Thursday, June 19, 2008

Is McCain Like Bush? It Depends on the Issue

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/17/us/politics/17policy.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper&oref=slogin- Hide quoted text -

---------- Forwarded message ----------From: barry levine <levinebar@gmail.com>Date: Tue, Jun 17, 2008 at 10:21 AMSubject: Is McCain Like Bush? It Depends on the IssueTo: letters@nytimes.com

To the Editor: In 2005, senator McCain was hailed for bravely defying the White House in insisting that the Military of the United States should use no interrogation techniques outside the Field Manual. For this, he took credit for restoring our good name among the civilized nations of the world who abjure torture. He went on, however this year to vote against binding the C.I.A. to that same standard. On this signature issue, the "Straight Talk Express" is belching smoke. The victims of torture don't care which service is torturing them. Our nation's honor is not preserved by hiding behind one uniform or another while violating our basic values.Barry Levine1142 Brown AveLafayette, CA 94549

Deals with Iraq are set to Bring Oil Giants Back

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/19/world/middleeast/19iraq.html?_r=1&oref=slogin


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: barry levine
Date: Thu, Jun 19, 2008 at 9:18 AM
Subject: Deals with Iraq are set to Bring Oil Giants Back
To: letters@nytimes.com



To the Editor:
In 2001 we waded through inconclusive accounts of who advised vice-president Cheney on his energy policy, and what they advised. In 2003 our papers were full of speculation on the real motive for invading Iraq as the WMDs proved illusory. Now, as George Bush and Richard Cheney contemplate their employment options in the private sector, we learn that American Oil Companies are enjoying privileged access to oil assets in Iraq. Are these three stories, or one?
Barry Levine
1142 Brown Ave
Lafayette, CA 94549

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Return to Old Spy Rules is Seen as Deadline Nears

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/10/washington/10fisa.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=lichtblau&st=nyt&oref=slogin- Hide quoted text -

---------- Forwarded message ----------From: barry levine <levinebar@gmail.com>Date: Tue, Jun 10, 2008 at 8:45 AMSubject: Return to Old Spy Rules is Seen as Deadline NearsTo: letters@nytimes.com

To the Editor: When Mr. Lichtblau writes "Wiretaps intended for Americans already require individual warrants...President Bush had authorized the agency to conduct wiretaps without court warrants" he points to the biggest issue to have escaped discussion in this election year. It is a sterile exercise to legislate the details of FISA if we don't establish that that law is binding.Barry Levine1142 Brown AveLafayette, CA 94549

The Great Seduction

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/10/opinion/10brooks.html?scp=1&sq=the%20great%20seduction&st=cse- Hide quoted text -

---------- Forwarded message ----------From: barry levine <levinebar@gmail.com>Date: Tue, Jun 10, 2008 at 12:25 PMSubject:: letters@nytimes.com

To the Editor: It would be unfair to require that columnists show an unclouded grasp of the future. A grasp of the past, however seems a reasonable prerequisite. It seems a bit much that it should take Mr. Brooks three decades to notice that age of Reagan, Milken, Boesky and "greed is good" has brought a weakening of business ethics. I look forward to his next column, in which he warns that electing the dilettante heir to a political dynasty as president might lead to an unwinnable war on false pretexts.Barry Levine1142 Brown AveLafayette, CA 94549

Sunday, June 8, 2008

For Clinton, a Key Group didn't Hold

http://blogs.reuters.com/trail08/2008/06/04/obama-says-he-will-cast-a-wide-net-in-vp-search/
---------- Forwarded message ----------From: barry levine <levinebar@gmail.com>Date: Thu, Jun 5, 2008 at 9:08 AMSubject: For Clinton, a Key Group didn't HoldTo: letters@nytimes.com

To the Editor:- Hide quoted text - In the current Democratic party system, a candidate would have to win the primaries and caucuses by more than twenty-five percent to secure the nomination without the superdelegates. In the absence of such a landslide, that twenty percent of unpledged delegates are empowered to choose our candidate. Senator Clinton bet on a strategy that required winning less than forty percent of votes in the primaries and caucuses with the superdelegates to make up the margin. Such a reliance on personal loyalties over the will of the People has served our country poorly for seven years now. It is a sign of health that the leaders of the Democratic party have rejected it.Barry Levine1142 Brown AveLafayette, CA 94549

Governor Declares Drought in California

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/05/us/05drought.html?scp=2&sq=steinhauer&st=cse- Hide quoted text -

---------- Forwarded message ----------From: barry levine <levinebar@gmail.com>Date: Thu, Jun 5, 2008 at 11:36 AMSubject: Governor Declares Drought in CaliforniaTo: letters@nytimes.com

To the Editor: As governor Schwarzenegger works to fix California's water delivery system, he should consider our canals. Whereas open ditches were great technological achievements in the fourth millennium b.c.e, they are an embarrassment today. Half the water that is diverted from the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers is lost to evaporation before it gets to Southern California. Putting a cover on these canals could therefore double the water delivered with no further damage to the river systems. If we were to cover them with photovoltaic arrays, we could even defray some of the cost of pumping that water up over the mountains.Barry Levine1142 Brown AveLafayettte, CA 94549

Obama's Comments on Israel Stir Criticism in U.S.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/07/us/politics/07obama.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=rohter&st=nyt&oref=slogin

---------- Forwarded message ----------From: barry levine <levinebar@gmail.com>Date: Sat, Jun 7, 2008 at 5:56 PMSubject: Obama's Comments on Israel Stir Criticism in U.S.To: letters@nytimes.com

To the Editor: Six years ago, Sari Nusseibeh (chancellor of Bir Zeit University) and Ami Ayalon (retired head of Israel's Shin Bet) issued jointly a sketch (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_People%27s_Voice)of an eventual peace settlement between Israel and a new Palestinian state. Although the U.S. media disdained to print or mention it (except to cover Yasir Arafat's rejection of it), it remains a likely model for the eventual peace. What remains unsolved is the path to that peace. That Ayalon/Nusseibeh document posits that there will be two states, and each will claim the open city of Jerusalem as its capital. While it would be unconventional, it is a solution that must be considered. Surely this is a problem that has cried out in vain for innovative thinking for too long. If Mahmoud Abbas rejects senator Obama's speech for endorsing an undivided Jerusalem, he sets himself against the best prospect for peace in the region.Barry Levine1142 Brown AveLafayette, CA 94549