In 1917, the U.S. Congress gave U.S. citizenship to Puerto Ricans when they were drafted to participate in World War I, as part of the Jones Act.
Showing posts with label war. Show all posts
Showing posts with label war. Show all posts
Monday, July 11, 2011
WW1 - Germany Asks Mexico To Join the Fight Against the USA
World War I - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In January 1917, Germany resumed unrestricted submarine warfare. The German Foreign minister, in the Zimmermann Telegram, told Mexico that U.S. entry was likely once unrestricted submarine warfare began, and invited Mexico to join the war as Germany's ally against the United States. In return, the Germans would send Mexico money and help it recover the territories of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona that Mexico lost during the Mexican-American War 70 years earlier.[99] Wilson released the Zimmerman note to the public and Americans saw it as a casus belli—a cause for war.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Puerto Rico police chief quits amid crime concerns
Amplify’d from www.miamiherald.com
Puerto Rico police chief quits amid crime concerns
Raid opens window into notorious Puerto Rico slum
Raid opens window into notorious Puerto Rico slum
It was always Puerto Rico's most famous slum, and the most picturesque, but the extent of criminality in La Perla apparently extended far beyond the colonial walls and cobblestone streets of Old San Juan.
Dominican police and soldiers are increasingly getting in the drug trade
Dominican police and soldiers are increasingly getting in the drug trade
More than 5,000 Dominican police officers and soldiers have been fired in the past three years over widespread corruption, including widespread drug trafficking.
Deadly assaults target gay and transgender people in Puerto Rico
Deadly assaults target gay and transgender people in Puerto Rico
Since November 2009, 18 people have been murdered and others beaten across Puerto Rico.
Obama courts U.S. Puerto Rican votes with visit to island
Obama courts U.S. Puerto Rican votes with visit to island
The last time a sitting U.S. president went to Puerto Rico, he didn't leave the hotel where the G-7 summit took place. But that was 1976, before 35,000 Puerto Ricans a year were moving to Florida.
President Obama arrives in Puerto Rico for state visit
President Obama arrives in Puerto Rico for state visit
The last president to visit Puerto Rico did not leave the hotel where a summit took place. This time, President Barack Obama arrived Monday morning to a hero’s welcome.
By DANICA COTO
Associated Press
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico --
Puerto Rico's police chief resigned Saturday amid sharp criticism over a rising homicide rate in the U.S. territory and allegations of police abuse.
Jose Figueroa Sancha stepped down after less than three years overseeing a 19,000-strong force.
"You, my fellow police officers ... represent the hope of a society that is going through a profound crisis in values," he said in a statement.
Figueroa did not say why he was leaving, but Gov. Luis Fortuno said in a statement that it was due to unspecified health problems.
Figueroa was appointed chief in November 2008 after working 23 years in the FBI. His resignation comes as the island of 4 million people battles a soaring crime rate: 568 killings so far this year, compared with 470 reported in the same period last year.
June was reportedly one of the bloodiest months on record, with nearly 30 people killed last weekend alone, including an 11-year-old boy. One of the most high-profile killings of the month was that of bank executive Maurice J. Spagnoletti, who was shot while driving home along one of the capital's busiest highways. No one has been arrested.
Figueroa inherited a high homicide rate, but the island also recorded its second-worst year for killings under his watch in 2010, when hundreds of National Guard troops were activated to fight crime. Despite their presence, more than 955 people were killed last year, compared with a record 995 people reported killed in 1994.
Figueroa, however, said the guard's presence reduced most crimes, including offenses such as robbery, assault and rape, by 11 percent.
Anibal Vega Borges, mayor of the northern town of Toa Baja, said Figueroa made an enormous effort to battle crime, despite limited resources.
"The police chief job is a hot seat that requires much composure and integrity," he said. "Figueroa Sancha leaves a positive contribution ... during a period of social and economic crisis. His Achilles' heel was the increase in killings."
William Ramirez, executive director of the ACLU in Puerto Rico, celebrated Figueroa's departure.
"Personally, I think this is long overdue," he said. "From the beginning, it was evident that he was not the person to be leading the police department."
The ACLU issued a recent report alleging police brutality against university students, union leaders and journalists. Ramirez also criticized Figueroa for activating riot squads during student protests.
"He has not done his job well, and he has failed to acknowledge that," Ramirez said. "He's not effective in any way. It's not that he's not effective in some areas. It's in all areas."
Last year, the government appointed an independent monitor for the police department and announced more training for all officers in response to brutality allegations.
But the department's image became further marred when FBI agents arrested 77 police officers in October on charges that they aided drug traffickers. The arrests marked one of the largest police corruption investigations in the FBI's history.
Fortuno praised Figueroa for his work and called him a person of integrity.
"(He) was an incorruptible, tireless, relentless fighter against crime and drug trafficking," he said. "Under his command, powerful drug trafficking organizations were attacked and dismantled like never before seen in Puerto Rico."
On Friday, Fortuno signed a new budget that awarded $759 million to the police department, a slight increase from last year. Another 536 police cadets also are expected to join the force.
Fortuno said retired Col. Jose Luis Rivera will serve as interim police chief.
