Matthew P. Maljevec – 2/10/06

This page was last updated on June 26, 2006.

Bush’s misplaced priorities; Matthew P. Maljevec; Beaver County Times; February 10, 2006.

Mr. Maljevec’s previous letter was entitled “Impeach Bush.”

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“I was shocked to read the front-page headline ‘Bush wants another 120 billion dollars for Iraq.’ This will put us near $500 billion spent on the fiasco in Iraq.

“Why is it when we ask for a few billion dollars to shore up our prescription plans here at home, we are turned down, and the stupid answer we get from the White House and the Congress is that we do not have the money.”

[RWC] I guess Mr. Maljevec missed the Medicare prescription drug program.

“Ever since we let the Republicans steal the White House with the Florida and Ohio elections, we have been in serious trouble in this country. People seem to forget that it was not Iraq but the Saudis who started this skirmish on Sept. 11, 2001, that we are involved in today.

[RWC] Amazing. This guy is still on the “Bush lost in 2000” mantra! What a joke!

“Oil, oil and oil or Bush, Cheney and Rice: These people were all involved in oil (and probably still are). These three musketeers have and are continuing to wipe out a generation of our young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 years of age. Total as of this date, 2,247 killed, not counting the thousands who have been injured and maimed.”

[RWC] President Bush has been out of the oil business for more than a decade and VP Cheney cut his ties with the oil industry when he chose to run for VP. Secretary Rice served on the Chevron board of directors from 1991 – 2001, when President Bush appointed her National Security Adviser. According to her biography, other than serving on some boards of directors and trustees, Ms. Rice’s “full time job” has been in political science positions in the U.S. government and at Stanford University.

How small does Mr. Maljevec believe “a generation of our young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 years of age” is? According to the Census Bureau, the population of those 20 to 34 years old as of the 2000 census was just under 60 million. Not intending to diminish any loss of life or injuries, how can 2,247 deaths and 7,706 injured “wipe out a generation” of 60 million? FYI, the total number of personnel wounded but not returned to duty within 72 hours was 7,706 as of February 7, 2006. The number of men/women with permanent injuries is a subset of this figure.

“The Republicans also wanted to cut the budget for the Veterans Administration, but Bush wants billions for his oil skirmish and will get it. He has a smirk on his face of dishonesty, and I, for one, do not like it and refuse to watch him whenever he appears on TV.”

[RWC] When will these guys quit lying about VA funding? As I’ve documented in previous critiques, VA funding during the Bush administration has risen at a rate far greater than during the Clinton administration.

“Oil skirmish?” I’m sure the “2,247 killed, not counting the thousands who have been injured and maimed” would not consider their effort in Iraq a “skirmish.”

“That is what is nice about the electronic age. I flip the switch off.”