The marines are tracking down Vietnam-era deserters, presumably to emphasize to the current force that desertion isn’t an option.

The prosecution may well have totally screwed any chance of the so-called 20th hijacker getting the death penalty.

ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 13 — The sentencing trial of Zacarias Moussaoui teetered on the brink of a mistrial today, as the judge in the case angrily said she might spare him the death penalty following the disclosure that a government lawyer had improperly coached some witnesses. “In all my years on the bench, I’ve never seen a more egregious violation of the rule about witnesses,” Judge Leonie M. Brinkema said.

Shouldn’t this be a slam dunk? Isn’t Moussaoui (a) barking mad and (b) representing himself? They can’t win under those circumstances, so they have to CHEAT, even knowing what the stakes are? Wow.

More here.

They’re going ahead with the RFID passport scheme despite grave concerns about its security. Trust us: we Heathen know from RFID, and this is a bad idea. A very bad idea.

Catholic Charities in Boston will stop helping to place ANY foster children in permanent homes rather than facilitate same-sex adoption.

The controversy began in October when the Globe reported that Catholic Charities had been quietly processing a small number of gay adoptions, despite Vatican statements condemning the practice. Over the last decades, the Globe reported, approximately 13 children had been placed by Catholic Charities in gay households, a fraction of the 720 children placed by the agency during that period.

Yeah, you read that right; 13 out of 720. They’re willing to bail on the 707 to keep from helping the baker’s dozen. Nice move, kids. Clearly, dogma is more important than compassion, though we Heathen think your ultimate boss may disagree.

AT&T is buying BellSouth. Didn’t we break this company up once already?

The White House is spooling up an effort to actively discourage aggressive coverage of itself, including threats of jail time for journalists under espionage laws.

We’re sure this is easier than, say, not trying to legalize torture, for example.

The DHS may come snooping if you do something suspicious, like pay off a credit card.

As it turns out, Bush was given a detailed briefing before Katrina:

WASHINGTON — In dramatic and sometimes agonizing terms, federal disaster officials warned President Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees, put lives at risk in New Orleans’ Superdome and overwhelm rescuers, according to confidential video footage. Bush didn’t ask a single question during the final briefing before Katrina struck on Aug. 29, but he assured soon-to-be-battered state officials: “We are fully prepared.” The footage _ along with seven days of transcripts of briefings obtained by The Associated Press _ show in excruciating detail that while federal officials anticipated the tragedy that unfolded in New Orleans and elsewhere along the Gulf Coast, they were fatally slow to realize they had not mustered enough resources to deal with the unprecedented disaster. Linked by secure video, Bush’s confidence on Aug. 28 starkly contrasts with the dire warnings his disaster chief and a cacophony of federal, state and local officials provided during the four days before the storm.

Just to be clear, since the press seems to be missing it, this means that not only did PLENTY of people anticipate the levee’s failure (contrary to Bush’s claim), but some of those people BRIEFED HIM ON THAT VERY POSSIBILITY only days before he lied to everyone about it.

Which is funnier: Defamer’s Hermione and the Corona of Fire or their eponymous site’s Hermione Granger and the Hangover of Doom“?

The Feds are prosecuting Forrest County, Mississippi sheriff Billy McGhee for seizing a pair of 18-wheelers full of ice on September 4, in the wake of Katrina. Said 18-wheelers were intended for aid, and the area in question needed aid.

Nice.

Via TPM.

Read this to find out. Here’s a tidbit I didn’t know: many if not most are there on scant real evidence, as they were turned over to US forces by rival Afghanis with little or no documentation. Don’t like your neighbor? Tell the Yanks he works for Osama!

NYT sues Pentagon over domestic spying.

Because otherwise, the jackasses in charge can get away with crap like this.

Microsoft’s next iteration of Windows will come in SIX versions. We don’t know whose idea this was, but their notion of “clear communication with the marketplace” is pretty jacked up.

This isn’t a simple whistle-blower thing, since the guy in question is an employee of Diebold’s law firm, not Diebold directly, but it still looks pretty shitty.

Florida cops threaten people who ask for complaint forms.

We’ve been too busy to follow this closely, but what Bruce says makes an awful damn lot of sense.

Fafblog weighs in on the cartoon controversy. It begins like this, and then gets even better:

“What if it’s not really a picture of Mohammed,” says me, “just a picture of a picture of Mohammed?” “Metablasphemy!” says Giblets. “It is sacrilegious and pretentious!” “What if it just looks like a picture a Mohammed but it’s really a picture a Jesus wearin a real good Mohammed costume?” says me. “Then it is pretend blasphemy,” says Giblets. “God can’t tell the difference. He has to smite you just to make sure.”

(Their follow-up is deliciously pointed as well.)

