Tuesday July 22nd 2008

Everybody Knows!
Must Read - A quote...." 22/07/08 "ICH" --- - "CHANGE" sounded like a really catchy thought two years ago, before we began this non-stop farce of political selections, amid the mountains of propaganda that rise from the open wastelands of the never-ending lies. -- 'Everybody knows' that all government's lie; the bigger the government, the bigger the lies. Most people also lie, but only politicians and criminals seek to make a career out of lying. Yet most Americans still believe that they live in a free country with laws that govern this society and protect the citizens from any and all attacks: because to fail to believe in this; is to be "Un- American" in some way."

CENTCOM's Master Plan and U.S. Global Hegemony
A quote...." How can a government that maintains more than 800 military facilities in more than 140 different foreign countries be anything other than an imperial power? The hundreds of thousands of troops who operate those bases and conduct operations from them, not to mention the approximately 125,000 sailors and Marines aboard the U.S. warships that cruise the oceans, are not going door to door selling Girl Scout cookies. United States of America is the name; intimidation is the game." -- Also posted at ICH

Troop Agreement Misses Deadline; Provincial Law Misses Deadline; Bombings in Mosul, Diyala, Fallujah
A quote...."First there was going to be a status of forces agreement between the US and Iraq, which would be ratified by the Iraqi parliament and would grant the US long-term bases. Private security guards and US troops would be immune from Iraqi law. US commanders would launch operations at will, would decide who a terrorist was, and would arrest and imprison Iraqis at will. -- Then al-Maliki went to Iran for consultations. And Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani forbade a giveaway of Iraqi sovereignty. And the Sadrists began demonstrating every Friday. Then the US launched a unilateral operation in al-Maliki's home town and killed his cousin." -- Think the US forces were trying to send al-Maliki a message? - mpg

Fallujah braces for another assault
A quote...."FALLUJAH - United States and Iraqi forces are preparing another siege of Fallujah under the pretext of combating "terror", residents and officials say. -- Located 69 kilometers west of Baghdad, the city that suffered two devastating US attacks in 2004 has watched security degrade over recent months." -- "The indications on the ground belie these claims. "The Americans and their allies transferred our leader, Colonel Fayssal al-Zoba'i, from his post because they have bad plans for the city," a major in the Fallujah police force told Inter Press Service (IPS). "He has all the right to keep his post because he was the one who led us to defeat the insurgency while the Americans failed. They [the US military] seem to have a plan to destroy the city again."  --  Divide the population by constantly playing off one faction, ethnic group, or religious affiliation against another - hundreds of thousands dead.  Divide the civilian population with "separation walls" - an imprisoned and cowed population.  Continue to have your friends the Saudi Royals fund the Jihadists - a never ending excuse to stay where you're not wanted.  Unfettered access to Iraq's oil.....utterly, totally, priceless. - mpg -- Also posted at CounterCurrents

U.S. Perpetuates Mass Killings In Iraq
A quote...."The United States is directly responsible for over one million Iraqi deaths since the invasion five and half years ago.  In a January 2008 report, a British polling group Opinion Research Business (ORB) reports that,  “survey work confirms our earlier estimate that over 1,000,000 Iraqi citizens have died as a result of the conflict which started in 2003…. We now estimate that the death toll between March 2003 and August 2007 is likely to have been of the order of 1,033,000. If one takes into account the margin of error associated with survey data of this nature then the estimated range is between 946,000 and 1,120,000”. -- For more on this issue see....Fake Intel / Propaganda - Iraq Deaths

Reality check: The Democrats are the real problem
A quote...."Obama’s candidacy is over, kaput. He’s already stated that he has no intention of stopping the war, so he has disqualified himself. That’s his prerogative; no one put a gun to his head."

No U-turn. Obama's stance on Iraq is chillingly consistent
A quote...."As November's American presidential elections approach, Barack Obama's message on Iraq is being widely interpreted as "flip-flopping" and a "retreat" from a previously unequivocal stance of fully withdrawing the US occupation forces. This is to misunderstand Obama, who is not someone who shoots from the hip. There is much more to his words than cursory reading could unravel."

New oil field discovered in southern Iran
A quote...."Tehran, July 22, IRNA - A new oil field was discovered in the city of Abadan in the Persian Gulf province of Khuzestan, Minister of Oil Gholam-Hossein Nozari said on Tuesday. - He made the announcement on the sidelines of a national seminar on petrochemicals in Tehran. - According to Nozari, the deposited oil in the new oil field, 'Arvand,' is estimated as 500 million barrels." -- Iran makes itself more tempting every day. It's sort of like slathering yourself in blood, tying a dozen raw steaks to your body and than parading yourself in front of a bunch of starving hyenas....not normally the smartest thing to do. - mpg

Iran Isolation Attempts Backfire
A quote...."Iran’s provocative missile tests ten days ago again fueled the debate on the likelihood of aerial strikes against Iran. Since last week’s thaw, however, an attack on Iran by the end of President Bush’s tenure no longer appears in the offing. Moreover, the narrow, exclusively military focus of the debate misses the broader picture. The overall U.S. strategy of containing Iran has failed in principle. And the attempt to impose a sanctions regime on Iran has led to an erosion of U.S. strategic influence in Asia and the Middle East. Over the long term, Washington’s shortsighted containment policy will only hurt Western business in the region. It will also play into the hands of China, drive crucial allies away, and render Iran untouchable."

US ‘olive branches’ aren’t what they seem
Must Read - A quote...."The chronically naïve might be tempted to believe that Washington has packed away its sabers and shrouded its deadly toys with dust covers...at least for now. There are those who are sincerely convinced that the neoconservative cabal responsible for the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq are losing the argument while their head honcho Vice President Dick Cheney is losing his influence over the last-minute legacy-seeking White House incumbent. And this soft and rosy turnabout is all thanks to Ms. Rice, who has morphed from hawk into Mary Poppins almost overnight, they say." -- Also posted at ICH

US/IRAN:  Scowcroft, Brzezinski Urge Bush to Drop Precondition
Ain't EVER going to happen, not with AIPAC in charge. - mpg -- A quote...."WASHINGTON, Jul 22 (IPS) - Two of Washington's most prominent foreign policy greybeards praised Saturday's direct participation in multinational talks with Iran by a senior U.S. diplomat but called on the administration of President George W. Bush to drop his demands that Tehran freeze its uranium enrichment programme as a precondition for broader negotiations."

US-led forces kill more Afghan civilians
A quote...."US and NATO forces killed at least 13 Afghans over the weekend, adding to the toll of civilian deaths as the military intensifies efforts to crush opposition to the nearly seven-year-old US occupation."

Venezuela's Chavez announces arms deal with Russia
A quote...."Moscow - Venezuela President Hugo Chavez announced new arms purchases from Russia and and agreed an energy partnership with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Tuesday. "We want peace, but we have to strengthen our defences," the president of the South American nation said at the start of a two-day visit to Moscow, the news agency Interfax reported."

Putin wants closer military ties with Venezuela
A quote...."22/07/2008 20:23 NOVO-OGARYOVO, July 22 (RIA Novosti) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday that he hopes military ties between the countries will strengthen."

Russia needs bombers in Cuba due to NATO expansion - ex-commander
A quote...."MOSCOW, July 21 (RIA Novosti) - The possible deployment of Russian strategic bombers in Cuba may be an effective response to the placement of NATO bases near Russia's borders, a former Air Force commander said on Monday." -- Also posted at WII

Regarding the three articles shown above....it appears Vlad and Dimtry are getting really TIRED of the US's shenanigans in Georgia, Ukraine and Lithuania and these moves by them are their not so subtle message telling the Neocons to cut it the f-ck out. - mpg

Berlusconi escapes trial thanks to new immunity law
A quote...."Italy's Senate on Tuesday passed into law a bill that effectively grants Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi immunity from prosecution during his time in office, the ANSA news agency reported." -- Berlusconi learns from the best, our flaccid, spineless, sycophantic, boot licking Congress, and his buddy Bush of course. - mpg

Evidence against terrorism suspect barred at Guantanamo trial
A quote...."The interests of justice are not served by admitting these statements because of the highly coercive environments and conditions under which they were made," Allred said of statements Hamdan made while held by U.S. forces in the Afghan outposts of Panjshir and Bagram." -- In other words, you can't torture someone to tell you what you want to hear, true or not - mostly not -  and than expect to present it as evidence in a court of LAW! - mpg
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Wachovia reports huge loss, will cut 10,750 jobs
A quote...."Wachovia Corp. announced a whopping second quarter loss of $8.9 billion this morning, with plans to shake up its mortgage unit, slash its dividend payout to shareholders, and cut thousands of jobs."

U.S. Expansion May Be First Without Income Recovery (Update1)
Special Note - A quote...."The current U.S. economic expansion is the first in 60 years that may end before many Americans have recovered from the last slowdown. Annual family incomes adjusted for inflation have grown just 0.8 percent since the end of 2001 even as the economy expanded an average 2.7 percent a year, leaving households little cushion to absorb higher food and fuel prices."

Adapted from Pete Seeger's "Where Have all the Flowers Gone"

Where have all the dollars gone?  Long time passing.
Where have all the dollars gone?  Long time ago.
Where have all the dollars gone?
The elites have taken them....everyone.
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?

Where have all the people gone? Long time passing.
Where have all the people gone? Long time ago.
Where have all the people gone?
Gone to bankruptcy every one.
Oh, When will they ever learn?
Oh, When will they ever learn?

