Mark Turner's Plea to Governor Charlie Crist Ignored

I have some information to share with you about Mark Turner and his family and friends - more of some of the bizarre events and behaviour surrounding his coming incarceration. Out of desperation, Mark contacted Governor Charlie Crist's office. That story is below. If you are not up-to-date on this case, Mark's Appeal was denied and he attempted to take his life. He is in a hospital, awaiting transfer to the County Jail in about a week. Read background on the criminal case here.

Mark and Nancy Turner and their Children

Some months ago, Mark contacted the office of Florida's Governor, Charlie Crist. He was seeking help to investigate Pensacola's Special Prosecutor, who Mark believes targeted him for RICO charges. Mark spoke with Dustin Fusillo in the Governor's office. Read Mark's Appeal attorney's response to the Court.
Find the article index on everything I have written about Mark Turner in the sidebar at top right of this page.

If you are in a position to help Mark and Nancy Turner with legal advice, or toward the cost of a Post Conviction Appeal, with any portion of the $15,000.00 they need, or can help with the process of getting the paperwork ready, please leave a comment here, or send an email. You'll find my email address in the right-hand sidebar, or leave a comment on Mark Turner's  blog here. If you are an attorney and want to read Turner's Appeal attorney's response to the court, read it here. Read every court document here. 

We are looking for a miracle for this man who has spent every dime he has, is supported by his wife and is now close to indigency. Your prayers are so appreciative. So many of you have told us you are praying for this family.

To bloggers: if you are interested in this story and will cross-post it for us, please do so, and link back here. The Turner's will be appreciative of your help.

This from Mark's wife Nancy:

Mr. Fusillo had told Mark that his case was being referred to Drew Atkinson, [who] would handle the complaint against the District 1 that Russ Edgar represents.  He called it an "Executive Investigation" and stated that his prior responses to Mark's request for help did not specify "Executive Investigation" and that he could not act unless it was specified. 

Mark has videotapes of himself attempting numerous upon numerous times to speak with Drew Atkinson but his secretary always had some excuse.  She would give him a time frame for Atkinson to respond and Mark would call back on that day and get another future timeframe.  

Mark finally got so upset after 3 months of waiting that he videotaped himself speaking to her about how the press was going to be involved and that he could not hold this story off any longer, she changed her tune and said "why didn't you say the press was involved."  

Atkinson called Mark back and told him that he had reviewed the information and that this was not the only complaint made on Russ Edgar and that there was already an Executive Investigation started on Edgar prior to Mark.  We were so hopeful.  

Recently Mark received a letter from Atkinson's office stating the Executive Investigation found no grounds to continue and that the case was closed.  Two other men currently being prosecuted with the same RICO charges that Edgar is famous for, had their charges dropped by the state.  The lesser charges were individually tried instead of combining all of them into one trial and they won their cases!  Good for them but not retroactive for Mark! 

Recently a friend of the Turners, Brenda Johnson, sent a letter to the Governor's Office with a plea for help. On September 7th she received this following email message from Dustin Fusillo, Office of Citizen Services.

Dear Ms. Johnson, 

Thank you for contacting Governor Charlie Crist on behalf of Mark Turner. The Governor asked me to respond on his behalf.  

The Florida Constitution limits the Governor's intervention in criminal investigation and prosecution. Each state attorney is an elected official charged with certain discretionary duties, including the duty to determine whether or not to prosecute any particular crime committed within his or her jurisdiction. This decision is based on the quality and quantity of the evidence of guilt shown, and in the best interest of justice. The state attorneys operate independently, and as elected officials, they answer only to the voters of their individual jurisdictions.  

Questions about guilt or innocence, or the procedural fairness of convictions must be addressed in the courts. Those who wish to contest judicial rulings may wish to speak with an attorney about what appellate procedures may be available. Those who need assistance in locating an attorney may wish to contact the Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service. The Bar can be contacted by calling toll-free at (800) 342-8011, or by writing to 651 East Jefferson Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2300. 

The Office of Executive Clemency is the appropriate authority to provide information regarding pardons. The Governor has no independent ability to pardon someone. The clemency function is a power to grant full or conditional pardons, restore a felon's civil rights, or commute punishment. There are complicated rules for these lengthy procedures, and these powers are vested in the Governor only with the agreement of two Cabinet members who are also statewide elected officials. For more information, you can write the Office of Executive Clemency at 4070 Esplanade Way, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2450, or you can call 1-800-435-8286. You may also email the office at clemencyweb@fpc.state.fl.us, and you can reach the office by fax at (850) 488-0965.

Thank you again for contacting the Governor's office. 

