Wednesday December 23rd 2009

The Troops Protect Our Freedom, and Other Lies I Learned in School
Must Read - A quote...."December 23, 2009 "C4SS" -- Barrack Obama’s Nobel acceptance speech included this self-congratulatory little gem: -- “But the world must remember that it was not simply international institutions—not just treaties and declarations—that brought stability to a post-World War II world.  Whatever mistakes we have made, the plain fact is this:  The United States of America has helped underwrite global security for more than six decades with the blood of our citizens and the strength of our arms.  The service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform has promoted peace and prosperity from Germany to Korea, and enabled democracy to take hold in places like the Balkans.” -- Before Mr. Obama dislocates a shoulder patting himself on the back, maybe we should look at the record. -- When it comes to guaranteeing stability and promoting democracy, the United States’ record is pretty clear.  “Global security” and “stability” mean the security and stability of a particular global order guaranteed by the United States—a global order that reflects the interests of the coalition of class forces that control the American government."

Dennis Kucinich – US War Presidents ignore Congress & Constitution - Alt - (YuTb 11m36s Dec. 23, 2009)
Must View Video - A quote...."(RussiaToday) – Anger is growing among Americans – who say less money should be spent on the country’s overseas military campaigns and more on tackling the country’s domestic problems. U.S. congressman Dennis Kucinich, who spoke exclusively to RT’s Dina Gusovsky, says America can no longer afford war-based economy."

Pentagon Spending For War Exceeds That Of All State Governments Combined
A quote...."The U.S. spends more for war annually than all state governments combined spend for the health, education, welfare, and safety of 308 million Americans. -- Joseph Henchman, director of state projects for the Tax Foundation of Washington, D.C., says the states collected a total of $781 billion in taxes in 2008. -- For a rough comparison, according to Wikipedia data, the total budget for what the Pentagon calls "defense" in fiscal year 2010 will be at least $880 billion and could possibly top $1 trillion. That’s more than all the state governments collect."

Under the radar, Obama pushes for Patriot Act renewal
A quote...."With key sections of the U.S. Patriot Act set to expire Dec. 31, the Obama administration - essentially tiptoeing through the corridors of Congress and using the raucous health care debate as cover - has quietly maneuvered for renewal of the controversial provisions, which he opposed as a senator." - also posted at BLN

Guantanamo may have to stay open until 2011
And another Obama "promise" broken.....he's kept exactly one major promise so far, he's escalated the "AfPak" occupations. - mpg -- A quote...."WASHINGTON (AP) — The prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, may not close until 2011 because of anticipated appropriation struggles in Congress, the need to change federal law and construction time to upgrade an Illinois facility to hold detainees."

Iraq inquiry: Gordon Brown given 'special treatment'
A quote...."Gordon Brown will be questioned by the official inquiry into the war in Iraq but not until after the general election, prompting accusations that ministers are being given "special treatment"."

'We have a major lack of leadership'
A quote...."Green Party security speaker and chair of the parliamentary defence committee Omid Nouripour has been among Germany’s most outspoken critics of the administration as the deadly Kunduz air strike scandal continues to unfold. The Local caught up with him to find out where he stands."

Iran complains about US intercepting its ships in int''l, territorial waters
War Warning - Casus belli Alert - It's starting, the US-NRE is going to ratchett up the pressure until it provokes the response it needs to go to war. - mpg - A quote...."UNITED NATIONS, Dec 22 (KUNA) -- For the second time in a week, Iran on Tuesday complained and warned that it would retaliate against the "unlawful" acts by the United States Navy which pursued an Iranian commercial ship on the high seas last October and caused another Iranian fishing boat to sink in Iranian territorial waters last September. -- In a letter to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Iranian Ambassador to the UN Mohammad Khazaee complained that last October the Iranian ship 'Aba' was pursued by the American destroyer USS Pinckney in the high seas on its way from Dalian, China, back to Bandar Abbas port, Iran. -- He added that a helicopter and a reconnaissance aircraft flew over the ship and filmed it and the crew on board and that the destroyer stopped pursuing the Iranian ship after the latter approached the Iranian waters where the Iranian naval forces were present."

Venezuela and China sign oil deal
A quote...."Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has offered China wide-ranging access to the country's oil reserves. -- The offer, made as part of a trade deal between the two countries, will allow China to operate oil fields in Venezuela and invest in new refineries. -- Venezuela has also offered to supply 120,000 barrels of fuel oil a month to China. --
Venezuela - the world's fifth largest oil exporter - sells about 60% of its output to the United States. -- Mr Chavez's administration, which has a strained relationship with the US, is trying to diversify sales to reduce its dependence on its largest export market."

Colombian governor found with slashed throat
If the Governor was still Uribe's boot licking lackey in good standing, it was probably the guerrillas that killed him, if on the other hand it turns out that the Governor, for whatever reason, had recently fallen out of favor with Uribe, or was challenging him in anyway, it was probably Uribe that did him in.  On the other hand, who really knows -- after all, it could have even been Blackwater that whacked him if the Governor had become an annoyance to the US-NRE for any reason. - mpg -- A quote...."The kidnapped governor of a southern Colombian province has been found dead, hours after a massive military operation was launched to rescue him."

Mumbai terror suspect David Headley was ‘rogue US secret agent’
Special Note - A quote...."A key terror suspect who allegedly helped to plan last year’s attacks in Mumbai and plotted to strike Europe was an American secret agent who went rogue, Indian officials believe." -- also posted at BLN -- For more on this issue see....Just Give it a Rest OK!! - 11-27-09 - mpg

Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi had secret £1.8m
A quote...."The Lockerbie bomber had £1.8m in a Swiss bank account when he was convicted eight years ago, it has been revealed. -- The Crown Office, Scotland’s equivalent of the Crown Prosecution Service, has confirmed it refused to grant bail to Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi as recently as November last year because of concerns he might try to gain access to the money." -- also posted at BLN

UK Muslim body: Israeli officials should face arrest
A quote...."A leading Muslim organization in Britain has voiced outrage at the UK government's promise to reverse the British legal system's jurisdiction over suspected Israeli war criminals."
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Israel threatens another large-scale Gaza war
War Warning - Israel may take advantage of their long planned attack against Iran in collusion with the US-NRE by finally liquidating the Palistinian problem in Gaza. - mpg -- by A quote...."Israel has threatened another massive war against the Gaza Strip as the impoverished enclave continues to suffer in the aftermath of the devastating January offensive. -- Israeli planes have been dropping thousands of leaflets across Gaza, warning Palestinians against cooperating with the resistance fighters based in the coastal sliver. -- The leaflets also threaten Gazans with a new attack just ahead of the first anniversary of Israel's 22-day onslaught against the Palestinian territory."

Zionist Terrorists Threaten to Attack Gaza Again
Special Note - Or perhaps as Irish4Palestine points out, it's to soon to start the final liquidation process, Israel has other short term objectives in mind. - mpg -- A quote...."Even Israel is not stupid enough to attack them again right now, when Israel is already being hounded with arrest warrants under international law worldwide. And the Goldstone report is not done filtering through the UN process that will eventually see it fail due to US pressure. But this "leaflet" drop right now is being done to accomplish two things, in my humble opinion. Firstly to terrorize the Gazan Civilian population on the Anniversary of the Gaza Holocaust. A cruel thing, but then Israel is the master of cruelty.  -- And Secondly just ask yourself what is happening today with regards to Gaza. Why there are two large groups of people, destined to arrive at Rafah very shortly. The Code Pink Marchers, who were recently denied entry in advance. And then there is the Viva Palestina Convoy arriving. Egypt cannot be "blamed" for keeping the border closed if so called "Security" reasons are cited. This is all a plan hatched by Egypt/US/Israel to close the border at a time when people from around the world want to visit and protest against Israel on the Anniversary of the Genocide.

Palestinian official: Israel to demolish 900 houses in Jerusalem
A quote...." RAMALLAH, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Israel plans to demolish 900 Palestinian houses in Jerusalem, a Palestinian official warned on Wednesday. -- "The plan was given to a private firm to demolish the houses and building housing units and settlements in the Old City in Jerusalem," said Hatem Abdul-Qader, Jerusalem affairs' commissioner in President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party." -- also posted at Uruknet

Palestinians celebrate Arab film at Gaza festival
Life still goes on. - mpg -- A quote...."Last Thursday marked the end of a one-week film festival in Gaza City. The Palestinian Film Forum, an independent Palestinian community organization, sponsored the event with 33 films produced in six Arab Gulf states. Ranging from documentaries to educational and short films, this is the first film festival in Gaza since Israel placed the territory under a tight blockade more than 30 months ago. Held at Gaza City's al-Meshal Cultural Center, the films were attended by scores of Palestinians from across the tiny coastal territory."
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Obama Double-Crossed Progressives on Health Care
Must Read - More on the no-care non-health bill -- A quote...."December 23, 2009 "The Progressive" -- - Are you feeling like a chump yet? -- If you're a good progressive, and you wanted single-payer health care for all, or, second best, Medicare for All Who Want It, or third best, a robust public option, or fourth best, a paltry public option, now you've got nothing, nada, zippo. -- Has it ever crossed your mind that this is the way President Obama wanted it to be?"

Healthcare industry stocks explode as bill progresses
Special Note - More on the no-care non-health bill -- A quote...."Shahien Nasiripour, The Huffington Post’s business reporter, yesterday.
For more on the article sshown above....Double Indemnity - 12-21-09 - mpg
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While You Were Sleeping… The Economy Collapsed
Must Read - Charts - A quote...."One of the most powerful forces in human psychology is the force of habit. Consistency, apathetic comfort, ties men to the ocean bottom to squeeze every ounce of oxygen from their last breath until it is gone, and we wake up at 50 or 60, only realizing then that we have done the same things and thought the same thoughts for decades without err. Repetition makes us easy to startle and easy to control. Any sudden break in daily routine can cause most people to freeze; animals gripped with terror at the very possibility of necessary individual action or adaptation. -- This same repetition induces a type of “sleepwalk” in the average person, a zombie-like reanimation of brain functions that shriveled up and died years before, giving the impression of “life,” but in reality, it is merely a life on autopilot. -- This is what makes catastrophes so catastrophic. It is not always the events themselves that reap such destruction, but people’s delayed reactions and dulled senses. The more ignorant the populace, the more magnified and painful such events become. Our lack of knowledge and reasonable action sets our own house ablaze, brings economies to ruin, and murders civilizations. Others may tip the problems into motion, but in the end, all of us, each and every individual, is responsible for the final result." - also posted at DProgram

Small-business bankruptcies rise 81% in California
A quote...."With credit tight and consumers still pinching their pennies, many business owners find they can't go on.

Tuesday December 22nd 2009

Amazing Speech by War Veteran – Iraq Veterans Against the War - Alt - (YuTb - 4m39s - Dec 20, 2009)
Must View Video - posted by ThePhaedrus83 - Quote of the Day...."Our real enemy is not the ones living in a distant land whose names or policies we don't understand; The real enemy is a system that wages war when it's profitable, the CEOs who lay us off our jobs when it's profitable, the Insurance Companies who deny us Health care when it's profitable, the Banks who take away our homes when it's profitable. Our enemies are not several hundred thousands away. They are right here in front of us" -- *Mike Prysner*

Top Ten Worst Things about the Bush Decade; Or, the Rise of the New Oligarchs
Must Read - A quote...."By spring of 2000, Texas governor George W. Bush was wrapping up the Republican nomination for president, and he went on to dominate the rest of the decade. If Dickens proclaimed of the 1790s revolutionary era in France that it was the best of times and the worst of times, the reactionary Bush era was just the worst of times. I declare it the decade of the American oligarchs. Just as the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Soviet Union allowed the emergence of a class of lawless 'Oligarchs' in Russia, so Neoliberal tax policies and deregulation produced American equivalents. (For more on the analogy, see  Michael Hudson.) We have always had robber barons in American politics, but the Neoliberal moment created a new social class." -- also posted at ICH

Wars to Come
Must Read - A quote...."For many, the Obama candidacy represented a change so profound that they thought (or perhaps more accurately, hoped), that an Obama presidency would not only mean a deep domestic social transformation, but an end to the American cycle of war. -- To them the news of an upsurge in U.S. troops in Afghanistan means those hopes were dashed. -- They will not be the last ones." -- also posted at DProgram

Americans Are Hell-Bent on Tyranny
Special Note - A quote...."December 22, 2009 "Information Clearing House" -- Obama’s dwindling band of true believers has taken heart that their man has finally delivered on one of his many promises--the closing of the Guantanamo prison. But the prison is not being closed. It is being moved to Illinois, if the Republicans permit. -- In truth, Obama has handed his supporters another defeat. Closing Guantanamo meant ceasing to hold people in violation of our legal principles of habeas corpus and due process and ceasing to torture them in violation of US and international laws. -- All Obama would be doing would be moving 100 people, against whom the US government is unable to bring a case, from the prison in Guantanamo to a prison in Thomson, Illinois." -- also posted at DProgram & AlethoNews & CounterPunch

"'Some of my colleagues in the prison lost their sight, some lost their limbs and others ended up mentally disturbed.'Guantanamo 'hell on Earth', says Somali detainee --Bare said the US authorities had never told him why he was arrested. 22 Dec 2009 A Somali just home from eight years in the US jail at Guantanamo Bay told AFP the prison was "hell on Earth", and alleged torture there had scarred some of his fellow inmates. Mohamed Saleban Bare, who arrived in his hometown of Hargeisa on Saturday, said he was innocent of any charges that would have caused security forces to arrest him in Pakistan in 2001 and transfer him to the US jail via Afghanistan. "Guantanamo Bay is like hell on Earth," he said in an interview Monday with an AFP reporter who visited him at his hotel in Hargeisa, capital of the northern breakaway state of Somaliland." -- Paragraph quoted from CLG

Lithuania hosted secret CIA prisons
A quote...."The CIA used at least two secret detention centres in Lithuania after the 11 September 2001 terror attacks on the US, a Lithuanian inquiry has found."

