Okay, we have Florida, where they throw your ass off the voting rolls for having the same name as someone who was once arrested.

Texas, where with the help of Bush political appointees, they pushed through a redistricting program knowing it was illegal.

Georgia went straight for the unconstitutional poll tax, again with the collusion of the Bush regime. Had the nerve to complain about still being reviewed under the Voting Rights Act when the courts ruled as independently as Bush claims he wants them to.

With Alabama refusing to repeal certain Civil War sentiments from the state constitution, I thought they'd be next. But Ohio's democratic tradition is the next to go under, if Republicans have their way.

L.A. Times:

Pryor worked the Midwestern chitlin circuit until the early 1960s when he took his show on the road to New York's Greenwich Village, which was in the throes of sociopolitical transition.

"A tentative but innovative rapprochement had been established between white audiences and a select group of black comedians," explains journalist and historian Mel Watkins in his book, "On the Real Side" (Simon & Schuster, 1994). "The transitional comics of the fifties (Timmie Rogers, Slappy White, and Nipsey Russell) had made inroads and in varying degrees Dick Gregory, Bill Cosby and Godfrey Cambridge all had bridged the racial impasse."

At the time, many black comedians eschewed not only social commentary, but they also tended to mute any fury, or at the very least sanded the edges of the country's racial realities. Pryor, however, dove head first into the deepest of uncharted waters. "African Americans were accepted as clowns and jesters," wrote Watkins, "but were expected to avoid satire and social commentary—the comedy of ideas."

Let's take another look at that Pew Research Center thing, make a few points.

---

Strikingly, however, two-thirds of the black public agreed in the 2003 survey that poor people have become too dependent on government assistance, only 5 percentage points fewer than the number of whites taking that view.

That gap has been narrowing for some years, as fewer whites, but higher numbers of blacks, express concern about dependency.

While African Americans are somewhat more inclined than whites to see a strong role for government in providing for the needs of citizens, a solid majority of blacks (62%) agree that the federal government should step in only when local government can't do the job.

With regard to government efficiency, as recently as 2000, blacks were far less inclined than whites to deplore government waste.

Now, perhaps as a result of several years of GOP control over both the White House and Congress, blacks have greater reservations: 53% of blacks now agree that government is "mostly wasteful and inefficient," scarcely fewer than the 57% of whites who say so.

---

This, in particular, I found interesting

It's on now.

I am... 

Staff Opinions Banned In Voting Rights Cases
Criticism of Justice Dept.'s Rights Division Grows
By Dan Eggen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, December 10, 2005; A03

The Justice Department has barred staff attorneys from offering recommendations in major Voting Rights Act cases, marking a significant change in the procedures meant to insulate such decisions from politics, congressional aides and current and former employees familiar with the issue said.

Disclosure of the change comes amid growing public criticism of Justice Department decisions to approve Republican-engineered plans in Texas and Georgia that were found to hurt minority voters by career staff attorneys who analyzed the plans. Political appointees overruled staff findings in both cases.

Fact of note:

This has reached its most imposition-of-Sharia-law-like level of intolerance in the campaign to cow stores into saying Christmas. O'Reilly, escalating his "Christmas Under Siege" campaign, has posted a list of naughty and nice retailers. The American Family Association goes further, calling for a boycott of stores -- it's targeted Target -- that fail to use the word Christmas in their advertising or in-store promotions. "Target doesn't want to offend a small minority who oppose Christmas," says AFA's chairman, Donald Wildmon. "But they don't mind offending Christians who celebrate the birth of Christ."

Really? I've just gone on the Target Web site and plugged Christmas into my product search. "We found 39,197 match(es) for 'Christmas' at Target," it reported. How offensive is that?

What 'War on Christmas'?
By Ruth Marcus
Saturday, December 10, 2005; Page A21

You guys have twisted the anti-slavery amendments quite enough.

The principle at issue rests on the first sentence of the 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868 to guarantee the rights of emancipated slaves: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside."

