Libertarian Commentary on the News, 17 - 23 August, 2008

Will this election ever get here? At least gas prices seem to be dropped, as do deaths in Afghanistan and Mesopotamia, although Muslims are killing each other in a lot of the rest of the world. Georgia hasn’t turned into WW3, and we haven’t lost all freedoms – yet. But we had the first big snow in the High Country in Colorado, and we are still getting rains and sprinkles in the lower elevations there and to the north: no global warming yet!

Afghan front:
Afghanistan: Suicide bombers assault US base
Reuters
“A wave of Taliban suicide bombers and gunmen attempted to attack the main U.S. base in southeastern Afghanistan on Tuesday but were repelled by ground troops and attack helicopters, NATO-led forces said. Troops from NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) killed seven of the insurgents, six of them suicide bombers, after they spotted them preparing to attack some 1,000 meters (yards) from the base. … A suicide car bomber rammed the gates of the same base, close to the border with Pakistan, on Monday killing 10 Afghan civilians and wounded 13 more.” (08/19/08)

If this sounds like a Viet Cong attack on an American or RVN base in the Highlands, it is only because it is – except even Charlie was not quite so casual about throwing his life away (Communism just doesn’t have as good an afterlife plan as Islam, you know… no virgins, for one thing). Like early 1970s South Vietnam, it will not be attacks like this that defeat the U.S. forces – it will be a political operation, mostly in the USA itself and in “allied” capitals.

Mama's Note: Just curious... how do they know a "suicide bomber" ahead of time? Those folks wearing their bombs on the outside of their clothing now?

Baboons:
Congress recognizes importance of free speech, due process in higher ed
Foundation for Individual Rights in Education
“President Bush signed the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act into law yesterday. Referred to by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) as a bipartisan effort, the new law recognizes the importance of free speech and due process rights for college students across the nation. Congress amended the law to include provisions stating that it was the sense of the Congress that ‘an institution of higher education should facilitate the free and open exchange of ideas’ and that ’students should not be intimidated, harassed, discouraged from speaking out, or discriminated against.’” (08/15/08)

Now, a about some other rights that college students, like the rest of us, should have?

Mama's Note: And why should anyone think there needs to be more and more "laws" to "recognize" these rights? That's like passing a "law" to "recognize" the right to breathe. I can't think of any "law" passed in the last 250 years that didn't violate someone's rights, one way or another. The only necessary and rational law is as old as mankind - the law of non-aggression.

Baboons:
Congress to vote on drilling ban
Christian Science Monitor
“Nearly 40 years after some 80,000 barrels of oil washed up on the beaches of Santa Barbara and launched a move to ban offshore drilling Congress is heading toward a vote to end that moratorium. For a generation of Democratic politicians, the notion of opening protected sites to drilling was toxic. But with soaring gas prices, public opinion is shifting toward anything that promises relief at the pump and congressional politics is moving with it. In a shift on Saturday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the House will take up comprehensive energy legislation next month that includes partially lifting the 1981 ban on offshore drilling.” (08/17/08)

I actually think this is naught but a ploy to get the GOP baboons off her back for a while – and don’t think that Congress will do anything to remove the ban, especially now that gas prices have started to drop.

Culture wars:
OR: Tribe recognizes same-sex marriages
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
“The Coquille Indian Tribe, based on the southern Oregon coast, recently adopted a law recognizing same-sex marriage, and its first such wedding is set for next spring. Oregon voters amended the state constitution in 2004 to prohibit gay marriage. But as a federally recognized sovereign nation, the tribe is not bound by the Oregon Constitution. Native Americans are ’sensitive to discrimination of any kind,’ said Ken Tanner, chief of the Coquilles. … Becky Flynn, regional director of Basic Rights Oregon, a gay rights advocacy group, said Wednesday the impact of the Coquille law is likely to be minimal beyond the couple and the tribe. The federal government has the legal right to deny recognition to same-sex marriages under the Federal Defense of Marriage Act passed by Congress in 1996.” (08/21/08)

I know nothing at all about the Coquille tribe, but some tribes DO have a tradition of homosexuality, at least in males, so presumably this fits with their culture. The Northwest coastal tribes cultures are incredibly strange and very hard to understand and relate to; this will just add to that, I’m sure. However, I (and many others, I’m sure) object to this chief’s lumping all AmerInd tribes and cultures together with his.

Culture wars:
CA: Supreme Court rules in favor of lesbian mom
San Francisco Chronicle
“Doctors in California must treat gays and lesbians the same as any other patient, regardless of religious objections, the state Supreme Court ruled [Monday]. In a unanimous decision, the court rejected a San Diego County fertility clinic’s attempt to use its physicians’ religious beliefs as a justification for their refusal to provide artificial insemination for a lesbian couple. Guadalupe Benitez sued North Coast Women’s care in Vista and two of its doctors, saying they told her in 2000 that because she was a lesbian their Christian beliefs prohibited them from performing intrauterine insemination for her. The doctors later claimed they would have refused the treatment for any unmarried couple.” [Editor’s note: It will be most interesting to see how this might affect other issues … like. say, contraception? - SAT] (08/18/08)

Another sick decision by the California Nazguli. Given the fact that at first this “couple” thought that it was okay, and that the clinic even referred them to another clinic, this strikes me as a travesty of judgment and justice. It is not the homosexuals whose rights were violated in this but the rights of the doctors and other medical personnel to practice their own religion. Apparently, increasingly in California, the only people withOUT rights are Christians.

East Asian front:
China: Grim competition with golf counterfeiters
Boston Globe
“Jason Yao lives a dangerous life for a guy in the golf business. He gets death threats. He raids factories and markets. He shakes down informants and hangs out with private investigators. He has 10 aliases. China is the focus of the worldwide war against counterfeit golf products, and Yao is on the front lines. His employer, Acushnet, located 7,000 miles away in Fairhaven, Mass., makes the world’s most popular — and most copied — golf ball, the Titleist Pro V1, along with clubs, accessories, and shoes that counterfeiters mimic for sales around the globe. As Chinese officials crack down this summer on the sale of fake items to Olympic fans in Beijing, Yao is farther south in that country, raiding factories that make ersatz Titleist clubs and golf bags.” (08/21/08)

Typical of “state capitalism” which is so typical of Communist China.

East Asian front:
China stops Americans carrying 315 Bibles
MSNBC
“A group of American Christians who had 315 Bibles confiscated by Chinese officials when they arrived in China is refusing to leave the airport until they get the books back, their leader said Monday. Pat Klein said he and three others from his Vision Beyond Borders group spent Sunday night at the airport in the southwestern city of Kunming after customs officers took the Bibles from their checked luggage.” (08/17/08)

Theft by government, no free exercise of religion, no free speech, the list of Chinese evils gets longer and longer.

Economic news:
Fannie, Freddie shares battered
CNN
“Shares of mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, suffering their worst day since a mid-July free fall, plunged Monday to their lowest points in nearly two decades. Fannie (FNM, Fortune 500) fell 22% and Freddie (FRE, Fortune 500) lost 25% after a Barron’s report suggested that a government takeover of the troubled companies is inevitable. Fannie closed down $1.76 to $6.15 a share, the stock’s lowest level since May 12, 1989, according to the Center for Research in Security Prices at the University of Chicago business school. Fannie ended down $1.46 to $4.39, its lowest point since Jan. 18, 1991. Shares of both companies have plunged more than 80% since the start of the year.” [Editor’s note: The quicker these two mutant companies are allowed to go under for good, the better — and here’s hoping that the vultures who swooped in after the last price crash, thinking Uncle Sugar would drive the price back up permanently, take a bath - TLK] (08/18/08)

The government (theoretically) runs these, anyway, so a “takeover” will just magnify their problems, and lower their value to so little that Congress can go ahead and steal the investments outright. Yes, they SHOULD go under, and they almost certainly WILL, but HOW they are eaten is sure to benefit the government and the politically connected, and damage everyone else – even if they deserve to be damaged.

