Each was an attempt to enforce the law. With each stage it became further apparent the need to ignore voluntary compliance.
A foundation of this country. Its basis in freedom and the individuals conscience to guide them towards complicity is slipping away. An assumed balance of law and individual honor was hoped for and in most cases assumed when codifying many laws.
As time goes on as is exemplified here. Its not the law that faltered. Its the people and their lack of moral fiber that failed. Hence the need to remove the governments faith in its people. And our freedom.
The moment you capitulate to lawlessness you've lost your civility.
Posts: 8970 | Location: San Diego, or near by. | Registered: 06-08-2007
Yet another classic tenet of the administration past - that by demonizing, hating, or even using 'immigrants' to inject fear - the problem will go away.
"The letter of the law is a sword that killeth; its intent is a spirit that giveth life." (Justice Holmes on 3 Cor 3:6)
Injecting fear? Its fear of non-compliance that was absent in their action. Not just the one hand knocking on the door. But to the other opening it. Neither showing due respect. With the lack of voluntary compliance comes mandated government enforcement. Where we are going.
The moment you capitulate to lawlessness you've lost your civility.
Posts: 8970 | Location: San Diego, or near by. | Registered: 06-08-2007
"Napolitano's political centrism has often left activists on both sides of the immigration debate scratching their heads. For example, those advocating for more restrictions applauded moves such as putting soldiers on the border, but they criticized her for opposing construction of border fencing." San Antonio Express-News, Dec. 5, 2008.
(If the government's federal level enforcement-only approach to the deteriorating immigration crisis is expected to go on unabated, please think again. Nominating a centrist like Napolitano to replace the rightist Chertoff as DHS head is a clear writing on the wall).
No speed-up for No-Match
"A federal judge in San Francisco rejected the Bush administration's request today to speed up consideration of rules that would pressure employers to fire suspected illegal immigrants whose Social Security numbers didn't match records in the government's database. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer - who blocked the so-called no-match rule from taking effect in October 2007 - turned down a proposal by the Department of Homeland Security for an accelerated hearing schedule that might have allowed a new version to take effect before President Bush leaves office next month. Instead, Breyer set a standard schedule for consideration of a lawsuit by labor unions and business groups challenging the rule, with written arguments planned through Feb. 24. He observed that the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama might want to take another look at the issue, said Scott Kronland, lawyer for the AFL-CIO and several other unions in the case." San Francisco Chronicle, Dec. 5, 2008.
(Oops! Sorry, I don't know, but I look at this as another blow to the ever-weakening E-Verify's main pillar... one of those signs of ominous time to come).
New England CBP chief charged with hiring undocumented immigrants
"The regional director of Homeland Security, Customs, and Border Protection was charged today with repeatedly hiring illegal immigrants to clean her Salem home after one cleaner wore a wire during an undercover investigation." Boston Globe, Dec. 5, 2008.
Bloody letter sent to official Larry O'Dell ASSOCIATED PRESS Saturday, December 6, 2008 Comment Print Listen Font Size Share Got a Question? You Report Buzz up!RICHMOND | Federal authorities say a Richmond man sent a bloody letter to a congressman, threatening to cut off the head of a U.S. official in Vietnam and vowing to orchestrate a massacre worse than last year's shootings at Virginia Tech.
Phuong Nguyen Le has been charged with threatening a U.S. official, authorities said, adding that he was apparently angry about the rejection of a visa application for his wife, who is in Vietnam.
Mr. Le, who worked for the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority, was arrested Wednesday. U.S. Magistrate M. Hannah Lauck on Friday found probable cause to present the case to a grand jury and ordered Mr. Le to be held in federal custody. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised probation, according to the U.S. attorney's office.
Federal public defender Amy Austin, who was appointed to represent Mr. Le, did not immediately return a phone message seeking comment.
An affidavit filed by FBI agent Douglas J. Brozick says the bloodstained letter was sent to the Richmond office of U.S. Rep. Robert C. Scott, Virginia Democrat. The letter threatened U.S. Consular Chief Charles Bennett, in Ho Chi Minh City, with decapitation. Mr. Scott had given Mr. Le a copy of the visa rejection letter written by Mr. Bennett.
According to the affidavit, Mr. Le's letter threatened, "Something more beautiful than VA Tech years ago" and called Tech gunman Seung-Hui Cho a "young hero." Cho killed 32 people before committing suicide, leaving his motive a mystery.
The affidavit says an intern in Mr. Scott's office opened the letter, noticed the blood and left it on a desk. Another employee, wearing rubber gloves, picked up the letter and read it aloud. The letter included Mr. Le's name and return address.
Mr. Brozick wrote that he interviewed Mr. Le, who admitted writing and sending the letter to Mr. Scott's office. He reported that Mr. Le said he bit his left thumb and signed the letter in blood.
