US considers use of nuclear weapons against Iran - "The administration of President George W. Bush is planning a massive bombing campaign against Iran, including use of bunker-buster nuclear bombs to destroy a key Iranian suspected nuclear weapons facility, The New Yorker magazine has reported in its April 17 issue. The article by investigative journalist Seymour Hersh said that Bush and others in the White House have come to view Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as a potential Adolf Hitler."
Iran ready for high-level talks, US resists - "Iran has prepared a high-level delegation to hold wide-ranging talks with the US, but the Bush administration is resisting the agenda suggested by Tehran despite pressure from European allies to engage the Islamic republic, Iranian politicians have told the Financial Times."
An October Surprise? - "While there seems no sense of urgency in Washington, the Bush Doctrine and Cheney ultimatum have painted us into a corner. Either Iran’s nuclear program is shut down, or the Bush Doctrine will have been defied by Tehran and Pyongyang, leaving Iraq as the Bush legacy. All this has led to speculation that this summer or fall, Bush, his options having been exhausted, will order the air strikes. What would be the benefits of such an October surprise? Rather than appearing a retreat, Bush’s pullout from Iraq would look like that of a defiant gunfighter backing through the swinging doors of a Tombstone saloon with both guns blazing. Bush’s rating could soar 20 points. Republicans would rally at the return of the 9/11 president. Democrats would be loath to attack a president who acted forcefully to remove what they themselves say is an intolerable threat. The neocons and Christian Right would hail Bush as the new Churchill. Bush would hold onto both houses in November, costing Democrats their best chance in a decade of recouping power. What would Hillary do? Nothing but wait and see what the fallout was from Bush’s newest pre-emptive war. And the risks? Iran could push its Shia allies to attack British and U.S. troops and send Revolutionary Guard “volunteers” in, which could mean a U.S. debacle, unless we responded with more American troops. Tehran could make us pay a price in blood in Afghanistan. Tehran could also send its agents into the emirates, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia to attack U.S. installations, setting the Near East ablaze and oil prices soaring to $200 a barrel, plunging the West into recession. Thus a pre-emptive war on Iran, while a political triumph for the president this fall, could, like the invasion of Iraq, prove a long-term disaster."
THE IRAN PLANS - "The Bush Administration, while publicly advocating diplomacy in order to stop Iran from pursuing a nuclear weapon, has increased clandestine activities inside Iran and intensified planning for a possible major air attack. Current and former American military and intelligence officials said that Air Force planning groups are drawing up lists of targets, and teams of American combat troops have been ordered into Iran, under cover, to collect targeting data and to establish contact with anti-government ethnic-minority groups. The officials say that President Bush is determined to deny the Iranian regime the opportunity to begin a pilot program, planned for this spring, to enrich uranium."
Fool Me Twice - "I used to think that the Bush administration wasn’t seriously considering a military strike on Iran, because it would only accelerate Iran’s nuclear program. But what we're seeing and hearing on Iran today seems awfully familiar. That may be because some U.S. officials have already decided they want to hit Iran hard."
The Cat's Out of The Bag - "Libby was clearly involved in revealing Plame's identity, which means that the President is either clueless or he lied when he released a statement that Libby wasn't involved."
Last Hope For Impeachment - "If Democrats don't do it now they are clearly complicit."
U.S.: In future wars, downplay rebuilding - "Amid growing recriminations within the Bush administration over its reconstruction program in Iraq, the State Department has produced a draft planning document saying that after any future conflicts, the United States should not immediately begin a major rebuilding program. Instead, it says, the first priorities should be to establish a secure, stable environment and begin political reconciliation. Otherwise, officials said, Washington and any local government that is formed are likely to suffer major political repercussions by making promises that cannot be kept."
Uranium’s Effect On DNA Established - " The use of depleted uranium in munitions and weaponry is likely to come under intense scrutiny now that new research that found that uranium can bind to human DNA. The finding will likely have far-reaching implications for returned soldiers, civilians living in what were once war-zones and people who might live near uranium mines or processing facilities."
Is The Capitol Building Next, Or Do The Tunnels Go Deeper? - "U.S. Capitol police however said a power spike that affected much of the metropolitan area "knocked out power to the Capitol building and caused lights and cable TV reception to flicker throughout the Capitol complex." In response, police evacuated the building and investigated, along with architect of the Capitol and fire officials. Normally, this apparently innocuous event would not be interesting, except for the fact that, on the weekend prior to the 9/11 attacks, power to the WTC complex was also shut off, allowing, as is now expected, the conspirators to enter the complex and 'prep' the buildings for the very obvious demolition that occured just a few days later."
