I've got a little secret -- okay, two secrets

Bob Harris points out this story from Newsday:

Washington - The White House has ordered the new CIA director, Porter Goss, to purge the agency of officers believed to have been disloyal to President George W. Bush or of leaking damaging information to the media about the conduct of the Iraq war and the hunt for Osama bin Laden, according to knowledgeable sources.

And as only Bob can, he explains what this means with crystal clarity:

"Disloyalty" here is the act of disagreeing. And since Bush and his cronies were wrong and/or lying about damn near everything in the run-up to the Iraq war, this means that everyone who actually did their job is in jeopardy of losing it.

I can't believe we're stuck with Bush for another four years of this nonsense. Well, yes, I know we're not exactly stuck with him -- there are ways to get rid of him if enough people want to, but after this election I ain't gonna hold my breath waiting for people to wise up.

And on the subject of secrecy: Wouldn't it be a lot harder, close to impossible, to abide by the law if the authorities wouldn't tell you what the law is? One guy found out how hard it is, and this web site tells his story.

On the 4th of July 2002, John Gilmore, American citizen, decided to take a trip from one part of the United States of America to another. He went to Oakland International Airport -- ticket in hand -- and was told he had to produce his ID if he wanted to travel. He asked to see the law demanding he show his 'papers' and was told after a time that the law was secret and no, he wouldn't be allowed to read it.

Now, I know they say that ignorance of the law is no excuse. But how do you play the game if you don't know the rules? Being forced to blindly follow the law is about as far from the American way as we can get. And that's the way Bush likes it.