Which Side Are You On?

"Go get a job right after you take a bath." - Newt Gingrich recalls his chicken hawk youth and revives the Dirty Hippie taunt, lovingly highlighted by Andrew Breitbart.

The recent criminal violence by Police Officers directed at the #Occupy Protesters is merely a symptom of the Overall Disease which plagues America; The Infestation of the Nation by the 1%. I use the terms very purposefully because what we have seen besides Criminal Behavior by the Police (at the direction of their 1%) is a orchestrated campaign of dehumanization from Rightwing Propagandists and servants of the Plutocracy designed to create conditions were conservatives support violence against the 99%.

It's a daily barrage of loaded terms, bigoted labels, and dehumanizating castigation of the #Occupy Movement which has seeped into and now permeates every rightwing blog and news site. It's also a very old tactic. And if you should happen to be so skeptical that the Rightwing Media of this Nation is being pulled/directed/massaged towards vilifying and lying about OWS, you are not paying attention.

Here is a Lobbyist memorandum to the American Bankers Association highlighting ways to target OWS, including the monitoring of Open Source Intel (#Occupy Social Media Sites) to manufacture smears and plan counter-protest actions and strategizing the Messaging War against OWS. All for the low, low price of $850,000 USC.

It should have been clear early on that the 1% wasn't going to allow their control of this country subside merely because their inhuman greed, evil crimes, theft, oppression and murder had pushed the total income of 150 Million Americans under that of 400 people. And that a mere 0.1% (One-Tenth of the One Percent) make HALF of the Capital Gains Income in this Nation.

The 1% has always had willing defenders who will lie, obfuscate, confuse, smear, distort and when that fails just call for outright violence.

"Remember the lesson from my book: It just took a few shootings at Kent State to shut that down for good," - Ann Coutler.

The Process of dehumanization is almost complete. From World Net Daily writer Phil Elmore,

"Call out the National Guard. Turn on the fire hoses. Send bulldozers. Bring flame-throwers, for pity's sake. Men and women who give a damn about their country, wearing Hazmat suits and respiratory gear, empowered by the lawful government of this nation, should be marching in ranks on every Obamaville this very moment, prepared to beat with truncheons and shoot with rubber bullets every last filthy hippie. The "occupiers" are criminals and terrorists."

Here's a twittter rundown from John Nolte, Editor-in-chief of Andrew Breitbart's Big Government Site. His tweets read as a justification of violence and oppression and are cheerfully supported by the diseased Rightwingers. A Nolte tweet from Nov 17, "#OWS #OccupyWallStreet is a domestic terrorist organization. End of Story." A Nolte tweet from Nov 20, "Why do people say 'pepper-spraying defenseless Occupiers' as though it's a bad thing?"

Because at the core of this Battle is; Who shall control the Country? The 1% and their Rightwing Guardians or the 99%? Which side are you on? The 99% or Karl Rove's? We ARE the 99%.

"No you're not! No you're not! No you're not! No you're not! No you're not! If you believe in the right of the First Amendment to free speech then you demonstrate it by shutting up," Karl Rove...

Republicans don't like to serve those extra 2/5ths persons

Bartender: "Hey! We don't serve their kind here!"
Luke: "What?"
Bartender: "Your droids. They'll have to wait outside. We don't want them here." ~ Discrimination rears it's ugly head even a long time ago, in a galaxy far far away...

Sharron Angle and Ayn Rand Paul are two of the most vocal Republicans to push forward the Republican Party agenda of removing the illegal 2/5ths of a person unconstitutionally added by Liberal activist judges.

The vast majority of conservatives and Republicans are bigots and racists. Every day the Republican Party is exposed for racism which permeates their party. David Bartholomew, the chair of Virginia Beach's Republican party, sent forth a typical racist Republican joke email which is so vile I wont repeat, but you can view it here.

However, more disconcerting than the individual racists who inhabit all levels of the Republican Party and all manners of conservatives is the effort by Tea Party groups to use naked aggression and threats to keep minorities from voting. Here's a sample of Tea Party Tolerance and conservative non-bigotry:

"You liberial scumbags should be hung by the neck in public ! We are on to your voter fraud. Keep it up you MOTHER FUCKERS and you will soon be put down for a long dirt nap! Your nothing but a bunch of white guilt ridden assholes, NIGGERS and greasy mexican spics!

