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May
01, 2006
Libertarian
Commentary on the News, 23- 29 April 2006
Culture
Wars at Home and Abroad
No longer content to fight about religious views, money, land, or
possessions, it is now acceptable and proper to fight about how "tolerant"
you are and must be - a situation where it seems to be the view of many
that only intolerance (of their point of view) can not be tolerated.
Anti-Homosexual
Bullying 'Endemic' in Schools, Study Says
CNSNews.com
A survey released Wednesday by a homosexual advocacy group suggests
there is a "pervasive problem of anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender bullying" in public high schools...
While our
exposure to public high schools has been limited, in several schools in
Colorado the "pervasive problem" seems to be exactly the opposite:
aggressive homosexual bullying of anyone professing a Christian faith
- usually with the tacit approval of many teachers and school administrators.
Mama's
Note: The "survey" was conducted by a homosexual organization,
so guess who they asked? I highly doubt they asked a wide cross section
of the people across the country. We all know that these surveys are usually
slanted to get the "answer" they are looking for. Too bad so
many people don't think about this and take these surveys as gospel.
Spain:
Baroness turns treehugger versus development
Independent [UK]
"Spain's art magnate and former beauty queen Baroness Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza
has threatened to tie herself to one of the ancient trees that shade her
museum in Madrid to stop them being chopped down for an urban renewal
scheme. Hundreds of trees planted in the late 18th century opposite the
Thyssen-Bornemisza museum, which houses one of the world's finest private
art collections, are to be felled and relocated in an ambitious remodeling
of the adjacent Paseo del Prado boulevard." (04/25/06)
What, doesn't
she realize that government knows best, even if her ancestors were once
the government themselves?
Targeting
Youth With 'Silence' and 'Truth'
CNSNews.com)
A homosexual advocacy group says half a million students at some 4,000
schools will take part in the tenth annual "Day of Silence"
on Wednesday. On Thursday, counter-protesters will have their say...
How about
telling the truth every day, and keeping your mouths shut (and your bizarre
dress - whether "sexually oriented" or not - in private) except
when absolutely necessary. Of course, the failure to speak the truth and
the failure to keep ANY sort of sex out of the classroom is the result
of government-ruined, theft-funded schools.
Conservatives
Look to June Vote on Marriage Amendment
CNSNews.com
Religious conservatives are trying to increase support for a proposed
constitutional amendment that would limit marriage to the traditional
one man, one woman arrangement...
As this
issue continues to smolder, expect fresh flare-ups as the election season
continues to heat up.
Dating-Abuse
Class Tells Kids to Rely on Peers, Not Parents
CNSNews.com
A curriculum dealing with dating abuse among teenagers was endorsed
by two members of the U.S. Senate this week as a way to stop a "frightening
and deadly cycle of children hurting children," but the leader of
a pro-family group called the program a waste of school time because it
teaches teens to seek help from peers before turning to their parents...
The usual
government interference and damage to the family? It seems to be the case.
Obviously, the more children depend on someone else, whether it is school
or government or peers, the less they depend on and "need" the
family. And the weaker and more corrupt society becomes.
MTV
Head Touts Network's Ability to 'Inspire' Youth
CNSNews.com
MTV has "empowered and educated" America's youth for the
last 25 years, said Christina Norman, president of MTV networks, who told
an audience at the National Press Club Thursday that her organization's
role is to "inspire a generation." Conservatives scoffed...
I suppose
this might be true, in the same way that the excesses of the French monarchy
"inspired" a generation to overthrow it and engage in two decades
of debauchery in the name of liberty.
Home
Front
Just
as we are fighting in the Mideast, so we are fighting the the Midwest
and other places right here in the 50 states.
Senate
to reignite immigration debate
Bradenton Herald
"Prodded by large demonstrations and the prospect of another on
the horizon, Senate leaders will try to revive stalled immigration legislation
this week, with some urging President Bush to mediate personally the sharp
differences among Republicans on the volatile issue. Two weeks after the
Senate walked away from its immigration debate, leaders of both parties
are expressing a new sense of urgency to act before the November midterm
elections. Bush, who has made immigration a centerpiece of his legislative
agenda and who could use a victory on Capitol Hill to revive his flagging
second term, is expected to address the issue again today in an appearance
in Irvine, Calif." (04/24/06)
This will,
of course, further inflame passions (real or faked) and the planned May
Day events will get a boost, which will further anger many mainstream
types and lead to more fun and games in the Congress. And sooner or later,
someone is going to blow sky-high, and either start shooting protesters,
or start shooting counter-protesters. Or maybe even a few congress-critturs.
Gas
prices surge 24 cents over 2 weeks
Detroit Free Press
"Retail gas prices across the country jumped an average of nearly
a quarter per gallon in the past two weeks, according to a survey released
Sunday. Self-serve regular averaged $2.91 a gallon, up from $2.67 two
weeks ago, said Trilby Lundberg, who publishes the nationwide Lundberg
Survey of 7,000 gas stations. Also Sunday, OPEC President Edmund Maduabebe
Daukoru predicted that oil prices would fall from their current high of
just over $75 a barrel to stabilize in the 'upper fifties to lower sixties.'"
