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Took my two youngest kids today to the Great Lakes Science Center and couldn’t get them to leave. That’s a good city attraction.
1. Want to make like a broadcaster and talk? Try these BBC Online Classes. H/t Erik Sherman’s Writer Biz blog.
2. MediaShift interviews Lisa Williams, Knight News Challenge Grant winner.
3. Is there a pattern: freshman Republican in California legislator sponsors bill similar to Ohio HB151, lead sponsors, Josh Mandel and Shannon Jones, both being freshman?
4. Blog Mastermind Mentoring Program: sounds good but where’s the beef?
5. Was Colorado trying to be too ethical?
Do something fun tonight.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 10:35 pm June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | 1 Comment
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Jun
2
National Foreign Trade Council to Ohio: drop HB151; IL struck down Sudan divestment law
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This article from the Inter Press Service News Agency does an excellent job in describing precisely why state attempts such as Ohio’s HB151 to legislate foreign policy undermines the federal government’s attempts at protecting American citizen’s interests.
I strongly recommend reading the entire piece, however, I’ve excerpted below the part in which “…the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a business lobby created by many of the nation’s biggest corporations, which has long opposed both unilateral U.S. trade sanctions and state divestment initiatives” counsels Ohio legislators about the problems with pursuing HB 151, whose chief sponsors are State Reps. Josh Mandel and Shannon Jones. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns also testified against such state action three months ago in the U.S. Senate.
“We could not support modifications to (ISA)[the federal 1996 Iran Sanctions Act] now being circulated in Congress that would turn the full weight of sanctions not against Iran but against our allies that are instrumental in our coalition against Iran,” Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told a Senate Committee in late March.
In this position, the administration has been strongly supported by the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a business lobby created by many of the nation’s biggest corporations, which has long opposed both unilateral U.S. trade sanctions and state divestment initiatives. [my emphasis]
“On one hand, we’re asking Europe, Russia, China and Japan to work together with us on this, and, on the other hand, we’re beating their companies over the head with a stick,” NFTC President William Reinsch told IPS.
In a letter to Ohio lawmakers considering divestment legislation, Reinsch made much the same argument, noting also that, in a case brought by the NFTC, a federal court judge recently struck down as unconstitutional a Sudan divestment law in Illinois on the grounds that it interfered with the federal government’s ability to conduct foreign policy and regulate foreign trade. [my emphasis]
In his weekly column in the Washington Times published shortly after Reinsch sent his letter, CSP’s president, Frank Gaffney, denounced Reinsch as “Terror’s lobbyist”, charging that the NFTC “favours doing business with America’s enemies and runs interference for those determined to do so”.
Do the research yourself before you decide which side you’re most likely to support or oppose:
William Reinsch
National Foreign Trade Council
Center for Security Policy
Frank Gaffney
Nicholas Burns
Article on NFTC win in Illinois court that struck down state dictate to divest from Sudan
Article on Terror-Free Investment movement
I haven’t studied if or how HB151 differs from the unconstitutional IL law to the extent that it would be less susceptible to an NTFC challenge, but if anyone knows, feel free to explain.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 7:40 pm June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | Comments Off
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Jun
2
Took my two youngest kids today to the Great Lakes Science Center and couldn’t get them to leave. That’s a good city attraction.
1. Want to make like a broadcaster and talk? Try these BBC Online Classes. H/t Erik Sherman’s Writer Biz blog.
2. MediaShift interviews Lisa Williams, Knight News Challenge Grant winner.
3. Is there a pattern: freshman Republican in California legislator sponsors bill similar to Ohio HB151, lead sponsors, Josh Mandel and Shannon Jones, both being freshman?
4. Blog Mastermind Mentoring Program: sounds good but where’s the beef?
5. Was Colorado trying to be too ethical?
Do something fun tonight.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 6:35 pm June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | 1 Comment
Print This Post
Jun
2
National Foreign Trade Council to Ohio: drop HB151; IL struck down Sudan divestment law
Filed Under Politics | Comments Off
This article from the Inter Press Service News Agency does an excellent job in describing precisely why state attempts such as Ohio’s HB151 to legislate foreign policy undermines the federal government’s attempts at protecting American citizen’s interests.
I strongly recommend reading the entire piece, however, I’ve excerpted below the part in which “…the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a business lobby created by many of the nation’s biggest corporations, which has long opposed both unilateral U.S. trade sanctions and state divestment initiatives” counsels Ohio legislators about the problems with pursuing HB 151, whose chief sponsors are State Reps. Josh Mandel and Shannon Jones. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns also testified against such state action three months ago in the U.S. Senate.
“We could not support modifications to (ISA)[the federal 1996 Iran Sanctions Act] now being circulated in Congress that would turn the full weight of sanctions not against Iran but against our allies that are instrumental in our coalition against Iran,” Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told a Senate Committee in late March.
In this position, the administration has been strongly supported by the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a business lobby created by many of the nation’s biggest corporations, which has long opposed both unilateral U.S. trade sanctions and state divestment initiatives. [my emphasis]
“On one hand, we’re asking Europe, Russia, China and Japan to work together with us on this, and, on the other hand, we’re beating their companies over the head with a stick,” NFTC President William Reinsch told IPS.
