This is a targeted question and the target knows who he or she is.
Which sitting US Governor was just indicted for corruption by US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald?
For bonus points, of what kind of corruption has this Governor been accused?
For bonus points, what is a "Fitzmas"?
But, speaking of targets, I was thinking, driving home from work, that this week is a target rich environment, only to find that Professor Glenn Reynolds used the same phrase to describe the situation. Like shooting fish in a barrel.
Regards -- Cliff
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
I Am Shocked, Shocked...
With due nod to Captain Louis Renault.
Corruption in Illinois? I remember someone quipping that when the Chicago machine stole the 1960 Presidential Election for Senator Kennedy they felt they were merely stealing it back from the southern part of the state, which was, they claimed, in the process of stealing it for Vice President Nixon.
So, I was not surprised to hear that the Illinois Governor and his Chief of Staff had been indicted on corruption charges.
Professor Glenn Reynolds notes we have "Another chance to play Name That Party!" One would think that the MSM would have learned by now that there is a belief out there on the right side of the Blogosphere that they are not even handed in naming the party affiliation of corrupt or allegedly corrupt politicians.
The Lowell Sun mentioned it in the third paragraph. The Boston Globe's latest web article on the issue not only does not mention that he is a Democratic Party member, it treats it like the Governor was just being a silly school boy, a la Presidential Candidate Gary Hart, rather than being corrupt. The WashPost nailed it in the first sentence.
The criminal complaint, as published in The Chicago Tribute is here.
And at the center of this is the US Attorney, Patrick J Fitzgerald. Mr Fitzgerald is one of the few who has his own feast day--Fitzmas. It is sort of like Christmas, with lots of surprises, but it is a movable feast. It could come at any time. The first Fitzmas was 28 October 2005, when Special Prosecutor Fitzgerald brought a five count indictment against I Lewis (Scooter) Libby. It is to be noted that US Attorney Fitzgerald is an equal opportunity law enforcer. He went after Illinois Republican Governor George Ryan soon after he (the US Attorney) was sworn in.
But, the important point is that we have the sitting governor of a major state trying to make profit off of appointing someone for two years to serve out Senator Obama's term. This should be an indictable offense and thank you to US Attorney Fitzgerald for making it so. Merry Fitzmas!
Maybe President Obama will nominate Mr Fitzgerald to be the US Attorney in Boston. We can always hope and pray.
On a side note, I pray that this investigation does not extend too far.
Regards -- Cliff
Corruption in Illinois? I remember someone quipping that when the Chicago machine stole the 1960 Presidential Election for Senator Kennedy they felt they were merely stealing it back from the southern part of the state, which was, they claimed, in the process of stealing it for Vice President Nixon.
So, I was not surprised to hear that the Illinois Governor and his Chief of Staff had been indicted on corruption charges.
Professor Glenn Reynolds notes we have "Another chance to play Name That Party!" One would think that the MSM would have learned by now that there is a belief out there on the right side of the Blogosphere that they are not even handed in naming the party affiliation of corrupt or allegedly corrupt politicians.
The Lowell Sun mentioned it in the third paragraph. The Boston Globe's latest web article on the issue not only does not mention that he is a Democratic Party member, it treats it like the Governor was just being a silly school boy, a la Presidential Candidate Gary Hart, rather than being corrupt. The WashPost nailed it in the first sentence.
The criminal complaint, as published in The Chicago Tribute is here.
And at the center of this is the US Attorney, Patrick J Fitzgerald. Mr Fitzgerald is one of the few who has his own feast day--Fitzmas. It is sort of like Christmas, with lots of surprises, but it is a movable feast. It could come at any time. The first Fitzmas was 28 October 2005, when Special Prosecutor Fitzgerald brought a five count indictment against I Lewis (Scooter) Libby. It is to be noted that US Attorney Fitzgerald is an equal opportunity law enforcer. He went after Illinois Republican Governor George Ryan soon after he (the US Attorney) was sworn in.
But, the important point is that we have the sitting governor of a major state trying to make profit off of appointing someone for two years to serve out Senator Obama's term. This should be an indictable offense and thank you to US Attorney Fitzgerald for making it so. Merry Fitzmas!
