Former President Jimmy Carter is trying to step back from calling President Bush’s foreign policy "the worst in history." Carter now says his remarks last week were "careless or misinterpreted." He says that he was only comparing the Bush administration’s foreign policy with President Nixon’s, and that he "was certainly not talking personally about any president."
But the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported Carter saying in an interview that "I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history." He also said that "the overt reversal of America’s basic values as expressed by previous administrations . . . has been the most disturbing to me," and that Bush’s policy of pre-emptive war was "a radical departure from all previous administration policies."
And when asked by the BBC about British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s support of Bush, Carter responded: "Abominable. Loyal. Blind. Apparently subservient. And I think the almost undeviating support by Great Britain for the ill-advised policies of President Bush in Iraq have been a major tragedy for the world."
Careless? Yes. Misinterpreted? Doesn’t seem like it.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Who would have thought that former Attorney General John Ashcroft would start to look good? But in addition to his now much-publicized decision, while he was in a hospital bed, not to reauthorize the Bush administration warrantless eavesdropping program, Ashcroft also resisted several other programs that he felt violated constitutional rights. The Washington Post reported that Ashcroft also opposed holding detainees indefinitely at Guantanamo Bay without some form of due process, that he fought to guarantee some rights for those to be tried by military commissions, and that he insisted that Zacarias Moussaoui, accused of conspiring with the Sept. 11 hijackers, be prosecuted in a civilian court.
Ashcroft was no civil libertarian, as he pushed for the USA Patriot Act and other policies. But compared with Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, Ashcroft at least tried to show some independence.
Speaking of Gonzales, Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., predicted Sunday that Gonzales would resign rather than face a vote of "no confidence" pushed by Democrats.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
In the next decade, America’s rural electric cooperatives plan to spend $35 billion to build coal-fired power plants, which during that time frame would produce enough carbon dioxide to undercut all state and federal efforts combined to combat greenhouse gases and global warming, reports the Washington Post.
And the coal-plant boom is being financed by taxpayer dollars, in the form of low-interest federal loans.
Two planned 700-megawatt coal-fired plants near Holcomb are among the beneficiaries of these federal subsidies.
How is this a wise use of taxpayer dollars?
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Greensburg residents are thinking about creating a tornado museum.
It’s a good idea. The fact is, Greensburg will always be associated with this historic tornado disaster, which almost wiped the town off the map. The EF5 tornado itself was of historic destructive power. So why not capitalize on it with a museum? I even liked the innovative idea of leaving a block of the town in its damaged state — with stripped trees and upended cars — to vividly illustrate the power of the storm.
This will draw in more tourists than the world’s largest hand-dug well. Guaranteed.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
U.S. students know a little bit more about history, but not much. The National Assessment of Educational Progress’ test last year on U.S. history showed no more than 8 percent increases within the three grade groups tested and drastic declines as students get older and near voting age. Some are blaming the lack of history knowledge on the No Child Left Behind Act, which focuses on reading and math. But even if history were taught to its full potential, would U.S. teens pay attention?
Posted by Andie Clum
