News -- March 25, 2006

The Israel Lobby - "The effect of the Israel lobby is getting some coverage right now, due to the publication - in England, of course, no American outlet would touch it - of the paper "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy". It's by two fairly well respected professors and discusses the influence of the Israeli lobby on the American government and media. First, a quick disclosure. I'm Jewish, and a pro-Israel sort of guy. But that country, like our own, has been hijacked by an immoral right wing group that tries to justify imperialism, brutality, and curtailment of civil liberties in the name of national security. So it's very important to be honest and not let the threat of accusations of anti-semitism suppress legitimate criticism. ... Honestly, these things are fairly well known to Washington insiders and those who pay close attention. But the paper is significant exactly because what it says is quite true, and as a result of this it is difficult for respectable, objective sources to publish this kind of information. Because the influence of the lobby is not openly discussed the net effect is that there is a powerful and often hidden warping of both our foreign policy and news reporting. As the paper says, "the Lobby boasts of its own power and then attacks anyone who calls attention to it"."

Why is American policy in the Middle East skewed in favor of Israel? - "American foreign policy has been weighed down for all too many years by an albatross hung round Uncle Sam's neck, one that distorts our stance especially vis-à-vis Middle Eastern issues and ultimately works against U.S. interests in the region and around the world: that albatross is unconditional support for the state of Israel. Of course, saying this amounts to a hate crime in today's political atmosphere, and it is almost impossible to criticize the Jewish state without being accused of religious bigotry, which is just how Israel's partisans want it. In the halls of Congress and the corridors of power, Israel is above criticism. But not anymore…"

Bush makes the ultimate commitment to Israel - "We borrow from our grandkids to give Israel billions every year, some of which is used to support illegal colonization of the West Bank by fundamentalist extremists; we supply Israel with our most advanced tactical aircraft, armor, anti-missile and military communications systems; we wink at Israel's development of a substantial nuclear weapons force; we leisurely investigate Israeli espionage and influence peddling in Washington. But we've never said that American soldiers will fight and die for Israel. Until now."

Judge: Charges against AIPAC officials may be unconstitutional - "A federal judge on Friday questioned the constitutionality of a law under which two former lobbyists with a pro-Israel group have been charged with receiving and disclosing national defense information. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III said the law, enacted by Congress during World War I, may be unconstitutionally broad and vague, especially given its potential impact on First Amendment rights."

Boehner says he won’t let anti-Israel laws through - "“As the new House majority leader, I can assure you that under my leadership, legislation that is in any way perceived as anti-Israel will not be considered in the House of Representatives,” Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) told the annual American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference, to thunderous applause." -- You know who runs Congress and it is not the American people.

It’s time to use the H-word - "The word holocaust from the Greek word holokauston, meaning "a completely (holos) burnt (kaustos) sacrificial offering." In Iraq, Bush is daily, through murder most foul, making a sacrificial offering of Iraqi men, women and children to the god of empire. ... The Amerikan people are easily cowed, why is that? Could it be our collective guilt over being the bully of the world? The old "what goes around comes around" thing? Like, deep in our communal soul we know that corporate Amerika through their political lackeys have committed and continue to commit genocide both at home and around the globe. That is some very heavy-duty shit to carry around. So we soon become caught up in this whole anxiety thing, I mean, hell, half the damn country is popping a pill for something; or seeking other avenues of escape from Bush’s reality. Keeping the faithful fearful, always works for the oppressor, and we are easily cowed. Corporate/political despots count on that fear, for control."

Iran's Nuclear Steps Quicken, Diplomats Say - "If engineers encounter no major technical problems, Iran could manufacture enough highly enriched uranium to build a bomb within three years, much more quickly than the common estimate of five to 10 years, the diplomats said."

Pentagon: Russia fed U.S. war plans to Iraq - "As U.S. troops moved toward Iraq in 2003, Saddam Hussein received intelligence about their battle strategy and troop movements from a Russian ambassador, according to a Pentagon report."

"President Bush was beyond pathetic.." - ""President Bush was beyond pathetic on the issue of Iraq during his press conference this week.... Bush has lost the American public on the war, and why he deserved to lose it was illustrated in spades by the press conference. He was confused and confusing; he made blatant misstatements of fact; he used phony arguments against critics of the war; he offered a false picture of progress in Iraq, then blamed the media for not telling that story. We will succeed in Iraq ultimately, he said, because he "believes" it. And, by the way, U.S. troops will be there at least until 2009."

9/11 Truth Goes Mainstream? - "The hypocrisy in the statements about Sheen's lack of knowledge on the subject of 9/11 lies in the fact that when people who do have the proper credentials to question 9/11 ask real questions they get no coverage by these same media outlets. While Sheen is not a government official, a 9/11 family member, an esteemed scientist, a rogue scholar, or a member of military intelligence - those that are exactly these things never get any coverage whatsoever."

Why Did the Trade Center Skyscrapers Collapse? - "The government’s collapse theory is highly vulnerable on its own terms, but its blinkered narrowness and lack of breadth is the paramount defect unshared by its principal scientific rival – controlled demolition. Only professional demolition appears to account for the full range of facts associated with the collapses of WTC 1 (North Tower), WTC 2 (South Tower), and the much-overlooked collapse of the 47-story WTC building 7 at 5:21 pm on that fateful day. ... While some experts claim that airliner impact severely weakened the entire structural system, evidence is lacking. The perimeters of floors 94–98 did not appear severely weakened, much less the entire structural system. The criminal code requires that crime scene evidence be saved for forensic analysis but FEMA had it destroyed before anyone could seriously investigate it. FEMA was in position to take command because it had arrived the day before the attacks at New York’s Pier 29 to conduct a war game exercise, "Tripod II," quite a coincidence. The authorities apparently considered the rubble quite valuable: New York City officials had every debris truck tracked on GPS and had one truck driver who took an unauthorized 1 ½ hour lunch fired. ... First, no steel-framed skyscraper, even engulfed in flames hour after hour, had ever collapsed before. Suddenly, three stunning collapses occur within a few city blocks on the same day, two allegedly hit by aircraft, the third not." -- Check out this guy's credentials at the bottom of the page.

Close-Up of WTC-7 Collapse Footage Shows Unmistakable Demolition Charges - "Looking at the upper right-hand corner of the building we see a rapid series of small explosions travelling upward just as the building itself begins to fall. The size, placement and timing of these "puffs" is very consistent with squibs from cutting charges of the type used in professional controlled demolitions, and in fact nothing but small explosive charges could create such an appearance." -- Check out the video.

Bush Addresses Heated Immigration Debate - "Bush sides with business leaders who want legislation to let some immigrants stay in the country and work for a set period of time. Others, including Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, say national security concerns should drive immigration reform."

Evidence Mounts That The Vote May Have Been Hacked - "When I spoke with Jeff Fisher this morning (Saturday, November 06, 2004), the Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 16th District said he was waiting for the FBI to show up. Fisher has evidence, he says, not only that the Florida election was hacked, but of who hacked it and how. And not just this year, he said, but that these same people had previously hacked the Democratic primary race in 2002 so that Jeb Bush would not have to run against Janet Reno, who presented a real threat to Jeb, but instead against Bill McBride, who Jeb beat. "It was practice for a national effort," Fisher told me. And some believe evidence is accumulating that the national effort happened on November 2, 2004."

U.S. Plans New Bases in the Middle East - "The U.S. military has developed a ten-year plan for "deep storage" of munitions and equipment in at least six countries in the Middle East and Central Asia to prepare for regional war contingencies. The plans, revealed in March 2006 contracting documents, call for the continued storage of everything from packaged meals ready to eat (MREs) to missiles in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and Oman, as well as the establishment of two new storage hubs, one in a classified Middle Eastern country "west" of Saudi Arabia ("Site 23") and the other in a yet to be decided "central Asian state.""

Dems split as impeachment whispers get louder - "Democrats remain far from unified. Prominent party leaders -- and a large majority of those in Congress -- distance themselves from the effort. They say the very word is a distraction, that talk of impeachment and censure reflect the polarization of politics. Activists spend too many hours dialing Democratic politicians and angrily demanding impeachment votes, they say." -- The Democratic Party is the second most incompetent political party in America.

Proposed FEC Rules Would Exempt Most Political Activity on Internet - "Most bloggers, individual Web users, and such Web sites as Drudge Report and Salon.com are exempted from regulation and will be free to support and attack federal candidates, much as newspapers are allowed."

