theloniusfleabag

Dear BHS, Have at 'er. I prefer beer myself. Just a hint, try to keep your 'still' away from combustibles and populated areas. Beer is so much safer to home-brew, I haven't heard of anyone needing a skin-graft from a brewing accident yet!

Dear BHS, I am unsure how to create links to other threads, so I'll just paste some info I previously posted... So, according to the CIA, a crime worthy of FBI involvement took place. I would expect you are right, though, I doubt anyone will go to jail.

Dear Black Dog, I have to agree. The reform of marijuana laws are reputedly just around the corner, so the gov't will be faced with issuing many more pardons, just down the road, if they are going to decriminalize this term.I, however, feel legalization is the only prudent course.

Dear kimmy, Don't worry, kimmy, if you get into politics, you will be too busy with your 'snout in the trough' and 'your fingers in the pie' to post here any more! Besides, we'd all be bashing you at that point, (well, 50+%, anyway) so I doubt you'd sully your elevated mind in a parley with us 'unwashed masses'. Btw, is your last name Campbell?

Dear Shady, I think the 'wait and see' attitude has hit this one. Depending on the timing, Rove may just be an ordinary asshole, rather than a criminal. Novak should be going to jail, regardless of his sources, and Rove's case is largely dependent on whether he approved of the leak beforehand (thereby fomenting it) or after the fact.

Dear August1991, Excuse moi, sil vous plait, je ne pas parlez francais. As Argus states, I think the overwhelming subconscious factor is "The devil you know is better than the one you don't". As to francophones leading our country, Trudeau was probably the most beloved PM in any country in recent times (with the exception of the NEP), and Jean Chretien was elected 4 times. Many thought Chretien to be 'a true Canadian', (but cringed when he opened his mouth) though at the end he was tainted by scandal (of which Martin must have a share). What the 'ROC' wants is a good leader, I don't think they care what that person's primary language or race is, as long as they are sensible and honest (a tall order for a politician) and not too far left or right.

Dear Sparhawk, I would agree, but 'liberal' and 'conservative' have different meanings other than the political parties. That being said, this is meant to be a political forum, so I can't blame someone for 'wearing their heart (or moniker) on their sleeve'.

Dear BHS, I can give you several examples of the police 'selectively upholding laws', or ignoring them, as they see fit. Stolen bicycles, for one. The local police told me that they do not bother with stolen bicycles anymore, as it isn't worth their time. I pointed out a 'homeless' crackhead (that I see almost everyday) to one officer, and told him that the mountain bike he was riding was probably worth about $3,000 dollars, and was likely stolen. The officer told me that stolen bikes are only returned to the owner in probably less than 5% of the time, so they don't waste manpower on them anymore. Possession of crack-cocaine...in the area around my business, people smoke crack in full view of my front doors almost everyday. I have given up calling the police. I have been told by the police several times that; eyewitness reports don't represent reasonable cause for arrest, the crackhead can stuff their pipe and crack inside some clothing and the police risk a lot by searching them, the crackhead will probably never show up in court, or pay the fine, etc...... One of my customers had to shuffle by a group of 8-10 people smoking crack right beside my front door, so I called 9-11. The police never showed, I had to call them back 25-30 min later and report that they had all moved on. They thanked me, because they could then cancel the call. While all this stuff I describe is illegal, the police have deemed it a 'non-priority', and for some of the arguments, I can't blame them. I do not envy them for a second.

Two excellent points. I think Stanley Kubrick said it best, with "Don't worry lad, I can make you better..."

Dear crazymf, Some people claim that the economy can be seen as a 'pie', with everyone vying for as big a slice as they can get. So, they claim, the answer is not to divide the pie more evenly (against 'market forces') but to create a bigger pie (growing the economy). Yes, there is an 'endgame', sort of, for it is when you get 100% of the pie. It is sort of like 'Monopoly', except you aren't allowed to win.

Dear BHS, Ahh, touche. Zip guns are quite unreliable, so it is probably easiest of all to make explosives. Perhaps if the 'powers that be' were to spend billions on a 'terrorist registry', they could solve all the world's present fears.

Dear BHS, I have seen numerous relevant examples of this term, though they could have been coincidences. In an editorial in the Calgary Sun, (years ago) Paul Jackson (an avowed right-winger) made fun of leftist thinking, and said "our system will last a thousand years" Transplant the word 'reich' for system, and you have the essence of 'crypto-fascism', with the appropriate obeisance yet less than full disclosure.

Dear Melanie, I find it sickening that a child would be taught that saying a prayer would possibly help them on a test, or sports field. I should think that they should be taught to respect the Lord, and not use prayer for selfish petty gain. Mind you, that's what gave rise to most religions (and TV evangelists!)

Dear Argus, I am not sure what part of the country you are from, but in Calgary, most of these are not true. Asian gang crime is probably #1 for gun crimes, to be sure, but the rest is fairly 'racially mixed'. None of the reserves cross the border in AB, so there is no smuggling, and if there is, I guarantee it isn't "Natives'. Also, the RCMP has jurisdiction on reserve land (for now), so they haven't 'given up'. I also know some Tribal Police officers, and they are quite decent guys. I have to agree with BHS on this one. The registry will do nothing, and cost billions, for the sake of making it look like something is being done. Canadians are much more easygoing, by and large, than most, so guns aren't used to solve problems, beer is.An interesting bit from Micheal Moore's "Bowling For Columbine" was the Chris Rock bit about gun control. "We don't need gun control, we need bullet control! ...If bullets cost $5,000 dollars, there would be no 'innocent bystanders'!".

