From: Bill Vance Subject: And you think its getting bad around _here_??? (fwd) Date: 09 Aug 2004 00:22:12 -0700 (PDT) ---------- begin forwarded message from Brad3000 ---------- FYI - Sometimes the 'state' doesn't like to be proved wrong... and this is in the Britain... but dont complain, old chap. We locked you up in jail for 25 years and you were innocent all along? That=92ll be =A380,000 please. Blunkett charges miscarriage of justice victims =91food and lodgings=92 By Neil Mackay, Home Affairs Editor - March 2004. http://www.sundayherald.com/40592 WHAT do you give someone who=92s been proved innocent after spending the best part of their life behind bars, wrongfully convicted of a crime=20 they didn=92t commit? An apology, maybe? Counselling? Champagne? Compensation? Well, if you=92re David Blunkett, the Labour Home Secretary, the choice is simple: you give them a big, fat bill for the cost of board and lodgings for the=20 time they spent freeloading at Her Majesty=92s Pleasure in British prison= s. On Tuesday, Blunkett will fight in the Royal Courts of Justice in London = for the right to charge victims of miscarriages of justice more than =A33000 = for every year they spent in jail while wrongly convicted. The logic is that = the innocent man shouldn=92t have been in prison eating free porridge and sleeping for nothing under regulation grey blankets. Blunkett=92s fight h= as been described as =93outrageous=94, =93morally repugnant=94 and the =93si= ckest of sick jokes=94, but his spokesmen in the Home Office say it=92s a complete= ly =93reasonable course of action=94 as the innocent men and women would hav= e spent the money anyway on food and lodgings if they weren=92t in prison. The government deems the claw-back =91Saved Living Expenses=92. Paddy Hill was one of the Birmingham Six. He spent 16 years behind bars for the 1974 Birmingham pub bombings by the IRA. Hill now lives on a farm with his wife and children near Beith in Scotland. He has been charged =A350,000 for living expenses by the Home Office. It wasn=92t until two y= ears ago that Hill was finally awarded =A3960,000 in compensation. However, during the years since his release, while waiting for the pay-out, the go= v- ernment had given him advances of around =A3300,000. When his compen- sation came through, the =A3300,000 was taken back along with interest on the interim payments charged at 23% =96 that cost him a further =A370,000. =93The whole system is absurd,=94 Hill said. =93I=92m so angry about what= has happened to me. I try and tell people about being charged for bed and board in jail and they can=92t believe it. =93When I left prison I was given no training for freedom =96 no counsell= ing or psychological preparation. Yet the guilty get that when they are released. To charge me for the food I ate and the cell I slept in is almost as big = an injustice as fitting me up in the first place. =93While I was in prison, my family lost their home, yet they get no comp= en- sation. But the state wants its money back. It=92s like being kicked in t= he head when someone has beat you already. =93I have to put up with this, yet there has not been one police officer = con- victed of fitting people up. The Home Office had no shortage of money to keep me in jail or to run a charade of a trial. But they had enough money to frame me. Nevertheless, when it comes to paying out compensation for ruining my life they happily rip me to shreds.=94 Hill is not leading the legal action against the government =96 instead h= e has handed the baton to another high-profile victim of miscarriage of justice: Mike O=92Brien. O=92Brien spent 10 years in jail wrongly convict= ed of killing a Cardiff newsagent. His baby daughter died while he was in priso= n and he was charged =A337,500 by the Home Office for his time behind bars. Hill said he cannot lead the legal fight as the Birmingham Six have fough= t every legal action together, but now three of them are over 70 and Hill believes it is too much to ask them to join him in taking on the governme= nt yet again. He said he was also worried about the compensation payments for the other members of the Birmingham Six being affected if they joined him in court against the government. =93The establishment hate me and people like me as we proved them wrong,=94 he said. =93They either want to ignore us or hurt us.=94 O=92Brien took the Home Office to court last March and won, but Blunkett appealed the decision. On Tuesday, the rights and wrongs of the govern- ment policy will be decided at the Royal Courts. O=92Brien said: =93Moral= ly, the position of the government is just outrageous. It shows total contempt fo= r the victims of miscarriages of justice. It makes me livid. =93I really believe if we win the appeal this week, the government is evi= l enough to take me to the House of Lords. They are trying to break us. I really think this is personal as far as the government is concerned. =93A government really can=92t get much worse than this. But I am confide= nt that we will win as the law and morality are on our side.=94 Vincent Hickey, one of the Bridgewater Four who was wrongly convicted for killing a paperboy, was charged =A360,000 for the 17 years he spent i= n jail. He said: =93If I had known this I would have stayed on hunger-strik= e longer, that way I would have had a smaller bill.