Massacre of civilians at Haditha worse than Abu Gharib...

We’ve been following the development about the massacre at Haditha: See, US Rep. Jack Murtha: Evidence the US military deliberately ... and Rep. Jack Murtha vindicated: US opens probe on Iraq civilian's death

Today Associated Press reports the massacre of civilians at Haditha in the Anbar province is worse than Abu Gharib:

The shootings last November at Haditha, a city in the Anbar province of western Iraq that has been plagued by insurgents, were covered up, said Rep. John Murtha…"Who covered it up, why did they cover it up, why did they wait so long?" Murtha said on "This Week" on ABC.

"We don't know how far it goes. It goes right up the chain of command….I will not excuse murder, and this is what happened," Murtha said. "This investigation should have been over two or three weeks afterward and it should have been made public and people should have been held responsible for it."

Additional coverage:
Haditha killings will likely weaken U.S. war support
The Shame of Haditha
Witnesses describe Haditha slayings of Iraqis

4th Amendment? What 4th Amendment? Police Can Enter Homes Without Warrant; only need pretext: an Emergency

The Supreme Court ruled that police officers can enter a home unannounced in an emergency situation. The decision affirms that officers were justified in going inside a home to break up a fight during a house party. A lower court had thrown out charges stemming from their search because the officers violated the Fourth Amendment. Gina Holland, Law.com 05/23/2006 Read Article: Law.com

New Orleans Mayor:Businesses are 'Predators'

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin said he is not bothered by businesses that said they may leave the city if he was reelected to office. Nagin said, "Business people are predators, and if the economic opportunities are here, they're going to stay. If not, they're going to leave…God bless them. I hope they stay, but if they don't I'll send them a postcard." Associated Press, New Orleans Times-Picayune 05/21/2006 Read Article: New Orleans Times-Picayune

Corporate greed: More 'Looted Body Parts' Lawsuits Filed in Baton Rouge

A total of eight lawsuits are now filed in federal district court in Baton Rouge, alleging that New York-based Biomedical Tissue Service sold stolen body parts from corpses to hospitals for transplant procedures. Judge Frank Polozola issued a stay in the cases until a decision is made on consolidating the Baton Rouge cases with others in the nation. The Advocate , The Advocate 05/23/2006 Read Article: The Advocate

Panel on Judicial Conduct Censures Texas Republican Supreme Court Justice

The Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct publicly admonished Republican Justice Nathan Hecht for endorsing Harriet Mier, a nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court. Hecht argues that he has the right under the First Amendment to free speech. He plans to "vigorously contest this charge" before a panel of three appellate judges. Chuck Lindell, Austin American Statesman 05/24/2006 Read Article: Austin American Statesman

Jury Finds for Family of Slain Knox College Student

A Naperville couple was awarded $1.05 million for their daughter's wrongful death. The student was brutally murdered in a dormitory stairwell at Knox College in Downstate Galesburg. The lawsuit against the college alleged poor lighting in the stairwell and inadequate security on campus provided an unsafe environment. Bill Bird, Chicago Sun-Times 05/24/2006Read Article: Chicago Sun-Times

Family of Train-Wreck Victim Plans to Sue

The family of a 24-year-old man who died in a train wreck plans to seek $1 million from the town of Terry, railroad company CN and Amtrak. Investigators determined that recently installed lights at the crossing had not been activated. A truck driver and about two dozen cattle he was hauling were killed in a collision at the same crossing in 2000. Kelli Esters, The Jackson Clarion-Ledger 05/23/2006Read Article: The Jackson Clarion-Ledger

Bare-knuckle entrepreneurs poised to Fight Insurance Reform Bills

Bare-knuckle entrepreneurs composed of insurers, bankers and other businesses have formed a coalition to protect none other than...insurance companies! The purpose? To stop the House Insurance Committee vote on SB 693, which would abolish a law that allowed insurance companies to increase rates by 10 percent or less without the approval of the Insurance Rating Commission. Robert Travis Scott, New Orleans Times-Picayune 05/24/2006 Read Article: New Orleans Times-Picayune

Rep. Jack Murtha vindicated: U.S. opens probe on Iraq civilian's death

Recently Rep. Jack Murtha, decorated Vietnam vet, condemned U.S. Military cover-up of the massacre of Iraqi civilians. On May 17, Murtha said the Haditha attack was far worse than originally reported. He accused U.S. troops of killing innocent women and children "in cold blood." Nearly twice as many people were killed than first reported. Murtha blamed the killings on an "overstretched and overstressed" military. See, US Rep. Jack Murtha: Evidence the US military deliberately ...

