Honesty in Politicians

Misinformation, whether it comes from the Bush administration or from a Democratic candidate rubs me the wrong way. I have refrained from writing about my misgivings toward Howard Dean knowing that he, at this point, has been capable of motivating hundreds of thousands of people. I also know that of those people, many have swallowed the media line and considered Dean to be the 'electable' one, over and above Kucinich, while prefering Kucinich in their hearts and minds.

How many Dean supporters are willing to sit by and watch yet another misrepresentation? We all know that Dean was not the 'first and only' to oppose the war from the start, yet he is mailing brochures to homes in New Hampshire stating that as a fact. This is dishonest and unethical and gives me visions of 'just another slimy politician who will do anything to win'. If Dean supporters don't want him perceived in that light, then I urge you to communicate your disapproval and set him straight. Honesty, not misrepresentation is what we are all looking for. Can Dean give it to us? I'm beginning to have serious doubts.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Elliott Smith Case Not Closed

Elliott Smith was thought to have died by his own hand two months ago.
Now, those investigating the presumed suicide of the 34-year-old folk-rocker aren't so sure.
Originally it was thought to be two self-inflicted knife wounds to the chest that did Smith in.
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Tentative Congrats to Borders Union!

Tentative agreement reached! posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Tidbits

Uncensored Gore Vidal interviewed by Marc Cooper

More questions:
Latest government report on Wellstone 'accident' finds its scapegoats, many questions remain

Native American Times Endorses General Wesley K. Clark

Halliburton pulled from Iraqi oil contract

Red Cross demands access to Saddam

Tape confirms Iraqis tried to save U.S. POWs posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Bush in 30 Seconds

There are only two more days to rate ads. Here are a few of the ads I especially liked. (requires QuickTime player)
Three Strikes You're Out
Forward to the Past
What are We Teaching Our Children?
Would you Steal From A Child?
If you find some especially good ones, please share. Leave a comment or send me an email. This is fun. Seriously posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Ashcroft Recuses Himself From Leak Investigation

Several Democratic lawmakers have been calling for Ashcroft to remove himself from the case for months, arguing that the former Republican senator from Missouri has a conflict of interest because of his close ties to senior White House aides. FBI agents have questioned top figures in the administration, including senior advisor Karl Rove.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Grassroots grow online for state caucus activists

by: Art Aisner Ann Arbor News
excerpt:

...But perhaps the single most impressive feat accomplished thus far by local grassroots campaign supporters belongs to those stumping for Ohio congressman Dennis Kucinich.

Within 36 hours of the candidate's announcement of a visit to the University of Michigan campus between campaign stops in Houston and Iowa earlier this month, Kucinich supporters pulled together more than 200 people through e-mails and phone calls.

The crowd swelled beyond the confines of the room reserved in the Michigan League, prompting an outdoor speech.

"It's a lot of work, but all worthwhile when it's someone you believe in," said Mares Herchert, of Hartland, who forwarded dozens of e-mail announcements on the event through a network of names she found through the candidate's Internet site.

Herchert also pledged to insert appeals for supporting Kucinich in her annual holiday cards. "You can't get much more grassroots than that," she said.

Knowing the vast majority of Americans still have probably only heard Kucinich name in passing, watching the growth of support and knowing that Bill Clinton only pulled a 2.8% vote in the Iowa caucus in 1992 leaves a lot of room for growing roots and seeing lush grass grow. I'm certainly not discouraged.

For Michigan readers don't forget this: Democratic voting begins Thursday
Applications will be accepted beginning January 1, 2004 and no sooner. Any application received before January 1, 2004 will not be processed. On January 1, 2004 vote by mail applications will be available on the MDP website at www.mi-democrats.com and from local party organizations or by contacting the Michigan Democratic Party by e-mail MIDEMPARTY@MI-DEMOCRATS.COM, phone (517) 371-5410 or mail 606 Townsend, Lansing, MI 48933. Applications must be returned by January 31, 2004 at 6 P.M.
List of caucus sites Note: These are NOT your normal voting places! posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Rewriting History

You are NOT going to believe THIS!
Nothing is sacred.
Bush's faith-based parks
The latest agency to take up the president's faith-based call is the National Park Service.
Your National Park Service is displaying religious symbols, selling creationist materials and is contemplating adding 'conservatively correct' images to government videos

"For years, as a Colorado River guide I told people how the Grand Canyon was formed over the evolutionary time scale of millions of years. Then I met the Lord. Now, I have 'a different view of the Canyon, which, according to the Biblical time scale, can't possibly be more than about a few thousand years old.'"

