Last night’s CBC National featured another heart-wrenching piece by Adrienne Arsenault, reporting on the desperate measures of a besieged Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip to protect their children from the anticipated onslaught of remorseless Israeli tanks.
As she described the “booby-trapped sand berm” behind her…

mp3 audio 300 kb
ogg audio 99kb
(This won’t be current for long, but click here to view the entire broadcast. It begins with a report on BC forest fires).
update – The facts that Arsenault omits.

LGF;

But this particular death threat is a bit different from the run of the mill hate mail we get around here, because an IP lookup on the sender reveals that he/she/it was using an account at none other than Reuters News: RIPE Whois Database: 192.165.213.18.

Don’t bring a plane to a plane fight.

Busted:

A congressman under investigation for bribery was caught on videotape accepting $100,000 in $100 bills from an FBI informant whose conversations with the lawmaker also were recorded, according to a court document released Sunday. Agents later found the cash hidden in his freezer.
At one audiotaped meeting, Rep. William Jefferson, D-La., chuckles about writing in code to keep secret what the government contends was his corrupt role in getting his children a cut of a communications company’s deal for work in Africa.
As Jefferson and the informant passed notes about what percentage the lawmaker’s family might receive, the congressman “began laughing and said, ‘All these damn notes we’re writing to each other as if we’re talking, as if the FBI is watching,'” according to the affidavit.
Jefferson, who represents New Orleans, has not been charged and denies any wrongdoing.
As for the $100,000, the government says Jefferson got the money in a leather briefcase last July 30 at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Arlington. The plan was for the lawmaker to use the cash to bribe a high-ranking Nigerian official _ the name is blacked out in the court document _ to ensure the success of a business deal in that country, the affidavit said.

Glenn Reynolds has a good memory;

Some readers may recall that Jefferson also used the National Guard to secure his home in New Orleans during the Katrina aftermath. Another triumph for Louisiana politics! However, the bribery story puts a new spin on this bit from the story about Jefferson’s urgent visit to his home amid the flood: “Finally, according to the source, Jefferson emerged with a laptop computer, three suitcases, and a box about the size of a small refrigerator, which the enlisted men loaded up into the truck.” Hmm.

“Marijuana does not damage cognitive abilities.”

The B.C. man wanted in the United States to stand trial for selling marijuana seeds by mail thinks a jail term south of the border could be his springboard to a political career in Canada.
“I get elected to Parliament, I become the justice minister and finally get rid of these marijuana laws,” is how Marc Emery sees his future on return from a prison term in the U.S. if convicted there on charges of conspiracy to distribute marijuana, distribute seeds and launder money.
“My personal feeling is, I do get taken away and kept in captivity for many years,” he says. “Historically, that’s a very good springboard to the governing party.”

“Marijuana does not make users violent.”

“If I go to jail, and I’m really well-known and, hopefully, get murdered in jail, that will serve as a form of martyrdom that every year, demonstrations, protests, bombing, various forms of violent and non-violent behaviour can be used to put forward our thing,” he says.

But Emery is an abberation, right? He doesn’t represent the mainstream of marijuana advocacy, does he?
From Emery supporter John Shavluk, posted to the Cannabis Culture forums Friday, April 21;

like i spent the day telling people yesterday at the rally,,,
that we only need one mp standing up(out of 307 i think)
and making a speech about our culture and getting a private members bill brought forward ,,,we could get a referendum or new decrim(joke) or out right legalize,,how about the end of prohibition period,,,
every one concentrate on your mp
maybe one of them will get balls or get their leader to do the job he is supposed to be doing.
we chain about 10 of us to Layton for example
on media
until he promises to enter a bill,,,
i watched him say he could get one anytime fast as he wanted to do against Emerson,,,
any ideas
because that is the only way it will stop eventually ,,
sadly after this escalation by the law and then a couple of tragedy’s, that I’m sure will develop,,,
i listened to a guy say he wanted to be the first cannabis suicide bomber in Canadian history,,
and had it all figured out
who
where,why him,,
what impact etc,,,

(Emphasis mine)
I have a question for my friends who sit on the pro-legalization side of this debate – is there any currently organized marijuana advocacy group in Canada that has publicly distanced themselves from or formally severed ties with Marc Emery and his Cannabis Culture “following”?