The agent also asked Mr. Le to explain the part of the letter about Virginia Tech.
"Le stated that the Virginia Tech shooter didn't tell anybody, but Le was telling people now. Le stated that he was capable of being like the young hero at Virginia Tech," Mr. Brozick wrote.
USC and Legal, Honest Immigrant Alike Must Fight Against Those That Deceive and Disrupt A Place Of Desirability! All Are Victims of Fraud, Both USC and Honest Immigrant Alike! The bad can and does make it more difficult for the good! Be careful who you blame!!! kami ay nanonood!!!
Pentagon To Temporarily Recruit Foreigners Posted By: Jason Adams 1 day ago Read Comments Recommend Print Article Email Article Larger Smaller
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Struggling to find enough doctors, nurses and linguists for the war effort, the Pentagon will temporarily recruit foreigners who have been living in the states on student and work visas, or with refugee or political asylum status.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates has authorized the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps to recruit certain legal residents whose critical medical and language skills are "vital to the national interest," officials said, using for the first time a law passed three years ago.
Though the military previously has taken recruits with green cards seeking permanent residency, Gates' action allows the services to start a one-year pilot program to find up to 1,000 foreigners who have lived in the states legally for at least two years on certain types of temporary visas.
The new recruits into the armed forces would get accelerated treatment in the process toward becoming U.S. citizens in return for serving in the wartime military in the United States or abroad.
"The services are doing a tremendous job of recruiting quality personnel to meet our various missions," sometimes with bonus pay and tuition for medical school, said Bill Carr, deputy under secretary of defense for military personnel policy. There are currently about 24,000 doctors, dentists and nurses in the Defense Department.
But despite the incentives, the Pentagon's doctor and nurse corps remain 1,000 short of the numbers needed to treat patients, and Carr said he hoped the program would fill the gaps.
The military's most pressing need is for neurosurgeons and dermatologists to treat troops coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan with brain and burn injuries caused by insurgents' wide use of roadside bombs and suicide bombs.
The force also lacks nurses with a broad range of specialties, Carr said.
It also needs people with special language and cultural skills for a war on terrorism that has taken the armed forces across the globe.
Though the military has been looking for more Arabic speakers and others to help with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the new program looks to recruit speakers of some three dozen languages, including Albanian, Korean, Punjabi, Somali and Turkish.
The effort to find the recruits begins early next year. If there is a need for more recruits in the future, it would take a new authorization, Carr said.
Of the 1,000 new recruits, at least a third must be medical professionals, Carr said.
"It is exceptional, limited, vital," he said of the new effort.
The linguists are to be used in a broad range of military jobs now done by troops at home and abroad -- as infantrymen, seaman, truck drivers and military policed. Those with the best language skills would be used in intelligence fields.
The armed forces have used foreigners since the War of 1812 -- at one time or another some 700,000 have served.
But because of the counterterrorism war started after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, President George W. Bush signed an executive order in July 2002 making foreigners who join the military eligible to apply immediately for citizenship.
They essentially go to the head of the line among citizenship applicants, having their cases processed in about three years as opposed to the five years it takes others, Carr said.
There are currently 29,000 non-citizens in uniform today, Carr said, with about 8,000 more enlisting every year.
Carr said he expected that among those who will be interested are doctors with work visas who are working at hospitals around the country, a program aimed at tackling shortages among U.S. medical professionals.
The military has never recruited non-green card holders, but a law passed three years ago allows them to do so when it is determined to be vital to the national interest.
Gates on Nov. 25 declared that to be the case for the purpose of getting more doctors, nurses and linguists.
Carr stressed that recruits will have to pass the same physical, mental and aptitude tests required of all who join the armed forces.
Health care workers also will have to meet all medical professional criteria to practice, be proficient in English, and agree to enlist either three years on active duty or six years as reservists
USC and Legal, Honest Immigrant Alike Must Fight Against Those That Deceive and Disrupt A Place Of Desirability! All Are Victims of Fraud, Both USC and Honest Immigrant Alike! The bad can and does make it more difficult for the good! Be careful who you blame!!! kami ay nanonood!!!
Pacquiao era begins with demolition By Kevin Iole, Yahoo! Sports Dec 7, 1:52 am EST
LAS VEGAS – Manny Pacquiao unequivocally established himself as the finest fighter in the world Saturday.
But he accomplished an even more stunning feat when he not only defeated Oscar De La Hoya but battered him into retirement with a shockingly one-sided victory in their welterweight bout before 15,001 at the MGM Grand Garden.
De La Hoya, the 1992 Olympic gold-medal winner and a professional world champion in six weight classes, was hammered as he never was in 44 previous bouts before trainer Nacho Beristain mercifully asked referee Tony Weeks to halt the carnage after eight one-sided rounds.