41% of Israel's Jews favour segregation - "A poll of attitudes among Israel's Jews towards their country's Arab citizens has exposed widespread racism, with large numbers favouring segregation and policies to encourage Arabs to leave the country. The poll found that more than two-thirds of Jews would refuse to live in the same building as an Arab. Nearly half would not allow an Arab in their home and 41% want segregation of entertainment facilities. The survey also found 40% of Israel's Jews believe "the state needs to support the emigration of Arab citizens", a policy advocated by some far-right parties in the run-up to next week's general election."

Scientist discovers that evolution is missing from Arkansas classrooms - "Teachers at his facility are forbidden to use the “e-word” (evolution) with the kids. They are permitted to use the word “adaptation” but only to refer to a current characteristic of an organism, not as a product of evolutionary change via natural selection. They cannot even use the term “natural selection.” Bob feared that not being able to use evolutionary terms and ideas to answer his students’ questions would lead to reinforcement of their misconceptions. But Bob’s personal issue was more specific, and the prohibition more insidious. In his words, “I am instructed NOT to use hard numbers when telling kids how old rocks are. I am supposed to say that these rocks are VERY VERY OLD ... but I am NOT to say that these rocks are thought to be about 300 million years old.”"

San Antonio-area school board reverses book ban - "By a 5-2 vote, the Judson school district board Thursday overruled Superintendent Ed Lyman's ban of the novel "The Handmaid's Tale" from an advanced placement English curriculum. The vote came after nearly three hours of public comment, including from Judson High School students. ... Lyman had banned the book by Canadian novelist Margaret Atwood after a parent complained it was sexually explicit and offensive to Christians." -- If you have not read "The Handmaid's Tale", you should. Thanks to Secular Front for posting the article.

Mouse Testicle Cells Behave Like Stem Cells - "German scientists say cells from the testes of mice can behave like embryonic stem cells. If the same holds true in humans, it could provide a controversy-free source of versatile cells for use in treating disease."

Canada's seal hunt to begin Saturday - "The spring leg of Canada's seal hunt is set to begin at dawn Saturday by isolated Atlantic fishermen determined to maintain their way of life, as the government largely ignores pleas from protesters opposed to the slaughter."

Pill-popping society fouling our water, official says - "Birth control pills, cancer drugs and a host of other pharmaceuticals that people flush down the drain every day are showing up in our drinking water, says Gord Miller, Ontario's environmental commissioner."

Florida high school students may pick majors - "Students like the Zoghbis would get an education more tailored to their career plans under a proposal from Gov. Jeb Bush that education experts say would make Florida the first state to require incoming high school freshmen to declare a major, just like college students."

Sexsomnia: Not as funny as it sounds - "It's the name for a condition in which someone has a sexual experience while asleep, sort of like how people walk or talk in their sleep."




Quote of the Day
"I want to tell you something very clear, don't worry about American pressure on Israel, we, the Jewish people control America, and the Americans know it."
~ Ariel Sharon to Shimon Peres, October 3rd, 2001, as reported on Kol Yisrael radio.

News -- March 24, 2006

Requests to Build Big U.S. Bases in Iraq Raise Concern - "Even as military planners look to withdraw significant numbers of American troops from Iraq in the coming year, the Bush administration continues to request hundreds of millions of dollars for large bases there, raising concerns over whether they are intended as permanent homes for U.S. forces."

Iran dispute 'long way' from military solution: US army chief - "The top US military officer said here that Washington does not consider military action as an immediate option to resolve the dispute over Iran's nuclear program."

Albright: Good versus evil isn't a strategy - "THE BUSH administration's newly unveiled National Security Strategy might well be subtitled "The Irony of Iran." Three years after the invasion of Iraq and the invention of the phrase "axis of evil," the administration now highlights the threat posed by Iran — whose radical government has been vastly strengthened by the invasion of Iraq. This is more tragedy than strategy, and it reflects the Manichean approach this administration has taken to the world."

So pro-Israel that it hurts - "The new John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt study of "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy" should serve as a wake-up call, on both sides of the ocean. The most obvious and eye-catching reflection is the fact that it is authored by two respected academics and carries the imprimatur of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. The tone of the report is harsh. It is jarring for a self-critical Israeli, too. It lacks finesse and nuance when it looks at the alphabet soup of the American-Jewish organizational world and how the Lobby interacts with both the Israeli establishment and the wider right-wing echo chamber."

Harvard's Paper on Israel Drew From Neo-Nazi Sites - "A prominent Harvard law professor, Alan Dershowitz, is alleging that the authors of a Harvard Kennedy School paper about the "Israel lobby," one of which is the Kennedy School's academic dean, culled sections of the paper from neo-Nazi and other anti-Israel hate Web sites." -- And the smear campaign begins?

KSG Seeks Distance from Paper - "In their paper, Walt and Mearsheimer argued that the “Israel Lobby,” composed of active supporters of Israel, has seized control of U.S. foreign policy and made it reflect Israel’s interests more than those of the U.S. Since its publication in the London Review of Books last Thursday, the authors have drawn heated criticism from many academics, including Harvard’s Frankfurter Professor of Law Alan M. Dershowitz and longtime Harvard lecturer Martin Peretz, who is also the editor-in-chief of The New Republic." -- With all this uproar, I'm thinking the authors of "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy" might have hit a little too close to the truth.

WAR MAKING 101 - A USER'S MANUAL - " Here's one definition of a dictator or at least one practicing to become one. It's a head of state able to decide alone with unchallengeable authority whether or not to take a nation to war for any reason. Here's an add-on to that definition. If a leader does it for any reason other than to respond to an attack by another nation or clear evidence an attack is coming, that leader is also a war criminal. Noam Chomsky believes every US president since WW II was and is a war criminal. Ditto, so do I. This essay will concentrate on the current "war criminal in charge." With some background for the historically uneducated, I'll then fast forward to the present and take you into the heart of the beast we better get to know well and quickly before it eats us alive. I'll lay out what I call a war maker's manual, step by step or rule by rule, from when we were new at this ugly business and still learning to the present. Ready? Here we go."

We don't need reason to hold you, Hammoudeh told - "Government attorneys finally told Sameeh Hammoudeh, Tuesday, the main reason they're keeping him imprisoned: because they can. ... But government attorneys argued in their written response Tuesday that the overriding reason Hammoudeh remains in jail is because ICE can legally keep him for six months, according to a U.S. Supreme Court decision."

The Seekers - "Internecine feuds are not uncommon among people who believe in conspiracies. Yet dubbing Truth movement members "conspiracy theorists" is inaccurate for two reasons. First, there's no doubt that 9-11 was a conspiracy—the question is whether it was among Muslim terrorists or others. Second, many Truth-ers deny having any theory at all. They resist efforts to construct an alternative story of the crime. "I cannot explain it. That is not my duty," says former German cabinet minister Andreas von B a leader of the 9-11 skeptics in Europe, in a recent Dutch documentary. VonKleist takes the same line. He doesn't theorize anything, he says. "I'm simply asking questions." That sounds fair at first, only it isn't."

Village Voice Hit Piece Attacks 9/11 Skeptics - "Jarrett Murphy's 'The Seekers' article in the Village Voice newspaper is a smarmy attempt to scoff at alternative explanations behind 9/11. ... The rules have changed Mr. Murphy and you are being replaced. People will not support newspapers that lie and twist the truth. The fact that the 9/11 movement is being directly targeted by Popular Mechanics, the State Department and others is a benchmark of our progress."

Corporate Media Manipulations - "There are more troubling question raised by Charlie Sheen concerning 9/11, but to me, the biggest tip-off is the fact the both george Bush and Dick Cheney did all they could to stop any investigation into what happened on that day. When they did finally decide to set up a comission, first they tried to place henry Kissinger in charge, and limited the scope, range, time, and funding for the commission. It's like Janeane Garofolo said on Air America a couple of weeks ago, 9/11 was an inside job. Perhaps if she was a bigger name, she might have generated as much controversy."

No Longer The Minority: 82% Plus Support Charlie Sheen - "Despite the best efforts of the now whimpering attack poodles of the mainstream media, an online CNN poll shows that over four-fifths, or 82 per cent, agree with actor Charlie Sheen that the U.S. government covered up the real events of the 9/11 attacks."

