OK, everyone knows that Cat Stevens (aka Yusuf Islam) was denied entry to the United States because of threat he posed to national security. Yes, it seems that the author of such hate-inspired songs as “Father and Son” and “Peace Train” who has consistently and publicly condemned terrorism done in the name of Islam has been added to the no-fly list because some of the millions of dollars he has donated to charities over the years might have gone to groups that support terrorism.

I’ve written about the No-Fly List before. One can’t say whether Mr. Islam belongs on the list because there is no fixed criteria for getting on it, no way to find out why someone has been added, and no official way to be removed from it.

Once alerted to the fact that this aging ex-pop star was coming to America, Homeland Security denied the plane permission to land in Washington DC and ordered it diverted to Maine, where it was met on the tarmac by armed federal agents covered by snipers.

What the hell are they putting in the water cooler over at Homeland Security? If you don’t want the guy in the country just turn him away at immigration. You don’t divert and entire flight and call out the SWAT team for this. This sort of over-reaction doesn’t inspire confidence in the judgment of this organization.

The legal fight surrounding Terri Schiavo is a strange one. In case you have not been following, fourteen years ago a severe heart attack left Terri brain damaged and in a vegetative state from which she will never recover, her husband instructed doctors to remove the feeding tube and let Terri die as she had requested while still conscious. Terri’s parents, however, had other ideas and sued to keep her alive. The courts ruled that the feeding tube could be removed, and it was

Now this kind of drama plays itself out all the time, but what makes this unique is that Governor Jeb Bush then hastily had legislation passed that gave him the power to prevent doctors from removing the feeding tubes or order them replaced in such circumstances regardless of the patient’s wishes. As expected, there was a lot of moralizing about statements about the sanctity of life.

Today the Florida Supreme Court ruled Bush’s law unconstitutional, and now several more years of legal wrangling are expected.

What I really don’t understand is why the people who are the most vocal opponents of “the right to die” are usually the strongest proponents of the death penalty. Florida, in fact, leads the nation in executions. I simply can’t understand the logic by which killing people who do not wish to die is a good thing, while killing those who do wish to die is wrong.

Were not supposed to get tornadoes in Virginia. A few little presents from hurricane Ivan ripped though Northern Virginia. You could actually see the funnel clouds and trees torn up by Route 66.

According the to the news, a large one formed around Routes 29 and 66 and then headed west — straight for the trailer parks. I’ve never quite understood the affinity tornadoes have for mobile homes, other than to make them truly mobile, that is.

I love right wing Christian talk radio, and I’m learning so much during my stay here. For example, I never knew that Fox News was “mindless liberal-controlled news media promoting their left-wing agenda.” I also learned that “Jesus is a Republican.” I didn’t even know he had citizenship. I wonder where he’s registered.

This stuff makes Japanese TV commercials look cerebral.

Reporting from Winchester, VA …

I had forgotten what a nice little town Winchester is. I went downtown
today to register for my absentee ballot. City Hall has a sign on the
door saying “Shirt and shoes required.”

Last night I went to my twenty-year high school reunion. I almost decided not to go because I expected it to be a night of men comparing cars and watches and women trying to determine who was best defying the ravages of time and gravity.

Fortunately it was nothing like that. Everyone was simply and genuinely happy to see each other and to catch up. It was a blast to see how old friends are doing. We have a bona-fide rock star, a state judge, most people leading perfectly normal and happy lives, and me kicking around Japan starting companies. I’m sure survivor bias comes into play to a degree. Someone living under a bridge in Southeast D.C. would not have made it to the reunion, but I prefer to think that everyone is doing well.

Even after 20-years of American fast food, most of the class has somehow avoided being super-sized. The only odd thing is that there were decidedly more blondes at the reunion than there were at graduation, but no matter. I was glad to see that many of the girls who were babes in high school are still babes, and a few that were geeks somehow managed to become babes along the way. And just like old times, these girls remain inaccessible. Now, of course, because they are married with children, and back then because I was a complete dork. It’s nice that some things never change.

We danced until the early hours to shamelessly out-of date music, and generally behaved like the “old” people we made fun of when we were in high school. Oh well, what did we know?

