The people who maintain and repair the REGJB escalators decided that on a Tuesday following a Monday holiday was the perfect time to shut down the escalator from the first floor. Of course chaos (not pictured) ensued.
The escalator repair company blamed the snafu on the company that advises them on repairs: BP.
However, other than the escalator shutdown, the day ran rather smoothly as we reported in our update yesterday. Kudos to Judge Slom and the County Court judges for carefully managing their calendars and not over scheduling a slew of cases for Tuesday.
Speaking of BP.....
As BP works on "Plan Q" this disaster is only going to get worse. We have no concept of the far reaching impact this disaster will have on our planet. Only time will tell.
COMING TOMORROW: THE SUPREME COURT SAYS TO REMAIN SILENT----YOU HAVE TO SPEAK UP. AND GUESS WHICH JUSTICE THAT OUR DAVID MARKUS SAYS IS A GREAT FRIEND TO THE CRIMINAL DEFENSE BAR VOTED WITH THE MAJORITY?
That Judge being wheeled out on a EMS Gurney in Broward on Friday was retired Dade Judge Richard Yale Feder who has been pitching in to cover the calendars of the departing and scandal ridden (and now former) Judge Ana Gardiner. (Hat tip JAA Blog.) A slight blood sugar problem was fixed and Feder was back at it "Dade Style" in the afternoon. Go get em Judge!
In Defense of Israel:
For over half a century Israel has always survived by being smarter than its enemies. Israel could never be bigger than those who threatened its existence. So being stronger meant being smarter. Not this time. Israel was out maneuvered and it was a classic trap. If Israel couldn't see this public relations nightmare coming from a thousand miles away, then something is seriously wrong with their political and military leadership.
But lets remember this incident for what it was: a publicity stunt. The attempt to try and run the blockade and resupply Hamas in Gaza was a classic "win/win" operation. Run the blockade and celebrate the resupply mission. Be intercepted by Israel- and become international martyrs.
The loss of life in this stunt is regrettable. But no less regrettable than the Israeli loss of life when Hamas was mercilessly shelling Israel in 2007. Where was the international outcry then?
The Palestinians are a tragic people. Disavowed by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan which at one time was 50% Palestinian, and thrust as pawns in the terrorists battle against Israel, first by the PLO and now by Hamas, the Palestinians are the real losers here. No one speaks up for the Palestinian children and their innocent families who didn't choose the terrorists who claim to speak on their behalf. When Israel attacks Gaza, it's innocent Palestinian families who are caught in the cross fire and die. When Hamas strikes back, it's innocent Israeli families who die from the rockets. See the pattern here? Innocents die while the politicians and their armies wage a century old war. Enough is enough. But until reason returns to the Middle East (and maybe reason has never really been there) Israel has the right and indeed the obligation to protect its citizens. And if that means intercepting ships trying to run the blockade so as to make sure the cargo doesn't contain weapons or WMDs, so be it.
Like the oil spill and our aging escalators, the Middle East just gets worse and worse.
And as we expected Hamas fired rockets from Gaza into Israel this morning. BTW- we left out the fact that Israel allows 100 buses and trucks of humanitarian aide into Gaza every day. But they are shipments carefully checked for arms before they are allowed to enter.
ReplyDeleteThe Stairs - - the Stairs - - when I was young, elevators and escalators were for the weak, the lazy, the privileged. Hell all you had to do to get to the courtroom was go six flights. There was one courthouse, downtown. It housed it all, county government, the jail up top, (run by a corrupt sherif, ole Tal), the courts, only six floors of courtroom at the time. Simple. That was before Fidel. Those were the days, an all white men show, before women and Qbans screwed it up. Come to think of it, back in the day, the women in the courthouse were usually defendants, collected by the vice squad the previous evening Aaaaaa the two oldest professions coming together, those were the days. I tell you, women and Qbans have destroyed both of the oldest professions in this town. You now have to speekie Spanish to get anywhere, and now you have to pay by the hour or alimony to get some. Boy-o-boy Archie Bunker were are thee!
ReplyDeletefarce.
ReplyDeleteblatant unjustifiable muder of innocents. period.
"My education's low
ReplyDeletebut I got long dough
I got moves like a pit bull
my heart pumps nitro
sleep on silk
lie like a politician
my uzi's my best friend
cold as a mortician
lock me up
there'll be another one after me
it's a genocidal catastrophe
cause I'm a hustler
h..u..s..t...l..e...r hustler."