Today the U.S. military announced it was opening criminal investigation into allegations. Associated Press reports, “A preliminary investigation by Multinational Force-West found enough information to recommend an investigation by the Naval Criminal Investigation Service.”

AP further reported, “Videotape aired by an Arab television station showed images purportedly taken in the aftermath of the encounter: a bloody bedroom floor, bullet holes in walls and bodies of women and children. An Iraqi human rights group called for an investigation of what it described as another deadly mistake that had harmed civilians.”

U.S. Rep. Jack Murtha: Evidence the US military deliberately massacred Iraqi civilians

Sometime last year, when we wrote about the real atrocities at Abu Ghrib, we were called liars. But, references to photographs and videotapes mentioned only in European newspapers began to surface, albeit cryptically, during official investigation of the allegations.

After months of denial and a lawsuit by the ACLU, the Army admitted it had evidence that was more shocking than pictures of soldiers holding vicious dogs over prisoners. It had evidence of murder and rape.

Notwithstanding, a federal judge's order to release the evidence, the military stonewalled "full disclosure." Finally, an Australian newspaper had the courage to print what the American news media shunned. And with its disclosure, there was more evidence of pres. Bush’s dishonesty. More evidence the Bush administration was desperately trying to salvage war in Iraq in order to salvage Bush’s presidency.

Today, senior House Democrat Jack Murtha, himself a decorated Vietnam veteran, disclosed evidence the US military deliberately massacred Iraqi civilians. In Murtha's words, the evidence will prove to be a "very, very bad thing" for the US.

The slaughter stems from the death Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas on Nov. 19, 2005. A roadside explosive device killed Terrazas. Initially, the military covered up the atrocity, claiming the same roadside bomb that killed Terrazas also killed civilians. But, that wasn’t the case. As a result of Terrazas’s death, US marines conducted a house-to-house search that resulted in the slaughter of 23 civilians. But Murtha's sources say the killings were deliberate.

Those of us who lived through the Vietnam, remember the horror of My Lai Massacre. We also remember its cause. At that time, US soldiers were caught in a war that was ill advised and could not be won. Common sense dictates that our leaders would have learned a lesson, but they didn't.

Murtha explained, "Our troops overreacted because of the pressure on them, and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood." Like My Lai, information about the Iraqi atrocities came from military personnel. Murtha said his information "comes from the commanders, it comes from people who know what they are talking about." It is difficult to believe that this nation will ever recover from the incredible damage inflicted upon it and the rest of the world by Pres. Bush.

Bush administration’s newspeak, and another attack on the U.S. constitution…

"Newspeak" is the use of language in a deliberately ambiguous and contradictory way to mislead and manipulate the public. George Orwell first described the idea in the novel 1984. With the rise of international authoritarianism, conservative governments worldwide use "fighting terrorism" and "national security" to "chill" natural rights, such as "freedom of expression," which individuals in Western democracies have long enjoyed.

The method is simple: First, have an authoritative figure in the government, someone like Atty. General Alberto Gonzales, threaten prosecution for a crime that is described in ambiguous language. Second, have a government-controlled news agency, like Fox news, communicate the threat in clear language. And, a timid press already softened by false-patriotism and greed will do the rest. Silence!

On Sunday May 21, 2006, Fox news reported, "Attorney General Says Reporters Can Be Prosecuted for Publishing Classified Leaks." Of course, when you wade through Gonzales's newspeak, the description of the crime is just vague enough to permit the Bush administration to say it wasn't trying to intimidate the press and yet achieve that effect.