Juan Dalmau, secretary-general of the minority Puerto Rican Independence Party, said the government needs to attack the island's rampant drug abuse and encourage students to stay in school to help drive down crime.
"If a multidisciplinary focus is not adopted to stop crime, we will continue to see the same rise in criminality regardless of who they name as superintendent," he said.
See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a16rgc
Puerto Ricans Increasingly Involved in Drug Trade & Violence
I've seen their involvement in the drug trade first hand in northern California. 7/4/2011 there was some sort of a coup, I imagine over the local Mexican cartels. I think the US military was involved in taking out some of their leaders...
And the Puerto Ricans are imitating the black American gangsters of the 1980's. Obviously most are not involved, but where you see drugs, sex trade, gun running, etc it is the evil downward spiral. Keep an eye out for these folks.
Obama's recent visit was prompted by their economic conditions and the massive inflow of PRs into the States, along with the drugs. I dont have the full connection and explanation, yet..
Amplify’d from www2.tbo.com
For Puerto Ricans, what will it be — state, colony or nation?
Commentary
By
LUISITA LOPEZ TORREGROSA
|
Los Angeles Times
Published: June 27, 2011
President Barack Obama's blink-of-an-eye visit to Puerto Rico, the first by a sitting American president since John F. Kennedy in 1961, put the spotlight on the island for maybe 10 minutes, just about as long as his arrival speech promising economic help to the island and support for whatever course its residents decide on when it comes to whether or not to become the 51st state.
Brisk as it was, the president's trip had a triple purpose: One was to appeal to the growing number of Puerto Rican voters in the key presidential state of Florida and the burgeoning nationwide Hispanic population; two was to reaffirm his 2008 campaign promise that he would set up a mechanism for resolving the island's political status during his first term; and three was to raise money for the Democrats and his campaign.
The visit came soon after a White House task force on Puerto Rico's status issued a report recommending that the island hold a two-step plebiscite by the end of 2012 to determine whether it should remain a protectorate or become part of the United States.
Obama vowed during his speech that his administration would support whatever Puerto Rico decides, but therein lies the dilemma.
About half the voters in Puerto Rico support statehood; the other half want to remain a commonwealth, keeping the self-rule territorial status forged for it in the 1950s. Only a small minority supports full independence. While all Puerto Ricans hold American citizenship, those who live on the island have no voting representative in the U.S. Congress, do not pay federal taxes and cannot vote in presidential elections, though they may vote in primaries. (In 2008 Obama lost to Hillary Rodham Clinton.)
Obama's intervention comes at a critical time.
Despite $7 billion in federal stimulus money for Puerto Rico, the island's Republican administration has slashed the budget and dismissed thousands of government workers. Unemployment has always been a problem on the island. Ten years ago, at the end of the prosperous 1990s, the island's rate was 11.7 percent, according to the Department of Labor and Human Resources. Today, it has climbed to a highly alarming 16.2 percent (compared with about 9 percent on the mainland).
Violence is rampant, driven in part by increased drug trafficking. Puerto Rico has less than half the population of New York City, but last year it had nearly twice as many murders, with 955 killings, according to FBI figures.
"We've hit bottom," Luis Agrait, the director of the history department of the University of Puerto Rico, told me during a spirited discussion at his San Juan apartment.
Statehood could bring parity with other states in economic aid and would confer full-fledged citizenship (with additional voting rights and representation in government) on Puerto Ricans. The economic benefits, according to the 2011 White House task force report, would at least partially offset the effect of federal income taxes.
On the other hand, opponents of statehood say that commonwealth status allows more independence from Washington and the preservation of a distinct bilingual culture rooted in the island's Spanish heritage.
Meanwhile, the island continues to bleed residents. Today, more Puerto Ricans live on the mainland (4.6 million) than on the island (3.5 million), and the exodus has become critical. A recent study by the Puerto Rico Statistics Institute found that the island has a net loss of about 35,000 people a year, and those who migrate out tend to be better educated and higher earning than those who are left behind or who migrate in. In the past decade many have moved to Central Florida, mainly to Orlando and Tampa, where Puerto Ricans now number approximately 850,000. Unlike the mostly blue-collar and unschooled Puerto Ricans who immigrated to New York and other points north in the 1940s and 1950s, today's newcomers support statehood and lean Republican.
In San Juan, President Obama addressed a people mired in economic crisis and facing a major political quandary: Who are we? Are we a state, a colony, a nation? For nearly 60 years that has been a dilemma for Puerto Ricans, and it is high time to make a decisive choice.
Luisita Lopez Torregrosa, a former editor at The New York Times, is a columnist for the International Herald Tribune. She wrote this for the Los Angeles Times.
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Emotional Intelligence
I read this book a long time ago and the lessons that are supposed to be learned have to be practiced all the time or you forget. Whenever you enter a new paradigm, it is difficult to remember the lessons from your past.
Emotional intelligence refers to the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others for motivating ourselves and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships - Daniel Goleman 1998 Working with Emotional Intelligence.
This is from a blogpost I found while researching the issue.
