Haiku 063009

flipping shadows
of tethered leaves…
summer breeze


***************

Recently, we read the following:

Washington Post: “White House Weighs Order on Detention” by Dafna Linzer and Peter Finn

“Obama administration officials, fearing a battle with Congress that could stall plans to close the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, are crafting language for an executive order that would reassert presidential authority to incarcerate terrorism suspects indefinitely, according to three senior government officials with knowledge of White House deliberations….

" ‘Civil liberties groups have encouraged the administration, that if a prolonged detention system were to be sought, to do it through executive order,’ the official said. Such an order could be rescinded and would not block later efforts to write legislation, but civil liberties groups generally oppose long-term detention, arguing that detainees should be prosecuted or released….

“Some of Obama's top legal advisers, along with a handful of influential Republican and Democratic lawmakers, have pushed for the creation of a "national security court" to supervise the incarceration of detainees deemed too dangerous to release but who cannot be charged or tried....

“On the day Obama took office, 242 men were imprisoned at Guantanamo. In his May speech, the president outlined five strategies the administration would use to deal with them: criminal trials, revamped military tribunals, transfers to other countries, releases and continued detention.

“Since the inauguration, 11 detainees have been released or transferred, one prisoner committed suicide, and one was moved to New York to face terrorism charges in federal court.

“Administration officials said the cases of about half of the remaining 229 detainees have been reviewed for prosecution or release. Two officials involved in a Justice Department review of possible prosecutions said the administration is strongly considering criminal charges in federal court for Khalid Sheik Mohammed and three other detainees accused of involvement in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

“The other half of the cases, the officials said, present the greatest difficulty because these detainees cannot be prosecuted in federal court or military commissions. In many cases the evidence against them is classified, has been provided by foreign intelligence services or has been tainted by the Bush administration's use of harsh interrogation techniques….

" ‘The challenge for the new administration is how to solve these legal questions of preventive detention in a way that is consistent with the Constitution, legitimate in the eyes of the world and doesn't create security loopholes that cause Congress to worry,’ Zarate said.”

***************

And we thought:

…”National Security Court” – blowing in the wind. Given the circumstances, perhaps the proposed court is a necessary interim structure. It appears to address a type of conflict for which conventions haven’t yet been established…


a contemporary haiku and current events blog. occasional notes on [and pokes at] nature and society. and some of their maddening stuff…like the economy finance capital mergers energy health care insurers jobs retirement politics government congress courts conflicts united nations human rights peace culture& society education alienation religion erving goffman artifacts history social change twitter scientific method sports travel environment wildlife carbon footprint global warming earth...

Haiku 062809

lighting up
downtown's skyline...
sunrise

***************

Recently, we read the following:

Los Angeles Times: “Apparent coup in Honduras: President tells of his 'brutal kidnapping' “ by Tracy Wilkinson and Alex Renderos

"Honduran army troops seized President Manuel Zelaya early today and sent the leftist president into exile in an apparent coup, reports from the Central American country said.

"Troops moved through the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa, and surrounded the presidential palace and other government buildings. The state television network was off the air as hundreds of angry Honduran citizens poured into the streets and shouted support for Zelaya....

"The military action followed days of unrest ahead of a referendum over constitutional reforms scheduled for today. The vote was to ask Hondurans whether they wanted another referendum to change the constitution in a number of ways, including allowing re-election of the president.

“Army leaders opposed the vote, which they, Congress and election officials said was illegal. In response, Zelaya last week fired the top military commander and then ignored a Supreme Court order to reinstate him.

"President Obama, in a statement issued by the White House, said he was 'deeply concerned' about the developments.

" ‘As the Organization of American States did on Friday, I call on all political and social actors in Honduras to respect democratic norms, the rule of law and the tenets of the Inter-American Democratic Charter,’ the president said. ‘Any existing tensions and disputes must be resolved peacefully through dialogue free from any outside interference….’ "

***************

And we thought:

…A fascist faction in the Honduran military forces perhaps thinks the world is still in the dark era of banana republics. On the other hand, was Zelaya in fact trying to have his country’s constitution amended for selfish interests? Was he angling for another presidential term? ....


a contemporary haiku and current events blog. occasional notes on [and pokes at] nature and society. and some of their maddening stuff…like the economy finance capital mergers energy health care insurers jobs retirement politics government congress courts conflicts united nations human rights lennon peace culture mores education alienation religion erving goffman artifacts history social change twitter scientific method sports travel environment wildlife carbon footprint global warming earth...