"There are some statutes on the book," Gonzales said, which "if you read the language carefully, would seem to indicate that that is a possibility." Words like "read the language carefully," "would seem," and "is a possibility" are never used to describe a crime. Criminal acts must be clear; otherwise they are not considered crimes. Can you imagine saying, if read carefully, there is a statute that seems to define the crime of robbery? Or, use of a gun rob someone "would seem" to be illegal? Or, if you rob someone with a gun, prosecution "is a possibility."

Such a situation would be silly. You can't be prosecuted for a crime that is ambiguous, unless the fix in with the judge. Or unless, prosecution isn't the objective; rather, the objective is curtailing "freedom of expression."

While keeping the alleged illegal act vague, Gonzales makes the threat clear. Referring to prosecutions Gonzales said, "We have an obligation to enforce those laws. We have an obligation to ensure that our national security is protected." Words like "obligation," "enforce," and "national security," are strong words that communicate the intended threat. A timid press will get the message and remain silent to avoid the risk of prosecution.

When a government, like the Bush administration, violates the peoples' constitution, hasn't national security been compromised? And, when an authority figure, like Atty. Gen. Alberto Gonzales, facilitates the violation, isn't he aiding and abetting. Besides, didn't both Cheney and Bush leak classified information? If so, who's the criminal? You decide.

Is it "we the people" or "me the people?" Presidential signing statement. A must see!

Phillip Cooper, a leading expert on Presidential signing statements, takes Pres. Bush to task in his 2002 book, By Order of the President: The Use and Abuse of Executive Direct Action. Cooper assesses the uses and abuses of signing statements by presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

By Cooper's count, “George W. Bush issued 23 signing statements in 2001; 34 statements in 2002, raising 168 constitutional objections; 27 statements in 2003, raising 142 constitutional challenges, and 23 statements in 2004, raising 175 constitutional criticisms.” In total, during Bush’s first term Bush raised a remarkable 505 constitutional challenges to various provisions of legislation that became law.

“It’s ‘we the people,’ not ‘me the people,’ Mr. President. The new animation "Decider." A must see!

The determined killing of Joseph Clark...

Determined, an adj., meaning: Marked by or showing determination…resolute… decided or resolved, as in: “was engaged in a protracted struggle with a determined enemy.”

Determined to get drug money, Joseph Clark killed David Manning. The day before he killed Manning, determined to rob a store, Clark killed a store clerk. Joseph Clark was determined man – determined to kill Manning, determined to rob a store, and determined to kill the store clerk.

When the State of Ohio got its turn, it was determined – determined to kill Joseph Clark.

Determined to kill effectively, Ohio’s execution team anticipated special problems in killing Joseph Clark. One member of the execution team admitted, we knew Clark’s veins "were not going to be easy to find." Determined to succeed, Ohio’s execution team struggled to find a vein in Clark’s arm. Finally, success! And, then Clark’s vein collapsed.

Determined to assist in his own killing, Clark pushed himself up from his gurney saying, "It don't work."

Determined to die for Ohio’s execution team, Clark offered a solution. "Can you just give me something by mouth to end this?" Clark asked his killers.

Determined not to be embarrassed, a member of Ohio’s execution team explained, we “tried to administer the lethal drugs through the first shunt by mistake.”

Determined not to hide the error, Ohio officials explained, “The vein simply collapsed — that wasn't a flaw in the process."

Then, Joseph Clark died.

The system ain’t broke! Harvard Study Analyzes Medical Malpractice Claims

According to a recent study, about 40 percent of medical malpractice cases filed in the US are groundless. The majority of these cases were dismissed but still accounted for about 15 percent of the money paid in verdicts or settlements. The study's lead researcher said, "We found the system did reasonably well in sorting the good claims from the bad ones, but there were problems." Still problems? You mean like maggots in an infected leg! Alicia Chang, Law.com 05/11/2006 Read Article: Law.com

Texas tort reform at its best: Homeowner Still Battling Insurance Cos. Months After Rita

