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Thomas Paine

To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

18 May - War a la Carte

Various prescription and street drugs may caus...Image via Wikipedia

Drug WarRANT

 

San Francisco cops still haven’t figured out video

San Francisco
For the second time in a week, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi accused police of stealing from drug suspects after releasing video footage Tuesday that shows two officers walk into a residential hotel empty-handed and leave with bags that were not booked into evidence.

http://www.drugwarrant.com/2011/05/san-francisco-cops-still-havent-figured-out-video

International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy

The inaugural issue of the new International Journal on Human Rights and Drug Policy is now available in full online.
The first issue starts off with an incredible editorial: ‘Deliver us from evil’? – The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 50 years on
In recent years there has been growing attention to the human rights implications of the international narcotics control regime among non-governmental organisations and UN human rights monitors. Human rights violations documented in the name of drug control in countries across the world include: the execution of hundreds of people annually for drug offences; the arbitrary detention of hundreds of thousands of people who use (or are accused of using) illicit drugs; the infliction of torture, or other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, in the name of ‘drug treatment’; the extrajudicial killings of people suspected of being drug users or drug traffickers; and the denial of potentially life saving health services for people who use drugs.

Fourth Amendment not valid if police say they thought they heard something.

The latest from the Supremes
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court on Monday ruled against a Kentucky man who was arrested after police burst into his apartment without a search warrant because they smelled marijuana and feared he was trying to get rid of incriminating evidence.
Voting 8-1, the justices reversed a Kentucky Supreme Court ruling that threw out the evidence gathered when officers entered Hollis King’s apartment.
The court said there was no violation of King’s constitutional rights because the police acted reasonably. Only Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dissented.
Officers knocked on King’s door in Lexington and thought they heard noises that indicated whoever was inside was trying to get rid of incriminating evidence.
Justice Samuel Alito said in his opinion for the court that people have no obligation to respond to the knock or, if they do open the door, allow the police to come in. In those cases, officers who wanted to gain entry would have to persuade a judge to issue a search warrant.
But Alito said, “Occupants who choose not to stand on their constitutional rights but instead elect to attempt to destroy evidence have only themselves to blame.”
In her dissent, Ginsburg said her colleagues were giving police an easy way to routinely avoid getting warrants in drug cases. “Police officers may now knock, listen, then break the door down, never mind that they had ample time to obtain a warrant,” she said.

Cannabis and the Environment

This is nice to see…
At Health News Digest: Would Legalizing Pot be Good for the Environment?
(The answer is “yes”)
It’s a short article, but it hits the high points.
Fact is, not only would legalizing pot be good for the environment, but legalizing all drugs would be good for the environment.


Pot Smokers are smarter than Sophie Scott

Pot smokers still see it as harmless: study – By national medical reporter Sophie Scott
A national survey has found many people see cannabis as a soft drug, with nearly half underestimating the harmful impacts it may have.
May have? What does that mean? Cannabis may cause a shift in the space-time continuum. The fact that pot smokers underestimate the potential harmful effects that cannabis may have on the space-time continuum hardly seems dangerous. How can you possibly blame pot smokers for underestimating the harmful effects of hypotheticals?
A study of 1,000 Australians, by the Richmond Fellowship of New South Wales, found almost one-third admitted to using cannabis.
People aged 25 to 34 were the most likely to use cannabis and also the most likely to discount the harmful effects of the drug.
So which “harmful effects” did they discount? Inquiring minds want to know. National Medical Reporter Sophie Scott, however, does not have an enquiring mind.

Progress in New York

There’s no doubt that the amount of attention being paid to marijuana arrests in New York is making a difference.
Bill would reduce charge for pot possession
ALBANY — In a rare show of bipartisanship and upstate-downstate agreement, freshman state Sen. Mark Grisanti is co-sponsoring a bill with Democratic Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries to reduce from a misdemeanor to a violation public possession of small amounts of marijuana.
The co-sponsors say many people, especially minorities in New York City, end up getting arrested for small amounts if they are stopped by a police officer and told to empty their pockets — at which point the possession becomes public.
“They are basically tricking them to show it,” said Tony Newman of the Drug Policy Alliance, who added that the arrests cost taxpayers in New York City an estimated $75 million annually.
Cue police lobbyists claiming that this bill will make the job of police officers harder and make the streets more dangerous in 3-2-1…

War is Business

What Will Afghan Exit Mean For The Economy?

