Resource information on understanding Guantanamo

NPR has a very nice resource linked in the title that provides some helpful information for those of us trying to follow the details of Guantanamo who don't have an extensive background in law or legal terminology. It's great to see them do this rather than do as some media does, give the terms then have the person have to use google to try to discover one source that actually puts it into English. One example from the NPR piece:

What is habeas corpus?

"Habeas corpus" is a Latin phrase meaning "you have the body." It's an ancient concept. In old English law, it was used to refer to a judge's order (or "writ") to bring a prisoner before a court to determine whether his imprisonment was unlawful.

In modern times, death row inmates have used this process to get access to federal court to challenge their confinement. In 1996, however, Congress passed a law cutting back on habeas petitions in death-penalty cases, reasoning that those appeals had become so numerous that they were eroding the effectiveness of the death penalty.

Nifty features from the Police...

I've been having fun today checking this really awesome banner out for the Police was quite a bit of fun. It's an interactive way to be able to watch videos, and more...

Please click on this to go and view an awesome banner where you can watch The Police's videos, listen to tracks from The Police's new 2 cd hits collection, enter to win a trip to NYC to see The Police in concert and even view details about their current world tour.



There are many other interactive features as well as a chance to win concert tickets to watch the Police in person. You can also send the banner via email to a friend or a family member if you are trying to hint to them that you want them to buy this set for you. I've entered the contest to win concert tickets and I have my fingers and toes crossed on that one. This is being done to celebrate the Police's tour and their new 2 disc compilation CD, I wrote a post as a part of a contest to win the Police Cd and I was one of those selected, so I can personally attest to how fantastic this set is. If you are a fan of the Police it's a must have.

There is also an awesome vintage poster that is included in the CD's that went on sale June 5th. Another reason to not want to wait to get yours now.

More on the Ron Paul banning..

I just received this via email, for those of you following this story it will be of interest:

My Fellow Conservatives,

Incredible as it sounds, Rep. Ron Paul has been banned from speaking at the June 30 Iowa Presidential Candidates Forum—an event sponsored not by some leftist media conglomerate, but by Iowans for Tax Relief and the Iowa Christian Alliance!

This makes no sense particularly since Ron Paul wants to slash taxes and is a pro-life physician.

We have only a few days remaining until this forum takes place. Please join me in urging the sponsors to open the Iowa Presidential Candidates Forum to all declared Republican candidates, including Rep. Ron Paul.

Go to www.ConservativesBetrayed.com, where you’ll find the link to our “Speak Out!” petition at the top left of the page. And once you’ve signed the petition, send it to your friends and get them to sign it too.

We will forward this petition to the sponsors of the forum, and notify the media of the public outrage expressed in this petition. But you must act fast because of the tight deadline—act NOW!

While I'm not a conservative I do think this is unacceptable and that it is supposed to be up to the voters to decide who they want as opposed to a political group limiting the public's access to a candidate.

I need a vacation...and soon...

I realized today how stressed and overworked I am when I thought today was Wednesday and emailed someone wondering why they had not completed something that is normally done by Wednesday morning. Then feeling like a complete idiot when I realized that today is Tuesday...So, it's obvious I need to get away and who do I turn to when I need to escape and I'm looking for Cheap Hotels that will fit into my budget? I use HotelReservations.com.

I know I'll get the best deal with them because they have their $100.00 guarantee that gives me assurance that their prices will be the lowest. There are also very few strings attached to that guarantee so it's not some *only valid on every second Saturday of the month during leap years* type scenarios.

If you are looking for a last minute vacation or plan on booking your vacation in the next few days, you'll still be in time to take advantage of their $30.00 gas rebate, which is what I'm planning on doing since I want to get away soon. By merely driving and staying two nights, I get $30.00.

This leads me to the next thing I love about HotelReservations.com, their Road Trips interactive system. This makes it so easy for me to find where I want to go, and what is located within my city and how far I want to drive to get away. Using this feature opened up for me many places that I didn't realize were only a two hour drive away from home. It's so easy to use, just enter your zip code and if there is a certain direction you want to head in select that and *voila* all of the great deals on hotels are right there for you to pick from.

If you don't want to drive, HotelReservations.com, has pages of vacation deals that include airfare as well as information on cruises. Just about any place in the world you want to go you can get there thanks to them. I can spend hours on their website dreaming of the places I'd love to travel too and the different activities I can do.

CIA Papers Detail Assasination Plots, LSD Testing

I plan to download this information since it has been finally released because I'm interested in it for many reasons. One of which is historical in nature and the other is making sure we have learned from the mistakes of the past. The documents can be downloaded here and are stated to contain:

Details of a CIA plot to assassinate Cuban leader Fidel Castro and of the spy agency's wiretapping campaign against U.S. journalists, civil rights activists and anti-Vietnam war protesters were among hundreds of pages of internal reports released

Reading is fundamental...

