Constitution

AT&T Whistleblower: Spy Bill Creates 'Infrastructure for a Police State' By Ryan Singel June 27, 2008 Mark Klein, the retired AT&T engineer who stepped forward with the technical documents at the heart of the anti-wiretapping case against AT&T, is furious at the Senate's vote on Wednesday night to hold a vote on a bill intended to put an end to that lawsuit and more than 30

The Thai prime minister, Samak Sundaravej, has blamed the military-backed constitution for his political woes, and says he will press ahead with amending it. Since coming into power six months ago the government has faced a barrage of challenges. On Tuesday, the ruling coalition lost two legal battles which could pave the way for impeachment of the [...]

Kucinich Bringing Back Impeachment This Week Ben Pershing Keeping true to his word, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) informed his colleagues today that he would bring one article of impeachment against President Bush "for taking our nation and our troops to war based on lies" to the House floor Thursday. In early June, Kucinich introduced 35 articles of impeachment against Bush and demanded that

The 10th Amendment to the US Constitution embodies much of what the founders envisioned for this country - a federal government strictly limited to only specific activities, with the rest being handled on state or local levels. Some may call this states’ rights, others refer to it as decentralization or federalism.  Whatever you call it, it’s [...]

The only known autograph of Abraham Lincoln from the day of the Gettysburg Address will be displayed at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.Center President Joseph Torsella said the signature is in an autograph book purchased at auction by businessman and philanthropist Lewis Katz. Torsella said the book is the only thing Lincoln is known to have signed during the November 1863 visit

Oakland, California, looks to be the next city to back off of the "Safe Homes Initiative," a plan to send officers door to door to look for illegally possessed firearms. When the project was announced in Boston late last year, it was met with a storm of protests. A few months later, Washington, D.C., announced it would be conducting a similar program, and that city was greeted with prote

Today the Supreme Court of the United States of America issued a judgment that says the Second Amendment is indeed an individual right. I know the 2nd amendment is a hot-button topic for many and widely debated, but today the Supreme Court has smacked down the argument that the 2nd Amendment is not an [...]

~Snooper~This is what happens when an idiot thinks it might know something about the Constitution. Kind of reminds me of Ron Paul. He can spell and say "constitution" too. If these fools actually read and studied Madison's notes, the Federalist and the anti-Federalist Papers, they just might learn something. Naturally, truth is abhorrent to these lackies of blissful ignorance. Once again, BDS

Delta Air Lines will cut its domestic capacity by 12 percent to 13 percent in the last half of this year to help cope with rising fuel costs, Chief Executive Richard Anderson said Thursday. Anderson also said during an appearance on CNBC that fares would “have to go up pretty significantly,” boosting industry revenue 15 [...]

This is pure unadulterated insanity. If the left insists on feeding the beast, it will soon devour U.S. From Stop The ACLU. Supreme Court Creates Killing Update: ACLU Cheers!-By Warner Todd Huston In a 5 to 4 decision, the idiots on the Supreme Court have decided that terrorists are covered by our Constitution, no matter where they are captured [...]

~Snooper~In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.The above is what the Constit

ISLAMABAD: The Constitution Avenue has been blocked with huge containers and barbed wires to block long march on Islamabad.D. Chowk has been blocked with ten containers and entry and exit routes of several others avenues have also been blocked, the sources added.The security has been beefed up and snap checking has been started at [...]

She is the oldest commissioned ship afloat in the world, and is even still in service by the US Navy. First put to sea on July 22, 1798, the USS Constitution, or “Old Ironsides” is still running strong, over two centuries later.Old Ironsides, one of six authorized for construction by the Naval Act of 1794, was one of the Navy’s capital ships. Therefore, she is larger and was more heavily arm

AT&T exec predicts mobile phones will match computersAtlanta Journal Constitution,  USA -2 hours agoBy KRISTI E. SWARTZ AT&T Mobility executive David Christopher said Tuesday mobile phones will become as powerful as personal computers. … . via iBeginShare.attachButton('share-tool-905419192', {title: 'AT&T exec predicts mobile phones will match computers - Atlan

(Billings, MT) Today, Senator Hillary Clinton, claimed victory in her fight to win the Democratic nomination for President of the United States.“It’s over! It’s over, because I have won the popular vote, by a wide wide margin!” said Clinton to a group of farmers. “All we have to do is count the vote using my new new math!”

The other day, I wrote a defense of "judicial activism" in which I showed how "activism," in the sense of judges overturning laws, is in fact one of the two primary purposes of the judiciary (along with the obvious job of arbitrating criminal and civil cases). In support of my contention, I quoted extensively from Alexander Hamilton's Federalist #78 (and if you recall your history, Hamilton was fa

The U.S. Government has abandonedthe Rule of Law as defined by the Peoplevia the Constitution.The numerous crises currently confronting our Republic are not the result of poor political policies. These evils are the direct result of decades of violations of the U.S. Constitution by our servant Government.

