DOMESTIC GROUPS F-B-EYED!
"Counterterrorism agents" at the Federal Bureau of Investigation have conducted numerous surveillance and intelligence-gathering operations that involved, at least indirectly, groups active in causes as diverse as the environment, animal cruelty and poverty relief, newly disclosed agency records show.
(NYT)

DECLARE VICTORY AND LEAVE!
"The elections represent the last best hope, a narrow -- and closing -- window of opportunity, to leave Iraq on our terms. The United States got rid of Saddam Hussein's government, the Iraqis drafted and ratified a constitution, and in December they will elect a parliament under that constitution. The next political benchmark may not come along for years; as currently written, the Iraqi constitution does not require the government to hold another parliamentary election until near the end of 2009."
(CATO INSTITUTE)

BIG BROTHER BUSH
" In his four-year campaign against al Qaeda, President Bush has turned the U.S. national security apparatus inward to secretly collect information on American citizens on a scale unmatched since the intelligence reforms of the 1970s."
(WASHINGTON POST)

SANTA LYNCHING UPSETS COMMUNITY
A large blindfolded Santa hanging from a noose from a tree in a man's yard has angered homeowners in a Florida neighborhood, according to a local television station.
(WKMG-TV, unearthed by Matt McCarthy)

ILLINOIS JOINS SONY/BMG ROOTKIT FRAY
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said Friday she is investigating whether Sony BMG violated privacy and consumer protection laws, noting that her office has requested information from the company regarding anti-piracy software it included on music CDs that experts have shown exposes Microsoft Windows users to security holes and computer viruses
(WASHINGTON POST)
On a personal note, you might remember (see below) my travails with Best Buy and their practice of continuing to sell the products after the Sony recall. After I wrote the story, I returned to the store to exchange my product and ran into their "return of software" policy. I explained to the young lady that this was no mere "I didn't like it" return but that ten days before my purchase Sony had instructed retailers to remove any unsold music discs containing the rootkit software from their shelves. So, I inquired, "Why are you selling it?"

She referred me to the store manager who told me it was my fault for buying a recalled item, that it was a matter between me and Sony and that there was nothing that she would do. She thanked me in that phony Merchandizing 101 tone (you know, the "Hi, How are you doing?, Can I help you find something?") but told me that there was nothing that she could do. "Thank you and (smirk!) Have a nice day, Sir." I left Best Buy, now pissed at them and not at Sony.

My voicemail hell complaints to their national store were finally met with the same response: We don't care that we sold a recalled item, that's between you and Sony.

I'll put my Santana CD in the trunk of my car and when I get over being angry at Sony, Artisa, Santana and, most of all, Best Buy, I may put it in my CD changer and listen to it. That's a shame, because I had been excited at the idea that one of my favorite performers had a new release. I understand that Best Buy made a marketing decision to sell the product because of the impending holidays. But rest assured, my marketing plans no longer call for purchases at Best Buy.

DUMB COPS II
"A San Francisco police officer was suspended and others face discipline after making videos containing sexist, racist and homophobic material for an office Christmas party, officials said. About 20 officers participated in creating or performing in the videos."
(CBS, unearthed by Bill Messick)

WHAT ABOUT THE POSSE COMMITATUS ACT?
"Day after day, reports of suspicious activity filed from military bases and other defense installations throughout the United States flow into the Counterintelligence Field Activity, or CIFA, a three-year-old Pentagon agency whose size and budget remain classified. Programs such as CIFA, Eagle Eyes and Talon -- names unfamiliar to most Americans -- must receive robust scrutiny by Congress and the media,' "
(WASHINGTON POST)

COP SHOOTS PARTNER
"An arrest warrant has been issued for Ronald Jay Dupuis, a former Hamtramck police officer who allegedly used his Taser stun gun on his partner. "
(WXYZ, unearthed by Bill Messick)

MEET THE "DOMINIONISTS"!
"The Dominionists -- biblical literalists who believe God has called them to take over the U.S. government are pressing an agenda that makes Newt Gingrich's Contract With America look like the Communist Manifesto. "
(ROLLING STONE)

BAH HUMBUG!!!
Washington State Police are celebrating the Christmas season by dressing up like the homeless to trap motorists who are not wearing a seat belt. The trick works so well that a trooper in Pierce County issued tickets at the rate of $760 an hour on Saturday.The officer, who was not in uniform, wore a cardboard sign around his neck reading, "Happy Holidays, Buckle Up." Charitable drivers passing by would offer him money to buy food.
(COLUMBIAN, unearthed by Brent Gourley)

NOW THIS IS TAILGAITING!
Police in Tampa busted a 40-foot motor homeconverted into a strip club on wheels, offering alcohol and lap dances to football fans outside the stadium before kickoff of a Tampa Bay Buccaneers game.
Six women performed lap dances inside the motor home, charging $20 to $40 depending on whether they danced topless or totally nude, police said Tuesday. The vehicle, adorned with a sign for strip club Deja Vu, was parked across the street from Raymond James Stadium.
(AP, unearthed by Joel Sogol)

PLAINTIFFS SOUGHT TO ATTACK DRUG POLICY
"Students for Sensible Drug Policy, one of the largest student organizations in the country, in partnership with the American Civil Liberties Union, is seeking plaintiffs for a lawsuit challenging the law that denies federal financial aid to students convicted of drug offenses. Since taking effect in 2000, more than 175,000 students have been deprived of aid under the drug provision of the Higher Education Act (HEA), often for minor offenses such as possession of marijuana."
(DARE GENERATION BLOG, unearthed by Paul Whitehurst)

KATRINA MADE WORSE BY POLITICAL INFIGHTING
Louisiana Sen. David Vitter (R) delivered a message that stunned aides to Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (D), who were frantically managing the catastrophe that began two days earlier when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast.
White House senior adviser Karl Rove wanted it conveyed that he understood that Blanco was requesting that President Bush federalize the evacuation of New Orleans. The governor should explore legal options to impose martial law 'or as close as we can get,' Vitter quoted Rove as saying, according to handwritten notes by Terry Ryder, Blanco's executive counsel."
(WASHINGTON POST)

KIDS SCARED STRAIGHT
A Moscow wax figure exhibition highlights the dangers of drugs by showing such things as the corpse of a glue sniffer. If this won't scare your kids nothing will.
(MOSCOW NEWS)

BOYCOTT SONY CDS, THEIR SUBSIDIARIES AND BEWARE OF BEST BUY
On November 16, 2005 Sony announced that it had instructed retailers to remove any unsold music discs containing the rootkit software from their shelves.CLICK HERE FOR LINK TO THAT STORY This came on the heels of a firestorm of controversy and criticism from no less than the Department of Homeland Security. CLICK HERE FOR LINK TO THAT STORY
I went to the local Best Buy yesterday (26th) and purchased a few CDs. I have been avoiding Sony CDs because of the latest hoopla. However, when I took my purchases home I noticed an acknowledgement to Sony/BMG on the liner notes to Carlos (Mr Free Spirit himself) Santana's newest Arista album. Apparently Sony has put this software on their other labels. Had I not read the liner notes prior to putting the CD in my machine it would have infected it. And, what is Best Buy doing selling recalled (if the recall extends to Arista) materials?

