Tuesday, December 30, 2014


News Clips For The Day


http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/12/15/1351990/-Dick-Cheney-I-have-no-problem-using-torture-program-against-innocent-persons?detail=email

Dick Cheney: 'I have no problem' using torture program against innocent persons
By Hunter
MON DEC 15, 2014

Yesterday, the former vice president of the United States and one of the architects of the American torture program explained why he was unconcerned about the torture of innocent prisoners.

CHUCK TODD: Let me go to Gul Rahman. He was chained to the wall of his cell, doused with water, froze to death in C.I.A. custody. And it turned out it was a case of mistaken identity.

DICK CHENEY: --right. But the problem I had is with the folks that we did release that end up back on the battlefield. [...] I'm more concerned with bad guys who got out and released than I am with a few that, in fact, were innocent.

CHUCK TODD: 25% of the detainees though, 25% turned out to be innocent. They were released.

DICK CHENEY: Where are you going to draw the line, Chuck? How are-- […]

CHUCK TODD: Is that too high? You're okay with that margin for error?

DICK CHENEY: I have no problem as long as we achieve our objective.

A reminder: some of the most egregious torture cases took place during preparations for theIraq War.

It was during this period that CIA interrogators waterboarded two alleged top al Qaida detainees repeatedly — Abu Zubaydah at least 83 times in August 2002 and Khalid Sheik Muhammed 183 times in March 2003 — according to a newly released Justice Department document.

"There was constant pressure on the intelligence agencies and the interrogators to do whatever it took to get that information out of the detainees, especially the few high-value ones we had, and when people kept coming up empty, they were told by Cheney's and Rumsfeld's people to push harder," he continued.

"Cheney's and Rumsfeld's people were told repeatedly, by CIA . . . and by others, that there wasn't any reliable intelligence that pointed to operational ties between bin Laden and Saddam, and that no such ties were likely because the two were fundamentally enemies, not allies."

Senior administration officials, however, "blew that off and kept insisting that we'd overlooked something, that the interrogators weren't pushing hard enough, that there had to be something more we could do to get that information," he said.

As for the innocent persons who found themselves in the CIA's torture programs, the effects were devastating.

It's difficult to understand how anyone could paint Dick Cheney as anything but a war criminal. Smugly advocating for torture of potential innocents; undertaking a torture program in major part to find "evidence" of an al Qaeda-Iraq link that did not exist—there are no possible legitimizing factors here.

ORIGINALLY POSTED TO HUNTER ON MON DEC 15, 2014 AT 10:27 AM PST.
ALSO REPUBLISHED BY DAILY KOS.




CHUCK TODD: 25% of the detainees though, 25% turned out to be innocent. They were released.... DICK CHENEY: I have no problem as long as we achieve our objective.... according to a newly released Justice Department document. "There was constant pressure on the intelligence agencies and the interrogators to do whatever it took to get that information out of the detainees, especially the few high-value ones we had, and when people kept coming up empty, they were told by Cheney's and Rumsfeld's people to push harder," he continued.... As for the innocent persons who found themselves in the CIA's torture programs, the effects were devastating. It's difficult to understand how anyone could paint Dick Cheney as anything but a war criminal. Smugly advocating for torture of potential innocents; undertaking a torture program in major part to find "evidence" of an al Qaeda-Iraq link that did not exist—there are no possible legitimizing factors here.”

George Bush once said that he went after Saddam Hussein because “he tried to kill my Daddy.” I empathize with that sentiment, but it's not a valid reason to go to war. Nonetheless, Bush and some of his advisors had decided to push the fighting into iraq – who had nothing to do with 9/11 – and they ramrodded it through the legislature. The Neocons then made disastrous and immoral moves as a result, including more than just the torture that occurred. Their ultra right warlike views have done our government and laws lasting damage, causing us to be too similar to a police state. They call it patriotism, but I just call it moving toward fascism. I dread what changes may come next every time more – and increasingly right wing – Republicans are elected to make still more radical moves. The conservatives in this country, though they talk about individualism, are much more like a herd of sheep than they were in the 1950s and 60s. There were free-thinking people among them at that time.