Thousands of homeowners across Texas have filed complaints against dozens of insurance companies for not covering damage done by Hurricane Rita. The TX Department of Insurance returned $15 million back to hurricane victims that filed complaints. About one-third of the complaints were against Allstate, but the company maintains that no complaints were filed for 98 percent of its claims. Click2Houston, Click2Houston 05/08/2006 Read Article: Click2Houston

FDA May Have Power to Force Drug Makers to Complete Trials

A US House committee added an amendment to a must-pass appropriations bill that will give the FDA the legal authority to force drug makers to complete post-marketing studies of new drugs. The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America argued that the agency already has "broad authority to monitor and ensure the safety of prescription drug products after approval." Diedtra Henderson, Boston Globe 05/11/2006 Read Article: Boston Globe

Attorney Proceeds with 'Good Hands' book about Allstate

Plaintiff attorney David Berardinelli of Santa Fe is the author of From Good Hands to Boxing Gloves, which is a book that Allstate Corp. does not want published. The book tells the story of the role of a management-consulting firm in reengineering automobile insurance claims practices at Allstate. The firm allegedly advised Allstate to using "boxing gloves" rather than "good hands" in dealing with some of its policyholders. BusinessWeek online, Business Week 05/01/2006 Read Article: Business Week

Good guys win: Owens Corning to Resolve Billions in Asbestos Claims

Victims of asbestos will receive $5.2 billion as part of a settlement with Owens Corning, the world's largest maker of insulation products. Creditors will also receive $2.5 billion, which will allow the company to emerge from bankruptcy. Other companies such as W.R. Grace, Federal Mogul Corp, and USG Corp. have also filed for Chapter 11 in order to wipe out their asbestos liabilities. Bloomberg, Bloomberg 05/11/2006 Read Article: Bloomberg

Darn frivolous lawsuit! Maggots in an injured leg aren’t medical malpractice. It’s alternative medicine.

A jury found the nursing home staff at Renova Health Center in Lake Park responsible for a woman's amputated leg. The women had been suffering from gangrene after having foot surgery, but the staff rebandaged the wound rather than cleaning it. After staying there for 18 days, a doctor reexamined her and found hundreds of maggots on her infected foot and leg. Sonja Isger, Palm Beach Post 05/11/2006 Read Article: Palm Beach Post

Big Oil does everything big: Lawsuits Mounting Over Exxon Gas Leak

An additional 50 claims seeking $1 billion in punitive damages will be filed today against Exxon Mobil. The lawsuits accuse the company of allowing gas from an underground fuel line to leak into the ground water near Jacksonville. The lawsuit also alleges Exxon and a station operator failed to report the leak for 37 days and exaggerated the success of their cleanup efforts. Timothy B. Wheeler, Baltimore Sun 05/11/2006 Read Article: Baltimore Sun

Thank you, Mr. President: Disaster Unemployment Benefits Expire Soon

A Rebublican-ledCongress just approved big - and I mean big - tax cuts for the rich, but the working-stiff is told "get a job; if you can!"

The U.S. Labor Department announced the 13-week extension of disaster unemployment benefits approved by President Bush in March will expire June 3. This will affect about 72,000 Louisiana residents who are still receiving the assistance. New Orleans CityBusiness, 05/11/2006

Money…Money…Money: Insurance Industry Riding Wave of Profits

Money…Money…Money: Insurance Industry Riding Wave of Profits

Can you believe it! Every day insurance companies “poor-mouth” it. Yet facts show, as hurricane season approaches, the insurance industry is "riding a wave of tidy profits." Industry profits hit a record high in 2005, despite storm damage across the Gulf South.

Analysts say its "good times in the property-casualty industry." Since 1992, insurers insulated themselves with increased prices, new deductibles, scaled-back high-risk coverage and shifting risk to other insurers. "The net result: Catastrophes don't hurt sellers of homeowners' insurance as much as they used to." An analyst says consumers are bearing the cost of higher insurance while the overall equation has shifted in favor of insurers.

Associated Press, New Orleans CityBusiness, 05/11/2006

A great champion is gone: Former Boxer Floyd Patterson Dies....

