Bell Curve The Law Talking Guy Raised by Republicans U.S. West
Well, he's kind of had it in for me ever since I accidentally ran over his dog. Actually, replace "accidentally" with "repeatedly," and replace "dog" with "son."

Tuesday, October 04, 2005

Military Response for the Flu?

Hi All,

A week or so ago I commented on this blog that I was concerned that the Bush administration seemed to be ensuring that the only federal agency that could do anything effectively was the military. Having accomplished that they want the military to take over everything from disaster relief to law enforcement and now Bush is suggesting that if the Bird Flu hits the US, it may require a military response. Wouldn't it be easier to cancel the highway bill pork fest and pay for the vaccine!? But why prepare when an "unforeseen" disaster would be an excuse to put the US military out on the streets nation wide! Medical professionals have been ringing the alarm bell about this flu for a couple of years now. They are comparing its potential to kill with the influenza pandemic in 1918. And now there are reports that it has mutated in exactly the way it needed to start a pandemic!

OK, that was a lot of links. But it's a complicated issue about which we've said little on this blog.

Comments?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I agree that people should be concerned about all the "new" tasks that the Pentagon is being put in charge of. In fact, when I heard that they wanted to put FEMA under Rummy's control, my first thought was , "military junta" here it comes.

I wonder if the military really can do things well. They're making so much "progress" in Iraq. 

// posted by USWest

Anonymous said...

The Founding Fathers understood that aside from blowing things up, a standing military was good at only two things: spending money and violating the rights of citizens. That's why they were so suspicious of it.

This Posse Comitatus (spelling?) act was actually put through as a backlash against the extensive use of the military in a police role during Reconstruction. That, by the way, was largely ineffective. Southern guerillas were able to pull off coup d'etats in several Southern states despite the presence of Federal troops. This leaves aside the activities of such post-Confederate guerilla gruops in their efforts to keep recently freed slaves from establishing themselves.

So we have the inheritors of the Confederacy insisting that we repeal Posse Comitatis just at that moment that Southern, Conservative politicians dominate the country. Hmmm...is the South rising again? 

// posted by Raised By Republicans

roothee said...

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