The Voice of Treason

“Representatives of the governments of the world, good morning to all of you. First of all, I would like to invite you, very respectfully, to those who have not read this book, to read it. Noam Chomsky, one of the most prestigious American and world intellectuals, Noam Chomsky, and this is one of his most recent books, ‘Hegemony or Survival: The Imperialist Strategy of the United States.’

It’s an excellent book to help us understand what has been happening in the world throughout the 20th century, and what’s happening now, and the greatest threat looming over our planet. The hegemonic pretensions of the American empire are placing at risk the very survival of the human species. We continue to warn you about this danger and we appeal to the people of the United States and the world to halt this threat, which is like a sword hanging over our heads. I had considered reading from this book, but, for the sake of time, I will just leave it as a recommendation.

It reads easily, it is a very good book…I think that the first people who should read this book are our brothers and sisters in the United States, because their threat is right in their own house. The devil is right at home. The devil, the devil himself, is right in the house.

– Hugo Chavez, September 20, 2006

“Any dictator would admire the uniformity and obedience of the U.S. media.”

– Noam Chomsky

Conversely, the U.S. media admires dictators.

Brian Williams: You say you have never repressed the rights of anyone — and you speak of the days when people were jailed for expressing opinions. Yet, during your authority, 100 newspapers have been closed — web loggers have been shut down. Western culture and music have been stopped from entering Iran. Arguably that is not freedom of expression.

Ahmadinejad: …Do you truly believe that using American music is a sign of freedom?

Brian Williams: I don’t like all American music…Mr. President, this is not a matter of great concern, this next question, but we have gotten used to seeing you in the tan jacket with the zipper. Today, you are dressed differently. Is that jacket a symbol of your standing or upbringing in Iran?

Williams: Excellent. You are on the cover of Time magazine here in the United States and around the world. Inside, it says, “A Date with a Dangerous Mind.” Why do you think they think you have a dangerous mind? Do you?

Frankly, it doesn’t matter how dangerous he is. People like Brian Williams, Mike Wallace, and Katie Couric aren’t going to let on.

“…With the passing of the era of agnostic philosophies, today humanity is once again joined in celebrating monotheism and belief in the Creator as the originator of existence. This is the common thread which binds us all.

…Faith and good deeds can bring deliverance and the good life even in this world.

…From the beginning of time, humanity has longed for the day when justice, peace, equality and compassion envelop the world. All of us can contribute to the establishment of such a world. When that day comes, the ultimate promise of all Divine religions will be fulfilled with the emergence of a perfect human being who is heir to all prophets and pious men. He will lead the world to justice and absolute peace.

– Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, September 17, 2005

“I emphatically declare that today’s world, more than ever before, longs for just and righteous people with love for all humanity; and above all longs for the perfect righteous human being and the real savior who has been promised to all peoples and who will establish justice, peace and brotherhood on the planet.

– Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, September 19, 2006

“God, I hate religion!”

– T, September 19, 2006

The Hungarian P.M. opened his mouth at the wrong time, but finally spoke the truth, and all hell has broken out in Budapest. The Thai P.M. makes a trip to New York and there’s a military coup back home. NASA can’t land the shuttle as planned because there’s a UFO - or two - out there. Muslims are still calling for the execution of the Pope and are, no doubt, planning to wipe Italy and the Vatican off the face of the earth. What the hell else is going to happen today?

Answer: Bill Richardson. No matter what’s going on in the world, Bill has to get his two cents in. I’m starting to think he travels with his own TV camera. Bill, the diplomat (although I still like to think of him as Bill Clinton’s pimp), has now gone on record to say that what the President should have said at the U.N. today is:

“We need your help. I’m here to ask for your help.”

Well, when Bill’s elected leader of the free world, he can go begging all he wants.

Anyway, the brownsheet skipped the U.N. lunch because alcohol would be served. What? We’re supposed to be impressed by your piety for passing up a glass of Pouilly Fuisse, but give you a pass for being a Holocaust denier and anti-Semite? (Hey, Mel was stoned out of his mind - this guy’s sober so there’s absolutely no excuse.)

Our President then took an opportunity to propose a toast. (Ooooh. Strategery.)

Bush gets trashed for his faith, yet Mahmoud stands before the U.N., prays for the end of the world — the return of the Twelfth Imam — and that’s great. I’m sure Mike Wallace is giddy as hell today.