=94 John McManus, of the Scottish Miscarriage of Justice Organisation, said: =93This is reprehensible. How can we call ourselves a democratic, civilis= ed society when our government is acting like this? =93The government seems intent on punishing innocent people. The state wants to be paid for making a mistake. It=92s hard to believe someone act= - ually thought this policy up. If you tell a child about this they will=20 think it insane. =93Only a sick mind could have invented this policy, yet the government i= s fighting to retain the right to act like this. It is cruelty with=20 intent. They seem to want to punish people for having the audacity to be innocent.=94 The SNP=92s shadow justice minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said: =93This is ou= trag- eous. It is another assault by Blunkett on the rule of law and on civil=20 liber- ties. These people didn=92t chose to go to prison. They were wrong= ly convicted, and to charge them for it beggars belief.=94 The Home Office said an =93independent assessor appointed by the Home Secretary takes into acccount the range of costs the prisoner might have incurred had they not been imprisoned=94. The spokes man said the asses- sor was =93right=94 to do this, adding: =93Morally, this is reasonable an= d=20 appropriate. I was a hostage, now they are billing me. ROBERT Brown was just a 19-year-old from Glasgow when he was jailed for life for murdering a woman called Annie Walsh in Manchester in 1977. He served 25 years before he was finally freed in 2002, when the courts ruled him innocent of the crime. He is now facing a bill of around =A380,= 000 for the living expenses he cost the state. For Brown, it is the final=20 straw. An interim payment he was given pending his full compensation off= er is exhausted; his mother recently died; his relationship with his girlfr= iend has fallen apart and he is facing eviction from his home following a mix-= up over benefits. =93I feel like ending my life,=94 he says. =93I=92ve tried to maintaindig= nity, but the state has treated me with nothing but contempt =96 now they are askin= g me for money for my bed and board in jail. =93I never contemplated suicide once while I was in prison, but it=92s di= fferent on the outside. I have received no counselling or support. Society is tre= at- ing me like something you=92d wipe off the bottom of your shoes, but I=92= m an innocent man and a victim of a terrible injustice. =93It=92s horrific. I=92ve been out of jail for 14 months and in that tim= e t state has put me through a war of attrition that it never needed to conduct. I feel my life is disintegrating around me. =93Making me pay for my bed and board is abhorrent. I was arrested, fitted up and held hostage for 25 yea= rs and now they are going to charge me for being kept as their prisoner against my will. =93Can you think of a more disgusting way to abuse someone? I really feel that my heart is truly and finally broken.=94 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D #11 Have A Plan Sam - 50 Ways To Save Your Butt. =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Any other views expressed herein, are my own, not bought or sponsored in any shape or form, by or for any organization, currently existing or not. It should be noted: the URL posted is very likely to suddenly expire & if the reader wants to read the full article, they should should visit the copyright holders listed site very promptly. References & partial texts are given for EDUCATIONAL & INFORMATIONAL purposes only as per the "Fair Use" as described in Title-17, Sect 107 below. -------------------------------------------------- **COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 USC Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research &=20 educational purposes only. [Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml] -------------------------------------------------- =20 ---------- end forwarded message from Brad3000 ---------- -- *************************************************************************= ******* * * =20 RKBA! * Blessings on thee, oh Israel!!! * 4-1= 9! * * =20 *************************************************************************= ******* An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured by | All Matter is vibration. | Let he who hath= no weapon in every | by Colt; | --Max Planck | weapon, sell hi= s hand =3D Freedom | Dial | In the beginning was the | garment, and = buy a on every side!! | 1-911-A1 | Word. --The Holy Bible | sword. --Jesus = Christ *************************************************************************= ******* Constitutional Government is dead! LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!!