Cindy Sheehan: "Brought to You by Boeing" - Before I headed to our "Gather-In of Hearts" in Central Park this afternoon, I was watching NBC's "Meet the Press." Except for a brief excerpt about the Alberto Gonzales hearing this week, the entire show was about Obama vs. Hillary. Should Obama hit harder? Should Hillary ignore him since she's the frontrunner? How will this affect the primaries? Will it affect the primaries? Fox and CNN are trying to distract us from real news that affects us all by round-the-clock... More >>
Michael Collins - Impeachment: Where weâre headed - I contend that there is real action on impeachment and that itâs occurring right now, before our very eyes. The actors are not singling out my favorite charges â a war based on lies and election fraud. But theyâve laid the basis for some serious damage to the administration through impeachment charges against the president... More >>
Zaoui: Gordon Campbell Series: The Special Advocates' Dilemma - Gordon Campbell writes: Like the Weasley twins in the Harry Potter saga, the special advocates appointed to the Zaoui review are the wild card element in the proceedings. Their role verges on the absurd. They are appointed by the Crown, but only in order to oppose the Crown case. They get to test the SIS secret evidence on Zaoui's behalf, yet can't talk to him. As Lord Bingham of the British Law Lords has said, this is nothing remotely like a normal lawyer/client relationship. More >>
Elections: Scientists Hack Into Electronic Voting Machines - Computer scientists from California universities have hacked into three electronic voting systems used in California and elsewhere in the nation and found several ways in which vote totals could potentially be altered, according to reports released yesterday by the state. The reports, the latest to raise questions about electronic voting machines, came to light on a day when House leaders announced in...More >>
Australia: Haneefâs Case Is A Lesson To Pakistani Government - After the four weeks of high drama in Australia, the terror charges against Indian Doctor Mohammed Haneef were dropped. Apparently, the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutors admitted that a mistake had been made. Dr. Haneef was charged on having links with the unsuccessful terror plot in London and Glasgow in June. He was arrested by Australia Federal Police (AFP) under the new Australian anti-terror law. Under this law, a person can be held at any unknown location under suspicion of being involved or supported terrorism... More >>
Michael Collins - IMPEACHMENT: "Did The President Ask You To Go?" On May 18th, âScoopâ reported that the testimony of James Comey, former Deputy Attorney General under John Ashcroft, provided evidence of a crime in which Bush, Gonzales, and Cardâ were clearly implicated. It was apparent that Bush had ordered his then counsel Alberto Gonzales and adviser, Andrew Card, to the sick bed of an ailing and sedated John Ashcroft. Their mission was to obtain Ashcroftâs signature authorizing warrant-less surveillance of Americans... More >>
Scoop Audio: Mikey Havoc Extended IV With George Galloway - 95bFM Audio: In an extended interview, Mikey Havoc talks to Firebrand Scottish MP George Galloway about getting kicked out of Parliament, Islamophobia and the state of the Middle East. Mr Galloway spoke to capacity audiences in Auckland on Friday July 27 and Saturday July 28 2007... More
Posada Carriles: Julie Webb-Pullman On Silencing The LAMBS Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, itâs Super-judge, Bush-appointed Federal Judge Kathleen Cardone, saving the day for the CIA. This intrepid defender of the values her Attorney-General Alberto Gonzalez holds so dear stunned one and all last week with her sheer audacity in dismissing immigration fraud charges against notorious terrorist Luis Posada Carriles. See... More >>
American Coup: Hammertime - Voting Machines And Citizen Violence - A 52-year old carpenter from Arlington Virginia expressed frustration over losing his voting rights by taking a hammer to a voting machine. The WinVote machine succumbed to no less than an Estwing Supreme 22S, "the finest framing hammer known to mankind," according to Sabo. Arlington has been forcing its citizenry to vote on machines of questionable pedigree, which count votes in secret, prohibit citizen oversight and for added fun, feature wireless capability throughout Election Day. See... More >>
Religion: A Corrupting A Cosmic Crutch Emerges In Thailand BANGKOK, Thailand -- Buddhists have become obsessed with a magic amulet which resembles a rap star's bling-sized medallion, despite warnings that the circular icon is a cosmic crutch, corrupting religion and society. When a fresh batch of Jatukam Ramathep amulets went on sale in April, buyers stampeded, trampling a woman to death. See... More >>
Iraq: David Swanson Assesses The Democrats War Funding Capitulation The new war money bill passed by the House on May 10 does not include even a nonbinding end date for the war. It does fund the war for a shorter period of time at one shot, but the Senate doesn't like that idea, and the bill must be reconciled with whatever the Senate passes. So, what's left in the bill that Bush doesn't like? Benchmarks! See... More >>.