...some immigration experts say that birthright citizenship is not a major incentive for the vast majority of illegal entrants.

"No, absolutely not," said Tamar Jacoby, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank. "It's something that a few middle-class professional people do. I have never met a poor person who has his wife walk across the desert at eight months pregnant so they can wait 21 years to be sponsored by their child."

It's the same bullshit as the push for voter ids implemented as unconstitutional poll taxes, done knowing the Bush regime would back their illegal measures.

I'm feeling these people hate your children.

"This is about attempting to deal with a serious policy problem by going after people's babies…. It doesn't have to become law for this kind of proposal to offend people," said Cecilia Muñoz, vice president for policy of the National Council of La Raza, a Latino advocacy group. "This one really hits a nerve."

I'm feeling these people will tell any lie,

There is no official tally of the number of children born to illegal immigrants; unofficial estimates range from 100,000 to 350,000 a year. Smith and other critics of current immigration law say that 1 in 10 U.S. births — and 1 in 5 births in California — are to women who have entered the country illegally.

Come ON, man...Are ten percent of the children YOU know born to illegal immigrants?

You KNOW these people are fucked.

GOP Faction Wants to Change 'Birthright Citizenship' Policy
By Warren Vieth, Times Staff Writer

WASHINGTON — For nearly 140 years, any child born on U.S. soil, even to an illegal immigrant, has been given American citizenship. Now, some conservatives in Congress are determined to change that.

A group of 92 lawmakers in the House will attempt next week to force a vote on legislation that would revoke the principle of "birthright citizenship," part of a broader effort to discourage illegal immigration.

 

Scientists: Fissure Could Be a New Ocean
- By ANTHONY MITCHELL, Associated Press Writer
Friday, December 9, 2005
(12-09) 19:45 PST ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) --

 

Ethiopian, American and European researchers have observed a fissure in a desert in the remote northeast that could be the "birth of a new ocean basin," scientists said Friday.

Researchers from Britain, France, Italy and the U.S. have been observing the 37-mile long fissure since it split open in September in the Afar desert and estimate it will take a million years to fully form into an ocean, said Dereje Ayalew, who leads the team of 18 scientists studying the phenomenon.

 

The existence of the additional material emerged as the head of the police officers union offered an apology for "extremely stupid and immature'' videos.

 

True. And thank you.

NEW IMAGES FOUND IN POLICE SCANDAL
Uproar over 'shameful' videos reverberates from Bayview to San Francisco City Hall
INVESTIGATION
Mayor orders probe of SFPD -- head of union apologizes
- Jaxon Van Derbeken, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, December 9, 2005

San Francisco police investigating what top city officials portray as racist and sexist videos produced by Bayview district officers said Thursday that new clips had come to light -- including an image of a black officer eating from a dog bowl and one of an Asian officer having difficulty riding a bicycle.

Reason 1:

The issue is heightened for public agencies like police departments, which have an obligation to serve the entire citizenry.

"When you are given a police uniform and a badge, you can't be like everyone else and have this kind of politically incorrect humor," said Joseph McNamara, former police chief of San Jose and now a fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution.

"When an entertainer like Chris Rock makes offensive comments, it's in a very different context," said Barry Chersky, an Oakland attorney who trains companies in sexual harassment prevention. "We can like or dislike Chris Rock's material, but he is not serving as the representative of a city charged with protecting all the citizens of the city."

And the key bit of advice:

What advice would Mathiason give to a San Francisco police officer -- or any other employee -- seeking to make a humorous video for his co-workers?

"I'd show it to your parents and see what reaction you get," he said.

"Or think: If it were shown on the 6 o'clock news, would your neighbors find it funny, or would it be something you'd be uncomfortable with?"

NEW IMAGES FOUND IN POLICE SCANDAL
Uproar over 'shameful' videos reverberates from Bayview to San Francisco City Hall
ETHICS
Videos violate most companies' harassment rules, experts say
- Ilana DeBare, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, December 9, 2005

Typical Old Testiment Americhristianism of note:

On Monday, Mirecki was treated at a Lawrence hospital for head injuries after he said he was beaten by two men on a country road. He said the men referred to the creationism course. Law enforcement officials were investigating.