Environists:
CA: World’s largest solar plants planned
eFluxMedia
“On Friday, solar panel maker SunPower Corp. announced it would join the huge project put together by Pacific Gas & Electric Corp., according to which two solar power plants will be built in California. It was said the two plants would have an electricity output twelve times larger than the biggest similar power plant functional today. They will occupy more than 12 square miles of land in the middle of the state with solar panels; in any given cloudless day, they would generate around 800 megawatts, which is quite close to the power output a small nuclear plant would have.” (08/17/08)

A nuke plant, of course, will take less than a section of land, and will produce more. Solar has its place, but its impact can be significant, and we should not depend on it as so many people want.

Environists:
ME: Recipes for new fuels reviving old mills
Boston Globe
“As employment in traditional industries, such as papermaking, has declined over the years, Maine officials have sought other ways to generate jobs in northern rural areas, where the unemployment rate may be double that of the state’s more urban south. Alternative energy offers new opportunities to tap Maine’s natural resources. The state’s vast forests, for example, could provide feed stock for renewable fuels, such as ethanol and biomass, and the wood and other organic materials can be burned to generate electricity, steam, and heat. There’s also the power of wind on isolated ridges and of tides along its coastline.” [Editor’s note: The true irony would be if the formerly low-income, working-class state of Maine (”nothing but a lot of trees”) became a power center in the process of this! - SAT] (08/18/08)

Never mind, Steve, the baboons in Congress and the enviros have made sure that Maine will be unable to participate at all: Congress in its INFINITE wisdom has decided that biomass from national forests, other federal lands, and most private lands is NOT legally a renewable resource and cannot be used as feedstock for cellulosic ethanol or other “renewable” fuels, such as biodiesel created by thermo-catalytic depolymerization.

Enviros:
Mexico begins effort to save porpoise
Arizona Republic
“Mexico said Wednesday that it will invest $16 million to save a highly endangered species of porpoise in the upper Gulf of California, asking reluctant fishermen to adopt safer methods or give up their trade entirely. Scientists say the population of the vaquita marina, Spanish for ‘little sea cow,’ has dwindled to 150 or fewer from more than 500 a decade ago. Plans include paying fishermen to avoid the porpoise’s habitat or give up drag nets that drown dozens of the shy, dolphinlike animals each year. Some will even be paid to stop fishing forever. ‘We want to save a species at risk without putting humanity at risk,’ Environment Secretary Juan Rafael Elvira said at a ceremony kicking off the program.” (08/21/08)

IF Mexico is willing to ask fishermen to voluntarily sell their rights to fishing, OR to accept payment to voluntarily change fishing techniques, this will be acceptable.

Euro front:
Gates scoffs at Russian warnings to Poland
ABC
“Pentagon chief Robert Gates dismissed as ‘empty rhetoric’ on Sunday Russian warnings that Moscow would target Poland for a possible military strike because Warsaw agreed to host part of a U.S. missile shield. ‘Russia is not going to launch nuclear missiles at anybody,’ Defense Secretary Gates said on ABC News’ ‘This Week.’” (08/17/08)

I tend to agree with Gates on this – Putin and his supporters and followers are not likely to behave so extremely – no matter how they rant and rave. Frankly, Putin does not do a good Stalin.

Euro front:
Norway: Russia to suspend ties with NATO
Raw Story
“Russia has informed Norway that it plans to suspend all military ties with NATO, Norway’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday. The report comes a day after NATO foreign ministers said they would make further ties with Russia dependent on Moscow making good on a pledge to pull its troops back to pre-conflict positions in Georgia. However, they stopped short of calling an immediate halt to all cooperation.” (08/20/08)

Fully expected, NOT good news, and a judgment call – is Georgia (only partially a “free” country as relative to, say Switzerland or Sweden or the United States) worth what is probably a temporary hiatus in NATO-Russian cooperation? Russia had to make the same decision: was their fear of NATO/US encirclement a serious enough danger to them to justify jeopardizing NATO/US-Russian cooperation and risk other retaliation? The most serious problem with this suspension is that Russia HAS been helping somewhat with the NATO missions in both Afghanistan and the former Yugoslavia. (But maybe, this is a reason to get out of Yugoslavia, at least.)

Freedom of religion:
New federal rules will protect anti-abortion health workers
Los Angeles Times
“The Bush administration Thursday announced plans to implement a controversial regulation designed to protect antiabortion healthcare workers from being required to deliver services against their personal beliefs. The rule empowers federal health officials to pull funding from more than 584,000 hospitals, clinics, health plans, doctors’ offices and other entities that do not accommodate employees who refuse to participate in care they find objectionable on personal, moral or religious grounds.” (08/22/08)

This is good – unfortunately, the California Supreme Court can’t see (separate story) that they are destroying the freedom of doctors by not allowing the same thing for fertility doctors. One wonders if the California Supremes will find this federal action unconstitutional.

Mama's Note: The real core of the problem is the funding. If each person was responsible for their own health care, etc., none of this would be an issue.

Freedom of speech:
TN: Ruling lets stand school’s Confederate flag ban
Tennessean
“A federal appeals court panel has ruled in favor of a Tennessee high school that banned students from wearing clothing with the Confederate battle flag after several racial incidents. Students Derek Barr, Chris White and Roger Craig White claimed in a lawsuit that their free speech rights were violated by the 2005 ban on the Confederate symbol at William Blount High School in Maryville. School officials said their ban came after racial tension that included a fight, a civil rights complaint and graffiti of a Confederate flag, a racial slur and a noose. In its opinion filed Wednesday in Cincinnati, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that school officials had a right to ban the flag because they could ‘reasonably forecast’ that it would disrupt education.” (08/20/08)

I can’t tell the parents to get their kids out of the schools, because they already ARE out of school, but other parents should do so. My question is, how much further can we claim that “disruption” is “reasonably forecast” and take away people’s rights to free expression? Is a “reasonable forecast” that someone is going to panic and call the cops if you wear a pistol into a store enough reason to ban carrying? If it is “reasonably forecast” that “disruption” will occur when wearing a CSA flag on a belt buckle IN the school, is it reasonable to assume that wearing it on the street OUTSIDE the schools would cause a disruption? How far outside the school? The street? A block, two blocks? Viewing distance? Potential disruption is a price to be paid – a reasonable price, an acceptable price – for freedom of speech. God save the right!

Government ruined, tax funded schools:
Report: Corporal punishment rife in US schools
Reuters
“More than 200,000 children were hit as punishment in U.S. schools last year and in the South more blacks than whites are struck, two human rights groups said in a report released on Wednesday. Texas accounted for a quarter of the instances of corporal punishment in the 2006-2007 school year, according to the study compiled by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union. … Twenty-one U.S. states still permit the use of corporal punishment in schools. In Texas and Mississippi children as young as 3 are struck for transgressions as minor as gum chewing, the report says.” (08/20/08)Re

No wonder the schools are so fouled up, eh? Even in those 21 states, there are still many schools which have no-paddle policies and where three-year-olds who get away with gum-chewing turn into pre-teens who binge-drink when teens; only to have the liberals (like Reuters) bemoan how the schools and society are failing our children. Never has the ancient injunction, “spare the rod and spoil the child” been proven more than in America’s GRTF in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

Mama's Note: Once again, it isn't discipline of one sort or another in the schools that is the core problem... it is the fact that children are given to strangers in the first place. Only parents and those they specifically designate should have the power to use physical discipline in the first place. It is totally inappropriate for a stranger to spank my child, and I would never stand for it. The children don't belong in government schools, period. Solve that, and this problem goes away.

Home front and New Religions (global warming):
AZ: Hundreds evacuated near Grand Canyon after flooding
Arizona Republic
“Working through the challenge of darkness, rescue helicopters continued through Sunday night to evacuate hundreds of residents and campers stranded by the flooding caused by a breached dam near the Grand Canyon. As of late Sunday night, officials had not reported any deaths or injuries, but they will press on today with their rescue mission as more rain is expected. About 400 people were evacuated Sunday, including tourists and some of the 400 members of the Havasupai Tribe who live in Supai, located about 250 miles northwest of Phoenix, north of Seligman. The village is in a side canyon of the Grand Canyon.” (08/18/08)

The global warming “models” and Chicken Little reports constantly scream about how the Southwest will enter a drought cycle and bake to death in the dust. In reality, the Southwest (the Four Corners, specifically) has had a delightfully wet year so far, and cool temperatures (better than our other home in the Black Hills) – with Colorado’s high country getting blizzards last weekend! Yet the global warming propaganda continues, even while incidents like this take place.

