Human Rights Law

A Time Comes When Silence Is Betrayal

Posted on August 14, 2008
SOMEHOW THIS MADNESS MUST CEASE. We must stop now. I speak as a child of God and brother to the suffering poor of Vietnam. I speak for those whose land is being laid waste, whose homes are being destroyed, whose culture is being subverted. I speak for the poor of America who are paying the double price of smashed hopes at home, and death and corruption in Vietnam...

Beautifully Human: Jill Carroll

Posted on August 13, 2008
On Jan. 7, 2005, while on assignment for the Christian Science Monitor, freelance reporter Jill Carroll was kidnapped in Baghdad. Her translator, Alan Enwiyah, was murdered. On Jan. 17, Carroll's captors issued a statement demanding that the United States free all female Iraqi prisoners in U...

2,407 Days of Detention

Posted on August 13, 2008
Omar Khadr Back in Court Today Today's court appearance by Omar Khadr will mark the 10th time the Toronto-born prisoner will have been taken by armed convoy from his cell to a makeshift courthouse. Doctor Examines Pakistani Accused of U.S. Troop Attack A Pakistani woman suspected of links to al Qaeda and accused of trying to kill U...

We Knew Him When

Posted on August 13, 2008
copyright © 2008 Betsy L. Angert.  BeThink.org "We knew him when."  These are the words countless in cyberspace will offer in January 2009.  As Congressman Jerry Northington, a Democrat from Delaware, is sworn into office, Citizen Journalists throughout numerous net neighborhoods will chortle...

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No Gay Marriage; Edwards Redux

Posted on August 12, 2008
Yeah, yeah . . . I'm going there. You don't have to come with. But I dare you not to. Q: You said your opposition to gay marriage is influenced by your Southern Baptist background. Most Americans agree it was wrong to use religion to justify slavery, segregation, and denying women the vote...

A Love Story

Posted on August 11, 2008
Her grave is set near her family's home, adjacent to a large grove of coconut palms, beside the backwater of a peaceful lagoon east of Hoi An. She died far away, in childbirth, bringing twin girls into the world in the high plateau country of Dac Lac Province...

Step aside, Bono - Hail Comrade Yao!

Posted on August 11, 2008
Amid all the other exciting news from Beijing, and while our president disgraces himself and the nation, a hero takes on another challenge. Yao Ming has accepted an invitation from the United Nations Environment Program to become its first Environmental Champion...

All in

Posted on August 11, 2008
On its way out the door of the White House, the Bush administration today decided to take one last giant runny reeking dump on the carpet: The Bush Administration's Plan To Make The Endangered Species Act Extinct is nothing less than nullification of law by administrative fiat...

Late For The Sky

Posted on August 10, 2008
Now, y'all didn't think I was gonna just take a pass on the Edwards scandal, did you? Ay, no. Truth be told, the death of Bernie Mack is a much bigger loss to me, personally. It takes no particular skill to be dishonest and selfish. But someone who could see the Very Funny in just about any situation and share the joke so well as Bernie Mack, now that was some mad talent...

Ghost Islands: Diego Garcia

Posted on August 10, 2008
WANTED: Extraterritorial location for indefinite detentions, torture of prisoners, and gigantic secret military installation.  Island preferred, remoteness a plus; must be cleared of troublesome natives and provide for completely restricted access...

APA Bureaucrats Try to Torpedo Anti-Torture Resolution

Posted on August 10, 2008
As Stephen Soldz, one of the supporters of an anti-torture referendum resolution now being mailed out to members of the American Psychological Association, reports: The APA has launched a strong effort at spin and disinformation regarding the referendum...

Where are the Children of Khalid Sheikh Mohammad

Posted on August 10, 2008
Cross-Posted to Daily Kos Where Are Khalid Sheikh Mohammad's Children ? by Chacounne Sun Aug 10, 2008 at 02:10:22 AM PDT Once again, I find myself unable to sleep, because once again I am haunted by the image in my mind's eye. Every day, several times a day, I am haunted by an image of two little boys, the sons of Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, who were kidnapped when they were 7 and 9 years old and turned over to the CIA...

"First they will have to kill us."

Posted on August 08, 2008
Pop Quiz Tomorrow, August 9th, is: a) Gillian Anderson's birthday b) The anniversary of the destruction of Nagasaki c) International Day of the World's Indigenous People d) The first day of John Edwards' life as a has-been To kickstart the celebration of the UN's International Day of the World's Indigenous People on August 9, Survival International has named what it calls the "Unholy Trinity" - the corporations guilty of the most flagrant abuse of tribal peoples...

Conditions for War Crimes

Posted on August 08, 2008
So here, ultimately, is how it all plays out: when the Iraqi man in the mosque posed a threat, he was your enemy; when he was subdued he was your responsibility; when he was killed in front of my eyes and my camera -- the story of his death became my responsibility ...

Torture Trial Ends: Reflections on the Hamdan Verdict

Posted on August 06, 2008
Osama bin Laden's personal driver and bodyguard, who made the magisterial sum of $200 per month, 34-year-old Salim Ahmed Hamdan, who was held years without charges at Guantanamo Naval Base prison, has just been found guilty of lesser charges in the first of a series of planned "military commission" trials by the Bush Administration...

About That Whole "Defining Reality" Thing ...

