[Note: This comment comes from friend Dave Hughes. DLH]

From: “Dave Hughes” <dave@oldcolo.com>
Date: April 30, 2009 8:18:51 AM PDT
To: “‘Dewayne Hendricks’” <dewayne@warpspeed.com>
Subject: RE: [Dewayne-Net] The US should cut military spending in half

[Note: This item comes from friend Jack Unger. DLH]

To really keep us safe, we should slash defense spending. Americans

should prepare for fewer wars, not different ones. Far from providing

our defense, our military posture endangers us. It drags us into

others’ conflicts, provokes animosity, and wastes resources. We need a

defense budget worthy of the name. We need military restraint. And

that would allow us to cut defense spending roughly in half…

Horsehockey. Yeah, if we just go to a fortress America posture like we tried
before Pearl Harbor, we will all be safe. Militant Islam, including, but not
limited to Al Quaeda will just give up their 100 year war-with-the-west
jihad, fueled by the Koran’s bottom line command “Either convert the
infidels or kill them.” Yeah there won’t be any strikes on US soil or
against US citizens or embassies under Clinton. Just close them all down.
Who needs embassies? And if you don’t want to do that, just yank the Marines
who are there to protect our civilian diplomats. Will save more defense
money. And what is another embassy takeover or two. 9/11 really didn’t
happen , didn’t it, Jack? Just some bad toilet trained teenagers on a joy
ride. And yeah Iran and Korea will just halt their nuclear plus missile
development. And never would use them against Israel, Tokyo, whom we
protect, Seoul, or the UK. Who cares? Just let them burn to a crisp. Be sure
we stop our anti-missile development expenditures. Just don’t close the
beach at Malibu. Yeah, finally I guess you reject the fact that we are
entwined in a global inter-dependent economy where our unmolested air and
sea transportation is necessary for trade. Just let someone else handle any
air or piracy.

I am really glad you think this is now a much more peaceful world, Jack, and
that all wars affecting us is our fault. And that if we disarm, all those
armed conflicts will go away.

Dave Hughes

[Note: This item comes from reader Randall. DLH]

From: Randall <rvh40@insightbb.com>
Date: April 30, 2009 10:14:01 AM PDT
To: johnmacsgroup@yahoogroups.com
Cc: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>
Subject: So why is gas still $2.09 a gallon?

POLL – World oil demand to fall far more than thought

LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) – World oil demand is forecast to fall this year by much more than previously expected, as growth stalls in emerging powerhouses China and India and fuel consumption declines in the developed world.
Estimates see oil growth re-emerging in 2010, but analysts remain divided about how severe this year’s demand contraction will be, as the short-term global economic outlook remains clouded.

The latest Reuters poll of 11 analysts, banks and industry groups shows oil consumption will decline by an average of 1.56 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2009 to 84.10 million bpd.
Demand is predicted to recover by 700,000 bpd in 2010, but will remain more than 1 million bpd below the 86 million bpd of demand seen in 2007, the last year consumption grew.
The forecast drop in 2009 oil demand is nearly four times larger than the 430,000 bpd drop analysts had expected in January, when Reuters last polled them.

<http://peakoil.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=48036>

[Note: This item comes from reader Randall. DLH]

From: Randall Webmail <rvh40@insightbb.com>
Date: April 30, 2009 7:48:50 AM PDT
To: johnmacsgroup@yahoogroups.com, dewayne@warpspeed.com
Subject: Could be good news (Haven’t read the opinion yet)

Court Reins in State Secrets Privilege
April 30, 2009
Inter Press Service

NEW YORK — In what may become a landmark decision, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the “state secrets privilege” – routinely used by the government to block lawsuits against its officials – can only be used to contest specific evidence, but not to dismiss an entire suit.

The ruling, which was hailed by human rights advocates, came in connection with a lawsuit against a company known as Jeppesen DataPlan for its role in the government’s “extraordinary rendition” program during the administration of former President George W. Bush.

The suit charges that Jeppesen knowingly participated in the rendition program by providing critical flight planning and logistical support services to aircraft and crews used by the CIA to forcibly “disappear” five men to U.S.-run prisons or foreign intelligence agencies overseas where they were interrogated under torture.

Jeppesen is a subsidiary of aerospace giant Boeing. The lawsuit was brought by the American Civil Liberties Union.

During the Bush administration, the government intervened when the case first came before a lower court in 2007, successfully asserting the “state secrets” privilege to have the case thrown out in February 2008. On appeal, the administration of President Barack Obama followed the same road as its predecessor. On Tuesday, the appeals court reversed that decision.