PRUNO ANYONE?
"Back in December 2002, the warden at Lancaster prison in Los Angeles County removed fresh fruit from box lunches in the maximum-security lockup, as an effort to reduce violence. Apparently, sober, scurvy-addled felons are much easier to control than drunken, violent convicts. "
(THE BLACK TABLE, unearthed by Matt McCarthy)

TORTURE SHOW HIGHLIGHTS RUMSFELD COMPLICITY
The recent PBS program Frontline illuminated the complicity of the 'small circle of lawyers who surrounded the president' and 'together would create a legal theory that would permit the United States to act unilaterally in defining the 'rules of war' and justifying the unprecedented powers to be given to George W. Bush including the authorization of torture. "
(VILLAGE VOICE)

PUBLIC RADIO'S HEAD ROLLS
Kenneth Y. Tomlinson, whose controversial leadership of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting's board of directors sparked an internal investigation into his tenure, resigned from the board Thursday in advance of the imminent release of the report, which is expected to contain criticism of his actions.

In the last six months, Tomlinson — whose two-year term as chairman expired in late September — provoked a heated debate with his aggressive efforts to incorporate more conservatives into public broadcasting, both on the air and behind the scenes. He said he was merely following federal law requiring the corporation to ensure objectivity and balance in public broadcasting, and argued that his actions would expand the appeal of the Public Broadcasting Service and National Public Radio.
(COMMON DREAMS)

COLIN POWELL AIDE SAYS FOREIGN POLICY HAS BEEN USURPED BY CHENEY/RUMSFELD "CABAL"
"Lawrence Wilkerson, Secretary of State Colin Powell's former chief of staff, has offered a remarkably blunt criticism of the administration he served, saying that foreign policy had been usurped by a 'Cheney-Rumsfeld cabal,' and that President Bush has made the country more vulnerable, not less, to future crises."
(NEW YORK TIMES)

DORGAN WITHDRAWS CUBA TRAVEL AMENDMENT
Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) withdrew the Cuba travel amendment, saying:

"I am withdrawing my amendment, one that is germane and relevant . . . The reason I am withdrawing my amendment is because a fellow senator submitted a second degree amendment to mine dealing with abortion . . . The use of a second degree amendment on abortion is unbelievable. Procedurally legal, but unbelievable . . . Elementary and high school students should all be watching today to see how politics really works . . ."
(LATIN AMERICAN WORKING GROUP)

FEMA OFFICIAL IGNORED EMAILS WARNING OF DISASTER
E-mails released today by one of his subordinates show that former FEMA Director Michael Brown blew off warnings about deteriorating conditions in New Orleans and the dire need for help.
Marty Bahamonde, a FEMA regional director, told a Senate panel investigating the government's response to the disaster that he gave regular updates and, in most cases, he was met with silence. 'I think there was a systematic failure at all levels of government to understand the magnitude of the situation,' Bahamonde said.
(YAHOO, unearthed by Talking Points Blog)

COPIER CODE CRACKED
"The Electronic Frontier Foundation said this week that it had cracked the code used in Xerox printers to embed details about the printer, including serial number, along with time and date information.
The EFF reported the existence of the watermarks this summer, and this week published source code of a Xerox decoding program. Speculation launched as to what other technology the government was tracking. And bloggers almost immediately began figuring out ways to get around the tracking."
(BLOGMA, unearthed by Paul Whitehurst)

DOG BITES LEGISLATOR
"Bob Schwartz, who also is New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson's crime adviser and the author of a new state law that allows felony charges against owners of dangerous dogs was hospitalized over the weekend after his own dog attacked him."
(SFGATE, unearthed by Paul Whitehurst)

CHECK OUT GAS PRICES
Just plug in your zip code and check out the gas prices for your area.
(MSN, unearthed by Gary L. Blume)

LATEST ON "CAMP KATRINA"
Richard Dorman of the Cunningham, Bounds law firm reports: "Well, we took another loaded truck over on Sunday. Full of food and cleaning stuff. We also had a group who stayed and manned the distribution tent all day. I am getting way to old for all this lifting!! Things are only looking slightly better down there, but I didn't have time to ride down 90 to see if things were better down the road. I really don't know how it could be since I think electricity is still very spotty at best. With all the destruction only a massive rebuilding is going to make it look better.

In any event, we have delivered 6 truckloads over the last few weeks not including the meat truck your folks donated. Yesterday they cooked the ribs that were donated for lunch and they were great!! Unfortuantely,we have about reached our limit on resources at this time and do not plan another trip this weekend. Yesterday we handed out food to a constant flow of people for almost 6 hours. People were coming from everywhere and driving as much as an hour to come to the distribution center to get needed food and supplies. I asked people where they were from and many were coming over from Louisiana becuase they couldn't get the things they needed over there."

BLOOD WRATH: IRAQ WAR PROTESTERS FACE CRIMINAL CHARGES
Last year, Clare Grady, along with her sister and two others, were charged in county court with misdemeanors for their actions in a March 2003 anti-war protest outside Ithaca, New York. More than a year later, that trial ended with a hung jury. The federal government then brought its own case against the activists, now known as the "St. Patrick's Four." On Monday, they were found not guilty of the federal charges for conspiracy, which carry a maximum six years in jail and $250,000 fine, but convicted of misdemeanor-level trespassing and damaging government property. In January, they will be sentenced, with a maximum possible term of 18 months behind bars.
(VILLAGE VOICE)

FEMA'S BROWN RUNS INTO A FIERCE STORM OF CRITICISM
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi ordered a Democratic boycott of the House Select Committee on Hurricane Katrina hearing, calling it a "sham" and a "photo opportunity." But, as defrocked FEMA director Michael D. Brown can attest, Pelosi's concerns about a whitewash proved unjustified.
(WASHINGTON POST)

