I’m Having a Wonderful Allergy Attack

I’ve been having a rough few days. Some of my regular readers may notice I have not been posting with my usual regularity. I’m sure I’ll get better soon.

James Pilant

Hi Jolly (via AZCentral)

http://www.city-data.com/picfilesc/picc73461.php

Arizona has had many visitors from many parts of the world. Generally speaking we don’t think of Muslims in the wild West. But Hadji Ali was there. He was a living legend across the American West. He died in 1902 in Quartsite, Arizona.

From AZ Central -

He died almost 97 years ago, but his name is still immediately recognized here. His tombstone is the largest monument in the city. It’s topped by a copper camel and it attracts thousands of visitors every year.

 And he is the direct cause of Camelmania, a rare but harmless malady that descends upon the desert town Quartzsite every year. Those who happen to be in attendance may, if they choose, become one if its victims.

The person under consideration here came to this country as Hadji Ali, but when he died, most people knew him as Hi Jolly.

From Wikipedia -

As near as anyone can determine, he was born of Jordanian Bedouin parentage in Jordan in the region of Greater Syria around 1828.^[3] Hi Jolly, originally named Ḥājj ‘Alī, was an Ottoman citizen. He worked for the Ottoman armed forces and he was a breeder and trainer of camels. Some sources allege that he took the name Hadji Ali during his early life after making the pilgrimage to Mecca. The title hajji was given when, as a Muslim, he made the Hajj pilgrimage.^[4] Other sources report that his mother was of Greek origin and his father was Syrian.

Why the name, Hi Jolly? Well, then as now, Americans cannot pronounce names from that part of the world. I have always thought that Hi Jolly’s story would make a good Western television series. He traveled all across the Southwest in the 1850′s, lived through the Civil War, ran a shipping business, prospected for gold, married, had children,participated in Crook’s campaign against the Sioux – he lived the history of the Wild West from the 1850′s to the closing of the frontier in 1900.

It drives me crazy when Americans lump all the followers of Islam into one angry group of terrorists, when the fact is that there are a billion and a half Muslims divided into many factions often with little interest in the United States.

Hadji Ali became an American citizen and was here when it was tough going. I’m proud to live in a country that can claim such figures as Hi Jolly.

James Pilant

$6.64 Billion Damages Sought over Israeli Government and AIPAC Use of Stolen Classified US Trade Data (via Aletho News)

What a surprise! A union between commercial interests and the government, the only surprise being in this case it concerns another nation.

This is nasty. The government of Israel stole diplomatic information on trade and commerce and handed it over to their business community giving those businesses an enormous and illicit advantage.

When should the government cooperate with industry? We can argue over where and when it is ethical. But can we really argue with direct illegality? I don’t think so. It was wrong to use privileged information, not just because it was illegal but because it endangers all future international cooperation.

This is not the first time the government of Israel has acted as a rogue government. It will not be the last.

James Pilant

Grant F. Smith | IRmep | May 24, 2011 WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Today the Section 301 Committee of the US Trade Representative formally received a petition demanding $6.64 billion in compensation for US exporters. In 1984 US exporters were urged to submit business confidential data about their prices, market share, internal costs and market strategy to the International Trade Commission. The USTR guaranteed confidentiality and compiled the dat … Read More

via Aletho News

Typhoon Approaches Japan, May Threaten Nuclear Plant (via Losing Freedom)

I feel a “Charlie Brown” good grief coming on. Those reactors have been venting radioactive into the sea for weeks now. All those scattered control rods are now going to be rained on and a good number of them have plutonium in them. Does the fun never end? Does this disaster have a half-life as long as one of the isotopes it produces?

Let us hope and pray for a better outcome that is likely.

James Pilant

n this May 27, 2011 photo released by the International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, members of the IAEA fact-finding team in Japan visit the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant in Okuma, Fukushima prefecture, northern Japan. – AP Photo TOKYO: Japan’s crippled Fukushima nuclear plant is not fully prepared to deal with violent storms, officials admitted Saturday, as the country braced for Typhoon Songda to hit. The storm system was located about 30 … Read More

via Losing Freedom

JOIN NOW! 200,000 SIGNATURE DRIVE FOR ELIZABETH WARREN RECESS APPOINTMENT (via Livinglies’s Weblog)

Let’s get in there and put pressure on Obama to get this nomination done. The banks and the special interests have allied to block it. They are trying to kill the agency before any work can be done. Their crimes and unethical behavior will not be brought into the light without the agency.

