Government in the Sunshine
I have been for all of my adult life a proponenet of "Sunshine" laws. My reading of history tells me clearly that our founders believed that all government business should be conducted in the open so that citizens could be informed and make informed decisions.
The one consission I'm willing to make is that there are some occasions where lives would be endangered, so some informaiton shoudl be temporarily secret.
The current Administration recognizes that information is the currency of power. However, they are so power hungry that they are unwilling to share. Thier default position is to withhold information so only they have the power.
President Bush is a "Corporatist." Pure and simple. His Administration and everything it does is aimed at increasing corporate hegemony. This can only come to pass in secret.
The one consission I'm willing to make is that there are some occasions where lives would be endangered, so some informaiton shoudl be temporarily secret.
They are only unwilling to share when it decreases their clout.
- Energy taskforce
- White House Emails on Katrina
- Abu Ghirad torture
When they believe they can increase clout or undermine proof of their lies and misinformation, they sing away:
- Valerie Plame
- Michael Brown emails
I'm certain others could come up with other examples.
What the Bush Administration is is politically expedient. They release information that misdirects and hide information that shines a light.
This behavior started long before 9/11 and will exist until the last Bush-ite has no power in the executive office. Unfortunately, if Dems don't get their act together, that could be a long, long time.
February 21, 2006 11:27 AM | Reply | Permalink