The ability to be able to read at or above the grade level your child is in is a critical skill that can have a huge affect on their overall learning. Almost every subject in school relies upon having the ability to read. If your child is struggling in reading, they usually will struggle in other educational areas. That's why it's so important to make use of Reading Tutors in a program like Score. Their reading program can make a huge difference in helping your child to succeed.

Ron Paul being barred from debates...

To many people Ron Paul is more libertarian than republican yet so far it doesn't seem as if the outcry from the public on his being banned from participating in RNC Debates seems to have made a difference. There are several petitions out there with a large number of signatures demanding that banning him from these debates violates free speech. Yet, the ironic part of that to me is that third party candidates have been kept out of debates for years...

So while I agree Ron Paul should not be kept from the debates, I don't think that credible third party candidates should be kept from the general presidential debates either...

Freedom of speech does include gossip...

It's probably realistic to say as long as man has had the ability to speak, gossip has existed. There's something in our human nature where some of us more than others like to ponder on rumors, gossip and speculation when it comes to people we know. Then when it comes to hollywood gossip? There are all kinds of places that you can get information, quite a few of those are obviously pretty out there as far as even being close to being true. A new website,www.celebritygossip.com is not like the others, it also has a social aspect where you can vote and comment on what you think is hot...or not...

Temperature of fuel affects how much you get...

This is in the category of you learn something new every day. I did not stop to realize that when the temperature rises consumers actually get less gasoline per gallon than is the set standard of 231 cubic inches per gallon. It appears this could change in the very near future according to this report in our local daily newspaper:

Almost a century ago, the industry and regulators agreed to define a gallon of gasoline as 231 cubic inches at 60 degrees. But as the mercury rises and gasoline expands, it takes more than a gallon of gas to produce the same amount of energy as a regular gallon in colder weather.

U.S. gas retailers ignore the temperature swings and always dispense fuel as if it’s 60 degrees. As a result, gas is an average of about five degrees warmer than the federal standard, according to a study analyzed by Dick Suiter of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. But it’s worst in southern and western states where the temperatures are the most consistently warm.

While I'd hope that this could be dealt with on a state level, as an example what Hawaii did, this will probably become a political issue which will mean years of dragging it out in the federal government...

Freedom of procreation...

While modern technology has made it easier for a woman to be able to conceive a child, the price of fertility treatments and other specialized services are not covered by many insurance plans. There are also women out there who do not have Maternity Health Insurance and may feel they are forced into not being able to have a child because of a lack of access to financial resources. That's where RAS (ReproductiveAccessSolutions.com) comes in, they have information and resources that can help women when it comes to health benefits and financial help.

You didn't raise the bar too high, you didn't deliver...

As I read this statement by Harry Reid as quoted in the Washington Post:

"I understand their disappointment," said Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada. "We raised the bar too high."

I wondered, is he that out of touch as to why people are disgusted with Democrats? It's not that they raised the bar too high, they didn't deliver. Outside of the flashy public relations moment of the first 100 days, politics as usual continued with the only difference in the Democrats having the majority was who was parading around claiming either victory or defeat. The promise was that the Democrats would not be business as usual and on that, they did not deliver.

Marriage is not an easy proposition...

I consider myself an expert when it comes to relationships, an expert on how to fail in a Relationship to be more precise. That's not all bad, because I've learned from the mistakes in the past and I strongly believe it is because of my acknowledgment of past errors that my third marriage is working. We've been together for 8 years and married for seven and while we have experienced many more crisis and challenges than I experienced with my two marriages that failed, rather than having adversity split us apart it has united us. A great place to visit to help you with your relationships is Relationship Headquarters , where some of their tips and advice could help you not have to learn the hard way...

Costs of the uninsured and the ER...

I ended up having to go to the Emergency Room today because of a complication with a medical issue that was being treated. I went to the closest hospital to my home which is a teaching hospital. I realize most times we go there it will take longer since it is a teaching hospital but over all they do a good job and the treatment I received today was excellent.

Yet, as I sat in the waiting room waiting to be taken back to an open room, I couldn't help notice that as people came in to the ER, I was the only person during that time period that had health insurance. It's very likely that those who were there with me will not be able to pay their hospital bill and will be turned over to the Ohio Attorney General's office for collection (well actually the OAG subcontracts that out to a Credit Collection agency but they claim to be from the AG's office until you question them then they admit they are hired by the AG as subcontractors). The bill will the eventually get written off in the majority of cases and added to the over all care that those of us who have insurance are charged for since these "charge offs" end up being a cost of providing care.

While I"m not sure I support a socialized system of medicine like Canada has, I also can't help but wonder how much less our premiums would be if these charge offs were no longer considered a regular expense...