Home front:
Court: States can monitor emissions, too
Washington Times
“A federal appeals court on Tuesday threw out a Bush administration policy that allowed only the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to monitor polluting industries, giving states broader authority over emissions control. The ruling could affect more than 16,000 industrial polluters such as oil refineries, power plants and factories across the country and was hailed by environmentalists as a victory for those seeking tougher restrictions for soot, smog, mercury and other pollutants.” (08/20/08)

Frankly, I can find no constitutional authorization for ANY Federal EPA monitoring – even with the idea of interstate commerce allowing for federal regulations, the actual monitoring and enforcement is clearly a power reserved for the states, NOT for the Central Government.

Home front:
IA: Small town struggles after immigration raid
Charlotte Observer
“It was as if a tornado had whipped through the town or a flood had swallowed up houses. Three months after the raid, that’s how many in Postville describe the events of May 12. Lives disrupted. People pushed out of jobs and homes. Children separated from parents. Businesses verging towards collapse. … And as in any small town swept by disaster, the community quickly banded together to help the victims. In the days following the raid, donations of food, clothing and money poured into St. Bridget’s, which became a sanctuary to nearly 400 immigrants, and to the local food pantry, flocked by families in need. Red ribbons, symbolizing support for the detained workers, still flutter from lamp posts and tree trunks.” (08/17/08)

Postville’s story is portrayed as indeed very pitiful, but the story is very one-sided, and tends to ignore some key facts, like the fact that these people who were rounded up were using stolen identities – a crime for which we should and usually do punish the native-born and naturalized citizen alike with considerably more harshness than this – prison time, with parents separated from children, and more! I do NOT and cannot describe the woman who stole the identity and $60,000 of a dear friend’s money as a “victim” because she was caught, hauled off to jail, tried, and convicted of those crimes – even if all she is doing is paying back the theft at the rate of $100 every two or three months. Yes, I am glad and pleased that the legal citizens of Postville banded together to help the illegals and the town in a time of trouble, but it would have been a lot more productive if the people of Postville had worked with these people long before the ICE showed up to get them legalized, and get them to stop committing crimes.

Home front:
HI: Protesters “reinstate” king
Independent [UK]
“Tourists were turned away from the Iolani Royal Palace in Honolulu yesterday as authorities assessed the damage from its brief occupation by protesters claiming they had reinstalled the islands’ king on the Hawaiian throne. The takeover began late on Friday and lasted for two hours before state police entered the palace grounds to bring it to an end. Officials said that 22 people had been arrested and 14 charged with trespassing. Others faced charges of burglary after forcing their way into the building, allegedly knocking aside and slightly hurting one employee along the way. … A group identifying its leader as King Akahi Nui claimed responsibility for the latest incursion. They distributed an ‘occupation public information bulletin’ after the break -in. It stated that ‘Majesty Akahi Nui, the King of Hawaii, has now reoccupied the throne of Hawaii. The Kingdom of Hawaii is now reenacted.’ King Nui says he was crowned in 1998.” (08/18/08)

No matter how much sympathy I have for secessionist movements, anyone who attempts to reinstitute a monarchy is no friend of liberty. Even if they are living in a dream world.

Islamic imperialists:
Algeria: Twin bombings kill 11 in second day of violence
Wall Street Journal
“Twin car bombings rocked a hotel and military headquarters in the Algerian town of Bouira on Wednesday, killing 11 people, official media and witnesses said a day after a suicide bombing in a neighboring region killed 43. A car laden with explosives went off at about 6 a.m. (12 a.m. ET) in front of the Bouira sector military command, injuring four soldiers …. It was followed a minute later by a second bombing against the nearby Hotel Sofi, Bouira’s largest, witnesses said. That attack killed 11 people and wounded 27 others …. The bombings came a day after a suicide bomber rammed a car into a line of applicants at a police academy in the town of Les Issers, some 27 miles to the north, killing at least 43 people and injuring 45.” (08/20/08)

From one end to the other: the western portion of North Africa clear to the Philippines, the “House of Peace” (Dar Al-Salaam or Dar Al-Islam) lives up to its name so well – if the “peace” or “submission” is that of the grave. Yet so many people continue to believe that Islam is a religion of peace… Bloody though the West is, we seldom have this kind of mindless killing again and again and again.

Islamic imperialists:
Pakistan: Toll in bombing rises to 30
Agence France-Presse
“The death toll from a suicide blast in northwest Pakistan has risen to 30 following the deaths of seven more people in hospital overnight, police said Wednesday. The suicide attack happened at a hospital in the troubled town of Dera Ismail Khan on Tuesday as Shiite Muslims gathered to protest over the death of a man in a suspected sectarian attack. … The suicide attack was the first since US-backed president Pervez Musharraf resigned on Monday.” (08/20/08)

And in the middle – more killing. Another example of the high morals and concern for others that characterizes Islam – a bloody attack on a hospital worthy of the best of Communist, Fascist, or Mongol actions in history.

Local tyranny:
UK: Fat children “should be taken from parents” to curb obesity epidemic
Times Online [UK]
“Grossly overweight children may be taken from their families and put into care if Britain’s obesity epidemic continues to escalate, council chiefs said yesterday. The Local Government Association argued that parents who allowed their children to eat too much could be as guilty of neglect as those who did not feed their children at all. The association said that until now there had been only a few cases when social services had intervened in obesity cases. But it gave warning that local councils may have to take action much more often and, if necessary, put obese children on ‘at risk’ registers or take them into care. It called for new guidelines to be drawn up to help authorities deal with the issue.” (08/16/08)

No, I checked to make sure that this was the Times and not the Daily Onion. One more excuse for local thugs to abuse entire families. Not that one might not relish the thought of Harry Potter’s muggle family split up with his cousin hauled out to a County fat farm for some drill and laps.

Massa wannabes:
TN: Boston Tea Party completes ballot drive
PRLog
“America’s new libertarian alternative wrapped up its first-ever ballot access petition drive today as Boston Tea Party representatives turned in petition signatures and other paperwork to state election officials. Once the signatures are certified by Tennessee’s Secretary of State, presidential candidate Charles Jay and vice-presidential candidate Thomas L. Knapp will be set to appear on Tennessee ballots in November. The petitioners turned in more than 400 signatures just before today’s deadline. Tennessee law requires 275 valid signatures.” (08/21/08)

275 signatures! South Dakota, a state with 1/5 the population of Tennessee, requires 3,000; other states require tens of thousands. Incredible. I do hope that they are having fun.

Massa wannabes:
CA: Local Ron Paul supporters traveling to Minneapolis
Orange County Register
“The ‘Ron Paul REVOLution’ isn’t over quite yet. The Republican congressman’s primary campaign unexpectedly erupted into a phenomenon, attracting tens of thousands who’d felt like political outsiders. And while Paul won only handful of delegates to the Republican National Convention next month, his alternative convention in Minneapolis has sold nearly 10,000 tickets. At least 10 of those tickets have gone to Orange County voters. ‘We all have so much energy from the campaign, and we have to find a way to carry it over,’ said Irvine commodities broker Allan Bartlett, who’s among those taking time off work to attend Paul’s ‘Rally for the Republic’ Aug. 31 to Sept. 2.” (08/21/08)

I also hope these people are having fun. The best I can expect of this that a percentage of these people will realize that the system is rigged against even Ron Paul, who is willing to temper (or dilute, if you prefer) his libertarian ideals to garner some support from the general mass of the population.

Mama's Note: I'm afraid that it's all a waste of time, even if a great many people got on board. Ron Paul's wife is seriously ill now, and - especially if she does not survive - I suspect his political career is over. He's long past retirement age, and I hope he lives long enough to enjoy at least a little of it.

