In which the middle-aged Peacenik mouths off about War Drones--and all the other things that make him cranky.
Mr Mahatma--who is a Mr in real life--lives in the valleys of Southern California with his wife, a herd of Dears, and an impressive collection of books. Pnorny!
He is reachable at: littlemrmahatma@yahoo.com
All writings are copyrighted 2003-2008 and trademarked: Little Mr. Mahatma
Tuesday, April 26, 2005 Jacko Still sick with that goddamn cough and now I may have cracked ribs to add to my misery. Still, I've been able to stay home and see what kind of crap is on daytime TV. And, except for Bill Cosby and Mission impossible, it's crap - real crap, Jerry Springer crap. No wonder Bush got elected. People who watch this pap day after day will have lost all ability to think in a critical manner. It's mind-numbingy stupid.
Which got me thinking about Michael Jackson. Here's a forty-something guy who claims that he's just a big kid at heart and simply loves children. He loves to have kids visit at his Neverland Ranch, and have them play freely. For a few, he invites them to sleep over, share his bed while he sleeps on the floor, play, and run rampant.
All harmless he claims.
Except I've yet to hear of a single case where he invited young girls to sleep over. It's always been young boys. Always!
Even Peter Pan had Wendy to go with Michael.
Is he guilty as charged? I'd be more surprised if he weren't but I expect he'll get off (like O.J.).
Tuesday, April 19, 2005 This And That Way too long since an update but the Mahatma Family has been struggling with some sort of bronchial crud - coughing, hacking, wheezing - combined with fevers and, in my case, chills, muscle aches, flu-like crap. Not a fun seven days. It was to take a break from everything but now, trying to get back into the work rut, everything is now that more urgent. So much for taking time off from work for being sick.
The Republican Borg Some dingle posted a letter to the L.A. Times talking about how not all Christians aren't Republicans. In fact, this person was a Christian and a Democrat and felt that the Democratic Party would do so much better if it got rid of the Atheists and other problem people.
And my reaction was: Crap! Is this the next phase of turning America into a Rightwing Christian Fortress?
It'd be pretty clever. The Republicans are pretty much 0wn3d by the UberRight. The Government is nearly 0wn3d by the Republicans, nearly except for a few final gasps of life from Democrats. What can the Republicans do? They can either "fight" the Democrats, marginalze them, or absorb them. "Fighting" is ugly and may end up scaring some of your own followers away, plus it legitimizes the opponent. Marginalizing the Democrats is also dangerous as they may roar back to life. No, the best way to remove the Democrats is to absorb them, to have the Democrats become the party for "Mainstream" Christian which would, of course, kowtow to the UberRight.
It would force the minorities - Gays, Atheists, Jews, etc. - to the fringe where matters can be neatly watched by those in Power.
You know, this country used to be about protecting the Minority from the Majority. It used to be about Fairplay and intelligent debate, about giving everyone a shot. Now, it's about business and profits, and business about prophets.
Here's a question someone should ask Bush: Would his country allow Atheists to live? That is, if the UberRight Republicans got everything their way, what would happen to the Atheists and the Gays and the Jews and the Hindus and other minorities?
Maps.google If you haven't played with Maps.Google.Com then you're missing a perverse pleasure. I've been looking up aerial views of racetracks I've been to and yet to visit. You can quickly switch between map and photograph view. So it's super easy to use the map view to find a placename, zoom in, then switch to pictures. And it's fairly fast.
See if you can find Area 51. Although I didn't find a closeup of Fort Knox, I think I found Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch. Clue, find Santa Ynez Valley north and west of Santa Barbara. Then find "Figueroa Mountain Road" leaving the city. As it's winds upwards, scroll upwards-left occassionally. You should see eventually a strange development that looks like a merry-go-round surrounded by other things. I could be wrong though...good luck!
