JUDGE BLOCKS TRANSFER OF AMERICAN TO IRAQUIS
"A U.S. District Court judge temporarily blocked the federal government from transferring an American citizen to the custody of the Iraqi government, noting Friday that the move could place the prisoner at risk of torture and indefinite confinement."
(WASHINGTON POST)

SOCIETY MOBILE-LA HABANA ANNUAL MEETING SET
The Society Mobile La Habana's annual meeting is set for Tuesday, February 7, 2006 at 5:30 p.m. at the AmSouth Bank Building, 31st Floor, 31 North Royal Street. Join them at 5:30 p.m. for refreshments or cut to the chase and attend just the meeting at 6:15 p.m.
They will elect board members and officers, present the Mobile Public Library with money for Cuba materials and get you up-to-date on the Society's activities and issues. For more information call the Society's President Mike Feore at 251-342-1641. Ya'll come! Si?

HUNTING AMMARI SAIFI
"The convoy, led by a wanted Islamic militant named Ammari Saifi, had just slipped from Mali into northern Niger, where the desert rolls out into an immense, flat pan of gravelly sand. Saifi, who has been called the 'bin Laden of the Sahara,' was traveling with about 50 jihadists, some from Algeria, the rest from nearby African countries such as Mauritania and Nigeria."
(VILLAGE VOICE)

MRS. KING IS DEAD
Coretta Scott King, who turned a life shattered by the assassination of her husband, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., into one devoted to enshrining his legacy of human rights and equality, has died. She was 78.
(ATLANTA JOURNAL)

WEBSITE CLAIMS DOJ MEMO CLAIMS THAT DEA AGENTS ARE INVOLVED IN CORRUPTION IN COLUMBIA
In an internal Justice Department document attorney Thomas M. Kent claims that federal agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s office in Bogotá, Colombia, are the corrupt players in the war on drugs.
(NARCO NEWS, unearthed by Jay Lewis)

MAN WHO KILLED TIDE FAN GETS SENTENCED
A man who claimed he killed a retired police officer because he thought the "A" on the victim's University of Alabama baseball cap meant he was the Antichrist has been sentenced to death.
(FOX, unearthed by John Kearley)

IMPEACH BUSH?
"As awful as Watergate was, after the vote on impeachment and the resignation of President Nixon, the nation felt a huge sense of relief. Impeachment is a tortuous process, but now that President Bush has thrown down the gauntlet and virtually dared Congress to stop him from violating the law, nothing less is necessary to protect our constitutional system and preserve our democracy."
(THE NATION, unearthed by Common Dreams)

KILLER CHICHUAHUAS?
A pack of angry Chihuahuas attacked a police officer who was escorting a teenager home after a traffic stop, authorities said. The officer suffered minor injuries, including bites to his ankle.
(MSNBC, unearthed by Maryanne Prince)

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)