Sincerely, Dustin Fusillo, Office of Citizen Services

Fusillo says the State Attorney General is officially charged with deciding whether a prosecution goes forward, but Mark told me many months ago, before contacting the Governor's office, that he did contact the Florida State AG, and was told the AG's office has the duty to support the prosecuting attorney. If I remember Mark's words clearly, the State AG said he would be upholding Russ Edgar, the prosecuting attorney's right to go to trial.

Nancy Turner sent this in an email:

I don't understand why Dustin Fusillo wrote this generic email back to Brenda Johnson.  I just read an article reporting that Governor Charlie Crist pardonned the dead lead singer to the Doors, Jim Morrison.  He was praised for stating that Jim Morrison probably ended his life with drug overdose because he was under duress from not receiving a fair trial and thus didn't think he would get a fair appeal.  Because he never got an appeal, the Governor was able to remove the charges in full and Jim Morrison was removed from the Florida law books.

Dustin Fusillo told Mark that the Governor does not get involved in litigation but the Charlie Crist stepped in and mediated a sexual harassment suit and settled it financially with the victims to avoid public exposure of the Miami sheriff's department.  My girlfriend Sandra was the victim.  How does he have the select ability to use his authority?

Is there anywhere a man or woman can go in Florida, and especially in Escambia County, to get a fair trial? Some people living in the area who do not know Mark Turner think it is not possible and I will publish those emails in the next few days.

If you live in the Pensacola area, have you noticed there is not a peep from the press about this story of a man involved with Pete Moore, the owner of Pete Moore Chevrolet. Nothing about Mark's suicide attempt. Nothing about a man who has many reasons to believe he has been framed or wronged from the lack of justice in Escambia Country, Florida. Please view two videos filmed by Turner just before he decided to take his life. Find them at the top of this page on the left.

This family needs help in financing and preparing for a Post Conviction Appeal. Are you the person who can help, or do you know someone who will be a miracle-worker for Mark Turner?

Maggie's Disclaimer: I do not live in the Pensacola area. I've done my best to represent this from what I'm reading, all of which has been made available to anyone wanting it - including all parties in all lawsuits, and a couple of recent emails from Nancy Turner. 

Read about the lawsuit a Turner friend just filed against Pete Moore 

Read my first article on Mark Turner. 

Posted by Maggie @ Maggie's Notebook

Rodney King Cynthia Kelley: Rodney King Marries Juror Cynthia Kelley

Rodney King, the beating victim of LA police in 1991 is marrying Cynthia Kelley, Juror No. 5...one of the women serving on the jury which awarded him $3.8 million.

Rodney King and Cynthia Kelley

 

Apparently, King called Kelley "on a whim" four months ago. They met previously the day after the trial ended in 1994 and shared a pizza, but both were already married to someone else.

 RadarOnline broke this story and are quoting Kelley saying the "first date" was at that pizzeria, even though they were each married. That relationship did not end until King participated in a May 2008 Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.

Kelley was the only Black juror in the beating trial that eventually acquitted the White police officers. She says the White jurors wanted to award King only $100,000.

"During deliberations, the other jurors said, 'Let's just award him $100,000, you know he's just gonna blow it anyway'," Kelley said.

"It was a blessing that I was even there, the other jurors didn't want to give him anything."

How does one person on a jury bounce the compensation from $100,000 to $3.8 million?

Video of the police attack on King showed them repeatedly hitting King with batons. After the officers were acquitted, riots raged through the area. It took the U.S. Marines, the U.S. Army and the National Guard to restore peace. Fifty-three died with more than 2,000 reported injuries.

In November 1989, about two years before the police beating, King robbed a store in Monterey Park, California and used an iron bar to beat the store owner. King was sentenced to two years in prison, but received early parole. By March 1991, he led the led the police on the infamous high-speed car-chase that resulted in the beating.

King's blood alcohol level was more than twice what California law allows, and during the chase, his speed reached 117 miles per hour. After release from the hospital for a broken ankle, a fractured facial bone and bruises and lacerations, King filed a claim with the City alleging eleven skull fractures, permanent brain damage, broken teeth and bones, kidney damage and shock and trauma.

After the riots, King went on television and asked, "can't we all just get along? The store owner he beat probably beat him to that question, but received no face time on television.

King was arrested in 1995 for hitting his then-wife - with his car, and spent 90 days in prison. Arrested again in August 2003 for drunk driving, running a red light and slamming his car into a house. In one of his Celebrity Rehabs he recounted the police beating and indicated he submitted to the police immediately which evidence did not support.

Apparently King has been sober for a year or more. I applaude anyone turning their life around. I hope this is what King has done, and I wish Cynthia Kelley good luck. Rodney King has had more than his share of luck by driving drunk, often - an action that could have killed many.

