Tuesday February 3rd 2009

Monday February 2nd 2009

Naomi Wolf on Real and Fake Mass Protests - (YouTube - 9 min 29 sec - February 01, 2009)
Must View Video - A quote...."Naomi Wolf, author of "The End of America", argues that bureaucracy has killed effective protesting because mass social protests in the U.S. now have a feeling of "Disneyland activism." -- "It feels fake, because it is fake," she says."

Noam Chomsky: The United States - Israel’s Godfather
Must View Video - A quote...."Noam Chomsky speaks about Gaza, Palestine, Israel at a meeting in Boston. 1-21-09 filmed by Paul Hubbard at the Palestine Cultural Center for Peace - www.socialistworker.org"

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The Looming Crisis at the Pentagon - How Taxpayers Finance Fantasy Wars
Special Note - A quote...."Like much of the rest of the world, Americans know that the U.S. automotive industry is in the grips of what may be a fatal decline. Unless it receives emergency financing and undergoes significant reform, it is undoubtedly headed for the graveyard in which many American industries are already buried, including those that made televisions and other consumer electronics, many types of scientific and medical equipment, machine tools, textiles, and much earth-moving equipment -- and that's to name only the most obvious candidates. They all lost their competitiveness to newly emerging economies that were able to outpace them in innovative design, price, quality, service, and fuel economy, among other things." -- also posted at AlterNet

A Bankrupt and Discredited Country -- The Era of American Leadership Is Over
Some quotes...."February 02, 2009 "Information Clearinghouse" --  James Petras examines Obama’s foreign policy appointments and finds the largest collection of Zionist militarists outside of Avigdor Lieberman’s far right political party in Israel." -- "Obama’s economic appointments are just as discouraging. Obama chose as his Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, the man who helped Bush’s Treasury Secretary, Hank Paulson, engineer the $700 billion dollar rip off of the US taxpayer, money that was gifted to the crooked banksters who destroyed Americans’ pensions, jobs and health care coverage." -- also posted at CounterPunch

Torture Chic: Why Is the Media Glorifying Inhumane, Sadistic Behavior?
Because more than half of this country really digs the stuff. - mpg -- A quote...."When photographs of torture and abuse at Abu Ghraib appeared in 2004, Bush's approval ratings sank, yet torture themes multiplied in film and TV. From 2002 through 2005, the Parents Television Council counted 624 torture scenes in prime time, a six-fold increase. UCLA's Television Violence Monitoring Project reports "torture on TV shows is significantly higher than it was five years ago and the characters who torture have changed. It used to be that only villains on television tortured. Today, "good guy" and heroic American characters torture -- and this torture is depicted as necessary, effective and even patriotic"." -- Um Yummy!!! --  For more on this issue see....Would You Have Been A Nazi? - A new test of Milgram's obedience experiment asks if it can still happen here.
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The Defamation League
Special Note - A quote...."To delve deeply almost anywhere into the arguments over the Israeli/Palestinian conflict is to invite an overload of irony, but let us focus for one moment on a fracas caused by Abe Foxman, national director of the B'nai B'rith Anti-Defamation League. Irony No. 1 is that a "league," as such, does not exist. Foxman is it. (When asked, for a New York Times profile, whom in the organization besides himself a reporter might interview, Foxman "couldn't think of anyone.") Irony No. 2? Under Foxman, "antidefamation" is not really the ADL's line; defamation is." -- For more on this issue see....Judeo-Christian C/C & US - ADL

The Israeli Who Runs the Obama White House - posted at BollynInfo
From the History File - Thursday, 06 November 2008 -- A quote...."It should come as no surprise that the New York Times article by Mark Leibovich fails to mention Emanuel's Israeli roots -- or the fact that his father was a member of the most murderous Zionist terrorist group in Palestine in the 1930s and 40s -- the Irgun.  The New York Times is the leading Zionist-controlled newspaper in the United States by virtue of the fact that it has been controlled by the Sulzberger family, founding members of B'nai B'rith (Jewish Freemasons) Lodge No. 1, for more than one hundred years."

Obama More Deadly for Afghan Civilians than Bush (in Jan 2009):
A quote...."“Change” Afghans Should Look Upon with Skepticism -- Simple arithmetic reveals that the eleven days under the Obama clock were 18-50% more deadly for Afghan civilians than the twenty days under the Bush regime."

Obama preserves renditions as counter-terrorism tool
A quote...."The role of the CIA's controversial prisoner-transfer program may expand, intelligence experts say." --  -also posted at ICH

"Obama sellout continues:Obama picks Republican senator for commerce job 02 Feb 2009 President Barack Obama will name a third prominent Republican to his cabinet on Tuesday, nominating Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire as commerce secretary, a White House official said on Monday." -- Paragraph quoted from CLG
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Bush's War Totals
A quote...."Its estimates are nearing 100,000, more than double its June 2006 figure of 45,000. (It does not count nonviolent excess deaths--from health emergencies, for example--or insurgent deaths.) If this is an acceptable marker, a plausible estimate of total deaths can be calculated by doubling the totals of the 2006 household surveys, which used a much more reliable and sophisticated method for estimates that draws on long experience in epidemiology. So we have, at present, between 800,000 and 1.3 million "excess deaths" as we approach the six-year anniversary of this war." -- also posted at ICH & AlterNet -- For more on this issue see....Fake Intel / Propaganda - Iraq Deaths

European Activists Call For Bush To Be Tried For Torture
A quote...."Now that former U.S. president George W. Bush is an ordinary citizen again, many legal and human rights activists in Europe are demanding that he and high-ranking members of his government be brought before justice for crimes against humanity committed in the so-called war on terror. -- also posted at RINF

Film: "The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder"
A quote...."Anyone following attempts to hold George W. Bush and gang accountable knows about Vince Bugliosi's best-selling book, which has finally just been mailed to all district prosecutors. Everything you can do to make a prosecution of Bush for murder happen is posted here."

The Gaza Attack - 9 Articles - Monday - [ Day 38 ] ========== ========== ========== ========

Hamas denies reports of a truce with Israel - Summary
Special Note - Full Quote...."Mon, 02 Feb 2009 15:24:05 GMT -- Beirut/Cairo - Hamas representatives on Monday denied they had agreed to a one-year truce with Israel. The Lebanon-based spokesman of the Palestinian movement Hamas, Osama Hamdan, reiterated the movement's stance that there could be no long-term peace agreement before the Egyptian and Israeli blockade of Gaza was lifted, contradicting remarks made by a Gaza-based Hamas representative Sunday. -- "As we said before, we want the siege to be lifted on our people in Gaza. Then we can talk about an agreement," Hamdan told Deutsche Presse-Agentur"

Gazans say Israeli troops forced them into battle zones
Special Note - A quote...."Posted on Monday, February 2, 2009 -- Conscripting Palestinians during the recent fighting in Gaza would appear to violate not only international law, but also Israel's court-imposed ban on using civilians as human shields. -- "The laws of war make it clear you must distinguish between civilians and combatants and you cannot force a civilian to take on a combat role," said Daniel Reisner, a legal scholar who spent nearly a decade as the head of the Israeli military's international law department. "Using a human shield is illegal."

Al-Attatra Village in Gaza : Then Came the Foreshadowing Silence
Photo Slide Show - A quote...."Jan 30, 2009 -- GAZA - Twenty-eight letters of the Arabic language aare no longer sufficient to create a the new vocabulary capable of describing the horrible stories of the Israelis Cast Lead Operation - Massacre in Gaza. The great pain from her grief will last for a long time. Nor can the creation of even 100 letters in the repetoire of the English language express the deep trauma in Ismail's face, a face washed by a thousand tears. I am looking into the eyes of a man's face, aged but still so young. In just a few days many years were added to his face."