Angle when confronted about her blatantly racist Watch out for the illegal mexican stealing college scholarships from wholesome white peoples campaign videos told the Hispanic crowd they looked a little more Asian to her. Angle sounds a little Ass-ian to me.

Rand Paul is livid that Corporations are not allowed to discriminate based on race or ethnicity and would not have voted for the Civil Rights act. "I don't like the idea of telling private business owners... But at the same time I do believe in private ownership." Paul believes in a Free Market were conservatives are free to tell certain people we don't serve your kind here.

Angle and Paul and so many others in the Republican Party are vile or ignorant racists but Racism is not the driving power behind the party. The real goal is to get these ignorant fiends elected so the Corporate Plutocrats can eliminate all assistance to the poor and Middle Class.

If the Republicans wrest control of Congress in 2010, they are coming for your Social Security. The Republican "Roadmap for America's Future" details plans to steal as much as 50% of Social Security benefits. The Moneyed Masters of the Republican Party have wanted to get their hands on Social Security for years. They want that money flushed into Wall street were they can make it disappear to Switzerland through algorithms and derivatives.

And with Republican victories this year they'll get it...

***Conservative Terror Alert - High***

The rising spate of Conservative Terror Attacks and the Republican Apocalyptic Denunciations and calls for Armed Revolt and Political Violence during 2009 and 2010 have placed the Obama Administration in the Time when Republicans and Conservatives embraced Terror in order to Win Political Power.

Liberals have gotten far too desensitized to the daily non-stop Terror Campaign being waged by the Toxic Bloggers, Right Wing Radio Hate Mongers and Republican Party Members. Not content with being racist bigots Republicans and Conservatives have imported the ideology of Al Qaeda and the Taliban thus became Terrorists.

When will the Conservative Terror Campaign end?

Probably never. But, especially if their tactics of lies, fear, racism, violence, and threats win them elections in 2010 and/or 2012. Fortunately, President Obama is kicking ass. He's killed more Terrorists and prosecuted the War in Afghanistan better than Bush, Health Care Reform will stand as a crowning achievement for Obama, Speaker Pelosi and the Democratic Party, and Obama's decision to reallocate the Bush Bank Bailout (TARP) from the Robber Baron Bankers to poor and underwater middle class homeowners clearly shows the differences between the Parties. Republicans hate Americans and want the poor and middle class to die at home or abroad and Democrats want to aid Americans and return the United States to the glory achieved thanks to Past Democratic Reforms.

And Obama has done this while Republican invective has been urging, prodding and hoping a Conservative will make an Assassination Attempt. Fortunately, the constant stream of lies, threats and hysterical buffoonery bellowing forth from Steve King, Jean Schmidt, Newt Gingrich, Michele Bachmann, Paul Broun, Sarah Palin, Jim DeMint, Joe Wilson and every cowardly, racist, chicken hawk, Terrorist Republican only serves to ostracize them and will ensure their further defeats in 2010 and 2012.

But, until the April 15th date passes, the ***Conservative Terror Alert*** will remain on High for fear another Right Wing Extremist who has swallowed the Republican lies will unleash an attack on Americans in the hopes of destabilizing and undermining this great Nation and returning it to the odious hands of the Republican Death Merchants and War Mongers.

Conservatism is Terrorism...

Who Will Conservative Terrorists Murder Next?

I want Americans Armed and Dangerous. ~ Michelle Bachmann

We have a chance to fight this battle at the Ballot Box before we have to resort to the Bullet Box. ~ Catherine Crabill, in recognition of the Tea Parties

Because he will slowly but surely take away your gun or take away your ability to shoot a gun, carry a gun. ~ Glenn Beck

Those crazies in Montana who say, 'We're going to kill ATF agents because the UN's going to take over' -- well, they're beginning to have a case. ~ Dick Morris

The incidents of Conservative Terrorism are rising. Conservative Terrorists have absorbed and become infested with the vile blather spewing forth from Beck, from their elected Republicans, from the tawdry and brazen Michelle Malkin and her ilk the Right Wing Extremist Blogs and have decided to take out their anger on Government officials.

