shhhhhh. Don't Tell 

Leiter's gutsy perfromance helps power Mets ove the Yanks.  

This is an Important film. Go and see it and then have your own opinion about the movie. The only thing I could think of when they showed the innocent children of Iraq dead with there parents morning is what it would feel like to have that happen to my kids.(I can't imagine) Now you might say we are in Iraq so that won't happen to our Kids but well it shouldn't happen to anyone's kids.  

The Mute Button Truth / Guantanamo Bay Prison

In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, due process has disappeared from the American judicial system. Everyone has a right to a lawyer and a trial, right? According to the Bush administration, not anymore.

Here's the catch: if you're not charged with a crime, you don't get the right to a trial. The Bush administration has used this loophole to their advantage. Classifying detainees as "enemy combatants" avoids having to be consistent with all those messy international human rights standards like the Geneva Convention. Detainees at Guantanamo Bay have received a lot of attention recently, despite the Bush administration's attempt to keep things quiet. Not only have top intelligence officials confirmed that none of the prisoners are high-ranking terrorists, but they also verified that less than 24 of the over 600 detainees are even suspected to be members of al Qaeda. Dick Cheney and other Bush administration officials have justified their illegal, unethical treatment of prisoners in Guantanamo by declaring that they were the worst of the worst, but clearly this isn't true.

Reports of torture at the Abu Ghraib prison are not isolated incidents. A rapid increase in suicide attempts at Guantanamo prompted many human rights organizations to suspect similar conditions of torture. The ACLU and Amnesty International are among the groups calling for an independent investigation to document previous human rights abuses and prevent further torture from occurring. While the US plans to release secret documents that prove torture was not condoned by high ranking Bush administration officials, they are not releasing other documents that provide legal justifications for torture. In fact, Ashcroft will not even discuss them with the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Why won't the administration talk about this issue and Why can't we figure out by know who of these people are terrorist and then let the other one's go.

Mets Rain out

Mets Rain out I did not have to go to Yankee stadium. Thank God I hate that place.

Roller Coaster Ride

Let me off this great Mets Space Coaster. One week the play great the next week they suck hard. I am not sure what this team is all about but I still think they will win the division. The team is coming together Reyes first home run is a great sign. For all us Mets Fan's I still believe.

The Mute Button Truth about Halliburton

Last week reports confirmed, once again, that the Bush administration has not been telling us the truth about how Halliburton has spent our tax dollars. A House Committee found that Halliburton has wasted at least $1 billion in tax payer money on military contracts in Iraq, due to poor planning and oversight. [Detroit Free Press, 6/16/04]

Cheney's History of Employment at Halliburton
Vice President Dick Cheney was CEO of Halliburton from 1995-2000.
Halliburton's board of directors voted to give Cheney a $20 million retirement package when he resigned, in addition to providing him with a massive salary and a bonus for just eight months of work in 2000.
Following his departure from Halliburton, Cheney retained possession of 433,333 options of Halliburton stock.
Although Cheney insisted that he severed his financial ties to Halliburton, the Congressional Research Service recently released a report saying that federal ethics laws consider both Cheney's deferred compensation and his stock options as lingering financial interest in the company.
Halliburton's Contract with the Federal Government
The Pentagon knew it would need help after the war rebuilding Iraqi oil fields and putting out oil field fires. Rather than following normal procedure and asking companies to bid on the job, the Pentagon turned the entire project over to Cheney's former firm, Halliburton. The Army Corps of Engineers said that Halliburton's compensation for rejuvenating Iraq's oil industry could be up to $7 billion. In postwar Iraq, Halliburton is the largest private contractor, with potential deals totaling over $11 billion.
Last September, Cheney said that he did not influence the decision to award Halliburton a no-bid contract: "I have absolutely no influence of, involvement of, knowledge of in any way, shape or form of contracts led by the [Army] Corps of Engineers or anybody else in the federal government." Since then, we have learned that:
Cheney's chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, received a Pentagon briefing in October 2002, one month prior to directing Halliburton to develop a secret plan for restoring and operating Iraq's oil infrastructure. The vice president's office was also made aware of a second contract worth up to $7 billion awarded to Halliburton four months later for implementing this plan.
Time Magazine uncovered an e-mail indicating that the $7 billion contract awarded to Halliburton was "coordinated" with Cheney's office.
Halliburton's Waste

Waste Due to Bush Administration's Lack of Oversight. David M. Walker, head of the General Accounting Office, testified that Defense Department planners had failed to adequately determine the needs of U.S. soldiers in Iraq and to effectively oversee the billions of dollars' worth of contracts issued. [Los Angeles Times, 6/16/04]
Halliburton Wasted $186 Million on Meals Never Delivered. Halliburton billed the government for 36 percent more meals than were served, overcharging $186 million. [Detroit Free Press, 6/16/04]
Lavish Hotels, Abandoned Trucks, Inflated Gas Prices. A Halliburton's subsidiary was also criticized for abandoning $85,000 trucks with flat tires, housing company officials in a five-star Kuwaiti hotel, overcharging for gas it imported into Iraq from Kuwait, and ordering empty trucks to crisscross the country. [Detroit Free Press, 6/16/04]
Halliburton Reaped Profits While Forcing Troops To Eat In Filthy Conditions. According to NBC News, "Pentagon inspections of mess halls run by KBR are finding a mess in some of them... In the main Baghdad dining facility where President Bush surprised the troops on Thanksgiving, inspectors found filthy kitchen conditions in each of the three previous months. Complaints filed in August, September and again October report problems. Blood all over the floor of the refrigerators, dirty pans, dirty grills, dirty salad bars, rotting meats and vegetables. In October, the inspector writes that Halliburton's previous promises to fix the problems have not been followed through and warns the company serious repercussions may result, due to improper handling and serving of food." [NBC News, 12/12/03]

A Day at The Republican National Convention

9.00 am Vice President Cheney (Halliburton Case Study on How to make money in wartime)

10.00am Former Senator Trent Lott (Racism and it's practice)

11.00am Oxycotin break sponsored by Rush Limbaugh

11:15am John Ashcroft (First Amendment What's it good for absolutely nothing.)

12:15 Colin Powell (War Strategy.. We got one... kind of.)

2:00 President Bush Arrives From Golf Course Asks aids for Jack and Water

2:15 President Bush Leaves for Fishing Trip (Due back around 5:00pm)

2:30 John Ashcroft (I lost a race to a dead man / why we need to suspend the up coming election? Because we can..)

2:45 Condi Rice (No one told me.. It always works)

3:00 3:07- Governor of California to read children’s Book to convention floor

3.07- V.P. Dick Cheney (Why you should nominate me for President again)

4:00 Stem Cell research Rap (performed by president's religious advisor and GOD)

4:30 John Ashcroft to Sing Amazing Grace

5:00 President Bush Returns by Fighter pilot. Says we have won the war!

6:00 President Bush (How I will alienate the whole world and bring about the end of times because I like that Mike Cameron Fellow and those cool books)

7:30 President Bush begins drinking Coke and Water then falls down some steps and blames a pretzel

8:30 Former General to speak on the President's distinguished military career

Oh Yeah The Mets are on a roll. I will be going to Yankee Stadium on Friday for Game one of Mets / Yanks 04 

HTMABC / Fathers Day

Fathers Day: It was a great day on Hunters Lane. The water worked all day and much work was being accomplished. The In-Laws seem to be stepping up to the plate. And yes, they were building the Bocce court Big E, Big P and Big F (who once saved my life) were deep into the construction of the court. I moved one very large board.

I saw both my brothers today for around 30 minutes they came they saw and went home to their families. M bought a nice new Honda motorcycle and was actually having a conversation with BW about their bikes. My family stayed for at least 4 and 1/2 hours we had sandwiches (ran out of meat) and then for supper had Pizza and Salad (ran out of Salad) Mom needs to learn how to feed big crowds again. Anyway, it seems like they may sleep at the new location before the end of the summer actually maybe tonight.

