So I'm still held a wee bit speechless by yesterdays events so I decided to blow off some steam with a break of sorts. If you're feeling rather overwhelmed by yesterdays news or generally just all the crap...come on in and talk about whatever seems good to you.

So after numerous failures to upgrade, coordinate, and empower our force of dipshit agents we call Homeland Security, it seems that Bush is convinced we just need more frosting on the timebomb despite so many expensive decisions leading no-where.

Hinting at a blossoming future of freedom's past, this section of a NYT post on the subject makes me feel security blanket warm and fuzzy inside:

General Michael V. Hayden, the deputy director of national intelligence, said the government would take steps to ensure that the changes did not impinge on American civil liberties. But in a briefing for reporters, General Hayden also said that the United States no longer had the luxury of maintaining divisions between its foreign and domestic intelligence structures, because "our enemy does not recognize that distinction."

But why are we fixing the ever-broke intelligence agencies yet again you hopefully ask?

Washington State's Ferry system is alright, it costs a ton but it works. It can also be much better.

With an eye on technology, service, and keeping costs low the Washington State Department of Transportation is holding several public meetings to discuss the future of this critical service.

WSDOT sucks though, honestly they depend largely upon contractors and a bunch of sub-par planners, engineers, and software to do the work of putting support infrastructure in place. As such...you should go to these meetings!

Tuesday Meeting: 12:00 pm - 1011 Western Ave., Seattle

Wednesday Meeting: 6:30 pm - Vashon Island's McMurray Middle School multipurpose room

As if on cue really but it seems our version of 007's Q would like to use plutonium to power future spy gadgets.

Plutonium.

Spy Gadgets.

Exploding Watches..nah..238 doesn't really pack the punch...

Camera's with a half life of 88 years? Maybe...

Whatever the cause though it's important to remember that we are asking Iran to not develop the technology to produce plutonium because it is hazardous and has the potential for abuse. Yet here we are using uranium tipped weapons and hooking our super agents up with plutonium jet packs (I can dream can't I?) to fly to their posh hotel.

We also have to consider that we can't keep nuclear secrets very well and that our gadgets often inspire same/similar gadgets on an international scale.

Mum's the word eh? Well fuck mum.

Alright all you folks out there with only enough cash for broadband and only a tiny bit of cash for entertainment purposes, listen up.

There will be no more licking crumbs off the plate.

From now on those of us who want to try before we buy, just play with samples we rip from it, or straight up rip a whole cd-quality copy of a cd because we can't even pay for medical insurance let alone drop $20 on a fancy booklet to accompany the CD which costs mere pennies...from now on...we can't do it.

To those programmers, animators, musicians, and photo artists out there who downloaded a copy of Visual Studio, Maya, VST plugins, or Photoshop just so you could learn how the program works to see if you wanted to buy it or really don't intend on making a profit with so can't justify dropping 2 years of college worth of flow on a few CD's that will be outdated next year (see Maya)...sorry, even though you are what drives this industry the method that most of you used to get where you are today went bye-bye.

So I've been following this story about the arrest warrants issued for 13 US CIA Agents whose successful efforts to kidnap a fundamentalist Muslim priest were well documented by the Italian government.

It's hilarious.

First we have all these Diner's Club receipts for first class hotels, fine dining, and celebratory vacations after assaulting the priest, spraying a debilitating chemical in his face, then tossing the 42 year old Osama Nasr Mostafa Hassan into a van where he could be beaten at a more leisurely pace later.

Karl Rove served his usual purpose as the the front line spewer of elephant shit during his acceptance speech for receiving the conservative Charles Edison Memorial Award (aka a Conservative Oscar).

With Democrats demanding an apology, the nations liberals relatively insulted, and the Republicans standing firm that whatever mother Rove says is golden - I thought we should take an opportunity to actually read, in context, exactly what the pasty face overlord of spin had to say about those of us against the war in Iraq (entire conservatives roxorz speech here):

But perhaps the most important difference between conservatives and liberals can be found in the area of national security. Conservatives saw the savagery of 9/11 and the attacks and prepared for war; liberals saw the savagery of the 9/11 attacks and wanted to prepare indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers. In the wake of 9/11, conservatives believed it was time to unleash the might and power of the United States military against the Taliban; in the wake of 9/11, liberals believed it was time to… submit a petition. I am not joking. Submitting a petition is precisely what Moveon.org did. It was a petition imploring the powers that be" to "use moderation and restraint in responding to the… terrorist attacks against the United States."

It would seem that your home or business is only yours if it isn't in the communities best interest to improve the area for economic or sociological interests.

The 5-4 ruling by our GOP pwn3d Supreme Court finally lays to rest many a battle that takes place in this nation on an annual basis...be it for roads, hotels, parks, or whatever the hell your local government/private corporation wants to do with it, your property isn't yours (I tend to argue that your property isn't yours anyway but I tend to think that because I tend to dislike what suburbia has done to our planet).

A NYT article goes on and on about it here.

The ruling can be found here...somewhere...I'm sure...but it's like a game of hide and seek to find it on this lame ass really poorly designed website you paid for.

A recent MSNBC article asking "Would you have allowed Bill Gates to be born?"; poses a very important question for parents.

