The Weekly Poll
Results
The 'Enemy of the State' Edition...
"The Obama administration has taken the extraordinary step of authorizing the targeted killing of an American citizen, the radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who is believed to have shifted from encouraging attacks on the United States to directly participating in them... officials say Mr. Awlaki is an operative of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the affiliate of the terror network in Yemen and Saudi Arabia...
It is extremely rare, if not unprecedented, for an American to be approved for targeted killing, officials said..."
Confirmed: Obama authorizes assassination of U.S. citizen - Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com
A.) Approve
B.) Disapprove
C.) This is nothing new, it's been going on for years...
Do you approve or disapprove of such an action?
A.) Approve
maw
Yes, The fact that he is an American citizen does not negate the fact that he is an enemy and threat to the US.
Adam in NoHo initially responded with...
Well, if the conspiracy theories are to be believed, we have targeted more prominent US citizens than this... Problem is, al-Awlaki's not the only 'Radical Cleric' who's a worthless piece of trouble making sh*t. By this measure, Mullah Robertson, Mullah Graham, Mullah Warren, Mullah Bishops [fill in the boy-raping blanks] and so many other troublemakers would have a price on their head as well. Hypothetically. I'm just sayin'...
I don't really have a problem with this. If a surgical sniper shot saves having to get squads of people killed on both sides, it makes perfect sense to me.
As we've seen, even with a price on one man's head, 1000 people will still die while we don't concentrate end effort on him.
But then reconsidered and sent...
I take it back. I didn't realize that was Star Chamber-type order for outright murder. If the guy had a trial or something and the whole thing was in any way above board and publicly documented, then fine. But Obama is continuing the worst of the Bush/Cheney agenda and it has to stop.
joe b...
I have to approve because Barack is the President and I have to back him, with all the crap he's taking, no way am I am going to pile on. I'll be glad when we get the hell out of that part of the world by becoming energy independent.
bebo
I applaud the POTUS for being more transparent.
B.) Disapprove
DanD
I guess I can put myself on the firing line and disapprove.
So now all Obama has to do is to (secretly) allege to have the information that an American citizen is an imminently threatening terrorist, and he can summarily have that citizen murdered without even casual judicial review.
Yet, on the flip side, any American citizens who have the chutzpa to notice Obama's terrorist conduct (such as committing due process-less murder) are officially accused of being domestic terrorists ... which -- by default -- puts them on a "take-out" list.
America's largely protestless population of weak-knee'd surrender monkeys now lives under the domestic tyranny of an oxymoron government.
and revisits last week's Burka poll with...
Also Bob;
I should have been more specific when I wrote my short answer last week. I said:
Actually, I would support banning all religiously mandated, cultural obligations.
However, if a woman wants to wear a burka, or even a hundred-pound suit of armor, in a free society it should be her choice. However, there is only one "law-of-the-land," and it ain't in anybody's holy book. In America at least, it is represented by the Constitution, as emphasized within the Bill of Rights.
Allowing religious corporations the default privilege of tax-exemption merely because they claim to represent the will of some god denies secular corporations the contravening right of equal (economic) protection under the law. Faith-based tax exemption actually enables a religiously defined practice of extra-constitutional authority, which allows the establishment of a presumed clerical jurisdiction over some segment of America's population that the Bill of Rights specifically refutes.
No religious organization should have the quasi-legal capacity to demand that any of its members -- beyond the (no longer would be tax-exempt) walls of any temple -- obey any religious mandate whenever their conduct also encompasses some personal or economic interaction with "non-believers." As far as I'm concerned, for any religious administrator to do so should make him/her/it liable under both criminal and civil law.
litebug
I strongly disapprove of any President or individual having this power, which is akin to the "Divine Rights of Kings". I also agree that it is probably nothing new and has been going on for years. Still, has any other President come right out and announced that he is pursuing such a course against a named individual? What happened to due process and the rule of law? It's shocking and I am very disappointed with Obama on this issue.
Richard McD...
If you can see him you can capture and try him.
Mark the Boilermaker
Murder is murder, even if it's a Democratic president ordering it.