Okay, so Rosie says:

“Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like America where we have a separation of church and state.”

And the Pope says:

“He said, I quote, ‘Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.’”

And what happens? Radical Christians set fire to the studio where The View is produced, shoot Rosie O’Donnell on West 66th, kidnap and mutilate her children, and vow to slit the throat of every lesbian in America.

Okay, okay, that hasn’t happened - probably because those Radical Christians are so busy rounding up all those imaginary people in those imaginary camps. Rosie has said a number of stupid things, but - and I can’t believe I’m doing this - I have to defend her on this one. Why? Key word here. Radical. She said radical. And she speaks the truth: For some people, radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam.

Do I want her to retract her statement? Apologize? No, I don’t. And I certainly don’t want the Pope to retract his or apologize. Hell, he was merely quoting someone else. But what do we have? Muslims in the streets again, protesting, calling for the execution of the Pope, and burning effigies.

Says T:

“You don’t have to be so condescending and you don’t have to spell it for me. I’ve got it. They’re burning figs in the streets.”

Damned atheist humor.

One last quote from sixty-five year-old Rosa Sgorbati, a.k.a. Sister Leonella, who lived and worked in Kenya and Somalia for 38 years, before she was shot in the back four times.

Her last words, in Italian:

“I forgive, I forgive.”

Obviously something her attackers cannot, and will never be able to say.

I’d just posted a glossary provided by Daniel McCarthy here on The V.O.T. and mentioned the quiz that accompanied it. Last night I went ahead and took that quiz and discovered that I answered 24 questions and the first ten responses were evaluated this way:

And I had read McCarthy’s definitions and classified myself as Conservative or Neoconservative. Generally, when I take these political quizzes I know how I’m supposed to answer - like when I took the Libertarian quiz I answered the way a Libertarian would answer and my quiz result was that I was a dyed-in-the-wool Libertarian. This time I just answered according to my opinion at the moment; I feel I have Libertarian leanings, but this McCarthy quiz is telling me I’m a political Sybil.

Ten questions, ten different categories. Am I…nuanced? Or am I a political freak show? Somehow I managed to answer ten questions and get a response from each of the ten groups. No wonder our ballots limit our choices of political parties. Faced with the number of parties the average Brit has to choose from, Americans would probably either stay home or try to “be fair” and choose a candidate from each party on their ballot.

As it is, it’s hard enough sometimes for the average voter to choose between the two major parties. I don’t advocate a dozen, but if John McCain is on the Republican ticket in 2008, I know I’ll be looking for a third.

Okay, that’s it. I can’t listen to George Noory anymore. People calling in to report yeti, alien, and chupacabra sightings is one thing, but last night they were calling in with “big bug” stories. One guy says he saw a fly the size of a potato and another said he had a dragonfly the size of a bird over his head. Eight inches long with a twelve-inch wingspan.

Well…I did see a cockroach in Mesa, Arizona once the size of a hamster… We’re wringing our hands over Islamofascists with nuclear devices, but it is they who will inherit the earth. Or more specifically, it’s T.H.E.M!

It’s the Takeover by Huge Entymological Monsters!

Horse flies the size of horses! Rhinoceros beetles the size of rhinos! Japanese beetles the size of Sumo wrestlers! Tiger beetles the size of tigers! Atlas beetles the size of Charles Atlas! Tumblebugs the size of tumbleweeds! Ants the size of your Aunt Mabel! Katydids the size of Kate Smith! Beetles the size of Ringo Starr!

Aaaaarrrrgggghhhhh! To die at the hands (hands, hands, hands, hands, hands) of these giant insects!!!

I found out today that I have yet another reason to move. Krispy Kreme has left the state. Jack in the Box left years ago after that E. coli outbreak. And speaking of E. coli, do you have any spinach in your fridge?

I saw the news yesterday and noticed that our state was one that was at risk for contaminated greens. Bagged spinach was the culprit. But my spinach isn’t in a bag. It’s in a plastic box. And I paid $2.50 for it.

I’m sitting here listening to the radio and I hear Earthbound Farms’ recorded message. Time to eat that two-fifty and toss the sh*t.

(T has just pointed out that inside our two bags of lettuce there are spinach leaves. Well, @#$%^&*!)

“I’m not a people person.”