Maybe President Obama will nominate Mr Fitzgerald to be the US Attorney in Boston. We can always hope and pray.
On a side note, I pray that this investigation does not extend too far.
Regards -- Cliff
Monday, December 8, 2008
Our Southern Border
Retired Army Colonel Robert Killebrew is a smart cookie and has a lot of insight. This article in Armed Forces Journal International should not give us pause, but should galvanize us to action--to write our Congresswoman and our two Senators.
The title is "Terror at the border A new terrorist threat is closer than you think." The lead paragraph is:
Colonel Killebrew finishes up with these two paragraphs
To quote someone I know, "I hope people are paying attention." Our response is known as the Merida Initiative. Funding for the immediate phase was included in the Supplemental Budget, PL 110-252, signed by President Bush on 30 June 2008. On the 3rd of December Mexico and the US signed a Letter of Agreement, that resulted in the release of $197 million in funds.
The US Congress has placed multiple restrictions on the funding and reporting, many of which had nothing to do with combating lawless gangs or narco-terrorists. I have been told by people who know that "It is intended to please everyone, but falls short." Part of the problem is that the US Congress has tried to get down in the weeds, drawing lines separating counter-narcotics, organized crime, and terrorism and mixing all with human rights, judicial reform, etc. These lines do not exist and judicial reform will only occur when judges and prosecutors are not in constant fear for their lives. Think back to a previous post, where I noted 4,000 deaths in Mexico related to drugs. In 2008 to date, 4,000 deaths.
In my humble opinion, we should be careful about how we encourage others to conform to our ideals. Here is a quote from an OAS broadsheet on the Merida Initiative:
Regards -- Cliff
The title is "Terror at the border A new terrorist threat is closer than you think." The lead paragraph is:
With American attention diverted to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the economic crisis and a hard-fought national election, national security experts have largely overlooked the bitter countercartel war in Mexico. But that war, which is beginning to overlap the U.S. border, is only the forerunner of an even more serious threat. Sometime in the near future a lethal combination of transnational terrorism and criminal gangs is going to cross the U.S. border in force. According to some, it already has, and we haven’t even noticed.This is not a new insight, but a restatement of what is already out there.
Colonel Killebrew finishes up with these two paragraphs
Beyond police work, though, U.S. lawmakers must begin to address social and domestic issues that support the gang and drug culture — and thus provide ungoverned space for terrorism — as a matter of national security. Immigration reform is an excellent example of a national domestic issue intrinsically involved in international gang culture that must be addressed. Prison reform is another — overcrowded prisons that warehouse minor offenders next to hardened gang members have become gang universities that take in amateurs and produce hard cases. Improvements in education, work-force development and other social priorities are no longer stovepiped issues, but have become part of the challenge of isolating and eliminating a drug and crime culture that has become a national security challenge.We, as the citizens, need to recognize that this is a large, complex and very mixed problem. We can't move to fight narcotics trafficking and not work to fight guerrillas in Latin America. We can't call for judicial reform in Mexico without understanding that our demand for drugs in this nation is undermining judicial officials in Mexico.
None of this is easy, and all of it is “irregular.” The enemy follows no rules, wears no identifiable markings — except perhaps gang tattoos — and attacks his objectives only indirectly, by undermining the opponent’s will to prevail. There is no single enemy network to attack, or hostile command and control system. In many cases, American security experts continue to be unaware of the threat posed by the axis of international gangs and terrorists, overseas and within America’s own borders. Much more can be said. But the challenge now is to recognize the threat, comprehend its many dimensions and better coordinate the counterattack.
To quote someone I know, "I hope people are paying attention." Our response is known as the Merida Initiative. Funding for the immediate phase was included in the Supplemental Budget, PL 110-252, signed by President Bush on 30 June 2008. On the 3rd of December Mexico and the US signed a Letter of Agreement, that resulted in the release of $197 million in funds.
The US Congress has placed multiple restrictions on the funding and reporting, many of which had nothing to do with combating lawless gangs or narco-terrorists. I have been told by people who know that "It is intended to please everyone, but falls short." Part of the problem is that the US Congress has tried to get down in the weeds, drawing lines separating counter-narcotics, organized crime, and terrorism and mixing all with human rights, judicial reform, etc. These lines do not exist and judicial reform will only occur when judges and prosecutors are not in constant fear for their lives. Think back to a previous post, where I noted 4,000 deaths in Mexico related to drugs. In 2008 to date, 4,000 deaths.
