News -- July 1, 2006

Insanity Defense - "That the United States, once touted as the "world's greatest democracy," is now ruled by a presidential dictatorship is a fact beyond any serious dispute. Indeed, except for a bare majority on the Supreme Court -- which will disappear with the retirement or demise of the aging Justice John Paul Stevens, who wrote the Court's stinging rejection of Bush's kangaroo military tribunals this week -- the nation's political establishment seems to have accepted this revolutionary system with remarkable docility, even as its lineaments are further exposed week by week. The Bush Administration no longer bothers to hide the novel theory of government upon which its rule is based, but declares it openly, in court, in Congress, everywhere."

GIs may have planned Iraq rape, slayings - "Investigators believe American soldiers spent nearly a week plotting an attack in which they raped an Iraqi woman, then killed her and her family in an insurgent-ridden area south of Baghdad, a U.S. military official said Saturday."

U.S. troops accused of killing Iraq family - "The U.S. Army will investigate charges that five American soldiers were involved in the killings of four Iraqi relatives, including a woman who had been raped, military officials said Friday. It's the sixth current inquiry into the alleged slayings of Iraqi civilians by American troops. Some of the five soldiers also allegedly burned the body of the woman they are accused of assaulting in the March incident, a U.S. military official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case."

Pentagon Fireworks - "One of the least noticed success stories of George Bush's years in power has been his administration's ability to focus the world's attention so singularly first on Saddam Hussein 's "nuclear program" – remember that yellowcake brick road? – which had absolutely no basis in reality; then on a meager (though frightening) North Korean nuclear force (of questionable use), and finally on a questionable Iranian nuclear bomb, which, according to the latest National Intelligence Estimate, is perhaps 10 years away and yet somehow has been ever in our midst. The near-civilization-destroying Israeli nuclear arsenal is hardly ever even noted."

Pentagon Misinformation the Only Sure Thing in This War - "To their credit, top Pentagon officials cautioned journalists and the public, since the Iraq war's early days, that the dissemination of misinformation would be a vital weapon in their war strategy. Needless to say, they have certainly held true to their word."

Israel warns: free soldier or PM dies - "The unprecedented warning was delivered to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a letter as Israel debated a deal offered by Hamas to free Corporal Gilad Shalit."

The Big Picture Comes Into Focus - "Wars are about national needs. In the case of Iraq, we needed (and still need) a war on terror to keep our economy going; not to mention obtaining more Iraqi and Iranian oil at some point. But in the case of China, which sits on dissent not unlike the axis of evil, our needs are different. We need China to buy our bonds, because without them, our spendthrift CONgress would have bankrupted the country already. (They already have, but the charade continues.)"

Thousands march for democracy in Hong Kong - "Police estimate 19,000 people started the march, but the crowd grew as the demonstrators moved through the city chanting slogans and blowing whistles."

'Has this country gone completely insane?' - "He insisted that I leave, but still not quite believing my ears, I tried one more approach to reason. "Hey, listen. I'm a veteran. This is a V.A. facility. I'm sitting here not talking to anybody, having a cup of coffee. I'm not protesting and you can't kick me out." "You'll either go or we'll arrest you," Adkins threatened."Well, you'll just have to arrest me," I said, wondering what strange land I was now living in."

Police hold mother-of-three for reading 'Independent' outside Downing Street - "An anti-Iraq war protester was questioned by police outside Downing Street because she was reading The Independent. Charity Sweet, 40, and a mother-of-three, was holding a copy of Thursday's edition which carried the headline: "Warning: if you read this newspaper you may be arrested under the Government's anti-terror laws." Inside was an article reprinted from Vanity Fair magazine which ran across the first three pages of that day's issue of the newspaper. The article, by the writer Henry Porter, accused the Blair Government of a sustained erosion of civil liberties." -- Orwell rolls. See the following link for the article.

Blair laid bare: the article that may get you arrested - "In the guise of fighting terrorism and maintaining public order, Tony Blair's Government has quietly and systematically taken power from Parliament and the British people. The author charts a nine-year assault on civil liberties that reveals the danger of trading freedom for security - and must have Churchill spinning in his grave."

