elessa: (labyrinth)
"Of all the enemies to public liberty war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and taxes; and armies, and debts, and taxes are the known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few. In war, too, the discretionary power of the Executive is extended; its influence in dealing out offices, honors, and emoluments is multiplied; and all the means of seducing the minds, are added to those of subduing the force, of the people. The same malignant aspect in republicanism may be traced in the inequality of fortunes, and the opportunities of fraud, growing out of a state of war, and in the degeneracy of manners and of morals engendered by both. No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare."

Political Observations" (1795-04-20); also in Letters and Other Writings of James Madison (1865), Vol. IV, p. 491

hypocrites

Feb. 10th, 2010 05:57 pm
elessa: (aargh kitty)
i really despise political hypocrites. i don't give a rat's ass which party they belong to 'cause they all do it. but damn, these guys need a good spanking.

elessa: (fluffy bunny)
in the current debate (if it can truly be called a debate due to the clueless not understanding the meaning of the word) about health care in this country there have been townhall meetings. during these meetings there has been a proliferation of people using the word NAZI to describe the president and his policies.

my question is this to those who are making said comparison:

when did adolph hitler push for health care reform for europe?

elessa: (fluffy bunny)


how can our president condemn the bush administration for ad hoc legal strategy then turn around to suggest reshaping standards to prolong detention for detainees without trial? preventive detention for crimes not committed? construct an appropriate legal regime to make indefinite detention system outside the courts and military commissions?

WTF?

this is wrong. so very, very, very wrong.
elessa: (trees)
the more i learn about packaged food the more i am glad i am buying locally produced fruits, vegetables, bread, and now, honey (because it is a damn sight tastier than grocery store honey).

honey can kill you...

two thirds of the honey sold in this country is imported.

honey laundering: a sticky trail of intrigue and crime - country of origin no guarantee on cheap imports

By ANDREW SCHNEIDER
SEATTLE P-I SENIOR CORRESPONDENT

With threats of border incursions from terrorists and tainted products that can harm or kill people or their pets, why were federal agents swooping down on a honey packer in Sultan?

For the Food and Drug Administration, it's all about keeping adulterated and possibly hazardous food off grocery shelves.

For years, China has used an animal antibiotic -- chloramphenicol -- to treat diseases ravaging their beehives. The FDA has banned that drug in any food product.

Since 2002, FDA has issued three "import alerts" to inspectors at ports and border crossings to detain shipments of tainted Chinese honey. The order in 2002 came after Canadian and European food-safety agents seized more than 80 shipments containing chloramphenicol, which can cause serious illness or death among a very small percentage of people exposed to it.

In March 2007, U.S. officials revised the alert when Florida food detectives found two other antibiotics -- iprofloxacin and Enrofloxacin -- in honey and blends of honey syrup that originated from China.


related: antibiotic use could taint honey's reputation as a miracle drug

In 2005, China's Ministry of Agriculture outlawed the use of chloramphenicol in food production, but there are reports that Chinese beekeepers are ignoring the ban.

Chloramphenicol is illegal for use in bees and other food-producing animals in the U.S. because it is impossible to determine a safe residue level, said Steve Roach, public health director of Keep Antibiotics Working, a Chicago-based group raising awareness about the hazards of antibiotics in food.

"If the Chinese authorities are unable to keep this drug from being used, then no imports of honey from China should be allowed," Roach said.
elessa: (obama)
obama to use lincoln bible - politico.com


Obama will take the oath of office using the same Bible upon which President Lincoln was sworn in at his first inauguration.

From the transition team:

"Washington, D.C. - On January 20th, President-elect Barack Obama will take the oath of office using the same Bible upon which President Lincoln was sworn in at his first inauguration. The Bible is currently part of the collections of the Library of Congress. Though there is no constitutional requirement for the use of a Bible during the swearing-in, Presidents have traditionally used Bibles for the ceremony, choosing a volume with personal or historical significance. President-elect Obama will be the first President sworn in using the Lincoln Bible since its initial use in 1861.

