Gang Violence Surging in Ecuadorian Prisons

At least 68 prisoners were killed at an Ecuadorean prison where more than a hundred inmates died in ongoing clashes between rival gangs that had begun back in September.  The riot occurred at the Litoral Penitentiary in the city of Guayaquil, where police tactical units found guns and explosives.  Nearly 300 inmates have died so far this year in the country's prisons-- the latest surge in gang-related violence was the worst in Ecuador's history.  Ecuador's prisons are currently accommodating about 9,000 more prisoners than they were designed to hold, officials say.  The Litoral Penitentiary was designed for 5,300 inmates but currently holds 8,500.

At the time, inmates from one wing of the prison crawled through a hole to gain access to a different wing, where they attacked rival gang members. Hundreds of officers and army soldiers were deployed to regain control of the complex.  The deadly fight, which saw some inmates decapitated, drew attention to the growing influence in Ecuador of transnational crime gangs such as the Mexico-based Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels.

Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso insisted that his government was regaining control not only of the prisons but also of areas of Ecuador where drug traffickers had gained a foothold.  He accused previous governments of being "passive" about drug trafficking but warned that rising drug use in the country would take "more than a decade" to tackle.  He also said Ecuador would need international support from neighboring Colombia, the U.S. and the EU to strengthen its armed forces and police to combat the growing influence of crime gangs.

 

Violence and Rape Against Women in India is Seemingly Never-ending

The Daily Dude has profiled the injustice faced by women in India many, many times over the years-- here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Seeing a pattern?  Sadley, it continues on.

Last month, four men were charged with the gang-rape and murder of a 19-year-old Dalit woman in India, a case that prompted nationwide protests and drew a fresh spotlight on India’s endemic problem of sexual violence. In Hathras, a small village in Uttar Pradesh, the 19-year-old woman was working in the fields when she was pounced on by four older men who dragged her to a field, attacked her and then tried to strangle her with her shawl.

The girl was a Dalit, India’s lowest caste, formerly known as “untouchables”, while her four alleged attackers were from a higher caste. Sexual violence against Dalit women is regularly used as a tool of oppression and around 10 Dalit women are raped every day in India.

The 19-year-old was discovered by her family bleeding in the field, barely conscious and with her spine broken. The girl was taken to a local hospital and then transferred to a government hospital in Delhi, where she died from her injuries two weeks after the attack.

Her case initially barely attracted any media attention. However, after the Uttar Pradesh police came under pressure for not properly registering her case as a rape and faced accusations of not investigating the case properly due to the low caste of the girl and her family, anger and protests exploded across India.  Several policemen were later suspended for “negligence and lax supervision” in the case. The police deny any wrongdoing.

The police also began to downplay and deny reports that the girl had been raped, and the right-wing firebrand chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, tried to claim that the rape allegations were an invented international conspiracy.

The Uttar Pradesh police also came under fire after they allegedly cremated the girl’s body at night, against the wishes of the family.  Officials later lied, saying the cremation was done “as per the wishes of the family”.  The police also formed a blockade around Hathras village, preventing senior opposition politicians and journalists entering to report on the case.  One journalist, Siddique Kappan, was arrested trying to reach the village and allegedly tortured by police before being charged with sedition under the draconian terrorism law, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (Uapa).  He remains in jail.

The case has once again exposed systemic bias against Dalits, as well as the widespread threat of sexual violence faced by women in India-- the country which remains the most dangerous place for women in the world.  Outcry over the brutal gang-rape of a student on a bus in Delhi in 2012 led to new anti-rape laws and harsher punishments, but rape cases remain rampant.

 

One (Well, a Half) Day To Go

Still no word on further pardons from Bush, but speculation is so rampant that Politico has issued odds. My money is that there will be some pardons or commutations, but your guess is as good as mine. I'm wondering why there hasn't been any mention of pardons for Rumsfeld or Cheney, since it has been established that they did authorize torture . . .

UPDATE: Bush issued two commutations yesterday afternoon (see below), with a White House official saying that no further pardons would be forthcoming. Nevertheless, there's still less than 6 hours to go . . .

