Saturday, April 30, 2005

Religion Dogma

I made a conscious effort before, a cardinal rule so to speak to stay away from religious rhetoric in any form. But lately, everywhere you turn in this country, you are being bombarded with religious rhetoric. I’m almost feeling suffocated by this constant bombardment by this government, who I don’t even believe have an iota of morality in them. But these people know that the masses can be used and abused if they confess a superficial belief in their religion. True belief is not even a requirement.

When this government returns to sanity, there will be no need to show the evil that people have said and done because their God sanctioned it against non-believers, because the threat will be over. I simply can’t accept the morality and love coming from religions that have a history of committing the most atrocious evil acts human kind can imagine. History has a way of repeating itself if precautions are not in place. And now, these religions are being peddled as the model of morality and righteous that everyone should follow without any regards as to how they failed society before. Everyone is beating themselves on their chest and saying we are more moral than you are, if you follow us, God will save you; otherwise, you are an infidel, a sinner, and doomed to hell. Well, I say it is all rubbish.

These phrases are good examples of why religions should be left out of politics and why we should be concerned when religion is mixed in with politics. Believers of Islam say this - Islam is a religion of peace, when in actuality, this is not the truth. What are these people reading, certainly not the Quran, their alleged “holy book”? How is this holy or peaceful? No one wants to talk about the naked truth. People seem to be content with only knowing superficial stuff about their religion. If your religion is as good as you think it is - how can you then explain the following passages, which clearly sanction evil against others? I reiterate - if these types of religious organizations can’t stand up to the test of truth and morality, does morality/truth even exist in the form that these institutions teach?

The following passages were extracted from The Politic blog. I think realreviews thoughts are way more radical than mines about politics, life, religion, etc. etc. Never the less, his blog is interesting...

What does Islam think about unbelievers?

"Slay them wherever you find them...Idolatry is worse than carnage...Fight against them until idolatry is no more and God's religion reigns supreme. " (Surah 2:190-)

"Make war on them until idolatry shall cease and God's religion shall reign supreme." (Surah 8:36-)

"Fight against such as those to whom the Scriptures were given [Jews and Christians]...until they pay tribute out of hand and are utterly subdued." (Surah 9:27-)

"Prophet make war on the unbelievers and the hypocrites and deal rigorously with them. Hell shall be their home." (Surah 9:73)

"Believers, make war on the infidels who dwell around you. Deal firmly with them." (Surah 9:121-)

What does islam say about women?

"Forbidden to you are...married women, except those you own as slaves." (Surah 4:20-, 24-)

"You shall not force your slave-girls into prostitution in order that you make money, if they wish to preserve their chastity." (Surah 24:33-)
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Friday, April 29, 2005

Hitler Youth and the Vatican - By Marc Ash

I guess the question is this, are we a product of our past actions or sins? Better yet, should we continue to believe in an organization that has a history of misleading or simply lying to the public? Do we have a moral obligation to question this type of duplicity? If these types of religious organizations can’t stand up to the test of truth and morality, does morality/truth even exist in the form that these institutions teach?

Boys as young as 14 faced advancing allied forces, often fighting to the death. Death, however, was not always the fate that awaited the young Germans, some were captured. The American and English soldiers who questioned the young prisoners noted two things almost categorically: most of the child soldiers were or had been Hitler Youth, and those who had held membership in the Fuhrer's youth corps were impossible to reason with. Passionate ideological mind-sets were reportedly common among these boys.

Recent worldwide press attention to the boyhood membership of now-Pope Benedict XVI in the Hitler Youth Movement has re-focused the attention of world on the origins of the catastrophic conflict that engulfed mankind in the mid-twentieth century. The debate has been focused in particular on what constituted a good German at that time.

Why Does All This Matter?

The Vatican contends today, as it has always contended, that they 'don't do politics.' History disagrees, particularly with regard to the Vatican's relationship with the Nazis. Serious allegations have swirled for years about the Vatican's complicity with the Nazis during and after the war. Those charges have resulted in several investigations and at least one lawsuit, but no more. The Vatican has refused repeated requests to open its archives from the period. Until they do so, the question remains open, as well it should.

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---------------oOo--------------- 2 Evangelicals Want to Strip Courts' Funds

Maybe these radical right ring evangelical Christian leaders are not the norm as Scud seems to think who is the owner of the blog flyoverguy - but they are gaining control over the government, which is a cause for concern. If this is not what the majority of them think, then why are they silent and letting these leaders run amuck? And, I'm the one who is called intellectually lazy. Geeze man who are you trying to kid!!! Does he not see what is happening? By insulting me, does Scud thinks that will divert attention from the truth? It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that this country is being controlled by fascist behavior in the guise of Christianity.

The sickness continues...

WASHINGTON — Evangelical Christian leaders, who have been working closely with senior Republican lawmakers to place conservative judges in the federal courts, have also been exploring ways to punish sitting jurists and even entire courts viewed as hostile to their cause.An audio recording obtained by the Los Angeles Times features two of the nation's most influential evangelical leaders, at a private conference with supporters, laying out strategies to rein in judges, such as stripping funding from their courts in an effort to hinder their work.


The discussion took place during a Washington conference last month that included addresses by House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, who discussed efforts to bring a more conservative cast to the courts.

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Thursday, April 28, 2005

GM Battle Sprouts in the States

I'm personally against GM foods. I've had this discussion before on an African Website and it didn't go well at all. There is a big push to give third world countries these GM crops to alleviate hunger. However, there is ample evidence to show that the biotech companies haven't adequately tested the products before they are being used for public consumption. Interestingly, unless you by organic foods in the US, you are already consuming these products. They are on your supermarket shelves. I think (and I haven't done any research on this at the present) that this may be part of the reason why African Americans have the health issues they have and the other part is that there are too many hormones in milk products, hair products, etc. etc. At some point, I will be discussing this topic in more details as time permits.

As for me, to avoid the consumption of GM foods that I'm convinced are not safe, I spend the extra money to buy organic foods and even this may not be safe since it has been reported that GM seeds have cross-pollinated with non-GM seeds. In other words, farms that were known producers of organic crops have been contaminated with these seeds.


Seed companies, pharmaceutical makers and biotechnology groups are pushing legislators to limit oversight of experimental crops designed to resist disease and insects or to produce chemicals and enzymes for scientific research. But environmentalists and food and beverage producers are urging caution, warning lawmakers of unknown economic and health risks of genetically engineered crops that could cross-pollinate with regular plants.

State lawmakers, so far, are siding mostly with biotechnology proponents. Seven states -- Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota and Pennsylvania -- have enacted laws to prohibit counties and other local governments from banning or regulating genetically enhanced seeds in their jurisdictions. A similar bill, supported by the agribusiness industry, is awaiting action by the governor in Georgia. And like-minded measures are being considered by legislatures in Arizona, Oklahoma and West Virginia.

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---------------oOo--------------- The Right to VOTE

The issue that African Americans may lose their rights to vote has not been sitting well with me, so I'm constantly researching this issue to make sure I can get a better understanding. None of us can deny the fact that the 1965 voting rights act was enacted to protect African Americans right to vote. No body can deny if our rights to vote were covered under the 15th Amendment, then we would not have needed a 1965-voting act to protect our rights to vote. The question that has been lurking in my mind endlessly lately is why was it necessary to have this act, and why as African Americans our rights to vote were not protected under the 15th Amendment.

What I didn't know was this - when I made my first analysis, in the US, the right to vote I thought was a constitutional right for some and not others. However, this assertion is false, I don't care if you are white, blue, purple, black, or what, no US citizen has a right to vote under the constitution. Voting is a state right, this is why African Americans needed protection, and this is why the voting rights act of 1965 was created, to give us protection at the state level.

According to Jesse Jackson Jr., without the constitutional right to vote, Congress can pass voter legislation - but it leaves the "states' rights" system in place. Currently, Congress mostly uses financial and other incentives to entice the states to cooperate and comply with the law. He says that this is one reason why there have been so many problems with the recently passed Help America Vote Act and why many states still have not fully complied with the law.

According to Harvard's Constitutional Law Professor Alexander Keyssar 108 of the 119 nations in the world that elect their representatives to all levels of government in some democratic fashion explicitly guarantee their citizens the right to vote in their Constitution. Both Afghanistan's Constitution and Iraq's interim legal document contain a right to vote.

The million dollar question is this, why isn't there a provision in the US constitution to explicitly guarantee US citizens the right to vote? If anyone is concerned about not having a constitutional right to vote, they should ask their congressmen/women to support the Voting Rights Amendment act that Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. is supporting. His Website has a nice little summary about voting rights frequently asked questions. It helped me tremendously.

I tell you - this government never ceases to amaze me, just when you think that you are the only one being screwed, you find out that others are constantly being screwed too. Welcome to "The Land of the Screwed and The Home of the Played" citizens. Like James Brown said, living in America. We are living under an illusion and that illusion is called democracy.

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Wednesday, April 27, 2005

The Minister of Minstrelsy by Max Blumenthal - Excerpt from page 3.

