HB56 empowers law enforcement officials to check the immigration status of individuals, which subject residents of Alabama – including countless U.S. citizens and non-citizens with permission to be in the United States – to racial profiling as well as unlawful interrogations, searches, seizures and arrests that violate the Fourth Amendment.

This law has devastated the immigrant community in Alabama. Under the provisions that are currently in effect, undocumented persons are unable to interact with the government—in any way and for any purpose. It has turned a significant class of people, effectively, into legal non-persons, subjecting them to a kind of legal exile. It has destroyed lives, ripped apart families, devastated communities, and left our economy in shatters.

“All things truly wicked start from an innocence.”~~Ernest Hemingway
In 2009 eleven year old Jordan Brown, of Lawrence County, PA, was accused of shooting his father’s pregnant finance’ with a shotgun while she slept. Both Kenzie Houk and the child she was carrying died and Jordan Brown was charged with two counts of homicide, because Kenzie Houk was eight and a half months pregnant. Since that day, questions have arisen about Jordan Brown. What could have driven a child to such an act? Should he be tried as an adult or …

**The following is a guest post from our friend Tony, better known as Bluzdude, at Darwinfish2 . Bloggers make terrific friends, and we are honored to count Tony among ours. Thanks, Bluz, for this terrific post! Oh and the remotes, all five of them, are on the end table.**
 
Right off, I’d like to thank Rich and Cher for inviting me to invade some of their space. (I promise I’ll move out once I get back on my feet. It should only take a couple weeks. Seriously! Now where’s the remote?)
Cher …

We know that No Child Left Behind has been shown to be a failure in our schools. In June of 2008 I wrote an article in which I stated, “Teachers who have traditionally been able to imbue their students with a love of learning have been thwarted. The ramification is that tens of thousands of teachers are dropping out of the profession or opting for an early retirement. They have been demoralized and de-skilled. When teaching methods are mandated to be standardized, the impact on creative and innovative instruction is …

Over the last year the very small, but militarily powerful nation of Israel has watched cautiously as its neighbors have struggled with internal rebellions and regime changes.  Located in a region of the world that has been known for decades for  political instability and volatility, Israel has recently witnessed an unprecedented shuffling of the political deck of cards.  As a matter of national policy, the Israeli government has largely refrained from making public comments about the political affairs of its neighbors, and has avoided any kind of direct involvement in …

It  just seems as if watching the parade of Republican circus clowns, each trying desperately to be more extreme than the other, is rapidly becoming tiresome.  There is Mitt Romney, who wants to turn back to the clock to the  days of unregulated and unfettered capitalism; then there is Rick Santorum, who wants to turn the country into a theocracy while denying that racial discrimination is a problem in America; then there is Newt Gingrich, who thinks that the best way to do away with all progressive legislation is to …

There were so many shenanigans going on in Iowa that my head was reeling. Who would have thought former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum would play leap-frog over Newt Gingrich? I live in PA and I can tell you, we didn’t like Santorum that much when he was here.
There were questions regarding his residency. Did he live in Penn Hills, PA, Mt. Lebanon, PA or was he actually residing in Virginia for most of the time he represented Pennsylvania? The questions were never satisfactorily answered by Santorum, who was defeated by …

As the first few days of 2012 slide by, there is very little indication that the new year will bring much relief from the political tensions and turmoils that embroil humanity from one side of the globe to the other.   The simmering tensions between the religious sects in Iraq continue to  heat up, the war between the Taliban and the government forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan continue to be  more explosive and destructive than ever, the much sought-after political reforms in Egypt, Libya and Bahrain continue to be elusive, and …

For far too long in history, women have been perceived as chattel, disposable and expendable. This past year we witnessed uprisings in the Middle East during their Arab Spring. Women often fought along side men to oust oppressive regimes. In Bahrain, however, women are still at risk of torture and rape. Yemen women played activists roles in toppling President Saleh, yet still fight vigorously to keep demands for their rights. Libyan women face a multitude of challenges in the face of change so that they may have access to education …

With only one day left before the highly-touted Iowa caucuses, the rather pathetic pack of  Republican presidential wanna-bees  are frantically blanketing every corner of the state in search for votes.  I have little doubt that ordinary Iowans will be glad when the whole damn thing is over, and the rhetoric of ass-kissing politicians from Texas, Massachusetts and Georgia can be turned down a notch or two.  It just seems as if everything about the Iowa Caucuses brings out the extreme side of politicians.  Each candidate furiously  tries to establish himself, …

It has been a rocky year politically, economically, and socially in many ways this past year. And it has been a fun year, now ending with Newt Gingrich in tears and a who-would-have-thought Iowa surge for Rick Santorum. Occupy rose to counter the Tea Party and we even attended an Occupy event. Activists to the end, we are! Global changes have caused both inspiration and a few times, some great concern. There is nothing so certain as change, is there? We have shared our ideas, thoughts, and opinions on a …