Joe S...
Disapprove - Highly Disapprove. The United States , We The People, should not targeting anyone for assassination let alone an American citizen. We have started down the slippery slope.
C.) This is nothing new, it's been going on for years...
DRD
One side of the aisle in this nation's history has always felt the USA could do no wrong.
The other side of the aisle has for the most part frowned on such deeds.
The third body, the great majority of Americans, have played the hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil game to the limit. I think it is called 'Plausible Deniability!'
I personally agree that the State has the legal as well as the moral authority to take the life of any human, citizen or not, AFTER THEY HAVE BEEN FOUND GUILTY IN A COURT OF LAW! [THE OUTCRY OVER ALL THE EXECUTIONS IN TEXAS UNDER MR. BUSH WAS NOT THAT THEY LACKED AUTHORITY, RATHER THEIR FAIRNESS WAS BROUGHT INTO QUESTION!] Remember Sacco and Vanzetti?
~~~~~~~~~~~
Well then, Poll-fans, here's how I see it... Under our 'common law' system trying a person, in absentia, that poses a 'clear and present danger' or is thought to have committed capital crimes and rendering any punishment against that person is not possible. It is under the 'civil law' systems of many other countries e.g. Italy, France,The Netherlands, Jordan, the former Soviet Union,The Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal (Martin Bormann) etal. That could legally permit 'sanctioning with extreme prejudice' as the 'Spy vs Spy' guys like to say, and that would be that. Examples are here.
However, there is a way, though... If one looks upon Mr. Awlaki as a police marksman would a psychopath that is holding a hostage and is then given the legal order to 'take out' said psychopath in order to save the hostage's life, then, Presto! Legal execution under exigent circumstances without the niceties of 'due process of law' (and all that there stuff). I dare say that is how Mr. Obama is viewing this particular situation... and, frankly, so do I... So, there it is...
Thanks to all responders! You are, of course, The Best!
I have to take a short 'medical leave of absence' and hopefully I will be back with a new question next Tuesday. It's nothing serious, mind ya, just annoying and inconvenient. Not to worry!
TTFN...
BadToTheBoneBob
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Paul Krugman: Looters in Loafers (nytimes.com)
It looks as if fraud played a significant role in the financial crisis, and reform of the kind now being contemplated could have prevented some of it.
Jacob Weisberg: Dying Breed (slate.com)
Who Killed the Responsible Republican? Bill Kristol, of course.
GRETCHEN REYNOLDS: Weighing the Evidence on Exercise (nytimes.com)
The newest science suggests that exercise alone will not make you thin, but it may determine whether you stay thin, if you can achieve that state.
Nawal El Saadawi: Egypt's radical feminist (guardian.co.uk)
Writer Nawal El Saadawi has braved prison, exile and death threats in her fight against female oppression. She isn't about to give up now, she tells Homa Khaleeli.
"Alien Hearts" (New York Review Books Classics) by Guy De Maupassant: A review by Lorin Stein
Sooner or later, in writing about Guy de Maupassant, one feels impelled to address a rumor.
Susan Salter Reynolds: Norris Church Mailer recalls life with Norman, and without him (Los Angeles Times)
The voice explains a lot. You think, how could any woman live with the famously moody writer Norman Mailer for 33 years, and then you hear Norris Church Mailer's soft, authoritative, Marilyn Monroe-ish voice, with its 61-year-old Arkansas twang still intact, and you have a revelation about men and women.
George Varga: "James Moody: Resting on His Laurels? No Way, Nohow" (creators.com)
Anybody who thinks you can't teach an old master new tricks clearly needs to catch up with James Moody. The jazz saxophone legend, who turned 85 on March 26 and performs June 23 in New York's Carnegie Hall, has been spending much of his spare time relearning the flute, thanks to a tip from flutist Holly Hofmann.
Robert Crampton: Iggy Pop at 62 (timesonline.co.uk)
The rock legend who has conquered drug addiction and his self-destructive streak to emerge a bigger star than ever.
