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That link should be this. I mis-copied it somehow.

"[U]nless there are levels of theft and fraud that would truly mean the end of American democracy, a Democratic House seems as close to a sure thing as we ever get in American politics three days before an election... November 2006 will be remembered either as the time American democracy was stolen again, maybe forever, or began a brighter day. "

analysis of flight 77 passengers

I still love that GEMS Access database which stores the votes completely unprotected: http://www.sierratimes.com/03/07/11/article_electi on_fraud.htm

...now, how about stopping attempts to require microchip implants (PDF link; sorry) in livestock which would render the few remaining family farms untenable and complete agritech's stranglehold on our food supply.

Current US govt is so in bed with big pharm that they are putting into effect a Federal plan to mentally screen kids from 5 years on up and prescribe expensive SSRI brain drugs without parential consent.

Before you suggest a tinfoil hat read some of the story here:

Site on the left

Site on the (Christian?) right

The story has been around for a while and I first read it here. on Dec 29, 03.

I like the way in which the Right can create all the huff, puff, & smoke, but then ridicule it when the same is done to them. And people complaining about this "loss of civil liberties" are going to called by the right as being hysterical and they will get away with it. But why ? Why this inequality ?

• A case in point is the Bush in 30 seconds Videoes at MoveOn.org. Maybe a couple of videos out of 1500 submitted ones had Hitler/Bushe theme. I could see myself doing one like that too. But, then the story got picked up by Fox & Drudge Report and not to mention the RNC And ah, the Wall Street Journal has indignation at the Hitler/Holocaust comparison.
• Fair Enough.
• But on the Other hand "the extremely influential GOP activist and White House insider Grover Norquist" referred to the supposedly specious argument that the estate tax was worth keeping because it really affected only "2 percent of Americans." He went on: "I mean, that's the morality of the Holocaust. 'Well, it's only a small percentage,' you know. I mean, it's not you. It's somebody else." From the transcript, it seems that Gross couldn't believe her ears. "Excuse me," she (the interviewer) interjected. "Excuse me one second. Did you just . . . compare the estate tax with the Holocaust?" ... It's hard to overstate Norquist's importance in contemporary Washington. He is head of Americans for Tax Reform, is an intimate of Karl Rove, the president's chief political aide, and has easy access to the White House. He presides over a weekly meeting of important Republican activists and lobbyists where the agenda -- at least Norquist's -- is to ensure that taxes are reduced to a bare minimum, the government is starved and everyone, the rich and the poor, is taxed the same, which is to say almost not at all.

So, there you go. A President whose actions might have killed thousands (15-20 thousand at least) cannot be compared to Hitler. But the Right can compare impostion of the Estate Tax on the richest 2 % to Hitler and his activities.

Look, at me here while I am talking. Is this fair?

You aren't serious, surely? I grew up in the 70s/80s as well. Lets see now - how about a site that's anti-gun control to correlate with the rise in guns? That is to say, one that is directly opposed to my position.

Here's one. Talks about a soaring murder rate in the 1980s. It is in favour of the right to carry guns, so I can't be accused of picking a site which panders to my own position.

Now, I'm UK-based so my historical references might be different to yours. However, Brixton, Handsworth, Liverpool...all majors riots involving firearms in the 1980s. No mass shootings in the 70s or 80s? Certainly not - there were indeed mass shootings then.

Cheers,
Ian

Rules? What rules?

I meant the constitution...

For example... can the president start a war? And if the US were not such a large and reputable country, the attack and occupation of another country would otherwise be an act of war crimes if committed by any other country.

For the record, I agree that something had to be done, I just feel that if we had abided by the rules and were a bit more diplomatic about it, we could have accomplished the same goals with much less backlash. But no, instead we were in a huge rush because the WOMD threat was SOOOOO eminent. Sadly, I think we played right into Saddam's hand. There is a lot to be said about rational thought, tact, and strategy. Shit, I would have been more concerned of a WOMD getting out of the USSR when it collapsed than Iraq...

It's possible that he/she wanted you to find the Sierra Times article on the greenhouse effect. Whose conclusion is...

Perhaps we would be better served by accepting that changes in the temperature of the Earth do occur and they are not under our control. Then we can get on with business.

Just before pointing out that General Relativity might be wrong.

Perhaps you don't have to at all !

Drakkos.

Citizens would only become a threat to the government if the government was deemed fraudulent, as in voter fraud or if the government was behind the 9/11 attacks or if elements of the government were trying to bring about a new world order.

Please mod this down.

Citizens would only become a threat to the government if the government was deemed fraudulent, as in voter fraud or if the government was behind the 9/11 attacks or if elements of the government were trying to bring about a new world order.