Lithuanian spy agency set up secret prisons for CIA
A quote...."Lithuania's intelligence agency helped the CIA to set up secret prisons in the Baltic country, a parliamentary panel said today. -- However, the national security committee found no evidence that any suspects were interrogated in Lithuania."

Lithuanian Probe Reveals Two CIA Black Sites - CIA Conducted 'Interrogations' in Stable
A quote...."The Lithuanian Parliament released its findings into a probe of CIA activities in the nation today, confirming that the American spy agency in fact operated two “black sites” inside the Lithuanian capital city of Vilnius."

Austria says US pressure to send more troops to Afghanistan "improper"
A quote...."Austria and the United States are quarreling over Austria's troop levels in Afghanistan. The Austrian government says it feels strong pressure from the US to send more of its troops to the NATO mission."

'Good' Taliban destroy Afghan Army base
A quote...."Forces under the command of a leader considered to be one of the "good Taliban" by the Pakistani military destroyed an Afghan Army camp."

Mullen Insists [US-NRE] Military Ready to Attack Iran
A quote...."Admiral Michael Mullen declared today that the military stands ready to attack Iran at the president’s order, and insisted that it was critical to negotiations that the ever-present threats to attack Iran remain “on the table.”

China Signals Resistance to Iran Sanctions, Seeks Further Talks
A quote...."Dec. 22 (Bloomberg) -- China signaled resistance to any U.S. and European push for tougher United Nations sanctions on Iran, saying talks aimed at preventing its development of nuclear weapons should be given a chance to succeed." -- also posted at WarInIraq

US[-NRE] Versus Russia & China; Yemen & Saudi Arabia
Special Note - A quote...."Why did Obama launch cruise missiles against civilians in Yemen? (Obama, Nobel peace prize in hand, bombs Yemen with cruise missiles) -- Yemen, just like Saudi Arabia, is in a strategically important position. China and Russia take an interest in Yemen."

World's Biggest Whore, Uncle Sam, spreads his legs for Israel... AGAIN
Special Note - OH Nooooooo, we're not trying to "surround" Russia - that's just everyone's paranoia talking. - mpg -- A quote...."Israel, as usual, will get the bulk of this 'excess' military equipment. But notice that a large majority of the rest are nations that border Russia? -- Introduced by California House member Howard Berman, who spends most of his time crafting bills to give money and political cover to Apartheid Israel and drafting legislation declaring economic war against Iran. -- H.R.2410: Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 2010 and 2011 - bold by website editor.

"(Sec. 847) Authorizes the President, for FY2010-FY2011, to provide for the crating, packing, and transportation of certain excess defense articles to Albania, Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Macedonia, Georgia, India, Iraq, ISRAEL, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Mongolia, Pakistan, Romania, Slovakia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Ukraine." - underline by website editor

Houthis repel Saudi incursion into northern Yemen
A quote...."Houthi fighters have managed to repulse Saudi Arabian forces trying to infiltrate into the province of Sa'ada in northern Yemen, killing an unspecified number of Saudi soldiers in a battle in the border region." -- also posted at AlethoNews

Yemenis protest [the] killing of civilians - Caused by the Saudi Royal Family and the US-NRE - mpg
A quote...."According to local sources, about 3,000 people in Dhal’e province and hundreds in Lahj and Abyan provinces condemned the military operation. Angry protesters shouted anti-government slogans and demanded an investigation into the attack."

Mubarak on urgent trip to Gulf about Iran's reconciliation move
Special Note - (Must read for the OUTRAGE) - Mubarak is a bastardized toady who's willing to sell himself like a cheap street walker to further the US-NRE’s and Israel’s PNAC Protocols.  The wall he's building to starve the Palestinians on the Gaza strip into submission is a true example of his vile nature and character.  Maggots like him are what's causing the Middle East to rot away for all of its people. - mpg -- A quote...."While Israel was wholly caught up in the next stage of a deal with Hamas for trading its soldier Gilead Shalit for several hundred jailed Palestinians, the Iran-Syrian axis pounced with swift moves to mend its fences with moderate Arab rulers. Sunday, Dec. 20, the powerful Iranian speaker of parliament, Ali Larijani, arrived in Cairo and was received at once by Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak for a conversation lasting two hours."

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood conservatives win vote
A quote...."CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's main opposition group announced the results of an election for its governing body and analysts said most of the 16 members are conservatives, signaling that it will reduce its role in mainstream politics."

RIGHTS-EGYPT:  Bloggers Name and Shame Torturers
A quote...."CAIRO, Dec 21 (IPS) - People might expect fresh-faced Noha Atef to spend a lot of time writing blogs and perusing social networking sites, but they are often surprised by the content of her posts and tweets. The 25-year-old Egyptian journalist uses the Internet to expose police abuse and torture in her home country. - Atef’s blog, 'Torture in Egypt'*, is the most comprehensive site of its kind in the Middle East, with reports, photos, video clips and a library of articles aimed at exposing the brutality of Egypt’s police and security forces" - *link added

US warns Japan over relocation of Futenma airbase
Thug Alert - There goes the US-NRE-ObamaCons, making friends just about everywhere. Take a look at the photo, there’s Hideous Hillary fresh from creating death squads in Honduras, she's now threatening Japan.  What a lovely bunch of people they are.  Japan shouldn't buy any more US-NRE toilet paper (treasuries) and they should just hike up the rent for the base to a billion dollars a day....the ObamaCons will get the message eventually. – mpg

Uruguayan Organizations Vs. US Military Bases
A quote...."Montevideo, Dec 22 (Prensa Latina) The National Commission for Social Organizations of Uruguay (CONOSUR) called to give a response to the US military stations with "peace stations" for 2010 to expose the purposes of the United States and its allies."

Venezuela: Campaign to Revoke Obama´s Nobel
Action Alert - A quote...."Caracas, Dec 22 (Prensa Latina) The United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) shapes from Tuesday a world campaign to claim the revocation of the Nobel Peace Prize that was bestowed upon Barack Obama because he is considered to be a warmonger."

Georgia opposition to protest against memorial dismantlement
A quote...."TBILISI, December 21 (Itar-Tass) - Leaders and activists of Georgia’s main opposition parties will stage in Kutaisi on Monday peaceful protest against the dismantlement of the memorial Martial Glory in Kutaisi."

Neocon Pundits Amp Up Demonization Efforts in Response to Possible Ron Paul 2012 Run
Bizarre Quote of the Day...."Last week, in a bizzare stretch that would make Orwell blush, Hannity called Ron Paul supporters extremists and claimed that the military industrial complex is what gives us freedom of speech."

The Truth of What Happened at the Summit
A quote...."If anything significant was achieved in the Danish capital, it was that the media coverage allowed the world public to watch the political chaos created there and the humiliating treatment accorded to Heads of States or Governments, ministers and thousands of representatives of social movements and institutions that in hope and expectation traveled to the Summit’s venue in Copenhagen. The brutal repression of peaceful protesters by the police was a reminder of the behavior of the Nazi assault troops that occupied neighboring Denmark on April 1940. "

Insanity Offense: Even the Mad Must Not Speak the Truth
A quote...."This sounds like something Mikhail Bulgakov might have written, deep in the sinister phantasmagoria of the Stalinist night. From the Israeli service ynetnews.com...." -- also posted at Uruknet
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

From Irish4Palestine
JIMMY CARTER GROVELS TO ISRAEL
ISRAEL SHOULD READ WIKI
DIRTY DEALS=ABBAS,ISRAEL,IRAN & AMERICA
IRAN TO SAVE MILLIONS OF AMERICANS

Is Israel a State or An Organ-Stealing Mafia?
A quote...."After Israel conceded to committing the crime of theft of human organs in a program which was aired on Israeli TV Channel 2, will the Abu Kabir butchery, the so-called "Autopsy Institute of Forensic Medicine" in Israel, be now named a strategic base for the harvesting the human beings?" -- For more on this issue see....Israeli Organ Thefts

Tainted By Terror
Special Note - Historical chronology of the Sabra and Shatila massacres - A quote...."Last week saw the third anniversary of the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Today marks another sad anniversary, that will not even be mentioned on most of the mass media outlets that gave us such extensive coverage of the 9/11 commemorations. Exactly 22 years ago, at 5:00pm on the evening of 16 September 1982, Lebanese Christians of the Phalangist militia entered the undefended Palestinian refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila in West Beirut. In the course of a 40-hour rampage, they shot, hacked, stomped, dragged, bulldozed and burned to death possibly as many as 3,500 civilians, and demolished hundreds of their homes. The Phalangists' intention was to so terrorize the 500,000 Palestinians in Lebanon - already refugees from Galilee in 1948 - that they would flee the country."

TRNN: Israeli repression wave targets activists - Alt - (YouTube - 8 min 15 sec - December 21, 2009)
RN - Video - A quote...."Israel's recent wave of repression led to arrest of Jamal Juma', coordinator of Stop the Wall Campaign."

Gaza, Afghanistan and International Law - Alt - (YouTube - 29 min 33 sec - December 20, 2009)
Video - A quote...."Interview with Richard Falk, Professor Emeritus of International Law at Princeton University and author of “Crimes of War: Iraq” and “The Costs of War: International Law, the UN, and World Order after Iraq” recorded October 17, 2009 in Seattle."

Israel fears ‘paradigm shift’ to grassroots nonviolent resistance in West Bank
Special Note - A quote...."Great piece by Jonathan Pollak at Huffpo on the Israeli crackdown on Palestinian civil rights, specifically, the right of people to protest inhumane political activities. He demonstrates that the crackdown is aimed at stopping the nonviolent movement that has begun to call attention to conditions in the West Bank that are far worse than apartheid. So Ehud Olmert’s warning of 2 years ago that an apartheid struggle will commence with the death of the two-state solution is happening. Pollak:" -- Aw My Gawd!!.....the Palestinians are becoming peacful!!  (Scream).  Now the Israelis shouldn't panic, after all, they along with the Saudi Royals and the US-NRE have spent literally DECADES arming almost every single radical agent provocateur group throughout the entire Middle East, not to mention sponsoring several vicious civil wars amongst the Palestinians.  No doubt they'll be able to create another "event" to justify more mass murder and mayhem....just like they did on 9/11. – mpg

World Has Betrayed Gaza Civilians: Rights Groups
A quote...."December 22, 2009 "AFP" - - The world has "betrayed" civilians in the Gaza Strip by failing to end a blockade of the Hamas-run enclave, 16 rights groups, including Amnesty International and Oxfam, said Tuesday. --
"The international community has betrayed the people of Gaza by failing to back their words with effective action to secure the ending of the Israeli blockade which is preventing reconstruction and recovery," said the report. -- Israel and Egypt have allowed only vital humanitarian aid into the territory since the Islamist Hamas seized power there in June 2007."

Galloway raps Arabs over forsaking Gaza
A quote...."British MP George Galloway speaks to reporters in Damascus December 21, 2009, during his campaign to aid Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. -- British Member of Parliament George Galloway has leveled strong criticism at Arabs over their inaction and failure to play a role in organizing aid convoys to the besieged Gaza Strip." - From Press TV

A year on, Gaza human shields speak out in war crimes probe
A quote...."GAZA, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- After Israel's massive offensive against the Gaza Strip in January this year, Palestinian Samir al-Attar was interrogated by Israeli authorities as a terrorist. -- In less than a year, the 38-year-old Gaza resident faced interrogation again, but this time as a victim. He was used by Israeli forces as a human shield during the war." -- also posted at Uruknet

Israel razes gas station, grocery near Nablus
This crap goes on every single day. IT IS REALLY GETTING ANNOYING. - mpg -- A quote...."Nablus – Ma’an – An Israeli military bulldozer demolished a gas station, a grocery store, and a cargo container in the northern West Bank village of Qusra south of the city of Nablus on Wednesday."

Display of used tear gas canisters shot by the army earns Bil’in activist an arms charge in Israeli military court
Photo - Censorship Alert - Kafka would be proud....no wait, he'd be quite ashamed actually. - mpg -- A quote...."Abdallah Abu Rahmah, a school teacher and coordinator of the Bil’in Popular Committee Against the Wall, was indicted in an Israeli military court yesterday. Abu Rahmah was slapped with an arms possession charge for collecting used tear gas canisters shot at demonstrators in Bil’in by the army and showcasing them in his home."

Christmas in Bethlehem and Gaza  December 20, 2009 - Alt - (YouTube - 4 min 01 sec - December 17, 2008)
Video - A quote...."Australians for Palestine and Women for Palestine offer a video that calls attention to the extreme humanitarian crisis in Gaza at a time when Christians are celebrating their most festive religious holiday - Christmas. Underlying the frivolity of Christmas shopping, eating and entertainment, is the destitution, misery and hopelessness that millions of Palestinians under occupation and in the refugee camps, face every day. Gaza endures the worst of it. The war is not over for them. Those who have allowed these crimes against humanity to continue, also have the power to change direction and demand freedom for the Palestinians and work for peace and justice. We can help them make that change. Speak up to end the siege of Gaza and the occupation of Palestine."

Latest BDS victory is but opening skirmish of a whole new campaign– English activist promises
Boycott, Divest and Sanction - Bacause the Isrealis give the world no other choice. - mpg -- A quote...."An English collegiate choir has had an invitation to sing in the Occupied Territories rescinded by the Anglican bishop because it is singing in Israel:" - also posted at WarInIraq -- For more on how to Boycott, Divest and Sanction the state of Israel see the upper-left-corner of the "Front Page" of this website. - mpg

What is the Aim of the Gaza Freedom March? - Interview
Action Alert - A quote...."As the days of December 2009 draw in, two events which each have a role to play in world peace draw closer. The first is on the 27th and is commemorating the start of the 22 day attacks on Gaza, an operation which targeted unarmed civilians, schools, hospitals, journalists and emergency staff. The second, The Gaza Freedom March will take place on the 31st. The Gaza Freedom March is a historic moment, the magnitude of which has not been seen in Palestine since 1967. Chiseled on the lessons learnt from South Africa' struggle for liberation against apartheid and from Gandhi' Satyagraha approach during the campaign for India' independence, the Gaza Freedom March is walking in the same shoes."

