. . .

When Barack Obama nominated Hillary Clinton as secretary of state, he made her appointment contingent on her husband revealing the contributors to his foundation in order to avoid any questions about potential conflicts of interest. The foundation subsequently disclosed its donors– after refusing to list them for a decade– and it turned out they included many “governments, corporations and billionaires with their own interests in U.S. foreign policy”. . . .

Not since endorsing horse slaughter have I received so many angry emails from readers of this blog as I have in response to my recent posts about the lamentable American soccer team. Really, American soccer fans need to lighten up; the anti-horse-slaughter crowd had a much better sense of humor. Also, fans might want to channel some of their energy and passion into more enlightened causes than soccer, such as ending world hunger and homelessness. . . .

From Politico: . . .

Because of an editing error, “The Less You Know” [Readings, June], an abridged transcript of a December 19, 2005, telephone conversation between Bernard Madoff and executives of the Fairfield Greenwich Group (FGG), mistakenly suggested that FGG permitted Madoff to remove funds directly from its accounts. The edited transcript also erroneously implied that Madoff was operating FGG’s fund. Furthermore, the Fairfield Greenwich Group has advised Harper’s Magazine that it was at the time of the conversation fully cooperating with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and that it notified the SEC about the phone call and all aspects of the conversation with Madoff. We regret the errors. . . .

The Daily Show and the Colbert Report were both unmissable last night. . . .

Yesterday I posted an item describing a picture (sent to me by several sources) of former President Bill Clinton posing for the camera with Gulnara Karimova, daughter of the dictator of Uzbekistan and a woman widely accused of corruption and thuggery. I didn’t post the picture because I wasn’t sure who owned the rights, but a reader emailed me to say that I could find a copy at Gulnara’s personal website, so here it is. (Incidentally, for a taste of just how vile Gulnara is, spend a few moments on her site.) . . .

I received dozens of replies to yesterday’s post about why I hate the American soccer team and was so happy to see it seize defeat from the jaws of victory in the Confederation Cup final against Brazil. The replies were overwhelmingly negative and a few were nasty (”You are embarrassing to our nation, the sport and journalism”). I’ll publish a few below. Thanks to everyone for writing, even Matt Horton, who sent that last comment (and I published the most civilized sentence of his tirade). . . .

Often enough, commentators talk about the prospect that some foreign prosecutors will open criminal cases against Americans involved in some of the Bush Administration’s criminal enterprises, such as the operation of the torture black sites. But such cases are not speculative. They are already pending, and the most advanced of them is now coming close to the conclusion of the trial phase. In Milan, Italian prosecutors are pursuing kidnapping and assault charges against 26 American officials—CIA officers, diplomats, and a military attaché—in connection with the seizure and torture of a radical Islamic cleric known as Abu Omar. According to some observers, the case will conclude by the end of the summer. . . .

From the New York Times: . . .

Two trusted sources have sent me a picture of former President Bill Clinton posing for the camera with a woman who the sources say is Gulnara Karimova, daughter of the dictator of Uzbekistan, one of the world’s worst regimes. The picture is undated but was clearly taken recently. I haven’t published it because I don’t know who owns the rights, but I have compared it with photographs of Gulnara on the web and it certainly appears to be her. . . .

I used to work at the Los Angeles Times and still read it online regularly, although I rarely see a hard copy. I was just in Los Angeles for a week and was surprised to see that — despite Sam Zell’s best efforts to destroy it — it’s still an exceedingly good newspaper. . . .

Americans almost always interpret international sports victories as demonstrations of national superiority, so it was wonderful to watch the U.S. soccer team’s massive choke in the Confederation Cup final against Brazil. Ahead 2-0 at the half, the Americans watched helplessly as Brazil scored three goals in the second half to win. (Actually four, but the referee blew a call and failed to credit what I, watching the game on television, could see was an obvious goal by Kaka.) . . .

From the Wall Street Journal: . . .

