THE ARCHITECTS (conspirators?) OF THE REPUBLICAN IRAQ WAR: WHERE ARE THEY NOW? ( they have been rewarded – not blamed – for their incompetence. --- it's long but it's for the record.)
Role In Going To War: Wolfowitz said the U.S. would be greeted as liberators, that Iraqi oil money for pay for the reconstruction, and that Gen. Eric Shinseki’s estimate that several hundred thousand troops would be needed was “wildly off the mark.” Where He Is Now: Bush promoted Wolfowitz to head the World Bank in March 2005.
Role In Going To War: As Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, Feith spearheaded two secretive groups at the Pentagon — the Counter Terrorism Evaluation Group and the Office of Special Plans — that were instrumental in drawing up documents that explained the supposed ties between Saddam and al Qaeda. The groups were “created in order to find evidence of what Wolfowitz and his boss, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, believed to be true.” Colin Powell referred to Feith’s operation as the Gestapo. In Bob Woodward’s Plan of Attack, former CentCom Commander Gen. Tommy Franks called Feith the “f***ing stupidest guy on the face of the earth.” Where He Is Now: Feith voluntarily resigned from the Defense Department shortly after Bush’s reelection. He is co-chairman of a project at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government to write an academic book on how to fight terrorism. Feith’s secretive groups at the Pentagon are under investigation.
Role In Going To War: As then-Deputy National Security Advisor, Hadley disregarded memos from the CIA and a personal phone call from Director George Tenet warning that references to Iraq’s pursuit of uranium be dropped from Bush’s speeches. The false information ended up in Bush’s 2003 State of the Union address. Where He Is Now: On January 26, 2005, Stephen Hadley was promoted to National Security Advisor.
Role In Going To War: Richard Perle, the so-called “Prince of Darkness,” was the chairman of Defense Policy Board during the run-up to the Iraq war. He suggested Iraq had a hand in 9-11. In 1996, he authored “Clean Break,” a paper that was co-signed by Douglas Feith, David Wurmser, and others that argued for regime change in Iraq. Shortly after the war began, Perle resigned from the Board because he came under fire for having relationships with businesses that stood to profit from the war. Where He Is Now: Currently, Perle is a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute where he specializes in national security and defense issues. He has been investigated for ethical violations concerning war profiteering and other conflicts of interest.
Role In Going To War: Abrams was one of the defendants in the Iran-Contra Affair, and he pled guilty to two misdemeanor counts of withholding information from Congress. He was appointed Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director on the National Security Council for Near East and North African Affairs during Bush’s first term, where he served as Bush’s chief advisor on the Middle East. His name surfaced as part of the investigation into who leaked the name of a undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame. Where He Is Now: Abrams was promoted to deputy national security adviser in February of 2005.
Role In Going To War: At the time of the war, Wurmser was a special assistant to John Bolton in the State Department. Wurmser has long advocated the belief that both Syria and Iraq represented threats to the stability of the Middle East. In early 2001, Wurmser had issued a call for air strikes against Iraq and Syria. Along with Perle, he is considered a main author of “Clean Break.” Where He Is Now: Wurmser was promoted to Principal Deputy Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs; he is in charge of coordinating Middle East strategy. His name has been associated with the Plame Affair and with an FBI investigation into the passing of classified information to Chalabi and AIPAC.
Role In Going To War: Shortly after the invasion of Iraq, Andrew Natsios, then the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, went on Nightline and claimed that the U.S. contribution to the rebuilding of Iraq would be just $1.7 billion. When it became quickly apparent that Natsios’ prediction would fall woefully short of reality, the government came under fire for scrubbing his comments from the USAID Web site. Where He Is Now: Natsios stepped down as the head of USAID in January and is currently teaching at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh’s School of Foreign Service as a Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy and Advisor on International Development. Key Quote: “[T]he American part of this will be $1.7 billion. We have no plans for any further-on funding for this.”
Role In Going To War: Dan Bartlett was the White House Communications Director at the time of the war and was a mouthpiece in hyping the Iraq threat. Bartlett was also a regular participant in the weekly meetings of the White House Iraq Group (WHIG). The main purpose of the group was the systematic coordination of the “marketing” of going to war with Iraq as well as selling the war here at home. Where He Is Now: Bartlett was promoted to Counselor to the President on January 5, 2005, and is responsible for the formulation of policy and implementation of the President’s agenda.
Role In Going To War: Mitch Daniels was the director of the Office of Management and Budget from January 2001 through June of 2003. In this capacity, he was responsible for releasing the initial budget estimates for the Iraq War which he pegged at $50 to $60 billion. The estimated cost of the war, including the full economic ramifications, is approaching $1 trillion. Where He Is Now: In 2004, Daniels was elected Governor of Indiana.
Role In Going To War: As CIA Director, Tenet was responsible for gathering information on Iraq and the potential threat posted by Saddam Hussein. According to author Bob Woodward, Tenet told President Bush before the war that there was a “slam dunk case” that Saddam possessed weapons of mass destruction. Tenet remained publicly silent while the Bush administration made pre-war statements on Iraq’s supposed nuclear program and ties to al Qaeda that were contrary to the CIA’s judgments. Tenet issued a statement in July 2003, drafted by Karl Rove and Scooter Libby, taking responsibility for Bush’s false statements in his State of the Union address. Where He Is Now: Tenet voluntarily resigned from the administration on June 3, 2004. He was later awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom. Key Quote: “It’s a slam dunk case.”
Role In Going To War: Despite stating in Feb. 2001 that Saddam had not developed “any significant capability with respect to weapons of mass destruction,” Powell made the case in front of the United Nations for a United States-led invasion of Iraq, stating that, “There can be no doubt that Saddam Hussein has biological weapons and the capability to rapidly produce more, many more. And he has the ability to dispense these lethal poisons and diseases in ways that can cause massive death and destruction.” Where He Is Now: Shortly after Bush won reelection in 2004, Powell resigned from the administration. Powell now sits on numerous corporate boards. He is poised to succeed Henry Kissinger in May as Chairman of the Eisenhower Fellowship Program at the City College of New York. In September 2005, Powell said of his U.N. speech that it was a “blot” on his record. He went on to say, “It will always be a part of my record. It was painful. It’s painful now.” Key Quote: “‘You are going to be the proud owner of 25 million people,’ he told the president. ‘You will own all their hopes, aspirations, and problems. You’ll own it all.’ Privately, Powell and Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage called this the Pottery Barn rule: You break it, you own it.” [Bob Woodward, Plan of Attack]
Role In Going To War: Prior to the war, Rumsfeld repeatedly suggested the war in Iraq would be short and swift. He said, “The Gulf War in the 1990s lasted five days on the ground. I can’t tell you if the use of force in Iraq today would last five days, or five weeks, or five months, but it certainly isn’t going to last any longer than that.” He also said, “It is unknowable how long that conflict will last. It could last six days, six weeks. I doubt six months.” Where He Is Now: Despite increased calls for his resignation, Donald Rumsfeld continues to be the most vocal supporter of staying the course in Iraq. Recently, he claimed that an early U.S. pullout would be the equivalent of leaving Germany in the hands of Nazis.
Role In Going To War: As National Security Adviser, Rice disregarded at least two CIA memos and a personal phone call from Director George Tenet stating that the evidence behind Iraq’s supposed uranium acquisition was weak. She urged the necessity of war because “we don’t want the smoking gun to be a mushroom cloud.” Where She Is Now: In December of 2004, Condoleezza Rice was promoted to Secretary of State and is being widely-mentioned as a possible presidential candidate. Key Quote: “We did not know at the time – maybe someone knew down in the bowels of the agency – but no one in our circles knew that there were doubts and suspicions that this might be a forgery. Of course it was information that was mistaken.”
Role In Going To War: Among a host of false pre-war statements, Cheney claimed that Iraq may have had a role in 9/11, stating that it was “pretty well confirmed” that 9/11 hijacker Mohammed Atta met with Iraqi intelligence officials. Cheney also claimed that Saddam was “in fact reconstituting his nuclear program” and that the U.S. would be “greeted as liberators.” Where He Is Now: Cheney earned another four years in power when Bush won re-election in 2004. Despite recent calls from conservatives calling for him to be replaced, Cheney has said, “I’ve now been elected to a second term; I’ll serve out my term.” Key Quote: “I think they’re in the last throes, if you will, of the insurgency.”
AND THE LAST BUT NOT LEAST:
Role In Going To War: Emphasizing Saddam Hussein’s supposed stockpile of weapons of mass destruction, supposed ties to al Qaeda, and supposed nuclear weapons program, Bush led the effort to build public support for an invasion of Iraq. Where He Is Now: In November 2004, Bush won re-election. Since that time, popular support for the war and the President have reached a low point.
----------------------------
09 October, 2006
Olbermann on Bush,Cheney,Rice, lies
A special comment about lying by Keith Olbermann (long but worth the read):
Secretary of State Rice first cannot remember urgent cautionary meetings with counterterrorism officials before 9/11. Then within hours of this lie, her spokesman confirms the meetings in question. Then she dismisses those meetings as nothing new — yet insists she wanted the same cautions expressed to Secretaries Ashcroft and Rumsfeld.
Mr. Rumsfeld, meantime, has been unable to accept the most logical and simple influence of the most noble and neutral of advisers. He and his employer insist they rely on the "generals in the field." But dozens of those generals have now come forward to say how their words, their experiences, have been ignored.
Yet—and it is Pentagon transcripts that now tell us this—evidently Mr. Rumsfeld’s strongest check on Mr. Bush’s ambitions, was to get somebody to excise the phrase "Mission Accomplished" out of the infamous Air Force Carrier speech of May 1st, 2003, even while the same empty words hung on a banner over the President’s shoulder.
And the vice president is a chilling figure, still unable, it seems, to accept the conclusions of his own party’s leaders in the Senate, that the foundations of his public position, are made out of sand. There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. But he still says so.
There was no link between Saddam Hussein and al Qaida. But he still says so. And thus, gripping firmly these figments of his own imagination, Mr. Cheney lives on, in defiance, and spreads—around him and before him—darkness, like some contagion of fear. They are never wrong, and they never regret -- admirable in a French torch singer, cataclysmic in an American leader.
Thus, the sickening attempt to blame the Foley scandal on the negligence of others or "the Clinton era"—even though the Foley scandal began before the Lewinsky scandal.
Thus, last month’s enraged attacks on this administration’s predecessors, about Osama bin Laden—a projection of their own negligence in the immediate months before 9/11.
Thus, the terrifying attempt to hamstring the fundament of our freedom—the Constitution—a triumph for al Qaida, for which the terrorists could not hope to achieve with a hundred 9/11’s.
And thus, worst of all perhaps, these newest lies by President Bush about Democrats choosing to await another attack and not listen to the conversations of terrorists.
It is the terror and the guilt within your own heart, Mr. Bush, that you redirect at others who simply wish for you to temper your certainty with counsel. It is not the Democrats whose inaction in the face of the enemy you fear, Sir.Mr. President, these new lies go to the heart of what it is that you truly wish to preserve.
It is not our freedom, nor our country—your actions against the Constitution give irrefutable proof of that.You want to preserve a political party’s power. And obviously you’ll sell this country out, to do it. These are lies about the Democrats -- piled atop lies about Iraq -- which were piled atop lies about your preparations for al Qaida.
To you, perhaps, they feel like the weight of a million centuries -- as crushing, as immovable.They are not. If you add more lies to them, you cannot free yourself, and us, from them. But if you stop -- if you stop fabricating quotes, and building straw-men, and inspiring those around you to do the same -- you may yet liberate yourself and this nation.
Please, sir, do not throw this country’s principles away because your lies have made it such that you can no longer differentiate between the terrorists and the critics. Amen and Amen
Secretary of State Rice first cannot remember urgent cautionary meetings with counterterrorism officials before 9/11. Then within hours of this lie, her spokesman confirms the meetings in question. Then she dismisses those meetings as nothing new — yet insists she wanted the same cautions expressed to Secretaries Ashcroft and Rumsfeld.
Mr. Rumsfeld, meantime, has been unable to accept the most logical and simple influence of the most noble and neutral of advisers. He and his employer insist they rely on the "generals in the field." But dozens of those generals have now come forward to say how their words, their experiences, have been ignored.
Yet—and it is Pentagon transcripts that now tell us this—evidently Mr. Rumsfeld’s strongest check on Mr. Bush’s ambitions, was to get somebody to excise the phrase "Mission Accomplished" out of the infamous Air Force Carrier speech of May 1st, 2003, even while the same empty words hung on a banner over the President’s shoulder.
And the vice president is a chilling figure, still unable, it seems, to accept the conclusions of his own party’s leaders in the Senate, that the foundations of his public position, are made out of sand. There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. But he still says so.
There was no link between Saddam Hussein and al Qaida. But he still says so. And thus, gripping firmly these figments of his own imagination, Mr. Cheney lives on, in defiance, and spreads—around him and before him—darkness, like some contagion of fear. They are never wrong, and they never regret -- admirable in a French torch singer, cataclysmic in an American leader.
Thus, the sickening attempt to blame the Foley scandal on the negligence of others or "the Clinton era"—even though the Foley scandal began before the Lewinsky scandal.
Thus, last month’s enraged attacks on this administration’s predecessors, about Osama bin Laden—a projection of their own negligence in the immediate months before 9/11.
Thus, the terrifying attempt to hamstring the fundament of our freedom—the Constitution—a triumph for al Qaida, for which the terrorists could not hope to achieve with a hundred 9/11’s.
And thus, worst of all perhaps, these newest lies by President Bush about Democrats choosing to await another attack and not listen to the conversations of terrorists.
It is the terror and the guilt within your own heart, Mr. Bush, that you redirect at others who simply wish for you to temper your certainty with counsel. It is not the Democrats whose inaction in the face of the enemy you fear, Sir.Mr. President, these new lies go to the heart of what it is that you truly wish to preserve.
It is not our freedom, nor our country—your actions against the Constitution give irrefutable proof of that.You want to preserve a political party’s power. And obviously you’ll sell this country out, to do it. These are lies about the Democrats -- piled atop lies about Iraq -- which were piled atop lies about your preparations for al Qaida.
To you, perhaps, they feel like the weight of a million centuries -- as crushing, as immovable.They are not. If you add more lies to them, you cannot free yourself, and us, from them. But if you stop -- if you stop fabricating quotes, and building straw-men, and inspiring those around you to do the same -- you may yet liberate yourself and this nation.
Please, sir, do not throw this country’s principles away because your lies have made it such that you can no longer differentiate between the terrorists and the critics. Amen and Amen
Foley,Kolbe,Hastert,Shimkus,Alexander
A spokeswoman for Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-Ariz.) confirmed yesterday that a former page showed the congressman Internet messages that had made the youth feel uncomfortable with the direction Foley (R-Fla.) was taking their e-mail relationship. Last week, when the Foley matter erupted, a Kolbe staff member suggested to the former page that he take the matter to the clerk of the House, Karen Haas, said Kolbe's press secretary, Korenna Cline.
The revelation pushes back by at least five years the date when a member of Congress has acknowledged learning of Foley's questionable behavior. A timeline issued by House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) suggested that the first lawmakers to know, Rep. John M. Shimkus (R-Ill.), the chairman of the House Page Board, and Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-La.), became aware of "over-friendly" e-mails only last fall.
It also expands the universe of players in the drama beyond members, either in leadership or on the page board. Hastert and his top aides have been sharply criticized by Democrats for failing to act promptly after receiving warnings that Foley had been sexually predatory in dealing with pages and former pages.
Only in Washington, D.C., can you take a group of people (Republicans) in charge of the House and basically have evidence that they've been looking the other way while a predator has been going after 15- and 16-year-old pages, and they somehow have the audacity to turn that into a political attack against Democrats.
The revelation pushes back by at least five years the date when a member of Congress has acknowledged learning of Foley's questionable behavior. A timeline issued by House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) suggested that the first lawmakers to know, Rep. John M. Shimkus (R-Ill.), the chairman of the House Page Board, and Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-La.), became aware of "over-friendly" e-mails only last fall.
It also expands the universe of players in the drama beyond members, either in leadership or on the page board. Hastert and his top aides have been sharply criticized by Democrats for failing to act promptly after receiving warnings that Foley had been sexually predatory in dealing with pages and former pages.
Only in Washington, D.C., can you take a group of people (Republicans) in charge of the House and basically have evidence that they've been looking the other way while a predator has been going after 15- and 16-year-old pages, and they somehow have the audacity to turn that into a political attack against Democrats.
08 October, 2006
republicans, morality, hypocrisy
Republicans pro life position is hypocrisy at best. They are against and are preventing science from using a microscopic clump of cells to cure Parkinson's or heal broken spinal cords, but they have no problem with blowing up a 6-year-old in Iraq as she is off to school. I call that immoral.
Reynolds,Alexander,Hastert,lies
On Monday, Reynolds said that Rep. Rodney Alexander earlier this year told him about Foley's e-mails to a Louisiana teenager. A Louisiana Republican, Alexander sponsored the teen when the boy served as a page in 2005. ( so much for REPUBLICANS BLAMING the victims and DEMOCRATS for leaking the story).
