' full demand'
no no no no no
i demand that you show my work
you need to show my work if you don't show my work i'll die
no no no not that way
i demand you show my work because of its merit not that i want to live
i'm not sure i want to live anyway and i don't want to live if you don't
show my work
no no no no why would you want to show my work that way
i want you to show my work this way
i want the frame i need the frame there must be silence
there must be silence surrounding my work silence inhabits my work
without silence my work is noise and nothing but noise
with silence there is the anticipation of my work and the memory of my
work
my work my work my work it's all about my work
i want my work shown with a very high ceiling an invisible high ceiling
shown with a dark black and in fact invisible floor
you're suspended between nothing visible and nothing visible
and yes of course nothing to the left and nothing to the right
and so much time that there is nothing before and there is nothing after
nothing but my work work work
no no no no no i demand you show my work my work not that way my work
just this way just this way and no other
i demand you show my work in any case no no no no no no no just my work
just my work in any case
i want my work shown with no one entering and no one leaving
shown with no one entering before my work and no one leaving after my work
no no no no no no no no no not that way not that way at all
just this way nothing above nothing below nothing before nothing after
nothing left and nothing right no no no not that not that way
i demand you show my work
'this is the demanding letter of the work
'following the begging letter for the work
'following the implication and the complicit letter
'preceding the letter of engagement and the letter of articulation
'preceding the letter of acquiescence and the letter of no demand
'following the letter of full demand the letter of presupposition
'within the letter of presupposition the letter of full participation
'
'the demanding letter of the showing of the work
'following the useless begging letter of or beseeching full work of
' full demand'
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 10:42:37 -0400
From: physnews@aip.org
To: sondheim@PANIX.COM
Subject: Physics News Update 728
PHYSICS NEWS UPDATE
The American Institute of Physics Bulletin of Physics News
Number 728 April 20, 2005 by Phillip F. Schewe, Ben Stein
AN OCEAN OF QUARKS. Nuclear physicists have now demonstrated that
the material essence of the universe at a time mere microseconds
after the big bang consists of a ubiquitous quark-gluon liquid.
This huge insight comes from an experiment carried out over the past
five years at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC), the giant
crusher of nuclei located at Brookhaven National Lab, where
scientists have created a toy version of the cosmos amid high-energy
collisions. RHIC is of course not a telescope pointed at the sky
but an underground accelerator on Long Island; it is, nevertheless,
in effect, a precision cosmology instrument for viewing a very early
portion of the universe, a wild era long before the time of the
first atoms (which formed about 400,000 years after the big bang),
before the first compound nuclei such as helium (about a minute
after the big bang), before even the time when protons are thought
to have formed into stable entities (ten microseconds).
In our later, cooler epoch quarks conventionally occur in groups of
two or three. These groupings, called mesons and baryons,
respectively, are held together by particles called gluons---which
act as agents for the strong nuclear force. Baryons (such as
protons and neutrons), collectively called hadrons, are the normal
building blocks of any nucleus. Could hadrons be melted or smashed
into their component quarks through violent means? Could a nucleus
be made to rupture and spill its innards into a common swarm of
unconfined quarks and gluons? This is what RHIC set out to show.
Let's look at what happened. In the RHIC accelerator itself two
beams of gold ions, atoms stripped of all their electrons, are
clashed at several interaction zones around the ring-shaped
facility. Every nucleus is a bundle of 197 protons and neutrons,
each of which shoots along with an energy of up to 100 GeV.
Therefore, when the two gold projectiles meet in a head-on "central
collision" event, the total collision energy is 40 TeV (40 trillion
electron volts). Of this, typically 25 TeV serves as a stock of
surplus energy---call it a fireball---out of which new particles can
be created. Indeed in many gold-gold smashups as many as 10,000
new particles are born of that fireball. Hubble-quality pictures of
this blast of particles
(http://www.bnl.gov/RHIC/full_en_images.htm), shows the aftermath of
the fireball, but not the fireball itself.
