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Monday 30th June 2008

The Capsizing of American Democracy

The Future of Freedom Foundation posted online today this piece from the April issue of Freedom Daily -
THE CAPSIZING OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY
by James Bovard
American democracy is capsizing as a result of the vast increase in the number of government dependents and government employees. This has created a voting bloc that overwhelms every other potential force. [...]

Tuesday 17th June 2008

Bush Slanders Freedom Again

In a Tuesday interview in Britain, Sky News editor Adam Boulton asked George W. Bush: “There are those who would say look, lets take Guantanamo Bay, and Abu Ghraib, and rendition and all those things and to them that is the complete opposite of freedom.”
BUSH: “Of course, if you want to slander America.”
This is the [...]

Tuesday 27th May 2008

Ron Paul Goes “Respectful”

1:36 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 10

The Washington Post has an article today on the number of Ron Paul’s relatives who worked for his presidential campaign.
          I will be curious if there are other analyses of how the Paul campaign spent $30 million.
        The Post article quoted Paul campaign spokesman Jesse Benton saying that Paul would be “continuing a positive, respectful [...]

Monday 26th May 2008

FFF Conference Next Week

9:50 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 0

The Future of Freedom Foundation will hold their second annual foreign policy/civil liberties conference next week in Reston, Va. The conference runs from June 6 to June 8. The $495 fee cover all meals and 20 speakers.
I will be speaking on Friday around 1:30 on “Bush’s War on Civil Liberties.” Tricky to find enough material [...]

No Justice on Memorial Day

11:03 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Bush | Comments: 6

Here is a great Washington Post photo of Bush strutting at the White House as he receives visitors from the Rolling Thunder veterans motorcycle group.
It is obscene how the same politicians who send Americans to die in unnecessary wars are treated like heroes on Memorial Day.
One would hope that this day, above all others, would be a time [...]

Saturday 24th May 2008

The Democratic-Peace Fraud

10:27 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 4

The Future of Freedom Foundation posted online my piece from the March 2008 Freedom Daily on why democracy is no cure for war. Here’s my 2 cents on the topic -
The Democratic-Peace Fraud
by James Bovard
The doctrine of “democratic peace” now provides vital camouflage for the American war machine. Michael Novak, a theologian with the pro-war [...]

Wednesday 14th May 2008

Now Online: Podcast of BMW Horse**** Interview!

Talk show host Brian Wilson and I had a rattlin’ good chat on WSPD in Toledo today. We kicked hell out of the Homegrown Terrorism and Violent Radicalization BS Act now before the Senate. There were wine, beer, and cigar jokes, as well as expressions of condolence to the Israeli Prime Minister who might be [...]

Sunday 11th May 2008

Terrorist Cabal on the Potomac?

4:56 pm | Bovard | Terrorism | Comments: 2

I don’t know for sure that those two were with Hezbollah - or maybe Hamas - but you can’t be too careful in an area perfect for launching kayak attacks on the DC bridges. Unless of course the kayakers drowned before getting that far (as often happens in these waters).
Seems like half the people that throng [...]

Ellsberg’s Excellent Memoir

4:24 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Uncategorized | Comments: 2

My latest article in Freedom Daily is “Ellsberg’s Lesson for Our Time.” I should have read Daniel Ellsberg’s excellent memoirs - SECRETS: A Memoir of Vietnam and the Pentagon Papers - long ago. But better late than never.
Here is the lead of the article:
Daniel Ellsberg is the kind of American who should receive a Medal [...]

Thursday 8th May 2008

GoLeft TV Interview Now Online -Radio Broadcast on Saturday

5:31 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Bush | Comments: 0

Mike Papantonio of the “Ring of Fire” nationally-syndicated radio program “Ring of Fire” recently interviewed me regarding article on “The 9/11 Servility Reflex.” I just heard from his producer Farron Cousins: “Your interview is going to run on this Saturday’s program, at the top of the second hour. We air from 3p - 6p Eastern [...]

