Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Torture is Anti-American
You don't have to be John McCain or a faith leader to know that torture is wrong. Clearly our Founding Fathers, who had some experience with the randomly brutal British legal system of its day, thought enough of this that 'cruel and unusual punishment' is expressly targeted in our Constitution's Bill of Rights.
Still, TeamBush is making a play to get around US laws and international treaties like the Geneva Convention by simply changing them to its liking. Bush has used information about top al Qaeda captives in his PR campaign to allow 'alternative methods' of questioning detainees. He referenced Khalid Sheik Mohammed ('KSM' in Bush nickname speak) frequently. Ok so here we have a guy who we know to be a major player, in fact, the mastermind of 9/11. Our fear of further attacks allows us to justify such methods in our own minds, which is always how the appeasers of 'alternative methods' work. It must be justified in some cases, limited cases, cases where innocent lives are imminently at stake.
But let's look at three realities. The big fish like ol' KSM, they weren't waterboarded or whipped with metal cables, or had their faces swathed in used women's underwear. They were given the subtle slow interrogation that uses flattery and rewards and psychology to get information--methods that work. (Question to TeamBush: Here's the guy who planned 9/11, are we ever going to see him tried?)
Torture's track record is shoddy at best. First, many people under such duress say anything to get the pain to stop. Such information is rarely useful. And let's remember, the people we intend on torturing, the al Qaeda honchos as Bush would have us believe, well these folks are really into martyrdom. Its pretty much their ideal way of going out. Does anyone actually think they, of all people, are going to cave? Not bloody likely.
But worse, when a culture of torture, of extreme alternative methods of interrogation, exists it trickles down and permeates throughout the military and justice systems. Look at the case of Maher Arar. Mistakenly linked to a possible supporter of terrorism this Canadian national of Syrian origin was detained by US security and shipped off to Syria for some 'alternative questioning' for several months until they figured out that he was in fact innocent. It also turns out that when US agents contacted the Canadians they didn't really mention that Arar was taking a special CIA plane to a repressive hellhole for questioning, apparently knowing that Canada has a weird problem with torturing their citizens, even naturalized brown ones.
And this is just one guy, a guy who's case we've heard of only because he got the attention of outraged Canadians. We know that the majority of the people in Guantanamo are in fact innocent. How much 'alternative questioning' have they endured? Or those folks in the piles at Abu Ghraib? And does anyone really think that someone who was indeed innocent and went through that kind of torment at the hands of US operatives or their buddies is simply going to 'live and let live?' Not a chance.
It's a fools game; which explains why TeamBush is playing it.
You don't have to be John McCain or a faith leader to know that torture is wrong. Clearly our Founding Fathers, who had some experience with the randomly brutal British legal system of its day, thought enough of this that 'cruel and unusual punishment' is expressly targeted in our Constitution's Bill of Rights.
Still, TeamBush is making a play to get around US laws and international treaties like the Geneva Convention by simply changing them to its liking. Bush has used information about top al Qaeda captives in his PR campaign to allow 'alternative methods' of questioning detainees. He referenced Khalid Sheik Mohammed ('KSM' in Bush nickname speak) frequently. Ok so here we have a guy who we know to be a major player, in fact, the mastermind of 9/11. Our fear of further attacks allows us to justify such methods in our own minds, which is always how the appeasers of 'alternative methods' work. It must be justified in some cases, limited cases, cases where innocent lives are imminently at stake.
But let's look at three realities. The big fish like ol' KSM, they weren't waterboarded or whipped with metal cables, or had their faces swathed in used women's underwear. They were given the subtle slow interrogation that uses flattery and rewards and psychology to get information--methods that work. (Question to TeamBush: Here's the guy who planned 9/11, are we ever going to see him tried?)
Torture's track record is shoddy at best. First, many people under such duress say anything to get the pain to stop. Such information is rarely useful. And let's remember, the people we intend on torturing, the al Qaeda honchos as Bush would have us believe, well these folks are really into martyrdom. Its pretty much their ideal way of going out. Does anyone actually think they, of all people, are going to cave? Not bloody likely.
