December 04, 2006

Libertarian Commentary on the News, 26 NOV - 2 DEC 2006
Well, last week was kinda calm, but look out - December is roaring in!

Home Front:
New citizenship test questions unveiled
Seattle Post Intelligencer
"Alicia Bowers, a Panamanian immigrant, can easily recall that George Washington was the first U.S. president. She knows the three branches of government are legislative, executive and judicial. But Bowers, who took a course to study for the U.S. citizenship test she plans to take, was stumped when asked why there are three branches of government?She also couldn't answer two other draft questions the government wants to try out on 5,000 immigrants who volunteer in 10 cities in an attempt to revise the citizenship test. The government unveiled to mixed reaction 144 draft test questions Thursday. Officials plan to begin trying them out early next year and begin using a redesigned citizenship test in 2008. .... "The people, they have to go to school to study that and take some courses in order to answer and have the right answers," Bowers said after she couldn't answer "What does the Constitution do?" and "Name one important idea found in the Declaration of Independence." [Editor's note: What'd be really interesting is using this as the 'high school exit exam', -MLS](11/30/06)

Sadly, no one has sent in any suggestions for what the questions should be. You do still have a chance to make YOUR suggestions, at TPOL-News at Libertyhaven.com.

Afghan Front:
NATO allies grumble over Afghan mission
CNN
"NATO pressed its members Tuesday to deploy more troops to Afghanistan's volatile south, but Germany resisted any permanent expansion and Canada complained of bearing the brunt of an increasingly bloody mission. Despite the strengthening Taliban insurgency and unexpectedly high casualties, NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer insisted the alliance would prevail in its first mission outside Europe. He also expressed hopes that by 2008, Afghan forces could begin taking over security tasks." (11/28/06)

Whistling in the dark? Probably. More NATO countries will no doubt ante up - and the difficult mission will continue, at least for a while. Will Afghan troops be ready by 2008? Probably, but they may be Taliban troops.

Afghan Front:
UK: Blair defends NATO Afghan mission
Guardian [UK]
"Tony Blair made the startling claim yesterday that Britain and other Nato members were 'winning' the war in Afghanistan despite increased Taliban activity and a sharply rising death toll. The prime minister was speaking to the press at the end of a two-day NATO summit in Latvia which exposed continuing divisions within the 26-member transatlantic organisation over the level of commitment to the Afghanistan venture. Doubts about the military operation have grown this year as a result of a resurgence in Taliban operations that has left thousands of Afghans dead, as well as NATO troops. Two NATO soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb south of Kabul yesterday. But Mr. Blair, who along with George Bush is among the most bullish of the NATO leaders about the prospects for Afghanistan, said: 'I think there is a sense that this mission in Afghanistan is not yet won, but it is winnable and, indeed, we are winning.'" (11/30/06)

Again, Afghanistan will NOT change until and unless the culture and religion changes. The bizarre tribalism existed as long ago as Alexander, and the conversion to Islam in the 8th Century reinforced the entire society beyond the ability of generations of western and Russian troops and administrators to change - but the country has never been subjected to any serious missionary activity by Christian groups; that is probably the only hope Afghanistan has: Christianity and liberty go hand in hand.

Afghani Front:
Suicide bomber kills 15 in Afghanistan
Watertown Public Opinion
"A Pakistani suicide bomber detonated himself in a crowded restaurant Sunday, killing 15 people and wounding 24, including an Afghan special forces commander and a district chief, the provincial governor said. The restaurant, located in the southeastern province of Paktika, was destroyed, said Gov. Mohammad Akram Akhpelwak. The attacker was believed to be targeting the military commander and the district chief, he said." (11/26/06)

"We like Coke, they like death." Too, too true.

Afghani Front:
UN: Afghan government officials protecting opium trade
Christian Science Monitor
"According to a new UN report, the opium trade in Afghanistan has reached record production levels this year, largely due to corrupt government officials who have been protecting drug production. The Associated Press writes that the report, a joint effort of the World Bank and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, shows a 'probability of high-level (government) involvement,' particularly in the Interior Ministry, which controls Afghanistan's police force. ... Zalmai Afzali, a representative of the Afghan counternarcotics ministry, said there is no evidence of government corruption, however. 'If there is evidence we welcome the evidence and the arrest will be on the spot,' he said. AP reports that the drug trade is flourishing in Afghanistan, with opium production rising 59 percent this year." [FND editor's note: Anyone surprised by this story just ain't been payin' attention. - SAT] (11/30/06)

Sounds like economic development to me and business and government as usual. Just what else does Afghanistan have to offer on the world market, anyway?

Mama's Note: Who knows what they might develop in a free world and free economy? Opium simply happens to be the best cash crop they can grow right now, I'm sure. They want to eat and feed their children as much as anyone else.

Canaanite Front:
Gaza cease-fire raises hopes for peace
USA Today
"A new truce was holding, stopping Palestinian rocket fire and Israeli operations in Gaza for the first time in five months, sparking hopes that it might lead to resumption of long-frozen peace negotiations. It took several hours for the word of the truce to filter down to the level of Palestinian rocket squads Sunday. They fired 11 rockets at Israel between 6 a.m., when the truce took effect, and 10 a.m., when the last rocket exploded near the Israeli town of Sderot, a favorite target." (11/26/06)

I really should put this in a category of news stories called "What to laugh about this year," because I have seen hundreds of stories about some event "raising hopes for peace" in the Middle East: and every one of them has resulted in nada, zip, nullo. This will, I suspect, simply be a breather to allow the "Palestinian rocket squads" to bring in more, probably bigger, weapons, and for the IDF to rotate some folks home for a few days leave.

Canaanite Front:
Rice meets with Abbas
USA Today
"Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice tried to build momentum Thursday for a fragile cease-fire agreement between the Israelis and the Palestinians, urging both sides to expand the peace deal beyond the Gaza territory. But U.S. options were limited, as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he was finished negotiating with radical Islamic militants who assumed control of the Palestinian government in January." (11/30/06)

I have often wondered just when negotiating between the Arabs and the Israelis became THE most important part of the job description for US Secretaries of State. Maybe we'd all be better off if the Cabinet had a regular "Arab-Israeli fall-guy-for-peace negotiations" position, since obviously our government is too stupid to stop interfering.

Mama's Note: And I wonder just when the US Gov idiots will figure out that sending a woman, especially a black woman, to "negotiate" with Arabs is about as intelligent as spitting into a gale force wind.

Culture Wars:
Nicaragua abortion ban called threat to lives
Boston Globe
"Doctors and women's groups are warning that Nicaragua's ban on all abortions -- even to save the mother -- will endanger the lives of thousands of women every year. With the new law, which imposes prison sentences of up to eight years for women and doctors , Nicaragua joins El Salvador and Chile as having the most restrictive anti-abortion laws in Latin America and among the toughest in the world. In El Salvador, women who develop ectopic pregnancies -- when a fertilized egg gets stuck in a fallopian tube, giving it no chance of survival -- are kept under guard in a hospital. A prosecutor must certify that the embryo has died or the woman's tube has ruptured before doctors can intervene." [RRND editor's note: Now let me get this straight ... Daniel Ortega, erstwhile "progressive" socialist, comes back to power and backs banning ALL abortions? I guess the USA is not the only nation in Bizarroworld! - SAT] (11/26/06)

Gee, when even slime-sucking liberal wanna-be dictators who hate the US don't support abortion, what is the world coming to? Let me make it clear - I don't support the new Nicaraguan law - the only justification I can see for abortion is to save the life of the mother - it is a sad and difficult but necessary choice to make and if the child kills the mother (as would be a probable outcome with a tube pregnancy like this) the child isn't going to make it either.

Mama's Note: In the first place, intervention in an ectopic implantation has NOTHING to do with abortion. It is a surgical procedure through the abdominal wall like any other. It is not terribly rare, about 1% of all fertilized eggs implant improperly, but a good half of them are resolved naturally, often with no interventions - and often without the woman even being aware of it. Some undefined number below .05% can cause problems and a few become medical emergencies. Just as with "rape and incest," this is being used as a false flag to whip up emotions and confuse the issue.

The wholesale murder of innocent, perfectly healthy babies can't be justified by this or anything else. The actual number of cases where the mother's life is in danger from a normal pregnancy are microscopic at best, and that decision should be between her, her doctor and God... not the government.

