Steven, Donald Rumsfeld just called and said that your plan to prosecute was an overreaction and not well thought out - colin powell just confirmed. Your reaction here just made CNN's new director of swine flu research blush. You're acting like a nba ref in lakers/rockets game 4.

Just to preface, I believe that:

1. Water boarding is torture
2. Stress Positions can be torture
3. The totality of what we did to these people is torture
4. Torture is morally justifiable in a ticking time bomb scenario
5. We have not faced a ticking time bomb scenario, nor will we (real life isn't 24)
   
6. Even if morally justifiable, it is still illegal
   

You can claim that prosecuting a president is the same thing as prosecuting Lynndie England, but you know better than that. Prosecuting a president who's been out office for four months is not the same thing as prosecuting Lynddie England. Any claim otherwise is dumb. We all know that you know better than that.

There may come a time and a place to prosecute Bush and high level officials, but the outcome would be highly politicized and divisive if you did it now. We're still engaged in places where this occurred. We still have people in office, in the military and in CIA that were there in the last administration (Gates for example). The ultimate result would be that people would believe that prosecuting would occur solely for political reasons. If a former president went to prison and people thought that he went to prison on the basis of his politics, then there would be a massive fallout. You think the political climate is bad now? Go ahead and prosecute a president and high level officials four months out of office, during a war where the tide seems to be turning in one place for the better and another for the worse and see what happens.

It seems like the only logical thing to do when it comes to prosecution is wait. Gather more information, more evidence and present it to the American public. If this is a clear case of torture as you describe it, then the public will make that decision on their own. Only then, much later, will the political fallout not be so incredibly disastrous and the international fallout not be so incredibly devastating. To me, all of that does not seem worth it right now, just because you believe that it will prevent people like Obama from acting like they're above the law. (Do you honestly think that what happened to Nixon didn't influence later president's behavior? Was he prosecuted?)

To be honest, I think it's hilarious that Democrats are acting like we should prosecute Bush because he "wiped his ass with the constitution" and "violated international law" as if this is the first time that this ever happened. We've been violating the constitution for a long time now. We've killed and tortured more people both domestically and abroad for much longer and in a much larger scope than this. The only reason this is getting play is because its politically advantagous. It's not advantagous to question presidents declaring unjust war when they are never given that authority (every war since WWII). It's not advantagous to point out that our protectionist trade policy impoverishes millions. And it's not advantagous to point out that our economic sanctions against the people that we don't like empower their rulers and kill their citizens. If anything is torture - it's that, but we don't talk about that. You want to prosecute for abuse, start with your boy jefferson who enabled millions of African Americans to spend their whole lives with sleep deprivation, stress positions, beatings, rape and perpetual enslavement. Jefferson wouldn't kick Bush in the balls, he would have his slave do it for him. There will be long term ramifications of Bush's torture, but the ramifications of the founders torture is still present.

Nevermind the fact, that there is no good definition for torture anyway. I think water boarding is torture. But prove that it is. Seriously, go ahead. You can't. Torture doesn't have a clear meaning. If we should be calling for anything, it should be to clearly define what is torture and what it isn't. Citing specific actions and laying out clear conditions.

Both of you seem to want serious systemic change in the system. You seem to want a change in drug policy, nanny policies, torture, foreign policy, and social issues. If this is the case, why did you vote for someone who in no way would EVER make any of those changes? Both of you guys studied marketing. How can you not have noticed that he's selling the same crap in a different package?



btw Steven, don't rip off bill Simmons title of "Back at you" in his email with Malcolm Gladwell. you really think i wouldn't notice that? subtle, maybe non-intentional, but simmons is seriously in your head.

Back at you

Adam, I don't understand how prosecuting high level Bush Admin officials would set a bad precedent. I think it would set an excellent precedent. I hope that every time an administration leaves power, the new ones investigate the hell out of them. That way, they will think twice before breaking laws and abusing power. You know what I think is bad precedent? Wiping your ass with the Constitution and getting away with it. What is to stop Obama or future presidents from acting like they are above the law? Nothing.

The logic is pretty simple. Torture is against international law (not to mention the 5th and 8th amendment of the Bill of Rights). The President authorized torture. The President is not above the law. Therefore, the President broke the law. He should be prosecuted for it. Lynndie England went to prison after Abu Ghraib for following orders that came from the top. George Bush relaxes comfortably in Highland Park. Seems pretty unfair to me.

Disclaimer: I like Ellen too. She is an excellent person who works hard in the community to help battered women. I help nobody, drink beer, eat tacos, and blog by myself. I just disagree with legislating morality in principle.

If you don't like basketball or baseball, then too bad! B/c Craig and I will continue blogging about them so we can keep our minds of the daily grind of toiling over ancient religious texts or talking to grease monkeys about air conditioners. I'm with you on hockey though. It is a combination of the two worst sports ever: soccer and figure skating.

Reactive Thoughts

To respond to my brothers' latest blog entries:

• I don't care about basketball.  Or baseball.  Or hockey.   Just a little bit of football and I'm good for the year in sports.  
• We will not win any "war on drugs."  Legalize pot.  
• Release the torture photos.  Don't prosecute anyone for war crimes.  It sets a bad precedent and won't accomplish much.  
• Legislatures, whether part-time or full-time, will always waste money.  Two things can combat this:  term limits and the line-item veto.  
• I like Ellen Whatshername, but the strip club tax was dumb.  And I don't even go to strip clubs. 

Supreme Mistake

Republican fundraisers are foaming at the mouth for Obama's nomination to the Supreme Court.  No matter who he chooses, their attacks will be swift and loud.  Political commentators, lobbyists, blowhards and unknown Senators looking to make a name for themselves will bemoan little known quotes from far and away speeches.  They will rip and twist every written opinion covering abortion or gay rights (the two issues that defines today's Republican party).   They will do it not because they know they can defeat his candidate, but to raise money making a stink about it.  It's sad that this is the Republican's next big opportunity to gain some traction - by tearing someone down, rallying evangelicals and deep South conservatives on divisive issues and by seeing how many times they can say the word "activist judge" in one sentence.  

My point, however, is my two cents on Obama's pick.  There is some talk that Obama might try to go "outside the box" and pick a non-judge - a politician, an attorney, a political ally.  Rumors that Governor Granholm is visiting the White House tomorrow and is on the "short list" are adding fuel to the fire of an out of left field pick.  I truly hope he doesn't.  Granted, I'm no constitutional expert, but deciding cases that make it to that level is tough.  And boring.   It takes someone that loves the law, has been deciding these things for years, if not decades. While I may not agree with Scalia's decisions, I don't believe he wants to overturn Roe v. Wade because he's pro-life, but because of he has a specific view of the Constitution.  He's intellectually honest and while I may disagree with his reasoning, he is truly trying to interpret the Constitution, not make policy.  Appointing politicians will politicize the Court from the inside out and it's the wrong path to go down.  

Was college a mistake?

Hernan thinks so.  In fact, Hernan says that he would have rather gone to prison than have gone to college.  Now those Californians are a little nutty, but he makes a good point.  

I recently received my 10 year high school reunion reminder and it made me think.  Ten years ago, I didn't have a dime to my name.  But, I was debt free.  Ten years later, I have six figures in student loan debt, an undisclosed amount on credit cards, one mortgage for a house I don't have my name on, one mortgage for a house I don't live in AND I'm looking to buy a car by the end of the year.   

Our parents were great and I came out of undergrad with no debt.  But law school?  I honestly question every single day whether it was a good decision or not.  Do I really want to be an attorney?  Not really.  It just seemed fun at the time.  Sure I love the law and politics and I'm sure it will help me the rest of my life, but an accounting, medical or masseuse degree would have helped me to0.  I don't regret going but I'll be making that payment for a very long time.   Was it worth it?  Probably not.  But I won't make that mistake again.  

P.S.  It's sad that Hernan think that $30,000 is a lot in student loans.  

War on Drugs

Einstein once said that the definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over again and expecting the same results. We seem to be doing just that with the war on drugs. I had hoped that Obama would change that approach, but he has not. We continue to crowd prisons, manufacture criminals, subvert foreign governments, and kill people. Why? Because drugs are bad, mkay?