But, whom do these Conservative Terrorists attack? Low level Government workers, museum guards and police officers. They don't lash out at the Glenn Beck Marxists who infest the upper levels of Government. No they kill and shoot those who Howard Zinn pointed out are the Guards for the Establishment the 1% who control the Wealth of the Nation and turn the other 99% on ourselves.

Why?

Mostly because they are mentally unbalanced but they became unhinged because the Evil Shit Smeared Toxic Commentators Malkin, Coulter, Beck, Hannity, Limbaugh, Fox News and Republican Politicians have worked ceaselessly to warp their minds and to make them Terrorists. Because that's what Conservatives want. Conservatives want terrorism and violence, they want to instill fear in Americans, they want violent shootings, Conservatives want Americans murdered, they want to destabilize the American Government in order so they can then regain control of that Government.

Conservatives are Terrorists.

And who made jesus angry?

On this fake blessed day it's time to remember the one group of people whom even jesus hated and distrusted; Bankers.

Yes Bankers, as a group, could drive the prince of peace to violence.

And overwhelmingly what political party do Bankers vote for and identify with; The Republicans. Therefore it is safe to infer jesus hates Republicans. And it's irrefutable because it's in the bible.

Related:
Illinois Police protect Atheist Sign Now that's an extra detail I'd sign up for!

Murdered Officers

And all for no reason
Just one piece of lead ~ I Hung My Head, Sting

Ronald Owens, Greg Richards, Mark Renninger and Tina Griswold were murdered for being Cops. They were fathers and husbands and a wife and mother. Read the short bios at the Officer Down Memorial Page.

The Lakewood Washington attack is an extreme incident but when coupled by the thousands of hostile and highly charged emotional interactions Police Officers have with people, everyday on the job, Officers (being people as well) often times naturally build a bunker mentality in which the only ones they feel they can trust are each other.

Not the Public, not the Courts, not their local City Officials, and not far removed elected politicians...

However, it feels tawdry and offends me to expound on Mike Huckabee's decision to commute the 35 year prison sentence and release the prime suspect, Maurice Clemmons, in this case. I won't use fellow Officers deaths to score cheap political points.

Update:
Of course, the ignorant loathsome odious Republican Coward Mike Huckabee can't take any responsibility and blames the Courts:

Should he [Maurice Clemmons] be found to be responsible for this horrible tragedy, it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system...

And, Bill O'Reilly assures Huckabee "It's Not Your Fault". IOKIYAR.

Fort Hood and the Costs of War

The Horrible Incident at Fort Hood, in which at least 13 service members died and 29* were wounded is unquestionably a Terrorist Attack. And the perpetrator, Nidal Malik Hasan, appears to be a Sleeper Agent.

If one suicide bomber can kill 100 enemy soldiers because they were caught off guard that would be considered a strategic victory.

That comment and his extremist posts lauding muslim suicide bombers now seem to be advance warning of a plan to conduct an attack from within on Americans for the faith. An acquaintance, Colonel Terry Lee alleges Hasan stated, "Muslims should stand up and fight the aggressor and that we should not be in the war in the first place." And that Hasan said he was "happy" when a US soldier was killed in an attack on a military recruitment centre in Arkansas in June.

How does this incident factor into the current American wars? Well, strategically as far back as the Punic Wars Generals have realized the most effective way to undercut deployed troops is to stage attacks back on their homes instead of on the actual deployed army. This had the effect of dividing their attention and undercutting their morale.

Scipio Africanus engaged in such slash and burn tactics forcing the Carthaginians to recall Hannibal from the Italian Peninsula and into direct combat with his Scipio, leading to the Roman Victory over Hannibal at Zama.

Sherman's March to the Sea and the devastation it wrought pulled the Confederate forces from the fight up north not only through the material destruction and interruption of the South logistics but through the psychological impact on the Southern soldiers.

Now, we have this... tragedy. American soldiers unsafe on base in CONUS and unsafe with a Doctor who was, ostensibly charged with, helping them cope and adjust.

Another cost of war... Another calculation Chicken Hawk Punk Ass Bitch Warmongering Neo-Conservatives merely put down in the "it's worth it" side of the cost/benefit analysis warfare ledger... This one, single attack is a terrorists' best weapon as it will shake and disrupt US society profoundly. Although I'm certain Sean Hannity and Liz Cheney are delighted as they will no doubt try and use this to blame Obama somehow...