Vicious Ideologue Renews Attack on Social Security
A quote...."Billionaire investment banker Peter Peterson is back on the warpath. He just established a new foundation with a $1 billion endowment, the main purpose of which is to cut back spending on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid." -- For more on this issue see....Go Build Your Neo-Roman Empire - Just Leave Us Out Of It - 10-14-07 - mpg

GM, Ford `On the Verge of Bankruptcy,' Altman Says (Update2)
A quote...."July 22 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co., the two biggest U.S. automakers, have about a 46 percent chance of default within five years, according to Edward Altman, a finance professor at New York University's Stern School of Business." -- Also posted at GlobRsch

US unemployment highest in 20 years - (AOL - 4 min 9 sec - July 21, 2008) - Alt @ YouTube
Video - A quote...."Consumer prices rose 1.1 percent in June, highest one month rise in 26 years"

The Week that America Woke Up to the Economic Crisis
A quote...."Last week, for the first time, the average American woke up to the fact that our economy is in trouble. - Despite Bernanke and Paulson's pep talks, despite the happy talk by the talking heads, despite the cooked earnings reports desperately being put out by the banks and others, last week people still got - on a gut level - that the economy is in mortal danger.

Ron Paul: Faith-Based Currency
A quote...."The Latin term “fiat” roughly translates to “there shall be”.  When we refer to fiat money, we are referring to money that exists because the government declares it into existence.  It is not based on production or earnings, and not backed by any commodity.  It is solely based on trusting the government.  Fiat money is exchanged in the economy as long as there is faith in the government that issues it."

Monday July 21st 2008

No posts. - mpg

Sunday July 20th 2008

Israeli shoots Palestinian with hands bound point blank  - (YouTube - 1 min 5 sec - Added:  July 20, 2008)
Video -- warning - graphic - mpg -- A quote...."The IDF has launched a probe into the conduct of soldiers who were caught on camera two weeks ago shooting a rubber bullet at a blindfolded and handcuffed Palestinian in the West Bank."
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Netroots Summit Grapples with Bipartisan Attacks on Rule of Law
A quote....

"It seems evident, at this point, that there will be no comeuppance as a result of the excesses of the Bush administration. There will be investigations; they will investigate. There will be subpoenas; they will simply be refused...We know misrepresentations were made that led us, apparently inexorably, into war. In the end, we are as a nation (public, press, and government) not particularly interested in hearing the particulars of how or why; the truth is that we were aching for a good war, and the rationale was an afterthought not just for the Bush administration, but for most of their audience. -- We know the rule of law itself was politicized, made into an apparatus of partisan advantage, a weapon for the ruling party to use against opponents. We know who did it, and we know it was not just unethical, but illegal. But to push it farther than that would require taking the last step -- from investigation, to prosecution -- and that step seems illusory, at best.... There will be reconciliation, and reconciliation will be defined by the conservative punditry as letting bygones be bygones -- anything but that will be unacceptable and partisan, in itself." -- *Mr. Hunter*, a popular "front-page poster" on DailyKos -- Also posted at CommonDreams
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They Won
July 20th 2008
mpg

They Won.....they came, they saw, they conquered.  They planned for thirty years after Watergate and Vietnam on just how they would get their revenge and then they got it, while making more money than even they thought was possible.  They stole the 2000 elections and than with the help of the Saudi Royals they set-up 9/11, murdered 3,000 Americans, took hold of the US's vast war machine, it's Military Industrial Complex, drove up oil prices, created the housing bubble, destroyed every international treaty this nation every signed, plunged this nation deeply into debt, made a mockery of the election process, corrupted the judicial process, obliterated the United State's constitution, engaged in torture, murdered millions of foreigners while reducing their nation states to utter ruin.

And now they'll just leave....for awhile anyway. The Neocons and their Republican ilk have finally worn out their welcome.

But they’ll be back.  It was all soooooo easy after all, and now that their appetites have been whetted they'll soon get hungry once again.

Really, really hungry.

But they have the other elites to replace them now, the "other" faction to be backed by the MIOC Consortium of Power ....However there's always the thought in their minds that maybe they could both share the country this time around, although that's something they don't normally want to do, after all for the past sixty years they've separated themselves into two castes.  The tear-down, conquer new territory and force them to take our currency caste....and the build-up re-capitalize, suck those now deflated dollars back home, reconsolidate and re-absorb them caste.

But there's so much more "meat-sheep" to go around these days, maybe the build-up caste wouldn’t mind if a few more "meat-sheep" were culled from the herd by the tear-down caste.

A few hundred thousand would do in a pinch; a few million would be much nicer though.

After all, the tear-down caste is always so very hungry -- Always, incessantly, voraciously, constantly, relentlessly, endlessly...HUNGRY.

And the meat-sheep that once used to be called the "American People" are so weak, so stupid, so easily corrupted, so easily manipulated, so indifferent to the rule of law, or their own conscience, or what's right and wrong, or the difference between propaganda and truth or even their own collective well being that they've all become easy prey.

And even though they've been left with a fifteen trillion dollar tab because of their masters most recent feeding frenzy, they could care less.

"America" truly is the land of opportunity.

Yummmy.  Baaaaa, baaaaaa

Welcome to the New Roman Empire. 
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Some Tentative Laws - To be updated/changed when needed
July 20th, 2008
mpg

First law of wartime currency expansion
The positive economic effects of wartime currency expansion/debt turn negative after approximately five years.

Second law of wartime currency expansion
The recovery time from the inflationary affects of war time currency expansion/debt is inversely related to the size of the conquered territory's underlying economic assets and directly related to how quickly they are incorporated into the conquering country's economic system.

Third law of wartime currency expansion
The interest rate (eventually) is inversely related to the amount of war time debt.
The interest rate (eventually) is directly related to the amount of war time currency expansion.

Fourth law of wartime currency expansion
The chances of a war occurring are directly related to the rate of deflation and inversely related to the rate of inflation.

Fifth law of wartime currency expansion
The size and length of the next war is inversely related to the economic recovery time of the prior war.

Sixth law of wartime currency expansion
The ability to wage war through currency inflation is directly related to the number and size of economies willing to accept the aggressor nation's currency/debt.

Seventh law of wartime currency expansion
The wartime cycles take approximately ten years to complete.

Special Note: If great care is not taken, each successive ten year cycle creates more and more  underlying debt/inflation per capita necessitating bigger and bigger cycles of war (violating the Fifth law) thereby increasing systemic instabilities untill the entire system collapses.

This is just a very tentative analysis - there's a lot more work to be done. - mpg

For more on this issue see....Effective Fed Funds Rate 03-24-07 - mpg
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Netroots Nation or Nation of Sheep: Nancy Pelosi and Al Gore Address the Netroots Nation Conference
A quote...."Saturday morning, July 19. Sitting here at the Netroots Nation conference in Austin, Texas with several thousand other online activists. Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Party Speaker of the House, the third most powerful politician in the United States, is up on the podium, doing her best to damp down the mounting criticism of the Democratic Party’s shameful collaboration in funding the war and aiding and abetting the Bush administration’s shredding of the Constitution. Before Pelosi speaks, an announcement is made from the podium that disruptions will not be tolerated–if any of us express our frustrations too passionately with Pelosi and the sell-out Democratic Party leadership we will be arrested." -- Typical. - mpg

Michael Collins: Election Fraud and Tyranny - Part 1
Michael Collins: Election Fraud and Tyranny - Part 2
A quote from part 2...."How did we reach our current state of decline in just eight excruciating years? Aren’t we working hard enough? Was there some millennial shift in consciousness and morality? How could we elect leaders like Bush and Cheney and their minions on Capitol Hill? -- Mark Crispin Miller’s latest book, “Loser Take All,” [at B&N, Powells, &  Amzn]* provides an explanation that precedes any other: election fraud. In his collection of essays, Miller shows that the losers took everything in both the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections. That made all the difference." - *links added

Cui Bono?  The 9/11 Promotions
A quote...."The 9/11 official story is a tale of outlandish incompetence.  We are led to believe that Al Qaeda successfully evaded a multi-billion-dollar defense establishment including NORAD, standard FAA intercept procedures, US airbases,[1] the FBI, the CIA, the NSA, international intelligence agencies and more, without any significant or effective resistance.  While any serious investigation of the 9/11 attacks was blocked by President Bush and Dick Cheney for more than a year,[2] a theory of systematic and incredible incompetence emerged: Al Qaeda got “lucky”.  Mindy Kleinberg, of the 9/11 Family Steering Committee in an opening address to the 9/11 Commission criticized this notion:"

“It has been said that the intelligence agencies have to be right 100% of the time. And the terrorists only have to get lucky once. This explanation for the devastating attacks of September 11th, simple on its face, is wrong in its value, because the 9-11 terrorists were not just lucky once. They were lucky over and over again. When you have this repeated pattern of broken protocols, broken laws, broken communication, one cannot still call it luck. If at some point, we don’t look to hold the individuals accountable for not doing their jobs, properly, then how can we ever expect for terrorists to not get lucky again?”[3]" -- *Mindy Kleinberg*
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9/11 - From The History File...9/11 Security Courtesy of Marvin Bush
Marvin Bush was in New York on 9/11
How To Spread the Word : Securacom and the WTC Power Downs - video
(YouTube - 6 min 52 sec - Added:  December 01, 2007)
Bush-Linked Company Handled Security for the WTC, Dulles and United
‘Frauds-R-Us’ - The Bush Family Saga
Securacom / Stratesec
Marvelous Marvin - The Bush Who Seems to be in All the Right Places
HCC Insurance/ Stratesec Links Marvin Bush & WTC
Family Business at the Watergate
Marvin Bush  - sourcewatch
Marvin Bush - 9/11 Encyclopedia
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Rare Banned Bush Speech - (YouTube - 1 min 30 sec - Added:  July 03, 2006)
Some of Bush words, taken out of his propaganda speeches to construct the truth. - mpg

US troops kill son of Iraqi governor
A quote...."US forces shot dead the 17-year-old son and another relative of the governor of northern Iraq's Salahuddin province in a raid today, local officials said."

