John Sez: Back in mid October, there was a conference held at the Council of Foreign Relations where the Swine Flu vaccine was discussed (video of the pertinent part at bottom of post). One of the speakers makes the point (which the attendees seem to think is funny) that the way to get people to take the vaccine is to CREATE a scarcity scare so people would rush to line up thinking they might not get the shot.

A few seconds later there is a mention that there already is a shortage of the Vaccine, but the speaker corrects that statement, saying that initially 2 shots were supposed to be given for each person but because they are only giving one dose per person there is really double the amount of vaccine and thus no real shortage.

Now, folks, think about this for a second: haven’t we been hearing for the last month how we were short on vaccines so we should rush out and line up to get it? Is anyone out there getting pissed at being played by these contemptible bastards in suits?
 
 
John Sez: So, here I am listening to CNN proclaiming that the national unemployment rate is just over 10% for the month of October. Of course, they don’t mention that the number itself is figured by counting only new unemployment claims and not a general count of both new claims and people who’s unemployment insurance ran out already, so realistically the number should be around 20-25%. But they have had on a bevy of so called ‘experts’ recently who have told us that the economy is getting better, and that the supposed ‘stimulus plans’ which have been rolled out by our government are a shining success. I wonder what CNN was offered to do damage control for the government instead of reporting the news objectively?

On the subject of the economy, I came across a rant by Mike Rivero (of whatreallyhappened.com and What Really Happened radio) which I thought was right on the money. And it goes something like this:

Look at where the stimulus money went! It went to Wall Street. And what did Wall Street do with it? They wrote themselves huge bonuses with it!

It is estimated that the sum of all spending related to the bailouts has reached $27 trillion (with a 't'). That's about $180,000 per taxpayer.

Now, had the government simply handed every taxpayer $180,000, people would have paid their mortgages. No housing crash. Had the government simply handed every taxpayer $180,000, people would have paid their credit cards. No credit crash. Had the government simply handed every taxpayer $180,000, Americans would have bought new cars. No big three automotive bailout needed. Had the government simply handed every taxpayer $180,000, we would have continued to buy TV sets and other toys. No retail crisis.

But the government shifted the money in the wrong direction. They transferred the wealth from the poor and middle classes to the already-wealthy. And as a result, our economy has gone totally out of balance and commerce has ground almost to a halt. Offering to loan us more money won't fix the problem if we have no jobs with which to repay those loans. More wealth, rather than more debt, is what the people need and what will get the economy moving again.

 
 
John Sez: A couple of months ago I posted about a French law that was up for vote which contained a similar measure. Now, it seems, that France isn’t the only place that is trying to institute such draconian measures…it’s now the world – or at least some cockamamie group of unelected officials who are trying to impose their ‘order’ on the rest of us.

According to the leaked report, it works like this: if you are accused (note: not convicted, not brought before the courts, not arrested, simply ACCUSED) of illegally downloading material from the internet three times, you will lose your access to the internet. Even on its face, such a law or treaty obligation is complete and utter rubbish, and rife with the possibility of massive abuse by whatever ‘council’ is in charge of filing and enforcing on these accusations.

What if a teenager is DL’ing in his home and hits the three strikes and you’re out rule? Will the rest of his family be forced to suffer the penalty of the loss of the internet?

What about erroneous accusations? I have personally heard of many stories of people being accused of illegal uploads of THEIR OWN music, which they owned all rights and copyrights on. Will people loose thier access due to a faulty charge?

How about people who leech bandwidth, or net cafes and libraries with WIFI access? Will they lose their internet service due to criminal activities beyond their control?

I would also think that it would be all too easy for governments to target political opponents or dissidents in their country and force a loss of internet access, thus promoting censorship and a loss if individual rights and liberties.

Also noted in the report is that ISP’s need to proactively police copyright violations. Considering the cost to carry out such a mandate in man hours and legal costs this will, in effect, mean the end of Youtube, playlist.com, online file storage companies, and millions of personal web sites.

The way that a great many governments have been clamping down on freedom of expression of their citizens (notable are  the US, France, China, Iran, and England) I wonder if this is not so much a play to protect copyright owners (of which I am one and I HEARTILY DISSAGREE with this proposal) and more of an outright attempt to wrest control of the internet from the hands of the people and have it regulated, seized and sterilized by the governments involved in the treaty.

Story from Raw Story:

Global treaty could throw file-sharers off Internet after ‘three strikes’

File-sharers could be jailed under proposed ACTA provisions

Leaked details of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement being negotiated in secret by most of the world's largest economies suggest Internet file-sharers could be blocked from accessing the Internet if they are repeatedly accused of sharing copyrighted material, say media and digital-rights watchdogs.

