Video: Boston Legal's Alan Shore at the Supreme Court

During Tuesday nite's episode, Boston Legal character Alan Shore (James Spader) presented his defence of a mentally-disabled black man convicted of raping a child and who had been sentenced to death in Louisiana as a result:



Love the digs he took at the supremes and a great performance, as always.
 

Canadian News Roundup

A few news stories to catch up on:

- Canada to seek clemency for Montrealer facing beheading. The Conservatives - for the death penalty before they were against it. (See this post as well.)

- I have a hard time believing that Harper is serious about taking Dion to court over the Cadman affair when he and his minions continue to talk about it in the house. It seems to be they would instead be saying that "this matter is before the courts" if they intended to go ahead with the suit. On the other hand, if it does go to court, he and his operatives will be forced to testify under oath under the threat of perjury charges. Stock up on popcorn for that case. Lastly, insinuating that their Conservative candidate Dona Cadman (who is the source of this bribery allegation) is a liar does them absolutely no favours in that riding. How can the Conservative party support an alleged liar as their candidate? They've hung her and their party out to dry. This is a no-win situation for this government and they know it. Lather. Spin. Repeat.

- Even though Harper has denied that his chief of staff, Ian Brodie, was responsible for leaking the Obama/NAFTA story to CTV, he still refuses to name the person responsible. If the opposition (and concerned Democrats) can make a case that the leak amounted to political interference (a criminal offence), there may be a role for the RCMP to check into it.

Harper announced today that "an internal security team has been called into the Foreign Affairs Department to investigate one of the leaks". That's not enough.

Mr. Harper didn't address the original leak, but said the government will use “every legal and every investigative technique necessary” to find the source of a second leak — of a private Canadian diplomatic memo — to a U.S. media outlet.

Harper is only interested in finding out who leaked the memo, saying that may be "illegal" but the fact that his government may have planted that CTV story to interfere with the US election is just as serious and must be investigated as well.

Beyond that, as has been extensively reported, the optics involved in showing that Canada's government officials can't be trusted not to reveal private communications between representatives of our country and the US (or any other country) has damaged our international reputation.

There's also concern being expressed that the leak may have influenced the outcome of the Ohio primaries on Tuesday, where Clinton was victorious over Obama, but there's absolutely no way to quantify how that story may have affected Ohio voters.

It should also be noted that the Obama campaign completely mismanaged this story from the moment it broke with its economic adviser Goolsbee asserting that he just said "hello" to Canadian representatives - a claim he had to change after it was revealed that the meeting he had with them actually lasted 40 minutes and resulted in a 1,300 word memo that the AP released details of this past week.

This story is far from being over.

Update:

CBC News video on the Obama/NAFTA story-



Update #2:

The Globe & Mail has a new story up that (according to one unnamed source) points the finger at Ian Brodie as being the source. The G&M story needs more analysis so I'll get into that in a separate post on Thursday.
 

Death Penalty Sentence Reprieve for Afghan Student

The Independent reports:

In a dramatic volte-face, the Afghan Senate has withdrawn its confirmation of a death sentence on Sayed Pervez Kambaksh, the student convicted of blasphemy for downloading a report on women's rights from the internet.

The move follows widespread international protests and appeals to the President, Hamid Karzai, after the case was highlighted by The Independent and more than 38,000 readers signed our petition to secure justice for Mr Kambaksh. In Britain, the Foreign Secretary David Miliband, the Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg and the shadow Foreign Secretary, William Hague, backed the campaign, and there have been demonstrations in the Afghan capital, Kabul.

But the fight isn't over:

Mr Kambaksh can now petition the court of appeal against both his conviction and sentence, and, afterwards, the supreme court. If he fails there, he can appeal directly to Mr Karzai – who has been inundated with emails about the case – for a pardon. Mr Kambaksh's brother, Sayed Yaqub Ibrahimi, welcomed the new position adopted by the Senate. He added, however, that he might have difficulties finding lawyers to present the case at the appeal court after warnings from fundamentalist groups against people "allying themselves with the apostate". He said the only realistic chance of his brother being freed might be the personal intervention of Mr Karzai.