US 'can't be trusted on torture'
A quote...."THE British government should no longer accept US assurances that it does not use torture, a parliamentary oversight committee said today in a wide-ranging report looking at London's human rights policy."

Brown plans to withdraw troops as he backs Obama over 'war on terror.
A quote...."Gordon Brown prepared the ground for a historic realignment in the "war on terror" yesterday by setting out a four-point plan for withdrawal of British troops from Iraq by the end of next year."

Maliki Doesn't Endorse Obama Troop Withdrawal Plan (Update3)
A quote...."July 20 (Bloomberg) — Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki hasn't endorsed any specific plan for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, a government spokesman said, a day after a magazine report that he backed Barack Obama's proposal."

Why Afghanistan is Not the Good War
A quote...."It's the perennial thorn in the colonialist's side.  It's the war that won't go away.  It's a wasp sting that swells, slowly choking the life out of the sting's recipient.  It is the nearly seven-year old occupation of Afghanistan by the United States and various NATO allies.  Nearly forgotten by most Americans, the situation in that country has taken headlines away from the occupation of Iraq because of the resurgence of the anti-occupation forces."

Obama's Wrong Turn in Afghanistan
A quote...."Running for president is a perilous endeavor. Candidates make mistakes. - And Barack Obama is making a serious mistake this weekend. - As he tours Afghanistan, the senator from Illinois says he is "more interested in listening than doing a lot of talking." - That would be good if it were the case. - Unfortunately, Obama is busy making promises."
Also posted at CommonDreams

Obama and the national security system - part 2
Obama and the Cold War mentality - part 1 - (Editor's note Real New's copy has no sound, this is YouTubes's)
Must View - A quote from part 2...."In the second part of his interview to Pepe Escobar, investigative historian and military policy analyst Gareth Porter expands on what awaits Senator Barack Obama when he deals with the power of the national security state.

Afghanistan hit by record number of bombs
A quote...."Air Force and allied warplanes are dropping a record number of bombs on Afghanistan targets. - For the first half of 2008, aircraft dropped 1,853 bombs — more than they released during all of 2006 and more than half of 2007’s total — 3,572 bombs."

NATO forces kill 9 Afghan policemen in air strikes
A quote...."NATO officials say nine Afghan policemen have been killed and five injured in air strikes by the international coalition forces."

Sarkozy, the current EU chairman, tries to set up a police state in France
A quote...."Using the drowsiness of summer, without any public debate nor legislative discussion, the French government is adopting the use of a police database aiming at a retrieving information on all kinds of activists involved in politics, unions, NGOs, religious groups, ... since the age of 13 (!) and without any limitations in the range of information collected, nor any time limit in keeping the datas. "

UK: Now there are 1,000 laws that will let the state into your home
A quote...."The march of the Big Brother state under Labour was highlighted last night as it was revealed that there are now 1,043 laws that give the authorities the power to enter a home or business." -- Also posted at BLN -- For more on the two articles shown above see....White Man's Burden

Conservatives Against Empire - The forgotten tradition of the antiwar right
Book Review - A quote...."Ain’t My America: The Long, Noble History of Antiwar Conservatism and Middle-American Anti-Imperialism,* by Bill Kauffman, New York: Metropolitan Books, 304 pages, $25 -- "If you are trying to discover how a particular conservative understands conservatism, a good place to start is to ask him what he thinks about Ron Paul. Paul’s admirers on the right don’t just consider the 10-term congressman from Texas a conservative. They tend to think the libertarian favorite was by far the most conservative of this year’s Republican presidential candidates." -- *link added
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The Shampoo Economy
A quote...."Bubble, bust, repeat...bubble, bust, repeat...bubble, bust, repeat.......For the last few decades, that's been the American growth recipe. The damage done by these cycles is evident in both the current downturn and the daily headlines featuring systemic failures large and small. But what may be unique about today's climate is that this dysfunctional process is clear to anyone willing to take close look at it. This should be especially notable to that group whose approval rating just hit record lows: the US Congress.

Housing prices haven't hit bottom yet
A quote...."WASHINGTON — The Bush administration's pledge to rescue ailing housing finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac raises anew questions about just when the nation's dismal housing market will hit bottom." -- Also posted at TruthOut

U.S. Financial Breaking Point Soon
War Alert - A quote...."Something is going to break, and soon. Banks are insolvent and failing by the hundreds if not thousands. Hedge funds are on the edge of oblivion. Only a tiny percentage of toxic waste losses in real estate and other asset classes of collateral, which will eventually amount to over $1.4 trillion in the US alone, has to date been recognized by the lying bankster fraudsters. Bonds are producing negative rates of return even based on ludicrously understated official rates of inflation (until this month, when we finally got some data bordering on the truth). Credit markets are frozen, and few can get financing at favorable rates. Banks won’t even lend to one another because they do not trust each other’s financial statements, which are all bogus." -- Also posted at Rense -- For more on why this article is a war alert see....Standard Disclaimer

Saturday July 19th 2008

Monster of the Century Contest
Must Read - A quote...."!!!!!!! Welcome to the Monster of the Century Award Competition !!!!!!!."

     "Everyone gets a chance to vote!  And if you've been arrested without habeas corpus, you get two votes !.And if you have guest status at the Guantanamo Resort, you get one vote for each year !  Plus a bonus vote for each water-boarding incident you've survived !"
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Nine Reasons to Investigate War Crimes Now
On a related note: - mpg -- A quote...."There is no longer any doubt as to whether the current administration has committed war crimes. The only question that remains to be answered is whether those who ordered the use of torture will be held to account."

I say Bomb Eye-ran!
A quote...."Attempting to disarm Iran's nuclear enrichment program diplomatically has proven futile. Even with the noose tightening around its neck through sanctions, and joint American-Israeli military exercises combined with covert CIA operations being conducted close to its border, Iran still has the sheer audacity to tell America that it will defend itself in the case of an invasion. How dare this 3000-year-old civilization threaten the world's declining 60-year hegemonic superpower? How dare this country stand up for itself after watching America slaughter [hundreds of] thousands in neighboring Iraq? It is time to bomb these people into oblivion so the West can once again overthrow its regime and replace it with one that will conform, abide by, and slave to its master. It's time these people got with the times. It is upon America and the rest of the "civilized world" to prevent another 9/11." -- underline by website editor -- Now how could bombing Iran help prevent another 9/11?  Unlike the Saudi Royals, Iran didn't send 15 of their citizens out of the 19 attackers to support Bushy and his PNAC'ing MIOC-CON brethren in their efforts to have what they themselves called a "Pearl Harbor Style Event!!"  Iran just wasn't invited.  They don't peg their currency to the dollar like the Saudi Royals do. They're not part of the "Big Dollar Club", the Bilderburg Group or the Bohemian Grove.  They’re just never going to be good little supporters of the "New World Order". - mpg

SCO regional bloc could lift moratorium on expansion on July 25
Special Note - A quote...."MOSCOW, July 18 (RIA Novosti) - Foreign ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will decide on whether to lift a moratorium on bringing in new states at a meeting in Tajikistan on July 25, a Russian diplomat said on Friday. -- "The moratorium has lasted for two years. We have now decided to consider the possibility of the SCO's enlargement," a source in the Russian Foreign Ministry said. -- Iran and Pakistan, observer states at the SCO since 2005, have sought full membership in the regional bloc comprising Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan and widely seen as a counterweight to NATO's influence in Eurasia."

Gazprom's Businesss with Iran
A quote...."The USG Open Source Center summarizes Russian press comment on the Gazprom deals with Libya and Iran. The deal with Iran is extremely important because if it goes forward, it would require Russia to tangle with US economic sanctions."

"Iran:  All Out War or Economic Conquest"
Audio Interview - Must Listen - A quote...."Interview with author and Director of the Center for Research on Globalization, Michel Chossudovsky. -- We discuss Iran's privatization program, U.S. war propaganda, Plan TYRANT, Congressional Resolution 362, the National Intelligence Estimate, dissent within the military, currency speculation, Russia, China, the police state and war agenda. Visit his website at http://www.globalresearch.ca.

The Zionist Power Configuration - In America And Israel’s War with Iran
A quote...."Zionists and their allies in Congress authored, implemented and enforced sanctions against Iran, which hinder the ambitions of the world’s biggest oil and gas companies. Israeli war exercises and public declarations threatening a massive air assault on Iran has pushed petroleum prices to world records. This spring 2008, the most powerful pro-Israel Jewish Lobby in the US, AIPAC held their annual conference and secured the support and commitment of both major US Presidential candidates and the majority of US members of Congress for an Israeli initiative to impose extreme economic sanctions on Iran with threats of a US/Israeli military attack."

[US - ] Iran Nuclear Talks End Without Agreement
A quote...."High-level international talks on Iran's nuclear program ended inconclusively today in Geneva, with European envoy Javier Solana telling reporters that Iran needed to give a more definitive answer within two weeks."

Western powers start talks with Iran on nuclear dispute
A quote...."GENEVA, July 19 (RIA Novosti) - European Union and United States diplomats began talks with Iran's top nuclear negotiator in Geneva on Saturday aimed at resolving the international dispute surrounding Iran's nuclear program."