US asks Japan to stop Iran oil development - "The United States has informally asked Japan to suspend its plans to develop an Iranian oil field as part of world efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, a Japanese newspaper said on Thursday. Resource-poor Japan has been planning to develop Iran's Azadegan oil field, estimated to hold the world's second-biggest single oil reserve, despite objections from Washington. But Japan's top government spokesman, Shinzo Abe, said Tokyo's plans to develop Azadegan were not currently a topic of discussion with the United States and added that the project was vital for Japan's aim of securing stable energy supplies ."

Battle begins to overturn S. Dakota abortion law - "Instead, abortion rights supporters may try to take the issue before South Dakota voters in November. State law allows ballot referendums seeking to overturn legislation. "When you take things to the courts you don't have the opportunity to engage the public in the process. You don't have the ability to build a movement," said Planned Parenthood spokeswoman Kate Looby."

Bush shuns Patriot Act requirement - "When President Bush signed the reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act this month, he included an addendum saying that he did not feel obliged to obey requirements that he inform Congress about how the FBI was using the act's expanded police powers. The bill contained several oversight provisions intended to make sure the FBI did not abuse the special terrorism-related powers to search homes and secretly seize papers. The provisions require Justice Department officials to keep closer track of how often the FBI uses the new powers and in what type of situations. Under the law, the administration would have to provide the information to Congress by certain dates. Bush signed the bill with fanfare at a White House ceremony March 9, calling it ''a piece of legislation that's vital to win the war on terror and to protect the American people." But after the reporters and guests had left, the White House quietly issued a ''signing statement," an official document in which a president lays out his interpretation of a new law."

Video Catches Hospital 'Dumping' Incident - "For many months, Los Angeles city officials have complained that regional hospitals are dropping off their indigent patients in the city's tough Skid Row area. On Wednesday, officials at a homeless shelter released a videotape that allegedly catches one hospital in the act."

New Home Sales Plummet in February - "Sales of new homes plunged by the largest amount in nearly nine years in February while the median price of a new home dropped for the fourth straight month, providing fresh evidence that the nation's once-booming housing market is cooling off."

Couple Accused Making 3-Year-Old Fight - "A Fort Hood soldier and his wife have been accused of injury to a child for allegedly forcing their 3-year-old daughter to beat up an older boy as they videotaped it, Killeen police said. ... Police said the tape shows the soldier commanding his daughter to knock the victim down, kick him and hit him in the face. The girl follows her father's instructions as the boy cries and pleads for her to stop, police said."

Coming soon: Download-to-own films - ""Download-to-own has the potential to completely revolutionize the way people watch movies," PA quoted Peter Smith, president of Universal Pictures International, as saying."

Nevada Approves New Mobile Gambling Rules - "The downside of mobility is "you'd probably spend more."" -- Isn't that the point?




Quote of the Day
"There is one simple way for the United states to decrease very significantly, the plague of terror in the world, and that is just to stop supporting and participating in it."
~ Noam Chomsky

News (Page 2) -- March 23, 2006

Fox News: ‘It’s Too Late…We’re Already Probably At War With Iran’ - "CAVUTO: But what if I told you it is too late, that we’re already probably at war with Iran and most of us don’t even know it. Welcome everybody, I’m Neil Cavuto, and this is Your World." -- They have the video.

Propaganda and the Fear Factor(y) - "Huge public opinion and marketing machines, along with the advertising industry provide commercial forms of propaganda. Their success flows from their ability to keep people self-indulgent, to keep people consuming, to keep them on the debt treadmill, and to keep them complacent, self-absorbed, and hedonistic. If you haven’t read George Orwell’s 1984 or Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World for awhile, now is a good time to pick them up and re-read them. I submit that American society today seamlessly blends the self-satisfaction of Huxley’s Soma with Orwell’s ubiquitous telescreens and the thought-control they engender. When people are afraid, they need the Soma all the more: fear produces anxiety and hysteria; Soma provides the escapism. It is a powerful 1-2 punch."

Apocalyptic President - "Even some Republicans are now horrified by the influence Bush has given to the evangelical right."

Democrats Say Bush Violated Constitution - "House Democrats want President Bush to say whether he knew of what they call a "fundamental constitutional problem" with the $39 billion deficit reduction package he signed last month."

Study blasts US pro-Israel lobby - "The pro-Israel lobby in the United States has manipulated Washington's policies in the Middle East to the point where it is the US that does most of the fighting, dying and rebuilding while Israel reaps most of the security benefits, argues a new study by two US scholars."

The House has had it with the Israel Lobby - "An aide to a member of Congress told the Jewish weekly Forward that apparently the penny has finally dropped for the elected representatives of the American public. They have started to realize that the constant harassment of Arabs is liable to damage American interests in the Middle East, especially in Iraq."

Scholars' Attack on Pro-Israel Lobby Met With Silence - "In the face of one of the harshest reports on the pro-Israel lobby to emerge from academia, Jewish organizations are holding fire in order to avoid generating publicity for their critics."

It's criminal - "Impeachment is the only recourse that can bring a halt to the madness in Iraq, and the insanity being planned in Iran and elsewhere."

Death Squad Democracy - "In fact, if any of us were involved in the Pentagon's "pacification" plans we'd probably be doing the same thing. After all, the War Department is already overextended, so a plan had to be devised to divert attention from the occupation forces and get Iraqis to kill each other. The only reasonable choice is to incite "sectarian violence" and make civil war inevitable. That, of course, is the task of the American trained death squads. (The New York Times has confirmed that the Interior Ministry death squads were trained by American forces)"

BANNED FOR SPEAKING OUT - "The thought police are now turning into the music police, if a recent incident at Rutgers University in New Jersey is any indication. One of America’s brightest young entertainers was recently barred from performing on the Rutgers campus, not because of any “controversial” lyrics in his music, but simply because his Internet web site contained political commentary that some people deemed to be “offensive.”"

We Hold These Truths and These LIES to be Self Evident - "I would rather die in a prison myself than live as a willing or silent supporter- or a supporter by default as a result of my silence- of this carnage, this ugly, ugly consistency of machine like murder and torment of others for the sake of a wasteful lifestyle. ... May we never forget what our ignorance; our fear, our selfishness, our greed, our ambition and our lack of conscience has cost the world. We must never again let men and women such as this any where near the corridors of power. I oppose them with every breath in my body and I do not count the cost."

Google Caught Censoring Charlie Sheen 9/11 Story - "Google is again embroiled in a censorship scandal after being caught blocking information about Charlie Sheen's 9/11 comments, despite the fact that every other major search engine had indexed the pages."

Native American resistance - "Cecilia Fire Thunder, the new president of the Oglala Sioux tribe of South Dakota has responded forcefully to the recent South Dakota ban on almost all abortions: "I will personally establish a Planned Parenthood clinic on my own land which is within the boundaries of the Pine Ridge Reservation where the State of South Dakota has absolutely no jurisdiction.""

What's Wrong With This Picture? - "British-led forces rescued three Christian peace activists from four months in captivity on Thursday after finding them tied up in a house in western Baghdad two weeks after an American colleague was killed.No shots were fired and the kidnappers had fled.That's odd. That sounds more like a pick-up than a rescue."

House OKs Bible study in public high schools - "A bill that allows public high schools to offer classes on the Bible sped through the House Monday, passing overwhelmingly with no debate. The legislation, which passed 151-7, would allow high schools to form elective courses on the history and literature of the Old Testament and New Testament eras. The classes would focus on the law, morals, values and culture of the eras."

Melting ice sheets could spur oceans' rise: study - "In an issue of the journal Science focusing on global warming, climate scientist Jonathan Overpeck of the University of Arizona reported that if global trends continue, Earth could ultimately see sea levels 20 feet higher than they are now. By the end of this century, Earth would be at least 4 degrees F (2.3 degrees C) warmer than now, or about as hot as it was nearly 130,000 years ago."

News -- March 23, 2006

Bush just can't stop lying - "Americans who tuned in for one of President George W. Bush's rare press conferences saw a cornered animal trying to squirm his way out of trouble by doing what he has always done - evading the truth. ... His eyes darted from side-to-side as he fielded questions about his real reasons for invading Iraq. He stammered. Stalled. Used the word "uh" more times than a suspect caught red-handed. He still claimed his reasons for invading Iraq were just, even though those reasons have been proven wrong. He claims the war can be won, a view not shared by many of his generals. He claimed a lot of things - few of them true. "President Bush exhibited symptoms of pathological prevarication," says Dr. Stephanie Crossfield, a psychologist who treats people who have trouble telling the truth and who watched Bush's performances on Monday and Tuesday at my request. "His eye movements, gestures, and changes in voice tone all display traits of consistent evasion of the truth.""