UPDATE: Elayne has a much more comprehensive entry on her blog about this entire fiasco. I missed it earlier. I'm guessing it went by a few of us. I'm changing the time and date of this entry to keep it more prominent now that most people are settling back from the holidays.
Learn more about the book giving the creationist explanation for the Grand Canyon posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Christopher Lydon Interviews

Wow! Thanks to Rajiv for passing this along!
Christopher Lydon has mp3 files of interviews with George Lakoff and Gore Vidal among many others. I'll probably camp out at his page for while listening to interviews.

Direct link to the mp3 with Gore Vidal

Vidal says of Kucinich:

I like Dennis Kucinich even though he looks rather peculiar. This is not a beauty pagent and everything he says is quite correct. He hasn't missed one issue that he's turned to that he hasn't been, in my view at least, right about.

People won't take him seriously because he's the wrong height, and um, the hair is deplorable. It's the only negative thing I can say about him, but then, he can get a crewcut perhaps, on inauguration day.

If they'd take him seriously, people might listen to the issues. If they'd listen to the issues, things might start to change, but they won't. They can't. Same people who own the political system own the media.

Direct links to George Lakoff interview: Two twenty minute segments of essential listening.

Who is going to use the internet most effectively, and how?
Part One

We are responsible people and we care. We have to work on it.
Part Two
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Lenny Bruce Finally #*&!-ing Pardoned

"In the tradition of Lenny Bruce, it's about f---ing time," said Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union.

posted by Andy | link |    | |

Genetic Marker For Esophageal Cancer Found

A study in the latest Journal of the National Cancer Institute describes an altered adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene that can be found in precancerous and cancerous esophageal tissue and in the bloodstream. With such a blood test, doctors could more accurately determine a cancer's stage, observe the effectiveness of various therapies, and screen for the cancer's return after treatment.
When Meltzer and his team examined cancer tissue DNA from patients diagnosed with two types of esophageal cancer, they found the methylated APC gene in 92 percent of the 52 patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma, and in half of the 32 patients with squamous cell cancer of the esophagus.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

They're going to need a whole lot of help

"There was an earthquake in Paso Robles, killing two people. The earthquake in Bam had the same magnitude of 6.5, and it killed thousands of people."
"That goes to show you how antiquated the architecture there is," he said. "That goes to show you that they're going to need a whole lot of help."


Visit Iranian Truth, a blog, with links to other Iranian blogs and good information. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

NOW with Bill Moyers

I get a couple more showings this week of Now with Bill Moyers. If you get the chance to see another airing, I recommend it. It seems that the loud self-righteous voices of the right-wing Christians and the hateful agenda they espouse, drown and devour the voice of The Right Christians.
Bill Moyers interviewed and featured James Forbes Jr. His voice is glimmering with hopefulness. The PBS website outlines several related subjects as usual, including:

The CEO and chairman of the Clergy Leadership Network, Reverend Albert M. Pennybacker, explained, "The Christian Right has been very articulate, but they have been exclusive and very judgmental of anyone who doesn't agree with them. People may want to label us the Christian Left. But what we really are about is mainstream issues and truth, and if that makes us 'left,' then that shines even more light on the need for a shift in our society."

Estimated Prophet wrote a compelling entry about Christian action yesterday: "Putting love of power before the power of love may well be the swansong of our millenium... " Are we learning yet? Are the voices there? posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Jeb Bush replaces elections supervisor

Goard allowed Florida Republican Party workers to modify absentee ballot requests in her office in the weeks leading up to the election.

