May 2, 2007
Nelson Report: Bush, reduced to “bunker mentality,” rants to big money supporters about
being misunderstood
I doubt President Bush is drinking again (although with him, anything is possible). That
being said Bush probably feels like he is living in a pressure cooker (one of his own
making, I hasten to add). And it appears he is not happy with it!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/seanpaul-kelley/bush-in-the-bunker_b_47328.html
Generals react to veto: You’ve failed us, Mr. President…
Today, two retired Generals who led troops in Iraq expressed outrage at the President’s
veto of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Health, and Iraq Accountability Act.
–Maj. Gen. John Batiste, USA, Ret.
Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton, USA, Ret.
Bush Calls Democratic Bill to Save GI Lives, a “prescription for chaos and confusion.”
Excuse us, Dr. George, but that was the prescription you wrote more than four years ago
when you launched the “shock and awe” adventure, and then declared “combat operations”
over. The Democrats are trying to END the chaos and confusion, you destructive sociopath.
Bush Vetoes Bill Tying Iraq Funds to Exit
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/02/washington/02policy.html?_r=1&th=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&
emc=th&adxnnlx=1178212828-KYrdBCm01ntTSHv3xsNGuw
Pelosi reveals: In 1999, Bush said it was important for the president to lay out war
timetables
The president wants a blank check. The Congress is not going to give it to him. The
president said, in his comments, he did not believe in timelines, and he spoke out very
forcefully against them. Yet in 1999, on June 5th, then-Governor Bush said, about
President Clinton, “I think it’s important for the president to lay out a timetable as to
how long they will be involved and when they would be withdrawn.” Despite his past
statements, President Bush refuses to apply the same standard to his own activities.
Standards — that’s the issue.
If the president thinks that what is happening on the ground in Iraq now is progress, as
he said in his comments tonight, then it’s clear to see why we have a disagreement on
policy with him. I agree with Leader Reid. We look forward to working with the president
to find common ground, but there is great distance between us right now.
Watch it:
http://thinkprogress.org/2007/05/01/pelosi-calls-out-bush-for-1999-statement-on-timetable/
This Week’s “BuzzFlash Wings of Justice Award” Rightfully Belongs to Kevin Tillman, Mary
Tillman, Jessica Lynch, and Pat Tillman (posthumously).
http://wingsofjustice.com/07/05/woj07018.html
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
House Republicans Continue to Add Their Names to the Bush/Cheney Death Warrant on
American GIs: “House fails to override Bush on Iraq.” GOP Reps Stand by Their Delusional,
Failed Sociopath and Abandon Our Troops.
Iraq lawmakers’ vacation plans draw fire
“If they go off on vacation for two months while our troops fight — that would be the
outrage of outrages,” said Rep. Chris Shays, R-Conn.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_iraq;_ylt=AgbPbouocKUxDfM_Qgx2tFGs0NUE
Bush’s Enduring Legacy of Delusion and Failure Continues to Reach Gruesome New
Milestones: Corpses Held for Ransoms in Baghdad
BAGHDAD – Criminals in Baghdad are stealing corpses from the scenes of car bombings and
killings in order to extract ransoms from grieving relatives.
In a macabre offshoot of the capital’s kidnapping epidemic, the gangs pose as medics
collecting bodies to be taken back to the city’s overflowing morgues.
Instead, they take the corpses to secret places and demand payments of up to $5,000
to release each body to relatives for burial. Because Muslim custom dictates that a body
must be buried as soon as possible after death, many families simply pay up, rather than
involve the police.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/world/20070501-121439-5721r.htm
Thank you to Wm. Lacy Clay (D-MO) and Janice Schakowsky (D-IL) for co-sponsoring Dennis
Kucinich’s impeachment bill; 3 down, 432 to go 5/3
http://www.atlantaprogressivenews.com/news/0153.html
General Eaton to Bush: “Respectfully, as your former commander on the ground, your
administration did not listen to our best advice. In fact, a number of my fellow Generals
were forced out of their jobs, because they did not tell you what you wanted to hear –
most notably General Eric Shinseki, whose foresight regarding troop levels was advice you
rejected, at our troops’ peril.”
http://www.veteransforamerica.org/index.cfm/page/weblog/subpage/display_blog/bid/4A0B50FE
-123F-747A-1BBCF49BBD9E5B47
Bush’s new definition of ’success’ in Iraq: ‘Success is not, no violence. There are
parts of our own country that have got a certain level of violence to it. But success is
a level of violence where the people feel comfortable about living their daily lives. And
that’s what we’re trying to achieve.’ What?!??!? 5/3
So, that’s what the regime is now trying to achive in Iraq? A “level of violence
where…people feel comfortable”? I really need to find a YouTube video of this speech,
because I don’t think that the above words (from the White House website transcript) are
exactly what Mr. Bush actually said.
