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M5 Readers: Keep in Mind That Political News, By Nature, May Reflect Sequential Agenda
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February  2010 

 

Veritas in Harvard: No, Just Double Standards, Injustice, and Fear By Mohamed Khodr M.D., M.P.H.. Axis of Logic [02/28/10] "I must strenuously and in the strongest terms possible protest the silence and inaction of Harvard University toward the outrageous, inhumane, offensive, even racist eugenic proposal that Dr. Martin Kramer, a Visiting Scholar at Harvard made during his speech at the Israeli Herzliya Conference on January 31, 2010. In that speech Dr. Kramer implored the West to stop its Pro Natal services to the already besieged and starving Gaza Palestinian pregnant mothers and infants as a method of controlling the rapid birth rate in Gaza as a matter of political and social policy. To him such control will naturally lead to a decrease in the radicalization of Palestinian youth which he calls “superfluous men” as well as relieve the “demographic threat” to Israel’s Jewish identity.  How racist is the term “superfluous men” to describe young Palestinian men who are constant fodder for Israeli soldier’s bullets, missiles, and tank shells (as soldiers themselves have told “Break the Silence” group of former IDF Soldiers) as unnecessary and wasteful human beings. ..."   

Israeli DM: No Need to Coordinate With US on Attacking Iran [02/28/10] "At his visit to the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP), an AIPAC founded think tank, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak reiterated his calls for Western nations to keep “all options” open in moving against Iran. But more importantly, he suggested Israel might attack Iran even beyond American objections. “I don’t think that there is a need to coordinate in this regard,” Barak insisted, adding later in the speech that Israel has always “felt very proud that we never asked the Americans to come and fight for us.” ..."  Related: Netanyahu: Israel-Iran War Not Being Planned [02/19/10] "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday his country is not planning a war with Iran and that Tehran's concerns over such a conflict are the result of the threat of additional international sanctions. "We are not planning any wars," Netanyahu said, speaking in Moscow after meetings urging Russian officials to approve tougher sanctions against Iran. ..." US has " no plan for military action against Iran": Clinton [02/19/10]  Note:  The cunt-in-chief lies again. They have at least two plans for everything. What a difference 19 days makes.  

Commentary: The Chicago gun case and the fight for economic liberty [02/28/10] "When the Supreme Court hears oral arguments on March 2, 2010 in the landmark gun rights case McDonald v. Chicago, the Second Amendment won’t be the only thing on the justices’ minds. That’s because when it comes to protecting constitutional rights from the depredations of state and local governments, the Court must obey the 14th Amendment, which commands: “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” McDonald will therefore turn on whether the right to keep and bear arms applies to Chicago via the 14th Amendment’s Privileges or Immunities Clause or via its Due Process Clause. That distinction matters because the Privileges or Immunities Clause has been a dead letter since the controversial Slaughterhouse Cases of 1873, which gutted the clause while upholding a state-sanctioned slaughterhouse monopoly in Louisiana. And despite overwhelming historical evidence that the Privileges or Immunities Clause was specifically written and ratified after the Civil War in order to secure individual rights against state abuse—including the right to armed self-defense—Slaughterhouse has never been overturned. ..." 

Analysis: Health care to die for [02/28/10] "In America, 45,000 out of 300 million people die because they lack health insurance. In England, 50,000 out of 60 million people die because they have health insurance. Adjusting for population and those 45,000 who die without health insurance would become 250,000 who die with health insurance. ..."  

Commentary: The False Health Debate: Shall We Be Forced To Buy Corporate Insurance By Law Or By Necessity? [02/28/10] ""By the time you read the next couple paragraphs the veil will be lifted from your eyes and you will finally understand what is really going on with the health care “debate”, which up to this point has been a total fraud on the American people. On the one hand we have the Republicans. They are for privatization, deregulation and the “free market”, all deceptive synonyms for giving all power to, and putting us totally at the mercy of, the corporations. In the Republican world view, we will be forced to buy corporate medical insurance if we can afford it, and simply die if we cannot (or if they cheat us out of our coverage)." ..."   

Russia Angered By US Missile Defense Plan [02/28/10] "Russia has serious concerns about U.S. plans to deploy missile interceptors in Romania, the Foreign Ministry said Friday. The statement from ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko reflected Moscow's irritation about the U.S. missile defense plans and signaled tensions in relations with Washington.Nesterenko said that Russia has been annoyed to learn about the move from the media. ..."  

Defying Global Slump, China Has Labor Shortage [02/28/10] "Just a year after laying off millions of factory workers, China is facing an increasingly acute labor shortage. As American workers struggle with near double-digit unemployment, unskilled factory workers here in China’s industrial heartland are being offered signing bonuses. Factory wages have risen as much as 20 percent in recent months. ..."   

Iran puzzles U.S. and Israel by moving nuclear fuel above ground [02/28/10] "When Iran was caught last September building a secret, underground nuclear enrichment plant at a military base near the city of Qum, the country's leaders insisted they had no other choice. With its nuclear facilities under constant threat of attack, they said, only a fool would leave them out in the open. So imagine the surprise of international inspectors almost two weeks ago when they watched as Iran moved nearly its entire stockpile of low-enriched nuclear fuel to an above-ground plant. It was as if, one official noted, a bull's-eye had been painted on it. Why take such a huge risk? That mystery is the subject of fervent debate among many who are trying to decode Iran's intentions. The theories run from the bizarre to the mundane: Under one, Iran is actually taunting the Israelis to strike first. Under another, it is simply escalating the confrontation with the West to win further concessions in negotiations. The simplest explanation, and the one that the Obama administration subscribes to, is that Iran has run short of suitable storage containers for radioactive fuel, so it had to move everything. ..."   

Commentary: Ayn Rand, Inspiration to Right-Wing Leaders, also Big Admirer of Serial Killers by Mark Ames[02/27/10] "There's something deeply unsettling about living in a country where millions of people froth at the mouth at the idea of giving health care to the tens of millions of Americans who don't have it, or who take pleasure at the thought of privatizing and slashing bedrock social programs like Social Security or Medicare. It might not be as hard to stomach if other Western countries also had a large, vocal chunk of the population who thought like this, but the US is seemingly the only place where right-wing elites can openly share their distaste for the working poor. Where do they find their philosophical justification for this kind of attitude? It turns out, you can trace much of this thinking back to Ayn Rand, a popular cult-philosopher who exerts a huge influence over much of the right-wing and libertarian crowd, but whose influence is only starting to spread out of the US. One reason why most countries don't find the time to embrace her thinking is that Ayn Rand is a textbook sociopath. Literally a sociopath: Ayn Rand, in her notebooks, worshiped a notorious serial murderer-dismemberer, and used this killer as an early model for the type of "ideal man" that Rand promoted in her more famous books -- ideas which were later picked up on and put into play by major right-wing figures of the past half decade, including the key architects of America's most recent economic catastrophe -- former Fed Chair Alan Greenspan and SEC Commissioner Chris Cox -- along with other notable right-wing Republicans such as Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Rush Limbaugh, and South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford. [Note: If you are able to finish this article, it could be quite chilling the "minds" we are dealing with today in our government and courts.] ..."   

Commentary:  Foreign Policy Hawks: Wrong Since 1938 [02/27/10] "In every international conflict, the side that favors war invariably gets to "own" the flag. Those favoring diplomacy can complain as much as they choose, but it's always the hard-liners, the hawks, and the "bombs away" crowd that successfully portrays itself as defender of the nation's interests. This is true during the build-up to war, throughout the war, and afterwards. No matter if the war turns out to have been built on lies or false premises -- or even if its results harm the nation's interests -- the side that pushes for negotiations is always put on the defensive by flag wavers. This is hardly new. Sometimes, it gets pretty hypocritical. ..."     

Mind Control: New Israeli Law Forbids Palestinians From Mourning Or "Showing Signs Of Sadness" [02/27/10] "A new law in Israel makes it a crime to commemorate what Palestinians call the "Nakba", the "catastrophe" of their dispossession by the creation of the Zionist state in 1948. The Knesset, Israel's parliament, has passed "The Nakba Draft Law" after just one reading. Penalties will be imposed on anyone showing signs of sadness and mourning within the (undefined) borders of Israel on 15 May; Palestinians remember on that day the creation of the refugee crisis that remains after 62 years. ..."   

Pentagon Discloses Hundreds of Reports of Possibly Illegal Intelligence Activities [02/27/10] "The Department of Defense has released more than 800 heavily-redacted pages of intelligence oversight reports, detailing activities that its Inspector General has “reason to believe are unlawful.” The reports are the latest in an ongoing document release by more than a half-dozen intelligence agencies in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed by EFF in July 2009. The reports, submitted to the Intelligence Oversight Board (IOB) by various Department of Defense components, cover the period from 2001 through 2008. The IOB’s role within the Executive Office of the President is to ensure that each component of the intelligence community works within the Constitution and all applicable laws ..."   

Commentary: Time to strip tax exempt status from all churches [02/27/10]  Note: Why give the delusional a tax break?

Court rejects 3rd term for Colombian president [02/27/10] "Colombian President Alvaro Uribe said he accepts a court's rejection of a referendum that might have allowed him a third term in office. ..."  

Airport Security: Welcome to Scannergate [02/27/10] "Call them what you will: bottom feeders, corporate con-men, flim-flam artists, peddlers of crisis, you name it. You can't help but marvel how enterprising security firms have the uncanny ability to sniff-out new opportunities wherever they can find, or manufacture, them. After all, nothing sells like fear and in "new normal" America fear is an industry with a limitless growth potential. While Republicans and Democrats squabble over who's "tougher" when it comes to invading and pillaging other nations (in the interest of "spreading democracy" mind you), a planetary grift dubbed the "War on Terror," waiting in the wings are America's new snake-oil salesmen. Welcome to Scannergate! ..."   

Robin Hood Hacker [02/27/10] "A hacker using the alias “Neo” has attained almost cult status in Latvia after releasing through Twitter the confidential financial data of allegedly corrupt banks and state-owned companies that profited from the global recession. The information shows that many state-owned companies awarded bonuses to its management while requesting government funds and that managers of a bailed-out Latvian bank did not take salary cuts as they had promised..."    

Documentary: The New American Century [02/27/10] VIDEO  [97:00]  "This documentary film goes in detail through the untold history of The Project for the New American Century with tons of archival footage and connects it right into the present. It exposes how every major war in US history was based on a complete fraud with video of insiders themselves admitting it.  ..."    

Israel is building a “museum of tolerance” right on top of an ancient Muslim cemetery [02/27/10] "As if all the persecution and brutalisation meted out to the Palestinians were not enough, Israeli authorities are finalising preparations for the construction of a museum on top of an ancient Muslim cemetery in West Jerusalem. ..."  Note:  typical move

California Demands Records From Major Health Insurers [02/27/10] "California's seven largest health insurers have 30 days to hand over financial records for Attorney General Jerry Brown's investigation of how they review and pay claims. Brown's office began investigating the companies in September 2009, driven by reports that they were denying 28 to 40 percent of claims. Subpoenas have been issued to Aetna Health, Anthem Blue Cross, CIGNA, Health Net, Blue Shield of California, Kaiser Permanente and PacifiCare. ..."    

Documentary: Discovery Channel presents: Top Secret NSA [02/27/10] VIDEO clip [9:57]  "Discovery Channel TV series examining the various intelligence organizations of the world, including the Mossad, the NSA, and Scotland Yard.  ..."  

Ex-Mossad agent: Israel uses 'false flag' in most ops to avoid suspicion in Arab states [02/27/10] "Israel's Mossad has regularly faked Australian passports for its spies, an ex-agent said on Thursday, as anger grew over the use of foreign travel documents for an alleged assassination. Former Mossad case officer Victor Ostrovsky told ABC public radio that the spy agency had used Australian passports for previous operations before last month's assassination of a top Hamas commander in Dubai that has been blamed on Israel. He said agents had little trouble passing themselves off as Australians as few people in the Middle East have much knowledge about the country. "Consider the fact that Australians speak English and it's an easy cover to take, very few people know very much about Australia," he said. "You can tell whatever stories you want. It doesn't take much of an accent to be an Australian or New Zealander, or an Englishman for that matter. "And I know people had been under Australian cover not once (but) quite a few times. So why not use it (again)?" Australia summoned the Israeli ambassador and warned that the countries' friendly ties were at risk after Dubai police named three Australian passport-holders in a list of new suspects in the murder of Mahmud al-Mabhuh. Britain, Ireland, France and Germany expressed similar outrage after people holding documents from their countries were also linked to the January 20 killing in a luxury Dubai hotel. ..."    

Judge gives 430-year sentence to serial rapist [02/27/10] "A serial rapist in New York has been handed a prison sentence more than four centuries long, the New York Daily News reported Wednesday. ..."  Note: As if law in one life could follow this man into another life ... sequential or not.

Kucinich jeers: Congress is ‘complicit’ in violating Americans’ constitutional rights [02/27/10] [Extension of Patriot Act, Commentary] "In the wake of congressional Democrats’ reauthorization and extension of the USA Patriot Act, few elected Democrats have been as vocal about the post-9/11 security measures as they were during the Bush administration.  ..."  

Indian law would make criticizing GM crops an imprisonable offense [02/27/10] "In an unprecedented muzzle on the right to freedom of speech of the citizen, Chapter 13 section 63 of the draft bill says, “Whoever, without any evidence or scientific record misleads the public about the safety of the organisms and products…shall be punished with imprisonment for a term that shall not be less than six months but which may extend to one year and with fine which may extend to two lakh rupees or with both.” ..."  

Indiana Sen. Dan Coats: Military action 'only option' on Iran [02/27/10] "Former Indiana Sen. Dan Coats told the magazine Human Events this week that "potential military action" is "the only option now" for halting Iran's nuclear program. ..."  Note: Another warhawk lunatic who is off his meds. 

Iran ready to accept Japan's nuclear offer [02/27/10] "Tehran says it is ready to hand over the construction of five nuclear power plants to Toyoko, if Japan is truly determined to shoulder the undertaking. ..."  Note: So much irony with all of this ...

Clinton: U.S. Deficit a National Security Issue [02/27/10] "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday said “outrageous” advice from former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan helped create record U.S. budget deficits that put national security at risk. Appearing before congressional panels to defend the State Department’s $52.8 billion budget request for 2011, Clinton said the massive U.S. foreign debt had sapped U.S. strength ..."  Note: And the current series of boondoggles isn't? Strength for what? To kill more people?

The End of Justice in Australia [02/27/10] "The right-wing government of John Howard proposes to introduce through Federal Parliament a draconian anti-terror legislation, the Anti-Terrorism Bill 2005. If passed, the Bill would make it easy for the government and the police to arrest and detain without charge Australians from Muslim and Arab backgrounds on suspicion of planning to commit act of terrorism. The Bill would abolish the fundamental right of Australian citizens, the right to personal liberty in peacetime. It is the end of justice for those deemed ‘Un-Australian’ by the Howard Government. The Bill provides the police with immunity from prosecution and reduces the rights of the accused and the defence practically to nothing. Australian Federal Police will have the power to secretly detained suspects and witnesses for 14-day preventive detention without charge. Alternatively, place them under indefinite 12-months “control orders” that would limit the movements of suspects. The Bill establishes the primacy of suspicion over fact, since measures restricting liberties, potentially leading to house arrest, could be imposed on individuals not for what they have done, but according to what the Attorney General thinks they could have done or could do. As Prime Minister John Howard stated, “it is not necessary for the prosecution to identify a specific terrorist act”. Thus, this Bill deliberately turns its back on the rule of law and establishes a new form of political regime, a police state. Although the Bill is a second draft, and some improvements have been made to the original, the changes are only window-dressing and designed to mislead the Australian public. The Howard Government may abolish habeas corpus which prevents authorities from detaining people indefinitely without charges. Without habeas corpus, the Government can simply detain its opponents freely. ..."     

Google executives have been convicted of violating Italian privacy laws [02/27/10] "Google executives have been convicted of violating Italian privacy laws, the first case to hold the company responsible for the content posted on its system. The case, though subject to appeal, could have sweeping implications worldwide for internet freedom: it suggests that Google was not simply a tool for its users, as it contends, but effectively no different from any other media company, like newspapers or television, that provides content and could be regulated. The trial centred on footage posted on Google Videos, of a teenager with Down syndrome who was being bullied by four other boys at a Turin school. The footage posted in September 2006 became the most viewed clip on Google Italy and remained for two months before it was removed. ..."  

Contractors outnumber full-time workers at DHS; lawmakers 'astounded'  [02/27/10] "The Department of Homeland Security has more contractors working for it than full-time employees, a situation two members of Congress said Tuesday was "unacceptable, untenable and unsustainable." Sen. Joseph Lieberman, the chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and ranking Republican Susan Collins said they were "astounded" to learn there are more than 200,000 contractor employees at the department. The civilian work force of Homeland Security numbers 188,000, according to an estimate provided to the senators by Homeland Security. In a letter sent Tuesday to the agency's Secretary Janet Napolitano, Lieberman and Collins said the figure "raises the question of whether DHS itself is in charge of its programs and policies, or whether it inappropriately has ceded core decisions to contractors." Although Lieberman, an independent from Connecticut, and Collins of Maine noted that contractors can offer a variety of needed assets and skills to federal agencies, they called the current balance between federal employees and contractors at Homeland Security "unacceptable, untenable and unsustainable," according to the letter. Napolitano is slated to appear before the Senate committee Wednesday and is expected to face questions on the subject. The senators want a unit-by-unit breakdown of where in Homeland Security the contractors are working and have asked for assurances that contractors are not performing "inherently governmental work." ..."  Note: For a department that didn't exist before 2001, what could they possibly need 388,000 to do? The record for DHS and TSA has been abysmal, and has made is evident that the quality of people hired is extremely low, even to the point where ex-criminals are hired, and many of the DHA and TSA employees have sadistic personalities and misuse their authority. The news is rife with these kind of reports based on innumerable documented events. 

Iris scanning for Australian Dubai visitors [02/27/10] "Australians traveling to Dubai will have to obtain a visa, be fingerprinted and have an iris scan in the wake of the Mossad hit squad passport scandal. ..." 

Obama: ‘I'm An Ardent Believer in the Free Market’ [02/26/10] Related: Alan Greenspan "Free Enterprise has Flaws" [2009]   

UK: Gordon Brown shouted 'you ruined my life' at Tony Blair [02/26/10] "Brown shouted in final confrontation that accelerated Blair's resignation as prime minister, according to Andrew Rawnsley's new book ..."  

Reid blasts GOP: ‘You’re not entitled to your own facts’ [02/26/10] "Striking a more aggressive tone than the cordial President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) wasted little time at the bipartisan health summit before rebuking Republicans for their allegedly dishonest approach to the debate. ..."  Note: Reid prompts the adage: 'the good die young, but pricks live forever'.

Navy intercepts Argentinian warship near British waters [02/26/10] "The Royal Navy has intercepted an Argentinian warship near British waters in an apparent escalation of the row over the Falkland Islands. ...Destroyer HMS York spotted the vessel around ten miles inside the disputed “oil zone” around the South Atlantic islands. The British crew had to radio the Argentinian ship, a smaller corvette named ARA Drummond, to demand that it change its course. .... Under international law, the 15 miles of sea surrounding the Falklands are officially British waters. The ship was spotted around 65 miles from the islands, in an area of sea called the “conservation zone”. It is in this zone that the oil exploration is taking place. It is not illegal for Argentinian ships to enter it but the incident has heightened tensions. "  Note: Another provocation by the British.  Related:  US refuses to endorse British sovereignty in Falklands oil dispute   "Washington refused to endorse British claims to sovereignty over the Falkland Islands yesterday as the diplomatic row over oil drilling in the South Atlantic intensified in London, Buenos Aires and at the UN. Despite Britain’s close alliance with the US, the Obama Administration is determined not to be drawn into the issue. It has also declined to back Britain’s claim that oil exploration near the islands is sanctioned by international law, saying that the dispute is strictly a bilateral issue.  ..."   

Report: Australia already warned Israel against faking its passports [02/26/10] "Australian authorities had already warned Israeli intelligence against using doctored passports in its clandestine activities around the world, the newspaper The Australian reported on Thursday. The Australian report came as Canberra warned Israel earlier Thursday that if it was involved in the alleged use of three forged Australian passports in the assassination of a Hamas leader in Dubai, it would not be considered the act of a friend. ..."  Related:   Israel Mossad 'factory' churned out fake Australian passports [02/26/10] "A former Mossad officer has alleged the Israeli spy agency has its own "passport factory" to create or doctor passports for use in intelligence operations. ..."  

60 MINUTES obtains video of pentagon employee selling secrets to Chinese Spy [02/26/10] "CBS "60 Minutes" has obtained an FBI videotape showing a Defense Department employee selling secrets to a Chinese spy for cash. The video, which has never been made public before, offers a rare glimpse into the secretive world of espionage and illustrates how China’s spying may now pose the biggest espionage threat to the U.S.  ..."   

Global treaty may make your ISP spy on you  [02/26/10] "Documents from talks on a secret global copyright deal have leaked online, various sources are reporting. The documents discussed are said to confirm that internet service providers could be compelled to constantly sift through their customers' data looking for copyright transgressions. The European Union's data protection chief has said that such requirements could curtail individuals' civil liberties. It's the latest twist in the tale of ACTA, the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, which has been swiftly and secretly negotiated by the 27 nations of the European Union, the US, Australia, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, South Korea, Singapore, Jordan, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates. The leak, detailed by PC World magazine, covers ACTA's "enforcement procedures in the digital environment". The draft being circulated says that ISPs operating in nations that have signed up to ACTA would be forced to operate "automatic technical processes" to detect copyright-infringing activities. Translated, that means they must examine data transferred by their customers for signs of copyrighted material, using the kind of deep packet inspection technology more typical of security services. ISPs told New Scientist in December that such technology will not only slow downloads, but puts in place technology that could be used for snooping and censorship. The leaked draft being circulated also says that those who ignore two warnings about infringing may have their internet connections severed by the state under a "three strikes" rule. In France, the government has already introduced a measure along these lines. It was declared unconstitutional, but the government then amended it and introduced it again. ..."  

Hustler Reports-'Sibel Edmonds: The Traitors Among Us' [02/25/10] "Sibel Edmonds, a former FBI translator, claims that the following government officials have committed what amount to acts of treason.  ...They are lawmakers Dennis Hastert, Bob Livingston, Dan Burton, Roy Blunt, Stephen Solarz and Tom Lantos, as well as at least three members of George W. Bush’s inner circle: Douglas Feith, Paul Wolfowitz and Marc Grossman. But is Sibel Edmonds credible? “Absolutely, she’s credible,” Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) told CBS’s 60 Minutes when he was asked about her in 2002. “The reason I feel she’s very credible is because people within the FBI have corroborated a lot of her story.” Edmonds’s remarkable allegations of bribery, blackmail, infiltration of the U.S. government and the theft of nuclear secrets by foreign allies and enemies alike rocked the Bush Administration. In fact, Bush and company actually prevented Edmonds from telling the American people what she knew—up until now. John M. Cole, an 18-year veteran of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Counterespionage departments, revealed the panic of upper-echelon officials when Edmonds originally started talking back in 2002. “Well, the Bureau is gonna have to try to work something out with Sibel,” Cole said an FBI executive assistant told him at the time, “because they don’t want this to go out and become public.” But they couldn’t “work something out with Sibel” because, it seems, she wasn’t looking to make a deal. Edmonds says she was looking to expose what she believed to be the ugly truth about the infiltration of the U.S. government by foreign spies. They were enabled, Edmonds claimed, by high-ranking U.S. officials and insider moles planted at nuclear weapons facilities around the nation. “Everybody at headquarters level at the Bureau knew what she was saying was extremely accurate,” Cole said recently. “They were trying to figure out ways of keeping this whole thing quiet because they didn’t want Sibel to come out. ..... Former CIA counterterrorism officer Giraldi summed up Edmonds’s disclosures to me in blunt terms: “This was a massive coordinated espionage effort directed against United States nuclear secrets engineered by foreign agents who successfully corrupted senior government officials and legislators in our Congress. It’s that simple.” According to a declassified version of a 2005 Department of Justice Inspector General’s report, Sibel Edmonds’s allegations are “credible,” “serious” and “warrant a thorough and careful review by the FBI.” Perhaps more damningly, the FBI’s John Cole recently confirmed a key element of Edmonds’s claims when he revealed the existence of “the FBI’s decade-long investigation” of the State Department’s Grossman. Edmonds claimed that Grossman was perhaps the top U.S. ringleader for the entire foreign espionage scheme. The probe, Cole added, “ultimately was buried and covered up.” Cole, who now works as an intelligence contractor for the Air Force, not only finds Edmonds “very credible,” but also confirms the “ongoing and detailed effort by Turkey to develop influence in the United States” through a number of illegal means.....”"   

Gates Calls European Mood "a Danger to Peace" [02/25/10] "“The demilitarization of Europe — where large swaths of the general public and political class are averse to military force and the risks that go with it — has gone from a blessing in the 20th century to an impediment to achieving real security and lasting peace in the 21st,” he told NATO officers and officials in a speech at the National Defense University, the Defense Department-financed graduate school for military officers and diplomats. A perception of European weakness, he warned, could provide a “temptation to miscalculation and aggression” by hostile powers. ..."  Note: Gates is a paranoid control freak and a dangerous individual with fractured logic.

