The potential lost from the blacks in prison

By: Marvin King
                              The high rate of blacks in prison is astounding levels.

The high rate of blacks in prison is astounding.

Some of my more recent columns at TheLoop21.com have focused on the devastating role of unemployment and the underground economy on the black community. One aspect of this is that blacks are more likely to need to relocate in order to find economic success. Another, more insidious aspect of poor local economics in the black community is high crime.

There are two consequences of this. First, too many blacks live in high-crime areas, which research concludes leads to higher stress In other words, we are making life harder for our families and ourselves.

The second consequence is the high rates of black incarceration. I am no Pollyanna. Some of these folks need to be in jail. Intimidating people with a gun is no laughing matter, and criminals should face the consequences of their actions. However — and only the most hawkish criminal justice-types dispute this — far too many blacks are in jail for too long for first-time and non-violent offenses.

Rectifying this situation is important, so the black community can reclaim lost potential.

The data is staggering. The lifetime chances of a black person going to prison are 18.4 percent, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. For whites, it is just 3.4 percent and for Hispanics, 10 percent. It is so bad that it's estimated that 32 percent of black males will enter state or federal prison during their lifetimes. The sheer magnitude is astounding. One in three! I am not sure there is a way to measure the total lost potential.

Using the bureau's data, I compiled the following two charts.


What can we take from this?

There is nothing in the data to indicate that blacks will leave their perch at the top in terms of total incarceration — at least anytime soon. We can all see that five times as many blacks are in jail during what should be the start of their careers. Instead, time spent in jail means time away from family, time not saving for retirement, time not contributing to the community.  (Read our story about the Troy Davis case.)

While it is unlikely to occur, it would be advisable for President Barack Obama to instigate a national commission on reducing the nation's prison population. We need to consider a variety of measures, including reducing prison sentences for non-violent offenders, drastically increasing funds for rehabilitation and providing much more money to integrate released offenders into society.

It is a tired cliché, but second, until we address the underlying cause of criminality, future generations will only live the same lives.

High poverty begets desperation, which always leads to involvement with the underground economy and almost inevitably jail.

Recently, I watched a documentary on Baltimore's Frederick Douglass High School. It made me simultaneously happy and fearful. I felt such joy watching those who made it to graduation. You could feel the joy. Then I felt so distressed at how many students seemed indifferent to their future.

We have to reach those students before they become part of the 32 percent spending time in jail and not building a life.

Marvin King is an assistant professor of political science at the University of Mississippi and writes the blog King Politics.

Abbey Lincoln Has Passed Away At the Age of 80

From The New York Times

Abbey Lincoln, Jazz Singer and Writer, Dies at 80
By NATE CHINEN
Published: August 14, 2010
Abbey Lincoln, a singer whose dramatic vocal command and tersely poetic songs made her a singular figure in jazz, died on Saturday in Manhattan. She was 80 and lived on the Upper West Side.

Her death was announced by her brother David Wooldridge.

Ms. Lincoln’s career encompassed outspoken civil rights advocacy in the 1960s and fearless introspection in more recent years, and for a time in the 1960s she acted in films, including one with Sidney Poitier.

Long recognized as one of jazz’s most arresting and uncompromising singers, Ms. Lincoln gained similar stature as a songwriter only over the last two decades. Her songs, rich in metaphor and philosophical reflection, provide the substance of “Abbey Sings Abbey,” an album released on Verve in 2007. As a body of work, the songs formed the basis of a three-concert retrospective presented by Jazz at Lincoln Center in 2002.

Her singing style was unique, a combined result of bold projection and expressive restraint. Because of her ability to inhabit the emotional dimensions of a song, she was often likened to Billie Holiday, her chief influence. But Ms. Lincoln had a deeper register and a darker tone, and her way with phrasing was more declarative.

“Her utter individuality and intensely passionate delivery can leave an audience breathless with the tension of real drama,” Peter Watrous wrote in The New York Times in 1989. “A slight, curling phrase is laden with significance, and the tone of her voice can signify hidden welts of emotion.”

Video: ALG’s Wilson on FOX Business Calls for an End to Fannie and Freddie

ALG Editor’s Note: In the following featured video from FOX Business, ALG President Bill Wilson reiterates his call to shut down mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac:

Obama Lied on Health Care, U.S. Department of Labor rule show

By Rick Manning
We all remember the Obama promise. The promise that, “if you like your health plan you can keep it,” promising that nothing in the health reform law would force businesses or consumers to change health plans or change their doctor.

Now that the bill is passed and the regulators are busily spinning out the estimated 20,000 pages of rules that will accompany the law, one thing is becoming crystal clear – Obama lied.
Who says?

The U.S. Department of Labor, which is charged with responsibility for overseeing the health plans that private business provides its employees across the nation, reports in an Interim Final rule that 69 percent of all health plans that cover workers will not be grandfathered into the plan as early as 2013.

This simply means that up to 69 percent of the workers who have employer provided health coverage are going to be forced to change health plans and depending upon the plan, change their doctor within three years.

If you work for a small business, the Department of Labor says it will even be worse with up to 80 percent of the small business health plans going the way of the dodo.

So, you will be able to keep your health plan if you like it, so long as it is one of the 31 percent that mold themselves to the Obama appointee vision of what a health plan should look like.
Get full story here.