The identity of the CIA leaker fired for passing classified information to Washington Post writer Dana Priest has been revealed.

The officer flunked a polygraph exam before being fired on Thursday and is now under investigation by the Justice Department, NBC has learned.
Intelligence sources tell NBC News the accused officer, Mary McCarthy, worked in the CIA’s inspector general’s office and had worked for the National Security Council under the Clinton and and George W. Bush administrations.
The leak pertained to stories on the CIA�s rumored secret prisons in Eastern Europe, sources told NBC. The information was allegedly provided to Dana Priest of the Washington Post, who wrote about CIA prisons in November and was awarded a Pulitzer Prize on Monday for her reporting.
Sources said the CIA believes McCarthy had more than a dozen unauthorized contacts with Priest. Information about subjects other than the prisons may have been leaked as well.

The sleuthing has begun ;

The report of the 9/11 Commission notes that the National Security staff reviewed the intelligence in April 2000 and concluded that the CIA’s assessment of its intelligence on bin Laden and al-Shifa had been valid; the memo to Clinton on this was cosigned by Richard Clarke and Mary McCarthy, the NSC senior director for intelligence programs, who opposed the bombing of al-Shifa in 1998

Ace has pulled up the campaign contributions. No surprises there.
More from WaPo this morning, including the expected self-serving spin defending the actions of the Post.
More, via Drudge: McCarthy was senior director for intelligence programs under Clinton [appointed by the same Sandy Berger caught carrying classified documents out of the National Archives – in his pants.]
This continues to develop, as expected – Was it a sting? I hope so – it might indicate that the powers that be at the Central Intelligence Sieve are finally getting serious about leakers.
Strata_Spnere;

Her actions put people at risk. The duplicity of the media compared to their outcries on the Plame Game is obvious, crude and crass. There is no excuse for this, and to pretend otherwise is to truly be whistling past the grave.

As has been pointed out – a Pulitzer was awarded for this story.
Mark Levin;

Well, as of this morning (Saturday) most of the big media don’t care. They’re fixated with the weather and gas prices � and anything else that will divert the public’s attention from the stunning revelation that a Sandy Berger crony has apparently been leaking top-secret information from her high post at the CIA. The media will continue to downplay this story as they cover-up their own role in exposing our nation’s secrets, including the supposed existence of CIA prisons in Europe. She’ll be called a “whistleblower” and praised as some kind of patriot (a patriot, in the eyes of the media, is anybody who undermines this administration and the war effort by leaking national security secrets to them). They will downplay that McCarthy was a Clintonoid who somehow managed to land a top post at the CIA, ultimately winding up in the CIA’s Inspector General’s Office, from where she could monitor CIA internal investigations of, well, leaks, among other things.

Complete with “Boy Love Code Of Ethics”. Because sex with boys is “Not an entitlement”!
Via Stop The ACLU, where a Blogspot flagging campaign is getting off the ground.

Reader “Boudica” asks;

“Is it just me or do you find it strange that the name of the person who self immolated recently at the Toronto Tim Hortons was never released?”

Perhaps our legions of curious readers can ferret that out….
update Several commentors have pointed out that his identity has been withheld “due to the family’s wishes”.
Well, big whoop. When one chooses to exit in a manner that places the public at significant risk, which destroys the property of others and closes down part of a metropolitan area, one should expect to forfeit the “right to privacy”.
Afterthought – has anyone else forgotten the March 8 announcement of the Tim Horton’s opening at the Canadian base at Kandahar? And it’s unreasonable for people to ask who was responsible for a gasoline fueled explosion in one of their restaurants in Toronto less than a month later?