Please go sign the petition. Elizabeth Warren will make a difference.

James Pilant

GET COMBO TITLE AND SECURITIZATION ANALYSIS – CLICK HERE EDITOR’S NOTE:  A recess appointment is one in which the President appoints someone during a congressional recess. I’m no expert on the details but I know that recess appointments have been extensively used, particularly by the Bush administration to get around the requirement of getting congressional approval. If Congress is not in session, the President makes the appointment because the p … Read More

via Livinglies’s Weblog

“The sad story of Jiangxi bomber, Qian Mingqi” (via thechinahotline)

Can bombing government offices be justified by crimes committed by public officials? I believe that there can be situations in which such actions can be justified. The crime must be as significant or more significant than the bombing itself. The target of the bomber must be the perpetrator of the crime not someone else. The bomber must have no other recourse.

This does not make it to that standard. Having your home stolen and demolished does not balance out against bombings. Bombings result in death or serious injury. Only blind luck and careful planning delay that inevitable outcome. Bombing public buildings is an excellent way to kill receptionists, janitors and low level functionaries without every getting close to anyone who did the actual harm.

James Pilant

Recently there's been a lot of talk about a man in Jiangxi province who detonated multiple bombs at government offices.  Shanghaiist has put together many of the details, giving us a picture of why he did it:  his home was demolished by the government, something that happens regularly to people across China when local officials are offered enough money by some development company.  It's been a source of true and growing anger among the populace, … Read More

via thechinahotline

Questioning Authority in Fukushima (via Jim Grisanzio)

I try to comment for a few paragraphs at least on each post but this writer has an edge I admire. He’s got this story nailed. Please read.

James Pilant

It’s good to see Fukushima citizens pummel Japanese government officials on the idiotic decision to increase acceptable levels of radiation for children — 20 times the previously permissible standard! That’s according to the New York Times today (link below). It’s just a stunning display of contempt for the health and well being of the people on the part of the government. The video link below from a few weeks ago is most interesting, though. Yo … Read More

via Jim Grisanzio

Jewish group fights for chaplain monument at Arlington (via CNN Belief Blog)

If four guys die tough and three get memorials, then the fourth should get on too.

(That may be my best summary of an article yet.)

I am for the monument. If you are as well, please let your congressman know.

James Pilant

By Eric Marrapodi, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor Arlington, Virginia (CNN) – Three German torpedoes ripped through the icy waters of the Atlantic off the coast of Greenland. On February 2, 1943, the USS Dorchester was transporting 902 U.S. servicemen to war. Only one torpedo hit, but it struck a deathblow — killing scores instantly and resetting the ship’s course to the bottom of the ocean. Amid the chaos, survivors later recalled, four U.S. Army ch … Read More

via CNN Belief Blog

Why I love the EFF (via Ben Gwalchmai)

Fortunately or unfortunately (I’m 54) that is very true. However, considering how much of the web I control, my death won’t liberate much.

James Pilant

via Ben Gwalchmai

Hank D and the Bee: Solar+Wind=____ (via Joe Mohr’s Cartoon Archive)

Whether you believe in solar or wind power, this is a positive, hopeful view of our future and I like those; I like them a lot.

About forty years ago, something went terribly wrong in the United States, it became the governmental fashion to avoid even attempting to solve real problems. Now, we just kick the can down the road and hope something good will happen. The Congress waits until enough contributions, enough lobbyists congregate, and then solves corporate money problems with no consideration of the wider effects.

Under these circumstances, it is hard to see a positive future. But this is a great country and it is still capable of great things.

James Pilant

Relevant info From Nobel Peace Laureates: “Renewable energy sources are one of the powerful keys to a peaceful future.” From NOVA: A Clean Energy Future? From Sourcewatch: Health Effects of Coal From Greenpeace: Anti Coal Activism Follow the rest of the Hank D and the Bee series at JoeMohrToons.com. For cartoon updates and other green goings-on, follow Joe on Twitter @GreenCartoons. … Read More

via Joe Mohr’s Cartoon Archive