August 2009 archive

To start, let’s put Apocalyptic Christianity into a historical perspective.

Native American Holocaust – Sex, Race and Holy War. Excerpts from the book: American Holocaust by David Stannard Oxford University Press, 1992

From the moment of its birth Christianity had envisioned the end of the world. Saints and theologians differed on many details about the end, but few disagreements were as intense as those concerned with the nature and timing of the events involved. There were those who believed that as the end drew near conditions on earth would grow progressively dire, evil would increase, love would diminish, the final tribulations would be unleashed-and then suddenly the Son of Man would appear: he would overcome Satan, judge mankind, and bring an end to history. Others had what is generally thought to be a more optimistic view: before reaching the final grand conclusion, they claimed, there would be a long reign of peace, justice, abundance, and bliss; the Jews would be converted, while the heathens would be either converted or annihilated; and, in certain versions of the prophecy, this Messianic Age of Gold would be ushered in by a Last World Emperor-a human saviour-who would prepare the way for the final cataclysmic but glorious struggle between Good and Evil, whereupon history would end with the triumphant Second Coming.

Trail Of Tears: Moving Beyond The Myth Of America

http://www.wral.com/news/local…

Let’s see…

19 year-old Herta Lluso is going to be deported from the US on August 19.  Unless, of course, we can get ICE officials to grant her a stay of deportation.  That’s where you come in.

Herta’s case is a strong example of just why we need the Dream Act:

The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (The “DREAM Act”) is a piece of proposed federal legislation that was introduced in the US Senate, and the US House of Representatives on March 26, 2009. This bill would provide certain illegal immigrant students who graduate from US high schools, are of good moral character, arrived in the US as children, and have been in the country continuously for at least five years prior to the bill’s enactment, the opportunity to earn conditional permanent residency. The students would obtain temporary residency for a six year period. Within the six year period, a qualified student must have “acquired a degree from an institution of higher education in the United States or [have] completed at least 2 years, in good standing, in a program for a bachelor’s degree or higher degree in the United States,” or have “served in the uniformed services for at least 2 years and, if discharged, [have] received an honorable discharge.” “Any alien whose permanent resident status is terminated [according to the terms of the Act] shall return to the immigration status the alien had immediately prior to receiving conditional permanent resident status under this Act.”

Wiki.

Passage of the Dream Act, however, won’t solve Herta Lluso’s deportation, because she’ll be gone, deported to Albania, long before it passes unless we get a stay of her deportation.  What we need to do is get a stay of her deportation.  And we need it now.

I found Herta’s story at dreamactivist.org:

My name is Herta Llusho, I am 19 years old, and I writing this because I am about to be deported.  I was born in Albania and was brought to the United States when I was 11 years old.   With the help and support of my family, I have struggled through more than seven years of legal proceedings to find a way to stay in this country legally.  Despite our best efforts, on August 19, I will be removed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from the only place I know as my home.  I will be sent back to a country that has become a foreign place to me.  I don’t even speak Albanian well anymore.  My only hope of staying here is for as many people as possible to ask DHS to delay my deportation until the DREAM Act is passed.

My parents brought me to the United States because they believed in the promises this country had to offer. To them it was the land of opportunities, values, and ideals. They were faithful believers of the American Dream, meaning that through hard work, education, and good character their children could accomplish anything they wanted. In fact, they believed in it so strongly that they sacrificed their own lives, as well as their relationship to make it happen. My dad stayed in Albania with the hope of relocating to the US, while my mom left everything behind in pursuit of a better life for her children. To this day, even after many years of struggle and sacrifice, they still believe that it is all worth it, and so do I. I have been truly blessed in the many opportunities I have received. The United States has made me the person I am today. I would like nothing more than to contribute to the country that has given me so much.

You can read her entire story at Citizen Orange.  And you can listen to her tell it here (audio is not great, so turn it up):

There’s not a lot more to say about why Herta should be kept in this Country.  It’s obvious. She is the kind of person we want in this Country.  It is our loss to deport her.

Let’s stop this deportation. Suggested action steps are here.  Please do what you can.

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cross posted from The Dream Antilles

1. The NY Times reports on A window into the C.I.A.’s embrace of secret jails. Kyle “Dusty” Foggo was asked by CIA officials in 2003 for his help buidling secret prisons. Foggo was the head of the CIA’s main European supply base at the time and “someone who could get a cargo plane flying anywhere in the world or quickly obtain weapons, food, money – whatever the C.I.A. needed.”

