Snowden's Statement
I promised commentary on a news item from yesterday, but I have to defer that until later today or tomorrow. Apologies.
Edward Snowden is supposedly the author of a statement posted on WikiLeaks. You can read the entire statement here: http://wikileaks.org/Statement-from-Edward-Snowden-in.html
I think some of it needs to be edited for accuracy. So I'm going to cut and paste pieces of it in this font, and then edit it with this font.
"One week ago I left Hong Kong after it became clear that my freedom and safety were under threat for revealing the truth."
"One week ago I left Hong Kong after it became clear that my freedom and safety were under threat for violating the oath I took to protect classified information I had access to, taking classified information I was not legally entitled to even access, let alone take with me, and other violations of the United States Code."
"This kind of deception from a world leader is not justice, and neither is the extralegal penalty of exile."
"This kind of deception from a world leader is not justice, and neither is the legal revocation of my passport under Section 22 CFR 51.62, which says passports may be revoked when the individual is the subject of a fugitive warrant."
Mr. Snowden's statements decry the violation of his right to seek asylum. Every extradition treaty there is contains language that limits or eliminates the right of a fugitive from arrest to seek asylum as a means to escape prosecution. If Mr. Snowden were a victim of persecution, he'd have an argument. Attempting to prosecute someone for violating the law is not persecution.
I also doubt that Mr. Snowden actually authored that statement. Someone, probably one of the WikiLeaks people, ghostwrote it.
* * *
Random ponderings this morning:
How many people think that on July 1st, the interest rate on government-subsidized Stafford loans aready made go up? They don't. The higher rates only apply to new loans being made.
Why is there no outrage over the revelation that the Archdiocese of Milwaukee tried to shelter $57 million from being paid to creditors in bankruptcy by moving it into a trust? Or that they paid priests who had committed acts of sex abuse, to leave the priesthood?
Is there something wrong with the notion that a robber has been dubbed the "Asian Wig Bandit" (he is Asian and he wears wigs when he commits his robberies) or is my problem the fact he's driving a late model BMW?
Was it an upset when Serena Williams lost to Sabine Lisicki? Yes. Was it all that surprising? No. Lisicki's been to the semis at Wimbledon when she entered as a wild-card and grass is by far her best surface.
Do reporters really need to ask Texas state senator Wendy Davis if she wore a catheter during her 11 hour filibuster? As a journalist, it is a question that I see no reason to ask.
Should Alec Baldwin get a pass for his homophobic language on Twitter while Paula Deen is excoriated for her admission of having used the "n-word"? He shouldn't get a pass, but he isn't being sued for creating a hostile work environment either.
* * *
I had a bad night. We did very well at trivia, finishing 3rd with only two of our normal crew of four there. We even had a chance to win, but we missed the final question (and we hadn't wagered enough anyway).
But for some reason I did not sleep well at all last night and when I took my blood pressure this morning it was up more than a bit. I had a doctor's appointment anyway and he ran a few tests and gave me a choice. Go home and rest for 24 hours and not go anywhere or check into the hospital for 24 hours and go nowhere. I opted to go home. I was supposed to play trivia tonight, but I'm not going to violate our deal.
What makes this interesting is how many times in my past I've had doctors tell me to do one thing and I just ignored their advice. Part of my being incredibly stubborn about what I want to do. On the Friday before O.J. Simpson killed his ex-wife and her waiter-friend, I had a bicycle accident on the bikepath that runs 40 some odd miles from Redondo Beach into the Pacific Palisades. I refused offers to drive me to the ER, rode my bike there and discovered I had a cracked rib and a sprained thumb. Then I rode home (I had no cash for a taxi), got dressed and went on a date.
That Sunday, June 12th (the day of the murders) I was signed up to run a 5K that ran down Hollywood Boulevard. I'd already paid for the race. I asked the ER doctor if there was any danger in running. He said it was not a good idea, I shouldn't do it and I'd be foolish to do it. So I did it anyway. I was gasping a little for air from the cracked rib but otherwise it was a good race.
Now I know better. The best choice then would have been to drive down and get my race t-shirt, and then turn around and go home. To not run the race. Today I will make the best choice and just stay home and rest. I can play trivia tomorrow night.
* * *
I will be writing another installment of As The Assisted Living Facility Turns later this week, after the events of today's and tomorrow's meetings. But one anecdote I wanted to share involves one of the residents who is a bit of a complainer (my gift for understatement at work). She was telling a new resident that the staff and other residents are afraid of her because she is "so much smarter than they are". Now this is a woman who almost certainly believes that the phrase "undercover agent" refers to a spy who gets to sleep on the job. A woman who once took a ladder to a party because the invitation read "drinks are on the house". A woman who tiptoes past the medicine cabinet because she's afraid of waking the sleeping pills. If you put her in a round room and told her there was a dollar in the corner, you wouldn't see her again for a very long time.
So for her to suggest that she's smarter than the other residents or the staff is simply ridiculous. If I went overboard to point out that she's nowhere near as intelligent as she thinks she is, chalk it up to blog hyperbole. (she probably thinks the hyperbole is what makes the Millenium Falcon go to light speed in Star Wars).
* * *
Trivial Tidbits you may or may not know:
"Saturday Night Fever" was the first U.S. mainstream movie where the phrase "blow job" was used as dialogue.
The average human being has enough blood in their bloodstream to fill two 2-liter bottles of soda and partially fill a third.
Almost all human beings cannot keep their eyes open when they sneeze.
A guy named Eddie Paskey appeared in 62 episodes of the original Star Trek TV series, but was never "credited" with an appearance.
If you converted all of Bill Gates' net worth of $66 billion into dollar bills and stacked them up in one single stack, it would be over 4,100 miles in height.
As of November of 2009, "The Price is Right" had given away over $250 million in prizes.
The longest confirmed sniper kill shot was over 2,700 yards.
When Usain Bolt ran his world record 100 meters in 9.58 seconds, he hit a top speed of 27.45 miles per hour.
This Date in History:
On this date in 1494, the Treaty of Tordesillas was ratified by Spain.
On this date in 1698, Thomas Saverny patents the first steam engine.
On this date in 1777, Vermont becomes the first U.S. territory to abolish slavery.
On this date in 1839, 53 African slaves about the Amistad take control of the ship.
On this date in 1881, President James Garfield is shot and mortally wounded.
On this date in 1890, Congress passes the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
On this date in 1897, Guglielmo Marconi obtains a patent for radio in London.
On this date in 1937, Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan are last heard from.
On this date in 1962, the first WalMart opens.
On this date in 1964, President Lyndon Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Famous Folk Born On This Date:
Thomas Spence
Charles Tupper
Lily Braun
Rene LaCoste (do polo players wear polo shirts?)
Thurgood Marshall
Ken Curtis
Murry Wilson
Pierre Cardin
Patrice Lumumba
Imelda Marcos (shoe whore)
Dave Thomas (burger mogul)
Polly Holliday
Richard Petty
John Sununu
Paul Williams (the Temptations)
Ron Silver
Larry David
Gene McFadden
Jerry Hall
Jose Canseco (steroid user)
Yancy Butler
Ashley Tisdale
Lindsay Lohan (rehab addict)
Movie quotes for the day come from "Hard Target" where Yancy Butler portrayed Natasha Binder:
Chance Boudreaux: What's your name?
Natasha Binder: It's Nat.
Chance Boudreaux: 'Nat?'
Natasha Binder: Mm-hmm.
Chance Boudreaux: Your parents named you for a... bug?
#2
Chance Boudreaux: Do you still have the 30.06... the one I gave you for your birthday?
Douvee: No... a gator ate it. But I still got your shot-gun.
#3
Natasha Binder: [after Douvee has been shot in the leg] Can you get up?