Given their apparent nostalgia for the Jim Crow South, the "New Vanguard" of black conservatives represents a novel trend in American politics. There have always been black Republicans, but never before have they been able to reach an anti-civil rights consensus.

Richard Nixon's Assistant Secretary of Labor, Art Fletcher, and William Coleman, who was Secretary of Transportation for Gerald Ford, ascended through party ranks despite, and possibly because of, their vocal support for civil rights. Yet by 1996, when delegates at the Republican National Convention heckled Colin Powell for praising affirmative action, it was clear the GOP's internal dynamics had changed.

"The Republican Party has chased out its moderate voices, both black and white, and now they're captive to the far right wing," explained Curry. "So today the litmus test [for black conservatives] is, you must be against affirmative action or the Republicans will have no use for you."

Talking about being used shamelessly and to what end.

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---------------oOo--------------- Minstrels in Our Midst

This is a very interesting piece that Cyrus is discussing on his blog (Xenophon) and unfortunately I think it is so true. I do find the whole concept disturbing although the piece is enlightening. This is a good insight into the divide in the African American community or should I say, how some of us are being manipulated by others and this is putting it nicely.

As the right fights for position in the American debate and continues on its crusade for power at the cost of democracy and civility there are, among us, certain black pundits who have traded their soul for pottage. Many of the right's advocates of color are no more than puppets. They have formed a cadre of opportunistic minstrels who will say anything and do anything for a dollar while clothing themselves in a self-righteous veneer of Ku Klux Klan brand Christianity. They fight day and night for a return to Jim Crow as minions of the Republican conservative right.

"When the black folks get out of hand...many white folks think that it is nice to have another black person to shut them down."
Stephen Carter

read on...

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---------------oOo--------------- This is part 3 of a 5-part series- Part III: A Deadly Culture of Life

I really like these editorials. It shows the sickness that is creeping into the American society and that sickness is called Christianizing this country. I’m really amazed that this is even happening. If things continue at this rate, I may have to become a bible totin Christian, especially since I've read recently that you may be considered un-American or a non-citizen if you are an atheist. I wonder if that also applies to pagans. Things are really beginning to escalate out of control either way you look at it.


"Our goal is a Christian Nation.... We have a Biblical duty, we are called by God to conquer this country. We don't want equal time. We don't want Pluralism. We want theocracy. Theocracy means God rules. I've got a hot flash. God rules."
-- Randall Terry, Head of Operation Rescue, speaking in Fort Wayne, Indiana, on April 15, 1993, as reported the following day in The News-Sentinel.

When so many Republican leaders and their evangelical allies sound so much like Randall Terry, we can only wonder whether the Grand Old Party will ever again find the voice of reason.

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Tuesday, April 26, 2005

Will African Americans lose their right to vote in 2007?

I've been hearing more and more lately that African Americans are soon to lose their rights to vote in 2007 and this morning again I heard it on Cliff Kelly show that we should make sure that we rally behind this issue. I decided to do a little research on the issue because I didn't fully understand how the voting rights of African Americans could be in jeopardy.

The Voting Rights Act, adopted initially in 1965 and extended in 1970, 1975, and 1982, is generally considered the most successful piece of civil rights legislation ever adopted by the United States Congress. The Act codifies and effectuates the 15th Amendment's permanent guarantee that, throughout the nation, no person shall be denied the right to vote on account of race or color. In addition, the Act contains several special provisions that impose even more stringent requirements in certain jurisdictions throughout the country.

Congress renewed in 1982 the special provisions of the Act, triggered by coverage under Section 4 for twenty-five years. Congress also adopted a new standard, which went into effect in 1985, providing how jurisdictions could terminate (or "bail out" from) coverage under the provisions of Section 4. This is why Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr is talking about this issue and others are saying that our rights to vote are in jeopardy.

According to NetSquirrel.com, this is an Urban legend, this is a complete an utter hoax, they went on to say that African-American voting rights were granted by the Fifteenth Amendment, which was passed immediately after the Civil War. And, that the expiration of the Voting Rights Act will not terminate the rights granted under the Fifteenth Amendment.

If this is a hoax and our rights to vote will not expire, then why was a voting rights act needed in 1965 to protect African Americans rights to vote in the first place? And furthermore, why was this act extended several times, which is slated to end in 2007? So is this a hoax or not? I'm still not sure...

Even the NAACP had this to say about the topic: The scary part about this misinformation is the number of people in our community who seem to have accepted it without investigation. We must be better prepared if we expect to be able to effectively exercise the rights we have!

A Time Line of African American History, 1852-1880 that proves we should at least have the right to vote under the Fifteenth Amendment. So again, the question becomes, how can our rights to vote be in jeopardy of expiring in the year 2007? All of this still doesn't make sense to me unless African Americans are not considered citizens under the constitution (which doesn't make sense). If we are covered under the 15th amendment as the NAACP thinks, who incidentally says that this is a hoax, then why was the voting rights act of 1965 created to protect African Americans rights to vote?

Is this a hoax that Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. has endorsed (who is a reputable lawyer) and Cliff Kelly is peddling to the African American community? You decide....

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---------------oOo--------------- CIA’s final report: No WMD found in Iraq

“After more than 18 months, the WMD investigation and debriefing of the WMD-related detainees has been exhausted,” wrote Charles Duelfer, head of the Iraq Survey Group, in an addendum to the final report he issued last fall.

“As matters now stand, the WMD investigation has gone as far as feasible.”

Then, you have to wonder why there is a small team still in place if no WMD has been found. What's up with this scenario??? What are you not telling the American public?

Small team still in place

Leaving the door to the investigation open just a crack, the U.S. official said a small team still operates under the U.S.-led multinational force in Iraq, although the survey group officially disbanded earlier this month. Those staying on continue to examine documents and follow up on any reports of weapons of mass destruction.

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Monday, April 25, 2005

An interesting analysis of how America works

I found an interesting analysis of How America Works through the Church of the Bad News blog. It was orginally taken from the blog, A Tiny Revolution. The analysis details the who, what, and how America works..

An excerpt:

In the US empire, military and economic decisions are made by exactly the same people. So it shouldn't be surprising if they are considering exactly the same issues in both cases.

Of course, those on the receiving end of these decisions might put it another way: the military and economic decisionmakers are two fingers on the same fist.

I wonder how many people are really surprised by this or how many people knew this. There are books out that say that there are approximately 25 families that control the entire world. If this is true, we are certainly living in a world dictatorship because these people giveth and taketh at will.

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---------------oOo--------------- Vital Nuclear Parts Missing

With all the crap that the US has done and is still doing to other people, this is not a good situation for America/Americans having missing nuclear parts unaccounted for. I saw in the video, the Fog of War, with Robert S. McNamara narrating the story - a lieutenant said that it is the US military policy to never go to war with someone who can defend themselves. I guess this is why the US went to war with Iraq, they simply did not have the capability of defending themselves. Also, I heard that the US had been bombing Iraq on and off for a decade so they knew there was no way that Iraq could have had WMD in their possession. Some people were thinking that the US was going to attack Iran next, but if Iran have these nuclear parts, and have the capability of producing nuclear weapon, I guess going to war is not a possibility since it is against the US military policy to go to war with anyone who can defend themselves. Talking about a bunch of bullies… I think this situation is going to be interesting to follow.

Excerpt from article:

Investigators worry that some components of a weapons factory ordered by Libya have fallen into the hands of another nation.

Critical components and specialized tools destined for Libya's nuclear weapons program disappeared before arrival in 2003.

Two senior international investigators said that the illicit technology had been shipped to Turkey, Malaysia and Dubai, United Arab Emirates, before it disappeared and that it remained unaccounted for.The equipment was initially meant for a $100-million, clandestine uranium enrichment plant and bomb factory being built for Libya by Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan and a network of middlemen on three continents.

The list of potential clients for a nuclear weapons program is not long, but it extends to countries in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia. Khan traveled extensively and had contacts worldwide. Investigators have identified at least 30 companies and middlemen who sold goods to his network.

The seizure by the United States and Britain of a separate shipment of nuclear-related components from a freighter headed for Libya in October 2003 crippled the network and led to Khan's admission that he had been selling know-how and technology to Iran, North Korea and Libya.

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Sunday, April 24, 2005

Dictators, Tyrants and Fools (It's all about distractions)

This is an interesting article that I meant to post earlier since it was published on March 22, 2005 but somehow it got lost in the shuffle of everything I was doing. The million dollar question is this - why does Libya need nuclear weapons in an already volatile environment? And why are we (the American public) allowing ourselves to be continously fooled and tricked by this government?

We all know by now about the enormous raft of lies that were fed to the American people and the world about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Would you be shocked to know, however, that they are doing it again? Earlier this year, the Bush administration told allies in Asia that North Korea had supplied nuclear materials to Libya. This was a bald-faced lie; North Korea sold nuclear materials to Pakistan, an ally of the United States. Pakistan turned around and sold the stuff to Libya, but the Bush crew decided to fire a salvo of lies and disinformation at North Korea, and US allies in Asia.