1. Pardon Prospects: Military and CIA interrogators of war-on-terror prisoners

There have been recent signs that people could face investigation and prosecution (either by Congress or Holder's DOJ) for use of harsh tactics in post-9/11 interrogations. Likely to require a “blanket” pardon which describes conduct, but does not name individuals-- but legal experts downplay the possibly of last-minute, surprise, blanket pardons for war crimes. Odds: 4 to 1

2. Pardon Prospect: Darth Cheney's former Chief of Staff “Scooter” Libby

Convicted in 2007 of obstruction of justice, false statements, and perjury in investigation into leak of identity of CIA officer Valerie Plame. 30-month prison sentence already commuted by Bush, was also fined $250,000 and disbarred. Bush risks public outcry for leaving full pardon for final days of presidency when it could have been done sooner. Odds: 1 to 2

3. Pardon Prospect: Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales

Still unemployed after leaving office under a cloud. Being investigated for misleading Congress and interfering with inquiries into the firings of U.S. attorneys. He’s also being investigated for preparing false after-the-fact notes of 2004 congressional briefing about warrantless surveillance. Odds: 1 to 1.

4. Pardon Prospects: Former American Israel Public Affairs Committee Lobbyists Steven Rosen and Keith Weissman, Former Pentagon Analyst Lawrence Franklin

Franklin pled guilty in 2005 to passing national secrets to Rosen and Weissman; also admitted to passing secrets to Israeli officials; Rosen and Weissman pled not guilty to conspiring to obtain and distribute classified information; trial set for April 2009. Pardons would please Jewish activists, but undercut Bush's anti-leak campaign. Odds: Rosen/Weissman, 10 to 1; Franklin: 20 to 1

5. Pardon Prospect: Former Justice Department official Bradley Schlozman

Former Bushie who is widely known to have chased career lawyers out of the Civil Rights Division and replaced them with politically-vetted GOP supporters-- and then lied to Congress about it. Odds: 4 to 1

6. Pardon prospect: Former junk bond king Michael Milken

Pled guilty in 1990 to six tax and securities-related felonies and served 22 months on a 10-year sentence. Out of prison for 16 years, he has engaged in extensive philanthropy since then. Odds: 2 to 1

7. Commutation Prospects: Former Border Patrol agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean

Convicted in 2006 of shooting fleeing drug smuggling suspect who was illegal alien; Compean sentenced to 12 years in prison; Ramos to 11 years. Crusade for clemency led by CNN anchor Lou Dobbs and supported by conservative lawmakers. Odds: 3 to 1

NOTE FROM THE DUDE: BUSH ISSUED THIS COMMUTATION YESTERDAY AFTERNOON.

8. Commutation Prospect: Former Governor George Ryan (R-Ill.)

Convicted in 2006 of corruption charges; serving six-and-a-half year prison sentence; set for release in 2013. 74-year-old Ryan has a wife in ill health, but has served only about a year of his sentence. Odds: 4 to 1

9. Commutation Prospect: Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard

Pled guilty to espionage in 1986; sentenced to life in prison without parole. Commutation would please Israel and Jewish groups, but strongly opposed by defense and intelligence communities. Odds: 20 to 1

10. Commutation Prospect: Randall “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.)

Pled guilty in 2005 to conspiracy and tax evasion as part of $2.4 million bribery scheme; sentenced to eight years four months. Suffering from prostate cancer at the age of 67, Bush once publicly called Cunningham’s scheme “outrageous”. Odds: 50 to 1

Two More Days To Go

Let's take a trip down memory lane, and remind ourselves of the early signs (eight years ago) of what an intellectually-challenged president Bush is:


"I am mindful of the difference between the executive branch and the legislative branch. I assured all four of these leaders that I know the difference, and that difference is they pass the laws and I execute them." --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Dec. 20, 2000

"If this were a dictatorship, it'd be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I'm the dictator." --George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Dec. 19, 2000