Commentary:  US refuses Iran 1 gram of isotopes worth $75K; prefers war  [02/25/10] " The yearly need of Iran for life-saving medical isotopes is less than one gram and costs Iran $75,000 to refine the fuel. Iran has stated they would prefer to buy the isotopes rather than produce them. The US could resolve the threat of war with Iran if President Obama made a speech today saying the US will allow Iran to produce it themselves under inspection by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a legal right guaranteed by treaty among nations including the US and Iran, or by the US selling Iran the isotopes. ..."   

CIA says 68 lawmakers were briefed on ‘harsh interrogations’ [02/25/10] "CIA officials briefed at least 68 U.S. lawmakers between 2001 and 2007 on enhanced interrogation methods like simulated drowning that were being considered or used against captured al Qaeda members, according to declassified documents released by the agency on Tuesday. The once-secret CIA papers, obtained in a lawsuit by the conservative legal foundation Judicial Watch, shed new light on which lawmakers knew the details of the controversial interrogation program and when. ..."  Note: Here's 68 more people with no 'moral center' ... that in a 'just' world should be forced to resign.

Senate Dems abandon reforms, extend Patriot Act [02/25/10] "Unable to find the 60 votes needed to overcome a Republican filibuster, Senate Democrats abandoned proposals to reform the Patriot Act and voted Wednesday night to extend key parts of the controversial security law to 2011. If the House approves the legislation as well, the Patriot Act -- an omnibus security bill passed in the wake of 9/11 that civil libertarians argue amounts to a major roll-back of civil rights -- will see three of its most controversial elements extended by a year. Those are the "roving wiretap" clause, used to monitor mobile communications of individuals using multiple telephone lines; the "lone-wolf" provision, which enables spying on individuals suspected of terrorist activity but with no obvious connection to extremist groups; and the controversial section 215, known as the "library records provision" that allows government agencies to access an individual's library history. The Patriot Act provisions are set to expire on Sunday. Senate Democrats had hoped to insert privacy safeguards into the law before passing the extension, but couldn't overcome a Republican filibuster. ..."  Senate votes to extend USA Patriot Act for 1 year  " The Senate approved the bill on a voice vote with no debate. It now goes to the House. ..."   Note: The Senate should be arrested and imprisoned for corruption and treason.   Under conditions of deepening economic crisis and in the face of ever-wider social polarization at home, it can defend these interests only by embracing the unconstitutional methods adopted by the Bush administration. The Obama White House is continuing to build up a police state not for use against some ubiquitous terrorist threat, but to counter the inevitable growth of mass struggles by the American working class.

New U.S. Embassy in London Will Cost $1 Billion; Yes, That Includes the Moat [02/25/10] "The United States has unveiled plans for its new $1 billion high-security embassy in London — the most expensive it has ever built. The proposals were met with relief from both the present embassy’s Mayfair neighbours and the residents and developers of the Battersea wasteland where the vast crystalline cube, surrounded by a moat ..."  

MSM: Poll: Voter Discontent With Congress Reaches New High [02/25/10] "Only 10 percent of voters gave Congress high marks. ..."  Note: Six percent of any society are psychopaths. Not much spread there. 

Former New Orleans Detective Pleads Guilty in Katrina Shooting Cover-up [02/25/10] "Former New Orleans Police Department Lt. Michael Lohman today pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiring to obstruct justice, in connection with one of a string of violent encounters between police and civilians in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Police shot at least 10 people during the week after the storm made landfall. (We have been investigating the shootings, along with our partners the New Orleans Times-Picayune and PBS “Frontline.”) Lohman’s conviction stems from the so-called Danziger Bridge incident of Sept. 4, 2005. Responding to an emergency call that day, New Orleans police officers shot six citizens—killing two—on and around the span. ..."   

Mainstream Media Refuses to Disclose that "Independent" Pundits Are Actually the Heads of Lobbying Firms [02/25/10] "As reporter Sebastian Jones points out (see this and this), former Congressman Richard Gephardt runs a lobbying firm representing giant insurance and pharmaceutical companies. Retired General Barry McCaffrey sits on the board of a giant defense contractor, DynCorp, and lobbies for war. And many other "pundits" interviewed by the mainstream news are really high-level lobbyists for giant companies, pushing their agendas. And yet they are treated as "independent experts" by the media. ..."  

New Iran sanctions in 30-60 days, Clinton claims [02/25/10] "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expects the UN Security Council to impose new sanctions against Iran in the “next 30 to 60 days.” ..."  Note: Still, the Cunt-In-Chief. 

3 Suspected US Spies Beheaded In Pakistan [02/25/10] "Pakistani Taliban militants beheaded three men charged with spying for the United States in Pakistan's northwest tribal region, officials said Wednesday. The beheaded bodies were dumped roadside in Mirali town in North Waziristan. A written paper found near the bodies warned that people would face the same destiny if they are found guilty of spying for America. Pakistani officials said two of those beheaded were Afghan citizens and another was Pakistani tribesman. ..."   

American Jews seriously rethinking their 'relationship' with Israel [02/25/10] "The evidence that American Jews are seriously rethinking their relationship with Israel is growing, as is weariness with what some critics have referred to as “McCarthyism” within the organized American Jewish community, which seeks to stifle any dissent. ..."  

Baby DNA Sent to Military Lab for Potential Use in National Database [02/25/10] "An Austin lawyer threatened to pursue a new federal lawsuit Monday after learning that some newborn blood samples in Texas went to the U.S. military for potential use in a database for law enforcement purposes. The Department of State Health Services never mentioned the database to Jim Harrington, director of the Texas Civil Rights Project, ..."  

Australia: Children to be given identity numbers [02/25/10] "A program in which every school child in Australia would be given an identity number so their academic progress could be tracked through their school life is expected to be announced by the federal government as early as today. The Herald understands the number, to be known as a ''unique student identifier'', will be annexed to the My School program, which publishes the performance of individual schools on the internet. The number would allow the performance of individual students in each of the core subjects to be monitored for the duration of their school life so their progress could be measured. The Education Minister, Julia Gillard, is expected to announce the proposal in a speech today at the National Press Club where she will also canvass a draft of the new national curriculum to be released next Monday. The curriculum, a plank in the government's so-called ''education revolution'', will apply to maths, English, history and the sciences and be taught at all schools, starting next year. The ''unique student identifier'' is expected to cause controversy and raise privacy concerns. A senior source said strict privacy provisions would restrict its use to those who needed the information, such as parents. Protections would be built in to stop third parties being able to identify students. The My School website is updated once a year and grades each school on its NAPLAN performance in reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy for years three, five, seven and nine. Parents are sent the NAPLAN test results for their child each year. The new identity number would allow parents and other concerned parties to access a database documenting the child's performance throughout their time at school, regardless of how many schools they attended and whether they shifted interstate. A student's strengths and weaknesses could be monitored and addressed as their education progressed. It is understood Ms Gillard will promote the measure as another way of ensuring maximum school performance. She may also signal the extension of the My School program to year 12. A source said the identity number would be introduced after the next round of NAPLAN tests in May, possibly before the federal election. Its implementation will be overseen by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. Teacher unions, which oppose My School, are threatening to boycott the tests this year. ..."  Note: Sequentials at work. 

CO: Cracking Down on Fracking [02/25/10] "Mike Markham of Colorado has an explosive problem: His tap water catches fire. Markham demonstrates this in a new documentary, “Gasland,” which just won the Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize. Director Josh Fox films Markham as he runs his kitchen faucet, holding a cigarette lighter up to the running water. After a few seconds, a ball of fire erupts out of the sink, almost enveloping Markham’s head. The source of the flammable water, and the subject of “Gasland,” is the mining process called hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking.”  Fracking is used to access natural gas and oil reserves buried thousands of feet below the ground. Companies like Halliburton drill down vertically, then send the shaft horizontally, crossing many small, trapped veins of gas and oil. Explosive charges are then set off at various points in the drill shaft, causing what Fox calls “mini-earthquakes.” These fractures spread underground, allowing the gas to flow back into the shaft to be extracted. To force open the fractures, millions of gallons of liquid are forced into the shaft at very high pressure. ..."  Note: Fricking frackers ... 

Obama Rejects Attackers' Cries of 'Socialism' While Speaking At Business Roundtable [02/25/10] VIDEO [39:00]  Note:  These are the movers, shakers and controllers of American society, largely ... so this is interesting.

CIA, Pakistan Spying in Tandem [02/25/10] "Beyond the capture of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, C.I.A. operatives working with the ISI have carried out dozens of raids throughout Pakistan over the past year, carried out from bases in the cities of Quetta, Peshawar and elsewhere, according to Pakistani security officials. The raids often come after electronic intercepts by American spy satellites, or tips from Pakistani informants — and the spies from the two countries then sometimes drive in the same car to pick up their quarry. Sometimes the teams go on lengthy reconnaissance missions, with the ISI operatives packing sunscreen and neon glow sticks that allow them to identify their positions at night. Successful missions sometimes end with American and Pakistani spies toasting one another with Johnnie Walker Blue Label whisky, a gift from the C.I.A. ..."  Note: They should have chosen an imported single malt Scotch, either Glen Livit 12 Year, Glenfiddich 12 Year, or Auchentoshan Triple Distilled, either Classic or 12 Year .... no fusil oils and congeners to speak of ... stupid CIA doesn't even know how to pick a good Scotch. 

Code Pink protester: Blackwater official threatened to kill me [02/25/10] "A Code Pink protester claimed a high-ranking Blackwater official threatened his life during a break of a Senate Armed Services hearing focused on the military contractor's actions in Afghanistan. Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin reported that the threat was made by Johnny Walker, a program manager with one of Blackwater's subsidiaries. Walker testified at the hearing about the role his company, Paravant, played during its mercenary deployments to the Middle East. Shortly after the break was announced, Tighe Barry criticized the US military's use of Blackwater to the court and the CNN camera. As Walker brushed past on his way out of the courtroom, Barry claims Walker said "I'm gonna kill you." "This is how they run their business," Barry said to the camera after Walker left the room. "They are trained murderers. They will threaten you at any moment and they'll be in our communities soon." During its six-month investigation of Blackwater, the Senate Armed Services Committee has shown that the company is riddled with problems and frequently violated the terms of its contract with the US military. ..."  Note: Johnny Walker ... right. Related: Blackwater took hundreds of guns from US military; Afghan police  "Senate Inquiry Shows Contractor Signed for Rifles Using 'South Park' Alias ... Employees of the CIA-connected private security corporation Blackwater diverted hundreds of weapons, including more than 500 AK-47 assault rifles, from a U.S. weapons bunker in Afghanistan intended to equip Afghan policemen, according to an investigation by the Senate Armed Services Committee. On at least one occasion, an individual claiming to work for the company evidently signed for a weapons shipment using the name of a “South Park” cartoon character. And Blackwater has yet to return hundreds of the guns to the military. A Blackwater subsidiary known as Paravant that until recently operated in Afghanistan acquired the weapons for its employees’ “personal use,” according to committee staffers, as did other non-Paravant employees of Blackwater. Yet contractors in Afghanistan are not permitted to operate weapons without explicit permission from U.S. Central Command, something Blackwater never obtained. A November 2008 email from a Paravant vice president named Brian McCracken, obtained by the committee, nevertheless reads: “We have not received formal permission from the Army to carry weapons yet but I will take my chances ...”"   Scahill: Blackwater used shell company to defraud US government [ Paravant ]

Commentary:  "Unplug the Signal: The Truth Will Not Be Televised" [02/24/10] "A flow of information is constantly streaming from the television set; a bombardment of words and pictures. The speed at which this information is communicated makes it easy for the signal to take control, switching the viewer’s brain to stand-by as information is absorbed without analysis or question. Today the television’s constant signal shapes the conclusions of the masses and produces the collective norm. The signal prescribes what is news and what is truth through the words of so-called experts and authorities, gelding the consciousness and independent thoughts of those subjected to it. Through television, the masses can be made to accept the most monstrous distortions of reality. The signal is a chill wind of continuous oppression over the minds of the masses. It controls the management of society and culture, creating uniformity across all subjects. The fuel for this vehicle of mass deception is a technique known as perception management where an array of psychological techniques are used to alter the truth, leading the viewer to a desired conclusion. Some call this spin or propaganda while others know it as lying. According to Joseph Goebbels, Propaganda Minister for Adolph Hitler, “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it… It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.” Most of what can be found on the nightly news is nothing but advertisements selling more government and a false reality that benefits only those in control. Television is the dictator of information; newspaper and radio are the whisper campaign of the television’s message. ......"  

Americans on Government Assassination List [02/24/10] "Raising troubling comparisons to tactics employed by Josef Stalin and right-wing Latin American dictatorships, the US government has created a “hit list” of Americans abroad marked for murder. Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair told a House Intelligence Committee hearing on Feb. 3 that the US may, with executive approval, target and kill American terrorist suspects, Inter Press News Service reported. “We take direct action against terrorists in the intelligence community,” he said. ..."  Note: Like the Mossad in Dubai, right? Right?

Judicial Watch Obtains Documents Regarding Congressional CIA "Torture Briefings" [02/24/10] "Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it has received the first batch of documents from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) regarding congressional "Torture Briefings." The CIA produced the documents pursuant to a previous court order in Judicial Watch's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the CIA (Judicial Watch v. Central Intelligence Agency, Case: 1:09-cv-01352). The court order stipulates that documents pertaining to congressional briefings on "enhanced interrogation techniques" must be provided to Judicial Watch by April 15. Additional documents are forthcoming. ..."   

The "Patriot Act" As A Violation of Free Speech [02/24/10] " .... My speech is particularly nonviolent,” says Ralph Fertig, president of the organization. “I’ve gone to jail in the United States for my advocacy for peace.” The federal government, he maintains, cannot constitutionally make it a crime to help others advocate lawful, peaceful solutions to international conflicts. In particular, Fertig and his organization have helped the Kurdistan Workers Party, known as the PKK, make human rights claims before international bodies. They have trained Kurdish leaders in peacemaking negotiations and have brought them to Washington to lobby. But when the PKK was designated an international terrorist organization under the Patriot Act, that all stopped, and the Humanitarian Law Project went to court. ..."    Related: Supreme Court Hears Free Speech Challenge to Law on Terror Groups  "Lawyers argued before the Supreme Court on Tuesday over whether the government is violating free speech by barring Americans from providing any assistance to listed terrorist groups, like teaching them how to get humanitarian aid or how to peacefully advance a political agenda. "Under the definition of this statute, teaching these members to play the harmonica would be unlawful," Justice Sonia Sotomayor said. ..."   

Oxymoronic Huckabee Talks Up Oxymoronic "Fair Tax" [02/24/10]  "Organized theft knows no bounds. Both Democrats and Republicans are seriously addicted to stealing your money. Democrats are out in the open about it while Republicans attempt to hide their penchant for organized thievery behind a facade of “fairness.” ...On Monday, Mike Huckabee, the guitar-playing Republican statist who doubles as a darling on Fox News, wrote about the so-called “fair tax.” The Huck said he merely disagrees with Obama and has no “desire to see his plans and policies fail. My goal is to see them change.” Huckabee repeats the Republican mantra that the IRS should be abolished. “We need a dramatic overhaul that eliminates the penalties on productivity. Instead of changing the IRS code, we should eliminate it and the IRS. Why punish work, investment, entrepreneurial risk and savings; the very things that really do stimulate the economy?” he writes. Huck then admits that both sides of the One Party aisle have “tinkered with the tax code,” but to no avail — “it only gets larger, more complicated, and more costly to comply with.” Instead of a direct income tax, the former Republican candidate for president suggests a tax “on our consumption of resources, not our creation of resources.”  Murray Rothbard  [Note: Rothbard was a brilliant historian] framed this thievery scheme appropriately — he called a tax on consumption a “permission-to-live” tax. Huckabee says a permission-to-live tax will be fair because it will force “prostitutes, drug dealers, and gamblers” to ante up to government. In other words, a “fair tax” will create new revenue streams where none existed previously. Republicans, of course, really don’t mean it. They are not opposed to theft at gunpoint. They just want to make the rip-off more “fair .... Back in 2007, Rep. John Linder, a Georgia Republican, introduced H.R.25, dubbed the Fair Tax. The language of the bill says it will “promote freedom, fairness, and economic opportunity by repealing the income tax and other taxes, abolishing the Internal Revenue Service, and enacting a national sales tax to be administered primarily by the States.” Naturally, the bill went nowhere. Because hell will freeze over before the government allows the Sixteenth Amendment to be tossed in the dustbin of history. Under Democrats or Republicans, government will only increase the authoritarian power of the IRS Mafia. Forget Huckabee’s lip-service. If you really want to know what establishment “conservatives” think about taxation, take a look at the video below. In the video, Fox News darlings Glenn Beck and Bill O’Reilly debate a national sales tax and a value added tax in order to “pay down the debt” owed to a cartel of international bankers. Notice Beck and O’Reilly didn’t even bother to suggest the income tax be eliminated, the IRS disbanded, and the Sixteenth Amendment repealed. Beck, O’Reilly and the Republicans want a “fair tax” and a continuation of the larceny that has gone on uninterrupted since 1913."  

Obama Seeks Repeal of Antitrust Exemption [02/24/10] "Obama on Tuesday called for a repeal of the health industry's exemption from federal antitrust laws. Doing so "would give American families and businesses, big and small, more control over their own health care choices by promoting greater insurance competition," Obama said in a statement as he ramped up his fight against insurers while trying to keep alive efforts for federal health care reform. ..."   

$2.7B in U.S. Tax Dollars to Go to British Liquor Giant [02/24/10] "The National Puerto Rican Coalition today urged the Senate to use the pending Jobs bill to kill a $2.7 billion taxpayer-funded corporate giveaway that'll create 40 minimum-wage jobs in the U.S. Virgin Islands – but will directly eliminate at least 400 higher-paying jobs in nearby Puerto Rico, which already has a 16.5% unemployment rate. "If Washington is serious about creating jobs, ending waste and stopping corporate welfare, we should quash a $2.7 billion taxpayer-funded corporate giveaway that'll kill more jobs than it creates," said NPRC Chairman Miguel Lausell.  NPRC President Rafael Fantauzzi said the Jobs bill, which the Senate has delayed until after the President's Day Recess, extends a program which returns a portion of the federal excise tax paid on Captain Morgan and other rums to the U.S. Territory where it is manufactured. The U.S. Virgin Islands has promised Captain Morgan's manufacturer, London-based Diageo, LLC, that if it moves its operations from Puerto to St. Croix, it will give the liquor giant nearly half of all revenues it will receive under the program, about $2.7 billion in all. Approximately 400 relatively high-wage distillery workers are employed at the distillery in Puerto Rico where Captain Morgan is presently distilled, but under its agreement with the Virgin Islands, Diageo will only have to hire 40 new workers in St. Croix, none of them paid more than the federal Minimum Wage of $7.25 hourly, Lausell said. ..."   

ACTA "internet enforcement" chapter leaks [02/24/10] "Someone has uploaded a PDF to a Google Group that is claimed to be the proposal for Internet copyright enforcement that the USA has put forward for ACTA, the secret copyright treaty whose seventh round of negotiations just concluded in Guadalajara, Mexico. This reads like it probably is genuine treaty language, and if it is the real US proposal, it is the first time that this material has ever been visible to the public. According to my source, the US proposal is the current version of the treaty as of the conclusion of the Mexico round. I've read it through a few times and it reads a lot like DMCA-plus. It contains, for example, a duty to technology firms to shut down infringement where they have "actual knowledge" that such is taking place. This argument was put forward in the Grokster case, and as Fred von Lohmann argued then, this is a potentially deadly burden to place on technology companies: in the offline world Xerox has "actual knowledge" that its technology is routinely used to infringe copyright at Kinko's outlets around the world -- should that create a duty to stop providing sales and service to Kinko's? This also includes takedown procedures for trademark infringement, as well as the existing procedures against copyright infringement. Since trademark infringement is a lot harder for a service provider to adjudicate (and since things that might be trademark infringement take place every time you do something as innocuous as taking a photo of a street-scene that contains hundreds or thousands of trademarks), this sounds like a potential disaster to me.  ..."   

The Military Conundrum: Follow Orders, Or Follow The Constitution? [02/23/10] "A currency crisis looms on the horizon for the United States with the very real possibility of ending in hyperinflation and the bankruptcy of the Treasury. The deliberately faulty monetary policies of our government and the private Federal Reserve have made this occurrence inevitable. Such an event would result in the most intensely threatening social atmosphere America has seen since the Civil War. Hyperinflation causes not just a breakdown of the general economy, but also erases the savings of the entire nation by devaluing the dollar to worthlessness. Unlike the Great Depression (a deflationary collapse), a hyper-inflationary disintegration would shut down ALL economic activity except for trade and barter. Civil unrest would be difficult to avoid. When people begin to starve, even the most apathetic will take to the streets. Preparations for a breakdown of this magnitude have already been made, most likely because elements of the government know full well that their financial actions will cause an economic disaster. Towards the end of his second term, George W. Bush issued Presidential Security Directive 51, which under continuity of government gives the Executive Branch and the head of the Department of Homeland Security full control over state and local governments without the consent of Congress during a national emergency. The document was considered so volatile that the White House censored most of its contents. In fact, not even Congress has been allowed to see the entire PDD 51 document, which in itself is a gross violation of Constitutional Law. PDD 51 along with the Patriot Act also allows the President to declare a “national emergency” whenever he sees fit, thus giving him the power to pronounce himself de facto dictator of the U.S. without any checks or balances from the other branches of government. Barack Obama, to the shock of many Democrats who believed he would rescind such orders after taking office, has actually supported them fully and is now quietly hiding Patriot Act legislation in his latest jobs bill so that Congress will be forced to pass it. (Note that politico.com buried this info on the last page of the article.) ..."  Note: Interesting article.  

Bill Maher Reviews How Dumb the US Population Really Is [02/23/10] VIDEO [4:31]  "They REALLY are... thus read more...easier to control. 91% of people didn't know what a molecule is... ..."   Related:  Majority of Americans think " Iran has The Bomb"  "A whopping 71 percent of Americans believe that Iran currently has nuclear weapons, according to a recent CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey. More than six in ten think the U.S. should take economic and diplomatic efforts to get Iran to shut down their nuclear program, with only a quarter calling for immediate military action. I like this part: “with only a quarter calling for immediate military action.” ..." 'Less than 3 in every 20 Americans have faith in govt.' [02/23/10] "A recent poll suggests that only 14 percent of Americans have complete faith in the United States government and the way it functions. ..."  Note: I am sure the feeling is mutual, in some way.

Accused Christmas Bomber Listened to Music, Slept [02/23/10] "A Michigan college student who sat next to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab on a Detroit-bound flight on Christmas Day says the accused terrorist's actions suggested he was in over his head. Jay Howard says that Abdulmutallab mostly slept and listened to music during the flight and seemed surprised when asked about the smoke that apparently came from under his blanket. ..."   Note: So, if he actually was surprised ....

Jenin Jenin: The Film IDF and Israel don't want you to see [02/23/10] VIDEO [45:00] 5 Video clips "Jenin Jenin depicts the true story of Israeli colossal barbarism. There is no doubt left, the Jewish State is the ultimate enemy of humanity and humanism. It also presents the Palestinian ordeal facing the Zionist evil. Clearly, surviving the Israeli occupation is nothing but heroism. ..."    

Dick Cheney hospitalized, complaining of chest pain [02/23/10] "Former Vice President Dick Cheney, 69, was hospitalized in Washington, D.C. on Monday after complaining of chest pains, according to published reports. "Two doctors at George Washington University Hospital said Cheney was stable but may have additional treatment Tuesday," NBC News reported. Cheney, whose heart troubles have been more or less episodic over the last 30 years, reportedly underwent an angiogram on Monday and doctors are considering further procedures. Since he was 37-years-old, the former vice president has experienced four heart attacks, undergone angioplasties, a quadruple bypass surgery and surgeries to fix arterial aneurysms in his knees. He was fitted with a pacemaker in 2001, which was replaced in 2007. His last heart-related hospital stay was in 2008, when he suffered an abnormal rhythm. ...In recent weeks, the former vice president has emerged as a fierce critic of the Obama administration's domestic security efforts, slamming the president as having made the country less safe. The Obama administration has largely maintained security policies instituted during Cheney's term during the Bush administration, with a key exception being the torture of terror war prisoners -- a grisly practice which Cheney adamantly supports, despite it being illegal under international law. A one-time Republican congressman from Wyoming, Cheney also served as President George H.W. Bush's secretary of defense."  Note: I'd say his entire incarnation reflects an 'abnormal rhythm'.  Related: Dick Cheney Gets Deferment Once Again, From Death Note:  Awwww, too bad. Wait until he gets to the other side, where he'll meet those resonant with him, as he plays the second half of the game for that incarnation. Nothing can 'save' him from being with other twisted people when he dies. He should get started as soon as possible, and take that ridiculous sneer with him.

In Mexico, 18 tons of state-owned explosives stolen [02/23/10] "Mexican authorities say a trailer loaded with 18 tons of industrial explosives have been stolen from a highway in northern Mexico... ..."   