Operation "Cast Lead" - For the Record - For History
Photo Slide Show - Some of these are very grim. - mpg

Innocence, Morality Ravaged in Gaza
A quote...."February 02, 2009 -- Israel has dropped tens of thousands of pounds of U.S.-made and/or U.S.-paid-for munitions on one of the most densely populated regions on Earth. Israel has been firing on known United Nations schools, killing dozens of civilians. -- There are credible U.N. reports that Israel has bombed shelters to which Israel evacuated civilians 24 hours earlier. Israel is using artillery shells, widely banned cluster munitions and white phosphorus munitions, all of which guarantee an increasing proportion of civilian casualties (more than 50 percent of the more than 1,000 Palestinians killed)." -- also posted at ICH & CommonDreams

Gaza and the Crimes of Hosni Mubarak
A quote...."February 2, 2009 -- As staggering as the statistics detailing Gaza’s destruction may be, they still do not present a complete picture of the unique travesties and tragedies suffered by individuals, families, neighborhoods and villages during Israel’s savage 22-day assault on the tiny territory. Yet, they bear repeating. From the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (www.pcbs.gov.ps) and various NGOs:"

• 1,334 killed, one-third of them children (more children than ‘militants’ were killed)
• 5,450 injured, one-third of them children
• 100,000 displaced, 50,000 made homeless
• 4,100 residential homes and buildings destroyed, 17,000 damaged (together accounting for 14 percent of all buildings in Gaza)
• 29 destroyed educational institutions, including the American International School
• 92 destroyed or damaged mosques
• 1,500 destroyed shops, factories and other commercial facilities
• 20 destroyed ambulances
• 35-60% of agricultural land ruined
• $1.9 billion in total estimated damages

In the face of such massive devastation and hardship—and this after the crippling 18-month siege had already reduced Gazato a state of bare subsistence—the behavior and actions of the regime of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak remain as contemptible after the war as they were before. -- also posted at ICH & GlobRsrch & CounterPunch

Gaza: The New Siege Mechanism
Special Note - A quote...."15:06 02/02/2009 -- Israel, the occupying power, is determined to keep a tight grip on the reconstruction process, which is why it sustained its closure of the border crossing following its "unilateral" ceasefire. Indeed, this is why it declared the ceasefire unilaterally: it did not want to be bound by any agreement -- the Egyptian initiative or any other framework -- that would oblige it to lift the embargo, if only partially, in order to facilitate reconstruction. Tel Aviv has also been seeking to obtain "guarantees" from international agencies such as UNWRA. On 19 January Reuters reported that Western diplomats revealed that Israel had asked the UN and other agencies to submit itemised lists of the goods, equipment and staff that they intend to send into Gaza, whether for urgent relief or for the more long-term reconstruction process."

Aid workers risk life and limb in Gaza
A quote...."February 3, 2009, 9:19 -- Humanitarian workers and rights activists in Gaza are helping locals put their lives back together after the three-week-long Israeli offensive. Many aid workers were in the region during the fighting and came under fire along with residents."

Today's Photo: A Little Survivor
A quote...."Mai, 4, one of the few who survived the massacre of Samouni family in Gaza City, Zaytoun quarter. Around 29 of her family members killed and ten other wounded. According to the family, Israeli soldiers gathered them in one house then hit them [with] 3 artillery shells. Those who [were] still alive suffer from severe psychological problems and traumas." -- bold by website editor

Prosecutor looks at ways to put Israeli officers on trial for Gaza 'war crimes'
A quote...."February 2, 2009 -- The International Criminal Court is exploring ways to prosecute Israeli commanders over alleged war crimes in Gaza."

Latest on BBC: Gaza appeal projected onto Portland Place (Must see!)
Action Update - A quote...."02.02.2009 23:23 -- In light of the BBC's continued refusal to air the Disasters Emergency Committee aid appeal members of the UK section of the International Solidarity Movement, have decided to utilise the BBC's Portland Place Broadcasting House building as the backdrop for a public projection of the appeal."

End - The Gaza Attack - 9 Articles - Monday - [ Day 38 ] ========== ========== ==========

Low turnout in Iraq's election reflects a disillusioned nation
A quote...."BAGHDAD — Voter turnout in Iraq's provincial elections Saturday was the lowest in the nation's short history as a new democracy despite a relative calm across the nation. Only about 7.5 million of more than 14 million registered voters went to the polls."

Sunni Arabs in Baghdad enclave left off voter rolls
A quote...."Some Sunnis in Adhamiya are unable to find their names on the rolls or are registered to vote in distant precincts. They accuse the Shiite-led government of deliberating leaving them off." -- also posted at WarInIraq

Afghans Protest After US Raid Kills Civilians
A quote...."Hundreds of Afghan protesters took to the streets Sunday in protest over a US raid they said led to the deaths of at least two civilians, the latest in a string to US raids which have killed a large number of innocent civilians."

U.S. Drone Strike America’s Introductory Gift to Pakistan?
A quote...."It is the high time for Pakistani leadership to openly clarify the point that in the case of further strikes on the tribal region, the Pakistani forces will have to be pulled from the tribal region and Swat district. These attacks are an open attack to the integrity and the sovereignty of Pakistan. If the Pakistani leadership compromises on this, then there will be an obvious increase of Talibanization in Pakistan. Currently, a major portion of Swat is already under the control of rebels and if the drone strikes continue, the Taliban will succeed in strengthening their holds on other districts of the state of Sarhad. And it is possible that, in the end, America will leave us alone in a quagmire and extract herself easily from the situation, as she is doing in Iraq. This would, consequently, result in our paying heavily for the situation, not only during our generation, but the next generation will have to as well."

Slain Exile Detailed Cruelty of the Ruler of Chechnya
A quote...."Umar S. Israilov saw the men who had come to kill him. They confronted him in the neighborhood where he lived in hiding in Vienna. He must have sensed their intentions, because he ran. -- For more than two years, Mr. Israilov, a Chechen in exile, had formally accused Russia’s government of allowing a macabre pattern of crimes in Chechnya. Even by the dark norms of violence in the Caucasus, his accusations were extraordinary." -- Perhaps Putin wants to drag Russia back to the good'ol days of Stalin, when twenty million Russians died needlessly.  Think of where Russia would be today if that hadn't happened, it might still encompass the territory of the old Soviet Union, it might have had a much more peaceful and prosperous future....but it didn't, and it doesn’t, and that’s a tragedy many Russians are living with to this day.  Lawlessness can kill a nation state faster than cancer can kill a person; it eats out the insides of a nation until it collapses like a rotten gourd.  It could happen again, it has happened before, it's something everyone in Russia should think about. - mpg
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Iran puts sat into orbit for 1st time
Special Note - A quote...."Iran has placed a domestic research satellite into orbit for the first time, ushering in an era of independence in its space program."

Airbus delivers to China
Special Note - Full quote...."Airbus should deliver its first Chinese-assembled A320 plane in June. -- The jet, completed at the plane maker's assembly line in Tianjin in north China, will be delivered to Sichuan Airlines after a May test flight.-- The Tianjin plant is expected to deliver 11 jets this year and more than 20 jets in 2010. -- Airbus has a presence in China as part of its bid to compete with Boeing in the world's second-largest aviation market."

