Onward Christian soldiers

Just when you think that what you know about the George W. Bush administration's depravity, rank hypocracy and sadististic bullying masquerading as patriotic piety has hit the bottom of the barrel, someone comes along and points out that there is a whole other barrel underneath this one. Apparently Donald Rumsfeld, not content to have things like prayer meetings going on at the Pentagon and a chief of Special Forces who make Gen. Jack T. Ripper look like the moderate wing of the GOP/military axis, took it upon himself to make special title pages for the regular top secret briefing he delivered to the president and handful of others. Pages with heroic, glamorous images of America's Heroic Glamorous Defenders of Heroic Freedom Heroically Defending Freedom in Glamorous ways, overlaid with stirring passages from, yep - you guessed it - the Bible.
(Image shamelessly lifted from Jesus' General)

See them all here

Keep in mind that this was not an attempt to play to the religious rubes out there in the hinterlands or a pose adopted to curry favor with the evangelistic electorate. These covers were for super-secret executive level only reports that were circulated only to the most senior people.
One wonders what the "Prince of Peace" would make of that. One also wonders why none of these pictures were included with suitable biblical quotes:

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth

Whatever you do to the least of my brothers, you do to me.

Suffer the little children to come unto me

If you are American, write your president, your congressman, your senator, your newspaper and demand that the people responsible for starting this hideous human meatgrinder on false pretenses for their own selfish reasons be brought to trial.

Gratitude to fellow Fez enthusiast Atta J. Turk, this is all crossposted from the Woodshed.

The Great Rumsfeld Snowjob

When Iraqi artist, Muayad Muhsin did this oil painting of former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld he may not have realized quite how insightful it would turn out to be.

In a series of internal musings and memos to his staff, then-Defense Secretary argued that Muslims avoid "physical labor" and wrote of the need to "keep elevating the threat," "link Iraq to Iran" and develop "bumper sticker statements" to rally public support for an increasingly unpopular war.

The memos, often referred to as "snowflakes," shed light on Rumsfeld's brusque management style and on his efforts to address key challenges during his tenure as Pentagon chief. Spanning from 2002 to shortly after his resignation following the 2006 congressional elections, a sampling of his trademark missives obtained yesterday reveals a defense secretary disdainful of media criticism and driven to reshape public opinion of the Iraq war.

Snowflakes?

What becomes obvious in the article is that Rumsfeld was not only disdainful of the media; he was also disdainful of the American public.

The contents of Rumsfeld's memos, aside from some of them demonstrating a serious level of uninformed prejudice, come across like some kind of Madison Avenue advertising executive fighting to keep the public buying a product which has no purpose.

Note that the view we get is not that of Rumsfeld telling his flunkies to "explain" the situation, but to "sell" it.

In one of his longer ruminations, in May 2004, Rumsfeld considered whether to redefine the terrorism fight as a "worldwide insurgency." The goal of the enemy, he wrote, is to "end the state system, using terrorism, to drive the non-radicals from the world." He then advised aides "to test what the results could be" if the war on terrorism were renamed.

So, as opposed to managing the most expensive department in the US government, he was more interested in marketing a reason to pursue the PNAC agenda.

In fact, Rumsfeld had his flood of memos named perfectly: Snowflakes. Culminating in one of the most amazing snowjobs in history.

More at The Carpetbagger Report and Crooks & Liars.

Damn! And So Close, Too ! ! ! !

From AlterNet today:

Rumsfeld Flees France, Fearing Arrest
By , IPS News - Posted on October 29, 2007

Former U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld fled France today fearing arrest over charges of "ordering and authorizing" torture of detainees at both the American-run Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and the U.S. military's detainment facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, unconfirmed reports coming from Paris suggest.

U.S. embassy officials whisked Rumsfeld away yesterday from a breakfast meeting in Paris organized by the Foreign Policy magazine after human rights groups filed a criminal complaint against the man who spearheaded President George W. Bush's "war on terror" for six years.

Under international law, authorities in France are obliged to open an investigation when a complaint is made while the alleged torturer is on French soil.

_______________


"Rumsfeld must be feeling how Saddam Hussein felt when U.S. forces were hunting him down," activist Tanguy Richard said. "He may never end up being hanged like his old friend, but he must learn that in the civilized world, war crime doesn't pay."

One can only hope the rest of bushco gets the same treatment:

No place to run and hide from world justice . . . .

(Cross-posted from Moving to Vancouver)

Waterloo . . . .

'Ya gotta love ABBA . . . .

(Cross-Posted at Moving to Vancouver)

Because you present awards to the wankers you've got; Not the wankers you'd like to have.

Donald Rumsfeld is about to receive an award for "statesmanship".

























Now, before anyone starts to hyperventilate too badly over this, try to keep it in perspective. The Claremont Institute gives out all kinds of "statesmanship" awards.

One better known recipient is Victor Davis (There hasn't been a war invented on which I am not the consummate expert) Hanson.

The occasional doctor-shopping drug addict.

And, Bush-fellating clowns in lawyer suits.

Oh yeah... I almost forgot. They also like to honour Conrad Black connected, entertainment-columnist-turned-political-pundit, hobbits.

This is nothing more than Rumsfeld becoming a "made man".

Sadly, No! has the Claremont formula for awards.

(Hat tip... Skippy)