Friday, September 29, 2006

Thursday's Detainee Interrogation Bill vote and the Dirty Dozen Hall of Shame! (Or, WHAT two party system?)

"any senator who voted for this, in my view, is essentially guilty, guilty, guilty of undermining basic fundamental rights and may well be guilty of war crimes, as well."
Michael Ratner, president of the Center for Constitutional Rights

And the list of 12 democrats, better known as "The Dirty Dozen" or in Michael Ratner's words, war criminals, who joined republicans in further destruction of your rights is as follows:
  • Tom Carper of Delaware
  • Tim Johnson of South Dakota

  • Mary Landrieu of Louisiana

  • Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey

  • Robert Menendez of New Jersey

  • Bill Nelson of Florida

  • Ben Nelson of Nebraska

  • Senator Pryor of Arkansas

  • Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia

  • Ken Salazar of Colorado

  • Debbie Stabenow of Michigan

  • Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, naturally.

    Well, there you have it...the Dirty Dozen. Of 44 total democratic senators, 12--or 27% voted with republicans which doesn't make for much of an opposition party. In fact, with democrats like that, republicans don't NEED a majority on critical issues like dismantling the constitution. That's because one in four dems agree.

    With an opposition party like this, even if we could overcome rigged voting machines, I wouldn't get too dreamy over the thought of democrats taking one or both houses of congress in November if this is their idea of party unity on issues critical to the survival of this country.
  • 9 comments:

    meldonna said...

    There is yet hope...somebody's up to some Larry Flynt bidness lately.

    Mark Foley, Florida, just resigned from the House. I bet there's a lot of people on Cap Hill that are re-thinking their attitude about the sanctity of email right now...and I hope like hell there are some hackers out there as nasty as the NSA program. Don't forget the right are just as easily hacked as Diebold -- except more so. Pirates have a tendency to fight against the Empire...and maybe this time Larry (or whoever) is being a bit more subtle...

    Savvy, mate?

    Anonymous said...

    God what a fugly looking bunch.


    Watching what is happening in your country is as painful as watching a dear friend descend into mental illness..


    -- but in more positive news I finally located TMBW at the library and am looking forward to watching it this weekend.

    Dena

    enigma4ever said...

    Truly a bunch of smallballedmealymouthedyellabellied WHIMPS......I hope and pray that Karma teach them well....( and I say that as a pretty badassed Buddhist at this point..)
    Thanks for posting this Hall of Shame...
    ( and yup - they are indeed fugly....)

    Dada said...

    Hi Dena: Nice to see you. Yes, it must be painful to watch this nation as it goes to hell. But is it some consolation for you that you're one nation removed from us?(albeit our neighbor) I imagine that would be of much comfort to me.

    Hope you enjoy TMBW. My first love of that film is the mestizo blend of faiths, pre-Columbian and Catholicism, into a mysticism that manifests where gods are more accessible, even sharing and enjoying a beer with us while considering our prayer.

    I feel that whenever I go to northern NM.

    Dada said...

    e4e: One of them, I forget whom, voted with the repugs (I sure others did as well), out of fear of appearing weak against terrorism if they didn't.

    Would being the majority party give this dirty dozen (save for Lieberman, of course) balls enough to vote with other democrats? I certainly hope so. If not, it's time for a new party.

    Dada said...

    Hey BB5: Thanks for the e-mail. And thanks for using this particular blog in that. I had such a bitch with this one. Spent most of the day with it. First finding then DL'ing the images, but I couldn't get the html code to align everything the way I'd laid it out...it wouldn't accept it. Finally, late in the evening of that day, blogger took it after the umpteenth change, just as I was about to give up and trash it. (I'm not even sure what I did to deserve success.)

    Anonymous said...

    But is it some consolation for you that you're one nation removed from us?(albeit our neighbor) I imagine that would be of much comfort to me.

    No. It's of absolutely no comfort to me at all. We are all inextricably bound and linked together -- and anything that happens to you affects me too... There is no us and them -- it's all us.. If Bush understood that he wouldn't want to "bomb another country back to the stone age" etc...

    by John Donne

    No man is an island,
    Entire of itself.
    Each is a piece of the continent,
    A part of the main.
    If a clod be washed away by the sea,
    Europe is the less.
    As well as if a promontory were.
    As well as if a manner of thine own
    Or of thine friend's were.
    Each man's death diminishes me,
    For I am involved in mankind.
    Therefore, send not to know
    For whom the bell tolls,
    It tolls for thee.

    Dena

    Dada said...

    Ditto Dena. I couldn't agree more. It is my fear that the failure by so many to recognize this is one of the dire shortcomings of Homo sapiens.

    And thanks for the poem. I found it interesting, listening to the radio over the weekend, they had a commentary that included a poem. (My next post was also of a poem.) Almost like poetry's in the air.

    Anonymous said...

    My pleasure Dada -- and even though the mood is so dark right now, we know that good will always prevail.
    D.