China repeats it in accord with Russia on Iran - "China said on Thursday, a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin left Beijing, that Beijing and Moscow are in accord on Iran's nuclear standoff with the West." -- Is Bush about to start WWIII?

Israel May Be Next al-Qaida Battleground - "Signs are mounting that al-Qaida terrorists are setting their sights on Israel and the Palestinian territories as their next jihad battleground."

What’s Become of Americans? - "Readers tell me that Americans don’t live here any more. They ask what responsible American citizenry would put up with the trashing of the Bill of Rights and the separation of powers, with wars based on deception, and with pathological liars in control of their government? One reader recently wrote that he believes that "no element of the U.S. government has been left untainted" by the lies and manipulations that have driven away accountability. So-called leaders, he wrote, "talk a great story of American pride and patriotism," but in their hands patriotism is merely a device for "cynical manipulation and fraud." ... The neocons have yet to tell us the real reason for their assault on Iraq, which has so far produced 20,000 dead, maimed, and wounded U.S. soldiers, between 30,000 and 180,000 (and rising) dead Iraqis, and demoralized U.S. Marines to the point that they commit atrocities on women and children. Would real Americans accept these blows for the sake of an undeclared agenda? Perhaps it is true that Americans don’t live here any longer."

Democratizing the Middle East: One Torture Victim at a Time - "Psychological torture, sleep deprivation, brutality, severe sexual humiliation, and murder summon visions of a dank dungeon in a remote region of pre-invasion Iraq, Iran, or North Korea, replete with evil inquisitors and hooded executioners. However, those manifestations of horror did not spring forth from the Axis of Evil. They are actually drawn from official post-9/11 US policy. Despite its fabled commitment to human rights, the United States government has been committing and enabling acts of torture for half a century. Not even Superman had the power to snatch "Truth, Justice and the American Way" from the crushing jaws of imperialistic ambition and avarice."

Censorship of the Worst Kind by Vanessa Redgrave - "This is censorship of the worst kind. More awful even than that.It is black-listing a dead girl and her diaries.A very brave and exceptional girl who all citizens, whatever their faith or nationality, should be proud and grateful for her existence. They couldn't silence her voice while she lived, so she was killed. Her voice began to speak again as Alan Rickman read her diaries, and Megan Dodds became Rachel Corrie.Now the New York Theatre Workshop have silenced that dear voice. ... If this cancellation is not transformed into a new production, somewhere in New York, immediately, we would be complicit, all of us, in a catastrophe that must not be allowed to take place. This play is not about taking sides. It is about protecting human beings. In this case, Palestinian human beings who have no protection, for their families, their homes or their streets. Rachel Corrie gave her life to protect a family. She didn't have or use a gun or bomb. She had her huge humanity, and she gave that to save lives."

The “Noble Cause” that killed Casey Sheehan - " A lot of rubbish has been written about "religious faith" lately. The fact is, there’s a force more powerful than faith; the power of denial. America has completely surrendered to denial; abandoning any claim to reason or clear-sighted analysis. The vast majority of people are perfectly content to ignore the tell-tale signs of looming disaster choosing instead to keep their heads firmly tucked in the sand. Is it really that hard to see what’s happening? ... Most people know intuitively that things are bad, they just can’t see passed the government smokescreen. No one with half a brain believes this can go on forever. The Bush administration has racked up another $3 trillion in debt in just 6 years most of it going to Bush’s well-heeled friends via the "tax cuts". Now, the Congress has voted to make the tax cuts "permanent" even though they are certain to increase the deficits by $400 to 500 billion per year. Deficit spending has become a permanent function of government….but why? ... Would countries rather buy oil in their own currency or with the euro which has increased by 32% in value since Bush took office?Of course, why would anyone choose to use a currency backed by $9 trillion of debt? ... So, what’s the Bush plan? Well, what you see is what you get. The major corporations have already loaded the boats, shifted the jobs, and drained every farthing from the public till. The Bush team has set up NorthCom (Northern Command) inside the country to deal with any needless unruliness on the part of the masses once they discover the country is dead broke; and the Federal Reserve has cobbled together a dollar-system that allows them to print worthless script in exchange for the wealth and resources of foreign nations. This allows Bush’s parasitic-class of bankers, oil magnates, and defense contractors to live large on the sweat and labor of the poorest workers on earth. Sounds like a plan."

Climate change to create African 'water refugees' - "Climate change is expected to shrink many African rivers dramatically, triggering massive refugee movements and even war, according to scientists at the Africa Earth Observatory Network."

Forum Says Governments Must Improve Water - "Governments, not private companies, should take the lead in improving public access to safe drinking water, representatives of 148 countries said Wednesday at the end of a forum on improving global water supplies."

Pulled over in Kansas? Get ready to show your license, registration — and fingerprints - "Over the next year the Kansas Bureau of Investigation will test 60 of the devices with law enforcement agencies around the state. State officials said similar tests are being planned for New York, Milwaukee and Hawaii."

Rights defenders targeted worldwide, report says - "More than 1,100 human rights defenders in 90 countries like Colombia, China and Russia were targeted for their activism last year and many were murdered, tortured or jailed, a report released on Wednesday showed."

Will Your Job Survive? - "In case you've been worrying about how the war in Iraq will end, or the coming of avian flu, or the extinction of the universe as we drift into the cosmic void, well, relax. Here's something you should really fret about: the future of the U.S. economy in the age of globalization. ... In the new global order, Blinder writes, not just manufacturing jobs but a large number of service jobs will be performed in cheaper climes. Indeed, only hands-on or face-to-face services look safe. "Janitors and crane operators are probably immune to foreign competition," Blinder writes, "accountants and computer programmers are not." ... Also dying, if not yet also kaput, is the comforting notion that a good education is the best defense against the ravages of globalization -- or, as Bill Clinton famously put it: What you earn is the result of what you learn. A study last year by economists J. Bradford Jensen of the Institute for International Economics and Lori Kletzer of the University of California at Santa Cruz demonstrates that it's the more highly skilled service-sector workers who are likely to have tradable jobs. And according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the proportion of jobs in the United States that require a college degree will rise by a measly one percentage point -- from 26.9 percent in 2002 to 27.9 percent in 2012 -- during this decade. Since education as such won't save us, Blinder recommends a kind of particularized vocational ed. We will have to specialize more, he writes, "in the delivery of services where personal presence is either imperative or highly beneficial. Thus, the U.S. workforce of the future will likely have more divorce lawyers and fewer attorneys who write routine contracts." Now, there's a prospect to galvanize a nation." -- How depressing.

Bush uncle benefits from war spending - "As President Bush embarks on a new effort to shore up public support for the war in Iraq, an uncle of the chief executive is collecting $2.7 million in cash and stock from the recent sale of a company that profited from the war. A report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission shows that William H.T. Bush collected a little less than $1.9 million in cash plus stock valued at more than $800,000 as a result of the sale of Engineered Support Systems Inc. to DRS Technologies of New Jersey."

ADHD panel rejects tough drug warnings - "An advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended yesterday that Ritalin and other drugs to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder not carry so-called "black box" warnings about cardiovascular and psychiatric risks."

Christians ready to refute 'Da Vinci Code' movie - " In a world accepting of docudramas and reality TV shows that aren't real, how does one counter a blockbuster movie whose theme challenges the orthodox religious history of the Western world? That's the task facing Christians already distressed by Dan Brown's wildly popular novel, "The Da Vinci Code," and his claim that the thriller is based on historical facts. ... Rather than organize protests or boycotts - steps taken in the past against controversial films - Evangelicals and Catholics instead are mobilizing "truth squads." They're producing books, websites, TV documentaries, DVDs, and study guides. Some hope to use the film as a "teachable moment" that could turn the occasion to their advantage."

LASA: The Latest Battleground in the War to Protect Academic Freedom - "Academic freedom is not specifically protected by the constitution but it is inferred from the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States which protects freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of assembly; for what do scholars do but speak, write, and come together to discuss ideas? What danger is there in that? If we don’t have freedom of speech, are we a free society, or are we really no better than the dictatorships that our government claims to oppose? Sadly, few societies have respected academic freedom."

Cops go to hotel bars to arrest drunk guests - "The controversial police tactic of arresting drunks at bars and restaurants has gone to a new level, to include intoxicated people at hotels, even those who are registered guests with no plans on driving."