No free ride for Europe, says top Barack Obama aide
A quote...."Europe will be challenged by a President Barack Obama to contribute more to global security and will no longer have the "easy out" of pandering to anti-Bush sentiment, according to a top adviser to the Democratic candidate." -- Translation - The message to Europe from 'Bombs away O-Bomb-a' is...."I've already been selected by our New Roman Elites no matter what the voters may think....so support the New Roman Empire - or there won't be any oil for you." - mpg  -- For more on this issue see....The US is After Europe Too! - 03-23-08 - mpg

Barack All Talk
A quote........"Barack
Was it all talk?
The message of change
Just a crock?"
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Iraqi PM: U.S. troops should leave as soon as possible
A quote...."19/07/08 "AP" -- - BERLIN — Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki says U.S. troops should leave Iraq “as soon as possible,” according to a magazine report, and he called presidential candidate Barack Obama's suggestion of 16 months “the right time frame for a withdrawal.”

Editor's Note & Warning: 'Bombs Away O-Bomb-A' wants to keep eighty thousand US troops in Iraq when all is said and done, and that's only if everything goes accordingly to "plan", else it'll be a hundred and fifty thousand....so what the heck is al-Maliki's and Barack O-Bomb-a's definition of "a withdrawal"???  What is our mass-media's?  What is the blogger-world's definition?

He and his policy advisors have repeatedly stated they intend to keep eighty thousand US troops in Iraq and he can only do so if conditions warrant it...the American people are in denial again regarding Iraq just as they are about what really happened on 9/11 and who was really responsible.  You are all being fooled again.

Wake up people....grow up, smell the coffee, heck go ahead and drink the coffee, take your rose colored glasses off, get off your meds, get on your meds, ....whatever euphemism you'd care to use but just do it. - mpg
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Bush Accepts Time Horizon for US Troop withdrawal - If Bush "accepts it", it can't be true....simple as that. - mpg
Some quotes...."Bush has agreed in all but name with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki on a timetable for US troop withdrawal from that country. As usual Bush's staff made up an implausible euphemism for the timetable, calling it a "time horizon" for "aspirational goals?" Language like that is a sure sign that Bush is too embarrassed to call it like it is." -- "Bush probably wants US troops in Iraq [so does O-Bomb-a] because they help nail down energy contracts between the US and Iraqi concerns. Without 140,000 troops in the country, the Iraqis would not have a good reason to favor US concerns like Hunt over China's Sinopec or Russia's Lukoil...."

The Occupiers will not Withdraw from Iraq
Must Read - A quote...."Americans will not withdraw from Iraq however stable the security situation, and will find pretexts at every stage to refuse to withdraw. They entered Iraq, occupied it, and destroyed the country on deceptive pretexts violating international law, and they will remain in Iraq by the same mostly-fabricated pretexts. The inflated Iranian danger serves their continuation in Iraq, serves Israel which pictures itself the victim in the world, and serves to remove Iraq from its community, thus weakening it. It reinforces the most important support inside Arab lines and keeps the Arab region vulnerable to regional conflicts and divisions which vindicate the claims of the occupiers."

Iraq's oil wealth on the block
A quote...."Last week saw the biggest step so far towards transferring Iraqi oil into the hands of foreign multinational companies, sparking renewed accusations that the US-UK war on Iraq was really motivated by an oil grab. -- The Oil Ministry announced on 30 June that foreign oil companies would be invited to bid for contracts to develop six of Iraq’s largest oilfields, which together contain around half of the country’s known oil reserves. -- Yet most commentators missed the significance of the move – that it would give away more to foreign companies than had been planned at any point since the Constitution was written in 2005, and possibly more than any major oil producer has given since the colonial era."

The Pentagon and the Hunt for Black Gold - The Oil Deal Nobody Wants to Talk About
A quote...."For years, "oil" and "Iraq" couldn't make it into the same sentence in mainstream coverage of the invasion and occupation of that country. Recently, that's begun to change, but "oil" and "the Pentagon" still seldom make the news together." -- For more on Hunt Oil see....War Resource & 9/11 - Hunt Energy

Iraq indivisible - They wish. - mpg
A quote...."Fifty years after the Iraqi army toppled the pro-West monarchy on 14 July 1958, Iraqis who live in their now terror- stricken nation are too preoccupied with survival to celebrate what many of them esteem as a revolution of national liberation against the colonial power of the time, Great Britain. -- The episode is not forgotten, however. If there is a lesson to be drawn, especially by Iraq's new rulers, it is that winning public support and confidence cannot be substituted for dependency on foreign occupiers and their protection." -- For more on this issue see....US Sponsored Civil Wars - Iraq

Iraq’s Sunni Bloc Rejoins Government
A quote...."BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's main Sunni Arab bloc rejoined the Shi'ite-led government on Saturday in a breakthrough for national reconciliation after parliament approved its candidates for several vacant ministerial posts."

Lebanon Breaks the Mould
A quote...."Lebanon, thanks to Hizbollah, is breaking moulds in the Middle East. After Hizbollah's defeat of Israel in the war of the summer of 2006, it has again humiliated the Zionist State by making it carry out another exchange of Lebanese and Palestinian prisoners like the one in 2004. (1) It has managed to weaken imperialist and Saudi Arabian strategy in the area with the show of force it made taking over Beirut in just four days. That brought about rapid mediation by various Arab countries, ending with the Doha Agreement by means of which Lebanon's patriotic and nationalist forces pushed through a government of national unity."

Japan drops troop plan for Afghanistan - media
A quote...."TOKYO, July 18 (Reuters) - Japan has dropped a plan to send ground troops to Afghanistan after the ruling coalition failed to reach a consensus due to fears over the continuing violence in the area, Japanese media said on Friday."

A West Bank Town's Fight to Survive
Some quotes....""Jerusalem bulldozer 'terrorist' kills 3 in rampage," read the headline of a CNN article describing the recent attack of a Palestinian construction worker that left three Israelis dead and scores wounded. A Google news search indicates that the brutal assault was mentioned in 3,525 news articles." -- "Another Google news search, this one using the name Ni'lin, produces only seventy-five results. A few major outlets have carried the story about the brave resistance to Israeli seizures of land staged by the residents of this Palestinian town in the occupied West Bank, but CNN, the LA Times and USA Today have not. "

The Gathering Tempest
A quote...."The government is unworried by the worsening security situation on our North West frontier. It is in a happy position because it has neither time nor inclination to think about such unpleasant matters. For now it is grappling with its own ineptitude. Let this battle be over---and there is no telling when this will be---before it can shift its attention to other issues. The army, however, is deeply worried, and for good reason because it is the army which is bearing the brunt of the undeclared war now raging along our western border. And it is the army which has to deal with the American pressure to "do more". The luxury of indifference available to the government---and one which the government is enjoying to the full---is not available to the army."

Pakistani premier says no foreign troops will be allowed to operate inside Pakistan
A quote...."ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said Saturday his government would not allow any foreign forces to operate against militants inside the country, but said Pakistan would continue to support the international community in the war on terror." -- Why?  Don't the Pakies appreciate the lovely things the US has done for Iraq and Afghnistan? Don't they want a million people killed, over five million displaced and over three hundred billion dollars worth of damage done to their country as the US has 'oh so graciously' done to Iraq?  Really, how rude can they be? -- Some people just don't know what's good for them. - mpg

Report: U.S. Africa Aid Is Increasingly Military
A quote...."NAIROBI, July 17 -- U.S. aid to Africa is becoming increasingly militarized, resulting in skewed priorities and less attention to longer-term development projects that could lead to greater stability across the continent, according to a report released Thursday by the advocacy group Refugees International." -- For more on this issue see....Africa - the Next Target - 02-28-08 - mpg

Sarkozy - Hello NATO, Goodbye France
A quote...."It seems it's just not possible for a French politician to truly admire the American empire builders (as Sarko seems to) and not grovel at their feet. -- After all there are great personal advantages to be had from aligning oneself and one's nation (whether they like it or not) with the last great empire. There is the sense of being on the "winning side" (who now can stand up to the US juggernaut?). There is immediate access to the massive resources, influence and intelligence assets of the empire through which previously impossible goals become not just possible but a matter of policy."

Air Force Cyber Command: Building the Infrastructure for High-Tech War Crimes
A quote...."What do you get when you combine U.S. militarism, fantasies of domination and an administration that views the internet as a hot-bed of "evil-doers" and "subversives"? Cyber Command, of course! Only this scheme has the potential of inflicting massive suffering on civilian populations across the planet." -- For more on this issue see....Attempts to Control the Internet

SAIC Investigated In TOPOFF5 Scandal
A quote...."WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal officials are investigating whether millions of dollars are being steered improperly toward a government contractor to run the country's largest counterterrorism exercise."

Office of Special Counsel official quits in protest
A quote...."WASHINGTON -- James M. Byrne, second in command at the embattled Office of Special Counsel, resigned his post effective Saturday after leaving his boss, Scott J. Bloch, a stinging letter suggesting that Bloch's "political agendas and personal vendettas" were preventing the agency from fulfilling its mission."
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Mother’s Milk of Politics Turns Sour
A quote...."Once again we’re closing the barn door after the horse is out and gone. In Washington, the Federal Reserve has finally acted to stop some of the predatory lending that exploited people’s need for money. And like Rip Van Winkle, Congress is finally waking up from a long doze under the warm sun of laissez faire economics. That’s French for turning off the alarm until the burglars have made their getaway."

