WEIRD THINGS


In the Middle East, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice calls for Syria to release detainees while, back in the U.S., Republicans in Congress are trying to deprive detainees of the right of habeas corpus.

Popular Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, as Governor, loses his popularity in record time.

Pat Robertson (No more need be said, but his latest is a claim that God will retaliate against Dover, Pennsylvania because its citizens voted against the teaching of intelligent design in science classes)

The United States and the European nations favor free trade but refuse to reduce farm subsidies that stand in the way of free trade.

State Department envoy and Bush advisor Karen Hughes supports women's rights in Saudi Arabia (whether they want it or not) while her Bush administration tries constantly to take women's rights away in the United States.

THE UPSIDE-DOWN HOUSE

That's the White House. Up is down; down is up. Its Healthy Forests hurts our forests.Its Clear Skies increases pollution. Its energy bill helps the energy companies, not our need for conservation.

Since President Bush didn't believe in scientific proof of global warming (just as he doesn't believe in evolution), his policies have contributed to the dangerous warming we now face.

Judging from the pending legislation for spending cuts, we have the spectacle of the poor sacrificing the most for the effort to help the poor who suffered from hurricanes.

And what is our anti-torture policy? Mr. Bush says we don't countenance torture while the government sends prisoners to foreign locations, some secret, some where torture is quite possible. At the same time that the President is issuing disclaimers, his Vice President is attempting to exclude the CIA from legislation that bans torture.

All this could just seem ludicrous if the consequences were not so dire. Think of the constant misleading association of Iraq with 9-11 helping to foster the war that has caused so much damage to our credibility and to the death and injury of so many American and Iraqis.

As the New York Times notes, ruefully, we have to endure three more years of George W. Bush.