Global Financial Crises And Hugo Chavez
A quote...."The Financial Crises that has gripped the globe resulting in the growing unemployment, poverty and hunger that will further aggravate during the coming months and years have created great uncertainty. While the global political and financial leaders and the media and establishment that support them, are groping in darkness about the solution to overcome this crises that has gripped the world community, it is futile to maintain expectation on the ability of these leaders to retrieve the situation as they themselves are the basic reason for this crises. This has been proven during the just concluded World Economic Forum meeting in Davos where empty discussions and debates was held, that lacked any concrete ideas to fix this crisis. The Davos Forum failed to find any answer and they stressed more about the problems instead of finding solutions."
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US Spying: Main Core, PROMIS, and the Shadow Government (Pt. 3) -- Part II -- Part I
Special Note - A quote...."With the long overdue departure of the Bush administration from the White House it is the hope many that the myriad of transgressions against the Constitution and the people of America will begin to seep out into the public domain. It took a remarkably short time. The day after the helicopter hauled ole George away like so much rubbish a major story broke. In an astonishing shot across the bow directed at the shadow government the first significant whistleblower has already come out with a story (once again ignored by the corporate media) and delivered a devastating blow to the premise that the massive illegal domestic spying programs of the Bush administration were undertaken in order to protect America from terrorism in the aftermath of September 11th, 2001."

Your ISP is watching you
A quote...."Since last autumn, BT – under the "Webwise" banner – has been trialling a technology called Phorm, which dials direct into your internet service provider's network and intercepts communications between you and the websites you visit, using information about the sorts of things you are viewing to serve you targeted ads."
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Our Children and Our Children's Children
Must Read - A quote....."Yes, our children and our children's children will be paying for this bonus and that $600-per-person check last year; but they will be paying for considerably more than two rounds of pandering handouts that will be largely ineffective against a freight train of recessionary forces that will not let up until a sufficient level of asset devaluation has been realized in its own course, at its own pace, and for our own good."

Fed lends two trillion without oversight - (YouTube - 6 min 1 sec - January 30, 2009)
Video - Special Note - A quote...."So, you know about the Treasury's $700 billion bailout plan. But you probably don't know that the Federal Reserve has lent out about $2 trillion since September. Few do. And that is what's irritating bulldog Congressman Alan Grayson. Will he be able to shed a light on the Fed's secret spending?"

Global recession - where did all the money go?
Interactive Slide Show - Special Note - A quote...."Before the credit crisis, the world was awash with money  Now central banks are pumping in more than ever before and still everyone is short.  Dan Roberts explains the illusion of wealth." -- For more on this issue see....Effective Fed Funds Rate & Total Nonfarm Payrolls & Some Tentative Laws - 07-20-08 - mpg & 1.3 Quadrillion and Counting - 09-18-08 - mpg

California goes broke, halts $3.5 billion in payments
A quote...."California, the eighth largest economy in the world, is broke. -- "People are going to be hurt starting today," said Hallye Jordan, speaking on behalf of the state Controller. "There's no money."

U.S. Consumer Spending Falls for Sixth Straight Month (Update2)
A quote...."Feb. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Consumer spending in the U.S. fell in December for a record sixth consecutive month, capping the worst year since 1961, a slump that is likely to persist as companies slash payrolls."

ISM Mfg Index
Chart - A quote...."The ISM manufacturing report shows less weakness in what may offer hope that economic contraction is slowing. The ISM's manufacturing index rose more than 2-1/2 points to 35.6 reflecting, fortunately, improvement in new orders which rose to 33.2 from 23.1. The 10-plus point move seems dramatic but the 33 level is still very low and indicates that many more manufacturers are reporting month-to-month weakness than strength. Backlog orders likewise improved, up 6-1/2 points to 29.5. -- The employment index, unfortunately, did not improve, holding unchanged at a 29.9 level that points squarely at continued and severe payroll contraction for the manufacturing component in Friday's employment report."

S Korea exports dive at record rate
A quote...."South Korean exports shrank at their fastest rate ever in January, government figures have shown, as the deepening global downturn continues to hammer Asia's fourth-largest economy."

Mexico’s Peso Stuns UBS With Biggest Drop Since 1995 (Update3)
A quote...." Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- The steepest decline in Mexico’s peso in 13 years blindsided everyone from UBS AG economists to Gustavo Huitron, the local marketing manager for Mercedes-Benz. -- After weakening 20 percent last year, the currency fell to a record low of 14.4484 per dollar today. RBS Greenwich Capital Markets in Greenwich, Connecticut, now predicts another 3.8 percent drop by June 30. The peso’s worst performance since 1995’s so-called Tequila Crisis is being driven by the U.S. recession and falling oil prices, which are cutting Mexican exports and government revenue."

Sunday February 1st 2009

"You call it hope- that fire of fire!
It is but agony of desire." -- *Edgar Allan Poe*, Tamerlane:1827

"The Matrix is a system, Neo. That system is our enemy. But when you're inside, you look around, what do you see? Businessmen, teachers, lawyers, carpenters. …..You have to understand, most of these people are not ready to be unplugged. And many of them are so inured, so hopelessly dependent on the system, that they will fight to protect it." -- *Morpheus*, The Matrix

Saturday January 31st 2009

Nests In Hell
Must Read - A quote....“American leadership is good for America and for the world.” -- So reads the introduction to the Project For The New American Century (PNAC), perhaps the most important document ever ignored by so many impacted millions—the neocon blueprint for American “full-spectrum domination” of the world. “Benign global hegemony” is their tender euphemism for it, and the hegemony business is not going as planned. American leadership for America hasn’t been so good, either."
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Israeli Ambassador slips up - (YouTube - 1 min 1 sec - January 30, 2009)
War Warning - Special Note - Video - A quote...."The Israeli Ambassador in Australia asks for the media to stop filming after letting slip plans concerning Iran."

From Gaza to Tehran - Israel Asserting Middle East Supremacy
War Update - Special Note - A quote...."January 31, 2009 "Information Clearinghouse" --- Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany bombed, invaded and annexed countries and territories as a prelude to their quest for World Empire.  Israel’s drive for regional dominance has followed in their footsteps, imitating their style: Indiscriminate aerial bombings of civilian and military facilities, a savage blitzkrieg led by armored vehicles, disdain and repudiation of all criticism from international agencies was accompanied by an open, military buildup for a new and bigger war against Iran.  Like the Nazi leadership, who played on the ‘Bolshevik threat’, the Israeli high command has set in motion a vast world-wide propaganda campaign led by its world Zionist network, raising the specter of ‘Islamic terror’ to justify its preparations for a military assault on seventy-four million Iranians.  Just as Nazi Germany interpreted the passivity, sympathy and impotence of the West when confronted by ‘facts on the ground’ as license for aggression, the Israeli military machine receives a powerful impetus for new wars by the Western governments’ inaction and flaccid response to its invasion of Lebanon, the bombing of Syria and now its Nazi style blitz and conquest of Gaza.  For the Israeli high command, the impotence and complicity of the Western states, marks the way to bigger and bloodier wars to establish Israel’s supremacy and dominance of the Middle East, from the Red Sea to the Persian Gulf." -- also posted at GlobRsrch

Israel may take Gaza war to Iran
War Update - A quote...."Israel's ambassador to Australia has suggested that the military campaign in the Gaza Strip was a "pre-introduction" to attacking Iran."

Likud Charter Does Not Recognize Palestine
Special Note - Than OBVIOUSLY both parties will have to recognize each other before negotiations can start. - mpg -- A quote...."The world hopes that this election will be as “clean and democratic” (Jimmy Carter and most international observers said so) as the last Palestinian election which took place in 2006 and saw Hamas win by a large majority. -- We know what happened next. To make a long story short, Israel and most of the international community refused to recognize Hamas as a legitimate party and then refused to recognize the newly-formed Palestinian unity government (formed in March 2007)." -- For more on the issue of Hamas see....US Sponsored Civil Wars - Palestine

I Have Uncovered Possible Hypocrisy On The Part Of The United States!
Full quote...."This is Barack Obama last week on U.S. policy toward Hamas:...