Posted by Maggie @ Maggie's Notebook

Nasrin Soutoudeh Shirin Ebadi: Nasrin Soutoudeh Arrested Charged

Nasrin Soutoudeh, sometimes spelled Nasrine, is an Iranian female attorney representing Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi. Soutoudeh received a warning from the Iranian intelligence officials that she would be arrested if she continued to represent Ebadi. Ebadi fled Iran one day before the elections, in June 2009 and is living in London. Soutoudeh was arrested last Saturday and is believed to be in Tehran's Evin prison.

Nasrin Sotoudeh

Charged with "propaganda against the regime" and "acting against national security," Soutoudeh is a member of the Iranian Human Rights movement, the One Million Signature Campaign, which is gathering names of Iranians opposed to the country's laws against women, and the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPRC).

Nasrin's home and office were searched at the end of August. Her hard drives were confiscated and her assets frozen. She has a husband, who she says is a "modern man," and two children about 11 and 3 years old. In Iran, Human Rights attorneys receive no payment for representing human rights victims. She believes the regime is working to "limit the conditions for human rights defense, and says the "ultimate goal is to shut down all defense of human rights."

A few days before her arrest, Sotoudeh told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran how the authorities were creating bogus tax problems for human rights lawyers as a way to provide pretexts for their prosecution.

“I was referred to the taxation bureau and while there I noticed in addition to my name, they are conducting special investigations into thirty human rights lawyers,” she said.

Soutoudeh said Shirin Ebadi paid hundreds of thousands of dollars on her 2003 Nobel Peace Prize money. She was the first Iranian to win the Nobel, and the first Muslim woman to receive the honor. In 2009 the regime confiscated the medal,  and diploma from her bank box and froze her assets.

Ebadi is also an Iranian lawyer, a human rights activist and the founder of Centre for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran.  Nasrin Soutoudeh has represented many victims of Human Rights atrocities, many of them Human Rights attorneys.

There are some conflicting stories about Soutoudeh, but in all, she is at the least missing. Some of the accounts say her attorney was told that "Soutoudeh would be interrogated for an indefinite time." Her husband says he has not seen her or heard from her.

Muslim women in the U.S. and across the West, live in a large measure of freedom, or at least the opportunity of freedom,  and never utter a word about their sisters existing in abject tyranny. Soutoudeh is just one of many. Give me one reason Islam is to be respected...anywhere in the world. Just one.

Linked by Drive By Thinking - Thank you!

New Gitmo at Bagram Afghanistan?

Reports are that US officials are looking at the American detention facility at Bagram Afghanistan to use to house detainees from "around the world." An unnamed Pentagon official says it may be the "least bad" option. General Stanley McChrystal allegedly opposes the idea, but believes it can work for those detained in Pakistan.

The new American detention center at Bagram houses about 800 detainees. Here's a problem:

The other complication for Mr Obama is that, under current plans, Bagram is to be handed over to the Afghan Government next year, so unless the US military retained control over one section of the prison — solely for suspects detained outside of Afghanistan — it is unlikely that the Government of President Karzai would approve of having responsibility for those detained by US special forces or the CIA in another part of the world.

With the Obama administration forced to think about doing something other than bringing these people to New York, or elsewhere in the U.S., Admiral Eric Olson refused to answer a Senate question about where he thought suspects from Yemen should be housed, unless the hearing was closed. Obviously, some in our military see these people as terrorists, and not criminals.

Yemen 36 Converted to Islam: Americans Converted to Islam in American Prison:

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee reports that 36 Americans converted to Islam while inside American prisons, and have traveled to Yemen in the past year for further enlightenment, and study of the Arabic language. They are officially known as the Yemen 36.

Our American intelligence says they "have lost track" of some of the men, but believe they are in Yemen.

But what's especially outrageous about the Yemen 36 is the very real possibility that they were fed their poison by folks collecting government paychecks as Muslim chaplains.

Our prisons are out-of-control with drugs, alcohol and murders rampant. Remember shoe bomber, Richard Reid? Now held in a maximum security penitentiary in Florence, Colorado, he eventually won the right to "worship" with other Muslims in the prison. There were measures in place to keep this from happening. A "Special Administrative Measure," known as a SAM expired...Eric Holder allowed it to expire, after Reid charged that his First Amendment rights were under assault.

Reid has an exclusive prayer circle. Ramzi Yousef and Zacarias Moussaoui, both convicted of the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, both kneel and pray with Reid. Ahmed Ressan, the "Millennium" bomber and Jose Padilla, the Dirty Bomber, also known as Abdullah al-Muhajir and Muhajir Abdullah, shares their prayers with Richard Reid.

Here's some information from the New York Post on Muslim clerics inside our prisons:

 In 2003, Imam Warith Deen Umar, who until 2000 was essentially in charge of hiring Muslim chaplains for New York's state prisons, told The Wall Street Journal that the 9/11 hijackers should be honored as martyrs.