Reynolds said he told Hastert about the e-mails because he thought it was appropriate to inform his "supervisor" about allegations of possible sexual misconduct.Hastert has said he does not recall the conversation, but he didn't dispute that it took place. House leaders have said they learned of the e-mails in late 2005. (WOULDN'T YOU REMEMBER THAT??)
Republicans saying that Democrats leaked the Foley matter, is just another lie.
Reynolds said he told Hastert about the e-mails because he thought it was appropriate to inform his "supervisor" about allegations of possible sexual misconduct.Hastert has said he does not recall the conversation, but he didn't dispute that it took place. House leaders have said they learned of the e-mails in late 2005. (WOULDN'T YOU REMEMBER THAT??)
Republicans saying that Democrats leaked the Foley matter, is just another lie.
failure to protect congressional pages
A Democratic congressional candidate whose son was abducted 17 years ago said GOP congressional leadership failed to protect teenage House pages from former Rep. Mark Foley's advances "Foley sent obvious predatory signals, received loud and clear by members of congressional leadership, who swept them under the rug to protect their political power," Minnesota Democrat Patty Wetterling charged in her party's weekly radio address Saturday.
House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., has rejected calls to resign, saying he hasn't done anything wrong. Republicans, including President Bush, have closed ranks around Hastert in recent days. Hastert had blamed Democrats for the election-season revelations, but on Thursday abruptly changed course and took responsibility for the matter.
Wetterling's 11-year-old son, Jacob, was abducted in 1989 on a rural road. Despite a massive search effort, Jacob was never seen or heard from again. The loss transformed Wetterling from a stay-at-home mom to a national advocate for missing children. "For 17 years, I have fought for tough penalties for those who harm children," Wetterling said. "Members of Congress are not and should not be above the law."
House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., has rejected calls to resign, saying he hasn't done anything wrong. Republicans, including President Bush, have closed ranks around Hastert in recent days. Hastert had blamed Democrats for the election-season revelations, but on Thursday abruptly changed course and took responsibility for the matter.
Wetterling's 11-year-old son, Jacob, was abducted in 1989 on a rural road. Despite a massive search effort, Jacob was never seen or heard from again. The loss transformed Wetterling from a stay-at-home mom to a national advocate for missing children. "For 17 years, I have fought for tough penalties for those who harm children," Wetterling said. "Members of Congress are not and should not be above the law."
07 October, 2006
why we should throw the republicans out
The cleric's young men fanned out across the neighborhood, moving from shop to shop, posting the new religious decrees. Printed neatly on white-and-green fliers, the edicts banned vices like "music-filled parties and all kinds of singing."
They proscribed celebratory gunfire at weddings and "the gathering of young men" in front of markets and girls' schools. Also forbidden were the "selling of liquor and narcotic drugs" and "wearing improper Western clothes."Women have been assailed for not wearing a veil or head scarf.
Athletes have been killed for wearing shorts, because some consider it un-Islamic to reveal thighs. Liquor stores have been attacked, and male doctors have been killed for treating female patients. In Sadr's stronghold of Sadr City and other Shiite-dominated areas, Islamic courts deliver strict, homegrown justice.
In early August, a group of armed men walked into Abu Ahmed Jassim's barbershop in southeast Baghdad. They shot dead his 23-year-old brother and another barber, as well as two customers. Before they left, they set a bomb. Jassim arrived an hour later to find the charred carcass of his shop.
Shiite barbers like him practice khite, an ancient way of removing hair from cheeks and eyebrows with twists of a cotton thread. Radical Sunnis consider this ritual, as well as trimming or removing beards, to be prohibited under Islam.
This is what we are dying for in Iraq. So much for Bush/Cheney/Wolfowitz, and Rumsfeldt saying they are spreading democracy in the Middle East. The only way to stop this madness is to throw the Republicans out in Novermber.
They proscribed celebratory gunfire at weddings and "the gathering of young men" in front of markets and girls' schools. Also forbidden were the "selling of liquor and narcotic drugs" and "wearing improper Western clothes."Women have been assailed for not wearing a veil or head scarf.
Athletes have been killed for wearing shorts, because some consider it un-Islamic to reveal thighs. Liquor stores have been attacked, and male doctors have been killed for treating female patients. In Sadr's stronghold of Sadr City and other Shiite-dominated areas, Islamic courts deliver strict, homegrown justice.
In early August, a group of armed men walked into Abu Ahmed Jassim's barbershop in southeast Baghdad. They shot dead his 23-year-old brother and another barber, as well as two customers. Before they left, they set a bomb. Jassim arrived an hour later to find the charred carcass of his shop.
Shiite barbers like him practice khite, an ancient way of removing hair from cheeks and eyebrows with twists of a cotton thread. Radical Sunnis consider this ritual, as well as trimming or removing beards, to be prohibited under Islam.
This is what we are dying for in Iraq. So much for Bush/Cheney/Wolfowitz, and Rumsfeldt saying they are spreading democracy in the Middle East. The only way to stop this madness is to throw the Republicans out in Novermber.
more reputlican lies
More to the story:
House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert's chief of staff confronted then-Rep. Mark Foley about his inappropriate social contact with male pages well before the speaker said aides in his office took any action, a current congressional staff member with personal knowledge of Foley and his behavior with pages said yesterday.
The staff member said Hastert's chief of staff, Scott Palmer, met with the Florida Republican at the Capitol to discuss complaints about Foley's behavior toward pages. The alleged meeting occurred long before Hastert says aides in his office dispatched Rep. John M. Shimkus (R-Ill.) and the clerk of the House in November 2005 to confront Foley about troubling e-mails he had sent to a Louisiana boy.
The staff member's account buttresses the position of Foley's one-time chief of staff, Kirk Fordham, who said earlier this week that he had appealed to Palmer in 2003 or earlier to intervene, after Fordham's own efforts to stop Foley's behavior had failed. Fordham said Foley and Palmer, one of the most powerful figures in the House of Representatives, met within days to discuss the allegations.
House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert's chief of staff confronted then-Rep. Mark Foley about his inappropriate social contact with male pages well before the speaker said aides in his office took any action, a current congressional staff member with personal knowledge of Foley and his behavior with pages said yesterday.
The staff member said Hastert's chief of staff, Scott Palmer, met with the Florida Republican at the Capitol to discuss complaints about Foley's behavior toward pages. The alleged meeting occurred long before Hastert says aides in his office dispatched Rep. John M. Shimkus (R-Ill.) and the clerk of the House in November 2005 to confront Foley about troubling e-mails he had sent to a Louisiana boy.
The staff member's account buttresses the position of Foley's one-time chief of staff, Kirk Fordham, who said earlier this week that he had appealed to Palmer in 2003 or earlier to intervene, after Fordham's own efforts to stop Foley's behavior had failed. Fordham said Foley and Palmer, one of the most powerful figures in the House of Representatives, met within days to discuss the allegations.
Bush, more lies about Iraq
Charts and graphs from a Joint Chiefs of Staff intelligence assessment from May 2006 paint a grim picture of the ground truth in Iraq.
Terrorist attacks were increasing, and the insurgents were gaining even after the Iraqi elections, the formation of a government, and a constitution. "Insurgents and terrorists retain the resources and capabilities to sustain and even increase current level of violence through the next year," says the secret Pentagon assessment sent to the White House.
The forecast of a more violent 2007 in Iraq contradicted the repeated optimistic statements of President Bush, including one, two days earlier, when he said the country was at a "turning point" that history would mark as the time "the forces of terror began their long retreat."
AND Bush is telling us that he is listening to his "generals on the ground"? More lies
Terrorist attacks were increasing, and the insurgents were gaining even after the Iraqi elections, the formation of a government, and a constitution. "Insurgents and terrorists retain the resources and capabilities to sustain and even increase current level of violence through the next year," says the secret Pentagon assessment sent to the White House.
The forecast of a more violent 2007 in Iraq contradicted the repeated optimistic statements of President Bush, including one, two days earlier, when he said the country was at a "turning point" that history would mark as the time "the forces of terror began their long retreat."
AND Bush is telling us that he is listening to his "generals on the ground"? More lies
run up to 9/11, bush, tenet etal
On July 10, 2001, George Tenet and his top terrorism expert, Cofer Black, visited Condi Rice and warned that a major terrorist attack was coming. "It's my sixth sense, but I feel it coming," said Tenet. "This could be the big one." Tenet thought he had done his job, laid it on the line very directly about the threat. Rice has said the July meeting was not as dramatic as Tenet remembers.
Cofer Black says, "The only thing we didn't do was pull the trigger to the gun we were holding to her head." The cabal, Bush, Rumsfeldt,Wolfowitz, and most importantly Cheney let it slide.
The 9/11 gave them an excuse to convince Congress to go along with their already decided invation of Iraq.
I am not accusing, but will let you "connect the dots".
Cofer Black says, "The only thing we didn't do was pull the trigger to the gun we were holding to her head." The cabal, Bush, Rumsfeldt,Wolfowitz, and most importantly Cheney let it slide.
The 9/11 gave them an excuse to convince Congress to go along with their already decided invation of Iraq.
I am not accusing, but will let you "connect the dots".
spin, lies,Rice, 9/11
Don't you just love the Republican spin machine blaming victims and others for Foley, sometimes even blaming each other. That's to be expected based on the last five years.
All this is not so important compared to Woodward's bombshell revelation that Rice and others lied about the warning in July 2001 of a likely imminent attack on this country WHICH THEY IGNORED.
A State Department Official has confirmed that fact.
They (Bush,Cheney, Wolfowitz,Rumsfeldt) were already fixated on attacking Iraq in their crusade scheme.
All this is not so important compared to Woodward's bombshell revelation that Rice and others lied about the warning in July 2001 of a likely imminent attack on this country WHICH THEY IGNORED.
A State Department Official has confirmed that fact.
They (Bush,Cheney, Wolfowitz,Rumsfeldt) were already fixated on attacking Iraq in their crusade scheme.
republicans, road to dictatorship/fascism
Do you know that consortium of major universities, with Homeland Security Department funds, is developing software that would let the government monitor "negative opinions" of the United States or its leaders in newspapers and other publications overseas. The "sentiment analysis" is intended to identify potential threats to the nation, security officials said.
This is an important step to connect "negative opinions" with threats to our nation. Very cute if it weren't so dangerous a step to fascism and dictatorship. It is also just creepy and Orwellian. What a nice cover for expanding the spying on and stifling dissent in the US.
This is an important step to connect "negative opinions" with threats to our nation. Very cute if it weren't so dangerous a step to fascism and dictatorship. It is also just creepy and Orwellian. What a nice cover for expanding the spying on and stifling dissent in the US.
06 October, 2006
Hastert, Foley, predator warnings
New statements from senior congressional aide Kirk Fordham indicate that he delivered multiple warning to Speaker Hastert's staff about Foley in 2004. Then, late in 2005, Hastert saw copies of Foley's emails and dismissed them as just "overly-friendly" -- despite the recipient's characterization of them as "sick, sick, sick..." and conservative pundit Bay Buchanan's opinion of one of the messages as having "predator stamped all over it."
The leadership of the House of Representatives has become corrupted by its absolute power. It's time the American people demand accountability.
The leadership of the House of Representatives has become corrupted by its absolute power. It's time the American people demand accountability.
dobson, republican party spin
As discontent with the Republican Party threatens to dampen the turnout of conservative voters in November, evangelical leaders are launching a massive registration drive that could help counter the malaise and mobilize new religious voters in battleground states.
The program, coordinated by the Colorado-based group Focus on the Family and its influential founder, James C. Dobson, would use a variety of methods — including information inserted in church publications and booths placed outside worship services — to recruit millions of new voters in 2006 and beyond.
As discontent with the Republican Party threatens to dampen the turnout of conservative voters in November, evangelical leaders are launching a massive registration drive that could help counter the malaise and mobilize new religious voters in battleground states.
Odd, isn't it? The same people who can move their followers to boycott any company, can't muster much outrage over one of their own preying on young boys and, more importantly, the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives ignoring it to save their political hides.
The program, coordinated by the Colorado-based group Focus on the Family and its influential founder, James C. Dobson, would use a variety of methods — including information inserted in church publications and booths placed outside worship services — to recruit millions of new voters in 2006 and beyond.
As discontent with the Republican Party threatens to dampen the turnout of conservative voters in November, evangelical leaders are launching a massive registration drive that could help counter the malaise and mobilize new religious voters in battleground states.
Odd, isn't it? The same people who can move their followers to boycott any company, can't muster much outrage over one of their own preying on young boys and, more importantly, the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives ignoring it to save their political hides.
Forbes,billionaires,middle class
For the first time in our nation's history, the Forbes list of the 400 wealthiest Americans includes only billionaires. In fact, having only a billion dollars means you're not on the list.
As a group, the Forbes 400 has a collective net worth of $1.25 trillion.So the rich are doing well.
But how about the middle class? More Americans than ever are living in poverty, living without health care, paying more for housing and for the costs of our public education. And real wages are falling.
Real median earnings of full-time working males fell nearly 2 percent last year, according to the Census Bureau, while the real wages of working women fell by 1.3 percent.
As a group, the Forbes 400 has a collective net worth of $1.25 trillion.So the rich are doing well.
But how about the middle class? More Americans than ever are living in poverty, living without health care, paying more for housing and for the costs of our public education. And real wages are falling.
Real median earnings of full-time working males fell nearly 2 percent last year, according to the Census Bureau, while the real wages of working women fell by 1.3 percent.
Rice, Tenet, CIA, Bush
On Monday, a State Department spokesman conceded that then-National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice had indeed been briefed in July 2001 by George Tenet, then-director of the CIA, about the alarming potential for an Al Qaeda attack, as Bob Woodward has reported in his aptly named new book, "State of Denial."
"I don’t remember a so-called emergency meeting," Rice had said only hours earlier, apparently still suffering from some sort of post-9/11 amnesia that seemed to afflict her during her forced testimony to the 9/11 Commission.
The omission of this meeting from the final commission report is another example of how the Bush administration undermined the bipartisan investigation that the president had tried to prevent.
Not remembering confirms her inattention to terror reports at a time the Bush administration was already fixated on "regime change" in Iraq.
It is, however, as she stated Monday, "incomprehensible" that she, then the national security advisor to the president and the person most clearly charged with sounding the alarm, would have ignored the threat.
But ignore it the administration did, and then later tried to lay the blame on the Clinton administration, which, Rice claimed at the 9/11 Commission hearings, lied when it said it had given the incoming White House team an action plan for fighting Al Qaeda.
"I don’t remember a so-called emergency meeting," Rice had said only hours earlier, apparently still suffering from some sort of post-9/11 amnesia that seemed to afflict her during her forced testimony to the 9/11 Commission.
The omission of this meeting from the final commission report is another example of how the Bush administration undermined the bipartisan investigation that the president had tried to prevent.
Not remembering confirms her inattention to terror reports at a time the Bush administration was already fixated on "regime change" in Iraq.
It is, however, as she stated Monday, "incomprehensible" that she, then the national security advisor to the president and the person most clearly charged with sounding the alarm, would have ignored the threat.
But ignore it the administration did, and then later tried to lay the blame on the Clinton administration, which, Rice claimed at the 9/11 Commission hearings, lied when it said it had given the incoming White House team an action plan for fighting Al Qaeda.
05 October, 2006
Boehner,Alexander,Reynolds,Hastert,Foley
Americans were shocked to learn this past weekend that a
United States Representative, Mark Foley (R-FL), had been sending
sexually-explicit e-mails and instant messages to 15- and 16-year-old boys
interning in the House of Representatives. But the members
of the House leadership -- foremost among them Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert -- were not shocked, because they already knew.
It's become quite clear in recent days that several other
high-ranking members of the House of Representatives knew
about Mr. Foley's despicable (and possibly illegal)
behavior -- and took no steps to stop it.
At least five prominent Representatives (Speaker Dennis Hastert,
R-IL; Majority Leader John Boehner, R-OH; Rep. Tom Reynolds,
R-NY; Rep. Rodney Alexander, R-LA; and Rep. John Shimkus, R-IL)
have admitted that they knew of the initial set of inappropriate emails
from Foley to a 16-year-old former House page.
Could it be that the House leadership cared more
about protecting one of their own than protecting the safety
of their teenage pages?
The Republicans' Talking Points are trying to portray
this as a democratic conspiracy. How lame!
The source for leaking all this was a GOP staffer.
United States Representative, Mark Foley (R-FL), had been sending
sexually-explicit e-mails and instant messages to 15- and 16-year-old boys
interning in the House of Representatives. But the members
of the House leadership -- foremost among them Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert -- were not shocked, because they already knew.
It's become quite clear in recent days that several other
high-ranking members of the House of Representatives knew
about Mr. Foley's despicable (and possibly illegal)
behavior -- and took no steps to stop it.
At least five prominent Representatives (Speaker Dennis Hastert,
R-IL; Majority Leader John Boehner, R-OH; Rep. Tom Reynolds,
R-NY; Rep. Rodney Alexander, R-LA; and Rep. John Shimkus, R-IL)
have admitted that they knew of the initial set of inappropriate emails
from Foley to a 16-year-old former House page.