ACCURATE REPORTAGE WAS ANOTHER KATRINA VICTIM
Reports of body counts, especially at the Superdome and New Orleans Convention Center, were inflated. Some reported atrocities -- the rape and murder of a 7-year-old at the Superdome -- did not occur.
(INDYSTAR, unearthed by realclearpolitics.com which was suggested by John Furman)

NOT REBUILD NEW ORLEANS? ARE YOU NUTS?
Writing about his time in the Big Easy during the late 1980s, Bob Dylan had this to say:

"In New Orleans you could almost see other dimensions. There's only one day at a time here, then it's tonight and then tomorrow will be today again. Chronic melancholia hanging from the trees. You never get tired of it. After a while you start to feel like a ghost from one of the tombs, like you're in a wax museum below crimson clouds. "
(INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE, unearthed by Common Dreams)

MOVE TO CHANGE POSSE COMITATUS ACT IS WRONGHEADED
The Posse Comitatus Act is no barrier to federal troops providing logistical support during natural disasters. Nor does it prohibit the president from using the army to restore order in extraordinary circumstances--even over the objection of a state governor.
What it does is set a high bar for the use of federal troops in a policing role. That reflects America's traditional distrust of using standing armies to enforce order at home, a distrust that's well-justified.
(CATO)

STUCK ON STUPID
I don't agree with the clockwise spin of this post, but you have to love - and agree with the response of Lt. Gen. Russel Honore (the MAN IN CHARGE of disaster relief in New Orleans) and everyone's second most hated profession. (Lawyers top the list).

"You are stuck on stupid. I'm not going to answer that question. We are going to deal with Rita. This is public information that people are depending on the government to put out. This is the way we've got to do it. So please. I apologize to you, but let's talk about the future. Rita is happening. And right now, we need to get good, clean information out to the people that they can use. And we can have a conversation on the side about the past, in a couple of months.
(RADIOBLOGGER, unearthed by Tyler McShan)

WEBSITE COLLECTS VIEWERS' KATRINA PHOTOS
Webshots members are documenting the wrath of Hurricane Katrina. Share their experiences and even help out.
(WEBSHOTS, unearthed by CNet)

CLICK HERE FOR A PENSACOLA NEWS JOURNAL STORY ON KATHRYN'S PEARLINGTON EFFORT

PORK, THE OTHER WHITE MEAT
"At least two major corporate clients of Bush's former campaign manager (and a former head of the FEMA), have already been tapped to start recovery work along the battered Gulf Coast. One is Shaw Group Inc. and the other is Halliburton Co. subsidiary Kellogg Brown and Root.
(COMMON DREAMS)

THIS IS WHY THEY CALL IT THE BIG EASY
Attention shoplifters, Attention shoplifters, the cops are over at aisle three. Don't worry, though, they're helping themselves to the contents of an abandoned Wal-Mart store.
(MSNBC, unearthed by Gary L. Blume)

NOLA DOCTORS KILLED THEIR PATIENTS
The Daily Mail, a British newspaper (credibility unknown by me) claims that "Doctors working in hurricane-ravaged New Orleans killed critically ill patients rather than leave them to die in agony as they evacuated hospitals, administering overdoses of morphine to those they believed could not make it out alive," the story claims.
"One New Orleans doctor told how she 'prayed for God to have mercy on her soul' after she ignored every tenet of medical ethics and ended the lives of patients she had earlier fought to save."
(COMMON DREAMS)

BUT, CLICK HERE TO SEE THIS INTERESTING ARTICLE ON SUSPICIOUS NATURE OF THIS REPORT

KATRINA MEDIA PORTAL CREATED
Webcasters.org now serves as a streaming aggregation and information portal that provides the latest links to live Katrina Relief broadcasts and Gulf Coast radio and TV station, web audio and video feeds from news outlets, ham radio operators, and citizen journalists, as well as podcasts and even videoblogs covering the relief efforts in the Gulf of Mexico.
There are some nifty things on there.
e.g. CHECK THIS ONE OUT!
(Suggested by Ben Walls)

NEW ORLEANS' JUSTICE CENTER ISSUES PLEA FOR HELP
“The Justice Center” is a three-story building that previously stood – and we hope still stands – at 636 Baronne Street in New Orleans. It has served the Louisiana’s indigent community for over a decade. It
houses four not-for-profit criminal justice organizations, three of which are attempting to set up temporary shop in Houston, Texas.

Those organizations are:

• LOUISIANA CAPITAL ASSISTANCE CENTER,
a non-profit death penalty trial office representing clients in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas;

• A FIGHTING CHANCE,
a non-profit organization of capital defense investigators;

• INNOCENCE PROJECT NEW ORLEANS,
a non-profit law office fighting to exonerate the wrongfully convicted.

They have lost most of the office equipment and personal belongings. "In many cases we were able to escape with little more than the clothes on our backs. We need help establishing a temporary office in Houston, so that we can continue to represent our clients. Many of our clients have trial dates and post-conviction filing deadlines pending and we must be able to resume work as quickly as possible in order to protect their interests. In addition, our staff, who have dedicated themselves to serving the indigent community for many years, now find themselves in need of assistance."

Included in this memo is a list of the Immediate Recovery Needs
OR
CLICK HERE TO MAKE AN ONLINE DONATION

(Suggested by Paul Whitehurst)

CLICK HERE FOR NEW ORLEANS KATRINA PHOTOS

GULF COAST DISASTER RELIEF FUND

251-967-4840
CHRISTIAN LIFE CHURCH
P.O. Box 10
Orange Beach, AL 36561
FOR MORE INFORMATION,
contact Trudi Champion at:
champion@gulftel.com

REPORT ON KATHRYN'S RELIEF EFFORT
Hello everyone. I just wanted to let you all know how your money and supplies are being expended. With the help of the ladies at Christian Ministries, Emerald Coast RV's and LOTS of their people, together with some of the money and supplies that you all have sent, I set up a hot meal service this weekend in Pearlington, Miss. (As you may know from other e-mails from me and phone calls, Pearlington is a little fishing villlage on the Pearl River on the Miss/La border. They are part of "ground zero".
My dear friends, James Amerson and Jeff Griffey, together with some volunteer help and a Pensacola News Journal reporter, and I were able to cook and serve between 500/600 hot meals to floks in Pearlington. The home-cooked red beans and rice, grilled sausage, fresh fruit, and cookies were a big hit on Saturday. Saturday night, James, Jeff and I camped out in Diamondhead, Ms at the United Methodist Church parking lot. We cooked chicken and rice and green beans for sunday. We also served breakfast on sunday morning (sausage biscuits, pb and j sandwiches, cookies, fruit, juice and coffee). Again, everything was a big hit as Pearlington had not had hot meals service until this weekend. I must tell you that the frech iced tea was our biggest hit....folks in the south NEED their iced tea.
We coordinated with the Diamonhead United Methodists and with FEMA (who is now on the ground in Pearlington) and hot meals service will continue daily. There is a shelter being set up by FEMA. There are a group of fine volunteer nurses on the ground and a hell of a vet running animal aide and fostering. The FEMA man in charge is doing a great job. We donated all of our equipment (grills, fish cookers, generator, supplies, groceries and fans) to various folks there that needed them. Christian Ministries spoke with me last night and are sending in a load of clean-up equipment today.
I will go back with more euipment later this week. Your donations all went to people that needed them and were so deeply appreciated. We come empty handed except for a small yellow tabby kitten fished out of the flood and now adopted by Kim at the Copper Possum.
Thank you everyone.
(Kathryn Runco Miller)

