ivins Archives - Where Is The Outrage?

Ricin Investigation – Getting Stranger

So, the last time I talked about this ricin investigation, the FBI had some Elvis impersonator from Mississippi in custody. That was so yesterday… Paul Kevin Curtis was the man who was arrested. The FBI and the news media let us to believe that this was an open and shut case. Not so fast. Paul Kevin Curtis is now out on bail. The FBI is currently ransacking (carefully searching) the house of Everett Dutschke. This case is getting stranger and stranger.

From WaPo:

Everett Dutschke said in a phone interview with The Associated Press that the FBI was at his home Tuesday for a search related to the mailing of the poisoned letters to Obama, U.S. Senator Roger Wicker and a Mississippi judge. Dutschke said his house was also searched last week.

Dutschke has maintained his innocence and says he doesn’t know anything about the ingredients for ricin. He said agents asked him questions about suspect Paul Kevin Curtis but also asked him if he would take a lie detector test and whether he had ever bought castor beans, which can be used to make the potent poison.

“I’m a patriotic American. I don’t have any grudges against anybody. I did not send the letters,” Dutschke said.

Lots of questions remain – how could the FBI make a high-profile arrest and not be 100% sure they’ve got the right man? If you recall, the FBI made the same mistake in the anthrax case. They were 100% sure it was Steven Hatfill. Then, they decided it was not Stephen Hatfill and focused on Bruce Ivins instead.

By ecthompsonmd|2013-11-03T18:18:15-04:00April 23rd, 2013|Terrorism|Comments Off

John Brennan, President Obama’s terrorism advisor, said something really stupid about no collateral damage from predator drones. For some reason, Glenn Greenwald has taken him seriously. Anything that includes man has to include some amount of error. We are not perfect. I don’t care how diligent we are at looking at photos and reviewing intelligence. We can still make errors. Just today, as I was walking out of the Biltmore estate a very nice gentleman offered my condolences since “my wife fell.” Nope, my wife did not fall. (I was actually walking with my mother, but no biggie). We make mistakes all the time. This is one reason why we should be out of the war business.
If anybody really thought that Bruce Ivins was the mastermind behind the anthrax deaths, I have some oceanfront property to sell you. The case was just too neat. Investigators found this weird guy who was clearly awkward around women and for some reason that made him not just the suspect but the prime suspect in the multiple anthrax deaths which took place in 2002. They never had a good motive which tied everything together. As a matter fact, I really didn’t have enough evidence to tie everything together. It looks like the Department of Justice has decided that the evidence looks kind of shaky also.

I’m really tired of extremism being wrapped in a nice pretty package and sold to the American people as mainstream. Deciding to default on America’s debt is extremism. Deciding not to negotiate to balance the budget is extremism. I understand that the President has decided to embrace the Draconian ideas of the Gang of Six or Gang of Seven in the Senate. Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security represent a pact that we’ve made with ourselves. This is not a treaty that we’ve made with Russia or China or some other foreign nation. Instead, this is a promise that we’ve made to the American people. It is a promise that was made to ourselves. If you want to figure out some way to make these programs more efficient and therefore cost less, I’m all for that. On the other hand, if you’re going to be cutting benefits that go to seniors and the disabled, I’m strongly against that. As a matter fact, as an American, I believe that we should keep our promises. Dismantling these programs is anti-American.
Representative Allen West said some very childish and inflammatory things about Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz. He says that he’s apologized. Right now I want to say something about adult behavior, but I’ll keep that to myself.
Maxine Waters is in big trouble.
I know that Senators Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell are working on some sort of compromise measure that will lower the debt by $3.7 trillion over 10 years and will also raise the debt ceiling. I have little hope that such a broad compromise will come out of such a divided Congress. Top Republicans are running away from this plan as fast as their little legs can carry them.
If you need a generalized update on what’s going on in the Rupert Murdoch/News Corp. scandal you can find a brief update and a small blurb on who’s who – when – who did what right here.

