News -- September 30, 2006

On Friday, September 29, It's Mourning in America - "Just as it is hard to fully comprehend the grief of a beloved friend or relative killed needlessly in an accident, it is excruciatingly painful to try to come to terms with the pernicious betrayal of our Constitution and liberty that occurred in the Senate on Thursday, September 28. ... With the law passed on September 28th by Congress, we have become the Republic of torture. We not only have lost our claim to be a civilizing force among nations and abandoned our Constitution, we have appeased the terrorists by doing so."

Report says detainee plan would pardon U.S. officials - "A video report from CNN's Jack Cafferty says that buried deep within the pending plan to create military tribunals for those suspected of terrorism is amnesty for present U.S. officials. He said that President Bush "is trying to pardon himself" with the plan, which is in the last stage of congressional endorsement and next will go to the president's desk." -- If you're not pissed off, then you are not paying attention.

Accessories to Torture - "These are grim days for the Constitution. The House and the Senate have passed the catastrophic "compromise" negotiated by senators McCain & Co. to the President's "enemy combatants" bill. The only thing compromised is the rule of law; the bill still strips detainees of the right to appeal, broadens the President's unilateral powers to decide who is an enemy and which interrogation methods violate the Geneva Conventions, and fatally undermines the War Crimes Act. The bill was rushed to passage just days after the Canadian government exonerated Maher Arar, "rendered" by the United States to Syria, imprisoned and tortured for nearly a year."

Sayonara to Checks and Balances? - " You -- citizen or non-citizen, resident of Topeka or Timbuktu -- can become an "unlawful enemy combatant." ... The Military Commissions Act of 2006, of MCA, passed by the House and Senate is a wholesale assault on the idea of a limited government under law. It will be taken by the Bush Administration as a blank check to torture, to detain indefinitely without just cause, and to trample the values that win America respect in the world. From tomorrow, counter-terrorism is the "land of do as you please" for the President and the wise men of the Defense Department -- those savants who brought you Iraq, the gift that keeps on giving (at least if you're a jihadist)."

U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes -- See who voted for the torture bill.

FINAL HOUSE VOTE RESULTS FOR 491 -- See who voted for the torture bill.

STATE OF DENIAL - "There was a vast difference between what the White House and the Pentagon knew about the situation in Iraq and what they were saying publicly. But the discrepancy was not surprising. In memos, reports and internal debates, high-level officials of the Bush administration have voiced their concern about the United States' ability to bring peace and stability to Iraq since early in the occupation."

Legislating Violations of the Constitution - "With little public attention or even notice, the House of Representatives has passed a bill that undermines enforcement of the First Amendment's separation of church and state. The Public Expression of Religion Act - H.R. 2679 - provides that attorneys who successfully challenge government actions as violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment shall not be entitled to recover attorneys fees. The bill has only one purpose: to prevent suits challenging unconstitutional government actions advancing religion."

Not Worth a Camel - "The Republican answer to its own fiasco is to say: "OK, you don't like the way the president is handling it. What's your solution?" The proper answer to that is: "In the first place, bro, I didn't break it. You did, and the only solution is to recognize that there is no solution. Not everything that breaks can be repaired. Our choice is to leave now, with 2,700 dead and 20,000 wounded, or linger on until there are 5,000 dead and 35,000 wounded and then leave." Eventually, after we leave, a new dictatorship will emerge, probably a Shi'ite version. The Shi'ites might keep the trappings of democracy like Egypt, but there will be no question about who runs the show. They will have a strong secret police and an army to shut down the dissidents. ... In the meantime, use your common sense. Ask yourself just what it is that America's young men and women are dying for. To make Iraq a happy place? To make Israel feel safer? To help corporations with insider connections get richer? Not one of those reasons is worth the life of a camel, much less a human being."

War Signals? - "According to Lieut. Mike Kafka, a spokesman at the headquarters of the Second Fleet, based in Norfolk, Virginia, the Eisenhower Strike Group, bristling with Tomahawk cruise missiles, has received orders to depart the United States in a little over a week. Other official sources in the public affairs office of the Navy Department at the Pentagon confirm that this powerful armada is scheduled to arrive off the coast of Iran on or around October 21."

A Scramble for Republicans in Wake of Foley Resignation - "The resignation Friday of GOP Congressman Mark Foley in a sex scandal adds to the woes of Republicans already fearing that voters might knock them out of power in the House in elections less than six weeks away."

