The American Republic will endure until…
Sep 25 at 2:02pm by Jagwire X
Alexis de Tocqueville
“The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money.”
“The surface of American society is covered with a layer of democratic paint, but from time to time one can see the old aristocratic colours breaking through.”
– Alexis de Tocqueville
How appropriate in these financial times.
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Americans Have Become a Bunch of Lazy, Worthless Citizens
Jul 21 at 11:11pm by Jagwire X
Al Gore: Green Energy by 2018
On Thursday July 17th, 2008 Former U.S. presidential candidate Al Gore delivered a speech on America’s future energy needs in Washington, D.C. The gist of the speech is that promises of 40 years to make changes to how we power everything is meaningless and 10 years is something people can focus on.
“Our dangerous over-reliance on carbon-based fuels is at the core of all three of these challenges — the economic, environmental and national security crises,” the former Democratic vice president and presidential candidate in 2000 told a meeting in Washington.
“We’re borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to burn it in ways that destroy the planet,” Mr. Gore said. “Every bit of that’s got to change.”
“So today I challenge our nation to commit to producing 100 percent of our electricity from renewable energy and truly clean carbon-free sources within 10 years,”
“A political promise to do something 40 years from now is universally ignored because everyone knows it’s totally meaningless. Ten years is about the maximum time that we as a nation can hold a steady aim and hit our target.”
Needless to say Gore was immediately attacked by big oil and coal businesses. For example the ACCCE (American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity) issued a statement saying the following: “former Vice President Al Gore associated himself with the mainstream by claiming there is scientific certainty that climate change is an issue that must be addressed in a timely fashion.” There is scientific certainty that climate change is an issue the ACCCE is deliberately denying the fact. The ACCCE state also said “we seriously question the feasibility of such a proposal and shudder to consider its costs to the American people, world leaders and key policymakers here in the U.S. do not share Mr. Gore’s notion that such a goal is necessary or achievable.” Going on to say the coal is, of course the solution. Coal is not clean or renewable under any circumstance.
Politicians, never afraid to make asses of themselves made sure to criticize Gore as well. Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) had an initial one-word response — “ridiculous.” He went on to say “We could put windmills from the Atlantic to the Pacific and, yes, it will increase the amount of carbon-free energy production, but the fact of the matter is, it’s not going to get the job done. What we need to do is to look at all of the various sources of energy… We’d be much more realistic to realize that it’s going to take all of these things in order for us to meet our energy demands.” Meaning the oil and/or coal businesses that lobby me want you to buy their product and not get your power on the cheap.
So why do I say Americans are lazy, worthless citizens. It’s because we have become so. Can we convert all electricity production to cheap, clean and renewable sources in 10 years. We can if we want to, if we have the courage to do so. We put man on the moon in less than 10 years, we entered World War II and fighting on two fronts, along with out allies, won it in less than 5 years. The proliferation of the World Wide Web as a major form of communication took 10 years, mass adoption of the automobile took roughly ten years during the 1920’s and 1930’s. So don’t tell me we can’t do it. Big business doesn’t want us to do it, it would hurt their profits. Our lazy selves will just go along with whatever is marketed to us, and worthless as citizens because we won’t attend to our duty to make this country better.
What would the advantages of such a program be? For one thing, jobs, many jobs. It would fire up the economy in much the way it was fired up after World War II and during the space race and to a lesser extent the early days of the web. During those time periods the United States underwent a tremendous transformation in terms of individual prosperity as well as prosperity on a regional and national level. Another advantage that would result would be the creation of new technologies, again as with the previously mentioned periods much of the technology we have come to rely on today was developed especially in the areas of aerospace, electronic communications (i.e. computers, the internet, etc.), industrial applications and medicine. These efforts had far reaching implications both technologically and socially and helped define our present society. For the most part all of these advances have improved the standard of living in the United States.
What Gore proposes is ultimately going to have to happen at some point. Non-renewable sources of energy are, well, non-renewable. They are going to run out. But while we still have them we should use that advantage and build our foundation for the future, or if not out future, our children’s. It’s estimated that enough solar energy falls on the surface of the earth in 40 minutes to meet the world’s energy needs for a year, and that the winds that blow across the Midwest every day could meet the country’s daily electricity needs. Why wouldn’t we tap into that kind of energy resource? If we wait until the oil is running out and the coal is difficult to transport, we will suffer in ways that make the Great Depression seem trivial. We will be thrown back to the early 19th century in a very brutal manner.
