My Case for Wikileaks

Wikileaks: I just can't get enough of it. If you've been living under a rock and you don't know what Wikileaks is, I wrote a previous blog post about it here; It's just a brief overview of the organization and some of the things it has done.

We can spend all day debating the ethics behind the action. In my opinion it serves as an outlet for whistle blowers. In other words, people steal things such as documents or videos and pass them on to organizations like Wikileaks who then verify and publish them. From this point, Wikileaks is pretty much a news outlet of activists (unless they solicit for illegal documents, which I don't think they do). If that's the case, what Wikileaks does is legal but what the whistle blowers who steal the documents is illegal. A debate about the ethics of the whistle blowers' actions will be left for another time. But let me make this case for Wikileaks: Let's imagine a world without this organization. There are much more leaks than just the huge ones that have made headlines recently. By looking back, I realized that so many important leaks were put out by Wikileaks at a time when this organization wasn't even named because no one thought it was important.

Wikileaks Wall paper!

If the world didn't have Wikileaks we wouldn't know about:

1. Abuse in Guantanamo Bay: where inmates were denied access to the Red Cross for 4 weeks at a time (a crime under international law) and were rewarded for good behavior by being provided toilet paper. (Dec. 2007)
2. Sarah Palin's Email: it was found that the former Governor was using her personal email for official business to avoid state laws that regulated it keeping leaders accountable by having them as public records.
3. BNP Membership List: began a debate in Britain about the extreme right wing party and why people would want to join it. (Nov. 2008)
4. Trafigura Report: detailed how companies were dumping gasoline in the Ivory Coast without much regulation and would have left it there without treatment. (Oct.2009)
5. Climategate Emails: Revealed 1000 Scientists' emails at a university that showed they were distorting their global warming research to better prove that it was man-made and get more funding for their research and ventures. (Nov. 2009)
6. Sept. 11 pager messages: Half a million pager messages were released from people in the buildings, outside, those who died and others who escaped. It gave us a more detailed look at what happened the day and what people were saying and doing. (Nov. 2009)
7. Apache Helicopter shoots journalists: This is the leak that made Wikileaks internationally known. In all the leaks past this media just said "some organization" leaked this information. This leak, gave Wikileaks it's brand name. The video showed the U.S. army shooting all, killing most, and wounding the rest of a group of civilians and 2 Reuters Reporters (who died). (April 2010)
8. Afghan War Logs: Tens of thousands of documents released showing the Taliban get substantial support from a U.S. ally: Pakistan (experts in the region already knew this, but there were no official documents stating it for the public till now). It also showed possible abuses by coalition forces toward Afghans and that U.S. has a secret assassination squad. (July 2010) Here is Assange in his own words on these documents.
9. Iraq War Logs: 400,000 documents revealing evidence for the torture of Iraqi civilians by coalition forces as well as more detailed accounts of death such as 66,000 "violent deaths" as well as an understatement of total deaths of the U.S. government by 15,000 people; in other words, the government purposely understated the death toll. (October 2010)
10. Cablegate leak: 250,000 diplomatic documents that show massive amounts of information from the State Department ordering it's diplomats to spy on UN representatives, to Arab states with Israel working to form a militia in Lebanon to fight Hezbollah, and massive tensions between the U.S. and Russia: which is trying to regain it's former global power by expanding regionally.(Nov 28th 2010)

Not listed were the Australian blacklist which detailed an attempt by the Australian government's attempt to create a firewall that would block any content that the government didn't see as favorable for it. Of those pages were Wikipedia pages about certain historical events. Also not shown is was "How to stop Wikileaks Manual" by the British military that aimed to do what the title implied by this manual to all it's soldiers. There are also thousands of other documents there were released that had great impact on individual nations like Kenya, Ivory Coast, and organizations the the Church of Scientology. For the lists see here, and here by the Daily Telegraph.

Imagine a world where we didn't know all of this? We should realize that we are living history. As we speak Wikileaks has released documents showing the Sudanese President (wanted for crimes against humanity) has stashed 9 billion dollars from oil revenues into foreign accounts for himself. It also revealed how China pursues it's foreign policy and economic development without regard to moral objections by supporting dictators for their natural resources (sounds like the U.S. also). Wikileaks is showing us that a Bangladeshi "death squad" was trained by British forces before it went off and killed innocent people. We also discover (because of the organization) that Yemen doesn't have stable control of its radioactive material and is most vulnerable to be lost to the wrong hands. It's okay to show documents about these dictators but not of western superpowers? That is a very weak argument.

In a TED talk dated July of 2010, Julian Assange (Wikileaks Director) explains why the world needs an organization like Wikileaks. In it, right off the bat, the host makes a great point: Wikileaks has, by itself, released more classified documents than the entire world's media combined.

Meanwhile the CIA has created a "WTF" (Wikileaks Task Force) to keep track of documents and assess the damage to the U.S. government. Although, it is almost impossible to stop an organization like Wikileaks legally or practically speaking: See here.

The only reasonable objection I've ever heard against Wikileaks is that these leaks can endanger many lives. To them I would show these letters between Wikileaks and the U.S. government. Wikileaks actively tries to blank out the names of those who could potentially be harmed but the government won't partake in it (for obvious reasons that they are stolen). Furthermore, as Mr. Assange likes to say time and time again in interviews: No one has been hurt or killed by any of the leaks. I believe in his newest interview with MSNBC he repeated the statement.

With all the controversy surrounding the organization, Wikileaks has announced it will release another 3 million more documents. If true (and it has never backed down on any of it's statements), the organization would outdo itself for the 3rd time and break it's own record of largest leak in U.S. (if not world) history. At the end of that last article about the 3 million more documents, there is an important point: Even the Pentagon admits that there have been no reprisals as a result of the Wikileaks' leaks. You can find all these documents on their website.

