Atheist soldier claims harassment

But the short and soft-spoken specialist is at the center of a legal controversy. He has filed a lawsuit alleging he's been harassed and his constitutional rights have been violated because he doesn't believe in God. The suit names Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

"I'm not in it for cash," Hall said. "I want no one else to go what I went through."

Known as "the atheist guy," Hall has been called immoral, a devil worshipper and -- just as severe to some soldiers -- gay, none of which, he says, is true. Hall even drove fellow soldiers to church in Iraq and paused while they prayed before meals.

More here and here.

It may have seemed quiet in Iraq these last few months, but that is changing right now.
Iraqi leader orders militias to surrender weapons amid heavy fighting

BAGHDAD — Amid heavy clashes between government forces and Shiite Muslim militants in Baghdad and the southern port city of Basra, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki issued an ultimatum Wednesday demanding that the militias surrender their weapons within 72 hours. Radical cleric Muqtada al Sadr , whose Mahdi Army militia is a prime target of the government offensive, responded by demanding that Maliki leave Basra.

(This issue was touched on in a diary posted 2 days ago)

A lot of people have covered how in Texas and Mississippi the results were skewed "Limbaugh Liberals", Republicans who crossed over to vote Democrat with the specific intent of messing with the Democrat primary and keeping Clinton in the race. Now, I personally don't think we have any moral ground to stand on and criticize them, thanks to the push during the Michigan primaries for Democrats to vote on the Republican side and keep Romney in the race. That's largely why I didn't think it was a very good idea at the time, I had a sneaking suspicion it would bite us in the ass later on.

But something that hasn't got a lot of play (largely because we attributed Clinton's wins in Ohio to older women and blue collar Democrats) is the "Limbaugh Liberals" that were gaming the Democrat primary in this state, and it turns out that they may have broken Ohio election law.

Commander warns of Al Qaeda threat

Stay afraid people. We're not sure exactly what. But there's probably something to be afraid of. Keep being afraid, and let us keep control. We'll keep you safe. But not so safe you shouldn't be afraid.

United Technologies makes the Blackhawk and other various pieces of military tech, as well as being a huge election contributor. They launch a hostile takeover of Diebold, one of the largest manufacturers of voting machines and ATMS. The United Technologies CEO holds a seat on the Board of Directors of Citi Group. Citi Group's largest individual interests are the Abu Dhabi goverment and Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal of Saudi Arabia.

What could possibly go wrong?

But does anyone remember, prior to the Iowa caucuses, how tired the country was of all the debates? Debate after debate after debate, and it was always pretty much the same things being said. Just as a reminder, for anyone who claims that Obama is scared to face Senator Clinton in a debate, here's a list of the twenty-one previous debates:Democratic Party (United States) presidential debates, 2008
(courtesy of Wikipedia)

So yesterday I got an email in my inbox, from the Obama campaign

This Wednesday, February 13, join fellow Obama supporters for an Obama Organizational Meeting in Columbus and learn how you can make a difference for Barack leading up to the March 4th Ohio Primary.

Obama Organizational Meeting in Columbus

Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 189 Labor Hall
1250 Kinnear Road
Columbus, OH

Wednesday, February 13, 2008
7:00 p.m.

RSVP Now

Well, I figured, I could spend the night screwing around playing World of Warcraft, or I could go see what I can do to make a difference. So I went.

I expected something tone-deaf and insensitive from the Hillary Campaign after her absolute trouncing this weekend. I did not expect anything as tone-deaf and insensitive as this. Wow. I was shocked. Off the CNN ticker:

Hillary dismisses weekend losses

Take a look at how, instead of regular standard political spin, she tries for an outright tale spin.

Since I yelled at them for it earlier, here's some props to CNN for tacking it on to the ticker.
Obama raises $7.2 million since Super Tuesday

NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Democratic Sen. Barack Obama has raised $7.2 million for his presidential campaign since the first polls closed on Super Tuesday night, his campaign said Thursday, a remarkable figure that is causing concern among supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Meanwhile Thursday, the Clinton campaign asked Obama to debate once a week, but he demurred.

Obama, riding a wave of fundraising from large donors and small Internet contributors, also raised $32 million in January.

Rest of the story below.

If you live in Ohio, today is the deadline to have your voter registration sent in, if you are not already registered or if you have moved.

Apparently Obama just wants to compromise with nasty corporations. Apparently he does not have a proven track record of getting anything substantial accomplished. Apparently he is a fraud as a liberal and a progressive. Apparently he does not have a track record of using compromise to achieve progressive goals. Apparently not.

Inspired by this diary

We all know, or should all know provided nobody is holding a magnet to our moral compass, that torture is wrong. It is a crime easily on par with the worst of them, like rape, murder, genocide, and it frequently goes hand in hand with these. But there are still those who say that it can be worth it in certain situations, provided it provides useful information.

There's a problem with that. It doesn't. Can we know that for sure? Probably not, as we aren't omniscient. I don't know for sure that black holes exist. But an awful lot of people who know a lot about the problem say that torture does not work.

If you live in Ohio, vote today. There is a bill (Senate Bill #16, also known as "Issue 1") on the ballot to make a law that will horrendously restrict adult bookstores, among other things.

IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH
STOP

IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH IMPEACH
STOP

But I'm not going to let a criminal act scare me into surrendering my rights. Not for 9/11, not for V-Tech. I will not be led so easily by people that want me to be afraid so they can dictate the rules for me.

I had a hard time sleeping last Thursday night. I was very excited. The weather seemed to reflect it, as the approaching thunder culminated in a massive thunderstorm passing directly overhead. Lightning, massive rolling booms of thunder, all right outside.

The law has been broken. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise. Laws were broken, and the breaking of those laws was admitted to. Which laws, in particular? Well, for details, I went to the articles of impeachment in the resolution introduced in New Mexico's legislature.

Military: No Gitmo abuse evident

In an unsurprising move today, the military confirmed that an investigation by the military into whether the military committed any abuses or harassment at Gitmo revealed no evidence whatsoever of military wrongdoing. Wow!