REPORT FROM CAMP KATRINA
There was an article on the front page of the Living Section today about Camp Katrina you might want to read. It will give you a pretty clear indication of how dire the situation is there.
We left the office a little before 7:30 and got there a little before 10. The functioning entity down there is the Christian Life Church in Orange Beach, along with some help from 2 other churches, I believe which are also from Baldwin County. There was no Red Cross presence that I saw and virtually no real FEMA assistance. There were some FEMA reps walking around and there was a lengthy line to file forms for assistance, but nothing being done by either organization to feed, house or supply people. That is what the Christian Life Church is doing.
We had a 26' foot truck from Flowerwood nursery substantially filled with supplies we bought based on the shopping list they gave us. I had been in touch with them on the ground there, and they told us exactly what was needed. Needless to say, we were very well received. We had tents, sleeping bags, air matresses, pillows, new clothing, radios, batteries, personal supplies, a ton of large cans of vegetables, beans, fruits, gatorade etc It went straight from our truck to the CL tent and then distributed to those in need. No wasted effort and no wasted time. In fact, all the tents,bags etc were gone almost by the time we finished unpacking. I can promise you there was and will not be a waste of assets or money in what we sent down there. On most of the stuff we also go very good discounts. For example, the Coleman outlet gave us 30% off on almost everything we bought.
When we finished unloading (and even some of our staff while the unloading was taken place) started assisting in unpacking and organizing supplies. It took us a little over an hour to unload the truck with about 8 of us doing it. Then we manned the kitchen for lunch from about 11 to 2:30. There were about 8 of us helping there out of 10 or 12 folks. Obviously they also need volunteers. If we had not been there today to help they would have been overwhelmed. The people we fed and gave drinks to were very thankful for our help. It was a very good, rewarding experience.
(FORWARDED BY RICHARD DORMAN, Cunningham, Bounds)

ARE MERCENARIES PATROLLING NEW ORLEANS?
A report on Truthout claims that: "Heavily armed paramilitary mercenaries from the Blackwater private security firm, infamous for their work in Iraq, are openly patrolling the streets of New Orleans. Some of the mercenaries say they have been 'deputized' by the Louisiana governor; indeed some are wearing gold Louisiana state law enforcement badges on their chests and Blackwater photo identification cards on their arms. " Can this be true?
(TRUTHOUT, unearthed by Mira Walker)

SLIDELL HURRICANE DAMAGE BLOG

OPERATION GOLDEN RULE LAUNCHED IN ALABAMA
Governor Bob Riley has launched Operation Golden Rule to identify housing for 10,000 Hurricane Katrina evacuees by 5 p.m. Friday, September 9th. He is seeking long-term housing where people can live as a family with dignity until their homes are repaired or rebuilt.

Are you aware of any available single-family homes, multi-family apartments, housing complexes, nursing homes, dormitories, houseboats, motorhomes, garage apartments, mobile homes, travel-trailer hook-ups, or any type of housing or shelter where people can live as families for an extended period of time? Please take a quick minute and send him the information using a FORM HERE

(Suggested by Joe Paul)

RUNCO RELIEF REPORT
(Got this email from Kathryn Runco (mill1099@bellsouth.net) in Pace, Florida yesterday. Kathryn (Carlos' mama) has been taking it upon herself to deliver supplies to the disaster areas.)

Went to Pearlington, Ms today thanks to the donation of the Copper Possum in Milton. No FEMA; No Red Cross; no electricity, no sanitation, no hot food. Small relief center run by national guard. Everything is filthy. Terrible smell for miles. No houses habitable that I saw. Churches destroyed. No stores--all destroyed.They need clean-up and sanitation supplies. I think I may have a church in Navarre willing to go there and set up a feeding station but if not, I will try some other way. Will go back with another load ASAP. THe smell is terrible, there are vultures everywhere and the people are so tired and defeated they can hardly hold their heads up. These are VERY proud people and they have taken an ass-kicking. Pardon my french.

k

(P.S. Just what might the "Copper Possum" be? An upscale restaurant?)

CHURCH SPEARHEADS DRIVE
Cottage Hill Baptist Church in Mobile is spearheading a fund drive to help hurricane Katrina victims. If you can help send your donation to:

Cottage Hill Baptist Church
attn: Scott Crawford
4255 Cottage Hill Road
Mobile, Al 36609

LAW FIRM RACING TEAM TO HELP WITH RELIEF
The BeasleyAllen.com race transporter is being emptied of race cars, tools, tires and most of the equipment which is carried to the race track, in order to make room for hurricane relief donations which will be gathered in Montgomery Friday afternoon.
The BeasleyAllen Racing transport rig will be at the Winn Dixie Promenade location at 2739 Eastern Bypass this Friday September 9th. Donations will be accepted from 3 p.m. until 6 p.m., and then delivered to the Robertsdale center. Willa Carpenter will be coordinating this effort for Beasley Allen, and any volunteers who can help receive, box and load the donations should contact Willa.

www.BeasleyAllenRacing.com
grantenfinger@yahoo.com
251 454 5211

PICTURES IN THE PRESS
Here are two pictures that ran in the Atlanta Constitution. One of them is of the Madden kids and the other one is Dennis Knizley checking out the oil rig that beached itself on Dauphin Island. (You can see the rig in the aerial photo below.)

TREE SERVICE IN MOBILE AND BILOXI AREA
If anyone needs tree service, please let them know that Jim Walker, is now in business. He is equipped with all the saws and a huge utility truck that goes about 65 feet up.

Shannon Harley will be taking all the calls, setting up the appointments, and lining up the estimates, etc...Spread the word and give them this cell phone 251.209.3564

KATRINA RELATED EMERGENCY SOURCES

One of the best sources for people looking to help or for assistance in finding people in NOLA is CRAIG'S LIST.

