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Month: June 2007

Jack Johnson Black Heavyweight Champion of the World And his 1910 Fight Against Jim Jeffries “The White Hope”

Jack Johnson Black Heavyweight Champion of the World And his 1910 Fight Against Jim Jeffries “The White Hope”

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Jack Johnson, nicknamed the "Galveston Giant" was arguably the best heavyweight of his generation and was the first black heavyweight champion of the world – 1908 – 1915. He not only was the champion during the white "Jim Crow" era of American history, but, he drove fast cars, kept company with white women and otherwise refused to act the way white "Jim Crow" citizens expected a black man to act – like a second class citizen. The white boxing establishment…

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More About Dick Cheney’s Preposterous Claim His Office is Not Part of the Executive Branch of Government

More About Dick Cheney’s Preposterous Claim His Office is Not Part of the Executive Branch of Government

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As might be expected, Vice President Cheney’s ridiculous claim that his office is not part of the executive branch as an excuse for not complying with federal disclosure laws has been lampooned everywhere. Seattle PI political cartoonist David Horsey political cartoon in the Seattle PI of June 26th hits the nail right on the head. It shows the vice president lecturing students about federal government structure with a blackboard drawing. The drawing diagrams the three branches of government in boxes,…

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God Works in Mysterious Ways – Accused dies on Italian Witness Stand

God Works in Mysterious Ways – Accused dies on Italian Witness Stand

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The media reports Fifty Nine year old Carlo Ventre kidnapped his daughter in California from his divorced wife and took her back to his home in Italy. The mother went to Italy and sued to have her daughter returned. She complained that Ventre had threatened to kill her. After a hearing the Italian court ordered the daughter returned to the mother. When the mother went to Ventre’s apartment in  Rome to get her daughter Ventre bludgeoned the 29 year old…

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“Fear and Loathing” of Dick Cheney – Washington Post Series

“Fear and Loathing” of Dick Cheney – Washington Post Series

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My son, Nick Luvera, sent me an email alerting me to a series in the Washington Post about vice president Richard Cheney. I began reading the articles on the internet and was reminded that he causes in me all the intense objections I have for elected officials who believe they alone know what’s best for all of us, who care nothing for public opinion or public interests and believe they are above the law, free to do whatever they think…

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U.S. Fish And Wildlife In Bed With Big Timber Weyehauser

U.S. Fish And Wildlife In Bed With Big Timber Weyehauser

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It was revealed the oil industry had numerous secret meetings in 2001 with Vice President Cheney to help create a national energy policy that would apply to big oil. (See Washington Post) The Bush white house and the oil industry immediately denied the oil industry was allowed to draft national energy policy. The vice president refused to produce documents relating to the development of the energy policy in an attempt to cover it up but, documents surfaced which proved it…

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Dick Cheney Re-Writes The Constitution by Insisting The Office Of Vice President is Not Part of the Executive Branch

Dick Cheney Re-Writes The Constitution by Insisting The Office Of Vice President is Not Part of the Executive Branch

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Vice President Cheney has made the astounding claim that his office, Vice President of the United States, is not a part of the executive branch of government. Flying in the face of the United States Constitution and history as taught in American schools since the country was founded, Mr. Cheney insists that his office really isn’t part of the executive branch after all. So, why would he make such a silly claim? The vice president, who has never been reluctant…

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Secret Court Files vs Open Courts

Secret Court Files vs Open Courts

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The National Law Journal reports that thirty two of the ninety two federal districts use an electronic case filing program that hides the existence of existing files. If the search involves a sealed file, instead of disclosing it’s existence the electronic response is "case does not exist" or "number is not valid." The NLJ reports that the Judicial Conference of the United States, which makes policy for federal courts, has "strongly urged" federal courts to eliminate these false and fraudulent…

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Italian Family Loyalty and Mamma’s Boys

Italian Family Loyalty and Mamma’s Boys

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In the book Elements of Italy, the author notes that family in Italy means much more than grown up children taking trays of cakes specially wrapped to the parental home for Sunday lunch or major holidays. The family relationship in Italy is unique. The family represents the network of the most important relationships of Italian society. The relationship of loyalty is so strong that it can be rightly called the basic building block of Italian society.  The most stable of…

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Mexico’s Hero Fr. Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez -“Viva Cristo Rey”

Mexico’s Hero Fr. Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez -“Viva Cristo Rey”

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In my readings I came across a short account of Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez. Curious to learn more about this Mexican priest and martyr I found a home page about him. He was born in 1891 in Guadalupe, Mexico and entered the Jesuit seminary in 1911. However, the Mexican revolution had begun in 1910 and the fighting lasted until 1921, killing some 900,000 people in the process. After studying in Mexico he was forced to leave when the tidal wave…

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Seattle Needs an Independent Review Process of the Activities of the Seattle Police Department

Seattle Needs an Independent Review Process of the Activities of the Seattle Police Department

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The front page headline in the Wednesday Seattle PI was "Chief blasts oversight report." Seattle police chief Gil Kerlikowske was angry at a report from a civilian review board report critical of his involvement in an internal investigation of a controversial drug bust. But, the conclusion of the report was that police officers should not police themselves and the current system Seattle has for monitoring police behavior may not be working. I agree. As the attorney for the Judson family…

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