Howard Friel: Bird Flu, Martial Law, and the 2008 Elections (CommonDreams)

Published on Tuesday, February 27, 2007 by CommonDreams.org
Bird Flu, Martial Law, and the 2008 Elections
by Howard Friel

Last fall, Lawrence Wilkerson, who was chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell, said about the Bush administration that “if something comes along that is truly serious, something like a nuclear weapon going off in a major American city, or something like a major pandemic, you are going to see the ineptitude of this government in a way that will take you back” to the eighteenth century. (“Transcript: Colonel Wilkerson on US Foreign Policy,” Financial Times, Oct. 20, 2005) The administration, in fact, seems determined to sink beneath even this standard of expectation. Apparently eager to duplicate the do-nothing response to Hurricane Katrina, presidential spokespersons have already announced that the administration will do nothing in response to a bird-flu pandemic by way of providing any help to cities, states, and hospitals. Michael Leavitt, Secretary of Health and Human Services, has been saying this for months.
Here is one such statement: “Any community that fails to prepare with the expectation that the federal government will throw them a lifeline is tragically wrong…. very community will have to take care of its own.” (“U.S. Health Chief Says Flu Pandemic Would Be Dramatic,” Associated Press, Jan. 13, 2006) By way of heeding Wilkerson’s warning, it might be prudent for every state, community, hospital, and citizen to assume that there will be no help from the federal government in response to what may be the worst disease pandemic in human history. This would be bad enough, but without immediate congressional intervention, federal ineptitude isn’t the only thing that may accompany a pandemic.

In October 2005, rather than offer financial assistance to states, communities, and hospitals, or oversee a major “surge” in vaccine research and production capacity, President Bush announced his intention to use the US military in a domestic law-enforcement capacity in response to a bird-flu pandemic. In this regard, the president said: “I’m concerned about what an avian flu outbreak could mean for the United States. One option is the use of a military that’s able to plan and move. I think the president ought to have all options on the table—all assets on the table—to be able to deal with something this significant.” The problem in 2005 was that the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 prohibited a president from using the military for police actions in the United States. In response to the president’s statements at the time, Irwin Redlener, associate dean of the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, who is involved in pandemic preparations for the city of New York, stated that giving the military a law enforcement role would be an “extraordinarily Draconian measure” and would lead to “martial law in the United States.” (“Bush Military Bird Flu Role Slammed,” CNN, Oct. 5, 2005)

The president’s desire to have all military options on the table for domestic law-enforcement purposes was not granted by Congress. That was October 2005. However, a few weeks ago we learned that “quietly tucked into the enormous defense budget bill” (that was signed into law by President Bush in October 2006) were provisions “that make it easier for a president to override local control of law enforcement and declare martial law.” (“Making Martial Law Easier,” New York Times, Feb. 19, 2007) Also signed into law at that time were provisions that stripped aliens and possibly US citizens of the right of habeas corpus, which is the constitutional right of recourse to the courts. (See “Repeal the Military Commissions Act and Restore the Most American Human Right,” Thom Hartmann, Common Dreams, Feb. 12, 2007; “What Is Habeas Corpus,” Larry Beinhart, Common Dreams, Jan. 31, 2007; “Democracy The Big Loser on Habeas Corpus,” Ralph Nader, Common Dreams, Sept. 30, 2006). Having essentially overthrown Posse Comitatus and habeas corpus in one month in 2006, there is more to fear than ineptitude from this administration with the onset of a bird-flu pandemic, which the president appears to view as a potential trigger for a declaration of martial law in the United States. .....(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.commondreams.org/views07/0227-32.htm

of this administration and the government it rules is to impose martial law both at home and abroad....and feed the military-industrial complex while doing so.

Couple that with the admission by Berezinski that a terrorist attack blamed on Iran is part of a likely scenario for going to war, and this all gets really, really murky.

we would be on our own if a pandemic hits and it is on their website at http://www.pandemicflu.gov/
but they have not publicized it widely so people can prepare.
They just put out a lame public service announcement which is at the above site.

And today this announcement came out which I find incredible
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BIRD_FLU_VACCINE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-02-27-12-45-12
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal health advisers recommended Tuesday that the government approve the first bird flu vaccine as a stopgap measure, despite evidence it wouldn't protect most people.
snip
"I am of the view that anything is better than nothing," said panel member Dr. Robert Couch, of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, prior to the vote.
snip
The vaccine already is being stockpiled, even without FDA approval, for eventual interim use to protect emergency workers and others in a pandemic
snip
The Paris-based company believes the benefits of the vaccine outweigh its risks. The FDA said the vaccine is safe but it remains unclear whether it's effective.

Is that pitiful or what?