Now here's Benjamin Netanyahu, almost certainly Israel's next prime minister, speaking on Thursday:...


Needless to say, in addition to their views on past agreements, Netanyahu's Likud party also does not recognize Palestine's right to exist, nor will it renounce violence. But I'm going to go out on a limb here and bet that even if they win, the US will still speak to Israel."
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The Great Black Hajj of 2009
Must Read - A quote...."The huge inaugural gathering on the Washington Mall - two million people, about half of them African American - resembled nothing so much as a Hajj. The assembled multitudes "were committed to a once (or, at least, first) in a lifetime trek to Washington to bear witness to The Biggest Black Event in History." Largely oblivious to the actual political import of his words - including threats against Social Security - the throng imagined "that their wildest dreams had come true in the form of Obama" - an unsustainable delusion."

Dear Mr President, An Open Letter
Must Read - A quote...."I didn't vote for you, sir, because, with all due respect, I didn't buy the hype. I experienced your campaign as a finely-tuned, extremely well-run exercise in creative vagueness and media manipulation. You were too disingenuous for me: "hope" doesn't feed the bulldog; "change" happens, like it or not - try to stop it. In fact, did you not declare finally that the "change" was you? I find that insulting. In a democracy, sir, the change is the people. You represent us, you do not rule us. Governing and ruling are not the same thing."

After eleven days in office, Newsweek puts Obama in Vietnam
A quote...."Coming to newsstands Monday: 1965. -- That's the year then-President Lyndon Johnson officially expanded America's involvement in Vietnam, expanding the number of US troops from 3,500 in March to 200,000 by December. -- Newsweek invites the comparison with a bold cover, titled, "OBAMA'S VIETNAM," going to press less than two weeks after Obama takes office. Johnson, like Obama, inherited a troubled US conflict from his predecessor."

Obama lets CIA keep controversial renditions tool
A quote...."January 31, 2009 -- WASHINGTON — The CIA's secret prisons are being shuttered. Harsh interrogation techniques are off-limits. And Guantanamo Bay will eventually go back to being a wind-swept naval base on the southeastern corner of Cuba." -- also posted at AmericanEveryman

New Bill Proposed To Federalize College & University Campus Security
Police State Update - A quote...."A new bill proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives seeks to take federal control over the security of College and University campuses across the nation. House Resolution 748 or the CAMPUS Safety Act of 2009’ would provide grants to institutions of higher education and other nonprofit organizations to assist in carrying out a myriad of functions pertaining to standardizing campus security across the country."

The Gaza Attack - 15 Articles - Saturday - [ Day 36 ] ========== ========== ========== ========

Connecting the Dots: Israel's Blood Fest Meets the Voice of the People as the Obama Show Begins
Must Read - A quote...."January 2009 will go down in human history as the month when the leaders of the state of Israel showed their true colors. If anyone doubted that Israeli politicians deserved a place next to the likes of Stalin, Hitler or Pol Pot, their storm troopers put those doubts to rest by displaying a brutality and callousness to shock even the most apathetic."

Sionistas imitando a Hitler - (YouTube - 5 min 6 sec - January 29, 2009)
Video - A video presentation made from this Photo Gallery (posted below)  and accompanied by John Lennon's famous song "Imagine", from his 1971 album of the same name. - mpg

The Not So Normal Life In Gaza Today
A quote...."February 1, 2009 at 7:28 am -- GAZA - “Only aerial photographs of the Gaza Strip will make it possible to show and to comprehend the extent of the destruction,” a number of Western civilians said this week. They added: “But there isn’t a chance that Israel will allow anyone to come with a light plane and do aerial photography.”

Gaza invasion: Powered by the U.S.
A quote...."Saturday, Jan 31, 2009 -- Energy analysts squabble about a myriad of issues. But if there is one truism that draws near-universal agreement, it's this: As energy consumption increases, so does wealth. And while that truism holds for oil use, it is particularly apt for electricity. As Peter Huber and Mark Mills point out in their 2005 book, "The Bottomless Well," "Economic growth marches hand in hand with increased consumption of electricity -- always, everywhere, without significant exception in the annals of modern industrial history." -- also posted at ICH

War on Gaza: Israeli Action, Not Reaction
A quote...."January 31, 2009 -- Stubbornly insisting on getting the carriage before the horse as the approach to a "durable and sustainable" ceasefire in Gaza Strip, U.S. and European diplomacy in particular is building on an Israeli misleading premise that the 22 – day military operation, dubbed "Cast Lead," against the Palestinian Gaza Strip was a reaction and not a premeditated long planned scheme that found in the change of guards in Washington D.C. an excellent timing. It was "not simply a reaction," but "a calculation," Daniel Klaidman wrote in Newsweek on January 10."

Secret Israeli database reveals full extent of illegal settlement
Special Note - A quote...."Last update - 00:37 01/01/2009 -- Just four years ago, the defense establishment decided to carry out a seemingly elementary task: establish a comprehensive database on the settlements. Brigadier General (res.) Baruch Spiegel, aide to then defense minister Shaul Mofaz, was put in charge of the project. For over two years, Spiegel and his staff, who all signed a special confidentiality agreement, went about systematically collecting data, primarily from the Civil Administration."

A Palestinian Woman
Must View Video - A quote...."This documentary short film brings the viewer close to the conditions isolating Palestinians within their communities. It is filmed next to the separation barrier that Israel continues to build in the occupied Palestinian territories."

Gaza desperately short of food after Israel destroys farmland
A quote...."Sunday 1 February 2009 -- Gaza's 1.5 million people are facing a food crisis as a result of the [deliberate, malicious and planned] destruction of great areas of farmland during the Israeli invasion." - also posted at WarInIraq

Israeli military refuses water filtration system for Gaza
A quote...."Saturday January 31, 2009 04:25 -- The Israeli government has blocked the entry of a much-needed water filtration system into the ravaged Gaza Strip."

Report: Palestinian foreign minister demands EU guarantee Israel won't strike Gaza
A quote...."Last update - 00:53 01/01/2009 -- Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki is seeking European guarantees that Israel will allow for the opening of Gaza border crossings and will also refrain from once again launching military operations in the Strip, the Arab-language daily Al Ayyam reported on Saturday."

U.S. Gaza Coverage Echoed Government Support of Israel
A quote...."February 1, 2009 -- U.S. television coverage of the recent three-week conflict in the Gaza Strip failed to tell both sides of the story, according to a number of media analysts. -- The most recent conflict between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Palestinian faction Hamas garnered some media attention, with an unusually large spike in coverage, but that level sank as the fighting dragged on." -- For more on this issue see....Judeo-Christian C/C & US - The Media

Holocaust Remembrance Day by ~Latuff2
Cartoon - Click on the cartoon to make it larger. - mpg

Spain to amend law to avoid trying Israeli war criminals
A quote...."Jan 31, 2009 -- OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Spanish government has decided to amend the country's law dealing with prosecuting military commanders involved in war crimes."

Hero's welcome for Erdogan - (90 sec - click on the video picture to start)
Video - Action Update - A quote...."15:57 30/01/2009 -- Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan is met by cheering crowds supporting his walking out of a debate with Israeli President Shimon Peres. Tayyip Erdogan got up and walked out of a debate at the World Economic Forum in Davos."

U.K.: Wave of university occupations in solidarity with Gaza
Action Update - A quote...."Saturday, January 31 2009 @ 04:44 PM CST -- Students across the country are holding occupations and sit ins in solidarity with Gaza. SOAS shut down a MOD exhibition and kicked off military recruitment off campus whilst students at LSE declared victory after seven days when the university agreed to all of their demands. Nottingham students occupied a room in the law and social sciences building on Wednesday 28th; the University has cancelled lectures in that room, against the wishes of the students, and shut off the power to the room, despite support for the students' actions from local shops and MPs.Wave of University Occupations."

End - The Gaza Attack - 15 Articles - Saturday - [ Day 36 ] ========== ========== ==========

Iraq Elections Could Be a Telling Signpost
A quote...."BAGHDAD — After strong polling for the provincial elections Saturday, Iraqis are looking out for new signposts of political recovery from the U.S.-led invasion and occupation."

Iraq provincial election is most peaceful since the fall of Saddam
A quote...."The last regional poll, in 2005, triggered two years of civil war. This time, there was not a single major attack anywhere in the country"

U.S. Will Not Renew Blackwater Contract In Iraq
A quote...."The U.S. State Department has told Blackwater Worldwide, the private security firm whose guards are accused of killing Iraqi civilians while protecting U.S. diplomats, that it will not renew its contract in Iraq."

Iranian president praises Turkish PM for Davos outburst
A quote...."TEHRAN, January 31 (RIA Novosti) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Saturday congratulated Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on taking a stand over Israel on Thursday at the World Economic Forum in Davos."

Italians Occupy Site of Proposed U.S. Military Base in Vicenza
A quote...."This morning around 10 a.m. the movement opposing the new U.S. base in Vicenza, Italy, entered and occupied the site. The police were caught completely off guard and the activists were able to cut the fence and gates and occupy the area. Once the police arrived, they were planning to forcibly remove the protesters. However, the protesters are occupying an area that was the airport Dal Molin, which is technically under control of the Italian civilian
aviation authority, ENAC, who has said the protest is legitimate. So far the police have backed off."

Five South American presidents spurn Davos meeting
A quote...."While bankers and politicians met this week in Davos for the World Economic Forum a rival summit in the Brazilian city of Belem challenged them and blamed the capitalist system for the current global crisis."

Russian newspaper mourns another murdered reporter
A quote...."The dead loom over the morning editorial meeting at Russia's leading investigative newspaper. Novaya Gazeta's staff is trying to plan the next issue and editor-in-chief Dmitry Muratov is in an understandably foul mood."
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PSI, US 1,000-Ship Navy: Control Of World's Oceans, Prelude To War
Special Note - This is similar to the DPG, Clean Break and PNAC concepts. - mpg -- A quote...."Officially launched on May 31, 2003, the PSI was the broadest application of international power projection by the US in the post-Cold War era, entailing as it does nothing less than the ability to conduct naval surveillance, interdiction and eventually unbridled military action in all the world's oceans."

From Prison to Award for Iraq War Whistleblower
Special Note - A quote...."On Jan. 26 in Copenhagen, I had the privilege to present to former Danish intelligence officer, Frank Grevil, the annual Sam Adams Award for Integrity in Intelligence. The late Sam Adams was a CIA analyst colleague who challenged the "fixing" of intelligence during the Vietnam War."

US Govt Spy Program: Main Core, PROMIS and the Shadow Government: Part I
A quote...."Suppose that the United States Government, or more likely an unaccountable privatized intelligence colossus empowered by the reaction to the 9/11 attacks and fueled by the rampant cronyism of a system long ago gone rotten had a surveillance tool capable of peering into the most private aspects of American lives on a whim. Now suppose that the new growth industry of a previously unthinkable futuristic police state was already in place, fully operational and has been online and has actively been being utilized for domestic spying for years before those two airplanes slammed into the World Trade Center."

Bush officials authorized torture of US citizen, lawyers say
A quote...."Published: Friday January 30, 2009 -- Attorneys for US citizen Jose Padilla -- who was convicted of material support for terrorist activities in 2007 -- say that high-level Bush Administration officials knew their client was being tortured during the time he was held an enemy combatant in a South Carolina brig, because of the command structure and that then-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld employed in approving harsh interrogation tactics." -- also posted at ICH
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If Deflation Is Coming, Sell Your Gold
Special Note - This website editor still says deflation is coming, but you might want to hold onto your gold anyway. - mpg -- A quote...."The debate over inflation versus deflation has been going on in hard money circles since about 1973. The debate has gone on within academic circles for well over a century. The economists are as confused as the general public, but they are confused in a far more sophisticated way. They turn confusion into a science."

Florida, Maryland, Utah Banks Shut as Financial Crisis Deepens
A quote...."Jan. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Banks in Florida, Maryland and Utah were closed yesterday as regulators wrapped up the busiest month for failures since the housing slump began in 2006." -- also posted at RougeGov

What Red Ink? Wall Street Paid Hefty Bonuses
A quote...."By almost any measure, 2008 was a complete disaster for Wall Street — except, that is, when the bonuses arrived. -- Despite crippling losses, multibillion-dollar bailouts and the passing of some of the most prominent names in the business, employees at financial companies in New York, the now-diminished world capital of capital, collected an estimated $18.4 billion in bonuses for the year." -- For more on this issue see....Having Fun With Your Tax Dollars

Iceland to be fast-tracked into European Union to stop economic meltdown
A quote...."Iceland is to be fast-tracked into the European Union in an attempt to stop the country going into complete financial meltdown, it emerged last night. - The small Arctic nation is expected to apply for membership within months and become the 29th member state of the EU within just two years." -- That's sort'a like closing the barn doors.....  But best of luck to them. - mpg

WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM:  Davos Under Fire
A quote...."DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 30 (IPS) - One of the few indicators on the rise at this time of economic and financial crisis is the level of repudiation expressed about those responsible for the disaster, and about the institutions sponsoring them." -- also posted at CommonDreams

Friday January 30th 2009

Thursday January 29th 2009

Bailout This! -- The Stabilization of the Financial Sector: The Holy Grail of Economic Salvation
Must Read - Financial Warning - A quote...."Idiocy is usually described as "endlessly repeating the same process, hoping for a different result". Lawrence Summers, Timothy Geithner, Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden et al are straining at the leash to get the Bailout Ball rolling once again. The stabilization of the financial sector, as elusive as it has been so far, has become the Holy Grail of Economic salvation. That makes $8.5 Trillion worth of trying and $0 of result. The Knights of the Oval Table are gathered to plan their mission as their beleaguered subjects are trying to batter down the castle gates.  It's no small wonder that Geithner wants to get the money out the door as soon as the end of this week." -- Although the Credit Default Swap derivative amounts are quite large, they are dwarfed by the overall derivatives market itself, which is estimated to be between 1.3 & 1.5 Quadrillion dollars.  For more on this issue see....1.3 Quadrillion and Counting - 09-18-08 - mpg

More Economists Say Crisis Is Worse Than Great Depression
Special Note - A quote...."Thursday, Jan 29th, 2009 -- More prominent economists have declared that the U.S. is facing a depression that may be even worse than that of the 1930s. - Noting that current efforts to rescue the mortgage industry are less successful than those used during the 30s, Edward J. Pinto, former chief credit officer at Fannie Mae has warned that the current crisis could be worse. - bold by website editor

Where Does It Stop? Government May Spend ANOTHER 4 Trillion Dollars - Hah! It'll be a lot more than that.
A quote...."Eonomists are saying that up to four trillion dollars may be spent on a "bad bank" to dispose of derivatives and other toxic assets (see also this). - Where does it stop? - Where will the money come from? - How many additional years will the depression be extended by the government's reckless actions?"

It Won't Save the Economy; It May Make the Crisis Worse - Obama's New Bank Giveaway
A quote...."After (1) threatening for eight years that the prospect of a trillion-dollar deficit spread over a generation or so is sufficient reason to stiff Social Security recipients and abolish debts to the nation’s retirees, and (2) after the Bush administration provided $8 trillion over the past three months in cash-for-trash swaps of good Treasury bonds for Wall Street junk derivatives, the Obama Administration is now speaking of (3) some $2 to $4 trillion more to be given in just the next week or so."

