ledge of liberty

Mystery of “The Pet Goat” Revealed

"Open your book up to lesson 60 on page 153…and get ready to read the title." - Mrs. Daniels, Emma E. Booker Elementary School, September 11, 2001

It’s taken a substantial amount of research, spurred on by reader inquiries of an earlier article, to track down the infamous goat story President Bush was reading on September 11, 2001. There have been several dead-ends, but alas I've found the elusive pet goat.

It was during a photo-op with the second graders of Emma E. Booker Elementary School, the President was notified of United Airlines Flight 175, the 2nd plane to crash into the WTC. From watching the footage of the President on the day, now immortalized by Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11, the question we're all left pondering is; with knowledge of the first attack, why did Bush spend the next 7 minutes reading the story about a pet goat?

A few months ago, I was struck by the oddity of the footage. I, like so many others, wanted to know what was so engaging about a book which would cause the leader of the free world to ignore the largest attack on American soil for 7 minutes, but when I searched, I found nothing. No information on the internet, no information at the library, and no information at the bookstores - it was as if the book never existed. This seemed extraordinarily odd to me considering its affiliation with the President and especially September 11th. And with all the books published and stories written on the subject, surely somebody must have a copy of the book.

When viewing the video of Bush at the Floridian elementary school, I was immediately struck by the odd, almost military teaching method. “The fast way” is repeated throughout the drill, and in the end, this was what led me to a book series called “Reading Mastery”.

“Reading Mastery approaches reading instruction in a clear, straightforward fashion. Six levels, plus a Fast Cycle, help children develop strong reading strategies that make the difference between lifelong reading success and failure.” -sraonline.com

Reading Mastery is a technique of “Direct Instruction” - a teaching technique developed by Siegfried Engelmann in the 1960’s which makes the claim, "Kids taught in a fully implemented Direct Instruction program read by the end of kindergarten…That's all kids, even disadvantaged kids, ghetto kids, and special-ed kids." As it turns out, Siegfried Engelmann is also the co-author of the “The Pet Goat”, a story found on page 153 of SRA’s “Reading Mastery 2” storybook #1.

Siegfried Engelmann, the proclaimed “Schoolyard Prophet” has authored many books during his lifetime including the controversial 1992 “War Against the Schools' Academic Child Abuse” [Portland: Halcyon House], a book which challenges institutionalized teaching methods. Engelmann headed several government education related programs during his lifetime, including Project Follow Through, a 1967 initiative of President Johnson's War on Poverty.

SRA, the Scientific Research Association, that published the “Reading Mastery” series in 1995, is a subsidiary of McGraw-Hill, a corporation which has a multi-billion dollar stake in Global industry companies such as Platts (energy), Standards and Poor’s (finance), Business Week (media), and appropriately named Construction (construction).

When I called SRA, looking for information on lesson 60 (the elusive goat story), I was quickly taken aback, when after a significant hold time, the friendly operator now returned anxious, and not with an answer to my enquiry, but a need to know my name, telephone number and town of residence. Needless to say, I declined further assistance and thanked the woman for her time.

Really, that was all it took, now positive I had the right book, I just needed a simple Ebay search. A kind seller confirmed the inclusion of “The Pet Goat” in the Reading Mastery series with a surprised, “it's in book 1, page 153 just as you said”, then with a big capital "LOL", she commended me on my “good research.”

“The Pet Goat” can be purchased HERE

Watch the video HERE

[07/10/04] UPDATE: THE PET GOAT: PART ONE & TWO

The Pet Goat
by Siegfried Engelmann & Elaine C. Bruner
Lesson 60, page 153
Reading Mastery 2, storybook #1
SRA (Scientific Research Associates)
McGraw-Hill, 1995
ISBN# 0026863553

“A girl got a pet goat. She liked to go running with her pet goat. She played with her goat in her house. She played with her goat in her yard. But the goat did some things that made the girl's dad mad. The goat ate things. He ate cans and he ate canes. He ate pans and he ate panes. He even ate capes and caps. One day her dad said, "that goat must go. He ate too many things." The girl said, "dad if you let the goat stay with us, I will see that he stops eating all those things." Her dad said he will try it. So the goat stayed and the girl made him stop eating cans and capes and caps and capes. But one day a car robber came to the girls house. He saw a big red car near the house and said, "I will steal that car." He ran to the car and started to open the door. The girl and the goat were playing in the back yard. They did not see the car robber.

More to come."

Reporter Tells Bush Where to Put His WMD’s

Even if you'd rather hack off an arm than watch another Bush interview, this one you just can’t miss. Irish Journalist, Carole Coleman met with Bush earlier this week just before his scheduled trip to Ireland. The exchange was heated, you see Coleman is a real journalist, and unlike the fembot Nazi Ann Coulters of the Fox Network, she wasn't afraid to ask the real questions.