17 miles from my apartment lies Tijuana, a city of 1.4 million people. The place is so close, I can see it from the top of the hill on a clear day. This city is being destroyed by drug cartels. In 2004 there were 355 murders in Tijuana. In 2008 there were 843. And the murder rate is still increasing. By contrast, Houston had 335 homicides in 2008, and Houston is twice as big and has better much better homicide reporting. It is esitmated that 60% of the drug cartels income in Mexico comes from marijuana. So you want to stop the drug cartels from killing people? Then legalize marijuana.

I actually think we should legalize all drugs in some form, but that is an entirely different post for another day. Marijuana is the easiest since it much less harmful than alcohol. Also it can make us tax revenue and not destroy people's lives when they fail a preemployment drug screen or can't get into college because they have a criminal record for smoking a plant. Maybe the next president might do it.

All we want to do is eat your brains

Eddie was in New Orleans last week and I found myself looking for something to do.  Rashee to the rescue!  We caught a concert last Wednesday night - Jonathan Coulton.  You guys should definitely check him out.  Supposedly a computer programmer turned rockstar, his songs range from suicidal vampires to creepy dolls, from outer space to zombies.  

Suggested songs:

• Re: your brains
• First of May
• Skullcrusher Mountain
• Code Monkey
• The Future Soon

Awesome!

Beware False Prophets

Or as a former investor of Citigroup, beware of false profits. Craig, I will give you credit to the fact that your wild prediction of Rockets in 7 may in fact come into fruition. I thought they would lose it to 6. As for Dad, he is old and kind of confused. He told me that Battier was a good defender, but there was no way he could keep Jerry West in check. He also told me that James Worthy and Kurt Rambis would give us matchup problems. Anyways, I'm going to fire off a few opinions. Feel free to comment.

Torture - Like Craig and Dad, I read a lot of Andrew Sullivan. Unlike Craig and probably Dad (he is a Republican), I believe top level people in the Bush Administration should be tried for war crimes. This includes the prez himself who signed off on the whole thing. We executed Japanese soldiers for waterboarding Americans after WWII. Stress positions, sleep deprivation (at least the way we did it), and waterboarding are torture. Torture is illegal, inhumane, ineffective, and indefensible. If Jefferson was alive he would kick Cheney in the balls. This is America after all. BTW, Obama needs to grow a pair and stamp this out once and for all. He needs to release the pictures, hold hearings, and go after these guys. Don't look the other way.

NBA Playoffs - LeBron is Jesus. Kobe is Satan. The Rockets are amazing. I have watched the Rockets for as long as I can remember, and I have never seen a team with as much heart as this one. And Shane Battier is a man and a half. Kobe keeps talking trash to him for some reason, and Shane says nothing. Blank face. And Therapist goes 11-27 in game 6. Doin' work I guess.

California - The state government of California spends money like Adam Moore with his Visa at Nordstrom's Rack. My solution: Switch to a system like Texas. Instead of a full time legislature we should have our representatives meet 6 months every 2 years. This gives our representatives less time to pass bills with pet projects. With a full time system, we end up spending $500 million on health insurance for whales because Hippie Q. McFreakington from Eureka feels like he needs to do something. Texas still has pork projects passed that anger libertarians (paging Ellen whatshername from Houston and the strip club tax), but there are less time to get them through. Also, we have an action movie star as a governor. I still think he is better than Perry though.

Enough for today. Maybe I will complete this tomorrow. Or in two months.

the prophet

Who was right?




That's right... that guy



Woe to you who thought that we couldn't beat the Lakers. The great Larry Moore predicted a sweep of the Rockets. The Great Steven (who is apparently not back) has predicted a the Lakers in 5.

The mighty prophet Craig boldly predicts the Rockets in 7 (but secretly guessed the lakers in 6). The might prophet Craig predicted the Rockets would win Game 1


Craig shows his amazing sports knowledge and foresight yet again and the false prophets are silenced. Craig "Isaiah/Jeremiah" Moore is victorious again








anyone think we got a shot?