As for Hasan, after his trial and conviction, his execution by firing squad or hanging needs to be done the same day.

Additional:
I am struck by two incidents which are to me somewhat comparable. First the infamous Columbine Massacre. One theory purports Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold committed the slaughter in retaliation for the alleged rampant bullying they were subjected to in school and there are allegations Hasan was subjected to slurs and harassment for being a muslim post 9/11.

The second was recounted by Howard Zinn in A People's History of The United States,

A twenty-year old New York City Chinese-American named Sam Choy enlisted at seventeen in the army, was sent to Vietnam, was made a cook, and found himself the target of abuse by fellow GIs, who called him "Chink" and "gook" (the term for Vietnamese) and said he looked like the enemy. One day he took a rifle and fired warning shots at his tormenters. "By this time I was near the perimeter of the base and was thinking of joining the Viet Cong; at least they would trust me." ~ pg. 495-496.

However, in no way do these comparisons justify or mollify the murderous actions of Hasan.

Yep

“I reallly do think that the Michele Bachmanns of this world and the Glenn Becks of this world are actively and consciously — or subconsciously — trying to get — I’m just going to say it — trying to get the president killed,” Savage stated angrily. “That’s why they’re setting this up as kill-or-be-killed arguments. ‘He’s going to kill your grandma.’” - Dan Savage tells Keith Olbermann what Michele Dump Bachmann is trying to accomplish.

Michele Dump Bachmann publicly declares she hears voices in her head. C.S. Lewis created the tri-choice of Liar, Lunatic or Lord, so let's apply that to Bachmann.

Whose voice do you think she's hearing:

Is it The Lord?
Is it Her own and she's lying claiming it's god?
Is it someone else's voice and Michele Bachmann is a Lunatic in need of electro-shock therapy and heavy doses of anti-psychotic medications?

Update:
M. Dump Bachmann explained It's all the Democrats Fault! They're Out To Get Me! They're Coming To Take Me Away, ha-haa! "They're doing everything they can to, I think, sabotage women like Sarah Palin, perhaps women like myself..." [Talking Points Memo]

Got A Gun Kill Some Women

Got a Gun
Fact I got Two
That's Okay Man 'cause I love Guns - Glorified G, Pearl Jam

Guns are tools. However, they are tools with the specific function of the projection of deadly force.

2009 has been a year of lament due to gun violence. Besides the common run-of-the-mill accepted gun violence and deaths, the ones were the reader shrugs his shoulders and goes ho-hum another day / another 6 shot at a gang members funeral. There have been spectacular episodes of gun murder as when the typical shooter "a quiet non-violent man who kept to himself" walked into a New York state Immigration center in April and proceeded to murder 13 people before killing himself.

It's hard enough for Police and the Court systems to stay on top of restricting gun access to those who have documented crimes as a recent August incident when a Chicago man shot his wife to death before taking his own life after a Domestic Dispute had been charged with a DB and had an OOP filed against him in 2006.

As a Police Officer you always fear coming into a Domestic and finding one of the involved parties has a gun, as a Libertyville Officer came upon on August 15th ending in the shooting and death of the suspect by the Officer.

And then you add on the nearly impossible to predict incidents when some catalyst starts a reaction which results in the slaying of 3 women and the wounding of 9 others while they were in a fucking yoga class by the aforementioned typical shooter, a quiet man who kept to himself, but whose warped and frustrated mind built up edifices of anger, which exploded into a murderous rage. He Ran Amuck and because of the tools he acquired 3 innocent people lost their lives.

Unfortunately, the Toxic Right has been augmenting the gun violence by stoking the fears of deranged and disturbed people with ObamaHitler is coming for your guns. This directly led to the ambush and murder of 3 Pittsburgh police officers at the hands of a Right Wing Extremist Terrorist. Who was specifically acting upon the idea that Police Officers as Obama Government officials were coming to take his guns, under the Obama Gun Ban.

There have been other Right Wing Extremist terror attacks this year, using guns, the murder of Doctor George Tiller and the attack on the Holocaust Museum.

