On Russ Baker’s new book from BUZZFLASH — One of my favorite sites.

A BUZZFLASH INTERVIEW The Patrician, Elitist Corruption of the Bush Dynasty and Where Was George H. W. Bush on November 22, 1963 Anyway? submitted by Mark Karlin

I am very careful not to speculate. What I do is begin with the curious fact that G.H.W. Bush has said he could not remember where he was on November 22, 1963. That makes him just about the only adult alive at the time who has that memory defect. — Russ Baker, author, Family of Secrets — The Bush Dynasty, the Powerful Forces That Put It in the White House, and What Their Influence Means for America

BuzzFlash has often said that “conspiracy theories” exist because a threshold of people believe that the official version of an event or personal history does not pass the believability test. But then the fun begins, because theories are just that, so you become an advocate of one perspective or the other, hopefully based on the strength of the argument and the backing of documentation. But that becomes more difficult as time passes and access to the unofficial version of events becomes more difficult.

Russ Baker has assembled the case to be made for the dark underside of the Bush dynasty, sort of a corrupt patrician elitist mob that relocated from New England to Texas (and Florida).

Choose what you want to believe from Baker’s book, but he’s a credible journalist who has a case to make, and he’s got a lot of tasty Bush family morsels to chew upon.

We interviewed him about his just published, Family of Secrets — The Bush Dynasty, the Powerful Forces That Put It in the White House, and What Their Influence Means for America

BuzzFlash: These are the last days of Bush dynastic rule, unless Jeb — running for Florida Senator in 2010 — makes a run for the presidency in 2012 or 2016. Why did you release this expose on the Bush dynasty now?

Russ Baker: There was so much disinformation out there, and so many layers of secrecy and obfuscation, that it took me five years to complete my reporting. As for relevance, there is no better time than now to try and comprehend what we have just been through–and how it is likely to affect us as Barack Obama takes over. Some countries have convened “truth commissions” to come to terms with their own tragic epochs. But here in the U.S., we tend to want to shut the door and move on. As I discovered, there was an entire hidden stratum of truth underlying the rise of the Bushes — a truth that, if not reckoned with, threatens to derail the reforms we all hope are on the horizon.

IN MEMORIAM:

Griffin Bell

“He was hired by E.F. Hutton to investigate charges that some members of the brokerage firm had engaged in complex fraud schemes. He also headed investigations into the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska, and Procter & Gamble Co. hired him to sue people who circulated false rumors that the company’s moon-and-stars logo was a satanic symbol.

“In 1986, he went to Nicaragua to help represent captured American mercenary Eugene Hasenfus. And in 1992, President George H. W. Bush hired Bell to be his private lawyer in the Iran-Contra scandal.”

Claiborne Pell — The Right Kind of Aristocrat

“Born to a family whose wealth dated back centuries, Pell married Nuala O’Donnell, who comes from a family that founded the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., the A&P. Democrats both, the Pells believed in noblesse oblige, with Claiborne in his 36 years as senator an ardent supporter of the environment, the arts and education, and a considerable force in the shaping of American foreign policy.

The Pell Grant program, arguably his greatest achievement, has allowed millions of lower-income students to earn a college degree.”

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE DAY — 14 G sung by Kristen Chenowith

LETTERS

Joe Dunphy writes:

“Danny/Staff: one of the technical aspects of war reporting to look out for is whether Israel uses the bunker-buster cluster bombs that were sold to it by the US late last year. If the bombs are used in Palestine, they would therefore be unavailable for use in Iran, unless there were some quick reverse-engineering, and scale up of manufacturing. The bombs, of course, have been considered de facto war crimes if used against humans. If one hits the ground/bunker, and does not explode, that potentially puts the technology in the hands of potentially anti-American sympathizers. This is not an issue one is likely to see explored on GE/NBC.”

ON GAZA

Da’ud X Mohammed writes:

“American political leaders are for the most part silent, unwilling, and perhaps even afraid to encourage the UN’s call for a ceasefire and humanitarian aid.”

That’s a helluva statement! That could be the opening line in a four-volume set.

I posted some excerpts from a dKOS piece by David Mizner:The Israel-Palestine Conflict is Simpler than You Think

In particular he sez, “Given the near-world wide consensus, you need not know much about the issue to see that if the US used its power and its influence with Israel to press for an agreement, a settlement would be within sight.”

Before seeing your statement, but taking into consideration Mizner’s, I wrote:

There can be no agreement or settlement because serious campaign funding from the Jewish community favors those who favor Israel the greater Israel Lobby has a kind of de facto veto-power over who serves in the Congress the likes of AIPAC and the neocon (literally) furnish legislation (that favors Israelis over Palestinians) to members of the House and Senate for passage, and which the always pro-Israel President signs into law.

That is the uniquely “American” status quo and the quid pro quo all rolled into one.”

DON’T ANSWER THEM!

Dennis Abbot writes from St. Paul about a suggestion by another reader:

I see Daniel Spak (1-5-9) thinks you should argue with commenters who disagree with you. Don’t! You have too much important work to do for the rest of us. I suggest those with an ax to grind comment on Mr. Spak’s blog instead of yours. He says he has time to answer.

Back with more tomorrow if I can drive, speak, show a film and write at the same time. I am screening, In Debt We Trust, in Hartford CT at 6PM.

Your comments welcome to dissector@mediachannel.org