The fight ended any debate whether Pacquiao or light heavyweight Joe Calzaghe deserves the top spot in the mythical pound-for-pound race, but it also sent a one-time legend into retirement.
De La Hoya, who was taken to a local hospital for a precautionary examination, never in his illustrious career had absorbed such a beating. Pacquiao’s hands were far too quick and, despite the fact that he was moving up from lightweight, his punches were much too hard for the Golden Boy to handle.
It was clear by the third round that De La Hoya was going to need a miracle to reverse the pummeling he was taking.
Pacquiao displayed every punch in the arsenal, raking the Golden Boy with straight lefts that nearly closed De La Hoya’s left eye and stunning him with hooks, jabs and uppercuts.
It was so savage of a beating that it was hard not to feel sorry for De La Hoya. At the end of the bout, a thoroughly beaten De La Hoya trudged across the ring and met his one-time trainer, Freddie Roach.
“You’re right,” De La Hoya said to Roach, who had prepared Pacquiao brilliantly. “I don’t have it any more.”
Pacquiao was a 2-1 underdog, largely because he was challenging a man who had fought at super welterweight or middleweight exclusively for the last seven-and-a-half years. Pacquiao had only fought once as high as lightweight and had fought 75 percent of his bouts before Saturday at super bantamweight or lower.
But Pacquiao unofficially weighed a pound-and-a-half more than De La Hoya – 148½ to 147 – and was clearly stronger and better Saturday.
“The media, the press is never wrong,” Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum said. “You all said it was a mismatch and it was a mismatch.”
De La Hoya didn’t officially announce his retirement, but his business partners, Bernard Hopkins and Shane Mosley, spoke of his career in the past tense. In his brilliant career, De La Hoya took on most of the greatest fighters of his generation, but never before was he beaten as cleanly and decisively as he was by Pacquiao.
Not when he was knocked out by a brutal shot to the liver by Hopkins in 2004, not when he dropped a split decision to then-pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. last year and not when a tactical mistake cost him a victory against Felix Trinidad.
“Pacquiao was phenomenal,” Hopkins said.
Pacquiao was never threatened by De La Hoya’s vaunted left hook, negating De La Hoya’s best chance of winning the fight.
It was something Roach had worked tirelessly on in the gym and something he unwaveringly told the world that Pacquiao would do.
“Taking the left hand away was a key,” Roach said. “We took Oscar’s left hand away from him and once we did that, the fight was over.”
Pacquiao called De La Hoya his idol and said he was honored to have had the opportunity to face him. But he didn’t spare his idol any pain, working his plan like a hired gun.
“It was nothing personal,” Pacquiao said. “I just came to do my job.”
He was far more impressive against De La Hoya than Mayweather, who retired in June as the widely acknowledged best fighter in the world. Pacquiao declined to say whether he’d
be willing to fight Mayweather, saying it was up to Arum to decide.
Arum said he wouldn’t discuss a potential opponent for Pacquiao until after the holidays, but it’s clear he’s sitting on a gold mine. With De La Hoya expected to wander into retirement, Pacquiao will take his mantle as the game’s biggest draw.
Fights against Mayweather, if he comes out of retirement, and Ricky Hatton are going to be massive events that would likely guarantee each men eight-figure paydays.
Arum wanted none of that talk, preferring to revel in one of the most satisfying victories of his nearly 50-year promotional career.
“Next to the night when George Foreman won the heavyweight championship of the world by knocking out Michael Moorer, this is it,” Arum said. “These are my two most memorable fights as a promoter.”
This was the boxing rite of passage that has become all too familiar over the years. It happened to Joe Louis against Rocky Marciano, to Muhammad Ali against Larry Holmes and to Julio Cesar Chavez against De La Hoya.
A younger, faster and better man snuffed out the star of one of the game’s all-time greats.
“Hats off to Manny Pacquiao, because he was incredible,” said Mosley, who has two wins over De La Hoya. “Remember what Oscar has done, though. He made this sport a great sport, and created this so that all of you people could come to see a great event.”
But De La Hoya didn’t have that one last great fight left and was forced to accept a beating as the final act of a Hall of Fame career.
“It happens to everyone,” said legendary trainer Angelo Dundee, who assisted De La Hoya in camp.
Dundee had trained Ali, Foreman and Sugar Ray Leonard, among many of the game’s greats, and had seen this scene before.
“I thought Oscar had what it takes to beat Pacquiao, but this happens when you let the guys fight the fight,” Dundee said. “You just have to give the other guy credit.”
Yes you do.
Oscar De La Hoya is the past.
It’s Pacquiao’s time now.
