http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A17151-2003Nov27.html

As with Bush's trip to England, a few hundred "cheering well-wishers" were hastily mustered to greet him at the airstrip. In the same newscast, they mention Bush "striding out onto a stage" - a STAGE, yet of course, there was not prearrangement (harhar). The troops are described as "leaping to their feet and cheering" but "stunned." Quite a strained bit of PR writing, eh!

In addition, a few cloying, obviously scripted "statements" supposedly from soldiers were released to the press. Statements like (I am not making this up, though paraphrased): "Bush's coming to Iraq proves that he has faith in our ability to keep him safe." Do I feel a dry heave coming on? As if that is why everyone is over there, struggling to get through each day, risking bloody sudden death! Just in case there's the off-chance Bush might visit and need to be kept safe. Another statement: "Bush's visit boosted my morale so much I can now get through the next two months." If any soldier actually said this and could be identified, I suspect his chances of being fragged would go up about 500%.

The only reason Bush really had for absolute secrecy (aside from his cover story for making such a sudden decision to go for photo ops) was to get in and out before the troops in Iraq had a chance to get wind of his presence. Bush is about as popular among Iraq troops as a bad case of hemorrhoids. Less, I bet.

But the White House is releasing a cover story about the trip that, as I listen to NPR, is getting more elaborate by the hour! Oh what a tangled web we weave....

The fact is, Bush is such a colossal opportunist that when the info came of Hillary's Thanksgiving plans, a hastily contrived one-upmanship show was set in motion. Until now, he hasn't even bothered to attend so much as one funeral of a soldier killed in Iraq, even in the safety of the US!

Here's a story from Democrats.com about another case of information stealing perpetrated by someone near and dear to the White House. In this case, a GOP aide, on orders from "someone," hacked memos from the computers of Democratic senators. This is a CRIME, yet the corporate media and the Bush judicial system are acting as if it were no big deal. Yet the Bush folks are read to send teenagers to prison for life for less clearcut, evidence-heavy cases of hacking federal websites, let along STEALING hacked data from federal computers. Here's a summary of the case:

"Josh Marshall writes, "Caught red-handed. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch has placed one of his committee staffers on administrative leave for what the media reports are agreeing to call, with some delicacy, 'improperly obtaining data from the secure computer networks of two Democratic senators.' (Reminds me of my pals who used to get kicks by improperly obtaining Snickers bars from the local drug store when we were in grade school.) Keep in mind, Democratic Senators raised questions about how an unsent memo from the Democratic staff on the Intel Committee ended up in the hands of radio chatmeister Sean Hannity three weeks ago. Now that it seems the Judiciary Committee memo was in fact stolen, the Democrats' demands that the other incident be investigated sounds a lot more compelling. Was that one 'improperly obtained' too? Following is a selection of Hatch's press conference late Tuesday." We demand an investigation!"

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2003_11_23.html#002240

What is extremely troubling here is that this is just one case - there are without doubt a network of Bush operatives out there using all the resources at their disposal to scoop up information illegally. This kid just happened to get caught.

When I tried to send my article "Clear Lies: the Deadly, Dirty Truth about the Clear Skies Initiative and the Catastrophic Bush/Cheney energy Bill" to News Insider three weeks ago, BEFORE the energy bill was debated, the attached file "disappeared" somewhere between "send" and my editor's mailbox. So did subsequent sends. I finally had to send it through the website's "submissions" page! My editor, an intelligence expert, said he found the disappearing file extremely suspicious.

So how many other writers, congressfolks, judges, and activists are the targets of Bush-style espionage? I suspect the number is VERY HIGH. It is an extremely telling commentary about the rightwingnut creeps that now control the US. They have neither the imagination, integrity, courage, nor honesty to fight their battles directly, man to man or woman to woman, based on the real merits of their candidates, belief system or goals. Oh, no. Instead, they have to fabricate a whole system of smoke and mirrors. Instead of doing the right thing or being truly patriotic, they fabricate titles for their atrociously damaging policies that only sound that way: OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM, the PATRIOT ACT, MEDICARE REFORM BILL, ANTI-TERRORISM LEGISLATION. They try to create the ILLUSION of Bush as a courageous and compassionate leader by landing him aboard an aircraft carrier with hundreds of camerapeople in tow dressed in a flight suit to announce an "end to major conflicts." But having Bush actually BE a leader, or having the major conflict actually over is not required. Only the window dressing matters. Hell, they even fabricated the reasons for going to war!

Now, as this pit of vipers becomes more desperate, they are going to greater lengths and lower lows to protect their interests - interests that are synonymous with "coroporate interests." My advice to everyone out there who is an activist, a political writer who ever dares criticize Bush and present compelling facts, to outspoken congressfolks, to judges and anyone else who could possible be perceived as a Bush threat, GET A KICK ASS FIREWALL. Also, be very careful of how and where you share information. As campaign 2004 heats up, things are only likely to get worse.

To the Troops in Iraq and Afghanistan: WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR SACRIFICE....and, to show our thanks, we who truly value American ideals plan to do our damnedest to see that you are brought home soon from this hideous, illegal war before more lives are needlessly lost or ruined.