Justice Department To Finally Look Into NSA Leaks

Update: Via Stop the ACLU: The ACLU is calling for the investigation to be called off. They say that since the wiretaps were illegal, that is what should be investigated, not who leaked the wiretapping. ----------- All the outrage and coverage by the left over the "outing" of a desk jockey at the CIA. Special Investigations. Indictment of a man, not for doing the outing, but for perjury and obstruction of justice over the investigation into said outing. Now this is worth investigating. Who did the leaking? When was it leaked? Remember that the Gray Lady said that they sat on this for "a year" before finally printing it just in time to affect the Patriot Act and their writer's impending book release. 64% of Americans are okay with this type of surveillance including 51% that identify as democrats. The BBC:

US investigates Bush spying leak Bush says monitoring is part of his so called war on terror The US justice department has opened an inquiry into how information about President George Bush's secret spying programme was leaked, officials say. The investigation is expected to focus on how the New York Times newspaper obtained the information. Earlier this month, the paper reported that the National Security Agency had been conducting surveillance in the US without warrants. Mr Bush later admitted he authorised the programme after the 9/11 attacks.

The AP:

Justice Dept. probing domestic spying leak The Justice Department has opened an investigation into the leak of classified information about President Bush's secret domestic spying program, Justice officials said Friday. The officials, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the probe, said the inquiry will focus on disclosures to The New York Times about warrantless surveillance conducted by the National Security Agency since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The Times revealed the existence of the program two weeks ago in a front-page story that acknowledged the news had been withheld from publication for a year, partly at the request of the administration and partly because the newspaper wanted more time to confirm various aspects of the program. Catherine Mathis, a spokeswoman for The Times, said the paper will not comment on the investigation.

Reuters:

US probes eavesdropping leak

The U.S. Justice Department has launched an investigation to determine who disclosed a secret NSA eavesdropping operation approved by President George W. Bush after the September 11 attacks, officials said on Friday. "We are opening an investigation into the unauthorized disclosure of classified materials related to the NSA," one official said. Earlier this month Bush acknowledged the program and called its disclosure to The New York Times () "a shameful act." He said he presumed a Justice Department leak investigation into who disclosed the National Security Agency eavesdropping operation would get under way. Justice Department officials would give no details of who requested the probe or how it would be conducted. The disclosure of the covert domestic spying program has triggered concerns among both Democrats and Republicans, with many lawmakers questioning whether it violates the U.S. Constitution.

Note the AP headline "Domestic Spying". Note also that the Gray Lady says that they have no comment on the investigation. I wonder how the Gray Lady is going to [not] cover this. Other coverage: Michelle Malkin - FINALLY: JUSTICE DEPT. OPENS NSA LEAK PROBE Stop The ACLU - Justice Department Opens NSA Leak Probe Blogs For Bush - Justice Department Opens Investigation Into NSA Program Leak Curt at Flopping Aces has a lot at - Justice Dept. Finally Investigating The Leak

Farris Hassan's Day Off

Farris Hassan, a 16-year-old from Fort Lauderdale, Florida decided to take a [few] day[s] off and go to Baghdad.

Hassan, a junior at Pine Crest School, a prep academy of about 700 students in Fort Lauderdale, recently studied immersion journalism - a writer who lives the life of his subject in order to better understand it. The teenager, whose parents were born in Iraq but have lived in the United States for about 35 years, says he wanted to travel to Baghdad to better understand what Iraqis are living through. "I thought I'd go the extra mile for that, or rather, a few thousand miles," he told The Associated Press. Skipping a week of school, he left the country on Dec. 11, telling only two high school friends of his plans. His travels took him to Kuwait and Lebanon before he arrived in Iraq on Christmas Day.

(source) His brother said that he speaks no Arabic and would have to have had a translator to even try his immersion journalism. The AP office in Baghdad that he went to called the US Embassy. Farris is now on his way home.

