Beauty Tips

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness...
For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
For beautiful hair, let a child run his/her fingers through it once a day.
For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone...
People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived,
reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone.

--Audrey Hepburn’s "Beauty Tips"

Neutrality

"If you are neutral in situations of injustice,
you have chosen the side of the oppressor.
If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse
and you say that you are neutral,
the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality."
-- Bishop Desmond Tutu, (1931- ) Nobel Prize for Peace 1984

167 Cases Of Death Following Taser Use

My earlier Post on the death of a 5-month-old fetus due to the mother being Tasered brought an email questioning whether the officer had reason to know a Taser could reasonably be expected to kill the fetus.

Duh, yes.

The Arizona Republic did a well-researched investigative report, documenting 167 deaths due to Tasers between September 28, 1999, and December 29, 2005. All those deaths make clear that if healthy adults can die at the hands of a Taser--like the woman in my earlier Post, often repeatedly Tasered--then a developing unborn child is likewise going to be no match for 50,000 volts.

TLC

Woman blames miscarriage on Taser shocks

WICHITA -- A pregnant woman stunned by a Taser last month during her arrest says the shocks, coupled with a lack of jail care, led to her miscarriage this week.
The Taser incident occurred Sept. 29 after Robinson was arrested on suspicion of driving with a suspended license, no proof of insurance and possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

Arnold said Robinson told her that she yelled she was pregnant to the sheriff's deputy, but he still pressed the Taser to her back three times while telling her to get on her stomach.

Sheriff's Lt. Larry Bragg told The Wichita Eagle that jail officials knew when Robinson arrived that she was pregnant and had been shocked by a Taser. They placed her in the jail clinic and monitored her for 24 hours, which is common with anyone stunned with the device, Bragg said.

Robinson returned to the clinic several times after that and saw a jail doctor periodically, Bragg said. She stayed at the clinic as recently as Sunday, but said she was feeling better Monday and asked to return to her jail pod, he said.

Robinson went into labor Wednesday night and was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where she had a miscarriage.

Full AP Story, Topeka Capital Journal, October 27, 2006

_____________________

Where is the imminent threat to the life or health of the Sheriff's Deputy that justified using a Taser in the first place? Sounds like another trigger-happy sadist with a badge.

And where are the "right-to-life" advocates? They should be marching en masse, along with those who oppose police brutality. A golden opportunity to form a coalition against just one more example of how the U.S. is turning into a Fascist state.

TLC

Dare

"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat."
--Theodore Roosevelt

Books

"When you give someone a book, you don't give him just paper, ink, and glue.
You give him the possibility of a whole new life."
--Christopher Morley. 1890-1957, Novelist, Journalist and Poet

Bike Lanes & Missing The Big Picture

From The Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 call-in line, October 27, 2006:

"It was reported we need money for public transportation. The next thing I read is about the need for a bike lane. I think money spent on transportation for the sick, handicapped or elderly is much more important than a bike lane for enjoyment."

____________________________

Uh, the more people on bikes, the less our oil consumption, the less we'll need to spend on killing people to take their oil for our own luxury, the less we'll spend trying to salvage the lives of the courageous men and women who become sacrificial slaughters for the multinational oil cartel. And we can use that savings, and that increased productivity, to help the sick, handicapped and elderly--not to mention, we won't be causing more people to be handicapped.

TLC

International Bullies & Karma

Hit it right on the head! From The Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 Line, October 27, 2006:


"The United States reminds me of a big bully that was at our school. One day a couple of guys got together and beat the holy crap out of him. And that's what's going to happen to us. Thank you, Mr. Bush."

Learning

"Learning is not compulsory, but neither is survival."
--W. Edwards Deming, management consultant

Saving Sentient Souls - Getting People's Attention

Take a look at the short introductory video that runs automatically on the Orange County California Humane Society's site! Wow!

http://www.ochumanesociety.com

TLC

Overcoming

"[T]here's no bad day that can't be overcome by listening to a barbershop quartet; this is just truth, plain and simple."
--Chuck, The World According to Chuck weblog, September 30, 2003

"Vote Democrat so we can bring our troops home and fight the terrorists here in America."
--Caller to The Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 Line, October 25, 2006


Ah, the old Bum$feld argument. Among the many problems with this line of thinking are:

1) It ignores the fact that it is the presence of the U.S. in Iraq as a colonial power, an occupying force, there in order to secure control of Iraqi oil and dominate other nations in the Middle East, that so many more terrorists are being created.

2) The argument is almost inevitably made by so-called "Christians". Inherent in the claim is that God created a world along the lines of the computer game "Black And White", in which humans kill each other for Divine Amusement. Or that an all-powerful God is so weak that He needs humans to fight as proxies against His other creations, all of which He has lost control over except to the extent He still has influence as a Divine Cheerleader.

TLC

Fur

"Get a feel for fur: Slam your fingers in a car door."
--Anonymous, on the use of steel traps to capture fur-bearing animals, cited in Audubon, November 1990

Happiness

"When I was twelve, I went hunting with my father and we shot a bird. He was laying there and something struck me. Why do we call this fun to kill this creature [who] was as happy as I was when I woke up this morning."
--Marv Levy

Sanction

"The evil of the world is made possible by nothing but the sanction you give it."
--Ayn Rand, "Atlas Shrugged"

The Disintegrating Facade Of Democracy

The SF Chronicle had a story about how beloved Frauline Feinstein is--thus the November "election" is more a coronation.

Give me a break!

My letter to the SF Chronicle:


Dear Editor:

Of course Feinstein has a cakewalk. Her forces successfully intimidated Cindy Sheehan into not running, thus giving Feinstein the "Democratic Party" nomination, while repeatedly voting with DerBu$hler to turn America into a police state.

Even the illusion of a democracy is being stripped away. As Frank Zappa predicted, "The illusion of freedom will continue as long as it's profitable to continue the illusion. At the point where the illusion becomes too expensive to maintain, they will just take down the scenery, they will pull back the curtains, they will move the tables and chairs out of the way, and you will see the brick wall at the back of the theater."