So we can debate whether the people stealing these documents are unethical in their behavior, but, now that they are out, how can anyone want the information returned?  These leaks have revealed to us more about governments and corporations than any other media organization the the world (maybe even history). Can we say no to that? Can we condemn the actions of even the hackers and people who stole the documents when the leaks will inevitably change the history books and our perspective of some many different events in the U.S. and the world? For me, I applaud Wikileaks and even Bradley Manning (if he is in fact guilty) for publishing these documents; Reporters Without Borders recently sent the U.S. government an open letter supporting Wikileaks: see here.  They have helped seriously keep governments and corporations in check. With no evidence to prove anyone has been harmed and real accountability all I can say is bring on another 3 million documents!

Note: All these pictures are wallpapers that Wikileaks provides on this page of it's website. Scroll down all the way to the bottom for the pictures.

Holder v. Humanitarian Law Project

As I was listening to my Glee Christmas Album (yes I listen to them; don't judge me), I reread an email by my sister that said "be careful what you say and do.. the recent supreme court ruling means even peace activists are now a target.." I read the article attached  that clearly argued against the findings of the Court, so I decided to look into it. I read the Court's opinion, 5 Amicus Briefs (arguments sent by "friends of the court" voicing their opinions), all the Merit Briefs and two analysis. It was painstaking, but that's what a future lawyer has to do.  So let me summarize without all the legal jargon and irrelevant court procedures.

The importance of such a case? It is the biggest test of the First Amendment that the Court has decided since it's controversial decision Citizens United v. FEC (this case decided that corporations could donate as much money as they want for political parties; any limit restricts their freedom of speech). There are also some major cases such as Snyder v. Phelps (a personal favorite) and Schwarzenegger v. Entertainment Merchants Association which all bring into question freedom of speech and its limits (these cases haven't been decided yet). But to the point of this case, it is also significant because it is the first and only case that directly challenges the USA Patriot Act, a law passed 6 weeks after Sept 11, that has reached the highest court in the land.

 Background of the Case: 

The original case was filed 12 years ago and has finally made its way to the top.  The case is a consolidation of two different cases into one for the Justices. One one side is a plethora of Pro-Tamil organizations like the Tamils of Northern California and Tamil Welfare and Human Rights Committee to name a few. For those that don't know, the Tamil people are native to India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia. The Tamil Tigers (active in Sri Lanka) are labeled as a terrorist organization by the U.S. as are the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) who fight for an independent Kurdistan from Turkey and Iraq. The suit was filed to gain the right to continue their efforts to "speak to, for, and in coordination with" these terrorist labeled organizations.

The Tamils (just to give them a name, although they are not officially the organization from Sri Lanka) believe that amendments to the Patriot Act that allow the State Department to stop "material support" for organizations it labels as terrorists. That phrase "material support" has been greatly expanded by later laws of Congress to include criminalizing “material support” in the form of “service,”  ”training,” or “expert advice or assistance, support in the form of  “personnel” or “expert advice or assistance” if it was “derived from scientific or technical knowledge.” Lower courts decided that the first three were unconstitutional because they were too "vague" while the last two were upheld as constitutional.

The Tamils argue that with such vague sections of the law, the federal government can overstep its bounds and as a result, restrict free speech guaranteed by the First Amendment as well as the 14th Amendment which guarantees "Equal Protection of the Law." More specifically, the group vigorously attacked the law's ban on support in the form of training or advice based on scientific or technical knowledge. They oppose it because it can be used to support criminal prosecution on many free speech activities like publishing statement by a leader of a blacklisted organization or giving legal advice if the group filed a human rights complaint with the UN.

The federal government argues that it isn't targeting speech just "conduct" (?) that helps terrorists organizations. The Patriot Act has been the strongest arm of the government at combating terrorism, and the Justice Department (as argued by Elena Kagan, still Solicitor General) believes it is essential to any fight to protect the country.

Court's Decision:

 6-3 in favor of the federal government. Justice Breyer wrote the dissent, joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor.

Personal Opinion:
Of course, I don't believe that the federal government aims to restrict freedom of speech, however, I believe that the effects of the law are overreaching to some extent. The definition of "conduct" that can help aid a terrorist organization is far too broad and needs to be better defined to guarantee no abuse of power. On the face of it, I wouldn't agree with the decision, but delving deeper into the Court's long opinion, I realized that it wasn't a complete victory for the federal government. The Supreme Court basically decided that, the government wasn't overstepping it's bounds, and could restrict those actions ONLY if the actions were controlled by the overseas terrorist organization. The decision makes sense, because it would work to reduce the influence of those organizations in the U.S. however, the Court didn't given any advice to the lower courts on how to pursue such issues which means it could get ugly (and abusive). An important part of the decision was that the Court agreed that even humanitarian efforts to help deal with abuses by governments like those of Turkey, Sri Lanka, Israel, etc could be prosecuted by the federal government. So, although you won't go to jail anytime soon for arguing for the Tamil Tigers, if it is with conjunction with the actual organization, expect the government to come knocking.

It is important to note that "independent advocacy" hasn't been defined, which again leaves room for government abuse. Although I don't completely disagree with the ruling, my sister's article did make an important point: Just a few years ago Nelson Mandela was removed off of the U.S. Terror List, and if the Patriot Act, as it is now, was in effect during the Apartheid years in South Africa, President Barack Obama (who was part of protests and pro Mendela) could potentially be prosecuted for his "conduct."  In a play of the famous statement "One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter" I would say today's terrorist can be tomorrow's freedom fighter (as was the case with Mandela). I'm not saying Osama Bin Laden will be a hero in the future, however,  it is better to create limits through definitions than be too broad in definition and interpretation I say.  Government always takes advantage of powers given to it by Congress or the Courts, let's not make that undue power.

If you are into all this legal jargon and you are sick and having nothing else to do because you are stuck at home lest you infect everyone around you or get even more sick (like myself) here are the documents: For the Merit Briefs I read: click here, here, here, and here. For the Court's Opinion. For the 5 Amicus Briefs I read: Click here, here, here, here, and here.