Swan Song for Fannie - Eulogy For The "Ownership Society"
A quote...." 18/07/08 "ICH" -- - The Fed's emergency rescue plan for the financial markets is hopelessly flawed. It's a scattershot approach that doesn't address the real source of the problem; an unregulated, unsustainable structured finance system that emerged in full-force after 2000 and spawned a shadow banking system that creates trillions of dollars of credit without sufficient capital reserves. This is the heart of the problem and it needs to be debated openly. The present system doesn't work; it's as simple as that. It makes no sense to provide trillions of dollars of taxpayer money to shore up a system that is essentially dysfunctional. It's just throwing money down a rat-hole."

'Massive potential' for global 'financial meltdown' - Confidence falls in U.S. authorities' ability to ease financial panic
A quote...."NEW YORK -- The nightmare scenario for U.S. economic authorities is here: Confidence in their ability to rescue the country from a housing-led financial panic is now at its lowest level since the crisis began."

Commercial bankruptcies soar, reflecting widening economic woes
A quote...."WASHINGTON — Driven by a sour economy and skittish consumers, U.S. business bankruptcies saw their sharpest quarterly rise in two years, jumping 17 percent in the second quarter of 2008, according to an analysis by McClatchy." -- "Commercial filings for the first half of 2008 are up 45 percent from last year, as the national climate for commerce continues to deteriorate amid rising energy and food costs, mounting job losses, tighter credit and a reticence among consumers to part with discretionary income." -- Editor's Note: Bankruptcies are a lagging indicator.  However, if the housing/banking crisis stretches into next year we'll be heading into the bottom of the normal ten year business cycle....which means we've got two to three more years of increasing bankruptcies to go. - mpg

Friday July 18th 2008

Time for Some Campaignin'
Must See Video - Hilarious. It will cheer you up....sort of. - mpg

What We Call the News
Video - This one was posted quite awhile ago on this site, but it's still a lot of fun and a true portrait of our illustrious faux-infotainment-presstitutes.- mpg

McCain adviser Gramm leaves campaign
A quote...."NEW YORK - Former Texas Sen. Phil Gramm resigned Friday from his role as Republican presidential candidate John McCain's campaign co-chairman, hoping to quiet the uproar that followed his comments that Americans had become a "nation of whiners" whose constant complaints about the U.S. economy show they are in a "mental recession."

McCain asked about PNAC and 9/11 at town hall
Missed this one. - mpg -- A quote...."Published: Thursday July 10, 2008 -- During a town hall event in Portsmouth, OH on Wednesday, John McCain was asked by a member of the audience whether his links to the parent organization of the Project for a New American Century explain why he has been reluctant to support calls for a new investigation of 9/11."

Nat Hentoff: Disillusioned about Barack Obama
A quote...."During my more than 60 years of covering national politics, I have never seen a candidate's principles and character so effectively tarnished — after so extraordinarily inspiring a start — as Barack Obama's. He has come to resemble another mellifluous orator I came to know in Boston during my first time reporting on a campaign — James Michael Curley, the skilful prestidigitator whom Spencer Tracy masterfully played in the movie "The Last Hurrah." Obama's deflation has not been due to ruthless opposition research by John McCain's team but by the "change" candidate himself. Like millions of Americans, I, for a time, was buoyed by not only the real-time prospect of our first black president but much more by the likelihood that Obama would pierce the dense hypocrisy and insatiable power-grabbing of current American politics."
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Who can and who can't have nuclear weapons?
Video - A quote...."Aijaz Ahmad:The Nuclear Nonproliferation treaty was signed by non-nuclear countries on the assumption that there would be a swift move towards disarmament by those that already had them would begin to disarm and even destroy their nuclear stockpiles."

Will the US finally attack Pakistan?
A quote...." Great powers tend to commit great blunders. But will the US be stupid enough to destabilize Pakistan, one of the most resilient states British Empire left behind? If I have to bet whatever dollars I am left with, I will say: No. --  Yet Pakistani print and electronic media are abuzz with the speculations about a large scale US-lead NATO attacks inside Pakistan's tribal areas bordering Afghanistan. Many will wonder what has brought us to this stage and what will these tactics achieve?

Bad Cop and Bad-Faith Cop
A quote...."Some optimistic souls are describing the Bush administration's decision to send undersecretary of State for political affairs Burns to negotiations in Geneva, and talk of opening a special interest section in Tehran, as a seismic shift in Iran policy. Others, more cynical, are describing it simply as the US pretending to play good cop to Israel's bad cop. Blake Hounsell of FP Passport is among the latter.  --  So is veteran reporter Gareth Porter, who explores the ins and outs of the lead up to those Geneva negotiations in detail today."

Russia's energy drive leaves US reeling
A quote...."Medvedev succeeded in prevailing over competing European and US rivals in the struggle for Turkmen gas. He further ensured that oil and gas from Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan will not bypass Russia. But what has truly incensed the Bush administration are Gazprom's dramatic inroads into Africa. -- Russian giant Gazprom, the largest extractor of natural gas in the world, has announced plans to build a pipeline across the Mediterranean to pump Libyan gas to Europe. This is the final lap of a Kremlin strategy that involves Gazprom handling the entire output of Libya's gas, oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) designated for export to Europe and the US." -- Also posted at  AsiaTimes

The Russians Are Back!
A quote...."With Russia it’s always like that,” writes contemporary Russia’s most read author, Viktor Pelevin. “You admire it and you cry, but when you look at what you admire up close, it can make you vomit.” That’s Pelevin, and others of the young generation. A mixture of compassion and fury. The rage of a young Russian against the post-Communist society that missed the curve and stuck the country in a repugnant swamp. But it’s also compassion for the Old Russia that he defends against superficial criticism and despite his violence he is solidary with its misery and its grandeur." -- Also posted at CounterCurrents

Censored by Money
A quote...."On the website of Craig Murray, the former British ambassador to Uzbekistan, you can read a letter his publishers have received from the law firm Schillings(1). It contains something I have never seen before: a threatened injunction against a book they haven't read and that won't be published until September. Acting on behalf of the "private security contractor" Tim Spicer, Schillings gave the publishers three days (the deadline was last Friday) to guarantee that the book does not defame its client, or face "an injunction to restrain publication"."

Spying Uncovered: Documents Show State Police Monitored Peace and Anti-Death Penalty Groups
A quote...."Undercover Maryland State Police officers repeatedly spied on peace activists and anti-death penalty groups in recent years and entered the names of some in a law-enforcement database of people thought to be terrorists or drug traffickers, newly released documents show." -- Also posted at CommonDreams

GOP Whistle-blower Names Karl Rove and others in Election Fraud Conspiracy
Some quotes...."Ohio Attorney Files to Lift Stay on ‘04 Election Case, Cites Allegations, Evidence of Massive Fraud by a Number of GOP Operatives" -- " “We anticipate Mr. Rove will be identified as having engaged in a corrupt, ongoing pattern of corrupt activities specifically affecting the situation here in Ohio.”

White House Blocks Release of FBI Files
A quote...."The White House yesterday blocked a House committee's attempt to obtain internal FBI reports about the leak of a CIA officer's identity, asserting that notes from interviews of Vice President Cheney and other administration officials are protected by executive privilege."
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Economic Depressions: Their Cause and Cure
Must Read - A quote...."An adequate theory of depressions, then, must account for the tendency of the economy to move through successive booms and busts, showing no sign of settling into any sort of smoothly moving, or quietly progressive, approximation of an equilibrium situation. In particular, a theory of depression must account for the mammoth cluster of errors which appears swiftly and suddenly at a moment of economic crisis, and lingers through the depression period until recovery. And there is a third universal fact that a theory of the cycle must account for. Invariably, the booms and busts are much more intense and severe in the "capital goods industries" – the industries making machines and equipment, the ones producing industrial raw materials or constructing industrial plants – than in the industries making consumers' goods. Here is another fact of business cycle life that must be explained – and obviously can't be explained by such theories of depression as the popular underconsumption doctrine: That consumers aren't spending enough on consumer goods." -- For more on this issue see....Effective Fed Funds Rate 03-24-07 - mpg & Obama, the Yang to Bush's Yin - 06-20-08 - mpg

US ranks 42nd in life expectancy
A quote...."A new study released Wednesday, entitled “The Measure of America,” provides a wealth of data demonstrating the profound and deepening social decay of the United States. Commissioned by the Oxfam charity and several foundations, and published by Columbia University Press, the report documents, using government figures, the dramatic decline of American society relative to other advanced industrialized countries and the mounting social disparities within the US."

California's median home price plummets [31.5%]  in June - link posted at BuzzFlash
A quote...."Housing data show the median price of a home in California plummeted 31.5 percent in June compared with the same month last year."

Bay Area home prices plunge 27% in last year
A quote...."(07-17) 12:20 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Double-digit drops in median home prices hit every Bay Area county in June, even the ones that had seemed Teflon-coated."
Thursday July 17th 2008

10+ Abuses for the Past 30+ Years
Must Read - Data Base Resource - A quote...."These 10+ abuses (below) did not all come about by mere coincidence. -- These 10+ abuses are gradually eroding the future and security of the nation. -- It takes a lot of abuse before a country decays into lawlessness and economic disaster, and the past 30+ years are evidence of that. -- That is, the U.S. is still one of the 26 best nations (of the hundreds) in the world to live. -- But for how much longer? -- What will the U.S. be like if these abuses are allowed to continue much longer?"
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Obama Calls For National Civilian Stasi
Special Note -- A quote...."Presidential frontrunner Barack Obama has called for a “civilian national security force” as powerful as the U.S. military, comments that were ignored by the vast majority of the corporate media but compared by one journalist to the Nazi Hitler Youth."

