crackedmachine

This morning, the senate attempted to add a provision to the pending "carte blanche on detaining and abusing 'enemy combatants'" bill. The provision would have removed the portion of legislation that denies the accused their basic Habeas Corpus rights. It would have made it possible for federal courts to review the legitimacy of the detainment of individuals suspected of terrorist involvement. Unfortunately, the amendment lost 51-48. Instead, the bill will be considered in its complete, ill-conceived form, granting the state the authority to detain prisoners indefinitely without charging them with a crime, while granting the accused no right to review and challenge the evidence (or lack thereof) against them. There is simply no protection for people wrongly detained because of poor information or mistaken identity, despite that fact that it happens.


Look at the votes for the amendment, and how strikingly they follow party lines. Republicans count on the public to be really stupid, and they will actually use this in their campaigns in the next few weeks. They count on the masses to interpret this bill not as an infringement on basic rights, but as protection from the ever-present threat of terror. Good Christ. They seem to be right. Most people apparently buy that shit. All of the
YEAs will be labeled supporters and appeasers of terrorists. All of the NAYs will be called strong on national security.


The full, terrible bill, allowing indefinite imprisonment of anyone the state wishes to detain with no regard for guilt or innocence will most likely pass later today.

The lawmakers who support this bill are practically bragging about their leniency towards torture and disregard for the rights of individuals against arbitrary state abuse. If they are reelected in November, we will have evidence that a good portion of U.S. citizens are ignorant, hateful, indifferent, or some combination of these.



http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=2&vote=00255#position



YEAs ---48

Akaka (D-HI)
Baucus (D-MT)
Bayh (D-IN)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Carper (D-DE)
Chafee (R-RI)
Clinton (D-NY)
Conrad (D-ND)
Dayton (D-MN)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D-WI)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Harkin (D-IA)
Inouye (D-HI)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Kohl (D-WI)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Lincoln (D-AR)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-FL)
Obama (D-IL)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Sarbanes (D-MD)
Schumer (D-NY)
Smith (R-OR)
Specter (R-PA)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Sununu (R-NH)
Wyden (D-OR)


NAYs ---51

Alexander (R-TN)
Allard (R-CO)
Allen (R-VA)
Bennett (R-UT)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burns (R-MT)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Coleman (R-MN)
Collins (R-ME)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
DeWine (R-OH)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Ensign (R-NV)
Enzi (R-WY)
Frist (R-TN)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Lott (R-MS)
Lugar (R-IN)
Martinez (R-FL)
McCain (R-AZ)
McConnell (R-KY)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Nelson (D-NE)
Roberts (R-KS)
Santorum (R-PA)
Sessions (R-AL)
Shelby (R-AL)
Stevens (R-AK)
Talent (R-MO)
Thomas (R-WY)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
Warner (R-VA)


Not Voting - 1

Snowe (R-ME)

Now for a couple songs to make everyone feel better. A lot of great music has come out of Brazil. Abuso Sonoro fits the current mood. Here are a couple of songs from the raging album Herencia, put out by Six Weeks.

Resistiremos
Guerrilhas