à bout de souffle

Wednesday was the 35th anniversary of the break-in that exposed the FBI’s nasty, pervasive, and very political domestic espionage program now commonly known as “COINTELPRO.” In the Los Angeles Times, Allan Jalon writes of the importance of that break-in, both then, and, if we would learn our lessons, now.

And, Jalon, in detailing some examples of intelligence abuse committed under the rubric of COINTELPRO, tells the story of Jean Seberg:

Under COINTELPRO, the bureau. . . targeted actress Jean Seberg for having made a donation to the Black Panther Party. The fragile actress ultimately committed suicide after a gossip nugget based on a FBI wiretap was leaked to the L.A. Times and published. The item, suggesting that the father of the baby she was carrying was a Black Panther rather than her French writer-husband, turned out to be wrong.

I reprint this excerpt not just because I am a sucker for Bonjour Tristesse, but also because it is a graphic example of how politically motivated domestic wiretaps can change lives. The battles we must wage today over the illegal warrantless surveillance practiced by the Bush Administration are not just fights about the vague esoterica of Constitutional rights, they are about everyday events that that can affect everyday people in life-altering ways.

Wednesday was also a noteworthy day over at the US Capitol, where a rubber-stamp Republican Intel Committee failed to exercise its Constitutional right to investigate the Executive branch. Is this the last gasp for our system of checks and balances? Will the loyal opposition learn how to be a little less loyal and a little more oppositional? Do the seemingly breathless members of the media need some guy with a crowbar to do their investigative work for them?

(I know, this is starting to sound like an episode of Batman, or any teaser for the new Nightline, but it is really just a lead-in to my post on capitoilette.)