From the monthly archives:

September 2007

Soviet plan for WW3 nuclear attack "unearthed" – RUBBISH!

by dionysus on 2007/09/21

So called “breaking news” from a usually reliable publication, the Telegraph

“Chilling Soviet plans to launch massive nuclear strikes in Europe followed by a ground offensive in Germany and southern France have been unearthed by a Nato historian.”

Not to diminish the horrific nature of the plan in question of course, but since when could this be called “news” (i.e. information that was previously unknown and is now being reported)? For years, the National Security Archive at George Washington University in Washington DC has had documents relating to Warsaw Pact offensive/defensive plans online and searchable. One (of many) examples can be seen here

This is far from the Telegraph’s customary high(er) standards of journalism. One wonders if the telegraph required a space filler on a slow news day, or whether one of their hacks was unfamiliar with the quantity of FSU/Warsaw Pact reports & documents available – for example – from the Parallel History project, started in 1999. This resource is hardly new, and (unlike many academic documentation resources) is neither opaque, or hard to search. On the contrary, contents are laid out clearly for the scholar and curious non-academic visitor alike.

In particular, a few minutes of searching would have revealed a gigantic mountain of documents relating to FSU/Warsaw Pact European defensive operations, beginning (for example) here

I find this article baffling. It aspires to inform the reader that the information ‘quoted’ (which it isn’t, there are zero citations therein) comes from a “Nato Historian”. Well, it’s worth noting that the “Nato Historian”, Petr LuÅˆÃ¡k referred to in the Telegraph article above, was one of the collaborators in this document collection which were published in May 2000!

My God, I so detest garbage journalism. In a side note; It would seem that yet another honorable profession is seeing the decline of its standards. When I say ‘honorable profession’ you should know that I mean professional journalists who painstakingly research/cross check facts before firing up the word processor for so much as the opening “who/what/where/when” sentence. I do not refer to those who write for the tabloid press. Members of that fraternity cannot ever be described as journalists in the classic sense of the word. The Telegraph purports to rise far above that standard – but the night editor perhaps had a vacation or sick day, – leading to rubbish of this nature being permitted to rise to the front page of a formerly proud banner newspaper.

Be the first to comment

Where is Edward R. Murrow when we need him?

by dionysus on 2007/09/13

I write this today with a heavy heart.

In America, individual liberties are being systematically crushed, in the name of some avowed ‘higher purpose’, usually perpetrated under the rubric of “The War on Terror”. Those who voice opposition to the views of Government are increasingly being sought out and systematically punished for the simple act of stating a contrary intellectual or political position.

These are sad times, but also times for the truly courageous to step forth and brave “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune”, in order to permit liberty and freedom of expression to prevail over ideological dogma, and the unbearable weight of a burgeoning police state. For such is what our beloved noisy, argumentative, endlessly debating society has come to resemble.

Lest you think that I have bowed to the seemingly inevitable, let me assure you that this is most assuredly not the case. History, helpfully, shows us that we have endured assaults upon our liberties before.

Periodically American society has been gripped by fear, and its responses have not done credit to its democratic nature. In this century the “Red Scare” following World War I saw hundreds of innocent aliens rounded up, imprisoned and deported, for no reason other than fear of their allegedly radical ideas. The Cold War unleashed another Red Scare in the late 1940s and early 1950s. But where there had been no great alien menace in 1919, communism did exist and did pose a danger to western democracy in the post-World War II era.

The hunt for subversives started during the war itself, and was furthered by congressional committees that often abused their powers of investigation to harass people with whom they differed politically. Then in February 1950, an undistinguished, first-term Republican senator from Wisconsin, Joseph McCarthy, burst into national prominence when, in a speech in Wheeling, West Virginia, he held up a piece of paper that he claimed was a list of 205 known communists currently working in the State Department. McCarthy never produced documentation for a single one of his charges, but for the next four years he exploited an issue that he realized had touched a nerve in the American public.

Edward R. Murrow, an erudite, distinguished, & fearless journalist with a talent for seeing the larger picture in national and world affairs, devoted an episode of his “See it Now” documentary series on CBS television, broadcast on March 9th 1954, to exposing the abuses of power that Senator McCarthy was responsible for.

