Thursday, March 31, 2011

Dear Mr. President,

Ever wonder why politicians have such a bad reputation? Why people get so fed up with their hypocrisy and lies, their disregard for the average Joe that they join fringe groups like the Tea Party? Here’s a few examples. You said we went into Libya for humanitarian reasons, to impose a No-fly Zone, save lives and protect the rebels against certain massacre by Qaddafi. Well, we’ve been there ten days now, sent a steady stream of missiles, rockets and bombs raining down on Qaddafi’s forces and stopped his Air Force from flying, but it hasn’t stopped his ground forces. So now we’re sending in teams of CIA operatives to assist the rebels and direct air strikes, flying Predator and Global Hawk drones, and debating whether to arm the rebels. This is “armed diplomacy” which has never worked in the past and won’t now. Death and destruction is not humanitarian; it only breeds more violence, more misery, more hatred. This is war, pure and simple, and all your euphemisms and high-flown rhetoric won’t change that. Bush, in his ignorance and hubris, declared himself The War President but I think that title belongs to you. Unequivocally. And here’s another little sleight of hand. “We’ve turned over control of the mission to NATO.” Well, sure we have. And who’s the NATO commander? None other than Admiral James Stavridis, a four-star U.S. Navy Admiral! But I bet you knew that all along, didn’t you, Mr. President? The old shell game politicians have played on the public for generations. You’re a master at it. One more example: your promise to protect the environment and undo the harm your predecessor did. A few days ago, the EPA’s long-anticipated plan to curb fish kills at power plants was released for public review. The plan? To let each state environmental agency decide what each site-specific fix should be. “Industry officials breathed a sigh of relief” while the Natural Resources Defense Counsel and Riverkeeper contend that this allows power plants and other large industrial facilities "to continue destroying billions of fish and overheating trillions of gallons of water from the nation's rivers, lakes, estuaries, and marine waters." No different than the Bushies. Like every politician, once you got elected, all those campaign promises vanished like chaff in the wind. And finally, Bradley Manning. Eleven months of unwarranted solitary confinement. This is torture. On your watch. By your administration. When will you end this nightmare and injustice?