Thursday, January 22, 2004



Oh, where to begin

I skimmed Dubya's State of the Union speech, and it's just one long paean to war, fear, tax-cuts and bigotry. Not much on Saddam's WMD (America fought a war; shouldn't its president explain why?), but calls to renew the PATRIOT Act (it expires this year - good riddance to totalitarian rubbish), make the tax cuts permanent (yeah, rob from the poor to give to the rich!), and "defend the sanctity of marriage" (deny gays the same rights enjoyed by hetrosexual couples). I'm so glad I live in a sane country rather than the United States.

There's a great Tui moment in there as well:

The American economy is growing stronger. The tax relief you passed is working.

Which is why there are no new jobs, and more Americans living in poverty. Again, I'm so glad I live in a sane country (or at least one which is not run by a clique waging class warfare on the poor) rather than the United States.

But the best bit - the part that makes your eyes bug out with its Orwellian reversal of the truth - is this:

We also hear doubts that democracy is a realistic goal for the greater Middle East, where freedom is rare. Yet it is mistaken, and condescending, to assume that whole cultures and great religions are incompatible with liberty and self-government. I believe that God has planted in every heart the desire to live in freedom. And even when that desire is crushed by tyranny for decades, it will rise again

Yes, it's mistaken and condescending - so why the hell is the US trying to deny Iraqis the right to elect their own government? Doesn't this make them the very tyranny that Bush is talking about?

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