Wife beating and killing a person due to emotional hijacking can be rare, but incidents of individuals quarreling with each other and in the process damaging a relationship are quite common. Such moments do not last very long, but the time that it lasts does enough damage. Most of the times, a person regrets getting into such an act.
Research shows that such emotional explosions are neuralhijackings. In such a moment, a center in the limbic system (a part of the brain), the amygadala, the seat of all emotions in the brain, takes over the neocortex. The neocortex is the part of the brain that is 
responsible for our thinking. During thismoment the neocortex stops functioning. The amygdala gets triggered and in an instant takes control of the brain, in a sense hijacking it. Thus, it is called emotional hijacking.
Emotional hijacking does not occur just like that out of no where. Usually certain past events that are disturbing to the individual keep building up resulting in the sudden emotional outburst. If a person is facing some problems for quite some time, they start playing on the mind and a moment may occur when he/she cannot take it any longer, which may result in the extreme explosion of emotions. A person may be too stressed out, or a person might be a bit angry for something that might have occurred before. In such a moment if something happens that further causes distress, then the chances of emotional hijacking to occur increase to a great extent.
Emotional hijacking takes place in an instant and by the time it gets over it can do a lot of damage to the person in many ways. If emotional hijacking keeps on occurring time and again then, it will have an immediate negative affect on the individual’s ability to have relationships as well as the quality of his/her current relationships. Emotional hijacking occurring too often in a person will give the impression to others of the individual being a loose cannon. People will begin to dislike his/her behaviour and may keep a distance from him/her. Likewise, his/her peers, friends, and others who are close to him/her may begin to dislike him/her, because nobody would like to be at the receiving end of a person’s extreme rage, especially when the person has a close relationship with them.
Emotional hijacking also creates a lot of negativity within the atmosphere. If a person due to an extreme outburst of anger shouts very loudly it has a bad affect on the mood of not only others, but also on the individual himself/herself. Such an emotional outburst is not at all good for the mental and emotional stability of the person. One incident of emotional hijacking can lead to a severe mood swing, so one can imagine what will happen if this happens very often. Such kind of behaviour will also increase the stress level of the person. In extreme cases it can cause high blood pressure and even heart problems. Therefore, emotional hijacking can have a very bad affect on a person’s mental as well as physical health.
Instead of facing the negative consequences of emotional hijacking it is much better to try to prevent it as much as possible. One way to do this is to try to reason and thus challenge the anger provoking thoughts. Emotional hijacking is more of an impulse driven reaction. The person should try to think before he/she reacts in such an aggressive manner and in a way try to hold back that impulse. He/she should try to channelize his/her thoughts to a more rationalistic way and try to bring down the level of anger. This is a very good way to counter emotional hijacking, but it is easier said than done. During an episode of emotional hijacking, a person becomes cognitively incapacitated. He/she almost loses the ability to think at that moment.
The best way to prevent emotional hijacking is to just move away from that place and go for a walk as soon as one realizes that matters can become worse. This works as a distraction from the anger provoking thoughts for the person. The person buys out some time, which helps in relaxation
of thoughts and makes the individual calm down. In such a situation the left prefrontal lobe (the front-left side of the brain) of the person comes into being. When the anger provoking thoughts get distracted, the left prefrontal lobe, which is responsible for maintaining emotional balance, works as a counter mechanism towards the amygdala and dampens its affect on the brain. Thus, the person comes back to his/her normal and calm phase and is able to prevent emotional hijacking.
In situations like this, watching television or listening to music can also help in distracting one from anger provoking thoughts and thus make the individual calm down. Distraction from such thoughts also helps the person to get into a more pleasant mood. If a person goes out for a walk, he/she might find the surroundings pleasant, which will have a positive affect on the mood and make him/her happier at that moment. The same thing happens when a person begins to watch television or listens to music at that moment.
Other ways of preventing emotional hijacking is deep breathing and muscle relaxation. This helps in changing the body’s high arousal of anger to a low-arousal state. It also, in a way, works as a distraction from whatever triggered the anger.
It is very obvious that emotional hijacking is a very unpleasant phenomenon.The consequences of emotional hijacking are nothing but bad, be it on mood, relationships, or the overall health of the individual. A person should always try to be in a positive frame of mind and try to be as emotionally relaxed and calm as possible. The more positive frame of mind the person is in the more chances are that he/she will be away from emotional hijacking and the more chances are that he/she will be an emotionally healthy person.
Emotional intelligence refers to the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others for motivating ourselves and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships - Daniel Goleman 1998 Working with Emotional Intelligence.
This is from a blogpost I found while researching the issue.
EMOTIONAL HIJACKING: THE TRIGGER TO AN UNHEALTHY MIND
Posted by Saif
Emotional hijacking is a state when an individual's cognitions are overpowered by his/her emotions. It is usually referred to in the context of aggression or fearfulness.
With respect to aggression, it can be said to be a sudden unleashing of rage towards another person. It is an extreme emotional outburst or an emotional explosion caused by an incident that may trigger anger or fear in an individual.