Escaped Prisoner's Attorney Asks for Bail

Reynaldo Rapalo's attorney asked for bail for his client on the escape charge. The judge rightly denied bail, stating that Rapalo was "a danger to this community". Rapalo was in jail awaiting trial in February on seven felony rape counts. This suggests to me that he was denied bail for those charges. This is a man who was apparently denied bail on the initial charges, then he escapes, then he's caught again. His attorney then asks for bail on the escape charge. Why would bail ever be granted to someone on escape charges? Obviously, this person wants to be out of jail. Why reward him? Is this just some way to try to play the "get out of jail free card"? It's not just that this guy was a danger to the community. He is an illegal alien (he overstayed his visa), he has no ties to this country. He is a flight risk. It's absolutely absurd that anyone would even ask for bail under these circumstances. Good for the judge denying bail.

Energy Hogs

My five-year-old came up to me this morning and said, "Mom, if you waste a lot of energy, hogs will come into your house." He saw this Ad Council PSA. The campaign was announced in March 2004 and was done by the Ad Council in conjuction with the Department of Energy. The ads are aimed at kids between 8 and 13, but they seem to work on five-year-olds too. The ads direct you to www.energyhog.org where you can train to become an Energy Hog Buster. We try here at home. We turn lights off in rooms we're not in. We try to get the kids to turn off the TV when they leave a room. We keep our heat set at 66° during the day and 64° overnight.

Please Pray

Jeanette at Oh How I Love Jesus asked me to post this. Her husband may possibly have suffered a heart attack. He is at the hospital and she is with him. His EKG this morning was good, and they are doing a catheterization tomorrow to be sure it wasn’t a heart attack. Jeanette, you and your husband are in our prayers.

Luke 2: 10-11

¹⁰And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. ¹¹For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. KJV

O Holy Night

O holy night, the stars are brightly shining; It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth! Long lay the world in sin and error pining, Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth. A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices, For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn. Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices! O night divine, O night when Christ was born! O night, O holy night, O night divine! Led by the light of faith serenely beaming, With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand. So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming, Here came the wise men from Orient land. The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger, In all our trials born to be our Friend! He knows our need—to our weakness is no stranger. Behold your King; before Him lowly bend! Behold your King; before Him lowly bend! Truly He taught us to love one another; His law is love and His Gospel is peace. Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother And in His Name all oppression shall cease. Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we, Let all within us praise His holy Name! Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever! His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim! His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim! Merry Christmas to one and all!

Track Santa's Progress

This is the 50^th year that NORAD and it's predecessor CONAD have tracked Santa's progress by radar. Click here for English Click here to choose a language. Santa hasn't taken off from the North Pole yet, but he'll be taking off soon to visit children all over the world. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

No Ornaments

This is why I don't have any ornaments on the Christmas tree, just lights and bows. His first birthday will be St. Patrick's Day, so he's still just a kitten.

Polls Closed in Iraq

Take a look at this picture. And people here in the States were complaining about long lines to vote in 2004?

The Iraqi election commission extended voting by one more hour because of high turnout in the country's historic parliamentary elections Thursday. And to the surprise of coalition forces, violence in Iraq was much lighter than expected and the smattering of attacks didn't appear to discourage Iraqis, some of whom turned out wrapped in their country's flag on a bright, sunny day and afterward displayed a purple ink-stained index finger — a mark to guard against multiple voting.

There shouldn't be any attacks at all, of course, but the fact that they were so minimal is wonderful. The Iraqi Security Forces are doing a great job.Fox News has the rest. Welcome Blogs for Bush Readers! Please look around. Stop the ACLU has a good round-up linking to other round-ups. Tags: News & Politics, Iraq

A Different Christmas Poem at Blackfive

Just go read it. This is one of the most moving things I have read in quite a while. As an Army veteran, I can attest to the truth of it. Military

A Date Which Will Live In Infamy

Today the battle-scarred, submerged remains of the battleship USS Arizona rest on the silt of Pearl Harbor, just as they settled on December 7, 1941. The ship was one of many casualties from the deadly attack by the Japanese on a quiet Sunday that President Franklin Roosevelt called "a date which will live in infamy." The Arizona's burning bridge and listing mast and superstructure were photographed in the aftermath of the Japanese attack, and news of her sinking was emblazoned on the front page of newspapers across the land. The photograph symbolized the destruction of the United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor and the start of a war that was to take many thousands of American lives. Indelibly impressed into the national memory, the image could be recalled by most Americans when they heard the battle cry, "Remember Pearl Harbor."