Haiku 062609

a wet quilt
of leaves and grass...
stormy night

***************

Recently, we read the following:


NPR: “Michael Jackson: Life Of A Pop Icon” by Neda Ulaby

“Singer Michael Jackson, the man known as the King of Pop to legions of fans around the globe, who lived most of his extraordinary life in the public eye, died Thursday in Los Angeles after going into cardiac arrest. He was 50 years old….

“It used to be that Jackson's talent was the most compelling thing about him, says music critic Jody Rosen….

“And then came the charges of child molestation.

“For comedians like Chris Rock, Michael Jackson became a punch line….

“Or an extended riff….

“Not long ago, Rosen was at a nightclub. Everyone there was too cool to dance. Then the DJ started spinning Jackson's early hits, one after the other.

" ‘As soon as he started playing those, the dance floor was stampeded,’ Rosen says. ‘The longer it went on, the more ecstatic the crowd got, and everyone was dancing. That's the image I'd like to remember MJ by: just sheer joy generated by his best music.’

“The Michael Jackson in his mind, Rosen says, was not a has-been, a controversy or a joke. He was a genius.”

***************

And we thought:

… People are stunned all the more by Michael’s sudden passing because, in the last 5 years, he did keep a low profile for the most part. Out of sight, out of mind. People were practically unaware as Michael was being buffeted by storms -- emotional, legal, financial, etc. -- caused by child molestation charges being filed against him one after the other. Most will be kinder now….



a contemporary haiku and current events blog. occasional notes on [and pokes at] nature and society. and some of their maddening stuff…like the economy finance capital mergers energy health care insurers jobs retirement politics government congress courts conflicts united nations human rights peace culture& society education alienation religion erving goffman artifacts history social change twitter scientific method sports travel environment wildlife carbon footprint global warming earth...

Haiku 062409

morning glories
lie still on the grass...
summer sunset

***************

Recently, we read the following:

NPR: “Iran Supreme Leader Vows Not To Bow To Protests”

“Iran's supreme leader said Wednesday that the government would not give in to pressure over the disputed presidential election, effectively closing the door to compromise with the opposition.

" ‘Neither the system nor the people will give in to pressures at any price,’ Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a meeting with lawmakers Wednesday….

“In his remarks on state television, Khamenei was adamant. ‘On the current situation, I was insisting and will insist on implementation of the law. That means we will not go one step beyond the law,’ he said…

“Mousavi claims that hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stole the June 12 election through massive fraud. He has called for annulling the results and holding a new vote.

“Mousavi supporters have flooded the streets of Tehran and other cities on a near-daily basis since the election, massing by the hundreds of thousands in protests larger than any since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. Security forces initially stood by and permitted the demonstrations.

“Khamenei said in a stern sermon broadcast to the nation Friday that Ahmadinejad was the legitimate winner. He told opposition supporters to halt their protests and blamed the U.S., Britain and other foreign powers for instigating unrest.

“The government then ramped up both the use of force and its rhetoric, beating protesters, firing tear gas and water cannons at them. State media say at least 17 people have been killed in the postelection unrest. Amateur footage of a woman bleeding to death from a gunshot on a Tehran street unleashed outrage at home and abroad….”

***************

And we thought:

… You’d think that Iran’s mullahs would at least try to provide a safe forum to hear out the protesters. Or do Iran’s laws actually prohibit dialogue between its leaders and its people? Scores of protesters have since fallen in the streets – some killed, a lot more injured. But the protests continue. Obviously, "threats, beatings, and imprisonments" -- and blaming other countries -- will not resolve the issues protesters have raised. A good-faith dialogue might just help start the process....

Haiku 062209

a squirrel's nest
of twigs and leaves...
summer home

***************

Recently, we read the following:

Washington Post : “Reporters Escape Taliban Captors” by Keith Richburg

"A New York Times reporter kidnapped by the Taliban and held for seven months in the rugged mountainous region along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border escaped Friday, along with a local Afghan reporter, by climbing over a wall and finding a nearby Pakistani army base, according to the newspaper, U.S. officials and the journalist's family.

"David Rohde, 41, was taken captive Nov. 10 along with local reporter Tahir Ludin, 35, and their driver while Rohde was researching a book on Afghanistan. News organizations, including The Washington Post, did not report on the abduction at the request of the Times and Rohde's relatives, who feared that publication of the news could endanger the lives of the captives....

"According to sources, the FBI worked closely with the Times in Afghanistan to negotiate his release. There were intermittent communications with the kidnappers, who also provided several 'proof of life' videos confirming Rohde was alive. But sources said the family insisted on using private security consultants to resolve the case, and it was those consultants who insisted on an absolute news blackout…"

***************

And we thought:

…Rohde's escape is fortunate. But what's most fortunate is he’s a member of a fraternity that has great resources (influence, connections, funds) and takes care of its own. Just wondering -- would this media fraternity agree as well to a “news blackout” for a private individual or a public figure, given the same "life-or-death" situation? Why do some of us doubt it will?...

Haiku 062009

waves of water
from the lawn sprinkler...
surfing robin

***************

Recently, we read the following:


NBC Washington: “99-Year-Old's Water Bill Jumps Almost 4000%” by Matthew Stabley

“Stop complaining about your utility bills. Jeannette Cohen's water bill jumped almost 4000 percent.

“The 99-year-old northwest Washington woman insists it must be a mistake. Usually, her water bill is $30. In March, she did a double take.

" ‘I got my usual bill and opened the envelope and looked at the amount,’ she said. ‘Huh? I looked again.’

“It was $1,181.

“Cohen complained and had plumbers check her house twice. Usually, she uses about 3,000 gallons of water per month. D.C. Water and Sewer Authority's records show that 139,876 gallons went into her house that month, and they insist she must pay for them.

" ‘It's just so obvious that, as the plumber said, You couldn't use that much water,' she told News4's Tom Sherwood….”

***************

And we thought:

… Not if Cohen's in fact one of Cheney's new sub-contractors – for secret off-site waterboarding assignments… =)

Haiku 061809

dense clouds
masking the sunrise...
long faces

***************

Recently, we read the following:

New York Times: “Clerics May Be Key to Outcome of Unrest” By Neil MacFarouhar

“With Iran’s political establishment at war with itself, a central question lurking behind the postelection tumult is which side the country’s highly influential clerics will back.

”So far the mullahs — a potentially critical swing vote — have remained largely silent, with the notable exception of a few prominent grand ayatollahs, including one who has attacked the vote count as ‘a gross injustice.’ And few religious leaders have joined the tens of thousands of Iranians expressing their fury by marching through the streets of Tehran and other cities.

‘The clerics and their thousands of pupils, concentrated in the holy city of Qum, are a generally conservative lot who have been known to jump into the political fray en masse only when a clear winner starts to emerge….

“One of the mysteries behind this week’s mass demonstrations is who is coordinating them. Some suspect that the hidden hand is the powerful political organization of former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. His daughter Faezeh Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former member of Parliament famous for opening sports to women, was spotted at a march for Mir Hussein Moussavi, who the Interior Ministry says came in second in a landslide for the country’s incumbent president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

“One of the country’s most influential clerics, Mr. Rafsanjani has been notably silent since Mr. Ahmadinejad was declared the winner last week, and there has been speculation that Mr. Rafsanjani is in Qum trying to muster clerical opposition to the country’s leaders. But those reports are difficult to confirm with any authority.

“Mr. Rafsanjani leads the 86-member Assembly of Experts, whose duties include endorsing the performance of the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who on Saturday called the election’s outcome ‘‘a divine blessing.” In theory, the group has the power to remove him, but that has never been done and any attempt to do so would probably further inflame the situation, analysts said….”