Obama to Establish a “Cyber Security” Initiative if Elected
Special Note - A quote...."On the heels of Obama’s Civilian National Security Force scheme, we learn about Mr. Change’s desire to establish a cyber security infrastructure if selected as NWO presidential puppet. “Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama says the White House is still asleep at the switch, when it comes to network defense,” writes Noah Shachtman for Wired."

Obama’s Disaster in the Making
Special Note - A quote...."Barack Obama calls the Iraq prime minister’s demand for an American troop withdrawal schedule “an enormous opportunity.” He is right, and it must be accepted. This is what the majority of the American public voted for, but didn’t get, from the midterm American election of 2006."

See also....Obama outlines policy of endless war
See also....Obama aims to send 10,000 more troops to Afghanistan
See also....Worse than McCain
See also....Ricorso on the Potomac: The Murderers of Democracy Return
See also....Barack Obama’s Whitewashed History of U.S. Foreign Policy
See also....Today's coverup of surveillance crimes and Barack Obama
See also....Could Anyone be "Worse" Than Bush?
See also....Obama ‘puzzled’ by Iraq comment frenzy
See also....“Frankly, I find it insulting” - Ray McGovern’s Response to Obama’s FISA Explanation
See also....Obama's Position on Iraq Could Put His Candidacy at Risk
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Greens Nominate Cynthia McKinney - posted at ICH
A quote...." Cynthia McKinney, a former Democrat who represented Georgia in the U.S. House during the administrations of Bill Clinton and George Bush and often sparred presidents of both big parties, easily secured the Green nomination Saturday at the party's convention in Chicago." -- article from the Nation -- There are many other choices to choose from other than a DemoRepub.....Don't vote for a DemoRepub - it's the smart thing to do. - mpg

Al-Marri and the power to imprison U.S. citizens without charges - posted at ICH
A quote...." 17/07/08 "Salon" -- - Of all the constitutionally threatening and extremist powers the Bush administration has asserted over the last seven years, the most radical -- and the most dangerous -- has been its claim that the President has the power to arrest U.S. citizens and legal residents inside the U.S., and imprison them indefinitely in a military prison, without charging them with any crime, based on his assertion that the imprisoned individual is an "enemy combatant." Beginning with U.S. citizen Yasser Esam Hamdi (detained in Afghanistan), followed by U.S. citizen Jose Padilla (detained at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport), followed by Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri (in the U.S. on a student visa and detained at his home in Peoria, Illinois), the Bush administration has not only claimed that power in theory but has aggressively exercised and defended it in practice." -- Article from Salon

Yet another US Afghan bombing 'kills dozens' of civilians
A quote...."Dozens of Afghan civilians have been killed during aerial bombing by US forces in the western province of Herat, tribal elders say. -- They said an important tribal elder was among the dead in Shindand district."

U.S.-led forces confirm killing Afghan civilians
A quote...."KABUL, July 17 (Reuters) - U.S.-led coalition troops killed eight Afghan civilians in an air strike in the western province of Farah during a Tuesday raid against suspected militants, the U.S. military said."

Afghan leader visits site where US-led strikes hit wedding
A quote...."JALALABAD, Afghanistan (AFP) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai flew Thursday to a remote village to commiserate with families of 47 civilians killed when US-led coalition air strikes hit a wedding party, his office said."

U.S. and Iraqi forces mulling new offensive on Falluja
A quote...."The city of Falluja has been placed under tight curfew as U.S. and Iraqi troops are said to be gearing for a new offensive. -  Iraqi security forces have established checkpoints forbidding movement of people and traffic." -- This is simply sick!  What is wrong with this country, when is enough, ENOUGH!?!?! - mpg

WHO says cholera, typhoid main health risks in Iraq
A quote...."GENEVA (AFP) The World Health Organisation said Thursday that cholera and typhoid pose the key risks to health in Iraq, with refugees and displaced people particularly vulnerable to any outbreak." -- For more on this issue see....The Method - 05-07-07 - mpg

Iraq's Falling Fig Leaf
A quote...."Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s call for a timetable on American troop withdrawals has touched off a dramatic change in the debate over the future U.S. engagement in Iraq – essentially, it marks a falling away of the fig-leaf rationales for the five-plus years of occupation."

Editorial: [from Arab News] Unpopular wars, unusual claims
A quote...."Widespread — and, we suspect, self-induced — amnesia among high officials of the Bush administration and its Defense Department has made it impossible for House investigators to determine whether top officials helped spread two bogus stories of heroism used to bolster support for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, said New York Times in an editorial yesterday. Excerpts:"

Nasrallah appears in person at Beirut celebration for prisoners - link posted at ICH
A quote...."BEIRUT (AFP) Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah appeared in person at public celebrations in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Wednesday to claim victory following the release of five Lebanese prisoners from Israel."

Nasrallah 'most admired' Arab leader - link posted at ICH
A quote...."Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah is the most admired leader among the Arab public, a survey released Wednesday showed. -- Twenty-six percent of respondents in six countries selected Nasrallah as their most admired leader, compared to 16% who chose Syrian President Bashar Assad and 10% who picked Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, according to the survey published by the the Saban Center at the Brookings Institution in Washington."

Africa Command has trouble filling key civilian slots
A quote...."Concerns about Pentagon encroachment on civilian agency missions, a lack of civilian agency resources and incompatible personnel systems are hampering a new military command aimed at promoting security and stability in Africa, witnesses told a House panel on Tuesday." -- For more on this issue see....Africa - the Next Target - 02-28-08 - mpg

Tehran weighs US mission request
A quote...."Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki says Iran is considering a proposal by the US to establish a diplomatic presence in Tehran." -- underline by website editor -- That means the US goes in, bombs the heck out of Iran and occupies the country....right?  Or do the Neo-Romans in the US mean something different this time.  It's all just so confusing -- of course it might be OK this time around as long as the US doesn't offer any "help" or "freedom and democracy" to the Iranians....if they do that, Iran can expect a minimum of  over a million dead along with over five million displaced refugees, just like in Iraq. - mpg

Turkey Stresses Negotiated End to Iran's N[uclear] Issue
A quote...." TEHRAN (FNA)- Turkey's Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said on Wednesday Ankara upholds efforts to solve Iran's nuclear issue through dialogue and that the Iranian foreign minister would pay a visit to Turkey on Friday."

US, EU meddle in Nicaraguan affairs'
A quote...."Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega has accused the European Union and the United States of meddling in Nicaragua's domestic affairs. "

Why Russia lacks aircraft carriers
Interesting - A quote...."MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti political commentator Andrei Kislyakov) - Soviet military policies never called for building full-fledged aircraft carriers operating multi-role warplanes. Nor did Russia draft any clear carrier construction program at the turn of the century." -- It makes it very difficult to "play" the "Great Game" when you don't possess a usable aircraft carrier. - mpg

MIDEAST:  Israeli Claims over Journalist Challenged
A quote...."LONDON, Jul 17 (IPS) - Medical reports seen by IPS appear to confirm the testimony of IPS Gaza correspondent Mohammed Omer of physical abuse at the hands of Israelis last month."

Tom 'Dispatch' on Bush and the media -- Tom Engelhardt: What corporate media won't write about (1 of 2)
Video - Special Note - A quote...."Editor and author Tom Engelhardt runs one of the most influential political Web sites on the net - Tomdispatch.com. In this interview Engelhardt and Pepe Escobar discuss the tribulations of Empire, the relationship of oil and war, and how mainstream media in the US constantly edits out crucial stories."
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Seven years on, no answer from White House on anthrax attacks
A quote...."It's been almost seven years since — in the weeks immediately following 9/11 — anthrax powder sent through the mail killed five people, threatened the lives of two Democratic senators, terrorized the entire nation, and helped prod a panicky Congress into passing the so-called Patriot Act." -- For more on this issue see....False Flag Ops

Is it 1992 and the Economy, Stupid? Deja Vu all Over Again;
A quote...."Is Barack Obama in some sense Clinton 2.0 when it comes to the public's perception of what the candidate could do for the economy? -- Just as Clinton benefited in 1992 from a feeling of economic malaise in the country, so too is is Obama getting advantages from the public's having announced to pollster's that the economy their number one concern."

AP's Problem Is Not What It Thinks
Interesting - By the way AP has produced several very good stories in the last several weeks. - mpg -- A quote...."There's been a lot of public discussion of late of the Associated Press's Washington Bureau Chief Ron Fournier's changes in style rules.  Out with "just the facts," in with opinion and perspective.  Or so the story goes.  The changes that are afoot at the AP appear to be part of a broader trend, influenced - in part - by the internet, the medium itself and the competition from bloggers.  Of the two biggest problems I see in American journalism, this trend could fix one of them while not necessarily having any immediate impact, pro or con, on the other."

Michael Collins: Election Fraud & Tyrannyi - Part 2 - posted at SmirkingChimp
A quote...."How did we reach our current state of decline in just eight excruciating years? Aren't we working hard enough? Was there some millennial shift in consciousness and morality? How could we elect leaders like Bush and Cheney and their minions on Capitol Hill? - Mark Crispin Miller's latest book, "Loser Take All," provides an explanation that precedes any other: election fraud. In his collection of essays, Miller shows that the losers took everything in both the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections. That made all the difference."

