Bad Deeds for 8-14-2007

Rule Allows Alberto Gonzalez to Fast Track Death Penalty Appeals, Executions – A little noticed provision in the reauthorization of the Patriot Act last year, gives Attorney General Alberto Gonzales power to decide whether or not states are providing enough counsel for defendants in death penalty cases and the power to shorten the time that death row inmates have to appeal convictions to federal courts.

Rick Perry Appoints Extreme Creationist to the Chairmanship Texas State Board of Education – Rick Perry Appointed Don McLeroy to the chairmanship Texas State Board of Education on July 17. McLeroy, a self-described social conservative, is one of eight Republicans who vote as a bloc on nearly all issues. He casts votes that are based more on ideology than on science or facts. McLeroy is known for his skepticism about the theory of evolution and has tried to convince textbook publishers to offer dissenting views on the origin of life. The board can refuse to place offending materials on the state approved list. If school districts want textbooks not on the list, the districts must purchase such materials entirely from their own funds. McLeroy has dragged the Texas State Board of Education into a series of divisive and unnecessary culture-war battles:

In 2001, McLeroy and a majority of the board rejected the only Advanced Placement textbook for high school environmental science because its views on global warming and other events didn’t comport with the beliefs of the board majority. McLeroy claimed the book wasn’t factual and was anti-American and anti-Christian even though panels of experts – including one panel from Texas A&M – found the textbook free of errors. . Meanwhile, dozens of colleges and universities were using the textbook, including Baylor University, the nation’s largest Baptist college.

He voted in 2001 to reject the only advanced placement environmental science textbook proposed for Texas high schools. Baylor University in Waco used the same textbook.

In 2003 McLeroy led efforts by proponents of creationism and intelligent design to de-emphasize discussion of evolution in proposed new biology textbooks. He was one of only four board members who voted against biology textbooks that year that included a full account of evolution. In 2003, Dr. McLeroy was one of four board members who voted against proposed high school biology textbooks because he felt their coverage of evolution was “too dogmatic” and did not include possible flaws in Charles Darwin’s theory of how life on Earth evolved from lower forms.

In 2004, McLeroy voted to approve health textbooks that stress “abstinence-only” in regard to instruction about pregnancy and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases.

Hopefully enough folks will take action on this, and get this disaster turned around. Write or call Rick Perry

Tom DeLay Predicts Karl Rove Will Continue His Quest for a Permanent Republican Majority – Former Rep. Tom DeLay warned Tuesday that Democrats shouldn’t be so quick to rejoice about Karl Rove’s resignation because the revered and reviled political strategist isn’t going to shrink back into the shadows. “He’s not dying. … He’s not just going to go away; he’ll still be around,” DeLay said in an interview of Fox News Tuesday morning. “In fact, I think he’ll be more powerful than ever, because he’ll be involved in a lot of campaigns, I’m sure. He’ll be an adviser to a lot of sitting elected officials. He’ll be bigger than ever.” Asked what Rove’s intentions are related to next year’s presidential election, DeLay predicted the architect of Bush’s successful White House runs fielded “at least nine or 10 calls yesterday” from this year’s slate of Republican hopefuls. “If they want his advice, he’ll give all nine of them his advice,” DeLay predicted. “I know he’ll be a major player … particularly in 08 and beyond.” DeLay predicted Rove would continue his quest for a permanent Republican majority.

Incestuous Amplification: If you only talk to the people who already agree with you, then the more extreme positions get noisier and noisier

Diebold Deletes Paragraphs From Wikipedia That Are Critical of Diebold – On November 17th, 2005, an anonymous Wikipedia user deleted 15 paragraphs from an article on e-voting machine-vendor Diebold, excising an entire section critical of the company’s machines. While anonymous, such changes typically leave behind digital fingerprints offering hints about the contributor, such as the location of the computer used to make the edits. In this case, the changes came from an IP address reserved for the corporate offices of Diebold itself.

Fox News Scrubs Wikipedia – Someone at Fox News has been making changes to Wikipedia. So, what kind of changes has Fox been making? Changing things to make them look better and make their critics look bad. They’ve been deleting what they don’t want you to know. And adding things to twist the truth. Details of the edits at the link below:

Katrina Aid Going To Wealthy Investors For Million $$ Football Condos – With large swaths of the Gulf Coast still in ruins from Hurricane Katrina, rich federal tax breaks designed to spur rebuilding are flowing hundreds of miles inland to investors who are buying up luxury condos near the University of Alabama’s football stadium.About 10 condominium projects are going up in and around Tuscaloosa, and builders are asking up to $1 million for units with granite countertops, king-size bathtubs and ‘Bama decor, including crimson couches and Bear Bryant wall art. While many of the buyers are Crimson Tide alumni or ardent football fans not entitled to any special Katrina-related tax breaks, many others are real estate investors who are purchasing the condos with plans to rent them out.

Regards,

Jim