Hitler-esque?On the Alex Jones Show today, a bible student at a large Christian college in Mount Vernon, Texas, related a story of intimidation as Department of Homeland Security goons dressed in black accused him of engaging in terrorism for teaching a group of Boy Scouts about the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.The student and interim pastor, going by the name “Jeff,” told Alex Jones he

8×10, Golden Open Acrylics on Canson board Please email me at JamieWG@aol.com if interested in this painting. This is another painting done this week from the Boscobel overlook to the Hudson River. The channels wind through Constitution Marsh, and the spring foliage is still sparse enough to clearly see them between the islands of violet-toned grasses. It’s [...]

Catholic charity Caritas will on Tuesday present an Arabic translation of the Italian constitution in a bid to help immigrants integrate in the southern city of Agrigento.Caritas will distribute the Arabic translation to schools, offices, and public bodies in Agrigento in southern Sicily. More...

Malaysia practises a system of parliamentary democracy and is ruled as a Constitutional Monarchy, with His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as the Head of the Country. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong is elected to the throne for a five year term from one of the hereditary Rulers of the nine states in the Federation which are ruled by Sultans. The states are Perlis, Kedah, Perak, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Johor, Pahang, Terengganu and Kelantan.In the other states, namely Melaka, Pulau Pinang, Sabah and Sarawak, the Head of State is the Yang di-Pertuan Negero or Governor of the state. The Yang di-Pertuan Negeri is appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for a four year term.The Federal Constitution of Malaysia clearly divides the authority of the Federation into its Legislative Authority, Judicia

We have just seen a newly elected Government, ready to face plenty of challenges and started fixing evil doing of the last government. Crisis of almost every thing from Electricity to Floor & Sugar have been suffer and still suffering. The government of Shaukat Aziz exported wheat at the rate of $200 per ton without necessary calculation that it may cause Shortage for our own. After the flour

10×8″, Acrylic on Canson Board $200 via PayPal, $10 shipping within US One of the nicest things about the Constitution Marsh overview from Boscobel at this time of year is that the foreground foliage doesn’t obscure so much of the marsh. I really enjoyed being able to paint a couple of vertical compositions there this week, instead [...]

It is claimed that Britain has no written constitution. We often hear quoted the doctrine ‘No parliament may bind its successor’. Today most often it is used to imply that there are no constitutional obligations limiting Parliament’s power. If this were true there would be no constitution and the sovereignty of Parliament would be unlimited. The reality [...]

It is claimed that Britain has no written constitution. We often hear quoted the doctrine ‘No parliament may bind its successor’. Today most often it is used to imply that there are no constitutional obligations limiting Parliament’s power. If this were true there would be no constitution and the sovereignty of Parliament would be unlimited. The reality [...]

It is claimed that Britain has no written constitution. We often hear quoted the doctrine ‘No parliament may bind its successor’. Today most often it is used to imply that there are no constitutional obligations limiting Parliament’s power. If this were true there would be no constitution and the sovereignty of Parliament would be unlimited. The reality [...]

~Snooper~Traitors all. One day, our government officials are going to grow a set of cajones and come to grips with that which we face. We are facing, in these modern times, a sophisticated and conniving enemy. They live amongst us. They claim to be American Patriots. They claim to be members of the Peace Movement. They claim to be members of the Anti-War Movement. They claim Free Speech and Freedom of Expression and thereby utilize those claimed "rights" to advocate the overthrow of the United States Government and that same United States Constitution.Their rhetoric is 180-degrees out of phase of the United States Constitution that they hide behind. It is "Rather" simple when one learns to recognize the tell-tale signs. Your first steps to learning the language of the Enemies Withi

CIA spokesman George Little continually insists the agency has operated its terrorist detention and interrogation program in accordance with US law. After being held for nearly three years in secret CIA prisons or “black sites,” a Yemeni prisoner, Khalid Al-Maqtani, was finally released without any charges being brought before a judicial tribunal. Al-Maqtania told Amnesty [...]

By Carlos Benito CamachoThe Supreme Court of the United States will consider the meaning of the second amendment to the American Constitution. Written more than 200 years ago, the amendment says, "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."The second amendment came in a package of ten amendments known as the Bill of Rights, which states or deals with the American citizens individual rights, and it was added to the American Constitution in 1791. Since it was a time when there was no institutionalized federal army or national guard yet, with its own logistic and armory, every citizen who joined the state militia had to carry with him his own private gun, musket at that time. By the end of

I applaud the nine members of the House Constitution and Elections committee who voted in favor of moving the bill calling for a constitutional convention to the floor for a vote. The people of Alabama deserve the chance to vote on this important legislation, denying them that right is not fair or democratic. Panel says [...]

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. Article 1. Section 1 All legislative Powers herein granted shall [...]

by Rep Ron Paul It has been over 6 years since the atrocities of September 11 were committed and there are still some very basic measures that need to be taken to bring the perpetrators to justice and make America  safer.  I have proposed legislation to help with these efforts and will continue to fight in [...]

For a long, long time, we’ve heard people debate back and forth about whether or not there’s a “right to privacy” in the Constitution (and Bill of Rights). For an excellent lesson on this issue, see a classic article from Harry Browne: The ninth and tenth amendments were included to make absolutely sure [...]