Needless to say, the White House is furious with Coleman and as a result, canceled a scheduled interview with Laura Bush. They even called Coleman to berate her for not “ask[ing] him a question on the outfit that Taoiseach Bertie Ahern wore to the G8 summit” as they had previously requested. Yes, damn her for not asking those hard-hitting questions. Instead, we’re subjected to meaningless exchanges like…

QUESTION: Mr. President, the world is a more dangerous place today. I don't know whether you can see that or not.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Why do you say that?

QUESTION: There are terrorists bombing every single day. It's now a daily event. It wasn't like that two years ago.

BUSH: What was it like September 11, 2001?

QUESTION: I saw four of your soldiers lying dead on the television the other day. A picture of four soldiers just lying there without their flak jackets.

Watch the interview, and just as Bush launches into his fifth turrets attack of "let me finish, let me finish, lemme finish plea[se]”... slow it down, pause it, and if you catch it at just at the right moment, you might actually see little Georgie-boy’s head explode.

Watch the interview HERE.

Bush Uses Hitler in New Ad Campaign

Unfortunately, this is not some internet gag, what you are looking at is an actual still frame from President Bush’s new campaign ad, which uses images and footage of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler to communicate some deranged abstract message. Never before has a President sunk so low; referring to the Democratic Party as the “Coalition of the Wild-eyed”, employing footage of Adolf Hitler and the sieg heil chants of the fascist nazi regime to gain voter support. The campaign ad, in all it’s repugnancy, can be viewed on the front page of George W. Bush’s official re-election website at georgewbush.com.

[07/04/04] UPDATE: Click HERE to watch the video.

To follow is a transcript of the Bush-Cheney '04 campaign ad, “Kerry's Coalition of the Wild-eyed”...

Graphic:
The Faces of John Kerry's Democratic Party
The Coalition of the Wild-eyed

Video Clip of Al Gore:
"How dare they drag the good name of the United States of America through the mud of Saddam Hussein's torture prison?"

Video Clip of Adolf Hitler:
[Chanting sieg heil]

Video Clip of Howard Dean:
"I want my country back”

Video Clip of Michael Moore:
"We live in a time where we have a man sending us to war for fictitious reasons."

Video Clip of Dick Gephardt:
"This president is a miserable failure."

Video Clip of Aldolf Hitler:
[Hitler shouting in German]

Video Clip of Al Gore:
"He betrayed this country! He played on our fears!"

Video Clip of John Kerry:
"Today, today, George Bush will lay off your camel, tax your shovel, kick your [bleep] and tell you there is no Promise Land."

Graphic:
This is not a time for pessimism and rage…

Graphic:
President Bush: It's a time for optimism, steady leadership and progress

Paid For By Bush-Cheney '04 INC.

Has Everyone Gone Insane?

Bush thinks so...

In July, Bush will be rolling out his New Freedom Initiative, a plan that moves to screen the entire US population for mental illness. According to the March 2004 White House progress report, "consumers of all ages" with a strong focus on children, will be screened for mental illness and medicated accordingly.

At face value, the report is laden in good intentions to integrate the mentally ill into society through technology, education, and community, but at a closer examination of the details, the plan appears to better serve drug companies than it’s patients. Should we really expect anything less from the Bush administration?

Between Bush ties to Eli Lilly and the overwhelming contribution trends of the Pharmaceutical industry to the Republican Party, lets look at the New Freedom Initiative for what it is – another vehicle for our governments money grubbing corporate freaks to take advantage of the average American.

Read a related article HERE

Download a PDF of the New Freedom Initiative HERE

Please Don’t Kill Me!

With 152 executions under his belt as Governor of Texas; should we be really be surprised to learn that during a 1999 Talk Magazine interview, our President, then Governor, mocked a woman after he condemned her to death? Puckering his lips, feminizing his eyes, and letting out in a desperate squeak, “please don't kill me!"

Not the words of a nefarious cartoon villain, but the words of our President. It was during his time as Governor; George Bush executed more prisoners than any governor in U.S. history, averaging 1 execution every nine days, with as many as 7 executions per month, and occasionally 2 executions per day. These statistics put whole countries to shame. George Bush executed the first woman in Texas since the 1860’s, executed the mentally ill, the mentally retarded, the rehabilitated, and statistically 9 innocent people.

