North Korea gathering cellular intelligence (2008)

Americans should be very thankful that we have a democracy and not a dictatorship ran by a psychopathic ruler Kim Jong-il, or Kim Jong Il, in North Korea.

Any person entering North Korea under orders of Kim Jong-il has to leave their cell phone with government officials at the port of entry into the country. To enforce this rule, all persons and property is searched for contraband. If your “monitor” who stays with you the entire times catches you with contraband a prison sentence is certain. And as you can guess, there will be peaking done on your electronics. After the person has left the port of entry and is in North Korea the cell phone is sent by a military courier to a military intelligence station. Once at the station the phone undergoes both a physical and data inspection for foreign intelligence connections (ie. MI5, CIA, ect.). All data including the call logs, address book, photos, emails, passwords, phone ID, SIM, and more, is saved to a computer system to be searched, cross-referenced, and stored forever.

Data recover software is also ran on the phone memory, SIM, and any SD memory in an attempt to recover any deleted files still available.

I know this for a fact since I just returned from North Korea on a business trip to find my phone completely erased, even the firmware software the phone needs to run. I was told ahead of time that I would have “surrender “my cell phone upon entry into the country, so out of security concerns for my company I enabled a password entered when the phone is turned on or used, and all files on my SD card were encrypted. When I “surrendered” the phone it was operational but off. But when I got it back it was dead.

When I took it into one of my provider’s stores, the rep. said he had never seen a phone like this with no software what so ever, and a phone would have to be sent, since my old phone was trash since it would have to be reprogrammed in the factory.

Nine Mexican Police Officers Arrested on Drug Charges Just South of Texas Border

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico — Mexican soldiers arrested nine police officers who were allegedly carrying drugs in their patrol cars in the violence-plagued city of Ciudad Juarez, just south of El Paso, Texas.

The officers were detained over the weekend while carrying marijuana and radios with non-police frequencies, Mayor Jose Reyes and municipal Public Safety Department spokesman Jaime Torres said Monday.

"We know there are officers who aren't upright and are breaking the law," Reyes said. "Our job is to identify them and fire them, and to support the federal authorities in their efforts."

Last week, the government sent more than 2,500 soldiers and federal police to crack down on soaring violence in the border state of Chihuahua, where Ciudad Juarez is located.

About 200 people have been killed in the city of 1.3 million so far this year, and 47 policemen have resigned or requested retirement in the last month.

Chihuahua is also home to the town of Palomas, across from Columbus, New Mexico, where at least 40 people have been killed since Jan. 1. Palomas' police chief recently sought asylum in the U.S. after his deputies abandoned him and he received death threats.

[SOURCE]

Adjacent-channel interference
A second impairment common in a wireless communications channel is interference from adjacent carriers. While government regulations and standards bodies regulate emissions into adjacent bands to limit interference, regulations do not entirely eliminate it. As a result, modem receivers apply filtering to account for adjacent-channel interference. In Figure 3, a single tone adjacent to a WCDMA carrier is illustrated.
The impact of interference on the modulated signal depends upon both the interference power and its frequency offset. In general, interference is more problematic when it is higher in power and closer to the band of interest. To illustrate this, we compare constellation plots of a 16-QAM signal in the presence of a single-tone carrier that is 4 MHz from the center frequency.
As Figure 4 illustrates, EVM increases with the power of the adjacent-channel interference. In the rightmost graph, we see that as EVM increases dramatically the receiver loses carrier lock.

AT&T loses use of arbitration clause, users can take company to court

It seems that every company on the planet would like to be able and handle all complaints or cases pending against them in arbitration, at least in AT&T's case, that's still an option but is not the only option not after a new court ruling.

AT&T had a little known clause in its service contracts that said if you made use of their service you lost your right to bring a class action lawsuit against the company and instead were forced to go through arbitration. No more, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled the clause "unconscionable" and any pending cases like this can now make it to a real court of law.

This was also the case while Cingular was still Cingular and since being taken over by AT&T then of course, it will apply to any case pending that was started under Cingular. Though, I'm not aware of any, I do know a number of people who are unhappy with AT&T service and a few problems associated with the iPhone, hey, AT&T, see you in court. Not that I would be foolish enough to make use of AT&T's service UNLESS I bought an iPhone and even then it doesn't completely make up for the below average service provided by the company.

Comcast is also trying something similar, with this ruling against AT&T it paves the way for the courts to nullify these clauses that other companies could be/are using as well.

Moore's movie Sicko, a gross Over-exaggeration

Delays make the universal system not quite as primo as Sicko says. Shortly before Christmas last year, Julie Mason of Ottawa received devastating news. She had ovarian cancer. Her husband's prostate cancer had returned. The costs of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatments could have been as overwhelming as the diagnoses. To date, though, the Masons' out-of-pocket expenses have been about $266, even though their story is not typical.

Now cancer-free, the Masons are among the few Canadians who rave about their national health care system - a system also extolled in Michael Moore's new movie, Sicko, as one of the world's best. Michael Moore’s controversial film slams the U.S. approach to health care, portraying it as a cold-hearted, profit-driven nightmare that dumps the uninsured out on the street and looks for any excuse to deny benefits even to those who can afford coverage.

By contrast, Moore paints the rosiest of pictures in Canada, France, Britain and Cuba, where every citizen, regardless of income or "pre-existing" condition, is entitled to necessary health care at government expense.

Among Sicko's most striking examples: When a Canadian worker accidentally severed all five fingers on one hand, the Canadian health care system picked up the entire tab of reattaching them. When an uninsured American sliced off two fingertips in an electric saw accident, he could afford to get only one reattached - at a cost of $12,000.

But is health care in other places really as terrific as Sicko suggests? A closer look at Canada - a country similar in history and culture to the United States - reveals a system that while truly classless, suffers from doctor shortages, restrictions on foreign nationals, long waiting times and hidden costs in the form of higher taxes and "health premiums."

"It's a wonderful system, but unfortunately it's overloaded at the moment," says Gerry Brissenden, who at 75 divides his time between Ontario and St. Petersburg as president of the Canadian Snowbird Association. Under Canada's Health Act, Brissenden and his 33-million fellow citizens are entitled to all necessary physician and hospital services, including prescription drugs. But they usually must pay for any drugs outside the hospital. Canada's health care system generally does not cover dental or eye care, however. And a shortage of diagnostic equipment - Canada has 4.5 MRIs per million people compared with 8.6 in the United States - is one reason patients often wait months for tests and nonemergency surgery.

As a result of such delays, a growing number of Canadians cross the border for tests or pay for testing at private clinics in their own country. Despite concern that "queue jumping" undermines the system's fairness, Canada's Supreme Court in 2005 struck down a Quebec law that banned people from using private insurance to pay for MRIs, cataract operations and other government-covered procedures.

"Access to a waiting list is not the same thing as access to health care," the court said, noting that Canadians had suffered and even died because of long waits.

Brissenden, for example, had his broken wrist in a cast for eight weeks before he could get an appointment with a doctor to replace two bones with a metal plate. If he could change one thing about Canada's system, it would be imposing a small charge for doctor visits.

Another reason for lengthy waits is a shortage of doctors in rural areas and in certain specialities like obstetrics and gynecology. Concerned that Canada might produce too many doctors, the federal and provincial governments in the early '90s cut back on medical school admissions and made it harder for foreign doctors to be licensed. About the same time, thousands of Canadian-born doctors and nurses left the country, lured by attractive bonuses to HMOs and for- profit hospitals in the United States.

"The big problem with our system - and part of it relates to the planning of a decade ago - is that our waiting times are considered unacceptable for routine and elective procedures," says Colin McMillan, a cardiologist and president of the Canadian Medical Association. "There are just not enough doctor and nurses to serve the population." Though the "brain drain" has largely stopped and medical school admissions are returning to pre-'90s levels, McMillan says patients in his province, Prince Edward Island, can still wait six months to see a consultant. "It should be four to six weeks," he says.

After waiting about a year for a hip replacement, Sharon Sholzberg-Gray dreaded another long wait - this time for two knee replacements. But as the weeks ticked by, she lost so much weight that her knees stopped hurting. "Now I don't need my knees replaced and I've saved the health system two knee replacement operations," says Sholzberg-Gray, president of the Canadian Healthcare Association.

The association represents hospitals, which are struggling with the fearsome cost of new technology and wonder drugs, particularly for cancer treatment. A recent series in the Ottawa Citizen on how hospitals use tax money found that drug costs rose 82 percent in just three years and the cost of new medical and surgical equipment zoomed 56 percent, far outpacing any other area of hospital spending.