But worse, when a culture of torture, of extreme alternative methods of interrogation, exists it trickles down and permeates throughout the military and justice systems. Look at the case of Maher Arar. Mistakenly linked to a possible supporter of terrorism this Canadian national of Syrian origin was detained by US security and shipped off to Syria for some 'alternative questioning' for several months until they figured out that he was in fact innocent. It also turns out that when US agents contacted the Canadians they didn't really mention that Arar was taking a special CIA plane to a repressive hellhole for questioning, apparently knowing that Canada has a weird problem with torturing their citizens, even naturalized brown ones.
And this is just one guy, a guy who's case we've heard of only because he got the attention of outraged Canadians. We know that the majority of the people in Guantanamo are in fact innocent. How much 'alternative questioning' have they endured? Or those folks in the piles at Abu Ghraib? And does anyone really think that someone who was indeed innocent and went through that kind of torment at the hands of US operatives or their buddies is simply going to 'live and let live?' Not a chance.
It's a fools game; which explains why TeamBush is playing it.
Pee Brained Justice
Tales of pee-stained jurisprudence just seem to be trickled all over today's web news. And, as always, I'm so proud when one such tale of urine antics gone painfully awry happens to eminate from the town of my birth! You just can't beat ledes like this one:
MCKEESPORT, Pa. - A woman pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in connection with a bizarre incident in February that resulted in a fake penis being microwaved at a convenience store.
There's just too much gold to mine here. As the article notes, the accused was trying to pass a workplace drug test by filling a lifelike dildo with clean whizz. They stopped at a 'Get Go', wrapped the pee-filled rubber member in a papertowel and asked the clerk to nuke it. Fearing he had a real, severed johnson on his hands, the clerk called the cops. But here's the best part--even though Mr. Clerk thought he had a real Bobbitt in his hands, it would seem he still nuked it!! Why else would part of the restitution be $425 to replace the aptly-named 'Get Go' microwave?! That's it. . . next trip I make to W PA I'm stickin' to the Sheetz Dogs!
Not to get in a pissing contest or anything, but the cross-border OH-PA rivalry heated up in nearby Akron, OH where a disgruntled Postal Worker admitted his role in placing urine in the office coffee urine, oops, I mean urn. Apparently his co-workers, noticing their morning brew had a bit of a whang to it, complained to supervisors who proclaimed the coffee untainted. Undaunted by the erroneous pee-free declaration of the USPS bosses, the workers spent $1200 of their own money to have a secret security camera placed in the breakroom, and that's when the piss hit the fan as Thomas Shaheen was caught yellow-handed on several occasions 'spiking' the punch, so to speak.
"He didn't offer a motive, but his lawyer, Paul Adamson, said Shaheen had been frustrated about his work."
One late addition: Jeez, this is the scatological topic that just keeps on giving. Let me squeeze out one more tale. 'Urine Trouble', some states warn truckers aka, "Hey Buddy, that's Not Gatorade!"
Tales of pee-stained jurisprudence just seem to be trickled all over today's web news. And, as always, I'm so proud when one such tale of urine antics gone painfully awry happens to eminate from the town of my birth! You just can't beat ledes like this one:
MCKEESPORT, Pa. - A woman pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in connection with a bizarre incident in February that resulted in a fake penis being microwaved at a convenience store.
There's just too much gold to mine here. As the article notes, the accused was trying to pass a workplace drug test by filling a lifelike dildo with clean whizz. They stopped at a 'Get Go', wrapped the pee-filled rubber member in a papertowel and asked the clerk to nuke it. Fearing he had a real, severed johnson on his hands, the clerk called the cops. But here's the best part--even though Mr. Clerk thought he had a real Bobbitt in his hands, it would seem he still nuked it!! Why else would part of the restitution be $425 to replace the aptly-named 'Get Go' microwave?! That's it. . . next trip I make to W PA I'm stickin' to the Sheetz Dogs!