Now, the Toxic Right and elected Republican Congressmen are encouraging people to show up armed to Obama's Town Halls. Why? Why are those who stoked and feed the flames of irrational fears with daily rhetoric about the encroaching Brownshirted ACORN-Nazi-Liberal-Islamo-Marxist-Fascist-Communist Dictatorship, encouraging people to bring guns to Presidential Rallies? And why did they not express the same fervent encouragement for Code Pink or Anti-War protesters to come packing to to Bush or Cheney Rally Round the Flag We Need More War speeches? (There's that nasty old time function again! Rights and patriotism change when a non-Republican is in office. Threatening gun violence is now what Real Americans do!)

I don't know what to do about Gun violence. I have no magic panaceas. But, the violence is reaching levels where it has to be debated. Distressingly the pro-gun argument techniques oft times devolve into: Ahem! Second Amendment. QED. So therefore, and as such as. Because shut up. Also.

It's been made worse as the bureaucratic system to control and ensure guns don't end up in the wrong hands has been shown to be lacking. It's not laziness or corruption which causes inefficiencies in a bureaucratic system, it's just not possible to apply general rules to cover all specifics and to have 100% efficiency when dealing with such a large number of people.

Americans do not want to live in a society with this Sword of Damocles (Barrel of Right Wingers) hanging over our heads. Of being gunned down at school, at a yoga center, at a funeral. Of being mistaken for throwing gang signs when speaking with a hearing disabled person, of being killed by your abusive spouse or of finding oneself at the end of a Birthers AR-15.

But, the empty and corrupt Hollow Men, the Glenn Becks who cavalierly suggest it's Time to Get a Gun when bewailing the Democratic Party are pointing the weapon at that which they want to destroy and easing the fingers of the deranged Protesters on the trigger...

Literally, Nothing

Let me tell you about murder. It's Fun! It's Easy! You... Gonna learn all about it... Tin Tin, from the masterful epic The Crow

Obama is an Arab
Obama is Kenyan.
Obama is Muslim.

Obama is a Socialist.
Obama is a Communist.
Obama is a Nazi.

Obama is The Joker
Obama is Mao
Obama is Hitler.

Obama wants to kill Babies.
Obama wants to kill Old People.
Obama wants to kill you.

Hear me calling
Can't you hear my death tone ~ ManOwaR, Death Tone

There is literally nothing the Republicans, The Toxic Commentators, The Birthers, The Teabaggers and the ignorant brainwashed bigoted followers won't shout in their effort to have Obama murdered. Because that is the goal. To have one of their ilk "remove" Obama from office.

Is this the Modern Republican Party? The ObamaisLiterallyHitler constant refrain, the use of violence and intimidation to stop the Democratic Party? The Scorched Earth Party? The Death Panels? (In Honor of the American Marine, Quit Making Things Up Sarah!) How do you debate that? How do you reason with those whose stated political position is a declaration to use lies, violence, bloodshed and murder?

I can only hope The Second American Revolution is not coming, because those who seek to unleash the murder and mayhem apparently do not understand a thing like that, once released, can not be controlled and thousands of innocents will die.

And even though I'm a Veteran and Police Officer I'm certain I'll be eliminated because I don't hold the Modern Republican Party platforms of christian insanity, chicken hawk war profiteering, work the people to death in the Military and Industry and bigoted racism to escape being put up against a wall.

Right Wing Extremist RESPONSIBILITY

Do any of you people know who Charles Whitman was?

...

None of you dumbasses knows? ~ Gunny R. Lee Ermey from the Famous and oft misinterpreted Full Metal Jacket.

Ultimately, everyone themselves must be accountable for their actions. Responsibility is not a political issue. Of course, in the hyper drive to have control of the government in order to enforce your will on every other American everything is an issue.

There have been three highly covered and intensely partisan terrorist attacks in America in the last two weeks; The murder of a Doctor, an American Soldier and now a Security Guard. Lost in the major network coverage has been the spike in violence and murder all across the nation, especially in my neighborhood Chicago land area.

What has not been lost is the Republican Toxic Defenders immediate propaganda response to shift the blame away from themselves and their American terrorist fomenting rhetoric and minimize the DHS Right-Wing Extremist report, which rightly warned and predicted of the Right's Terror Campaign.

The Right's rhetoric theses days is akin to the trainers of suicide bombers. Their demagogues spew forth a constant stream of hate-filled vitriol designed to set up a cascade of mental dominoes in their ignorant and brain washed followers. Who then respond with acts of violence after which the toxic commentators rush to bellow about their innocence and non-culpability as the deadly fields of violence they have sown are reaped by the terrorists they train...

