tagged w/ Accountability Now
-
Current.com is a great place for news and discussion, but some of the policy and administrative decisions can be pretty frustrating, especially when Current issues no explanation as to its motives, or rather lame, unenlightening PR placation. So when your frustration boils to a fury, place wrath here.
Revolt, teeming masses!Current.com is a great place for news and discussion, but some of the policy and... more
-
-
Richard Nixon left office in shame, but his shameful policy remained. The war on cannabis has remained and harmed us in so many ways. It is time for change! It's time to change Richard Nixon's war on cannabis hemp. Facts matter!
After Richard Nixon flattened the Democrats as soft on crime in the '68 election, the President-elect faced a dilemma. There's not much the White House can do to impact crime. The thugs people are afraid of — burglars, robbers, rapists, murderers — are the business of state courts. Then somebody mentioned drugs.1*
In a textbook example of fear manipulation, Nixon warned the country that a plague of unimaginable proportions was about to engulf the nation. “The problem has assumed the dimensions of a national emergency,” he said. 2 To fight the pushers on their own terms, he would need emergency powers — preventive detention, unorthodox strike forces, more freedom to search, wire tap, and arrest.
For scientific support, he appointed former Republican Pennsylvania Governor Ray Shafer to head a National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse. He told Gov. Shafer to treat marijuana just like heroin despite the "obvious differences between marijuana and other drugs."3 He was even more direct withchief of staff Bob Haldeman. "I want a Goddamn strong statement about marijuana...that just tears the ass out of them."4
But after months of testimony from academics, medical experts, lawmen and health professionals, the facts overwhelmed the myths. The report was devastating:“Marijuana use, in and of itself, is neither causative of, nor directly associated with crime...”5 It found no basis for the gateway theory. Alcohol, it said, was probably a greater danger, and the report concluded that personal use of marijuana should no longer be a crime.6
The President hit the roof. He complained to Haldeman, "...every one of the bastards that are out for legalizing marijuana is Jewish."7 In the face of the shooting war in Vietnam the Shafer Commission was quickly forgotten but the consequences of that cover-up are with us still. Since the 1972 release of that official report recommending legalization, we have arrested more than 14 million Americans8 at a cost of over $100 billion9 and the use of marijuana is undiminished.10
* Visit http://www.csdp.org/publicservice/nixon06notes.htm for citations, including full text of the Shafer ReportRichard Nixon left office in shame, but his shameful policy remained. The war on... more
-
-
After the sudden death of Michael Jackson Evan Chandler tells the truth.
evan
” Now for the first time i can’t bare to lie anymore. Michael Jackson didn’t do anything to me, all was my father lies to escape from being poor.”
In 1993, Chandler told a psychiatrist and police that he and Jackson had engaged in sexual acts that included oral sex, the boy gave detailed description of Jackson’s genitals. The case was settled out of court for a reported $22 million, but the strain led Jackson to begin taking painkillers. Eventually he became addicted.
Now maybe for the remorse of his death Chandler decides to tell us the truth. ” I never meant to lie and destroy Michael Jackson but my father made me to tell only lies. Now i can’t tell Michael how much i’m sorry and if he will forgive me ”.Evan Chandler was tape-recorded saying amongst other things, “If I go through with this, I win big-time. There’s no way I lose. I will get everything I want and they will be destroyed forever…
Under the influence of a controversial father (Jordan Chandler) told his son to tell that Jackson had touched his penis.Jordan Chandler then told a psychiatrist and later police that he and Jackson had engaged in acts of kissing, masturbation and oral sex, as well as giving a detailed description of what he alleged were the singer’s genitals.
” Now for the first time i can’t bare to lie anymore. Michael Jackson didn’t do anything to me, all was my father lies to escape from being poor.”After the sudden death of Michael Jackson Evan Chandler tells the truth.
evan
”... more
-
-
Starting today Anderson Cooper will be taking a close look at cannabis and its use in the United States. He asks, is there a case for legalization? He wants to hear from people on all sides of the issue. What are your questions? 10:00 PM every night this week, Anderson Cooper will be making the case for and against cannabis on CNN.
Let's see if he keeps them honest. Will all sides really be heard? I guess I'll be watching CNN this week, how about you?Starting today Anderson Cooper will be taking a close look at cannabis and its use in... more
-
-
America's criminal justice system is broken.
How broken? The numbers are stark:
• The United States has 5% of the world's population, yet possesses 25% of the world's prison population;
• More than 2.38 million Americans are now in prison, and another 5 million remain on probation or parole. That amounts to 1 in every 31 adults in the United States is in prison, in jail, or on supervised release;
• Incarcerated drug offenders have soared 1200% since 1980, up from 41,000 to 500,000 in 2008; and
• 60% of offenders are arrested for non-violent offensives--many driven by mental illness or drug addiction.
