POLITICAL: Did Iran execute an American citizen?

Monday, October 28, 2024

https://nypost.com/2024/10/28/world-news/iran-executes-california-man-jamshid-sharmahd-after-abducting-him-during-international-flight-layover/?utm_source=sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=news_alert&utm_content=20241028?&utm_source=sailthru&lctg=6080ba40747925275a09dcd3&utm_term=NYP%20-%20News%20Alerts

Iran executes California man Jamshid Sharmahd after abducting him during international flight layover, convicting him of terror charges
By Ronny Reyes 
Published Oct. 28, 2024, 1:44 p.m. ET

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Iran has executed a California resident after Iranian agents abudcted him during a flight layover in Dubai four years ago, officials said. 

Sharmahd, 69, a German-Iranian dissident who lived in Glendora with his family, was accused by the Islamic Republic of planning a 2008 attack on a mosque that killed 14 people and wounded over 200 others. 

His family disputes the terror charges, claiming Sharmahd is among the many Iranian dissidents who have been kidnapped or tricked into returning to Iran in recent years.

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Almost regardless of whether he was a US citizen or just a resident, the USA should have stepped up for him.  But we are too busy making enemies in the region.  

Now, at the very least, the USA should PNG some folks.  Maybe aim for the embassy workers.  Make it inconvenient for them.

And we should shut down all the attacks on and rhetoric about Iran.

Dona Nobis Pacem

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<< EDITOR ADDED DATE 2024-11-01>>

Germany Shutters Iran Consulates

Germany ordered the closure of all three Iranian consulates there yesterday, expelling 32 Iranian diplomats and leaving only Iran’s embassy in Berlin. The move followed Iran’s execution of German-Iranian citizen Jamshid Sharmahd.

Sharmahd, 69, was executed Monday after being sentenced to death last year on terrorism charges. Following his 2020 capture by Iranian forces in Dubai, Sharmahd was accused of leading a US-based Iranian opposition group and planning a 2008 mosque attack in Shiraz, killing 14 people and wounding more than 200 others. The US and human rights groups criticized the trial, alleging Sharmahd was not given proper representation.

The news escalates tensions between the two countries, with relations previously strained by Iran’s nuclear program and human rights abuses and Germany’s support for Israel. Germany halted trade incentives with Iran in 2022, reducing exports to approximately $1.3B in 2023, a 24% decrease from the previous year. Germany is now calling for EU-wide sanctions against those involved in Sharmahd’s execution.

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[JR: Answers the question that he was not a citizen of the USA.  However, the USA Gooferment should expel someone!  Whatever happened to the Congress using Marque and Reprisal?]  

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POLITICAL: Replace “Pick One” with “ranked choice” aka “instant runoff”

Monday, October 28, 2024

https://www.reuters.com/graphics/USA-ELECTION/RANKED-CHOICE/zdpxqrolgvx/?utm_placement=newsletter

An alternate voting method that puts a premium on finding a majority and allows voters to rank all candidates, not just cast a single vote for their favorite.

By Travis Hartman and Tiana McGee
Published Oct. 24, 2024 09:00 AM EDT

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In the United States, when only two candidates are on a ballot, the results are normally quite clear — the winner has a majority, or over 50% of the vote. But when there are three or more contenders, the vote can easily split in a way that allows for someone with less than 50% of the vote to win. Which means a majority of the votes were for someone other than the winner. 

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Alaska and Maine are currently the only two states that use this style of voting for federal elections, though Hawaii uses ranked choice voting for its special elections.

It is being used by over 50 cities in the United States and has been in place for over 100 years in Australia and Ireland.

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This seems to be a vast improvement over the current system.  And it eliminates the “wasted  vote” syndrome.  

For example, here in New Jersey, voting for a third party candidate is a waste of time, attention, and effort.  The D’s swamp everything.  Without Ranked Choice Voting, voting for a Libertarian “wastes” a vote.  With it, my vote eventually counts for something.

Think the powers that own this country will ever allow “We, The Sheeple” to express their preferences?  I don’t think so.  But I could be wrong.

Kudos to Reuters for a simple graphic explanation that even a fat old white guy injineer could understand.

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