New Quaker Notebook

Can't you just feel the love? Some things I've observed this week in and around the American political scene:

The Congressional vote to keep the Patriot Act means that al-Qaeda has won. Terrorism really does work.
The one-vote margin for the passing of CAFTA might suggest a shift in viewpoint for the House and Senate, but it's not enough to preserve what little economic justice there is for the poor in Central America. The majority in Congress doesn't care what happens to them.
The Senate vote to block lawsuits against gun manufacturers (The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act) is another Wild West largesse for the powerful gun lobby in the US.
The 1,724-page energy bill passed by Congress this week hands over fistfuls of free tax money to the major energy corporations. At least it also extended daylight-saving time—so Americans can work longer hours to pay for it all.
Hillary Clinton's call at the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) for "a cease-fire, time for all Democrats to work together based on the fundamental values we all share" was like the bark of a sheep dog calling the herd to the middle of the field. Soon Ralph Nader won't be able to recognize Tweedle-dum and Tweedle-dee, for they will be one and the same. What do we call countries where there is only one political party?
It appears that President Bush has given Americans the finger twice [See bradblog.com for the two rude finger flips]. Watch for it a third time when he makes John Bolton Ambassador to the UN in a special recess appointment.
Oh, and how about Iraqnam? That's going well, don't you think?

Those Chinese are a riot. Grist Magazine sent me the following news piece in its weekly alert today:

Chinese villagers riot to keep polluting pharmaceutical plant closed

Thousands of Chinese protestors battled police for hours last week in an effort to stop a polluting plant from resuming operations. Villagers in Xinchang, China, 180 miles south of Shanghai, say corrupt local officials have refused to do anything about chemical wastes from the Jingxin Pharmaceutical Co. that have ruined crops, poisoned the local river, and made villagers sick. Jingxin was closed after an explosion there killed a worker in early July; after plans to reopen it were announced, people traveled via mountain paths and rice paddies to protest by throwing rocks and overturning police cars. Police have bussed in reinforcements and closed off all roads to the facility. Protestors in Xinchang say they're inspired by the success in the nearby city of Dongyang, where more than 10,000 rioters turned out against a polluting pesticide factory in early spring. They vow to keep it up until the Jingxin plant is moved. Says one demonstrator, "They are making poisonous chemicals for foreigners that the foreigners don't dare produce in their own countries."[1]

My guess is that it won't take the Chinese long to realize that global free-market capitalism not only exploits people and countrysides, but it also generates lots of trash. Anyone remember the Mobro, the Long Island garbage barge that in March 1987 headed down the Atlantic coast toward North Carolina with 3,186 tons of trash, only to be turned away—again and again and again? (The mate was a mighty sailin' man, the skipper brave and sure. Five passengers set sail that day, for a three hour tour, a three hour tour ....) Six months, six states, and three countries later the barge finally got to unload its fetid cargo back in Islip, New York, where it all started. Oddly, I don't remember any Americans rioting over that.[2]

1. Sources are: The New York Times, July 19, 2005; Reuters, July 19, 2005 ; AsiaNews.it, July 19, 2005.
2. Hey, it's not too late, especially as we learn that we're now carrying dozens of potentially harmful toxic compounds in our bodies. In tests on about 2,400 people in 2000 and 20001, the US Centers for Disease Control found them carrying around more than 100 compounds, many known to be linked to health issues. Thanks again to Grist Magazine for the story and these sources: Los Angeles Times, July 22, 2005; Mercury News, July 22, 2005; Wall Street Journal, July 22, 2005.

Bush Administration Replaces 'War on Terror' Slogan

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration is changing its slogan for its global fight against terrorist groups and is now pushing the idea that the long-term struggle is as much an ideological battle as it is a military mission, senior administration and military officials said on Monday.

Gen Richard B. Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the National Press Club on Monday that he had "objected to the use of the term 'war on terrorism' before, because if you call it a war, then you think of people in uniform as being the solution." He said the threat instead should be defined as violent extremists, with the recognition that "terror is the method they use."

Recently, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and senior military officers have begun speaking of "a struggle against violent extremism" rather than "the global war on terror," which had been the administration's catchphrase of choice. Now, say officials, that phrase may no longer be relevant because it focused attention solely on the military campaign. Instead, Rumsfeld said in a news conference today, "we will now refer to the 'struggle against violent extremism' in the United States, or simply the acronym 'SAVE US'."

Satire using a shortened, loosely re-written news article published in New York Times, Tuesday, July 26, 2005. Original article is archived at Common Dreams News Center.

Okay, so I need to get out more. I was hanging out online over at Harper's Magazine and happened to check out their selection of cartoons by Mr. Fish and came across his July 8 cartoon featuring an image of Jesus surrounded by children. The caption reads:

Jesus teaching the virtues of love, homophobia, the 2nd amendment, the death penalty, disdain for Mexicans, unilateralism, English-only legislation, tearing down the wall between church and state, censorship, war in space, a shitty healthcare system, and patriotism amped fanatically into an ugly prejudice to children.

Now that isn't true ... but then it is true. That's funny, how can a cartoon make you cry? What's up with that?

More Rove continues at Wikipedia. The Karl Rove entry over at Wikipedia is now live again for editing. It was protected from editorial changes for about three days while disputes were resolved on the discussion page for contributors. Wikipedia's policy specifies that "all articles should be written from a neutral point of view: without bias, representing all views fairly." Not surprisingly, this NPOV involving Rove was in hot dispute, but the lengthy editorial protection began to threaten the timeliness of the article. Some of the disputed issues on the talk page included how best to write about Rove's 1992 firing from George H.W. Bush's re-election campaign for allegedly leaking information to journalist Robert Novak.

You would think that Rove would be more cautious (or should the word be circumspect ... discreet ... heedful ... patriotic?) when talking again with Novak.