Wednesday, April 06, 2005 Keeping the Money at Home In yet another attempt to imprison Americans within America (unless you're rich):
U.S. to Require Passports at Border Entry Points
Wed Apr 6, 7:55 AM ET
By Paul Richter Times Staff Writer
WASHINGTON — In a move intended to counter terrorism, the U.S. will require by 2008 that Americans show passports or other specialized documents to reenter the country from Mexico and Canada, federal officials said Tuesday.
Under the restrictions, recommended by the Sept. 11 commission, Americans no longer would be allowed to show only a driver's license or a government-issued photo identification card, officials said. Similarly, Canadians, who have been able to enter the United States with a driver's license, would need a passport.
Some in the travel industry have opposed the changes, which would make it harder for travelers to take spur-of-the-moment trips. Critics have contended that it would bring an end to a long relationship between the U.S. and Canada that allowed casual cross-border travel as a part of daily life.
But U.S. officials point out that the Algerian man who was convicted of plotting to bomb Los Angeles International Airport in late 1999 was admitted from Canada without a passport.
U.S. officials decided to tighten the borders to keep out "people who want to hurt us," said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Under the planned rules, Americans returning from Panama and Bermuda also would need to show passports or secure documents, officials said. Currently, Americans returning from Mexico, Panama or Bermuda need only show a government-issued ID card, plus proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or a naturalization certificate.
In addition to passports, American travelers would be able to use the secure "border crossing card" also known as a laser visa. Some Mexicans traveling frequently to the United States use the laser ID in place of a passport and visa.
Officials said travelers probably would be able to obtain secure ID cards issued under several other federal programs, such as those for frequent travelers and shippers.
The new rules would be phased in. The passport rule would be imposed on air and sea travel from the Caribbean, Bermuda and Central and South America on Dec. 31 of this year. It would be extended to air and sea travel from Canada and Mexico on Dec. 31, 2006. A year later it would apply to land crossings.
The changes are required under the intelligence reform law approved by Congress and signed by President Bush last year. In implementing the law's requirements, State Department officials said there would be a 60-day period for public comment. The rules could undergo changes based on the comments before becoming final this fall.
"We recognize the implications this might have for industry, business and the general public, as well as our neighboring countries, and they are important partners in this initiative," said Maura Harty, assistant secretary of State for consular affairs.
She said the advance notice of the proposed requirements would allow those affected "to voice concern and provide ideas for [alternative] documents acceptable under the law."
Elaine Dezenski, an acting assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said the changes would make travel within the Western Hemisphere more like other foreign trips.
"We want folks to think about their travel to and from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda as equivalent to taking a trip to Europe or Asia," Dezenski said.
Even with the new rules, Canadians would be exempt from fingerprinting requirements that would apply to other foreign visitors to the U.S., officials said.
Some Canadians have voiced criticism about U.S. border concerns. In reaction, one Canadian official said, his country might begin requiring Americans to show their passports before crossing into Canada.
"We will review our requirements for American citizens, and we're going to do that in collaboration with the United States," Canadian Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan said outside the House of Commons in Ottawa.
Maryscott "Scotty" Greenwood, executive director of the Canadian American Business Council in Washington, said that for traffic to continue to flow smoothly with the new rules, governments would have to provide sufficient resources at the border and would have to make people in border communities fully aware of the new requirements.
"Implementation will be crucial," she said.
Border security has been a leading concern among U.S. policymakers since the Sept. 11 attacks. The Sept. 11 commission report warned last year that "the current system enables non-U.S. citizens to gain entry by showing minimal identification. The 9/11 experience shows that terrorists study and exploit America's vulnerabilities."
It said that "Americans should not be exempt from carrying biometric passports or otherwise enabling their identities to be securely verified when they enter the United States; nor should Canadians or Mexicans."
The stupidity and hypocrisy in this act is overwhelming:
It's increases the Governmental bureaucracy and all because of one person - right!
Like airport security, the supposed anti-terrorist effect can't be measured but the aggravation to the average American will be increased and noticeable.
This implies that my driver's license is not a valid form of official identification. Maybe we need an "Official" National ID card...