Things to Campaign On

Get permalink here.

Recovery Summer Exposed

By Adam Bitely
We are nearing the end of August, and the end of what was dubbed the “Recovery Summer” by the Obama Administration. This was supposed to be a time where all Americans would experience the “most active Recovery Act season yet”, where “the American people will get to see first-hand the Recovery Act dollars being put to work in their communities” according to Joe Biden’s press office. It is nearly the end of summer and all Americans must be wondering where the “recovery” is?

While laying out the top priorities of the activity that will be seen through the “Recovery Summer”, the administration remained vague, choosing not to lay out major goals of any sort. For instance, these were the top examples of projects that would be performed throughout the summer:

• “Highway Projects: There will be 6 times as many highway projects underway in July 2010 as in July 2009 – projects will surge from 1,750 last summer to over 10,000 this summer.

• “Clean and Drinking Water: This summer over 2,800 clean and drinking water projects will be underway versus just over 100 last summer – more than 20 times as many.

• “Home Weatherization: This summer, 82,000 homes will be weatherized versus 3,000 last summer – 27 times as many homes this summer as last.

• “National Parks: This July, nearly 800 projects will be underway at national parks versus just over 100 last July – 8 times as many this summer.”

In the same press release highlighting all of the good stuff that billions of taxpayer dollars would be spent on, there was not a single mention of how money jobs would be “created or saved” by the “Recovery Summer” activity. The Obama administration chose to focus on a year-end goal of 3.5 million jobs without noting whether or not this net figure on jobs would be “created or saved”.

Get full story here.

The great Obama land grab

By Michelle Malkin

Have you heard of the “Great Outdoors Initiative”? Chances are, you haven’t. But across the country, White House officials have been meeting quietly with environmental groups to map out government plans for acquiring untold millions of acres of both public and private land. It’s another stealthy power grab through executive order that promises to radically transform the American way of life.

In April, President Obama issued a memorandum outlining his “21st century strategy for America’s great outdoors.” It was addressed to the Interior Secretary, the Agriculture Secretary, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency and the chair of the Council on Environmental Quality. The memo calls on the officials to conduct “listening and learning sessions” with the public to “identify the places that mean the most to Americans, and leverage the support of the Federal Government” to “protect” outdoor spaces. Eighteen of 25 planned sessions have already been held. But there’s much more to the agenda than simply “reconnecting Americans to nature.”

The federal government, as the memo boasted, is the nation’s “largest land manager.” It already owns roughly one of every three acres in the United States. This is apparently not enough. At a “listening session” in New Hampshire last week, government bureaucrats trained their sights on millions of private forest land throughout the New England region. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack crusaded for “the need for additional attention to the Land and Water Conservation Fund — and the need to promptly support full funding of that fund.” ...

Get full story here.

Do All Black Men Want White Women? (Tiger’s Jungle Fever)

Week before last, I finally buckled under the pressure and wrote a blog about Tiger Woods. I don’t know about y’all, but I’m tired of waking up to more “shocking scandal” about the former all-American golfer. Yet, like a train wreck, I sometimes find myself unable to look away.

Still, my plan was to walk away from the topic for the foreseeable future, but then I received an email from one of my new readers.

Hey, NWSO, I stumbled upon a status update on FaceBook yesterday that read: ‘FRIEND’S NAME is disappointed at the way the media, golfers, and random people are approaching Tiger Wood’s situation.’ 

I had thoughts but none were definitive enough to add my two cents, so I said nothing. I shrugged my shoulders and carried on with my own business. During my digression from my finals work, I stumbled upon a Tiger Woods article where someone’s response surprisingly moved me; I usually eschew this type of rhetoric altogether for fear of becoming the “angry Black woman.” I gave her a chance, though, and I’m glad I did. Here’s what she wrote: 

“Whenever a professional man, Black or White falls, no Black woman is ever behind it but whenever a professional Black man falls, check out who is normally behind it. Always White women.

Look what marrying one did to O.J.—jail. Look how sex with one for one night told lies on Kobe and almost sent him to jail. [NFL player] Steve McNair never lived to tell his tales because she wiped out his tail. Now who was swinging the famous golf club that has put Tiger’s life that his Black dad built in this mess? A White woman who Tiger gave a life, a name and face. Tell me that his dad is not turning in his grave to see his son give up what made him for a White woman?

Lionel Richie cheated on his Black wife with a White woman and married her. He had to give up his career because of her jealous insecurities. He was miserable and went back to what made him—singing. She left him because she could not stand what she did to a Black woman happening to her.

Elin cheated with Tiger on his ex so it is karma. White women are aggressive ‘knicker swingers’ and controlling! Was anyone crying poor Mrs. McNair? Nope! The Kardashians will be doing a take two—more idiots down soon. NFL player [Richard] Jefferson from the Nets made the wisest decision of his life. So did Will Smith, Denzel, Obama, Sam Jackson and few others.”

I didn’t care much for the comment until the commenter wrote: “Was anyone crying poor Mrs. McNair? Nope!” It made me think about Michael Jordan’s wife, and even Shaq’s wife (Okay, so Shaq doesn’t have a squeaky clean image but you get my drift). Does anyone cry for Black women? The only concrete thing that came to my mind was: Could it be that this whole Tiger Woods media tirade is because he cheated on a **insert dramatic pause** White woman? It’s like, How dare Tiger cheat on an educated White woman?!!! 

