Psyche, Science, and Society

Valtin on Robert Gates

Daily Kos diarist Valtin has compiled what we know about the new Secretary of Defense designee, Robert Gates: ran-Contra, Iraq, and WMD — Who is Robert Gates?
He was apparently involved in many of the most evil activities of our government, including supplying poison gas to Saddam, illegal weapons to Iran, and aid to the Contra terrorists. No wonder he was chosen. Only terrorists are qualified for such a high foreign policy role.

Valtin’s summary:

OK. The Democrats won big. Now Bush, Rove, and Cheney want to use the fake glow of bipartisanship to sneak in their nominee for Secretary of Defense to replace the hated, inept Donald Rumsfeld. But Robert Gates is no innocent.

A protege of William Casey, Gates was forced to withdraw his nomination for Director of the CIA in 1987, because of questions about his role in Iran-Contra. While not indicted, the Walsh report devoted an entire chapter to Gates and his dubious behavior during the Iran-Contra affair, and his less than forthcoming testimony before Congress.

Finally, Gates was heavily implicated in a secret progam in the 1980s to provide crucial satellite information to Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq War. This information may also have facilitated Iraq development, at that time, of their nuclear weapons program! (more…)

Anyone want to bet on whether the newly victorious Democrats will bring up the anticonstitutional, murderous activities of this new cabinet official? Guess my readers aren’t that stupid.

November 8th, 2006

Pray for the Iraqis?

In a recent email distributing my article Death in life in Iraq that, if I was religious, I would say “pray for the Iraqis.” In response to my comment, Rick Stecker, a student at the Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis Institute for the Study of Violence, a retired minister, sent the following comment:

Stephen,

Prayer doesn’t work on God; it works on you. And so, to pray for the people of Iraq means to hold their suffering and exploitation within you so that compassion (“with suffering”) and action (your article) may improve their lot as well as enabling others to be sensitive to such things in the future. In such matters you are “religious” because the root word for religion comes from the word ligament which means being “bound together.”

Rick

November 8th, 2006