Go read this. He’s right. Again.

It turns out, at least according to BoingBoing that Google Video allows the uploader to determine what countries may or may not view the file. Ergo, whomever uploaded the IED video decided that USAians need not see it, not Google.

Bob Parsons points out they’re trying to control the .COM registry. Forever.

Apparently, the Houston Police chief wants to deploy an awful lot of surveillance cameras on private property.

Look what Screenhead found when they tried a link for an Iraqi weapons-cache explosion:

Via BoingBoing. Rep. Lantos grills Yahoo on their bullshit behavior in China.

Cheney’s finally owning up, but only after three days of people calling “bullshit” on his attempt to blame his victim. What happened to the GOP being all about values and character?

Read this:

You may not be interested in the digital rights war, but that doesn’t mean you’ll have the luxury of sitting on the sidelines. Because the other side is very, very interested in you.

Implanting them to replace key cards. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

(Via BoingBoing.)

The Austin American Statesman is reporting that Whittington was hit with around 100 pellets.

A 28-gauge shell only has about 300 pellets in it. This absolutely does not square with the “thirty yards” bit we’ve been fed earlier. Overnight observation is one thing, too, but Whittington is by all accounts still hospitalized three days later. If you hit someone with 1/3 of the load in as tight a pattern as his injuries suggest (lower face, chest, left shoulder), and he’s in the hospital for days on end, well, your unfortunate hunting parter was substantially closer than 30 yards.

(Paul Begala agrees.)

This editorial in the Charlotte Observer backs up what we said yesterday: it is, unequivocably, Cheney’s fault. The writer goes further, too, in exploring the other questionable aspects to this “hunt.” If he’s such an accomplished and avid hunter, he ought to know all the rules listed therein.

Of course, the White House continues to assert it was Whittington at fault, which is plainly bullshit, and is fortunately being called as such:

Several hunting experts were skeptical of McClellan’s explanation. They said Cheney might have violated a cardinal rule of hunting: Know your surroundings before you pull the trigger. “Particularly identify the game that you are shooting and particularly identify your surroundings, that it’s safe to shoot,” said Mark Birkhauser, the incoming president of the International Hunter Education Association, a group of fish and wildlife agencies. “Every second, you’re adjusting your personal information that it is a safe area to shoot or it’s not a safe area to shoot.” Safe-hunting rules published by the National Rifle Association and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department echo Birkhauser’s advice. “Be absolutely sure you have identified your target beyond any doubt,” the NRA says in the gun-safety rules on its Web site. “Equally important, be aware of the area beyond your target. This means observing your prospective area of fire before you shoot. Never fire in a direction in which there are people or any other potential for mishap. Think first. Shoot second.”

There’s more feedback from real hunters here.

From Yahoo/AP:

CHICAGO — The American Bar Association denounced President Bush’s warrantless domestic surveillance program Monday, accusing him of exceeding his powers under the Constitution. The program has prompted a heated debate about presidential powers in the war on terror since it was disclosed in December. The nation’s largest organization of lawyers adopted a policy opposing any future government use of electronic surveillance in the United States for foreign intelligence purposes without first obtaining warrants from a special court set up under the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The 400,000-member ABA said that if the president believes the FISA is inadequate to protect Americans, he should to ask Congress to amend the act. Bush and his administration have defended the warrantless eavesdropping, saying it is needed to fill a gap in U.S. security and is allowable under both the president’s constitutional powers and the congressional measure authorizing him to go to war in September 2001. The ABA has urged Congress to affirm that when it authorized Bush to go to war, it did not intend to endorse warrantless spying.

(Thanks to Triple-F, who appears to be recovering nicely.)

(Click for full-size.)

A Federal judge has approved a PATRIOT act request to review someone’s email records (to and from whom, but not contents or subjects) despite the fact that there is no evidence of criminal behavior by the person in question.

“Thanks for your service, son. Sorry about your arm. Now pay up for your lost body armor.”

From MSNBC:

Feb. 13, 2006 issue — In the latest twist in the debate over presidential powers, a Justice Department official suggested that in certain circumstances, the president might have the power to order the killing of terrorist suspects inside the United States.

So now they’re down not just on checks & balances, judicial review, the separation of powers, and due process, but also on the whole idea of a trial. Excellent. What country is this again?

First, we have this crack in the GOP veneer, via UPI:

WASHINGTON, Feb. 5 (UPI) — Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, says President George W. Bush’s warrantless surveillance program appears to be illegal.

A newly released memo makes it very, very clear that Bush was determined to invade Iraq from the get-go despite his assurances to the contrary. Remember “We are doing everything we can to avoid war in Iraq?” MeFi does.