Anti-creationism prof quits department chair

TOPEKA, Kansas (AP) -- A University of Kansas professor who drew criticism for e-mails he wrote deriding Christian fundamentalists over creationism has resigned as chairman of the Department of Religious Studies.

Paul Mirecki stepped aside on the recommendation of his colleagues, according to Barbara Romzek, interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

I have this movie in the background, The Librarian. The hero, a dork, just met the heroine...seat neighbors on an airplane.

Guy tries to flirt.

Girl say, "Look, let get this straight. I'm out of your league. If your league were to explode I wouldn't hear the sound for three days."

Hey, I collect clever lines. 

Death row clash
KFI's "John and Ken" become lightning rods in the Stanley Tookie Williams debate.
By Scott Martelle
Times Staff Writer
December 10, 2005

Tune in to the afternoon "John and Ken Show" on talk radio's KFI-AM (640) and you get a highly personalized take on Stanley Tookie Williams and those who are lobbying for the commutation of his death sentence. NAACP President Bruce S. Gordon is "a lunatic." Los Angeles journalist/progressive political advocate Jasmyne Cannick is a "black racist" and a "crackpot activist trying to make a name for herself." Williams himself? A conman in a murderer's prison jumpsuit.

...and "John and Ken" are weak minded assholes who have nothing but knee-jerk fear and a lust for the American death ritual.

Quote of note:

Beneath this rhetoric lies a theology declared heretical in the early centuries of Christianity: Manichaeism from a third century teacher, Mani. Manichaens of every age divide the world simply and starkly between the forces of good and the forces of evil, and urge the former to stamp out the latter. Appealing in its simplicity, Manichaeism is disastrous in reality. Early Christians regarded Manichaeism as heretical precisely because it blinded people to their own capacity for evil and encouraged gross self-deception.

Iraq war debate enters new phase
ANTHONY B. ROBINSON

You might not expect a West Point graduate, Vietnam vet and career soldier to come out with a book titled "The New American Militarism: How Americans Are Addicted to War." But that's what Andrew Bacevich, who now directs the program in International Relations at Boston University, has done.

Saudi Says Iraq War Likely Fueled Terrorism
From Times Wire Reports
December 9, 2005

The U.S.-led war in Iraq may have accelerated the spread of terrorism around the globe, and reports of U.S. mistreatment of militant suspects are troubling its allies, the new Saudi ambassador to Washington said.

In an interview, Prince Turki al Faisal said even if the United States had not invaded Iraq, global terrorism would have continued. [P6: Even Saudi princes fear trolls] "Going into Iraq may have accentuated or accelerated that process," he said.

Turki also said, "The U.S. for much of mankind has always stood as an example of … due process, human rights, innocent before proven guilty. If any of these precepts and principles are flouted by the promoter … then that affects all of us."

Courtesy of the White House.

(Obviously digital video production has gotten TOO easy.) 

I'm not kidding when I say this is symbolic of the flaws of Western culture.

"It's unimaginable how big this is," says Chen Yu, 27, who employs 20 full-time gamers here in Fuzhou. "They say that in some of these popular games, 40 or 50 percent of the players are actually Chinese farmers."

For many online gamers, the point is no longer simply to play. Instead they hunt for the fanciest sword or the most potent charm, or seek a shortcut to the thrill of sparring at the highest level. And all of that is available - for a price.

"What we're seeing here is the emergence of virtual currencies and virtual economies," says Peter Ludlow, a longtime gamer and a professor of philosophy at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. "People are making real money here, so these games are becoming like real economies."

Ogre to Slay? Outsource It to Chinese
By DAVID BARBOZA

FUZHOU, China - One of China's newest factories operates here in the basement of an old warehouse. Posters of World of Warcraft and Magic Land hang above a corps of young people glued to their computer screens, pounding away at their keyboards in the latest hustle for money.