Not to get in a pissing contest or anything, but the cross-border OH-PA rivalry heated up in nearby Akron, OH where a disgruntled Postal Worker admitted his role in placing urine in the office coffee urine, oops, I mean urn. Apparently his co-workers, noticing their morning brew had a bit of a whang to it, complained to supervisors who proclaimed the coffee untainted. Undaunted by the erroneous pee-free declaration of the USPS bosses, the workers spent $1200 of their own money to have a secret security camera placed in the breakroom, and that's when the piss hit the fan as Thomas Shaheen was caught yellow-handed on several occasions 'spiking' the punch, so to speak.
"He didn't offer a motive, but his lawyer, Paul Adamson, said Shaheen had been frustrated about his work."
One late addition: Jeez, this is the scatological topic that just keeps on giving. Let me squeeze out one more tale. 'Urine Trouble', some states warn truckers aka, "Hey Buddy, that's Not Gatorade!"
Labels: Hometown Follies, toilet humor
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Rosie's Riles Righties
Yikes, The Queen of Daytime sure seems like she's gotten into some hot water with her commentary on 'The View', comparing radical Islam with radical Christianity. Right-wing blogs and TV shows railed on her. And to be truthful, it wasn't a very good move from a PR standpoint. Joe Scarborough on MSNBC has made this a pet issue over the last days, and I don't see much coming from Rosie or ABC, though you know the Christian Right is wildly upset.
But here's the thing: Rosie's pretty much right.
On the face of it, religious fundamentalism, regardless of faith, has a few common charcteristics. It is a reaction to modernity, it has a circle the wagons mentality of persecution, and it believes that the way to right the world or society is by adhering strictly to the tenets of the faith. Those who don't believe are simply wrong. And they all have a fascination with end times where the wrongs will be redressed and, not surprisingly, the fundamentalist views will be fully vindicated and those who aren't on 'the right path' will be struck down, smote, burned in an eternal inferno, etc etc. Its a buttoned-down black-and-white view of the world with a revenge fantasy. The world is collpasing in on these people. They are upset with the liberal secular humanist lax attitudes toward decency or mores as demonstrated by suggestive clothing and dances and promiscuity and tolerance of homosexuality. You'd get little argument from the average fundie about that last sentence, yet mention that one need only add the words 'western' and 'infidel' and you'd have al-Qaeda's basic talking points and watch the sparks fly!!
Ok, that's just a quick and dirty take, there's alot of scholarly analysis on the topic. A very accessible primer on the topic is Karen Armstrong's The Battle for God.
If anything, I'd say that the difference between the Islamic and Christian fundamentalists at this moment in history is that the islamists have been on the short end of the stick and have a bigger bone to pick with the world. More than Islam, specifically, I'd say the Middle East and arab nations have the worst of such problems--driven by factors both external and internal to the nations and culture. Which is to say that, IMHO, given similar circumstances that engender such angst, you would easily see Christians react the same way.
Joe Scarborough and the GOPers are taking Rosie to task for 'proportionality', and it seems pretty accurate on the surface. There are lots of hopped up Muslims who are angry and killed 3,000 people five years ago and continue to wreak havoc across the planet, and the so-called Christian radicals simply aren't comparable.
But to that I say 'danger' comes in many forms. Frankly, Christian fundamentalists, working from their ideology, are undermining things in this nation in ways that foreign terrorists never could. The whole idea that evolution is 'just a theory' (not the dominant theory) is perpetuated in classrooms across our country. Frequently biology teachers are discouraged from discussing the topic because it's 'too controversial'. Recently, the field of evolutionary biology was actually removed from a list of federal scholarship-eligible programs of study. The fundamentalists in charge of buying textbooks for the State of Texas wield such power by their purchasing power that they can and do demand edits to national schoolbooks that suit their worldview.
And its not just a problem of the minority radical fringe who are bombing abortion clinincs and killing doctors, as Scarborough implied. When Eric Rudolph took to the Carolina hills, he had a group of sympathizers that helped him evade capture on charges of the Olympic Park bombing as well as gay nightclubs and abortion clinics. Many in those rural communities agreed with Rudolph's motives, if not methods, enough that they were willing to provide aid to a man on the FBIs Most Wanted List.