President Obama was one of the few who bucked popular patriotic feeling and didn't vote for the Iraq War. Hillary Clinton did, however, after arguing against it. In other words, she caved in. I have not forgotten that, and when it's time to consider her for the Presidency I will look around for someone else, especially another woman like Elizabeth Warren, to vote for instead of Hillary. A woman president is like a black or Hispanic president, it's high time we had one, but I don't want to elect just any woman. If there is no more liberal choice, I may vote for Hillary in 2016. Status Quo thinking is too prevalent in the country these days, and we need progressive fighters for the average people and for social improvements. Electing a Democrat who is going to be afraid to protect our rights serves no purpose except to keep Republicans out of the White House. That's something, but not enough.





http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/12/17/1352496/-Ancient-Egyptian-technology-may-be-our-first-line-of-defense-from-hospital-infections?detail=email

Ancient Egyptian technology may be our first line of defense from hospital infections
By Weinenkel
WED DEC 17, 2014

No matter where in the world you find yourself, hospitals are filled with bacteria and viruses and potential infections for patients. Constanza Correa and her colleagues believe they have found a simple, and very old, fix that could greatly reduce inpatients' chances of infection—replacing bedrails with copper.

Copper definitely wipes out microbes. "Bacteria, yeasts and viruses are rapidly killed on metallic copper surfaces, and the term "contact killing" has been coined for this process," wrote the authors of an article on copper in Applied and Environmental Microbiology. That knowledge has been around a very long time. The journal article cites an Egyptian medical text, written around 2600-2000 B.C., that cites the use of copper to sterilize chest wounds and drinking water.

Cassandra D. Salgado, MD (who, besides being a hospital epidemiologist and associate professor of medicine, is also the medical director for infection prevention at the Medical University of South Carolina) explains:

“...that the antimicrobial effect of copper-alloy surfaces is a result of the metal stealing electrons from the bacteria when they come into contact with each other. “Once the bacteria donate the electrons to the copper metal, this places the organism into a state of electrical-charge deficit,” she says. “As a consequence, free radicals are generated inside the cell, which ultimately leads to the cell’s death.”

Early data from a study done where copper rails were used in 3 separate hospitals' ICU units are promising.

Our study demonstrated that placing a copper alloy surface onto 6 common, highly touched objects in ICU rooms reduced the risk of HAI by more than half at all study sites.

Copper hasn't been used because it's cheaper to mass-produce plastics and stainless steel moldings. However, hospital related infections are considerably more of an economic burden for everyone involved.

In industrialized countries, 5 percent of patients develop these infections and the number is three times more in developing countries. These are infections like pneumonia and urinary tract infections. In the United States, the annual direct cost to treat these infections is $40 billion a year. Plus the patient loses time at work. And we don't consider what happens after a patient leaves the hospital. They may get sick [from these infections] later, too.

In the end, the bump in price to install copper bedrails is not that much. The larger question will be whether hospitals get more radical and actually outfit the numerous surfaces that can benefit from the use of copper.

Copper kills everything. Why wouldn't you use it?




"Bacteria, yeasts and viruses are rapidly killed on metallic copper surfaces, and the term "contact killing" has been coined for this process," wrote the authors of an article on copper in Applied and Environmental Microbiology. That knowledge has been around a very long time. The journal article cites an Egyptian medical text, written around 2600-2000 B.C., that cites the use of copper to sterilize chest wounds and drinking water.... “...that the antimicrobial effect of copper-alloy surfaces is a result of the metal stealing electrons from the bacteria when they come into contact with each other. “Once the bacteria donate the electrons to the copper metal, this places the organism into a state of electrical-charge deficit,” she says. “As a consequence, free radicals are generated inside the cell, which ultimately leads to the cell’s death.” Early data from a study done where copper rails were used in 3 separate hospitals' ICU units are promising.... Copper hasn't been used because it's cheaper to mass-produce plastics and stainless steel moldings. However, hospital related infections are considerably ..more of an economic burden for everyone involved... These are infections like pneumonia and urinary tract infections. In the United States, the annual direct cost to treat these infections is $40 billion a year. Plus the patient loses time at work. And we don't consider what happens after a patient leaves the hospital. They may get sick [from these infections] later, too."

