In many states, a pattern of two or three incidents can be the basis for a stalking charge. A 42-year-old woman in the Hague proved to be something of an overachieving stalker when she called her ex-boyfriend over 65,000 times in one year.
Continue reading “Dutch Court Orders Woman To Stop Calling Ex-Boyfriend . . . After Over 65,000 Calls in One Year”
Month: September 2011
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
Following up on a previous post titled Libyan Rebels Claim To Find Evidence That CIA Helped Capture Libyan Dissidents and Used Regime For Renditions and Torture:
Human Rights Watch (HRW), an organization that discovered hundreds of archived documents in Tripoli, said the documents provide evidence of US and UK complicity in torture crimes in Libya during the rule of Col. Muammar Gaddafi. From Human Rights Watch: “Among the files were documents confirming that both the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the United Kingdom’s MI6 sent terrorism suspects to Libya for detention – despite Libya’s notorious record for torturing prisoners.” The documents appear to show that Libyan cooperation with both the Central Intelligence Agency and Britain’s MI-6 agency under Gaddafi was closer than had been acknowledged in the past. According to the New York Times, the CIA sent terrorism suspects to Libya for interrogation at least eight times.
Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
It’s nice to see our government off the “Stupid Train” for once. Swedish officials continue to require Fredrik Jansson of Skelleftea to verify that he has trouble walking after his leg was surgically amputated ten years ago. Jansson who suffered the procedure as part of his bid to fight off bone cancer, finds the regulation ridiculous. He is mandated to see a physician to verify the loss every three years.
Continue reading “Amputee Must Prove It Every Three Years to Keep Handicapped Parking Permit”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
On November 9, 2011, Justice Antonin Scalia will preside over the reenactment of Texas v. White (1869). The event is part of the Frank C. Jones Reenactment Lecture hosted by the Supreme Court Historical Society.
Each side get 20 minutes to present their case and then Justice Scalia will render his opinion. These reenactments are apparently enjoyed by the Justices who participate.
Submitted by Mark Esposito, Gust Blogger
Dionette L. Price may need some basic crime lessons. Seeking to carjack a vehicle driven by Rayna Garrett, Mr. Price opted to stand in the middle of busy U.S. Highway 71. When Ms. Garrett attempted to drive around the would-be felon, Price leaped onto the hood of her car, brandished a .357 semi-automatic handgun, and told her, through the glass, to “..drive or I’ll blow your head off.” Ms. Garrett obliged the 26 year-old and took him directly to the Kansas City police station garage. Finding no one in the garage, she rammed the door and alerted the attendant. A foot chase ensued between the Kansas City police and our ersatz “Mr. Toad,” resulting in felonious restraint and weapons charges.
Source: Yahoo News
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Not quite. The Republican Party was founded in 1854 by a coalition that included anti-slavery activists. The Republican Party name was christened in an editorial written by New York newspaper magnate Horace Greeley. The first Republican National Convention was held in the Musical Fund Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 17 to June 19, 1856, where John C. Frémont was nominated for the President of the United States and William L. Dayton was nominated for vice-president over Abraham Lincoln.
Yet President Obama, in Thursday’s speech before Congress, said: “We all remember Abraham Lincoln as the leader who saved our Union. Founder of the Republican Party.”
Continue reading “Is This Man The Founder Of The Republican Party?”
Below is today’s brief essay in the Los Angeles Times that is part of a series called Reflections on 9/11. I was asked that day after the attacks to write a column for the newspaper, which ran on September 13, 2001. As I wrote the piece, I could still see smoke rising from the Pentagon. The plane in Washington hit just behind my car a minute or so after I passed the Pentagon on my way to work from Alexandria. On that day, my greatest concerns were two-fold: a change in the definition of war and the expanded use of assassination. Unfortunately, my worst predictions were exceeded by the Bush Administration and later the Obama Administration. It is shocking to think that this was ten years ago. The images and feelings remain so vivid. My car was forced into a curb by a careening car that morning and I had to replace my tire as the smoke bellowed from the Pentagon. The thought of all the innocent people lost in Washington, New York, and Pennsylvania remains an open wound for so many of us. The sheer savagery and inhumanity of the attacks shocked the conscience — a feeling only magnified later when Bin Laden was shown gloating over how he personally advised the terrorists on the best place to hit the buildings. The cautionary piece on September 13th was not meant to take away from the legitimate and collective anger that we felt — and still feel. However, it was already clear within two days of the attacks that Bush officials were going to seek the radical expansion of presidential powers and were already referencing our civil liberties as an impediment to our safety. My heartfelt sympathy to all who lost friends and family on that day.
Here is our picture of the week from our erstwhile colleague in the City of Light, Eric Tenin.
Submitted by Gene Howington, Guest Blogger
Cecelia Ingraham had a daughter. Her name was Tatiana. In 2003, her then teen-aged daughter was diagnosed with leukemia. After a brief period of remission, the cancer returned. An opportunistic infection claimed Tatiana’s life in 2005. Tatiana was an only child.
Cecelia Ingraham had a job. It was in New Jersey. She worked for Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical for 12 years as an administrative assistant in the marketing department. At this job, she had a cubicle. In this space, Cecelia kept mementos of her daughter not unlike any grieving parent might; pictures and a pair of ballet slippers. On this job, like any job, not all discussions are about business matters. In the course of meandering discussions, Cecelia sometimes talked about her deceased daughter not unlike any grieving parent might. In the spectrum of trauma human beings can face, “what’s the worst trauma” is a zero sum game, but in that spectrum there are certainly forms of trauma that are uniquely painful due to their nature. In that regard, for a parent to lose a child is a unique trauma. It leaves an emotional scar that for most never fully goes away.