Read more at the National Park Service USS Arizona Site. This quote was from the Education Programs link. Michelle Malkin and La Shawn Barber have excellent roundups. Welcome visitors from Classical Values and Scared Monkeys! We will not forget. News & Politics Military

Emails Purportedly From The FBI and CIA

I've been getting emails purportedly from the FBI and CIA saying that I have visited illegal websites and should open the attachment to see what sites I have visited. I have deleted these emails. If you get them, delete them too. Those agencies do not send you emails. The attachments will contain a virus.

"Holiday Tree" Too Inclusive

Via Joe Carter at Evangelical Outpost in his Outtakes post of 11.30.05 we find this post by Gil Student, an Orthodox Rabbi at Hirhurim-Musings He says that renaming a Christmas Tree a "Holiday Tree" is offensive to Jews because it implies that the Tree covers all holidays at this time of year, including Hanukkah. Rabbi Student is correct. It is a Christmas tree, not a Hanukkah tree, a Diwali tree, a Ramadan tree, or a New Year tree. By renaming it a "Holiday" tree it lumps together all religious and secular holidays that occur at this time every year. Update: Oops! I forgot Kwanza! There is no Kwanza tree either. {sorry} It's time to Take Back Christmas! For Everyone! The American Princess has further thoughts on this. Very good commentary. Welcome Anchoress and A Lady's Ruminations Readers! Religion

The Carnival of True Civil Liberties IX

We are happy to be hosting this week's Ninth Carnival of True Civil Liberties! das Heize at info4beer presents Locater Service for ACLU Lawyers and Can Somebody Help Us Understand dumbswede? about a comment left on the first post. Team Swap at Swap Blog presents Oak Ridge Censorship Daniel Levesque at Raving Conservative presents The Biggest 'Tard in America Jay at Stop The ACLU presents Another School Censoring Christmas Greg Tinti at The Political Pit Bull presents A Principled Jurist Gribbit at Gribb presents Saddam's WMD's They Did and Do Exist Adam at Sophistpundit presents An Educated Jury If you have a post that deals with how our civil liberties are being stripped away via judicial activism, Please Submit it to our Carnival! We have a petition set up asking Congress to stop taxpayer funding for the ACLU. Stand up, and fight the ACLU. Sign the petition! Join Stop the ACLU! If you would like to join us, please email Jay at Jay@stoptheaclu.com or Gribbit at GribbitR@gmail.com. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 115 blogs already onboard. ACLU

Polipundit Temporarily Down

Via Anklebiting Pundits the PoliPundit site is temporarily down. They are aware of it and are working on it. Keep checking back to see if the problem's been fixed. Blogs & Bloggers

The Next Carnival of True Civil Liberties

We will be hosting the next Carnival of True Civil Liberties, here, Monday, December 5, 2005. The deadline for submissions is 9 pm (EST), Friday, December 2, 2005. You can use the Carnival Submission Form at Conservative Cat. ACLU

My Mother Broke Her Foot

Poor Mom. She woke up at 4 am yesterday morning and used the facilities. When she went to the sink, her blowdryer fell off the vanity and onto her right foot. She called me at about 9 am and said she needed some help because her foot hurt really bad. So, the little guy and I went over to help her out. I had brought some canes to help her move around but Mom couldn't use them. I went and got her some crutches, but she couldn't use those either. We finally used her office chair to get her out to the car. We drove over to the Acute Care Center and used a wheelchair to get her out of the car and around in the Center. They took x-rays of her foot and found that she broken the first and second metatarsals in her foot. Numbers 8 and 9 below are the first and second metatarsals. The red lines are where the breaks are. They tried her with a walker at the Acute Care Center, but she couldn't use that either. We went to a local medical supply company and rented a wheelchair for her. Right now she has a splint on. Tomorrow we're going to see the Orthopaedist to see what he'll do. Mom has plans to go to Florida to stay with my aunt for a while and we're hoping she'll have a walking cast so she can still do that. I told her yesterday that she'll just have the normal amount of trouble at airport security since she's an "old, white lady" and you know old white ladies are targeted by security anyway. I, at least, got a chuckle out of her... Blogging might be a little light for a while... Family& Friends Health & Wellness