Letters To The Editor

THE POST-NAM GENERATION

Dear Editor:

My name is Leif Berkson and I'm writing in response to the correspondence you have had with Jim Houle about my status in prison and the events leading up to it. I will try to give you a quick synopsis of my history: I am currently serving a LWOP for the murder of Mr. Harvey Boynton in 1993, something I am very remorseful for every day. My father was an Army Special Forces trained counterinsurgent who had fought in Vietnam from 1961-63. Later he was a CIA sponsored mercenary in Angola, the Belgian Congo, Chile, and a number of other locations in the 1960s. In 1972 he went to Cambodia and flew ostensibly for the Khmer Royal Airlines which was actually the Air America of the Cambodian theater. My mother, my one-year-old sister, and myself, then 8, joined him in Phnom Penh in 1973. He flew C-47s, DC-3s, Convairs and a number of other aircraft even going out on details with the well-known “Ravens” in Laos and other hotspots. There are loads of photographs from our times over there in Southeast Asia, although none that I know of from the earlier campaigns in Africa. We returned to the United States in 1975 about a month before the fall of Phnom Penh and lived in Carmichael, California. My mother died of cancer in 1976. Thereafter we moved around Southern California where I went to many schools and stayed with various relatives. It was a difficult time. In 1981 we moved to Covelo permanently. That was a real culture shock to me and to the Covelo people as well. They didn't know what to do with a surfer/skater and burgeoning punk rocker this far inland. I even wore surfer shorts to school against the dress code and was called “a city slicker.”

It wasn't long before we became a part of the underground horticultural economy of Mendocino. I played a lot of football and even had some scholarship offers from minor league colleges, obtained with the help of Laytonville coach Grover Faust. By this time I had dyed hair and all. I was involved in everything from Reggae on the River, punk rock shows, and once even participated in the Grateful Dead's MTV video in 1987 filmed at Laguna Seca. A lot of fun, no direction, no aspiration, and what I see now as a whole lot of issues. Hard drugs and alcohol didn't really become a problem until 1988-89. By the early 90s I had become a meth-head speeding alcoholic. I traded in my boots, leather jacket, subversive anti-government ideologies, for methamphetamine and alcohol and gangsta rap music. I look back now and realize I sort of sold out as a lot of us Generation X rebels did. Some had caught themselves and maintained a balance between being productively employed in the community 9-5 while keeping their ideologies gleaned from the youth scene. I just spiraled out of control until that fateful day in April of 1993 when I set my course towards a life in prison. Now during the last six years I've embarked upon a new journey. I lead groups of fellow prisoners in the alternatives to violence project (AVP). I have earned an associate degree from a local junior college, and I lead spiritual activities, Buddhists and the like. I am currently directing the anger management conflict classes here and will be running seminars over the next 18 weeks until December.

I suppose I could write the screenplay for a movie about all of this, but I doubt there would be a very wide audience. You are welcome to write me here:

Leif Berkson J-55735

Ironwood State Prison, Cell A1, 250L

PO Box 2199

Blythe, CA 92226-2199

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WHY THE PURSE SEARCH?

To the Board of Directors of the Mendocino County Fair and Apple Show:

Last week my husband and I attended the Boonville fair. At the entry, I was surprised that the fair personnel asked to search my purse. (I am 61 years of age.)

In my purse I had a three-inch Swiss Army knife which was encrusted with gum. The fair personnel said that I would have to take the knife back to our car. Since we were parked a distance away, I asked if the knife could just be held at the entry booth until my departure. The young man at the booth, though uncomfortable with the idea, said yes.

When we were departing the fair, I asked for the return of my kniife, but it was no longer there. We asked to speak to a supervisor who then soon came, looked quickly through the nearby garbage bin and retrieved my knife. I have to say that all of their personnel were courteous and I hope that the young man at the entryway who was trying to do the right thing was not reprimanded for allowing me to leave my knife there.

The idea that we need to be searched upon entry at our little county fair is reprehensible to me. Was there an incident in the past that made someone require this to now be necessary? (I have to mention that my husband also had a small Swiss Army knife in his pocket but was not asked to empty his pockets.)

Next we'll be required to step into x-ray machines in order to go look at the bunnies and goats! Please!