In boxing, they strike the bell 10 times to show a great champion can’t answer the bell.

Bong… Bong… Bong… Bong… Bong… Bong… Bong… Bong… Bong… Bong… to show a great champion is gone.

Today, from New Paltz, it’s reported 71 year old Floyd Patterson, “who came back from an embarrassing loss to become the first boxer to regain the heavyweight title, died Thursday.” Patterson was a kind, humble champion, who overcame many disabilities to achieve what few men have achieved.

See it here: Comedian Stephen Colbert nails Pres. Bush....

Comedian Stephen Colbert nails Pres. Bush at the Whitehouse Correspondents dinner. Unlike the mythical WMDs, Bush had no place to hide ... Play: Colbert Speech

When Pharmaceutical company tells you they want to help, run! Pfizer Tested Unapproved Experimental Drug on Nigerian Children

A Nigerian government report found, Pfizer tested the experimental drug Trovan on children without their authorization. Nearly 100 children and infants who suffered from a deadly strain of meningitis received the drug at a field hospital in Kano. The report remained confidential for almost five years. The Washington Post, Austin American Statesman 05/08/2006 Read Article: Austin American Statesman

Good guys win: Jury Finds for Rail Road Machinists in Asbestos Suit

Long Island Rail Road must pay three machinists $16.4 million for exposing them to dangerous substances such as asbestos. The men now suffer a potentially fatal disease known as asbestosis and will probably "suffer a lifetime of misery in the years they have left," said their lawyer. Susan Edelman, New York Post 05/07/2006 Read Article: New York Post

Riddle: When can a stick or golf club be a proxy?

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports, legislators use sticks and a golf clubs to reach across the aisles and punch the electronic voting buttons on the desks of colleagues who are absent at the moment a vote is called. House Speaker Joe Salter said technically if lawmakers are not present then they should not have votes cast for them in their absence. I'll say they shouldn't. Robert Travis Scott, New Orleans Times-Picayune 05/08/2006 Read Article: New Orleans Times-Picayune

No shame: The rabid right wing wackos declare a ULL grad a terrorist…

When dissent is threatened, what’s at strake? Nothing less than “the entire country.”

"It is the duty of the patriot,” Thomas Pine said, "to protect his country from the government.”

Each year a group of Americans gathers in Georgia to protest the School of the Americas (SOA), now called “Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation.” The SOA has the dubious honor of having been involved with:

El Salvador death squad leader, Roberto D'Abuisson
Panamanian dictator and drug dealer, Manual Noriega
Haitian coup leader, Raoul Cedras
19 Salvadoran soldiers linked to the 1989 murder of six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her daughter
Col. Julio Roberto Alpirez, Guatemalan officer linked in the death of an American innkeeper
Hector Gramajo, former Guatemalan defense minister found liabile in United States court for abduction, rape, and torture of Sister Dianna Ortiz, a United States citizen.
Argentinian dictator, Leopoldo Galtieri, leader of the "dirty little war: responsible for the deaths of 30 civilians
Two of the three killers of Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador
El Mozote massacre : Ten of the twelve officers responsible for the murder of 900 civilians in the El Salvadoran village of El Mozote.

I’ve only listed a few; there are thousands more. So mush so, in 1997, U.S. Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy introduced H.R. 611 to close the campus the SOA because it exports murder.

But, nothing has gotten the attention of rabid-right-wing-wackos better than “Fr. Roy Bourgeois, Maryknoll Missionary Priest, ULL graduate, Vietnam veteran, Purple Heart winner, and founder of School of the Americas Watch.” Fr. Bourgeois’s group, which numbers in the thousands, gathers each year at the gates of the SOA to register a Patriot’s Protest to export of American totalitarianism.

Now the FBI has turned its sights on Fr. Bourgeois group. In “FBI Puts SOA Watch Under ‘Counterterrorism Surveillances,’” Matthew Rothschild explains.

When the government wanted to abuse you, they used to call you a “Red.” Now days you’re called a terrorist. Terrorism is the code word for international totalitarianism.

