ICE Raids Coming To Mississippi

From World Prout:

Saturday, August 23, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, August 22, 2008

Contact:
Patricia Ice-office 601-354-9355
Bill Chandler-office 601-968-5182

JACKSON, MS – A series of preparations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on the Gulf Coast has local advocates on edge about the possibility of yet another worksite raid, and yet another devastating blow to businesses, families and communities in the name of immigration enforcement.

“The preparations we are seeing ICE make are alarmingly similar to what occurred immediately prior to the raid on the Agriprocessors, Inc. Kosher meatpacking plant in Postville, Iowa, a few months ago, ” said Patricia Ice, an immigration attorney and spokesperson for MIRA. ICE has reportedly booked dozens of rooms in hotels on the Gulf Coast. They may be checking in as early as tonight.

Perhaps even more worrisome are the reports that the federal court in Hattiesburg is being readied for a response similar to the response to the raid in Postville, when nearly 400 plant workers were arrested on trumped up identity theft charges, and slammed through criminal prosecution and judicial removal (being forced to waive all their criminal defense and immigration claims) within just days of the raid.

“What happened in Postville was an absolute travesty of justice that must never happen again,” said Ms. Ice. “ICE must assure that any future enforcement actions are conducted in a humane manner and that detainees are permitted their constitutional rights to due process and to legal counsel.”

With all the signs pointing to an impending raid, Ms Ice, other staff and local leaders are working quickly to identify possible targets, educate workers and assemble a team of attorneys to offset the burden on public defenders and provide immigration advice.
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The Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance (MIRA) is a membership-based alliance which guarantees the human rights of immigrants and all workers in Mississippi. MIRA works to support immigrants in the exercise of their rights through providing services, organizing, advocacy and public education.

www.yourmira.org

The Great Shefflera Pruning Experiment

Even though NPR has become more and more right-winged since the Bush Administration has tried to politically cement all things in government into a neoconservative block of power, I still listen on occasion.

One of my favorite shows is featured on Mississippi Public Broadcasting stations on Friday (and again on Saturday). It is called The Gestalt Gardener and its host is Felder Rushing. For those of you who are aware, his show is a laid back look into home gardening and I get all sorts of tips (even though I do not really have much of a green thumb). I admit that since July 1st, Dr Dirt (Felder’s co-host on the show) retired to the garden, but Felder is great as a loner, as well. he always has excellent guests on to help with all sorts of gardening issues.

We were given a small Shefflera about 15 years ago (BuelahLady’s Grandfather’s funeral flowers/plants) and from what I understand, they are almost impossible to kill (unless they get too cold). As a house plant, I can attest, there is nothing you can do to kill them (short of Roundup or something).

We moved from a 4400 Sq Ft house to 1500 and we have virtually no room (and a stroage building FULL of stuff) and we simply put the plants in the house and let them go (watering only one a month and barely at that).

They ended up looking like this (two HUGE plants that were durn near 8 feet tall):

I asked Felder in an email about how to prune them and he basically told me what I suspected, you can’t kill them and to prune them however I like and recommended a layered look. So I did this:

Notice the new growth? Felder is a gardening Hero of mine. You should listen in if you can find his show.

BuelahMan and BuelahLady’s 18th Anniversary Today!

At 26 years old, I decided to go back to college, understanding that my wild life would never take me anywhere financially (or any other way). I had been highly misguided in my early life by a lot of different issues and at 18 my goal was simply to ‘make it’ to 29. I honestly thought that I would be dead by 29 because I had had so very many close calls already and the fact that I really did give a damn whether or not I lived.

I have had a guy keep a 357 magnum in my face for hours, then hit me over the head after a standoff, the gun going off and me hitting the deck, bleeding, thinking I was shot.

I have had a knife wielding maniac try to take my beer and last $20 and I refused and had the knife stuck through my hand (which saved my face, where he was trying to stab me).

I have been beaten senseless/unconscious and woke up in a pouring rain, soaking wet with amnesia and taking three days for me to recover (I never knew who hit me… they took all my shit, tho).

This doesn’t even scratch the surface. I can’t tell you how wild and crazy and noncaring about anything I was. I didn’t care about me or anything else for that matter.

Then I met her.

What is most strange is that I met her at a time when I was “the man”, in that I went back to college and broke out my trumpet and before I knew it, I was the lead trumpet player in all the concert and marching bands, but more importantly to me, in the Jazz Bands (technically a Lab Band). I was the guy who could step out in the middle of the field and let loose with some bad ass tunes on a trumpet. I mean, at the time, I was truly bad to the bone on that horn (I suck right now… out of practice).

I used to have all the dancers dance around me and come on to me. Many asking me out, evermore flirting with the “old man” (I was 26 and they were all 18-20).

But there was something about BuelahLady that really grabbed my attention and wouldn’t let go. She was 18 but didn’t act like the rest of the ‘little girls’.

So, we dated for over three years before getting married.

Now, notice that we had a little birthday party for a 4 year old yesterday. When BuelahLady was on the birthing bed 4 years ago, it was 5 minutes before the 25th of August that we had BuelahGirl. 5 minutes before our 14th anniversary.

We waited 14 years to have a child… on purpose.

Now, even though (as everyone else experiences) we have had our hard times (some extraordinarily difficult), I would not trade her in for any of those dancers (nor anyone else in the world).

We still have our problems and she suffers from medical issues that are some of the most difficult for someone to endure, we still love each other very much.

This pic about 2 years old, I think.