Reports from the Balkans are unmistakable. There were, from indisputable evidence stipulated by both sides, dozens of civilian dead from an air raid on a motorized convoy carrying civilians, refugees. NATO suspects a Serbian MiG. Serbian sources report as fact that it was an American aircraft. The kicker is that the pilot has apologetically described his killing of his fellows. He coldly described his premeditated actions, consciously calling up weapons and positioning to deliver ordnance on a small gaggle of *vehicles that looked alike* that were traveling down the road. Defense Secretary Cohen has publicly apologized for the *collateral damage.* The prez has tossed it off as inevitable. A definitive answer is required. This could nail shut the coffin on Slobodon Milosovic and his oft-reported thuggery forever and all, exposing him as an animal for staging such a thing. Or, it could be the little girl running down the road naked and on fire from American napalm ... or the South Vietnamese general putting a .38 into the skull of an North Vietnamese lieutenant who had infiltrated during Tet. It could cause the American people to realize just what the term *collateral damage* means. How? Who can we trust? Why, we can TRUST the Fibbie lab. Just ask Agent Dr. Whitehurst, formerly HMFIC explosives analyst (canned and subsequently paid a large remuneration for getting fired without cause, for telling the world that in the Fibbie lab, evidence and analysis was manipulated by orders from on high) in Freehdom. Therefore, we are required to round up some of Freehdom's finest and pack them off to Kosovo. Get the straight skinny. Bomb frags. Explosives residue. Let the chips fly. Come on Louie, ya gotta do it. It's your job. Who cares that is foreign? That didn't slow down your boss, now, did it? Don't tell me that there's a war going on. Did I hear that war was declared? Noooo. Did I miss something? Yeah ah deid. Ah hurd dat de Serbs had done got pissed an deeclayred waur on US. Oh. That makes it ok ... doesn't it? Who declared war on them? Nobody?!? Wait a minute. It's certainly reasonable to expect that if you drop bombs on someone, they're liable to get irritated. What are we doing over there to start with? You mean that we are bombing a buncha folks that nobody seems to have a complaint against? Why? Because we got a gang up and told them to sign an *agreement* letting us put a bunch of soldiers on their streets while they disarm. Or we would bomb them into the stone age. What if the europeans had gotten together back in the 1800's and told us we had to stop killing indians and they were going to put troops all over the place. I don't think so. What if they did it in, say, 1865? What if they bombarded our coastal towns and blockaded our ports? What if they sank every ship they could find and sailed every navigable stream destroying towns? They would of course call every infrastructure *potentially of military use.* There is international law. It is considered polite behavior in international circles to not approach one's neighbor in the middle of the night as an armed housebreaker. Nor as an armed and fueled mob threatening arson and death in the street. If one becomes irretrievably pissed at one's neighbor(s), one swears out a warrant (declares war) while pursuing a)defense and b)recompense. To do otherwise is international and state-conducted piracy. Our own laws dictate in Article I section 8 that the congress shall have the power to declare war. Article I section 8 also speaks to the congress' duty to arm and provide for the militia ... though the states shall control and deliver upon Washington's request. THEN there's an army for our president to command. And a mission. Dictated by Congress. "War. Mr. President, go do it. We have spoken with the military commanders, and they have told us what has to be done and what it will cost and that it can be done. Here are the keys. Crank'er up." Mr. President can react to an acute attack on American security and interest. No such situation has been demonstrated to exist. We have, with a gang of other folks with no standing in law to press an attack, joined in a brutal and destructive attack on the physical infrastructure of a sovereign nation. The Federalist Papers speak to the presence in the states of the militia, assuring that an attack or threat or unforseen circumstance deleterious to public order would be dealt with by the citizens' militia, and if major would soon have the forces of nationalized militia from other states joining in the larger effort. The Constitution speaks to the use of the militia -- to execute the laws of the union and suppress insurrections and repel invasions. It is perilously close to accurate to say that the President is in a state of insurrection. So... LOOOOIE! LOOOOOOOIE! Freehdom, where are you? Congress? Where are all these freaking Constitutional scholars from January? How about it, senators? I know ya'll can't declare war, but ya'll certainly qualify as interested parties. Mr. and Ms. Justices, yoo hoo, whassup? Ya'll got ennythang t'say? Sheeeit. Ye cain't git good hep nowhar... William Michael Kemp.
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