Israelis and Palestinians

I was a bit conflicted over what to write about this time.I'm stuffed after a big family dinner, my head hurts a bit, I have the flu and my little cousin (whom I love) won't stop discovering the world. I read an article about Wikileaks and how even the Swiss bank who has protected drug lords and Nazis has refused to service Wikileaks on the basis that Julian Assange gave out misinformation about his place of residents (gasp!). For that article follow this.

Israeli Settlements

Instead of decided to talk about the Israeli Palestinian conflict; not the entire conflict itself because it's history will be too long for a blog like this and should be left for the history books. However I did bump into several articles that I thought were worth mentioning: Agreement for peace seems more hopeless than ever as the Obama Administration tries to push through peace negotiations. This became evident after the U.S. failed to get Israel to extend a freeze on settlement construction in the West Bank.This was in direct defiance of the administration's statements against the settlements. After that the State Department decided to move on and not stick to the issue as Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said that negotiations could not continue as Israel built settlements on their land.

Just though this was representative of recent edicts and letters.

Shortly after, life for Arabs in and around Israel got worse as hundreds of Rabbis published a religious edict forbidding Jews from selling or renting houses to Arabs. As a result, but which got far less media attention, a letter by the New Israel Fund (which is a progressive organization in the United States for peace) condemning the edict was signed by almost a thousand Rabbis around the world was sent to the hateful Rabbis (of course there edict still stands). More recently, a letter by 30 Rabbi wives has been sent out to Israeli girls advising them not to date Arab men.

Hamas-- generally considered an extremist organization

Of course, Anti-semitism in Palestine is widespread as a country that identifies itself as "the Jewish state" helps make their lives worse; they draw a connection to the Jewish people. Admittedly, both sides extreme show hatred to one another as Muslim extremists can't stop rambling on about the evil of the Jewish people; these need no links because it's so blatantly obvious to anyone who understands even a tiny amount about the conflict.The problem is, Israel elected a right wing party to its government in the last elections and all these hate-filled messages from Israel come at a time when things are already unsettling as they are. Furthermore, Hamas isn't giving up on it's goal of replacing all of Israel with a one state solution of Palestine. So if peace seemed likely at any point (which it didn't) the situation is even more dire now.

Ban Ki Moon -- UN Secretary General

There is hope however. The UN is directing it's attention at stopping the settlement building in the West Bank which will help to bring Palestinian leaders to the table without the shadow of the Israeli settlements. At the same time Palestinians are now turning to the UN Security Council to condemn the settlements, which could, if passed, set the tone for future negotiations as the legitimization of the settlements garners less support.We can always hope for a change in the next Israeli elections to more reasonable leaders? Can't we? Of course, Hamas is getting more unpopular as efforts by the U.S. and Israel seem to be working at making the millions in Gaza live horrible lives.

This isn't just a hit at Israel, since the media is afraid to publish Wikileaks cables about it, because the Palestinian side hasn't been very helpful in the process, but their requests aren't unreasonable. Furthermore, Israel, more and more, can not claim to be the reasonable and less extreme side as all these things occur over time. Both sides need to swallow some pride because decisions, even against the extremes of their people, are only made my real leaders; recently a friend told me that leaders aren't needed when things are going fine, only when change is needed. They must make the difficult decisions and all leaders must be " very adaptable to different situations and climates." This conflict has gone on for more than 60 years, it's time to adapt to the different circumstances but with the same vision of peace and co-existence.

SATANIC TRAVESTY:The Rolling Stones In Altamont

Altamont-a stock car racing track in California.Over 40 years ago this place has been the event of what would be the epitome of a rock n' roll nightmare.Back in December 1969,a young man was killed on a free festival the Rolling Stones had organized during the last leg of their American tour.


The Woodstock festival proved to be nonetheless successful and other copycat festivals who tried to emulate it came out to be disastrous and trouble plagued.The Rolling Stones were considered to be second to the Beatles in the manner that they named themselves to be the total opposite of the band-which John Lennon dismissed later on that the Stones stole the Beatles' identity and thus started some sort of a press war between him and Mick Jagger.But in spite of all of the press releases and rumours,both the Beatles and the Stones were very good friends and were respectable of each other's musical styles.


After being lambasted by the music press for their exhorbitant high ticket prices,the Rolling Stones decided to give a free festival-- a way of saying thank you for supporting their previous tours and a way of saying sorry.The Grateful Dead helped organized the Altamont free festival which was dubbed by many as 'Woodstock West'.The Hells Angels were hired to police the event in exchange of a $500 worth of beer to watch over the equipment and defend the stage from drugged out fans.

The main reason the Hell's Angels had been hired is that the Stones hated having the cops securing their concerts and both Mick Jagger and Keith Richards admired the image of the Angels.And the London chapter of the famous motorcycle gang had successfully and peacefully policed the preceedings on their Hyde Park gig the previous July.The Hyde Park gig-a tribute to their leader and founder Brian Jones who drowned on his swimming pool on July 3 of the same year.

The festival was proved to be disastrous at the very start as Mick Jagger was attacked by a hippie and was punched in the mouth.This was well documented by the Maysles Brothers who made the film of the event called Gimme Shelter.The Maysles Brothers were known for their reality tv style of documentary films,having filmed the Beatles' first US visit five years earlier,they shot the Altamont scene under extremely dangerous conditions including the murder of Meredith Hunter in which we will discuss later on.

During which the Stones arrived at the  festivity,a fence was said to have been torn by angry drugged out fans in which Keith Richards mumbled as 'the first act of violence.' Openers like the Grateful Dead and Santana backed off when they saw that the place was in total chaos as violence rummaged between the Hell's Angels and the young freaks who we believe should be the future leaders of this country.Further violence flared during sets by Jefferson Airplane and The Flying Burrito Brothers as  members of the former were beaten by these aggressive,drug laden spectators.