According to the Post, "The White House declined to offer an official to comment by name about the new details concerning Pakistan.

The Washington Post reported on Sunday the fallout from these lies . "The Bush administration's approach, intended to isolate North Korea," wrote the Post, "instead left allies increasingly doubtful as they began to learn that the briefings omitted essential details about the transaction, U.S. officials and foreign diplomats said in interviews. North Korea responded to public reports last month about the briefings by withdrawing from talks with its neighbors and the United States."

This is why Condi Rice is touring Asia right now; some outraged allies have to be soothed. No, we didn't really lie to you. It's just that we can't make Pakistan look bad under any circumstances, and we surely can't have people know that our ally was selling nuclear materials to Libya.

I think it is interesting that this current administration always manage to keep the general public distracted using various antics to cover up their real actions and intentions.

The author of this article has this to say about these types of distractions: Understand that whatever these people are making noise about is not what they actually care about. They did it a couple of weeks ago; while shouting about Social Security reform and getting everyone all fired up over that, they passed the Bankruptcy bill, the Gun Manufacturers Shield Law and opened ANWR for drilling. They've known their Social Security 'reforms' have been dead in the water for weeks, but kept pushing them to distract opponents from their true goals, which they reached in fine style. So it goes with Ms. Schiavo. They don't care about her. They want everyone looking at her, however, while they prepare to destroy the filibuster in the Senate in order to appoint a few far-right judges to the bench. Never mind that the Senate has confirmed 204 of Bush's judicial nominations, blocking only 10, which is an approval rate of 95%.

I think if we are honest with ourselves, we will have to admit that these people are slick and devious with their petty distractions, while at the same time pushing their own personal agenda right down the throats of all the American people. When will a critical mass of us wake up and smell the coffee and speak against this Republican led government dictatorial behavior?????

It is interesting to note that the Iraqi people were innocent, yet they were attacked, and still being occupied for wrongs they never committed, while North Koreans were able to sell WMD to Pakistan, who in term sold them to Libya. Something is fishy here. You really have to ask, who is Libya planning to use these weapons on? Black Africans, these are the only people Libya has been fighting with.

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Thursday, April 21, 2005

Ninth Annual Graduate & Professional Student Research Conference

The next couple of days I won't be blogging at all, I am attending a one day conference and will be presenting my work. I need to practice, practice, and practice before I make a complete fool out of myself. Anyway, the conference is held at Northwestern University, Evanston Campus, Norris University Center, Saturday April 23, 2005. As you can see, I don't have much time...

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---------------oOo--------------- What Gender is your brain?

I'm not sure why I like taking these types of tests, but I think this is an accurate description of who I am. I always thought I was level headed and this test has just proven that I am right. Copy Kat from Professor Kim's Blog, whose brain is slightly more male than mines.

Your Brain is 53.33% Female, 46.67% Male

Your brain is a healthy mix of male and female You are both sensitive and savvy Rational and reasonable, you tend to keep level headed But you also tend to wear your heart on your sleeve

What Gender Is Your Brain?

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---------------oOo--------------- Judges Battle Transcends Numbers

No matter what the Conservatives say about the liberals, the reality is - they are the ones in control of this country and have been for a while. Therefore, if there is a problem plaguing this country, it can be traced back directly to those in charge. These are some interesting numbers. The next three years are going to be interesting. What is happening now in D.C. - the effects will be felt for years to come as reflected in the numbers below.

WASHINGTON — The looming battle over President Bush's nominees to the U.S. appeals courts might derail the Senate, but it probably won't make much difference in the federal courts. That's because Republican appointees already dominate them. The issue is how far right the GOP can take them.

Though it remains a staple of conservative rhetoric that the courts are "out of control" and driven by "liberal activists," the GOP's control of the White House for 24 of the last 36 years has given Republicans — if not conservatives — a firm grip on the federal judiciary.

A Republican bench

Of the 162 active judges on the U.S. court of appeals, 94 of them, or 58%, are Republican appointees. There are 12 nominees by President Bush awaiting confirmation, all of whom were nominated earlier but blocked in the Senate.

Who appointed current judges
Nixon: 1
Ford: 1
Carter: 9
Reagan: 29
G.H.W. Bush: 29
Clinton: 59
G.W. Bush: 34
Total: 162

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Wednesday, April 20, 2005

Selection of The New Pope

I initially said I wasn’t going to comment on this new Pope on my blog since I’m not religious and all, but the thought of this Old conservative German Cardinal being selected as the new Pope is not sitting well with me. First of all, why didn’t they select a Pope from a third world country since over half of the members of the Catholic Church are in these countries? Second, I thought there must be a reason that this conservative Pope was selected who unlike his predecessor, who was overwhelmingly loved by his native countrymen, many Germans are upset with his position, the headlines read Cardinal Ratzinger divides Germany.


Then I ran across an article that says, the “New pope intervened against Kerry in US 2004 election campaign”. Could this be the reason for Ratzinger's election to pope? Did the new pope accord a selective advantage to Bush (hmm) and this is his reward? Isn't it against the Church policies or against one of God's mandates to not to interfere with politics? Isn't that a sin? This is another example that the Catholics don't always practice what they preach. You have the infamous child molestation cases by many priests and they are protected under the banner of the Church. Now this new Pope is said to have intervened in politics; I wonder what will be next.

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---------------oOo--------------- UN Reports Large Gender Gap in Education Worldwide

The things that happen to women and girls in other countries are unfortunate. In my family, I consistently outperformed all of my siblings, the males and females. Just think if I was born in another country, I could very well be among those unfortunate numbers. Although I get upset with the corruption in this country, it is still better than some of those other countries, especially for women and girls. One would think with all the wealth America has at its fingertip - more money would be allocated to assisting poorer countries and nations. But, who am I kidding; America doesn't even want to help its own poor.

A new United Nations reports shows a majority of the 115 million children worldwide who are excluded from receiving an education are girls. More...

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Tuesday, April 19, 2005

Gunther von Hagens' Body Worlds, The Anatomical Exhibition of Real Human Bodies

I went to the Museum of Science & Industry to see this exhibit. It is a must see. It is surreal and I wouldn't advise anyone to take kids under 12 years old. I think it could be traumatic for them to see this exhibit.

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---------------oOo--------------- Brutality of Chicago Police

April 13, 2005 — The FBI has been called in to look into a shootout between Chicago police and an off-duty railroad officer back in February. Howard Morgan was shot 25 times. Police say he pulled a gun on officers and is now charged with attempted murder.

This morning Howard Morgan's wife was on the Cliff Kelly show and she told people that her husband had been shot 15 times in the back after he was down. This is some of the brutality that occurs in Chicago by some police officers... I guess this is a good example of the saying that you can't keep a good man down. How this man lived after this ordeal, no one will ever know. It all boils down to this, when it is not your time to die, you will live....

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Monday, April 18, 2005

Why did the "New Economy" fail to create the "long boom" that was promised?

The economic program of Bill Clinton's presidency is a perfect example of how close one may come to success, and yet fall short. The "New Economy" rose in response to the flow of technology, much of it developed by government, and to an economic program which history will call "Rubinomics."

The key to understanding what the Clinton administration did is to remember what the vicious cycle consists of: America must import energy, this causes a trade deficit. The trade deficit, in turn, means that the US must sell assets abroad, this creates an investment deficit. To bring investment in means that one must also cut taxes on the wealthy, so that companies remain under the control of Americans, rather than being bought up by foreigners, particularly those from nations that do not have internal economies. This creates a budget deficit.

The investment deficit and budget deficit together create conditions in which real wages do not increase as quickly and there is less growth in the kind of upwardly mobile employment that people need. This situation also creates incentives for government to tax consumption, both because this reduces the trade deficit, and because the wealthy cannot be taxed. This creates a wages deficit. The wages deficit, in turn, gives people an incentive to borrow more, particularly against their homes. This creates a wealth deficit, with increasing inequality in assets. The solution to the wealth deficit is for people to use gasoline to shop around for better bargains, and to buy homes further from where they work, and in areas that do not have to pay the carrying costs of large metropolitan areas. This means they burn more energy, and this loops back around to the beginning of the cycle.

The whole cycle then is:

1. Energy deficit creates trade deficit.
2. Trade deficit creates investment deficit.
3. Investment deficit creates budget deficit.
4. Investment deficit and budget deficit creates wages and wealth deficit.
5. Wages and wealth deficits create pressure to use energy to generate housing wealth, which starts the cycle over again.

Each stage pushes the next along, because at each stage there is a group of people that can benefit by pushing the problem to the next group of people.

Democratic politics since 1978 has consisted of a series of attempts to find a way to break this cycle. Carter tried direct conservation, to end the energy deficit. Mondale wanted to raise taxes and investment in the US, to break the wages and wealth deficit. By the time Clinton was elected, however, there was a broad consensus that there could not be a direct attack on these problems. Clinton himself tried to attack the problem directly by proposing an energy tax, but this met with tremendous resistance and was dropped. While he was able, because of the high deficits created both by the borrowing Reaganomics had engaged in, and by the collapse of the Savings and Loan System, which was an unintended consequence of lowering energy prices, he did not have the political capital to go farther along this line than he did. more

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---------------oOo--------------- Kenya’s wealth in foreign hands

The bulk of Kenya’s wealth is in foreign hands, according to statistics obtained exclusively by The Sunday Standard.