Could it be that the House leadership cared more
about protecting one of their own than protecting the safety
of their teenage pages?
The Republicans' Talking Points are trying to portray
this as a democratic conspiracy. How lame!
The source for leaking all this was a GOP staffer.
04 October, 2006
current leadership
In more rational times, including at the height of the Cold War, bizarre actions such as unilateral, unprovoked, Hitler-like Preventive War are dismissed by thoughtful, seasoned, experienced men and women as mad.
But those qualities do not characterize our current leadership.
For a president who thinks he is divinely guided and imagines himself to be a latter day Winston Churchill (albeit lacking the ability to formulate intelligent sentences), and who professedly does not care about public opinion at home or abroad, anything is possible, and dwindling days in power may be seen as making the most apocalyptic actions necessary. We will have to pay for his actions. God help us.
But those qualities do not characterize our current leadership.
For a president who thinks he is divinely guided and imagines himself to be a latter day Winston Churchill (albeit lacking the ability to formulate intelligent sentences), and who professedly does not care about public opinion at home or abroad, anything is possible, and dwindling days in power may be seen as making the most apocalyptic actions necessary. We will have to pay for his actions. God help us.
03 October, 2006
another republican lie
A State Department official confirmed Woodward's account that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice did receive a CIA briefing about terror threats just about two months before the Sept. 11 attacks.
Rice has said repeatedly she could not specifically recall the meeting.
Rice has said repeatedly she could not specifically recall the meeting.
Republican blame game
There were lots of warning signs .In 2001, pages were warned to be careful with Foley.
In 2005, one page complained to his congressman about "sick" e-mails from Foley, a complaint passed on to the Speaker's staff.
Then this past spring, the complaint was again raised with three Republican leaders, including Hastert himself. Foley wrote his lurid messages at the same time he presented himself as a champion of young people and the pages.
The leadership Republicans failed to take action to protect their pages in favor of covering this pedophile so he could win his election in his Florida district for them. Then they tried to lie saying that they didn’t know.
Some Republicans are now trying to blame the pages, the victims.
In 2005, one page complained to his congressman about "sick" e-mails from Foley, a complaint passed on to the Speaker's staff.
Then this past spring, the complaint was again raised with three Republican leaders, including Hastert himself. Foley wrote his lurid messages at the same time he presented himself as a champion of young people and the pages.
The leadership Republicans failed to take action to protect their pages in favor of covering this pedophile so he could win his election in his Florida district for them. Then they tried to lie saying that they didn’t know.
Some Republicans are now trying to blame the pages, the victims.
02 October, 2006
Republican coverup
In the letter faxed by Foley's attorney David Roth, to local media outlets in West Palm Beach, Florida Sunday night, Foley, R-Fla., says, "I strongly believe that I am an alcoholic and have accepted the need for immediate treatment for alcoholism and related behavioral problems." The offense is that he sent emails to pages asking if they were horny and asking for pictures???
Well, well, another Republican caught and hiding behind alchoholic rehab (ala Republicans Cunningham and Ney ).
The Foley case is repugnant, but it's equally bad that Republican leaders in the House of Representatives delayed protecting their pages by knowing there was a problem and ignored it possibly to preserve a congressional seat this election year, otherwise why would they sit on it rather than take action to protect their 16 year old pages.
Well, well, another Republican caught and hiding behind alchoholic rehab (ala Republicans Cunningham and Ney ).
The Foley case is repugnant, but it's equally bad that Republican leaders in the House of Representatives delayed protecting their pages by knowing there was a problem and ignored it possibly to preserve a congressional seat this election year, otherwise why would they sit on it rather than take action to protect their 16 year old pages.
01 October, 2006
cut and run
An Illinois congressional candidate who lost both her legs during combat in Iraq said Saturday that President Bush has no real strategy for securing the war-ravaged nation, just political talk designed to appeal to voters.
"Instead of a plan or a strategy, we get shallow slogans like 'Mission Accomplished' and 'Stay the Course,"' former Army Capt. Tammy Duckworth said in the Democrats' weekly radio address. "Those slogans are calculated to win an election. But they won't help us accomplish our mission in Iraq."
"Well, I didn't cut and run, Mr. President. Like so many others, I proudly fought and sacrificed," Duckworth said. "My helicopter was shot down long after you proclaimed 'mission accomplished."'
"Instead of a plan or a strategy, we get shallow slogans like 'Mission Accomplished' and 'Stay the Course,"' former Army Capt. Tammy Duckworth said in the Democrats' weekly radio address. "Those slogans are calculated to win an election. But they won't help us accomplish our mission in Iraq."
"Well, I didn't cut and run, Mr. President. Like so many others, I proudly fought and sacrificed," Duckworth said. "My helicopter was shot down long after you proclaimed 'mission accomplished."'
might just be another lie
The teen's family contacted their congressman, Rep. Rodney Alexander, R-La., who then discussed the problem of Republican Representative Foley's inappropriate emails to a congressional page with Representative Reynolds sometime last spring.
"I told the speaker of the conversation Mr. Alexander had with me," Reynolds said.
Republican Speaker Hastert said he does not remember talking to Reynolds about the Foley e-mails, but did not dispute Reynolds' account.
Now come on, if you had a conversation with someone last spring about that subject you would remember. But now the "cat is out of the bag" and could not be contained any more. Might just be another lie by these Republicans.
"I told the speaker of the conversation Mr. Alexander had with me," Reynolds said.
Republican Speaker Hastert said he does not remember talking to Reynolds about the Foley e-mails, but did not dispute Reynolds' account.
Now come on, if you had a conversation with someone last spring about that subject you would remember. But now the "cat is out of the bag" and could not be contained any more. Might just be another lie by these Republicans.
30 September, 2006
I refuse
I refuse to accept the following government actions by the current administration and its servants, the Republican Congress and the Republican Senate, that include:
* spying on its citizens without their knowledge or consent, an action contrary to existing law;* elimination of personal privacy through the Patriot Act, an action that presumes culpability, not innocence until proven guilty;
* preemptive invasion of other nations determined by the unilateral judgment of an all powerful executive that eviscerates the power of the peoples’ representatives;
* acts of extrajudicial execution and the abandonment of rule by law thereby making the President, in effect, judge, jury and executioner;* acts of torture and the unilateral infliction of "acceptable" torture techniques thus casting America before the world as an amoral nation beholden to no international agreement and placing at risk the soldiers who defend it
* imposition of illegal actions of war instituted through an orchestrated control of lies communicated to the citizenry thereby negating their democratic right to know that they might vote in accord with their conscience;
* levying an incredible tax burden on the citizens to pay for the consequences of these lies that will cost them and their children dearly for decades to come while corporations reap a windfall of profit from closed bids and corruption;
* infliction of a forced military occupation on a nation against the desires of its people and enabling that occupation to use illegal weapons of war contrary to the Geneva Conventions thus implicating its citizens in acts against humanity;
* development of diverse nuclear weaponry in direct violation of the UN Charter even as it decries other nations for attempting to acquire their own nuclear weaponry;.
These are not the actions of a democratic state; these are the actions of an autocratic state, an amoral state, an arrogant state that rules by force and acts as ruthlessly as the "extremists", which also participates in the killing of innocent women and children.
If you support these tyrants, these actions will be on your conscience and your record when you stand to be judged by your maker. May God have mercy on your soul.
* spying on its citizens without their knowledge or consent, an action contrary to existing law;* elimination of personal privacy through the Patriot Act, an action that presumes culpability, not innocence until proven guilty;
* preemptive invasion of other nations determined by the unilateral judgment of an all powerful executive that eviscerates the power of the peoples’ representatives;
* acts of extrajudicial execution and the abandonment of rule by law thereby making the President, in effect, judge, jury and executioner;* acts of torture and the unilateral infliction of "acceptable" torture techniques thus casting America before the world as an amoral nation beholden to no international agreement and placing at risk the soldiers who defend it
* imposition of illegal actions of war instituted through an orchestrated control of lies communicated to the citizenry thereby negating their democratic right to know that they might vote in accord with their conscience;
* levying an incredible tax burden on the citizens to pay for the consequences of these lies that will cost them and their children dearly for decades to come while corporations reap a windfall of profit from closed bids and corruption;
* infliction of a forced military occupation on a nation against the desires of its people and enabling that occupation to use illegal weapons of war contrary to the Geneva Conventions thus implicating its citizens in acts against humanity;
* development of diverse nuclear weaponry in direct violation of the UN Charter even as it decries other nations for attempting to acquire their own nuclear weaponry;.
These are not the actions of a democratic state; these are the actions of an autocratic state, an amoral state, an arrogant state that rules by force and acts as ruthlessly as the "extremists", which also participates in the killing of innocent women and children.
If you support these tyrants, these actions will be on your conscience and your record when you stand to be judged by your maker. May God have mercy on your soul.
29 September, 2006
facism step by step
By writing into law for the first time the definition of an "unlawful enemy combatant," the bill empowers the executive branch to detain indefinitely anyone it determines to have "purposefully and materially" supported anti-U.S. hostilities.
By writing into law for the first time the definition of an "unlawful enemy combatant," the bill empowers the executive branch to detain indefinitely anyone it determines to have "purposefully and materially" supported anti-U.S. hostilities.
The administration attempted to make the bill bulletproof by including provisions that would sharply restrict judicial review and limit the application of international treaties -- signed by Washington -- that govern the rights of wartime detainees. The bill also contains blunt assertions that it complies with U.S. treaty obligations.
University of Texas constitutional law professor Sanford V. Levinson described the bill in an Internet posting as the mark of a "banana republic."
Yale Law School Dean Harold Koh said that "the image of Congress rushing to strip jurisdiction from the courts in response to a politically created emergency is really quite shocking, and it's not clear that most of the members understand what they've done."
Georgetown University law professor Neal Katyal said the bill's creation of two systems of justice may violate the Constitution's 14th Amendment, which requires equal protection of the laws to anyone under U.S. jurisdiction.
By writing into law for the first time the definition of an "unlawful enemy combatant," the bill empowers the executive branch to detain indefinitely anyone it determines to have "purposefully and materially" supported anti-U.S. hostilities.
The administration attempted to make the bill bulletproof by including provisions that would sharply restrict judicial review and limit the application of international treaties -- signed by Washington -- that govern the rights of wartime detainees. The bill also contains blunt assertions that it complies with U.S. treaty obligations.
University of Texas constitutional law professor Sanford V. Levinson described the bill in an Internet posting as the mark of a "banana republic."
Yale Law School Dean Harold Koh said that "the image of Congress rushing to strip jurisdiction from the courts in response to a politically created emergency is really quite shocking, and it's not clear that most of the members understand what they've done."
Georgetown University law professor Neal Katyal said the bill's creation of two systems of justice may violate the Constitution's 14th Amendment, which requires equal protection of the laws to anyone under U.S. jurisdiction.
your republican controlled government
Your government, on the basis of outrageous lies, is waging a murderous and utterly illegitimate war in Iraq, with other countries in their sights. Your government is openly torturing people, and justifying it.
Your government suppresses the science that doesn't fit its religious, political and economic agenda, forcing present and future generations to pay a terrible price. Your government is moving to deny women here, and all over the world, the right to choose.
Your government puts people in jail on the merest suspicion, refusing them lawyers, and either holding them indefinitely or deporting them in the dead of night. Your government is moving each day closer to a theocracy, where a narrow and hateful brand of Christian fundamentalism will rule.
Your government enforces a culture of greed, bigotry, intolerance and ignorance.
Your government suppresses the science that doesn't fit its religious, political and economic agenda, forcing present and future generations to pay a terrible price. Your government is moving to deny women here, and all over the world, the right to choose.
Your government puts people in jail on the merest suspicion, refusing them lawyers, and either holding them indefinitely or deporting them in the dead of night. Your government is moving each day closer to a theocracy, where a narrow and hateful brand of Christian fundamentalism will rule.
Your government enforces a culture of greed, bigotry, intolerance and ignorance.
28 September, 2006
what makes a good liar
"We believe that the more we inform our American citizens, the better our government will be," President Bush said Tuesday.
In reality, of course, classification, secrecy and denial of access to information has expanded in size and scope to unprecedented levels in the Bush Administration.
How he can say that with a stright face shows what a good liar he really is.
In reality, of course, classification, secrecy and denial of access to information has expanded in size and scope to unprecedented levels in the Bush Administration.
How he can say that with a stright face shows what a good liar he really is.
closed minded fanatics
It is just amazing how people of closed minds cannot disagree with without these snears, smears and personal attacks. It's a common affliction of which there is apparently no cure.
Oh well, I will try again: Iraq facts: Four underlying factors are fueling the spread of the jihadist movement: (1)Entrenched grievances, such as corruption, injustice, and fear of Westerndomination, leading to anger, humiliation, and a sense of powerlessness; (2) theIraq .jihad;. (3) the slow pace of real and sustained economic, social, andpolitical reforms in many Muslim majority nations; and (4) pervasive anti-USsentiment among most Muslims.
Our generals on the ground in Iraq are retiring so they can complain. Three of them said so in a hearing that Republican politicians boycotted.
Retired Maj. Gen. John Batiste, who led the 1st Infantry Division in Iraq, said, "we went to war with a flawed plan. We certainly had the troops necessary to win the fight to take down Saddam Hussein, but we in no way considered the hard work to win the peace. There was 10 years of good, deliberate war planning by U.S. Central Command that was essentially ignored."
Soldiers are complaining, parents are complaining and these people turn a deaf ear. Iraq caused us to take our eye off the ball, so says the 9/11. Hello, earth to all those closed minds.
1:19 PM
Oh well, I will try again: Iraq facts: Four underlying factors are fueling the spread of the jihadist movement: (1)Entrenched grievances, such as corruption, injustice, and fear of Westerndomination, leading to anger, humiliation, and a sense of powerlessness; (2) theIraq .jihad;. (3) the slow pace of real and sustained economic, social, andpolitical reforms in many Muslim majority nations; and (4) pervasive anti-USsentiment among most Muslims.
Our generals on the ground in Iraq are retiring so they can complain. Three of them said so in a hearing that Republican politicians boycotted.
Retired Maj. Gen. John Batiste, who led the 1st Infantry Division in Iraq, said, "we went to war with a flawed plan. We certainly had the troops necessary to win the fight to take down Saddam Hussein, but we in no way considered the hard work to win the peace. There was 10 years of good, deliberate war planning by U.S. Central Command that was essentially ignored."
Soldiers are complaining, parents are complaining and these people turn a deaf ear. Iraq caused us to take our eye off the ball, so says the 9/11. Hello, earth to all those closed minds.
1:19 PM
the solution
Our nation can ensure every American access to health coverage but we can't do it with this Congress...Progressives don't need a new vision, we need increased representation in Washington.
We have a government that can't, won't, and shouldn't solve great national challenges like our energy dependence, education, and the war on terror.
That's why it's time to stand up for a new vision of government this November.
We can restore our democracy... The good news is we just need to get a majority and we can stop these threats in their tracks... Here's what I hope you will do, vote and get your friends to vote.
We have a government that can't, won't, and shouldn't solve great national challenges like our energy dependence, education, and the war on terror.
That's why it's time to stand up for a new vision of government this November.
We can restore our democracy... The good news is we just need to get a majority and we can stop these threats in their tracks... Here's what I hope you will do, vote and get your friends to vote.
27 September, 2006
Iraq facts
Four underlying factors are fueling the spread of the jihadist movement: (1)
Entrenched grievances, such as corruption, injustice, and fear of Western
domination, leading to anger, humiliation, and a sense of powerlessness; (2) the
Iraq .jihad;. (3) the slow pace of real and sustained economic, social, and
political reforms in many Muslim majority nations; and (4) pervasive anti-US
sentiment among most Muslims.
Countering the spread of the jihadist movement will require coordinated
multilateral efforts that go well beyond operations to capture or kill terrorist
leaders.
Entrenched grievances, such as corruption, injustice, and fear of Western
domination, leading to anger, humiliation, and a sense of powerlessness; (2) the
Iraq .jihad;. (3) the slow pace of real and sustained economic, social, and
political reforms in many Muslim majority nations; and (4) pervasive anti-US
sentiment among most Muslims.
Countering the spread of the jihadist movement will require coordinated
multilateral efforts that go well beyond operations to capture or kill terrorist
leaders.
Modern Christians vs.the Prince of Peace
Those who proclaim their adherence to the words and suggestions of Christ may recall the Christ that spoke words of non-violence. (I’m speaking of the Jesus Christ pre-Constantine, and certainly pre-Augustine – Augustine, who penned, The Just War, making God a partner in the crime of war. Modern-day sensibilities could re-title his text as, War, Positive Pre-emptive Thinking with Jesus’ Blessing).
Before Constantine no Christian parent would offer up their child for a war nor allow them to be sent off to kill or be killed, although they might pray the state would be successful in its endeavor.
Since Constantine, Jesus not only condones war, but is expected to pick a side. Before Christ became a product of the State; before Christ was usurped from Christianity, Christians were non-violent.