The SouthWest Emergency Response Network is the central repository for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. If you or your organization / agency / corporation have resources that may be made available to the response agencies, please list them in the Resource Registry. (PS: The southeastern regional is HERE)

Again, if you want to see what happened or have a relative and would like to check out their house if you haven't heard from them, GO HERE

REPORT FROM LODA
Just got back to the house. Had stayed here for the hurricane but left on Wednesday when I got fed up with living under martial law. (Carlos had been with me until the morning of the hurricane but them left for Pace when it seemed that the storm was moving westward. He was back in school by Tuesday.) About the only real horrible part of the hurricane was listening to the constant wind and the roof tearing off on the houses across the street (which took 10 hours!).

Zack evacuated from Baton Rouge to Gonzalez and spent the night of the hurricane with his girlfriend's parents. He is still working at the hotel and the influx of people into Baton Rouge has him quite frazzled. He is scooting back and forth between Gonzalez and Baton Rouge and is seriously depressed about the whole thing. Click Here for a website that quotes him

Obviously, Mobile, although hit quite hard, was nothing compared to our friends to the west. Kathryn and Carlos put me up in their guest house in Pace and it was quite nice after that. They have a pleasant and beautiful farm out there with horses and goats, etc and that seemed like such a pleasant sojourn from living with a flashlight on my chest and having the mosquitoes taunt me with their pre-puncture buzzing.

As if putting up an ex-husband wasn't enough generosity, she and her husband Doug (and her sister Leslie) put together a caravan on Thursday and went into Mississippi with about $3,000 worth of stuff they had purchased at the local Wal-Mart. To do this, remember, they had to disregard all of the hysteria about looters and carjackers, get around the blocked highways choked with emergency vehicles coming from points east, deal with the lack of gasoline, and somehow find a way into an area that was being cordoned off by the authorities.

They didn't get back till late that night but very rightly so were proud that they had done that. They say the need is desperate. Had an old codger of a chief of police cry on them and thank them for their generosity. They are going back again Tuesday and are collecting things to take: baby items, diapers, tents, camping gear, bug spray, disinfectant, medicines, light clothing, etc. Let me know if you can help. In Mobile, Leslie is helping coordinate the effort.

The image above is Wendell's beach house on Dauphin Island. Notice the oil drilling rig beached across on the other shore. If you want to see what happened or have a relative and would like to check out their house if you haven't heard from them, GO HERE

OUCH!
"Authorities have charged two people with castrating a man who got into a fight with another man who was supposed to give him a tattoo. They were charged with malicious castration; assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury; kidnapping; and maiming of body parts."
(WISI-TV, unearthed by Garet Cox)

NOW, THAT'S NOT VERY CHRISTIAN PAT!
Christian Broadcasting Network's The 700 Club host Pat Robertson founder of the Christian Coalition of America has called for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Frias.

"I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it.
It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war ... and I don't think any oil shipments will stop. But this man is a terrific danger and the United ... this is in our sphere of influence, so we can't let this happen."
(VHeadline.com, unearthed by Art Heitzer. Image used by permission from artist. Click on the image to see more of his magnificent work.)

WASHINGTON POST HAS THIS TO SAY ABOUT ROBERTSON'S GIFT FOR WORDS:

It's a pity Venezuelans don't know that "The 700 Club" broadcaster is a fading shadow of the Republican Party figure he once was. That Mr. Robertson once ran for his party's nomination, built a conservative religious advocacy group that had aspiring office-seekers quaking in their boots and -- entrepreneur that he is -- befriended every sub-Saharan kleptomaniac he managed to meet.

AMERICA'S GO-TO MAN FOR GLOBAL ISSUES
"Fareed Zakaria hosts Foreign Exchange which airs on Saturdays on PBS. He is America's go-to man for global chaos, providing some urgently needed outside perspective on our never ending war on terror. In the last few years, Zakaria has become a kind of bridge to the Arab world - an Asian-born Muslim with a Yale and Harvard education who seems willing to act as a cultural interpreter.
Zakaria stands out from the crowd of lily-white talking heads that populate American news shows thanks to his tan skin, clipped Bombay lilt, and his insistence that we pay attention to the rest of the globe. It was his post–9-11 Newsweek cover story "Why They Hate Us" that put him on the mainstream map as someone who could make sense of the now threatening outside world.
(VILLAGE VOICE)

HUNTER THOMPSON'S FINAL GONZO ACT
"Things are shaping up nicely for Hunter Thompson's final blast-off this Saturday. Hunter's ashes have been placed in 34 shells custom-designed by Zambelli Fireworks Internationale. The shells will be launched from a monument modeled after Thompson's Gonzo logo: a clenched fist, made symmetrical with the addition of a second thumb, perched atop a dagger.
Actor Johnny Depp is funding the event, which organizers estimate will cost roughly $2.5 million, to fulfill the vision that Thompson detailed in a 1978 BBC documentary and to his friends and family leading up to his suicide."
(5280, unearthed by Paul Whitehurst)

GAY MEXICAN GRANTED ASYLUM
"A federal appeals court in the United States has granted asylum to a homosexual man with Aids from Mexico on the grounds that if he was sent back to his country he could face persecution.
The court has made similar rulings in other cases involving homosexual and transgender asylum-seekers from Central and Latin America, because of concerns they would face persecution at home inflicted or condoned by the police.
(THE INDEPENDENT, unearthed by Paul Whitehurst)

CUBAN FIVE GRANTED RETRIAL!