Lavrov: Israeli Settlement Halt 'Insufficient'
A quote...."Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has asked Israel for more commitment to the peace process, saying a decision to limit some aspects of settlement construction is not enough. -- "We have approved [Benjamin] Netanyahu's decision to impose a 10-month moratorium on some aspects of settlement construction," Russian news agencies quoted Lavrov as saying on Tuesday. -- During a speech at the University of Global Economy and Diplomacy in the Uzbek capital, Tashkent, Russia's top envoy highlighted that although he believed the step was in the right direction, it still required improvement. -- "The step is correct but clearly not sufficient," he added."
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More on the US-NRE's Honduran Coup....

Honduras: The Coup That Never Happened
Must Read - A quote...."What strikes a visitor to the Honduran capital most immediately in this moment is the degree to which the social and political conflict that has erupted since the golpe de estado (coup d’etat) on June 28th is actually written on the walls, the fences, the rockfaces, bridges, errant bits of siding, abandoned buildings, and even the concrete upon which one walks. Though the discourse in the international press is muddled and misinformed, the situation in Honduras is very obvious to those who are here – as a quick taxi ride around Tegucigalpa demonstrates."

From Isis Obed to Walter Trochez - Death is not in vain
A quote...."Honduras Resists preface: In recent days repression in Honduras has continued to escalate. With the eyes of the corporate press off of Honduras, the extreme right, who has seen Honduras as a strategic staging ground for their counter-offensive against the rise of grassroots alternatives to capitalism in Latin America, is now attempting to eliminate the unexpected consequences of the coup. The Honduran government, with financing and collaboration from the U.S. and from the extreme right throughout the hemisphere, has resorted to extreme force, disappearances and assassinations." -- For more on this issue see...."Hideous Hillary's New Death Squads"
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Exposed: Joe Lieberman
More on the health no-care bill - A quote...."You know, every now and then the time comes around that you see things the way they are. We thought we had fought for and won a great victory in the last two elections. We thought we had given an inspiring Progressive new President a huge mandate and the Congress he needed to bring about real change in this country. Now, we realize we are being stabbed in the back and that many of the Democrats and those that caucus with them in office are no better than the Republican crooks that preceded them. It is time that these folks are exposed for what they are and we realize who really controls our government. No better example of a lying backstabber can be found anywhere than treasonous Joe Lieberman." -- For more on the no-care bill see....Double Indemnity - 12-21-09 - mpg

Health Care Bill Is A Huge Tax Heist
More on the health no-care bill - A quote...."A Boston Globe analysis of the health care bill which Democrats are trying to ram through before Christmas illustrates how the legislation is a gigantic tax heist which will further economically cripple Americans already laboring under the worst financial crisis since the great depression."
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The Ponzi Decade: A Lost Decade in Stocks, Industrial Production, U.S. dollar, and Housing. How we Managed to Inflate and Destroy the Biggest Financial Bubble of our Generation. -- Must Read - Charts - A quote...."It is fitting that we end the current decade just like we started it, with the bursting of bubbles.  In the early part of the decade we were dealing with the fallout of the technology bust.  That was quickly replaced by the even bigger housing bubble and that has now popped as well.  The trillions lost by average Americans is incredible but in reality nothing was technically lost because the entire decade was one enormous Ponzi scheme and like all Ponzi schemes the wealth created is false.  Bernard Madoff was simply the mascot of a decade built on phony money spewed out by the corporatocracy of Wall Street.  What is even more troubling is how the actions taken by Wall Street are not being prosecuted in the same fashion as our justice system took on Bernard Madoff.  The reason for that is the corporatocracy has legalized national bank robbery." -- also posted at DProgram

Reliving the Crash of '29 - (It's not what you think)
Must Read - Analysis - A quote...."Well, weren't the 1920s, with their burgeoning optimism, their speculation, their enshrinement of big business in politics, their Republican dominance, their individualism, their hedonistic cultural decadence, weren't these years indeed the heyday of laissez-faire? Certainly the decade looked that way to most observers, and hence it was natural that the free market should take the blame for the consequences of unbridled capitalism in 1929 and after. -- Unfortunately for the course of history, the common interpretation was dead wrong: there was very little laissez-faire capitalism in the 1920s. Indeed the opposite was true: significant parts of the economy were infused with proto–New Deal statism, a statism that plunged us into the Great Depression and prolonged this miasma for more than a decade. -- In the first place, everyone forgot that the Republicans had never been the laissez-faire party. On the contrary, it was the Democrats who had always championed free markets and minimal government, while the Republicans had crusaded for a protective tariff that would shield domestic industry from efficient competition, for huge land grants and other subsidies to railroads, and for inflation and cheap credit to stimulate purchasing power and apparent prosperity."

Under(lying) Today's GDP Revisions (Or: "The Church of the  Revelation")
Down to 2.2% from 1st revsn 2.8%, which was down from orig 3.5%.  Is that what almost twenty four TRILLION dollars in back stops, payouts and guarantees gets you, a lousy 2.2% GDP?? - mpg -- A quote...."We probably can't get more relevant commentary on today's absolutely massive downward GDP revision than that penned today by Goldman Sachs' Edward F. McKelvey:...."

"This was a much larger than normal revision for the third pass on a given quarter, knocking what once was a fairly robust 3.5% bounce down to a mediocre 2.2% (from 2.8% prior to this revision). All sectors except the trade balance -- a focal point of last month's  downgrade -- saw some downward revision. Revisions were particularly deep in business investment -- to -5.9% from -4.1%, worth two tenths of the revision --  and in inventories (also worth nearly two tenths)."

US home foreclosures top one million mark
Chart - A quote...."The number of US homes in foreclosure topped the one million mark for the first time ever, according to figures released this week by federal agencies. The continued deepening of the housing crisis is being driven by the relentless economic squeeze on working people, confronted with declining wages and persistent and growing mass unemployment."

More prime mortgages default in 3rd quarter
A quote...."Also: Many homeowners with modified mortgages fall behind again. And the number of homes in foreclosure rises, though new foreclosures are steady, report shows."

Brace Yourself For a Hard Landing
A quote...."December 22, 2009 "Information Clearing House" -- -Ben Bernanke has been a bigger disaster than Hurricane Katrina. But the senate is about to re-up him for another four-year term. What are they thinking? Bernanke helped Greenspan inflate the biggest speculative bubble of all time, and still maintains that he never saw it growing. Right. How can retail housing leap from $12 trillion to $21 trillion in 7 years (1999 to 2006) without popping up on the Fed's radar? It's not possible. Bernanke is just fudging the facts to save his skin."

Forget the Happy Talk: Longer, Deeper Recession Lies Ahead, Execs Warn - posted at ThisCain'tBeHappining
A quote...." Spins get put on every hint of good news, as when last month “only” 11,000 jobs were lost (a story that was quickly followed by an “unexpected” jump in new unemployment claims by 474,000 in early December). -- What didn’t get widely reported was a report by the Association of Financial Professionals, a trade association that includes CFOs, treasurers, comptrollers, and risk managers of mid-sized and large corporations, which asked over 1000 of these executives the question: “When do you expect your company to begin hiring again?” -- The answer tells you all you need to know about the depth of the current economic crisis, and blows all the media and government happy talk out of the water." -- also posted at CounterPunch
EU/IMF Revolt: Greece, Iceland, Latvia May Lead the Way
A quote...."Total financial collapse, once a problem only for developing countries, has now come to Europe. The International Monetary Fund is imposing its “austerity measures” on the outer circle of the European Union, with Greece, Iceland and Latvia the hardest hit. But these are not your ordinary third world debtor supplicants. Historically, the Vikings of Iceland successfully invaded Britain; Latvia  n tribes repulsed the Vikings; and the Greeks conquered the whole Persian empire. If anyone can stand up to the IMF, these stalwart European warriors can."

In Ireland's deep budget cuts, an omen for a heavily indebted United States?
A quote...."Like other heavily indebted nations around the world, Ireland is borrowing vast sums from foreign investors to plug its budget deficit. Fearing that the country will buckle under the weight of so much debt, the Irish have an answer: Put the government on a diet."

Goldman's Attempt To Ambush Dollar Aborted, Tactical Shorts Closed As Stop Losses Hit
A quote...."Just as the year end onslaught on the dollar was spearheaded to a climax by Blankfein's minions, so did Europe finally decide to convulse under an unbearable lead of ridiculous mispriced "assets" and vomited up a whole load of troubling financial data, which spread from Greece to Austria to Ireland, setting sovereign CDS to multi month highs. Obviously, this did not help the weak dollar case and cost GS traders a few hundred million." -- also posted at BLN

The Real Reason Newspapers Are Losing Money, And Why Bailing Out Failing Newspapers Would Create Moral Hazard in the Media -- A quote...."Conventional wisdom is that the Internet is responsible for destroying the profits of traditional print media like newspapers. - But Michael Moore and Sean Paul Kelley are blaming the demise of newspapers on simple greed."
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The Known Universe by AMNH - (YouTube - 6 min 31 sec - December 15, 2009)
Must View Video - Simply Awesome.....mpg -- A quote...."The Known Universe takes viewers from the Himalayas through our atmosphere and the inky black of space to the afterglow of the Big Bang. Every star, planet, and quasar seen in the film is possible because of the world's most complete four-dimensional map of the universe, the Digital Universe Atlas that is maintained and updated by astrophysicists at the American Museum of Natural History. The new film, created by the Museum, is part of an exhibition, Visions of the Cosmos: From the Milky Ocean to an Evolving Universe, at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan through May 2010."

Monday December 21st 2009
Double Indemnity
12-21-09
mpg

Obama’s Right: The Insurance Companies and the New Dems Will Never Have an Opportunity Like This Again -- Must Read - A quote...."Our “progressive” voices are quickly growing silent as one site after the other, as one hold-out after the other, jumps ship and leaves the American working class to fend for themselves. -- When Barak Obama said that we have to pass this bill (this perversion of our election day mandate to reform healthcare in America) because we will not see an opportunity like this again for a very long time, he was absolutely correct.  After almost a year of backroom deals and secret negotiations, the insurance/pharmaceutical industries will never again be this close to a deal this good and the neoliberal New Dems will never be so close to gaining absolute control of the Democratic Party.  Never."

Regarding Obama's no-care bill, think of it this way folks, the US-NRE on behalf of the parasitic class is going to force Americans to buy crappy policies from the LOWEST common denominator insurance companies. 

Exactly how are they going to do this? -- Are they going to send their storm troopers to break down people's doors, levy their bank accounts, have the IRS seize their refunds (to do so they’d have to file a substitute purposed insurance tax on them) deny them their drivers licenses and have America’s “security” forces stop them on the streets to check their “papers”??

All the while the SAME identical people on Wall Street who brought everyone the financial crisis, who paid what were supposed to be the people's representatives to vote for this insane travesty, will be selling DEATH BONDS betting on the "little people's" early demise.

Don't you GET IT folks?  You'll all be FORCED by your very own government to buy insurance contracts from companies that will be highly motivated to give you the LEAST amount of medical care which will increase their profits and therefore their stock prices.  These very same companies will than turn around and sell their life insurance annuity contracts to Wall Street to be bundled into DEATH BONDS.

In other words it will be DOUBLY in the financial interests of Wall Street's crooks and their fellow insurance scammers to give you LESS care and for you to DIE more QUICKLY.

It's their very own highly profitable version of double indemnity. - mpg
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Now I’m Really Getting Pissed Off
Must Read - A quote...."December 21,2009 "Information Clearing House" --  Hey did you hear about the iconic African-American guy who plays golf, and whose relationship with the public is in a free-fall lately? -- No, as a matter of fact - I'm not talking about Tiger Woods. -- You know, I've really been trying not to write an article every other week about all the things I don't like about Barack Obama. -- But the little prick is making it very hard. -- Like any good progressive, I've gone from admiration to hope to disappointment to anger when it comes to this president. -- Now I'm fast getting to rage."