(04/23/06)
Prices
just jumped to over $3.00 here in the Four Corners area, while only two
weeks ago I paid $2.30 a gallon in eastern Wyoming. Nationally, it seems
to be that the aftereffects of Katrina, and panic due to Iran and Nigeria
and other places, are still with us; when combined with EPA and state
mandates on "reformulated" fuels requiring costly and time-consuming
downtime for refineries, coupled with years of denying exploration and
development, we are well and truly paying the piper. And more - as fuel
prices go up, so the general prices of most things go up. When it is commonplace
to ship freshly-baked bread 250 miles instead of having local bakeries;
when soda (pop) bottlers have distribution areas with a radius of 300-400
miles, and when just-in-time inventory controls ship parts 1,000 miles
routinely, everything goes up in cost.
UK:
Minitrue on offensive v. thoughtcrime
Independent [UK]
"The Government has been forced on to the offensive over its record
on civil liberties. Tony Blair attacked critics yesterday, dismissing
the former law lord Lord Steyn as 'out of touch' with modern Britain and
saying that there would be no letup in the hard-line approach to crime
suspects. Then last night the Home Secretary, Charles Clarke, published
a 14-page critique of an article by the Independent columnist Simon Carr
which criticised the Government's record on civil liberties. " (04/24/06)
Fun and
games! Lots of reason to watch this fuss, because the UK is probably already
past the point of no return, and the only question is how quickly it either
turns into bloody chaos or becomes an Islamic state.
UK:
Anger control classes make some more dangerous
Guardian [UK]
"Anger management courses for convicted armed robbers, wife beaters
and stalkers are being axed by the prison and probation services following
an official inquiry into the murder of the city financier John Monckton.
Home Office instructions sent to the probation service say that anger
management courses are counterproductive and actually help violent offenders
who make premeditated attacks to manipulate the situation to their advantage."
(04/23/06)
There is
very little that cannot be twisted and warped to evil use, and this just
shows even such training can be done like that.
Political
climate unfriendly to ID devices, backers say
GovExec.com
"At the Smart Cards in Government Conference, advocates for RFID
and tech-based 'smart cards' said mandates to use modern technologies
would dramatically improve the nation's security infrastructure. But resistance
to such measures and technologies is swelling, they said. ... Signorino
said the political climate in New Hampshire has made it especially difficult
for the industry to make a case for itself. The Granite State has been
particularly active on the ID front. House lawmakers there last month
passed a bill to reject a 2005 federal mandate for standard driver's licenses.
'We're scared to go to New Hampshire,' he said. 'They have gun racks on
their motorcycles. They don't want anyone telling them what to do.'"
(04/20/06)
Good for
New Hampshire!
Mama's
Note: Unfortunately, instead of saying, "Well, that wasn't a good
idea" and dropping it, they'll move heaven and earth to sneak or
force it onto us somehow. To these people, "no" means "try
something else" instead of FORGET IT!
Analysts:
Fedgoon immigration crackdown limited
Boston Globe
"A new Homeland Security plan to crack down on employers who hire
illegal immigrants is being billed by federal authorities as a sharp break
from a long-standing policy of giving companies a slap on the wrist when
they break the laws. But immigration analysts say that real enforcement
of the Homeland Security Department plan would require far more resources
than the Bush administration has committed to the new push, and more political
spine than it has shown previously. As part of the program, announced
Thursday by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, the agency will
dedicate 171 agents of its 2,500 nationwide to investigate and take action
against employers who hire undocumented immigrants." (04/21/06)
As I suggested
last week, this is all eyewash, according even to a Mainstream Media type.
(And who knows eyewash better?)
Jury
deliberates in Moussaoui trial
Chippewa Herald
"Jurors in the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui headed into a second
day of deliberations Tuesday to decide whether the Sept. 11 conspirator
should receive a death sentence or life in prison. The jury deliberated
for three hours Monday after hearing closing arguments in the six-week
trial. Prosecutors told jurors that the decision to sentence Moussaoui
to death ought to be relatively easy given the horror inflicted on 9/11
and Moussaoui's glee -- evident throughout the trial -- at the destruction
he helped wreak. ... Moussaoui's court-appointed defense lawyers, who
have been at odds with their client for years, said a death sentence would
be giving Moussaoui exactly what he wants -- an execution at the hands
of his enemies and martyrdom." (04/25/06)
I really
don't see how butchering this guy in five or ten years (after the feds
spend millions more in the appeals) can do anything constructive. From
his (very wrong) point of view, not executing him just delays his "reward"
of virgins and debauchery in Paradise; from our point of view it only
hastens his judgment by He who really is the only legitimate judge.
Acquitted
Anti-War Protesters Promise More Protests
CNSNews.com
Less than a week after a federal magistrate judge acquitted four antiwar
protesters who had been charged with demonstrating outside the White House
without a permit last October, their leader promised more civil disobedience...
I applaud
their courage - although the fact that the law even exists that allowed
the cops to arrest them for not having a permit is itself a crime.
Senate
diverts war funds to "border security"
Houston Chronicle
"The Senate voted today to divert some of the money President
Bush requested for the war in Iraq to instead increase patrols against
illegal immigrants on the nation's borders and provide the Coast Guard
with new boats and helicopters. An amendment was adopted, 59-39, to cut
Bush's Iraq request by $1.9 billion to pay for new aircraft, patrol boats
and other vehicles, as well as border checkpoints and a fence along the
Mexico border crossing near San Diego." (04/26/06)
Pork wins!
Of course, 1.9 Billion is such a piddling amount (only about four Alaskan
bridges, after all) that it is more symbolic than substantial, but isn't
it nice to know that the congrus-critturs have their priorities straight?