Numbers only tell part of the story.
While heavily focused on non-violent offenders, law enforcement has been distracted from pursuing the approximately one million gang members and drug cartels besieging our cities, often engaging in unprecedented levels of violence. Gangs in some areas commit 80% of the crimes and are heavily involved in drug distribution and other violent activities. This disturbing trend affects every community in the United States.
Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009. This legislation, which I originally introduced in March, creates a Presidential level blue-ribbon commission charged with conducting an 18-month, top-to-bottom review of our nation's entire criminal justice system, ultimately providing the Congress with specific, concrete recommendations for reform.
The committee hearing can be seen via webcast live today at 3:00pm. http://judiciary.senate.gov/hearings/hearing.cfm?id=3906
The goal of this legislation is nothing less than a complete restructuring of the criminal justice system in the United States. Only an outside commission, properly structured and charged, can bring us complete findings necessary to do so.America's criminal justice system is broken.
How broken? The numbers are stark:... more
-
-
One does not have to be a politician to be a 'Voice of Reason'. Many times the best voices come from outside government. Their views do not have to pass the political sniff test. Who is paying them to speak? All they need is a platform for their views to be heard.
Jesse Ventura is a voice, which is feared by the left and the right. He's willing to speak, regardless of party. Country before party, what a concept! We need more Americans willing to stand up and be heard, regardless of party.One does not have to be a politician to be a 'Voice of Reason'. Many times the best... more
-
-
Jesse Ventura takes Elizabeth Hasselbeck to school, it was great. I have a hard time turning on 'The View' cause Elizabeth Hasselbeck makes me scream at my television. Jesse Ventura makes me stand up and applaud. Finally, a 'Voice of Reason'! Kudos to Jesse Ventura!Jesse Ventura takes Elizabeth Hasselbeck to school, it was great. I have a hard time... more
-
-
-
free sri lanka from misinformation and terrorism.
-
-
Malaysia's government owned and subsidized oil palm cooking oil and biofuel
industry -- the scourge of Asia and the world's rainforests -- is continuing to
expand, this time into the heart of the Brazilian Amazon
BRIEF BACKGROUND:
Malaysia‘s Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA) will soon break ground on
a joint venture with a Brazilian firm to establish 30,000-100,000 hectares (ha;
75,000 – 250,000 acres) of oil palm plantations in the heart of Brazil's Amazon
rainforest. Similar oil palm development continues to devastate Asia-Pacific's
rainforests, and increasingly the world, with some thirty square miles of carbon
and biodiversity rich habitat being cleared a day to provide cooking oil and
transport biodiesel. Oil palm agrofuel is heralded as a climate change
mitigation measure, yet the initial rainforest clearance leads to much more
carbon release than its production and use avoids.
Large scale biofuel production runs counter to urgently addressing climate
change and threatens to cause more deforestation, hunger, human rights abuses,
and degradation of soil and water. Global ecological sustainability and local
well-being depend critically upon ending all industrial development in the
world's remaining old forests -- including plantations, logging, mining and
dams. The amount of primary and old growth forests that have been lost has
already overshot the carrying capacity of Earth. Globally there are not enough
old forests to maintain climatic and hydrological cycles, meet local forest
dwellers' needs, and to maintain ecosystems and the biosphere in total. Local
peoples must be assisted to fully protect, restore and benefit from intact,
standing forests.
TAKE ACTION NOW: (bye clicking the link)
http://www.climateark.org/shared/alerts/send.aspx?id=amazon_oil_palmMalaysia's government owned and subsidized oil palm cooking oil and biofuel
industry... more
-
-
Retired Brigadier General John Adams has something in common with his namesake and distant relative. Like the second president of the United States, the retired brigadier general adheres to one basic principle in his professional actions and beliefs: defend and uphold the Constitution of the United States. He stands convinced that those that have acted in a way that would, as he put it, "triage the Constitution" must be brought to justice, including those who approved of and authorized the use of torture on U.S. held detainees.
John Adams understands the gathering of intelligence, having served thirty-plus years in the military in numerous capacities around the world including as a U.S. Army Military Intelligence Officer. Adams was also a distinguished graduate of the Intelligence Officer Basic Tactical Course at the United States Army Intelligence Center in 1977.
In my interview with Adams, he made clear that during all his years of service and training, including his tenure as a professor at West Point, what he learned and what he taught was consistent: the United States military always acts under the rule of law, in accordance with the Geneva Convention, and upholds the Constitution. What was not taught, or even discussed, were terms like harsh or enhanced interrogation techniques ("I never heard those terms used"), or arguments concerning what constitutes a so-called unique enemy ("In all my training, the current discussions are the first time I ever heard that argument used"). Said Adams: "I have never known anyone in a leadership position in the military who would condone torture. They would never do it. It would go against all the training we had, and against what we were trained to do, which is to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law."
