I listened to the Vice President on the Imus in the Morning radio program, yesterday. The questions were soft and so the interview a waste of time for the rest of us. Even in the soft pillow atmosphere, the Vice President answered the ubiquitous question about why we went to war if there weren’t any weapons of mass destruction. The Vice President is better than most on this question.

First, he never entirely gives up on the point. After all, just because we didn’t find any doesn’t mean that there weren’t any. And, even if there weren’t any, Hussein would have made them just as soon as free to do so. In other words, Hussein was the mother of all weapons of mass destruction. As for actually going to war, the V.P. asked what if we had been wrong the other way. What if we did nothing and there were weapons? What would we be saying then?

Working backwards, while the V.P. thought it was better to be wrong the way we were wrong, rather than being wrong the other way, he made no mention of the possibility that could have ever been right. Now, doesn’t that give you a feeling of confidence?

While Hussein was about as bad as they get, he wasn’t an immediate danger, was he? We could have kept him boxed in, while we continued to pursue bin Laden. In fact, had 9/11 not taken place, was there a hint that we were planning to invade Iraq because Hussein was a murderer? And even if that was the intention of the government, perhaps they could have taken some time to make sure of their intelligence, planning, preparedness and diplomacy, all badly lacking as things have worked out.

Finally, if we did not locate weapons stockpiles that did exist, then we either made a dangerous situation worse or will be leaving a potentially dangerous situation if we ever actually leave Iraq. But, the V.P. keeps repeating the same rhetoric.

The Bush Administration operates as some sort of revival meeting. But, despite having sent him back to office, if you can believe the polls (itself an act of faith), the public no longer thinks invading Iraq was worth it, and only half the public thinks he is doing a good job. This term, it will not be enough to be less wrong on the issues; the President will have to find something to be right about.

AO was feeling defensive this week. Predictably, she reacted to the criticism being leveled at the Bush Administration for spending $40,000,000 on the inauguration ceremonies this year. So far, some $25,000,000 has been paid for by contributions from rich people and corporations. AO wants us to leave her alone and let her have her party. Of course, her first reaction was to state that Clinton spent $25,000,000 in 1993. Funny that AO likes to rely on Clinton as a benchmark when her own folks are acting badly.

In one sense she is right, most every President spends too much on inauguration festivities. And, it's not as if we have to avoid having parties altogether, but $40,000,000 is still a mind boggling figure, no matter how they came up with it. It's worse when corporations are asked to pay the tab.

Besides, this year we are at war. The families of soldiers who lose their lives will collect between $12,000 and $250,000, depending upon whether they could afford the $240 a year premium to collect the latter. Imagine, in this day and age having to pay for your own insurance when you volunteer your life in the service of your country. When that kind of fact sinks in, who really wants to go to a $40,000,000 party, anyway?

AO reminds us that billionaires are spending their money helping to elect Democrats. Then, again, the same is true of Republicans. That isn't the point. The inauguration is a public event and not a private one, nor is it a coronation.

Of course, it is all symbolic; $40,000,000 doesn't really pay for very much when you are talking about the problems of war or natural disasters. Then, again, it seems like a lot of money to pay for people getting dressed up and drunk for the evening.

Let’ Face It, I Will Not Live Forever

I have been thinking about death recently and have been working on my last words, which has resulted in the following ideas and other thoughts:

It’s all gone by so quickly, except for the last 60 years, or so.
Life was like a merry-go-round; I was never so nauseous.
My mother never thought I would amount to anything, and I spent my whole life trying to prove her wrong, or at least to create a reasonable doubt.
I guess it was to be expected that on the occasion of my death, my blue suit would not be back from the cleaners.
Why is it that after a full life, all I can think about were the good parking spaces?
I came into this world with nothing and am leaving 50 pounds overweight.
My life has been like a pot roast, or was it the other way around.
About the best you can say about me is that I never passed gas in a crowded elevator, despite one or two close calls.
I regret that I have but one life – that’s it.
If I get to meet God: If all men are created equal, are some damaged during transportation?
If I get to meet God: Were two coats of paint really necessary? What’s so funny?
If I get to meet God: How do you decide who gets to drive a new BMW and who the used Plymouth Valiant? No, really.
I don’t believe in reincarnation; I can’t even believe my life actually took place
If there is such a thing as reincarnation, I would like to come back as part of a majority, any majority.
What a relief it will be not to worry about where I put my keys.
It is a far, far better place I go than the three and a half rooms I have been living in for 32 years.
Though I cannot specifically recall, I must have taken a vow of poverty somewhere along the way.
If I get to meet God: Make it a Scotch and water.
My only regret is that I cannot remember anything I haven’t regretted.
Yea, I am about to walk in the shadow of death – doesn’t that sound like fun?
I was never of sound mind and body all at the same time.
To all of my friends at MasterCard, up yours.
If I get to meet God: What was this some kind of sick joke?!
All of my life I wanted to move south. Now, as my life is coming to an end, all I want to do is go north.
If I get to meet God: I was just kidding when I said that George Burns was probably better looking than you.
If I get to meet God: Funny thing is I thought all I wanted to know was the meaning of life. Now that I’m here, questions about death seem to be at the top of my list.
If I get to meet God: Why do Jews like smoked fish so much? And why is it that you cannot slice it thin enough to satisfy us?
If I get to meet God: Do you have a plan, or are you playing this whole thing by ear?
I have always wished for peace on earth, although there were a couple of days when I begged God for a yacht in the Mediterranean.
I can’t remember having had a particular calling in life, or even a mere suggestion.
I lived my life much as my father, who ate what he wanted, smoked, drank and didn’t exercise much and still lived the better part of 50 years.
I wish I would have been taller. I would have been the same schmuck, but taller.
I lived my life best I could; that pretty much says it all, doesn’t it?
I lived my life according to the adage that a penny saved is a penny earned. I just didn’t get that wasn’t supposed to be my only goal.
When I was a young boy, my mother dreamed I might be a judge one day. Later, she just wanted me out of the house.
I didn’t live a very good life. Was that my responsibility?
It is a great comfort to have ones faith as death draws near. Strangely, it is just as comforting to be holding the hand of a young blonde hired for the evening.
Life is a mystery. Personally, I think the butler did it.

Giving AO a story like CBS News airing a negative report about President Bush without being able to authenticate the documents it relied upon and then arrogantly defending its report without a leg to stand on is like throwing an underhand pitch to Barry Bonds with the fence 100 feet away. She had fun with it, including, of course, taking a poke at President Clinton for being a rapist. That’s AO’s job.

Of course, AO ignored the other story about lies that was wound up this week, that being the official report that the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq has turned up empty. But, that story was sort of unimportant. OK, so far 1,339 US soldiers have been killed in the Iraq war, thousands more have been seriously wounded, and tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed or wounded, all based upon the US claim that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction poised to be unleashed against America. The story, of course, pales in comparison to the CBS story when you are a pundit like AO.

Like CBS, the government still defends the Iraq war for a variety of reasons, none of which it proposed for going to war in the first place. Unfortunately, we will not get a final report damning the Bush Administration, as we got for CBS. Instead, the President handed out freedom medals to some of the culprits. Others, like Colin Powell, continue to defend the President’s action, and others still, like Donald Rumsfeld, get annoyed when soldiers with their lives on the line ask for better equipment. Powell has been a particular disappointment; since he told lies about the weapons of mass destruction at the United Nations in the name of the United States.
If AO really wanted to put her intelligence, education and talents to work, she might start by asking why the government lies so often and so profoundly to the American people. Vietnam, Iran-Contra and now Iraq would be pretty good places to get started. However, it’s easier to write about CBS News and calling President Clinton a rapist.