Moreover, I fear how our foreign policy is being hijacked by premillenialist apocalyptic visions. Fundamentalists are waiting for that end time, that rapture. Watch the TBN channel and see them discuss how current events in the Middle East are 'foretold' in the Bible as ushering in the Second Coming. They are psyched about it. They feel blessed that it could actually happen in their lifetimes! That's why they support Israel to the hilt and are into this notion of crusade.
And to close the rant (and I didn't even get into General "My God is a real God and his an idol" Boykin) a few quotes and sources for further review cribbed liberally from a comment to a fellow blogger's posting:
"[Christian fundamentalists must] take dominion over the US...[abolish democracy] which is actually heresy...[establish a theocratic republic] under biblical law...True to the letter of Old Testament law, homosexuals, adulterers, blasphemers, astrologers, [and for such offenses as] abortion, heresy, apostasy...will be executed."-Rousas John Rushdoony, President, Chalcedon Foundation, in Christianity Today, Democracy as Heresy.
"...we will see the beginning of massive killing of abortionists and their staffs. In time the killing, in protection of the innocent, will begin to spill over into the killing of the police and military who attempt to protect them...members of Planned Parenthood, and other pro-abortion/choice organizations will be sought and terminated as vermin are terminated."-Father David Trosch, Director, Life Enterprises Unlimited, Letter to Members of Congress.
"What should we do? We should do what thousands of people across this nation are doing. We should be forming militias...There are plans of resistance being made...Churches can form militia days and teach their men how to fight...This Christmas, I want you to do the most loving thing...buy each of your children an SKS rifle and 500 rounds of ammunition..."-Reverend Matthew Trewhella, Director, Missionaries to the Preborn, addressing the Wisconsin Convention of the US Taxpayers Party.
''Young men of faith{My brothers through the grace of our Lord and saviour Yah'shua Messiah} I stand before you{as the voice of one crying out in the wilderness}that you may hear the battle-cry {Which is sounded this day} From the Lord your God.You {who are shepherds} are to form localized militia in order that you may protect your flocks.You are called to be executors of Biblical law upon this nation{seeing as the state repudiates it's own responsibility to do so}.Young men of faith....Strong,wise and self-controlled...Merciful whenever possible, ferocious when not ! You are to form death squads ! {you must}... Seek out local drug dealers,seek out local Pimps,abortionists and all corruptors of youth {all dens of iniquity} and execute ! execute ! execute !.....Drag their bodies through the streets and raise your right hand to the sky,proclaiming the Laws and statutes given to us by the king of heaven and {to the glory of} his only begotten son''.- Pastor Josiah Abraham II,addressing Christian Identity{Youth of the true Israelites} Rally in Belfast 2005 shortly before being deported.
To learn more about Biblical law: www.armyofgod.com
www.aryannations.org/holyorder/
www.godhatesfags.com
www.thesignsofthetimes.net
www.aryannationsrecords.com
www.forerunner.com
www.chalcedon.edu
www.amprom.org
www.Michaelbray.com
www.orangestreetchurch.org
www.streetpreach.com
www.christiangallery.com
www.moseshands.com
www.aryanyouth.com
www.silverringthing.com
www.battlecry.com
www.kingidentity.com
www.holywar.org
www.anglo-saxonisrael.com
www.congregationofyhwhnz.org.nz
Or simply Google the following; Richard Kelly Hoskins.Read 'Vigilantes of Christendom' By Richard Kelly Hoskins.Phinehas Priesthood.Christian identity Churches.Kinism.Dominionist theory.Read 'A time to kill' By the Reverend Michael Bray.Eric Rudolf.Paul Hill.Gary North. Read 'The Turner Diaries' By Andrew Mcdonald.Nauvoo militia.
Yikes, The Queen of Daytime sure seems like she's gotten into some hot water with her commentary on 'The View', comparing radical Islam with radical Christianity. Right-wing blogs and TV shows railed on her. And to be truthful, it wasn't a very good move from a PR standpoint. Joe Scarborough on MSNBC has made this a pet issue over the last days, and I don't see much coming from Rosie or ABC, though you know the Christian Right is wildly upset.
