The corruption charges against Ted Stevens are likely to be dismissed later this afternoon because of an "oops" by the federal prosecutor. With all the corruption and political-based hirings and firings at the Department of Justice lately, it isn't much of a stretch to wonder if this wasn't a "gift" to a longtime loyal Bush ally. "Sorry, your honor, I 'accidentally' forgot to disclose the material to the defence. I guess you'll have to dismiss the charges now. Shucks." Does anyone actually trust the Department of Justice enough at this point to think that this isn't a real possibility? If this wasn't deliberate, what does that say about the quality of our federal prosecutors?

One of the men criminally charged after placing blinking cartoon advertisements around the city and causing a terrorism scare videotaped a police bomb squad removing one of the devices, but did not tell the officers the object was harmless. Surveillance cameras caught 27-year-old Peter Berdovsky videotaping officers removing what they thought was a possible bomb last week. "Mr. Berdovsky didn't do anything inappropriate," his lawyer, Walter Prince, said Tuesday. full article

Well, he's screwed. If you buy his lawyer's claim that he just happened to be innocently taping the incident, I have a bridge I'd like to sell you.

I don't doubt that Saddam Hussein committed atrocities during his time in power (many with U.S. backing). Saddam Hussein was and isn't a nice guy. However, how anyone could claim that the sham trial just completed was in any way a "fair trial" is beyond me. Defence lawyers picked off one by one, a judge that was seen by the United States (the occupying power) as supportive of Saddam was replaced by one who was blatantly anti-Saddam. Even the date of the verdict seems conveniently timed to Bush's interests.

In a puppet trial like this: even if condemned truly deserved what they get, they come out looking like a martyr not a criminal.

video from existentialista:



Emmie Rose died yesterday before her hearing could take place. Essentially, the hospital ethics committee decided the "ethical" course of action was to starve a baby to death. The state of Michigan will happily imprison the likes of Dr. Kevorkian, who assisted the suicides of people who wanted to die. However, a doctor deliberately killing a baby who's parents' want her to live is somehow legal? It is abhorrent.

A 50-year-old woman filed a federal lawsuit against Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center yesterday, saying she was forcibly undressed by five male security guards there last year after she refused a nurse's order to take off her clothes. The incident, which hospital officials have defended as necessary to make sure the woman was not hiding drugs or weapons, triggered flashbacks to childhood sexual abuse, according to the woman, Cassandra Sampson. She alleged in the suit that her civil rights were violated under the Americans with Disabilities Act, because hospital officials made no effort to protect her from psychological damage. Sampson said she went to the hospital for treatment of a severe migraine headache, but was moved to a psychiatric unit when she admitted struggling with self-destructive impulses. She said she pleaded to be allowed to keep at least her pants on before the strip search, but the nurse refused. ``Go ahead and rape me; everybody else has," Sampson said she cried out as the guards unbuckled her pants and removed them. ``They left me there with my underwear showing and my johnny up to my chest . . . I was crying, and [the nurse] said, `That's what you get for not listening to me.' " In a letter to Sampson, hospital officials said they were sorry she had such a terrible experience, but stood by their strict policy of searching psychiatric patients for their own benefit. ... A spokeswoman at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester said the hospital never asks psychiatric patients to undress on arrival. If they suspect the patient may be dangerous, security guards perform a clothed pat-down search. Dr. Maggie Bennington-Davis led a successful effort to stop strip searches of psychiatric patients at Salem Hospital in Oregon in 2003. ``We can't be hauling people in here and be doing more harm to them," she said. ``It's very clear that a strip search retraumatizes them." ... Sampson hadn't intended to go to Beth Israel's emergency room on March 25, 2005, according to the lawsuit. But it was a weekend, and her primary care physician said the ER would be the best place to get help for severe migraine headaches that had persisted for three days. However, as soon as Sampson told a nurse that she took psychiatric medications and that she had been battling impulses to hurt herself that week, the nurse said she would need a psychiatric evaluation. Nurse Heather A. Richter then told Sampson that she would need to completely undress, according to the lawsuit. full article

This is absolutely disgusting. How in the world could Beth Israel's staff think it was in any way appropriate to have 5 male security guards rip off a woman's clothing? This story not only illustrates the dangers of being admitted into psych hospital for victims of sexual assault or abuse, it also illustrates the dangers of telling the wrong person about your feelings and thoughts. Note that Sampson only had thoughts of self harm, not suicide. Her life was NOT at risk. Psych wards are at most about safety nowadays. She did not need the babysitting of a hospital and she definitely did not need to be further traumatized. It was only a panicky nurse that caused her to end up there, this did not need to happen at all.

Some who have been critical of the Bush administration have confused torture with cruel, inhumane treatment.      -- John Yoo, law professor and former Bush Justice Department Attorney

Um... yeah... um...

I didn't make any progress on my room last night. At all. Did very badly mentally, very panicked and switchy, until I finally got myself to sleep. I wish I had something to just knock myself out with sometimes.

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Harriette showed up at 9:00 this morning, as planned. We talked again about an hour about what services I can expect from her as my community case manager. After that topic was covered, the conversation went in it's own directions. I ended up loaning her my Scientific American with the article "The Neurobiology of Child Abuse", because I thought it would interest her.

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This afternoon, I have a meeting at the Wayside Center with Harriette, my MBHP intensive case manager, a representative from the Lexington Crisis Center, a representative from the Cambridge Health Alliance, and my Lawyer. It should be interesting.

Ate at Yee’s Village with purpleglitter and riga_mortia last night. They both have been extremely helpful to me in many ways lately. I’m very grateful to both of them for their support.

riga_mortia and I are going to be pen pals! We live really close to each other, true, but we’re going to start writing letters back and forth, anyway. I’m very excited.

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Today, purpleglitter and I ran errands around town. We both voted and picked up cat supplies. I dropped a comment in the comment box of Cambridge Savings Bank. It read something like:

I love CSB. The candy and the coffee is a wonderful touch. It may seem little, but it makes the banking experience feel much more personal. I’m always recommending CSB to my friends.

I felt good leaving a good comment. CSB is so so much better than Fleet. Fleet simply sees customers as dollar signs. At CSB I feel like a person.

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On the agenda for tomorrow, I have a meeting with Susan, my MBHP intensive case manager, and Harriett, my community case manager. My lawyer has informed me that she wants to be present for the meeting as well. This should be interesting.

I'm back home, again with no aftercare. My lawyer was livid about the level of care I'm still recieving. She chewed out several people at several places, in the nice scary way only a lawyer can. Her fury in fighting my case has helped me maintain the will to keep fighting myself.

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Thanks to the help of a friend, the housing situation will work out. We will make the rent for the first month, without the fourth roommate. Furthermore, I have found a very probable roommate for December. Me, merryperseis and pillowkisser can breath a little easier.

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zarthon and purpleglitter helped me pack today. Actually, they did most of the packing, while I lay on the floor crying. I don't think I would have made it through today without their help.

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I'm preparing a long post about the events that lead up to and directly preceded my hospitalization. Hopefully I'll have that up by tomorrow. My life has been moving much too fast lately to be able to post as many details as I'd like to in my journal. I'll try to catch up as best I can.

they disconnected the phone because i never got the bills together. it could have been paid, but i just didnt do it. i can't do anything. i hate me. i just want to die. everyones going to hate me now. i cant even talk to the lawyer to find out whats going on. im just might do tomorrow today.