THE MURDER OF MEREDITH HUNTER

It was often believed that it was during the set of "Sympathy For The Devil" when the bloody encounter happened.But actually it was during the set of "Under My Thumb" when the controversial killing took place.Though the Stones had said that something funny always happens whenever they play the song "Sympathy.." it was actually after the band has just finished "Under My Thumb" when a young man called Meredith Hunter was killed by an Angel.The killing was captured on video when Meredith brandished a gun in the air and was stabbed several times by a member of the notorious motorcycle gang.Being the prey of the Angels,it was said that he has caught the Angels' attention for being black and grinning a lot,and for being in the company of a white woman as a girlfriend.

The Stones' came out eight hours later than scheduled and their set kept on going down as the Hell's Angels lose their tempers over the freaks who want to get onstage.Mick Jagger kept on pleading helplessly to the crowd to "keep cool" and telling them that theres no reason to hassle anyone.Hunter was stabbed to death not far from the stage and the show went on in which  Jagger was badly criticized by the music press for being irresponsible and for not checking out what really happened.

The Rolling Stones returned to the UK and did not dropped their bad boy posturing which remained intact in 1971's Sticky Fingers album.Rolling Stone magazine which was named in honor of the band lambasted Jagger for his lack of contrition and for his helplessness in the face of real demons.

It was said that an equal number of births took place during the festival but later on it was discovered that nobody had been born at Altamont,it was a night of violence and fear though many praise it as it was one of the finest gigs ever performed by the Stones.The Hell's Angel who stabbed Hunter later revealed to be Alan Passaro was acquitted on grounds of self defense.Though he was later found dead almost twenty years later in a ditch.

When I first saw the film Gimme Shelter I thought it was some kind of joke but I was really appalled over the fact that the murder was actually captured and shown live.But all in all it has some good songs though but I do feel that the Stones' songs were actually evoking some violence in a way, like the song "Midnight Rambler" for instance,which the song goes "I'll stick my knife down your throat baby and it hurts".I dont know if it just a coincidence or not but some of their songs I believe is somewhat inviting some piece of action in it,though the riffs and the sound was great.The Rolling Stones were one of my favorite bands besides the Beatles and I can say they were indeed very good.Im more of a sound guy rather than the lyrics dude so Im gonna cut 'em some slack.

The Rolling Stones were one of the greatest rock bands in the world besides the Beatles and I know Jagger felt so sorry that the Altamont free fest ended in catastrophy.I read his interview in the nineties recalling the nightmare of Altamont and he quoted: "you expect everyone in San Francisco to be nice and gentle but unfortunately it wasn't" something like that...

I do not blame Mick Jagger,he was a victim too..



Heres more of the photos of the violence at Altamont...All I can say is...it was all out of his[Jagger] hands...

Long live the Rolling Stones!

Long live Rock N' Roll!

Santa Clara cop now faces federal charges for allegedly feeding information to Hells Angel

 Santa Clara cop now faces federal charges for allegedly feeding information to Hells Angel: "Deepening his legal troubles, a Santa Clara police officer now faces federal criminal charges for allegedly supplying confidential information to a member of the Hells Angels to pay off a debt.
In an indictment unsealed on Monday in federal court in San Jose, Clay H. Rojas, a five-year veteran of the Santa Clara police department, is charged in fraud and conspiracy counts with furnishing inside information to William 'Billy' Bettencourt, a suspected member of the Hells Angels Santa Cruz chapter. Rojas, the indictment alleges, provided the confidential information, such as criminal and DMV records, to Bettencourt.
The indictment also names Bettencourt and Viviana Rodriguez, who is accused of seeking Bettencourt's aid in getting the inside information. Bettencourt, who has a prior felony criminal record, already is in custody without bail on related state charges and faces life in prison under the 'three strikes' law.
For Rojas, 36, the indictment marks an escalation of a criminal investigation into the allegations involving the Hells Angels. He was charged in state court in October with a felony for allegedly feeding the material to Bettencourt. Now the feds have piled on the new charges."

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7 alleged Vagos indicted

Mohave Daily News > Archives > News > Local > 7 alleged Vagos indicted: "Mohave County grand jury indicted seven alleged members of the Vagos motorcycle club, including five who were allegedly involved in a July 18 fight at a Bullhead City beach.

Shawn Patrick Bailey, 36, Robert George Keller III, 35, Shawn Lee Muncy, 41, Gabriel Timothy Nader Jr., 25, and Dale Warren Smith, 52, were indicted on two felony counts of aggravated assault and one count each of riot and assisting in a criminal street gang. The defendants are expected to be arraigned before Superior Court Judge Steven Conn Jan. 10. Bailey, Muncy and Keller are from Bullhead City. Smith is from Mohave Valley. Nader is from Golden Valley.

Jeffrey Daniel Woods, 53, of Lake Havasu City, also was indicted on charges of misconduct involving weapons, possession of dangerous drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia. He is expected to be arraigned before Conn Jan. 6. Nick Bernard Prano, 54, also of Lake Havasu City, was indicted on a charge of possession of dangerous drugs. He is expected to be arraigned before Superior Court Commissioner Derek Carlisle Jan. 6."

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Bikie gangs linked to Coogee tattoo parlour bomb blast

Bikie gangs linked to Coogee tattoo parlour bomb blast: "TATTOO parlour in Coogee owned by two of Sydney's most notorious bikies has been gutted by fire after a petrol bombing, with the street gang Notorious the prime suspect.

Coogee Ink, on Coogee Bay Road, was burnt out just before 1am yesterday.

The fire forced the evacuation of about 30 people from the nearby flats."

