Liberty
Freedom of the Press is an expensive asset
Sometimes an asset can be a very expensive. But the Danes should be proud of the comments by their Prime Minister here Danes face growing Muslim storm
“The Danish government cannot apologise on behalf of a Danish newspaper. It does not work like that… and we have explained that to the Arab countries. Independent media are not edited by the government,”
Defending the freedom of the press can be a hard thing to do, but a correct one. All things in context, the Danes are free to do what they have elected by their own laws to allow. And extreme reactions to the sovereignty of a nation should not be violated by any nation, or religion.
President Jonah
What can I say here, on my blog, that hasn’t been bested here:
Though I don’t agree with everything, it does reflect an attitude I agree with.
Another good read.
Torture and domestic Spying, the really big picture.
I have been reading some of the Right-Wing Blogs, and they either don’t get it, or they do and believe that anything that will protect them from the great terrorist boggy man is Ok by them.
Don’t they ever get the point, Domestic spying is illegal. The Bush Administration know this. They also know that any evidence acquired in this method can never be used in an American Court of Law. It would be thrown out for being illegally obtained, this is why the FISA courts began denying so many of the taps requested by this Administration.
If they can not use this information to bring criminals and terrorist to trial, what good is it?
It’s being used to snatch people in the U.S., and other countries, for the other illegal act they are promoting, Rendition, a pretty word for Kidnapping and Torture.
Hasn’t anyone else figured this out yet?
Bush and Chaney had no intention of ‘bringing terrorist to justice’ they are too busy establishing a Rein of Terror of their own.
Impeach Bush, Chaney and the rest of this corrupt and Illegal government.
Update: FBI Sought Data on Thousands in ’05
Updated again: The National Security Agency has been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans
Any more arguments?
FoI in Ireland
This article on Irish corruption is scary Attack on Freedom of Information – Reaction
But what really should scare everyone is what they are going to great lengths to cover up with this change to the Freedom of Information Act.
What are they, the government, so afraid of, that they would go to this effort to hide it.
Al Gore and Wingnut Bloggers
I didn’t even have to know that Al Gore had made a great speech, or to know what he said. All I had to do was look at all the Flak that the Right Wing (GOP supported) Blogsphere was putting into the internet about it.
I could only find one link Al Gore: Bush must be probed
And wouldn’t you know, none of the Mass Media seem to have taken any notice that he even gave a speech.
So much for “Fair and Balanced” coverage of the news.
Conservative’s and The Fear of Change
I have been in some ‘discussions’ with the other side of the political fence. And the first impressions I have received in many of these cases is, one of fear. Having read Why I Am Not a Conservative I quote:
Conservatism proper is a legitimate, probably necessary, and certainly widespread attitude of opposition to drastic change…
…It is that by its very nature it cannot offer an alternative to the direction in which we are moving. It may succeed by its resistance to current tendencies in slowing down undesirable developments, but, since it does not indicate another direction, it cannot prevent their continuance. It has, for this reason, invariably been the fate of conservatism to be dragged along a path not of its own choosing.
It’s no wonder that often the ‘banter’ from the Right so often results in name calling. Much like a child who either does not get his way, or the way is not of his choosing, and is then resisting without being able to give an alternative.
The child in the conservative is unable to cope with change. And the faster the change the more the resistance to change.
We live at Internet speeds, information on so many subjects smacking us in the face all the time. Things like religion being confronted by Science, Politics and truth. Mass Media, and Blogs. All constitute changes that draw fire from the conservatives.
There was a great program on RTE about Petrol Dollars and Petrol Euros and the real reason for the invasion of Iraq. ‘The continuation of American Dominance through the perpetuation of the Petrol Dollar as the foundation of the American Economy.’ Change, creates Fear, fear of what might happen to the U.S. economy which is founded almost entirely on the non renewable resource of oil.
And just like the child, the conservative, who can not offer up an alternative (like alternative energy) the conservatives resist, like a child, clutching onto the bitter end of a dropped stick of candy. Unable to see another new piece to suck on. The conservatives will never see another source of economic stability other than Oil.
So rather than accept change, a change that will come anyway, they would rather kill thousands, rob and pillage billions from others to hold on to their savior, God of Oil.
There will be Petrol Euros, and Evolution is a fact. If we could put all the conservatives into a padded cell until the changes that will happen, do. We are stuck educating the conservatives with the truth. Baby spoons anyone?
Whither we like them or not, such changes are going to happen. Unless we are open-minded enough, meaning liberal enough, to discover alternatives to these changes. we will cease to continue on this planet.
The future will happen without us, if it has to.
This should scare everyone.
There is nothing in the world that won’t be used to increase taxes. Navigating future for road charges. GPS was invented to help navigate, defend and attack. Not as a means to spy on and make money from new taxes.
Powerful applications are expected on the roads; the Galileo network would allow a vehicle’s exact movements to be tracked, presenting new possibilities for road-user charging and tolling.
And it’s not like the government will stop road tax and petrol dutys. After all, they will claim that they must continue, “because not all vehicle’s are currently equipped with the GPS” nanny monitors.
But beyond this as a money making tool, what about the privacy issues.
Can you imagine.
Maybe you should.