Follow link for full story by Marlene H. Phillips at The Huffington Post.Retired Brigadier General John Adams has something in common with his namesake and... more
-
-
The word is that a million votes is all it takes to present the idea to obama, and the call is free!!(short of your personal monthly bill)
Now the number i called is SLIGHTLY DIFFERNT from the one i found online, so
LOOK IT UP! MAKE THE CALL!! use google to make this work for you and tell your friends!
(i personaly ran into a snag while trying to call becaus i cut my phone bill down bye droping long distance so my call never made it through..........) BUt im not gonna let that keep me from getting a "vote" in.
So if anyone has more helpfull information about getting our voices heard on this highly important topic please let it be known!!
~~"It is time!!"~~ *rafikee*lion kingThe word is that a million votes is all it takes to present the idea to obama, and the... more
-
-
Joe Scarborough: Blame Dana Priest "If Planes Go Into Buildings" Because She Reported On Waterboarding
If America gets hit again it will be due to George W. Bush and his enablers. It's time to hold them all accountable using facts. 'Shame in plain sight' -- that's the change we need. These guys are shameful!
Joe Scarborough seems to think that the sadistic use of waterboarding has been an essential and successful component of our national security apparatus, when in truth, its a fantastic boon to terrorist recruiters. Apparently, however, these programs - torture, rendition, secret prisons - are so dear to him, that he'll be holding Washington Post reporter Dana Priest responsible for any further deaths related to terrorism. This is, as they say, bonkers:
SCARBOROUGH: The second Dana Priest wrote her article and we had this debate on waterboarding, we were moving towards not using waterboarding again. We don't - these techniques are worthless now anyways, so if planes go into buildings, well don't blame Barack Obama, blame Dana Priest and the chaos that occurred after that cause that was - when her article came out, from that point forward, this secret CIA program was dead on arrival.Joe Scarborough: Blame Dana Priest "If Planes Go Into Buildings" Because She Reported... more
-
-
LTTE propaganda pushing LTTE supporters have spread enough lies on the internet. Now many Sri Lankans are standing up for the truth.
As I v said, my sinhalese is not that good, so when I saw this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=karCvHe7xiI
I was applled. I was angry even at President of Lanka who had said
he would do good to bring change then I sent an email asking those
who know alot about the situation for clarifications and I got information
from people who pointed me in the right direction.
Spreading misinformation has been a trick of the LTTE & LTTE
supporters. Just look at Tavis Smiley interview of singer mia
she plainly says words to the effec that since Americans do not know
about the situation, she will go ahead and say the information: Misinformation
she and others like her thinks that if a group of people do not know
something it is ok to lie and mislead them. well you messed
with the wrong bulls sister!!!
Because we like to stick to at least...the facts.
The government is not blameless, but much has changed. LTTE is not blameless.
I m not linking the video because I do not want readers to think that it is truth. find out for yourself. The responses I got to my email of "Misleading Misinformation: do you know Sinhala? then help me to know what she is saying" Are below.LTTE propaganda pushing LTTE supporters have spread enough lies on the internet. Now... more
-
-
Lies by people like Joe Scarborough which go unchallenged is what is wrong with America. They are allowed to lie in 'plain sight' and no one corrects them. If a lie goes unanswered, does it become fact? Only in the minds of the uninformed and ordinary Americans who do not have time to fact check what mainstream voices tell them.
No one is held accountable for lying to ordinary Americans in 'plain sight'. They use our public airwaves to spread disinformation, without being held accountable, or shamed for openly lying to their viewers. Too many people take them at their word, trusting that if they were lying, someone would speak up and correct their misstatements. Instead, everyone just moves along. SAD! SAD! SAD!
When lies and distortion are portrayed as fact, it leads ordinary Americans to question truthful facts. Fact and spin are spun as equal. That's an "Assault on Reason" and an 'assault on us'.Lies by people like Joe Scarborough which go unchallenged is what is wrong with... more
-
-
JUST SAY 'NO'!
Not on our dime. If there isn't a law in place to stop our tax dollars from being outsourced? There should be! Enough is enough!
I'm not against other countries gaining jobs, but not with our money. If our money is to be spent, it should not be to create jobs in other countries! If corporations get TARP monies, they should create jobs in America, if jobs are to be created.
Posted by Paul McDougall, Mar 24, 2009 03:10 PM
A Pennsylvania lawmaker is blasting JP Morgan Chase for accepting $25 Billion in TARP funds while planning to outsource thousands of U.S. tech jobs to India. And you thought AIG bonuses were a hot-button issue.