Labor arbitrage: Happy Meals, Unhappy Workers

Labor arbitrage exploits human effort by searching the world for the cheapest labor possible, regardless of the effects. Labor arbitrage is one of the major causes of the worldwide totalitarian endeavor called Globalization.

But, labor arbitrage would not be possible without economic collaboration and cooperation of former communist and bare knuckled capitalist.And, no one abuses workers better than brutal communist states, like Vietnam, in partnership with bare-knuckled capitalist states, like the U.S.

Adam Smith envisioned such an effect as negative. Karl Marx, who read and understood Smith, envisioned it as well. Both men would condemn the joint efforts of communist states and capitalist states that arbitrage labor.

Aaron Glantz and Ngoc Nguyen report, "Vietnamese workers earn less than $2 a day making stuffed animals and Happy Meal toys for U.S. consumers.” You know the little package of toys kids cry for at fast food restaurants. But, Vietnamese workers fought back, calling for wildcat strikes until the government raised wages to prevent factories from moving to other countries. Read: Happy Meals, Unhappy Workers

KY Nursing Home Loses Wrongful-Death Lawsuit

Beverly Health and Rehabilitation of Frankfort and two nurses were found responsible for the death of an 84-year-old man. The man had repeatedly called for nurses because of abdominal pain. They ignored his calls and he later died of a heart attack and blood clot in his left lung. A jury awarded his estate $20 million for the wrongful death. Greg Kocher, Ft. Worth Star Telegram 05/05/2006 Read Article: Ft. Worth Star Telegram

Doctors fail us again: Kaiser Transplant Center Turned Away Organs from UC San Fran

Officials at UC San Francisco offered to transplant organs they had matched to 25 Kaiser patients. However, Kaiser would not authorize the transplants and did not tell the patients that they were declined. These organs could have given patients a better chance of survival and now they may have to wait a long time before they get another opportunity. Tracy Weber and Charles Ornstein, LA Times 05/04/2006 Read Article: LA Times

Broward Judge to Unseal Cases Hidden on Secret Docket

Secret dockets? Removal of documents? Hey, that’s not justice! Judge Robert Carney plans to open up more than 100 civil lawsuits that were hidden on a secret docket. However, he plans to delay the action in order to give the parties involved an opportunity to remove the settlement agreements. A former attorney for The Miami Herald said he's "unaware of any law or rule that permits judges to withdraw documents from public court files." Patrick Danner and Dan Christensen, Miami Herald 05/05/2006 Read Article: Miami Herald

When a conservative’s liberty is at risk, who’s he going to call: The ACLU

Yea…yea…yea…all conservatives say the same thing over and over: “How can anyone seriously try to claim that the ACLU is helping our country these days? Which of their causes [is] noble and admirable?” Yet, when conservatives and conservative causes are in trouble – really, really in trouble – they don’t go the Fox News or conservative pundits; they go to the ACLU. Conservatives know who really defends personal liberty in this country.

Consequently when religious liberty – real religious liberty – is under attack, it's the ACLU who comes to the defense. Here's a short list:

ACLU of Nebraska Defends Church Facing Eviction by the City of Lincoln (8/11/2004)

ACLU's Defense of Religious Liberty (3/2/2005)

ACLU of Rhode Island Files Appeal on Behalf of Christian Prisoner Barred from Preaching at Religious Services

ACLU of Michigan Defends Catholic Man Coerced to Convert to Pentecostal Faith in Drug Rehab Program

ACLU of New Jersey Joins Lawsuit Supporting Second-Grader’s Right to Sing "Awesome God" at Talent Show

After ACLU Intervention on Behalf of Christian Valedictorian, Michigan High School Agrees to Stop Censoring Religious Yearbook Entries

ACLU Argues for Legal Recognition of Small Christian Church

ACLU of MA Defends Students Punished for Distributing Candy Canes with Religious Messages

ACLU of Nebraska Defends Church Facing Eviction by the City of Lincoln

ACLU Defends Church’s Right to Run "Anti-Santa" Ads in Boston Subways

Following Threat of ACLU of Virginia Lawsuit, Officials to Agree Not to Ban Baptisms in Public Parks