Usually those in power have no qualms about setting the lesser classes of Americans against one another. But, it so happens with the Toxic Republican Pro Human Pain and Suffering Party of Deferments collapsing as a viable political entity they are more than willing to ratchet up the violent inciting speech. This is always done with the sheen of plausible deniability hanging about so when someone does follow through Hannity, Glenn Beck, Jonah Goldberg, She Who Shall Not Be Named 2 and the rest can affect their wide-eyed stance of, well of course i didn't mean for my mouth breathing followers to actually murder those troop hating, American destroying, socialist liberals who deserve to be dealt with someway (wink wink)...

However, these extraordinary acts of Republican motivated political violence and bloodshed still do not worry me as much as the ordinary murder and bloodshed being visited upon normal decent everyday Americans, until now that the Toxic Republican Pro Human Pain and Suffering Party of Deferments continued Call for Jihad is turning the extraordinary right wing political terror campaign into ordinary everyday occurrences.

So the Toxic Right will continue their plan to Blame Barack for absolutely everything continue to push the go out and get a gun the liberals are destroying America bombast and hope and pray for another foreign terrorist attack on America.

Update:
Watch video of Ed Schultz correctly declare "Absolutely" to Joe Scarborough that Dick Cheney "wants Americans to die in a terrorist attack so he can regain a political advantage".

Overthrow

You thought it was a joke and so you
Laughed, you laughed! When I had said that
Losing you would make me flip my lid - right? ~ They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa! Napoleon XIV

Patriotism is a function of Time. Or a subset. I don't quite have the Math-esque analogies down yet. Protests against the Federal Government were once the bastion of the anti-american looney leftards, championing Tear-Oh-Wrists in Iraq, hurting the Troops and entirely unacceptable. But the sun orbits and then Blam! Here come the April 15th Tea Party Protests, which are totally not being orchestrated and are like totally populist.

Today, unlike at anytime during the previous 8 years, all responsible Congressmembers are calling for an "Orderly Revolutions".

Do they really want to succeed? Once the revolution, "Orderly" or not, begins you have called for an end to the tradition of peaceful transition of power.

I will not accept any post hoc eschatological, metaphysical, philosophical or other class of rationalizations to explain the overthrow of an elected figure. And it can't be a one-off never to be repeated event. The Djinn will be out. And from that point on I would never respect a Republican elected official in the Federal government. Never.

Update 04/15:
Many events have transpired since I first opened this article. Governor Rick Perry's call for Texas Secession and the horrible Ambush Murder of the Three Pittsburgh Brothers by a madman incited by the Obama's Coming to Take Guns Away, ha-haaa Meme.

Guns Amok

Run Amok - 'a murderous frenzy or rage'

Three more murderous rampages recently occurred in March in which firearms were used, one in Alabama, another in Germany and the killing of a pastor during a religious sermon in Illinois.

Yet there can be no debate on the gun issue as the common man is brow beaten into submission by slogans, "Guns don't kill people, people do!", "If owning a gun is made a crime, Only Criminals will have Guns!"

When someone in Java or Malaysia went Amuco centuries past, there was only so much murder they could accomplish with a war club and keris before being overpowered.

Is the threat of death by Amuco just another weight, another burden we must accept? The Dread of Damocles, of being gunned down, whether it be at a High School, a University, a Metal Concert, Church services, out shopping or while merely sitting on our front porch?

This past year Chicago experienced a sad spike in murders due to gun violence. The University of Chicago produced a study Gun Violence among School-Age youth in Chicago:

A total of 510 people were murdered in chicago during 2008. eighty percent of these victims were killed by gunfire. nearly half were between the ages of 10 and 25, and the vast majority were male. The dramatic overrepresentation of both young males and firearms in homicide is not unique to chicago, nor are these patterns new. Yet over the past 50 years, our society has made far less progress in understanding how to protect our citizens from gun violence (and violence more broadly) than we have learned about how to protect citizens from other serious threats to life and health.

