January 2005: A Different Year, A Sadder Start

Last November, Ohio public interest attorneys filed election challenges in response to the rigging/tampering that had thrown the state to Bush. This month, Ohio's Republican Attorney General initiated revenge. Already being forced to withdraw the suits, the attorneys are now threatened with sanctions for having filed in the first place.

If Ohio goes after their ability to practice law, maybe they can find fulfillment in second careers. Like the journalist who tried to break the story of Bush's 1976 DWI arrest in Kennebunkport: though he lost his newspaper job, he is now enjoying life as a truck driver.

All of us need to move on, get over it, etc., given the enormity of Bush's "mandate." His "accountability moment" has come and gone, and it included the public's thumbs up to his venture in Iraq.

As we await the re-coronation, there's this—

Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2005
From: Clever Sister
To: Pink
Subject: "Will you turn into a pillar of salt?

—Other instructions given performers include a warning not to look directly at Bush while passing the presidential reviewing stand, not to look toeither side and not to make any sudden movements.

— ow my eyes, it burns!— cs

When the festive day arrives, Norwegians are appalled by the Bushes' salute to Satan. They would be seem to be on to something, the Norwegians. Even if the gesture was not made in Cheney's direction.

Fortified by his mandate, Bush immediately sets out on a "mission" (so to speak) — he begins pitching his plan to "save" Social Security. Of course, it's the same mission he's always had, and the platform of his first run for office in 1978. Thom Hartmann often makes the connection between Bush's 1999 plan to become a "war president," and undoing Social Security as a centerpiece of his ideology.

The death and disability toll of U.S. military; the unknown (though astronomical) numbers of Iraqui civilian deaths, devastated survivors, millions of refugees—when it comes to the post-1930s Republican project of overturning the New Deal, no price is too high to be paid by someone else.

The White House "charm offensive" includes such highlights as the "town hall" of January 12. The hand-picked audience is let in on Bush's deep concern for African-Americans: "Another interesting idea...is a personal savings account...which can't be used to bet on the lottery, or a dice game, or the track...African American males die sooner than other males do, which means the system is inherently unfair to a certain group of people."

In my workplace, Cruella will talk at length about the illness that caused her husband's disability, and how much of a fight it took for him to finally receive benefits. But "family values" for these Republicans is only about me and mine—anyone else in need of a safety net is a deadbeat who is forcing them to pay taxes.

And as George is busy with his snake oil tour, there's the usual display of appropriateness from this quarter:

As I read about the Auschwitz visit, I'm reminded that a key difference between our regime and the Nazis is that their "socialism" was of some benefit to ordinary Aryans—they got jobs and sometimes received a tiny cut of their masters' stealing. Whereas Bushler robs exclusively from the bottom, to enrich the top. Yes, some money is funneled back to their churches, but: how likely is it that most of that cash goes into the pockets of mega-church CEO/pastors?

This leads to some email conversation with my sister, who concludes, "Germans got jobs, booming war economy up to a point, a certain culture & style, sense of belonging…Today the pro-Bush bottom get job cuts, etc. The real thing they get is just like Nazis: emotional backing & superiority of being anti-science & anti‑intellectual. Being part of hate-filled christian culture, they can hate gays, moslems, abortion, liberals, democrats, unions, etc."

In one more test of how much irony overload we can take, New York reports that "Postelection, citizenship applications from Jewish refugees—and their descendants—are up at the Manhattan consulate." This because the post-war German constitution created a "right of return" for Jews who fled between 1933 and 1945, descendants included. Author Mark Fass cites the consulate's press attaché on the "unusual number of calls" the day after the election. To the official's surprise, since "Germany is usually a place you want to get away from."

The January 31 Jesus' Best Administrative Assistant Quote Of The Day: "Is February 2 Groundhog Day? My kids always like to do something special, but I can never remember what day it is."

Excuse me, but: wouldn't that be a pagan holiday? Sure sounds like she's in need of an intervention by one of her fellow funda-mental-ists: shouldn't they all be busy crusading against a day more ungodly than Halloween?