Self Reliance

Emerson

So use all that is called Fortune. Most men gamble with her, and gain all, and lose all, as her wheel rolls. But do thou leave as unlawful these winnings, and deal with Cause and Effect, the chancellors of God. In the Will work and acquire, and thou hast chained the wheel of Chance, and shalt always drag her after thee. A political victory, a rise of rents, the recovery of your sick or the return of your absent friend, or some other quite external event raises your spirits, and you think good days are preparing for you. Do not believe it. It can never be so. Nothing can bring you peace but yourself. Nothing can bring you peace but the triumph of principles.



"Keeping my eye on today is about all I'm capable of. And today, I think I'll go for a run."

John Bingham, "Back to the Future,"

After 5 days Ledezma finishes hunger strike

After giving in to his demands, Antonio Ledezma has recently finished his hunger strike. His first demand, to have a special commission of the OAS come to Venezuela, was declared by Jose Miguel Insulza, Secretary General of the OAS. His second demand to have the Executive government give him the money to comply with workers obligations was also declared by the Executive government.

Antonio Ledezma is a true representation of the tenacity and sacrifice of Venezuelans in crunch time all for the sake of Venezuelan democracy...My personal respects to Mr Ledezma!

A total of 5 days or 120 hours without food!

8th Tour de France for Lance?

Lance Armstrong races on for his 8th Tour de France?

The race finishes on July 29, 2009, currently he is 0.13 seconds away from the yellowshirt...

Antonio Ledezma bolder than ever - more than 75 hours of hunger strike

Antonio Ledezma continues his hunger strike, now from more than 75 hours. A dozen of workers from the Mayorship of the city of Caracas have also joined the elected mayor in his strike.

The hunger strike is taking place in the offices of the OAS (Organization of American States) in Caracas. My deepest solidarity for Ledezma and his courageous effort to restore democracy in Venezuela.

This is in spite of the media blackout doned by official media outlets and also private-chavista media outlets like Panorama, Ultimas Noticias and Vea. All Chavista editorial newspapers in Venezuela. Some day justice will be served...

Antonio Ledezma calls for hunger strike from OAS

Antonio Ledezma Venezuela opposition leader and the elected mayor of the city of Caracas (Alcaldia Mayor), has today declare himself on a hunger strike from the offices of the Organization of American States in Caracas, Venezuela.

Let’s remember that Antonio Ledezma was elected Mayor of the City of Caracas (Alcaldia Mayor) last December. The President Hugo Chavez has not liked the idea of having an opposition mayor in the city of Caracas, important Chavista controlled zone. Chavez promoted through the National Assembly that officially creates an office of governorship of the City of Caracas (Primera Autoridad), and the appointment comes straight from President Chavez.

Antonio Ledezma in his hunger strike requests the OAS, the following:

1. The immediate release of the public funds for the workers of the Mayorship of the city of Caracas
2. To stop the arbitrary dismantlement of the Office of the Mayor of the city of Caracas by the Executive Government.
3. The OAS should designate a high level Commission to travel to Venezuela, with urgency status, to observe the grave situation democracy is going through in Venezuela, and how the national Constitution is violated, specially the office of the Mayor of the city of Caracas and the governorships of Tachira, Zulia, Miranda, Carabobo and Nueva Esparta.
4. To verify in the case of the Mayor Antonio Ledezma, the National government and the rest of its representatives mock Venezuela´s national sovereignty

If Ledezma continues with this hunger strike, it could be groundbreaking and perhaps ignite a social upheaval and could get the international attention on the democracy in Venezuela. In my mind, I can see parallels between Mel Zelaya and Antonio Ledezma. Or better yet, between Zelaya and Hugo Chavez who constantly violates the Constitution of Venezuela and remains, yet, unpunished.

Constitutional Crisis in Honduras?

This past weekend the events in Honduras has raised international attention. The events that led the Armed Forces of Honduras to take action against the elected President, Zelaya.

