Have you heard about this reclassifying of documents? Our administration is so paranoid that they are taking documents that have been declassified for years, in some cases over 50 years, and yanking them off the shelves to be reclassified. This is the weirdest thing I've heard in a while. These are articles that have been in the public domain for years. Most of them have been photocopied by private historians, so they already exist in private libraries and books. Removing the official copies does not remove them from circulation. The whole thing is madness.
Some of these documents are more than 50 years old and seem mainly to be on the reclassify list because they are embarrassing. If this truly is the reason it is not only ridiculous but also illegal, as the law clearly states that saving someone (group, country) from embarrassment CANNOT be the reason a document is kept classified or reclassified. The one I'm thinking of is a 1950s memo that predicted that the Chinese would not intervene in the Korean War, 12 days before they did. Would the US rather not have that bandied about? Yes. Reason enough to keep it secret? No.
As much as I think this is funny, it is also quite scary too. This administration, more than any other in recent memory, craves secrecy, because they know that if you control the information you control the populace. This program (which has been going on over 5 years by the way) is just the latest in their efforts to massage the media and information in general. Remember how Bush paid journalists to write favorably about his agenda? Notice how Cheney will only grant interviews to the ultra-conservative FoxNews channel? These are not coincidences.
Wake up people!
Acknowledgments: Slate, Blogcritics.org
Friday, February 24, 2006
Monday, February 20, 2006
Not a Dictatorship (yet)
I am getting tired of George W. Bush's claim that due to the "war on terror" he can do whatever he wants, including spy on American citizens without judicial oversight. Just because we are in a war (of his own making) he seems to think he has carte blanche to do illegal things. The Supreme Court has said that a war, any war, does not give the President complete and total control. We live in a Democratic Republic, with an ingenious system of checks and balances. No one person or one body can rule the country; it takes all three. Bush seems to have forgotten that.
I read in the paper today that Bush is now trying to get the Congress to retroactively say he has the right to spy on Americans. This whole business saddens me. Why must Bush make such a blatant grab for power? Is he so insulated that he doesn't realize how bad he looks? I think that may be true. I read another article yesterday that said the chief of protocol at the White House was the only person (aside from Laura Bush) who could tell the president he was wrong. That scares me. It means our president is surrounded by "yes men" and doesn't have anyone to tell him the unvarnished truth, if that truth is "You're wrong". No wonder Bush thinks this wiretapping which clearly exceeds the bounds of his power is legal.
Another thing Bush appears to have forgotten is that someday a Democrat will be back in the White House. Any grab for power Bush succeeds at will serve as a precedent for future Presidents of both parties. Does he really want a Democrat to have the same power?
The funny thing is, Bush could probably get permission for all his wiretapping from the secret court. As I understand it, it rarely refuses requests. So he could be doing all of this legally. Why does he have to be so difficult?
I read in the paper today that Bush is now trying to get the Congress to retroactively say he has the right to spy on Americans. This whole business saddens me. Why must Bush make such a blatant grab for power? Is he so insulated that he doesn't realize how bad he looks? I think that may be true. I read another article yesterday that said the chief of protocol at the White House was the only person (aside from Laura Bush) who could tell the president he was wrong. That scares me. It means our president is surrounded by "yes men" and doesn't have anyone to tell him the unvarnished truth, if that truth is "You're wrong". No wonder Bush thinks this wiretapping which clearly exceeds the bounds of his power is legal.
Another thing Bush appears to have forgotten is that someday a Democrat will be back in the White House. Any grab for power Bush succeeds at will serve as a precedent for future Presidents of both parties. Does he really want a Democrat to have the same power?
The funny thing is, Bush could probably get permission for all his wiretapping from the secret court. As I understand it, it rarely refuses requests. So he could be doing all of this legally. Why does he have to be so difficult?
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Freezing and Reading
It is FREEZING here! Well, cold for the California Bay Area anyway. It was in the 40s at 5 p.m., when the sun was still up. What's up with that?! It is almost in the 30s now (40.6 F according to the digital thermometer outside) and it is not even nine yet. We did get a dusting of snow of the various peaks around the Bay last Friday or so. That is always a big event here, even if it is only an inch or less and only in a few mountain areas. Our local newspaper ran the requisite photo of a kid next to a snowman, the surrounding area bare because all the snow had gone into building it. It is fun for a few days, but I'll be happy when we get back to 50s and 60s. I'm so spoiled.
Well I've been making some progress on my reading, of which I have a TON. Mom and I were discussing schools of thought on how to speed up reading and comprehension. One way, according to what Mom has heard, is to cut out the "inner voice" that "reads" along with you in your head. If you can make the information go straight from the page to your brain and skip this reader you go a lot faster. She tells me that it is possible to put a sensitive microphone on the throat of somehow who is reading (kinda the kind of microphone that you see on commandos in the movies) and it will pick up faint vibrations from the vocal chords that mimic the reader. With this set up it is possible to tell where a person is in a book, even though they are not speaking aloud, nor trying to convey the information in any way. Isn't that fascinating? Food for thought.