“His primary achievement has been in confusing the public mind, as between the internal and the external threats of Communism. We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty. We must remember always that accusation is not proof and that conviction depends upon evidence and due process of law. We will not walk in fear, one of another. We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason, if we dig deep in our history and our doctrine, and remember that we are not descended from fearful menâ€” not from men who feared to write, to speak, to associate and to defend causes that were, for the moment, unpopular.”

This is no time for men who oppose Senator McCarthy’s methods to keep silent, or for those who approve. We can deny our heritage and our history, but we cannot escape responsibility for the result. There is no way for a citizen of a republic to abdicate his responsibilities. As a nation we have come into our full inheritance at a tender age. We proclaim ourselves, as indeed we are, the defenders of freedom, wherever it continues to exist in the world, but we cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home.”

He and his aides, Roy Cohn and David Schine, made wild accusations, browbeat witnesses, destroyed reputations and threw mud at honorable men such as George Marshall, Adlai Stevenson, and others whom McCarthy charged were part of an effete “eastern establishment.” Senator McCarthy terrorized American public life, and even President Eisenhower, who detested McCarthy, was afraid to stand up to him. Finally, however, the senator from Wisconsin over-reached himself.

In April 1954, in what were to be the first televised hearings in American history, McCarthy obliquely attacked President Eisenhower and directly assaulted Secretary of the Army Robert Stevens. Day after day the public watched McCarthy in action – bullying, harassing, but never producing any hard evidence, and finally, his support among people who thought he was “right” on communism began to evaporate. Americans regained their senses, and the Red Scare finally began to wane. By the end of the year, the Senate decided that its own honor could no longer put up with McCarthy’s abuse of his legislative powers, and it censured him in December by a vote of 65 to 22.

If, dear reader, within the text of Ed Murrow’s quote above, you care to substitute any reference to “Senator McCarthy” with either “Vice President Cheney” or “President Bush” I would venture to suggest that those remarks, broadcast 53 years ago, still hold their weight in the turmoil and chaos of today’s political arena.

Today, the hot button word is no longer “Communist”, this administration has substituted “Terrorist” and – as unrestrained Government always will when it can – promptly set about reinforcing and augmenting the power of the Executive Branch accordingly. Why? Because quite simply, it can.

As Mr. Murrow pointed out in 1954, and to re-state part of his narrative;

We proclaim ourselves, as indeed we are, the defenders of freedom, wherever it continues to exist in the world, but we cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home.”

Where are those members of the Senate and House of Representatives whose voices are almost perpetually raised in protest?

I say to the honorable members of both legislative bodies;

Is it so easy to forsake your responsibilities to the nation? to your constituents? to the Constitution itself? You serve no national interest by remaining silent, by permitting this administration the egregious abuses of power it has so far been given free rein to implement in almost every area of national life.

Courage, sadly, has become a commodity in short supply on Capitol Hill.

Be the first to comment

Goat sacrifices & aircraft maintenance

by dionysus on 2007/09/06

This article from Reuters with a Kathmandu, Nepal byline.

“Officials at Nepal’s state-run airline have sacrificed two goats to appease Akash Bhairab, the Hindu sky god, following technical problems with one of its Boeing 757 aircraft, the carrier said Tuesday.

Nepal Airlines, which has two Boeing aircraft, has had to suspend some services in recent weeks due the problem.

The goats were sacrificed in front of the troublesome aircraft Sunday at Nepal’s only international airport in Kathmandu in accordance with Hindu traditions, an official said.

“The snag in the plane has now been fixed and the aircraft has resumed its flights,” said Raju K.C., a senior airline official, without explaining what the problem had been.”

OK, this is good. I’ll file this knowledge for future reference. At the present moment I don’t have any goats, but I wonder if a politician or monarch would be OK as a substitute. In the meantime, perhaps this would benefit the airline industry. It certainly seems to make as much sense as taking off your shoes before going through the metal detector (and let’s thank Richard Reid, the shoe bomber for not stashing the bomb in his underwear.)

