If you think that George W. Bush is the only person in the “hot seat” when it comes to torture, think again.  There are people in Congress who knew about it, who condoned it, who gave the Bush administration the “thumbs up”.

We need to hold them accountable as well.

I’m doing my part.  Below is the letter I sent to my state newspaper, among others…

Lately, there is a lot of talk going on about “national service”.  Ok, so, it’s not new.  President Obama said this back in December 2007:

MT. VERNON, Iowa – Democrat Barack Obama on Wednesday advocated a major expansion of the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps and other national service programs, saying “This will be a cause of my presidency.”

The Illinois senator said that the government is not keeping pace with those who want to serve. “We will create new opportunities for all of us to serve,” he said at a rally at Cornell College.

Obama evoked the memory of President John F. Kennedy and his Peace Corps volunteers. “JFK made their service a bridge to the developing world,” he said.

So, what is prompting this essay?  Well, it’s a bit convoluted…

It’s no secret that I am a former Republican.  So, when I read an article by a current Republican talking about how the GOP needs to reform, I want to see what ideas they have to share.

I was able, due to the individual being a professor, to find his email and respond to him directly.  

My response is below…

In order to not seem like I only criticize, I would like to make some helpful suggestions to those who consider themselves part of the “religious right” and/or a GOP supporter.  

I just sent this out to all the people I thought needed to hear my thoughts — give me yours.

Condi Rice in a Washington Post article stated (I’m linking to AmericaBlog’s recount):  What is more important than current controversies, she argued, slapping the table for emphasis, is how the decisions will look 25 or 30 years from now. “If you get very focused on whether someone thinks your policies are popular, you won’t do the right thing,” she said.

Why do we continually see this timeframe?

As many of you know, I am an avid reader of certain blogs; AMERICAblog, Crooks and Liars, Think Progress, TPM, Raw Story, Glenn Greenwald and Balloon Juice.  If I want to find news or commentary of substance, that is where I go to find it.

While I in no way put myself in the same class as those I read, I can also say that it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure something out when the writing is on the wall…

The “this” I speak of is the shooting of the subway passenger by a BART cop.

If you are as old as I am, you remember the movie The Star Chamber.  

It was about a group of judges who met in secret.  The would discuss and debate over which criminal who got off due to a technicality that they should put out a “hit” on, and, they would then hire an assassin to kill that person.

I find echo chambers to be much the same thing.

There is a phrase in American culture that has taken on a dynamic unto itself — conspiracy theory.  As far as I can tell, it started with Roswell and that the government was hiding alien bodies, though, nobody could ever prove it.  

While reading Digby, I found an article written on the use of excessive force by police officers.

So… what is the proper use of force?

As I sit reading the news (no, I don’t watch cable news, I read reliable blogs), there were quite a few things I thought to write about, but, the one thing that captured my mind is the whole GOP mindset of, “they are TERRORISTS, how can you defend them!”