I can't believe how we trample the sovereignty of foreign countries (see below). Imagine, Pakistani Investigators smashing into the homes of fundamentalist christians in the US. Imagine Chinese cruise missiles landing on a bunch of Chinese dissidents in a car driving along a California highway. Imagine a Carnival Cruise line ship being boarded by Haitian commandos b/c they have a problem with our trade to Dominica and impounding American property.

Can you imagine this? Do you think it would be RIGHT?

D

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP)--A radical Islamic lawmaker belonging to an anti-U.S. alliance that rules in northwest Pakistan announced Friday he has filed a resolution in the federal Parliament to establish a government committee to monitor FBI activities in Pakistan. The proposal by Shabbir Ahmed Khan, of the Mutahida Majlis-e-Amal alliance - or United Action Forum - alliance, said that "increasing American interference was a threat to the country (Pakistan)."

Khan wants a government committee to act as a watchdog on the U.S. FBI operating here. Islamic conservatives have complained bitterly that the FBI is involved in raids on homes and religious facilities throughout the country. The U.S. Embassy in Pakistan has refused to comment on FBI activities.

"Honorable Members of the house should be informed of the identities and number of people working for American agencies
inside Pakistan," Khan said in the resolution. "Moreover, a powerful committee of the house (should) be set up to monitor the illegal activities of the American agencies so the house is informed with accurate and timely information."

President Pervez Musharraf, a key ally of the U.S.-led anti-terrorist coalition, says only a small number of FBI are operating in Pakistan and only to provide intelligence on suspected al Qaida or Taliban fugitives.

But Islamic conservatives who placed third in last October's general election disagree.

"Honorable citizens are harassed on suspicions of being al-Qaida. Our state institutions have become tools in protecting American interests. This should be stopped immediately," Khan said in the resolution, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press.

Khan was elected to the assembly from Peshawar, a conservative city in western Pakistan, near the Afghan border. He is also a deputy head of the hardline Jamaat-e-Islami party for the region.

The FBI is operating out of the U.S. consulate in Peshawar to supervise the construction of military posts along the Afghan border, Khan said in the resolution. He accused the government of handing over security of Pakistan's western borders with Afghanistan to the FBI.

The alliance has about 57 seats in the assembly, or lower house of the Pakistani parliament, and is ruling the strategic North West Frontier province after making strong gains in general elections in October last year.

The resolution is to be taken up for debate by the assembly in its session scheduled for Feb. 26, Khan said. It was unclear what its prospects of passage were.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires
02-21-03 1127ET- - 11 27 AM EST 02-21-03

These morons buying duct tape and plastic sheeting amuse me greatly. So naive, so stupid. The only difference between the way they and I draw our final agonizing breath is I'll be thinking about my loved ones, life, maybe God, etc. and THEY'LL be thinking "Damnit, those sheets and tape don't work. Home Depot ripped me o---"

G Bush is the most dangerous man on the planet, more dangerous to his own citizens and others than Osama could ever hope to be. Osama is the man THIS bush didn't GET, Saddam is the man his failure useless FATHER didn't get, so they're a man behind in that family. A man behind and a sandwitch short of the full platter.

NYC is on full scale alert, turns out to be a hoax. I'd be hoaxing my head of for the fun of it too if I were an *UNCHARGED* UNCONVICTED prisoner at Guantanamo Bay for the last YEAR and a half. Does anybody stop and question as to whether these people have actually done anything wrong or just happen to be Arab. Lucky our prison system is set up so you don't have to do anything wrong to end up there.

I graduated the last month. It was good b/c the school of law was the first to get our degrees and I was the first of the only four JD students as they're done alphabetically so after the 3 honorary degrees and 3 uni medals I was the first to be hooded and certificated.

The anthem was nice, a US Senator gave a speech, and the whole thing went well. Afterwards Mer and I went to a diner, got the public transport home (this was part of the deal for three years now - we took a car out there but she HAD to experience the PT as I did on the way back) and she took me to a Candy Store near our home to buy some candy.

I still have to take the bar exam, the ethics exam, the ethical fittness committee/squad, dye my hair purple and teach my cat to speak French before I’m eventually an actual attoney though.

And the Bar Exam is pissing me off. One line I get most frequently is "OH, JFK Jr. filed the bar exam three (5,7,120) times!" What are they saying? Are they saying I’m not as smart as HIM? Jesus. Pretty he was, but otherwise….. Besides, I believe he passed his PILOT’S license first time.

