blog'n at san onofre: 06/01/03

There is no place like home... no place like home... no place....

Cabin run to Harts Place. Top O' The WORLD, but glad to be home where the air has water in it....

The 14 Characteristics of Fascism,

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial, ethnic or religious minorities; longboarders; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.

5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national policy.

6. Controlled Mass Media - Access to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.

9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

10. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed .

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

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Guru of Ganja Receives 1-Day Sentence

SAN FRANCISCO -- U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer sentenced convicted marijuana grower Ed Rosenthal to one day in federal prison with credit for time served, essentially setting him free.

He will be on supervised release for three years as part of his sentence that was handed down in federal court in San Francisco this morning.

Rosenthal, 58, of Oakland, the author of several marijuana books, claimed he was growing starter plants to help patients and said he believed his actions were legal under California's medical marijuana law of 1996.

But because Rosenthal was prosecuted under federal law, Breyer did not allow his attorneys to present any evidence about medical marijuana and barred the jury from considering the state law.

Rosenthal was convicted on Jan. 31 on three counts related to marijuana cultivation. - Bay City News

"It seems like we made a horrible mistake. I should have stood up and said,
'I'm not convicting.'" -Marney Craig, one of the Rosenthal jurors

Someone should have told Marney about F.I.J.A.

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River Surfing World Record Set
Brazilian Wins: 34 Minute Wave

A 20-year-old Brazilian from the northeastern state of Ceara set a new world record during the country's river-surfing championship recently.

Adilton Mariano surfed for 34 minutes and eight seconds on a wave that was five metres high and lasted for some 40 minutes with a speed close to 20 kilometres per hour.

The previous record, also set by Mariano, was 26 minutes and 19 seconds.

"I had a moment when I almost disappeared into the wave, I recovered and thank God I was able to overcome my limitations and take maximum advantage of the wave," said a relieved Mariano after the competition.

The river-surfing event occurred on the Araguari (ar-ah-GWAR-ee) River in the city of Macapa (mah-KAH-pah), located 2000 kilometres north of Brasilia.

The Amazon's giant wave, known as a "pororoca", is a unique phenomenon that attracts surfers throughout the world.

It differs from ocean waves in that it has two currents pushing across each other.

As a result, the wave exhibits great strength and duration and repeats itself every twelve hours

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