Sorry this is so long but I had to share with someone I thought could actually deliver some type of meaningful insight. 

Oh, boy, where do I begin?

I kind of see what the commenter was trying to say, but I feel like she was way off base with her initial argument. First, the claim that every tragedy to befall successful Black men is the fault of White women is preposterous. I have two words to dead that argument—Robin Givens.

I don’t know the sister personally or the dynamics of her bedroom, but I’ll be damned if Robin didn’t appear that she ran Mike Tyson through the wringer. Sure he had/has a whole bunch of personal issues that can’t be blamed solely on Robin, but it didn’t look like this Black woman helped raise him up.

Secondly, maybe I’m just overly sensitive but the whole marrying “one” reeks of a racist undertone to me. Actually O.J.’s incarceration had nothing to do with his marriage to Nicole Brown-Simpson or her murder (I won’t even get into the if he did it conundrum), he went to jail for stealing football memorabilia years after his former White wife had passed. Sure, some could argue it was payback for him getting acquitted for Nicole’s murder, but that’s a very weak argument.

As for Kobe, he wanted to do it in the butt with a sidepiece that just happened to be White. Shoot, you don’t think if a 6’6” basketball player tried to ram it up your rear uninvited a Black woman wouldn’t rat him out because of some unspoken cultural bond? GTFOH!

Steve McNair just happened to be dealing with a psycho chick that shot him in his sleep, I doubt her skin color had anything to do with her mental state and whatever lies he was feeding her. Besides that, the chick’s name was Sahel Kazemi, which sounds more Middle Eastern than “White” to me. (I tried to confirm her ethnicity but got tired of devoting energy to uncovering something that in the end won’t really matter because they’re both dead).

In regards to the “point” about Tiger; once again, I see no merit as to what race has to do with Elin swinging a club at her cheating husband. In case you missed it, the man has over a dozen mistresses; I think a Black woman, or any woman for that matter, would swing a lot more than a gulf club at his head. Also, if I’m not mistaken, Elin actually had a modeling career before getting with Tiger, so not is sure that he gave her a “life, name and face.” And last I checked, (Okay, I didn’t check) Tiger’s father was alive and kicking so I doubt he’s doing any rolling around in graves any time soon. Not to mention Tiger’s pops is an African

American/Native American/Chinese man that married a Thai/Dutch/Chinese woman, so I doubt he’d be that upset about his son getting with a White woman.

SMH
I won’t even waste any more time poking holes in the comment, but I will say this: Yes, we (Americans) live in a society that revolves around race; but damn, does everything have to be about Black and White?
Yeah, Tiger cheated and all of the women were Caucasian, but would things be drastically different if there were a few, or all, chocolate bunnies in the mix? I doubt it. He’d still be an undiagnosed sex addict (seriously, it sounds like dude is a sexaholic) that stepped out on his wife. I don’t see how the skin color of the women changes anything, like if he was being a whore with Black women that would make things better.
Pffft!

Seriously, people, race is only as big as you make it. With that said, the reader who pulled this quote does did raise an interesting point in that the media probably wouldn’t be in such an uproar if the powerful Black man wasn’t “ruining” a precious White woman. Throughout American history, White women have traditionally been put up on a pedestal, while Black women were pushed to the side—only to be secretly lusted after in the shadows.
I have no problem with the idea of Black love, just like I have no problem with White, Yellow, Green love. I don’t care if the world’s greatest golfer or Tyrone from down the block fell in love with a White woman or not—truthfully, it’s none of my business—as long as they honor each other and their vows I’m with it. The problem here is Tiger did none of that.

What did you think about the quote the reader pulled and the views expressed in it? Do you think that every time a Black man goes down it’s the fault of a White woman? Do you feel that some Black women always want to blame their man troubles on women of different races? Ladies, do you take it as a personal insult when a successful Black man marries/dates outside the race? Why? Do some of you really feel that Black men view White women as the ultimate trophy and the sisters are consolation prizes? Why do you think American culture is so focused on race? At the end of the day, shouldn’t people be more outraged about Tiger’s cheating than by the color of the women he cheated with and married?

Speak your piece…

Unhinged: Anti-Israel college student throws pie at Democrat Sen. Carl Levin

Michigan State University seems to have a problem. It has failed to teach its student agitators how to engage in civil discourse with opponents.

Flashback: December 1, 2006 – Mob rule at Michigan State University

Flashback: January 26, 2009 – 3 students arrested in Gaza protest

Two of those students, who were charged with trespassing during an anti-Israel protest at Michigan Democrat Sen. Carl Levin’s office in the incident last year, have now been implicated in an appalling assault on Levin today, via the Detroit Free Press:

U.S. Sen. Carl Levin got an apple pie – no whipped cream or ice cream on top either – in the face this morning during a question-and-answer session for the Mecosta County Democrats at a Big Rapids deli after being criticized by a young man for his stance on foreign policy and defense of Israel.

Witnesses at Pepper’s Café and Deli said as the Detroit Democrat who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee asked the audience to let the man have his say, a young woman circled behind him and squashed a pie into the 76-year-old Levin’s face.
…Big Rapids police said the woman, 22-year-old Ahlam Mohsen of Coldwater was arrested not far from the deli and charged with assault and disorderly conduct. It was not immediately clear this afternoon if she was still being held.