Sincerely,

Terry L. Clark

Stress

"The perfect no-stress environment is the grave. When we change our perception we gain control. The stress becomes a challenge, not a threat. When we commit to action, to actually doing something rather than feeling trapped by events, the stress in our life becomes manageable."

Greg Anderson
Author of "The 22 Non-Negotiable Laws of Wellness"

Make The Most Of What You Have

On Nov. 18, 1995, Itzhak Perlman, the violinist, came on stage to give a concert at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City. If you have ever been to a Perlman concert, you know that getting on stage is no small achievement for him. He was stricken with polio as a child, and so he has braces on both legs and walks with the aid of two crutches. To see him walk across the stage one step at a time, slowly, until he reaches his chair. Then he sits down, slowly, puts his crutches on the floor, undoes the clasps on his legs, tucks one foot back and extends the other foot forward. Then he bends down and picks up the violin, puts it under his chin, nods to the conductor and proceeds to play.

By now, the audience is used to this ritual. They sit quietly while he makes his way across the stage to his chair. They remain reverently silent while he undoes he clasps on his legs. They wait until he is ready to play.

But this time, something went wrong. Just as he finished the first few bars, one of the strings on his violin broke. You could hear it snap - it went off like gunfire across the room. There was no mistaking what that sound meant.

There was no mistaking what he had to do. We figured that he would have to get up, put on the clasps again, pick up the crutches and limp his way off stage - to either find another violin or else find another string for this one. But he didn't. Instead, he waited a moment, closed his eyes and then signaled the conductor to begin again.

The orchestra began, and he played from where he had left off. And he played with such passion and such power and such purity as they had never heard before. Of course, anyone knows that it is impossible to play a symphonic work with just three strings. I know that, and you know that, but that night Itzhak Perlman refused to know that.

You could see him modulating, changing, re-composing the piece in his head. At one point, it sounded like he was de-tuning the strings to get new sounds from them that they had never made before. When he finished, there was an awesome silence in the room. And then people rose and cheered. There was an extraordinary outburst of applause from every corner of the auditorium. We were all on our feet, screaming and cheering, doing everything we could to show how much we appreciated what he had done.

He smiled, wiped the sweat from this brow, raised his bow to quiet us, and then he said - not boastfully, but in a quiet, pensive, reverent tone - "You know, sometimes it is the artist's task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left."

What a powerful line that is. It has stayed in my mind ever since I heard it. And who knows? Perhaps that is the definition of life - not just for artists but for all of us. Here is a man who has prepared all his life to make music on a violin of four strings, who, all of a sudden, in the middle of a concert, finds himself with only three strings; so he makes music with three strings, and the music he made that night with just three strings was more beautiful, more sacred, more memorable, than any that he had ever made before, when he had four strings.

So, perhaps our task in this shaky, fast-changing, bewildering world in which we live is to make music, at first with all that we have, and then, when that is no longer possible, to make music with what we have left.

--Source Unknown

You

"You suppose you are the trouble
But you are the cure
You suppose that you are the lock on the door
But you are the key that opens it
It's too bad that you want to be someone else
You don't see your own face, your own beauty
Yet, no face is more beautiful than yours."

Rumi, 1207-1273
Persian Poet and Professor

Here We Go Again

Salon's War Room has a good summary of Bu$h's supposed interest in considering changing course in Iraq. My Posting:


Back in 2004, there were "background stories", or "leaks", about how DerBu$hler had learned from the previous 3 1/2 years, and would be changing things if re-(s)elected.

Sounds like they're trying that trick again.


"There's an old saying in Tennessee--I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee--that says, fool me once, shame on--shame on you. Fool me--you can't get fooled again."
--DerBu$hler, Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002

TLC

"Experiments"

Ask the experimenters why they experiment on animals, and the answer is: "Because the animals are like us." Ask the experimenters why it is morally okay to experiment on animals, and the answer is: "Because the animals are not like us." Animal experimentation rests on a logical contradiction.
--Charles R. Magel

Action

"Often the difference between a successful man and a failure is not one's better abilities or ideas, but the courage that one has to bet on his ideas, to take a calculated risk, and to act."
--Maxwell Maltz

BLT Loves Cheney

The Bu$h League Times, formerly known as the New York Times, now serves us an article titled, "Cheney Feels the Love as He Hits the Heartland".

Not a word in the article about how the Gestapo protects Cheney from anyone wishing to exercise their former right of free speech...

Who writes their stuff, Karl Rove?

TLC

Don't Let The Facts Get In The Way Of Propaganda

Democracy Now had an item today about nuclear proliferation, reporting that up to 30 countries could soon have nukes.

Not a word about WHY all those countries are moving toward nukes. It's not like this technology hasn't been available for decades to any country willing to put forth some effort.

Over at the New York Times, they report that the number of countries soon to have nukes is actually 40, not just 30.

In the 10th paragraph of the NYT piece, blame is affixed to "me-tooism". That bad countries like North Korea and Iran are working on nukes, so the rest better get in line.

Not a word, tho, about the role of the US in all this.

My letter to the New York Times:


Dear Editor,

Your extended article on nuclear proliferation fails to say a word about what is motivating many nations toward possessing nuclear weapons: The United States.

In the past 60 years, the U.S. has repeatedly attacked other countries, directly and through proxies, to achieve the goals of its corporate masters. It has established puppet regimes throughout the world, and murdered officials in other countries that would not submit to U.S. hegemony.

It is no wonder that so many nations are seeking nuclear weapons: To protect themselves from a U.S. takeover.

Your article is just more evidence that the NYT has become a shrill for the Bu$h Regime.

Sincerely,

Terry L. Clark

Slaughter Of Heroes

The SF Chronicle carried a very touching wire service article about a dog who gave his life in the service of others. My letter to the Chronicle and other publications:


Dear Editor:

It is quite fortunate that Jesse, who saved Jamie Henson's life and died trying to save the life of his feline companion, found his forever home with Jamie. Otherwise Jesse, a golden retriever-German shepherd mix for whom there was no breed-specific Rescue group, would almost certainly have been murdered without a second thought at any of the thousands of government-run and government-sanctioned kill facilities throughout America.