The GOP workers added voter-ID numbers to about 2,000 requests initially rejected by Goard's office. Jacobs, a Democrat, asked the courts to throw out the nearly 16,000 absentee ballots cast by Seminole County voters.

Had Jacobs won, then-Vice President Al Gore would have defeated George W. Bush for the presidency.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

If you Watch Nothing Else This Year

 
It will take a while to download this interview with Dennis Kucinich on Link TV . I downloaded it, paused it, and kept the window open until I had time to view it. I absolutely urge you to do the same. I wouldn't recommend it with a dial-up however. If you're VERY patient and on dial-up you can use this link.

Kucinich speaks to sustainability, Green jobs, renewable resources, growth in our economy, public accountability, corporate accountability, monopolization of markets in agriculture, and his experience fighting for the interests of the public, including health insurance, pharmaceuticals, and education.
It includes excellent questions from viewers, including questions about the security of voting machines and the responsibilty of citizens to insure the integrity of our elections.

This is far above what you will hear on mainstream media. There is nothing here that could be considered 'far-out' or overly idealistic, simply reasonable solutions for unreasonable times.

UPDATE When you try to download this video, there doesn't appear to be any indication that it is downloading. It really does, but it takes quite a while. (at least 10 minutes) Craig is attempting to break it into smaller segments. I'll let you know if he is successful.
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Looking Under the Tree


1. Saint Nicholas is the patron Saint of children in Siberia (Russia), a supplanter to the indigenous Shaman.
2. The Amanita muscaria mushrooms grow nearly exclusively under the Christmas (Coniferous) Trees (Birch also [another whole story]). 2. The Reindeer eat these mushrooms, hence the presumed flight.
3. Santa brings presents in his white bag/sack. Mushrooms are gathered in bags, and Amanita muscaria sprouts out of a white volval sack.
4. The mushrooms are red and white and grow under a green tree. Christmas colors are red, white and green.
5. Typically, the red and white mushrooms are dried by stringing them on the hearth of the fireplace. Christmas stockings are red and white, hung in the same way, and shaped similar.
6. The Virgin Birth is symbolic for the "seedless" growth/germination pattern of the mushroom. To the ancient mind, with no microscope to see the spores, it's appearance was thought to be miraculous.
7. The very name, "Christmas" is a holiday name composed of the words, "Christ" (meaning "one who is anointed with the Magical Substance") and "Mass" (a special religious service/ceremony of the sacramental ingestion of the Eucharist, the "Body of Christ"). In the Catholic tradition, this substance (Body/Soma) has been replaced by the doctrine of "Trans-substantiation", whereby in a magical ceremony the Priests claim the ability to transform a "cracker/round-wafer" into the literal "Body of Christ"; ie, a substitute or placebo. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Court Blocks Changes to Clean Air Act (yahoo)

Good.

Eliot Spitzer, New York's attorney general, called it "a major decision."

"When it comes to environmental policy, this court decision is as big a success as we've had in stopping the Bush administration from undercutting the Clean Air Act," he said.

Not Good.
Granholm Said Yes To Nestle Diversion After Court Said No

Ms. Granholm and her senior environmental and economic advisors unexpectedly shut out a feisty citizens group and aided the world’s largest food company in a two-year-old David and Goliath legal struggle that affects all of Michigan. The issue: The security of the state’s treasure trove of fresh water.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Prayer for America is # 16 on NY Times Bestseller List

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Kucinich says U.S. can't go it alone in Iraq

MESILLA, N.M. - Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich said Tuesday the United States needs the United Nations to develop a constitution for Iraq and warned that America cannot be the only nation calling the shots to rebuild the country.

He also spoke to local effects of NAFTA:
"We must recognize the effect NAFTA has had on El Paso (Texas) and communities around the country. We need a whole new approach to trade, and that begins with the cancellation of NAFTA."