In a letter to Ohio lawmakers considering divestment legislation, Reinsch made much the same argument, noting also that, in a case brought by the NFTC, a federal court judge recently struck down as unconstitutional a Sudan divestment law in Illinois on the grounds that it interfered with the federal government’s ability to conduct foreign policy and regulate foreign trade. [my emphasis]
In his weekly column in the Washington Times published shortly after Reinsch sent his letter, CSP’s president, Frank Gaffney, denounced Reinsch as “Terror’s lobbyist”, charging that the NFTC “favours doing business with America’s enemies and runs interference for those determined to do so”.
Do the research yourself before you decide which side you’re most likely to support or oppose:
William Reinsch
National Foreign Trade Council
Center for Security Policy
Frank Gaffney
Nicholas Burns
Article on NFTC win in Illinois court that struck down state dictate to divest from Sudan
Article on Terror-Free Investment movement
I haven’t studied if or how HB151 differs from the unconstitutional IL law to the extent that it would be less susceptible to an NTFC challenge, but if anyone knows, feel free to explain.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 3:40 pm June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | Comments Off
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Jun
2
Took my two youngest kids today to the Great Lakes Science Center and couldn’t get them to leave. That’s a good city attraction.
1. Want to make like a broadcaster and talk? Try these BBC Online Classes. H/t Erik Sherman’s Writer Biz blog.
2. MediaShift interviews Lisa Williams, Knight News Challenge Grant winner.
3. Is there a pattern: freshman Republican in California legislator sponsors bill similar to Ohio HB151, lead sponsors, Josh Mandel and Shannon Jones, both being freshman?
4. Blog Mastermind Mentoring Program: sounds good but where’s the beef?
5. Was Colorado trying to be too ethical?
Do something fun tonight.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 3:35 pm June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | 1 Comment
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Jun
2
Step right up! That’s right! Get your original reporting right cheer!
From David Potts of Left of Ohio:
Now, David, I think you can do a nice editorial wrap-up and compare the experience to how you have been unable to participate in the same way or even observe Charlie Wilson. But I bet you thought of that already. 
PS I couldn’t find any MSM reports on the event yet. That shouldn’t be considered definitive re: whether someone else has written it up. But with David’s take, you don’t necessarily need to keep looking – unless you want to.
Great work, David.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 1:19 pm June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | 1 Comment
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Jun
2
National Foreign Trade Council to Ohio: drop HB151; IL struck down Sudan divestment law
Filed Under Politics | Comments Off
This article from the Inter Press Service News Agency does an excellent job in describing precisely why state attempts such as Ohio’s HB151 to legislate foreign policy undermines the federal government’s attempts at protecting American citizen’s interests.
I strongly recommend reading the entire piece, however, I’ve excerpted below the part in which “…the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a business lobby created by many of the nation’s biggest corporations, which has long opposed both unilateral U.S. trade sanctions and state divestment initiatives” counsels Ohio legislators about the problems with pursuing HB 151, whose chief sponsors are State Reps. Josh Mandel and Shannon Jones. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns also testified against such state action three months ago in the U.S. Senate.
“We could not support modifications to (ISA)[the federal 1996 Iran Sanctions Act] now being circulated in Congress that would turn the full weight of sanctions not against Iran but against our allies that are instrumental in our coalition against Iran,” Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told a Senate Committee in late March.
In this position, the administration has been strongly supported by the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a business lobby created by many of the nation’s biggest corporations, which has long opposed both unilateral U.S. trade sanctions and state divestment initiatives. [my emphasis]
“On one hand, we’re asking Europe, Russia, China and Japan to work together with us on this, and, on the other hand, we’re beating their companies over the head with a stick,” NFTC President William Reinsch told IPS.
In a letter to Ohio lawmakers considering divestment legislation, Reinsch made much the same argument, noting also that, in a case brought by the NFTC, a federal court judge recently struck down as unconstitutional a Sudan divestment law in Illinois on the grounds that it interfered with the federal government’s ability to conduct foreign policy and regulate foreign trade. [my emphasis]
In his weekly column in the Washington Times published shortly after Reinsch sent his letter, CSP’s president, Frank Gaffney, denounced Reinsch as “Terror’s lobbyist”, charging that the NFTC “favours doing business with America’s enemies and runs interference for those determined to do so”.
Do the research yourself before you decide which side you’re most likely to support or oppose:
William Reinsch
National Foreign Trade Council
Center for Security Policy
Frank Gaffney
Nicholas Burns
Article on NFTC win in Illinois court that struck down state dictate to divest from Sudan
Article on Terror-Free Investment movement
I haven’t studied if or how HB151 differs from the unconstitutional IL law to the extent that it would be less susceptible to an NTFC challenge, but if anyone knows, feel free to explain.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 12:40 pm June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | Comments Off
Print This Post
Jun
2
Step right up! That’s right! Get your original reporting right cheer!