The constitutional quagmire as I understand is as follows. President Zelaya requested in an additional referendum question in Honduras (political survey) asking the Hondurans whether or not they are in agreement with the establishment of a Constitutional Assembly to draft a new constitution, and thus enabling himself for reelection. Now, the issue at hand is that the current Honduran Constitution provides in article 239 that anyone who has been previously elected president can not be eligle for President. Further, article 239 of the Honduran Constitution provides that anyone who breaches the rule or proposes its ammendment, and those who directly or indirectly give their support, will cease from public office and will remain politically disable for 10 years.

Now in my view President Zelaya has breached Honduran Constitutional law, specifically article 239, by submitting or trying to submit the possibility of his political reelection by the establishment of a Constitutional Assembly.

Cartoon

Venezuelan National Assembly orders Telcoms to monitor communications 24/7

The Venezuelan National Assembly approved today an amendment to the Organic Penal Procedure Code (in spanish Código Orgánico Procesal Penal) in first discussion. The amending Organic Penal Procedure Code expressly orders all the telecommunication operators in Venezuela to have a Surveillance Unit which will be readily available to the Public Prosecuting Office (Ministerio Público) 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for real time surveillance. The law was approved in first discussion and now will be subject to review concerning human rights and open for second and third discussion.

It seems Chavez´s intention is to limit personal freedom, not only economic freedoms but also human rights, all in favour of a greater social good.

Goicochea clarifies absence

Yon Goicochea, the Venezuela student leader has clarified from Mexico City, Mexico, that his absense will solely be a short 2 month stint. He will participating in a book of "Responsible Governance" by a private entity in Mexico. Goicochea will write the respective Venezuelan chapter.

Now, who is paying Goicocheas trip?

Venezuelan student leader bails from communist Venezuela

Yon Goicochea, a Venezuelan student leader recently has left Caracas, Venezuela with his young son and his wife, to Mexico. Apparently the student leader, who graduated from the Law School of my alma mater, Universidad Catolica Andres Bello, left Caracas because of the political tension against the opposition.

Yon Goicochea was the leader of the student movement which in 2006 organized against the Constitutional Reform present by the socialist President, Hugo Chavez. Goicochea was severely critizied for not taking a more proactive approach towards politics and with certain shyness was involved with the political party, Primero Justicia.

For his involvement in the student movement against the Constitutional Reform back in 2007, Goicochea was given the Milton Friedman award for Freedom with a check of US$500,000.

Now what has Yon Goicochea done with the money so far? Obviously buy a home in his now beloved Mexico...I seriously think hes got a lot of explaining to do, specially student who remain here in Venezuela!

The Existential and Pessimist Jose Saramago

Jose Saramago, a nobel literature prize winner and writer of one of my favorite novels "The Gospel according to Christ", "Baltazar and Blimunda" and "Blindness" recently gave some declarations from his home in Portugal. He stated: "Nothing is getting better, nothing changes"

Saramago was born in Portugal even though in the 1990s he sought political asylum in Spain (Canary Islands). The reason was his book on The Gospel according to Christ, a narration of the gospel from the point of view of Jesus Christ, as a completely normal human being. The book was thought to be heretic by Portuguese religious authorities. Saramago has been a member of the Portuguese Communist Party since 1969, as well as an atheist and self-described pessimist.

"I am not a pessimist; it is the world that is pessimist"

His views have aroused considerable controversy in Portugal, especially after the publication of The Gospel According to Jesus Christ. Members of the country's Catholic community were outraged by Saramago's representation of Jesus Christ as a fallible human being. Portugal's conservative government would not allow Saramago's work to compete for the European Literary Prize, arguing that it offended the Catholic community. As a result, Saramago and his wife moved to Lanzarote, an island in the Canaries (Spain).

He is publishing a new book, The Notebooks, which contain a collection of his blog entries dealing with several issues. Jose Saramago´s blog can be accessed here.