Utah House votes to not comply with Real ID Act [02/23/10] "State agencies would be forbidden from further compliance with the federal Real ID Act under a measure the Utah House approved Thursday. The move would do nothing to end hours-long waits at state drivers license offices, but could mean that Utah residents won't be able to board airplanes or enter federal buildings in the future. ..."   

HAITI: Private Contractors 'Like Vultures Coming to Grab the Loot'  [02/23/10] "Critics are concerned that private military contractors are positioning themselves at the centre of an emerging "shock doctrine" for earthquake-ravaged Haiti. Next month, a prominent umbrella organisation for private military and logistic corporations, the International Peace Operations Association (IPOA), is co-organising a "Haiti summit" which aims to bring together "leading officials" for "private consultations with attending contractors and investors" in Miami, Florida. Dubbed the "mercenary trade association" by journalist Jeremy Scahill, author of "Blackwater: the Rise of the World' Most Powerful Mercenary Army", the IPOA wasted no time setting up a "Haiti Earthquake Support" page on its website following the Jan. 12 earthquake that devastated the Caribbean country. ~~~ Likewise, the private military contractor, Raidon Tactics, has at least 30 former U.S. Special Operations soldiers on the ground, where they have been guarding aid convoys and providing security for "news agencies," according to a Raidon employee who told IPS his company received over 1,000 phone calls in response to an ad posting "for open positions for Static Security Positions and Mobile Security Positions" in Haiti. Just over a week following the earthquake, the IPOA teamed up with Global Investment Summits (GIS), a UK-based private company that specialises in bringing private contractors and government officials from "emerging post-conflict countries" together, to host an "Afghanistan Reconstruction Summit", in Istanbul, Turkey. It was there, says IPOA's director Doug Brooks, that the idea for the Haiti summit was hatched "over beers". ..."   Haiti: One Of The Undeveloped Mineral Wealth Treasures On The Planet [02/23/10] "Here Engdahl talks with Paul Jay of The Real News, says that geophysics suggest there could be massive oil and mineral deposits in Haiti, and that the US may be motivated by the desire to strategically deny oil deposits in Haiti to the rest of the world. ..."   

The Railroading of Bernard Kerik [02/23/10] "The US justice system is a criminal enterprise, as Paul Craig Roberts and Bill Anderson have shown. Government judges and government prosecutors, in a police state, can railroad anyone into prison. (And government prisons — totalitarian mini-states — are immense evils themselves.) Here lawyer and reformer Andrew Kreig describes what happened to Bernard Kerik. Of course, I always assume that anyone targeted by the state is less bad than the officials targeting him, and that legal and all other official-media propaganda is a pack of lies. ..."   

UK:  Millions of anti-terror cash spent on luxury London flats for police chiefs [02/22/10] "Britain’s most powerful police body, which is run as a private business, has spent millions of pounds meant for counter-terrorism work on luxury London flats for senior officers. The spending on an undisclosed number of apartments in the Westminster area is understood to be about £1.6million a year. The money is taken directly from taxpayers’ cash given to the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) by the Home Office to tackle the terrorist threat across Britain. ... The funding – £33million last year – is supposed to be used to beef up regional police forces’ anti-terrorism response and pay for crucial equipment and facilities. Instead, ACPO’s Terrorism & Allied Matters (TAM) committee, headed by Assistant Commissioner John Yates, has used millions of pounds from the budget to pay for flats. Last night ACPO refused to disclose how many apartments it was paying for, or who was receiving the perk, but all are said to be well-appointed homes close to Scotland Yard. ACPO insists they are ‘occupied’, but two well-placed sources told The Mail on Sunday that officers only occasionally stay in them. Local estate agents say the cheapest two-bedroom flats in the area cost £400,000 to buy or at least £300 a week to rent. But with the officers requiring a ‘secure location’ the flats are said to cost substantially more. ACPO is already under fire for its commercial activities. Last year The Mail on Sunday disclosed it was: * Selling information from the Police National Computer for up to £70 - even though it pays just 60p to access the details. * Marketing ‘police approval’ logos to firms selling anti-theft devices. * Operating a separate private firm offering training to speed-camera operators, which is run by a senior officer who was banned from driving ...."  Note:  Bloody disgusting.

Israel rejects recognition of Palestinian state [02/22/10] "Israel on Sunday rejected the idea of foreign countries recognising a Palestinian state without a negotiated peace agreement, after France's foreign minister hinted at such a scenario. "Imposing this kind of semblance of a partial solution from outside goes against the very idea of peace," a senior Israeli official told AFP on condition of anonymity. ..."  Note: Another provocation.

UK:  Gordon Brown: 'psychological flaws' is starting to look like an understatement [02/22/10] "Andrew Rawnsley's new book paints an all-too familiar portrait of Gordon Brown's struggle to cope with the responsibilities of running the country, writes Benedict Brogan.  ..."  Note: Yes, he's a loon all right.

James Traficant on Alex Jones TV: AIPAC Runs America’s Foreign Policy [02/22/10] VIDEO [50:00]  5 Video clips  

Fox News runs damage control after Ron Paul wins CPAC presidential straw poll [02/22/10] "Remember the big conservative conference Fox News has been hyping over the past 10 days? The Conservative Political Action Conference's presidential straw poll, a key marker of the mood among conservative voters, apparently didn't mean anything to the network. And if it did mean something, the only real result is bragging rights for the individual candidates who were so well exposed. And hey, even Dick Cheney showed up. Or, at least that's how Fox News characterized the poll, after it was reported that Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX) had won it by a wide margin. CPAC participants voted for Paul as their favored candidate by some 31 percent, giving him the largest margin of victory in recent years. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, who has won the vote over the last three years, was the runner up with 22 percent. Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin was third with seven percent. Over 10,000 people attended CPAC this year. ..."It is way early, it is unscientific," said a Fox News host, even as the split-screen showed Glenn Beck on stage at the conference. "Perhaps it offers nothing more than bragging rights, uh, through the course of this year. But, it is quite a, uh, enthusiastic crowd. What a difference a year makes ...... "   

Tracy, California Residents Now Have To Pay For 911 Calls [02/21/10] "Tracy residents will now have to pay every time they call 9-1-1 for a medical emergency. But there are a couple of options. Residents can pay a $48 voluntary fee for the year which allows them to call 9-1-1 as many times as necessary. Or, there's the option of not signing up for the annual fee. Instead, they will be charged $300 if they make a call for help. "A $300 fee and you don't even want to be thinking about that when somebody is in need of assistance," said Tracy resident Greg Bidlack. Residents will soon receive the form in the mail where they'll be able to make their selection. No date has been set for when the charges will go into effect.  ..."  Note: And if you can't afford these outrageous fees, 911 is off limits ... it's unconscionable to even propose this.

"Industrial Production Up" [02/21/10] " American industry has expanded continuously for seven months, giving 2010 positive numbers after two years of overall declines, the Federal Reserve announced Wednesday. ..."  Note: But still no production job growth of any note, so why bother with the doublespeak, Bernanke?

Clinton criticized for dodging question on Israel nukes [02/21/10] "US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is criticized for dodging a question on Israel's nuclear arsenal during a "town hall" meeting at a Jeddah college. ..."  Note:  Cunt-in-chief fails again. Out to pasture she goes.

Local Gun-Control Laws Come Into Sights of U.S. Supreme Court [02/20/10] "For gun-control advocates, defeat may be inevitable in the Chicago handgun-ban case before the U.S. Supreme Court. The question is whether they will get a consolation prize. The central issue in the case, set for argument March 2, is whether the Constitution’s Second Amendment applies to state and local gun laws, in addition to those enacted by the federal government and District of Columbia. When the court in 2008 struck down D.C.’s handgun ban and declared that the Second Amendment protects individual rights, the five justices in the majority suggested the court eventually would bind states and cities. How the court takes that step, known as “incorporation,” may prove as important as if it does so. Some gun-control groups are effectively conceding incorporation, instead asking the court to say that states and cities can still enact “reasonable” regulations. That might leave intact sales restrictions and bans on concealed weapons and particular types of guns.  ..."   

British military insider: World War III is being staged; starting with Israel and Iran  [02/20/10] "US “leadership” and their corporate media minions are pushing juvenile-level propaganda for war with Iran; lies that anyone can verify with a few moments’ attention. If you haven’t already confirmed the Orwellian-level disinformation, stop and read the above two links now. Many people hypothesize the confirmed lies for wars with Iraq and Afghanistan, and a final war with Iran, is to control oil. Connected is the theory that US political and economic “masters” are so confident in their propaganda, and so correct in their conclusion that the critical mass of humanity is too feeble to stop them, that they brazenly move forward for global hegemony. This article provides a different explanation of the facts; with heightened urgency to prevent war with Iran, as it is a planned step to begin a Third World War. ..."   

Bob Barr jeered at CPAC for saying waterboarding is torture [02/20/10] "Republican congressman-turned-Libertarian Bob Barr got a chorus of jeers at the CPAC conference Friday when he declared that waterboarding is torture. ..."  Note: Of course, the US charged a Japanese prisoner with war crimes for doing it to Americans during WWII.

Book: Cheney pushed for military conflict with Russia [02/20/10] "A new book suggests Vice President Dick Cheney pushed for the US to engage militarily with Russia when Russia invaded the US-allied Georgian republic in 2008. Ronald Asmus' A Little War that Shook the World, published last month, says that in August 2008, as the South Ossetia War between Russian and Georgia was raging, the White House looked at the possibility of taking military action to prevent Georgian forces from being routed by Russian troops. ..."   Related:  David Swanson: Cheney's Crimes and Confessions By David Swanson  "Dick Cheney's statutory crimes are notable for their severity, their number, and his public confessions to them. Torture is the least of it. We can start with the crimes found in the three articles of impeachment contained in H Res 333 in the 110th Congress: ..."   

State releases parks hit list, 9 sites in CNY targeted [02/20/10] "State officials have recommended shuttering six state parks, one public swimming beach and two historic sites in Central New York in an effort to close the state's expected $8.2 billion budget deficit. ..."   

Activist's case will test U.S. anti-terrorism law [02/20/10] "Ralph Fertig hardly resembles a terrorist, but the soft-spoken 79-year-old pacifist and human rights activist from Los Angeles might well qualify as one under the government's strong anti-terrorism law. He is the lead plaintiff in a Supreme Court case to be heard next week that will test whether speaking out on behalf of an oppressed foreign minority -- represented by a group that's been deemed a terrorist organization by the U.S. -- can result in a long prison term. ..."  

Joe Stack Plane Crash: Why Did He Hate IRS Enough to Kill? [02/20/10] "Joseph Andrew Stack's seething hatred for the IRS appeared to have roots at least two decades long, judging from the web post he left behind before crashing his plane into in an Austin, Texas office building Thursday where some 200 employees of the tax agency worked.  ..."  Related: News That Joe Stack Was Not A Tea Party Member Disappoints Obamanoids  "Even before many of the details were confirmed surrounding yesterday’s tragic events in Austin, political operatives were callously exploiting the incident to advance their agenda in demonizing opponents of big government as terrorists who crash planes into buildings – unfortunately for them it has since emerged that Joe Stack was not a “fringe extremist” and he was not a member of any Tea Party organization. Time Magazine instantly labeled Stack a " domestic terrorist" and openly implied links to the Tea Party by including a red link to an article about the Tea Party movement in the middle of their story about the Austin plane crash. ..."  Note: Nice try, Time.

Homeland Security Loses Hundreds Of Weapons [02/20/10] "In a baffling example of government incompetence, the federal agency created after the 9/11 terrorist attacks to keep America safe has lost hundreds of weapons and some have ended up in the possession of violent gangbangers and felons. Remiss officers working for the embattled Department of Homeland Security have lost government-issued guns in bowling alleys, public bathrooms, unlocked cars and a variety of unsecure areas, according to a scorching 27-page report PDF published by the agency’s inspector general.  Most of the lost weapons—including military rifles, handguns and shotguns—have never been found and at least 15 have been recovered by local law enforcement officials in the possession of criminals, gang members and known drug dealers. The majority of the losses occurred because Homeland Security officers did not sufficiently secure firearms in their possession, investigators determined. They further point out that the lost firearms created an unnecessary risk to the public, which goes without saying. Americans may be relieved to know however, that the abhorrent negligence has been met with “extra training” and in some cases disciplinary actions. This may seem laughable considering the Department of Homeland Security is supposed to keep the nation safe from foreign threats. The crucial agency was created after the 2001 terrorist attacks by encompassing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection, Citizenships and Immigration Services and the Transportation Security Administration.  In theory, their combined forces are more effective in preempting terrorist attacks. In reality, various branches of the agency have become best known for their perpetual mishaps, especially the Transportation Security Administration which was created to protect the nation’s transportation system.  ..."   

The Real Roots of the CIA's Rendition and Black Sites Program [02/19/10] "On Tuesday, February 10, the British High Court finally released a "seven-paragraph court document showing that MI5 officers were involved in the ill-treatment of a British resident, Binyam Mohamed." The document is itself a summary of 42 classified CIA documents given to the British in 2002. The US government has threatened the British government that the US-British intelligence relationship could be damaged if this material were released. The revelations regarding Mohamed's torture, which include documentation of the fact the US conducted "continuous sleep deprivation" under threats of harm, rendition, or being "disappeared," were criticized by the British court as being "at the very least cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment by the United States authorities," and in violation of the United Nations Convention Against Torture ....."  Note:  Interesting historical overview.

Obama Meets With Dalai Lama [02/19/10] "Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader called China “childish” on Thursday after conferring with President Barack Obama in a meeting that was held over Beijing’s objections. The White House released a carefully worded statement that praised the Dalai Lama without lending too much weight to his cause. ..."  Related: China blasts U.S. for Obama's meeting with Dalai Lama  Note: At least Obama is consistent, doing the opposite of what any normal person would do, as a head of state. On the other hand, there is more to this Dalai Lama thing ... when the Dalai Lama was there, it was more about a primitive punitive feudal society than about religion, at least in the 20th century. Also, it is possible that the Dalai Lama is a CIA asset, just like Obama. There is always more to know. It never was a 'Shangri La'. Not that China is much better, in some ways, during some time periods.

US has " no plan for military action against Iran": Clinton [02/19/10]  Note:  The cunt-in-chief lies again. They have at least two plans for everything.  Related: Netanyahu: Israel-Iran War Not Being Planned "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday his country is not planning a war with Iran and that Tehran's concerns over such a conflict are the result of the threat of additional international sanctions. "We are not planning any wars," Netanyahu said, speaking in Moscow after meetings urging Russian officials to approve tougher sanctions against Iran. ..."   

Obama Administration Eyes ‘More Confrontational’ Approach to Iran [02/19/10] "Not that diplomacy will be abandoned publicly, as officials will continue to insist that they are seeking diplomacy, at least nominally, so they can accuse Iran of refusing to accept talks. Since the Iranian government just got done accepting a Western demand only to have it roundly condemned and the rhetoric stumble along more or less unchanged, it seems officials are already comfortable with ignoring reality when it gets in the way of the narrative. ..."  

Napolitano Secretly Hosts Terrorist Groups In D.C. [02/19/10] "In the Obama Administration’s latest effort to befriend radical Muslims, the cabinet official in charge of protecting the country’s safety covertly met with a group of extremist Arab, Muslim and Sikh organizations to discuss national security matters.  Briefing radical Islamists who want to murder Americans about homeland security measures may seem like a bizarre tactic to counter terrorism, but it’s the center of Obama’s famous change rhetoric. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, most concerned about a wave of anti-Muslim backlash after the Ft. Hood massacre, and her senior staff privately met in Washington D.C. with the groups. Among them was the terrorist Muslim Brotherhood, which is a sort of parent organization of Hamas and Al Qaeda.  Not surprisingly, the mainstream media ignored the two-day event which was exclusively reported this week by an alternative internet news company that regularly breaks big stories. Napolitano actually spent and hour and a half briefing the Middle Easterners about the U.S. government’s new “counter-radicalization” and “anti-terrorist” programs largely aimed at their followers.  The top-secret event was part of President Obama’s innovative program aimed at creating an information-sharing framework with Muslim organizations, even those with known extremist ties and terrorist connections. The idea, laughable as it may seem, is to win over Muslims and get them to collaborate with the U.S. government.  ..."  

Michelle Obama Stocked White House Library With Books on Socialism [02/19/10] "Rob Port visited the White House today and took this picture in the library. ..."   

Massive cyber attack breached 75,000 PCs around the world [02/19/10] "Coordinated cyberattacks launched from Europe and China breached computers at firms and government agencies worldwide in the past 18 months, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Journal quoted computer security firm NetWitness as saying the attacks made mountains of data vulnerable to mining by hackers, although the damage had yet to be fully assessed. Information bared to hackers ranged from credit card transactions to intellectual property of slightly more than 2,400 victims, including 10 US government agencies, according to the Journal. "More than 75,000 computer systems at nearly 2,500 companies in the United States and around the world have been hacked in what appears to be one of the largest and most sophisticated attacks by cyber criminals discovered to date," The Washington Post adds.
The hacking operation began in late 2008 in Germany and has yet to be stopped, NetWitness said. ..."  

New IAEA Chief Stokes Iran War Fever for the Bush-Obama Regime [02/19/10] "In an astounding development, the brand-new director of the International Atomic Energy Agency -- who was narrowly elected to the post a few months ago with the strong, one might say insistent, backing of the United States -- has just issued his very first report on Iran's nuclear program. And guess what the new, American-backed director said? Go on, you'll never guess. Give up? Well, hold on to your hats -- the American-backed director, Yukiya Amano, has "broken with the more cautious style of his predecessor, Mohamed ElBaradei" -- you know, the man who was right about Iraq's lack of a nuclear weapons program -- to suggest (sans proof, of course) that there might be "possible military dimensions" to Iran's nuclear program, which just happens to be the most internationally inspected and regulated nuclear power program in history. That's right; coming just days after Hillary Clinton's fresh bout of fear-mongering about Iran, the American-backed Amano echoed the talking points of the Bush-Obama Administration. (Should we not finally just give the proper name to the "continuity" of our militarist-corporatist rulership?) The Bush-Obama regime has continually proclaimed its unshakable belief that Iran is trying to build nuclear weapons. So unshakable is this belief that nothing on earth can alter it -- not Iran's willingness to send its uranium to other countries for enrichment, and not the acknowledgment by the White House itself that Iran lacks the technical capability of enriching uranium even to a level far below that needed for weaponization. ..."  Related: 'UN nuclear chief confirms Iran program peaceful'  "Iran's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says the UN nuclear watchdog's chief has confirmed that the country's nuclear program is peaceful in nature. ..."  Note: It may not matter: IAEA: "Iran may be making nuclear warhead"   "The U.N. nuclear watchdog says Iran may be working on a nuclear warhead for a missile, CNN reported." Note: The new IAEA chief lies and is moot from now on. What 'watchdog'? He just started the job. Amano previously served as a Japanese diplomat and international civil servant for the United Nations and its subdivisions.

Biden wants US warheads with worldwide reach [02/19/10] "US vice president Joe Biden says Washington should seek an "adaptive missile defense shield" and conventional warheads with global range. ..."  Note: Sick shit. Related: Israeli News:  Biden: Israel has 'sovereign right' to attack Iran [02/19/10] "In interview with ABC, VP Biden suggests Washington won't stand in Israel's way should it choose to attack Iran's nuclear facilities ..."  Note: No, it doesn't, Joe Biden. Iran is not doing anything outside of International Law. 

Obama reverses Biden, warns Netanyahu publicly and privately on Iran [02/19/10] "Government sources said the administration of President Barack Obama relayed a warning to Israel that Washington has not changed its opposition to an Israeli strike option against Iran. ..."  

U.S. to pump money into nuke stockpile, "increase security" [02/19/10] " The United States intends to boost funding for maintaining its nuclear stockpile while stepping up its nuclear deterrent, a top U.S. official said during the Second Annual Nuclear Deterrence Summit in Virginia...."  Note: Since when has paranoia ever actually increased security? Another logical fallacy from the 'nuclear deterrence' summit.

Israel downplays fake passport row with Europe [02/19/10] "Israel plays down the diplomatic row shrouding the terror of Hamas commander Mahmud al-Mabhouh in Dubai which is largely blamed on the Israeli intelligence service, Mossad. ..."  

Pentagon Bracing for a Snap Offensive Against Venezuela [02/19/10] "The US SOUTHCOM electronic surveillance base has been functioning in Aruba for several years. One day, an individual looking like a typical American, wearing shorts, a Hawaii shirt, and sunglasses, walked into it effortlessly and started roaming around. The US marines must have been too tired of the heat and assumed he actually was one of their countrymen - the base has been hosting numbers of visitors from the US recently amid the preparations for serious operations against Venezuela. ..."   

Poland co-sues Russia for 1940 massacre [02/19/10] "A class-action lawsuit by Polish citizens against Russia for the 1940 massacre of army officers at Katyn has been joined by the Polish government. ..."   Note:  More victimhood based in the deep past, used as a financial means of current funding.

Three Tesla Motors Employees Killed in Plane Crash [02/19/10] "Residents of a densely packed neighborhood in East Palo Alto, Calif., awoke to explosions and fire Wednesday when a small plane carrying employees of an electric car company crashed in dense fog, killing all three aboard and spewing debris over several homes. ..."  

Analysis: US Spy’s Israel Ties Deeper Than First Thought  [02/18/10] "Stewart David Nozette, an American scientist arrested for attempted espionage during an FBI sting last October, had deeper ties to Israel than initially believed. Nozette, a former employee of the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was arrested for attempting to share classified US government data with an undercover FBI officer posing as a handler of Israeli intelligence agency Mossad. At the time of Nozette’s arrest, the US Justice Department argued for keeping him in jail, as he “might flee to Israel if not confined”. Interestingly, however, US officials said at the time that Israel had no role in Nozette’s attempted espionage, and the FBI’s own indictment admitted that the Bureau “does not allege that the government of Israel or anyone acting on its behalf committed any offense under US laws in this case”. Shortly after Nozette’s arrest, we raised two important counterintelligence questions: first, how did the FBI know to lure Nozette with an agent posing as an Israeli –as opposed to a Russian or Chinese– handler? Second, why would Nozette flee to –and presumably be protected by– Israel, even though the government of Israel was not involved in this case, according to the FBI? We then suggested that Nozette’s connection to Israel, through his most recent employer, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), was probably much deeper than the FBI was prepared to admit publicly. ..."    

Former IAEA Head Hans Blix: 'Iran Won't Simply Sit There and Accept an Attack' [02/18/10] "Hans Blix is the former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency and also worked as a UN weapons inspector in Iraq. He talks to SPIEGEL about whether Iran really has the ability to enrich uranium and if economic sanctions can ever be effective. ..."   

Illinois Senate Meets in Secret [02/18/10] "A highly unusual closed-door meeting of the state Senate lasted about an hour and a half today, and participants said many of the chamber's 59 Democrats and Republicans attended to hear a presentation on budgeting and the economy from national experts. Lawmakers barred reporters from the meeting, saying it was a joint gathering of the Democratic and Republican caucuses that was not required to be public under the state Constitution or open meetings law. Reporters were offered the opportunity to get the information from the budget experts at a post-meeting news conference, but Democratic and Republican leaders said they wanted the meeting private to encourage a frank exchange between public officials. Donald Craven, a longtime attorney for the Illinois Press Association who also has represented the Chicago Tribune on open government issues, said the meeting should have been open no matter how big or small the topic. "The topic is not important," Craven said. "If the Senate can go into a joint caucus to talk about this topic, what's the logical extreme?  ..."   

France leapfrogs past Australia in Big Brother stakes: Lock up your kids and lock down your PC's [02/18/10] "France yesterday put in its bid for an unlikely prize, becoming the first western country to make even Australia look liberal when it comes to state powers of internet censorship. In the teeth of fierce opposition both inside and outside parliament, the National Assembly approved, by 312 votes to 214 against, a first reading of a bill on Internal Security .. ..."  AKA: France Moves to Increase Internet Controls, Censorship of Websites

Lost notebook reveals plans for New Zealand spy agency reshuffle [02/18/10] "Plans for a possible radical reshuffling of New Zealand’s intelligence infrastructure were revealed yesterday, with the discovery of a notebook belonging to a government official. The notebook was dropped on a busy Wellington street by an employee of New Zealand’s Treasury Department, who was returning from a classified presentation on the future of the country’s intelligence agencies. It was recovered by Julian Robins, a political correspondent for Radio New Zealand, who proceeded to reveal the notebook’s contents.  ..."  

UK special forces chief trying to prevent book publication [02/18/10] "The director of Britain’s Special Forces is actively trying to stop the publication of a new book that sheds unprecedented light on the elite combat group’s operations in Iraq. The official, whose name cannot be revealed for security reasons, has said that the book, authored by BBC journalist Mark Urban, will negatively impact the operational effectiveness of the Special Air Service (SAS) and other UK Special Forces units.  ..." 

