Friday, August 05, 2005
The Road Ahead
In his current essay http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/08/05/120.html , Moscow Times correspondent Chris Floyd documents the now familiar corruption and cronyism in the Bush White House regarding Vice President Cheney's hallowed Halliburton contracts, while a commenter at http://driftglass.blogspot.com/2005/08/carville-discovers-novaks-launch-codes.html provides a more accessible, and I would argue more precise, depiction of the wholesale hollowing out of the federal vault.
And the distinction is an important one. Graft and cronyism are normal in our system of government. Complete and utter ransacking of the public wealth and credit are another matter altogether. Equivocating on this subject--whether in the name of protecting the sanctity of the office, or out of fear of being exposed for the relatively petty crimes committed by both parties in Congress on any given day--is already having disastrous consequences on public health and education.
Given we are now way beyond any hope for resolution through official channels, we had best prepare for what was once thought put behind us for good.
And the distinction is an important one. Graft and cronyism are normal in our system of government. Complete and utter ransacking of the public wealth and credit are another matter altogether. Equivocating on this subject--whether in the name of protecting the sanctity of the office, or out of fear of being exposed for the relatively petty crimes committed by both parties in Congress on any given day--is already having disastrous consequences on public health and education.
Given we are now way beyond any hope for resolution through official channels, we had best prepare for what was once thought put behind us for good.