Sincerely,

Darcie Mahoney

Elk

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NO ON CORRUPTION, YES ON F

Dear Editor;

Here's a crucial issue not being discussed by candidates: political corruption and the destruction of our democracy. The billion$ now being poured into candidates' coffers decimate the notion of one person, one vote, and that we all have an equal voice in our democracy.

There’s no natural law that says we must allow billionaires, giant corporations and Wall Street bankers to control our government. To restore the economy, get a fairer tax structure, get action on climate change, and reduce the massive military-industrial complex, we’ll need elected officials who put the interests of people first, not the corporate funders of their campaigns.

Today, those with the big money get the government and policies they want; the poor and middle class lose out. We can’t rely on politicians, who are dependent on big money interests, to end this political corruption. It is up to us.

MoveToAmend.org  is a popular movement sweeping the nation working to get Congress to pass an amendment to the US Constitution stating that corporations are not people, money is not “free speech,” and that campaign spending and lobbying can be regulated. Already over seven states and 200 municipalities have joined this groundswell and voted in favor of such an amendment.

We Mendocino County voters now have a chance to vote for one, too. Say NO to corporate corruption of our democracy. Vote YES on Measure F.

Tom Wodetzki

Albion

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WHEN GOLD TURNS TO LEAVES

Dear Editor and Fellow AVAers,

Monday, 5 of midnight, 17 September, 2012 — Non illegitimati carborundum. Don't let the bastards wear you down. Down Rover. Service with a smile. He knows if you're naughty or nice. Peachy keen. The mountains breathe. And a snake won't die until the sun goes down, even if you chop off its head. If a snapping turtle gets hold of you, he won't let go until it thunders. “Dinner” is the midday meal. The three most effective methods of communication: telegraph, telephone, and tell Diana. Envious people have little to say to you, but a lot to say about you. He who dies with the most secrets wins. A good question is one that can be answered. Black jeans, black sweater, black shoes, black shades, too. A commando get-up. LA, man. A commando get-up. Interracial babies are no crime. The Santa Ana winds arrive and suck moisture from the sky that sparkles under an unencumbered sun. Dylan says, “I play a nose flute.” What teacher isn't bored and watchful at the same time? “Hang in there,” I tell the wall banger, who banged on the wall when she doesn't get any. Tshaphog is Thibetan for halt the middle of the day. In Thibet autumn has the youthful charm of spring. The pebbles on the path chat under your feet as fir trees point to the sky. Eyes that are half-eyes gaze inward. Fences protect cultivated land from intrusion of cattle. Mani padme, jewel in a lotus on the icy emerald waters; a glittering moving mirror. “He bent low and touched the bottom of my dress with his forehead as Thibetans do to the lamas they worship.” Kale pheb: go slow (polite farewell). Kale ju: Stay or sit (polite farewell to those who stay).

* * *

Saturday, 15 September, 2012 — “My country tis of thee, sweet land of felony.”

No tickee, no washee, no gold, no oil. Presidential election coming. The dollar's gold backing was canceled out during the Nixon presidency. Then the dollar plunged because of ineptitude with politics in Washington. The dollar continues to sink because the United States has paid (and goes on paying) more for imported oil than it earns from exports. The United States doesn't have much gold left; we squandered enormous amounts in futile attempts to “demonetize” gold. “Demonetize” is to deprive (currency) of its standard value to stop using (silver or gold) as a monetary standard. In Fort Knox and the Federal Reserve there is enough gold to pay one year's United States oil bill. Natural gas, which used to be available to generate electricity, is in short supply. And although coal is available, it is dirty and a pollutant. “If I were an Arab, I'd refuse paper dollars for oil and demand gold.” Fort Knox has not been audited since 1953. “Fraud” has been shouted about Fort Knox gold, there may be a lot less than the world believes; they also claim the remaining gold is impure from melted down coins containing silver, copper and antimony, which President Roosevelt called in when gold ownership for Americans was made illegal. In the 1960 dollar crisis United States gold was used to support the dollar, with the intention it would be replaced. It never was. If the rest of the world believes the United States doesn't have the gold it claims to have, there will be a fresh run on the dollar — panic selling. When people in Washington talk about the missing gold, they say every new Treasury Secretary is sworn to secrecy, then told the facts. Our government will not permit an independent audit of Fort Knox gold.

