There have been a few news items in the past few days that have made me call "boolshiite" on them: Here they are, in no particular order
By LARA JAKES JORDAN WASHINGTON (AP) – The Bush administration has agreed to shift course and let a secret but independent panel of federal judges oversee the government’s controversial domestic spying program.
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court will have final say in approving wiretaps on communications involving people with suspected terror links, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Wednesday in a letter to the leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Since Jan. 10, when the court began overseeing the program, at least one request has been approved to monitor communications of a person believed to be linked to al-Qaida or an associated terror group.
In his letter to Sens. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Arlen Specter, R-Pa., Gonzales wrote that "any electronic surveillance that was occurring as part of the Terrorist Surveillance Program will now be conducted subject to the approval of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court."
The Bush administration secretly launched the Terrorist Surveillance Program in 2001 to monitor international phone calls and e-mails to or from the United States involving people suspected by the government of having terrorist links. Gonzales said Bush would not reauthorize the program.
This is like getting a hand-written thank-you note, after you’ve been gang-raped by bikers. Nice to know that The Terror Troika (now that Runsfeld has gone civilian) of Cheney, Rove and Jo Jo The Idiot Boy have finally figured out where The U.S. Constitution is kept.
(CBC. CA)Royal Bank has changed its U.S. dollar account policy and will now let dual nationality Canadian customers open the accounts as long as they meet standard residency and other requirements. Canada’s biggest bank issued what it called a clarification of its policies "due to confusion" surrounding the issue.
A brief statement from the bank said it asks for proof of citizenship and residency for any individual client wanting to open a U.S. dollar account. "With some exceptions, RBC will provide a U.S. dollar account to dual citizens of sanctioned countries as long as they meet our ‘know your client’ and ‘anti-money laundering’ requirements, which include proof of residency in Canada," the bank said.
An RBC spokesman in Montreal said the bank "just nuanced our position to a certain extent."
"So we have now a policy that states that we can open U.S. dollar accounts for our clients who are Canadian citizens and are not residing in their country of origin," Raymond Chouinard told CBC News.
He said the "change … will allow us to keep a larger number of accounts open."
On Tuesday, the Royal Bank caused a stir when it confirmed a Radio-Canada story that said it was denying U.S. dollar accounts to all Canadian customers who are also nationals of Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Cuba, North Korea or Myanmar.
Royal Bank vice-president David Moorcroft cited U.S. Treasury Department rules that he said had been tightened after the Sept. 11 attacks.
But spokespeople at several other Canadian banks were soon being quoted as saying their banks were not going as far as the Royal Bank and would not deny a U.S. dollar account to someone just because they had dual nationality with countries the U.S. has placed sanctions against.
The Royal Bank said it will apologize to anyone whose account was mistakenly closed.
Always nice to know that all American laws are immediately applied here in Canada, regardless to those pesky border, right Steve? By the way, is the reverse true, dear Prime Minister? Does Ohio have to recogize Quebec and write all their laws in English and French? When do I get to deduct mortgage interest from my income and have to suffer by with a 23 percent decrease in Federal Income Tax. As for RBC, well, they’re just looking out for their US business and customers can take the hindmost.
By Liza Porteus (Fox) Two Texas Border Patrol agents convicted of shooting a Mexican drug runner in the backside while on duty turned themselves in to U.S. Marshals Wednesday, and there’s still no word on whether President Bush will grant them a pardon. Ignacio Ramos and Jose Alonso Compean began serving 11- and 12-year prison sentences, respectively, for the February 2005 non-fatal shooting of Osvaldo Aldrete Davila.
Several groups, including Friends of the Border Patrol, The Minutemen and Grassfire.org, have been trying through petitions to keep the agents out of prison — either by a motion to allow them to remain free on bond during an appeal or through a presidential pardon. U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone denied a motion for the two ex-agents to remain free on bond until their appeals on Tuesday.
"This ruling by Judge Cardone is the most disgraceful act that I have ever heard of in the history of our great nation and both she and the prosecutors should be ashamed of themselves for taking the word of a drug smuggler, caught in the act, while ignoring the facts," Friends of the Border Patrol Chairman Andy Ramirez wrote in a statement. "Evidence that would have severely damaged the credibility of the known drug smuggler, and exonerated Compean & Ramos was sealed and suppressed and the attorneys were prevented from mounting a proper defense." Ramirez said El Paso Border Patrol chiefs Robert Gilbert and Luis Barker and Robert Gilbert have hung their agents out to dry.
"I must remind the public that narcotic traffickers and human smugglers laugh at law enforcement as they know that the Johnny Sutton’s of DOJ will not prosecute them, and instead will prosecute officers who do their job and keep that poison off our streets and out of our schools, parks, and neighborhoods," Ramirez wrote.
I don’t know all the details of the case, but the smuggler, Davila, cut a helluva deal, for immunity so he could go back to smuggling and the two Border Patrol agents have been hung out to dry. Even if the
two officers acted poorly and without reasonable cause, the worst they should get is dismissed.
The funny thing is, I’m not suprised. If the US was serious about stopping the border incursions, then they could close it tight in a week. Just like the Department of Homeland Paranoia isn’t interested in Security, the DOJ isn’t really interested in Justice.
So, to sum up: The Spies now have Judicial Oversight for four years of uncontrolled invasion of your privacy of person.
The Royal Bank of Canada wants your money, as long as you aren’t going to make things difficult for them in the US.
All Border Patrol Officers should consider applying for a gig with Brown and Root, as I bet you a nickle and a Coke that the Border Patrol gets outsourced to private industry in the next two years.
All together now: Boooool Shiiiiiite!
RoadDave 