Such incidents happen many a times. There are a number of situations in which a person might get angry or upset and without even thinking about anything he/she might just lose his/her cool and simply explode with emotions and attack the other person verbally or even physically. For instance, an individual might suddenly get extremely angry and begin to shout at his/her friend and even slur him/her. In an extreme case, a disgusted husband might suddenly get upset and beat up his wife badly. In more extreme cases, a person might kill another person with an outburst of anger.
Wife beating and killing a person due to emotional hijacking can be rare, but incidents of individuals quarreling with each other and in the process damaging a relationship are quite common. Such moments do not last very long, but the time that it lasts does enough damage. Most of the times, a person regrets getting into such an act.
Research shows that such emotional explosions are neuralhijackings. In such a moment, a center in the limbic system (a part of the brain), the amygadala, the seat of all emotions in the brain, takes over the neocortex. The neocortex is the part of the brain that is 
responsible for our thinking. During thismoment the neocortex stops functioning. The amygdala gets triggered and in an instant takes control of the brain, in a sense hijacking it. Thus, it is called emotional hijacking.Emotional hijacking does not occur just like that out of no where. Usually certain past events that are disturbing to the individual keep building up resulting in the sudden emotional outburst. If a person is facing some problems for quite some time, they start playing on the mind and a moment may occur when he/she cannot take it any longer, which may result in the extreme explosion of emotions. A person may be too stressed out, or a person might be a bit angry for something that might have occurred before. In such a moment if something happens that further causes distress, then the chances of emotional hijacking to occur increase to a great extent.
Emotional hijacking takes place in an instant and by the time it gets over it can do a lot of damage to the person in many ways. If emotional hijacking keeps on occurring time and again then, it will have an immediate negative affect on the individual’s ability to have relationships as well as the quality of his/her current relationships. Emotional hijacking occurring too often in a person will give the impression to others of the individual being a loose cannon. People will begin to dislike his/her behaviour and may keep a distance from him/her. Likewise, his/her peers, friends, and others who are close to him/her may begin to dislike him/her, because nobody would like to be at the receiving end of a person’s extreme rage, especially when the person has a close relationship with them.
Emotional hijacking also creates a lot of negativity within the atmosphere. If a person due to an extreme outburst of anger shouts very loudly it has a bad affect on the mood of not only others, but also on the individual himself/herself. Such an emotional outburst is not at all good for the mental and emotional stability of the person. One incident of emotional hijacking can lead to a severe mood swing, so one can imagine what will happen if this happens very often. Such kind of behaviour will also increase the stress level of the person. In extreme cases it can cause high blood pressure and even heart problems. Therefore, emotional hijacking can have a very bad affect on a person’s mental as well as physical health.
Instead of facing the negative consequences of emotional hijacking it is much better to try to prevent it as much as possible. One way to do this is to try to reason and thus challenge the anger provoking thoughts. Emotional hijacking is more of an impulse driven reaction. The person should try to think before he/she reacts in such an aggressive manner and in a way try to hold back that impulse. He/she should try to channelize his/her thoughts to a more rationalistic way and try to bring down the level of anger. This is a very good way to counter emotional hijacking, but it is easier said than done. During an episode of emotional hijacking, a person becomes cognitively incapacitated. He/she almost loses the ability to think at that moment.
The best way to prevent emotional hijacking is to just move away from that place and go for a walk as soon as one realizes that matters can become worse. This works as a distraction from the anger provoking thoughts for the person. The person buys out some time, which helps in relaxation
of thoughts and makes the individual calm down. In such a situation the left prefrontal lobe (the front-left side of the brain) of the person comes into being. When the anger provoking thoughts get distracted, the left prefrontal lobe, which is responsible for maintaining emotional balance, works as a counter mechanism towards the amygdala and dampens its affect on the brain. Thus, the person comes back to his/her normal and calm phase and is able to prevent emotional hijacking.In situations like this, watching television or listening to music can also help in distracting one from anger provoking thoughts and thus make the individual calm down. Distraction from such thoughts also helps the person to get into a more pleasant mood. If a person goes out for a walk, he/she might find the surroundings pleasant, which will have a positive affect on the mood and make him/her happier at that moment. The same thing happens when a person begins to watch television or listens to music at that moment.
Other ways of preventing emotional hijacking is deep breathing and muscle relaxation. This helps in changing the body’s high arousal of anger to a low-arousal state. It also, in a way, works as a distraction from whatever triggered the anger.
It is very obvious that emotional hijacking is a very unpleasant phenomenon.The consequences of emotional hijacking are nothing but bad, be it on mood, relationships, or the overall health of the individual. A person should always try to be in a positive frame of mind and try to be as emotionally relaxed and calm as possible. The more positive frame of mind the person is in the more chances are that he/she will be away from emotional hijacking and the more chances are that he/she will be an emotionally healthy person.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Anger Towards Wall Street Could Lead to Civil Unrest
What are the unemployed and homeless going to do when the economy gets worse and they get angry? Protests? Civil Unrest. Will the American police beat down and arrest the citizens that all simply victims of financial terrorism?
Amplify’d from www.rollingstone.com
Over drinks at a bar on a dreary, snowy night in Washington this past month, a former Senate investigator laughed as he polished off his beer.