Culture Wars:
10 is the new 15 as kids grow up faster
Fox News
"Zach Plante is close with his parents. ... Lately, though, his parents have begun to notice subtle changes in their son. Among other things, he's announced that he wants to grow his hair longer -- and sometimes greets his father with 'Yo, Dad!' ... Thing is, Zach isn't a teen. He's 10 years old -- one part, a fun-loving fifth-grader who likes to watch the Animal Planet network and play with his dog and pet gecko, the other a soon-to-be middle schooler who wants an iPod. In some ways, it's simply part of a kid's natural journey toward independence. But child development experts say that physical and behavioral changes that would have been typical of teenagers decades ago are now common among 'tweens' -- kids ages 8 to 12." [FND editor's note: It's not really kids growing up faster, but kids doing what they used to do, for generations, until society started infantilizing them. A 12-year-old lad in frontier times already had a wife and kids! - SAT] (11/26/06)

I have to disagree with this claim of Steve's - I know of virtually NO MALE who was married and had kids at age 12; American frontier families tended to follow fairly widespread cultural norms that are now considered illegal and immoral: women might marry commonly at 12, 13, or 14, but almost always to men who were anywhere from 5 to 20 years older. Men mature (emotionally, especially) later than women. And in that I do agree with Steve, the idea of "teenager" is a relatively new concept and has done a great deal of harm to the nation and society in the 80 or so years it has been dominant.

Culture Wars:
IL: Festival nixes "Nativity Story" ads
Fox News
"A public Christmas festival is no place for the Christmas story, the city says. Officials have asked organizers of a downtown Christmas festival, the German Christkindlmarket, to reconsider using a movie studio as a sponsor because it is worried ads for its film The Nativity Story might offend non-Christians. New Line Cinema, which said it was dropped, had planned to play a loop of the new film on televisions at the event. The decision had both the studio and a prominent Christian group shaking their heads. 'The last time I checked, the first six letters of Christmas still spell out Christ,' said Paul Braoudakis, spokesman for the Barrington, Ill.-based Willow Creek Association, a group of more than 11,000 churches of various denominations. 'It's tantamount to celebrating Lincoln's birthday without talking about Abraham Lincoln.' He also said that there is a nativity scene in Daley Plaza -- and that some vendors at the festival sell items related to the nativity." (11/28/06)

If these thin-skinned people are offended so easily by a MOVIE about the birth of Jesus, they are surely going to be offended by the name of this festival - translated as Christ-Child-Market. I would HOPE that most of the vendors sell things related to the Nativity! How stupid our government officials are.

Mama's Note: If people want to be free to say and do things - whether they are religious or not - they need to do so on private property! Those who insist on bringing their religion into places paid for by everyone will continue to find discrimination. It's too bad the thin skinned can't tolerate Christians as they wish to be tolerated, but we all know that's not going to happen. Eliminate "public property" and this problem goes away.

Culture Wars:
Theologian: Christians must "let go" of some beliefs
Tennessean
"To live peacefully with Muslims and Jews, Christians must put aside the notion that their faith requires the creation of a Christian kingdom on Earth, a Lipscomb University theologian told an interfaith gathering at the university. 'We are not going to get very far in our relationship with Jews or Muslims if we do not let go of this idea,' Lipscomb professor Lee Camp said at Tuesday's conference. The unusual gathering of several dozen clergy and lay people was devoted to resolving religious conflict in Nashville and around the world. 'We need to forsake the Christendom model,' Camp said. 'The most basic Christian commitment ... is that we say we believe in the Lordship of Jesus. But, if we claim that, how can a Muslim or Jew trust us, if we say Jesus is the Lord of all Lords?'" (11/29/06)

Unless Lipscomb University has completely departed from its original foundation and philosophy, I can only assume that Lee Camp was being sarcastic in his comments - for he is pointing out what should be obvious - that Christianity is completely incompatible with either Judaism or Islam. They can't ALL be right, and if you accept one, you have to necessarily reject the other two. There is no room for pluralism in religion.

Mama's Note: This misses the core point altogether. To live peacefully, those who profess ANY religion (as well as those who don't) must make no attempt whatsoever to FORCE others to conform to their beliefs. It is the initiation of force that causes the problems, not the beliefs.

Culture Wars:
Pope preaches brotherhood in Turkey
Baltimore Sun
"Pope Benedict XVI began his first visit to a Muslim country today with a message of dialogue and 'brotherhood' between Christians and Muslims in an attempt to ease anger over his perceived criticism of Islam. Two months after the pope touched off fury across the Islamic world with remarks linking violence and Prophet Muhammad, the Turkish prime minister -- in a last-minute change of plans -- was on hand at the airport in Turkey's capital to greet the pontiff. ... The pope used his first moments of his four-day trip to try to mend fences with Islamic leaders." (11/28/06)

Of course Christians should have an open dialogue with Muslims - there is little other way to convert them from the evils in which they are drowning. But frankly, any effort to "mend fences" is just opening up opportunities for more penetration of the West by Muslims.

Culture Wars:
NJ: Anti-homo pol moves for same-sex marriage ban
New York Times
"Outraged by the State Supreme Court's decision last month declaring that same-sex couples are entitled to the same legal rights and financial benefits as heterosexual ones, a Republican legislator on Monday introduced a bill to amend the Constitution by defining marriage as being only between a man and a woman. The lawmaker, Senator Gerald Cardinale of Bergen County, said the proposed amendment was modeled after successful efforts in other states in recent years -- including several on this Election Day -- to essentially ban same-sex marriage." (11/28/06)

This is not a surprise and it very well might pass even in generally liberal New Jersey -thus "requiring" the courts to intervene and "force liberty" on the state. Even the pro-homosexual-marriage supporters admit that Arizona (the only state to vote on it that has not voted to ban it) was a fluke.

Culture Wars:
Austria's anti-Santa clause
Source: Ananova [UK]
"Santa Claus is being banned from Christmas markets in Germany and Austria. Anti-Santa campaigners claim Father Christmas was invented by Coca-Cola and detracts from the true spirit of the festive season. Austria's biggest Christmas market is in front of the Vienna city hall where thousands of visitors march past stalls offering everything related to Xmas -- except Santa. The only Santa to be seen is the one in the middle of the occasional 'Ban Santa' stickers. A Vienna city hall spokesman confirmed: 'There are rules governing what stallholders can do and one of them is to agree not to use the image of Santa as a condition of being able to trade there. Santa is an English language creation, people who want to see him should go to America where I am sure Coca Cola will be happy to oblige.'" (11/27/06)

The problem here is that these Austrians are throwing the baby out with the bathwater: losing cherished traditions to a generic world culture is bad, but refusing to admit that some things (like Coke) have become more than just "American" and are a part of Germanic culture as much as, say, Spezi or sauerbraten, or pommes frites, is silly.

Mama's Note: Since St. Nicholas predates Coke by centuries, this whole idea is silly. From Wikipedia:

Saint Nicholas Day is a festival for children in much of Europe related to surviving legends of the saint, and particularly his reputation as a bringer of gifts. The American Santa Claus, as well as the Anglo-Canadian and British Father Christmas derive from this icon, the name 'Santa Claus' being a degeneration of the Dutch word Sinterklaas.

Economy:
Firms crimping oil supplies?
Associated Press
"[A]n Associated Press analysis suggests that big oil companies have been crimping supplies in subtler ways across the country for years. And tighter supplies tend to drive up prices. The analysis, based on data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, indicates that the industry slacked off supplying oil and gasoline during the prolonged price boom between early 1999 and last summer, when prices began to fall. The industry counters that it's been working hard to meet untiring demand." (11/26/06)

Gee, did AP finally figure out ONE basic law of economics: that supply and demand establish prices? Too bad they still haven't passed the next lessons, as this article shows. Yeah, I guess the oil producers have been "slacking off" - no new refineries, no new oil fields, very little rehab of old oil fields. Slackers. Yeah, any industry will try and restrain trade - but the only ones that succeed in doing that are the ones that get the government regs to help them.

Economy:
Orders for manufactured goods plunge
Houston Chronicle
"Orders for big-ticket manufactured goods plunged in October by the largest amount in more than six years, in another sign of a slowing economy. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that demand for durable goods fell a larger-than-expected 8.3 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted $210 billion, reflecting a big drop in demand for commercial airplanes, a category that had soared in September. It marked the third month in the past four that orders have either fallen or shown no gain, providing evidence that the nation's factories are beginning to feel the impact of the slowdown in the overall economy." (11/28/06)

We are also seeing, I believe, the impact of the huge fuel price bubble - a bubble that is really not ended for diesel fuel. The diesel fuel prices, in large part can be blamed squarely on government mandates to convert to Ultra-Low-Sulfur formulations, driving the manufacturing cost up, but also greatly reducing production capacity and fuel stocks because of the need to retool.

Mama's Note: I read here that a big part of this plunge was the reduction in orders for new aircraft and related items. This may actually be GOOD NEWS for liberty. If the airlines all go bankrupt, in spite of the massive welfare of government, it will send one hell of a message to everyone that a lot of people will not trade liberty for anything, especially more oppression.

If you still fly the unfriendly skies, in any carrier, please take a moment to reconsider. Wouldn't you rather be free?