The pressure on hospitals will only increase as aging baby boomers demand more and better health services - a strong argument for preventive care and healthy lifestyles, Sholzberg-Gray says. "No health system in the world is going to be able to be sustained unless people focus on keeping a healthy weight, eating healthy and reducing the amount of diabetes," she said. "But right now the problem, as with any health system, is we could use more money."

Although the United States spends almost twice as much on health care per person, Canada's costs are rising so fast that the government of Ontario, the most populous province, began deducting a "health premium" from wage and pension checks in 2004 to pay for more doctors, nurses and hospital beds. The premium is based on income and can be as much as $900 Canadian (about $852 U.S.).

Canadians also pay far more sales tax than Americans, 14 percent in Ontario compared with 6 or 7 percent in Florida, and only a small amount of that tax money in Canada goes to health care.

Defining cronyism for an ignorant Hillary Clinton

Former President Bill Clinton and Senator Hillary Clinton are absolutely outraged that President Bush granted executive clemency to Scooter Libby, recently convicted of making false statements under oath. They obviously believe that Libby should serve his thirty month sentence.

Does that mean that they now think that perjurers should go to jail? Or have they simply forgotten about Bill Clinton’s own plea agreement in the last hours of his presidency — for making false statements under oath? Some people would call that perjury.

One would have thought that Hillary and Bill Clinton wouldn’t touch the Libby executive clemency issue with a ten-foot pole — for lots of reasons.

After all, Bill Clinton has a well-earned reputation as the king of pardons — granting 140 of them during his last minutes in office — with many going to terrorists, people who had paid Hillary’s brothers to arrange for pardons, contributed money or key support to Hillary’s Senate campaign, given the Clintons expensive personal gifts, and/or made large contributions to Bill Clinton’s Presidential Library. One of the pardons went to Bill’s own brother, Roger, while another went to Susan MacDougal, who kept quiet about Clinton during the Whitewater trial.

Given the disgraceful Clinton record on pardons, most reasonable people would have kept quiet — especially when Libby’s offense was so similar to Bill’s own criminal conviction. But the self-righteous former first couple couldn’t resist. Once the clemency was announced, Hillary immediately attacked President Bush, saying, "This commutation sends the clear signal that in this administration, cronyism and ideology trump competence and justice.”

Hey, Hillary, do you understand what cronyism really means?

Cronyism is favoritism shown to friends and supporters without regard to their qualifications. And that’s what Bill Clinton’s pardons were all about. Except, as usual, the Clintons went way over the top. So, in addition to granting pardons to undeserving friends, Bill Clinton also pardoned undeserving strangers who paid his family, friends, campaign coffers, and presidential library.

Now Bill and Hillary claim that his highly controversial pardons were “different” than the Libby clemency.

He’s absolutely right ...

The big difference was that many of the Clinton pardons were patently bought and paid for — something event he Clintons don’t claim to be the case in the Libby commutation.

Hillary’s brothers were paid more than $500,000 to lobby the president for pardons that were then granted to con artists and drug dealers. For a fee of $400,000, Hugh Rodham successfully pushed for a pardon for drug kingpin Carlos Anabel Vignali, convicted of shipping a half-ton of cocaine from L.A. to Minnesota. His father was a big contributor to the Democratic Party — he gave more than $150,000 to the Los Angeles Democrats. Obviously, the investment was a shrewd one.

That’s cronyism, Hillary. Get it?

Tony Rodham advocated a pardon for Edgar and Vanna Jo Gregory. The Gregorys, who owned a carnival company, defrauded a federal bank. When the pardon was publicized, Hillary stated that Tony was “not paid” by the Gregorys for his work on the pardon. Tony repeated that line on the Larry King Show.

After an investigation, the House Government Operations Committee disagreed and announced that Hillary’s statement was inaccurate. Now, a federal bankruptcy court overseeing the carnival company’s bankruptcy is about to rule on whether over $100,000 paid to Tony Rodham at the time of the pardons was a loan or payment for “consulting.”

The Gregorys contributed over $100,000 to Hillary’s campaign and other Democratic causes. These folks were well known to the Clintons — they visited them at Camp David and were hired to stage two carnivals on the White House grounds — paid for by the taxpayers.

That’s cronyism, Hillary.

When the Rodham brothers’ exploits were made public, Bill and Hillary announced that they were “shocked and saddened” by the disclosure. At the time of the pardons, the Rodham brothers were actually living in the White House with the Clintons and had made contact with the highest level of presidential assistants. But the Clintons claimed that they were totally unaware of what Hugh and Tony were doing.

But, it wasn’t just Hillary’s family who benefited from the Clinton cronyism. Bill’s brother Roger was pardoned for his drug conviction, and he was allegedly paid $30,000 to promote six felons — although those pardons were never granted.

That’s cronyism, Hillary.

The most outrageous Clinton pardons went to sixteen members of the terrorist gang, the FALN, a Puerto Rican nationalist group responsible for over 130 bombings in the U.S. — attacking the N.Y. office of the FBI, military recruiting headquarters, and even former president Jimmy Carter’s Chicago campaign office. Six people died and dozens more were injured as a result of FALN’s actions. These terrorists never even asked for a pardon, but because Hillary wanted to ingratiate herself with the Hispanic population in New York during her first Senate race, they were suddenly granted a commutation of their sentences.

Although the commutations were opposed by the FBI and the Clinton Justice Department, Bill Clinton granted them to all 16 terrorists. Once again, Hillary claimed to have “no involvement in or prior knowledge of the decision.” Her statement is ridiculous. Two days before the announcement of the pardons, New York City Councilman Jose Rivera personally presented Hillary with a packet of materials including a letter asking her to “speak to the president and ask him to consider granting executive clemency to the prisoners.” What a coincidence — the sentences were immediately commuted!

Hillary, that’s another example of cronyism.

Joe Connor, the son of one of the innocent men killed by the FALN terrorists at the Fraunces Tavern in Manhattan, put it this way:

“The Clinton family traded the release of terrorists for votes, votes that were promised to be delivered by New York politicians to Hillary for senate and Gore for president. That was clear.”

That’s cronyism, Hillary.

And Hillary actually has the audacity to accuse President Bush of cronyism! This woman has no shame.

Then, of course, there was also Marc Rich, the fugitive oil broker who renounced his American citizenship. Rich was illegally buying oil from Iran during the American trade embargo and hid the $200 million in trading (and over $100 million in profits) with Iraq using dummy transactions in off-shore corporations.

Ironically, Scooter Libby was one of Rich’s lawyers, while Rudy Giuliani was the U.S. Attorney who brought the indictment. Amazingly, the U.S. Attorney’s Office was never contacted by the White House for input into the pardon decision. Here’s what the prosecuting attorney had to say about the pardon:

“I cannot imagine two people that were less suited for a presidential pardon than Marc Rich and Pincus Green[the co-defendant]. It is inconceivable that President Clinton chose to pardon the two biggest tax cheats in the history of the United States who had renounced their citizenship, been fugitives for seventeen years, and who had traded with the Iranians during the hostage crisis. While I do not know what motivated President Clinton to pardon Rich and Green, I can state that it is implausible that those pardons were based on his evaluation of the merits of the case...” [http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/pardonsex8.htm]

Interestingly, Rich’s wife bought furniture for the Clinton’s Chappaqua home and contributed at least $450,000 to the Clinton Library.

That’s cronyism, Hillary.

Finally, there were the four New Square pardons. There, the Hasidic defendants were convicted of pocketing $40 million of federal scholarship money. Hillary visited the community, and on Election Day the community supported Hillary 1400 to 12. Weeks later, on December 22, 2000, President Clinton met with the New Square leaders to discuss a pardon. Hillary attended the meeting, but claims that she did not speak.

Apparently, she didn’t have to — the pardons were granted.

That’s cronyism, Hillary!

Iran admits having material for A-Bomb

Iran has produced more than 220 pounds of enriched uranium, the country's interior minister was quoted Friday (6/22/07) as saying about the process that can make fuel for civilian energy or fissile material for a bomb. The ISNA news agency carried comments by Mostafa Pourmohammadi, the interior minister, who said that Iran now has 3,000 hooked-up centrifuges actively enriching uranium. And what was the IAEA doing during this time of failure of oversight?

"In the first steps, we were halted and they (the West) did not allow our only 20 centrifuge machines to work," Pourmohammadi said. "But right now, 3,000 of the machines have been operational and more than 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of enriched uranium has been ready and stored."

In Vienna, a diplomat familiar with Iran's enrichment activities said the interior minister appeared to be talking about "material ... over the past two years" that Iran has produced.
Pourmohammadi also said that more than 165 tons of primary materials of uranium gas have been stored in the Iranian nuclear facilities. Centrifuge machines spin uranium hexafluoride gas and convert it into enriched uranium. Pourmohammadi did not elaborate on the percentage of enrichment of the stored enriched uranium. Depending on the level of enrichment, uranium can be used for both nuclear fuel and nuclear weaponry. Experts say about 1,100 pounds of enriched uranium would be needed for one bomb.

