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To: Cogito who wrote (500)	6/16/2008 2:01:45 PM
From: one_less	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 3816

Supreme court to decide if people should be executed for raping children ... and Gun law Exxon fines (For 1989 disaster) =========== Gun rights is biggest issue for court to decide By MARK SHERMAN,AP WASHINGTON (AP) - One momentous case down, another equally historic decision to go. The Supreme Court returns to the bench Monday with 17 cases still unresolved, including its first-ever comprehensive look at the Second Amendment's right to bear arms. The guns case - including Washington, D.C.'s ban on handguns - is widely expected to be a victory for supporters of gun rights. Top officials of a national gun control organization said this week that they expect the handgun ban to be struck down, but they are hopeful other gun regulations will survive. Last week, the court delivered the biggest opinion of the term to date with its ruling, sharply contested by the dissenting justices, that guarantees some constitutional rights to foreign terrorism detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The 5-4 decision, which Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote for his four more liberal colleagues, was the first case this term that broke along ideological lines. The conservative-liberal split was seen frequently last term, including in cases that limited abortion rights, reined in voluntary school desegregation plans, made it harder to sue for pay discrimination and prodded the Bush administration to combat global warming by regulating tailpipe emissions. Kennedy was the only justice in the majority in all those cases, siding with conservatives in all but the global-warming dispute. It's hardly unusual that the cases that take until late spring to resolve are the most contentious and most likely to produce narrow majorities. The dispute over gun rights poses several important questions. Although the Second Amendment was ratified in 1791, the court has never definitively said what it means to have a right to keep and bear arms. The justices also could indicate whether, even with a strong statement in support of gun rights, Washington's handgun ban and other gun control laws can be upheld. Officials at the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence said recently that they expect Washington's 32-year-old handgun ban to fall but believe that background checks, limits on large-volume gun sales and prohibitions on certain categories of weapons can survive. In addition to the guns case, the justices are still weighing whether Exxon Mobil Corp. has to pay a $2.5 billion punitive damages judgment over the Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska in 1989 and whether people convicted of raping children may be executed. Exxon has been fighting an Alaska jury's verdict for 14 years, contending that the $3.5 billion it already has spent following the worst oil spill in U.S. history is enough. The jury initially awarded $5 billion to 33,000 commercial fishermen, Native Alaskans, landowners, businesses and local governments, but a federal appeals court cut the verdict in half. Some justices appeared, based on their comments when the case was argued in February, to favor cutting the judgment further. Justice Samuel Alito is sitting out the case because he owns $100,000 to $250,000 in Exxon stock. Also awaiting a decision is the case of a man sentenced to death in Louisiana after he was convicted of raping his 8-year-old stepdaughter. Only five states - Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas are the others - allow executions for the rape of a child, but only Louisiana has imposed death sentences on people convicted of the crime. The Supreme Court banned executions for rape in 1977 in a case in which the victim was an adult woman. The last executions for rape or any other crime that did not include a victim's death were in 1964. Retirements typically are announced at the end of the term, although it would be a huge surprise if anyone decided to retire this year with a presidential election looming and little prospect of a nominee being confirmed before then. Five justices, though, will be at least 70 by the time the court reconvenes in October. Justice John Paul Stevens is 88, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is 75, Justice Antonin Scalia is 72, Kennedy will turn 72 in July and Justice Stephen Breyer will celebrate his 70th birthday in August. On the Net: Supreme Court: supremecourtus.gov

To: Cogito who wrote (500)	6/16/2008 8:38:33 PM
From: one_less	Respond to of 3816

I am creating a barometer for humanity. One end is desperation and the other is tranquility. Which way do you all think we are trending, or do you think it is samo samo? What do you all think will move humanity's mercury one way or the other? Human trafficking Economic Collapse Increased Prosperity Oil Food Population Drought and other climatic extremes Terrorism Diplomacy Superpower conflict Culture clash Cultural blending Social and societal degradation Social evolution Modernization Empire building Globalization Technology Education Religion Philosophy Politics Feel free to add to the list

To: Cogito who wrote (500)	6/18/2008 4:47:48 PM
From: one_less	Respond to of 3816

Sex trafficking and illegal workers threaten OlympicsStewart Tendler The London Olympics will be a magnet for people traffickers smuggling sex slaves and illegal workers into Britain, Home Office and police chiefs forecast yesterday. Investigators believe that gangs are certain to try to exploit the millions on offer for workers on the £9 billion project. The gangs know that workers will have wages to spend. The warning came in a Home Office report on combating trafficking, published yesterday, which noted: “Criminal elements are expected to exploit the situation by establishing themselves in London from now on. Organised immigration crime, including human trafficking, has been factored into the strategic planning for the Olympics 2012.” Graham Maxwell, the deputy chief constable of South Yorkshire and a national spokesman on combating trafficking, said: “There is a possibility for labour exploitation and a possibility for sexual exploitation. There will be huge construction projects taking place.” He added: “You will have young men together who earn considerable amounts of money. If they spend that money paying for sex, we must make sure they are aware there are women held against their will. Organised crime will operate wherever they can make a profit.” As part of the strategy, freed victims of trafficking will be allowed to stay in Britain temporarily and the Home Office is accepting the European Convention on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings. The convention offers victims such as women sold into the sex trade the right to at least 30 days’ grace after they escape from traffickers. Ministers have until now refused to join the agreement because there were fears that it could be abused by illegal immigrants and even attract illegal immigrants to Britain. The move is likely to win cross-party backing after the Conservatives urged ministers to sign the convention earlier this year. David Davis, the Shadow Home Secretary, said that the step was vital for “moral reasons” in an effort to protect exploited victims. There were an estimated 4,000 victims of trafficking working in prostitution in the UK during 2003. Another estimate put the figure at 10,000 in London and the Midlands. Other aspects of the plan include special teams set up at ports, a new national system to support victims and a child trafficking telephone advice line. John Reid, the Home Secretary, signing the convention yesterday, said: “This weekend marks the 200th year since the legal abolition of the slave trade and I am happy to celebrate such an occasion by taking steps forward to tackling the appalling modern-day slavery we see in human trafficking.” He said that the convention would help Britain to give minimum rights and protection for all identified victims of trafficking. timesonline.co.uk