Sincerely,

Diana Polyglot Vance Into Dollars

Deadtree, Mendocino (waiting rain)

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SUPPORT THE GOOD GUY

Editor,

The Cash Mob at the Four-Eyed Frog Bookstore in Gualala last Saturday was a huge success.

All of the community helped to make it a success. Lots of people bought books, games, calendars and cards. Gualala Super donated cookies and Mike Thomas/Bones was opened for locals to celebrate after.

Eric Price of Shoreline Restaurant is owed some money by Bones. I am not in law enforcement, so I don't know the legalities. But for the fourth time Saturday Eric sent sheriff's deputies into Bones to collect all the money in the cash register. Some type of process server stayed to collect any money spent at Bones.

The Cash Mob crew were intending to tip Mike Thomas well because he has suffered like all local business. We moved the location to the patio of Four Eyed Frog because we were afraid that the process server would collect the tips.

We did not allow Eric Price to ruin our day. Apparently Mike thought he and Eric's lawyer had worked out a payment schedule so that both businesses could continue to serve the community.

I don't know Eric, but this is what I know for sure about Mike Thomas: he has been a contributing member of Gualala for about 30 years. He built some very beautiful timberpeg homes in our area and he employed many of our friends and neighbors.

Of course, Bones Roadhouse is a major employer in the area. Mike supports all the fundraisers. Mike puts on one of the spaghetti dinners for the South Coast Seniors every year. For the Martini Madness fundraiser, Mike made fabulous drinks, brought music and donated two $50 gift certificates without being asked, as he has done for the Rec Center rally and Redwood Coast Medical Service.

What touched my heart the most, he showed up at Linda Crockett's memorial with food and served it. He is one of the good guys.

Eric and the Shoreline have probably done some great things for the community, but I just don't know them. If Eric or one of his friends (he has some friends, doesn't he?) would like to write a letter to explain what a great community supporter he is, I am sure all of us would like to see it.

In a small community we must support the good guys. Both our grocery stores are star supporters, and that is why we shop at both. Please support Mike Thomas and Bones.

Thank you,

Carol Skaug

Sea Ranch

VOLUNTEER GIFTS

Editor,

Volunteers: a lifeline to our community. I won't name names. There are too many, and many are hidden. Being involved in helping Bruce Longstreet struggle through his noble fight with cancer brought this to light even brighter than usual.

In the past, some of those bright lights have been — seeing the community rally in 2008 to support the non-stop fire fighting efforts of our local #74. In 2011 when health clinics across the state were in jeopardy of closing, the fortitude of this community called public officials, wrote letters, and won to keep our local clinic open. And I have been thoroughly impressed with the people who engaged their energy and succeeded in keeping Hendy Woods State Park open this year and beyond.

We work hard for our local establishments, and we work hard for our local individuals.

For Bruce Longstreet we were able to create 'round-the-clock care, 7 days/week, on a weekly basis, within 36 hours. Not to mention the many other tasks that came before and will go on in remembrance of Bruce.

So, in this striking light, I thank you:

• everyone who stat with Bruce when he needed us,

• everyone who did little and big chores for him,

• everyone who cared for and supported those who cared for Bruce,

• everyone who prayed and sent good thoughts to Bruce.

Not one of these could have existed without the other.

It was a proud day when I stepped foot into Anderson Valley 10 years ago; and it's a proud day for me today as I walk through this town, this forest of volunteers.

Truly feeling the gifts of our labor.

Taunia Green

Boonville

P.S. I can't help it: thank you to everyone who volunteers in the name of our Valley.

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A LICK OF SENSE

Aloha,

That's it. I can't handle life in paradise with no AVA to read any longer. Poor me. I was a satisfied reader for a decade, as a then-resident of the North Coast. Usually bought it at Village Liquors in Mendocino, or else at Down Home Foods in Fort Bragg. There were countless times when your newspaper was the only thing that made a lick of sense, through some truly strange years in that locale. (2001-2011) Family members in San Francisco have also greatly enjoyed the AVA. I believe that my late father, Peter Dewees even wrote to you a time or two.

Please sign me up for a subscription as soon as possible. My remittance is in the mail. Thank you!

