[Mb-civic] Dem and Rep: one of the few differences

[William Swiggard]

 >From Penn Faculty and Staff Against War in Iraq (PENN-FSAWI):

by Michael Albert,  zmag.org:

Today though, I thought I would send some amusing and uplifting
material. Enjoy.

First, the Democratic Party is one of two parties in the U.S. serving
corporate interests. It makes war, routinely, as do the Republicans,
much less the fundamentalist thugs now in power. Still, at least as far
as hypocrisy is concerned, or perhaps as far as self preservation is
concerned, there seems to be a marked difference between the parties. I
received today an email that was quite amusing, in that respect. It
listed lots of Republicans and Democrats indicating their past service
in the military. I didn't check it and so can't vouch for it, yet I have
the distinct feeling few errors will show up. Here it is:

Democrats: 

* Richard Gephardt: Air National Guard, 1965-71. 
* David Bonior: Staff Sgt., Air Force 1968-72. 
* Tom Daschle: 1st Lt., Air Force SAC 1969-72. 
* Al Gore: enlisted Aug. 1969; sent to Vietnam Jan. 1971 
  as an army journalist in 20th Engineer Brigade. 
* Bob Kerrey: Lt. j.g. Navy 1966-69; Medal of Honor, Vietnam. 
* Daniel Inouye: Army 1943-47; Medal of Honor, WWII. 
* John Kerry: Lt., Navy 1966-70; Silver Star, Bronze Star with 
  Combat V, Purple Hearts. 
* Charles Rangel: Staff Sgt., Army 1948-52; Bronze Star,Korea. 
* Max Cleland: Captain, Army 1965-68; Silver Star & Bronze Star, 
  Vietnam. Paraplegic from war injuries. Served in Congress. 
* Ted Kennedy: Army, 1951-53. 
* Tom Harkin: Lt., Navy, 1962-67; Naval Reserve, 1968-74. 
* Jack Reed: Army Ranger, 1971-1979; Captain, Army Reserve 1979-91. 
* Fritz Hollings: Army officer in WWII; Bronze Star and 
  seven campaign ribbons. 
* Leonard Boswell: Lt. Col., Army 1956-76;Vietnam, DFCs, 
  Bronze Stars, and Soldier's Medal. 
* Pete Peterson: Air Force Captain, POW. Purple Heart, 
  Silver Star and Legion of Merit. 
* Mike Thompson: Staff sergeant,! 173rd Airborne, Purple Heart. 
* Bill McBr ide: Candidate for Fla. Governor. Marine in Vietnam; 
  Bronze Star with Combat V. 
* Gray Davis: Army Captain in Vietnam, Bronze Star. 
* Pete Stark: Air Force 1955-57 
* Chuck Robb: Vietnam 
* Howell Heflin: Silver Star 
* George McGovern: Silver Star & DFC during WWII. 
* Bill Clinton: Did not serve. Student deferments. 
  Entered draft but received #311. 
* Jimmy Carter: Seven years in the Navy. 
* Walter Mondale: Army 1951-1953 
* John Glenn: WWII andKorea; six DFCs and Air Medal 
  with 18 Clusters. 
* Tom Lantos: Served in Hungarian underground in WWII. 
  Saved by Raoul Wallenberg. 

Republicans 

* Dick Cheney: did not serve. Several deferments, the last by marriage. 
* Dennis Hastert: did not serve. 
* Tom Delay: did not serve. 
* Roy Blunt: did not serve. 
* Bill Frist: did not serve. 
* Mitch McConnell: did not serve. 
* Rick Santorum: did not serve. 
* Trent Lott: did not serve. 
* John Ashcroft: did not serve. Seven deferments to teach business. 
* Jeb Bush: did not serve. 
* Karl Rove: did not serve. 
* Saxby Chambliss: did not serve. "Bad knee." 
  The man who attacked Max Cleland's patriotism. 
* Paul Wolfowitz: did not serve. 
* Vin Weber: did not serve. 
* Richard Perle: did not serve. 
* Douglas Feith: did not serve. 
* Eliot Abrams: did not serve. 
* Richard Shelby: did not serve. 
* Jon! Kyl: did not serve. 
* Tim Hutchison: did n! ot serve. 
* Christopher Cox: did not serve. 
* Newt Gingrich: did not serve. 
* Don Rumsfeld: served in Navy (1954-57) as flight instructor. 
* George W. Bush: failed to complete his six-year 
  National Guard; got assigned to Alabamaso he could 
  campaign for family friend running for U.S. Senate;
  failed to show up for required medical exam, disappeared from duty. 
* Ronald Reagan: due to poor eyesight, served in a 
  non-combat role making movies. 
* B-1 Bob Dornan: Consciously enlisted after fighting 
  was over in Korea. 
* Phil Gramm: did not serve. 
* John McCain:Vietnam POW, Silver Star, Bronze Star, 
  Legion of Merit, Purple Heart and Distinguished Flying Cross. 
* Dana Rohrabacher: did not serve. 
* John M. McHugh: did not serve. 
* JC Watts: did not serve. 
* Jack Kemp: did not serve. "Knee problem, " although 
  continued in NFL for 8 years as quarterback. 
* Dan Quayle: Journalism unit of the Indiana National Guard. 
* Rudy Giuliani: did not serve. 
* George Pataki: did not serve. 
* Spencer Abraham: did not serve. 
* John Engler: did not serve. 
* Lindsey Graham: National Guard lawyer. 
* Arnold Schwarzenegger: AWOL from Austrian army base. 