"Everything's fucked up, and nobody goes to jail," he said. "That's your whole story right there. Hell, you don't even have to write the rest of it. Just write that."
Nobody goes to jail. This is the mantra of the financial-crisis era, one that saw virtually every major bank and financial company on Wall Street embroiled in obscene criminal scandals that impoverished millions and collectively destroyed hundreds of billions, in fact, trillions of dollars of the world's wealth — and nobody went to jail. Nobody, that is, except Bernie Madoff, a flamboyant and pathological celebrity con artist, whose victims happened to be other rich and famous people.
The rest of them, all of them, got off. Not a single executive who ran the companies that cooked up and cashed in on the phony financial boom — an industrywide scam that involved the mass sale of mismarked, fraudulent mortgage-backed securities — has ever been convicted. Their names by now are familiar to even the most casual Middle American news consumer: companies like AIG, Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley. Most of these firms were directly involved in elaborate fraud and theft. Lehman Brothers hid billions in loans from its investors. Bank of America lied about billions in bonuses. Goldman Sachs failed to tell clients how it put together the born-to-lose toxic mortgage deals it was selling. What's more, many of these companies had corporate chieftains whose actions cost investors billions — from AIG derivatives chief Joe Cassano, who assured investors they would not lose even "one dollar" just months before his unit imploded, to the $263 million in compensation that former Lehman chief Dick "The Gorilla" Fuld conveniently failed to disclose. Yet not one of them has faced time behind bars.
See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a16i0u
QE2 Causing Inflation Abroad, Followed by Civil Unrest #peakoil #crisis #economy #deficit #2012
As the US created more dollars to inflate away its debt repayment obligations, countries that are linked to the dollar, including China, India and parts of Latin America, would suffer 1970s-style inflation
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/global-train-wreck-coming-20110630-1gszi.html#ixzz1R67wczqR
Amplify’d from www.smh.com.au
Global 'train wreck' coming
THE global economy is facing ''a slow-motion train wreck'' with Greece only the first nation to be hit, Reserve Bank director Warwick McKibbin has told a Melbourne conference.
Referring to the most recent global economic crisis as a mere ''blip'', he said the coming crisis could undo the mining boom and bring on inflation of the kind not seen since the 1970s.
Professor McKibbin told the Melbourne Institute conference dozens of European countries now had gross government debts on track to exceed 60 per cent of GDP. ''Japan is forecast to be 200 per cent of GDP, the US is forecast to be over 100 per cent of GDP,'' he said.
''At zero interest rates that can be sustained, but at 5 per cent interest rates countries have to put aside 5 per cent of their GDP every year just to service the debt. That is not sustainable.
''Already consumers aren't spending and investors aren't spending because of the tax increases that are in prospect.
''Greece, Portugal and Ireland don't just need to have their debts written off, they need to have a 30 per cent to 40 per cent depreciation of their real exchange rate,'' he told the conference.
''There are two ways to do that, either pull out of the euro and depreciate by 40 per cent, or have deflation of 40 per cent over the next 12 months.
''I do not believe any society can survive having a 40 per cent deflation that's been imposed by the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank.''
As the US created more dollars to inflate away its debt repayment obligations, countries that are linked to the dollar, including China, India and parts of Latin America, would suffer 1970s-style inflation.
See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a16i00
China increases its investments in Iraq #peakoil
China needs energy and doesnt go to war to get it.
Amplify’d from www.dallasnews.com
China increases its investments in Iraq
AL-AHDAB OIL FIELD, Iraq - China didn't take part in the
U.S.-led invasion of Iraq or the bloody military battles that
followed. It hasn't invested in reconstruction projects or efforts
by the West to fortify the struggling democracy in the heart of the
Middle East.
But as the U.S. military draws down and Iraq opens up to foreign
investment, China and a handful of other countries that weren't
part of the so-called coalition of the willing are poised to cash
in.
In the past two years, Chinese companies have walked away with
stakes in three of the 11 contracts the Iraqi Oil Ministry has
signed in its bid to increase crude output by about 450 percent
over the next seven years. Only two American firms won stakes in
oil deals.
The French automaker Renault and Germany's Mercedes-Benz are in
advanced talks to make trucks for industrial transport, according
to Iraqi officials. The South Koreans signed a memorandum of
understanding to build a multimillion-dollar steel mill in the
south and a power plant, and the Turks have scored a series of
construction and government services contracts.
Except for a $3 billion contract with General Electric to
purchase power-generating equipment for Iraq, Iraqi and U.S.
officials are hard-pressed to point to any significant U.S.
investment in Iraq.
The U.S. "consistently ranks in the bottom" among investors,
according to a 2009 study by Dunia Frontiers Consultants, which
tracks private investment in Iraq.
"This is a rich country," French Ambassador Boris Boillon said.
"In this world of recession, in this period of global crisis, we
need to get growth and expansion wherever you can find it."
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Saturday, July 2, 2011
End Prohibition! Ask Congress to VOTE "YES" on HB2036 to Legalize Marijuana
Be sure you understand the differences between why non-narcotic industrial hemp is illegal and why marijuana is illegal. Look up hempcar.org and read the history there.