They did not and would not participate in government actions that tested their faith. No man no state, whether secular or theocratic, is given or receives in some fashion the moral authority over the rest of us.
Pointing the barrel of a gun at our heads, destroying all of our possessions, torturing us for a confession or information, or just because they can, should not be the standard barer for moral authority; nor should the use of weapons of mass destruction that leaves the air, water and land tainted with radioactivity.
Radioactivity or depleted uranium (DU) that will eventually and lethally kill our soldiers and their families and our enemies and their offspring forevermore.
The only moral authority We the People have given the State is defined by its social contract. That contract is the Constitution and The Bill of Rights. It exists only because we the people affirm its promise. It’s been said the world has changed since 911. That’s true for our government is indiscernible.
It’s unrecognizable. It no longer adheres to the principles of our founding papers. It no longer accepts The Bill of Rights as the law of the land. No longer does it recognize treaties, proclamations or conventions.
Our leader leads by fiat. No longer does congress proclaim their responsibility to be both check and balance. Signing statements have become the law of the land. We the people look for justice. We look towards the courts that used to represent mankind’s last resort against tyranny.
If we begin with God’s basic premise, Thou Shall Not Kill and continue with the rebellious and revolutionary teachings of Christ: Love one’s enemy; Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, one has to question if these teachings apply to modern times? Or are they quaint expressions?
Certainly, nowadays one risks being deemed an enemy combatant or accused of treason if they espouse such notions. Today, Jesus would find Himself confined to a maximum security prison as a radical censoring his unpatriotic rantings of peace and non-violence. After all, He was a simple man.
A man of principle: The Prince of Peace. We knew how His story would end, even as children. We knew the State had to kill him; it was a given. Just like we knew in our hearts and minds what would befall Gandhi and Martin Luther King.
As we ponder our existence, question our reason and purpose in life, is it not the right to believe in non-violence and the right to practice it? Is it not the responsibility of those who govern to adhere to the social contract that we all agreed upon?
Or is it all for naught: null and void; is it all conjecture; is hope the false prophet in a dismal world of chaos? We need a new vision. A new belief that is more inclusive - so help us God.
Before Constantine no Christian parent would offer up their child for a war nor allow them to be sent off to kill or be killed, although they might pray the state would be successful in its endeavor.
Since Constantine, Jesus not only condones war, but is expected to pick a side. Before Christ became a product of the State; before Christ was usurped from Christianity, Christians were non-violent.
They did not and would not participate in government actions that tested their faith. No man no state, whether secular or theocratic, is given or receives in some fashion the moral authority over the rest of us.
Pointing the barrel of a gun at our heads, destroying all of our possessions, torturing us for a confession or information, or just because they can, should not be the standard barer for moral authority; nor should the use of weapons of mass destruction that leaves the air, water and land tainted with radioactivity.
Radioactivity or depleted uranium (DU) that will eventually and lethally kill our soldiers and their families and our enemies and their offspring forevermore.
The only moral authority We the People have given the State is defined by its social contract. That contract is the Constitution and The Bill of Rights. It exists only because we the people affirm its promise. It’s been said the world has changed since 911. That’s true for our government is indiscernible.
It’s unrecognizable. It no longer adheres to the principles of our founding papers. It no longer accepts The Bill of Rights as the law of the land. No longer does it recognize treaties, proclamations or conventions.
Our leader leads by fiat. No longer does congress proclaim their responsibility to be both check and balance. Signing statements have become the law of the land. We the people look for justice. We look towards the courts that used to represent mankind’s last resort against tyranny.
If we begin with God’s basic premise, Thou Shall Not Kill and continue with the rebellious and revolutionary teachings of Christ: Love one’s enemy; Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, one has to question if these teachings apply to modern times? Or are they quaint expressions?
Certainly, nowadays one risks being deemed an enemy combatant or accused of treason if they espouse such notions. Today, Jesus would find Himself confined to a maximum security prison as a radical censoring his unpatriotic rantings of peace and non-violence. After all, He was a simple man.
A man of principle: The Prince of Peace. We knew how His story would end, even as children. We knew the State had to kill him; it was a given. Just like we knew in our hearts and minds what would befall Gandhi and Martin Luther King.
As we ponder our existence, question our reason and purpose in life, is it not the right to believe in non-violence and the right to practice it? Is it not the responsibility of those who govern to adhere to the social contract that we all agreed upon?
Or is it all for naught: null and void; is it all conjecture; is hope the false prophet in a dismal world of chaos? We need a new vision. A new belief that is more inclusive - so help us God.
26 September, 2006
killing for democracy
read today:
Bush said, "I like to tell people when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look like just a comma." It will bring democracy. Really?
Killing innocent people, torture, draining our treasury, stealing elections, spying on American citizens without due process, leaving the people of the Gulf States hanging on their roofs for their dear lives, etc, do not bestow democracy and the people harmed should not be reduced to punctuation marks.
Democracy rises from the people. Great Britain did not go to war with our forebears to impose democracy, but to stop it
Bush said, "I like to tell people when the final history is written on Iraq, it will look like just a comma." It will bring democracy. Really?
Killing innocent people, torture, draining our treasury, stealing elections, spying on American citizens without due process, leaving the people of the Gulf States hanging on their roofs for their dear lives, etc, do not bestow democracy and the people harmed should not be reduced to punctuation marks.
Democracy rises from the people. Great Britain did not go to war with our forebears to impose democracy, but to stop it
24 September, 2006
USA more at risk under Republicans
White House and Republican lies about Iraq:
America's Spy Agencies have concluded that the invasion of Iraq has created a flood of new Islamic terrorists and increased the danger to US interests to a higher level than at any time since the 9/11 attacks.
The study represents a consensus opinion of 16 different intelligence organizations. Entitled 'Trends in Global Terrorism: Implications for the United States', it was completed last April.
Its stark warning is that the threat from Islamic terror groups and their jihadi philosophy has spread across the world.
So much for White House and senior Republicans who often say their tough line has made America safer over the past five years.
America's Spy Agencies have concluded that the invasion of Iraq has created a flood of new Islamic terrorists and increased the danger to US interests to a higher level than at any time since the 9/11 attacks.
The study represents a consensus opinion of 16 different intelligence organizations. Entitled 'Trends in Global Terrorism: Implications for the United States', it was completed last April.
Its stark warning is that the threat from Islamic terror groups and their jihadi philosophy has spread across the world.
So much for White House and senior Republicans who often say their tough line has made America safer over the past five years.
Republicans destroy freedom, one step at a time
If ever there were a case that should turn the public against the Bush Administration's push for broader powers to suspend due process and continue to torture terror suspects, it is the story of Maher Arar, a Canadian computer engineer who found himself caught up in post-9-11 law enforcement paranoia.
Arar was a victim of the secret "rendition" program President Bush only recently acknowledged--a process by which terrorism suspects have been "disappeared" to other countries notorious for torturing prisoners during interrogation.
Arar, who was exonerated on Monday by a Canadian government commission of any ties to terrorism, spent a year enduring beatings in a small cell in Syria, before he was released.
The Canadian government blames the United States for withholding information from Canadian authorities, and sending Arar to Syria without notifying his family or the Canadian consulate, and for ignoring Arar's objections that he would be tortured. And, of course, there is the matter of his innocence.
Stories like Arar's show how much freedom we sacrifice under Bush's war on terror. This is not the kind of country most of us want to live in.
Arar was a victim of the secret "rendition" program President Bush only recently acknowledged--a process by which terrorism suspects have been "disappeared" to other countries notorious for torturing prisoners during interrogation.
Arar, who was exonerated on Monday by a Canadian government commission of any ties to terrorism, spent a year enduring beatings in a small cell in Syria, before he was released.
The Canadian government blames the United States for withholding information from Canadian authorities, and sending Arar to Syria without notifying his family or the Canadian consulate, and for ignoring Arar's objections that he would be tortured. And, of course, there is the matter of his innocence.
Stories like Arar's show how much freedom we sacrifice under Bush's war on terror. This is not the kind of country most of us want to live in.
Rove, Bush's Brain,The Architect
recommended reading:
In The Architect, James Moore and Wayne Slater, the bestselling authors of Bush’s Brain, return to document how Karl Rove:
• Used lobbyist Jack Abramoff as a cat’s-paw to manage unruly legislators.
• Energetically led the antigay marriage movement while protecting a family secret that made his stance bizarrely cynical.
• Turned Christian churches into a gigantic vote delivery system, despite privately admitting to being a nonbeliever.
• Repeatedly leaked information to harm political opponents, making him the man investigators most wanted to talk to when they began probing the Plame affair.
• Was intimately involved in an international disinformation scheme to lead America to war.
The Architect is an eye-opening and frequently shocking report on the maneuverings of a brilliant but morally ambiguous political strategist, and the first-ever in-depth look at a political operative striving to absolutely control the future.
In The Architect, James Moore and Wayne Slater, the bestselling authors of Bush’s Brain, return to document how Karl Rove:
• Used lobbyist Jack Abramoff as a cat’s-paw to manage unruly legislators.
• Energetically led the antigay marriage movement while protecting a family secret that made his stance bizarrely cynical.
• Turned Christian churches into a gigantic vote delivery system, despite privately admitting to being a nonbeliever.
• Repeatedly leaked information to harm political opponents, making him the man investigators most wanted to talk to when they began probing the Plame affair.
• Was intimately involved in an international disinformation scheme to lead America to war.
The Architect is an eye-opening and frequently shocking report on the maneuverings of a brilliant but morally ambiguous political strategist, and the first-ever in-depth look at a political operative striving to absolutely control the future.
terroism, republicans
The Iraq war has contributed to an increased threat of terrorism, according to an intelligence assessment that has not lessened the Senate majority leader's defense of the U.S.-led invasion three years ago and occupation.
The classified assessment of the war's impact on terrorism came in a National Intelligence Estimate that represents a consensus view of the 16 disparate spy services inside government, an intelligence official said Sunday.
First, Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn. said he had not seen the classified report, which was completed in April. Now as majority leader, that sounds like a lie. Then later in the TV program he said, "I think — and the majority of the American people think — what it shows is that we've got to win," Frist said
The classified assessment of the war's impact on terrorism came in a National Intelligence Estimate that represents a consensus view of the 16 disparate spy services inside government, an intelligence official said Sunday.
First, Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn. said he had not seen the classified report, which was completed in April. Now as majority leader, that sounds like a lie. Then later in the TV program he said, "I think — and the majority of the American people think — what it shows is that we've got to win," Frist said
terroism threats increase under Republicans
The Iraq war has contributed to an increased threat of terrorism according to the latest intelligence assessment.
The classified assessment of the war's impact on terrorism came in a National Intelligence Estimate that represents a consensus view of the 16 disparate spy services inside government, an intelligence official said Sunday. The official, confirming accounts first published in Sunday's New York Times and Washington Post, spoke on condition of anonymity because the report is classified.
The report found that the war has helped create a new generation of Islamic radicalism and that the overall terrorist threat has grown since the Sept. 11 attacks.
The classified assessment of the war's impact on terrorism came in a National Intelligence Estimate that represents a consensus view of the 16 disparate spy services inside government, an intelligence official said Sunday. The official, confirming accounts first published in Sunday's New York Times and Washington Post, spoke on condition of anonymity because the report is classified.
The report found that the war has helped create a new generation of Islamic radicalism and that the overall terrorist threat has grown since the Sept. 11 attacks.
23 September, 2006
republicans,dirty politics
The National Republican Congressional Committee, which this year dispatched a half-dozen operatives to comb through tax, court and other records looking for damaging information on Democratic candidates, plans to spend more than 90 percent of its $50 million-plus advertising budget on what officials described as negative ads.
The hope is that a vigorous effort to "define" opponents, in the parlance of GOP operatives, can help Republicans shift the midterm debate away from Iraq and limit losses this fall. The first round of attacks includes an ad that labeled a Democratic candidate in Wisconsin "Dr. Millionaire".
Against some less experienced and little-known opponents, said Matt Keelen, a Republican lobbyist heavily involved in House campaigns, "It will take one or two punches to fold them up like a cheap suit."
The hope is that a vigorous effort to "define" opponents, in the parlance of GOP operatives, can help Republicans shift the midterm debate away from Iraq and limit losses this fall. The first round of attacks includes an ad that labeled a Democratic candidate in Wisconsin "Dr. Millionaire".
Against some less experienced and little-known opponents, said Matt Keelen, a Republican lobbyist heavily involved in House campaigns, "It will take one or two punches to fold them up like a cheap suit."
22 September, 2006
republicans, torture
As the dust begins to settle on the latest round of George Bush vs. American Values, it's important to emphasize just how little support this man has for the torturous way he operates. While Senate Republicans now say that that they have reached some sort of Geneva Conventions-friendly "agreement" with the White House, the vehement backlash against Bush by the military this past week is well worth revisiting.
Five former Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff actually had to publicly stand up against a sitting President of the United States! Yeah, it's really gotten that bad.
These men were joined by dozens of other Generals, Admirals, intelligence officers and the entire JAG Corp, plus, the FBI (who refuse to be present while interrogations are taking place because they are too gruesome).
What about those "rendition" sites in foreign countries?
Five former Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff actually had to publicly stand up against a sitting President of the United States! Yeah, it's really gotten that bad.
These men were joined by dozens of other Generals, Admirals, intelligence officers and the entire JAG Corp, plus, the FBI (who refuse to be present while interrogations are taking place because they are too gruesome).
What about those "rendition" sites in foreign countries?
19 September, 2006
islamofascists, religiousfundamentalists
I do not care to erode our constitution to become like the terroists, that's the difference between followers who will give up the Bill of Rights and independent thinkers that love our country.
It happened to blind followers in Nazi Germany in the 30's. I stand with Rep.Lindsey Graham, and Senators John Warner and John McCain on the tortue issue (all republicans, thank you, who right-wingers call appeasers).
Islamo-religiousfundamentalists is the correct term unless one parrots the Bush/Cheney propaganda,
and we have them without the "islamo" in our own country.
Republicans are always trying to redefine the language to their advantage: my dictionary says, "Democratic Party" not democrat party. Democrats need to teach those republicans the proper language usage.
It happened to blind followers in Nazi Germany in the 30's. I stand with Rep.Lindsey Graham, and Senators John Warner and John McCain on the tortue issue (all republicans, thank you, who right-wingers call appeasers).
Islamo-religiousfundamentalists is the correct term unless one parrots the Bush/Cheney propaganda,
and we have them without the "islamo" in our own country.
Republicans are always trying to redefine the language to their advantage: my dictionary says, "Democratic Party" not democrat party. Democrats need to teach those republicans the proper language usage.
bush,torture,rendition program
Sept. 18 - Canadian intelligence officials passed false warnings and bad information to American agents about a Muslim Canadian citizen, after which U.S. authorities secretly whisked him to Syria, where he was tortured, a judicial report found Monday.
The report, released in Ottawa, was the result of a 2 1/2-year inquiry that represented one of the first public investigations into mistakes made as part of the United States' "extraordinary rendition" program, which has secretly spirited suspects to foreign countries for interrogation by often brutal methods.
The report, released in Ottawa, was the result of a 2 1/2-year inquiry that represented one of the first public investigations into mistakes made as part of the United States' "extraordinary rendition" program, which has secretly spirited suspects to foreign countries for interrogation by often brutal methods.
15 September, 2006
Iraq civil war update
More than 130 people were slain in two days — either killed in attacks or tortured and dumped in rivers or on the city's streets.The average number of weekly attacks increased 15% and Iraqi casualties increased by 51%, compared with the previous three months.
A U.S. Marine was killed in Anbar province. A U.S. soldier was declared missing after a suicide truck bombing a day earlier killed two other soldiers and wounded 30 west of Baghdad. There were six American deaths Thursday and Friday, raising the toll of U.S. service members killed in Iraq since 2003 to 2,678.
A U.S. Marine was killed in Anbar province. A U.S. soldier was declared missing after a suicide truck bombing a day earlier killed two other soldiers and wounded 30 west of Baghdad. There were six American deaths Thursday and Friday, raising the toll of U.S. service members killed in Iraq since 2003 to 2,678.
another Republican caught
Rep. Bob Ney, Republican, agreed Friday to plead guilty to federal criminal charges he made false statements and conspired to commit fraud and violate federal lobbying laws in the congressional corruption probe spawned by disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
In exchange for the improper gifts, Ney offered legislation on three occasions in 2002 to benefit Abramoff's lobbying clients and helped another client win a multi-million-dollar government contract for wireless communications, court papers said.
Ney had consistently denied any wrongdoing, even after his former chief of staff pleaded guilty in May.
In exchange for the improper gifts, Ney offered legislation on three occasions in 2002 to benefit Abramoff's lobbying clients and helped another client win a multi-million-dollar government contract for wireless communications, court papers said.
Ney had consistently denied any wrongdoing, even after his former chief of staff pleaded guilty in May.