Pundits & Preachers 
* Sean Hannity: did not serve. 
* Rush Limbaugh: did not serve (4-F with a 'pilonidal cyst.') 
* Bill O'Reilly: did not serve. 
* Michael Savage: did not serve. 
* George Will: did not serve. 
* Chris Matthews: did not serve. 
* Paul Gigot: did not serve. 
* Bill Bennett: did not serve. 
* Pat Buchanan: did not serve. 
* John Wayne: did not serve. 
* Bill Kristol: did not serve. 
* Kenneth Starr: did not serve. 
* Antonin Scalia: did not serve. 
* Clarence Thomas: did not serve. 
* Ralph Reed: did not serve. 
* Michael Medved: did not serve. 
* Charlie Daniels: did not serve. 
* Ted Nugent: did not serve. (He only shoots at things that don't shoot
back.) 

I also got a message today letting me know about a new song by a Texas
based rock and roller named James McMurtry. He's been around awhile,
doing very good work. But this song is probably going to kick up a bit
of a storm. Try it, I think you will probably like it. You can access
via the link at http://www.jamesmcmurtry.com/

Here are McMurtry's lyrics...and the music and vocals are excellent too!

"We Can't Make it Here"

Vietnam Vet with a cardboard sign
Sitting there by the left turn line
Flag on the wheelchair flapping in the breeze
One leg missing, both hands free
No one's paying much mind to him
The V.A. budget's stretched so thin
And there's more comin' home from the Mideast war
We can't make it here anymore

That big ol' building was the textile mill
It fed our kids and it paid our bills
But they turned us out and they closed the doors
We can't make it here anymore

See all those pallets piled up on the loading dock
They're just gonna set there till they rot
'Cause there's nothing to ship, nothing to pack
Just busted concrete and rusted tracks
Empty storefronts around the square
There's a needle in the gutter and glass everywhere
You don't come down here 'less you're looking to score
We can't make it here anymore

The bar's still open but man it's slow
The tip jar's light and the register's low
The bartender don't have much to say
The regular crowd gets thinner each day

Some have maxed out all their credit cards
Some are working two jobs and living in cars
Minimum wage won't pay for a roof, won't pay for a drink
If you gotta have proof just try it yourself Mr. CEO
See how far 5.15 an hour will go
Take a part time job at one of your stores
Bet you can't make it here anymore

High school girl with a bourgeois dream
Just like the pictures in the magazine
She found on the floor of the laundromat
A woman with kids can forget all that
If she comes up pregnant what'll she do
Forget the career, forget about school
Can she live on faith? live on hope?
High on Jesus or hooked on dope
When it's way too late to just say no
You can't make it here anymore

Now I'm stocking shirts in the Wal-Mart store
Just like the ones we made before
'Cept this one came from Singapore
I guess we can't make it here anymore

Should I hate a people for the shade of their skin
Or the shape of their eyes or the shape I'm in
Should I hate 'em for having our jobs today
No I hate the men sent the jobs away
I can see them all now, they haunt my dreams
All lily white and squeaky clean
They've never known want, they'll never know need
Their sh@# don't stink and their kids won't bleed
Their kids won't bleed in the da$% little war
And we can't make it here anymore

Will work for food
Will die for oil
Will kill for power and to us the spoils
The billionaires get to pay less tax
The working poor get to fall through the cracks
Let 'em eat jellybeans let 'em eat cake
Let 'em eat sh$%, whatever it takes
They can join the Air Force, or join the Corps
If they can't make it here anymore

And that's how it is
That's what we got
If the president wants to admit it or not
You can read it in the paper
Read it on the wall
Hear it on the wind
If you're listening at all
Get out of that limo
Look us in the eye
Call us on the cell phone
Tell us all why

In Dayton, Ohio
Or Portland, Maine
Or a cotton gin out on the great high plains
That's done closed down along with the school
And the hospital and the swimming pool
Dust devils dance in the noonday heat
There's rats in the alley
And trash in the street
Gang graffiti on a boxcar door
We can't make it here anymore


It seems pop music is beginning to get angrier with each passing day.
You might even like the new song by the Rolling Stones obviously
directed to our Commander in Chief.  Here are its lyrics, I kid you not.


SWEET NEO CON
(M. Jagger/K. Richards) 

You call yourself a Christian 
I think that you're a hypocrite 
You say you are a patriot 
I think that you're a crock of shit 

And listen now, the gasoline 
I drink it every day 
But it's getting very pricey 
And who is going to pay

How come you're so wrong 
My sweet neo con.... Yeah 

It's liberty for all 
'Cause democracy's our style 
Unless you are against us 
Then it's prison without trial 

But one thing that is certain 
Life is good at Haliburton 
If you're really so astute 
You should invest at Brown & Root.... Yeah 

How come you're so wrong 
My sweet neo con
If you turn out right 
I'll eat my hat tonight 

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.... 

It's getting very scary 
Yes, I'm frightened out of my wits 
There's bombers in my bedroom 
Yeah and it's giving me the shits 

We must have lots more bases 
To protect us from our foes 
Who needs these foolish friendships
We're going it alone 

How come you're so wrong 
My sweet neo con
Where's the money gone
In the Pentagon 

Yeah ha ha ha 
Yeah, well, well 

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah 
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah... 
Neo con 


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