:Text may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder

Obama: Two Years Into It

So, it isn't officially two years, we still have a bit more than a month to go, but I might as well just put this up since New Years is coming along. Many are probably wondering what the heck has President Barack Obama accomplished since he's taken office. If you think he hasn't done anything, then you aren't paying attention.  Important note before we go over this: This is a list of his accomplishments regardless of whether you agree with them or not.  Although not a complete list and clearly by a pro-Obama democrat I was able to find this youtube video going over much of it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Z90SeYwK_Q&feature=player_embedded

If you don't want to watch the video here is a list I compiled. I raked the entire internet and every list I came by was either by Left Wing Larry who celebrated the smallest things such as 'Obama ordering departments to recommend cuts in spending' or Right Wing Ronnie who refused to acknowledge any successes while labeling him a Muslim Communist, so I compiled my own list (random):

• Wall Street Reform
• Healthcare reform

• Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
• American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
• Second Stimulus (forget what they called it)
• Tobacco regulation
• Ended Iraq War
• Refocused on Afghanistan-- surges
• New Start Treaty
• DADT repealed
• Credit Card Reform
• New Sanctions against Iran (AFTER talking to them)
• Mathew Shephard Hate Act
• Student Loan Reform
• Education Reform
• Banned Torture and signed executive order to close Guantanamo (but still open, in process)
• Got both his Supreme Court picks onto court.

This list doesn't count important things like how he's improved relations with most of the world, including Muslim World, or his signature that greatly expanded conservatory efforts or his expansion of SCHIP. The listed are just what I consider to be his greatest successes in his first to years.

Just for context, they may just be listed here and not seem that much, but these are his largest legislative and political victories (or at least in my opinion). I may be missing a few, feel free to suggest, however, their importance should never be understated. Regardless of whether you agree with the policies or not, the amount he has accomplished is truly amazing because all these laws have such massive effects in and of themselves; compiling them together to a reader that understands their impact is world changing. My history may be shaky, but I don't believe I've seen a more progressive first two years in anytime in the past 40-50 years for a president of the U.S. (if you feel that's an overstatement, prove me wrong.) He is also greatly admired.

If you are wondering why the old picture instead of one when he's president; I just say, why not?

Islamic Banking

I ran by this topic while going through my daily consumption of news from both national and international sources. Islamic Banking. It's going international. Now if you have a phobia about Islam or have some irregular hatred for them that is emotionally driven this may help change your opinion on Islam.

Islamic banking has existed for a while but was never considered a good kind of banking, namely, because Islamic/Muslim banks don't charge interests. That's right folk, no interest, on car, house, business, or any other kind of loan. Traditional banks charge interest, and that's where they make most of their money. In fact, any basic lesson in Financing will show you that banks earn more in interest (on average) than the total sum of the loan itself. So for example, you take a 16,000 dollar car loan. If you are lucky you may get 6.5%, but for practical reasons we will say you get a 8% interest rate (nationally). The amount of interest you will pay if you make the minimum payments (lets say 200, though that is pushing it) each month, it would take you about 9 1/2 years to pay off the loan. In that time, the total you would have paid to the bank would be around 30,000 dollars. That's almost double the total amount for the entire loan. As you can see, for those that didn't know, banks make a HUGE net profit margin in their investments.

So how is Islamic banking related?


Well for one, they don't charge interest. That means, when you take a 16k loan from an islamic bank, all you pay is the 16k. That isn't a preferable system for western banks to adopt when they make so much money from interest. The reason why Islamic banks don't charge interest is because it is against Islam to earn money you haven't worked for; interest is a charge for using someone's money and not earned at all. This Islamic teaching has been interpreted to apply to banks and for some time now, interest charges have been a banned practice (they are also banned in the Old testament).

Amidst the recent financial crisis, Islamic banks (although having their troubles) have, for the most part, weathered the storm better than most western banking systems (Note: They aren't big on derivatives). Furthermore, consumers find the idea of a no interest loan from a bank more appealing than the loans they typically have received which has led to growth of this kind of banking.

So if they don't charge interest, how do they make money? Ruediger Prenzlin who is the CFO of HK Islamic Index Limited, Hong Kong's first equity index to feature an Islamic compliant portfolio of companies gives an example that goes along the lines of:

"For example, in Islamic housing finance the risks involved are shared between the bank and the borrower, rather than transferring all the risk to the latter. The most commonly used contract is the diminishing musharaka (partnership) contract. In this case the bank and the borrower form a partnership, with the bank providing up to 95 percent of the purchase price, and the borrower 5 percent.

The borrower buys out the ownership share of the bank which makes its profit from the rent paid by the client for the share the bank owns. This happens over a period of, usually, 15 to 30 years.

Should the borrower default on a rental or principal repayment, the bank may advance the borrower an interest-free loan to enable him to continue their payments in anticipation that he will pay in full when he is able to. The good news is that during this period of distress, the borrower retains his home rather than face eviction.

Having said this, Islamic banks still appraise credit risk, and indeed are more cautious about who they finance than conventional banks."

So maybe Islamic banking is good? Maybe you should give it a try (or at least the principle)? Maybe, just maybe, Islam has a solution to modern day problems and can be pictured in a positive light rather than one with an enraged masked terrorist rambling on about infidels.... think about it.

Julian Assange

With all that has been going around with who I would call a true "International Man of Mystery," there is no way I was going to avoid the subject. But a quick recap for those who don't know much about Julian Assange and Wikleaks (I'll bullet them, so if you know all this, just skip over to the paragraph):

• Basically Wikileaks is an international nonprofit organization that accepts, verifies, and publishes submitted documents via it's website and media partners, most notably the NYTimes (at least here in the U.S).
• It was started by Julian Assange in 2006 and within it's first year has close to a million documents sent to it. 
• Wikileaks NEVER asks or knows who sends the information. The intent of the person is irrelevant if the documents are real. In 2010 it made national news when it released a 2007 video of U.S. forces killing Iraqi civilians and 2 Reuters reporters.You can see the full clip uncut and unedited here and a shorter version here. 
• In the same year Wikileaks released what is called the "Afghan War Logs" which is 76,900 documents about the U.S. involvement in the Afghanistan that weren't available to you and I previously.
• In October 2010 it released some 400,000 documents called the "Iraq War Logs" that detailed much of the undisclosed information of the war effort in Iraq. 
• Finally, as of November, Wikileaks has just started releasing another 250,000 diplomatic cables that detail everything from UN relations to those between Russia and the U.S. or about different conflicts in the Middle East. All these can be seen (and downloaded if you really want to) at their website: Wikileaks.

