The Academic Objector

Actually, when he got arrested at Ft. Huachuca he did not tell them his name was Omar Khadr. Rather, in response to their repeated requests that he reveal his identity his consistent response was along the lines of "I am here representing Omar Khadr, a prisoner being wrongly imprisoned at Guantanamo." If he had told them he was actually Omar Khadr he would've been charged with something akin to fraud.

Hmmm a 33 year old "student" wonder if he has ever had a productive work day in his life? Funny how these drifters like to hold themselves up thinking they are "enlightened" more than the masses.

I hope you get your day in court too, and get a lengthy sentence. And part of your sentence should be a hefty fine that forces you to pay for your feeding, housing, and clothing while inside the prision collecting more ideas for your next student project.

Tuition dollars @ work, & many wonder why the UC system is strapped for $$$. I think 1 of the many answers is right here, just my humble opinion :) henry

Religion is not sacred. When religion becomes a manual for violent behavior it needs to be regulated. Harris may want to include the historical, codependent relationship between violence and religion in his studies........

So the issue is that the BOP is being secretive about banning certain materials they feel could be used to incite violence? Why would they want to be secretive?

The thing here is this: Prison ain't supposed to be a fun, paid vacation. When you commit a crime, especifically a crime of violence, you've negated your trust bond w/ society. If the crime is committed under the name of a movement (religious or political) it then becomes a whole new ball game. What do people fail to realize about the fact that certain individuals just ain't "reformable" or "rehabilitative" in any way? Of course, when an organization chooses to defend those of 1 religion or movement over another, then an agenda is clear. In any case, best of luck to Mr. Harris w/ his studies, but don't count me as a supporter, that is my right :) henry

Since there were so many comments on this issue, all I have to say is "Who put the BOP in the BOP de BOP de BOP, Who put the RAM in the RAMA LAMA Ding Dong?"

HAHAHA! Made my evening! :) henry

Nice comments, from a bunch of fools that have most likely never been to jail, and apparently don't know a thing about religion.

To InTheKnow: If you disagree with Josh's project, then go ahead and be critical of it. It's pretty messed up to be critical of the guy himself, who I'm sure you don't know.

ElMasmacho(peromuymisinformado), you're absolutely right about 1 thing: We've never been in jail. That's probably because us fools have been, or are, using our lives to work hard to support ourselves & families, unlike people who take up criminal behavior or activities (terrorists, gang members, career criminals, etc.).
Just in case you don't know what may get you thrown in jail, here's a top 10 list (w/ respect to Mr. Harris' & the ACLU's implications of who is wrongly imprisoned):
1) Stockpiling automatic weapons.
2) Stockpiling armor piercing ammunition.
3) Stockpiling materials for making explosive devices.
4) Contacting terrorist organizations to join.
5) Planning to carry out attacks on federal, state or county offices/installations.
6) Planning to carry out attacks against individuals, especially based on said individual's race, ethnicity, religion, gender, political views or sexual orientation.
7) Engaging in activities that may result in the injury or death of military pesonnel.
8) Diverting of monetary funds to terrorist organizations.
9) Aiding & abbetting known terrorist.
10) Falsifying documents to further criminal or terroist activities.
That's just a top 10 list, I'm sure there's more, but if you ain't doing any of these things then you really have no reason to be thrown in la pinta.
By the way, these items listed also apply to criminal gang activity, which Santa Barbara has been a subject of in increasing numbers as of lately.
So yeah, we're a bunch of fools that have never been to jail & personally I think that's something to be proud of :) henry

ElMasMAcho = Josh Harris???? Maybe since the guy created his account the day after people posted, riping him apart and only has one posting.

What is wrong Mr Macho? Did we strike a nerve and make you reflect even more?

I take it from your post you have been to jail/prision? At least that is what your posting implies. I guess you have that in common with Josh, you could be him huh?

Be a productive member of society, not one of these fruits that live off the government teet and then complains about the milk being sour... that is all that I'm saying.

Great project, and strongly in support of our Bill of Rights. Kudos.

Does the Bill Of Rights cover the right to yell "fire" in a crowded theater?

Sounds like a terrorist sympathizer to me.

When someone yells "fire", we just submerge underwater 'til the crisis passes.

Sometimes war is necessary. One time, my pod and I invaded the Sea Of Cortez to deal with some unruly killer whales. We ran them out and back into the Pacific Ocean.

33 years old and still in school. Time for this guy to get a real job. He has WAY too much time on his hands.

If these prisoners were Christian would Harris and the A.C.L.U. be so quick to defend them?

billclausen, your question reveals a sad ignorance of the history of ACLU cases and causes.

and LegendaryYeti, do you have some background information on Josh Harris to support your juvenile comment "33 years old and still in school"? According to the article,"he returned to his studies at Claremont and began to consider possible topics for his master's thesis" in 2007.

