Life in OUR America, Volume 2, The Livyjr Files Options

[Livyjr]

PHOENICIANS

From 1200 to 800 B.C. the Semitic-speaking Phoenicians lived and prospered on the Mediterranean coast north of Palestine.

The Alphabet. As merchants, the Phoenicians needed a simple alphabet to ease the burden of keeping records.

They therefore replaced the cumbersome cuneiform alphabet of 550 characters with a phonetic alphabet, based on distinct sounds, consisting of 22 letters.

After further alterations by the Greeks and Romans, this alphabet became the one we use today!

Indeed, the Phoenicians were an amazing people, Mr. A.B.

I have a long post on Phoenicia and Lebanon over in Volume I of this thread, and in there, as I recall, the Phoenicians could brag of having the world's first democracy!

According to some wags, George W. Bush threatened to use nuclear weapons on them if they did not democratize in a time frame set for them, BY HIM!

Carthage, which figures prominently in Rome's Punic Wars, was a Phoenician city-state, and Hannibal, the scourge of Rome along with his war elephants, was from Carthage, which would make him a Phoenician!

At one time, Carthage, which would be in modern-day Libya, I believe, on the southern shore of the Mediteranean Sea, controlled a vast sweep of territory that included a good chunk of Spain along the north shore of the Mediteranean Sea.

Their navies figure in to Greek tales, as well, as the Phoenicians were masters of the sea who were sought out by the Greeks to aid them in their own intrigues and conquests.

A lot of history in that land of Lebanon, indeed!

I wonder if George W. Bush can spell Lebanon!

[Livyjr]

But first, we need to clean "House" of the empty headed goose stepping republican brown shirts so we can properly IMPEACH THE SON OF A BUSH

And here is something that I find quite refreshing, actually!

Is the FREE RIDE for these CONGRESSBOYS about to be over?

Are the American people about to wake up and say, "HEY!"

"WAIT A DAMN MINUTE HERE!"

"JUST WHOSE POCKETS DO YOU BOYS THINK YOU ARE PICKING HERE, ANYWAY?"

"YOU BOYS THINK WE ARE ALL STUPID, OR WHAT?"

Top Stories - USATODAY.com

"Congress' approval rating on the slide"

Tue Mar 15, 8:01 AM ET

By Andrea Stone, USA TODAY

Fewer Americans approve of the way Congress is handling its job than at any time since shortly after Republicans impeached President Clinton, a Gallup Poll finds.

Only 37% of Americans gave Congress a high approval rating, down from 45% last month, the poll taken last week showed.

A total of 53% disapproved, up from 48% in February.

It was the worst showing for Congress since September 1999, the year after the Republican-controlled House of Representatives impeached Clinton.

Even then, Congress had an identical 37% approval rating.

It hasn't been lower since October 1997.

Meanwhile, President Bush's approval rating remained fairly steady at 52%.

The number of those who disapproved of Bush's handling of his job was at 44%.

The decline in Congress' approval from last month was about the same among Democrats and Republicans, whose party controls both the Senate and House of Representatives.

That may be because Congress faces several controversial issues and not because of a specific one, analyst David Moore wrote on the Gallup Organization Web site.

"Democrats are even unhappier with the Republican Congress than before," Brookings Institution political analyst Thomas Mann said.

"And many Republicans don't like what they are hearing about Social Security and the budget."

The drop in approval for Congress was larger than that found in other measures of public satisfaction, Gallup Editor in Chief Frank Newport noted.

General satisfaction with the way things are going in the country also slipped, but by only 3 percentage points, from 45% to 42%.

"We're in a period of some bickering now because of Social Security, but also other issues where people see senators and congressmen arguing" on TV and in the House and Senate, Newport said.

American Enterprise Institute congressional expert Norm Ornstein said the poll could spell trouble eventually for Republicans, whose House majority leader, Tom DeLay of Texas, faces mounting ethics questions.

"When people are down on Congress, they don't make distinctions between party," Ornstein said.

"But ultimately, if you've got a low rating and you're in the majority, you better be nervous."

[Livyjr]

And here is something that I find quite refreshing, actually!

Is the FREE RIDE for these CONGRESSBOYS about to be over?

Are the American people about to wake up and say, "HEY!"

"WAIT A DAMN MINUTE HERE!"

"JUST WHOSE POCKETS DO YOU BOYS THINK YOU ARE PICKING HERE, ANYWAY?"

"YOU BOYS THINK WE ARE ALL STUPID, OR WHAT?"

Top Stories - USATODAY.com
 
"Congress' approval rating on the slide"

Tue Mar 15, 8:01 AM ET 

By Andrea Stone, USA TODAY

Fewer Americans approve of the way Congress is handling its job than at any time since shortly after Republicans impeached President Clinton, a Gallup Poll finds.

Only 37% of Americans gave Congress a high approval rating, down from 45% last month, the poll taken last week showed.

A total of 53% disapproved, up from 48% in February.

It was the worst showing for Congress since September 1999, the year after the Republican-controlled House of Representatives impeached Clinton.

American Enterprise Institute congressional expert Norm Ornstein said the poll could spell trouble eventually for Republicans, whose House majority leader, Tom DeLay of Texas, faces mounting ethics questions.

QUESTION: HOW DO THE REPUBLICANS DEAL WITH ETHICS PROBLEMS?

ANSWER: THEY DO AWAY WITH THE ETHICS RULES, AND THEN THEY SAY "WHAT ETHICS VIOLATIONS CAN YOU POSSIBLY BE TALKING ABOUT?"

[Livyjr]

WHAT'S WITH THIS BUSH CO.?

I am an older American, AND I AM INCENSED THAT BUSH CO. WOULD TRY TO "BUY" US OFF, to have us turn OUR backs on the younger Americans who are just coming along, and so do not have "political awareness" to any great degree, yet, AND THIS IS TYPICAL BUSH CO. B*** S***!

TURN US AGAINST EACH OTHER!

Break us up into "FACTIONS", and then buy us off, a faction at a time!

"OKAY, OKAY, LOOK, all you OLDER AMERICANS OUT THERE, look, I'll do a deal with you, and I'll exempt you from the screwing that I'm going to make sure your children and grandchildren get, AND SINCE YOU CAN'T SAVE THEM ANYWAY, DO THE SMART THING, TAKE THE DEAL WHILE IT'S ON THE TABLE!"

Well, guess what, George, NO DEAL!

Go pound salt!

Or is it sand?

Is it "go pound sand"?

No, must be salt, or is it sand ........

I went back out in the woods on snowshoes today, for a couple of more hours, to get away from here, and thinking about what is going on out there in America these days, which seems to threaten everything I hold dear as an American, starting with LIBERTY, JUSTICE, and INTEGRITY OF GOVERNMENT!

HAS GEORGE W. BUSH EVER TOLD US THE TRUTH ABOUT ANYTHING?

And I don't ask that lightly or friviously, either, as having an American president who seems to tell nothing but an endless stream of lies is no joking matter, and not by a long shot!

In a post above, jeffmoskin commented on Millhouse "Tricky Dick" Nixxon getting impeached, and I have my own thoughts on that as well, and I don't believe that you can compare the impeachment of "Tricky Dick" Nixxon with that of Bill Clinton, FOR TO ME, THEY ARE APPLES AND ORANGES!