Massa wannabes:
CO: Denver cops told, hold off on pot arrests during DNC
Raw Story
“Denver police should refrain from penalizing adults for possession of small amounts of cannabis, up to an ounce, during the Democratic National Convention, the mayor’s advisory panel said Wednesday. While simple possession of small amounts is the city’s lowest law enforcement priority thanks to initiatives passed by voters in 2005 and 2007, state law remains in place and enforceable. ‘We’ve always enforced the state statute,’ Denver Police spokesman Sonny Jackson said Monday. ‘That was the law before the initiative and it’s nothing new. I don’t know why we’d relax any law.’” (08/21/08)

A poor exchange for having to play host to the Demos – especially for those of us who cannot stand what Denver has become in the past few decades.

Massa wannabes:
New Christian group airs ads … for Obama
Christian Science Monitor
“His face fills the screen as the man looks earnestly into the camera and speaks directly to the viewer. ‘As a pastor, I know you can learn a lot about a man’s character by the way he treats his family,’ he says. It’s prominent evangelical leader Brian McLaren, and so begins the new TV ad for Sen. Barack Obama, which ran last weekend during Pastor Rick Warren’s presidential forum at Saddleback Church in California. The ad on ’standing up for families’ doesn’t come from the Obama campaign, but from an independent political action committee (PAC) that has recently joined the battle for the Christian vote. The Matthew 25 Network, as it’s called, is a group of Evangelical, Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Pentecostal Christians. Its purpose, organizers say, is to broaden the issues Christians pay attention to and also to counter falsehoods or smears targeting Senator Obama.” (08/21/08)

I have no problem with broadening the issues discussed, but it is incredible to me to believe that ANY Christian can support either Obama or McCain. Yes, you can learn a lot from the way a man treats his family, but there is more to politics and the evils of government than that, by a long shot. The more I learn about Obama, the less he thrills me – not that I ever saw much in him.

Massa wannabes:
Group wants OK to attack Obama on abortion
Raw Story
“A group purporting to tell the ‘real truth’ about Barack Obama’s views on abortion wants a judge to rule it is not subject to federal election restrictions on fundraising and advertising. The Real Truth About Obama Inc., a group formed by antiabortion activists, is trying to establish a Website and air radio ads. But the group’s attorney says his clients fear they will be prosecuted for breaking federal rules that restrict fundraising and advertising by political action committees, or PACs. The Richmond-based group argues it is not a PAC because it would be ‘talking about an issue, not advocating Obama’s defeat or election.’” (08/17/08)

These people are playing “barracks lawyer” but it is hard to blame them with the way McCain-Feingold has warped things. These people should have every right to say and teach what they want to. We may be seeing McCain hoist by his own petard.

Massa wannabes:
Obama chooses Biden as running mate
MSNBC
Barack Obama named Delaware Sen. Joe Biden as his vice presidential running mate early Saturday, balancing his ticket with a seasoned congressional veteran well-versed in foreign policy and defense issues. Biden, who has served in the Senate since being elected at the age of 29, is the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee.

I guess since the Democrats couldn't get Bob Dole, they chose their equivalent. The man has as little real world experience as Obama: he worked as a lawyer for one year before getting elected to county office for two years and then the US Senate, where he took office at age 30 years, one month, 15 days: and there he has camped ever since: claiming to be a specialist in foreign affairs and security matters. He has started a "political dynasty" in Delaware - rather, another political dynasty. He seems to be a liberal's liberal, and the one good thing I can say for him, is that he doesn't live in DC: he commutes by train from Delaware to DC each day. He ought to make a fine match for Obama. At least he will liven up
things somewhat.

Medical news:
100 years later, immune systems still remember
Fox News
“Nearly a century after history’s most lethal flu faded away, survivors’ bloodstreams still carry super-potent protection against the 1918 virus, demonstrating the remarkable durability of the human immune system. Scientists tested the blood of 32 people aged 92 to 102 who were exposed to the 1918 pandemic flu and found antibodies that still roam the body looking to strangle the old flu strain. Researchers manipulated those antibodies into a vaccine and found that it kept alive all the mice they had injected with the killer flu, according to a study published online Sunday in the journal Nature.” (08/17/08)

Nine decades maybe, not “nearly a century” but the point is, people adapt! What does not kill us, makes us stronger. At the same time, I fear that modern society is incapable of dealing with a similar pandemic today without really severe trauma at all levels of society.

Mama's Note: Yes. Unfortunately, a major pandemic today would wipe out a majority of the population, especially in America and Europe. All of the antibiotics, vast dependence on various drugs and a poor diet that does not build the immune system make most people highly vulnerable to all sorts of disease. Constant, low level exposure to germs and toxins of all kinds help the healthy immune system build good defenses. Living in a disinfectant, antibiotic saturated world, unending stress, eating junk and getting no significant exercise, etc. sets one up for this disaster.

Mesopotamian front:
Blackwater guards get target letters
Biloxi Sun Herald
“Half a dozen Blackwater Worldwide security guards have gotten target letters from the Justice Department in a probe of shootings in Baghdad that killed 17 Iraqis, The Washington Post reported. The Blackwater guards are caught up in the investigation of shootings that took place last September when a Blackwater team arrived in several vehicles at an intersection in Baghdad where shooting erupted, leaving numerous Iraqis dead and wounded.” (08/17/08)

There is no way that this investigation should have been taking this long – which may explain why it is the USDOJ and not a “Iraqi” government agency is doing this.

Mesopotamian front:
Iraq [sic]: Government [sic] troops storm office, killing one
Agence France-Presse
“Iraqi soldiers stormed the offices of the governor of the restive province of Diyala before dawn on Tuesday, killing his secretary and firing on local police, the governor told AFP. The incident, which occurred about 2 am (2300 GMT on Monday) sparked clashes between the soldiers and local security forces which governor Raad Rasheed Mulla Jawad said had caused casualties.” (08/19/08)

Typical internal Arab politics – for the last 3000 years, at least. It seems that “Iraq” may be returning to a post-invasion normal.

Nazgul:
Mistrial in student’s Confederate flag lawsuit
MSNBC
“A teenager’s free-speech lawsuit against a school dress code that banned Confederate flag clothing ended in a mistrial Friday when a jury in federal court failed to reach a verdict. The panel of five women and three men deliberated about 13 hours over three days before telling U.S. District Judge Tom Varlan they couldn’t reach a unanimous decision in the case of Tommy DeFoe, 18. Lawyers for DeFoe and for the Anderson County School Board both claimed victory.” (08/15/08)

I cannot imagine that this jury was given instructions that were right and accurate…

North American union:
Citizens’ US border crossings tracked
Washington Post
“The federal government has been using its system of border checkpoints to greatly expand a database on travelers entering the country by collecting information on all U.S. citizens crossing by land, compiling data that will be stored for 15 years and may be used in criminal and intelligence investigations. Officials say the Border Crossing Information system, disclosed last month by the Department of Homeland Security in a Federal Register notice, is part of a broader effort to guard against terrorist threats. It also reflects the growing number of government systems containing personal information on Americans that can be shared for a broad range of law enforcement and intelligence purposes, some of which are exempt from some Privacy Act protections.” (08/20/08)

The more information the government has, the more our freedoms vanish, if not because of the government directly, then because the government lets other crooks steal the data.

North American union:
Mexicans are wary of both US candidates
Arizona Republic
“Like many Mexicans, Jaime Reyes is a little apprehensive about the coming U.S. presidential election. ‘Whoever wins, it could be bad for us,’ said Reyes, a salesman in the western city of Guadalajara. ‘The Republicans seem like they’re anti-immigrant, and (Barack) Obama is against free trade. I don’t think either is good.’ It’s a common sentiment in Mexico, as the slumping U.S. economy and the effects of the 2001 terrorist attacks make the relationship between the United States and its southern neighbor more complicated than ever. Mexicans are still bitter about George W. Bush, a Texan who took office in 2000 promising a new kind of partnership with Mexico. Instead, Bush has overseen an unprecedented fortification of the border and a crackdown on illegal Mexican immigrants.” (08/20/08)

Of course, the “fortification” of the border (which is at best an exaggeration and at worst an outright lie) has been over Bush’s significant objections and where done, with little cooperation. As for a “crackdown” – it has been nothing like previous attempts to crack down on illegal immigrants over the past century: it is just that our standard of “severe” has changed so much. But face it, unless the next US president is Fox or Calderon or some other Mexican politician, most Mexicans will be very unhappy. And I venture a guess that we will find very few if any folks so unhappy about the next president that they decide not to sneak into the US – it is always better than Mexico.

