Luke_Wilbur

The Eckington Civic Association will meet this Tuesday at 7pm. The location is 22 Q St NE. We will be joined by Leila Batties of Holland and Knight. She will be doing a presentation on the proposed development at Eckington Pl and Harry Thomas Way(Capitol Commerce Center/Fed Ex Field/former Fairfield project). I look forward to see you and please be on time.

That is sad. I visited Lake Titicaca about 10 years ago.

How do you know that these are fraudulent companies?

I just wanted to thank everyone for coming and the waiter that had to deal with our table. Lots O Food The movie was great. I highly recommend it. Its full some great liners. If you stayed at the end of the credits to hear Maggies first word: Sequel Maybe we will be another movie sometime before the next decade.

Understanding that you and respect our Constitution. What is your opinion of being in Contempt of Congress when Executive privlege used? Do you think any reforms in this area are necessary? http://blog.johnedwards.com/story/2007/7/30/113052/726

In his testimony yesterday, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales claimed that when James Comey raised objections to the administration's spying program, he was referring to other intelligence activities, not the warrantless wiretapping program that Bush has confirmed. Gonzales's big problem is that he told the Senate on February 6, 2006 that no one within the Justice Department dissented from President Bush's warrantless surveillance program, a contention made dubious by James Comey's testimony in May that, as acting attorney general in March 2004, Comey refused to reauthorize a program he considered illegal. Yesterday, Sen. John Rockefeller (D-WV), who was ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee at the time, said he was never told of other intelligence activities. As far as I'm concerned, there's only one intelligence program, Rockefeller said. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales repeatedly made references to the "Gang of Eight" when being questioned about the warrantless surveillance/ domestic spying while testifying at the Justice Department Oversight hearing held July 24, 2007. One "Gang of Eight" member, Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA), who was present at this classified briefing took issue with Gonzales even speaking about the meeting, "'The attorney general is selectively declassifying material from a classified briefing, which I find improper.'" In today's Times, another member of the Gang of Eight, speaking anonymously, backs Gonzales: "Speaking on condition of anonymity, he confirmed the attorney general’s testimony that the group reached a “consensus” that the disputed intelligence activity should continue and that passing emergency legislation would risk revealing secrets." In March 2004, a dispute arose over the legality of a secret intelligence wiretapping program. Then-Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft was in the hospital after a gallbladder operation, and James Comey was acting attorney general. White House counsel Alberto Gonzales (shown) now the attorney general, went with Andrew Card, White House chief of staff at the time, to Ashcroft's bedside to get him to reauthorize the program. Apparent discrepancies and evasions in Attorney General Gonzalez' testimony is leading several senators to call for charges of perjury. The Gang of Eight is a common colloquial term for a set of eight leaders of the U.S. Congress. Specifically, the Gang of Eight includes the leaders of each of the two parties from each of the two houses of Congress and the chairs and ranking members of the intelligence committees of each of the two houses of Congress. The President of the United States is required by 50 U.S.C. § 413(a)(1) to "ensure that the congressional intelligence committees are kept fully and currently informed of the intelligence activities of the United States." However, the President may elect to report instead to the Gang of Eight when he feels "it is essential to limit access" to information about a covert action. The term "Gang of Eight" gained wide currency in the coverage of the Bush administration's warrantless domestic spying program, in the context that no members of Congress other than the Gang of Eight were informed of the program, and they were forbidden to disseminate knowledge of the program to other members of Congress. The Bush administration has asserted that the briefings delivered to the Gang of Eight sufficed to provide Congressional oversight of the program and preserve the checks and balances between the executive and legislative branches. The non-partisan Congressional Research Service released a legal analysis on January 18, 2006, concluding that the Bush administration's refusal to brief any members of Congress on the warrantless domestic spying program other than the Gang of Eight is "inconsistent with the law." The New York Times The Washington Post Current Members of the Gang of Eight Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives John Boehner, Republican House Leader Harry Reid, Democratic Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, Republican Senate Leader Silvestre Reyes, Chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Peter Hoekstra, Ranking Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence John D. Rockefeller, IV, Chair of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Kit Bond Ranking Member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence

Understanding that you and respect our Constitution. What is your opinion of being in Contempt of Congress when Executive privlege used? Do you think any reforms in this area are necessary? I wrote this same question on a Blog that I set up on Senator Clinton's web site http://connect.hillaryclinton.com/forum.js...rumID=400006445