Now they’re going after non-dilutive usages of brands in art; a bill that’s passed the House already would prohibit, among other things, some famous paintings. Read more here. Remember, trademarks are meant to prevent marketplace confusion, not give exclusive rights to a given word or image. (Via MeFi.)

The End of the Internet? From The Nation. Read it.

Their take on the impending RIM shutdown:

This one, when Bush tried to slam Congress for their refusal to gut Social Security last year, and in response the Democrats present stood and clapped. GOP response? Stony silence. Beautiful.

Watch. It’s fantastic.

Western Union no longer sends telegrams. (Via JWZ.)

You’ll have to be be content with facsimiles via email or post.

.–. .-. . … ..- — .- -… .-.. -.– –..– / – …. .. … / -.. — . … -. .—-. – / .. — .–. .-.. -.– / – …. . / … .. — ..- .-.. – .- -. . — ..- … / . -..- – .. -. -.-. – .. — -. / — ..-. / – …. . / … – .-. .. .–. .–. . .-. –. .-. .- — .-.-.-

“It hurts my think-bone.”

If you voted for cloture today, you can kiss my ass. And Lieberman? Just fucking switch parties already. You suck.

The BBC is marking Easter with a somewhat nontraditional celebration. Said party will include …

…an hour-long live procession through the streets of Manchester featuring pop stars from The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays and featuring songs by The Smiths and New Order. In the programme, called Manchester Passion, a character representing Jesus will sing the legendary Joy Division anthem Love Will Tear Us Apart before dueting his arch-betrayer Judas on the New Order hit Blue Monday, according to senior church sources involved in the production. Mary Magdelene, the penitent whore of the New Testament, is also getting in on the act: she is being lined up to sing the Buzzcocks hit Ever Fallen in Love (with Someone You Shouldn’t have) accompanied by a string band. Former Happy Monday and Celebrity Big Brother winner Bez will play a disciple. The climax of the event sees Jesus sing the Smiths classic song Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now as he is being flayed by Roman soldiers.

You just can’t make this stuff up.

Chris Penn was found dead in his home today.

Cintra Wilson had our favorite piece on this particular Penn, from 2004 in Salon:

But then came the jewel in the crown of Christopher Penn’s acting career, and this was Abel Ferrara’s “The Funeral” (1996), where Chris plays a mentally ill suicidal gangster. Either Chris Penn has the best imagination ever captured on film, or the Penn boys’ emotional color wheels are naturally so supremely black that they make Sylvia Plath’s look like sample chips for baby’s bedroom. Chris was able to inhabit a Jungian shadow-self that any sane angel would fear to tread, in such a hardcore and chilling performance it makes it impossible not to presume that he has actually endured some bone-splinteringly dark nights of the soul. This is the apotheosis of Chris Penn. He is an Italian gangster hovering over the open casket of his little brother (Vincent Gallo, an ideal corpse). His face paints an entire road map of emotions. He grabs Gallo’s suit. “My baby brother,” he whimpers, his mouth grimacing in despair. He dissolves into tears. Then, he remembers himself: He’s a mobster. The tears turn ugly. He starts hacking out involuntary grief noises that get louder and louder until they escalate into a screaming, spitting, casket-pounding fury. Christopher Walken and other black-clad, sallow-eyed Italo-actorini try to restrain him. Chris Penn’s bloodshot eyes go momentarily wide and satanic — a murderous plot appears in his brain like a fever blister. Then — he knows it won’t help — he dissolves into blubbering grief again. Then, with a swallow, he snaps his head, pulls himself together, wipes his face, wetly kisses Walken on the face. He is drained, he’s wrecked, but he is OK to go to the buffet table.

Google is now, unequivocally, evil.

Conservative newsmag Insight is reporting that the Administration fears impeachment may result from the domestic spying inquiry; a (presumably bipartisan) coalition is said to be forming in support of the move. In a GOP-controlled Congress.

The entitled “hope” isn’t that Bush be impeached, mind you. It’s a hope that the Rule of Law is still what governs us, and that our government as an extension of ourselves can be trusted to behave accordingly, at least in its Legislative arm. What Bush has done far exceeds any impeachable sins committed by Clinton, but it’s still a disaster to be in a position for this remedy is appropriate.

Via Atrios, we learn the following:

1. In 2002, Sen. DeWine (R-OH) proposed a bill that would have lowered the standard required for obtaining a FISA warrant;
2. It is these easy-to-get warrants that Bush has refused to get in re: his illegal domestic spying initiative;
3. The proposed law was opposed by the Bush DoJ on Constitutional grounds.

The Beast provides their list of the 50 Most Loathsome People in America of 2005. We are in particular pleased with Nos. 49, 45, 44, 25, 24, 21, 19, 15, 11, 7, 5, 3, 2, and 1.