Like everyone else, I’ve had my share of aggravation with airlines over the years, but that pales in comparison to current regulations passengers have to reluctantly observe. Here’s a short list of my personal pet peeves:

1. No-cellphones-during-flight rule.

Passengers are told that leaving them on can interfere with the plane’s instruments. I have accidentally left mine on without incident. Several times, because I’m stupid, rubbish, and forgetful. On charter flights and/or private planes, no one seems to care. The fact is that – these days – avionics are unaffected by cellphone emissions. The real reason is to force people to use the airline phones that cost an arm and a leg. This regulation is complete and utter crap.

2. The no-more-than-3-ounces-onboard rule.

If Yussef Ali DoucheBag wants to destroy an aircraft, he needs only two ONE OUNCE bottles of binary explosive, and a mixing container like a plastic glass. Not only would that be more than sufficient to blow the aircraft into millions of one gram pieces (think “Metal Rain” here for a moment), but also would probably fuck up the space time continuum in some way that the bits of aircraft would fall on a prehistoric landscape, prompting some large herbivores to suspect that they had just witnessed the first signs that the famous civilization ending meteorite is scheduled for an appearance next week sometime.

3. The no-matches-onboard rule.

If matches are so goddamned dangerous, why are we permitted to bring lighters on board ffs?

All of this leads me to the inexorable conclusion that goats, after all, do have a purpose in society. The same goes for chickens and sheep. Recently a colleague and myself were involved in a business project that was fairly important to us. It occurred to me at the time that we should perhaps sacrifice some livestock and fowl. The only problem would have been that in order for it to work, we would have had to do half of it in the client parking lot. Plus, it was so important that we would have needed several goats, at least two sheep, and God knows how many chickens. For sheer effectiveness (more bang for the buck, so to say?) we would have to have sacrificed the other half of our rather large collection of farmyard animals RIGHT IN THE CLIENTS’ OFFICE. Now, take a moment or two and consider that mental imagery. A large conference table on the 6th floor of a prestigious office building “somewhere in the Ranstad” covered in farmyard animal carcasses. Blood and entrails all over the nice corporate blue deep pile carpeting, and your dedicated reporter, dogshit, slashing away with a large machete at the throat of a large sheep. [sound of sawing noises] “Baaaaaaaah Baaaaaaaaaaaah Ba…..” [gurgle gurgle] Sure, we would have gotten some business from that client, no question about it!

Be the first to comment

Senator Warner announces retirement

by dionysus on 2007/09/01

Senator John Warner (R, VA) yesterday announced his intention not to seek reelection in 2008. The 5 term Senator made the announcement yesterday in a nostalgic speech on the north steps of the Rotunda of the University of Virginia, where he studied law 50 years ago, and where, in 1977 he announced his candidacy for the United States Senate.

With characteristically gracious style, in a handwritten letter to his constituents, Senator Warner quoted another Virginian, (and founder of the University of Virginia) and the nations’ third President -Thomas Jefferson;

“There is a fullness of time when men should go, and not occupy too long the ground to which others have the right to advance”

President Bush praised him in a statement issued on Friday, saying; ” John Warner is one of the most dedicated Senators in American history. Five Presidents have relied on his steady judgment, wise counsel, and candid advice” He went on to add; “With Senator Warner’s retirement, the Senate will lose one of its most independent and widely-respected voices and the Commonwealth of Virginia will lose one of its fiercest advocates” (see the full text of the Presidents’ statement here)

Early Life

Senator John William Warner was born in Albermarle County Virginia on February 18, 1927. He is the grandson of John W. and Mary Tinsley Warner of Amherst County, Virginia, and the son of Martha Budd Warner and Dr. John W. Warner, a physician and surgeon. Raised in Washington DC, he attended the prestigious St Albans private school. In January 1945, a month before his 18th birthday, he enlisted in the US Navy, and served a one year term, leaving as a Petty Officer 3rd Class. Upon his return to civilian life he attended Washington and Lee University, and upon graduation in 1949, entered University of Virginia School of Law in Charlottsville, VA.

Fellow Alumni of University of Virginia School of Law include such well known names such as Senator Edward Kennedy, (D, MA) former Senator Robert F. Kennedy, Senator (D, NY) Evan Bayh (D, IN) and the 28th President of the United States, Woodrow Wilson.