There is what one does AS president, and there is what one does WHILE president, and to me, they just are not the same thing at all!

For example, WHILE president, Bill Clinton apparently fiddled around some with some women who might not exactly have been his lawful wedded wife, and so, there was some domestic hub-bub and in the course of all of that, "ole BUBBA", as Bill Clinton was affectionately known by America; "ole BUBBA" told a whole pack of lies, and for shame, Bill!

Do I admire Bill Clinton for fiddling with these women, or having them fiddle with him, however it actually went down?

No way, Jose!

STUPID, STUPID, STUPID!

BUT ....

I consider who was getting inside of Bill Clinton's pants beside Bill Clinton to be none of my business, and it is something that I am not really interested in knowing about, to be truthful.

At best, it is tawdry, or titillating, or "NASTY", or whatever, and it is kind of low stuff for me to spend any mental energy whatsoever on.

BY ALLEGEDLY LETTING SOMEONE ELSE INSIDE OF HIS PANTS AT THE SAME TIME THAT HE WAS WEARING THEM, DID BILL CLINTON BRING DOWN THE AMERICAN PRESIDENCY?

Who knows!

BY ALLEGEDLY LYING ABOUT WHO ELSE WAS INSIDE BILL CLINTON'S PANTS WHEN HE WAS IN THERE TOO, DID BILL CLINTON BRING DOWN AMERICA?

Again, who knows, but outside of making himself look kind of foolish, or stupid, Bill Clinton brought no harm to me that I could ever discern!

Unless of course, Osama bin Laden decided to attack America because too many people were in Bill Clinton's pants, besides Bill Clinton, in which case, I would have to reconsider my own position here.

But outside of that possibility, which the Bush Co.'s just might grasp onto as EXCUSE NUMBER 533 as to why we just had to invade Iraq, Bill Clinton's alleged illicit activities with women not his wife WHILE President really did nothing to harm me, personally!

Just makes him one more on a long list of American men who might be considered PIGS for the manner in which they treat women!

And Bill Clinton has essentially admitted that, with respect to Monica Lewinsky, so that my CHRISTIAN side would have to say, "well, forgive and forget and move along!"

Not so, "TRICKY DICK" Nixxon, however.

AS American president, Millhouse "Tricky Dick" Nixxon allegedly tried to have the CIA corrupt a governmental investigation!

As American president, Millhouse "Tricky Dick" Nixxon is alleged to have actively used his office, the OFFICE of OUR president, to OBSTRUCT JUSTICE, here in OUR AMERICA!

Not WHILE president; AS president!

Apples and oranges, as I see it!

[Livyjr]

I went back out in the woods on snowshoes today, for a couple of more hours, to get away from here, and thinking about what is going on out there in America these days, which seems to threaten everything I hold dear as an American, starting with LIBERTY, JUSTICE, and INTEGRITY OF GOVERNMENT!

HAS GEORGE W. BUSH EVER TOLD US THE TRUTH ABOUT ANYTHING?

And I don't ask that lightly or friviously, either, as having an American president who seems to tell nothing but an endless stream of lies is no joking matter, and not by a long shot!

The other thought that came to me, of course, is how under this Bush Co., WE, AMERICA, are having what I would call a PARASITIC CLASS thrust or imposed upon us, BY BUSH CO., and his various minions, at least up here in the corrupt Empire State of New York under the IRON RULE of Bush Co. minion George Pataki!

PLACEMEN!

Just like the British were sending over here in the days before the American Revolution to eat us out of house and home!

Parasites, sponsored by the government, itself!

The Avalon Project at Yale Law School

Charleston Non-Importation Agreement; July 22, 1769

We, his Majesty's dutiful and loving subjects, the inhabitants of South Carolina, being sensibly affected with the great prejudice done to Great Britain, and the abject and wretched condition to which the British colonies are reduced by several Acts of Parliament lately passed; by some of which the moneys that the colonists usually and cheerfully spent in the purchase of all sorts of goods imported from Great Britain, are now, to their great grievance, wrung from them, without their consent, or even their being represented, and applied by the ministry, in prejudice of, and without regard to, the real interest of Great Britain, or the manufactures thereof, almost totally, to the support of new-created commissioners of customs, placemen, parasitical and novel ministerial officers; and by others of which Acts we are not only deprived of those invaluable rights, trial by our peers and the common law, but are also made subject to the arbitrary and oppressive proceedings of the civil law, justly abhorred and rejected by our ancestors, the freemen of England; and finding that the most dutiful and loyal petitions from the colonies alone, for redress of those grievances, have been rejected with contempt so that no relief can be expected from that method of proceedings; and being fully convinced of the absolute necessity of stimulating our fellow subjects and sufferers in Great Britain to aid us in this our distress, and of joining the rest of the colonies in some other loyal and vigorous methods that may most probably procure such relief, which we believe may be most effectually promoted by strict economy, and by encouraging the manufactures of America in general, and of this province in particular: we therefore, whose names are underwritten, do solemnly promise, and agree to and with each other, that, until the colonies be restored to their former freedom by the repeal of the said Acts, we will most strictly abide by the following:

RESOLUTIONS

I That we will encourage and promote the use of North American manufactures in general, and those of this province in particular And any of us who are vendors thereof, do engage to sell and dispose of them at the same rates as heretofore

II That we will upon no pretence whatsoever, either upon our own account or on commission, import into this province any of the manufactures of Great Britain, or any other European or East India goods, either from Great Britain, Holland, or any other place ........

Source:
Colonial Society of Massachusetts Publication.

http://www.yale.edu/.../amerrev/amerdocs/c...tation_1769.htm

[Livyjr]

The other thought that came to me, of course, is how under this Bush Co., WE, AMERICA, are having what I would call a PARASITIC CLASS thrust or imposed upon us, BY BUSH CO., and his various minions, at least up here in the corrupt Empire State of New York under the IRON RULE of Bush Co. minion George Pataki!

PLACEMEN!

Just like the British were sending over here in the days before the American Revolution to eat us out of house and home!

Parasites, sponsored by the government, itself!

The Avalon Project  at Yale Law School

Charleston Non-Importation Agreement; July 22, 1769

We, his Majesty's dutiful and loving subjects, the inhabitants of South Carolina, being sensibly affected with the great prejudice done to Great Britain, and the abject and wretched condition to which the British colonies are reduced by several Acts of Parliament lately passed; by some of which the moneys that the colonists usually and cheerfully spent in the purchase of all sorts of goods imported from Great Britain, are now, to their great grievance, wrung from them, without their consent, or even their being represented, and applied by the ministry, in prejudice of, and without regard to, the real interest of Great Britain, or the manufactures thereof, almost totally, to the support of new-created commissioners of customs, placemen, parasitical and novel ministerial officers;

And actually, it was jeffmoskin back in VOLUME I of "Life in OUR America" who got this thought of PLACEMEN running through my head, and that was some time ago now, where jeffmoskin did a kind of tally of the amount of commissions that Bush Co. would be jamming down the pockets of HIS PLACEMEN IF he managed to get HIS changes made to OUR social security system.