The comments came as Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani, was scheduled to meet Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency in Vienna, Austria, for talks expected to push for a new round of negotiations over Iran's nuclear program. It was hoped that the meetings could find a way to bridge the impasse over Iran's rejection of U.N. Security Council demands that it suspend enrichment.

The United States and some of its allies fear that Iran is using its nuclear program as a cover to produce weapons. Iran denies the charge, saying it only seeks to generate electricity. In a report last month, the U.N. nuclear watchdog provided the potential trigger for a new, third round of U.N. sanctions, saying that Iran continued to defy the Security Council by expanding its enrichment activities. The Security Council first imposed sanctions on Iran in December and modestly increased them in March.

Lawmakers Probe Prosecution of Border Agents Who Shot Mexican Drug Runner

Pressure is growing on Capitol Hill to investigate the prosecution of two former Border Patrol agents doing prison time for their on-duty shooting of a Mexican man who was transporting drugs into the United States.

Jose Compean and Ignacio Ramos are serving 12 and 11 years, respectively, for the non-fatal shooting in 2005 of Osvaldo Aldrete Davila. The agents shot Davila in the buttocks as he was transporting more than 700 pounds of marijuana into the United States through Fabens, Texas.

Davila was given immunity in exchange for his testimony against the agents.

Now the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights and Oversight is organizing a hearing on any influence the Mexican government may have had on prosecuting Compean and Ramos.

Rep. Bill Delahunt, the Massachusetts Democrat who chairs the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee, said a formal invitation to testify will be also be sent to U.S. prosecutor Johnny Sutton "so there will be no confusion as to whether he’s available or whether he’s willing to appear."

California Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, the ranking Republican on the subcommittee who requested the hearing, is asking for information from the State and Homeland Security departments about possible contact the Mexican government made with the U.S. government about the case.

Rohrabacher’s office has been trying to get information from the Justice and Homeland Security departments about Davila’s border crossing and parole documents to determine whether he delivered another load of marijuana in Texas in October 2005, after he entered the U.S. to have surgery by U.S. Army doctors to repair his shattered urethra, a wound he sustained during the arrest.

"We’ve been stonewalled unbelievably," said Rohrabacher spokeswoman Tara Setmayer, particularly about her office’s request for correspondence from the agency investigator in the case and for details of Davila’s immunity agreement.

"It’s absurd … they claim the reason for the denial of that information is because of the privacy act. They require a privacy waiver to be signed by the drug smuggler before they can release that information.

"We want to find out what type of access he had to the country and if it was unfettered access, why would our government grant him such a privilege and also, because of the second drug bust, the relationship between that second drug bust and the dates he was supposed to have surgery in Texas."

Documents prepared by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and obtained by FOXNews.com show that on Oct. 22, 2005, Davila was identified by a witness as the driver of a 1990 Chevy Astro van that contained six bundles — approximately 752.8 pounds — of marijuana. He allegedly dropped off the load around 3 p.m. at the home of a man in Clint, Texas. The man described the van’s driver to DEA investigators, saying he was a "Mexican male, 5’10", dark skin, 20-30 years of age, short hair, and has a colostomy bag," according to the DEA documents.

Rohrabacher’s office has also been asking why residents of the Clint, Texas, home, where the so-called "October load" was stashed, were not charged.

Sutton, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas, left open the door of possibility that charges could still come from that incident.

"The bottom line is, we are still arresting people out of that event," Sutton told FOXNews.com. "We’ve arrested a number of suspects out of that investigation and the investigation is ongoing."

As for Davila, Sutton said: "As soon as we have sufficient, competent admissible evidence to charge him with a crime, we will do it."

Justice Department spokeswoman Kimberly Smith said her department is "committed to working with Congress to answer questions and educate the public on the facts of the Ramos/Compean prosecution and has provided numerous documents explaining the court record and facts of the case to members of Congress," including statements, transcripts and other information.

"We will continue to provide materials and answer questions pursuant to Department of Justice regulations and guidelines," she added.

But Delahunt told FOXNews.com: "We continue to have difficulty in terms of ascertaining a date and there has been some indication that since there’s an appeal, there was hesitation on having him testify."

Delahunt said he also met with the Mexican ambassador privately to discuss the matter, but foreign officials are prevented by protocol and the practices of the Mexican government from testifying to the U.S. Congress. As a matter of course, the congressman added, "We do not have foreign government representatives at hearings."

"I’ve met with the Mexican ambassador. I’ve indicated to other members, including Mr. Rohrabacher, that the Mexican ambassador would be willing to meet with him and other members of Congress privately and we’re making an effort to arrange that," Delahunt said.

As for his invitation, Sutton said he has not yet been formally asked to appear.

"I’m absolutely willing to testify before Congress and cooperate in any way with any congressional hearings or invest, subject of course, to Department of Justice regulations, rules and policy," Sutton said, adding that he would not be allowed to talk about anything that could jeopardize pending cases. "But we also need to do the people’s business and investigate crimes and prosecute criminals."

The department "will carefully consider any invitation for witnesses should Congress choose to hold hearings," Smith added.

Smith said both Sutton and Justice officials "have actively sought to educate members of Congress and the American public about the facts of the Ramos/Compean prosecution."

In a separate incident, the Mexican consulate sent a letter to Edwards County Sheriff Don Letsinger in Texas, and the FBI, pushing for Deputy Gilmer Hernandez to be prosecuted.

On April 14, 2005, Hernandez shot at an SUV full of illegal immigrants in Rocksprings as it sped off while he tried to stop it for running a red light. One of the bullets shattered the teeth of a woman inside the SUV. Hernandez reported the incident, was jailed for 266 days, and the immigrants now may be suing the U.S. government.

"Based on the Consular Convention between Mexico and the United States and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, the Consulate of Mexico is entitled to represent, protect and defend the rights of Mexican nationals in this country," the Mexican consul wrote to Letsinger, Hernandez’s boss, in a letter obtained by FOXNews.com. "That is the care of my country that this kind of incidents against our nationals, do not remain unpunished."

Sutton prosecuted that case as well.

Does the Punishment Fit the Crime?

The House Judiciary Committee also may take up the issue of federal sentencing guidelines known as "924c" in light of recent cases involving law enforcement on the border. It’s those guidelines that called for 10-year sentences for Compean and Ramos for shooting at someone who was running away.

The section of the U.S. Criminal Code says "during and in relation to any crime of violence or drug trafficking crime," any person who uses or carries a firearm should be sentenced to no less than 10 years in prison if a gun is discharged. The law, however, does not make any allowance for law enforcement.

North Carolina Rep. Walter Jones wrote Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in October 2006 asking that Compean and Ramos not be subjected to any misapplication of the law.

"When §924(c) is applied to law enforcement officers, it is in the context of heinous crimes, such as sexual assaults, which are clearly outside the realm of official duties. The application of §924(c) in this case is overly broad, setting a dangerous precedent of application to law enforcement officers trying to act within the scope of their official duties,” the letter states.

"This is an issue that both the majority and the minority want to address and we expect a hearing to be scheduled," said Texas Rep. Lamar Smith, the ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee.

On the Senate side, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the California Democrat who chairs the Senate Judiciary Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security subcommittee, is also looking into how Compean and Ramos were prosecuted.

"This is something Senator Feinstein has been very interested in, she has expressed interested in holding a hearing," said her spokesman, Scott Gerber. The length of the ex-agents’ sentences and "whether they’re appropriate is a significant policy question she’d be interested in looking into," he added.

Meanwhile, a House bill sponsored by Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., to pardon Compean and Ramos includes a provision that requires DHS to revisit engagement policies on the border — policies that even Sutton has called harsh.

"Mr. Hunter, he was worried not only for the safety of the agents but the effect this particular conviction would have on the morale and future efforts of the U.S. Border Patrol," said Hunter spokesman Joe Kasper. "These are two law enforcement officials who are empowered as law enforcement officials to enforce our nation’s laws … these two agents were given the equivalent of murder sentences arguably, arguably … the facts of these cases do not merit 11 and 12-year prison sentences."

Those who have rallied around Compean and Ramos worry that their case could set a disturbing precedent for how Border Patrol agents are prosecuted for on-the-job shootings and other violence, particularly at a time when there is so much pressure to strengthen border security as part of a broader immigration reform debate.

But Sutton, as well as officials at the Border Patrol and Justice Department, point out that the case was decided by a jury and there is more to the story than what’s being told.

