Op-Ed Column: Open Letter to My Readers

I haven't posted here since Monday's September 11th article. There are a couple of reasons for this.

Finally bringing myself to write about 9/11 took more out of me than I could have imagined. I've felt a bit mentally and physically drained since doing so. Quite simply, I needed a break. And this site is still a one-man operation. Part of this drain was a consequence of returning to emotions and images I'd largely put behind me in order to live my day-to-day life. But another source of this drain lay in the subsequent self-acknowledgement that even with the seeming anti-Bush tipping point in this country, his administration still remains in power, the mainstream media continues to cover this White House as though it demands credibility, and the daily death, torture and maiming of human beings as a direct result of its policies and directives proceeds unabated.

Such knowledge, of course, is ever-present in the back of my mind. Yet in pausing to reflect on what has happened to this country since 9/11, to sift through the months and years that have only brought more death and destruction and executive branch lawlessness, along with a sense of complacency for too many citizens whose daily lives haven't been directly affected, it was, to be honest, incredibly dispiriting.

The police state I experienced while attending a peaceful protest of Bush’s visit at Ground Zero on Sunday (the same anti-democratic atmosphere created by NYC police during protests to prevent the invasion of Iraq) underscored this feeling, as did the fact that our president’s confession to running secret prisons seems to have little impact on our nation. The President of the United States of America admitted to sanctioning the use of undisclosed gulags around the world. That alone should be it. See ya. End of story. Regardless of the laundry list of his and his administration's other crimes. Congress should be calling on him to resign immediately or face impeachment. A trial for war crimes also should be imminent. The press should have pounced on this story, treating it like the bombshell disclosure it was. "Bush Admits to Running Secret Prisons" or some such wording warranted front-page real estate on every paper in the nation and the lead story on every news broadcast that evening.

Instead, what is now quite possibly the height of the mainstream media's abnegation of responsibility, the administration's current legislative efforts to continue utilizing secret prisons, torture and enact legal loopholes to prevent future prosecution for these very crimes is being couched almost solely in terms of election year political maneuverings. Will this put Democrats on the defensive? Will this White House strategy work?

What absolute madness.

It’s official: We have reached a point in our country where an administration’s underhanded scheme to absolve itself of past and future war crimes is now considered a political strategy by our mainstream media.

This is madness on a scale not even Network author Paddy Chayefsky predicted.

All of that said, I ask you to forgive my brief hiatus and momentary bleak state of mind. And I thank you for the outpouring of support I received in response to Monday’s article. Going forward, I promise to only fight harder to hold our mainstream media to task, bring to light underreported stories and expose the ongoing high crimes of this administration.

I am humbled, honored and inspired by your continued readership.

Sincerely,
MediaBloodhound

Comments

[mainsailset]

Of the many wonderful things the internet has brought us is each other. Today I send you a bit of strength to tide you over for who knows, tomorrow I may ask for a bit back from you. These are enduring hard times, we are not machines and thus it is important to care for one another, to take on the task at hand. Bush has taken so much from all of us, together we can take it back. Make him fight all of us.

[Ben Marble, M.D.]

I too have been appalled by the fact that basically Dubya Gump is calling for changes to article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and wants the changes to be RETROACTIVE i.e. the Dubya Gump administration is ADMITTING TO WAR CRIMES with this very action and the MAINSTREAM MEDIA WHORES can't seem to grasp that concept!