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Libertarian
War on the News, 30 December, '07 - 5 January, '08
Another short news week with a holiday in the middle. Welcome to 2008!
Lots of news from Africa and the Middle East/South Asia this week, though.
Afghan
front:
Deadly year in Afghanistan:
110 US soldiers killed
MSNBC
“U.S. military deaths, suicide bombings and opium production hit
record highs in 2007. Taliban militants killed more than 925 Afghan police.
But U.S. officials here insist things are looking up. The Afghan army
is assuming a larger combat role, and militants are unlikely to mount
a major offensive next spring, as was feared would happen a year ago.
Training for the Afghan police force is increasing.” (12/31/07)
110 doesn’t
sound like that many, of course, compared to Mesopotamia. And when you
get right down to it, it is a horribly logical tradeoff: the Taleban,
if not trying to retake their own home ground, would be busy killing a
lot more people in other countries, most likely including the West: another
suicide bombing – a successful one – in Madrid, London, Miami,
or Los Angeles, could easily kill 10 times that number of westerners,
even while the Taleban, with a free hand in Afghanistan and Pakistan would
be killing 20 or 30 times as many locals who don’t agree with their
rabid beliefs.
Mama's
Note: While it is certainly possible that some of these people might attack
us here, that is simply no justification for our occupation there. If
they come here, we deal with it. In the meantime, how many of their own
people they kill is none of our business, regrettable as it is.
Afghan
front:
Afghanistan: 21 killed
in latest fighting
MSNBC
“Roadside bombs and military operations in Afghanistan killed
21 people, including a coalition soldier and 14 Taliban fighters, as the
record violence that Afghanistan saw in 2007 continued into the new year,
officials said Wednesday. A roadside bomb hit a U.S.-led coalition vehicle
in eastern Khost province, killing a soldier and an Afghan interpreter,
the coalition said. The soldier’s nationality was not released, but
a majority of the troops in the east are American. Two other soldiers
were wounded.” (01/02/08)
I don’t
think anyone in Afghanistan is paying attention to the calendar, people.
The Taleban are worse than bandits, although that seems to be how they
are acting: they want more than just money or goods.
African
front and massa-wannabes:
Sudanese
Americans Challenge '08 Candidates in Iowa
CNSNews.com
Sudanese Americans rallying in Iowa on New Year’s Day urged the
U.S. presidential candidates to speak out on the situation in the northeast
African country, where a U.S. diplomat was shot and killed Tuesday...
Fat chance
that any of them would do a thing: I doubt if most of them could find
the Sudan or Darfur on a map.
African
front:
Sudan: Gunman kills US diplomat, driver
CNN
“An American diplomat working toward restoring peace in war-torn
Sudan was shot and killed along with his driver early Tuesday as he headed
home from a New Year’s party in the Sudanese capital, his family
said. U.S. Officials are working with Sudanese authorities to determine
whether it was a targeted attack or an isolated incident.” (01/01/08)
In the
past, the killing of a diplomat like this was almost a certain “casus
belli” – a cause of war. Today, though the US occupies more
and more of the world and wars on more and more, I expect nothing at all
to be done.
African
front:
Sudanese question witnesses
in American’s death
MSNBC
“Sudanese authorities questioned witnesses on Wednesday in the
slaying of a U.S. Diplomat killed in a driveby shooting as he returned
from a New Year’s party in the capital. One woman said she rushed
to help the badly wounded American, who pleaded, ‘I am dying, I need
help,’ the independent Al-Rai Al-Amm newspaper reported.”
(01/02/08)
At least
one woman tried to help. Of course, I have to ask what a diplomat is doing,
in a place like Khartoum, going to a New Year’s party. I do NOT think
it was an accidental shooting or a simple crime: Sudan does not want the
West to interfere with the official murder of thousands and tens of thousands
of their own “citizens.” Just as further south, a “peaceful”
country has again turned into a series of killing fields.
African
front:
Kenya: Kibaki re-elected in disputed
vote
Connecticut Post
“Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki won a second term Sunday amid allegations
that the government stole the vote, sparking deadly riots that lit up
the night sky as enraged youths torched homes and shouted ‘Kibaki
must go!’ Soon after the results were announced, the government suspended
live television broadcasts and the slums, home to tens of thousands of
opposition supporters, exploded into fresh violence. At least 15 people
were killed in fighting across the country, police and witnesses said,
although the tally was likely higher.” (12/31/07)
Could this
be the future of the United States and other western countries as elections
become more hotly contested (since the stakes are higher each and every
year) and as more and more un-integrated immigrants from the third world
(places like Kenya) fill their cities?
Mama's
Note: Quite possible in some of the "disarmed victim" zones.
Not so likely where the ordinary person is still armed.
African
front:
Kenya: Opposition
to defy protest ban
BBC News [UK]
“Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga has insisted a banned mass
march will go ahead in Nairobi on Thursday despite pleas for post-election
unrest to stop. Refusing to accept defeat to Mwai Kibaki in the 27 December
presidential election, Mr. Odinga’s party boycotted crisis talks
with the new president. The US ambassador to Nairobi has urged the two
to sit down and talk. More than 300 people have been killed and at least
70,000 driven from their homes across Kenya since Sunday.” (01/02/08)
Another
“democracy” starts to shatter, apparently, and another phase
of ethnic, racial, religious and/or government killing and dying is underway.
African
front:
Kenya: Church torched, 50 reported
killed
Columbia State
“A mob torched a church where hundreds had sought refuge Tuesday,
and witnesses said dozens of people — including children — were
burned alive or hacked to death with machetes in ethnic violence that
followed Kenya’s disputed election.” (01/01/08)
There is
no sign of the murdering and worse slowing down.
American
front:
Mexico aims to fix slow trial system
Arizona Republic
“The wheels of justice were grinding slowly at the 38th Criminal
Court in Mexico City. In a courtroom that looked like a police squad room,
defense lawyer Enrique Sepulveda was deposing a robbery witness at a glacial
pace. There was no judge, no jury, no spectators — just a desk, a
court clerk and a barred window where Sepulveda’s client strained
to hear what was going on. This is justice in Mexico: a slow, secretive
process that many experts say breeds corruption, encourages human-rights
abuses and undermines Mexicans’ faith in the rule of law. Now, lawmakers
are working on a sweeping overhaul of Mexico’s courts, a reform that
would introduce U.S.-style ‘oral trials,’ guarantee the presumption
of innocence and give new investigative powers to police. The United States
is hoping the changes will help Mexico rein in drug lords and reduce a
backlog of cases that is clogging Mexican prisons.” (01/02/08)
Sounds
pretty typically Hispanic to me: whether we are talking Spain or Portugal
or Latin America, the “justice system” is a joke. While some
of these ideas seem good, the idea of EXPANDING police powers in a Latin-heritage
government is very, very scary.
American
front:
Nicaragua:
Opposition resists Chavez-style “revolution”
Christian Science Monitor
“Emboldened by the recent defeat of the constitutional referendum
to expand Hugo Chavez’s ’21st-century socialist revolution’
in Venezuela, the opposition in Nicaragua has started to organize against
what it claims is President Daniel Ortega’s similar intentions to
consolidate power in this country. Mr. Ortega, an ally of Venezuela’s
president, has promised to implement his own version of ‘direct democracy,’
similar to the model of government in Venezuela and Cuba. The ex-Marxist
leader, whose first Sandinista government battled US-backed contras in
the 1980s, has promised that his government will deepen the country’s
democracy by ’sharing the powers’ of his presidency with the
poor people through the creation of Councils of Citizen Power (CPCs).
Opponents, however, claim that behind the rhetoric of Ortega’s ‘new
revolution in peace’ are authoritarian pretensions similar to those
of Chavez.” (01/02/08)
From what
I know of Ortega, this is undoubtedly exactly his plan; expect too many
leftists to scream in horror that the opposition is organizing.