Iraq held its first National Sovereignty Day in honor of the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraqi cities. A celebration was held with poets and singers in Baghdad's al-Zawraa park and former Vice President Dick Cheney said that he was worried that the withdrawal would “waste all the tremendous sacrifice that has gotten us to this point.” Two hundred Iraqis were killed or wounded in the last ten days of June. CNN The Washington Times A federal court judge in New York City sentenced Bernard Madoff to 150 years in prison, calling Madoff “extraordinarily evil” and noting that none of the financier's family members, friends, or associates had pleaded for leniency on his behalf. NY Times Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was exiled to Costa Rica by the military as part of a coup d'etat under the direction of the Honduran Supreme Court; he was replaced by Roberto Michelletti, who took power in what he called “an absolutely legal transition process.” BBC News Steve Jobs returned to Apple with a new liver. NY Times Google CEO Eric Schmidt said that attempts by governments to censor the Internet were futile, and that governments censored “at their own peril.” Telegraph The New York Times revealed that, for seven months, it had sought to keep news of the kidnapping of one of its reporters by the Taliban out of the media, and had worked closely with Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales to suppress news of the kidnapping. The New York Times Spanish fertility researchers advised professional cyclists to freeze their sperm, BBC News and the sheriff of Los Angeles County was considering whether to distribute condoms to all L.A. jail inmates, rather than just the gay ones. LA Times . . .

The chief judge of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals acted preemptively in an apparent effort to head off challenges to his colleague, torture lawyer turned judge Jay Bybee. On Friday, public interests groups in California filed a judicial misconduct complaint against Bybee based on his focal role in creating legal memoranda designed to protect torturers against criminal prosecution. Judge Alex Kozinski handed down a decision stating that judges of the court of appeals could not be held accountable for any crimes they may have committed before they came on the bench—at least not through the court’s own internal disciplinary mechanisms. Bybee had prepared the torture memoranda for the Department of Justice while his nomination to the federal bench was in the process of being cleared, and some critics have seen evidence of a quid pro quo arrangement under which he prepared the memoranda in order to get the appointment as a federal judge. Bybee is now the subject of a criminal investigation in the Spanish Audiencia Nacional—making him the first American federal appeals court judge to continue on the bench after becoming the subject of a criminal proceeding. John Roemer of the Daily Journal reports:(subscription required) . . .

Verde que te quiero verde. Verde viento. Verdes ramas. El barco sobre la mar y el caballo en la montaña. Con la sombra en la cintura ella sueña en su baranda, verde carne, pelo verde, con ojos de fría plata. Verde que te quiero verde. Bajo la luna gitana, las cosas le están mirando y ella no puede mirarlas. . . .

Vita brevis, sensus ebes, negligentiæ torpor et inutiles occupationes nos pancula scire permittent. Et aliquotients scita excutit ab animo per temporum frandatrix scientiæ et inimica memoriam præceps oblivio. . . .

Dear Michael, . . .

. . .

Why was Paul K. Charlton, the man appointed by George W. Bush in 2001 as U.S. attorney in Arizona, fired from his job in the immediate wake of the 2006 election? Charlton was pursuing a corruption investigation into G.O.P. Congressman Rick Renzi. Karl Rove and his acolytes in the White House were deeply concerned that information about the investigation could cost the G.O.P. a vital seat in the House. That fact seems clearly to have played a major role in the decision to fire Charlton. But it seems that political meddling with the Renzi case was not limited to Charlton’s firing. . . .

While the collapse of the Justice Department’s prosecution of former Alaska Senator Ted Stevens and the criminal probe targeting the Department’s senior prosecutors responsible for political cases have gained some recent attention, the story of prosecutorial misconduct in high-profile political cases over the last eight years remains largely unexplored. On Friday, June 26, a forum in Washington will focus attention on these cases and will revive the call for Congressional probes and an internal accounting within the Justice Department. . . .