United States v. Campa, ___F.3d ___(11th Cir No. 01-17176, decided August 9, 2005)
The defendant-appellants, Ruben Campa, Rene Gonzalez, Gerardo Hernandez, Luis Medina and Antonio Guerrero, were convicted and sentenced for various offenses charging each of them with acting as unregistered Cuban intelligence agents working within the United States. Hernandez was also convicted of conspiracy to commit murder by supporting and implementing a plan to shoot down United States civilian aircraft outside of Cuban and United States airspace. They appeal their convictions, sentences, and the denial of their motion for new trial arguing, inter alia, that the pervasive community prejudice against Fidel Castro and the Cuban government and its agents and the publicity surrounding the trial and other community events combined to create a situation where they were unable to obtain a fair and impartial trial.
We agree, and REVERSE their convictions and REMAND for a retrial.
(Suggested by Art Heitzer)

PROSECUTORS CALL GITMO TRIALS FIXED
A third US military prosecutor has walked out of the commissions process set up to try Guantanamo Bay detainees because of concerns it was unfair. Air Force Captain Carrie Wolf chose to take a reassignment along with other prosecutors. Capt Wolf asked to leave the Office of Military Commissions at the same time as two other colleagues, Major Robert Preston and Captain John Carr. Earlier this week, the ABC revealed that in March 2004, Maj Preston and Capt Carr requested transfers because they believed the process was "rigged" and pursuing "marginal" cases.
(ABC, unearthed by Human Rights First)

WHO WE ARE
"Three Republican senators are giving the White House fits with their attempt to get legislation approved that would expressly prohibit cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment of detainees in U.S. custody.
There was a dramatic encounter during the floor debate last week when our own Senator Jeff Sessions spoke out against the legislation, saying there was no need for it because, as he put it, the detainees are not prisoners of war, 'they are terrorists.
Senator McCain, of Arizona, argued that the debate "is not about who they are. It's about who we are." Americans, said Mr. McCain, "hold ourselves" to a higher standard."
(NYT, unearthed by Joe Paul)

BADA BING!
Sopranos fan? Check out Baer v. Chase, a dispute between the creator of the series an attorney who contributed ideas during the show's initial development.

"Unlike many half-baked 'He stole my idea' claims, however, this case contains concrete evidence of plaintiff's contribution. For example, Baer put Chase in touch with several good fellas who 'told true and sometimes personal stories involving loan sharking, a power struggle with two uncles involving a family business, and two individuals, Big Pussy and Little Pussy.' These facts (which exist in the public record) bear a striking resemblance to Sopranos characters Uncle Junior and Pussy Bonpensiero. Seriously, what writer could've dreamt up a mobster named 'Pussy'?"
(FINDLAW'S MODERN PRACTICE DIGEST)

MY ROBOT, MYSELF
My boyfriend called me the next day and asked if I was sleeping in the same room with Nuvo. When I told him we were sleeping in the same bed, there was an awkward pause.
(NYT)

THE LAST WORD
If you want to see a hilarious obituary (that seems to be getting a lot of coverage on the internet) check out this obit for Dorothy Gibson Cully from the Charlotte News & Observer:

At the time of her death, Dot was visiting her daughter, Carol in Memphis. Carol and her husband, Ron, away from home attending a "very important conference" at a posh Florida resort, rushed home 10 days later after learning of the death. Dot's other children, dutifully at their mother's side helping with the normal last minute arrangements - hospice notification, funeral parlor notice, revising the last will, etc. - happily picked up the considerable slack of the absent former heiress.
(As with all of these items, click on the red headline to go to that story)
(CHARLOTTE NEW & oBSERVER, unearthed by Joel Sogol)

PLANS CALLED FOR KILLING US CITIZENS AND GIs
"Code named Operation Northwoods, the plans reportedly included the possible assassination of Cuban emigres, sinking boats of Cuban refugees on the high seas, hijacking planes, blowing up a U.S. ship, and even orchestrating violent terrorism in U.S. cities.

The plans were developed as ways to trick the American public and the international community into supporting a war to oust Cuba's then new leader, communist Fidel Castro. America's top military brass even contemplated causing U.S. military casualties, writing: 'We could blow up a U.S. ship in Guantanamo Bay and blame Cuba,' and, 'casualty lists in U.S. newspapers would cause a helpful wave of national indignation.'"

CLICK HERE to read 15 pages of declassified Joint Chiefs of Staff documents on Operation Northwoods as posted on the National Security Archive of George Washington

CLICK HERE for Instructions on how to access 181 pages of declassified documents from this operation on the website of the US National Archives and Records Administration
(ABC, unearthed by Waldo)

HACKER BUGS SECRET SERVICE PHONES
"A sophisticated computer hacker had access to servers at wireless giant T-Mobile for at least a year, which he used to monitor U.S. Secret Service e-mail, obtain customers' passwords and Social Security numbers, and download candid photos taken by Sidekick users, including Hollywood celebrities."
(SECURITY FOCUS)

REPORT CHIDES US ROLE IN PROVIDING WEAPONS TO TYRANTS
Bush launched his second term as US President in January by vowing to implant democracy around the globe "with the ultimate goal of ending tyranny in our world". This was a key neoconservative goal with overtures of regime change. Nearly six months later, the World Policy Institute in New York reveals in a study that the US is stepping up its arms sales to some of the most odious and repressive regimes in the world. "Perhaps no single policy is more at odds with President Bush's pledge to end tyranny... than the US's role as the world's leading arms exporting nation," says Frida Berrigan, co-author of the report. She adds: "Arming repressive regimes, while simultaneously proclaiming a campaign against tyranny, undermines the credibility of the US and makes it harder to hold other nations to high standards of conduct on human rights and other key issues."
(JANE'S FOREIGN REPORTS)

HISTORY OF THE MARIJUANA LAWS
Read the new Supreme Court Case which addresses the issue of medical marijuana use and the power of the federal government to prohibit states from allowing its cultivation. Its not only interesting reading on an important issue, it also contains some excellent history about marijuana drug laws.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE DISSENT

CLICK HERE FOR AN EXCELLENT ARTICLE ON THE WAR ON DRUGS

(FINDLAW)

OR, TAKE THE DANTE'S INFERNO TEST?
How low will you go?
(Suggested by INJUSTICE ANYWHERE)

ARE YOU A REPUBLICAN?
"Are you a Republican? Answer a few simple questions and you can find out."
(Suggested by MACONDO BLOG)

20 AMAZING FACTS ABOUT VOTING
"1 in 5 Americans believe the elections were fraudulent. That's over 41 Million Americans. You are NOT alone!"
(ANGRY GIRL, unearthed by Joe Paul)

AMAZING RIVER INCIDENT
"On April 28, 1979 tow boat M/V CAHABA, commanded by Capt. Jimmy Wilkerson, was dropping 2 barges, with coal, through the non-lifting East span of Rooster Bridge on the Tombigbee River. What happened next is truly amazing!
(Suggested by Michael Cornwell)

PORTUGUESE ARTISTS GIVE FLAGS NEW MEANINGS
A team of artists in Lisbon have produced the "flags campaign" which researches relevant global and current facts. They put new meanings to the colors of the flags using real data taken from the websites of Amnesty International and the UNO. The campaign has been running in Portugal since January 2005. There are eight flags that portray very current topics like the division of opinions about the war in Iraq in the United States, the violence against women in Africa, the social inequality in Brazil, the drug trafficking in Columbia, Aids and malaria in Angola, etc
(BOOMAN TRIBUNE)

RELIGIOUS WRONG
" I think we are teetering on the brink of theocracy and the Christian Right could conceivably use the battle over the judiciary and weakening support for reproductive rights to push us over the edge."
(SMIRKING CHIMP, unearthed by Joe Paul)

SPAM MUNCHIES!
Dealing with e-mail, instant messages, and other messaging interruptions throughout the day is more damaging to one’s IQ than either lack of sleep, or using marijuana, according to a recent study of more than 1,000 Brits conducted on behalf of Hewlett Packard.
(Aunty Spam's Net Patrol, unearthed by LockerGnome)

DRACONIAN DRUG BILL INTRODUCED BY SENSENBRENNER

The full House Judiciary Committee is set to vote as early as next week on H.R. 1528, which creates a new group of mandatory miniumum penalties for non-violent drug offenses, including a five year penalty for passing a joint to someone who's been in drug treatment.