If the Q's plan is being used in the Gulf, the spill will certainly be plugged by day's end. Finally, somebody at BP called the Q!
ReplyDeleteYou guys are funny. Those escalators are "worked on" 9 months out of the year. How much repair work do they need????
ReplyDeleteStairs are good for you! Enjoy.
Rump, you got it wrong.
ReplyDeleteIsrael may have been smarter, but it is way stronger in terms of brute force. You would have been right 40 years ago, but not anymore.
Israel is now the ignorant bully in the region.
I don't fault the boarding party for the deaths of the 9 people on that boat. The soldiers were clearly under attack and acted in self-defense. But, they should never have been there in the first place.
If you consider delivering food and medical supplies to some of the most needy and desperate people on Earth - "resupplying Hamas", then you are as blind as the Israeli government - a group of religious zealots who would not be in power were it not for the excessive political power exerted by the religious elite.
Mind you, these are the same people who the man who assassinated Yitzak Rabin was aligned with. They benefited, the people of Israel and the rest of the world that yearns for peace, lost.
It is time for Israel to make peace with the Palestinians...if the country is unwilling, it will not exist after oil runs out and our interests in the region are gone. If you believe that the American people will support a state of Israel that is simply causing trouble and there is no benefit, then you know nothing about antisemitism or the simple dynamics of a larger group response to folks who claim to be "chosen"
I am not so naive as to fail to recognize that the Israelis have enemies that want to destroy the State, but they need to regain the "smarts" and embark on a long-term plan to stabilize relations with the rest of the world, without the grace of which it will no longer exist.
- A realistic, non-self hating, pragmatic Jew.
the israeli govt has jumped the shark on this one. they only bolster their enemies and stifle their friends when they knowingly attack a "humanitarian" vessel. They knew it was a trap and yet they fell right into it. How stupid. And oh by the way, there are ways of blockading vessels that does not require a commando raid from helicopters. Double stupid.
ReplyDeleteBreaking News The Leader of the Republican Party of Florida - Charlie Crook's right hand man - has been arrested!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.miamiherald.com/2010/06/02/1659606/authorities-ex-florida-gop-chairman.html
If you read the Israeli press, Bibi's government got this wrong. Wrong policy in the Gaza, wrong use of the IDF (who did the best they could with a bad situation), wrong public relations, wrong way to deal with Turkey (a critical ally).
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, that range of opinion and frank self-criticism by Israelis does not appear in the US. After all, we are colored by feelings of love and loyalty instilled upon us since Seif the Knife sharpened his blade (the local chosen ones know what I'm talking about).
There is absolutely no defense to Israel. Israel is a terrorist state and has been so for decades. Israel conducts terrorist activities under the guise of security with the approval of the U.S. and U.K. There is no defense to Israel. They are actively engaged in a systematic policy of apartheid, racial discrimination and refuses to respect international boundaries. Shame on Israel.
ReplyDeleteWhat's wrong with putting U.S. interests over those of Israel? Aren't we all Americans? Can't we disagree with Israel without being called anti-Semetic? I have a bad feeling that, at some point in the future, we are going to have to make this choice.
ReplyDeleteBreaking News The Leader of the Republican Party of Florida - Charlie Crook's right hand man - has been arrested!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.miamiherald.com/2010/06/02/1659606/authorities-ex-florida-gop-chairman.html
I'll be the first to say it... Somebody call the Q!!!
isreal is one of our most trusted and loyal allies 1:48. the real problem are muslim terrorists who many in gaza are in league with. im not jewish but many of my friends are. i dont sort with muslims too often. not my type of folk.
ReplyDeleteTHE CAPTAIN REPORTS:
ReplyDeleteSo you want to be a Circuit Court Judge .....
The JNC was in session today interviewing candidates for a seat on the Circuit Court.
To recap, 19 applied and 11 were interviewed. The JNC now sends the following six names to Governor Crist:
Miguel de la O
Robert Galt, III
Darrin Gayles
Browyn Miller
Lisa Walsh
Deborah White-Labora
If he chooses any of the last four names, he will get a 2-1 and the JNC will be back at it again in a couple of months.
Below are the names of those interviewed that did not make the cut:
Robin Faber
Andrew Hague
Patricia Kopco
Robert Kuntz Jr.
Rodney Smith
Once again, rather than complain about the process, send a communication to the Governor's office by snail mail, email, phone call, fax, etc. to:
Governor’s Legal Affairs Office
The Governor’s Office,
The Capitol,
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-00;
FAX: (850) 488-9810 or (850) 922-0307.