S59: Dr Ian Hassall: Perspective On The New Section 59 - Public uncertainty over the fate of the Crimes (Substituted S59) Amendment Bill came suddenly and dramatically to an end last Wednesday. The Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition and the Billâs sponsor called a press conference mid-morning and announced that they had struck a deal to allow the passage of the Bill which had up to then been held up by a National-led parliamentary filibuster. More >>
Paul Smith On Media: Crank It Up For The Oldies Once upon a time older TV viewers were barely considered by those running the media Market, though occasionally a stallholder might offer glimpses into their lives. Now all that's changing rapidly. See... More >>
Energy: Bonus Joules - Eye of the Unknown - Dear Bryan Leyland. No, start again. Dear all the Bryan Leylands in New Zealand. And the world, for that matter. I believe you are making a massive error demolishing the Auckland Energy Community Trust, which owns most of Vector Ltd i.e. the utility grids of Auckland and Wellington cities. Your action will dwarf the disastrous fiascos of NZ Telecom and NZ Rail and will cost our nation dearly. Please, please reconsider. See... More >>
War & Religion: Jason Leopold - A Holy War In The US MilitaryAn Orthodox Jew and former petty officer in the US Navy said his civil rights were violated after a chaplain and officials at a Veterans Administration hospital in Iowa City, Iowa, tried to convert him to Christianity while he was under the VA's care. See... More >>
UQ Wire: Dusty & 'The Boys' II - A MadCowMorningNews investigation has learned that the company which owned the DC9 airliner caught carrying 5.5 tons of cocaine at an airport in Mexicoâs Yucatan last year was engaged in other illegal activities as well, including massive âpump and dumpâ stock fraud involving a network of companies led by scandal-ridden San Diego defense contractor Titan Corp. See... More >>
American Coup: RFK & Palast - Rove And Rove's Brain, 'Should be in jail' NEW YORK -- Voting rights attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has called for prison time for the new US Attorney for Arkansas, Timothy Griffin and investigation of Griffin's former boss, Karl Rove, chief political advisor to President Bush. See... More >>
US Election 2008:Sam Smith On Why Obama Is Called Black - One of the jobs of a journalist is to keep cleaning up one's own mind. It is so easy to drift into a colloquial world in which habit, cliche and spin conspire to make one an unconscious co-conspirator in the myths of the time. See... More >>
US Attorneys: Thor Hearne The White House & A Fire In Missouri A high-level GOP operative and master "voter fraud" snake-oil salesman, Mark F. "Thor" Hearne of Missouri, was in charge of hiring a high-level White House/DoJ operative to help put out the fire in an investigation by former U.S. Attorney Bud Cummins, according to a recent interview. See... More >>
George Tenet's Book: -Robert Parry On Tenet-Bush Pre-9/11 "Small Talk"In late August 2001, when aggressive presidential action might have changed the course of US history, CIA Director George Tenet made a special trip to Crawford, Texas, to get George W. Bush to focus on an imminent threat of a spectacular al-Qaeda attack only to have the conversation descend into meaningless small talk. More >>
NZ Economy: Keith Rankin On Fixing Monetary Policy - There seems to be growing acknowledgement that tight monetary policy (ie the actions taken by the Reserve Bank to raise interest rates) is a flawed concept. More commentators and policymakers are accepting that, at best, that the actions of the Reserve Bank ... See... More >>
Book Review: Suzan Mazur Reviews Joe Conason's "It Can Happen Here" - With the dismantling of security states there is generally a toppling of the symbol of the reign of terror. Americaâs emblem has come to be the surveillance camera, which exploded on the US landscape as the PATRIOT Act began the usurping of precious freedoms of speech, assembly, due process, legal representation, and freedom from search and seizure. Like some alien invasion cooked up by the producers of a cheap, sleazy science fiction movie, the camera suddenly allowed corporate property rights to trump an individualâs right to privacy. See... More >>
Bush Vs Rule Of Law: White House Faces Sweeping Congressional Oversight- Jason Leopold Writes: Congress took unprecedented action against the Bush administration Wednesday, using its sweeping powers to vigorously pursue testimony and documents from key White House officials and agencies on issues that have mired the administration in at least a ... See... More >>
US Attorneys: USA Under Attack for "Terror Trophy" Prosecutions - A small but increasingly vocal group of protesters is charging that a United States attorney in northern New York has pursued a series of terror-related "political prosecutions" to enhance his reputation as "a loyal Bushie" and thus avoid the fate of eight of his colleagues recently fired by Alberto Gonzales's Department of Justice. See... More >>
Iraq: Robert Parry Assesses The War President's Charlie Rose IV - Robert Parry Writes: George W. Bush admits he has no evidence that a withdrawal timetable from Iraq would be harmful. Instead, the President told interviewer Charlie Rose that this core assumption behind his veto threat of a Democratic war appropriation bill is backed by "just ... See... More >>
Antiquities: Mazur - Italy's List Of Ancient Treasures At Cleveland - Cleveland Museum representatives met in Rome on Friday with Italyâs ministry of culture to discuss a list of dozens -- yes dozens -- of pieces of Italyâs cultural patrimony now part of the museumâs hoard. Topping the list is the fabulous ex-Hunt collection Medea calyx krater, 400 bc, first identified on these pages as looted Italian art
â the vase former Boston Museum of Fine Arts curator Cornelius Vermeule told me heâd âkill forâ around the time of the 1990 Hunt-Sothebyâs auction. More >>
Karl Rove: Rove Investigator Himself Under Investigation - A federal investigation into the political activities of Karl Rove, announced late Monday, is being headed by a Bush appointee who is currently the target of an internal White House probe - calling into question the integrity of the administration's efforts ... More >>
