Attorney General John Ashcroft said today, before the 9/11 Commission, that he moved quickly once in office to overturn a "failed policy" that he said allowed American agents to capture terrorist leader Osama bin Laden but "not assassinate him. Even if they could have penetrated bin Laden's training camps, they would have needed a battery of lawyers to take action" he complained.
In other words, the United States' top law enforcement officer, the head of our great American justice system, the top attorney in our great national experiment in democracy, is bitter because he can't just shoot and kill people. He is forced to be handicapped with lawyers, courts of law and all that silly, bothersome justice and due process stuff.
Seriously. He really said that.
Tuesday, April 13, 2004
Two Scary Ideas
On August 6, 2001, President George Bush read a simply-worded 1 1/4 page summary memo clearly entitled "Bin Ladin Determined to Strike in US." One paragraph of the memo stated: "Nevertheless, FBI information since that time indicates patterns of suspicious activity in this country, consistent with preparations for hijackings or other types of attacks, including recent surveillance of federal buildings in New York."
The next sentence continued, "The FBI is conducting approximately 70 full field investigations throughout the US that it considers Bin Ladin-related."
The President was then enjoying a month-long summer vacation on his Texas ranch. According to one CNN reporter whose beat then was the vacationing President, Mr. Bush was incredibly relaxed that summer..."more relaxed than we had ever seen him." The President read this memo, and concluded that it was too vague to cause protective action to be taken in New York or elsewhere.
I don't know which idea is scarier to me.....that he's lying about his interpretation of this memo and made an erroneous risk assessment, or that he honestly finds these words too vague to be a credible warning and "actionable" threat. His earnest insistence is starting to convince me that he really didn't comprehend the memo.
I find it more comforting to think he's lying. Lying can be fixed.
Send emails to DeborahWhite@UniqueRecipes.com.
The next sentence continued, "The FBI is conducting approximately 70 full field investigations throughout the US that it considers Bin Ladin-related."
The President was then enjoying a month-long summer vacation on his Texas ranch. According to one CNN reporter whose beat then was the vacationing President, Mr. Bush was incredibly relaxed that summer..."more relaxed than we had ever seen him." The President read this memo, and concluded that it was too vague to cause protective action to be taken in New York or elsewhere.
I don't know which idea is scarier to me.....that he's lying about his interpretation of this memo and made an erroneous risk assessment, or that he honestly finds these words too vague to be a credible warning and "actionable" threat. His earnest insistence is starting to convince me that he really didn't comprehend the memo.
I find it more comforting to think he's lying. Lying can be fixed.
Send emails to DeborahWhite@UniqueRecipes.com.
Sunday, April 11, 2004
Ultimate Springtime Lemonade Cake
Our Easter dinner menu today is....
Salad greens with roma tomatoes, diced black olives and honey mustard dressing
Ham, Farmer John smoked
Cinnamon carrots
Garlic smashed potatoes
And the consensus piece de resistance, Ultimate Springtime Lemonade Cake for dessert. The recipe is simple, but the taste is extreme.
Cream together one yellow cake mix, 4 eggs and 1/4 cup canola oil. In a separate bowl, add 3/4 cup boiling water to a 3 oz package lemon jello. Stir until the jello is thoroughly dissolved. Add the jello mixture to the cake batter, and mix. I then added a few drops of lemon extract for extra measure. Bake in a tube pan for 55 minutes at 350 degrees. Just before your cake is done baking, blend together a glaze of one thawed regular-size can of frozen lemonade with 1 cup super-fine sugar. As soon as you remove your cake from the oven, loosen cake edges from the pan sides, and then spoon all the glaze over the cake. Let cool for about 15 minutes, and then refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
I made the cake yesterday, and can barely keep Andrea from partaking of a piece before dessert. :) Her desire may be the sincerest form of culinary flattery.
Send mail to DeborahWhite@UniqueRecipes.com.
Salad greens with roma tomatoes, diced black olives and honey mustard dressing
Ham, Farmer John smoked
Cinnamon carrots
Garlic smashed potatoes
And the consensus piece de resistance, Ultimate Springtime Lemonade Cake for dessert. The recipe is simple, but the taste is extreme.
Cream together one yellow cake mix, 4 eggs and 1/4 cup canola oil. In a separate bowl, add 3/4 cup boiling water to a 3 oz package lemon jello. Stir until the jello is thoroughly dissolved. Add the jello mixture to the cake batter, and mix. I then added a few drops of lemon extract for extra measure. Bake in a tube pan for 55 minutes at 350 degrees. Just before your cake is done baking, blend together a glaze of one thawed regular-size can of frozen lemonade with 1 cup super-fine sugar. As soon as you remove your cake from the oven, loosen cake edges from the pan sides, and then spoon all the glaze over the cake. Let cool for about 15 minutes, and then refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
I made the cake yesterday, and can barely keep Andrea from partaking of a piece before dessert. :) Her desire may be the sincerest form of culinary flattery.
Send mail to DeborahWhite@UniqueRecipes.com.
Saturday, April 10, 2004
An Easter Prayer
A little more kindness and a little less greed;
A little more giving and a little less need;
A little more smile and a little less frown;
A little less kicking a man when he's down;
A little more "we" and a little less "I";
A little more laughs and a little less cry;
A little more flowers on the pathway of life,
And fewer on graves at the end of the strife.
---- C. Austin Miles, "The World's Greatest Need"
A little more giving and a little less need;
A little more smile and a little less frown;
A little less kicking a man when he's down;
A little more "we" and a little less "I";
A little more laughs and a little less cry;
A little more flowers on the pathway of life,
And fewer on graves at the end of the strife.
