The Price of Freedom

washingtonpost.com: Supreme Court Says Federal Sentencing Guidelines Not Mandatory:

“The Supreme Court today declared unconstitutional a portion of the nation’s federal sentencing law and said that federal judges are no longer obligated to follow the controversial system of sentencing guidelines established by Congress in 1984.

The long-awaited decision, one of the most significant rulings in a criminal case in years, effectively converted the guidelines from mandatory status to advisory status, meaning that judges must consider them rather than necessarily follow them.

The greatest uncertainty today was the extent to which the ruling will permit appeals by individuals already sentenced under the guidelines.

The central problem with the guidelines, the court said in its 5-4 decision, is that they allow convicted criminals to have their sentences increased on the basis of facts that are unproven before a jury in court.”

Some will complain about judges who make law as being out of control, “activist” judges who pervert laws. However, few seem to grumble when legislatures restrict the ability of judges to do their job, that is, to judge. It seems they might prefer to weaken that our government’s system of checks and balances to attain ends they find suitable. However, these folks might want to re-examine their thinking.

Without “activist” judges, there’d be no Brown vs. Board of Education, for example. They stand between the tyranny of the majority and the freedom of the minority. (I mean that both ways!) And if that means a felon gets his/her sentence reduced, well that’s we must be willing to pay that price. Freedom is seldom free.

Weapons?! Weapons?! We Don’t Need No Stinkin’s Weapons!

Search for Banned Arms In Iraq Ended Last Month (washingtonpost.com):

“Four months after Charles A. Duelfer, who led the weapons hunt in 2004, submitted an interim report to Congress that contradicted nearly every prewar assertion about Iraq made by top Bush administration officials, a senior intelligence official said the findings will stand as the ISG’s final conclusions and will be published this spring.

President Bush, Vice President Cheney and other top administration officials asserted before the U.S. invasion in March 2003 that Iraq was reconstituting its nuclear weapons program, had chemical and biological weapons, and maintained links to al Qaeda affiliates to whom it might give such weapons to use against the United States.”

Though my Republican-esque friends made the assertion that the media is liberal, it’s hard to stretch that to the CIA’s report. This is as conclusive as it is ever going to get, folks. And it contradicts every assertion this administration has made as a justification for war. How Bush sent this country to war was either irresponsible, at best, or some reprehensible Clinton-esque truth telling, at worst. (Remember that “Well, that depends on what your definition of the word ‘is’ is,” comment? OUCH!) We’ll never know the truth for sure, unless some defector from Bush’s Administration decides to strike it rich with a tell-all. Now, THAT would be some comedy. 😉

Ultimate Switcher Mac?

I read an article on eWeek about the Mac mini being the ultimate “switcher” mac because all you need is a KVM switch and you are done. No muss. No fuss. At first, I thought that was a bullshiznit argument, but on second thought, it makes a helluva lot of sense.

First, the thing will take up no space. Second, Macs shine when used over time. My father-in-law has a whole Windows 2000 network built by yours truly, but he is switching whole hog to the Mac on the basis of using his iMac G4 for less than a year. Laptop for him and his wife with the desktop as the new server.

Clearly this is something Apple should push. Given the growth in the computer user market, even a 1% market share up tick would be hugely lucrative for Apple.

Apple’s mini Shuffle

Apple – Mac mini and iPod Shuffle are new editions of the hardware lineup that even cheapskates can love. Simple. Elegant. Mac.

Have Negro Will Travel

It would seem that TheStateOf.com put Armstrong on blast for that Leave No Child Left Behind stunt even with the apology. It’s shills like this that supply black conservatives with the credibility they currently enjoy.

Exploitation by the So-Called Protectors

BBC News – New York’s HIV experiment (PDF Version)

This outrage had me seething, folks. What is being done to defenseless children in New York City is no different from the Tuskeegee Experiment. The city’s Administration, big pharmaceutical companies, even the Catholic Church all have a hand in this. Sometimes, I am completely flabbergasted and bewildered at the evil people can commit to benefit themselves and their interests. Once again the voiceless and the most vulnerable are targeted and exploited.

What’s also shameful is the ineptitude or deliberate ignorance of our own press. This report comes to us from the BBC! I’m reminded of John 3:20, “For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed.”

Microsoft Out of Sync

I’m greatly disappointed by the incredibly slow pace that Microsoft’s Macintosh division is developing updates to its handheld sync conduit for the newer Palm PIM applications. Obviously PalmOne or PalmSource or whoever updated these apps to conform to Outlook/Entourage’s calendar, contacts, and task formats. We, loyal Microsoft customers all, should not have to deal with substandard support for so long? My goodness, this isn’t rocket science. Even more ridiculous is the fact that Microsoft supports the Palm and not the PocketPC!

I think it would be wise and profitable for Microsoft to simply license the database API to as many vendors as those who wish to pay. I suspect they’ve already done this with the PocketMac folken. Mark/space would be the obvious next candidate. It’s not MBD’s core business, but it sure makes Office more valuable. Being able to sync with a multitude of handheld devices actually enhances their ability to charge for Office!

C’mon Microsoft. Get In Sync.

House Republicans Adopt Change That Would Benefit DeLay

New rules prevent Tom DeLay from having to step down as majority leader if he is indicted in an investigation in Texas. [The New York Times > Home Page]
This from the party that cried bloody murder over Clinton. Hypocrisy incarnate. This should embarrass all conservatives who have a shred of integrity.

Make Love Not War

Yahoo! News – Army Defends Baghdad Battle That Left 16 Dead
This article is a rare glimpse into what war is like even for those who might stand on moral high ground. War is hell. War is evil. It certainly isn’t surgery. And this is why it can never, ultimately win against terrorism. It can defeat an enemy, but not a tactic or a motive, i.e. hatred.
The day after the Towers fell, I saw a sign on the road that read “Kill All Towel-heads.” It didn’t discriminate or hurl rage at terrorists, it hurled a racial epithet. Would any Iraqi who lost someone in this tragedy, who is caught up in the same grief and rage we were, really think any different about us? Tragedies like this recruit for an enemy who needs hatred to gain recruits.
Terrorism is like a grease fire for military might. What usually would put out the fire, our superiority, actually causes it to spread. My heart goes out to the soldiers who have to bear the weight of this conflict and to the thousands Iraqis who are lost in grief. Hopefully, we can let love prevail and defeat the hate that fires terrorism and heal wounds such as these.

Kerry Enlisting Clinton Aides in Effort to Refocus Campaign

Former President Bill Clinton offered John Kerry advice, as Mr. Kerry enlisted more Clinton advisers for the campaign. [The New York Times > Campaigns]
John! I guess they heard you.

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