Demo Kucinich visits borderland

Arizona Republic : Kucinich on the Issues Good link to send to people just joining the primary process

This administration has overreached in the area of civil liberties," he said. "Government shouldn't have that power. It's not consistent with what we are as a nation." Washington Post (excellent article!) posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Tom Daschle/ Carl Levin Letter to Ashcroft: Classified Leaks Continue

Note to self..Living in Michigan with voices like Levin, Conyers and Dingell makes me feel a bit luckier than most. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

US News: Keeping Secrets

The Bush administration is doing the public's business out of the public eye. Here's how--and why

Key Dates: Secrecy and the Bush Administration

Inauguration Day (1/20/01) Administration freezes Clinton-era regulations, without allowing for public comment.

10/12/01 Attorney General John Ashcroft, reversing Clinton policy, encourages agencies to deny Freedom of Information Act requests if a "sound legal basis" exists.

10/26/01 President Bush signs U.S.A. Patriot Act, expanding law enforcement powers and government surveillance.

2/22/02 Congress's General Accounting Office sues Vice President Dick Cheney for refusing to disclose records of his energy task force; the GAO eventually loses its case. A separate private case is pending.

3/19/02 White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card directs federal agencies to protect sensitive security information.

11/25/02 Bush signs Homeland Security Act. Its provisions restrict public access to information filed by companies about "critical infrastructure," among other matters.

01/3/03 Administration asks, in papers filed before the Supreme Court, for significant narrowing of the Freedom of Information Act.

3/25/03 Bush issues standards on classified material, favoring secrecy and reversing provisions on openness.

I've yet to read this but I don't want it to get buried in the snow. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Murdoch's Mega-Media Merger

Ever wonder where Murdoch got $10 million to lobby with?? posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The Economy as Religion

The Dynamics of Consumer Culture by Dell deChant

The novelty of our era is that mans deepest experience is no longer with nature. Hence nature is no longer the inciter and place of the sacred.
As with the cosmological systems of yore, modern cosmological religious expressions seek to relate persons and all of culture to the source of sacred power.
Just as the ancient cosmological religions utilized myth and ritual to establish and legitimate this relationship, so too does the modern cosmological religion. And because the source of sacred power has changed, so too have the myths and rituals.

Consumption simply is, and through myth and ritual it affirms and acts out (in a heightened and intensified sense) the truth of the cosmic (Economic) order that is already revealed in everyday life. And this truth is that the way things are is the way they ought to be; and the way things are in postmodern culture when things truly are, is the way things are when persons consume. Thus, like every other entity in culture, individuals serve the Economy; and when they serve rightly, they prosper. Why? Because of the sacred order and process of the Economy itself.

[...] To recap my argument: religion in postmodern society is that collection of culturally embedded phenomena that mediate individual and collective relationships with the sacred power of the Economy through acquisition-consumption-disposal. It is not enough to simply acquire and consume objects and images. One must do both and one must also dispose of the objects and images for the sacred to be experienced. The entire process must be completed, for only then (in the cyclical manner that is elemental to cosmological systems) can the process begin again. The quicker the process is completed and then begun again, the greater is one’s experience of the sacred, and hence the greater one’s power in the socio-religious system.

[...] During holy-day cycles, tertiary myths are widely communicated and fervently reaffirmed; one needs only consider the increased number and size of newspaper inserts on weekends before holidays, TV holiday commercials, and the greater number of ads in the holiday issues of magazines. Additionally, holy-day advertisements (tertiary myths) are acutely focused on the sacred concerns of specific holidays. In these myths we discover sacred narratives about objects appropriate or simply available for ritual acquisition during specific holy days: lawn and garden tools for Memorial Day, summer foods and beverages for The Fourth, jewelry for Valentine’s Day, fall apparel for Labor Day, you-name-it at Christmas, and who-knows-what for America’s newest holiday – Patriot Day, to be celebrated on September 11. To the degree that Patriot Day becomes a genuine postmodern holy day, it will generate its own tertiary myths and Americans will respond with rituals of acquisition, for this is what happens on holy days in American culture.