Either way – is this what our soldiers are dying every day for? Establishing an
acceptable level of violence in Iraq? And what, exactly, is an acceptable level of
violence? 10 headless bodies pulled out of the river? 5 car bombings? 2.3 American
deaths? I want metrics, dammit.
http://allspinzone.com/wp/2007/05/02/bush-redefines-success-in-iraq/
Peter Michaelson: A Democratic Deterrent against the Politics of Fear
Rudy Giuliani has unveiled his presidential campaign strategy: He will pursue the
Republican Party’s goal of encouraging Americans to be fearful, thereby weakening the
country.
http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/contributors/979
Richard Cohen: A Case Against Cheney; See, Dana Milbank, you could have written this
piece instead of spending valuable Washington Post space making fun of Kucinich. 5/3
Case Against Cheney
By Richard Cohen
Wednesday, May 2, 2007; Page A15
The resolution offered by the gentleman from Ohio reads sensibly. It alleges crimes high
and low, misdemeanors galore — all of them representing an effort to mislead the
American people and take them into war. It is Dennis Kucinich’s articles of impeachment
directed at Dick Cheney. The vice president will, of course, deny being a liar. As long
as Kucinich is at it, add that to the articles.
The congressman’s case is persuasive, although his remedy may be too radical. He calls
for Cheney to be impeached by the House and tried by the Senate, just as Bill Clinton was
for what turned out to be neither a high crime nor much of a misdemeanor. What was it,
anyway, compared with more than 3,300 American dead?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/01/AR2007050101419.html
Here’s another mind-bender for you, Mr. Clarke
In case you missed it, Richard Clarke’s recent op-ed in the New York Daily News, “Put
Bush’s ‘puppy dog’ terror theory to sleep,” was classic instruction in Logic 101 and a
sneak preview into Intermediate Propaganda, a field in which we’re likely to be returning
but unwilling students, and soon.
The “puppy dog” theory his title referred to is the president’s insistence “that
terrorists will ‘follow us home’ like lost dogs. This will only happen, however, he says,
if we ‘lose’ in Iraq.” And this, Clarke notes, “is the corollary to earlier sloganeering
that proved the President had never studied logic”: “We are fighting terrorists in Iraq
so that we will not have to face them and fight them in the streets of our own cities.”
This is, of course, hogwash of the most transparent kind. First, Clarke writes, “nothing
about our being ‘over there’ in any way prevents terrorists from coming here. Quite the
opposite, the evidence is overwhelming that our presence provides motivation for people
throughout the Arab world to become anti-American terrorists.”
Furthermore, observes Clarke, “U.S. military raids in Iraq have uncovered evidence that
Iraqis are planning attacks in America, perhaps to be carried out by terrorists with
European Union passports that require no U.S. visas.” So it may be that deadly, hard
evidence of Bush’s illogic will emerge well before his departure from office.
If, however, it does not, and comes only later, “if Bush is down on the ranch cutting
trees, he and whatever few followers he retains by then will blame his successor. You can
almost hear them now: If only his successor had left enough U.S. troops in the Iraqi
shooting gallery to satisfy the blood lust of the enemy, as Bush did, then they wouldn’t
have come here.”
Yet there’s another mantra repeated by Team Bush even more often than the “puppy dog
theory.”
How many times have we heard that if the U.S. publicizes a timetable for withdrawal, the
bad guys will simply wait us out? They’ll simply wait till we leave at the appointed
time, then unleash their dastardly havoc (as if today’s situation is tolerable).
What am I missing? Timetable proponents should point out just as often that this
argument’s corollary is that once this hoped-for peace is achieved, American military
forces would, the administration implies, then withdraw — but what’s to stop the bad
guys from likewise simply waiting out an artificial, internally imposed, interim peace?