Kleptocrats of the World, Unite!
A quote...."As Justice [taxes being "the price we pay for civilization."] Holmes would have understood, had he not been a blinkered positivist and deranged militarist, taxation is what fuels the forces of barbarism – the Warmakers, empire-builders, and practitioners of public plunder in all of its malignant varieties. -- The "civilizing" deeds of such people are measured by the graveyards they have filled, the prisons and gallows they have built, and the number of names listed in the obscene war memorials they erect in their own honor, if that word applies. All of these depredations are made possible by taxation."

Famed Forecaster Predicts Collapse, Recommends Gold
A quote...."Famed future trend forecaster Gerald Calente was recently interviewed by libertarian economics writer Lew Rockwell. Calente said...." - Editor's note: Gold does not appreciate very well in Depressions, which is where this economy is heading since it appears no matter how much the powers-that-be prime the pump, they can't inflate their way out of this mess they created, but it certainly would be a safe haven for value if the dollar should collapse, and of course in the highly unlikely event they do manage to re-inflate the economy. It's your money and it's your call folks. – mpg
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US Special Forces Unconventional Warfare Operations: overthrowing governments, sabotage, subversion, intelligence and abduction, FM 3-05.201, Apr 2003 -- Document - Field Manual - A quote...."FM 3-05.201: Special Forces Unconventional Warfare Operations is current US military doctrine (policy) on the use of indigenous or surrogate forces to overthrow a foreign government and the use of sabotage, subversion, intelligence, extra-territorial abductions and similar activities, the most well known example of which is the US involvement in Nicaragua. There is also a section on legalities, including abductions ("The United States reserves the right to engage in nonconsensual abductions for three specific reasons.."). The 296 page manual was made doctrine in April 2003 by Army Headquarters, Washington DC. "

Military to Pledge Oath To Obama, Not Constitution - This is un-confirmed, but if true, we're in trouble. - mpg
Dictatorship Alert - A quote...."Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is extremely frustrated with orders that the White House is contemplating. According to sources at the Pentagon, including all branches of the armed forces, the Obama Administration may break with a centuries-old tradition. -- A spokesman for General James Cartwright, the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, states that the Obama Administration wants to have soldiers and officers pledge a loyalty oath directly to the office of the President, and no longer to the Constitution."

Obama lawyers set to defend Yoo
It just keeps getting worse, it would be real nice if Obama could be honest for once, step in front of a microphone on capital hill, and scream as loudly as he can, just like Bush did, that the constitution of the United States of America, (along with all the treaties this nation signed, the Magna Carta, the Geneva Conventions, etc.) are "just Goddamn piece[s] of paper", so everyone, especially all those idotic Obamatrolls, would know exactly where they stand in the "New World Order" – mpg -- A quote...."In Democratic legal circles, no attorney has been more pilloried than former Bush Justice Department official John Yoo, chief author of the so-called torture memos that Barack Obama last week sought to nullify." -- Actually Obama provided loop-holes for continuing to conduct torture, but that's another article. See below....  mpg

US president allows short-term CIA sites
A quote...."LAHORE: Amid praise for US President Barack Obama’s decision to close the Guantanamo Bay prison, the Washington Times has reported a loophole in the president’s executive order closing Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) ‘black sites’ – a little-noticed exception that allows the spy agency to continue to operate temporary detention facilities abroad."

President Obama, Don't Become Complicit in Their Crimes!
A quote...."by Cynthia McKinney -- On Thursday, January 29th, I sent President Obama this message: -- "Mr. President: The Bush Administration lied to the people in pursuit of war. As a result, at least one million Iraqis and thousands of U.S. soldiers are dead. Thousands more are maimed. The stature of the U.S. is severely damaged. The U.S. Constitution is in shreds after signing statements, wiretaps, and torture. Your obligation is to investigate and bring to justice those who violated U.S. and international law, such as the torture treaty. Failure to do so makes you complicit in their crimes."

Richard Cohen fulfills the role of the American journalist
Must Read - A quote...."There is no longer room for debate that the prime function of our national media is to urge that wrongdoing on the part of our highest government officials be concealed rather than exposed ("it is often best to keep the lights off"), and, when that doesn't work, to demand that high-level government lawbreakers be protected ("Cap, my Safeway buddy, walks and that's all right with me").  What's most amazing about that is that it's the exact opposite function of the one they long pretended (and still claim) to perform:  to expose government secrets and hold government officials accountable for wrongdoing. "

The Gaza Attack - 25 Articles - Thursday - [ Day 34 ] ========== ========== ========== ========

Zionism and the road to Gaza’s killing fields
Must Read - A quote...."29-Jan-09 -- There it is, Zionism was never about religion but a conspiracy to create a gendarme state amongst the ‘unreliable’ indigenous Middle East states and to protect oil interests. This has been proclaimed consistently since the official foundation of the World Zionist Organisation in August 1897. Theodore Herzel writing to Cecil Rhodes, said, ‘I believe that the Zionist idea…is a colonial..idea’. That the Zionist programme in Palestine should ‘form a portion of a rampart of Europe against Asia’ and be ‘an outpost of civilisation as opposed to barbarism’."

Francis A. Boyle: International Law and Israel`s War On Gaza
Special Note - A quote...."28-Jan-09 -- When the Oslo Document was originally presented by the Israeli government to the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations in the Fall of 1992, it was rejected by the Delegation because it obviously constituted a bantustan. This document carried out Menachem Begin’s disingenuous misinterpretation of the Camp David Accords–expressly rejected by U.S. President Jimmy Carter–that all they called for was autonomy for the people and not for the land too."

For Palestinians, Obama’s Message Is Crystal Clear
Special Note - A quote...."Those who counted on Obama to bring a just peace to the Middle East must’ve had their hearts broken watching the man charging against Hamas’ terror, as thousands of Gazans were killed and wounded, including 430 children in the matter of three weeks as a result of Israel’s barbarous attacks, using mostly American weapons (and full, unqualified US backing.)"

Watch the devastated Al-Attatra Village - Israeli War Crimes of Historical Dimensions - Gaza, January, 2009
A quote...."Jan 28, 2009, 23:04 -- GAZA - In the vacuum between the US transition of government, the Israelis breached the Egyptian brokered ceasefire with Hamas government in Gaza. Then as planned, the Israeli military unleashed a relentless campaign of air strikes all across Gaza Strip and on January 4, Israeli ground troops invaded Gaza from the northern border. After three weeks of massive slaughter, and a new ceasefire reached with the Hamas government in Gaza Strip, the Israeli military left the city Beit Lahia and the neighboring Al- Attatra village in shambles 9 days ago."

Gaza - Then And Now
Photo - Gallery - click on the red arrows in the upper-left corner to advance the frames. - mpg

YouTube: Israeli Navy Attacks Palestinian Fisherman
Video - That's the Israelis for you, they just can't let those "vermin" have the dignity and pride of fishing for their own families.....nope, the Jews of Israel have to reduce them to beggar status, make them crawl on their knees.  What a really nice bunch of people they are. - mpg -- A quote...."27th January 2009, Gaza: On the morning of the 27th of January 2009, a Palestinian fishing boat left Gaza City port in one of the first attempts to work after the recent onslaught on Gaza, and the following ceasefire announced by Israel. -- While fishing in Palestinian territorial waters, about 1 mile off the northern Gaza Strip shore, it was attacked by an Israeli gunboat. The fishing boat was sprayed with bullets of different types."