Please mod this down.

Apparently US journalism has no obligations to adhere to the truth.

I love it it when they say. "Of course we have the right to protest." And then go on for a long time about how horrible the protesters are.

I can't believe the press does this. You'd think of all groups they would understand the importance of respecting everyone's rights. But their time is gonna come when the brown shirts start pulling their chains too. The entire media is starting to sound like Rush Limbaugh. All mind games and bullshit.

Weeeeee! Welcome to America! Have you heard about what's gonna happen if a Red Alert is announced? It's marshall law, people. Want to pick up your kids from school during a Red Alert? Well, they're not going to let you. Is this not an important thing to be aware of? Is the press talking about Red Alert? Nooo. It's all about how evil the protesters are and how glorious the war effort is.

If the nation escalates to "red alert," which is the highest in the color-coded readiness against terror, you will be assumed by authorities to be the enemy if you so much as venture outside your home, the state's anti-terror czar says.

Hey we get yet another "czar" too.

Now WLS is talking about how much they love police, and again how horrible the protesters are. Boy, it doesn't take long for people to put on the brown shirts.

Unfortunately, CNN has no legal obligation to tell the truth. The appellate court in Florida recently ruled that it is legal for the media to lie and distort the truth.

They have an ethical obligation... but it seems like they have forgotten that part.

by way of example

• On February 14, a Florida Appeals court ruled there is absolutely nothing illegal about lying, concealing or distorting information by a major press organization. The court reversed the $425,000 jury verdict in favor of journalist Jane Akre who charged she was pressured by Fox Television management and lawyers to air what she knew and documented to be false information. The ruling basically declares it is technically not against any law, rule, or regulation to deliberately lie or distort the news on a television broadcast.

Im sorry, Im Canadain... we have no "second and tenth amendments" nor do people from ecuador

Neither does England...and now that only outlaws are armed as a result of their victim-disarmament laws, their violent-crime rates are among the worst in the industrialized world. You're far more likely to be mugged or killed in London than in New York City.

It's a good thing you didn't try to fit libertarian/market anarchist groups in there. I can't wait to see what happens when Lew Rockwell or Anti-State get popular enough that they have to worry about these kinds of problems. Then again, from National Review to Free Republic, the right has been losing eyeballs and minds to the market anarchists in droves....heck, even Sierra Times hardly links to the Freep anymore, and they're as 'conservative' as the libertarian.net gets (more so than Backwoods Home Magazine, although to their credit they have still resisted calls for National ID cards (though the article in question was written by a Cypherpunk and not one of their regulars). Smash the State, and have a nice day!

It's a good thing you didn't try to fit libertarian/market anarchist groups in there. I can't wait to see what happens when Lew Rockwell or Anti-State get popular enough that they have to worry about these kinds of problems. Then again, from National Review to Free Republic, the right has been losing eyeballs and minds to the market anarchists in droves....heck, even Sierra Times hardly links to the Freep anymore, and they're as 'conservative' as the libertarian.net gets (more so than Backwoods Home Magazine, although to their credit they have still resisted calls for National ID cards (though the article in question was written by a Cypherpunk and not one of their regulars). Smash the State, and have a nice day!

This article points out several issues with using driver's licenses for ID:

1. They include information that's specific for driving that may be used other identifying features.
2. Each state has it's own standard. For example, some store social security numbers, other fingerprints, most store address, etc.

The core failing of this issue is that driver licenses (and social secuirity numbers) were never designed nor intended to provide general identification.

What is required is a standard that appies to the entire country for what can be used on ID's. One solution is to establish a National ID, administered by the federal government, which would replace the state drivers licenses and social security numbers strictly for providing identification in a secure manner. Another solution would be for the federal goverment to establish guidelines to be followed by the states in establishing IDs.

The current situation is unacceptable from both a privacy and an identification point of view.

Partly right. There might be a case for a national standard on state driver licenses, but a national is going much too far. I have grave privacy concerns on a national ID. Even the linking of state DMV databases is IMO going much to far.

I found the following at http://www.sierratimes.com/02/02/27/eddf022702.htm and now put these questions to you.

20 Questions to Ask National ID Supporters by Duncan Frissell:

Here are some questions to ask supporters of a modern "enhanced" ID system for the United States.