What sort of country slaughters millions of Jesses every year because they are "inconvenient"? The same country that kills hundreds of thousands of Iraqis who get in the way of that country's likewise selfish insistence on controlling oil for its own convenience.

Sincerely,

Terry L. Clark

Parents

"The thing that impresses me the most about America is the way parents obey their children."
--King Edward VIII

Give Kerry Another Chance To Betray?

Rolling Stone asks, "Does John Kerry Deserve a Second Chance?". My response:


Kerry chickened out in 2004, surrendering the Presidency to Bu$h, and hundreds of thousands have died because of Kerry's cowardice, with the death toll escalating daily. Not to mention all that will suffer and eventually die due to the US use of depleted uranium in Iraq. Give Kerry another chance to tuck tail? No Way!

TLC

Casino Gambling: Eerie Parallels

Methamphetamine proponents have been unsuccessfully trying to push expanded methamphetamine use through the Kansas legislature for years.

State Senator Pete Brungardt from Salina says this upcoming session could be the year for meth. "The longer it is around, and the more people get comfortable and familiar with it and the more they understand that it is not organized crime and it is not massive suffering of the populace, the more they kind of come to grips with. For example, meth is part of our everyday life now. You don't see lots of harm form it."

Brungardt says admittedly there is a lot of money spent on the meth, but it helps the state and people seem to enjoy it. He says the same could be said for heroin.

__________________

Original, from KSAL, Salina, Kansas, October 16, 2006:

Gambling proponents have been unsuccessfully trying to push expanded gambling through the Kansas legislature for years.

State Senator Pete Brungardt from Salina says this upcoming session could be the year for gaming. "The longer it is around, and the more people get comfortable and familiar with it and the more they understand that it is not organized crime and it is not massive suffering of the populace, the more they kind of come to grips with. For example, the Lottery is part of our everyday life now. You don't see lots of harm form it."

Brungardt says admittedly there is a lot of money spent on the lottery, but it helps the state and people seem to enjoy it. He says the same could be said for casino gambling.

Bush Right?

"President Bush is right. We shouldn't cut our losses and run. We should go on losing."

--The Salina [Kansas] Journal's Anonymous Extension 333 Line, October 16, 2006

Brave

"Be brave, bold robot"
--Unknown

California Insurance Commissioner Election: A Surprise

Especially after the corruption of Republican Chuck Quackenbush, the decent job done by John Garamendi, and the sad performance by so many other Republican California officeholders (HerrGoobernator and Secretary Of State Bruce McPherson the most outrageous), one might think the Republicans would be runing another loser for Insurance Commissioner.

But check this out:


[Steve] Poizner seeded his campaign treasury with several million dollars of his own money, but has since proved fairly proficient at raising money from outsiders -- with the exception of the insurance industry. Poizner made pledge not to accept a dime from the industry and has backed that promise with an impressively throrough four-step process (which he has made public) to screen out contributions from anyone with even indirect ties to the industry.

His opponent, Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, got off to a bad start by scooping up more than $120,000 -- in addition to free meals and travel -- from insurance interests. Bustamante has since returned some of those contributions, but his coziness with the industry during his days in the Assembly suggests he is not the right politician for this job.

Full Editorial, SF Chronicle, October 15, 2006


Not surprising about Bustamante, he had no qualms about taking bribes, er, "campaign donations", from anyone that wanted to purchase influence, er, "support him", during the Gray Davis Recall. A pleasant surprise about Poinzer, who has been advertising heavily this election season.

TLC

Perspective

One day a father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the firm purpose of showing his son how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.

On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the trip?"

"It was great, Dad."

"Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked.

"Oh yes" said the son.

"So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?" asked the father.

The son answered: "I saw that we have one dog and they had four.

We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a river that has no end.

We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night.

Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.

We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight.

We have servants who serve us, but they serve others.

We buy our food, but they grow theirs.

We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them."


The boy's father was speechless.

Then his son added, "Thanks, Dad, for showing me how poor we are."

Isn't perspective a wonderful thing? Makes you wonder what would happen if we all gave thanks for everything we have, instead of worrying about what wedon't have.

Appreciate every single thing you have, especially your friends!"

Life is too short and friends are too few."


--Author unknown

It's (Still) All Bill's Fault

"I am so mad at Bill Clinton. I got up this morning and two of my goldfish were floating on their backs, dead as could be, and I know by golly that he did it."

--Call to the Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 Line, published October 14, 2006

Greed

"One person's greed is another person's broken dreams."

--Call to the Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 Line, October 14, 2006

The Sham And Implications Of Breed Stereotyping

The Lawrence Journal-World carried a wire service article about a man who was convicted of deliberately unleashing three pit bulls for the "fun" of watching them attack people.

My letter to the Lawrence Journal-World, and other newspapers:


Dear Editor,

The owner of three pit bulls in Kansas City that attacked three people was let off with no jail time, just probation.

It is interesting how governments are so quick to kill innocent pit bulls based solely on ancestry, yet when the government has the opportunity to punish a person responsible for a serious dog attack, those same governments do virtually nothing.

When will people wake up to the fact that governments fan the flames of breed stereotyping so as to condition the masses for stereotyping--and worse--based on national ancestry, skin color, and other equally illegitimate criteria?

Sincerely,

Terry L. Clark

Senseless Killing, Senseless Newspaper

The Salt Lake Tribune published an article, which is being picked up by the wire services, titled "Police say 4 confess to ewe prank, 3 others suspected".

My letter to the Salt Lake Tribune:

Dear Editor,

Your headline describes the sickening shooting of an innocent sheep, and the hanging of the sheep's lifeless body from a football field goalpost, as a "prank".