And the worst-case scenario could see popular Web sites like YouTube and Flickr shut down because of a provision in the treaty that would force them to monitor everything uploaded to the site for copyright violations.

Internet law professor Michael Geist published details of "leaked" portions of the discussions on ACTA on his blog Tuesday, as a new round of ACTA negotiations began in Seoul, South Korea. The US, along with all the countries of the European Union as well as Japan, Canada, Australia and a handful of other countries, are involved in the negotiations.

"The provisions would pave the way for a globalized three-strikes and you're out system," Geist blogged Wednesday, referring to a proposal from copyright holders to have Internet service providers cut off service to anyone accused at least three times of illegally sharing copyrighted material.

READ MORE

 
YANKEES WIN!!! 11/05/2009
 
John Sez: The bums from the Bronx have brought home championship number 27! Congrats on yet another World Series win to the boys in pinstripes. To quote team president Randy Levine, “The Yankees won. The world is right again.”

 
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Go Yankees!
 
 
John Sez: Cheers for the voters of Breckenridge, Colorado. Now all we need is for an entire State to fall on this issue, and the rest will follow one by one. Then we can finally be free of the ludicrous, draconian, and overtly corrupted money-making machine known as the ‘war on drugs’.

Story from Raw Story:

Breckenridge, Colorado voters legalize marijuana, paraphernalia

Voters in the ski resort town of Breckenridge, Colorado legalized marijuana and marijuana paraphernalia by a nearly three-to-one margin on Tuesday. It is the first municipality in the United States to allow paraphernalia, such as pipes, bongs and bubblers.

"[The measure] passed 73 percent to 27 percent," ABC 7 News in Denver reported.

READ MORE

 
 
John Sez: This came in my e-mail box today from Congressman Kucinich, and I have to say I strongly support what he is saying and I applaud his efforts.

Kucinich Addresses UN Goldstone Gaza Resolution

November 3, 2009, Congressman Dennis Kucinich addresses H.RES. 867 on the House Floor. H.RES. 867 condemns the UN Goldstone Gaza Fact Finding Mission Report.

Congressman Kucinich stated:

"Today we journey from Operation Cast Lead to Operation Cast Doubt. Almost as serious as committing war crimes is covering up war crimes, pretending that war crimes were never committed and did not exist."

"Because behind every such deception is the nullification of humanity, the destruction of human dignity, the annihilation of the human spirit, the triumph of Orwellian thinking, the eternal prison of the dark heart of the totalitarian."

"The resolution before us today, which would reject all attempts of the Goldstone Report to fix responsibility of all parties to war crimes, including both Hamas and Israel, may as well be called the "Down is Up, Night is Day, Wrong is Right: resolution."

"Because if this Congress votes to condemn a report it has not read, concerning events it has totally ignored, about violations of law of which it is unaware, it will have brought shame to this great institution."

"How can we ever expect there to be peace in the Middle East if we tacitly approve of violations of international law and international human rights, if we look the other way, or if we close our eyes to the heartbreak of people on both sides by white-washing a legitimate investigation?"

"How can we protect the people of Israel from existential threats if we hold no concern for the protection of the Palestinians, for their physical security, their right to land, their right to their own homes, their right to water, their right to sustenance, their right to freedom of movement, their right to human security of jobs, education and health care?".

"We will have peace only when the plight of both Palestinians and Israelis is brought before this House and given equal consideration in recognition of that principle that all people on this planet have a right to survive and thrive, and it is our responsibility, our duty to see that no individual, no group, no people are barred from this humble human claim."


 
 
John Sez: Why the two law enforcement officers are still on the job or not in jail is beyond me. And the judge’s attitude is altogether way too mild to my mind as well.

Constitutional law scholar, Jonathan Turley, Had this to say about the matter:

This is one of the most incredible videos that I have seen. In the video, Officer Adam Stoddard with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is clearly shown reading confidential papers of defense attorney Joanne Cuccia while she is addressing the court on behalf of jail inmate Antonio Lozano (accused of fighting with another inmate). He then pulls a sheet from the file on the defense table and gives it to another deputy to be copied.

What is equally amazing is the relatively weak response from Judge Lisa Flores, who could presumably see Stoddard’s actions from the bench. It is possible that she was blocked in her view by counsel. In the video, Lozano appears to be the only person who clearly notices the removal.

When told, however, Flores reacts a bit defensively to objections from Cuccia and tells her repeatedly to calm down, even though Cuccia seems determined but professional in her statements to the court. Flores also immediately offers a justification that Stoddard is there to protect the court — apparently by copying confidential material. Eventually, she suspends the sentencing hearing.

