Time and Perspective

Oh, what a difference a little time can have on a person's perspective. Case in point: Dick Cheney in 1994 and Dick Cheney post-2001. In a CSPAN interview dated April 1994--shortly after the conclusion of Desert Storm--Mr. Cheney defended the first President Bush's choice to not invade Iraq. In the interview, he provided a litany of things that would have gone wrong had the U.S. pursued Saddam Hussein and overthrown his government after pushing his troops out of Kuwait. Recently, a video clip from that CSPAN interview was rebroadcast on Countdown with Keith Olbermann. The clip, archived at MSNBC here, does have Cheney's original comments on Iraq, Baghdad, and Saddam Hussein, but it is over seven minutes long! There is, of course, a commerical (hey, it's a free video folks) before getting into the actual clip. Once the clip does start, it moves from the Countdown intro/montage right into Olbermann musing on how a surgical change in heart might lead to a behavioral/attitudinal change heart -- i.e., replacing the heart with machinery might make a person "heartless" in more ways than one. From that interesting theory, we move into the Cheney bit. After that, we have Olbermann's always entertaining editorializing and an analysis/discussion with guest commentator, John Nichols of The Nation, who discusses what might have caused Cheney's change of heart. If you don't want all of that media fluff, and just want to see/hear Cheney's comments so that you can judge them for yourself, you can find several briefer, more succinct, versions of the CSPAN clip over on YouTube. This one is only 1:23 long and it has not been hit with countless comments. A quick search on YouTube will turn up a number of creative showcases and responses to this historical gem. Watch the Cheney clip and think about what has happened since March of 2003. No matter what your politics, you have to admit that it's pretty chilling.

Don't Ask, Don't Yell

Well, the Bush Administration has one more side issue to deal with in the press this week. There's bound to be all sorts of hoopla over the fact that a Top general calls homosexuality 'immoral' [Chicago Tribune | Free Registration Required]. Here is the money quote at the center of this story:

"I believe homosexual acts between two individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts," Pace said in a wide-ranging discussion with Tribune editors and reporters in Chicago. "I do not believe the United States is well served by a policy that says it is OK to be immoral in any way. "As an individual, I would not want [acceptance of gay behavior] to be our policy, just like I would not want it to be our policy that if we were to find out that so-and-so was sleeping with somebody else's wife, that we would just look the other way, which we do not. We prosecute that kind of immoral behavior," Pace said.

For those of you who don't want to -- or don't have time to -- register for an account with the Tribune, here is the full text of the story (but you should know that there is video footage over at the Tribune as well):

Top General Calls Homosexuality 'Immoral' By Aamer Madhani Tribune national correspondent Published March 12, 2007, 10:47 PM CDT Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Monday that he supports the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" ban on gays serving in the military because homosexual acts "are immoral," akin to a member of the armed forces conducting an adulterous affair with the spouse of another service member. Responding to a question about a Clinton-era policy that is coming under renewed scrutiny amid fears of future U.S. troop shortages, Pace said the Pentagon should not "condone" immoral behavior by allowing gay soldiers to serve openly. He said his views were based on his personal "upbringing," in which he was taught that certain types of conduct are immoral. "I believe homosexual acts between two individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts," Pace said in a wide-ranging discussion with Tribune editors and reporters in Chicago. "I do not believe the United States is well served by a policy that says it is OK to be immoral in any way. "As an individual, I would not want [acceptance of gay behavior] to be our policy, just like I would not want it to be our policy that if we were to find out that so-and-so was sleeping with somebody else's wife, that we would just look the other way, which we do not. We prosecute that kind of immoral behavior," Pace said. The "don't ask, don't tell" policy caused an uproar in the military when signed into law by President Clinton in 1993. At the time, supporters of the policy inside and outside the military argued that it was essential for the cohesion of combat units, not a question of morality. Under the policy, gays and lesbians may serve only if they keep their sexual orientation private and do not engage in homosexual acts. Their commanders may not ask about their orientation. Charles Moskos, a military sociologist at Northwestern University who was instrumental in helping the Pentagon craft the "don't ask, don't tell" law, said it is unusual for a top commander to use morality as a justification for the policy. But he said he has repeatedly heard enlisted members use that reasoning when opposing gays in the military. "With the enlisted, it's a question of cohesion, but morality is something they always bring up," said Moskos, who declined to comment specifically on Pace's remarks... [ Continued in the COMMENTS ]

How will this play out in the media this week? Will the General's attitude lead to difficulties in recruitment? Is this a matter of free speach? Your Prophet and Madman is monitoring the situation...