Anne Dewees

Papa'aloa, Hawaii

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THANKS FROM JERSEY

To the good people of Anderson Valley:

The family of Bruce Longstreet (brother-Bill, sisters-Ann and Nancy, our spouses, children and grandchildren, and of course our mother, Harriet) would like to thank you all for the many kindnesses you showed to Bruce Longstreet during his final illness. We are especially grateful to the guys who he played poker with for taking up the collection so Bruce could get the airline ticket to come back to New Jersey and spend quality time with us. Thanks also to the person who donated frequent flyer miles for the same purpose. I am sorry that I don't know your names, but I want you all to know how much we appreciate all that you did. Additional thanks to all who helped Bruce with rides to doctors, groceries, and for just being his friends. Although we will miss Bruce terribly, it is comforting to know that he passed away in the Valley he loved and considered home, surrounded by such good friends.

Several years ago, Bruce gave me a subscription to the Anderson Valley Advertiser, just so I could get the “flavor” of his home. Now that he is gone, reading this paper every week will keep me connected to his spirit and all of you.

Peace and love to all,

Ann Hebbe-Ardler

Roselle Park, New Jersey

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WHERE’S THE HAMBURG REPORT?

Dear Editor,

I recently read online and in your most recent print edition of Supervisor Dan Hamburg’s angst and displeasure with you and your newspaper. His sentiments apparently were piqued by the widespread dissemination of August 2012 factual and legal findings that followed my office’s ten-month investigation into the circumstances leading up to the death of Aaron Bassler.

As District Attorney, my role was to factually explain to the public what had happened and to legally evaluate whether law enforcement had acted within the boundaries of the law after Bassler murdered two upstanding local citizens and further threatened violence on law enforcement officers seeking his surrender in the woods.

Given Supervisor Hamburg’s expressed displeasure with the outcome, I respectfully invite him to undertake a fact-finding mission of his own and, upon its completion, release for public scrutiny his efforts and findings. I’m sure Mendocino County residents would be interested in a Hamburg report, perhaps even as much as they have overwhelmingly supported the information and findings my office has provided. I know I would be interested in the Supervisor’s summary of facts, the breadth of information he may choose to include, and any suggestions and proposed fixes. I will be especially watchful for an opportunity to legally evaluate any previously-undisclosed new information that Supervisor Hamburg uncovers to support what I trust will be his fair and objective conclusions.

C. David Eyster

Mendocino County District Attorney

Ukiah

CHARGING FOR LETTERS?

Dear Editor,

I hope this note finds you and all else well at the mighty AVA these days. I’m writing today because I am shocked and appalled at two columns that appeared in this past week’s edition of our local paper, The Pacifica Tribune. Though ostensibly a local paper that covers the happenings in Pacifica (pop. ~40,000), the Trib is owned by the Bay Area News Group and is a subsidiary of the San Jose Mercury News.

The matter at hand is a pair of columns written by the newspaper’s staff regarding endorsement letters to the editor for candidates for the upcoming city council elections. The first column was written by the editor of the paper, Elaine Larsen. In addition to the atrocious grammar (e.g., “….potential endorsement that will be written by myself and our Community Division Publisher” — has no one told this editor that “myself” is to be used in a reflexive context and, when one is referring to another individual and oneself, the other is to be listed first?), the discussion of the Trib’s policy on letter writers’ endorsements of candidates, articulated in the fourth paragraph, is particularly astonishing. In it Ms. Larsen notes that the only endorsements allowed will be via paid political advertisements:

Her fourth and final paragraph (which is composed of a single sentence) defends this practice by stating that, in her estimation, the ads are “reasonably priced.” I can only conclude at some subconscious level that she must know that this practice is deeply morally wrong, hence her need to defend it.

The second column is written Ms. Larsen’s boss, a Mr. Steve Paterson, and is ironically titled “Shame on us.” Instead of expressing remorse and shame over stifling the expression of those too impoverished to pay for advertising space or issuing a mea culpa acknowledging that the system they are implementing will result in those with the biggest ads getting the most space and, therefore, the most recognition, Mr. Paterson nakedly spells out the grasping publication’s true motives when he states that, “After all we, as other businesses, are a business with investors and owners who seek a profit.” He offers no acknowledgement of the traditional role of the local newspaper as a community organ around which members of community communicate and share ideas regarding issues of the day. Instead, in a “down is up and up is down” turn of phrase that would make Karl Rove proud, he has the unmitigated gall to claim that political advertising “…levels the playing field and takes the newpapers (sic) subjectivity out of the equation. So, shame on us for trying to please our community in the past by allowing this practice.”