Obviously, the monsters that engaged in such outrageous conduct are not the only ones in need of years of psychological counseling.

Sincerely,

Terry L. Clark

Credit Where Credit's Due: The New Phil Angelides Ad

Ok, it doesn't address what he will actually do if elected...but the shot of the "Dump Nixon" poster at the beginning of the clip really got me.

The ad is titled, "Always On Your Side"

http://angelides.com/multimedia/video/

TLC

Pac World

"Computer games don't affect kids, I mean if Pac Man affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in darkened rooms, munching pills and listening to repetitive music."
--Kristian Wilson, Nintendo, Inc, 1989

The Disconnect Of Rep. Christopher Shays

"It was outrageous, outrageous involvement of National Guard troops.who were involved in a sex ring and they took pictures of soldiers who were naked, and they did other things that were just outrageous. But it wasn't torture."

Congressman Christopher Shays, October 11, 2006


Must be that Star Trek alternative parallel universe that Rep. Shays lives in.

TLC

The French Thought Police Are Alive & Well

France Outlaws Denial of Armenian Holocaust

In France, lawmakers have passed a bill that criminalizes denial of the Armenian holocaust. The bill was passed over the fierce lobbying of the Turkish government. Turkey continues to deny it killed some 1.5 million Armenians during the First World War.

Democracy Now, October 13, 2006

It Was The Booze, It Was The Critics...It Was Everything But Me

Mel Gibson said in an interview his anti-Semitic tirade last summer may have been set off by criticism of his 2004 movie "The Passion of the Christ" even before its release and by Israel's war in Lebanon.
Full Article, SF Chronicle, October 13, 2006


Memo to Mel:

1. Denial is still not just a river in Egypt...it runs through every vein of your body...

2. Google "Dry Drunk"

TLC

Like

"If you just set out to be liked, you would be prepared to compromise on anything at any time, and you would achieve nothing."
--Margaret Thatcher, British stateswoman

Bu$h: The Growing Gap From Reality

DerBu$hler today dismissed the report of over 600,000 deaths in Iraq due to Operation Iraqi Liberation:


Q Thank you, Mr. President. Back on Iraq. A group of American and Iraqi health officials today released a report saying that 655,000 Iraqis have died since the Iraq war. That figure is 20 times the figure that you cited in December, at 30,000. Do you care to amend or update your figure, and do you consider this a credible report?

THE PRESIDENT: No, I don't consider it a credible report. Neither does General Casey and neither do Iraqi officials...

Q -- the 30,000, Mr. President? Do you stand by your figure, 30,000?

THE PRESIDENT: You know, I stand by the figure. A lot of innocent people have lost their life -- 600,000, or whatever they guessed at, is just -- it's not credible. Thank you.

DerBu$hler's Press Conference, October 12, 2006


Fascinating: 30,000 innocents dead as of December, 2005. Still only 30,000 Iraqi civilians killed, 10 months later. Welcome to Bu$hworld, where nobody dies.


The major symptom of these disorders is psychosis, or delusions and hallucinations. Delusions are false beliefs that significantly hinder a person's ability to function.
--Definition, Psychotic Disorders (Including Schizophrenia)


TLC

North Korea: What's Good For The Goose...

DerBu$hler wants to "sanction" or "punish" North Korea for detonating a nuclear weapon.

Considering the U.S. has been blasting the planet, including atmospheric tests that spread radiation throughout Mother Earth, it appears the U.S. is long overdue for far more serious consequences.

And what awaits the U.S. for the deaths of over 600,000 Iraqis in order to keep the price of oil high by controlling the supply?

TLC

Maintenance

"Once a government resorts to terror against its own population to get what it wants, it must keep using terror against its own population to get what it wants. A government that terrorizes its own people can never stop. If such a government ever lets the fear subside and rational thought return to the populace, that government is finished."
--Michael Rivero

Impeachment Now: Petition Congress To Impeach Bu$h

Summary:

Petition Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr., who may throw your Petition in the trash, but WILL pay attention to the numbers of Petitioner he receives. To ensure the Petition is actually recorded and counted, send a copy to Rep. John Conyers. Print out pages 3 through 6 at http://beingism.org/cgi-bin/DIY.cgi

Petition YOUR Congressperson too. Print out pages 2 and 3 at http://beingism.org/cgi-bin/DIYExtra.cgi

TLC

__________________________________________
~ Impeach For Peace ~~

• DIY Impeachments: Send on NOW, Tell your friends today ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

• DIY Impeachments: Send NOW, Tell your friends...

CRITICAL: Email the following announcement to your contact lists...

---Mail going out in tomorrow's post will contain hundreds of thousands legal documents sent to the houses of Congress to initiate formally the impeachment of President George W. Bush. Put yours in the mail on Thursday, October 12th!

To do this, citizens will use a little known and rarely used part of the Rules of the House of Representatives. This procedure empowers individual citizens to initiate the impeachment process themselves. Although not well publicized prior to 2006, the method was discovered by Jodin Morey, an organizer for the Minneapolis-based group Impeach for Peace.

While researching the "Jefferson’s Manual," an interpretive guide to parliamentary procedure included (along with the Constitution) in the bound volumes of the Rules of the House of Representatives, Morey learned that there are multiple acceptable methods of bringing impeachment motions to the floor of the House. An impeachment Memorial, or "Do-It-Yourself Impeachment," is one of these. The process is ratified by each Congress--including the current one--and has been updated continuously through the history of our democracy.

DIY Impeachment has been used successfully before. An 1830 Memorial by Luke Edward Lawless was successful in initiating the impeachment of Federal Judge James H. Peck. This Memorial became the template for DIY Impeachment. After considerable research, Impeach for Peace is now certain that it has a legal document that U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert must recognize.

Any citizen can download the DIY Impeachment Memorial and submit it, making it possible for Americans to do what our representatives have been unwilling to do. The idea is for so many people to submit the Memorial that it cannot be ignored.

