Palin: Alaska Independece Party, Checking FactCheck.org

I appreciate the concept and challenge of FactCheck's work; however, it seems in their effort to be "objective" they narrow their summaries into sound-bites made easy to abuse.

Example:

FactCheck Says: "She was never a member of the Alaskan Independence Party, a group that wants Alaskans to vote on whether they wish to secede from the United States. She’s been registered as a Republican since May 1982."

Issue dismissed.

But Wait. Palin demonstrates a pattern of involvement with AIP, which isn't captured in the summary.

Deeper reading of FactCheck reveals, "her husband was a member for years, and she attended at least one party convention, as mayor of the town in which it was held." In addition, "As governor, Palin sent a video message to the 2008 convention, which is available on YouTube, and the AIP says she attended in 2006 when she was campaigning."

In her brief video to the 2008 AIP convention, Palin says, "we have a great promise to be a self-sufficient state...." Is this code for saying the State should strive to secede from the union?

It's starting to look like Palin might share the views of AIP, like someone who shares the views of the Green Party but registers Democrat.

A little more balanced shading of the FactCheck summaries might help place the "facts" into a more "factual context." And what about that title, "Sliming Palin: False Internet claims and rumors fly about McCain's running mate."

Contact FactCheck and let them know what you think.

Sources:

FactCheck, Sliming Palin: False Internet claims and rumors fly about McCain's running mate

CIA forged letter's Influence on Domestic Opinion

We are facing a When in times of human events moment. The present Bush administration form of government has become destructive of deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. It is the right of the people to alter or abolish it.

Many actions of the Bush administration are designed to be nearly irreversible, such as the appointment of partisan operatives to the judicial bench, driving the treasury into debt as a means of weakening federal agencies that protect the environment and the rights of the common people, shifting that money and power to transnational corporations that steer the Bush administration from the shadows. The Congress is similarly captured by the influence of the consolidated wealth, leaving them impotent to reverse course.

Reversing course is no light and transient cause. Our inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are threatened by increasing evidence of a tightening police state in which corporate power is used by a small group of people who enter and exit the government at will to secure largess for themselves and their adherents. This intertwining of corporate and executive branch power, used to consolidate ever more power, is a hallmark of fascism; fascism isn't an "ism." It doesn't push a doctrine. It does anything necessary to grab power, even if that means pretending to promote a doctrine.

The situation is reaching a tipping point, evidenced by the revelations of Ron Suskind that the Bush administration ordered the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to forge a letter linking Iraq to 9/11 and the CIA's compliance. The CIA, restricted to foreign affairs, crossed a bright line when the forged Habbush letter was used to influence domestic opinion. Will the people of the United States simply accept this blatant abuse of power that was targeted at them? The Declaration of Independence says:

all experience hath shown, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.

It also says,
But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

Yes. We are living one of those When in times of human events moments.

When in times of human events...

We are facing a "When in times of human events" moment. The present current "form of government" has "become destructive" of "deriving [its] just powers from the consent of the governed". In cases like this, which are not light and transient causes, "It is the right of the people to alter or abolish it." Alter significantly we must.

Many actions of the Bush administration are intentionally designed to be nearly irreversible. Consider the appointment of partisan operatives to the judicial bench, driving the treasury into debt as a means of weakening federal agencies that protect the environment and the rights of the common people, shifting our national treasure and power to transnational corporations that are in alliance with the Bush administration. The Congress is similarly captured by the influence of the consolidated wealth leaving them impotent to reverse course.

Our nation has become corrupted by an small elite class of people, some operatives and some are simply lucky relatives going along for the ride, probably oblivious to the crimes being committed as they live in luxury, traveling freely and enjoying all the best that money can buy. They do this in the face of a failing empire, which can no longer hold the index finger high and say "USA, We're #1".

The following rankings are evidence of US decline in the world:

• Number 37 on the Healthcare Quality Index (World Health Organization).
  
• Number 32 in infant mortality rate (Save the Children).
  
• Both of which are a result is number 29 on life expectancy.
  
• Number 9 on Adult Literacy Scale (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)).
  
• Number 12 on student reading ability (OECD).
  
• Number 48 on the Journalistic Press Freedom Index (Reporters Without Boarders).
  
• Number 17 on women's rights (World Economic Forum).
  
• Number 13 on a quality of life survey by Economist magazine.
  
• Number 45 on the Environmental Sustainability Index (Yale and Columbia universities).
  

Reversing this corrupt course is no light and transient cause. Our inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are threatened by increasing evidence of a tightening police state. Consolidated corporate power, including the mass media, is used by a small group of people who enter and exit the government at will to secure largess for themselves and their adherents. This intertwining of corporate and unitary executive power, used to consolidate ever more power, is a hallmark of fascism; Actually, fascism isn't an "ism." It doesn't push a doctrine. It does anything necessary to expand its power, even if that means pretending to promote a doctrine. Fascism is by its nature corrupt.

The situation is reaching a tipping point, evidenced by the revelations of Ron Suskind that the Bush administration ordered the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to forge a letter linking Iraq to 9/11 and the CIA's compliance. The CIA crossed a bright legal line when it used the forged Habbush letter to influence domestic opinion; the CIA is strictly limited to foreign intelligence matters. This restriction is a keystone to the freedoms of democracy we hold so dear.

Will the people of the United States simply accept this blatant abuse of power, which was intentionally targeted at them by the Bush administration? The Declaration of Independence says:

all experience hath shown, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.

It also says,
But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

Yes. We are living one of those When in times of human events moments.

Sources:

Statistics on American rankings are from page 244 of "The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder," Vincent Bugliosi, Vangaurd Press, 2008.