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January 28, 2006

Keeping an eye on things

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Let's start with a prescient The State of the Union address, to get you in the mood , and move right along to an excellent editorial entitled Bush the Incompetent -- catchy.

For those of us who simply cannot believe that somehow 42.9% of the American public (or thereabouts) still thinks our facile dictator, George W. is doing a good job, and the the polls just have to be rigged --- a liberal blog, MyDD, commissioned an untainted poll -- one that asked questions submitted by My DD readers -- and here are the results, answers to the first five questions -- there is more to follow

1. Are you registered to vote in elections in your local area?
Yes: 100.0%

2. And are you registered to vote as a Democrat, a Republican, an Independent, a member of some other party or are you registered but with no party preference?

Democrat 33.1%
Republican 29.5%
Ind/Oth/No Party 37.5%

3. Generally speaking, in your opinion is the United States headed pretty much in the right direction these days or is it headed off on the wrong track?

Right Direction 36.9%
Wrong Track 48.3%
Not Sure/DK/ref 14.8%

4. And do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling the job of President?

Approve 42.9%
Disapprove 50.4%
Not Sure/DK/ref 6.7%

5. How would you describe the availability of good jobs at decent wages in your local area? Would you say such jobs are widely available, available but not easy to find, rarely available or not available at all?

Widely Available 17.6%
Available, not easy 37.1%
Rarely Available 25.3%
Not available 9.4%
Not Sure/DK/ref 10.6%

Just in case you like walnuts and cherries on your sundae, and have a longer attention span than I, lawyer Glenn Greenwald has written an excellent analysis examining the legality of wiretapping, including some interesting old quotations from the administration itself, lauding protections that the FISA Court offers us as citizens of the USofA, as well as its efficiency. As my mother (1908-2005) used to say "Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive" (Walter Scott 1808). Especially don't try it when all those smart people on the internet are watching you.

Here's the good news, action initiated by states can set the impeachment process in motion. There are those who have been gathering evidence for years, for just such an occasion.

As Paul Lukasaik over there at The AWOL project says,

"There are about 290,000,000 people in the United States. I spent four months doing research that apparently, no one else bothered to do. That means that there are about 289,999,999 other people out there who, with a few notable and extremely important exceptions, haven’t put this much time and effort into this subject.
I’m very happy to answer people’s questions about my research. But, (and don’t take this the wrong way), please do not write to me to tell me what documents I should be making the effort to get a hold of, or how I should write to CNN and tell them about my work, or whatever. Each and every one of you is just as capable as I am of demanding the records you think I should have, filing FOIA requests, and writing to emails to bring this stuff to the attention of others. I thought it was important enough for ME to do what I did. If you think something is important enough for ME to do, it should be important enough for YOU to do yourself. Thank you."

I am lamely considering this entry as doing my part -- please consider my advanced age when evaluating the effort.

Photo note: Lately, I've been seeing watchful eyes everywhere. Ah, the power of the unconscious as it peeks through the viewfinder.

Posted by Dakota at January 28, 2006 06:31 AM