Ozone hits sperm count as well as lungs: study - "The team, from the University's Keck School of Medicine, found that ozone formed in smoggy air was the only pollutant that appeared to be linked to decreased sperm production. Carbon monoxide seemed to have no effect."

Public service ads aim to raise awareness about global warming - "In a series of TV and radio spots that one publicist termed "edgy" - and that a global warming skeptic called "the ultimate triumph of propaganda over science" - the group is hoping to spawn a massive shift in social awareness that will send millions rushing to turn down their thermostats, inflate their car tires and recycle their plastic."

Study: Online News Popular on Broadband - "Americans with high-speed Internet connections at home are far more likely than dial-up users to go online for news, a new study finds. The Pew Internet and American Life Project says 43 percent of broadband users turn to the Internet to get news, compared with 26 percent for dial-up users. Broadband users are also more likely to read a national newspaper, but less likely to turn to local television."

Dixie Chicks Address Death Threats - "Three years ago, the Dixie Chicks were getting death threats for the stands they took on the Iraq war. Now, in the first single from their new album, they address those threats head on. The song is called “Not Ready to Make Nice.” “And how in the world can the words that I said/Send somebody so over the edge/That they’d write me a letter/Sayin’ that I better shut up and sing/Or my life will be over.” I cannot recall in the history of pop, country, rock or R&B — maybe somewhere in rap — this issue coming up. In the same song, lead singer Natalie Maines warbles: “It’s a sad, sad story when a mother will teach her/Daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger.”" -- Even though I don't particularly enjoy their music, they have earned my respect.




Quote of the Day
"Somebody told me, when I was just a little kid, don't follow leaders, think for yourself."
~ Blue Rodeo (Better Off As We Are)

News -- March 22, 2006

US troops investigated over Iraqi massacres - "The growing evidence of retaliatory killings of unarmed Iraqi families, often including children, by US soldiers seemingly bent on punishing Iraqis after an attack, will spark comparisons with the massacre of Vietnamese villagers at My Lai in 1968. US troops have been notorious among Iraqis for their willingness to shoot any Iraqi they see in the aftermath of an insurgent attack. But it is only now that convincing and detailed information is becoming available about the killings." -- Silence is compliance.

Three blind mice - "Mr. Rumsfeld, appearing in The Washington Post Sunday, expressed the conviction that history will vindicate the decision to invade Iraq. "Fortunately," he wrote, "history is not made up of daily headlines, blogs on Web sites or the latest sensational attack. History is a bigger picture, and it takes some time and perspective to measure accurately." All of these assertions flow from the proposition that Mr. Bush, Mr. Cheney and Mr. Rumsfeld believe in accuracy. History so far has revealed that they do not."

The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy - "For the past several decades, and especially since the Six-Day War in 1967, the centrepiece of US Middle Eastern policy has been its relationship with Israel. The combination of unwavering support for Israel and the related effort to spread ‘democracy’ throughout the region has inflamed Arab and Islamic opinion and jeopardised not only US security but that of much of the rest of the world. This situation has no equal in American political history. Why has the US been willing to set aside its own security and that of many of its allies in order to advance the interests of another state? One might assume that the bond between the two countries was based on shared strategic interests or compelling moral imperatives, but neither explanation can account for the remarkable level of material and diplomatic support that the US provides. Instead, the thrust of US policy in the region derives almost entirely from domestic politics, and especially the activities of the ‘Israel Lobby’. Other special-interest groups have managed to skew foreign policy, but no lobby has managed to divert it as far from what the national interest would suggest, while simultaneously convincing Americans that US interests and those of the other country – in this case, Israel – are essentially identical. ... A final reason to question Israel’s strategic value is that it does not behave like a loyal ally."

The War Party in Disarray - "Worse yet, as the ostensible rationales for the invasion of Iraq are debunked and fall by the wayside, the War Party's real motivation for bringing about what Gen. William E. Odom has rightly called the biggest strategic disaster in our history has come out in the wash. "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy," a study by John J. Mearsheimer, the doyen of foreign policy realism, and Stephen M. Walt, dean of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, has blasted the scales from our eyes. While not falling into the trap of identifying the efforts of "the Lobby" as the sole reason for the radicalization of U.S. foreign policy in the post-9/11 era, their research clearly shows that this was the decisive factor."

Bush Slipping and Spinning on Iraq and Wiretaps - ""I believe that my job is to go out and explain to people what's on my mind. That's why I'm having this press conference, see. I'm telling you what's on my mind. And what's on my mind is winning the war on terror." Is that supposed to reassure Americans--or Iraqis? Such a remark prompts a larger question: why does Bush and the White House believe that sending him out to give a seemingly endless series of speeches on Iraq--and his plan for victory there--is going to change anything at this stage? This is the guy who said the war was about WMDs and who said virtually nothing when senior members of his administration before the war made it sound as if the post-invasion period would be a breeze. With that history, is sharing what's on Bush's mind about Iraq an effective strategy?"

Iran poses threat to dominance of the US dollar - "This week in the world of economics began with the opening of the international oil exchange in Iran. The intrigue of the situation is accentuated by the fact that trading will take place in the European currency. This in itself is setting a precedent: in modern history oil has been quoted exclusively in dollars. Alarmists and antiglobalists from all countries have rushed to describe this as yet another sentence against the hegemony of the dollar and the USA. It can not be ruled out that this idea is what is motivating the Iranian authorities. At the height of tension in relations between the USA and Iran the latter’s move looks like a blow to the economic power of its enemy. This cannot be deemed a weak blow – Iran has a share of at least 4% of worldwide oil production. Moreover, it has been declared that the format of the exchange will meet international norms: the question now is: which other of the Persian Gulf states will support Iran?"

The Planet of Unreality - "This is not good. The people running this country sound convinced that reality is whatever they say it is. And if they've actually strayed into the realm of genuine self-delusion -- if they actually believe the fantasies they're spinning about the bloody mess they've made in Iraq over the past three years -- then things are even worse than I thought."

At Issue: Classified Leaks - "March 20, 2006 - The upcoming trial of two pro-Israeli lobbyists accused of sharing classified U.S. government information with Israeli diplomats is causing anxiety within the State Department in the wake of a subpoena to a top U.S. diplomat who now serves as Washington’s deputy ambassador to Iraq."

H2O ought to be a public good, not a commodity - "Today, half of all Americans drink bottled water. One in six drink only bottled water. The bottled water industry has doubled in the United States in the last decade. Today, supplying water is $400 billion business, already 30 percent larger than the pharmaceutical industry. Bottled water may seem harmless, but this boom, which is no accident, is quite troubling. Bottled water is the most visible example of a global trend toward water as a privatized commodity --rather than as a human right."

Left Behind - "While I do think "focusing on the positive" is important and useful, all these "good" actions and words and beliefs still ignore a critical fact:The people we are fighting are ourselves."Other" people are not really Other. They are us. Our "people" are not Republicans, or Progressives, or Americans, but human. We have forgotten this, these past few centuries of machismo and turf wars. It is not "other" people who are killing and bombing and maiming and raping and beating and polluting. It is all of us. It is simply us. We, humanity, are doing these things. And of course it is self-serving, when we coldly allow the death (and disease, maiming, starvation, and abject poverty) of so many of our brothers and sisters. There is nothing we can say about it to make it OK. If we aren't fixing the problem, we aren't fixing the problem. And that is our fault."

U.S., Bulgaria still wrangling over bases - "The second issue is whether Washington will warn Bulgaria in advance if bases on Bulgarian territory will be used for attacks against other nations, particularly Iran Bulgarian and a U.S. working group are finalizing the technical parameters of the agreement."

Bloggers from both sides oppose FEC regulations - "Conservative and liberal bloggers both worry their freedom of speech is threatened by proposed campaign-finance rules that seek to regulate online political speech."

9 Years Without a Pay Raise - "In the past nine years, workers making the minimum wage have not gotten a single raise.Not one.In the meantime, the President and Congress of the United States have given the ownership class hundreds of billions in tax breaks. The reasoning has been that all that money all those rich people will be saving is going right back into the economy and is helping all those low income, poor, and other working American stiffs to have a better life. Can't you feel it? Can't you just see how your savings account is filling up? how much more secure you feel in your employment? how your credit card debt is shrinking? how your children's college fund is growing?Can the lie of this reasoning get any more obvious? We only have to look at Americans earning the minimum wage as example.While the wage of $5.15 an hour has stayed the same, its value has dropped dramatically because of inflation, putting workers further and further behind. Worse, the minimum wage ties millions of other low income workers to a wage floor that is a national disgrace."