And as ususal, WE HAVE NO DETAILS WHATSOEVER FROM BUSH CO. as to what HIS plan for OUR children's future would COST THEM, SO AS TO ENRICH A WHOLE NEW GENERATION OF PARASITIC PLACEMEN that Bush Co. would create in OUR America with HIS social security plan!

"TRUST ME WITH YOUR CHILDREN'S FUTURE", says Bush Co., and I say, "NO WAY IN HELL, George, BECAUSE WE NEVER HEAR THE TRUTH FROM YOU, ABOUT ANYTHING!"

YOU'RE UNTRUSTWORTHY, GEORGE!

NO DEAL!

[Livyjr]

"TRUST ME WITH YOUR CHILDREN'S FUTURE", says Bush Co., and I say, "NO WAY IN HELL, George, BECAUSE WE NEVER HEAR THE TRUTH FROM YOU, ABOUT ANYTHING!"

YOU'RE UNTRUSTWORTHY, GEORGE!

NO DEAL!

And is there a COST to us for all the lies this administration has told to date concerning Iraq?

What about this following?

Top Stories - AP

"Nations Leaving Iraq Amid Anti-War Gains"

1 hour, 40 minutes ago

By WILLIAM J. KOLE, Associated Press Writer

ROME - Italy said Tuesday it will start drawing down its 3,000-strong contingent in Iraq in September, putting a fresh crack in President Bush's crumbling coalition.

Bulgaria also called for a partial withdrawal, and Ukraine welcomed home its first wave of returning troops.

The moves come on top of the withdrawal of more than a dozen countries over the last year and could complicate efforts to keep the peace while Iraq's new government builds up police and military units capable of taking over from foreign forces.

Two years after the U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein, the coalition is unraveling amid mounting casualties and kidnappings that have stoked anti-war sentiment and sapped leaders' resolve to keep troops in harm's way.

Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who confirmed he will seek re-election next year, alluded to the rising public discontent, saying:

"I've spoken about it with (British Prime Minister) Tony Blair, and it's the public opinion of our countries that expects this decision."

"In September, we will begin a progressive reduction of the number of our soldiers in Iraq," the ANSA news agency quoted Berlusconi as saying during the taping of a TV talk show.

But, he added, the withdrawal is tied to the Iraqis being able to secure the country.

Italy's government, a staunch U.S. ally, had vowed to stay despite suffering 21 casualties and enduring fierce public opposition that escalated this month after U.S. soldiers in Baghdad fatally shot an Italian intelligence agent escorting a newly freed hostage.

Thirty-eight countries have provided troops in Iraq at one point or another.

But 14 nations have permanently withdrawn since the March 2003 invasion, and today's coalition stands at 24.

Excluding U.S. forces, there are 22,750 foreign soldiers still in Iraq.

The scramble to get out has taken the multinational force from a high of about 300,000 soldiers in the region early in 2003 to 172,750 and falling.

About 150,000 U.S. troops shoulder the bulk of the responsibility and suffer the most casualties.

A Pentagon spokesman, Lt. Col. Barry Venable, said the decisions by some nations to reduce or end their presence in Iraq was not a threat to security.

"The coalition is strong," he said.

Venable said the reductions are part of the natural process of turning security over to Iraq's government.

"The plan is to have the Iraqis fill in everywhere," he said.

"That process will continue and indeed accelerate."

The United States also is drawing down its troop levels.

After bolstering the U.S. force to about 155,000 during Iraq's recent elections, the Pentagon is bringing some units home and expects to be down to 138,000 soldiers in a few months.

Some 137 Ukrainian servicemen returned home Tuesday, part of a gradual pullout of a 1,650-strong contingent to be completed in October.

Ukraine has lost 18 soldiers in Iraq, and its people overwhelmingly oppose the deployment.

The Netherlands formally ended its mission March 7, and the bulk of its 1,400 troops return home this month.

The U.S. and British governments urged Dutch leaders to extend the mission, but they refused, saying they had met their commitments.

Poland, which has command responsibility for a large swath of central Iraq, plans to withdraw several hundred of its 1,700 soldiers in July and hopes to pull out completely by year's end or early in 2006.

Among the nations that withdrew last year were Spain, which pulled out 1,300 soldiers; Tonga, 44; New Zealand, 60; Thailand, 423; the Philippines, 51; Honduras, 370; the Dominican Republic, 302; Singapore, 160; Nicaragua, 115; and Hungary, 300.

Norway withdrew 150 troops but left 16 liaison officers.

Last month, Portugal withdrew its 127 soldiers, and Moldova pulled out its 12.

The Associated Press tally is based on queries to military officials in the various coalition nations.

The trend isn't closely tracked on Web sites maintained by the Defense Department or the U.S. Central Command, which offer dated information.

Ferocious insurgent attacks, coalition casualties and a spate of civilian abductions and beheadings have rattled ordinary citizens in many countries.

"If we continue to keep our troops in Iraq, Koreans — not only here but also abroad — will be subject to terrorist attacks.

It only puts our security in danger," said Ryu Jae-yoon, a 22-year-old office worker in Seoul.

Anti-war sentiment boiled over there last June when a South Korean military contract worker was beheaded by militants after the Seoul government refused a demand to withdraw its forces.

In Bulgaria, which has 460 troops in Iraq, the deaths of eight soldiers have heightened public calls to bring them home.

On Tuesday, President Georgi Parvanov urged a partial withdrawal, a proposal that parliament must now decide.

To be sure, America's top two allies in Iraq — Britain, with about 8,000 soldiers, and South Korea with 3,600 — are standing firm.

Australia, Albania and Georgia are boosting their presence, and NATO is expanding its training mission in Baghdad.

Yet surveys suggest opposition is running at roughly two-thirds in most coalition countries.

In Albania, a staunch U.S. ally that plans to enlarge its 71-member contingent to 121 in April, there are fears the troops could end up paying with their lives.

"Our men should be back, alive, as soon as possible," said Qerime Haxhia, a 54-year-old woman selling vegetables in downtown Tirana.

"Can our small group help big America's army keep Iraq calm?"

"I doubt that."
___

Associated Press writers Bo-Mi Lim in Seoul, South Korea; Veselin Toshkov in Sofia, Bulgaria; and Llazar Semini in Tirana, Albania; and researcher Jennifer Farrar in New York contributed to this story.

[Livyjr]

And is there a COST to us for all the lies this administration has told to date concerning Iraq?

What about this following?

Top Stories - AP
 
"Nations Leaving Iraq Amid Anti-War Gains"

By WILLIAM J. KOLE, Associated Press Writer

ROME - Italy said Tuesday it will start drawing down its 3,000-strong contingent in Iraq in September, putting a fresh crack in President Bush's crumbling coalition.

Two years after the U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein, the coalition is unraveling amid mounting casualties and kidnappings that have stoked anti-war sentiment and sapped leaders' resolve to keep troops in harm's way.

Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who confirmed he will seek re-election next year, alluded to the rising public discontent, saying:

"I've spoken about it with (British Prime Minister) Tony Blair, and it's the public opinion of our countries that expects this decision."

"In September, we will begin a progressive reduction of the number of our soldiers in Iraq," the ANSA news agency quoted Berlusconi as saying during the taping of a TV talk show.

Italy's government, a staunch U.S. ally, had vowed to stay despite suffering 21 casualties and enduring fierce public opposition that escalated this month after U.S. soldiers in Baghdad fatally shot an Italian intelligence agent escorting a newly freed hostage.