"Dick Cheney and I do not want this nation to be in a recession. We want anybody who can find work to be able to find work." --George W. Bush, 60 minutes II, CBS, December 5, 2000

"The legislature's job is to write law. It's the executive branch's job to interpret law." --George W. Bush, Austin, Texas, Nov. 22, 2000

"They want the federal government controlling Social Security like it's some kind of federal program." --George W. Bush, Nov. 2, 2000

"It's important for us to explain to our nation that life is important. It's not only life of babies, but it's life of children living in, you know, the dark dungeons of the Internet." --George W. Bush, Arlington Heights, Ill., Oct. 24, 2000

"It's your money. You paid for it." --George W. Bush, LaCrosse, Wis., Oct. 18, 2000

"Mr. Vice President, in all due respect, it is --" I'm not sure 80 percent of the people get the death tax. I know this: 100 percent will get it if I'm the president." --George W. Bush, third presidential debate, St. Louis, Mo., October 18, 2000

"If I become president, we're going to have emergency-room care, we're going to have gag orders." --George W. Bush, third presidential debate, St. Louis, Missouri, Oct. 18, 2000

"There a huge trust. I see it all the time when people come up to me and say, 'I don't want you to let me down again.'" --George W. Bush, Boston, Mass., Oct. 3, 2000

"I will have a foreign-handed foreign policy." --George W. Bush, Redwood, Calif., Sept. 27, 2000

"It is clear our nation is reliant upon big foreign oil. More and more of our imports come from overseas." --George W. Bush, Beaverton, Ore., Sep. 25, 2000

"America better beware of a candidate who is willing to stretch reality in order to win points." --George W. Bush, aboard his campaign plane, Sept. 18, 2000

"We'll let our friends be the peacekeepers and the great country called America will be the pacemakers." --George W. Bush, Houston, Texas, Sept. 6, 2000

"Well, I think if you say you're going to do something and don't do it, that's trustworthiness." --George W. Bush, in a CNN online chat, Aug. 30, 2000

"We cannot let terrorists and rogue nations hold this nation hostile or hold our allies hostile.'' --George W. Bush, Des Moines, Iowa, Aug. 21, 2000

"I think we agree, the past is over." --George W. Bush, on his meeting with John McCain, Dallas Morning News, May 10, 2000

"I think anybody who doesn't think I'm smart enough to handle the job is underestimating." --George W. Bush, U.S. News & World Report, April 3, 2000

"I understand small business growth. I was one." --George W. Bush, New York Daily News, Feb. 19, 2000

"If you're sick and tired of the politics of cynicism and polls and principles, come and join this campaign." --George W. Bush, Hilton Head, S.C., Feb. 16, 2000

"This is Preservation Month. I appreciate preservation. It's what you do when you run for president. You gotta preserve." --George W. Bush, speaking during "Perseverance Month" at Fairgrounds Elementary School in Nashua, New Hampshire, Jan. 28, 2000

"I know how hard it is for you to put food on your family." --George W. Bush, Greater Nashua, N.H., Chamber of Commerce, Jan. 27, 2000

"If the terriers and bariffs are torn down, this economy will grow." --George W. Bush, Jan. 2000

"One of the great things about books is sometimes there are some fantastic pictures." --George W. Bush, Jan. 3, 2000

Three More Days To Go

If you've only got a precious few days left to rule the country, why not take the time to piss off the French?

That seems to be the logic of the Bush administration, who has sparked anger across the Atlantic by tripling the import duty rate on roquefort cheese to 300%, a move which the U.S. hopes will "shut down trade" in the sheep's milk product by making it prohibitively expensive.

The decision, part of Washington's attempts to force the EU into dropping its ban on hormone-treated beef, was greeted with disbelief by the French government and by farmers in the south-western Aveyron region who depend on the industry for their livelihoods.

The tariff on roquefort, condemned as "incomprehensible and inadmissible" by the French government, will probably have a minimal effect, given exports to the U.S. accounts for just 2% of annual sales. French farmers said it would mean "the end" for roquefort in the US and vowed to take "symbolic actions" in return.