According to the OPP news conference presently ongoing, the eight slain men found in an Ontario farm field were all members of the Bandidos motorcycle gang, as is at least one of the five arrested and charged with 8 counts of first degree murder. All were killed by gunshot wounds.
Looks like the Hells Angels denial of responsibility might have been legit, after all – the phrase “internal cleansing” is being used.
CTV is now up with the details.

Do you suppose that on each April 7 in years to come, that thousands of citizens across the nation will gather in candlelight vigils in remembrance of men who have died by violence?
Update: Dogs and Cats Lie Down Together – In the comments, leftie blogger Ted (“Cerberus”) hammers out common ground with the right, endorsing death penalty for gang members and drug traffickers. Wonders never cease!
(just having a little fun with you, Ted.)

Gee, now – what are the odds that the same guy who allegedly molested a 2nd grader in an Edmonton school washroom, who reportedly “ran away” from a hair salon when he found out the price to have his hair “died” – would follow that up by approaching the child and her uncle on said schoolground to ask for a light?

The drama unfolded as school was letting out for the day and parents – nervous after the Grade 2 girl was groped in a school washroom on Monday – were arriving to escort their children home.
Ironically, it was the first day back at school for the little girl herself. Her uncle was with her on the playground when the dishevelled-looking man walked up and asked for a cigarette.
“We just saw this guy walking through the playground,” said Brian Wong, one of those who held down the man. “He matched the description of the guy. My wife and I looked at him and said, ‘that must be the guy.’ We grabbed him and said ‘we have some questions here.’ He started taking off. We tried to get a hold of him until the cops showed up.”
Witness Rob Shrestha said the man was shouting and that four people were grabbing at his hands and legs to keep him from getting away.
[…]
“It looked like him for sure,” said Kyla Mackey, one of a group of parents that were gathered on the playground as school was letting out.
“When they drove away, he just glared at all of us. It was freaky. Then we all cheered.”

Low, as it turns out.
(link fixed)

I can repaint any time I like, but I can never leave.
Readers have asked how the Harley repaint is going. Well, thanks for asking – I finally finished up yesterday around noon and it was consigned to the booth for the final coat of clear. That’s how long it took to restore my work to the point it was at before all proverbial Hell broke loose back on March 31st.
The customer called me this morning to advise he was at the shop, had inspected the work, and the job looked great.
Then, an hour later, he called again.
He dropped the front fender on the pavement while loading it in his truck. So, I shall return on Monday morning to repair the dent and refinish that piece. Again.
I’m not even upset. You see – I anticipated this turn of events. Perhaps it’s a result of inhaling too much basecoat. Perhaps it’s a side effect of wet sanding with solvent – but, whatever the reason, there is no denying this growing, irrational, and unshakable conviction that the only way I will ever find release from this flame job is by outliving the customer.
Which, if he drops any part of this bike again, is an event that may just come to pass.

As the saying goes, When you can’t take the heat…

HANNITY: Once and for all you need to be challenged. You want to call our vice president a terrorist – fine. You want to talk about stoning people to death, say it on my program. If you want to be irresponsible and call our president a mass murderer while he’s at war leading troops in harm’s way …
BALDWIN: And what are you gonna do about it, Sean Hannity?
HANNITY: You don’t have the courage to answer questions.
BALDWIN: And what are you gonna do? And what are you going to do about it, Sean Hannity. If I come on your program, what are you going to do?
LEVIN: He’s going to show that you have a two digit IQ – that’s what he’s gonna do.

h/t Nealenews

This item should send the usual suspects all a’titter. One would think.

Train declared winner.

