Antiwar.com Blog

On December 15, 1791 the U.S. Bill of Rights was adopted. This was considered the first and most important business of the new government, for many states only agreed to adopt the U.S. Constitution on the condition that it be quickly amended to restrict the power of the central government. Having recently experienced creeping infringement of personal liberties, the former colonists feared that the checks and balances of a tripartite form of government might prove an insufficient protection…..William L. Hosch,  Britannica Blog.

THE BILL OF RIGHTS

The Conventions of a number of the States having, at the time of adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added, and as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government will best insure the beneficent ends of its institution;

Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, two-thirds of both Houses concurring, that the following articles be proposed to the Legislatures of the several States, as amendments to the Constitution of the United States; all or any of which articles, when ratified by three-fourths of the said Legislatures, to be valid to all intents and purposes as part of the said Constitution, namely:

Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.    

Amendment II
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

Amendment III
No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Amendment V
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

Amendment VI
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.

Amendment VII
In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

Amendment VIII
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Amendment IX
The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Amendment X
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.

Ed Koch, a member of the board of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, has called for the dismissal of Dennis Prager from the Council, citing his recent anti-Muslim comments. Which raises a profound question: Ed Koch and Dennis Prager are on the board of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council??? Seriously?

And who named them to that solemn post? The Decider, of course.

Any guy who can’t manage the ribbon-cutting duties of the presidency without impaling himself on the big wacky scissors is probably not The Right Man to lead a crusade. Might wanna jot that down on a Post-It for future reference, Frum.

Antiwar Radio: Ron Paul

For the second installment of my new show Antiwar Radio for KAOS 95.9 in Austin and Antiwar.com, I spoke with the libertarian-Republican congressman representing Texas District 14, Dr. Ron Paul (another reason for Texans to be proud).

I asked about the president’s constitutional role in America’s relations with foreign countries, why congress has given all their power away and how a responsible president would have handled September 11th.

MP3 here. (16 min)

Comments welcome at Stress.

Is this for real?

I’m still incredulous of what I have just read. Rep. Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), has been appointed the new chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, on which he has served for the last six years. This is a person you’d expect to be more than basically knowledgeable of the world in which he lives. Well, surprise! You’d expect wrong. Silvestre Reyes just found out last week that al-Qaeda is Sunni, and what Hezbollah is. Actually, I’m not so sure these items were resolved, I just know that when asked, he whined about being asked questions so late in the afternoon.

Here are the schadenfreudelicious tidbits for you all to enjoy:

Al Qaeda is what, I asked, Sunni or Shia?

“Al Qaeda, they have both,” Reyes said. “You’re talking about predominately?”

“Sure,” I said, not knowing what else to say.

“Predominantly — probably Shiite,” he ventured.

Reyes has to have spent six years on the House Intel Committee playing solitaire on his Palm to — wait, no. Reyes has to be a RETARD to not know that al-Qaeda is a Sunni organization. Not only that, his answer — with the “predominantly” in there — makes it obvious that he doesn’t even understand the fanaticism of the likes of al-Qaeda. Al-Qaeda is 100% Sunni, there is no minority faction. As the interviewer mentioned, “If a Shiite showed up at an al-Qaeda club house, they’d slice off his head and use it for a soccer ball.”

And Hezbollah? I asked him. What are they?

“Hezbollah. Uh, Hezbollah…”

He laughed again, shifting in his seat.

“Why do you ask me these questions at five o’clock? Can I answer in Spanish? Do you speak Spanish?”

“Poquito,” I said—a little.

“Poquito?! “ He laughed again.

“Go ahead,” I said, talk to me about Sunnis and Shia in Spanish.

Reyes: “Well, I, uh….”

You see, Reyes has apparently never even heard of Hezbollah. You’d think he would have at least known of them from when they blew up the Marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983, since they have been termed “terrorists” by the US ever since that day.

There is nothing left to conclude except that Reyes has gone to work every day and literally not paid attention for a second to his work. In fact, he can’t even have read a newspaper very many times in the past decade, something over which the Democrats love to pick on the President. This will (hopefully) go down in history lumped with the hilarity of Ted “Tubes” Stevens and the Foley fiasco as proof that the government is staffed not with experts (even in their own fields!) and the pure of heart, but with morons with the right connections who just want to show up and get their check.

Qué vergüenza.

Antiwar Radio:
Robert Dreyfuss

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Announcing the debut of Antiwar Radio, to run regularly at Antiwar.com and Radio KAOS 95.9 and 92.7 FM in Austin, Texas.

For the first show, I interviewed the great investigative reporter and author Robert Dreyfuss – who penned last Tuesday‘s spotlight article, “Bush’s Meeting With a Murderer” – about the different groups vying for power in what was once Iraq.

Download mp3 here. (About 31 min)

My sound guy (me) didn’t do the best job and my interviewing skills are a little rusty, but these are problems that can soon be resolved.

And thanks to those of you who’ve been asking what’s taking so long! : )

Comments welcome at Stress.

From The Economist — “Ethiopia and Somalia: The rumbling rumours of war“:

… The spectre of a hostile Christian Ethiopia bearing down on Somalia has rallied Somalis behind the Islamists. Somalia’s Islamists have spread a similar fear among Ethiopians, giving succour to Mr Zenawi’s unpopular and isolated government.

…Mr Zenawi has turned Ethiopia into a police state. Many of the opposition are in prison on trumped-up charges carrying the death penalty. Tens of thousands of young Ethiopians were sent to prison camps after last year’s poll. A few still languish there; others have fled abroad. Several judges have defected, fearing for their safety.

The press has been crushed, foreign correspondents expelled and many journalists and editors put in jail. The government has hired foreign specialists to help it shut down dissident websites, tap telephones and track e-mails. …

American military intelligence now works closely with Ethiopia, sometimes taking up whole floors of hotels in Addis Ababa. But experts in the region question the reliability of American intelligence.

The European Union is against America’s plan to send UN peacekeepers to the region and, by the by, is sceptical of recent American warnings that Somali jihadists have been planning suicide attacks on Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. America’s reluctance to encourage negotiation with the Somali Islamists suggests it may want to provoke, isolate and defeat them by force, with Ethiopia providing the muscle.

So war is in the offing….

~ Sam Koritz