Dear Shady, That is a large claim, for what you believe to be 'right' may or may not be right at all.

Dear BHS, Are you suggesting that any comment about this is going to be 'bile', and only based on anti-americanism? I personally don't know enough about tarrifs to understand why the decision was taken, but Canada should be suing, and then sending a report to a collections agency. Barring that, NAFTA should be scrapped if the US doesn't pay. If any company tried to not only engage in less than fair trade practices, and then ignore court rulings, no one would do business with them. Refusing to pay is pretty cheesy.

Dear Hugo, Not completely wrong. I derive no benefit from accepting them, only loss. They charge both ends a transaction fee, and cash nearly eliminates that. They also must charge more that the benefit given, or else they wouldn't do it.

Dear (whoever is over 12 here), This is correct, but the US isn't trying to prosecute Emery for sending drugs out of Canada, just for bringing them in to the US (not that a seed is a harmful substance or a drug itself, per se) Now, if the Canadian authorities caught someone smuggling hashish (an incredibly delicious derivative of marijuana) into the country, from say, Pakistan, I would expect that the person should be tried in whatever country that they are caught in. If it is not the 'offended country', they should be free to issue a warrant and capture that person should they step foot in that country. They should also be free to petition for extradition, but if that is refused, they shouldn't be able to use main force. If the person involved in international smuggling is caught in their own country, perhaps they should be tried jointly.

Dear Hugo, But for whom are the costs minimized, Hugo? For the banks, (the 'counterfeiters') all of these things increase profit, because they lessen their own costs, but couple it with more fees, thus doubling the profit. As an example, I declined to accept credit and debit cards at my business. Cash or cheque only. There were several factors in this decision, but the biggest one was fees. The merchant pays to have a machine installed, and pays for every transaction, and so does the customer, often plus percentage. So the merchant gets less than full price for his good and services, and the consumer pays extra, and the bank gets money from both parties just to use a specific payment method. That is why 'Cash is King'.

Here is another link to the technical side... http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/iran-strikes.htm

Dear Argus, Looks like Rafsanjani is still at it...this was taken from www.globalsecurity.org. Not sure how much power he still has, but if he was the moderate, things don't look good. Assuming, of course, that the plan to eventually use the nukes. It looks as though the development of them is destined to move beyond posturing.

Dear Hugo, Standardization. It is best (in my opinion) to have standardization of laws and punishment across the land, rather than different ones every few feet.

Dear Argus, I do believe that this is, and always will be, the thinking of Israel. (not that it is wrong) It is also the reason that Israel wouldn't care too much about the US' interests in the region, if they feel that their survival is threatened. Black Dog, Yes, Israel stuck at the Osirak nuclear facility in Iraq, and I don't know that Iran would be seen in any different light than Iraq by Israel.

Dear Hugo, It has to do mostly with choice. The 'people' have chosen to empower the state with the 'right' to do these things, ostensibly on their behalf. It is a choice between 'rule of law' vs. 'mob rule'. The aquiesence of the 'people' allowing the use of overwhelming force to uphold said laws depends on how 'just' the majority feels the laws are. When you claim the police are 'kidnappers', there are rules that must be followed for said 'forcible confinement against one's will' to occur. Then again, some laws are 'more just' than others. Consider the kidnapping and rape of a child. The rule of law (and the will of the 'people', at least the majority) dictates that the offender be tracked down and incarcerated. Mob rule wouldn't bother with incarceration, even if the offender offered no resistance. The offender would likely be lynched in short order. To avoid this, the 'rule of law' is meticulously observed (sometimes too much so, in favour of the offender). Now, consider a case that happened to a friend of mine, some 20 years ago. He was caught with an open beer in public, and had 10 grams of hashish on his person. He tried to eat it, so the police put him in a choke-hold, ground his head and shoulder into the pavement, and bloodied him severely. He was eventually convicted of possession, was given a $200 fine and a criminal record (he got a pardon long ago). Hardly comparable crimes, but the police only work with the laws that they are given. (I realize you claim that the laws are often not applied equally, and I believe you are right) .The point is that I believe we must have some laws, and that people's 'rights' must be revoked on occasion to uphold them.

Dear Black Dog, Israel would not be acting on the US' orders. Israel only acts with Israel's interests in mind, period. Israel has a lot of contempt for the US, their love-affair isn't a two-way street. They would have a bit of a tougher time because Iran is at the extreme range of Israeli delivery capability (from fighters-bombers) but it is possible. However, the US might like the idea, because they themselves couldn't do it without repercussions, while Israel could, and could also count on the US coming to their aid should there be a 'Muslim, anti-Israel backlash'. Then, the US would have a much freer hand in the Middle East, and it wouldn't look like the US started the obliterations.