"There’s just an extensive misrepresentation of the facts," Sutton said. "I’d be outraged, too, if it was just two Border Patrol agents doing their job ... they don’t tell you these guys shot 15 times at a guy running away, covered up a crime scene and filed false reports.

"If I had five minutes to tell the real facts, most people say ‘oh, that’s different’ … we can’t have federal agents shooting people and covering it up."

Paris is crying again!

Paris Hilton lost it as she was hauled off in cuffs in the back of a black and white. With her fate hanging in the balance, Paris Hilton decided to face the judge dressed in ... drab gray sweats!

Paris Hilton arrived at the Los Angeles County Superior Court, just under 30 minutes after officers handcuffed her and tossed her into the back of a Sheriff's cruiser. With more special treatment from the Sheriff's Office, Ms. Hilton was able to avoided the media frenzy at the court when Sheriffs used a private, covered entrance to escort her into the courtroom.

There is no word yet on exactly what type of enterance it was, and if more rules were broken by having an inmate enter though a employee enterance.

The problem here is that there is a medical issue and it isn't wise to keep a person in jail with her problem over an extended period of time and let the problem get worse," bleated Sheriff Lee Baca into his wads of $50 notes. "In my opinion, justice is being served by the decision to have her serve her time at home. She would still be in the county jail if it were not for the medical advice. My message to those who don't like celebrities is that punishing celebrities more than the average American is not justice. Justice is being served by the decision to have her serve her time at home."

The frenzy began early Thursday (6/7/07) when sheriff's officials released Hilton because of an undisclosed medical condition and sent her home under house arrest. She had been in jail for three days. Hilton was fitted with an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet and was expected to finish her 45-day sentence for a reckless driving probation violation at her four-bedroom, three-bath home. The decision by Sheriff Lee Baca to move Hilton chafed prosecutors and Sauer, who spelled out during sentencing that Hilton was not allowed to serve house detention.

Immigration bill grants amnesty to lawbreakers

Last June I had an unexpected exchange of viewpoints in the News Journal with U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson. In explaining why I had voted against Nelson in the previous election, I cited his abominable record re suppression of illegal immigration.

Nelson responded: "I oppose amnesty. The immigration bill Sen. Martinez and I voted for doesn't grant amnesty to anyone. Instead, it would allow only certain immigrants who play by all the rules to seek a path to legal status."

I noted in follow-up letter that illegals had already broken a key law by entering the U.S. illegally, so none of them could actually qualify.
Well, Sens. Nelson and Martinez are at it again.

As a member of NumbersUSA (www.numbersusa.com), I have sent more than 100 faxes -- many to Nelson and Martinez, but also to President Bush, John McCain, Mitt Romney, Jeff Miller, Gov. Crist and others -- expressing concerns about the illegal-alien situation.
Hundreds of thousands of like-minded concerned citizens have done likewise, all to no avail if the present bill granting amnesty -- whatever they want to call it -- is passed.
The senators negotiating the present amnesty "compromise" would have you believe that illegal immigration can be solved by rewarding it, even though what it really means is that the American people will be subjected to a flood of accelerated immigration, which will overwhelm and forever change America.

A recent study by the bipartisan Commission on Immigration Reform found that guest worker programs depress wages, burden local communities with substantial costs, and fail to reduce unauthorized migration. The American Legion likewise emphatically opposed amnesty.
There are 23 million low-skilled Americans, including 40 percent of working-age African-American men, who currently do not have jobs. Shouldn't they get first shot at the American Dream? By 2020, amnesty would increase the number of green card holders from about 25 million to 50 million, further depressing wages and opportunities for this segment of the American populace.

By 2050 immigration could result in 200 million additional workers. Construction, restaurants, hotels and hospitality services would be overwhelmingly manned by these newcomers, to the detriment of lower-skilled Americans.

Then there's the cost to taxpayers -- estimates are that 60 percent of illegals are high-school dropouts, and the Heritage Foundation found that every household that includes a high school dropout costs taxpayers $22,500 per year, i.e., they pay $10,000 a year in taxes and receive $32,500 in taxpayer-subsidized benefits.

Can you imagine the effect on already overburdened Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security and education programs? In short, we will become a giant welfare state paid for by the rest of us.
We need a change in immigration policy, but not one based on closed-door negotiations between Senate leaders and the Bush White House. The status quo, as bad as it is, is far better for American workers than the Bush/Kennedy immigration compromise.

Border security and a reliable employment verification system must be our first priorities. Stronger enforcement plus stiffer penalties for illegal workers and their employers will address our illegal immigration crisis.

With a secure border and strong enforcement in place, we can then consider a tightly controlled guest worker program geared to serving America's interests.
American taxpayers need a legion of heroes to protect us from this outrage. Be one of those heroes. Call your senators -- (202) 224-3121 -- and express your opposition now, before it's too late.

Paris Crying Behind Bars

Jailbird Socialite Paris Hilton, has spent her second day behind bars at California’s Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood yesterday- is reportedly struggling to cope behind bars.
Inside sources revealed to TMZ.com: ‘Paris is scared. She has been crying on the phone, saying she’s not sleeping or eating. “Paris says her cell is freezing cold. She has three little blankets and no pillow. She’s using one of the blankets as a pillow.

And I say this is a very good thing. She has lived her life thinking she can do anything she wants without any punishment. I think the judge went easy on her giving her only 45 days, maybe the judge was blinded by her celebrity.


The question I have is: Do you think a regular person would only get 45 days in jail after being pulled over three diffrent time with a susspended license?

Updated: 6/7/07 15:03
Hilton's path to jail began when she was arrested Hilton in Hollywood on Sept. 7. She pleaded no contest to reckless driving and was sentenced to 36 months' probation, alcohol education and $1,500 in fines.

On Jan. 15 she was pulled over by the California Highway Patrol. Informed that her license was suspended, Hilton signed a document acknowledging she was not to drive. Then, on Feb. 27, she was pulled over a third time, which led to her brief incarceration.

Border Agents Warn Immigration Bill Will Compromise National Security

A group of former Border Patrol Agents convened on Monday to warn U.S. senators that the current immigration bill would compromise national security if signed into law.

Chairman of the National Association of Border Patrol Officers Kent Lundgren said, "First and most dangerous, is the fact that there will be no meaningful criminal or terrorist record checks of the applicants. If the amnesty passes, we will legalize them despite what past history they may have. Despite what the Administration and Congress say about record checks to ease voters' minds, they are lying about it."

Under the current bill, those who entered the country illegally would be eligible to obtain a "z visa" if certain requirements are met. The z visa is described as a legal, renewable, identification card that could be issued without requiring its holder to first return to their home country. In order to get a z visa, applicants must undergo a full background check.

The bill only gives government officials a single business day to determine if the applicant is a criminal. If nothing suspicious turns up within 24 hours, the applicant would immediately be given a probationary z visa that would be valid for up to six months after the official z visa is issued.

According to varying estimates, there are between 12 million and 20 million illegal aliens currently living inside the United States. All of them would be able to apply for the z visa under the Senate bill.

At the National Press Club, Lundgren explained: "There is no way that record checks can be done on that many people in a limited time frame. And the provision that [background] checks must be completed within 24 hours would be laughable if it were not so outrageous, told obviously to deceive."

"And, it makes no mention of foreign criminal record checks, which are simply an impossibility," Lundgren added. "There won't even be an attempt made there."

The bill also allows illegal-alien gang members to sign a "renunciation of gang affiliation" that would clear the applicant of past gang affiliation and help them obtain a visa. Another provision shelters illegal aliens who have defied a court ruling to leave the country. If the illegal alien, called an "absconder" in this context, could prove leaving the United States "would result in extreme hardship" to the absconder or immediate family, the criminal alien would be permitted to apply for a z visa.

Lundgren said these provisions would benefit members of the notorious terrorist gang Mara Salvatrucha 13, commonly known as MS-13, which is largely made up of illegal aliens from El Salvador and Honduras.

Another unworkable provision of the Senate bill, according to the group, is a requirement that 6,000 new agents be installed to by 2008.

Jim Dorcy, who retired as a senior special agent with the Justice Department's Inspector General's Office after serving the Border Patrol, said the process of hiring Border Patrol Agents is "extremely complicated and exacting."

"To do it properly, it would take months or even year to bring on board and train personnel staff to do a minimally adequate job of pre-hire vetting," he said.

The Border Patrol's residential training program is 19 weeks long. Its curriculum includes immigration law, physical training, firearms instruction, driving and the Spanish language. There is only one training facility, located in New Mexico, where potential agents can receive this instruction.

To qualify for Border Patrol training, a recruit must pass a three-part entrance exam that gauges reasoning skills, a recruit's ability to learn Spanish and job-related experiences and achievements. During resident training, an agent must complete 200 hours of Spanish-language instruction and then pass periodic refresher courses.