Well I've been making some progress on my reading, of which I have a TON. Mom and I were discussing schools of thought on how to speed up reading and comprehension. One way, according to what Mom has heard, is to cut out the "inner voice" that "reads" along with you in your head. If you can make the information go straight from the page to your brain and skip this reader you go a lot faster. She tells me that it is possible to put a sensitive microphone on the throat of somehow who is reading (kinda the kind of microphone that you see on commandos in the movies) and it will pick up faint vibrations from the vocal chords that mimic the reader. With this set up it is possible to tell where a person is in a book, even though they are not speaking aloud, nor trying to convey the information in any way. Isn't that fascinating? Food for thought.
Saturday, February 18, 2006
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Have you ever read that book? Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs? It was one of my favorites as a kid and still is, really. It is a very creative story.
It is about a "tall-tale" that a grandfather tells his grandkids about the tiny town of Chewandswallow. It has three hundred people and the most unusual weather you have ever seen. The weather comes 3 times a day and accounts for all the food they eat. For breakfast, for example, it might rain orange juice, followed by low clouds of sunny-side up eggs and pieces of toast. A shower of milk would finish the meal.
This idyllic existence is shattered with the weather begins to turn violent. The food items grow in size until a gigantic pancake covers the school, forcing it's closure. It just gets worse and worse until the townspeople fear for their lives. They decide to abandon Chewandswallow.
They take some of the huge stale pieces of bread that fell earlier and caulk them together sandwich style with peanut-butter. Using pieces of pizza for sails, they set off into the unknown. After many days of sailing, they arrive at a quiet coastal town that welcomes them, and they gradually settle in to a new life, even learning how to shop at the grocery store. So it is a happy ending.
This book fascinated me as a child. It really fires the imagination. I remember trying to think how my favorite meals could translate into weather. Like my breakfast of cereal, milk and juice would become milk rain and Cherrio hail, followed by showers of orange juice. But how would the transition work? What if you got both orange juice and milk in one glass? That would be gross! And would the milk rain interfere with the Cherrio hail and make it soggy? These are important issues! I suppose it is all pretend so you can make up any rules you want, but I like to pretend it is real and imagine the problems that would come with that reality. So you see how my mind works.
Well I visited my grandparents today (they are fine) and got some reading done, so overall a very successful day. I hope your day was too.
It is about a "tall-tale" that a grandfather tells his grandkids about the tiny town of Chewandswallow. It has three hundred people and the most unusual weather you have ever seen. The weather comes 3 times a day and accounts for all the food they eat. For breakfast, for example, it might rain orange juice, followed by low clouds of sunny-side up eggs and pieces of toast. A shower of milk would finish the meal.
This idyllic existence is shattered with the weather begins to turn violent. The food items grow in size until a gigantic pancake covers the school, forcing it's closure. It just gets worse and worse until the townspeople fear for their lives. They decide to abandon Chewandswallow.
They take some of the huge stale pieces of bread that fell earlier and caulk them together sandwich style with peanut-butter. Using pieces of pizza for sails, they set off into the unknown. After many days of sailing, they arrive at a quiet coastal town that welcomes them, and they gradually settle in to a new life, even learning how to shop at the grocery store. So it is a happy ending.
This book fascinated me as a child. It really fires the imagination. I remember trying to think how my favorite meals could translate into weather. Like my breakfast of cereal, milk and juice would become milk rain and Cherrio hail, followed by showers of orange juice. But how would the transition work? What if you got both orange juice and milk in one glass? That would be gross! And would the milk rain interfere with the Cherrio hail and make it soggy? These are important issues! I suppose it is all pretend so you can make up any rules you want, but I like to pretend it is real and imagine the problems that would come with that reality. So you see how my mind works.
Well I visited my grandparents today (they are fine) and got some reading done, so overall a very successful day. I hope your day was too.
Friday, February 17, 2006
Brand New Post
Alright, let's get this thing started. Here is a first ever brand new post, hot off the presses.
What should I write about? I'll tell you what I'm listening to: Dianne Reeves, on the "Good Night and Good Luck" soundtrack. It is a wonderful album, especially if you like soft jazz. Good movie too, one that scarily parallels our own situation in this country today. It has some nice up-tempo ones too, though my favorite may be this this very slow version of "Straighten Up and Fly Right" that is gorgeous.
Have you ever listened to the lyrics of that song? I never had until just recently, and I discover that the title is not metaphorical, as I had always assumed. The song begins "A buzzard took a monkey for a ride in the air/the monkey thought that everything was on the square/the buzzard tried to throw the monkey off of his back/the monkey grabbed his neck and said 'Now, listen Jack'/", and that is where the title lyrics come in. It really is a little odd. Great song though.
Well, I should read some for my class. More tomorrow hopefully.
What should I write about? I'll tell you what I'm listening to: Dianne Reeves, on the "Good Night and Good Luck" soundtrack. It is a wonderful album, especially if you like soft jazz. Good movie too, one that scarily parallels our own situation in this country today. It has some nice up-tempo ones too, though my favorite may be this this very slow version of "Straighten Up and Fly Right" that is gorgeous.
Have you ever listened to the lyrics of that song? I never had until just recently, and I discover that the title is not metaphorical, as I had always assumed. The song begins "A buzzard took a monkey for a ride in the air/the monkey thought that everything was on the square/the buzzard tried to throw the monkey off of his back/the monkey grabbed his neck and said 'Now, listen Jack'/", and that is where the title lyrics come in. It really is a little odd. Great song though.
Well, I should read some for my class. More tomorrow hopefully.
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