The scramble to get out has taken the multinational force from a high of about 300,000 soldiers in the region early in 2003 to 172,750 and falling.

About 150,000 U.S. troops shoulder the bulk of the responsibility and suffer the most casualties.

SO!

Of course, as always, right now, this is all quite inconclusive, BECAUSE .....

Because we don't know what might have happened had George W. Bush and Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld and Condo Rice ever told us and the candid world the TRUTH about anything, even one thing!

This all looks like what it is, on the part of the Bush Co., and that is ONE MAJOR COCK-UP!

A MAJOR BOTCH-JOB from the word "GO TAKE THE OILFIELDS, AND DAMN THE CONSEQUENCES!"

And while all of this happening, WHAT IS THE BUSH CO. UP TO?

INCITING MORE TROUBLE IN THE WORLD, WHEN HE CANNOT EVEN HANDLE WHAT HE HAS LEFT OVER FROM HIS FIRST FOUR YEARS?

Politics - Reuters

"Bush Calls on Hizbollah to Lay Down Arms"

12 minutes ago

By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush held out the prospect of legitimacy for the Lebanese guerrilla group Hizbollah on Tuesday by saying it can prove it is not a terrorist organization by laying down its arms.

U.S. officials have said they could accept a political role for Hizbollah in Lebanon if it disarmed.

The group has been blamed for launching attacks against Israel from southern Lebanon.

But the organization is also a political party, with deputies in the Lebanese parliament, and last week it showed its power by drawing hundreds of thousands of people to central Beirut for a pro-Syria rally.

The rally appeared aimed at deflating a U.S.-led drive to pressure Syria to pull out troops from Lebanon.

"We view Hizbollah as a terrorist organization and I would hope that Hizbollah would prove that they're not by laying down arms and not threatening peace," Bush told reporters with Jordan's King Abdullah at his side.

He said a major concern, discussed by him and Abdullah, was that Hizbollah may try to derail the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.

But in a possible olive branch to the group, Bush pointedly noted that "Hizbollah has been declared a terrorist organization by the United States because of terrorist activities in the past."

White House spokesman Scott McClellan later said, "It would change the dynamic if they disarmed and renounced terrorism."

"This isn't about Hizbollah."

"This is about supporting the Lebanese people."

"The president believes that the future of Lebanon is in the hands of the Lebanese people," he said.

He said Syria's first phase of a troop withdrawal from Lebanon was encouraging but that all the troops and intelligence personnel need to be gone as soon as possible to allow Lebanon to have parliamentary elections in May free of outside interference.

1983 BEIRUT ATTACK

New York Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer was skeptical about forgiving Hizbollah.

The group killed more than 200 U.S. servicemen in a suicide attack on a Marine headquarters in Beirut in 1983.

"Hizbollah has the blood of Americans on its hands and it is awfully difficult to forgive them so quickly, especially when they have not denounced terrorism," Schumer said.

Bush, who is using the early months of his second term to push for democratic reforms across the Middle East, was gentle on the subject with Abdullah, a close U.S. ally.

Jordan is a constitutional monarchy in which citizens have limited political rights.

The king appoints the prime minister, cabinet and a 55-member Senate, while a 110-member lower house is elected.

Bush said a recent U.S.-Jordan free trade agreement would help make Jordan more prosperous.

"It's much easier to reform when there's prosperity, when people are able to see his majesty's vision about a prosperous future," Bush said.

The two leaders also discussed the Middle East peace process.

Bush said each side needed to make sacrifices in the quest for peace, and raised some eyebrows by saying "Israel must withdraw from the settlements."

McClellan said there was no change in policy, that Bush was referring to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's overall withdrawal plan.

The United States is calling for a freeze in Jewish settlement activity.

(Additional reporting by Adam Entous)

[Livyjr]

SO!

Of course, as always, right now, this is all quite inconclusive, BECAUSE .....

Because we don't know what might have happened had George W. Bush and Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld and Condo Rice ever told us and the candid world the TRUTH about anything, even one thing!

This all looks like what it is, on the part of the Bush Co., and that is ONE MAJOR COCK-UP!

A MAJOR BOTCH-JOB from the word "GO TAKE THE OILFIELDS, AND DAMN THE CONSEQUENCES!"

And while all of this happening, WHAT IS THE BUSH CO. UP TO?

INCITING MORE TROUBLE IN THE WORLD, WHEN HE CANNOT EVEN HANDLE WHAT HE HAS LEFT OVER FROM HIS FIRST FOUR YEARS?

Politics - Reuters

"Bush Calls on Hizbollah to Lay Down Arms"

By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush held out the prospect of legitimacy for the Lebanese guerrilla group Hizbollah on Tuesday by saying it can prove it is not a terrorist organization by laying down its arms.

U.S. officials have said they could accept a political role for Hizbollah in Lebanon if it disarmed.

But the organization is also a political party, with deputies in the Lebanese parliament, and last week it showed its power by drawing hundreds of thousands of people to central Beirut for a pro-Syria rally.

"We view Hizbollah as a terrorist organization and I would hope that Hizbollah would prove that they're not by laying down arms and not threatening peace," Bush told reporters with Jordan's King Abdullah at his side.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan later said, "It would change the dynamic if they disarmed and renounced terrorism."

"This isn't about Hizbollah."

"This is about supporting the Lebanese people."

"The president believes that the future of Lebanon is in the hands of the Lebanese people," he said.

Does anyone besides me ever wonder if this BUSH CO. presidency is scripted by MEL BROOKS as some kind of PARODY?

OR IS THIS REAL?

CAN IT BE REAL?

First we have the WHITEHOUSESPOKESBOY Scottie "BOY" McClellan saying that:

"This isn't about Hizbollah."

"This is about supporting the Lebanese people."

"The president believes that the future of Lebanon is in the hands of the Lebanese people!"

To which I say, "OKAY!"

I think I understand here what Scottie "BOY" is trying to say, which is that the Lebanese people should be in charge of their own internal affairs in Lebanon!

AND I AM FOR THAT, TOO, AS I THINK ANY SANE AND RATIONAL, FREEDOM-LOVING PERSON WOULD BE!

SO?

What's this next business, then, with the Bush Co., where IT says that U.S. officials have said they could accept a political role for Hizbollah in Lebanon if it disarmed.

As the news article above makes quite clear, Hizbollah IS ALREADY a political party WITH A POLITICAL ROLE IN LEBANON, with deputies in the Lebanese parliament, BY THE WILL OF THE LEBANESE PEOPLE, AND SO .....

IF this is about supporting the Lebanese people, as WHITE HOUSE SPOKES BOY Scottie "BOY" McClellan says above, wouldn't we just keep our mouths shut, here?

Just curious?

[Livyjr]

And before I must go for today, here is one more story that serves to restore some faith in OUR American system of justice!

AND WHEN YOU READ THIS, KEEP IN MIND THAT THIS WORLDCOM SCAM IS WHAT GEORGE W. BUSH IS PROMOTING AS "HIS" CURE FOR SOCIAL SECURITY:

Business - AP

"Former WorldCom CEO Guilty on All Counts"

1 hour, 13 minutes ago

By ERIN McCLAM, Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK - Bernard Ebbers, the once-swaggering CEO of WorldCom, was convicted Tuesday of engineering the largest corporate fraud in U.S. history — an $11 billion accounting scandal that capsized the big telecom company three years ago.