I got my first response. So I have decided to rephrase my question. Dear Senator Obama, Understanding that you were a constitional law professor and respect our Constitution. What is your opinion of being in Contempt of Congress when Executive privlege used? http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/blog/lukewilbur

I agree with Human. Right or wrong we have committed our nation to the war in Iraq. We owe it to the soldiers and citizens of Iraq who gave their lives for this cause. But, we need to somehow get the government of Iraq moving a little faster in securing hostile areas. We also need to give Iraqis more jobs and basic utilities before they lose faith in us. Finally, as long as US armed forces are in Iraq their governemtn should pay our country's military expenses with their oil revenue.

Senator Obama, If you get elected as President of our great country what position would you take on Executive privilege and do you believe that being in Contempt of Congress trumps Executive privlege? I wrote this same question on a Blog that I set up on Senator Obama's web site http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/p...lukewilbur/CppP Bling Bling or anyone please forward this message to Senator Obama.

Resolution Recommending That the House of Representatives Find Harriet Miers and Johua Bolten, Cheif of Staff, White House, In Contempt of Congress For Refussal to Comply With Supoenas Duly Issued by the Committee on the Judiciary Mr. Conyers, from the Committee on the Judiciary submitted the following Report together with Additional Views The form of Resolution that the Committee on the JUdiciary would recommend to the House of Representatives for citing former White House Counsel Harriet Miers and White House Chief of Staff Josua Bolton for contempt of Congress pursuant to this Report as follows: Resolved, That pursuant to 2 U.S.C 192 and 194, the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall certify the report of the Committee on the Judiciary, detailing the refusal of former White House Counsel Harriet Miers to appear before the Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law of the Committee on the Judiciary as directed by subpoena, to the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia, to the end that Ms. Miers be proceeded against in the manner and form provided by law Background and Explanation I. Background of Committee Investigation and Requests for Information from the White House and Harriet Miers A. House Judiciary Committee Hearings Beginning in March 2007, the House Judiciary Committee and its Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law have held a number of hearings on the U.S. Attorney terminations and related issues. These have included: U.S. Attorneys and William Moschella. On March 6, 2007, six of the terminated U.S. Attorneys and William E. Moschella, Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, among others, testified before the Subcommittee. At this hearing (and in private briefings on February 28 and March 5 to Subcommittee members and staff that proceeded it), Mr. Moschella testified, inter alia, as to the Justice Department's then-claimed reasons for firing U.S. Attorneys. The terminated U.S. Attorneys testified inter alia, that they had not been given reasons for their firing and, among other matters, responded to some of the Department's asserted reasons for their firing, and discussed political and other factors that may have been related to their firing. H.R. 580, Restoring Checks and Balances in the Confirmation Process of U.S. Attorneys: Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law of the House Committee on the Judiciary, 110th Congress (2007) (prepared statement of Carol C. Lam et al.) The six former U.S. Attorneys who testified were Ms. Lam, Mr. Iglesias, Mr. Cummins, Mr. McKay, Mr. Bogden and Mr. Charlton. The other witnesses included the following: Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA); former Representative Asa Hutchinson (R-AR); John A. Smietanka, a former United States Attorney for the Western District of Michigan; George Terwilliger, former Deputy Attorney General of the U.S. Department of Justice; T.J. Halstead, Legislative Attorney, American Law Division, Congressional Research Service; and Atlee W. Wampler, III, President of the National Association of Former United States Attorneys. Ensuring Executive Branch Accountability. On March 29, 2007, the Subcommittee heard testimony about the validity of White House assertions concerning executive privlege in the U.S. Attorney controversy. Beth Nolan, former White House Counsel under President Clinton, indicated that she testified four times before congressional Committees on matters directly related to her White House duties, including three times while she was serving that position. James Comey. On May 3, 2007, former Deputy Attorney General James Comey testified before the Subcommittee. Alberto Gonzales. On May 10, 2007, Attorney General Gonzales appeared before the full Judiciary Committee for an oversight hearing that focused on the U.S. Attorneys controversy. Monica Goodling. After a grant of limited use immunity, Monica Goodling, former Senior Counsel to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and the Department's White House Liason, appeared before the full Committee on May 23, 2007. Paul McNulty. On June 21, 2007, Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty testified before the Subcommittee. Harriet Miers. Former White House Counsel Harriet Miers refused to comply with a subpoena requiring her appearance before the Subcommittee on July 12, 2007. Ms. Miers not only failed to provide testimony or documents, but she also failed to appear for the hearing. Subcommittee Chair Sanchez proceeded to overrule Ms. Miers' claims of immunity and privlege and her rulling was sustained by Subcommittee members in a recorded vote of 7 to 5. B. Justice Department Documents and Staff Interviews On March 8 2007, Chairman Conyers and Subcomittee Chair Sanchez wrote to the Attorney General requesting documents and interviews with Department of Justice personnel concerning the U.S. Attorney matter. Pursuant to that request, the Committee has received and reviewed thousands of pages of Justice Department documents. Many documents were initially produced in redacted form, with Committee staff being granted a limited right to review the unredacted documents on Department premises. Additional Committee efforts to obtain additional documents voluntarily, included letters of March 22, March 28. and April 2, 2007. were not successful. On April 10, 2007, the Committee issued a subpeona to the Department for full production of all relevant documents in unredacted form. Negotiations to secure full compliance are continuing. A large number of additional documents have produced as a result, and Committee staff expect a limited number of additional documents to be produced by the Department. In addition to the initial Committee requests, Chairman Conyers, Subcommittee Chair Sanchez, Representative Zoe Lofgren, and Representative Keith Ellison have sent further requests for information pertinent to the U.S. Attorney controversies in Missouri and Minnesota. On July 17, 2007, Chairman Conyers, Subcommittee Chair Sanchez, Representative Artur Davis, and Representative Tammy Baldwin requested documents and information about several prominent prosecutions and convictions of Democratic officials or operatives in various parts of the country, in light of extensive allegations of selective, politically influenced prosecutions. In addition, Majority and Minority staff from both the House and Senate Judiciary Committees have so far jointly conducted on-the-record interviews of twelve current and former Department of Justice officials.