Nigeria: Akanimo Sampson Reports On Nigeria's Disputed Polls - THE Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (IHRHL) working in partnership with the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI), with offices in Washington, DC United States of America (USA) and Abuja, Nigeria, have made public their report on the April 21 polls in Nigeria
George W. Bush: Two Doctors Take A look Inside Bush's Head - When we feel inadequate about some aspect of our lives, we work to submerge those feelings with compensations and defenses. Evidence is that in the case of George W. Bush, deep feelings of inadequacy and powerful defensive behaviors employed to submerge them and cover them up cripple the decision-making process he needs for his duties as president. The dynamics of the president's cover-up involve a vicious psychological paradox: because he secretly anticipates the humiliating failure he has experienced all his life, he behaves in ways that ensure that he will fail. See⦠The Psychology Behind G.W. Bush's Decision-Making
Smacking Debate: Ron Law's Dummie's Guide To The S59 Repeal Bill - Contrary to popular belief, Sue Bradford's so-called âanti-smackingâ Bill has already been defeated by the parliamentary process. Having been the recipient of numerous "anti âanti smackingâ" or "anti âpro beat your kidsâ" emails I thought it prudent, as a risk & policy analyst, to look at what all the fuss was about so I could make an informed decision myself. See... Ron Law: Section 59 for Dummies
Media: David Swanson Farewells Kurt Vonnegut - Kurt Vonnegut published over two dozen books, including 2005's "A Man Without a Country." It's a book that is brutally honest in its hopelessness, in fact â I think â overly hopeless, and yet humorous. It may even be hopeless in order to better be humorous. Vonnegut discusses in the book the use of tragedy to heighten laughter. But certainly the humor works to lighten the load of dismay and despair that this book ever-so-lightly dumps on us. See... Vonnegut Dies Without a Country or Religion
US Dollar: An American Perspective On Current Account Chaos - The American people are in La-la land. If they had any idea of what the Federal Reserve was up to theyâd be out on the streets waving fists and pitchforks. Instead, we go our business like nothing is wrong. Are we really that stupid? What is it that people donât understand about the trade deficit? Itâs not rocket science. The Current Account Deficit is over $800 billion a year. See... Mike Whitney: Doomsday for the Greenback
George W. Bush: Two Doctors Take A look Inside Bush's Head - When we feel inadequate about some aspect of our lives, we work to submerge those feelings with compensations and defenses. Evidence is that in the case of George W. Bush, deep feelings of inadequacy and powerful defensive behaviors employed to submerge them and cover them up cripple the decision-making process he needs for his duties as president. See⦠The Psychology Behind G.W. Bush's Decision-Making
Smacking Debate: Ron Law's Dummie's Guide To The S59 Repeal Bill - Contrary to popular belief, Sue Bradford's so-called âanti-smackingâ Bill has already been defeated by the parliamentary process. Having been the recipient of numerous "anti âanti smackingâ" or "anti âpro beat your kidsâ" emails I thought it prudent, as a risk & policy analyst, to look at what all the fuss was about so I could make an informed decision myself. See... Ron Law: Section 59 for Dummies
Media: David Swanson Farewells Kurt Vonnegut - Kurt Vonnegut published over two dozen books, including 2005's "A Man Without a Country." It's a book that is brutally honest in its hopelessness, in fact â I think â overly hopeless, and yet humorous. It may even be hopeless in order to better be humorous. Vonnegut discusses in the book the use of tragedy to heighten laughter. But certainly the humor works to lighten the load of dismay and despair that this book ever-so-lightly dumps on us. See... Vonnegut Dies Without a Country or Religion
US Dollar: An American Perspective On Current Account Chaos - The American people are in La-la land. If they had any idea of what the Federal Reserve was up to theyâd be out on the streets waving fists and pitchforks. Instead, we go our business like nothing is wrong. Are we really that stupid? What is it that people donât understand about the trade deficit? Itâs not rocket science. The Current Account Deficit is over $800 billion a year. See... Mike Whitney: Doomsday for the Greenback
Meditations: Martin LeFevre Unpacks Bono's Heavenwards Glances - In a recent essay in âTimeâ magazine, Bono said, âLooking inward wonât cut it. We discover who we are in service to each other, not the self.â There is some truth, and a lot of falseness packed into that statement. Letâs unpack it. Bono is to be commended for using his celebrity status to raise important issues, but how much has the world actually benefited by celebrity attention to problems? Rock stars and actors have made no real difference. So itâs celebrity activism that wonât cut it. See... Martin LeFevre: Celebrity Activism
Media: Paul Smith On The Killing Of The Messengers - I had a New Yearâs wish - but it proved more fragile than most. It was for the safety of canaries - the human version. Look at it this way: once, coal miners carefully monitored the health of their canaries. If the birds died, they knew they were in trouble. All over the world canaries of a different kind are dying - they are journalists whose work tells us thereâs oxygen enough to live in a civil society. But in the poisoned air of the new century, they are being jailed without trial, murdered, tortured and otherwise silenced. See... Paul Smith: How To Kill A Canaryâ¦
Iran: Noam Chomsky Puts The Iran Crisis in Context - Unsurprisingly, George W. Bush's announcement of a "surge" in Iraq came despite the firm opposition to any such move of Americans and the even stronger opposition of the (thoroughly irrelevant) Iraqis. It was accompanied by ominous official leaks and statements -- from Washington and Baghdad -- about how Iranian intervention in Iraq was aimed at disrupting our mission to gain victory, an aim which is (by definition) noble. See... Noam Chomsky: What If Iran Had Invaded Mexico?