Nico Rubello, a reporter for the Big Rapids Pioneer, said Levin stuck around and answered more questions after the incident. His newspaper reported that the man who asked the question was Max Kantar, 23, of Big Rapids. It also quoted Mohsen as saying, “We wanted to target Levin today to send a message that liberals and Democrats are just as implicated in the violence (of war) as the Republicans.”

Pathetic. Levin issued a statement noting that these punks only hurt themselves — a point I’ve made for years after repeated physical assaults by the Left on conservative speakers and public figures.
But don’t look for any hysterical columns from Krugman or Rich on the “insane rage” of campus Israel-haters any time soon.

By Michelle Malkin

Radio Host Convicted for Threatening Judges

A US Internet radio host was convicted Friday of threatening to assault and kill three judges who upheld a ban on handguns in Chicago, the US Justice Department said.

Hal Turner

Hal Turner, 47, was arrested in June 2009 for an Internet posting that said of the three federal judges who had upheld Chicago’s handgun ban, “Let me be the first to say this plainly: These judges deserve to be killed.”
His post included photos of the three men, Chief Judge Frank Easterbrook and Judges Richard Posner and

William Bauer, as well as their phone numbers and work addresses.

All three judges testified during his trial, which was held in New York after Chicago judges recused themselves.
Prior to the trial, it was disclosed that Turner was a well-paid informant for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), pulling in over $100,000 from the government in just five years time.

Turner’s FBI codename was “Valhalla,” which he sometimes wrote on the memo line of the checks the agency sent him.

Turner’s famously vile, racist broadcasts began in 2002, though the one-time Pat Buchanan campaign coordinator did not begin his relationship with the FBI until 2003. He was first outed as an FBI informant in July, 2008, when unknown hackers broke into the racist agent provocateur’s e-mail and discovered a message to a bureau handler discussing an alleged plot to kill Sen. Russ Feingold.

Turner ceased broadcasting in 2008 and insisted up through his trial that he was “a deep undercover intelligence operative.” He now faces up to 10 years in prison for threats to assault and murder the men in retaliation for their performance of official duties.

“There is no place in society for threatening federal judges with violence. Period. We are grateful that the jury saw these threats for what they were and rejected any notion that they were acceptable speech,” said Patrick Fitzgerald, US Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.

If there is anyone who disagrees with the last quoted statement, are you prepared to comment on it?

Atlanta to Pay $4.9 million to Kathryn Johnson Family, Survivors of 92-Year Old Atlantan Shot to Death By Narcotics Cops

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting the settlement of the civil claims arising out of the killing of 92 year old Kathryn Johnson by bad cops.  This disturbing tale once again drives home the cost of "tough justice."

"Four years after rogue narcotics officers killed a 92-year-old woman while illegally raiding her home, the city has finally settled with her family.  Kathryn Johnston, 92, was shot and killed Nov. 21, 2006, when police officers illegally raided her northwest Atlanta home.  Police officers burst into Kathryn Johnston's house kill[ing her] in a hail of bullets after [she] fir[ed] a [warning]shot [apparently in fear of a break in.]

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed announced Monday morning that the estate of Kathryn Johnston, led by her niece Sarah Dozier, would be getting a $4.9 million settlement. The full city council will debate and vote on it this afternoon.  Under the structure of the settlement the estate will get $2.9 million this year and another $2 million in fiscal year 2012.

Reed said the resolution of the case is an important healing step for the city and the police department, which was nearly ripped apart because of the shooting. 'As a result of the incident, several police officers were indicted in federal and state court on charges and were later convicted and sentenced for their actions,'  said Reed, adding that the Narcotics Unit has been totally reorganized.

Johnston was killed when a police drug unit tried to execute a 'no-knock' warrant on her home, using [false] information provided by an informant who claimed he had purchased drugs at from the home. After officers kicked in the door, the elderly Johnston reached for a gun and fired one shot. Police returned fire, killing her. No drugs were found, and officers planted drugs in the home that had been recovered from a different raid.

This past June, two Atlanta police officers involved in the shooting were fired after an internal investigation found they lied and falsified documents; another officer resigned and six more were disciplined."
___________________
So get this, they go in to this home, and kill this old lady, and with drugs stolen by them from an evidence locker, these officers cover up their crime.  Rule of law?  Respect for law and order?  Not a chance.

Posted by Bad Lawyer

Strikes called off at UK airports

Strike action at 6 UK airports has been averted. An initial agreement was last night reached between British airport operator BAA and the Unite union. It followed a day of negotiations. Hundreds of Irish passengers heading to the UK at the end of August had faced disruption if the action went ahead. Brendan Gold of UNITE says the union was at an advantage because of the overwhelming support for strike action. “The strong mandate that we received has been able to achieve a successful, negotiated settlement” he said. “We’re very satisfied (with) that – we wouldn’t recommend a settlement which we didn’t think our members were going to support”. “So we’re very comfortable with the way that that’s gone” he added.