Kevin Iole covers boxing and mixed martial arts for Yahoo! Sports. Send Kevin a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast. Updated Dec 7, 1:52 am EST
Workers at Republic Windows continue sit-in after company closes
Bank, citing sharp downturn in business, canceled company's line of credit
By Gerry Smith | Tribune reporter December 7, 2008
Carrying signs that read "Bank of America: Don't Steal Christmas," workers at a North Side manufacturer continued their protest Saturday after the company shut its doors on three days' notice because the bank canceled its line of credit.
The same thing happened when the airline Midway went under in August 2001. The management attempted to remove themselves of their responsibilities by claiming sudden bankruptcy and stuffing all their staff with a short closing notice.
I suspect we'll be seeing more of this over next few months
In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move - Douglas Adams
Its obvious what happened. The company was strangled by union thugs. Without the union making the company unable to compete they would never have needed the line of credit to begin with. That is the problem. You won't find the UAW or Teamsters in Japan or China.
The moment you capitulate to lawlessness you've lost your civility.
Posts: 8970 | Location: San Diego, or near by. | Registered: 06-08-2007
What about the lack of a 60 day notice as required by LAW davdah?? Remember Enron, Worldcom etc? They tried to claim they didn't know they were gonna go bankrupt. What a croc of lies.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Brit4064,
In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move - Douglas Adams
60 day notice? What law is that? Most employment is 'at will'. Meaning the employee can quit any time they want and the employer can terminate at will. Many places have a 2-week notice requirement. Per employer/employee agreement. Which doesn't eliminate the ability to fire with no notice depending on circumstances. Or quit without notice. Would you want someone working for you for 2 months who knew their days were numbered? Would it surprise you if there wasn't some retaliation?
It is possible for an organization to hold out to the last minute before throwing in the towel to bankruptcy court. More often than not it is the case for numerous reasons. Not the least of which is ensuring suppliers and all the other connected entities continue to
And yes, in many cases it is the unions fault for dragging down a company. Any other developing nation has no where near the stranglehold by unions we have. Which makes it difficult if not nearly impossible to compete in the world market. Ford and GM are good examples. The cost difference in labor alone is huge. Not to mention the increased regulatory requirements of the EPA, OSHA, and others. All of which translate into increased costs.
The moment you capitulate to lawlessness you've lost your civility.
Posts: 8970 | Location: San Diego, or near by. | Registered: 06-08-2007
Even so davdah, there's a moral point here. Do you lie to your employees and say everything's alright then a week later, go bankrupt and claim you knew nothing about it? It's too suspicious when that happens.
In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move - Douglas Adams
Originally posted by Mrs. B.: Pacquiao era begins with demolition By Kevin Iole, Yahoo! Sports Dec 7, 1:52 am EST
LAS VEGAS – Manny Pacquiao unequivocally established himself as the finest fighter in the world Saturday.
But he accomplished an even more stunning feat when he not only defeated Oscar De La Hoya but battered him into retirement with a shockingly one-sided victory in their welterweight bout before 15,001 at the MGM Grand Garden.
De La Hoya, the 1992 Olympic gold-medal winner and a professional world champion in six weight classes, was hammered as he never was in 44 previous bouts before trainer Nacho Beristain mercifully asked referee Tony Weeks to halt the carnage after eight one-sided rounds.
The fight ended any debate whether Pacquiao or light heavyweight Joe Calzaghe deserves the top spot in the mythical pound-for-pound race, but it also sent a one-time legend into retirement.
De La Hoya, who was taken to a local hospital for a precautionary examination, never in his illustrious career had absorbed such a beating. Pacquiao’s hands were far too quick and, despite the fact that he was moving up from lightweight, his punches were much too hard for the Golden Boy to handle.
It was clear by the third round that De La Hoya was going to need a miracle to reverse the pummeling he was taking.
Pacquiao displayed every punch in the arsenal, raking the Golden Boy with straight lefts that nearly closed De La Hoya’s left eye and stunning him with hooks, jabs and uppercuts.
It was so savage of a beating that it was hard not to feel sorry for De La Hoya. At the end of the bout, a thoroughly beaten De La Hoya trudged across the ring and met his one-time trainer, Freddie Roach.
“You’re right,” De La Hoya said to Roach, who had prepared Pacquiao brilliantly. “I don’t have it any more.”
Pacquiao was a 2-1 underdog, largely because he was challenging a man who had fought at super welterweight or middleweight exclusively for the last seven-and-a-half years. Pacquiao had only fought once as high as lightweight and had fought 75 percent of his bouts before Saturday at super bantamweight or lower.
But Pacquiao unofficially weighed a pound-and-a-half more than De La Hoya – 148½ to 147 – and was clearly stronger and better Saturday.
“The media, the press is never wrong,” Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum said. “You all said it was a mismatch and it was a mismatch.”
