April 23, 2007

April 23, 2007

War and the Police State: Complicity of the American People - "In this era of perpetual warfare, escalating domestic tyranny, government-sanctioned torture, and a Nazi-like pursuit of Middle-East domination, one would expect, at the very least, an audible outcry from the People who proclaim resolute devotion to the ideals of liberty and justice for all. Yet for the most part, Mainstream America continues to assume a posture of apathy, bitterness, or eery silence."

Soldier: Honor troops like Va. Tech dead - "An Army sergeant complained in a rare opinion article that the U.S. flag flew at half-staff last week at the largest U.S. base in Afghanistan for those killed at Virginia Tech but the same honor is not given to fallen U.S. troops here and in Iraq." -- That's because the flag would be perpetually at half-staff and therefore a constant reminder of the death taking place in the Middle East. Now, you know we can't have that.

Jihadis aspire to 'conquer France' - "As the French people went to the polls to select a president, jihadi members of an al-Qaeda online forum exchanged messages discussing their aspiration to "reinvade France (and convert it into) an Islamic country."" -- Jesus.

Bush Administration Awash in Scandals - "Campaigning in 2000, Texas Gov. George W. Bush would repeatedly raise his right hand as if taking an oath and vow to "restore honor and integrity" to the White House. He pledged to usher in a new era of bipartisanship. ... Now, with fewer than two years left of his second term, the Bush administration is embroiled in multiple scandals and ethics investigations. The war in Iraq still rages. Bush's approval ratings are hovering in the mid-30s. And Democratic-Republican relations have seldom been more rancorous. ... The furor over Gonzales and Rove's e-mail practices follow disclosures of shoddy medical treatment of war-injured veterans, FBI abuses of civil liberties, and the conviction of a top White House aide of lying to a grand jury. What ever happened to restoring honor and dignity?"

Gasoline at $4 Coming to a Pump Near You, Unfazed by Rising Tab - "Whether it's $50 to fill up your Prius or $130 for the Ford Expedition, $4-a-gallon gasoline is coming to a pump near you."

Bush Poised to Veto Long-Sought Labor Reform - "For years, companies have been keeping workers from exercising their legal rights to organize and exacerbating America's income and wealth inequality. A new bill could help reverse that trend, but does it stand a chance against Bush's veto pen?"

John Kerry: Building 7 Was Deliberately Demolished - "At a recent speaking engagement in Austin Texas, Senator John Kerry responded to a question about WTC Building 7 by concluding that according to his information, the building was brought down as a result of a controlled demolition, directly contradicting the official line that the structure fell as a result of fire and debris damage."

Danger on the airwaves: Is the Wi-Fi revolution a health time bomb? - "The technological explosion is even bigger than the mobile phone explosion that preceded it. And, as with mobiles, it is being followed by fears about its effect on health - particularly the health of children. Recent research, which suggests that the worst fears about mobiles are proving to be justified, only heightens concern about the electronic soup in which we are increasingly spending our lives."

AttenTV turns Web surfing into eerie spectator sport - "Broadcasting your clickstream--a record of the Web sites you've visited--used to be considered a privacy violation. Now, some companies are trying to turn such broadcasts into just another way to squeeze value from what seems to be one of our most precious assets: the things we pay attention to."

On payday, it's still a man's world - "A dramatic pay gap emerges between women and men in America the year after they graduate from college and widens over the ensuing decade, according to research released on Monday."

The "Silent" Ninth Amendment Gives Americans Rights They Don't Know They Have - "The first Amendment right of free speech and the Fifth Amendment right to avoid self-incrimination are well known, but the Ninth Amendment is ignored. Pity, because it bears directly on abortion, the right to die, and gay rights."

Need a Safe Abortion? Go to Mexico City - "U.N. data shows that in countries where women have access to safe contraception, reproductive health care, and legal abortion, the actual abortion rates are much lower than in countries where women do not have such rights."

Mexican Catholics protest plan to legalize abortion - ""They are committing genocide, no-one has the right to take away life," said Maria Morales, a housewife who had traveled south from the state of Hidalgo to attend the rally." -- No one? Really? Then why is so much life taken away every day? Are unborn children more important than all the people killed in war? Are they more important than those killed by capital punishment? What kind of murder is okay and what kind of murder is not okay? Where in the Ten Commandments does it tell me that this kind of murder is permissable, but this kind is not? I thought it simply said "Thou shalt not kill", period.

Studies put abstinence funds at risk - "Two recent studies -- one that found federally funded abstinence programs do not affect teenage sexual behavior and another that found that "almost all" American adults have sex before marrying -- are adding momentum to the argument that abstinence-only education is folly." -- Um, that's because we humans are supposed to have sex.

Michigan student suspended for wearing 'I'm straight' sticker - "A Christian student has been punished by his Michigan high school for demonstrating opposition to a school event celebrating the homosexual lifestyle. The boy's father, a pastor, says he's frustrated the rights of Christian students are being constantly trampled on campus."

Bentonville Man Files Suit Over Library Book - "A Bentonville man is seeking $20,000 from the city after his two teenage sons found a book on lesbian sex on a library bookshelf. Earl Adams says his sons were "greatly disturbed" after finding the book, titled "The Whole Lesbian Sex Book." Adams says the book caused, "many sleepless nights in our house."" -- Yeah, I'm sure your teenage son's had "many sleepless nights" after looking at that book. ;-)

FDA Was Aware of Dangers To Food - "The Food and Drug Administration has known for years about contamination problems at a Georgia peanut butter plant and on California spinach farms that led to disease outbreaks that killed three people, sickened hundreds, and forced one of the biggest product recalls in U.S. history, documents and interviews show. Overwhelmed by huge growth in the number of food processors and imports, however, the agency took only limited steps to address the problems and relied on producers to police themselves, according to agency documents."

Daily pill to beat genetic diseases - "A pill that can correct a wide range of faulty genes which cause crippling illnesses should be available within three years, promising a revolution in the treatment of thousands of conditions."

Cloned dogs to be mated as test - "THE world's first cloned dog will be mated with the world's second dog clone, in an experiment to see whether they can reproduce normally."

Catapult boy is eaten after taunting crocodile in pen - "A schoolboy who climbed over a fence into a crocodile enclosure and taunted the animals with sticks and a catapult was dragged into the water and eaten." -- I have to say I don't have much sympathy here. I am more pissed off that they killed the crocodiles.




Quote of the Day
"The enormous gap between what U.S. leaders do in the world and what Americans think their leaders are doing is one of the great propaganda accomplishments of the dominant political mythology."
~ Michael Parenti

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