In 2006, Imam Umar Abdul-Jalil, the city's head Muslim prison chaplain, was caught by The Post preaching against "Zionists in the media" and the "terrorist" President Bush -- and kept his job.

 At an al Arabiya website, they talk of "another group" of 10 Americans in Yemen who are Islamic fundamentalists and have married Yemeni women.

Now we have the Yemen 36 who were radicalized inside American prisons. We let Muslim clerics inside our prisons and we pay them to radicalize. Are we nuts, or what? Now we must worry about these American men coming back into the country - but...intelligence has lost track of some of them! Do we know their Muslim names? Are they on a no-fly list?

Others talking about the Yemen 36:

Jihad Watch

OJ Simpson in Hospital? OJ Beaten in Prison? OJ Simpson Prison Beating - Hospitalized?

Rumors are out there that OJ Simpson has been hospitalized after being beaten in his Las Vegas prison. The report says the beating was a result of racial discrimination. Sure it is...couldn't have anything to do with the fact that the guy is a murderer, a thug and a pompous ass. Could it be that he offends other prisoners? - can it be anything other than racial? Whatever! More when details are available. See video below:

OJ Simpson

OJ Simpson

CAIR Urges Obama to Investigate Afghan Abuse: Afghan Teenagers Allege Abuse at Bagram

The Council on America Islamic Relations (CAIR) has sent an open letter to Barack Obama urging him to address U.S. abuses against two Afghans in his Tuesday night prime time speech delivered from West Point.

Bagram Air Base

The Washington Post says that two teenagers alleged the abuse happened at Bagram Air Base, and while their reports have remained consistent, they cannot be "independently substantiated." The tentative suggestion is that abuse has now happened on Obama's watch.

Colonel John Garrity, a commander at Bagram at the time said "I want to be clear that there is no harsh treatment at all."

I won't repeat what is in the report, but listening to these boys tell their stories, if they are indeed boys, saying that "no one can endure this," should just talk to their sisters and mothers about the definition of ill treatment - and what it takes for a woman to live out life in that harsh Muslim country.

Michigan Kansas Terrorist Prison Courtroom: Jon Stewart Gitmo Video

Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas may be the home of a new experimental stateside "Gitmo." The Standish Maximum Correctional Facility in Standish, Michigan may be the second such facility. See a hilarious (allbeit liberal) video below with Jon Stewart.

Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas

Both maximum security facilities are being considered for a prison-courtroom combination for prisoners from the War on Terror. The idea does not have final approval and is said to be one of many being discussed to house the prisoners now at Guantanamo Bay. Michigan Senator Carl Levin (D) said the plan would require "state and local concurrence."

Levin was only one of six senators this week to fund the Cuban facility's closure, however. Ninety rejected funding until the administration detailed where in the U.S. the alleged terrorists would await trial or serve time upon conviction. Levin said hundreds of convicted terrorists are already serving time in federal prison.

Former Michigan Governor, John Engler is quoted saying that housing the Gitmo prisoners in the state's Upper Peninsula "could net $1 billion a year." "Levin said he didn't know where Engler came up with that figure." The Standish, Michigan prison is scheduled to be closed:

Russ Marlan, spokesman for a prison system aiming to reduced its inmate population by more than 3,500 and close several prisons by Oct. 1, is already shopping prison space to other states and the U.S. Department of Justice. He said no offer had been made to house alleged terrorists.

Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas is both a military base and maximum security prison, raising the level of security for the area. That's a good thing. Friends of the imprisoned would not likely hang around a military base. In researching this idea, I found an interesting bit of information. At least half of the existing Ft. Leavenworth prisoners are military, and imprisoned U.S. soldiers can not be held in the same facility with "foreigners." Kansas Senator Sam Brownback (R) says Ft. Leavenworth is "not well-suited" to house those now in Guantanamo. "It makes no sense to spend millions and millions of dollars to build what we already have...." After the video, think about how a courtroom jury pool will be chosen in the isolated areas being considered for this prison-courtroom combo. If you haven't had a laugh lately, this Jon Stewart video, a segment from The Daily Show, will provide a few. Yes, it's a liberal viewpoint, but it is funny.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Guantanamo Baywatch - The Final Season
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John Stewart Gitmo Video

Shoe Bomber Richard Reid Wins: Terrorism Wins, Jihad Wins,

Terrorism wins again. Shoe Bomber Richard Reid, who tried to light a shoe bomb on American Airlines Flight 63, has won the right to meet with other al Qaeda members in prison to "pray," and worship. He may have more access to written communication inside the prison and out.