Economy:
Spam tries to go upscale
Wall Street Journal
"Can the maker of Spam find new successes beyond the blue-collar dinner table? Hormel Foods Corp. thinks so and along with competitors like Kraft Foods Inc. and General Mills Inc. is chasing the small but fast-growing premium, ethnic and health-conscious markets. But so far, Hormel is finding that its quest is hampered by its identification with Spam and other processed meats. ... In February 2004, Hormel rolled out the first of four new ethnic-themed varieties of its Refrigerated Entrees line -- Hot and Spicy Szechuan-Style Beef Strips, Teriyaki Chicken Breast Strips, Sweet and Sour Diced Pork, and Southwestern Pork Carnitas. It pulled all four off the shelves earlier this year. The reason: Consumers were skeptical that the maker of Spam could also deliver restaurant-quality ethnic fare." (11/29/06)

I guess I'm lower class, because while I stay away from Spam T itself, the turkey-based Spam T is a useful long-term food storage item. Hormel canned meats (pure Chicken breast, Turkey breast, Ham, etc.) are also good-quality and relatively reasonably priced canned foods. So the refusal of consumers to accept other products, of a "higher" lifestyle, is baffling.

Mama's Note: There is a good reason junk email is called "spam!!" Those more than 50 years old have vivid memories of this stuff. I can't imagine why anyone would actually buy it at all. I keep tuna in my long term storage foods instead. It's far more nutritious, cheaper and better tasting.

Economy:
America the charitable: A few surprises
Christian Science Monitor
"Everybody knows Americans are big givers. But their charitable impulses keep generating surprises. Consider just a few conclusions from recent research: * Charitable giving plays an even larger role in the economy than is suggested by some $260 billion in annual contributions. Each dollar of giving appears to create $19 of extra national income, according to a book released this past weekend. * Demand for nonprofit services gets proportionately bigger, not smaller, as a locality's income rises, a Federal Reserve economist finds. * The philanthropy of the wealthy may not hinge on tax incentives to the degree many believe. In one new survey, a majority of wealthy givers say they would contribute the same amount if the estate tax were abolished. Ditto, they said, if they could no longer deduct the value of gifts from their taxable income." [Editor's note: The myth that says that rich folks are greediest is such a crock; what rich folks know (and what some of us are learning) is, the flow of wealth is not static, and an open hand receives better than a closed fist - SAT] (11/27/06)

As good as this sounds, I still take it with a grain of salt, both because of its source (the Fed) and because I've seen this "multiplier" effect used far too often to justify some sort of pork barrel or boondoggle project that it is tainted in my eyes. At the same time, there is a point to be made: wealth does create (in many people) an opportunity AND a desire to do more things to help others. Remember that during the Roman Republic (a mercenary, money-grubbing society if there ever was one), virtually ALL public improvements not directly related to "national defense" were paid out of private wealth and NOT the taxpayers.

European Front:
Bush supports Georgia bid to join NATO
MOSNews
"President George W Bush vowed on Tuesday to maintain U.S. support for Georgia's aspiration to join the NATO alliance despite strong Russian opposition that has sparked tensions between Moscow and Tbilisi, Reuters news agency reports. Speaking just before the first NATO summit on former Soviet soil, Bush said in a speech at the University of Latvia that the alliance would keep its door open to new members and hoped to issue additional invitations at its next summit in 2008." (11/29/06)

Georgia is, technically, in Europe, as I recall, but it seems to me that Israel or the Dominican Republic would be a better addition to NATO than this country.

Free Speech and Local Tyranny:
Woman faces fines for wreath peace sign
Lodi News-Sentinel
"A homeowners association in southwestern Colorado has threatened to fine a resident $25 a day until she removes a Christmas wreath with a peace sign that some say is an anti-Iraq war protest or a symbol of Satan. Some residents who have complained have children serving in Iraq, said Bob Kearns, president of the Loma Linda Homeowners Association in Pagosa Springs. He said some residents have also believed it was a symbol of Satan." (11/26/06)

Funny, I just had a semi try to run me off the road in this quaint little city - although I do admit the guy hauling a pig (a big tanker trailer for carrying Portland cement) was from Buena Vista (are ALL your drivers thugs, ACA?), who tried to pass me on the right and ran out of room (at 10 miles over the speed limit, no big surprise) and forced me into oncoming traffic. Five minutes later a local in too much of a hurry on a snow-packed road tried passing five of us and just about ran my wife off the road. Just another couple of examples of local thugs shoving their weight around - which is what this homeowners association is doing.

Look, you idiots, I didn't spend two decades in the service (none of us spent time in the service and in combat) so you could have the authority to beat up on a woman for expressing her views - in fact, we did it so that she COULD express her views - even if her view is that she hates us. I'm no fan of the "broken cross" (which really was taken from the semaphore for "N" and "D" - Nuclear Disarmament, and was taken over by the "Peace Movement" in the Vietnam era, just like they hijacked Churchill's "V for Victory" hand symbol into the "peace sign."

Mama's Note: Subsequent stories last week indicate that the "homeowners association" has backed down and even apologized to the lady. Funny what some publicity will do for you.

Free Speech and National Tyranny (Our British Cousins):
UK: Police want power to crack down on offensive demo chants and slogans
Guardian [UK]
"Police are to demand new powers to arrest protesters for causing offence through the words they chant and the slogans on their placards and even headbands. The country's biggest force, the Metropolitan police, is to lobby the attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, because officers believe that large sections of the population have become increasingly politicized, and there is a growing sense that the current restrictions on demonstrations are too light. Trouble at recent protests involving Islamic extremists has galvanized the Met's assistant commissioner, Tarique Ghaffur, into planning a crackdown. ... The police want powers to proscribe protest chants and slogans on placards, banners and headbands. Human rights experts say that such powers could also be used against protesters such as animal rights and anti-globalisation activists. The civil rights group Liberty said the powers would make the police 'censors in chief.'" (11/27/06)

Well, I am sure that large numbers of people are becoming alarmed by the rapid deterioration of British society and their liberties as Englishmen, Welshmen, and Scots, Mr. Ghaffur, but you really think taking MORE liberty away is the answer? You are just speeding up the day when words will not be enough and it will again be guns, bombs, and now, missiles, doing the talking.

Free Speech and the Culture Wars:
UK: Atheist takes fight against religion into the classroom
Independent [UK]
"Richard Dawkins, the Oxford geneticist, best-selling author and campaigning atheist, is to take his battle against God into Britain's schools after setting up a foundation to counter the religious indoctrination of young people. The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Science and Reason will subsidise books, pamphlets and DVDs for teachers to fight the 'educational scandal' that has seen the growth in popularity of 'pseudo science' and 'irrational' ideas. The foundation will also conduct research into what makes some people more susceptible to religious ideas than others and whether young people are particularly vulnerable." (11/27/06)

Believe it or not, I once had a lot of respect for Dawkins, putting him up there with Sir Fredrick Hoyle and a good many other folks whom I respect in spite of not agreeing with them. But like Sagan and a whole host of other "progressive humanists" he isn't content to have free speech and civil debate - he wants to ram his beliefs down everyone's throats. Last week, it was Elton John that wanted to outlaw religion - now Dawkins just wants to impose his own on the schools.

Mama's Note: I've come to the conclusion that aggression - the initiation of force - is the true root of all evil. The "love of money" comes out of the same sickness, of course, but aggression is at the bottom of it.

Home Front:
Native American? [sic-AmerInd] The tribe says no
USA Today
Native American [sic-AmerInd]tribes are facing allegations of greed and racism as they purge members from their rolls and deny the applications of others. The expulsions have sent tremors through Indian country. Thousands of Native Americans have lost their cultural identities and access to tribal benefits, such as medical care, housing and education. Certain gaming tribes divide casino profits among members, in some cases thousands of dollars a month per person. Those expelled lose their cut. Tribal officials say they're protecting legitimate members by making sure everyone in the tribe is qualified. As sovereign nations, tribes have the final say in who can - and cannot - join. Each tribe determines what degree of Indian blood is necessary for membership, a requirement that varies among the 561 federally recognized tribes.

As the article states, every tribe is empowered to set its own standards for blood quantum - and therefore, to some degree, its own standards for who is "enrolled" - that is, a citizen of what is, by international law, a sovereign nation. This amount is usually 1/4 or 1/8, but sometimes as much as 5/8. The US (that is, the BIA) does interfere improperly by even requiring blood quantum (many tribes have a long-established practice of adoption), but for the most part the tribes do what they want. And like Anglo governments, many AmerInd are corrupt but it is THEIR people's business to clean them up, not the US or a State, or anyone else.

Mama's Note: Interesting that the "AmerInd" folks are somehow "sovereign" when the rest of us are patently not... Of course, they are bound by at least most of the same insane "laws" and must live with the same "war on__" as the rest of us. We'll all be better off when we're ALL "sovereign" individuals with just one law: non-aggression.

Home Front:
AP Exclusive: government quietly rates millions of travelers for terrorism potential
Kenai Peninsula Clarion
"Without notifying the public, federal agents for the past four years have assigned millions of international travelers, including Americans, computer-generated scores rating the risk they pose of being terrorists or criminals. The travelers are not allowed to see or directly challenge these risk assessments, which the government intends to keep on file for 40 years. The scores are assigned to people entering and leaving the United States after computers assess their travel records, including where they are from, how they paid for tickets, their motor vehicle records, past one-way travel, seating preference and what kind of meal they ordered." (11/30/06)

Are you on this list? I know my family is sure to be on it. And we apparently can't do anything to remove it either.