Amplify’d from blogs.alternet.org
Latest Obama/DOJ Memo Emphasizes Why We Must Pass HR 2306, The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act Of 2011
On Wednesday the Obama administration for the second time in two years issued a Department of Justice memorandum regarding the state-sanctioned use and production of medical cannabis. However, unlike the release of the 2009 ‘Ogden memo,’ which the administration promoted with great fanfare, the issuance of this week’s ‘Cole memorandum’ is strategically being downplayed by the Justice Department.
As for the content of the memo, which you can read in full here, it’s hardly surprising — particularly in light of the administration’s recent, and highly public threats to lawmakers in states wishing to enact medical marijuana laws or expand upon their existing programs.
Perhaps most notably, the memorandum states that the recent flurry of intimidating US Attorney letters to state lawmakers are ‘entirely consistent’ with the Obama administration’s position. In other words, the administration is now on record in support of claims made by US Attorneys in Rhode Island, Washington, and other states alleging that state employees could be targeted and federally prosecuted for simply registering and licensing medical cannabis patients or providers — a position that is even more extreme than that of the previous administration. (Notably to date, however, no state employee — or for that matter, no state sanctioned dispensary operator — has ever been prosecuted by the federal government.)
The memo goes on to state that the federal government distinguishes between individual medical cannabis patients and third party providers, indicating that it is a poor use of federal resources (rather than a poor use of judgment) to target the former, while indicating that the latter are fair game for federal prosecution. It states:
“A number of states have enacted some form of legislation relating to the medical use of marijuana. Accordingly the Ogden memo reiterated to you that prosecution of significant traffickers in illegal drugs, including marijuana, remains a core priority, but advised that it is likely not an efficient use of federal resources to focus enforcement efforts on individuals with cancer or other serious illnesses who use marijuana as part of a recommended treatment regimen consistent with applicable state law, or their caregivers. The term “caregiver” as used in the memorandum meant just that: individuals providing care to individuals with cancer or other serious illnesses, not commercial operations cultivating, selling or distributing marijuana.”
Finally, the memo acknowledges that there has been an increase in the number of states that have either enacted or are considering enacting state laws allowing for the licensed production and distribution of cannabis to authorized patients. (To date, such state-licensed dispensaries are up and running in Colorado, New Mexico, and Maine; laws permitting such facilities are on the books in Arizona, Delaware, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont.) Clearly, the federal government is not at all pleased with this progress.
“The Odgen Memorandum was never intended to shield such activities from federal enforcement action and prosecution, even where those activities purport to comply with state law. Persons who are in the business of cultivating. selling, or distributing marijuana, and those who knowingly facilitate such activities, are in violation of the Controlled Substances Act, regardless of state law. Consistent with the resource constraints and the discretion you may exercise in your district, such persons are subject to federal enforcement action, including potential prosecution. State laws or local ordinances are not a defense to civil enforcement of federal law with respect to such conduct, including enforcement of the CSA. Those who engage in transactions involving the proceeds of such activity may also be in violation of federal money laundering statutes and other federal financing laws.”
Regardless of how one wishes to interpret the latest memo from the DOJ, one thing is clear. States will never truly enjoy the freedom to experiment with alternative marijuana policies until the federal government is compelled to get out of their way. Only the passage of HR 2306, the ‘Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011,’ can make that happen.
House Bill 2306 mimics changes enacted by Congress that repealed the federal prohibition of alcohol by removing the federal government’s power to prosecute minor marijuana offenders. It would eliminate the existing conflict between federal law and the laws of those sixteen states that already allow for the limited use of marijuana under a physicians’ supervision. Further, it would permit state governments that wish to fully legalize and regulate the responsible use, possession, production, and intrastate distribution of marijuana for all adults to be free to do so without federal interference.
State lawmakers should be free to explore alternate marijuana policies — including medicalization, decriminalization, and/or legalization — without being held hostage to archaic federal prohibition or the whims of the Department of Justice. Contact your member of Congress and urge him or her to vote ‘yes’ on HR 2306.
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Greed and Envy Are 2 Sides of the Same Coin
We gotta find harmony and balance in our lives before we kill each other and destroy the planet along with it.
Amplify’d from views.washingtonpost.com
Political/Education leader
No Downside to Greed
I am skeptical about the ability of individual CEOs to change the culture on Wall Street that led to the recent economic crisis. What would happen to the leader of a public company who announced that he or she was not focused on maximizing profits in the short run, but was concerned about strengthening the company for the long term? Millions of Americans who do not own stock in that company would praise the virtue of that CEO while his or her stockholders would scream bloody murder.
Right now it appears that the pursuit of greed has no downsides, except if you work for a company that has to plead for help from a government official who was formerly chairman of one of your company's competitors. The private-sector pressures on Wall Street business leaders are such that we are unlikely to see significant change in the business culture. Appropriate government intervention will be necessary to alter the conduct that has led to such disastrous economic results in our recent past.
@DAN1138, JFV123, JERKHOFF et al..
There is a time value to money but no time value to Law - the time value must be provided by Regulation.