It was during a 1999 interview with CNN correspondent, Tucker Carlson, when Bush decided to publicly humiliate a woman after refusing her request for a 30-day stay of execution and condemning her to death. There was public outcry to save the life of Karla Faye Tucker, who during her 14 years of imprisonment, found God, became the leader of a prison ministry, and by all outward appearances seemed rehabilitated. With incoming pleas for clemency from Pope John Paul and the world community as a whole, it was outrageous that Bush should so quickly discount world opinion and put the woman to death.

The very essence of prison is rehabilitation, so why spend 14 years and taxpayer money to rehabilitate an inmate, just to put them to death? This is not a question of pro or anti-death penalty; it’s more a question of logic, a question of humanity. Did Karla Tucker deserve to die? I don’t know. But I do know the spirit of justice should look upon the past, rise above quick judgment and cruelty, and objectively balance wrong with right.

"Devil May Care"
Tucker Carlson
Talk Magazine, 9/99

Bush's brand of forthright tough-guy populism can be appealing, and it has played well in Texas. Yet occasionally there are flashes of meanness visible beneath it.

While driving back from the speech later that day, Bush mentions Karla Faye Tucker, a double murderer who was executed in Texas last year. In the weeks before the execution, Bush says, Bianca Jagger and a number of other protesters came to Austin to demand clemency for Tucker. 'Did you meet with any of them?' I ask.

Bush whips around and stares at me. 'No, I didn't meet with any of them,' he snaps, as though I've just asked the dumbest, most offensive question ever posed. 'I didn't meet with Larry King either when he came down for it. I watched his interview with [Tucker], though. He asked her real difficult questions, like 'What would you say to Governor Bush?' 'What was her answer?' I wonder.

'Please,' Bush whimpers, his lips pursed in mock desperation, 'don't kill me.'

I must look shocked -- ridiculing the pleas of a condemned prisoner who has since been executed seems odd and cruel, even for someone as militantly anticrime as Bush -- because he immediately stops smirking.

'It's tough stuff,' Bush says, suddenly somber, 'but my job is to enforce the law.' As it turns out, the Larry King-Karla Faye Tucker exchange Bush recounted never took place, at least not on television. During her interview with King, however, Tucker did imply that Bush was succumbing to election-year pressure from pro-death penalty voters. Apparently Bush never forgot it. He has a long memory for slights.”

Film to Expose Nike Sweatshops

"While doing research for a term paper in Theology, Jim Keady, a graduate assistant soccer coach with the top-ranked St. John’s University Red Storm, discovers that the Nike Corporation is abusing its overseas workforce in sweatshops. At the same time Keady is exploring this issue, the SJU athletic department is negotiating a $3.5 million dollar endorsement deal that would require all coaches and athletes to wear and promote Nike products. Feeling that coaches and athletes would be walking billboards for a company that exploits its labor force in poor countries, Keady publicly challenges the SJU administration. They respond with an ultimatum, “Wear Nike and drop this issue … or resign.” Keady is ultimately forced to resign, and the story hits the major media... ESPN, HBO Real Sports, the New York Times, the front page of the Village Voice, etc..

In an attempt to silence critics at St. John’s and uncover the story behind the statistics about Nike factory workers, Keady assembles a team and travels halfway around the world to Tangerang, Indonesia to learn and document first-hand Nike's overseas’ operations. To gain a more human perspective on the lives of Nike’s factory workers, Keady and college friend, Leslie Kretzu live for one month in an Indonesian slum on the wages that workers are paid: $1.25 / day. In the process, they encounter the local mafia, intimidation, starvation, football-sized rats, fist-sized cockroaches, raw sewage in the streets, massive burning of toxic shoe rubber, corporate complicity and cover-up.

Through their time in Indonesia, Keady and Kretzu discover the reality of U.S. multinational corporations' labor practices in the developing world and how Nike's cutthroat, bottom-line economic decisions have a profound effect on human lives.

Along with Keady and Kretzu's critique and commentary, SWEAT includes powerful interviews with Indonesian workers producing for Nike, Adidas, and the Gap; Audioslave's Tom Morello; US Olympian, Kevin McMahon; Former Indonesian President, Abdurrahman Wahid; Indonesian Democracy Leader, Dita Sari; US Congressperson, Sherrod Brown; Best-Selling Author, David Korten; Comedian and Political Commentator, Janeane Garofalo, all offering suggestions on how things could be done differently and how average Americans can help to stop sweatshop abuses." -sweatthefilm.org

For more information, visit the website HERE

Leadership Failure on 9/11

Yesterday [6/18], Air Force Vice Chief of Staff, General Ralph Eberhardt testified before the 9/11 Commission as to NORAD’s role on September 11th. More directly, he was questioned as to whether or not the hijacked planes could have been taken down before hitting civilian targets. General Eberhardt’s answer – yes, NORAD could have taken down all three planes, before they hit their civilian targets, had they been promptly notified by the Chain of Command.

