No More Second-Hand?

While I'm on a roll with all this lawmaking fun, let's talk about consignment and secondhand stores. There's this marvelous new law that says those NO ONE is allowed to sell any products meant for those age 12 or younger if they contains lead or phthalates. Check out these links:

• "New Safety Rules for Children's Clothes Have Stores in a Fit" by Alana Semuels
• "CPSIA Impact on Small Business, Thrift Stores, and the Environment" by Monkey Mama
• Petition to Save Second-Hand Kids' Clothes & Toys
• Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008

P.S. If you want to back up your blog online (in case you accidentally delete your blog, or worse), try this site. And if you use Blogger and want a copy saved to the computer, then go to "Settings>Basic>Blog Tools>Export blog."

HR 5122, the Insurrection Act, & other handy tidbits

Those striving for self-sufficiency generally grow food and then store it for winter use when there are limited growing opportunities (I sound like an Agriculture lecture, eek!). And Mormons have their year supply/food storage thing going on. Now, have you ever heard of "food hoarding?" "Martial Law?" "The Insurrection Act?"

Let's take it from the top. The Insurrection Act is a set of laws that serves just one purpose: preventing the President from using the military to control the people in our country as Monarchy and other such government systems do. It doesn't totally prevent him from using the military on American soil, but it is supposed to severely cripple him in that respect. On October 17, 2006, our now ex-President (is there another, official, term for that?) Bush signed into law a bill that seeks to overcome that limitation. HR 5122, Subtitle H, Section 1076 amends Section 333 of Title 10, United States Code. Section 333's original text can be found here, while a copy of the HR 5122 and, more specifically, the amendment to Section 333 can be found here (after clicking "continue on to the bill," you will be taken straight to the part you are looking for: section 1076; it's a long bill and so it might take a minute or two to load). I'll give you a few minutes to read and maybe drown a little in legal jargon.

Done? Great. Basically what the bill is doing is allowing the President to declare martial law on an area without the permission of the local authorities and to take any troops from any state to accomplish that. And there are no limits on what situations martial law is acceptable in:

"the President may employ the armed forces, including the National Guard in Federal service, to restore public order and enforce the laws of the United States when, as a result of a natural disaster, epidemic, or other serious public health emergency, terrorist attack or incident, or other condition in any State or possession of the United States, the President determines that domestic violence has occurred to such an extent that the constituted authorities of the State or possession are incapable ..."

And that could mean anything. This article discusses what exactly this bill is and why it's so "disturbing" (for lack of a more powerful word).

Okay, so now we know that the Prez can declare martial law on any one of us at any time for any reason. So what is martial law? (And how come if you switch the 'i' and 't' t becomes marital law?) Quite simply it's the set of laws that are put in place when the military is doing the police and court's job of enforcing the law. And instead of our judicial system, they have a military tribunal they call a "court martial." Most likely the writ of habeas corpus will be suspended. And there is generally a curfew. This "martial law" is normally only put in place during war when there isn't a government. See this page for more details.

In order to prevent the misuse of the power of military law, there is (or was) this thing, Posse Comitatus, which basically says "the military isn't allowed to be involved in enforcing domestic laws without going through lots of trouble with Congress." But then HR 5122 came along and so it isn't really in effect anymore.

So where does "food hoarding" come in? (you: food hoarding? what has that got to do with anything? you haven't said anything about it in this whole post or even... me: cool your jets, sweetie pie. I mentioned it at the beginning. you: the beginning? yeah right. you've been yammering so long I can't even remember that far. I probably wasn't even born then me: just sit down and listen. leave your complaints in the comments section okay, m'dear? you (sulkily): fine) Food hoarding is what most people call the behavior of those who store food (like homesteaders and Mormons). Most states have some kind of "anti-hoarding" law which usually says something like "you can store a week's worth of food, but if you have any more than that, then we can take it the extra and do what we please with it." This article discusses so-called food hoarding as well as Executive Orders. They say it better than I can, so please read it. Also, under martial law, they can seize your goods and belongings without permission. The ultimate edict amounts to bad BAD BAD.