Shoe Bomber Richard Reid

Reid is held in a maximum security penitentiary in Florence, CO. "Special Administrative Measures," known as SAMs were leveled on Reid's imprisonment. SAMs are directives intended to insure that some prisoners are kept out of "communication" with persons they might... 'plot' with. The SAMs for any prisoner are renewable annually. Richard Reid's SAM has expired and Eric Holder allowed it to happen. Reid's First Amendement rights were under assault - his right to free speech and his right to free exercise of religion. Reid filed a complaint with the Department of Justice. He said he was illegally prevented from performing daily "group prayers in a manner prescribed by my religion." The fellows Reid will be praying with are Ramzi Yousef and Zacarias Moussaoui convicted of conspiring on the 1993 World Trade Center bombing; Ahmed Ressam the 'Millenium' bomber; Jose Padilla the 'Dirty bomber'; and Osama Bin Laden's personal secretary, convicted in the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombing that killed 247 people, Wadih el-Hage. We might wonder why a SAM directive would be needed when someone is in a maximum security prison. The answer is that maximum security prisoners are allowed outrageous privileges:

...the shocking discovery that three of the 1993 World Trade Center bombers at ADX, not subject to security directives, had sent 90 letters to overseas terrorist networks, including those associated with the Madrid train bombing. The letters, exhorting jihad and praising Osama bin Laden as “my hero of this generation,” were printed in Arabic newspapers and brandished like trophies to recruit new members.

The DOJ has had a fairly hardline on using SAMs after having some experience dealing with imprisoned jihadists. In December 2008, before The Time of Obama, Justice recommended that Reid's lawsuit be dismissed. They cited a case proving:

...the seriousness [of the threat of] "a group of inmates, of like mind in their opposition to the U.S. to congregate for a prayer service conducted in a language not understood by most correctional officers. While imprisoned for passport fraud in 1992, [Ahmed Ajaj] assisted in the plans to destroy the World Trade Center on Feb. 26, 1993, making phone calls to Ramzi Yousef and speaking in code to elude law enforcement monitoring. Ajaj tried to get his “training kit” to Yousef, which included videotapes and notes he had taken on bomb-making while attending a terrorist camp on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.

On July 6th, DOJ caved in favor of terrorism, and now Reid will be given "a new placement." No one knows what that mean, the Bureau of Prisons isn't talking and Justice "refuses to comment." More Obama-style transparency. The WSJ ponders: can it mean a transfer to a less secure facility, or a "stepped down" security designation - perhaps to a different unit? We have no way to know. More pondering:

What drove the Obama administration’s decision to cave in to Reid’s demands? The president after all has repeatedly pitched supermax and the federal prison system as a secure alternative to Guantanamo, citing the fact that it handles “all manner of violent and dangerous criminals.” Yet the last thing he needs, as his administration engages in its hasty effort to shut Gitmo down by a fast-approaching deadline, is for lawyers and human-rights activists to use a hunger-striking, near-death prisoner to launch a propaganda campaign fashioned right out of the Gitmo detainees’ playbook. Lawyers who shamelessly compared Gitmo to Nazi concentration camps would think nothing of casting supermax as the next “symbol of America’s shame” and a “rallying cry for our enemies.

Speaking of hunger strikes, Richard Reid had one. He didn't eat for 58 days. Medical intervention was necessary. Nasty publicity for a President appeasing his hard Left followers.

Mr. Obama has been trying to thread the needle between national security policy and his ideological affinity with civil liberties lawyers and human-rights activists, meeting with and consulting them prior to making detainee-related decisions.

The ACLU filed a suit two months ago similar to Richard Reid's, on behalf of two terrorists held in a medium security prison in Terre Haute:

...the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Colorado issued a statement saying that conditions at supermax are “simply another form of torture” worse than Gitmo which “make a mockery of ‘innocent until proven guilty.’”

The author of this WSJ piece is Debra Burlingame, the sister of Charles Burlingame III, the pilot of American Airlines Flight 77 which was crashed into the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. A former attorney, Ms. Burlingame says Barack Obama is "either disingenuous or naive:"

The militant Islamists at Guantanamo too dangerous to release believe that their resistance behind the wire is a continuation of holy war. There is every reason to believe they will continue their jihad once they have been transported to U.S. soil where certain federal judges have signaled a willingness to confer upon them even more rights. ...the Obama administration is moving full steam ahead, operating on the false premise that giving more civil liberties to religious fanatics bent on destroying Western civilization will make a difference in the Muslim world.

His lawsuit remains active while the Department of Justice works out a settlement that satisfies the man who declared, “I am at war with America.

When it comes to free speech and freedom to worship as you please, we need to so some serious analyzing. There are times when a prisoner should lose these rights. Free Speech and freedom to worship in your cell should always be allowed, but not elsewhere if the ideology is Islam. Prisoners have the right to counsel. If they have a message to get out, they should be required to do it through their attorney. Some very limited communication that is approved by authorities should be allowed with immediate family. That's all. No worshipping outside the cell for Moslems. Jihad is a part of every mosque, whether it's admitted or not. If they want to worship with others, then stay out of prison. This may sound simplistic, but violent Islam should have no privilege in America. These men are all violent jihadists.