Video: Michael Douglas has throat cancer ITN NEWS

ranian fighter jet crashes near nuclear plant

TEHRAN, Iran — An Iranian fighter jet crashed Tuesday in southern Iran near the country's nuclear power plant that is to start up over the weekend, a semi-official news agency reported. The two pilots ejected safely.
The Fars agency quoted local government official Gholam Reza Keshtkar as saying one of Iranian airforce's F-4 planes crashed about four miles (six kilometers) north of the city of Bushehr. The city is located 745 miles (1,200 kilometers) south of the capital, Tehran.

Keshtkar said the pilot and co-pilot ejected safely from the plane before it crashed but were rushed to the hospital in Bushehr. He didn't provide other details.

Another local official, Mohammad Hasan Shanbadi, said technical failure was the cause of the crash but did not elaborate. He said the plane crashed in the desert, close to an industrial center.

The Bushehr nuclear power plant — Iran's first such facility — is expected to start fueling up this weekend.
Iran purchased many U.S.-made planes, including scores of McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom IIs before the 1979 Islamic Revolution and during the rule of the late pro-Western Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

Calif. gays must wait to wed during Prop 8 appeal

SAN FRANCISCO — Gay couples who had been gearing up to get married in California this week had to put their wedding plans on hold once again after a federal appeals court said it first wanted to consider the constitutionality of the state's same-sex marriage ban.

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals imposed an emergency stay Monday on a trial court judge's ruling overturning the ban, known as Proposition 8. Chief U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker had ordered state officials to stop enforcing the measure starting Wednesday, clearing the way for county clerks to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

"It's saddening just to know that we still have to keep waiting for this basic human right," Marcia Davalos, of Los Angeles, a health care advocate who had planned to marry her partner, Laurette Healey, said when the stay was issued Monday. "We were getting excited and then all of a sudden it's like, 'Ugh.' It's a roller-coaster."

Lawyers for the two gay couples who challenged the ban said Monday they would not appeal the panel's decision on the stay to the U.S. Supreme Court. They said they were satisfied the appeals court had agreed to fast-track its consideration of the Proposition 8 case by scheduling oral arguments for the week of Dec. 6.

"Today's order from the 9th Circuit for an expedited hearing schedule ensures that we will triumph over Prop. 8 as quickly as possible," said Chad Griffin, president of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, a group funding the effort to get the voter-approved gay marriage ban permanently overturned. "Our attorneys are ready to take this case all the way through the appeals court and to the United States Supreme Court."

Read more

Homebuilder Blues: NAHB/Wells Fargo Home Builder Ratings August 2010

Today, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) released their latest Housing Market Index (HMI) showing a continued pullback or flattening for all measures as home builders continue to downwardly adjusted their outlook in the wake of the home "buyer" tax credit expiration.

It's important to recognize that currently each sentiment index shows notable year-over-year declines with each still sitting near the lowest levels seen in over 20 years, a testament to the significance of the latest pullback.

Further, the "buyer traffic" index is showing the weakest results pulling back some 37.5% since August of 2009 and sitting just 3 points above the lowest level ever recorded while assessments of future activity appear to be on a similar "wipe-out" trend.

The new home market will likely not resume any significant form of healthy function until the considerable overhang of inventory is cleared.





BY SoldAtTheTop

US banks ease lending standards

 
(From the ft.com) US banks eased lending standards to consumers and businesses in the second quarter even as demand for credit remained flat, the Federal Reserve said on Monday. In its quarterly survey of loan officers, taken last month, the US central bank said that companies of all sizes were benefiting from better terms on their loans amid rising competition within the banking industry.
The Fed described this as a “modest unwinding of the widespread tightening that has occurred over the past few years”.

In addition, the US central bank reported that terms had improved on credit to small businesses for the first time since 2006, a significant shift given that lack of credit to small businesses has been partly blamed for holding back the American economic recovery.

Nevertheless, the unchanged demand for credit remains a big concern for policymakers and economists, indicating that even in a growing economy, Americans are still wary of taking on debt to make new purchases or investments.

“Demand is still a big problem, pretty much every sector is deleveraging,” said Julia Coronado, economist at BNP Paribas in New York. She added that the loan survey “is generally in the right direction but it doesn’t alter the idea that we’re in this for a long haul”.

POT Stock Jumps: Silly $39B Takeover By BHP Soundly Rejected

POT's board of directors has rejected an unsolicited takeover proposal from BHP for $39B, or $130 a share in cash.

POT is trading higher by 29% in pre-market today.

POT's Chairman Dallas Howe said that “The Potash Corp. Board of Directors unanimously believes that the BHP Billiton proposal substantially undervalues Potash Corp. and fails to reflect both the value of our premier position in a strategically vital industry and our unparalleled future growth prospects,”

Given that POT trades at CAD$112.50, the offer is indeed ridiculous. Obviously it is a n initial low ball number to start the conversation.

With the expected increase in population as well as the quality of food that the new middle classes of China and India and elsewhere will eat, the fertilizer markets are going ot be a very hot area, hence the high level of activity.

Global population will grow by one third to 9.1 billion in 2050 from 6.8 billion, according to the United Nations.

Suicide Bomb Attack Hits Baghdad Army Recruiting Center, 60 Dead and 125 Injured

This had to be a HUGE blast at an Iraqi army recruiting center in Baghdad as 60 Iraqis were killed and 125 were injured as upwards of 1000 new recruits waited in line. The report from Breitbart doesn't specifiy it but I'm guessing that this was a vehicle laden with explosives that was set off. (Photo is file photo)

From the article:

At least 60 people were killed and 125 injured in a suicide bomb attack on Iraqi army recruits in Baghdad on Tuesday, the Associated Press reported.

