Why is this woman sobbing?

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Opinion, Why the Government Sucks

AP Photo

This is Trinity Tomsic. She’s married to the Honorable Cheye Calvo, Mayor of Berwyn Heights, Maryland. She’s distraught because the couple recently lost their family pets — two black Labradors — after cops in Maryland broke down their door, handcuffed the Mayor, opened fire and killed the animals.

The Mayor and his wife weren’t committing any crimes. They were the victims of an on-going crime known as the War on Drugs.

It seems that the couple had received a package, via regular post, of over 30 pounds of marijuana. You know… leaves.

This gave law enforcement rise to forcibly break into the couple’s home, place the mayor in handcuffs (and leave him that way for hours), shoot the couple’s dogs and treat the pair as if they’d committed murder. At the end of it all, the geniuses in Berwyn Heights’ police department figured out that the couple had nothing to do with the delivery.

They wouldn’t even apologize for icing the dogs.

The story is here and it should probably make you rethink the role of government in protecting us from ourselves. In other words, is grass really cause for an overzealous cop discharging a firearm in a family’s home? Which does more harm?

These people are victims, but there’s plenty more victims out there. The War on Drugs doesn’t work. It creates a black market where there should instead be oversight. It creates organized crime where there would otherwise be none. It creates gang violence, turf wars, criminals out of addicts and ruined lives over a plant.

A damn plant.

No wonder potheads are so paranoid.

Try Them for Murder

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Opinion, Why the Government Sucks

Vincent Bugliosi may not be a name you know unless you’re over 45 years or age or an avid follower of high-profile criminal cases in the United States.

He was the Deputy Prosecutor during the trials of the Manson Family in California. He’s also the author of The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder.

He’s no slouch.

Here, now is Bugliosi’s testimoney to a House Judiciary Committee on the matter. Watch and decide.

This Day in History

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Opinion, Why the Government Sucks

ThinkProgress reports that on this day, 8 years ago, then-Presidential hopeful and Republican nominee, George W. Bush told convention-goers that he would uphold the honor and dignity of the office of the President of the United States of America:

So when I put my hand on the Bible, I will swear to not only uphold the laws of our land, I will swear to uphold the honor and dignity of the office to which I have been elected, so help me God.

He also promised to uphold the laws of our land. Do you think he’s done so?

Over the past 8 years, we’ve been made criminals, guilty until proven innocent, under the United States Patriot Act – legislation so vigorously pushed by the Bush administration that most members of the House and Senate never had a chance to even read it.

We’ve lost our right to Habeas Corpus and Writ of Quo Warranto – the rights that guarantee us the ability to defend ourselves against wrongful persecution and perhaps the most sacred rights we have save our rights to life, liberty and happiness.

We’ve read news story after news story about torture committed by the United States against detainees. We’ve heard the Bush White House defend the practices of waterboarding and other extreme methods of interrogation over and over, in clear opposition of international law and the Geneva Conventions.

We’ve seen members of the Bush administration thumb their noses at the Congress.

We’ve seen monstrous legislation bullied through the chambers of the Legislature that defy our Constitutionally guaranteed rights under the 4th Amendment.

We’ve read over 35 separate articles of impeachment against the President along with a number of them against his Vice President, based on felonies and misdemeanors.

We’ve seen an administration that obstructed justice and blocked the efforts of a commission to investigate and report back to the American people on the events of September 11, 2001.

We’ve all felt the effects of a falling dollar value, hyperinflation and trillions upon trillons of dollars in debt to pay for a military industrial complex in support of a war that the President, himself, lied to the American people about.

We’ve seen articles of the hundreds of thousands of dead Iraqi citizens and thousands of dead American service people.

So, my question is this:

Precisely what law of the land and what honor and dignity has Mr. Bush upheld?

The Real Drug Criminals

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Opinion, Why the Government Sucks

This is why I detest the pharmaceutical companies and the utterly corrupt FDA.  Take a look at this:

Now, I realize that clinical depression is a rather serious matter and that people suffering from its effects need serious intervention and treatment if they are to survive.

However, it’s also clear that many who are prescribed these brain-scrambling toxic drugs are not clinically depressed. How many people do you know who are taking these poisonous drugs because they have a hectic life and find difficulty in dealing with it? Probably quite a few.

