Notes on a Cowardly Lion

By Jeffrey Bennett, Publisher

"The recession started upon my arrival. It could have been — some say February, some say March, some speculate maybe earlier it started — but nevertheless, it happened as we showed up here. The attacks on our country affected our economy. Corporate scandals affected the confidence of people and therefore affected the economy. My decision on Iraq, this kind of march to war, affected the economy."

Note: All quotations in dark red print were made by President George W. Bush.

”If I only had a heart…”

When a man's an empty kettle he should be on his mettle,
And yet I'm torn apart.
Just because I'm presumin' that I could be kind-a-human,
If I only had heart.

For starters, I don’t think that it’s a hidden fact that I do not care for President Bush – anymore than I cared for nor agreed with the policies of his predecessor, Willy J. Clinton spent more time defending his various – er – uh – peckerdillos – you know – affairs – both foreign and domestic?

George W. Bush – in his own minute wis-dumb has shown his disdain of lower and middle-class American people and his ignorance of the United States Constitution. He has “spent” us into the financial abyss ("It's clearly a budget. It's got a lot of numbers in it") via his search for the non-existent weapons of mass destruction (WMD’s), committed us to an never-ending war in the Middle East and generally bumbled his way through nearly five years at the helm of the U.S.S. Titanic (going down anyone?).

”Ah,” you say - ”then you would have voted for John Kerry?” Nope! I would have cast my vote for Monty Brewster – in other words ”None of the Above.” At least Brewster had a heart.

Bush is in office for one reason – to placate and line the pockets of those who put him in office. Oh no – I don’t mean the sheople, who “voted” for him and really think that their vote counts - I speak of Corporate America (not the country) – the B-I-G business, whose interests are served by war, inflation, deflation and national disasters like Katrina ("We are ready for any unforeseen event that may not occur"). There are rumors in the news-media that while Halliburton continues to profiteer big-time in the never-ending war – they are on the verge of stepping into Lousy-anna in order to “re-build” Nawleens for the elite. (See: http://www.waynemadsenreport.com: September 9, 2005 - Dallas meeting plans reconstruction of New Orleans without poor African Americans)

Is Junior any different than those who came before him? Nope – he just can’t act as well as they did. He definitely qualifies for the Rotten Tomatoes Academy Award. He has proven that you can fool all of the people – ALL of the time. What suckers the sheople are.

”If I only had a brain…”

I could while away the hours, conferrin' with the flowers
Consultin' with the rain.
And my head I'd be scratchin' while
my thoughts were busy hatchin'
If I only had a brain
I'd unravel every riddle for any individ'le,
In trouble or in pain.
With the thoughts you'll be thinkin'
you could be another Lincoln
If you only had a brain.

Oh, I could tell you why The ocean's near the shore.
I could think of things I never thunk before.
And then I'd sit, and think some more.
I would not be just a nothin' my head all full of stuffin'
My heart all full of pain.
I would dance and be merry, life would be a ding-a-derry - If I only had a brain.

In the scheme of things (and they are constantly scheming), G.W. Bush – the B-I-G Texas oil-man that he claims to be – couldn’t hold a candle to J.R. Ewing – who would have chewed him up and spit him out. Bush is like the Cliff Barnes of politics – always scheming – always losing and always ending up looking like a bad caricature of a leader. Martin Sheen has spent a large part of his acting career portraying Presidents, Vice Presidents and other political personages on both small and large screens – and has more experience in the field than Junior – and he is a more likeable guy. And yet today – we could use a J.R. Ewing to lobby for American oil interests instead of our continued dependence on the Saudi families.

I have never witnessed a more inept public speaker – a guy who just can’t think on his own two feet (or probably can’t think on his own). He’s kind of like a librarian – someone who has read a lot of books – in the closet – with the lights turned off!

”One of the great things about books is, sometimes there are some fantastic pictures."

Upon notification of the attack on the World Trade Center on 9/11, Georgie showed no emotion whatsoever – he quietly turned back to students in the classroom and concluded reading the children fairy-tales. Photo ops then presented themselves at ground-zero days later before the public. The “speech” was good – but he ain’t no Rudy Guliani! Then he rattled his limp-sword toward the middle east and declared Osama bin Layed Yet as our mortal enemy – as he was laying the foundation for the rules of engagement. And who did we engage? Sodomy Insane – evil ruler of an evil empire. No WMD’s (still – four years later) – yet hundreds of thousands of America’s sons and daughters were sent to the Afghanistan and Iraq (where we came to GIVE them something called ‘democracy’) to fight for “our security and freedom.” And don’t forget that there may be more to come!

As with all administrations, nepotism and personal relationships are the rule of the day. Michael D. Brown at FEMA (finally resigned on 9/12/05) and Michael Chertoff as head of the SS – I mean Homeland Security. His main financial backer, Kenneth Lay (remember ENRON?) still has yet to be brought before the courts for his shafting of employees and stock-holders alike. Like Clinton before him – it seems that the big money backers get away with murder and grand-larceny (remember Marc Rich and his hottie ex-wife?) And now Nawleens may be going to the highest bidder for the resurrections of Casinos and more upscale tony neighborhoods. What of the poor to middle class citizens who once lived there? Bulldoze and burn is my assumption. The Center for Disease Control along with the Department of Health and Human Services will probably condemn large blocks of The Big Easy due to potential (and very real) health concerns – and as of this writing – business have been allowed to begin re-entering the affected areas – but not Rufus Homeowner. Where is the compassion? Where is the heart? As to the brains, well - the lights are definitely off!

Suggesting to Nancy Pelosi – as relates to FEDGOV’s response to Katrina – that nothing had gone wrong in Nawleens – was ludicrous. It showed a lack of brains, heart and courage. Maybe Bush simply just gets off pissing off Pelosi.  Making her cry.  Yeah, that's the ticket!

Do I believe that the government should pick up the pieces for everything that goes wrong in this nation? Absolutely not! But given the fact that billions and trillions of dollars are committed to “giving” freedom to nations around the world who don’t grasp the concept – it seems that charity MUST begin at home. On the other hand – let’s be blunt – the “charity” would be better administered and given by private contribution and corporate sponsorship. Every time FEDGOV gets involved – the costs increase at least ten-fold and efficiency declines by 90%. Result?: It costs to get assistance.

Breaking News: Monday, September 12, 2005, Los Angeles, CA:
A large portion of Los Angeles was hit with a blackout Monday afternoon. The city was investigating the cause and extent of the outage. The blackout came a day after ABC aired a videotape of a purported al Qaeda member making terrorist threats against Los Angeles, on the fourth anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

Four years ago we were constantly barraged with scare tactics like this on a daily basis. Gotta keep the public whooped up into a frenzy – that’s how we sell our agenda. Seems to me that a guy named Adolph once did something like this. Wasn’t it called Reichstag? Seig Heil mein herren und mein damen!

”If I only had courage…”

Yeh, it's sad, believe me, Missy,
When you're born to be a sissy
Without the vim and verve.
But I could show my prowess, be a lion not a mou-ess
If I only had the nerve.
I'm afraid there's no denyin' I'm just a dandelion,
A fate I don't deserve.
I'd be brave as a blizzard....
I'd be gentle as a lizard....
I'd be clever as a gizzard....
If the Wizard is a Wizard who will serve.
Then I'm sure to get a brain, a heart, a home, the nerve!

Having the audacity (translate: ”balls”) to politely indicate to the public that they can ”go phuoc yourselves” should not be confused with having courage. Having courage takes real leadership.

Oh well – ‘nuff said!

Without apology I am,