Attorney General Ashcroft

I have little doubt that John Ashcroft is well-intentioned, and sincerely believes that he acts on profoundly moral principles, but unless he quickly comes to understand that many other profoundly moral individuals are being profoundly screwed by policies that he has engineered, his remaining in power creates a danger to the foundation of our Democracy.

It is a sufficient indictment of his policies to show that many entirely innocent people are being hurt by them, but I am especially looking for compelling stories of people whose good works are being stopped or interrupted by legal or other action from this justice department. Send me some links! [End of Post]

Am I Overwrought?

Those who know me, may be surprised to hear me equivocate about my own liberalism, declaring that I have conservative values as well. I certainly will NOT equivocate about my displeasure with the policies of the Bush Administration! Therein lies the point. My displeasure is not focused on how far to the right the administration has moved, but rather on how consistently wrong it is. Indeed there are politicians arguably to the right of Bush, Jack Kemp comes to mind, who command my respect though I might adamantly disagree with much of their politics.

Of late, I've been almost overwrought about the willingness of so many to find Bush to be an acceptable leader of this, the most powerful nation in a dangerous world. Many who share my distress express dismay at how far to the right Bush has moved. I don't think he has *moved* to the right, he has simply focused on issues to *appease* the far right constituency upon which he depends so much. The frightening underpinning of his foreign policy appears to have been there from the start, and is equally appalling to Pat Buchanan as it is to Ralph Nader. Opposition to gay marriage and the like is all just window dressing to activate the conservative base.