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19 August 2010 By Jeff Gates Few Americans know better than John McCain how to
displace facts with what “the mark” can be deceived to
believe. When defrauding an entire nation to wage war
on false pretenses, it’s essential to have
on-the-ground operatives who lie reliably. The transformation of the provocation of 911 into
an invasion of Iraq will go down in history as one of
the greatest cons of all time. This was way beyond Big
Foot, the Loch Ness Monster or the hucksters who sold
schmucks a deed to the Brooklyn Bridge. We’re the schmucks. McCain and his handlers are the
hucksters. Everyone knows this war was a con job.
Well, maybe not everyone, just those with access to
the facts. That access includes McCain as a senior
member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. He knows. The only question is this: when did he
know? Did he knowingly lie or was he induced to lie for
others? That distinction makes all the difference. If he
knew he was lying, that’s treason and he should be
indicted, prosecuted, convicted and executed. If he was misled, then he is “only” incompetent and
a fool who has no place in national politics. And
certainly no place setting policy on the Armed
Services Committee. If he was duped, that should be his campaign theme:
I won’t be fooled again. But he has been duped time and time again which
suggests we’re the ones being duped. Remember the $150
billion savings and loan fraud of the 1980s? Was he
also duped then? What about the subprime mortgage fraud? Was he
duped again? How many more frauds can we afford? How
many more fools can our national security survive? The Easy Way Out History will not be kind to this Arizona senator.
His fealty to Israel will merit him a gravesite on the
Mount of Olives alongside other Likud Party stalwarts
to whom he was reliably loyal. His role as an enemy collaborator persuaded Colonel
Ted Guy, his commanding officer, to urge his
indictment for treason. When Richard Nixon granted a
blanket pardon to all returning prisoners of war, that
flawed president ensured a political future for this
flawed senator. Though a critic might easily dismiss his obvious
lack of intelligence, what shines through most clearly
is his lack of character. He is not merely flawed in
some fundamental sense, John McCain sees himself as
the present-day embodiment of the legacy of Abraham
Lincoln. I saw him say just that—with conviction—in a town
hall meeting in Tempe, Arizona. What’s most unsettling
is the sincerity of his belief. When performing his
John McCain Act, he can even get an audience to buy
into that political branding. As Americans, how do we free our government from
the influence of such flawed personalities? The
consistency of his conduct over decades confirms he
should long ago have been indicted. Yet even now he is campaigning for a fifth term as
a U.S. Senator. If elected, America will be subjected
to a full three decades of a Senate in which John
McCain is a member. If he chooses not to resign, how do we protect
national security from an agenda set by the syndicate
that produced his political career? McCain may preclude an easy way out. Short of
resignation or prosecution, how do we protect
ourselves from this perilous political phenomenon? Restoration of the Rule of
Law The consistency of his conduct is testimony to how
the fact-based rule of law continues to be eroded by
those skilled at displacing facts with what “the mark”
can be induced to believe. We are the mark—i.e., We the People. We were conned
into destroying Iraq by the same syndicate that
destroyed our savings and loan industry. The S&L con
was a prelude to the securitization of mortgages as
pre-staging for the far larger subprime mortgage
fraud. As a POW, John McCain mastered the art of conning
himself. He convinced himself that he gave only
useless information to the enemy. Yet his
collaboration increased by 60% the casualty rate of
our airmen when that classified data was used by North
Vietnamese anti-aircraft gunners. He may sincerely believe that his collaboration
with S&L banksters did not increase by 50% the
taxpayer cost of the S&L bailout. He may even believe
his claim that the Israeli murder of 34 Americans
aboard the USS Liberty was a case of mistaken
identity. He could even believe that the subprime
fraud was an accident. He may also believe that the moon is made of green
cheese and that he is liked by his oft-abused staff.
Yet the facts remain the facts. Behind the scenes, he
is much reviled and often ridiculed. When he departs (please let it be soon), his
epitaph is already written: good riddance. |