Mama's
Note: How nice that we are to have our very own Berlin wall. Does this
come complete with machine gun towers and attack dogs, etc.? Might as
well go first class here. Oh, and how soon before people start getting
shot for trying to escape over it to the south?
US
seeks to keep evidence from 9/11 families
CNN
"Prosecutors asked a judge to rethink granting 9/11 families suing
airlines access to evidence gathered for the criminal case against al
Qaeda terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui. U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema's
April 7 order requires prosecutors to provide copies of all unclassified
aviation security documents to attorneys representing September 11 families
in a civil lawsuit pending in New York." (04/26/06)
Seems there
might be some secrets they don't really want freely available?
Mama's
Note: There shouldn't be any secrets about this at all! We have a perfect
right to know exactly what happened and who is responsible. Don't hold
your breath, however.
Senate
panel recommends abolishing FEMA
Tampa Tribune
"The nation's beleaguered disaster response agency should be abolished
and rebuilt from scratch to avoid a repeat of multiple government failures
exposed by Hurricane Katrina, a Senate inquiry has concluded. Crippled
by years of poor leadership and inadequate funding, the Federal Emergency
Management Agency cannot be fixed, a bipartisan investigation says in
recommendations to be released Thursday." (04/26/06)
If they
didn't want to just replace it with another alphabet agency, probably
with more powers, more people, and more money to burn, this would be good
news. As it is, it is strictly politics as usual.
PlameGate:
Rove testifies for fifth time
Detroit Free Press
"Top White House aide Karl Rove made his fifth grand jury appearance
in the Valerie Plame affair Wednesday, undergoing several hours of questioning
about a new issue that has come to light since the last time he testified.
Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald declined to comment at the conclusion
of the grand jury session. Rove appeared at ease as he left the U.S. courthouse,
joking to journalists to 'move to the back' as the White House aide, his
lawyer and several reporters entered an elevator to leave the building."
(04/26/06)
Sounds
like more fishing than actually catching anyone.
FL:
Email lands group on Pentagon's "credible threat" list
Palm Beach Post
"With the zap of a single e-mail, a group of graying peaceniks known
as The Truth Project was catapulted into the clutches of the mightiest
military power on earth. The group and its activities -- mostly handing
out leaflets at local high schools and meeting at Lake Worth's Quaker
Meeting House -- were branded a 'credible' potential threat by the Pentagon,
its existence posted in a secret electronic gallery of suspected terrorists.
The Pentagon has since apologized -- but why The Truth Project's two dozen
or so middle-age members were considered a credible threat has remained
a mystery. Unlike other, more visible protest groups, they worked within
government channels -- politely requesting Palm Beach County school system
permission to spread their message on campus. The military now says The
Truth Project was brought to the Pentagon's attention by a 'concerned
citizen' who dispatched an e-mail on Nov. 13, 2004. While not offering
specifics, Commander Gregory Hicks, a Pentagon spokesman, said the e-mail
'probably' was forwarded to federal authorities by a local police agency."
(04/24/06)
Perhaps
it is the fact that they tried to do it through official channels that
made them more credible.
CA:
Rumors of immigration raids "unfounded"
San Francisco Chronicle
"Widespread rumors of immigration raids being conducted by agents
riding around the East Bay and perhaps elsewhere in unmarked vans are
unfounded, U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, said today. Lee's district
office in Oakland received multiple calls Tuesday from residents who had
heard rumors that immigration agents were sweeping the area to arrest
people in the country illegally and undocumented workers, said Lee spokesperson
Nathan Britton. The rumors are not restricted to the East Bay: 'I just
got a call from someone at (the Department of) Homeland Security saying
they're getting calls from all over the West Coast,' Britton told the
Chronicle this morning." (04/26/06)
Black helicopters
in the night, death squads roaming the streets in black SUVs with cryptic
license plate numbers ("WRDEATH", "HNG-M-HI" and "DI-NOW"),
and other urban myths - it is not just California where these stories
are circulating. Rumors of such sweeps have forced businesses such as
motels and restaurants in other parts of the country to close without
warning when none of their usual workers show up. Is it the usual urban
myth machine, or is it pro-illegal-immigrant forces doing a Reichstag
or is it the anti-immigrant forces seeking to terrorize? Or is it real?
Lay
pins Enron failure on Fastow, short-sellers, journalists
Houston Chronicle
"Saying he's lived the American dream and the American nightmare,
Ken Lay testified today that Enron's demise can be laid at the feet of
thief Andrew Fastow, conspiring short sellers and financial journalists.
'I accept full responsibility for everything that happened at Enron,'
Lay said in his first day on the stand. 'Having said that, I can't take
responsibility for illegal acts I had no knowledge of.'" (04/24/06)
Thanks
to stupid laws and this pitiful excuse of a court system, this kind of
nonsense comes up constantly.
Mideast
Tarbabies
Iran,
Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel, the other 'Stan's, Turkey, Egypt, and the rest
of the Arab and Middle Eastern world.
Global
Jihad Returns to Its Source, Experts Say
Jerusalem CNSNews.com
Global jihadists appear to be returning to Egypt, the place where the
movement started decades ago, experts here said, following multiple terror
attacks in the Egyptian Sinai this week...
The problem
seems to be that Egypt is too tolerant of "Western decadence"
as displayed in the topless beaches and bars and clubs of its resorts
mobbed by Western Europeans and Brits.
