according to Zillow, our house has gone up 10% since we bought it in June, though Salem as a whole has decreased in value ever so slightly.

Weird! And strangely comforting, though likely it is a false comfort.

What kind of country we've become:

"The Administration’s position as articulated by Gonzales is not that the Administration has the power under the AUMF or under precepts of Article II "inherent authority" to engage in warrantless eavesdropping against Americans. Their argument is much, much broader -- and much more radical -- than that. Gonzales' argument is that they have the right to use all war powers – of which warrantless eavesdropping is but one of many examples – against American citizens within the country. And not only do they have the right to use those war powers against us, they have the right to use them even if Congress makes it a crime to do so or the courts rule that doing so is illegal.

Put another way, the Administration has now baldly stated that whatever it is allowed to do against our enemies in a war, it is equally entitled to exercise all of the same powers against American citizens on American soil.

...

The "war powers" which a President can use in war against our enemies are virtually limitless -- they include indefinite detention in prison with no charges or access to lawyers, limitless eavesdropping, interrogation by means up to and perhaps including torture, and even killing. The reason the Administration claims it can engage in warrantless eavesdropping against Americans is because it has the general right to use all of these war powers against Americans on American soil, of which eavesdropping is but one example. Without hyperbole, it is hard to imagine a theory more dangerous or contrary to our nation’s principles than a theory that vests the President -- not just Bush but all future Presidents -- limitless authority to use war powers against American citizens within this country.

Critically, these claimed powers are not purely theoretical or, as Gonzales claimed in response to questions from Sen. Feinstein, "hypothetical." Quite the contrary. Not only has the Administration claimed these powers, they have exercised them aggressively -- not just against Al Qaeda, but against American citizens.

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more flights flying from Florida to South America

Well, there are lots of people from the Caribbean and Central America who live in southern Florida, and it's a lot easier to fly to the Caribbean than any other transport method, and slowly the sphere of flying-locations has increased. Anyway, that's my theory, based on 2 hours spent in the Miami airport a few years back.

I am trying to eat somthing every 2 hours, but my food plan has been twarted by there being no english muffins in the pantry. I should have brought in my bread.

Without hyperbole, it is hard to imagine a theory more dangerous or contrary to our nation’s principles than a theory that vests the President -- not just Bush but all future Presidents -- limitless authority to use war powers against American citizens within this country.

I've been saying that the "king" meme is inaccurate. "Dictator" seems more appropriate.

Physicists think they may have a framework in which to test string theory.

[link]

Cool. Grand Unification may be getting closer.

Grand Unification may be getting closer.

Ah, yes - Vulcans and Romulans reunited....

(sorry)

I've been saying that the "king" meme is inaccurate. "Dictator" seems more appropriate.

Don't worry:

During the news conference, Bush bristled at the suggestion he was assuming unlimited powers.

“To say ‘unchecked power’ basically is ascribing some kind of dictatorial position to the president, which I strongly reject,” he said angrily in a finger-pointing answer. “I am doing what you expect me to do, and at the same time, safeguarding the civil liberties of the country.”

See, Bush is only doing what he needs to do to protect us.

Plus, don't make him angry....

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OK, you all know that I'm probably one of the top people to be completely and utterly unexcited, I daresay maybe even severly disgruntled, over the possibility of snow this wekend. But Our worst fears realized ??

Someone must be really bored.

they have the right to use them even if Congress makes it a crime to do so or the courts rule that doing so is illegal.

This strikes me as alarmist OTT. I mean, Alberto Gonzales can say that this is so, but then the Supreme Court will call up its Marbury v. Madison hit squad and beat the everliving crap outta him.

Even people who agree on the issues with a guy won't let him get away with a gigantic land-grab. Not when it's their land he is grabbing.

I can totally imagine somebody saying this. Even in Hebrew, because we use the English words for "shell" and "script".

This reminds me -- in class yesterday, the professor was saying there's a joke in the Latin American NGO world that no wonder they can't figure out accountability, because there isn't even a word for it in Spanish. Then he said they do have one now -- accountability. (Say it in Spanish.) Heh.