What’s to stop them from laying down arms (as some are, in fact, now doing), smiling
deferentially at occupational forces and thereby bamboozling policymakers into thinking
it’s OK to withdraw?
In short, what’s the difference between them waiting out a timetable and waiting out a
peace?
So either way — whether Iraqi sectarians continue their internecine slaughter or
suddenly shake hands — the logic of Bush’s “They’ll wait us out if we announce a
withdrawal date” theory is as mangy as his “puppy dog.”
http://pmcarpenter.blogs.com/p_m_carpenters_commentary/2007/05/heres_another_m.html
Troops are fighting for freedom of speech, too bad the Army doesn’t want them to have
that same freedom while their lives are on the line; The U.S. Army has ordered soldiers
to stop posting to blogs or sending personal e-mail messages, without first clearing the
content with a superior officer. No more censorship: We can handle the truth. 5/3
http://www.wired.com/politics/onlinerights/news/2007/05/army_bloggers
Bush Lied, Soldiers Keep Dying.
3,355 U.S. Military Fatalities in Iraq
385 U.S. Military Fatalities in Afghanistan
24,912 U.S. Military Maimed in Iraq (source: DoD Update as of April 25, 2007)
68,796 Iraqis Reported Killed (source: Iraq Body Count)
655,000 Iraqis Reported Killed (source: The Lancet)
May 3, 2007
Rove’s e-mails subpoenaed as Gonzales continues to defy Senate Judiciary Committee
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/05/02/gonzales.subpoena/index.html?eref=rss_topstories
America’s Military Being Broken By Bush: “Key US Army ranks begin to thin”
Washington – Thousands more mid-level enlisted soldiers are leaving the Army than in
each of the past two years, forcing the service to increase its use of pay-to-stay
programs and find other ways to keep GIs in the fold.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20070502/ts_csm/aretain
More Evidence at the DOJ of the Bushevik to Make America a One-Party State, Not a
Democracy. It’s Called Fascism, Not Justice.
Justice probes hiring of prosecutors
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department is investigating whether its former White House
liaison used political affiliations in deciding whom to hire as entry-level prosecutors
in some U.S. attorney offices around the country, The Associated Press has learned.
Such consideration would be a violation of federal law.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070503/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/justice_prosecutors;_ylt=Ap882bPkJ1
YUabIVjbKH0TOs0NUE
Bush is Now Calling Himself “The Commander Guy.” We Call Him a Jailbird.
From ‘The Decider’ to ‘Commander Guy’ to ‘Veto Man’?
Just when the press had pretty much exhausted every joking play on President Bush’s self-
proclaimed nickname “The Decider” he handed them another on a platter today: “The
Commander Guy.”
In a speech to the Associated General Contractors of America, a construction industry
trade group, today in Washington, he discussed his current tussle with Congress over
troop levels and funding for Iraq.
“The question is, ‘Who ought to make that decision, the Congress or the commanders?,’’
Bush said. “As you know, my position is clear – I’m the commander guy.” So he vetoed the
congressional initiative in this area.
This led Sheryl Gay Stolberg on The New York Times’ blog, The Caucus, to wonder if this
suggested a possible new new nickname: “Veto Man.”
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=100358005
=xx=x=
x=x=xx=x=x
7
Fantastic Flyby
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2007/01may_fantasticflyby.htm?list169474
Don’t let drilling destroy the Upper Green
Welcome to the southern Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, with its mountain vistas,
sagebrush mesas, and verdant ribbons of forest. Home to the longest wildlife migration
corridor in the lower 48, the Upper Green River Valley is quickly being consumed by gas
drilling, resulting in hazy skies, heavy traffic, and greatly reduced populations of
wildlife.
Even so, the Bush Administration plans to triple the number of wells there, to more than
10,000 gas wells. But there’s an alternative plan – one that promotes balance and
sensible growth. Help us tell the Bureau of Land Management to choose a better plan
before the June 18 public comment deadline
http://action.wilderness.org/campaign/upper_green/i8kxe3840txk6mk?
Harry’s Iraq deployment is delayed
Prince Harry’s deployment to Iraq has been delayed to allow time for fellow soldiers to
assess the potential dangers his unit will face.
There has been much speculation the prince would not serve in southern Iraq, as news of
his deployment with the Blues and Royals has coincided with one of the worst months for
British casualties since the war began in 2003.
Of the twelve British soldiers killed in April, two had been carrying out the same
duties Prince Harry, 22, would be expected to undertake in his six-month tour; there is
also fear that the prince’s deployment would increase the risk of attacks for his
colleagues. It has now emerged that soldiers from his regiment will travel ahead to
undertake combat and assess the threats posed by insurgents
http://www.guardian.co.uk/monarchy/story/0,,2071309,00.html
Progress in Iraq hard to define, hard to measure
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/05/02/btsc.labott/
Iraq on Watch List of Nations That Violate Religious Rights
For the first time since the U.S. invasion in 2003, a high-level advisory panel has
placed Iraq on a watch list of countries that violate religious freedom, saying the
government there engages in extrajudicial killings based on religious identity.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/02/AR2007050202445.html
After more than two years of banging the drum here at The BRAD BLOG, it looks as if the
national MSM has finally picked up on the fraud perpetrated by Missouri’s White House
operative Mark F. “Thor” Hearne and his high-level democracy-hating GOP scammer pals in
Missouri, at the Department of Justice, and in the White House.
http://www.bradblog.com/?page_id=4418
Missouri stem-cell resolution rejected
By KIT WAGAR
JEFFERSON CITY | A House panel on Monday night shot down an effort to override voters’
approval of Amendment 2, which protects stem-cell research.
Conservatives rev up effort to revamp Missouri’s judicial-selection system
If critics in the Legislature have their way, Missouri voters will be asked to do away
with the state’s 67-year-old system for appointing and retaining judges on its highest
courts, and in Kansas City and St. Louis.
A state House panel is expected to vote later this week on a proposed constitutional
amendment, known as House Joint Resolution 31, that would do just that. If voters
approve, the governor and the state Senate would wield more power over who gets on the
bench. Voters would lose it.
Supporters of the proposal, including the Federalist Society, say their aim is to rein
in an out-of-control judiciary that has issued some unpopular rulings. Opponents, which
include the Missouri Bar Association, say the result would put politicians in control of
the courts.
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/missouristatenews/story/E6F0111417603AE
F862572CE0011887F?OpenDocument
In 2004, Matt Blunt was locked in a neck-and-neck campaign for Governor against now-
Senator Claire McCaskill. The race went down to the wire, and on Election Day, Matt
Blunt narrowly prevailed.
One of the key issues in that campaign was health care. Let’s take a little stroll down
memory lane: Watch this short video clip of Matt Blunt from 2004, talking about his
position on health care.
In this 2004 interview, Matt Blunt says he was “opposed to changing eligibility
requirements for [Medicaid].” Responding to concerns that he would join Missouri
Republicans in throwing thousands of children off the Medicaid rolls, Blunt denied such
charges, saying the “children’s health insurance program is a great investment for our
state to make in Missouri’s future.”
Well guess what happened just one year later, after he was elected governor? Matt Blunt
slashed or eliminated the health insurance of more than 400,000 Missouri citizens,
including more than 55,000 Missouri children.
It’s hard to believe that Matt Blunt would really take health insurance away from
thousands of our friends and neighbors who need it the most. And it’s even harder to
believe that he would outright lie to the voters about his intentions. But he did.
Don’t believe me? Watch Matt Blunt talk about health care for yourself.
http://www.missouridems.org/issues/bluntonmedicaid.asp
Now Matt Blunt is rolling out his latest health care scheme. He claims that it will fix
our health care system in Missouri — yet it does nothing to restore the health care
coverage he took from so many of Missouri’s most vulnerable families two years ago.
That’s just wrong. This week, as the Missouri House of Representatives continues to
debate Matt Blunt’s new health care plan, I hope you’ll join Democratic leaders like Jay
Nixon and speak out.
Demand that Governor Matt Blunt restore health insurance to more than 400,000 of our
most vulnerable neighbors here in Missouri. Forward an e-mail to Governor Blunt and your
state legislators now!