So they are releasing these newest cables (at a horribly slow pace) to the world via their website as well as partnerships with different media partners. I won't go on about how they verify their documents but here is their own description of the process.

 If you want to know more details about them to go their Wikipedia page or from their own "About Us" section on their website.

______________________________________________________________________________________

Having a better understanding of the organization, we now have the U.S. government and Sweden looking to destroy the organization because it keeps on leaking things. Why Sweden you ask? Julian Assange likes to say that the party in power and "certain leaders" are his enemies and instigated "rape charges" against him simply to get rid of him. This wouldn't be the first time that the leader of Wikileaks is under attack and has been on the run from governments; it is in his line of work. Since then, Interpol put out a red warning for the capture of Assange for the allegations. Although I'm always used to taking the side of the rape victim first, the facts seem suspicious. I won't comment further on those allegations.

The biggest issue here and now, is if Julian Assange is extradited to the United States does the Justice Department have a case against him to be sent to jail. If my legal study tells me anything, simply accepting stolen material than publishing it is perfectly legal under the Espionage Act as shown by the Supreme Court case New York Times v. United States. The Justice Department is searching to find out if Wikileaks in any way solicited Pvt. Manning (the alleged person who leaked the documents) to give them the information and break the law. If so, they can be persecuted under the Espionage Act. Furthermore, some fear that Julian Assange has talked his way into being applicable to the Act.

This all should be very interesting to watch especially when you realize that this is all history in the making. How it will end will affect generations to come in the legal applications of the Espionage Act, the explosion of whistle blower websites like Wikileaks, and our image of transparent government.

Top/Most (Something) Lists

Well, it's that time of the year again....

A time when all news organizations choose to recap the year giving you the "Best" "Most Intriguing" "Top Ten" of 2010. We see it every year from media giants like Times "Person of the Year", People's "Sexist Man Alive 2010," Fortune's "Fortune 500," even CNN's "Year in Review" or "Most Intriguing Person." We even see the list go international with Al Jazeera's (English) "The Al Jazeera Top 10 of The Year."

The "list phenom" has even gone religious with Top 10 Christian Stories and The Top Ten Most Intriguing Muslim Stories of the Year -- 2010!

So what's to be said of all these lists? Some have stirred up controversy, such as Time's "Person of the Year" in which Facebook founder and head honcho Mark Zuckerberg was chosen over others like Julian Assange, the founder and leader of Wikileaks. Others have created a anger as Walmart tops the Fortune 500 even through the past economic recession. These recaps and awards can remind us of things that seemed to have happened years ago such as the eruption of a volcano in Iceland (one which I won't bother spelling out). However, it is always fun to watch people fail at it, take a look: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jq-sMZtSww

Happy Blogging!

Hello All!

Although new to the blogosphere (contributor) I'm certainly not new as a reader. More often than not I've found myself getting a lot of my content from blogs and their dedicated contributors. My goal with this blog is to discuss things of interest in the world, without contributing to the seemingly never-ending blabber that goes on over the internet. I hope to provide meaningful insight from my own perspective because I don't feel like any single blog that I've read discusses with enough detail the large array of topics I love discussing.

If I did, it would be unreasonable to start a redundant blog. Any and all advice on improving the blog or it's design as well as suggestions for stories or commentary is welcomed. So to all those bloggers and readers, Happy Blogging!

Bikie gang paymaster faces extradition

Bikie gang paymaster faces extradition: "AUTHORITIES have swooped on one of Australia's most wanted men, the alleged drug lord and Comanchero bikie gang financier Hakan Ayik, on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, ending his six months on the run.

He faces extradition to Australia to confront charges connected to the nation's biggest recent organised crime probe, Operation Hoffman.

Mr Ayik had been the subject of a NSW Police and Interpol arrest warrant and was believed to be living on money he had stashed in foreign bank accounts. He narrowly avoided capture at the Greek-Turkish border two months ago, possibly after bribing officials.

It is believed his arrest is connected to alleged criminal offences flowing from his previous escape."

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Outlaws motorcycle President Guilty - wtvr

Outlaws motorcycle President Guilty - wtvr: "federal jury has found the national president of the Outlaws motorcycle club, Jack Rosga, guilty in his second trial.

Rosga was accused of participating in a criminal enterprise responsible for a variety of violent crimes, most of them in a turf war with the rival Hell's Angels. Defense attorneys claimed the government was trying to make several isolated incidents look like a conspiracy.

Three other defendents were also convicted. They'll be sentenced April 8th.

In November a federal jury in Richmond deadlocked in the charges against Rosga. That jury acquitted two co-defendants and convicted another on two on four counts.

Rosga has been in custody since he and 26 other biker gang members from several states were arrested in June. More than half entered guilty pleas."

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abbey mania

abbey lee for MANIA MANIA.
drool.
she's such a sex kitten.

Skeletal remains found in North River identified as former Hells Angel biker Mersereau - Local - News - Truro Daily News

Skeletal remains found in North River identified as former Hells Angel biker Mersereau - Local - News - Truro Daily News: "Dental records were used as the source to identify the remains of murdered outlaw biker Randy Merserseau, an RCMP spokesperson says.
'Positive identification of the skeletal remains was made through dental records,' Sgt. Brigdit Leger said late Monday afternoon.
Police discovered Mersereau's skeletal remains on Dec. 1 after searching for several days in a heavily wooded area of the Hiram Lynds Road in North River.
Leger said the remains were confirmed to the RCMP by the Nova Scotia Medical Examiner last Friday evening after being identified through forensic examination.
Mersereau disappeared in the fall of 1999, within weeks of a bombing at a used car dealership in Bible Hill that injured six people.
Mersereau escaped virtually unscathed but a few weeks later his vehicle was found abandoned near Milford on Highway 102.
Hells Angel member Jeffrey Albert Lynds of North River has been named in court documents as Mersereau's killer, although there is no indication that he has been charged with the crime.
Police have speculated in the past that Lynds earned his full-patch membership into the Hells Angels by killing Mersereau.
Lynds is currently in a Montreal jail where he is facing first-degree murder charges in an unrelated double homicide that occurred in late January. He is awaiting further court dates on the charges, which have not been proven in court."