= ! *************************************************************************= ******* - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Bill Vance Subject: SRA - AW Petition & Poll.. (fwd) Date: 24 Aug 2004 17:52:16 -0700 (PDT) ---------- begin forwarded message from Brad3000 ---------- FYI - Please consider signing the petition at: http://patriotpetitions.us/nogunban/ to urge Congress to let the "semi-auto assault weapon" ban expire on September 13th. The Center for Disease Control, the Violence Policy Institute, and other gun-ban supporters who enthusiastically pushed for this law back in 1994, have had to admit that it has done nothing to reduce crime. ------------- AW Poll - http://www.indystar.com/ (Halfway down on the left) ================================================= #11 Have A Plan Sam - 50 Ways To Save Your Butt. ================================================= ---------- end forwarded message from Brad3000 ---------- -- ******************************************************************************** * * RKBA! * Blessings on thee, oh Israel!!! * 4-19! * * ******************************************************************************** An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured by | All Matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by Colt; | --Max Planck | weapon, sell his hand = Freedom | Dial | In the beginning was the | garment, and buy a on every side!! | 1-911-A1 | Word. --The Holy Bible | sword. --Jesus Christ ******************************************************************************** Constitutional Government is dead! LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!!! ******************************************************************************** - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Bill Vance Subject: SRA - Lets Look At Bush Accomplishments: Judge Him In Total. (fwd) Date: 30 Aug 2004 04:16:07 -0700 (PDT) ---------- begin forwarded message from Brad3000 ---------- FYI - Interesting.. OpEd: Beyond conspiracy theories, judge Bush in total By Jeffrey Folks - August 30, 2004. Retired English professor. http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0830/p09s01-coop.html?s=3Dhns KNOXVILLE, TENN. =96 After Watergate nearly every American president, it is assumed, has spent the bulk of his time engaged in a conspiracy of one sort or another. Gerald Ford, it was assumed, arranged in advance to pardon Richard Nixon. Ronald Reagan was obsessed with setting up a secret network of funding for the Contra operation. The elder George Bush had cynically proclaimed "no new taxes," knowing all the time that new taxes would be necessary to curtail the burgeoning national deficit. Underneath his genial exterior, Bill Clinton was little more than an immo= ral opportunist, philandering in the Oval Office while renting out White Hous= e bedrooms to the highest bidder. And now the conspiracy script has been reloaded: George W. Bush, it is assumed, has done nothing more in the past two years than mislead the American people concerning the threat posed by Iraq. To what extent these accusations are true has become almost irrelevant. Within the conspiracy mode of thinking, the entire work of an administra- tion is boiled down to one event - a central conspiracy. This sort of Wes= t Wing mythmaking appeals to the popular imagination, but it utterly distor= ts the reality of what goes on at the White House. Determined to discover a conspiracy, we are blinded to the totality of a president's work, so that we come to see Nixon only in terms of Watergate= , we think of the first President Bush only in terms of new taxes, we remem= - ber Clinton only in terms of his sexual indiscretions. And now we are in danger of missing the point again. In its totality, the work of Mr. Bush = as president has been substantial and positive. To what extent he engaged in spin and exaggeration to justify the war in Iraq, we cannot yet know. = It appears that he was seriously misled by the intelligence community, but whatever history's final verdict is, the war in Iraq is only one aspect=20 of his presidency, and it may yet turn out to be one of his major accomplishment= s. If we move beyond the conspiracy mode of thinking, we can begin to judge the total contribution of the Bush presidency and see that we are far bet= ter off than we were at the end of the Clinton administration. The president has ably led us through the uncertain days following the worst attack on our country in modern times. Funding of terror cells has been disrupted; Al Qaeda operations have been crippled. A brilliant military victory in Afghanistan has eliminated bases for=20 training camps that were turning out fanatical anti-American terrorists, and this victory and the one in Iraq have made the Middle East and the world a safer place on the whole. The Clinton recession was the product of a fraudulent culture of inflated stock prices and corrupt corporate accounting. The recession is easing, and the economy is turning around. The jobs that John Kerry has comp- lained about for months are beginning to come through in substantial numbers. The largest tax cut in American history has returned the people'= s money to them. The conspiracy theory makes good headlines and sells papers, but it doesn't help us to make a fair assessment of a president. On the whole, Bush has compiled a solid record of facing the dangers that exist both at home and abroad. He has led us through perilous times. His policy decisions have not been flawless, but they have been sound. Let's forget the conspiracy theory and give the Bush administration credit for the important work it has done. =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D #11 Have A Plan Sam - 50 Ways To Save Your Butt. =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Any other views expressed herein, are my own, not bought or sponsored in any shape or form, by or for any organization, currently existing or not. It should be noted: the URL posted is very likely to suddenly expire & if the reader wants to read the full article, they should should visit