The outward streaming particles provide all the forensic evidence
for determining the properties of the fireball. To harvest this
debris, the RHIC detectors must be agile and very fast. The
recreation of the frenzied quark era is ephemeral, lasting only a
few times 10^-24 seconds. The size of the fireball is about 5
femtometers, its density about 100 times that of an ordinary
nucleus, and its temperature about 2 trillion degrees Kelvin or (in
energy units) 175 MeV. RHIC was built to create that fireball. But
was it the much-anticipated quark-gluon plasma? The data
unexpectedly showed that the fireball looked nothing like a gas.
For one thing, potent jets of mesons and protons expected to be
squirting out of the fireball, were being suppressed.
Now, for the first time since starting nuclear collisions at RHIC in
the year 2000 and with plenty of data in hand, all four detector
groups operating at the lab have converged on a consensus opinion.
They believe that the fireball is a liquid of strongly interacting
quarks and gluons rather than a gas of weakly interacting quarks and
gluons. The RHIC findings were reported at this week's April
meeting of the American Physical Society (APS) in Tampa, Florida in
a talk delivered by Gary Westfall (Michigan State) and at a press
conference attended by several RHIC scientists.
Brookhaven physicist Samuel Aronson said that having established the
quark-gluon-liquid nature of the pre-protonic universe, RHIC
expected to plumb the liquid's properties, such as its heat capacity
and its reaction to shock waves. The liquid is dense but seems to
flow with very little viscosity. It flows so freely that it
approximates an ideal, or perfect, fluid, the kind governed by the
standard laws of hydrodynamics. At least in its flow properties the
quark liquid is therefore a classical liquid and should not be
confused with a superfluid, whose flow properties (including zero
viscosity) are dictated by quantum mechanics.
One of the reasons for RHIC's previous hesitancy in delivering a
definitive pronouncement was concern over the issue of whether the
observed nuclear liquid was composed of truly deconfined quarks and
gluons or of quarks confined within hadrons, or maybe even a mixture
of quarks and hadrons. According to William Zajc (Columbia Univ.
and spokesperson for the PHENIX detector group at RHIC), the
patterns of particles flying out of the fireball, including
preliminary data on heavier, charm-quark-containing particles such
as D mesons, support the quark liquid picture.
To summarize, the main stories here are (1) that based on the
evidence of the RHIC data, the universe in the microsecond era would
seem to consist of a novel liquid of quarks and gluons; (2) that
RHIC has reproduced small fragments of this early phase of the
universe for detailed study; and (3) that these results are vouched
for by all four RHIC groups. If there had been delays in making an
announcement of the results or if the exact nomenclature for the
novel nuclear matter had been left unsettled, the RHIC physicists at
the press conference seemed more interested in pursuing their new
kind of experimental science---a sort of fluid-dynamical cosmology.
(All four groups are also concurrently publishing "white paper"
summaries of their work in the journal Nuclear Physics A. Preprints
are available as follows: BRAHMS,
http://arxiv.org/abs/nucl-ex/0410020 ; PHENIX,
http://arxiv.org/abs/nucl-ex/0410003 ; PHOBOS,
http://arxiv.org/abs/nucl-ex/0410022 ; and STAR,
http://arxiv.org/abs/nucl-ex/0501009)
***********
PHYSICS NEWS UPDATE is a digest of physics news items arising
from physics meetings, physics journals, newspapers and
magazines, and other news sources. It is provided free of charge
as a way of broadly disseminating information about physics and
physicists. For that reason, you are free to post it, if you like,
where others can read it, providing only that you credit AIP.
Physics News Update appears approximately once a week.
AUTO-SUBSCRIPTION OR DELETION: By using the expression
"subscribe physnews" in your e-mail message, you
will have automatically added the address from which your
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If you use the "signoff physnews" expression in your e-mail message,
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distribution list. Please send your message to:
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(Leave the "Subject:" line blank.)
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 09:50:15 -0700
From: World Wildlife Fund <ecomments@wwfus.org>
To: Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
Subject: WWF April E-Newsletter: You Can Save Our Living Planet This Earth Day!