the House Judiciary Committee sent a report and resolution to the House of Representatives finding former White House Counsel Harriet Miers and White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten in statutory contempt of Congress for failing to respond to the Committee's subpoenas in the U.S. Attorney investigation. The report passed by a vote of 22-17. "In order to pursue this investigation, we have done what committees in the Congress have always done – we have sought out documents and testimony, initially on a voluntary basis, and through compulsory process only as a last resort," said Committee Chairman John Conyers, (D-MI). "I began this investigation with a simple question – who put the list of fired US Attorneys together and why. I would think it would be in everyone’s interest to get the facts on the table, so we could reassure the American people that the nation’s laws are being fully and faithfully enforced." Following the vote, Conyers sent a letter to White House Counsel Fred Fielding alerting him of today's actions and urging him to reconsider negotiating terms to resolve the document and testimony issues without further confrontation. "As I explained before the Committee’s vote, I regret that the Committee has had to take this step, and continue to hope that we can resolve with you the Committee’s need for information from the White House in our investigation," he wrote. The full House of Representatives is now required to vote on a contempt resolution before the matter is sent to the District of Columbia's U.S. Attorney for action.

"If the gloves don't fit, we must acquit!"

I contacted the Tonight Show about Jay Leno's letter. This is the response I got.

This was sent to me by the America's Second Harvest The Nation's Food Bank Network:

I just received an email today from Ebay. It appears Ebay has started a new company Kijiji. It appears to be a blatent copy of Craigslist. Ebay has 25 percent ownership interest in Craigslist. http://washingtondc.kijiji.com It even has a kijiji for every city (Craigslist secret sauce). Here is the email I received:

Cindy Sheehan, an Iraq War protester, was arrested inside the Rayburn Building in Washington, D.C. in United States along with 45 to 50 other protesters for disorderly conduct on Monday. "The Democrats will not hold this administration accountable, so we have to hold the Democrats accountable. And I for one am going to step up to the plate and run against Nancy Pelosi," said Sheehan during her protest inside the capitol. Sheehan and the other protesters were at the offices of Rep. John Conyers Jr. who is the House Judiciary Committee chairman, demanding that President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney be impeached. Conyers would be the politician who would start impeachment hearings. Sheehan then said she would run against Nancy Pelosi, who is the Speaker of the House of Representatives, in the next election for her seat in the House representing the state of California. "If Nancy Pelosi doesn't do her constitutionally mandated job by midnight tonight, tomorrow I will announce that I'm going to run against her. Not only am I going to run against her, but I will beat her. Impeachment is not a fringe movement, it is mandated in our Constitution. Nancy Pelosi had no authority to take it off the table," added Sheehan. Pelosi's Press Secretary Brenden Daly says Pelosi is working hard to make sure that the right steps are taken in Iraq. "The speaker is focused on changing course in Iraq by bringing our troops home safely and soon and refocusing our effort on protecting Americans from terrorism, holding the Bush administration accountable and setting a 'New Direction for America,'" said Daly. Sheehan became an anti-war protester after her son, Casey Sheehan, was killed while fighting in the Iraq War on April 4, 2004 at the age of 24. Earlier this year, on Memorial Day, she announced her resignation as "the 'face' of the American anti-war movement" on a personal web journal page published by the Daily Kos.

Quorum-sensing bacteria leak into their surroundings a chemical that, like body odor, indicates their presence. As the bacterial population increases, so does the concentration of this chemical, called an autoinducer. When the amount of autoinducer reaches a certain level, the whole bacterial neighborhood is transformed. The once-independent, solitary bacterial cells suddenly become part of a large, multicellular organism. An everyday example of such bacterial transfiguration is the tenacious slime that can accumulate on teeth, ships, bathtubs, and kitchen drains. These slippery coatings are actually sophisticated microbial communities called biofilms in which bacteria either become part of protective coatings, walls, or nutrient-filled channels, or they swim around inside these structures as highly mobile, independent cells. Bacteria exist within complex communities termed biofilms on solid surfaces, including plant roots. Members of these communities interact both cooperatively and competitively to enable the inhabitants to perform functions not possible by single organisms. The discovery that bacteria are able to communicate with each other changed our general perception of many single, simple organisms inhabiting our world. Instead of language, bacteria use signalling molecules which are released into the environment. As well as releasing the signalling molecules, bacteria are also able to measure the number (concentration) of the molecules within a population. Nowadays we use the term 'Quorum Sensing' (QS) to describe the phenomenon whereby the accumulation of signalling molecules enable a single cell to sense the number of bacteria (cell density). In the natural environment, there are many different bacteria living together which use various classes of signalling molecules. As they employ different languages they cannot necessarily talk to all other bacteria. Today, several quorum sensing systems are intensively studied in various organisms such as marine bacteria and several pathogenic bacteria. QS enables bacteria to co-ordinate their behaviour. As environmental conditions often change rapidly, bacteria need to respond quickly in order to survive. These responses include adaptation to availability of nutrients, defence against other microorganisms which may compete for the same nutrients and the avoidance of toxic compounds potentially dangerous for the bacteria. It is very important for pathogenic bacteria during infection of a host (e.g. humans, other animals or plants) to co-ordinate their virulence in order to escape the immune response of the host in order to be able to establish a successful infection. Quorum sensing was first observed in Vibrio fischeri, a bioluminiscent bacterium that lives as a symbiont in the light-producing organ of the Hawaiian bobtail squid. When V. fischeri cells are free-living (or planktonic), the autoinducer is at low concentration and thus cells do not luminesce. In the light organ of the squid (photophore), they are highly concentrated (about 1011 cells/ml) and transcription of luciferase is induced, leading to bioluminescence. In the past 10 years, it has become well established that disease-causing genes of most pathogens are expressed in response to diffusible signals released from the host. Tapping into the chemical communiques needed to make biofilms has many applications. Biofilm-blocking substances could reduce illness caused by infected catheters and other implanted medical devices. They could prevent bacterial buildup in industrial cooling towers and swimming pools. And, if added to toothpaste or mouthwash, they could battle tooth decay. By studying the way bacteria join together into organized groups, scientists also learn how humans and other higher organisms developed, Bassler says. After all, our bodies are essentially collections of genetically identical cells that, based on chemical cues, specialized into different tissues (skin, bones, a heart, brain, and so forth). According to Bassler, these tissues probably interact with each other using chemical crosstalk similar to that in bacteria. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gquery/gquery....=Quorum+sensing

Now Jonathan, In third person writing, the author does not interject himself into the story.

I will not be talking politics. Although, do you remember the episode "Mr. Spitz Goes to Washington?" Krusty the Klown ran for Congress as a Republican, they had a hilarious version of FoX news and their news crawls.