If faxing, please include a means in addition to your fax number which may be used to contact you for further information. Anonymous correspondence is not taken into consideration.
Cap Out .......
Of course we never blame the provocateurs. Since the embargo has been imposed the number and ferocity of attacks from Gaza upon Israelis has bcome almost non-existence. The reason for this confrontation at this time by the "activists" is to try to turn international opinion away from the blockade and to loosen things up enough to permit arms to flow into Gaza again.
ReplyDeleteOver the past several months the flow of humanitarian goods has increased exponentially. The "activists" knew they would be stopped and the vessel towed to an Isreali port and once cleared the aid would be sent by land to Gaza. If you look at the tapes, you see that the soldiers were attacked by well armed, organized and prepared crew members and others who were aboard. The use of deadly force was not initially authorized, evidenced by the fact that the first soldiers were not armed with live ammunition. It was not until the second waive that firing began, in self defense.
Was it a badly executed operation? Yes. Was it murder? Not hardly. Was it provoked for a purpose? Yes.
By the way, to all those who think the blockade is wrong, speaking for those of us who were around in 1962, it beats all out war. You being here is living proof of that.
Israel has stolen land from the Palestinians, refuse to allow East Jerusalem to serve as capital for a future Palestinian state and continue to build and expand settlements in territory that the world recognizes as belonging to the Palestinians. They fire helicopter attacks into schools, hospitals, government buildings, apartment buildings, etc. Scores of innocent Palestinians have been killed or maimed. All of these actions have foster and contributed to the rise of Hamas, an establish terrorist organization. Netanyahu is a reckless man and he has always believed in dealing with the Palestinians militarily. No one supports the acts of militant elements of Gaza or the West Bank. But Israel is supposed to be a democratic free state and they resort to such overwhelming attacks on so many urban Palestinian areas. I blame Israel because their leadership, with the exception of late and grate P.M. Rabin, is not committed to peaceful coexistence with a sovereign Palestinian State. The zealots in Jerusalem will never allow it. And that is a fact.
ReplyDeleteThe comments to this post are a microcosm of the entire middle east problem....
ReplyDeleteIsrael: This is 100% the fault of the Palestinians.
Palestinians: This is 100% the fault of Israel.
Israel: No, it's not. In 1962, blah, blah, blah.
Palestinians: No it's not, in1982, blah, blah, blah.
How many innocent children, Jewish or Palestinian, have to die before you JUST FUCKING STOP?
How anyone who watches the video of the so called humanitarian activitsts attacking the Israeli soldiers as they boarded the vessel can think that they had clean hands is beyond me. Open your eyes people.
ReplyDeleteIf another country fired rockets into the US on a regular basis would we stand down?
BTDT
PS---how the hell could the Israelis know there were no weapons (other than metal poles) on board? They're supposed to trust them? Please. They're converting garbage trucks and ambulances into covert rocket launchers, attack behind civilian shields, etc. I'm not saying Israel has clean hands (they've made plenty of mistakes), but let's get real here.
Israeli has conceded that nothing more than humanitarian aid was on the unarmed vessels it attacked.
ReplyDeletei heard one zealot supporter of israeli's slaughter of humanitarian workers "yeah but cement can be used to make bunkers!"
sounds like supporters of the nazi regime. ironic, isnt it?
Gotta love holy wars. They have been constant entertainment for thousands of years. And likely for thousands more. I'm 39 years old and this crap has been going on for as long as I can remember.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I could care less. Let them all blow each other up. I'm changing the channel.
Let Israel take care of its own. Why are we sending up to 3 BILLIONS in aid to a country that look down on us and our policies? I will never understand that.
ReplyDeleteThe simplistic answer for the question of why the U.S. provides so much aid to Israel (and it's a lot more than $3 billion/year) is to blaim it on "the Jewish lobby," but it's a lot deeper than that. Israel actually serves an important strategic purpose for the West and for Western industry (especially the oil companies), since it is actually a Western proxy state in an area where everyone else is fairly hostile to Western interests. Nothing shows this more than the 1956 Suez Canal War, when Israel provided cover for France and the U.K to prevent Egypt from taking over the Canal. And, when the history is finally written about both of the Gulf Wars, the evidence will show that Israel provided an important staging area for Western military strategy. This also explains why people like Dick Cheney--who I'm sure could give a shit about a Jewish homeland--is so protective of Israel.
ReplyDelete