Obama Year One: Betrayal and Failure
Must Read - A quote...."Campaigning, he offered change, a new course, sweeping government reforms, addressing people needs, and "ensur(ing) that the hopes and concerns of average Americans speak louder in Washington than the hallway whispers of high-priced lobbyists," the same ones he said wouldn't run his administration, but would "have a seat at the table," and why not given their large contributions to him and other Democrats. - Little wonder that a year later hope is now disillusion, frustration, and anger over promises made, then broken with an awakening knowledge that change won't come unless growing millions demand it." -- "His chief fundraiser is Penny Pritzker, some describe as America's most powerful woman and one of the richest as heiress to part of the Pritzker fortune. Believed over $40 billion, most of it is grandfathered in tax-free offshore trusts. Only the little people pay taxes as a prominent scafflaw once said. - An October 2008 Bloomberg "Power of Penny Pritzker" article stressed the enormous influence she wields in Democrat party circles as a fundraiser extraordinaire, and, according to Warren Buffet, she's the person to call when you want to "get the job done." - also posted at ThePeoplesVoice

Israel Resorts to Blackmailing Own Citizens for Organ Donors
A quote...."Looks like all the Israeli “Organ Theft” brouhaha which has come to light worldwide, has caused Israel to pass a new law regarding organ donation. Perhaps because they see the writing on the wall, no more theft from Palestinians, the jig is up, the world knows now. Perhaps it is that Israel fears more war crimes charges, or perhaps an investigation into the theft of organs. Either way, Israel is forced to change its ways. The law is aimed at the entire Israeli population, and gives priority medical treatment to those who have signed a donor card. The catch: This preferential treatment, which can save a life, will be offered ONLY to those who signed up at least three years BEFORE they need the life saving treatment. You want life saving treatment? Sign the card today and wait three years or you go way down the list. I say again, in Israel equality does not exist. It become more and more like a Nazi state every day. This resort to blackmailing it's own citizens is a disgrace, but it illustrates the lengths Israel will go to when it wants something." -- For more on this issue see....Israeli Organ Thefts

Israel to seek another 1b euros Holocaust in reparations from Germany
One would guess all the bad press lately (an example shown above) has gotten the Israelis to play the "Holocaust" card -- again -- for the thousandth time.   Actually at this point, after Israel's recent behavior, Germany should be free of it's shame by now.  Of course if the German people still feel they have to pay more, they should go ahead and just do so.  However they should hold the money in trust for the Palestinian people to pay for all of Israel's war crimes and the horrendous damage done to the Palestinian's economy.  Since that figure is well in the tens of billions of dollars, it should become the policy of all the nations in Europe that Israel WILL NEVER receive any more money EVER AGAIN until their reparations to the Palestinians are paid up IN FULL!! - mpg
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Egypt Says It Will Block International Gaza Freedom Marchers
First of all, it's NOT Egypt that's blocking the aid, it's that dictator Mubarak who's doing so at the behest of the US-NRE, Israel and the Saudi Royals, and second of all, he's going to fail in his efforts. - mpg -- A quote...."On December 31, together with more than 1000 peace advocates from around the world, I’m planning to join tens of thousands of Palestinians in a march in Gaza to the Erez border crossing to protest the Israeli blockade of Gaza, and to demand international action to relieve Gaza’s humanitarian crisis." - also posted at WarInIraq & AftrDwngSt

Christians of Palestine Decry `Absence of All Hope`
A quote....""In the absence of all hope, we cry out our cry of hope. We believe in God, good and just. We believe that God's goodness will finally triumph over the evil of hate and of death that still persist in our land. We will see here 'a new land' and 'a new human being', capable of rising up in the spirit to love each one of his or her brothers and sisters," concluded a document “Kairos Palestine Document” released by Palestinian Christian leaders on December 11, 2009." -- also posted Uruknet

Where is the Palestinian Gandhi? In Israeli prison, of course!
A quote...."Not that I’m in any way playing into the Palestinian Gandhi dialogue, I think its actually pretty diversionary/racist. But sometimes you have to laugh in order not to cry right? -- Jamal Juma’, the director of the Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign, also known as Stop the Wall, was summoned for interrogation on the night of December 15th. Jamal has been detained by the Israeli military and has not had access to a lawyer since the 16th of December. I was in the Stop the Wall Office on the 15th of December. I said hi to Jamal. I’ve met him on a couple of occasions. He is a quiet man with a commanding presence." -- also posted at WarInIraq

Humanitarian & human rights orgs: ‘The international community has betrayed the people of Gaza’
A quote...."Today, 16 major humanitarian and human rights organizations have issued a report calling the international community to task for a year of inaction following the devastating Israeli attacks on Gaza a year ago. Titled "Failing Gaza: No rebuilding, no recovery, no more excuses," the report says the world has "betrayed" the people of Gaza by failing to end the Israeli blockade which is making reconstruction and recovery impossible."

"For us, olive trees are a matter of resistance" - posted at Electronic Intifada
Must Listen Audio - A quote...."Planting olive trees is a matter of resistance for the Arab Group for the Protection of Nature (or APN), a non-profit organization based in Amman, Jordan." --  ||  Download [MP3 - 16 MB]  ||
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Peace Prize President Kills 23 Children and 17 Women in Order to Protect the Assets of the IMF and World Bank
Special Note - A quote...."Last Thursday, quietly and with zero fanfare, the Peace Prize winning president of the United States (possibly while actually wearing his Peace Prize around his neck to bolster his “progressive” street cred) signed the order to unleash the dogs of war against two separate locations in Yemen.  Their “target”, a “suspected Al-Qaeda member”, was not harmed.  However, many civilians were harmed.  Many of them were killed and maimed in the attacks."

"Oybama" in Oslo -- Bordering on the Ridiculous
A quote...."THIS WEEK I enjoyed an hour of happiness. -- I was on my way home, after collecting William Polk’s new book about Iran. I admire the wisdom of this former State Department official. -- I was walking on the seaside promenade, when I was seized by a desire to go down to the seashore. I sat down on a chair on the sand, sipped a coffee and smoked an Arab water-pipe, the only smoke I allow myself from time to time. A ray of the mild winter sun painted a golden path on the water, and a lone surfer rode on the white foam of the waves. -- The shore was almost deserted. A stranger waved at me from afar. Some passing youngsters from abroad asked to try my pipe. From time to time my gaze wandered to far-away Jaffa jutting out into the sea, a beautiful sight."

Saudi [Royal Family] jets kill 18 civilians in Yemen
A quote...."Fresh Saudi air strikes on northern villages of Yemen have claimed the lives of 18 civilians, all women and children, the Houthi fighters say. -- According to a statement released by the fighters, Saudi forces carried out more than 40 air raids on al-Razih, al-Nazir, al -Malaheet, and the district of Ghamra in northern Yemen on Monday."

Iran Sanctions Are a Precursor to War – Ron Paul - posted at DProgram
Must View Video - Alt/Vid - (YouTube - 3 min 53 sec - December 21, 2009) -- A quote...."This policy is pure isolationism. It is designed to foment war by cutting off trade and diplomacy. Too many forget that the quagmire in Iraq began with an embargo. Sanctions are not diplomacy. They are a precursor to war and an embarrassment to a country that pays lip service to free trade. It is ironic that people who decry isolationism support actions like this."

Another Sorry Episode in American History – Agent Orange – Sibel Edmonds  - posted at DProgram
Contains Video - Alt/Vid - (YuTb 5m53s 05/19/08) -- A quote...."Cycles of atrocities, Cycles of Shame & Regret, and Cycles of more atrocities… This recent article by Time Magazine on Agent Orange in Vietnam opened up a floodgate of emotions I had thought I had gotten over with a year ago, after my own personal first-hand experiences there. The article was fairly well-written, that is, considering the publication. Here are some excerpts: "

Courts Free Faraj Hassan, Government’s Case Falls Through
A quote...."Today the Courts ruled that the control order imposed by the government on Faraj Hassan (also known as prisoner AS) was illegal in nature. His case was bought before the courts after the Law Lords ruled in June that the use of secret evidence in the imposition of control orders by the government was illegal. The evidence which neither Hassan or his Solicitors were able to see until last June was used to incarcerate him in HMP Long Lartin for four years from which he was released onto a control order in 2007. He has been under the control order since then until this morning."

Money Bomb for AE911Truth  - posted at DProgram
A quote...."Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth is one of the most important organization of the 9/11 truth movement. They will soon reach 1,000 architects and engineers supporting a new and independent 9/11 investigation. In many ways, they are at the forefront of the 9/11 truth battle. This amazing team works hard everyday and it is our time to give it back to them so they can be even stronger for the year to come."

US-Led Copenhagen Accord Decried as Flawed, Undemocratic
A quote...."The climate summit in Copenhagen came to a close Saturday with the world’s nations reluctantly agreeing to “take note of” but not endorse a non-binding accord President Obama announced Friday night. The twelve-page agreement seeks to limit global warming to a maximum of a two degree Celsius rise in temperature. But it does not specify targets for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. We speak with Guardian columnist George Monbiot and Lucia Green-Weiskel of the China-based organization Innovation Center for Energy and Transportation. [includes rush transcript]" -- ||  Real Video Stream  ||  Real Audio Stream  ||  MP3 Download  ||  More…  || 
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The Recession Is Over but the Depression Has Just Begun
Must Read - Quote of the Day...."Recessions are typically characterized by inventory cycles – 80% of the decline in GDP is typically due to the de-stocking in the manufacturing sector. Traditional policy stimulus almost always works to absorb the excess by stimulating domestic demand. Depressions often are marked by balance sheet compression and deleveraging: debt elimination, asset liquidation and rising savings rates. When the credit expansion reaches bubble proportions, the distance to the mean is longer and deeper. "

Trillions Of Troubles Ahead
A quote...."A crushing burden of debt threatens to sap America's growth for years to come." -- also posted at BLN

The Long Decline of the American Economy
A quote...."The official position on the cause of the current financial downturn is that it was caused by the reckless practices of financial institutions and the failure of regulatory bodies, and it is likely that these were the proximate causes, but they were not the ultimate cause. Americans, unfortunately, are rarely willing to search for ultimate causes or do anything about them when they are found. "

Hedge fund manager makes $2.5 billion betting on US bailout of Wall Street
A quote...."David Tepper, manager of the hedge fund Appaloosa Management, is set to pocket more than $2.5 billion this year after successfully gambling that the Obama administration would provide unlimited public funds to bail out the major banks. According to an article in Monday’s Wall Street Journal, Tepper’s firm, which specializes in buying up “distressed” shares and assets, has already racked up $7 billion in profits this year."

Sunday December 20th 2009

`A Visit from St. Obama'
Must Read -- A quote...."Twas the night before Christmas and all through the land
Not a creature was stirring in Afghanistan.
The bedrooms were bunkered with piles of hard stones
To protect from attacks by the Predator drones.
The children were huddled, afraid, in their beds
While visions of night raiders danced in their heads.

Mama doffed her hijab and I doffed my hat
And we both settled down for a rest and a chat
When out in the yard their arose such a clatter,
I sprang to the door to see what was the matter.
Away to the entrance I ran ‘cross the floor,
Pulled on the handle and opened the door.

The moon hadn’t risen but up in the air
A chopper was shining a light. Such a glare!
And what to my wondering eyes did appear
But a whole gang of men, armed and dressed in black gear....." -- also posted at AftrDwngSt
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U.S Kill 63 Civilians, 28 Children in Yemen Air Strikes  - posted at ICH
Contains Video - Alt/Vid -- A quote...."Yemen's Houthi fighters say scores of civilians, including many children, have been killed in US air-raids in the southeast of the war-stricken Arab country. -- The Shia fighters on Friday reported the deaths of 63 people, including some 28 children, in the southeastern province of Abyan. -- Almost 90 people were also injured in the attacks by US warplanes in the village of Bakazam, they added. -- Yemen's southern provinces have recently been the scene of US airstrikes which Washington claims to be aimed at uprooting an al-Qaeda cell operative in the Persian Gulf state."

Saudi warplanes rain '1,011 missiles' on Yemen
A quote...."Houthi fighters say Saudi warplanes have fired some 1,011 missiles on the borderline with Yemen where the Shia population is already under heavy state-led and US-aided bombardment."

Restful music: US troops sent to assist the Satanic alliance between  Al-Qaeda, the Yemen government, and Saudi Arabia, to commit crimes against Humanity.  - Special Note - Contains Video - Alt/Vid -- Some quotes ...."Trahlala! Sing along with me. Watch this video by way of introduction. Play the music as you read." -- "Everything makes sense. And in case you forgot the purpose of war, it is all very legitimate business in self defence:"
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The “Post-9/11 World” Is A Detriment To Humanity
Special Note - A quote...."The event that created the “Post-9/11 World” were the attacks of September 11th, 2001. -- Every effort has been made by the American Government to conceal the truth about what happened that day. The “Joint Congressional Inquiry” was “limited in scope” thanks to the efforts of George W. Bush, and Dick Cheney. The “PENTTBOM” investigation failed to address a number of the families’ questions. The “9/11 Commission” was compromised from beginning to end, and was headed by Philip Zelikow, someone the families called for the resignation of during the 9/11 Commission, someone who re-wrote the 9/11 Report to be more favorable of his good friend Condoleezza Rice, someone that tried to insert a false link into the 9/11 Report between Iraq and 9/11, someone that shied people away from the NSA, someone that shied people away from Saudi Arabia’s possible involvement in the attacks, someone that is alleged to have taken the direction of Karl Rove, someone who wrote the preemptive war strategy mentioned above, someone who should never have been anywhere near the 9/11 Commission."

The 90-Minute Stand Down on 9/11: Why Was the Secret Service's Early Request for Fighter Jets Ignored?
Special Note - A quote...."Shortly after the second World Trade Center tower was hit, at 9:03 a.m. on September 11, 2001, an officer at Andrews Air Force Base, just outside Washington, DC, was notified that the Secret Service wanted fighter jets launched over the nation's capital. It was now obvious the U.S. was under terrorist attack, and Washington would have been an obvious potential target. And yet the Secret Service's request came to nothing." - also posted at DProgram - For more on this issue see....9/11-NORAD

David Ray Griffin on the 9/11 Cell Phone Calls: Exclusive CBC Interview - Alt - (YuTb - 6m57s - 12/18/09)
Special Note - A quote...."Excellent interview with Dr. Griffin. He especially notes how the FBI itself admits that there was only one connection attempt made from Barbara Olson, which lasted "zero seconds," not to mention that Ted kept changing his story, first saying she called him on a seatback phone, then cell phone, then seatback again. And given that out of all the supposed 9/11 phone calls, Olson is the only passenger to mention "boxcutters," the FBI's admission is an intriguing one indeed." - For more on this issue see...9/11-NORAD

Did America keep mum on 26/11? - More on the US-NRE's Mumbai false flag attack. - mpg
Must Read - A quote...."Did the Americans have detailed advance information about the 26/11 plot which they did not share with India, only passing on a watered-down warning? And was there an American spy within the Lashkar-e-Tayyeba who kept Washington (or Langley) informed of terror acts planned against India —  even if this information was never handed over to us? -- It is certainly beginning to look that way. -- When Headley was first arrested, the Americans declared that they had foiled a plot to kill a Danish cartoonist. Then, more details began to trickle out. The terror suspect, we were told, was a US citizen of Pakistani origin. He had some links with the LeT. He had visited India. He may have been part of an advance team for 26/11." -- For more on this issue see....Just Give it a Rest OK!! - 11-27-09 - mpg

Headly, the CIA, Nariman House, False Flag Ops
Special Note - Related Article - A quote...."It could be argued that the Mumbai attacks of 2008 were carried out by the CIA and its friends."