Fitzgerald says Rove was trying to fire him during CIA leak probe
A quote...."In a supplement to his responses to the House Judiciary Committee, Patrick Fitzgerald confirms what we've always suspected: Karl Rove was trying to have Patrick Fitzgerald fired while Fitzgerald was still investigating Rove for his role in leaking Valerie Wilson's identity--and the timing lines up perfectly with the Administration's efforts to fire a bunch of US Attorneys."
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Saudi Oil: A Crude Awakening on Supply?
A quote...."....the detailed document, obtained from a person with access to Saudi oil officials, suggests that Saudi Aramco will be limited to sustained production of just 12 million barrels a day in 2010, and will be able to maintain that volume only for short, temporary periods such as emergencies. Then it will scale back to a sustainable production level of about 10.4 million barrels a day, according to the data. BusinessWeek obtained a field-by-field breakdown of estimated Saudi oil production from 2009 through 2013."

Single-family home starts drop to 17-year low - Which will be good for the housing market....eventually. - mpg
A quote...."WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- New construction of single-family homes fell 5.3% to a fresh 17-year low in June, while a change in building permit rules for multifamily units in New York City pushed up total starts by 9.1%, the Commerce Department reported Thursday."

WRAPUP 2-U.S. [Multi-Unit] home starts falsely pointed up, still weak
A quote...." Total starts rose 9.1 percent in June but would have dropped 4 percent except for the actions of New York City builders who sped up multi-family projects before new construction rules took hold on July 1, the Commerce Department said. - The rate of building permits, which signal future building plans, rose 11.6 percent but would have climbed only 0.7 percent except for the code change, the government said."

Banks reportedly not taking IndyMac checks
A quote...."LOS ANGELES - The frustration didn't end for some IndyMac customers when they finally were able to withdraw their funds from the failing Southern California bank seized last week by federal regulators."

Concern grows over a fiscal crisis for U.S.
A quote...."(07-17) 04:00 PDT Washington - -- As the Bush administration proposes backstopping mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with a $300 billion line of credit and Congress contemplates another economic stimulus, the question is who will bail out the government? -- "People seem to think the government has money," said former U.S. Comptroller General David Walker. "The government doesn't have any money." -- A rare consensus has developed across the political spectrum that the government's own fiscal affairs are precarious, with an astonishing $53 trillion in long-term liabilities, according to the Government Accountability Office. -- To put that number in human terms, the debt has reached $455,000 per U.S. household. As that debt grows, the United States increasingly relies on foreigners, including China and Middle East oil producers, for financing."

You Owe $455,000
Related Article - A quote...."If you opened your credit card statement and it said that you owe $455,000, you would be quite concerned, right? - If you got a letter from the IRS saying you owe $455,000, you'd be upset, right? - Well, I'm sorry to tell you, but you really do owe $455,000. - According to the Government Accounting Office, each American household owes $455,000. This is your share of the $53 trillion in long-term liabilities held by the U.S."

D.C. Socialists Save Crashing Capitalists
A quote...."Here they go again! Financial capitalism is crashing. So the lights are on late in Washington’s Federal Reserve, SEC and Treasury Department trying to figure out how socialism (your tax dollars and credits) can once again bail out these big time gamblers with our money. -- Every cycle of casino capitalism that heads for, or goes over, the bankruptcy cliffs gets larger and larger. This year’s collapse towers over the bailout of the Savings and Loan banks in the 1980s. -- bold by website editor -- An extremely important point, even if they get away with this ten year cycle, the next one ten years from now will be much worse. - mpg

No-shorts rule in effect for summer
A quote...."NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Wall Street has everything. Even a poet laureate. Michael Silverstein has concocted "A Summer Stock Market Rally Poem."

Fannie, Freddie and MGIC lead financials higher
A quote...." Shares of the U.S. mortgage giants jumped 30% in midday trading, with Fannie  (FNM:11.12, +1.87, +20.2%) -- and Freddie (FRE 8.31, +1.48, +21.7%) hitting respective intraday highs of $13.99 and $9.69 on the heels of their Wednesday rallies. -- Both companies appeared to get a reprieve from concerns over their viability after, among other things, new rules were announced to prevent naked short-selling of their shares. "

Editor's Caution: Hundreds of billions of dollars in Fannie's and Freddie's combined mortgage portfolios totaling roughly five trillion dollars are now worthless....and the situation is not expected to improve anytime soon.  In fact it's going to get a lot worse. A $300 billion dollar line of credit is just that, a line of credit, which at some point in the future will have to be paid back in full....something that is becoming increasingly unlikely.

It therefore appears the market action during the last two days was caused mostly by short covering, or perhaps an actual short squeeze -- engineered by none other than Ben Bernanke himself.....so much for the US's endlessly vaunted "free market".

By the way, there's also been a lot of loose talk recently about how "good" the reports issued by some of the US's banks and brokerage firms appear to be.  It should be pointed out however that if any of these firm's financial reports, along with the rosy profit projections they released, were based on the "borrowed" t-bills they received from the Fed in exchange for those highly questionable "securities" they own.....than these "good" financial reports and profit projections would essentially be a bunch of hog wash.

Something to think long and hard about. - mpg
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Jaws close in on Bernanke
Special Note -- A quote...."The plunge of US home-loan agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into the arms of a government-funded rescue may have killed the likelihood of an interest rate increase in the near future. That would mean the death of US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke's credibility as an inflation fighter."

Amber light flashing on U.S. dollar intervention
A quote...."LONDON (Reuters) - Three days before the last bout of coordinated central bank intervention to calm world currency markets, the International Monetary Fund's top economist opined: "If not now, when?" Many experts are now asking the same."

85% of US Unhappy with Economy - Just wait a couple of more years. - mpg -- posted at BuzzFlash
A quote...."You would expect Americans, in a period of falling home prices, a wobbly stock market and an ongoing war, to be less than satisfied with the direction of the country. It's natural. But Americans are not simply dissatisfied. They are very unhappy. O.K., deeply, pessimistically unhappy. Un–American Dreamy unhappy: 85% of respondents in an exclusive TIME/Rockefeller Foundation poll believe that the country is on the wrong track."

American inequality highlighted by 30-year gap in life expectancy - posted at BuzzFlash
A quote...."The United States of America is becoming less united by the day. A 30-year gap now exists in the average life expectancy between Mississippi, in the Deep South, and Connecticut, in prosperous New England. Huge disparities have also opened up in income, health and education depending on where people live in the US, according to a report published yesterday."

France Rediscovers Its Love of Trams
A quote...."Trams are enjoying a comeback in France. From Nantes to Marseille, city planners are building new, high-tech streetcar lines as central elements in urban redevelopment. And they haven't forgotten any of the French flair the world has come to love."
Wednesday July 16th 2008

Militants ready for a war without borders
A quote...."KARACHI - From thinly disguised insinuations against Pakistan following the suicide attack on the Indian Embassy in Kabul this month to outright accusations against Islamabad by the Afghan government over the unrelenting Taliban-led insurgency, the blame game has entered a critical time: a major regional battle could erupt in a matter of days."

IRAQ:  Unrest Surfaces in Fallujah Again
A quote...."Local militias supported by U.S. forces claim to have "cleansed" the city, 70 km to the west of Baghdad, of all insurgency. But the sudden resignation of the city's chief of police, Colonel Fayssal al-Zoba'i, has appeared as one recent sign of growing unrest. -- Authorities may have controlled the media better than the violence." -- underline by website editor -- So the Iraqis are finally learning something from the US afterall. - mpg

Obama's Brave New World [Roman Empire]
Video - Special Note - A quote...."In a major foreign policy speech in Washington, Senator Obama detailed his "five goals essential to making America safer" in case he's elected President - from ending the war on Iraq and confronting al Qaeda in Afghanistan to rebuilding US alliances around the world. Pepe Escobar discusses how Obama's policies differ from Senator John McCain's, and points to what he thinks are Obama's hits and misses." -- For more on the issue of "terror" see....US Support of Terror

Military surge in Iraq ends; 150,000 troops remain
A quote...."Military buildup in Iraq ends, but shift in mission means more troops there than before surge -- The military surge into Iraq that began more than 18 months ago has ended. But 150,000 U.S. troops remain, as many as 15,000 more than before the buildup began." -- This doesn't, like, actually surprise anybody....does it? - mpg

Middle East Democracy: Blowback Through the Looking Glass
A quote...."If I had a world of my own . . . nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would.” -- *Alice in Wonderland*

Alice: “You want democracy in the Middle East?”
Uncle Sam: “I do.”
Alice: “And Iran was a democracy?”
Uncle Sam: “It was.”
Alice: “With a constitution?”
Uncle Sam: “Of course!”
Alice: “But you replaced that democracy with a dictatorship?”
Uncle Sam: “ I certainly did!”
Alice: “I don’t understand you?”
Uncle Sam: “My dear, how else will democracy flourish in the Middle East?”
Alice: “It’s all so dreadfully confusing.”

Also posted at CommonDreams
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Gitmo interrogation video! Is this some kind of sick joke? Release Omar Khadr’s Torture Tapes!
A quote...."Do you know what the difference is between watching an interrogation video and a torture tape? It’s the difference between watching a video of someone being interviewed after they have been raped, and watching the actual video of the rape."

Torture for Torturers?
A quote...."I don’t believe in torture, but right now, I’d like to see a few people subjected to some of the torture techniques that they approved for use against US captives in the so-called War on Terror. -- I’d be satisfied if they just stuck to the ones used against 15-year-old Omar Khadr—techniques that a US federal judge established constituted torture under the Geneva Conventions. -- I have a 15-year old son, so I’m particularly aware of what an atrocity it has been the way the US has treated Khadr, and some 2500 other young boys and teenagers that it admits to having captured and labeled as “enemy combatants” in its so-called “war on terror.”

