GUN VIOLENCE IN AMERICA: FOR WHO THE BELL TOLLS NEXT.

Just five people shy of Sandy Hook elementary school mass shooting incident that claimed 26 lives, the Uvalde Texas Robb elementary school mass shooting at 21 victims, now ranks among the highest grossing gun carnage in America. It is sad that such frequent blood spilling has tragically become part of our culture as a society. May the souls of the killed now rest.

25th AMENDMENT: ITS NOW ALL CRICKET.

Madam Speaker Nancy Pelosi once questioned former President Donald John Trump's fitness to remain in office due to what she claimed was his declining mental capacity. Does anyone know what Madam Speaker presently thinks about the incontrovertible case which America is now saddled with? Just curious!

WHO WILL REBUILD UKRAINE?

The West should convert frozen Russian assets, both state's and oligarchs' owned, into a full seizure and set them aside for the future rebuilding of Ukraine. Like the Marshal Plan, call it the Putin Plan.

A HERO IS BORN.

I am staying put. I will not run away and abandon my people. The fight is here in Ukraine. What I need are weapons and ammunitions, not a ride out of town like former Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani - President Volodymyr Zelensky.

IT IS WHAT IT IS.

"There is too much hate in America because there is too much anger in America." - Trevor Noah.

WORD!

A life without challenges is not a life lived at all. A life lived is a life that has problems, confronts problems, solves problems and then learns from problems. - Tunde Fashola.

NOW, YOU KNOW.

When fishing for love, bait with your heart and not your brain, because you cannot rationalize love. - Mark Twain.

JUST THE FACT.

In our country, you can shoot and kill a nigger, but you better not hurt a gay person’s feelings - Dave Chappelle

DO YOU?.

“What you believe in can only be defined by what you’re willing to risk for it." - Stuart Scheller.

HEDGE YOUR CRISIS.

Never get in bed with a woman whose problems are worse than yours. - Chicago PD.

PROBLEM SOLVED.

'The best way to keep peace is to be ready to destroy evil. If you Pearl Harbor me, I Nagasaki you.' - Ted Nugent.

OUR SHARED HUMANITY.

Empathy is at the heart of who we are as human beings. - Cardinal Matthew Kukah.

WORDS ON MARBLE.

"Birth is agony. Life is hard. Death is cruel." - Japanese pithy.

REPENT OR PERISH - POPE.

Homosexuality is a sin. It is not ordained by God, therefore same sex marriage cannot be blessed by the church - Pope Francis.

CANCEL CULTURE IS CORROSIVE.


FOR SAKE OF COUNTRY.


MAGA LIVES ON: NO RETREAT, NO SURRENDER!

TWITTER IS BORING WITHOUT HIS TWEETS. #RestorePresidentTrump'sTwitterHandle.


WORD.

"If you cannot speak the truth when it matters, then nothing else you says matters.” - Tucker Carlson.

#MeToo MOVEMENT: A BAD NEWS GONE CRAZY.

"To all the women who testified, we may have different truth, but I have a great remorse for all of you. I have great remorse for all of the men and women going through this crisis right now in our country. You know, the movement started basically with me, and I think what happened, you know, I was the first example, and now there are thousands of men who are being accused and a regeneration of things that I think none of us understood. I’m not going to say these aren’t great people. I had wonderful times with these people. I’m just genuinely confused. Men are confused about this issue. We are going through this #MeToo movement crisis right now in this country." - Harvey Weinstein.


RON DELLUMS: UNAPOLOGETICALLY RADICAL.

"If it’s radical to oppose the insanity and cruelty of the Vietnam War, if it’s radical to oppose racism and sexism and all other forms of oppression, if it’s radical to want to alleviate poverty, hunger, disease, homelessness, and other forms of human misery, then I’m proud to be called a radical.” - Ron Vernie Dellums.


WHAT REALLY MATTERS IN LIFE - STEVE JOBS

“I reached the pinnacle of success in the business world. In others’ eyes, my life is an epitome of success. However, aside from work, I have little joy. Non-stop pursuing of wealth will only turn a person into a twisted being, just like me. God gave us the senses to let us feel the love in everyone’s heart, not the illusions brought about by wealth. Memories precipitated by love is the only true riches which will follow you, accompany you, giving you strength and light to go on. The most expensive bed in the world is the sick bed. You can employ someone to drive the car for you, make money for you but you cannot have someone to bear sickness for you. Material things lost can be found. But there is one thing that can never be found when it is lost – Life. Treasure Love for your family, love for your spouse, love for your friends. Treat yourself well. Cherish others.” - SJ

EVIL CANNOT BE TRULY DESTROYED.