De La Hoya didn’t officially announce his retirement, but his business partners, Bernard Hopkins and Shane Mosley, spoke of his career in the past tense. In his brilliant career, De La Hoya took on most of the greatest fighters of his generation, but never before was he beaten as cleanly and decisively as he was by Pacquiao.
Not when he was knocked out by a brutal shot to the liver by Hopkins in 2004, not when he dropped a split decision to then-pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. last year and not when a tactical mistake cost him a victory against Felix Trinidad.
“Pacquiao was phenomenal,” Hopkins said.
Pacquiao was never threatened by De La Hoya’s vaunted left hook, negating De La Hoya’s best chance of winning the fight.
It was something Roach had worked tirelessly on in the gym and something he unwaveringly told the world that Pacquiao would do.
“Taking the left hand away was a key,” Roach said. “We took Oscar’s left hand away from him and once we did that, the fight was over.”
Pacquiao called De La Hoya his idol and said he was honored to have had the opportunity to face him. But he didn’t spare his idol any pain, working his plan like a hired gun.
“It was nothing personal,” Pacquiao said. “I just came to do my job.”
He was far more impressive against De La Hoya than Mayweather, who retired in June as the widely acknowledged best fighter in the world. Pacquiao declined to say whether he’d
be willing to fight Mayweather, saying it was up to Arum to decide.
Arum said he wouldn’t discuss a potential opponent for Pacquiao until after the holidays, but it’s clear he’s sitting on a gold mine. With De La Hoya expected to wander into retirement, Pacquiao will take his mantle as the game’s biggest draw.
Fights against Mayweather, if he comes out of retirement, and Ricky Hatton are going to be massive events that would likely guarantee each men eight-figure paydays.
Arum wanted none of that talk, preferring to revel in one of the most satisfying victories of his nearly 50-year promotional career.
“Next to the night when George Foreman won the heavyweight championship of the world by knocking out Michael Moorer, this is it,” Arum said. “These are my two most memorable fights as a promoter.”
This was the boxing rite of passage that has become all too familiar over the years. It happened to Joe Louis against Rocky Marciano, to Muhammad Ali against Larry Holmes and to Julio Cesar Chavez against De La Hoya.
A younger, faster and better man snuffed out the star of one of the game’s all-time greats.
“Hats off to Manny Pacquiao, because he was incredible,” said Mosley, who has two wins over De La Hoya. “Remember what Oscar has done, though. He made this sport a great sport, and created this so that all of you people could come to see a great event.”
But De La Hoya didn’t have that one last great fight left and was forced to accept a beating as the final act of a Hall of Fame career.
“It happens to everyone,” said legendary trainer Angelo Dundee, who assisted De La Hoya in camp.
Dundee had trained Ali, Foreman and Sugar Ray Leonard, among many of the game’s greats, and had seen this scene before.
“I thought Oscar had what it takes to beat Pacquiao, but this happens when you let the guys fight the fight,” Dundee said. “You just have to give the other guy credit.”
Yes you do.
Oscar De La Hoya is the past.
It’s Pacquiao’s time now.
Kevin Iole covers boxing and mixed martial arts for Yahoo! Sports. Send Kevin a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast. Updated Dec 7, 1:52 am EST
What Impresses Me Most About Manny, Is He Probably Accomplished This After a Fifth of Tanguray!!!! Miss Spelled of Coarse.
USC and Legal, Honest Immigrant Alike Must Fight Against Those That Deceive and Disrupt A Place Of Desirability! All Are Victims of Fraud, Both USC and Honest Immigrant Alike! The bad can and does make it more difficult for the good! Be careful who you blame!!! kami ay nanonood!!!
Places to See Before They Disappear Consider visiting these rare cultural, historic, and natural sites before they are irrevocably altered or gone
Taj Mahal If the plan to close the Taj Mahal goes into effect, it would reduce this over-the-top mausoleum — built by Shah Jahan (fifth emperor of the Mughal dynasty) to mourn his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal — to a mere postcard silhouette instead of the spiritual experience it can be.
Even a recent rise in admission prices doesn't deter floods of tourists from shuffling through the Taj Maha l — three to four million tourists every year. Between the crowds and the air pollution that's eating away its white stone facade, tourism officials are considering closing this 17th-century landmark to the public, leaving its fabulous domed symmetry — that graceful center onion dome, the four smaller surrounding domes, the slender punctuating minarets, the serene reflecting pool — visible only from afar.
Shah Jahan placed this memorial beside the Yamuna River, despite the constant risk of flooding, because it was next to the bustling market of the Tajganj, where it is said he first saw Mumtaz selling jewels in a market stall. Work started in 1641, and it took 20,000 laborers (not to mention oxen and elephants) 22 years to complete; its marble came from Rajasthan, the precious stones from all over Asia. In the late 19th century, the badly deteriorated Taj Mahal was extensively restored by British viceroy Lord Curzon; what will today's Indian government do to preserve this treasure?