The Independent will keep its petition going in the meantime. Canadians should contact the department of foreign affairs to put pressure on Bernier to keep an eye on this case. (Yes, I know he's practically useless and won't even stand up for the rights of Canadians held in other countries who are facing the death penalty, but he is the minister.) Bother Steve while you're at it too.

Update:

NDP presses for stronger stand by Ottawa on Afghan death sentence

OTTAWA - NDP Leader Jack Layton wants Parliament to take a stand in support of an Afghan journalist sentenced to death for allegedly insulting Islam.

In an interview Sunday, Layton complained the Conservative government has been largely silent on the case of Sayad Parwez Kambaksh, convicted by a court in northern Afghanistan two weeks ago.

"We have every right as a country to speak out on this issue," said the NDP chief.

Moving Again & Assorted Drivel

Moving Day: Thursday.

Not sure when I'll be back on the internets since we have to straighten out the router situation at the new place.

Oh, and it's not that I'm ignoring the Mulroney/Schreiber scandal. I've just been too busy to follow all of the details. Plus, washed-up assholish politicians like Mulroney should be put out to pasture somewhere never to be seen or heard from again. He makes my skin crawl - always has. So, it's just annoying having to deal with him being front and centre in the news again. But, of course, I hope he gets his ass handed to him on a plate and that Steve goes down with him. That would be sweet. A gal can dream...

I can't believe we have to live with this US election crap for another year. No wonder Americans are sick and tired of their politicians. Their electoral system sucks. Yes you're right: I don't have to pay attention to it. Just call me a rubber-necker at a messy car accident. It's repulsive and fascinating at the same time. Well, maybe "fascinating" is the wrong word. "Entertaining" might be more appropriate. Entertaining - like a really bad sitcom. Hmmm...well it gives me something more to write about. Ya. That's the ticket.

penlan sent me a link to this Global Incident Map site. It's got little flashing icons for suspicious events happening around the world. I suspect most of those are real events - not the faux crap that Bushco likes to trot out, especially before xmas. After 9/11 he told everybody to "go shopping" and ever since then he's been trying to scare the pants off everybody by publicizing you're all going to be killed in a shopping mall by al Qaeda stories. Which reminds me: Buy Nothing Day is on Nov 23rd this year. Take a day off from shopping. That way you get to outwit al Qaeda (ha!), Bush and WalMart. Sounds like a plan to me.

Speaking of so-called terror, terror, here's a story you might want to check out: Sensitive Guantánamo Bay Manual Leaked Through Wiki Site.

Here's another one: America and the world's executioners join efforts to block UN moves to end death penalty. (You just know that that one makes Steve drool. If only he wasn't Canadian. Sucks to be him.)

And, whoops.

Okay, that's it for now. Play nice, stay warm and wear a hat. See you soon.

Update:

I missed this bit of good news about Lt Ehren Watada last week. More about Watada here if you're not familiar with his story of refusing to serve in Iraq and subsequently being prosecuted for it. Score one for conscientious objectors.
 

Canadian News Roundup

Busy getting ready to move next week but these stories caught my eye:

- Pigs do fly. Steve is going to investigate his bff Brian Mulroney. He didn't exactly have much of a choice though, did he? (h/t penlan)

- If elected, Dion vows to slash poverty rates. He'd better have a different plan than the last Liberal government or that's just another empty promise. (Have you seen those ridiculously immature ads being run to mock Dion? Did the election campaign start and I missed it or what? If the Conservatives think they have to run ads like that during the off-season, that shows they must be a tad scared of what might happen to them when the next election is really called. They're looking desperate, don't you think?)