Remember when former Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey insisted—in response to Congressional calls for accountability for the torture lawyers–that the notion that attorneys could be criminalized for writing a legal opinion was “absurd”? Of course, those who seriously tracked the issue recognized that Mukasey’s remarks were not serious. The Justice Department in fact regularly prosecuted lawyers for writing opinions, when it reckoned that the opinions were part of a larger conspiracy to commit a crime. Why would that same reasoning not apply to the case of the torture lawyers? In fact it would, and in fact, Congress expressly created a crime—conspiracy to torture—which covers it. The New York Times has reported on another recent case in which a group of tax lawyers and accountants and a foreign bank conspired to introduce a tax shelter product that they offered to their clients. The lawyers participated by issuing legal opinions, as the Justice Department stresses in its own press release covering the matter. So why is this not a perfect precedent justifying the criminal prosecution of the torture team? Major distinctions between the cases—torture is a vastly more serious crime than games with tax shelters, and the tax shelter case turns on issues of tax law as to which reasonable minds might differ, unlike the torture case—cut in favor of a prosecution of the torture lawyers. The decisive difference may simply be that the United States Department of Justice holds its own attorneys to a far lower standard of accountability than it holds ordinary attorneys. Ask the lawyers who head the Department’s own Public Integrity Section. They’re now the targets of a special prosecutor investigating their criminal misconduct. It’s revealing that the criminal probe into the misconduct of federal prosecutors in political cases occurred by special action of a federal court, not as a result of any internal action of the Justice Department itself. When complaints were brought to the attention of the Justice Department it consistently reacted the same way, sweeping them under the carpet. Often enough, we have to ask on which side of the law enforcement divide the Justice Department stands. The answer often disappoints. . . .

In response to my post about whether or not Jesus is white, in which I mention that some white supremacists are converting to Odinism and Asatru in order to avoid the inherent contradiction of worshiping Jesus who was most surely...

Why I still like Ron Paul . July 3rd, 2009 10:35 am · 0 comments. Because he's one of the few, if not the only, in either party with the cojones to write this: Generations of conservatives followed the great advice of our Founding ...

Ron Paul News. News for the Revolution. Friday, July 3, 2009. The Banality of Evil Applies to Everyone. -Jacob G. Hornberger. One of the aspects of the Iraq War that has fascinated me the most is how CIA agents and U.S. soldiers could ...

Ron Paul News. News for the Revolution. Friday, July 3, 2009. Water Boarding and the Future State of Torture. -Aaron Emery. America has been standing on shaky moral ground for a very long time. A country that was once viewed as the ...

Legislators are sick of not knowing what's going on inside Bernanke's fortress, especially as the Fed becomes further enmeshed in the nation's fiscal policy. Paul's little bill has become emblematic of a larger movement, one that could ...

Ron Paul's legislative history is a lesson in principled failure. Among the bills he has co-sponsored: ending U.S. cooperation with the United Nations, a repeal of antitrust law "to restore the inherent benefits of the market economy," ...

This Wednesday afternoon, Ron Paul joined John McManus, David Bruckner, Mary Ruwart and Jim Babka for an insightful discussion of the latest political and.

Ron Paul , Deflation, Campaign for Liberty, Liberty Caucus, RonPaul.org, Austrian Economics, Inflation, End the Fed, housing bust, recession, stock market, crash, China, Russia, Europe, Euro, recession, gold, silver, economics, War, ...

"I support Ron Paul for president because we share the same goal, that of overturning Roe v. Wade," McCorvery said. " Ron Paul doesn't just talk about being pro-life, he acts on it…He has never wavered on the issue of being pro-life and ...

It's been one week since 10-year-old McCleary resident Lindsey Baum disappeared.Photos of Lindsey

The surprise announcement stirred speculation that she would focus on a bid for the 2012 Republican nomination for president.

Filmmaker Jason Reid hopes his documentary will lead to some revelations about why Seattle lost its NBA team.

The blaze disrupted TV and radio stations and affected a server farm that provides service to multiple Web sites.

Two Snohomish County sheriff's deputies, responding to a domestic violence, say the man refused their orders. Incident started with 911 call

The KING 5 Investigators update the case of a little foster child nicknamed Poca. State of Injustice

When Candice Tarbert's home caught fire, she jumped from the roof to survive.She lost everything

Even though fewer people will travel on the holiday weekend this year, millions of people will be on the roads, in the air and taking ferries.

Detectives say it's likely 10-year-old McCleary resident Lindsey Baum was abducted.Photos of Lindsey

Authorities say 31 people are now under arrest. due to the 14-month investigation into meth and cocaine distribution.

