"... authorizes the president to seize American citizens as enemy combatants ... "

PLEASE. Please. Read this link. Follow this link. Our Congress is doing something multiply unconstitutional. The Republicans are handing the Geneva Conventions to a 'dunce' to decide what they mean, and removing THE WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS! THE WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS! Yes I said it again. I'm going to say it one more time. This bill would suspend the Writ of Habeas Corpus.

If I disapear for writing this. Look for me in Cuba!

Excerpts - Habeas Corpus

The Detainee Bill

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Rick Klein writes in the Boston Globe: "The Senate yesterday passed a sweeping measure authorizing military tribunals for some suspected terrorists and permitting aggressive interrogations of top terror suspects, handing President Bush a major victory five weeks before crucial congressional elections."

Charles Babington and Jonathan Weisman write in The Washington Post: "The Senate joined the House in embracing President Bush's view that the battle against terrorism justifies the imposition of extraordinary limits on defendants' traditional rights in the courtroom. They include restrictions on a suspect's ability to challenge his detention, examine all evidence against him, and bar testimony allegedly acquired through coercion of witnesses. . . .

"Democrats . . . nearly amended the detainee bill to allow foreigners designated as enemy combatants to challenge their captivity by filing habeas corpus appeals with the federal courts. But Republicans held fast, gambling that Democrats will fail in their bid to convince voters that the GOP is sacrificing the nation's traditions of justice and fairness in the name of battling terrorists and winning elections."

R. Jeffrey Smith writes in The Washington Post: "The military trials bill approved by Congress lends legislative support for the first time to broad rules for the detention, interrogation, prosecution and trials of terrorism suspects far different from those in the familiar American criminal justice system."

David G. Savage and Richard Simon write in the Los Angeles Times: "Bush is expected to receive a bill he can sign into law in the next few days, but legal challenges almost assuredly will be pursued against the prosecution process, which the administration considers a key element in its war on terrorism."

I'm still amazed that Democrats didn't filibuster the bill in the Senate. Indeed, 12 Democrats actually voted for it.

A bright sunny day in September

Not the best day. Not a record. Not the day we expected. But being the middle of September and having had a few days of rain, today was a good day to see hawks. We saw some:



















These are all different pictures. Not reversed. The birds were close today.

And there were plenty of them:

Violence?

I don't like this Pope. Not sure why, maybe its the Hitler youth thing. Maybe its the dictatorial attitude. But he said what I was taught (in Catholic school). Islam was spread by the sword.

Now. I'm not saying that's right. My Catholic upbringing is too similar to what the pope said for me to be objective. However, there IS an absolute truth out there. What is it?

If Islam was advanced on the end of a blade then it was. In this country the truth is an absolute defense. If history says this didn't happen, then the pope should apologize. Not the apology lite I heard today, which went something like; I'm sorry if you were upset by what I said.

I don't care if he read it from an old book. Either he's right or he isn't.

However. I heard on tv that there were three Catholic Church bombings and a nun murdered, because of what the Pope said.

If you want to be known as a peaceful religion, that's not the way to do it!

Wait a minute!

This actually occurred to me a while ago, but I do my best blog thinking when I'm not where I can do blog writing.

Here goes.

Jafarzadeh ( Alireza Jafarzadeh, president of Strategic Policy Consulting,) is hoping that during Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to the United Nations next week, he will meet strong opposition to Iran's refusal to comply with the U.N. Security Council's Aug. 31 deadline to halt uranium enrichment.

WAIT A MINUTE

Lets look at that again ...


Jafarzadeh ( Alireza Jafarzadeh, president of Strategic Policy Consulting,) is hoping that during Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to the United Nations next week, he will meet strong opposition to Iran's refusal to comply with the U.N. Security Council's Aug. 31 deadline to halt uranium enrichment.

Ok. Here's the thing. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was one of the students who attacked the US embasy in Tehran back in 1979, right?

From Reuters: http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=3017

"Several Americans who were held during the 444-day 1979-81 hostage crisis have said they recognized Ahmadinejad as a ringleader.

Ahmadinejad has denied he was involved in storming the U.S. embassy in Tehran, denials which are supported by leading hostage-takers."

Well, lets just arrest the bastard! We can try him, legally, for kidnapping (were there killings in that seige?). Maybe if he opens his nuclear facilities for inspection and cancels his weapons enrichment program, we can let the next president pardon him!

Wouldn't it be sweet if that president were Jimy Carter?