Tuesday 6th May 2008

AmeriCorps’ Latest Triumphs

7:58 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Uncategorized | Comments: 1

The current issue of Ripon Forum includes a piece I wrote on the case against AmeriCorps and other national service boondoggles. The Forum is published by the Ripon Society, an organization of liberal Republicans founded in 1965. The same issue of the magazine features articles by Bob Dole, George HW Bush, and Chris Shays. I [...]

Monday 5th May 2008

Warring as Lying

1:54 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Lying | Comments: 4

The Future of Freedom Foundation posted online today my article from the February issue of Freedom Daily on lying & warring. Amazing to see how much hokum politicians get away with when they commence killing foreigners…..
Warring as Lying Throughout American History
by James Bovard Freedom Daily February 2008
Americans are taught to expect their elected leaders to [...]

Thursday 1st May 2008

NOW ONLINE Mp3 of the Interview with Brian Wilson

5:53 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 0

The zippety interview from last Friday with talk show host Brian Wilson is now online here. (The MP3 list is on the left side).
The same page has surprising background on Brian. I was not aware of the two weeks he teamed up with Seigfried and Roy.
That explains why he dislikes beer.

Friday 25th April 2008

Listen Live Radio 2 pm Friday (4/25) Brian Wilson Show in Baltimore

8:14 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 7

Talk show legend Brian Wilson is back on air in Baltimore. As the Baltimore Sun reported a few weeks ago, “No matter what happens, Brian Wilson can’t seem to stay away from Baltimore for long.”
I will be on his program on WHFS (105.7 FM) at 2 pm today (Friday, 4/25). You can listen live here. [...]

Thursday 24th April 2008

Finally - a Good Ron Paul Antiwar TV Ad!

2:59 pm | Bovard | Ron Paul | Comments: 8

The folks at American Liberty Coalition have crafted a powerful antiwar ad promoting Ron Paul for president. This minute long ad conveys Ron Paul’s passion and his concern about the ruinous costs of the current wars and the peril of Bush attacking Iran.
The Liberty Coalition solicited donations to help pay for airing the ad, and [...]

Thursday 17th April 2008

Congress Quietly Repeals Martial Law Provision

8:42 am | Bovard | Comments: 8

In late 2006, Congress revised the Posse Comitatus Act and the Insurrection Act to make it far easier for a president to declare martial law. Those changes were repealed at the end of this January as part of Public Law 110-181 (HR 4986), the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (signed into law [...]

Tuesday 15th April 2008

Ron Paul Supporters Rally at Capitol

5:00 pm | Bovard | Ron Paul | Uncategorized | Comments: 11

A couple hundred Ron Paul supporters gathered in front of the Capitol today to hear speakers @organized by the Granny Warriors.
I stopped by mid afternoon. I was told by one attendee that “Ron Paul came by and spoke around 11:15. Unfortunately, the sound system was not yet working at that point.” He said he had [...]

Wednesday 9th April 2008

White House Choreographed Torture Sessions

9:38 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Torture | Comments: 11

ABC has a bombshell tonight about how Cheney and other top Bush administration officials would sit at the White House and decide exactly how Muslim detainees would be tortured.
ABC noted: “The high-level discussions about these ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ were so detailed, these sources said, some of the interrogation sessions were almost choreographed — down to [...]

Martial Law Act of 2006

The Future of Freedom Foundation today posted online my article from the January 2008 issue of Freedom Daily on Martial Law. Without further ado…
The Martial Law Act of 2006
by James Bovard
Martial law is perhaps the ultimate stomping of freedom. And yet, on September 30, 2006, Congress passed a provision in a 591-page bill that will make [...]

Tuesday 1st April 2008

$34 Million for the Ron Paul Prez Campaign

3:49 pm | Bovard | Ron Paul | Comments: 10

The latest financial disclosure forms indicate that more than $34 million has been raised by and for the Ron Paul campaign for president. The campaign has spent more than $28 million. The campaign had $5.5 million on hand at the end of February.
The Paul campaign also filed a disclosure listing more than 2500 itemized expenses. [...]