The worst thing about the whole Bar Exam experience is I have so little time to myself, for my own thoughts or amusements. I’ve hardly read a newspaper or listened to the Beatles in weeks now. Something about North Korea being our latest football…..using "the football" on them, and All You Need is Love.

The Republicans are having their annual get together in NYC and my friend is thinking of things to chain herself to in protest. I’d like to throw condoms all over them after the Bush Administration has come down so hard on condoms in favor of…and this is so precious…abstinence. This has to be some kind of sick comedy. And if they find that funny, they’l just roll around with laughter at he millions of people who die of AIDS each year. And not just in America, our foreign policy is anti-condoms effecting nations not so wealthy but oh so much smarter than us. Words can’t explain

I guess I’m just a NY liberal. In that, I am these conservative cunts’ worst nightmare; A NYC financier/trader liberal wanna be tort lawyer. AND a FOREIGER to boot. My very existence is a poke in their wholesome Alabama farming pro-life Bible thumping eyes. Only if I were gay would I offend them more.

One joke from my studies,; The difference between negligence, gross negligence, and recklessness is the difference between a fool, a damn fool, and a God-damned fool. This is also funny I thought

Keep well

D

ps
this is interesting if you value privacy at all, though only three or four people in America seem to these days. I think Saffire is a windbag and a cunt, but I agree with him here. I won't even comment of Ashcroft...

For hire: the principality of Liechtenstein

February 15 2003
Vaduz

Anxious to put itself on the world map, the Ruritanian statelet of Liechtenstein is putting itself up for rent. The tiny country, famous mainly for allegedly sheltering the tainted millions of drug barons and dictators, is about to metamorphose into one giant corporate hospitality centre.

In what is thought to be the world's first rent-a-state scheme, the tiny principality is to offer itself for hire by multinationals for conferences, celebrations and even office parties.

Not that, as a country, it amounts to very much. Squeezed between Switzerland and Austria, the landlocked state has 33,000 inhabitants and covers just 155 square kilometres. It is, in effect, 11 villages. But for a fee of up to £320 ($A870) per person per day, a multinational can have it all: the scenic alpine backdrop and accommodating tourist officials.

At the top rate, a four-day conference for 900 delegates (the maximum that can be accommodated) would cost £1.2 million. The facilities are, however, far from conventional.

Corporate clients can "brand" the entire state with their logo, emblazoning it on prominent buildings. Arrangements can also be made for the discerning multinational to have access to the national art gallery and theatre, the royal family's wine cellar, and at least one of Liechtenstein's fairytale castles - the 13th-century Schloss Gutenberg.

In the present

One night in the Home of the Free…THis is all true, taken from a pastiche of several real cases.

At C’s apartment, A, B, and C are watching TV. A and B decide to buy some marijuana for their evening.

A "Shall we buy some dope tonight?"

B "I suppose so, why not. Later."

C says nothing but hears the agreement

A is a coffee seller by trade and has a diary on him with a list of dates, times, weighted amounts, and no more.

The police who are standing at the door, not with their ears to the door but it is a thin door, hear.

Pursuant to law, the police break the door down and arrest A&B for conspiracy to purchase heroin, a felony. "Dope" can mean whatever the prosecution wants it to means, if they are black the prosecution could decide "dope" means crack. But they’re lucky, at sentencing the dates (of B’s coffee purchases for his business) and times and weights are presumed to all be purchases of heroin.

No substantial step is required for drug conspiracies. If they said "Let’s murder X tonight," to be guilty of conspiracy to murder they must have made some step in furtherance of that conspiracy - perhaps getting a gun, calling X to be in a certain place at a certain time, etc - but with drugs the mere agreement is sufficient. So A and B and C are charged with kilos of heroin even though they did nothing more than tentatively agree to buy marijuana for personal consumption. If A is a good coffee seller, they could be legally charged with tons of possession.

Federally they can be sentenced to 360 months to life, and state wise, 30 years to life. None have criminal records, not even a parking ticket, and not a grain of heroin or marijuana was found on this no knock, warrantless search.

People are in jail for decades for LESS than this.

******************************************************************************************



In the future….

"On August 8, 2013, the defendant was found guilty of possession of 528 grams of tobacco, a schedule A controlled substance (Presidential Executive Order - Pres. Jeb Bush, 2010), an A II felony, and 300 grams of coffee, a class A misdemeanor. The above were discovered on a "possible cause" no knock entry and search of defendant’s home. No further drugs were found during routine forced stomach and bowel evacuation, or hair, nail, skin, blood, eyelid scrape lab tests. Defendant has pleaded down and shall receive a sentence of 10-13 years and have citizenship rights taken away for a further 10 years."

Don't laugh...its coming.