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Bush pardons 14 and commutes 2 prison sentences

WASHINGTON – President George W. Bush has granted pardons to 14 individuals and commuted the prison sentences of two others convicted of misdeeds ranging from drug offenses to tax evasion, from wildlife violations to bank embezzlement, The Associated Press learned Monday.

The new round of White House pardons are Bush's first since March and come less than two months before he will end his presidency. The crimes committed by those on the list also include offenses involving hazardous waste, food stamps, and the theft of government property.

Bush has been stingy during his time in office about handing out such reprieves.

Including these actions, he has granted a total of 171 and eight commutations. That's less than half as many as Presidents Clinton or Reagan issued during their time in office. Both were two-term presidents.

On the latest pardon list were:

_Leslie Owen Collier of Charleston, Mo. She was convicted for unauthorized use of a pesticide and violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.

_Milton Kirk Cordes of Rapid City, S.D. Cordes was convicted of conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act, which prohibits importation into the country of wildlife taken in violation of conservation laws.

_Richard Micheal Culpepper of Mahomet, Ill., who was convicted of making false statements to the federal government.

_Brenda Jean Dolenz-Helmer of Fort Worth, Texas, for reporting or helping cover up a crime.

_Andrew Foster Harley of Falls Church, Va. Harley was convicted of wrongful use and distribution of marijuana and cocaine.

_Obie Gene Helton of Rossville, Ga., whose offense was unauthorized acquisition of food stamps.

_Carey C. Hice Sr. of Travelers Rest, S.C., who was convicted of income tax evasion.

_Geneva Yvonne Hogg of Jacksonville, Fla., convicted of bank embezzlement.

_William Hoyle McCright Jr. of Midland, Texas, who was sentenced for making false entries, books, reports or statements to a bank.

_Paul Julian McCurdy of Sulphur, Okla., who was sentenced for misapplication of bank funds.

_Robert Earl Mohon Jr. of Grant, Ala., who was convicted of conspiracy to distribute marijuana.

_Ronald Alan Mohrhoff of Los Angeles, who was convicted for unlawful use of a telephone in a narcotics felony.

_Daniel Figh Pue III of Conroe, Texas, convicted of illegal treatment, storage and disposal of a hazardous waste without a permit.

_Orion Lynn Vick of White Hall, Ark., who was convicted of aiding and abetting the theft of government property.

Bush also commuted the prison sentences of John Edward Forte of North Brunswick, N.J., and James Russell Harris of Detroit, Mich. Both were convicted of cocaine offenses.

Under the Constitution, the president's power to issue pardons is absolute and cannot be overruled.

Some high-profile individuals, such as Michael Milken, are seeking a pardon on securities fraud charges. Two politicians convicted of public corruption — former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Calif., and four-term Democratic Louisiana Gov. Edwin W. Edwards — are asking Bush to shorten their prison terms.

One hot topic of discussion related to pardons is whether Bush might decide to issue pre-emptive pardons before he leaves office to government employees who authorized or engaged in harsh interrogations of suspected terrorists in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Some constitutional scholars and human rights groups want the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama to investigate possible war crimes.

If Bush were to pardon anyone involved, it would provide protection against criminal charges, particularly for people who were following orders or trying to protect the nation with their actions. But it would also be highly controversial.

At the same time, Obama advisers say there is little — if any — chance that his administration would bring criminal charges.

COME SEE SCROOGE THE MUSICAL

J.P. Hayes is as honest as we like to think we are

By Jay Busbee

The true test of a man's character is what he does when no one is watching. John Wooden said that, or maybe it was Spider-Man. Whatever, it still holds true; being noble and upstanding is easy enough when you've got people watching, but when you're alone with yourself, when you could do the wrong thing (or avoid the right thing) and get away with it, well -- that's when you find out what kind of person you are.

By that standard, then, J.P. Hayes is among the best that sports has to offer. He played a nonconforming ball for a single hole of the second stage of Q School last weekend. He realized it more than a day after the "violation," called it on himself, and thus disqualified himself from Q School ... with some severe, career-altering effects down the line.

So how did this go down? So easily, you'll cringe:

On his 12th hole of the first round at Deerwood Country Club last Wednesday, Hayes' caddie reached into his golf bag, pulled out a ball and flipped it to Hayes, who missed the green with his tee shot. He then chipped on and marked his ball. It was then that Hayes realized the ball was not the same model Titleist with which he had started his round. That was in violation of the one-ball rule, which stipulates that a player must play the same model throughout a round.