Today watching the news on TV it just makes me think about the books that Gabriel Garcia Marquez wrote, the "realismo magico" or magical reality to be specific. It is amazing how diferent La Paz and Santa Cruz are in their cosmovision and understanding of reality. Beyond the fact that MAS approved a constitution in an illegal fasion and the leaders of Santa Cruz are declaring their authonomy with a scope which also goes beyond the current concept of legality in Bolivia. Taking a step away from this situation, it is just astounding that so many people live with such different understandings of reality within the same country.Thank God that there hasn't been violence as is of the end of today Saturday 15th, but we can only pray that this goes on.Nevertheless, due to the fact that points of view are only getting more radical and differences are deepening instead of disappering, violence (unfortunately) seems to be on the short term roadmap of this our country. Not that I consider myself

I, like most everyone else, do not particularly care for lawyers, even though technically I am one of them. As a group, they are all too full of themselves, and are predators on the various miseries that plague each of us, and society as a whole.So everyone always gets a big kick out of Shakespeare's advise to “first kill all the lawyers.” But most people who mouth that bit of wit, do not realize it was the opening salvo in an attempt to institute tyranny. I was reminded of this when I saw the spectacle of lawyers protesting the suspension of the constitution in Pakistan. As amusing as it was to see pompous lawyers in suits rioting on the streets of Islamabad, it really was rather profound.When lawyers are sworn into the bar they swear an allegiance to the constitution. And actually every time a criminal defense lawyer is trying to get their slimy client off on a “technicality” they are doing a service to the continued vitality of the Republic's Charter.But, today the consti

Fox News has refused to air an ad produced by the Center for Constitutional Rights that criticizes the Bush administration for "destroying the Constitution" by the use of renditions, torture, and other tactics. Media Matters has Fox's email...read more | digg story

The above ad was rejected by the Fox News Channel for the following reason:"We cannot approve the spot with it being Danny Glover's opinion that the Bush Adminstration [sic] is destroying the Constitution. If you have documentation that it is indeed being destroyed, we can look at that."If they want evidence the Constitution is being destroyed, they just have to watch the other news channels or read the newspaper. Fox News should just rename itself the Fox Fantasyland Channel. Instead of "Fair and Balanced", their slogan should be "Delusional and Reality Resistant".

2 people dead and tens wounded is the price that MAS took from the people of Sucre to approve the new constitution. This is horrendous, it's really a dictatorship. It's enfurating how people outside the country think that Evo Morales is the best president Bolivia has had, he is a criminal not better than many which have preceded him.The government actually held the constitution session in a military base guarded by legions of people which came from El Alto, like the "Ponchos Rojos" and the bolivian military forces. They approved the new constitution for Bolivia with only 75 of the 255 members that should be present in the session. I have seen on TV how common citizens from Sucre where repressed like criminals, even children. This is really angering.Approving a new constitution for Bolivia in this manner, with blood, is no good sign of what might come to pass in this poor country.The current government is full of lies and more lies. They don't care about the poor people, they lie! Th

A human rights group is encouraging people to give President Bush an early holiday gift: the US Constitution, and a polite letter asking him to read it. Every time someone signs the online petition, the organization will send a copy of the Constitution to the White House as a "seasonal reminder that the Constitution needs to be upheld not destroyedread more | digg storyLiberty Central- Conservatism's Blog of Choice

There are many priorities to consider as we change the occupant of the White House. After experiencing the consequences of a president who was unprepared for the job in 2001, we don’t need a president who’s experience is limited to a single Senate term which was primarily used to run for the nomination. After a president who got us involved in the Iraq war and pushed through the Patriot Act we don’t need a president who was a big backer of both, regardless of his apologies. After a president who tried to ignore the Constitution and grab more power for the Executive Branch we don’t need a president who promises to do more of the same. With all the charges of “Bush-lite” which have floated around the past few years, the most Bush-like candidate of all is John Edwards. Edwards has mentioned his idea denying health care to Congress if they do not pass his health care proposal in the past, but fortunately he is finally receiving criticism for this uncon

A president with declining popularity. Court rulings challenging presidential actions. Opposition voices growing louder. Personal freedoms crushed in the name of the war on terror. Rumors of secret arrests and coming martial law.Sound like the U.S.? Actually, it's Pakistan, but the similarities are startling. George W. Bush's political ally, Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf ordered Martial Law in Pakistan on Saturday, suspending the country's constitution, the judicial system, cutting phone lines and blocking news transmissions.While the White House had been asking Musharraf not to declare martial law for the past week, one has to wonder if Bush is sitting up in his chair watching how this unfolds. After all, Musharraf seems to have learned a thing or two from watching W.Seven Pakistan Supreme Court justices refused the declaration of Martial Law and started meeting in their chambers to overturn the declaration. Musharraf had his police barricade the doors to the building so t

So, I went there last night. A place no one else was willing to go. A place everyone was hedging about and not saying. ABORTION! Allow me to quote from the Declaration please:"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that ALL men are created equal, that they are endowed by their CREATOR with certain UNALIENABLE Rights, that among these are LIFE, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."per the dictionary:ALL: Every one; the whole number or quantity of; the whole; the total; everythingCREATOR: One who creates; GodUNALIENABLE (dictionary ---> see inalienable): Incapable of being alienated, or transferred to anotherLIFE: existence; vitality; time during which one lives; conduct; spirit; vivacity; energy; biographical narrationI asked "So, if inalienable means incapable of being transferred,  and we are all (everyone of us) entitled to life (existence) by the One who creates us, then why is there a fight about whether abortion is illegal?"I had the feminist mother