I suppose it is theoretically possible that a letters page that allows endorsements could be exploited by so-called “Astroturf” campaigns where a company uses its representatives or PR hacks to impersonate regular Joes and Janes to flood a letters page for endorsements for a specific candidate or proposition, but how likely is that to happen? Wouldn’t a savvy editor be able to identify such campaigns (and report on them to the paper’s readership as an interesting news item)?

My purpose in writing to you about this travesty and tragedy is dual-fold: First, I know that not everyone agrees with what is written in the AVA, but I am grateful to you for printing a wide variety of viewpoints and most especially for having such a wonderful and extensive letters-to-the-editor section where (shockingly!) candidate endorsements are allowed. Second, as I’ve commented to my wife on more than one occasion lately, the AVA is one of the few places where I can find decently written prose of any kind whatsoever. In both of these ways, the AVA is truly living up to its billing as “America’s Last Newspaper” and I am deeply appreciative for your hard work and dedication and drive that brings the paper to us week in and week out. Reading it is one of the highlights of my week.

With much appreciation my best regards to you and Ling and Zack.

Tor Neilands

Pacifica/Clow Ridge

PS. Update: I am pleased to report that the citizens of Pacifica rose up on their hind legs and persuaded the Pacifica Tribune to reverse the terrible policy of prohibiting political candidate endorsements in letters sent to the editor. It helped that several eagle-eyed readers pointed out that other local papers, including this paper’s parent or flagship paper, did and still do in fact allow for such endorsements. The comments area on their on-line edition/page makes for lively reading; embedded within the comments is a mea culpa from Mr. Paterson about the policy.

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FRAUD? WHAT FRAUD?

Dear Editor:

The GOP has added a new twist to their attempts in suppress minority and young voters in a number of red states through their photo ID and birth certificate laws. Although the legislatures in these red states say they have done so because of voter fraud, there is little evidence of voter fraud. The New York Times, in an editorial regarding the early closing of precincts in counties in Ohio that vote Democratic referred to this practice as “Overt Discrimination.” The editorial board was too kind. I would call it “Overt Racism.” The state of Florida also passed Jim Crow laws when there was no evidence of voter fraud.

Now the twist: the Republican National Committee (RNC) reccommended Allied Strategic Consulting for voter registration efforts to state committees in seven swing states. Among other state committees the Republican Party of Florida signed a consulting contract with this firm. Now the Florida committee has fired the firm for filing in a number of counties “suspicious voter registration forms.” They also filed a complaint with the Division of Elections alleging the firm turned in forms with fake signatures and false information. The RNC and state committees in North Carolina, Colorado and Virginia have also canceled their contracts with the firm.

The owner of the firm, Nathan Sproul, has a sullied reputation dating back to past elections where his employees allegedly destroyed Democratic voter registrations. Sproul says RNC officials because of his reputation requested that he set up a new company so the party would not be publicly tied to his reputation. His name does not appear in the corporate paperwork. The RNC denies his story: however, my first impression is to believe Sproul. The irony certainly is while the GOP takes action based on unsubstantial charges it turns out they are the ones guilty of the sin.

In peace,

James G. Updegraff

Sacramento

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YEE HAH!

Dear Editor,

Subject: AMTRAK Thruway Bus Drivers

I never did get her name, but she was a frowzy blond in her late 40s or early 50s who did her own chain installations on the rear duals after the snow starts flying. She only used the PA once. Her welcoming statement was, “If you use alcohol or tobacco on my bus, I WILL throw you off!” The rest of the trip, she spoke loud enough without amplification for the first four or five rows to hear. She said whatever was on her mind, whether we responded or not. Her gratuitous comments were frequently punctuated with “YEE HAH,” as in what a cowboy sez after discovering the exhilaration of the V-8 internal combustion engine. She said it to other drivers. “Yee Hah, look at that idiot, changing lanes right in front of us without even looking.”