Christmas is, of course, the most vivid illustration of the postmodern sacralization of holidays and the greatest holy-day cycle of postmodern culture. Christmas is, however, only the most dramatic and dynamic example of neo-cosmological religiosity. It is thus different from other holy days, not so much in essence or substance as in degree and size. During Christmas and other holyday cycles, pilgrimages to shrines and temples (stores and shopping malls) are more frequent. Persons may review the tertiary myths more closely and become more focused in their performance of sacred rituals of acquisition; fulfilling their dharma as consumers, reaffirming their primordial relationship with the Economy’s sacred power.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Kucinich stops in El Paso and Las Cruces

Maybe my parents will take a trek to the Plaza tomorrow. I hope this peaceaware group is there.

Dennis Kucinich, will make a quick campaign stop in El Paso today.

Kucinich will attend a fund-raising dinner at 5:30 p.m. at Cafe Mayapan and then will go to a private fund-raiser.

Tuesday, Kucinich will visit Mesilla and Las Cruces. He will appear at a rally on the Mesilla Plaza at 10 a.m. and at a noon luncheon at the Mountain View Co-Op Market.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

USA Today: There must be a plot to bring back the conspiracy theory

Count the many different 9-11 theories. We've all heard at least one version, and possibly have our own personal version resolved in our own minds until something more definitive resolves it futher for us. We were beginning to feel comfortable with our own theories but now, the Saddam-Capture Conspiracy Theories Begin.

At the moment NewWorld Disorder has a list of 21 theories linked, and counting! Take your pick.
I'm just wondering what this says about our trust in our government. Wasn't trust supposed to be an inherent value? For me it's gone.
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

I never knew Howard Dean's official position on IRV. Project for a New Century of Freedom shows me the consistency in Dean's view and the news is good. Now, if we could just get IRV added to the agenda along with paper trails and paid for with HAVA funds we would be that much further along insuring our voice is clear and verifiable. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Another Canadian View

 
From Dave Pollard at How to Save the World

Dennis Kucinich, in an interview with Salon and LinkTV shows why he's the only real liberal in the Democratic race, and brilliantly deconstructs arguments he is 'unelectable'. I'm just more and more impressed with him. I think he'd have a superb relationship with other world leaders as President, and having that kind of collaboration and cooperation, instead of the Bush bullying and unilateralism and confrontation, could make all the difference in the world. Even if 2004 is not his year, watch this guy -- he's not going away and could well turn out to be the best President of the 21st century.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Letters from Soldiers in Iraq

 
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The 800-pound octopus is unleashed

Murdoch gets global satellite-TV reach with purchase of DirecTV posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Hunger, Homelessness On the Rise in Major U.S. Cities

US Conference of Mayors

As need increased, the level of resources available to help meet that need at emergency food assistance facilities decreased in 52 percent of the cities, increased in 35 percent, and remained the same in 13 percent. Just over half the cities surveyed said they are not able to provide an adequate quantity of food to those in need. And nearly two-thirds of the cities reported they had to decrease the quantity of food provided and/or the number of times people can come to get food assistance. An average of 16 percent of the demand for emergency food assistance is estimated to have gone unmet in the survey cities.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

NYTimes: Remember 'Weapons of Mass Destruction'? For Bush, They Are a Nonissue

"So what's the difference?" said the unelectable one. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Clipping of pResidential wings

"We find that the President lacks inherent constitutional authority as commander-in-chief to detain American citizens on American soil outside a zone of combat,"
In the second case yesterday, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the hundreds being held at Guantanamo Bay have the right to legal representation. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Matt Gonzalez Endorses Dennis Kucinich

San Francisco Supervisor Matt Gonzalez on Tuesday gave Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich a third-party boost, endorsing his run for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Gonzalez, president of the Board of Supervisors and one of the most prominent elected member of the nation's Green Party, said Kucinich represents the best of the Democratic Party.

"He's unapologetic about his politics and the progressive nature of what he represents," Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez said the Democrats have fielded several candidates better than President George Bush and that Kucinich "stands out as the real deal."

Kucinich, appearing with Gonzalez at the Studio Z community space in SoMa, said Gonzalez's endorsement validates him as a "green Democrat."