The "Defending America's Most Vulnerable: Safe Access to Drug Treatment and Child Protection Act of 2005" (H.R. 1528) was introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) on April 6, and it has already passed out of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.

The bill would also create a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence for a first-time conviction of distributing a small amount of marijuana to a person under 18 years of age ... and a 10-year sentence for a second offense of distributing marijuana to a person under 21.

Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) also has an action alert on this bill:

MAKES THE FEDERAL SENSENCING GUIDELINES MANDATORY

CREATES NEW MANDATORY MINIMUMS

ELIMINATES THE SAFETY VALVE FOR LOW-LEVEL COURIERS.

PUNISHES DEFENDANTS FOR "RELEVANT CONDUCT" COMMITED BEFORE THEY JOINED A CONSPIRACY

AND THERE'S MORE!
(Suggested by Joe Paul)

BEWARE, THE UNITARIAN JIHAD!
Beware! Unless you people shut up and begin acting like grown-ups with brains enough to understand the difference between political belief and personal faith, the Unitarian Jihad will begin a series of terrorist-like actions. We will take over television studios, kidnap so-called commentators and broadcast calm, well-reasoned discussions of the issues of the day. We will not try for "balance" by hiring fruitcakes; we will try for balance by hiring non-ideologues who have carefully thought through the issues.
(SF CHRONICLE, unearthed by Joe Paul)
P.S.

My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Sibling Katana of Enlightenment.

Get yours.

THE UNDOING OF AMERICA
"Gore Vidal on war for oil, politics-free elections, and the late, great U.S. Constitution"
(CITY PAGES)

SOCIAL INSECURITY
How will you fare under Bush's privatization plan? Here's a nifty site that helps you calculate the actual differences between the plan and the status quo.
(Suggested by Patti Martin)

CUBA TRAVEL GROUP SEEKS ACADEMICS FOR PETITION SIGNATURE
ECDET, a group that is organizing to confront the restrictions on academic travel to Cuba, is putting together a petition to get the US government to change the guidelines back to what they were before June 2004. There is an effort to collect faculty names across the country. The names of the faculty will be submitted to the Congress on April 25th. They are trying to get individual faculty members, departments, colleges and faculty senates to join in this effort.
At this point all they need is for people to submit their names and their university. "ECDET, coordinated by Wayne Smith of Johns Hopkins University and Les McCabe of the Institute of Shipboard Education, is working to confront and rescind these regulations. So, if you are an academic, join ECDET today. It is free; all you need to do it reply to tiana@ciponline.org with your contact information and your wish to join ECDET. Help them repel the attack on academic freedom.

HISTORY OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
When killing was routine
(NEW YORK TIMES, unearthed by Sentencing Law and Policy)

THERE'S ALWAYS BEEN MONEY IN SLAVERY
Six weeks after Cuban refugees were ordered released, many remain locked up. For some wardens that's good, because housing them means big bucks.
(TIMES-PICAYUNE)

DON'T YOU DON NO GAY APPAREL
"Leigh Clemons, an assistant professor at Louisiana State University, had watched one of her former pupils, Patriots defensive back Randall Gay, play a key role in New England's 24-21 win against Philadelphia in Super Bowl XXXIX.
When Clemons entered the last name of the Patriots cornerback, her request was rejected by NFLshop.com, the league's official online merchandise center. The Web site accompanied the rejection with a message that said, "This field should not contain a naughty word."
(TIMES-PICAYUNE)

DON'T MOAN, ORGANIZE!
One of the problems we working class Southerners have is that educated progressive Americans see us as a bunch of obese, heavily armed nose pickers. This problem is compounded by the fact that so many of us are pretty much that. Call it the “Dumb-crackers-lordee-I-reckon” syndrome. But liberals err in thinking this armed and drunken laboring species is an exclusively Southern breed. No matter where you live in this nation you will find us. We are the folks in front of you at the Wal-Mart checkout lugging a case of motor oil while having nicotine fits. But even in such democratic venues as shopping, our encounters are limited because we do not buy designer beer and you do not buy ammo or motor oil by the case.
(DISSIDENT VOICE, unearthed by Joe Paul)

MUSICIANS BREAK RANKS WITH RIAA
"Musicians are not universally united in opposition to peer-to-peer file sharing" as the major records companies claim," a prominent group of musicians and artists, urged the Supreme Court not to hold online file-sharing services responsible for the acts of users who illegally trade songs, movies and software. Many musicians find peer-to-peer technology . . . allows them easily to reach a worldwide online audience, they said.
(WASHINGTON POST)

NIXON/REAGAN SHADOW CABINET
"News stories about Elliot Abrams, John Negroponte and Otto Reich have largely relied on past reporting and he-said, she-said soundbites by the usual supporters and critics, rather than in-depth investigations into their complicity in one of the bloodiest scandals of the past 20 years. And their guilt is based not on speculation or gossip, but on hard evidence that they aided torturers and death squads,circumvented Congress and the Constitution, and deceived the American people.
(FAIR)

CUBA TRAVEL MEMORANDUM
"An explanation of current U.S. restrictions on professional research and educational activities in Cuba."
(MICHAEL KRINSKY, unearthed by Cuba News Digest)

TORTURE VICTIM BELIES BUSH'S ASSURANCES
"On January 27th, Two and a half years ago, American officials, suspecting Maher Arar, a Canadian engineer born in Syria, of being a terrorist, stopped him while he was changing planes in New York and sent him back to Syria, where he endured months of brutal interrogation, including torture. "
(NEW YORKER, unearthed by Progresso Weekly)