More Censored Book Fun

"Don't Read This Book" written and performed by Keith "Rockerbob" Lewis:

200 Banned (& Challenged) Books

Arranged alphabetically by title. Bold the books you have read, italicize the books you want to read. Place a checkmark (√) next to the books you own. In the comments, place a link to your 200 Banned, tell how many you've read, and/or list the titles and authors of any other books that qualify for this list (that generally means anything written for audiences under eighteen that includes one or more of the following: sex, violence, addresses serious issues, addresses the darker side or humanity, contains ideas that are not 'politically correct,' contains ideas that aren't conservative, et cetera).

The difference between banned and challenged books: Challenged is when someone tries to restrict a book. A ban means it's been removed.

“[I]t's not just the books under fire now that worry me. It is the books that will never be written. The books that will never be read. And all due to the fear of censorship. As always, young readers will be the real losers.” — Judy Blume

195 Banned (& Challenged) Books:

1. 1984 by George Orwell
2. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
3. A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
4. A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
5. A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
6. A Separate Peace by John Knowles
7. A Time To Kill by John Grisham
8. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
9. Alice (Series) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
10. All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren
11. Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
12. American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
13. An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
14. Anastasia Again! by Lois Lowry
15. Anastasia Krupnik (Series) by Lois Lowry
16. And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell
17. Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison
18. Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden
19. Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
20. Arizona Kid by Ron Koertge
21. Arming America: The Origins of a National Gun Culture by Michael Bellesiles
22. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
23. Asking About Sex and Growing Up by Joanna Cole
24. Athletic Shorts by Chris Crutcher
25. Beloved by Toni Morrison
26. Black Boy by Richard Wright
27. Bless Me, Ultima, by Rudolfo Anaya
28. Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause
29. Blubber by Judy Blume
30. Boys and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
31. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
32. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
33. Bumps in the Night by Harry Allard
34. Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey
35. Carrie by Stephen King
36. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
37. Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
38. Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health by Robie H. Harris
39. Christine by Stephen King
40. Crazy Lady by Jane Conly
41. Cross Your Fingers, Spit in Your Hat by Alvin Schwartz
42. Cujo by Stephen King
43. Curses, Hexes and Spells by Daniel Cohen
44. Cut by Patricia McCormick
45. Daddy's Roommate by Michael Willhoite
46. Daughters of Eve by Lois Duncan
47. Deal With It! by Esther Drill
48. Deenie by Judy Blume
49. Detour for Emmy by Marilyn Reynolds
50. Draw Me A Star by Eric Carle
51. Earth's Children (Series) by Jean M. Auel
52. Fade by Robert Cormier
53. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
54. Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers
55. Family Secrets by Norma Klein
56. Fat Kid Rules the World by K.L. Going
57. Fear Street (Series) R. L. Stine
58. Final Exit by Derek Humphry
59. Flashcards of My Life by Charise Mericle Harper
60. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
61. For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
62. Forever by Judy Blume
63. Freaky Friday by Mary Rodgers
64. Girls and Sex by Wardell Pomeroy
65. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous
66. Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin
67. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
68. Goosebumps (Series) by R.L. Stine
69. Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily von Ziegesar
70. Grendel by John Gardner
71. Growltiger's Last Stand by T.S. Eliot
    
72. Guess What? by Mem Fox
73. Halloween ABC by Eve Merriam
74. Harris and Me by Gary Paulsen
75. Harry Potter (Series) by J.K. Rowling
76. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
77. Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Newman
78. His Dark Materials trilogy, by Philip Pullman
79. Holy Bible
80. How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
81. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
82. I Saw Esau by Iona Opte
83. In a Dark, Dark Room by Alvin Schwartz
84. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
85. In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
86. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
87. Ironman by Chris Crutcher
88. It's Perfectly Normal by Robie Harris
89. It’s So Amazing! A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families by Robie H. Harris
90. Jack by A.M. Homes
91. James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
92. Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
93. Junie B. Jones (series) by Barbara Park
94. Jump Ship to Freedom by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
95. Jumper by Steven Gould
96. Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane
97. Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
98. King and King by Linda de Haan
99. Lady Chatterley's Lover by DH Lawrence
100. Life is Funny by E.R. Frank
101. Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
102. Little Black Sambo by Helen Bannerman
103. Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
     
104. Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
     
105. Lolita by Vladmir Nabokov
106. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
107. Mick Harte Was Here by Barbara Park
108. Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole
109. My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier
110. Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
111. Nathan’s Run by John Gilstrap
112. Native Son by Richard Wright
113. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
114. Olive’s Ocean by Kevin Henkes
115. On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer
116. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
117. Ordinary People by Judith Guest
118. Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
119. Pinkerton, Behave! by Steven Kellog
120. Private Parts by Howard Stern
121. Rabbit, Run by John Updike
122. Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez
123. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor
124. Running Loose by Chris Crutcher
125. Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie
126. Scary Stories (series), by Alvin Schwartz
127. Sex by Madonna
128. Sex Education by Jenny Davis
129. Shade’s Children by Garth Nix
130. Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
131. Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Anne Rice)
132. Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson
133. So Far From the Bamboo Grove by Yoko Watkins
134. Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
135. Sons and Lovers by DH Lawrence
136. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
137. Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes by Chris Crutcher
138. Summer of My German Soldier by Bette Greene
139. Taming the Star by Runner S.E. Hinton
140. That Was Then, This is Now by S.E. Hinton
141. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
142. The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby by Dav Pilkey
143. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
144. The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell
145. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
146. The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
147. The Brimstone Journals by Ron Koertge
     
148. The Call of the Wild by Jack London
149. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
150. The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
151. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
152. The Dead Zone by Stephen King
153. The Drowning of Stephen Jones by Bette Greene
154. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things by Carolyn Mackler
155. The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney
156. The Facts Speak for Themselves by Brock Cole
157. The Fighting Ground by Avi
158. The Giver by Lois Lowry
159. The Goats by Brock Cole
160. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
161. The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
162. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
163. The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
164. The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
165. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
166. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
167. The Lord of the Rings (series) by JRR Tolkien
168. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
169. The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer
170. The New Joy of Gay Sex by Charles Silverstein
171. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
172. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
173. The Pigman by Paul Zindel
174. The Shining by Stephen King
     
175. The Stupids (Series) by Harry Allard
176. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
177. The Terrorist by Caroline Cooney
178. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
179. The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss
180. The Wish Giver by Bill Brittain
181. The Witches by Roald Dahl
182. Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
183. Then Again, Maybe I Won’t by Judy Blume
184. Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume
185. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
186. Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller
187. TTYL; TTFN; L8R, G8R (series), by Lauren Myracle
188. Uncle Bobby's Wedding, by Sarah S. Brannen
189. View from the Cherry Tree by Willo Davis Roberts
190. We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier
191. Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher
192. When Dad Killed Mom by Julius Lester
193. What My Mother Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones
194. What's Happening to my Body? Book for Boys: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Sons by Lynda Madaras
195. What's Happening to my Body? Book for Girls: A Growing-Up Guide for Parents & Daughters by Lynda Madaras
196. Where Did I Come From? by Peter Mayle
197. Where's Waldo? by Martin Hanford
198. Women in Love by DH Lawrence
199. Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women's Fantasies by Nancy Friday
200. You Hear Me by Betsy Franco

This list is far from exhaustive. Some good books that aren't on here but qualify are "Boy Toy" by Barry Lyga, "Tender Morsels" by Margo Lanagan, "Rubyfruit Jungle" by Rita Mae Brown, "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" by Tom Robbins, "Push" by Sapphire, "Leaving Brooklyn" by Lynne Sharon Schwartz....

P.S. This is post number 50!!!

Banned (& Challenged) Books

I am mucho annoyed. Only annoyed? you say. Well, perhaps it is more than that. A few different things I came across as I traversed the world wide web have sparked me to add my own voice to the others on a certain subject: banned and challenged books.

“If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind. Were an opinion a personal possession of no value except to the owner; if to be obstructed in the enjoyment of it were simply a private injury, it would make some difference whether the injury was inflicted only on a few persons or on many. But the peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is, that it is robbing the human race; posterity as well as the existing generation; those who dissent from the opinion, still more than those who hold it. If the opinion is right, they are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth: if wrong, they lose, what is almost as great a benefit, the clearer perception and livelier impression of truth, produced by its collision with error.”
— On Liberty, John Stuart Mill

Each year the ALA (American Library Association) sponsors Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read. This year it's September 26th-October 3rd (2009).