The term HAI is used in this article, but not defined I don't think. It means “Healthcare associated infections.” Such HAIs are costing $40 billion a year, not to mention the number of people who become so seriously infected that they die. This is one case in which the cost of using copper instead of plastic should not stop our medical facilities from switching over. It's amazing that the Egyptians knew this before anyone had – as far as we know – the skill to makes lenses that would magnify strongly enough to render bacteria visible. They could, by observing the changes in drinking water or wounds as infections multiplied, however, and perhaps guess that there was a living agent. Or maybe they just thought it “purified” things. Still, it's a very advanced idea for that time period. Of course, there are the trepanned skulls, successfully healed over, which have been found in prehistoric sites. That's pretty amazing, too!


Trepanning
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Trepanning, also known as trepanation, trephination,trephining or making a burr hole (the verb trepan derives via Old French and therefrom via Medieval Latin from the Greek noun of relevant meaning trypanon, literally "(a) borer, (an) auger")[1][2] is a surgical intervention in which a hole is drilledor scraped into the human skull, exposing the dura mater to treat health problems related to intracranial diseases. It may also refer to any "burr" hole created through other body surfaces, including nail beds. It is often used to relieve pressure beneath a surface. A trephine is an instrument used for cutting out a round piece of skull bone.

In ancient times, holes were drilled into a person who was behaving in what was considered an abnormal way to let out what they believed were evil spirits.[3] Evidence of trepanation has been found in prehistoric human remains from Neolithic times onward. Cave paintings indicate that people believed the practice would cure epileptic seizures, migraines, and mental disorders.[4] The bone that was trepanned was kept by the prehistoric people and may have been worn as a charm to keep evil spirits away. Evidence also suggests that trepanation was primitive emergency surgery after head wounds[5] to remove shattered bits of bone from a fractured skull and clean out the blood that often pools under the skull after a blow to the head. Such injuries were typical for primitive weaponry such as slings and war clubs.[6]

There is some contemporary use of the term. In modern eye surgery, a trephine instrument is used in corneal transplant surgery. The procedure of drilling a hole through a fingernail or toenail is also known as trephination. It is performed by a physician or surgeon to relieve the pain associated with a subungual hematoma (blood under the nail); a small amount of blood is expressed through the hole and the pain associated with the pressure is partially alleviated.





http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/12/19/1352929/-Former-Buffalo-cop-fights-for-pension-after-exposing-brutality?detail=email

Former Buffalo cop fights for pension after exposing brutality
Scout Finch
FRI DEC 19, 2014

In 2006, Cariol Horne was a 19-year Buffalo police department veteran. She rushed to assist another officer on a domestic violence call. When she arrived, she was shocked to see another officer abusing the suspect and what happened next changed her life forever. The suspect was already cuffed, but that didn't stop the arresting officer from attacking:

"He was handcuffed in the front and he was sideways and being punched in the face by Gregory Kwiatkowski," explained Horne.

That was just the beginning:

"Gregory Kwiatkowski turned Neal Mack around and started choking him. So then I'm like, 'Greg! You're choking him,' because I thought whatever happened in the house he was still upset about so when he didn't stop choking him I just grabbed his arm from around Neal Mack's neck," said Horne.

From there, Officer Kwiatkowkski turned his attention to Cariol Horne:

"He comes up and punches me in the face and I had to have my bridge replaced," said Horne.

Cariol Horne was fired and denied her pension after a 19-year career. She's lost every appeal and her case is now being reviewed by the City of Buffalo Common Council.

As for Officer Kwiatkowkski?

Officer Kwiatkowski was forced to retire from the police department after he was suspended for choking another officer on the job, and in a separate incident, punching another officer when he was off the clock.

In May 2014, Kwiatowkski and two other officers were indicted on federal civil rights violations against black teen suspects.

Kwiatowkski is accused of holding down one of the teens and shooting him with a BB gun.

Let's hope the City of Buffalo Common Council does the right thing and restores Cariol Horne's full pension.

You can learn more and see WKBW's interview with Cariol Horne here.