Listen to testimony HERE

Operation Northwoods

In 1962, the Joint Chiefs of Staff proposed initiating fake terrorist attacks on America and foreign U.S. military bases. Why? To gain global support and justify a war with Cuba. President John F. Kennedy condemned the plans and subsequently launched investigations into its extreme right-wing elements. These investigations were never completed, as they were dropped after J.F.K. was assassinated.

Operation Northwoods can be downloaded HERE.

Points of interest…

"We could blow up a US ship in Guantanamo Bay and blame Cuba." Pg. 8

"It is possible to create an incident which will demonstrate convincingly that a Cuban aircraft has attacked and shot down a chartered civil airliner enroute from the United States to Jamaica, Guatemala, Panama or Venezuela. The destination would be chosen only to cause the flight plan route to cross Cuba. The passengers could be a group of college students off on a holiday or any grouping of persons with a common interest to support chartering a non-scheduled flight.” Pg. 10

"The terror campaign could be pointed at Cuban refugees seeking haven in the United States. We could sink a boatload of Cubans enroute to Florida (real or simulated). We could foster attempts on lives of Cuban refugees in the United States even to the extent of wounding in instances to be widely publicized." Pg. 9

“(5) Blow up ammunition inside the [Guantanamo] base; start fires. (6) Burn aircraft on air base (sabotage). (7) Lob mortar shells from outside of base onto base. Some damage to installations." Pg. 8

“The suggested courses of action appended to Enclosure A are based on the premise that US military intervention will result from a period of heightened US-Cuban tensions which place the United States in the position of suffering justifiable grievances. World opinion, and the United Nations forum should be favorably affected by developing the international image of the Cuban government as rash and irresponsible, and as an alarming and unpredictable threat to the peace of the Western Hemisphere." Pg. 2

“This paper NOT be forwarded to commanders of unified or specified commands. c. This paper NOT be forwarded to US officers assigned to NATO activities. d. This paper NOT be forwarded to the Chairman, US Delegation, United Nations Military Staff Committee." Pg. 3

The House of Ghouls

In the middle of the night, what’s to fear? Is it something in the basement, under the bed, in the closet? No. There’s something far more chilling. You see, as you sleep, the House of Representatives is meeting up, passing laws, and subverting democracy.

“Never before has the House of Representatives operated in such secrecy:

At 2:54 a.m. on a Friday in March, the House cut veterans benefits by three votes.

At 2:39 a.m. on a Friday in April, the House slashed education and health care by five votes.

At 1:56 a.m. on a Friday in May, the House passed the Leave No Millionaire Behind tax-cut bill by a handful of votes.

At 2:33 a.m. on a Friday in June, the House passed the Medicare privatization and prescription drug bill by one vote.

At 12:57 a.m. on a Friday in July, the House eviscerated Head Start by one vote.”
- Congressman Sherrod Brown, “Under The Cover Of Darkness”

Other bills passed during these witching hours include the Patriot Act and the recent Medicare privatization bill. You see the House is meeting up in the middle of the night to avoid the people, the press, to avoid the ever-present eye of C-SPAN. Congressman Sherrod Brown tells a story of twilight coercion, bribery, and intimidation at the highest levels, detailing…

“Many of the two dozen Republicans who voted against the bill had fled the floor. One Republican hid in the Democratic cloakroom.

By 4:30[AM], the browbeating had moved into the Republican cloakroom, out of sight of C-SPAN cameras and the insomniac public. Republican leaders woke President George W. Bush, and a White House aide passed a cell phone from one recalcitrant member to another in the cloakroom.

At 5:55[AM], two hours and 55 minutes after the roll call had begun, twice as long as any previous vote in the history of the U.S. House of Representatives, two obscure western Republicans emerged from the cloakroom. They walked, ashen and cowed, down the aisle to the front of the chamber, scrawled their names and district numbers on green cards to change their votes and surrendered the cards to the clerk.

The speaker gaveled the vote closed; Medicare privatization had passed.”

Read “Under The Cover Of Darkness” HERE

The Emma E. Booker School 9/11 Video

This obscure video originated from the Emma E. Booker Elementary School website, but was quickly removed from the internet. Many people have seen the footage of Bush on September 11th, sitting in an elementary classroom reading the story of the “Pet Goat", but very few have seen this second video. A video opening with a Presidential motorcade and concluding with a prepared speech in front of students and staff as the events of the day were unfolding.

To watch the video click HERE.