Wyoming welcomes Ron Paul with a great news clip from a local Cheyenne news station. The news clip states "Ron Paul is the only candidate that can READ the Constitution."read more | digg storyLiberty Central- Conservatism's Blog of Choice

I suggest everyone read this speech Senator Dodd gave on the floor of the Senate Friday Morning. This is in regard to his efforts to stop the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) reform legislation, in its current form, from being considered by the full Senate and from receiving a vote on the Senate floor. Last week Dodd announced he has placed a hold on the bill, a tool available to Senators to stop legislation from moving forward. Mr. President, for 6 years the President has demonstrated time and again that he doesn’t respect the role of Congress, nor does he respect the rule of law. It is the latter point that I want to address this morning because it is the rule of law which draws us all together, regardless of politics, ideology, or party. It is the rule of law, not of men, which we swear to uphold when we take the oath of office in this Chamber, as Members do in the other Chamber, and certainly as the President does on January 20 every 4 years. For 6 years this

I suggest everyone read this speech Senator Dodd gave on the floor of the Senate Friday Morning. This is in regard to his efforts to stop the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) reform legislation, in its current form, from being considered by the full Senate and from receiving a vote on the Senate floor. Last week Dodd announced he has placed a hold on the bill, a tool available to Senators to stop legislation from moving forward. Mr. President, for 6 years the President has demonstrated time and again that he doesn’t respect the role of Congress, nor does he respect the rule of law. It is the latter point that I want to address this morning because it is the rule of law which draws us all together, regardless of politics, ideology, or party. It is the rule of law, not of men, which we swear to uphold when we take the oath of office in this Chamber, as Members do in the other Chamber, and certainly as the President does on January 20 every 4 years. For 6 years this

Time and time again, it seems to fall on American atheists to defend our Constitution from believers who trample it in the name of their mythical god. The Cherry Creek School District, an extremely wealthy area of Denver, CO, is the site of the latest attempt to push religion in the public schools. Believers just cannot be content with practicing their religion in their homes and churches; they need to push it on their neighbors via the public schools. Fortunately, the Freedom From Religion Foundation is once again defending the Constitution here.According to CBS4 (Denver), the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) and an atheist family have filed a lawsuit to stop the Cherry Creek School District from continuing to promote religion in violation of the Constitution.The program in question, 40 Developmental Assets, is described as promoting "religious community" along with "things like family support, positive peer influence and doing homework." Evidently, the program says that childr

6×8″, acrylic on sealed, primed hardboard Email me if interested in purchasing. I was supposed to hike into Constitution Marsh with a friend to paint yesterday, but it was raining. Fortunately, I had photos from a previous fall visit there, so I pulled this one up on the screen and painted from the image on my monitor. It’s not the same, but it was the closest I could get to being there!

Only because we've been dumbed down by our failed educational system is this kind of information "eye-opening"...Yes, the Constitution was created to LIMIT the governments power, NOT to give them UNLIMITED power to erode our freedoms.read more | digg storyLiberty Central- Conservatism's Blog of Choice

6×8″, acrylic on sealed, primed hardboard This painting will be available at the Riverwinds Gallery starting November 10. I spent a beautiful, warm fall day today at Boscobel, overlooking Constitution Marsh on the Hudson River. This could be the last of the warm fall days! The colors were spectacular.

Katherine at Obsidian Wings wrote an interesting post yesterday regarding President Bush's Attorney General nominee Michael Mukasey. After watching the confirmation hearing, she concluded:None of the statements that I’ve read today give me any real information or reassurance about what he will do as Attorney General. [...]The statements that “I categorically denounce torture,” “the United States doesn’t torture,” “torture is antithetical to our values”—they are meaningless from members of this administration.While she is absolutely right that his blanket statements are meaningless, I have to disagree that we didn't learn any real information about what Michael Mukasey would do as Attorney General. Quite the opposite actually. We learned quite a bit, but from different statements.The mindset Mukasey exhibited, via the following examples, and the conclusions that can be drawn, paint a disturbing picture.During his confirmation hearing:1) Michael Mukasey made excuses f

The following is a letter to the editor I just sent to the Atlanta Journal & Constitution! Boy it's hard to sum things up in just the 150 word limit people have when writing to this particular paper: To The Editor: It's time to wake up! If you don't know it already we're a nation that's politically polarized and we've been that way since the Clinton scandal. Nothing in Washington is done for the good of our nation and "We the People." How can we expect to win the War on Terror if we are divided here at home? We need to get behind Mike Huckabee, the only Presidential candidate that will unite us as a nation again. Mike has bipartisan appeal. As Governor of Arkansas he carried forty-five percent of the African-American vote. Governor Huckabee has received praise from evangelical, Janet Folger and conservative pundit Dick Morris, but also The Daily Kos (for his stance on the environment) and the endorsement of the International Machinist Union. The choice is cle