=xx=x=
=xx=x=x==x=x
‘No Trade Deal With a Corrupt Regime’
Colombia is the most dangerous country in the world for trade unionists. Nearly 2,300
union leaders and members have been murdered there since 1991 and the government
routinely ignores or violates internationally recognized workers’ rights.
Last year alone, 72 trade unionists were murdered in Colombia. Yet the Bush
administration continues to push for a trade deal with that country.
http://blog.aflcio.org/2007/05/02/no-trade-deal-with-a-corrupt-regime/
Resurrection’s Anti-Union Crusade Hurting Its Bottom Line
The failure of Resurrection Health Care’s (RHC’s) management to deal fairly with its
workers is hurting the company’s bottom line. The bond-rating firm Moody’s Investors
Service has downgraded Resurrection’s debt rating, citing among other things “pressures
from a protracted labor union campaign
http://blog.aflcio.org/2007/05/03/resurrections-anti-union-crusade-hurting-its-bottom-
line/
StopIranWar.com
Please join the Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans at VoteVets.org and me — sign the
petition to President Bush today. Urge him to work with our allies and use every
diplomatic, political, and economic option at our disposal to deal with Iran. War is not
the answer.
http://ga4.org/campaign/stopiranwar/w6wk8364pxk768b?
Click here to see how Republican senators have served as an echo chamber for George
Bush’s bogus claims about progress in Iraq.
Mission Accomplished: Echoing Bush, Republican Senators Spin Tall Tales On Iraq
But GOP Spin Isn’t Backed up by Facts on the Ground:
http://www.dscc.org/news/roundup/20070501_mission1/index2.htm
Exactly four years after standing in front of a banner emblazoned with the slogan
“Mission Accomplished” and proudly declaring the end of major combat operations in Iraq,
President Bush now stands poised to veto legislation that would bring U.S. troops home.
Tens of thousands of lives and billions of dollars later, it is clear that Mission
Accomplished has become Mission Impossible.
https://www.clw.org/contribute/council/
G.O.P. Contenders Ponder What to Say About Bush
LOS ANGELES, May 2 — As they gather Thursday night at the Ronald Reagan Presidential
Library for their first debate, the Republican presidential candidates are thrilled at
the chance to associate themselves with Reagan. But they may not be able to escape the
challenge created for them by the current president.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/03/us/politics/03repubs.html?th&emc=th
66 Workers at Agency Had Records, Inquiry Finds
HOUSTON, May 2 — An investigation into sexual abuse and mismanagement at the Texas Youth
Commission has led to the dismissal of 66 employees with records of felony charges or
arrests, including one convicted of homicide and another who had pleaded guilty to
attempted murder, the state official leading the inquiry reported Wednesday.
The employees included guards, case workers and maintenance staff members, most of them
in regular contact with hundreds of troubled youths. Officials said they had no
information on whether any of the 66 were accused of harming youths in their custody.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/03/us/03texas.html?th&emc=th
Unwanted Folk
Why was Joan Baez considered too objectionable to participate in a concert for injured
soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center?
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/03/opinion/03thu4.html?th&emc=th
He’s Impeachable, You Know
By FRANK BOWMAN
Published: May 3, 2007
Columbia, Mo.
IF Alberto Gonzales will not resign, Congress should impeach him. Article II of the
Constitution grants Congress the power to impeach “the president, the vice president and
all civil officers of the United States.” The phrase “civil officers” includes the
members of the cabinet (one of whom, Secretary of War William Belknap, was impeached in
1876).
Impeachment is in bad odor in these post-Clinton days. It needn’t be. Though provoked by
individual misconduct, the power to impeach is at bottom a tool granted Congress to
defend the constitutional order. Mr. Gonzales’s behavior in the United States attorney
affair is of a piece with his role as facilitator of this administration’s claims of
unreviewable executive power.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/03/opinion/03bowman.html?th&emc=th
Confucianism
Do not do to others what you would not like yourself. Then there will be no resentment
against you, either in the family or in the state. Analects 12:2
Buddhism
Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful. Udana-Varga 5,1
Christianity
All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye so to them; for this is
the law and the prophets. Matthew 7:1
Hinduism
This is the sum of duty; do naught onto others what you would not have them do unto you.