Gaza farmers devastated by war - 29 Jan 09 - (AJ YouTube - 2 min 26 sec - January 29, 2009)
Video - Can't let them farm either....the Jews of Israel must be filled with pride as they view all their very deliberate, very methodical, destruction of Gaza's once vibrant farming community.  What a sick, twisted bunch of morons they are.  – mpg -- A quote....The scale of the damage caused by Israel's war on Gaza continues to emerge. Palestinian agriculture officials estimate the cost to the strip's farming sector will be more than 200 million dollars. Al Jazeera's Mike Kirsch reports from Gaza, where many farmers are devastated at having to start again from scratch."

UN makes $613m appeal for Gaza
A quote...."Thu Jan 29, 8:11 AM -- DAVOS, Switzerland (AFP) - The United Nations will launch a 613 million dollar appeal to meet the "massive" needs of those hit by Israel's 22-day war in Gaza, UN chief Ban Ki-moon said Thursday. -- The money is needed to provided to provide food, water, shelter, health care and other assistance after the conflict which left at least 1,300 dead and caused widespread destruction in the Palestinian territory, UN officials said."

Reporter's diary: Gaza's tunnels
A quote...."Tuesday, January 27, 2009 -- 09:43 Mecca time, 06:43 GMT -- While Israel waged their bloodiest assault on Gaza in decades, their warplanes targeted tunnels on Gaza's border with Egypt in an effort to halt alleged arms shipments. Now, Palestinians are busy restoring the bomb-damaged tunnels, and consumer goods are starting to flow into Gaza again. Al Jazeera's Jeremy Young describes the process of filming inside them."

Hamas delivers cash relief to Gaza victims - 30 January 09 - (AJ YouTube - 1 min 53 sec - January 29, 2009)
Video - A quote...."Hamas, the Palestinian group in power in the Gaza Strip, has begun handing out the promised aid money as part of a broader relief effort to those who lost their homes or loved ones in Israel's recent military offensive."

The Indian example
A quote...."26 January 2009 -- In Gaza, Palestinians have once again been blamed for their own deaths. The British made a similar argument 151 years ago when they killed thousands of Indian civilians -- 1,200 in a single village -- in response to the largest anti-colonial uprising of the 19th century. If Israel truly desires peace with the Palestinians and safety for its citizens, it should look back to one of the greatest, and misunderstood, independence movements in history."

Erdogan storms out of WEF over Gaza
Bully for Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He's this website editor's hero along with Chavez and all the other foreign leaders out there who've had the courage to speak up about these atrocities despite Israel's geo-political power!!! - mpg -- A quote...."Fri, 30 Jan 2009 01:19:49 GMT  -- Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan stormed out of a Davos forum after a heated debate with Israel's President Shimon Peres and slamming moderator David Ignatius." -- See video and article shown below....

Gaza crisis stirs heated debate in Davos - 30 January 09 - (AJ - YouTube - 2 min 53 sec - January 29, 2009)
Here's the Video - A quote...."A debate on the Middle East crisis focusing on the aftermath of Israel's war on Gaza has dominated the second day of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland."

Erdogan hailed after Davos walkout
A quote...."Friday, January 30, 2009 -- 13:10 Mecca time, 10:10 GMT -- Turkey's prime minister has returned home from the World Economic Forum in Davos to a warm welcome after he stormed out of a debate over Israel's war on the Gaza Strip."

Scott Horton Interviews Kathy Kelly
Audio Interview - A quote...."January 26th, 2009 -- Kathy Kelly, founder of Voices for Creative Non-Violence, discusses her recent visit to Gaza at the end of Israel’s incursion, the systematic damage done to civilian infrastructure, the mounting evidence that the Israelis used white phosphorus and committed war crimes, the large volume of images and reporting broadcast by Al-Jazeera in Gaza compared to the Western media’s near-blackout of coverage and the hopeful possibility that new U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell can broker a peace deal."

What Happened to Hassan
A quote...."January 29, 2009 -- Hassan, an 8-year-old Gazan boy, could consider himself lucky. Last year, thanks to his serious illness, Israel let him in to be treated in a Tel Aviv hospital. Israel boasts of its generosity: after four decades of occupation, which has left Gaza's hospitals on a Third World level, followed by years of siege, which has exhausted the little equipment and medicine arsenal those wretched hospitals had acquired, Israel grants treatment to a small number of mostly terminal Palestinian patients, provided the full cost is paid by the Palestinian National Authority. How very generous indeed."

EU sends positive signals to Hamas
A quote...."First Published 2009-01-29 -- EU prepared to work with Palestinian unity government that includes Hamas if it peruses two-state solution."

‘Hamas would recognise Israel within 1967 borders’
Now Hamas has gone and done it!!  Israel is going to have to attack them again after arranging (and videotaping) another Saudi Royal sponsored false flag attack on IDF soldiers.  Gee Whiz, when the heck is peace gonna stop breaking out!  It's all so tiresome and annoying. – mpg -- A quote...."Thursday, January 29, 2009 -- France summons Israeli ambassador over warning shots; US envoy calls to bolster Gaza truce PARIS/OCCUPIED-AL-QUDS: Hamas would recognise Israel if it withdraws to its pre-1967 borders, a French Jewish writer said this week after meeting the exiled leader of the Palestinian Islamist movement, Khaled Meshaal."

Israel Continues Gaza Attacks: Insists It Isn’t Violating Ceasefire
A quote...."Posted January 28, 2009 -- The Israeli military attacked what it described as a “weapons manufacturing facility” in Rafah today, and continued to strike tunnels along the Gaza-Egypt border, in what it said was retaliation for an apparent Qassam launch by militants in the Gaza Strip."

Israel faces Spanish investigation
A quote...."Friday, January 30, 2009 -- 11:22 Mecca time, 08:22 GMT -- A Spanish judge has agreed to hear a complaint against seven senior Israeli military figures, accused of crimes against humanity over a bombing in Gaza in 2002, which killed 15 Palestinians."

Israel promises immunity to war criminals
A quote...."Thu, 29 Jan 2009 19:15:28 GMT  --  The Israeli defense minister has vowed to halt a Spanish probe into the alleged war crimes of former Israeli military officials."

The war crimes evidence keeps piling up
A quote...."Thursday, January 29, 2009 -- Via Action Report Online, an article in Haaretz (my emphasis in red [bold/black]): 


UN to probe attack on Gaza compound
A quote...."Friday, January 30, 2009 -- 13:12 Mecca time, 10:12 GMT -- The UN secretary-general has announced an investigation into the attack on the UN headquarters in the Gaza Strip during Israel's 22-day assault on the Palestinian territory."

Israeli army used flechettes against Gaza civilians
A quote...."27 January 2009 -- Apart from white phosphorus, the Israeli army used a variety of other weapons in densely populated civilian areas of Gaza in the three-week conflict that began on 27 December." -- Not to mention the DIME weapon. - mpg

ACTION UPDATES.....

For first time, U.S. professors call for academic and cultural boycott of Israel
Action Update -- A quote...."Last update - 08:45 29/01/2009  --  In the wake of Operation Cast Lead, a group of American university professors has for the first time launched a national campaign calling for an academic and cultural boycott of Israel."

End - The Gaza Attack - 25 Articles - Thursday - [ Day 34 ] ========== ========== ========== =====

A Capped Volcano of Suffering
Special Note - A quote...."The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees provides recent statistics showing that more Iraqis continue to flee their country than are returning. Two studies show the number  of dead Iraqis to be between 1.2-1.4 million, and the number of those displaced to be nearly five million, or one in six Iraqis. During 2006 and 2008, scores of bodies were found on the streets of Baghdad and fished from the Tigris River as death squads and sectarian militias raged. All but one of my Iraqi friends and translators have either fled the country, or been killed. It is nearly impossible to meet a family that has not had a family member killed or wounded." -- For more on this issue see....US  - Fake Intel / Propaganda - Iraq Deaths

Sunnis candidates killed before Iraq elections
If the Iraqi people would just try to live together in peace and harmony, and certain Shi'a elements (the murder in Mosul was probably committed by Kurdish elements) would stop murdering Sunnis, things would get a lot better in the country.  Of course that assumes the US-NRE stops interfering and leaves as quickly as possible and there is no competition for influence in Iraq between the Saudi Royals and Iran. - mpg -- A quote...."Iraq [was] on high alert after three candidates, [and] two election workers [were] shot dead ahead of [the] vote."

