"A Rose By Any Other Name..."

If a rose by any other name still smells as sweet,

With the Senate's CIA reporting now complete,

Techniques of Enhanced Interrogation has the same

Stink as torture... Never mind its legal sounding name.

CIA's attempts to shield their countrymen from harm

Went a whole lot further than a simple twisted arm.

EITs, where Everyone Is Targeted for it,

Stinks of desperation (which can smell a lot like shit.)

I know agents only sought to serve the greater good

When they questioned prisoners in handcuffs and a hood.

They forgot, when torturing the people we oppose,

You can't roll in shit and come up smelling like a rose.

Spying On Germany

(Photo/Courtesy of usatoday.com)

What a tangled web we weave

When we practice to deceive...

Berlin says they've caught 2 guys;

Claim that both are U.S. spies.

Merkel, who's already mad

We were bugging her i-Pad,

Caught up in this web we've woven

Acted like our feet were cloven.

Germany gave us the heave;

Asked our diplomat to leave,

Leaving our relations strained

(Even if  the anger's feigned.)

JFK Conspiracy Solved... It Was Us.

50 years ago today John Kennedy was shot.

Many still believe in an assassination plot:

L.B.J., the CIA, or Castro, or the mob.

Presidents could not be killed by one pathetic slob.

Looking back we all remember it as Camelot;

Dreaming of our glory days, but maybe we forgot

We were simply not a most congenial spot back then.

My mom is a Northerner who lived down South and when

She was at the Commissary they announced the news;

People started cheering and expressing racist views.

Toxic atmospheres build up and then some loser acts.

Let's not try to kid ourselves; we have to face the facts...

No one fled the grassy knoll; Lee Oswald was alone.

He was not the patsy here.  He acted on his own.

But the ugly politics and scandals of the day

Also had a passive, but important, part to play.

Maybe we should think about that as we're looking back

From our current, constant state of partisan attack.

This new generation of Americans must change...

Who knows which new lunatic is at the target range.

Across the Pond - Syria and Russia (Still)

A Syrian rebel leader committing cannibalism. (Photo/ForeignPolicy.org)

Want to help the Syrians, but - wait...  Before we start.

Who is it we're helping?  Rebel ate a soldier's heart,

Then cut out his liver and, it seems, he ate that too.

That is not the kind of guy I want to help.  Do you?

If the U.S. gets involved we'll only make things worse;

That's unless John Kerry gets the Russians to reverse

Their position on Assad and that's not looking good...

Russia says they've caught a spy in Moscow's neighborhood.

He was found with wigs and cash and offers to employ

Someone to spy on the Russian homeland for us.  Boy...

Bet that put a crimp in Secretary Kerry's style.

Getting Putin's help in Syria might take a while.

Dear Secretary Kerry... Sincere Sympathies on Your Dream Job

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry...  Poor bastard.

Secretary Kerry has his work cut out for him;

Situation in the Middle East is pretty grim.

Civil war in Syria; the circumstances dire.

Innocent civilians getting caught in the crossfire.

Plus 2 million refugees have packed their things and fled.

Assad's neighbors have to try and keep those people fed.

War's been dragging on for 2 years now; no end in sight.

The United States stayed on the sidelines of the fight.

Now - so rumor has it - CIA is helping out;

Shipping arms to rebels so the battle's not a rout.

Trying hard to pick and choose who's gonna get the guns

In a region that's known warfare since Attila's Huns.

Egypt's on the brink of a collapse...  They're out of cash.

Thus, their fragile government may hit a wall and smash.

Even with intentions that are pure as driven snow,

Morsi's in a bind if the economy won't grow.

And, of course, there's Israel and Palestine, as well.

You call that the Holy Land?  It's more akin to Hell.

It's no wonder Hillary decided that she'd quit;

Let poor Secretary Kerry try to deal with it.

The 113th Congress - Mr. Paul Goes To Washington

Rand Paul went to Washington and held the Senate floor...

Spoke for almost 13 hours...  Bet his throat is sore.

'though I mostly think that Paul is wrong; this time he's right,

And I'd like to thank the man for taking up the fight.

Drone Strikes and Due Process

Photo/ProPulica.Org

As a former member of the military, I

More than understand why drones are authorized to fly;

Maybe save a soldier's life with less civilian loss.

No trials for al-Qaeda members? I don't give a toss.

If your aim is to destroy America then, fine;

You have just declared yourself at war with me and mine.

Am I truly horrified when innocents are killed?

Yes.  Despite the fact our troops are trained and highly skilled

People on the side-lines in a war zone tend to die;

Whether by stray bullets or a bomb dropped from the sky.

I suspect that fewer people die when we use drones

And, no matter how much that the ACLU moans,

'though we skipped due process when we killed a citizen

It was not a question if  he'd try something, but when. 

Still, it's not a bad idea if, when the next drone flew

It was first submitted to some judges for review.

The 112th Congress - Because They've Got Nothing Better To Do

US Ambassador to the United Nations - Susan Rice.  (Photo/The Telegraph)

What, exactly, is it that Republicans oppose?

Nomination that Obama has yet to propose?

Susan Rice read talking points.  It turns out they were wrong.

Now the rumors of conspiracy are going strong.

FOX News is all over it; they say Rice told a lie.

Went and spun the facts so they'd look better for her guy.

Claim she knew al Qaeda was behind the whole attack;

That her motivation was to have Obama's back.

Never mind the fact the CIA said it was them,

And forget the other Rice (the one who's not a Dem.)

This Rice had no luck at all when she went to The Hill,

Now the voice of opposition's started growing shrill.

John McCain and Lindsey Graham are sure it's all a trick;

And it looks like others may have joined their little clique.

I guess, with elections over, there's air-time to fill.

Crazy controversies give the FOX and Friends a thrill.

God Bless The CIA

CIA just foiled a plot to bomb a U.S. flight...

Warning to the terrorists; they've got you in their sight.

Still, what is the deal with bombs in underwear? It's strange;

I would bet that  detonator's tricky to arrange.

Credit, though, where credit's due and thus, I have to say;

Job well done! They kept us safe. God bless the CIA.

(Bet they never worry how a bomb like that would feel

Sewn into their underwear, 'cause they've got balls of steel.)

Plus, have guys in Yemen never heard; the TSA

Took away our privacy on airplanes anyway?

If you're wearing diapers now - and past the age of 4 -

You'd have very little chance of getting through the door...

Not without a pat-down that would make a sailor blush

And, if someone starts in to complaining; tell 'em "Hush!

(Even those with leaky bladder syndrome like my aunt's)

"Sorry, but some morons wear explosives in their pants."

Race for the White House - Guantanamo Bay

Photo credit: Associated Press

 Some folks say Obama lied; they say he broke his word.

Didn't close Guantanamo - I think that that's absurd.

Every time he tried to shut it down he faced attacks.

Congress wouldn't let him move it to a Super Max.

But the hardest job right now, for military men,

Is the JAG's who has to step into the lion's den

And provide a strong defense for guys the CIA

Have detained, while classifying everything they say.

Have to give a trial that's fair to every detainee

O.B.L. is dead and gone - they buried him at sea.

Anything that these guys know is old, outdated stuff.

Give the JAG Corps guys a break; their job is tough enough.