The fine folks over at Brasscheck TV (where I found this video), had this to say on the subject:


Doctors have completely abdicated all responsibility for really understanding the impact of the drugs they prescribe.

They accept pharmaceutical industry representations uncritically along with what in any other industry could only be called bribes.

The FDA, the White House, Congress have demonstrated that they will not do anything to protect the public.

If you’re prescribed a drug, do your own homework. Don’t count on your physician to know what he or she is doing. Most don’t.

According to CNN Money, over 232 million prescriptions for antidepressants — generating over $12 billion in revenues — were dispensed in 2007. 232 million people sucking deadly rubbish into their bodies or forcing it on their children. And that’s in the United States alone.

The FDA has proven itself, time and again, to be as trustable in governing these matters as your dog is in keeping an eye on your cheeseburger. Time and again we read of drugs causing disastrous side effects — side effects that pharmaceutical companies play down dramatically — being part of the accepted medical response to serious problems as well as things that aren’t really problems to begin with (does your foot shake at night?).

It’s profit over human life. Plain and simple. And, until and unless doctors start pushing back against these filthy, greedy, inhumane pharmaceutical companies, it will continue.

Again, recognizing that clinical depression is a very serious matter, I find it difficult to believe that 232 million Americans were diagnosed with the illness in 2007. Something isn’t adding up.

Then again, something is. Profit. Profit over the health, longevity and very life of the individual. And, they keep getting away with it.

Try selling an ounce of grass on your street corner (the most non-addictive, non-toxic substance there is) and let me know how fast the cops were on you like ticks on a hound.

Who are the criminals here? Seriously?

Truth Rising

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Opinion

Some people think he’s spot on whilst others will tell you that he’s completely off his rocker. Love him or hate him, Alex Jones is one brave son of a gun.

On July 4, Jones released 9/11 Chronicles: Truth Rising. The film is yet one more critique of the government’s response to the events of September 11, 2001 and a supporting gesture to the 9/11 Truth movement and other civil liberties activists who believe the events of that day served to benefit the government in reducing the freedoms of the average American citizen.

You needn’t be a conspiracy theorist to see how effectively the American people have been put at heel by the current field of elected halfwits. Nor do you need to sympathize with the mourners of those fallen to understand why this type of uprising was simply bound to happen.

Here it is from Google Video. You decide for yourself.

Something Big is Going On… Let’s See if Anyone Notices

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Opinion

On matters of money and liberty, once again Ron Paul delivers the goods. But, will anyone listen?

The former Presidential candidate, still seated in Congress, has penned a lengthy but very powerful statement to the Congress which he will introduce as a special order next week.

In it, the 10-term representative outlines the reasons for our failing economy and the potential for a disastrous outcome. Paul’s doctrine of sound money, non-intervention foreign policy and settled civil liberties is one he’s supported for over 35 years.

During the campaign process, he was labeled as a crazy man for holding such values.

Well, with Rome burning and our elected officials just fiddling away, I’m not sure Ron Paul can be called the crazy one anymore.

You can read the entire entry by clicking the link below. Get comfortable as it’s a hefty piece of work. When you’re done, send it along to everyone in your address book.

Ron Paul - Something Big is Going On

7 Words I Don’t Want to Hear

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Assorted, Opinion

Comedian George Carlin dead at age 71.

George Carlin was something of a hero to me for quite a long time. Probably since I was only 8 or 9 years of age. I adored his wit as well as his ability to point out the stupidest of human behaviors that nearly all of us share.

Unlike the Carlos Mencias and Dane Cooks of today, Carlin was not edgy because he tried to be. He was simply a very bright person with a penchant for pointing out absurdity and he did it with a style that none could imitate.

Carlin was a pioneer in direct and honest language and, sometimes, it got him into trouble.

His case, FCC v. Pacifica, was a small piece of American history that sparked debate on the limits to protected expression and encouraged the individual to rethink their personal definition of decency. The irony of Supreme Court Justices hearing Carlin’s “Seven Filthy Words” transcript has oftentimes made me grin.

But, I hope Carlin is remembered for more than just his salty language.

His was something of a craftsmanship, honing material that he, doubtless, formulated from day-to-day life — always a common thread, always particularly human.

