xtcian

Go Lucy!

And on a related note, go Neva!! I've been following your blog about the journey toward this weekend's tri, and I wanted to wish you luck in this forum so that we could all be thinking of you during the race. Good luck!! Please let us know how it goes.

Sweet photo.

Go Neva!

I love this photo.

You should turn that into a painting.

CUTE!!!! Time for one of those teeny Suzuki violins?

Can you teach her some Charlie Daniels???

Response to from Cornyn to my sister (writing to urge changing Habeas Corpus under Military Commissions act)

Thank you for contacting me regarding legislation pertaining to the
Military Commissions Act; I appreciate having the benefit of your comments
on this important matter.  In September 2006, Congress overwhelmingly
passed the Military Commissions Act (MCA) of 2006 (S. 3930), which will be
used to prosecute unlawful enemy combatants—such as members of al
Qaeda—who
have played key roles in terrorist attacks on the United States.  In
addition to establishing procedures for military tribunals, the legislation
also clearly defines the obligations of our intelligence professionals in
the field as they interrogate captured terrorists.  Without such clarity,
our intelligence community would not be able to conduct these necessary
interrogations, and we would lose a critical tool in the War on Terror.

Some critics claim that this measure would permit torture or allow the
mistreatment of detainees. They further argue that it does not provide
sufficient rights for captured terrorists to challenge their detentions.
In fact, the legislation neither permits the mistreatment of detainees nor
prohibits a detainee from having a fair process with which to challenge his
detention.

The policy of the U.S. is, and always has been, to treat all detainees
humanely. Torture is illegal under current U.S. laws and under our
international treaty obligations, such as the Geneva Conventions and U.N.
Convention Against Torture. Further, Congress passed legislation in
December 2005 that prohibited all cruel, inhuman, and degrading
treatment—as defined by the U.S. Constitution—for all detainees in U.S.
custody, regardless of where they are held. Nothing in S.3930 changes
that. In fact, torture and other cruel and inhuman treatment are
considered a grave breach of our international obligations, and we have
clearly defined such as war crimes under U.S. laws. Although no one
expects that al Qaeda will ever follow the laws of war, the U.S. can stand
proud, fully meeting its treaty obligations while aggressively bringing
terrorists to justice.

It is important to note that torture and overly coercive treatment do not
yield good intelligence. Detainees will simply tell their captors what
they want to hear in order to end the treatment. But American’s national
security requires that we continue an effective, aggressive interrogation
program that is consistent with U.S. laws and treaty obligations.
Intelligence gained through the CIA’s High Value Terrorist Detention
Program has been critical to capturing al Qaeda operatives and preventing
additional terrorist attacks against the U. S. And as a result of the MCA
of 2006, that important program will continue protecting America. The
Senate passed S. 3930 on September 28, 2006, by a vote of 65 to 34, and
President George W. Bush signed it into law (P.L. 109-366) on October 17,
2006.

Some have mistakenly suggested that terrorists will have an inadequate
right—or no right at all—to challenge their detentions. This is
simply not
true. While the legislation prevents detainees from frivolously suing the
U.S. government and our men and women in uniform, captured terrorists still
may challenge their imprisonment.

As required by the Detainee Treatment Act, passed in 2005 (P.L. 109-163),
each detainee currently has the right to appear before a Combatant Status
Review Tribunal (CSRT) to challenge his detention. A detainee may
challenge the CSRT decision in a federal court, and seek a review by the
Supreme Court. In fact, a detainee under the U.S. system has a number of
procedural protections that a captured American soldier would not have,
even under the Geneva Conventions.

The new law will not provide al Qaeda terrorists with the same legal rights
available to U.S. citizens accused of a crime. But it will ensure that
terrorists like Khalid Sheik Mohammed are finally brought to justice and
that the U.S. is not forced to hand over classified national security
information that would then find its way to other terrorists. It will also
allow aggressive interrogation techniques, some of them not to be made
public, that have already proven their value in preventing attacks on the
homeland and U.S. military forces.

We are a compassionate nation, and a civilized one. But it is the duty of
those in public office to ensure the safety and security of our citizens,
first and foremost. Texans can be confident I will do everything possible
in the U.S. Senate to ensure that we fulfill this primary responsibility.
I appreciate the opportunity to represent you in the United States Senate.
Thank you for taking the time to contact me.
Sincerely,

JOHN CORNYN
United States Senator

517 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Tel: (202) 224-2934
Fax: (202) 228-2856
http://www.cornyn.senate.gov