In 1950 he interrupted his studies to commence a second tour of active military duty in the US Marine Corps, following the outbreak of the Korean War,and served as a ground officer in the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. He continued in the Marine Corps Reserves after the war, eventually reaching the rank of Captain. He resumed his studies after the war, and received his law degree in 1953.

He became a law clerk to the late Chief Judge E. Barrett Prettyman of the United States Court of Appeals following his graduation, and in 1956 joined the Justice Department as assistant US Attorney in the trial and appellate division. In 1960 he entered private law practice for Hogan & Hartson of Washington DC.

Political Career

John Warner was appointed Undersecretary of the Navy in the administration of President Richard Nixon in 1969, and in 1972 succeeded John H. Chafee as Secretary of the Navy, serving as Secretary from 1972 – 1974. He entered politics following the 1978 election for the US Senate, obtaining a narrow victory for the Republican party over his opponent, Democrat Andrew P. Miller, the former Virginia Attorney General. He has been in the United States Senate since that time, and – as of this writing – is the second longest serving Senator in Virginia’s history (behind Harry F. Byrd Sr. who served for 32 years from 1933 – 1965) and certainly the longest serving Republican Senator from the State of Virginia.

In the Senate he quickly became known as an authoritative and influential voice on military affairs. Although a fierce protector of the interests of his home state, John Warner was widely regarded by colleagues as “The Senator’s Senator”. Combining a courtly civil manner, exceptional negotiation and consensus building skills, he personified the traditional Senate approach, submerging ideology in favor of decisions which favored the national interest as a whole.

Larry Sabato, a political scientist at the University of Virginia, and director of the UVA Center for Politics observed;

“As people look at his career, they’re going to see the perception of what a United States senator used to be. Not just a Senator for his party, or for the party’s dominant ideology, but a senator for the United States as a whole, and acting in the United States best interest.”

He went on to add; “Sadly, there aren’t many senators who do that any more”

Senator Warner has been significantly more moderate than is usual for Republican Senators from the South, and has taken an independent course from that of his colleagues several times during his Senate career.

In 1987 he crossed party lines to reject the nomination of Supreme Court Justice candidate Robert Bork by President Reagan. In a speech on the Senate Floor he said; ”I searched the record. I looked at this distinguished jurist, and I cannot find in him the record of compassion, of sensitivity and understanding of the pleas of the people to enable him to sit on the highest Court of the land.””

He is among a minority of Republican colleagues in supporting gun control laws. In 1993 he voted in favor of the Brady Bill and in 1999 was only one of five Republican Senators to vote to close the so-called “Gun Show Loophole“. In 2004, he was only one of three Republicans to sponsor an amendment by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D, CA) that sought to provide for a 10 year extension of the “Assault Weapons Ban”

One of Senator Warner’s most significant contributions in his Senate career, has been committee memberships:

Senate Armed Services Committee member 1978 – present, Chairman 1999 – 2001, 2003 – 2007

In addition, he has also protected and enlarged the flow of billions of dollars into the economy of the State of Virginia via the state’s naval installations and shipbuilding enterprises.

Senate Select Committee on Intelligence

member: 2006 – present

He has also served on the following committees in various capacities:

Environment & Public Works

Health, Education, Labor & Pensions

Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs

Senator Warner will be sorely missed. He is a man of unimpeachable honor and integrity. He has diligently and earnestly applied himself to the nation’s business during a lengthy and meaningful career. At 80 years of age though, he is also entitled to some well earned rest.

This writer is going to miss his thoughtful measured stance during critical matters of national involvement, and fair minded observations in Senate session, and before the press. Sunday political television, once a much anticipated part of my weekly routine, shows will never seem quite the same again.

With a heavy heart, this writer wishes him well, and respects his decision to; “yield the right to others to advance”

Attributions, Credits & Thanks

I am indebted for material, quotations, contextual and source data to (at least) the following organizations:

New York Times

Washington Post

Roanoke Times – the voice of Virginia

St. Albans School

University of Virginia

University of Virginia School of Law

Washington & Lee University

The White House Historical Archive

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress