km.wittig

kmwittig

2006-01-10T00:18:00.000-05:00

kmwittig

Due to the size and amount of entries in this blog, (1,400) from this point on, I will now continue at http://kmwakak8.blogspot.com

~kmw

Evidence Allegedly Found of Secret CIA Prisons in Europe | Europe | Deutsche Welle | 09.01.2006

2006-01-10T00:15:00.000-05:00

Evidence Allegedly Found of Secret CIA Prisons in Europe Europe Deutsche Welle 09.01.2006

Unfortunately this is not a surprise. US cut a deal with Romania. Very sad for the people there to become involved in this mess.

Swiss intelligence services are allegedly in possession of proof that the US has detained terror suspects in secret prisons in various European countries. The CIA is irritated.
A fax sent by the Egyptian foreign ministry to its embassy in London stated that more than 20 Iraqis and Afghans had been questioned at a US-run base in Romania, a Swiss newspaper reported on Sunday.

SonntagsBlick said the Swiss secret services obtained a copy of the fax which revealed that the Egyptian embassy in London "learned from its own sources that 23 Iraqi and Afghan citizens had been questioned at the Mikhail Kogalniceanu base in the town of Constanza on the Black Sea coast."

The newspaper quoted a report written by the Swiss fefense ministry which said Egypt believed there were "similar centers in Ukraine, Kosovo, Macedonia and Bulgaria."

The Swiss ministry reacted to the report with a statement saying it would open an investigation into how the information was leaked. However, because the report is meant to be secret, the ministry refused to comment on its contents.

A senior officer at the Mikhail Kogalniceanu base categorically denied the report on Sunday.

"I have been working at this base since 1995 and I have never been aware of such an operation," officer Dan Buciuman said.

He added that the base was open to "anyone who wants to carry out an investigation."

Amid protests from European governments that their airports are being used by the Central Intelligence Agency to transport suspects, the United States has not denied the existence of alleged prisons in eastern and central Europe and elsewhere, but has refuted allegations that it uses torture to obtain information.

Just in time

US television network ABC reported in December that the US had held 11 senior members of the al Qaeda network in Poland but that they were evacuated to North Africa shortly before US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice toured Europe that month.

This renders the US Government nothing but slimey creatures of lies and deceipt, but we already knew that.

Iran Has Broken Nuclear Commitments, Says Steinmeier | Europe | Deutsche Welle | 09.01.2006

2006-01-10T00:08:00.000-05:00

Iran Has Broken Nuclear Commitments, Says Steinmeier Europe Deutsche Welle 09.01.2006

Iran's decision to resume nuclear research marks a breach of its international commitments and "cannot remain without consequence," German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Monday.

Steinmeier said Berlin would this week discuss Iran's latest step with France and Britain, the other two countries that form the European troika negotiating with Tehran on its controversial nuclear program.

"This marks a breach of Tehran's commitments ... It cannot remain without consequence," for the troika, Steinmeier said on the sidelines of a meeting of the German cabinet in Genshagen, outside Berlin. "We have had two very, very grave signals from the Iranian government over the past weekend," he added.

If the US invades Iran, will these countries suport this mission? US has made many conflicts with these countries.

International War Crimes Tribunal

2006-01-10T00:02:00.000-05:00

International War Crimes Tribunal

Incinerated body of an Iraqi soldier on the "Highway of Death," a name the press has given to the road from Mutlaa, Kuwait, to Basra, Iraq. U.S. planes immobilized the convoy by disabling vehicles at its front and rear, then bombing and straffing the resulting traffic jam for hours. More than 2,000 vehicles and tens of thousands of charred and dismembered bodies littered the sixty miles of highway. The clear rapid incineration of the human being [pictured above] suggests the use of napalm, phosphorus, or other incindiary bombs. These are anti-personnel weapons outlawed under the 1977 Geneva Protocols. This massive attack occurred after Saddam Hussein announced a complete troop withdrawl from Kuwait in compliance with UN Resolution 660. Such a massacre of withdrawing Iraqi soldiers violates the Geneva Convention of 1949, common article 3, which outlaws the killing of soldiers who "are out of combat." There are, in addition, strong indications that many of those killed were Palestinian and Kuwaiti civilians trying to escape the impending seige of Kuwait City and the return of Kuwaiti armed forces. No attempt was made by U.S. military command to distinguish between military personnel and civilians on the "highway of death." The whole intent of international law with regard to war is to prevent just this sort of indescriminate and excessive use of force.(Photo Credit: © 1991 Kenneth Jarecke / Contact Press Images) (viewer discretion advised)

Oplan Bojinka - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2006-01-09T23:54:00.000-05:00

Oplan Bojinka - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Oplan Bojinka (also known as Operation Bojinka, Project Bojinka, Bojinka Plot, Bojinga, possibly from Arabic: بجنكة – slang in many dialects for explosion and pronounced Bo-JIN-ka, except in Egyptian where it is Bo-GIN-ka) was a planned large-scale attack on airliners in 1995, and was a precursor to the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Several media outlets, including TIME Asia [1], claim that the word Bojinka means "loud bang" or "explosion" in Serbo-Croatian. Khalid Shaikh Mohammed fought with Muslim fighters in Bosnia and supported this effort financially [2]. Endnote 7 of Chapter 5 of the 9/11 Commission Report states that Khalid Shaikh Mohammed claims that "bojinka" is "a nonsense word he adopted after hearing it on the front lines in Afghanistan." In English, the acronym "BOHICA" for 'Bend Over Here It Comes Again' is common military slang which refers to an incoming enemy attack, often bombs and is also used in online chat, e-mail, or newsgroup postings.

Not all media or text that refer to Oplan Bojinka will call it by that name.
The term can refer to the "airline bombing plot" alone, or that combined with the "Pope assassination plot" and the "CIA plane crash plot". The first refers to a plot to destroy 11 airliners on January 21 and 22, 1995, the second refers to a plan to kill Pope John Paul II on January 15, 1995, and the third refers a plan to crash a plane into the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia and other buildings. Operation Bojinka was prevented on January 6 and 7, 1995, but some lessons learned were apparently used by the planners of the September 11 attacks. This article will cover all three plans.

The money handed down to the plotters originated from Al-Qaida, an international Islamic militant organization which was then based in Sudan. Philippine authorities say that Operation Bojinka was developed by Ramzi Yousef and Khalid Shaikh Mohammed while they were in Manila, Philippines in 1994 and early 1995.

The money that funded Operation Bojinka came from Osama bin Laden and Hambali, and from front organizations operated by Mohammed Jamal Khalifa, bin Laden's brother-in-law.

Wali Khan Amin Shah, an Afghan, was the financier of the plot. He funded the plot by laundering money through his girlfriend and other Manila women, several of whom were bar hostesses and one of whom was an employee at a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant.

They were bribed with gifts and holiday trips so that they could open bank accounts to stash funds.
The transfers were small, equivalent to about 12,000 to 24,000 Philippine pesos (500 to 1000 U.S. dollars), and would be handed over each night at a Wendy's or a karaoke bar.

The funds went to "Adam Sali", an alias used by Ramzi Yousef. The money came through a Filipino bank account owned by Syrian Omar Abu Omar, who worked at International Relations and Information Centre, an Islamic organization run by Mohammed Jamal Khalifa. [1]

A company called Konsojaya also provided financial assistance to the Manila cell by laundering money to it. Konsojaya was a front company that was started by the head of the group Jemaah Islamiyah, an Indonesian named Riduan Isamuddin, also known as Hambali. Wali Khan Amin Shah was one of the board of directors of the company.

Contents
1 Financing
2 Planning of Oplan Bojinka
3 Phase I
3.1 Pope assassination plot
3.2 Airline bombing plot
3.2.1 The bomb
3.2.2 Airports planned to be affected
3.2.3 Flights planned to be affected
4 Phase II, CIA plane crash plot
5 Discovery and Termination of Oplan Bojinka
6 The evidence in Room 603
6.1 Yousef's Computer
7 Murad's Confession
8 Manhunt
9 The end result
10 Opinions on Oplan Bojinka in relation to September 11
11 Bibliography
12 Other external links

World Can't Wait | Drive Out the Bush Regime

2006-01-09T22:49:00.000-05:00

World Can't Wait Drive Out the Bush Regime

WAR CRIMES INDICTMENTS TO BE DELIVERED TO BUSH ET AL AT THE WHITE HOUSE
Its about time!

Citizen's Tribunal Indicts President On War Crimes And Crimes Against Humanity
When: 1:30 p.m. January 10, 2006
Where: The White House, Washington, D.C. www.bushcommission.org

Contact: Larry Everest or Janet Yip: 212-941-8086 or e-mail
commission@nion.us
This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it.

Indicments will be delivered at the front gate of the White House and a press conference will follow in Lafayette Park following delivery of the indictments to the White House.

Present to answer questions will be retired CIA analyst Ray McGovern, authors William Blum and Larry Everest and Travis Morales, World Can't Wait, Drive Out the Bush Regime.
The indictments will also be delivered to the Department of Justice.

Named in the indictment are:
President of the United States George W. Bush
Vice President Richard Cheney
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld
U.S. Army Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez
U.S. Army Major General Geoffrey Miller
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, and others

These indictments result from preparatory work and testimony presented in New York City on October 21 and 22, 2005, at the opening session of the International Commission of Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity Committed by the Bush Administration, alleging illegal acts carried out or approved by the above named individuals in relation to, or in the conduct of, the following:

1) Wars of Aggression, particular reference to Iraq and Afghanistan;
2) Torture and Indefinite Detention;
3) Destruction of the Global Environment, particular reference to systematic policies, contributing to the effects of global warming;
4) Attacks on Global Public Health and Reproductive Rights, particular reference to the genocidal effects of forcing international agencies to promote "abstinence only" in the midst of a global AIDS epidemic; and
5) Bush administration's lethal response to Hurricane Katrina.

What about constitutional violations??? http://kmwakak8.blogspot.com

[See http://www.bushcommission.org/ for audio of session 1, read the chapters andfull indictments.]The concluding sessions of the International Commission of Inquiry will be at the Riverside Church and the Columbia University Law School in New York on January 20-22.

The commission was organized by the Not in Our Name Statement of Conscience and is endorsed by:
Center for Constitutional Rights, National Lawyers Guild, After Downing Street.Org and many other prominent individuals and organizations, including Former Sen. James Abourezk, former British MP Tony Benn, authors Gore Vidal, Howard Zinn and Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and actor Edward Asner.
The above-named defendants are invited to appear or to send representatives to speak in their defense before a panel of distinguished jurors.
This is the first opportunity in the United States for a complete public hearing of the charges and the evidence and testimony supporting them.

Charter, full indictments, standards for judgment, and audio and video coverage of the first session: http://www.bushcommission.org/
First Session (Oct '05) video and audio now available at: http://www.bushcommission.org/

Bush Regime in Trouble

2006-01-09T22:42:00.000-05:00

Bush Regime in Trouble

Bush Regime: Under Siege and Lashing Back
Revolution #021, November 6, 2005, posted at revcom.us
The Bush Regime is in trouble. Big trouble.

And that makes this moment both extremely promising and extremely dangerous. We stand at a crossroads where the impact of what we do--or don’t do--is greatly magnified.
We are more powerful than he is

WILD AMBITIONS
We have to recognize that Bush came to power with a sweeping plan to transform American society--both its place in the world and its "social contract."

The people who brought Bush to power--and remember, they shamelessly and coercively stole an election to get him in--wanted a much more untrammeled domination of the planet by the U.S.

To help effect that and to keep the "home base" itself stable, they needed and wanted a fascist order at home, one propped up ideologically and socially by an extreme, know-nothing brand of Christianity.