The people working at this clandestine locale are "gold farmers." Every day, in 12-hour shifts, they "play" computer games by killing onscreen monsters and winning battles, harvesting artificial gold coins and other virtual goods as rewards that, as it turns out, can be transformed into real cash.

That is because, from Seoul to San Francisco, affluent online gamers who lack the time and patience to work their way up to the higher levels of gamedom are willing to pay the young Chinese here to play the early rounds for them.

Quote of note: 

Best Buy spokeswoman Dawn Bryant said the plaintiffs had misunderstood the company's "customer-centric" way of doing business.

Oh, really?

Lawyers for the plaintiffs, including Bill Lann Lee, former U.S. assistant attorney general for civil rights, also portrayed the alleged discrimination as part of a company ethic that focuses on serving white customers. They cited a company policy requiring salespeople to target buyers matching four hypothetical models — all white.

Best Buy Workers File Bias Lawsuit
By Molly Selvin
Times Staff Writer
December 9, 2005

I should stop reading the news now, while I'm feeling good about the possible outbreak of intelligence (as in being smart).

Should Israel give up its nukes?
By George Bisharat
December 9, 2005

IN A SUDDEN ATTACK of common sense, a Pentagon-commissioned study released in mid-November suggests an approach to nuclear nonproliferation in the Middle East that might actually be accepted by the people of the region. What is this breakthrough idea? That U.S. policies begin not with a country that currently lacks nuclear weapons — Iran — but rather with the one that by virtually all accounts already has them — Israel.

To avert Iran's apparent drive for nuclear weapons, concludes Henry Sokolski, a co-editor of "Getting Ready for a Nuclear-Ready Iran," Israel should freeze and begin to dismantle its nuclear capability.

This and other recommendations emerged from two years of deliberations by experts on the Middle East and nuclear nonproliferation.

Quote of note:

It appears that U.S. intelligence agents at some point picked up a guy they identified as an Al Qaeda member. He was duly interrogated (you guess how). And when interrogators demanded that he cough up the names of other terrorists still at large, the suspect got revenge by rattling off a list of everyone who'd ever annoyed him, including one of his old college professors, who had really burned him up by giving him a bad course grade.

Grading on the terrorist curve
Rosa Brooks
December 9, 2005

ON MONDAY, I'll be giving a final exam to 80 law students, and judging from their e-mail messages, they're worried about grades. But this term, I'm even more worried about their grades than they are.

 

Quote of note:

Kidan, who has known Abramoff since their student days when they were members of the College Republicans, has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy and wire fraud in connection with the purchase of the SunCruz fleet in the fall of 2000.

"Adam will testify against Abramoff and Ney if he is given an opportunity to do so," said Joseph Conway, an attorney for Kidan.

Plea Deal Near With 2nd Abramoff Associate
Kidan Has Agreed to Cooperate in Probes
By Susan Schmidt and James V. Grimaldi
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, December 9, 2005; A08

Federal prosecutors have all but finalized a plea agreement with a second business partner of former lobbyist Jack Abramoff in exchange for cooperation in the ongoing criminal investigations of Abramoff, congressional aides and Rep. Robert W. Ney (R-Ohio), lawyers in the case said yesterday.

Something about the combination of guns and immunity from prosecution brings out the asshole in all of us, I guess.

...many Iraqis complain that the force used by contractors, who are immune from prosecution under an order signed into Iraqi law last year, is often excessive.

"At least the police and army are recognized in the street, and they have the right to shoot because they are security forces," said Qasim Muhammed, 44, a Baghdad taxi driver. "But who gave those civilians the right to shoot?"

The newly released video, which was broadcast widely on Arabic-language satellite television stations in recent days, shows no faces and contains few audible bits of dialogue.

U.S. Military Probing Video Of Road Violence
British Contractors Appear To Shoot at Iraqi Civilians
By Jonathan Finer and Ellen Knickmeyer
Washington Post Foreign Service
Friday, December 9, 2005; A01

BAGHDAD, Dec. 8 -- A silver Mercedes swings into the passing lane when a machine gun opens fire, sending the car smashing into a taxi, whose terrified occupants scatter. Moments later on the video, posted on the Internet and apparently recorded in Iraq, a white sedan is riddled with bullets as it accelerates on an open highway.

