Please tell me who the humans are who think this is justice:

*****
Federal officials are subverting California’s medical marijuana law
again, and California prosecutors are helping them do it.

After six months of pursuing the case, a California prosecutor
suddenly dropped state charges against a middle-aged couple who grew
marijuana for their own medicinal use. Then, as soon as the two were
deceived into thinking their troubles were over, federal officials –
invited by the state prosecutor — swarmed into the courtroom and
arrested the couple on federal charges.

This elaborate ruse was enacted for the sole purpose of getting around
California’s medical marijuana law. It is an outrage.

David Dean Davidson, 52, and Cynthia Barcelo Blake, 53, grew marijuana
on their own property for their own use. They had a doctor’s
recommendation to take marijuana for their illnesses. Yet they were
arrested, and Tehama County prosecutor Lynn Strom pursued a case
against them for six months. Then, in the courtroom, she suddenly
dropped the charges.

Thinking the case was dismissed, the couple’s lawyers were lured into
the judge’s chambers. While the lawyers were absent, the feds swarmed
into the courtroom and arrested Davidson and Blake on federal charges.
The lawyers were deprived of the opportunity to advise their clients
of their rights. If convicted, the couple now faces a mandatory
minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
*****

SOURCE: Marijuana Policy Project

FORMER TREASURY SECRETARY PAUL ONEILL SAYS INVASION OF IRAQ WAS PLANNED IN THE FIRST DAYS OF THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION LONG BEFORE 9/11, IN AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW SUNDAY ON “60 MINUTES”

The Bush Administration began laying plans for an invasion of Iraq including the use of American troops within days of President Bush’s inauguration in January of 2001, not eight months later after the 9/11 attacks as has been previously reported. That is what former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill says in his first interview about his time as a White House insider. O’Neill talks to Lesley Stahl in the interview, to be broadcast on 60 MINUTES Sunday, Jan. 11 (7:00-8:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

“From the very beginning, there was a conviction that Saddam Hussein was a bad person and that he needed to go,” he tells Stahl. “For me, the notion of pre-emption, that the U.S. has the unilateral right to do whatever we decide to do is a really huge leap,” says O’Neill.

O’Neill, fired by the White House for his disagreement on tax cuts, is the main source for an upcoming book, “The Price of Loyalty,” authored by Ron Suskind. Suskind says O’Neill and other White House insiders he interviewed gave him documents that show that in the first three months of 2001, the administration was looking at military options for removing Saddam Hussein from power and planning for the aftermath of Saddam’s downfall, including post-war contingencies like peacekeeping troops, war crimes tribunals and the future of Iraq’s oil. “There are memos,” Suskind tells Stahl, “One of them marked ’secret’ says ‘Plan for Post-Saddam Iraq.’” A Pentagon document, says Suskind, titled “Foreign Suitors For Iraqi Oilfield Contracts,” outlines areas of oil exploration. “It talks about contractors around the world from…30, 40 countries and which ones have what intentions on oil in Iraq,” Suskind says.

In the book, O’Neill is quoted as saying he was surprised that no one in a National Security Council meeting questioned why Iraq should be invaded. “It was all about finding a way to do it. That was the tone of it. The president saying ‘Go find me a way to do this,’” says O’Neill in the book.

Suskind also writes about a White House meeting in which he says the president seems to be wavering about going forward with his second round of tax cuts. “Haven’t we already given money to rich people,” Suskind says the president uttered, according to a nearly verbatim transcript of an Economic Team meeting he says he obtained from someone at the meeting, “Shouldn’t we be giving money to the middle?”

O’Neill, who was asked to resign because of his opposition to the tax cut, says he doesn’t think his tell-all account in this book will be attacked by his former employers as sour grapes. “I will be really disappointed if [the White House] reacts that way,” he tells Stahl. “I can’t imagine that I am going to be attacked for telling the truth.”

SOURCE: MATT DRUDGE, DRUDGEREPORT

At Denver International Airport, suspected terrorist Blake Dethlefs, 4, submits to a body search on his way to Disney World.

CREDIT: Steve Liss for TIME

There are actual, functioning humans who think this makes sense, including Elgin, Illinois assistant city attorney Rick Kozal.

Early next week, President Bush will announce an effort to put Americans to the Moon again, then off to Mars.

“Americans have more media access than ever - yet have never been more intellectually disengaged. I suspect it’s because almost everything coming down those pipes is candy.”

Civil libertarians have been scoffed at when suggesting that under the PATRIOT Act and other hysterical reactions to 9-11 would empower authorities to use these extraconstitutional powers to prosecute non-terrorism related crimes. Well, now, we see that they were right. Anyone outraged? No way, why?? There’s a new Friends episode on tonight!

An example of conservative consistency on the new Rush Limbaugh issue.

No, but that’d be nice. It’s reality, folks. I love the agreeable ignoramuses quoted in the article, too, especially Ronald Cohen of East Windsor, NJ, who (apparently) said:

“Anything they do is a good thing. I have no problems with it.”

Ronald (and millions of like-minded patriots such as Nathan Irby of Baltimore) will love those full body cavity searches and that brand spanking new in-home monitoring equipment. And hey, who needs sleep if “they” need to search your home at 3am? Or perhaps just take some stuff. Or even put you in jail without a hearing or a trial or access to a lawyer. Just on the off chance it might help them “fight terror.”

And why don’t these organizations stand up and say, “no?” Is it fear? Complacency? Both?

Not to be too bleak tonight, but when I read stuff like this I think I’m living in some nightmare world where the will of the individual has been nearly (and willingly) extinguished.

Rover Spirit is apparently facing south. While the rover is still hibernating, the images are flowing from the lander’s camera at this moment. I just saw (via live NASA feed with an annoying newswoman asking annoying questions…) the first panoramic image downloaded via Odyssey - and a polar perspective panorama of the craft and the landing site. Amazing stuff… and just the beginning.

Spirit lands on Mars… these guys at NASA JPL are totally amazing.