Court Upholds the "Protect Act"

In a notable decision, the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 that an online child pornography law was constitutional. An earlier law was struck down in 2002 as being too vague. Read in the New York Times or the Christian Science Monitor for an understanding of how the Court balanced freedom of expression vs. the government's role in protecting children.

CA Supreme Court Okays Gay Marriage

Massachusetts and California are the only two states that currently allow gay marriages. (As opposed to civil unions, which some other states allow.) As you can see in the photo there was a lot of celebration among the California proponents of gay marriage. This story is far from over however, as those opposed to the ruling can use California's constitution to try to undo the Court's ruling. Read the following for details. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2004415750_apgaymarriage.html

Does Obama Have the Nomination Locked Up?

After winning decisively in the North Carolina primary, and finishing a close second in Indiana, it looks almost impossible for Hillary Clinton to catch up to Obama. The race isn't over yet, but things continue to go Obama's way. Here is the latest:

Obama hauls in 9 superdelegates - The latest numbers are included in this article as of 3:00 pm on Friday

Cyclone Disaster in Burma/Myanmar

This is a tragedy that may get worse because the paranoid dictatorship of the nation is making it very difficult for aid agencies to get into the country. According to MSNBC:

Six days after the disaster, relief aid has been delivered to only 220,000 of an
estimated 1.9 million people in need, the Red Cross says.

Read the full article: 'Nightmare' in Myanmar aid relief

Also, for background on the military junta that runs Myanmar you can check this out: Fact file: Myanmar's junta.

Burma: Perfect example of why there is more to democracy than just holding elections

This reminds me a lot of what they used to do in the Soviet Union. Or Iraq under Saddam Hussein. Or any number of other autocratic regimes trying to masquerade as democracies.

The military government in Myanmar (also known as Burma) is holding a referendum on a new constitution in about a month. Only is won't be a fair election. Read here to find out why.

In the meanwhile, it is good that Congress is giving support to Aung San Sui Kyi.

Why Are So Many Americans in Jail?

From today's New York Times came this news:

"The United States has less than 5 percent of the world’s population. But it has almost a quarter of the world’s prisoners."

Now, I knew that the incarceration rate in this country is bad, especially for the poor and racial and ethnic minorities, but these statistics did take me by surprise.

Read more and think about due process. Inmate Count in U.S. Dwarfs Other Nations’ Tell me your thoughts.

Hillary Wins Pennsylvania

Hillary Clinton won a convincing victory in the Pennsylvania primary tonight. The 10% margin of victory will energize her supporters and campaign donors. It will also ensure that the campaign between she and Obama will continue for at least a few more weeks.

Some Democrats are getting pretty nervous that this thing hasn't been settled yet and it may make it more difficult for the Democrats in the general election in November.

What do you think?

World Food Crisis on the Horizon?

Like too many other Americans, I ate more calories worth of food than I needed today. In fact, the extra plate of pasta I had at dinner was probably bad for my long term health.

Yet, as many of us in the developed world overeat, hunger still exists in our world, and it might get a lot worse if we don't act soon. As if this world doesn't have enough problems, the World Food Program is now warning the world of a 'silent tsunami' of hunger.

Like the problem of carbon emissions and global warming, this problem shows that with over 6 billion people on the planet, we have to be smarter and more fair in how we use our resources. Read the article, and think about whether or not basic nutrition is a fundamental human right. Frankin Roosevelt gave a famous speech just prior to WWII in which he said that the "Four Freedoms" worth fighting for were freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom from fear, and freedom from want. In today's news, Prime Minister Gordon Wood of Great Britain said that, "Tackling hunger is a moral challenge to each of us."

What responsibilities does the world have to make sure that all on our planet have enough to eat, and what does the article suggest can be done about it?

Death Penalty Issues at the Supreme Court

One case was decided and one case was argued on Wednesday. The Court let stand as constitutional the method of lethal injection used in Kentucky. The Court opinions were varied in the case however, not necessarily providing a lot of clarity in this area.

They also heard a case that goes to perhaps an even more controversial question: should the death penalty be applied to people convicted of crimes other than murder? Only murderers have received the death sentence in the last several decades, but the case before the court involves a particularly heinous rape of a child that did not result in death.

