There’s no excerpting this one. Just go read it. And when you are done reading it and are done throwing up, talk yourself down for a moment. This is how Congress works. It used to be worse. John Murtha represents two things. He represents everything that is wrong with Congress, and he represents the model of effectiveness for a member of Congress. I can’t even begin to line up all the reforms that would be needed to change this system. The New York Times article is a great start. But, as disgusting as Murtha’s actions are when you look at them in isolation, he is merely playing the game according to the rules of the game. He’s good. He’s done absolute wonders for his district. They’d have to be masochists to throw him out.
At the root of this is the very thing that Dwight D. Eisenhower warned us about: the military-industrial complex. It trumps everything. It trumps ethics and waste and corruption and transparency. It trumps aid for the poor, education and health care. Nothing matters besides the military-industrial complex. And we most certainly should consider the energy industry as an integral part of the complex.
This is a problem so big that only a charismatic leader in a nation in crisis could hope to clean it up on a dime. We little guys can only hope to chip away here and there. Transparency and accountability are the best short-term protections against this kind of bad government.
You might think John Murtha is a hero. He’s not. He’s just very good at what he does.
