Monday, September 12, 2005

New Orleans reveals Bush administration's true colors

Check out my article in the Bowdoin Orient which expands upon my comments on Bush's response to Katrina.

Here's an excerpt:

Liberals have long been alleging that this president is oblivious to the needs of the poor, and rightfully so. On August 30, the Census Bureau released statistics showing that household income has failed to increase for five years in a row, the first time in recorded history this has happened.

In addition, the poverty rate actually rose last year. All this has happened despite White House claims that we are in the middle of economic recovery.

That may be the case, depending upon how you define a recovery. But what is clear is that income inequality has grown dramatically during Bush's presidency. Corporate profits, meanwhile, continue to rise steadily thanks to the war and Bush's cozy relationship with corporate America. The rich continue to get richer, and the poor continue to get poorer.

All the while, right-wing Christians continue to be under the illusion that this is a president who cares about the poor.

In the church I was raised in, we were taught that one of the core principles of Christianity was to care for the poor. It's sad that politics has made Bush forget this. Perhaps the latest tragedy will open people's eyes to the truth.

Tuesday, September 06, 2005

New Orleans Shows Bush's Disregard for the Poor

The current debacle is just the latest episode to show that Bush and his cronies care much more about their rich and powerful friends than average citizens.

Just a casual glance at the images of the ruined city make it clear that the majority of the victims stranded in the city during the hurricane were poor and black. Now I’m not calling the administration racist. I’m just saying that they have never truly cared about the poor and downtrodden.

If a similar disaster had occurred in Orange County, California, or a similar wealthy, white bastion of conservatism, I think it’s safe to say that help would have been sent immediately. It would be foolish to ignore the roles race and class play in this tragedy.

The people whose lives were most deeply affected by Katrina were the ones who could not afford to leave the city-the poor. These are the same people who have been most hurt by the war in Iraq as well. As their sons and daughters come home in coffins, Bush’s friends in corporate America are lining their pockets with war profits. It must be nice to be so isolated from reality.

It's time to stop ignoring class in America. We live in a classist society, and we have a president who grew up with a silver spoon in his mouth, a president who is so isolated from ordinary Americans that he cannot relate to them. The poor in New Orleans, and the poor across the country, are the real victims. We live in a country where millions live each day in poverty, and it's time to stop ignoring this.

Friday, September 02, 2005

Bush's energy policy and Hurricane Katrina

Note: This was cross-posted on Daily Kos under my diary page

The disaster in New Orleans is obviously a tragedy. And even I can't blame Bush for the weather. However, it is worth noting that Bush's terrible energy policy is partly responsible for the recent rise in gas prices.

If we had a truly comprehensive energy policy that didn't rely almost exclusively on oil, mainly foreign oil, it's safe to say that we wouldn't be paying $3 at the pump right now. Since the disaster destroyed a bunch of off-shore oil rigs, supply of gas has been tight, leading to an increase in prices. The administration has released oil from the domestic strategic reserves, but this isn't enough to make up for the shortfall.

If our country wasn't run by former (and current) energy executives, perhaps we would have an energy policy that moves us towards sustainable sources(i.e. solar, wind, green power, and other renewable sources). It will take political will, however, and unfortunately the Bush administration does not possess that. After all, Cheney, Bush, and their friends at companies like Exxon Mobil are making out like bandits while the average citizen gets screwed at the pump.

"Compassionate conservativism" is a misnomer. They're only compassionate towards their wealthy friends at energy companies. Meanwhile, the average working American is devoting more and more of their paycheck to gas.

Bush's Obscene Tirades Rattle White House Aides

This piece was just way too funny to pass up.

While President George W. Bush travels around the country in a last-ditch effort to sell his Iraq war, White House aides scramble frantically behind the scenes to hide the dark mood of an increasingly angry leader who unleashes obscenity-filled outbursts at anyone who dares disagree with him.

“I’m not meeting again with that goddamned bitch,” Bush screamed at aides who suggested he meet again with Cindy Sheehan, the war-protesting mother whose son died in Iraq. “She can go to hell as far as I’m concerned!”


Bush flashes the bird, something aides say he does often and has been doing since his days as governor of Texas.
Bush, administration aides confide, frequently explodes into tirades over those who protest the war, calling them “motherfucking traitors.” He reportedly was so upset over Veterans of Foreign Wars members who wore “bullshit protectors” over their ears during his speech to their annual convention that he told aides to “tell those VFW assholes that I’ll never speak to them again is they can’t keep their members under control.”