Baboons
and spooks:
Lawmaker warned CIA not
to destroy tapes
MSNBC
“The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee warned in
a 2003 letter that destroying videotapes of terrorist interrogations would
put the CIA under a cloud of suspicion, according to a newly declassified
copy of the letter. ‘Even if the videotape does not constitute an
official record that must be preserved under the law, the videotape would
be the best proof that the written record is accurate, if such record
is called into question in the future,’ Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif.,
wrote in a Feb. 10, 2003 letter to then-CIA general counsel Scott Muller.”
(01/03/08)
It seems
that Harman felt that a begging letter was more appropriate than a law
prohibiting the CIA from doing this?
British
cousins:
UK: NHS now four
different systems
BBC News [UK]
“There are now four different NHS systems operating in the UK
since devolution, according to health chiefs. As the NHS enters its 60th
year, NHS Confederation boss Gill Morgan has told the BBC the health service
is now in a unique position in its history. Ms Morgan said while the underlying
principles of free health care still stand, patients in the UK’s
four nations are getting different services.” (01/01/08)
I rate
this as good news – decentralization, even of an evil thing like
socialist medicine, is a good thing (if not as good as ending it).
Mama's
Note: The latest I saw is that the NHS is now asking people to stay home
and do what they can to treat themselves since the clinics and hospitals
are overflowing and can't cope with the numbers. They've also got some
sort of epidemic stomach bug that is making things even worse, despite
the fact that only a tiny fraction of those affected really need any medical
intervention at all.
Canaanite
front:
What Palestinians
will do with $7.4 billion
Christian Science Monitor
“When donors met in Paris last month and awarded $7.4 billion
in aid to the Palestinians, a larger-than-expected package to be distributed
over the next three years, many in the international community showed
a new readiness to support the new Israeli-Palestinian peace push and
provide a safety net for it in the form of economic stability. Now Palestinian
and foreign observers alike are keen to see how and where the money is
spent, putting senior officials on the spot with questions of how they
intend to avoid the corruption and mismanagement that characterized the
Palestinian Authority (PA) in the past. But unlike international relief
in the past, this aid package … comes with meticulous oversight mechanisms
that make it much more difficult for money to be siphoned off or embezzled,
a senior Palestinian official says.” [Editor’s note: Since
70% of it is already going to “public salaries” who needs to
suck off further graft? - SAT] (01/04/08)
You better
not believe it: this is just more graft for corrupt, evil, conniving,
Arab politicians who seem, every day, to just look for more ways to sell
their own people out – while killing a few more Israelis (excuse
me, racist Zionist pig subhumans). Since only 30% is available for outright
graft instead of just featherbedding, I guess they have reason to be upset.
Frankly, these “donors” would do better to convert the “award”
into twenty-Euro notes and airdrop them over the West Bank for all the
good it will do to give it to the politicians.
Canaanite
front:
Murder
of Two Israelis Refocuses Attention on Palestinian Security Services
CNSNews.com
Jerusalem – The Israelis and Palestinians are taking very different
views of last week’s attack on two off-duty soldiers. Was it a crime
or a terrorist attack? The answer has political implications...
Can there
be any more of a modern oxymoron than “Palestinian Security Services”?
At the same time, how can there be any difference between a “crime”
and a “terrorist attack?” Isn’t a terrorist attack just
a specific kind of crime?
Mama's
Note: Sort of like thinking a murder is "hate crime," instead
of just a regular old murder.
Canaanite
front:
Abbas: Bush must speak out on Israeli
settlements
Raw Story
“Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said Wednesday that US President
George W. Bush must speak out against Israeli settlements during his visit
to the region next week, because they were making peace talks impossible.
‘When he arrives in the region President Bush must speak clearly
about eliminating all obstacles which are hindering negotiations and settlement
activity is the main obstacle,’ Abbas said. ‘It is impossible
for negotiations to continue as long as settlements continue,’ he
said after talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo. Bush
is due to begin a regional tour, his first at president, on January 9.”
(01/02/08)
In other
words, Abbas is demanded that the US force the Israelis to cave on one
of the major issues supposedly being discussed in the “talks.”
Chinese
front:
China
Postpones Democracy for Hong Kong – Again
CNSNews.com – Ten years after Hong Kong reverted to Chinese
rule, pro-democracy residents of the territory are reeling after Beijing
once again dashed hopes that they would soon be able to choose their leaders
directly...
Didn’t
a lot of people warn Her Majesty’s ministers that this was EXACTLY
what would happen? That they were ultimately condemning millions of Hong
Kong subjects to a future of tyrannical rule by Beijing, and indirectly
destroy the hopes of millions more Chinese on the mainland to a continued
life under Communism?
Mama's
Note: As opposed to the US, where the tyrannical rule is by "elected"
despots...
Culture
wars:
NH: “Civil
unions” takes effect
All Headline News
“Gay unions are now recognized in New Hampshire. At the stroke
of midnight on Dec. 31, the law allowing civil unions between gay and
lesbian couples became effective. Hours after the law took effect, 37
gay couples entered into civil unions at an outdoor ceremony amid below
freezing temperatures. The civil union ceremonies took place at the New
Hampshire Statehouse where the law was adopted and signed in 2007. …
New Hampshire is the fourth state to permit civil unions, but the first
to do it without a court decision or the threat of one.” (01/01/08)
At the
same time, Oregon has put a hold on this sort of thing, pending a voter
referendum later this year. I, for the life of me, cannot understand how
libertarians can claim this is some sort of “apartheid scheme.”
What it is, is more government interference in what is none of government’s
business, and all for the sake of making some people more eligible for
government welfare benefits.
Mama's
Note: Exactly! I get so tired of "libertarians" yammering about
this as if it was wonderful. Why in the world do they care what or whom
anyone "marries" or sets up housekeeping with? As long as I'm
not being robbed to subsidize it, anyone can marry anyone or anything
they please. It's none of my business and I don't want it to be.
Culture wars:
FL:
Scientists euthanize, study whale
Sarasota Herald Tribune
“Marine researchers euthanized a sick female sperm whale early
Tuesday. It had been moving through the shallow waters of Tampa Bay. The
animal’s carcass was towed by boat to Fort De Soto Park, where researchers
conducted a necropsy to determine what had ailed the marine mammal. There
are about 1,300 of the species in the Gulf of Mexico. The decision to
euthanize the whale came after researchers from Mote Marine Laboratory
and several other agencies spent much of Monday tracking the animal and
saw that its health was gradually declining.” (01/02/08)
Oh? What
happened to the idea that we humans are supposed to treat whales as fellow
sentient beings? I guess if you can kill a unborn baby or euthanize a
failing elderly man, you can do the same to a whale because obviously
it has no “quality of life.”
Culture
wars:
Model sues
jewelers for “lewd” ad
Fox News
“A model who says she has worked hard to maintain a wholesome
image has filed a $5 million lawsuit complaining that a jewelry company’s
video advertisement in which she writhes and moans looks pornographic.
The commercial, seen on the Internet in a clip entitled ‘Rock Her
World,’ shows a woman wearing blue lacy lingerie and a diamond necklace
while moaning and stroking her face and neck. It ends with the Web address
for the jewelry company, Szul.com. The 37-year-old woman claims in her
lawsuit that she did not ‘consent to or authorize the use of her
likeness, picture, image or name to simulate a female having an orgasm
or otherwise experiencing sexual pleasure.’” (01/03/08)
It is too
bad more models don’t stand up for their image like this – the
amount of lewdness available today has to be almost as much as the last
40 or so centuries combined, in just seven years of the 21st Century!
Mama's
Note: Wait a minute! If this woman posed for those pictures and did the
acting, how is she some paragon of virtue? If she contracted to do those
ads, which one must assume she did (and got paid for it), how does she
get off suddenly deciding it's beneath her? If she really felt that way,
she wouldn't have done any of it to start with. This is bogus.
