Ford's in His Flivver

"God's in His Heaven, all's right with the world"

Robert Browning

Well, Rummy's gone and all's well in the universe, or so we are led to think (I chose this article rather arbitrarily, but almost everyone is in agreement.) Ding dong, the witch is dead, the wicked witch is dead.... Everyone is elated that the ogre is banished, but is he really? GWB is still the decider.

In the past, I have questioned the wisdom of electing a former CIA director to be President (Pappa Bush.) I've further questioned placing a 4-Star Active-duty General in charge of the CIA. The CIA is now under the Department of Defense (DoD) umbrella, and now the DoD will be firmly under the control of a former CIA Eagle Scout.

It seems that DoD now controls the CIA and the CIA controls the DoD. The snake is swallowing its own tail.

The public must oppose the DoD takeover of State Department functions., Department of Justice legal functions, and the violations of posse comitatus, all of which have gone largely ignored. Now, with the appointment of Bob Gates to succeed Rumsfeld, the merging of DoD and the Intel function is complete.

The Defense Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency and CIA are all funded secretly and their activities are shielded from Congressional oversight. And they're consolidated under Defense in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security. Orwell must be rolling in his grave. Vindication often comes late for brilliance, but it comes. President Eisenhower's admonition to fear the military-industrial complex is also timely.

With a nod and a wink, everybody accepts that the CIA walks the dark side. The Directors are involved in revolutions, assassinations, black psyops and international intrigue that often violates international and U.S. laws.

This is acceptable as long as "plausible denial" is maintained. But is this really the mindset that should be occupying the Oval Office or that of the Secretary of Defense?

The bright side of this is that DoD can now get on with the business of secret prisons and torture. In Huxley's update of Browning, "Ford's in his flivver, and all's well with the world." It's only fitting.