Last Sunday I read an article of Paul Krugman who won Nobel Memorial in Economic Sciences, the sole awardee for 2008. That some of the points of him I would like to share with you. Below is the thoughts that I get after read that article. I feel impress with some of the points, as it maybe useful in Malaysia political as well.
1. US President Barack Obama was asked whether he would seek an investigation of possible crimes by the Bush administration. His responed "I don't believe that anybody is above the law"... "we need to look forward as opposed to looking backwards"
2. In Mr. Paul Krugman article he said that, the fact is that the Bush administration's abuses extended from environmental policy to voting right, and most of the abuses involved using the power of government to reward political friends and punish political enemies.
3. In his article he also mentioned that abuse involve the US Justice department, there's strong evidence that officials used their positions, to undermine the protection in minority voting right and persecute Democratic politician (that time opposition political party of Bush administration).
4. The war of Iraq, Bush administration handed billion of dollars in no-bid contracts to political connected companies, companies that then failed to deliver.
5. Any government official who tried to enforce the accountability of the awarded contracts, will find his or her career derailed.
6. Moreover, while the Bush administration government agencies experienced major scandals over the past eight years. In most cases, the scandals that were not properly investigated. You may read more at wikipedia US Political Scandals.
7. Does anyone seriously doubt that the Bush administration deliberately misled the nation into invading Iraq? Why, then shouldn't we have an official inquiry into the abuse during the Bush years?
8. "Pursuing the truth would be divisive, that it would exacerbate partisanship." As we normally will said that, "over is over, let it be, we need to move forward". But if the partisanship is so terrible, shouldn't there be some penalty for the Bush admintration's politicisation of every aspect of government?
9. We are told we don't have to dwell on past abuses because we won't repaet them. But the issue is that, first do we break the law at that moment? If yes, should we be punish? Or due to we are somebody, we are exempted from any prosecution.
10. For US during the Ronald Reagan (40th President of the US) years, the Iran-Contra conspirators violate the Constitution in the name of national security. But the President George H.W. Bush in the final day of presidency pardoned all the malefactors who involve in the Iran-Contra.
11. In short would the US President Barack Obama let Bush administrator sleeping scandals lie?
12. From the article above, what lesson can the Malaysia politicians learned? Let we all judge ourself.
Source:
1. New Sunday Times 18th Jan 2009 Page 21
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/