Mahabharata 5,1517
Islam
No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for
himself. Sunnah
Judaism
What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellowman. This is the entire Law; all the
rest is commentary. Talmud, Shabbat 3id
Taoism
Regard your neighbor’s gain as your gain, and your neighbor’s loss as your own loss. Tai
Shang Kan Yin P’ien
Zoroastrianism
That nature alone is good which refrains from doing another whatsoever is not good for
itself. Dadisten-I-dinik, 94,5
Number Of Iraqi Civilians Slaughtered In America’s War On Iraq – At Least 655,000 + +
http://tinyurl.com/usq4x
Number of U.S. Military Personnel Sacrificed (Officially acknowledged) In America’sWar
On Iraq 3,352
http://icasualties.org/oif/
The War in Iraq Costs
$421,919,915,674
See the cost in your community
http://nationalpriorities.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=182
Why There Was No Exit Plan
By Lewis Seiler, Dan Hamburg
For all the talk about timetables and benchmarks, one might think that the United States
will end the military occupation of Iraq within the lifetimes of the readers of this
opinion editorial. Think again.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17628.htm
In case you missed it
The War Party
Video
Panorama investigates the “neo-conservatives”, the small and unelected group of right-
wingers, who critics claim have hijacked the White House. They brought us war against
Iraq – what do the hawks in Washington have in store for us now?
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8581.htm
Enter the Empire
By Manuel Valenzuela
The wealthiest nation-state the world has ever seen has for the last sixty years been
standing atop the upper crust of humankind, basking in the splendor of unfathomable
richness, enjoying unprecedented standards of living, accumulating power and control at
tremendous speed and becoming, at the expense of the planet and its inhabitants, the
latest incarnation of Rome.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17629.htm
Don’t Steal, Don’t Lie and Don’t Be Lazy
Evo Morales and the New Wave of Democracy in Latin America
A Must Listen Audio Report
Democratically elected with 54% of the vote, he is soft-spoken, honest, mature, humble
and trying to balance a history of oligarchic elitism with the growing needs on his
people. A new breed of government which has the Bush Administration perplexed and unable
to put in their pocket.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17631.htm
H a r l a n C o u n t y USA:
Video
Least we think that America was built by the starched shirts and expensive suits
featured on FOX News and CNN. This documentary will help to remind us that our freedoms
and working conditions were not won by U.S. soldiers in foreign lands but through the
suffering and sweat of our fathers and grand fathers in their struggle against commercial
interests.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article13730.htm
Millions Will Die
By George Monbiot
Rich nations seeking to cut climate change have this in common: they lie. You won’t find
this statement in the draft of the new report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change, which was leaked to the Guardian last week. But as soon as you understand the
numbers, the words form before your eyes. The governments making genuine efforts to
tackle global warming are using figures they know to be false.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17632.htm
U.S. Cites 91 Percent Rise In Terrorist Acts in Iraq:
The number of terrorism incidents in Iraq — and resulting deaths, injuries and
kidnappings — skyrocketed from 2005 to 2006, according to statistics released by U.S.
counterterrorism officials yesterday.
http://snipurl.com/1izf2
U.S. Military wife tells off neocon Kristol : 3 Minute Video:
On a C-Span morning call-in show, a military wife took issue with William Kristol’s
disconnect from the personal strains of military families. Kristol was almost speechless
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17630.htm
Some straight talking: but is anyone in America listening?:
According to a recent poll, one in four Iraqis has personally experienced or witnessed
the murder of a family member as a result of violence since the US-led invasion.
http://snipurl.com/1izf6
Baghdad up close and personal:
Pepe Escobar, is back in Iraq and in the Red Zone – that is, outside “Fortress USA”, the
Green Zone. This is the first of his unembedded, non-Kevlar-protected, bodyguardless
reports.