The end of the Cold War, the tremendous changes brought by globalization, the differences in people’s thinking off of both the struggles of the ’60s and the socioeconomic transformations of the ’90s--all these, and many other things besides, had introduced a lot of uncertainty and instability, and the imperialists saw the need for an iron fist to bludgeon their way through.

This has led to a very radical restructuring in how U.S. imperialism enforces its domination, overseas and domestically. For example: this is not the first time that U.S. intelligence and military personnel have tortured prisoners. But it IS the first time that the president has openly proclaimed that he has the legal right to order such torture!

(It is also significant that those within the army who could not stomach the systematic and wide-ranging scope of the "new torture" regimen were forced out.) Nor is this the first time that religion has played a prominent role in U.S. public life.

But it IS the first time when Supreme Court nominees must be vetted and approved by religious fanatics and when the president’s "model justice" (Scalia) says that the legitimacy of the government is based on "God’s will," rather than the consent of the governed (even though the "consent of the governed" is itself a myth, the fact that a Supreme Court justice would not even claim it as the source of legitimacy is significant. . . and ominous).
And these are just a few examples of many.

Bush does all this not mainly out of perversity and ignorance, but because he represents a section of imperialists--the dominant section--that believes that these "new norms" must be enforced to maintain U.S. dominance abroad and hold U.S. society together while doing so. He and others are convinced that this and this alone can represent the interests of the system in a time of major and unpredictable changes.

He is not the whole of the system, nor is he all of what’s wrong; but he is its main representative and the changes he represents will be very bad for the people and their ability to struggle for a better future.

World Can't Wait | Drive Out the Bush Regime

2006-01-09T22:30:00.000-05:00

World Can't Wait Drive Out the Bush Regime

weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Cheney leaves hospital after breathing scare

2006-01-09T22:28:00.000-05:00

Top News Article Reuters.com

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Vice President Dick Cheney was taken to hospital complaining of shortness of breath on Monday but was released about four hours later, his office said.
"The vice president has departed the hospital. He is home," said Jenny Mayfield, a spokeswoman for his office.

The vice president, who has had four heart attacks, was taken to George Washington University Hospital around 3 a.m. (0800 GMT), according to a statement issued by his office.

Lets keep him really, really stressed, but I imagine keeping all the lies, deceipt and complicity going is stressful indeed.
Not enough.

World by the Tail, Inc. Creators of ClayPaws�, the original paw print kit�

2006-01-09T22:12:00.000-05:00

World by the Tail, Inc. Creators of ClayPaws�, the original paw print kit�

While off the subject of my usual ranting and raving, I had to add this site. We had to euthanize our last living member of our immediate family today, Ted a 20 year old tabby cat, but who fought to the end even when it was determined he had tumors ravaging his wasting away little body. Heartbreaking it was, but the gesture to make a paw print for us to save was very sweet, and I am sure we will cherish it, as much as we cherished the feisty cat who once walked on those old paws.
This was one amazing cat, and even after the euthanasia, he hung on, and passed while the vet was making an imprint of his back paw, leaving a very annoyed look on teddy's face as he passed away.
Its a very nice gesture for vets to offer thier clients, at a very difficult time.

Was the Media's Credibility Buried?

2006-01-09T20:35:00.000-05:00

Was the Media's Credibility Buried?

The media is always chomping at the bit for a story, but here in the states, we actually, beleve it or not have some limited media tactics, but in my mind you get the facts right before you publish.

I have recently come to terms with the fact that certain government agencies see to it that information is not available, simply missing, or people are told NOT to talk.

We are NOT the land of the Free any more to-to.

9/11: The Big Lie - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2006-01-08T18:08:00.000-05:00

9/11: The Big Lie - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

On the Attempt against the Pentagon
In 9/11. The Big Lie, the author, based on several inconsistencies, limits himself to affirm that the official version of the high-jacked plane that crashed against the building is absurd.

Offering no explanation on what happened, he limits himself to say that if US authorities lied about such a serious issue, they could have also lied about many other aspects linked to the September 11 events.

However, the author deals with the issue later in another work: Le Pentagate, in which he affirms that the attack was carried out with the use of a missile.

For the author, it looks impossible that:
a) Air defense systems had not had enough time to act
b) The Pentangon Automatic air defense systems had not been activated
c) The course of the plane suggests its travelling along 500 km close to the earth surface.
d) No parts of the plane, not even its reactors, were found outside the building.
e) Fire-fighters had not found any parts or pieces belonging to a Boeing.
f) The hole opened by the plane when it crashed against the Pentagon is too small for the size of the fuselage of a Boeing.

This thesis would be complete with an explanation on the disappearance of the plane which, according to the official version, crashed against the Pentagon. Besides, the official version has been rejected by the FAA, for which the plane disappeared over a natural reserve 500 kilometers from Washington, without showing again on the radar screens.

According to Thierry Meyssan, it is always strange that US authorities have not released a video since the Pentagon is surrounded by surveillance cameras. Two months after the attacks took place the FBI, under the pressure of the US press, gave the CNN a low-quality video (taken from a side perspective) in which no plane can be seen, only a fast lighting and then an explosion in the building.

According to the officers, the plane fully disintegrated, a fact that allows Meyssan to use irony about some science fiction “dematerialization”.

Neither a black box nor other plane part would have been recovered. On the contrary, different office components such as seats, books and desks appeared intact on the upper floor of the Pentagon, right above the site where the plane crash took place. Similar observation reveal that the Pentagon lawn remained undamaged after the explosion occurred.

States Intervene After Drug Plan Hits Early Snags - New York Times

2006-01-08T13:31:00.000-05:00

States Intervene After Drug Plan Hits Early Snags - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 - Low-income Medicare beneficiaries around the country were often overcharged, and some were turned away from pharmacies without getting their medications, in the first week of Medicare's new drug benefit. The problems have prompted emergency action by some states to protect their citizens.

"There is a public health emergency due to the federal implementation of Medicare Part D, which has resulted in serious operational problems, causing senior citizens to be turned away at the pharmacy without the drugs they need."

Where the word federal is used, there is guaranteed a 'F' up.

WorldNetDaily: Al-Qaida nukes already in U.S.

2006-01-06T21:35:00.000-05:00

WorldNetDaily: Al-Qaida nukes already in U.S.

WASHINGTON – As London recovers from the latest deadly al-Qaida attack that killed at least 50, top U.S. government officials are contemplating what they consider to be an inevitable and much bigger assault on America – one likely to kill millions, destroy the economy and fundamentally alter the course of history, reports Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin.

According to captured al-Qaida leaders and documents, the plan is called the "American Hiroshima" and involves the multiple detonation of nuclear weapons already smuggled into the U.S. over the Mexican border with the help of the MS-13 street gang and other organized crime groups.

Plausible indeed. American Hiroshima. We won't have many allies left soon at the rate Bush and Cheney are doing thing. Hence, the original intro to this blog at the top of the page.

Planned US-Israeli Attack on Iran

2006-01-05T20:09:00.000-05:00

Planned US-Israeli Attack on Iran

Michel Chossudovsky, I would believe.

At the outset of Bush's second term, Vice President Dick Cheney dropped a bombshell. He hinted, in no uncertain terms, that Iran was "right at the top of the list" of the rogue enemies of America, and that Israel would, so to speak, "be doing the bombing for us", without US military involvement and without us putting pressure on them "to do it":

"One of the concerns people have is that Israel might do it without being asked... Given the fact that Iran has a stated policy that their objective is the destruction of Israel, the Israelis might well decide to act first, and let the rest of the world worry about cleaning up the diplomatic mess afterwards," (quoted from an MSNBC Interview Jan 2005)
Israel is a Rottweiler on a leash: The US wants to "set Israel loose" to attack Iran.

Commenting the Vice President's assertion, former National Security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski in an interview on PBS, confirmed with some apprehension, yes: Cheney wants Prime Ariel Sharon to act on America's behalf and "do it" for us:

"Iran I think is more ambiguous. And there the issue is certainly not tyranny; it's nuclear weapons. And the vice president today in a kind of a strange parallel statement to this declaration of freedom hinted that the Israelis may do it and in fact used language which sounds like a justification or even an encouragement for the Israelis to do it."

The foregoing statements are misleading. The US is not "encouraging Israel". What we are dealing with is a joint US-Israeli military operation to bomb Iran, which has been in the active planning stage for more than a year. The Neocons in the Defense Department, under Douglas Feith, have been working assiduously with their Israeli military and intelligence counterparts, carefully identifying targets inside Iran ( Seymour Hersh, http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/HER501A.html )

Under this working arrangement, Israel will not act unilaterally, without a green light from Washington. In other words, Israel will not implement an attack without the participation of the US. Covert Intelligence Operations: Stirring Ethnic Tensions in Iran

Meanwhile, for the last two years, Washington has been involved in covert intelligence operations inside Iran. American and British intelligence and special forces (working with their Israeli counterparts) are involved in this operation.

"A British intelligence official said that any campaign against Iran would not be a ground war like the one in Iraq. The Americans will use different tactics, said the intelligence officer. 'It is getting quite scary.'" (Evening Standard, 17 June 2003, http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/FOX306A.html )

The expectation is that a US-Israeli bombing raid of Iran's nuclear facilities will stir up ethnic tensions and trigger "regime change" in favor of the US. (See Arab Monitor, http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/ARA502A.html ).

Bush advisers believe that the "Iranian opposition movement" will unseat the Mullahs. This assessment constitutes a gross misjudgment of social forces inside Iran. What is more likely to occur is that Iranians will consistently rally behind a wartime government against foreign aggression. In fact, the entire Middle East and beyond would rise up against US interventionism.

Retaliation in the Case of a US-Israeli Aerial Attack
Tehran has confirmed that it will retaliate if attacked, in the form of ballistic missile strikes directed against Israel (CNN, 8 Feb 2005). These attacks, could also target US military facilities in the Persian Gulf, which would immediately lead us into a scenario of military escalation and all out war.
In other words, the air strikes against Iran could contribute to unleashing a war in the broader Middle East Central Asian region.

Moreover, the planned attack on Iran should also be understood in relation to the timely withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon, which has opened up a new space, for the deployment of Israeli forces. The participation of Turkey in the US-Israeli military operation is also a factor, following an agreement reached between Ankara and Tel Aviv.
In other words, US and Israeli military planners must carefully weigh the far-reaching implications of their actions.
Israel Builds up its Stockpile of Deadly Military Hardware
A massive buildup in military hardware has occurred in preparation for a possible attack on Iran.

Israel has recently taken delivery from the US of some 5,000 "smart air launched weapons" including some 500 BLU 109 'bunker-buster bombs.

The (uranium coated) munitions are said to be more than "adequate to address the full range of Iranian targets, with the possible exception of the buried facility at Natanz, which may require the [more powerful] BLU-113 bunker buster ":

"Given Israel's already substantial holdings of such weapons, this increase in its inventory would allow a sustained assault with or without further US involvement." (See Richard Bennett, http://globalresearch.ca/articles/BEN501A.html )

I feel suicide bombers may be looming in this country, US citizens hell bent of stopping this madness.

CNN.com - Journalist: U.S. planning for possible�attack on Iran - Jan 17, 2005

2006-01-05T20:04:00.000-05:00

CNN.com - Journalist: U.S. planning for possible�attack on Iran - Jan 17, 2005

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Bush administration has been carrying out secret reconnaissance missions to learn about nuclear, chemical and missile sites in Iran in preparation for possible airstrikes there, journalist Seymour Hersh said Sunday.

White House says report is 'riddled with inaccuracies'

THE WHITE HOUSE LIES.

European media report US plans to strike Iran

2006-01-05T20:02:00.000-05:00

European media report US plans to strike Iran

German and Turkish media have reported that the US government is planning air strikes against Iran. The reports suggest that the attacks could take place in early 2006.

On December 30, the German magazine Der Spiegel discussed recent articles on the subject in the German press, including a report by Udo Ulfkotte of the news agency DDP.

Citing unnamed “Western security sources,” Ulfkotte wrote that a possible air strike was discussed during a recent meeting between CIA Director Porter Goss and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdrogan.

“More specifically,” Der Spiegel wrote, “Goss is said to have asked Turkey to provide unfettered exchange of intelligence that could help with a mission. DDP also reported that the governments of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Oman and Pakistan have been informed in recent weeks of Washington’s military plans.”

Bad freaking move! I have to cross check info on this one....GRRRRR a**holes, I hate american government

Cheney Cites Justifications For Domestic Eavesdropping

2006-01-05T18:57:00.000-05:00

Cheney Cites Justifications For Domestic Eavesdropping

Vice President Cheney said yesterday that the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks might have been prevented if the Bush administration had had the power to secretly monitor conversations involving two of the hijackers without court orders.

As part of an effort to sell Americans on the administration's recently disclosed program to eavesdrop on telephone and e-mail communications between the United States and people overseas without a warrant, Cheney told a small group of conservatives at the Heritage Foundation that instead of being able to "pick up" on the terrorist plot "we didn't know they were here plotting until it was too late

BU*SH*IT. Those planes that took down the twin towers could have been averted a minimum of 30 minutes before they struck. It appears more and more that it was staged.

Surveillance Court Is Seeking Answers

2006-01-05T13:07:00.000-05:00

Surveillance Court Is Seeking Answers
Judges Were Unaware of Eavesdropping

The members of a secret federal court that oversees government surveillance in espionage and terrorism cases are scheduled to receive a classified briefing Monday from top Justice Department and intelligence officials about a controversial warrantless-eavesdropping program, according to sources familiar with the arrangements.

Several judges on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court said they want to hear directly from administration officials why President Bush believed he had the authority to order, without the court's permission, wiretapping of some phone calls and e-mails after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Of serious concern to several judges is whether any information gleaned from intercepts by the National Security Agency was later used to gain their permission for wiretaps without the source being disclosed.

Bush has a lot to hide. We're not going to let him.

Rebel Attacks in Iraq Kill 50, 30 at a Funeral - New York Times

2006-01-05T13:03:00.000-05:00

Rebel Attacks in Iraq Kill 50, 30 at a Funeral - New York Times

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Jan. 4 - Insurgents unleashed car bombs and suicide attacks throughout central Iraq on Wednesday, killing more than 50 people in the deadliest day since the national parliamentary elections three weeks ago.

In the most lethal attack, terrorists hit a frequent target - a funeral packed with Shiite mourners - killing more than 30 people and wounding 36 during a two-stage bombing of a mourning procession in Miqdadiya, 60 miles northeast of the capital.

The first attacker, according to one witness, wore a slim bomb strapped to his torso and set it off it after wading into a group of grieving relatives who had surrounded the coffin. Then a car bomber drove into the frantic crowd and exploded, killing more mourners, said the witness, Ali Abbas, a 25-year-old student who attended the funeral.

It is never ending.

Sharon Suffers 'Extensive' Stroke and Is 'Very Grave' - New York Times

2006-01-05T12:59:00.000-05:00

Sharon Suffers 'Extensive' Stroke and Is 'Very Grave' - New York Times

JERUSALEM, Thursday, Jan. 5 - Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a serious stroke on Wednesday night and was undergoing emergency brain surgery in an effort to save his life, a hospital official said.

Mr. Sharon's power as prime minister was transferred to Deputy Premier Ehud Olmert. Israeli politics, dominated in recent years by Mr. Sharon, were thrown into turmoil, especially with growing lawlessness in the Gaza Strip.

World Fears Turmoil if Israel Loses Sharon | Europe | Deutsche Welle | 05.01.2006

2006-01-05T12:55:00.000-05:00

World Fears Turmoil if Israel Loses Sharon Europe Deutsche Welle 05.01.2006

It will be a dark day, decade or even lifetime for Isreal if Prime Minister Sharon passes. Peace to him and his family.

European and world leaders sent wishes of recovery to critically ill Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon Thursday, while Arab and Israeli media raised the prospect of a profoundly changed Middle East if he dies.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday sent her best wishes to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon who is seriously ill in hospital after suffering an extensive brain hemorrhage.

Bush to Give Up $6,000 In Abramoff Contributions

2006-01-05T12:21:00.000-05:00

Bush to Give Up $6,000 In Abramoff Contributions

Republican Party officials said yesterday that President Bush will give up $6,000 in campaign contributions connected to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, joining an expansive list of politicians who have shed more than half a million dollars in tainted campaign cash.

Abramoff raised more than $100,000 for the Bush-Cheney reelection campaign, making him an honorary Bush "Pioneer." But the campaign is giving up only $6,000, which came directly from Abramoff, his wife and one of the Indian tribes the lobbyist represented. The money will be donated to the American Heart Association.

hum, di dum, di DUMB

The War Crimes Act of 1996: Bush, Rumsfeld could be indicted under US law

2006-01-05T03:33:00.000-05:00

The War Crimes Act of 1996: Bush, Rumsfeld could be indicted under US law

How many times have I said this? Repeatedly, I asked them to be brought to justice for war crimes.

The War Crimes Act of 1996, a federal statute set forth at 18 U.S.C. § 2441, makes it a federal crime for any U.S. national, whether military or civilian, to violate the Geneva Convention by engaging in murder, torture, or inhuman treatment.

The statute applies not only to those who carry out the acts, but also to those who ORDER IT, know about it, or fail to take steps to stop it. The statute applies to everyone, no matter how high and mighty.18 U.S.C. § 2441 has no statute of limitations, which means that a war crimes complaint can be filed at any time.The penalty may be life imprisonment or -- if a single prisoner dies due to torture -- death.

Given that there are numerous, documented cases of prisoners being tortured to death by U.S. soldiers in both Iraq and Afghanistan, that means that the death penalty would be appropriate for anyone found guilty of carrying out, ordering, or sanctioning such conduct.Here's where it gets interesting. The general in charge of the notorious Abu Ghraib prison in

Iraq stated this week that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and other top administration officials ORDERED that inhuman treatment and torture be conducted as part of a deliberate strategy.

It has also recently come out that, even after the torture at Abu Ghraib hit the news, torture still continues at that prison and, indeed, the U.S. is still torturing people worldwide. Even to the casual observer, it is obvious that the administration has no plans to stop, but has instead been working tirelessly to make it easier to carry out torture in the future.

Let's recap. We now know that torture in Iraq was ordered by top officials, and that torture is continuing, notwithstanding the administration's claims that it was only "a couple of bad apples" that were responsible for Abu Ghraib.

Making a potential prosecutor's job easier, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales wrote a memo in January 2002 to President Bush saying that America should opt out of the Geneva Convention because top officials have to worry about prosecutions under 18 U.S.C. § 2441.

By attempting to sidestep the Geneva Convention, Gonzales created a document trail that can be used to prove that top administration officials knowingly created a policy of torturing prisoners, and that such a policy could reasonably have been expected to result in the death of some prisoners.

The U.S. did opt out of the Geneva Convention for the Afghanistan war, but we never opted out of the Geneva Convention for Iraq. Indeed, President Bush has repeatedly stated that Geneva applies in Iraq (although he has since claimed that foreign fighters captured in Iraq are not covered).

Thus, there would be very little room for fancy footwork by defense lawyers in a prosecution against top officials concerning torture in Iraq.

The Abu Ghraib general's recent statements about torture coming from the top is an important piece of evidence for convicting Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Gonzales, and a host of other top administration officials for violation of the War Crimes Act of 1996.

Upon conviction, they could be sentenced to life in prison, or even death.Additionally, violation of the war crimes act almost certainly constitutes a "high crime or misdemeanor" which would allow impeachment of such officials.

posted by George Washington

Read on.

CRG Books and Videos

2006-01-05T03:23:00.000-05:00

CRG Books and Videos

"Millions of people have been misled regarding the causes and consequences of September 11.

When people across the US and around the World find out that Al Qaeda is not an outside enemy but a creation of US foreign policy and the CIA, the legitimacy of the bipartisan war agenda will tumble like a deck of cards."

Across the land, the image of an "outside enemy" is instilled in the consciousness of Americans. Al Qaeda is threatening America and the world. The repeal of democracy under the Patriot legislation is portrayed as a means to providing "domestic security" and upholding civil liberties.

The 9/11 Commission Report destroys the historical record of US covert support to international terrorism, while creating the illusion that America and "Western Civilization" are threatened. In turn, the various terrorist warnings and code orange alerts have created, across America, an atmosphere of fear and intimidation.

CRG -- Cover-up or Complicity of the Bush Administration? The Role of Pakistan's Military Intelligence Agency (ISI) in the September 11 attacks

2006-01-05T02:55:00.000-05:00

CRG -- Cover-up or Complicity of the Bush Administration? The Role of Pakistan's Military Intelligence Agency (ISI) in the September 11 attacks

Pakistan's chief spy Lt. General Mahmoud Ahmad "was in the US when the attacks occurred." He arrived in the US on the 4th of September, a full week before the attacks. He had meetings at the State Department "after" the attacks on the WTC. But he also had "a regular visit of consultations" with his US counterparts at the CIA and the Pentagon during the week prior to September 11.

What was the nature of these routine "pre-September 11 consultations"? Were they in any way related to the subsequent "post-September 11 consultations" pertaining to Pakistan's decision to cooperate with Washington. Was the planning of war being discussed between Pakistani and US officials?

On the 9th of September while General Ahmad was in the US, the leader of the Northern Alliance Commander Ahmad Shah Masood was assassinated. The Northern Alliance had informed the Bush Administration that the ISI was allegedly implicated in the assassination.

The Bush Administration consciously took the decision in "the post September 11 consultations" with Lt. General Mahmoud Ahmad to directly "cooperate" with Pakistan's military intelligence (ISI) despite its links to Osama bin Laden and the Taliban and its alleged role in the assassination of Commander Masood, which coincidentally occurred two days before the terrorist attacks.

Meanwhile, senior Pentagon and State Department officials had been rushed to Islamabad to put the finishing touches on America's war plans. And on the Sunday prior to the onslaught of the bombing of major cities in Afghanistan (October 7th), Lt. General Mahmoud Ahmad was sacked from his position as head of the ISI in what was described as a routine "reshuffling."

In the days following General Ahmad's dismissal, a report published in the Times of India, revealed the links between Pakistan's Chief spy Lt. General Mahmoud Ahmad and the presumed "ring leader" of the WTC attacks Mohamed Atta.

The Times of India article was based on an official intelligence report of the Delhi government that had been transmitted through official channels to Washington. Quoting an Indian government source Agence France Press (AFP) confirms in this regard that: "The evidence we [the Government of India] have supplied to the US is of a much wider range and depth than just one piece of paper linking a rogue general to some misplaced act of terrorism."

The revelation of the Times of India article has several implications. The Indian intelligence report not only points to the links between ISI Chief General Ahmad and terrorist ringleader Mohamed Atta, it also indicates that other ISI officials might have had contacts with the terrorists.

Moreover, it suggests that the September 11 attacks were not an act of "individual terrorism" organised by a separate Al Qaeda cell, but rather they were part of coordinated military-intelligence operation, emanating from Pakistan's ISI.

The Times of India report also sheds light on the nature of General Ahmad's "business activities" in the US during the week prior to September 11, raising the distinct possibility of ISI contacts with Mohamed Atta in the US "prior" to the attacks on the WTC, precisely at the time when General Mahmoud and his delegation were on a so-called "regular visit of consultations" with US officials.

In assessing the alleged links between the terrorists and the ISI, it should be understood that Lt. General Ahmad as head of the ISI was a "US approved appointee". As head of the ISI since 1999, he was in liaison with his US counterparts in the CIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the Pentagon. Also bear in mind that Pakistan's ISI remained throughout the entire post Cold War era until the present, the launch-pad for CIA covert operations in the Caucasus, Central Asia and the Balkans

The existence of an "ISI-Osama-Taliban axis" was a matter of public record. The links between the ISI and agencies of the US government including the CIA are also a matter of public record. The Bush Administration was fully cognizant of Lt. General Ahmad's role. In other words, rather than waging a campaign against international terrorism, the evidence would suggest that it is indirectly abetting international terrorism, using the Pakistani ISI as a "go-between".

The Bush Administration's links with Pakistan's ISI --including its "consultations" with General Ahmad in the week prior to September 11-- raise the issue of "complicity". While Ahmad was talking to US officials at the CIA and the Pentagon, ISI officials were allegedly also in contact with the September 11 terrorists.

In other words, according to the Indian government intelligence report, the perpetrators of the September 11 attacks had links to Pakistan's ISI, which in turn has links to agencies of the US government. What this suggests is that key individuals within the US military-intelligence establishment might have known about the ISI contacts with the September 11 terrorist "ring-leader" Mohamed Atta and failed to act.

Whether this amounts to the complicity of the Bush Administration remains to be firmly established. The least one can expect at this stage is an inquiry. What is crystal clear, however, is that this war is not a "campaign against international terrorism".

It is a war of conquest with devastating consequences for the future of humanity. And the American people have been consciously and deliberately misled by their government. Whether this amounts to the complicity of the Bush Administration remains to be firmly established.

And the American people have been consciously and deliberately misled by their government.

Ultimately the truth must prevail. The falsehoods behind America's war against the people of Afghanistan must be unveiled.

Empire Notes

2006-01-05T02:22:00.000-05:00

Empire Notes

Now were talking truth. I discovered this gentleman in the introduction of a book I just started reading;

The New Pearl Harbor
The New Pearl Harbor. Disturbing Questions about the Bush Administration and 9/11
David Ray Griffin Foreword by Richard Falk

A new Blog may be forthcoming ;) At the very least

Mine tragedy ends in confusion

2006-01-04T18:45:00.000-05:00

Top News Article Reuters.com

The way the news of the deaths of the dozen miners was conveyed angered many family members who stood vigil at a nearby church gripped by apprehension, jubilation, then despair as the reports reaching them from the mine shifted overnight.

"I feel that we were lied to all along," said Anne Meredith, whose father died, adding that she planned to sue the mine owner, International Coal Group Inc..
Company officials delayed a scheduled news briefing during the day on Wednesday before detailing the chain of events.

Very unfair to the families.

Just one survivor at W. Virginia mine

2006-01-04T18:43:00.000-05:00

Top News Article Reuters.com

Very sad, but there were conflicting news reports on this all day

TALLMANSVILLE, West Virginia (Reuters) - Only one man survived after an explosion in a West Virginia coal mine, a mine official said on Wednesday, transforming joy into grief and anger just hours after a mistaken report emerged that 12 of 13 missing miners were still alive 40 hours after the blast.

Ben Hatfield, president of mine owner International Coal Group Inc., blamed the earlier report on "miscommunication" and said that the company had then waited until it could determine which of the miners were dead or alive to tell the families their fate.

Anne Meredith, whose father died in the incident, said, "I feel that we were lied to all along," adding that she planned to sue ICG.

Virginia Dean, whose uncle was in the Sago mine in central West Virginia, reacted by saying: "Only one lived. They lied."

Very tragic in a very dangerous industry.
Perhaps it was a lack of communication, or lying is just becoming an american standard, based on our leaders and their trail of lie, after lie after lie. Its maybe patriotic to be dishonest, who knows these days.
america is NOT what it used to be and people have to stop believing its the greatest country because its NOT.

U.S. Strike on Home Kills 9 in Family, Iraqi Officials Say - New York Times

2006-01-04T13:03:00.000-05:00

U.S. Strike on Home Kills 9 in Family, Iraqi Officials Say - New York Times

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Jan. 3 - American F-14 warplanes killed nine members of an Iraqi family, including women and young children, during a bombing and cannon strike on Monday night that obliterated a home near the northern industrial city of Baiji, Iraqi officials said Tuesday.

Enough of this BU*SH*IT.
Its like a recreation of Pearl Harbor (9-11) Leading into another Vietnam.
History is repeating itself in the most repulsive ways, and in the end, we'll pay the price, and because of our leaders, we earned it.

U.S. to Seek Dismissal of Guant�namo Suits - New York Times

2006-01-04T12:44:00.000-05:00

U.S. to Seek Dismissal of Guant�namo Suits - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 - The Bush administration notified federal trial judges in Washington that it would soon ask them to dismiss all lawsuits brought by prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, challenging their detentions, Justice Department officials said Tuesday.

The action means that the administration is moving swiftly to take advantage of an amendment to the military bill that President Bush signed into law last Friday. The amendment strips federal courts from hearing habeas corpus petitions from Guantánamo detainees.

On Tuesday, the Justice Department sent notices to all the federal judges in Washington who have cases involving challenges brought by Guantánamo inmates, informing them of the new amendment. The officials said the department would file formal notices within several days asking the judges to dismiss more than 160 cases involving at least 300 detainees.

If the administration wins its argument it would mean an abrupt end to a wide effort by dozens of lawyers to use the right of habeas corpus in federal courts to challenge the imprisonment of suspected terrorists at Guantánamo as enemy combatants.

This is really making me sick. This is so wrong, so unethical and very inhumane. WTF is wrong with this man?

Iran to Resume Its Nuclear Work; U.S. Warns of Seeking Restraints - New York Times

2006-01-04T12:33:00.000-05:00

Iran to Resume Its Nuclear Work; U.S. Warns of Seeking Restraints - New York Times

PARIS, Jan. 3 - Iran announced Tuesday that it planned to restart nuclear research, a move that jeopardized an agreement with the Europeans, complicated a Russian initiative and prompted an American threat.

I believe the little menace is going to be our demise, here our leaders go again, causing MORE trouble. There they go threatening Iran and stepping on Russia's toes, while we have serious issues here at home.
Who are we to threaten anyone? We are not as mighty and powerful as the meglagomaniacs in DC think we are.

Files Say Agency Initiated Growth of Spying Effort - New York Times

2006-01-04T12:28:00.000-05:00

Files Say Agency Initiated Growth of Spying Effort - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 - The National Security Agency acted on its own authority, without a formal directive from President Bush, to expand its domestic surveillance operations in the weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks, according to declassified documents released Tuesday.

The N.S.A. operation prompted questions from a leading Democrat, Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, who said in an Oct. 11, 2001, letter to a top intelligence official that she was concerned about the agency's legal authority to expand its domestic operations, the documents showed.

BU*SH*IT- can you hear me now?

Tremors Across Washington as Lobbyist Turns Star Witness - New York Times

2006-01-04T12:21:00.000-05:00

Tremors Across Washington as Lobbyist Turns Star Witness - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 - As a high-flying Republican lobbyist, Jack Abramoff has long been known as a mover and shaker in Washington. But when he cut a deal with federal prosecutors on Tuesday, he shook up this town as never before.

Even before Mr. Abramoff left the federal courthouse on Tuesday in a trench coat and fedora, nervous lawmakers of both parties, and even the White House, began trying to distance themselves from him.

Speaker J. Dennis Hastert of Illinois announced that he would donate to charity $69,000 in campaign contributions directed to him by Mr. Abramoff.

I told you this was gonna get good ;)

Abramoff Expected to Plead Guilty to 3 Felony Charges

2006-01-03T12:38:00.000-05:00

Abramoff Expected to Plead Guilty to 3 Felony Charges

Former high-powered lobbyist Jack Abramoff is expected to plead guilty today to three felony charges in a deal with federal prosecutors that would clear the way for his testimony about members of Congress and congressional staffers in a wide-ranging political corruption investigation.

The plea bargain would settle one of two fraud and corruption cases against Abramoff, involving charges stemming from his lobbying activities in Washington on behalf of Native American tribes. The other case, arising from an indictment in Miami in connection with the purchase of a fleet of casino cruise ships, is expected to be settled by another plea agreement.

The purpose of the conspiracy by Abramoff and co-defendants was "to enrich themselves by obtaining substantial funds from their clients through fraud and concealment," according to a criminal information document outlining the plea agreement.

This is going to be fun!

Rink Collapse in Germany Kills at Least 10 - New York Times

2006-01-03T11:40:00.000-05:00

Rink Collapse in Germany Kills at Least 10 - New York Times

BERLIN, Tuesday, Jan. 3 - The roof of an ice-skating rink collapsed on Monday afternoon after a heavy snowfall in Bad Reichenhall, a resort in southern Germany

Very sad.

New Rules Set for Giving Out Antiterror Aid - New York Times

2006-01-03T11:38:00.000-05:00

New Rules Set for Giving Out Antiterror Aid - New York Times

Facing (MORE) cuts in antiterrorism financing, the Department of Homeland Security plans to announce today that it will evaluate new requests for money from an $800 million aid program for cities based less on politics and more on assessments of where terrorists are likely to strike and potentially cause the greatest damage, department officials say.

The changes to the program, the Urban Area Security Initiative, are being driven in part by a reduction in the overall pool of money for antiterrorism efforts. For 2006, Congress has appropriated $120 million less in these urban grants than for 2005.

Domestic security grants in general, including the urban area ones, have been criticized because they have sent more antiterrorism money per capita to sparsely populated states like Wyoming and Alaska than to states like New York and California.

How lovely you make this information public, the enemy is here, and making some of the dumbest calls I've ever seen.

Federal Bureau of Investigation - Freedom of Information Privacy Act

2006-01-02T17:10:00.000-05:00

Federal Bureau of Investigation - Freedom of Information Privacy Act

So basically what I find is very limited freedom of information.
Pages missing, sections blacked out. More serious incidents are not available for reading.
In other words, Limited Information, Most Kept Private Act.

Pricey coffee good to the last dropping

2006-01-02T12:41:00.000-05:00

Oddly Enough News Article Reuters.com

On the lighter side of life -YUCK.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Would you pay $175 for a pound of coffee beans which had passed through the backside of a furry mammal in Indonesia?

Apparently, some coffee lovers wanting to treat themselves to something special are lapping it up.

Kopi Luwak beans from Indonesia are rare and expensive, thanks to a unique taste and aroma enhanced by the digestive system of palm civets, nocturnal tree-climbing creatures about the size of a large house cat.

"People like coffee. And when they want to treat themselves, they order the Kopi Luwak," said Isaac Jones, director of sales for Tastes of The World, an online supplier of gourmet coffee, tea and cocoa.

Despite being carnivorous, civets eat ripe coffee cherries for treats. The coffee beans, which are found inside of the cherries, remain intact after passing through the animal.
Civet droppings are found on the forest floor near coffee plantations.

Once carefully cleaned and roasted, the beans are sold to specialty buyers. Jones said sales for Kopi Luwak rose three-fold just before the Christmas holiday compared with the first half of the year. The company started selling the rare coffee in February 2005.