But lawyers for the men who brought the case also sounded a note of caution. “This historic decision marks the beginning, not the end, of this litigation,” said Ben Wizner, staff attorney with the ACLU National Security Project, who argued the case for the plaintiffs.

“Our clients, who are among the hundreds of victims of torture under the Bush administration, have waited for years just to get a foot in the courthouse door. Now, at long last, they will have their day in court,” he said.

[snip]

<http://www.military.com/news/article/court-reins-in-state-secrets-privilege.html?col=1186032310810>

<http://snipurl.com/h35au>

[Note: This item comes from friend Jack Unger. DLH]

From: Jack Unger <junger@ask-wi.com>
Date: April 29, 2009 7:38:53 AM PDT
To: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>
Subject: The US should cut military spending in half

Washington – Hawks depicted the cuts that Defense Secretary Robert Gates recently proposed for the Pentagon’s weapons programs as a savage assault on the military industrial complex. They insisted that Secretary Gates would leave us prostrate before future rivals.

Counterinsurgency enthusiasts, meanwhile cheered Mr. Gates’s willingness to swap high-tech platforms for capabilities suited to the unconventional conflicts we are fighting.

The truth is that the Gates proposal is both too cautious and inadequate. After all, Gates isn’t cutting non-war-related military spending; he’s raising it slightly, to a whopping $534 billion.

If he has his druthers, the next military budget will look much like this one: It will still serve excessive objectives. We will still defend allies that can defend themselves, fight in other people’s civil wars in a vain effort to “fix” their states, and burn tax dollars to serve the hubristic notion that US military hegemony is what keeps the world safe.

To really keep us safe, we should slash defense spending. Americans should prepare for fewer wars, not different ones. Far from providing our defense, our military posture endangers us. It drags us into others’ conflicts, provokes animosity, and wastes resources. We need a defense budget worthy of the name. We need military restraint. And that would allow us to cut defense spending roughly in half…

<http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0427/p09s01-coop.html>

[Note: This item comes from friend David Isenberg. DLH]

From: “David S. Isenberg (isen)” <isen@isen.com>
Date: April 30, 2009 6:53:48 AM PDT
Subject: I blogged my talk

I’ve blogged my Broadband Properties talk here:
<http://isen.com/blog/2009/04/broadband-without-internet-ain-worth.html>
or <http://bit.ly/WCumA>

Please feel free to cite this URL, harass your favorite editor
to publish it, send it to members of Congress, digg it, blog it,
et cetera.

Thank you again for all your help!

David I

[Note: This comment comes from friend Jack Unger. DLH]

From: Jack Unger <junger@ask-wi.com>
Date: April 25, 2009 2:35:22 PM PDT
To: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>
Subject: Re: [Dewayne-Net] Searched leaving the country

My responses to Jock’s questions are inline.

Dewayne Hendricks wrote:

[Note: This item comes from friend Jock Gill. Anyone else know anyone who has had similar problems of late? DLH]

From: Jock Gill <jg45@me.com>

Date: April 22, 2009 10:48:35 AM PDT

To: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>

Subject: Searched leaving the country

Dewayne,

On my recent trip to China, I had a most unusual experience in Chicago on the jetway to the plane to Shanghai.

The border patrol, NOT TSA, stopped me, they say at random, on the boarding jetway in Chicago. I was not the only one. I was asked many questions about employment, any big checks via mail, did I report them to the IRS, nature of my trip, how much money was I leaving the country with, searched my carry on luggage, etc. Young Officer Agnew was a very pleasant person.

But that aside, I am wondering if being searched while trying to board a plane to leave the country is new or SOP these days?

Probably both – It’s likely the new SOP.

I thought Americans were free to travel without having to explain themselves.

No; not in a “post-911 world”.

Did it have anything to do with being a flight to China?

Probably. Per the “golden rule” (He who has the Gold makes the Rules) – China is now making the rules because the U.S. is now permanently in debt to China. This fact scares most Americans and it scares (too late) the American government. The biggest “threat” to America never was from “Muslim terrorists” – that was and is a distraction that was used to support and profit the big oil companies (note how the price of oil shot up and generated billions in profits after 9/11?) as well as profiting the big weapons-building companies (note how the purchase of hugely-expensive weapons systems shot up after 9/11?). The biggest threat to American is (and always was) the threat of economic domination. American now faces economic domination by China. Unfortunately, we (the American people ) did this to ourselves by failing to support American workers and American industry and by buying mostly cheap, imported Chinese goods.