The massive blast occurred at around 7:30 a.m. when as many as 1,000 recruits were lined up outside an army division headquarters, located in an open area next to Maidan Square in the heart of Baghdad, AP reported from the Iraqi capital.

At least three soldiers were among the dead and eight among the wounded, the report said, citing police.

The really disturbing aspect here is that this happened in Baghdad but at the same time, one has to wonder about the Iraqi's security situation here - to have 1000 Iraqis applying for a job in the army at one time should have sent up dozens of red flags. Al Qaeda in Iraq's two favorite targets are army recruiting centers and police headquarters so if this was a vehicle borne suicide bomb, then some Iraqis really screwed up.

China Passes Japan, Not As Important As It Seems

After months of speculation, it’s finally official: the Chinese economy, as measured by GDP, is larger than the Japanese economy. In the second quarter of 2010, the Japanese economy was valued at about $1.29 trillion, the Chinese economy at $1.34 trillion. The gap will widen next year and for the foreseeable future.
The swap of the number two and three spots in the world, behind the U.S., is heralded as (i) a sign of Chinese ascendance and Japanese stagnation; and (ii) proof of the superiority of the PRC’s state-led development model.

This swap is certainly not the result of a superior development model and it might not even say too much about Chinese ascendance. This is because, while GDP does measure size, it is a flawed measure of economic performance and prosperity.
Start with what GDP does measure. On simple GDP, China just became larger than Japan. However, the PRC repeatedly revises its own GDP higher and is still missing some service sector and rural transactions. It probably passed Japan several years ago. Also, GDP calculations adjusting for different prices within economies —known as purchasing power parity—indicated China’s economy was larger than Japan’s as early as 1995. This is old news.

It’s true that simple GDP does matter. The increasing size of China’s economy means the entire world is now affected by its voracious demand for oil, iron ore, and other commodities, as well as its low-cost supply of consumer electronics, clothing, and other goods.

But for successful economic development, what matters far more is the wealth of individuals and families. Japanese economic weakness is not shown in its still impressive 3rd place in world GDP but in its roughly 40th place on measures of personal income. From an economy once thought better managed and better performing than the U.S., the average citizen of Japan is now poorer than the average citizen of Mississippi. American citizens are noticeably richer than citizens of most other developed countries, such as in the EU. But Japan, in particular, is moving backward.

In contrast to Japan’s 20 years of weakness, there has been stunning growth in Chinese GDP per capita for 30 years. Yet China is still a developing economy. Chinese GDP per capita, even adjusted for purchasing power, is about 15 percent the level of the U.S. Further, GDP per capita actually exaggerates China’s performance.

The PRC’s incomplete data revisions undermine comparisons but, from the middle of 2000 to the middle of 2010, GDP per capita increased by more than 9500 yuan or, at present exchange rates, another $2800 in annual income. However, urban disposable income increased less than 6800 yuan, or about $2000 in annual income. And rural income increased less than 2000 yuan, or $600 in annual income.

Urban and rural income increases don’t average to the GDP per capita increase because most households see little of China’s GDP gains. Instead, the benefits of the PRC’s growth are captured by state-owned enterprises. Japan is struggling, but this moment of apparent Chinese triumph requires a disclaimer: fast GDP growth is overrated when individuals and families lag behind.

Author: Derek Scissors, Ph.D.

Taliban stone couple for adultery in Afghanistan

Taliban militants in northern Afghanistan stoned a young couple to death for adultery this weekend. Rights group said the stoning was the first confirmed use of the punishment in the country since the hardline Islamist regime was ousted in 2001.

The stoning appeared to arise from an affair between a married man and a single woman in Kunduz province’s Dasht-e-Archi district. They were staying in a friend’s home after running away together when Taliban operatives discovered them and stoned them to death in front a crowd of about 150 men on Sunday, Aqyar said.

Amnesty International said it was the first confirmed stoning in Afghanistan since the fall of Taliban rule in the 2001 U.S.-led invasion.

International rights groups representatives have recently warned that attempts to negotiate with the Taliban to bring peace to Afghanistan could mean a step backward for human rights in the country.
Death by stoning is a legal punishment in some countries, like Iran, which justify it under Shariah, or Islamic law.

Last month, Iran’s religious authorities called off the planned stoning of a woman convicted of cheating on her husband. Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani’s sentence, which would have been Iran’s first stoning since 2008, was lifted following a campaign by politicians, rights groups, diplomats, and celebrities around the world.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Eden Abergil, The Product Of A Blindfolded Society On 08.16.10, By Max

Eden Abergil during "the most beautiful time" of her life

Is there anything shocking about the Facebook photos showing the Israeli female soldier Eden Abergil posing in mocking positions next to bound and blindfolded Palestinian men? While her conduct was abominable, I did not find it especially distinct from the documented behavior of Israeli soldiers and Border Police in the Occupied Territories.

Below is a photo I took in Hebron in June before soldiers demanded that I stop shooting (I will release video from Hebron as soon as I get the chance). Scenes like these can be witnessed on any given day in the West Bank. Not only do they show the dehumanization that the Palestinian Morlocks are subjected to on an hourly basis, they depict the world where Abergil spent what she called “the most beautiful time of [her] life.” It is easy to see how young Israelis (or anyone) would be sapped of their humanity in such an environment.