Frontline is back for another season of documentaries and starts out strong, once again doing the reporting which most of the mainstream media fails to do. This week’s episode (available for view on line) is on Cheney’s Law. The documentary shows how Dick Cheney had the goal of expanding the power of the Executive Branch ever since the days of seeing Congress investigate and limit the powers of Gerald Ford and later Ronald Reagan. Cheney is shown urging previous presidents to ignore the Constitutional checks on the power of the president, but it wasn’t until George Bush that he had a president willing to ignore the rule of law. The attacks of 9/11 provided the perfect opportunity for Cheney to act upon his beliefs as he argued at the time that we must become a government of men and not law. The New York Times has reviewed Cheney’s Law: Much of what is reported in the film about Mr. Cheney’s efforts to encroach on Congressional and judicial autonomy since the a

Dear Fellow Bloggers --I love you! I love comments! I love answering comments! I love my chat box! I love coming back to your site and visiting you!! Some of you are actual kin and some of you I like to think of as my kith, all brought together by the whole wide world of the internet. My daughter and I have been studying the constitution of the United States at our local Freedom Library every Tuesday night. I have to tell you how amazing it is to sit and dissect this wonderful document our founding fathers gave us, sentence by sentence, article by article. I have immensely enjoyed learning the differences between rights and privileges laid out clearly for us to see in bold brilliant writing! It is truly glorious!! If you are a long time reader, or perhaps you were just introduced to my blog in the last week or so, you may have seen some comments and/or notice my posting about having to delete some things. You may have even read in my posts where I stated I also got some emails I had t

A Taliban constitution for Afghanistan made public recently would ban "un-Islamic thought" and require women to be fully covered.The 23-page shadow constitution, which would allow education for women only within the limits of Sharia, has been offered as an alternative to the government of President Hamid Karzai, Britain’s Telegraph reported. The newspaper said the Constitution of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, written in Pashto and Dari languages, says, “Every Afghan has the right to express his feelings through his views, writings or through other means in accordance with the law,” but also warns violators of Islamic thought “will be punished according to Sharia.”"The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan wishes good working relations with all the neighboring countries and specially those who have supported the Afghan nation during jihad," the document says. More...

"We need to be very precise then, about what I said wearing my stars and being very conscious of it, and that is, very simply, that we should respect those who want to serve the nation but not through the law of the land, condone activity that, in my upbringing, is counter to God's law."If you want to follow "God's law," then perhaps you should become a General in the Pope's army, but here in America, the only law that matters is the one the 13 colonies approved in 1787. Sometimes it agrees with "God's law," sometimes it doesn't. If you can't accept the times it doesn't, then perhaps you shouldn't be a part of our government.Have a nice day :-)

A most interesting development in the Holy Land Foundation trial in Texas has taken place: As the Dallas Morning News reveals, the Muslim Brotherhood's goals in the US included replacing the Constitution with Shari'a law (Hat tip: Hot Air): Amid the mountain of evidence released in the Holy Land Foundation terrorism financing trial, the most provocative has turned out to be a handful of

Today is a day that’s not celebrated like many other “holidays” in American society. You see, September 17th is Constitution Day - a day that appears to be nearly forgotten in America. Sadly, over the years, people have stopped paying attention to the Constitution. It’s rare to hear people talking about the rules for government when discussing current events. And, it’s even more rare to hear politicians refusing to pass legislation because it’s not authorized by the Constitution. For decades and decades…and decades, we have allowed our government to twist and distort the Constitution - away from its meaning in plain English - into something that changes meaning with the political whims and ambitions of the times. Hopefully, though, some people will take a moment to try get back in touch with the basics that the founding fathers gave us in this easy-to-read text. The key principle of the Constitution is quite simple: positive grant. Positiv

Yes, you did read that correctly! Ok, so maybe you’re thinking I’m off my rocker; what in heaven’s name do cows have to do with the Constitution? Well, according to an interesting post by Liliana Segura at AlterNet this week, we learn that COWs is actually a device that Neil Bush is selling to school districts around the country. From the article: Despite having no experience in education, Neil Bush is the founder of a Texas-based company called Ignite! Learning, which, since 1999 has peddled strange little devices called “Curriculums on Wheels” (COWs) to schools state and nationwide. Rather than anything bovine, COWs actually resemble bright plastic droids or office chairs gone terribly wrong. Described as “computer/projectors,” it’s not really clear what they do or how they work, and a cursory look at the company’s website does not help. (Apparently it involves swivel action.) Regardless, there are COWs for different subjects: t

A law has been in place for many years that exempts Congressman from arrest while en route to vote on an issue and returning home thereafter. This was originally to keep congressional representatives from incarceration in other states because they disagreed with the congressional representative from that state. Yes, in days gone by this was a real problem. But in the spirit of the law I doubt it was meant to shield a Congressman from any possible repercussions for his actions. Moreover, while this sort of defense might technically be sound everyone knows it is still not right. It is likely that people will see this as “cheating” and nobody likes a cheater. Senator Craig might well escape legal repercussions for his actions but he is sadly mistaken if he thinks the people will just forget about his actions. This is the same as Bill Clinton selling pardons for money. Technically the president has the right of unquestioned pardon. But that still doesn’t mean what Clinton did was right