the copyright holders listed site very promptly. References & partial texts are given for EDUCATIONAL & INFORMATIONAL purposes only as per the "Fair Use" as described in Title-17, Sect 107 below. -------------------------------------------------- **COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 USC Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research &=20 educational purposes only. [Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml] -------------------------------------------------- =20 ---------- end forwarded message from Brad3000 ---------- -- *************************************************************************= ******* * * =20 RKBA! * Blessings on thee, oh Israel!!! * 4-1= 9! * * =20 *************************************************************************= ******* An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured by | All Matter is vibration. | Let he who hath= no weapon in every | by Colt; | --Max Planck | weapon, sell hi= s hand =3D Freedom | Dial | In the beginning was the | garment, and = buy a on every side!! | 1-911-A1 | Word. --The Holy Bible | sword. --Jesus = Christ *************************************************************************= ******* Constitutional Government is dead! LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!!= ! *************************************************************************= ******* - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Bill Vance Subject: I DO Believe Again - YES!!!!!!!!!!! (fwd) Date: 30 Aug 2004 04:16:42 -0700 (PDT) ---------- begin forwarded message from BOBWORN@aol.com ---------- This is MY story of BELIEVING again!! There once was a time of darkness in my life. A time when all things seemed a fantasy of the past. I no longer believed in all the wonderful things that had been in my childhood. In the adult world there was no Santa and no Easter Bunny. Life had become very depressing. There were no real joys to look forward to. Then suddenly----I saw the light!!! My hopes were raised up from the bottomless pit of despair. I once again became a BELIEVER!! I now know for sure that there is a Tooth Fairy!! I have no doubts that Santa is for real!! I relish in anticipation of the Easter Bunny, once again coming to my house on Easter! There is new hope in my life! There are dreams that I can again live! I can once more search for the end of the rainbow---and perhaps have the chance to dance around it's pot of gold with the leprechauns.!! Yes!! Yes!!! Each day is again full of life!!! And where did this new hope come from you ask? From where did this ray of sunshine, in an otherwise deep and darkening forest, appear? It appeared on TV one night-----from a magical show. Something called the Democratic Convention!!! A wonderful Wizard by the name of Kerry exploded onto my television screen and brought hope into my otherwise dismal life. YES!! I can once again BELIEVE!!! I believe in the Tooth Fairy again!! I believe in Santa and the Easter Bunny!! I believe that soon I will have FREE health care and FREE medicine. I believe that my taxes will be reduced--if not eliminated. I believe there will no longer be poverty to witness. I believe there will be a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage. I believe housing will be affordable for EVERYONE and communities will be rid of thugs and robbers and they will be replaced with happy and caring people. I will want for nothing. I believe I will live in a world of happiness and dance amongst the fairies. I can have the Battleship Misouri for a bathtub toy. My friends will all have wonderfully high paying jobs and lots of money left each week with which to enjoy life. I believe there will be smaller schoolroom classes for children--and that each child will get the special attention they need, and have been so desperately seeking. I believe that over the next four years, so much money will be appropriated, cures will be found for all the diseases in the world. I believe the people of the world will all come together and hug one another, as one big happy family. And with all the love they produce there will no longer be room for terrorists. But most of all--- I BELIEVE THAT IT WILL NEVER COST ME A PENNY!!! The evil rich people will pay for it all. Kerry told me so!! YES!!! YES!!! Kerry has once again made me able to BELIEVE in FAIRY TALES!!! I feel as if a thousand pounds of weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. I am again dancing amongst the fairies! I can once again DREAM!!! Thank you Mr. Kerry!!! ---------- end forwarded message from BOBWORN@aol.com ---------- -- ******************************************************************************** * * RKBA! * Blessings on thee, oh Israel!!! * 4-19! * * ******************************************************************************** An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured by | All Matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by Colt; | --Max Planck | weapon, sell his hand = Freedom | Dial | In the beginning was the | garment, and buy a on every side!! | 1-911-A1 | Word. --The Holy Bible | sword. --Jesus Christ ******************************************************************************** Constitutional Government is dead! LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!!! ******************************************************************************** -