DIY Impeachment is part of the law, and legally, Hastert must recognize it. Another organizer for the group, Mikael Rudolph, explains: "He might still toss them all in the trash, but with House Minority Leader John Conyers also receiving copies, Hastert can be held accountable by Conyers."

Impeach for Peace is asking everyone to send in the memorials on a single date, October 12th. Rudolph continues, "Imagine dozens of extra trucks called into service to deliver tons of mail to Speaker Hastert and Congressman Conyers in mid to late October. The DIY Impeachment has been downloaded over 200,000 times."

Be a part of history: http://impeachforpeace.org/ImpeachNow.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

• It will take more than emails to accomplish our goal.

We need people to get out into the world and get involved. Calling all concerned citizens...Activate!

We need leaders. Ask yourself if you're willing to put in the time to help make this happen. No heiarchy, no egos. Our organization is proud of the fact that anybody who has the desire can step up and make things happen. There are a few of us who started things initially, but we're all in agreement that this movement must be democratic, and open to all. Anyone who wants to step up and make this happen, is free to. We'll provide you any resources to which we have access to help make your dreams of Bush-Free America come true.

We do need your help. This can't happen without people stepping up to demand Bush step down. Please contact us, come to a meeting (info on the website), and become a player in this movement. We have plenty of projects which are as-of-yet undone. Which one of you would like to head up the project to get the Minnesota Legislature to pass an impeachment resolution? We know how, and can provide you the resources necessary.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

• Become a sponsor...

Organizing requires resources. So far, most of the funding of this cause has been borne by those attending the meetings. However, we will obviously not be able to afford the costs associated with this whole movement as it grows. Please think of how important this effort is, and ask yourself if you can contribute to this cause of ours. Even $10 or $20 can really make a huge difference to us. You can do so on our website by clicking on the "Donate" button. Or, feel free to come to a meeting, and donate in person. We'd love to mention you as a sponsor on the website, or feel free to remain anonymous. You may choose to sponsor a specific cause. Perhaps a freeway banner? We'll be posting some specific needs related to our October protest soon. We are not-for-profit, so every dollar goes to Impeach Bush. Help us to reclaim our democracy. http://impeachforpeace.org/donate.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
• Recurring events

For details: http://beingism.org/cgi-bin/activistlistwcw.cgi

Every Tuesday-7:30pm Minneapolis World Can't Wait Meeting For 1.5 hours.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Other Impeach For Peace Resources...

Do-It-Yourself Impeachment: http://impeachforpeace.org/ImpeachNow.html

See all the events at http://beingism.org/cgi-bin/activistlistwcw.cgi

Join us for discussion at http://impeachforpeace.org/board/

See our blog at http://impeachforpeace.org/blog/

Our parent organization: http://worldcantwait.net

Success

"Success means fulfilling your own dreams, singing your own song, dancing your own dance, creating from your heart and enjoying the journey, trusting that whatever happens, it will be OK. Creating your own adventure!"
--Elana Lindquist

A Constitutional Right To Beat?

Good Grief. From The Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 Line, October 10, 2006, this gem:


"The issue is that I spanked my child. My child ended up going to school and the school ended up calling SRS on me, and they were saying that even if you do spank your child and it leaves a little bit of a mark on their bottom that you can be charged with battery. I think it's very unfair that a person cannot spank their child without being threated with a court case on battery."

Eyes

"I saw deep in the eyes of the animals the human soul look out upon me. I saw where it was born deep down under feathers and fur, or condemned for a while to roam four-footed among the brambles. I caught the clinging mute glance of the prisoner and swore that I would be faithful."
--Henry David Thoreau

Modesty

"No modest man ever did or ever will make a fortune."
--Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (1689-1762) English Writer

Eisenhower Carrier Group Sails for Iran Theater

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Eisenhower and its accompanying strike force of cruiser, destroyer and attack submarine slipped their moorings and headed off for the Persian Gulf region on Oct. 2, as I had predicted in a piece in The Nation magazine a few weeks back.
Full Article, Dave Lindorff, October 9, 2006

The Cowardice Of The BLT And Other Corporate Media

Great article by Dave Lindorff, October 9, 2006, on how the corporate press--the BLT, the SF Chronicle, and others--keep their reporters towing the Bu$h company line.

TLC

Child Predators Are Funny?

The Eureka Reporter recently added James Dobson of Focus On Fascism, er, "Focus On The Family", as a columnist. Perhaps they would like to consider Mr. Dobson's observations on Foleygate:

"As it turns out, Mr. Foley has had illicit sex with no one that we know of, and the whole thing turned out to be what some people are now saying was a -- sort of a joke by the boy and some of the other pages."

--Thanks to Media Matters, October 6, 2006

Perspective Of Aircraft

Letter to the editor by Joe Collins of San Francisco, printed in the SF Chronicle, October 9, 2006:


Editor -- A year ago, during Fleet week with the overwhelming roar of military aircraft above us, a co-worker of mine made the following observation:

"For some people, this is the last sound they hear. And to think, here we are, celebrating it."

The Real Threat

How many countries has North Korea attacked, without provocation, in the past 50 years? How many governments has North Korea overthrown during that time?

How many countries has the United States so attacked in the past 50 years? And the number of governments the U.S. has overthrown?

TLC

The Shape We're In

"Nothing says 'I am ashamed of you my government' more than 'Stewart/Colbert '08'"
--Jon Stewart

The Challenge

"It's easy to convict the guilty. The real challenge is to convict the innocent". --Tony Serra, Defense Attorney Extraordinaire http://www.courttv.com/trials/binion/111804_defense_ctv.html

Children

"When Jesus Christ asked little children to come to him, he didn't say only rich children, or White children, or children with two-parent families, or children who didn't have a mental or physical handicap. He said, 'Let all children come unto me.'"
--Marian Wright Edelman

Criticism

"If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much."
-- Donald H. Rumsfeld, US Secretary of Defense

A Celebration Of Genocide

Monday, October 9th, the U.S. celebrates "Columbus Day", the anniversary of the first of a series of events that led to a genocide of Native Americans that rivals what Hitler did to the Jews.