Monday 24th March 2008

The 9/11 Servility Reflex

The Future of Freedom Foundation posted online today my Freedom Daily piece on the tidal wave of groveling that swept America after 9/11.
THE 9/11 SERVILITY REFLEX Freedom Daily, December 2008
by James Bovard
Many citizens react to their rulers like little kids who recognize that a stranger is acting suspiciously and may be up to no good [...]

Thursday 20th March 2008

Now Online - My Radio Interview on Antiwar.com

7:17 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Bush | Comments: 7

Antiwar.com’s Scott Horton and I had a rattlin’ good chat yesterday regarding the 5 year anniversary of Bush’s invasion of Iraq. The interview includes accolades for Antiwar.com itself and heaps justified abuse upon the media.
The MP3 is here. The interview is about 15 minutes long.

Tuesday 18th March 2008

Bush Earned Impeachment Five Years Ago Today

In a memo sent to Congress five years ago today, Bush decreed that he was attacking Iraq “to take the necessary actions against international terrorists and terrorist organizations, including those nations, organizations, or persons who planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001.”
The Bush administration linked Saddam to 9/11 to justify [...]

Wednesday 12th March 2008

McCain Again Votes for Torture

John McCain voted to uphold Bush’s veto of the latest anti-torture legislation to pass Congress.
McCain also voted against the initial version of this law that would ban waterboarding by U.S. government agents.
McCain also voted for the final version of the Military Comissions Act in September 2006. By giving Bush boundless discretion to define torture, this law [...]

Friday 7th March 2008

Now Online: MP3 of Brian Wilson Interview + Ron Paul Update

8:59 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 19

Today’s interview with Brian Wilson is now online. Click here to listen or download the MP3.
We had a good ol’ time; Brian revealed the best Merlot to go with bratwurst.
Ron Paul came up. I stressed again, as I have indicated often on this blog, that Ron Paul is a great congressman. He shows great courage [...]

LISTEN LIVE Discussing Ron Paul on the Brian Wilson Show today (3/07) at 5 pm

9:57 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Ron Paul | Comments: 2

I will be on the Brian Wilson radio show today at 5 pm. Brian is one of the funniest and most thoughtful talk show hosts in the biz. I assume Ron Paul’s campaign and drop-out will be a prime topic.
Listen Live here. (He is on Toledo’s WSPD - 1370 on the AM dial)
Here is Brian’s [...]

Ron Paul’s Missed Chance Against McCain?

John McCain survived the New Hampshire primary thanks to receiving the support of the bulk of Republicans opposed to the Iraq war</a>. McCain also did much better with the antiwar voters than other GOP candidates in the crucial Florida primary.
Ron Paul, who announced he was dropping out of the race last night, never made his opposition [...]

Saturday 23rd February 2008

McCain’s Forgotten Drug Fix

Amongst all the media teeth-gnashing over the question of whether McCain did special favors for his blondie lobbyist, his wife’s sweetheart deal for massive narcotics theft in the 1990s has been forgotten.
If a poor black woman from Anacostia had committed the crimes that Cindy McCain committed, the black woman might have been sent to prison [...]

Wednesday 20th February 2008

Do Elections Guarantee Freedom?

9:54 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Elective Dictatorship | Comments: 15

That’s a rhetorical question, right?
Actually, it’s the title of the most recently posted article of mine from the Future of Freedom Foundation’s Freedom Daily.
Even though elections did not guarantee freedom in the past, we can be confident they will do so this year because [redacted by FBI web editor]
DO ELECTIONS GUARANTEE FREEDOM? Freedom Daily, November [...]

Tuesday 19th February 2008

My Favorite Cartoon (from Playboy 2002)

Clay Butler did this wonderful cartoon for Playboy for a 2002 article of mine bashing the Patriot Act. His cartoon was so good that I urged St. Martin’s/Palgrave to use it for the cover of Terrorism & Tyranny. Alack - my editors there did not share my mania for cartoons.
The full size of the cartoon is [...]