Lord Howe Island More than half of the original recorded species of birds on this island are extinct due to hunting; non-native predators such as black rats, cats, and owls; and overgrazing by farm animals. Now that Lord Howe Island is protected and managed, the most serious threats are oil and chemical water pollution, and groundwater pollution from sewage management.
Possibly Australia's best birding site, Lord Howe Island is a carefully preserved nature sanctuary, where only 400 tourists are allowed at a time. Seventy-five percent of the island, including much of the southern mountains and northern hills, is a permanent protected nature reserve. The island is home to more than 130 bird species, between residents and migratory visitors. Walking trails along the island's ragged east coast provide great views of seabirds, star among them is one of the world's rarest birds, the Providence petrel, which nests near the summit of Mount Gower. This sturdy-looking seabird is so trustful of humans that it can even be called out of the air — and might even decide to rest in your lap.
For impressive aerial feats, look to the skies, especially over the tropical forests of the northern hills, and you'll see the beautiful red-tailed tropic bird, with its elegant red tail streamers. When courting, it will fly backwards, in circles, and, for good measure, throw in some vertical displays. It's a splendid sight, and one few birders ever get to see.
Pyramids of Giza Of all the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, only one is still standing: the Great Pyramid of Cheops. Granted, its pinnacle was lopped off, and the polished white limestone that once faced its sloping sides was scavenged ages ago. But there it is in the Egyptian desert, the largest in a trio of stupendous royal tombs, with a quirky monument called the Sphinx alongside. It's quite a sight to see — if only you could see it.
Today, aggressive throngs of souvenir vendors, tour touts, and taxi drivers crowd the entrance to the Pyramids of Giza. Though camel rides and horseback tours are now banned from the monument area, visitors still clamber unchecked over the ancient landmarks. The haphazard sprawl and pollution of Cairo comes right to the edge of the archaeological zone, yet Egyptian officials seem unconcerned about protecting the site.
It's difficult now to get that iconic long-distance view of the three pyramids looming in the desert; you can't really see them until you're too close. Oriented precisely to the points of the compass, they were built for three Pharaohs of the 4th Dynasty (about 27th c. B.C.) — the Great Pyramid of Cheops, the slightly smaller Second Pyramid of Chephren, and the much smaller red-granite Third Pyramid of Mycerinus — and designed to imitate the rays of the sun shining down from its zenith. Most tourists expect a visit to the famed pyramids to be a once-in-a-lifetime thrill, not a tawdry letdown. It's the only Ancient Wonder we have left — what a pity it's come to this.
Gu Gong (Forbidden City) This vast complex is half a millennium old — the emperors lived in the Forbidden City from 1420 to 1923, beginning long before Columbus sailed to the Americas and ending right before Lindbergh flew across the Atlantic — and the heavy traffic is taking its toll.
It may have been forbidden once, but nowadays nearly seven million visitors a year cross the threshold of this imperial palace, home to an unbroken line of 24 Chinese emperors. Limiting access would be a ticklish proposition for the Chinese government since most of the visitors are Chinese citizens getting in touch with their heritage. Many sections may be closed when you visit, due to a massive renovation lasting through 2020.
There's no one must-see section — it's the scale and harmony of the whole that's so impressive, an irrefutable statement of Chinese imperial might. It was originally built by an army of workers in only 14 years, although after various ransackings and fires, most of what you see today was built in the 17th century. Check out the largest gate, the Gate of Heavenly Peace, where Mao Tse Tung made his dramatic announcement founding the People's Republic in October 1949. The nearby Gate of Supreme Harmony leads into the perfectly symmetrical outer court, and then into an inner court and increasingly private — at least in the emperor's time — pavilions and structures.
Little Green Street Little Green Street isn't in the center of London, but maybe that's why it survived so long — it's one of only a few intact Georgian streets left in the whole metropolis. These two-story brick houses may have survived the Blitz in World War II, but the inexorable march of gentrification is another thing altogether. It's not even a full neighborhood, just a one-block-long street, a narrow cobblestoned lane lined on both sides with perhaps a dozen modest 18th-century terraced houses.
The houses themselves being knocked down, it's the street itself that lies in danger. A developer seeking to build nearby can only access the plot of land through the 2.5m (8 feet) wide street. Lorries and backhoes would barely scrape through this lane, coming within inches of the terrace's neatly painted front doors and bow windows. No studies had been done to test how much the constant rumbling and vibrations of that traffic would affect the foundations of these 225-year-old buildings, given a projected construction period of 4 years.