Grace Jones: 'God I'm scary. I'm scaring myself' (guardian.co.uk)
Pop's formidable diva talks to Simon Hattenstone about sex, slaps and annoying copycats (that's you, Lady Gaga).
Lucy Powell: Why actors are still haunted by 'Macbeth' (timesonline.co.uk)
As Lucy Bailey's production of 'Macbeth' opens at Shakespeare's Globe, we examine the superstitions around the work.
Mark Edmonds: "Witter: Joanna Lumley" (timesonline.co.uk)
The world's fastest interview, with the TV siren, Gurkhas' champion and 'monumentally bossy' national treasure.
Rosanna Greenstreet: "Q&A: Ted Danson" (guardian.co.uk/)
'My most embarrassing moment? My day goes from one embarrassing moment to the next.'
David Bruce, editor: Fantabulous! (lulu.com)
Download: FREE. Talented writers congregate in Athens, Ohio. This is a collection of some of their humorous autobiographical essays.
wrote:
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Reader Comment
Page Problem
Hi Marty,
You probably know this already, but I could not read about 1/3 of yesterday's BCE page (at the bottom). Looks like you are having a bad computer day, but, just in case... I noted that you commented about Baron Dave's stuff, so I guess you are aware of this...
:)
Sally P
Thanks, Sally!
Damn gremlins.
But, I don't go to bed until all is tickety-boo with the page.
I've taken to checking it using 2 different browsers, so all looked fine when I called it a day.
Anybody else experiencing this problem?
Reader Picture
Bear in Tujunga
Marty:
Reader Comment
Gun Rallies
We have had big gun rallies here lately--the idiots who think Obama is going to take all their guns away so they have to stockpile even more and demonstrate against something that hasn't happened, hasn't been talked about. Of course, they were torn about demonstrating in DC--it makes a statement to protest in the nation's capital. But then again, they can't have their beloved guns in DC. So a lot of them joined a rally in Virginia--right over the bridge from DC--so they could be NEAR the capital AND have their guns.
What made me laugh out loud was hearing one of them being interviewed on the radio today--he was talking about how bewildering it is because all the states have different laws. So this jackass who doesn't want the government in his life, doesn't want it to do anything that he and his state can do for themselves seemed to be calling for a national law on guns so there would be consistency. Calling for MORE government involvement--something the States' Rights people and Teabaggers are so against...until it isn't convenient for them.
As Daffy Duck used to say, "What a bunch of maroons!"
Linda >^..^<
Thanks, Linda!
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Another nice, sunny day.
Some links for today: 4/20 and 420
Haiti Benefit
Chris Brown
Chris Brown will headline and host a benefit concert in Virginia next month.
"Virginia Stand Up! A Call to Action" will be held May 15 at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. Performers will include Trey Songz, Keri Hilson, T-Pain, Mario and Ryan Leslie.
The 20-year-old R&B singer said in a statement Monday he wanted to personally contribute to the Haitian relief effort and support an organization that helps people in his home state. Proceeds will benefit the American Red Cross and the Central Virginia Foodbank.
Brown was sentenced last year to five years' probation and six months of community labor after pleading guilty to felony assault. He was charged in an attack on his then-girlfriend Rihanna hours before the 2009 Grammys.
Chris Brown
Sets BBC America Record
"Doctor Who"
The premiere of the "Doctor Who" reboot set viewership records for BBC America.
Saturday's debut averaged 1.2 million total viewers, making it the network's most-watched telecast ever.
The previous record of 1.0 million was set in January by the U.S. premiere of "Doctor Who: The End of Time," a special that marked the swan song of David Tennant as the mysterious time-traveler and introduced Matt Smith as his replacement.
BBC America said "Doctor Who" is also the No. 1 TV series in the iTunes store. The "Doctor Who" reboot features not only a new Doctor but a new companion, played by Karen Gillan.
"Doctor Who"
Appearing On `The View'
Joe Biden
Vice President Joe Biden is facing the ladies of "The View" this week.
The talk show announced Monday that Biden will be its featured guest on Thursday's show.
