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Another (Correct) Conspiracy Nut

In contemplating the events and outcome of Lt. Watadas' trial, I've come to wonder if the mistrial wasn't dictated from above. My reasoning is this: The small PR victory that would have resulted from his conviction is nothing compared to the huge PR blow that would have come if he had been acquitted. Can you imagine what would have resulted if a jury of Army officers had agreed with him regarding the illegality of the war? If he had been convicted and sentenced to jail time his status as a symbol of opposition to the war would have been greatly increased.

This may be the best the government could have hoped for. I would not be at all surprised if the Army jerks him around for a while with the threat of a new trial but eventually allows him to resign his commission as he had originally offered.

But then again maybe I'm getting too conspiracy minded in my old age.

Best regards,

--Michael "redbear" Mossberg, Seattle

The Year of the Pigs

2007: The year of the non-binding resolution.

2007: The year of the irresolute Democrats.

2007: Another year of Despot Doublespeak running rings around the Democrats since March 20, 2003.

2007: The real question is: how many weapons of mass destruction the United States introduced to the Middle East since overthrowing the democratically elected government of Mohammed Mossadegh and installing the Shah of Iran, supplying Saddam Hussein and fighting Iraq?

2007: The real question is: when does American global militarism, subversion, and weapons proliferation come to an end?

2007: How does Barack Obama, by increasing the Pentagon budget early in his reign stop the Military-Industrial Complex from pursuing its next imperial adventure?

2007: Aren't one Cold War and a host of American-instigated hot wars in the past half century enough?

2007: When does America stop perpetuating and instigating civil wars in Colombia, Palestine, Lebanon, and elsewhere?

2007: How does Barack Obama, by propping up the Pentagon, restore and strengthen Social Security, Medicare, Education, Low-Income Housing, The Pension Guaranty Trust Fund, pay down the debt, confront the endlessly-growing gap between rich and poor, and create Universal Health Care?

2007: When do the Democrats seriously and effectively address just one of the above? If not now, when!

--Bob Miller, Seattle

Gone Postal

I'm a pissed off letter carrier with an axe to grind against this imperial President. What kind of idiotic Congress catches the President admitting on television that he wiretapped Americans without a warrant, and doesn't do anything about it? And then, when he adds a statement to a postal reform bill that says he can open our mail without a warrant, they still sit on their hands and extol the virtues of "bipartisanship"?

This is one postal worker who isn't gonna take it lying down. I'm working hard to organize the opposition. I got a resolution passed at my union, I'm working on getting a solidarity resolution passed at the Labor Council, and I'm trying to organize other postal workers online at www.postalworkersunited.blogspot.com

The fact is that Congress doesn't do squat unless enough people raise enough hell that they feel shamed into it. So that's what we have to do.

Anyone feel like helping out?

--Jeff Richardson, Acting Director, Postal Workers United Against Tyranny, Gig Harbor WA

Another Viaduct No-No

So what is an elector to do?:

1. Vote, vote, vote. More than letters to editors and public research polls, elected officials will pay close attention to the results of this advisory vote.

2. Join me and let them know that they have not looked at the big picture and that electeds are buried in a narrow vision.

I will vote NO on both questions. And it is a quite simple conclusion as both options are wrong for Seattle now and in the future.

Tunnel: six lanes is a costly project that I believe is way underestimated and way underfunded. It will drain money from critical needs and our grandchildren will be paying the bill for decades. The four lane option was created to save face, not solve problems. Four lanes will create the world's worst underground traffic jam. Who wants to be lost for ever in a tunnel? Remember the Boston MTA folk song line: "Will he ever return?" And no one knows if four lanes is any less expensive than six lanes. Just smoke and mirrors.

Viaduct replacement or rebuild: Yes, the viaduct provides drivers a wonderful view while they should be watching the road and not the boats at sea. The viaduct is ugly, ugly, ugly. It represents the least of the creative thinking that took place 50 years ago. But worst of all, replacing the viaduct does nothing to help solve global warming. Hey, anyone seen "An Inconvenient Truth"? We need less freeways. We need mass transit and surface streets. Just think: what kind of mass transit system we could create with those billions of dollars. And we will adjust to surface streets and using mass transit. And feel better for it.

It is time to tell elected officials what we think. My advice is to send them back to the drawing boards and force them to develop 21st Century solutions for 21st Century problems.

Please join me in voting NO & NO.

--Curt Firestone, Seattle