Four More Days To Go

Five More Days To Go

I've been reading a lot of Bush farewells and valedictories, and they are coming off as particularly nostalgic. Last night, Bush asked us not to judge him by his disastrous results, but instead by what's inside him (either a black heart or a black hole in his head, I"m not sure which). Anyway, the Economist had a particularly informative essay on his legacy.

[Bush] leaves the White House as one of the least popular and most divisive presidents in American history. At home, his approval rating has been stuck in the 20s for months; abroad, George Bush has presided over the most catastrophic collapse in America’s reputation since the second world war. The American economy is in deep recession, brought on by a crisis that forced Mr Bush to preside over huge and unpopular bail-outs.

America is embroiled in two wars, one of which Mr. Bush launched against the tide of world opinion. The Bush family name, once among the most illustrious in American political life, is now so tainted that Jeb, George’s younger brother, recently decided not to run for the Senate from Florida. A Bush relative describes family gatherings as "funeral wakes".

The three most notable characteristics of the Bush presidency [are] partisanship, politicization and incompetence. Mr. Bush was the most partisan president in living memory. He was content to be president of half the country—a leader who fused his roles of head of state and leader of his party. He devoted his presidency to feeding the Republican coalition that elected him.

This being the Economist, however, there comes late in the essay an attempt to throw Bush a bone. You can read it for yourself-- it doesn't amount to much, really.

Mr. Bush’s presidency is not without its merits. He supported sensible immigration reform. He proposed tighter regulation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the now-nationalised mortagage agencies (note from the Daily Dude: not sure I agree with that assessment, but both efforts failed anyway, so big deal!) . . On trade, too, Mr. Bush’s heart was in the right place, though policy was at first subverted by political or strategic priorities . . .His administration’s handling of the financial crisis alternated between shaky and competent . . . The president’s legendary stubbornness paid off in one area: his decision to ignore Washington’s wise men and increase troop levels in Iraq, rather than preparing for withdrawal.

And in the end, Bush gets slammed on his economic record:

Meanwhile, his policy of cutting taxes while increasing spending—of simultaneously pursuing big government and small government—dramatically swelled the deficit . . Mr. Bush’s biggest failure, however, is on entitlements. In the end he achieved few cost savings, while adding a staggering $8 trillion to Medicare’s unfunded liability. Between the Medicare drug benefit and the failure to restore solvency to Social Security, the long-term unfunded cost of America’s programs for the elderly had last year reached a stratospheric $43 trillion.

The Daily Dude Responds To Bush's Farewell Speech

So you have gratitude, huh George? You better thank God that you won't be prosecuted for war crimes.

You say you remember standing in the rubble? Do you remember paying attention to the briefing on August 6, 2001 when you were warned that terrorists were going to hijack planes?

Vowed to do everything to keep us safe? Our infrastructure has been horribly neglected; you failed to get Bin Laden.

Afghanistan has improved? They're still the world's leading heroin producer and girls are still getting acid thrown in their faces.

Seven years without another terrorist attack? What about the anthrax attacks-- did we ever solve those cases?

You think it's an honor to the military and their families by letting conditions at Walter Reed get so deplorable? How about eavesdropping on the phone sex of overseas military?

You say that people who live in freedom do not willingly choose leaders who pursue campaigns of terror? What about Hamas?

You say America is promoting human liberty, human rights and human dignity? What about Guantanamo? Renditioning? Do you think Americans like being spied on?

Expanding opportunity and hope you say? You failed at immigration reform! More people are without health insurance than when you entered office eight long years ago . . .

Do you really think air and water are cleaner? You muzzled scientists at EPA and gutted environment regulations!

You say the federal bench has "wise" new members? They just voted yesterday that the police can make up bogus search warrants and still use the illegal evidence against us in court.

You safeguarded the economy? You nearly destroyed the economy! Unemployment skyrocketed during your eight years in office. You let spending get completely out of control!

Yes, sir-- you did have setbacks. Your prescription drug program is a mess; you failed to fix social security.