Framed as if on a movie screen by the outline of a sport-utility vehicle's rear window, those scenes and others show what appear to be private security contractors firing on Iraqi civilians. The video footage has prompted an investigation by the U.S. military, a spokesman said Thursday, and by the company linked to the incidents. It even has a soundtrack: Elvis Presley's upbeat "Mystery Train."

I just throw it across the room when it wakes me up. 

via Boing Boing

Alarm clock wakes you with a noisy hovering chopper
This alarm clock launches a small, noisy helicopter to hover over your bed when it goes off:

One thing that sometimes wakes you up at night and prevents you from sleeping is the mosquito or blowfly when flying around your room. You can't and don't want to fall asleep again until you've caught it. These produces adrenalin and requires movements. The alarm clock blowfly works like a "blowfly" that at the desire time it escapes from a cage in your room. It starts moving and producing sound around you - to turn it off you should catch it and put it back in the cage.

The site aggregator is temporarily disabled. Basically, the problem is, since I loaded about a thousand feeds all at once, they try to update all at once. I'll do something about thatthis weekend while I'm in clean-up mode.

Quote of note:

The officials suggested sending Ahmad to an unspecified foreign country that employed torture in order to increase chances of extracting information from him, according to the petition's description of the memo

Pentagon Memo on Torture-Motivated Transfer Cited
A court filing describes a classified proposal to send a detainee away for information extraction.
By Ken Silverstein
Times Staff Writer
December 8, 2005

WASHINGTON — Although Bush administration officials have denied that they transfer terrorism suspects to countries where they are likely to be abused, a classified memorandum described in a court case indicates that the Pentagon has considered sending a captured militant abroad to be interrogated under threat of torture.

Ex-GOP Official Faces Conspiracy Charge
Former GOP Official Faces One Federal Count of Conspiring Against Voters' Rights in 2002
By BEVERLEY WANG
The Associated Press

CONCORD, N.H. - A former national Republican Party official played a key role in an Election Day 2002 phone jamming plot against New Hampshire Democrats, the prosecution said Tuesday during opening statements.

James Tobin, President Bush's onetime New England campaign chairman, is being tried on one federal count of conspiring against voters' rights and several counts involving telephone harassment. He could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted.

U.S. Attorney Andrew Levchuk said the state GOP's former executive director, Chuck McGee, had Tobin's blessing for the scheme as well as his help in the plot to disrupt Democratic get-out-the-vote phone banks and a nonpartisan ride-to-the-polls line.

Senate Dems predict Medicare win in ’06
By Carrie Sheffield

Senate Democrats and a handful of centrist Republicans are poised to strike a political blow to the White House early next year by passing legislation that would change the Medicare prescription drug benefit.

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) has enough votes to pass a bill that would extend the Medicare prescription-drug-benefit enrollment period for seniors until the end of 2006 and allow seniors a one-time change in plans.

“We are going to try to attach our language to the first available vehicle when we come back in January,” said Nelson spokesman Brian Gulley. “It would be the quickest way to get our language passed, as opposed to having to go through the committee gantlet. We have to get this thing passed as quickly as we can.”

Quote of note:

Too often, in cases where misconduct occurs, "OPD settles for ambiguous, vague and, at times, implausible answers (from officers), thereby avoiding the critical determination of whether officers saw misconduct and failed to report it," the report said.

The report said the department had developed -- but not yet implemented -- policies regarding disciplining and investigating officers.

Study: Retaliation common for Oakland officers who report misconduct
- Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, December 7, 2005

(12-07) 16:10 PST OAKLAND -- Despite improvements elsewhere, Oakland police still too often fail to report fellow officers who improperly use force when making arrests or conduct illegal searches, and those who do come forward often face retaliation, according to a report issued today.