President Bush’s Address at Emma E. Booker Elementary:

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is a difficult moment for America. I, unfortunately, will be going back to Washington after my remarks. Secretary (of education) Rod Paige and the lieutenant governor will take the podium and discuss education. I do want to thank the folks here at Booker Elementary School for their hospitality.

Today, we have had a national tragedy. Two airplanes have crashed into the World Trade Center in an apparent terrorist attack on our country. I have spoken to the vice president, to the governor of New York and to the director of the FBI, and I've ordered the full resources of the federal government to help the victims and their families and to find those folks who committed this act.

Terrorism against our nation will not stand. And now, if you'll join me in a moment of silence.

(pause)

May God bless the victims, their families and America. Thank you very much.”

Who Killed Margie Schoedinger?

On December 2, 2002, Texas resident Margie Schoedinger, filed a lawsuit against President George W. Bush, claiming he and others committed "individual sex crimes" against her and her husband. The proper paperwork was filed, a detailed court petition was submitted, and it was apparent this case was serious; President Bush would be served with papers to appear before the court on charges of rape.

Now, I know what you’re thinking; this is big, if it’s for real, why didn’t I hear about it? Well, it appears there’s been a “media blackout” on the story, as no one, with the exception of a few local newspapers and internet sites, reported the story. The charges, whether fabricated or not, were legitimately filed and can still be read on the Fort Bend County website. Margie claimed, she had been harassed by both FBI and policemen, who she also filed cases against, and stated in her court petition…

"the Defendant [George Bush] also informed the Plaintiff [Margie Schoedinger] that his only option to assure his never having to answer for the previous contact would be to simply see Plaintiff pressured to the point of committing suicide"

On Monday September 22, 2003, 38-year-old African-American, Margie Schoedinger was found dead, with an apparent "gunshot wound to the head". The Harris Country Examiner's Office filed the death as a "suicide". Only 9 months after charges are filed, Margie Schoedinger is found dead.

Jackson Thoreau who interviewed Schoedinger shortly before her death reported, ”she didn't sound "deranged" to me in July 2003. She sounded like someone who had gone through something weird and was trying to sort it out. She sounded like someone who wanted the truth to come out.” It was during this exchange, Schoedinger expressed, "I am still trying to prosecute [the lawsuit]…I want to get this matter settled and go on with my life…People have to be accountable for what they do, and that's why I'm pursuing it."

Enron Tapes and Transcripts

Click HERE for all tapes and transcripts.

10 Facts About Attorney General John Ashcroft

1. He’s a lousy singer.
2. He hands out lyrics to his song, Let the Eagle Soar, and forces his poor staff to sing it every morning.
3. He holds daily bible study meetings at the White House.
4. He believes calico cats are signs of the devil.
5. He ordered the bare breast of the “Spirit of Justice” statue be draped with sheets.
6. He disapproves of dancing.
7. He’s been anointed with holy oil "in the manner of King David”, each time he’s accepted a political office.
8. He claims, "the Bible calls (homosexuality) a sin, and that's what defines sin for me."
9. He refers to his campaign victories as "resurrections” and to his defeats as "crucifixions."
10. Did I mention he’s a lousy singer?

We at the Bush Administration Don’t Break The Law - We Fix It!

"Under the Rome Treaty, the International Criminal Court (ICC) will come into being with the ratification of 60 governments, and will have jurisdiction over the most heinous abuses that result from international conflict, such as war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.”

President Clinton said these words on December 31st, 2000, only 3 weeks before leaving his office. It was on this day, he signed in agreement with the 1998 Rome Treaty on the International Criminal Court, approved by the United Nations in a vote of 120 to 7. The International Criminal Court promised to employ a judicial system where the international community would try the most serious crimes of war, including torture and genocide.

So, it’s under this article of the Geneva Conventions; the international community would be investigating the Abu Ghraib torture scandal, right? Not under the Bush administration. You see it’s just another case of G.W. editing law to suit his agenda, as he officially “unsigned” this article of the Geneva Conventions back in May 2002. Yes, that’s right, he “unsigned” the very article of the Geneva Conventions that currently would be launching the independent and international investigations of systemic torture, designed and ordered by the Bush Administrations Chain of Command. This decision was made public, in a press statement released by Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, John R. Bolton…

“ This is to inform you, in connection with the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court adopted on July 17, 1998, that the United States does not intend to become a party to the treaty. Accordingly, the United States has no legal obligations arising from its signature on December 31, 2000. The United States requests that its intention not to become a party, as expressed in this letter, be reflected in the depositary's status lists relating to this treaty.”