From David Potts of Left of Ohio:
Now, David, I think you can do a nice editorial wrap-up and compare the experience to how you have been unable to participate in the same way or even observe Charlie Wilson. But I bet you thought of that already.
PS I couldn’t find any MSM reports on the event yet. That shouldn’t be considered definitive re: whether someone else has written it up. But with David’s take, you don’t necessarily need to keep looking – unless you want to.
Great work, David.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:19 am June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | 1 Comment
Print This Post
Jun
2
Step right up! That’s right! Get your original reporting right cheer!
From David Potts of Left of Ohio:
Now, David, I think you can do a nice editorial wrap-up and compare the experience to how you have been unable to participate in the same way or even observe Charlie Wilson. But I bet you thought of that already.
PS I couldn’t find any MSM reports on the event yet. That shouldn’t be considered definitive re: whether someone else has written it up. But with David’s take, you don’t necessarily need to keep looking – unless you want to.
Great work, David.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 6:19 am June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | 1 Comment
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Jun
2
Remains of the Day, 6-01-07
Filed Under Politics | 2 Comments
I’ve been asked to participate on a panel that I know is going to intimidate me but if they keep asking, I’ll keep trying to say yes. It also means I have to get to bed.
1. Ideacrossing.com. I don’t need it, but maybe you do, or someone you know? I read about it in the June 2007 Inside Business.
2. “Palestinian Kindergarteners Vow to Die for Allah” Disclaimer: note the source of the article. There are stories about this kind of thing fairly often. But is it any different from Jesus Camp? I don’t know – but I think that question is worth a debate.
3. New gene mutations, connected to breast cancer, have been discovered. But I don’t understand most of what I’ve read so far.
4. Twenty percent of people vacationing take their computers and squeeze in work. Wendy Hoke wrote about this issue not long ago.
5. Two from Editor & Publisher:
-AP will track its online content if you use it
-Cuts at San Jose Mercury News, same week that its former editor starts at the PD
6. Akron man with concealed carry shoots are robbers
7. Cleveland Clinic tries to civilize kids – the question should be, why aren’t parents teaching the exact same lessons? It shouldn’t take someone having an illness to respect differences.
Shabbat Shalom.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 3:14 am June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | 2 Comments
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Jun
2
A bunch of reports indicate a second annual increase in the occurance of violent crimes. I haven’t located one of the actual reports, but here’s what I have found:
There is a USDOJ report due out next week, and there is this report, released in early March 2007, from the Police Executive Research Forum. There is also a DOJ report from early in May, for which I can only find extremely scant references in PR releases and other news articles, but cannot find isolated and distinct. The report is the result of the first of a three phase effort Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announced last fall, called the Initiative for Safer Communities.
It is in the paraphrasing of the Initiative for Safer Communities study’s results where Gonzales fingers guns as the problem. From CNN (pardon the lengthy excerpt but it tells the story that some of us, like myself, have presumed for years would be the trend):
The spike [in violent crime found by the FBI in 12/06] prompted Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to order a study of violence in 18 cities. The results [the ones I cannot find anywhere online] were released earlier this week, when Gonzales announced that the Justice Department would spend $50 million to combat urban violence.
The Justice Department concluded that the increased violence is caused by a younger and more violent generation of criminals who have easy access to guns. Many are loosely organized into street gangs and crews.
In Philadelphia, police and civic activists point to several factors, including poverty and drugs. But by far the biggest catalyst, they say, is the availability of guns. [my emphasis]
Young men who grow up angry with few opportunities use guns to win status on the streets, said Greg Bucceroni, of Men United for a Better Philadelphia, which mentors at-risk teens, counsels crime victims and sponsors community events to try to reduce violence. (Watch Bucceroni talk about how why the violence is getting worse 
)
“They feel that’s how they get respect, so the level of violence escalates,” he said.
Bucceroni works for the city but also spends much of his time volunteering to help guide kids who have gotten into trouble. An activist since the early 1980s, he has seen the changes.
“In the 70s, I mean, if somebody came up and they had a zip gun — which was a homemade gun — that was big time,” he said. “Now if, if you don’t have an AK-47 or a sawed-off shotgun or a 9 mm, even if you pull out a .38, they laugh at you because, ‘Is that all you’ve got?’ That is their mentality when now people are carrying automatic handguns.”
So long as members of our society decide that they prefer to resolve differences and dangerous situations with a shot to the gut or the leg or the heart, regardless of whether they’ll be able to provide evidence afterwards that they had the requisite law on their side to do so, we will continue to see an increase in violent crime, against people, with guns.
Think you’re gonna call Alberto? Here’s what he says he plans to do. Does it make you feel any safer?
Me neither.
Finally, from the PERF study:
*Cleveland had a 20% or more increase in homicides between 2004 and 2006 (p.3)
*Cleveland had a more than 30% increase in robberies between 2004 and 2006 (p.3)
*Cleveland had a more than 30% increase in aggravated assaults with firearms between 2004 and 2006 (p.3)
Looks a little something like this (click on the chart; “Cleveland” is highlighted in blue):
By Jill Miller Zimon at 2:31 am June 2nd, 2007 in Politics | 5 Comments
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