In what other country is the anniversary of what led to the senseless murder of over 10 million people a major paid national holiday, a cause for festivities and celebration?

TLC

Torture As The Policy Of The U.S. Government & Organized Religion

AP Learns Gitmo Guards Brag of Beatings

Guards at Guantanamo Bay bragged about beating detainees and described it as common practice, a Marine sergeant said in a sworn statement obtained by The Associated Press.

Full Story, SF Chronicle, October 6, 2006

___________________

America used to believe this was the conduct of dictatorships, of totalitarian governments, of brutal police states.

That's still the case, whatever the current Regime that occupies Washington may think.

That's also still the case, whatever most of the "leadership" in U.S. churches may think.

Why are the churches so silent?

Money. It's all about the money.

Churches are fearful that if they object to torture and other atrocities, their older members will stop donating money, and will leave part or all of their Estates to others.

They are afraid that if they offend Bu$h and his band of terrorists, that they will cut off the flow of government funds to churches, and send the IRS after them.

Jesus threw the moneychangers out of the temple.

And rest assured, if Jesus returns to this plane of existence, He will throw most of the Reverends, Priests, Pastors, and Ministers, out of the pseudo-churches and into the street gutters where they belong.

TLC

Sanity Takes A Migratory Flight

Hutchinson wants to discourage egrets

HUTCHINSON -- While some may enjoy the arrival of snowy-white migratory egrets, Hutchinson officials and residents are considering several different methods to get the birds to move somewhere else.

The first step was directing Hutchinson Police Chief Dick Heitschmidt to develop a new team to address an annual problem that drew federal officials back to Hutchinson this week. The birds, which some consider a nuisance because of the smell and noise they create, are a federally protected species, complicating any control measures.

Full Wire Service Article, Topeka Capital Journal, October 5, 2006

________________________

My letter to the Topeka Daily Capital (which carried the wire service article and makes their archives available for free) the Hutchinson News, and other papers:


Dear Editor:

Apparently, certain government officials and other citizens in Hutchinson Kansas have spent too much time in evidence rooms. Now the local police chief has been directed to remove egrets, a most magnificent and beautiful bird, from a town whose primary claim to fame is a prison.

How ironic that in a world with too many people that are so self-centered that they have no respect for the rights of others to live their lives in peaceful harmony, who lack appreciation for nature’s splendor, the Hutchinson "law enforcement" are preparing to inflict and perpetrate that mindset.

Sincerely,

Terry L. Clark

High School

"I know it's difficult for you to understand this now, Pete. But you've got the majority of your life ahead of you - and one day you'll find that these high school years will be a tiny, distant memory. The scars, of course, are yours to keep forever."
--Tom Batiuk (American Cartoonist)

Another Food Delicacy

Salon has an article by a chef whining that he might be limited in what animals are tortured to satisfy his craving for profits. My response:


Subject: Another Food Delicacy

Soylent Green. And I know one sick s.o.b. that should be the first ingredient.

Disgusted,

TLC

War Room: Get Back On Track

My email to Tim Grieve over at Salon:


Tim,

Literally millions of children are getting screwed in Iraq and Afghanistan by the Fourth Reich, yet your column is going ballistic on the Foley story. Could you get a grip here, and cover the horrific things that are happening to children with brown skin? And a mention or two about the royal fucking nearly 300 million Americans are getting due to the Fourth Reich and their complinat minions in CON-GRRR-US as the US Constitution, the Geneva Accords, and everything else this country used to stand for, gets waterboarded and flushed?

You may publish this--I just didn't want it get bogged in all the fog you're generating.

TLC

CB$ and ABC: Propaganda Agents For The Republicans

CBS "Breaking News" proclaims, Thu, 5 Oct 2006 13:26:22 -0400:

House Speaker Dennis Hastert will take responsibility for the page sex scandal that has rocked the House and call for new rules to discipline anyone making inappropriate contact with teenage pages, a House Republican official says.


ABC "Breaking News" proclaims, Thu, 5 Oct 2006 11:55:37 -0700:

HOUSE SPEAKER DENNIS HASTERT ON HOUSE PAGE SCANDAL: 'WE'RE TAKING RESPONSIBILITY ... 'ULTIMATELY, THE BUCK STOPS HERE'

________________________

My reply to CBS and ABC (just changed the letters, below):

Hastert's going to resign and pay monetary damages to all of the people harmed by his coverup?

Or is he just going to give lip service and continue to make excuses along the lines of, "I take responsibility even tho I didn't know what was going on, and never mind the fact that I was warned repeatedly and did nothing"?

CBS: Press Agents for the Republican Party once again.

TLC

USA, USSR: Welcome To The Gulag

Great interview with historian Kate Brown comparing the current move toward Gulags by the US and the decades of such terror in the USSR.

Welcome to Fascist America!

My fellow Americans, it’s official now: We live in a fascist nation.

Now, the term "fascist" has been thrown around over the last fifty years in a loose way that has drained it of much of its meaning. If someone wanted to cut 5% off of a leftist professor's favourite welfare programme, the professor would call his opponent a "fascist." I’m not using the word like that. I mean honest-to-goodness, old-fashioned, 1930s style fascism, featuring such old favourites as:

* Secret prisons – they’re back!
* Torture – we’re doing it.
* Spying on all citizens.
* Arrests and indefinite imprisonment without trial.
* Rampant militarism.
* Secret detention.
* Enforced disappearance.
* Denial and restriction of habeas corpus.
* Prolonged incommunicado detention.
* Unfair trial procedures.

Full article, well worth a couple minutes to finish reading, from Gene Callahan at Lew Rockwell.com

Fact

"As a rule, indeed, grown-up people are fairly correct on matters of fact; it is in the higher gift of imagination that they are so sadly to seek."
--Kenneth Grahame (1859-1932) Scottish Author

Pucker Up & Kiss The 1st Amendment Goodbye Too

A Denver-area man filed a lawsuit today against a member of the Secret Service for causing him to be arrested after he approached Vice President Dick Cheney in Beaver Creek this summer and criticized him for his policies concerning Iraq.

