Motley Moose – Archive

National Archives, US Gov’t.  Navajo man and family.  

All The News is a semi-regular feature here in purple.  I select articles from news sites around the world, and use other social media for possible stories too.  Please share stories you find interesting or comment on anything included here.  

Judge: Obama sex assault comments ‘unlawful command influence’

Stars & Stripes; Eric Slavin

Two defendants in military sexual assault cases cannot be punitively discharged, if found guilty, because of “unlawful command influence” derived from comments made by President Barack Obama, a judge ruled in a Hawaii military court this week.

Navy Judge Cmdr. Marcus Fulton ruled during pretrial hearings in two sexual assault cases – U.S. vs. Johnson and U.S. vs. Fuentes – that comments made by Obama as commander in chief would unduly influence any potential sentencing, according to a court documents obtained by Stars and Stripes.

On Wednesday and Thursday, Fulton approved the pretrial defense motions, which used as evidence comments that Obama made about sexual assault at a May 7 news conference.

…

The judge’s pretrial ruling means that if either defendant is found guilty, whether by a jury or a military judge, they cannot receive a bad conduct discharge or a dishonorable discharge. Sailors found guilty under the Uniform Code of Military Justice’s Article 120, which covers several sexual crimes including assault and rape, generally receive punitive discharges.

The ruling sets the stage for defense attorneys to use the same arguments in sexual assault cases throughout the military.

Obama makes policy comments.  Defense lawyer says “oh noes!!!!”  Judge rules no one may be discharged for bad conduct?  #wtf  

Walt Stoneburner.  

On Memorial Day the flag is displayed at half staff until noon and at full staff from noon to sunset.

GO! RIGHT NOW!  OUTSIDE!  LOOK TO THE WEST!  ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE IN CALIFORNIA!  

Memorial Day Planet Parade: See Jupiter, Mercury & Venus

This is a part of a series of posts analyzing the 2010 midterm elections. This post will analyze some interesting tidbits of the 2010 Utah Senate and Gubernatorial elections. Specifically it will look at some hints of increasing Democratic strength in this blood-red state.

(Note: Edited pictures are derived from the NYT).

Salt Lake County, 2004

Utah is commonly considered as one of the most conservative states in America, and for good reason; Democrats are essentially nonexistent in the state. Some Southern states will occasionally vote (or used to occasionally vote) for a conservative Democrat. Not Utah; its Republicans are rock-hard Republicans.

Here is how Utah looked like in the 2004 presidential election:

More below.

Grand Canyon, from space shuttle – credit to the astronauts.  I don’t understand the perspective though, there are heavy pine forests near the rim.  

Disclaimer:  In case it is not already abundantly clear, the stuff inside the blockquotes are NOT my words.  I provide links to the full content just above each blockquote.  I give full attribution to photos from news sites and normally copy their own attribution directly.  If I use my own words, they are in plain text, and outside of the blockquoting and orange links.  

Commander Chris Hadfield took this from the ISS and shared it on twitter.  

Here is your Sunday night news.  Please add stories you like, or from where you are, in the comments.

Disclaimer:  In case it is not already abundantly clear, the stuff inside the blockquotes are NOT my words.  I provide links to the full content just above each blockquote.  I give full attribution to photos from news sites and normally copy their own attribution directly.  If I use my own words, they are in plain text, and outside of the blockquoting and orange links.

Looking south from the Shoreline Trail just south of University of Utah section.    

@thatsearth Ocean Sand 250x magnification.  

Lead story:

Gun Violence Since Newtown

Bill Moyers; John Light and Lauren Feeney

Take a look at gun deaths, school shootings, public opinion and the Senate vote on gun control in the wake of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT, that killed 26 people, including 20 children.

The Victims



Number of people killed by guns in the first 98 days post-Newtown: 2,244

 There are info-graphics & data.  Read and weep.

 

Pat Toomey confirms it: Obama is right about GOP

Wapo; Greg Sargent

Having a Republican on record confirming this is useful. As Steve Benen notes, it makes all the suggestions that Obama needs to “lead” and “twist arms” look pretty silly. Indeed, Toomey’s concession is particularly relevant to the ongoing debate over Obama’s remarks at his presser yesterday. Here’s the bit that has all of the Green Lanternites out there slapping their knees and laughing uproariously:

   “I cannot force Republicans to embrace those common-sense solutions…It’s tough. Their base thinks that compromise with me is somehow a betrayal. They’re worried about primaries. And I understand all that. And we’re going to try to do everything we can to create a permission structure for them to be able to do what’s going to be best for the country. But it’s going to take some time.”

But is this materially different from what Toomey said about his own party? No, it isn’t.

Just a reminder:  The GOP in general and in specificity cannot stand to do one single thing that might possible make Obama look good.  

By Ilkka Hamalainen

Arch of Titus – Arco di Tito

Like most triumphal arches, this one celebrates a victory of war.

The Arch of Titus has provided the general model for many of the triumphal arches erected since the 16th century.

All The News Fit To Share:  Add your own in the comments!  

If media covered America the way we cover foreign cultures

DATELINE APRIL 21, 2013

IT HAS HAPPENED AGAIN, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:

   Yet another massacre has occurred in the historically war-torn region of the Southern United States – and so soon after the religious festival of Easter.

   Brian McConkey, 27, a Christian fundamentalist militiaman living in the formerly occupied territory of Alabama, gunned down three men from an opposing tribe in the village square near Montgomery, the capitol, over a discussion that may have involved the rituals of the local football cult. In this region full of heavily-armed local warlords and radical Christian clerics, gun violence is part of the life of many.

   Many of the militiamen here are ethnic Scots-Irish tribesmen, a famously indomitable mountain people who have killed civilized men – and each other – for centuries. It appears that the wars that started on the fields of Bannockburn and Stirling have come to America.

   As the sun sets over the former Confederate States of America, one wonders – can peace ever come to this land?

I selected the example, however, the rest of the writing is very interesting.  

NASA’s photo.  

Three international journalists asked to leave Bahrain

The Bahraini government ordered three journalists from the British television network ITV to leave the country today, according to news reports citing an ITV spokesman. The journalists, who were also briefly detained on Thursday, are in the process of leaving the country.

The ITV crew was composed of correspondent Rageh Omaar, and a cameraman and producer, who have not been identified, according to news reports. The journalists were covering the political unrest in Bahrain that coincided with a major Formula One race this coming weekend, the reports said.

An ITV spokesman said in a statement on Thursday that police stopped the crew from filming on Thursday and took them to a local police station. She said the police held “discussions” with them before saying they could continue to film. The ITV journalists filed a story on the protests later that day.

Committee to Protect Journalists:  14 dead journalists in 2013.