Another day, another dollar -- in the hole, that is. By now you may have concluded that the US economy really isn't showing signs of recovery, no matter how much the powers-that-be try to talk it up. And just like the major corporations have been caught red-handed manipulating spreadsheets to appear profitable, well, the government's day will come. But for now, Bush can only hope that the populace doesn't connect the dots between him and his administration, and the corporations he scolds, but Gilles d'Aymery reveals the patterns which connect and the hint of a changing sentiment toward "Sonny" Bush in Smelling Blood. Michael Stowell reviews the Bush sleight of hand sale of Harken Energy Corp stock, and calls upon us to shine a spotlight on his and his cronies' magic tricks.
But if all that gets you and your portfolio down, have no fear: Help is on the way! Dubya has declared war on corporate fraud and created a 'financial crimes SWAT team', to be headed by Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson. Thompson's qualifications? Two 5-year stints at the law firm King & Spaulding, ranked by Petroleum Economist as among the world's top ten international energy law firms, whose client list includes ExxonMobil, El Paso Energy, BP, Texaco.... Dynegy and Enron. The line between politics and business has blurred to the point that the Corpocracy can't even appear to investigate itself! Ralph Nader, where are you?
Meantime, we have other wars to think about -- they help the economy, after all, and though it looks as if the pollsters have advised against a preemptive strike on Iraq, the threat continues to loom. Deck Deckert provides an Invasion Q & A that you won't get from Ari Fleischer, and Milo Clark discusses the connection between current events and 1968 attitudes with the help of historian John Lukacs. Can we learn from the past? Will we ever learn to not repeat it? Aleksandra Priestfield also asks those questions in a book review of A History of Bombing, by Sven Lindqvist.
Finally, we journey away from this mayhem and enter the poetic worlds of Europe and Africa as lived through the words of Alma Hromic in part 6 of her 10-part poem, and we share a few words of feedback from our readers.
Enjoy this rendition and, as always, form your OWN opinion. Then, let your friends (and foes) know about Swans. It's your voice that makes ours grow.
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Gilles d'Aymery: Smelling Blood
Two weeks ago, in The Tribulations Of The Toads, I mentioned New York Times Op-Ed columnist Paul Krugman and his scathing columns of May 21 ("Enemies of Reform") and June 14 ("Plutocracy and Politics") against Resident Bush (aka, Dubya, Sonny, George), all the president's men, and the "System" (of which Krugman is one pillar among many). More...
Michael W. Stowell: Magic
When I was eight years old I saw a news program in which vice-president Richard Nixon gave Fidel Castro a small reception in Washington D.C. (President Eisenhower refused to meet with Fidel). I remember telling my dad "that guy is a crook." More...
Milo Clark: Continuing Explorations In Perception And Perspective
Why am I so disquieted by current approaches to current events. . . . am I alone? OK, John Lukacs yet again. Rambling among historians, as I have, for so many years, I may be acquiring some perspectives on history. Maybe it is only attitude. More...
Deck Deckert: Invasion of Iraq Q&A
Q: President Bush said the other day that he would "use all the tools at our disposal" to bring down Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. Can he do that? More...
Alma A. Hromic: Going Home: vi - Far and Wide
[Ed. Sixth part of a ten-part poem]
The journeys.
The Earth
is round. And I slid down
meridians
and rode the Equator carousel.
More...
Aleksandra Priestfield: Sven Lindqvist, A History of Bombing
This book is a descent into the darkest of labyrinths -- the depths of depravity that one human being can sink to against another. More...
Saving, spending, taxing the toads
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