In June 2006, there were 11,300 Border Agents on staff.

Dorcy said that there has already been a rush to bring agents on staff that has comprised their ranks. "The rush to hire is bringing about agents in place before background checks [on the agents] are completed," he said. "There have already been illegal aliens, not just aliens, but illegal aliens found in the green uniform. Other agents have been found to be married to illegal aliens, and still others have illegal family members. That is a conflict of interest, even for the agent who has the best of intentions."

Former Chief of U.S. Border Patrol Hugh Brien, a legal immigrant from Ireland, asked listeners to pay special attention to recent news reports. "I am sure you have read about the potential terrorist that were scoping out Fort Dix, New Jersey," he said "Did you notice that the report said that two of them were illegal aliens who entered the border between the United States and Mexico? They are certainly not the only ones."

On May 7, six men--the "Fort Dix Six"--were arrested for plotting an attack on the Fort Dix military base in New Jersey. Three of the men were brothers, who migrated with their family illegally from Mexico to the United States in 1984. None of the family members were ever given legal status. Yet, the family owned and maintained a roofing business, called Colonial Roofing, in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The business was approved by Cherry Hill's local zoning bard in December 2000.

Brien said worrying about illegal immigration was "a good reason to stay awake at night. No one knows how many [potential terrorists] there are, where they come from and where they are now. Worst of all, we don't know what they are up do and that can hurt us badly."

The National Border Patrol Council, a union for Border Patrol Agents 11,000 strong, also opposes the Senate immigration bill. T.J. Bonner, president of the NBPC, said in a May 17 statement the legislation "needlessly jeopardizes the security of this Nation."

"Rewarding criminal behavior has never induced anyone to abide by the law," Bonner said. "And there is no reason to believe that the outcome would be any different in this case."

Social Security and immigration

In fiscal 2001, President Bush used the Social Security lockbox that Al Gore cherished throughout the 2000 presidential campaign. By the end of the current fiscal year, Mr. Bush will have spent more than a trillion dollars in Social Security surpluses over the last five years. And he recently submitted a five-year budget plan (2008-12) that proposes to spend $1.2 trillion more in Social Security surpluses. Moreover, according to the latest trustees' report, the present value of Social Security's unfunded liabilities over the next 75 years is $4.8 trillion. Redeeming an additional $2 trillion in current trust fund bonds will almost certainly require dipping into general revenues, which would squeeze government operations everywhere else, including national security. Thus, the present value of Social Security's 75-year shortage is $6.8 trillion, and it's rising each year.

In a fiscally catastrophic environment like this, what's another $207 billion? Well, as former Republican Sen. Everett Dirksen once said, "A billion here, a billion there -- pretty soon it adds up to real money." By several orders of magnitude, a $100 billion here, a hundred billion there . . . So, yes, $207 billion is real money.

Thus, the Bush administration should think twice about the U.S.-Mexico Social Security totalization agreement, which would have the effect of transferring an estimated $207 billion in Social Security assets by 2040 to 1.6 million Mexican workers and dependents. The majority of those cash benefits would go to Mexicans who worked illegally in the United States. According to a recent study by TREA Senior Citizens League, a Social Security advocacy group, $207 billion represents the price tag of paying Social Security benefits to (a) 827,000 aliens from Mexico who used "non-work" Social Security numbers to work illegally in the United States; (b) Mexican citizens who overstayed their visas here and worked illegally; and (c) illegal aliens from Mexico "who entered the United States illegally on or after Jan. 1, 2004, and worked for at least 18 months," provided that immigration amnesty passes and they gain work authorization.

Beyond the Social Security benefits that would be collected by Mexicans who worked here illegally, their dependents "are also eligible for benefits and could increase the cost of totalized retiree benefits by as much as 50 percent," the TREA Senior Citizens League study asserts.

If Mr. Bush goes forward with his intention to sign this agreement, either chamber of Congress has 60 days to reject it. Both bodies should exercise that duty. In the meantime, as the ill-advised immigration "reform" bill makes its way through the Senate, the appropriate amendments should be passed to prevent illegal aliens from making Social Security's precarious finances worse than they already are.

Notes

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Pro-Illegal Alien Protesters Attack Police

A day of mostly calm immigration rallies ended with a clash between police and demonstrators, and Police Chief William Bratton promised a department review to "determine if the use of force was appropriate."

Several people, including about a dozen officers, were hurt during skirmishes at MacArthur Park near downtown Los Angeles late Tuesday. About 10 people were taken to hospitals for treatment of injuries including cuts, authorities said. None of the injuries were believed to be serious. At least one person was arrested, said Officer Mike Lopez.

May Day marches in Los Angeles brought out about 25,000 people, only a fraction of the roughly 650,000 who rallied last year. Turnout nationwide was also light compared to a year ago.

Organizers said fear about raids and frustration that the marches haven't pushed Congress to pass reform kept many people at home. They said those who did march felt a sense of urgency to keep immigration reform from getting pushed to the back burner by the 2008 presidential elections.

The clash at MacArthur Park started after 6 p.m. when police tried to disperse demonstrators who had moved off the sidewalk onto the street. Authorities said several people of the few thousand still at the rally threw rocks and bottles at officers, who fired rubber bullets and used batons to push the crowd back onto the sidewalk.

"(Police) started moving in and forcing them out of the park, people with children, strollers," said Angela Sambrano, one of the rally's lead organizers.

The police action cut short several speeches, said Hamid Khan, who works at the SouthAsia Network. He said officers "overreacted."

Bratton said "certain elements of the crowd" started the disturbance, but the "vast, vast majority of the people who were here were behaving appropriately."

He promised an investigation to determine what happened and whether police used excessive force.

"If officers behaved inappropriately, we will deal with that," he said at a late news conference.

A staff member from Spanish-language TV station Telemundo confirmed to the Los Angeles Times late Tuesday that one reporter and three camera operators from the station had been injured and taken to the hospital by police.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who was traveling in El Salvador at the start of a nine-day trade mission, said the incident was "a most unfortunate end to a peaceful day."

Villaraigosa said he asked Bratton, who was scheduled to join the mayor in El Salvador and Mexico, to remain in Los Angeles to oversee a review of the incident.

Maria Elena Durazo, the executive secretary-treasurer at the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, said the incident marred an otherwise peaceful protest, and urged changes to police practices. She said the group was "outraged and saddened" by reports of excessive force by law enforcement.

"While we understand that a group of anarchists, not associated with the rally, instigated an altercation with police, we are disappointed that authorities would respond to their actions by herding them into a peaceful crowd and by shooting rubber bullets with little warning," Durazo said in a statement.

North Korea targets Hawaii and PM Harper

Unnamed Japanese and U.S. officials have reported that one of the missiles North Korea launched this week was aimed at a small island one mile off the coast of Hawaii. The missile launched on the 4th of July was much stronger and more sophisticated then previous missile launched by North Korea in the past. If it had not malfunctioned, it apparently would have landed on the designated target.

The missile, called the Taepodong-2, has a range of more than nine thousand miles and is capable of reaching parts of the United States, Alaska, Hawaii, and Canada.

The United States is not the only target the North Korean dictator has. He has also made repeated threats of missile strikes against Canadian interests. Kim Jong IL as gone as far as stating he has spies in Canada updating him on Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s every move.

Denigration of personal responsibility

Currently in the United States we are seeing a trend of personal responsibility being passed from an individual to society as a whole. Victims are never at fault, and money can always be gain. One example is the lawsuit filed against MySpace.com for $30 million dollars for an alleged sexual assault in Travis County, Texas. For some reason beyond my comprehension MySpace is totally at fault because a 14-year-old girl was contacted by a 19-year-old man, she gave him her cell phone number, and of her own free will and accord she went on a date with him. After dinner and a movie in the back seat of his car he allegedly raped her. And because of that, MySpace owes her money. Where were her parents in all of this, were they monitoring her internet usage? Obviously not. And why did she give him her cellphone number? It sounds like she knew her parents would not approve, and she felt like she needed to hide it.
This is almost as injudicious as a fat person suing McDonalds because their double cheeseburgers made them fat. What did they think it was made of, fruits and vegetables?
I think America needs to wakeup to common sense and have parents monitor internet usage and properly educate children to the dangers of the world, instead of having them walk around hood-wicked to society.

Chemical weapons in Iraq

Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) and Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.) announced Wednesday the finding of over 500 munitions or weapons of mass destruction, specifically “sarin- and mustard-filled projectiles,” in Iraq.