Is the Bush administration above the law? Did they break the law when they hijacked an election, stole from the treasury, waged war under false pretense, ordered torture, lied to congress, and lied to Americans? What about back in 2002, with the U.S. mass grave execution of 3,000 surrendered Afghanis who were packed into plastic barrels, shot at for “air holes”, loaded into freight trucks, driven across the desert for a week, pulled out of the blood, feces, and rotting flesh filled barrels, dumped into a hole, and any left breathing, awake or comatose, were executed on the spot - were there any laws broken then? The President certainly had knowledge of this, as he made mention to the Convoy of Death in his January 28, 2003, state of the union address, saying…

“More than 3,000 suspected terrorists have been arrested in many countries, and many others have met a different fate... let's put it this way, they are no longer a problem for the United States and our friends and allies.”

The Bush administration doesn’t break the Law - they fix it. Whether it’s a preemptive attack on the Geneva Conventions or the Constitution, they’ve planned ahead, and they’ll continue to endeavor to placate the world and the American people with their contempt for democracy, while they practice oligarchy.

Saint Reagan, Apotheosis of a Bigot

It was my latest social disgrace, attending a party and laughing at the news of Ronald Reagan’s passing…

Now before you all send me hate mail, I certainly don’t think it’s funny to laugh at the death of a former anything, especially not a President. But, what is worth a chuckle is watching a punk rocker revere Reagan’s name in such a mournful tone, “haven’t you heard? Reagan died today…”

It was impossible to restrain, and then it happened -- I laughed. Yes I laughed, not because I’m heartless, not because I dislike Nancy Reagan, not because I don’t like his movies, and certainly not because the poor man died at a respectable 93 years old. It was the hypocrisy of the moment, this punk chick, who admittedly I didn’t know, relaying this information as if Sid Vicious himself had just keeled over on the kitchen floor. It was right there, in that moment of inappropriate hysteria, I realized the rewriting of Reagan’s legacy had already begun.

It’s been three days now since Reagan’s death, and so goes the spin machine at maximum RPM, unfurling a legacy of lies as the concrete history of a dead President. A President who chose to exercise his Presidential powers with the fervor of a bigot. Okay, there I said it. This man tried to pass off ketchup as vegetables in low-income neighborhood school lunch programs. This man gave tax credits to segregated schools. This man had 1.9 percent African-American, and 8 percent female judicial appointees. This man closed down the V.A. hospitals and mental institutions and coined them as “homeless by choice”. He intentionally ignored the Aids epidemic, deeming it as “gay cancer” and let 60,000 people die by 1987 without assistance nor mention.

Do we remember “voodoo economics”? Yes, years have passed, but let history not forget the hypocrisy of the anti-union stance; being a SAG union member himself, when he fired the air traffic controllers asking for better wages and retirement benefits. There’s Iran-Contra, the incursion of Grenada, the assassinations, Beirut, El Salvador, the document shredding, the outrageous government spending, Star Wars, and certainly Reagan’s "constructive engagement" with apartheid in South Africa.

Of course, I offer my condolences to the Reagan family who just lost a dear relative. The love affair between Nancy and Ronald alone was beautiful and exemplary for any marriage. I don’t think two people could love each other more. But, I haven’t forgotten the fear of a child threatened by nuclear war, I haven’t forgotten the throngs of homeless amputee veterans, I haven’t forgotten the 60,000 souls lost to Aids those silent years...

I haven’t forgotten the Reagan years.

FBI Abducts NY Artist and Seizes Art

Steve Kurtz, Associate Professor of Art, was in the midst of tragedy on May 11th, when he called 911 to report his wife had died in her sleep due to heart complications. When help arrived, the course of the investigation quickly shifted when police mistook art supplies for bio-terrorism weapons. CounterPunch Wire reports, “Thus began an Orwellian stream of events in which FBI agents abducted Kurtz without charges, sealed off his entire block, and confiscated his computers, manuscripts, art supplies... and even his wife's body.”

Kurtz, a performance artist and member of CAE, the Critical Art Ensemble, a progressive group of artists, “has been producing performances and theory that merge political realities with technology and theater since 1987.” Kurtz was held without charges or rights to legal representation under the guise of the U.S. Patriot Act, and even after the Commissioner of New York States Public Health tested samples from the Kurtz home and announced there was no public safety threat, the FBI refused to release any impounded materials, which included works of art for an upcoming exhibition at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art.

On June 15, Steve Kurtz, an American artist; will be indicted by the FBI before a Grand Jury on unknown charges. Several other members of the performance art collective have since been subpoenaed by the FBI, including Adele Henderson, Chair of the Art Department at UB; Andrew Johnson, Professor of Art at UB; Paul Vanouse, Professor of Art at UB; Beatriz da Costa, Professor of Art at UCI; Steven Barnes, FSU; and Dorian Burr.