Other Airline Terrorism:
Abdul Mudallad is Nigerian NW Flt 253 bomber - Failed Al-Qaeda Airline Bomb Attempt

A Call to Jews: Abu Ghraib is Arabic for Auschwitz?

Trackback URL for this entry: http://haloscan.com/tb/maggiesnotebook/5768150077409798066 Here's a question to Jewish Americans. Why do you vote Democrat? How can you vote Democrat? That's my question. Democrats do not support you. Americans, including Jewish Americans, are dying to deny radical Islam an American home. Israel is slated for destruction by most of the Middle East. This cannot be ignored. We ask for the voice of moderate Muslims to speak out against the vileness of Jihad. American Jews, here's the message: speak out against politician's pro-Islamic attitudes, cozying-up with Syria, reaching out to Iran, lending credence to Hamas. Doesn't it outrage you that the news about Israel is NEVER reported fairly in the MSM? Take issue, - do it now, do it loudly, and, my goodness, vote for the party that supports the right of Israel to exist. From the Left|Democrats|2008 Elections|anti-Bush is selling t-shirts, hoodies and coffee mugs inscripted with

Abu Ghraib (Iraq) is Arabic for Auschwitz

There's more. Presidential contender, Barack Obama references the evil in the world

...as seen in the September 11 terrorist attacks

...and according to The WashingtonTimes.com,

...he sees it in the detention camp in Guantanamo and in the prisoner abuses at Abu Ghraib in Iraq.

The Left|Democrats are attempting to make money from Abu Ghraib, as our military protects their pathetic souls from an enemy that will gladly show them the difference between an incinerator and a leashed dog, and they will gladly do it in the heart of every town square in America. Democrat Barack Obama stood in front of this nation and publicly imaged evil as the 9/11 perpetrators, AND America's detainee prison at Guantanamo Bay AND Abu Ghraib, where a small handful of soldiers brashly humiliated, but did not kill, the enemy. Obama sees detention of the enemy as "equal evil" to bringing down the World Trade Towers. A bit of underwear on your head, a dog in your face, some nude photos and a soldier dragging a prisoner around on a leash. Yes, it is contemptible but it is not close to a comparative evil. While Obama had the camera, and while he wanted to speak of evil, why would he choose these particular American examples, among all the evils in the world? The answer, of course, is that he is appealing to those who hate America, and for the sake of gaining the office of President, he hits low. I can post photos of the real face of evil for the sake of controversy, there are thousands out there, and I can debate the merits of going into Iraq or not, cite or link to research, quote politicians, and we can disagree about American action in Iraq, BUT...how can we accept our leader's constant drumming about Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib without acknowledging the deceit behind the words? It is the Democrat attempt to discredit America in the worst way, by shaming this country - and it is all for political gain. Guantanamo is legal, Abu Ghraib has been dealt with. Neither have been ignored. Fight it if you believe it should be fought, but take a hard look at real Evil, and it's deep desire to settle itself on your doorstep. The Jewish vote, standing-up AGAINST surrender and appeasement, can make a difference. Article end. Posted by Maggie Trackposted to Perri Nelson's Website, The Virtuous Republic, The Amboy Times, Leaning Straight Up, Pursuing Holiness, Pet's Garden Blog, Rightlinx, third world county, Woman Honor Thyself, stikNstein... has no mercy, Pirate's Cove, The Pink Flamingo, Church and State, The Random Yak, A Blog For All, 123beta, guerrilla radio, DeMediacratic Nation, Adam's Blog, Phastidio.net, Cao's Blog, The Bullwinkle Blog, Colloquium, Jo's Cafe, Conservative Cat, Diary of the Mad Pigeon, Faultline USA, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, The World According to Carl, Blue Star Chronicles, Gone Hollywood, Cao's Blog and thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe. Maggie's Notebook pinged Long-Term Planning from Right Truth. Excerpt: Contrary to popular belief, many Palestinians wish for the days when Israel was in charge. They long for the days when things were more peaceful than they are today. Some in Gaza stated that they approved when Israel started launching missiles and attacks, ... Linked by Friday Afternoon Roundup Sultan Knish. Excerpt: We begin the friday afternoon roundup with Kick Olmert Out of Office, the game hopefully soon to turn live action movie. As a public service to the people of Israel and the State of Israel, Sultan Knish presents your opportunity to kick ... Pinged by Death Tolls and the blogosphere today Wake-up America. Excerpt: Jules has two excellent must read pieces, one of which shows Death Tolls that our media has been ignoring.... terrorist death tolls. Technorati Tags: American Jews, Democrats, Jewish Vote, Hamas, Barack Obama, Syria, Hamas, Auschwitz, MSM, Evil, Presidential Race 2008, Abu Ghraib,Israel, 9/11, September 11, Guantanamo Bay