14 September, 2006
islamofascism,Iraq, republicans
The problem is, almost everything that President Bush understands about his own war on terrorism is wrong. According to nearly a dozen former high-ranking officials who have been on the front lines of the administration's counterterrorism effort, the president is not only fighting the wrong war -- he is fighting it in a way that has actually made the threat worse. The war on terrorism, they say, has been mismanaged and misdirected almost from the start, in no small part because the president simply does not understand the nature of the enemy he is fighting.
"I hate the term 'global war on terrorism,' " says John O. Brennan, a CIA veteran who served as the first director of the National Counterterrorism Center, the primary organization set up by Bush to analyze all intelligence about terrorism and coordinate strategic operational planning. "I hate the tough talk, you know, the 'we're gonna kill these guys' stuff."
Brennan is not alone. In a survey conducted this summer, more than 100 top foreign-policy experts -- including former secretaries of state, CIA directors and high-ranking Pentagon officials -- were asked if the president is "winning the War on Terror." Eighty-four percent said no.
If the president had kept his focus on capturing bin Laden, top officials say, he might have been able to declare a swift victory. Instead, Bush shifted from going after Al Qaeda in Afghanistan to going after Saddam Hussein in Iraq -- a decision with fateful consequences for U.S. security. "Iraq broke our back in the War on Terror," says Michael Scheuer, who headed the CIA's Al Qaeda unit until 2004.
By failing to "smoke out" bin Laden as promised, the president has given hope to a new generation of freelance terrorist cells, Islamist copycats and Al Qaeda wanna-be's. "We let them get away," says a retired CIA station chief. "We took a relatively centralized organization and turned it into a generalized virus. Before Afghanistan, we were facing somewhat of a unified threat.
We now have the equivalent of a phantom that we're fighting." Lawrence Wilkerson, a retired Marine colonel who served as Colin Powell's deputy at the State Department, also ridicules the president's notion that the enemy is a global force made up of "Islamic fascists" who can be defeated as the Nazis were by military force. "I don't think there's a soul in the administration, except for Vice President Dick Cheney, who believes that crap about 'Islamofascism,' " he says.
"I hate the term 'global war on terrorism,' " says John O. Brennan, a CIA veteran who served as the first director of the National Counterterrorism Center, the primary organization set up by Bush to analyze all intelligence about terrorism and coordinate strategic operational planning. "I hate the tough talk, you know, the 'we're gonna kill these guys' stuff."
Brennan is not alone. In a survey conducted this summer, more than 100 top foreign-policy experts -- including former secretaries of state, CIA directors and high-ranking Pentagon officials -- were asked if the president is "winning the War on Terror." Eighty-four percent said no.
If the president had kept his focus on capturing bin Laden, top officials say, he might have been able to declare a swift victory. Instead, Bush shifted from going after Al Qaeda in Afghanistan to going after Saddam Hussein in Iraq -- a decision with fateful consequences for U.S. security. "Iraq broke our back in the War on Terror," says Michael Scheuer, who headed the CIA's Al Qaeda unit until 2004.
By failing to "smoke out" bin Laden as promised, the president has given hope to a new generation of freelance terrorist cells, Islamist copycats and Al Qaeda wanna-be's. "We let them get away," says a retired CIA station chief. "We took a relatively centralized organization and turned it into a generalized virus. Before Afghanistan, we were facing somewhat of a unified threat.
We now have the equivalent of a phantom that we're fighting." Lawrence Wilkerson, a retired Marine colonel who served as Colin Powell's deputy at the State Department, also ridicules the president's notion that the enemy is a global force made up of "Islamic fascists" who can be defeated as the Nazis were by military force. "I don't think there's a soul in the administration, except for Vice President Dick Cheney, who believes that crap about 'Islamofascism,' " he says.
13 September, 2006
Marine Col. Devlin on Iraq
The chief of intelligence for the Marine Corps in Iraq recently filed an unusual secret report concluding that the prospects for securing that country's western Anbar province are dim and that there is almost nothing the U.S. military can do to improve the political and social situation there.
The officials described Col. Pete Devlin's classified assessment of the dire state of Anbar as the first time that a senior U.S. military officer has filed so negative a report from Iraq.One Army officer summarized it as arguing that in Anbar province, "We haven't been defeated militarily but we have been defeated politically -- and that's where wars are won and lost."
Devlin reports that there are no functioning Iraqi government institutions in Anbar, leaving a vacuum that has been filled by the insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq, which has become the province's most significant political force, said the Army officer, who has read the report. Another person familiar with the report said it describes Anbar as beyond repair; a third said it concludes that the United States has lost in Anbar.
Devlin, as part of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) headquarters in Iraq, has been stationed there since February, so his report isn't being dismissed as the stunned assessment of a newly arrived officer.
In addition, he has the reputation of being one of the Marine Corps' best intelligence officers, with a tendency to be careful and straightforward, said another Marine intelligence officer
The officials described Col. Pete Devlin's classified assessment of the dire state of Anbar as the first time that a senior U.S. military officer has filed so negative a report from Iraq.One Army officer summarized it as arguing that in Anbar province, "We haven't been defeated militarily but we have been defeated politically -- and that's where wars are won and lost."
Devlin reports that there are no functioning Iraqi government institutions in Anbar, leaving a vacuum that has been filled by the insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq, which has become the province's most significant political force, said the Army officer, who has read the report. Another person familiar with the report said it describes Anbar as beyond repair; a third said it concludes that the United States has lost in Anbar.
Devlin, as part of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) headquarters in Iraq, has been stationed there since February, so his report isn't being dismissed as the stunned assessment of a newly arrived officer.
In addition, he has the reputation of being one of the Marine Corps' best intelligence officers, with a tendency to be careful and straightforward, said another Marine intelligence officer
12 September, 2006
9/11, more lies, the pearly gates
The ABC 9/11 drama was produced by a Republican operative for Republicans to blame 9/11 on someone else. It did not state the fact that Bush had a CIA memo in early August 2001 on his desk stating that it was likely we would be attacked soon by planes and he did nothing, apparently notified noone, not even our air defense forces, and he just went on vacation.
Did they want it to happen so they could carry out their neo-con ambitions for world domination? Only God knows. Can you imagine what will happen when they get to heaven's pearly gates.
Did they want it to happen so they could carry out their neo-con ambitions for world domination? Only God knows. Can you imagine what will happen when they get to heaven's pearly gates.
Iraq, more republican distortions
Two partially declassified reports issued by the Senate Intelligence Committee last week that were critical of pre-war intelligence on Iraq that remains significantly overclassified, which means the public's right to know doesn't really exist in the real world.
Portions of the report which the intelligence community leaders have determined to keep from public view provide some of the most damaging evidence of this administration's falsehoods and distortions.
Also administration recent claims of progress in Baghdad are based on faulty reports of less casualties. The original report left out some and counted only certain incidents. How tacky at a minimum.
Portions of the report which the intelligence community leaders have determined to keep from public view provide some of the most damaging evidence of this administration's falsehoods and distortions.
Also administration recent claims of progress in Baghdad are based on faulty reports of less casualties. The original report left out some and counted only certain incidents. How tacky at a minimum.
09 September, 2006
Iraq, republican war
The mishandled war in Iraq — which had nothing to with the 9/11 attacks — has proved to be a devastating blunder. Lawrence Wright, author of a new book on al-Qaeda, The Looming Tower, says internal al-Qaeda documents show that after its rout from Afghanistan, the organization was in despair and on the ropes.
But Iraq gave al-Qaeda a new lease on life, providing a place where extremists could go and fight — and helping prove their contention that the United States wants to attack Muslims and occupy Muslim lands.
The Iraq war has undermined U.S. efforts to win hearts and minds in the moderate Muslim world. In the five predominantly Muslim countries surveyed earlier this year by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, support for the U.S.-led war on terror was only 10% in Egypt, 14% in Turkey, 16% in Jordan, 30% in Pakistan and 39% in Indonesia.
But Iraq gave al-Qaeda a new lease on life, providing a place where extremists could go and fight — and helping prove their contention that the United States wants to attack Muslims and occupy Muslim lands.
The Iraq war has undermined U.S. efforts to win hearts and minds in the moderate Muslim world. In the five predominantly Muslim countries surveyed earlier this year by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, support for the U.S.-led war on terror was only 10% in Egypt, 14% in Turkey, 16% in Jordan, 30% in Pakistan and 39% in Indonesia.
republican polluters
The Bush administration proposed easing environmental rules Friday to allow oil refineries and other industries to change how they calculate whether they need pollution control equipment.
"This is a big gift to the refinery industry," said Frank O'Donnell, president of Clean Air Watch, an environmental watchdog group. "They are saying let's close our eyes and pretend pollution is not happening." "It's a way to allow industry to pollute more without cleaning up."
"This is a big gift to the refinery industry," said Frank O'Donnell, president of Clean Air Watch, an environmental watchdog group. "They are saying let's close our eyes and pretend pollution is not happening." "It's a way to allow industry to pollute more without cleaning up."
Bush, a wanna-be tyrant
Tyrants: The welfare of the people in particular has always been the alibi of tyrants, and it provides the further advantage of giving the servants of tyranny a good conscience.
The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home
A great wave of oppressive tyranny isn’t going to strike, but rather a slow seepage of oppressive laws and regulations from within will sink the American dream of liberty.
This and no other is the root from which a tyrant springs; when he first appears he is a protector.
(Quotations from our history, but sounds a lot like Bush.)
The means of defense against foreign danger historically have become the instruments of tyranny at home
A great wave of oppressive tyranny isn’t going to strike, but rather a slow seepage of oppressive laws and regulations from within will sink the American dream of liberty.
This and no other is the root from which a tyrant springs; when he first appears he is a protector.
(Quotations from our history, but sounds a lot like Bush.)
08 September, 2006
Iraq, al Quaeda, 9/11 lies
Air America has been playing the many times Bush said Iraq had contacts with al Aqaeda and was involved in 9/11. They also played Bush denied saying it.
Today, it came out that Iraq had no contacts or connection to al Quaeda and 9/11. Bush's spokesman didn't refute this, Tony Snow only said, "that's old news", he didn't deny it. Lies and the Liars who lie and lie in denial. Vote them out.
Today, it came out that Iraq had no contacts or connection to al Quaeda and 9/11. Bush's spokesman didn't refute this, Tony Snow only said, "that's old news", he didn't deny it. Lies and the Liars who lie and lie in denial. Vote them out.
Rumsfeld would not listen to planners re Iraq
Months before the United States invaded Iraq in 2003, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld forbade military strategists from developing plans for securing a post-war Iraq, the retiring commander of the Army Transportation Corps said Thursday. Even if the troops didn't stay, "at least we have to plan for it," General Scheid thought... Even if the troops didn't stay, "at least we have to plan for it," Scheid said.
"I remember the secretary of defense saying that he would fire the next person that said that," Scheid said. "We would not do planning for Phase 4 operations, which would require all those additional troops that people talk about today. "He said we will not do that because the American public will not back us if they think we are going over there for a long war." "In his own mind he thought we could go in and fight and take out the regime and come out".
"But a lot of us planners were having a real hard time with it because we were also thinking we can't do this",Scheid said. ".Once you tear up a country you have to stay and rebuild it. It would be very challenging." Rumsfeld wouldn't listen.
Later, Scheid said he remembers everyone thinking, "My gosh, we're in the middle of Afghanistan, how can we possibly be doing two at one time? How can we pull this off? It's just going to be too much."
"I remember the secretary of defense saying that he would fire the next person that said that," Scheid said. "We would not do planning for Phase 4 operations, which would require all those additional troops that people talk about today. "He said we will not do that because the American public will not back us if they think we are going over there for a long war." "In his own mind he thought we could go in and fight and take out the regime and come out".
"But a lot of us planners were having a real hard time with it because we were also thinking we can't do this",Scheid said. ".Once you tear up a country you have to stay and rebuild it. It would be very challenging." Rumsfeld wouldn't listen.
Later, Scheid said he remembers everyone thinking, "My gosh, we're in the middle of Afghanistan, how can we possibly be doing two at one time? How can we pull this off? It's just going to be too much."
CIA shows Republicans still lying about Iraq
There's no evidence Saddam Hussein had a relationship with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and his al-Qaeda associates, according to a Senate report on prewar intelligence on Iraq. Democrats said the report undercuts President Bush's justification for going to war.
The declassified document being released Friday by the Senate Intelligence Committee also explores the role that inaccurate information supplied by the anti-Saddam exile group the Iraqi National Congress had in the march to war.
It discloses for the first time an October 2005 CIA assessment that prior to the war Saddam's government "did not have a relationship, harbor, or turn a blind eye toward Zarqawi and his associates."
Bush and other administration officials have said that the presence of Zarqawi in Iraq before the war was evidence of a connection between Saddam's government and al-Qaeda. Zarqawi was killed by a U.S. airstrike in June this year.
The long-awaited report, said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., a member of the committee, is "a devastating indictment of the Bush-Cheney administration's unrelenting, misleading and deceptive attempts" to link Saddam to al-Qaeda.
The report, two years in the making, comes out amid a series of Bush speeches stressing that pursuing the military effort in Iraq is crucial to winning the war on terrorism, and two months before that policy will be tested in midterm elections.
The declassified document being released Friday by the Senate Intelligence Committee also explores the role that inaccurate information supplied by the anti-Saddam exile group the Iraqi National Congress had in the march to war.
It discloses for the first time an October 2005 CIA assessment that prior to the war Saddam's government "did not have a relationship, harbor, or turn a blind eye toward Zarqawi and his associates."
Bush and other administration officials have said that the presence of Zarqawi in Iraq before the war was evidence of a connection between Saddam's government and al-Qaeda. Zarqawi was killed by a U.S. airstrike in June this year.
The long-awaited report, said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., a member of the committee, is "a devastating indictment of the Bush-Cheney administration's unrelenting, misleading and deceptive attempts" to link Saddam to al-Qaeda.
The report, two years in the making, comes out amid a series of Bush speeches stressing that pursuing the military effort in Iraq is crucial to winning the war on terrorism, and two months before that policy will be tested in midterm elections.
Bush, torture lies
Not that it should surprise anyone anymore, but yesterday's stomach-churning Bush speech defending torture contains this little number:
We knew that Zubaydah had more information that could save innocent lives, but he stopped talking. As his questioning proceeded, it became clear that he had received training on how to resist interrogation. And so the CIA used an alternative set of procedures. These procedures were designed to be safe, to comply with our laws, our Constitution, and our treaty obligations.
The Department of Justice reviewed the authorized methods extensively and determined them to be lawful. I cannot describe the specific methods used--I think you understand why--if I did, it would help the terrorists learn how to resist questioning, and to keep information from us that we need to prevent new attacks on our country.
But I can say the procedures were tough, and they were safe, and lawful, and necessary.Zubaydah was questioned using these procedures, and soon he began to provide information on key al Qaeda operatives, including information that helped us find and capture more of those responsible for the attacks on September the 11th. For example, Zubaydah identified one of KSM's accomplices in the 9/11 attacks--a terrorist named Ramzi bin al Shibh.
The information Zubaydah provided helped lead to the capture of bin al Shibh. And together these two terrorists provided information that helped in the planning and execution of the operation that captured Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
First, according to Ron Suskind, Abu Zubaydah didn't clam up because he was "trained to resist interrogation," but because he has the mental capacity of a retarded child. Second, the idea that Abu Zubaydah's interrogation tipped off the U.S. to the existence of Ramzi bin Al Shibh is just an outright lie.
A Nexis search for "Ramzi Binalshibh" between September 11, 2001 and March 1, 2002--the U.S. captured Abu Zubaydah in March 2002--turns up 26 hits for The Washington Post alone. Everyone involved in counterterrorism knew who bin Al Shibh was.
Now-retired FBI Al Qaeda hunter Dennis Lormel told Congress who Ramzi bin Al Shibh was in February 2002. Abu Zubaydah getting waterboarded and spouting bin Al Shibh's name did not tell us anything we did not already know.
Of course, most Americans don't have access to Nexis. And most Americans don't remember--and can't be expected to remember--newspaper coverage of Al Qaeda for a seven-month stretch between the attacks and Abu Zubaydah's capture.
Bush is exploiting that ignorance to tell the American people an outright lie in order to convince them that we need to torture people. As Bush once said in another context, if this is not evil, then evil has no meaning.
We knew that Zubaydah had more information that could save innocent lives, but he stopped talking. As his questioning proceeded, it became clear that he had received training on how to resist interrogation. And so the CIA used an alternative set of procedures. These procedures were designed to be safe, to comply with our laws, our Constitution, and our treaty obligations.
The Department of Justice reviewed the authorized methods extensively and determined them to be lawful. I cannot describe the specific methods used--I think you understand why--if I did, it would help the terrorists learn how to resist questioning, and to keep information from us that we need to prevent new attacks on our country.
But I can say the procedures were tough, and they were safe, and lawful, and necessary.Zubaydah was questioned using these procedures, and soon he began to provide information on key al Qaeda operatives, including information that helped us find and capture more of those responsible for the attacks on September the 11th. For example, Zubaydah identified one of KSM's accomplices in the 9/11 attacks--a terrorist named Ramzi bin al Shibh.