For more information, visit the CAE Online.

Privatization: Merit or Mafia?

It’s the Government’s answer to everything these days, it’s called privatization, and from the oil fields to the killing fields, privatization could mean money laundering for corporate and political giants.

With the U.S. occupation of Iraq in full swing, there are 100’s of billions of dollars of contracts being doled out. So in an effort of reconstruction and democratization, it can be assumed that these contracts and jobs will aggregate employment and financial integrity for the liberated citizens of Iraq, right?

“Privatization: A very broad term – but most simply, privatization is the transfer of assets or service delivery from the government to the private sector. Privatization runs a very broad range, sometimes leaving very little government involvement, and other times creating partnerships between government and private service providers where government is still the dominant player.” - privatization.org

So lets apply this definition to post war Iraq. The U.S. government will transfer assets, in this case, the Iraq oil fields, from the government to the private sector, i.e. Corporations such as Halliburton, to create a partnership, of various involvements, between the government and said service provider. By definition, privatization is unequivocally a partnership between government and corporate interests, so surely this partnership is regulated to eliminate inevitable corruption?

"Deregulation: Removal or relaxation of regulations or controls governing a business or service operation such as utility." - ugi.com

Due to deregulation, these government/corporate partnerships, solely control price and legally work together to control an asset, which in turn, the partnership withholds and squeezes distribution, to best regulate and effectively control its price. In the case of Iraq, this meant forming a partnership between the U.S. government and companies such as Halliburton, the invasion of an unarmed country, the seizure of it’s treasury, and the distribution of it’s wealth to the corporations which are held in principal interest by the Highest ranks of our own U.S. Government.

Through privatization, the government can legally behave much in the same manner as the mob. Yes it’s legal, but is it ethical? Is it acceptable to rape a land and it’s people for financial gain? To leave the “democratized” Iraqi people, in a state of emotional and economic despair, while the rich get richer? With Saddam Hussein out of power, Iraq has real potential for democracy, but democracy will not be apparent until the people of Iraq are made free to make decisions regarding their treasury and sovereignty, and it’s only then when freedom will endeavor to prevail.

The Pet Goat, a Story by George W. Bush

Countless anomalies in the official story of 9-11, have led people to question it’s validity. One can go through the days timeline with a fine tooth comb, investigate the suspicious collapse of WTC 7, examine the plane-less scene of the Pentagon crash site, but I have a more simplistic question to ask, who wrote “The Pet Goat”?

While the events of September 11th were unfolding, our President and Commander in Chief was sitting in a Floridian elementary school listening to 2nd graders read a story called "The Pet Goat". He issued no commands for 45 minutes after the initial crash. With knowledge of 4 hijackings, instead of issuing orders or giving NORAD the go ahead to shoot down the hijacked planes, he sat in a 2nd grade class room, for a photo-op, while the students read a book entitled, “The Pet Goat".

What was so engaging about this book to cause the leader of the free world to ignore the largest attack on American soil, for 45 minutes? And after countless searches, and one dead end after another, I can't find out a thing, no information about this book; nothing on the internet, nothing on amazon.com, nothing regarding it’s author or orgin. It’s as if the book never existed, which is certainly odd considering it’s association with the President.

Well, the book, I can’t locate, but what I do have is video footage of G.W. on September 11th, during his visit to the Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida. Watch the video, and note the President as he is informed of United Airlines Flight 175, the 2nd plane to attack the WTC. Watch as he receives the information and chooses to ignore it.

Watch the video HERE

[06/29/04] UPDATE: THE MYSTERY OF THE PET GOAT REVEALED

Hey, why not read along with the class…

“The Pet Goat” by ?

“A girl got a pet goat. She liked to go running with her pet goat. She played with her goat in her house. She played with her goat in her yard. But the goat did some things that made the girl's dad mad. The goat ate things. He ate cans and he ate canes. He ate pans and he ate panes. He even ate capes and caps. One day her dad said, "that goat must go. He ate too many things." The girl said, "dad if you let the goat stay with us, I will see that he stops eating all those things." Her dad said he will try it. So the goat stayed and the girl made him stop eating cans and capes and caps and capes. But one day a car robber came to the girls house. He saw a big red car near the house and said, "I will steal that car." He ran to the car and started to open the door. The girl and the goat were playing in the back yard. They did not see the car robber.

More to come."

Haven’t you Heard? Torture’s the New Black!

Like it or not, in the eyes of the world, Torture is what you’re wearing. Yes that’s right, straight off the prison runways, the latest fashions in sandbags, electrodes, rape, and murder can now be seen on the backs of each and every American, civilian and military persons alike.