How many government informants are there in China? [02/18/10] "The interest of intelligence observers was stirred last week by a rare revelation made by a Chinese regional police official, who said that his bureau employs one in every 33 local residents as an informant. Speaking to Xinhua News Agency, Liu Xingchen, deputy public security bureau director for Inner Mongolia’s Kailu County, said his force employed 12,093 informants out of approximately 400,000 inhabitants. The informants’ task, he said, was to provide government with intelligence, to weed out “non-harmonious elements”, and to uncover “all sorts of information that might destabilize society”. Some reports note that, when applied nationwide, these statistics point to the possible existence of “at least 39 million informants”, a number that represents 3 per cent of China’s population and “lays bare the enormous scale of China’s surveillance network”. Such extrapolations, however, are risky for a number of reasons.  ..."   

Global Non-Compliance to The System [02/18/10] VIDEO [10:00]  "...This short is an excerpt from Zeitgeist: Addendum. ..."   

Israeli minister in handshake debacle with Saudi spy chief [02/18/10] "Much has been made of an episode in the recent Munich Security Conference, in which Israel’s deputy foreign minister shook hands with Saudi Arabia’s former intelligence director. As is often the case in international conferences involving high-level participants from Israel and Muslim states, organizers at the Munich Security Conference went out of their way to ensure that Egyptian, Saudi, and –lately– Turkish government representatives were not to meet in the same seminars with Israeli officials. Participants were surprised, however, to see Saudi Arabia’s former intelligence chief, Prince Turki bin Faisal al-Saud, present in a seminar that featured a panel contribution by Israeli deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon. During the remarks session, Ayalon expressed dissatisfaction with the Muslim participants’ insistence to stay clear of the Israeli delegation, to which Turki al-Faisal responded with reference to Israel’s recent diplomatic spat with the Turkish government. ..."  

Governments Admit That They Carry Out False Flag Terror [02/18/10] "Forget the claims and allegations that false flag terror – governments attacking people and then blaming others in order to create animosity towards those blamed – has been used throughout history. This essay will solely discuss government admissions to the use of false flag terror.  ..."  

Why the U.S. Senate is where legislation goes to die [02/18/10]  VIDEO [1:24]   "In an appearance on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360, Bill Maher argued part of the problem with American politics is that "they're not polarized enough." "We don't have a progressive party in this country," Maher said. "This is the problem, is that you have corporatist Democrats, like Evan Bayh, who act just like the people on the other side of the aisle." Maher discussed Sen. Evan Bayh's recent announcement that he is retiring from Congress, and the Indiana senator's comment that Congress isn't working. ..."    Note:  Click on the second video with CNN Anderson cooper    Related: Bayh retires with $14 million net worth...how? "Evan Bayh's retirement is so interesting. Look behind the headlines though. Here is a Senator who has been in elective office since he was 30 years old. Yet, his net worth is estimated to be as high as $14 million. How did that happen serving the public? His spouse was a mid-level attorney at Eli Lilly. Shortly before he was sworn into the Senate, she was elected to the boards of a bunch of public companies. A coincidence? ..."  Note: Evan Bayh, the walking conflict of interest. Rand Paul and Ron Paul on Anderson Cooper 360  VIDEO [6:13]  Note: It is believed by many that Anderson Cooper is a CIA asset.

The Talking Heads of Cable News Are Leading Double Lives as Paid Lobbyists for Corporations [02/18/10] "Since 2007 at least 75 registered lobbyists, public relations reps and corporate officials have appeared on cable news without disclosing the corporations that paid them." ..."  

The Real Reason for Sanctions Against Iran: America's Quest for Global Military Dominance [02/18/10] "The U.S.-sponsored drive to impose new economic sanctions on Iran has nothing to do with the noble cause of limiting proliferation of nuclear weapons on the planet. It is directly linked to the U.S. military doctrine of establishing 'full spectrum dominance' - i.e., military dominance on land, sea, air, and outer space over all other countries in the world. The logical extension of this doctrine is that only countries firmly allied to the U.S. government should be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons or to even develop the capacity to do so. Israel , for example, is widely-believed to hold secret Nuclear weapons. Yet there is no call for sanctions or investigations of them. The reason is simple: They are a U.S. ally. India and Pakistan have declined to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty and have developed nuclear weapons. Yet there is no call for sanctions or investigations of them. The reason is simple: They are U.S. allies. Iran and North Korea are being subjected to economic sanctions, calls for more sanctions, and even threats of military aggression against them The reason is again simple: They are not U.S. allies. The principal of national sovereignty includes non-interference in a nations internal affairs by outside powers. It is an important cornerstone of real international peace and security, and among other things is related to accepting and respecting the cultural, political, and economic diversity of the world.  ..." 

Fourth Amendment Trashed As Airport Tyranny Hits The Streets [02/18/10] "Tampa police, TSA and Homeland Security agents are teaming up “to keep your family safe,” according to ABC News, by implementing random searches at bus depots, in yet another example of how airport tyranny is being rolled out onto the streets. “Bomb sniffing dogs, pat-downs and metal detector wanding, gloved inspections of hand-held bags” are all now going to become a routine part of everyday life as the Fourth Amendment is completely trashed in the name of “security”. ..."  Note: There is a video. It shows MINIONS in uniform, dogs in 'people suits', arrogant, nazi-like thugs and goons ... Related:  Homeland Security targets bus traffic in Tampa  VIDEO [1:36]  Note: Turn down your volume. 

Scalia: ‘No Right To Secede’ [02/18/10] "...If there was any constitutional issue resolved by the Civil War, it is that there is no right to secede. (Hence, in the Pledge of Allegiance, “one Nation, indivisible.”) Secondly, I find it difficult to envision who the parties to this lawsuit might be. Is the State suing the United States for a declaratory judgment? But the United States cannot be sued without its consent, and it has not consented to this sort of suit. ..."  

Ruling means Gitmo detainees have no legal protection: rights group [02/18/10] "A federal court ruling this week that prevented the families of two dead Guantanamo detainees from seeking damages means that "no court can hear abuse and wrongful death claims from Guantanamo," says a human-rights group. "In dismissing the case, the district court ruled that the deceased’s constitutional claims ... could not be heard in federal court," said the Center for Constitutional Rights, in a statement released Thursday. On Wednesday, a US district court in Washington, DC, rejected claims for damages from the families of two Guantanamo inmates who were found dead in 2006. Salah Ahmed Al-Salami and Yasser Talal Al-Zahrani, along with a third inmate, Mani Shaman Al-Utaybi, were found dead in their barracks with rags stuffed down their throats in June, 2006. Al-Salami's and Al-Zahrani's families had sued, claiming it was "a violation of due process and cruel treatment to detain them for four years without charge while subjecting them to inhumane and degrading conditions of confinement and violent acts of torture and abuse," according to the Center for Constitutional Rights. ..."  

U.S. okays Russia's intention to help Mexico fight drug criminality [02/18/10] "The United States has no objections to Russian-Mexican joint efforts to fight drug trafficking in the Latin American state, US State Department spokesman Mark Toner has said. Russia has reiterated its readiness to help Mexico fight the drug criminality, a major woe for the U.S. neighbor. The joint U.S.-Mexican Merida Initiative with the same goal has been widely criticized. Critics say the project has yielded no significant results despite huge investments. Answering the journalist's question on how the U.S. views Russia's initiative, Toner said there were no grounds for anxiety. "I mean, Mexico is a close neighbor, friend, partner with the United States. I would just say it's welcome to pursue bilateral relationships with any country it wants to, including Russia," he said. ..." 

‘By normal beliefs,’ Cheney committed war crime: John Dean [02/18/10] "Former Vice President Dick Cheney may have acknowledged his complicity in a war crime when he told an interviewer on Sunday that he was "a big supporter" of the Bush administration's use of waterboarding on suspected terrorists. Legal expert and one-time Nixon White House counsel John Dean appears to agree with that conclusion, although he cautiously told MSNBC's Keith Olbermann on Tuesday that Cheney had merely "admitted to torture, which once was a war crime." "I'm not quite sure after the Bush administration lawyers got finished with it that it was," Dean continued, though his tone of voice made it clear that he didn't actually mean his words. "At least [Cheney] doesn't seem to believe that it is. But by normal beliefs, it is a war crime." When Olbermann asked whether a statement made during a TV interview could be considered a legal confession, Dean answered, "It certainly is an admission against interest, and these are admissible in many proceedings." In criminal law, an "admission against interest" is a statement which "tends to show guilt of the defendant," even though it does not amount to a full confession. ..."  

All-Dem House Caucus Makes Millions Selling Influence [02/17/10] "The all-Democrat Congressional Black Caucus is a shady enterprise that skirts federal fundraising laws by using unregulated “charities” and “nonprofits” to raise tens of millions of dollars from corporations and industries seeking to influence members.  Extremely powerful and influential, the congressional caucus is a fund-raising juggernaut that essentially sells access and influence, according to a major newspaper report that offers scathing details of the group’s crooked dealings. Like so many other Washington political organizations, the Black Caucus has an official fund-raising arm subject to federal rules, but it dodges those laws with a network of “nonprofit groups” that lets it rake in unlimited amounts of cash from corporations and labor unions. ..."  

AP (Always Propaganda) Continues to Beat War Drums Over Iran’s Medical Reactor Enrichment [02/17/10] "Back again like a bad penny, Associated Press writer George Jahn has returned from nearly a week-long span without any fresh articles to deliver the latest claims that Iran’s civilian enrichment program is either capable of or possibly aimed toward the production of nuclear weapons. Some may remember Jahn’s February 8 article, “Iran Moves Closer to Nuke Warhead Capacity,” and the subsequent furor over exaggerations and flat out misstatements, which ultimately led the AP to pull the piece in its entirety, replacing it with a separate story by a different author. ..."  

Audit finds US census preparations wasted millions [02/17/10] "The Census Bureau wasted millions of dollars in preparation for its 2010 population count, including thousands of temporary employees who picked up $300 checks without performing work and others who overbilled for travel costs. Federal investigators caution the excessive charges could multiply once the $15 billion headcount begins in earnest next month unless the agency imposes tighter spending controls, according to excerpts of a forthcoming audit obtained by The Associated Press. On a positive note, investigators backed the Census Bureau's decision to spend $133 million on its advertising campaign, saying it was appropriate to boost public awareness. The spending included a $2.5 million Super Bowl spot that some Republicans had criticized as wasteful. The findings by Todd Zinser, the Commerce Department's inspector general, highlight the difficult balancing act for the Census Bureau as it takes on the Herculean task of manually counting the nation's 300 million residents amid a backdrop of record levels of government debt. ..."  

Commentary: The Most Liberating Word [02/17/10] "We are routinely told that the government ruling us rests on the "consent" of the governed. "Submission" is a more appropriate term. Think of it for a second: How often does the State recognize our right to withhold consent? Are those in the State's employ generally willing to accept "no" as a final answer, or do they generally treat it as an act of criminal rebellion? ..." 

Ariz. Sen. Passes Bill Outlawing Sanctuary Cities [02/17/10] "Fed up lawmakers in a Mexican border state plagued with huge numbers of illegal immigrants are increasingly taking matters into their own hands by passing laws to control the crisis long neglected by the federal government. Weeks after an Arizona State House panel approved a pair of measures intended to curb illegal immigration, the Senate has passed a law prohibiting sanctuary cities in the state. The measure allows illegal aliens to be charged with trespassing, makes it unlawful for anyone—documented or undocumented—seeking work to enter a vehicle stopped on the street and penalizes drivers who impede traffic in an attempt to hire a day laborer. The bill, which moves to the House for the crucial approval that could make it law, will also prohibit all state and local governments from adopting policies that restrict the enforcement of federal immigration measures. In fact, it requires state and local governments to comply with and assist in the enforcement of U.S. immigration laws.  In the last few weeks Arizona House committees have endorsed similar measures to conquer the state’s colossal illegal immigration crisis which is good news for the pending Senate bill. The first prevents cities, counties and police departments from prohibiting law enforcement officers from enforcing immigration laws. The other requires criminal charges for day laborers and those who hire them if they impede the normal flow of traffic on public streets. The measures are necessary because at least four Arizona cities, like many others across the U.S., ignore a 1996 federal law that requires local governments to cooperate with immigration authorities. The so-called sanctuary policies protect illegal aliens by instructing public employees and law enforcement officers not to notify the federal government of illegal immigrants—including those convicted of serious crimes—living in their communities.  ..." 

EU Biofuels Significantly Impacting Food Production [02/17/10] "EU companies have taken millions of acres of land out of food production in Africa, central America and Asia to grow biofuels for transport, according to development campaigners. The consequences of European biofuel targets, said the report by ActionAid, could be up to 100 million more hungry people, increased food prices and landlessness. The report says the 2008 decision by EU countries to obtain 10% of all transport fuels from biofuels by 2020 is proving disastrous for poor countries. Developing countries are expected to grow nearly two-thirds of the jatropha, sugar cane and palm oil crops that are mostly used for biofuels. "To meet the EU 10% target, the total land area directly required to grow industrial biofuels in developing countries could reach 17.5m hectares, over half the size of Italy. Additional land will also be required in developed nations, displacing food and animal feed crops onto land in new areas, often in developing countries," says the report. Biofuels are estimated by the IMF to have been responsible for 20-30% of the global food price spike in 2008 when 125m tonnes of cereals were diverted into biofuel production. The amount of biofuels in Europe's car fuels is expected to quadruple in the next decade. ..."  Related:   Biofuel 'miracle crop' jatropha failing to deliver   "A "miracle" plant, once thought to be as the answer to producing renewable biofuels on a vast scale, is driving thousands of farmers in the developing world into food poverty, a damning report concludes today. Five years ago jatropha was hailed by investors and scientists as a breakthrough in the battle to find a biofuel alternative to fossil fuels that would not further impoverish developing countries by diverting resources away from food production. ..."    

Biofuels Algae to solve the Pentagon's jet fuel problem [02/17/10] "The brains trust of the Pentagon says it is just months away from producing a jet fuel from algae for the same cost as its fossil-fuel equivalent. The claim, which comes from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) that helped to develop the internet and satellite navigation systems, has taken industry insiders by surprise. A cheap, low-carbon fuel would not only help the US military, the nation's single largest consumer of energy, to wean itself off its oil addiction, but would also hold the promise of low-carbon driving and flying for all. ..." 

Google openly admits to censoring material that is “anti” anything  [02/17/10] "Google has sensationally banned all sales through its shopping merchant of a DVD critical of the Obama administration under the terms of its program policy which bars any material deemed to be “advocating against a protected group”. Apparently, Google considers the government to be a “protected group,” and immune from criticism. ...The fact that Google openly admits to censoring material that is “anti” anything is a startling insight into their distain for free speech. However, the fact that Google allows the sale of clearly racist items such as The Turner Diaries, while censoring films critical of the Obama administration, is an obvious double standard. At no point whatsoever throughout the nearly 2 and a half hour long documentary Fall of the Republic is violence against anyone advocated. What the film does expose is how Obama abandoned his promise of change and is hastily implementing and expanding the same financial and geopolitical policies advanced under Bush. This message has been received by millions of people who have seen different free versions of the film on You Tube ....Maybe the fact that Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt, a man who recently spelled out pretty clearly the disregard Google has for your privacy, campaigned for Obama and appeared with him at town hall meeting held at Google headquarters in November 2007, has something to do with the anti-Obama film disappearing from Google’s merchant website .... "

Report: France ‘deliberately’ used soldiers as ‘nuclear guinea pigs’ [02/17/10] "The secret military report, obtained by AFP, said that between 1960 and 1966 France sent troops onto Algerian desert test sites "to study the physiological and psychological effects caused on humans by an atomic weapon." ..."  Note: Governments have always used people as guinea pigs. This is because the estimated 6% corrupt and psychopathic segment of society ALWAYS rises to the top.

DynCorp Wins $10 Million Punitive Damages Appeal [02/17/10] "The 4th Circuit vacated a $10 million punitive damages award against defense contractor DynCorp International in a lawsuit accusing it of discriminating against the minority-owned subcontractor Worldwide Network Services. ..."   

Human bones could reveal truth of Japan's 'Unit 731' experiments [02/17/10] "The experiments included hanging people upside down until they choked, burying them alive, injecting air into their veins and placing them in high-pressure chambers. Now new detail about their victims' suffering could be revealed after the authorities in Tokyo announced plans to open an investigation into human bones thought to have come from the unit. ..."   

Casualties of Economic Terrorism in the United States: Surveying the Damage [02/17/10] "The devastating numbers across-the-board on the economic front are staggering. I’ll go through some of them here, many we have already become all too familiar with. We hear some of these numbers all the time, so much so that it appears as if we have already begun “to normalize the unthinkable.” You may be sick of hearing them, but behind each number is an enormous amount of individual suffering, American lives and families who are struggling worse than they ever have. ..."  

USAID Steers No-Bid Haiti Contract to 'Politically Connected' Firm of Bill Clinton Friend [02/17/10] "USAID's latest no-bid contract, worth close to $100,000, was awarded on Jan. 18 to the GlobalOptions Group for work in earthquake-stricken Haiti, where Clinton is the U.N. special envoy and is helping to lead private fundraising efforts.  Described as an "integrated risk management" firm, GlobalOptions is headquartered in Manhattan's Rockefeller Plaza and boasts 10 offices across the U.S. The GlobalOptions subsidiary that executed the contract is James Lee Witt Associates (JLWA), the "emergency preparedness and management" consulting firm founded by the former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) under President Clinton.  While heading up JLWA, Witt is also a registered lobbyist, headquartered in Washington, D.C. Among his clients are the city of Little Rock, Ark., and its airport commission, from which JLWA received at least $120,000 last year; Allstate; and telecommunications giant Sprint Nextel.  ..."   

Online Backup Lawsuits: Carbonite Conceals System Doesn't Work With Windows Vista [02/17/10] "A federal class action claims that Carbonite sells computer backup services for $50 a year without telling customers that the system fails with Windows Vista. The named plaintiff, a dentist, claims that after he lost data, Carbonite told him that it "was aware of the glitch, but did not want to cause 'widespread panic' with its customers" by informing them. ..."  Related:  Investors Want $18M From Symantec "Symantec filed a bogus notice of a claim of liability to avoid pay more than $18 million to shareholders of SwapDrive, shareholders and former shareholders say in Federal Court. Symantec acquired SwapDrive, a software company specializing in online data backup and storage, in 2008. ..."  Note: Putting valuable things in the custody of others is a fools plan, anyway.

The government doesn't want 9/11 public trial  [02/17/10] VIDEO [4:52]  "The US government does not want to have public 9/11 trials in a civilian court. Officials are doing their best to bring Khalid Sheik Mohammed to military tribunal. Manny Badillo had an uncle who was murdered by the 9/11 terrorist attack and now works for we are change. Badillo believes that the trial should be public because he says it is the only way to get the evidence out there for the public to see.   ..."  Note: Except evidence about who did 911.

Jordanians sue Israel over Dimona nuclear plant [02/17/10] "The al-Jisr al-Arabi center has accused Israel of causing death, cancer and other afflictions among the Jordanian population residing in the area adjacent to the nuclear plant and thus prone to the toxic gases and radiation the facility emits. The Amman-based human rights group has reportedly taken the preliminary steps necessary ahead of filing a legal lawsuit against Israel in the coming month with Jordanian legal bodies. ..."  

Governments ADMIT That They Carry Out False Flag Terror [02/17/10] ".... Zbigniew Brzezinski – told the Senate that a terrorist act might be carried out in the U.S. and falsely blamed on Iran to justify war against that nation ..."   

Saudi Arabia: Efforts to rid Mideast of nukes must apply to Israel [02/17/10] "Amid growing Western efforts to impose harsher measures against Iran over its contentious nuclear, Saudi Arabia expressed doubts on Monday about the usefulness of imposing more sanctions. Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal told a news conference alongside U.S. Secretary in Riyadh that the threat posed by Iran's nuclear ambitions demands a more immediate solution than sanctions. The Saudi minister also said efforts supported by the U.S. to rid the Middle East of nuclear weapons must apply to Israel. Before leaving Qatar for Riyadh earlier Monday, [Hillary] Clinton said that the United States believes Iran's Revolutionary Guards are driving the country towards military dictatorship and should be targeted in any new UN sanctions. Clinton denied the United States planned to attack Iran and said Washington wanted dialogue with Tehran but could not "stand idly by" while Iran pursued a suspected nuclear weapons program. ..."  Related: S Arabia calls for prompt resolution of Iran nuclear issue "Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal has called for an “immediate resolution” of the dispute over Iran's nuclear program. ..."  Note:  If it's convenient, of course. The Saudi's can't 'demand' anything, any more than any other country can.

Gaza's Defiant Tunnellers Head Deeper Underground [02/17/10] "They are the real resistance. They are the lung through which Gaza breathes. True, missiles must pass along their subterranean tracks, Qassam rockets, too, Kalashnikov ammunition, explosives. But by far the greatest burden of the tunnellers of Gaza is the very life-blood of this besieged little pseudo-Islamic statelet: fresh meat, oranges, chocolate, shirts, trousers, toys, cigarettes, wedding dresses, paper, entire motor-cars in four bits, car batteries, even plastic bottle tops. The tunnellers of Gaza are bombed by the Israelis, they die in their own collapsing tunnels – and now they face a new Egyptian wall, even the fear of drowning. Terrorists they may be to the Israelis – the promiscuous use of this word makes it fairly meaningless these days – but heroes they are to the Palestinians of Gaza. Rich ones, too, perhaps. ..."   

Update: "Watergate 2010: "Nearly every national secret" passed through Landrieu's Offices" [02/17/10] "In late January 2010, a “Watergate” type attack on the Federal Building in New Orleans was thwarted when 4 “black bag” operatives, one the son of US Attorney, William J. Flannigan, whose offices were in the same building, were arrested “in the act.”  Another of the men, James O’Keefe is a close associate of Texas Republican and Member of Congress, Pete Olson. Olson’s campaign to recover convicted Rep. Tom Delay’s seat from the Democrats was financed by rogue billionaire Dan Duncan, noted for his helicoper/machinegun trophy hunting trips to Russia.  Suspects, even American citizens, who commit crimes like this one are sent to Guantanamo, subjected to “waterboarding” and years of detention, unless, of course, they have friends in high places, friends who want terrorists dealt with harshly unless those terrorists are their friends or family. ... Representative Olson has failed to comment on the nature of his relationship with O’Keefe. Olson has referred to the now jailed O’Keefe as a great American hero. 31 GOP members of Congress concur. They can now visit their “hero” in prison. As for O’Keefe’s heroic act, nobody has been able to figure that out yet. Does spying on the United States count? In an odd turn, when 46 year old Olson collapsed from heart failure, he was saved by Rahm Emanual, President Obama’s Chief of Staff. Olson now has a pacemaker as does his other close associate and advisor, former Vice President Dick Cheney. Senator Mary Landreiu is senior member of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, making her office and communications the most classified of any elected official in the United States outside the President. Nearly every national secret involving the security of the United States passes through those offices. Information accessed thru the attempted wiretap and breakin could enable any terrorist organization full access to our most sensitive materials regarding counter-terrorism, intelligence coordination and active ongoing operations. Information under the highest classification levels from the FBI, CIA, NSA, DIA, DHS , NSC and Whitehouse along with secure “chatter” between House and Senate members and their staffers on homeland security issues would have been accessed. On the “intelligence market,” as described by former FBI translator, Sibel Edmonds, information of this kind is regularly accessed and sold by individuals directly connected to those arrested, sold to enemies of the United States. We are still waiting for the Attorney General to act on these now very substantiated allegations....."  

The New York Times: Making Nuclear Extermination Respectable [02/16/10] "On July 18, 2008 The New York Times published an article by Israeli-Jewish historian, Professor Benny Morris, advocating an Israeli nuclear-genocidal attack on Iran with the likelihood of killing 70 million Iranians – 12 times the number of Jewish victims in the Nazi holocaust .... What does the publication by the New York Times of an article, which calls for the nuclear incineration of 70 million Iranians and the contamination of the better part of a billion people in the Middle East, Asia and Europe, tell us about US politics and culture? For it is the NYT, which informs the ‘educated classes’ in the US, its Sunday supplements, literary and editorial pages and which serves as the ‘moral conscience’ of important sectors of the cultural, economic and political elite .... The Times sets the tone for the entire New York cultural scene, which privileges Israeli interests, to the point of assimilating into the US political discourse not only its routine violations of international law, but its threats, indeed promises, to scorch vast areas of the earth in pursuit of its regional supremacy. The willingness of the NYT to publish an Israeli genocide-ethnocide advocate tells us about the strength of the ties between a purportedly ‘liberal establishment’ pro-Israel publication and the totalitarian Israeli right: It is as if to say that for the liberal pro-Israel establishment, the nonJewish Nazis are off limits, but the views and policies of Judeo-fascists need careful consideration and possible implementation....."  

Former Israeli Counter Terrorist Agent Juval Aviv, on Fox News, Warns "Next US Terror Attack Within 90 Days At Most" [02/16/10] "... Since mass transportation is the next attack, when you travel  ..."  Note: How would he know that mass transportation would be hit? Unless it again is the Mossad doing it. Check this page out: The Controversy of Juval Aviv also includes  VIDEO [6:42] of Aviv  Note:  Google Search Results on Juval Aviv 

Network effects: How a new communications technology disrupted America’s newspaper industry—in 1845 [02/16/10] "... “America has in fact transformed journalism from what it once was, the periodical expression of the thought of the time, the opportune record of the questions and answers of contemporary life, into an agency for collecting, condensing and assimilating the trivialities of the entire human existence…the frantic haste with which we bolt everything we take, seconded by the eager wish of the journalist not to be a day behind his competitor, abolishes deliberation from judgment and sound digestion from our mental constitutions. We have no time to go below surfaces, and as a general thing no disposition. ..."   