"Gregory Kwiatkowski turned Neal Mack around and started choking him. So then I'm like, 'Greg! You're choking him,' because I thought whatever happened in the house he was still upset about so when he didn't stop choking him I just grabbed his arm from around Neal Mack's neck," said Horne. From there, Officer Kwiatkowkski turned his attention to Cariol Horne: "He comes up and punches me in the face and I had to have my bridge replaced," said Horne. Cariol Horne was fired and denied her pension after a 19-year career. She's lost every appeal and her case is now being reviewed by the City of Buffalo Common Council.... Officer Kwiatkowski was forced to retire from the police department after he was suspended for choking another officer on the job, and in a separate incident, punching another officer when he was off the clock.... In May 2014, Kwiatowkski and two other officers were indicted on federal civil rights violations against black teen suspects. Kwiatowkski is accused of holding down one of the teens and shooting him with a BB gun. Let's hope the City of Buffalo Common Council does the right thing and restores Cariol Horne's full pension.

You can learn more and see WKBW's interview with Cariol Horne here (https://www.facebook.com/wkbwtv/posts/10152488461606892).
It's not surprising that Cariol Horne is a young and pretty black woman. The good old boy's network doesn't like outsiders interfering with things, even if what was going on was illegal, immoral and more than a tad obscene in it's cruelty. I don't think most cops, even those who have committed violent abuse, are as bad as Kwiatowkski. I do hope Horne wins her case, gets her pension, and throws a scare into the Buffalo Police Department, because they aren't doing what they should. They waited until Kwiatkowski had also assaulted two police officers and an unmentioned number of young black youths. The DOJ needs to jump in on this one, and possibly a lawsuit by the NAACP or the ACLU or both against the Buffalo PD and the rotten excuse for a "peace officer," Kwiatkowski.





http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/12/29/373810455/new-york-mayor-de-blasio-heckled-at-police-graduation-ceremony

New York City Mayor De Blasio Heckled At Police Graduation Ceremony
Eyder Peralta
DECEMBER 29, 2014

Adding to an already tense situation, police cadets heckled New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio at a graduation ceremony on Monday.

CBS News describes the scene at Madison Square Garden:

" 'Let's be honest about the realities of our society,' de Blasio told the graduating class of more than 800 new officers. 'You'll confront all the problems that plague our society, problems that you didn't create.'"

Immediately after the mayor made that remark, someone from the crowd yelled, 'You did!' to a round of applause."

As we've reported, the rift between the mayor and the police department began after a grand jury refused to indict a police officer involved in the death of Eric Garner. Since then, protests have erupted across the city and a gunman, apparently in response to Garner's death, shot and killed two police officers.

The Patrolmen's Benevolent Association's president, Pat Lynch, accused the mayor of having "blood on his hands."

Reuters reports that as in the past, about a dozen people turned their backs on de Blasio today.

The wire service adds:
"Before he had even finished speaking, the mayor's press office circulated a long, evidently prepared email to journalists.

" 'Want to remind folks that today was not the first time a NYC Mayor has been booed at a police graduation,' Marti Adams, a spokeswoman for the mayor, wrote before pointing reporters to old news reports about de Blasio's three predecessors getting similar treatment.

"The wake for the second slain officer, Wenjian Liu, is due to be held on Saturday in Brooklyn and the funeral on Sunday."





" 'Let's be honest about the realities of our society,' de Blasio told the graduating class of more than 800 new officers. 'You'll confront all the problems that plague our society, problems that you didn't create.'" Immediately after the mayor made that remark, someone from the crowd yelled, 'You did!' to a round of applause."... Since then, protests have erupted across the city and a gunman, apparently in response to Garner's death, shot and killed two police officers.... " 'Want to remind folks that today was not the first time a NYC Mayor has been booed at a police graduation,' Marti Adams, a spokeswoman for the mayor, wrote before pointing reporters to old news reports about de Blasio's three predecessors getting similar treatment.”