Little Green Street looks like a perfect slice of Regency London; it's been celebrated in the poetry of that quintessentially British poet John Betjeman, and used as the setting for music videos and photo shoots. The campaign to save Little Green Street has not only knit together the dozen families who live there, it has attracted actors, writers, musicians, and others concerned with preserving London's historic character. On February 28, 2008, the Camden Town Council denied the developers construction access to Little Green Street, but the appeals process continues.
Do all the good you can, in all the ways you can, as long as ever you can.
Originally posted by Brit4064: Even so davdah, there's a moral point here. Do you lie to your employees and say everything's alright then a week later, go bankrupt and claim you knew nothing about it? It's too suspicious when that happens.
Brit, I don't think you can compare Enron with Republic Windows for obvious reasons. Enron has faced charges in 1997 and 1999 before its famous debacle in 2002 while cooking the books during that same time peorid. Yet, it was that same company that paid for the 1996 Presidential inauguration party as well as the California gubernatorial inauguration party.
With Republic Windows, you are dealing with a comapny that was highly leveraged in debt financing. It has a shoddy product, shoddy sales, and shoddy management. Not to mention, it was Richard Daily's darling as well as the outgoing Illinois governor.
Managment hoped, prayed, maybe even performed a spiritual chant to keep the doors open. However, without the financing and t he cash to pay employees and management, it had no choice to close. I understand the 60 day rule, but this rule does not imply when the company goes bankrupt. If you look at the law again, it specially states who should receive the notice and the situation that Republic Windows is currently facing is not entitled their. Now,who is usurping the law now?
The other thing Brit is that American unions are unique from other unions around the world. Most unions in Canada, Europe, or even Asia act more like guilds than a corporation of employees. Here in the U.S., a union acts more like a corporation and unions can be greedy, very greedy. Most oft he early pension reform bills were a direct result of unions, along with organized crime, of taking away pensions. You can think Jimmy Hoffa for that one Brit. Furthermore, the AFL-CIO wants to pass the Card Check Bill which would remove the secret ballot on voting for union benefits, strikes, and other union democratic processes. Not exactly fair or Democratic there Brit, is it?
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"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence." John Adams on Defense of the boston Massacre
U.S. Anti-Kidnap Expert Abducted In Mexico Acclaimed Security Consultant Nabbed In City Where He Was Giving Advice On Ransom Demands
(AP) A well-known U.S. anti-kidnapping expert has himself fallen victim to Mexico's wave of abductions as unidentified assailants snatched him from a street in the northern city of Saltillo, one of his employers said Monday.
The kidnapping of U.S. security consultant Felix Batista - who was in Saltillo to offer advice on how to confront abductions for ransom - showed how bold Mexico's kidnappers have become. Attacks on U.S. anti-crime consultants have largely been the stuff of movies.
"We have notified the FBI and Mexican authorities, and they are working on the case," said Charlie LeBlanc, the president of the Houston-based security firm ASI Global LLC., where Batista is a consultant. "What we are doing is we're offering our support to the family and hoping for the best."
The U.S. Embassy in Mexico City said it would not comment on the case, and LeBlanc would not say whether any ransom demand had been received, saying "I'd rather not talk about it right now."
LeBlanc said Batista "was abducted on the evening of Dec. 10 by unknown assailants" in Saltillo, the capital of Coahuila state. He said Batista had his own security business and that "he was in Mexico for business that wasn't associated with our company."
Batista's work involved "crisis management consulting," LeBlanc said. "Part of that could be or may involve negotiations with kidnappers."
ASI Global's Web site advertises "kidnap and ransom response" and says the company has worked for major insurance companies.
Kidnapping has become a rising problem in Mexico, and Coahuila's governor recently set off a nationwide controversy by proposing to reinstate the death penalty for kidnappers who kill their victims. Mexico outlawed the death penalty in 2005 and abandoned it in practice decades ago.
The kidnap-killings in the past year of the daughter of the country's former sports commissioner and the son of a prominent businessman have caused outrage across Mexico.
Coahuila state law enforcement officials who were not authorized to be quoted by name said Batista had been giving talks to local police officials and businessmen on how to prevent or avoid kidnappings.
They said he apparently was snatched from a street outside a restaurant.
A profile of Batista posted - and later removed - from the ASI Global Web site described him as "the primary case officer for all cases throughout the Latin American region."
The site said Batista was a former U.S. Army major who is "known for conducting in-depth threat assessments, the successful resolution of nearly 100 kidnap and ransom cases (many on behalf of major insurance carriers) and investigations."
The company denied local media reports that Batista was a former FBI agent, and warned those reports could put his life at risk.
"We at ASI are very concerned for Felix's safety and would like to take this opportunity of stating categorically that Felix has never been an agent in the FBI," the company said in a statement. "Irresponsible and erroneous reporting in the press could pose a very real threat to Felix's life and the safe resolution of this terrible situation and must be corrected."