Greed and Envy are two sides to the same coin if you will excuse the expression, but both are time valued: I do not envy Bernie Madoff as much as I once did.
Here's the deal: I hate Regulation as much as the next guy, but it is the only way to insure that all (human) plaintiffs are not rendered indigent before a finding of fact. It is only recently that Public Defenders in Texas were prohibited from napping during Capital Murder trials, so this Regulation as Social Conscience thing might be a bit hard to swallow. Too bad. Bringing the Law up to the speed of Money, Greed and Envy is the only rational approach.
Posted by: gannon_dick | September 21, 2009 7:34 PM
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Greed & Poverty - 2 Sides of the Same Coin - Now out of #Balance- #crisis #economy#harmony
Thi article says it well. It doenst talk about ENVY. That drives the frustration between the haves and the have nots.
Amplify’d from www.thelangreport.com
The most serious spiritual problem in the country today is reckless and untrammeled greed. caused the disgraceful corporate scandals that fill our newspapers. Greed is responsible for crooked cops and crooked politicians. Greed causes the constant efforts to destroy unions that protect basic worker rights.
But how is this possible? GREED. The economic pie is getting bigger -- how can it be true that most Americans are getting smaller slices? The answer, of course, is that a few people are getting much, much bigger slices. GREED. Although wages have stagnated since Bush took office, corporate profits have doubled. The gap between the nation's CEOs and average workers is now ten times greater than it was a generation ago. GREED!
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Wednesday, June 29, 2011
This deserves attention! http://ni4d.us/ and http://vote.org/
Amplify’d from vote.org
The National Initiative for Democracy
A "Plan B" when Congress doesn't Represent
Led by former US Senator Mike Gravel, the National Initiative empowers us to check and balance representatives, similar to ballot initiatives in 24 States, but at all levels from local to national and with major improvements. It gives us a "Plan B" whenever representatives don't represent us. (Do torture, perpetual wars and debt, domestic spying and bailouts for the rich represent you??)
A few Congress members have tried to get us this power from Congress since 1907, without success. Gravel discovered the Founders had the same problem: the existing 13 Legislatures refused to share their power with the USA. The Founders found a way: The People ratified the Constitution at the Constitutional Conventions. James Madison said "The people were in fact, the fountain of all power, and by resorting to them, all difficulties were got over."(His 2nd response in the 1787 Debate)
Now we resort to you to read and vote to ratify the National Initiative, to make real the promise of "government by the people." The National Initiative consists of the brief Democracy Amendment and the more detailed Democracy Act.
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What will our veterans do when they come home? #jobs How many are out there? Where will they live? #foreclosure #army #navy #rotc #marines #2012 #hemp #VEHP2012 #venusproject #USACIO
DRAFT - Cover Letter to @barackobama for the position of CIO, US Federal Government.
DRAFT - Proposal For a Microloan for Twisted Politix a 501 c3 (non-profit)
How will America transition to 2nd Place?
Are you familiar with the Veterans Emergency Housing Program from WW2 (1947)? It isnt on Wikipedia and should be. It gave discounts to soldiers to buy homes in the suburbs just outside the city after returning from war. It is essentially what started modern day suburbia and suburban sprawl, and the long commute, and highways, the cars, but I digress.
Now speed forward to 2012 (#VEHP2012). Couldn't the existing foreclosures all across the country be sold at a major discount to soldiers returning from posts overseas? Obviously the Administration would have to lean heavily on the banks to be so kind, but this is for the SOLDIERS! Who could refuse! (Imagine all the places we have bases or troops - Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, Panama, Japan, Germany, Nigeria, etc. It would depend on where they are. Some may not want to come home. Would you want to leave Germany now? - When their economy is doing well and Octoberfest is coming and the girls, etc. But maybe Afghanistan isn't so fun now the Bin Laden is dead.) Of course to do this, you would have to close bases and that would be tough even with the deficit!
Wouldn't a program like that NOW help end the wars, secure the nation (tough guys in the house), reduce anti-American sentiment, and stimulate the economy? End the wars because with such a great $deal$, the soldiers would want to come home fast!
Or what if they were granted the permit to build homes as long as they were built to spec under the architectural guidance of Jacques Fresco, a futurist like DaVinco, using innovative and renewable materials that are 100% eco-friendly, such as hemp, grown right here in the USA. (You would have to legalize industrial, non-narcotic hemp which is ILLEGAL in the USA because of corporate lobbyists.)
And all food must be grown locally (within 50 miles), and all waste must be disposed of locally (within 50 miles),
All electrical power would have to be generated from solar or wind or other approved renewables, like biomass, and EVERY building would have to be self-sufficient and provide its own energy.
All the automobiles had to run on biofuels and were only for mass transport or public transit, which were all leased on a subscription based service like with Zipcars. But these would be taxed heavily and tricycles and bicycles would be donated by China.
Back to reality for a moment... If they havent lost their homes, then Good for them! Is it possible that these soldiers wont have jobs when they get home?
Maybe instead of them collecting unemployment, they could BUILD the new VEHP2012 themselves.