The information Zubaydah provided helped lead to the capture of bin al Shibh. And together these two terrorists provided information that helped in the planning and execution of the operation that captured Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
First, according to Ron Suskind, Abu Zubaydah didn't clam up because he was "trained to resist interrogation," but because he has the mental capacity of a retarded child. Second, the idea that Abu Zubaydah's interrogation tipped off the U.S. to the existence of Ramzi bin Al Shibh is just an outright lie.
A Nexis search for "Ramzi Binalshibh" between September 11, 2001 and March 1, 2002--the U.S. captured Abu Zubaydah in March 2002--turns up 26 hits for The Washington Post alone. Everyone involved in counterterrorism knew who bin Al Shibh was.
Now-retired FBI Al Qaeda hunter Dennis Lormel told Congress who Ramzi bin Al Shibh was in February 2002. Abu Zubaydah getting waterboarded and spouting bin Al Shibh's name did not tell us anything we did not already know.
Of course, most Americans don't have access to Nexis. And most Americans don't remember--and can't be expected to remember--newspaper coverage of Al Qaeda for a seven-month stretch between the attacks and Abu Zubaydah's capture.
Bush is exploiting that ignorance to tell the American people an outright lie in order to convince them that we need to torture people. As Bush once said in another context, if this is not evil, then evil has no meaning.
Republican neo-con agenda for Middle East
An article by retired US Major Ralph Peters titled "Blood borders" published in the Armed Forces Journal last month has given Pakistan some food for thought over manipulating the geopolitical game on its own terms and conditions. Peters, formerly assigned to the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, where he was responsible for future warfare, argues that borders in the Middle East and Africa are "the most arbitrary and distorted" in the world and need restructuring.
Four countries - Pakistan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - are singled out for major readjustments. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are also defined as "unnatural states".Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey read much between the lines of talk of restructuring their boundaries.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz recently visited Turkey and then Lebanon, where he announced that his country would not send any peacekeeping troops to the latter.
Ankara (Turkey) then said that if peacekeeping forces tried to disarm Hezbollah, Turkey would pull out of the peace mission. These decisions are the result of back-channel diplomacy among Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan.
This is what the Republican neo-cons are really up to and what they are causing in the Middle East.
Four countries - Pakistan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - are singled out for major readjustments. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are also defined as "unnatural states".Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey read much between the lines of talk of restructuring their boundaries.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz recently visited Turkey and then Lebanon, where he announced that his country would not send any peacekeeping troops to the latter.
Ankara (Turkey) then said that if peacekeeping forces tried to disarm Hezbollah, Turkey would pull out of the peace mission. These decisions are the result of back-channel diplomacy among Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan.
This is what the Republican neo-cons are really up to and what they are causing in the Middle East.
Iraq illnesses
It was a hearing in U.S. District Court in Manhattan on a topic that Democracy Now! listeners know about: the soldiers from the New York National Guard who served in Iraq and who ended up being exposed to depleted uranium and who have been sick since coming back, they were finally -- had a beginning of a day in court.
It was a hearing over their lawsuit, they and their relatives, their families, against the United States military, over their exposure to depleted uranium. And there was a hearing over the government's motion to dismiss the case completely. And it lasted for several hours.
Gerard Matthew, who after he came back from Iraq, has been sick with illnesses that could not be diagnosed by the military. And then his wife becomes pregnant, and they have a child born with missing several fingers on one hand.
And so, he was from a separate transportation company that was transporting destroyed or damaged tanks back from Iraq into Kuwait. And so, all the soldiers, eight of them in total, are involved in the lawsuit.
It was a hearing over their lawsuit, they and their relatives, their families, against the United States military, over their exposure to depleted uranium. And there was a hearing over the government's motion to dismiss the case completely. And it lasted for several hours.
Gerard Matthew, who after he came back from Iraq, has been sick with illnesses that could not be diagnosed by the military. And then his wife becomes pregnant, and they have a child born with missing several fingers on one hand.
And so, he was from a separate transportation company that was transporting destroyed or damaged tanks back from Iraq into Kuwait. And so, all the soldiers, eight of them in total, are involved in the lawsuit.
Iraq, Republican war
Hubris, by investigative journalists Michael Isikoff and David Corn, adds more weight to a body of evidence that the White House was determined to go to war from early 2002. Planning on Anabasis, which cost $400m (£210m), started at the end of 2001 and was approved by President Bush in February 2002. CIA agents entered Iraq to recruit volunteers two months later.
The covert CIA preparations for war have been previously reported, but this is the first time details of the plan have been made public. According to the book, the CIA flew 80 former Iraqi soldiers into the US in the summer of 2002, and trained them at an energy department nuclear test site, 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas.
Talking to his spokesman, Ari Fleischer, in May 2002, President Bush made clear his intentions towards Saddam when he said: "I'm going to kick his sorry ass all over the Mid East," according to another press aide, Adam Levine, who witnessed the conversation.
They rehearsed seizing an Iraqi airbase at Nukhaib, near the Saudi border, and broadcasting a call to Iraqi units to join a revolt against Saddam. The CIA expected Saddam to strike back and violate the no-fly zone, creating a pretext for US-British military intervention. "The idea was to create an incident in which Saddam lashes out," John Maguire, a CIA agent who ran the operation told the authors, adding that if the plan worked "you'd have a premise for war: we've been invited in".
The covert CIA preparations for war have been previously reported, but this is the first time details of the plan have been made public. According to the book, the CIA flew 80 former Iraqi soldiers into the US in the summer of 2002, and trained them at an energy department nuclear test site, 65 miles northwest of Las Vegas.
Talking to his spokesman, Ari Fleischer, in May 2002, President Bush made clear his intentions towards Saddam when he said: "I'm going to kick his sorry ass all over the Mid East," according to another press aide, Adam Levine, who witnessed the conversation.
They rehearsed seizing an Iraqi airbase at Nukhaib, near the Saudi border, and broadcasting a call to Iraqi units to join a revolt against Saddam. The CIA expected Saddam to strike back and violate the no-fly zone, creating a pretext for US-British military intervention. "The idea was to create an incident in which Saddam lashes out," John Maguire, a CIA agent who ran the operation told the authors, adding that if the plan worked "you'd have a premise for war: we've been invited in".
07 September, 2006
9/11, Katrina, hiding the money?
The current reports by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) state that the U.S. isn't prepared to handle disasters like 9/11 and lacks an effective way to track $88 billion doled out to help rebuild the Gulf Coast after last year's killer hurricanes.
The government has no place to collect data on how and where 23 agencies are spending their share of the $88 billion Congress has allocated for Gulf Coast recovery. Taxpayers and hurricane victims also should be able to find out how the money's being spent, the report said.
Now who do you suppose doesn't want us to know how the money is spent and who benefits?
The government has no place to collect data on how and where 23 agencies are spending their share of the $88 billion Congress has allocated for Gulf Coast recovery. Taxpayers and hurricane victims also should be able to find out how the money's being spent, the report said.
Now who do you suppose doesn't want us to know how the money is spent and who benefits?
04 September, 2006
Malloy lives, Air America sells out
read today:
Mike Malloy's firing, supposedly for budgetary reasons, is just another example of Air America’s willingness to follow "ieAmerica" into the tar pit’s of talk show network extinction. At least "ie " stood by their more talented hosts, something Air America seems to know little about.
No, Air America would rather stand by Jerry Springer (still on AAR in a few markets, but gratefully pre-empted by the very talented Stephanie Miller in most markets), the borish Al Franken and hire “out of house,” Jones network mega-bore; Ed Schultz… who actually makes Mr. Franken almost sound interesting… almost, while leaving the superior Randi Rhodes Show to but a handful of few stations nation-wide.
Mike Malloy's firing, supposedly for budgetary reasons, is just another example of Air America’s willingness to follow "ieAmerica" into the tar pit’s of talk show network extinction. At least "ie " stood by their more talented hosts, something Air America seems to know little about.
No, Air America would rather stand by Jerry Springer (still on AAR in a few markets, but gratefully pre-empted by the very talented Stephanie Miller in most markets), the borish Al Franken and hire “out of house,” Jones network mega-bore; Ed Schultz… who actually makes Mr. Franken almost sound interesting… almost, while leaving the superior Randi Rhodes Show to but a handful of few stations nation-wide.
02 September, 2006
ode to Mike Malloy
This blog is just too serious. Once in awhile, there comes an entertainer that just blows you away. Well, we lost one of those when Air America fired Mike Malloy. He was a giant among mondane midgets. He spoke with sincere conviction from the heart AND he was hilarious. Okay, here are some of his references:
MALLOY ISMS:
George W. Bush: Chuckle Nuts, the Giggling Killer, President Bunny Pants, Man-or-Monkey, Dim Son, Weak-and-Stupid, Raisin Brain(s), Too-Stupid-to-Be-President, Too-Stupid-to-Chew-a-Pretzel, Too-stupid-to-ride-a-bicycle, Dipthong, MENSA Man, the Bush Bastard, the Toy President, Guaca-Moron, Cinco de Moron, Prince Valium
Dick Cheney: Darth Cheney, Cyborg Man, Bionic Man, Deadeye Dick
Laura Bush: Pickles
Condoleezza Rice: the Schoolmarm, Condoleezza Valdeez, The Shoe Lady
Alberto Gonzales: Torquemada, Torture Boy, Bush's Tejano
Donald Rumsfeld: Rumsferatu, Field Marshal Von Rumsfeld
Scott McClellan: Scotty the Duck, The Quacking Quackaroo
Tony Snow: Snowjob, Tony the Snowman, Foxy the Snowman
Rush Limbaugh: The Oxy-Moron, The Drug Addled Freak, The Pigman
Tom Delay: The Bugman
The best to you Mike Malloy to your bride, Kathy, and Molly. Bless you whatever you do and whereever you are. We will go to White Rose Society for your archives (give us a buzz when you are back on.) Bye , Bye Air America.............we will not listen to AA again, EVER!
MALLOY ISMS:
George W. Bush: Chuckle Nuts, the Giggling Killer, President Bunny Pants, Man-or-Monkey, Dim Son, Weak-and-Stupid, Raisin Brain(s), Too-Stupid-to-Be-President, Too-Stupid-to-Chew-a-Pretzel, Too-stupid-to-ride-a-bicycle, Dipthong, MENSA Man, the Bush Bastard, the Toy President, Guaca-Moron, Cinco de Moron, Prince Valium
Dick Cheney: Darth Cheney, Cyborg Man, Bionic Man, Deadeye Dick
Laura Bush: Pickles
Condoleezza Rice: the Schoolmarm, Condoleezza Valdeez, The Shoe Lady
Alberto Gonzales: Torquemada, Torture Boy, Bush's Tejano
Donald Rumsfeld: Rumsferatu, Field Marshal Von Rumsfeld
Scott McClellan: Scotty the Duck, The Quacking Quackaroo
Tony Snow: Snowjob, Tony the Snowman, Foxy the Snowman
Rush Limbaugh: The Oxy-Moron, The Drug Addled Freak, The Pigman
Tom Delay: The Bugman
The best to you Mike Malloy to your bride, Kathy, and Molly. Bless you whatever you do and whereever you are. We will go to White Rose Society for your archives (give us a buzz when you are back on.) Bye , Bye Air America.............we will not listen to AA again, EVER!
immigration, another view
read today: Illegal Immigration in the US
I just watched an episode of Morgan Spurlock's show, 30 Days, where a guy from the Minute Men lived 30 days with a family of illegal immigrants in LA. Now that show got me thinking and it occurs to me that it's rather strange how opposed that some Americans are to illegal immigration.
I mean it strikes me that the United States is founded upon illegal immigration.I mean, it's not like the folks on the Mayflower submitted to interviews by the INS or Homeland Security. They didn't fill out the proper forms and wait for approval from the Americans of that time.
They just hopped on a boat and sailed over. I mean they were the original boat people and they didn't just take away jobs from the Americans that were already here. They killed them.
Really, I think most Americans should appreciate illegal immigration and what it has done for them. I mean without it they'd probably be still be in Britain getting persecuted for their religious views.
I just watched an episode of Morgan Spurlock's show, 30 Days, where a guy from the Minute Men lived 30 days with a family of illegal immigrants in LA. Now that show got me thinking and it occurs to me that it's rather strange how opposed that some Americans are to illegal immigration.
I mean it strikes me that the United States is founded upon illegal immigration.I mean, it's not like the folks on the Mayflower submitted to interviews by the INS or Homeland Security. They didn't fill out the proper forms and wait for approval from the Americans of that time.
They just hopped on a boat and sailed over. I mean they were the original boat people and they didn't just take away jobs from the Americans that were already here. They killed them.
Really, I think most Americans should appreciate illegal immigration and what it has done for them. I mean without it they'd probably be still be in Britain getting persecuted for their religious views.
republican leadership
The Iraq war was a mistake and remains one today. This dilemma that the United States created in Iraq was a "miscalculation," at best and it was not planned with realistic expectations. The United States had no business invading Iraq, not when the terrorists and Osama bin Laden were, and remain, on the loose — threatening this nation, our allies and free people everywhere.
Shame on the Republicans running for reelection, our so-called representatives of the people, for not speaking out sooner. True leaders are not the ones who speak only when they are up for re-election.. Rather, they speak the truth no matter what the consequences.
Shame on the Republicans running for reelection, our so-called representatives of the people, for not speaking out sooner. True leaders are not the ones who speak only when they are up for re-election.. Rather, they speak the truth no matter what the consequences.
01 September, 2006
republicans
The offices of at least six Alaska legislators, including the son of Sen. Ted Stevens, were raided by federal agents searching for possible ties between the lawmakers and a large oil field services company, officials and aides said.
Among the offices searched was that of Alaska Senate President Ben Stevens, Republican, the son of the senior senator from Alaska. Ted Stevens, Republican..
Among the offices searched was that of Alaska Senate President Ben Stevens, Republican, the son of the senior senator from Alaska. Ted Stevens, Republican..
VOTE REPUBLICANS OUT
Sectarian violence is spreading in Iraq and the security problems have become more complex than at any time since the U.S. invasion in 2003, the Pentagon said Friday.
In a notably gloomy report to Congress, the Pentagon said illegal militias have become more entrenched, especially in Baghdad neighborhoods where they are seen as providers of security as well as basic social services.
Death squads targeting mainly Iraqi civilians are a growing problem. "Death squads and terrorists are locked in mutually reinforcing cycles of sectarian strife," the report said, adding that the Sunni-led insurgency "remains potent and viable" even as it is overshadowed by the sect-on-sect killing.
Peter Rodman, the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, in a separate session with reporters, said the security conditions have deteriorated even as the number of trained Iraqi troops has increased.
The Republicans are only starting to change their tune because the elections are coming. VOTE THEM OUT!
In a notably gloomy report to Congress, the Pentagon said illegal militias have become more entrenched, especially in Baghdad neighborhoods where they are seen as providers of security as well as basic social services.
Death squads targeting mainly Iraqi civilians are a growing problem. "Death squads and terrorists are locked in mutually reinforcing cycles of sectarian strife," the report said, adding that the Sunni-led insurgency "remains potent and viable" even as it is overshadowed by the sect-on-sect killing.
Peter Rodman, the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, in a separate session with reporters, said the security conditions have deteriorated even as the number of trained Iraqi troops has increased.
The Republicans are only starting to change their tune because the elections are coming. VOTE THEM OUT!
republican liars, not their children
Thought for the day:
For the first time in US History, we attacked another country without them attacking us.
Bush did order the invasion that killed hundreds of thousands of women and children in a country he now admits had nothing to do with 9/11, -- plus got over 2600 of our finest young men killed SO FAR--that makes him at a minimum, a BIG LIAR..(that's a fact)
And he and Cheney are about to do it again to protect their family oil interests and their Saudi friends. IMPEACH
For the first time in US History, we attacked another country without them attacking us.
Bush did order the invasion that killed hundreds of thousands of women and children in a country he now admits had nothing to do with 9/11, -- plus got over 2600 of our finest young men killed SO FAR--that makes him at a minimum, a BIG LIAR..(that's a fact)
And he and Cheney are about to do it again to protect their family oil interests and their Saudi friends. IMPEACH
31 August, 2006
mike malloy
If you are disappointed or angry about the firing of Mike Malloy by Air America send comments to >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>comments@airamericaradio.com
republican corporate facism
A just-released report from the Institute for Policy Studies and United for a Fair Economy, top executives at major U.S. corporations took home 411 times more than average workers ;ast year.
In 1994, at the birth of the living wage movement, chief executive pay outpaced pay for average workers by only 142 times.
To fatten corporate bottom lines and hit those jackpots, executives have downsized workers, outsourced jobs, gutted pensions, trimmed benefits, and slashed R & D. These executive decisions, taken together, have left American workers appreciably poorer and American companies considerably less competitive.
Just one example: CEOs at the nation's top 34 defense industry companies, the new "Executive Excess" report documents, have seen their average pay double since the "War on Terror" began. Nearly every major corporation in the United States today is taking in substantial revenue from government contracts, subsidies, tax breaks, or grants.