The verdict marked a colossal fall for Ebbers, who had turned a humble Mississippi long-distance provider into a global telecommunications power, swallowing up companies along the way and earning the nickname "Telecom Cowboy."

A federal jury in Manhattan returned guilty verdicts on all nine counts, including securities fraud, conspiracy and lying to regulators — a decision that could send Ebbers, 63, to prison for the rest of his life.

Sentencing was set for June 13.

The former chief executive reddened deeply when the jury announced its verdict after eight days of deliberations, and his wife, Kristie, burst into tears in the courtroom's front row.

Later, as his lawyer spoke outside, promising an appeal, Ebbers and his wife — nearly toppled by the enormous crew of cameras and reporters camped outside the federal courthouse — made their way to a nearby street, hailed a cab and drove away.

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales called the conviction a "triumph of our legal system."

He said the jury had recognized that the fraud "extended from the middle management levels of this company all the way to its top executive."

In a six-week trial, prosecutors painted Ebbers as obsessed with keeping WorldCom stock high, and panicked about pressure he was getting over $400 million in personal loans that were backed by his own WorldCom shares.

From late 2000 to mid-2002, the government claimed, Ebbers intimidated chief financial officer Scott Sullivan into covering up billions of dollars in out-of-control expenses and recognizing improper revenue.

"He was WorldCom, and WorldCom was Ebbers," prosecutor William Johnson told jurors.

"He built the company."

"He ran it."

"Of course he directed this fraud."

The defense claimed all along that the fraud was masterminded by Sullivan, who testified as the star government witness that Ebbers instructed him quarter after quarter to "hit our numbers" — meet Wall Street expectations.

Ebbers himself took the witness stand at trial's end and flatly denied any role in the fraud.

He said he viewed his role at the company as a visionary and cheerleader, was uncomfortable with accounting and left it to Sullivan.

"He's never told me he made an (accounting) entry that wasn't right," Ebbers said of Sullivan.

"If he had, we wouldn't be here today."

The largely blue-collar jury of seven women and five men considered the case for eight days, an uncommonly long deliberation for white-collar cases, but never showed signs of discord.

The jurors were ushered away from the courthouse without speaking to the media, and Judge Barbara Jones instructed reporters not to badger them.

Outside court, top defense lawyer Reid Weingarten said he was "devastated" but predicted Ebbers "will ultimately be vindicated" on appeal.

He said he had no regrets about calling Ebbers to testify.

"I did not think Mr. Ebbers ever acted with criminal intent," he said.

"Obviously we're disappointed by the result, but the fight will continue."

Legal experts said the appeal would be difficult.

Weingarten said part of the case would center on prosecutors' refusal to grant immunity to three former WorldCom executives the defense wanted to call as witnesses.

The nine criminal counts against Ebbers — securities fraud, conspiracy and seven counts of making false filings to the Securities and Exchange Commission — carry up to 85 years in prison.

He will be free on bail until sentencing.

The conviction comes more than two years after an internal auditor began asking questions about curious accounting at WorldCom, touching off a scandal that eventually unearthed $11 billion in cooked books.

With the entire telecom industry suffering a dot-com hangover, the fraud was driven by soaring "line costs" — the fees WorldCom paid to smaller local telephone carriers to use their networks.

Besides Sullivan, three former WorldCom accounting officials who have pleaded guilty in the case testified they were pressured to cover up the expenses.

Only Sullivan directly implicated Ebbers.

Ebbers still faces civil litigation, including from the company, which backed up his $400 million in personal loans when Bank of America demanded more and more collateral as the stock price fell.

The company struck a $750 million settlement with federal regulators to repay aggrieved investors, a small sum compared to the tens of billions of dollars of market capitalization that evaporated in the scandal.

WorldCom, which was based in Clinton, Miss., since re-emerged as MCI Inc., based in Ashburn, Va.

Twelve former directors of the company, plus some investment banks that underwrote WorldCom securities and auditing firm Arthur Andersen, also face a civil trial brought by angry investors.

That trial is scheduled to get under way later this month.

In winning a conviction against Ebbers, federal prosecutors in Manhattan rang up another victory in a remarkable string of white-collar prosecutions that began in the summer of 2002.

Martha Stewart, Adelphia Communications founder John Rigas and former dot-com banking star Frank Quattrone were all found guilty during that stretch — with the same prosecutor, David Anders, handling both Quattrone and Ebbers.

The prosecutors have also wrung guilty pleas from countless other executives, including ImClone Systems Inc. founder Sam Waksal and five other former WorldCom officials who agreed to cooperate against Ebbers.

Sullivan and the three former WorldCom executives who have pleaded guilty in the case still face sentencing.

They hope to win lighter prison terms — or none at all — by cooperating with the government against Ebbers.

[jeffmoskin]

PHOENICIANS

From 1200 to 800 B.C. the Semitic-speaking Phoenicians lived and prospered on the Mediterranean coast north of Palestine. Their chief cities were Tyre and Sidon. They gained fame as sailors and traders. They occupied a string of cities along the Mediterranean coast, in what is today Lebanon and Syria.

Contributions to Civilization Manufacturing and trade. The coastal land, though narrow, was fertile and supported farming. Still, the resourceful Phoenicians became best known for manufacturing and trade. They made glass from coastal sand. From a tiny sea snail, they produced a widely admired purple dye, called "Tyrian purple" after the city of Tyre, which became their trademark. It became the favorite color of royalty.

And, for what it's worth, the name "PHOENICIANS" comes from that dye:


The name Phoenicians (phoinikes) was given to these people by the ancient Greeks and was related to the word for the red-purple color of the dye for which they were famous. This royal purple dye was produced by removing, soaking and heating the glands of mollusks belonging to the genus Murex.

[jeffmoskin]

...He will be free on bail until sentencing...

Five'll get you ten he skips town.

I hear he has a lot of money in the Cayman Islands.

[Abu Beacon]

Five'll get you ten he skips town.

I hear he has a lot of money in the Cayman Islands.

If you make that five will get me one hundred, I might risk a small bet.

Maybe he, Kenny Boy, and Scrushy will start a new colony there?

A.B.

[Livyjr]

If you make that five will get me one hundred, I might risk a small bet.

Maybe he, Kenny Boy, and Scrushy will start a new colony there?

A.B.

To show solidarity and brotherhood with the American people, what George W. Bush ought to do is send Ebbers over to Syria where George sends other alleged "ENEMIES OF AMERICA", and let the Syrians have their way with "ole" Bernie.

Or maybe send him to abu Ghraib, where Donald Rumsfeld's perverted HARD BOYS could take a turn or two with him!

In the meantime, I think I am with jeffmoskin on this, the "skipping" part that is.

Or Bush Co. will give him a presidential pardon, 'cause they buddies, don't you know, just like DUBYA and Kenny "BOY" Lay.

[Livyjr]

And that, folks, brings us to today!

A nice sunny day up here in the somewhat cold country of America, where I presently am.

Only about 25 degrees Fahrenheit this morning, so little by little, the cold is losing its grip!

