Insert a Trite Metaphor for a Corral #46

Posted on February 6, 2007 in Roundup

He’s not a household name yet, but the court martial of Ehren Watada may go far in impressing the public about the immorality and illegality of the war in Iraq. Yesterday, he pled “not guilty” to missing movements and two counts of conduct unbecoming an officer. This latter charge strikes me as capricious: is not the conduct of our armed forces in Iraq — not to mention our president — unbecoming our nation? (And sometimes dangerous even to our allies?) We know how this trial will go, but it will make its mark as surely as the execution of [[Saddam Hussein]] backfired. Repeat the name of [[Ehren Watada]]. It stands for conscience.

• A Test Case: Bill Gates may not look so good for prosecuting Alexander Ponosov who is accused of pirating software for use on his school’s computers. Mikhail Gorbachev has stepped in and asked Gates to grant Ponosov a reprieve. “Many people in Russia regard this scandalous case as trumped-up,” said Gorbachev, “launched on the initiative of Microsoft corporation to set a precedent”. Ponosov claims that the software came with the computers.
• Lost in Space: A U.S. astronaut used pepper spray on a rival for the affections of a shuttle commander. Navy Capt Lisa Nowak is now being held without bail.
• Wicked Stepmother? A British mother and stepmother challenges the sociobiological model that insists that stepmothers care only about their own offspring. “Rather than pushing my stepchildren away once my baby daughter was born, I felt increased affection for them. Previously I’d sometimes found them demanding, but I now looked on them with something approaching awe. My stepchildren could manage without being constantly suckled, tended and changed.”
• Suffer the Little Children: Experts are divided over whether Iraqi children’s war play is a healthy means of coping or a repetition that will lead to violent acting out in adulthood. They will become adults in a world where the term “moderate” means “less extreme”.
• The [[Laffer Curve]] is a Joke: If you believe we can balance the budget by keeping taxes low, then you must be a Republican.
• Among the Dead: Flooding in Jakarta, Indonesia has driven hundreds of thousands of refugees into the city’s cemeteries as others try to live in six inches or more of water.

If you find any articles worthy of mention in these roundups, send the URL to gazissax at best dot com. And feel free to comment!