***************

And we thought:

….Is there a good number of Iran's clerics inclined to ride Moussavi’s green bus? For now, this seems like a long shot....

Haiku 061609

horses perking
where hills rise and fall...
bugle call

***************

Recently, we read the following:




New York Times: “Defiance Grows as Iran’s Leader Sets Vote Review” by Robert F. Worth and Nazila Fathi

“Hundreds of thousands of people marched in silence through central Tehran on Monday to protest Iran’s disputed presidential election in an extraordinary show of defiance from a broad cross section of society, even as the nation’s supreme leader called for a formal review of results he had endorsed two days earlier.

“Having mustered the largest antigovernment demonstrations since the 1979 revolution, and defying an official ban, protesters began to sense the prospect — however slight at the moment — that the leadership’s firm backing of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had wavered.

“The massive outpouring was mostly peaceful. But violence erupted after dark when protesters surrounded and attempted to set fire to the headquarters of the Basij volunteer militia, which is associated with the Revolutionary Guards, according to news agency reports. At least one man was killed, and several others were injured in that confrontation….

“Protesters were especially enraged that Mr. Ahmadinejad on Sunday dismissed them as nothing more than soccer fans who had just lost a game and as ‘dust.’ One demonstrator fired off a Twitter message, one of thousands of brief electronic dispatches that kept the outside world up-to-the-minute on the protests, proclaiming, ‘Ahmadinejad called us Dust, we showed him a sandstorm.’

“Earlier Monday, Ayatollah Khamenei … called for the Guardian Council to conduct an inquiry into the opposition’s claims that the election was rigged and then had that announcement repeated every 15 minutes on Iranian state radio throughout the day. It was a rare reversal….

“Nevertheless, his announcement could not calm the anger of the people…. Hours later, a broad river of people in Tehran … marched slowly from Revolution Square to Freedom Square for more than three hours … many of them wearing the signature bright green ribbons of Mr. Moussavi’s campaign and holding up their hands in victory signs….”


***************

And we thought:

....From "dust" to "sandstorm" -- after long-drawn-out, incremental changes, a sudden qualitative change....

Haiku 061409

at six-thirty
the truck starts idling...
wake-up call

***************

Recently, we read the following:

Washington Post: “U.N. Imposes Tough New Sanctions on North Korea” by Colum Lynch

“The U.N. Security Council unanimously voted Friday to impose a broad range of additional financial, military and trade sanctions on North Korea in response to its recent nuclear and ballistic missile tests, and called on states for the first time to seize banned North Korean cargo on the high seas….

“The resolution would restrict Pyongyang's access to international grants, financial assistance and low-interest loans. It would also reinvigorate efforts to enforce a range of sanctions imposed on North Korea after its first nuclear test in October 2006….

“The current push for tough sanctions has generated skepticism among some observers, who recall that the Security Council never enforced sanctions on North Korea following its first nuclear test in October 2006.

“In fact, North Korea's overseas trade has grown substantially since then, with trade volumes last year at their highest levels since 1990, when a far more prosperous and less isolated North Korea was heavily subsidized by the Soviet Union, according to an analysis by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, a government-funded organization in Seoul.

“North Korean exports surged 23 percent last year, compared with the previous year, and imports jumped 33 percent, the agency said. It found that China's share of overseas trade with the North is soaring, up from 33 percent in 2003 to 73 percent last year….”

***************

And we thought:

….North Korea’s escalating provocation seems another ploy to extract new concessions down the road....

Haiku 061209

lurking
in the damp backyard...
mushrooms

***************

Recently, we read the following:

Huffington Post: "O'Reilly Unrepentant, Tones Back 'Tiller the Killer' Rhetoric on First Show Since Murder" by Brad Friedman

“After years of demonizing Kansas physician Dr. George Tiller who was assassinated in his Wichita church on Sunday, Fox ‘News’ host Bill O'Reilly toned back his inflammatory rhetoric on his first show back since yesterday's murder.