- Speaking of ads, I don't know who produced this video clip in response to the immoral Conservatives refusing to seek clemency for Canadians on death row in countries that are democracies (and are they kidding thinking the US is anything resembling a democracy these days with its horrendous human and civil rights abuses and a boy king at the helm who relished his days executing people in Texas?), but kudos to whoever took the time to put the clip together. And speaking of the death penalty, if you missed Bill Moyers' Journal on Friday nite, watch the interview with Thomas Cahill online. It's definitely worth seeing.

- The Center for Constitutional Rights (please visit their site) has launched Maher Arar's appeal but they'll have to get past the "national security" hurdle that resulted in the case being dismissed in a lower court. On another front in this case:

NEW YORK - Gasps broke out in a U.S. federal appeals court Friday as a U.S. government lawyer spoke of Maher Arar's "unequivocal membership of al-Qaida."

One of the court's three sitting judges echoed the reaction of many in the public gallery, declaring the statement stunned him too.

Not only has a Canadian judicial inquiry cleared Arar of having any terrorism links, but U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has admitted the U.S. government did not properly handle his case.

"It was kind of a shocking statement with which to start," Judge Robert Sack told Dennis Barghaan, one of three government attorneys opposing Arar's bid to see his lawsuit against the U.S. government reinstated.

Arar lawyer Maria Lahood hinted outside the courtroom the judge's reaction bodes well for Arar's case.

"To me, it was a sign the judge knew this was an innocent man," she said.

One can only guess what kind of bullshit "evidence" has been manufactured to back up that supposed al Qaeda link.

- New Khadr witness discovered. That could be a major development. In the meantime, our useless federal government is still leaving Omar Khadr to rot in Gitmo. If it had any concern for "Canada's standing in the world" (which it claims to when it defends continuing our presence in Afghanistan), it would actually try to help Khadr get out of legal limbo. In this case though, pigs won't be flying anytime soon.

- Looking for an old movie to rent this weekend? If you haven't seen it (and I'm sure some of you young whippersnappers out there haven't), check out In the Name of the Father. Caution: It will remind you of the Bush regime. Prepare to be infuriated.

If you live in Calgary, I'm looking for 3 (free) things: a wireless router for the new place, a dvd player (I've never owned one besides the one I have in this used laptop I recently got - really) and a flat panel monitor (any size) to replace my gargantuan 21" monitor that's as heavy as a teevee and which I'll either trade or give away. Drop me a line. My e-mail's up there on the left and the bonus, of course, is that you'd get to meet anonymous me in real life (oh how exciting!!). No stalkers please. My life is already interesting enough, thanks. (And yes, I belong to Freecycle™ and have posted wanted ads there and elsewhere).

I also found a local guy who's into recycling/refurbishing computer stuff that he then gives away to those in need. Just gave away my old 486 that I was using as a footstool. Glad someone can use it for its real purpose. I used it for years. (Yes, I'm still stuck in the 90s). If you want his number, let me know.

One last thing, my movers collect and donate things for Afghan/Pakistani refugees settling in the Calgary area. If you have something to donate, e-mail me and I'll forward your e-mail to them. I know someone did e-mail me the last time I mentioned them but I lost the e-mail. Sorry.
 

Bush's Culture of Death

The cover story of The Independent newspaper today, "Bush's lethal legacy: more executions" alerts its readers to the fact that Alberto Gonzales may soon be given the ultimate authority in death penalty cases.

The Bush administration is preparing to speed up the executions of criminals who are on death row across the United States, in effect, cutting out several layers of appeals in the federal courts so that prisoners can be "fast-tracked" to their deaths.

More details from the LA Times:

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is putting the final touches on regulations that could give Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales important new sway over death penalty cases in California and other states, including the power to shorten the time that death row inmates have to appeal convictions to federal courts.

The rules implement a little-noticed provision [probably because none of the legislators actually cared that it was in there or even bothered to read the bill since they seldom do. -catnip] in last year's reauthorization of the Patriot Act that gives the attorney general the power to decide whether individual states are providing adequate counsel for defendants in death penalty cases. The authority has been held by federal judges.