North American union:
US farmers see how their employees live back in Mexico
Christian Science Monitor
“On a recent day Stan Linder drives around town in a white Ford pickup truck, pointing out where corn is grown and where his friends live. Locals pile into the back to avoid the steep walk up dirt roads. But he’s nowhere near his own home, 2,000 miles north on a dairy farm in Wisconsin. He’s in the remote mountains of Mexico as part of a cultural exchange to see how life is for the families of the migrant workers he employs. As hostility to immigrants seems to be rising in the US … former Wisconsin high school Spanish teacher Shaun Duvall is trying to boost cross-cultural understanding with 10-day ‘cultural immersion’ trips for US farmers.” (08/19/08)

This seems to be a pretty good idea to me. Now, if some of the big-urban yuppies who hire wetbacks to mow their lawns, rake their leaves, and nanny their children could do the same thing and go to see where THEIR immigrant employees come from… Of course, farmers are likely to appreciate the trip and the sights more, being a little more grounded to earth than your average urban dweller today.

Mama's Note: Give me ONE single reason why anyone, rich or poor, should not be free to hire anyone, at any agreed upon price, for any job that does not involve aggression against others? Without the "papers please" insanity of these "crackdowns," nobody would need or want to practice identity theft. Without the welfare and other crap, those who did not want to work would not come. All of the problems trotted out are rooted in the government efforts to "control" and the inevitable infringement on everyone's rights in the process.

Persian front:
Iran test fires rocket, says state media
CNN
“Iran test-fired a rocket that it plans to launch later to carry a research satellite into space, state-run media reported Sunday. The launch of Iran’s two-stage rocket, called Safir or ‘messenger,’ was successful on Saturday and ‘paved the way for placing the first Iranian satellite in orbit,’ the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.” (08/17/08)

Good for them. Maybe we can help them divert the energy devoted to fighting for preeminence in the Ummah (the Islamic world) to space.

Politics 2008:
Donors pick up convention tab
USA Today
“Labor unions and wealthy donors are helping to close funding gaps for both national political conventions, sometimes contributing more than what they could legally donate to Barack Obama or John McCain. The American Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) each recently gave at least $500,000 for the Democratic convention in Denver. Republicans asked New York Jets owner Robert W. ‘Woody’ Johnson IV to reach out to friends and corporate contacts to raise funds for their convention Sept. 1-4 in St. Paul.” (08/14/08)

Hmmm – does this mean that the Unions are going to pay the tens of thousands of us who are going to have to find a way to drive through or around Denver when they close off five miles of I-25 (Valley Highway to you old fogies out there, like me) for the Coronation? From the cost of supporting a court, we’d be a WHOLE lot better off with a real king or queen: instead of having three coronations every four years, there would only be one every ten or twenty…

Politics 2008:
Voting machine maker discloses program error
Toledo Blade
“A major voting machine maker has notified its customers in 34 states that a programming error discovered during testing may cause votes to be dropped when they are uploaded to a computer server from the machines’ vote-holding memory cards. Premier Election Solutions Inc. supplies touch-screen voting systems as well as scanners for paper ballots to large and small customers throughout the nation. … The Allen, Texas-based Premier is a unit of North Canton-based Diebold Inc.” (08/22/08)

Wow, don’t you wish we went back to paper?

Mama's Note: What difference does it make? Fraud was no more difficult with paper. Remember that the only thing that counts is who counts the votes. Why encourage them at all?

Right to keep and bear arms:
CA: Armed 93-year-old woman scares off intruder
KNBC News
“A 93-year-old Hemet woman shot at an intruder who entered her home, but she missed and the bullet went through a window and over a neighbor’s home, Hemet police said Friday. The woman shot at the intruder who entered her home in the 300 block of South Street shortly before 11 p.m. Thursday, Lt. Duane Wisehart said. She called police and they surrounded the home until she came out without the weapon, Wisehart said. The woman told police she heard someone in her home and armed herself with a pistol, then shot at the intruder as the man walked down her hall toward her. The bullet went through a kitchen window of the small, two-bedroom home, through a shade structure and over a house next door, Wisehart said. The intruder took some pieces of jewelry and a watch, Wisehart said. … The home’s garage door was pulled open from the outside, but the intruder or intruders entered through an open window. ‘She’s been given the security talk,’ Wisehart said. The woman will not be facing charges, Wisehart said. (08/16/08)

Forget about going OVER the house – where did the bullet end up? She needs training, badly, and I hope that the “security talk” was about basic things like locking windows, locking doors, and how to aim.

Mama's Note: My hair stood on end when I read this one! Even a .22 bullet can travel far and still do damage. How in the world she could miss the intruder at that range... Maybe she didn't really try to hit him? I'm with Nathan and hope she will get at least some basic training.

Right to keep and bear arms:
VA: Homeowner holds gun on man until police arrive
Tidewater News
“An Ivor resident who returned home early one day last week was able to help police apprehend a man who had broken into at least two homes along Holloman Drive. When he got home last Tuesday and found a man ransacking his house, the burglary victim grabbed a shotgun, confronted the man and held him at bay until police could arrive on the scene. When they got there, they found that the man, 35-year-old Christopher Michael Hosking, who is listed as ‘homeless’ in court records, was in possession of a handgun that had been stolen from another house nearby, along with cash that had been taken from the second victim’s home, according to Detective Cpl. Richard Morris of the Southampton Sheriff’s Office. Hosking was charged with breaking and entering, grand larceny, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and first-offense possession of marijuana, a misdemeanor. Morris said the man also has criminal charges pending in South Carolina.” (08/12/08)

I hope that all these people get their possession, (including the gun) back.

Right to keep and bear arms:
TX: Perry says school districts should decide own gun rules
Houston Chronicle
“Gov. Rick Perry said Monday that local school districts should be able to decide whether to allow concealed weapons on their campuses.’I'm pretty much a fan that if you’ve been trained, if you are registered, then you ought to be able to carry a weapon,’ Perry said. He was asked about the policy of a small school district west of Wichita Falls, which may be the first to allow employees who are licensed to carry concealed handguns to bring their weapons to the district’s lone 110-student, K-12 campus. After the 2007 mass shooting at Virginia Tech University, Perry expressed support for allowing licensed Texans to carry concealed handguns anywhere, including churches, courthouses and college campuses.” (08/21/08)

Well, good. A small step, not nearly enough, but a start.

Right to keep and bear arms:
TX: Resident shoots intruder
My Fox Houston
“Investigators say Clarence Hill, 28, had an argument Tuesday night with John Cruz, 21, at the Sierra Pines Apartments on the 6400 block of Sierra Blanca Drive near Presidio Square Boulevard. Cruz ran into his apartment and was followed by Hill, who forced his way into the unit, according to investigators. After Hill entered the home, deputies say Cruz shot and killed him. The Harris County grand jury will determine whether or not Cruz will face any charges in the death of Hill.” (08/20/08)

It seems pretty clear cut, but I am sure that there is some question about WHY Cruz ran into his apartment – was it after a threat to kill Hill?

Right to keep and bear arms:
TX: store owner fatally shoots robber
Houston Chronicle
“Confronted with a pistol and bound with duct tape, the owner of a northwest Harris County store decided not to quietly submit and hope his attacker would show mercy. The businessman worked himself free, got his own gun and killed the robber in a shootout, sheriff’s deputies said. The incident happened about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday when a man walked into the cellular phone store in the 12000 block of Veterans Memorial Drive near Antoine, pulled out a gun and tied up the owner, sheriff’s detectives said. ‘He (the robber) was in the process of trying to disable the surveillance equipment when the owner was able to free himself,” said Sgt. Ben Beall. The owner grabbed his own pistol and opened fire. The robber did the same, but was fatally wounded.” (08/21/08)

It sounds like the man was facing a desperate situation indeed.