Oops;

From the moment Liberal turncoat David Emerson was lured to the Conservatives with the jingle of ministerial limo keys, angry voters and otherwise disgusted Canadian folk have been writing to the ethics commish, imploring him to investigate.
Just over 200 of those submissions, apparently, were made to Shapiro by e-mail. Citizen to government. In confidence. Or so they thought.
[…]
With the release of the Emerson ruling Monday, the commissioner’s staff dutifully e-mailed a little thank-you note to all those who had written, drawing their attention to the internet address where they could read the full text of his decision.
It ended: “We thank you for your interest on this matter and in the ethics commissioner’s mandate.”
Unfortunately, each message was prefaced by the e-mail addresses of all 202 complainants.
Dozens of the addresses identify the senders by their first and last names. Every one of them represents a violation of personal privacy.
(If nothing else, the list of addresses from Internet providers across the country also dispels claims by Emerson and his new Tory brethren that the public outcry over his floor-crossing was limited to a bunch of partisan malcontents in his Vancouver riding.)

That’s right – for all the hours of media commentary and outrage over the Emerson floor crossing, the volume of actual email complaints sent to the Ethics Commissioner was in the same general range as a lively comments thread at SDA.
(That distant pop you hear is the sound of Charles Adler’s ego).
Via DMB.

There are daffodils here.
And I think that at the moment, I prefer those to blogging.
If I can get my laptop online, I’ll post a few road photos, (including some shots of the flooding in southern Illinois yesterday.) Otherwise, those will wait till I get home. Ive got a busy few days ahead, so the likelihood of any regular current events blogging from me are rather slim.

Well, all I can say is that Charlotte, NC is one hell of a long way from Delisle. Made it as far as Mt.Vernon, Ill. Just a few hours left in this marathon… until it’s time to drive home. (In case you’re wondering why i didn ‘t fly – multiple dogs and airplane travel don’t mix well..)
Looks like the kids are holding down the fort nicely. Which is good, as I haven’t the energy to do much more than read this evening.
UPDATE – except for this;

A motorist was trapped in his car driving at almost 130mph for 60 miles after the accelerator jammed.
Kevin Nicolle, 25, was unable to stop the automatic BMW going at top speed after the malfunction on the A1.
Kevin Nicolle: ‘I couldn’t get the pedal off the floor’ His terrifying journey, which was followed by four police cars and a helicopter, ended when he smashed the car into a roundabout, flipping it on its roof.

What?
WHAT?
This twit (and it’s not the first time stories like this have come across the wire) needs his license suspended – not for the mechanical failure, but for not knowing how to find neutral orhow to drive without power steering. Holy crap, it’s disturbing to think there are people out there with such a total lack of emergency driving skills.
And yes, I’ve been in that situation – more often than I can remember. I used to own a Ford Bronco that suffered a frozen accelerator at random intervals every time the weather got cold. My ’65 Mustang pulled the trick on me a couple of times. The problem with a this particular type of mechanical failure isn’t “how to stop”, it’s how to manage the problem until you can pull into somewhere you can get it fixed. Of course, that’s just me.
I think of the situations I’ve found myself in – navigating Tower Junction Pass in Yellowstone Park in a heavily loaded Chev propane van without power brakes, the night I kicked the dimmer switch on my 65 ‘Stang doing 65 mpg on a gravel road only to have the headlights cut out completely, lots of blown tires. Why don’t they teach people the easy stuff like driving to the side of the road with the engine cut?

To a whole new level;

The Straits Times said Li Xiao Meng, a 16-year-old from China who was studying at Singapore’s Hua Business School, was a keen musician who liked to jump up and down while playing his guitar in his hostel room.
“But on November 17 he took things a bit too far,” the newspaper said, reporting on a coroner’s court findings.

To say the least.

No surprise here

Canadians will be shocked by the true cost of the federal government’s ill-fated gun registry, says new Public Security Minister Stockwell Day.
Day told The Canadian Press that figures bureaucrats have shown him during briefings for his new portfolio are much higher than previously thought. He would not divulge what the tab is, but said it’s upsetting.
“Some of these numbers, when we get out all the numbers and when the auditor general releases them all very soon, eyebrows are going to go up,” he said Thursday.
“People are going to be upset and they’re going to have a right to be upset.”