– Kimveer Gill

Well, hell, I can’t say I am, either, and I happen to own a black leather trench coat. Sometimes I think that what keeps me from snapping is this: Authorities would connect me to The V.O.T. and the headlines would read that I was a crazed, pleonastic, racist, homophobic, misanthropic, anti-Muslim, misogynistic, evangelical Christian Nazi who votes Republican.

And I wouldn’t be around to rebut that. But that’s precisely what happens when you land on someone’s blog and start reading. You make assumptions. This person’s a Commie. This person’s a Socialist. This person’s a Fascist. This person’s a really bad speller.

I found an old article from Daniel McCarthy the other day - written pre-9/11. McCarthy said he put it - and the quiz that accompanies it - together during a period of procrastination and offers it up as a helpful guide. It’s called “Are You a Neocon?” and it defines, more or less, common political types.

Centrist - Just what it sounds like. Someone who doesn’t have any particularly strong ideological leanings in any direction.

Conservative - Specifically a “fusionist” conservative of the National Review - Heritage Foundation mold. Someone who believes in traditional morality and capitalism, and the need for a limited government to allow both to flourish.

Left-Libertarian - The quiz uses a mild definition of a left-libertarian, an anti-statist who is somewhat fearful of corporate and religious influence on public life.

Liberal - Supports economic regulation to promote social justice and takes a progressive stance toward moral or cultural issues.

Libertarian - A libertarian opposes most or all government activities. Does not favor much or any government support for either moral or economic systems.

Neoconservative - A “neocon” is more inclined than other conservatives toward vigorous government in the service of the goals of traditional morality and pro-business policies. Tends to favor a very strong foreign policy of America as well.

Paleoconservative - “Paleocons” want less US involvement in foreign affairs than other conservatives and oppose mass immigration. They are also more favorably disposed toward the South and the idea of secession, or at least decentralization, than neoconservatives.

Paleo-Libertarian - Similar to other libertarians except for opposition to mass immigration, and shares the paleocon appreciation of the South.

Radical - Critical of bourgeois morality and strongly opposed to capitalism and willing to use state power to achieve desired ends.

Third-way - More supportive of foreign intervention than liberals and less supportive of economic regulation, coupled with more-or-less progressive social views. “Third-way” is to liberal what neoconservative is to conservative.

Fascinating! But not complete. I’m sure anyone reading this can come up with half a dozen other terms. The popular one now is “Independent.” It’s an election year and suddenly all the Republicans and Democrats we voted for in the previous elections have switched parties and are now “Independents.” If these politicians are all so damned independent, why don’t they resign from office, leave Washington, and go build log cabins out in the middle of the Dakotas - and leave us the hell alone?

There’s an easy way now to tell who’s who. Call someone a Republican, and he’ll say he’s an Independent. Call someone a Liberal, and he’ll say he’s a Progressive. I call T a Libertarian and he says: “I’m not a Libertarian. I am Nothing! I am affiliated with nothing and no one. I can think for myself, thank you.”

According to the McCarthy glossary, T almost sounds like a Left-Libertarian. That whole atheist thing, you know.

Now if I were to choose from this particular list of definitions I’d have to go with Conservative - or, based on current foreign policy, even Neocon. The assumption, then, is that I am a Nazi, a homophobe, a religious fanatic. Again, I’m agnostic. That’s a religious Centrist, so to speak. I don’t care if a person is an atheist, a Wiccan, a Pentecostal, a Unitarian, or a Druid. I don’t care what color a person is or what his sexual orientation is. I just want people to behave.

I’m sure that’s all Kimveer Gill wanted, too, but he obviously lost patience waiting for them to cooperate.

Could be!
Who knows?
There’s something due any day;
I will know right away,
Soon as it shows.
It may come cannonballing down through the sky,
Gleam in its eye,
Bright as a rose!

Who knows?

I was watching some news story about the Pope and had this overwhelming feeling that he’s going to be assassinated. Or that the Vatican will be targeted in the very near future.

But then I had a feeling not long ago about Oprah going down in an airplane and that hasn’t happened, so I might just be way off again.

Some say it’s probably just those dastardly Republicans again, making everyone feel paranoid and afraid. Hell, I don’t need Republicans to feel paranoid. I can’t shake the feeling that something’s going to happen. Can’t put my finger on it, but something’s coming.

I stayed up late…probably fell asleep about five this morning. Yes, I was listening to George Noory again. It was a show devoted to September 11 conspiracies and I just couldn’t help myself.