1. Under your system, can one's ID fail online verification for any reasons other than authentication failure (ID is not in the database or biometrics don't match) or expiration? Can a valid ID be cancelled for any reason (beyond expiration)?
2. Does your ID system have protections to prevent legislators and bureaucrats from adding other conditions to ID use? For example blocking ID authentication for failure to pay fines, failure to pay taxes, criminal arrest or conviction, etc.? The drivers licence system currently allows suspension for many such acts or omissions.
3. Will your ID system supply risk assessment services in addition to ID verification services. That is, will it provide a "credit score", "fraud score" or "criminal risk score" in addition to ID. What information beyond ID validity will the system supply to users.
4. If your system supplies risk assessment services, will it accept foreign government criminal, civil, or administrative records and apply them to the IDs of US citizens? If so, how can these records be challenged, how do you assure that the alleged acts would be crimes or civil wrongs if committed in the US (e.g. hate speech), and how do you deal with differing due process standards in different nations?
5. Should government subsidize wealthy financial corporations by supplying them with free or low-cost ID authentication and risk assessment services?
6. How can people challenge the accuracy of these assessments?
7. Will one's ID be the sole ID accepted for any goods or services? If so, which goods or services?
8. The Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that anonymity and refusal to identify oneself to the police are constitutionally protected actions. Do you favor a constitutional amendment to reverse these court decisions?
9. Four million US citizens are not residents of the US. Since they cannot be denied entry to the US and do not require visas to enter the US, what ID are they supposed to use in the US? They currently use a US passport, a foreign drivers license, and domestic or foreign credit cards.
10. Do you favor the end to the visa waiver program which allows citizens of many OECD countries to enter the US without visas? If so, what ID are they supposed to use in the US? They currently use a foreign passport, a foreign drivers license, and domestic or foreign credit cards.
11. 11. Do you favor the abrogation of the North American Free Trade Agreement and other treaties which allow citizens of other North American countries and some Caribbean countries to enter the US without passports or visas? If so, what ID are they supposed to use in the US? They currently use a foreign passport, a foreign drivers license, and domestic or foreign credit cards.
12. Have you warned the American people that once these passport and/or visa waiver programs are cancelled, foreign countries are likely to require passports and visas to enter their countries making international travel (including Canadian, Mexican, and Caribbean vacations) much more difficult to prepare for?
13. Passport design is not under US control but under the control of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Do you favor the replacement of the current passport with an "enhanced" identity document? How are poor counties supposed to afford the infrastructure necessary to support high-tech online-verifiable ID documents?
14. If your ID system is based on the state ID system, will any non-residents of the individual states be able to receive the new state IDs?
15. Do you favor cleaning up the existing ID system? Will you require all Americans to reverify their identity to receive the "enhanced" ID? If so, what documents or other proof of ID will they have to present? For example, will entries in a family bible be acceptable as proof of identity?
16. What provision have you made for persons who present themselves for identification but who have no (or inadequate) identification documents and whose biometric identifiers are not yet in the system? [The current system allows the testimony of others to establish identity for such purposes as passport issuance].
17. Do you favor requiring address registration (the requirement that all residents to register their address with police or local government) as part of your new ID system?
18. Will the homeless be able to obtain ID without a fixed address?
19. What do you envision happening to the millions of US residents who fail to qualify for the new IDs (or whose IDS are cancelled) or who refuse to apply for them for religious or political reasons?
20. Does your system envision any controls on false IDs intentionally issued by foreign (or US) governments for intelligence or witness protection purposes?

Permission to reprint/republish granted, as long as you include the name of our site, the author, and our URL.
www.SierraTimes.com All Sierra Times news reports, and all editorials are © 2002 SierraTimes.com (unless otherwise noted)

This article points out several issues with using driver's licenses for ID:

1. They include information that's specific for driving that may be used other identifying features.
2. Each state has it's own standard. For example, some store social security numbers, other fingerprints, most store address, etc.

The core failing of this issue is that driver licenses (and social secuirity numbers) were never designed nor intended to provide general identification.

What is required is a standard that appies to the entire country for what can be used on ID's. One solution is to establish a National ID, administered by the federal government, which would replace the state drivers licenses and social security numbers strictly for providing identification in a secure manner. Another solution would be for the federal goverment to establish guidelines to be followed by the states in establishing IDs.

The current situation is unacceptable from both a privacy and an identification point of view.

Partly right. There might be a case for a national standard on state driver licenses, but a national is going much too far. I have grave privacy concerns on a national ID. Even the linking of state DMV databases is IMO going much to far.

As far as SSNs on driver licenses go, the law states SSNs are only to be used for social security. Many or most states will put another number on the license if you are persistent enough.

I found the following at http://www.sierratimes.com/02/02/27/eddf022702.htm and now put these questions to you.

20 Questions to Ask National ID Supporters by Duncan Frissell:

Here are some questions to ask supporters of a modern "enhanced" ID system for the United States.