Mama's Note: I'm probably on more lists than you can shake a stick at. You can't ever know what lists you are on either, much less get off of them.

Home Front:
Wrongly accused man settles bomb suit
USA Today
"The federal government has agreed to pay an Oregon lawyer $2 million to settle part of a lawsuit he filed after the FBI misidentified a fingerprint and wrongly arrested him in the 2004 Madrid terrorist bombings. 'The pain and torture and humiliation that this (case) has caused my family is hard to put into words,' Brandon Mayfield said after the settlement was announced Wednesday. Mayfield was arrested in May 2004 on the basis of a fingerprint found on a bag of detonators in Madrid that was mistakenly matched to him after the March 11, 2004, train bombings that killed 191 people and wounded more than 1,500." (11/29/06)

It took a long time to get them off his back, but this appears to be either too high or too low - too high if it is just to pay for his lost time, expenses, etc.; and too low if it is supposed to punish the government for making a stupid mistake.

Mama's Note: Whatever the amount, the worst of it is that those who made the "mistake" are not the ones paying for it. You and I, the ordinary tax victims are the only ones footing the bill. The criminals in government, on the other hand, get PAID for it. I've not read a single word about these goons even having their hands slapped.

Home Front:
Police investigate threat at Lincoln Memorial
Fox News
"The FBI is helping the U.S. Park Police and Washington, D.C. police investigate what is described as the discovery of an 'anthrax threat letter' and a suspicious package at the Lincoln Memorial. A strange liquid was found in the women's restroom on the property Monday afternoon. Authorities would not confirm what the note said or what the substance may have been. There are no reports of anyone being sick, nor have any ambulances been called. One citizen reported seeing a suspicious bottle, which police never found. There was a letter in a clear plastic sleeve with threatening language found in the restroom, along with a thermos found on the memorial steps. After testing, the fire department later determined that the substance in the thermos was not harmful." (11/27/06)

Snipe hunting in the nation's capital. How are thousands of people negatively impacted by this? But at the same time, think of all the government agencies with their knickers in a knot who therefore didn't have time to go out and harass people.

Mama's Note: The great Keystone Kops kapers just keep rolling along... but of course they just recruit more goons to go out and harass people.

Home Front:
Justice Department eyes spy program
Pocatello Idaho State Journal
"The Justice Department has begun an internal investigation into its handling of information gathered in the government's domestic spying program. However, Democrats criticized the review as too narrow to determine whether the program violated federal law. The inquiry by Glenn A. Fine, the department's inspector general, will focus on the role of Justice prosecutors and agents in carrying out the warrantless surveillance program run by the National Security Agency." (11/27/06)

Exactly what good it will do to have the Justice Department investigate is beyond me. Like having the Undersheriff investigate the Sheriff for corruption.

Imperial Courts:
Serb nationalist fails to show at war crimes trial
Independent [UK]
"One of Serbia's most infamous paramilitary leaders boycotted the start of his war crimes trial in The Hague yesterday. Vojislav Seselj is accused of unleashing a bloody campaign of persecution, extermination, murder and atrocities against non-Serbs in Croatia and Bosnia. Mr. Seselj, 52, one of the most prominent political figures in the Yugoslav war crimes tribunal's custody, claimed he was too weak to attend trial after being on hunger strike for the past fortnight in protest at what he called the 'prejudiced' court. After yesterday's no-show, the presiding judge Alphons Orie said he had permanently lost his right to defend himself." (11/28/06)

Interesting, isn't it, how a man can "permanently" lose his right to defend himself? Makes you think the claim of a prejudiced court has some basis in fact.

Media Panic:
Ex-spy's poison on the Internet
San Francisco Chronicle
"It's one of the deadliest imaginable poisons, a radioactive substance about 100 billion times as deadly as cyanide -- and a Web site run by a physicist and flying saucer enthusiast offers to sell you a trace amount of it for $69 and send it via the U.S. Postal Service or UPS. Contrary to early news reports, polonium-210 -- the poison suspected in the death of an ex-Russian spy in England -- is not some exotic material available solely from nuclear laboratories. The isotope is available from firms that sell it for lawful and legitimate uses in industry, such as removing static electricity from machinery and photographic film. If ingested in large enough amounts, polonium-210 causes a hideous death." (11/28/06)

Although I am glad that the Chron did some investigation and printed this, the presentation is that of a panicked response: this strikes me as the opening of a campaign to ban the ownership of this evil, evil stuff.

Mama's Note: Have you ever witnessed the "hideous death" of a person treated with gallons of chemotherapy for a terminal cancer? I have, many times over a 20 year nursing career. I can't imagine how this Russian spy's death could be any worse. Let's "ban" chemotherapy too...

Mesopotamian Front:
Iraqi [sic- Mesopotamian] leaders plead for killing to halt
Las Vegas Review Journal
"Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish leaders called Sunday for an end to Iraq's sectarian conflict and vowed to track down those responsible for the war's deadliest attack. But as they went on national television to try to keep Iraq from sliding into an all-out civil war, fighting between Iraqi security forces and Sunni Arab insurgents raged for a second day in Baqouba, the capital of Diyala province north of Baghdad." (11/26/06)

This properly should say "some" Sunni and Shi'a leaders - I might believe that most Kurdish leaders are not urging their people to go out and kill heretics or infidels or farengi, but many Sunni and Shi'a leaders are the ones coordinating and promoting the killing.

Mesopotamian Front:
Bush nixes suggestions Iraq [sic-Mesopotamia] in civil war
Great Falls Tribune
"Under intense pressure to change course, President Bush on Tuesday rejected suggestions Iraq has fallen into civil war and vowed not to pull U.S. troops out 'until the mission is complete.' At the opening of a NATO summit, Bush also urged allies to increase their forces in Afghanistan to confront a strengthening Taliban insurgency. On the eve of his visit to Jordan for meetings with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Bush portrayed the battles in both Afghanistan and Iraq as central fronts in a war 'against the extremists who desire safe havens and are willing to kill innocents anywhere to achieve their objectives.'" (11/28/06)

The "suggestions" were of course NBC's decision to start calling it a civil war - no doubt leading the rest of the mainstream media in the same way. Although I've about decided that last week's sectarian murder of more than 200 innocent people was right on the verge of civil war, and is certainly the level of violence found in civil wars, these are NOT force on force engagements. These are tit-for-tat attacks on civilians - murders, not battles in a civil war. Neither side is organizing any sort of government - and not really fighting for control of the existing government - they are just killing enemies, and a lot of innocent bystanders. So it probably still isn't quite a civil war, but neither is it an "insurgency."

Mama's Note: Seems we need a whole new term to describe this thing... but maybe not. "Insanity" seems to fill the bill. Short and simple. The bottom line, however, is that the US can't stop or fix it, now or ever.

Mesopotamian Front:
Air Force jet crashes in Iraqi province
Tulsa World
"Mortar rounds crashed into an oil processing facility near the northern city of Kirkuk on Monday, igniting a huge blaze, and a U.S. Air Force jet with one pilot crashed while supporting American soldiers fighting in Anbar province, a hotbed of Iraq's Sunni Arab insurgency. The government fully lifted a curfew on Monday, allowing vehicles back on the roads and reopening the international airport on the fourth day after suspected Sunni insurgents used bombs and mortars to kill more than 200 people in Sadr City, a large Shiite slum, in the worst attack by militants in the war." (11/27/06)

"Militants" is also not, in my opinion, an acceptable term for murderers. But things have cooled off from last week, and the claim of "civil war" more in doubt as a result.

Mesopotamian Front:
Panel reaches deal on US-Iraq policy
Port Clinton News Herald
"A bipartisan commission, under pressure to offer a U.S. exit strategy for the increasingly unpopular war in Iraq, has reached a consensus and will announce its recommendations next week, the group's cochairman said Wednesday. Former Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Ind., declined to disclose any specifics about the Iraq Study Group's decisions." (11/30/06)

Supposedly, it calls for an immediate start of a gradual drawdown - and I have to wonder if it is the same kind of drawdown we've had in Germany from 1945 to the present?

Mesopotamian Front:
Bush, Iraqi PM al-Maliki meet in Jordan
Kalispell Daily Inter Lake
"President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on Thursday opened talks originally set for the day before but canceled following disclosure of U.S. doubts about the Iraqi leader's capabilities and a Baghdad protest of his attendance. Instead of talks over two days, the stunning turn of events found Bush and al-Maliki meeting only Thursday for a working breakfast and a longer session afterward. The Iraqi prime minister came to Bush's hotel, and the pair were to appear before reporters at the end of nearly two and a half hours together." (11/29/06)

Keeping in mind "Brownie" and Rumsfeld, al-Maliki is probably packing right now: having Bush complement you is apparently a sure sign you are going to get sacked.