Aggregated | By W.I.B. Syndication
Buy opium poppy
An executive at a small defense contractor recently joked to me, “Afghanistan is our business plan.” I asked him what he would do if the war ended. He stared at me for a moment and said, “Well, then I hope we invade Libya.”
• Read more at www.pbs.org

  1. Consultant’s Brilliant Advice: ‘If You Can Get Security Right,’ Winning Afghanistan Is Easy!
  2. ‘The Closest Thing America’s Economy Has Produced To Socialism’
  3. $1.2 Trillion—The Real US ‘Security’ Budget
  4. FT Tries To Tally Up Bin Laden’s Bill For US Taxpayers
  5. Canadian Opposition Party Running Against Lockheed Martin

    NYT Must-Read: ‘Kingfish’ Erik Prince Now Trains Colombian Mercs To Put Down Dissent In UAE

    1. Blackwater Founder Erik Prince Vs. The FBI
    2. Erik Prince-Connected Mercenary Firm, Saracen International, Loses Somalia Contract
    3. As We Predicted: Foreign Mercs, Including Blackwater, Will Remain In Afghanistan
    4. Another Problem With Shady Mercenary Firms
    5. Prince Andrew Gets Around—To All The Wrong Places 
    6.  

    7. ‘NATO Ships Go Home’—A Sign Of Greek Sentiment

      1. Arms Shipments Evidently Cruising Past NATO Blockade Of Libya
      2. Proposed US Sale Of ‘Non-Lethal’ Armored Troop Carriers To Libya: Sure Looks Stupid Now
      3. John Boehner’s Gift To Julian Assange
      4. Joshua Foust: ‘Not Triumph, But Tragedy’ At Tarok Kolache
      5. Egypt Protest Pictures Highlight The Arms Trade’s Unintended Consequences

       

    Iran’s Navy Also Hunts Pirates In The Gulf Of Aden

    1. Pakistani Navy Scares Away Pirates, Brags About It
    2. Life Plus 80 Years: Back-Patting By US Prosecutors After Verdict Against Unlucky Somali Pirates
    3. Despite Official US Statements Against Mercs At Sea, Bidding Is Hot For Somali Pirate-Hunters
    4. Khalij Aden General Company Profile
    5. Why The World’s Mightiest Navies Can’t Defeat The Somali Pirates

      Historically ‘Reliable’ Navy Contractor Axed For Slipshod Work

    1. Better Late Than Never: US Navy Secretary Announces Anti-Corruption Unit
    2. Veiled Nostalgia For Glory Days Of UK Navy
    3. Barre Army Navy Company Profile

     

    Who Is To Blame For Arming 15,000 Militia Members In One Central Afghan Province?

    1. Raytheon Training Afghan Pilots. Next Pakistan?
    2. Routine Forgery Of Arms Licenses In Pakistan Abets Proliferation
    3. The Pentagon’s Expanding Footprint In Central Asia
    4. Afghan Governor Complains About Foreign-Led Development Projects

    Contractors Account For Nearly 1 In 3 US War Fatalities Since 2001

    1. Iraq Private Army Update
    2. Mercenaries’ Lobby Calls Afghan Taxes Unlawful
    3. Professor Says Privatized War Paved The Way For Privatized Government
    4. UK Government Also Outsourcing Afghanistan War 

    JOURNAL: Ding Dong Osama's Dead Redux

    Here's a challenge to the dominant perspective that hopefully get's you thinking (after you get over being pissed off):
    Great.  Osama's dead.  Good job to my former compatriots in tier one.  Unfortunately, Osama may have already won strategically (see Boyd on al Qaeda's Grand Strategy for more) by the time they got to him.  How?  He was able to cause an over reaction whereby the US did serious harm to itself.  Here's the run down.  You decide.

    http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/globalguerrillas/2011/05/journal-ding-dong-osamas-dead.html

    RC JOURNAL: An Omnivorous Strategy for Local Energy

    Increasingly, the energy we consume to heat and power our communities, will be produced locally. Unfortunately, many of the strategies we use to produce energy are vulnerable due to specialization.  We are too dependent on specific forms of energy and the dedicated equipment used to utilize it.
    One of the methods I recommend to reduce that vulnerability is to use microgrids. Microgrids are essentially a local controlled electricity network that makes it possible for communities to create dynamic local markets for electricity production and consumption that can zoom innovation and investment.   When we first began to talk about microgrids, the technologies involved were merely plans on paper.  Now, a mere three years later, we see offerings from many major technology companies (with the potential of open source projects that can open up this tech for everyone).

    http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/globalguerrillas/2011/05/rc-journal-an-omnivorous-strategy-for-local-energy.html

     

    Alpha Omega said...
    Localization in a globalized, technological civilization is an oxymoron; it is tantamount to voluntary collapse. The way forward is through more extensive use of super-intelligent machine-man hybrid networks and the elimination of irrational hominids from power wherever possible.