ACLU Defends Families Fighting Removal Of Religious Symbols from Florida Cemetery

ACLU Fights For Right Of Students To Distribute Christian Literature At School

ACLU Argument In Support of the Display of a Christian Cross in a Public Forum

ACLU Defends Free Speech Rights of Christians And Others On Main Street Plaza

ACLU Defends Prisoner’s Rosary Beads

ACLU Pledges to Back Church in a Zoning Battle

ACLU of PAFiles Discrimination Lawsuit Over Denial of Zoning Permit for African American Baptist Church

ACLU Offers To Represent Private Prayer on Public Property

Pro-Life advocates turned to the ACLU to defend their right to protest abortion clinics:

ACLU Backs Abortion Protester

When “rabid right wing wackos,” such as Rev Jerry Falwell, Rush Limbaugh, and Bob Barr, are under attack, they run to the ACLU:

Rev. Jerry Falwell - In Win for Rev. Falwell (and the ACLU), Judge Rules VA Must Allow Churches to Incorporate (4/17/2002)

Rush Limbaugh – ACLU Asks Court to Protect Confidentiality of Rush Limbaugh's Medical Records (1/12/2004)

Conservative Rep. Bob Barr - ACLU Announces Collaboration With Rep. Bob Barr; Says Conservative Congressman... 11/25/2002

Most conservatives are just unhappy, but they don’t know why!

Man on the run: Rumsfeld Is Confronted by Antiwar Protesters…

First, there were high-level accusations Rummy allowed torture at Gitmo. See, Man on the run: Rumsfeld personally allowed the abuse at Gitmo

Then, U.S. generals waded in making a strong case for Rummy’s incompetence. See, Man on the run: Rummy becomes “art of a sort” and the object of military scorn…

Today, in Atlanta, the public ratcheted it up a notch.

"Why did you lie to get us into a war that caused these kind of casualties and was not necessary?" Ray McGovern, the former CIA analysts, publicly demanded of Rumsfeld. Patricia Robertson, a grieving mother who lost her son in Iraq, insisted Rummy come clean.

"I did not lie," said Rummy unconvincingly.

But, facts show Rummy lied:

"But no terrorist state poses a greater or more immediate threat to the security of our people and the stability of the world than the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq." (Testimony of U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld before the House Armed Services Committee regarding Iraq, Rayburn House Office Building (Washington, D.C.), 9/18/02)

"His regime has amassed large clandestine stocks of biological weapons, including anthrax and botulism toxin and possibly smallpox. His regime has amassed large clandestine stockpiles of chemical weapons, including VX and sarin and mustard gas." (Rumsfeld Testimony, 9/18/02)

Saddam's removal is necessary to eradicate the threat from his weapons of mass destruction (Donald Rumsfeld March 30, 2003)

Big Oil’s new best friend: State Government

The assault on private property is unending. First, there was Kelo v. City of New London. Now, Big Oil has State Government as its new best friend. Sen. Robert Adley (District 36), who is welded to Big Oil, is pushing a bill that says a landowner whose property is damaged by Big Oil must turn the proceeds over to the State. Regrettably, Gov. Kathleen Blanco backs the bill. And, shamefully, both Blanco and Adley are Democrats.

Lafayette Parish Republicans, Sen. Mike Michot and Sen. Craig Romero, warmly supported Adley’s bill, which favors Big Oil over landowners. Both men jumped at the chance to favor Big Oil.

But, Sen. Butch Gautreaux (St. Mary Parish), Sen. Nick Gautreaux (Lafayette), and Sen. Reggie Dupre (Terrebonne Parish), all Democrats, fought Adley’s bill arguing, a landowner, and not the State, has the right to decide what happens to his own property.

Sen. Butch Gautreaux says he'll offer SB 702 that would put district courts in charge of remediation plans and supervision. Gautreaux said, "If we depend on DNR to do it, they could defer action for years and years." Mike Hasten, The Shreveport Times 05/01/2006 Read Article: The Shreveport Times