Douvee: I cannot dance... but, I can get up.
Edward Snowden is supposedly the author of a statement posted on WikiLeaks. You can read the entire statement here: http://wikileaks.org/Statement-from-Edward-Snowden-in.html
I think some of it needs to be edited for accuracy. So I'm going to cut and paste pieces of it in this font, and then edit it with this font.
"One week ago I left Hong Kong after it became clear that my freedom and safety were under threat for revealing the truth."
"One week ago I left Hong Kong after it became clear that my freedom and safety were under threat for violating the oath I took to protect classified information I had access to, taking classified information I was not legally entitled to even access, let alone take with me, and other violations of the United States Code."
"This kind of deception from a world leader is not justice, and neither is the extralegal penalty of exile."
"This kind of deception from a world leader is not justice, and neither is the legal revocation of my passport under Section 22 CFR 51.62, which says passports may be revoked when the individual is the subject of a fugitive warrant."
Mr. Snowden's statements decry the violation of his right to seek asylum. Every extradition treaty there is contains language that limits or eliminates the right of a fugitive from arrest to seek asylum as a means to escape prosecution. If Mr. Snowden were a victim of persecution, he'd have an argument. Attempting to prosecute someone for violating the law is not persecution.
I also doubt that Mr. Snowden actually authored that statement. Someone, probably one of the WikiLeaks people, ghostwrote it.
* * *
Random ponderings this morning:
How many people think that on July 1st, the interest rate on government-subsidized Stafford loans aready made go up? They don't. The higher rates only apply to new loans being made.
Why is there no outrage over the revelation that the Archdiocese of Milwaukee tried to shelter $57 million from being paid to creditors in bankruptcy by moving it into a trust? Or that they paid priests who had committed acts of sex abuse, to leave the priesthood?
Is there something wrong with the notion that a robber has been dubbed the "Asian Wig Bandit" (he is Asian and he wears wigs when he commits his robberies) or is my problem the fact he's driving a late model BMW?
Was it an upset when Serena Williams lost to Sabine Lisicki? Yes. Was it all that surprising? No. Lisicki's been to the semis at Wimbledon when she entered as a wild-card and grass is by far her best surface.
Do reporters really need to ask Texas state senator Wendy Davis if she wore a catheter during her 11 hour filibuster? As a journalist, it is a question that I see no reason to ask.
Should Alec Baldwin get a pass for his homophobic language on Twitter while Paula Deen is excoriated for her admission of having used the "n-word"? He shouldn't get a pass, but he isn't being sued for creating a hostile work environment either.
* * *
I had a bad night. We did very well at trivia, finishing 3rd with only two of our normal crew of four there. We even had a chance to win, but we missed the final question (and we hadn't wagered enough anyway).
But for some reason I did not sleep well at all last night and when I took my blood pressure this morning it was up more than a bit. I had a doctor's appointment anyway and he ran a few tests and gave me a choice. Go home and rest for 24 hours and not go anywhere or check into the hospital for 24 hours and go nowhere. I opted to go home. I was supposed to play trivia tonight, but I'm not going to violate our deal.
What makes this interesting is how many times in my past I've had doctors tell me to do one thing and I just ignored their advice. Part of my being incredibly stubborn about what I want to do. On the Friday before O.J. Simpson killed his ex-wife and her waiter-friend, I had a bicycle accident on the bikepath that runs 40 some odd miles from Redondo Beach into the Pacific Palisades. I refused offers to drive me to the ER, rode my bike there and discovered I had a cracked rib and a sprained thumb. Then I rode home (I had no cash for a taxi), got dressed and went on a date.
That Sunday, June 12th (the day of the murders) I was signed up to run a 5K that ran down Hollywood Boulevard. I'd already paid for the race. I asked the ER doctor if there was any danger in running. He said it was not a good idea, I shouldn't do it and I'd be foolish to do it. So I did it anyway. I was gasping a little for air from the cracked rib but otherwise it was a good race.