And no, sir-- our nation/the world is not safer. The world is more at war than eight years ago; more countries openly despise and oppose the U.S. than ever before

You like to speak of "moral clarity"-- what about lying to us to justify going to war? What about committing war crimes by torturing detainees?

You say murdering the innocent to advance an ideology is wrong every time-- does that include murdering innocent Iraqis to advance Cheney/Rumsfeld's neocon ideology?

Yes, I agree with you that our nation inspires immigrants to risk everything for the dream of freedom-- as long as they don't get caught up by cruel, draconian anti-immigrant laws and get shipped out of the country by ICE.

Yes, the citizens of New Orleans have faced danger and trial-- and for them, there is more ahead since you failed to rebuild the levies to withstand another Katrina-level flood.


Goodbye and good riddance. Don't let the Oval Office door hit your ass on the way out.

Letterman's Top 10 Moments Of The Bush Years

Bush Tours America To Survey Damage Caused By His Presidency

Countdown To Crawford: Day 340

And now, time for some more classic quotes:


"You Fucking son of a bitch. I saw what you wrote. We're not going to forget this."

-While on a 'charm offensive' with Wall Street Journal columnist Al Hunt, 1988



"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully."

-Saginaw, Michigan, September 29, 2000



"I think we need not only to eliminate the tollbooth from the middle class, I think we should knock down the tollbooth."

-The New York Times (quoted by Gail Collins) February 1, 2000

Countdown To Crawford: Day 350

Over the years, many of George's critics have found his behavior to be juvenile and appalling. During George's "missing year" (May 1972 to May 1973, when he went missing from his National Guard service), he spent legendary amounts of time partying with booze and cocaine. At one point, he caused nearly $5,000 (adjusted to 2007) in party damage to a Montgomery, Alabama house he rented from an old woman confined to a nursing home-- which he never paid back.

In the book "The End of Faith", author Sam Harris recounted how during his career as governor of Texas, Bush mocked a female prisoner who appealed to him to lift her death sentence by mockingly imitating her pleas for mercy. On another occasion during his term as governor, he flipped the "bird" to a TV producer while on camera just before taping an appearance.

When Bush appeared on the "Late Show With David Letterman" during his 2000 campaign, he was caught on tape committing a heinous breach of social etiquette. During a commercial break, producer Maria Pope was on stage discussing something with Letterman-- and while she was standing there in front of Bush, he leaned forward, grabbed the back of her sweater, and used it to clean his glasses.

At the 2006 G-8 summit, presidential observers went crazy after George (while chewing with a mouthful of food) interrupted Tony Blair, using the word "shit". Later that week, he gave German chancellor Merkel an unwelcome neck rub while she was talking to the Italian prime minister-- which was dubbed the "love attack" by European press and earned him the nickname "Groper In Chief".

Another more recent example was in May of 2007, during a commemorative ceremony in which Bush presented the mothers of dead soldiers with a Presidential coin. George jokingly commented to one of them: "Now don't go sell it on eBay!"


Quotes For The Ages:


"I understand small business growth. I was one."

-- New York Daily News, February 19, 2000


"More and more of our imports come from overseas."

--Beaverton, Oregon, September 2000

Countdown To Crawford: Day 360

George W. Bush's intellectual capabilities have long been questioned by the press, politicians, and the public at large on numerous occasions. A study published in 2006 by the scientific journal Political Psychology estimated the IQ's of all US presidents since 1900 by analyzing each president's speeches and publications. The study ranked Bush second to last, with an estimated IQ between 111.1 and 138.5, and a mean of 120 In an interview, it was noted by the study's director that "Bush may be 'much smarter' than the findings imply" but that he "scores particularly unimpressively for 'openness to experience, a cognitive proclivity that encompasses unusual receptiveness to fantasy, aesthetics, actions, ideas and values.'"



Quotes For The Ages:


"I don't know whether I'm going to win or not. I think I am. I do know I'm ready for the job. And if not, that's the way it goes."

-Des Moines, Iowa, August 21, 2000



"Keep good relations with the Grecians."

-The Economist, 1999