By ecthompsonmd|2011-07-20T17:31:03-04:00July 20th, 2011|Budget, Economy, Media, Obama administration, Party Politics|Comments Off

Sergio Garcia is fading at the Byron Nelson Championship in Dallas, Texas. Whatever he thought he fixed in his mental game isn’t fixed. Currently, Joe Ogilvie leads by one stroke.
I find it interesting that Fox News has decided to keep Sarah Palin on the payroll since it’s clear that she is now exploring a presidential run. They dropped Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum as soon as they were considering a presidential run but not Sarah Palin. Why? Is it that Sarah Palin isn’t really considering a presidential run? Maybe Sarah Palin is doing her Donald Trump bit and simply trying to drum up publicity for herself. She’s been able to cash that publicity in and make some significant money (just bought a new house in Arizona).
No matter how much the public thinks that Paul Ryan’s budget balancing, Medicare killing plan is wrong for America, the Republicans are continuing to push it. If you’re in a hole, I guess you can do one of three things – stop digging, continue digging or try to climb out of the hole. Republicans have decided to continue digging.
The LA Times has a nice and very long discussion on Bruce Ivins, who was the odd researcher accused in the anthrax killings. I’m still not convinced that this is the guy. Yep, he is weird, but being weird isn’t a crime.
President Obama is in Joplin, Missouri today. My heart and prayers continue to go out to the residents of Joplin.

I really dislike politicians who in front of the cameras in Washington talk about cutting this and cutting that but when they’re at home in front of their constituents they’re bashing the government for not doing more. Today’s example is Representative Lou Barletta of Pennsylvania. He voted to cut EPA funding; yet, in front of his constituents is complaining that the EPA is not doing more.
Former Senator John Ensign is hoping that the Department of Justice cannot use incriminating e-mails which will surely land him in jail. Basically, as I understand it, the Senate Ethics Committee could obtain evidence in multiple different ways which may not be transferable to the Department of Justice. For more information on this legal conundrum read this.
I continue to be amazed at how the Republicans are trying to sell this “cut and grow” idea to the American people. Republicans, including House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, continue to try to sell the American people on trickle-down theory. If all we did was cut this or that money would then roll down to small business and small businesses would thrive. Over the last 30 years we’ve tried this theory so many times and as a whole it hasn’t worked. The one thing that is clear with trickle-down theory is that the rich get richer.
So far, I think the most interesting candidate on the Republican side is Mitt Romney. He’s trying to walk a tight rope. He’s trying to play up his credentials as a financial wiz but the same time separate himself from the Wall Street Christians and against that which nearly destroyed our economy. He has the same type of balancing act with healthcare. He can’t support the national healthcare reform that was passed by Congress last year or he’ll alienate many Republicans. At the same time, he’s trying to push his own credentials as a healthcare fixer because of what he passed in Massachusetts, which is almost identical to the national healthcare reform plan. Finally, lots of evangelical Christians are unsure if they can embrace a Mormon. It is difficult if not impossible to win enthusiastic Republican support without the support of evangelical Christians.
The New York Times is trying to tell me that their coverage is so great that I should pay $35 per month for their award-winning reporting. It seems to me that the Wall Street Journal has outstanding coverage also. They’re asking me to pay a third less than the New York Times. What’s up with that? Are the Washington Post and the LA Times going to follow suit? One of the distinct advantages of the Internet was that I was able to access multiple different sources of information. Am I going to have to shell out money for this information? Is advertising revenue down that much?
Everyone is not flocking to the theaters just because the movie is in 3-D. For some reason this is a surprise to Hollywood. (Psst, Hollywood… we will sit down and look at movies that are entertaining and enjoyable. More like Thor and less like the Green Hornet.) As a whole, I haven’t found the 3-D experience to be all that additive to a excellently written film. I just saw the movie Thor and I didn’t think that the three-dimensional qualities were helpful at all. BTW, I’m looking forward to seeing Kung Fu Panda 2. I really enjoyed the first one. I”m hoping that they, the producers, don’t screw this sequel up.