Hooray!

Birds are starting to sing, although to be truthful, some have been around for a while now, singing out their little hearts, like the Phoebes, who were out there on some of those days way below zero Fahrenhiet.

SO?

Where are we heading?

Hard to tell!

Stay tuned!

Live!

Late-breaking!

Life, in OUR America.

[Livyjr]

This morning, on the radio, I heard an interview with a man from an organization of people in America who are now starting to get together to look into the reverses to environmental legislation that has occurred primarily under this Bush Co., or perhaps has escalated under Bush Co., because up my way, outside of "tokenism", there really has not been much guts or teeth in "environmental" regulation since the mid-1980's, BY DESIGN.

Over the years of studying GUMMINT here in the corrupt EMPIRE state of New York, I have come to notice, or learn, perhaps, that laws are really a kind of TOLL GATE that the political parties, and here the REPUBLICANS probably have the edge over the DEMOCRATS, can exploit for THEIR FINANCIAL WELL-BEING, at the expense of the citizens whom the laws or regulations were ostensibly put in effect to protect.

And for their part, the citizens allow this to happen, BECAUSE citizens don't know the law!

And getting to court up here to have the law enforced is not for the timid, or those without a big boodle of cash, and so, the game goes on, as it has for quite some time now.

For those of you who are interested, there is an excellent book on the life of Theodore Roosevelt when he was a member of the New York State Assembly entitled "He Rose Like A Rocket" by Paul Grondahl which details some of the "EXTORTION" schemes that members of the New York State Assembly would cook up in the form of "legislation" that would allegedly forces businesses to have to pay them to take a piece of punitive legislation back off the books.

The book is well-researched, and contains a long list of references, and Grondahl himself has quite a bit of experience covering the shenanigans of the New York State Legislature, so, if you are interested in fighting GUMMINT CORRUPTION, and you want to know how to recognize the "BEAST", try that book for a starter.

It is informative.

[Livyjr]

And before my next "discussion", I want to post this second post with respect to where OUR concept of "LIBERTY" in OUR America has come from:

Cato's Letters
Cato's Letters in the news

http://www.worldhistory.com/wiki/C/Cato's-Letters.htm

The essays called Cato's Letters were written by two Englishmen, concealing their identities with the honored ancient Roman name of Cato.

They are considered a seminal work in the tradition of the Commonwealthmen.

Later their identities were revealed as John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon.

Their 144 essays were published from 1720 to 1723, originally in the London Journal, later in the British Journal.

These newspaper essays condemning tyranny and advancing principles of freedom of conscience and freedom of speech, were a main vehicle for spreading the concepts that had been developed by John Locke.

The Letters were collected and printed as Essays on Liberty, Civil and Religious.

A measure of their influence is attested by six editions printed by 1755.

A generation later their arguments immensely influenced American colonists, where it is estimated that half the private libraries in the American Colonies held bound volumes of Cato's Letters on their shelves.

The prototypical 'Cato' was Cato the Younger (95 - 46 BC), the implacable foe of Julius Caesar and a famously stubborn champion of republican principles.

And that brings me to an interview that I heard on another radio station yesterday with a man in Egypt, who stated that he was 45 years old, and except for a brief period, HE HAS LIVED HIS ENTIRE LIFE OVER THERE UNDER MARTIAL LAW!

His dream was to live a part of his life under what he was calling civil law, and listening to him really made me think about the brink that we are poised on, right now, here in OUR America, where the REPUBLICANS would have us all living under a form of martial law, FOREVER!

OUR LIBERTY is as much a threat to the REPUBLICANS here in OUR America as LIBERTY in Egypt is a threat to that Mubarrak character that they have in power over there.

It just is a thing with TYRANTS, it seems, that they simply cannot stand the thought of LIBERTY for others, as it somehow serves to diminish their MANHOODS or something wierd like that.

And that brings me to the second of what were called "CATO's LETTERS", that I have posted below here.

One thing that I am doing in here, in keeping with the spirit of this forum as it is embodied in the words of Thomas Paine above, is exploring the roots of this thing we call LIBERTY, and for us, as Americans, those roots are partly in CATO's LETTERS, so, without further ado, and as you read this, KEEP IN MIND THAT THIS LETTER WAS WRITTEN IN 1720, 56 years before OUR Declaration of Independence and the words of Mr. Thomas Paine above here:

No. 16 The Leaders of Parties, their usual Views. - Advice to all Parties to be no longer misled

SIR, ....

A very great Authority has told us, that 'Tis worth no Man's Time to serve a Party, unless he can now and then get good Jobbs by it.

This, I can safely say, has been the constant Principle and Practice of every leading Patriot, ever since I have been capable of observing publick Transactions; the primum Mobile, the Alpha and Omega of all their Actions: They all professed to have in View only the Publick Good; yet every one shewed he only meant his own; and all the while the great as well as little Mob, ..., contended as fiercely for their Leaders, as if their Happiness or Misery depended upon the Face, the Cloaths, or Title of the Persons who robbed and betrayed them.

Thus the Highwayman said to the Traveller, Pray, Sir, leave your Watch and Money in my Hands; or else, by G__, you will be robbed.

Pound a Fool in a Mortar, and he comes out never the wiser; no Experience will make the Bulk of Mankind so, or put them upon their Guard; they will be caught over and over again by the same Baits and Stale Stratagems:

No sooner is a Party betrayed by one Head, but they rail at him, and set up another;

and when this has served them in the same Manner, they choose a Third; and put full Confidence in every one of them successively, though they all make the same Use of their Credulity;

that is, put a Price upon their Calves Heads, and sell them; which, however, they have the less Reason to complain of, because they would have all done the same.

I assure you, Sir, that I have not the least Hopes in this Letter to make Men honester, but I would gladly teach them a little more Wit; that is, I would advise any one who is contented to be sold, that he receive the Money himself, and take good Care of One, whatever becomes of his Neighbours; as some discreet Persons have lately done.

Whatever Bargains are struck up amongst the Betrayers of their Country, we must find the Money, and pay both Sides.

How wise and advantageous would it then be for us, not to interest ourselves in the Agreements or Squabbles of ambitious Men, who are building their Fortunes upon our Ruin?

Once upon a Time, a French Ambassador desired an Audience of the Grand Vizier, and in pompous French Fustian notified to him, that his Master had won a great Victory over the Germans; to which that wise Minister answered laconically, What is it to me, if the whole Herd of Unbelievers, like Dogs, mutually wary one another, so that my Master's Head be safe?

This Letter of Advice is not intended for those who share already in the publick Spoils, or who, like Jackalls, hunt down the Lion's Prey, that they may have the picking of the Bones, when their Masters are glutted.

But I would persuade the poor, the injured, the distressed People, to be no longer the Dupes and Property of Hypocrites and Traytors.

But very few can share in the Wages of Iniquity, and all the rest must suffer; the People's Interest is the publick Interest; it signifies the same Thing:

Whatever these Betrayers of their country get, the People must lose; and, what is worse, must lose a great deal more than the others can get; for such Conspiracies and Extortions cannot be successfully carried on, without destroying or injuring Trade, perverting Justice, corrupting the Guardians of the publick Liberty, and the almost total Dissolution of the Principles of Government.