War: The Multiple Wars On Terror Iraq & Peace - When Senator Russ Feingold and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid propose cutting off the funding for the war, they are proposing the only thing that can possibly benefit U.S. troops. In fact, there is no way to make any sense of the idea that ... See... You Can't Hurt a Troop By Defunding a War MORE WAR COMMENT:
Media: Paul Smith On The Subtlety Of Granny Herald's Sub-Editors - When I collected the Herald from my letterbox the other day it was as if the editors thought I might be hard of hearing. The front page headline bellowed at me as I tottered off down the drive, another daft, deaf git: 40 seconds from air disaster. Where I wondered was the screamer, the exclamation mark? But, having been yelled at so to speak, I had to read on, discovering in the process that the aircraft in question was⦠five miles from disaster. Okay it might, just might have been close - but don't shout. See... Paul Smith: Hark, the Herald Angel⦠SHOUTS!!!!!
Iraq War: Efforts To Stop The War Bump Into Bush - When the new Democratic majority successfully attached a troop withdrawal deadline to the $124 billion supplemental Iraq spending bill in late March, the newspapers described it as a stunning development. If this bill made it through the Senate, Bush would be faced with a choice he wanted no part of: swallow an exit deadline, or veto a pile of money needed to keep the Iraq meat grinder spinning. See... William Rivers Pitt: And Then, Something Went Bump MORE ON ENDING THE IRAQ WAR:
Israel & OT: Palestine Absent At Stockholm's War Anniversary Protest - The Stockholm air was too cold, even for the most animated speaker to excite a crowd. But I had little choice: thousands of anti-war protesters had descended on the capitalâs main square to show their support of the Iraqi people on the four-year anniversary of the US invasion, and to demand an immediate American withdrawal. See⦠War Anniversary: Israel, Palestine Links Absent MORE NEWS ON PALESTINE & THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES:
Disarmament: Jeremy Rose On De-Nuking The Middle East - The United Nationâs General Assembly, The Security Council, the Arab League, Iran, Israel, Egypt, and the Non-Aligned Movement are just some of those who have publicly lent their support to a Middle East nuclear free zone over the past three decades. Itâs no exaggeration to say that representatives of virtually the entire world have expressed support for Middle East nuclear free zone (MENFZ). Yet in the dozens of articles Iâve read in recent weeks about the Iranian nuclear crisis Iâm yet to see a single mention of the proposal. See... Time To Get Serious About Nuclear Free Middle East
US Attorneys: USAG Alberto Gonzales's Story Unraveling - Embattled Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and his closest advisers have stated repeatedly over the past two months that the selective firings of eight United States attorneys last year were justified because President Bush has the authority to purge federal prosecutors at will, a fact that is not under dispute. See... DOJ Emails Illustrate Plan to Mislead Congress US ATTORNEYS COMMENT:
American Coup: Diebold Amuses A Boston Legal Eagle - BOSTON - Diebold Election Systems, Inc., the controversial voting machine supplier, won't be supplying Massachusetts with its machines in 2008 and the company is not happy about it. So they are suing the state over the lost contract bid. But the solemn tone of Diebold's lawyer, William Weisberg, speaking in a hushed voice almost swallowed up by the stately, high-ceilinged courtroom of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court this week, drew laughter from the jovial judge with a Cheshire cat grin and raised chuckles from the courtroom audience. See⦠Diebold's MASS Alice-In-Wonderland Jester's Court MORE AMERICAN COUP:
Media: Public Address Radio Is Born! - We have a radio show. It is called, with impeccable logic, Public Address Radio, and it will be presented by myself and David Slack at 2pm on Saturday afternoons, starting this week, on Radio Live. It's produced by the Down Low Concept, the creators ... See⦠Public Address 26/03/07 - Public Address Radio MORE PUBLIC ADDRESS:
US Attorneys: Evidence Of White House Involvement Piles Up - Emails released by the Department of Justice over the past two weeks in conjunction with a Congressional investigation into the firings of eight US attorneys show that White House officials have communicated with DOJ staffers about the attorney purge, using email accounts maintained by the Republican National Committee in possible violation of the Presidential Records Act. See... White House Use of Outside Email Accts. Questioned MORE US ATTORNEYS COMMENT:
Nepal: Yet Another Massacre In The Himalayas - Those killed in Gaur on Wednesday, March 21, 2007, no matter who they were: Maoists or Madheshis or Pahades, were the children of the same Mother Nepal. The history of Nepal was full of the palace massacres for grabbing power starting in 1846 and ending in June 2001. The palace massacres put Jung Bahadur Kunwar later Rana to power in 1846, and Gyanendra in 2001. Now, the power struggle shifted from the palace to the field but the victims are the same Nepalis called in different names. See... Siddhi B. Ranjitkar: Gaur Massacre MORE NEWS COMMENT FROM NEPAL:
Iraq War: US House Votes In Favour Of Ending Iraq War Soonish - If you could secretly tell a magic genie "Yes" and receive a million dollars but cause the deaths of a million people you've never met in China, would you say No? This is no longer just a philosophical brain teaser. The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote Friday morning on funding for a war that has already caused the deaths of possibly as many as a million Iraqis. See... David Swanson: A Measure of Morality in Congress MORE ON THE EFFORT TO END THE IRAQ WAR:
Iran: What's It Like Waiting Around To Be Bombed? - A recent CBS News/New York Times poll showed that 65 percent of Americans endorsed diplomacy with Iran, while 10 percent favored military action. But when asked by an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll if the US should "destroy Iran's ability to construct nuclear weapons," the percentage that advocated an attack rose to 43 with 47 percent demurring. The same poll also asked if we should attack Iran if it were found responsible for exporting roadside-bomb technology to Iraq. Those in favor were now in the majority -- 55 percent -- while 45 percent opposed. See... Russ Wellen: Iran On The Brink