Mama's Note: I heard a lot of newspeople spinning their wheels about this last week. Nobody seemed to be able to make any sense of it, but the bottom line seemed to be another case of foot in mouth disease for the idiot in chief. Nice going, dumbo... not that it matters too much how many of your puppets you piss off.

Mesopotamian Front:
Iraq's hard truths shape general's new battle plan
Boston Globe
"When Lieutenant General David Petraeus was reassigned last year from a top command in Iraq to this sprawling Army complex [Fort Leonard Wood?] in the heartland where new leaders are trained, many in the military saw it as a move to sideline a potential critic from Pentagon decision-making. Petraeus seized on the opportunity to think -- about how the war has been waged and how it should have been. As commander of the 101st Airborne Division, and later as the commander in charge of training Iraqi forces, Petraeus had gained 'ground truth,' as it is called in the military, about taking on the deadly and confounding insurgency that emerged after the swift, early victory in the campaign against Baghdad." (11/29/06)

One reason to rotate troops AND leaders in and out of combat zones. The Globe, of course, makes this seem to be the mere accident of good luck as the result of a secret move to punish someone.

Murdering scum and Local Tyranny:
FL: Guards, nurse charged in "boot camp" killing
Houston Chronicle
"Gina Jones has buried her son twice in the past year. News that eight former employees of a boot camp for juveniles were charged Tuesday in his death finally gave her something to celebrate. 'Today is a good day for me,' Jones said. 'I'm finally getting justice.' In the past 11 months, Jones has repeatedly seen on television a surveillance video showing seven guards beating and kicking her son, 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson, during a 30-minute altercation at the Bay County sheriff's camp in Panama City. A nurse is seen doing nothing to help him. The boy died at a Pensacola hospital the next day. The seven guards and the nurse face as much as 30 years in prison if convicted on charges of aggravated battery of a child. Bail was set at $25,000 for each, and they will be arraigned in mid-January, a prosecutor's office official said." (11/29/06)

Is there any reason at all for an inmate to be beaten to death - much less a 14-year-old? Do I expect these scum to pay for their crime? Hardly - but there is a chance that they won't be able to do it to another teen. If child molesters can be made permanent pariahs, then so should these people.

Mama's Note: I will agree, just as soon as they are convicted by a jury of their peers... Innocent until proven guilty applies to the worst scum on the planet.

North American Union Thugs:
Brawl, standoff in Mexican Congress
Chicago Tribune
"Lawmakers wrestled, slapped each other and tumbled across the floor of Mexico's Congress after opposition legislators threatened to block the inauguration of the incoming president, whom they accuse of stealing the election. By late Tuesday, the brawl had turned into a tense standoff between congressmen of President-elect Felipe Calderon's conservative party -- who want him to take the oath of office in Congress -- and opposition leftists who have vowed to block the swearing-in ceremony." (11/29/06)

Sounds like another step on the way to a complete collapse of Mexican government and society.

Mama's Note: Complete collapse is highly unlikely since new dictators and strong men are always crowding the wings in a situation like this, but it would be nice if it could happen. Maybe then the people would discover that their lives were a thousand times better without the "boss." Unfortunately, it's a "chicken and egg" deal that shows no signs of ending soon. The people have been convinced (just as have most of the people of the world) that, somehow, they really need these criminals to "rule" them and "keep them safe" from whatever...

North American Union:
Cuba: Sick Castro misses birthday celebrations
Guardian [UK]
"New doubts were raised today about the health of the Cuban leader, Fidel Castro, after he failed to attend the launch party last night of a delayed five-day national celebration to mark his 80th birthday. In a message read out to a gathering of 5,000 people in Havana's Karl Marx theatre, Mr. Castro said he was not well enough to be at the gathering. The message indicates that he is far from recovered from a mysterious ailment that in late July forced him a to hand power over to his brother Raul. The Cuban leader turned 80 on August 13 but delayed his birthday celebrations as he recovered from surgery two weeks earlier for intestinal bleeding. Mr. Castro, who has not been seen in public for four months, wanted the delayed birthday celebrations to be held on December 2, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the date when he and fellow rebels landed by boat in Cuba to launch their revolution." (11/29/06)

We'll see if he shows up on the 2nd - but it seems that he is gradually declining, and nothing is being done that is obvious to prepare for the best opportunity in two generations to end communism in Cuba.

Mama's Note: He didn't make it. He's not been seen in public since July and his condition is a "state secret." A friend of Pol, an ex-pat from Cuba says he is watching the whole situation closely and will write about it when the time comes.

North American Union:
Biden: Blame immigration woes on Mexico
Winston-Salem Journal
"Sen. Joe Biden, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's incoming chairman, wants to get tough with Mexico, calling it an 'erstwhile democracy' with a 'corrupt system' responsible for illegal immigration and drug problems in the U.S. Biden, D-Del., was in Columbia on Monday in his first postelection trip to this first-in-the-South presidential primary state as he continues to line up support for his presidential bid." (11/27/06)

To me, what Biden is saying is nothing but the truth. Mexico is the inheritor and banner-bearer for 1300 years of Spanish history, with its merger of military and civilian government, its corruption and its authoritarian nature. And it is doomed to civil war, which will make the immigration north that much larger.

North American Union:
Bush seeks unity on immigration
Boston Globe
"The White House is reaching out to leading congressional Democrats on the issue of overhauling immigration, hoping to build a bipartisan coalition to support a 'guest worker' program and provide a path to legalized status for many undocumented immigrants, lawmakers and administration officials said. President Bush has expressed an eagerness to work with Democrats on the issue in private meetings with lawmakers and in public statements, as he seeks to strike a new tone with Democrats who will be in control of Congress for the final two years of his presidency. The president's interest in the issue is getting a warm reception from members of both parties in Congress, particularly in the Senate, where a bill reflecting the president's priorities passed this year only to die in negotiations with the House." (11/27/06)

Bush has clearly indicated, for his entire time in office, that he intends to have such a thing - and it may be the one thing he does that lasts (for bad or good) in his eight years in office. Pathetic, isn't it?

Our Imperial Courts
FEMA must resume Katrina housing aid
MSNBC
"A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency to immediately resume making housing benefits available to the thousands of evacuees of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. U.S. District Judge Richard Leon said FEMA failed to adequately explain why it ended the 18-month housing assistance program for people who lost their homes in the 2005 storm." (11/29/06)

This blackrobe claims that they had no warning and that FEMA must individually explain to each welfare recipient why and when they will stop getting paid. He appears to make a presumption that FEMA must continue to pay until it can demonstrate that there is no reason to pay. This decision is unbelievably stupid.

Mama's Note: What makes the folks caught with their pants down in New Orleans, etc. any different than the many thousands of others who lose their homes from one thing or another? Nothing, of course. The bureaucrats (judges included) have no problem with including one group after another in their welfare schemes. It all adds up to job security for them, after all. That's the whole point to everything they do.

Our Imperial Courts:
High court to hear pivotal global warming case
MSNBC
"The Supreme Court hears arguments this week in a case that could determine whether the Bush administration must change course in how it deals with the threat of global warming. A dozen states as well as environmental groups and large cities are trying to convince the court that the Environmental Protection Agency must regulate, as a matter of public health, the amount of carbon dioxide that comes from vehicles." (11/26/06)

I expect the opponents to get just as fair a trial on global warming as anti-evolution advocates have gotten since the Monkey Trial. It won't be the first time a government body has put junk science into the catbird's seat, of course, and won't be the last, either.

Mama's Note: Carbon dioxide is not a "pollutant," it's plant food... If we are truly lucky, the economy will collapse before they get started on this insanity.

Our Imperial Courts:
US ordered to help blind tell bills apart
MSNBC
"The government discriminates against blind people by printing money that all looks and feels the same, a federal judge said Tuesday in a ruling that could change the face of American currency. U.S. District Judge James Robertson ordered the Treasury Department to come up with ways for the blind to tell bills apart. He said he wouldn't tell officials how to fix the problem, but he ordered them to begin working on it." (11/28/06)

This does NOT seem to be in the purview of the courts, but then, the government (or a government-controlled corporation) shouldn't be in the business of printing money. Coins are readily used by blind people, because of differences in shape and size (shucks, even sighted people can tell coins by size and shape). If we used real money, this would be no problem.

Our Imperial Courts:
Judge strikes down Bush on terror groups
Orangeburg Times and Democrat
"A federal judge struck down President Bush's authority to designate groups as terrorists, saying his post-Sept. 11 executive order was unconstitutionally vague, according to a ruling released Tuesday. The Humanitarian Law Project had challenged Bush's order, which blocked all the assets of groups or individuals he named as 'specially designated global terrorists' after the 2001 terrorist attacks." (11/28/06)

The problem with this decision is that it accepts "executive orders" as constitutional, and only the content as "unconstitutionally vague." Executive orders are all too often the equivalent of imperial decrees - laws written by an executive officer who HAS no lawmaking ability, according to the Constitution.