Why was I searched without a warrant?

Because the government claimed this right and the American people were afraid to speak up.

Why was I asked so many questions that had nothing to do with my trip?

Because intimidation is the first role and the largest role of law enforcement.

Notes were taken.   Very curious indeed. What recourse do we have, if any?

The American people can start paying attention to the law-making and law-enforcement actions of our Federal government, including most specifically, the actions of our official U.S. “law-makers” – the members of Congress. We’ve got to lobby them; tell them our views, tell them we support permanent liberty, and that laws claiming to improve our security must first and foremost protect our liberty.

“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety” (Benjamin Franklin)

<http://www.law.duke.edu/journals/dltr/articles/2001dltr0036.html>

Getting into and out of China was MUCH smoother. Returning to the US was also very smooth. But exiting?

This very Un-american, dare I say paranoid event, seemed like a bad joke about Nazi police checking travel documents. Have we really devolved this far towards a police state?

Unfortunately, yes.

Do we have to be afraid to travel now?

Yes.

I was very surprised. I wonder when this started and what the real policy is.

This started on September 12, 2001 – the day after World Trade Center Buildings 1, 2, and 7 were brought down with explosives.

Is it published?

If you read all the “anti-terrorism” law language passed since September 12, 2001 I’m pretty sure you can find legal justification for every question that the Border Patrol agent asked you.

Or is it a “state secret”? Have others had this experience?

Note: In the same vein, I got my visa for China the same day I submitted it. It turns out that it is very much harder for a Chinese to get a visa for entry into the US. I am told that all visas are now taken from the Embassy in Beijing back to Homeland Security for vetting. This can cause delays of over 6 months!   This is a real barrier to doing international business. It effectively killed a project I went to China to start. Further, it also turns out to be no cake walk for a Chinese student to get a visa for study in the US. In the case I know, a young man wanted to spend some weeks in an English immersion program that cost around $12,000 US. But no. The US college lost the $12,000 in cold, hard, cash because of the problems with the US visa process. And this at a time when most american Colleges are strapped for cash. It sure looks like we need to rebalance this process away from immigration and security paranoia back towards a more balance approach.

Only if the American people have the desire to live in a free society again. My guess is the majority will always be too ignorant (not a “negative” word – it simply means people who don’t know what they don’t know) to understand that they are supposed to be playing a direct role in the law-making process by lobbying their elected officials.

Your thoughts?

Sadly, it’s probably too late to regain our freedoms. The “horse is out of the barn” and very few people give a damn. They have already traded their “Liberty” for “Safety”. I think everyone needs to learn how to accept and live in our increasingly oppressive Police State. I think the bulk of the credit for giving birth to our current Police State must rightfully be given to Dick Cheney who with a little help from his American and Israeli business “partners” ushered us into our current Police State on September 11, 2001… ahhh…but that’s a topic for another post.

Jack Unger – President, Ask-Wi.Com, Inc.

[Note: This comment comes from friend Janos Gereben. DLH]

From: janosG <janosg@gmail.com>
Date: April 25, 2009 2:23:30 PM PDT
To: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>
Subject: Re: [Dewayne-Net] Re: The State of the iPhone is Strong – Very Strong

From a friend now making a living with iPhone app programming:

<<have done about 30 iphone apps so far. Apple is hyping that you can get rich quick by making apps, but it is more like the lottery where a few people do get rich and the rest get next to nothing; the average app makes about $150, so hardly the stuff of dreams, but hey it is a living and finally I get distribution worldwide (apple sells the apps in 80 countries), so the future is bright, and my new life as a cellphone developer agrees with me; I like working on simple stuff instead of getting stuck in 5-year projects as before.>>

[Note: This comment comes from friend Bob Frankston. DLH]

It created the opportunity for Microsoft, Apple and many others. I know far
too much about the details of the history to want to get caught up in a
sound bite throwing debate.

Far more important to deal with being locked into the deadly embrace of
broadband (http://frankston.com/?name=BroadbandInternet) and the failure to
understand the triumph of end-to-end over empowering networks. As long as we
think we need network providers like ATT, Comcast, Internet [sic], etc etc
then we will limit our future opportunities.