In July, I waited inside the cafeteria of Israel’s Guantanamo-like Ofer Prison after watching Ibrahim Amira, a leader of the Ni’ilin popular committee, be sentenced by a kangaroo court to six months in prison for the trumped-up charge of “incitement” (he was accused of paying kids to throw rocks at the Israeli soldiers who invade their village at least every week, as if they needed encouragement). While I stood at the counter to order a coffee, I watched four female jailers gather around a laptop to check their Facebook pages. I wondered what their status updates looked like. If they wrote anything relating to their work, would their Facebook pages look different than Abergil’s? Of course not. Just take a trip to Eyal Niv’s blog and look at some of the photos other young Israelis are posting.

I took this photo in Hebron in June before soldiers ordered me to stop shooting. A Palestinian man was being near the Ibrahimi mosque in Hebron.

You don’t have to go to the West Bank or into an Israeli prison to recognize that Abergil is a typical product of Israel’s comprehensively militarized society. Just watch the documentary, “To See When I’m Smiling.” In the film, which tells the soul-crushing stories of four young women conscripted into the Israeli Army, one of the characters recounts posing for a photo beside a dead Palestinian man who had an erection. She was smiling from ear to ear in the photo. However, at the end of the film, when she is compelled to look at the picture for the first time in two years, she does not recognize the monster who bears her image. Her contorted facial expression seems to ask, “Who was I?”

“To See When I’m Smiling” was produced by Breaking The Silence, a human rights group formed by ex-Israeli soldiers who collect testimonies from their peers. Incidentally, Breaking The Silence has published a 132-page booklet of testimonies by female soldiers (PDF here) who participated in acts at least as hideous as those depicted on Abergil’s Facebook page.

Here is Testimony 63, by a female sergeant from the Nahal Unit who served in Mevo Dotan:

I recall once, this was after we moved to Mevo Dotan, to the base there, some Palestinian was sitting on a chair and I passed by several times. Once I thought: Okay, why is he sitting here for an hour? I feel like spitting at him, at this Arab. And they tell me: Go one, spit at him. I don’t recall whether anyone did this before I did, but I remember spitting at him and feeling really, like at first I felt, wow, good for me, I just spat at some terrorist, that’s how I’d call them. And then I recall that afterwards I felt some thing here was not right.
Why?

Not too human. I mean, it sounds cool and all, but no, it’s not right.

You thought about later, or during the act?

Later. At the time you felt real cool.

Even when everyone was watching, you felt real cool.

Yes, and then sometimes you get to thinking, especially say on Holocaust Memorial Day, suddenly you’re thinking, hey, these thing were done to us, it’s a human being after all. Eventually as things turned out he was no terrorist anyway, it was a kid who’d hung around too long near the base, so he was caught or something.

A child?

An adolescent.

Slaps?

Yes.

Blindfolded and all?

Yes. I think that at some point no one even stood watch over him.

The female sergeant recalled the Holocaust when she reflected on her actions. If you are raised in a Jewish home, it is difficult not to see the ravages of the occupation in the light of the Holocaust, regardless of whether you know that the Israeli army’s violence bears little comparison to the exterminationism of the Nazis. Just as when I watched “To See When I’m Smiling,” Abergil’s photos made me think of Costa Gavras’ haunting Holocaust film, “Music Box.” If you have seen it, you will understand my reference. If not, rent it.
I also thought of the first stanza of “Vision,” a poem by the Palestinian writer Muhammad al-Qaisi. The poem reminded me not only of the Abergil’s public unmasking, but also of the many Israelis who told me about their experiences in the army as though they were describing some morally debased person they had never met:

I see the faces change their complexion
peel off their outer skin
I see the faces divested
of makeup and masks
and I see an empty stage
the spectators denying their own images
in the third act.

By Max Blumenthal

Texas Supreme Court refuses to overturn judicial conduct panel's reprimand of state's highest criminal court judge

Sharon Keller - Michael Richard

HOUSTON – The Texas Supreme Court refused Monday to overturn a judicial conduct panel's reprimand of the state's highest criminal court judge for her handling of an execution-day appeal.

Judge Sharon Keller, presiding judge of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, had appealed the "public warning" the State Commission on Judicial Conduct gave her July 16. The warning was one of the least severe sanctions that panel could have imposed, but Keller's lawyer claimed the Texas Constitution didn't allow such a warning.

The Supreme Court disagreed.

The brief order from the court in Austin indicated only that Keller's petitions in the case were denied and Justice Nathan Hecht did not participate in the ruling.

"Obviously, we're disappointed they didn't accept the case for review," said Keller's attorney, Chip Babcock.

The reprimand stemmed from the 2007 execution of twice-convicted killer Michael Wayne Richard. His lethal injection came the same day the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to consider a Kentucky case claiming the method of punishment was unconstitutionally cruel.

Richard's lawyers, who were scrambling to file a last minute appeal, told Keller they were having computer problems that were preventing them from delivering their appeal. She responded, "We close at 5," and closed the court.

Hours later, Richard was executed for the 1986 rape and slaying of a Harris County nurse at her home. He became the last condemned killer put to death anywhere in the U.S. for months because the U.S. Supreme Court ruling effectively stopped executions nationwide.