But here's the thing: Rosie's pretty much right.
On the face of it, religious fundamentalism, regardless of faith, has a few common charcteristics. It is a reaction to modernity, it has a circle the wagons mentality of persecution, and it believes that the way to right the world or society is by adhering strictly to the tenets of the faith. Those who don't believe are simply wrong. And they all have a fascination with end times where the wrongs will be redressed and, not surprisingly, the fundamentalist views will be fully vindicated and those who aren't on 'the right path' will be struck down, smote, burned in an eternal inferno, etc etc. Its a buttoned-down black-and-white view of the world with a revenge fantasy. The world is collpasing in on these people. They are upset with the liberal secular humanist lax attitudes toward decency or mores as demonstrated by suggestive clothing and dances and promiscuity and tolerance of homosexuality. You'd get little argument from the average fundie about that last sentence, yet mention that one need only add the words 'western' and 'infidel' and you'd have al-Qaeda's basic talking points and watch the sparks fly!!
Ok, that's just a quick and dirty take, there's alot of scholarly analysis on the topic. A very accessible primer on the topic is Karen Armstrong's The Battle for God.
If anything, I'd say that the difference between the Islamic and Christian fundamentalists at this moment in history is that the islamists have been on the short end of the stick and have a bigger bone to pick with the world. More than Islam, specifically, I'd say the Middle East and arab nations have the worst of such problems--driven by factors both external and internal to the nations and culture. Which is to say that, IMHO, given similar circumstances that engender such angst, you would easily see Christians react the same way.
Joe Scarborough and the GOPers are taking Rosie to task for 'proportionality', and it seems pretty accurate on the surface. There are lots of hopped up Muslims who are angry and killed 3,000 people five years ago and continue to wreak havoc across the planet, and the so-called Christian radicals simply aren't comparable.
But to that I say 'danger' comes in many forms. Frankly, Christian fundamentalists, working from their ideology, are undermining things in this nation in ways that foreign terrorists never could. The whole idea that evolution is 'just a theory' (not the dominant theory) is perpetuated in classrooms across our country. Frequently biology teachers are discouraged from discussing the topic because it's 'too controversial'. Recently, the field of evolutionary biology was actually removed from a list of federal scholarship-eligible programs of study. The fundamentalists in charge of buying textbooks for the State of Texas wield such power by their purchasing power that they can and do demand edits to national schoolbooks that suit their worldview.
And its not just a problem of the minority radical fringe who are bombing abortion clinincs and killing doctors, as Scarborough implied. When Eric Rudolph took to the Carolina hills, he had a group of sympathizers that helped him evade capture on charges of the Olympic Park bombing as well as gay nightclubs and abortion clinics. Many in those rural communities agreed with Rudolph's motives, if not methods, enough that they were willing to provide aid to a man on the FBIs Most Wanted List.
Moreover, I fear how our foreign policy is being hijacked by premillenialist apocalyptic visions. Fundamentalists are waiting for that end time, that rapture. Watch the TBN channel and see them discuss how current events in the Middle East are 'foretold' in the Bible as ushering in the Second Coming. They are psyched about it. They feel blessed that it could actually happen in their lifetimes! That's why they support Israel to the hilt and are into this notion of crusade.
And to close the rant (and I didn't even get into General "My God is a real God and his an idol" Boykin) a few quotes and sources for further review cribbed liberally from a comment to a fellow blogger's posting:
"[Christian fundamentalists must] take dominion over the US...[abolish democracy] which is actually heresy...[establish a theocratic republic] under biblical law...True to the letter of Old Testament law, homosexuals, adulterers, blasphemers, astrologers, [and for such offenses as] abortion, heresy, apostasy...will be executed."-Rousas John Rushdoony, President, Chalcedon Foundation, in Christianity Today, Democracy as Heresy.