Crossbows, cash, Harley seized in gang busts - National - NZ Herald News

Crossbows, cash, Harley seized in gang busts - National - NZ Herald News: "Crossbows, $20,000 cash, methamphetamine and a Harley Davidson motorcycle were among goods seized during a series of police raids on Hells Angels gang houses in Auckland and Napier this morning.
Napier area commander Inspector Kevin Kalff said the arrests followed an intensive two-month operation focusing on the distribution and sale of methamphetamine in Hawke's Bay.
Gang members in Hawke's Bay allegedly bought large quantities of methamphetamine from Hells Angels' headquarters in Mt Eden, Auckland, and sold it from a suburban house in Napier."

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Ex-Hells Angel named in Nova Scotia slaying

Ex-Hells Angel named in Nova Scotia slaying: "RCMP in Nova Scotia plan to continue combing through a wooded area near downtown Truro this weekend as they search for the remains of a former Hells Angel last seen alive more than a decade ago.
The results of the search in Nova Scotia could have implications for Jeffrey Albert Lynds, 42, of Nova Scotia. He, too, is a former Hells Angel, and he is in custody in Montreal while he faces two first-degree murder charges in connection with the deaths of two South Shore men. The men were fatally shot in the parking lot of a McDonald's restaurant in January.
The victims, Kirk Murray, 47, and Anthony Onesi, 51, were shot as they sat inside a car parked outside the restaurant on St. Jacques St. W.
Police sources have said the double slaying probably involved a drug deal gone bad."

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The Beatles

The Beatles is the greatest rock band on this planet,changing the course of rock music forever.They sold millions of albums and has appealed down to new generations of fans for over forty years.I started listening to the fab four since I was a little boy through my dad of course.Theres this infinite coolness the band possess that you just can't describe on how or why are you so crazy about their songs.Its just beautiful.The band started everything: recording techniques,wah wahs,distortions,hairstyle, anyone couldn't  ever imagine  in the sixties.The band started a revolution,they introduced modern rock music which remains a staple for budding rock bands today.

Bored with Elvis and other rockabillies,the young generation of America went ape for the Beatles and thus started the British Invasion of the United States.Other rock bands from Britain followed:The Rolling Stones,The Who,Cream,Led Zeppelin etcetera and the hallmark of modern rock music was sealed.Of course,America answered with our very own gems like the Beach Boys,the Doors,The Rascals and all,but obviously nobody ever topped the Beatles,who alone are on the mountaintop of fame.

The Beatles toured around the world selling millions and mesmerizing the crowd of Beatlemaniacs[too bad I wasn't even born yet when this all happened--lol!] and touring proved to be nonetheless boring but dangerous to several members of the band.

The 1966 World Tour proved to be the most chaotic and dangerous of all..in the wake of John Lennon's remark that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus spawned angry debates over religious groups particularly Christians though they slagged it off anyway,the band received numerous death threats specifically on America's deep south.But none could be more embarassing or should I say hateful than the band's disastrous tour of the Philippines on that same year. The Beatles unintentionally snubbed a dinner party Imelda Marcos had for them and being in a country where the president was gearing himself up to be a national dictator,those bureaucrats obviously won't take no for an answer and the band was harrassed and their entourage was beaten off at the Manila airport as they were on their way home.Anyway,George Harrison was saying in the Anthology book that even before the horrible dinner party scam took place things weren't good in Manila by the time they arrive there--citing these annoying figures at the airport who were so disrespectful and was in fact bullying them as they took off the plane. I'm of Filipino descent and I was born in the Philippines,and I resent the fact that my favorite band was treated badly in that country where I was born.But I wasn't around during that time--I wasn't born yet.And I feel sorry to those rude bullies who have maltreated them,I hope they rot in hell.I couldn't blame Paul for snubbing and walking off several Philippine press who went to his London office for an interview,what happened to them was traumatic..I myself wouldn't want to go back... after the way we were treated huh?! I was wondering,what happened to the world famous Filipino hospitality here?  It was all pretentious lies,a little clever clever...it was sad..

Adding insult to injury,the Beatles were insulted in a cable TV network called TFC on this show called Magandang Tanghali Bayan,where several asshole comedians made a laughing stock out of the band--I hated TFC ever since.They made the Philippines more hateful to the eyes of the fab four.I'm glad that show has long been gone..

Well,amid all the bad vibes,the Beatles all in all continued to mesmerize crowds and appeal to new generations of fans and they are the greatest,ruling Billboard and continued to have number one records even after the band broke up.

John Lennon,Paul McCartney,George Harrison and Ringo Starr weren't the first rock stars but they sure changed rock music forever.The way we listen,the style,attitude,long hair,hippiedom will pass down to generations who would want to have the same coolness and simply wanted to be happy--always.

I love the Beatles! Always and Forever!

John Lennon,30 Years After...

December 8,1980 is the most gruesome and shocking event that ever happened in the history of rock music.John Lennon was shot dead in front of his Dakota Apartment in New York City.Fast forward 2010,30 years later,the Beatles were still up there on the rock mountain of fame and John Lennon was given a special birthday tribute on youtube on what supposed to be his 70th birthday.