Bush
urges Iraqis to form government quickly
USA Today
"President Bush on Sunday called Iraq's top leaders to congratulate
them on breaking a political impasse and urge the quick formation of a
coalition government. Bush said he told President Jalal Talabani, Prime
Minister-designate Jawad al-Maliki and parliament Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani
that they have a duty to improve the lives of Iraqis, defeat the insurgency
and unite the country." (04/23/06)
He is right
- they need to act fast. Will they? Arab history is against them, all
the way. Centuries of fighting the West have been accompanied by centuries
of fighting each other. In a culture where marriage of first cousins is
almost mandatory in many circumstances, feuds are inevitable because of
the tight clan structures which evolve, and minute religious differences
are magnified.
Iranian
spokesman says nuclear program is irreversible
Houston Chronicle
"Iran said today its nuclear program is irreversible, issuing
yet another rejection of a U.N. Security Council deadline to cease enriching
uranium that expires in five days. Earlier this month, Tehran announced
for the first time that it had enriched uranium using 164 centrifuges,
a step toward large-scale production of nuclear fuel that can be used
either in atomic weapons or in nuclear reactors for civilian electricity
generation." (04/23/06)
"Irreversible?"
It seems that they have confused physical processes with political processes
- as they continue to taunt the West. Baiting the bear - even if it is
a lion, an eagle, and even a snail (France) being baited - is often very
hard on the bait.
Inspectors
find more torture at Iraqi jails
MSNBC
"Last Nov. 13, U.S. soldiers found 173 incarcerated men, some
of them emaciated and showing signs of torture, in a secret bunker in
an Interior Ministry compound in central Baghdad. The soldiers immediately
transferred the men to a separate detention facility to protect them from
further abuse, the U.S. military reported. Since then, there have been
at least six joint U.S.-Iraqi inspections of detention centers, most of
them run by Iraq's Shiite Muslim-dominated Interior Ministry. Two sources
involved with the inspections, one Iraqi official and one U.S. official,
said abuse of prisoners was found at all the sites visited through February."
(04/23/06)
Clearly
the Iraqis are not pulling themselves up by their own bootstraps into
21st Century civilization. Can Americans and Brits and Poles and other
troops and aid workers do it for them? Once more we are seeing that when
the society itself is corrupt and built on a corrupt foundation, "regime
change" is not enough: a lesson which might ultimately have to be
applied to the Western nations now trying it in the Mideast.
Egypt:
At least 23 killed in resort blasts
USA Today
"Three nearly simultaneous bombings hit the Egyptian beach resort
popular with foreigners Monday at the height of the tourist season, killing
at least 23 people and wounding more than 60 a day after Osama bin Laden
issued a taped warning against Westerners. The bombers struck the Sinai
seaside city of Dahab in the early evening along a crowded promenade of
shops, restaurants and bars. Interior Minister Habib el-Adly said those
killed included 20 Egyptians and three foreigners. Sixty-two people were
wounded." (04/24/06)
We don't
occupy Egypt, as far as I remember, so we can't blame the Americans for
this - but the Islamicists don't care who they kill, as long as the blood
flows.
Iran:
Ahmadinejad weighs treaty withdrawal
Buffalo News
"Iran's hard-line president said Monday he is thinking about withdrawing
from the nuclear nonproliferation treaty if the U.N. atomic agency tries
to prevent his country from enriching uranium. ... The fiery Ahmadinejad
said he was reconsidering Iran's adherence to the nonproliferation treaty,
which is aimed at stopping the spread of atomic weapons while allowing
peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and membership in the International Atomic
Energy Agency, a U.N. watchdog body. 'What has more than 30 years of membership
in the agency given us?' he asked at the news conference, which was only
the second since he took office last year at which foreign journalists
have been allowed to ask questions. 'Working in the framework of the Nuclear
Nonproliferation Treaty and the agency is our concrete policy,' he said.
'[But] if we see that they are violating our rights, or they don't want
to accept [our rights], well, we will reconsider.'" (04/25/06)
More baiting
the eagle!
Israel
worries about a nuclear exchange
Mideast Haaretz
"In a comprehensive report, most of which is top secret, a military-civilian
committee has determined that other Muslim countries in the Middle East
could follow Iran in equipping themselves with nuclear weapons. Endorsing
the report, outgoing Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said in remarks quoted
by Army Radio on Monday that 'For the first time since the days of the
nation's founding, an official document has been placed before the leaders
of Israel, setting out a comprehensive security viewpoint, both current
and long-range.' The committee, chaired by former minister Dan Meridor
and appointed by former prime minister Ariel Sharon, recommended to Mofaz
on Sunday that Israel should maintain its policy of nuclear ambiguity,
that as Jordan has strategic importance for Israel, its stability should
be supported, and that the National Security Council should become the
government's central military planning authority." (04/24/06)
Seems like
the same-old, same-old to me. But I am sure this kind of rhetoric justifies
more spending, even in Israel.
Babylon
is fallen (more)
Biblical Archeology Review
Babylon, the city with the million-dollar name, has paid the price of
war. It has been ransacked, looted, torn up, paved over, neglected and
roughly occupied. Archaeologists said American soldiers had even used
soil thick with priceless artifacts to stuff sandbags. But Iraqi leaders
and UN officials are not giving up on it. They are working assiduously
to restore Babylon, home to the Hanging Gardens, one of the Seven Wonders
of the Ancient World. They want to turn it into a cultural center and
possibly even an Iraqi theme park.