Mama's Note: And I'm sure the terrorist in chief is going to shake in his boots over this "decision" too. He's going to simply end all of this illegal activity because the court said "no no." In our dreams...

Our Imperial Courts:
Seven million in US "justice" system
Miami Herald
"A record 7 million people -- or one in every 32 American adults -- were behind bars, on probation or on parole by the end of last year, according to the Justice Department. Of those, 2.2 million were in prison or jail, an increase of 2.7 percent over the previous year, according to a report released Wednesday. More than 4.1 million people were on probation and 784,208 were on parole at the end of 2005. Prison releases are increasing, but admissions are increasing more." (11/29/06)

This merely confirms what libertarians already know and have been saying for years: more and more people under the direct thumb of the feds as each year passes. And more pork in building new jails and hiring all these people to operate them.

Mama's Note: As Ayn Rand said (paraphrased): You can't rule honest men. If there are not enough criminals, one merely make more things "criminal."

The seven million now enmeshed in the process are only those who have been charged with a "crime." There are so many "laws," and so many of them contradictory, that any of us can be taken into the jaws of this death trap almost at a moment's notice. The only question is just how long we're going to stand for this state of affairs.

Our Imperial Courts:
Court affirms $10 billion Philip Morris ruling
CNN
"The Supreme Court on Monday sided with Philip Morris USA, refusing to disturb a court ruling that threw out a $10.1 billion verdict over the company's 'light' cigarettes. The court issued its order without comment. Last year, the Illinois Supreme Court threw out the massive fraud judgment against Philip Morris, a unit of the Altria Group Inc., in a class-action lawsuit involving 'light' cigarettes." (11/27/06)

A strange victory, but one surely good. Like lawsuits over scalding coffee and how much avocado is in a sauce, this doesn't merit the time wasted on it.

Our Right to Defend Ourselves against Local Tyranny.
GA: Cops suspended after murdering 92-year-old
Sarasota Herald Tribune
"The police chief placed all eight members of a narcotics investigation team on leave Monday after a confidential informant said they had asked him to lie during the investigation of the death of an 88-year-old [sic] woman, shot and killed by police officers during a drug raid last Tuesday. Chief Richard J. Pennington said the Federal Bureau of Investigation would investigate the death of the woman, Kathryn Johnston, who was killed after she fired at three officers who breached the door of her small house, with its green shutters and a wheelchair ramp. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is also examining the case." (11/28/06)

Kathryn Johnson's name is placed upon the roll of martyrs of liberty - and these Georgian thugs deserve to also water the tree of liberty. Hopefully, before that time comes, they will have to compensate for her murder in other ways.

Mama's Note: I'm glad it wasn't totally swept under the rug, though I don't expect to see any justice done, of course. One thing I'd like to figure out, however, is why about half of the accounts say Kathryn was 92, and the other half say 88. This story, as with some others, quotes BOTH ages! Was she 92 or 88? If they can't get that little detail right, makes you wonder about any of the rest of it...

Tech and Medical Issues
Russia Will Develop Space Elevators
Space War Daily
Nikolai Sevastyanov, president of the Energia Rocket and Space Corporation, said Russia will build the first permanent lunar base in 2015. NASA managers claim that U.S. astronauts will land on the Moon in 2018 and manned lunar bases will subsequently be established. Chinese scientists are also spotlighting their intention to exploit the Moon's natural resources.

Great article! Apparently Energia (the old Korolov Design Bureau) is seriously talking about a way to avoid the current 1% problem (99% of a chemical rocket and its capacity is necessary to send 1% into interplanetary orbits). Good news for freedom.

Mama's Note: Elevators? I'll have to go back and read the whole thing later. Don't think I want to be stuck between the top floors of THAT elevator!

Tech and Medical Issues:
GM plans plug-in, battery-powered car
Baltimore Sun
"General Motors Corp. will resurrect it with a plug-in version of the Saturn Vue sport utility vehicle, said G. Richard Wagoner Jr., GM's chairman and chief executive. He wouldn't say when it would be ready for sale. 'I can't give you a date but can tell you this is a top priority program for GM given the huge potential it offers for fuel economy improvement,' Wagoner said at the opening of the Los Angeles Auto Show. Wagoner estimated a Vue plug-in could obtain better than 45 percent higher mileage than a gas-driven Vue, which would give it a city rating of nearly 70 miles per gallon." (11/30/06)

Before believing their claims, I'd like to see exactly how they convert energy use to calculate this so-called 70 mpg. I have my doubts about the gas-driven Vue's claimed consumption, as well. At the same time, having a vehicle that can be easily plugged in, instead of having to refuel, would be nice in many places - though it is quite a limit on an SUV.

Mama's Note: Doesn't sound good to me at all. I've spent too many years driving in places where there is NO outlet to plug into!! Somehow, running out of "battery" on a lonesome stretch of Wyoming highway just doesn't appeal to me much, especially in winter!

Tech Issues:
US warns of possible financial cyber attack
MSNBC
"The U.S. government has notified U.S. private financial services of a call for a cyber attack against U.S. online stock trading and banking Web sites beginning Friday, officials said. Almost immediately, however, however, other officials downplayed the risk of any danger to U.S. financial institutions. NBC News' Pete Williams reported that a unit of the Homeland Security Department sent out an advisory to banks, saying that a jihadist Web site posted an 'aspirational' item, which said it would be a good thing to carry out cyber attacks on the U.S. Financial industry to retaliate for abuses at the Guantanamo Bay prison facility." (11/30/06)

I'd much rather have the information, than NOT hear what might be happening.

Theft by Government:
AZ: Valley cities battle for big-league teams
Arizona Republic
"The bid to bring more baseball teams to the Cactus League is pitting two West Valley cities against each other as Glendale and Goodyear battle for public financing. Glendale is courting the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago White Sox, two storied major-league teams. Goodyear, meanwhile, has a commitment from the Cleveland Indians and continues to search for a second team to make its proposal more attractive. In the middle and faced with intense political pressure is the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority, which oversees a limited pot of tax money for spring training facilities in Maricopa County. A committee of the sports authority began exploring Goodyear's proposal two weeks ago. Glendale is expected to submit its proposal to the agency this week. The authority was created, in part, to renovate Maricopa County's spring training facilities and build the Surprise stadium." (11/28/06)

Yet another example of using taxpayer's money for "economic development" that amounts to nothing more than lining a very few pockets with a lot of money, while furthering the creation of more boondoggles. Any industry that can afford to pay its workers multiple millions is making enough money to build its own facilities.

Theft by Government:
CA: City plans to steal land from Wal-Mart
Fox Reno
"The city of Hercules is planning to file a lawsuit of eminent domain in Contra Costa County Superior Court in Martinez by the end of this week in an effort to [steal] a 17-acre parcel of land in central Hercules currently owned by Wal-Mart Stores Inc., according to City Attorney Alfred Cabral. The city council voted unanimously Tuesday night in what might be a first for a redevelopment agency to invoke the city's eminent domain authority to [steal] land from a commercial developer, Cabral said. Historically, redevelopment agencies have used eminent domain to [steal] residential property to use for commercial development that will bring more revenue to the city, Cabral said. ... The city wanted a neighborhood shopping center and had zoned the property for that purpose, not for a big box store, Cabral said." (11/29/06)

Theft as a tool of social engineering? Well, that is what taxes have been for a long, long time.

Theft by Government:
Federal fund gives millions to charity tax cheats
MSNBC
"When the U.S. government's version of the United Way handed out hundreds of millions of dollars to charities last year, its largesse extended to more than 1,280 nonprofit organizations that collectively owe $36 million in taxes dating back as far as 1988. At the same time, other federal agencies gave $1.6 billion in grants to at least 170 of the delinquent charities, which account for nearly 6 percent of the approximately 22,700 charities funded by the Combined Federal Campaign." (11/27/06)

Frankly, we should not be surprised by this - agencies that are willing to accept government money in the first place are no doubt crooked in other ways. What this story does NOT point out, however, is that money in the CFC or Combined Federal Campaign does NOT come from the various agencies (at least not directly) - it is money donated by government employees, including soldiers, from their own paychecks - and therefore, they have the right to donate to whom they will.

Theft by Government:
Tax issue presents dilemma for Dems
San Francisco Chronicle
"After six years of railing against Republican tax cuts for the rich and fiscal irresponsibility, Democrats will find themselves come January under enormous pressure to pass a hugely expensive tax cut -- without any way to make up the revenue. The alternative minimum tax, which slaps an extra income tax on many higher-income people, has become a political monster for Democrats, threatening to clobber prosperous professionals in such Democratic strongholds as California and New York." [FND Editor's note: Can you say "irony," boys and girls? I knew that you could! If they do come through here, as they clearly should, the Dems might campaign as "tax-cutters" next time! But will they also live up to the promise to cut the spending? Stay tuned - SAT] (11/27/06)

Couldn't happen to a better bunch. But one of the more stupid positions of the Democratic Party in the past 40+ years has been this harping on "soaking the rich" by raising taxes - especially when history has proved time after time that CUTS in tax rates result in INCREASES in taxes actually raise.