Foreign Affairs: Cameron Walker Examines The NZ Double Standard On US Aggression - In January 2007 Cabinet Minister Jim Anderton, in an interview about the Bush Administrationâs decision to send 20,000 more troops to Iraq, with Christchurch's newspaper The Press, compared the occupation of Iraq with America's Vietnam 'fiasco'. He then added: "One wonders whether the lessons I would have expected to be learnt from that fiasco have been learnt in any way at all. It is literally years since Mr Bush landed on an aircraft carrier and announced the war was over. I don't know whether he remembers that." See... Clark And Peters: Apologists for Mass Terror
US Attorneys: House Tightens Its Grip On White House - In a letter late Wednesday, Rep. Henry Waxman presented numerous instances in which subpoenas were used by Congress to compel the testimony of presidential staff in former administrations. White House Spokesman Tony Snow told reporters that the demand for sworn testimony from presidential advisers is "unprecedented" and "highly unusual in any White House."See... Renner: Waxman Provides Precedent for Subpoenas MORE US ATTORNEY'S NEWS:
Lebanon: NZ Work Clearing Cluster Bombs Much Appreciated - Little more than a week after they began work in southern Lebanon, near Tyre, local workers were already back to ploughing. Paul Mead, Officer in Charge of the Battle Area Clearance (BAC) team, laughs that the locals insisted on going out âthe very next dayâ after it was declared safe from unexploded munitions. The contamination of land by cluster bombs impacts upon the livelihoods of land owners, land users and workers. See... NZ Work Clearing Cluster Bombs Much Appreciated
Iraq: A Majority of Iraqis Support Violent Attacks on U.S. Forces - How can we ask our soldiers to serve extended duty in a nation where a majority of the people endorses to attacking them? Why isnât this headline news daily? Why isnât action on this clearly stated opinion at the center of the current debate on our future in Iraq? What on earth is any politician or governmental official thinking who supports staying in Iraq when a majority of Iraqis endorse attacks on U.S. forces? Widespread exposure and analysis of this clearly stated opinion by the Iraqi people would change U.S. public opinion rapidly and permanently. Where are our leaders? See... M. Collins: Iraqi People to White House - Leave! MORE ON THE WAR THAT WON'T END:
US Attorneys: House Tires Of Lies â Pressure Grows On Alberto Gonzales - Yesterday on ABC's "This Week," Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) called on key White House officials like Deputy White House Chief of Staff Karl Rove and former White House Counsel Harriet Miers to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee to testify under oath. This comes after the Senate Judiciary Committee authorized Senator Leahy to issue subpoenas to 11 current and former Department of Justice officials. See... Leahy Subpoenas: "Tired of Getting Half-Truths" MORE US ATTORNEYS NEWS & NEWSLINKS:
US Attorneys Scandal: Michael Collins Exposes The American Coup Nexus - Top U.S. law enforcement official Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez engineered a Pearl Harbor Day for eight Republican appointed federal prosecutors. From one end of the country to the other, previously well regarded prosecutors were summarily fired (allowed to resign) on December 7, 2006. Chief of the Office of U.S. Attorneys, Michael Battle spread the news. In a rare case of the messenger shooting himself, Battle abruptly decided that he too would resign after the firings turned into a major scandal this month. See... Fired Federal Prosecutors And Election Fraud MORE US ATTORNEYS COMMENT:
Plamegate: Fitzgerald To Be Gagged When He Appears Before Congress - Patrick Fitzgerald has made clear the limitations of his possible testimony regarding the Valarie Plame Wilson leak-investigation set to begin in the House of Representatives on Friday. On March 8, 2007, Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform - the central investigative arm of the House - issued an invitation to Fitzgerald for a private sit-down to discuss the upcoming investigation. In a written response, Fitzgerald made clear that the Department of Justice will not permit him to discuss any non-public information with Congress. See... DOJ Limits What Fitzgerald Can Reveal to Committee
Finance: Carolyn Baker On A Return To Serfdom In America? - This week the Senate Banking Committee has begun an investigation of credit card companies and that industryâs lending practices of which Chairman, Carl Levin of Michigan said, âMillions of familiesâ¦are kept in debt and are in over their heads not just because of their own purchasesâ¦but because of the abusive practices and excesses of the credit card companies.â Simultaneously, MSNâs Money Markets Editor, Jim Jubak, published an enlightening piece âDebt Pyramid Threatens To Topple Marketsâ. See... Carolyn Baker: In Debt We Trust
Privacy: FBI Patriot Act Abuses Do Not Lead To A Resignation - Speaking from FBI headquarters, Robert S. Mueller, III told reporters âI am to be held accountable,â Apparently being responsible for misuses of national security letter authorities doesnât involve resigning as Mueller went on to state he would not resign his position as FBI Director. Director Muellerâs comments were in response to questions about the 199-page report âA Review of the Federal Bureau of Investigationâs Use of National Security Lettersâ issued in March 2007. See... Patricia L Johnson: "I Am Accountable" MORE ON THE FBI'S PATRIOT ACT EXCESSES:
Ending The War: Tina Richards vs Congressman Obey - Iâve received emails thanking me for speaking out on behalf of my son and other troops serving in Iraq. In addition, Iâve received questions about my exchange with Rep. David Obey that was videotaped by a citizens news group, Kathleen Gabel and Tyler Westbrook, that is documenting the peace movement in the halls of Congress. Theyâve covered my visits with other members of Congress as well as the work of other citizens working to end the war. See... Tina Richards: How Will You End This War? MORE ON THE EFFORT TO END THE WAR:
Law: The Waxman Inviteth - Congressman Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said Thursday he wants Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald to testify before his committee about his investigation into the leak of covert CIA operative Valerie Plame-Wilson's identity. Plame-Wilson, Waxman's office said, has agreed to testify before Congress on March 16. See... Waxman Asks Fitzgerald to Testify Before Congress & Congress Says Prepared to Act in Plame Affair MORE ON THE LIBBY VERDICT & AFTERMATH:
Travel Story: Thailand Struggles and Penang Delights Through The Eyes Of A Kiwi Traveller - My train journey tells a tale of Southern Thailand. It is a story of the growing conflict between the Buddhist and Malay Muslim communities which habituate the southern region of Thailand. And... Swathes of incense, from joss sticks up to four foot high (no kidding), fill the air and drift slowly down the street. This is Chinese New Year in Penang⦠Alex Bremner writes of discovered delights. See... AB's SE Asia Sojourn: Thailand To Penang
Plamegate: Finally Fitzmas Is Here!: - Dick Cheney's Chief Of Staff Convicted Of Lying About Revenge Attack On CIA Agent Valerie Plame (For Her Husband's Exposure Of Iraq War Lies) - Washington - Former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby was convicted Tuesday of obstruction, perjury and lying to the FBI in an investigation into the leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity to reporters. See... Scoop Link: Libby Found Guilty in CIA Leak Case MORE BUSH VS RULE OF LAW COMMENT:
Meditations: Where Did We Come From? Who Are We? And What Lies Ahead For Us? - Thereâs a lot of interest in human origins these days. A new, permanent exhibition, featuring more than 200 casts of prehuman and human fossils, just opened at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. On the same day I came across the article about the opening of the exhibition, I happened upon the movie, â2001: A Space Odyssey.â Arthur Clarkâs story and Kubrickâs classic movie address the same three questions, and were the inspiration, when it debuted in 1968, for my philosophical work in âtheories of human nature.â See... Martin LeFevre: Homage to â2001: A Space Odysseyâ. See also... Martin LeFevre: Presidentâs Day in the USA
Iraq: David Swanson On The Best Way To Swiftly End The War - The shortest route to ending the Iraq war (and preventing additional wars) is almost certainly through Congress. Influencing the White House directly is unimaginable, and stopping the war through the courts unlikely. Clearly, Congress is the way to go. But what specifically can Congress do? See.. David Swanson: Can Congress End the War? MORE IRAQ WAR NEWS:
Economics: Changing How Money Works Is The Key To Changing The World - All-too frequently I encounter activists who donât like to talk about money. While they crusade loudly for âeconomic justiceâ, they resist talking about their own relationship with money as if it were somehow an X-rated topic on par with sexuality or bathroom habits. In other words, these well-meaning individuals have little or no financial literacy. For this reason I wrote a 2005 article âActivists And Accountants: Absolute Alliesâ in which I emphasized that economic IN-justice only happens when people sacrifice sustainability for profit and that whenever we attend to our own sustainability and that of our community, we are practicing economic justice, but we cannot do so without acquiring financial literacy. See... No Change Until You Change How Money Works MORE VIEWS ON RECENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS :
Israel/Palestine: - Red Herrings Multiplying In The Sea Of Galilee? -While the world silently spectates the immense suffering that the occupation continues to bring upon an innocent peoples, the Israelis keep seeding the land with new reality on the ground which too then becomes "impractical" to undo and becomes new leveraging points in any subsequent peace talks - take 10 and give back 1 if the Palestinians behave, then repeat! This reality formally got constructed in 1948 and is continually being constructed as we speak, at each turn becoming impractical to undo requiring the victims to continually having to accommodate to the new reality for peace settlement, because true justice is now deemed "impractical". See... Zahir Ebrahim: The Endless Trail Of Red Herrings MORE ISRAEL/PALESTINE NEWS & VIEWS:
Environment: Pacific Ecologist No. 13: Climate & Poverty Solutions - AUBREY MEYER & KAY WEIR outline a global action plan to reduce global warming emissions equitably, and transparently across nations. Contraction and Convergence is inclusive and allows everyone a fair share in a scheme for international emission entitlements. It has been the official position of the Africa Group of Nations at climate negotiations for the past 10 years. If such a democratic plan is not adopted soon to stop emissions rising to dangerous levels, the consequences will be disastrous for everyone. See... Support Grows For Equity-Based Global Warming Plan MORE:
Iraq: Stopping The War â Three Perspectives - A weekend of confusion among Democratic senators over possible action on Iraq was capped off by an announcement by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada that the Senate would wait on any Iraq-related legislation. See... Senate Stalls on Iraq MORE:
Intelligence: Wot, No Jihadis? - Paul Buchanan compares the 2005 and 2006 SIS Annual Reports: The major discrepancy is in the primary threat assessment. Rather than local jihadis, the 2006 report focuses on the activities of foreign intelligence organizations operating in New Zealand. This begs some questions. What happened to those local jihadis? See... Paul G. Buchanan: A Change Of Focus At The SIS
Iran: Uri Avnery On Israel's Preparations For An Iran War - "WE ARE ready for the next war," a reserve soldier told a TV reporter this week, on the scene of a brigade-size maneuver on the Golan Heights. What war? Against whom? About what? This was not stated, and not even asked. The soldier saw it as self-evident that war will break out soon, and it seems that he did not particularly care against whom. See... Uri Avnery: "You And I, And The Next War" MORE LOOMING IRAN WAR NEWS:
Bush Vs Rule Of Law: The Latest Wrinkles - It is at least conceivable that Congressman Jack Murtha and company are backing off on requiring that Bush and Cheney send only prepared, equipped, and rested men and women to the slaughter for more than one reason. One reason, of course, is that Fox News has called Murtha and company traitors. But there could be a second reason. Someone somewhere may just have pointed out that Congress has enacted these limitations before and Bush has undone them with a signing statement. See⦠Congress Must Reauthorize Use of the Constitution MORE BUSH VS THE RULE OF LAW:
Libby Trial: Cheney Front And Center As Libby Trial Closes - It was the defense attorney representing I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby who first told jurors during closing arguments in the perjury and obstruction-of-justice trial Tuesday that the government believes Vice President Dick Cheney told Libby to leak the identity of covert CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson to a New York Times reporter in July 2003 to undermine the credibility of her husband, a critic of the Iraq War. See... Cheney's Role Dominates Libby Trial Closing Args. MORE LIBBY TRIAL NEWS:
Democracy & S***t: Latest Public Address Blend Includes A Dash Of Scoop & Other S***t - Last Thursday night's Public Address/Karajoz Big Blend featured Q&A (Questions by Russell Brown) with film makers Matt Heath and Chris Stapp â C**tstables, Back Of the Y, Bogan's Heroes, The Devil Dared Me Too â about their shit. The first few minutes were not recorded because they were shit. The presentation included clips of video shit which you can't see because this is audio and you didn't come. See⦠Audio/Images: Matt Heath & Chris Stapp Talk Shit Also featured on the night was a more serious discussion about digital democracy featuring a bloke from Google and Alastair Thompson from Scoop. See⦠Audio/Images: Big Blend Digital Democracy Panel
UQ Wire: " a terrorist act in the U.S. blamed on Iran; culminating in a 'defensive' U.S. military action against Iran" - Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski - The National Security Advisor to former President Carter testified before the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on 1 Feb 2007. Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski delivered a scathing assessment of the core mistakes made by the Bush administration in the Middle East. Just before describing what he termed the mythical historical narrative of the policy, he offered a scenario that the Bush administration might use as a convenient invitation to attack Iran. War may result from Iraqi failures at governance attributed to Iranian interference followed ââ¦by some provocation in Iraq or a terrorist act in the U.S. blamed on Iran; culminating in a âdefensiveâ U.S. military action against Iranâ¦â See⦠UQ Wire: Brzezinski On The Path To War With Iran MORE UQ WIRE:
RECOMMENDED AUDIO: KiwiFM Audio: Scoop's Selwyn Manning and KiwiFM's Wallace Chapman discuss how the United States has intensified its military presence in the Persian Gulf amidst expectation of regional conflict with Iran. Will the USA strike first against the Atomic Ayatollahs?
PlameGate: Truthout Reads Between The Lines & Catches A President - â¦"T-h-i-s space P-r-e-s," Addington said, spelling out the words. "And then it's got a scratch-through." "So it looks like 'this Pres.?'" Wells asked again. "Yes sir," Addington said. Thus, Cheney's notes would have read "not going to protect one staffer and sacrifice the guy this Pres. asked to stick his head in the meat grinder because of the incompetence of others."The words "this Pres." were crossed out and replaced with "that was," but are still clearly legible in the document. See... Handwritten Notes Implicate Bush in Plame Affair MORE:
Mexico: Oaxaca's Repression Widens To Close Churches - Oaxaqeño authorities have yet again demonstrated just how bereft they are of the most minimal observation of human rights. Only a week after attacking a peaceful march of a thousand people in Miahuatlán, Oaxaca, detaining several including minors, disappearing several more, and terrorising family members of about 20 prisoners into seeking refuge in the church housing the International Civil Commission for the Observation of Human Rights (CCIODH), they have turned their attention to the churches themselves. See... Julie Webb-Pullman: Ulises Ruiz Turns to Religion
Israel/Occupied Palestine: Remembering Palestine's Fallen Leader - "IF ARAFAT were aliveâ¦" one hears this phrase increasingly often in conversations with Palestinians, and also with Israelis and foreigners. "If Arafat were alive, what's happening now in Gaza wouldn't be happeningâ¦" - "If Arafat were alive, we would have somebody to talk withâ¦" - "If Arafat were alive, Islamic fundamentalism would not have won among the Palestinians and would have lost some force in the neighboring countries!" See... Uri Avnery: "If Arafat were Aliveâ¦" MORE:
Protest: 100s Of Thousands Of Americans Take To The Streets - Truthout.org Editor's Note: The New York Times article below states that "tens of thousands" attended the March on Washington, Saturday. For many years now, the United States Park Police and other government agencies have refused to estimate crowd sizes. The organizers of the March, United for Peace and Justice, estimated the crowd at 400,000. Our headline of "hundreds of thousands" comes down somewhere in between. See... 100s of 1000s of Protesters Converge on Capitol
Law: Elizabeth de la Vega On The Latest Developments In Bush vs Rule Of Law - I hope I can be forgiven if animal images kept coming into my mind during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing last week. On the eve of the first such hearing to be held by the newly-elected Democratic majority, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales sent a letter to Committee Chairmen Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Arlen Specter (R-PA) announcing that, henceforth, the President's Terrorist Surveillance Program would be conducted under the supervision of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. See... Elizabeth de la Vega: Lying and Spying LATEST BUSH ADMIN vs RULE OF LAW LINKS:
