News – Courts put Bush in his place

US

Two federal appeals courts have dealt serious blows to the Bush administration’s ability to arrest and hold people forever without representation. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City has said that an American arrested on American soil can’t be held as an Enemy Combatant. U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco has ruled that the US can’t detain ‘Enemy Combatants’ indefinitely in Guantanimo Bay. This means, as well, that the 600 imprisoned there now should have lawyers. This is a good day for liberty.

Lee Malvo has been found guilty of three weighty charges. All that is left for the jury to determine is if he will live or die.

It’s reported that Federal Prison officers in Brooklyn abused immigrants detained after 9/11 physically and verbally. Some of the things described annoy me to no end. If true, these people need to be losing their jobs, simply because they can’t seem to control themselves and act in a civilized manner.

John Kerry seems committed to his campaign. He’s taking out a loan and planning to sell his family home to finance it.

Howard Dean stands by his statement hat Saddam’s capture doesn’t make America safer. Personally, I agree with him. We’re no safer than the day before that.

The flu is widespread, in 36 states and found in all 50 now, but the CDC still hasn’t dubbed it an epidemic yet. It isn’t yet clear if this early start will lead to an early end or a worse than normal season before it all ends.

Musing Howard Dean’s seeming plagiarism of Clinton, while bashing Clinton a bit. Will his strategies work?

As Special Envoy, what is James Baker getting for his trip to Europe? Explainer has details for you.

Iraq

An explosion hits an office of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution. No details, though one is believed killed, seven injured.

Halliburton says it saved money. Read and decide if you believe them.

Why is David Kay likely to leave? Depends who you ask. Some say he’s got family obligations, such as a worried wife. A good enough reason. Another notes that the flow of personnel out of Kay’s group and into counter intelligence against the insurgents could be another cause. I’d wager it may well be an all of the above circumstance.

Paul Bremer has noted a previously unmentioned attack which he survived. A convoy he was in was hit by explosives and small arms fire before it sped away, with no one injured.

Some of the dead haven’t been honored. When will there be an official number for the death toll the war had on Iraqi civilians?

The mystery of the Oregon license plate found in Saddam’s garage continues. A collaborative effort draws froth the last owner’s identity, though he has not been contacted yet. I wager we will know soon if Chatterbox can dig up any more info.

Israel/Palestine

Sharon is getting lots of flack for his separation plan. He’s giving the Palestinian’s a deadline of months. And, by proxy, doing the same to the US. Of course, Bush should have seen this coming. Israel mimics many of our methods and we do the same. It was a matter of time before Sharon decided to go unilateral, regardless of the flack he gets.

Migron might be the first settlement to go.

Iran

Iran has signed the treaty that obligates them to accept snap inspections of their nuclear facilities. We can all hope that means Iran’s days of obfuscation on nuclear issues are over. On other issues, though..

General

New research suggests that silver colored cares are less likely to be involved in crashes resulting in serious injury. I kid you not. Brown, black and green cards had a higher rate of crashes with serious injury. Just why color has an effect has not yet been known. ‘d surmise it could have to do with anything form visibility to the general personality of people who buy certain color cars. The suggestion that increasing the volume of silver cars on the road might reduce crashes is a bit premature, though.

Another study shows that long haul fliers(those tested flew at least ten hours, with an average of 39) shows they’re more likely to blood clots. A concern for frequent, long term travelers.

A review for LotR: Return of the King that is nice and even handed.

Ahh, the trials of mixed emotions and when good news is bad news. I’m sure many of us have mused that.

Today’s Papers has the Washington Post digging up some interesting docs on Rummy’s 1984 trip to Iraq, the Pentagon assigning one medal to both Iraq and Afghanistan service, the mixed White House response on Sharon’s Plan B and more.

Amusements

Chevy readies new “American Revolution” ad campaign to taut their patriotic new offerings, which include the South Korean-built Aveo, Euro-designed Malibu and Canadian-built Silverado

Fark Photoshop Challenge: Photoshop the Fark topic tags running amok on an unsuspecting world.

Newgrounds: The Twelve Pains of Christmas

Newgrounds: Tortoise Vs. Hare

TooStupidToBePresident.com: Saddam’s Capture

TooStupidToBePresident.com: It’s a Wonderful Life