"The threat of evil is ever present. We can contain it as long as we stay vigilant, but it can never truly be destroyed. - Lorraine Warren (Annabelle, the movie)


ONLY THE POOR WISH THEY HAD STUFF?

“I’m not that interested in material things. As long as I find a good bed that I can sleep in, that’s enough.” - Nicolas Berggruem, the homeless billionaire.

Monday, October 27, 2008

TED STEVENS' UNFLATTERING END?

The lesson of the guilty verdict in Alaskan Senator Ted Stevens corruption trial was succinctly articulated by Harry Reid, the Senate Majority leader. According to Harry, “This verdict is a personal tragedy for our colleague Ted Stevens, but it is an important reminder that no man is above the law. Senator Stevens must now respect the outcome of the judicial process and the dignity of the United States Senate"

The "no man is above the law" aspect of his remarks is what does not obtain in so many countries of the world including NIGERIA where the likes of Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida and Olusegun Obasanjo have proved over the years to be above the law! Ibrahim Babangida at one time asked a duly constituted judicial tribunal to come to his home if they so desire his testimony. That Dele Giwa as well as Bola Ige were murdered in cold blood without any meaningful investigation speaks volume that these two men are really above and beyond the reach of Nigerian law, if any? But Senator Ted Stevens is Icheoku's object of commentary today so we must pivot back to the senator.

Senator Ted Stevens, the Senate’s longest-serving Republican and Alaska’s dominant political figure for more than four decades, was found guilty of violating federal ethics laws for failing to report gifts and services that he was given by friends. The jury of District of Columbia residents convicted Senator Ted Stevens, 84, on all seven felony counts he faced in connection with charges that he knowingly failed to list on Senate disclosure forms the receipt of some $250,000 in gifts and services used to renovate his home in Girdwood, Alaska. The home pictured here left, was remade (upgraded) under the supervision of his wife, Catherine Stevens, from A-frame cabin to a grander, two-story residence fitted with two decks, a new garage and amenities like a whirlpool, a steam room and an expensive gas grill.
The indictment charged that he had received some $250,000 in gifts and services from a longtime friend, Bill Allen, the owner of a huge oil services construction company, and gifts from other friends like a sled dog and an expensive massage chair. Mr. Allen, who was convicted for his role in a scheme to bribe Alaska state lawmakers to help his oil exploration projects, agreed to cooperate with the government and have his telephone conversations with Mr. Stevens recorded. Mr. Allen, who was the prosecution’s chief witness, testified that Mr. Stevens knew he was receiving the goods and services free and even sent an emissary to ask that no bills be sent.

Mr. Stevens’s defense was largely built on the notion that he had not asked for, and had no use for, many of the goods and services he received. In the case of the massage chair, he said it had not been a gift from Bob Persons, a friend and restaurant owner who had bought it from a Brookstone store and sent it to the Stevenses’ Washington home. It was a loan, Mr. Stevens testified, even though it had remained in his Washington home for more than seven years and he once wrote to Mr. Persons that he enjoyed using it and even fell asleep in it.
Although Senator Ted Stevens was still defiant after his conviction claiming that he was innocent but his republican party Senate leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky was more realistic, issuing a statement saying that, “Senator Stevens was found guilty by a jury of his peers, and now must face the consequences of those actions. As a result of his conviction, Senator Stevens will be held accountable so the public trust can be restored.”

In conclusion, Icheoku says that Senator Ted Stevens should be made to pay restitution, resign his seat in the senate but should not serve term. Our reason is his very advanced age coupled to his long service of over four decades for Alaska. Let Ted be allowed to spend his twilight years reminiscing about all the things he did right like this airport in Anchorage right, watching the sun set in his home rather than in the big house gritting his teeth over some gift which he should not have received. Senator Ted Stevens conviction is more than enough punishment and if Scooter Libby could be pardoned, then let Grandpa Ted enjoy the same magnanimity. But this is just our thoughts and in no way meant to affect the course of justice!

See generally this link U.S. v. Stevens: Indictment and Trial Exhibits for the full gamut of the trial.

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