U.S. troops abandon Afghan outpost following attack
A quote...."KABUL, July 16 (Reuters) - U.S. troops have pulled out of a remote outpost in northeastern Afghanistan, NATO-led security force said on Wednesday, three days after Taliban militants tried to overrun the base and killed nine U.S. soldiers."

Media manipulations: The child was called a murderer while the soldier was called a ‘boy’
A quote...."One of today’s main articles on the Guardian reads ‘Israel exchanges Lebanese murderer for bodies of two captured soldiers’. -- When anyone in the English reading world sees this title and what follows in the article, he or she would immediately think that one of the persons mentioned is a vicious murderer while the others are innocent persons. This is a good example of media manipulation and steering of the public views, aiming to charge the public to hate one side and to sympathize with the other."

Who Spread False Tales of Heroism?
A quote...."Widespread — and, we suspect, self-induced — amnesia among high officials of the Bush administration and its Defense Department has made it impossible for House investigators to determine whether top officials helped spread two bogus stories of heroism used to bolster support for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan." -- For more on this issue see....Fake Intel / Propaganda - Pat Tillman

The final countdown for India
A quote...."BANGALORE - India's ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) will face a crucial confidence vote early next week that will decide the fate not only of the government but also the India-United States civilian nuclear deal. If the government loses the vote, the country faces early elections and the nuclear deal will probably be scuttled."

Gas pipeline gigantism
A quote...."MONTREAL - Ground was broken in Kazakhstan last week for construction of that country's segment of a natural gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to China, set to be the longest and most expensive such pipeline in the world - its length is usually given as 7,000 kilometers, and although this looks like a rounding-up of a distance exceeding 6,500 km it may when work is finished be a more accurate figure than the most recent construction estimate of US$26 billion."

Ecuador, Venezuela agree to build biggest oil refinery
A quote...."Rafael Correa, the Ecuadorian president, and Hugo Chavez, his Venezuelan counterpart, have entered into an agreement to build the biggest oil refinery on South America's Pacific coast."

Palestine in the Middle East: Opposing Neoliberalism and US Power
A quote...."The first thing to note about the PRDP is that the heavy hand of the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and other neoliberal institutions such as the British Department for International Development (DFID) can be clearly seen in its policy recommendations and outlook." -- The poor Palestinians, they let the World Bank and IMF onto their territory.....they're doomed. - mpg
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The Third Tower 1/2 - (YouTube - 8 min 56 sec - Added:  October 09, 2007)
The Third Tower 2/2 - (YouTube - 6 min 48 sec - Added:  October 09, 2007)
Videos- A quote...."What happened to the 47 story Building 7 (WTC7) of the World Trade Center complex on 9/11?" For more videos on this sort of issue see....9/11 & It's Fallout - Videos

Unanswered Questions of 9/11 (July 2005)
A quote...."For many Americans, there is a deep psychological desire for the 9/11 tragedy to be over. The shock of the day is well remembered and terrorist alerts from Homeland Security serve to maintain lasting tensions and fears. The 9/11 Commission report gave many a sense of partial healing and completion — especially given the corporate media’s high praise of the report. There is a natural resistance to naysayers who continue to question the US government’s version of what happened on September 11, 2001. This resistance is rooted in our tendency toward the inability to conceive of people we know as evil; instead evil ones must be others, very unlike ourselves."

[British] Big Brother database recording all our calls, texts and e-mails will 'ruin British way of life' - posted at ICH
A quote...." 16/07/08 "Daily Mail" -- - Plans for a massive database snooping on the entire population were condemned yesterday as a ‘step too far for the British way of life’. -- In an Orwellian move, the Home Office is proposing to detail every phone call, e-mail, text message, internet search and online purchase in the fight against terrorism and other serious crime." -- Article from the DailyMail

Rape threats, beatings and racist chants: 15 Italians jailed for abuse of G8 Genoa protesters
A quote...."Fifteen Italian police officers and doctors were last night sentenced to jail terms of up to five years after being found guilty of abusing protesters detained during riots at the 2001 G8 summit in Genoa." -- The examples set by the US's Neo-Roman Empire are spreading world wide. - mpg -- Also posted at InfoWars

Bush Hides 'Plame-gate' Testimony - posted at ConsortiumNews
A quote...."In the latest twist in the “Plame-gate” scandal, President George W. Bush has asserted executive privilege to block release of Vice President Dick Cheney’s interview with a special prosecutor about possible criminal violations in the leaking of a CIA officer’s covert identity."

Bush claims executive privilege on CIA leak
A quote...."WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush has asserted executive privilege to protect information that a House panel has subpoenaed on the leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity, the White House said Wednesday."

Mukasey Claims Executive Privilege
A quote...."Attorney General Michael Mukasey pre-empted a contempt of Congress vote by the House oversight committee this morning by claiming executive privilege. Henry A. Waxman's House oversight committee subpoenaed Mukasey to issue a ton of documents related to the Valerie Plame Wilson scandal, including the interview special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald had with Dick Cheney."

The Fourth Circuit’s Ominous Decision
A quote...."Led by conservative judges, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has just affirmed the Bush administration’s “enemy combatant” doctrine, a doctrine that allows President Bush and his military forces to designate anyone anywhere in the world as an “enemy combatant” in the so-called war on terrorism and treat him accordingly. While the case that the Court was deciding involved a foreigner, Ali al-Marri, the Court’s reasoning applies to American citizens as well."
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Atlanta Journal-Constitution to cut 8 pct of staff
A quote...."NEW YORK, July 16 (Reuters) - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution plans to cut 8 percent of its full-time staff and will trim some of its geographically targeted community sections to deal with rising costs and falling advertising revenue."

Gannett plunges 13% after earnings disappoint
A quote...."CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Shares of Gannett Co. were down as much as 13% Wednesday after the largest U.S. newspaper publisher reported that second-quarter earnings and revenue fell short of Wall Street's expectations."
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Bill Moyers Journal | Mortgage Meltdown
Program Note: http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/about/airdates.html.
PBS Airtime: Friday, July 18, 2008, at 9:00 p.m. EDT on PBS (check local listings at
A quote...."This week, PBS's Bill Moyers Journal travels to ground zero of the mortgage meltdown - Cleveland, Ohio. Correspondent Rick Karr takes viewers to Slavic Village, one of the hardest-hit neighborhoods in the nation when it comes to the spate of foreclosures caused by the sub-prime mortgage crisis."

Status Report on the Collapse of the U.S. Economy
War Alert - A quote...."Even the super-rich are becoming nervous as cries for an emergency suspension of short selling ring out. -- What is really taking place, however, is that the producing economy of working men and women is being crushed by the overall debt burden on households, businesses, and governments that could reach $70 trillion by 2010. The financial system, including mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, is bankrupt, as the debts it is based on cannot be repaid." -- For more on this issue see....Standard Disclaimer

American inequality highlighted by 30-year gap in life expectancy
Special Note - A quote...."The United States of America is becoming less united by the day. A 30-year gap now exists in the average life expectancy between Mississippi, in the Deep South, and Connecticut, in prosperous New England. Huge disparities have also opened up in income, health and education depending on where people live in the US, according to a report published yesterday."

US faces global funding crisis, warns Merrill Lynch
A quote...." The US Treasury is running out of time before foreign patience snaps, writes Ambrose Evans-Pritchard -- Merrill Lynch has warned that the United States could face a foreign "financing crisis" within months as the full consequences of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage debacle spread through the world." -- For more on this issue see....Debt Doesn't Matter When the Rubes Pay 02-29-08 - mpg & The Green Light 01-16-08 - mpg & Obama, the Yang to Bush's Yin - 06-20-08 - mpg

Fannie, Freddie spent $200M to buy influence
A quote...."If you want to know how Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have survived scandal and crisis, consider this: Over the past decade, they have spent nearly $200 million on lobbying and campaign contributions." -- Also posted at CommonDreams

GM continues job slashing in effort to stave off bankruptcy
A quote...."In what it termed a move to “bolster liquidity to protect against a prolonged US downturn,” General Motors announced plans Tuesday to slash jobs, wages and benefits of its salaried workforce. It will also further reduce production at light truck manufacturing plants, move to sell off assets, and suspend dividend payments to shareholders for the first time since 1922."

Consumer prices surge 1.1%, worse than feared
A quote...."WASHINGTON - Consumer prices shot up in June at the second fastest pace in 26 years with two-thirds of the surge blamed on soaring energy prices."

Sovereign funds cut exposure to weak dollar
A quote...."Some of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds are seeking to scale back their exposure to the US dollar in a sign of global concern about the currency. -- One big sovereign fund in the Gulf has cut its dollar-denominated holdings from more than 80 per cent a year ago to less than 60 per cent, while China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) has been looking to strike deals with private equity firms in Europe as a part of a strategy to reduce its dollar holdings."

Home builder sentiment crumbles in July: NAHB
A quote...."NEW YORK (Reuters) - Home builder sentiment dropped to a record low in July as the confluence of falling home prices, rising energy costs and unemployment turned buyers away, the National Association of Home Builders said on Wednesday."

Micro Generation and Micro Farming: Combating High Energy prices, High Food Prices and Tyranny
A quote...."One of the world's leading experts on trend forecasting says that individuals producing their own energy for their homes and cars (called "micro generation") will become a huge trend in the next couple of decades."

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071608-072208 - links page

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