In a jurisdiction that has already enacted a living wage ordinance, for instance, progressives could insist that no government contracts ought to go to companies that pay their top executives over 25 times that jurisdiction's living wage. SO GO VOTE THIS NOVEMBER.
In 1994, at the birth of the living wage movement, chief executive pay outpaced pay for average workers by only 142 times.
To fatten corporate bottom lines and hit those jackpots, executives have downsized workers, outsourced jobs, gutted pensions, trimmed benefits, and slashed R & D. These executive decisions, taken together, have left American workers appreciably poorer and American companies considerably less competitive.
Just one example: CEOs at the nation's top 34 defense industry companies, the new "Executive Excess" report documents, have seen their average pay double since the "War on Terror" began. Nearly every major corporation in the United States today is taking in substantial revenue from government contracts, subsidies, tax breaks, or grants.
In a jurisdiction that has already enacted a living wage ordinance, for instance, progressives could insist that no government contracts ought to go to companies that pay their top executives over 25 times that jurisdiction's living wage. SO GO VOTE THIS NOVEMBER.
more republican lies
WHEN President Bush declared last week that "nobody has ever suggested in this administration that Saddam Hussein ordered" the 9/11 terrorist attacks, a large segment of the American public must have been very surprised. Another lie.
The most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly...it must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over.": Joseph Goebbels, Nazi Propaganda Minister.
Isn't this what Bush said, "my job is to say it over and over again." So, who is the facist?
WHEN President Bush declared last week that "nobody has ever suggested in this administration that Saddam Hussein ordered" the 9/11 terrorist attacks, a large segment of the American public must have been very surprised because saying it again doesn't change the FACT that its a BIG LIE.
The most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly...it must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over.": Joseph Goebbels, Nazi Propaganda Minister.
Isn't this what Bush said, "my job is to say it over and over again." So, who is the facist?
WHEN President Bush declared last week that "nobody has ever suggested in this administration that Saddam Hussein ordered" the 9/11 terrorist attacks, a large segment of the American public must have been very surprised because saying it again doesn't change the FACT that its a BIG LIE.
30 August, 2006
bye bye Air America
It's a crying shame that Air America is on its last pegs. Evidence of this is the firing of their premier talk show host. You know his name. It's Mike Malloy. A real entertainer and commentator who tells it from the heart. A giant on that network among midgets.
The death knell has sounded. We have heard the taps being played. How sad. How revolting. It's a victory for the far right facists to silence such an eloquent voice. Bye Bye Air America. Have a nice funeral.
The death knell has sounded. We have heard the taps being played. How sad. How revolting. It's a victory for the far right facists to silence such an eloquent voice. Bye Bye Air America. Have a nice funeral.
War money going to republicans
A new report on the "Cost of Iraq" will be released on Wednesday, August 30. The report will analyze the cost of the Iraq War by Congressional district.
Since the Iraq war began, the Republican-led Congress has spent more than $300 Billion on President Bush's failed policy. $18 billion has been awarded to Halliburton (Cheney's Company), much of which was in "no bid" contracts and $9 billion is missing.
Most Americans agree President Bush's Iraq policy is a fiasco. But Congress keeps rubber-stamping Bush's wasteful spending. By voting to spend $300 billion on the fiasco in Iraq, Republicans in Congress have short-changed education, health care, job creation, and tough homeland security.
Since the Iraq war began, the Republican-led Congress has spent more than $300 Billion on President Bush's failed policy. $18 billion has been awarded to Halliburton (Cheney's Company), much of which was in "no bid" contracts and $9 billion is missing.
Most Americans agree President Bush's Iraq policy is a fiasco. But Congress keeps rubber-stamping Bush's wasteful spending. By voting to spend $300 billion on the fiasco in Iraq, Republicans in Congress have short-changed education, health care, job creation, and tough homeland security.
29 August, 2006
Segregated Iraqi Army
The Iraqi army is recruited and trained regionally, and they expect to serve in their own provinces. That is by and large the practice, but in times of crisis -- like the outbreak of violence in Baghdad -- they can in theory be called on to deploy anywhere.
Members of two Iraqi military units have refused orders to deploy to heavily contested areas around Baghdad, a top U.S. military general said. . The majority were Shiite who make up 60% of the country"s population. Some army!
Members of two Iraqi military units have refused orders to deploy to heavily contested areas around Baghdad, a top U.S. military general said. . The majority were Shiite who make up 60% of the country"s population. Some army!
update Iraq
and the beat goes on and on:
U.S. price tag of $320 billion of our money and "at least 2,631 " members of the U.S. military have died, not counting (1)"contractors" (2) Iraqi civilian women and children (3) the tens of thousands that have been wounded, and (4) the one in five surviving soldiers that have lingering mental problems
A miserable milestone was passed the other day. America's (andBritain's) disastrous war in Iraq has now lasted longer than the US involvement in the Second World War.
U.S. price tag of $320 billion of our money and "at least 2,631 " members of the U.S. military have died, not counting (1)"contractors" (2) Iraqi civilian women and children (3) the tens of thousands that have been wounded, and (4) the one in five surviving soldiers that have lingering mental problems
A miserable milestone was passed the other day. America's (andBritain's) disastrous war in Iraq has now lasted longer than the US involvement in the Second World War.
28 August, 2006
how republicans do business with our money
Letitia White was a receptionist when she joined the staff of Rep. Jerry Lewis, R-Calif. More than two decades later, she is an influential lobbyist whose connections to Lewis — now chairman of the powerful Appropriations Committee and others on the Hill have translated into millions of dollars for her and her firm.
During the year prior to her departure from Lewis' office, the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call reported, her income dropped by around $11,000, to just $80 below the $112,500 salary ceiling that would have triggered an automatic one-year ban on her lobbying of Lewis.
The day after leaving the Hill, on Jan. 9, 2003, White signed up a major client, General Atomics, along with one of its aeronautics subsidiaries. The companies received several multimillion-dollar earmarks that year in the defense spending bill for the 2004 fiscal year, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense, including $3 million for General Atomics to provide anti-terror systems at Liberty Island, home to the Statue of Liberty, and $15.3 million for the aeronautics division to develop unmanned aerial vehicles.
By the end of 2003, White had signed up about 15 more clients, mostly defense contractors, and was bringing in hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees. Her clients were enjoying similar success to General Atomics in getting earmarks. White, her husband lobbyist Richard White, and her firm's clients were donating generously to Lewis' fundraising committees.
White co-owns a Capitol Hill townhouse with the head of one of her client companies, Trident Systems Inc. Trident's founder, Nick Karangelen, is chairman of a political action committee called Small Biz Tech PAC that has employed Lewis' stepdaughter, Julia Willis-Leon, for fundraising. White and her husband have both donated to the PAC.
During the year prior to her departure from Lewis' office, the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call reported, her income dropped by around $11,000, to just $80 below the $112,500 salary ceiling that would have triggered an automatic one-year ban on her lobbying of Lewis.
The day after leaving the Hill, on Jan. 9, 2003, White signed up a major client, General Atomics, along with one of its aeronautics subsidiaries. The companies received several multimillion-dollar earmarks that year in the defense spending bill for the 2004 fiscal year, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense, including $3 million for General Atomics to provide anti-terror systems at Liberty Island, home to the Statue of Liberty, and $15.3 million for the aeronautics division to develop unmanned aerial vehicles.
By the end of 2003, White had signed up about 15 more clients, mostly defense contractors, and was bringing in hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees. Her clients were enjoying similar success to General Atomics in getting earmarks. White, her husband lobbyist Richard White, and her firm's clients were donating generously to Lewis' fundraising committees.
White co-owns a Capitol Hill townhouse with the head of one of her client companies, Trident Systems Inc. Trident's founder, Nick Karangelen, is chairman of a political action committee called Small Biz Tech PAC that has employed Lewis' stepdaughter, Julia Willis-Leon, for fundraising. White and her husband have both donated to the PAC.
27 August, 2006
neo-con plans
That's surely the question uppermost in the minds of Bush administration neocons as they seek to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat following Israel's costly and unsuccessful effort to destroy Hizbollah. Urged on by the Bush administration (while condemned by the rest of the world), Israel undertook its invasion not for the reason advertised (in response to recent Hizbollah attacks) but to deprive Tehran from using the Shiite militia in retaliation for the long-planned attack on Iran.
If the Lebanese fighters can be driven from the border area back behind the Litani River, they will be unable to launch missile attacks such as the 3800 provoked by Israeli's most recent invasion.
U.S. public opinion will more likely accept an attack on Iran if it can be sold as part of the "War on Terror." Bush has already depicted Israel's attack on Lebanon as part of that war, and the U.S. corporate media has dutifully portrayed the recent fighting as between Israel acting in self-defense and a "terrorist Hizbollah" acting as a proxy for Iran, the world's "most active state sponsor of terrorism."
Perhaps a third of the nation is inclined to accept an attack on Iran and the apocalyptic scenario to follow as the fulfillment of biblical prophecy---hence welcome in preparing the way for the Lord.
Even if Iraq's a disaster, Afghanistan a growing problem, and the president widely perceived as stupid and dishonest, the neocon-driven administration just might get what it wants---its new Israel-centered U.S.-occupied creatively chaotic Greater Middle East---by the end of the president's second term.
If the Lebanese fighters can be driven from the border area back behind the Litani River, they will be unable to launch missile attacks such as the 3800 provoked by Israeli's most recent invasion.
U.S. public opinion will more likely accept an attack on Iran if it can be sold as part of the "War on Terror." Bush has already depicted Israel's attack on Lebanon as part of that war, and the U.S. corporate media has dutifully portrayed the recent fighting as between Israel acting in self-defense and a "terrorist Hizbollah" acting as a proxy for Iran, the world's "most active state sponsor of terrorism."
Perhaps a third of the nation is inclined to accept an attack on Iran and the apocalyptic scenario to follow as the fulfillment of biblical prophecy---hence welcome in preparing the way for the Lord.
Even if Iraq's a disaster, Afghanistan a growing problem, and the president widely perceived as stupid and dishonest, the neocon-driven administration just might get what it wants---its new Israel-centered U.S.-occupied creatively chaotic Greater Middle East---by the end of the president's second term.
26 August, 2006
who is willing to bleed for these Republicans?
History is repeating itself this week, when the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Peter Hoekstra of Michigan, released a garishly illustrated and luridly written document that is ostensibly dedicated to ‘helping the American people understand’ that Iran’s fundamentalist regime and its nuclear ambitions pose a strategic threat to the United States.
Hoekstra is just one in a never ending coil of snake-like, Republican liars who want as much blood and death and injury as the American people are willing to give. They are cowards, these Conservatives. Given a chance to enter the military they flee like scared little children. So, who is willing to bleed for these Republicans?
Hoekstra is just one in a never ending coil of snake-like, Republican liars who want as much blood and death and injury as the American people are willing to give. They are cowards, these Conservatives. Given a chance to enter the military they flee like scared little children. So, who is willing to bleed for these Republicans?
25 August, 2006
war criminals
A chief prosecutor of Nazi war crimes at Nuremberg has said George W. Bush should be tried for war crimes along with Saddam Hussein.
Benjamin Ferenccz, who secured convictions for 22 Nazi officers for their work in orchestrating the death squads that killed more than 1 million people, told OneWorld both Bush and Saddam should be tried for starting "aggressive" wars--Saddam for his 1990 attack on Kuwait and Bush for his 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Benjamin Ferenccz, who secured convictions for 22 Nazi officers for their work in orchestrating the death squads that killed more than 1 million people, told OneWorld both Bush and Saddam should be tried for starting "aggressive" wars--Saddam for his 1990 attack on Kuwait and Bush for his 2003 invasion of Iraq.
24 August, 2006
Republicans destroy freedoms, one step at a time
During his gubernatorial days in Texas, George W let slip a one-sentence thought that unintentionally gave us a peek into his political soul. In hindsight, it should've been loudly broadcast all across our land so people could've absorbed it, contemplated its portent?and roundly rejected the guy's bid for the presidency. On May 21, 1999, reacting to some satirical criticism of him, Bush snapped: "There ought to be limits to freedom."
So many freedoms to limit, so little time! But in five short years, the Republican BushCheneyRummy regime has made remarkable strides toward dismembering the genius of the Founders, going at our Constitution and Bill of Rights like famished alligators chasing a couple of poodles.
Forget about such niceties as separation of powers, checks and balances (crucial to the practice of democracy), the First Amendment, the Fourth Amendment, and open government-these guys are on an autocratic tear.
Whenever they've been challenged (all too rarely), they simply shout "war on terror," "commander-in-chief," "support our troops," "executive privilege," "I'm the decider," or some other slam-the-door political phrase designed to silence any opposition.
Indeed, opponents are branded "enemies" who must be demonized, personally attacked, and, if possible, destroyed.
Bush's find-the-loopholes lawyers assert that a president has the right to lie (even about going to war), to imprison people indefinitely (without charges, lawyers, hearings, courts, or hope), to torture people, to spy on Americans without court or congressional review, to prosecute reporters who dare to report, to rewrite laws on executive whim?and on and on.
So many freedoms to limit, so little time! But in five short years, the Republican BushCheneyRummy regime has made remarkable strides toward dismembering the genius of the Founders, going at our Constitution and Bill of Rights like famished alligators chasing a couple of poodles.
Forget about such niceties as separation of powers, checks and balances (crucial to the practice of democracy), the First Amendment, the Fourth Amendment, and open government-these guys are on an autocratic tear.
Whenever they've been challenged (all too rarely), they simply shout "war on terror," "commander-in-chief," "support our troops," "executive privilege," "I'm the decider," or some other slam-the-door political phrase designed to silence any opposition.
Indeed, opponents are branded "enemies" who must be demonized, personally attacked, and, if possible, destroyed.
Bush's find-the-loopholes lawyers assert that a president has the right to lie (even about going to war), to imprison people indefinitely (without charges, lawyers, hearings, courts, or hope), to torture people, to spy on Americans without court or congressional review, to prosecute reporters who dare to report, to rewrite laws on executive whim?and on and on.
22 August, 2006
children killed
Amnesty International on Wednesday accused Israel of war crimes, saying it broke international law by deliberately destroying Lebanon's civilian infrastructure during its recent war with Hezbollah guerrillas.
The human rights group said initial evidence, including the pattern and scope of the Israeli attacks, number of civilian casualties, widespread damage and statements by Israeli officials "indicate that such destruction was deliberate and part of a military strategy, rather than 'collateral damage.'"
The United Nations children's fund, UNICEF, estimates that some 1,183 people died, mostly civilians and about a third of them children, while the Lebanese Higher Relief Council says 4,054 people were injured and 970,000 displaced. U.N. officials reported that around 15,000 civilian homes were destroyed.
The human rights group said initial evidence, including the pattern and scope of the Israeli attacks, number of civilian casualties, widespread damage and statements by Israeli officials "indicate that such destruction was deliberate and part of a military strategy, rather than 'collateral damage.'"
The United Nations children's fund, UNICEF, estimates that some 1,183 people died, mostly civilians and about a third of them children, while the Lebanese Higher Relief Council says 4,054 people were injured and 970,000 displaced. U.N. officials reported that around 15,000 civilian homes were destroyed.
21 August, 2006
died for nothing
Hundreds of Israeli reservists pushed Monday for an investigation of how the government and army handled 34 days of fighting with Hezbollah guerrillas, saying they were rushed into battle without enough food, water and equipment.
A group of parents of fallen soldiers called for Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's resignation, saying that the government's objectives had not been achieved and that their sons died for nothing.
Sound Familiar? Ours have died based on lies of WMD's and a connection to 9/11 and went into a civil war without adequate armor.
A group of parents of fallen soldiers called for Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's resignation, saying that the government's objectives had not been achieved and that their sons died for nothing.
Sound Familiar? Ours have died based on lies of WMD's and a connection to 9/11 and went into a civil war without adequate armor.
17 August, 2006
out-of-step republicans
"Hezbollah has demonstrated that total Arab defeat is not inevitable. ... Israel has lost its tremendous psychological advantage," says George Friedman, an intelligence analyst and CEO of Stratfor, a private intelligence firm in Austin.
"Israel will be perceived by its enemies as weak, constrained and dysfunctional," says Aaron David Miller, a former U.S. Middle East negotiator now at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.
The conflict also has dealt a blow to Bush's campaign to bring democracy to the region. It bolstered Iran, Hezbollah's main patron, and Shiites elsewhere — including in Iraq, where, "having first experienced the limits of American power, (the Shiites) are now seeing the expanding boundaries of Iranian power," Friedman says.
"Israel will be perceived by its enemies as weak, constrained and dysfunctional," says Aaron David Miller, a former U.S. Middle East negotiator now at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.
Yet, the United States is taking a different lesson from the conflict. President Bush said this week that Hezbollah lost. That shows just how ignorant and wrong these Republicans are and continue to be.
"Israel will be perceived by its enemies as weak, constrained and dysfunctional," says Aaron David Miller, a former U.S. Middle East negotiator now at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.