Stop the ACLU Blogburst Reports on More Tuberculosis and Terrorism Suspects

Stop the ACLU has up two important piece today: ACLU Fights to Expose Public to Deadly Disease: Maricopa County, AZ Sheriff Joe Arpaio's efforts to keep a tuberculosis-infected patient in a county sanitarium and out of the public arena. The ACLU has filed suit on behalf of the patient, Robert Daniels, who is believed to have an "extreme multi-drug resistant tuberculosis. If at First You Don't Succeed..., announcing a new ACLU lawsuit filed against a Boeing subsidary for allegedly transporting terrorism suspects to shores unknown, under the Extraordinary Rendition Program. For more ACLU background on the Boeing story: ACLU Sues Boeing Subsidiary over "Terrorism Suspect" Transfers, posted today here at Maggie's Notebook. Technorati Tags: ACLU, Stop the ACLU, Boeing Co., Boeing Subsidiary, Khaled El-Masri, Terrorism, War on Terror, Binyam Mohamed, Elkassim Britel, Ahmed Agiza, WashingtonPost.com

Sunni al-Qaeda Split in Iraq?

Various sources are reporting Iraqi-Sunni factions, with fealty to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda in Iraq, are unhappy with the alliance, and are breaking ties. After a plea to bin Laden to:

"...assume religious and organizational responsibility for al-Qaeda..."

but, still, continuing to see Iraqi civilian deaths a the hands of al-Qaeda, Sunnis are outraged. Al-Qaeda in Iraq is believed to be comprised of mostly foreign fighters and be heavily financed by foreign sources. Al-Qaeda claims credit for a chlorine gas bombing, kidnappings, bodies found in ditches, trash bins and rivers, and destruction of city infrastructure and houses of worship. An Iraqi Parliament member is quoted:

They [Sunni fighters] have realized that those people [al-Qaeda] are not working for Iraq's interests,..."

It's a big dilemma, and not one with an easy-out. Sunnis are fighting Sunnis, and being a Sunni is a complicated progeniture. A leader of the Jamiat insurgency says that were it not for al-Qaeda's 9/ll assault on America,

"...neither Iraq or Afghanistan would be occupied..."

There's a lot of truth in that, because any war lord worth his stash of IEDs, knows that double-digit UN Resolutions are no threat at all. We can turn this whole lament around. It's reasonable to think that some Iraqis desire to live in a civilized society, and because of al-Qaeda, Saddam is gone, but school is open on most days and teachers no longer despair over Uday Hussein's mid-day summons of a young female student. Remember Abu Ghraib, where real atrocties were committed, every day, before U.S. Troops arrived? Thank al-Qaeda that Abu Ghraib no longer imprisons Saddam's political dissidents. Saddam's exit from the everyday life of powerful Ba'athist Sunnis, no long receiving dispensation from their leader and reduced to living the life of a terrorist on the run, has provided the motive to get that power back. The problem is, there's no one Ba'athist to whom allegiance can be pledged - each splinter group has their own agenda, as does al-Qaeda - and al-Qaeda's allegiance is not to the good people of Iraq. Read this piece from Truth & Consequences (Jim Simpson) for Sunni Ba'athist background before reading the current news reports below. The question is, does the split from al-Qaeda help our troops in Iraq? Read these analyses and see if you can figure it out: Counterterrorism Blog: CBN News on the Anbar Salvation Front By Daveed Gartenstein-Ross with links to Erick Stakelbeck "Re-Taking Al-Qaeda" and Bill Roggio's "Islamic Army of Iraq splits from Al-Qaeda, Sudarsan Raghaven's intriguing story of tribal warfare at the WashingtonPost.com and this piece from the latimes.com. Permalink for this entry: http://maggiesnotebook.blogspot.com/2007/04/sunni-al-qaeda-split-in-iraq.html Trackback URL for this entry: http://haloscan.com/tb/maggiesnotebook/2916545998234977731 Tracked to: Iz-lamic RepubliC of GreaT Britain by Woman Honor Thyself. Excerpt from her important piece: Britain’s National Union of Journalists denounced Israel on Friday for its “military adventures” in Gaza and Le-banon, called on the government to impose sanctions and urged a boycott of Israeli goods. Islamic Army of Iraq Splits from Al-Qaeda by Bill Roggio - The Fourth Rail. Excerpt: The largest Sunni insurgent group has severed ties with al Qaeda and its Islamic State of Iraq; Sunni religious leaders oppose al Qaeda Trackposted to Pet's Garden Blog, Perri Nelson's Website, third world county, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, stikNstein... has no mercy, DragonLady's World, Pirate's Cove, The Bullwinkle Blog, The Pet Haven, Conservative Cat, High Desert Wanderer, Right Voices, and The Yankee Sailor, Outside the Beltway, The Virtuous Republic, , and Faultline USAthanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe. Technorati Tags: Al-Qaeda Sunni Iraq Anbar Province Islamic Party of Iraq Al-Qaeda in Iraq Bill Roggio Erick Stakelbeck WashingtonPost.com LATimes.com Osama Bin Laden Afghanistan US Troops US Military War on Terror