Why doesn't
this article explain how the Arabian conquerors pillaged and demolished
even more back in 636? And how Arab "civil wars" over the centuries
have further destroyed not just this site but tens of thousands more -
or what Arabs and Turks and other Islamic jihadists did to Constantinople,
Athens, Corinth, Thebes, Alexandria, Susa, Persopolis, and a thousand
other places? Bad as the US and Colaition troops were, clearly Saddam
was worse and had longer to do it, but he was just the last in a very,
very long series of Islamic thugs and tyrants who do the same and worse.
Under
Fire From the West, Iran and Sudan Cozy Up
CNSNews.com
As the U.N. Security Council deadline looms for Iran to suspend its
nuclear activities, Tehran found common cause this week with another regime
that is at loggerheads with the international community, Sudan. Iran also
said it was ready to spread its newly announced nuclear energy technology
to other countries...
More baiting
by Iran, and making friends with a nation that possibly is the most despicable
one today - reaching heights even Saddam and the Saudis have been reluctant
to approach: slavery, murder, looting, barbaric tortures, and a lot more.
Iraq's
Economic Progress Overshadowed by Violence
CNSNews.com
Despite disruptions from the war and the terror attacks that followed,
the Iraqi economy is progressing and the political system is meeting expectations,
according to Iraq's finance minister. "I take issue with those who
focus on conflicts," Ali Abdul Ameer Allawi said at an appearance
in Washington...
It is,
of course, easier to focus on the violence, since for about 1100 out the
last 1400 years, violence and conflict have been the standard Arab export.
Iraq:
New VP's sister, others killed in attacks
San Diego Union-Tribune
"A sister of Iraq's new Sunni Arab vice president was killed Thursday
in a drive-by shooting in Baghdad, a day after the politician called for
the Sunni-dominated insurgency to be crushed by force. In southern Iraq,
a bomb hit an Italian military convoy, killing four soldiers -- three
Italians and a Romanian -- and seriously injuring another passenger, officials
in Rome said. The bomb struck the convoy near an Italian military base
in Nasiriyah, a heavily Shiite city 200 miles southeast of Baghdad, said
local Iraqi government spokesman Haidr Radhi. ... In Ramadi, 70 miles
west of Baghdad, U.S. forces exchanged fire with insurgents who attacked
with small arms and shoulder-fired rockets from a former train station
and a nearby building. ... In a separate incident, one Iraqi soldier was
killed during a firefight with insurgents in a nearby Ramadi neighborhood,
army officers said. A roadside bomb in Baghdad hit an Iraqi army patrol,
killing a soldier, police said. The bodies of 16 Iraqis who had been kidnapped
and tortured were found Thursday in Baghdad and other cities, police said."
(04/27/06)
The daily
quota of death and murder.
Israel:
Terrorist killed in airstrike
The State
"Israeli aircraft fired missiles at two cars in Gaza packed with
rockets on Thursday, killing one Islamic Jihad militant and critically
wounding another, the Israeli army and Palestinian officials said. The
militants were on their way to fire a barrage of homemade rockets at Israeli
targets, the military said. The militants belonged to a cell that was
especially active in firing rockets, it added. One of the two cars targeted
was hit, the army said. Pillars of black and white smoke billowed from
the destroyed vehicle as rescue workers removed burned and dismembered
bodies from the car. Israel has pledged to end the rocket fire from Gaza
into Israel, but is reluctant to launch an invasion into the coastal area
it withdrew from in August. The homemade rockets are highly inaccurate,
but at times have killed people and damaged buildings. The new Hamas-led
government has said it will not arrest the militants launching the rockets
or take other steps to halt the fire." (04/27/06)
Another
chapter in the sad history of the original Philistine territories (or
is that terror-tories) that eventually gave their name to the entire land
originally known as Canaan (Palestine is the Romanized version of Philistia.)
It is ironic that 3000 years after King David finally ended the 400-year
era of anti-Jewish terrorism based in Gaza and the other cities of the
coast, it is still a base for such attacks.
Rice,
Rumsfeld tout new Iraq government
Indianapolis Star
"Success in forming a new Iraqi government may let some U.S. troops
leave the war zone within months, the top American military commander
in Iraq said Wednesday. Paying a surprise visit, Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld embraced the country's fledgling
leaders as independent and focused on the future. 'I came away most encouraged,'
Rumsfeld said after he and Rice spent a day meeting with Iraqi politicians
and U.S. military and diplomatic advisers in the capital city." (04/26/06)
I think
that encouragement needs to be a bit reserved for now, to see if the new
government really is "successful."
Olmert
Moves Closer to West Bank Withdrawals
CNSNews.com
Interim Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert moved a step closer to realizing
his "convergence" plan - a unilateral evacuation of Israelis
from some West Bank communities -- when he signed a coalition agreement
between his Kadima Party and the Labor Party on Thursday night...
Even an overtly-faith-based nation seemingly has the seeds of its own
destruction planted and nurtured by its own people - blithely cooperating
with the enemies that would destroy them. Of course, it won't be the first
time - as the history of the first Israel during the era of the Judges
(and the decline into a kingdom) shows: even the Jews returning from Babylonian
captivity were enticed by the thoughts of compromise with the enemies
which surrounded them. Clearly, Olmert is no Nehemiah or Ezra.
