Thursday, November 02, 2006

Oh what rutty ruts we weave!

If you like a good metaphor, I think you might love this one. On August 26, 2004, president Bush came to Las Cruces, NM. It was an election year and he was hustling votes.

Las Cruces official's warned the Bush campaign their little international airport couldn't handle the weight of a C-17 jet ladened with heavy bullet-proof vests, limos, and other presidential accoutrements so necessary for Bush's comfort and safety. But the jet went ahead and landed anyway.

Someone in town had given their permission Air Force officials said. Who remains vague, maybe because no one wants to claim responsibility for the nearly two-thirds of a million dollars damage the two inch deep ruts in runway 4-22 suffered! Seems the Bush example was followed, i.e., responsibility of anyone for anything doesn't exist.

After Bush's visit, runway 4-22 was closed down. Now, twenty-six months later, it still remains closed. It took almost 14 months for the city of Las Cruces to receive a check in the amount of $603,754 from the Air Force to repair runway 4-22, making the Bush Las Cruces appearance one of the most expensive campaign stops of the 2004 season.

I'm not so sure the city's slowness in getting runway 4-22 repaired wasn't a very wise decision, being as how it's another election year--just in case Bush got a whimsy to drop by Las Cruces again this fall.

But Las Cruces' rutted remnants of Bush's presence got me to thinking of the tracks Bush and his business hacks have left all over the world, to include those inside the vaults of the U.S. Treasury.

Runways can be paved over, and the holes dug to bury the dead resulting from this administration's global hubris can be filled in, if not forgotten. But the ruts in the lives of millions upon millions of survivors cannot.

But be patient, for if Bush doesn't maim or kill you politically, economically or militarily by January, 2009, he and his gluttonous hacks may have sated their appetities for wealth and opulence by then. And they may actually decide to leave office then!

That would seem to be the indication hinted at by the actions both Bush and Cheney are presently taking. With U.S. national debt up over three trillion dollars ($3,000,000,000!) since they took office, and the country having to borrow $2.5 billion each and every day (why that's $1/2 a billion more than we're spending in Iraq every two weeks!) just to remain solvent, looks like our president and his veep are hedging their bets against U.S. economic collapse.

Or I could be overly pessimistic here. Bush and Cheney may simply be planning their escapes to avoid war crimes trials. Whatever the reasons, Cheney is investing heavily in "Old Europe" bonds and inflation protected securities in what looks like anticipation of a U.S. economic armageddon as Mike Whitney over at Counterpunch suggests.

And what of Bush? Well, that one's even more curious. Seems there are rumors here, and stories in various Latin American (but not U.S.) newspapers. As succinctly put over on Wonkette's We Hate To Bring Up the Nazis, But They Fled To South America, Too:

"Here’s a fun question for Tony Snow: 'Why might the president and his family need a 98,840-acre ranch in Paraguay protected by a semi-secret U.S. military base manned by American troops who have been exempted from war-crimes prosecution by the Paraguyan government?'"

The answer's probably simple: To get away from all the ruts Bush has created, to cover his tracks (or ass?), leaving the rest of us scurrying for the life boats on the decks of the world's biggest Titanic.

Many thanks for the Bush Paraguayan paradise segment go to D.K. Raed, who alerted me to this over two weeks ago, and Nona over at Fish Wars on Cars who blogged about it, 11/1/06.

8 comments:

enigma4ever said...

Well well...I have been to Las Cruces many years ago...
in my mispent youth and I would bet good money that there is not too much in that little town that needed visiting by the King even in that year of Electile Dysfunction.....

And yes, I would not be surpised if the Bushco folks have been "investing" in South America- I mean what good Nazi wouldn't ? And Interesting Bonds are I am sure being spent, and Swiss Bank Accounts ? SIlver and Gold Investments ?

And yes we should all be learning Chinese....

We need a coup in the country- we need the following groups to Rise Up NOW:
(1) Evangicals and religous zealots ( don't laugh)..and yes even the Real Spiritual People.
(2) The Military- the Real Brass- not the RummyPuppets...and of course VETS
(3) AARP needs to be more powerful than MoveOn
(4) Women and Moms...
(5) The Youth needs to wake up and be supported by Parents to protest and Rebel
(6) the Fucking Media- no more TwinKette Whores with Mary Kay Makeup and KMart Gems telling me What I need to Know- I mean REAL Journalists nned to again educate and stir minds and souls...
( as Bloggers do daily)

If all these People Rose Up, in Synchronous Overwhelming Rightous Anger then maybe a Miracle Movement would occur.....

azgoddess said...

i remember reading about that runway...and how at first the airforce denied it caused the damage...

about baby bush and his compound in south america...

brings to mind the phrase...take the money and run...

Anonymous said...

Oh, if only Las Cruces' experience could serve as a warning to us all ... do NOT let this man into your city, close the gates to your town, what he can't steal, he will kill for, his whole gang is so power-mad they don't mind destroying world as long as they have a safe haven. If I believed in reincarnation, I would think we are looking at Genghis Khan, Hitler, & Torquemada combined.

Yeah, the Paraguayan redoubt is down & dirty, alright. I left comments at Nona's. I think the bushies are hedging their bets since peak oil is almost upon us. Down there are huge natural gas fields & the largest underground freshwater in the world. Throw in ICC immunity & you just know their beaks are dying to dip into that big time.

Beautiful list, Enigma. Puts me in mind of Bob Dylan's "Chimes of Freedom":

"Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight,
Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight.
And for each and every underdog soldier in the night,
We gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing ...
Tolling for the luckless, the abandoned and forsaked,
Tolling for the outcast, burning constantly at stake ...
Striking for the gentle, striking for the kind,
Striking for the guardians and protectors of the mind,
And for the unpawned painter far behind his rightful time,
We gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing."

I long to hear the Chimes of Freedom ringing loudly Nov 7, so Conyers can finally begin impeachment hearings. A new congress can begin restoring the 3-branches of govt by making a blanket stmnt that "Signing Stmnts do not carry weight of law". And all provisions of The Bill of Rights needs to supercede any nsa bs. We've been crushed & need to spring forth renewed. ~~ D.K.

enigma4ever said...

Okay...so number 2 is perhaps on the White Castle Doorstep as of tonight Friday Nov 3rd at 8 pm, on Countdown it was revealed that on Monday a Devastaing editorial is going to run in ALL the Military Papers demanding Rummy's Resignation....hmmmm...

( okay not a coup...but still very interesting....and about fucking time)

Dada said...

Thanks Enigma for the "electile dysfunction"...it appears it's already begun. Even here in El Paso, the County Attorney has received a number of complaints of early voting election irregularities. I expect this is going to be another questionable election with questionable outcomes and the winter of our discontent will continue. Your suggestions seem to answer what should be done next, after November 7th.

Dada said...

Yes, Enigma, I heard on Countdown tonight about the Monday request coming down, asking for Rummy's resignation. As an awol GI said on democracy now this morning, this is where it needs to begin...where it needs to come from, the military itself, so this has to be seen as encouraging.

Anonymous said...

Dada, pleasure to meet you. I just adore those blue homepage link thingies....And what a gorgeous blog you keep.
When I meet another person who abhors Dubya, I know, against all odds, that everything in the world can be beautiful again.

Dada said...

hillcountrygal: Thanks for dropping by. Enjoyed reading of your move back to Texas.

And writing this now on Tuesday, Nov. 7th, I guess we're just hours away from learning how bad enigma's colorful description for all the stories we'll be hearing about voting irregularities are -- electile dysfunction indeed!

I know I'll probably be unable to stop myself from saying that while waiting in line to vote later today.