This is a Moderated Forum for a small group of Democrats who have been unable to express political or economic opinion without harassment from bullies on open threads.
Bush and Cheney's Support for Vicious Attacks on Senator Daschle: Message 16777183 Message 16775650 ..........................................***********************............................................................. Conservatives Support HATE Attacks on Senator Leahy "Someone in Washington pushed the button to activate the far-right political network," said David Carle, Leahy's spokesman. "Thousands of folks were given scripts and asked to call, and there also were many hate calls and messages, including those in print." Message 16787320 .........................................***************************........................................................... Folks who Contributed or Offered Help to the Bush Campain. ENRON:http://www.siliconinvestor.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=16781387 Akin, Gump: Message 16781291 Vasquez Director of Corps, See: Message 16781237 ...........................................************************..........................................................
"By juggling Big Oil, defence, and government, at any rate, senior members of the US (BUSH) administration have ensured that they have a finger in every possible pie."
( Opinion: siliconinvestor.com ............................................************************........................................................ Political Commentary: democrats.org AND democrats.com democrats.com us.net ...........................................**********************............................................ Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe said: "We now know why the Bush Social Security Commission met in secret: because it plans to cut Social Security benefits and raise the retirement age. (12/11/2001) democrats.org See:http://www.siliconinvestor.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=16789731 ........................................**********************............................................. References: SHRUB by Molly Ivins and Lou Dubose, Random House, Copyright 2000.
"The highlights of Ashcroft's new methods to spy on you," by Molly Ivins (see: Message 16781455 )
Back Ground: Lost History: Contras, Cocaine, The Press & Project Truth by Robert Parry, The Media Consortium, Arlington, Virginia, Copyright 1999 by Robert Perry. PARRY ASKS: >How did the vaunted Watergate press corps of the 70s become the Monica Lewinsky press corps of the 90s? >What's real and what's not about cocaine trafficking by President Reagan's Nicaraguan contras?
( For opinion see Message 16706547 )
Taliban Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia by Ahmed Rashid, published in the United States by Yale University Press. Copyright 2000 by Ahmed Rashid. The author covered Afghanistan as a reporter for approximately 21 years.
ucomics.com. .........................................***************************........................................................... Arctic Oil: A Distraction, Not a Solution Oil companies are after Alaska's Arctic Refuge, but drilling would deeply scar this majestic wilderness without solving our country's energy problems.
Spread the word: Send (a) letter from Robert Redford to friends and family. nrdc.org For additional information: Message 16662802 .........................................................*******************..................................................................... President Bush's energy plan won't work, because it makes the wrong choices. The Bush Administration energy plan ignores high-tech, energy-efficient solutions in favor of increased oil, gas, coal, and nuclear production, while his budget proposal slashes funding for renewable energy and efficiency by a third.
The Sierra Club realizes that we can't drill, dig or destroy our way out of our energy problems. That's why we're pushing for a more honest, balanced policy that promotes energy efficiency, uses clean renewable energy like wind and solar power, and emphasizes responsible production. Americans need an energy policy that provides quicker, cleaner, cheaper, and safer solutions. See what America would look like under the Bush energy plan. Where does he plan to put those 1,300 new power plants? sierraclub.org ............................................................****************.............................................. Justice Deformed: War and the Constitution "Americans must speak up . We do not want history to record this as one of those mixed moments in which the behavior of our government failed to live up to the performance of our troops in the field. We do not want to remember this as a time when the nations of the world united in a campaign against terrorists, and then backed away when America attempted to prosecute foreign nationals in secret trials conducted according to unfair rules. " New York Times Editorial, December 2, 2001 Message 16735016
USA: Presidential order on military tribunals threatens fundamental principles of justice -- AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL November 15, 2001 Amnesty International is deeply troubled by the Military Order signed by President George W. BUSH on 13 November allowing for the trial by special military commissions of non-US citizens suspected of involvement in "international terrorism."