—–Original Message—–

From: dewayne-net [mailto:dewayne-net@warpspeed.com] On Behalf Of Dewayne

Hendricks

Sent: Saturday, April 25, 2009 15:06

To: Dewayne-Net Technology List

Subject: [Dewayne-Net] Re: The State of the iPhone is Strong – Very Strong

[Note: This comment comes from reader Mike O'Dell. DLH]

From: Michael O’Dell <mo@ccr.org>

Date: April 25, 2009 10:42:26 AM PDT

To: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>

Subject: Re: [Dewayne-Net] Re: The State of the iPhone is Strong -

Very Strong

interesting thesis,

but how does this explain the success of Microsoft?

RSS Feed: <http://www.warpspeed.com/wordpress>

[Note: This comment comes from reader Mike O'Dell. DLH]

From: Michael O’Dell <mo@ccr.org>
Date: April 25, 2009 10:42:26 AM PDT
To: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>
Subject: Re: [Dewayne-Net] Re: The State of the iPhone is Strong – Very Strong

interesting thesis,
but how does this explain the success of Microsoft?

Dewayne Hendricks wrote:

[Note: This comment comes from friend Bob Frankston. DLH]

From: “Bob Frankston” <Bob19-0501@bobf.frankston.com>

Date: April 25, 2009 7:28:28 AM PDT

To: “‘Dewayne Hendricks’” <dewayne@warpspeed.com>

Subject: RE: [Dewayne-Net] The State of the iPhone is Strong – Very Strong

If this is what a partially open platform can do despite the constrictions

of telecom imagine what an open product could do without the constrictions.

We don’t need to imagine == think of what happened when the mainframes were

unlocked up by the IBM consent decree and ATT was prohibited from extending

their monopoly into computing …

<http://frankston.com/?name=AssuringScarcity>

—–Original Message—–

From: dewayne-net [mailto:dewayne-net@warpspeed.com] On Behalf Of Dewayne

Hendricks

Sent: Saturday, April 25, 2009 09:55

To: Dewayne-Net Technology List

Subject: [Dewayne-Net] The State of the iPhone is Strong – Very Strong

The State Of The iPhone Is Strong – Very Strong by MG Siegler on April 23,

2009

<http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/04/23/the-state-of-the-iphone-is-strong-very

-strong/?awesm=tcrn.ch_a7&utm_medium=awesm-twitter&utm_content=techcrunch-au

topost&utm_campaign=techcrunch&utm_source=direct-awesm>

RSS Feed: <http://www.warpspeed.com/wordpress>

[Note: This item comes from friend Jock Gill. Anyone else know anyone who has had similar problems of late? DLH]

From: Jock Gill <jg45@me.com>
Date: April 22, 2009 10:48:35 AM PDT
To: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@warpspeed.com>
Subject: Searched leaving the country

Dewayne,

On my recent trip to China, I had a most unusual experience in Chicago on the jetway to the plane to Shanghai.

The border patrol, NOT TSA, stopped me, they say at random, on the boarding jetway in Chicago. I was not the only one. I was asked many questions about employment, any big checks via mail, did I report them to the IRS, nature of my trip, how much money was I leaving the country with, searched my carry on luggage, etc. Young Officer Agnew was a very pleasant person.

But that aside, I am wondering if being searched while trying to board a plane to leave the country is new or SOP these days?

I thought Americans were free to travel without having to explain themselves. Did it have anything to do with being a flight to China? Why was I searched without a warrant? Why was I asked so many questions that had nothing to do with my trip? Notes were taken.   Very curious indeed. What recourse do we have, if any?

Getting into and out of China was MUCH smoother. Returning to the US was also very smooth. But exiting?

This very Un-american, dare I say paranoid event, seemed like a bad joke about Nazi police checking travel documents. Have we really devolved this far towards a police state? Do we have to be afraid to travel now?

I was very surprised. I wonder when this started and what the real policy is. Is it published? Or is it a “state secret”? Have others had this experience?

Note: In the same vein, I got my visa for China the same day I submitted it. It turns out that it is very much harder for a Chinese to get a visa for entry into the US. I am told that all visas are now taken from the Embassy in Beijing back to Homeland Security for vetting. This can cause delays of over 6 months!   This is a real barrier to doing international business. It effectively killed a project I went to China to start. Further, it also turns out to be no cake walk for a Chinese student to get a visa for study in the US. In the case I know, a young man wanted to spend some weeks in an English immersion program that cost around $12,000 US. But no. The US college lost the $12,000 in cold, hard, cash because of the problems with the US visa process. And this at a time when most american Colleges are strapped for cash. It sure looks like we need to rebalance this process away from immigration and security paranoia back towards a more balance approach.

Your thoughts?

Jock