Les Thaïlandais(es) votent aujourd’hui sur une nouvelle constitution proposée par la junte militaire qui a renversé Thaksin Shinawatra dans un coup d’État le 19 séptembre 2006. La nouvelle constitution renforcerait le rôle et le pouvoir des militaires, des juges et des fonctionnaire et diminurait le pouvoir de l’exécutif. Le nombre de député élus aux proportionelles (ces sièges étaient facilement gagnés par Thaksin) serait réduit. Le sénat serait de 200 à 150 sièges et la moitié de ceux-ci ne seraient plus élus mais nommés par des juges et des fonctionnaires. Si les Thaïlandais(es) approuvent la nouvelle constitution, elles et ils seront récompensé(e)s par de nouvelles élections.   Quels sont les évennements qui ont mené à cette situation? Récapitulons en vitesse.   Suite à la crise financière asiatique de 1997 (sur laquelle on devra revenir dans un article subséquent) le Fond monétaire intérnational (FMI) gouverna la Thaï

This is more than just a bit scary. Charles Schumer has decided that the Democrats can arbitrarily over ride the Constitution, and President Bush,  just because they don’t like the current makeup of the Supreme Court. Where was Chucky when the court was voting a consistent 5-4 for every wacky lib item put before them? “We should reverse the presumption of confirmation,” Schumer told the American Constitution Society convention in Washington. “The Supreme Court is dangerously out of balance. We cannot afford to see Justice Stevens replaced by another Roberts, or Justice Ginsburg by another Alito.”As usual the hypocrisy of the left knows no bounds. When it’s a conservative decision made it’s regressive and extreme. When it’s a Democrat issue then it’s progressive and positive. Nope, no bias there. It is going to be interesting to see how this plays out in the courts if President Bush does get a chance to fill another SCOTUS opening before he leaves office. If nothing else I ha

News Update 7.23.07 North Carolina Loose ends from the Jerry Anderson trial here and here. Elsewhere Some very interesting developments out of Florida, where Judge Carven Angel has issued a temporary injunction preventing the execution of Ian Lightbourne. The judge heard testimony on the torture-execution of Angel Diaz, and then-Governor Jeb Bush’s attempts to cover it up, before ordering the State to revise its lethal injection protocol to provide for adequate equipment, trained personnel, and a medically-informed procedure. From Maryland, the story of Vicki Schieber, whose daughter was brutally killed in 1998. The loss did not change her views on capital punishment, but it did change her life. Harris County, Texas has scheduled the execution of its 100th inmate in the modern era. That one county has executed more people than any state in the union, except of course Texas. More than Virginia. More than twice as many as all of North Carolina. About eight times more than the

We Americans are famous for taking everything for granted, whether it be cheap gasoline, clean water, Social Security when we retire. Oh, and a representative democracy based on an extraordinary document called the Constitution (accompanied by a Bill of Rights), replete with a system of checks and balances that prevents any one component of our government - executive, legislative and judicial - from amassing unmitigated power. Right? George Bush's legacy, which we are told has become of increasing concern to to this damaged shell of a man, will of course be the gravest attack on the principles of our democracy in the 200 years of its history. We no longer have a President, we have a king, and the king has a magic want called "executive privilege," with which the "people's business" suddenly has been placed on a "needs to know" basis. And we, the American people, apparently have no need to know. From today's Washington Post: "Bush administration officials unveiled a bold new ass

At least that's how Rasmussen is trying to spin it.Seventy-two percent (72%) of conservatives give the Constitution good orexcellent ratings. Just 58% of liberals say the same. Given those figures, it’snot surprising that 72% of conservatives believe the Constitution should be leftalone and that 55% of liberals agree.And just when you thought Rasmussen isn't biased;Living in an era when the federal government has expanded beyond anything the Founding Fathers could have imagined, just 17% of Americans now say the Constitution places too many restrictions on what the government can do. Forty-two percent (42%) take the opposite view and say that it does not place enough restrictions on what government can do. The Rasmussen Reports survey found that 32% believe the current balance is about right. Yes, that's that overwhelming behomoth of a government they hate so much. Well, they hate is except when it's keeping gays in the closet, women from making choices regarding their bodies, an

The framers of the Constitution attempted to balance the power of the President as commander-in-chief with that of Congress, the representatives of the People. Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution gives to the Executive Branch the command of the nation’s armed forces, while Article I, Section 8 gives to the Legislative Branch the power to decide when the United States goes to war. They weighed the individual will of the Executive against the deliberative function of the Legislature, whose constituents would bear the full costs of any war. Thus, the framers deliberately separated the powers of declaring and waging war; they confined these powers in such a way so as to thwart the tyranny of kings. Despite being known as one of the greatest champions of centralized power of the times, even Alexander Hamilton felt that the President must generally bow to Congressional directions in times of peace and also in times of war. He stated this clearly in Federalist #69: “The Pr

