Here is a great song and a disturbing video to accompany it. David Bowie and Trent Reznor remix a classic Bowie tune, "Im afraid of Americans". It fits regarding my previous post.

Thank you Alphamonkey for basis of the editorial synopsis in which I so heartily agree.

Soooo, it’s not quite a full pardon, but President Bush commuted Scooter Libbey’s 30 month jail term to probation and fines because he felt the jail term was ‘excessive’. Notwithstanding the fact that the sentence was handed down by a judge Bush appointed who, after looking at all the evidence, stated in no uncertain terms that he thought 30 months was more than appropriate and certainly in line with sentencing guidelines. Not to mention that the Supreme Court earlier this year supported a sentence harsher than this for a similar crime. Let’s hear it for corrupting the rule of law! Woo-hoo!

In that spirit, I heartily recommend reading The Washington Post’s excellent multi-part piece on the Cheney Vice Presidency. This is a wonderful primer for those who don’t know much about the man (or the basis for his particular world-view), and an excellent synopsis of his effect on the US over the last seven years. The nearly unchecked expansion of executive power starts at this man’s door, and the contempt for the constitutional process and transparency of government that emanates from Cheney’s office is just staggering.

Moving away from politics, and a little less infuriating a read would be The New Age of Ignorance: Both a review of Natalie Angier’s ”The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science“ and an overall look at science’s declining stature in Western Culture, and some interesting ideas on why it’s come to pass. It made me more sad and resigned than angry, all the more so for the idea that the Western world simply doesn’t seem to care about how badly our understanding of basic science has floundered.

5 minute Supreme Court Crash Course

Slate.com posted a great discussion about Constitutional law and such relevant issues as:

Equal Protection Clause
freedom of religion
Freedom of Speech
State Sovereignty

etc.

Check it out at Slate.com

Does Dick Cheney know what branch of government he is apart of?

I find it amazing that our V.P. has claimed for nearly three years that he has executive privilege. A special privilege claimed by the executive branch keep presidential papers, records and other documents secret, even from the Congress. I am the first to admit that some of our greatest presidents have claimed this common law privilege (Washington, Jefferson) setting the precedent for subsequent holders of the office. There are many times when I can see keeping certain documents from the eyes of others.

There is a time, when the country is in arms, when Congress has asked, when the National archives as made requests. Documents must be shared. perhaps not to the whole public, but why not to the appropriate committee members?

Now Mr. Cheney is claiming that the V.P. is not part of the executive branch. But part of the legislative branch since the V.P. is the head of the senate. Did out V.P. not read the Constitution?

Article II of the Constitution outlines the executive branch. It is in this article that the election of the V.P. is described. Furthermore Amendment XXII further describes the link of the V.P. to the executive branch.

Secondly, the Constitution has built in oversight between the three branches; “A system of checks and balances”. Part of this is a form of oversight to make sure each branch is honest.

If the Mr. Cheney would like to claim he is part of the Legislative branch, then he not only has oversight from the executive branch, but he also has oversight by the appropriate committees in congress.

The fact that our V.P. is resorting to such tactics make me believe that he is hiding more than I could ever imaging. It is classic case of all of the “soft evidence” pointing in his direction. It is as if he can just fend off and keep the people from seeing the “hard evidence” then he will go free. Just what is he hiding?