Arkansas Blog

I know the first guy in gets to set the tone for "open line".
SO, did you guys see GirlArkansas' video of Jack Cafferty on CNN talking about the bill Bushco is trying to push through congress before the election? It gives him IMMUNITY for any war crimes he has committed, or may commit - all the way back to 9/11 - hidden way back in the bill. Shame, shame, shame. I don't know how to post a video myself (uneducated hillbilly), but here's a link to GA's blog, so go check it out for yourself:
http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/armedia/
It's called "Pardon our torture"

Evidently they've been writing free passes into every government document they can get their grubby hands on, RickBaber...including the Iraqi Constitution.

I'm still so disgusted that my country's decided that torturing people is just fine and dandy. I wake up every day and can't believe we're actually debating the nuances of torturing other human beings. We're s'pose to be good...not like the bad guys/gals we're fighting.

...there, that's my contribution to the open line.

I just watched a CNN special and found out something I had not realized to be true.
Bush's "No Child Left Behind" was touted as a plan to make sure every child in America reached his or her full potential. Well, there is a more sinister component. It mandates that schools provide personal information about it's students to military recruiters. They are free to enter the schools at any time, too, and talk to our kids without our permission or knowledge.
CNN began looking into this because some recruiters have been convicted of rape and other crimes.
It you have teenagers, warn them!

I heard the INS would be mingling with the crowd. I sure hope that doesn't put a damper on the festivities. . .

I've enjoyed seeing Saline county on the local news this week.
You can tell it is almost time for an election when the sheriff has a sting operation to nab guys who think it is cool to have sex with 14 yr old "girls" (really police men) they have met on the internet (a bad thing to be sure) filmed and broadcast on the 10pm channel 11 news.
The best part of the braodcast? Hearing the announcer tell us that the on-line name of one of the pervs was "mythrobbingpenis".
My 14yr old fell off his chair at that.

It was also the week that Tiffany Nix spent her day in prison for running over that little boy as he got off his school bus last year.
My favorite part of the boardcast? The Bryant police officer letting us know that even with the new tougher laws folks still do not stop when buses are loading and unloading.
Hello?
Maybe if Ms. Nix had spent just a bit more time in prison folks would take the laws more seriously.

I LOVE living in Saline county.

I believe the bill our senator Pryor voted for friday gave bush a pardon for most anything he or anyone else connected to his wars have done. I still don't understand how that makes a difference to international laws but i doubt they could be captured to be taken to court. It might be fun to watch someone chase him down in the brush of crawford, and It might make traveling tough .

I wonder why republicans don't try to attack Beebe by having their representatives, senators, or prosecutors request A.G. opinions that would put Beebe's office in an uncomfortable position?

Also, Jim Holt or Dustin McDaniel could request an opinion and get some press out of them if depending on the subject.

Just something that came to mind....

Yeah...Dome Rat is calling the folks out (even if you are a staffer, I appreciate the pull...er...that sounds like Foley)...

I'd like to ask Jesus Jim and The Family Bed's opinion of...shoot...what was it we were talking about? Oh! Opinion...

Now...about that retirement thingee with the state er somethin'?

Bob Woodward's bombshell hits Sunday on the talk shows.
Not complimentary to Bushco, talks of failed policies.

I've had two emails sent to me by Demo political operatives in West and South and north parts of Ark...seems in recent local or legislative races there are few "Republicans" running.
They are now calling themselves
"Conservatives."

Well, Foley's dirty emails were Republcan, Tom DeLay-Jack Abramoff shenannigans were Republican, Cunningham's conviction was Republican, and the best Republican story of the entire 6 years is Katrina-FEMA.
But strangely, state-wide, few Republicans are running, just conservatives.
_

I am in a quandry. I will have to forget a lot of things now known to me before I will ever vote for another Republican. I will vote against Lincoln, Pryor and Ross in primaries. If they have Repub oppositon I will refuse to vote. All three of those supposedly Democrats are on my political hit list and I have voted for them in the past. Yuk!

"even if you are a staffer"

Sorry rosso, I am not a staffer, but I did stay at a holiday Inn express last night.

he he...

both my sons scored very high on the military aptitude test or whatever you call it that they do in high school. Then the recruiters started calling me.

If the boys want to join the military Im all for it, but if they dont, then im not. One particular Army recruiter told me, now Mom, all you have to do is sign one paper since he's just 17........then he said he was coming to my house to bring me said paper.

i gave fair warning that I was going to set the dogs on him and I did. at that time we had a big chocolate Lab that wouldnt hurt a fly unless it got after one of us but we had a truly satanic schnauzer. She bit my ex three times, though, and you dont find a good dog like that too often.

The recruiter left in a hurry. that just made me so mad, when we both told him that my son wasnt interested, and he came out to try to manipulate us anyway.

with my younger son I knew what was coming, so when the calls started, I told them that he had just realized he was gay and I wasnt sure that being on a big old submarine, for example, just loaded with other young men, would be the best environment for a kid who just came out of the closet, etc.

I recommend either of these systems to get rid of them. I work at home and I dont really appreciate repeated phone calls trying to sell me something or trying to get me to sign something, even worse. if they werent annoying, they might get further. And they do visit all the high schools around here and try to recruit kids fairly aggressively from what i have been told.

Also, Tina, if you have other kids they could just skip the test. Even though it's "mandatory" I skipped it. I don't remember if I hung out in the library or just didn't show up at school until it was over, or what. I just remember being pissed that we were being asked to waste time taking a test to score us for something I wasn't even interested in. I never heard from any recruiters...

Would you rather deal with over the top recruiters and a test or would you rather have a draft?

Besides, with standards being lowered, that test does not mean as much as it did in the past.

DK,

Aren't they ICE (Immigration and Control Enforcement) now under Immaculate Georges new catchall DHS? I think they are still nicknamed "La Migra," but I don't think INS agents do that anymore.

Tina,

I don't think you were wrong, the recruiter crossed the line, in my opinion.

However, please remember most of these recruiters are assigned that duty and would much rather serve another overseas deployment. Instead they have to meet high quotas and extreme pressure to provide recruits. Especially high pressure as the Bush Administration and Rumsfeld have added so many attractive incentives to active and reserve service in the all-volunteer military.

I don't want to justify overzealous recruiters, but understand they have to come up with the recruits to continue their career and get back to the part of the service they selected and were trained to do.

Yep, NCLB is not about the kids getting a good education at all. It's about forcing the schools to open their records to the recruiters.

They are counting on the parents that don't care as much, or that are very busy working to get by, to let it slide so the recruiters can harass the kids. It's part of the plan to "thin the herd" of poor and lower middle class people, so are more Republicans.