Campaign
2006
Nobody
sounds very happy now in national politics as the clock ticks down.
Dump
Cheney for Condi, Bush urged
Times Online [UK]
"Republicans are urging President George W Bush to dump Dick Cheney
as vice-president and replace him with Condoleezza Rice if he is serious
about presenting a new face to the jaded American public. They believe
that only the sacrifice of one or more of the big beasts of the jungle,
such as Cheney or Donald Rumsfeld, the defence secretary, will convince
voters that Bush understands the need for a fresh start. The jittery Republicans
claim Bush's mini-White House reshuffle last week will do nothing to forestall
the threat of losing control of Congress in the November mid-term elections."
(04/23/06)
This has
been bandied about a lot - there are many GOP types who would love to
see Condi in the VP slot as a great place to run for Prez in 2008, and
many view her as the best chance against Hillary. You've got to admit
that Democrats will be very embarrassed about NOT voting for a black woman,
even if she is (in their eyes) an Aunt Jemima and working for Da Man.
Democrat
Leader Casts Republicans As Out-of-Touch
CNSNews.com
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid is trying to derail the conservative
agenda by portraying it as out-of-touch with Americans' real concerns.
On Monday, Reid said the Senate must focus on the issues that concern
the American people most - not on the "pet issues of the right wing."
Pot calling
the kettle black!
Dems Offer
60-Day Gas Tax Break
CNSNews.com
On the same day that President Bush announced he would suspend deposits
to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, Democrats unveiled a plan of their
own Tuesday designed to give consumers a break from high gas prices by
offering drivers a 60-day holiday from the federal gas tax...
Odds of
passing? Virtually nil - but it makes lovely propaganda, doesn't it? As
the next day's story, below, shows. Still, this has to beat the stupid
"rebate" idea.
Democrats
Ask, Who Do You Trust to Lower Gas Prices?
CNSNews.com
Democrats say they have a "simple strategy" that will help
them win the midterm elections. They plan to ask voters who they trust
to lower prices at the pump...
Who should
we trust? How about private business, freed from insane taxes and economic
policies and held to a standard of "serve the customer first"?
As for the Democrats, their strategy may not be simple, but they sure
appear to be.
Dems
Launch Door-to-Door Outreach Effort
CNSNews.com
Ding-dong, there's a Democrat at your door: The Democratic National
Committee says volunteers will go door-to-door in all 50 states on Saturday
- "to share the Democratic Party's bold vision for America and begin
a series of conversations with the American people about the upcoming
elections."
It doesn't
say if they are going two-by-two, or perhaps they will all be wearing
white shirts and ties and black jackets, or perhaps orange nylon robes?
No doubt featuring copies of "Democratic Watchtower" and "Voter
Awake." Perhaps they'll just content themselves with reminding people
that "with more people than ever voting this year, voting is spread
out over several days; Democrats should vote on Tuesday and Republicans
and others on Wednesday."
Our
Right to Defend Ourselves
Tyranny
at home, and the fight against it, deserve a special section, where we
see how important the right to keep and bear arms is, and how we are winning
or losing - this week.
SC:
man calls killing self-defense
Charleston Post & Courier
"Police are investigating a fatal shooting that one man claims
was self-defense. David Lamar Staggs, 54, of Inman, called police Friday
to report that he had shot a man. Deputies found Garland Samuel Simpson
III, 55, of Campobello, dead in Staggs' driveway. Staggs told deputies
Simpson attacked him with a knife, said sheriff's spokesman Maj. Dan Johnson.
Staggs said he shot in self-defense. Johnson said Staggs had wounds on
his right hand and that Simpson was shot several times." (04/23/06)
Hmmm. May
be some doubt here, I agree. Just investigate quickly, folks.
Venezuela:
Chavez arming fellow countrymen
Cay Compass [Cayman Islands]
"President Hugo Chavez constantly warns Venezuelans a U.S. invasion
is imminent. Now he's begun training a civilian militia as well as the
Venezuelan army to resist in the only way possible against a much better-equipped
force: by taking to the hills and fighting a guerrilla war. Supporters
of the president, a former paratroop commander, are increasingly taking
up his call. Chavez wants 1 million armed men and women in the army reserve,
and 150,000 have already joined, surpassing the regular military's force
of 100,000. Now Venezuelans are also organizing neighborhood-based militia
units for Chavez's Territorial Guard." (04/19/06)
Clearly,
Chavez is NOT a student of William Lind and "fourth generation war."
I think that the would-be "new Castro" may be in for a surprise,
arming his own people. Those militia guns don't just point out, after
all. And he has a lot of unhappy people. But that doesn't bother him,
apparently, as another news story relates
( Jerusalem Post) : these weapons are not just for defense: Venezuelans
will spill blood to defend Cuba against a possible US invasion, President
Hugo Chavez said. "If the US empire were to invade Cuba, Venezuelan
blood would run in the defense of Cuba and its people," Chavez said
Friday during a speech to government supporters in Venezuela's capital.