About a year and a half after Tatiana’s death, Carl DeStefanis, Director of Marketing, at the urging of Human Resources, had a discussion with Cecelia Ingraham “to convey complaints [Human Resources] had received about plaintiff’s conduct and interaction with co-workers. Several of those complaints were unrelated to Tatiana, but administrative staff in the department had also remarked about plaintiff’s tendency to speak to them about Tatiana’s tragic passing. The co-workers said they sympathized with plaintiff, but they felt uncomfortable and at a loss for ‘what else that we can say that we have not said already.’ The co-workers said they tended to avoid contact with plaintiff and to take work or questions elsewhere.” DeStefanis told Cecelia Ingraham that she needed to remove the pictures and ballet shoes of her deceased daughter from her cubicle and that she could “no longer speak of her daughter because she is dead” and should act as if her daughter “did not exist”.
Distraught, Cecelia left work that day and did not return. Over the next few days, she began to have sudden heart palpitations that required surgery. After the surgery and some recovery time, Cecelia Ingraham resigned her position at Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical. She then filed suit for Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (IIED) against Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical, their parent company Johnson & Johnson, and Carl DeStefanis. What happened next might be seen by some people as adding insult to injury. Her case was dismissed. But was it a result of bad law or a failure in basic empathy?
Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger
As someone who voted for and rejoiced in Barack Obama’s election in 2008, I had certain expectations for his Presidency. My expectations heightened with the Democratic party’s majorities in Congress. Foremost I wanted to see a swift end to both wars, which I believe are unjust and draining the resources of this country. Since Obama was presumably a constitutional law scholar, I expected that he would return this country to the Rule of Law. I expected the new President to eliminate the Bush constitutional usurpation of our government and people, occurring with Democratic Party compliance. The Administration would end the widespread use of torture, rendition, and the excesses of The Patriot Act. His Department Of Justice would prosecute those who were responsible. As far as the economic crisis engendered by Wall Street excesses, I had faith that he would deal with it through FDR like projects, by re-regulation/prosecution of the financial industry and ending the unjustified Bush Tax cuts for the wealthy.
That none of this has happened, or was even attempted has filled me with disappointment and anger towards this Administration’s performance. In my mind as I tried to make sense of it of this betrayal, there was a nagging suspicion. What if the “powers that be” in our Country including the Military-Industrial complex had sent the word to the newly elected President: “Play ball”, or find yourself and your family grievously threatened? I was a young adult through the 60’s as I watched the assassinations of my heroes, one of whom was a President. I’m not comfortable with the official explanation of these deaths, since there was much that didn’t make sense. In the 70’s The Pentagon Papers, Watergate, and later the Church Committee Report on the CIA gave credence to the possible actions of a secret government. In addition, we learned from General Smedley-Butler, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smedley_Butler that a group of businessmen had contacted him in 1934 about leading a coup against FDR. One of those conspirators was Prescott Bush, father of Bush I and grandfather of Bush II. Later, Prescott Bush was involved in a Bank that had financed the NAZI’s rise to power. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2004/sep/25/usa.secondworldwar.
On September 7th, Rob Kall’s OpEdNews published “Obama Team Feared Coup If He Prosecuted War Crimes”. Andrew Kreig, executive director of the Justice Integrity Project, wrote this article. There are some very persuasive points in it and I believe it is worth your perusal and comment:
http://www.opednews.com/articles/1/Obama-Team-Feared-Coup-If-by-Andrew-Kreig-110907-156.html
If this speculation were true, it would go a long way towards explaining what we’ve been seeing from the Obama Administration. It would also be a disaster for any notion of the Rule of Law. Continue reading “The President Has Been Afraid of What?”
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
During the recent Congressional recess, House Budget Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) decided that he wasn’t going to hold any public face-to-face town meetings with the constituents in his district. Instead, according to Politico, he opted for town hall-style meetings that were strictly “pay-per-view.” And Ryan wasn’t the only
member of Congress who chose to charge people for the privilege of speaking to them.
In a Politico article, Reid Epstein wrote:
By outsourcing the events to third parties that charge an entry fee to raise money, members of Congress can eliminate most of the riffraff while still — in some cases — allowing reporters and TV cameras for a positive local news story.
Evidently, Ryan didn’t want to be confronted at public forums with any protesters or with angry backlash or questions from voters upset with his positions on issues like taxes, Medicare, and Social Security—as he was last spring.
Continue reading “Pay to Say: Paul Ryan Charges His Constituents to Talk to Him”
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Erskine College is a small, private, four year Christian liberal arts college located in South Carolina. William Crenshaw, who taught at the college for 35 years, earning tenure, an endowed chair, and teaching awards was fired for his dissent of Erskine’s teaching of science.
Continue reading “Erskine College Professor Fired For Supporting Science”
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez took office in part based on her hard stance against illegal aliens. After being given 1930 Census records by reporters, however, she has now acknowledged that her grandparents illegally came to the USA from Mexico. In the meantime, another family member of President Obama has been arrested as an illegal alien.
Scientists have again embarrassed themselves . . . this time in that fanciful Science Magazine. While creationists (including many of the GOP presidential contenders) have shown that the Earth is only 6000 years old, scientists insist that they have found Australopithecus sediba fossils with the skull, pelvis, hands and feet of the ancient hominin. The fossils with both ape and human characteristics were unearthed three years ago in South Africa.
We have previously followed employees fired or denied benefits for resisting robberies, even when coming to the aid of customers. In the case of Jeremy Hoven, the pharmacist says he was fired by Walgreens after he foiled a late-night robbery in Michigan. He has now filed a wrongful termination lawsuit and Walgreens’ answer to the complaint has an interesting reported twist.