N.Y.C.'s crime fight to get more eyes - "The NYPD is installing 505 surveillance cameras around the city - and pushing to safeguard lower Manhattan with a "ring of steel" that could track hundreds of thousands of people and cars a day, authorities revealed yesterday."

Irony and More ''1984'' - America's Children Are Becoming Orwell's Children - "How long before America's children are the living, breathing, flesh-and-bone embodiment of Orwell's darkest dream? Not long dear friends -- not long at all:"

Oil Gushes into Arctic Ocean from BP Pipeline - " Across the frozen North Slope of Alaska, the region's largest oil accident on record has been sending hundreds of thousands of litres of crude pouring into the Arctic Ocean during the past week after a badly corroded BPO pipeline ruptured."

Worse than Fossil Fuel - "The last time I drew attention to the hazards of making diesel fuel from vegetable oils, I received as much abuse as I have ever been sent by the supporters of the Iraq war. The biodiesel missionaries, I discovered, are as vociferous in their denial as the executives of Exxon. I am now prepared to admit that my previous column was wrong. But they’re not going to like it. I was wrong because I underestimated the fuel’s destructive impact."

'Diversity Day' canceled over 'gay' speakers - ""By excluding the Christian and ex-gay viewpoints, the (Viroqua) District violates the Establishment Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment guarantee of equal protection," the group said."

Italian Co. Designs Jeans for Muslims - "A new line of jeans designed by a small company in northern Italy caters to Muslims seeking to stay comfortable while they pray. "As far as we know we're the first, at least in Italy," said Luca Corradi, who designed Al Quds jeans."

Neo-Nazis threaten to massacre Muslims at World Cup - "In a statement published by Italian daily Repubblica, the memeber of AS Roma's notorious ultras hooligan group claims neo-Nazis across Europe met in Braunau in Austria to plan attacks against supporters from Islamic countries during the World Cup in Germany from June 9 to July 9."

High Levels of Radioactive Material in Water - "The groundwater does not intersect drinking supplies, and although the strontium-90 is believed to have reached the Hudson it would be safely diluted in the river, said Jim Steets, spokesman for Entergy Nuclear Northeast."

Do Plants Have The Potential To Vaccinate Against HIV? - " Scientists have developed a new kind of molecule which they believe could ultimately lead to the development of a vaccine against HIV using genetically modified tobacco."

Blowing Smoke - "Like Walters, the $766 million drug-testing industry isn't ready to give up on testing students, for which it charges between $14 and $30 a cupful of pee. Melissa Moskal, executive director of the 1,300-member Drug and Alcohol Testing Industry Association, pointed me to a preliminary study that she likes better than Michigan's and that Walters also frequently references. The study is funded by the Department of Education and produced by the Institute for Behavior and Health, and its lead author is Robert DuPont, a former White House drug official. DuPont is also a partner at Bensinger, DuPont & Associates. DuPont says that Bensinger "doesn't have anything to do with drug testing." But the company's Web site states: "BDA offers a range of products designed to help employers establish and manage workplace drug and alcohol testing programs.""

Underage sex 'link' to media - "There is a direct relationship between the amount of sexual content a child sees and their level of sexual activity or their intentions to have sex in the future, the study found. Such media also has at least an equal influence on sexual behaviour as religion or a child's relationship with their parents and peers, the study said."

How France Is Saving Civilization - "New legislation in France would force Apple Computer to open the iPod and iTunes to competitors -- and that's a good thing for consumers, in the long run. ... But French legislators aren't just looking at Apple. They're looking ahead to a time when most entertainment is online, a shift with profound consequences for consumers and culture in general. French lawmakers want to protect the consumer from one or two companies holding the keys to all of its culture, just as Microsoft holds the keys to today's desktop computers."

Chef's Quitting Controversy - "Isaac Hayes did not quit "South Park." My sources say that someone quit it for him. I can tell you that Hayes is in no position to have quit anything. Contrary to news reports, the great writer, singer and musician suffered a stroke on Jan. 17. At the time it was said that he was hospitalized and suffering from exhaustion. It’s also absolutely ridiculous to think that Hayes, who loved playing Chef on "South Park," would suddenly turn against the show because they were poking fun at Scientology. ... Friends in Memphis tell me that Hayes did not issue any statements on his own about South Park. They are mystified. “Isaac’s been concentrating on his recuperation for the last two and a half, three months,” a close friend told me. Hayes did not suffer paralysis, but the mild stroke may have affected his speech and his memory. He’s been having home therapy since it happened. That certainly begs the question of who issued the statement that Hayes was quitting "South Park" now because it mocked Scientology four months ago. If it wasn’t Hayes, then who would have done such a thing?"




Quote of the Day
"There's a darkened sky before me."
~ Iron Maiden

News (Page 2) -- March 21, 2006

Bush Defends Decisions on Iraq War - "President Bush said Tuesday the decision about when to withdraw all U.S. troops from Iraq will fall to future presidents and Iraqi leaders, suggesting that U.S. involvement will continue at least through 2008."

Journalist gets chance to question Bush - "Journalist Helen Thomas has questioned every president since John Kennedy. On Tuesday she got what has become a rare chance to question the current commander in chief. "You're going to be sorry," Thomas warned President Bush when he called on her in his news conference at the White House."

Some U.S. Officials Fear Iran Is Helping Al Qaeda - "U.S. intelligence officials, already focused on Iran's potential for building nuclear weapons, are struggling to solve a more immediate mystery: the murky relationship between the new Tehran leadership and the contingent of Al Qaeda leaders residing in the country."

U.S. media wallows in amnesia - "It's official: Operation Iraqi Liberation, which is how former White House spokesperson Ari Fleischer once put it, is now in its fourth year. (That's Operation Iraqi Liberation, as in O-I-L. But we shan't belabour that point.) ... According to Editor & Publisher, a Gallup poll conducted March 10-12 "found that 39 per cent still believe Saddam was personally involved in the 9/11 attacks. Shortly before the war began, 51 per cent held that view, but that was before the many official, and media, reports to the contrary. Yet a high number still cling to the view." The poll also revealed that "today 57 per cent of Americans express some degree of certainty that (weapons of mass destruction) or programs to develop them were in Iraq just before the fighting began — 29 per cent feel definite about it, and another 28 per cent think the weapons were there, though they have some doubt." Some doubt? Short of calling tens of millions of people in the most wired culture in the world stupid and/or ignorant, how does one explain such a discrepancy between reality and propaganda? It's not the message; it's the media." -- This is flat out scary.

Ex-UN chief: America has 'lost its moral compass' - "Highlighting the US’s opposition last week to the creation of a new UN Human Rights Council, Mrs Robinson said: "It illustrates the seismic shift which has taken place in the relation of the US to global rule of law issues. Today, the US no longer leads, but is too often seen merely to march out of step with the rest of the world.""

Huge Reaction To Sheen 9/11 Story - "The mainstream media pour over stories about Mr. Sheen's personal life whether real or manufactured yet will they remain silent when Sheen actually discusses something serious? Carlos Santana is all over the news today for criticizing George Bush and the Iraq war yet Charlie Sheen has gone much further, if the media ignores this story it is proof positive of a cover-up."

IRS plans to allow preparers to sell data - "The IRS is quietly moving to loosen the once-inviolable privacy of federal income-tax returns. If it succeeds, accountants and other tax-return preparers will be able to sell information from individual returns - or even entire returns - to marketers and data brokers. The change is raising alarm among consumer and privacy-rights advocates. It was included in a set of proposed rules that the Treasury Department and the IRS published in the Dec. 8 Federal Register, where the official notice labeled them "not a significant regulatory action.""

Death raises concern at police tactics - "The recent killing of an unarmed Virginia doctor has raised concerns about what some say is an explosion in the use of military-style police Swat teams in the United States. Armed with assault rifles, stun grenades - even armoured personnel carriers - units once used only in highly volatile situations are increasingly being deployed on more routine police missions."

UAE, Saudi considering to move reserves out of dollar - "A number of Middle Eastern central banks said on Tuesday they would seek to switch reserves from the US greenback to euros."