"Mumbai-style false flag on tap for London - and boy are they (the govt) blatant about it! Police expect Mumbai-style terror attack on City of London 20 Dec 2009 Scotland Yard has warned businesses in London to expect a Mumbai-style attack on the capital. In a briefing in the City of London 12 days ago, a senior detective from SO15, the Metropolitan police counter-terrorism command, said: "Mumbai is coming to London."The detective said companies should anticipate [!] a shooting and hostage-taking raid "involving a small number of gunmen with handguns and improvised explosive devices". The warning -- the bluntest issued by police -- has underlined an assessment that a terrorist cell may be preparing an attack on London early next year." -- Paragraph quoted form CLG

Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), Member of Subcommitte on Defense: "I'm not even sure Bin Laden is still alive" -- A quote...."Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) is a progressive Democrat serving his ninth term in the U.S. House of Representatives. He is a member of the powerful Appropriations Committee and a member on the Subcommittee on Defense. -- In 1999 Hinchey wrote an amendment to intelligence reauthorization legislation that forced the declassification of documents that revealed the active role the Nixon Administration --especially Henry Kissinger-- played in the illegal overthrow of Salvador Allende, the democratically elected president of Chile, in 1973. -- He has consistently been one of the most outspoken opponents of the 2003 war in Iraq. And has consistently maintained since 2002, that the Bush Administration intentionally let Osama bin Laden escape capture." -- For more on this issue see....US Fake Intel / Propaganda - Osama bin long gone Laden

Pakistan in crisis as 'creeping coup' unfolds
A quote...."THE political crisis in Pakistan has deepened after the Government's anti-corruption agency sought a warrant for the arrest of the country's Interior Minister. -- Officials from the National Accountability Bureau asked for permission to arrest Rehman Malik, the minister in charge of law and order and the war on terrorism."

US fighter jets intrude into Pak airspace
A quote...."US fighter jets were on Saturday seen flying over Mohmand tribal region bordering Afghanistan for almost two hours, local residents and officials said, reported Indian news agency PTI. -- The jets, which were flying at low altitude, intruded almost 50 kilometers into the Pakistani airspace."

Let's talk to the Taliban, says Guttenberg
A quote...."Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg called on Sunday for greater dialogue with moderate Taliban where possible, as part of a reassessment of Germany’s strategy to stabilise Afghanistan."

Westerwelle wary on Afghan troop rise
A quote...."Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle expressed pointed scepticism about raising the number of German soldiers in Afghanistan on Monday, adding uncertainty to the government’s position on the controversial question."

SPD rules out support for Afghan combat troop increase
A quote...."The opposition Social Democrats would oppose any boost to Germany’s troop numbers in Afghanistan, leader Sigmar Gabriel said on Saturday as his party sought to reposition itself politically in the wake of the controversial Kunduz airstrike affair."

Hezbollah leader hails Hariri's landmark visit to Syria
A quote...."Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has hailed the Lebanese prime minister's visit to Syria, calling it a practical step to open up 'new horizons' in ties between the two Arab neighbors. "

Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan to establish common economic space before 2012
A quote...."ALMATY, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- The leaders of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan announced Saturday that a common economic space would be established among the three countries before 2012 to further enhance cooperation ." -- also posted at WaInIraq

China, Venezuela Strengthening Strategic Links
A quote...."Caracas, Dec 21 (Prensa Latina) China and Venezuela open on Monday in this capital the 8th Meeting of their Intergovernmental Commission which will result in the signing of new cooperation agreements on energy, economy, politics and technology."

US Military Aggression Against Venezuela Escalating
War Alert - (because these activities are directly related to the pending attack on Iran) -- A quote...."Caracas, 20 December – Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez revealed today on his Sunday television and radio program, Aló Presidente, that unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also known as drones, have illegally entered Venezuela’s airspace during the past several days. “A few days ago, one of these military planes penetrated Venezuela as far as Fort Mara,” a Venezuelan military fort in the State of Zulia, bordering Colombia. The drone was seen by several Venezuelan soldiers who immediately reported the aerial violation to their superiors. President Chávez gave the order today to shoot down any drones detected in Venezuelan territory. Chávez also directly implicated Washington in this latest threat against regional stability by confirming that the drones were of US origen." - also posted at DProgram - For more on this sort of issue see....US-NRE Standard Attack Profiles (SAPs) - 11-16-09 - mpg

Related Article - "Hugo Chavez orders military to shoot at US aircraft [trespassing into Venezuela's airspace - mpg] -- President Hugo Chavez has accused the US of violating Venezuela's airspace with an unmanned spy plane, and ordered his military to shoot down any such aircraft in the future. 20 Dec 2009 Speaking during his weekly television and radio program, Mr Chavez said the aircraft overflew a Venezuelan military base in the western state of Zulia after taking off from neighbouring Colombia. He did not elaborate, but suggested the plane was being used for espionage. "These are the Yankees. They are entering Venezuela," he said. "I've ordered them to be shot down," Mr Chavez said of the aircraft. "We cannot permit this." He has accused Colombia of allowing the United States to use its military bases to prepare a possible attack against Venezuela. [See: CIA 'plot to kill Hugo Chavez' -- Hugo Chavez has claimed that he avoided a US plot to kill him. 03 Jun 2009 The Venezuelan president said on state television that he had eluded an assassination attempt in El Salvador where he was due to attend the swearing in of its new leader, a Left-wing ally.]" -- Paragraph quoted form CLG
 
Colombia to build military base near Venezuelan border
Related Article - A quote...."Colombia has announced that it plans to build a new military base near its border with Venezuela. -- Colombian Defense Minister Gabriel Silva said on Friday that the base, which is to be located on the Guajira peninsula near the city of Nazaret, will have up to 1,000 troops. -- Two air battalions will also be activated in other border areas, he stated."

Letting the Beast Out of the (Corporatist) Bottle: Obama Channels Bush on Bioweapons
Special Note - A quote...."The Obama administration's recent declaration on bioweapons would simply be another run-of-the-mill example of our "change" president's duplicity were it not such an unmitigated disaster. -- Recapitulating sinister Cold War practices that informed American ruling class consensus when it came to secretly toying with nature's most deadly pathogens, (a) because they could, (b) because it was, and is, highly profitable and (c) because they got away with it, the profound failure by the administration to rein-in out-of-control corporate grifters, militarists and scientists thirsting after an endless flow of taxpayer dollars, have put us all on a potential glide path towards the abyss." -- also posted at Uruknet & DProgram

Agent Orange Poisons New Generations in Vietnam
A quote...."This lonely section of the abandoned Danang air base was once crawling with U.S. airmen and machines. It was here where giant orange drums were stored and the herbicides they contained were mixed and loaded onto waiting planes. Whatever sloshed out soaked into the soil and eventually seeped into the water supply. Thirty years later, the rare visitor to the former U.S. air base is provided with rubber boots and protective clothing. Residue from Agent Orange, which was sprayed to deny enemy troops jungle cover, remains so toxic that this patch of land is considered one of the most contaminated pieces of real estate in the country. A recent study indicates that even three decades after the war ended, the cancer-causing dioxins are at levels 300 to 400 times higher than what is deemed to be safe."
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Shaker Aamer: UK Government Drops Opposition To Release Of Torture Evidence
A quote...."Last week, as I explained in a recent article, Shaker Aamer, the last British resident in Guantánamo, who was seized in Afghanistan in 2001 after traveling to Afghanistan with his friend Moazzam Begg (and their families) to establish a girls’ school in Kabul, won a significant victory in the British High Court. Lord Justice Jeremy Sullivan ruled that evidence in the possession of the British government, regarding his torture in US custody in Kandahar, Afghanistan, before his transfer to Guantánamo, must be made available to lawyers working on his behalf in the United States, so that they can make representations to the Obama administration’s interagency Task Force, which is currently reviewing the cases of the remaining prisoners in Guantánamo, and is expected to reach a decision sometime next month." -- Something the "Changeling", the "Pope of Dope" Mr. "Bombs Away O-Bomb-a" will NEVER do. - mpg

The [US-NRE] Regime’s Heroic Border Guards in Action
A quote...."Crossing the border of a totalitarian state — in either direction — is an experience fraught with visceral anxiety. -- Finding himself in the unwanted company of humorless, heavily armed goons of dubious competence and abysmal intelligence, the traveler is vividly aware that he can be arrested, imprisoned, beaten, or even shot at whim." -- also posted at AlethoNews

On A Parent's Death And Minding Your Tongue In The U.S.A.
A quote...."Everywhere in the world, every day, people's phone calls, emails and faxes are monitored by Echelon, a secret government surveillance network. No, it's not fiction straight out of George Orwell's 1984. It's reality..." -- For more on this issue see....Attempts to Control The Internet - Echelon

Intelligence Agencies Release Docs Describing Misconduct in Response to EFF Lawsuit
A quote...."Today the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of State, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the National Security Agency released 162 pages of intelligence oversight reporting in response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by EFF in July."

Podcast Show #16 -- The Boiling Frogs Presents Russ Baker
Audio Interview - Boiling Frogs interviews Russ Baker, with Sibel Edmonds and Peter B Collins -- Thursday, 17. December 2009 -- A quote...."Russ Baker discusses his book, Family of Secrets [The Bush Dynasty, the Powerful Forces That Put It in the ... ]. [GoglBkSrch]* the first complete historic portrait of the Bush dynasty, and provides us with an overview of how this dynasty shaped our politics. He tells us about the shadow government in the US, the real players, elites, and power centers within each president’s government, and the limitation on what and how much an American president can accomplish – considering the influence of these powerful and independent fiefdoms characterized by entrenched agendas and constant intrigue. Mr. Baker defines and explains the concept of Forensic Journalism, and talks about his nonprofit news organization WhoWhatWhy, the need for nonpartisan and independent journalism today, the current media landscape in the US, and more. -- Interview with Russ Baker [64:40m]: Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download (1305)" -- *links added
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

ISRAEL ADMITS ORGAN THEFT FROM PALESTINIANS
A quote...."Murderers and Criminals, that's what they are.-- All the ad nauseum claims of "Anti-Semitism" over the Organ Trade dealings that were reported in Swedish newspapers; and lets not forget those grubby Rabbis in New Jersey and their illegal organ trading either. All of the "Israeli Outrage" when in fact, it was true all along and validation of this, by an Israeli Doctor no less. And proof has been sitting in the hands of a professor of anthropology at the University of California-Berkeley since 2000."

Israel admits harvesting Palestinian organs
Related Article - A quote...."Israel has admitted that pathologists harvested organs from dead Palestinians, and others without the consent of their families – a practice that it said ended in the 1990s, it emerged at the weekend." -- For more on this issue see....Israeli Organ Thefts

"It is time for us to put an end to this occupation"
Special Note - A quote...."Situated just west of Ramallah, the Palestinian village of Nilin has lost huge swathes of land to Israel's settlements and its wall in the occupied West Bank. In a year and a half of resisting construction of the wall, five villagers have been murdered by the Israeli military while demonstrating. Hassan Mousa is a coordinator of the Nilin Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements and the uncle of Ahmed Mousa, an 11-year-old boy who was the first villager from Nilin to be killed by the Israeli army."

Israeli army fires rubber-coated steel bullets at demonstrators celebrating the Arab Creativity Award for Bil’in
Contains Video - Alt/Vid - A quote...."This Friday the demonstration organized by the Popular Committee against the Wall was joined by dozens of leaders, members and supporters of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, marking its 42nd anniversary. As every Friday a number of international and Israeli peace activists and residents of Bil’in and neighboring villages took part in the protest."

Israeli Soldier Chased a Kindergarten Girl
Photos - A quote...."20 December 2009, by: Johann Funk, she is the vision of innocence, peering up into the dull eyes of a soldier towering over her.  She can only be four or five years old.  Black slacks with a green striped short skirt fanning out beneath her short black jacket indicate that she is a kindergarten student.  She strains to hand the backpack, which is half her length, up to the soldier who orders her to stop.  He systematically opens every zipper and plunges his hands into each pocket before handing the backpack back.  It slumps to the ground." -- also posted at Uruknet

Year On, Gaza Still in Ruins
A quote...."GAZA CITY – Like thousands of his fellow Gazans, Kamal Awaja is still living with his family in a tent on the rubble of their home which was razed to the ground during Israel’s deadly onslaught a year ago." -- also posted at Uruknet

Net around Israeli war crimes suspects tightens
A quote...."Efforts by human rights organizations, lawyers and activists in Palestine and Europe to hold Israeli war crimes suspects to account have gained momentum over the past few years. Last week, former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni cancelled a visit to the UK over threats of a lawsuit under the country's universal jurisdiction laws."

Viva Palestina Convoy Arriving in Turkey - Alt/Vid - (YouTube - 6 min 26 sec - December 19, 2009)
Video - Action Update -- A quote...."Tuesday December 15, 2009: Video of arrival in Turkey from Greece. Interviews with the drivers and members of the Convoy. -- The Viva Palestina Convoy departed for Gaza from London on December 6: http://vivapalestina.org  -- Get News & Track the Convoy here: http://readingpsc.org.uk/convoy/  -- * This is an edited version of the full video that insaniyardim2003 posted at: http://www.dailymotion.com/insaniyard...*"

Hamas awaits Israeli response to new prisoner exchange offer
A quote...."GAZA, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) -- Hamas is waiting for Israel's response to a new proposal for the exchange of an Israeli soldier and a number of Palestinian prisoners, a Hamas source said Sunday."

The Gaza I Know
Must Read - A quote...."For most Americans, the Gaza Strip is, at best, unknown territory. At worst, it is a hostile land whose "terrorist infrastructure" must be dismantled, no matter what the cost to its million and a half residents... --
The Gaza I have been visiting for the past twenty-one years bears little relation to the dehumanizing imagery to which it has been reduced by the mainstream media. The Gaza I know is home to friends and strangers who are as welcoming and humane as they are resilient and determined to achieve their freedom. They have maintained their humanity despite enduring a brutal forty-two-year-old Israeli occupation that has cost them the destruction of their homes, land, economy and future and the loss of more than 4,000 lives since the dawn of the twenty-first century."
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Foreclose on the Banks - How to Give America Its Best Christmas Ever - posted at ICH
Must Read - A quote...."December 19, 2009 "Information Clearing House" -- NEW YORK - Citibank is suspending foreclosures and evictions for 30 days, until after the holidays. -- Mighty white of them. -- Who knew bankers could be so amusing? In an interview, Citi mortgage czar Sanjiv Das acknowledged that "moratoriums are not permanent solutions" and said his company was looking for "some long-term fundamental alternatives" to throwing people out of their homes because they've fallen behind on their payments. But he didn't offer a specific example."