The framers of the Constitution attempted to balance the power of the President as commander-in-chief with that of Congress, the representatives of the People. Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution gives to the Executive Branch the command of the nation’s armed forces, while Article I, Section 8 gives to the Legislative Branch the power to decide when the United States goes to war. They weighed the individual will of the Executive against the deliberative function of the Legislature, whose constituents would bear the full costs of any war. Thus, the framers deliberately separated the powers of declaring and waging war; they confined these powers in such a way so as to thwart the tyranny of kings. Despite being known as one of the greatest champions of centralized power of the times, even Alexander Hamilton felt that the President must generally bow to Congressional directions in times of peace and also in times of war. He stated this clearly in Federalist #69: “The Pr

In reading the Constitution, we can plainly see that Congress possesses the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, to raise and support armies, to grant letters of marque and reprisal, to provide for the common defense,” and even “to declare war.” Congress shares, with the President, the power to make treaties and to appoint ambassadors. As for the Executive, the President is assigned only two powers relating to foreign affairs; commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and the power to receive ambassadors. The United States Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land in our country, delegates the power to declare war to the Congress and the power to wage war to the President. What that means is that only the Congress, as representatives of the People and of the States, can determine whether or not the nation goes to war. If the People, through Congress, decide that the nation shall go to war, the President then, and only then, has the author

Massachusetts legislatures today voted against putting a gay marriage ban amendment on the ballet in ‘08. The bigger issue here to me is the way that the legislature with help from the governor, Deval Patrick, have shown complete disdain for the state constitution. A group was able to gather 140,000 signatures in favor of the amendment, this should have been more than enough to have the issue go to the voters. At first it looked as though this would happen, however the governor started applying immense pressure and even bribed members with the promise of government hack jobs in return for their votes, and in some cases to have the legislators accept the jobs and step down before the vote. This group did everything according to the state constitution to have an amendment voted on and the legislators turned their backs on the constitution. You can read more about that here, and here. Governor Patrick was able to successfully delay the vote until he was able to get the vote he want

In reading the Constitution, we can plainly see that Congress possesses the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, to raise and support armies, to grant letters of marque and reprisal, to provide for the common defense,” and even “to declare war.” Congress shares, with the President, the power to make treaties and to appoint ambassadors. As for the Executive, the President is assigned only two powers relating to foreign affairs; commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and the power to receive ambassadors. The United States Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land in our country, delegates the power to declare war to the Congress and the power to wage war to the President. What that means is that only the Congress, as representatives of the People and of the States, can determine whether or not the nation goes to war. If the People, through Congress, decide that the nation shall go to war, the President then, and only then, has the author

Throughout history, humans have been unable to survive without fire. They used it to stay warm from the elements, for food preparation, as well as for social gatherings. However, even though fire is essential, it is also extremely dangerous. As a result, humans decided to put fire in a special place: they called it a fireplace. The fireplace would ensure that the fire could be controlled, as well as to prevent the fire from harming anyone. Whenever fire stayed inside the fireplace, it was considered a good fire. Whenever fire went outside the fireplace, it needed to be extinguished before it burnt down the entire house.Like fire, our Founding Fathers knew they could not survive without Government. Government would ensure protection of their liberties and inalienable rights. They knew that the absence of Government meant anarchy and chaos. However, they also knew from history that Government was extremely dangerous. As a result, our Founding Fathers decided to put Government in a specia

On May 29, the AJC asked a porn star - Lisa Ann Taylor — a.k.a. “Melissa Wolf” and “The Mansion Madam” - who she thought were the five sexiest athletes. Now I would have expected this out of a publication like Sports Illustrated, but I thought something like this would be below the Journal-Constitution's standards. Guess not.Because I know you're curious, here's who she chose:1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots. Boy next door good looks, great smile.2. David Beckham, L.A. Galaxy. Tall, blond, knows fashion.3. Jeff Francoeur, Atlanta Braves. Also has the boy next door looks. Two-sport star in high school and just a nice boy.4. Jeremy Shockey, New York Giants. Has the bad boy image working — long hair, tattoos — if you’re into that sort of thing. [I] certainly like the bad boys!5. Apolo Anton Ohno, speedskater. You know he could take you out for a fun night after “Dancing with the Stars.”Also receiving votes: Michael Vick (“lives in my neighborhood”); Alex Rodri

Even though the constitutional process died two years ago, federalists within the European Union continue to push a document that would greatly strength Brussels’ control over the bloc. France might have rejected the constitution, but the country’s new president, Nicolas Sarkozy, wants to implement much of the defeated document. (more…) Share This Tags: Angela Merkel, Blair, EU constitution, Sarkozy

See Original StoryThe Constitution has stood for two centuries as the defining document of our government, the final source to determine - in the end - if something is legal or right.Every federal official - including the President - who takes an oath of office swears to "uphold and defend" the Constitution of the United States.Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia says he cringes when someone calls the Constitution a "living document."Well Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, what would you say if I told you that President Bush thinks the Constitution in his own words; "It's just a goddamned piece of paper!"The way this man treats our citizen's, I guess we are not too much better than the Constitution...

The Constitution is easily the most important document that our nation has to offer.  It governs everything that we do, all the laws we live by.  The entire country operates on the premises that the constitution sets forth.  With the Bill of Rights offering a model of freedom that many around the world have tried [...] For the whole article, visit me at collegecritic.net!