Mama's Note: Which, of course, all begs the point that the money belongs to those who earn it, therefore government doesn't "lose" anything if people retain more of what they own in the first place. Unfortunately, as long as government has the power to steal, and the power to spend, this will be mostly an academic discussion.

Theft by Government:
TN: State could require drivers to pay gas tax by the mile
Tennessean
"Drivers could be paying their share of the state's highway improvements based on how far they're driving, under an idea being floated by some state legislators. The system would work something like this: You pull up to a gas station, and a transmitter in your car tells the pump how far you've driven since you last filled your tank. The state charges you pennies for each mile you've traveled instead of the usual 21.4 cents per gallon you've been paying with every fill-up. Members of the Senate Transportation Committee have been informally discussing the possibility of a 'user fee' system, in which a Global Positioning System device would transmit your mileage to a gas pump and charge accordingly." [FND Editor's note: This should annoy the economy-car folks, while delighting the SUV gas-gulpers; hard to see it passing, even if it does represent a move of sorts toward "user fees." - SAT] (11/30/06)

I suspect that the system proposed, like the one considered either in WA or OR, is going to be sophisticated enough that the politicians that set the fees will be able to suitably penalize trucks, SUVs, and anything else they don't like, and so do "good" to the system. And the system might be able to figure out that of the last 750 miles you drove since buying gasoline in Tennessee, that 550 of it was driving in Virginia, and so you shouldn't have to pay Tennessee (but don't count on it). The point is, such a system would be possible today, using that quaint little thing called an odometer built (by law) into every vehicle on the road. The real danger of this is the GPS and the downloading of information on exactly where you were, when: it would be easy enough to have a subroutine that calculates that you traveled the 75 miles from Nashville to town X in only 50 minutes, resulting in a speed of 90 mph, which is 15 miles over the speed limit, and tack on an extra $150 traffic fine and six points - or whatever. Or show that you really did park in front of Ms. Valley-Girl's Bordello three nights a week from nine until midnight, the same time your credit card bill (for the same credit card you bought gas on) showed a $75 charge for "gift wrapping."

Mama's Note: Steve seems to have missed the massive invasion of privacy this would represent. This isn't about maintaining or building roads. This is about control, just as it is with everything else government does.

Thugs
Pelosi scuttles pick for key House post
New York Daily News
"Incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi yesterday dumped the top contender for House Intelligence Committee chairman because of past ethics problems. Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) said he was 'disappointed,' but promised to seek 'better and bigger opportunities in a Democratic Congress.' ... A former federal judge, Hastings was acquitted of bribery charges in 1983, but some judicial colleagues alleged he had fabricated his defense. The House impeached him in 1988, and the Senate removed him from the bench the next year." (11/29/06)

Fortunately, the damage to the Pelosi speakership has already been done - a Judicial AND a Legislative thug has been appointed to a very sensitive position; demonstrating that party loyalty and political correctness are more important than ethics, morals, or national security.

Thugs and the Home Front:
Hagel: U.S. should pullout of 'mismanaged' Iraq
CNN
"A leading Republican senator called Sunday for American troops to begin withdrawing from Iraq, declaring that a U.S. pullout is needed to head off 'impending disaster' in the nearly 4-year-old war. 'There will be no victory or defeat for the United States in Iraq,' Sen. Chuck Hagel wrote in Sunday's edition of The Washington Post. Instead, he said, President Bush should use the upcoming report from a bipartisan panel led by former Secretary of State James Baker to begin laying the groundwork for a "phased withdrawal" of U.S. Troops" (11/26/06)

Like rats running off a sinking ship, eh? We made the mess so lets just make more of a mess, let some other Saddamish dictator come in, now that we've bred a couple more generations of hatred, and wait for them to really figure out how to do WMD.

Mama's Note: There doesn't seem to be any way of changing that, no matter what we do. There is nothing we can do to clean up that mess, no matter how long we stay or how many people die. What is the point of remaining?

Thugs:
Congress's pragmatic newcomers
Christian Science Monitor
"From time to time, a freshman class in Congress leaves its mark on Capitol Hill. There were the reform-minded Watergate babies of 1974. More recently came the GOP insurgent 'citizen legislators' of '94. Now, the class of '06, too, has been elected on a surge of voter discontent, and although the new class isn't as big as those two, it has the potential to leave its own stamp. If interviews with incoming freshmen are any indication, that mark will be pragmatism first, even at the expense of party loyalty, and a get-things-done sensibility. This pragmatic tone is good news for moderates in both parties, who have been marginalized in the past few Congresses." (11/24/06)

Pragmatic: a thug who values his profits over his loyalties to party and party members.

Thugs:
Reid: Ethics, stem cells atop Senate agenda
CNN
"Ethics reform, a higher minimum wage and more money for stem cell research are the top items on the Senate agenda next year, incoming Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Tuesday in an interview with The Associated Press. Reid said he will tackle those priorities after cleaning up the 'financial mess' that the outgoing Republican leadership has left. He was referring to nine long-overdue appropriations bills covering 13 Cabinet departments for the budget year that began October 1." (11/28/06)

And Reid is such a perfect person to be responsible for getting these 'priorities" passed. With his priorities, the appropriations bills will get passed in time for FY2007.

Mama's Note: Unfortunately, it doesn't matter much when they are "passed." Government doesn't have any business being involved in any kind of research, medicine, or the personal lives of people anywhere. That's what Reid and company are missing.

Thugs:
Obama to join Democrats in New Hampshire
ABC News
"Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, who is mulling a presidential bid, will make his first visit to New Hampshire next month. The Illinois senator will join the state's Democrats on Dec. 10 for a belated celebration of their big win in the midterm election. Obama has traveled to Iowa, site of the leadoff presidential caucuses, but New Hampshire hasn't been on his itinerary. Obama has gotten encouragement to seek the presidency in 2008 from fellow Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, who sent a letter to political supporters this week encouraging them to sign a 'Run, Barack, Run' petition." (11/28/06)

Obama has the potential to be an demagogue on the scale of JFK himself - a scary thought. Too bad we have to put up with this for the next two years. Sigh.

Mama's Note: From what I've read, this person is easily swayed, easily let, and says whatever he thinks others want to hear. Sounds like perfect puppet material for the Democrats. I have nightmares about seeing this fool installed with his VP Hillary. Unfortunately, none of the other options is any better, and many could be much worse. Don't choose the "lesser evil." You will always then choose evil.

Thugs:
Frist won't seek GOP nomination
Indianapolis Star
"Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist renounced a bid for the White House in 2008 on Wednesday, becoming an early dropout from the most wide-open race in decades. 'In the Bible, God tells us for everything there is a season, and for me, for now, this season of being an elected official has come to a close,' said the Tennessee Republican, a surgeon before he entered politics in 1994 Frist made his announcement as several potential GOP hopefuls were descending on Miami for the annual meeting of the Republican Governors' Association. Among them were Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., planned private meetings with governors today. ... His decision capped a 12-year career in politics marked by a speedy rise but an uncertain tenure at the peak of Senate power." (11/30/06)

Yuck. 2008 looms ahead. Frist needs to go back to the real world (if he ever really was in it - as a doctor he might have missed a lot.)

Mama's Note: A doctor? I KNEW there was something I didn't like about him, even before I knew he was a politician. How in the world Ron Paul has managed not to be destroyed by either of those is a modern miracle.

Thugs:
Bush, Webb in testy exchange
Raw Story
"President Bush and U.S. Senator-elect Jim Webb got into a testy exchange over the status of Webb's soldier son, who is serving in Iraq, The Hill is reporting. Emily Heil writes that at a White House private dinner just after the election featuring 'newly elected lawmakers,' Bush asked Webb 'how his son, a Marine lance corporal serving in Iraq, was doing.' According to a person who was present at the dinner, Webb replied to the President that he 'really wanted to see his son brought back home.' 'I didn't ask you that, I asked how he's doing,' Bush replied, according to The Hill's source. 'Webb confessed that he was so angered by this that he was tempted to slug the commander-in-chief, reported the source, but of course didn't,' writes Heil. 'It's safe to say, however, that Bush and Webb won't be taking any overseas trips together anytime soon.'" (11/29/06)

Sounds like Webb has a problem - but then, don't most politicians? I've lost track of how many times, participating in debates, that neither the Democrat nor the Republican bothered to really answer the question. And clearly, Webb's anger is itself a problem - if he is so quick to lose his temper in a situation like that, what about out in the real world?