These involve 8th Amendment and due process issues. Read about them and let me know what you think.

ABC Newscasters: Pandering yellow journalists?

The political world has been buzzing today over the types of questions that were asked at last night's debate. For more on the criticism, see this: ABC criticized for handling of Democratic debate

If you saw the debate, or just highlights on the news or in the paper, let me know what you thought. I think you can guess my reaction.

Spring Break News

Spring Break!

It has been so nice to have time off! Sadly it comes to an end Monday morning, but I guess we wouldn't appreciate free time without work/school.

I've had computer problems and haven't posted yet this week, so I'll kind of list a few stories you might be interested in commenting on:

The Olympic Torch has drawn lots of protesters in cities around the globe. Tibetans and others concerned about human rights abuses by the Chinese government have been out in force. As a result, a lot of focus has been on Tibet's ruler-in-exile, the Dalai Lama. It is an interesting coincidence that he is here in Seattle this week at a huge event dubbed "Seeds of Compassion".

General David Patraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker testified before Congress on the state of the military operations in Iraq and the results of the surge. Bottom line - no quick end to the Iraq war.

The infamous "torture memo" of 2003 was finally released to the public in this past week. The 80-something page report by the White House legal office encouraged and endorsed as appropriate the use of many techniques of rough interrogation that are widely considered torture by human rights groups, international law, and U.S. law. The argument basically said that it was all legit in a time of war under the President's authority as commander-in-chief. That is quite a lot of reading between the lines of Article II, Section II of the Constitution. Sadly, little was done to protest the recommendations by the President's closest advisors.

The political battle for President goes on. The most interesting rumor I heard over the past week is that some are urging John McCain to choose Condoleeza Rice as his running mate. It would make for an interesting race....

Lots more has been happening, but that's all from me for now!

Enjoy the rest of Spring Break! The sun is shining this morning, and if it's not when you read this, it will be back soon. Until then, maybe this video will cheer you up!

Update: Sunday Morning -
Here are some links to stories mentioned above -

PBS Newshour News for Students
Memo Reveals Bush Administration Legal Theory on Interrogation

Coverage in the New York Times:
’03 U.S. Memo Approved Harsh Interrogations
Petraeus Urges Halt in Weighing New Cut in Force

Coverage from the Christian Science Monitor:
Amid human rights protests, a look at China's record - - Freedoms have improved tremendously in the past 25 years, but Chinese people today face plenty of red lines.
Olympic torch rallying China's critics
Petraeus to Congress: reassess Iraq before further troop cuts

Listening and Reading at NPR:
Continued Protests Plague Beijing Olympics

From the Seattle Times:
China Outraged by US-Tibet Resolution
Politics follows Dalai Lama to Seattle
Dalai Lama kicks off Seattle visit with 3 events
Compassion — and action? - Coverage of Day 2 of Dalai Lama's visit
Rossi, Gregoire raising money for governor's race at record clip

AND I really should have included something on the government's raid on the religious compound in El Dorado, Texas. The government raided the temple and arrested many in the polygamist sect that has been accused of sexual abuse of minors. Lots of constitutional issues involved here. Summary article of events here.

ALSO - Should governments help out professional sports franchises by using public money to build new stadiums and arenas? The on-going conflict with the Seattle Supersonics led to evidence this week that the team's owners have not been negotiating in good faith. Governor says we've all "been lied to" on Sonics.

McCain's Foreign Policy Speech

John McCain, not having to worry about a primary battle anymore, traveled to Iraq and other locations in the Middle East last week, and got to look very Presidential in the press coverage - a big advantage of having the nomination sewn up.

He returned and made a major policy speech on foreign policy. You can read about it in The Seattle Times. Now, I take campaign promises with a grain of salt, and I'm not sure about how McCain will specifically do these things - I didn't hear details in the report on the speech. However, foreign policy is supposed to be his strong suit and I was happy to hear him say two things:

1. He believes the U.S. needs to work to restore it's image around the world and adopt less of a "go it alone" attitude that we have seen from the Bush Administration.

"Today we are not alone," McCain said. "Our great power does not mean we
can do whatever we want whenever we want, nor should we assume we have all the
wisdom and knowledge necessary to succeed."