“Where he had previously, and repeatedly, described Tiller as ‘Tiller the Baby Killer’, compared him to a Nazi, described him repeatedly as ‘executing babies’ and ‘operating a death mill’, tonight O'Reilly characterized himself as the victim of a ‘left-wing’ cabal of ‘Fox News haters’ trying to ‘exploit’ the tragedy to ‘shut guys like me down’. He did not, however, use the same strident rhetoric that had characterized his ‘reportage’ of Tiller in the past….

“In response to a Huffington Post editorial which claimed O'Reilly would ‘back-pedal’ on tonight's show following the murder, he told viewers ‘No back-pedaling here...Every single thing we said about Tiller was true.’

“He then went on to back-pedal on largely everything, at least the most outrageous allegations, that he'd previously reported.

" ‘We based our analysis on the facts,’ O'Reilly said in his own defense tonight. Though his previous ‘analysis’ including the repeated allegation that Tiller was a mass-murderer was nowhere to be heard this evening. He did not use the term ‘murder’ to describe what Tiller did, as he had so frequently in the past. He used carefully selected, non-libelous phrases such as ‘destroyed fetuses’ instead.

“And where he had previously charged Tiller with ‘operating a death mill,’ the closest he came to that tonight was the carefully worded use of ‘this mill’ when he admitted that Tiller hadn't been found guilty of breaking any laws. ‘The people of Kansas allowed this mill to take place’ for thirty five years, he said….

“Though his reportage is still as misleading and inaccurate as ever, we're happy to see O'Reilly's new, more responsible approach to his hateful, libelous and dangerous rhetoric. “In the toning back of his own rhetoric, Bill O'Reilly acknowledges the irresponsibility of his own previous behavior….

“Everything O'Reilly said was not true, despite his claims to the contrary tonight. A man is dead in Kansas, in no small part, thanks to the type of irresponsible "reporting" and incessant, outrageous hatred, that O'Reilly helped to inflame.”

***************

And we thought:

.....Unfortunately, a section of O'Reilly's viewers are wired to take his venomous rhetoric as code to kill. How many more Americans is O'Reilly going to send to their deaths?...

Haiku 061009

all day rain
the car wash money
goes to pizza

Haiku 060809

I find 
more lake place stars --
spring cleaning

What Ifs*

1.
We had read:

“Transcending one’s class is living
the dreams of the labouring class,
becoming the labouring class,
being the labouring class.”

2.
What if we did hew our disparate lives
with the steady hands
of the toiling classes,
and grasped history with a proletarian’s mind?

What if we did reckon our days,
like men and women for others --
for brothers and sisters exploited
and bridled?

What if we did become the spark
that lit the prairie fire --
ending man's exploitation
of man?

Musings of a petit-bourgeois...

3.
We muse instead, who took the path
less bloody.






*Chapter 4, Fractured Memories

Haiku 060409

drifting clouds
of cottonwood seeds...
spring blizzard

***************

Recently, we read the following:

Washington Post: “Tiller killing puts spotlight on Fox's O'Reilly” by David Bauder (AP)

“The shooting death of abortion provider George Tiller has put Fox News Channel's Bill O'Reilly in the media spotlight because of stories he did about the Kansas doctor over the past few years.

“Liberal commentators have questioned whether O'Reilly's words, including calling the doctor 'Tiller the baby killer,' were too incendiary. O'Reilly condemned Tiller's killing and said his opponents are exploiting the murder to attack Fox and stifle criticism of people like Tiller.

“Tiller was gunned down Sunday while at church services in Wichita. He had operated a clinic that was one of three in the nation to perform abortions after the 21st week of pregnancy, when the fetus is considered viable, and had survived a previous shooting….

“Before Tiller's death, O'Reilly had talked about him on his top-rated ‘The O'Reilly Factor’ some 29 times since February 2005, according to Salon magazine Monday. Twice he sent producers to Kansas to report on the story. In June 2007, Fox's Porter Barry confronted Tiller in the street and asked, ‘they call you Tiller the baby killer. Is that appropriate?’ Tiller was shown calling 911 and saying he was being accosted by an O'Reilly producer. Last July, Fox's Jesse Waters followed then-Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius in the street to ask about Tiller.