Soon we will be playing Bocce on the hill with a view of the Big RV and the 5 new houses that are going to be built in the area.

Let's Go Bocce. You should of seen The Big Boy dancing in the Kitchen with Memere, Mema, and Tina. It will make the grief worthwhile.

Stay tuned for my next installment when I will discuss how I have my mother’s bad attitude and my father’s bad veins.

New Look Mets Strike Again 

Richard Hidalgo to the Mets / Stunning prediction

I for one am extremely happy about this trade. He is going to hit the crap out of the ball for the rest of the year because he is going to be a free agent and knows he has a chance to show what he can do on a big stage. Dave Weathers was good but not part of any long term plans so he was going to go someplace. This will be good. I am making a prediction the Mets will win the national league east. (mostly because I do not want them to win it)

HTMABC / BIG RV

A tan newer big Ford pick up truck with a 40 foot RV attached. Yes my friends this is what you see when you look out my parents new bedroom window. It is parked not in someone's driveway or even a yard it is parked on the street in front of the house. It is so big it covers the neighbors house and a quarter of my parents property.

I have heard about the big RV and how it is destined to move every few weeks and then come back to rest at it's home. They both are mad about it but my father has already talked to the neighbor and has said "what am I supposed to do know I live next to them" simmering all the while. We will report on the comings and goings of the Big RV it is sure to be entertaining. That is until a Bocce ball goes through a window.

How To Make a Bocce Court.

This is the first in a weekly installment about my parents return to CT.

Yes the snow birds have reversed their commute and have bought a house in CT. (CT is a cold place to come to spend your twilight time)I am glad my parents moved back it is good for my boys to have a link to the older generations of the family. But yesterday it happened "so how do you like the house".

I began to sweat and then opened my mouth. "It does not matter what I think as long as you're happy I am happy". My five year old looked at me as I said this line. You could tell what he was thinking " that won't work I could of done way better then that". I wanted to let him know that I'm out of practice but realized that would only make matters worse.

My dad said "that is a cop-out come on give me an answer all ready".. My mother came to my defense "know that is a great answer as long as we are happy he is happy". The food then arrived and I helped my son with his pizza. The time had passed and I did not have to answer the question and you know what I won't answer it now either. What I do know for sure is they had fun watching me coach the u5 soccer team and they paid for lunch.

Hot Ass Coffee

(This is a warning for all of you that may from time to time bring scalding hot coffee on and airplane)


Was flying to Baltimore on a biz trip Southwest Airlines of course (my company is frugal) and I needed coffee. The Coffee place was on the way to the gate perfect it was close and the line was short. Grab a coffee and move to the shoe shine chair. Once in a while I like to indulge myself in a good shine. It is a bit like being a king sitting that chair. After the shine I run to the gate I am the last person on the plane.

I look up and notice the air things. Not sure of the technical names but you turn the thing and cool air comes out. My coffee is still amazingly hot like a super nova of lava. I think to myself that air coming in would be a bunch better then just trying to blow on this coffee to cool it off. Slowly I remove the cover as to not spill anything then I begin to move it closer to the air thing this my friends was not a good Idea. Well it did cool the coffee but not before it stained my shirt, pants and suit jacket.

So to make a long story short do not use the airplane cooling system as a cooler for your Hot Ass Coffee it only leads to burns and heartache.

June 11th 1.40 PM

I remember it like it was yesterday ten years old in class watching the inauguration of President Ronald Reagan. I knew my parents liked the man and voted for him and as he raised his hand to take the oath of office It felt like he was going to make our country safe and strong again. While the inauguration was going on the orchestrated release of our hostage's was in progress. They would cut in and quickly after the inauguration we saw the footage of the newest free Americans. Yeah I felt safe.

Now today the man that made me feel safe has been laid to rest. Even at ten I questioned him his motives and the place we held on the world stage. And as a teenager I really liked that Genesis Video with the puppets you know the one "This is a land of confusion this is the world we live in blah, blah blah" but even though his stance on many issues were different then mine I respected his conviction.