Front Organizations for U.S. Oligarchs Have Been Established in Abu Dhabi  [02/16/10] "The latest news from our traveling Deputy Treasury Secretary appears to be that the skids have been greased in Abu Dhabi and front organizations have been identified. The code words for raping taxpayers, "cooperation between the public and private sector," have been spoken. In other words, it's time for Carlyle Group founder David Rubenstein to call his office. ..."   

Commentary: Internet has been hijacked by corporate interests to accelerate cultural, political and economic decline By Chris Hedges [02/16/10] " .... Ask journalists, photographers, musicians, cartoonists or artists what they think of the Web. Ask movie and film producers. Ask architects or engineers. The Web efficiently disseminates content, but it does not protect intellectual property rights. Writers and artists are increasingly unable to make a living. And technical professions are under heavy assault. Anything that can be digitized can and is being outsourced to countries such as India and China where wages are miserable and benefits nonexistent. Welcome to the new global serfdom where the only professions that pay a living wage are propaganda and corporate management.  The Web, at the same time it is destroying creative work, is forming anonymous crowds that vent collective rage, intolerance and bigotry. These virtual slums do not expand communication or dialogue. They do not enrich our culture. They create a herd mentality in which those who express empathy for “the enemy”—and the liberal class is as guilty of this as the right wing—are denounced by their fellow travelers for their impurity. Racism toward Muslims may be as evil as anti-Semitism, but try to express this simple truth on a partisan Palestinian or Israeli website. Jaron Lanier, the “father of virtual reality technology,” in his new book “You Are Not a Gadget,” warns us of this frightening new collectivism. He notes that the habits imposed by the Internet have reconfigured how we relate to each other. He writes that “Web 2.0,” “Open Culture,” “Free Software” and the “Long Tail” have become enablers of this new collectivism. He cites Wikipedia, which consciously erases individual voices, and Google Wave as examples of the rise of mass collective thought and mass emotions. Google Wave is a new communication platform that permits users to edit what someone else has said in a conversation when it is displayed as well as allow collaborators to watch each other as they type. Privacy, honesty and self-reflection are instantly obliterated.  ..."   

Hillary Clinton, Turkish officials get physical in Qatar [02/16/10] "A fight broke out between high-ranking US and Turkish officials at a meeting held between Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Qatar. The fight was reported between the US ambassador to Qatar and an advisor to the Turkish prime minister at the end of a 20-minute meeting between Clinton and Erdogan on Monday. The altercation took place after the US envoy entered the room to remind those present to close the meeting as the time was over. In response, Erdogan's adviser said, "It is not for you to judge the importance of our meeting, you offend our country," the Turkish daily Today's Zaman reported. The quarrel led to physical confrontation and the two diplomats were separated with difficulty.  ..."   Related: Turkey's PM calls on world to rescue Palestinians from Israeli siege   "Erdogan called on the developed world to rescue 1.5 mln-Gazans from Israeli aggressions and siege, ending human tragedy in the land. ..." | Netanyahu speaks with Clinton ahead of her visit to Persian Gulf

Clinton Meets With Al Jazeera Brass In Qatar [02/16/10] "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with the director general of the Al Jazeera Network, Wadah Khanfar, and the network's senior editorial staff while in Doha, Qatar on Monday, a spokeswoman for the Arabic station said. The purpose of the meeting, the spokeswoman said, was to "further dialogue with Al Jazeera." Following the meeting, Clinton was interviewed for Al Jazeera's "From Washington" program, moderated by Al Jazeera's Washington Bureau Chief, Abderrahim Foukara.  ..."   

Clinton: "Iran Is Becoming Military Dictatorship With Nukes"  VIDEO [1:25] "U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Monday that Iran is becoming a military dictatorship, a new U.S. accusation in the midst of rising tensions with Iran over its nuclear ambitions and crack down on anti-government protesters...."  Note: "Unlike the United States" , of course... Ralph Nader ‘We live in a two party elected dictatorship’  VIDEO [3:52] | Alex Jones – The Two Party Dictatorship  VIDEO [2:09] |‘America lives in a fascist state’ – Gerald Celente  VIDEO [11:17]

It Is Too Late To Prevent The Collapse Of The G-7 [02/16/10] "For Greece, with on and off balance sheet liabilities at over 800%, it's game over. For the Eurozone, with the same ratio at about 500%, it is also game over. For the US, at 500%+, it is, you guessed it (sorry Joseph Stiglitz), game over, but since we have the printers, it will simply take a little longer.  ..."   

U.S. Economic Terrorism the New ‘Winning Trade’ [02/16/10] "When Wall Street planned and executed the U.S. housing-bubble (and all its related scams), it destroyed the lives of tens of millions of Americans. Then, when it subsequently ‘crashed’ global markets, it inflicted hardship on most of the world. But the Oligarchs were just getting started. ..." 

Industry Study: Dems Cost US $2.36 Trillion in Oil Money [02/16/10] "In 2009 Democrats scrapped oil and gas leases in Utah, permanently banned drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), and nixed offshore drilling. ...For decades Democrats have blocked efforts to responsibly develop this nation’s energy resources, transforming vast areas of opportunity into “The No Zone.”"  

Commentary: Indicting the Supreme Court by Prof John Kozy [02/15/10] "Grumbling over the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Citizens United continue to rumble like distant thunder. Will the decision go down in history as one more in the Court’s long line of egregious opinions? Likely! Will it have much effect on the American political landscape? Likely not! Simply ask yourself, how much worse can it get? There is scant evidence that the Congressional attempts to limit corporate expenditures in electioneering have had any effect in reducing corporate influence in government. Expecting the Congress, most if not all of whose members reside deep in corporate pockets, to eliminate that influence can be likened to expecting the rhinovirus to eliminate the common cold. Corporate money is the diseased life-blood of American politics; it carries its cancerous spores to all extremities. The Supreme Court really should be named the Unbeseem Court. Without any Constitutional justification whatsoever, as Justice Holmes, dissenting in Lochner, pointed out, the Court has taken its task to be the constitutionalization of a totally immoral, rapacious, economic system instead of the promotion of justice, domestic tranquility, the general welfare, and the blessings of liberty. Consider this short list of examples: ..."  

US media omission: Iran calls for global nuclear disarmament [02/15/10] "The American public has not been informed by the US news media about highly newsworthy statements made by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Friday February 12. He said the era of nuclear weapons is over, suggesting Iran has no plans to build "inhumane" A-bombs. Ahmadinejad called for a world free of nuclear arms in an interview with Russia's NTV channel. "We believe that not only the Middle East but also the whole world should be free of nuclear weapons because we see such weapons as inhumane," he said. "Today, no one can use a nuclear weapon and we believe that the US is taking a wrong move by stockpiling nuclear weapons," he added. "Those who claim that they are against nuclear weapons should dismantle their nuclear weapons first to prove that they are honest." ..."   

Conservative Activists Rebel Against Fox News: Saudi Ownership Is ‘Really Dangerous For America’ [02/15/10] "Last weekend, at the right-wing Constitutional Coalition’s annual conference in St. Louis, Joseph Farah, publisher of the far right WorldNetDaily, blasted Fox News for its relationship with Alwaleed. Farah noted correctly that Alwaleed had boasted in the past about forcing Fox News to change its content relating to its coverage of riots in Paris, and warned that such foreign ownership of American media is “really dangerous.” ....... A battle between WorldNutcaseDaily and Faux Noise? I hope they use real weapons. ..."  

UK Guardian Observer: Americans stock up to be ready for end of the world [02/15/10] "It seems that trend forecaster Gerald Celente was right (again) about the popular trend he has dubbed “neo-survivalism.” There is a lot of uncertainty in America right now, thus it is no surprise that many are reverting back to the rugged individual roots that existed during the founding of our nation. ..."  

Joe the ‘Plumber’: ‘I don’t owe John McCain shit, he really screwed up my life’ [02/15/10] "For one-time political icon Joe Wurzelbacher, reminders of his old campaign buddy Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) aren't exactly pleasant. Some grapes turn more sour than others, it seems. More commonly known as "Joe the Plumber" -- even though he held no such certification when McCain endowed him with the title -- Wurzelbacher has thrown a fair amount of hatred toward the Arizona politician and the Republican party as a whole since the 2008 presidential campaign ended. But it's his recent comments to Pennsylvania public radio that really take the cake. ..."    

Rachel Maddow Stuns Rep. Aaron Schock By Calling Out His Spending Hypocrisy [02/15/10] VIDEO  "A heated exchange took place during NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday when MSNBC host Rachel Maddow accused Rep. Aaron Schock (R-Ill.) of hypocrisy for railing against a spending bill in public while touting its benefits in his home district. ..."   

Monsanto 'faked' data for approvals claims its ex-chief [02/14/10] "..... Jagadisan, who worked with Monsanto for nearly two decades, including eight years as the managing director of India operations, spoke against the new variety during the public consultation held in Bangalore on Saturday. On Monday, he elaborated by saying the company "used to fake scientific data" submitted to government regulatory agencies to get commercial approvals for its products in India. ... The former Monsanto boss said government regulatory agencies with which the company used to deal with in the 1980s simply depended on data supplied by the company while giving approvals to herbicides. "The Central Insecticide Board was supposed to give these approvals based on the location and crop-specific data from India. But it simply accepted foreign data supplied by Monsanto. They did not even have a test tube to validate the data and, at times, the data itself was faked," Jagadisan said. "I retired from the company as I felt the management of Monsanto, USA, was exploiting our country," Jagadisan, 84, said from his home in Bangalore. "At that time, Monsanto was getting into the seed business and I had information that a 'terminator gene' was to be incorporated in the seeds being supplied by the firm. This meant that the farmer had to buy fresh seeds from Monsanto at heavy cost every time he planted the crop," he said....."   

The republic is dead [02/14/10] "In order for a democracy or a republic to function, the citizens must have a voice. This essay will argue that the people have lost their voice, and will be fundamentally unable to regain that voice regardless of who is sitting in the political seats. Even the president is powerless to affect change, and is wholly subservient to the money interests who put him there. That has become obvious to people paying attention. ..."  

8 percent of Americans want the members of Congress re-elected [02/14/10] "Just 8 percent of Americans want the members of Congress re-elected, according to a CBS News-New York Times poll taken nine months before roughly one-third of the Senate and the entire House face voters. The Feb. 5–10 survey found 81 percent of respondents saying the lawmakers shouldn’t receive another term. By 80 percent to 13 percent, Americans said members of Congress are more interested in serving special interests than the people they represent. ... Also, 75 percent disapproved of the job Congress is doing, the highest level since 74 percent said they disapproved in October 2008. Congress’s job approval rating was 15 percent in the current survey; it was 12 percent in October 2008."  

More fraudulent holocaust survivors  [02/14/10] "The Claims Conference fired three employees last week who allegedly approved more than 100 fraudulent Holocaust-era claims — filed primarily by Russians now living in Brooklyn — that bilked the German government out of more than $350,000, The Jewish Week has learned. ..."  

2008 habeas ruling may pose snag as U.S. weighs indefinite Guantanamo detentions [02/14/10] "he case against Saeed Mohammed Saleh Hatim seemed ironclad. But a federal judge reviewed the case and found the government's evidence too weak to justify Hatim's confinement. The judge ordered the detainee's release, ruling that he could not rely on Hatim's statements because they had been coerced. He also found that the government's informer was "profoundly unreliable." The rulings in the Hatim case and the 31 others may be a harbinger of trouble for the Obama administration, which is considering plans to indefinitely detain dozens of Guantanamo Bay prisoners without civilian or military trials. Although the detainees will never face a jury, they are entitled to their day in court under the Supreme Court ruling. ..."  

Federal takeover of lakes looms [02/13/10] "Like Asian carp and other invasive species, the White House has recently laid the groundwork for a federal takeover of the Great Lakes and its tributaries. The activities of a White House task force have raised questions about state sovereignty and federal control over natural resources. It is imperative that Gov. Jennifer Granholm and the Legislature get answers, especially since they are discussing the threat of the Asian carp with the Obama administration. In June, the White House created an Interagency Oceans and Great Lakes Policy Task Force whose statements, at the least, confuse the issue of state sovereignty and, at the worst, threaten it. In fact, the task force effectively authorizes the feds to take over jurisdiction of one of the remaining linchpins of Michigan's economy, our multibillion-dollar fishing industry that generates over 27,000 jobs. The Great Lakes states have always managed their natural resources from the land up to the shoreline and three miles out. The feds have jurisdiction after that point and in international waterways.  ..." 

Is US a Police State? – Video Interview with Paul Craig Roberts [02/13/10] VIDEO [4:09] "The US now has a list of Americans that the country can now murder abroad if they are fraternizing with terror groups. Paul Craig Roberts says that all of this points to a sign that the United States has become a police state.  ..."   

Iceland may become investigative haven [02/13/10] "Wikileaks hopes to convert Iceland into a friendly home for investigative journalists with laws friendly to whistleblowers, its editor says. ... 

Mullen to visit Jerusalem  [02/13/10] "In another sign of growing cooperation between Israel and the US ahead of a new round of sanctions on Iran, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Michael Mullen will arrive in Israel on Sunday as the guest of IDF Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi. According to a recent New York Times article, Mullen has urged Israel to hold off on attacking Iran and to give the new round of sanctions, expected to be imposed in the coming weeks, a fair chance. ..."  Note: Mullen is a nutcase.

American Muslims Issue Fatwa: Body Scanners Violate Sharia Law [02/13/10] "t seems that it’s not just Americans who believe that body scanners violate a host of privacy and child pornography laws. The Fiqh Council of North America has issued a fatwa, or religious ruling, denouncing the use of body scanners because they would violate Islamic rules on modesty  ..."    

Top judge: Binyam Mohamed case shows MI5 to be devious, dishonest and complicit in torture [02/13/10] "Legal defeat plunges Security Service into crisis over torture evidence, and it is revealed that judge removed damning verdict after Foreign Office QC's plea ..."   

The secret behind the Rush of The International Mining Companies to Haiti [02/13/10]   VIDEO [34:07]  "Canadian CKUT Radio from Montreal host Chris Scott interviews Marguerite Laurent of the Haitian Lawyers Leadership Network (HLLN) on Haitian resources and the secret behind the rush of international mining companies to Haiti taking advantage of the Chaos and lack of legislation and a strong government. ..."   

Olympic Torch Approaches Opening Ceremonies [02/13/10] Note: The idea of the torch run came about at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. It's a Nazi concept.

Canada:  Ahead of Olympics, Vancouver assaults civil liberties [02/12/10] "Vancouver may be the world's most livable city, at least according to one survey, but many of its residents are upset by what they see as an assault on civil liberties intended to silence critics of the Olympic Games. For months, this picturesque metropolis of 2 million people, sandwiched between forest-covered mountains and the Pacific Ocean, has been the site of an increasingly bitter dispute between the city's Olympic organizing committee and civil rights activists who say the city has stepped over the line in its efforts to keep dissent as far away as possible from international news cameras. The controversy began in earnest last summer, when a group calling itself the Olympics Resistance Network accused the city's Olympic security unit of harassing their members by showing up at their homes and issuing "thinly veiled threats to interfere with their jobs and invasions of personal spaces," Vancouver's The Province reported. Concerns over civil liberties were ramped up when the provincial government of British Columbia passed a law allowing Vancouver to ban anti-Olympic signs, even when they are on private property. Under that law, residents can be imprisoned for six months and fined $10,000 ($9,500 US) for not removing "offensive" signage. Equally alarming to some was a provision that allows police to enter private property without a warrant to remove the signs. ..."   Related:  No Agenda Broadcast Of Vancouver 2010 False Flag VIDEO [7:42]  "Discussion of Vancouver 2010 False Flag possibilities...." | The War on Terrorism and the Countdown to the 2010 Olympics | U.S.- Canada Border Security and Military Integration | Amy Goodman and the Police State North of the 49th Parallel |Sci Fi Author Peter Watts Arrested At US Border "Toronto science fiction writer accused of assault following `altercation' at U.S. border crossing ..." |20 Years After Montreal Massacre, Ottawa Debates Gun Control | Blame Canada: Pentagon Wonders If Neighbors Are 'Bad Guys' | Canada Bans Most Carry-On Luggage | Zakaria Amara, 'Toronto 18' Ringleader, Gets Life Sentence  

MS update gives some XP boxes the Blue Screen [02/12/10] "Applying the latest patches from Microsoft can cause Windows XP machines to crash with the infamous blue screen of death. ... Updating systems with the MS10-015 bulletin, which addresses "important" vulnerabilities in Windows Kernel, can cause machines to lock up when restarted before falling into a never-ending reboot loop. The problem is far from isolated, judging by a growing thread on the topic on an official Windows support forum here - though it's fortunately not commonplace either."  Note: Again, this is why I turned my automatic updates OFF. 

Candid camera sex scandal shocks Palestinians [02/12/10] "Palestinians were shocked on Thursday after Israeli TV aired a graphic video showing a senior official caught on a hidden camera soliciting sex from a job applicant. The video, parts of which aired on Israel's Channel 10 earlier this week, was shot by former Palestinian intelligence officer Fahmi Shabaneh, who has accused the Western-backed Palestinian Authority of widespread corruption. In the video, Rafiq al-Husseini, president Mahmud Abbas's chief of staff, is shown flirting with a woman Shabaneh said was seeking a job in the Authority before entering a bedroom, taking off his clothes and crawling into bed. "How does this work? Should I turn off the lights or will you," he chuckles from inside the room to someone off-screen in the video, now widely available on youtube. Moments later Shabaneh and several other security men walk into the room, surprising a naked Husseini, who holds British citizenship, and confronting him with the allegations. ..."   

Commentary:  Ridicule of Conspiracy Theories Focuses On Diffusing Criticism of the Powerful [02/12/10] "But - while people might admit that corporate executives and low-level government officials might have engaged in conspiracies - they may be strongly opposed to considering that the wealthiest or most powerful might possibly have done so. Indeed, those who most loudly attempt to ridicule and discredit conspiracy theories tend to focus on defending against criticism involving the powerful. This may be partly due to psychology: it is scary for people to admit that those who are supposed to be their "leaders" protecting them may in fact be human beings with complicated motives who may not always have their best interests in mind. ..."   

Davos: The Bomb Shelter [02/12/10] "The real US unemployment picture is one reason why the parasites and predators who gather in Davos are so concerned. Their 300 year-old system of credit and debt concocted to drain the productivity of others has succeeded beyond their wildest dreams; but it has come at a cost—their host, society, upon which their profits depend is now collapsing. Their concern is genuine, similar to that of plantation owners whose slaves are falling prey to disease and death brought on by age and overwork. That such was inevitable did not occur to them so inured were they from living off the labor of others; and, now, while their dilemma is obvious the solution is not. ...  

Feds push for tracking cell phones [02/12/10] "Even though police are tapping into the locations of mobile phones thousands of times a year, the legal ground rules remain unclear, and federal privacy laws written a generation ago are ambiguous at best. On Friday, the first federal appeals court to consider the topic will hear oral arguments (PDF) in a case that could establish new standards for locating wireless devices. ..."    

Guantanamo Detainee Deaths - Responding To The Defense Department's Whitewash [02/12/10] "On December 7, 2009, under the direction of Professor Mark Denbeaux, Seton Hall University School of Law's Center for Policy & Research (CP&R) published its 15th GITMO report titled, "Death in Camp Delta," covering three simultaneous deaths on June 9, 2006 in the maximum security Alpha Block. The detainees were found hanged in separate cells shortly after midnight on June 10, unobserved for at least two hours, rags stuffed down their throats, despite constant surveillance by five guards responsible for 28 inmates in a lit cell block monitored by video cameras. One of them was scheduled for release in 19 days, so why would he commit suicide? The report found "dramatic flaws in the government's investigation (and) raise(s) serious questions about the security of the Camp (and) derelictions of duty by officials of multiple defense and intelligence agencies," who either let them die or killed them, then whitewashed the investigation to suppress it. ..."   

Constitution clearly prohibits Hillary Clinton from serving as secretary of state until 2013 [02/11/10] "Look like Hillary was padding the salary before she was appointed. Do you think just perhaps she was giving a clue that she was going to be appointed? Sure looks that way.  ...The U.S. Constitution, Article I, section 6, clause 2, provides: "No senator or representative shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall have been [increased] during such time." The case brought on behalf of a career government employee outlines how during Clinton's tenure in the U.S. Senate, the salary for the secretary of state was raised to $186,600, then to $191,300, and then again to $196,700. The complaint challenges whether a resolution adopted by Congress as Clinton was preparing for the position that rolled back the compensation to the level of Jan. 1, 2007, could remove the obstacle to Clinton's appointment. WND reported when Judicial Watch filed its notice that it would bring the arguments to the Supreme Court, and now the brief in the case has been submitted. A special three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed the case, concluding Rodearmel lacked standing. But Judicial Watch has argued Rodearmel cannot be forced to serve under the former senator as it would violate the oath he took as a Foreign Service Officer in 1991 to "support and defend" and "bear true faith and allegiance" to the U.S. Constitution. "Our client's goal is to vindicate the U.S. Constitution," said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. "The Constitution clearly prohibits Hillary Clinton from serving as secretary of state until 2013. We hope the Supreme Court assumes jurisdiction over this matter and puts a stop to this attempt to do an end-run around the Constitution."  Note:  Cunt-in-Chief ... out to cause havoc in other countries.

The Democrats, the Deficit, and Social Security [02/11/10] "It’s official: the Democrats are coming after Social Security and Medicare. How refreshing that all the backroom scheming and political conspiring is finally out in the open. Before, the corporate elite had been having this conversation in private, via right-wing think tanks and business journals. Now, mainstream media is promoting these ideas, including the Democrat’s media mouthpiece — The New York Times. ..."  

It Is Now Official: The US Is a Police State by Paul Craig Roberts [02/11/10] "Americans have been losing the protection of law for years. In the 21st century the loss of legal protections accelerated with the Bush administration’s “war on terror,” which continues under the Obama administration and is essentially a war on the Constitution and U.S. civil liberties. The Bush regime was determined to vitiate habeas corpus in order to hold people indefinitely without bringing charges. The regime had acquired hundreds of prisoners by paying a bounty for terrorists. Afghan warlords and thugs responded to the financial incentive by grabbing unprotected people and selling them to the Americans. The Bush regime needed to hold the prisoners without charges because it had no evidence against the people and did not want to admit that the U.S. government had stupidly paid warlords and thugs to kidnap innocent people. In addition, the Bush regime needed “terrorists” prisoners in order to prove that there was a terrorist threat. As there was no evidence against the “detainees” (most have been released without charges after years of detention and abuse), the U.S. government needed a way around U.S. and international laws against torture in order that the government could produce evidence via self-incrimination. The Bush regime found inhumane and totalitarian-minded lawyers and put them to work at the U.S. Department of Justice (sic) to invent arguments that the Bush regime did not need to obey the law. The Bush regime created a new classification for its detainees that it used to justify denying legal protection and due process to the detainees. As the detainees were not U.S. citizens and were demonized by the regime as “the 760 most dangerous men on earth,” there was little public outcry over the regime’s unconstitutional and inhumane actions. ..."   

Australian hackers hit government sites [02/11/10] "Hackers in Australia launched attacks on government Web sites to protest upcoming Internet filtering legislation and perceived censorship, officials said. ..."  Note:  These could also be government paid hackers .. in order to justify a crackdown ... hacking selected sites ...

MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews: Palin has ‘nothing going on mentally’ [02/11/10] "..... MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews forcefully ripped into Sarah Palin's advice that President Obama could "declare war on Iran" to improve his re-election chances, repeatedly calling her "frightening" and claiming she's "an empty vessel" with "nothing going on mentally .... "She's frightening. Mark, that is frightening stuff. Frightening," Matthews said Tuesday on his show Hardball. "First of all, president don't declare war. Anybody knows that in high school. Congress has to declare war. To declare war on Iran, I don't think the most far right, Middle East hawk will talk about declaring war on Iran, a country with 70-some million people, with an advanced air force. ... Matthews assailed her ostensible lack of knowledge on military matters and war, claiming she doesn't understand the matter she's discussing. "She has no idea what the Korean War was. She didn't know anything," he said ...... Matthews took a direct swipe at her intellect, alleging that "she has nothing going on mentally." Referring to her recent interview with Wallace, he said, "Nothing comes out. Nothing. She says nothing spontaneously when you ask her a serious question." Time magazine's Mark Halperin agreed, saying Palin was "obviously flailing" during the interview. Palin said Sunday she's open to running for president in 2012 and that it would be "absurd" not to consider it. "I'd be afraid of her," Matthews continued. "She's an empty vessel ready to be filled by ideology she does not understand, and that is really scary." Comparing her to former vice president Dan Quayle and former president George W. Bush, he added that "Nothing is more frightening than an empty vessel in power."   

