Patriot Act and Christmas

Patriot Act Renewal

The renewal of the Patriot Act has been in the news recently, and at the moment, it’s stalled in Congress. That’s good news for Americans that care about civil liberties and that understand the principles on which this country was founded.

Let’s dispel a myth promulgated by neo-conservatives regarding the Patriot Act: “The Patriot Act is a necessary tool in the war on terrorism.” President Bush reiterated this sentiment in his radio address to the nation yesterday. Excrement. The Patriot Act has nothing to do with anti-terrorism. In fact, the provisions within the Patriot Act were part of a neo-con, law enforcement wish list that existed prior to 9/11. The terrorist attacks of September 11th provided an opportunistic moment for passing such sweeping legislation and thus endangering the civil liberties of all Americans.

I find it difficult to understand why the Bush Administration pushes so forcefully on Patriot Act renewal yet does virtually nothing when it comes to enacting the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. Remember them? A bi-partisan commission that investigated the root causes and failures that led to 9/11? Well, the Commission had a series of recommendations that were designed to fix the failures in intelligence and communication that allowed the terrorists to operate in this country, and thus by implementing the fixes would presumably make America safer. To my knowledge, the powers granted via the Patriot Act were not deemed to be impediments in catching terrorists pre-9/11. If those powers had been in place before September 11, the attacks would not have been foiled. Yet President Bush contends that the Patriot Act makes us safer. The question is “how?”, but there is no answer because the contention is purely rhetoric, and it is rhetoric that fewer and fewer people are swallowing every day. That’s why the Patriot Act is stalled in Congress.

Is Christmas here yet?

Honestly, I can’t wait until Christmas is over this year. After that, we won’t have to hear about the faux “War on Christmas” being fought by the brave soldiers at Fox News, at least not until next year. However, a lot of people have bought into this trumped up controversy designed to boost ratings and sell books (see Bill O’Reilly and John Gibson). Now you can count Congress among the fools. This past week, House Resolution (579) calling for the support of “the symbols and traditions of Christmas” was passed by a vote of 401 to 22. What a joke! I cannot believe we are paying these people to spend time on such a meaningless issue. Considering the issues before this country, it’s embarrassing that our elected representatives chose to devote time and energy to this. Bill O’Reilly has truly won the war! Fortunately, Rep. John Dingell (D-MI), brought a measure of sanity to the discussion by composing a poem about the alleged controversy of Christmas and reading it on the House floor. The text of the poem appears below:

'Twas a week before Christmas and all through the House,
no bills were passed 'bout which Fox News could grouse.
Tax cuts for the wealthy were passed with great cheer,
so vacations in St. Barts soon should be near.

Katrina kids were all nestled snug in motel beds,
while visions of school and home danced in their heads.
In Iraq, our soldiers need supplies and a plan,
and nuclear weapons are being built in Iran.

Gas prices shot up, consumer confidence fell.
Americans feared we were in a fast track to ... well.
Wait, we need a distraction, something divisive and wily,
a fabrication straight from the mouth of O'Reilly.

We will pretend Christmas is under attack,
hold a vote to save it, then pat ourselves on the back.
Silent Night, First Noel, Away in the Manger,
Wake up Congress, they're in no danger.

This time of year, we see Christmas everywhere we go,
From churches to homes to schools and, yes, even Costco.
What we have is an attempt to divide and destroy
when this is the season to unite us with joy.

At Christmastime, we're taught to unite.
We don't need a make-up reason to fight.
So on O'Reilly, on Hannity, on Coulter and those right-wing blogs.

You should sit back and relax, have a few egg nogs.

'Tis the holiday season; enjoy it a pinch.
With all our real problems, do we really need another Grinch?
So to my friends and my colleagues, I say with delight,a Merry Christmas to all, and to Bill O'Reilly, Happy Holidays.

Ho, ho, ho. Merry Christmas.