I sampled some police comments at a police website since the Ferguson case emerged, and there was very little moderation to be seen among them. They know that they are all under scrutiny, and they are reacting as a group under attack. I understand that, but I don't like it. I want to see those police officers who are decent people to stand up and speak for a just, fair, benign way of doing their job. I'm not saying they don't have a hard job, just that it is possible for police officers to refrain from being downright abusive and ruled by anger every moment. That mindset is a sign of mental illness – not insanity, but viciousness – what I call sin. As Jesus said, humans are “sick with sin!”

I have seen a number of de Blasio's statements, and they have not been against the police. They have been expressive of concern about the unnecessary violence when it occurs and the welfare of all the people in the city, including the poor, the ignorant, the mentally disturbed, and people “whose skin is a different shade.” I quoted that recently I know, but I love the turn of phrase. It's from the wonderful musical play South Pacific. I think de Blasio's statements have been appropriate as the mayor of a city and aimed toward healing community problems, while not coddling the police.





http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/12/29/373791213/2-los-angeles-police-officers-attacked-by-gunmen

2 Los Angeles Police Officers Attacked By Gunmen
Eyder Peralta
DECEMBER 29, 2014

The Los Angeles Police Department says two suspects opened fire on a patrol car with a rifle Sunday evening.

KTLA-TV reports:
"Several rounds were shot in the direction of the officers, LAPD Capt. Lillian Carranza said.

"'This was a completely unprovoked attack,' she added.

"One of the officers returned fire toward the alleged gunmen, but it was not immediately clear whether either was hit."

The two officers inside the car survived without injuries and one of the suspects was apprehended. But the search for the other suspect resulted in a manhunt through the evening.

The Los Angeles Times reports:

"Police recovered a rifle at the scene of the shooting, which occurred about 9:30 p.m.

"A three-block area around the shooting scene was immediately cordoned off after the attack as police scoured the area with search dogs.

"Just before 11 p.m. LAPD advised residents to stay indoors. 'Armed suspect in the area,' the police station said on Facebook. 'Please keep our officers in your thoughts and prayers!'"

Police departments across the country have been on alert after a gunman shot and killed two New York City Police officers more than a week ago.

There is no word on motive for the attack in Los Angeles.




"Several rounds were shot in the direction of the officers, LAPD Capt. Lillian Carranza said. "'This was a completely unprovoked attack,' she added. "One of the officers returned fire toward the alleged gunmen, but it was not immediately clear whether either was hit."... "Police recovered a rifle at the scene of the shooting, which occurred about 9:30 p.m. "A three-block area around the shooting scene was immediately cordoned off after the attack as police scoured the area with search dogs. "Just before 11 p.m. LAPD advised residents to stay indoors. 'Armed suspect in the area,' the police station said on Facebook. 'Please keep our officers in your thoughts and prayers!'"

This is another unprovoked attack on police officers since Ferguson. I understand the anger of black neighborhoods, especially in areas where police abuse has been commonplace, but these killings won't forward the cause of justice, and will only increase the rancor on both sides of the issue. We need a new Martin Luther King – disciplined, highly intelligent, ethical, persistent, but passive under attack by police. Lacking that, we need a group of committed neighborhood organizers of all colors across this whole nation who will work to improve the living situation in the black neighborhoods (and other poor neighborhoods), file lawsuits against very aggressive policemen and their departments, and work cooperatively with those police departments who will do likewise in return.

De Blasio strikes me as a good leader for forming interracial ties and yet continuing to put pressure on all the transgressions that occur, by both the police and the communities. More marching, more talking, more legal work, and efforts to get blacks ready to vote no matter what the state voting rules are, and less rioting and police abuse are necessary for constructive change. Acting in anger exacerbates anger. We all know that, but it's hard to be the first to put it into action.





http://www.npr.org/2014/12/28/373519521/fleeing-to-dismal-swamp-slaves-and-outcasts-found-freedom

Fleeing To Dismal Swamp, Slaves And Outcasts Found Freedom
Sandy Hausman
DECEMBER 28, 2014

Most Americans know about the Underground Railroad, the route that allowed Southern slaves to escape North. Some slaves found freedom by hiding closer to home, however — in Great Dismal Swamp.

The swamp is a vast wetland in southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. In George Washington's time, it was a million acres of trees, dark water, bears, bobcats, snakes and stinging insects. British settlers, who first arrived in 1607, believed the swamp was haunted.