Barack Obama accuses Iran of attempt to build a nuclear bomb [02/11/10] "President Obama accused Iran yesterday of trying to build a bomb after Tehran’s nuclear scientists began enriching uranium closer to weapons grade in defiance of the United Nations. The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that its inspectors had been called to the Natanz plant to witness the beginning of work to upgrade Iran’s 3.5 per cent enriched uranium to 20 per cent. ..."  Note: Sorry ... you need 90% enrichment for weapons.

Poll: Majority of Americans Support Cutting Size of Government Workforce [02/11/10] "A Rasmussen Reports poll shows that 58 percent of Americans support cutting the size of the government workforce to reduce the deficit, while 22 percent oppose the idea and 19 percent are "not sure" (mindless) ..."  

Religious groups want gay judge removed from Prop-8 trial [02/11/10] "After a columnist for The San Francisco Chronicle claimed that Judge Vaughn Walker is gay, some religious groups are clamoring that he recuse himself from presiding over the federal trial for Proposition 8. Several groups opposed to gay rights have issued statements that a homosexual justice constitutes an unacceptable bias in a case over California's ban on gay marriage. “The revelation that Judge Walker apparently chooses to engage in homosexual conduct, if true, would explain much of his bizarre behavior throughout this trial,” said Matt Barber in a press release from Liberty Counsel, a non-profit religious and political organization. Barber referred to Walker's decision to broadcast video from the trial online as an example of the "circus-like atmosphere" he has created, though that decision was overturned later. ..."   

Christians & Zionism's Useful Idiots [02/11/10] "You know the imagery-- millions of christians around the world have spontaneously disappeared - where did they go? Some say aliens, others terrorists. Now airplanes are plummeting to destruction, trains derailing, cars crashing, nuclear power plants are melting down and dumbfounded people staggering around in confusion looking for their children... Who unleashed this insanity on mankind? My brother, who is an atheist, and I were watching TBN a while back and happened upon these images from Kirk Cameron's blockbuster film, Left Behind. There were no shortages of side-splitting laughs.  The false ideas put forward in most movies and books pertaining to end-times Biblical prophecy appear to most as sheer unadulterated religious stupidity but to the majority of protestant christians particularly, in America, they are both real and imminent.  ..."    

Virginia delegates pass bill banning chip implants [02/11/10] "On Wednesday, Virginia's House of Delegates passed a bill that forbids companies from forcing their employees to be implanted with tracking devices, a move likely to be applauded by civil libertarians. ..."   

Iraq reportedly booting 250 past and present Blackwater employees [02/11/10] "Iraq has apparently had enough of the controversial Xe Services LLC, the private military contractor previously known as Blackwater. The Voice of Iraq reports, "A total of 250 employees working for the U.S. security firm Blackwater have been dismissed and given seven days to leave Iraq, the Iraqi minister of interior said on Wednesday, according to the semi-official al-Iraqiya TV." "Iraq orders hundreds of former and current Blackwater employees to leave country within 7 days," the Associated Press reports in a breaking story. US Vice President Joe Biden announced during a visit to Baghdad in January that Washington will appeal a judge's decision to clear five US security guards accused of killing 14 unarmed Iraqis in 2007 while working for Blackwater. The five guards, who had been part of a convoy of armoured vehicles, had been charged with killing 14 unarmed Iraqi civilians and wounding 18 others during the attack at a busy Baghdad square using guns and grenades. ..."   

A Primer on Iran’s Medical Reactor Plans [02/11/10] "It costs Iran about a $1 million per annum to import its current needs for diagnostic 99Mo. About half of that is “wasted” in transit as the molybdenum decays, an amount that could be saved if the isotope was produced locally. If, as has been discussed in the media, Iran transfers enough LEU (currently at an average enrichment of 3.5% U235) for five years worth of fuel for the TRR (about 160 kg of 19.75% U235 metal according to my calculations) then it will need to ship about 2200 1500 kg of LEU to Russia. However, according to the IAEA, Iran only has about 1508 kg of UF6 LEU, as of 31 July 2009. So Iran will either have to get less TRR fuel or process more 3.5% LEU. The required amount nicely matches the amount of LEU Iran had as of the beginning of August. ..." 

Maddow: Republicans not embarrassed by their own hypocrisy [02/11/10] "MSNBC's Rachel Maddow is furious about knee-jerk Republican opposition to anything the Obama administration proposes, but she is equally frustrated by "the futility of Democrats ... trying to persuade Republicans to go along with them on policies that are good for the country." Maddow summed up the current Republican position as one of "Screw policy. Screw what even they believe is good for the country. Screw what even they believe is good for their own districts." "They are not voting 'Yes' for even things that they agree with," Maddow explained. Her primary example of Republican hypocrisy was the Obama administration's economic stimulus program, which "passed despite every single Republican in the House voting 'No' on it." ..."  Note:  Article includes video.

The Myth of the Good War: America in World War II [02/10/10] "The bombing of Dresden had little or nothing to do with the war against Nazi Germany: it was an American British message for Stalin, a message that cost the lives of tens of thousands of people. Later that same year, two more similarly coded yet not very subtle messages would follow, involving even more victims, but this time Japanese cities were targeted, and the idea was to direct Stalin’s attention to the lethality of America’s terrible new weapon, the atomic bomb.[27] Dresden had little or nothing to do with the war against Nazi Germany; it had much, if not everything, to do with a new conflict in which the enemy was to be the Soviet Union. In the horrible heat of the infernos of Dresden, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Cold War was born. ..."  

Americans Helped Corrupt African Leaders Spend Their Money in the U.S. [02/10/10] "For some Americans it’s no questions asked. Bring your millions of dollars looted from foreign treasuries and spend lavishly in the United States, or simply stuff it into domestic bank accounts, including bundles of cash smuggled in on the persons of world leaders. The U.S. Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations latest report (Keeping Foreign Corruption Out of the United States: Four Case Histories) details the lives of rich African despots who have funneled huge sums into the country, all with the help of morally-flexible Americans. There’s Omar Bongo, president of Gabon, who was aided by lobbyist Jeffrey Birrell in his purchase of American-built armored vehicles and military cargo aircraft, and who stashed more than $100 million into offshore shell companies. Bongo also transported $1 million into the U.S., right past customs, by using his diplomatic status and gave it to his daughter for her to deposit into an American bank ......"  

US/UN Cyber Security: ‘More Draconian Than Chinese Net Censorship’ [02/10/10] VIDEO [4:56]  "Alex Jones joins Russia Today to discuss the proposed cyber security legislation recently passed in the US House of Representatives.  ..."   

Why the U.S. owes Haiti billions [02/10/10] "The U.S. has worked to break Haiti for over 200 years. We owe Haiti. Not charity. We owe Haiti as a matter of justice. Reparations. And not the $100 million promised by President Obama either – that is Powerball money. The U.S. owes Haiti Billions – with a big B. The U.S. has worked for centuries to break Haiti. The U.S. has used Haiti like a plantation. The U.S. helped bleed the country economically since it freed itself, repeatedly invaded the country militarily, supported dictators who abused the people, used the country as a dumping ground for our own economic advantage, ruined their roads and agriculture, and toppled popularly elected officials. The U.S. has even used Haiti like the old plantation owner and slipped over there repeatedly for sexual recreation. Here is the briefest history of some of the major U.S. efforts to break Haiti. ..."   

Canadian Prime Minister Delivers Global Governance Plan [02/10/10] "During the January 2010 World Economic Summit in Davos Switzerland Prime Minister Stephen Harper, the current Chairman of the G-20, presented the upcoming agenda for the G-20 and G-8 meetings to be held in Ontario in June. Many were shocked to hear this Conservative leader declare that “we also know markets need governance. For the new global economy, the G-20 is what we have.” ..."   

The "Shock Doctrine" for Haiti [02/10/10] "ONE MONTH after the devastating earthquake, Haiti continues to suffer under apocalyptic conditions. ..."   

Will Israel Assassinate Barack Obama? [02/10/10] "To assassinate an American president with impunity requires pre-staging. For Israel to succeed would require an Evil Doer on whom the deed could plausibly be blamed. The emerging fact patterns suggest that such pre-staging is well underway and that a Pakistani could be the perceived culprit. The recent history of Evil Doer branding offers insight into what to expect. ..."   

When the “War on Terror” Becomes Genocide [02/10/10] "The “Convention for the Punishment and Prevention of the Crime of Genocide” stresses the prevention of genocide more than prescribing its exact manner of punishment. Genocide does not have to be committed for the Convention to have effect. By defining “genocide” it seeks to avert agendas which will confirm the crime.  ..."   

Christmas Day Crotch Bomber Tied to Israel, FBI [02/10/10] "How did a young Nigerian Muslim without a passport “slip through” security at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport? Not only did his itinerary feature an illogical travel route, he paid cash for a high-priced last-min ICTS International, the security screening company at Schiphol, was founded by former members of Shin Bet, Israel’s civil security agency, and Israeli executives in charge of El Al security. ICTS had already proven its expertise in mounting this type of operation. ..."   

Battle With Mental Illness: Bachmann: US will cease to exist if it opposes Israel [02/10/10] "Michele Bachmann, the outspoken conservative House representative from Minnesota, says the United States will cease to exist if it "fails to stand" with Israel. "I am convinced in my heart and in my mind that if the United States fails to stand with Israel, that is the end of the United States," Bachmann said at a meeting of the Republican Jewish Coalition in Los Angeles on Feb. 6. Bachmann went on to explain that God's special relationship with Israel means the US would be cursed if it were to oppose Israeli policies. "We have to show that we are inextricably entwined, that as a nation we have been blessed because of our relationship with Israel, and if we reject Israel, then there is a curse that comes into play," Bachmann said. The congresswoman's comments went under the radar until Andy Birkey reported on them at the Minnesota Independent. ..."   Palin recommends launching war with Iran VIDEO [1:06]   Huckabee “Absolutely” Backs Drive to Bomb Iran "Mike Huckabee, former Arkansas governor and Republican presidential candidate and now the darling who plays guitar on Fox News, wants to engage in mass murder.  ..."  Note: Huckabee is a nut case.

AP Pulls Iran Nukes Story After Antiwar.com Exposé [02/10/10] "Associated Press issued a story yesterday (Monday) entitled “Iran moves closer to nuke warhead capacity.” It was full of inaccurate and misleading information implying that Iran had admitted trying to enrich weapons-grade nuclear material. The story appeared on a wide variety of media. Last night, Antiwar.com news editor Jason Ditz issued a story refuting the AP story. This morning, Associated Press recalled the story without explanation and replaced it with another, much less inflammatory story written by a different author. ..."  Note: AP .... All Propaganda  

Descent Into Barbarism: The US and NATO Wage War on the World [02/10/10] "The argument is won: capitalism as an effective system to organise society and provide for human needs has expired. The evidence is conclusive. Trillions of dollars to kickstart the economy in the US and Europe may have given an ephemeral lease of life to the financial class to spin the casino wheel once again, but [...]"   

Insurers Lose Appeal in S.C. Cancer Policy Case [02/10/10] "Insurers must pay cancer insurance policyholders the full amount of cancer treatment, as billed by medical providers, despite a recently enacted state law defining "actual charges" as the amount paid out by insurers, the 4th Circuit ruled. ..."  

UN find challenges Israeli version of attack on civilian building in Gaza war [02/10/10] "he UN mine action team, which handles ordnance disposal in Gaza, has told the Guardian that the remains of a 500-pound Mk82 aircraft-dropped bomb were found in the ruins of the mill last January. Photographs of the front half of the bomb have been obtained by the Guardian. This evidence directly contradicts the finding of the Israeli report, which challenged allegations that the building was deliberately targeted and specifically stated there was no evidence of an air strike. ..."   

America's 250th DNA exoneration raises questions about how often the wrong person goes to prison [02/10/10] ".... So these 250 DNA exonerations aren't proof that the system is working. They're a wake-up call that it isn't. Instead of falling back on groups like the Innocence Project to serve as unofficial checks against wrongful convictions, lawmakers, judges, and law enforcement officials should be looking at why there's so much work for these organizations in the first place. ..."  

Whaling: Japanese Authorities Breach Human Rights [02/10/10] "The Japanese government breached a series of internationally guaranteed human rights by detaining two Greenpeace activists who had uncovered major corruption in the Japanese whaling programme, according to a working group of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). (1) Junichi Sato and Toru Suzuki, known as the “Tokyo Two”, are due to stand trial on February 15th, but it has been revealed that the UNHRC’s Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) informed the Japanese government in December that the rights of the two men have been breached by the Japanese justice system. ..."  Related:  Protest Ship 'Bob Barker' Rammed by Illegal Whaler "The Bob Barker had been actively blocking the slipway of the Nisshin Maru, the Japanese whaling fleet’s factory ship when the collision occurred. Four harpoon ships, the Yushin Maru 1, 2, and 3 and Shonan Maru 2, were circling and making near passes to the stern and bow of the Sea Shepherd vessel. The Bob Barker did not move from its position. At which point, the Yushin Maru 3 intentionally rammed the Bob Barker, creating a 3-foot long 4-inch deep gash in the mid starboard side of the Sea Shepherd vessel above the waterline. No crew was injured during the collision. The Bob Barker continues to block the slipway of the Nisshin Maru, preventing the transfer of slaughtered whales and effectively shutting down illegal whaling operations. The incident demonstrates a continued escalation of violence by the illegal whalers in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. ..."  

US jails Chinese-born engineer 15 years for spying [02/09/10] "A Chinese-born aerospace engineer was jailed for more than 15 years Monday after being convicted of selling technology related to the US space shuttle program to China, officials said. Dongfan "Greg" Chung, 73, was convicted last year of stealing trade secrets from Boeing and Rockwell during a three-decade career where he was also working as a Chinese agent, a justice department statement said. Federal Judge Cormac Carney jailed Chung for 188 months at a hearing in Santa Ana, outside of Los Angeles, telling the former engineer it was not possible to "put a price tag" on national security. Carney said the stiff sentence was intended to send a message to the Chinese government: "Stop sending your spies here." Chung was found guilty of conspiracy to commit economic espionage, six counts of economic espionage to benefit a foreign country, one count of acting as an agent of the People's Republic of China and one count of making false statements to the FBI. ...  A native of China and a naturalized US citizen, Chung held a "secret" security clearance when he worked at Rockwell and Boeing on the space shuttle program, according to prosecutors. He retired from the company in 2002 he returned to Boeing as a contractor the following year until 2006. During his trial last year, prosecutors alleged Chung stole Boeing trade secrets relating to the shuttle and the Delta IV rocket. "Mr Chung betrayed his adopted country and endangered our national security," acting US attorney George Cardona said. "This case demonstrates our resolve to protect the secrets that help protect the United States, as well as the important technological advancements developed by scientists working for companies that provide crucial support to our national security programs." The case against Chung was uncovered during a probe into another Chinese espionage case involving the sale of sensitive military information to China."    

Riyadh urges firm stance on Israeli war threats [02/09/10] "Saudi Arabia has called on the international community to take a 'rigorous position' against Israel's saber-rattling against Lebanon, Syria and the Palestinians. ..."   

Obama Administration Plays the "Yellow Cake from Africa" Type Propaganda Card: "Iran Reportedly Making A Deal For Raw Uranium" [02/09/10] "This year began with some hope of change in the long confrontation between Iran and the West, but it's ending with new allegations about Iran's nuclear program. The Associated Press obtained a document saying Iran is trying to buy 1,350 tons of uranium ore from Kazakhstan. Associated Press reporter George Jahn talks to Steve Inskeep about the document. ... A nation member of the International Atomic Energy Agency. It has good intelligence in the region. It's a two-page summary on this purported deal, basically .... "  Note:  Same MO as with Iraq and the UN in early 1990's. This is when the CIA supplied false data to justify an invasion to the UN ... John Bolton and Powell ..... now, Iran declares it wants to enrich uranium to 20% (native ore is 3%) and everyone's getting excited. But 20% is THE degree of enrichment necessary for medical isotopes and power plants.  It takes 90% enrichment to build weapons, and that just isn't in the cards ... but they think that people don't realize this. See this video clip where researcher Wayne Madsen discusses this.

Democratic lawmaker Jack Murtha dies at 77 [02/09/10] "Democratic heavyweight Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) -- who went by Jack -- has died after complications following gallbladder surgery. Murtha was the chairman of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee, where he oversaw Pentagon spending. He was the longest-serving Pennsylvania lawmaker, and was first elected in 1974. Murtha routinely faced criticism from government watchdog groups, which accused him of being the "king of pork." He made the list of the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington's most corrupt legislators list in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. Murtha’s alleged corruption issues are manifold, CREW said in 2009: “his ties to the PMA Group, a now defunct lobbying firm under federal investigation; his ties to Kuchera Industries, a defense contractor under federal investigation; his ties to defense executives and former military personnel convicted of skimming money from government contracts; actions he may have taken to benefit his brother’s lobbying clients; and his chief of staff’s threats to a political opponent.”"  Note:  Good riddance. The guy was a crook and instrumental in the buildup of the military industrial complex.  Related: Without Murtha, Dems now one vote short of passing ObamaCare in House Note: Cool.

Iran vs Israel: What The Media Wants You To Forget  [02/09/10] "The corporate media have been given their orders to throw the focus back on to Iran.
Here is a recap of what they are trying to make you forget. ..."   

Blue Cross hikes Calif. individual rates 39 percent [02/09/10] "It's an issue that strikes at the core of America's health reform debate: How much should one have to pay to ensure a clean bill of health? From an insurer's perspective, almost everyone's life has a margin of profitability, and a price. Now take that price and inflate it by 39 percent -- just to get a feel for what it is like to be one of roughly 800,000 Anthem Blue Cross customers in California who hold individual policies. The company said its dramatic rate hike would take effect on March 1. State regulators almost immediately promised to investigate the increase. Then, on Monday, the Obama administration got involved. ..."   

 Commentary:  Globalization Is Killing The Globe: Return to Local Economies by Thom Hartmann[02/09/10] "Globalization is killing Europe, just as it's already wiped out much of the American middle class. Spain and Greece are facing immediate crises that many other European nations see on the near horizon: aging boomer workers are retiring with healthy benefit packages, but the younger workers who are paying for those benefits aren't making anything close to the income (or, therefore, paying the taxes) that their parents did. Globalists/ corporatists/ conservative "free market" and "flat earth" advocates say this is a great opportunity to cut benefits for the old folks (and for the young folks in the future), thus bringing the countries budgets back into balance, and this story is the main corporate media storyline. ..."   

Time for an American Intifada? [02/09/10] "A beguiling combination of Hollywood fiction, manipulated beliefs and outright lies remain at the core of this entangled alliance and the U.S.-Israeli "special relationship." The deceit deployed to advance the hegemonic goals of the Zionist project remains obscured by an undisclosed media bias reinforced by a widespread pro-Israeli influence in popular culture. As with the 1960 film, the ongoing manipulation of thought and emotion lies at the core of this duplicity a half-century later. ..."   

"Al Qaeda Definitely Behind Crippling Cyber Attack" [02/09/10] "Both the Pentagon and the CIA say that 'al Qaeda' was definitely behind the cyber attack that hit the country's internet backbone, severely damaging sensitive equipment and comprising our nation's security. "This certainly has the fingerprints of somebody like Bin Laden," stated Rita Katz of SITE, a privately run internet search company that picks up sensitive plans on future terrorist attacks from Internet chat rooms. ..."  Note: Nope. More propaganda from the CIA. Rita Katz is Mossad-connected. Related: Israeli Ritz Katz: Voice of Osama Bin Laden | More

As Blair blasts Iraq ‘conspiracy’ hunt, British officials eye Bush, aides [02/09/10] "Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair wants the public to believe that his motives in helping the United States invade Iraq were completely pure. The reasons for an inquiry into his government's actions, he argued during a recent interview, stem merely from an "obsession" to uncover a grand "conspiracy" to take the two nations to war. But it's not just Blair who should be sweating the British inquiry. UK officials are also considering interviews with Bush administration officials, The Washington Post noted Monday evening. "John Chilcot, head of the inquiry, confirmed that he hopes to obtain evidence from officials in the United States, but did not name specific individuals, or specify if his panel hopes to put questions to former President George W. Bush himself," the paper reported. It also quoted Chilcot as saying the UK inquiry cannot accept "formal evidence" from American officials, but would instead seek to "interview" them. ..."  

An American Defeat: The 100 Day War Against the Plutocrats [02/09/10] "During the Great Depression, following the stock market crash of 1929, the American public sought a scapegoat for their economic plight. Some held President Hoover responsible, others targeted the three B's -- brokers, bankers, and businessmen. In reality, it could not be attributed to one individual or even a group of people. The roots of the Great Depression were in the very structure of the American economy itself. ..."   

Water District Sues Arizona Over Money Grab [02/09/10] "Arizona unconstitutionally swiped $12.5 million from the Arizona Water Banking Authority and intends to grab another $5.4 million, the Central Arizona Water Conservation District says. The water district, which manages the Central Arizona Project, claims that the money deposited by two Nevada water commissions to finance the purchase, delivery and storage of Colorado River water - not to help the state stave off its budget woes. ..." 

Disinformation Tactics: The Methods Used To Keep You In The Dark [02/09/10] "here was a time, not too long ago (relatively speaking), that governments and the groups of elites that controlled them did not find it necessary to conscript themselves into wars of disinformation. Propaganda was relatively straightforward. The lies were much simpler. The control of information flow was easily directed. In fact, during the early Middle-Ages ...." 

Russell Williams, Top Canadian Military Official, Charged With Murder [02/09/10] "The commander of Canada's largest Air Force base, who once flew dignitaries around the country, has been charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of two women Ontario Provincial Police Det. Insp. Chris Nicholas said Monday that Col. Russell Williams, 46, was also charged in the sexual assaults of two other women. Williams was arrested Sunday in Ottawa. The charges left Canada's military in a state of shock. ..."  Note: As if military people don't kill people as well as anyone else  ... what's the 'shock'?  

Senate Passes AIPAC's Iran Sanctions Bill in Five Minutes [02/09/10] "Not everyone was happy that it passed by voice vote. It's an election year and senators want some Iran-bashing credit with their donors. ..."     

Israel and the US preparing for Iran Part 1 - The Military Perspective [02/09/10] "This year saw an Israeli-US joint exercise "Juniper Cobra 10" take place off the coast of Israel which involved the IDF and the US Navy 6th Fleet. The purpose of the exercise was to participate in countering simulated attacks by ballistic, medium-range and short-range missiles and rockets by Iran on Israel. ..."   

Netanyahu makes every anti-Iran effort in Russia [02/09/10] "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit Moscow to persuade the Kremlin into backing tougher sanctions against Iran, days after media reports revealed that Tel Aviv has dispatched two warships to the Persian Gulf. The three-day trip, planned weeks ago, will see Netanyahu making every effort in convincing Russian government officials to join the Western-led campaign for additional sanctions against Iran's enrichment activities. ..."   

Hamas leader: No prospects for talks [02/09/10] "Khaled Meshaal, leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, says there's no prospect of successful peace talks with Israel. ..."   

Iran "develops air defense system comparable to Russia's S-300" [02/09/10] "Iran has developed its own air defense system comparable to and even more sophisticated than the Russian S-300 system, the IRNA news agency said Monday, citing an Iranian military official. ..."  Note:  Sounds like propaganda .... why would they have ordered the S-300, to be delivered by the Russians, shortly, if they had a design of their own, or could have designed something better?  Related: Iran "builds own aerial drones with strike capabilities"   

Japan baulks at $2.9b troop bill [02/09/10] "In a country where land is a precious commodity, many United States bases in Japan boast golf courses, football fields and giant shopping centres whose food courts offer everything from Taco Bell to Subway and Starbucks. They are the most visible point of grievance in a sharpening debate about the cost to Japan of supporting the 47,000 American service members here - about US$2 billion ($2.9 billion) a year. That's nearly a third of the total, and about three times what Germany pays to host United States forces on its soil. But facing economic woes and seeking a more equal relationship with the US, Japan's new reformist Government is questioning whether it should spend so much on US troops - a topic that was taboo under the pro-Washington administrations that governed Japan for most of the post-World War II era. ..." 

The US Military: A Mindset of Barbarism [02/09/10] "On December 27, in the eastern Kunar region of Afghanistan, ten Afghans, eight of whom were schoolchildren, were dragged from their beds and shot by US forces during a nighttime raid. Afghan government investigators said the eight students were aged from 11 to 17 years. This incident is but one example of countless atrocities US military personnel have carried out in the occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan. In Iraq, US military personnel torturing detainees in Abu Ghraib, Iraqi civilians suffering the violence meted out by US forces, or US forces detaining schoolchildren in Baghdad, the list of atrocities is seemingly endless. ..."  Note:  Part 2

The Battle With Mental Illness: U.S. soldier 'waterboarded his own daughter, 4, because she couldn't recite alphabet' [02/08/10] "A U.S. soldier has been accused of 'waterboarding' his four-year-old daughter because she couldn't recite the alphabet. Joshua Tabor admitted to police that he used the CIA torture technique because he was so angry. As his daughter 'squirmed' to get away, Tabor said he submerged her face - upwards - three or four times until the water was lapping around her forehead and jawline. Tabor, 27, admitted to investigators that his daughter was terrified of water and he had deliberately chosen the punishment. ..."  Note:  So, the Pentagon dumps traumatized sociopathic GI's out into society and then looks the other way .... the writing is on the wall ... 