So much for spontaneous vacations to Mexico. We'l have to vacation at home.
What about commercial traffic? Will they get a "pass" through the borders or will the economy take a hit?
This "tightening" of the borders probably will not deter terrorists from entering.
Forget about people - what about securing packages coming in to our ports? It's far easier shipping a biological weapon in to the U.S. than to sneak a person over.
Essentially, this move further isolates America from the rest of the world, a move which is short-sighted and downright stupid (but is typical of the Bush Administration).
What next? Lie detector tests and Oaths of Fealty for all Americans? Bounties if you report your neighbors for anything "suspicious"? Fifty years ago, we feared the Reds; now we fear the Terrorists, who are everywhere and waiting.
Gas Tax in California I heard on this morning news that some mental midget in California came up with the idea of dropping the gas tax by 11 cents to help us poor drivers. The loss inrevenue would be offset by increasing the sales tax by a quarter point.
Gosh, what a great idea! Let's stop penalizing drivers and penalize every consumer. Drop the gas tax and watch as more gas gets guzzled. And, of course, we know that the chance of ever reducing the sales tax in California is virtually nil.
At times like this (income tax time), I feel the State and Federal Governments should drop the sham. They should simply take all of our money and dole it back to us every week if we behave according to Law. Yeah, that'll do it. We'lll be good, we promise.
Tuesday, April 05, 2005 Pope John Paul II As an atheist, the passing of the Pope didn't mean much to me on any spiritual level. Politically, (and make no mistake the Pope is a political figure) things meant more for me. It should be interesting to see whom the Cardinals choose as the new Pope. Do they go Conservative or Liberal, regressive or progressive, Euro-central or perhaps Third World?
I'm sure JP2 was a nice person. I never met him though I did visit the Vatican back in 1990. I was amazed and impressed at the wealth of the Vatican. I remember another tourist commenting that the Vatican has the greatest collection of stolen treasures in the world. I couldn't argue with him. Jesus would be mighty impressed with the horde and mighty depressed at how it was acquired. It's kind of ironic that you'll find the church presence in many of the poorest areas of the world yet the Vatican is so rich. Maybe it's the religious version of Trickle-down theory.
JP2 did bring the Church screaming and kicking in to the 14th century. He apologized for the Church's behavior towards the Jews but he never quite loudly apologized for the Church's behavior towards child abuse. He was righteously disgusted at 9/11 and correctly disgusted at the Invasion of Iraq. He visited nearly every country in the world, including a visit to the Wailing Wall. I remember seeing him in downtown Los Angeles way back when, cruising by in his bulletproof Pope-mobile. The streets were somewhat empty so I gave him a friendly wave and - dang! - he waved back. We shared a moment and I appreciated him for that.
I'm amazed at the reactions to his death. As neither Judaism nor Islam have a single figurehead, neither group enjoys the periodic mourning fervor at a passing. At least, nothing on the Pope's level. But how much of the coverage was due to the celebrity mentality of the Media and how much was due to a religious bias in the Media? One channel had a reporter go on and on about how the Pope lived correctly to the teachings of Jesus Christ and he went on - Christ this and Christ that. Amazing thing was, it wasn't Fox.
I was amazed at how many reporters made the death seem so fantastic - "Going into God's arms", "greeted by Jesus Christ", etc. Folks, when John Paul 2 died, angels did not descend from the sky and sweep him up. Jesus Christ didn't appear over Rome. Ethereal trumpets didn't blare. He died - that's it. And he'll be buried with many other dead Popes under St. Peters - that's it. He won't be coming back on a white horse. There won't be a giant teardrop from God.
It looks like the Federal buildings have their flags at half-mast. So much for any illusion of separation of church and state - it's gone. The Pope proves even in death that religion and politics are inseparable at that scale.
And Just Like That... Terri Schiavo is old news. Meanwhile, Michael Jackson is invoking God in his defense. I dunno, I think John Paul 2 may whisper a few words to God, something about pedophilia not being kosher...