Dear Ward 5 Residents, Your opinion counts! If you haven't already completed the Survey of Ward 5 Residents, please click on the link below and complete Harry "Tommy" Thomas, Jr. survey . The survey will close on July 31. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=_2fO...QpOrH44UA_3d_3d The survey is completely anonymous--your responses will be compiled with responses received from other residents.

This was email was sent to me. Does anyone know if it is real

18 years in the making, people! And it's finally here! This coming Friday we're catching the 7:30pm showing of The Simpsons at the Regal Gallery Place Stadium 14 (701 Seventh Street NW, Washington, DC 20001). Gallery Place is only playing a few evening showings, so if you want to join us, I highly recommend buying your ticket well in advance. Click on this link Meet us upstairs at the bar of Clyde's (right next door) at a little before 6pm.

Parents and guardians are encouraged to update their child’s immunization records before the school year begins. All students attending public schools in the District of Columbia are required to have up-to-date immunization records prior to registration for the 2007-2008 school year. Records must show that the student received a physical examination, including eye, hearing, and oral health exams, as well as, a Tuberculosis Assessment. Early Bird Registration for the 2007-2008 school year began July 16th for the District of Columbia’s Public Schools. Parents and guardians may now register daily, between the hours of 9:00 am and 4:00 pm, at the school their child plans to attend Extended registration hours of 9:00 am to 6:00 pm will be available on Thursdays, July 19 and 26, 2007 and August 2, 2007, unless otherwise noted by the school. For more information regarding District of Columbia’s Public School’s registration requirements, as well as, a list of free immunization clinics, please visit the DC Public Schools website, www.k12.dc.us, and click on the “parents” icon and Immunization/Student Health.

Starting Monday July 16, 2007, 8:30 PM Between the US Capitol and the Lincoln Memorial On the Mall Washington, DC The annual Screen on the Green festival brings free films to the Mall on Monday nights, where they're shown on a giant 20-by-40-foot screen between Fourth and Seventh Streets. The films begin at dusk, or roughly between 8:30 and 9 pm. Viewers often arrive as early as 5 pm, so plan to get there well in advance. If there's inclement weather, screenings may be canceled. The schedule is: July 23: The Thing (From Another World) July 30: Wait Until Dark Aug. 6: All the King's Men Aug. 13: Casablanca The Thing from Another World The Thing from Another World is a 1951 science fiction film which tells the story of an Air Force crew and scientists at a remote Arctic research outpost who fight a malevolent alien being. It stars Kenneth Tobey (Capt Patrick Hendry), Margaret Sheridan (Nikki Nicholson), Robert Cornthwaite (Dr. Arthur Carrington) and Douglas Spencer (Ned Scott). James Arness appeared as The Thing, unrecognizable in costume and makeup. Oddly, no players are named during the otherwise-complete opening credits; the only cast credit is at the end (this was somewhat unusual in the 1950s). Wait Until Dark The mystery thriller's heroine is Susy Hendrix, a blind Greenwich Village housewife who becomes the target of three thugs searching for the heroin hidden in a doll her husband transported from Canada as a favor to a woman who since has been murdered. The trio tries to convince Susy her spouse has been implicated in the crime and the only way to protect him is to surrender the doll. More murder and mayhem ensue when she refuses, with the stage lights turned off for the final scene when Suzy levels the playing field by plunging her apartment into total darkness. All the King's Men All the King's Men is a 1949 drama film based on the Robert Penn Warren novel of the same name. It was directed by Robert Rossen and starred Broderick Crawford in the role of Willie Stark. All The King's Men is the story of the rise of politician Willie Stark from a rural county seat to the spotlight. Along the way, he loses his initial innocence, and becomes just as corrupt as those who he assaulted before for this characteristic. Also included is the romance between one of his "right hand women" and the up-and-coming journalist who brings Stark to prominence. Casablanca Casablanca is an Oscar-winning 1942 romance film set during World War II in the Vichy-controlled Moroccan city of Casablanca. The film was directed by Michael Curtiz and stars Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine and Ingrid Bergman as Ilsa Lund. It focuses on Rick's conflict between, in the words of one character, love and virtue: he must choose between his love for Ilsa and his need to do the right thing by helping her husband, Resistance hero Victor Laszlo, escape from Casablanca and continue his fight against the Nazis. Contact: Screen on the Green (877) 262-5866 View Screen on the Green Gallery