Each year, the American Library Association (ALA) is asked why the week is called “Banned Books Week” instead of “Challenged Books Week,” since the majority of the books featured during the week are not banned, but “merely” challenged. There are two reasons. One, ALA does not “own” the name Banned Books Week, but is just one of several cosponsors of BBW; therefore, ALA cannot change the name without all the cosponsors agreeing to a change. Two, none want to do so, primarily because a challenge is an attempt to ban or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A successful challenge would result in materials being banned or restricted.
Read more...

Want to know which books are banned/challenged? The list might surprise you ("Freaky Friday" is on there?! WT*?). I have posted it here.

Resources:

• Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read
• Banned Books Week Basics
• How to Support Banned Books Week
• Support for dealing with or reporting challenges to library materials
• Censored Book Review: Growltiger's Last Stand
• Banned Books Week's MySpace Page
• Banned Books Week's Facebook Page
• Katie Couric's Notebook: "Banned Books Week" (CBS News)
• Press Release: Children’s book on male penguins raising chick tops ALA's 2007 list of most challenged books
  
• Dealing With Challenges to Library Materials (mp3)
• The 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990–20001 and Challenges by Initiator, Institution, Type, and Year

The most frequently challenged authors of 2008
1. Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson
2. Philip Pullman
3. Lauren Myracle <--Gemini: Amazing author! Probably placed here because of her books "TTYL," "TTFN," and "L8R, G8R"
4. Jim Pipe
5. Alvin Schwartz
6. Chris Crutcher
7. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
8. Rudolfo Anaya
9. Stephen Chbosky
10. Cecily Von Ziegesar <--Gemini: Another awesome author. Placed here because of her Gossip Girl series?

Top Ten Challenged Authors 1990-2004
1. Alvin Schwartz
2. Judy Blume <--Gemini: Yet another great author. She's probably on here because of "Forever" and maybe "Then Again, Maybe I Won't" as well as a few others.
3. Robert Cormier
4. J.K. Rowling <--Gemini: Obviously on here because of her Harry Potter books (there's nothing wrong with them!)
5. Michael Willhoite
6. Katherine Paterson
7. Stephen King <--Gemini: Three guesses why he's on here.
8. Maya Angelou <--Gemini: Author of "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings"
9. R.L. Stine <--Gemini: I personally don't like very many of his books but that's just cuz I don't prefer the horror genre. There was one about vampires I really liked though. Fear Street or something. My sister, on the other hand, adores his books. But then again, horror is one of her favorite genres.
10. John Steinbeck <--Gemini: Authored "Of Mice and Men"

Out of 8,332 challenges reported to or recorded by the Office for Intellectual Freedom, as compiled by the Office for Intellectual Freedom, American Library Association. The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom does not claim comprehensiveness in recording challenges. Research suggests that for each challenge reported there are as many as four or five which go unreported.

What is this Orange Border?

A. The trench due for construction to make eight continents, cuz we're tired of just seven.
B. Cheese. My five year old decided to take spray cheese and outline our country.
C. The Constitution-Free zone. Places where an unconstitutional effort to curb immigration is in effect.
D. Cities we are going to blow up with bombs in an effort to clean up our borders and beaches.

On one of the blogs I frequent, I found some disturbing news. (The answer is 'C' by the way. 'C' for 'correct.') Here's an excerpt from her post:

That's the map of the 100 mile US Border Patrol zone that people are calling the Constitution-Free Zone. Not many people have heard about this, and I had heard rumors, but I didn't realize they had put it into effect. This was brought to my attention because of a pastor that got his head split open at one of the checkpoints within the 100 mile along the Mexico side of this zone. Evidently, there are now a series of checkpoints along major highways...

Read the entire post...

I found it very disturbing, but I don't know what should be done. I know that others should be alerted to this, so spread the word. What else do you think we should do?