Culture
wars:
Judge
Blocks Oregon Same-Sex Unions Law
CNSNews.com
Federal
District Judge Michael Mosman on December 28 temporarily blocked a law
passed last year by the Oregon Legislature that would have authorized
same-sex civil unions in the state starting on January 1. A conservative
legal group requested the delay to give voters a chance to weigh-in with
a ballot referendum in November 2008...
What? How
DARE this judge make a ruling that says that the voters of a state have
any right to second-guess their imperial maste… I mean, their faithful
and wise representatives in the legislature assembled… No doubt the
same-sex activists will be staging violent protests in Salem and Portland
against this evil action, and setting off suicide bombs to convince Oregon
voters to choose correctly, er, no, Muslims that do that. Sometimes it
gets so hard to keep everyone straight.
Economics:
Oil hits $100 a barrel
Casper Star-Tribune
“Crude oil prices topped $100 a barrel Wednesday, but producers
in Wyoming say they can’t open the spigot fast enough to take advantage
of the price. Although Wyoming oil producers welcome higher prices for
the commodity, they’re not exactly celebrating the $100 per barrel
event. Many in the industry here bemoan not having carbon dioxide supplies
and pipeline infrastructure in place to sweep oil out of aging fields.”
[Stringer’s note: Of course, nobody has a clue just why none
of this infrastructure is in place … It’s not like they had
to spend ten or fifteen years getting “permission” for any of
that - ML] (01/03/08)
Wyoming
has had exactly ONE refinery come on-line in about 30 years: a “living
museum” antique refinery in Lusk, showing people how it used to be
done. Wyoming’s industrial siting laws, together with the fact that
the Federal government owns so much of Wyoming that it is impossible to
build a pipeline without having to get from three to ten federal agencies
involved in some way, are not nearly so bad as in the majority of states,
but still make anything very difficult and very expensive. It is, of course,
governments’ fault that oil IS $100/barrel: panic due to governments’
actions and restrictions that give an edge to OPEC make up much of this.
Even OPEC is running afraid of the markets right now: they know that $100/barrel
oil may cause the populations of the US and Europe to decide that force
is preferable to “peaceful intercourse” and occupy more than
former Iraq and Afghanistan.
Environists:
California sues EPA on greenhouse
gas rules
San Francisco Chronicle
“California led 15 other states and five environmental groups
into federal court Wednesday to challenge the Bush administration’s
refusal to let the state limit vehicle emissions of gases that contribute
to global warming. In a lawsuit filed in San Francisco, the state accused
the Environmental Protection Agency of exceeding its authority when it
barred California last month from enforcing limits on cars and trucks
starting with the 2009 model year, the first law of its kind in the nation.
The state needed the EPA’s approval to implement clean-air standards
that are stricter than federal rules.” (01/03/08)
Take your
pick – federal tyranny and unconstitutional powers or state tyranny
and unconstitutional powers. Sounds to me like real people can’t
win.
Government
ruined, tax funded schools:
NJ: Court dismisses
parents’ lawsuit
School Reform News
“A New Jersey trial court has dismissed a lawsuit by some parents
of students in failing schools seeking school choice as a remedy. The
case, Crawford v. Davy, was filed as a class-action lawsuit on July 13,
2006 in Essex County. It was later transferred to Mercer County —
where Trenton, the state capital, is located. Plaintiff Van Ness Crawford
is a widower and the father of three boys enrolled in Newark Public Schools.
Before moving to Newark in 2005, the Crawford children had attended a
Catholic school, but they could no longer afford to do so afterward.”
(01/01/08)
As in the
next story, Trenton will continue to ignore the problems with their corrupt,
ineffective, incompetent and unbelievably expensive school system and
force children into it, by the combination of taxes, legal restrictions,
regulations, and political pressure.
Government
ruined, tax funded schools:
DC: Task force targets school corruption
DC Examiner
“U.S. Attorney Jeffrey A. Taylor has convened a ‘working
group’ of anti-fraud investigators from federal and local agencies
tasked with rooting out endemic corruption in the District of Columbia’s
education system. The new task force began work in the shadow of a string
of high-profile fraud and abuse cases within the city’s schools.”
(12/28/07)
Of course,
there isn’t ANY part of the DC government that is not so corrupt
that the stench can't be smelled all the way to Hawaii. But the schools
have always been really bad, and Congress has refused, flatly, to defy
the unions and allow a voucher system or better yet, eliminate the government
system entirely.
Mama's
Note: They never will, of course. The only answer is for ordinary people
to take back their lives and refuse to live where these thugs operate.
Vote with your feet, people, and keep your children out of these death
camps.
Government
ruined, tax funded schools:
Teachers spend big to push agendas
Winston-Salem Journal
“The American Federation of Teachers reported spending almost
$800,000 last month on mailings and radio advertisements in Iowa and New
Hampshire in support of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid.
The teachers are the biggest spenders among labor unions and interest
groups backing candidates in early-voting states. The groups spent more
than $2.3 million last month, almost seven times the amount spent in December
2003 before the last presidential-election year, Federal Election Commission
records show.” (01/03/08)
AFT together
with NEA are two of the biggest (and piggiest) statist organizations n
the US today, and really should be told that for them to support ANY presidential
candidate is a clear conflict of interest.
Home front:
Legal voters thrown off rolls
USA Today
“Five years after passage of a federal law to create electronic
registration databases to deter voter fraud, the new technology is posing
hurdles that could disenfranchise thousands of legal voters, a USA TODAY
examination finds. From Florida to Washington, voters have been challenged
because names or numbers on their registration forms did not exactly match
other government databases, such as Social Security and motor vehicle
agencies.” (01/01/08)
This could
happen to any of us. Even in the old paper days, my own home town’s
local do-gooder tried to get my name thrown off the voter list because
I was in the service and stationed overseas and therefore wasn’t
a “resident” as she (with no military or legal experience) believed
was required.
Home front:
Electronic passports raise privacy
issues
Washington Post
“The federal government will soon offer passport cards equipped
with electronic data chips to U.S. citizens who travel frequently between
the United States and Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean. The cards can be
read wirelessly from 20 feet, offering convenience to travelers but raising
security and privacy concerns about the possibility of data being intercepted.”
(01/01/08)
Let me
see: how many places can a hacker stand with the electronics inside a
pack or briefcase and read the info as the travelers shuffle in line to
have their travel papers inspected?
Mama's
Note: For those folks who simply can't get out of submitting to the passport
thing, an envelope that blocks the transmission of the data would seem
to be the only answer. I'm not sure if a simple fold of aluminum foil
around the thing would work, but it seems unreal that there isn't a good
answer to this - besides the obvious of not having it, of course.
Home front:
CA: Over half of voters say economy
is poor
San Francisco Chronicle
“It may be the start of a new year, but a good many California
voters aren’t convinced that economic good times are on the way over
the next 12 months, a new Field Poll shows. ‘Voters are a little
downcast, which isn’t surprising considering the bad news on the
state budget and the housing market,’ said Mark DiCamillo, the poll’s
director. More than half of the registered voters surveyed said the state’s
economy is in the tank right now, compared with 20 percent who are convinced
times are good. As for 2008, 35 percent say things will get worse while
25 percent see improvement ahead.” (01/01/08)
May I point
out that California has only itself to blame? The People’s Socialist
Republic thinks that it can do no wrong and that government can solve
everything: no wonder their economy is in a mess!
Mama's
Note: Amen! The only miracle is that there are any businesses - especially
small businesses - still willing to stay there and pay the crushing burden
in taxes and regulation. As they leave, along with many taxpayers, things
can only get worse.