I got lucky!

The plane was over-booked, and I got bumped up to first class. Hot damn! Bigger seats, better food, cuter stewardesses, and a two-hour shorter flight time. Well, maybe not, but what a difference! Instead of having a shrink-wrapped, microwaved meal heaved across two other passengers in the general direction of my tray, I ate decent food with a linen tablecloth served on real china and silverware — except of course a plastic knife. ANA takes this counter-terrorism stuff seriously, you know. Come to think of it, I would wager that an enterprising individual could do a lot of damage with this metal fork.

The stewardess seemed genuinely disappointed when I declined her offer to try the chocolates and the brandy they were bringing out. “Oh, but you should try one. There’re really good.” she pouted.

I’m enjoying this while I can. No doubt I’ll be back in cattle class for the return trip.

I’m off to Washington DC, my old hometown, for a week or so. It’s been over two years since I’ve been there. Just a short little 14-hour shuttle hop and I’m there.

At first I thought this was a poor attempt at liberal satire, but it’s real. The people that came up with this, Metrospy, actually support Bush and seem to think this Frisbee will convince others to support him as well.

If this was satire, it would be a bit over the top. I mean come on, the American soldier as an undead zombie advancing through the flames? The Orwellian slogans? As parody, it would be uncreative and simplistic. As reality, it is mind-boggling.

In case you can’t read the fine print it says, “Pansies, hippies, dirt bags a freaks, shut up and stay out of the way!” Hey, that’s pretty tough talk coming from someone holding a Frisbee!

I’m having some difficulty imagining the zombie-soldier Frisbee actually being used. Let’s give it a try.

Two young neo-cons in love decide to go to the park and play Frisbee (a suspiciously lefty, liberal, hippy activity, if you ask me). While she lovingly packs a picnic lunch of dolphin sandwiches on genetically modified white bread, he places the zombie-soldier Frisbee in the back of the car as the perfect accessory to a romantic springtime date.

Hummm. No. That doesn’t quite work for me. Let’s try another.

Two jackbooted thugs go to the park to play Frisbee… No. No, that one is not working either.

I don’t understand how the self-styled “patriots” who sell this thing can possibly think it conveys a positive image.

Interaction with the Japanese legal system is like interaction with a gun. You are either on the good end or the bad end. There is nothing in the middle. And just like a gun, there is almost nothing you can do to ensure you never end up on the bad end.

Mohamed Himu, a foreign businessman living in Japan, was arrested on suspicion of being an Al-Qaeda cell leader, and held incommunicado for seven weeks while the police interrogated him and the media speculated frequently and wildly about the evil he had done. His name and his company’s name became household words.

Full story
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?fl20040831zg.htm

Unfortunately, the police got the wrong guy. This poor guy has nothing to do with Al-Qaeda or any other terrorist group. However, since his exoneration and release was barely mentioned by the press and not explained by the police, he is out of business. His suppliers and business partners wont even take his phone calls.

The war on terrorism has both Japan and America rather cavalierly ruining the lives of innocent people. I pray we are not sliding towards another Red Scare when accusation is considered proof and the only way to ensure you are not accused is to accuse the other guy first.

It’s a shame, but it seems innocent until proven guilty is a very hard concept for most people to support on any but the most superficial level.

OK, I admit it. I’m not linked in, plugged in, wired in, or even clued in.

Joining one of these social networking sites is like going for a free personality test at your local Scientology office. It all seems like harmless fun at the time, but it can have unforeseen consequences.

At first LinkedIn was fun. I caught up with a lot of people I had not seen in years, and I had no problems forwarding on requests of one friend asking for an introduction to another.

The problem is when a friend of a friend asks me to forward contact information to a friend of some other friend. There is a good reason these four-places-removed introductions do not occur in real life. If I have no clue who two people are, it is hard to care deeply whether or not they ever get together.

You can’t ignore the request since the system will hound you incessantly. You can’t decline the request because not only would that be rude, but the system requires an explanation of your rudeness which is then archived forever. You can’t even pass on the request without adding some inane comment of your own.

Please, I don’t want to be one of the cool kids anymore. How can I make it stop?