The conflict also has dealt a blow to Bush's campaign to bring democracy to the region. It bolstered Iran, Hezbollah's main patron, and Shiites elsewhere — including in Iraq, where, "having first experienced the limits of American power, (the Shiites) are now seeing the expanding boundaries of Iranian power," Friedman says.
"Israel will be perceived by its enemies as weak, constrained and dysfunctional," says Aaron David Miller, a former U.S. Middle East negotiator now at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington.
Yet, the United States is taking a different lesson from the conflict. President Bush said this week that Hezbollah lost. That shows just how ignorant and wrong these Republicans are and continue to be.
15 August, 2006
vote, vote vote
Five years after 9/11, the Bush administration has failed to keep us safe. The war in Iraq has diverted attention from protecting America from terrorism. This past week 9/11 commissioners said Iraq is distracting from security at home. The war in Iraq has inflamed the whole Middle East and is helping Al Qaeda attract new recruits.
Osama Bin Laden is still on the loose. Katrina showed all of us that the Republicans aren't able to protect America at home.
The Republican Congress hasn't followed through on the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. Republican political attacks during last week's terror threat are outrageous. Dick Cheney said Connecticut voters were supporting Al Qaeda. Don't let him get away with that.
Register to vote, demand paper trails so they can't steal close elections again, and VOTE.
Osama Bin Laden is still on the loose. Katrina showed all of us that the Republicans aren't able to protect America at home.
The Republican Congress hasn't followed through on the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. Republican political attacks during last week's terror threat are outrageous. Dick Cheney said Connecticut voters were supporting Al Qaeda. Don't let him get away with that.
Register to vote, demand paper trails so they can't steal close elections again, and VOTE.
14 August, 2006
baby killers
Limits to tolerance There are limits to our patience, and there are limits to our tolerance. We do not believe in divine promises as a justification for occupation and apartheid. We have left the Middle Ages behind. We laugh uneasily at those who still believe that the god of flora, fauna and the galaxies has selected one people in particular as his favorite and given it silly, stone tablets, burning bushes and a license to kill.
We call baby killers "baby killers" and will never accept that people such as these have a divine or historic mandate excusing their outrages. We just say: Shame on all apartheid, shame on ethnic cleansing and shame on every terrorist strike against civilians whether carried out by Hamas, the Hezbollah or the State of Israel!
We call baby killers "baby killers" and will never accept that people such as these have a divine or historic mandate excusing their outrages. We just say: Shame on all apartheid, shame on ethnic cleansing and shame on every terrorist strike against civilians whether carried out by Hamas, the Hezbollah or the State of Israel!
13 August, 2006
who is moral in politics?
Cheney suggested Wednesday that Lamont's victory might encourage "the al-Qaeda types" who want to "break the will of the American people in terms of our ability to stay in the fight and complete the task." Joe Lieberman thinks a Lamont victory in Novermber could embolden terrorists.
"My God, here we have a terrorist threat against hearth and home and the very first thing that comes out of their mind is how can we turn this to partisan advantage. I find that offensive," Lamont said in an interview Sunday with The Associated Press.
"My God, here we have a terrorist threat against hearth and home and the very first thing that comes out of their mind is how can we turn this to partisan advantage. I find that offensive," Lamont said in an interview Sunday with The Associated Press.
the future of our beloved USA
The point of public relations slogans like "Support our troops" is that they don't mean anything... That's the whole point of good propaganda. You want to create a slogan that nobody's going to be against, and everybody's going to be for. Nobody knows what it means, because it doesn't mean anything.
Its crucial value is that it diverts your attention from a question that does mean something: Do you support our policy? That's the one you're not allowed to talk about. If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television can dominate our ideas, they will be secure in their power. They will not need soldiers patrolling the streets. We will control ourselves.
Four sorrows are certain to be visited on the United States. Their cumulative effect guarantees that the U.S. will cease to resemble the country outlined in the Constitution of 1787.
First, there will be a state of perpetual war, leading to more terrorism against Americans wherever they may be and a spreading reliance on nuclear weapons among smaller nations as they try to ward off the imperial juggernaut.
Second is a loss of democracy and Constitutional rights as the presidency eclipses Congress and is itself transformed from a co- equal 'executive branch' of overnment into a military junta.
Third is the replacement of truth by propaganda, disinformation, and the glorification of war, power, and the military legions.
Lastly, there is bankruptcy, as the United States pours its economic resources into ever more grandiose military projects and shortchanges the education, health, and safety of its citizens.
Its crucial value is that it diverts your attention from a question that does mean something: Do you support our policy? That's the one you're not allowed to talk about. If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television can dominate our ideas, they will be secure in their power. They will not need soldiers patrolling the streets. We will control ourselves.
Four sorrows are certain to be visited on the United States. Their cumulative effect guarantees that the U.S. will cease to resemble the country outlined in the Constitution of 1787.
First, there will be a state of perpetual war, leading to more terrorism against Americans wherever they may be and a spreading reliance on nuclear weapons among smaller nations as they try to ward off the imperial juggernaut.
Second is a loss of democracy and Constitutional rights as the presidency eclipses Congress and is itself transformed from a co- equal 'executive branch' of overnment into a military junta.
Third is the replacement of truth by propaganda, disinformation, and the glorification of war, power, and the military legions.
Lastly, there is bankruptcy, as the United States pours its economic resources into ever more grandiose military projects and shortchanges the education, health, and safety of its citizens.
12 August, 2006
update Iraq
Police found a dozen bodies trapped in a grate in the Tigris River, and a roadside bomb killed two U.S. soldiers on a foot patrol south of Baghdad Saturday as nearly 50 violent deaths were reported across Iraq.
They appeared to have been the victims of sectarian death squads(civil war) that operate in the religiously mixed communities in the Baghdad area.
Remember Cheney saying the insurgents in Iraq were just deadenders in their last throes. Lies, lies.
They appeared to have been the victims of sectarian death squads(civil war) that operate in the religiously mixed communities in the Baghdad area.
Remember Cheney saying the insurgents in Iraq were just deadenders in their last throes. Lies, lies.
10 August, 2006
false government accounting
The federal government keeps two sets of books.
The set the government promotes to the public has a healthier bottom line: a $318 billion deficit in 2005.
The set the government doesn't talk about is the audited financial statement produced by the government's accountants following standard accounting rules. It reports a more ominous financial picture: a $760 billion deficit for 2005. If Social Security and Medicare were included — as the board that sets accounting rules is considering — the federal deficit would have been $3.5 trillion.
Congress has written its own accounting rules — which would be illegal for a corporation to use because they ignore important costs such as the growing expense of retirement benefits for civil servants and military personnel.
The set the government promotes to the public has a healthier bottom line: a $318 billion deficit in 2005.
The set the government doesn't talk about is the audited financial statement produced by the government's accountants following standard accounting rules. It reports a more ominous financial picture: a $760 billion deficit for 2005. If Social Security and Medicare were included — as the board that sets accounting rules is considering — the federal deficit would have been $3.5 trillion.
Congress has written its own accounting rules — which would be illegal for a corporation to use because they ignore important costs such as the growing expense of retirement benefits for civil servants and military personnel.
09 August, 2006
crony "govment" contractors
The Bush administration on Wednesday awarded temporary housing contracts worth up to $1.5 billion for future hurricane disasters, including four to companies that previously received no-bid contracts for Katrina work.
Four of the six contracts awarded will go to Shaw Environmental & Infrastructure, Bechtel National, CH2M Hill Inc. and Fluor Enterprises Inc., which received similar contracts but without competition after Hurricane Katrina last fall.
Some of the companies have strong political and government ties. The Shaw Group's lobbyist, Joe Allbaugh, is a former FEMA director and is a friend of President Bush, while Bechtel CEO Riley Bechtel served on Bush's Export Council from 2003-2004, and CH2M Hill Inc. and Fluor Corp. have done extensive previous work for the government.
Four of the six contracts awarded will go to Shaw Environmental & Infrastructure, Bechtel National, CH2M Hill Inc. and Fluor Enterprises Inc., which received similar contracts but without competition after Hurricane Katrina last fall.
Some of the companies have strong political and government ties. The Shaw Group's lobbyist, Joe Allbaugh, is a former FEMA director and is a friend of President Bush, while Bechtel CEO Riley Bechtel served on Bush's Export Council from 2003-2004, and CH2M Hill Inc. and Fluor Corp. have done extensive previous work for the government.
Iraq update
New studies make the Bush administration's "liberation" argument for a 'pre-emptive' war against Iraq seem questionable.
The invasion of Iraq in March 2003 by U.S.-led coalition forces has been responsible for the death of at least 150,000 civilians, reveals a compilitation of scientific studies and corroborated eyewitness testimonies.
The majority of these deaths, which are in addition those normally expected from natural causes, illness and accidents, have been among women and children, documents a well-researched study, that had been released by The Lancet Medical Journal.
The report in the British journal is based on the work of teams from the Johns Hopkins University and Columbia University in the U.S., and the Al-Mustansiriya University in Baghdad.
The invasion of Iraq in March 2003 by U.S.-led coalition forces has been responsible for the death of at least 150,000 civilians, reveals a compilitation of scientific studies and corroborated eyewitness testimonies.
The majority of these deaths, which are in addition those normally expected from natural causes, illness and accidents, have been among women and children, documents a well-researched study, that had been released by The Lancet Medical Journal.
The report in the British journal is based on the work of teams from the Johns Hopkins University and Columbia University in the U.S., and the Al-Mustansiriya University in Baghdad.
07 August, 2006
Lebanon update
Israeli death toll to 97, including 49 soldiers, the 12 reservists and 36 civilians. Israel's attacks on Lebanon have killed at least 617 people, including 524 civilians, 29 Lebanese soldiers and at least 53 Hezbollah guerrillas.
Iraq civil war, who do you believe?
The Bush, Rumsfeld, Cheney, neo-cons and their lackeys say Iraq is not yet in a civil war. However, the Iraqi civil war has already begun, U.S. troops say: Villages have been abandoned by Sunni and Shiite Muslims;
Sunni insurgents have killed thousands of Shiites in car bombings and assassinations; Shiite militia death squads have tortured and killed hundreds, if not thousands, of Sunnis; and when night falls, neighborhoods become open battlegrounds.
Sunni insurgents have killed thousands of Shiites in car bombings and assassinations; Shiite militia death squads have tortured and killed hundreds, if not thousands, of Sunnis; and when night falls, neighborhoods become open battlegrounds.
Republican neo-cons
There is no way that the Republican neo-cons in our shadow government are ready to admit that their thinking is flawed; they continue to confuse confidence with success, desire with achievement, military muscle with the ability to achieve practical goals. Who pays for all this bumbling?
04 August, 2006
google chickenhawks for conservatives
Man is the only animal that deals in that atrocity of atrocities, War. He is the only one that gathers his brethren about him and goes forth in cold blood and calm pulse to exterminate his kind. He is the only animal that for sordid wages will march out... and help to slaughter strangers of his own species who have done him no harm and with whom he has no quarrel.... And in the intervals between campaigns he washes the blood off his hands and works for "the universal brotherhood of man" - with his mouth: Mark Twain
He must have been talking about conservatives for liberals try to create a moral universe, conservatives try to dismantle it. Jesus was a liberal.
He must have been talking about conservatives for liberals try to create a moral universe, conservatives try to dismantle it. Jesus was a liberal.
more republican lies
Republican conservative websites and Web logs have used only snippets of Dingell's comments. Mehlman said Friday, "As our allies fight this same war on other fronts, should we support them, or should we — as the longest-serving Democrat in the House and possible committee chairman John Dingell said — 'not take sides for or against Hezbollah.'"
Now for what Dingell really said," if the United States is going to be an honest broker in the Middle East, it must talk to Israel and Hezbollah. I happen to be — I happen to be against violence, I think the United States has to bring resolution to this matter. Now, I condemn Hezbollah as does everybody else, for the violence," Dingell said.
More lies by these republicans.
Now for what Dingell really said," if the United States is going to be an honest broker in the Middle East, it must talk to Israel and Hezbollah. I happen to be — I happen to be against violence, I think the United States has to bring resolution to this matter. Now, I condemn Hezbollah as does everybody else, for the violence," Dingell said.
More lies by these republicans.
Republicans on your health
Creekstone Farms, a Kansas beef producer, wants to reassure customers that its cattle are safe to eat by testing them all for mad cow disease. Sounds like a smart business move, but there's one problem: The federal government won't let the company do it.
Sixty-five nations have full or partial restrictions on importing U.S. beef products because of fears that the testing isn't rigorous enough. As a result, U.S. beef product exports declined from $3.8 billion in 2003, before the first mad cow was detected in the USA, to $1.4 billion last year. Foreign buyers are demanding that USDA do more.
The brain-wasting disease — known formally as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE — is extremely rare but extremely deadly. Since 1986, it has killed more than 150 people worldwide, mostly in Britain, who ate infected meat.
USDA is doing the bidding of large cattle barons afraid that Creekstone's marketing will force them to do the same tests to stay competitive. It's true that the incidence of mad cow disease is quite low. But there's little logic in stopping a company from exceeding regulations to meet the demands of its customers, or protecting its rivals from legitimate competition
"In a nation dedicated to free market competition," says John Stewart, CEO of Creekstone, which is suing USDA, "a company that wants to do more than is required to ensure the quality of its product and to satisfy customer demand should be allowed to do so." When regulators disagree with reasoning like that, you know the game is rigged.
Sixty-five nations have full or partial restrictions on importing U.S. beef products because of fears that the testing isn't rigorous enough. As a result, U.S. beef product exports declined from $3.8 billion in 2003, before the first mad cow was detected in the USA, to $1.4 billion last year. Foreign buyers are demanding that USDA do more.
The brain-wasting disease — known formally as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE — is extremely rare but extremely deadly. Since 1986, it has killed more than 150 people worldwide, mostly in Britain, who ate infected meat.
USDA is doing the bidding of large cattle barons afraid that Creekstone's marketing will force them to do the same tests to stay competitive. It's true that the incidence of mad cow disease is quite low. But there's little logic in stopping a company from exceeding regulations to meet the demands of its customers, or protecting its rivals from legitimate competition
"In a nation dedicated to free market competition," says John Stewart, CEO of Creekstone, which is suing USDA, "a company that wants to do more than is required to ensure the quality of its product and to satisfy customer demand should be allowed to do so." When regulators disagree with reasoning like that, you know the game is rigged.
republican war
Hundreds of thousands of Shiites chanting "Death to Israel" and "Death to America" marched through the streets of Baghdad's biggest Shiite district Friday in a show of support for Hezbollah militants battling Israeli troops in Lebanon.
"Mahdi Army(Iraqi) and Hezbollah are one. Let them confront us if they dare," the predominantly male crowd shouted, waving the flags of Hezbollah, Lebanon and Iraq
Al-Sadr followers painted U.S. and Israeli flags on the main road leading to the rally site, and demonstrators stepped on them — a gesture of contempt in Iraq. Alongside the painted flags was written: "These are the terrorists
Protesters set fire to American and Israeli flags, as well as effigies of President Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, showing the men with Dracula teeth. "Saddam and Bush, Two Faces of One Coin" was scrawled on Bush's effigy. This is what these Republicans have got us into based on lies.
"Mahdi Army(Iraqi) and Hezbollah are one. Let them confront us if they dare," the predominantly male crowd shouted, waving the flags of Hezbollah, Lebanon and Iraq
Al-Sadr followers painted U.S. and Israeli flags on the main road leading to the rally site, and demonstrators stepped on them — a gesture of contempt in Iraq. Alongside the painted flags was written: "These are the terrorists
Protesters set fire to American and Israeli flags, as well as effigies of President Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, showing the men with Dracula teeth. "Saddam and Bush, Two Faces of One Coin" was scrawled on Bush's effigy. This is what these Republicans have got us into based on lies.
02 August, 2006
two sets of books ok for our "go'ment"
The federal government keeps two sets of books.
The set the government promotes to the public has a healthier bottom line: a $318 billion deficit in 2005.
The set the government doesn't talk about is the audited financial statement produced by the government's accountants following standard accounting rules.
It reports a more ominous financial picture: a $760 billion deficit for 2005.
If Social Security and Medicare were included — as the board that sets accounting rules is considering — the federal deficit would have been $3.5 trillion.
The set the government promotes to the public has a healthier bottom line: a $318 billion deficit in 2005.
The set the government doesn't talk about is the audited financial statement produced by the government's accountants following standard accounting rules.
It reports a more ominous financial picture: a $760 billion deficit for 2005.
If Social Security and Medicare were included — as the board that sets accounting rules is considering — the federal deficit would have been $3.5 trillion.
01 August, 2006
who cares?
read today:
The story that rockets to Israel came from Cana, it turns out, was a lie. No rockets originated from Cana, yet all those women and children were horribly killed. And none of these self styled US sleeve Christians care. All those victims might as well have been victims of the pogroms in Poland back in 1943.
The story that rockets to Israel came from Cana, it turns out, was a lie. No rockets originated from Cana, yet all those women and children were horribly killed. And none of these self styled US sleeve Christians care. All those victims might as well have been victims of the pogroms in Poland back in 1943.
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