Harder to buy US Treasuries
Actually it's harder to PAY for them (like who really want's too?), it's real easy to BUY them.  After all, aren't they selling them in rolls now, you know, about five inches across with 600 bonded sheets to the roll wrapped around a little cardboard tube? - mpg -- A quote...."It is getting harder for governments to buy United States Treasuries because the US's shrinking current-account gap is reducing supply of dollars overseas, a Chinese central bank official said yesterday."

Cautionary Observations From A Chronological Analysis Of The S&P 500 Balance Sheet
Market Tech Note - A quote...."There was a time when investment decisions had more to do with fundamentals than whether Bernanke would wake up tomorrow and decide it is time to stop the liquidity spigot (arguably, the only thing that matters these days). Indeed, if in the odd chance Bernanke is not reconfirmed by the Senate, the huge drop the market experienced last year when Congress refused to get Paulson's first TARP version to be shoved down its throat, will seem like a Sunday morning picnic."

Saturday Decembr 19th 2009

No posts. - mpg

Friday December 18th 2009

Dred Scott Redux: Obama and the Supremes Stand Up for Slavery
Must Read - A quote...."It happened earlier this week, in a discreet ruling that attracted almost no notice and took little time. In fact, our most august defenders of the Constitution did not have to exert themselves in the slightest to eviscerate not merely 220 years of Constitutional jurisprudence but also centuries of agonizing effort to lift civilization a few inches out of the blood-soaked mire that is our common human legacy. They just had to write a single sentence." -- also posted at OpEdNews

It Takes a Conscience
Must Read - A quote...."I know what cynicism is. I felt it during the eight, long years of the homicidal Bush-Cheney tyranny. And I recognized it, piercingly, when Barack Obama referred to Afghanistan as the “right” war. I experienced it, again and again, before the election, especially, when Obama chose as his running mate the ardent Zionist Joe Biden along with consultants from the corporate sector. -- When my youngest son called and told me he wanted to go to DC for the historic inauguration—just to be there—to tell the children he may have someday that he was on the scene, I was aware of my cynicism. I wanted to say to him, “This man is going to disappoint you beyond belief. He’s going to turn off a generation of young people who are inspired by his message of change.” -- I hated this cynicism. Because I’ve always been proactive in the face of despair."

911-War Promises - Alt - (YouTube - 1 hr 15 min 43 sec - November 27, 2009
Must View Video - A quote...."Millions of people believe that evidence proves that Western intelligence services organized the hideous attacks on New York and Washington on 11 September 2001. Even the mainstream media have stopped defending the official version and now prefer to ignore the issue altogether. -- Distrust in Western governments grows as the wars of aggression waged by the USA and NATO continue to be justified with these “false flag” operations. Ever harsher domestic laws are being passed to crush all outrage and resistance in Western populations; at the end of the day they aim to unleash the German military on German civilians, instead of allowing morality and ethics to flow into day-by-day policy-making." -- For more on this issue see.....Reficultnias's 9/11 Central

Iraq war inquiry: Britain heard US drumbeat for invasion before 9/11
From the history file - Tuesday 24 November 2009 22.54 GMT -- A quote...."Tony Blair's government knew that prominent members of the Bush administration wanted to topple Saddam Hussein years before the invasion but initially distanced itself from the prospect knowing it would be unlawful, it was disclosed at the Iraq inquiry today. -- British intelligence also dismissed claims by elements in the US administration that the Iraqi leader was linked to Osama bin Laden, it heard."

Adrian Hamilton: The one thing Chilcot won't reveal is the truth
From the history file - Thursday, 26 November 2009 -- A quote...."What is the difference between the inquiry being led by Sir William Gage into the death in military custody of Baha Mousa and the inquiry chaired by Sir John Chilcot into the Iraq war? The simple answer is that Gage's inquiry into one terrible victim of the war will, according to Sir William, "follow the chain of command up as far as it leads," while the Chilcot inquiry into the whole circumstances of a war that split the country and led to the loss of hundreds of thousand of civilian lives in Iraq as well as irreparably damaging the international reputation of the country and its Prime Minister will not, according to Gordon Brown in setting it up, aim to "apportion blame."
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9/11 - From The History File...Britain’s secret plans to topple Saddam two years before war
Iraq inquiry: British officials ruled against 'illegal' ousting of Saddam
Chilcot Inquiry Reaffirms British Instigation of Iraq War
The one thing Chilcot won't reveal is the truth
Iraq war inquiry: Britain heard US drumbeat for invasion before 9/11 - Alt
Condi set sights on Iraq as 9/11 unfolded: UK diplomat
UK Hearing Confirms U.S. Planned to Invade Iraq Before 9/11

For more on this issue see....9/11 PlngGuide - SpecTrgts - New Weblist !!
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2 million troops have deployed since 9/11
A quote...."In the eight years since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, American troops have deployed almost 3.3 million times to Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Defense Department data. -- The numbers, as of October 2009, show that more than 2 million men and women have shouldered those deployments, with 793,000 of them deploying more than once."

Neocons Must Be Pissed; China and Russia Are Getting the Sweet Oil Deals in Iraq
A quote...."BEIJING - Former United States vice president Dick Cheney, ex-defense minister Donald Rumsfeld and assorted US neo-cons will have plenty of time to nurse their apoplexy. One of their key reasons to unleash the war on Iraq in 2003 was to seize control of its precious oilfields and thus shape a great deal of the new great game in Eurasia - the energy front - by restricting the access of Europe and Asia to Iraq's staggering 115 billion barrels of proven oil reserves." -- Yes, they're perhaps a bit miffed at not getting some of the contracts, or at least those owners of the US-NRE's oil and gas sector are.  But this sad state of affairs could all change with the next Iraqi government, and the Neocons and their AIPAC backers have fulfilled four other very important reasons for their invasion of Iraq.  1)  The establishment of a massive and permanent military footprint in Iraq to threaten Iran, China and Russia.  2)  The elimination of Iraq as an economic or geo-political competitor to Israel.  3)  The hegemony and use of the US-NRE's currency in Iraq in oil transactions. And finally 4) Access to Iraq's oil and gas....although, for the moment, they do not have direct control of it. - mpg

US Attacking Yemen After All - Cruise Missiles Hit Multiple Sites in Concert With Yemeni Govt
BREAKING NEWS - The Nobel "Peace" Prize winner strikes again....and it goes on and on and on....mpg -- A quote...."Just one day after a very public denial [Oh, and he lied about it too. - mpg ] that American forces were in the process of attacking sites in Northern Yemen, President Barack Obama ordered multiple cruise missile attacks on sites across the tiny, coastal nation."

Obama Approves $30 Billion in Military Aid to Israel Over Next Decade
BREAKING NEWS - Obama just keeps on kissing AIPAC butt - mpg -- A quote...."As the single largest expense of the 2010 foreign aid budget, President Obama approved $2.775 billion in military aid to Israel, the first payment in a decade-long commitment that will reach at least $30 billion. -- Last year, Israel’s military budget amounted to $13.3 billion, so the US funding is a significant portion of their overall expenditure. The US formerly provided both military and civilian aid, but it has since been folded entirely into military aid, at Israel’s request." - bold by website editor

Iran producing advanced, new centrifuges
A quote...."The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization (AEO) said Friday that the country is producing two new generations of uranium enrichment centrifuges."

UN's Afghan mission takes a hit
Special Note - A quote...."The revelation by the United Nations' special representative to Afghanistan, Kai Eide, that his former deputy, the scandal-ridden American ex-diplomat, Peter Galbraith, had plotted a meticulous step-by-step scheme to unconstitutionally depose and replace President Hamid Karzai has invited fresh embarrassment for the world organization."

Co-Intel, Agent Provocateurs, and Propaganda Techniques of the Enemy
From the history file - A quote...."According to FBI records, 85% of COINTELPRO resources were expended on infiltrating, disrupting, marginalizing, and/or subverting groups suspected of being subversive, such as communist and socialist organizations, people suspected of building a "coalition of militant black nationalist groups" ranging from the Black Panther Party those in the non-violent civil rights movement Students for a Democratic Society, the National Lawyers Guild, almost all groups protesting the Vietnam War, and even individual student demonstrators with no group affiliations, and nationalist groups such as those seeking independence for Puerto Rico. The other 15% of COINTELPRO resources were expended to marginalize and subvert "white hate groups," including the National States' Rights Party." -- also posted at WarInIraq

Chief G-77 Negotiator Lumumba Stanislaus Di-Aping: US-Backed Proposals Mean Death for Millions of Africans
More on the Climate-Gate Enviro-Scam - A quote...."With the talks entering the final twenty-four hours, a leaked UN document—exposed yesterday on Democracy Now! with French news website Mediapart—has created a firestorm of controversy here at the summit. The UN memo determines that global temperatures would rise by an alarming three degrees Celsius, or 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit, under the current emissions targets being discussed. We speak to Lumumba Stanislaus Di-Aping, the chief negotiator for the G-77, the largest developing country bloc represented at the COP15. [includes rush transcript] -- ||  Real Video Stream  ||  Real Audio Stream  ||  MP3 Download  ||  More…  || 
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS THIS - Some Christmas cheer from Irish4Palestine....really....it's funny. - mpg
A quote...."So, we are approaching the 1 year anniversary of the Gaza Genocide and posts will become very somber as we remember the horrific scenes and death. So before we begin the descent into sadness and remembrance we want to post this. So, without further adieu:"

Settlers in Jerusalem attack Palestinian family, 3 injured 25 detained
A quote...."Bethlehem - Ma'an - Three Palestinians were injured including two children and a journalist in an attack by Israeli settlers on homes in the East Jerusalem community of Sheikh Jarrah on Friday evening."

Maqdisi: Occupation authorities order demolition of mosque and 7 homes
A quote...."RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Maqdisi Society said that the Israeli occupation authorities have handed on Thursday orders to demolish seven homes in the Jabal al-Mukabber in the southern part of Jerusalem." -- also posted at Uruknet

IOF soldiers bulldoze cultivated land in Gaza
A quote...."GAZA, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces (IOF) advanced into central Gaza Strip on Friday and bulldozed cultivated land lots, local sources told the PIC reporter. -- They added that five huge tractors escorted by three armored vehicles advance around 400 meters east of Breij refugee camp and started to bulldoze the lands amidst random firing to terrorize the inhabitants."

Twenty seven activists arrested at protest against settler expansion in Sheikh Jarrah
A quote...."A peaceful demonstration of around 300 people, held in solidarity with the evicted Palestinian residents of Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in East Jerusalem, was violently dispersed by the Israeli police."

There shall be no occupation in the land of Palestine
A quote...."2009 years ago, like these days, the wise men, guided by the Bethlehem star were to know that Jesus will be born. A new history has begun with the hope that lightness win over darkness. Last year, like these days when hundreds of millions of Christians around the world were celebrating the Christmas by chanting peace on earth, Israel launched one of its most deadly attacks on the besieged Gaza, the most populated area on earth, the majority of its population are the victims of the cleaning war of 1948. Isreal, did not listen to the voices coming from Gaza such as the voice of the father shown on Al Jazeera carrying his 3 and 5 years old murdered babies shouting in Hebrew to war lord Ehud Barak “Barak Barak why you killed my babies, they did nothing to you”. Neither had Israel heard the voices of Millions around the world demanding Israel to stop the genocide."
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Obama Campaigned AGAINST Two Major Provisions In This Health Care Bill
More on the Obama non-care no-health bill - Bet'cha all you Obamatrolls thought the bill couldn't POSSIBLY get any worse.....but you'd be wrong. - mpg -- A quote...."As David Zephyr pointed out in this thread, the current heath care bill has a provision allowing people to buy insurance across state lines (as described in the LA Times article here). The problem is that, once insurance can be sold across state lines, insurance companies will gravitate to the states that most favor them and least favor the consumer."

Bernie the Quitter Fools Us Again - The Health Care Charade
More on the Obama non-care no-health bill - A quote...."Vermont’s Senator Bernie Sanders spoke for months about his “historic” efforts to get a vote on a single-payer health care bill in the Senate. While we all knew the outcome was going to be a rather miserable failure, it was a tiny crumb being flicked to those of us who still believe in both real solutions to the health care crisis AND the possibilities of democracy."
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The greatest outpouring of money and credit from central banks and governments in history
Special Note - A quote...."The past two years have seen the greatest outpouring of money and credit from central banks and governments in history. In most countries interest rates cannot fall much lower being presently under 1% or close to zero. You might call this an attempt at fiat money recovery. As a result of pump priming for the past six months or more investors have returned to the same gambling and risk taking they engaged in before, the losses of which caused the world economy to come to the edge of the financial abyss. All sectors of investment are again affected by a casino mentality." -- also posted at DProgram

Kucinich: ‘Class war is over, working people lost’
A quote...."WASHINGTON -- Reflecting on the growing divide between Wall Street and Main Street, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) on Wednesday offered a powerful critique on the state of the economy in an open committee hearing. -- The class warfare is over -- we lost," Kucinich said before the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. "I want to make that announcement today. Working people lost.  The middle class lost." -- also posted at DProgram

President Hugo Chavez Lambasts Capitalism at COP15
Video - Just to let everyone know, from this website editor's perspective free markets are great, "capitalism" should be well controlled and the vile, filthy, depraved, degenerate, idolatrous, murderous, monopolistic, klepto-crony-psychotic criminal enterprise that we’ve devolved to in this country has absolutely NOTHING whatsoever to do with free-markets and very little to do with a capitalist "market" economy. - mpg

Seven U.S. banks closed by regulators; failures at 140
A quote...."SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Seven U.S. banks were closed by regulators on Friday, bring the total this year to 140 as the effects of the credit crisis continued to be felt across the country. -- What's more, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. established temporary institutions to help close two of the failed banks."