Mama's Note: He was very lucky. One wonders why he didn't employ his gun a lot earlier in the situation. I will never allow myself to be tied up that way. I will fight just as long and as hard as I possibly can to prevent it.

Right to keep and bear arms:
CA: Would-be robber flees store after employee shoots him
Desert Sun
“A man was shot Tuesday morning as he tried to rob a Coachella convenience store, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. The man entered the Y and M Market in the 1500 block of Second Street about 10:40 a.m. and brandished a handgun. Gunfire was exchanged between the suspect and a store employee and the suspect was shot, according to the sheriff’s department. The suspect fled the scene in a vehicle with a woman. They did not get away with any money. No one in the store was injured.” (08/20/08)

Another case where an unarmed employee would have likely been dead or wounded and the store robbed.

Mama's Note: My youngest son lives near there and he says the whole area is becoming increasingly violent. I'm sure all the folks who want to disarm everyone refuse to read about this sort of thing.

Right to keep and bear arms:
LA: Neighbors blame victims in robbery shootout
WLTV News
“On Sunday, around 10:30 p.m., New Orleans Police Department officers say two hooded men robbed an employee of the Soprano’s Meat Market at gun point at 2703 Ursulines Avenue. Store owner and brother of the employee, Rick Abraham, says surveillance video captured the entire incident. ‘They robbed him, beat him with the gun, threw him on the floor, and demanded the money,’ he said. But Abraham says his brother was only carrying $50, and so when the robbers demanded more, his brother pulled out his own gun to defend himself. ‘What happened wasn’t just some gunfight; it was a matter of life and death situation.’ But on Tuesday night, a handful residents showed up to the First District police station, arguing otherwise. … During the NONPAC meeting, officers told residents the store employee, legally, did nothing wrong. New Orleans police Sgt. Cyril Davillier said the man did not have a concealed weapons permit, but said so long as a person is carrying a gun from their work to their vehicle, or from their home to their vehicle, they do not need one. … Many of the residents at Tuesday’s anti-crime meeting say they blame the store’s owner for much of the area’s illegal activity. They say the meat market stays open later than it should, and accuse the store’s owner of attracting customers who contribute to crime.” (08/20/08)

Even if the store MIGHT be causing problems, how does this take away an employee’s right to defend himself? Even if he is a brother? I cannot see any reason why, especially in a city like NO, a store should cause a problem by staying open all the time – and as for attracting customers who contribute to crime, well, could not the same be said for ANY late-night store? It sounds like these neighbors are looking for excuses to close the store down.

Mama's Note: Good grief... with neighbors like that, who needs enemies?

Right to keep and bear arms:
IL: City looks to draft new victim disarmament laws
WBEZ News
“Lawyers in the Chicago area are looking for new ways to restrict handguns despite a recent Supreme Court ruling that made bans illegal. The ruling found that Washington, D.C.’s ban on all handguns violated the constitutional rights of the city’s residents. Since then, villages and cities around Chicago have been getting rid of their bans. Nina Vinik is with a gun control group but she says the court’s decision wasn’t all bad news. VINIK: It’s an opportunity to come in now and say, ‘Okay, no longer do we have a ban, let’s look at what we can put into place.’” (08/18/08)

They just don’t get it – freedom is wasted on far too many people, isn’t it? Of course, so are a lot of other things, so I guess we’ll keep on fighting for liberty anyway.

Right to keep and bear arms:
MS: Car burglar shot
WLBT News
“A burglary victim opens fire on a man who he allegedly caught breaking into his vehicle Saturday morning. JPD Lt. Jeffery Scott said 22-year old Mario Lampkin was shot once in the leg by the owner of the vehicle. Investigators say it happened just before 6 a.m. at 1315 North Jefferson Street. Officers also believe Lampkin is responsible for breaking into two other vehicles before he was shot.” (08/16/08)

I am not exactly convinced that this was self-defense, and not sure if I’d WANT to shoot someone in the leg when he was breaking into my car – do I really want to argue with the insurance company about the fact that I actually put the bullet hole in the car, after the round goes through Lampkin’s leg? There is a reason that God gives armed people mouths – a warning is usually sufficient in situations like this.

Right to keep and bear arms:
IN: Two shot in break-in
Indy Channel
“Two people were shot in a home break-in early Monday morning at an apartment complex on Indianapolis’ east side. Indianapolis Metro police were called to 42nd Street and Post Road just after 1 a.m. Police said they found two men had been shot. One was believed to be a resident of the apartment complex and the other was possibly an intruder, officers said. The resident was struck in the head and the other man was hit in the chest. Their injuries were believed to be serious but not life-threatening.” (08/18/08)

Gee, this used to be a good neighborhood, as I recall. But that was when there was an Army post nearby – and nobody liked the neighbors. More reason to be armed at all times.

Russo-Georgian war:
US, allies contemplate action against Russia
Salisbury Post
“The United States on Sunday accused Russia of stalling its military pullback in Georgia, but the Bush administration is not rushing to repudiate Moscow for its actions. The White House is struggling to figure out the best way to penalize Russia. It doesn’t want to deeply damage existing cooperation on many fronts or discourage Moscow from further integrating itself into global economic and political institutions.” (08/17/08)

Seems like the most simple thing would be to tell all three factions to stop beating up on each other! Trying to “punish” someone in a situation like this seldom does any good that I can see. Since it is certainly by no means clear that Russia is the aggressor, or the only aggressor, best to stay out of the mess. Or rather, to GET out of the mess.

South Asian front:
Bombings rock Pakistan ahead of elections
CNN
“The Taliban claimed responsibility Thursday for dual suicide bombings at a Pakistani military arms factory that police said killed 66 people and wounded more than 70 others. The spokesman for Pakistan’s Taliban, Maulvi Omar, said his group, Tehrik-e-Taliban, was responsible for Thursday’s attacks. Two suicide bombers blew themselves up near the gates of the military arms factory in Wah, near Rawalpindi, where Pakistan’s military is based.” (08/22/08)

The Taleban, of course, does not really want Pakistan to exist (any more than they want Afghanistan to exist) unless they can control it themselves.

South Asian front:
Pakistan: Musharraf resigns
Best Syndication
“The embattled Pakistani President, Pervez Musharraf, resigned his post yesterday leaving many decisions to be made by the courts and other political leaders. Musharraf was facing impeachment for his 1999 coup and for firing 60 judges in November of last year.” (08/18/08)

Too bad, so sad… seriously, Musharraf and the Army clearly decided that his presence in office would no longer provide any benefit to the Army and the nation which is, for all intents and purposes, centered around the Army. This can in no way be compared to Nixon’s resignation in 1974; the Army will still be the dominant group in government, whether it is an “army” president or not.

Stupid government tricks:
MA: 439,000 more get health coverage
Boston Globe
“Nearly three-quarters of previously uninsured Massachusetts residents now have medical coverage under the state’s landmark campaign to extend health insurance to virtually all Bay Staters, according to a report released yesterday by Governor Deval Patrick’s administration. Since the program’s launch in June 2006, 439,000 more people have enrolled in health insurance, and nearly half of them signed up for private insurance not funded by taxpayers, says the report from the Division of Health Care Finance and Policy. Before 2006, studies had estimated that about 600,000 Massachusetts residents lacked health insurance. The dramatic expansion has spurred a substantial drop in patients seeking routine care in hospital emergency rooms, where treatment is much more expensive.” [Editor’s note: The short-term upside (less use of E-rooms) is evident; the long-term downside (more centralized reliance on “insurance” for all ailments) is less obvious - SAT] (08/20/08)

Steve’s point is well-taken. And of the new “insured,” more than half are now on the dole. Also, are they sure that the sign-ups have reduced the emergency room visits, or is there some other factor at work?

Mama's Note: There is only one thing that will significantly and permanently return the emergency room and trauma centers back into productive and efficient places... elimination of the "law" that requires them to see any and all who walk through the doors. Back in the dark ages when I was an ER nurse (briefly, thank God), we were able and willing to sort out the real emergencies and tell everyone else to go somewhere else... suggesting that they see their regular doctor, visit a clinic, go home and sleep it off... whatever. It was not our responsibility to "make sure" there was nothing life threatening in each and every runny nose or hangover presented. We dealt mostly with blood, breathing emergencies and heart attacks... all fairly easy to spot.