1. Under your system, can one's ID fail online verification for any reasons other than authentication failure (ID is not in the database or biometrics don't match) or expiration? Can a valid ID be cancelled for any reason (beyond expiration)?
2. Does your ID system have protections to prevent legislators and bureaucrats from adding other conditions to ID use? For example blocking ID authentication for failure to pay fines, failure to pay taxes, criminal arrest or conviction, etc.? The drivers licence system currently allows suspension for many such acts or omissions.
3. Will your ID system supply risk assessment services in addition to ID verification services. That is, will it provide a "credit score", "fraud score" or "criminal risk score" in addition to ID. What information beyond ID validity will the system supply to users.
4. If your system supplies risk assessment services, will it accept foreign government criminal, civil, or administrative records and apply them to the IDs of US citizens? If so, how can these records be challenged, how do you assure that the alleged acts would be crimes or civil wrongs if committed in the US (e.g. hate speech), and how do you deal with differing due process standards in different nations?
5. Should government subsidize wealthy financial corporations by supplying them with free or low-cost ID authentication and risk assessment services?
6. How can people challenge the accuracy of these assessments?
7. Will one's ID be the sole ID accepted for any goods or services? If so, which goods or services?
8. The Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that anonymity and refusal to identify oneself to the police are constitutionally protected actions. Do you favor a constitutional amendment to reverse these court decisions?
9. Four million US citizens are not residents of the US. Since they cannot be denied entry to the US and do not require visas to enter the US, what ID are they supposed to use in the US? They currently use a US passport, a foreign drivers license, and domestic or foreign credit cards.
10. Do you favor the end to the visa waiver program which allows citizens of many OECD countries to enter the US without visas? If so, what ID are they supposed to use in the US? They currently use a foreign passport, a foreign drivers license, and domestic or foreign credit cards.
11. Do you favor the abrogation of the North American Free Trade Agreement and other treaties which allow citizens of other North American countries and some Caribbean countries to enter the US without passports or visas? If so, what ID are they supposed to use in the US? They currently use a foreign passport, a foreign drivers license, and domestic or foreign credit cards.
12. Have you warned the American people that once these passport and/or visa waiver programs are cancelled, foreign countries are likely to require passports and visas to enter their countries making international travel (including Canadian, Mexican, and Caribbean vacations) much more difficult to prepare for?
13. Passport design is not under US control but under the control of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Do you favor the replacement of the current passport with an "enhanced" identity document? How are poor counties supposed to afford the infrastructure necessary to support high-tech online-verifiable ID documents?
14. If your ID system is based on the state ID system, will any non-residents of the individual states be able to receive the new state IDs?
15. Do you favor cleaning up the existing ID system? Will you require all Americans to reverify their identity to receive the "enhanced" ID? If so, what documents or other proof of ID will they have to present? For example, will entries in a family bible be acceptable as proof of identity?
16. What provision have you made for persons who present themselves for identification but who have no (or inadequate) identification documents and whose biometric identifiers are not yet in the system? [The current system allows the testimony of others to establish identity for such purposes as passport issuance].
17. Do you favor requiring address registration (the requirement that all residents to register their address with police or local government) as part of your new ID system?
18. Will the homeless be able to obtain ID without a fixed address?
19. What do you envision happening to the millions of US residents who fail to qualify for the new IDs (or whose IDS are cancelled) or who refuse to apply for them for religious or political reasons?
20. Does your system envision any controls on false IDs intentionally issued by foreign (or US) governments for intelligence or witness protection purposes?

Permission to reprint/republish granted, as long as you include the name of our site, the author, and our URL.
www.SierraTimes.com All Sierra Times news reports, and all editorials are © 2002 SierraTimes.com (unless otherwise noted)

If there is a third water tunnel, how come the cops where able to retrieve the gold before any robbers? Jeremy Irons must have been sleeping between September and January. Just imagine: the potential for the heist of the century, and they just let it pass!

Feds Eat Spam and Move Back
and you didn't even know this was happening!

There are issues far deeper than this, here is a start:

sierratimes article

Do a little research into Dewey and the NEA and you will find communist/Marxist ideals spread throughout.

Point 10 of the communist manefesto:

10. Free education for all children in public schools. Abolition of children's factory labor in its present form. Combination of education with industrial production, etc.

I don't have the full details, but there are issues far more disconcerting than educating students for dead-end jobs.

The best article I've read in a while I read just today. This can be found on the Sierra Times website and reports on aspects of this crisis that major media have ignored.

Like how environmentalists are set to destroy wetlands habitats for 400+ species of waterfowl.

Sierra Times is as far as I can tell an independent website.

The best article I've read in a while I read just today. This can be found on the Sierra Times website and reports on aspects of this crisis that major media have ignored.

Like how environmentalists are set to destroy wetlands habitats for 400+ species of waterfowl.

Sierra Times is as far as I can tell an independent website.