Home front:
FL: Family of
6 arrested over droopy jeans
Local6.com [FL]
“Five family members, who got involved in the arrest process of
a relative because of his droopy jeans, spent New Year’s Eve behind
bars, according to police. Deputies said Florida State University student
Franz Leger was banned from a mall last summer for wearing saggy jeans.
But when Leger returned Monday, police arrested him for trespassing. When
the student’s family heard what was happening, Leger’s father,
mother, sister and two cousins got involved. All were handcuffed and taken
to jail. Police said they did everything by the book, but the Leger family
claims they were treated unfairly.” (01/01/08)
This sounds
like the mall and the cops might have just inherited the attentions of
a family of feudists, eh? I suspect that the City is really going to regret
this little brouhaha.
Mama's
Note: Indeed... Too bad this family doesn't seem to have a clue about
private property or non-aggression. What a shame that this fighting spirit
will be used to defend an entitlement mentality instead of freedom.
Home front:
Feds take on Latino gang “Florencia
13?
Independence Examiner
“In a murderous quest aimed at ‘cleansing’ their turf
of snitches and rival gangsters, members of one of Los Angeles County’s
most vicious Latino gangs sometimes killed people just because of their
race, an investigation found. There were even instances in which Florencia
13 leaders ordered killings of black gangsters and then, when the intended
victim couldn’t be located, said ‘Well, shoot any black you
see,’ Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca said.” (12/31/07)
“Ethnic
cleansing” is not limited to backwaters of Europe or jungles of Africa,
by any means. But as Mama Liberty pointed out, the bizarre thing is that
the cops are making this out to be a racial thing, not a gang thing. Of
course, any politically-correct observer KNOWS that this is really all
the fault of The Man, who is just using the poor, downtrodden masses of
the people of color to do The Man’s dirty work for him, to save the
world for honkies.
Islamic
imperialists:
Saudi
Arabia: Govthugs abduct blogger
Independent [UK]
“Fouad al-Farhan knew they were coming for him. A few days before
Saudi security forces swooped on his offices, he sent a letter to friends
telling them he was a wanted man. ‘They will pick me up any time
in the next two weeks,’ he predicted. His crime? Writing one of the
most widely read blogs in Saudi Arabia. Mr. Farhan, 32, who describes
his online mission as ’searching for freedom, dignity, justice, equality,
public participation and other lost Islamic values,’ had already
broken ground by refusing to hide behind a pen-name as he vented his spleen
about the rampant corruption blighting political life. Now he has clocked
up another first — the first blogger to be arrested in the kingdom.
The blogger was picked up on 10 December from the offices of his computer
company in Jeddah, but it was not until this week that the interior ministry
finally confirmed his arrest.” (01/03/08)
Our “brave”
and “loyal” allies: the Wahhabi evil plutocratic, perverted,
murdering, looting, … words fail me.
Massa-wannabes:
MySpace poll: Obama, Paul virtual
top picks
Raw Story
“Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Ron Paul were selected by
members of the online MySpace community as their parties’ 2008 presidential
candidates, the site announced Thursday. With the Iowa caucuses looming
later in the day, MySpace’s count of more than 150,000 virtual votes
January 1-2 showed Obama on top with 46 percent of the vote, trailed by
Hillary Clinton (31 percent) and John Edwards (eight percent). MySpace,
which dubbed its own exercise “the Nation’s First Presidential
Primary,” said Republicans picked Ron Paul with 37 percent of ballots,
followed by Rudy Giuliani (18 percent) and Mike Huckabee (16 percent).
Respondents said the economy/jobs, war in Iraq and health care were their
top concerns, the poll said.” (01/03/08)
Much as
I might want to be cheered by all those folks choosing Paul (as evidence,
right or wrong, that some love of freedom and liberty can be found even
in the jungles of Myspace), the choice of Obama to run against him shows
how lacking in discernment these would-be voters are.
Mama's
Note: And the fact that Romney won the greater part of the Wyoming Republican
delegates should make you realize just how little most people - even the
good folks of Wyoming - understand what liberty is all about.
Massa-wannabes:
IA: Huckabee, Obama top caucuses
Philadelphia Inquirer
“Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mike Huckabee won the Iowa
caucuses last night, capturing the opening event in the 2008 presidential
selection process and the powerful burst of momentum that goes with it.
Obama’s decisive victory, buoyed by a massive turnout of political
independents, was a sharp blow to the once seemingly inevitable candidacy
of Hillary Rodham Clinton, who finished third behind John Edwards. …
Huckabee, 52, the former Arkansas governor and favorite of Iowa’s
evangelical Christian community, defeated Mitt Romney by a surprisingly
large margin, putting the former Massachusetts governor in a virtual must-win
position heading into New Hampshire. … John McCain, who had hoped
for a clear third place, didn’t get it, finishing in a virtual tie
with former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson. Texas Rep. Ron Paul beat out
former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani for fifth.” [Editor’s
note: Weasel-wording there: Paul, at about 10%, was a closer to McCain’s
and Thompson’s 13.x% performances than he was to Giuliani’s
3.x% debacle - TLK] (01/04/08)
Millions
of words are being spewed about this – I’m sick of the campaign
already, myself. Iowa has made its cameo appearance on the stage and is
now shuffled off to its normal drab political existence, while the would-be
stars race across the country to New Hampshire like a bunch of preschoolers
bouncing around the playground after a cookie and a cup of extra-sugar
Koolaid.
Massa-wannabes:
TX: Kucinich sues Democrats over loyalty
oath
Austin American-Statesman
“A federal judge next week plans to hear a lawsuit brought by
U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich and a famous Texas supporter, Willie Nelson,
that questions the legality of a long-standing loyalty pledge required
of Democrats running for president in Texas. Kucinich, of Ohio, is seeking
the Democratic presidential nomination. He applied last week to appear
on the state primary ballot March 4 but scratched out a portion of the
pledge on the application stating he’d support the party’s nominee
for president, whoever it is. … The suit calls the refusal to put
Kucinich’s name on the ballot a violation of the First and Fourteenth
amendments to the U.S. Constitution.” (01/04/08)
Most politicos,
I admit, would just sign and then ignore it later: too bad Mr. Kucinich’s
grasp on reality doesn’t match this degree of morality.
Massa-wannabes:
Dodd,
Biden drop White House bids
Reuters
“Veteran U.S. Sens. Joe Biden and Chris Dodd dropped out of the
race for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination on Thursday after
placing a distant fifth and sixth, respectively, in the Iowa caucuses.
Biden of Delaware and Dodd of Connecticut offered perhaps the most experience
among the Democratic contenders, having each served in Congress for more
than a quarter century. Both chaired powerful committees. But they came
up far short in the race for the White House with polls showing Americans
demanding change.” (01/04/08)
Two more
are toast.
Massa-wannabes:
If
Not Me, Then Obama, Kucinich Says
CNSNews.com
Democratic presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich wants Iowans to vote
for him at tomorrow’s caucuses, but if Kucinich fails to get the
required 15 percent of the vote, he’s publicly asking his Iowa supporters
to vote for Senator Barack Obama on the second ballot...
Oh, right.
I can imagine how thrilled Obama must be about THIS endorsement. The only
thing worse would be for LaRouche to endorse him: that would be a second
kiss of death.
Mama's
Note: We can only hope... Maybe we could get Kucinich to endorse all of
them??? <G>
Mesopotamian
Front:
Iraq: Suicide bomber kills
at least 32 at funeral
MSNBC
“A suicide bomber detonated a vest loaded with explosives at a
Shiite funeral in eastern Baghdad on Tuesday, killing at least 32 people
and wounding 34 others, police and ambulance officials said. The explosion
took place in Baghdad’s eastern Zayouna neighborhood, a mixed Shiite
and Sunni district, the officials said on customary condition of anonymity.”
(01/01/08)
The killing
of Muslim by Muslim continues.