Al Gore is not perfect but at least he’s willing to make a stand. What are you willing to do?
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Liberty and FISA Amendments Act of 2008
Jul 10 at 1:01pm by Jagwire X
Bill of Rights
The FISA Amendments Act of 2008 is a particularly pernicious piece of legislation. It denigrates our liberty and removes our guaranteed rights.
I’d like to share with a few pertinent quotes:
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.
—Benjamin Franklin
Suspicion is a virtue as long as its object is the public good, and as long as it stays within proper bounds. … Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect every one who approaches that precious jewel.
—Patrick Henry
I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty, than those attending too small a degree of it.
—Thomas Jefferson
Government is not reason, it is not eloquence — it is force! Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. Never for a moment should it be left to irresponsible action.
—George Washington
If God is truly just, I tremble for the fate of my country
—Gibson Haynes
Take a moment and contemplate those quotes.
Now consider this:
The FISA Amendments Act of 2008 has the following effects:
- The provisions of the bill granting immunity to the complicit telecoms create a roadblock for a number of lawsuits intended to expose and thwart the alleged abuses of power and illegal activities of the federal government since and before the September 11th attacks.
- The bill expands the power of the federal government in conducting warrantless surveillance and strips the requirements for judicial oversight, effectively enabling unlimited government surveillance of any citizen of the United States for any reason.
- Allows the government to conduct unapproved warrantless surveillance of any person for up to one week (168 hours) without any judicial oversight.
The Bill of Rights guarantees in the Fourth Amendment Protection from unreasonable search and seizure.
The FISA Amendments Act of 2008 effectively negates the Fourth Amendment. That being:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Our liberty is being taken away from us one amendment at a time. Why are you being so complacent? Why are you not up in arms over this? The founders of this great country would shake their heads in shame at our government’s behavior and ours.
Call your congressmen and senators and urge them to repeal the FISA Amendments Act of 2008. It’s unconstitutional and illegal. One more quote from one of the founding fathers, in case you still don’t get it.
The people cannot be all, and always, well informed. The part which is wrong will be discontented, in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. If they remain quiet under such misconceptions, it is lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty.
—Thomas Jefferson
Further reading:
- Senate Accepts Retroactive Immunity for Telecoms
- FISA Amendments Act of 2008 - WikiPedia Article
- H.R. 3773: FISA Amendments Act of 2008 - Full Text
- The new FISA compromise: it’s worse than you think - Ars Technica
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FISA Passes Senate
Jul 9 at 2:02pm by Jagwire X
Talking Points Memo
From Talking Points Memo - FISA Passes Senate
FISA Passes Senate
07.09.08 — 3:10PM
By David KurtzThe final vote was a rout: 69-28.
No surprises here. Just the weight of disappointment.
Late Update: Worth noting that Hillary voted against the bill, while Obama –as we’ve noted here before — changed positions on telecom immunity and voted for the bill.
To paraphrase Mark Twain:
Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of the Senate (Congress). But I repeat myself.
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Bandwidth Barons Want More Money for Fewer Bytes
Jul 9 at 11:11am by Jagwire X
Internet Map
One day soon, when you get your Internet connection bill and it is much larger than you expected, don’t blame Hulu or Microsoft for offering you funny videos or a new security patch, blame your service provider for not evolving with the Internet.
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Bill Joy - What if the Oil Runs Out?
Apr 16 at 3:03pm by Jagwire X
Bill Joy
Bill Joy is rightfully concerned about the impact of robotics, bioengineering and nanotechnology - but what if the oil runs out first?
Why the future doesn’t need us
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What you missed while watching the war
Apr 8 at 2:02pm by Jagwire X
New York Stock Exchange
The Supreme Court hands a big victory to corporations. They have limited the punitive damages awarded to victims of corporations. Since the only language corporations understand is profits and losses, the supreme court has effectively dismantled the right of a citizen to sue a corporation into compliance. Corporations will now have even less of a motive to follow the law knowing that the awards they pay out will never significantly impact their bottom line.
Did you see this in your local paper? No, it was all war talk. It’s one of the benefits of All War All the Time. It allows for a distracted public while the Radical Right Wing can further insure that the United States is a republic for business and not for its citizens.
Read all about it in The Financial Times.
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