I could list dates and numbers of persons killed in the recent murderous shootings rampages but I'm not going to use the sorrows of others to ply my argument. I don't have the answer. I don't know the magic fix to this problem. But, isn't it worth discussing? Isn't it worth attempting to disrupt the cycle? Couldn't the Laissez-faire market take a break from giving billions for Banker Bonuses and Bailouts and the never ending Black Hole of the Military Industrial Complex? Or is that just more government socialism?

The Worst Crime (the Shoe Thing)

Every Nation-State makes the removal of the Government the Worst Crime. Even being charged meant imprisonment, conviction meant a slow tortured death. The brutal case of Damiens in 1757 being one of the best recorded. In the United States, even threatening the life of the President (or those in the Succession) can lead to a fine and a maximum imprisonment of 5 years.

This is good, a civil society can not abide having people going around issuing or proclaiming death threats to anyone.

But... But, removing a nation's Government and killing it's citizens is exactly what happens during war. Individuals under the direction of Tipsy Canoe accomplished the removal and deaths of members of the Iraqi government, including the "elected leader". Along the way, innocent individuals were killed.

Usually the venerable Just War Theory is raised, but with Iraq a strange heresy was created by Dick Cheney when he morphed the Just War Theory into his 1% Doctrine - supposedly if there is a 1% chance of a threat facing the United States, military action is called for - which according to Ron Suskind became the foundation for invasion of Iraq.

So the Smoking Gun/Mushroom Cloud Raison d'etre was invoked. And Iraq was invaded sans War being declared.

Why is the overthrow of a government, not to mention the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent people, acceptable when a government claims it is, but unacceptable for the individual?

But, to answer my own rhetorical question, Governments, including the vaunted US one, grant themselves an exclusive Monopoly on the Use of Force. Allowing themselves the ability to circumvent laws at their whim. Occasionally this backfires and the pawns of that government rise up, but the US has little fear of that because it has evolved the greatest System of Controlling it's citizens seen in the history of the world.

The idea the State should be the sole arbiter and controller of force is very old but was given a political-philosophical coating by Thomas Hobbes in Levithan. Hobbes describes the creation of the Sovereign to whom and from whom all rights and powers derive. Bush, Cheney clearly hold to the Hobbesian view of the Sovereign. According to Hobbes, once placed in power the Sovereign can do no wrong and can commit no crime, nor can he commit an injustice. His actions can not injure his subjects because what is good for the Sovereign is good for the people.

This is evidenced by Bob Woodward's assertion Bush told him, "I'm the commander – see, I don't need to explain – I do not need to explain why I say things. That's the interesting thing about being the president. Maybe somebody needs to explain to me why they say something, but I don't feel like I owe anybody an explanation." ~ Bush at War

So, who cares how many American subjects died when they did have to die? Who cares if the subjects don't like the Iraq Occupation? So what if Al Qaeda wasn't in Iraq until the US invaded? Who cares about Illegal Wiretapping? Who cares about Signing Statements? So what if we do Torture? So what if the Sovereign lies? These actions are taken in defense of the Leviathan and as such the actions of the Sovereign are by axiom not illegal.

But, of course, real world actions have real world consequences. And while Ole Tipsy Canoe may believe his lies and is on a whirlwind tour to claim he kept America safe, including saving the largest "skyscaper" in Los Angeles. So, while excepting that whole 9/11 thing and the Amerithrax attacks others, especially those in the ravaged country of Iraq, seem to have a dimmer view, hence the Shoe-Throwing Attack. And Bush's clear ignorance is on display when he states, "I don't know what the guy's cause is..."

The bigger problem than Bush is the mess he leaves us with. Tipsy Canoe has allowed The United States to inherit the role of the Latter Roman Republic in Mesopotamia. Ahmed Chalabi used the US the way the Satraps and Deposed Princes of the fragmented Seleucid Empire called upon the military might of Rome to gain the throne. Of course, after civil war and repeated invasions by the Armenians and Parthians and Ptolemaic Egypt, Rome eventually took direct control of the Middle East. The results of the Roman entanglement in the Middle East (the creation of christianity and the unfortunate rise of islam) are the building blocks for the problems still facing the world today.

Despite all his crying Bush's actions have really only managed to "keep us safe" from prosperity, worldwide respect, and medical advances. But as the Sovereign, he views himself as absolved or rightly above and beyond punishment for crimes, which if perpetrated by an individual, would result in a sentence far worse than having two shoes thrown at them.