Few can receive the Advantages arising from publick Misfortunes; and therefore methinks few should desire them.

Indeed, I can easily see how Men of desperate Circumstances, or Men guilty of desperate Crimes, can find their Account in a general Confusion of all Things.

I can see how those Priests, who aim at Tyranny, can find their Interest in the Loss of publick Liberty, in the Restraint of the Press, and in introducing a Religion which destroys Christianity:

There are Reasons too at hand, why ambitious Men should, ..., grasp at the Possession of immense Wealth, high Honours, and exorbitant Power:

But that the Gentry, the Body of the People in a free Nation, should become the Tools and Instruments of Knaves and Pick-pockets; should list themselves in their Quarrels, and fight their Battles; and this too, often at the Expence, and by the Violation of good Neighbourhood, near Relation, private friendship That Men of great Estates and Quality, for small and trifling Considerations, and sometimes none at all, should promote wild, villainous Projects, to the Ruin of themselves and Country, by making precarious their own Titles to their Lives, Estates, and Liberties, is something so stupendous, that it must be thought impossible, if daily Experience did not convince us that it is more than possible.

I have often seen honest Tories foolishly defending knavish Tories; and untainted Whigs protecting corrupt Whigs, even in Instances where they acted against the Principles of all Whigs; and by that Means depreciated Whiggism itself, and gave the stupid Herd Occasion to believe that they had no Principles at all, but were only a factious Combination for Preferment and Power.

It is high Time, at last, for the Bubbles of all parties, for Whigs and Tories, for High Church and Low Church, to come to an Eclaircissement, and no longer suffer themselves to be bought and sold by their Drivers:

Let them cease to be Calves and Sheep, and they will not be used like Calves and Sheep.

If they can be persuaded now and then to confer Notes, they will find, that for the most part the Differences between them are not material; that they take only different Measures to attain the same Ends; that they have but one common Interest, which is the Interest of their Country; and that is, to be freed from Oppression, and to punish their Oppressors: Whose Practice, on the contrary, will always be to form Parties, and blow up Factions to mutual Animosities, that they may find Protection in those Animosities.

Let us not therefore, for the Time to come, suffer ourselves to be engaged in empty and pernicious Contentions; which can only tend to make us the Property and Harvest of Pickpockets:

Let us learn to value an honest Man of another Party, more than a Knave of our own:

Let the only Contention be, who shall be most ready to spew out their own Rogues; and I will be answerable that all other Differences will soon be at an End.

Indeed, there had been no such Thing as Party now in England, if we had not been betrayed by those whom we trusted.

Through the Villainy and knavish Designs of Leaders, this Nation has lost several glorious Opportunities of rescuing the Constitution, and settling it upon a firm and solid basis:

Let us not therefore, by the like Practices, lost the present favourable Offer:

Let us make Earnings of our Misfortunes, and accept our Calamities as an Opportunity thrown into our Laps by indulgent Providence, to save ourselves; and not again foolishly and ungratefully reject and spurn at the Intimations and Invitations of Heaven, to preserve our Prince and Country.

Machiavelli tells us, that no Government can long subsist, but by recurring often to its first Principles, but this can never be done while Men live at Ease and in Luxury; for then they cannot be persuaded to see distant Dangers, of which they feel no Part.

The Conjunctures proper for such Reformations, are when Men are awakened by Misfortunes, and frighted with the Approach and near View of present Evils; then they will wish for Remedies, and their Minds are prepared to receive them, to hear Reasons, and to fall into Measures proposed by wise Men for their Security.

The great Authority just quoted informs us what Measures and Expedients are necessary to save a State under such Exigencies:

He tells us, that as a Tyranny cannot be established but by destroying Brutus; so a free Government is not to be preserved but by destroying Brutus's Sons.

Let us therefore put on a Resolution equal to the mighty Occasion:

Let us exert a Spirit worthy of Britons, worthy of Freemen who deserve Liberty.

Let us take advantage of the Opportunity, while Men's Resentments boil high, whilst lesser Animosities seem to be laid aside, and most Men are sick of Party and Party-Leaders; and let us, by all proper Methods, exemplarily punish the Parricides, and avowed Enemies of all Mankind.

Let neither private Acquaintance, personal Alliance, or Party Combination, stand between us and our Duty to our Country:

Let all those who have a common Interest in public Safety, join in common Measures to defend the publick Safety:

Let us pursue to Disgrace, Destruction, and even Death, those who have brought this Ruin upon us, let them be ever so great, or ever so many:

Let us stamp and deep engrave, in Characters legible to all Europe at present, and to all Posterity hereafter, what Vengeance is due to crimes, which have no less Objects in View than the Ruin of Nations, and the Destruction of Millions:

They have made many bold, desperate, and wicked Attempts to destroy us; let us strike one honest and bold Stroke to destroy them.

Though the Designs of the Conspirators should be laid as deep as the Center, though they should raise Hell itself in their Quarrel, and should fetch Legions of Votaries from thence to avow their Proceedings, yet let us not leave the pursuit, till we have their Skins and Estates:

We know, by past Experience, that there are those amongst us, who will be glad to quit the Chase, when our Villains, like Beavers, drop what they are usually hunted for; but the Nation is now too much provoked and too much injured, to suffer themselves to be again so betrayed.

We have Heaven to direct us, a glorious King to lead us, and a wise and faithful Parliament to assist and protect us:

Whilst we have such a King, and such a Parliament, every worthy Briton cries out aloud,

Manus haec inimica Tyrannis Ense petit placidam, sub libertate quietem.

February 11, 1720

[jeffmoskin]

We have Heaven to direct us, a glorious King to lead us, and a wise and faithful Parliament to assist and protect us:

Whilst we have such a King, and such a Parliament, every worthy Briton cries out aloud,

Manus haec inimica Tyrannis Ense petit placidam, sub libertate quietem.


February 11, 1720

We have Heaven to direct us, a glorious King to lead us, and a wise and faithful Government to assist and protect us:

Whilst we have such a King, and such a Government, every worthy American cries out aloud,

Manus haec inimica Tyrannis Ense petit placidam, sub libertate quietem.


March 16, 2005

This post has been edited by jeffmoskin: Mar 16 2005, 04:20 PM

[Livyjr]

We have Heaven to direct us, a glorious King to lead us, and a wise and faithful Government to assist and protect us:

Whilst we have such a King, and such a Government, every worthy American cries out aloud,

Manus haec inimica Tyrannis Ense petit placidam, sub libertate quietem.

March 16, 2005

PARRICIDE: The crime of killing one's father; also a person guilty of killing his father!

- Black's Law Dictionary

It is indeed interesting, jeffmoskin, that I was thinking on these exact same words today, after I made that post of Cato's Letter Number 16 that you quote from above!

Except I may see it more metaphorically than you do, as I see George W. Bush and his crowd AS THE PARRICIDES mentioned in this sentence of Cato No. 16, to wit:

"Let us take advantage of the Opportunity, while Men's Resentments boil high, whilst lesser Animosities seem to be laid aside, and most Men are sick of Party and Party-Leaders; and let us, by all proper Methods, exemplarily punish the Parricides, and avowed Enemies of all Mankind!"

George W. Bush and HIS CROWD ARE NOT the"glorious King to lead us, and a wise and faithful Government to assist and protect us", and not at all!