Vice President M Jusuf Kalla called on the House of Representatives (DPR) and the People`s Consultative Assembly (MPR) to talk with other high state institutions to make a study before amending the 1945 Constitution. "On a possible amendment of the 1945 Constitution, the government calls on DPR and MPR to invite other high state institutions to consider the possible impacts of the amendment in the future," the vice president said here Tuesday when commenting on the proposed amendment of the Constitution.The amendment was proposed to increase the DPD`s authority especially in the discussion of laws on regional affairs, state budget, taxation, education and religions.

“Once the military leaders become council members,” said Sodsri Sattayatham in an interview with the Bangkok Post today, “they’re bound to follow the group’s decision. This would also show they don’t have only coup attempts on their mind. But if they still resort to a coup, their action would not be justified and they would [...]

Welcome to the Fifth Carnival of Principled Government, a carnival which strives to uphold our founders' vision for our nation as found in our founding documents. In honor of East High's recent victory in the We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution Contest, we shall have a little test. 1. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by

A double-urgency bill for amending Clause V of Note 13 of the current year's Budget Law has not been recognized as contravening religious principles or the constitution by the Guardian Council. The bill, which was ratified by the Iranian parliament on May 6, 2007, includes a single article that removes a Budget Law clause which stipulated that gas oil would be sold at 450 rials per liter as of

A double-urgency bill for amending Clause V of Note 13 of the current year's Budget Law has not been recognized as contravening religious principles or the constitution by the Guardian Council. The bill, which was ratified by the Iranian parliament on May 6, 2007, includes a single article that removes a Budget Law clause which stipulated that gas oil would be sold at 450 rials per liter as of

There is an article here about Mitt Romney calling for a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. Here is a little back-story about how gay marriage was forced on the Mass. residents. Most Americans know that Massachusetts is the only state that allows gay marriage. And they probably also know that Mitt Romney was governor when gay marriage was legalised. What I’m not sure many people know around the country is how this came to pass. This was not a bill that passed through the state house and senate, then on to Romney’s desk for a signature. This was a case of liberal, activist judges instituting their own personal policy preferences onto the citizens of Massachusetts, where they had no right to do so. They forced Mass. residents to accept something that polls show a vast majority of residents don’t want. A citizen’s group gathered up more than enough signatures to have this issue go to the citizens for a vote in 2008 on this issue and have the constitution

We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Every time I turn on the news it seems like a new regulation of our behavior is being proposed and/or implemented by the government. . . . promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. The preamble to the Constitution talks about general welfare.  That does not mean government should address every detail of society that some might find objectionable.  Next it speaks of individual liberty and guaranteeing it for future generations.  General welfare means an equal opportunity, not socio-economic equality.  It means anyone can be a doctor or a lawyer if they work at it.  It doesn’t mean some people should get special privileges to make it easier.  The only thing special privileges do is devalue the accomplishment. Yes, there are injustices, but you can’t legislate injustice away.  You can, throug

This execution was "shadier than a forest", as my chum Mark Armstrong is fond of saying. Now the Asian Tribune reports: The decision to send Hussein to the gallows was not a judicial but a political one. It was signaled by al-Maliki himself after the death sentence was pronounced by a special tribunal on November 5, when the Iraqi prime minister declared that Hussein would be executed before

It is with great disgust, anger and fear that I regard President Bush’s latest power grab.  Constitutional protections provided by our founding fathers in the U.S. Constitution have been swept aside by George W. Bush.   The act was committed when the President signed The Military Commissions Act this week. James Bovard writes: . . . the new law makes the president legislator, prosecutor, judge, and bailiff. As Yale law professor Jack Balkin notes, "The President has created a new regime in which he is a law unto himself on issues of prisoner interrogations. He decides whether he has violated the laws, and he decides whether to prosecute the people he in turn urges to break the law" . . . the bill codifies the president's power to label anyone on Earth an "enemy combatant" — based on secret evidence which the government need not disclose. “Anyone on Earth,” not just “foreign” terrorists, but also American citizens are subj

Scary news from DR.dk via LGF:"Islamists in Europe are working on a special legislation for muslims, that will be above national legislation. The initiative comes from the Fatwa-council for Europe, who claims that a "constitution for European muslims" is on its way. The Fatwa-council has close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood organization. It's spokesman is Tariq Ramadan, who among many westerners has a reputation of representing a more liberal european Islam."

I came across this news, Iraq may adopt Malaysia's Constitution. Well, it's a good news for me as a Malaysian as we, as a multi-racial nation, is always being admired by many countries out there on how we live together with that much tolerance and care among races.Malaysia is formed of three major races, Malays, Chinese and Indians. Also, in our country, we have some other races like Ibanese, Kadazan and many more. Iraq have more or like the same race structure as us, they the Kurdish in the north centered on Arbil, Sunni Islamic Arabs in the center around Baghdad, Shi'a Islamic Arabs in the south centered on Basra, the Assyrians, a Christian people, living in various cities in the north, and the Marsh Arabs, a nomadic people, who live on the marshlands of the central river.Well, Malaysia have been progressing by leaps and bounds, even we have some different cultures and beliefs in this country. It all thanks to the constitution and tolerance among people here. I know we are not in