If Kenya were a cake to be shared out, Kenyans would only lay claim to 31 per cent of the country’s total wealth. The rest would go to foreigners.

Agriculture, tourism and banking, which combined bring in the country’s largest earnings, are in foreign hands. Last year, tea, tourism, flowers and coffee earned the country Sh140 billion, nearly half of the annual national budget. Of this money, only 31 per cent ended up in the country — as tax and real earnings to the nationals.

And shareholding in the richest 20 companies that trade at the Nairobi Stock Exchange is foreign.

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---------------oOo--------------- New procedure allows principals to fire teachers without a hearing

This has already caused a stir in Chicago

More than a thousand Chicago teachers could be fired by their principals -- without a hearing -- and in some cases without a reason. A new procedure could mean big changes in Chicago Public Schools.

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---------------oOo--------------- What Kind of American English do you speak

Taken from Cobb's Website

Your Linguistic Profile:

70% General American English

15% Upper Midwestern

10% Dixie

5% Midwestern

0% Yankee

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

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Saturday, April 16, 2005

John Conyers: Halt Assault on Judges - the Congressional push for judiciary control remains out of line

Last Congress, we passed a series of court-stripping bills that would have constituted the first time Congress had eliminated the federal courts from considering the constitutionality of federal laws. We also considered the Orwellian "Constitution Restoration Act," that would have declared it an impeachable offense for a federal court to cite foreign legal precedents in freedom of religion cases.

To make matters worse, Congress has failed to provide judges with their annual cost-of-living allowances over most of the last decade, resulting in the equivalent of an estimated $77,000 reduction of salary, making it increasingly difficult for the judiciary to attract and retain talented lawyers.

As any student of the Constitution knows, if there is any single idea in the Constitution that has separated our experiment in democracy from all other nations, it is the concept of an independent judiciary.

This evangelical Christian conservative government is turning itself into a dictatorship. The deeper you dig into this Conservative psyche; you really see that it is a contradiction, they say they believe in God and morality and the liberals are quite frankly immoral, but these same people are willing participants in the destruction of what John Conyers calls an "experiment in democracy”, but this experiment has worked well for over 200 years. Are the conservatives aware that this government is constantly eroding this system? And if they are aware, how can they say that they love their country, at the same time sit back, and allow it to be destroyed? If they are not aware, shame on them....

If anyone thinks that I am unfairly targeting these evangelical right-wing Christians, take a look at the following statement from an article in truthout.org, America's Religious Right, Saints or Subversives? Part II

Judge Roy Moore knows how to rally the troops, especially among right-wing Christian evangelicals. A devout Southern Baptist, he tells them what they want to hear, as he did in early 2002 to a gathering in Tennessee:

Since September 11, we have been at war. I submit to you there is another war raging - a war between good and evil, between right and wrong. For 40 years we have wandered like the children of Israel. In homes and schools across our land, it's time for Christians to take a stand. This is not a nation established on the principles of Buddha or Hinduism. Our faith is not Islam. What we follow is not the Koran but the Bible. This is a Christian nation. Since when? Not according to the Constitution?

Why is Moore speaking about good and evil in one breath and in the next talking about other religions? Is it safe to say that Moore is using Christianity and the bible to say that these other religions are evil? If Moore isn't implying this - then why the references to these other religions after the good and evil statement. Saints are Subversives? You decide!!!

It appears they are trying to draw a line and you better decide which side of the line you will be on. The handwriting is on the wall...

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---------------oOo--------------- Scientists Scramble to Destroy Flu Strain

London - Thousands of scientists were scrambling Tuesday at the urging of global health authorities to destroy vials of a pandemic flu strain sent to labs in 18 countries as part of routine testing.

The rush, urged by the World Health Organization, was sparked by a slim, but real, risk that the samples, could spark a global flu epidemic. The vials of virus sent by a U.S. company went to nearly 5,000 labs, mostly in the United States, officials said.

It was not immediately clear why the 1957 pandemic strain, which killed between 1 million and 4 million people - was in the proficiency test kits routinely sent to labs. It was a decision that Stohr described as "unwise," and "unfortunate." You think - It was unwise? No kidding...

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Friday, April 15, 2005

The United Vegetative States of America

This is an interesting article from someone who is Watching America. I think many Americans should be ashamed of the way they behave. I've said before, this government keeps us so busy fighting one another that we can't see the real truth or maybe we just don't want to face the truth because we will have to be accountable for our actions. I agree with the author that America and some of its citizens are so hypocritical it makes me sick. With the technology that we have at our fingertips, how can we say that we are ignorant of anything? Simply Unbelievable...

Anwaar Hussain eagleeye@emirates.net.ae

After having lived for 15 years in a persistent vegetative state, Terri Schindler Schiavo crossed over from here to the hereafter on the last day of March.

With her blood scent up in the air, the feral American media went berserk in the last two weeks of Schiavo's life. Using this so called freest press in the world, the American public was lead on a leash by the right-wing activists with a not so subtle help from the neofundos ruling the roost in their great country. The pro-life campaigners remained at the point of this bizarre national entertainment.

Americans never fail to astound the world with their penchant for sensationalism. Just when it appears that they’ve scaled new peaks, they manage to notch themselves up yet higher into the dizzying summits of luridness. While the carnival of mayhem is progressing ahead in full tide in Iraq, the Americans love and sympathy for the plight of Terri Schiavo is the very embodiment of duplicity. Hypocrisy in its truest form, it speaks volumes of their OJ Simpson syndrome. It would be interesting to know what he means by this OJ Simpson syndrome..

While the Americans and their media kept a macabre death-watch over Schiavo's plight, Dr. Hafidh al-Dulaimi, the head of "the Commission for the Compensation of Fallujah citizens" has reported the destruction that American troops have inflicted on Fallujah. Here is a brief gist; "7000 totally destroyed, or nearly totally destroyed, homes in all districts of Fallujah. - 8400 stores, workshops, clinics, warehouses, etc. destroyed. - 65 mosques and religious sanctuaries demolished - 59 kindergartens, primary schools, secondary schools and technical colleges destroyed. - 13 government buildings leveled. - Four libraries, that housed thousands of ancient Islamic manuscripts and books, gutted completely. - on and on and on..." Human beings lived in those buildings; make your own guess of their toll. Go talk of Schiavo's right to live or die.

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Thursday, April 14, 2005

DNA project to trace human steps

A project spanning five continents is aiming to map the history of human migration via DNA. The Genographic Project will collect DNA samples from over 100,000 people worldwide to help piece together a picture of how the Earth was colonised.

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---------------oOo--------------- Ketchup Boy Fooled by the Onion - An unjustified attack

On April 12th the following post entitled "Ketchup Boy fooled" by The Onion was posted on Ramblings' Journal. You have to admit, it is a catchy titles and I'm a sucker for catchy titles. The first line of the post caught my attention too: John Kerry showed up Sunday whining about "voter intimidation" of minorities citing an old adage that says that Republicans should vote on Tuesday, while Democrats should vote on Wednesday.

Since I was on a conservative blog and I'm not a conservative, I always try to be on my best behavior so my response was this even though I think the story is true: Whether this story is true or not, I live in Illinois, which is a Blue State and I had my voter registration card with me that showed I was a registered voter; somehow - my name got deleted from the roll and was only allowed to vote provisionally (which really didn't count). There were so many inconsistencies in this election it wasn't funny.

Chris from The Black Republican said this: If you really believed that kind of schoolkid nonsense and didn't vote, you're too stupid to be selecting the President of the United States. Why didn't your provisional vote count, Cynthia? Mistakes like what happened to you are why there's the capability for provisional voting in the first place. Once they confirmed you were deleted erroneously, they should have counted your vote like any other. Did you leave out some detail, or are you really unaware of what a provisional vote really is? If the latter, it sure wouldn't be funny - but I'd certainly find the irony humorous.

As you can see, Chris' response is very condescending. Although I was a registered voter and I had my voter registration card to prove that I was registered - because someone took my name off the roll, I was told that I could only vote provisionally. I was livid. Anyway, I thought I am here and I'm not leaving unless I vote so I took the provisional ballot and voted. Since I noticed that my ballot was being set aside, I asked when will my vote be counted? I was instructed that it would only be counted if they can verify that you are registered and if these provisional votes are needed. After insisting that someone give me some answers as to why I was taken off the roll, I was told that this happened to at least 500 people in each of the Black precincts across Chicago. After this grueling and troubling experience - I had to follow this presidential election to the end. I thought it was a little odd that Bush won after the exit polls clearly said Kerry won. The more I looked into the 2004 election, I discovered there were discrepancies in nearly all the 50 states. And, what happened to me was child's play to what Ken (doll baby) Blackwell , who incidentally made the list of one of the Negroes of highest dubiosity on the Afro-Netizen Blog , did to the people in Ohio. When I saw Ken Doll Baby's name on that list, I knew right away that the author of the Blog, Chris Rabb knew what role Ken Doll Baby played in the Ohio election. Right now they are still investigating whether the Board of electors in at least Cuyahoga County broke the law in the recount. Rep John Conyers investigated and release a 103-page report entitled Preserving Democracy, What Went Wrong in Ohio. There were so many inconsistencies in this last election it wasn't funny.

