ROME (AP) — Italy’s highest criminal court on Tuesday overturned
Amanda Knox’s acquittal in the slaying of her British roommate and
ordered a new trial, prolonging a case that has become a cause celebre
in the United States.
http://www.timesunion.com/news/crime/article/Italian-court-orders-new-trial-for-Amanda-Knox-4384072.php
**********
Will this never end?
I’ve long been a supporter of Knox and her claim of innocence in this case.
Apparently the Italian court system doesn’t recognize double jeopardy.
I continue to support Knox, and wish her well.
I couldn’t urge her strong enough not to set foot in Italy in the future.
And our State Dept. and POTUS should state soon that any future Italian extradition request will be denied.
Washington US Senator Maria Cantwell should also quickly publicly
support Knox, as she has done for 3 years, and work to prevent any
possible extradition in the future.
I followed this case closely, and a blog entry on cannonruminations.blogspot.com is still relevant:
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Amanda Knox, Kafka’s The Trial and Camus’s The Rebel
Franz Kafka’s The Trial is a metaphorical novel of a man caught in a
bureaucratic maze of a totalitarian criminal justice system.
It’s an old metaphore on bureaucracies, and how these impersonal, top-down organizations smother the human spirit.
Albert Camus’s The Rebel is an existiential essay on what forces a
man to revolt; to proclaim his humanity in the midst of total
subservience to the state, or state bureaucracies.
As the appeal trial of Amanda Knox winds down by Monday, the Kafka and Camus writings bear reflection.
A young British student,Meredith Kercher, was murdered. That is a tragedy.
And an American attending college in Italy, Amanda Knox, was accused, and sentenced to 25 years for the murder.
In a surreal Kafka-like tale, Knox was accused of being a sex-obessed, drug-addled murderer.
The Peruiga prosecutor, Minini(?), is a character out of Kafka’s bureaucractic nighmare.
He needed to find the killers, or killer, and he focused in on Knox and her boyfriend.
Under normal circumstances, Amanda Knox should have revolted, Camus-like, as she faced this ordeal.
Instead, the past 3 years in the Italian prison has shown her to be the
opposite of the prosecutor’s protrait of a femme fatale, a she-devil.
How many of us would have reacted in such a calm manner?
The appeal decision is expected Monday.
The odds seem to be more than 50% that Knox will be found not guilty; and allowed to return home to the State of Washington.
That would be a victory for the human spirit; and a defeat for the deary, dark bureaucracies that make up our lives.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rebel_(book)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Trial
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Friday, March 15, 2013
Just a quick plug from this humble tattered nonentity blogger, this speck on the windshield of life on a radio talk appearance on the 23rd March.
Just a quick plug from this humble tattered nonentity blogger, this speck on the windshield of life on a radio talk appearance on the 23rd March.
The blurb is at the bottom of the Saratoga Broadcasting info.
*****************
SaratogaBroadcasting.com
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Informative and fun talk shows.
Check our Programming Schedule by clicking on our Calendar.
Informative and fun talk shows.
Check our Programming Schedule by clicking on our Calendar.
The 80′s was an important time in
music history. MTV brought about the music video, giving us a whole new way to
enjoy pop music; rap became mainstream and exploded into what we know today as
hip hop; the term “one hit wonder” would enter into the vernacular; hair metal
bands would rule the country; and pop superstars like Madonna, Mariah Carey,
Whitney Houston and others were born. We play the hits of the 80′s that
you love!
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Thursday, March 14, 2013
As of this lunch time, there is no new Pope. (Blog yesterday before new Pope Francis I)
As of this lunch time, there is no new Pope.
*****
The ritual, secrecy,opaqueness of the whole process has some limitations.
But then I was baptized a northern Baptist.
Baptists baptize by dunking the person; and I really thought the
minister at Rochester,NY Lake Ave. Baptist church was going to hold me
under water till the second coming.