Mama's
Note: This sort of thing makes a funeral there sort of counterproductive,
I'd think. Very, very weird people...
Mesopotamian
front:
2007 deadliest year for US troops
in Iraq [sic]
Anderson Independent Mail
“The second half of 2007 saw violence drop dramatically in Iraq,
but the progress came at a high price: The year was the deadliest for
the U.S. Military since the 2003 invasion, with 899 troops killed. American
commanders and diplomats, however, say the battlefield gains against insurgents
such as al-Qaida in Iraq offer only a partial picture of where the country
stands as the war moves toward its five-year mark in March.”
(12/30/07)
High-water
mark? But for whom?
Mama's
Note: Those who profit from war, of course.
Mesopotamian
front:
Iraq
[sic]: US troops kill three civilians
Agence France-Presse
“Three Iraqi civilians were killed by US military fire in two
incidents on Thursday in the province of Diyala, one of the most dangerous
regions in the country, Iraqi security officials said. Two people died
…. when a US patrol shot up their vehicle as it entered the main
street from a side road while the convoy was passing …. US forces
killed a civilian crossing the street near a gas factory in the centre
of Baquba, said police Captain Muhannad al-Bawi …” (01/03/08)
Since almost
all of the “insurgents” infesting the streets of the land between
the rivers are technically “civilians,” there is no indication
whether of not these were “patriots seeking the liberation of their
homeland [sic],” or “murdering hoodlums” or just poor folks
that got caught in the crossfire – wrong place, wrong time.
Mesopotamian
front:
Petraeus
Credits Syria With Cutting Flow of Terrorists to Iraq [sic]
CNSNews.com
General David Petraeus, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, is crediting
efforts by the Syrian government with cutting the flow of al-Qaeda terrorists
entering Iraq. Petraeus also said stepped-up counter-terrorism activities
in other Arab states have helped...
Is this
just back-patting, like saying “nice kitty” to the lion? Or
is Petraeus honestly saying that Syria is doing this? If Syria is, I suspect
it is because they are (as Arabs) fearful that Iran will gain too much
influence on the situation in Mesopotamia.
MilTech:
Military use of unmanned aircraft
soars
Eau Claire Leader-Telegram
“The military’s reliance on unmanned aircraft that can watch,
hunt and sometimes kill insurgents has soared to more than 500,000 hours
in the air, largely in Iraq, The Associated Press has learned. And new
Defense Department figures obtained by The AP show that the Air Force
more than doubled its monthly use of drones between January and October,
forcing it to take pilots out of the air and shift them to remote flying
duty to meet part of the demand.” (01/01/08)
Actually,
a good many of the pilots operating the various UAV are located at Creech
Air Force Base in the very distant, foreign land of … Nevada. No
combat pay for them, of course.
Nazgul:
TX: DNA test expected to free inmate
— after 26 years
Associated Press
“Charles Chatman said throughout his 26 years in prison that he
never raped the woman who lived five houses down from him. Now 47, Chatman
is expected to win his freedom Thursday on the basis of new DNA testing
that lawyers say proves his innocence and adds to Dallas County’s
nationally unmatched number of wrongfully convicted inmates. … Chatman’s
nearly 27 years in prison for aggravated sexual assault make him the longest-serving
inmate in Texas to be freed by DNA evidence, Innocence Project lawyers
said. Chatman was 20 when the victim, a young woman in her 20s, picked
him from a lineup.” (01/03/08)
As many
of us can figure out, at least this wasn’t a death penalty case.
Mama's
Note: I'm sure that gives the guy some comfort as he contemplates his
ruined life... What I want to know is whether or not the "law"
will do anything about the lying scumbag woman who started this? Until
there are real consequences for false
claims of rape, etc., this will continue to happen.
Nazgul:
CA: Judge orders Navy to cut sonar
use
Los Angeles Times
“A federal judge in Los Angeles on Thursday ordered the toughest
set of restrictions ever imposed on the U.S. Navy’s use of mid-frequency
sonar off the Southern California coast as part of a protracted court
battle to protect whales and other marine mammals from underwater sonic
blasts. The order was the first time the judge has spelled out specific
rules the Navy must follow to avoid a court-imposed ban on training missions
with a type of sonar that has been linked to the death and panicked behavior
of whales and dolphins.” (01/04/08)
The mission
of the US Navy may be to protect the Constitution, and therefore protect
the people of the United States and freedom of the seas for those people:
clearly the mission of this judge outranks the Navy’s. ( I think
his mission is apparently to protect sealife.)
New religions:
environists:
Plan for drilling off northern Alaska
assailed
Arizona Republic
“Environmental groups teed off Wednesday on the federal decision
to open up nearly 46,000 square miles off Alaska’s northwestern coast
to oil and natural-gas leases, a decision the groups say will harm marine
mammals. The Minerals Management Agency planned the sale in the Chukchi
Sea without taking into account changes in the Arctic brought on by global
warming and proposed insufficient protections for polar bears, walruses,
whales and other species that could be harmed by drilling rigs or spills,
according to the groups. The lease sale was planned without information
as basic as the polar bear and walrus populations, said Pamela A. Miller,
Arctic coordinator with Northern Alaska Environmental Center.”
(01/03/08)
The MMA
gave these groups of fanatics years and many, many opportunities to comment
and complain in the NEPA process, but obviously that was not enough.
Mama's
Note: And the greater walrus/bear populations will do exactly what for
us when we're freezing to death in our homes?
New religions:
environists:
Northeast: Emissions down, but lasting
efforts may suffer
Boston Globe
“Greenhouse gas emissions from Northeast power plants were about
10 percent lower than predicted during the last two years, because of
milder weather and increased reliance on natural gas instead of oil. But
the decrease may have some unanticipated consequences for efforts to combat
global warming: It could have the perverse effect of delaying more lasting
reductions, by undercutting incentives intended to spur power plants to
invest in cleaner technologies and energy efficiency. Massachusetts and
nine other Northeast states are part of a landmark pact called the Regional
Greenhouse Gas Initiative that is designed to cap power plant emissions
in 2009 and then gradually reduce them by 10 percent over the next decade.”
(01/03/08)
In other
words, even when emissions are lower, it is still bad news. These people
(the environists) don’t want to see reduced emissions from power
plants as much as they want to see fewer power plants, less electricity,
and less everything – for everyone else. This sort of reaction is
clear evidence of that attitude.
Right of
Privacy:
Reports of data breaches reach new
heights in 2007
USA Today
“The loss or theft of personal data such as credit card and Social
Security numbers soared to unprecedented levels in 2007, and the trend
isn’t expected to turn around anytime soon as hackers stay a step
ahead of security and laptops disappear with sensitive information. And
while companies, government agencies, schools and other institutions are
spending more to protect ever-increasing volumes of data with more sophisticated
firewalls and encryption, the investment often is too little too late.”
(12/31/07)
As I have
pointed out time and time again, the key here is NOT improved security
systems and better defenses against hackers. The key IS not allowing the
stinking government to have and keep all that private information in the
first place. And frankly, not allowing even your doctor or dentist to
have all that data under THEIR control. Today, with thumb drives and all
the other technology around, we have the ability to carry our medical
records and everything else around with us and instantly available with
our permission or that of a trusted family member or friend. Yeah, we
can lose it, sometimes: so you have backups. Even doctors offices and
government buildings burn down sometimes!
Mama's
Note: And the key to safely carrying your information around with you
is to have it well encrypted so even if you should lose the device, nobody
else can read it. And no, the doctor or dentist does not need to know
your life story or every detail of your medical history. The most important
thing they need is a list of medications (if you actually ingest any of
their chemicals) and your RESPONSE to surgery or treatments related to
any they propose for you. They can ask those questions each time, if needed.
All the usual "medical record" actually does is document what
they have done TO you, for their own protection - not yours.