Executive producers Barbara Walters and Bill Geddie say it's part of the program's ongoing "Red, White and View" series of political discussions. They often get heated, even with the show's most conservative host, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, outnumbered.
Biden last appeared on ABC's "The View" in 2007 while promoting his book about his life in politics.
Joe Biden
Conservative TV Project
Kelsey Grammer
Kelsey Grammer, one of Hollywood's most outspoken conservative actors, is now promoting a new television network: RightNetwork, aimed at his political brethren. What's less clear is what sort of broader funding the new project has lined up, after a number of prominent political blogs have mistakenly reported that the network has already been acquired by the cable giant Comcast.
The liberal blog Crooks and Liars initially reported that the RightNetwork would be "partners" with cable giant Comcast. And indeed, language in the company's overview (in a PDF "look book" overview that was posted by Crooks and Liars' blogger) implies there's a business relationship: "On television, through partners including Comcast, RightNetwork delivers programming on demand that enables our audience to watch what they want, when they want," it reads, noting that the lineup will focus on "entertainment with Pro-America, Pro-Business, Pro-Military sensibilities."
The Drudge Report - linking to a Politico item (which in turn links to C&L) - ran with a headline that Comcast and Grammer were jointly launching the new conservative-themed network. And The Huffington Post ran a banner headline across its media page - "Tea Party TV" - that also reported a partnership between Comcast and RightNetwork.
But Comcast says that's not the case.
Although Comcast as a company does not have any deal with RightNetwork, a top executive is playing a role in the network's development.
Kelsey Grammer
Asked to Return Razzie Statue
Sandra Bullock
The co-founder of the Razzie Awards has taken to the media to ask Sandra Bullock to return the award she won last month for Worst Actress.
"We are ready to take the unprecedented step of asking a winner to return a Razzie," John Wilson, the awards co-founder, told the UK's Telegraph newspaper.
Lest you think this gesture has anything to do with her recent personal-life strife, think again: the Razzie judges haven't changed their mind about Bullock's performance in "All About Steve" - they just want the actual trophy back.
It seems they got so caught up in the moment that instead of giving Bullock the intentionally cheap (it's worth a whopping $4.79), spray-painted replica of the award that all winners receive, the Razzies organizers say they inadvertently handed Bullock the original 30-year-old award. Given its age and rarity, the original has much more value as a collector's item.
Sandra Bullock
Hosting MTV Movie Awards
Aziz Ansari
Aziz Ansari is bringing his quirky comedy to the 2010 MTV Movie Awards.
MTV said Monday the 27-year-old comedian will host the network's annual ode to film.
Ansari stars on TV's "Parks and Recreation" and appeared on the MTV comedy "Human Giant."
He said he's "so happy Ronnie from 'Jersey Shore' was unavailable and this exciting opportunity was able to come my way."
Aziz Ansari
Girt For Ozzy
Sharon Osbourne
Sharon Osbourne says she's having her breast implants removed this summer and will give them to her husband, rocker Ozzy Osbourne, as a paperweight.
The 57-year-old reality TV star says the implants will be better on Ozzy's desk "than on my chest 'cause they're awful."
She confirmed reports of her plans to do so during an appearance Monday on the "Today" show.
Sharon Osbourne
Brother Admits Molestation
Mo'Nique
The brother of Oscar winner Mo'Nique said Monday on Oprah Winfrey's talk show that he molested the actress when they were children and he wants to apologize to her.
Gerald Imes said on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" that the molestation continued for a year or two, starting when he was 13 and Mo'Nique was 7 or 8.
Imes said he decided to appear on Winfrey's show to apologize to Mo'Nique and bring their family back together. Imes said he himself was molested and he was using drugs and alcohol at age 11.
Mo'Nique has discussed her brother's molestation in previous interviews. She hasn't responded to a request for comment sent to her publicist. Winfrey said Mo'Nique didn't want to be a part of the interview but gave Winfrey her blessing.
Mo'Nique
Movie Delayed
James Bond
The next James Bond movie will be delayed indefinitely due to "uncertainty" from the still unfinished auction of MGM, the movie studio behind the film series, producers said on Monday.