Thank you Bush, thank you Cheney, thank you Rumsfeld, and thank you, the designers of Torture, for providing such ready-to-wear fashions in shame. Thank you, the contractors of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, the sweatshops, for personally making Torture couture en vogue for each and every American. Black or white, left or right, Democrat or Republican, we all get to wear this shame. And we’ll pay for Torture, for years to come.

The War on Error

“Error: a moral offense; violation of duty; a sin or transgression; iniquity; fault.”

Well, there's something to sum up the Bush administration in one word, "error". From day one of G.W’s term, the disinformation machine has been chattering away at maximum decibel, making truth out of lies and hero’s out of villains, and it’s time we make this machine halt!

Thanks to the Liberals, and the War on Error, the Bush administration is finally being asked to account for their mistakes, but this is not enough. It’s time for truth versus lies, empathy versus apathy, and in the War on Error; it’s time for Bush to concede and liberty succeed.

Fahrenheit 911 Trailer

Click HERE to watch the Fahrenheit 911 Trailer, in theaters nationwide June 25, 2004.

Employee Free Choice Act

Passing this Act will:

1. Allow employees to freely choose whether to form unions by signing cards authorizing union representation.
2. Provide mediation and arbitration for first contract disputes.
3. Establish stronger penalties for violation of employee rights when workers seek to form a union and during first contract negotiations.

Support the Employee Free Choice Act and call your U.S. senators at 202-224-3121 and U.S. representative at 202-225-3121, and push them to co-sponsor the EFCA. Get involved and ensure workers have a fair chance to win a free voice on the job.

For more details on the Employee Free Choice Act, download the pdf.

Enron Caught On Tape

And here it is, the uncensored transcript of the Enron tape, the Justice Department tried to withhold from the American people.

"Burn, baby, burn," the traders celebrate as the devastating forest fire cut off the major energy transmission line to California.

"He just fucks California," says one Enron employee. "He steals money from California to the tune of about a million."

"Will you rephrase that?" asks a second employee.

"OK, he, um, he arbitrages the California market to the tune of a million bucks or two a day," replies the first.

"If you took down the steamer, how long would it take to get it back up?" an Enron worker is heard saying.

"Oh, it's not something you want to just be turning on and off every hour. Let's put it that way," another says.

"Well, why don't you just go ahead and shut her down."

"They're fucking taking all the money back from you guys?" complains an Enron employee on the tapes.

"All the money you guys stole from those poor grandmothers in California?"

"Yeah, grandma Millie, man"

"Yeah, now she wants her fucking money back for all the power you've charged right up, jammed right up her asshole for fucking $250 a megawatt hour."

"Government Affairs has to prove how valuable it is to Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling," says one trader.

"Ok."

"Do you know when you started over-scheduling load and making buckets of money on that?

"It'd be great. I'd love to see Ken Lay Secretary of Energy," says one Enron worker.

"When this election comes Bush will fucking whack this shit, man. He won't play this price-cap bullshit."

America Incorporated

We at The Bush Administration TM, a subsidiary of Halliburton Corporation, maximize our war profiting power by exploiting the fear of people who desire freedom and those who die in it's name.

So, when "the war on terror" has become a 100 billion dollar per year business, it's time to ask the tough questions, like what companies are profiting from this war, who owns these companies, and by what law are these companies governed?

The first one to come to mind is Halliburton. This is a Corporation, owned and operated by the highest ranks of our government, including President Bush and Vice President Cheney. In the wake of war, the Bush administration has rendered Iraq, a lawless society where war profiteers and mercenaries are not governed by any domestic, military or international law. Therefore, these Iraq based government contractors, which include those who issued torture orders to Abu Ghraib prison interrogators, cannot and will not be held accountable for abuse, murder or any other misconduct. It's neither legal nor illegal for a mercenary, who by the way out earns a U.S. soldier by 20 fold, to abuse, torture, and kill innocent Iraqi citizens.

Where is the accountability in our government when its highest ranks have lost all objectivity and pragmatically refute national and international criticism as partisan politics? Where is democracy when a government defined by it's accountability to the people, continually exemplifies distain for it's civilian and military population by cutting civil liberties, veteran and military pay and benefits? And most importantly, where is the political allegiance when the republic is governed by corporate rule?

corporations have been enthroned

"I see in the future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to think for the safety of my country. Corporations have been enthroned. An era of corruption in high places will follow and the money power of this country will endeavor to prolong it’s reign by working on the prejudices of the people until the wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the republic will be destroyed."

- from the diary of Abraham Lincoln