In my humble opinion, we should be careful about how we encourage others to conform to our ideals. Here is a quote from an OAS broadsheet on the Merida Initiative:
Mexico – After vocal opposition to language in the original bill that required that all cases of Mexican soldiers accused of human rights violations be referred to civilian courts (in violation of Mexican constitutional provisions) as a condition for assistance, Mexican officials and lawmakers are satisfied with the wording of the bill as passed in the House and referred to the Senate.I don't know the details. Did we promise a "wink and a nod"? When we put language in our bills that encourage other nations to violate their own Constitutions we are encouraging a lack of respect for not only Constitutions, but for the rule of law in general and that is not a good thing.
Regards -- Cliff
Cardinal Seán Visits Lowell
Seán Cardinal O'Malley, OFM Cap, paid a visit to our Parish on Saturday. I was in charge of taking photographs of the Kiddie Choir. None of the photos turned out. The lady shooting pictures for the Lowell Sun got at least one great picture, which ran on Sunday. Unfortunately, the web version of Robert Mills' article does not include the picture. However, you can view a bunch of shots here.
One of the things that was interesting was that Father Nicholas Sanella told us, in introducing Cardinal O'Malley, that he was called and told he was going to the Immaculate Conception Parish on 6 December, which is the Feast Day of Saint Nicholas. And, then the Cardinal's delayed visit--delayed by several months--was on 6 December, the same Feast Day. To that Cardinal O'Malley noted that "Coincidence is when God chooses to remain anonymous." That is an old saying, but it is a good one.
I expect that there will be something about the visit in Cardinal Seán's Blog.
If I figure out the legalities of including the Lowell Sun photos, I will append them to this post.
For those following Feast Days, today is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, after which our Parish is named. The phrase "Immaculate Conception" is not to be confused with the phrase "Virgin Birth." They are two very different things.
Regards -- Cliff
One of the things that was interesting was that Father Nicholas Sanella told us, in introducing Cardinal O'Malley, that he was called and told he was going to the Immaculate Conception Parish on 6 December, which is the Feast Day of Saint Nicholas. And, then the Cardinal's delayed visit--delayed by several months--was on 6 December, the same Feast Day. To that Cardinal O'Malley noted that "Coincidence is when God chooses to remain anonymous." That is an old saying, but it is a good one.
I expect that there will be something about the visit in Cardinal Seán's Blog.
If I figure out the legalities of including the Lowell Sun photos, I will append them to this post.
For those following Feast Days, today is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, after which our Parish is named. The phrase "Immaculate Conception" is not to be confused with the phrase "Virgin Birth." They are two very different things.
Regards -- Cliff
Sunday, December 7, 2008
CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL IMAGEPearl Harbor Day
Today is the 67th Anniversary of the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor, if my math is correct.
To us it is "a day that will live in infamy." It united our nation and when Germany declared war on us several days later there was no question that we would take them on also.
However, for many Japanese it is still "The Greatest Single Victory that Disprove White Supremacy." Thus writes Dr Tohmatsu Haruo in H P Willmott's Pearl Harbor.
I don't know Dr Tohmatsu Haruo, but I know and have worked with both Ned Willmott and Spencer Johnson, the other two authors of the book. I respect them both, thus by reference I give respect to Dr Tohmatsu Haruo's understanding of the attack from the Japanese point of view.
It is interesting that at the time of the attack Japan had been bogged down for five years in a war in China that was growing increasingly unpopular. Thus, the victory at Pearl Harbor was a shot in the arm for them. However, it galvanized the United States. Looking back, the outcome was never in question.
From the US point of view, the defeat at Pearl Harbor could have been much worse. First, our aircraft carriers home ported at Pearl Harbor were at sea and untouched. Second, the Japanese (and here there is thick historical argument) passed up an opportunity for a third attack. But, they had achieved a six month period of freedom of action.