The boar war that was averted on San Juan Island Los Angeles Times The history books don't say whether the dead pig had a name. There's also no mention of whether the ... and more »

Examiner.com Scenic flight on a seaplane combined with whale watching makes a ... Examiner.com Kenmore Air has teamed up with San Juan Safaris to offer a great day trip to the San Juans that includes a scenic round trip flight to Friday Harbor aboard ... and more »

San Juan Islands offer top rate fireworks show Seattle Post Intelligencer will be offered at the Port of Friday Harbor . The Friday Harbor Fireworks Show, with a 100 shot finale in honor of the town's Centennial, is scheduled for ... and more »

Rhiana, daughter of Ken and Suzanne Franklin of Friday Harbor , will perform from 12:45-1:30 p.m. and 3:30-4 p.m. She will be accompanied by Bob Leytze on accoustic guitar and Cecil DeMeerleer on bass. Doug Miller, event producer and CEO ...

A Lummi canoe will arrive on Friday Harbor's shore Friday, noon, for the beginning of three days of participation in the town's centennial Fourth of July celebration. The arrival and welcoming ceremony are public events. ...

At 644 feet 2 inches, it is believed to be the largest cruise ship ever to anchor in Friday Harbor waters, Harbormaster Tami Hayes said. The ship has a beam (width) of 97 feet 2 inches and a draft (the part of the boat that's submerged) ...

We appreciate Airlift Northwest recognizing this need by stationing a crew at Friday Harbor for the third consecutive year. This is a very positive relationship that provides superior service for people on the islands who experience a ...

Examiner.com Luxury residential ship, The World, to drop anchor in Friday ... Examiner.com Cruise ship, The World, set to call in at Friday Harbor July 5th and 6th. The luxury residential ship, The World, will be dropping anchor in Friday Harbor ... and more »

Holiday closures for Clallam and Jefferson counties Peninsula Daily nFerries: The ferries MV Coho and the Victoria Express between Port Angeles and Victoria and the Victoria Express to Friday Harbor , PS Express between Port ... and more »

Massive cruise ship condominium to visit Friday Harbor . by Tim Flanagan on July 1, 2009. The story comes to us from Captain Richard Rodriguez's BitterEnd blog. He calls it a sign of the coming apocalypse. ...

FrIday Harbor , San juan Islands. On San Juan Island, you can see Canada. I had to take a ferry there. I only stayed there one night but I mowed their lawn for them. they have 7 acres so it can be difficult to do it. ...

The Friday Harbor Kiwanis Club meets every Thursday at noon downstairs at the Legion. 0:5675 1:Meeting: Friday Harbor Kiwanis Club 2:

Examiner.com Fourth of July activities in the San Juans Examiner.com Here's a sampling of events in the island: 4th of July Parade - Friday Harbor starts in downtown Friday Harbor at 10:30am. Antique Fire Apparatus-Car Show ... This week in the San Juans, events on Orcas, San Juan and Lopez ... Examiner.com all 3 news articles »

These photos of the Friday Harbor Collection really should be hanging in an art gallery and preserved forever, don't you think? Sonia's gift amazes me. She opened the package at the post office and impulsively drove to a local garden ...

Day Six. A few pictures & a couple of anecdotes. She downloaded her pictures and sat beside him with the computer. Please note, He is a BOTANIST/oceanographer. She says to him, “See these pink flowers?” He says, “Hmmm. ...

Waiting for a ferry at Orcas Island and pondering our incompetence Seattle Times We've been sitting here, living on Island Time, waiting for a ride to Friday Harbor , for four hours. But who's counting? About two hours after taking my ... and more »

The San Juan Islands are a great place to celebrate the 4th of July. Why not ride the passenger ferry from Port Angeles to Friday Harbor to experience the.