Perhaps he didn’t like me
taking more than one cookie from the church classroom; or playing
basketball while he teaching an adult class in the church’s basement.
The Church’s rituals certainly attract attention. All the major networks have their big names in Vatican square.
But how much air pollution is generated by the black smoke after each undecided vote.
If the votes continue for days, or weeks, Vatican square will be as air polluted as Shanghai,China.
I know the Church likes tradition, but how about just tweeting to the world when a new Pope is decided?
Just imagine here that the new Pope, the infallible leader of 1.2
billion worldwide is being decided by 115 cardinals. That’s not very
democratic.
Why not modernize the process by having the
cardinals decide on the final three; and then opening up it to on line;
phone balloting by all the Catholics in the world.
Or the final 3 could appear on Idle, the X Factor, or the Voice.
The three finalists would perform a Mass; and the best, or quickest performer could win.
And the panel of judges would then ask each of the three whether they
favored women being ordained as priests; eliminating male priestly
celibacy ; and perhaps some others.
*****
The ritual, secrecy,opaqueness of the whole process has some limitations.
But then I was baptized a northern Baptist.
Baptists baptize by dunking the person; and I really thought the
minister at Rochester,NY Lake Ave. Baptist church was going to hold me
under water till the second coming.
Perhaps he didn’t like me
taking more than one cookie from the church classroom; or playing
basketball while he teaching an adult class in the church’s basement.
The Church’s rituals certainly attract attention. All the major networks have their big names in Vatican square.
But how much air pollution is generated by the black smoke after each undecided vote.
If the votes continue for days, or weeks, Vatican square will be as air polluted as Shanghai,China.
I know the Church likes tradition, but how about just tweeting to the world when a new Pope is decided?
Just imagine here that the new Pope, the infallible leader of 1.2
billion worldwide is being decided by 115 cardinals. That’s not very
democratic.
Why not modernize the process by having the
cardinals decide on the final three; and then opening up it to on line;
phone balloting by all the Catholics in the world.
Or the final 3 could appear on Idle, the X Factor, or the Voice.
The three finalists would perform a Mass; and the best, or quickest performer could win.
And the panel of judges would then ask each of the three whether they
favored women being ordained as priests; eliminating male priestly
celibacy ; and perhaps some others.
Congratulations Pope Francis I.
Catholic
cardinals elected Jorge Mario Bergoglio, an Argentine, as the new pope.
The 76-year-old Jesuit will take the name Francis. (NYT)
Here’s a profile. (National Catholic Reporter)
****************
Congratulations Pope Francis I.
This certainly is a change from the Europe- and Italy-centric Popes in the Church’s history.
But let’s get serious here.
Pope Francis I has been a strong opponent of the progressive Argentina government and president (a lady-Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner).
He will not deviate from the Church’s dogma,tradition, on such important issues as contraception;women ordination as priests; priestly celibacy; gay rights, including marriage and adoption; and a long list of issues that divide the Vatican bureaucracy from the Catholics in the neighborhoods and streets of Buenos Aires and Brooklyn. and the Bronx.
Pope Francis often visited the barrios in Argentina, teeming with the poor, and mothers with many children.
But in these visits, and in his counseling, he has not promoted a rational approach to childbearing, esp. contraception.
Expect the same ol’ same ol’ on these important issues.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/molly-alexander-darden/the-church-wears-the-emperors-new-clothes_b_2862066.html
Here’s a profile. (National Catholic Reporter)
****************
Congratulations Pope Francis I.
This certainly is a change from the Europe- and Italy-centric Popes in the Church’s history.
But let’s get serious here.
Pope Francis I has been a strong opponent of the progressive Argentina government and president (a lady-Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner).
He will not deviate from the Church’s dogma,tradition, on such important issues as contraception;women ordination as priests; priestly celibacy; gay rights, including marriage and adoption; and a long list of issues that divide the Vatican bureaucracy from the Catholics in the neighborhoods and streets of Buenos Aires and Brooklyn. and the Bronx.