Space probe backs up dark view of the Universe - "Researchers have released the first data in three years from a NASA satellite that is mapping the faint afterglow of the Big Bang. The much anticipated results support the idea that our Universe contains a good chunk of 'dark' material, and fits the theory that it expanded rapidly in its first moments."

Woman With Perfect Memory Baffles Scientists - "McGaugh's journey through an intellectual purgatory began six years ago when a woman now known only as AJ wrote him a letter detailing her astonishing ability to remember with remarkable clarity even trivial events that happened decades ago. Give her any date, she said, and she could recall the day of the week, usually what the weather was like on that day, personal details of her life at that time, and major news events that occurred on that date. Like any good scientist, McGaugh was initially skeptical. But not anymore. "This is real," he says."

Crazy Patents! - "For the USPTO to issue a patent, the invention must be novel, non-obvious, and "useful." The standard for usefulness is certainly the weakest of the three -- any possible utility, no matter how small, will suffice. And, useful does not necessarily mean commercially viable. In other words, you can get a patent on some crazy things that will never make it to the shelves of your local store. For instance:" -- The first one was enough for me.

News -- March 21, 2006

Bush warns Iran on Israel - "US President George W. Bush said he hoped to resolve the nuclear dispute with Iran with diplomacy, but warned Tehran he would "use military might" if necessary to defend Israel." -- And the real reason is mentioned?

IRAN vs. USA: NEW RESEARCH PAPER BY TWO DISTINGUISHED PROFESSORS SHOWS HOW THE PRO-ISRAEL LOBBY MANIPULATES AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY - "(1) the pro-Israel lobby inside the U.S. has managed to convince American lawmakers, officials, and U.S. public opinion to support Israel "no matter what," even though this support runs counter to America's own national interests; (2) pro-Israel officials inside the Bush administration - namely, neocons Paul Wolfowitz, Douglas Feith and David Wurmser - were behind the push for war with Iraq, and pro-Israel lobbying groups were a driving force in encouraging the Bushites to invade Iraq; and
(3) the pro-Israel lobby actively suppresses American public debate about U.S. Middle East policy by disingenuously accusing everyone who disagrees with their pro-Israel positions of being "anti-Semitic." [2]"

Why the war is a waste - "Three years after the invasion of Iraq, the only positive result of this war that the Bush administration can claim is the removal of Saddam Hussein, who had been our man in the Middle East, from power. Otherwise, the Iraqi people are worse off than before, and so are we."

Iraqis Think U.S. in Their Nation to Stay - ""I think we'll be here forever," the 19-year-old airman from Wilkes-Barre, Pa., told a visitor to his base. The Iraqi people suspect the same. Strong majorities tell pollsters they'd like to see a timetable for U.S. troops to leave, but believe Washington plans to keep military bases in their country."

Editorial Writers: The Silence of the Sheep - "As the third anniversary of the invasion of Iraq passed into history, the White House continued to dumb down what defines "victory," Bush administration officials regurgitated their upbeat talking points, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld wrote an op-ed claiming, "The terrorists seem to recognize that they are losing in Iraq. Now is the time for resolve, not retreat." We may or may not agree with the president and his people, but at least they have an opinion. Sadly, the same can't be said of the editorial writers for America's most influential mainstream media."

Man Overboard - "I have a new theory about what's behind everything that's wrong with the Bush administration: manliness. ... Manliness, he writes, "seeks and welcomes drama and prefers times of war, conflict, and risk." It entails assertiveness, even stubbornness, and craves power and action. It explains why men, naturally inclined to assert that "our policy, our party, our regime is superior," dominate in the political sphere."

Religious fanaticism out of control - "Two of the country's bigger pharmaceutical companies Merck and GlaxoSmithKline have developed and proven the safety of a vaccine that prevents a common sexually transmitted disease called human papillomavirus (HPV). Strains of HPV are known to cause cervical cancer in early adulthood. The vaccine needs to be administered to girls before they become sexually active, which is an average age of 17. And therein lies the rub for the religious base of the Republican Party that George Bush and company have installed in crucial posts in the health department. That base and George W. Bush himself steadfastly adheres to the proposition that kids need to practice abstinence. In their eyes, anything from promoting the use of condoms to giving young girls vaccinations against sexually transmitted diseases only encourages promiscuity among young people. These people refuse to believe results of the numerous scientific studies that have shown the availability of condoms, for instance, has absolutely no impact on the rate of teen sex, or that young people who pledge to abstain actually engage in sex as often as those who don't take a pledge. Their religion maintains that premarital sex is a sin, period, which is fine except that Bush has created a situation where those overzealous religious beliefs instead of scientific fact determine national policy."

Harris tells Christian group she believes God wants her in public service - "Harris, who told a national television audience Wednesday that she would be spending $10 million to win Florida's U.S. Senate race, said she never would have entered politics if she did not believe that God wanted her to make public service part of her life." -- Jesus.

Rewriting The Science - "As a government scientist, James Hansen is taking a risk. He says there are things the White House doesn't want you to hear but he's going to say them anyway. ... "In my more than three decades in the government I've never witnessed such restrictions on the ability of scientists to communicate with the public," says Hansen."

Ethiopia gripped by fear of regime - "A climate bordering on fear has taken hold of the Ethiopian capital as journalists, lawyers and politicians carefully measure their public remarks and contacts in the face of widespread arrests and prosecutions."

Thank You Bastards! - "You! Yes, you! You flag waving beer swilling brain damaged chemically imbalanced paranoid idiot! You know I'm talking about you, you bastard. The idiot who voted for Bush, twice. Those who insist, still, that Saddam had WMD. The seriously deluded fuckhead who thinks we're there to bring freedom to the Iraqi people. The misguided moron who thinks this war is "going to make America strong." You know who I'm talking about, if your not against it, then you are for it, you bastard.And what are you for? Beyond the civil war? Beyond the establishment of a Islamic state in the place of a secular one? Beyond the senseless slaughter of innocent civilians? Beyond the lies of a corrupt and devious administration? Let me tell you what you're for."

Lawmakers get out of the House - "The House of Representatives is on track this year to be in session for fewer days than the Congress Harry Truman labeled as “do-nothing” during his 1948 re-election campaign. ... Through Friday, the House was in session for 19 days, compared with 33 for the Senate. If they stick to their current schedule — including two weeks off in April, a week in May and July, plus all of August — House members will spend 97 days in Washington this year. The House was in session 108 days in 1948, according to the chamber's archives, compared with 141 days last year."

Chinese Internet dissident gets 10-year sentence - "Chinese authorities have sentenced a man to 10 years in prison for posting an anti-government article on the Internet, a human rights advocacy group said."

Daytime TV tied to poorer mental scores in elderly - "Older women who say talk shows and soap operas are their favorite TV programs tend to score more poorly on tests of memory, attention and other cognitive skills, researchers reported Monday."


I'm disappointed with Blogger as 3 of the last 4 days I have been unable to upload pictures to this blog. If this problem gets fixed, I will resume posting bumper stickers and such in this space.


Quote of the Day
"I've developed a new philosophy...I only dread one day at a time."
~ Charlie Brown

News -- March 20, 2006

Three Years of War Against Iraq - "The most obvious example is the fact that we are still in Iraq even though 82 percent of Iraqis "strongly oppose" the presence of the coalition forces. Another fact is that 45-47 percent of Iraqis support attacks on coalition forces. This gives us and idea about how unwanted the invading army actually is in Iraq. In comparison, only 7 percent support attacks against Iraqi security forces and only 1 percent support attacks on civilians. But the most horrifying fact, by far, is that, according to American figures, between 2 and 9 percent of the insurgency is foreigners. That means that 91-98 percent of the insurgency is Iraqis. Given these facts, only one conclusion is possible -- we are in open war with the Iraqi people!"

Deaths, debate rage on after 3 years - "On the third anniversary of the Iraq war, more than 2,300 U.S. troops have died, tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed and a fledgling democratically elected government is trying to hold the country together."

Memos Reveal War Crimes Warnings Could Bush administration officials be prosecuted for 'war crimes' as a result of new measures used in the war on terror? The White House's top lawyer thought so. - "The White House's top lawyer warned more than two years ago that U.S. officials could be prosecuted for "war crimes" as a result of new and unorthodox measures used by the Bush administration in the war on terrorism, according to an internal White House memo and interviews with participants in the debate over the issue. The concern about possible future prosecution for war crimes—and that it might even apply to Bush adminstration officials themselves— is contained in a crucial portion of an internal January 25, 2002, memo by White House counsel Alberto Gonzales obtained by NEWSWEEK. It urges President George Bush declare the war in Afghanistan, including the detention of Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters, exempt from the provisions of the Geneva Convention."