'President-elect Obama is deeply honored that the Library of Congress has made the Lincoln Bible available for use during his swearing-in,' said Presidential Inaugural Committee Executive Director Emmett Beliveau. 'The President-elect is committed to holding an Inauguration that celebrates America's unity, and the use of this historic Bible will provide a powerful connection to our common past and common heritage.' "
elessa: (fluffy bunny)
auto bailout talks collapse

the washington post is reporting that there will not be a bailout for the automakers. seems the UAW wasn't willing to cut pay for its members to parity with the nonunion workers on US soil for toyota and honda.

i wonder just how far stocks are going to fall tomorrow. 500 points? 750? 1000?

~sigh

i was finally getting a little of my previous losses over the last four months back. i suppose i shall wave goodbye to it when the bell rings in the morning.

pondering

Dec. 3rd, 2008 11:58 am
elessa: (fluffy bunny)
Obama: Financial bailout must help homeowners, too

been thinking about this. what percentage of the population owns a home? what percentage rents?

why should those who have a mortgage be given help with making their expenses? why aren't those who rent and are also having money come out of their pockets in order to have a roof over their head given aid as well?

seems to me that the few are being given preferential treatment over the many.

don't get me wrong. i have been a homeowner. i was careful with mortgages on both houses i owned. yes, the first house was with my ex, the second i held the mortgage in my name only as i was divorced. they were fixed rate 30 year loans. no surprises in monthly payments.

i now rent.

i do not think someone should be bailed out simply because they own a house they can't pay for. there are people who rent who cannot make their monthly payments either due to job downsizing or rent increases. how is this different as those who bought, have job issues and now may have an increased mortgage payment due to a variable interest rate?
elessa: (fluffy bunny)
methinks there will be violence as a result of this. historically, there always is.

Construction of Imperial Valley water reservoir begins l.a. times.

a reservoir is being constructed in the imperial valley to store water that would otherwise be "lost" to mexico. here are some choice quotes from the article.

But it will mean less water for Mexico, where farmers and cities are suffering from drought and a leaky infrastructure that has trouble delivering water to its customers.

For decades, the United States has allowed Mexico to receive more water from the Colorado River than it was assured under a 1944 treaty.


oh, and this choice one.

"It's not Mexico's water," said Stella Mendoza, a member of the Imperial Irrigation District board. "It's California's water. Mexico has been using it for free all these years. They should have realized that someday it would stop."

isn't the water coming from colorado? doesn't that make it colorado's water. yeah, i know. there are water agreements/treaties, what have you.

this does not bode well for the future.
elessa: (fluffy bunny)
hmmm... let's see what the bailout in addition to further making this a socialist country contains in the bill according to CNN.

oh, lookie!

Archery

The proposal includes an excise tax exemption for a very specific type of arrow used by child archers. The estimated cost of the proposal is $2M over ten years.

Oregon senators Ron Wyden, a Democrat, and Gordon Smith, Republican were the initial sponsors of the arrow provision. According to Bloomberg News, the earmark provision would be worth $200K to Rose City Archery in Myrtle Point, OR.

Cyclists

A measure would cost taxpayers $10M would allow employees to provide benefits to employees who commute to work via bicycle, such as help buying or maintaining a bicycle.

Movies

In order to keep movie production in the US, production companies would be allowed to deduct the cost of producing the films from their taxes. Rep Diane Watson, Democrat from California, has been one of the program's biggest supports, the measure would cost taxpayers $478M over ten years.

Racetrack

Owners of a motor sports racetrack follow a seven year depreciation schedule and write each year's depreciation off their taxes. The IRS wanted to increase the depreciation timetable to 15 years, which would mean the track owner's depreciation would be cut in half.

The measure in the bill keeps the seven-year depreciation schedule for two years and would cost the taxpayers $100M.

Rum

One measure provides a tax break on rum from Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It would cost taxpayers $192M.

A $13.50 per gallon excise tax is placed on rum imported into the US. The measure extends to December 31, 2009 a refund of $13.25 per gallon tax back to PR and the Virgin Islands. The refund has been in place since the early 1990s.