By 1620, some of their slaves may have overcome that fear to find freedom there.

Hidden Islands Of Resistance Communities

Today, 112,000 acres of swamp remain, and archaeologist Daniel Sayers has explored many of them. He's found large islands where escaped slaves settled.

"When you're walking through a thousand feet of the briars and the water, the mosquitoes are eating you alive, sweating bullets, and you're almost exhausted, and then suddenly your foot's no longer squishing in the peat but now it's walking on dry ground and crunchy leaves — it blows your mind," Sayers says. "You can't imagine people not living there."

He's now written about life on these islands in a new book,A Desolate Place for a Defiant People. He believes 10 generations of escaped slaves lived here, along with Native Americans who'd been driven off their land and whites who were shunned by mainstream society.

Since 2003, he's found thousands of artifacts during Great Dismal Swamp digs. In his laboratory at American University, he unwraps several: bits of clay tobacco pipes, nails and traces of at least a dozen cabins, along with what could have been an arsenal — a place where Sayers found gun flints and lead shot.

"Make no mistake about it. These were resistance communities. They weren't going out there because they loved swamps," he says. "They were going out there because they were living in a very brutal and oppressive world of enslavement and colonialism."

Ancestors Calling

News of these finds is exciting for professional and amateur historians like Eric Shepherd, a resident of Suffolk, Va., who organizes tours to help African-Americans get in touch with their roots.

"As our ancestors are calling us to look for them, I think we ought to pick up the spiritual phone and answer the call," he says.

Research led Shepherd to a distant relative named Moses Grandy, who left an account of his time in the swamp around 1800. He first went there to dig canals so his master could cut and transport timber.

"The labor there was very severe," Grandy wrote. "The ground is often very boggy: the negroes are up to the middle or much deeper in mud and water, cutting away roots and baling out mud: if they can keep their heads above water, they work on. ... [The overseer] gave the same task to each slave; of course the weak ones often failed to do it. I have often seen him tie up persons and flog them in the morning, only because they were unable to get the previous day's task done."

Grandy was skilled at handling boats, and sometimes his master allowed him to work for others, sharing the money that he made moonlighting. Over the years, Grandy saved enough to buy his own freedom. He could have headed north. Instead, he returned to live in the swamp.

"I built myself a little hut, and had provisions brought to me as opportunity served," Grandy wrote. "Here, among snakes, bears and panthers, whenever my strength was sufficient, I cut down a juniper tree, and converted it into cooper's timber. ... I felt to myself so light, that I almost thought I could fly, and in my sleep I was always dreaming of flying over woods and rivers."

"Slavery will teach any man to be glad when he gets freedom," Grandy wrote.

Such stories, along with some of the artifacts Sayers found, will be on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African-American History and Culture when it opens in 2016.



Moses Grandy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Moses Grandy (c. 1786[nb 1] - unknown), was an African-American author, abolitionist, and, for more than the first four decades of his life, an enslaved person. At eight years of age he became the property of his playmate, James Grandy and two years later he was hired out for work. The monies Moses earned were collected and held until James Grandy turned 21. Grandy helped build the Great Dismal Swamp Canal and learned how to navigate boats. It was that skill that led him to be made commander of several boats that traveled the canal andPasquotank River, transporting merchandise from Elizabeth City, North Carolina to Norfolk, Virginia. The position allowed him to be better fed, shod and dressed. Able to keep a portion of his earnings, Grandy arranged to buy his freedom twice and twice his owners kept the money and held him in slavery. An arrangement was made for an honorable man to buy him and Grandy earned the money to buy his freedom a third time, this time successfully.

In the course of his life he had witnessed beatings and sales of family members, including his first bride when they were married but eight months. Once he obtained his freedom, he worked to make the money to free his wife and children. He was able to secure the release of his wife and 15-year-old son. He dictated a narrative of his life, Narrative of the Life of Moses Grandy, Late a Slave in the United States of America, with the intention of buying the freedom of additional family members.

His slave narrative, and others, read in the United States and overseas, helped to bring awareness of slavery and fuel the abolitionist movement.