He ends this recent interview stating that "nothing is getting better, even the British democracy, which seemed untouchable, is now having Members of Parliament charging for their pets food, is a real shame." He furthers by saying that even tough humanity has seen some technical changes; morally things are getting worse than before. He even states that with the economic crisis they are trying to save some furniture, but capitalism will remain.

Saramago´s only hope is recently elected US President Barack Obama while at the end of his interview he categorically rejects the Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez by stating that it is dangerously close of being a totalitarian regime.

High Court in the UK- No Privacy for bloggers

Bloggers have no expectation of privacy

The Times Newspaper could reveal the identity of the 'Night Jack' blogger, said the High Court on 16 June 2009 in a landmark ruling (Author of a Blog v Times Newspaper Limited [2009] EWHC 1358 (QB)). The court ruled that blogging is essentially 'a public rather than private activity'.

The complainant - a policeman by day - operated a blog in which he would write about the social and political issues affecting the police force and the administration of justice. When a Times reporter managed to identify him, the blogger sought an injunction from the court to stop the newspaper from disclosing his data as he believed that this would put him at risk of being exposed to disciplinary action for discrediting and bringing unwanted media attention to the police force. In his blog, the policeman - now named as DC Richard Horton - allegedly made references to the cases he worked on, although he denied providing any information that identified the parties involved. He was also said to have 'criticised a number of ministers'.

The court ruled that, even if Horton had a right to anonymity, he would not have passed the public interest test: '[I]t would seem quite legitimate for the public to be told who it was who was choosing to make, in some instances, quite serious criticisms of police activities and, if it be the case, frequent infringements of police activities.'

“Mr Justice Eady [the judge in the case] is to be thanked on three accounts", said Francis Aldhouse, Consultant at Bird & Bird. "First, he has recognised breach of privacy as a routine, if still novel, cause of action with well-established elements. Secondly, he has given us practical guidance in drawing a line around the private sphere and declaring “blogging” as a public activity. Thirdly, the media, often unfairly critical of this judge, should welcome the emphasis he gives to the recent remark of Toulson, L. J. in Napier v. Pressdram that ‘freedom to report the truth is a precious thing’".

Iran is on the verge of a revolution

Iran is on the verge of a revolution. The presidential elections last friday were doubted by candidate Mousavi, who claims that another election should take place. People are flocking the streets of Tehran against president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Time is ticking against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad...

Gary Larson -Artist Review

Gary Larson was born and raised in University Place, Washington. His parents are Vernon, a car salesman, and Doris, a secretary. He attended Curtis Senior High School before attending Washington State University, from which he graduated in 1972 with a degree in communications. In 1987, Larson married Toni Carmichael, an anthropologist. Ms. Carmichael graduated from Safford High School in 1972, before pursuing a higher education.

Larson credits his older brother Dan for his "paranoid" sense of humor. Dan would pull countless pranks on Gary, taking advantage of his phobia of monsters under the bed by, for example, waiting in the closet for the right moment to pounce out at Gary. Dan is also credited with giving Gary his love of science. They caught animals in Puget Sound and placed them in terrariums in the basement, even making a small desert ecosystem. His use of snakes in his cartoons stems from his long-standing interest in herpetology. Dan died of cancer in 1991.

Venezuelan Health Ministry prohibits Coke Zero

The Venezuelan Health Ministry orders the Coca Cola Company in Venezuela to retire its Coke Zero brand off of Venezuelan shelves. The argument behind the Venezuelan Health Ministry is that the soft drink contains a suspicious ingredient that could possibly be harmful for human consumption. Please note that this is the same Ministry that declared that Venezuela was armored against the H1N1 virus. As of today Venezuela has 57 confirmed cases.

This topic was recently discussed in internet spam emails and appears to be a media campaign against the soft drink giant from the US. The ingredient is actually an artificial sweetener called Cyclamate. Cyclamate was banned from the United States in the 1970s.

Cyclamate is an artificial sweetener that was discovered in 1937 at the University of Illinois by graduate student Michael Sveda.