He expects to sell around 200 pounds of the coffee this year, with orders coming from North America and Europe. So far, most of the orders have been from California.
Indonesia produces only about 500 kilograms, or roughly 1,100 pounds, of the coffee each year, making it extremely expensive and difficult to find.
"It's the most expensive coffee that we know about in the world," said Jones.
By comparison Jamaica's Blue Mountain coffee, considered to be an expensive type, sells for $35 to $40 per pound, while a pound of Colombia's Supremo arabicas can be bought for about $14.

I'll stick to my current Blend, and Illy for espresso.

Bush Defends Spying Program As 'Necessary' to Protect U.S.

2006-01-02T12:03:00.000-05:00

Bush Defends Spying Program As 'Necessary' to Protect U.S.

again, but to recap one of the dumbest statements yet and the year has only begun...

"If somebody from al Qaeda is calling you, we'd like to know why."~ George Bush

Likewise, George.

Muslim Scholars Were Paid to Aid U.S. Propaganda - New York Times

2006-01-02T11:59:00.000-05:00

Muslim Scholars Were Paid to Aid U.S. Propaganda - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Jan. 1 - A Pentagon contractor that paid Iraqi newspapers to print positive articles written by American soldiers has also been compensating Sunni religious scholars in Iraq in return for assistance with its propaganda work, according to current and former employees.

The Lincoln Group, a Washington-based public relations company, was told early in 2005 by the Pentagon to identify religious leaders who could help produce messages that would persuade Sunnis in violence-ridden Anbar Province to participate in national elections and reject the insurgency, according to a former employee.

Since then, the company has retained three or four Sunni religious scholars to offer advice and write reports for military commanders on the content of propaganda campaigns, the former employee said. But documents and Lincoln executives say the company's ties to religious leaders and dozens of other prominent Iraqis is aimed also at enabling it to exercise influence in Iraqi communities on behalf of clients, including the military.

Mirror.co.uk - News - All News Archive - PILGER: THIS WAR IS A FRAUD

2006-01-02T11:55:00.000-05:00

Mirror.co.uk - News - All News Archive - PILGER: THIS WAR IS A FRAUD

I know that, many know that, not everyone knows that. Thats not quite as big a tragedy as the 'war' itself, but tragic nonetheless that so many Americans are so blind.
Since I live here, I can only attest to the fact that most are caught up in their own little worlds.

Some of us are paying attention.

Full List of External Articles - Global Issues

2006-01-02T11:42:00.000-05:00

Full List of External Articles - Global Issues

On the War on Terror, a long comprehensive list published by Anup Shah;

The full list is on my other blog:

http://kmwakak8.blogspot.com

USA THE MOVIE

2006-01-02T11:34:00.000-05:00

USA THE MOVIE

Mainstream Media Introduction - Global Issues

2006-01-02T11:06:00.000-05:00

Mainstream Media Introduction - Global Issues

Press Freedom Around the World
In October 2005, Reporters Sans Frontiers (Reporters Without Borders or RSF) published their
2005 worldwide press freedom index.

The results were interesting:
On the whole, it showed that democracies ranked best. (The top position was jointly held by predominantly North European nations: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, and Switzerland.)

Totalitarian and communist regimes ranked worst because there was next to no press freedom as in almost all such cases, the media is government controlled.
(The worst 5 were Burma, Iran, Turkmenistan, Eritrea, and North Korea.)

But there were a few surprising findings:

The U.S. slipped down to just 44th. In 2004, they ranked 22nd which was not good, anyway;
Canada and France also slipped (to 21st and 30th, respectively)
U.K. ranked just 24th, almost on par with Benin, a small nation in Africa which the United Nations classifies as being one of the poorest nations in the world, and El Salvador, another very poor country;
Spain and Italy ranked just 40th and 42nd, respectively (they were both only joint 39th the year before).
New Zealand (12th), Trinidad and Tobago (12th), Benin (25th) and South Korea (34th) are the highest-ranked countries in other continents and the top 20 were dominated by Europe (only two were from elsewhere).

Very interesting indeed.

Bush says spying leak causes great harm - U.S. Security - MSNBC.com

2006-01-02T01:21:00.000-05:00

Bush says spying leak causes great harm - U.S. Security - MSNBC.com

Of this tired already issue, I heard Mr. Bush say tonight on the new :If some one from al-Qaida calls you on the phone, we want to know why.

Well you know what George, if someone from al-Qaida calls you, I want to know why.

I am not buying any of your bu*sh*it. People from other countries who don't know the history of the US may not understand, but there is a long line here that makes the picture much clearer. It goes back way further than I'll begin...

TWA 800 flight went down July 17 1996. Countless witnesses saw a missle hit the plane. The government hushed it away as a fuel tank explosion. They lied. Those files are not accessible in the FBI Freedom of Information Act.

I just happened upon a book Entitled The New Pearl Harbor referring to 9-11, and it hit me so clearly I am sick and can not sleep.

FDR knew about Pearl Harbor before the fact. He allowed it to happen as a back door to War with Hitler.

I have good reason to suspect 9-11 was no surprise, we went to Afghanistan, evaded the hunt for Osama Bin laden, and you conviently decided Iraq had WMD, and we would go to war.

You came from an oil background, daddy was head of the ill reputed CIA who's motto"the truth shall make you free" couldn't be further from the truth. The truth about the CIA is rearing its not so trustworthy dutiful head.

Now as publicists have often made mention, you had every intention of invading Iraq before 9-11. There are many pieces of the puzzle that are coming together, I suspect perhaps you want to know how much WE know. Some of are much smarter than you think, and a picture is becoming more clear, and that is a THREAT to YOUR National Security.

I am far from done with this.

Douglas Valentine - A Nation of Assassins

2006-01-02T00:24:00.000-05:00

Douglas Valentine - A Nation of Assassins

More will be revealed.

Pet-Abuse.Com - Profile

2006-01-02T00:20:00.000-05:00

Pet-Abuse.Com - Profile

Frank Aquino
Gender: Male
Approximate Age: 43
Date of Birth: Dec 1961
Location: Putnam County, NY (US)
History
Convicted: Dog kicked to death
May 29, 2005 - Putnam Valley, NY (US)

He needs to be whacked, or as the CIA would say, neutralized
I have zero tolerance for cruelty to animals

D.C. Plagued By Backlog In Autopsy Reports

2006-01-01T12:15:00.000-05:00

D.C. Plagued By Backlog In Autopsy Reports

The D.C. medical examiner's office has a backlog of 1,037 unfinished autopsy reports, including some cases dating back more than a decade, records show. The agency's slow turnaround has delayed police work and criminal prosecutions, and forced some families to sue the office to obtain the paperwork about their loved ones.

The District's incomplete autopsies include 765 that are at least a year old. Maryland and Virginia, by comparison, have no cases a year old. Among the unfinished D.C. cases are 84 homicides.

This is completely absurd.

844 in U.S. Military Killed in Iraq in 2005 - New York Times

2006-01-01T12:06:00.000-05:00

844 in U.S. Military Killed in Iraq in 2005 - New York Times

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 31 - At least 844 American service members were killed in Iraq in 2005, nearly matching 2004's total of 848, according to information released by the United States government and a nonprofit organization that tracks casualties in Iraq.

The deaths of two Americans announced by the United States military on Friday - a marine killed by gunfire in Falluja and a soldier killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad - brought the total killed since the war in Iraq began in March 2003 to 2,178. The total wounded since the war began is 15,955.

Blood for oil. Innocent lives, in the name of greed, deceipt, lies, corruption and invasion of our personal privacy.

As New Drug Plan Begins, Stores Predict Bumps - New York Times

2006-01-01T12:00:00.000-05:00

As New Drug Plan Begins, Stores Predict Bumps - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Dec. 31 - Millions of older Americans will gain access to government-subsidized prescription drugs on Sunday with the long-awaited expansion of Medicare. But pharmacists say beneficiaries may initially experience delays and frustration as the promise of the new program is translated into practice.

Since my mother is retiring this week, I've watched her and her friends struggle to make sense out of this plan. They seem to have made it more complicated for the retired generation, which in and of itself is par for the course with our current leaders. I am sure I will be aware of the loopholes before long...

Wanting Facts Firsthand, Teenager Makes Secret Trip to Iraq - New York Times

2006-01-01T11:54:00.000-05:00

Wanting Facts Firsthand, Teenager Makes Secret Trip to Iraq - New York Times

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Dec. 30 - A Florida teenager secretly made his way to Iraq this month for firsthand impressions of the war, and was returning home on Friday to family members who said they were galled by his recklessness but thankful he was safe.

A junior at a rigorous private school here, Farris, whose parents emigrated from Iraq several decades ago, wrote in an essay recently that he felt guilty "living in a big house, driving a nice car and going to a great school." He wrote that he wanted to experience the hardships of Iraqis and volunteer with the Red Cross during his travels, helping the people of Iraq "rebuild their lives," even if it meant risking his own.

Ms. Atiya, their mother, said Farris had e-mailed the essay he had written about his trip - which he started here and finished in Kuwait - to Pine Crest School, but that the school was angry about the trip and had not accepted it. She said she had lost weight after her son's disappearance and wanted nothing more than to see him again.

I commend Farris's bravery, and desire to see his homeland- with guilt about what was happening to his homeland compared to how he lives here. That shows character.
I am grateful he made it back ok as well. He's a little young to embark on such a journey, but I appreciate his passion to do so.

Justice Deputy Resisted Parts of Spy Program - New York Times

2006-01-01T11:27:00.000-05:00

Justice Deputy Resisted Parts of Spy Program - New York Times

A top Justice Department official objected in 2004 to aspects of the National Security Agency's domestic surveillance program and refused to sign on to its continued use amid concerns about its legality and oversight, according to officials with knowledge of the tense internal debate. The concerns appear to have played a part in the temporary suspension of the secret program.

The concerns prompted two of President Bush's most senior aides - Andrew H. Card Jr., his chief of staff, and Alberto R. Gonzales, then White House counsel and now attorney general - to make an emergency visit to a Washington hospital in March 2004 to discuss the program's future and try to win the needed approval from Attorney General John Ashcroft, who was hospitalized for gallbladder surgery, the officials said.

The unusual meeting was prompted because Mr. Ashcroft's top deputy, James B. Comey, who was acting as attorney general in his absence, had indicated he was unwilling to give his approval to certifying central aspects of the program, as required under the White House procedures set up to oversee it.....

With Mr. Comey unwilling to sign off on the program, the White House went to Mr. Ashcroft - who had been in the intensive care unit at George Washington University Hospital

Questions about the surveillance operation are likely to be central to a Congressional hearing planned by Senator Arlen Specter, the Pennsylvania Republican who heads the Judiciary Committee. Mr. Specter, like some other Republicans and many Democrats in Congress, has voiced deep concerns about the program and Mr. Bush's legal authority to bypass the courts to order domestic wiretaps without warrants.

Thank you Mr. Senator. The saga continues.

Merkel Strikes Personal Note in New Year's Wishes to Germans | Germany | Deutsche Welle | 31.12.2005

2005-12-31T15:14:00.000-05:00

Merkel Strikes Personal Note in New Year's Wishes to Germans Germany Deutsche Welle 31.12.2005

Very nice

"What can be accomplished in a year?" Merkel asked, in traditional New Year's Eve remarks to be broadcast Saturday. "A great deal! How would it be if we all set a goal tonight to accomplish a bit more in the coming year?"

I think Germany is a remarkable country, while certainly not exempt from its share of political, social and economic issues, its has certainly well risen above what was once a haunting past, and become a sovereign country, with exceptional potential to solidify the EU to far surpass USA.