Under the rules now being prepared, if a state requested it and Gonzales agreed, prosecutors could use "fast track" procedures that could shave years off the time that a death row inmate has to appeal to the federal courts after conviction in a state court.

The Independent looks at Gonzales' horrendously careless track record in Texas where he also dealt with death penalty cases with Bush and there's no need to wonder aloud why Bush would want to grant Gonzales such power considering they've both dedicated themselves to destroying the legal, civil and human rights of Americans for such a long time. Nor do I feel the need to argue against the death penalty, as I've done that extensively here before.

I do think that this quote from The Independent illustrates the ultimate hypocrisy though and needs to be focused on:

At no time has Mr Bush seen any contradiction with his avowed commitment to the sanctity of life. As President he has even instituted a National Sanctity of Human Life Day, which, he has said, "serves as a reminder we must value human life in all its forms, not just those considered healthy, wanted, or convenient".

Contrast that with how he mocked Karla Faye Tucker when she was on death row in Texas and you know all there is to know about Bush's views about the so-called "sanctity" of life - a term that only applies to fetuses - not to those who are already born.

If he actually had any concern for the "sanctity" of life, he would not choose to hide the coffins of the troops returning home from his failed wars. Of course, "No one suffers more" than George and Laura when it comes to the Iraq war. "No one". If he really valued life, he would take it upon himself to actually attend some of their funerals and would never have lied, sending thousands of Americans to their deaths while causing the deaths and displacement of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis at the same time - all for the sake of fattening the bank accounts of his war profiteering buddies. Blood money.

He would never have told Brownie that he was doing a "heckuva job" while people were still dying from the gross negligence of FEMA and his administration in NOLA and elsewhere in the gulf region. He would not have foisted Reaganesque "trickle down economics"/tax cuts for the wealthy on the American people believing that somehow the poor would eventually benefit. He would not neglect the fact that over 40 million Americans don't have health care coverage - making his government complicit in their daily pain, suffering and deaths. He would actually embrace science instead of treating it like a cult meant to undermine religion. He wouldn't have spent almost half a trillion dollars on the war machine - bankrupting future generations, those fetuses he claims to care about so much who, guaranteed, will certainly suffer much more than George and Laura ever have or could even conceive.

There are a lot of things he would do if he believed in that so-called "sanctity".

And now he wants to kill death row inmates more quickly - yet another manifestation of his sociopathic personality in which the word "compassion" exists somewhere between "callous" and "conservative" in the dictionary.

There is no nobility to be found in participating in the deaths of your fellow countrymen. There is no glory to be had by hastening their deaths. There is no pulpit to stand and preach from, exalting your moral supremacy, when you choose to deny justice to people sentenced to die.

There ought to be a totally shameful sense of failure when you've (once again) placed yourself in the company of the some of the world's worst human rights abusers (countries you condemn) while you lie about your justice system being the "best" in the world.

2006 executions

China: 1,010+

Iran: 177

Pakistan: 82

Iraq: 65+

Sudan: 65+

USA: 53

Saudi Arabia: 39+

Yemen: 30+

Vietnam: 14

Kuwait: 10+

Source: Amnesty International, based on 2006 figures

+ symbol indicates that the figure is a minimum one; the true figure may be higher due to state secrecy or a lack of available information

But in order to feel shame you need to have a conscience, and people like Bush and Gonzales and those who support their culture of death have never proven that they do. They are predictably and unapologetically apathetic - these task maskers of death.
 

Montana Votes to Abolish the Death Penalty

It was a very close vote with what looks like quite an interesting debate:

After a lengthy debate in which lawmakers quoted Jesus, Thomas Jefferson and Ted Bundy, the Senate voted 27-22 to approve the measure.

Yet, the Democratic-controlled senate decided to go against public opinion that favoured the death penalty by moving to abolish it.

Onward, Montana!

(I think the fact that Montana borders Canada has something to do with it. Next thing you know, they'll turn into a haven of that dreaded "socialism" we have here too. This isn't your daddy's wild, wild west anymore.)

h/t JJB