She has been driving for AMTRAK for two and a half years. Before that, a school bus. I’m guessing her present job is easier, even with the chains. You can manhandle THEM.

One-lane traffic, crawling all the way to Nyack, CHP units parked among the construction equipment, lights flashing. “CALTRANS is taking a very casual approach to this year’s highway-widening project. They just don’t seem to give a damn. They started two months early (April) and they are supposed to be finished with this segment tomorrow. They are going to miss it by a month or more — they will probably be working into the first snowstorm — that will be the 24th or 25th of October — at least that’s what it’s been the last three years.”

Finally, she gets a response from the fit-looking, hirsute guy in work clothes sitting behind me. He is headed for Bakersfield; he works county road crews on the Grapevine. There ensues a long, highly technical discussion of snow chains: chains vs cables, buying them or making your own from scratch, “ice cutters,” speed limits (25 or 30, at the most — “I have seen four-wheelers, who have never driven in snow before, doing 60 on chains — for a little while”), which wheels to put them on on a big rig, whether and how much 4WD helps, and on and on. I-80 is very rarely closed; the Grapevine closes several times each winter and it’s only 4,000 feet. “Those idiots down there don’t know how to drive on ice; it’s the crashes that close I-5.”

“On I-80, you never see CHP units in the wintertime unless there is a wreck. They hide well.”

“How many locomotives do you need on a 100-car freight train going over “the hill”? “That depends on what’s in those cars. The train we just passed had two on the front, one in the middle and three on the back.”

Auburn station, we’re circling the parking lot headed for the designated bus stop. A blue Suburu stops right in front of us so the driver can let his girl friend out. They exchange parting pleasantries, oblivious. “What a numb nuts! HEL-lo? How can you NOT see a 45-foot bus on your ass?!?” The young woman finally looked up, startled. She gave us a nervous smile and a wave.” “Yee Hah” sez our driver, without waving back.

When she handed me my bag in Sacramento (right on schedule), I gave her two bucks, but more for the entertainment than for handling my bag.

Cheers,

Your dedicated AMTRAK Guest Rewards Member.

Stewart Bowen

Suisun City

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MITT’S LINKS

Editor,

I'm wondering if you noticed the links between the taxpayers who pay their fair share here (for functional government and other phantom notions), and Romney's current position as champion of the 'self-made man' deal? Personally, I've not been so upset since the 50's and all that uproar over the blue suede shoes.

Mitt has got considerable mileage from the apparent success of his Bain Capital, how it creates wealth which then might dribble down; how it creates jobs, though what kind, how many, and where, still remain mysteries. Democracy Now pointed out recently that Bain started up with some millions input from the ghouls who ran the death squads in El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala. Congratulations, Mitt, for this stellar bit of your resume. What DN neglected to mention is that those same Central American millionaires who routinely murdered men, women, and children, human rights workers, labor organizers, liberation theologists, and various innocent bystanders, got a goodly pile of their personal wealth directly from U.S. taxpayers. Go back and look up the massive contributions made to their coffers covertly, through the Black Budgets of the CIA, NSC, NSA, and other spooks. These moneys did get some note in the press then, but received little of the emphasis due them then, and almost none since. The point is, the horrors perpetrated by the death squads then, and the horror of Mitt Romney now, were and are all built upon handouts from the treasury of Human Americans' hard-earned dollars.

And it will not go without saying again here that not one dime of wealth is created in any office, anywhere. Not one grain of gold, not one crumb of coal or drop of oil, not one grain of rice or slice of bacon enters any economy but through the hands of PEOPLE working to make it so. The theorists who hoot about the 'trickle down' economic model have it directly backwards: Any waste-water treatment worker can tell you it's definitely not MONEY that rolls downhill.

Quite sincerely,

Rick Weddle

San Francisco

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SAVE THE USPS

Dear Editor,

Alexander Cockburn came to me in a dream and said: “Save the US Post Office.”

“How?” I asked.

“Tell everybody to put an extra ten cent stamp on all their letters. Pass the word.”

Aloha,

Bill Brundage

Kurtistown, Hawaii

PS. I anxiously await your lengthy hysterical critique of NPR news.

Ed note: Too boring.