Former Reagan Deputy and Colonel Says 9/11 "Dog That Doesn't Hunt" - "The former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense under the Reagan Administration and a highly decorated Vietnam veteran and Colonel has gone on the record to voice his doubts about the official story of 9/11 - calling it "the dog that doesn't hunt.""

Sept. 11 claim stirs UW probe - "The University of Wisconsin-Madison announced Thursday that it would launch a review of an instructor who argues that the U.S. government orchestrated the Sept. 11 attacks for its own benefit."

Bush Attack on New York Times Could Have 'Chilling Influence,' Overseas Press Club Warns - ""None of these newspapers need help from our organization," Stolley wrote. "But we are deeply concerned that other editors, who have less prestige, less influence, and less supportive and well-financed publishers, may feel the chilling influence of your words and hesitate to publish controversial stories for fear of being called unpatriotic. This would be a serious blow to press freedom and to the long-range good of the country.""

State Tracked Protesters in the Name of Security - "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's office in charge of protecting California against terrorism has tracked demonstrations staged by political and antiwar groups, a practice that senior law enforcement officials say is an abuse of civil liberties."

10,000 EPA Scientists Protest Library Closures - " In an extraordinary letter of protest, representatives for 10,000 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency scientists are asking Congress to stop the Bush administration from closing the agency's network of technical research libraries. The EPA scientists, representing more than half of the total agency workforce, contend thousands of scientific studies are being put out of reach, hindering emergency preparedness, anti-pollution enforcement and long-term research, according to the letter released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER)."

IT’S THE LAW! FEDS PAVE THE WAY TO TOLL AND PRIVATIZE THE INTERSTATE HIGHWAYS AS PART OF AMERICAN UNION - "On July 29, 2005, President Bush signed a bill which permits and promotes the charging of tolls on existing and planned interstate highways, bridges, and tunnels. Before the passage of the bill, known as SAFETEA-LU, or “Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users”, it was generally illegal to charge tolls on roads built with Federal funds. What’s more, the tolls collected will be automatic, requiring universally compatible toll transponder tags on every vehicle."

New Energy Sources and Inventions - "Spectacular new energy technologies were developed right along with other breakthroughs. Since then, multiple methods for producing vast amounts of energy at extremely low cost have been developed. None of these technologies have made it to the "open" consumer market, however."

Big Three Cars Emit 230 Million Tons of Greenhouse Gas - "Cars built by the Big Three automakers gave off 230 million metric tons of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the United States in a year, more than the biggest U.S. electric utility, environmental researchers said Wednesday. General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler cars and light trucks emitted nearly three-fourths of all carbon dioxide from vehicles on U.S. roads in 2004, the year for which statistics were available, according to the watchdog group Environmental Defense."

Arctic sea levels dropping steadily - "Sea levels in the Arctic have been falling by a little more than two millimetres a year — exactly the opposite of what is happening elsewhere. “It’s enough to be significant. It’s remarkable that it’s the opposite sign of what we see in the rest of the world,” said researcher Remko Scharroo"

Not Enough Fish in the Sea - "We need omega-3 oils for our brains to function properly. Yet we are rapidly destroying the only source of these oils -- the world's fisheries."

Swim lessons for children, infants focus on safety - ""I totally disagree that it's inappropriate for an infant to be exposed to the water," said Bob Hubbard, president of the trade association. "You're not drown-proofing them; you are making them water-aware. I would never argue that a child is safe alone in the pool.""

Study: Even one drink can be dangerous - "A University of Washington study warns that even a single strong drink can make a person "blind drunk" and impair the drinker's driving abilities."

French lawmakers approve 'iTunes law' - "French lawmakers gave final approval Friday to legislation that could force Apple Computer Inc. to make its iPod and iTunes Music Store compatible with rivals' music players and online services."

'Blue Pill' Prototype Creates 100% Undetectable Malware - "A security researcher with expertise in rootkits has built a working prototype of new technology that is capable of creating malware that remains "100 percent undetectable," even on Windows Vista x64 systems."




Quote of the Day
"Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people. To destroy this invisible government, to befoul the unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the first task of the statesmanship of today."
~ Theodore Roosevelt