2. He called for a reduction in nuclear arms. McCain called for U.S.-led worldwide reduction in nuclear weapons:

"We do not need all the weapons currently in our arsenal." He offered no
specifics.

3. He said that America should not torture prisoners and should close Guantanamo Bay.

Unfortunately, McCain is going to have a hard time (in my opinion) convincing the rest of the world that he is a different sort of President than Bush unless he begins to indicate that we will do things much differently in Iraq and begin to withdraw our troops from that country. Much of the world, rightly or wrongly, sees our presence there as a manifestation of American arrogance, and that won't go away until we take some meaningful action. Closing Guantanamo Bay will not be enough - we must also reduce our military presence in Iraq as soon as possible.

Violent Clashes in Iraq the Week

The overall level of violence in Iraq has been down the last few months. However, this week, new violence has emerged both in Baghdad and especially in the southern city of Basra where there have been clashes between the Iraqi security forces and militas that are loyal to a Shiite religious leader named Moqtada al-Sadr.

Sadr's forces have been observing a cease-fire for the past 7 months, but there are fears that the cease-fire may be coming apart. The militias feel they are being unfairly targeted by the Iraqi government headed by Nouri al-Maliki, who has giving the militias until the end of the week to lay down their arms. There is coverage all over the news, but a good place to start might be with the BBC, "Milita Battles Threaten Fragile Iraq", and thy have links to background reports as well to help you understand what is going on.

The Christian Science Monitor's coverage also helps you understand what is going on between the rival factions in Iraq: Basra fight widens rift among Shiite factions

Should China Be Hosting the Olympics?

I think it is a tough question. The Chinese government is steadfast in it's refusal to acknowledge or improve the human rights situation in their country. They have obstructed efforts to bring the government of Sudan to account for the atrocities in Sudan, and are blaming the Dalai Lama for what is going on in Tibet.

The fact is, though, that the Olympic Torch is making its way toward Beijing and most people would argue that it isn't fair to the athletes to pull out of the Olympics.

However, a high profile event like the Olympics does give protesters a chance to bring to the world's attention the misdeeds of the Chinese government. Exhibit A is the protest that occured this week in Greece.

How Many Have Died in Iraq?

It isn't an easy question to answer. As the official toll of U.S. military deaths creeps closer to 4,000, it is still very difficult to assess how many Iraqis have died as a result of the conflict. The British newspaper the Guardian explains in this article.

5 years of war in Iraq

I heard in the car on my way home from MRHS that at the beginning of the war on March 19, 2003, 70% of the American public was in favor of the war. I wasn't. I still have my "NO IRAQ WAR" sign in the trunk of my 1985 Honda Accord (that no longer runs).

Today, over 53% of Americans believe it was a mistake to invade Iraq. (Also, I would add that it was a clear violation of international law - look it up and decide for yourself.)

President Bush gave a speech today saying the war was the right thing to do. He claims the "troop surge" has been a success as violence is down from one year ago. Still, Iraq is a mess, and Bush says we need to stay longer to "finish the job". His poll ratings are at an all time low. (So are those of Congress.)

What are your thoughts on the war and where we go from here?

Click here for lots of good coverage, including multi-media.

Obama Gave a Very Important Speech

UPDATED POST - 6:00 pm.
If you read Kimberly's post from last week, or followed the campaign news over the weekend, you know that there has been an uproar over parts of sermons that the pastor of Barack Obama's church gave in the past.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright, the now-retired pastor, had used some very strong language critical of the United States and U.S. foreign policy. (BTW - most of these sermons were given a few years ago, before Obama became a senator. But what some people are asking is how could he attend a church with a pastor that would say such things.)

Obama gave a speech yesterday, that not only addressed his relationship with Rev. Wright, but really laid out some important issues that we are dealing with in this country. At least I thought it was a great speech. What did you think?

You can listen to it here: http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/hisownwords/ ; read a trancript of the speech here, or read the coverage in any of the major news outlets.

I am so curious to see how America receives this speech. But I am fearful that people will not look at the complexity of the issue Obama tried to address. The intellecutally lazy will be tempted to simply retreat back into old stereotypes of what "blacks are like" and what "whites are like". Obama was calling on blacks, whites, and also Asians, Latinos, and others to try to understand each others attitudes and to reach out to one another to bridge the differences that we have inherited from a divided an ugly history of race in the U.S. It is so important for all of us to understand that history, and to understand how to use our constitutional system to make "a more perfect union".