Like many artificial sweeteners, the sweetness of cyclamate was discovered by accident. Michael Sveda was working in the lab on the synthesis of anti-fever medication. He put his cigarette down on the lab bench and when he put it back in his mouth he discovered the sweet taste of cyclamate. The patent for cyclamate was purchased by DuPont but later sold to Abbott Laboratories which undertook the necessary studies and submitted a New Drug Application in 1950. Abbott intended to use cyclamate to mask the bitterness of certain drugs such as antibiotics and pentobarbital. In the US in 1958 it was designated GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe). Cyclamate was marketed in tablet form for use by diabetics as an alternative tabletop sweetener, as well as in a liquid form; one such product was named 'Sucaryl' and is still available in non-US markets. In the European Union, it is also known under the E number (additive code) E952. Since 1969, its sale and use has been banned by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States.

Now Coca Cola argues that the product does not contain cyclamate, instead they argue that it contains aspartame and acesulfame. Two artificial sweeteners that they claim are safe for consumption.

Smells like a revolution in Iran

Suprisingly it smells of revolution in Iran, in presidential elections coming up tomorrow Friday, June 12, 2009. The news cables have indicated that the race is very tight and that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad trails behind ex prime minister Mousavi.

Should President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad loose the Presidency this could mean a serious blow for the inestability of the region and a step towards rationalization in politics and true democracy in Iran.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has also gone on the media declaring that should the people crowd the streets in protest, the Revolutionary Guard will crush any attempts for a "velvet revolution"...

Tomorrow is a big day in Iran!

The "Velvet Revolution" or "Gentle Revolution" (November 16 – December 29, 1989) refers to a non-violent revolution in Czechoslovakia that saw the overthrow of the Communist government. It is seen as one of the most important of the Revolutions of 1989.

On November 17, 1989, a Friday, riot police suppressed a peaceful student demonstration in Prague. That event sparked a series of popular demonstrations from November 19 to late December. By November 20 the number of peaceful protesters assembled in Prague had swollen from 200,000 the previous day to an estimated half-million. A two-hour general strike, involving all citizens of Czechoslovakia, was held on November 27.

With the collapse of other Communist governments and increasing street protests, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia announced on November 28 that it would relinquish power and dismantle the single-party state. Barbed wire and other obstructions were removed from the border with West Germany and Austria in early December. On December 10, President Gustáv Husák appointed the first largely non-Communist government in Czechoslovakia since 1948, and resigned. Alexander Dubček was elected speaker of the federal parliament on December 28 and Václav Havel the President of Czechoslovakia on December 29, 1989.

In June 1990 Czechoslovakia held its first democratic elections since 1946.

The term "Velvet Revolution" was used internationally to describe the revolution, although the Czech side also used the term internally. After the dissolution of the nation in 1993, Slovakia used the term "Gentle Revolution", the term that Slovaks used for the revolution from the beginning. The Czech Republic continues to refer to the event as the "Velvet Revolution".

Thomas Paine and Rebellion

Human rights originate in Nature, thus, rights cannot be granted via political charter, because that implies that rights are legally revocable, hence, would be privileges:

It is a perversion of terms to say that a charter gives rights. It operates by a contrary effect — that of taking rights away. Rights are inherently in all the inhabitants; but charters, by annulling those rights, in the majority, leave the right, by exclusion, in the hands of a few . . . They . . . consequently are instruments of injustice.

The fact, therefore, must be that the individuals, themselves, each, in his own personal and sovereign right, entered into a compact with each other to produce a government: and this is the only mode in which governments have a right to arise, and the only principle on which they have a right to exist.

Government's sole purpose is safeguarding the individual and his/her inherent, inalienable rights; each societal institution that does not benefit the nation is illegitimate — especially the Monarchy, the Nobility, and the Military.

Thomas Paine was an English-American pamphleteer (agitator), revolutionary, radical, inventor, intellectual, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.

He lived and worked in Britain until age 37, when he emigrated to the British American colonies, in time to participate in the American Revolution. His principal contributions were the powerful, widely-read pamphlet Common Sense (1776), advocating colonial America's independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain, and The American Crisis (1776–1783), a pro-revolutionary pamphlet series.