Examiner.com Sail from Friday Harbor on the tall ship The Adventuress Examiner.com The much-loved tall ship, The Adventuress, will be in Friday Harbor on Sunday, June 28th for a three-hour public sailing from 1 pm to 4 pm. ... and more »

Examiner.com Friday Harbor Homeschool Field Trip Examiner.com Last week we visited Friday Harbor with a group of 30 other homeschooling families. We travel annually and last year we were in Portland. ... and more »

Seattle-to- Friday Harbor ferry route in jeopardy Seattle Times There might be no private foot ferry between Seattle and Friday Harbor this summer, pending the outcome of a state hearing Tuesday. ... and more »

Truly, another beautiful evening enjoying the serenity of the San Juan Islands ! Thanks- -Jaclyn, naturalist. Whales and Wildlife Are Our Only Business. ©. posted by Whale Watching Naturalist at 10:13 AM ...

Canoes regularly plied the marine highway between the San Juan Islands and what is now Canada and mainland Washington state. Communities on the islands had different names then — p'kweekh-EEL-wuhlh, WH'LEHL-kluh, EH-leh-luhng, SMUH-yuh. ...

Airlift Northwest will again base one of its helicopters at Friday Harbor Airport this summer to expedite emergency services for residents and visitors in the San Juan Islands . The helicopter will be at the airport during the day on ...

National Independence Day Parade – Washington D.C. If you’re into large crowds then viva the

FrIday Harbor, San juan Islands . On San Juan Island, you can see Canada. I had to take a ferry there. I only stayed there one night but I mowed their lawn for them. they have 7 acres so it can be difficult to do it. ...

Friday Harbor becomes a time machine with presentations, walking tours and the historical museum's auction · New foundation for historic 1894 King Farmhouse · San Juan Islands Museum of Art opens in new location May 25 ...

Pink! . .

June 27, 2009  How many of you have a front porch with a some comfortable chairs? I know it is the

J. R. sailing Clipper After an uneventful morning, I found myself simply going with the motions of r

June 22, 2009 A couple days later we were off again – this time S/V CUTTHROAT is cruising with

Living in the area there are so many natural hidden treasures at your finger tips. So many natural retreats to take in the beautiful scenery this area has.

San Juan Islands . Six more jobs targeted in pending $1 million budget cut · JOURNAL OF THE SAN JUANS Jun 22 2009, 10:50 AM · UPDATED; 2009 Eastsound Solstice Parade · ISLANDS SOUNDER Jun 20 2009, 1:06 PM · UPDATED; Oh... the places they ...

What constitutes great customer service? It’s a terrific question to ask friends or colleagues. Ev

I'm planning on taking 5 or 6 days to bike the San Juan Islands . Does anyone know of a book or a website that can give me a trip plan. I'm looking for the best routes to take so I can tour the islands on the best roads. ...

Fort Stevens was built in 1863…during the Civil War.  It remained in service until 1947…

The summer ferry schedule starts on Sunday, June 21 and when the seasons turn warmer, Pacific Northwest waters glisten and dance, and the inviting sea mist beacons travelers to the San Juan Islands . The ferry-serviced islands in ...

I painted again today… and finished a small piece.  (yay!)  I’m quite pleased with mysel

  Summer 1987     “Wings” Under Sail San Juan Islands We chartered “Win

Jill shared with us an excerpt from an article by David R. Carlin. The article is in reference to Pr

This pocket-sized coupon book offers 136 coupons for entertainment bargains in Seattle. Any way you

George Washington Inn’s webcam has been added to an interesting Swiss website that will take t

For the weekend, Mar, Sallie, Fede, BK & I headed up north for the Tour de Lopez bike ride once

Chinook salmon fishing circa 1900 (North Cascades National Park archives).

Yesterday Bernie and I made it outside for a nice hike. We did a large loop walking on both dirt roa

The San Juan Islands hold a new place in my heart after moving here from Bar Harbor , Maine. Bar Harbor and the San Juan Islands are listed in the top ten places to kay ak in the USA, but I would say they are so far my two favorite ...

1. The Anglo-Zanzibar War: the shortest war in history, only 40 minutes long Fought between the Unit

Grace .

  Yesterday we went for a hike up to Pine and Cedar Lakes in the Chuckanut Mountains. I chose it fo

Travel writer and ecologist Don Pitcher knows the best way to experience the San Juan Islands, from