QUOTABLE LOFGREN

Dear Editor,

Here are just a few of the exquisite quotations from the new book by Mike Lofgren, The Party is Over; How Republicans Went Crazy, Democrats Became Useless, and the Middle Class Got Shafted. It’s an easy read, filled with great quotables, and rich in detail. It is based on fact, not opinion, and it’s a cogent explanation of how we got to where we’re at. It’s not a rant or a screed, but rather a well organized mental trip into the abyss.

“As Hannah Arendt has observed then, a disciplined totalitarian minority can use the instruments of democratic government to undermine democracy itself.”

“The GOP’s thirst for confrontation and crisis is symptomatic of a destructive and nihilistic streak that has overtaken our political system”.

“Republicans are now operating on the Leninist principle of ‘the worse, the better’. Delay and gridlock have been the Republicans’ principal objective for the last three years…They have so far been mostly successful in meeting their objectives.”

“When they (Republicans) are out of power they focus single-mindedly on seizing up the wheels of government to prove to the American people that government just doesn’t work—at least when the GOIP is out of power.”

“But for present-day Republicans, and even more for the Tea Party activists who run around in colonial garb, the Constitution is the most sacred document they have never read.”

“None of this would have happened in the presence of a vigilant press or a resolute citizenry conscious of its rights and skeptical of distraction, scare tactics, or intimidation..”

“Nations have declared wars against other nations since time immemorial. Now, for the first time, we were declaring war on a tactic.”

“War is a racket. It always has been. It is possibly the oldest, easily the most profitable, surely the most vicious…It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives.”--General Smedley Butler, U.S. Marine Corps, twice awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.

“Congress, however has heaved out the window its constitutional responsibilities both to declare war and to raise and support armies, as well as to demand that the Pentagon adhere to the appropriations and accountability clauses of the Constitution.”

“In 2001 the United States already spent as much on it s military as all everyone else in the world, but that did not help prevent 9/11.”

“Vaunting rhetoric to the contrary, our military policies of the last decade have left us less prosperous, less secure, and less free.”

“But the larger objective, beyond specific policies, is to blanket the American public with a message of fear.”

“According to a 2012 evaluation by Reporters Without Borders, the United States’ press ranks as only the forty-seventh freest in the world.”

“The religious right provides the foot soldiers for the GOP.”

“All around us now is a prevailing anti-intellectualism and hostility to science. Politicized religion is the sheet anchor of the dreary forty-year old culture wars.”If the world is divided between the Children of Light and the Children of Darkness, then compromise in the spirit of traditional representative government becomes difficult.”

“It is ironic that the United States should have been founded by intellectuals, for throughout most of our political history, the intellectual has been for the most part either an outsider, a servant, or a scapegoat.”

“The plutocrats would drag us back to the Gilded Age; the theocrats to the Salem witch trials.”

"The Tea Party faithful are not so much libertarian as authoritarian, the furthest thing from a “live free or die” constitutionalist.”

“If this country ever fully uncorks the genie of politicized religion, as the Republican Party has been attempting to do, we shall long regret it.”

The American political system does not suffer from too much thinking and critical analysis; it is becoming crippled by their virtual absence.”

“Owing to the lack of serious and informed popular interest in real issues, we have current Republican menu of pseudo-issues: abortion, gay marriage, flag burning, prayer in schools, sharia law, and so on.”

“Rigid ideology and faith-based evidence have created an alternate reality for many Republicans.”

“These people’s obsessive drive for personal power, their ruthlessness in exercising it, their recklessness and heedlessness of the consequences, and their blind faith in their own righteousness makes them authoritarian personalities, to be sure, but also exactly the wrong people to be holding power in representative government.”

“If Congress is often woefully uninformed about national security matters, it is sometimes because the Pentagon willfully misinforms them.”

“The crowning irony is that the preposterous attacks against Obama actually did the president a favor by masking his true political makeup: that of a corporate centrist who basically followed (with minor variations) the main policy line of his predecessor.”

As Republicans have grown ideologically more rigid, Democrats have almost entirely ceased to have any core beliefs at all—and their grab for corporate money is as egregious as that of the GOP.”

“If Bush’s policies were a dangerous excursion from constitutional practices, what are we to say now that Barack Obama has consolidated, institutionalized, and expanded those practices?”

Lee Simon

Far ‘n Away Farm, Virginia