---- C. Austin Miles, "The World's Greatest Need"
Wednesday, April 07, 2004
Of Obvious and Evil Wrong
I wanted to write here today about some small aspect of everyday life that illuminates a larger idea about our lives, our significance to others, God's significance....maybe about Andrea's 8th softball season, her coach's obsession with The Game and yet his quiet curiosity about why church is a priority for us, about why she seems different to him from the other girls.....perhaps another springtime rose-growing flight of fantasy or a musing about the fragrant cinnamon muffins I baked yesterday.....maybe recount Ron's constant battle with diabetes and how it affects every bite he takes, every plan he makes. I could easily ramble on about all the fascinating and revolutionary aspects of "The eBay Life." (A pastor friend recently grasped its enormity, and remarked "I had no idea....") I could elicit ideas about how to liven up my writing contest essay-in-progress about librarians.
But this morning's news reports that US Marines fired rockets at a Iraqi mosque filled with worshippers. Our rockets killed 40 people praying to their god. Not toting guns or throwing rocks, not threatening our soldiers, not even jeering insults at what they regard as occupiers of their country. They were worshipping and praying. Witnesses report that a helicopter fired missles into the mosque compound as the faithful had gathered for traditional afternoon prayers. Just imagine the hypocrisy of claiming to be a just-minded American or a loving Christian while lining up your aim to kill people in their place of worship. Other reports say that 25 Iraqi women and children died last night from American fire in another assault.
What are we fighting for in Iraq? To destroy dangerous weapons of mass destruction? They don't exist. To dethrone the twisted dictator, Saddam Hussein? We already have him in custody. To disable this once powerful country? We already have. To install our ideal of a government into a markedly different foreign country and culture? They don't seem to want or respect it. To control their rich oil fields? That's greed. To make tons of money rebuilding what we've destroyed? That's evil greed. To save political face for George Bush? Probably too late.
Of course, I mourn for the dead and their families. But more than that, I feel profound sadness and disappointment, even disillusionment, that our country...the great democratic experiment founded on liberty, justice and religious freedom for all, the country we were taught to love and respect, the Great Land of Freedom.....would do such obvious and evil wrong.
It makes everything else seem so small today.
Send emails to DeborahWhite@UniqueRecipes.com.
But this morning's news reports that US Marines fired rockets at a Iraqi mosque filled with worshippers. Our rockets killed 40 people praying to their god. Not toting guns or throwing rocks, not threatening our soldiers, not even jeering insults at what they regard as occupiers of their country. They were worshipping and praying. Witnesses report that a helicopter fired missles into the mosque compound as the faithful had gathered for traditional afternoon prayers. Just imagine the hypocrisy of claiming to be a just-minded American or a loving Christian while lining up your aim to kill people in their place of worship. Other reports say that 25 Iraqi women and children died last night from American fire in another assault.
What are we fighting for in Iraq? To destroy dangerous weapons of mass destruction? They don't exist. To dethrone the twisted dictator, Saddam Hussein? We already have him in custody. To disable this once powerful country? We already have. To install our ideal of a government into a markedly different foreign country and culture? They don't seem to want or respect it. To control their rich oil fields? That's greed. To make tons of money rebuilding what we've destroyed? That's evil greed. To save political face for George Bush? Probably too late.
Of course, I mourn for the dead and their families. But more than that, I feel profound sadness and disappointment, even disillusionment, that our country...the great democratic experiment founded on liberty, justice and religious freedom for all, the country we were taught to love and respect, the Great Land of Freedom.....would do such obvious and evil wrong.
It makes everything else seem so small today.
Send emails to DeborahWhite@UniqueRecipes.com.
Monday, April 05, 2004
Quote of the Day
"There are three ways to get something done...do it yourself, employ someone else, or forbid your children to do it."
---Monta Crane
---Monta Crane
Thursday, April 01, 2004
Now That's Entertainment.....Trump-Style
Been a long time since I've had such fun watching a TV program as I do "The Apprentice" on Thursday evenings. It's an absolute hoot for this MBA to be a spectator of the gamesmanship, personalities and competitive number crunching on that show. Been there, felt just like that. I actually get a bit nervous before the scorecards are read.
Any one of the remaining four....Amy, Nick, Bill or Kwame...deserve final victory. They all have their strong suits. Who will actually emerge as the victor? Bill and Amy are the most all-around clever and competent, and both are excellent strategists. Nick won't win....too much of a salesman to the exclusion of other management skills. But don't overlook Kwame.... so often, the quiet one with all the Ivy League style and little risk-taking is the one left standing.
If I were Donald Trump, I would select Bill to be the winning job applicant. But I'm not The Donald.
Now that's entertainment. Praise God it's only on TV for 60 minutes a week. It could turn into a regular time-devouring vice for me, rather like sports-watching for the masses of athletic competition addicts.
Send emails to DeborahWhite@UniqueRecipes.com.
Any one of the remaining four....Amy, Nick, Bill or Kwame...deserve final victory. They all have their strong suits. Who will actually emerge as the victor? Bill and Amy are the most all-around clever and competent, and both are excellent strategists. Nick won't win....too much of a salesman to the exclusion of other management skills. But don't overlook Kwame.... so often, the quiet one with all the Ivy League style and little risk-taking is the one left standing.
If I were Donald Trump, I would select Bill to be the winning job applicant. But I'm not The Donald.
Now that's entertainment. Praise God it's only on TV for 60 minutes a week. It could turn into a regular time-devouring vice for me, rather like sports-watching for the masses of athletic competition addicts.
Send emails to DeborahWhite@UniqueRecipes.com.
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