I think if my name wasn't arbitrarily removed from the voter registration roll, I would not have been aware of all the voter disenfranchisement that took place in the November, 2004 election because mainstream media didn't cover this at all, which shows that these outlets are controlled by the conservative led government. There were investigations into the elections and protests, which occurred all over the US about the irregularities and mainstream media didn't cover one iota of it, which indicates that in the US, the media is not independent of the government. This was a learning experience for me.

The way John Kerry responded was less than admiral (putting it nicely). This last election showed me the necessity of a third party. This two party system failed miserably in this last election.

The last thing I will say on this subject is this - the media covered the Ukraine elections and the headlines read U. S. Rejects Tally, and Colin Powell said "We cannot accept this result as legitimate because it does not meet international standards and because there has not been an investigation of the numerous and credible reports of fraud and abuse”. The U.S. was alerted to the voter fraud that occurred in its election in the same manner that the Ukraine election was rejected, the exit poll was different from the outcome and reports of fraud followed. If the Ukraine election could be rejected based initially on the exit polls, then reports of fraud, why isn't this same standard applied to the U.S. election? Very interesting indeed and I'm the one that is being called stupid!!! This comment from Chris illustrates a sinsister flaw in the characters of some black people that dates back to when our people were enslaved. I guess we will always have among our mist House Niggas who will say Massa, I sa put that Field Nigga in hur place. Ain't I sa gud boy, Massa.

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---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, April 12, 2005

The future looks black

I agree with the author's assessment. Some people that I personally know support Mugabe just because he took that land from those white farmers. I tried telling them about his record, they didn't even care. The only thing that matters was that - when he took that land from those white farmers, he was on the right track. This is a sad and unfortunate commentary about Black people everywhere.

The curse of black Africans, in Africa and abroad, is their unrequited obsession with the white man. Black Africans try to reduce all human existence to a simple morality tale in which the white man is the source of all evil and misfortune. They have little interest in black people beyond their borders but enormous interest in white people. If there is an atrocity in an African country, black people outside that country will not care unless there are white people concerned, either as instigators or as victims.

When Mugabe slaughtered 20,000 black people in southern Zimbabwe in 1983, nobody outside Zimbabwe, including the ANC, paid it the slightest attention. Nor did they care when, after 2000, he drove thousands of black farm workers out of their livelihoods and committed countless atrocities against his black population. But when he killed a dozen white farmers and pushed others off their farms, it caused tremendous excitement. Mugabe became a hero in the eyes of black activists in South Africa, the US and England. That he has ruined Zimbabwe, a beautiful and naturally blessed country; that he has turned it from a food exporter to a hungry food importer; that he has caused 80 per cent unemployment and 600 per cent inflation; that he has killed and tortured tens of thousands of Africans; that he has crushed democracy; that he has reduced life expectancy from 55 years in 1980 when he came to power to 33 years now — none of this matters compared with his glorious triumph in beating up a handful of white farmers. more

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---------------oOo--------------- Saudis execute more Black Africans

Saudi Arabia, the center of Islam has one again shown its contempt and hostility to African people. I'm not surprised by this. An Arabic lady got really upset with me and exposed her hand when we had what I thought was a minor disagreement on some issue (I don't remember what) and told me, do you want me to telll you what Arabs think of Black people. My response was - who cares what they think.


SAUDI ARABIA executed six Black Africans last week. At least one victim was not told he had been condemned to death, it is alleged.

Five Somalis and one Sudanese man have been put to death in the last week by the House of Saud. The five Somalis were each jailed for five years in 1999 and sentenced to 3,000 lashes for "abducting and robbing" taxi drivers.

When their sentences were up they remained in jail, despite protests from Amnesty International. There are claims that the five are innocent and were forced to sign confessions written in Arabic after being tortured. more

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---------------oOo---------------

Monday, April 11, 2005

EPA Halts Florida Test on Pesticides

Can you believe that parents in Florida agreed for a nominal fee to expose their infants to pesticides over a two year period?

A recruiting flier for the program, called the Children's Environmental Exposure Research Study, or Cheers, offered $970, a free camcorder, a bib and a T-shirt to parents whose infants or babies were exposed to pesticides if the parents completed the two-year study. The requirements for participation were living in Duval County, Fla., having a baby under 3 months old or 9 to 12 months old, and "spraying pesticides inside your home routinely." Full story

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---------------oOo--------------- Stroke the rich IRS has become a subsidy system for super-wealthy Americans IRS winks at rich deadbeats

The federal tax system that millions of Americans are forced to deal with before April 15 is not at all what you think it is. Congress has changed it in recent decades from a progressive system in which the more one earns the more one pays in income taxes. It has become a subsidy system for the super rich.

Through explicit policies, as well as tax laws never reported in the news, Congress now literally takes money from those making $30,000 to $500,000 per year and funnels it in subtle ways to the super rich -- the top 1/100th of 1 percent of Americans.

While letting rich tax cheats run wild, Congress did finance a crackdown on the poor. The working poor, most of whom make less than $16,000, are eight times more likely to be audited than millionaire investors in partnerships. more

This is why I will never describe myself as a conservative or a liberal. Regardless of our political affiliation in the grand scheme of things, unless you are part of that upper class, you are being screwed by this system. This is why I chuckle when people describe themselves as this or that. All this does is keep the masses fighting among themselves while at the same time the rich get away with murder. The masses can't see the forest for the trees, (we are so busy cutting each other down, being distracted by this issue or that issue, that we can't see what the real issues are).

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---------------oOo---------------

Sunday, April 10, 2005

Israel's Unlikely Ally (America's Black Community)

Excerpt from the article: The members of the Christian Allies Caucus of Israel’s parliament sat in stunned silence. A visiting African American pastor had just told them something they had never expected: Israel had a potentially powerful ally in America’s black community.

What the Israeli Caucus was thinking during the lecture: Do you think this Negro know that there are some Negroes who know that a few powerful Jewish people from New York funneled milions of dollars into the Georgia election to unseat that Cynthia McKinney. We did this, because we had no choice, this Negro forced us to do this because she kept getting in our way by voting against us on key issues, she simply was siding with the common people too much. And some of those liberals (Negroes and Whites) from Illinois actually had the nerves to help this Negro regained her seat and we think that at least those Negroes are still angry with us, especially since it was our influence that was instrumental in preventing her from regaining her seniority once she was relected to the Congress.

Excerpt from the article: Plummer “It’s hard to out do a black preacher when he talks Old Testament…” the charismatic Detroit pastor added with a chuckle. “As a biblical American, I find myself connected to Israel,” Plummer said.

What the Israeli Caucus was thinking during the lecture: Could these Americans Negroes be as naïve as the “Good Reverend” thinks they are? Can we call on this Rev. Jesse Jackson to represent our cause (that some think is unjust) and win a critical number of these Negroes on our side so we can continue our attack on those Palestinians; after all, we are the chosen people and God said we have a right to this land?

Excerpt from the article: Plummer blamed a few media hungry black figures for the rift in Black-Jewish relations that has deepened with the demonization of Israel. “Don’t listen to the Farrakhans,” Plummer implored.

What the Israeli Caucus was thinking during the lecture: Is this man stupid or what? Don’t he know that our spies have informed us that the American Negro Christians are starting to unite with this Demon Farrakhan and just recently in Chicago - Farrakhan and Jesse Jackson were on the same platform.

Excerpt from the article: Plummer left his best line for last. Stressing the black community’s familiarity with the history of the Jewish people, Plummer noted, “We’re people who understand the difference between Isaac and Ishmael. We get it.”

What the Israeli Caucus was thinking after the lecture: I hope these Negroes are as stupid as the Pastor said. We should approach him to see if we can recruit some spies to infiltrate the Christian organizations to remind them that Farrakhan is worshipping a demon God, therefore he is a demon. Brothers and sisters of the Caucus, do you think it will work?


This article is a good example why religion has no place in politics. Good people who are religious are oftentimes easily manipulated using their beliefs in their God against them to bring about whatever desired outcome any leader fancy, whether it is good or evil. This is why religions in my opinion was created and why it is maintained so that those in charge can control the masses, pull their strings at will.

The blog, Afro-Netizen has a list of the people that the author thinks are “The Negroes of Highest Dubiosity”, I would have to say, that maybe Pastor Glenn Plummer, former Chairman of the National Religious Broadcasters Association should be added to a list similar to this. This is a dubious act to use people’s religion against them in this fashion. Religion is a dangerous tool that has consistently been misused far too long as a justification to harm others. This religious superiority crap has to end. I am appalled by Pastor Plummer's remarks. These are very dangerous times we are living in. It used to be a time (in the US) when people were free of religious persecution, if the current trend continues, this will end.

