Pictures!
To make the most efficient use of our time online, we're just going to throw up pictures by category, starting from when we first arrived in Tanzania all the way to some pics of our site. As we've said, our camera battery charger was stolen right after we arrived at site, so it will take some time until we get a new system to keep our camera going and can show more current pics. Anyway, we love and miss you all. Enjoy the pics! :)
posted by James and Christy at 10:20 AM
5 Comments:
Hi, Christy & James! I saw your pictures today. I am so proud of both of you. Dad and I miss you very much, as do Jamie and Becka. We love you soooo much!!! Dad saw Dr. Kosoris. He says his son is still in western Africa but is miserable. Take good care of yourselves and each other, and let us hear from you.
Love, Mom (Robyn)
James & Christy: thanks so much for sharing your pictures. I particularly like seeing the ones of the potters. That's what I call functional pottery. It's also nice to see the smiles on your faces and on the faces of the people around you. Very proud of you both. Patrick
those are some very cute kids!
Hi, Christy & James -
I wish you were here to enjoy the exposure of the Bush crowd to Congressional oversight - something they have not had to worry about for the past six years.
The recent election resulted in a Democratic majority in the House and the Senate. As a result, the chairmanship of key committees passed to Democrats. Now those committees are beginning to ask questions and demand answers - bad news for the most secret White House in history. We are now discovering why secrecy was so important: as it usually is, the apparent reason is that they had a lot to hide.
The current issue involves the recent firing of 8 US Attorneys by the Justice Department, headed by Bush's old pal and all-purpose fixer, Al Gonzalez. The Congress was first told that the US Attorneys were fired because of their "performance". That resulted in a prompt rebuttal from some of those who were fired, who pointed out that they were judged to be outstanding performers in their recent formal evaluations. Then it developed (based on documents and statements made by some of the officials involved in the firings) that the Deputy Attorney General who was involved in the firing of at least one of the US Attorneys, never reviewed his evaluation. Next it developed that the White House, specifically Karl Rove and Harriett Myers, were very much involved in the choice of those to be fired. Finally, it became obvious that two or three of those selected for the ax were either involved in criminal investigations of Republican officeholders or officials, or were being pressured to initiate criminal investigations of Democratic officeholders or officials. In other words, the situation smelled of political interference with the administration of our criminal justice system.
It is true that Presidents appoint US Attorneys and, when an incoming president is of a different political party than his predecessor, he typically fires all or most of the US Attorneys and replaces them with members of his party. It is not usual, however, for US Attorneys to be fired during the term of office of a president, especially, as here, when it appears to be political interference with their discretion about who to prosecute and when to prosecute. Once they are appointed, US Attorneys are supposed to administration their substantial power without regard to politics.
Both House and Senate committees are trying to investigate these firings. It turns out that members of the Justice Department lied to Congress about why and how the firings occurred. A high-ranking Justice Department official has already resigned when it appeared he was involved in the lying. Today's paper revealed that Al Gonzalez, who called a press conference last week to announce that he had "no discussions" about the decision to fire the US Attorneys, in fact presided over a one-hour meeting last November in which he and other high-ranking staff members discussed the firing of the US Attorneys. Al's spokesman said there was no inconsistency because Al merely meant that "no details" of the firing had been discussed with him, an explanation so lame as to be almost laughable.
When the Democrats in Congress asked for Karl Rove and Harriett Myers to come to Congress and testify under oath about these matters, Bush claimed "executive privilege" and refused to produce them. Instead, he offered them for informal, private conversations at which there would be no transcript or recording. In other words, "executive privilege" means to Bush that his cronies will speak only if they can lie without facing any consequences for it.
This probably will lead to a courthouse where some federal judge will have to decide whether to let Bush get away with one more assault on our system of justice.
Your grandmother and I worry about you two. Christy, I hope you will stop eating food that may injure you. I understand about local customs, but you need to divise some way to explain that your health is too important to sacrifice for politeness.
Did you get the AA Big Book and the Swahili translation? I hope you will learn something useful from the books. I warn you, however, that the most common symptom of the disease of alcoholism is a refusal to acknowledge it. Trying to persuade an alcoholic that he or she is an alcoholic is usually a futile exercise. If you can find one alcoholic who does admit that he or she is an alcoholic and is willing to accept some help, that person will become your best way to recruit others. AA works with one drunk talking to another. Earth people generally cannot understand that crazy way an alcoholic's brain works (or doesn't work), but one alcoholic can usually talk effectively to another alcoholic. It is situation where "the blind leading the blind" actually works.
Your grandmother mailed to you some books yesterday. I hope you get them and enjoy them.
Love, Papa
James & Christy -
One thing I neglected to mention: Bush appointed all 8 of the US Attorneys who were fired.
Papa
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