"...we will see the beginning of massive killing of abortionists and their staffs. In time the killing, in protection of the innocent, will begin to spill over into the killing of the police and military who attempt to protect them...members of Planned Parenthood, and other pro-abortion/choice organizations will be sought and terminated as vermin are terminated."-Father David Trosch, Director, Life Enterprises Unlimited, Letter to Members of Congress.
"What should we do? We should do what thousands of people across this nation are doing. We should be forming militias...There are plans of resistance being made...Churches can form militia days and teach their men how to fight...This Christmas, I want you to do the most loving thing...buy each of your children an SKS rifle and 500 rounds of ammunition..."-Reverend Matthew Trewhella, Director, Missionaries to the Preborn, addressing the Wisconsin Convention of the US Taxpayers Party.
''Young men of faith{My brothers through the grace of our Lord and saviour Yah'shua Messiah} I stand before you{as the voice of one crying out in the wilderness}that you may hear the battle-cry {Which is sounded this day} From the Lord your God.You {who are shepherds} are to form localized militia in order that you may protect your flocks.You are called to be executors of Biblical law upon this nation{seeing as the state repudiates it's own responsibility to do so}.Young men of faith....Strong,wise and self-controlled...Merciful whenever possible, ferocious when not ! You are to form death squads ! {you must}... Seek out local drug dealers,seek out local Pimps,abortionists and all corruptors of youth {all dens of iniquity} and execute ! execute ! execute !.....Drag their bodies through the streets and raise your right hand to the sky,proclaiming the Laws and statutes given to us by the king of heaven and {to the glory of} his only begotten son''.- Pastor Josiah Abraham II,addressing Christian Identity{Youth of the true Israelites} Rally in Belfast 2005 shortly before being deported.
To learn more about Biblical law: www.armyofgod.com
www.aryannations.org/holyorder/
www.godhatesfags.com
www.thesignsofthetimes.net
www.aryannationsrecords.com
www.forerunner.com
www.chalcedon.edu
www.amprom.org
www.Michaelbray.com
www.orangestreetchurch.org
www.streetpreach.com
www.christiangallery.com
www.moseshands.com
www.aryanyouth.com
www.silverringthing.com
www.battlecry.com
www.kingidentity.com
www.holywar.org
www.anglo-saxonisrael.com
www.congregationofyhwhnz.org.nz
Or simply Google the following; Richard Kelly Hoskins.Read 'Vigilantes of Christendom' By Richard Kelly Hoskins.Phinehas Priesthood.Christian identity Churches.Kinism.Dominionist theory.Read 'A time to kill' By the Reverend Michael Bray.Eric Rudolf.Paul Hill.Gary North. Read 'The Turner Diaries' By Andrew Mcdonald.Nauvoo militia.
Ann Richards
I don't know what to say. I politically came of age just out of college in Austin, Texas, and Ann Richards was truly one of my icons. She was sassy, smart, decent, compassionate, and just fun to be around. It was a great day when she was elected Governor of Texas over Clayton 'rape's like rain' Williams, overshadowed only by Jim Hightower's loss for AG to Rick 'Goodhair' (with apologies to Molly Ivins) Perry. The sign for months outside of Wheatsville Coop read 'Congrats Ann, Sorry Jim.'
I guess its beacuse of Ann, and Jim and Molly that I retain my love of Texas and Texans while the Lone Star State remains villified in Blueland for foisting W. on the rest of us. My Texas--Austin, also known as the People's Republic of Travis County, was and still is a liberal, intelligent oasis amidst a sea of bible-belters and xenophobes. It was serious and concerned, but always fun and never took itself too seriously. When I think of UT football games, Shiner Beer, and BBQ in my own head I guess I always think of Ann presiding over things in the grackle-shit coated Mansion next to the Capitol, always a regular Jane, populist enough to talk cars and horses and sports while knowing that she had a duty to try to make things better for regular people.
I'd say Rest in Peace, but I get the feeling Ann would certainly prefer to spend eternity the same way she lived her life, kickin' ass and laughing loudly all the way. We'll miss you.
Labels: RIP
