LEAVE IT TO PEEVER

Congress – Let me die in peace

– Bumper sticker of the week: Let’s all suffer so rich people can have more money.

– Quote of the week: "Whatever women must do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily, this is not difficult." Charlotte Whitton

"Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission." Eleanor Roosevelt

– Oil continues to be the name of the game: It is now over $55 per barrel. The world has never seen it over $40. Get ready: Soon it will be a luxury to drive a car and heat a home. Just you wait and see. Maybe, just maybe, we should start thinking about some alternatives.

– The Schiavo case draws a blank for Bush: In the Bush administration’s latest attempt to run interference in the lives of American citizens, the federal court system refused to step in and overrule 19 state judges from Florida, all who agreed Schiavo’s husband has a right to allow her to die by not continuing to have her force-fed. This was an unprecedented attempt by Congress and the president to interfere with states’ rights, and our right-to-die. The federal court basically told the president and his right-winged cohorts to mind their own business and keep their asses out of our personal lives. At least, that’s what they should have said. The courts should tell them the same about abortion. The government, in particular Bush and his right-winged warriors, have no business pushing their pious beliefs off on the rest of us. Not in a democracy.

– Quote, From Rep. Sam Johnson, Texas: "Syria is the problem...You know, I can fly an F-15, put two nukes on ‘em, and I’ll make one pass. We won’t have to worry about Syria anymore." If someone said that about Washington, they’d be thrown in one of our secret detention camps and held unlawfully, probably forever.

– Here’s a good one from right-wing cheerleader, Ann Coulter: "Press passes can’t be that hard to come by if the White House allows that old Arab Helen Thomas to sit within yards of the president." Ends up Helen Thomas has been reporting on the presidency for 45 years. Typical Coulter bullshit.

– Forced democracy: President Bush’s goal is to democratize the world, one threat, one war at a time. It doesn’t trouble him that perhaps that is not what the rest of the world wants. On the other hand, democracy has done wonders for us: We are the only civilized nation in the world that does not have universal health-care; we attack other nations based on lies well-documented; we have as much graft and corruption in our government as any in the world; we have a broken down justice system; our school system is crumbling before our eyes; our highways are reverting back to horse paths; our corporations own the media and the government; we now have corrupt elections; we have right-wing yahoos running the place; we are shipping all our jobs overseas; we have a huge national debt; and we are polluting ourselves into extinction. If you’re selling democracy, the one place you wouldn’t want to look is here. That’s why Bush doesn’t lead by example. He leads by force and lies. Carl Rove has taught him well the art of deception. Keep an eye on these countries. Forced democracy might soon be coming their way: Iran, Syria, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela. Democracy, making Bush’s buddies richer and richer, one country at a time.