Wednesday, August 21, 2002

Gadaffi To Head Human Rights Body. Libya is to be elected chair of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights - despite its links with terrorism and torture. [Sky News] This is an unusually open admission by the UN of what they really think about human rights. Gadaffi's only qualification for the post seems to be his hatred of America, which no doubt endears him to the sort of people involved in the UN and international "human rights" groups. This story comes from a news site in the UK. I haven't seen anything about it in the US news yet. comment () trackback ()  9:32:19 PM     Musharraf Grants Self Broad Powers [AP World News] A careful reading of this article certainly leads me to believe that Musharraf is just another dictator who likes to make noise about democracy as window-dressing for his behavior. Consider these key lines from the story: ...President Gen. Pervez Musharraf unilaterally amended the Pakistani constitution Wednesday, granting himself sweeping powers ÷ including the right to dissolve parliament ÷ and extending his term in office. Or in other words, he gave himself the power to remove things that limit his power. "We don't believe that an individual or group has the right to amend the constitution," said Raza Rabbai of the opposition Pakistan People's Party... They don't believe? This wording is suspicious--doesn't the Pakistani constitution specify a procedure for amendment? Musharraf seized power on Oct. 12, 1999 in a bloodless coup that toppled Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The Supreme Court ruled that the coup was legal... Again, this is rather suspicious. How does a coup get ruled legal? Are we to believe that Pakistan has laws governing coups? Musharraf also made clear that his two potential rivals ÷ Bhutto and Sharif ÷ will not be allowed to run in the elections. Winning the upcoming election (if he bothers to hold it) will naturally be rather more likely if the opposing candidates aren't allowed to run. comment () trackback ()  3:52:45 PM     I think I’ve seen the future. I think I’ve seen the future, or a small part of it, regarding weblogs. Two things: 1. If you’re not syndicating your site as RSS it might as well not exist. 2. If you don’t include a tag in your home page that points to your RSS feed, then you might as well not be syndicating your site, and therefore it might as well not exist. [inessential.com] I don't think this is true. This weblog has both an RSS feed and a tag pointing to it, but it has many fewer readers than weblogs which have neither--for example, InstaPundit.com. comment () trackback ()  12:10:44 PM     LP's medical marijuana ads play role in defeat of U.S. Rep. Bob Barr: The "worst drug warrior in Congress" has lost his seat, and the Libertarian Party appears to have played a small role in making it happen. U.S. Rep. Bob Barr, a four-term incumbent, lost the Republican primary in Georgia's 7th District on Tuesday night to fellow Republican John Linder, 67 percent to 33 percent. comment () trackback ()  10:47:32 AM     Queers settle Berkeley - 'God gave us this land'. Resistance comes on many fronts. A group of queer -- and that's on all levels -- activists have "settled" a Starbucks coffee shop in Berkeley in the style of the Israeli colonists. (Starbucks is owned by a right-wing, rabidly pro-Israel jewish American.) The group erected palm trees to "make the concrete bloom" and enacted 24-hour curfews for straights -- enforced, thankfully, with Super Soakers rather than American assault rifles. [kuro5hin.org] This is mostly just another story illustrating why California is the "granola state" (because it's full of nuts and flakes). However, it also happens to contain one sentence answering a question I've been wondering about: what do liberals have against Starbucks? The answer is, "Starbucks is owned by a right-wing, rabidly pro-Israel jewish American." comment () trackback ()  9:53:03 AM     Will Nevada Take Lid Off Pot?. A measure to legalize marijuana in the Silver State is being closely watched -- and hotly debated on the Internet -- by friend and foe alike. By Eliot Borin. [Wired News] I don't think it matters if this passes or not. The Feds will just continue persecuting people regardless of the state law, just as they do already in places which have passed medical marijuana laws--including Nevada. comment () trackback ()  9:18:01 AM     my brother and the deputy. The Jackson's at Liberty Round Table - my brother and the deputy - a true story, sadly. [smith2004] Scott had parked the truck about a quarter mile from where he was working, and was up in a tree with a chain saw when he suddenly realized that a sheriff's deputy (hereafter known as Rocket Scientist #1) was standing under the tree pointing a gun at him. "Put your hands up!!" called the Rocket Scientist. Scott assessed the situation and replied, "I intend to cooperate, sir, but if I do that the chain saw will land on your head and I will fall out of the tree. What do you want me to do?" [End the War on Freedom] This story is pretty funny, in a disgusting sort of way. The deputy, who was trespassing on private property without a warrant, had decided that some random bush on the property was marijuana. comment () trackback ()  9:13:43 AM

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