Wednesday 6th February 2008

MP3 Now Online of My Interview on Ron Paul etc. With Goyette

9:48 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Ron Paul | Comments: 0

My interview from last Thursday with Charles Goyette is now online here. Thanks to Scott Horton at Antiwar.com for posting it.
Charles and I had a rollicking discussion - covering torture, Iraq, and some of the struggles of the Ron Paul campaign. The interview is 16 minutes. Most of the discussion about the Paul campaign was [...]

Wednesday 30th January 2008

Discussing Ron Paul Etc. Thursday Morning - LISTEN LIVE

I will be on the Charles Goyette radio show 8:35 AM Eastern time Thursday (1/31) discussing the Ron Paul campaign and other developments in the presdiential race.
Charles is one of the best libertarian hosts in the country; his political courage and humor have helped make him the most popular talk show host in Phoenix. He is on the dial [...]

Monday 28th January 2008

AntiWar Issue in FLA Primary???

11:25 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Iraq | Comments: 16

Are any of the candidates in tomorrow’s presidential primaries in Florida running advertisements criticizing the Iraq war? Are any of the candidates making opposition to the Iraq war their premier issue?
Is the antiwar issue being raised in the media or in Q & A with candidates?
Has anybody seen polls on which candidates are favored by [...]

Friday 25th January 2008

Bush Does Abraham

The intellectual bootlickers surrounding Bush have apparently persuaded him that he is the reincarnation of Abraham Lincoln. Fox News recently had unprecedented access to Bush to produce a documentary to air on Sunday night: ““George W. Bush: Fighting to the Finish.” Fox reporter Bret Baier commented of his meetings with Bush: ”
We talked a lot [...]

Saturday 19th January 2008

Congratulations Ron Paul!

Ron Paul scored a big upset today, coming in #2 in the Nevada primary. It is bracing to see him whup McCain, Thompson, Huckabee, and Guiliani in convincing fashion.
The race between Paul and the winner, Romney, may have been closer with a little bit of luck. The Nevada GOP continually changed the rules and changed the locations for [...]

Tuesday 15th January 2008

B.W. Radio Interview Now Online as MP3

10:25 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 3

You can listen or download the audio file of my interview on the Brian Wilson Show today here.
As for the joke about the centerfold in Attention Deficit Democracy - I have already received 3 complaints about my comment on Brian’s suggestion that the centerfold revealed Miss Montgomery County. I did not know that “corn fed” had such odious [...]

Monday 14th January 2008

LISTEN LIVE Tuesday (1/15) 5 pm Eastern -BRIAN WILSON show

11:28 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 5

Brian Wilson, one of the zippiest talk show hosts around, invited me on his show for Tuesday (1/15) at 5 PM Eastsern. You can listen live here. He is on WSPD in Toledo, 1370 AM.
Not sure of the topics - but Ron Paul, Bush, and the “Filipino Monkey” might be on the hit parade.
Should be plenty [...]

The War Issue in the Michigan Primary?

7:51 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Iraq | Comments: 11

Unfortunately, I don’t live in Michigan [!] - but I’m curious on the big vote on Tuesda -
How are the presidential candidates playing the Iraq war issue in the Michigan primary?
Are any candidates running radio or TV ads explicitly opposing or supporting the war?
If so, are the ads on the war resonating?
Does the Iraq war seem to [...]

Friday 11th January 2008

Stomping Freedom: The Martial Law Act of 2006

Counterpunch posted online my Freedom Daily January article on how Congress passed law to give presidents push-button martial law power. Here’s the piece.
Stomping Freedom
Inside the Martial Law Act of 2006
By JAMES BOVARD
Martial law is perhaps the ultimate stomping of freedom. And yet, on September 30, 2006, Congress passed a provision in a 591-page bill that [...]

Wednesday 9th January 2008

Why did Antiwar Voters Support McCain in NH?

CNN crunched the exit poll data from yesterday’s New Hampshire primary and found that “among the 34 percent [of Republican primary voters] who said they disapproved of the war, McCain had a wide advantage over the GOP field — even over Texas Rep. Ron Paul, the sole advocate of a U.S. withdrawal in the Republican [...]