     

    Top Briefs

  6. 4GW -- Fourth Generation Warfare
  7. A SHADOW OPEC
  8. AL QAEDA'S GRAND STRATEGY: SUPERPOWER BAITING
  9. ALEXANDER THE GREAT AND THE SCYTHIANS
  10. BOYD ON AL QAEDA'S GRAND STRATEGY
  11. CASCADING SYSTEM FAILURE
  12. CHECHEN ECONOMIC ASSAULT ON RUSSIA
  13. DESIGN FLAWS: METHODS OF ATTACKING CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE
  14. DESTABILIZING TERRORIST NETWORKS
  15. EFFECTS BASED OPERATIONS
  16. EMERGENT COMMUNITIES DEDICATED TO WAR
  17. FEAR MANAGEMENT
  18. GLOBAL GUERRILLA FINANCING
  19. GLOBAL GUERRILLA SWARMING
  20. GLOBAL WARRIORS
  21. GREEN GUERRILLAS
  22. GUERRILLA ENTREPRENEURS
  23. HOMEMADE MICROWAVE WEAPONS
  24. INFRASTRUCTURE MELTDOWNS
  25. IRAQ: ELECTRICITY DISRUPTION
  26. LONG TAIL COUNTER-INSURGENCY
  27. LOYALIST PARAMILITARIES
  28. MAPPING TERRORIST NETWORKS
  29. MERCENARIES UNBOUND
  30. NETWORKED TRIBES
  31. PARTIAL vs. COMPLETE SYSTEM DISRUPTION
  32. PIERCING THE CORPORATE VEIL
  33. PRIMARY LOYALTIES
  34. SCALE-FREE NETWORKS
  35. SCENARIO: CHECHEN INDEPENDENCE (I)
  36. SCENARIO: CHECHEN INDEPENDENCE (II)
  37. SCENARIO: THE DISRUPTION OF SAUDI ARABIA
  38. SIZING THE IRAQI INSURGENCY
  39. STATE FAILURE 101
  40. STIGMERGIC LEARNING
  41. TARGET: CORPORATE PSYCHOLOGY
  42. TARGET: GHAWAR
  43. TARGET: HALLIBURTON
  44. TARGET: INVESTMENT
  45. TARGET: IRAQI OIL PRODUCTIO

Secret UAE desert force set up by Blackwater’s founder

Documents show 800-strong mercenary force is aimed at UAE's external — and internal — foes


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43036162/ns/world_news-the_new_york_times/t/secret-uae-desert-force-set-blackwaters-founder

Flooding could spur largest ever dead zone

http://www.dailycomet.com/article/20110514/ARTICLES/110519646?Title=Flooding-could-spur-largest-ever-dead-zone&tc=ar

Mark Collins - China Working With Rogue Nuke States

United Nations, China, North Korea, International Relations, Iran, Pakistan Add comments
Tough to get really enthusiastic about the way the Dragon is going:

http://www.cdfai.org/the3dsblog/?p=252
 Sure has an odd 'take' on countries working under the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty vs. those not. Guess who he states are 'rogue states' ?...responsible countries which disapprove of WMD on principle ! Sanctions ensure war on innocents continues...not on dangerous entities !
The nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which contains the only binding commitment to nuclear disarmament in a multilateral treaty, became international law in 1970.

http://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/legal/npt/nptindex1.html

Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_Non-Proliferation_TreatyThere are 189 states party to the treaty, five of which are recognized as nuclear weapon states: the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, and China (also the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council).
Four non-parties to the treaty are known or believed to possess nuclear weapons: India, Pakistan and North Korea have openly tested and declared that they possess nuclear weapons, while Israel has had a policy of opacity regarding its own nuclear weapons program. North Korea acceded to the treaty, violated it, and in 2003 withdrew from it.

 The CF’s Afghan Training Mission (Plus “Stinging” Brit Update)
http://www.cdfai.org/the3dsblog/?p=250

Canadians secretly added to U.S. security list: WikiLeaks
CSIS continues to pass along names in secret to the U.S.
http://www.cdfai.org/the3dsblog/?p=248

Colin Robertson - Put Mexico at the top of Canada’s aid list
http://www.cdfai.org/the3dsblog/?p=247
Since NAFTA, Mexico has suffered from a lack of strategic consideration by Canada. Our policy initiatives often lack follow-through, especially in maintaining regular contact at the ministerial level, or reflect the kind of heavy-handedness for which we criticize the United States. The imposition of a visa on Mexican visitors in 2009 was badly handled. Still in place, it is a reminder of our ineffectual refugee determination system and its reform should be a priority for the re-elected Harper government.

Mexico is Canada’s third-largest trading partner and our fourth-largest export market, and its economic prospects are positive.
( And so is the disruption caused by the US 'War on Drugs' with casualties comparable to any war.No wonder they want aid -it would be irresponsible to invest in such a place except  under programs designed to destroy it. That's what's known as a wry jest...hitting too close to the truth.)
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