A classical liberal

Many times those of us who lean libertarian are called "classical liberals", while the word "liberal" conjures up someone who appears to support more government if it is "for the good of the majority", that's not what being a "Classical Liberal" is:

The libertarian, or "classical liberal," perspective is that individual well-being, prosperity, and social harmony are fostered by "as much liberty as possible" and "as little government as necessary."

According to Charles Murray:

A few people, of whom I am one, think that the Founders' insights are as true today as they were two centuries ago. We believe that human happiness requires freedom and that freedom requires limited government.

The correct word for my view of the world is liberal. "Liberal" is the simplest anglicization of the Latin liber, and freedom is what classical liberalism is all about. The writers of the nineteenth century who expounded on this view were called liberals. In Continental Europe they still are. . . . But words mean what people think they mean, and in the United States the unmodified term liberal now refers to the politics of an expansive government and the welfare state. The contemporary alternative is libertarian. . . .

Be a smart consumer and use coupons...

I'm not talking about spending hours of clipping store coupons though you can do that if you want to, what I am focusing on today is using online coupons to save money at many of your favorite stores that have online shopping. Take Home Depot as just one example, using Coupon Chief you can save hundreds of dollars for items you could be planning to purchase right now. Another one of my favorite places to shop online is Petco and there are some great savings deals through Coupon Chief for them as well. Coupon Chief has hundreds of merchants who offer special online deals or coupons, so start saving now!

:-)

New Jersey is working on ridding pork...

Let's hope other states as well as our Congress might decide to follow New Jersey's example. While there it's called "Christmas Trees" rather than "earmarks" they are same basic thing. I applaud them for trying to make the process more open as far as hearings and requiring that a name be placed on the "Christmas Tree" project so that the public inspection aspect will hopefully remove some of the questionable items.

Smoking bans and Libertarianism..

Here in Ohio we recently had a smoking ban pass and there has been a great deal of discussion and debate on the clarity of the language used. There is now another attempt to gather signatures to try to put before the voters a plan that would allow bars, bowling alleys and private clubs to be able to determine for themselves if they want to be smoking facilities.

The libertarian side of me takes issues with these types of bans believing if the free market really supported the concept of non-smoking establishments the market would have created them. That if all of the people who are truly non-smoking demanded non-smoking places or opened non-smoking places of their own, by virtue of the free market it would be demonstrated that we as adults could police our own desired way of life without all of this unnecessary regulation. Unfortunately that does not usually end up being the topic as most people get bogged down in arguing over who has rights, smokers or non-smokers. Personally I believe it is the business owners rights who are getting trampled on since they are being told they cannot allow something to happen in their businesses that is still legal...

Take a twist of reality and make it supernatural...

I knew as soon as I heard the tag line for the 1408 Movie I was going to want to see it, "The Dolphin Hotel invites you to stay in any of its stunning rooms. Except one.." I do believe in the supernatural and I do love horror flicks, especially when they involve a killer combination of a place that is one I would want to visit, like the Dolphin Hotel, and a story line that conveys a chance that it could happen.

When you watch the trailer you get hints as to what the 1408 Movie is about, it is the story of Mike Enslin who after the death of his daughter becomes a specialist in the supernatural, though he doesn't believe he has ever found proof it exists he secretly wants to. That would mean for him that he might be able to see his daughter again. This adventure lures him to the Dolphin Hotel where the manager, Mr. Olin, played by Samuel L. Jackson tries to warn Enslin that he does not want to enter that room, explaining how many people have been said to have died in room 1408. Enslin does not listen and then is faced with the true horrors of the supernatural experience that happens to him in that room. The trailer does not provide the answer to the question that automatically comes to mind...Does Mike Enslin survive? For that you'll have to watch the film...or read the book...

John Galt's speech...

If you are one of those people who don't know who John Galt is, this post probably won't help you. However, if you are one of those who are familiar with John Galt, this mini version of his speech might interest you:

For twelve years you've been asking "Who is John Galt?" This is John Galt speaking. I'm the man who's taken away your victims and thus destroyed your world. You've heard it said that this is an age of moral crisis and that Man's sins are destroying the world. But your chief virtue has been sacrifice, and you've demanded more sacrifices at every disaster. You've sacrificed justice to mercy and happiness to duty. So why should you be afraid of the world around you?

Your world is only the product of your sacrifices. While you were dragging the men who made your happiness possible to your sacrificial altars, I beat you to it. I reached them first and told them about the game you were playing and where it would take them. I explained the consequences of your 'brother-love' morality, which they had been too innocently generous to understand. You won't find them now, when you need them more than ever.

For the rest, visit here and the most quoted saying of John Galt?

The world will change when you are ready to pronounce this oath:
I swear by my Life and my love of it that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for the sake of mine.