Threat of Violence Looms Again Over Fallujah
A quote...."FALLUJAH — The threat of violence hangs over Fallujah again as leaders of the Awakening Council fight for political power through the elections Jan. 31."
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U.S. army suicide highest in three decades - source
A quote...."U.S. defense officials say suicide among U.S. soldiers increased again last year and is at a nearly three-decade high. -- The Army plans to announce figures later on Thursday, but a source in the U.S. Department of Defense told The Associated Press that at least 128 soldiers killed themselves in 2008 alone."

Saddam-Qaeda Conspiracy Theorist Surfaces Writing Iraq Reports For The Pentagon
Fake Intel Update - A quote...."It's a truism that neoconservatives have a talent for failing upward: for repeatedly getting important things wrong and not seeing their careers suffer - for, in fact, being handed new opportunities to pursue their work (see, e.g., Kristol, Bill; and Hayes, Stephen). -- Today we can add another name to that list: Laurie Mylroie, the quintessential conspiracy theorist of the Iraq War era, wrote reports about Iraq for the Pentagon as recently as Fall 2007, years after she was discredited, according to documents obtained by TPMmuckraker." -- For more on this issue see....Fake Intel / Propaganda

Phony Guantanamo Recidivism Numbers?
A quote...."Seton Hall Law School Professor Mark Denbeaux has authored a study on the Pentagon’s claim, including an exposé of exaggerated Pentagon statements back to March 2004 about Guantanamo detainees who allegedly went “back into the battlefield” against Americans. Denbeaux found that some so-called Guantanamo recidivists had never appeared on any official list of Guantanamo prisoners. Although the government number has been more marked by a lack of names and specifics, Denbeaux proves that the majority of alleged recidivists who were named by the Pentagon had not conducted attacks against Americans or coalition members. - bold by website editor -- For more on this issue of DELIBERATELY obscuring who the terrorists really are (also known as being an accessory after the fact) see....The Convenient Silence of Guantanamo Bay - 05-31-08 - mpg

More Disturbing Legislation Emanating From Congress
Police State Alert - Special Note - A quote...."It has become increasingly clear over the past several years -- it's just become more blatantly obvious since the appointment of the Bush administration to the White House -- that the U.S. Congress that is supposed to protect and speak for the people they're elected to represent has been doing quite the opposite, once again introducing potentially unconstitutional legislation that tramples rights and liberties." -- also posted at BLN

Days before leaving office, Bush's lawyer told Rove not to turn over any documents
A quote...."Four days before leaving office, and ten days before House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) subpoenaed him to testify, President Bush's White House Counsel instructed Karl Rove not to appear before Congress or turn over any documents relating to his time at the White House."

Google's censors [Uruknet]: The cat is out of the bag
A quote...."As our readers know, on April 24, 2008 Google stopped indexing Uruknet.info as a news source. It was the fourth time that Google discontinued indexing Uruknet. The previous times google had reinstated it following many complaints sent in by our readers. The last time there was nothing to be done: in a first moment google news wouldn't even answer to our emails and, at last, after about ten days has answered with a series of lies..."
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Latest US economic data confirms accelerating contraction
A quote...."The return of mass unemployment in the US is one of the sharpest expressions of the social misery now being felt by wide sections of the population. The past four days alone, according to a CNNMoney.com analysis, have seen more than 110,000 layoff announcements."

When in Doubt, Blame the Asians
A quote...."....the main problem with the explanations provided by Paulson and the burgeoning establishment line is that none of the Asian countries sits on the Federal Reserve board, the prime instigator of this effervescent predicament. And as influential as the China or Japan lobbies are seen to be by many, neither country sets the federal-funds rate or conducts open-market operations."

A million on strike as France feels pinch
A quote...."More than one million French workers downed tools yesterday in the first general strike to hit a major industrialised nation since the start of the global financial crisis." -- Something Neo-Romans here in this country will never, ever do. -- Dayz worships dem dare Masters down here on da'plantation, yes'im dayz surely do....uh'huh, dayz gets down on dare knees for dem masters, pray to dee'almighty dollar-god for they's salvation....kill dem own children day'would to get'dem som'ol dat money....yes'im day surely would. - mpg -- also posted at RougeGov

Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin calls for end of dollar stranglehold
A quote....""The one reserve currency has become a danger to the world economy: that is now obvious to everybody," he said in a speech at the World Economic Forum. -- It is the first time that a Russian leader has set foot in the sanctum sanctorum of global capitalism at Davos. -- Mr Putin said the leading powers should ensure an "irreversible" move towards a system of multiple reserve currencies, questioning the "reliability" of the US dollar as a safe store of value. "The pride of Wall Street investment banks don't exist any more," he said."

Durable goods orders fall 5 straight months
A quote...."WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New orders for long-lasting manufactured goods dropped 2.6 percent in December, falling for a fifth straight month, according to a report on Thursday that underscored the deepening economic malaise. - Durable goods orders for November were revised to show a decline of 3.7 percent, the Commerce Department said, which was previously reported as a 1.5 percent fall." - bold/underline by website editor

New-home sales fall to record low in Dec.
A quote...."Sales fell 14.7% in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 331,000 -- the lowest level since the series began in 1963. Sales were weaker than the 390,000 annualized pace expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. In addition, November sales figures were revised much lower. See Economic Calendar." - bold/underline by website editor

Regarding the two articles shown above....This is about the twentieth time economic figures from prior months were revised to show a worsening economic outlook, some of them by quite large amounts.  This is a very BAD SIGN of things to come for three reasons.   One: it shows the economy is getting a lot worse.   Two: it shows that economists are having trouble predicting just how much worse it's getting.   And three: it shows that government figures are unreliable, possibly deliberately unreliable, which means they are probably hiding a lot of unpleasant stuff....like in the banking sector.  This does not bode well. - mpg

Ford reports record yearly loss
A quote...."Ford said its net loss for the fourth quarter of 2008 was $5.9bn (£4.1bn). For the whole year, the loss amounted to a record $14.6bn."

British slump will be worst in developed world, says IMF
It's what happens when you're a willing participant in the New Roman Empire's ponzi schemes.  The British people have no one to blame but their leaders, whereas the "Americans" (Neo-Romans) have no one to blame but themselves. – mpg -- A quote...."Britain will be hit harder than any other advanced nation in the worst recession for more than 60 years, world economists warned last night. - In the bleakest assessment yet of British prospects, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast that the economy would shrink by 2.8 per cent this year [Hah! It'll be much worse than that. - mpg], twice as much as it previously thought and far more than the 2 per cent average drop for developed nations in 2009."

Gloom deepens for Japan's economy
A quote...."Japan's industrial output has suffered its steepest fall in more than half a century while unemployment has hit a three-year high and household spending continues to slide, according to the latest raft of government data."

The List: The Next Iceland
A quote...."FP looks at five countries on the verge of following Iceland to economic ruin and political meltdown."

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Wednesday January 28th 2009

“Based on the people who have been appointed to the key foreign policy positions, I foresee essentially no change at all. And as far as the military is concerned, I don't see any change there either,” -- *John Sayen*