The Appalling Mire of Mexican Abuse

Who's Not Getting It Now?
Answer: Texas Lawmakers
Issue: Building Texas Prisons Inside Mexico's Border

As I wrote this article, two things were prompting me. I'm putting them up-front for consideration as you read about the proposed Texas legislation.

ONE FRIGHTENING THOUGHT:
Just think of the "mixed" guard unit serving inside the prison on Mexican soil - part Mexican Nationals and part U.S. citizens. Pity the poor American Guard who offends his prisoner or his Superior. It didn't work on the American side of the border, it will never work on the Mexican side.

ONE URGENT THOUGHT:
Border Patrol Agents Ramos and Compean. Every American will benefit from looking into the details of their cases. For multiple sourced details, read and follow the links from In-Depth Information on Border Patrol Agents Ramos and Compean.

Texas State Senator Craig Estes (R) has proposed building a Texas prison, over the border, inside Mexico. This prison would house non-violent, illegal offenders, now currently residing in Texas prisons.

Here's quotes and pertinent points made by U.S. and Mexican officials about Senator's Estes' submitted legislation:

Senator Estes: "This is more humane," he said."... the inmates would be closer to home." "They would be closer to their families. It would be a prison system where Spanish is predominantly spoken. There probably would be a mix of guards: U.S. citizens and quite a few Mexican nationals." And... "The plusses are that it's a heck of a lot less expensive to build and staff prisons down there," Sen. Craig Estes said. "They would be Texas quality and they'd roughly cost about half."

Texas State Senator John Whitmire: "Hell no!" he said. "It's pretty generally accepted it's unconstitutional and unworkable. It's interesting to talk about it, but Mexico prisons are dysfunctional."

Ronaldo Del Carmen, Corrections expert at Sam Houston State University:"a novel idea" he said, but doubted its legality. The transfer of inmates just between states requires court hearings. The transfer between countries raises entirely different legal hurdles, Del Carmen said. "You have some serious due process problems," he said. "I think it can be done through a treaty, but I doubt very much if it can be done by legislation, to contract with a private contractor in Mexico. I doubt even Congress could do it."

Mexican, Rep. Antonio Valladolid, a member of the Mexican Congress' Border and Migrant Committee, said Estes would have a tough sell. "Somebody would have a difficult time trying to explain to Mexico what the benefits would be to participate in such a scheme," he said.

My Points:
Rep. Valladolid ponders what this "scheme" can do for Mexico - what would be the benefits? Let us not give him and his fellow Congressmen much time to mull this over. We know jobs for the people aren't a top priority for Mexico's leaders, but nationalizing a "Texas quality" institution might be.

Yes, I do get it: the cost of illegals in this country is astounding, but let us not give more power to Mexico! Let us spend our tax dollars on building new prisons, if needed. When illegals recognize they will spend the appropriate time in American prisons, they will not so eagerly encroach our borders. To the "humane" issue: If Texas prisons are good enough for legal Texans, then they are good enough for illegals in Texas. By comparison, the Texas prison will win the Prison Hospitality Award of the Year, over any Mexican prison, any time. When the shiny, multi-million dollar prisons are built, and new immigration laws become more efficient (i.e. not as many illegal offenders in our country), I'm betting legal Texans will fill those prisons, probably sooner rather than later. History shows that if we build them, they will fill them.

Let us make certain there is nothing, absolutely nothing, in this for Mexico, with the exception of getting their criminals released right back into the middle of their stellar societies. We don't build prisons there, we don't do anything to help their economy, at the very least, until they cooperate with the U.S. in closing and guarding their own borders.

To read Michael Gracyzk's Associated Press Report (quoted above) in its entirety, visit Texas Lawmaker Proposing Texas-Run Prison in Mexico. Mr. Gracyzk's article makes it clear that Senator Estes' proposed legislation is dead-in-the-water, this time, but let's face it: it is always about what is good for Mexico. Most of us care deeply about what is good for America, and many times, when it is "best for America" it makes things better somewhere else in the world.

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Planck's Constant on a New Google-type Search Engine
Conservative Thoughts: Comparison-Guiliani v. Clinton; Democrats and Rep
Lost Genre Blog: Roots in Frozen Generation
Adam's Blog: Weekend Update for February 10-11, 2007
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