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/IE02Ak01.html
Price tag for war in Iraq on track to top $500 billion:
The bitter fight over the latest Iraq spending bill has all but obscured a sobering
fact: The war will soon cost more than $500 billion.
http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington//17158295.htm
Everywoman – Iraqi women :
Video explores the lives of 4 Iraqi women living under U.S. occupation.
http://snipurl.com/1izf8
Few Iraqi refugees allowed into U.S.:
The United States admitted 68 Iraqi refugees in the six months through March, a tiny
percentage of those fleeing their homes because of the war, State Department figures show.
http://snipurl.com/1izfl
Coalition statement in support of impeachment :
A group of prominent Americans gathered at the U.S. Capitol to speak in support of
beginning impeachment proceedings against President George W. Bush and Vice President
Richard B. Cheney.
http://www.ichblog.eu/content/view/1355/59/
A Saudi Prince Tied to Bush Is Sounding Off-Key:
Bush administration officials have been scratching their heads over steps taken by
Prince Bandar’s uncle, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, that have surprised them by going
against the American playbook, after receiving assurances to the contrary from Prince
Bandar during secret trips he made to Washington.
http://snipurl.com/1izfs
Iran says “evil approach” by U.S. prevents talks:
Iran will not negotiate with the United States until it stops its “evil approach”, the
government spokesman was quoted as saying on Tuesday, two days before the two foes were
due to attend a meeting on Iraq.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/DAH144564.htm
‘They sold out the world for an F-16 sale’ :
The US and its allies allowed Pakistan to clandestinely acquire most of the technology
for its nuclear program from abroad, unwittingly facilitating the spread of nuclear
weapons technology to Iran, North Korea and Libya over the past several decades.
http://rawstory.com/news/2007/They_sold_out_world_for_F16_0426.html
Child Slavery: Video:
Around 8.4 million children around the world are enslaved today. Now, in a remarkable
journey across three continents, five of them tell their stories. This documentary is
presented by reporter Rageh Omaar
http://snipurl.com/1izge
Cops Planted Pot on 92-Year Old Woman They Killed:
According to federal documents released this week, these are the events that led to
Kathryn Johnston’s death and the steps the officers took to cover their tracks.
http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/51151/
x=x=x=x=
=xx=x==x==x
The U.S.’ War on Democracy
Interview with John Pilger
The United States has long waged a war on democracy behind a facade of propaganda
designed to contort the intellect and morality of Americans and the rest of us. For many
of your readers, this is known. However, for others in the West, the propaganda that has
masked Washington’s ambitions has been entrenched, with its roots in the incessant
celebration of World War Two, the “good war”, then “victory” in the cold war.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17637.htm
Anti-Capitalism in Five Minutes or Less
By Robert Jensen
We are told, over and over, that capitalism is not just the system we have, but the only
system we can ever have. Yet for many, something nags at us about such a claim. Could
this really be the only option?
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17634.htm
Some analysts see Iraq war eclipsing toll from Vietnam:
As fighting in Iraq enters its fifth year, an increasing number of specialists in
foreign policy and national strategy are contending that the biggest difference might be
that the Iraq war will inflict greater damage to US interests than Vietnam did.
http://snipurl.com/1j4xw
Anger in Baghdad as Americans finish wall:
American forces have completed construction of a concrete wall around the Baghdad
district of Adhamiya despite protests from the Iraqi prime minister and local residents
who claim that they are now at the mercy of militants.
http://snipurl.com/1j4xz
Top aides say Bush can order warrantless wiretaps:
Senior Bush administration officials told Congress on Tuesday that they could not pledge
that the administration would continue to seek warrants from a secret court for a
domestic wiretapping program, as it agreed to do in January.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/nation/4766952.html
Administration pushes to expand domestic surveillance:
Claiming that federal investigators are missing key information on terrorists because of
an outdated spying law, the top U.S. intelligence official called on lawmakers on Tuesday
to revamp the foreign surveillance act and make it easier to eavesdrop on non-citizens in
the U.S. with suspected links to terrorism.
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/news/editorial/17166016.htm
Arctic ice cap melting 30 years ahead of forecast :
This means the ocean at the top of the world could be free or nearly free of summer ice
by 2020, three decades sooner than the global panel’s gloomiest forecast of 2050.
http://snipurl.com/1j4zo
George Monbiot: How to Stop the Planet From Burning:
All over Washington, you can hear the giant scraping sound of officials and legislators
frantically back-tracking. After years of obfuscation, denial, and lies about climate
change, all but the most hardened recidivists are rebranding themselves as friends of the
earth.
http://www.alternet.org/story/51006/
=xx=x=
=xx==x=x
Fighting Them Here Too
By: Nicole Belle on Wednesday, May 2nd, 2007 at 7:15 PM – PDT The American front on
the “War on Terror” has taken some interesting turns this week, especially if you’re the
trainwreck that is Debbie Schlussel, who you may remember sees Muslim terrorists around
every corner.