If Paine were alive today and lived in Venezuela he would be blogging (agitating, pamphleteer) against Chavez and calling people to rise in arms.

Franklin on Chavez

Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God.

Benjamin Franklin

Franklin sought to cultivate his character by a plan of thirteen virtues, which he developed at age 20 (in 1726) and continued to practice in some form for the rest of his life. His autobiography lists his thirteen virtues as:
"TEMPERANCE. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation."
"SILENCE. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation."
"ORDER. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time."
"RESOLUTION. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve."
"FRUGALITY. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing."
"INDUSTRY. Lose no time; be always employ'd in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions."
"SINCERITY. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly."
"JUSTICE. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty."
"MODERATION. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve."
"CLEANLINESS. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation."
"TRANQUILLITY. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable."
"CHASTITY. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation."
"HUMILITY. Imitate Jesus and Socrates."

Corapi on perils of US socialism

I read this article written by Father John Corapi, reflecting on the perils of socialism in government. I think its groundbreaking for a priest to address issues, such as governance and politics.

"Flash point: The point at which something is ready to blow up. That has been my perception of Western society in general for some time now. Perhaps, a train wreck waiting to happen would be another way to put it. All evil can claim its ultimate origin in moral evil. Those that deny objective standards of morality merely facilitate the demise of their society. When it happens they will be nowhere to be found.

That apparently large numbers of people seem to be intellectually and morally numb is not news, but the near light-speed evaporation of our way of life is. Actions have consequences, and sometimes the consequences can’t be seen this side of eternity. That does not mean they aren’t real. You will be seeing some of the consequences very soon, however, not the worst, but the most immediate.

Personal liberty has already begun to be compromised. Various governments, including the United States, now own car companies like General Motors and Chrysler, mega insurance companies, soon perhaps health care and energy. Injustice is beginning to be seen from the smallest of individuals to the largest of corporations. The only problem with that is that governments have never been able to operate anything profitably, efficiently, or equitably. The little guy and the large corporation will all be equal opportunity recipients of heavy-handed injustice very soon.

The government is about to dictate what car you can drive, how you insure it, what your bank can pay you or not, what kind of heating you have in your home, if you can have air conditioning or not. And, oh, if you eat a Twinkie your health insurance premium is going up. If you get sick, perhaps the Twinkie did it, and you aren’t covered.

You might say that the government needs to control things to keep us safe, etc. That might work if the people in government could be trusted. They can’t, but we elected them. We get what we deserve, and many chickens are about to come home to roost.
One of the inherent difficulties with a democratic republic is that it is only as good as the people in it. When a people lose their moral equilibrium, live in sin, and suffer the consequent loss of wisdom, then that nation’s days are numbered.

Why? How have we come to this? It can be traced to the most compelling moral issue of our times, and we can’t escape from it, no matter how uncomfortable it is—abortion and other life issues. No matter what other rosy picture is painted by those that would have you believe all is well, God is not a disinterested spectator. Regardless of the high sounding rhetoric of the day, seeming progress in this or that area, it is an illusion. Nothing will ultimately go well for the United States or any other country until the injustice of all injustices is remedied. Until every human being is respected and reverenced, from the moment of conception to the last moment of natural life, no one will be safe and secure. Whether it is the helpless infant in the womb or the misguided and/or evil abortionist on the wrong end of a bullet, all deserve the safety and security of the law. Only God can in justice and wisdom decide when life begins and when life ends. When we attempt to usurp God’s job description we always come up short.


God Bless You,

Fr. John Corapi"

David Carradine RIP

Kung Fu and Kill Bill star David Carradine was found yesterday dead in a hotel room in Bangkok, Thailand. Apparently he was found in his robe...

Carradine was an excelent actor, reminding the mythical Kung Fu star who roamed the earth and mostly recently Bill in Kill Bill series delivered by Quentin Tarantino...

A sad loss for movies.