According to the lawsuit filed at U.S. District Court in Denver, Howards and his son walked to about two-to-three feet from where Cheney was standing, and said to the vice president, "I think your policies in Iraq are reprehensible," or words to that effect, then walked on.

Ten minutes later, according to Howards' lawsuit, he and his son were walking back through the same area, when they were approached by Secret Service agent Virgil D. "Gus" Reichle Jr., who asked Howards if he had "assaulted" the vice president. Howards denied doing so, but was nonetheless placed in handcuffs and taken to the Eagle County Jail.


Full Story, Rocky Mountain News, October 3, 2006

Great Day

"Any day I have stirred up some dormant brain cells is a great day".
--Terry L. Clark

Hillary, The Vapid Clinton

Explaining why she [Hillary Clinton] had not taken any unpopular stances and championed no big ideas, Hillary answered Joshua Green more like diva than devil in the upcoming cover story for The Atlantic Monthly: "Everything I do carries political risk because nobody gets the scrutiny that I get. It's not like I have any margin for error whatsoever."

--NYT columnist Maureen Dowd, September 27, 2006
___________________

Thankfully, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, when he was Senator from New York, felt differently. Indeed, all those that most of us look up to had a different view of their place in this world.

TLC

Choose

"Choose any direction,
as long as it's moving forward".
--Toyota Advertisement

It All Depends On Your Definition Of "Donation"

Humboldt County California is having an election in November for the Fourth District Board Of Supervisors, pitting Nancy Flemming, the stalking horse for billionaire developer Rob Arkley, against 20-year Republican incumbent Bonnie Neely, who is supported by those by those opposed to Mr. Arkley's plan to cover longstanding highly toxic pollution with dirt and build a Home Despot on top of it.

Monday night, October 2nd, there was a debate of sorts between the two candidates. On one key issue, here's how the two local excuses for newspapers handled it:

_____________________

On the issue of campaign finance, both candidates fielded questions about who is backing their campaigns.

Neely responded to questions about the $25,000 she received from the Blue Lake Rancheria, and the influence some feel that may buy.

She said she was both pleased and surprised by the group's support.

"They endorsed me because they thought I had a backbone and I was honest," she said.

Flemming took a question about her discarded promise from the primary to limit donations to $500, which she said she had to disregard when her opponent wouldn't take the same pledge. She said she wished she could have kept to that limit.

"This election shouldn't be about money," she said.

Eureka Times-Standard, October 3, 2006

_____________________

One caller questioned Neely on a $25,000 campaign contribution from the Blue Lake Rancheria, which was reported to be the single largest political donation in the county's history.

Neely said she was surprised and proud to get the endorsement, which she said was the first ever by the tribe for a political candidate.

"They said they endorsed me because I have a backbone and I was honest," Neely said.

On the issue of campaign contributions, Neely called Flemming out on what she called a "broken promise" to limit her campaign contributions to less than $500.

Although Flemming did limit her contributions for the primary election, she removed that limit the night of the primary to be able to better compete with Neely and her large donations.

Eureka Reporter, October 3, 2006
_____________________

So, similar articles, right?

The Times-Standard proclaims itself to be the paper of, "Credibility, Truth, Compassion".

The Eureka Reporter declares itself to be "fair, balanced and independent".

The Eureka Reporter, by the way, is owned by billionaire developer Rob Arkley.


But what's missing from both articles is the fact that, during the debate that actually took place, the issue came up in the context of Nancy Flemming, during the Primary--a time when she was supposedly taking donations of no more than $500.00--sold some of her paintings to raise funds for her campaign. Flemming refused to disclose the selling price of those paintings, and further refused to reveal who they were sold to.

So much for a $500.00 limit. THAT is what Flemming was asked about. THAT is what Neely was referring to in her response. But you wouldn't know that from reading either of the two main local birdcage liners.

So much for reporting of the news with credibility, truth, fairness or balance. Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dumb--Dumb being what the major local newspapers must think their readers are.

And for those who watched the debate that actually took place: Flemming never answered the question, and the triplet reporters (Times-Standard, Eureka Reporter, and North Coast Journal) never followed up to get a meaningful answer.

TLC

White House View On Mark Foley

“There have been other scandals, as you know, that have been more than simply naughty emails.”
--White House Press Secretary Tony Snow

Source: National Review, October 3, 2006

Peddlers

From The Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 call-in line, October 3, 2006:

"I wonder if I'm the only parent in USD 305 that is sick and tired of their kids being turned into miniature merchants. Every time I turn around they're having to sell something else to raise money for the school. I send them to school to learn, not to be street peddlers."

Flags

From The Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 call-in line, October 3, 2006:

"Waving a flag around does not make you more superior or more patriotic than people who don't. What it does make you is an idol worshiper."

Freedom

"Man is tormented by no greater anxiety than to find someone quickly to whom he can hand over that great gift of freedom with which the ill-fated creature is born."
--Fyodor Dostoevsky, "The Brothers Karamazov"

PETITIION--URGENT--HELP SAVE LIVES

Watch the slideshow:

http://slideroll.com/?s=xuep28qt

Now, you DO have 30 seconds to sign the petition. Your signature, and comment if you like, can help save so many lives:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/NoahsJustice/index.html

Because if you don't have time for them...who will have time for you if society ever decides YOU have become inconvenient?

I have written about Noah's Ark before:

http://terrylclark.blogspot.com/2006/08/noahs-ark-in-long-beach-speak-out-on.html

http://terrylclark.blogspot.com/2006/09/noahs-ark-animal-rescue-getting-word.html

http://terrylclark.blogspot.com/2006/09/noahs-ark-animal-rescue-another-way.html


TLC
________________________

From: Donna Willinsky [mailto:dogfishdonna@earthlink.net]
Sent: Monday, October 02, 2006 10:27 AM
Subject: NOAH'S ARK-PETITION! (And Hearing Tomorrow-Tues. Oct. 3rd, 5pm) PLEASE CROSSPOST!Importance: High

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/NoahsJustice/index.html

Hi! Thanks for opening this e-mail.