Wool

The bill includes a measure that would help US worsted wool fabric makers and clothing manufacturers. The bill extends provisions through 2014 or 2015 that were originally sponsored by Res Louise Slaughter, D-NY and Melissa Bean, D-Illinois, in 2007. The measure would cost taxpayers $148M.
elessa: (screaming bunny)
at the moment i am listening to the dulcet sounds of road construction.

why do cities spend the money and the time to inconvenience the citizens with paving the
roads in preparation for the rainy winter months to then turn around less than two months later to cut trenches in them to lay water lines/fiber optic/electric?

why not cut the trench, lay the water lines/fiber optic/electric, then repave? now there will be patches over the trenches which will catch water in the seams to create pot holes. surely in the planning and permit process (which isn't something that takes a couple days, rather it can take months) didn't someone say, "hmmm... why don't we delay the paving of XYZ Street so that the new water lines/fiber optic/electric trenches can be cut and the utilities laid before we repave the entire stretch?"

makes no fucking sense.

*sigh
elessa: (aargh kitty)
today i joined the ACLU

why? because i am pissed. i am tired of the loss of commonsense in this country. this is no longer a country i am proud to be a citizen of.

the impetus?

this article in the NY times

A Hong Kong computer programmer who had legally resided in the US for 15 years (since he was 17) and fathered two American children went for his final green card interview and was locked up, detained until he died of cancer that the DHS refused to treat him for. He had overstayed a visa (the DHS sent a key notice to the wrong address), and this prompted the DHS to lock him away and demand that he waive all right to immigration appeal and be immediately deported. In detention, his complaints of excruciating back pain were treated as fakery, and he was dragged around in shackles after he lost the ability to walk, taken on long, bumpy drives while official demanded that he drop his immigration appeals. The jailers who caused his death were private contractors with fat deals with the DHS to lock up immigration detainees.

As he lay dying, his family -- wife and two children, aged 1 and 3 -- were denied access to him while the warden considered their request to visit.

"Give us your poor, your tired, your huddled masses..."


the united states is no different than china, darfur, russia, north korea or any one of a number of countries we look down our noses at and "tut tut".
elessa: (fluffy bunny)
here is another example of more money about to come out of your wallet.

in an article in the new york times, food chain - as the price of corn rises, catfish farms dry up

"i don't eat catfish", you might say. ah, but you do eat beef or chicken in all likelihood. the same impact is going to be felt on that industry.

i found the line "government mandates for corn to produce ethanol..." to be interesting. so, our government is telling farmers not to grow food? i realise this country is starved for fuel for its oversized land yachts aka SUVs and other guzzlers. however, in light of the flooding in the midwest there is going to be a significant shortfall in the amount of corn which can be grown this year. within the next six months expect there the be less meat products available in your grocery store. expect the price of processed food items to also rise due to a lack of corn to be made into high fructose corn syrup. you know, the additive to nearly everything in a box, can or bag on the shelf at the grocers. read the labels on a bag of corn chips, frozen dinner, or can of beans you'll see what i mean.

with the shortage of corn there is going to be further unemployment as is reported in the article affecting the catfish industry. everything is ultimately related.
elessa: (labyrinth)
do the chinese people ever question what they are told? when they receive foreign publications which have pages missing or in the case of the current issue of the national geographic having pages glued together don't they wonder what is it they are not supposed to know?

was the gluing of the pages precipitated by the the chinese government? did another agency decide that there was dangerous propaganda contained in the issue covering china?

i thought that china was opening up. i guess i am wrong. keep the populace in the dark in order to control free thought.
elessa: (fluffy bunny)
some interesting tidbit i read in the news.

the possiblity of chelsea clinton running for prez.

ok, let me get this straight. should hillary clinton prevail and become prez through some miracle, she could conceivably be elected to two terms. chelsea could run and be elected as she will be of age to be eligible at that point.

no. please. no.

this country is a democracy, not a monarchy. we do not need a dynasty in the white house!

July 2017

S M T W T F S
      1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
3031     

Syndicate

RSS Atom

Most Popular Tags

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags

No cut tags
Page generated Jul. 7th, 2025 06:39 am
Powered by Dreamwidth Studios