Reading from unclassified portions of a document developed by the U.S. intelligence community, Santorum said, “Since 2003, coalition forces have recovered approximately 500 weapons munitions which contain degraded mustard or sarin nerve agent. Despite many efforts to locate and destroy Iraq’s pre-Gulf War chemical munitions, filled and unfilled pre-Gulf War chemical munitions are assessed to still exist.”

According to Santorum, “That means in addition to the 500, there are filled and unfilled munitions still believed to exist within the country.”

Reading from the document, Santorum added, “Pre-Gulf War Iraqi chemical weapons could be sold on the Black Market. Use of these weapons by terrorist or insurgent groups would have implications for coalition forces in Iraq. The possibility of use outside of Iraq cannot be ruled out. The most likely munitions remaining are sarin- and mustard-filled projectiles. And I underscore filled.”

Santorum said the “purity of the agents inside the munitions depends on many factors, including the manufacturing process, potential additives and environmental storage conditions.”
While acknowledging that the agents “degrade over time,” the document said that the chemicals “remain hazardous and lethal.”

The media has reported that “insurgents and Iraqi groups” want to “acquire and use chemical weapons,” Santorum noted.

The idea that, as my colleagues have repeatedly said in this debate on the other side of the aisle, that there are no weapons of mass destruction is in fact false,” Santorum said. “We have found over 500 weapons of mass destruction and in fact have found that there are additional chemical weapons still in the country. Hopefully a few of these munitions will find its into the front yard of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Maybe then Canada will get off it's ass and help.

US taxpayer money helping Mexican army smuggle drugs and humans

The U.S. government has sent more than $376 million to Mexico in the past decade for the Mexican military and police to help stop illegal alien and drug smugglers, guard against terrorists, and protect America's southern border, including $50 million due this year. The money that was quietly and unknowingly to the American public authorized through State and Defense departments to train and equip the Mexican military and police who has been repeatedly caught crossing into American territory to unsuccessfully help drug smugglers go undetected. The US taxpayer money helps funds helicopters, four-wheel-drive vehicles, trucks, all-terrain cycles, communications and detection equipment, binoculars, training Mexican in intelligence gathering and counterterrorism, computers and other equipment for the Mexican military and police.

This funding program should cease immediately, and the Mexican government needs to be placed on notice that any further incursions by its military or police will not be tolerated after reoccurring incidents on the border in which the Mexican military confronted and fired upon U.S. law-enforcement officers. If they have this kind of money to give away, there are better ways to spend it like school and more detention space. Mexico cannot control its own military, and it makes no sense to give them better weapons and equipment they can use to attack and threaten our own law-enforcement officers.

The 2006 budget request calls for the delivery of a telephone intercept system, which would give Mexico the ability to eavesdrop on suspected narcoterrorists, smugglers, both American and Mexican citizens, as well as high ranking officials of the American government all over the country. According to the State Department, the funds help the Mexican government respond to domestic Mexican threats, and equipping Mexican first-responders. Most of the 2006 funding request for about $28.1 million, comes from the State Department's Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs for technical assistance, equipment and arms transfers, as well as programs to encourage the cultivation of legal crops and assistance for drug demand-reduction programs.

An additional $18.4 million is from the Defense Department's International Military Education and Training program, which provides counternarcotics assistance and training to foreign military personnel and police. The budget also includes $2.5 million for grants and loans to help Mexico purchase U.S.-produced weapons, defense equipment and military training; $1.1 million is for additional training for the Mexican secret police and an unknown number of civilians; and $450,000 to train military officers as part of the Regional Defense Counterterrorism Fellowship Program.

Cheney hunting story over reported?

Since Sunday (2-12-06) when the hunting accident involving Vice President Dick Cheney shooting lawyer Harry Whittington was reported, it seems that is the only big news happening in the United States for the past three days. Every show from cable news to late night talk shows are constantly making jokes, and endlessly talking about it. And why? On average about 80 fatalities are caused each year by hunting accidents, and never go reported, especially for three days straight.

But on a whole the over reporting of the Dick Cheney story is not that big of a thing. So many other stories in the United States that are not favorable to the current administration are going under reported. Like the story of British abuse, two soldiers were arrested today in Britain, but that doesn’t seem to be important at all. For months the public has known from Iranian governmental statements that they have been working towards nuclear weapons, and what has the UN done? Nothing. And the media prosecution of Neil Entwistle has also has been dropped by the media. Unfortunately on of the downsides is the under reporting of the CIA and NSA leaks and prosecutions. I bet numerous people would feel those are more interesting and important stories then a hunting accident in Corpus Christi Texas on private property. So if the media wants to constantly bloviate about a story that will go nowhere, I say let them, then we can watch as their ratings plummet, as people realize there is better things to do with their time.

Master Mason Spc. Wilder found dead after ritual

Spc. Donald Anthony Wilder, radio communication security controller repairman with the 512th Maintenance Company, become active with the Prince Hall Masons in the fall of 2005 and was found dead in a barracks shower. His plan was to get so drunk for the Jan. 7 2006 ceremony that he wouldn't feel the pain of the paddling he expected, according to a friend, Spc. Tony de'Ercole. His mother Diane Wilder, said her son told her that if he got so drunk that he passed out, his fellow Masons would take his blows for the fallen Brother.

The Prince Hall Masons are a predominantly black secretive brotherhood. Similar to other branches of Masons, the group offers a system of morality and performs community service. Several U.S. troops in Europe and around the world belong to the Prince Hall Masons. On Jan. 8, just hours after the evening ceremony that took place inside Mannheim American High School at Benjamin Franklin Village, Wilder was found dead in a friend's shower in the barracks at Spinelli Barracks in Mannheim, medical professionals, military police and the German police were called to the scene. Shortly after noon, Spc. Donald Anthony Wilder, a 21-year-old veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, was pronounced dead.

An autopsy performed last month at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center was inconclusive, pending further studies, which are due back next week (2/14/06 - 2/18/06). Marie Shaw a hospital spokeswoman, said preliminary findings show Wilder experienced a sudden, unexpected death. Soldiers are not prohibited from joining such groups as the Masons.

The Prince Hall Grand Lodge that has jurisdiction of the lodge with which Wilder was active issued an edict against hazing just 10 days after Wilder died. The lodge's Grand Master said his group is investigating what happened at the initiation ceremony, stated paddling is forbidden, a that what happened on Jan. 7 2006 was an isolated incident that should not reflective the Prince Hall Masons as a whole.

"Be it hereby known and acknowledged that there will be no hazing or un-Masonic conduct of any sort tolerated during degree work within the Jurisdiction of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Washington and Jurisdiction, the Jan. 18 2006 letter stated. Any such behavior that is determined to be inappropriate will be dealt with swiftly and unequivocally per our code on un-Masonic conduct."

The letter was signed by Wendell O. Hutchings, the lodge's grand master.

Freemasonry under attack in Scottland

The Scottish Parliament Wednesday rejected a petition calling for an inquiry into how many Freemasons there are in the police and the judiciary. Sidney Gallagher brought forward the petition to the Public Petitions Committee was reported to have been thrown out of the Edinburgh-based parliament after shouting at its MPs.

Convener Michael McMahon said there had been a number of petitions on the topic in the past and had referred them on to the Justice Committee, which then carried out a full inquiry. "I don't think this petition adds anything to that inquiry. I don't think there's any value in taking it forward," McMahon was quoted waying by PA News. The committee simply agreed to note the latest petition, Gallagher, described as a 66-year old joiner from Glasgow, shouted that he wanted justice before being led out by security staff.

Police were said to have later questioned the petitioner, who later revealed he had been sentenced to six years in prison for attempted murder, claiming that two officers, who gave evidence against him, were Freemasons. An inquiry by the Home Affairs Committee of the British Parliament in 1998 concluded that there were a "large number of freemasons within the criminal Justice system," but said that the numbers in themselves give "no general cause for concern." It reported that it is "not possible on the evidence we received to say that there has never been any abuse of masonic contacts" despite the many allegations.

"There is a widespread public perception that freemasonry can have an unhealthy influence on the criminal justice system," the committee said. It said that it "certainly believe that one of the main reasons for freemasonry's poor public image is a perception that it is a secret society" while recommending that members themselves of the secret brotherhood address such a perception. A government survey at the time found that there were at least at least 247 judges in the UK who admitted they were masons and over 1,000 magistrates.

Iranian contradiction concerning the Holocaust

Today I was very surprised to hear that Iran's best-selling daily paper Hamshahri has launched a competition to find the best cartoon about the Holocaust. The reason for my surprise was not because the Holocaust is a forbidden taboo that can never be talked or joked about, it is because the newly elected President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad recently called the Holocaust a "myth." "Iran's Foreign Ministry has decided to hold a conference on the Holocaust to assess its scale by scientific means and discuss its consequences," a ministry spokesman, Hamid Reza Asefi, told a news conference on Sunday.