Right of
privacy:
U.S.
at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to privacy
Computer World
“The U.S. has one of the worst privacy records in the world, and
is an “endemic surveillance society,” along with such countries
as China and Russia, according to the group Privacy International. And
things are only getting worse. The group recently released its annual
International Privacy Ranking, and the results aren’t pretty. Only
a handful of countries were given the worst ranking possible, “endemic
surveillance societies.” In the U.S. privacy deteriorated over the
last year; in 2006, we were an 'extensive surveillance society.' ”
(01/03/08)
Does this
come as a surprise? To those of us who live out in the wide open spaces
of the West, we can possibly avoid the nasty peeping toms (almost always
of government, and a few big businesses) much or even most of the time.
People who “get” to live in cities, even those as small of 5,000,
are under observation more and more.
Right to
keep and bear arms:
DC: City to file
briefs in gun ban case
NBC 4 News
“City officials must file legal briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court
this week on why justices should not overturn the city’s 30-year-old
ban on handguns in homes …. Acting D.C. Attorney General Peter Nickles
will file the city’s formal brief on Friday, kicking off the 2008
defense of the law that was challenged successfully in a lower court last
year.” (01/01/08)
This was
complicated by them firing the lawyer who was preparing the entire case,
as the next story relates. They will have lots of “good” arguments,
but I suspect that they weren’t doing as well in preparing their
case as the PTB in DC want.
Mama's
Note: One interesting thing to watch is whether or not the supreme court
nazguls even realize that they are trying to answer the wrong question.
See: The
Second Amendment Question before the Supreme Court - Constitutionally
Flawed and Dangerous By Robert Greenslade © Nitwit Press
Right to
keep and bear arms:
Attorney for D.C. in gun ban case
fired
Examiner
“Acting D.C. Attorney General Peter Nickles has fired the city
lawyer who had been preparing to defend the longtime District ban on handguns
in the high-stakes Supreme Court case this spring. Alan B. Morrison, who
has argued roughly 20 cases before the high court, was asked to leave
his post as special counsel by the end of this week, Morrison said today.
Morrison had been hired by former Attorney General Linda Singer, who resigned
two weeks ago, and put in charge of arguing the handgun case. ….Morrison
had taken an active hand, along with a team of lawyers from the city and
two private firms, in writing the 15,000-word brief that is scheduled
to be filed with the high court on Friday. It is not clear whom Nickles
will select to replace Morrison.” (01/03/08)
There are
obviously some internal politics creating difficulties for this office,
and I just drip with sympathy for them. I love the oxymoron in this article:
a “15,000-word brief” – only lawyers can say that with
a straight face.
Mama's
Note: Indeed! Just imagine if they were paid by the word instead of by
the hour.
Right to
keep and bear arms:
FL: Elderly man fends off robbers
WKMG News
“A Central Florida man who collects cash for parking at a church
fought off five armed men who had ambushed him and demanded cash. The
65-year-old victim, who did not want to be identified, said he was collecting
cash in the Parramore area before an Orlando Magic basketball game when
someone put a gun to his head. He noticed that that he was surrounded
by four other men as well. The man said he pretended to reach into his
jacket for cash but instead pulled out his hidden gun and opened fire.”
(12/31/08)
Good for
him: prepared and willing!
Mama's
Note: I don' t understand how this managed to get back into the news.
This story was reported at least a month or so ago... But it doesn't hurt
to remind the street thugs that they can't have it all their own way.
Right to
keep and bear arms:
MS:
Teen kills intruder
Vicksburg Post
“A teen shot and killed a home intruder Sunday night, stopping
a theft in progress and sending the intruder’s accomplices scurrying,
said Sheriff Martin Pace. Pace said the adults who lived in the home where
Bruce was shot made a living as street vendors. He said Bruce and two
other men had forced their way into the mobile home at 25 Red Oak Drive
about 7 p.m. after inquiring about purchasing shoes. The teen and several
other juveniles were alone when the trio entered. Pace said after the
men got inside, they started ‘loading up merchandise’ until
the teen got a shotgun and fired it at Bruce, who had a handgun in his
pocket. After being shot, Bruce turned and walked out onto the lawn, where
he was found when deputies arrived. The other men fled in a sedan.”
(01/01/08)
This sort
of home invasion is all too common, especially in mobile home parks on
the edge of large urban areas.
Right to
keep and bear arms:
UK:
Elderly use canes for self-defence
Ananova [UK]
“A martial arts expert has set up special walking stick self-defence
classes for pensioners. Kevin Garwood, 58, of Gorleston, near Great Yarmouth,
is showing them how to use their walking sticks to be more confident.
And his lessons have already paid off after an old woman fought off two
muggers, reports the Daily Mail. Mr. Garwood currently teaches three walking
stick self-defence classes a week and aims to start more sessions this
year.” [Editor’s note: expect the gov’t to ban canes.-MLS]
(01/03/08)
Could be,
Mary Lou, could be. Certainly, a walking stick (especially a nice piece
of Irish black thorn with a good knobby grip) can be an effective and
deadly weapon of self-defense. But it still doesn’t beat the deterrence
value of a couple of kilos of cold steel (or, if you prefer, polymer).
Mama's
Note: The same problem exists for most non-firearm defense tools. The
criminal has to get much too close in order for them to be in any way
effective, and if the attacker IS armed with a gun, the fight is over
before it has begun.
Right to
keep and bear arms:
LA:
Judge postpones trial for lawsuit over guns seized after Katrina
Seattle Post Intelligencer
“A federal judge has agreed to postpone a trial for a lawsuit
that the National Rifle Association filed against city officials for seizing
hundreds of guns in Hurricane Katrina’s aftermath. Last week, NRA
attorneys said the lobbying group needs more time to search for hundreds
of gun owners whose firearms were confiscated by New Orleans police following
the Aug. 29, 2005, hurricane. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier agreed
Friday to reschedule a Feb. 19 trial for the case. A new trial date is
expected to be picked during a telephone conference with the judge later
this month.” (01/02/08)
For once,
the NRA has at least the semblance of a good idea, but it is far too trusting
in the good will of the judges and courts in general, just as it believes
that Congress can be forced to do the right thing.
Right to
keep and bear arms:
MI:
Store owner halts robbery
Kalamazoo Gazette
“Police say arrests in a robbery attempt thwarted when a grocery-store
owner armed himself and chased off the suspects may lead to arrests in
another holdup earlier in December. Two would-be robbers fled the LaSierra,
a Sturgis grocery, around 1:30 p.m. Monday after seeing the store owner
headed toward them with a gun, according to the Sturgis Police Department.”
(01/02/08)
No shots
fired – armed bandits flee, often as not, when confronted by someone
armed and willing to take them on.
South Asian
front:
Pakistan: Election
to be delayed, protests threatened
KTTC News
“A top official in Pakistan says the country’s elections
are going to be delayed by a month. A formal announcement will come Wednesday.
The elections were supposed to take place next Tuesday, but the delay
comes amid the turmoil sparked by the assassination of Benazir Bhutto.
Opposition parties are threatening to launch street protests unless the
vote is held as scheduled on January 8th.” (01/01/08)
At the
same time, there WAS a drop in the violence after the delay was announced.
This is not a situation in which anyone (except those who plunder and
kill and seek power) can win.
South Asian
front:
Sri Lanka: Government pulls out of
cease-fire
CNN
“The government decided Wednesday to withdraw from an internationally
brokered cease-fire that had largely collapsed since the resurgence of
fighting in Sri Lanka’s civil war two years ago, an official said.
The Cabinet unanimously approved the prime minister’s proposal to
pull out from the 2002 truce, Media Minister Anura Yapa told The Associated
Press.” (01/03/08)
Nothing
more than pulling their head out of the sand long enough to see what happened
about 26 months ago.