ENEMA MINE
Investigators say a Texas woman caused her husband's death by giving him a sherry enema, leading to alcohol poisoning. The enema caused his blood alcohol level to soar to 0.47 percent — almost six times the legal intoxication limit, a toxicology report showed.
(HOUSTON CHRONICLE, unearthed by Bill Messick)

BASKETBRAWL
Alabama police say more arrests will be made following a savage brawl that erupted at a girls' basketball game.
(IVILLAGE)

DR. ECSTASY: HE COULD HAVE DANCED ALL NIGHT
"in 1976, Shulgin fished an obscure chemical called MDMA out of the depths of the chemical literature and introduced it to the wider world, where it came to be known as Ecstasy."
(NYT)

TALIBAMA DREAMIN'
"The other night I dreamed that Roy Moore was elected governor."
(ANNISTON STAR, unearthed by Joe Paul)

IRAQ REALITY CHECK
What if the war in Iraq were happening in New York State? What would it be like? In reality, the numbers are roughly comparable. The state has 19 million people. Iraq has 25 million. Baghdad's population is about 6 million. New York City's is 8 million.
(VILLAGE VOICE)
FOR A BEAUTIFUL TRIBUTE TO THE GUYS AND GALS WHO ARE OVER THERE CLICK HERE
(Suggested by Marsh Acker)

SPONGEBOB SEEN WITH UNDERAGE TELETUBBY, PINK POWERRANGER IS JEALOUS
First it was the spate of the SpongeBob rob jobs from local Burger Kings. Now the little yellow guy who lives in a pineapple under the sea is at the center of a far grimmer controversy, again not of his own making. Two conservative Christian groups attacking the cartoon character for allegedly being part of, as one of them put it, a "pro-homosexual video." CLICK HERE FOR OTHER COMMENTARY
CLICK HERE FOR AN EXAMPLE OF THE 'DEBATE' AMONGST THESE 'CHRISTIANS' or CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO JUST GOOD OLE REACTIONARIES(MSNBC, unearthed by Joel Sogol)

MOBILE BUSH PROTEST
While hundreds of Alabamians were in Washington celebrating the second term of President Bush, a few of their fellow citizens staged a shadow inauguration Thursday in Mobile with a different take on the nation's leader. CLICK HERE FOR OTHER PROTESTS

(MOBILE RESITER and COMMON DREAMS)

MIA: MANDATE
"President Bush will begin his second term in office without a clear mandate to lead the nation, with strong disapproval of his policies in Iraq and with the public both hopeful and dubious about his leadership on the issues that will dominate his agenda, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll. "
(WASH POST)

CHINESE INFLUENCE IN CUBA GROWS
Saw the Mayor today at the Blockbuster, he told me that the Chinese are strengthening their influence in Cuba. Found this related story in the Kansas City Star: "In his first visit to Cuba, Chinese President Hu Jintao lent strong political support to this besieged nation but also came bearing gifts, including $500 million for a new nickel plant and $15 million for education, health and other areas. Hu even pledged late last month to finance the manufacture of 1 million television sets on the island."
(KANSAS CITY STAR)

THE BLUES ARE SEEING RED
"The major political battles this year in Washington may not be between Democrats and Republicans in Congress, but between the states and the federal government. 'The principle of federalism has gotten lost in the weeds by a Republican Congress that was elected to uphold it in 1994,' said Senator Lamar Alexander, a Republican and former governor of Tennessee who is an advocate for states on Capitol Hill. 'Conservatives are as bad as liberals about imposing mandates once they come to Washington.'"
(NYT)

ALL THE PRESIDENT'S NEWSMEN
" The Jan. 7 edition of "Crossfire," CNN's can stand as an exceptionally ripe paradigm of what is happening to the free flow of information in a country in which a timid news media, the fierce (and often covert) Bush administration propaganda machine, lax and sometimes corrupt journalistic practices, and a celebrity culture all combine to keep the public at many more than six degrees of separation from anything that might resemble the truth when it failed miserably to take Armstrong Williams, a conservative commentator, talk-show host and newspaper columnist to task for his role as the frontman for a scheme in which $240,000 of taxpayers' money was quietly siphoned to him through the Department of Education and a private p.r. firm so that he would "regularly comment" upon the Bush administration's No Child Left Behind policy in various media venues during an election year.
(NYT)

CHEERLEADERS' PHOTOS POSTED ON PORN SITE
"Parents and students at Thomas S. Wootton High School were horrified when the dozen or so photos of their varsity cheerleaders popped up on a pornographic Web site in November, endangering the squad's chances of participating in an annual competition and raising questions about privacy and propriety."
(WASHINGTON POST)

WHAT'S NEXT? BOBBLEHEAD LAWYER JOKES
"The Birmingham law office of Tommy Spina started receiving an unusually high number calls in October requesting not the lawyer's legal services, but his resemblance on a bobblehead doll."
(TUSCALOOSA NEWS, unearthed by Joel Sogol)

BEYOND THE BLING
"Income inequality in the U.S. began climbing 30 years ago, reversing a nearly 50-year trend. And the prison population has soared. Hardest hit have been African Americans, whose folk culture has made cash registers ring. America is now No. 1 in the percentage of its population in prison and No. 1 in income inequality among industrialized nations. Read this story for some real statistics"
(VILLAGE VOICE)

MOORE PUBLISHES BOOK
In a new book, 'So Help Me God,' Former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore describes the night of July 31, 2001, as he sat alone in his state courthouse office awaiting delivery of a Ten Commandments monument he wanted to install in the rotunda as the completion of a lifelong mission to use his position as the state's highest judge to publicly display a symbol of his religion."
(AP, unearthed by Bill Messick)

MEMO SHOWS GONZALES REJECTED RECONSIDERATION OF BUSH'S TORTURE POSITION
"Gonzales reconsidered, at the request of Secretary of State Colin Powell, Bush's decision "that al Qaeda and Taliban detainees are not prisoners of war under the [Geneva Convention]." After detailing arguments for and against prisoner of war status, the White House Counsel concluded that "[o]n balance, I believe that the arguments for reconsideration and reversal are unpersuasive." (January 25, 2002)
(FINDLAW)

PROVE IT
"Attorneys defending Jose Padilla, an American accused of participating in an al-Qaida plot to set off a 'dirty bomb' have issued a challenge to federal prosecutors: prove it or free him."
(FINDLAW)

STATE OF EMERGENCY EXTENDED IN IRAQ
"Iraq extended a state of emergency for another 30 days on Thursday because of continued insurgent attacks in the country. The state of emergency, originally announced two months ago, will continue throughout Iraq except for the Kurdish run areas north of the country, interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's office said in a statement."
(FINDLAW)