{"id":10245,"date":"2013-04-11T03:46:24","date_gmt":"2013-04-11T10:46:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=10245"},"modified":"2013-04-11T03:54:51","modified_gmt":"2013-04-11T10:54:51","slug":"open-thread4112013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2013\/04\/11\/open-thread4112013\/","title":{"rendered":"Open Thread–4\/11\/2013"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yesterday I got the rest I needed to recover from my long volunteer day in prison.  I’m current with replies.  Tomorrow appears routine.<\/font><\/p>\n

Jig Zone Puzzle<\/strong>:<\/font><\/p>\n

Today’s took me 3:24 (average 4:51).  To do it, click here<\/a>.  How did you do?<\/font><\/p>\n

Short Takes<\/strong>:<\/font><\/p>\n

From NY Times<\/a>: <\/font>The military prosecutors seeking to have Pfc. Bradley Manning convicted of violating the Espionage Act over his release of secret government files to WikiLeaks will face an additional burden at his court-martial under a ruling on Wednesday by a military judge.<\/p>\n

The judge, Col. Denise Lind, ruled at a pretrial hearing that prosecutors must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Private Manning had “reason to believe” that the files could be used to harm the United States or to aid a foreign power. Prosecutors had contended that they should be required to prove only that he willfully disclosed defense-related files to win a conviction under the spying law.<\/p>\n

I think the judge made the right decision. Unlike many on the left, I believe that Manning should receive some punishment. In Civil Disobedience (one of my favorite books), Henry David Thoreau made it clear that the moral authority for civil disobedience is that the perpetrator considers the issue so important that he or she willingly accepts the consequence of punishment to emphasize that point. That said, I also believe that after being convicted of a charge less than espionage, he should be sentenced to time served and released. He has been punished more than enough already.<\/font><\/p>\n

From Huffington Post<\/a>: <\/font>Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) turned to the Bible on Wednesday during a congressional hearing, using the Great Flood to support his claim that climate change isn't man-made…<\/p>\n