Im more of a Paul fan when it comes to the Beatles,but Im very fascinated with the kind of charisma John has.Though we all know that John himself founded the greatest rock band in the world,the shocking news about his death sent shivers to every rock star known on earth.Peace advocator/protester,he spent the mid seventies in a lazy haze,sick of being famous and he busied himself raising his son Sean while his wife Yoko did the music publishing business.Unlike his former songwriting partner Paul McCartney, who was recording and touring with his band Wings during that time,John didn’t even care about fame and just spent his time in New York,a quiet private life.When he decided to re-enter the music business again,it was granted with a quite successful album called Double Fantasy,John’s happy thoughts about the album’s success was cut short by a man called Mark David Chapman.The music industry has never been the same.

Five years ago,I got a copy of LIFE’s tribute book about the 25th Anniversary of John Lennon’s murder,my dad gave it to me as a birthday gift.I still have the book,it was full of photos,mostly of unseen ones of John during his lifetime with several short stories told by friends and people who had worked with him.Everytime I opened that book,I was in total awe about the kind of life he had.

At the same time,I had a copy of Guitar Legends’ special edition tribute to Lennon where the most shocking story was published.It was about Dr Frank Veteran’s account on how he tried to save Lennon’s life during that dark day of December 8.It was really disturbing and Dr Veteran admitted later on that he had a depression after the incident-watching John Lennon bleed to death while trying to resuscitate him is the most unforgettable experience any doctor could have,I mean,they were used to those things but John Lennon? -whose music changed the course of rock n’ roll…..oh man.Dr Veteran confessed being a fan and any fan whether you’re a doctor or whatever you are,watching your idol die in your hands would really really send you shivers.That article sure scared the shit out of me,it was really disturbing especially If you’re a Beatles fan.
We only had two surviving Beatles left and a band reunion is obviously impossible.Unless Paul and Ringo would make a new album with a backing band and call themselves the Beatles,but it would be silly to do that.George Harrison’s passing in 2001 wasn’t a shock to the heart like Lennon’s but it was sad that another Beatle went up there with John in rock n’roll heaven.

John is a hero,a saint and will never be forgotten.I had rock music flowing in my veins by the time I was born and I will never get tired of paying tribute to these people who changed my life and influenced me a lot with the most beautiful music ever written.John Lennon and the Beatles’ legacy has appealed to every generation of fans.My daughter Heather has started listening to the Beatles as well,it was funny at age 2 she wanted Rubber Soul to be played over and over again while she played with her toys.Besides the Beatles,she also liked Collective Soul and Led Zeppelin and she always put their CDs on the stereo,it was funny.I guess she’ll be the next Lita Ford or Stevie Nicks–haha!
My favorite John Lennon albums? Umm..John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and Imagine.

John,I hope you’re reading this…we had three generations of fans here in my family.Your music,whether be with the Beatles or on your own lives on forever…

Eleven arrests after police drug raids on gang | Stuff.co.nz

Eleven arrests after police drug raids on gang Stuff.co.nz: "Police arrested 11 people in raids in Auckland, Napier and Hamilton targeting alleged methamphetamine suppliers linked to the Hell's Angels motorcycle gang.
While searching the Hell’s Angels headquarters, police found approximately four grams of methamphetamine, $20,000 in cash, scales and small plastic bags used for dealing methamphetamine.
There were also three crossbows with bolts and arrows found in gang members’ bedrooms.
Police are continuing inquiries to find people connected with these items.
A 39-year-old Auckland debt collector, who is also a Hell’s Angels gang member, appeared in the Auckland District Court earlier today.
After searching his home, police found two police batons and a large quantity of cash.
They also seized a Harley Davidson motorbike, which they alleged had been used in drug dealing offences."

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Body may be missing man

Body may be missing man: "RCMP in Nova Scotia have uncovered human remains in a wooded area near downtown Truro, but say it's too soon to confirm whether the body is that of a missing former Hells Angel.
Officers had been combing the area for traces of Randy Mersereau, 48, a past member of the Hells Angels' Nova Scotia chapter. He was last seen alive on Oct. 31, 1999.
The discovery of the body could have implications for Jeffrey Albert Lynds, 42, of Nova Scotia. He, too, is a former Hells Angel, and is currently in custody in Montreal where he faces two first-degree murder charges in connection with the deaths of two South Shore men. The men were fatally shot in the parking lot of a McDonald's restaurant in Notre Dame de Grace in January"

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Napier P raids linked to swoop on Hell's Angels HQ - Local News - Hawke's Bay Today

Napier P raids linked to swoop on Hell's Angels HQ - Local News - Hawke's Bay Today: "intensive two-month investigation into the methamphetamine (P) trade in Hawke's Bay led to raids on seven houses in Napier this morning and the arrests of six people said to have links with the Hell's Angels gang in Auckland.

As the Napier raids were being carried out armed police swooped on the gang's headquarters in Mount Eden.

Napier Area Commander Kevin Kalff said the operation which had used 'a lot of resources' had focused on the distribution and selling of methamphetamine.

Those arrested had allegedly been buying 'large' quantities of P from the Hell's Angels in Auckland and selling it from a suburban house in Napier.

'The dealers were also allegedly distributing the drug to other dealers in the city for on-selling.'

He said the operation revealed large quantities of the drug were being sold in the local community and this morning's raid would disrupt the flow of P coming into the Bay."

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MORE AMERICANA!

customised cheap monday shirt, customised vintage shirt.

the incandescent afternoon

The incandescent afternoon

Led me astray, to sigh and swoon,

Led me to delve my mind in words

Of broken bodies, whistling birds.

And still became that Monday eve,

Filled with brilliant lines that weave

Lives of torture, lies and pain

Rewound in deep consuming feign.

A heart of boldness drove her mind,

to see her breath and blood entwined,

malicious laughter filled her dream,

ripped her apart at every seam.

The incandescent afternoon,

Decayed her humours far too soon,

I read the hidden, contemplate,

How she just befell such fate.

I love storytelling.

Words by myself based on macbeth.

Vintage red dress and velvet cape.