Regarding the Vastly Vaunted Endorsement of Senator Obama by Colin Powell...

The media is rewriting history and I find that terrifying.

When I worked in intelligence, I became very familiar with the compelling insidiousness of propaganda, all the while I was clothed in the lofty knowledge that our country was largely above such devious and deceitful methods of dealing with its populace.

We've come a long way, Citizens.

Now I'm not so naïve as to think our media is free of proselytism, or ever has been, but we have now arrived at a place where the majority of facts are not just being parsed, or slanted, or omitted, or ignored—ALL of which describe what the Fourth Estate has done in this last shocking decade--but rather, invented. Our national media is taking it upon themselves to rewrite history.

As Blue Lyon cogently says on her blog, the Colin Powell of yesterday's endorsement bears little resemblance to the Colin Powell we all know and love. She also discusses the hypocrisy of the left in their embrace of a sometimes-reviled Republican, but as the left barrels remorselessly down its path of no-return, I'm learning to step out of the way rather than be mown down.

I've no such compunction with our national media. It continues to be an outrage of the highest order that our sources of information—FACTS—can be wholly controlled by an increasingly powerful corporatocracy with everything but Americans' interests at heart.

For reasons that I still cannot thoroughly refine in my mind, it serves our media best to elect Senator Obama to the presidency. For this, it will pervert and scorn any and every 'fact' that comes its way. The latest incarnation of this is the glow that surrounds Colin Powell. To listen to the media, he is the most respected voice in America, the voice of reason, the final say.

So let's go back a lot of years. I liked him. He seemed fine, upstanding, honest, honorable. That was until he joined the Bush team and then Colin 'Macbeth' Powell went over to the dark side. And in the worst way possible. He used the esteem of the military and his laudatory service in it to dupe the countries of the world. If smarmy Cheney had made that same presentation at a plenary session of the UN, postulating the lethality of Iraq's intentions, there might have been some hesitancy to sign on. But Powell is a soldier, endowed with all the dignity, honor, and respect of his military career and years. When C.L. Powell speaks, people listen.

And with his help, the Iraq slaughter was born. He betrayed the troops who would die for years to come by using the honor of his uniform and all that entails. I find that insupportable.

Disgraceful too, is the betrayal of his oath. It is incumbent on every officer to desist from obeying an unlawful order. The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) says,

'An order which is unlawful not only does not need to be obeyed, but obeying such an order can result in criminal prosecution of the one who obeys it. Military courts have long held that military members are accountable for their actions even while following orders -- if the order was illegal.'

The last I heard, the order to lie is illegal. He knew what he was doing when he lied straight into the eyes and ears of the world, watching and trusting what he would say.

And this is the man who has now endorsed Obama, the man whose endorsement is the final jewel in the crowning of the media candidate, the man who holds all sway over our voting choice because he and his honorable career are unimpeachable.

Nice invention, media. I marvel that you think you may rewrite a history that is still ongoing.

Our kids are still dying in Iraq and Powell's words helped put them there.

Rewriting history only works if we let it.

Kindergarten Promises

Do you ever feel like you're back in grammar school and the candidates for school president are promising you hot and cold running chocolate in the water fountains if you'll vote for them?

'Hot and cold running tax cuts in a globally tanking economy. Just vote for me.'

Yeppirs.

A Stunningly Sneaky Run for the Presidency

If there's anything I really dislike, it's slimy dealings. For the American media to harp incessantly on the 200,000 people who attended Senator Obama's speech in Berlin, all the while omitting the preceding two concerts by favorite European bands, AND free pizza, beer and bratwurst, is simply repugnant.

Evidently, this sort of modus operandi is not without precedent in the Obama camp. With respect and thanks to justsaynodeal.com, I excerpt a fragment of their comment on this mucky affair, and another, similar one:

“While coverage of Senator Obama's Berlin speech provided audiences here at home nothing less than a visual "shock and awe," it neglected to mention that the well-hyped speech had an opening act: a gratis concert by two wildly popular groups....

While we appreciate the Obama Campaign's hospitality, on behalf of furthering US-Germany relations, offering free bratwurst, pizza and even beer for three hours during the free rock concert, we question whether or not the monies might have been better spent here on financially strapped US citizens.

Similarly, back on May 20, 2008 in Portland, Oregon, Senator Obama took the stage following the critically acclaimed local band The Decemberists, who gave a rare free concert for 75,000 fans. While news stories generated by both appearances focused on the enormity of the crowd size, few mentioned the accompanying perks, leaving some to question whether revelers are showing up for Senator Obama or for free food and entertainment.

Without this additional information, Just Say No Deal contends that Americans are being misled about the presumptive Democratic nominee’s true popularity."

Misled? I'd certainly say so. Remember when we learned that a lie is still a lie when it's a fully cognizant omission? Guess the media missed that lesson.

Euphemisms, Lies, and Leaders

Voilà, a sampling of rhetoric to gloss over Senator Obama's crafty, calculated, and utterly impolitic MOVE TO THE CENTER.

'The conversation is rising about what the left should properly do when the presumptive nominee appears to emphasize his moderate side...'

'Senator Obama is a nuanced, sophisticated speaker.'

'He's a good politician. He's doing all he can to make sure people know he would govern as a post-partisan moderate.'

'He’s being proactive by taking centrist stances on issues that are important to a lot of people in this country...Obama is doing what he has to do in order to win.'

What tripe.

I'm getting downright fatigued with the unscrupulous manipulation of language to disguise actions by politicians that are entirely self-serving and ineffably stupid.

Let's just speak plainly. The Senator from Illinois has lied. Either he lied when he laid out his stances on public campaign financing, wiretapping, the death penalty, free trade, diplomacy, immunity for telecoms, handguns, the 'surge', and more---or he's lying now.

I have two problems with that.
1.How am I to impress on my teenagers the dishonor brought to their lives by lying when our would-be leaders spew lies like stock in trade?
2.How can I vote for someone who lies, bold-faced and with impunity?

There's another thing I teach my children: when you compete in any venue, do it with honor. Win, but win with honor. Without it, any win will be empty and will do justice to no one. Witness the 'win' to which we've been subjected these last, long eight years. We are all the poorer, even those with lots more in the bank.

Is it too much to ask that our leaders possess an iota of integrity?
Can we not have a win with even the outward perception of honor?