The seizure seems to echo the plot of a 2004 movie, "Man on Fire," in which Denzel Washington played a U.S. security consultant who takes on Mexican kidnappers and is abducted himself
A courageous Iraqi journalist throws his shoes at President Bush out of contempt for Bush over the Iraq war. Such a shame he misses.
You have to respect this man's restraint. With over 1,000,000 Iraqis dead as a result of George's war, flying shoes are practically flowers and candy.
In the middle of the news conference with Mr Maliki, Iraqi television journalist Muntadar al-Zaidi stood up and shouted "this is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog," before hurling a shoe at Mr Bush which narrowly missed him.
With his second shoe, which the president also managed to dodge, Mr Zaidi said: "This is for the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq."
Throwing shoes at someone, or sitting so that the bottom of a shoe faces another person, is considered an insult among Muslims.
The Cairo-based al-Baghdadiya TV channel said Mr Zaidi should be freed because he had been exercising freedom of expression - something which the Americans had promised to Iraqis on the ousting of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
The programming director for al-Baghdadiya, Muzhir al-Khafaji, described the journalist as a "proud Arab and an open-minded man".
The brother of the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at US President George W Bush has said that the reporter has been beaten in custody.
Muntadar al-Zaidi has suffered a broken hand, broken ribs and internal bleeding, as well as an eye injury, his older brother, Dargham, told the BBC.
Mr Zaidi told a BBC correspondent that despite offers from many lawyers his brother has not been given access to any since being arrested.
Mr Zaidi was a graduate of communications from Baghdad University.
"He has no ties with the former regime. His family was arrested under Saddam's regime," his programming director said.
Mr Zaidi has previously been abducted by insurgents and also held twice for questioning by US forces in Iraq.
In November 2007 he was kidnapped by a gang on his way to work in central Baghdad and released three days later without a ransom.
He said at the time that the kidnappers had beaten him until he lost consciousness, and used his necktie to blindfold him.
Mr Zaidi never learned the identity of his kidnappers, who questioned him about his work before letting him go.
Dargham al-Zaidi told the BBC that his brother deliberately bought Iraqi-made shoes, which were dark brown with laces.
The shoes themselves are said to have attracted bids from around the Arab world.
According to unconfirmed newspaper reports, the former coach of the Iraqi national football team, Adnan Hamad, has offered $100,000 (£65,000) for the shoes, while a Saudi citizen has apparently offered $10m (£6.5m).
Number Of Iraqis Slaughtered In US War And Occupation Of Iraq: 1,284,105
Number of U.S. Military Personnel Sacrificed (Officially acknowledged) In U.S. War And Occupation Of Iraq: 4,209
Cost of U.S. War and Occupation of Iraq: $579,602,161,240
2 shoes for this one also. One SNEAKER and One BIG BOOT
**** Cheney Takes Parting Shots By Jay Allbritton Dec 15th 2008 10:03PM
During **** Cheney's interview with ABC's Jonathan Karl, the vice president disagreed with Karl Rove's statement last week that if pre-war intelligence indicated Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction the United States would not have gone to war. Cheney argued that we would have gone in, saying, "[Saddam Hussein] had a long reputation and record of having started two wars. Of having brutalized and killed hundreds of thousands of people, some of them with weapons of mass destruction in his own country."
And his point is? and what did that have to do with usa?
Cheney also told ABC that Guantanamo Bay's detention camp should remain open until the end of the War on Terror. He said he did not know when that would be. Terror, incidentally, has been in existence... forever.
Cheney expressed doubts that President-elect Barack Obama will close the camp or give up any of the broadened authority Cheney fought to bring to the executive branch. Cheney told Rush Limbaugh, "Once [the Obama administration] get[s] here and they're faced with the same problems we deal with every day, then they will appreciate some of the things we've put in place."
Of waterboarding, Cheney said that he supported the process of getting it cleared. He called waterboarding, "a remarkably successful effort, and I think the results speak for themselves." Actually, they don't, since we have no idea what information waterboarded detainees have provided.
Cheney's farewell media push culminates with an hour long interview on Fox News Sunday.
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The Cairo-based al-Baghdadiya TV channel said Mr Zaidi should be freed because he had been exercising freedom of expression - something which the Americans had promised to Iraqis on the ousting of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
The brother of the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at US President George W Bush has said that the reporter has been beaten in custody.
Mr Zaidi told a BBC correspondent that despite offers from many lawyers his brother has not been given access to any since being arrested.
Number Of Iraqis Slaughtered In US War And Occupation Of Iraq: 1,284,105
Cheney argued that we would have gone in, saying, "[Saddam Hussein] had a long reputation and record of having started two wars. Of having brutalized and killed hundreds of thousands of people, some of them with weapons of mass destruction in his own country."