My colleague Bob Evans and others have written about JP Morgan's plans to increase its use of India-based contractors by as much as 25%, partly to speed the integration of IT assets previously owned by Washington Mutual and Bear Stearns.
Democratic Congressman Robert Brady, from Philly, calls the bank's plan to ship out jobs while drinking lustily from the public trough "outrageous."
"We would like to remind you that the taxpayers of the United States of America contributed $25 billion to your company to help stabilize our economy not send jobs overseas," Brady recently wrote to JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon.
"There seems to be a disconnect between some major financial institutions and the suffering of the everyday people who are losing their jobs," said Brady.
Brady's populist appeal makes sense, at first. Why should American taxpayers' dollars be used to hire workers in India?
On the other hand, JP Morgan and its buddies on the corporate welfare line need to operate as efficiently, and cheaply, as possible if they're to get out of the crater-sized pit they've dug for themselves. TARP in a sense makes us all shareholders in the companies that received funds, and the inexpensive labor offered by India could lead us to a higher return on our investment.
Before Congress acts rashly, and, say, hauls CIOs like JP Morgan's Guy Chiarello (himself no stranger to handouts) before a subcommittee and outlaws outsourcing by TARP recipients, it needs to weigh the real pros and cons of the issue. Government by sound bite is getting really old, really fast.
What do you think? Should TARP recipients be allowed to outsource?JUST SAY 'NO'!
Not on our dime. If there isn't a law in place to stop our tax... more
-
-
Is President Obama going to let the pharmaceutical companies follow the path of the banks, which are now 'supposedly' to big to fail? I think it's time to stop any companies in America from becoming to big to fail. Will we be forced to bail them out next?
President Obama should stop this before it happens.Is President Obama going to let the pharmaceutical companies follow the path of the... more
-
-
A voice of reason. Well worth listening to!
-
-
The National Whistleblower Assembly will be held in Washington, DC, from Sunday March 8 to Wednesday March 11, 2009.
This year’s Assembly has four cornerstone objectives:
1. Matchmaking for solidarity and ongoing working relationships between whistleblowers and those who should benefit from their dissent, such as NGO’s, investigative journalists and government investigators;
2. Lobbying Congress to upgrade its rhetorical commitments for stronger whistleblower protection into reality, from completion of legislation pending nine years to overhaul the Whistleblower Protection Act, to comprehensive corporate rights expanding on five precedents in the last Congress
3. Providing "street law" so that whistleblowers learn how to use and act on their rights under new whistleblower laws; and
4. Providing a living history forum where whistleblowers can make a record of why they risked their careers to defend the public, and what happened.
The National Whistleblower Assembly will kick-off with a plenary session comprised of whistleblowers and government leaders. The Assembly will strategize on how to assist and help hold our leaders to President Obama’s commitment made his first day in office:
“Starting today, every agency and department should know that this administration stands on the side not of those who seek to withhold information, but those who seek to make it known.”
We encourage all 264 organizations and corporations that signed the Whistleblower Protection Act sign-on letter to join us! We are already bonded by a shared principle that “whistleblower protection is a foundation for any change in which the public can believe. It does not matter whether the issue is economic recovery, prescription drug safety, environmental protection, infrastructure spending, national health insurance, or foreign policy.”The National Whistleblower Assembly will be held in Washington, DC, from Sunday March... more
-
-
Los Angeles
Sunday, February 8th, 2009
*Group of Sri Lankans, Americans & Sri Lankan-Americans gathered
to rally and protest recording artist mia's lies & misrepresentation
to the American public and her support of terrorism and to hold her accountable for
her statements. The peaceful gathering was in downtown LA
across from the 51st annual grammy awards venue & they loudly said
"NO" to terrorism. the ltte terror group in sri lanka uses
suicide bombers, recruit child soldiers & hav been harming people
for 25 + years. Community leaders such as Piyal Matharaarachchi,
a group of Venerable Monks including from Normandy & Sun Valley Temple,
Nish Pitigala, Dr. Walter Jay, Dr. Lakshman Makandura, actor/singer Shantha Senadheera
& hip Reggie Dissanayake other community members and non sri lankan terrorism activists were at the rally as well. A better late than never participant & activist
Malinda brought attention to child soldier recruiting
& suicide bombings. Various age groups marched, chanted, & waved
signs to make an impact in bringing awareness to the current situation.
**When I heard about the group speaking up with say no to terrorism I also went to see what was happening and to find out the cause and took part because there is
a time to speak up about harmful situations.**Los Angeles
Sunday, February 8th, 2009
*Group of Sri Lankans, Americans & Sri... more
-