   “Foggo went on to oversee construction of three detention centers”. Each prison was “designed to appear identical, so prisoners would be disoriented and not know where they were if they were shuttled back and forth.”

   “It was too sensitive to be handled by headquarters,” Foggo said. “I was proud to help my nation.” Foggo also helped himself. Last year he pleaded guilty “to a fraud charge involving a contractor that equipped the C.I.A. jails and provided other supplies to the agency”.

2. The Washington Independent reports the White House faces rising anxiety on Afghanistan. Richard Holbrooke, Obama’s special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, faced a skeptical audience of journalists, think tankers, and former officials who pressed him “about the wisdom of the entire eight-year war in Afghanistan – and President Obama’s definitions of success for a conflict he may decide to escalate.”

   “Holbrooke’s answer suggested an unresolved tension at the level of strategy… ‘The military struggle with U.S. troops is not an open-ended event, but our civilian assistance will continue,'” he said.

   Meanwhile, America’s use of mercenaries is making the situation worse in Afghanistan. The LA Times reports a Deadly contractor incident sours Afghans. Four Xe (Blackwater) mercenaries “are said to be under investigation in the deaths of two Afghans.”

   “A June report by the Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan cites serious deficiencies among private security companies in Afghanistan in training, performance, accountability and effective use-of-force rules. The report says U.S. authorities in Afghanistan have not applied ‘lessons learned’ in Iraq”.

   “Since February, oversight of security contractors in Afghanistan has been entrusted not to Congress or the Pentagon, but to a British-owned private contractor, Aegis. The company was hired by the American government after the U.S. military said it lacked the manpower and expertise to monitor security contractors.”

   While incapable of controlling mercenaries, The Guardian reports the US marines in Afghanistan are launching their first energy efficiency audit in the war zone. “General James T Conway, the Marines Corps Commandant, said he wanted a team of energy experts in place in Afghanistan by the end of the month to find ways to cut back on the fuel bills for the 10,000 strong marine contingent. US marines in Afghanistan run through some 800,000 gallons of fuel a day.“

   Meanwhile, the NY Times reports Bombs kill 14 civilians in Afghanistan. “Two bomb explosions in southern Afghanistan killed 14 people, including 3 children at play”. The bombings are likely part of the Stepped-up Taliban intimidation campaign as the Afghan elections nears. The Taliban is threatening Afghans not to vote or face “strong punishment”. “One Taliban commander stood up in a mosque in the southern province of Zabul and warned people that the Taliban would cut off any finger stained with the indelible ink that marks voters, a witness said.”

   Writing at Foreign Policy, Brian Glyn Williams writes What defeat in Afghanistan looks like.

   Having spent this past July at International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF) headquarters in Kabul, I have seen what defeat looks like. It takes the form of thousands of casualty-phobic troops ensconced behind the walls, sand bags, and blast barriers of a well-protected safety bubble…

   For the vast majority of troops at ISAF headquarters, Afghanistan remains an enigma, a threatening land lying beyond the concertina wire of the base. The only Afghan most ever meet is the Hazara carpet seller on base who serves authentic Afghan food once a month. And the only coalition soldiers most Afghans meet are encased in armor-plated vehicles or flak jackets.

   The troops at ISAF HQ are hardly the exception.

   Spencer Ackerman at the Washington Independent comments on the piece: “Defeat in Afghanistan has a very definable profile, and it looks like risk-aversion… you can’t fight a war if you don’t fight a war – but the war is out in the provinces more than it is in the capital city.”

Four at Four continues with Cheney unloading on Bush, revolts in India caused by lack of water, and a horrible crime in Portland, Oregon.

Crossposted from The Hillbilly Report, crossposted to Agent Orange

Burning the Midnight Oil for Living Energy Independence

Ryan Avent has provided high quality debunking of many of the flaws of Ed Glaeser’s ongoing analysis of Cost and Benefits of HSR. His current piece, Ed Glaeser’s Rail Fail, does not let us down.

Hell, I decided I’d read Ryan Avent’s piece first, before reading Glaeser, so I would not get riled up and start a long rant, only to find that Ryan has explained it more clearly … and to more total readers, to boot.

But I got riled up anyway. Ed Glaeser in the most recent piece comes out with a blatant lie, and one that’ll trap almost all casual readers.