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Saturday, April 09, 2005

Exchange of Information - a meeting in Chicago

Today, (4/9/05) I went to a meeting that was designed to give information that you don't hear in the media. The MC of the meeting was Cliff Kelly, radio talk show host on WVON and the keynote speaker was Thomas N Todd, Chicago Civil Rights Attorney. All in all, I was glad I attended the event.

Since I knew this would be the most opportune time to give out information about the Other Side of HIV/AIDS, I complied a 28-page report and gave it to Cliff Kelly. Cliff is a very intelligent man, I told him that he should read the information and determine for himself whether the public is being fed a stream of lies about the HIV/AIDS theory.

I know at some point, Cliff will talk about this information on his show. This was a very strategic move on my part, because the Cliff Kelly show draws some of the most intelligent people in the African American community not only in Chicago, but other cities as well because of the internet broadcasting. In addition, I gave the information to other key people in Chicago. This is the first time that anyone in the African American community (as far as I know) have complied this kind of information. We are no longer dealing with conspiracy theories, but we can begin to analyze the data as a community on a more intelligent and informed level.

This was indeed a good day in the hood.

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Friday, April 08, 2005

The outcome of religion manipulation

Attempts at controlling society by using God as an authoritarian figure or as an angry patriarchal concept of God has historically always had the indirect dire consequences of motivating peoples desires to please this deity to a point where they will indiscriminately fight and die for that cause. The common man is thereby used as a tool for the political enhancement of the manipulator.

We can see the results of this manipulation most often in the uneducated parts of the world. Fighting between Muslims and Christians in Sudan has for past 21 years been the cause of several hundred thousand deaths in that region. Muslims are still told by clerics to expand Islam by any means possible; this supposedly is Allah’s message to Muhammad. This goal of attempting to please Allah has caused strife between Muslims and its neighbors in the Philippines, Malaysia, Cambodia, India and many other regions of the world.

An Indian Post Doc once told me that whenever there is strife in India, you could bet that the Muslims are the ones behind it. This person said if I became the President of India, I would tell all the Muslims in the country to pack their bags and leave India now.

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---------------oOo--------------- WHY RELIGIOUS PEOPLE SUPPORT BUSH'S LIES

Dr. Gerry Lower, Keystone, South Dakota
opednews.com

To para phrase Michael Kinsley (The Limits of Eloquence, Slate, Nov 14, 2003), How can one's current beliefs be accepted as being "transcendentally correct" if one has recently stated beliefs quite the opposite. How can one say "up" and point "down" and then turn around and say "up" and point "up"? In that regard, "George Bush's powers of persuasion are apparently so spectacular, at least to some, that almost all the pro-Bush voices in Washington and the media have remained pro-Bush even when "pro-Bush" means the opposite of what it did five minutes ago."

The truth of "up" and "down" does not matter in Bush World. All that matters is the power to dictate which is which, control mania exemplified. Bush World is a religious manipulation unfettered by the restrictions of knowledge and elementary logic. In this regard, Kinsley gives too much credit to Bush's "powers of persuasion" and not enough credit to the gullibility of religious conservatives.

Internal Fears

While external fears still linger in the American cultural air, the Bush administration is no longer supported by those with a dire need for vengeance or for protection from Saddam Hussein. George Bush increasingly gets his support from internal fears on the part of his religious supporters.To admit that the war on Iraq was launched and is maintained on immoral ground (because it was based on religious attitudes, fabrications and fear-laden hype) would be nothing short of a crisis of self-identity and self-concept for religious fundamentalists.

How can Old Testament believers possibly be immoral? How can the people of the "Good Book" possibly do wrong in the eyes of their all-seeing and all-knowing Old Testament God? How, indeed? How can the religious right wing come to terms with Bush's lies and failures? The answer is that they simply cannot. They have no choice but to rest their case on fabrications and transcendental self-righteousness.For religious fundamentalists to admit error would be to denigrate their heavenly source of authority and themselves for abiding supernatural authority. It would require admiting their humanness and fallibility. It would require giving up on the notion that George Bush's words are somehow transcendent (when they do not even transcendent the realm of dirty lies).

America's neofundamentalists have, in the western religious tradition, locked themselves into an untenable position by their own beliefs and actions. There is no escape from religious blunder, no way to return to empirical reality without losing control over both the faithful and reality.This is always what happens when one administers violence based on "transcendent" belief. There is simply no way, in case of failure, to cover one's ass honestly and intelligently. In the face of lies and failure, Bush's support is no longer based on belief in his policies and practices.

His support is based increasingly on the need of his followers to maintain their religious self-identity as "compassionate" conservatives and would be "Christians." This fear of losing one's religious self-identity on the part of Bush's supporters will ensure that the Bush agenda of capitalistic neoimperialism, however inconsistent that might be with the values of Democracy, will be preserved and fulfilled to the extent possible, until it all falls for its utter lack of honest truth and human values.The more encompassing freedoms beneath Jefferson's democracy are "freedom from fear and ignorance," freedoms which cover considerable ground. It was freedom from the fear of religious oppression, for example, which demanded the separation of church and state.

Bush World thrives on religious fear and ignorance, and Bush's policies and programs will remain transcendent in the eyes of his loyal followers.Wake up good people. The Bush administration has dumbed even good religious people down such that they can no longer make a distinction between the values of democracy and the values of religious despotism, between the values of Christianity and the values of Old Testament vengeance-based religion, between the values of fairness and equality and the values of crony capitalism. Because they have sacrificed themselves to Bush's "god," most religious people in America no longer know what they are talking about.

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---------------oOo--------------- A "Black" Man, A Moor, John Hanson was the First President of the United States! 1781-1782 A.D.

George Washingtonwas really the 8th President of the United States! George Washington was not the first President of the United States. In fact, the first President of the United States was one John Hanson. Don't go checking the encyclopedia for this guy's name - he is one of those great men that are lost to history. If you're extremely lucky, you may actually find a brief mention of his name.

The new country was actually formed on March 1, 1781 with the adoption of The Articles of Confederation. This document was actually proposed on June 11, 1776, but not agreed upon by Congress until November 15, 1777. Maryland refused to sign this document until Virginia and New York ceded their western lands (Maryland was afraid that these states would gain too much power in the new government from such large amounts of land). Once the signing took place in 1781, a President was needed to run the country. John Hanson was chosen unanimously by Congress (which included George Washington). In fact, all the other potential candidates refused to run against him, as he was a major player in the revolution and an extremely influential member of Congress. As the first President, Hanson had quite the shoes to fill. No one had ever been President and the role was poorly defined. His actions in office would set precedent for all future Presidents. He took office just as the Revolutionary War ended. Almost immediately, the troops demanded to be paid. As would be expected after any long war, there were no funds to meet the salaries. As a result, the soldiers threatened to overthrow the new government and put Washington on the throne as a monarch. All the members of Congress ran for their lives, leaving Hanson as the only guy left running the government. He somehow managed to calm the troops down and hold the country together. If he had failed, the government would have fallen almost immediately and everyone would have been bowing to King Washington. In fact, Hanson sent 800 pounds of sterling siliver by his brother Samuel Hanson to George Wasington to provide the troops with shoes.

Hanson, as President, ordered all foreign troops off American soil, as well as the removal of all foreign flags. This was quite the feat, considering the fact that so many European countries had a stake in the United States since the days following Columbus. Hanson established the Great Seal of the United States, which all Presidents have since been required to use on all official documents. President Hanson also established the first Treasury Department, the first Secretary of War, and the first Foreign Affairs Department. Lastly, he declared that the fourth Thursday of every November was to be Thanksgiving Day, which is still true today.

The Articles of Confederation only allowed a President to serve a one year term during any three year period, so Hanson actually accomplished quite a bit in such little time. Six other presidents were elected after him - Elias Boudinot (1783), Thomas Mifflin (1784), Richard Henry Lee (1785), Nathan Gorman (1786), Arthur St. Clair (1787), and Cyrus Griffin (1788) - all prior to Washington taking office. So what happened? Why don't we ever hear about the first seven Presidents of the United States? It's quite simple - The Articles of Confederation didn't work well. The individual states had too much power and nothing could be agreed upon. A new doctrine needed to be written - something we know as the Constitution. And that leads us to the end of our story. George Washington was definitely not the first President of the United States. He was the first President of the United States under the Constitution we follow today. And the first seven Presidents are forgotten in history.

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---------------oOo--------------- The Media Campaign for HIV Tests

This is an interesting article about the story behind HIV/AIDS. It also explains how HIV/AIDS was first diagnosed or fabricated in Africa.

March 12, 2005 By Liam Scheff

As a journalist who writes about AIDS, I am endlessly amazed by the difference between the public and the private face of HIV; between what the public is told and what's explained in the medical literature. Continued...

