What's Better And What's Worse InThe News

*What's Better With Torture Claims?
  A defense contractor, Eligibility Holdings, has to pay 71 Iraquis ( who first have to pay their attorneys) $5.3 million for torturing them. Other US cases are pending. Let's hope judges don't sit on their hands on the pretext that "these are military matters" as civilian contractors are not in the military.
*What's Better With Water?
  Nationally, the extraction of oil and gas takes less than 1 per cent of the amount of water used in agriculture.
*What's Worse With Spying?
  Rush Limbaugh reports that Eric Holder refused to answer directly when Congressmen asked him if the No-Justice Department was spying on them. He made an evasive response which apparently was accepted by the testosterone-challenged Republicans.The problem is now who is spying on the No-Justice Department to make sure they're not using their spy information corruptly? We, the people, need to be demanding an end to corruption and telling the potentially corrupt what we want watching over them.
*What's Worse Now With The Zimmerman Case?
  The judge has denied the wishes of some of the defense witnesses to testify confidentially. Obviously, they are afraid of publicly telling the truth and having  people hurt them as a consequence. If this is true, let me ask the people who would harm people who tell the truth this: "Is this the way you want to live your lives where the threat of violence is used to stop the truth? You may think you're holding a sword in your hand, but that sword cuts both ways. Meaning, is this the kind of world you want for your children and yourself? Where the truth is not respected but gangs of criminals are? If you don't care about your childlren or yourself and are hopelessly immoral, are you aware that if your standard of "truth" is force, you are hopelessly outnumbered? Are you aware that if you use force, the most loving thing to do to you is to stop you with whatever force is reasonable?
  Don't be a hypocrite who wants force used against others but not against your family, your friends, and you. Stand down and let Zimmerman have a fair, honest trial. No, insist on it!
* Quote Du Jour
   The great Russian poet "Gorky who did not 'accept' the (Communist)Revolution right away, was quite direct: ' Lenin, Trotsky, and their fellow travelers are already intoxicated with the the foul poison of power as they show by their disgraceful attitudes to freedom of speech, the person, and to all the rights for which the democracy fought.'" page 169
"Lenin" by Dmitri Volkogonov
Peter Nickerson, MS, MSW, Gainesville, Florida 352-359-0850
Sources: Wall Street Journal, Gainesville Sun, talk show hosts Cain, Limbaugh, Morrison, Dean, Savage, and reading widely.