Armageddon: Iran And The Doomsday Clock - We cannot stop or slow the space/time/continuum that permeates our world and the universe, but we must, if we really care about the future and destiny of humanity, stop the time of human folly that is leading toward a black abyss. This was underscored this month when the hands on the famous âDoomsday Clockâ of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BAS) was moved forward from seven to five minutes before midnight. See... If Atomic Clock Strikes 12 â Midnight Is Forever RELATED:
Antiquities: Bob Hecht's Former Partner Talks To Suzan Mazur - Speaking with West Coast film producer Bruce McNall, the man who brought us WarGames with Matthew Broderick and Summa Gallery with antiquities' Bob Hecht, reminded me of my chats many years ago with magazine publisher Malcolm Forbes, dubbed "the happiest millionaire". McNall's enthusiasm is just like that -- maybe minus some of the millions. It's so infectious that it's difficult to believe McNall's financial world ever crumbled in the 1990s and that he spent several years in jail after being convicted for overvaluing ancient coins. See... McNall On Hecht & Collapse Of Antiquities Market & Mazur: Hecht's Partner On The Roman Bronze Boy
Iraq: Opposition To War Grows On Eve Of Massive Protest - (APN) ATLANTA â Last week US Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) introduced H.R. 508, the "Bring the Troops Home and Iraq Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2007," the strongest of all current US Congressional bills which seek to de-escalate the US Invasion of Iraq. See... Woolsey Bill Would "Bring Troops Home" in 6 Mnths MORE IRAQ NEWS:
Iran: Escalation In Iran Rhetoric Continues Unabated - The Editor-in-Chief of the Arab Times reports that a âreliable sourceâ in Washington has provided detailed information about the forthcoming US hard-power attack on Iranâs nuclear and oil industries. See... Bush Will Expand War To Iran Before Blair Resigns MORE IRAN NEWS:
Bush: Columnists Give Their Impression Of The State of Bush's Union - It was disturbing to see so many members of Congress in both parties clamoring to get Bush's autograph on their copies of his State of the Unionânot because it was such a dishonest speech that did such a disservice to this country, and not because they should have been handing him subpoenas instead. Rather, my concern arises from the habit Bush has developed following the signing of any document. Typically he goes home, talks to his lawyers, and issues a "signing statement" the next day radically altering what he has just signed. Bad as that speech was, it could get a lot worse. See... David Swanson: Demanding Truth from Power MORE:
Iraq: Graham Reid - The Writing On The Wall - There is a famous saying: Those who do not learn from history are condemned to keep watching it re-run on CNN. And that's pretty much how I feel tonight after watching the current American president address his people and tell them that more of their sons and daughters were going to be sent to Iraq. See... Public Address 12/01/07 - The Writing On The Wall MORE IRAQ SURGE REACTION:
Law: President Bush Vs The Rule Of Law - As some people learned from the minimal and abusive media coverage, on December 8, 2006, Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney introduced Articles of Impeachment against President George W. Bush, making him the 10th president of the United States ... See... Cynthia McKinney Makes the Case for Impeachment MORE BUSH Vs RULE OF LAW NEWS CLIPS:
Antiquities: Suzan Mazur Talks To Italy's Antiquities Beak - Italy's antiquities prosecutor, Maurizio Fiorilli, has become the darling of the media in the past year helping to persuade the American public, and particularly the art world, to rethink the ethics of holding onto Italy's cultural patrimony with words like: "Until now we have dreamed, we have slept. Now it is time to wake up." Words meant to be heard back home in Italy, perhaps, but shot around the world via the Los Angeles Times. See... Interview: Italy's Antiquities Prosecutor Fiorilli
Internet: Medical Whistle Blower Chronicles Steamy Brazilian Legal Wrangles - Usually I write about political stuff. Or serious things. But stay with me. This is really a serious article about male machismo among investment bankers, and how far that will take them, impacting the entire internet. By this time, it would appear that most of the world has watched the forbidden video of wildly popular Brazilian MTV host Daniela Cicarelli. See... Daniela Cicarelli's beach lover: Stud or dud? ALSO:
Media: Should Editors Use Spin Doctors As Independent Columnists? - Author Nicky Hager argues that news organisations have a duty to their readers to stop using former or current spin doctors as allegedly independent columnists. "Richard Long's recent columns about 'stolen emails' and allegations of shadowy Labour Party involvement in my book The Hollow Men are classic pieces of political spin doctoring. Richard Long was once head of media management for Don Brash, planning the daily 'lines' used to evade issues and spin the news." See... Hager: Use Commentators Not Spin Doctors
Mexico: Julie Webb-Pullman At The Zapatista Intergalactico - The autonomous Zapatista community of Oventik, in Chiapas Mexico, welcomed a couple of thousand people on 30 December to the Intergalactica, the first international encuentro, or meeting, between the Good Government Juntas and the people of the world. This event was primarily designed for the Zapatistas to explain their system of government to their international supporters, and how they are dealing with themes such as health, education, women's issues, The Other communication, art, and culture, co-operative commerce, and the fight for land and territory. See... Best And Worst Of Zapatista Conference
Terror: Richard S. Ehrlich On Thailand's New Year Bombings - BANGKOK, Thailand -- Eight small bombs which killed three people and injured 38, including nine foreigners during Bangkok's New Year celebrations, were a plot by supporters of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, according to the military junta which overthrew him in a September coup. See... Bangkok Bomb Plot