Publisher's Note: Jim Bispo's weekly column appears in the Beaufort Observer.
Does anyone remember J. Edgar Hoover?? He's the individual after whom the FBI building in Washington, D.C. is named. He holds the world record for longevity of management of a US Federal Agency; more years than many of us care to remember. The Does anyone remember J. Edgar Hoover?? He's the individual after whom the FBI building in Washington, D.C. is named. He holds the world record for longevity of management of a US Federal Agency; more years than many of us care to remember. The record is not about to be broken any time soon - if ever. Maybe... He was appointed the first FBI Director when the Bureau was established in March 1935 and remained there until his death in May 1972. It was only after his demise that rumors began to leak out as to how he managed to accrue all that seniority.
According to Wikipedia,
Late in life and after his death Hoover became a controversial figure, as evidence of his secretive actions became known. His critics have accused him of exceeding the jurisdiction of the FBI.[1] He used the FBI to harass political dissenters and activists, to amass secret files on political leaders,[2] and to collect evidence using illegal methods.[3] Hoover consequently amassed a great deal of power. Said one journalist in the 1960s, "Hoover does not have to exert pressure, he is pressure".[4]
In view of what in hind sight were clearly questionable activities, it becomes clear how he managed to survive for so long. But there's some food for thought...
The fact that his clearly unsavory (if not illegal) activities worked to keep him in power for so long, would certainly suggest that a whole lot of those folks who "succumbed to his charms" (including every president from Franklin D. Roosevelt to Richard M. Nixon) may have had something to hide. Likely there were a whole lot more big shot bureaucrats, Cabinet Officers and Politicians who, likewise, may have had something to hide. I have no idea if they did or not. But, how else would the type of "motivation" he allegedly offered work?? Hmmm.... As I said - food for thought.
Are we seeing a parallel today with the Holder FBI (or is it the Administration??) seeming to "go after" big time Generals (and Admirals)?? It would seem that they won't have to bring too many of them down before the rest either toe the line or resign their commissions. Then who will be left?? Well, actually all the ones who are still around will be left.
It is interesting to note that what was clearly acceptable as recently as the Clinton Administration is now just as clearly unacceptable. In the recent past, questionable behavior could survive an Impeachment proceeding and now it can't even survive being alleged. And just who do you suppose is doing the exposing?? Could it possibly be troops from Eric Holder's straight arrow Justice Department?? Too bad it wasn't Secret Service doing the investigation; the transgressions may have passed unnoticed. Beyond that all we can do is hope there is no ulterior motive behind the FBI "investigations". But don't bet the farm on that one. Hoover reprised??
About all you can say is that this latest "flap" has indeed succeeded in turning our conversation from Benghazi and what seemed to be failure of our security and "gun walking" (another failed program). Our attention seems to have been diverted to the Generals' personal lives.
We hear a lot of complaints about the management capabilities of the Prez and his administration, but you've got to admit they are really good at some things. Those would be misdirection and sand bagging. (Too bad they didn't get to NJ and NY before Sandy did. If Al Gore had been there to help, with their combined sandbagging skills, together they likely could have held back the ocean and all the devastation could have been avoided.) But I stray...
And speaking about indiscretions... It's interesting. The Libs want us to pay for contraceptives (which implicitly promotes the type of behavior for which those things are intended) but then they not only claim to frown on that very behavior - but they also seem to frown on even alluding to it in e-mails. What's wrong with that picture??
So what's the problem?? Is it the Seventh or Tenth Commandments (or both??), or is it the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ)?? Surely it can't be the same Commandments that we seem to be trying to bar from every public place in the country, with the possible exception of the Supreme Court facility.. It must be the UCMJ. And how could we possibly overlook any violation of the UCMJ??
The short answer is the same way as we countenance violation of Laws that require the Executive Branch to provide to the congress a prospective listing of Regulations proposed for issuance. As I understand it the last two legally mandated submissions have simply been "skipped". And that would not be the first time properly enacted statutes have been ignored by this administration. Try the Welfare to Work legislation enacted during the Clinton Administration that was recently overridden administratively. All kinds of Executive orders are being used to override all kinds of laws that the Anointed One seems to find burdensome (i.e. don't comport with his world view).
Here's some more food for thought. Did you ever try to "strike up" a conversation (or anything else) with someone and be ignored?? I rather suspect that the short answer is Yes. And if there was a conversation, was it a "long" one?? Maybe; maybe not. Not unless the individual with whom you were trying to make a connection was interested.
That's a roundabout way of wondering why the Generals are getting all the attention to the exclusion of anyone else?? Think about that one for a minute. I don't bring it up in an effort to downplay what may of may not have happened or to excuse anyone's behavior. But the Toucan, with its bright coloration and oversized bill, comes to mind: One can't; but two can. That would seem to be particularly germane when the same name starts showing up more than once in some of these career ending "investigations".
Aha!! An inspiration. Why don't we extend the UCMJ to the civilian employees of the government and get rid of any one who has ever "misbehaved" in the same way as the Generals are alleged to have done. Surely the Dems would be forced to accept this idea. I would suggest that there is a fairly good probability that the size of Government would be significantly reduced; especially considering all the indiscretions the current administration has visited on the tax-paying middle class.
D'ya think??