Stupid
cop tricks:
IL:
Cops get prison time in drug dealer shakedowns
Chicago Sun-Times
“[Broderick] Jones, 36, led a ring of rogue cops who robbed drug
dealers of their cash and cocaine, then funneled the drugs back to the
street. For the treachery to his badge, Jones, a Desert Storm veteran,
got 25 years in prison Thursday. He had faced life. ‘You and your
merry band have essentially raped and plundered entire neighborhoods,’
U.S. District Judge Ronald A. Guzman told Jones, one of three ex-cops
sentenced Thursday. His police colleague Eural Black, 44, got 40 years
after going to trial, and former officer Darek Haynes, 38, received 19
years. A drug dealer who helped set up robberies for the cops, Brent Terry,
36, got just over 20 years. He committed his crimes while out on bond
on an attempted murder charge.” (01/04/08)
How many
more “merry bands” like this one are out there?
Stupid
government tricks:
UK: Victim of false rape claim charged
for room, board in jail
Daily Mail [UK]
“A man wrongly jailed when a woman cried rape has failed to prevent
being charged £12,500 for his ‘board and lodging’ while
in prison. Warren Blackwell, 38, spent three years in jail as a convicted
sex attacker until his ‘victim’ was unmasked as a fantasist.
It was revealed he has been awarded £252,500 compensation for his
lost years — but minus the estimated cost of his food and accommodation
while behind bars.” (01/01/08) Mr. Blackwell said he had failed to
stop the money being siphoned off after his lawyer told him there was
little to be done about it.
Well, at
least it isn’t coming out of his pocket DIRECTLY. I would, however,
suggest that the “fantasist” be the one made to pay.
Stupid
government tricks:
California’s medical marijuana
system in “chaos”
Raw Story
“California’s Proposition 215 legalized medical marijuana
in that state 11 years ago as a treatment for pain, the side-effects of
chemotherapy, and other ailments. However, the federal government still
views all marijuana use as illegal, and the Supreme Court has upheld the
federal Drug Enforcement Agency’s right [sic] to go after dispensaries,
no matter what state laws allow. In September, the DEA raided the California
Healthcare Collective in Modesto and arrested the store’s chief financial
officer, Luke Scarmazzo. ‘They handcuffed me and put me on my kitchen
table,’ Scarmazzo told 60 Minutes. ‘One of them … said
‘you knew I’d be coming soon.”” (01/01/08)
Clearly,
the blame for this (unusual, in California) can be laid at the feet of
the FedGov. But don’t let California’s gov-goons get off too
easy: if the thugs in Sacramento had made it clear to the DEA and the
Congress that they intended to vigorously fight FedGov attempts to enforce
the illegality of cannabis for medical use, I think that DC would have
backed down, at least in practice if not in word and these kinds of raids
wouldn’t be happening.
Stupid
government tricks:
MA: Penalties to rise for shunning
health insurance
Boston Globe
“Penalties for Massachusetts residents who can afford health insurance
but do not purchase it in 2008 could quadruple compared with the maximum
penalty in 2007, according to draft regulations released by the Department
of Revenue yesterday. The maximum penalty for those who flout the law
and do not buy health insurance would be $912 a year, compared to $219
in 2007. The higher penalty is intended to get those who are on the fence
to buy health insurance. For those wavering, it could make more sense
to pay for insurance than to pay the penalty. The proposed penalties also
drive home the full impact of the health reform law’s personal mandate
principle. This approach makes buying health insurance a responsibility
of all residents, similar to the way drivers are required to purchase
auto insurance. The penalty was enacted to spur residents to purchase
insurance rather than rely on the care hospitals are still required to
provide to patients regardless of coverage or ability to pay.”
[Editor’s note: Once again, the focus is still on “insurance
coverage” instead of “preparedness to pay for services, by whatever
means.” If this requirement were phrased so that a medical savings
account, or other ‘escrow’ process could be substituted, it
would be far more acceptable. (Meanwhile, note that (1) “required
car insurance” deals with liability to others, not self-protection,
and (2) one does not seek reimbursement for oil changes or other maintenance
on a vehicle from one’s auto insurance policy - SAT] (01/01/08)
Sadly,
too many people in Mass and elsewhere SUPPORT this kind of abuse. And
frankly, even $912 a year is still cheaper than paying the rates caused
by inflated government requirements for insurance and the lack of a free
market.
Mama's
Note: The only reason the premium is anything below the going rate is
that the general taxpayer will subsidize the rest. So, the price is not
really "cheaper" in the long run, only the excess is hidden.
It's not possible to actually pay less than something is worth. Either
it isn't really worth it, or someone else is paying. There is no such
thing as a free lunch.
Stupid
government tricks:
Drug firms probed in Iraq oil-for-food
scandal
CNN
“Britain’s Serious Fraud Office has demanded documents from
three major drug makers in connection with allegations the companies paid
bribes to secure lucrative contracts in Iraq while Saddam Hussein was
in power, the companies said. GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca and Eli Lilly
and Co. Ltd. — the British affiliate of Indianapolis, Indiana-based
Eli Lilly and Co. — are all accused of violating the U.N.’s
oil-for-food program, established in the mid-1990s to ease the impact
on Iraqis of sanctions imposed on Saddam’s regime after his 1990
invasion of Kuwait.” (12/30/07)
The bribery
of officials is a fact of life in Third World countries and especially
in Islamic countries, whether “secular” or not. It seems like
a waste of taxpayer money to punish people a second time for having to
pay bribes the first time.
Mama's
Note: Not to mention the rather obvious hypocrisy of imposing "sanctions"
and then acting like they are worried about the "impact on Iraqis."
It's not like anyone really believed that any such sanctions could possibly
have been arranged to affect only Saddam and his henchmen. They undoubtedly
suffered not at all.
Stupid
government tricks:
DoJ opens criminal probe on CIA tapes
Allentown Morning Call
“The Justice Department opened a full criminal investigation Wednesday
into the destruction of CIA interrogation videotapes, putting the politically
charged probe in the hands of a mob-busting public corruption prosecutor
with a reputation for being independent. Attorney General Michael Mukasey
announced that he was appointing John Durham, a federal prosecutor in
Connecticut, to oversee the investigation of a case that has challenged
the Bush administration’s controversial handling of terrorism suspects.”
(01/02/08)
Got to
admit it is kind of fun watching when gov-goons start eating each other.
Mama's
Note: My thoughts exactly! I eagerly await more and more of the same as
they respond with fear to the growing number of people who no longer buy
the lies.
Stupid
government tricks:
Atlantis launch delayed again
USA Today
“NASA on Thursday delayed the flight of space shuttle Atlantis
until late January or, more likely, February to replace a suspect connector
in the fuel tank. The connector is believed to be responsible for back-to-back
launch postponements last month. NASA on Thursday delayed the flight of
space shuttle Atlantis until late January or, more likely, February to
replace a suspect connector in the fuel tank. Deputy shuttle program manager
John Shannon said the mission to the international space station is off
until at least Jan. 24.” (01/03/08)
How do
you spell “junker”?
Mama's
Note: I can't make up my mind if I'm happier they do try to reuse things
or not, since the obvious alternative would be more money spent for all
the newest and fanciest each year. Best would be neither, of course.
Stupid
people tricks:
Passengers
sue after being stuck on airplane
Houston Chronicle
“Two passengers who were stranded for hours on American Airlines
airplanes diverted during a major storm over North Texas have sued the
carrier, accusing it of false imprisonment, fraud and negligence. Kate
Hanni, of Napa, Calif., and Catherine Ray, of Fayetteville, Ark., were
on flights diverted from Dallas-Fort Worth Airport to Austin on Dec. 29,
2006. After landing, passengers sat in the planes for more than eight
hours, unable to leave despite overflowing toilets and little food or
water.” (01/01/08)
It does
indeed sound unreasonably, but “false imprisonment” still sounds
like a bogus charge. Why not just “kidnapping?”