Now I know better. The best choice then would have been to drive down and get my race t-shirt, and then turn around and go home. To not run the race. Today I will make the best choice and just stay home and rest. I can play trivia tomorrow night.
* * *
I will be writing another installment of As The Assisted Living Facility Turns later this week, after the events of today's and tomorrow's meetings. But one anecdote I wanted to share involves one of the residents who is a bit of a complainer (my gift for understatement at work). She was telling a new resident that the staff and other residents are afraid of her because she is "so much smarter than they are". Now this is a woman who almost certainly believes that the phrase "undercover agent" refers to a spy who gets to sleep on the job. A woman who once took a ladder to a party because the invitation read "drinks are on the house". A woman who tiptoes past the medicine cabinet because she's afraid of waking the sleeping pills. If you put her in a round room and told her there was a dollar in the corner, you wouldn't see her again for a very long time.
So for her to suggest that she's smarter than the other residents or the staff is simply ridiculous. If I went overboard to point out that she's nowhere near as intelligent as she thinks she is, chalk it up to blog hyperbole. (she probably thinks the hyperbole is what makes the Millenium Falcon go to light speed in Star Wars).
* * *
Trivial Tidbits you may or may not know:
"Saturday Night Fever" was the first U.S. mainstream movie where the phrase "blow job" was used as dialogue.
The average human being has enough blood in their bloodstream to fill two 2-liter bottles of soda and partially fill a third.
Almost all human beings cannot keep their eyes open when they sneeze.
A guy named Eddie Paskey appeared in 62 episodes of the original Star Trek TV series, but was never "credited" with an appearance.
If you converted all of Bill Gates' net worth of $66 billion into dollar bills and stacked them up in one single stack, it would be over 4,100 miles in height.
As of November of 2009, "The Price is Right" had given away over $250 million in prizes.
The longest confirmed sniper kill shot was over 2,700 yards.
When Usain Bolt ran his world record 100 meters in 9.58 seconds, he hit a top speed of 27.45 miles per hour.
This Date in History:
On this date in 1494, the Treaty of Tordesillas was ratified by Spain.
On this date in 1698, Thomas Saverny patents the first steam engine.
On this date in 1777, Vermont becomes the first U.S. territory to abolish slavery.
On this date in 1839, 53 African slaves about the Amistad take control of the ship.
On this date in 1881, President James Garfield is shot and mortally wounded.
On this date in 1890, Congress passes the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
On this date in 1897, Guglielmo Marconi obtains a patent for radio in London.
On this date in 1937, Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan are last heard from.
On this date in 1962, the first WalMart opens.
On this date in 1964, President Lyndon Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Famous Folk Born On This Date:
Thomas Spence
Charles Tupper
Lily Braun
Rene LaCoste (do polo players wear polo shirts?)
Thurgood Marshall
Ken Curtis
Murry Wilson
Pierre Cardin
Patrice Lumumba
Imelda Marcos (shoe whore)
Dave Thomas (burger mogul)
Polly Holliday
Richard Petty
John Sununu
Paul Williams (the Temptations)
Ron Silver
Larry David
Gene McFadden
Jerry Hall
Jose Canseco (steroid user)
Yancy Butler
Ashley Tisdale
Lindsay Lohan (rehab addict)
Movie quotes for the day come from "Hard Target" where Yancy Butler portrayed Natasha Binder:
Chance Boudreaux: What's your name?
Natasha Binder: It's Nat.
Chance Boudreaux: 'Nat?'
Natasha Binder: Mm-hmm.
Chance Boudreaux: Your parents named you for a... bug?
#2
Chance Boudreaux: Do you still have the 30.06... the one I gave you for your birthday?
Douvee: No... a gator ate it. But I still got your shot-gun.
#3
Natasha Binder: [after Douvee has been shot in the leg] Can you get up?
Douvee: I cannot dance... but, I can get up.
posted by me at 12:18 PM
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