In the footsteps of Dr. Doom - "Pianka argued that a population crash is coming; a disease (not Ebola) is likely to do it; if Ebola became an airborne virus, it could kill 9 out of 10 people; outside a human perspective, this would be a good thing for natural ecosystems around the world; organized religion was the underlying cause of the problem because our anthropocentric lens is what allows us (and even encourages us) to abuse the world around us, and this anthropocentrism comes from organized religion. Hearing this, and misunderstanding (willfully in my view) the difference between prediction and prescription, Mims accused Pianka of advocating genocide."
Feds Try to Seize Gold From Suspects' Teeth - "Government lawyers tried to confiscate the gold tooth caps known as "grills" from the mouths of two men facing drug charges, saying the dental work qualified as seizable assets. They had them in a vehicle headed to a dental clinic by the time defense attorneys persuaded a judge to halt the procedure."
Arkansas Bans Smoking in Most Public Spots - "The law exempts hotels and motels with fewer than 25 rooms, tobacco shops, nursing homes and home-based businesses with fewer than three employees. Also, it would not affect some bars. Violators can be fined $100 to $500."
Passive Smoke Fingered as Trigger for Glucose Intolerance - "Previous research has suggested that smokers are at an increased risk for glucose intolerance and diabetes, but the current study is the first to link passive smoking with glucose intolerance, Dr. Houston and colleagues said."
The Air Force Soars to the Right - "The Air Force recently released new guidelines on religious expression. The guidelines come after several investigations that documented a lack of religious tolerance at the Air Force Academy. Consequently, last year the Air Force issued revised guidelines that struck a good balance between the right to free speech and religious toleration. But evangelical Christian organizations and members of Congress complained, prompting the Air Force to issue new guidelines that pander to the religious right."
Teachers voice concern over religious fundamentalists - "Religious fundamentalists are gaining control of state schools and imposing their narrow beliefs on children, the National Union of Teachers warned today. The teachers’ union said some private business figures now running English schools had too much influence over lessons."
300 million year old rock - "How does believing a 300 million year-old rock is only 6,000 years old become dangerous? It is a reflection of where and how we find answers. A 300 million year-old rock is the answer resulting from decades of observation, research, field study, laboratory testing, comparative studies and critical thinking. A 6,000 year old rock is the answer because God said so. Is the accurate age of a rock really important? Interesting, yes, but important? Maybe not. But what if the question is about Polio? Should we seek an answer from decades of observation, research and field study, discover a vaccine and destroy a worldwide plague or does the answer lie in God’s plan? What if the question is about food? Decades of observation, research and field study have shown us there is only so much arable land that can produce only so many calories of food energy. Currently, we burn 10 calories of oil energy to make 1 calorie of food energy. Our world population of 6 billion people is barely sustainable, let alone the 12 billion projected in another 40 years. Should we answer with conservation or with prayer?"
Why the wingnuts hate Plan B - "There has been an oddly evasive struggle going on in Washington DC for the last several years. We have a safe, easy method of emergency contraception that has been turned into a political football, with Republicans playing their usual role of criminally stupid thugs, trying to crush a simple idea: Plan B contraception. It illustrates exactly how the Religious Right is trying to intrude on your private life, and in particular, how they want to control women. I'll explain how Plan B works, but to do so I'm going to have to explain some basics of the hormonal control of the menstrual cycle."
San Francisco may be world's gayest city: report - "New statistics suggest San Francisco has the highest percentage of gay men among major cities in the world, with a quarter of them HIV-positive, a top city health official said on Friday."
Fury at 'antisemitic' Catholic radio station - "A CATHOLIC radio station in Poland that has close ties with the country's government has been attacked by a survivor of the Warsaw ghetto uprising after it broadcast a programme accusing Jews of profiteering from the Holocaust."
Study: Plants helped ants evolve - "A team at Harvard University who used a genetic clock to reconstruct the history of ants found the ant family first arose more than 40 million years earlier than previously thought, but did not diversify into different genera and species until flowering plants came onto the scene."
Quote of the Day
"Depopulation should be the highest priority of U.S. foreign policy towards the Third World."
~ Henry Kissinger
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