Bush still sees no reason to apologise - "If anyone was looking for even the slightest hint of second thoughts from those led the US into Iraq, they would have been sorely disappointed on the third anniversary of a war that is eating into America's soul and that may well reshape its political landscape."

Iraqi police report details civilians' deaths at hands of U.S. troops - "Iraqi police have accused American troops of executing 11 people, including a 75-year-old woman and a 6-month-old infant, in the aftermath of a raid last Wednesday on a house about 60 miles north of Baghdad. The villagers were killed after American troops herded them into a single room of the house, according to a police document obtained by Knight Ridder Newspapers. The soldiers also burned three vehicles, killed the villagers' animals and blew up the house, the document said."

Did Marines Commit Crime in Iraq Civilian Deaths? - "A bloody videotape shot by a local Iraqi journalism student has prompted the Pentagon to launch a criminal investigation into an incident that left at least 15 Iraqi civilians dead in the city of Haditha. The details of what happened four months ago in Haditha are just now coming to light with the release of the videotape by an Iraqi organization called Hammurabi Human Rights. The tape shows the bloodied and bullet-marked homes that had been allegedly stormed by the Marines, and includes comments by local residents."

The Letter of the Law - "The White House says spying on terror suspects without court approval is ok. What about physical searches?"

Holly of Pennsylvania and Arun of India Have an Urgent Message: Americans Wake-Up Now or You May End Up Dead Like Thousands of Others Around the World Caught in the Vice-Grip of the Bush War Machine. - "While Holly Avila protests the Iraqi War from her small town in Pennsylvania, Arun Shrivastava of India is trying to alert the world of an ever growing "circle of death" caused by the U.S. military's illegal use of depleted uranium in the Middle East. An unlikely pair, nevertheless they provide a unique example of how people from all over the world are finally beginning to come together for one purpose, the purpose of stopping the war and stopping the government killers before they bring about World War III."

Bush's Iran plan a time bomb with explosive results - "An air strike against Iranian nuclear facilities is unlikely to be surgical. There are about 50 sites associated with nuclear development in Iran and they are mainly sited in towns where civilian populations would be at risk. An attack would be certain to inflame the Islamic world against the US, almost certainly lead to a full-scale civil war in Iraq with the support of the predominantly Shiite Iranian people, and the US fleet in the shallow and narrow Persian Gulf would have to withdraw or be vulnerable to Iranian missile attack. Worse, any air strike against Iran is unlikely to get the support of the United Nations Security Council, given that China and Russia would likely veto any resolution put up by the US. Why would the Bush Administration risk widening Gulf War II to include Iran when it still has the chance to limit its losses to Iraq? The most popular explanation is that the US wants to pre-empt the Iranian decision to set up a Tehran oil bourse to facilitate the selling and buying of oil in euros instead of US dollars. The idea is that this would cause a chain reaction in which more and more oil producers and their customers would trade in euros and eventually force the US to pay for its oil in euros too. This would mean the US would have to do what every other country in the world has to do, namely earn foreign exchange through exports in order to pay for its oil imports."

‘Impeach Bush’ chorus grows - "THE movement to impeach President George W Bush over the war on terror began with a few tatty bumper stickers on the back of battered old Volvos and slogans such as "Bush lied, people died" on far-left websites. But as Democrat hopes rise of gaining control of Congress this autumn, dreams of impeaching Bush are no longer confined to the political fringe." -- How about imprison?

U.S. finances China nukes - "U.S. taxpayers are lending Westinghouse Electric Co. almost $5 billion to build nuclear power plants in China – even though the company, based in Pennsylvania, is about to be sold to Japan's Toshiba Corp., and even though the company is currently owned by British Nuclear Fuels Ltd. And, so far, no one in the U.S. government is showing any interest in scrutinizing the sale over the transfer of nuclear-power technology – or in halting the loan from the Export-Import Bank."

BIN LADEN REALITY SHOW CAUSES 9/11 FURY - "A forthcoming reality TV show starring OSAMA BIN LADEN's niece has been widely condemned by 9/11 support groups. WAFAH DUFOUR, the daughter of terrorist bin Laden's half-brother YESLAM BIN LADIN, has signed a lucrative deal for the TV series, which will follow her battle for chart success in a fly-on-the-wall documentary."

Taxes, Death and Certainty - "Each season when spring approaches, attention turns to the ritual of filling out tax forms. All year long paying taxes is an integral part of the daily regiment. But when it comes time to sign your permission slip for legalized thievery, your submission to indentured servitude goes public. By becoming just another number in the long line of digital compliance under the penalty of perjury, the average citizen is performing his or her financial obligation to the State. At least that is what you are told is your duty."

W.House pushes more schools to drug-test students - "Student athletes, musicians and others who participate in after school activities could increasingly be subject to random drug testing under a program promoted by the Bush administration. White House officials say drug testing is an effective way to keep students away from harmful substances like marijuana and crystal methamphetamine, and have held seminars across the country to promote the practice to local school officials. But some parents, educators and school officials call it a heavy-handed, ineffective way to discourage drug use that undermines trust and invades students' privacy."

How to spot a baby conservative - "Remember the whiny, insecure kid in nursery school, the one who always thought everyone was out to get him, and was always running to the teacher with complaints? Chances are he grew up to be a conservative. At least, he did if he was one of 95 kids from the Berkeley area that social scientists have been tracking for the last 20 years. The confident, resilient, self-reliant kids mostly grew up to be liberals. ... Block admits in his paper that liberal Berkeley is not representative of the whole country. But within his sample, he says, the results hold. He reasons that insecure kids look for the reassurance provided by tradition and authority, and find it in conservative politics. The more confident kids are eager to explore alternatives to the way things are, and find liberal politics more congenial.
In a society that values self-confidence and out-goingness, it's a mostly flattering picture for liberals. It also runs contrary to the American stereotype of wimpy liberals and strong conservatives."

Virginia mulls bad-driver fees to save budget - "Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and General Assembly lawmakers want lousy drivers to help balance the state's budget and ease congested roads. Mr. Kaine, a Democrat, and the Republican-controlled House and Senate are each pushing "abuser-fee" programs that annually fine drivers for the number of points on their driving record or if they have been convicted of a serious offense such as drunken driving. The fines would be in addition to court fees and insurance surcharges."

Blame 'Big Chicken' - "According to University of Ottawa flu virologist Earl Brown, lethal bird flu is entirely man-made, first evolving in commercially produced poultry in Italy in 1878. The highly pathogenic H5N1 is descended from a strain that first appeared in Scotland in 1959. People have been living with backyard flocks of poultry since the dawn of civilization. But it wasn't until poultry production became modernized and birds were raised in much larger numbers and concentrations that a virulent bird flu evolved. Somehow, the virus that arose in Scotland found its way to China, where, as H5N1, it has been raging for more than a decade."

Grow Your Own Oil, U.S. - "Researchers hoping to ease America's oil addiction are turning sawdust and wood chips into bio-oil, a thick black liquid that could become a green substitute for many petroleum products. Bio-oil can be made from almost any organic material, including agricultural and forest waste like corn stalks and scraps of bark. Converting the raw biomass into bio-oil yields a product that is easy to transport and can be processed into higher-value fuels and chemicals."

Humans spur worst extinction since dinosaurs - ""In effect, we are currently responsible for the sixth major extinction event in the history of earth, and the greatest since the dinosaurs disappeared, 65 million years ago," said the 92-page Global Biodiversity Outlook 2 report."

Virus used to make nanoparticles - "UK scientists from Norwich have used a plant virus to create nanotechnology building blocks."

Best job market in 5 years for grads: report - "U.S. college graduates are facing the best job market since 2001, with business, computer, engineering, education and health care grads in highest demand, a report by an employment consulting firm showed on Monday."

Tom Green County mulls faith-based prison - "Supporters say it could influence prisoners' lives through religion, and create jobs."

Nasa to put man on far side of moon - "Under the project, up to four astronauts at a time will land on the far side of the moon to collect rock samples and carry out research, including looking for water that might one day support a lunar base."










Quote of the Day
"It doesn't make a damned bit of difference who wins the war to someone who's dead."
~ Captain Yossarian, Catch-22 by Joseph Heller