It seems to me that Iran is facing a dilemma right now because they want to attack Israel and Jews in retribution for cartoons depicting Muhammad, but the cartoon contest should not be very offensive since according to their President the Holocaust is a "myth" that was created by Western powers to justify the creation of Israel in the heart of the Islamic world. Just as with their nuclear program, I think Iran needs to get their story straight before making statements.

Cartoon Contest Source
Holocaust myth source
Why protests where delayed

What would Muhammad do? WMD

Last year the Danish writer Kaare Bluitgen was putting the last touches on a book about the prophet Muhammad aimed at children. In spite of the prohibition on portraying the prophet in Islam, Bluitgen decided that he would like his book to be illustrated. In the wake of the murder on Theo van Gogh, and an attack on a professor in history at the University of Copenhagen, Bluitgen felt that it was wisest to keep the illustrators anonymous because of fear of reprisals from crazy fundamentalists.

The Danish newspaper "Jyllandsposten" picked up the story about Bluitgens choice to keep the names of the illustrators secret, and to demonstrate that Denmark has freedom of speech, the newspaper commissions cartoonists to make a series of satirical drawings of the prophet Muhammad. 12 of the numerous cartoons appeared in print September 30 2005. They were not immediately met with outrage from Muslims in Denmark, the outrage by the muslim population only started after several radical clerics from Europe traveled around the Middle East distributing the cartoons, and giving fiery speeches.

This is crazy how muslims are protesting these cartoons when Jews are shown in islamic newspaper cartoons over and over with hook noses, jew gold around their necks with the star of David, and greedily stashing money. And what about all the caricatures depicting Christ and god, you do not see Christians taking to the streets and shooting rifles into the air like they have smoked to much dope in thier parlors. I think muslims need to take a serious look at themselves, and realize what they are turning into.

Rude Letter from Rep. Tom Prezelski

(Direct Quote) Forwarded from Immigration fighter

"Proposition 200 failed in the district I represent. Given that you don't live here, I find it rather presumptuous that you think you can speak for my constituents. Your comments indicate that you have absolutely no knowledge of the ELL problem in Arizona (the issue goes back for decades) or anything about the people who I am trying to represent. This issue has little or nothing to do with illegal immigration and the elected officials who say so generally know better and are posturing. The opinion of NumbersUSA, whoever they are, is irrelevant to me, since I am here to speak for the best interests of the people of Tucson.

Your use of the term "anchor baby" shows a rather unfortunate contempt for your fellow human beings. I find it equally unfortunate that someone with a vaguely Spanish sounding name like yourself would throw in with a bunch of bigots who would like to deport most of my friends, family, and neighbors. Sorry, fella, but neither one of us fits into their vision of America and don't think that you aren't next. You should be glad that someone is speaking out against this movement."

Thomas Edward Prezelski, JR. - Date of Birth: 01/12/1970
State Representative, District 29
1700 W. WashingtonRoom 330
Phoenix, AZ 85007
Office Phone : (602) 926-3424
Office Fax : (602) 417-3129
tprezelski@azleg.gov


----------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a very rude guy, but what do you expect from a felon and bad driver who was only able to be elected by running unopposed.

Rep. Tom Prezelski under investigation media story

*** Detailed Case Infomation ***

**** Case infomation source ****

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Fighting Immigration

To J.D. Hayworth, conservative Republican congressman from Scottsdale, Americans are acting like "a bunch of defeatist wimps," unwilling to stand up for the country's culture, its borders, its security and its own laws.

But in Whatever It Takes: Illegal Immigration, Border Security, and the War on Terror, a new book authored by Hayworth and his chief of staff, Joe Eule, the 47-year-old lawmaker declares that he won't be among those "cowed into inaction" by "namby-pamby" editorial writers or even presidential adviser Karl Rove.

In fewer than 200 pages, Hayworth levels a full-scale attack on illegal immigration that he seems confident will draw wide attention.

Predicting that he will be pilloried by "the media elite" for what he has written, Hayworth takes on President Bush's plan to establish a limited guest-worker program, as well as the left, the right, the country of Mexico and political correctness.

Hayworth's own prescription for a more-secure United States calls for such things as putting active-duty troops on the border to help stop illegal crossings and, "as a last resort," building a border security fence from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico.

"Sympathizers of illegal immigration," Hayworth says, may argue that it is unfeasible to seal the border. But the $4 billion to $8 billion cost of such a security fence would be "a bargain when considering what illegal immigration is costing the country" in health care and education, higher crime, and perhaps even the eventual balkanization of parts of the country, he writes.

Hayworth challenges Bush

The underlying message in the book from conservative publisher Regnery ($27.95; publication date Jan. 16) is that Americans have at least one brave, bold voice from what he calls the gateway of an illegal invasion that is not afraid to tell it like it is.

"I consider this book a wake-up call," Hayworth said in an interview Wednesday.

Hayworth writes that Bush has been giving the United States the verbal equivalent of a sedative whenever he talks about illegal immigration.

"President George Bush's leadership in the War on Terror has been bold and inspiring. But when it comes to illegal immigration, he has been uncharacteristically and disturbingly vague and indecisive," Hayworth writes.

"Instead of the moral clarity we've come to expect, we get such politically correct buzz phrases as, 'If an American employer is offering a job that American citizens are not willing to take, we ought to welcome into our country a person who will fill that job.' That's not policy - it's a verbal tranquilizer meant to soothe the nerves of Americans who have had it with rampant lawbreaking on our border."

Hayworth also recalls a remark from Rove after the congressman suggested to Bush about a year ago during a GOP retreat in West Virginia that it would be a mistake to hand Congress an agreement with Mexico coordinating the two countries' Social Security systems.

"The president thanked me for being candid and said he would consider my views. But Rove became somewhat exasperated and spluttered, 'You just don't want to help Brown people, do you?' "

"Was this the president's right-hand man, or had I stumbled into the Twilight Zone?" Hayworth writes. "One thing is certain: we don't need Republicans playing the race card when there are so many liberals who are so good at it."

And therein lies a main theme of Hayworth's book: He says that much of what this nation has done with regard to border security and illegal immigration, or has failed to do, is driven by "rampant political correctness and multicultural sensibilities."

And although Sen. John McCain, a fellow Arizona Republican, and Arizona GOP Reps. Jim Kolbe and Jeff Flake are expected to be among those pushing hard for an expanded guest-worker plan for foreign workers when Congress reconvenes, Hayworth will be among those opposed to it, Hayworth writes.

Such a program, among other things, would give millions of undocumented workers already in the country the ability to apply for temporary guest-worker status and eventually citizenship after paying fines.

Rewarding illegal behavior

Hayworth acknowledges that he once did support the idea of a temporary-worker program. But he says he has since determined it would do nothing but reward illegal behavior and encourage more illegal immigration.

The former sportscaster likens such a program to someone getting caught sneaking into the Super Bowl, only to be allowed to stay and watch the game if he pays a small fine.

He also scoffs at those who warn of the economic repercussions of plugging this source of willing, low-wage labor, and includes some of his fellow Arizona Republicans in Congress as among what he calls these "lettuce liberals."

"At a meeting in the Capitol with several members of the Arizona congressional delegation and Arizona governor Janet Napolitano, one of my guts-up conservative colleagues made the case for a guest-worker program. Without it, he asked, 'What's going to happen to the price of lettuce?' " Hayworth writes.

But Hayworth says national security should not be lost at a cost of appeasing businesses that want cheap labor.

"Al Qaeda is looking to ship a nuke across our southern border and we're supposed to wring our hands over the price of lettuce? Not this congressman," he writes.

A White House official said Wednesday that Rove recalls the conversation recounted by Hayworth but that the quote as published is inaccurate. Rove was simply trying to encourage Hayworth to be sensitive to all citizens, the official said.

On Wednesday, Hayworth stood by the quote. He also said that he does not know if book sales ultimately will turn a profit but said he hopes so. He said that he already has received word that House ethics rules permit him to keep the money.

Border Security

Finally the governor the Arizona has sent National Guard troops to secure the southern border. I think this action will help decrease the amount of illegal immigrants crossing the border. Some “open-border� supports are going to claim that more troops on the border will increase the amount of death. But that is entirely wrong. With more troops on the border, illegal immigrants will be less likely to cross in the first place out of fear of being detained and returned. So the only people who have to be worried are drug and human smugglers, honest people do not depend on illegal activity.

This should have started decades ago, and if it was, more infrastructures would be available. I think every recruit in every branch of service should be sent to the southern border for basic training. The presence of troops on the border will be a big deterrence. Every skill from tracking, moving, and surveillance, which is a vital skill for survival on a battlefield, can be tested and honed before a single life is at peril.