Moody's Puts $143 Billion Of Jumbo RMBS On Downgrade Review
Financial Sector Alert - A quote...."So much for no taxpayer losses on GSE exposure."

Citigroup’s Exit From Bailout Clouded by Citi Holdings Assets
A quote...." Dec. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Citigroup Inc. Chief Executive Officer Vikram Pandit, emerging from a U.S. bailout with higher capital levels and loan-loss reserves than any peer, still has a $617 billion reason to worry. -- That’s the amount of assets left in Citi Holdings, the division that Pandit set up to strip his bank of unprofitable businesses, troubled loans and securities. While the bank has unloaded almost $100 billion of the assets so far, getting stuck with the rest may hinder earnings for years, analysts said." - bold by website editor - Did somebody say Enron? - mpg

[British] Bank lending to businesses falls
Deflation Alert - A quote...."It was a slightly bigger decline than the £4.6bn fall in September, reported by the Bank of England in its Trends in Lending report . -- It drove a 7.6pc drop in the annual rate of net lending, which was a new low in the decade since the monthly series began. The Bank explained the record fall by net repayments of loans through much of 2009." - bold by website editor

[British] National Debt hits post-war peak as tax receipts slide
A quote...."The national debt has burst through the 60pc of gross domestic product level for the first time in post-war history, in the latest blow to the Government's fiscal credibility."

For First Time Ever PIIGS Fly Higher Than BRICs
A quote...."For the first time ever, the combined risk of the PIIGS (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain) is greater than that of the developing BRICs. China is now well on its way to global domination and risk-haven status. Renminbi reserve currency anyone?" -- Well, perhaps the PIGGS got Greeced. - mpg

Thursday December 17th 2009

This article is Part 3 in the Series, "The Origins of World War III." - posted at Global Research
Must Read - A quote...."In Part-1 and Part-2 of this series, I have analyzed US and NATO geopolitical strategy since the fall of the Soviet Union, in expanding the American empire and preventing the rise of new powers, containing Russia and China. This Part examines the implications of this strategy in recent years; following the emergence of a New Cold War, as well as analyzing the war in Georgia, the attempts and methods of regime change in Iran, the coup in Honduras, the expansion of the Afghan-Pakistan war theatre, and spread of conflict in Central Africa. These processes of a New Cold War and major regional wars and conflicts take the world closer to a New World War. Peace can only be possible if the tools and engines of empires are dismantled."

The War Trap - posted at ICH
Must Read - A quote...."December 18, 2009 "Information Clearing House" -- Today, twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall and nineteen years after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the military budget of the United States is larger than at any time during the Cold War and roughly equal to the total of all other military budgets throughout the world. -- Why, in the midst of the greatest economic emergency in seventy years, with the public sector of the U.S. economy starved for funds required for economic recovery, and with urgent global climate and energy crises directly before us, have we failed to benefit from a "peace dividend" from the end of the Cold War? Why are we instead engaged in two wars in nations that pose no threat to us?"   

Addicted to War: Is there any Cure? - posted at ICH
Must Read - A quote...."....the military industrial complex has become the most lucrative business that ever existed in the entire 6,000 years of recorded history. We need to keep in mind that the United States is viewed as the seat of world capitalism where the motto is: “The sky is not the limit.” This means that the ultimate goal is to make more and more money with no end in sight. The tragedy with this lies in the fact that whatever comes in the way is literally demolished. It would not make any difference if these were to be objects or people. --  When the means chosen to achieve a specific objective are intrinsically bad and we continue to pursue such means at all costs, then we have here a serious vicious addiction. In other words, we become categorically devoted or dedicated to the pursuit of evil by all means. The capitalists’ most effective weapon to use without having to be accountable to anyone is war."

Freedom Rider: “War is Peace” Prize
Must Read - A quote...."The Norwegian Nobel Committee, who award the Nobel Peace Prize, created world wide feelings of dismay, shock and anger from the moment they announced that Barack Obama would be the 2009 honoree. How could the man who is waging two wars, who is responsible for the largest military budget in world history, be given the same honor that went to luminaries such as Martin Luther King, who fought tirelessly against militarism? -- Barack Obama’s actual speech at the ceremony was worse, much worse than anything that could have been imagined when this honor was announced two months ago. His words were so horrific, so bereft of any of the ideals of peace makers, that he single handedly made the once prestigious Nobel Peace Prize worthless. If the winner speaks about the urgent need for military action and denigrates the very need for peace, then surely the wrong person was honored." -- bold by website editor

More and more, Obama seems a faux liberal - Article also posted at ICH
Must Read - A quote...."Following President Obama’s war speeches at West Point and Oslo —- two breathtaking exercises in political cynicism that killed any hope of authentic liberal reform — I’ve got only one question: Have the liberals who worshipped at the altar of “change you can believe in” had enough? -- There was already ample evidence of Obama’s feeble commitment to peace, progress and justice. Ever since he started fundraising for his presidential campaign, it’s been clear that the principal change in the offing was skin tone and slogans." -- also posted at AlethoNews

Obama, Is Preparing for War in South America - posted at ICH
Interview - Mike Whitney interviews Eva Golinger -- A quote...."December 18, 2009 "Information Clearing House' -- 1 Mike Whitney----The US media is very critical of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. He's frequently denounced as "anti-American", a "leftist strongman", and a dictator. Can you briefly summarize some of the positive social, economic and judicial changes for which Chavez is mainly responsible?"

Chavez to Obama: Give back Nobel Prize
A quote...."He [Obama] got the Nobel Peace Prize almost the same day as he sent 30,000 soldiers to kill innocent people in Afghanistan," he said during a speech at a climate change conference in Denmark. -- "Obama should give back the prize," Chavez added on Thursday." -- also posted at WarInIraq

Ahmadinejad: Obama walking down Bush's road
"WALKING DOWN IT!!"  Is Ahmadinejad kidding? Bombs Away O-Bomb-a is building an eight lane super highway to Wartown and driving a triple tandem truck fully loaded with explosives down it at over a hundred and fifty miles per hour grinning from ear to ear. - mpg -- A quote...."More than a week after Obama defended US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq in accepting his Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Ahmadinejad said Obama's oft-stated claims of change increasingly seem to be "just talk and nothing more.""

Stunning Statistics About the War Every American Should Know - Article also posted at ICH
A quote...."Contrary to popular belief, the US actually has 189,000 personnel on the ground in Afghanistan right now—and that number is quickly rising." -- also posted at AlethoNews

Kristol Clear: The Source of America’s Wars
A quote...."Americans feeling let down by Barack Obama’s escalation of the war in Afghanistan should take careful note of those who welcomed yet another “surge.” It might help them to identify the source of their seemingly endless wars."

NEWS & BACKGROUND: Leaking of dubious document spurs new wave of anti-Iran propaganda
Propaganda Alert - Special Note - A quote...."On Monday the Times of London said "confidential intelligence documents" from Iran, one of which it published in toto, "show that Iran is working on testing a key final component of a nuclear bomb."[1]  --  For endorsement of the document the Times cited the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) as its only named expert source.  --  The paper published a translation (from Farsi) of the document on its website.[2]  --  The New York Times devoted a long piece to the document in its Wednesday edition, emphasizing that the document had not been authenticated by Western intelligence agencies.[3]  --  It had nothing to say about the provenance of the undated two-page document either.  --  The Washington Post also devoted a long article to the document, and also said nothing about where it came from, noting, however, for some reason, that it was "creased."[4]  --  Like the Times of London, the Post cited ISIS as its only named expert commentator.  --  Finally, on Wednesday, Robert Burns and Pamela Hess of the Associated Press hinted that Israel was the source of what it bizarrely called a "reportedly-secret document" -- bizarrely, since on Sunday a photograph of the original was published on the website of the Times of London along with a complete translation.[5]" -- For more on this sort of issue see....US Fake Intel / Propaganda

A Word From The Taliban - Regarding the Invaders Recent Brutalities. - posted at ICH
Special Note - A quote...."December 18, 2009 "Information Clearing House" -- The public of the world, particularly, our country men know that the invading forces usually detain miserable Afghans under various pretexts and then mercilessly torture them. These atrocities have been continuing at the hand of the invaders for the past eight years. Besides these, there are other savageries being committed by the invading forces. Even mass murder has been committed by the cut- throat troops. But the so-called advocates of the human rights and the international community have always turned a blind eye to all these crimes. They have never put out a protest nor issued any word of condemnation, despite that the atrocities have been continuing unabatedly. Here, we present our readers with facts about the following gruesome events:" -- Word to the Taliban....give everyone video cameras and film everything, than broadcast it everywhere.  By the way, don't use anything with a GPS chip in it.  - mpg

US Plot to Replace Afghan President Suspected
A quote...."Washington, Dec 17 (Prensa Latina) A United Nations member of staff and the White House plotted to replace Afghan President Hamid Karzai, The New York Times reported on Thursday."

Austrian defense minister rejects increase of troops in Afghanistan
A quote...."VIENNA, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Austrian Defense Minister Norbert Darabos has declared that Austria would not send more troops to Afghanistan despite the pressure from the United States and Britain, which believed that Austria should get more involved in the central Asian country."

Veterans Group Calls for Refusal to Deploy to Afghanistan and Iraq
A quote...."In what is sure to be a controversial call to action or inaction, the organization March Forward, a group of patriotic retired and active-duty servicemen, has recommended that soldiers refuse orders to deploy to Afghanistan and Iraq."

NATO Fails to Get Russian Commitment for Afghan War
A quote...."In another sign of just how desperate the international alliance is for help in the floundering war, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen asked the Russian government to provide military helicopters as well as air force training personnel for the Afghan War."

Pakistan says US drone attacks counterproductive
A quote...."Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani told US Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen on Wednesday that drone attacks in Balochistan would be considered as an aggression against the country, the Press TV correspondent reported."

Pakistan, US at Odds on Enemies in Terror War
A quote...."In an interview on Pakistani television today, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Michael Mullen declared that Pakistan’s Army would soon launch an invasion of North Waziristan to crack down on the Haqqani network, a long-time US rival. -- It seems to have come as something of a surprise to the Pakistani Army, whose spokesman also gave an interview today insisting that they were in no position to invade North Waziristan."

Mumbai attacker Kasab retracts confession, claims meeting U.S. terror suspect
BREAKING NEWS - Special Note - A quote...." NEW DELHI, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Mohammed Ajmal Amir alias Kasab, the only militant caught alive in Mumbai terror attacks, Friday retracted his earlier confession before an Indian special court, said officials sources. -- But Kasab also claimed he had met arrested U.S. citizen David Coleman Headley, who has recently been charged by the FBI for planning the Mumbai attacks, as the latter interrogated him with four whitemen in his cell at the Mumbai police custody after he was captured, said the sources." -- For more on this issue see....India: Was Mumbai suspect a double agent for US? & Just Give it a Rest OK!! - 11-27-09 - mpg

Bush Intentionally Let Osama bin Laden Escape, Asserts Congressman Hinchey
A quote...."I think the main reason obviously for that was to be able to justify the attack against Iraq. If [Osama] bin Laden had been captured -- the person who initiated and organized the attack of September 11, 2001, against the United States -- then it would have been difficult to say, that in spite of the fact that we have captured the person who initiated that attack, now we have to attack another country that had nothing to do with that attack. -- So, that was the main reason why he wasn't captured. And this isn't anything new. I've been saying this for years - many, many years. It's so interesting to me that now all of a sudden, what I've been saying for years is getting a lot of interesting attention." -- *Maurice Hinchey*, US congressman -- For more on this issue see....US Support of Terror

Officials Say Iraq Fighters Intercepted Drone Video
A quote...."WASHINGTON — Insurgents in Iraq have occasionally intercepted video images sent from American military drones to troops in the field, causing the Defense Department to increase its use of encryption over the last year, military and intelligence officials said Thursday."

Fresh Saudi blitz kill 13 civilians in Yemen
A quote...."At least 13 civilians have lost their lives in a series of air strikes by Saudi military air planes along the border between Yemen and the oil-rich kingdom, Houthi fighters say."

Houthis: Another Saudi crawl stopped, US killing continues
A quote...."Saudi army tried to crawl this morning on the (Gabry )front from the northern side of Khowaya, and with the help of God, was broken, two tanks were destroyed, and the Saudi army and fled to the rear, and continued rocket fire on (Mount Dukhan, Almdod, Rumaih, Markaz Gabri). Throughout the day more than (312) missiles, and bombing by Apache (Malahit and Hawia, and Almagada) with more than (30) attacks."

North Korean arms plane 'has links to New Zealand'
A quote...."The mystery surrounding the missile-laden plane seized in Bangkok en route from North Korea deepened today as it emerged that the aircraft had links to a company based in New Zealand. -- Officials in Georgia, where the plane is registered, told AFP news agency that the aircraft, which was carrying 35 tonnes of missiles and explosives, including rocket propelled grenades, was leased from its owner, Air West, by SP Trading, in Auckland. -- The plane’s crew, from Kazakhstan and Belarus, were arrested last Friday after they made an emergency refuelling stop at Bangkok airport." -- also posted at BLN & RogueGov

No-Fault Espionage
Special Note - A quote...."Spies are traitors in every sense of the word, unless, of course, if one is spying for Israel. Israel aggressively spies on the US both to influence policy and steal high technology, but getting caught only very rarely has any consequences.  Leading neoconservatives like Richard Perle, Douglas Feith, and Stephen Bryen have all been detected in flagrante providing classified information to Israel but the investigations were halted and their security clearances were godfathered so they could continue to hold high office.  FBI counter intelligence officer John Cole has reported on the frustration of his colleagues over the many cases of Israeli espionage that are dropped under orders from the Justice Department.  He provides a "conservative estimate" of 125 worthwhile investigations into Israeli espionage in the US involving both American citizens and Israelis stopped due to political pressure from above. Israeli citizens and diplomats who are caught in the act spying are routinely freed without criminal charges and allowed to return home." - bold by website editor

Obama moves ahead with AFRICOM
A quote...."...all the available evidence demonstrates that he [Obama] is determined to continue the expansion of US military activity on the continent initiated by President Bill Clinton in the late 1990s and dramatically escalated by President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009. While many expected the Obama administration to adopt a security policy toward Africa that would be far less militaristic and unilateral than that pursued by his predecessor, the facts show that he is in fact essentially following the same policy that has guided US military involvement in Africa for more than a decade." - also posted at BLN & RogueGov - For more on this issue see....Africa - the Next Target - 02-28-08 - mpg

Wave of strikes sweeps Greece
A quote...."A wave of strikes culminating on Thursdays pan-worker mobilisation has been the response to the scaremongering of the government amidst the worsening economic crisis that threatens Greece with bankruptcy."