He said Gonzalez's support will help him carry the Bay Area and he hopes to work with Gonzalez as the next president.

Gonzalez said his endorsement is implicitly a statement that the Green Party should not be fielding a candidate as long as there is a choice who represents its views.

"At some point, we have to be willing to cross party lines and endorse the best candidate in the field," Gonzalez said.

Matt Gonzalez and Me by John Halle composer, music professor at Yale and Green Party alderman posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Justice Dept. Finds Evidence of Abuse of Sept. 11 Detainees

The Justice Department's inspector general announced today that investigators had found hundreds of prison videotapes that were not turned over by federal prison officials during an earlier investigation and that the tapes confirm reports of serious physical and verbal abuse of immigrants detained after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.


Inspector General Glenn A. Fine found that "some officers slammed and bounced detainees against the wall, twisted their arms and hands in painful ways, stepped on their leg restraint chains and punished them by keeping them restrained for long periods of time," according to a report released today. [ read more ]

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The IRS Claims New Patriot Act Type Powers to Punish Political Dissenters

The IRS, through the small office of "Director of Practice," claims the authority to wield carte blanche authority over all the other powers of government -- the authority to monitor, surveil, and eavesdrop on political dissenters, the authority to pry into the private financial records of banks, businesses, and taxpayers, the authority to conduct secret investigations under a criminal grand jury, and the authority to censure political dissenters by branding on them a badge of infamy and stripping them of governmentally-protected licenses. In short, under the guise of a "practice" investigation, the IRS claims the right to wield all intrusive and invasive powers of government available.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Saddam bodyguard informed US forces of former leader's whereabouts

He informed some of his relatives of his intentions to betray Saddam and "contacted the Americans through one relative he trusted," the newspaper said.

They agreed on a plan by which Muslit had "to drug the Iraqi president...to guarantee his capture alive, without giving him an opportunity to resist or to escape from the trap that was laid out for him," the report said. The officer "succeeded in drugging Saddam in his hideout,"

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The Illustrated Complete Summary of Thomas Pynchon's "Gravity Rainbow"

Flash 6 site. If this link doesn't work for you, try pasting this url in your browser:

http://www.themodernword.com/gr/default.htm posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

There is a fascinating Tour of Religion by John Isbell is at Open Source Politics. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

CBS News | Thomas Kean | 9/11 Attack was Preventable

(CBS) For the first time, the chairman of the independent commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks is saying publicly that 9/11 could have and should have been prevented, reports CBS News Correspondent Randall Pinkston.

"This is a very, very important part of history and we've got to tell it right," said Thomas Kean.

"As you read the report, you're going to have a pretty clear idea what wasn't done and what should have been done," he said. "This was not something that had to happen."

Appointed by the Bush administration, Kean, a former Republican governor of New Jersey, is now pointing fingers inside the administration and laying blame. [ read the story ]

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

So, What's the Difference?

 
Liberal Oasis has the tough question and answers presented to Bush by Diane Sawyer.

SAWYER: But stated as a hard fact, that there were weapons of mass destruction, as opposed to the possibility that he could move to acquire those weapons still --

BUSH: So what’s the difference?

This is the man who was given permission by our Congress to conduct a war with all its destructive implications based on a possibility? And we wonder why there were checks and balances built into the Constitution? Make them accountable! Begin with Bush. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

What's missing is will, not opportunity

Posted by Hillary at the Bunker.
Chomsky fans just go now. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Ashcroft sanctioned for violating gag order in Detroit terror trial

"I regret making those statements, which resulted in a disruptive impact on the court's management of the proceedings," Ashcroft wrote. "I made a mistake in making statements that could have been considered by the court to be a breach of the court's order."

U.S. Attorney General John D. Ashcroft was sanctioned by a federal judge on Tuesday for twice violating a court-imposed gag order in the Detroit terror trial.

But Ashcroft, the nation's highest-ranking law enforcement officer, will not face criminal charges of contempt of court. He apologized for what he said were inadvertent comments.