Saddam's Terror Training Camps

In the latest issue of The Weekly Standard there is an interesting article by Stephen F. Hayes titled "Saddam's Terror Training Camps". In it the author reports the former Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein... "Trained thousands of radical Islamic terrorists from the region at camps in Iraq over four years immediately preceding the U.S. invasion, according to documents and photographs recovered by the U.S. military in postwar Iraq."

Many of the terrorists training in Iraqi camps were drawn and supported by groups in northern Africa with very close links to al Qaeda. Thousands were trained in Iraq and have returned and are responsible for the attacks, which have taken place since the invasion.

How does Hayes the author justify these statements? He says, "The photographs and documents on Iraqi training camps come from a collection of some 2 million exploitable items captured in postwar Iraq and Afghanistan. They include handwritten notes, typed documents, audiotapes, videotapes, compact discs, floppy discs and computer hard drives." The documentation is there for any other legitimate source to examine.

There are other reports too, which should have waved flags at traditional publications and launched them on an extensive investigation to disprove the facts being presented.

1. For example, those documents show that Abdul Rahman Yasin, the only member of the al Qaeda cell that detonated the bomb in the 1993 World Trade Center attack to remain at large, fled to Iraq, where he was given a house and a monthly salary.

2. An al Qaeda member now in United States custody has confessed that in the 1990s bin Laden made an agreement with Saddam Hussein to cease all terrorist attacks inside Iraq.

3. Another report has a former colonel in Saddam's Fedayeen saying bin Laden's fighters were in Iraq in 1997 and that he observed them in a training camp in Salman Pak, southeast of Baghdad.

Reports upon reports are available and could be reviewed by legitimate press services. Little effort has been made by these media sources to make that information a central factor of the debate on why the war is being fought in Iraq. Instead, from CNN News to the Democrat Bloggers and from party line newspapers to the New York Times, all the public hears are chants that "Bush Lied!"

Many of the facts mentioned in this article and in the Weekly Standard are contained in a book by Richard Minter titled "Losing bin Laden: How Bill Clinton's Failures Unleashed Global Terror", which was on the bestseller lists in 2003. Mr. Minter is a senior fellow at the Center for the New Europe and his writings can also be found online at Tech Central Station.com.

These facts, according to the Weekly Standard article have come to light after translation of only 50,000 documents. There has been so much intelligence uncovered that at the current rate of translation two more generations of language experts will be required to bring all the details to light. But, even if that happens there will be those unpatriotic scum in the government and the media who claim there was no involvement with al Qaeda and there was no terrorist activity in Iraq before the Americans launched their attack.

Attention NumbersUSA.COM activists

NumbersUSA : January 4 , 2006 -- by Roy Beck, President (unedited)


THE BATTLE IN THE SENATE BEGINS NOW

Some of you started sending us emails on Christmas Day wanting to know why -- after our big victories in the U.S. House -- we weren't already working on the next step of the battle. And why we weren't giving you your next set of marching orders. (We honor your enthusiasm but took some vacation time anyway ... along with most congressional staffers!)

Now, Hill staffers are back. And so are we.

NumbersUSA Comment:This report is for NumbersUSA members only. Please do not pass this email on to other people or post it on a website.

The action moved today to a hostile, foreign country -- the U.S. Senate, where the majority works harder for corporations and foreign workers than for American workers and their families.

This email contains a number of things that we need you to do. Please read carefully and take action now.

To skip all my verbiage and cut to the chase, just go to the ACTIONS IN BRIEF section in the right column and click the links for action.

1. BACKGROUND

Our battle began in the U.S. House last month. Just before Christmas, an overwhelming bi-partisan majority attached strong amendment after strong amendment to H.R. 4437 before passing this tough immigration enforcement bill AND legal immigration reduction bill.

Click here to read all about what the bill does and how it was passed.

Now, we move from our home base over to the Senate.

Senate leaders hope to pass their own immigration bill before March.

The two bills will then go into a joint Conference Committee of negotiators who will create a compromise bill that goes back to both chambers of Congress for a final vote.

We expect a poor to terrible bill to come out of the Senate. But we will be fighting to get as good of a bill as possible to improve chances of creating a compromise bill close to what the House passed.

2. SEN. SPECTER'S PLAN ... Amnesty and Guestworkers

Our Senate sources told us today that Senate Judiciary Chairman Specter (R-PA) has a plan to force backers of tough immigration enforcement to accept amnesty and guestworker programs as the only way that Specter will allow a crackdown on illegal immigration.

Sen. Specter is expected to begin executing his plan next week with the hope of having it all in place when he hopes his committee will pass the amnesty/guestworker bill in early February.

Based on his sneak efforts in November, also anticipate that Sen. Specter will slip into the bill major increases in permanent green cards. (In November, he added 350,000 permanent worker slots EACH YEAR to the Budget Reconciliation bill. Fortunately, your activism and House leaders forced every single one of those slots out of the bill before final passage.)

3. PHONE SEN. SPECTER ... Tell him and his staff that they are out of step with the American people

Call any or all of these offices:

202-224-4254 Washington, DC

610-434-1444 Allentown, PA

215-597-7200 Philadelphia, PA

NumbersUSA Comment:Here are important phone numbers for you to copy down!

412-644-3400 Pittsburgh, PA

717-782-3951 Harrisburg, PA

570-346-2006 Scranton, PA

570-826-6265 Wilkes-Barre, PA

814-453-3010 Erie, PA 16501

For some reason, Sen. Specter and his staff have come to believe that no matter how outrageous their efforts for creating open borders and flooding American communities with foreign workers that the public won't really pay that much attention to them.

Your task this week -- all week -- is to let all of Sen. Specter's staffs know that you know what he is up to -- and that he has become the most powerful force for open borders in the country.

Although Sen. Specter has never been helpful to us on immigration issues, his decision to become the chief proponent for the most radical immigration measures in American history is puzzling to many.

A number of our sources in the Senate tell us that they don't think Sen. Specter is even paying that much attention to the immigration issues and is primarily letting one of his staffers lead the way.

That staffer is Joe Jacquot (pronounced JAY-ko).

Mr. Jacquot is widely known on the Hill for his close relationship with the Microsoft lobbying operation.

You may want to mention Mr. Jacquot and question Microsoft's role when you make your phone calls.

I would hope that your primary message on your calls would be something like: Stop all efforts to include legalization or mass guestworker programs in your immigration bill. Model yourself after the House and create an ENFORCEMENT-ONLY bill. Don't consider any other aspects until you have proven that the federal government can actually enforce the law. WE DON'T NEED MORE FOREIGN WORKERS.

4. TAKE OUR POLITICAL SURVEY ... so you can see more specialized faxes

Many of our fax opportunities are seen only by people who have identified themselves as (a) Democrats or (b) Republicans or (c) Swing Voters.

If you have not taken our political survey, you won't see any of these faxes on your Action Buffet corkboard.

Please take this completely private survey at:

www.numbersusa.com/survey?action=shortlist&cat=political

If you already have taken the survey, open it up again to make sure it properly reflects your affiliations.

5. HAMMER YOUR SENATORS WITH FAXES ... press them to support Enforcement-Only bill

After you have taken the political survey, you should see Action Notes on your corkboard for you to send customized faxes to your two Senators.

Start preparing their staffs to understand that the Senators' votes on this immigration bill will be widely followed and scrutinized -- especially votes by Senators who are running for re-election later this year.

Please modify and send all faxes that are listed on your Action Buffet at:

www.numbersusa.com/actionbuffet

We will have many more messages for you to send during this battle. But these are important opening faxes to gain the attention of staff.

6. THANKS & NO THANKS ... Send fax to your own Representative based on his/her immigration votes in House last month

Many of you have been clamoring for three weeks for these faxes.

Well, here they are.

On your Action Buffet is a fax tailored to your Representative based on his/her votes on the key amendments and H.R. 4437.

Don't miss giving House Members quick feedback on their behavior.

Please modify and send the fax from:

www.numbersusa.com/actionbuffet

7. HEAR ME ON RADIO SUNDAY NIGHT ... the Terry Anderson show at midnight EST

NumbersUSA Comment:Listen to Roy on the Terry Anderson radio show via the web Sunday night.

Terry is the incredibly motivating mechanic of South Central Los Angeles who burns up the airwaves every Sunday night.

You can listen on the internet at:

www.theterryandersonshow.com

Terry's producer says people are bombarding the show after the House victories wanting to know what they should do next. We'll talk about that at midnight Eastern time.

THANKS FOR STARTING THIS BATTLE IN THE SENATE; THERE'LL BE MANY MORE OPPORTUNITIES IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS,

-- ROY