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Apr. 11, 2006 One of my favorite of the all-time classic movies is "And Justice For All" with Al Pacino, who plays Arthur Kirkland, a young, idealistic public defender caught up in the contradictions and inconsistencies which make up the legal world. Kirkland is coerced into defending a powerful man charged with beating and raping a young lady. Although the defendant completely denies any wrongdoing, during the course of Kirkland's work he learns that this man is indeed guilty. The young attorney is forced to continue with the case or risk his career even before it has started. In the defining moment of this movie, and perhaps of Pacino's career (although there have been a few of those), Kirkland presents his opening statements to the jury and a packed courtroom: "What is Justice? What is the intention of justice? The intention of justice is to see that the guilty people are punished and the innocent are freed. Simple, isn't it? Only it's not that simple. However, it is the Defense Counsel's duty to protect the rights of the individual, as it is the Prosecution's duty to uphold and defend the laws of the State. Justice for All. Only we have a problem here. And you know what it is? Both sides want to win. We want to win! Regardless of who's guilty or innocent! WINNING is everything! That man there (pointing to the District Attorney played by Craig T. Nelson) wants a win so badly today, it means so much to him, he is so carried away with the Prospect of winning, the IDEA, that he forgot something absolutely essential to today's proceeding. He forgot his case." The scene, of course, continues to build to a crescendo before Kirland (Pacino) is dragged from the courtroom screaming, "I have just finished my opening statement!" as the doors of the courtroom slam behind him. The scene helped make a good movie great and sealed Pacino as a star. The opening statement given so brilliantly by Al Pacino in a Hollywood movie sums up the overwhelming problem evident in today's political landscape---both sides want to win. There is so much power and money at stake in Washington, D.C. and in states across the nation, so many special interests at stake, that neither side can afford to lose in many ways. And, even beyond that, the bloated egos within the political world often cannot tolerate losing. Politicians are "carried away with the Prospect of winning..." just as Arthur Kirkland opined. This zest to be on top, to be in control, has become so powerful that all sense of reasonableness is so often cast aside in favor of the ultimate objective. It is no longer important what is right and what is wrong; facts are meaningless and the pursuit of real evidence is deemed a folly by too many. The mostly baseless attacks against our president are supreme evidence of the mindset which prevails in the modern age. The objective has been to throw as much garbage against the wall and see what sticks. This strategy has produced accusations and conspiracy theory induced scenarios from all directions, some are completely absurd while others are only mildly outlandish. The media caves and reports these theories as if there is some level of credibility to them, The airwaves, newspapers and magazines are filled with so much of this bile that it is difficult for even an educated person to separate fact from fiction. Democrat Congressman and Senators stand up on the floor of their Houses and screech empty charges and name-calling which should be reserved for an Al Quaeda membership meeting. Others pander in front of talk show cameras, spewing not constructive criticism or alternative strategies but inflammatory rhetoric useful only to their own cause--to WIN. Certainly, this is not to say that the Administration is above reproach and that it is totally innocent on all accounts; however, the amount of truly substantive evidence which shows clear incompetence or wrongdoing on the part of the Bush Administration has been sorely lacking. There has been, in fact, evidence which contradicts charges against President Bush going back to his first term in office. Yes, indeed, too many of the accusers forgot to bring their cases. The latest example of the partisan boondoggles is the complete and intentional misinterpretation of Scooter Libby's testimony which indicates that President Bush (through the Vice President) authorized a "leak" of classified information which COULD have included the name of a covert CIA operative, Valerie Plame. This story has been treated as if Libby's written testimony is prima facie evidence of a Bush lie (at a minimum) and the Administration releasing classified information, which could prove harmful to the U.S.. The connotation evident in the reporting is that Bush did this somehow for personal political gain. The facts, however, indicate that President Bush has complete authority to declassify information and authorize its release to the general public. The facts also indicate that Valerie Plame's husband, who had already been previously caught in multiple lies, continued to make unfounded charges against the Administration in relation to its case for war against Saddam Hussein. President Bush, by all reasonable accounts, did what any reasonable person would have done under the circumstances. He declassified and released information which supported the Administration's position, which would properly discredit the accusations being made against the U.S. and its case, information which he deemed would not compromise the nation's security. There is no evidence that he authorized release of any covert operatives names or personal data. Interestingly, the Democrats and media have hounded Bush and his team for the last five years about "operating in secrecy." Yet, when Bush opens up information for public consumption, he is still the bad guy. The goal is to WIN and reason and logic will not be allowed to impede that objective. The sad truth of the matter is that the U.S. political landscape was not always nearly as contentious as it is today. Sure, both political parties, as well as the occasional third-party candidate, have had their bouts throughout history; however, it did not extent to the bitter level currently on display. The partisanship has escalated in fact from the time the Republicans took control of the House in 1994, and it has only gotten worse as that party now controls the Senate as well and the presidency. Prior to 1994 the Democrats controlled Congress, for the most part, and had their share of presidents for forty years. They owned government. Republicans appeared to be content getting the scraps that were handed to them and the parties ostensibly got along for the most part, especially during war. Democrats, however, cannot stand to be out of power and it is showing in their behavior. From baselessly discrediting our president during a time of war to blindly assigning blame for an unprecedented natural disaster to charging that "Bush knew" in advance about a pending terrorist attack against this nation while hamstringing his ability to prevent future such attacks, it is the Left (not the president) which is clearly out of control. They want to WIN, and the good of the nation will not get in their way. And it just does not matter that they forgot their case. ------------ About the author: Ed Abraham is a concerned citizen living in flyover country, U.S.A., who happens to be truly disgusted by the loss of common sense in our society and is doing all he can to try to reinstall it. Email: eabra@myway.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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