Pope Francis often visited the barrios in Argentina, teeming with the poor, and mothers with many children.
But in these visits, and in his counseling, he has not promoted a rational approach to childbearing, esp. contraception.
Expect the same ol’ same ol’ on these important issues.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/molly-alexander-darden/the-church-wears-the-emperors-new-clothes_b_2862066.html
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Paul Ryan wants to repeal Obamacare! The guy is persistent, and consistent. But he needs to get a life!
Paul Ryan wants to repeal Obamacare! The guy is persistent, and consistent. But he needs to get a life!
___________________
(“..Second, health care. Our budget repeals the president’s health-care law and replaces it with patient-centered reforms. It also protects and strengthens Medicare…Starting in 2024, we’ll offer eligible seniors a range of insurance plans from which they can choose—including traditional Medicare—and help them pay the premiums.
Third, welfare reform. After the welfare reforms of 1996, child poverty fell by double digits. This budget extends those reforms to other federal aid programs. It gives states flexibility so they can tailor programs like Medicaid and food stamps to their people’s needs….”)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323826704578353902612840488.html
****
“You are snarky. Stop and be nice-you look ugly when you speak like that..” Take that, Mr. Ryan!
Meghan Lemery, Mean Girls:How to Use Girlpower for Good, Not Evil” Saratoga Today, Week of March 8-14th, 2013.
*****
Paul Ryan, the House Budget Chair, has unveiled the House GOP budget for 2013-2023.
It is a right-wing, libertarian Ayn Rand budget that is DOA with Dems.
Ryan wants to repeal Obamacare! He never quits, even after the SCOTUS majority declared it constitutional.
He wants to begin vocherizing Medicare by 2024, while still claiming that the current single-payer Medicare will be one of several options.
But of course, offering other private insurance options will begin the death spiral of traditional Medicare.
He wants to bloc grant Medicaid (totally), and numerous other social safety net programs. And the block grants will be much lower in total dollars than these various programs are currently getting.
He, and the far right-wing, know what they are doing.
Block granting these programs to numerous GOP, far right, governors and legislatures will unravel our already fragile safety net.
And Mr. Ryan wants to give the top 5% of income/wealth owners more tax relief.
Humorist Andy Borowitz tells us that Ryan’s budget was just endorsed by Ayn Rand:
(..Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) was jubilant today after his newly unveiled budget plan picked up a key endorsement from the novelist Ayn Rand.
It was a rare public utterance for the late Ms. Rand, who has been damned to eternal torment in Satan’s lake of fire since 1982…”
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/borowitzreport/2013/03/ryan-budget-plan-gets-endorsement-from-ayn-rand.html?mbid=nl_Borowitz%20%2892%29
Monday, March 11, 2013
House Rep. Paul Tonko and the Saratoga Congress on the Corner meet-up on Saturday.
House Rep. Paul Tonko and the Saratoga Congress on the Corner meet-up on Saturday.
*****************
Had the opportunity to attend Rep. Tonko’s Congress on the Corner meeting at the Saratoga City Center on Saturday.
Tonko handles himself very well; is very articulate; and provided the good turnout with detailed answers on several questions.
AARP shirted attendees were very concerned with Medicare and Social Security cuts that may still be on the table in the coming budget negotiations.
Tonko has been, and reinforced this Saturday, that he is opposed to additional cuts in these entitlements. He is not in favor in privatizing SS through any type of individual retirement option.
I had the opportunity to ask him about the POTUS’s upcoming visit to Israel.
Obama will be under intense pressure in Israel, both by right-winger PM Netanyahu, and others in the Israeli national security apparatus, to agree to a date for engaging in an aerial attack on Iran’s nuclear development sites…either a joint Israeli/US attack; or a unilateral US attack.
I asked Tonko if a Congressional Declaration of War should be in place before this happens…a Declaration that is Constitutionally required is we were to attack Iran. While this Declaration requirement has not been really applied for over 50 yrs., it is still a power that Congress has.