CA:
Bill seeks to require guns to tag ammunition
Contra Costa Times
"California could become the first state in the nation to require
semiautomatic handguns include microscopic equipment for pressing an identifying
mark into every bullet fired. Through newly developed technology, the
firing pin of a semiautomatic weapon can stamp the gun's make and model
onto a bullet shell as it leaves the chamber. The technology could help
police investigate homicides and trace gun trafficking. Thirty-three California
police chiefs and two county sheriffs support a bill, sponsored by Assemblyman
Paul Koretz, D-West Hollywood, that would require the markers." (04/21/06)
The latest
nutty idea from California, where a couple of years ago they wanted to
put serial numbers on all bullets (both casings and the actual bullets)
and make it illegal to buy out of state. Why not put an RFID chip on each
shell and bullet? That ought to be fun. Almost as much fun as replacing
the firing pin or "fixing" it with either no mark or the mark
of some other weapon. I suppose that they can require each gun to be handmade
so that parts (like the firing pins) can't be interchangeable? Or duplicated?
Mama's
Note: One more reason not to live in California. Leave, people, before
it's too late.
WI:
Logger tells of "running gun battle"
Rhinelander Daily News
"Investigators have determined through the statements of the victim,
John 'Homer' Van Meter, that 'a running gun battle took place through
the woods over a lengthy area.' According to Van Meter, a logger who has
worked in the area of County Highway O and Poplar Road for years, a black
SUV pulled up to his work site at approximately noon on Wednesday and
a white male, described as short with blond hair, exited the vehicle and
began shooting. Authorities say Van Meter told them he hid behind his
truck during the first volley of fire but eventually retrieved his own
pistol and returned fire." (04/22/06)
Environmental
extremist? Angry landowner? Cuckolded husband? Mistaken identity? Nutcase?
Take your pick, folks. Sounds very strange, even for Wisconsin. Of course,
knowing Wisconsin, the logger will probably be vilified for having a weapon
and defending himself.
MO:
Self-defense case has activists up in arms
NBC Action News
"A guilty verdict in a self-defense case has upset activists claiming
a person should have the right to shoot intruders when they break into
their home. A Jackson County Judge found Mitchell Robinson guilty of manslaughter
Thursday. The case hinged on whether he should have locked the door to
keep out the intruder and how far he could go to protect himself. '(Robinson)
goes inside, shuts the door, the backs up as far back as he can inside
the kitchen and gets a shotgun out,' said Robinson's defense attorney
Lucy McShane. ... What happened in the apartment building may have lead
to a different outcome in court if a bill making its way through the Missouri
Legislature had passed yet. Self-defense activists call it the 'castle
doctrine' and say it will expand the opportunity for people to protect
themselves in their homes." (04/21/06)
This case
(which could also belong in "Imperial Courts") shows why the
fad for "castle doctrine" is so popular. This makes so many
stupid assumptions that it is hard to figure out how to tackle it. Hopefully,
this man can appeal.
Mama's
Note: Sounds like he's in another state that people need to leave quickly
while they still can. Passage of some "castle doctrine" bill
won't really change the methods or the temper of the police and courts
there, you can bet on it.
CA:
Clerk shoots gunman; bystander wounded
CBS 2 News
"A liquor store clerk in Hawthorne fatally shot an armed thief
and accidentally wounded a 15-year-old girl during an attempted robbery
on Thursday night. ... The clerk shot at an armed gunman and his accomplice
as they tried to rob the store. The gunman, who never fired, according
to Butao, died at the scene. A 15-year-old girl who was shopping in the
store was struck by the clerk's gunfire and was taken to a hospital, where
she displayed stable vital signs." (04/21/06)
Don't you
love news-speak? "Displayed stable vital signs" could mean anything
from "they put a Band-Aid on the scratch on her arm" to "she's
in a coma but breathing on her own."
AZ:
No witnesses, evidence in murder case
Arizona Republic
"There is nothing typical about Arizona vs. Harold Fish. The state's
case against the 59-year-old hiker, who shot and killed a camper north
of Payson on May 11, 2004, boils down to picking apart Fish's claim of
self-defense. The prosecution has no eyewitnesses. It has no forensic
evidence. It has nothing but Fish's story. And he says he was protecting
himself when he shot 43-year-old Grant Kuenzli of Payson three times in
the chest. When he testifies in his second-degree murder trial, which
is under way in Coconino County Superior Court, Fish will say he was attacked
by Kuenzli and his two dogs near the end of a strenuous day of hiking
up the Mogollon Rim on Pine Canyon Trail." (04/21/06)
I would
agree that this is one case that deserves a trial. At the same time, where
are the dogs? Or their bodies?
Mama's
Note: I'd say this was evidence that hiking alone is probably not a good
idea, no matter how well prepared you might be to defend yourself against
aggression. You might need a witness to defend yourself against the "authorities"
if you did run into trouble.
WA:
Weak regulation fosters more abuse
Seattle Times
"Lying on an examination table in a paper-thin gown, Lyubov Veselkov
felt at ease with Dr. Huong T. Luu, even as he performed a pelvic exam.
She never saw him slip a camera from his coat pocket. She didn't see the
flash between her legs. But after a while, she asked, 'Dr. Luu, it's taking
a long time, what are you doing?' Then, Veselkov, 32, recalls, 'He started
to get nervous.' The exam concluded and she cast the awkward moment aside.