Kidnapped German Family in Yemen Set Free | Germany | Deutsche Welle | 31.12.2005

2005-12-31T15:01:00.000-05:00

Kidnapped German Family in Yemen Set Free Germany Deutsche Welle 31.12.2005

German Foreign Frank-Walter Steinmeier confirmed Saturday afternoon that the family had indeed been released. He said they were on their way to the southern port city of Aden and that they were well.

Steinmeier thanked the Yemeni government and his own emergency task force in Berlin for their activities to free the Chrobogs.
"We're free, thank God," Chrobog's wife told AP.

Thats a beautiful thing, twice recently German citizens kidnapped have been released. Thats not something that has happened with americans. Get the picture?
Germany is doing the right thing.

POLITICS: UN to Protect Corruption Whistle-Blowers

2005-12-31T13:02:00.000-05:00

POLITICS: UN to Protect Corruption Whistle-Blowers

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 29 (IPS) - After being politically crucified over charges of malfeasance and mismanagement, the U.N. Secretariat has responded with a new "whistle-blower protection policy" aimed at encouraging staffers, contractors, consultants and even the public to help expose corruption in the world body.

The new policy, which comes into force in January, assures whistle-blowers that there will be no retaliation for reporting misconduct and "for cooperating with duly authorised audits or investigations".

Funny I should happen upon this article just after making reference to whistle blowing laws. It was not intentional, as this is a different news source and other issues as you will note in the full article.

Justice Dept. Investigating Leak of NSA Wiretapping

2005-12-31T12:58:00.000-05:00

Justice Dept. Investigating Leak of NSA Wiretapping

The Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation into recent disclosures about a controversial domestic eavesdropping program that was secretly authorized by President Bush after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, officials said yesterday.

Federal prosecutors will focus their examination on who may have unlawfully disclosed classified information about the program to the New York Times, which reported two weeks ago that Bush had authorized the National Security Agency to monitor the international telephone calls and e-mails of U.S. citizens and residents without court-approved warrants, officials said.

Bush, in his self imposed dictatorship has gone far beyond ethical behavior, he has left a wake of deceipt, lies and corruption and each day seems to avail new levels of his illegal and convoluted agenda. Whoever disclosed what most of already knew obviously felt, as most of do Bush's conduct is WRONG. There are whistle blowing laws which should be upheld here.
He was a criminal before he became president, and continues to be a criminal in office.

Conspiring Against the Voters - New York Times

2005-12-31T12:26:00.000-05:00

Conspiring Against the Voters - New York Times

President Bush has announced four nominees for the Federal Election Commission, moving to keep the policing of campaign abuses firmly in the hands of party wheel horses. The timing of the announcement - the president waited until the Senate had gone home - is likely to allow the nominees to avoid the full hearing and confirmation process needed to evaluate them properly.

There seems to be no limit to what this menace to society will do next.

Israel News: Al Quaeda claims responsibility for Katyusha attack

2005-12-30T20:41:00.000-05:00

Israel News: Al Quaeda claims responsibility for Katyusha attack

Al-Qaeda in Iraq said Thursday it was responsible for the Katyusha rocket attack on Kiryat Shemona two nights before, but experts are not so sure.

"A group of al-Qaida lions planned ... a new attack on the Jewish state," the statement on an Islamist Web site said. "The brothers accomplished their mission as it was planned and succeeded in their escape."

However, the IDF has blamed a Palestinian faction in Lebanon for the rocket attack, and bombed a base belonging to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command.

Give Israel back their land and let them live in peace.

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | More than 80,000 held by US since 9/11 attacks

2005-12-30T20:06:00.000-05:00

Guardian Unlimited Special reports More than 80,000 held by US since 9/11 attacks

The US has detained more than 80,000 people in facilities from Afghanistan to Cuba since the attacks on the World Trade Centre four years ago, the Pentagon said yesterday. The disclosure comes at a time of growing unease about Washington's treatment of prisoners in its "war on terror" and Europe's unknowing help in the CIA's practice of rendition.

The Bush administration has defended the detentions from criticism by human rights organisations, saying the interrogation of suspected militants has been crucial in its attempt to dismantle terror networks. At least 14,500 people are in US custody in connection with the war on terror, Pentagon officials in Washington and Baghdad said yesterday. Some 13,814 people are being held in Iraq and there are approximately 500 at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba.

How many are innocent, and why does our constitution not apply to this? (Why do I ask redundant questions about the Constitution when Bush has violated almost every amemdment)
Reference: http://kmwakak8.blogspot.com

CIA insider says U.S. fighting wrong war - Nightly News with Brian Williams - MSNBC.com

2005-12-30T19:03:00.000-05:00

CIA insider says U.S. fighting wrong war - Nightly News with Brian Williams - MSNBC.com

Good Interview. Its not America's war. Its George Bush's war at the expense of the american people and the innocent people in Iraq.

A career CIA officer claims in a new book that America is losing the war on terror, in part because of the invasion of Iraq, which, he says, distracted the United States from the war against terrorism and further fueled al-Qaida’s struggle against the United States. The author, who writes as “Anonymous,” is a 22-year veteran of the CIA and still works for the intelligence agency, which allowed him to publish the book after reviewing it for classified information.

In an interview with NBC’s Chief Foreign Affairs
Correspondent Andrea Mitchell, he calls the U.S. war in Iraq a dream come true for Osama bin Laden, saying, “Bin Laden saw the invasion of Iraq as a Christmas gift he never thought he’d get.” By invading a country that’s regarded as the second holiest place in Islam, he asserts, the Bush administration inadvertently validated bin Laden’s assertions that the United States intends a holy war against Muslims.

In his book, titled "Imperial Hubris," he calls the Iraq invasion "an avaricious, premeditated, unprovoked war against a foe who posed no immediate threat,” arguing against the concept of pre-emptive war put forward by President Bush as justification for the Iraq war.
Story continues below ↓

How a Lobbyist Stacked the Deck

2005-12-30T16:37:00.000-05:00

How a Lobbyist Stacked the Deck

Not a real bright guy.

* Funding Attacks on Republicans: A client of Jack Abramoff sent $150,000 to a firm associated with Ralph Reed as part of his effort to kill an anti-gambling bill. The money was used to attack GOP House members who backed the bill. This graphic shows an e-mail exchange confirming the check's arrival.

* Abramoff's Paper Trail: Jack Abramoff directed eLottery money to charities and political friends. This graphic shows e-mails between Abramoff and his assistant discussing some of those transactions.

The Fast Rise and Steep Fall of Jack Abramoff

2005-12-30T16:33:00.000-05:00

The Fast Rise and Steep Fall of Jack Abramoff

Jack Abramoff liked to slip into dialogue from "The Godfather" as he led his lobbying colleagues in planning their next conquest on Capitol Hill. In a favorite bit, he would mimic an ice-cold Michael Corleone facing down a crooked politician's demand for a cut of Mafia gambling profits: "Senator, you can have my answer now if you like. My offer is this: nothing."

The playacting provided a clue to how Abramoff saw himself -- the power behind the scenes who directed millions of dollars in Indian gambling proceeds to favored lawmakers, the puppet master who pulled the strings of officials in key places, the businessman who was building an international casino empire....

"Everybody lost their minds," recalled a former congressional staffer who lobbied with Abramoff at Preston Gates. "Jack was cutting deals all over town. Staffers lost their loyalty to members -- they were loyal to money."

Now this reminds me of a book I am reading entitled "The Broker" by John Grisham....
Its not far from the way things really are. In fact the last 4 books I read made reference to a CIA term "neutralize" which in mafioso terms means whacked. Look back through History and count how many people were "neutralized."

Homeland Security Is Faulted in Audit

2005-12-30T15:00:00.000-05:00

Homeland Security Is Faulted in Audit

Nearly three years after it was formed, the immense Department of Homeland Security remains hampered by severe management and financial problems that contributed to the flawed response to Hurricane Katrina, according to an independent audit released yesterday.

The report by Homeland Security Inspector General Richard L. Skinner aimed some of its most pointed criticism at one of DHS's major entities, the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Katrina and a subsequent storm, Rita, increased the load on FEMA's "already overburdened resources and infrastructure," the report said.

In addition, the report found, "the circumstances created by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita provide an unprecedented opportunity for fraud, waste and abuse," primarily because FEMA's grant and contract programs are still not being managed properly.

"While DHS is taking several steps to manage and control spending under Katrina, the sheer size of the response and recovery efforts will create an unprecedented need for oversight," the report concludes.

Yep, thats a no brainer. They've screwed up a lot of things.
As I see it, the ban on assault weapons was lifted, so citizens probably in their best defense should get their own security; problem with that is I see a rise in gun crimes daily...but I can drive a few minutes up the road and get an Uzi If I wanted to.

Wrongful Imprisonment: Anatomy of a CIA Mistake

2005-12-30T11:34:00.000-05:00

Wrongful Imprisonment: Anatomy of a CIA Mistake

In May 2004, the White House dispatched the U.S. ambassador in Germany to pay an unusual visit to that country's interior minister. Ambassador Daniel R. Coats carried instructions from the State Department transmitted via the CIA's Berlin station because they were too sensitive and highly classified for regular diplomatic channels, according to several people with knowledge of the conversation.

Coats informed the German minister that the CIA had wrongfully imprisoned one of its citizens, Khaled Masri, for five months, and would soon release him, the sources said. There was also a request: that the German government not disclose what it had been told even if Masri went public. The U.S. officials feared exposure of a covert action program designed to capture terrorism suspects abroad and transfer them among countries, and possible legal challenges to the CIA from Masri and others with similar allegations.

They may be covert, secret and often dangerous (to anyone in their way) But they are not always the sharpest tacks in the box, despite what they'd like you to believe.

Covert CIA Program Withstands New Furor

2005-12-30T11:22:00.000-05:00

Covert CIA Program Withstands New Furor

The effort President Bush authorized shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, to fight al Qaeda has grown into the largest CIA covert action program since the height of the Cold War, expanding in size and ambition despite a growing outcry at home and abroad over its clandestine tactics, according to former and current intelligence officials and congressional and administration sources.

The broad-based effort, known within the agency by the initials GST, is compartmentalized into dozens of highly classified individual programs, details of which are known mainly to those directly involved.

GST includes programs allowing the CIA to capture al Qaeda suspects with help from foreign intelligence services, to maintain secret prisons abroad, to use interrogation techniques that some lawyers say violate international treaties, and to maintain a fleet of aircraft to move detainees around the globe. Other compartments within GST give the CIA enhanced ability to mine international financial records and eavesdrop on suspects anywhere in the world.

Is this somethong we are supposed to know about...?

US probes eavesdropping leak

2005-12-30T11:11:00.000-05:00

Top News Article Reuters.com

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department has launched an investigation to determine who disclosed a secret NSA eavesdropping operation approved by President George W. Bush after the September 11 attacks, officials said on Friday.
"We are opening an investigation into the unauthorized disclosure of classified materials related to the NSA," one official said.
Earlier this month Bush acknowledged the program and called its disclosure to The New York Times () "a shameful act." He said he presumed a Justice Department leak investigation into who disclosed the National Security Agency eavesdropping operation would get under way.

I don't know why they feel the need to get to the bottom of something that the public knew for a long time, they waste alot of time trying to cover up things that are obvious to the most casual observer.

Fairfax Gunman's Christmas Morning Rampage Detailed

2005-12-28T16:30:00.000-05:00

Fairfax Gunman's Rampage Detailed

Police yesterday described a harrowing scene at the Great Falls home where a triple slaying occurred Christmas morning, with the 27-year-old gunman rampaging through the spacious residence, shooting two victims at bedside and one cowering in a closet.