U.S. Counterterrorism Officials Insisted that Crotch Bomber Be Let Into Country [02/08/10] "Undersecretary for management at the State Department, Patrick F. Kennedy, told Congress that the State Department wanted to keep crotch bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab out of the U.S., but that intelligence agencies insisted that Abdulmutallab be let into the country. Specifically, on January 27th, Kennedy told the House Committee on Homeland Security that intelligence agencies blocked revocation of Abdulmutallab's visa because it would have foiled a "larger investigation" into Al Qaeda. ..."  Note: By doing this, they deliberately put all the passengers on that flight at risk ... their lives mean nothing. What does that tell everyone else ... everyone, except the people in charge, is expendable.

Obama Marks Bureau of Labor Statistics For Termination: Details of Economic Breakdown to Remain Hidden [02/08/10] "The Obama administration has apparently come up with a creative way to deal with the increasingly bleak news with regard to the economic position of the United States in the world. It proposes to eliminate the office in the Bureau of Labor Statistics that collects and publishes the comparative data on employment, unemployment, manufacturing productivity, and labor costs, among other things. You can find it right there on page 11 (PDF) among the various programs that it has marked for termination.  ..."  

False Flag Op - France:  Armed robbers disguised in burkhas carry out £4,000 raid [02/08/10] "The crime – which took place yesterday in the suburb of Athis Mons – comes as the French government faces growing calls for the controversial garments to be banned. ..."  

NY crime statistics doctored by police: survey [02/08/10] "A controversial report reveals that high-ranking officers at the New York Police Department (NYPD) have consistently manipulated crime statistics in a bid to show the city as safe and secure. ..."  

USA Has A History Of Attacking Itself To Justify A War [02/08/10] VIDEO [10:58]  Note: In 1858, a pretext was used to take control of the Caribbean, including Haiti ....

Arab media: 2 Israeli Navy ships passed through Suez Canal [02/08/10] "Two Israeli missile boats pass through Egypt's Suez Canal en route to Red Sea, according to Arab media reports; Cairo adopts strict security measures to ensure ships' safety. Egyptian sources estimate vessels headed to Persian Gulf. ..." 

Britain plans crackdown on student visas [02/08/10] "The British government plans to introduce changes in regulations that would keep thousands of foreigners from getting student visas, officials say. ..." 

An Historian Speaks [02/08/10] "British historian, Paul Johnson, was interviewed extensively on C-SPAN this morning. A viewer called to ask him whether, in his view, the world was “going to hell.” Johnson answered that he thought life on the planet had made a general improvement, materially, in the past two to three thousand years, but then added that, morally, humans had made no real improvement; that on a moral level, we are on about the same level as humans were during the times of Julius Caesar; that we needed to focus our attention on improving the moral realm of our behavior. He was later asked his opinions about recent events in the Middle East, and answered that he largely agreed with the actions taken by the United States and Great Britain in Iraq and Afghanistan. I did not hear him suggest how any moral improvement was to take place as long as humans can support the continuation of a war system whose logic has remained unchanged since the time of Julius Caesar. Perhaps it will be left to some other persons, in some other place, at some other time, by some other means, to address the moral dimensions of how we are to live ..."   

Our Secret Government – Lawlessness in government has become the rule of the land [02/08/10] VIDEO [21:32]   "“Not every wrong, or even every violation of the law, is a crime.” Michael Mukasey, US Attorney General. Lawlessness in government has become the rule of the land. Loyalty to the party superseded the loyalty to the country, which is a déjà vu phenomenon in the archives of fascism. The stench of our political sewage system has contaminated our nation and the world. Mendacity became truth, and manipulation became intelligence and virtue. Macchiavellian politics has reached new height of deception, corruption, and propaganda. Our supreme court became politicized with unscrupulous appointees who were co-opted to implement the new laws for the new world order. Our intelligence agencies have been methodically politicized and corrupted for many years to a point of no return.  ..."  

Iran detains 7 ’spies’ tied to US-funded radio station [02/08/10] "Iran has arrested seven people linked to a Farsi-language radio station funded in part by the United States, accusing them of fomenting unrest. According to the Associated Press, the Official Iranian News Agency and state radio both cited a statement by the Iranian Intelligence Ministry which claimed the seven individuals were trained outside of Iran in sabotage, spreading rumors and overthrowing a government by soft means. The suspects were not identified and it is unclear exactly when they were arrested. Iran may be merely trying to discredit the opposition, as opposition protests are expected to swell throughout the streets again on Feb. 11 as Iran marks the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. Anti-government demonstrations in Tehran on Dec. 27 turned bloody. At least eight people were killed that day and security forces arrested hundreds more during the most violent clashes since Iran's disputed presidential election last June. ..." 

Democracy Now:  Ignoring Torture Claims and Questionable Evidence, New York Jury Convicts Pakistani Scientist Aafia Siddiqui [02/07/10] VIDEO "A New York jury has convicted the US-educated Pakistani neuroscientist Aafia Siddiqui of attempted murder for shooting at US forces while jailed in Afghanistan in 2008. None of the Americans were injured, but Siddiqui was shot and wounded while in US custody. Human rights groups have long alleged that Siddiqui was forcibly disappeared by Pakistani authorities in 2003 and interrogated and tortured at the behest of the United States. In her testimony, Siddiqui claimed to have been held in a US secret prison. We speak to Siddiqui family spokesperson Tina Foster of the International Justice Network and Petra Bartosiewicz, an independent journalist who has been closely following Siddiqui’s case.  ..." 

US dismisses Iranian claims of nuclear agreement [02/07/10] "Deal to reduce Iran's uranium stockpile in doubt as Tehran accused of stalling for time ..."  Note: There is no 'stalling for time', since Iran's actions are within international purview and the IAEA has not had a problem. The US State Department is delusional, with Hillary at the 'helm' ...  

Commentary: "The US Government has Lost its Reason for Being"  by D Lindorff [02/07/10] "The way I see it, we’ve pretty much lost our government, and just voting in new politicians isn’t going to fix anything (we just demonstrated that!). Our best hope then is a popular groundswell for a new Constitutional Convention. Let’s roll the dice and try over, now that we’ve seen how our government can be stolen. ...There were two points in President Obama’s State of the Union address that provoked resounding and universal applause in the chamber from the assembled senators and representatives of both parties. One point was when the president said he wanted to start his job-creation program “in small businesses, companies that begin when an entrepreneur takes a chance on a dream, or a worker decides its time she became her own boss.” The other point was when he said, “While we're at it, let's also eliminate all capital gains taxes on small business investment; and provide a tax incentive for all businesses, large and small, to invest in new plants and equipment ....  What is clear from the wild applause to these two lines in the State of the Union address is that government at this point is not about improving the general welfare at all (if it ever was). It is self-evidently about enriching the rich. And at that point such a government has lost its reason for being  ....."   

Ron Paul Blasts Home Land Security on Fox Business [02/07/10] VIDEO [6:50]  "Ron Paul explains how the giant Home Land Security bureaucracy falls to function. ..."  

 Israeli News: U.S. Senator Lieberman – "Impose sanctions on Iran or attack it" [02/07/10] "IAEA chief seeks accelerated talks with Tehran over proposed uranium enrichment outside Iran. The world faces a stark choice between imposing tough sanctions on Iran to stop its nuclear program, or attacking it, United States Senator Joe Lieberman said Saturday. Lieberman is the influential chairman of the Senate committee on homeland security. ..."  Note: Despicable individual.   Related: The lynch-mob mentality  "The fact that the Government labels Person X a "Terrorist" is not proof that Person X is, in fact, a Terrorist. ..."  

Mysterious Danish Group Builds Exotic Compound on Baja Coast [02/07/10] "Tvind Alert says that the complex cost $10 million to build. The watchdog website says that a Mexican-Danish company bought the land from local landowners between 1999 and 2003. Attorney Morachis informed me that the landowner is a Mexican company.  ..."   

Anthrax-tainted heroin spreads in Britain [02/07/10] "An anthrax contamination linked to heroin has killed nine people in Scotland and infected a man in England, authorities said. ... "Similarities to the cases in Scotland suggest that the heroin, or a contaminated cutting agent mixed with the heroin, is the likely source of infection," a spokesman for the HPA said. Last month, the French health ministry issued a warning about contaminated heroin, noting the Scottish cases and one other case in Germany, and saying the drug could also be circulating in other European countries. Anthrax is a potentially lethal bacterium that exists naturally in the soil and can also occur among cattle. It is also, more notoriously, a potential bio-terror weapon."  Note: Interesting. Who benefits? No one ... so it has to be accidental ... with the drug market so lucrative, who would want to poison the well ....

British Arms Maker Pays Up [02/07/10] "British defense giant BAE has agreed to pay the UK and U.S. governments almost $800 million in penalties after it finally admitted guilt in the face of long-running corruption allegations. The deal allows the company to avoid being placed on an international arms trade blacklist ..."  

4 British MPs claim immunity from prosecution [02/07/10] "Four British lawmakers facing criminal charges over their expense claims are arguing that they are above the law, while some of their colleagues have yet to repay taxpayers' money. ..."     

Alyona Minkovski Show : Episode 10 [02/07/10]  VIDEO [26:33]  "head of President Obama's first visit to Japan, protesters demonstrated their anger over a new American military base in Okinawa. Former CNN International Senior Correspondent, Walter Rodgers, explains why their boisterous demands may fall on deaf ears. Rodgers details previous military agreements made by both the US and Japan. Then see the fashion faux pas that landed three Czech soldiers, serving in Afghanistan as Nato troops, in big trouble! And it's the battle between two beasts over FREE news content on the internet. Will Google bow down to Rupert Murdoch's demands? Peter Scheer from truthdig.com shares his thoughts. Plus, the queen of talk show squares off with Mutual of Omaha? Let's just say Oprah has her own "Aha Moment". And it's a website designed for the filthy rich. Alyona exposes the web address and the unbelievable price tags! Then "Call of Duty" sets record sales and sparks controversy over the video game designers decision to portray Russians as the enemy. And could the price of gold set off another terrorist attack in the US? Gerald Celente from The Trends Research Institute explains why it could happen sooner than we know it. ..."   

The Rising Tide of Internet Censorship [02/06/10] "The focus is back on Internet censorship this week as a pair of articles from Time Magazine and The New York Times came out almost simultaneously advocating for licenses to operate web sites. These articles were skillfully skewered by Paul Joseph Watson as lame attempts to shore up a disintegrating establishment media in the face of a blogosphere that is increasingly replacing them. The articles follow on calls by Craig Mundie—Microsoft’s chief research and strategy officer—for an Internet licencing system. Introducing the idea, he said “We need a kind of World Health Organization for the Internet.” Evidently unaware of the ongoing investigation into the WHO’s role in manufacturing the H1N1 pandemic hoax to line the pockets of Big Pharma, Mundie added that an international Internet authority should be given the same kind of authority that the WHO has in dealing with a pandemic. “When there is a pandemic, it organizes the quarantine of cases. We are not allowed to organize the systematic quarantine of machines that are compromised.” These calls are worrying because they represent only the latest instance of influential figures proposing increasingly tyrannical controls on free speech on the Internet. The Obama presidency has seen an increase in hype over cybersecurity threats, with the influential CSIS “think tank” having written white papers proposing cybersecurity as a key issue for the 44th president. As we reported last July, CSIS argued for “minimium standards for securing cyberspace” because “voluntary action is not enough.” .."  Related:  Time Magazine Pushes Draconian Internet Licensing Plan  

Al Franken lays into David Axelrod over health care bill [02/06/10] "Sen. Al Franken ripped into White House senior adviser David Axelrod this week during a tense, closed-door session with Senate Democrats. Five sources who were in the room tell POLITICO that Franken criticized Axelrod for the administration’s failure to provide clarity or direction on health care and the other big bills it wants Congress to enact. ..."   

The Greatest Con of All: "Al-Qaeda" and the "War on Terror" [02/06/10] "As U.S. Intelligence officials claim that Al-Qaeda will attack the U.S. within the next few months ~ please review BBC's 2004 video The Power Of Nightmares which reveals how the Al-Qaeda illusion was originally created by the Neo Cons and how the War on Terror is an ongoing campaign of fear mongering to politically justify the gargantuan Military-Industrial complex ... I chuckled and smiled knowingly when I heard that top U.S. Intelligence officials recently predicted that an attempted Al Qaeda attack in the United States in the next three to six months was all but "certain". Of course, it should be obvious. The Patriot Act is now up for renewal in Congress as certain provisions are set to expire this February. And as is typical, Congress is once again being fear-mongered into voting for it, along with what the ACLU says is even more freedom-curtailing provisions than before. I immediately thought of BBC's incredible documentary The Power Of Nightmares which was broadcast on November 3, 2004 and is still more than relevant today. "  Related: Pentagon Seeks Untold Billions for Terror War [02/06/10] "The Obama Administration is seeking billions of dollars in additional terror funding for assorted anti-terror operations, including increased military aid in Pakistan and funding to confront militants across the world. Pentagon officials declined to speculate exactly how much additional funding was being requested, and many of the requests are hidden in classified budget requests. The cost of the ever-growing CIA drone strikes against Pakistan in particular remains a closely guarded secret. ..." 

Washington anticipates a new 9/11 within six months [02/05/10] "The top US intelligence chiefs created a commotion at their annual hearing before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, on 2 February 2010. Director of National Intelligence Dennis C. Blair first alluded to a cyberwar, implying that it would be triggered by China and would jeopardize the entire world internet infrastructure. He later affirmed rather bluntly that the U.S. intelligence community has authority to target anyone, including American citizens, for assassination anywhere in the world if they present a direct terrorist threat to the United States and to other Americans. In particular, Admiral Dennis C. Blair, CIA Director Leon Pannetta, FBI Director Robert Mueller, Defense Intelligence Agency Director Ronald Burgess and Acting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Intelligence and Research John Dinger each stated that Al Qaeda is preparing an attack against United States territory in the next three to six months, by adapting their methods in ways that make it difficult to detect. At the domestic level, this declaration aims to prepare US public opinion for a new cataclysm and a possible throwback to neo-conservative policies. But vis-à-vis the rest of the world, it is meant to counter the rumour disseminated by certain Middle East mainstream newspapers such as Kheyan (Iran), Al-Binaa (Lebanon) or Al-Wataan (Syria) to the effect that, in order to relaunch the "clash of civilizations", the Hebrew State is planning to organize a new 9/11 which would be pinned on Al-Qaeda. However, according to the same sources, the Iranian and Turkish intelligence services have observed Israeli agents involved in reconnaissance activities not in the United States, but in Europe. Tel-Aviv is apparently looking into the possibility of striking a highly symbolic religious target, like Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris or St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. This attack would justify a new crusade against Islam. ..."  Note:  Video of the Proceedings  

Patriot Act - Eight Years Later [02/05/10] "The Senate Judiciary Committee passed the USA PATRIOT Act Extension Act of 2009, a bill that critics say falls far short of restoring the necessary civil liberties protections lacking in the original Patriot Act. The bill, passed by the committee after two sessions of debate, makes only minor changes to the Patriot Act and was further watered down by amendments adopted during markup. The Senate body temporarily postponed reconsideration until next month. Meanwhile, the House Judiciary Committee passed much stronger legislation. A Conference Committee will have to reconcile House and Senate versions. Negotiations over legislative language continue. ..."  Note: A lengthy article, worth reading if you are interested in the current status of this dynamic.

US presence in Pakistan exposed [02/05/10] "Pakistani public is furious as evidence of Washington’s military influence builds.  ...Yesterday came news of a bomb attack on a road convoy near a school in Pakistan. On the surface, this is nothing out of the ordinary — reports of bombings in Pakistan come thick and fast, particularly in the lawless and fraught North-West Frontier Province, where the latest attack took place. But this was different. The initial reports had it that “three westerners” were among the ten people killed. First, officials said they were journalists, then aid workers. It later emerged that they were US soldiers. Which raises the question — what were these soldiers doing there? Officially, there are no US troops stationed in Pakistan..... "   

How Corporations Secretly Move Millions to Fund Political Ads [02/05/10] "The Supreme Court’s seismic January ruling that corporations are free to spend unlimited amounts of their profits to advertise for or against candidates may have been the latest shakeup of campaign finance – but gaping holes already allow corporations to spend enormous sums without leaving a paper trail, a Raw Story investigation has found. The Supreme Court’s seismic January ruling that corporations are free to spend unlimited amounts of their profits to advertise for or against candidates may have been the latest shakeup of campaign finance – but gaping holes already allow corporations to spend enormous sums without leaving a paper trail. ..." 

Why the CIA is the World's Number One Terrorist Organization [02/05/10] "The time has come to abolish the CIA --to smash it into a thousand pieces --as JFL had promised! Its leadership should be dismissed and investigated. Where there is probable cause, CIA members should be investigated and tried for crimes against humanity. ..."   

Global Military Spending ‘Recession-Proof’ [02/05/10] "According to a report by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, one group has been completely unaffected by the global economic meltdown, the military. “The economic crisis hasn’t had a dramatic impact on defense spending in the past 18 months,” one of the IISS economists, Mark Stoker, noted. In fact worldwide the report showed that military spending actually grew markedly over the past few years, from $1.3 trillion worldwide in 2006, to $1.55 trillion in 2008. ..." 

Western Officials Slam Iran for Accepting Western Demands on Nuclear Swap [02/05/10] "Yesterday Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad surprised everyone when he declared publicly that the terms of the draft third party enrichment deal Western nations have been demanding that Iran sign are perfectly acceptable. ..."  Note: I know, it's nuts. 

GA Senate Passes Bill Opposing Involuntary Microchips [02/05/10] "A bill that prohibits microchips from being involuntarily implanted in humans overwhelmingly passed the State Senate today. ..

Judge Andrew Napolitano : False Flag Event To Save Obama's Presidency [02/05/10] 2 Videos   

Ron Paul on Freedom Watch with Judge Napolitano [02/05/10] VIDEO [9:36]  " Ron Paul discusses the corrupt Treasury Department and lots more. ..."   

Israel stole 2 billion dollars from Palestinian workers: 40-year deception exposed [02/05/10] "Over the past four decades Israel has defrauded Palestinians working inside Israel of more than two billion US dollars by deducting from their salaries contributions for welfare benefits to which they were never entitled, Israeli economists have revealed. ..."  

Reid To GOP: "If You Filibuster Obama's Nominees, We'll Bypass The Senate" [02/05/10] Note: Now, that has to be unconstitutional. Reid is so corrupt ...

House Overwhelmingly Passes Cyber Security Bill [02/05/10] VIDEO [2:58]  "Following the Halloweenesque scare fest on Capitol Hill earlier this week — where National Intelligence director Dennis Blair and CIA director Leon Panetta warned of impending terrorist doom — the has House has The Cybersecurity Enhancement Act (H.R. 4061).  ..."  

One-Person Company Can't Plead the Fifth [02/05/10] "A one-person company has no Fifth Amendment right to refuse to hand over corporate records, the 2nd Circuit ruled. ..."  

Class Action Suit Claims Pentagon Stiffs Retirees [02/04/10] "A class of retired Defense Department employees says the Pentagon refused to pay their departure bonuses by selectively interpreting its own regulations. They say the Pentagon fails to inform retiring employees that they need to stay on the job until the beginning of the first pay period in January to qualify for the bonus. ..."  Note: The Pentagon has no insight into it's own behavior and the results of it on civilization.

Booze Pirates Fleece Puerto Rico With the Help of Congress [02/04/10] "A transfer of billions of dollars in federal aid from public projects in Puerto Rico to one of the world’s largest liquor conglomerates over the next 30 years continues to move forward without any objection from Congress.  ..."    

Chris Hedges on ‘Illusion,’ Corporatism and Inverted Totalitarianism [02/04/10] AUDIO MP3 " ..In this interview with Vermont Public Radio’s Neal Charnoff, “Empire of Illusion” author and Truthdig columnist Chris Hedges emphasizes what makes his book’s argument different from that of the stereotypical elder who disapproves of emerging artistic and cultural forms: “I’m not attacking culture, I’m attacking corporatism,” he tells Charnoff. Hedges also describes the difference between totalitarianism and inverted totalitarianism (“economics trumps politics”) and what’s wrong with the education provided these days by such vaunted Ivy League institutions as Harvard, Princeton and Yale. "    

U.S. Military No Where to be Found in Port-au-Prince [02/04/10] "I have been driving all week around Port-au-Prince taking photos of the destroyed homes and buildings and as I've gone from one end of this city to the other, the US is military is only found at the airport - nice and secured behind those gates. Meanwhile, the UN and its white Jeeps are driving all around this city, but I haven't seen them stop at any particular location to give food or water. Where is all the aid going, if any? Michel David Stephan is a 22-year-old Haitian university student who has not been able to continue his studies because the campus has been badly damaged. I asked him what he thought of the UN. "We call them 'tourists' because they don't do nothing," Stephan told me. I also asked Stephan what he thought of the US military. ..."  

"Gang of 54" Congressmen Slammed for Censuring Israel [02/04/10] "An American-Israeli action group has strongly criticized a group of 54 U.S. Congress members for accusing Israel of inflicting “collective punishment” on the residents of Gaza. ..."  Note: They did inflict collective punishment. They're criminally insane psychopaths and sociopaths.

Berlusconi pledges to stand by Israel [02/04/10] "Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi says his country will stand by Israel in the worldwide fight against anti-Semitism. ..."  Note: What a stupid thug ...

America’s Secret Prisons for Undocumented Immigrants [02/03/10] "There are at least 186 secret detention centers maintained by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) within the borders of the US, according to an article published in the Nation magazine in December. Drawing on a report by Amnesty International (AI) entitled “Jailed without Justice,” it estimates that 415,000 people have been held at these facilities, which are operated under the authority of the Department of Homeland Security as so-called “sub-field offices” of the ICE. Their purpose is to deny undocumented immigrants due process and any means by which they can effectively lobby for their rights. “If you don’t have enough evidence to charge someone criminally but you think he’s illegal, we can make him disappear,” explained ICE Executive Director for the Office of State and Local Coordination James Pendergraph at an August 2008 police and sheriffs’ conference, according to the AI report. In October 2009 an assistant to Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano first revealed the existence of the secret prisons to the secretary, without making the locations public. The author of the December 16 article in the Nation, Jacqueline Stevens, obtained “a partial list” of the secret facilities from an ICE officer. These prisons include unmarked rooms without beds, showers, toilets, or windows in office parks and commercial building spaces. Stevens reports that some 84 percent of persons arrested by ICE are at first “housed” in such sub-field offices. ..."  

  Alex Jones Interviews:  Mike Rivero from What Really Happened [02/03/10] VIDEO Note:  Part 1 [11:00]  Part 2 [10:51]  Part 3 [10:59]  Part 4 [9:09] 

Beijing warns U.S. Obama against meeting with Dalai Lama [02/03/10] "Beijing warned the U.S. President Barack Obama that in case he decides to meet with the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, during his visit to China this month relations between countries may deteriorate. ..."  Note: All this posturing between 'nation-groups' is so tedious. 

'Laws of science do not apply in Aafia Siddiqui case' [02/03/10] "Aafia Siddiqui's lawyer says the laws of science do not apply in the case against the Pakistani woman who is charged with attempting to murder US soldiers and FBI agents...." Note: This case is a travesty. 

France Telecom's CEO resigns in wake of suicides [02/03/10] "The chief executive of one of Europe's largest telecommunications companies has decided to resign following a spate of suicides among its employees. ..." 

Blocking War Funding Just Got Easier By David Swanson [02/03/10] " ..... We only need 40 'No' votes from Democrats in the House if the Republicans are voting No, and we can get them. Here's the whip list: http://defundwar.org Have at it! ..."   

Opinion:  Most Republicans Think Obama is a Socialist [02/03/10] Note: Of course, the system that exists is more properly described as fascism. 

Mullen demands billions for costly Afghan war [02/03/10] "US military chief demands more money for Afghanistan war, saying the funds are vital in order to contain Taliban's growing influence across the war-weary country. ..."  Note:  The guy is a psychopath.

Kalid Sheikh Mohammed: Guilty Until Proven Innocent With Torture  [02/03/10] "Robert Gibbs was on MSNBC recently and spoke about alleged 9/11 hijacker Kalid Sheikh Mohammed. No matter where the trial is held, “he is likely to be executed” Gibbs said. Unfortunately, legal concepts like ”innocent until proven guilty” are a far cry from even our highest officials minds. Gibbs was echoing comments from many on both sides of the political aisle.  ..."   

Annual Herzliya Conference underway in Israel: a soup-to-nuts discussion of Israeli security and economic issues [02/03/10] " ..."  Note: Herlliya is also the home of the Mossad and many other factions. Israeli policy decisions are made here, each year.