Would you abort a developing fetus if a genetic test was available that would allow mothers to identify whether the child would be autistic or normal?

What if autistics felt that society has completely misunderstood the individuals who actually fall within this wild spectrum?

This fabulous conversation we've been going on about had much to do with what individuals can try to do and are doing in order to set our conscience free. One such effort I had described involved utilizing technology to help improve communication, governance, and education. Many in the conversation were wondering or confused about the technologies I described and how relevant they are to governance in the modern world. I'd like to introduce you to just one of many groups who are really into these new concepts.

Free Culture is a group that deserves lots of attention as they make dreams into realities and, like one of the campaigns I'm running, are trying to do something new that requires your input. Having just attained non-profit status, I think you'll agree that the plan is rather interesting and quite legitimate.

Please, as I keep begging you to get involved and here is one of many ways via Free Culture (now with non-profit sauce):

In order to help bolster our image abroad, this lovely report from Amnesty International highly critical of the US shows us where some of our important tax contributions are going...

Here is a snippet from Irene Khan's international press speech:

Yet, the US government and its allies who lead the “War on Terror” continue to persist with politically convenient but ineffective strategies, which undermine human rights.

There can be no sustainable security strategy without justice and respect for human rights. The continued violence in Israel and the Occupied Territories. Despite the building of the Wall – in defiance of international law, the most stringent restrictions on freedom of movement of Palestinians, and the biggest demolition of houses in recent years, the security situation remains precarious.

Well..I guess since I managed to accidentally mis-post I might as well fill it with something important.

Looks like yet another soldier, 2nd Lt. Pantano, has taken things a little to far by passionately shooting a couple of day-old dead insurgents, 60 times (multiple clip things I presume), and then hanging a warning sign on him like the sheriff of Tombstone. Doubt the two fabricated stories are relevant but none the less, seems a number of our soldiers need some counseling.

From the Guardian Unlimited:

The two Iraqis were killed during an April 2004 search outside a suspected terrorist hideout in Mahmudiyah, Iraq.

Prosecutors said Pantano, 33, intended to make an example of the men by shooting them 60 times and hanging a sign over their bodies - ``No better friend, no worse enemy,'' a Marine slogan. Pantano did not deny hanging the sign or shooting the men repeatedly.

Perhaps in an effort to sit upon an investment that could help with future funding for regime change in other countries or just another semi-strategic war based on lies, the Pentagon is hopping mad that UK pulp's have gone and published more of their private stash of porn. Via ABC:

"Saddam's attorney said he would sue the newspaper "and everyone who helped in showing these pictures."

It's stories like this that make me glad my parents packed my high desert ass up and brought me to Washington when I was only two. Had they not brought me with them I'd of been sad indeed. =)

From the Washington Environmental Council (WEC):

"After the Senate version (SB 5509) passed out of the Senate on a 32-16 vote it passed the House on 3/30/05 with a strong bi-partisan vote of 78-19. The Governor signed the bill the first week of April. The legislation requires state buildings, schools, and universities to be built and certified as high performance, green buildings. This will result in buildings that save energy and water, are cheaper to operate, and improve student learning and employee performance."

The concept that I most appreciate about democracy is the idea that officials, once elected to govern a body of individuals, will not push their personal agendas upon the people.

I wish I could wake up to a dreamy that instead of all the nightmares spawning from the conservatives.

So when I read this story (via UK's Guardian)...

"Brazil yesterday became the first country to take a public stand against the Bush administration's massive Aids programme which is seen by many as seeking increasingly to press its anti-abortion, pro-abstinence sexual agenda on poorer countries."

...I was very impressed by Brazil's wisdom to decline all those greenbacks we were offering if they'd use that oh-so-effective abstinence only approach to resolving the AIDS crisis. Perhaps more importantly this nation who really could of used the assistance declined it because it would infringe upon the reproductive rights of the Brazilian population. Thankfully the Global Fund has not been so impacted and countries who don't wish to absorb US morals in exchange for aid do have options.

Were it to be that the US actually had $75,900,000,000.00 to spend I would be happy to let them spend it on something like crappy education, shittier health care, and inspiring economic recovery through a pretty lame reduction in taxes for the filthy rich or even more outsourcing to help inspire the American workforce.

But this is not the case.

Many of you have probably seen the recent reports that the planet is not faring so well against the onslaught of human development. I get pissed about this daily so I won't go on about it lest this rant become encyclopedic.

Instead I'd like to focus on our states contribution to global climate change.

People I am a weather geek. I love climate science so much that on a daily basis I pour through the data sets our National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has so kindly made public. But all this wonderful information that is usable to climate scientists, boaters, educational institutions, and amateur meteorologists is about to be taken away from us.

Lobbied by Accuweather and other private weather services Republican Senator Rick Santorum has introduced a vaguely worded bill that would cut off our access to critical data that is being used to help understand climate change.

Article @ PalmBeachPost.com

I dislike Santorum for a ton of reasons, but this effort will take information gathered with equipment and personnel we pay for and seal it up for private interests to resell back to us. This is unfair and we need help stopping it.

Please, help me with a letter blitz so that groups that get results like this...