Today we honor those who gave their lives at Pearl Harbor and thank them for their devotion to duty and dedicate ourselves to carefully thinking through the long term consequences of our actions--based upon the lessons to be learned from both the US and the Japanese side of the war that followed.
Regards -- Cliff
To us it is "a day that will live in infamy." It united our nation and when Germany declared war on us several days later there was no question that we would take them on also.
However, for many Japanese it is still "The Greatest Single Victory that Disprove White Supremacy." Thus writes Dr Tohmatsu Haruo in H P Willmott's Pearl Harbor.
I don't know Dr Tohmatsu Haruo, but I know and have worked with both Ned Willmott and Spencer Johnson, the other two authors of the book. I respect them both, thus by reference I give respect to Dr Tohmatsu Haruo's understanding of the attack from the Japanese point of view.
It is interesting that at the time of the attack Japan had been bogged down for five years in a war in China that was growing increasingly unpopular. Thus, the victory at Pearl Harbor was a shot in the arm for them. However, it galvanized the United States. Looking back, the outcome was never in question.
From the US point of view, the defeat at Pearl Harbor could have been much worse. First, our aircraft carriers home ported at Pearl Harbor were at sea and untouched. Second, the Japanese (and here there is thick historical argument) passed up an opportunity for a third attack. But, they had achieved a six month period of freedom of action.
Today we honor those who gave their lives at Pearl Harbor and thank them for their devotion to duty and dedicate ourselves to carefully thinking through the long term consequences of our actions--based upon the lessons to be learned from both the US and the Japanese side of the war that followed.
Regards -- Cliff
Saturday, December 6, 2008
The Costs of Higher Education
In today's Boston Globe Derrick Z Jackson has an excellent OpEd on the cost of higher education and the salaries of College Presidents.
Being part of the Continuing Ed crowd, I do pretty well on college expenses--except for books, but long gone are the days when my Father used to complain that college education in California was not free--it cost him $100 a semester for each of my two Brothers to attend Cal State Long Beach. That $100 included books, parking fees, locker fees--the whole shoot'en match.
I don't begrudge professors and administrators a good wage. And, I don't want to see my taxes go up. However, we have to find a way to do post-High School education in a way that educates our total work force and does not cost us an arm and a leg. And, we need to make sure we are educating those from the lower socio-economic rungs of the ladder--education is their leg up in this world.
If there is a "new economy" out there, we are not going to catch our part of it unless we have the workforce to go with it.
My youngest Brother tells the story of Senator Byrd of West Virginia putting another earmark into the Congressional Budget, this time moving some IRS function from Baltimore, MD, to West Virginia. No one in IRS liked the idea, and they were dragging their feet, but when the first test move was made it was so successful that the IRS wanted to speed up the deal. Why? Because there was an idle, but educated, work force ready to do the work.
We need to be the State with the educated work force ready to do the work (or better, ready to transition to the new work). High costs will not help that along. We need to be ordering our priorities and looking for solutions to this issue.
Regards -- Cliff
Being part of the Continuing Ed crowd, I do pretty well on college expenses--except for books, but long gone are the days when my Father used to complain that college education in California was not free--it cost him $100 a semester for each of my two Brothers to attend Cal State Long Beach. That $100 included books, parking fees, locker fees--the whole shoot'en match.
I don't begrudge professors and administrators a good wage. And, I don't want to see my taxes go up. However, we have to find a way to do post-High School education in a way that educates our total work force and does not cost us an arm and a leg. And, we need to make sure we are educating those from the lower socio-economic rungs of the ladder--education is their leg up in this world.
If there is a "new economy" out there, we are not going to catch our part of it unless we have the workforce to go with it.
My youngest Brother tells the story of Senator Byrd of West Virginia putting another earmark into the Congressional Budget, this time moving some IRS function from Baltimore, MD, to West Virginia. No one in IRS liked the idea, and they were dragging their feet, but when the first test move was made it was so successful that the IRS wanted to speed up the deal. Why? Because there was an idle, but educated, work force ready to do the work.
We need to be the State with the educated work force ready to do the work (or better, ready to transition to the new work). High costs will not help that along. We need to be ordering our priorities and looking for solutions to this issue.
Regards -- Cliff
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