December 23, 2006

THE THINKING SPOT

"If the citizens neglect their Duty and place unprincipled men in office, the government will soon be corrupted; laws will be made, not for the public good so much as for selfish or local purposes; corrupt or incompetent men will be appointed to execute the Laws; the public revenues will be squandered on unworthy men; and the rights of the citizen will be violated or disregarded.": Noah Webster

ALERT
"A slave is he who cannot speak his thoughts.": Euripides

WAR
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"The bad thing of war is, that it makes more evil people than it can take away." : Immanuel Kant - (1724-1804) German philosopher
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French claim US command held them back from catching Osama
http://tinyurl.com/yc54rj

Assad will abandon Iran if Israel talks peace with him: Syrian President Bashar Assad has proposed negotiations with Israel. The latter, for the second time in its history, has set preconditions (the first time was about two years)
http://tinyurl.com/y52xhb

The Race for Iraq's Resources - The Iraqi government is considering a new oil law that could give private oil companies greater control over its vast reserves. In light of rampant violence and shaky democratic institutions, many fear the law is being pushed through hastily by special interests behind closed doors.
http://tinyurl.com/ya226f

THE WHITE HOUSE

Poll: Bush not trustworthy, doesn't share values, no longer inspires confidence Only 37 percent believe that the president inspires confidence, compared to 61 percent who say that he does not. In 2005, 46 percent thought the president inspired confidence. Bush fared much better in this category in 2001 following the September 11 terrorist attacks, when 75 percent said that he inspired confidence.
http://tinyurl.com/yx7u9l

Bush, Asleep In The Bunker - Here's the bad news: Bush is in a hole and he will keep on digging.
http://tinyurl.com/ymgtn9

CABINETS, COMMISSIONS, etc

Taxpayer-funded TV and Radio Martí are spending $377,500 to air select programs on South Florida broadcast stations over the next six months, using loopholes in a law that prohibits the propaganda channels from distribution within the United States.
http://tinyurl.com/ykegvz

"Sorry America, there is no Santa Claus, at least not in the form of Robert Gates. We may have thought the humble, open-minded outsider was going to blow in to sweep away the old. Instead he is shaping up to be flaccid yes man, one who can't even get his timing right."
http://tinyurl.com/yncb4h

SCANDAL

Anthrax Attacks on U.S. Congress Were Inside Job The perpetrator of the 2001 anthrax attack on Congress likely was a government scientist employed at the Army's Ft. Detrick, Md., bioterrorism lab having access to a "moonsuit" that made it possible to safely process and manufacture uper-weapons-grade anthrax, a bioterrorism authority says.
http://tinyurl.com/yl77bl

LEGAL ITEMS

Scientist sentenced to two years probation for illegal deal with Pfizer; Pfizer stock down 40%. CEO gets $180,000,000 package What? No criminal charges for Pfizer's CEO? A huge reward instead? Imagine that.
http://tinyurl.com/y8bsh3
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FEMA Not Required to Restore Aid to Evacuees, Court Rules -
http://tinyurl.com/y8gp8a

ELECTION ITEMS

E-Voting Machine Probe Ends, Company Sold - A major voting machine company owned by Venezuelan investors said Friday it plans to sell its US subsidiary, ending a federal investigation into questions of possible ties between the company and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
http://tinyurl.com/y2tlwf

ECONOMY

Real U.S. shortfall: $4.6 trillion in red 'Taxing 100% of all wages, salaries, corporate profits would not eliminate a deficit of this magnitude'
http://tinyurl.com/yn8rqf

Richest 2 Percent Own Half the World's Wealth
http://tinyurl.com/y4wvr5

Gender pay gap stuck in place
http://tinyurl.com/y4374h

The Moneychangers & The TRF (Tax Retirement Fund) And my, did the money changers do a good job in the last 80 years in making most of the nation dependent. In fact they made the populace of the USA so dependent that the populace pays tribute of over 4 trillion dollars a year (Local and Federal taxation) to the moneychangers to keep themselves dependent while the money changers have amassed over 60 trillion of the populace's wealth. That's a lot of productivity value now secured in the government's coffers folks!
http://tinyurl.com/yhallu

CONGRESS

Raising the Floor on Pay - On the verge of controlling Congress, the Democrats are making a much-delayed increase in the minimum wage their signature attempt to lift incomes and quiet widespread economic anxiety.
http://tinyurl.com/yhdkf2

DOMESTIC

This Is No Time to Reopen the Floodgates for Unreported, Illegal Campaign Money; District Court Erred in Wisconsin Right to Life Case
http://tinyurl.com/sac99

RELIGIOUS ITEMS

Archbishop attacks US, Britain on Iraq: THE spiritual head of the Anglican Church launched an outspoken attack on the British and US governments on Saturday, saying their "ignorant" policy in Iraq has put Christians in the region at risk.
http://tinyurl.com/y2fapf

ENVIRONMENT

Southern California Edison Signs Biggest US Wind Contract - Electric utility Southern California Edison and Australian-based Allco Finance Group Ltd. have signed the biggest contract for wind power in US history.
http://tinyurl.com/y6ghvt

U.S. professor discovers mammals can smell underwater
http://tinyurl.com/ymsxls

INTERNATIONAL

World's biggest ecstasy dealer nabbed in Rio An Israeli believed to be the world's biggest dealer of ecstasy was arrested Saturday on a beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazilian police announced.
http://tinyurl.com/yxyh6b

Raul Castro Urges Students to Debate "Fearlessly" Raul Castro has set a surprising new tone for Cuban politics, telling university students in Havana that they should debate "fearlessly" and bring their concerns directly to him. Castro's remarks, published Thursday by the Communist Party newspaper, Granma, are the clearest indication yet of how he might reshape Cuba after the death of his ailing brother, Fidel Castro. Raul Castro told the students that his brother is "irreplaceable."
http://tinyurl.com/y4wxal

MEDIA AND JOURNALISM

Target Iran with Scott Ritter and Seymour Hersh - an in-depth discussion between two figures who have been critical of the Bush administration's policy on Iran. Scott Ritter, a former United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq, and Seymour Hersh, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist for The New Yorker magazine.
http://tinyurl.com/vg5lr

HEALTH

Brazilian berry destroys cancer cells in lab, UF study shows
http://news.ufl.edu/2006/01/12/berries/

HUMAN RIGHTS

A Woman's Fight to Save the Poor From Black Fever Black fever kills about 60,000 people a year, most of them poor. There is a cure, but the global pharmaceutical industry wasn't interested in producing the drug, at least not until an American woman began her crusade.
http://tinyurl.com/yzh3ys