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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 21, 2006)
TO THE EDITOR To be fair, these missing trillions start- ed under the Clinton administration; it is not a partisan political problem. The scan- dal is merely worse now under Cheney and Bush. Catherine Austin Fitts, assistant secre- tary of Housing and Urban Development during the first Bush administration, has an excellent website about the missing tril- lions at www.whereisthemoney.org Please also visit www.oilempire.us/trillions.html for accurate information on a scandal too big for the media to mention. Mark Robinowitz Eugene PIRATE BEHAVIOR The world certainly is different after 9/11, and I am having difficulty with the glorification of pirates when we are sup- posed to be at war with terrorism. While there doesn't appear to be an agreed upon definition of terrorism either legally (espe- cially internationally), politically, or envi- ronmentally, pirate behavior has many more similarities than differences with the descriptions given for contemporary inter- national terrorists. For instance, interna- tional terrorists, like the 17th and 18th cen- tury pirates, prefer to be based in places that tolerate them. Sea-going piracy is still active today in places like the coasts of Africa, and there is no reason to believe it will ever be elim- inated from occurring anywhere in the world. The same can be said about interna- tional terrorism. I don't believe anyone wants to be a fun cop, but some considered thought about terrorism realities is needed. Unfortunately, we are not in Disneyland anymore, Toto. So, it’s hard for me to get all gushy over pirates when we are now living in a world faced with esca- lating threats of terrorism. Bob Hibschman Eugene DEALING WITH ENEMIES Tom Hinkle's excellent “enemy” letter (9/7) got me to thinking about the defini- tions and actions appropriate when we are thinking about how to deal with enemies. How do we decide who is a friend, acquaintance or enemy? Friend and acquaintance are pretty easy, but enemy can get very complicated. Do we let ideo- logues like the Bushies make that deci- sion? Do we let a political party make that decision? Do we let friends make that decision? Do we let the media make that decision? Do we let 9/11 make that deci- sion? Do we let facts or lies or propaganda make that decision? Should we put enemies in jail or shun them or kill them or fight them? Perhaps if we decide not to have enemies and let gov- ernment or the U.N. deal with the problem using police, courts, negotiation, etc.? Perhaps closing all U.S. foreign bases and bringing all U.S. troops home will elimi- nate all major U.S. enemies? Perhaps hav- ing global disarmament of weapons of mass destruction? Perhaps ending U.S. policies of financial and military aggres- sion, bombing, killing people all over the world without making sure they are really enemies will work? If we did that perhaps the U.S. would have so many friends that enemies would no longer be a serious prob- lem? Bob Saxton Eugene NORMAL POLICE I rode in my second Critical Mass the last Friday in August and was pleased that unlike the first I did not experience an intimidating police presence. Maybe the power of the EW press convinced the police to moderate their presence. On this ride the police were where you would normally expect to see them, such as congested accident-prone intersections. At one intersection, one of the riders rode through a red light, impeding traffic with the right of way; he also seemed to be urg- ing the stopped cyclists to follow him. An officer who was watching the intersection ran up, tapped him on the shoulder and appropriately issued a citation in a prompt and courteous fashion. A little later two other cyclists and I were riding single file in the far right of our Eugene/Springfield’s Annual Light The Night Walk Benefiting The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Friday, September 29 Registration: 6 pm Walk Start: 7:30 pm Oakway Center - Heritage Courtyard 1-800-466-6572 • www.lightthenight.org An annual evening fundraising walk celebrating & commemorating lives touched by cancer. Participants walk in twilight holding illuminated balloons - white for survivors and red for supporters. More than a walk, the evening includes music, food & family activities. Thank You to our 2006 Sponsors! OHSU-Center for Hematologic Malignancies The Greenbrier Companies / Gunderson Inc. / Oakway Center 'SPN/FX:PSL Agora Books A bookstore of distinction! GRAND OPENING Buried Treasure in a book! Find Agora bucks hidden in the pages of our books. The Agora bucks are good toward store credit. Located next to the downtown bus station and the McDonald Theatre. Only 1/2 block away from the 10th & Oak st. city parking garbage. (Mon-Fri only $3.50/day, free on weekends) 1044 Willamette Eugene, OR 97401 541-684-9057 esales@agorastore.com 7.6'06'4T14) IHETJLFTINNN SEPTEMBER 21, 2006 7