“Salon's Gabriel Winant wrote that ‘O'Reilly didn't tell anyone to do anything violent, but he did put Tiller in the public eye, and help make him the focus of a movement with a history of violence against exactly these kinds of targets.’

“Frank Schaeffer, who with his father Francis in the 1980s said that force could sometimes be justified in fighting abortions, wrote in The Huffington Post that he and the religious right ‘all contributed to this killing by our foolish and incendiary words. I am very sorry....’

***************

And we thought:

….Wasn’t Hitler accountable when his Jew-hating followers in fact carried out the killing of Jews in the millions?

Curiously, even if many hold O’Reilly accountable for sowing hatred for “Tiller the baby-killer,” some question if it’s “his fault if some abortion-hating fanatic decides to kill another human being.” How could O’Reilly be held blameless otherwise? It was his repeated verbal assaults against Tiller’s person that one of O'Reilly's viewers/followers finally played out. At the least he bears some responsibility for Tiller’s killing.

O’Reilly, over the years, fomented hatred against Tiller, the person. His relentless name-calling and personal attacks obviously just clouded the issues and obscured the legal paths anti-abortionists might take. He could have remained focused on Tiller’s acts -- the abortions he performed that O’Reilly hated -- and the law and court opinions that allowed those acts. This would have been the more responsible, public behavior for O’Reilly.

O’Reilly reportedly holds sway over 3.3 million viewers. He should certainly be careful about what he says on the air. Who knows – maybe Tiller’s killer took one of O’Reilly’s “hate” labels for Tiller as code word to kill….

Haiku 060109

more grass shoots…
watering the lawn
after mass

***************

Recently, we read the following:

Washington Post: “Leftist Takes El Salvador Helm” by Mary Beth Sheridan

“Nearly two decades after the end of a U.S.-backed war against El Salvador's rebels, a representative of the former guerrilla movement took power on Monday -- with a top American official applauding.

“Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton attended the inauguration of Mauricio Funes, dressed in bright red, the color of the Farabundo Marti Liberation Front. It was an image that would have been unthinkable in the 1980s, when the United States poured $6 billion into El Salvador to fight the rebel group backed by Cuba and the Soviet Union….

“Clinton, however, told reporters here that she expects ‘a positive relationship’ with Funes, who is considered by many Latin Americans to be a moderate. Her visit signaled the Obama administration's effort to reach out to a more assertive Latin America altered by a ‘pink tide’ of socialist victories in recent years….

“In his inaugural speech at an amphitheater packed with men in red ties and women in red jackets, Funes hailed his two political heroes: President Luis Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil, a moderate leftist, and President Obama….

“Cynthia Arnson, director of the Latin America program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, said the FMLN has a democratic track record, holding many mayor's offices and congressional seats in recent years. ‘The FMLN has been part of the architecture of representative democracy in El Salvador. El Salvador's resemblance to other countries in Latin America governed by the populist left are quite minimal, she said….

“Funes's inauguration was deeply emotional for many Salvadorans who suffered through the 12-year civil war, which left 75,000 dead. ‘We fought the battle so we could have this change,’ said Cecilia Hermin Navarro, 68, a tiny woman in a red shirt who said she was tortured by police during the conflict….”

***************

And we thought:

….After three decades since the FMLN’s formation, spring harvest! No doubt change is a protracted process. Moving forward, Mauricio Funes inherits 20 years of bungling by ARENA, an ultra right-wing party in El Salvador founded by the late Roberto D’Abuisson.

[D’Abuisson was the Salvadoran army major who organized and led the death squads that tortured and killed thousands of civilians during the Salvadoran civil war. Among his victims was San Salvador Archbishop Oscar Romero who was assassinated in 1980 while celebrating Mass. The archibishop was known widely for his denunciations of human rights violations during the Salvadoran civil war and for his advocacy on behalf of the Salvadoran poor.]

Funes and the FMLN face a tough road ahead. What could -- and would -- the FMLN do in the next five years to put reforms in place, based on its ideal of “preferential option for the poor”? Hope the changes would be enough to earn the FMLN an extended run, five years hence, as it pursues its goals of economic and social justice in El Salvador. One expects the FMLN already has the late Archbishop's blessings ….