Okay, so, two-stroke penalty, no big deal. He recovered well enough to put himself in position to finish in the top 20 and advance to the third and final round of Q School. The top 25 finishers in that round, plus ties, earn exempt status for the entire 2009 PGA season. So, breathe deep, think about how close you came to disaster, then tee it up for the next round.

Only, while Hayes was breathing deep, he realized something else -- not only did he play the wrong ball, he might have played a ball that wasn't even approved for play at all.

"It was a Titleist prototype, and somehow it had gotten into my bag," he said. "It had been four weeks since Titleist gave me some prototype balls and I tested them. I have no idea how or why it was still in there ... I called an official in Houston that night and said, 'I think I may have a problem. He said they'd call Titleist the next day. I pretty much knew at that point I was going to be disqualified."

Now, the easy move here would be to either do nothing or blame the caddy. Hayes rose above both those temptations, putting all the blame on himself and asserting that everybody else on the PGA in his shoes would have done the exact same thing. We'll never know, but let's hope so.

Also, Hayes already has more than $7 million in career earnings, so it's not like he'd consigned himself to another year working the counter at the Quik Stop. But still, knowing you're taking yourself out of the running for a year of career stability and wealth takes some serious situational ethics.

Would you do it?

Really?

Star Trek Trailer III

Star Trek Trailer II

I wanted to put an extra blog in after putting the trailer up. I'm a huge fan of STAR TREK and I've been more than a little skeptical with this latest edition to the Movie series. But I have to say after seeing the this trailer, my heart is beating a little bit faster!!!!

Can't wait till it comes out.

Star Trek Trailer

Would You Do Anything For Your Kid?

The Last Letter by Michael W. Smith

Sitting alone up in your empty room
In the stillness of the night
Where all the many dreams that used to carry you
Are no longer in sight
You put your feelings down in black and white
A sad, disturbing reply
That you don't really want to face another night
So you're saying goodbye
But do you know that you're saying goodbye
To a lifetime

Chorus:
Well, Ive got to tell you there's another way
To be free to be complete
But, you've got to make it thru another day
And deny your own defeat (don't give in)
And I'm here to tell you there's another way
To consume a hungry heart
All the love you need is just a prayer away
Let it in to where you are

You've made it to the edge of seventeen
Thinking now you've reached the end of the line
But there's so much of life that you have never seen
Now you wont have the time
You say that you don't hear the music play
So you're ready to give up the dance
Now that nothing really matters anyway
Oh, you give up your chance
But do you know that you give up your chance
At a lifetime

Chorus:
Well, Ive got to tell you there's another way
To be free--to be complete
But you've got to make it thru another day
And deny your own defeat (don't give in)
And I'm here to tell you there's another way
To consume a hungry heart
Jesus is waiting just a prayer away
Let him in to where you are

You put your feelings down in black and white
A sad, disturbing reply
That you don't really want to face another night
So you're saying goodbye
But do you know that you're saying goodbye
To a lifetime


*Blogger Note: This is one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite albums. I hope you enjoy.

Moose Against Palin

Wasilla looks to Palin's future

From NBC's Peter Alexander

WASILLA, Alaska -- At the Wasilla Sports Complex in Sarah Palin's hometown, it was the first -- and only -- loud applause of the night when Sen. John McCain mentioned Palin's name. Otherwise, the room was silent and stunned. A line-up of rock bands took turns on stage, but few people here are in a festive mood.

"You know when the next campaign starts?" A clearly disappointed Phyllis Robertson said. "Tomorrow."

Here, the pride for Wasilla's former mayor is tremendous. Many supporters came tonight wearing the same updo the governor has made famous. Vendors are selling T-shirts with slogans like "Palin: She Doesn't Run with the Pack, She Shoots Them" and "My Pit Bull Wears Lipstick."

One pin reads: "Palin 2012."

Kelly Caraway of Wasilla brought her daughter to witness history -- though not the outcome she had hoped for.

"From the beginning, I said it would be good for Sarah no matter what happened," she explained. "I'm glad we get to keep her in Alaska for a while, but we know it's not forever."

* Blogger Comments: NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. Can I say it enough times? NO!!!!

Change has come to America

President Obama...