U.S. Agrees to Timetable for UN Gun Ban [02/03/10] "The United Nations and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are moving forward with their plan to confiscate your guns. The United States joined 152 other countries in support of the Arms Trade Treaty Resolution, which establishes the dates for the 2012 UN conference intended to attack American sovereignty by stripping Americans of the right to keep and bear arms. Working groups of anti-gun countries will begin scripting language for the conference this year, creating a blueprint for other countries when they meet at the full conference. The stakes couldn’t be higher. Former United Nation’s ambassador John Bolton has cautioned gun owners about the Arms Trade Treaty and says the UN “is trying to act as though this is really just a treaty about international arms trade between nation states, but there’s no doubt that the real agenda here is domestic firearms control.” Establishing the dates for the Arms Trade Treaty Conference is just the first step toward their plans for total gun confiscation. The worldwide gun control mob will ensure the passage of an egregious, anti-gun treaty… ..."  

Zardari's nuke remote control to be snatched [02/03/10] "A new bill passed by the Pakistani parliament may snatch the remote control of the country's nuclear bombs from President Asif Ali Zardari. The Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) has been assigned a significant role in the National Command Authority (NCA) while the president of Pakistan, despite being the supreme commander of the armed forces under the Constitution, figures nowhere in an extremely essential law passed by the National Assembly last week, The News reports. ..."   

Ahmadinejad: West survives on sowing discord [02/03/10] "President Ahmadinejad warns against divisive policies that seek to destabilize the region, as reports circulate that Washington is ramping up its military hardware in the Persian Gulf,. ..."   

Republicans unite to halt trials of alleged 9/11 plotters [02/03/10] "US lawmakers Tuesday unveiled plans to block public funding for US-based trials involving Guantanamo detainees who are accused of plotting the September 11, 2001 attacks. Republican lawmakers Frank Wolf and Lindsey Graham joined forces to introduce legislation which "would explicitly block this dangerous and wasteful trial from any domestic civilian court," Wolf said. They also won support from Democrats Jim Webb and Blanche Lincoln, as well as independent senator Joe Lieberman. If approved, the legislation would stop the Justice Department from using public funds to try the alleged mastermind of the 2001 attacks, Khaled Sheikh Mohammed, and his four co-accused, in domestic US courts. ...But the plan has been met with howls of protest from lawmakers and New York residents .... Democratic Senator Jim Webb threw his backing behind the bill saying the attacks should not be prosecuted in a US civilian court. "This is not an appropriate type of crime to be tried in an American criminal court," he said. He also warned that Attorney General Eric Holder had yet to give "a very clear answer" on what would happen to the accused plotters of the attacks if they were acquitted by a US court."  Note: Israel and the Mossad were largely responsible for the entire 911 scenario, aided and abetted by factions in the US political system.  A trial would expose the lack of evidence, forcing the system to explain things that would lead to Israel's involvement. Related:  What remains must be the truth: 9/11 revisited "Paul J. Balles argues that, revisiting the question of who benefited from 9/11, "it becomes perfectly clear that Israel alone had reason to plot and execute” it. But he says that Israel couldn't possibly have executed such a plan without help from the US authorities and that a process of elimination "leaves only the Zionist neo-conservative civilian leaders of the Pentagon” as Israel’s accomplices. ..."   

Who Will Be the New Global "King of the Hill"? [02/03/10] "China and India stopped being part of what was called the “third world” when the “second world,” the communist world, disappeared in a shattering of global illusions in 1989. Since then there has been a search to find a new King of the Global Hill. The United States rejoiced for a few years in being the sole superpower, considering it an opportunity to remake the world according to its own advantage. The 9/11 attacks in 2001 gave it the opportunity and encouragement to try remaking the Middle East and Asia. The effort has not produced the desired results. In Afghanistan and Iraq, the U.S. found itself mired in interventions it has been unable successfully to conclude. It has found itself drawn into deeper and much more dangerous engagements in the political and military affairs of Pakistan, the Iran nuclear imbroglio and an out-of-control Israeli government. Then came economic crisis: the credit and Wall Street collapse, and an unexpected recoil of international opinion against the American model of globalized capitalism, together with an international consensus that the system has to be replaced on terms that are not America’s terms. China has assertively placed on the table its claims to international status and authority; recognition of its geopolitical rank and diplomatic weight; and its demand that international opposition or interference cease with respect to its political claims on Tibet, Taiwan, contested islands in the South China Sea, and—for future attention—frontier adjustments with respect to North Korea, Vietnam and India. ..."  

US ups pressure but China won't buckle on Iran issue [02/03/10] "The United States is strongly urging China to respond to its call to impose new sanctions on Iran, but Beijing has not succumbed to the pressure to turn against Tehran. ..."  Note:  China has no reason to comply.

Israeli commander: 'We rewrote the rules of war for Gaza' [02/03/10] "A high-ranking officer has acknowledged for the first time that the Israeli army went beyond its previous rules of engagement on the protection of civilian lives in order to minimise military casualties during last year's Gaza war, The Independent can reveal. ..."   

Republicans unite to halt trials of alleged 9/11 plotters [02/03/10] "US lawmakers Tuesday unveiled plans to block public funding for US-based trials involving Guantanamo detainees who are accused of plotting the September 11, 2001 attacks. Republican lawmakers Frank Wolf and Lindsey Graham joined forces to introduce legislation which "would explicitly block this dangerous and wasteful trial from any domestic civilian court," Wolf said. They also won support from Democrats Jim Webb and Blanche Lincoln, as well as independent senator Joe Lieberman. If approved, the legislation would stop the Justice Department from using public funds to try the alleged mastermind of the 2001 attacks, Khaled Sheikh Mohammed, and his four co-accused, in domestic US courts. ...But the plan has been met with howls of protest from lawmakers and New York residents .... Democratic Senator Jim Webb threw his backing behind the bill saying the attacks should not be prosecuted in a US civilian court. "This is not an appropriate type of crime to be tried in an American criminal court," he said. He also warned that Attorney General Eric Holder had yet to give "a very clear answer" on what would happen to the accused plotters of the attacks if they were acquitted by a US court."  Note: Israel and the Mossad were largely responsible for the entire 911 scenario, aided and abetted by factions in the US political system.  A trial would expose the lack of evidence, forcing the system to explain things that would lead to Israel's involvement.  [See related stories on the 911 page, off the Special Articles panel ]

The Battle With Mental Illness: "Creationists want to put God back in classroom"  VIDEO [2:21] [02/03/10] "One creationist in Louisiana is striving to take the Bible from the church and into the classroom, arguing that it is un-American not to allow students to learn different views of how the world was created. While it is not illegal to teach creationism in public schools, most science teachers opt to teach evolution alone. ..."  Note:  It's 'watch a moron' week.

Israel Laughs At Haitian Disaster [02/03/10] VIDEO [3:19] "January 27, 2010 at 7:32 pm (Chutzpah, Haiti, Israel) So sad but true….. as can be seen in the ‘comedy’ news report on the earthquake in Haiti..."    Note: Pathetic. Sigh.

The Makings of a Police State-Part VI: A Nation of Suspects by Sibel Edmonds [02/03/10] "... Despite the current futility, many constitutionalists, legalists, analysts, and activists are writing, talking, and arguing about the legality or illegality, constitutionality or unconstitutionality, practicality or impracticality, of these surveillance and search practices of our ‘National Security State.’ There is a plethora of material out there for you to read or listen to on those points, so there is no need for me to cover all that has been covered already; over and over. I am not going to discuss the tedious and ambiguous laws, nor am I going to waste time on the vague and irrelevant notion of and argument on security. No. I intend to focus on the subjects of these practices; the people; the masses, in fact, the entire population as the willing recipients who have come to view and accept themselves as suspects. Isn’t this what we have become; a nation of suspects? ..."  

Mel Gibson Is Done With Apologizing, Calls Reporter an Asshole [02/03/10] VIDEO [1:30]  Note: The reporter was a real putz.

Deficits May Alter U.S. Politics and Global Power  [02/03/10] "American deficits will not return to what are widely considered sustainable levels over the next 10 years. In fact, in 2019 and 2020 — years after Mr. Obama has left the political scene, even if he serves two terms — they start rising again sharply, to more than 5 percent of gross domestic product. His budget draws a picture of a nation that like many American homeowners simply cannot get above water. For Mr. Obama and his successors, the effect of those projections is clear: Unless miraculous growth, or miraculous political compromises, creates some unforeseen change over the next decade, there is virtually no room for new domestic initiatives for Mr. Obama or his successors. Beyond that lies the possibility that the United States could begin to suffer the same disease that has afflicted Japan over the past decade. As debt grew more rapidly than income, that country’s influence around the world eroded. ..."     Related: Rep. Obey: Pentagon, foreign aid not exempt from spending freeze | Obama unveils record $708 bn military budget | Obama Budget Seeks $1.9 Trillion Tax Rise on Richest, Business [02/03/10] "The administration budget released yesterday would reinstate 10-year-old income tax rates of 36 percent and 39.6 percent for single Americans earning more than $200,000 and joint filers making more than $250,000 as part of a broad $1.9 trillion tax increase proposal. ..."  Obama Budget Seeks More Money for Nuclear Weapons   

Chinese firm says iPad is a copy [02/03/10] "The president of a Chinese electronics firm claimed the iPad, Apple Inc.'s recently unveiled foray into the tablet market, was a copy of one of their products. Xiaolong Wu, president of Shenzhen Great Loong Brother, said when the iPad makes it to China, "we won't have any choice but to report them ... it will certainly affect our sales," of the company's P88, which resembles an over-sized iPhone, Wired reported Monday. ... Wired said there were several significant specification differences in the products, including battery life, a 250-gigabyte hard drive in the P88 that the iPad does not have, the choice of microchips and point that the P88 runs a Windows operating system. Wu, however, said the products were "completely identical" and that the company would charge Apple with "plagiarism" if it the California company opens up sales in China."    

Russia, China and the American free lunch: United States expects the world to support its lifestyle and wars [02/02/10] "After watching Anthony Blair’s performance at the Chilcot [Iraq] Inquiry I went to the Financial Times hoping for something cheering. The story “Paulson claims Russia tried to foment Fannie-Freddie crisis” was intriguing. Ah, those unreconstructed Commies, I thought. But no! It seems that the Russians had trustingly invested their hard earned roubles in the bastion of free market capitalism and like Americans themselves were rightly concerned about their investment. Hank Paulson of course was the US treasury secretary who presided over the US-generated global financial crisis, of whom Time magazine said: “If there is a face to this financial debacle it is now his.” He has written his memoirs and apparently none of it was his fault. ..."   

US bracing for secessionist sentiments [02/02/10] "After one-and-a-half-century, Washington has come across a new phenomenon surfacing in its political arena as secessionist advocates in the state of Vermont seek a divorce from the United States of America. Last week, a group of Vermont State secessionists declared their intention to seek political power in a quest to quit the Union altogether. "For the first time in over 150 years, secession and political independence from the US will be front and center in a statewide New England political campaign," said Thomas Naylor, 73, one of the leaders of the campaign, Time reported on Sunday  ..."   

Senate Burglary: CIA Domestic Black-Op Team Arrested [02/02/10]   "Last week’s break-in at Senator Mary Landrieu’s office in the New Orleans Federal Building was more than it seemed, much more. All of the 4 arrested had been trained by the CIA and, possibly, Israel. One arrested, Stan Dai, is listed as an Operations Officer of the Department of Defense Irregular Warfare Program and a known expert and lecturer on, not only surveillance but explosives training, assassinations and “false flag operations.” If you wanted a plane to crash, an enemy to get sick and die or a building to blow up, Dai would be the man to know how to make it happen. Problem is, his skills were being used as part of a criminal conspiracy inside the United States against members of our own government. Original reports on the “break-in” were also wrong. One of those arrested was found blocks away with a covert receiver, managing the office bugs. The man in the car is identified as Stan Dai, Operations Officer for the Department of Defense Irregular Warfare Program: “one of the four was arrested with a listening device in a car blocks from the senator’s offices.” The FBI’s affidavit noted that Flanagan and Basel were in the building with O’Keefe, and a federal law enforcement official confirmed to AP that Dai was the one in the car.”  What is not initially known is whether this was the first attempt or, as is much more likely, an additional incursion to plant new bugs as the ones in place were missing key conversations. Also, it is not known how many “black ops” crews are being run by the CIA inside the United States in violation of their charter or if their operations are being limited to spying on Democratic lawmakers or if operations of a more threatening nature have been performed but remain undiscovered. Additionally, as this was a covert op against US government investigations of, not only terrorism and terrorism funding but major financial crimes against the United States, it is unclear who the recipient of the “product,” an intelligence industry term for “output” or information put up for “distribution” might be. Potential buyers could be the Republican Party, Israel, Turkey, India, Russia, China, Venezuela, North Korea or financial institutions involved in massive money laundering schemes being investigated by the Senate’s Committee on Homeland Security of which Senator Landireu is a member. ... Learn how the Intelligence Community Center for Academic Excellence (IC CAE) at Georgetown University and the CIA got involved in this seedy domestic “black ops” group. In a story broken this week ...."  

Berlusconi eyes Israeli membership in EU [02/02/10] "Italian Prime Minister says Israel should join the European Union, in a u-turn from his earlier remarks criticizing Israel's settlement policy as an impediment to peace."  Note: Israel is not part of Europe, and Berlusconi is a thug. 

CIA moonlights in corporate world [02/02/10] "In the midst of two wars and the fight against Al Qaeda, the CIA is offering operatives a chance to peddle their expertise to private companies on the side — a policy that gives financial firms and hedge funds access to the nation’s top-level intelligence talent, POLITICO has learned. ... sources familiar with the CIA’s moonlighting policy defend it as a vital tool to prevent brain-drain at Langley, which has seen an exodus of highly trained, badly needed intelligence officers to the private sector, where they can easily double or even triple their government salaries. The policy gives agents a chance to earn more while still staying on the government payroll. Related:  They Made a Killing: The Use of Knowledge of Covert Operations in the Stock Market [02/02/10] ".... A recent study by economists Arindrajit Dube, Ethan Kaplan, and Suresh Naidu argues that those in on the planning process also profited handsomely. By tracking the stock prices of UFC and other politically vulnerable firms in the months leading up to CIA-staged coups in Guatemala, Chile, Cuba, and Iran, the researchers provide evidence that someone—perhaps one of the Dulleses, Cabots, or others in the know—was trading stocks based on classified information of these coups-in-the-making. ..."   

Israeli Organ Trafficking and Theft: From Moldova to Palestine [02/02/10] "In August 2009, Sweden’s largest daily newspaper published an article containing grisly evidence suggesting that Israel had been taking Palestinian internal organs. The article, by veteran photojournalist Donald Bostrom, called for an international investigation to discover the facts. ...In her Forum 13 lecture Scheper-Hughes discussed the two motivations of Israeli traffickers. One was greed, she said. The other was somewhat chilling: “Revenge, restitution—reparation for the Holocaust.” She described speaking with Israeli brokers who told her “it’s kind of ‘an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. We’re going to get every single kidney and liver and heart that we can. The world owes it to us.’” Scheper-Hughes says that she “even heard doctors saying that.”"   Note: and Haiti

Quadrennial Defense Review: Melee Mode, Cyberwar, More Killer Robots, Environmental Catastrophes [02/02/10] "The Pentagon will no longer shape the U.S. military to fight two major conventional wars at once, but rather prepare for numerous conflicts and not all in the same style, according to a draft of a new strategic outlook the Pentagon is announcing on Monday. ..."   

'Iran will deliver telling blow to global powers on Feb. 11' [02/02/10] "Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the nation will deliver a harsh blow to the "global arrogance" on this year's anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. "The Islamic Revolution opened a window to liberty for the human race, which was trapped in the dead ends of materialism," Ahmadinejad said during a cabinet meeting on Sunday. "If the Islamic Revolution had not occurred, liberalism and Marxism would have crushed all human dignity in their power-seeking and money-grubbing claws. Nothing would have remained of human and spiritual principles," he added. Ahmadinejad said that in the three decades of its history, the Islamic Revolution had inspired some great developments in the world. The Iranian president made the remarks as the 31st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution approaches. Iranians are expected to pour into the streets on February 11 to celebrate the occasion in public rallies across the country, as they have done annually over the past three decades...."

At least 41 killed, 106 injured in suicide attack in Baghdad [02/02/10] "At least 41 people have been killed and 106 injured by a female suicide bomber in Baghdad, Aljazeera news agency, citing the Iraqi interior ministry, said on Monday. ..."   

'Bin Laden issues threat over Super Bowl 44' [02/02/10] Related: Israeli Ritz Katz: Voice of Osama Bin Laden | More

Iraq to file lawsuit against US, Britain For Use of Depleted Uranium Munitions [02/01/10] "raq's Ministry for Human Rights will file a lawsuit against Britain and the US over their use of depleted uranium bombs in Iraq, an Iraqi minister says. Iraq's Minister of Human Rights, Wijdan Mikhail Salim, told Assabah newspaper that the lawsuit will be launched based on reports from the Iraqi ministries of science and the environment. According to the reports, during the first year of the US and British invasion of Iraq, both countries had repeatedly used bombs containing depleted uranium. The report says that 2,000 tonnes of depleted uranium has been used in Iraq. Atomic radiation has increased the number of babies born with defects in the southern provinces of Iraq, including Basra. The high rate of birth defects and cancer cases will move in the coming years to the central and northern provinces of Iraq since the radiation may penetrate the soil and water by air. The ministry will seek compensation for the victims of these bombs.  ..."  Note: Hideous and genocidal weaponry.

Israel: Please, No More Bin Laden Tapes, Nobody Is Buying It [02/01/10] "The new audio tape from “Osama bin Laden” taking responsibility for the idiotic and childish incident in Detroit where moronic Nigerian armed with a useless “bomb” is simply too much. Now using audio tapes because, supposedly, nobody in Al Qaeda got a flash drive video recorder for Christmas is even more of a joke. Please, with the hundreds of millions our Saudi allies have given to terrorists, a video camera the size of an Ipod might have been a nice touch. Even funnier was releasing the audio, using algorithm software probably illegally downloaded off the internet, and giving it to Al Jazeera. Pundit Debbie Schussell, former Mark Siljander (VT staff writer) staffer, has bitterly complained about the strong ties between Fox News and Al Jazeera. Fox owner, Rupert Murdoch, is the most powerful “influencer” of the ultra-rightists in Israel.  ..."   

Globalism vs. Realism: British PM Brown Gets Grilled By the European Parliament [02/01/10]  VIDEO [10:59] Brown Admits Obama will Betray U.S (03/24/2009)

U.S. drone kills Taliban chief in Pakistan's tribal belt [02/01/10] "Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud has been killed in a U.S. drone missile strike, Pakistan state television reported on Sunday. ..."   

Government 'Back Door' Allegedly Allowed Hackers into Google Email [02/01/10] "Just how sophisticated were the attacks originating from China that saw hackers accessing Google Gmail accounts and corporate networks across the country? According to security guru Bruce Schneier, the attacks on Gmail actually exploited the very system Google put in place to allow law enforcement officials, hopefully with warrants, spy on users. The United States has long wished for the ability to spy on American citizens. Former Vice President Al Gore lobbied hard for a "Clipper Chip" back door into digital devices back in the 1990s. Ironically enough, when the National Security Agency started wiretapping Internet connections without warrants after the passage of the Patriot Act, Gore's boss, former President Bill Clinton, was one of the users caught in the illegal dragnet. Meanwhile, the Chinese government is once again denying any involvement in the attacks, arguing that the accusation "is groundless and aims to denigrate China" according to an anonymous Ministry of Industry and Information Technology official quoted by state news agency Xinhua. The situation has prompted Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu to ask American diplomats like Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to drop the "so-called Internet freedom issue." ..."   

Netanyahu wavering over independent investigation of Cast Lead  [02/01/10] Note: Just DO the independent study, independently of whether he likes it or not.

Proof surfaces that Israel deliberately targeted Gaza civilians [02/01/10] "One of the most important questions raised by the Goldstone Report is whether there was an intentional Israeli objective to destroy Gaza's civilian infrastructure. ..."    

Hamas Leader 'Strangled, Electrocuted' By Israelis In Dubai Hotel [02/01/10] "The Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas accused Israel yesterday of assassinating one of its military chiefs in Dubai — a man who helped to found the group’s armed wing and who was behind the kidnapping and killing of two Israeli soldiers in the first intifada 21 years ago. Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, who was a key to the continuing operations to smuggle weapons into the blockaded Gaza Strip, was killed in a hotel in Dubai on January 20, Hamas officials said. He is believed to have been behind the attempted smuggling of truckloads of weapons into Gaza through Sudan last year — a convoy that was blown up by Israeli jets while still in Africa. Hamas officials refused to specify the circumstances of his death until an inquiry had been held, and hinted that the delay in announcing the killing was part of an attempt to capture his assassins. Dubai police said they had begun a manhunt but suspected that the killers had already left the emirate using fake European passports. They said: “The culprits left a trace behind that points to them and will help in chasing and arresting them.” The police promised to work with Interpol to track the killers down.  ..."  Related: Israel's History Of State-Ordered Murders | Dubai police investigating death of Hamas official  "Dubai Police said Sunday that at least seven individuals were involved in the murder of a Hamas official in a local hotel last week, and would not rule out the possibility that the Israeli spy agency Mossad had a hand in the attack. "It could be Mossad, or another party," police chief Dhahi Khalfan told AFP. "Personally, I don't exclude any possibility. I don't exclude any party that has an interest in the assassination." Khalfan told news agencies on Sunday that the seven primary suspects carried various European passports, but he would not elaborate. The police have contacted the relevant European nations, said a top commander, in order to glean more information on their identity. ..."     

Dept of Justice [ Unethical] Ethics Report Clears Bush Lawyers in Torture Memo [02/01/10] Note: They have no insight into their own behavior.  

Davos: France wants to use its presidency of the Group of 20 in 2011 to create a new international monetary system [02/01/10] "France wants to use its presidency of the Group of 20 next year to create a new international monetary system, President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Wednesday, adding that he believed the dollar should no longer be the primary reserve currency in the global economy.  ... In an expansive and lofty speech to the business and political leaders gathered here at the annual World Economic Forum, Mr. Sarkozy also called for a “revolution” in international regulation that would make labor, health and environmental standards as enforceable as trade rules ...."   

U.S. steps up arms sales to Persian Gulf allies [02/01/10] "The Obama administration is quietly working with Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf allies to speed up arms sales and rapidly upgrade defenses for oil terminals and other key infrastructure in a bid to thwart future military attacks by Iran ..." 

  Socialist Cornel West's note to Obama [02/01/10] VIDEO [6:10] Note:  After 1 year, even he is pissed off ...  Note: See the 18-part documentary on Socialism in the notable video section, if interested in the conceptual basis for their stance.   Related:  Concepts & Practices: The Nature of Socialism [02/01/10] "..... Socialist systems differ from the capitalist process by establishing one compulsory owner, who becomes the ultimate decision maker in the economic system.  The consequences of that step are unavoidable, since without private property there can be no intellectual division of labor. Instead of the market process, there is a physical and compulsory exclusion of competition, which substitutes for the market one ultimate decision making process, directing allocations of factors. The central owner does not determine the value of factors of production as the market process does, because he has no means to relate his assessment to other opportunities that might have been perceived by other entrepreneurs. There is no basis for quantitative discrimination between production projects, for there only can be a straight ordinal valuation of them (a valuation of completely vertically integrated processes). The so-called "social appraisement process" is abolished once private property is abolished. "  

Russia's LUKoil signs contract to develop Iraq's West Qurna-2 [02/01/10] "Russia's largest independent crude producer LUKoil signed on Sunday a 20-year contract to develop Iraq's massive West Qurna-2 oil field. ..."   [02/01/10] " ..."   

200 hospitalised after eating Chinese fruits [02/01/10] "Over 200 children, most of them younger than three years, were hospitalised with acute intestinal infection after eating fruits imported from China, Rossiya TV channel reported Sunday. According to doctors, the children were poisoned after eating imported fruits - bananas, apples and citruses - largely supplied from China. ..."     

Baptist Do-Gooders in Trouble in Haiti [02/01/10] "Call it vigilante relief work or kidnapping, 10 American Baptists are in jail in Port-au-Prince after attempting to take 33 children out of Haiti in what they claim was an effort to “do the right thing ..."  

New York: Police brutality revealed in courtroom, on tape [02/01/10] "Three New York City police officers went on trial last week on charges of aggravated sexual abuse and cover-up for repeatedly sodomizing a suspect with a metal baton. The victim, Michael Mineo, charged that the sadistic assault occurred in a Brooklyn subway station in October 2008 after he was spotted smoking marijuana.  ...The outrageous police brutality charged in this assault is by no means unprecedented. The case bears marked similarities to that of Abner Louima. In 1997, NYPD officers viciously and repeatedly beat Louima on the streets of Brooklyn. The officers then dragged Louima to the police station, where one of the cops sodomized him with a stick, leaving him hospitalized with severe damage to his internal organs. The officers then tried to cover up the abuse. One of the cops, Justin Volpe, was sentenced to 30 years in prison for carrying out the assault, while another, Charles Schwarz, was jailed for five years for covering it up."  Related: Family Alleges Officers Beat Man to Death "The family of a Worcester man who died after being stopped at a state police sobriety checkpoint filed a federal civil rights and wrongful death lawsuit yesterday, alleging that Kenneth R. Howe was beaten to death by police. ..."