Kleptocracy, Cronyism, and War Profiteering – Part One

As I get older, I find the strangest memories come to mind. You know, those fleeting thoughts that are like a drive by shooting – they ambush you out of nowhere and then keep on going, leaving skid marks on your brain. I recently remembered being in a Hallmark Card shop about twenty years ago and looking at leather checkbook covers. There was one checkbook cover that begged to be stolen: “DON’T STEAL! The Government hates competition.”

My computer monitor is decked out in sticky notes with story ideas I haven’t seen covered. When the Bush Administration unveiled a new program in the midst of the Israeli-Lebanese war, I immediately suspected the timed release and the fact it was almost instantly buried. Anyone who pays attention to the news cycles and the White House realizes there is a pattern in terms of “For Immediate Release”:

• If it’s damaging, release two stories so there’s ample “cover”.
• Release it on Friday or Saturday nights when the media brains aren’t paying attention. By Monday, it becomes “old news” and typically gets ignored.
• If it’s damaging, create a distraction or wait to release it behind a major story so the headliner buries it.

The mainstream media often neglects its duty to inform. Instead, they have become either a willing patsy for release of propaganda video news releases paid for and produced by public relations firms, or have given credibility to paid government employees who moonlight as expert pundits for whatever program is being pushed. When the GAO issues a report , you can guarantee there’s something to the story; it’s about the media’s laziness and lack of disclosure. Recently the FCC has sent out letters to news stations around the country, asking them to account for their use of VNR’s without legally disclosing who is behind the viewpoint being broadcast.

All this has come on the heels of Armstrong Williams, who got caught pushing the No Child Left Behind Act for the Department of Education after he received a $240,000 payment to do so. Prior to any payments, he was against this program . Then when Mr. Williams found himself cornered , he performed a desperate dance called “The Washington Weasel Waltz”, trying to extricate himself. It’s amazing what a quarter of a million dollars will do to your stance. I guess it’s not based on principle (as a rule) but on principle and interest. Everything is for sale.

Ok, so what’s paid pundits and sneaky news releases got to do with the price of tea in China ? Maybe everything when you go back to the idea the press seemingly was in cahoots with the White House to bury the latest and greatest Presidential initiative: kleptocracy . What is kleptocracy? Simply put, it’s the rule of thieves, or better yet, climbing to the top of the food chain and then stealing the pyramid. As I read the details of the White House’s press conference , I scratched my head in confusion; “why are they worrying about international kleptocracy when they’ve got more than they can handle on their own plate?”

At first blush, my reaction to kleptocracy was, “this has GOT Karl Rove’s name all over it”. In researching the nature of the kleptocratic beast, I was amazed to discover the phrase was actually coined by those under Mobutu Sese Seko in the Democratic Republic of the Congo . It may be Mobutu’s description, but the fingerprints all over it are undoubtedly Rovian. What is the White House up to?

The remarks made by Pat O’Brien , Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing, made me curious. I didn’t have to go past his title of “terrorist financing” before the red flags started flapping violently in the wind, warning me of Hurricane Snow Job about to make landfall on my wallet. The clouds of doubt turned dark as the dots appeared, waiting to be connected – and there are many!

The first person that came to mind in terms of “terrorism” and “financing” was Yasser Arafat. If the term hadn’t been coined to describe Motubu, then I’d say Arafat would’ve been the poster child for kleptocracy. Arafat’s personal fortune is estimated to have been in the neighborhood of $1 to $4 BILLION dollars, and I don’t think there’s an honest job in the occupied West Bank paying a salary like that. The Palestinian Authority government under his leadership was well known for their corruption ; the people knew it and often protested against it . Strangely, the foreign aid from all over the world continued to flow in, despite every White House administration unashamedly identifying him as a terrorist.

It’s not racist to point these facts out – even the Arab world governments knew Arafat was funneling incoming cash into his own accounts and remained tight fisted over the expenditures.

One has to question the wisdom on these actions, resulting in Arafat’s gold being virtually untraceable to this day, while the Palestinian people continue to starve and barely exist in subhuman conditions Westerners would report each other to the authorities over if their pets were in comparable situations. It is completely shameful the Palestinian people suffered so much at the hands of a corrupt son.

If the White House wants to unveil the latest and greatest governmental teat, it is with total incredulousness that before the breast had gone cold, there was already a customer firmly affixed to the taxpayer nipple. Is it just me, or should the White House be a tad bit more selective of its guests in light of the international drive to stamp out rule by theft?

President Nursultan Nazarbayev is a well-known autocrat who rules over Khazakhstan with a heavy hand. There have been allegations of vote fraud and corruption, which are hard to deny when you take into account most of his family and in-laws all hold important positions in the government, or in opposition media with the ability to quash dissident voices. Where Vice President Dick Cheney views Khazakhstan to be a bright light in terms of democracy , I only see a burnt out light bulb of delusion. The real “bright light” is their oil reserves. I worry about countries with oil; all that black gold makes them a target for a future invasion. It’s common for the US government to prop up a fledgling government, creating a dictator along the way, and then deposing the dictator. If Nazarbavev were wise he’d stay far away from the neo-conservative nightmare.

It makes absolutely no sense to unfurl the flag of anti-kleptocracy when you’re inviting them to the White House. This is a bizarre way to put the “Commanders in Thief” on notice.

Nazarbayev is hardly the only controversial figure received at the top levels of the Bush administration. In April, the president welcomed to the Oval Office the president of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, who has been accused of rigging elections. And Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice hosted Teodoro Obiang Nguema, the president of Equatorial Guinea, who has been found to have millions of dollars stashed in overseas bank accounts.