Apparently millionaire George Soros has dedicated over $15.5 million for the removal of George Bush. This is now the "central focus" of his life. He further lambasted the administration's "supremacist ideology," and said it reminded him of Nazi Germany. "It is a matter of life and death," he said.

Despite the seemingly extreme sound of the statements, I actually found this refreshing.

First, consider the Nazi statement. This comparison should not be interpreted as saying this administration is as bad as the Nazis... no way. Rather, I imagine he referring to heavy handed militaristic tactics as well as shady domestic politics (tax cuts disproportionally benefiting the rich, questionable threats to civil liberties, and then trying to sell it to the "average American" as being in his/her interest). Anyhow, there is an authoritarian ethos to Bush and co.

The life and death statement is my favorite, and I don't take it as hyperbole. The most obvious reference is to the current war. People are dying. Whether or not you think the war was justified (I don't), I think it is clear that post-war planning was piss poor. One scholar on the subject said today that the U.S. did as bad a job planning for the aftermath of the war as they did a good a job defeating the Iraqi army. The statement also rings true on the domestic front as well. The quality of life has gone down in the United States since Bush came into office. This is a lighter reading of "life and death," but one that should be taken seriously regardless.

I suppose what struck me the most is the strong, albeit simple, language Soros used. I only wish more people could understand what is truely at stake.

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! Episteme !