Bolivia MAS Wins Legislative Majority
A quote...."La Paz, Dec 17 (Prensa Latina) The ruling Movement towards Socialism (MAS) confirmed Thursday it reached majority in the two chambers of the future Plurinational Legislative Assembly, now that the official counting of the Bolivian general elections is over."

Colombia rebel groups Farc and ELN agree 'to unite'
A quote...."Two of Colombia's biggest rebel groups have announced they intend to unite to fight the country's security forces."
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Naomi Klein Finally “Gets It”
A quote...."Naomi Klein has been running around for the longest time supporting the events in Copenhagen like they were a real effort to save the world or something.  I figured she had completely sold out or was so high on her own rhetoric, she couldn’t see the forest for the trees (little pun there). -- Well, one of the most vocal and coherent anti-globalization and anti-neoliberal Friedman economic reform advocates has finally ”woken up”.

Documents Suggest Bush White House Failed to Search for Libby's "Missing" Emails Subpoenaed in CIA Leak Probe -- A quote...."Between late 2005 and January 2006, the Bush administration tried to recover "lost" emails from staffers who worked in the Office of the Vice President (OVP), an effort centered on a critical week - October 1 through October 6, 2003. That same week the Justice Department announced it was investigating the unauthorized leak of Valerie Plame Wilson's covert CIA status."

Death Of The Internet: Censorship Bills In UK, Australia, U.S. Aim To Block “Undesirable” Websites
Web Censorship Alert - A quote...."Internet censorship bills currently working their way into law in the UK, Australia and the U.S. legislate for government powers to restrict and filter any website that it deems to be undesirable for public consumption. -- In the UK, legislation slated as the “Digital Economy Bill“, currently being debated in the House of Lords, would allow the Home Secretary to place “a technical obligation on internet service providers” to block whichever sites it wishes." -- also posted at DProgram

Muslims Say F.B.I. Tactics Sow Anger and Fear
A quote...."The anxiety and anger have been building all year. In March, a national coalition of Islamic organizations warned that it would cease cooperating with the F.B.I. unless the agency stopped infiltrating mosques and using “agents provocateurs to trap unsuspecting Muslim youth.” "

Even in cases the U.S. wins, Guantanamo evidence is suspect
A quote...."A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the United States is unlawfully imprisoning at Guantanamo a Yemeni once accused of training at an al Qaeda camp, just days after a different U.S. judge upheld the detention of another Guantanamo detainee who trained at the same camp."
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

The CIA trains and supervises Palestinian torturers of Hamas prisoners
Special Note - A quote...."I recently found myself in an argument with my father, who failed to believe a simple fact I was presenting him. The easily verifiable argument I was putting forth was that Fatah tried to overthrow militarily the new, democratically elected Hamas government in Gaza, and that this coup attempt was being done with US guns, ammunition, and training. A quick Google search provided all the factual evidence I needed to make that point --  It turns out US (para)military cooperation with the Palestinian Authority reaches even more shocking, and condemnable, levels. The CIA has, in fact, been training and supervising two branches of the Palestinian Authority (the Preventative Security Organization and the General Intelligence Service), both of which are documented to have used systematically torture on their prisoners, according to human rights groups."

CIA Working in West Bank "Security" Groups -- America You Must Be So Proud
Special Note - A quote...."American CIA assisted torture in the West Bank. - George W. Bush has never left the Whitehouse, he's just grown taller, darker, and speaks with a larger vocabulary.......What's changed, nothing:"
"According to America and the CIA "it's ALL good."

Sir Geoffrey Bindman: Livni has no right to claim immunity from prosecution
Must Read - A quote...."It is not at all surprising that the Israeli government is outraged at the attempt – initially successful – to obtain an arrest warrant in Britain against their former foreign minister Tzipi Livni. But their characterisation of it as a "diplomatic offence" is wide of the mark. Those who come to Britain are subject to its laws. -- It is necessary to step back from the particular case and look at the broader picture. War crimes and crimes against humanity are international crimes transcending national boundaries. Universal jurisdiction to put those accused of them on trial is a logical development of that recognition. Such crimes are unlikely to be redressed in the country where the perpetrators hold political power. If they are not, they can only be adjudicated in courts of another state, or in an international court or tribunal."

Get the war criminals arrested now
Special Note - A quote...."The recent arrest warrant issued in London  for former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni is more than justified. -- This woman, along with two other Israeli leaders, Ehud Olmert and  Ehud Barak, stood at the helm of the Israeli government that ordered, supervised and charted  the  genocidal onslaught against the Gaza Strip this time last year. -- She was a chief participant in the decision-making process who also supervised the progress of the hideous massacre from the beginning to the end. -- Needless to say, the decisions taken by Livni, and other suspected Israeli war criminals, did lead to the murder of more than 1440 people,  including hundreds of innocent children whose lives were terminated by indiscriminate bombings from air, land and sea. This is in addition to the pornographic destruction of a huge part of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure, including tens of thousands of homes, mosques and public buildings of every kind." -- also posted at Creative-i

Is Britain’s capitulation to Israel on the Livni arrest warrant an effort to protect Tony Blair from a similar fate?
Special Note - Related Article - A quote...."Have you ever heard of a ranking official of a sovereign nation apologize to the official of another country for the perfectly legal machinations of its esteemed and independent judiciary? Yeah, I didn’t think so. -- Yet this was the treat afforded to global audiences when Britain’s foreign secretary, David Miliband, called up former foreign minister of Israel, Tzipi Livni, to pander to her sensibility offended by the British courts, which had earlier issued an arrest warrant for her involvement in possible war crimes related in Gaza. More embarrassingly still, Miliband issued a statement that Britain would look into revising its own laws in order to concede to the Israelis’ indignation:"

Allies suspected of war crimes should not be above the law
Related Article - A quote...."Israeli politician Tzipi Livni and her supporters are outraged that last weekend a British court issued a warrant to allow police to arrest her and question her about allegations that she committed war crimes during the Gaza offensive last Christmas. Ms Livni, Israel’s foreign minister at the time of the offensive, was planning a trip to the UK. The British government is under pressure to change the law to ensure that Israeli citizens are less likely to be subjected to the universal jurisdiction that the UK courts have to deal with allegations of war crimes. And it looks like it will do so, after foreign secretary David Miliband issued a grovelling apology yesterday to Israel for what has transpired."

Jerusalem culture event shut down by Israeli forces
There is something truly sick about the "Jews" of Isreal. - mpg -- A quote...."Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli forces arrested several and scuffled with Palestinians while shutting down a cultural festival meant to proclaim attachment to Jerusalem on Thursday." -- also posted at AlethoNews

Hamas Won't Recognize Extension of Abbas's Term
Abbas was the one who tried to bury the Goldstone report and soon thereafter was forced to tender his resignation because of the publics outrage at such a betrayal.  Now he's back.  Maybe he thinks his constituents have forgotten his betrayal, maybe he thinks they've forgotten Israel's murderous attack on Gaza, maybe he even thinks they've forgotten they're Palestinians? --  Maybe he's right to think so.  Heck all the Neo-Romans in this country can't even remember their constitution, bill of rights, political promises more than a month old or even that they were once Americans, so Abbas could be right. - mpg -- A quote...."Hamas has refused to recognize the extension of the tenure of acting Palestinian Authority Chief, Mahmoud Abbas, describing the decision as illegitimate. -- "This is an illegal decision and a political bribe to cover up for the fact that Abbas's term in office expired a long time ago," Hamas said in a statement, Sari al-Khalili, Press TV correspondent reported." -- For more about what this website editor though of his resignation, when he tendered it, see below....

Abbas 'not to seek re-election' - Hip Hip Hooray!! - mpg
Special Note - Some quotes...."Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, has said he will not seek re-election when elections are held in January, Palestinian officials have said." -- "Another PLO official said Abbas, who heads the Fatah faction in the West Bank, will give a speech later on Thursday explaining his decision not to run." -- OH!  ME! ME! ME! Let this website editor try.....

My Fellow Palestinians

After many years of service to the Israeli and US-NRE establishments. After carefully hiding my traitorous nature to the Palestinian cause.  After being the most obsequious, servile, craven, crawling, butt-kissing,  sniveling, conniving, backstabbing, lowlife, toad, ever to disgrace the glorious history of the Palestinian people, it has come to my attention that you've all become aware of what I truly am when, during the last month, under strict instructions from my masters in Isreal and the US-NRE, I attempted to delay the adoption of the Goldstone report by the UN.

Since there's hardly a chance of me safely walking down a public street for the rest of my life without an armed escort because of what I've done, much less ever running for elective office again, I have concluded with the greatest regret to give up my lifetime sinecure with the Israeli and US-NRE administrations and leave you poor slobs to their tender mercies while I high-tail it out of here to some friendly, low tax, European country to contemplate my ill-gotten gains. 

Have a nice life folks. - mpg -- posted 11-05-09

Australian activists give Olmert an unwelcome reception - posted at Electronic Intifada
Action Update - A quote...."Australia's support for war crimes, something the UN-sponsored and -endorsed Goldstone report found Israel committed, is what the protest was opposing. The protest was to show the world that there are people in Australia who oppose Israel's attacks on Gaza, the increasing of illegal settlements and the construction of the apartheid wall; that there are people who want to see the right of self-determination for the Palestinians. We oppose our government's continuing support of Israel in the face of these atrocities. A bit of pepper spray will not deter us -- it is nothing in comparison to the horrors Palestinians face every day. - also posted at Uruknet

Britain's Jewish Chronicle newspaper rattled by Redress website
Action Update - A quote...."Britain's top Zionist newspaper and Israeli mouthpiece, the Jewish Chronicle, is becoming desperate in the face of growing public support for the Palestinian cause. -- In an article published on 17 December, the newspaper expressed concern at the work of our website, Redress Information & Analysis, in highlighting Israeli racism and crimes against humanity."
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Salon.com’s Glenn Greenwald: Current Health Reform Bill Does More Harm Than Good - Alt - (3m41s)
Must View Video -- More on Obama's non-health no-care bill  -- A quote...."I don’t think this has anything to do with “anger” or anything that Jay Rockefeller just said. I think the argument of why the bill should be defeated as Dr. Dean is expressing and others is not that “well because we didn’t get everything we wanted, sink the bill”. That’s not it. The argument is much more substantive than that. The argument is that this bill does more harm than good from the perspective of healthcare policy and how our government works. Essentially it requires by force of law, 10s of millions of people who don’t want to be customers of the private insurance industry to become customers of that industry." -- *Glenn Greenwald*

White House as helpless victim on healthcare
Must Read -- More on Obama's non-health no-care bill -- Two Quotes of the Day...."....contrary to Obama's occasional public statements in support of a public option, the White House clearly intended from the start that the final health care reform bill would contain no such provision and was actively and privately participating in efforts to shape a final bill without it.  From the start, assuaging the health insurance and pharmaceutical industries was a central preoccupation of the White House...."  ---  "The evidence was overwhelming from the start that the White House was not only indifferent, but opposed, to the provisions most important to progressives.  The administration is getting the bill which they, more or less, wanted from the start -- the one that is a huge boon to the health insurance and pharmaceutical industry." -- *Glenn Greenwald*

Rahm’s Making the White House Look Terrible
More on Obama's non-health no-care bill -- A quote...."This morning, the Politico made news by reporting that someone at the White House had ordered Harry Reid to cut a deal with Joe Lieberman on health care."
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DETROIT Case Study: The Deindustrialization of America and Fall of the Republic
Video - From the history file - 11/05/09 -- (YouTube - 8 min 21 sec - November 05, 2009) - A quote...."http://www.infowars.com/ -- A look into Infowars.com exclusive footage documenting the collapse of Detroit, a case in the deindustrialization of America. Several key cities in the "Rust Belt"-- once the backbone of U.S. industry-- are now scheduled to be bulldozed and shrunk, destroying abandoned homes and re-wilding large portions of these industrial urban areas."

Bank Collapse in Austria Brings Eastern European Debt Center Stage
A quote...."In the links Monday, I pointed to an FT article detailing the Austrian government’s nationalization of the insolvent bank Hypo Group Alpe Adria (HGAA). The financial institution, which has 58 billion in assets, is the country’s sixth largest bank. But, in relative terms, this is a very large bankruptcy – using GDP at purchasing power parity, an American HGAA would have assets of $2.5 trillion, larger than any of the American banks. So, this is a very big deal and it points to renewed risks in banking and the possibility of contagion." - also posted at DProgram

Initial Jobless Claims in U.S. Unexpectedly Increase
A quote...."Initial jobless claims rose by 7,000 to 480,000 in the week ended Dec. 12, from a revised 473,000 the prior week, Labor Department figures showed today in Washington. The number of people receiving unemployment insurance was little changed in the prior week, while those getting extended payments increased." -- From Bloomberg

Fall in November retail sales figures point to disappointing Christmas for British retailers
A quote...."LONDON, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- A surprise and unwelcome fall in November's retail figures on the British high street has sounded a warning about the extent of the recession and hopes for recovery."

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