And maybe the Jonathan Rose Companies could run the projects. And these new homes and transition towns could be located along train lines or in the projected path for new high speed rail that has been proposed and paid for by the Federal government.
There are foreclosures deep in the heart of the cities, in the suburbs, and even on farms. It most certainly has happened.
If any Congressmen or Senators with sons in the military knew about this, they might write a bill and pass a law, and whalaaahhh! Economic improvement. A stimulus but for VETERANS! Man would this stir up a serious fight in our Congress. Only a Democrat would bring it up because its a stimulus when all the conversation is about deficits. Then the Republicans would have a hell of a time explaining why its no good. Meanwhile the soldiers find out and starting asking when they are going to come home. The generals and admirals start putting pressure on the GOP to give in so their boys can come home. - Oh but wait, we can't leave a war without WINNING first! So how do you define winning? Shit this is going to be a long one...
Oh but you can imagine the capitalists licking their chomps to get a hold of this contract or win some business from the Government! To sell any services or supplies to the returning soldiers. But what if in order to be a a vendor of the project, you had to be certified with a license that confirms that you are an US company, privately held (NOT publicly traded), whose employee base is at least 20% made up of people that are unemployed, and that at least 50% of the ownership was made up of employees, even part timers, etc.
This is a campaign slogan that WORKS! HEMP4VICTORY2012 Hoorah! Start GROWING!!!
Ok and now off the deepend...And what if they measured the cost of goods in calories required to produce it start to finish, and measured the cost of service by the customer ratings. And people who worked in these transition towns were paid incentives like how many positive tweets they got. No wait that sounds too funky. They were paid with hours of time from experts - with wisdom. And they were grateful they got all this so they gave back by teaching others something they have learned - whatever skill they have. But all employees were volunteers but owners in the companies or even in the village itself.
Amplify’d from www.daviesscountyhistoricalsociety.com
The end of World War II was the beginning of a new set of problems for Gallatin veterans. The vets were coming “home,” but there wasn’t any “home” for them to return to. A Gallatin survey revealed there were at least 25 new houses needed since there weren’t any vacant houses nor rooms to rent.
The Gallatin Rotary Club passed a resolution backing a building program for the purpose of alleviating the housing shortage and also to curb inflation of real estate values.
The problem came to light when a man went to buy a permit to build in the city. He found a building priority for a home was impossible to obtain unless the town in which he resided had a set building quota. Gallatin didn’t have any such quota.
Building quotas were based on each particular town and an investigation of Gallatin revealed several factors had to be resolved before a quota could be set. A few of these factors were:
1. There were eight or more families without places to live and several others were inadequately housed
2. Property values had inflated from 100% to 300%
3. Many retired farmers were moving to town
4. Several returning veterans had expressed wanting to live in Gallatin.
A proposal was set up by the FPHA (Federal Public Housing Authority) stating they’d furnish pre-fabricated houses of a war-housing type and ship the parts to Gallatin for assembly. The housing units would remain federally owned. They would be four, five, or six bedroom homes and modern in every way.
Only discharged veterans or families of servicemen were eligible to apply for the accommodations. Before applications could be made for the temporary housing, an estimate of community needs had to be made. All veterans and servicemen’s families who wanted the accommodations were urged to sign up for them. The number of houses to be asked for depended upon the number of people interested in securing this type of housing.
In January 1946, Gallatin made application for 15 temporary family units to be occupied by discharged veterans and the families of servicemen. Additional units were to be ordered if the houses were being utilized and proved to be satisfactory. The government would furnish pre-fabricated war-housing type dwellings delivered prepaid by the city. The cost of a site and connecting the utilities would be paid to the city. The rent, at a very nominal cost of $22 a month, was to be charged to the veterans and families.
The application was turned down because the quota for the houses had been exhausted. Both the project requested and the number size of the housing administration was too small. They’d substitute 10 trailers. In February, 1946, 10 family trailers were ordered and were to be of two sizes, 7' x 22' one bedroom units and three 22' x 22' bedroom units. Each trailer had their water and electricity. The trailers would be allotted to the applicants in the order the requests were received.
Dockery Park was chosen for the site because there’d be less work and expense. There’d be little grading and sodding to be done, sidewalks and gavel driveways were already built and present light and water facilities were nearby. Rent from the trailers would go to the FPHA after the expenses of maintenance were deducted. FPHA retained the title to the buildings. Families of servicemen and veterans were the only eligible tenants of the trailers. Also included were men seeking accommodation so they could bring their families stationed outside the locality.
Near the end of February, Gallatin was assured of its trailer colony housing project. The FPHA would provide the materials and the labor for the construction of two baths and laundry buildings at the trailer site. The building would be 29 ½' x 23' and would cost $8,300. The project had been turned down earlier by the city officials due to the scarcity of materials and labor.
In May 1946, the government agreed to relieve the city of any responsibility in building construction. The bath and laundry building was approved for the colony. Under the proposal the city would sign a contract with the housing authority to build the structure, with the government agency paying the bill. The city was to hire the labor, buy the material, and supervise the construction. The building was to be centrally located in the trailer colony.
Note: -- by Wilbur Bush
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