Shocked neighbors, friends and law enforcement officials struggled to make sense of the killings, which occurred less than an hour after the gunman, identified as Nathan Cheatham, allegedly killed his mother, Sheila Cheatham, at her McLean home eight miles away. The bloodbath ended when Cheatham shot himself in the head with the 9mm handgun, bringing the day's death toll to five, authorities said

Very sad indeed.

A Political Debate On Stress Disorder

2005-12-28T16:21:00.000-05:00

A Political Debate On Stress Disorder

The spiraling cost of post-traumatic stress disorder among war veterans has triggered a politically charged debate and ignited fears that the government is trying to limit expensive benefits for emotionally scarred troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

In the past five years, the number of veterans receiving compensation for the disorder commonly called PTSD has grown nearly seven times as fast as the number receiving benefits for disabilities in general, according to a report this year by the inspector general of the Department of Veterans Affairs. A total of 215,871 veterans received PTSD benefit payments last year at a cost of $4.3 billion, up from $1.7 billion in 1999 -- a jump of more than 150 percent.

You caused it, you fix it. Its deplorable that our veterans are all camped out on the streets of Washington and other major cities because what you have subjected them to has rendered them unfit to now function in society.
Understanding how PTSD works on a personal level, it needs to be taken very seriously.

Germany's Schr�der Bags Top US Public Speaking Deal | Germany | Deutsche Welle | 28.12.2005

2005-12-28T15:30:00.000-05:00

Germany's Schr�der Bags Top US Public Speaking Deal | Germany | Deutsche Welle | 28.12.2005

Former German Chancellor Schröder certainly knows how to stay in the headlines. His wildly lucrative business deals are not giving his critics a chance to even begin lowering their eyebrows.

When asked what his plans were after leaving the White House, former President Bill Clinton responded -- frankly and without any qualms -- that he was interested in making money. The enticing connection between politics and profit seems to have captured the imagination of former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder as well.

hmm

Latin American mercenaries guarding Baghdad's Green Zone

2005-12-28T15:26:00.000-05:00

Latin American mercenaries guarding Baghdad's Green Zone

More than 1,000 Latin Americans recruited by US private security contractors to work as mercenaries performing dangerous jobs in the countries under US military occupation. Their deaths underscore the emergence of a cheap labor market for mercenaries that has thrived in recent months.

Unemployed young men from Peru—most of them former soldiers—are paid only $1,000 a month—less than a tenth the salary paid to American mercenaries. For $5.75 an hour—a figure that is roughly equivalent to the US minimum wage—the recruits put themselves “in the line of fire” protecting US and British interests in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Forbes magazine reports that the US Government “pays private firms between $500 and $1,500 a day for the experienced military personnel they supply in Iraq. That works out to mercenaries who often earn between $150,000 and $250,000 a year.”

That's just wrong.

EU launches Galileo satellite

2005-12-28T14:17:00.000-05:00

Science News Article | Reuters.com

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The European Union launched its first Galileo navigation satellite on Wednesday, moving to challenge the United States' Global Positioning System (GPS).

Russia's space agency Roskosmos said the 600 kg (1,300 lb) spacecraft went into its designated orbit 23,000 km (15,000 miles) from the earth after its launch on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur cosmodrome in the middle of Kazakhstan's steppe.

"From now on, directing the spacecraft is down to the client that made the order -- that is, the European Space Agency," a Roskosmos spokesman said.

I suspect far more advanced than NASA

Saudi telecom stops text vote for Arab talent show

2005-12-28T14:15:00.000-05:00

Internet News Article | Reuters.com

RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi mobile operator Mobily has stopped users from text message voting for an Arab "Star Academy" competition because of an Islamic decree branding the reality show immoral, the company said on Monday.

Hey, Islamic Arabs are people too!

Specter Urges Discipline in Hussein Trial

2005-12-28T12:44:00.000-05:00

Specter Urges Discipline in Hussein Trial

BAGHDAD, Dec. 27 -- Saddam Hussein's judges should take control of his chaotic trial, Sen. Arlen Specter said here Tuesday, either by holding him in contempt for his repeated disruptions of the proceedings or banishing him from the courtroom.

Specter (R-Pa.), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said U.S. officials in Baghdad had told him that they expect Hussein to face a half-dozen trials. That would raise the prospect of months or years of proceedings unless conviction, condemnation and hanging for any one case stop the clock on trials to follow.

Actually, I have to agree with Arlen Specter on this one, Sadaam Hussein has made a gross mockery of the Judicial system in Baghdad. Why the judge has allowed this conduct is beyond me, except perhaps fear of his life as several lawyers have already been murdered with regard to this case.

Defense Lawyers in Terror Cases Plan Challenges Over Spy Efforts - New York Times

2005-12-28T11:51:00.000-05:00

Defense Lawyers in Terror Cases Plan Challenges Over Spy Efforts - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Dec. 27 - Defense lawyers in some of the country's biggest terrorism cases say they plan to bring legal challenges to determine whether the National Security Agency used illegal wiretaps against several dozen Muslim men tied to Al Qaeda.

The lawyers said in interviews that they wanted to learn whether the men were monitored by the agency and, if so, whether the government withheld critical information or misled judges and defense lawyers about how and why the men were singled out.

The government can find information and do anything they want with it: use it, hide it, deny it, or even kill to wipe away any traces of it if it doesn't suit their purposes.

Powell Speaks Out on Domestic Spy Program - New York Times

2005-12-26T11:31:00.000-05:00

Powell Speaks Out on Domestic Spy Program - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Dec. 25 - Former Secretary of State Colin L. Powell said on Sunday that it would not have been "that hard" for President Bush to obtain warrants for eavesdropping on domestic telephone and Internet activity, but that he saw "nothing wrong" with the decision not to do so.

Ah, the limited mindset of a political conspiracy. We the people feel differently.

DropShots | Christmas Dinner Entertainment

2005-12-26T11:24:00.000-05:00

DropShots | New

As I mentioned before, these little ones were in the spirit. Adopted by long time friends (our adopted family), these little Korean charmers were a smashing hit!

Keep Christmas in greetings

2005-12-25T09:24:00.000-05:00

The News Leader - www.newsleader.com - Staunton, Va.

Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays" seems to be a hot topic that has been going on for several years now. Only recently have I become more aware of the threat of the possibility of our first amendment right to free speech, being destroyed by those who claim political correctness. What is political correctness after all? Who wants or needs to be state- or government-correct in this country that boasts freedom of speech?

We have become so afraid of offending someone — anyone —that some of our lawmakers are using time that should be spent in creative thinking, planning and proceeding to bring our troops home safe from a needless war. With thousands of Americans under assault in Iraq and Afghanistan, including families and friends right here in the good old USA that need protecting, it is difficult to comprehend those offended by spoken words of "Merry Christmas!"

It is quite a bit disheartening that there is very little reference today in any of the headlines to Christmas.

"Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays." It is still our choice! But for how long? Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Hannukah, Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas!

December 25 - New York Times

2005-12-25T09:12:00.000-05:00

December 25 - New York Times

Most of us know how we want to feel this time of year, whatever holiday we are celebrating. We want to feel safe, loving and well loved, well fed, openhanded, and able to be moved by the powerful but very humble stories that gather in this season. We would like to feel that there is a kind of innocence, not in our hearts, since our hearts are such complicated places, but in the very gestures and rituals of late December. We would like to feel that we are returning to something unchanged, some still spot in a spinning world. Whether you believe with an absolute literalism or with a more analogic faith, whether you believe at all, whether you are Christian or Jewish or Muslim or merely human, the word we would like to feel most profoundly now is Peace.

It's easy enough to be cynical about the things we would like to feel here at the dark end of the year, to dismiss them out of hand as if they were only the battery-powered, sugar-coated, marzipan dreams of a child's holiday. Life is too tough, too embattled for such sentimentality. That is Scrooge's point exactly: no use pretending the world isn't exactly the way it is. One of the reasons we love to hear the story of an old crank like Scrooge is that he seems to embody this cracked old world, made whole in one night by regret and repentance.

One night will not do it, nor will one day. Peace does not simply appear in the sky overhead or lie embodied one morning in a manger. We come into this season knowing how we want it to make us feel, and we are usually disappointed because humans never cease to be human. But we are right to remember how we would like to feel. We are right to long for peace and good will.

Sad, but true every person I know of just couldn't get it together this year. We all admitted going through the motions (except for a couple toddlers I know now respectively 3 1/2 and 2. adopted from Korea) I have a video unparallelled to anything I have ever seen about Christmas spirit. Priceless as the video is, they are exempt from understanding the nature of crisis looming over each and every adult I have spoken to this season.

I am not catholic, but often atend a catholic service with a friend and her two daughters on Christmas eve.
Her oldest daughter asked why every one was dressed in black.
I thought about the grim reality of the times. As we were gathering for the service, twice a priest interrupted the childrens choir singing, to grumble over the loudspeaker, in a less than friendly inflection "In the name of Christian Charity, please do not save seats for those whom you are waiting for to arrive"
The delivery and the tone of those words, put quite a rough edge on what would otherwise be a joyful celebration.
There is no room in the Inn to be saved for your family(???)

Whose Economy Is It, Anyway? - New York Times

2005-12-25T08:51:00.000-05:00

Whose Economy Is It, Anyway? - New York Times

I have asked myself this many times...

As polls registered public discontent with the economy earlier this month, back-to-back government reports showed strong economic growth and respectable job creation. To explain the discrepancy, Allan Hubbard, one of President Bush's top economic advisers, said that hurricanes and high gas prices had temporarily darkened Americans' collective mood, but that the president was pleased with the economy. "He's more concerned with results than he is about polls," Mr. Hubbard said.

No wonder the president seems out of touch. Headline statistics - the "results" Mr. Hubbard referred to - can mask as much as they reveal.

Take, for instance, the solid 4.1 percent economic expansion in this year's third quarter and the 215,000 jobs created last month. In the past four years, similar jolts of positive data have never lasted long enough to result in consistently strong hiring and rising wages. There is little reason to believe things will be different this time. Already, analysts are slashing their fourth-quarter growth estimates to reflect the drag of America's huge trade deficit

Administration officials also love to cite the economy's low unemployment rate, recently 5 percent. But more than one million people have left the work force since 2001 and are not counted as unemployed, although a big reason for leaving is a lack of good jobs. Add to that the 4.2 million part-timers who want full-time jobs, and employment is weaker than the administration would have you believe.

The administration also wants you to think that wages are on an upswing. But during the current recovery, wages have lagged inflation by 0.3 percent for 80 percent of the work force, generally defined as nonmanagers. To add insult to injury, the decline has occurred even as Americans have set records for productivity. That means Americans are working harder, but taking home less.

When I was looking for work, there were no jobs. After it was deemed I could not work, from injuries resulted in an accident; I was denied SS, stating my condition was severe, but not severe enough. Off to the court of appeals.

U.S. Airstrikes Take Toll on Civilians

2005-12-24T11:58:00.000-05:00

U.S. Airstrikes Take Toll on Civilians

RAMADI, Iraq -- U.S. Marine airstrikes targeting insurgents sheltering in Iraqi residential neighborhoods are killing civilians as well as guerrillas along the Euphrates River in far western Iraq, according to Iraqi townspeople and officials and the U.S. military.

Just how many civilians have been killed is strongly disputed by the Marines and, some critics say, too little investigated. But townspeople, tribal leaders, medical workers and accounts from witnesses at the sites of clashes, at hospitals and at graveyards indicated that scores of noncombatants were killed last month in fighting, including airstrikes, in the opening stages of a 17-day U.S.-Iraqi offensive in Anbar province

"These people died silently, complaining to God of a guilt they did not commit," Operation Steel Curtain, which began on Nov. 5, medical workers had recorded 97 civilians killed. At least 38 insurgents were also killed in the offensive's early days, Rawi said.
"I dare any organization, committee or the American Army to deny these numbers," Rawi said.