Since the attacks in the USA on 11 September, Amnesty International has been calling for anyone suspected of involvement in these crimes to be brought to justice in accordance with international standards for a fair trial. This sweeping presidential order bypasses those fundamental principles, in contravention of US obligations under international law, specifically the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ratified by the USA in 1992. As such it is unacceptable and should be revoked. amnesty.org Last updated : November 15 (http://www.siliconinvestor.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=16744493)
For opinion see:http://www.siliconinvestor.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=16768014 Message 16741421 Message 16716460 Message 16705404 Message 16685494 ............................................................*******************............................................... .......................................THE PATRIOT ACT .......................... house.gov Acrobat viewer needed.
eff.org HTML the Act eff.org EFF Analysis (Electronic Frontier Foundation)
EFF Analysis Of The Provisions Of The USA PATRIOT Act That Relate To Online Activities (Oct 31, 2001) Introduction On October 26, 2001, President BUSH signed the USA Patriot Act (USAPA) into law. With this law we have given sweeping new powers to both domestic law enforcement and international intelligence agencies and have eliminated the checks and balances that previously gave courts the opportunity to ensure that these powers were not abused. Most of these checks and balances were put into place after previous misuse of surveillance powers by these agencies, including the revelation in 1974 that the FBI and foreign intelligence agencies had spied on over 10,000 U.S. citizens, including Martin Luther King.
A Rush Job
The bill is 342 pages long and makes changes, some large and some small, to over 15 different statutes. This document provides explanation and some analysis to the sections of the bill relating to online activities and surveillance. Other sections, including those devoted to money laundering, immigration and providing for the victims of terrorism, are not discussed here.
Yet even just considering the surveillance and online provisions of the USAPA, it is a large and complex law that had over four different names and several versions in the five weeks between the introduction of its first predecessor and its final passage into law. While containing some sections that seem appropriate -- providing for victims of the September 11 attacks, increasing translation facilities and increasing forensic cybercrime capabilities -- it seems clear that the vast majority of the sections included have not been carefully studied by Congress, nor was sufficient time taken to debate it or to hear testimony from experts outside of law enforcement in the fields where it makes major changes. This concern is amplified because several of the key procedural processes applicable to any other proposed laws, including inter-agency review, the normal committee and hearing processes and thorough voting, were suspended for this bill.
Were our Freedoms the Problem?
The civil liberties of ordinary Americans have taken a tremendous blow with this law, especially the right to privacy in our online communications and activities. Yet there is no evidence that our previous civil liberties posed a barrier to the effective tracking or prosecution of terrorists. In fact, in asking for these broad new powers, the government made no showing that the previous powers of law enforcement and intelligence agencies to spy on US citizens were insufficient to allow them to investigate and prosecute acts of terrorism. The process leading to the passage of the bill did little to ease these concerns. To the contrary, they are amplified by the inclusion of so many provisions that, instead of aimed at terrorism, are aimed at nonviolent, domestic computer crime. In addition, although many of the provisions facially appear aimed at terrorism, the Government made no showing that the reasons they failed to detect the planning of the recent attacks or any other terrorist attacks were the civil liberties compromised with the passage of USAPA.
(See EFF SIite for a continuation of the analysis. You may be surprised to learn that the Bush Administration may spy on your Google or other internet searches)
The Bushies and ENRON
"Rep. Henry Waxman , a California Democrat and ranking member of the Government Reform Committee, wrote to Vice President Richard Cheney seeking information on Enron's possible influence on the Republican administration's energy policy.
I am writing to ask that you release information about secret contacts your energy taskforce had with Enron Corporation,'' said the letter, which was dated Tuesday.
``Press reports indicate Enron -- a major Republican contributor -- had detailed communications with the taskforce and other senior administration officials,'' Waxman wrote." December 5, 2001,http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20011205/pl/utilities_enron_. See :http://www.siliconinvestor.com/readmsg.aspx?msgid=16777296 Message 16753542 Opinion: Message 16764210 "Enron-gate: Where are the investigations of Bush's liaison with the bankrupt company" by Molly Ivins (See: siliconinvestor.com
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