Mama's
Note: Why not just drive, take the train, stay at home? Why does anyone
subject themselves to this insanity in the first place?
Stupid
people tricks:
RIAA inserts uber-frivolous ripping
claims in frivolous suit
Washington Post
“Despite more than 20,000 lawsuits filed against music fans in
the years since they started finding free tunes online rather than buying
CDs from record companies, the recording industry has utterly failed to
halt the decline of the record album or the rise of digital music sharing.
Still, hardly a month goes by without a news release from the industry’s
lobby, the Recording Industry Association of America, touting a new wave
of letters to college students and others demanding a settlement payment
and threatening a legal battle. Now, in an unusual case in which an Arizona
recipient of an RIAA letter has fought back in court rather than write
a check to avoid hefty legal fees, the industry is taking its argument
against music sharing one step further: In legal documents in its federal
case against Jeffrey Howell, a Scottsdale, Ariz., man who kept a collection
of about 2,000 music recordings on his personal computer, the industry
maintains that it is illegal for someone who has legally purchased a CD
to transfer that music into his computer.” (12/30/07)
As usual,
the more contentious a controversy gets, the more ridiculous the claims
made are. When you buy something, you own it, and you SHOULD be able to
do what you would like to with it. Of course, similar claims have been
made for much the same reasons, like being told that you are breaking
the law if you take that tape or disk and sell it to someone else as a
used product. And the idea that at least some Japanese soldiers had during
WW2 that if an article like a watch was marked “Made in Japan”
it had obviously been stolen from a Japanese person.
Stupid
people tricks:
UK:
Couple banned for life from shopping centre and branded ‘terrorists’
Daily Mail [UK]
“A couple were banned for life from a shopping centre - because
they were taking photos of their beloved grandchildren. Kim and Trevor
Sparshott were ordered to stop taking photos because they were causing
a security threat. They were thrown out of the centre after they took
out a camera to snap the look on the youngsters’ faces when they
turned up unexpectedly. ” (01/02/08)
I suspect
there is a lot more to this story. However, whatever the reasons, the
privately-owned shopping complex is completely out-to-lunch and living
in some bizarre fantasy world to believe that taking pictures is a terrorist
threat: clearly both their rent-a-thugs and their management have quite
impressive pairs.
Stupid
people tricks:
S.F. Zoo visitor saw tiger “victims”
teasing lions
San Francisco Chronicle
“Two victims [sic] of a lethal Christmas Day tiger attack were
harassing the big cats at the San Francisco Zoo shortly before a 350-pound
feline escaped its enclosure and mauled them, a woman told The Chronicle
on Wednesday. The revelation comes as the zoo reopens today, nine days
after a visitor was killed and two of his friends were injured by the
Siberian tiger, later shot dead by police. Jennifer Miller, who was at
the zoo with her husband and two children that ill-fated Christmas afternoon,
said she saw four young men at the big-cat grottos — and three of
them were teasing the lions a short time before the tiger’s bloody
rampage that killed 17-year-old Carlos Sousa Jr.” [Editor’s
note: Still waiting for PETA to take up this cause … or even comment
on it - SAT] (01/03/08)
Darwin
award nominees, plus two potential runners-up!
Mama's
Note: Actually Steve, some idiot "animal rights" bunch did weigh
in on this, though I can't find the story now.
Stupid
people tricks:
Austria: Teens
buried speed camera
Ananova [UK]
“Two Austrian teenagers have been fined £75,000 for hacking
down and burying a roadside speed camera. Peter Hochstacher and Thomas
Moebel, both 19, were snapped by the camera speeding in the town of Lustenau
in Austria. They used a pair of axes and a saw they had with them in their
car to chop it down and then buried it in a nearby field. But the box
was found by a local farmer as he ploughed his land and police who examined
it found pictures of the pair on the camera inside and they later confessed
to tearing down the device.” [Editor’s note: At least they
took the initiative in doing something positive! - TLK] (01/02/08)
Stupid,
because they should have done more than just bury the foul, infernal device.
Theft by
government AND church:
PA: Court
allows land theft for private school
First Amendment Center
“A city agency acted legally when it seized a woman’s home
to help a religious group build a private school in a blighted Philadelphia
neighborhood, the state Supreme Court ruled last week. In a case pitting
eminent domain against the separation of church and state, the state high
court’s ruling reversed a ruling by the lower Commonwealth Court,
which had sided with homeowner Mary Smith. … The city Redevelopment
Authority condemned Smith’s property in North Philadelphia in 2003
and transferred it to the Hope Partnership for Education, a Catholic organization
that proposed a nondenominational middle school for the site, among other
projects. Smith appealed the condemnation, arguing that it benefited a
private religious entity and was not for a public purpose as the law requires.”
How on
earth can ANY church that claims to be “christian” allow this
to happen?
Theft by
government:
GA: Couple wins $134k in land theft
case
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“The ongoing and contentious legal battle between Mark and Regina
Meeks and the city of Stockbridge could at last be over. The city paid
the owners of Stockbridge Florist and Gifts more than $134,000 last week
as part of a court order following the couple’s successful eminent
domain fight against the city. The sum covered the legal fees the Meeks
incurred as well as interest. The state Court of Appeals refused in late
November to hear the city’s appeal of a lower court ruling that said
the couple was entitled to more than $130,000 for legal fees from a fight
that first began in 2005. … Henry County Superior Court Judge Arch
McGarity had initially ruled in spring 2006 that the city had gone too
far in its application of eminent domain laws because it hadn’t proven
the Meeks’ property would be used for public purposes.”
(01/03/08)
One small
battle won, but this does NOT end the need to outlaw eminent domain, letting
it join such ancient evils as witch burning, the “king’s”
forests, and primus noctis.
Mama's
Note: I can't help getting upset when people try to convince me that this
theft is somehow acceptable for a "public use" (read government
use) of the property. Theft is theft is theft. I don't care who the thief
is (or how many of them there are) or what he might plan to do with my
property once he's stolen it.
Thugs-in-power:
IL: Blagojevich denies role in kickback
scheme
Chicago Tribune
“Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Wednesday denied allegations made in
a federal court document that he offered to help two political insiders
who have been convicted in a corruption investigation of his administration.
… Blagojevich was hit with investigation questions Wednesday afternoon
during his first media appearance since prosecutors filed the document
just before Christmas. The required filing lays out key elements of the
federal government’s case against former Blagojevich adviser and
fundraiser Antoin ‘Tony’ Rezko, who is scheduled for trial on
corruption charges in February. The document identifies the governor only
as ‘Public Official A.’ The governor’s spokeswoman had
previously denied he is that person. In the document, federal prosecutors
placed Blagojevich inside their widening investigation of his administration
for the first time.” (01/02/08)
Yeah, I
know it is the feds doing the investigation, but I don’t find it
hard to believe that RB is a conniving, corrupt, crooked politician; like
so many Illinois politicians have been back to (and before) the time of
Lincoln.
Mama's
Note: Why pick on Illinois? Most politicians are so crooked they could
hide behind a spiral staircase.
World wars:
Libya heads UN Security Council
CNN
“After years as an international pariah, Libya on Thursday ascended
the world stage, taking over the rotating post as president of the U.N.
Security Council. Libya’s representative to the United Nations, Giadalla
Ettalhi, said it was ‘quite a challenge’ to assume the presidency
in the first month that the North African country has been allowed a seat
on the council, ‘but we will do our best.’” (01/03/08)
If you
ever thought you should take the UN seriously…
Mama's
Note: So, when did Libya dump Gadaffi? I must have missed that one. And
just the other day someone was telling me, in all sincerity, how their
group was working to get the UN to adopt armed self defense as a human
right... Oh, sure.
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