Still Wondering

The other day I asked what was happening in Haiti. Despite the headlines that have followed, I'm still wondering: What is really going on?

Did the U.S. kidnap Aristide to get him out of Haiti? Of course the U.S. denies this, but do we have any reason to believe these denials? The history of U.S. involvement there and in other devloping nations doesn't make the U.S. denials seem very credible. See, e.g., a short history of Haiti by former U.S. Attorney General Ramsy Clark.

The UPI reported last week on accusations that the U.S. has been covertly supporting the "armed rebels" in Haiti:

"The Bush administration is again engaged in regime change by armed aggression," former U.S. attorney general Ramsey Clark said. "This time, the armed aggression is against the administration of the democratically elected president of Haiti."

Note the rhetoric of the news coverage. The people with the guns in Haiti are "armed rebels." Aristide is "Haiti's firs freely elected leader." Last I checked, where a small group of people resorted to force of arms to disrupt a legitimate government, they were being called "terrorists," not "armed rebels." Where's the line between "terrorism" and "armed rebellion"? Does it simply depend on whether the U.S. agrees with the goals of those using force of arms?

Another question: Has Haiti just become another Venezuela? The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.
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Posted while listening to: Catch Me Now I'm Falling from the album "Low Budget" by The Kinks

Posted 07:18 AM | Comments (3) | general politics

Warning: Sarcasm

In light of recent conversations, I want to make clear that I don't mean to offend anyone here, but I do appreciate sarcasm and so I can't resist: 12 Reasons Gay Marriage Will Ruin Society.

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Posted while listening to: Get A Life from the album "Ultimate Alternative Wavers" by Built To Spill

Posted 07:15 AM | Comments (1) | general politics

Duper Tuesday

Today is "Super Tuesday," but somehow it doesn't seem so super. The last debate among the Democratic candidates was mostly annoying squabbling over trifles, as notable for the poor performance of the journalists as for anything the candidates said. Not so long ago it seemed like there was a lot at stake in this Democratic nomination race, but now the headlines say this could be "Edwards' last hurrah" and "Kerry hopes for knockout blow."

*yawn*

Howard Dean's candidacy is what made the nomination race interesting for the last year, and it's still making headlines. Political Wire has a roundup of the different takes on whether the campaign disintegrated because of infighting. Dean says no, Howard Kurtz says yes, and Matthew Gross, Dean's former chief blogger who is now working for Joe Trippi, says yes, too, but sort of moderates that position here. The worst accusation is that Dean never wanted to actually get elected, but I find that very hard to believe. He certainly didn't look or sound like someone who didn't sincerely want to win; in fact, until now, everyone seemed to think his desire to win was too intense, and that's one of the things that brought him down. But whatever the case, I hope Trippi's "people" and Dean's "people" can come together or at least cooperate on their mutual goals. A lot of good could come from what they started, and it would be a shame to waste all that potential on battling egos and hurt feelings.
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Posted while listening to: Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors from the album "Amnesiac" by Radiohead

Posted 06:59 AM | election 2004 general politics