Knowing that to most of us, a grasp on reality is important, she invokes Godwin’s law
over being called out over her incredibly ignorant and blind bigotry. Yet, as petrified
as Debbie is over a couple of teenagers with cherry bombs, she remains blithely
indifferent to the advocation of domestic terrorism by the leader of the Southern Baptist
Convention or worse, an actual BOMB left at a women’s clinic in Austin. Obviously, for
Debbie, the amount of melanin she suspects is in your skin dictates whether it’s
considered terrorist activities.
Sadly, Cliff Schecter suspects that Michael Chertoff may actually be getting his
Homeland Security ideas from the same shallow pool as Schlussel. Yes, it’s that
disturbing…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/02/fighting-them-here-too/
Consequences
Terry McCarthy, an ABC News Baghdad correspondent tells Charlie Rose what has happened
to the Iraq society from the occupation. The religious factions were not at their throats
until now…
It’s another heartbreaking moment brought to you by all the Republicans in Congress that
rubber stamp Bush and his policies. We can throw in these seven House Democrats as well
who voted against the veto bill today.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/02/consequences/
Colbert: Romney’s Not a Mormon…He’s a Scientologist!
Has Mitt Romney been lying all along about his religion? After his startling revelation
on FOX, Stephen thinks so.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/02/colbert-romneys-not-a-mormonhes-a-scientologist/
Stephanie Miller & Maxine Waters Educate America On Iraq
can’t believe it’s over.”The Stephanie Miller Show” had its final run on MSNBC this
morning and she went out with bang. This interview with Maxine Waters (D-CA) should be
required viewing for every American. It’s all about framing the issues and few people do
it better than Congresswoman Waters. Watching these women shred the Bush rhetoric on Iraq
and the money for the troops is truly a thing of beauty.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/02/stephanie-miller-maxine-waters-educate-america-
on-iraq/
Is Rice engaging in ‘bad behavior’?
can’t wait to hear the noise machine blather endlessly about how Condoleezza Rice is
undermining U.S. policy by chatting with Syrian officials. (thanks to L.J. for the tip)
Remember when Pelosi had the audacity to talk to Syria directly? As I recall, when the
Speaker of the House chatted with Syrian officials last month, the White House,
congressional Republicans, and far-right activists were apoplectic. CNN even ran a news
segment on Pelosi’s trip titled “Talking to Terrorists.”
The ringleader of this spectacularly stupid smear was the Bush White House. Somehow I
suspect Rove & Co. will be a little quieter now.
And as long we’re on the subject of hypocrisy, guess who wants to engage with Iran, too?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/02/is-rice-engaging-in-%e2%80%98bad-
behavior%e2%80%99/
Government Oversight Continues With Halliburton, Cheney & Terrorists
The Democrats promised to conduct oversight when they took control of Congress and boy,
are they delivering. On Monday, the Senate Oversight Committee held a hearing dealing
with Halliburton and their exploitation of a loophole in U.S. law that allowed the
company to use foreign subsidiaries in order to do business with terrorist states -
namely, Iran. This clip shows Democratic Senators Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Sherrod
Brown (D-Ohio) grilling Sherry Williams, V.P. and Corporate Secretary for Halliburton
about the company’s deplorable ethics and questionable practices.
Vice President Cheney continues to recieve his hefty pension from Halliburton, all the
while knowing that that money is being earned with the blood of American soldiers. These
people have no morals and no conscience. It’s all about the almighty dollar, screw the
troops and screw the American people. They’re going to get thiers no matter where the
money comes from and how many people have to die to get it. This isn’t new by any means,
but getting these scumbags in front of Congress and forcing them to answer for their
disgusting business practices is, and it’s about time. Enjoy the show…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/02/government-oversight-continues-with-halliburton-
cheney-terrorists/
A Look Back at the “Mission” We’ve “Accomplished”
Keith takes a critical look back at all the “progress” Bush has cited over the past four
years. If the “mission” was “bringing democracy to the people of Iraq,” haven’t we
already “accomplished” that?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/02/a-look-back-at-the-mission-weve-accomplished/