I loved this speech not only because I support Barack's candidacy, but the message he was trying to get across is one of the goals upon which I have built my teaching career - trying to get diverse Americans to empathize with, and understand one another. Only Barack can deliver the message much more effectively and reach a lot more people than I ever will.

Tibetans Rise Up Against Chinese Rule

Peaceful protests by monks led to a violence after Chinese police harshly cracked down on them late this week.

Some video from the Associated Press has been uploaded to youtube at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nAsIpm_Wvw&eurl=http://news.google.com/nwshp?hl=en&tab=wn

UPDATE:

The violence has continued, with the Chinese police cracking down hard on Buddhist monks and others who have demonstrated against the Chinese government. They are accusing the Dalai Lama of orchestrating the protests.

The Communist Party that controls China is not only cruel, but foolish, and an embarassment to itself. Denying basic political freedoms to 1/6 of the world's population will never make them great leaders.

The question for us, is how do we stand in solidarity with Chinese dissidents and hold the government accountable?

Here are some links to coverage of this important story:

Tourist video shows riot, flames in Tibetan capital (from CNN with Video)

Police keep tight lid on Tibet after protests
The region sees its biggest demonstrations in 20 years.

China blocks YouTube, reporters over Tibet news
Broad Internet controls have blocked YouTube and most chat rooms.

Why Tibetan monks are protesting now
The Olympics in China offer Tibetans a chance to draw world attention to human rights issues.

For Beijing, Tibet threat is 'life and death'
Officials say exiled leaders seek independence to break up China.

Q&A: China and Tibet

Profile: The Dalai Lama

more on obama

(CNN) — Barack Obama's Chicago minister, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, is under fresh scrutiny, after an ABC News report Thursday shed light on some of his controversial sermons.
In one delivered last December, Wright argues Hillary Clinton's road to the White House is considerably easier than Barack Obama's because of his skin color.
"Hillary was not a black boy raised in a single parent home. Barack was," Wright says in a video of the sermon posted on YouTube.
"Barack knows what it means to be a black man living in a country and a culture that is controlled by rich white people. Hillary! Hillary ain't never been called a 'nigger!' Hillary has never had her people defined as a non-person," a fiery Wright also says.
Wright, who retired from his post earlier this year, also is seen saying in the video, "Who cares about what a poor black man has to face every day in a country and in a culture controlled by rich white people?"
Wright's sermon shortly after the September 11, 2001 terrorism attacks is also under scrutiny, during which he said America had brought on the attacks with its own practice of terrorism.
"We bombed Hiroshima, we bombed Nagasaki, and we nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye," he says. "We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans, and now we are indignant. Because the stuff we have done overseas has now brought right back into our own front yards. America's chickens are coming home to roost."
Obama and Wright have long been close. Obama has been a member of Wright's church since his days in law school, and Obama's bestselling book, The Audacity of Hope, takes its title from one of Wright's sermons. Wright also married the Obamas and baptized their two children.
But Obama has long maintained he is at odds with some of Wright's sermons, and has likened him to an "old uncle" who sometimes will say things he doesn't agree with. He has also specifically denounced Wright's 9/11 comments.
An Obama campaign spokesman also said Thursday the Illinois senator "deplores divisive statements whether they come from his supporters, the supporters of his opponent, talk radio, or anywhere else."
UPDATE: Speaking with the Pittsburgh Tribune Review, Obama said, "I profoundly disagree with some of these statements."
"Here is what happens when you just cherry-pick statements from a guy who had a 40-year career as a pastor. There are times when people say things that are just wrong. But I think it's important to judge me on what I've said in the past and what I believe," he also said.






so i'll post alot about obama usually because he is definitely who i want to be pres =D . anyway i hate how people are judging him on what his pastor said not what he believes. its not fair to him. why should it even matter in the first place. anyway let me know your thoughts =D

No Random Student Drug Testing in Our State!

Article in this morning's Seattle Times. I gotta go get ready for work, and can't comment in depth, but as someone who prizes civil liberties, I'm happy to see our WA State Supreme Court make this ruling. A great example of individual liberties vs. promoting the general welfare, with regard to search and seizure.