Will a Drug Warrior Be Hanged?

So, after the primary results last night, I was looking for something uplifting to put on the blog.
Voila! The possibility that an evil politician could get hanged!
The Future of Freedom Foundation today posted online an article from their Freedom Daily on the Bush-blessed Thai slaughter of drug users and other people hated by the police. The American media [...]

Monday 7th January 2008

Forecasts for Ron Paul for NH?

10:09 pm | Bovard | Ron Paul | Comments: 23

I’m curious to know what folks expect Ron Paul’s vote totals will be for in the New Hampshire primary. I’m also curious to hear surmises on what the lasting impact (if any) from Paul’s candidancy in NH and elsewhere.
I’m hoping he can hit a home run and come in third, though the polls seem to [...]

Wednesday 2nd January 2008

Thanks for the Great Comments in ‘07!

I greatly appreciate the folks who added their thoughts and wit to this blog over the past 12 months. We’ve had a hoot of a time, despite the political BS flooding this nation.
Laughter might not be the best medicine, but it is a good antidote to the servility that pervades the media and contemporary political life. And I’ve learned a [...]

Sunday 16th December 2007

Before I was Certified as a ‘Bush Hater’…..

11:14 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Bush | Comments: 9

I’ve received bushels of emails over the past few years denouncing my pinko liberal tendencies. Here’s a collection of some of the highlights after Bush Betrayal came out in 2004.
I was rummaging through some old material yesterday and came across this fervent review of Feeling Your Pain: The Explosion and Abuse of Government Power in the Clinton-Gore [...]

Ron Paul Tea Party Day!

10:12 am | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 4

This is the anniversary of the 1773 Boston Tea Party. Grassroots supporters of Ron Paul are conducting a nationwide pledge campaign today for Tea Party 07. The details - and some lively political art - are at this website.
Ron Paul continues to be practically the only ray of sunlight on the national political horizon. The further [...]

Saturday 15th December 2007

Happy Bill of Rights Day!

1:32 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 7

This is the 216th anniversary of the ratification of the Bill of Rights - the first 10 amendments to the Constitution of the United States. This should be one of the most honored civic days on the American calendar. Unfortunately, most Americans never notice the occasion -in the same way that many people seem [...]

Friday 14th December 2007

Bush’s AmeriCorps Fraud

The Future of Freedom Foundation posted online today my article on AmeriCorps from the September 2007 Freedom Daily.
I admit: the first sentence is my favorite line in the piece.
Bush’s AmeriCorps Fraud Freedom Daily, September 2007
by James Bovard
Politicians have long used moral doggerel to make citizens docile. Though President Bush is often verbally inept, he has [...]

Tuesday 4th December 2007

Ron Paul Vindicated on Iran

7:29 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Bush | Comments: 18

Ron Paul is the only non-Armageddon presidential candidate among the Republicans. He is the only person who staunchly opposes a massive first strike against Iran because of its alleged nuclear program. He has long been ridiculed for his aversion to preemptive genocide in the Middle East.
The National Intelligence Estimate yesterday reported that Iran abandoned its nuclear weapons [...]

Friday 30th November 2007

Radio Interview Now Available Online MP3

1:32 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 4

Yesterday’s interview by radio host Brian Wilson is now available online here. The October 4 interview we did is available on the same page.
Brian and I had a rowdy time. I suspect that my joke about the Farm Journal may have mystified people in western Ohio. Woulda worked like a charm in eastern Ohio, where people are [...]

Wednesday 28th November 2007

Listen LIVE Online Thursday (11/29) -Brian Wilson Radio Show 5 pm Eastern

8:56 pm | Attention Deficit Democracy | Bovard | Comments: 3

Brian Wilson, one of the finest talk show hosts in the biz, invited me on his show tomorrow (Thursday, 11/29) at 5:00 pm Eastern time. You can listen live here. He is on WSPD in Toledo, 1370 AM. He rules talk radio in his part of the country, and is reportedly on the verge of [...]

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