Stupid cop tricks:
UK: Flung in cell for photo of copper
The Sun [UK]
“A man was held for five hours after he photographed a cop reversing the wrong way up a one-way street. Andrew Carter snapped the cop van outside a chippie. PC Aqil Farooq leaped out, hit the camera to the ground, handcuffed Mr. Carter and bundled him into the back of the vehicle. The plumber, 44, was arrested for supposedly being drunk, resisting arrest and assaulting the officer with the camera. He was kept in cells before finally being released on police bail at midnight.” (08/20/08)

An obvious case of good, old-fashioned police brutality – and for every one of these the Sun or Telegraph reports, I expect that there are fifteen or twenty that never get reported for fear of reprisals by the bobbies.

Stupid government tricks:
UK: Migrant children “held too long”
BBC News [UK]
“An immigration removal centre has wrongfully detained disabled children and transports families in metal cages, the prisons’ inspectorate has found. The HM Inspectorate of Prisons said children were detained for too long and left distressed and scared at the Yarl’s Wood centre in Bedfordshire.” (08/21/08)

Government power inevitably results in government abuse, as even the very limited Confederate government of 1776-1783 and the first years of Federal government proved. This is exactly what happens when you give people too much power over others.

Mama's Note: "This is exactly what happens when you give people too much ANY power over others." There, fixed that for you...

Stupid government tricks:
IL: Sheriff goes to jail for an education
Yahoo! News
“Sheriff Mark Curran of Lake County, Illinois, walked into his own jail on Wednesday to spend a week as a prisoner, saying he was divinely inspired to learn what it was like to be confined and to sample jail programs designed to reduce recidivism. ‘The biblical adage that we reap what we sow is very true in criminal justice,’ said Curran, 45, before exchanging his business suit for a prison jumpsuit at the Waukegan, Illinois, facility near Chicago. Illinois ‘has historically had one of the worst-run prison systems in the nation … treating inmates like caged animals only to see them released back into their communities angrier and more bitter than they originally were,’ he said. Curran will spend time in the general population of some 600 inmates who are awaiting trial on charges of murder, rape and lesser crimes, though at times he will have his own cell.” (08/21/08)

I am putting it in this category not because of what the sheriff is doing – that strikes me as a good idea – but because Illinois has constantly demonstrated that their prison and jail system causes more crime than it prevents. Tied with a “criminal justice system” that is more criminal than justice, it is clear that the situation needs as much help as possible. I don’t know if A sheriff can make a difference, but at least he is trying.

Mama's Note: This one struck me as totally off the wall. Sounds like a big publicity stunt, and I can't see how doing this will help reform the system at all. But, if he can see a way, I'm glad.

Stupid government tricks:
TN: Sex crime registry may add juveniles
Tennessean
“Tennessee’s failure to include sex offenses by juveniles on its public sex offender registry could start costing the state federal money in 2009. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman Kristin Helm said the agency is going to ‘wholeheartedly push’ to have the legislature change the sex registry law to include offenses by juveniles. The federal Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 includes a 10 percent reduction in federal law enforcement funding to states that fail to comply with the law by July 2009. The law allows two annual extensions for states that show significant movement toward including juveniles in public sex offender registries.” [Editor’s note: Given how broad a term “sex crime” has become, this is unlikely to be good news - SAT] (08/18/08)

Steve is right, of course – this is the same technique as used by MADD to force states to go along with the Age 21 drinking laws that more and more colleges say actually make matters worse (see related story). And I can no more find constitutional justification for the Feds using extortion in this issue than in drunk driving. Nor expect any more real benefit.

Mama's Note: I've never understood what benefit such a registry is supposed to provide. I've never seen one, and have no interest in doing so. Sounds like just another way to track and control people.

Stupid government tricks:
MA: T hacking exposes a deeper clash
Boston Globe
“Recent inventions to emerge from the workshop of Zack Anderson include the ‘Killbot,’ a radio-controlled robot with a ‘1,500,000-candlepower spotlight to blind the victim,’ a bullhorn ‘to terrify victims,’ and a spinning drill bit ‘to bore through obstacles.’ Anderson, a 21-year-old electrical engineering major at MIT … along with his freshman-year roommate, R. J. Ryan, 22, and another student in the class, Alessandro Chiesa, 20, claimed in their project to have developed a way to hack into the MBTA’s recently installed $180 million automated fare-collection system and provide fellow hackers with ‘free rides for life.’ Not surprisingly, the T was not pleased to learn of the development.” [Editor’s note: From how much of public transit is tax-subsidized … to the value of debugging poor security systems … It’s hard to know where to begin - SAT] (08/18/08)

Out of curiosity, how long does it take the MBTA to pay for an $180 million dollar system? And who paid for the system - the riders? Somehow, I don’t think so. These guys are stealing, all right, but the real big-time theft occurred a long time before they hacked into the system.

Stupid government tricks:
UK: MI5 wants gay recruits
Fox News
“Britain’s domestic spy agency wants gay recruits to know: It’s time to come out of the closet. After shunning them for decades over worries of blackmail, MI5 is now asking gay and lesbian people to consider a career as a spy, promising the chance to fight terrorists, protect their country — and earn a decent salary, plus benefits. As part of an ongoing recruitment drive, MI5 is already wooing women, minorities and people with language skills. The fact that they’re now reaching out to Britain’s gay community is long overdue, said Peter Tatchell, a London-based gay rights activist.” (08/18/08)

Of course, this sort of perversion used to be something that people (Brits, especially, with their tradition of “We’re British, of COURSE we don’t have sex.”) used to be ashamed of. But now, of course, even people who are NOT homosexual sometimes like to give the impression that they are, since they get preferred treatment in so many ways… and it is easier to pretend to be homosexual than it is to be black or Asian.

Mama's Note: Forget the homosexuals... "domestic spy agency?" That says it all for me.

Stupid government tricks:
Mexico: Agave growers giving corn a shot
Arizona Republic
“Here in the heart of Mexico’s tequila country, where every town has a distillery and the air smells sweet like fermenting molasses, a sign proudly marks the entrance to Miguel Ramirez’s farm: ‘Rancho Ramirez: Producer of Agaves.’ But behind the fence, the blue-agave plants, the raw ingredient of Mexico’s most famous liquor, are getting harder to spot. They are being replaced by row after row of leafy cornstalks. Like other farmers in western Mexico, Ramirez is abandoning his slow-growing agave plants to cash in on corn, beans and other food crops that are selling for record prices worldwide. They are part of an international trend, as everyone from Idaho potato farmers to Bolivian coca growers cut back on their trademark crops in hopes of making big money on corn and grain.” [Editor’s note: Yet another example of what happens when governments distort markets - SAT] (08/17/08)

Frankly, the reduction of tequila acreage bothers me not in the least, it being nothing but a legal recreational drug. Personally, I think that Mexico should end its dependence on foreign corn (mostly US corn), but trading corn for oil isn’t really all that bad for the USA or Mexico either one.

Stupid people tricks:
CO: Threatening letters to McCain not dangerous
Agence France-Presse
“A threatening letter sent to Republican White House hopeful John McCain’s headquarters near Denver, Colorado contained a powder substance that posed no danger, officials said Friday. The letter, which briefly sparked panic among staffers who were hospitalized and placed under quarantine on Thursday, was mailed by a prisoner at a nearby jail, a Secret Service spokesman told AFP.” (08/21/08)

Panic is triggered, in large part, by a lack of adequate training. These staffers should have been trained.

Mama's Note: I'm having real trouble with this one. All letters to be mailed by prisoners are read by prison employees, so any problems with it should have been discovered long before the McCain staff saw it. Some of this story is missing...

