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The End
"...the end - Of our elaborate plans, the end - Of everything that stands, the end - No safety or surprise, the end - I'll never look into your eyes...again - Can you picture what will be, - So limitless and free - Desperately in need...of some...stranger's hand - In a...desperate land - Lost in a Roman...wilderness of pain - And all the children are insane, All the children are insane... This is the end." (lyrics: The Doors)

KARLA

THE ROAD TO IMPEACHMENT

(Associated Press, Nov. 8, 2006) [...]

The sudden decline of the Republican Party and the likely downfall of the Bush-Cheney administration follows a cascade of catastrophes and unexpected reversals of fortune for the White House during the second Bush term.

THE ECONOMY: The American economy is in deep recession and, many economists fear, on the brink of depression. Heedless of warnings by economists from both parties, Bush and the Republican Congress continued its policy of deep tax cuts to the wealthy, the dismantling of social services, and huge deficits with no end in sight. Recognizing at last the unsustainability of these policies, the international financial community lost all confidence in the dollar, and, as a result, the value of the dollar against world currencies plummeted. Then the economic dominoes proceeded to fall. The price of imported goods skyrocketed and became unaffordable to ordinary Americans. International banks (primarily Chinese and Japanese) refused to continue their support of Bush's budget deficit which forced the US to raise interest rates dramatically. Consequently, debt-ridden US consumers have lost their homes, disposable family income has shrunk, businesses have closed, and unemployment is rising to levels not seen since the Great Depression of the thirties. However, this time the bankrupt US government can not supply unemployment compensation or other relief. The suffering public has put the blame for this disaster directly upon the Republicans and the Bush Administration.

THE MEDIA: After the 2004 election, it was widely believed that Republican-corporate control of the mainstream media had guaranteed a permanent Republican "lock" on the federal government. Not so. Soon thereafter, the public finally began to wake up to the fact that it had been lied to by the media and, just as important, that it had been denied vital information about the misdeeds of the Congress and the Administration. As a result, the media audience fell dramatically, creating a crisis in advertising revenue. In the meantime, the internet became the primary source of news to the public. Attempts by the Bush-friendly FCC and the Congress to stifle the internet failed in the face of public outcry. There was then a re-birth of investigative journalism which immediately received widespread support, thence advertising revenue. Investigative journalists then proceeded to uncover a rogue's gallery of "White House Horrors" -- the instigators of the Valerie Plame affair, the suppression of accurate intelligence information, the sellout of public resources and institutions to private "investors," unbid "sweetheart" contracts to firms such as Halliburton, and much more.

[...]

[...] When reminded by a journalist that two "senior White House" officials had revealed the CIA affiliation of covert agent Valerie Plame, thus endangering her and her contacts abroad, McClellan verbally attacked the reporter as "coming close to providing aid and comfort to the enemy" by questioning the Administration. He added: "Though the Democrat Party tends to forget it, our country is engaged in a war against terrorism, and all Americans should watch carefully what they say and do. Raising questions about the Administration's veracity and war-policies might make the terrorists think that the American government is weak and unable to confront them. This could make our country more vulnerable to attacks."

[...]

"But this extremist crew will not go easily into their dark night. If they're going to go down, they probably are willing to take the country down with them."

"For the good of the country, and for what little is left of their reputations, Bush and Cheney should resign. If they do not, they can anticipate being dragged through the trauma of impeachment. My guess is that if they resign, they might be able to 'plea-bargain,' as it were, and the country would go easier on them for their crimes."

Above excerpted from: "GOP Swept from Power in 2006 - Impeachment Looms" - By Bernard Weiner and Ernest Partridge
Co-Editors, The Crisis Papers - May 31, 2005

Editor&Publisher:

Time Inc. To Hand Over Notes in Plame Case, As 'NYT' Protests - By Joe Strupp | Published: June 30, 2005 10:02 AM ET

Time Inc.'s statement also included a lengthy explanation from Norman Pearlstine, Time magazine's editor in chief, about why the company chose to hand over the documents,... continued here...

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