_________________________________________________________________
World Wildlife Fund
E-newsletter for a Living Planet
April 2005
_________________________________________________________________
In this issue
---------------------------------------------------
Happy Earth Day! In celebration of Earth Day this year, WWF is
offering you a selection of quick and simple e-actions that you
can take to make a huge difference for our living planet!
_________________________________________________________________
To see an HTML version of this email, please click here:
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/hostedemail/email.htm?h=fd37c8fab2b7e539b0131c6572ee7d1c&CID=96381754
********************************************************
* Hot Topics *
Save the Arctic Refuge
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104839&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
Protect Nature Around the Globe
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104840&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
Get Your Friends Active
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104841&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
The Effect of Ecosystem Health on Humans
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104842&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
* Do You Know? *
How many letters did WWF activists send to decision makers last
year?
a. 50,000
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104843&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
b. 100,000
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104844&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
c. 250,000
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104845&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
d. 900,000
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104846&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
Question submitted by:
WWF Conservation Action Network
Have a great animal question?
Email it to us! ecomments@wwfus.org
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
* Celebrity Species*
Rhino Conservation at Risk
With all five species of rhinos seriously threatened, it's bad
news that President Bush's budget request to Congress proposes a
big drop in support for conservation of key imperiled species
around the world, including rhinos. Rhinos have benefited
enormously from the Multinational Species Conservation Fund, as
their numbers have been recovering thanks to projects supported
by this funding. Take action now to make sure support is
provided for antipoaching, habitat protection, public education,
and measures to reduce conflicts between people and rhinos.
Please urge your members of Congress to provide sufficient
funding for this critically important Fund.
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104847&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
Rhinos
Habitat: Various landscapes within Africa and Asia
Diet: Grass, leaves, shrubs, fruit
Threats: Poaching and habitat loss
Fun Fact: Rhinos may look indestructible, but their skin is
actually quite sensitive, especially to sunburn and biting
insects, which is why they like to wallow in mud.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
* In the Field*
Protecting Barrier Reefs in Belize
The 130-mile long barrier reef off the coast of Belize is home
to thousands of species, including the endangered West Indian
manatee, American crocodile, and hawksbill turtle, and faces
serious threats from development, overfishing, and polluted
runoff. With support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF)
-- an international funding collaborative -- scientific
research, public education, and strengthened management is now
meeting those challenges. Urge Congress to provide enough
funding so the GEF can continue to assist this project and
hundreds of others around the globe.
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104848&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
*Get Involved*
Help Pass Global Warming Legislation
It's time for the United States to do its share to curb global
warming and passing the Climate Stewardship Actwould be a good
first step. The act would set a national policy to limit and
reduce our heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions. As the world
celebrates the launch of the Kyoto Protocol -- the first
international agreement to protect our living planet from global
warming -- the United States remains paralyzed by inaction and is
still not among the 140 nations that have ratified the treaty.
Urge Congress to pass the bi-partisan Climate Stewardship Act
and protect the polar bears, coral reef species, and other
wildlife already feeling the effects of our warming planet.
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104849&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Have friends who want to take action for the environment?
Send them this email and spread the word about conservation this
Earth Day.
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/forwardthis/ft.php?mID=26537&em=sondheim@panix.com&ch=78df61bea96bb38fe4f7713332da00
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Conservation Action Network: Want to take more actions for
our living planet, and stay informed of when new actions are
available? Sign up for CAN -- WWF's free action network -- and
receive alerts to let you know when you can take action for the
environment.
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104850&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Earth Day Adoptions! A symbolic adoption of a Panda or
Gorilla from WWF's Online Adoption Center will help protect
these animals in the wild this Earth Day.
https://secure.worldwildlife.org/forms/adoptionCenter_1.cfm?sc=AME0510WS442&adoption=enews0405work&enews=enews0405work
-----------------------------------------------------------------
* Friends of WWF *
Organic Mother's Day Flowers
OrganicBouquet.com created the WWF Mother's Day bouquet to
benefit WWF's efforts to protect endangered animals and habitats
around the world. WWF receives 15% of any floral purchase
originating from WWF's shop page or this e-newsletter and an
additional 5% on purchases of the WWF Mother's Day bouquet.
