Notes`031712

Random news items that elicited comment and reflection.
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Accountability
The 26-year-old United Nations Convention Against Torture requires that all parties to it seek to enforce its provisions, even for acts committed elsewhere. That provision, known as universal jurisdiction, has been cited in the past by international prosecutors to justify investigations of acts by foreign officials. It is probable that the future will see more nations review the actions of others as the measures of power evolve.

Eye of the spy
American officials are overhauling federal statues to allow greater authority to spy on citizens without judicial review.  The Bush administration secretly expanded illegal surveillance.  Congress retroactively approved those acts by making ex post facto law.  Once a government bureaucrat starts there is no stopping.  Current proposals include requiring cable and phone providers to create surveillance backdoors to their services.  Government agents seek to centralize Internet and phone communications so that it passes through their hands first.  Essentially this is the key to censorship and serves as a model for all other totalitarian regimes seeking to suppress descent.

Non candidate
Ron Paul a GOP candidate for president is not doing well in the race to the White House.
Part of his difficulty is that he is rational in an irrational campaign.  Paul publicly opposes key GOP legislation for indefinite detention of American citizens without due process of law.  The legislation also provides the U.S. military authority to act as a secret police force on American soil.  Paul along with his son U.S. Senator Rand Paul also opposes the unrestrained authority of TSA. Subsequently TSA demonstrated that power by harassing the Senator during a screening that forced him to miss his flight.   While demonstrating its storm trooper power over all who oppose it, TSA also demonstrated its arrogance and lack of smarts.  For a government agency to harass a U.S. Senator, the son of a U.S. Representative and presidential candidate was not the way to change minds and win support.

Only fools rush in
Only a fool would believe a politician’s campaign promises.  The fact is however the fools elect candidates based on those promises and showmanship.  It has been said that the voters get the government they deserves, so fools elect fools to fool themselves with foolish government.  This campaign season the GOP has put on a show, worthy of court jesters, with lots of humor and slapstick. Explicit and implicit promises have included Christianity (Protestant) as state religion, evict all immigrants, women as chattel, ten cent gas, riches to the rich, new wars for the generals, no taxes for political donors and return to ancient values the candidates don’t value.  Each candidate attempts to out radical the other at each sound bite for extremist votes while frightening the middle.  The GOP has engaged in a bloody and vicious self-destruct campaign to the delight of the Democrats who so far have escaped their own civil war this campaign season.