A hearing was later held before Judge Gary Donahoe and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s office defended Stoddard, insisting that he must screen all defense documents that are passed to an inmate. He insisted that, when he walked near the defense attorney’s table, he recognized some documents that weren’t previously screened.

It is true that some courts allow deputies to thumb through papers to be certain that they do not contain contraband or weapons, but this is a cursory inspection. It is a somewhat controversial practice but it is so limited that most attorneys are not concerned because the officers do not read the papers. Most courts do not have this practice. While your papers can be inspected at jails in face-to-face meetings, courtrooms are generally not subject to such inspections. After all, most courts have metal detectors at the entrances. Weapon transfers, therefore, are not a serious threat in counsel-to-client interactions in court. That leaves contraband, which is not a justification (in my view) for such intrusion. We have seen lawyers arrested on such charges (here and here), but it is incredibly rare. It is more common to see deputies arrested for contraband rackets than attorneys.

I have never heard of an officer copying a document at a prison or a court in such an inspection. This document was found by Donahoe to be subject to attorney-client privilege. Stoddard is clearly reading the document and proceeds to take it without notifying Cuccia and making a copy. It is a simply amazing violation of constitutional and confidentiality rules. I am surprised not to have seen a strong statement and intervention from the Arizona state bar in the case, but I hope that will be coming this week.

For the full story, click here.

 
 
John Sez: Never mind that the guy is 81 years old, which brings into question what was on the mind of the 4 men in uniform who pulled him over and tased him. But WHY is the military patrolling the highways of Alaska when that is strictly prohibited and ILLEGAL according to the Posse Comitatus Act?

Story from Fairbanks NewsMiner:

81-year-old Tasered by Eielson Air Force Base police

by Chris Freiberg 

FAIRBANKS — An 81-year-old man was Tasered during a traffic stop last week.

It is the second time since 1998 that police have had to make a show of force during a traffic stop to arrest Glen M. Wilcox, a Fairbanks-based Episcopalian priest and real estate agent.

Court documents allege that officers with Eielson Air Force Base’s 354th Security Forces Squadron pulled Wilcox over just after 1 p.m. Wednesday for going 11 miles over the speed limit on the Richardson Highway.

An officer, identified as a senior airman in court documents, took Wilcox’s license, registration and proof of insurance and wrote him a traffic citation. When he returned to Wilcox’s car, Wilcox refused to accept the documents and sped down the highway, according to a criminal complaint filed in court.

Wilcox disputes that version of events.
 
READ MORE
 
 
John Sez: I found this vid on YouTube, and it’s a real eye opener. I live in the area and have noticed how a great many commercial properties have been becoming vacant over the last few years. It’s a sure sign of the times.

Thanks to johnu78 on YouTube for thinking to document this and posting it.
 
 
John Sez: Notice that CIT was ‘awarded’ almost 2 and a half billion dollars of tax payer money, plus a few billion here and there from various parts of the bailout plan, and they STILL went under. So much for the banker bailout – we’ll never see that money again, but at least the higher-ups got their bonuses.

Also note in the story that CIT was the primary lender not only for many small to medium sized businesses, but also for 60% of the US’s clothing industry. Considering that many small businesses are in deep trouble right now (and that slave-labor in Asia and South America is destroying the little bit of clothing manufacturing competition we have left in the states, and high taxes, insurance costs, and government leeway to companies who leave the country and take their tax break with them right here in the states) we can expect to see a lot of mom and pops shuttering their windows, more layoff in the manufacturing sector, and a lot more stuff with tags that show they were not made in the US. And all of this with the holiday season coming up.

Merry Xmas, from the government to all of us, eh?

Story from London Guardian:

US businesses at risk as lender CIT Group files for bankruptcy

Thousands of small and medium-sized businesses in the US face financial difficulties and could go out of business after lender CIT Group filed for bankruptcy protection last night.

Although the company will keep operating, it is unlikely to be able to make the same number of loans as before. CIT provides working capital to small firms such as shops, their suppliers and restaurants, many of whom are already struggling in the recession.

In one of the the biggest corporate failures in US history, CIT made its filing in the New York bankruptcy court yesterday, after a debt-exchange offer to bondholders failed. CIT said most of its bondholders have agreed a prepackaged reorganisation plan which will reduce total debt by $10bn (£6.1bn) while allowing the company to continue to do business.

The collapse is also bad news for US taxpayers, who stand to lose the $2.3bn provided last year to prop up the troubled lender.

Creditors will end up owning the company, while common and preferred shareholders – including the US government – will be wiped out by the plan. This is the government's biggest loss yet through its Troubled Asset Relief Programme (Tarp).

READ MORE