The 13-member judicial conduct panel could have recommended the Texas Supreme Court remove Keller from the bench but such action would have been historically extraordinary. The commission did say her actions amounted to "willful or persistent conduct that is clearly inconsistent with the proper performance of her duties." It also decided she had cast "public discredit on the judiciary."

Keller then appealed, asking for the public warning to be removed from her record and allegations of judicial misconduct to be dismissed.

The case is "by no means" over, Babcock said Monday. He said he was writing a letter Monday asking Supreme Court Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson to appoint a special court of review or hold an entirely new trial similar to the one Keller had before the Judicial Conduct Commission.

"Whatever the court thinks is appropriate," he said. "We could have another trial in front of three judges appointed by the court if the court decides it's permissible."

Babcock acknowledged such a proceeding would be "unusual" and something that hadn't happened before.

Texas is the nation's most active death penalty state. Keller, a Republican, was elected in 2006 to the court that serves as the last resort for inmates facing execution there.

Her lawyers claim the misconduct case as an attempt by death penalty opponents to have her removed from the bench. Her term expires in 2012, and it's unclear if she'll run for re-election.

Source: AP, August 16, 2010

Susan Smith Protegee: 2 Toddlers Pulled From Car in South Carolina-Mom ShaQuan Duley Arrested

Orangeburg, SC– Toddler brothers 18-month-old Ja’van T. Duley and 2-year-old Devean C. Duley, both of Orangeburg, were pulled from their Mothers car in from a boat landing in the North Edisto River .

The boy’s Mother, 29 year old Shaquan Duley, was arrested on charges of leaving the scene of an accident. Autopsies for the boys are pending.

Orangeburg County Sheriff Larry Williams says authorities are investigating to determine whether the deaths were an accident.

The sheriff said investigators are considering how a traffic accident could have happened at the boat ramp, about 20 yards upstream from a main road that crosses the slow-moving river. A mobile home, a house and mechanic’s shop are a short distance away.

Obama Sets The Example In The Gulf

Bring tourism back to the gulf is what the President is not only saying but showing.
On a short visit that was mixed with some business and some family time President Obama took a plunge in the Gulf of Mexico this weekend.

Image Via Reuters

The staff of the White House scheduled the Obamas’ trip in response to criticism that Barack Obama was not heeding his own advice that Americans take their holidays in the Gulf, and should set an example for the rest of the country.

The President said that he had great optimism for the region, saying that “this is still a place that’s open for business and welcoming so vacationers and people can have a wonderful holiday here,” during a June trip to Pensacola, Florida – one of his four to the area before this weekend.

In related news, regarding the oil leak – The government’s ‘National Incident Commander’, retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, said on Friday that he was not satisfied that the plug on the damaged well was secure. He said that drilling a relief well — regarded as the only way to ensure that the well deep at the bottom of the Gulf does not leak oil again — must go forward. However, work on the relief well was suspended this week due to bad weather.

By James[via]

Joe Siano Libertarian For Congress: On Third Party, Second Class

In today’s hyper contentious political times, we are told that everyday Americans pray for a spirit of bipartisanship, to see the two parties come together in common cause.

Praise the Lord!  The Republicans and Democrats have finally found an issue that they can hold hands on; keeping third party candidates off the ballot.  Like brothers who seem to fight incessantly, they quickly drop their squabbles to turn back any outside challenger.

The Philadelphia Inquirer recently ran a story about the shenanigans of the PA Democrats and Republicans working tirelessly to challenge third party candidates through technicalities and have them removed from the ballot.  As voters tire of the same old same old, the Big 2 want to make sure that voters have no choice but Brand D or Brand R come voting day.  It kind of reminds one of the Soviet style one party elections.  The Party got all the votes, ergo, the voters must be happy.

This is frustrating but it’s what I’ve come to expect from professional pols whose only concerns are power, prestige and perks.

However, it saddens me when I see the same games played by my Tea Party brothers who are ostensibly “fighting the man” to restore America to limited Constitutional government.

A group of New Jersey patriots had a great idea: Certified Constitutional Candidate. 
C3 is a website that that ostensibly rates candidates for public office based upon their knowledge of and fealty to strict constructionist Constitutional principle.  The candidates are evaluated in an open forum by answering questions from voters on the blog page.   The only problem is C3’s unstated policy of awarding certification only to Republican candidates. 

This policy does both NJ voters and C3 itself a grave disservice.  Voters have no clue that the game is rigged.  Rigging the game undermines the credibility and integrity of what the creators set out to do, that is, vet candidates based upon their adherence to Constitutional principle.  As I explained to several of the C3 staffers, certification implies only that the candidate has demonstrated some degree of knowledge and competency in Constitutionalism. 

Certification does not constitute an endorsement. It is just one factor in weeding out the best and most qualified candidates.  Certified Constitutional candidates could hold a wide range of opinions on various policy issues, some wise, some not so wise but all Constitutional.  Endorsements, if C3 even needs to make them, should also consider the candidate’s specific policy positions, his character, experience and perceived ability to be effective.  But above all, it should be party-free.

The creators of C3 have the absolute right to run it as they choose.  But if becomes apparent that they are just a shill for Republican candidates, they have defeated their own cause and C3 becomes meaningless.