December 17, 2007 archive

Cross posted to Dailykos, VetVoice & Turn Maine Blue with link to here to post comments.

I am tired. So tired. I usually use an editor for my diaries because of my head injury and poor organization, grammar, repeating myself and essays that are generally too long.  Those take me 10 hours or more and then an editor.

This one is straight from the heart and hip and will be written in short order and to the point (I hope).

During Viet Nam there were tons of protests and large marches and people in front of the

White house and more.

This war is even worse and the condition of our nation is far worse. We have some small and well meaning attempts at rallies and marches. Nothing near the ones of the Nam era.

Some news and OpEn ThReAd.

1. The New York Times reports New Jersey abolishes death penalty. “Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed into law a measure repealing New Jersey’s death penalty on Monday, making the state the first in a generation to abolish capital punishment. Mr. Corzine also issued an order commuting the sentences of the eight men on New Jersey’ death row to life in prison with no possibility of parole, ensuring that they will stay behind bars for the rest of their lives. In an extended and often passionate speech from his office at the state capitol, Mr. Corzine declared an end to what he called ‘state-endorsed killing,’ and said that New Jersey could serve as a model for other states.

2. Ryan Singel of Wired’s “Threat Level” blog writes Senators Debate retroactive Telco immunity. “Senator Chris Dodd (D-Connecticut), who tried to stop the debate by putting a hold on the bill, fierily denounced the amnesty provision:”

   Collusion in warrantless wiretapping is-and the warrant makes all the difference, because it is precisely the court’s blessing that brings presidential power under the rule of law.

   In sum, we know that giving the telecoms their day in court-giving the American people their day in court-would not jeopardize an ounce of our security.

   And it could only expose one secret: the extent of our president’s lawbreaking, and the extent of his corporations’ complicity.

   TPM Election Central reports his campaign stated Dodd vows to filibuster “as long as he can”. “Senators Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden have all pledged to support” the filibuster, but reportedly are not in Washington to do so.

3. Adam Nagourney of the NY Times writes about Managing a post-Feb. 5 campaign. “As campaigns try to keep up with this fast-paced, multi-layered campaign, there is growing sense among Republicans that for their contest at least – and perhaps for Democrats – Feb. 5 may not be the end of the line. And at the same time, Democrats are looking at a scenario where only two of their candidates emerge out of [Iowa]”… Even if the candidate doesn’t actually accumulate enough delegates to claim the nomination, the pressure from party leaders to coalesce around a nominee, combined with the obstacles facing other candidates who might want to fight on, would carry the day. Except that it is now entirely possible that no Republican will be moving very quickly going into Feb. 5…. An extended contest seems possible on the Democratic side, but less so, because there are fewer strong candidates to divide the Feb. 5 take.”

4. A couple stories from our changing climate. First, The Oregonian reports Cascade resorts plan for a future with less snow. “Cascade Mountain winters are expected to get warmer. So at Mt. Bachelor — as well as just about every ski resort in the Northwest — resort managers are starting to adjust long-term plans based on the predicted effects of global warming. This fall, Mt. Bachelor’s owners hired a group of scientists to create a long-term climate forecast specific to the 9,065-foot butte west of Bend,” Oregon.

   And the Washington Post reports As temperatures rise, health could decline. “Depending on where you are, this is going to be a hotter, wetter, drier, windier, calmer, dirtier, buggier or hungrier century than [humans have] seen in a while. In some places, it may be deadlier, too. The effects of climate change are diverse and sometimes contradictory. In general, they favor instability and extreme events. On balance, they will tend to harm health rather than promote it.” Dangers include: heat stress, extreme weather, air pollution, waterborne and food-Borne disease, and insect- and animal-borne disease.

This is an Open Thread: No Credit Needed To Enter

Headlines For Monday December 17: A town against the wall: Obama confronts rumor he is a Muslim: Storm buries Northeast, causes 3 deaths: Africa war wounds begin to heal amid progress: Inside the Hajj, with 1m believers

USA

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said this month that he would take landowners to court to seize property if needed, and also pledged that he would not pay more than market price for land.

A town against the wall

Granjeno on the Rio Grande has outlasted the rule of Spain, Mexico and the Republic of Texas. Now the border fence aims for its heart.

By Miguel Bustillo, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

December 17, 2007

GRANJENO, TEXAS — Gloria Garza doesn’t have a whole lot. But what she has, she clings to with pride.

She lives in a simple stucco house with a rustic wooden veranda and a well fashioned from odd stones her husband found around the state. Kittens stretch lazily in the sun beside her porch. Armadillos dart across her backyard.

Her two-acre lot is her heirloom, her link to a legacy that dates to 1767, when Spain’s King Carlos III gave her pioneer ancestors a porcion of property that started at the Rio Grande and stretched inland for miles.

So she is not going to be quiet while some bureaucrat in Washington tries to take it — to build a border fence. She doesn’t want to become an unintended victim in a war against illegal immigration that she sees as misguided and wrong.