Remember that 1948 military plane crash we discussed here, and the Government's misrepresentation as to its cause, which now casts in doubt the viability of the 1953 Supreme Court decision Reynolds v. US? The 1953 Reynolds decision established the military and state secrets privilege. Georgetown's Jonathan Turley says it is ''the bedrock for an entire superstructure'' of national security law."

It's back in the news today. If the victim's daughter is correct, and the U.S. lied about the crash to the Court, what does it mean?

If the military did lie to the Supreme Court about the nature of the accident report, [the daughter] Loether's discovery casts doubt on the landmark Supreme Court decision. Few observers expect the petition to change law or government policy, but it could serve as an important lesson about the potential consequences of expanding the government's homeland security powers, as the Bush administration has tried to do, in part relying on United States v. Reynolds.

One specialist in national security law who is critical of the Reynolds decision said the Supreme Court's response to this unusual petition could have wide implications.

''Reynolds is already used in an abusive fashion, but if the court remains silent those abuses will be magnified significantly,'' said Jonathan Turley, a professor at George Washington University. ''If the government is not held to account in the face of obviously false statements, it's hard to see what limitations exist.''

Thanks to Jim Capozzola at Rittenhouse for a heads-up on the article.

Gulf War veteran Louis Jones was executed in Terre Haute this morning. He was pronounced dead at 7:08 a.m.

The federal government has executed three people in the last forty years. Two were Gulf War Vets with no prior criminal record.

The Struggle

What do Timothy McVeigh, accused Washington sniper John Mohammed and Louis Jones, due to be executed Wednesday, have in common? All are Gulf War Vets. All came back from the War acting very differently than before they went. Could this be a warning of dangers to befall our troops going over now?

Joyce Riley, a nurse and spokeswoman for the American Gulf War Veterans Association, is furious that troops are being deployed in the region again.

"We support the military, but we are against sending troops in an area where they're going to become cannon fodder," said Riley, who suffers from a neurological disorder she attributes to her service in that war. "Gulf War veterans aren't just sick, they're dying."

Gulf War veteran Rick Wilson of Indianapolis attributes his migraine headaches and joint pain to an extended exposure to low levels of a cocktail of poison gases.

"If those guys get sick like we are or sicker, I'm concerned the Veteran Affairs and Defense Department are not going to be responsive to their needs," said Wilson, a member of the staff of U.S. Rep. Dan Burton, R-Ind. "Those troops loyal to Saddam Hussein know they're going down with him, and I wouldn't put it past them to use that stuff."

Jones was a career noncommissioned officer, a decorated combat veteran with no criminal history before the Gulf War. Yet, after his service in the Middle East, experts said, he came to suffer the most severe form of Gulf War syndrome, an affliction that may have led to violence.

His experience illustrates the unknown dangers today's troops may risk as they, too, face the threat of biological and chemical weapons. Some fear the nation could soon have another generation of veterans plagued by mysterious sicknesses that appear to have unleashed deadly violence in some victims.

The Associated Press provides some answers to questions about legality of war to oust Saddam Hussein

The international community is debating whether a U.S.-led war against Iraq would be legal without approval from the United Nations. Here are some questions and answers about that issue:

Q: Can the United States and allies legally launch war without Security Council backing?

Q: Isn't Iraq violating disarmament resolutions?

Q: Isn't this a continuation of the 1991 Gulf War?

Q: The Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1441 in November requiring Iraq to cooperate with U.N. arms inspectors. Doesn't that permit enforcement

Read the article for the answers. Use the comments here if you disagree.

What will the military invasion of Iraq consist of? Lightning Strikes. To help war-challenged people like us understand what this means, here's a primer:

War plans call for simultaneous, lightning-quick operations by air, land and sea to overwhelm Iraq's shaky military forces. Heavy mechanized forces would speed toward Baghdad, bypassing Iraqi regular army units in a drive to reach the seat of President Saddam Hussein's power. The vanguard of the U.S. force would leave it to a second wave to engage those Iraqi forces. Special operations forces would parachute from helicopters deep behind enemy lines.

Whereas the United States took six months to position its forces for the 1991 Persian Gulf War and five weeks to bomb Iraqi targets before the ground war began, current war plans call for, at most, 48 hours of bombings — using tens of thousands of precision-guided munitions — before U.S. troops storm across Iraq's border.

Arranged across Kuwait to lead the charge are about 130,000 Americans, including 21,000 of the Army's 3rd Infantry Division, more than 21,000 of the Army's 101st Airborne Division, about 64,000 Marines, 5,000 of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division and several thousand special operations troops. Also in Kuwait are headquarters elements of the Army's V Corps and about 25,000 British troops. About 1,100 military aircraft, ranging from land-based Air Force fighter jets and bombers to Navy and Marine fighter and support planes launched from aircraft carriers, are in the region.

