Will Pitt's Latest Gem - I love this guy...

[Lyle]

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/121905Z.shtml

Radical Militant Librarians and Other Dire Threats
By William Rivers Pitt
t r u t h o u t | Perspective

Monday 19 December 2005

-snip-

The most disturbing aspect of this situation is, simply, how totally unnecessary it was. The provisions of the Patriot Act, along with several other laws, allow the administration to get warrants for the surveillance of anyone, anywhere in the country, with little trouble. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) set up a special court for the dispensation of warrants with no need for evidence or probable cause. This court has almost never denied the issuance of such warrants when asked, and said warrants are usually delivered in a matter of hours.

"Why would the President deliberately circumvent a court that was already wholly inclined to grant him domestic surveillance warrants?" asked columnist David Sirota in a recent essay. "The answer is obvious, though as yet largely unstated in the mainstream media: because the President was likely ordering surveillance operations that were so outrageous, so unrelated to the War on Terror, and, to put it in Constitutional terms, so 'unreasonable' that even a FISA court would not have granted them. This is no conspiracy theory - all the signs point right to this conclusion. In fact, it would be a conspiracy theory to say otherwise, because it would be ignoring the cold, hard facts that we already know."

-snip-

"Today," continued Kwiatkowski, "we have a President and administration that has out-Nixoned Nixon in every negative way, with none of the Nixon administration's redeeming attention to detail in domestic and foreign policy. It may indeed mean that the constitution has flat-lined and civil liberties will be only for those who can buy and own a legislator or a political party. We will all need to learn how to spell 'corporate state,' which for Mussolini was his favorable definition of fascism."

-snip-

"It all points to growing DC anti-constitutionalism," continued Kwiatkowski, "and what Dr. Robert Higgs calls the growth of the warfare state. A warfare state is wholly incompatible with a constitutional Republic. In my opinion, we need to fight, resist, refuse to subsidize Washington in every way, and we must immediately begin impeachment proceedings against this particular president, not only because he has clearly earned impeachment, but in order to revive a national awareness of the intent of the Founding Fathers to circumscribe centralized state power, and their vision of a free and peaceful Republic."

[Jade Fox]

1. That second paragraph says it all....

Bush was undoubtedly spying on political enemies.

[RJnAbbysNana]

2. Yeah! Like Quakers and little, old ladies.

n/t

[Ellipsis]

3. Gurney Eh...

Good article, excellent timing and if I may..

From Dune

Muad'Dib: Stilgar, do we have wormsign?
Stilgar: Usul, we have wormsign the likes of which even God has never seen.

and from The Heretics of Dune

"Bureaucracy destroys initiative. There is little that bureaucrats hate more than innovation, especially innovation that produces better results than the old routines. Improvements always make those at the top of the heap look inept. Who enjoys appearing inept?"

Peace.

[donkeyotay]

4. We have replaced the welfare state with the warfare state

Spying on political opposition. Bribes and threats. Fat contracts going to "defense" companies that kick back to the GOP who gives them more fat contracts in a downward spiral of corruption. Military contractors that own and control the public dialog about our defense. Private companies that accept money from the GOP fountain and count your vote. Defense contractors with offshore accounts prosper while you and your children and grandchildren go bankrupt. Wake up America. Fascism is here.