The so far untitled movie, which will be the 23rd in the series about the British spy, had been due for release in 2011 or 2012.
James Bond is one of MGM's most lucrative franchises.
But Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, the producers of James Bond, said in a joint statement, "Due to the continuing uncertainty surrounding the future of MGM and the failure to close a sale of the studio, we have suspended development on BOND 23 indefinitely."
James Bond
Asks NY Judge For Mercy Toward Son
Michael Douglas
Michael Douglas says his family's fame and history of substance abuse helped drive his son into drug addiction and crime in New York.
The Academy Award-winning actor has asked a federal judge in a handwritten letter to show leniency toward Cameron Douglas at a sentencing set for Tuesday.
Michael Douglas says he's not blind to his son's actions, but in his words: "I don't want to see him break."
Michael Douglas' letter points to relatives' drug and alcohol problems and "the pressure of finding your own identity with a famous father."
Michael Douglas
Shocking! Splits Sharply
SCOTUS
The Supreme Court seemed to split sharply Monday on whether a law school can deny recognition to a Christian student group that won't let gays join, a case that could determine whether nondiscrimination policies trump the rights of private organizations to determine who can - and cannot - belong.
In arguments tinged with questions of religious, racial and sexual discrimination, the court heard from the Christian Legal Society, which wants recognition from the University of California's Hastings College of the Law as an official campus organization with school financing and benefits.
Hastings, located in San Francisco, turned them down, saying no recognized campus groups may exclude people due to religious belief or sexual orientation.
The Christian group requires that voting members sign a statement of faith. The group also regards "unrepentant participation in or advocacy of a sexually immoral lifestyle" as being inconsistent with the statement of faith.
A federal judge threw out the Christian group's lawsuit claiming its First Amendment rights of association, free speech and free exercise had been violated, a decision that was upheld by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a two-sentence opinion in 2004.
SCOTUS
Promiscuous Women Cause Earthquakes
Iran's Pat Robertson
A senior Iranian cleric says women who wear immodest clothing and behave promiscuously are to blame for earthquakes.
Iran is one of the world's most earthquake-prone countries, and the cleric's unusual explanation for why the earth shakes follows a prediction by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that a quake is certain to hit Tehran and that many of its 12 million inhabitants should relocate.
"Many women who do not dress modestly ... lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes," Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi was quoted as saying by Iranian media. Sedighi is Tehran's acting Friday prayer leader.
Women in the Islamic Republic are required by law to cover from head to toe, but many, especially the young, ignore some of the more strict codes and wear tight coats and scarves pulled back that show much of the hair.
Iran's Pat Robertson
Demoted Proselytizing Creationist
JPL
A Jet Propulsion Laboratory worker who distributed religious DVDs on the job is suing the JPL for discrimination after he was demoted.
David Coppedge's lawsuit filed last week in Los Angeles County says he was demoted last April for sharing his views in the workplace. He wants a court order allowing him to discuss his beliefs.
Coppedge is an information technology specialist on the Cassini space mission exploring Saturn. He's also a Christian who promotes the concept that an intelligent being created the universe.
Defendants in the lawsuit include his supervisor, JPL and the California Institute of Technology, which runs JPL.
JPL
Claims No. 1 Spot
`Kick-Ass'
The top movies at the weekend box office have flip-flopped again, with the superhero comedy "Kick-Ass" edging out the animated adventure "How to Train Your Dragon."
Final studio numbers Monday have Lionsgate's "Kick-Ass" at No. 1 with $19.8 million. DreamWorks Animation's "How to Train Your Dragon," distributed by Paramount, ran a close No. 2 with $19.6 million.
On Sunday, Paramount had estimated "How to Train Your Dragon" took in $20 million, but the final number came in $400,000 lower.
The same thing happened the previous weekend, when 20th Century Fox's "Date Night" was reported as No. 1 based on Sunday estimates. Final numbers Monday gave the box-office victory to the Warner Bros. release "Clash of the Titans."
`Kick-Ass'
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