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104852&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Beanie Babies� to Protect Wildlife!
Ty Inc. is supporting WWF through the sale of a series of
limited edition endangered species Beanie Babies�. Sundar(TM), a
snow leopard, and Bahati(TM), an African elephant, are available
only on Ty's Web site. Ty contributes 6% of the purchase price
to support WWF's global conservation efforts.
http://newsletter.worldwildlife.org/ct/ct.php?t=104853&c=96381754&m=m&type=3
_________________________________________________________________
Your email address: sondheim@panix.com
If you no longer wish to receive the WWF E-Newsletter from us,
you can reply to this message and write "Take me off the mailing
list" in the subject line. You can also update your options on
your preference page,
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including not receiving any further communications from WWF.
World Wildlife Fund
1250 24th Street, NW Washington, DC 2003
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 12:40:20 -0700
From: PFAW Activist Network <alerts@pfaw.org>
Reply-To: noreply@pfaw.org
To: Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
Subject: Brace yourself: Frist going nuclear!
================================================================
SUPREME COURT CAMPAIGN -- People For the American Way
April 20, 2005
________________________________________________________________
Dear Alan,
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist will stop at nothing to push
his "nuclear option" on the American people. This Sunday, he is
speaking via closed circuit television to thousands of church
congregations organized by the radical right Family Research
Council as a part of "Justice Sunday," a desperate and offensive
campaign claiming that the 200 year-old Senate filibuster is
being used to target people of faith.
This is a campaign of religious McCarthyism. We must not let it
pass without calling Frist to account for his pandering to the
Religious Right and his unconscionable injection of religion
into the business of Congress. And House Speaker Tom DeLay's
recent threats against the judges in the Schiavo case make this
all the more urgent.
Support People For's response to Frist's tactics:
http://pfaw.kintera.org/supportstoptheabuse
Frist and his "Justice Sunday" allies want to clear the path
for President Bush's extreme far-right nominations to the
federal courts, including the Supreme Court. They can do it by
nuking the filibuster, the last "check and balance" against the
majority's abuse of power.
The independence of the federal courts is all that stands
between democratic checks and balances in government and
unchecked total far-right domination. That independence rests on
our ability to defeat the nuclear option, which could come up
for a vote as early as next week.
Take a moment right now to support our efforts to defend
America's democratic traditions:
http://pfaw.kintera.org/supportstoptheabuse
For several months, People For the American Way has been
working to educate the public, the media and elected officials
about the critical role that the filibuster has played in
protecting minority rights in the Senate. Last month, we helped
collect more than one million signatures via the Internet on
petitions presented to Frist and Senate Minority Leader Harry
Reid urging them to preserve the filibuster. In addition, People
For the American Way is continuing its long-standing opposition
to far-right nominees to the federal courts.
In a separate effort, People For the American Way Foundation,
which launched a "Mr. Smith" ad campaign a few weeks ago that
helped bring the nuclear option threat into the open, ratcheted
up its ad campaign by releasing yesterday a new ad with a
sharper message that makes the stakes ever clearer. The new ad
features Ted Nonini, the same common-sense Republican
firefighter who appeared in the original ad, telling viewers
that far-right political leaders abusing their power,
threatening judges, and injecting religion into politics and
shutting down debate is a sure sign that something is wrong.
In reaction to both organizations' efforts, the far-right has
intensified its counter attack on the independent judiciary. The
Radical Right and their allies on Capitol Hill are putting
intense pressure on Republican Senators to support their nuclear
option. Radical Right groups have started running highly
personal attack ads on Senators who do not support the nuclear
option. They're pulling out all the stops now to force Frist to
pull the trigger as early as next week!
People For the American Way needs your support right now to
help preserve the Senate's last check and balance against the
majority's abuse of power. Please support our Supreme Court
Defense Fund today.
http://pfaw.kintera.org/supportstoptheabuse
With sincere gratitude for all that you do,
Ralph G. Neas
President
________________________________________________________________
People For the American Way
2000 M Street, NW | Suite 400 | Washington, DC 20036
http://www.pfaw.org/
1-800-326-PFAW | 202/467-4999
================================================================
This message was sent to: sondheim@panix.com
To ensure that People For e-mails are not diverted to your spam
or bulk folders, please add alerts@pfaw.org to your address book
and/or "safe list."
Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. Replies will not be read.
To contact us online, please use the web form at:
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To remove yourself from this mailing, please go to http://www.kintera.org/TR.asp?ID=M68373065608825013794665
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 19:45:46 GMT
From: NARAL Pro-Choice America <can@ProChoiceAmerica.org>
Reply-To: notice-reply-xeiuxu4a56wix7@prochoiceaction.org
To: Alan Sondheim <sondheim@panix.com>
Subject: Take Action to Overturn Federal Refusal Clause TODAY!
Pro-choice champion Sen. Barbara Boxer needs your help to repeal
a recently passed anti-choice law - the Federal Refusal Clause.
Last year, anti-choice leaders inserted this serious restriction
on the right to choose in the final hours of the session with a
sneaky back-room maneuver.
Thanks to the leadership and commitment of Sen. Boxer, you have
a chance to overturn the law. Please take action in support of
Boxer's repeal today! Click here to take action today -
http://prochoiceaction.org/campaign/sen_fedrefclause_042005/xeiuxu4a56wix7. We just learned that the
Senate will have an up-or-down vote on the Federal Refusal
Clause as soon as this Thursday, April 21.
The vote will be very close, so your action will make a
difference.
What's At Stake:
The Federal Refusal Clause is a stealth gag rule that lets HMOs,
for-profit hospitals, and other health-care companies forbid
their doctors from providing abortion services - or even
information - to their patients. Doctors could be gagged from
even referring women clients to another provider - even if the
doctor thinks the patient's health is at risk.
We know you heard from us only days ago about other attempts by
anti-choice leaders to take away a woman's right to choose, but
the vote to repeal the Federal Refusal Clause could come as soon
as this Thursday, April 21. We have a chance to overturn this
dangerous restriction - so please take action today - click here
http://prochoiceaction.org/campaign/sen_fedrefclause_042005/xeiuxu4a56wix7!
You can take action on this alert via the web at:
http://prochoiceaction.org/campaign/sen_fedrefclause_042005/xeiuxu4a56wix7
Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this.
http://prochoiceaction.org/campaign/sen_fedrefclause_042005/forward/xeiuxu4a56wix7
Take Action to Overturn Federal Refusal Clause TODAY!
INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND VIA THE WEB:
If you have access to a web browser, you can take action on this
alert by going to the following URL:
http://prochoiceaction.org/campaign/sen_fedrefclause_042005/xeiuxu4a56wix7
Your letter will be addressed and sent to:
Your Senators
----THIS LETTER WILL BE SENT IN YOUR NAME----
Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],
As your constituent, I am writing to request your support for
reversing the Federal Refusal Clause.
Slipped into the federal budget at the end of the 2004, this
provision allows any health-care company (including hospitals,
health-insurance corporations, and HMOs) to refuse to comply
with any federal, state, or local law that assures women have
access to abortion services. It lets a health-care company gag
its doctors, and bar them from providing abortion services - or
even information - to their patients. Doctors could even be
blocked from referring women clients to another doctor under
this proposal even when a woman's health is at risk.
Under the Federal Refusal Clause, many women may lose access to
vital reproductive health services, and in some cases may not
even be told what options are available to them. Congress has
voted before to oppose gag rules, based on the principle that
neither politicians nor big business should interfere with
doctor-patient relationships. The Federal Refusal Clause should
be treated no differently.