But an office assistant had spotted the camera flash and told Veselkov
about it afterward. After she got over her shock, Veselkov notified the
Washington Department of Health, in June 2001. Department investigators
... recovered 136 photos, most showing Luu touching women's genitalia,
most with an ungloved hand." (04/23/06)
I'm putting
this in the self-defense section because the headline is so unbelievably
stupid. The solution to this would have been for Veselkov to have pulled
out her pistol from her handbag and either cocked it or made taking the
safety off a very loud noise. Or to have another member of Veselkov's
family (if she didn't want to do it herself) pay a tactful visit and suggest
that Dr. Luu might want to find another field of work. Genital groping
like this might not be the capital crime that rape is, but certainly would
merit a public whipping. The problem is not weak regulation, it is leaving
such things to a state agency run by and for doctors - rather than allowing
a free market in medical services and in information. We need a situation
where anyone moving to an area could go to several databases (not just
one) that list all medical practices in the area and see what complaints
and comments are made about them, what accusations (and defenses) have
been lodged, the death rate of their patients, oh, and their prices. This
is not just illegal in the US today, but will land you in multiple felony
charges, including practicing medicine without a license (or so I have
been told by several specialists in the field, over the years).
Mama's
Note: The obvious way to prevent such vile behavior by any medical professional
is to have someone with you during the examination! It is illegal in most
places for a male doctor to examine a female patient in this manner without
another female present, either family or one of the staff. This woman
should not have allowed the examination without someone else she trusted
being in the room.
AZ:
Napolitano signs self-defense bill
KVOA News
"Governor Napolitano today signed into law a bill to strengthen
Arizonans' rights to claim self-defense and to use force against intruders.
The bill was supported by the National Rifle Association and opposed by
prosecutors. It imposes a new burden of proof on prosecutors to demonstrate
beyond a reasonable doubt that a defendant's self-defense claim was unfounded.
It also implants the so-called 'castle doctrine' in Arizona law to give
a person the right to use force in a home or vehicle against an intruder
without having to retreat." (04/24/06)
This comes
as a shock to me, considering her usual stand! A good shock, mind you,
but still, I am amazed. And I was wrong to say she would veto it.
Gun
industry seeks seat at victim disarmament summit
National Shooting Sports Association
"In a letter faxed today to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's
office, the trade association representing the firearm industry officially
requested a seat at the table at tomorrow's national summit on illegal
guns organized by Bloomberg and Mayor Thomas Menino of Boston. Lawrence
G. Keane, who signed the letter on behalf of the National Shooting Sports
Foundation (NSSF), said the industry shares the mayors' concerns about
further reducing crime by keeping guns out of the hands of criminals.
'Our industry has developed programs that are working to reduce criminal
misuse of firearms, as well as reduce firearms accidents. We would welcome
the opportunity to educate mayors about these programs, including Don't
Lie for the Other Guy, the straw purchase deterrence initiative developed
in partnership with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives,'
said Keane, senior vice president and general counsel." (04/24/06)
A good
political stand, but one I am sure that they expect to be ignored by the
hoploclasts.
NH:
House reverses course, supports self-defense
Seacoast Online
"Gun owners and advocates carried the day in the House on Wednesday.
In a surprise turnaround, the House supported legislation it defeated
last month that would give people more leeway to use guns to defend themselves
in public places. It also voted for a bill to bar the state from taking
guns or ammunition from people during a state of emergency. 'Nothing should
chip away at our freedom,' argued Rep. Lynne Ober, R-Hudson. If weapons
had been confiscated centuries ago, 'we might have been singing God Save
the Queen,' she said." (04/26/06)
Last month
this seemed like the exception to the fad of "castle doctrines"
that we see sweeping the nation. But like Arizona, NH is seeing its way
clear to recognize a right that is NOT the state's to take away.
South
Africa: Dad screamed like never before
News 24
"More than 30 shells and the shattered windows of two cars bore
testimony on Tuesday to the raging gun battle between three robbers and
a young man trying to save his father. When all the shooting was over,
the three intruders lay dead at the Bertrams' house they had been trying
to rob in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The 23-year-old, who does
not want to be identified for fear of revenge attacks, described the gunfight
between him and the band of robbers to Beeld on Tuesday, just a few hours
after police officers removed the bodies of the three men. ... 'The police
don't protect us and the new firearms act empowers only the criminals,'
said the young man. People here are tired of crime and eventually you
reach a point where you realise enough is enough -- you must look after
your people yourself.'' (04/26/06)
The young
man is more likely to be in trouble for his words than for his shooting.
OR:
Salem police say shooting death likely self-defense
Salem Statesman Journal
"What started as an argument involving a woman, her estranged
boyfriend and her current boyfriend ended with the former boyfriend shot
dead Monday night, Salem police said. Jason Benjamin Scott, 31, the former
boyfriend of Diana Carol Rennels, 26, was found dead by police about 9:35
p.m. at 2375 Coral Ave. NE. Police said Sean C. Dougherty, 38, Rennels'
current boyfriend, who lives with her at the northeast Salem apartment,
shot Scott after the 6-foot-4, 300-pound man broke through the front door
of Rennels' apartment. Three children were in the apartment at the time."
(04/26/06)
While this
seems to be self-defense, it is the circumstances that make it sad: people
who have no more responsibility for their own actions than these are bound
to create conditions that lead to violence and death. A woman with the
morals of an alley-cat has the blood of at least one man, and the potential
scarring of her innocent children, on her hands.
More
News and Commentary on Page 2
Nathan
Barton is writing from his secret bunker complex on the eastern slopes
of the Paha Sapa, swilling Doctor Pepper (and gallons of water each day,
milady) and plotting to reelect Gaius Julius Caesar dictator of the Republic
- or was that Senator Palpatine? Granville James Corbin? W? Q?
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to visit my blog, Liberty's
Outpost.
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