This was sent to me from Alexiea from Noah's Ark who had all her animals taken in an illegal seizure and without a warrant. She is fighting this atrocity with everything she's got and she will not give up. Neither should we. She has nursed so many of these animals back to health when no one else could or would. Now they're back in the pound and many of them are dying in there from lack of care. Many are old and need their medicine.

If there's any way you can make it tomorrow, please try to attend. It's in Long Beach, California.

Either way, PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION! It could mean so much to the animals who have been caught in this horrible legal crossfire. They are dying at the shelter right now and really need our help getting out!

Thank you so much,

Sincerely,

Donna Willinsky, Director of Animal Welfare, Atwater Village

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/NoahsJustice/index.html

________________________

From: "alex", akyrklund@earthlink.net
Date: October 2, 2006 9:43:06 AM PDT

We will be going in front of the city council tomorrow - PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION - and if you can come..

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/NoahsJustice/index.html

PLEASE CROSS THIS TO EVERYONE WE WANT TO GO IN FRONT OF THE CITY COUNCIL WITH THOUSANDS OF SIGNATURES AND SHOW THE MAYOR WE HAVE NOT STOPPED FIGHTING.

WE NEED AS MANY BODIES OF SUPPORT WE CAN GET IF ANYONE CAN ATTEND IT WILL HELP THE ANIMALS GREATLY

The lawyers feel that if the council looks across and sees a full audience it will cause them to waver--our objective is the release without impound fees.

They are holding these pets as a lien against impound fees. In other words pay close to $100,000 and get the animals out--that is financial blackmail.

And remember we are still trying to raise funds for the lawyer who is busting his ass.

Thanks to Jennifer so please every thing helps

With an attorney we can also get the impound fees dropped

Please donate if you can!

Anyone that wants to attend us at 5 pm Tues the 3rd at the city hall long beach I believe its 333 ocean blvd.

Please send me an email if you are speaking so that we can organize it.

Alexiea

Alexiea's e-mail: akyrklund@earthlink.net

Noah's Ark Website: http://www.n-a-a-r.org/

These are some of the animals still at the Long Beach Animal Shelter! They need our help getting out!

Slideshow: http://slideroll.com/?s=xuep28qt

Petition: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/NoahsJustice/index.html


Thank you!

And We'll Keep Killin' Until There's Nobody Left

The more innocents we kill, the more people that become ticked and become opposed to Bu$h and company (ergo, become "terrorists"), so we have to kill them too...until there's nobody left...

TLC
________________________

President Bush Vows Attacks “Across the World”

On Saturday, President Bush vowed to continue waging attacks across the world. His comment came during his weekly radio address.

President Bush: “The only way to protect our citizens at home is to go on the offense against the enemy across the world. When terrorists spend their days working to avoid capture, they are less able to plot, plan, and execute new attacks on our people. So we will remain on the offense until the terrorists are defeated and this fight is won.”


Source: Democracy Now, October 2, 2006

Guess We'll Have To Keep Troops There Forever

Having created the conditions that have resulted in gross human rights abuses by all concerned, the US will now use that as an excuse to keep US troops in Iraq indefinitely, and proclaim that it is doing so to promote human rights.

George Orwell must be saddened by how all of his warnings have gone unheeded.

TLC
______________________________________________

Iraq’s Human Rights Abuses Could Jeopardize U.S. Funding

The U.S. government is warning Iraq that it may be forced to withhold funding for Iraq’s security forces unless the Iraqi police improve its human rights record. Under what is known as the Leahy Law, the U.S. government is prohibited from financing foreign security forces that commit "gross violations of human rights."

Source: Democracy Now, October 2, 2006

Foley & Alcoholism

The morning "breaking news" emails are proclaiming that Rep. Mark Foley, who has spent years proclaiming his concern for protecting children from internet predators while being one himself, particularly with male Congressional pages, has checked into an alcoholism treatment facility.

Since when does alcoholism turn a person into an aggressive predator wanting to have sex with children?

The corporate media is, once again, attempting to cover for the Republicans.

TLC

"Christians" And Torture

From The Salina [Kansas] Journal's anonymous Extension 333 call-in line, October 2, 2006:

"Now that Sen. Brownback voted to approve torture, I hope he stops calling himself a Christian."

Start

"Do not wait! The time will never be 'just right'. Start where you stand and work with whatever tools you may have at your command and better tools will be found as you go along."
--Napoleon Hill

Usurpation

"It is only when the people become ignorant and corrupt, when they degenerate into a populace, that they are incapable of exercising their sovereignty. Usurpation is then an easy attainment, and an usurper soon found. The people themselves become the willing instruments of their own debasement and ruin."
--James Monroe (1758-1831) American president

Vote Democratic and Always Carry a Toothbrush

I've decided to start carrying a toothbrush.

Incredibly, we’ve reached that point in America where, thanks to a bunch of spineless traitors in Congress (Republicans and Democrats), it is only a matter of time before the state begins rounding up people like me and whisking us off to dark cells without telling anyone.

Full Article, by Dave Lindorff, October 1, 2006. Well worth taking a few minutes to read.

Spider

A meditation student, while meditating in his room, believed he saw a spider descending in front of him. Each day the menacing creature returned, growing larger and larger each time.

So frightened was the student, that he went to his teacher to report his dilemma. He said he planned to place a knife in his lap during meditation, so when the spider appeared he would kill it.

The teacher advised him against this plan. Instead, he suggested, bring a piece of chalk to meditation, and when the spider appeared, mark an "X" on its belly. Then report back.


The student returned to his meditation. When the spider again appeared, he resisted the urge to attack it, and instead did just what the master suggested. When he later reported back to the master, the teacher told him to lift up his shirt and look at his own belly. There was the "X".

--Source Unknown