----END OF LETTER TO BE SENT----
Sincerely,
Alan Sondheim
If you would like to unsubscribe from NARAL Pro-Choice America's
Choice Action Network, you can visit your subscription
management page at:
http://prochoiceaction.org/can/smp.tcl?nkey=xeiuxu4a56wix7
***********************************
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Memorial
Allen Ginsberg or Kathy Acker or Robert Creeley dies and the lists swell
with memorials, ephemera, anecdotes, quotations, odes, forwards, from
friends, strangers, almost always loving, sometimes websites are created,
people might travel a little bit in real life, people cry, tears are
written, the swelling grows, levels, subsides, the loss is present, some
might say ever-present, others sutured over, it's moment's like these that
lists, communities, online and offline, come together, at least appear to
We're all vulnerable, we all wait our turn in the wings for our memorial,
our moment, of passing, the whisper which fades, can only fade, in this
most fragile of media, these archives that disappear as well, without
memorial, passing comments at best
Before the Net, what then?, rumors, telephone calls, almost always one to
one immediately, then perhaps the newspaper or radio announcements, if one
is sufficiently famous, perhaps a gathering at St. Mark's or other space
turned place for memorials, always carried in memory, not even the arc-
hive, someone might have made a video of the event, or an audio, anything,
but not publicly accessible, now online the archives are there, present,
naked to anyone, susceptible to hacking, damage, but at least momentarily
present, at least the denouement
What will happen to us, to me, when the words cease and others suture in,
or at least one hopes for the suturing, the swollen and marked, remarked,
residue, communal ripples, there
Or as lists increasingly list, to the side of the dead, thanatotic, encom-
iums, tottered graves, true memorials of eternal battered words, the dead
praising the dead, the graves full from one end of the infinite Net to the
other, guarded against intrusion, archives infinitely duplicated, words
presenting at the last judgment
Thomas Browne and a quincunx of urns in his honour
Lance Armstrong and the hearts of his fellow countrymen and women
Alan Sondheim and synaptic release of hard disk flash mem spasm
_
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 20:35:36 -0400 (EDT)
From: moderator@portside.org
Reply-To: portside@portside.org
To: portside@lists.portside.org
Subject: LA Times - 'Bolton Should Step Aside'
Los Angeles Times
April 20, 2005
EDITORIAL
Bolton Should Step Aside
President Bush's nomination of John Bolton to become
United Nations ambassador began as an embarrassment and
is ending as a disgrace. The Senate Foreign Relations
Committee was right to delay a scheduled vote and
resist being railroaded by the administration into
approving him.
Bolton's infantile crack that it would make no
difference if the U.N. lost its top 10 floors already
testified to his unfitness to serve as the United
States' diplomat to the world. It may have been Bush's
right to appoint someone provocative yet capable. But
the revelations that have emerged over the past weeks
in the Senate call into question Bolton's basic ability
to do the job.
On issue after issue, whether North Korea or Iraq,
Bolton has wielded a wrecking ball. It might be
possible to wave off one allegation of the misuse of
intelligence - infighting always takes place in the
government bureaucracy - but Bolton appears to have
willfully and systematically suppressed and misused
classified information, including bullying civil
service officials who dared to challenge his
apocalyptic assessments of North Korean, Iraqi and
Cuban weapons programs. Former CIA Deputy Director John
McLaughlin apparently had to intervene to protect a
Latin American analyst from Bolton's wrath; Carl W.
Ford Jr., the State Department's former assistant
secretary of intelligence and research - the only
government bureau to get it right on Iraq - describes
him as a "serial abuser." And Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.)
is rightly inquiring about Bolton's unusual request to
look at National Security Administration intercepts and
why he asked for the identities of analysts. Why
indeed?
The best case that can be made for Bolton is that he's
no worse than other neoconservative officials in the
Pentagon who manipulated intelligence about Iraqi
weapons of mass destruction. But Bolton also appears to
have a mean streak, a pattern of arrogant recklessness
that bodes ill for this assignment. If there is anyone
in the U.S. government who needs to be infinitely
patient, it's the ambassador at the U.N., who must
constantly engage representatives of dozens of nations
- diplomats Bolton would no doubt find infinitely
annoying. Not only does he lack the temperament for the
job, it's hard to imagine why he'd want it.
Bolton surely can't want the job now, with the world on
notice that even the Republican Senate has its
misgivings about his nomination. Bush may find it hard
to back down, so Bolton should do him and his country a
favor and step aside. Maybe there is a consolation
prize the White House could offer him. How about
ambassador to France?
Copyright 2005 Los Angeles Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-bolton20apr20,0,1738794.story
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