Though I'm jumping up and down this evening, in obvious excitement, I've also indicated that I'm leary of making too much out of this. Basically, even though we see President Elect Obama as President-Elect, the electoral college does not meet until December 13th and they're vote is what actually gets counted, not ours. There are laws in most states that force the electoral college board to vote for the candidate - they can still defy the odds and vote a different way.

I won't make a Yippy Skippy dance until December 14th.

Top Ten Reasons Why John McCain Will Lose This Election

1. George W. Bush

2. The Iraq war

3. The economic implosion this fall.

4. Without the national security card McCain couldn't win.

5. Hillary Clinton made Barack Obama a better candidate than he ever would have been on his own.

6. McCain picked Sarah Palin without vetting her, and believed she was interchangeable with Hillary Clinton.

7. McCain and his team bought the notion of the mythical anti Obama Hillary block and doubted that Hillary Clinton, along with Bill Clinton, would bring her supporters home (in droves).

8. McCain and his team botched the roll out of Sarah Palin, throwing her into the deep end of the media pool, instead of letting her wade with the wingnuts and radio barkers who would have protected her.

9. McCain turned into a candidate no one recognized, sacrificing his core "maverick" message.

10. McCain and his team misjudged, underestimated and disrespected the formidable talent of Barack Obama and the team he put together.

-- by Taylor Marsh

I couldn't agree more.

The Electoral College.... Watch this....

I found this on Wikipedia today. Thought you might like to read it. Watch what happens tonight through Dec. 13th the the electoral college meets.


"Discourages turnout and participation

Except in the few closely fought swing states, it does not matter how many people turn out to vote. The Electoral College eliminates any advantage to a political party or campaign for encouraging voters to turn out, except in those swing states. If the presidential election were decided by a national popular vote, in contrast, campaigns and parties would have a strong incentive to work to increase turnout everywhere. Individuals would similarly have a strong incentive to persuade their friends and neighbors to turn out to vote. The differences in turnout between swing states and non-swing states under the current electoral college system suggest that replacing the Electoral College with direct election by popular vote would likely increase turnout and participation very significantly."

It happened in 2000 Bush vs Gore and it could happen again. Let's pray that the College listens to the people this time around.

STAR WARS TRIBUTE - JOHN WILLIAMS

A friend of mine from work sent this to me and I just had to add it. Hope you like

We have a lot of work to do

Car Tags and Such

I saw a car today that made me stop and think. It actually made me glad I'm not voting for the Republican Party.

"You wouldn't hire a clown to fix a leak on your john would you?"

Then vote for McCain and Palin.

What?!?!?!?!?

Real McCain joins fake Palin on "Saturday Night Live"

By Andy Sullivan

Sat Nov 1, 9:55 PM PDT

The real John McCain and the fake Sarah Palin traded jokes on Saturday as the Republican presidential candidate took a break from the campaign trail to appear on the comedy TV show "Saturday Night Live."

With the election only three days away, McCain joked that he might resort to a strategy called "the double maverick."

"That's where I go totally beserker and freak everybody out, even the regular mavericks," he said.

McCain poked fun at his cash-strapped campaign and got in a few digs at rival Barack Obama in the show's opening skit with actress Tina Fey, whose impersonation of McCain's running mate Palin has helped the NBC show enjoy healthy ratings this fall.

McCain joked that while Obama had purchased a half-hour block of airtime on all the major TV networks last week, his campaign could only afford an appearance on the home-shopping channel QVC.

"Would I rather be on three major networks? Of course. But I'm a true maverick, a Republican without money," McCain said.

"When you go to the polls on Tuesday, remember: Country first. As a reminder, all undergarments are nonrefundable," he said.

McCain and Fey hawked blank plates to commemorate the debates that Obama had declined to participate in this summer, "pork knives" to help cut out wasteful spending, and "fine gold" necklaces displayed by his wife, Cindy, in honor of the McCain-Feingold law that limited money in politics.

They also offered a talking doll of Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden.
"Great if you want to clear out a party," McCain said.

"Or keep elk out of your yard," Fey added.

The show was hosted by actor Ben Affleck, who joked that his longtime support of losing Democratic presidential candidates has led him to endorse McCain this year.

Palin herself appeared on the show on October 18, drawing its largest audience since 1994.

McCain last appeared on "Saturday Night Live" in May, joking about his age and urging Obama and New York Sen. Hillary Clinton to prolong their battle for the Democratic nomination.

He also hosted the show in 2002.

(Editing by Eric Beech)

*Bloggers note: All I can do is shake my head and wonder...