Stupid people tricks:
NJ: Ninja “warriors” arrested
CBS News
“Clifton police say they arrested two men dressed liked ninjas and armed with Asian martial arts weapons who said they were sending a warning to drug users. Calling themselves ‘Shinobi warriors,’ the men wore black SWAT-type vests and carried knives, throwing stars, swords, nunchucks and a bow and arrows. Twenty-year-old Tadeusz Tertkiewicz and 19-year-old Jesse Trojaniak are charged with weapons possession. Tertkiewicz is also charged with harassment for a letter left for an ex-girlfriend. After being arrested early Wednesday in a car on Route 46, the men said they were delivering warning letters to drug dealers and drug users urging them to stop their ‘impure’ activities.” (08/21/08)

Incredibly stupid as these two men are, it appears to me that they did nothing wrong. How and why are these weapons illegal in New Jersey?

Mama's Note: Everything is illegal in New Jersey! I think you need a "permit" for the knife to cut your meat there.

Stupid people tricks:
UK: Man jailed for NHS smoking scam
BBC News [UK]
“A modern day ‘Walter Mitty’ who stole £90,000 posing as an NHS no-smoking advisor, has been jailed for 18 months. Harry Singer, 55, from Earl’s Court, west London, invented an army of imaginary quitters as part of his scam to defraud his local NHS trust.” (08/20/08)

When you have government spending money stolen from taxpayers, you have con artists trying to steal the money again.

Stupid people tricks:
VA: Teens charged with conspiracy to commit terrorism
Roanoke Times
“Two Pembroke teenagers have been charged in connection with a series of playing cards that were defaced with threatening writing and left at stores in Christiansburg and Pearisburg — a gesture police said the teens admitted had been inspired by this summer’s Batman movie, ‘The Dark Knight.’ … [Police Chief] J.C. Martin would not say how they identified the suspects but said the teens admitted Tuesday during police interviews they were responsible for the cards, which they patterned after elements of ‘The Dark Knight.’ Both were charged with conspiracy to commit an act of terrorism. In Christiansburg, the same pair of teens was charged Wednesday with disorderly conduct in connection with cards left inside the town’s Kmart, said police Maj. Dalton Reid.” (08/16/08)

Why, I guess this means that we need to ban teenagers from going to movies like this that give them ideas for how to be “terrorists.” It used to be that things like this were viewed as “pranks” and the perps sent to their parents for a good whipping or other punishment – after (perhaps) spending a night in a jail cell to think about their stupidity. No more, of course.

The Texas war:
TX: Childnappers seek court permission to strike again
Associated Press
“More than two months after being forced to return children from a polygamist sect to their parents, Texas child welfare authorities want eight of the youngsters put back in foster care. Individual hearings for the four mothers of the children, ranging in age from 5 to 17, are set to begin Monday. Child Protective Services has asked Texas District Judge Barbara Walther to return the children to foster care because their mothers allegedly have refused to limit their contact with men accused of being involved in underage marriages.” (08/17/08)

They just don’t get it, do they? The family protection racket is alive and well.

Theft by government:
NJ: Officials threatened theft for corporate welfare project
The Daily Journal
“The city [of Millville] threatened to use eminent domain when negotiating the sale of Millville Gardens with its owners, but there’s a difference of opinion how committed the city was to using the controversial tool. City officials previously downplayed suggestions it had threatened to seize the run-down apartment complex, but a letter obtained by The Daily Journal through the state’s public records law indicates otherwise. … After details of the deal were hammered out, the commission voted Aug. 5 to accept the sale. The city, which could take ownership by October, plans to seek a developer to construct a mixed-use facility on the six-acre lot. … Mayor James Quinn said eminent domain is important for the city to protect itself from ‘greedy’ property owners trying to unfairly raise a sales price, but said the negotiations with Millville Gardens’ property owners never reached a point where the option was realistically considered, because the negotiations went so well. … ‘They were very cooperative.’” [Editor’s note: Of course they were cooperative, you thug — you threatened to steal the property if they didn’t sell it to you at the price you wanted to pay, and they knew you could get away with it - TLK] (08/19/08)

This incident illustrates a very important point, as Tom says: one of the major problems with this archaic and immoral power of government is that it creates an UNfree market – one in which sellers are NOT voluntary, lest they have their land stolen from them with much less fair compensation and terrific legal fees.

Theft by the public:
CA: Metallica singer’s fence: Heavy-metal impact in Marin
San Francisco Chronicle
“James Hetfield co-founded the influential heavy metal band Metallica and, as its chief songwriter, helped pen and perform strident songs such as Don’t Tread on Me. It might as well be his anthem for property rights in Marin County. The Marin County resident has erected a barbed-wire fence on his property near San Rafael, cutting off a fire trail that locals say has been used for at least a half-century to access treasured hiking trails along scenic ridgelines. Hetfield’s representatives have told county officials that the metal and barbed-wire fence is a response to vandalism on the property. Nonetheless, the decision has infuriated the bikers, hikers and equestrians who use the trail.” [Editor’s note: Now we find out if Metallica fans actually listen to the lyrics! - SAT] (08/19/08)

I suspect that Steve will find that Metallica fans are as fickle as voters usually are, when their daily lives conflict with a mere song. Marin County, that hotbed of socialism and communitarianism, is the kind of place where people believe that your property rights begin six inches or so inside the walls of your house or apartment (provided that you do not smoke there, have a gun there, or speak slightingly of minorities or homosexuals there).

War on some drugs:
College presidents want drinking age lowered to 18
NewsDay
“College presidents from more than 100 schools across the country are calling on lawmakers to do something about binge drinking: Consider lowering the drinking age from 21 to 18. ‘Twenty-one is not working,’ says the group’s statement, signed by presidents from prominent colleges such as Dartmouth, Duke and Syracuse. ‘A culture of dangerous, clandestine ‘binge drinking’ — often conducted off-campus — has developed.’ … In 1984, Congress voted to penalize any state that set its legal drinking age lower than 21 by rescinding 10 percent of that state’s federal highway funding.” (08/19/08)

There is too much to say about this Amethyst movement and what brought it about, to include in just this commentary, so I am working on a blog/article now. Suffice to say, MADD is very much so about this, and their victim/nanny/Grundy machine is in full scream about these evil college presidents.

War on some drugs:
Terror threat lurks in drug smuggling subs
Boston Globe
“Skimming just below the surface, they are extremely difficult to detect from surveillance aircraft or patrol boats. Their sleek design, up to 80 feet in length, can secretly carry several tons of cargo thousands of miles. These ’semi-submersibles,’ which exhibit some of the same characteristics as military submarines, mark a significant advancement in the ability of drug smugglers to slip past coastal defenses. So far this year, the Coast Guard says it has encountered at least 27 such vessels headed toward the southern and western United States, more than in the previous six years combined, while far more are believed to have gone undetected, according to US military and law enforcement officials.” [Editor’s note: Of course, if we ended the Insane War on (Some) Drugs, the ONLY “threat” would be of terrorists … or undocumented immigrants - SAT] (08/17/08)

Demand creates initiative and invention. It is disgusting that, thanks to government, we have this sort of thing long before we have commercial tourist subs and similar innovations.

World wars:
UK: Bomb victim completes peace walk
BBC News [UK]
“A woman who lost both legs in the 7 July bombings on London’s transport network has completed a 250-mile walk she hopes will help unite communities. Gill Hicks, 38, took 30 days to walk from Leeds to London, stopping in 22 towns and cities along the way. Her Walktalk project aimed to help people of different faiths and communities to engage with each other.” (08/17/08)

An interesting quest indeed. I am not sure exactly what benefit this is as far as uniting communities, though.

Worldwide wars:
Marine decries prosecution in civilian court
Cincinnati Enquirer
“A former Marine sergeant facing the first federal civilian prosecution of a military member accused of a war crime says there is much more at stake than his claim of innocence on charges that he killed unarmed detainees in Fallujah, Iraq. In the view of Jose Luis Nazario Jr., U.S. troops may begin to question whether they will be prosecuted by civilians for doing what their military superiors taught them to do in battle.” (08/17/08)

This does indeed establish a deadly precedent, in my opinion. It is not right that any act in war should be immoral, but the fact is that what is an acceptable reaction in combat is not in civil, peacetime society. You need wolves in combat, but wolves do not do well in peacetime, and wolves do not deal well with the kind of nanny-crats that run our society.

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