“British settlers, who first arrived in 1607, believed the swamp was haunted. By 1620, some of their slaves may have overcome that fear to find freedom there. Hidden Islands Of Resistance Communities – Today, 112,000 acres of swamp remain, and archaeologist Daniel Sayers has explored many of them. He's found large islands where escaped slaves settled.... He's now written about life on these islands in a new book,A Desolate Place for a Defiant People. He believes 10 generations of escaped slaves lived here, along with Native Americans who'd been driven off their land and whites who were shunned by mainstream society.... Research led Shepherd to a distant relative named Moses Grandy, who left an account of his time in the swamp around 1800. He first went there to dig canals so his master could cut and transport timber.... Grandy was skilled at handling boats, and sometimes his master allowed him to work for others, sharing the money that he made moonlighting. Over the years, Grandy saved enough to buy his own freedom. He could have headed north. Instead, he returned to live in the swamp.”

Moses Grandy was quite a man. I have ordered his autobiography from Amazon and should get it soon. I look forward to reading this, and I plan to pass it around in my family, on the promise that they will send it back to me when finished. The Dismal Swamp, also, is one of my favorite places. In the 1970's I stayed a little over a year at my parents house in Plymouth, NC – my father was a lumber inspector and was working at a Georgia Pacific plant grading lumber for them to sell. We sometimes went out in a rowboat on the Dismal Swamp Canal. Other than the mosquitoes, it was a great way to spend time. One of my favorite memories is of a Great Blue Heron lifting skyward from the edge of the water. We also saw a bear, raccoons and other wildlife, but I don't remember any alligators. According to Wikipedia, they do live there, however.





http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/12/28/373648101/pope-john-paul-iis-would-be-assassin-lays-roses-at-his-tomb

Pope John Paul II's Would-Be Assassin Lays Roses At His Tomb
Scott Neuman
DECEMBER 28, 2014

The Turkish man who tried to kill Pope John Paul II and subsequently spent three decades in jail, has laid flowers at the tomb of the former pontiff.

Mehmet Ali Ağca shot John Paul twice at close range on May 13, 1981 as the pope was traveling in an open car through St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, an attack that left the pope in critical condition.

The gunman was quickly arrested. John Paul recovered and later met Ağca in prison, where the pontiff forgave his would-be killer.

At the time of the shooting, Ağca, now 56, had been a member of the right-wing Turkish nationalist group known as the Grey Wolves. He was sentenced to life in prison for the attempt on the pope's life as well as for the murder of a Turkish journalist two years before. He was subsequently released in 2010.

Reuters reports:

"Ağca called the Italian daily la Repubblica on Saturday to announce he had arrived in the Vatican, his first visit since the assassination attempt and exactly 31 years after John Paul met him in prison.

"The visit was confirmed to Reuters by Father Ciro Benedettini, the Vatican's deputy spokesman, who said Ağca stood for a few moments in silent meditation over the tomb in St. Peter's Basilica before leaving two bunches of white roses."

By way of background, Newsweek writes:

"The assassination attempt prompted the Vatican to add glass to the vehicle used to transport the pope during public visits, nicknamed the 'Popemobile.' Pope Francis said this year it is his preference not to use the bulletproof vehicle because it distances him from people.

"It's still unclear why Ağca attempted to assassinate the pope; originally, he testified that he had been on a solo mission. Later on, he said that the attack had been planned by Soviet and Bulgarian secret services. A 2006 investigation led by an Italian parliamentary commission corroborates said claim; the investigative team said the attack had been orchestrated by former Soviet Union leaders 'beyond a reasonable doubt.' At the time, Ağca ... was sought by Turkish police for various crimes, including armed robbery, when he attempted to murder the Pope."



http://www.christianitytoday.com/ch/asktheexpert/nov7.html

What part did Pope John Paul II play in opposing Communism in Eastern Europe?
Steven Gertz answers your questions. | posted 8/08/2008

To understand Karol Wojtyla (John Paul II's birth name) and his part in the collapse of Communism is to remember this man lived under oppression and tyranny for much of his life. Wojtyla had barely turned 19 when Nazi Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, and the regime forced him into manual labor, first as a quarryman and blaster, and later as a factory worker in a chemical plant. But Wojtyla refused to bow to Nazi propaganda; he joined UNIA, a broad-based armed resistance movement trying to save Jews from the Holocaust. Later, he entered an underground seminary, where Adam Sapieha, archbishop of Krakow, reinforced and guided his thinking about human dignity and freedom.