He also questioned the establishment, much to the chagrin of those in it and around it. In his last special (unfortunately titled Life is Worth Losing), Carlin had mighty harsh words about the people he called the “owners” of America. But, they were sensible words and he was probably spot on in his accusations.

Haunted for years by the demons of chemical addiction, Carlin might not be the role model you’d point to for your child’s sake. But, he was a thinker. No two ways about it.

And, it was that thinking and communicating that people warmed up to. He made you think a bit. He made you uncomfortable once in a while. And he made you tear up with laughter as well. For those things, I’ll always be grateful that I knew of him.

And, if you ever wish to turn to his pearls of wisdom to figure out the meaning of your existence here on earth…

Plastic. A$$HOLES!

From the Mouths of Babes

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Opinion

Here’s a pretty revolting story of a young man who gets hassled by his school and the cops for something truly shocking.

No, he wasn’t peddling narcotics on a street corner. He wasn’t spraying obscenities on a bank building. He wasn’t even loitering in front of a convenience store.

He cited his First Amendment rights.

That’s right, guys and dolls. Police state mentality is here and it’s just as ugly as it could be.

I Have Bad News and Good News

Posted by: Pamela Hennessy  :  Category: Opinion

The bad news is that Presidential candidate, Congressman Ron Paul has ended his bid for the White House. Paul announced his decision at a rally on Thursday, June 12, 2008.

Given a rough way to go by the corporate media and practically ignored by his own party, Paul was a miracle candidate — raising millions of dollars in donations, inspiring countless Meetup groups and grassroots volunteers and publishing a book that hit Amazon’s number one position the first day of retail offering.

There is absolutely no doubt that Paul’s strong anti-war message, dedication to public service and obedience to the rule of law and the Constitution turned peoples’ heads.

His supporters came from all walks of life, age groups, ethnic backgrounds and political leanings. He inspired me and my significant-other enough to change party affiliations so that we could vote for him in Florida’s primary election. We were far from the only people who took such a bold move.

The prospect of keeping American troops in Iraq should be a positively disturbing one. The massive cost and loss of life are enough to sicken you. Add to that the unConstitutional method of engaging and Iraq’s own Prime Minister calling for our departure and you have plenty of reason to put this mess in past. Yet, the Republican’s presumed nominee thinks that’s a bad move.

With over 70% of Americans polled disagreeing with the war and wanting American troops home, it’s mind-boggling to me that Ron Paul’s message of peace and liberty didn’t resonate. Again, the virtual media black-out may have a bit to do with that. My own mother thought he dropped out over 3 months ago — when, in fact, he didn’t.

Well, there is still some good news in all of this. One major ray of sunshine is Paul’s newly-formed Campaign for Liberty. The campaign will work to elect like-minded individuals to positions of public service.

From its Mission Statement:

The Campaign for Liberty will carry out its mission through the following activities:

1. Promoting candidates for public office who share our commitment to freedom.

2. Gaining a foothold in political life at every level of government by expanding our precinct leader program.

3. Educating the electorate and lobbying against harmful or unconstitutional legislation.

4. Encouraging the formation of discussion groups and book clubs at the local level to help people learn more about our ideas.

5. Establishing a speakers bureau to give presentations around the country about the great principles we champion.

6. Developing materials for homeschooling families, to help them educate their children in history, sound economics, and related fields.

7. Featuring written as well as video commentaries on the news and issues of the day.

8. Additional efforts as time and resources allow.

And, perhaps this was Ron Paul’s true calling, after all. Bringing people together to get a single but very important job done — restoring liberty.

Reading the news makes you wonder if such an undertaking is even possible. Body scanners in airports, nurses being thrown in jail for rescuing cops from burning cars. Certainly, it seems that those in power have completely and totally lost their ever-lovin’ minds.

So, it makes sense to replace those rogue authorities with people who still trust in the principles of the Constitution, the rule of law and the sovereignty of the individual.

As sad as I am to see him end his Presidential bid, Ron Paul hasn’t yet lost me. I’ll stick with the program until every corporate whore is out of Washington and people who understand the concept of public service replace them.

So, the Revolution hasn’t really ended. It’s only taken on a different shape. The purpose is still the same. The method is just a little bit different.