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Wednesday, April 06, 2005

Louisiana Activists to Protest Bank One Reparations Offer

Dorothy Tillman (Chicago Alderwoman) has devoted her life to getting reparations for African Americans. Recently, she was instrumental for the passing of an ordinance in Chicago that states no company can do business in Chicago unless they disclose whether they owned slaves. When JP Morgan Chase acquired Bank One, through her efforts, Chase was prevented from doing business in Chicago for a year. Initially, Chase tried to deny that they owned any slaves, but through relentless perseverance by Dorothy Tillman, Chase disclosed with names the slaves they held in Louisiana. As a result, Chase established a scholarship funds, reparation for African Americans in Louisiana. Although I didn't think this was enough compensation, I at least thought this was a start, someone admited that we were wrongfully enslaved and they were willing to pay, maybe this is the beginning of others coming forth and admitting they committed the ultimate crime against African Americans.

Excerpt of the article is taken from BlackElectorate.com

However, an Activist in Louisiana, Antoinette Harrell-Miller, a noted Louisiana genealogist, New Orleans television personality, and organizer of the press conference is said "They must pay us more," (good for her) . "This ridiculous amount of money does not come anywhere near what that company owes us for the devastation they caused our ancestors and their descendants,"

She said they never consulted us on the decision to create the scholarship fund, and are concerned about where the funds will actually go. "This paternalistic approach to paying reparations is reminiscent of how Blacks were treated during slavery," says New Orleans attorney Pius Obioha, co-lead counsel in a federal class action case for slavery reparations pending against Bank One and 17 other corporations.

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---------------oOo--------------- America's Religious Right - Saints or Subversives? Part I: The Lure of Christian Nationalism

These are quotes to show that this new Christian Nationalism that has recently arisen in American politics is something new, as the founders of the US did not believe in Christianity or any other religion. What is going on is actually unconstitutional. The literal interpretation of religion does not make sense to a lot of people, in fact there are scholars such as Barbara Thiering who did her PhD thesis dealing with this subject. In this day and age, with all the resources at our finger tips - no one should take religious teaching literally.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...
-- First Amendment to the United States Constitution

The United States is in no sense founded upon the Christian doctrine.
-- George Washington

The founders of the U.S. were men of the 17th and 18th Century Enlightenment, who consciously rejected any literal interpretation of the Bible. To the degree they had religious faith, and many did, they believed in a God who - like a cosmic watchmaker - created the world and its natural laws, and then played no further part.

Deism, as they called their belief, runs unmistakably through the Declaration of Independence, in which Thomas Jefferson wrote of the "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God"

To cite only one example:
I have recently been examining all the known superstitions of the world, and do not find in our particular superstition [Christianity] one redeeming feature. They are all alike, founded upon fables and mythologies. (Letter to Dr. Woods)

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---------------oOo--------------- What religion is right for you - Part II

I took a quiz to determine what religion is right for me and I do agree with the results. The score I received for Satan surprised me since I don’t believe in Satan. My beliefs span many different religions; it probably would be easier to explain why I don’t like the three major religions. These religions are too masculine and as a result are out of balance with life, nature, and God, which to me explains the brutality that is done in the name of these Gods. We are chosen, therefore, we have the right to kill, take, and abuse and misuse whatever and whoever we want because our God has sanction our actions (an entitlement syndrome).

First, paganism is a broad term used to describe any religion or belief that is not Christian, Jewish, or Muslim. It is an earth-based religion, which lays emphasis on the worship of all aspects of nature. Pagans generally don’t believe in heaven and hell, but a recurrent thought is one of reincarnation, after all matter is neither created nor destroyed. I believe along with most Pagans that each individual is ultimately responsible for his or her own evil acts/deeds. In the end, no one will be able to use the excuse “the Devil made me do it”. It was your choice, your actions, and you will be held accountable for your deeds in life (good and bad) and your belief in Jesus, Allah, and Yahweh will not save you from your just judgment. The Christians have a verse that is often overlooked and marginalized, "Faith Without Works Is Dead" (James 2:20). It is not enough to believe, you must act out your faith. If your God is good, then the majority who profess that faith will display the goodness of their God. If you believe that your God is capable of evil or doing harmful things to others, the actions of those who believe in this God will reflect that concept. If you take a cursory view of history and the present, the goodness of their God is overshadowed by evil deeds done by the believers of those faiths.

Second, I hold similar beliefs to that of Wicca’s. They believe in a God and a Goddess. One without the other is quite absurd. All life is an extinction of the Goddess and the God. This is how Jesus can be God to some and why Muhammad can be a prophet, but not the last prophet of God. And this is why Mary (mother of Jesus) and Isis (mother of Horus) are holy too and are Goddess in their own rights. Herein lies the problem, the great “Omission”; these religions omitted the female deity from the God entity. I can only speculate this was done because of some type of twisted notion of male superiority giving rise to the male entitlement syndrome, everything must submit to the man and anything that doesn’t will be forced to fit my will.

A fundamental belief in all religions is the sanctity of marriage, the idea of a husband and wife as the ultimate sacred relationship that was ordained by the “God” entity. If we agree that this model is what these alleged Gods wanted for people, then it stands to reason that the same God entity must have been both male and female, otherwise, why would this type of relationship be the ultimate expression of the God entity. All life depends on the Ying/Yang to balance things out. Without the Ying or the Yang, a type of psychosis occurs which manifests itself in all types of evil (holy wars, slavery, annihilation of various groups). Based on these observations – it appears there are fundamental problems inherent in these religions that have proven to be problematic for most to overcome.

Third, if a person do any type of research on the origins of their respective religion, they will see that Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are not unique religions ordained by a specific God but they are a mere adaptation of ancient religious beliefs described in Africa with the Goddess aspect removed. In essence, these religions are steeped in what some have termed Pagan beliefs. Many may want to dispute the origin of these religions, but this fact is irrefutable. The following Website Woman, Thou Art Loosed talks a bit more about these connections and her experiences/beliefs about God and religion.

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Tuesday, April 05, 2005

How the cycle of deficits has kept the right in power in America.

Excerpts from an interesting article about the American Economy (REGANOMICS)


The reality is that all of the deficit problems, the energy deficit, the trade deficit, the budget deficit, and the wages and wealth deficit, are connected, each one reinforcing the others.

They cannot be solved piecemeal: increasing real wages will mean that Americans will burn more oil, and import more, which means a higher trade deficit. In an environment in which other nations have energy deficits of their own, America cannot export its way to material prosperity, and so it votes for budget deficits to keep the economy propped up. This is the centerpiece of why the Republicans hold power: to undo what they have done requires a broad mandate to attack, not one deficit, but all simultaneously.

Because America runs an energy deficit, and must import it, and we cannot export other goods to others to pay for it, we run a trade deficit. Oil is scarce, not because there is not enough energy in the world, but because it is so much cheaper to extract energy from oil than from other sources, and oil can be used to transport goods and people.

But what happens when America buys energy? What does that trade deficit mean? This is the second step of the vicious circle: while many nations sell some energy, a few nations export energy, but import virtually nothing. A nation like Nigeria, with a large population, does not pile up energy wealth because it has many demands on the flow of money coming in. A nation like Saudi Arabia on the other hand, which has a small population and a much greater concentration of the control of oil, piles up profits year after year. Those profits, rather than going into developing Saudi Arabia, are poured back into the US.

This means the trade deficit creates an investment deficit: the US takes in more investment from the rest of the world than it sends out to the rest of the world.

To prevent investors in these countries from gaining control, the developed world, and particularly the US, is forced down a particular path: it must cut taxes on our wealthy, so that they match the taxes on the wealthy of Saudi Arabia. This cutting of revenues is what drives the US budget deficit: without the reduction in revenues from upper-bracket tax rates being lowered, and without the interest on the National debt, there is no financial crisis. This means that the trade deficit, combined with the nature of a few energy exporting states, creates the budget deficit.

The reason Reaganomics was put in place then, and remained in place even after the Democrats took back both the Congress and, by 1992, the Presidency, is that no single point on the circle could be broken: raise real wages, and the trade deficit gets worse, raise tax rates by enough to rapidly wipe out the deficit, and face the prospect of foreign ownership of the "commanding heights" of the American economy.

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---------------oOo--------------- Function of Proteases and Side Effects of Protease Inhibitors

PROTEASE is responsible for digesting proteins in your food, which is probably one of the most difficult substances to metabolize. Because of this, protease is considered to be one of the most important enzymes that we have. If the digestive process is incomplete, undigested protein can wind up in your circulatory system, as well as in other parts of your body.

When you take protease in higher quantities, it can help to clean up your body by removing the unwanted protein from your circulatory system. This will help to clean up your blood stream, and restore your energy and balance. One of the tricks of an invading organism is to wrap itself in a large protein shell that the body would view as being "normal". Large amounts of protease can help to remove this protein shell, and allow the body's defense mechanisms can go into action. With the protective barrier down, your immune system can step in and destroy the invading organism.

PROTEASE INHIBITORS are pills that need to be taken at least twice a day supposedly to inhibit HIV from replicating. These protease inhibitors also inhibit the body's natural proteases that are required to digest proteins, which automatically throws your body out of homeostasis. This is why there is certain death for anyone taking the HIV/AIDS cocktails. Here are some pictures of the body deformations that these drugs cause.