"Two serious transgressions committed in this case are simply one too many for the court to abide with no response," U.S. District Judge Gerald E. Rosen wrote in an 83-page opinion. "More than a warning is necessary here."

Rosen criticized comments Ashcroft made at two press conferences -- the first on Oct. 31, 2001, and the second on April 17 -- in which Ashcroft praised a government witness during the trial of four Arab immigrants in Detroit.

Rosen chose to issue a public admonishment, a sanction that falls short of rebuking Ashcroft with a formal reprimand. [ more, if you can stomach it ]

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Medical Marijuana Victory!!

Appellate panel says the U.S. can't prosecute patients if doctors call marijuana their only relief and the drug is obtained at no charge.
Federal officials may not prosecute marijuana smokers whose doctors say pot is their only medical relief — at least so long as the users grow their own or obtain it from other growers without charge, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

Release by Dale Gieringer, Coordinator, California NORML

Ninth Circuit Rules Prop 215 Patients Raich and Monson May Use & Grow Medical Marijuana for Personal Use

"Prop 215 Now Federal Law in California"

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 16th. In a stunning victory for medical marijuana, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the right of patients Angel Raich and Diane Monson to possess and cultivate marijuana for their own personal medical use in accordance with Prop. 215.

In a 2-1 ruling, Justices Pregerson and Paez held that the federal government lacked power under the Interstate Commerce Clause of the Constitution to interfere with the plaintiffs' possession and cultivation of marijuana for personal use. The court ordered a preliminary injunction barring the government from arresting Raich or Monson for violating the Controlled Substances Act.

"This is an enormous victory for medical marijuana patients," declared California NORML coordinator Dale Gieringer, one of the original authors of Prop. 215, "It essentially makes Prop. 215 federal law in California" (The decision should also apply to the other states in the Ninth Circuit with medical marijuana laws, namely Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Nevada and Hawaii).

The decision did not address the broader question of the federal government's authority over marijuana distribution and commerce within California, an issue that is the subject of a second, pending appeal by the Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana and the Oakland Cannabis Buyers' Cooperative. This marks the first case in which the Controlled Substances
Act has been held unconstitutional. The court's decision was based entirely on the Commerce Clause and did not address other issues raised by the plaintiffs, such as states' rights or the fundamental right of patients to relief from pain and suffering under the 5th and 9th amendments.

The text of the court's decision may be found at:
http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/ruling.pdf
For further info read DrugWarRant, who, by the way, just endorsed Dennis Kucinich.

Big Left Outside also has a perspective on this even if his case of glaucoma seems to be developing..
Glaucoma has little to do with The Short Term Vision Thing Maybe that's the reason Kos rubs me wrong. His vision is skewed. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Texas housewife busted for hawking erotic toys

Joanne Webb, a former fifth-grade teacher and mother of three, was in a county court in Cleburne, Texas, on Monday to answer obscenity charges for selling the vibrator to undercover narcotics officers posing as a dysfunctional married couple in search of a sex aid.

..."We have a real problem with drugs in our schools,'' she said, "and they're using our narcotics officers to entrap me for selling a vibrator.''

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

National Council of Churches Statement on the Capture of Saddam Hussein

"The National Council of Churches USA welcomes the news that Saddam Hussein has been captured by U.S. forces in Iraq. As demonstrated by the displays of celebration in the streets of Baghdad, the arrest of this dictator should bring to an end the fear that has gripped Iraqis throughout his long reign, a fear that has lingered throughout these last several months of U.S. occupation. It is our hope now for the Iraqi people that freedom will flourish in their country.

As the next days and weeks unfold, we remind the U.S. government that the world will be watching to see how we treat our adversaries after they are in our custody. This presents a teachable moment in western ideals and democracy. We therefore urge the US government not to give in to the temptation of vengeance or expediency, but to facilitate the prosecution of Hussein in a manner consistent with the highest accepted international standards of justice.