I also asked, in a linked question, if Israel should be pressured to publicly announce that they, indeed, have a large stockpile of activitated nuclear warheads. Also, should Israel be pressured to announce they will dis-mantle, de-commission a small number of these nukes, slowly and with Israel’s survival taking precedence.
Tonko’s answers were somewhat hazy. He favors negotiations, rather than striking Iran. He really didn’t deal with the second part of the question.
***
(“..It is believed that Israel had possessed an operational nuclear weapons capability by 1967, with the mass production of nuclear warheads occurring immediately after the Six-Day War.[2] Although no official statistics exist, it has been estimated that Israel possesses from 75 to as many as 400 nuclear weapons, which are reported to include thermonuclear weapons in the megaton range.[3][4][5] Israel is also reported to possess a wide range of different systems, including neutron bombs, tactical nuclear weapons, and suitcase nukes.[6] Israel is believed to manufacture its nuclear weapons at the Negev Nuclear Research Center…”)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction
*****************
Had the opportunity to attend Rep. Tonko’s Congress on the Corner meeting at the Saratoga City Center on Saturday.
Tonko handles himself very well; is very articulate; and provided the good turnout with detailed answers on several questions.
AARP shirted attendees were very concerned with Medicare and Social Security cuts that may still be on the table in the coming budget negotiations.
Tonko has been, and reinforced this Saturday, that he is opposed to additional cuts in these entitlements. He is not in favor in privatizing SS through any type of individual retirement option.
I had the opportunity to ask him about the POTUS’s upcoming visit to Israel.
Obama will be under intense pressure in Israel, both by right-winger PM Netanyahu, and others in the Israeli national security apparatus, to agree to a date for engaging in an aerial attack on Iran’s nuclear development sites…either a joint Israeli/US attack; or a unilateral US attack.
I asked Tonko if a Congressional Declaration of War should be in place before this happens…a Declaration that is Constitutionally required is we were to attack Iran. While this Declaration requirement has not been really applied for over 50 yrs., it is still a power that Congress has.
I also asked, in a linked question, if Israel should be pressured to publicly announce that they, indeed, have a large stockpile of activitated nuclear warheads. Also, should Israel be pressured to announce they will dis-mantle, de-commission a small number of these nukes, slowly and with Israel’s survival taking precedence.
Tonko’s answers were somewhat hazy. He favors negotiations, rather than striking Iran. He really didn’t deal with the second part of the question.
***
(“..It is believed that Israel had possessed an operational nuclear weapons capability by 1967, with the mass production of nuclear warheads occurring immediately after the Six-Day War.[2] Although no official statistics exist, it has been estimated that Israel possesses from 75 to as many as 400 nuclear weapons, which are reported to include thermonuclear weapons in the megaton range.[3][4][5] Israel is also reported to possess a wide range of different systems, including neutron bombs, tactical nuclear weapons, and suitcase nukes.[6] Israel is believed to manufacture its nuclear weapons at the Negev Nuclear Research Center…”)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction
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Comedian Greg Ferguson
“The way he’s lived has been simple and admirable, but it has not taught him how to deal with the high pressure of huge problems in the church,” Mario Cuomo said of Pope Francis.
***********
Spot on, mr. mario.
The NYT’s reports this morning that Pope Francis was chosen over a Church bureaucratic reformer,Cardinal Scola.
The Vatican curia, the inner bureaucracy apparently won out over a possible reformer who would have seriously dealt with the many Church problems and scandals.
(..While the workings of the conclave are secret, Cardinal Bergoglio won the papacy, according to comments from cardinals, Vatican experts and leaks to Italian newspapers, in part because the Vatican-based cardinals protective of their bureaucracy snubbed the presumptive front-runner, and a favored candidate of reformers, Cardinal Angelo Scola…)
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/15/world/europe/new-popes-piety-and-humility-aided-his-surprise-selection.html?_r=0