We also read somewhere, can't remember exactly where right now, that Bush is going to ask Congress to authorize 90 billion dollars for the war.

There is no money for war in the huge deficit budget Bush proposed a month or so ago. 90 billion? Where's it going to come from?

You can view the Not in Our Name public service announcements here.

President Bush declined late Monday to stop the execution of a decorated Gulf War veteran who claims severe brain damage from his exposure to Iraqi nerve gas led him to kill.

Without presidential clemency, it was virtually assured Louis Jones Jr. will be executed by injection Tuesday morning at the U.S. Penitentiary near Terre Haute, Ind.

As the execution neared, Jones met Monday with his 22-year-old daughter, his attorney and two spiritual advisers. Attorney Timothy Floyd said his client had been hopeful as he awaited word on whether Bush would consider his request to commute his death sentence to life in prison.

"He was really remarkably strong and I think at peace with whatever happens. I attribute that to his deep faith -- I think that's sustained him through this," Floyd said.

For his last meal Monday, Jones selected whole fruit: nectarines, peaches and plums.

If the execution proceeds, Jones would be the third person -- after Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh and drug kingpin Juan Garza -- put to death by the federal government since 1963.

Sen. Tom Daschle said tonight that Bush has failed miserably in diplomacy, forcing America to war.

''I'm saddened, saddened that this president failed so miserably at diplomacy that we're now forced to war,'' Daschle said in a speech to the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. ''Saddened that we have to give up one life because this president couldn't create the kind of diplomatic effort that was so critical for our country.''

Sign the Petition to Support the Dixie Chicks.

We wish to express our support for Natalie Maines and the Dixie Chicks and their right to dissent from President Bush's style of diplomacy. As a result of the Bush administration's disrespect for the United Nations and international law, all Americans have suffered injuries to their reputations in the eyes of the world community, which most acutely affect those Americans working and traveling abroad. It was therefore well within Maines's rights to dissociate herself from the views and actions of the President before a London audience. Maines has subsequently made clear that she intended no disrespect to the office of the President or to the American soldiers serving in the Gulf.

We applaud Natalie Maines and the Dixie Chicks for giving voice to the voiceless majority of Americans who do not support President Bush's decision to invade Iraq without UN authorization. We deplore the efforts of radio stations and other media outlets and organizations to boycott the Dixie Chicks. We find it especially ironic that these efforts to chill future voices of dissent are being led by broadcasters to whom the public has entrusted our most vital First Amendment rights.

We call for an immediate end to all such boycotts, and encourage all Americans to show their support for the Dixie Chicks by signing this petition and continuing to enjoy their music.

Dr. Frederic Whitehurst, the whistleblower referred to in today's news articles about the 3,000 criminal cases that may be tainted due to "flawed science" and "skewed testimony" at the FBI lab prior to 1997, has this to say about the matter:

The present director of the FBI crime lab is Dr. Dwight Adams. You may remember that one of the improvements to the FBI crime lab taken in 1997 was that the lab would be managed by an outside scientist, not an FBI agent. That individual was Dr. Don Kerr. He stayed about 3 years and left and was replaced quietly by ... an FBI agent. Back to normal. Dr. Adams is an FBI agent and has been one for close to twenty years. He originally worked in the serology section of the lab, went to the field to the New York FBI office and returned in about 1996 or 1997 and zoomed up the ladder of management.

Supervisory Special Agent Adams, now director of the FBI crime lab, tells us that the number 3000 cases affected by the lab's woes is not necessarily alarming as the lab has 650 employees working hundreds of thousands of cases. That Adams would say that is in itself alarming. But look behind those numbers. The IG report only looked at the work product of 13 examiners. The lab employs 650 personnel. If 13 employees caused the work in 3000 cases to be suspect then if you do the math you could imagine that on the average one lab examiner might mess up 230 cases in a career. Multiply that by 650 and you get a universe of 149,500 cases that might be flawed. In reality only about 200 of those 650 employees in the lab are examiners who render opinions. So let's assume that the 450 technicians do perfect work during their whole career (fat chance). That will reduce the possible universe of flawed cases down to a mere 46,000 cases. Dr. Adams should be relieved by that number. The question you should ask yourself then is, are you relieved knowing that only 46,000 cases may have been screwed up by the FBI crime lab and the US Department of Justice only found 3000 of those cases.

But there is more.

With war imminent, some veterans are very angry at Bush.

Gary Hart is now officially accepting donations while considering whether to run for President. Give soon, give as much as you can. Every little bit helps. Here's the donation link.

His website is garyhartnews.com