For all you know, the years between undergrad and grad school could have been filled with ropin', ridin', and fightin', stock-brokerin', and any number of pursuits to warm your oh-so-manly heart.

ACLU cases & causes: To seem to support the US Constitution's laws by protecting those that want to do away w/ the rights & freedoms afforded by the US Constitution. If there's a group of Nationalist Socialist Party members (nazis) that want to goose step through a Jewish neighborhood, the ACLU is there!
If there's a foreign spy that is caught giving secrets to a foreign hostile nation & wants legal representation, the ACLU is there.
If there's a guilty copkiller that wants to try & get off on a technicality, the ACLU is there.
Interesting about the ACLU's history: "Roger Nash Baldwin became head of the National Civil Liberties Bureau in 1917. An independent outgrowth of the American Union Against Militarism, the Bureau opposed American intervention in World War I. The NCLB provided legal advice and aid for conscientious objectors and those being prosecuted under the Espionage Act of 1917 or the Sedition Act of 1918. In 1920, the NCLB changed its name to the American Civil Liberties Union, with Baldwin continuing as its director and Walter Nelles as chief counsel. Jeannette Rankin, Jane Addams, Crystal Eastman, Albert DeSilver, Helen Keller, along with other former members of the NCLB, assisted Baldwin with the founding of the ACLU. Among the founding members was Felix Frankfurter, who later became an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. DeSilver and Nelles were Baldwin's closest associates.
The ACLU was formed to protect aliens threatened with deportation, along with U.S. nationals threatened with criminal charges by U.S. Attorney General Alexander Mitchell Palmer for their communist or socialist activities and agendas. It also opposed attacks on the rights of the Industrial Workers of the World and other labor unions to meet and organize.
In 1940, the ACLU formally barred communists from leadership or staff positions, and would take the position that it did not want communists as members either. The board declared that it was "inappropriate for any person to serve on the governing committees of the Union or its staff, who is a member of any political organization which supports totalitarianism in any country, or who by his public declarations indicates his support of such a principle." The purge, which was led by Baldwin, himself a former supporter of communism, began with the ouster of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, a member of both the Communist Party USA and the Industrial Workers of the World."
W/ this given history of the ACLU's formation, why then NOT support any American for any cause? Just those who seem to want to practice totalitarian causes such as nazis, kkk, Islamic terrorist. I guess their rights are more important for some reason or another, but given the track record, there's definately a questionable aspect & definitely an agenda :) henry

Binky: I posed a question that you didn't answer.

I remember the case where the Nazis wanted to march through Skokie, Illinois c.1977. At that time, there were 7000+ Nazi death camp survivors living in Skokie. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skokie,_...)

Try to imagine what it would be like to endure the Holocaust and then see Nazis marching down the street. How the A.C.L.U. can consider this a mere free speech issue is beyond me, and is clearly a case of arguing technicalites over the common good.

billclausen, in the off-chance you aren't being disingenuous, here are just four cases from this year:

The ACLU and the ACLU of New Jersey (2009) filed a successful lawsuit on behalf of a New Jersey prisoner an ordained Pentecostal minister to restore his fundamental right to preach to other inmates. The minister had preached at weekly Christian worship services at the New Jersey State Prison in Trenton, NJ for more than a decade when prison officials suddenly banned that activity without any justification. As a result of the ACLU lawsuit, state officials agreed to allow the minister to resume preaching and teaching Bible study classes under the supervision of prison staff.
www.aclu.org/religion-belief/ordained...

The ACLU of Michigan (2009) filed a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of the First Baptist Church of Ferndale after local residents cited a zoning ordinance to prevent the church from providing social services to the poor and homeless on church property. The ACLU argued that zoning boards may not burden the free exercise of religion simply because neighbors object.
www.dailytribune.com/articles/2009/09...

The ACLU of Tennessee (2009) came to the defense of a group of student teachers who conduct church services with the homeless in a public park. The ACLU successfully negotiated with the Metro Board of Parks and Recreation to revise a policy that had unfairly blocked religious groups' regular use of park space.
www.aclu.org/religion-belief/aclu-tn-...

The ACLU and the ACLU of Virginia (2009) argued against the censorship of religious materials being sent to detainees in the Rappahannock Regional Jail. The ACLU wrote a letter to the superintendent of the jail, asking that the jail cease the removal of Christian-themed materials and biblical passages from letters written to detainees. As a result of ACLU involvement, the prison agreed to change its policies and allow religious mail.
www.aclu.org/prison/restrict/40258prs...

And hank, the sad fact is protecting ALL of our rights will occasionally include the protecting rights of the truly reprehensible or the mal-intentions of the not-so innocent.