As for the court process itself, no trial is possible based on evidence to date of weapons of mass destruction, or of a link between Hussein and the terrorism of 9/11-- two reasons many Americans believe we went to war in the first place. Prosecution should instead focus on the abundant evidence of heinous crimes he committed against his own people. For this, the Iraqis themselves must play a prominent role in what should be a public trial."

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

from JuanCole:
Iran has decided to lodge a legal complaint against Saddam in the World Court. Its spokesmen say they not only want Saddam tried for crimes against humanity, but also want to bring out the role of the Western nations that supported and built up Saddam (including the US, France, Russia and Germany). posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The Questions the Media Are Failing to Ask

Seven-hour "conclusive" DNA tests? Dyed hair while living in a hole? War tribunals for Saddam set up 3 days before Saddam's capture? So where are those alleged hoardes of "Saddam loyalists? read the questions posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Extra! Extra!

When I was a little boy in Albany, N.Y., I delivered newspapers. Whenever there was a big story, like the day Charles Lindbergh's baby was kidnapped, the newspapers rushed into print with an extra edition to tell everyone about it.

There was no television then.

Newspaper boys went out in the street with bundles of papers, yelling,

"Extra, extra, extra!" I felt sorry for newspaper editors this morning. The papers were on the street before they knew Saddam Hussein had been captured.

Not a word about it in the paper.

Like most Americans, I first heard the news when I turned on the radio this morning. I went to my television set and sure enough, there was Dan Rather, a fireman in the television news business, yelling "Extra, extra, extra!"

I had a hundred thoughts about Saddam Hussein while I was eating breakfast.

What was his mother like?

I hope we don't kill him.

I hope we don't let him kill himself.

He's a great source of information and such an egotistical bastard that he'll enjoy telling us everything.

If you made a list of the 10 most evil men of all time - there has never been a woman so evil - Saddam Hussein would be on the list.

My history isn't good enough to name all the old ones like Genghis Khan, Nero, Caligula, Attila the Hun, but we all know the modern bad guys: Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, Franco, Qaddafi, Khomeini, Marcos.

We congratulate ourselves all the time on our democracy here in America and for not having had a dictator. I don't know whether we've been lucky or smart. It could happen.

The people who follow an evil leader don't have to be evil themselves. They can be dumb, uninformed, disinterested in the world, or just too absorbed with their personal problems to care about their government. It's been amazing, really, that this great democracy of ours has lasted so long.

A dictator doesn't usually just come in and take over. He moves in little by little. That's why every country, even so free and democratic a one as ours, with a nice guy as president, has to watch out.

It's why some Americans - me for example - are nervous about something like the recently enacted Patriot Act. We're even nervous about saying we're nervous, for fear of sounding un-American.

Anyway, we've all been looking for the perfect Christmas present, and now we've got it: The capture of Saddam Hussein. It's the best gift we could possibly get, and we thank the men who gave it to us.

Written By Andy Rooney © MMIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Dems Better Shape Up, Or Get Left Behind

by Harley Sorensen

Of all the candidates, only Dennis Kucinich has the courage to call for a "single payer" (government-run) health-care system, the kind used successfully by every other industrialized nation in the world.

And this, in my opinion, brings to mind the greatest problem the Democrats face: letting the Republicans define them.

The Fox News spinners, like those on MSNBC, giggle at a candidate like Kucinich and dismiss him as a representative of the lunatic fringe.

But I ask you, how crazy is it to try to drag America into the 21st century when it comes to health care? (To say nothing of the 20th! Germany has had universal health care for more than 100 years.)

And how crazy would it be to finally, finally, relieve employers of the responsibility of providing health care for their employees? Right now, the payment of health-care costs is perhaps the biggest sticking point between unions and employers.

...Something's going on in this country, and the Democrats had better pick up on it. Books by Moore, Al Franken and other outspoken liberal writers are selling big. There is a hunger for reform, for the return of decency to our nation's politics and policies.

The Democrats can provide that. But to do so they have to return to their Democratic roots. More important, they have to stop letting the Republicans define them. Good Democrats are good people who are good for our country. Wishy-washy, lukewarm Democrats aren't good for anything.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Do artists need narcotics even more than ordinary people?