This is a pathetic act by the US military, and a tragedy to the people of Iraq. They have every right to hate us.

Alito Urged Wiretap Immunity

2005-12-24T11:25:00.000-05:00

Alito Urged Wiretap Immunity

Here it is again!

Supreme Court nominee Samuel A. Alito Jr. once argued that the nation's top law enforcement official deserves blanket protection from lawsuits when acting in the name of national security, even when those actions involve the illegal wiretapping of American citizens, documents released yesterday show.

To date, much of the debate involving Alito's nomination has centered on his views on abortion. The latest of Alito's memos to be disclosed opened a window on his thinking in the area of national security vs. privacy rights, an issue that is currently under considerable scrutiny.

As it should be.strong>

Alito Memo in '84 Favored Immunity for Top Officials - New York Times

2005-12-24T11:18:00.000-05:00
Alito Memo in '84 Favored Immunity for Top Officials - New York Times

The attorney general should be immune from lawsuits for ordering wiretaps of Americans without permission from a court, Samuel A. Alito Jr., President Bush's Supreme Court nominee, wrote in a memorandum in 1984 as a government lawyer in the Reagan administration.

The memorandum, released yesterday by the National Archives, made recommendations concerning a lawsuit against former Attorney General John N. Mitchell over a wiretap he had authorized without a court's permission in 1970. The government was investigating a plot to destroy underground utility tunnels in Washington and to kidnap Henry A. Kissinger, the national security adviser.

Ah the big picture unfolds, George picks them to suit his agenda....

Mr. Cheney's Imperial Presidency - New York Times

2005-12-24T10:47:00.000-05:00
Mr. Cheney's Imperial Presidency - New York Times

George W. Bush has quipped several times during his political career that it would be so much easier to govern in a dictatorship. Apparently he never told his vice president that this was a joke.

Virtually from the time he chose himself to be Mr. Bush's running mate in 2000, Dick Cheney has spearheaded an extraordinary expansion of the powers of the presidency - from writing energy policy behind closed doors with oil executives to abrogating longstanding treaties and using the 9/11 attacks as a pretext to invade Iraq, scrap the Geneva Conventions and spy on American citizens.

It was a chance Mr. Cheney seems to have been dreaming about for decades. Most Americans looked at wrenching events like the Vietnam War, the Watergate scandal and the Iran-contra debacle and worried that the presidency had become too powerful, secretive and dismissive. Mr. Cheney looked at the same events and fretted that the presidency was not powerful enough, and too vulnerable to inspection and calls for accountability.

I feel this is why Bush won't be impeached, we'd be stuck with this power monger, who would be much worse.

Spy Agency Mined Vast Data Trove, Officials Report - New York Times

2005-12-24T10:43:00.000-05:00
Spy Agency Mined Vast Data Trove, Officials Report - New York Times

WASHINGTON, Dec. 23 - The National Security Agency has traced and analyzed large volumes of telephone and Internet communications flowing into and out of the United States as part of the eavesdropping program that President Bush approved after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to hunt for evidence of terrorist activity, according to current and former government officials.

The volume of information harvested from telecommunication data and voice networks, without court-approved warrants, is much larger than the White House has acknowledged, the officials said. It was collected by tapping directly into some of the American telecommunication system's main arteries, they said.

As part of the program approved by President Bush for domestic surveillance without warrants, the N.S.A. has gained the cooperation of American telecommunications companies to obtain backdoor access to streams of domestic and international communications, the officials said.

I feel like I am reading "Digital Fortress all" over again, but this is real life NEWS

Expatica's German news in English: German army to move to northern Afghanistan

2005-12-23T14:47:00.000-05:00
Expatica's German news in English: German army to move to northern Afghanistan

Germany finishes what america did not.

EU Threatens Microsoft With Daily Fines For Non-Compliance | Business | Deutsche Welle | 23.12.2005

2005-12-23T14:45:00.000-05:00
EU Threatens Microsoft With Daily Fines For Non-Compliance | Business | Deutsche Welle | 23.12.2005

Technology giant Microsoft could be faced with daily fines of up to 2 million euros imposed by the European Commission for not complying to an EU competition ruling in 2004.

A standoff between the EU antitrust watchdog and Microsoft heated up Thursday when the European Commission threatened to slap a daily fine of up to 2 million euros ($2.37 million) on US software giant for failing to comply with a ruling.

EU Budget Deal Costs Germany More Than Expected | Europe | Deutsche Welle | 23.12.2005

2005-12-23T14:38:00.000-05:00
EU Budget Deal Costs Germany More Than Expected | Europe | Deutsche Welle | 23.12.2005

Praised as a dealmaker par excellence after engineering last week's EU budget compromise, Angela Merkel has drawn the the opposition's ire after it emerged that Germany's payments to Brussels are set to increase.

The annual check Germany, already the European Union's biggest net-contributor before the newest deal, sends to finance the European Union grew by another 2 billion euros ($2.4 billion) as part of the delicate budget deal Chancellor Merkel brokered last week.

"We will have to pay less than we had expected, but we will pay more than in the past," the government's deputy spokesman Thomas Steg said, confirming a report in the Berliner Zeitung daily.

Give the woman a break.

Another School Barrier for African Girls: No Toilet - New York Times

2005-12-23T14:30:00.000-05:00
Another School Barrier for African Girls: No Toilet - New York Times

BALIZENDA, Ethiopia - Fatimah Bamun dropped out of Balizenda Primary School in first grade, more than three years ago, when her father refused to buy her pencils and paper. Only after teachers convinced him that his daughter showed unusual promise did he relent. Today Fatimah, 14, tall and slender, studies math and Amharic, Ethiopia's official language, in a dirt-floored fourth-grade classroom

This is really a shame. The UN should not allow these things to happen, but they seem so proccupied with other matters, some far less significant.

Political Trivia

2005-12-23T14:16:00.000-05:00
(washingtonpost.com)

Oh joy, I was right again...they are predictable

Vice President Cheney canceled visits to Saudi Arabia and Egypt this week and returned to Washington earlier than scheduled to cast a tiebreaking vote on legislation before the Senate. What part of the U.S. Constitution grants the vice president the authority to cast tiebreaking votes in the Senate?
Article I, Section 2
Article I, Section 3 You Are Correct
Article III, Section 1
Article II, Section 2
Article I, Section 3 states that, "The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided."

PDF: Justice Letter to Congress

2005-12-23T14:07:00.000-05:00
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/documents/122205NSAletter.pdf

Power We Didn't Grant

2005-12-23T12:50:00.000-05:00
Power We Didn't Grant

In the face of mounting questions about news stories saying that President Bush approved a program to wiretap American citizens without getting warrants, the White House argues that Congress granted it authority for such surveillance in the 2001 legislation authorizing the use of force against al Qaeda. On Tuesday, Vice President Cheney said the president "was granted authority by the Congress to use all means necessary to take on the terrorists, and that's what we've done."

perhaps there should have been clarity...

Daschle: Congress Denied Bush War Powers in U.S.

2005-12-23T12:30:00.000-05:00
Daschle: Congress Denied Bush War Powers in U.S.

The Bush administration requested, and Congress rejected, war-making authority "in the United States" in negotiations over the joint resolution passed days after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, according to an opinion article by former Senate majority leader Thomas A. Daschle (D-S.D.) in today's Washington Post.

Daschle's disclosure challenges a central legal argument offered by the White House in defense of the National Security Agency's warrantless wiretapping of U.S. citizens and permanent residents. It suggests that Congress refused explicitly to grant authority that the Bush administration now asserts is implicit in the resolution.

The Justice Department acknowledged yesterday, in a letter to Congress, that the president's October 2001 eavesdropping order did not comply with "the 'procedures' of" the law that has regulated domestic espionage since 1978. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, established a secret intelligence court and made it a criminal offense to conduct electronic surveillance without a warrant from that court, "except as authorized by statute."

Read on...

Newly Emboldened Congress Has Dogged Bush This Year

2005-12-23T12:26:00.000-05:00
Newly Emboldened Congress Has Dogged Bush This Year

After four years in which Congress repeatedly lay down while President Bush dictated his priorities, 2005 will go down as the year legislators stood up.

This week's uprising against a four-year extension of the USA Patriot Act was the latest example of a new willingness by lawmakers in both parties to challenge Bush and his notions of expansive executive power

What is most striking is that the pushback is coming not just from Democrats and moderate Republicans, who often disagree with Bush, but also from mainstream conservatives

Its about time.

FEMA Slows Search for Kids From Katrina

2005-12-23T12:22:00.000-05:00
FEMA Slows Search for Kids From Katrina

Efforts to locate 500 children still classified as missing after Hurricane Katrina are stalled because the Federal Emergency Management Agency, citing privacy laws, has refused to share its evacuee database with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, according to investigators tracking the cases.

Not until the White House and Justice Department intervened earlier this month did Department of Homeland Security officials agree to a compromise that grants FBI agents limited access to information that may provide clues to many of the unresolved cases.

This is just wrong. The Gov. has broken laws to suit their needs, but not for the missing children.

Reuters AlertNet - CRISIS PROFILE-What's going on in Sudan's Darfur?

2005-12-23T12:13:00.000-05:00
Reuters AlertNet - CRISIS PROFILE-What's going on in Sudan's Darfur?

This is a very serious problem, and its personally discouraging more hasn't been done to rectify the situation.

What is the humanitarian crisis in Darfur?

Attacks by government troops and Arab militia have forced about 1.2 million people, mostly black villagers, from their homes in western Sudan. Many have gone to live with families in other parts of Darfur, and about 130,000 have fled across the border into Chad. As many as 50,000 have died in violent raids over the past year and reports continue of massacres, rape, torture and looting despite a nominal ceasefire.

Warning of mass starvation and epidemics, the United Nations has described the situation as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Relief workers are rushing to get desperately needed food, water and medicine to hundreds of thousands but much of the aid is not getting through.

Save Darfur.org ::

2005-12-23T12:11:00.000-05:00
Save Darfur.org ::

Reuters AlertNet - US Congress rebuffs Rice on Darfur troop funding

2005-12-23T12:10:00.000-05:00
Reuters AlertNet - US Congress rebuffs Rice on Darfur troop funding

WASHINGTON, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Congress rejected U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's impassioned appeal to provide $50 million for African troops trying to keep peace in Sudan's Darfur region, the State Department said on Monday.

U.S. funding for about 6,000 African Union peacekeepers ends this year and the State Department is concerned that violence in Darfur will only get worse if more money is not found to keep the mission going.

Still, despite the rejection by a Congress under pressure to keep spending down, the U.S. State Department said it would seek to find the money from other foreign aid programs for the Darfur mission.

"We are frustrated and disappointed. The AU plays an important role in Darfur," State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said.

Now this is a land and people in serious need of help

Italy issues warrant for CIA team

2005-12-23T12:03:00.000-05:00
Top News Article | Reuters.com

MILAN (Reuters) - A Milan court has issued a European arrest warrant for 22 CIA agents suspected of kidnapping an Egyptian cleric from Italy's financial capital in 2003, Prosecutor Armando Spataro said on Friday.

The case is one of several investigations into whether U.S. intelligence agents used Europe to illegally transfer militant suspects to third countries for interrogation. The renditions have led to tensions between Washington and the European Union.

Milan magistrates suspect a CIA team grabbed Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr off a Milan street and flew him for interrogation to Egypt, where he said he was tortured.

EU is cracking down in american bully tactics and covert operations illegal on their soil. Nice to know.