Posted on August 05, 2008
Remember this (emphasis added)?(...) The (Bush) aide said that guys like me were "in what we call the reality-based community," which he defined as people who "believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality." ... "That's not the way the world really works anymore," he continued...

My friends, there will be more wars. A campaign promise.

Posted on August 04, 2008
"There's going to be other wars. ... I'm sorry to tell you, there's going to be other wars. We will never surrender but there will be other wars..." We're gonna have a lot of PTSD to treat, my friends, we're gonna have a lot of combat wounds.." John McCain, January 2008 "I know how to win wars...

Monday Action Items and Open Thread

Posted on August 04, 2008
Happy Monday, amigos! I hope everyone had a peaceful, relaxing weekend. It's been a busy weekend for me but much fun, and as I write this, late on Sunday evening, the thought of Monday morning and facing a jammed calendar and inbox filled with work-related email makes me want to hibernate on the sofa with my daughter, eat popcorn, watch Animal Planet and pretend that Monday will be an easy, stress-free day...

Jerry "Possum" Northington PHOTO AUCTION FUNDRAISER PAGE!

Posted on August 04, 2008
Sunday through Wednesday, we're raising money for Jerry Northington, aka possum, who is running for Delaware's at-large seat in the House of Representatives. Possum's primary is this September. Possum is a Vietnam Vet and veterinarian who will provide our caucus with one more, and a much better, Democrat! Rather than just asking you for donations, for this diary we're holding an auction here on NION of featuring eight digital photos...

Auction 4: Bronx Bumble Bee, by Eddie C.

Posted on August 04, 2008
16" x 20" print.  No bids under $20 accepted. Envy prevents me from offering a proper description for this photo. If you want to bid, post a comment entitled "BID - $xxx" where "xxx" is the amount of your bid.  Please make sure no one has already outbid you!  See this diary for auction rules...

Auction 3: Phaius Tankervillia, by dadanation

Posted on August 04, 2008
7.5" x 10" print.  No bid under $15 accepted. A serene still life and a study in contrasting tones. If you want to bid, post a comment entitled "BID - $xxx" where "xxx" is the amount of your bid.  Please make sure no one has already outbid you!  See this diary for auction rules...

Auction 2: Phaius on a Rainy Day

Posted on August 04, 2008
7.5" x 10" print.  No bids under $15 accepted. This is a bright, beautiful study in contrasting textures, colors, and moods. If you want to bid, post a comment entitled "BID - $xxx" where "xxx" is the amount of your bid.  Please make sure no one has already outbid you!  See this diary for auction rules...

The Games begin in two hours.

Posted on August 03, 2008
No, not those games. The 2008 North American Indigenous Games officialy begin this afternoon with an opening ceremony at 5 Pacific time. The opening, and 20-some hours of athletic competition throughout the Games, will be covered and streamed live on the web by Aboriginal Peoples Television Newtwork...

Little Girls (and Boys) Lost

Posted on August 02, 2008
Sometimes I wonder why people (1) have children. Doesn't it stand to reason that if you don't want a child, aren't willing and happy to accept the "responsibility" or the crimp in your party girl lifestyle, you'd take some precautions to avoid bringing yet another unwanted child into the world? Another little girl is missing in Florida...

Why the Silence on Real Torture Timeline?

Posted on August 02, 2008
Last month, I examined the testimony from the Senate Armed Services Committee hearings on interrogations and torture. The hearings concentrated on the military's Survival, Evasion, Resistance, Escape (SERE) program, and its use of military psychologists hired by the CIA to "reverse-engineer" SERE program elements for use in coercive interrogations by the United States at Guantanamo Bay prison and elsewhere...

Friday Open Thread and Books: The Dark Side by Jane Mayer

Posted on August 01, 2008
If you haven't read NION co-administrator Valtin's Physicians, Psychologists & the Problem of "The Dark Side" -- well, whatcha waitin' for, muchacho? Five days after 9/11, Vice President Cheney appeared on television and talked about fighting terrorism, stating: "...

How Not to Fight Terrorism - The Rand Report

Posted on July 31, 2008
Rand Corporation has recently published a report which concludes that terrorist groups rarely cease to exist as a result of winning or losing a military campaign. To me it is mind-boggling that it took Rand, or anyone else, 8 years to come to this conclusion...

Main Thing

Posted on July 31, 2008
So let's talk, amigos. What's your main thing? Don't worry, I'm not going to ask who is your main thing -- but if feel like telling me, I'll keep it on the dolo. What in cono is a Main Thing? It started out as a mangling of the English language by yours truly...

On Eve of the Convention: Is APA Leadership Splintering?

Posted on July 30, 2008
Dr. Bryant Welch's recent article, Why Did They Do It? - Torture, Political Manipulation and the American Psychological Association, published online at Counterpunch, Psyche, Science and Society, and many other sites, is a powerful indictment of the moral and political bankruptcy of the American Psychological Association, written by a key insider...

Measures of Worth

Posted on July 30, 2008
This is an old essay, and as such, I left it to the sidebar...I think it still relevant as we look to the abuses of minorities, hate crimes against even tolerance of the gltb tribe and the atrocities of our health care system. Not to mention Endless War!) This is an attempt at starting a dialogue about the fabric of what our human existence entails at present, and what it should strive to be...

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