War on Some Drugs:
Presidential candidate promises end to US counternarcotics operations
Lawrence Journal-World
"The leader in Ecuador's presidential election Monday repeated his promise to end the U.S. military's counternarcotics operations out of an airport in Manta, while his rival cried fraud. Four exit polls, including one from the Organization of American States (OAS), found that Rafael Correa, a leftist economist with a doctorate from the University of Illinois, won Sunday's runoff election by at least 13 percentage points. The OAS had 80 observers here, and its counts are traditionally very close to the actual results." (11/28/06)

Now that he has won (BBC), will this make any difference? Don't count on it. The US and other Latin American countries will put pressure on Ecuador to continue to participate.

War on Some Drugs:
MI: Pols chicken out on medical marijuana
Detroit News
"A bill to allow people with 'debilitating medical conditions' to legally use marijuana to ease their symptoms died in the Michigan Legislature on Tuesday, and backers say the issue will likely be left up to voters to decide. Following an often emotional, 90-minute hearing before a state House committee, the panel broke without taking a vote. It was the first and only hearing on the legislation, introduced a year ago. The inaction means the bill will have to be reintroduced in a new session in January." (11/29/06)

Going the ballot issue route will let the legislators play both sides of the fence, of course.

Mama's Note: These people need to look up the statistics on marijuana and note there are NO deaths attributed to it. Then they should look up steroids or any of thousands of other prescription drugs and note the death toll... It's like debating whether or not celery seed will be "allowed" in potato salad. A non issue, except for the fact that government wants every avenue possible to keep the population both terrified and under control - and the jails full.

World Wars:
FBI joins probe of Kremlin critic's radiation-poisoning death
Denver Post
"The FBI is joining the British probe into the poisoning death of a Kremlin critic, the agency announced Thursday as investigators found traces of radiation at a dozen sites in Britain and a former Russian prime minister reported symptoms consistent with poisoning. British authorities requested the involvement of the FBI, agency spokesman Richard Kolko said. FBI experts in weapons of mass destruction will assist with some of the scientific analysis, he said. There is no suspected link to the U.S. in an investigation that extends to five airliners and locations from London to Moscow." (11/30/06)

World Wars:
UK: Radiation found on planes
Seattle Times
"British authorities investigating the death of a former Russian spy have discovered low-level radiation on two British Airways planes, prompting warnings to tens of thousands of passengers who traveled on those aircraft and on a third plane grounded in Moscow, company officials said Wednesday. ... The radiation found on the planes is an important new clue for investigators trying to solve an extraordinary case that has caused political tensions between Britain and Russia. It may help determine where the material that killed Litvinenko, called polonium-210, came from as detectives follow the trail of the radioactive substance. Traces of radiation also have been found at his London home, as well as a central London restaurant, a hotel and two offices that he visited Nov. 1, the day he fell violently ill. Litvinenko's supporters -- and the former spy himself in a deathbed statement -- have alleged he was killed on orders from Russian President Vladimir Putin, which Kremlin officials have called nonsense." (11/30/06)

With the FBI now involved, the chances of getting anything resolved have just dropped again. And everyone is panicking over it.

World Wars:
Senior EU officials accused of covering up secret CIA prisons
Independent [UK]
" European countries - including Britain - and senior EU officials have come in for heavy criticism for concealing the truth and obstructing an investigation into the transport and illegal detention of prisoners by the CIA. A draft report from the European Parliament deplores the attitude of the British Government, attacks the EU's foreign policy spokesman, Javier Solana, and complains of a lack of cooperation from many European countries." (11/29/06)

Perhaps these countries feel that the threat from the terrorists (or from the US) is a greater worry than the threat from the EU.

World Wars:
Pope's fence-mending trip
Christian Science Monitor
"It most likely isn't the welcome Pope Benedict XVI was expecting when his trip to Turkey was first planned. The pontiff's arrival Tuesday has been met not with open arms, but by angry demonstrators, an exodus of elected officials leaving the country for other engagements in order not to be seen with him, and a security detail even larger than that provided for George W. Bush's 2004 visit. Even the original purpose of the trip -- an opportunity to heal the 1,000-year-old schism between the Vatican and the Orthodox Church, whose spiritual leader resides in Istanbul -- has changed. Since offending Muslims in a September speech that linked Islam with violence, Pope Benedict's visit -- his first to a Muslim country -- is now being billed as a chance for him to heal another East-West divide, that between Christianity and Islam. But observers here say that the pope's image among Muslims and the political realities in Turkey will not only make that a difficult task but also turn his visit into an extremely delicate balancing act." (11/28/06)

Is it possible to "heal" this "divide?" Not without repudiating his own religion - there can be no reconciliation between Islam and any form of Christianity that even pretends to follow the Bible. The rift between Roman and Orthodox is probably not repairable either.

World Wars:
Fiji military chief gives PM 24-hour ultimatum
swissinfo [Switzerland]
"Fiji's defiant military chief gave Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase a 24-hour ultimatum on Thursday to clean up his government or face removal despite winning a raft of concessions. Suva residents were stockpiling supplies from supermarkets and cash machines were running short of money despite attempts by Qarase [to] allay fears in a national address. Military Commander Frank Bainimarama stoked those fears anew when he said crisis talks in New Zealand on Wednesday had been a failure and gave Qarase 24 hours to meet all his demands or he would start his threatened 'cleanup campaign.'" (11/30/06)

Fiji's troubles continue, as do those in many smaller nations around the world. Why are so many third-world revolutions coups? Because the military is the only part of society except the police that has not been disarmed. Of course, I have to wonder just WHY Fiji has a full-time military and not just a militia - but government can't get rid of force - it just has to have a monopoly of force.

World Wars:
Maldive arrests spark claims of state repression
Independent [UK]
"The Maldives government has begun a new crackdown on political opponents and pro-democracy activists, ordering the mass arrests of peaceful protesters and using violence and intimidation as a means of curbing dissent, a human rights group said. Hundreds of opposition activists have been arrested and many have suffered torture and beatings after being detained, Amnesty International said yesterday, adding that scores of detainees were still being held without charge in some of the country's worst jails. ... The Maldives, best known to outsiders as a luxurious holiday resort for Western tourists, has come under growing international pressure in recent years to make reforms, with rights groups accusing President Maumoon of running an autocratic state. Unprecedented antigovernment violence has flared in the streets." (11/30/06)

Like Madagascar, Zimbabwe, and many other nations, things seem to be breaking into pieces in the Maldives. For decades, the tourists and foreign governments have shored up this, and other nations, with tourist dollars and foreign aid. Now, that is no longer enough to let liberty sprout.

World Wars:
US Embassy asks Bush twins to leave Argentina
ABC News
"Amid a growing barrage of front-page headlines, U.S. embassy officials 'strongly suggested' President Bush's twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara Bush, cut short their trip to Buenos Aires because of security issues, U.S. diplomatic and security sources tell ABC News. But the girls have stayed on, celebrating their 25th birthday over the weekend and producing even more headlines about their activities. Officials say the media coverage upstaged publicity plans for the new U.S. Ambassador Anthony Wayne, who had only recently arrived in the country. Neither the White House nor the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires responded to requests for comment." (11/27/06)

The "cult of personality" so common in Communist Countries is alive and well in the US today, and in most western nations. Celebrities and those who can be made celebrities dominate the news: who cares about another stuffed shirt in the Embassy?

World Wars:
Japan Able To Develop Nuclear Weapons
Space War Daily
Japan has the ability to produce nuclear weapons but chooses not to, its foreign minister said Thursday amid debate on breaking the nuclear taboo after neighboring North Korea tested an atomic bomb. "We have the technology to develop nuclear weapons," Taro Aso, Japan's outspoken foreign minister, told a parliamentary committee. "But this doesn't mean we will immediately create nuclear weapons to possess them," Aso added.

Why not? Of course, this is assuming this isn't just disinformation and that in reality Japan doesn't already have the weapons - how many governments tell the truth?

Mama's Note: What do you bet Bush wouldn't be in a hurry to invade Japan, even if it could be proven without a doubt. Since Japan holds an awful lot of our IOUs, I suspect we're going to be VERY nice to them, no matter what.

World Wars:
India Joins BMD Club
Space War Daily
The Indian Defense Ministry announced Monday it had completed what it described as a successful test of anti-ballistic missiles off the Orissa coast. All Headline news reported From New Delhi that M. Natarajan, the scientific adviser to the Indian defence minister, told The Hindu newspaper, "With this, India has acquired the capability of air defense against the incoming ballistic missile threat. It is a significant milestone in the missile defense of the country."

Another milestone for the world at war, but perhaps (maybe, just maybe) a good one: defense is better than MAD (mutually assured destruction) when it comes to ballistic missiles and nuclear warheads - and India has at least two enemies armed with nukes: China and Pakistan.

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Nathan Barton is writing this from a wonderful place in the West, which might be in the Black Hills of South Dakota or Wyoming, or might be in one of the Four Corners States. Exactly where it is, the breezes blow with the scent of liberty, and the sound of the pines or the pinions is the sound of freedom. For thousands of years, people have fought and died for the liberty that Americans in the great spaces of the West enjoy, and he writes these commentaries in the hopes that continued generations will be able to do so, until the end of Time.

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