Binky: I must admit I'm surprised that they have done this. I'm glad to see they took on the right causes in the cases you presented.

Binky, this guy seems like a professional student to me. Time to get out into the real world.

Binky, I totally hear you. But my way of seeing it is this: If you've got the resources to create a scene, then you damn well better have the resources within your scene to back it up yourself.
I too am a person that believes nobody's rights should be trampled. As somebody born in a communist country I cherish my freedoms & liberties in this great nation.
But I have to wonder what the agenda is when someone chooses to represent such reprehensible causes. They can back themselves up just fine, why give them assistance?
It's kind of like a defense lawyer that knows his/her client is as guilty as sin, but will do anything within the legal means to get said client off & this usually involves a technicality.
In the case of a heineous crime like murder, sure, the murder is set free, but it don't change the fact that the murder is still a murder & chances are they'll kill again.
It truly is a sad fact like you said & I am cognizant of that. Having you point it out the way you did is always a welcome read.
But if we're talking about rights of all, then it is my right to not support an organization like the ACLU.
Even if backed into a legal corner, I'd rather go down on my terms than let them represent me. But if I ain't doing any of the things I previously mentioned then my chances for being put in a negative situation are exponentially minimized.
Bill, I was aware of those cases that were listed above, but it still won't change my mind. Comes down to the following: "My life, my rights, my choices." By the way, glad to see you made it back on here, always good to hear from you :) henry

@ current_observer. So you agree that the Islamic religion should be regulated....right? Daniel Petry

I have not been to jail. And, I am not Josh. Josh is white, and so it seems unlikely to me that he would choose to make an internet name for himself in Spanish.

My comments, which were obviously charged with some resentment, were due to the snide manner in which most of the first bloggers critiquing this article focused on the person, and not what the person is doing. The latter, at least, could be constructive and would be understandable. It makes no sense, however, to start assuming things about and hating on the guy himself, as if you are incapable of engaging in constructive argumentative discourse about this issue.

Children and politicians make personal attacks when they cannot gather a dialectic rebuttal. So, while we are being hard working contributors of society and all that jazz, let's not be childish when it comes to the discourses about our society. That's all I'm trying to say.

Violence breeds violence.

http://www.answering-islam.org/Author...

http://www.answering-islam.org/Author...

http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/1...

@ current_observer - How about thinking for yourself. Please don't burden us with cut and paste. Daniel Petry

By Ahmed Al-Mansour

As a former Muslim, I can tell you from experience that Islam not only breeds violence, it is a religion and ideology that feeds off of violence. It has been this way since Mohammed invented Islam in the seventh century. U'bul Kassim (later known as Mohammed) was a criminal, a terrorist and a pirate. He needed a method in which he could recruit pirates and criminals to do his will and keep them in line. How better to recruit new members of a criminal organization than to invent a religion for criminals. Islam was the answer! Allah, the pagan "moon god" of the Quraish Tribe of Arabs, the tribe of Mohammed, was the perfect model for his one god. Allah is distrustful of man, contemptuous of man and had no love for mankind. Only for those who submit to his will which is actually Mohammed's will.

Islam has been at war with all others since Mohammed invented his religion. The quotes for the so-called "holy" Quran are indicative of just how militant and confused Muslims are. There are many others in the Quran. the entire book of the Quran is an evil book. Every page spews forth Satanic words of hatred, contempt and violence.

In Islam, it is not a sin to kill an infidel. In fact, one can assure himself of a better place in paradise if one kills multiple infidels in the name of Allah! This is what Major Hasan did at Fr. Hood. He was so deceived by the writings of Mohammed, the utterances of his Imam and other Muslims that he decided to act and act for the sake of Islam and his prophet Mohammed.

In Islam, one is not free to leave the faith. I did. If my brothers can find me, I will be killed as I have brought "dishonor" upon my family name by converting to Christianity and leaving behind my Muslim heritage. I must thank an American soldier whose compassion and love for all people put his Christian faith above all else to help his fellow man, in this case me, when I was injured and would have died otherwise. My "Muslim brothers" inflicted grievous injuries on me and others as a result of our cooperating with US soldiers to stop the killing in Iraq. Islam is a religion of confusion and hatred. There is no love, no peace and not tolerance allowed in this faith.

To a Muslim the religion is above all else. One can only be a patriot, IF his government is run by the Sharia, according to the Quran. All other governments, even your government in America is way below the Quran and all the teaching of Islam. Accordingly, you are all enemies of Islam and a Muslim must fight you! Quran 9.33 says clearly, "He it is who sent his Apostle (Mohammed) with guidance and the religion of truth, that He might cause it to prevail over all religions, though the polytheists (Roman Catholics) may be averse."