Let’s see…who was all on there last night? Oh - David Hawkins (”Manufactured Shock”). Riveting stuff. Actually I kind of like hearing how TIAA-CREF was behind the destruction of The World Trade Center just to collect insurance money and fatten teachers’ pension funds. Looking at the cast of characters in this little drama, I think this is one conspiracy theory I could buy into.

Then there was Victor Thorn, accompanied by Lisa Guliani. They’re the co-hosts of something called Wing (World Independent News Group) TV and their theory is this: The Jews did it. Specifically because the “Dancing Israelis” were seen doing the happy dance in New Jersey as the towers were collapsing in the distance. Part of their theory is that Flight 93 didn’t crash in Shanksville; instead it was a “diversionary missile” that left a crater there in that field.

Alex Jones was on, too, and he insists that the jig is up. Everyone knows now that this was one big hoax and people at Ground Zero yesterday were cheering him on because they know the world was hoodwinked. Jones mentions that all the search and rescue dogs who were in Manhattan have died from inhaling all that crap at Ground Zero. Interesting, because I’ve heard conflicting stories from the rescue groups about the health of the dogs. Well, they must be part of the conspiracy, too, then. One way to look at this is: if any significant number of dogs have died…well, hell, these dogs were on the job five years ago. A large dog’s life span is limited; perhaps some of these dogs died of old age. Is Mr. Jones playing with the facts, or is he presenting the real story?

Finally, Howard Bloom was on. Despite all the theories that Bush - no,Clinton, the Mob - no, the CIA, Jews - no, evangelical Christians, Neocons - no, Netanyahu, were behind September 11, Mr. Bloom says the real enemies are bin Laden, the brownsheets in Iran, and groups like Hezbollah. And if we don’t launch a preemptive strike on their nuclear capabilities, they’ll surely attack the West.

Psshaw! There is no bin Laden the others say. Never has been - he’s a made-up character. Others say he does exist, but he’s simply a pawn working for the criminals in our government. (Excuse me, but after ABC’s airing of The Path To 9/11, depicting a government filled with bureaucratic sloths, how could conspiracy theorists claim these jokers masterminded anything?)

Let’s not forget the theory of the many bin Ladens. The tall bin Laden, the short bin Laden, the fat nose bin Laden, the thin nose bin Laden…there are a bunch of ringers out there posing as this bin Laden guy. There’s a whole herd of fake bin Ladens. No, says another conspiracy theorist: there really is a bin Laden, he really did plot the destruction of September 11, and he’s dead. It’s just that our government isn’t telling us that. They have his body somewhere and will probably pull it out before the elections.

No, says another theory. They can’t ever let on that he’s dead. The Neocons need a boogeyman if they want to stay in power. Gotta keep scaring people into believing that Islamofascists want us dead. The New World Order…the Illuminati…the Freemasons…aaaarrrggghhh!!!

All I know is that George Noory kept breaking in with: “Something’s happening in Damascus.”

Doesn’t matter. I’m sure that whatever’s happened in Syria can be made to fit into the conspiracy, too. Call me naive, but I have to rely on every Mafia film I’ve ever seen for truth. As soon as a plot gets complicated and a lot of people are involved, what happens? Someone - and it’s inevitable - slips up. Someone does something stupid. Someone blows it for everyone else.

It’s been five years. With so many layers on these 9/11 conspiracies, and so many people involved, you’re telling me that no one has cut a deal with The National Enquirer?

…FNC’s Catherine Herridge recounted a story about a woman from Chicago. Her sister had been at a breakfast meeting on the top of The World Trade Center when a plane slammed into the building. Herridge remembers watching this woman collecting ashes off the sidewalk, scooping them into a shoebox so she would have something of her sister to bring home to her family.

…T and I were watching 9/11 coverage on FNC today: “The Day America Changed.” There was a discussion on the war and whether or not it was something that could be won.

T: “We’re not going to win the war. It’s just not something we can win. It’s like this: There will always be child molesters, there will always be terrorists. And what is this crap about the day America changed? America didn’t change.”

Me: “Yes, it did.”

T: “No. It wasn’t the day America changed - it was just the day America joined the party.”

…I heard an ad on the radio for a local car dealership. It was directed to police, firefighters, emergency workers, military personnel, and volunteers — whether today or on that day. This is a day to remember them.

“Come on down and get a vehicle inspection for just nine dollars and eleven cents!”

Oh, and free hot dogs for the kids.