Yet Soviet "liberation" of occupied Poland brought only further repression. And for 33 years, Wojtyla would promote Christianity and religious freedom under threat of  a regime attempting to squash any opposition to atheistic totalitarian rule. Rising to the position of archbishop of Krakow in 1963, he carefully avoided direct criticism of the government, but spread his philosophy of Christian "humanism" through a series of poem-cycles that, in effect, worked to undermine the Marxist foundation of Communism. Yet clashes were inevitable—he encountered fierce opposition in his efforts to create 11 new parishes through door-to-door evangelism, and Soviet authorities tried to stop him from publicly leading Catholics in Poland's Corpus Christi procession, a medieval feast day celebrated every June.
Wojtyla's election as pope in 1978 armed him with an international following that, in retrospect, cowed even the Soviet empire. "Be not afraid" became his rallying cry, and following a 1979 address to the U.N. General Assembly in which he challenged the free world to defend human rights, he embarked on a courageous but dangerous nine-day public pilgrimage to "strengthen the brethren" in Poland. There he warned Communist authorities that the papacy would watch them closely, and he reminded them of their responsibility "before history and before your conscience." The people responded to John Paul II's visit with loyalty borne of years of shared suffering—banners with the Communist party slogan "The Party Is for the People" sported the daring addition, ". . . but the People are for the Pope."
John Paul II's example encouraged other leading church authorities, such as the Czech Cardinal Frantisek Tomasek, to become fierce critics of Communism. His visit also inspired an unemployed electrician named Lech Walesa to form in 1980 the Soviet Union's first and only trade union—Solidarity—that in the words of French political scientist Alain Besancon gave the Poles back "the private ownership of their tongues." Soviet authorities feared Solidarity could undermine Soviet power, and the Warsaw Pact planned an invasion and mass arrest of Solidarity's leaders. John Paul II intervened by writing directly to Soviet president Leonid Brezhnev, giving his support to Solidarity and warning against the consequences of such an action. While this only delayed a crackdown, the pope had set a precedent. In 1989, when Solidarity swept available seats in a semi-free election, no one doubted who to credit for the moral fiber that had held the party together.

On December 1, 1989, Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev visited John Paul II in the Vatican. It marked the extraordinary end to hostilities between Rome and Moscow—and the triumph of Christian faith over Communism. Taking his wife Raisa by the hand, introduced her to John Paul II. "Raisa Maximovna, I have the honor to introduce the highest moral authority on earth." Then he joked, "And he's Slavic, like us!"




“The gunman was quickly arrested. John Paul recovered and later met Ağca in prison, where the pontiff forgave his would-be killer. At the time of the shooting, Ağca, now 56, had been a member of the right-wing Turkish nationalist group known as the Grey Wolves. He was sentenced to life in prison for the attempt on the pope's life as well as for the murder of a Turkish journalist two years before. He was subsequently released in 2010.... "The visit was confirmed to Reuters by Father Ciro Benedettini, the Vatican's deputy spokesman, who said Ağca stood for a few moments in silent meditation over the tomb in St. Peter's Basilica before leaving two bunches of white roses."... A 2006 investigation led by an Italian parliamentary commission corroborates said claim; the investigative team said the attack had been orchestrated by former Soviet Union leaders 'beyond a reasonable doubt.'”

The Pope was shot on May 13, 1981. Gorbachev was general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1985 to 1991 and president of the Soviet Union in 1990–91. The Russian leader in 1981 was Leonid Brezhnev. President Grobachev was, in my eyes, an enlightened leader and reached out for detente during Ronald Reagan's presidency. Under his tenure the opening of East Germany occurred, with the fall of the infamous Berlin Wall. That scene from news footage is one that I remember well. Unfortunately now, under Putin, Russia is apparently trying to grab back some of the USSR's former territory. He denies that, of course.