PROTEASE INHIBITOR (SIDE) EFFECTS

Invirase &AEling; (Hoffmann-LaRoche)

Body as a whole: allergic reaction, chest pain, edema, fever, intoxication, parasites external, retrosternal pain, shivering, wasting syndrome, weight decrease.

Cardiovascular: Cyanosis, heart murmur, heart valve disorder,

hypertension, hypotension, syncope, vein distended.

Endocrine/Metabolic: Dehydration, dry eye syndrome, hyperglycemia, weight increase, xerophthalmia.

Gastrointestinal: Cheilitis, constipation, dysphagia, eructation, feces bloodstained, feces discolorred, gastralgia, gastritis, gastrointestinal inflammation, gingivitis, glossitis, hemorrhage rectum, hemorrhoids, hepatomegaly, melena, pain pelvic, painful defecation, pancreatitis, parotic disorder, salivary glands disorder, stomatitis, tooth disorder, vomiting.

Hematlogic: Anemia, microhemorrhages, pancytopenia, splenomegaly, thrombocytopenia.

Musculoskeletal: Arthralgia, arthritis, back pain, cramps muscle, musculoskeletal disorders, stiffness, tissue changes, trauma.

Neurological: Ataxia, bowel movements frequent, confusion, convulsions, dysarthria, dysesthesia, heart rate disorder, hyperesthesia, hyperreflexia, hyporeflexia, mouth dry, numbness face, pain facial, paresis, poliomyelitis, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, spasms, tremor.

Psychological: Agitation, amnesia, anxiety, depression, dream excessive, euphoria, hallucination, insomnia, intellectual ability reduced, irritability, lethargy, libido disorder, overdose effect, psychotic disorder, somnolence, speech disorder.

Reproductive System: Prostate enlarged, vaginal discharge.

Resistance Mechanism: Abscess, angina tonsillaris, candidiasis, hepatitis, herpes simplex, herpes zoster, infection bacterial, infection mycotic, infection staphylococcal, influenza, lymphadenopathy, tumor.

Respiratory: Bronchitis, cough, dyspnea, epistaxis, hemoptysis, laryngitis, pharyngitis, pneumonia, respiratory disorder, rhinitis, sinusitis, upper respiratory tract infection.

Skin and Appendages: Acne, dermatitis, dermatitis seborrheic, eczema, erythema, folliculitis, furunculosis, hair changes, hot flushes, photosensitivity reaction, pigment changes skin, rash maculopapular, skin disorder, skin nodule, skin ulceration, sweating increased, urticaria, verruca, xeroderma.

Special Senses: Blepharitis, earache, ear pressure, eye irritation, hearing decreased, otitis, taste alteration, tinnitus, visual disturbance.

Urinary system: Micturition disorder, urinary tract infection.


Crixivan &AEling; (Merck, Sharp & Dohme)

Body As A Whole/Site Unspecified: Abdominal distention, chest pain, chills, fever, flank pain, flu-like illness, fungal infeciton, malaise, pain, syncope.

Cardiovascular System: Cardiovascular disorder, palpitation.

Digestive System: Acid regurgitation, anorexia, aphthous stomatitis, cheilitis, cholecystitis, cholestasis, constipation, dry mouth, dyspepsia, eructation, flatulence, gastritis, gingivitis, glossodynia, gingival hemorrhage, increased appetitie, infectious gastroenteritis, jaundice, liver cirrhosis.

Hemic and Lymphatic System: Anemia, lymphadenopathy, spleen disorder.

Metabolic/Nutritional/Immune: Food allergy.

Musculoskeletal System: Arthralgia, back pain, leg pain, myalgia, muscle cramps, muscle weakness, musculoskeletal pain, shoulder pain, stiffness.
Nervous system and Psychiatric: Agitation, anxiety, anxiety disorder, bruxism, decreased mental acuity, depression, dizziness, dream abnormality, dysesthesia, excitement, fasciculation, hypesthesia, nervousness, neuralgia, neurotic disorder, paresthesia, peripheral neuropathy, sleep disorder, somnolence, tremor, vertigo.

Respiratory System: Cough, dyspnea, halitosis, pharyngeal hyperemia, pharyngitis, pneumonia, rales/rhonchi, respiratory failure, sinus disorder, sinusitis, upper respiratory infection.

Skin and Skin Appendage: Body odor, contact dermatitis, dermatitis, dry skin, flushing, folliculitis, herpes simplex, herpes zoster, night sweats, pruritus, seborrhea, skin disorder, skin infection, sweating, urticaria.

Special Senses: Accommodation disorder, blurred vision, eye pain, eye swelling, orbital edema, taste disorder.

Urogenital System: Dysuria, hematuria, hydronephrosis, nocturia, premenstrual syndrome, proteinuria, renal colic, urinary frequency, urinary tract infection, urine abnormality, urine sediment abnormality, urolithiasis.

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Monday, April 04, 2005

What religion is right for you?

While visiting the blog - the chicago files, I took a quiz to determine what religion is right for me. I don't understand the score I received for Satan since I don't even believe in Satan, which wasn't asked in the quiz. The results are interesting since I don't believe at all in the three major world religions for various reasons, which automatically means that I am pagan.

You scored as Paganism. Your beliefs are most closely aligned with those of paganism, Wicca, or a similar earth-based religion. You may also follow a Native American religion.

Paganism 79%
Buddhism 75%
Atheism 67%
Hinduism 63%
Agnosticism 50%
Satanism 46%
Islam 42%
Judaism 25%
Christianity 17%

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---------------oOo--------------- Seventeen Techniques for Truth Suppression

by David Martin, author of America's Dreyfus Affair

Strong, credible allegations of high-level criminal activity can bring down a government. When the government lacks an effective, fact-based defense, other techniques must be employed. The success of these techniques depends heavily upon a cooperative, compliant press and a mere token opposition party.

1. Dummy up. If it's not reported, if it's not news, it didn't happen.

2. Wax indignant. This is also known as the "how dare you?" gambit.

3. Characterize the charges as "rumors" or, better yet, "wild rumors." If, in spite of the news blackout, the public is still able to learn about the suspicious facts, it can only be through "rumors." (If they tend to believe the "rumors" it must be because they are simply "paranoid" or "hysterical.")

4. Knock down straw men. Deal only with the weakest aspect of the weakest charges. Even better, create your own straw men. Make up wild rumors and give them lead play when you appear to debunk all the charges, real and fanciful alike.

5. Call the skeptics names like "conspiracy theorist," "nut," "ranter," "kook," "crackpot," and of course, "rumor monger." Be sure, too, to use heavily loaded verbs and adjectives when characterizing their charges and defending the "more reasonable" government and its defenders. You must then carefully avoid fair and open debate with any of the people you have thus maligned. For insurance, set up your own "skeptics" to shoot down.

6. Impugn motives. Attempt to marginalize the critics by suggesting strongly that they are not really interested in the truth but are simply pursuing a partisan political agenda or are out to make money (compared to over-compensated adherents to the government line who, presumably, are not).

7. Invoke authority. Here the controlled press and the sham opposition can be very useful.

8. Dismiss the charges as "old news."

9. Come half-clean. This is also known as "confession and avoidance" or "taking the limited hangout route." This way, you create the impression of candor and honesty while you admit only to relatively harmless, less-than-criminal "mistakes." This stratagem often requires the embrace of a fall-back position quite different from the one originally taken. With effective damage control, the fall-back position need only be peddled by stooge skeptics to carefully limited markets.

10. Characterize the crimes as impossibly complex and the truth as ultimately unknowable.

11. Reason backward, using the deductive method with a vengeance. With thoroughly rigorous deduction, troublesome evidence is irrelevant. For example: We have a completely free press. If they know of evidence that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (BATF) had prior knowledge of the Oklahoma City bombing they would have reported it. They haven't reported it, so there was no prior knowledge by the BATF. Another variation on this theme involves the likelihood of a conspiracy leaker and a press that would report the leak.

12. Require the skeptics to solve the crime completely. For example: If Vince Foster was murdered, who did it and why?

13. Change the subject. This technique includes creating and/or publicizing distractions.

14. Scantly report incriminating facts, and then make nothing of them. This is sometimes referred to as "bump and run" reporting.

15. Baldly and brazenly lie. A favorite way of doing this is to attribute the "facts" furnished the public to a plausible-sounding, but anonymous, source.

16. Expanding further on numbers 4 and 5, have your own stooges "expose" scandals and champion popular causes. Their job is to pre-empt real opponents and to play 99-yard football. A variation is to pay rich people for the job who will pretend to spend their own money.

17. Flood the Internet with agents. This is the answer to the question, "What could possibly motivate a person to spend hour upon hour on Internet news groups defending the government and/or the press and harassing genuine critics?" Don't the authorities have defenders enough in all the newspapers, magazines, radio, and television? One would think refusing to print critical letters and screening out serious callers or dumping them from radio talk shows would be control enough, but, obviously, it is not.

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