I won't say "Republican pedophile ring" but feel free to think it... - "To me, it looks like Denny was protecting Foley. Look at it from Foley’s angle: Surely, he knew that IM transcipts can be captured and forwarded, which is just what the page ended up doing? So, either Foley was crazy, or he felt safe. And the only way Foley could really feel safe would be if he was protected. But why would Foley assume he was protected? In the best case, Foley could assume that any investigation would be buried, because that’s in the Republican Playbook under “Best Practices.”"

Police order curfew in Baghdad - "A curfew is in effect in Baghdad banning virtually all movement in the city, police said."

Ashcroft Is Denied Immunity in Case - "A federal judge in Idaho has ruled that former attorney general John D. Ashcroft can be held personally responsible for the wrongful detention of a U.S. citizen arrested as a "material witness" in a terrorism case."

Senate approves fence for border - "The Senate last night gave final approval for construction of 700 miles of fencing along the U.S.-Mexico border."

Cooling Down The Climate Scare - "The country is drowning in wild alarums warning of impending doom due to global warming. Yet there has risen -- from the U.S. Senate, of all places -- a lone voice of rational dissent. While Al Gore drifts into deeper darkness on the other side of the moon, propelled by such revelations as cigarette smoking is a "significant contributor to global warming," Sen. James Inhofe is becoming a one-man myth-wrecking crew."

Internet gambling ban added to U.S. port security bill - "Congress was pushing on Friday to finish legislation that would boost security at U.S. ports, but at the last minute lawmakers added provisions to prohibit Internet gambling."

A Vaccine Against Narcotics - "Someday, along with jabs against mumps and measles, kids could get vaccinated against nicotine, cocaine and heroin. Vaccines for cocaine and nicotine have already been tested in humans. Nicotine vaccines, in particular, are getting a lot of attention."

China's 'cruelty olympics' causes international outrage - "This is just the latest shocking picture to emerge from the Animal Olympic Games which is being held in China, a country with a shameful animal rights record."

Internet freedom reigns in Amsterdam - "At a time when the neutrality of the Internet is at stake, and Internet service providers (ISPs) are moving to prioritize their premium traffic, the Amsterdam Internet Exchange is a reminder that the Internet was built on the principle of the unrestricted exchange of ideas and information."

Southern California branded US smog capital - "According to the figures, Southern California had 86 days of unhealthy air during the smog season, which runs from May 1 and ends on October 1. It is the third year in a row the region has topped the smog rankings, the AQMD said."

Super-luxury homes hit market for $100M - "The listings represent a monetary milestone in American real estate: the first time U.S. homes have broken into a whopping nine figures, according to real estate experts, and they've done so in quick succession. A May survey of the nation's most expensive homes by Forbes.com put Trump's home at the most expensive and the first to break the $100 million mark. At the time, the next highest listing was a $75 million estate in Bridgehampton, N.Y. Now, the trio has market followers wondering: Will they sell? And what do you really get for $100 million?" -- Just in case you had forgotten that you are a member of the "have-nots".

Study: Students struggling to finish homework - "Even though they get help from their parents, teachers and the Internet, middle school students struggle daily to finish their homework, according to a study released Friday by the National Education Association."

Colleges coveting home-schooled students - "Home-schooled students — whose numbers in this country range from an estimated 1.1 million to as high as 2 million — often come to college equipped with the skills necessary to succeed in higher education, said Regina Morin, admissions director of Columbia College. Such assets include intellectual curiosity, independent study habits and critical thinking skills, she said."

Surprise! Moral movies draw 7 times the fans - "A new study is confirming that if you want to make money in the movie business, get out your Bible and read the values it teaches." -- Because anything that is non-Christian is immoral?

Abstinence Rose Pin - "You are like a beautiful rose..." -- Make sure to read the rest. WTF?

Scientists: St. Helens eruption slowing - "Two years after Mount St. Helens began its low-key eruption, a process that has extruded tons of rock into the crater left by the volcano's deadly 1980 blast, scientists say the mountain seems to be slowing down. But they're making no predictions about when the activity will end."




Quote of the Day
"First, they came for the terrorists,

and I didn't speak up, because I wasn't a terrorist.

Then they came for the foreigners,

and I didn't speak up, because I wasn't a foreigner.

Then they came for the Arab-Americans,

and I didn't speak up, because I wasn't Arab-American.

Then they came for the radical dissenters,

and I didn't speak up, because I was just an ordinary troubled citizen.

Then they came for me,

and by that time there was no one left to speak up for me."
~ Adapted from Pastor Niemoller's 1945 quote about the Nazis