To the contrary, George W. Bush and HIS crowd, including Richard "Halliburton Dick" Cheney, are the direct antithesis of the "glorious King to lead us, and a wise and faithful Government to assist and protect us"; and so, are the avowed Enemies of ALL MANKIND, the PARRICIDES mentioned in Cato No. 16!

In OUR hearts and minds as LIBERTY-loving human beings, we have an "image" of the "GLORIOUS KING" as OUR Leader, and that most sertainly IS NOT GEORGE W. BUSH!

Not by a long shot!

In OUR hearts and minds as LIBERTY-loving human beings, we similarly have an "image" of the "WISE AND FAITHFUL GOVERNMENT TO ASSIST AND PROTECT US", and here is where George W. Bush and HIS fall way short of the mark, in my estimation, BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT "WISE", THEY CERTAINLY ARE NOT "FAITHFUL", AT LEAST TO US, AND THEY ARE INEPT AND SEEMINGLY GROSSLY INCOMPETENT, WHICH LEAVES THEM TOTALLY INADEQUATE WITH REGARD TO EITHER ASSISTING US IN ANY MEANINGFUL WAY, OR ESPECIALLY PROTECTING US, FROM ANYTHING!

We wish for a glorious King to lead us, and a wise and faithful Government to assist and protect us, and we have George W. Bush and his, instead!

And so, BECAUSE OF THIS, every worthy American cries out aloud,

Manus haec inimica Tyrannis Ense petit placidam, sub libertate quietem.

March 16, 2005

AMEN!

[Livyjr]

And is there a COST to us for all the lies this administration has told to date concerning Iraq?

What about this following?

Top Stories - AP
 
"Nations Leaving Iraq Amid Anti-War Gains"

By WILLIAM J. KOLE, Associated Press Writer

ROME - Italy said Tuesday it will start drawing down its 3,000-strong contingent in Iraq in September, putting a fresh crack in President Bush's crumbling coalition.

Bulgaria also called for a partial withdrawal, and Ukraine welcomed home its first wave of returning troops.

The moves come on top of the withdrawal of more than a dozen countries over the last year and could complicate efforts to keep the peace while Iraq's new government builds up police and military units capable of taking over from foreign forces.

Two years after the U.S.-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein, the coalition is unraveling amid mounting casualties and kidnappings that have stoked anti-war sentiment and sapped leaders' resolve to keep troops in harm's way.

Italy's government, a staunch U.S. ally, had vowed to stay despite suffering 21 casualties and enduring fierce public opposition that escalated this month after U.S. soldiers in Baghdad fatally shot an Italian intelligence agent escorting a newly freed hostage.

Thirty-eight countries have provided troops in Iraq at one point or another.

But 14 nations have permanently withdrawn since the March 2003 invasion, and today's coalition stands at 24.

Excluding U.S. forces, there are 22,750 foreign soldiers still in Iraq.

The scramble to get out has taken the multinational force from a high of about 300,000 soldiers in the region early in 2003 to 172,750 and falling.

About 150,000 U.S. troops shoulder the bulk of the responsibility and suffer the most casualties.

A Pentagon spokesman, Lt. Col. Barry Venable, said the decisions by some nations to reduce or end their presence in Iraq was not a threat to security.

"The coalition is strong," he said.

Over in Mr. A.B.'s "Religion and Politics" thread, I just made a post where I compared George W. Bush to the Biblical character Nimrod, who was himself quite a "CONQUERER" in the mold of George W. Bush.

In that post, "GOD" is said to have directly INTERVENED in Nimrod's plans to "TAKE OVER THE EARTH", THWARTING THOSE PLANS, and in that post, where this is said, in parenthesis, I put in the parallel to today, where George W. Bush's apparent plans to seemingly take over the earth are similarly being thwarted by what appears to be the HAND OF GOD acting to break up George W. Bush's "COALITION" in Iraq!

And now, we have George W. Bush himself saying, "IT IS NOT SO!"

Apparently to him, at least, "GOD" is still on his side!

SO!

We will see, I guess!

Politics - Reuters

"Bush Insists Iraq Coalition Not Crumbling"

44 minutes ago

By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush insisted on Wednesday the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq was not crumbling and he shrugged off Italy's decision to begin pulling troops from Iraq by September.

"Quite to the contrary," Bush said when asked if the coalition was falling apart.

"I think the coalition has been buoyed by the courage of the Iraqi people."

Nearly two years after the Iraq war began, Bush hailed the first meeting of Iraq's national assembly as a "bright moment" and said Iraq's elections, a potential Syrian pullout from Lebanon, and Israel and the Palestinians talking peace could produce change elsewhere in the Middle East.

"I believe those examples will serve as examples for others over time," he told a White House news conference.

"And that will lead to more peace, and that's what we want."

The decision by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, a close Bush ally, to start withdrawing Italy's 3,000 troops from Iraq was a blow to the U.S.-led coalition.

It came after U.S. troops killed an Italian secret service agent and wounded an Italian journalist in what Washington has called a tragic accident that remains under investigation.

Bush said he spoke to Berlusconi and the prime minister told him "any withdrawals would be done in consultation with allies and would be done depending upon the ability of Iraqis to defend themselves."

Bush acknowledged countries with troops in Iraq were anxious to bring them home once Iraqi forces are trained and able to defend themselves against an insurgency that has launched suicide bombings and attacks against coalition forces and the fledgling Iraqi government.

He offered no timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops, saying "Our troops will come home when Iraq is capable of defending herself."

Bush appeared in the White House briefing room almost two years after launching a war with the aim of toppling Saddam Hussein for not giving up weapons of mass destruction.

The weapons were never found and more than 1,500 Americans have been killed in a conflict against an insurgency that critics say has grown because of the U.S. presence.

'WHOLESOME PROCESS'

Bush now sees Iraq as a place where democracy can take root in the Middle East.

To that end, he said he was not worried about whether Iraq's parliament will be able to form a new government, which rival political blocs are squabbling over.

"It's a wholesome process and it's being done in a transparent way."

"I mean, you've got the press corps all over them, watching every move, which is a positive example for others in the region, and that's important," he said.

Bush repeated Syria must withdraw all troops and expressed particular concern about Syrian intelligence personnel.

He said they are "embedded in a lot of government functions in Lebanon, and there needs to be a complete withdrawal of those services in order for there to be a free election."

State Department spokesman Adam Ereli questioned whether the Syrian intelligence agents were actually leaving Lebanon, saying it was unclear where they were going.

Bush met with Cardinal Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir, spiritual leader of Maronite Catholics in Lebanon, and they discussed their desire for Lebanon to be free of Syrian influence.

"Lebanese of all convictions are alarmed by the continued migration of Christian and Muslim youths due to the lack of job opportunities and the suffocating political conditions at home," the patriarch said.

Bush sought to clarify a comment he made on Tuesday in which he appeared to leave the door open to the Hizbollah guerrilla group having a political role in Lebanon if it disarmed.

Democrats had pointed out Hizbollah was responsible for a bombing that killed more than 200 U.S. servicemen in Beirut in 1983.

"Hizbollah is on the terrorist list for a reason, and remain on the terrorist list for a reason."

"Our position's not changed on Hizbollah," he said.

(Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed)