Wednesday June 2nd 2010


A Plague Upon The World: The USA is a "Failed State"
Must Read Interview - A quote...."Interview with Dr. Paul Craig Roberts, former Assistant Secretary US Treasury, Associate Editor Wall Street Journal, Professor of Political Economy Center for Strategic and International Studies Georgetown  University Washington DC." - also posted at ICH

The Back Art Of ‘Master Illusions’
Must Read - A quote...."June 02, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- How do wars begin? With a “master illusion”, according to Ralph McGehee, one of the CIA’s pioneers in “black propaganda”, known today as “news management”. In 1983, he described to me how the CIA had faked an “incident” that became the “conclusive proof of North Vietnam’s aggression”. This followed a claim, also fake, that North Vietnamese torpedo boats had attacked an American warship in the Gulf of Tonkin in August 1964."

Israeli Murders, NATO and Afghanistan
Must Read - A quote...."What I was being told last night was very interesting indeed. NATO HQ in Brussels is today a very unhappy place. There is a strong understanding among the various national militaries that an attack by Israel on a NATO member flagged ship in international waters is an event to which NATO is obliged - legally obliged, as a matter of treaty - to react." - also posted at AlethoNews
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Al Qaeda Number 3 Killed… Again
Propaganda Exposed - A quote...."(SteveWatson) – The next time you consider voicing opposition to the illegal bombardment of Pakistan with drone delivered U.S. missiles, consider this – the drones are effective. So effective, in fact, that they can kill terrorists who have already previously been killed. -- Once again this week we have been reliably informed by U.S. officials via the ever present SITE intelligence group [Rita Katz] via the terrorists themselves, that a drone delivered missile has successfully taken out Al Qaeda’s number three man: " - bold by website editor - For more on Rita Katz see....Judeo-Christian C/C & US - Rita Katz

Calls Increase for Government to Regulate Internet Journalists and Bloggers
Web Censorship Alert - A quote...."Outrage is rising over a Michigan lawmaker’s plan to introduce a bill to license bloggers and internet-based journalists." - For more on this issue see....US - Atmpts 2 Cntrl Web

DHS investigates after man beaten to death in Border Patrol custody
A quote...."Hernandez Rojas, 42 and a father of five, died on Monday after a beating at the hands of US Border Patrol agents who were seeking to deport him, according to a spokesman at the Mexican consulate in San Diego. -- Hernandez Rojas, who had lived in the United States for more than 20 years, died of cardiac arrest after doctors said he had already sustained severe brain damage in the beating."
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Baradei Supports the Iran-Turkey-Brazil Nuclear Deal, Warns Against Sanctions and Military Strikes
A quote...."I was frankly not surprised that the offer came through.  I was surprised at the reaction that some countries would continue to say that they want to apply sanctions, because, the Iranian issue, if you remove over half of the material that Iran has to Turkey, that is clearly a confidence-building measure regarding concerns about Iran’s future intentions…to say that we are going to apply sanctions nonetheless despite this deal, I think would be completely counterproductive”." -- *Mohamed ElBaradei*, Former Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency

Iran troops fighting Kurdish rebels inside Iraq: Official
A quote...."SULAIMANIYAH: Iranian troops were operating three kilometres (two miles) inside Iraqi territory yesterday amid clashes with Kurdish rebels in the Qandil mountains near the border, a security official said. The Iranian force crossed the border late on Monday after a series of clashes in recent days with rebels of Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK), the Iraqi official added, requesting anonymity."

Iran: [Iraq] haze contains depleted uranium: MP
A quote...."TEHRAN (Press TV) -- An Iranian lawmaker says the haze that arrives in Iran from Iraq is polluted with depleted uranium due to the U.S. military's use of the prohibited weapon in the neighboring country." - also posted at RogueGov
    
Israeli strike echoes in Pakistan
Special Note - A quote...."Israel’s deadly attack on Monday on an unarmed Turkish aid ship trying to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza has overnight changed this, sparking protest rallies across the Muslim world. Even the biggest facilitator of the Gaza siege, Israel's ally Egypt, reacting to the protests, opened the Rafah border crossing into Gaza. -- The incident has also turned the spotlight on the United States, which ultimately might be the major loser, especially in Afghanistan and Pakistan."

Abkhazia, S. Ossetia may soon open embassies in Nicaragua
A quote...."All formal procedures related to the opening of the Abkhazian and South Ossetian embassies in Nicaragua have been completed, the Latin American country's foreign minister said."

Russia-Vietnam submarine deal worth record $3.2 bln — magazine
A quote...."Last year's contract on the delivery of six Kilo class diesel submarines to Vietnam, worth a total of $3.2 billion, is the largest deal in the history of Russian exports of naval equipment, a Russian magazine says."

Japanese prime minister resigns after just nine months
A quote...."Under mounting pressure from within the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama announced yesterday that he and DPJ secretary general Ichiro Ozawa would resign their positions. The resignations follow a disastrous slump in the government’s poll ratings ahead of upper house elections expected on July 11."
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The Attack and Seizure of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla....(Day Four - June 2nd 2010)

Mad-Dog of the Planet - Notch Up Another Disaster for Israel's Well-Oiled Propaganda Machine
Must Read - Quote of the day....(in bold) -- "An old Israeli saying describing various less-than-esteemed military leaders says: "He was so stupid that even the other generals noticed." The same derisive remark could be applied almost without exception to the present generation of Israeli politicians."

If ANY Other Nation Had Done This We’d Be Up In Arms! – Helen Thomas
VideoAlt - (CSpanYuTb - June 02, 2010 - 1 min 33 sec) - Source: MoxNewsDotCom - Helen Thomas asking a pertinent question, why wasn't Israel's blatantly illegal actions immediately condemned by the White House?  For more on why see the video by Paul Craig Roberts shown below. - mpg

Paul Craig Roberts – ‘AIPAC purchases US elections’
Must View RTVideo - Alt - (RTYuTb - 4 min 47 sec - June 01, 2010) - Source: DrRonPaul2012 -- A quote...."(RussiaToday) – The deadly Israeli assault on a Flotilla aid ship has caused an outcry in the international community. In the United States the Obama Administration has been quiet about their official stance on what transpired. Paul Craig Roberts says that there will be nothing that is going to be done by the United States to change the relationship with Israel." - As long as people in this country keep voting for DemoRepubs, the Israeli/AIPAC consortium will completely control this country's foreing policy.  It's that simple....and it's that expensive for everyone living here. - mpg

"Honest Officer, I didn't Rape and Kill that Woman!"
Must Read - A quote...."Excuse me sir, but I'm investigating what appears to be a very violent murder and rape of this young woman that's laying on the grass and was wondering if you knew anything about it?" -- "What the hell you asking me for, I'm innocent!" -- "Uh, sir, your hands are covered in blood and you're holding what appears to be a very sharp and bloody knife and when I approached the scene, you were in the act of pulling up your pants." -- "See, there you go, jumping to conclusions. The woman attacked me, me, for Christ's sake and I just defended myself. The knife I'm holding I took from her when she tried to stab me."

Lies, damned lies, and Israeli propaganda
Must Read - A quote...."On the BBC and Sky News, a frequent argument has been that Israel feels "isolated" by the international community and is in a "war" situation, and therefore feels that it has to take extraordinary measures to defend itself. To shore up this argument, these media outlets have, once again, repeated two tired fabrications; Hamas is committed to Israel's destruction and Israel's blockade of Gaza was imposed in response to Hamas rocket attacks."

Turkish Prime Minister's Speech on Israeli Attack on Aid Flotilla
A quote...."Today I do not only want to speak to my dear people but to all of humanity. -- I want to call to the conscience and hearts and minds of the whole of humanity, I would like to share courageously my feelings. -- Yesterday, in the darkest moment of the night two bloody attacks occurred. -- The first of them was the terrorist attack against our military troop at the Iskenderun Naval Base. In this malicious, vicious attack six of our soldiers died, and they have become martyrs. Seven of our soldiers have been injured."

Israel's brutality laid bare by raid on aid ship, says Anifah
A quote...."AMMAN: Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman said the storming by Israel of the Gaza-bound humanitarian aid vessel with Malaysian and other volunteers on board has truly opened the eyes of the world to the brutality of the Israeli regime."

Israelis opened fire before boarding Gaza flotilla, say released activists
A quote...."Survivors of the Israeli assault on a flotilla carrying relief supplies to Gaza returned to Greece and Turkey today, giving the first eyewitness accounts of the raid in which at least 10 people died." - also posted at ICH

No one armed on Gaza flotilla: German witnesses
A quote...."BERLIN, Jun 01, 2010 (AFP) - Three visibly shaken Germans who experienced at first hand a deadly raid by the Israeli military on an aid flotilla bound for Gaza denied on Tuesday that anyone on board was armed. -- "The Israeli government justifies the raid because they were attacked. This is absolutely not the case," former member of parliament Norman Paech, 72, wrapped in a blue blanket, told reporters in Berlin."

TEN Facts about Israel’s Massacre against the Gaza Freedom Flotilla
A quote...."1.  The Gaza Freedom Flotilla is an international aid project whose objective is to end the three-year-long Israeli blockade that has created a vast humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Palestine. It is made up of 750 individuals from more than 40 countries traveling on 7 ships and carrying 10,000 tons of relief supplies. --  2.  On the night of May 31, a coordinated naval and air attack by Israeli military forces killed at least 10 international aid activists and wounded as many as 50 others" -- 3...."

USS Liberty Survivor Among 12 U.S. Citizens Abducted by Israel – 11 Have Been Released – What Happened to the 12th? -- A quote...."We are getting closer to understanding what really happened after the Israeli commandos opened fire on the humanitarian aid flotilla some 5 minutes prior to their attempt to board the ships. Israel has begun the process of sending 325 humanitarian aid workers back to their respective home nations, but 186 still remain locked away in the Israeli prison system somewhere, or worse."

Turkey flies home Flotilla wounded
A quote...."Turkey has begun a large-scale operation to bring home people injured in the Israeli attack on the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla and Turkish citizens detained after the incident."
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

UN demands Israel lift siege of Gaza
A quote...."UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has demanded that Israel lift the blockade of the Gaza Strip immediately in the wake of the deadly attack on the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla."

Organizers: Freedom Flotilla 2 in a few weeks
A quote...."Gaza – Ma’an – The Brussels-based European campaign against the siege on Gaza announced Wednesday that they had secured funds to support three new aid ships to be sailed to Gaza." - also posted at AlethoNews

Death of baby brings the death toll in the siege on Gaza to 374
A quote...."GAZA, (PIC)-- A Palestinian infant died on Tuesday in the Gaza Strip because his family was not allowed to admit him for treatment in hospitals in the territories occupied in 1948, bringing the death toll in the siege on Gaza to 374."

Settlers torch hundreds of Nablus olive trees
A quote...."Nablus – Ma'an – Residents of the illegal Yitzhar settlement set fire to more than 100 dunums of Palestinian lands near Urif village, southwest of Nablus on Wednesday afternoon, Palestinian officials said." - For more on this issue see....Israel's Scorched Earth

Soldiers Break Into Arab Hospital In East Jerusalem
A quote...."Israeli soldiers and member of the so-called border-police broke into the Al Makassed hospital in East Jerusalem in an attempt to kidnap a wounded Palestinian but could not kidnap the wounded youth as dozens of youths clashes with them and forced them out."

Judge declares attempted deportation of US activist illegal
A quote...."Israeli District Court ruled in favor of US activist Ryan Olander this Wednesday. The precedent-setting ruling articulated that the police and “Oz” immigration unit practices were illegal, and stated that freedom of speech and political orientation are not reasons for arrest and deportation."
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Goldman Sachs sold $250 million of BP stock before spill
A quote...."Firm's stock sale nearly twice as large as any other institution; Represented 44 percent of total BP investment. -- The brokerage firm that's faced the most scrutiny from regulators in the past year over the shorting of mortgage related securities seems to have had good timing when it came to something else: the stock of British oil giant BP." - also posted at BLN

Obama's USDA to deceive Americans over GM crops
A quote...."(NaturalNews) The Obama administration's Department of Agriculture (USDA) is attempting to downplay the risks of genetically modified alfalfa, a crop previously banned by numerous federal courts." - also posted at BLN

Tuesday June 1st 2010

The Attack and Seizure of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla....(Day Three - June 1st 2010)

Israeli raid on aid flotilla condemned by UN, ‘Free Gaza’ protests flare up globally
RTVideo - Special Note - Alt - (RTYuTb - 5 min 23 sec - June 01, 2010) - Source: DrRonPaul2012 -- A quote...."(RussiaToday) – UN Security Council has condemned the deadly raid of an international flotilla taking aid to Gaza. At least 9 pro-Palestinian activists were killed and dozens injured when Israeli troops stormed the vessels. Paula Slier is in the Israeli port city of Ashdod, where the ships have arrived. She’s been assessing the growing chorus of condemnation."


Israeli Knesset Member: Israel Wanted High Number Of Fatalities
Special Note - A quote...."A member of the Israeli Knesset, the legislative branch of the Israeli government, who was on board the Marmara ship when it was ambushed by IDF troops, has told reporters that the intention of the raid was to kill as many on board as they could in order to ward off others from attempting to reach Gaza by sea. -- Hanin Zoabi, who currently serves as a member of the Knesset representing the Balad party, made the following comments at a press gathering today...." - also posted at PJB

“It was clear from the size of the force that boarded the ship that the purpose was not only to stop this sail, but to cause the largest possible number of fatalities in order to stop such initiatives in the future.”

Israeli MP's Terror on Aid Ship: 'Plan Was to Kill Activists'
Special Note - A quote...."An Arab member of the Israeli parliament who was on board the international flotilla that was attacked on Monday as it tried to take humanitarian aid to Gaza accused Israel yesterday of intending to kill peace activists as a way to deter future convoys. --  Haneen Zoubi said Israeli naval vessels had surrounded the flotilla’s flagship, the Mavi Marmara, and fired on it a few minutes before commandos abseiled from a helicopter directly above them. --  Terrified passengers had been forced off the deck when water was sprayed at them. She said she was not aware of any provocation or resistance by the passengers, who were all unarmed. --  She added that within minutes of the raid beginning, three bodies had been brought to the main room on the upper deck in which she and most other passengers were confined. Two had gunshot wounds to the head, in what she suggested had been executions."

Reporters Without Borders: 15 journalists still missing
Press Censorship Alert - A quote...."Bethlehem - Ma'an - Reporters Without Borders is urging the Israeli authorities to release a list of the journalists who were arrested during Monday's raid on the humanitarian flotilla and to say where they are being held." - also posted at Uruknet

America's Complicity in Evil
Must Read - A quote...."As I write at 5pm on Monday, May 31, all day has passed since the early morning reports of the Israeli commando attack on the unarmed ships carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, and there has been no response from President Obama except to say that he needed to learn "all the facts about this morning's tragic events" and that Israeli prime minister Netanyahu had canceled his plans to meet with him at the White House." - also posted at DProgram & CounterPunch & PJB

Act of War? And Treason? Yes
A quote...."The United States blocked a UN Security Council investigation into what happened to those ships on international waters. But that’s not all… we have also suggested that Israel be in charge of an “impartial investigation” instead.  I’m serious. -- I don’t really know what to say about this, so I will just put it out there for you all to see. I can’t say that I am surprised in any way, unfortunately, but I am a little disappointed."

Dead: 19. Injured: 60. This is Israel. Appeal of the BRussells Tribunal.
Special Note -- A quote...."Even for eyes burnt witnessing human suffering, there is something shocking, something impossible, about watching Israeli soldiers, armed and in gas masks, fast-roping from helicopters onto an aid ship filled with civilians — journalists, parliamentarians, human rights activists, mothers, doctors — headed to Gaza to break the inhuman siege that keeps 1.5 million people somewhere between life and death."

We are all Gazans now
Special Note - A quote...."Footage from the deck of the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara - played across the world, but not much on US networks - is unmistakable. Fully body-armored and weaponized Israeli commandos have approached the flotilla on high-speed marine dinghies, deployed stun grenades and tear gas and shot everything in sight - a military helicopter is hovering over the flotilla. At a certain point the commander of the Marmara is heard, in English: "Please stop all resistance. They are using live ammunition." 


Captain recounts attack on Flotilla
A quote...."They pointed two guns to the head of each of us," Tokalak told a news conference on Tuesday. "They were really interesting guns, like the ones you see in the movies." - also posted at AlethoNews

Operation Mini Cast Lead
Must Read - Some quotes...."Like in "Mini-Israel," the park where there is everything, but smaller, Israel embarked yesterday on a mini Operation Cast Lead. Like its larger, losing predecessor, this operation had it all: the usual false claim that is was they who had started it - and not the landing of commandos from helicopters on a ship in open sea, away from Israeli territorial waters. There was the claim that the first act of violence came not from the soldiers, but the rioting activists on Mavi Marmara; that the blockade on Gaza is legal and that the flotilla to its shores is against the law - God knows which law." -- "If Cast Lead was a turning point in the attitude of the world toward us, this operation is the second horror film of the apparently ongoing series. Israel proved yesterday that it learned nothing from the first movie." - also posted at ICH

All At Sea
Must Read - Some quotes...."June 01, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- I wonder how many of you remember the hijacking of the Italian cruise ship the Achille Lauro way back in October 1985?" -- "The incident created headlines around the world and polarized people over the Palestinian cause. - It also prompted the law makers to create new legislation making it an international crime for anyone to take a ship by force. - And this is the reason for the brief history lesson - under article 3 of the Rome Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation of 1988, it is an international crime for any person to seize or exercise control over a ship by force, and also a crime to injure or kill any person in the process. - The treaty necessarily adopts a strict approach. One cannot attack a ship and then claim self-defence if the people on board resist the unlawful use of violence."

Obama's Timidity and Deaths at Sea
Must Read - Obama, and a good portion of the US-NRE's population, are the best Isreali/AIPAC butt kissers the world will ever see....mpg - A quote...."June 01, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- A chief lesson to learn from President Barack Obama’s recent unwillingness to stand up to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Likud Lobby is that such timidity can get people killed. -- Casualty figures are still arriving in the wake of Israel’s Sunday night-Monday morning commando attack on an unarmed flotilla trying to bring relief supplies to the 1.5 million Palestinians crowded into Gaza. Already, at least nine civilian passengers are reported killed, and dozens wounded."

Does Israel Rule the World? - No, just what used to be called the United States of America. - mpg
A quote...."Yesterday, the Israeli military attacked and boarded one of the Turkish aid ships sailing to Gaza as part of a flotilla, killing 19 and injuring many more. As this occurred in international waters, it is not only an act of piracy but could also be construed as an ‘act of war'. This attack on unarmed civilian men and women illustrates the moral depths to which the Jewish state has sunk." - also posted at OnlineJournal

Ex-Mossad agent: Gaza flotilla raid ’so stupid it’s stupefying’
A quote...."
The former Mossad agent is Victor Ostrovsky, who enlisted in the Israeli Defense Force at age 18 and has since written two books highly critical of Israel's war-fighting apparatus. His first book, "By Way of Deception," illustrates the brutal and often confusing nature of the Israeli spy service's covert operations, casting the agency as a villain that engages in the drug trade to further their ambitions over the good of Israel. His other book, "The Other Side of Deception," speculates as to Mossad's greater agenda. The book is available online in its entirety."

What if Iran had committed the Gaza carnage and Freedom Flotilla massacre?
Special Note - A quote...."The "international community," which in most cases comprises the United States and its European friends, that gave birth to this inauspicious child continue to tolerate the consequences of the great mistake they made 60 years ago. From the very beginning, it was clear that the establishment of the regime of Israel would be tantamount to insecurity, anxiety and disorder in the Middle East. [That WAS the idea.] Now Israel is expanding the frontiers of its aggressiveness and one can easily foresee the days when the European and American civilians are massacred by the Zionist regime, a simple instance of which we witnessed in the flotilla case."

For more articles on Gaza's aid flotilla.....

U.S. blocks Security Council criticism of Israeli raid - Alt
Western Leaders are too Cowardly to Help Save Lives - Alt
No weapons on stormed Turkish ship: Report
Complete Interview Transcript with Richard Falk from May 31st 2010
Obama Regime Blocks Condemnation of Israeli Crimes at UNSC Meeting - Alt - Alt
Nicaragua suspends ties with Israel
US refuses to condemn Israel
Washington comes to aid of Israel over Gaza convoy massacre
Reporting Israeli Assault Through Israel's Eyes - Alt
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Stop Supporting the Troops and End the Wars
Must View Video - Alt - (YouTube - 9 min 24 sec - May 23, 2010) - Source: AutonomistVoice -- A quote...."War is terrorism. Soldiers are not heroes. Presidents are not saviors. A powerful call to action, to move from ritualized ‘marches’ to sustained rebellion. Filmed at UC Santa Barbara on May 7, 2010. Thanks to Emma Kaplan and Matthis Chiroux. - Two portions of this were lifted from “What You Didn’t Know About the War” — watch it here: http://bit.ly/jVSSn"

American Denial - Living in a Can’t-Do Nation
A quote...."Graduates of the class of 2010, I’m honored to have been asked to address you today, but I would not want to be you. -- I graduated in 1966 on a gloriously sunny day; then again, it was a sunnier moment in this country.  We were, after all, still surfing the crest of post-World War II American wealth and productivity.  The first oil crisis of 1973 wasn’t even on the horizon." - also posted at ICH

From the 1953 CIA Overthrow of Democracy in Iran, to the Iraq War, to the Criminal Gulf Catastrophe and Deaths, BP Was There - A quote...."If you were to draw an oily line from the first exploitation of oil in the Middle East by the British in 1901 (they were in the process of converting their then world dominating naval fleet from coal to oil and were in desperate need of it) to the overthrow of the secular democratic leader in Iran, Mohammed Mossadeq, in 1953, to the Iraq War, to the criminal environmental catastrophe in the Gulf, BP would have been there."

Hamas, Turkey, Iran, and Strategic Leadership in the Middle East
A quote...."In our two extended discussions with him, see here  and here, HAMAS political chief Khalid Mishal came across as a clear-eyed, strategic leader.  Last week, Charlie Rose sat down in Damascus for his own interview with Mishal, see here.  The interview is very evocative, substantively and in terms of Mishal’s personal qualities, of our conversations with the HAMAS leader.  But, in the context of yesterday’s Israeli attack, in international waters, against a flotilla of Turkish ships bringing relief supplies to Gaza, Rose’s interview with Mishal takes on special significance, and we urge its full viewing."

Algeria, Libya set to buy Russian Pantsir-S1 short-range air defense systems
A quote...."Algeria and Libya are ready to buy Russian Pantsir-S1 short-range air defense systems, deputy head of the Russian Military-Technical Cooperation Service Vyacheslav Dzirkalin said on Wednesday."

Russia to supply Su-30, Yak-130 planes to Algeria in 2011
A quote...."Russia will supply Su-30 Flanker fighters and Yak-130 Mitten trainer/light attack jets to Algeria in 2011, the deputy head of the Russian Federal Service for Military Technical Cooperation, Vyacheslav Dzirkalin, said."

Japan's prime minister steps down over US base row
BREAKING :  53 mins ago - (1:48 am PST 06-02-10) -- A quote...."TOKYO – Embattled Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama resigned Wednesday to improve his party's chances in an election next month, after his own popularity plunged over his broken campaign promise to move a U.S. Marine base."  - bold by website editor

China Bans Court Evidence Gained Through Torture
You know what's completely hysterical about this headline, the US-NRE is going in the opposite direction as fast as it can. - mpg -- A quote...."The top judicial and law enforcement bodies in China have issued new guidelines that seek to halt the use of torture in obtaining confessions or witness testimony, especially in death penalty cases." - Source: NYT

Free trade zone for China, S.Korea, Japan to produce hefty benefits, thorough exploration needed
A quote...."While regional integration is breaking down the walls dividing adjacent countries, free trade is thickening the web of their economic interdependence between them with potential benefits." - also posted at BLN

Dmitry Medveved – Russia ready to eliminate visas for EU citizens
A quote...."Russia has submitted a draft agreement to the European Union on scrapping the current visa requirements, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said at a news conference following the Russia-EU summit in Rostov-on-Don."
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

The Lone Ship of the Freedom Flotilla: The Rachel Corrie MV Continues to Sail Towards Gaza in Defiance of Israeli Threats -- A quote...."Following Israel's criminal raid in international waters on May 31st, the Rachel Corrie MV continues to sail towards the Gaza coastline in defiance of Israeli threats. - In an act of tremendous courage, the Rachel Corrie MV is determined to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza."

ECESG: Freedom fleet 2 to set sail to Gaza in weeks
A quote...."Brussels, June 2, (Pal Telegraph) The  "European Campaign to End Siege on Gaza", announced that it already obtain the funding of the first three ships of the new fleet which will go to the Gaza Strip, which will be named "fleet of Freedom 2", related to the name of the First Fleet, who was exposed to piracy and a bloody massacre by Israel against the peace activists on board."

Govt warns Israel to 'exercise restraint' on Irish aid ship
A quote...."Israel is being warned to act with "absolute restraint" when the MV Rachel Corrie approaches Gaza. -- The ship - with three Irish citizens on board - was part of the original flotilla intercepted by Israeli forces yesterday."

"No other options:" Gaza's tunnel industry
A quote...."GAZA CITY, occupied Gaza Strip (IPS) - Life can be hard working in these tunnels, and it is always at risk. But many have no choice but to work in them, particularly since mid-2007, when Israel and Egypt, with the help of the international community, imposed a siege of staggering severity on the 1.5 million humans in the Gaza Strip."
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Wall Street Operative Geithner Rebuffed in Berlin on Mission to Make World Safe for Derivatives
Special Note - Hip Hip Hooray!!! - (video previously posted May 29th 2010) - RTVideo - Alt - (RTYuTb - 7 min 51 sec - May 27, 2010) - Source: RTAmerica - A quote...."On the most important stop of last week’s desperate mission to make the world safe for derivatives, US Treasury Secretary Geithner has been dealt a decisive rebuff. Geithner’s obvious attempt to sabotage the recent prohibition enacted by the German government against naked credit default swaps (among the most toxic of derivatives) was rejected in Berlin on Thursday by German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble. -- At their joint press conference, Geithner and Schäuble could hardly hide the atmosphere of tension and hostility, even though both were determined to mask the clash for domestic political reasons."

Keiser Report on Toxic Twins: Oil Spill & Cash Crisis
MKVideo - Alt - (RTMKYuTb - 24 min 55 sec - June 01, 2010) -- A quote...."This week Max Keiser and co-host Stacy Herbert compare the BP offshore toxic oil spill crisis to the toxic derivatives spill polluting global financial system. In the second half of the show, Max interviews Heidi Moore of Slate's TheBigMoney.com about movie futures, financial innovation and financial reform."

Owners Stop Paying Mortgage ... And Stop Fretting About It
Special Note - A quote...."ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — For Alex Pemberton and Susan Reboyras, foreclosure is becoming a way of life — something they did not want but are in no hurry to get out of. - Foreclosure has allowed them to stabilize the family business. Go to Outback occasionally for a steak. Take their gas-guzzling airboat out for the weekend. Visit the Hard Rock Casino."

Commodities’ Biggest Drop Since Lehman Is Bear Signal (Update4)
Deflation Alert - A quote...." June 1 (Bloomberg) -- The biggest slump in commodities since Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. collapsed is undermining Wall Street forecasts for accelerating economic growth and higher prices for everything from copper to crude oil. - The Journal of Commerce Industrial Price Commodity Smoothed Price Index that tracks the growth rate of steel, cattle hides, tallow and burlap plunged 57 percent in May, two years after a decline that foreshadowed the worst recession in half a century. The index of 18 industrial materials declined the most since October 2008 as Europe’s debt crisis widened and China took steps to curb growth."

A Visible Fall in US Money M3 Worries Some Analysts
Deflation Alert - A quote...."According to the British newspaper the Telegraph from 26 of May US money supply M3 (the Fed doesn’t publish this data any longer) displays a visible decline. The yearly rate of growth of this measure of money stood in April at minus 5.3% against minus 4.3% in March and plus 5.2% in April last year. -- Economists that follow M3 are alarmed with the sharp fall in this measure of money. They are of the view that this large decline might be pointing to a nasty recession ahead."

FDIC shuts down more banks, pushing yearly tally to 78
A quote...."May 28, 2010, 10:13 p.m. EDT - LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- The number of U.S. bank closures continued to climb late Friday as regulators shut down three banks in Florida, one in California and another in Nevada."

Eurozone unemployment rate rises
A quote...."The unemployment rate in the countries that share the euro has hit its highest level in almost 12 years, statistics have shown."

ECB Warns of $239 Billion in Further Bank Loan Losses
A quote...."The European Central Bank warned on Monday that euro zone banks face up to 195 billion euros in a "second wave" of potential loan losses over the next 18 months due to the financial crisis, and disclosed it had increased purchases of euro zone government bonds."

Monday May 31st 2010

The Attack and Seizure of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla....(Day Two - May 31st 2010)

Call your governments, demonstrate support for Freedom Flotilla
Video - Action Alert - Special Note - Alt - A quote...."Under darkness of night, Israeli commandos from at least 14 warships and military helicopters boarded the Turkish passenger ship, Mavi Marmara, and began shooting. According to live video from the ship, at least two civilians have been murdered, and dozens injured. Israeli television is reporting 16 civilians killed."

In raw video, reporters claim Israelis fired on activists before boarding ship
Presstitute Alert - A quote...."In what could be a serious blow to Israel's narrative on the killing of at least nine humanitarian activists making their way to Gaza through international waters, raw video by an Al Jazeera producer, who was filming during the raid, appears to provide evidence that the IDF opened fire on the flotilla even before boarding it."

Raid on the Gaza Flotilla Israel's Attack on Us All
Must Read - Presstitute Alert - A quote...."It is quite astounding that Israel has been able to create over the past 12 hours a news blackout, just as it did with its attack on Gaza 18 months ago, into which our main media organisations have willingly allowed Israeli spokespeople to step in unchallenged."

Brave Israeli Commandos Slaughter Aid Activists at Sea
Presstitute Alert - A quote...."Even America's major media can't duck a crime this grave - attacking and slaughtering up to 20 Gaza Freedom Flotilla activists and injuring dozens more."

International solidarity and the Freedom Flotilla massacre
Contains Photos- Special Note - A quote...."Early this morning under the cover of darkness Israeli soldiers stormed the lead ship of the six-vessel Freedom Flotilla aid convoy in international waters and killed and injured dozens of civilians aboard. All the ships were violently seized by Israeli forces, but hours after the attack fate of the passengers aboard the other ships remained unknown."

Turkish Sources - Israeli Advance Target Assassination List Found on Flotilla
Special Note - A quote...."Turkish sources and media revealed a document which shows that a death list had been prepared in advance by the Israelis, showing names and pictures of people on board of the ships to be murdered, who, according to Israel, were “involved in the International humanitarian aid for Gaza”. According to the Turkish sources, hundreds of Israeli soldiers stormed the blue Turkish ship “Marmara” flotilla and they had copies of the death list. The list included the names of civilians on the fleet who should be killed”. The document was apparently recovered after one of the Israeli soldiers lost it during the piracy act."

Israel Forces Fired On Sleeping Civillians Under Cover Of Darkness
Special Note - A quote...."While the Israeli government is praising it’s soldiers as heroes and saying they were acting in self defence by firing on unarmed civilians flying a white flag in international waters, one group involved with the Freedom Flotilla has a quite different story."

'Israel is a Lunatic State' - Finkelstein on Gaza Flotilla Attack
Must View Video - A quote...."Political scientist Norman Finkelstein has spoken to RT to give his assessment of Israel's raid on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla."

Memorial Day Massacre: Israel Has Attacked Gaza Flotilla – Casualties and Fatalities Reported – BETWEEN 16 AND 20 DEAD, 30 TO 60 INJURED -- Contains Video - A quote...."It is being reported on German and Turkish News that between 10 and 19 are dead at this point… all members of Free Gaza -- Obama is waiting for his Israeli Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel (son of an Irgun Terrorist) and his AIPAC aligned Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, to tell him what to do."

The Legal Position on the Israeli Attack
Special Note - A quote...."A word on the legal position, which is very plain. To attack a foreign flagged vessel in international waters is illegal. It is not piracy, as the Israeli vessels carried a military commission. It is rather an act of illegal warfare. -- Because the incident took place on the high seas does not mean however that international law is the only applicable law. The Law of the Sea is quite plain that, when an incident takes place. on a ship on the high seas (outside anybody's territorial waters) the applicable law is that of the flag state of the ship on which the incident occurred. In legal terms, the Turkish ship was Turkish territory. -- There are therefore two clear legal possibilities."

Israel Kills 20 : Attacks Gaza Aid Fleet
Must View Videos - PressTV(1/2) - PressTV(2/2) - LiveTVRprt -- A quote...."Israel Navy troops opened fire on pro-Palestinian activists aboard a six-ship aid flotilla sailing for the Gaza Strip early Monday."

Israeli Butchery at Sea -- An institutional failure of a morbid society
Must Read - A quote...."May 31, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- As I write this piece the scale of the Israeli lethal slaughter at sea is yet to be clear. However we already know that at around 4am Gaza time, hundreds of IDF commandos stormed the Free Gaza international humanitarian fleet. We learn from the Arab press that at least 16 peace activists have been murdered and more than 50 were injured. Once again it is devastatingly obvious that Israel is not trying to hide its true nature: an inhuman murderous collective fuelled by a psychosis and driven by paranoia."
    
Gaza Aid Convoy Attack:  Israel’s Murderous Sea Piracy a Horrendous Moment of Truth for US Policy
Must Read - A quote...."May 31, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- This time, the Israeli war machine may have gone too far for international public opinion to stomach.  In the early hours of 1 June, before daybreak, Israeli commandos stormed the international civilian aid convoy heading for Gaza. Between 20-24 volunteers onboard have been killed and at least 50 injured, according to various reports, but the number of casualties has risen rapidly from the initial reports of two dead. The final death toll could be greater."

Updated – Israel Kills 16 Human Rights Activists on Route to Gaza, World Outrage Spreads
Special Note - A quote...."ABC News Report: White House ‘Working to Understand’ Israeli Attack; scheduled meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tomorrow cancelled. -- For continuing updates, see Witness Gaza and Al Jazeera. Turkey, Spain, Greece, Denmark and Sweden have all summoned the Israeli ambassador’s in their respective countries to protest against the deadly assault." - also posted at WarInIraq

At least 12 nations summon Israeli ambassadors
Special Note - A quote...."Bethlehem - Ma'an - As international condemnation over the killing of at least 10 activists by Israeli forces as they raided an aid convoy en route to Gaza, a host of governments have summoned Israeli ambassadors to provide a full explanation on the assault."

Protesters from Paris to Istanbul denounced deadly Gaza flotilla raid
A quote...."Pro-Palestinian demonstrators took to the streets in cities from Istanbul to Paris on Monday to protest a deadly Israel Navy raid on a flotilla of international activists attempting to bring humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip."

Russia condemns Israeli raid of humanitarian aid ships in neutral waters (Update 6)
A quote...."Russia has condemned the Israeli raid on a number of ships in neutral waters that were bringing humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip that led to the deaths of at least 10 people, Russia's first deputy ambassador to the UN said on Monday."

For more articles on Gaza's aid flotilla.....

Israeli police say 16 Gaza-bound activists sent to jail
Irish citizens 'kidnapped' in international waters
Erdogan:Aid ship raid is Israeli state terrorism
Turkey vows response to Israeli attack
Turkey seeks Security Council meeting, condemns Israel
Live coverage: Israel's flotilla raid
Turks rally against Israeli attack
Rage in London at Israel's killing of peace activists
Flotilla protest outside UN building, Beirut - in pictures
BASTARDSGaza aid ship attacked by ~Latuff2 - cartoon - (click to enlarge)
Brazil summons Israeli envoy over raid - Alt
Vatican 'concerned' over Flotilla raid - Alt
Gazans unite in call for solidarity with Freedom Flotilla
Rights org condemns "hideous" attack on Freedom Flotilla
The Gaza flotilla and the ironies of history
EU demands inquiry into Israeli raid

Anti-Israeli demos held in France
Israel must be prepared to face consequences - Turkish Foreign Minister (Update 5)
Turkish premier accuses Israel of state terrorism, demands ship's release (Update 3)
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Barack Obama: Liar, Warlord, and Corporate Shill
A quote...."It shouldn't surprise because no one gets the top job or any government position of power unless they're safe, yet, naively, most people thought Obama was different. Many still do. - As a candidate, he promised change, a new course, sweeping government reforms, addressing people needs, and “ensur(ing) that the hopes and concerns of average Americans speak louder in Washington than the hallway whispers of high-priced lobbyists” – the same ones who bought and now own him." - also posted at DProgram

German president Horst Köhler quits over Afghanistan gaffe
A quote...."Germany's president, Horst Köhler, resigned without warning today, after intense criticism of remarks in which he suggested military deployments were central to the country's economic interests."

Beijing Suspects False Flag Attack on South Korean Corvette
A quote...."WMR's intelligence sources in Asia suspect that the March attack on the South Korean Navy anti-submarine warfare (ASW) corvette, the Cheonan, was a false flag attack designed to appear as coming from North Korea. --  One of the main purposes for increasing tensions on the Korean peninsula was to apply pressure on Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama to reverse course on moving the U.S. Marine Corps base off Okinawa. Hatoyama has admitted that the tensions over the sinking of the Cheonan played a large part in his decision to allow the U.S. Marines to remain on Okinawa."

The Korean Crisis: Cui Bono?
A quote...."The alleged North Korean sinking of a South Korean boat in March has dramatically escalated tensions between north and south Korea. It has also caused a reversal of a planned Japanese government push to close the US military base on Okinawa. The major question in the bizarre affair is Cui Bono?" - For more on the two articles shown above see the list shown below....(previously posted)

Russia wants '100% proof' N.Korea sunk ship
Gulf of Tonkin Redux: Did an American Mine Sink South Korean Ship?
Second Korean War will drag nations into Global Bloodshed? - video - Alt - (RTYuTb - 3m32s - May 27, 2010)
Analysts question Korea torpedo incident
PCC-772 Cheonan: An Unacceptable Provocation by the United States of America....
Is the U.S. Government Planning War to Quell the Tide of Economic Unrest?
The Sinking of the Cheonan: We Are Being Lied To
German Made Torpedo Sunk South Korean Cheonan

A Century of War: Anglo-American Oil Politics and the New World Order
Book Review - A quote...."A CENTURY OF WAR: Anglo-American Oil Politics and the New World Order, William Engdahl. London: Pluto Press, revised 2004 (orig. 1992) -- The distinguished economist and historian William Engdahl provides must reading with this book. A Century of War once again proves Santayana's dictum, "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it." (And proves George Bernard Shaw's corollary, "We learn from history that we learn nothing from history.")"
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Emily Henochowicz, U.S. Art Student, Shot in the Face With a Tear-Gas Gun by IDF Soldier at Protest
A quote...."This is a picture of a U.S. citizen being carried to a hospital by a Palestinian and being cared for by another Palestinian after being shot in the face with a tear-gas canister by an IDF soldier. IDF soldiers have often shot demonstrators directly with the tear-gas canisters in the past."

Israeli soldiers allegedly submit children to sex abuse
A quote...."international children's rights group has said it has evidence that Palestinian children held in Israeli custody have been subjected to sexual abuse. -- The Geneva-based Defence for Children International has collected affadavits from over one hundred Palestinian children to say that efforts to extract confessions from them came with threats of rape and other abuses."

Gaza's real humanitarian crisis
A quote...."The Israeli government has, for weeks, insisted that the 10,000 tonnes of supplies on board the Gaza aid flotilla are not necessary. Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's foreign minister, reiterated that claim on Friday, telling reporters "there is no humanitarian crisis in Gaza"." - also posted at Uruknet
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Press TV-On The Edge with Max Keiser-05-28-2010 (Part1) - Alt1 - (Part 2) - Alt2 - (Part 3) - Alt3
MKVideos - A quote...."Latest on the state of global economy with Max Keiser"

The U.S. Economic Collapse Top 20 Countdown
A quote...."So just how bad is the U.S. economy?  Well, the truth is that sometimes it is hard to put into words.  We have squandered the great wealth left to us by our forefathers, we have almost totally dismantled the world’s greatest manufacturing base, we have shipped millions of good jobs overseas and we have piled up the biggest mountain of debt in the history of mankind.  We have taken the greatest free enterprise economy that was ever created and have turned it into a gigantic house of cards delicately balanced on a never-ending spiral of paper money and debt.  For decades, all of this paper money and debt has enabled us to enjoy the greatest party in the history of the world, but now the bills are coming due and the party is nearly over."

Sunday May 30th 2010

The Attack and Seizure of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla.... (Day One - May 30th 2010)

WitnessGaza
Live Blogging & Streaming - Join us as we travel to Gaza. Witness what happens on board the boats. Watch our videos everyday. Stay tuned for WitnessGaza. List of passengers on the boats -- Email information about worldwide protests and demonstrations to protests at freegaza.org"

Gaza aid flotilla attacked, 10 killed
A quote...."Israeli forces have attacked the international aid convoy Freedom Flotilla en route to the besieged Gaza Strip, killing at least 10 people and leaving more than 50 injured."

Up to 16 reported killed as Israel disrupts Gaza humanitarian effort
Contains Video - A quote...."Up to 16 people have been killed and about 30 injured after Israeli boats allegedly attacked a flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, reports Al Jazeera referring to the Israeli Army radio."

Death toll from Gaza aid attack hits 20
A quote...."The death toll from the Israeli navy's takeover of a Gaza aid convoy has risen to 20 while Israel carefully censors reports on the casualties from the attack."

Israel Has Attacked Gaza Flotilla: Casualties and Fatalities Reported
Full quote...."“Two dead, at least 30 wounded” as Israel opens fire at Gaza activists - They seem to have opened fire on the boats from the Israeli helicopters (I guess the ones we paid for)  --  Report: Several casualties in clash between Gaza aid flotilla, Israel Navy  --  Picture of Blood on a Life Vest  --  BBC is Confirming the Interception but no word on casualties yet – “Hamas says the interception took place in international waters, more than 150km (90 miles) off the coast of Gaza. Israel has made no comment”  --  Live feed  --  Update: Initial reports – at least two people killed, 30 injured in Israeli attack on freedom flotilla"

Gaza TV's phlog - George Galloway Speaks Out
Audio - (3 min 52 sec) - A quote...."George Galloway speaks from Houston Texas."

Turkey condemns Israeli storming of Gaza aid ships
A quote...."The Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned on Monday the storming by Israeli commandos of international ships carrying humanitarian aid to the occupied Gaza Strip. -- The Israeli army's press service said more than 10 people had been killed and four Israeli commandos had been injured when the Israeli military stormed the six-ship Freedom Flotilla carrying some 10,000 tons of aid to Gaza and 600 human rights activists. -- Al Jazeera earlier quoted Israeli Army Radio as saying 16 people had been killed and more than 30 injured."
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Saturday May 29th 2010

Industrial EspionageHow the CIA got the world to buy American during the Cold War
Must Read - A quote...."New York University researchers Daniel Berger, Bill Easterly, Shanker Satyanath—together with Harvard economist Nathan Nunn—have analyzed Perkins' "economic hitman" theory—that is, the theory that the U.S. government has used the CIA to promote American corporate interests abroad. (The economists prefer the term "political influence hypothesis" to "economic hitman theory.") Based on information from declassified documents detailing covert CIA operations during the Cold War, the social scientists find that Perkins' claims are backed up by the numbers: Countries targeted for CIA political interventions started importing more U.S. products, a sign of American economic imperialism at work." - also posted at BLN - How the US-NRE really does "business" with countries around the world. - mpg

Kyrgyzstan’s "Rose Revolution": Washington, Moscow, Beijing and the Geopolitics of Central Asia - Part II
Special Note - [Part I?] -- A quote...."China’s growing economic ties to the cash-strapped regime of former Kyrgyz President Askar Akayev was a major reason Washington decided to dump its erstwhile ally Akayev after almost a decade of support. In June 2001 China, along with Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, signed the Declaration creating the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Three days later Beijing announced a large grant to Kyrgyzstan for military equipment.[1]" - also posted at BLN
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Obama's Letter to Lula Exposes White House Forked Tongue On Iran
Must Read - A quote...."May 28, 2010 "NewsHoggers" --May 27, 2010 -- Via Robert Naiman, it appears that President Lula of Brazil has decided to shine some light on the Obama administration's machinations on Iran. He has finally released the full text of Obama's 20th April letter to Brazil about the proposed TTR fuel swap deal and the entire thing appears today in Brazilian Foreign Policy...."

Israel must sign NPT, 189 countries say
A quote...."The final statement of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference has called for the establishment of a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East. -- The 28-page document, which was agreed upon on Friday by all 189 NPT signatories after a month-long round of talks at UN Headquarters in New York, called for a conference to be held in 2012 "to be attended by all states of the Middle East, leading to the establishment" of a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East." - also posted at WarInIraq

Key points of UN nuclear conference statement
A quote...."The following are key points of the final document agreed here Friday at the end of a month-long UN conference to review efforts to curb the spread of nuclear weapons."

Israel rejects plea of 189 countries
A quote...."After the United Nations ratified a resolution calling for a nuclear weapons-free Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu moves to condemn the treaty. -- The attack came after all 189 signatories to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) reached a deal on Friday for the establishment of a Middle East without nukes."

Israel stations nuclear missile subs off Iran
A quote...."Three German-built Israeli submarines equipped with nuclear cruise missiles are to be deployed in the Gulf near the Iranian coastline."
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The President Fetes the Jews
"Fete" isn't really the most accurate description of what Obama, or for that matter, most US-NRE presidents do to show their appreciation for the campaign contributions they receive and how they should "properly" genuflect to the "Jewish community" in this country.

Whereas most politicians in other countries like to kiss babies (on their faces), US-NRE politicians must kiss AIPAC/Israeli butt each and every day or suffer the immediate monetary wrath and media backlash of the "Jewish community", and out of all the presidents so far, Obama is the best AIPAC/Israeli butt kisser of them all.  Keep in mind folks the "Jewish community" in the US-NRE is about 5.5 to 6 million strong, that's about 1.8 to 2 percent of the 320 MILLION people who now live in this country. Think about just how small a number that represents compared to all the headlines you've seen during the last twenty years.

From the public creation of plans like the PNAC Protocols and a Clean Break and the invasions of Israel's enemies these plans called for, to 9/11 which served as their pretext, to the twenty four trillion dollar bail-out for the Banksters, to the constant, ceaseless, endless, non-stop, yammering to invade Iran, to the total news black-out regarding the Saudi Royals cooperation with Israel's support for Hama's rivals along with the Saudi Royals support for their own ever expanding network of Madrasas and al-Qaeda elements throughout the Middle East for the last ten years.

Truly, honestly, just for once, ask yourselves is this your country, are these your policies and plans, do they actually benefit YOU and YOUR children, do they represent YOUR aspirations and ideas or do they serve solely to benefit another country and its citizens? - mpg


A quote...."The reception brought together an impressively wide array of personalities. In addition to the usual farrago of Rabbis and Jewish leaders and professionals, there were Washington insiders like David Brooks, Nina Totenberg, Roger Cohen, Diane Sawyer, Carl Bernstein and government officials like David Axelrod and Peter Orszag, a group of Senators and congressmen (including the easily spotted Al Franken.) Supreme court justices -- and Elena Kagan, the nominee -- added to the august feel of leather bound books on the shelves and Presidential seals on everything from the carpet to the paper hand towels. Several non-Jews active in politics and supportive of Israel, including the Director of research for the Southern Baptist convention, Barrett Duke, were present; and of course, Israel's Ambassador Michael Oren. To reinforce the connection of the administration with Israel, the President made a point to remind us that Rahm Emanuel was in Israel for the Bar Mitzvah of his son."
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Building What? How SCADs Can Be Hidden in Plain Sight
Must Read - A quote...."May 28, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- At 5:21 PM on 9/11, Building 7 of the World Trade Center collapsed, even though it had not been hit by a plane – a fact that is important because of the widespread acceptance of the idea, in spite of its scientific absurdity, that the Twin Towers collapsed because of the combined effect of the impact of the airliners plus the ensuing jet-fuel-fed fires. The collapse of World Trade Center 7 (WTC 7) thereby challenges the official account of the destruction of the World Trade Center, according to which it was accomplished by al-Qaeda hijackers, even if one accepts the government’s scientifically impossible account of the Twin Towers. This fact was recently emphasized in the title of a review article based on my 2009 book, The Mysterious Collapse of World Trade Center 7,1  by National Medal of Science-winner Lynn Margulis: “Two Hit, Three Down – The Biggest Lie.”2"

Former BBC Reporter Alan Hart Reveals ‘Mossad’ Involved in 9/11 on Alex Jones Tv
Video - AH&AJ(1/5) - AH&AJ(2/5) - AH&AJ(3/5) - AH&AJ(4/5) - AH&AJ(5/5) -- A quote...."(May 28) – Alex talks with respected Middle East expert and former BBC presenter Alan Hart. Mr. Hart has broken his silence on 9/11 and has revealed that the world’s most prominent civil engineering company told him directly that the collapse of the twin towers was a controlled demolition." - For more on the two articles shown above see....Reficultnias's 9/11 Central

Pure Kafka
Must Read - A quote...."The first paragraph of today’s New York Times article by Charlie Savage:

"The 48 Guantánamo Bay detainees whom the Obama administration has decided to keep holding without trial include several for whom there is no evidence of involvement in any specific terrorist plot, according to a report disclosed Friday."

"The Report itself, in a matter-of-fact-tone, describes the individuals to be kept in a cage indefinitely without charges this way...."

A disgrace of historic proportions
Related Article - A quote...."The Miami Herald's Carol Rosenberg reports  that, this week, yet another federal judge has ordered the Obama administration to release yet another Guantanamo detainee on the ground that there is no persuasive evidence to justify his detention.  The latest detainee to win his habeas hearing, Mohammed Hassen, is a 27-year old Yemeni imprisoned by the U.S. without charges for 8 years, since he was 19 years old.  He has "long claimed he was captured in Pakistan studying the Quran and had no ties to al Qaida," and that "he had been unjustly rounded up in a March 2002 dragnet by Pakistani security forces in the city of Faisalabad that targeted Arabs."  Hassen is now the third consecutive detainee ordered freed who was rounded up in that same raid.  The Obama DOJ opposed his petition even though the Bush administration had cleared him for release in 2007.  He has now spent roughly 30% of his life in a cage at Guantanamo." - also posted at AlethoNews

Times Square bomb plot: Pakistani Army major arrested
A quote...."A Pakistani Army major, who was until recently a serving officer, has been arrested in connection with the failed Times Square bomb plot."

A quote...."It's the 'Oh, my God' Obusha holiday weekend really, really bad news dump:  US considering attack on Pakistan 29 May 2010 The US military is reportedly weighing all possible options to attack Pakistan, in the event that it manages to link the country with a disastrous attack on the US soil... Military officials in the US have used the failed bomb attempt on New York's Times Square on May 1, to accuse Pakistan of harboring terrorists. The incident was also used to urge the Obama administration to review how it would respond to a successful attack on US soil" - Paragraph quoted from CLG

US admits blame for [Afghan] civilian deaths
A quote...."A US drone attack which left 23 Afghan civilians dead when they were mistaken for Taliban fighters occurred due to the "unprofessional" approach of the soldiers involved, an internal military report has found. -- The civilians died on February 21 in Uruzgan province when three vehicles were hit by Hellfire missiles fired from a drone on the orders of a special forces commander on the ground."

Taliban capture Afghan district on Pakistan border
A quote...."KUNAR, Afghanistan (AFP) – Taliban militants captured the administrative headquarters of a remote Afghan district Saturday, officials said, while a suicide bomber blew himself up near a NATO base in Kabul. -- Insurgents had surrounded Bargi Matal district in Nuristan province, which borders Pakistan, on Friday and engaged police in a fierce gun battle, Nuristan governor Jamaludin Badr told AFP. -- The fate of police officers guarding the administrative compound — which houses government, police and judicial offices — was unclear. -- "Since the district headquarters is inside the village in a crowded location we had to make a tactical retreat to avoid casualties to civilians" living in nearby houses, he said. -- Afghan authorities often use the term "tactical retreat" when Taliban have overrun police forces and captured districts." - also posted at YahooNews

America’s Forgotten War
A quote...."Perhaps President Barack Obama should be thankful for the bad news—the oil spill, intractable unemployment and the rest—for it has definitely diverted attention from his biggest disaster: the Afghanistan war. -- So far, the distant war, fought by service volunteers and civilian contractors, can’t compete for attention in the media world. This may be good for Obama today. I doubt he wants a national debate on Afghanistan. But it’s bad for the country, and as it continues it will be bad for Obama, dragging him down as other senseless wars have done to his predecessors."

China urges calm in standoff over North Korea
A quote...."SEOGWIPO, South Korea (Reuters) – China came under pressure to censure in North Korea at a regional summit on Sunday but gave no sign it would get tough with the hermit state, instead urging everyone to calm tensions over a ship sinking."

Russia wants '100% proof' N.Korea sunk ship
A quote...."MOSCOW (AFP) – Russia will not support efforts to punish North Korea for sinking a South Korean warship until it is fully convinced Pyongyang was behind the incident, a foreign ministry spokesman said Thursday."

Gulf of Tonkin Redux: Did an American Mine Sink South Korean Ship?
A quote...."Editor’s note: The sinking of the Cheonan took place in South Korean waters dominated by a joint U.S.-Korean base for anti-submarine warfare operations, an area North Korea admits it does not have the technology to penetrate with its submarines. It is speculated the USNS Salvor was was laying bottom mines in the area and a rising mine was inadvertently released. “If indeed it was an American rising mine that sank the Cheonan, it would constitute a friendly-fire accident,” writes Yoichi Shimatsu. Or it was a Gulf of Tonkin incident intended to provide a pretext to blame North Korea. Either way, don’t expect the corporate media to report on this." -- For more on this issue see the articles shown below (previously posted).....

Second Korean War will drag nations into Global Bloodshed? - video - Alt - (RTYuTb - 3m32s - May 27, 2010)
Analysts question Korea torpedo incident
PCC-772 Cheonan: An Unacceptable Provocation by the United States of America....
Is the U.S. Government Planning War to Quell the Tide of Economic Unrest?
The Sinking of the Cheonan: We Are Being Lied To
German Made Torpedo Sunk South Korean Cheonan

[Russia's] Duma to consider response to U.S. missile deployment in Poland
A quote...."The State Duma will discuss Russia's response to the deployment of U.S. missiles in Poland during debates on the new Russian-U.S. strategic arms reduction treaty, Duma speaker Boris Gryzlov said on Saturday. --  In an interview with the Rossia TV channel, he suggested one possibility could be the deployment of Russian missiles in the Kaliningrad exclave near the Polish border."

Russia wins large contract to modernize Indian Su-30MKI fighters - media
A quote...."India has placed orders with the Russian defense industry to modernize Su-30MKI Flanker-H fighters produced in India under the Russian license, India Today magazine reported in its June issue, without disclosing the sum of the contract."

Belarus reaffirms interest in integration with Russia, Kazakhstan
A quote...."The Belarusian government on Saturday reiterated its commitment to integrate into a customs union with Russia and Kazakhstan. -- "Belarus reaffirms its desire for integration with our partners - Russia and Kazakhstan - in the framework of a customs union and a single economic space," the government press service said in a statement. -- The Belarusian Cabinet of Ministers said it would continue working with its Russian and Kazakh partners to overcome their differences over a tripartite customs union agreement."

China, Kazakhstan seek to upgrade military cooperation
A quote...."The Chinese and Kazakh defense ministers have agreed to advance cooperation between the two militaries, Xinhua said on Saturday. -- At a meeting with his Kazakh counterpart, Adilbek Dzhaksybekov, visiting Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie said "military-to-military relationship is a key part of overall bilateral relations."

New base deal drives wedge through Japanese gov't, alienates islanders
A quote...."....as much as the decision has served to drive the political wedge further between Okinawa and mainland Japan, it has also caused a rift in the ruling coalition following Hatoyama's forcible dismissal of Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Mizuho Fukushima, who, not wishing to betray the people of Okinawa, refused to sign a Cabinet document sanctioning the plan. -- The whole ordeal has left all and sundry utterly flummoxed. -- Hatoyama has dithered, bungled, deceived, flip-flopped and fumbled his way back to the exact point he started from when he took office last September, regarding the relocation of the Futenma facility, numerous political pundits are asserting."

In Japan, U.S. Losing Diplomatic Ground to China
A quote...."TOKYO — When Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates visited Japan’s new leaders in October, not long after their historic election, he pressed so hard and so publicly for a military base agreement that the Japanese news media labeled him a bully."

In US, thousands protest Arizona law
A quote...."Thousands of people from all over the US have gathered in Arizona's capital, Phoenix, to protest against the state's immigration law, saying it could lead to racial profiling."
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USS Liberty: American Servicemen Expendable; Don't Embarrass Israel
A quote...."Within the United States, there has been a growing awareness of Palestinian suffering. This has been manifested in the many demonstrations held during Israel's assault on Gaza from December 2008-January 2009. The boycott of Israeli goods is gaining speed, as well as the campaign to recognize the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians as apartheid. -- Yet there is one tragic and shameful event in particular which serves to discourage Palestinian rights activists. If so-called “patriotic” Americans viciously suppress the concerns of veterans and their families by covering up the murder of their own sailors, what hope is there to recognize the voices of oft-maligned Arabs half a world away?"

American Radical – The Trials of Norman Finkelstein
Videos - NF(1/9) - NF(2/9) - NF(3/9) - NF(4/9) - NF(5/9) - NF(6/9) - NF(7/9) - NF(8/9) - NF(9/9) - A quote...."This past week one of Israel’s main television networks broadcast the documentary AMERICAN RADICAL three times. An old Israeli friend wrote to ask whether it had been shown in the U.S. I had to smile.” Norman Finkelstein "
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

'A Battle for the High Seas. And the High Ground'
Action Update - A quote...."If you're hoping to see news about the extraordinary events taking place in the Med sea around Cyprus on either the BBC or Sky this weekend. Forget it. For now. Despite the fact that almost three dozen Brits are amongst the 700 brave souls heading to Gaza on a fleet of ships laden with essential aid. Or the incredible military and political manoeverings surrounding Israel’s response to the peaceful attempt, major news channels in the West remain silent. This despite the fact their news editors have the direct numbers of spokespeople on board and access to the live news feed."

FGM: We’re on the way to Gaza
Action Update - A quote...."After tremendous pressure from the Greek Cypriots, reneging on their agreement with us, we were forced to take our MPs and activists to Famagusta yesterday, on the Turkish/Cypriot side of Cyprus. We spent all day going from one port to the next, surrounded by helicopters and police. Clearly our deal with Cyprus officials had fallen through, and we ended up being pawns in a political soap opera. The Cypriot members of Parliament, the ones who had worked so hard to get us permission to leave, were outraged. The Greek Parliament members finally told us to go to the North. If they could, they would. The Cypriot government said they made their decision because, “The Republic of Cyprus is fighting for its survival” but it didn’t bow to pressure from Israel. As they said this, they bowed their heads."

Israel to World: Screw You, We will Continue to Block Gaza
A quote...."It all happened before. -- A ship sailing to Palestine. Its organizers care not so much about the ship’s arrival. They want to bring world attention to the injustices in Palestine. Live broadcasts from aboard the ship excite and inspire supporters on the shores." - also posted at Creative-i

ISRAEL MAKES ANOTHER MISTAKE ON FLOTILLA
A quote...."It’s not us, it’s you……….  So, the burning question that Israel and Israelis ALL want to know "Why do people hate us and hate Israel" The Answer? Because you taught us to hate you....  If I were Israel, I'd fire my PR Propaganda team!! Israel is about to make another grave PR mistake by attacking and stopping the flotilla. They can’t even see, that yet once again they are showing the world they have no compassion for human suffering and again teaching the world to hate Israel and confirming we are right to do so."

Grace Notes
Special Note - A quote...."It’s been too long since I’ve seen the Abu Leila’s, living in a tent in Gaza’s northern Al Attatra region. The last time I visited, 31 December, the land was drenched with long-needed rain, their tent leaky and sagging beneath the water’s weight. -- Only the oldest daughter is ‘home’ when I stop in, parents Saleh and Arafia having gone to the bombshell of their pre-Israeli war on Gaza home not far from the tent camp. -- But the girl, just 10 years, is happy to play host, taking on the persona and role of an adult as Palestinian children so easily do, living lives of adults from a young age."- also posted at Uruknet

East Jerusalem eviction orders threaten new embarrassment for Netanyahu
A quote...."As PM heads to Washington to expunge memories of row with U.S. over Jewish building in the capital, settlers' push to oust Palestinians from Sheikh Jarrah risks reigniting tensions."

Israel shells Gazan farmers, injuring six
A quote...."Yesterday, Thursday the 27 May ’10, three people were wounded in the Zeytoun neighborhood of Gaza City which was bombed by the Israeli Apache helicopters and six farmers from the same area were wounded by the tank artillery fire while farming near the border. -- This morning (Friday 28th), two ISM activists visited two of the wounded farmers in the Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. -- Baraka Mihammad AL Mugrabi, age 53 and Musa Ashad Badawi, age 28 are neighbors, and went to farm yesterday at 6 a.m. Because they have small plots of land they were quite near each other and a part of a larger group of about 30 people. -- Baraka has 5 dunums of land and Musa 12, and they grow olives, apricots and other fruits as well as vegetables and some wheat." - For more on this issue see....Israel's Scorched Earth

Settlers reportedly set fire to Hebron store
A quote...."Hebron – Ma'an – Palestinian residents living near the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement in Hebron accused settlers of setting fire to a local Palestinian store and home on Saturday."

Israeli warplanes pound southern Gaza overnight
A quote...."Gaza – Ma'an – Israeli warplanes struck the defunct Yasser Arafat International Airport near Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, early Sunday morning, marking the second day of air strikes."

Clashes erupt in Jenin
Full quote...."Jenin, May 30, 2010 (Pal Telegraph) – Israeli occupation forces (IOF) raided Sunday Romana town in the city of the West Bank of Jenin, and roamed its streets which erupted clashes between the IOF and the citizens. -- Eyewitnesses said to SAFA news agency that three military vehicles supported with Israeli troop raided the town at 9 a.m. which resulted in erupting clashes between IOF and students. -- Palestinian citizens confirmed that IOF fired gunshots in air to disperse the crowd of the students."

Solidarity campaign with Palestinian people launched
A quote...."A campaign of solidarity with the Palestinian people was launched in Lahore earlier this year which is now gathering momentum. -- Campaign founders, including Amanullah Kariapper, Qalandar Memon, and Dr Magid Shihade, a Palestinian scholar teaching at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), discussed the initiative “Pakistanis for Palestine” at the Lahore Press Club."

Deutsche Bank: “We are out of Elbit” - Victory!!  Victory!!
Action Update - Boycott, Divest and Sanction, because if we all join in this effort, it will work! - mpg -- A quote...."Occupied Palestine – Germany’s biggest bank Deutsche Bank has divested the bank’s 2% stake in Elbit Systems, an Israeli arms company that supplies the Israeli military and provides components for the Apartheid Wall in Occupied Palestinian Territory that was found to be in violation of international law by the International Court of Justice.[i] The announcement at the Bank’s AGM today follows a concerted campaign from German human rights organisations."- bold by website editor - also posted at USCACBI - For more on how to Boycott, Divest and Sanction the state of Israel see the upper-left-corner of the "Front Page" of this website.

BDS Is Vital For Palestine’s Freedom
Action Update - Contains Video - AltBoycott, Divest and Sanction, because it's a measure of not only human justice, but a measure of us all! - mpg -- A quote...."2010 Nobel Peace Prize nominee, Mustafa Barghouthi, tells PSC that an international campaign of boycott, sanctions and divestment on Israel is vital if Palestine is ever to be free of occupation. Dr Barghouthi, who heads the Palestinian National Initiative, also describes how the movement of non-violent resistance in the West Bank is challenging Israel’s occupation." - also posted at USCACBI - For more on how to Boycott, Divest and Sanction the state of Israel see the upper-left-corner of the "Front Page" of this website.

Call for an international campaign to Stop the Jewish National Fund
Action Update - Boycott, Divest and Sanction, because it's the human thing to do. - mpg -- A quote...."The Jewish National Fund (JNF)[1] was instrumental in the ethnic cleansing[2] of Palestine in the 1948 Nakba, and continues to play a central role in maintaining Israel’s regime of apartheid.[3] The JNF provided political, financial and intelligence[4] support for the Zionist forces in their conquest, massacres and ethnic cleansing operations that characterized the 1948-49 war and the Palestinian Nakba. Today, the JNF controls vast properties belonging to millions of Palestinians, developing them exclusively for persons of “Jewish nationality,” a concept established and promoted in the JNF’s charter to exclude all others." - also posted at USCACBI - For more on how to Boycott, Divest and Sanction the state of Israel see the upper-left-corner of the "Front Page" of this website.
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Tarpley: “A casino economy of globalization”
Must View RTVideo - Alt - (RTYuTb - 7 min 51 sec - May 27, 2010) - RTAmerica -- A quote...."Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner is visiting Berlin this week, meeting German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schauble for talks focusing on the economic crisis in the euro zone, and measures being taken to restore global confidence and financial stability and to promote continued recovery. Webster Tarpley says that the whole point of Timothy Geithner’s visit is to make the world safe for derivatives, speculation and this casino economy of globalization."

Marc Faber: 'The Banks Are Gone'
Video - A quote...."Marc Faber spoke with Bloomberg Television about his bearish views on markets yesterday, and they remain as bearish as always. -- "The banks are gone," according to Marc Faber, and are only being kept alive by European Central Bank and government aid programs. -- Faber, though, feels in the near term that things are oversold, and that there will be a summer rally. The bottom won't get here until October and November, when more stimulus should come in and challenge sovereign debt yet again. -- Faber thinks the economy will settle much lower in the future."

Austerity measures throughout Europe
A quote...."Two weeks ago, European heads of state and the International Monetary Fund reached agreement on a €750 billion rescue package for the euro. Since then, not a day has gone by without the announcement of a new round of draconian austerity measures. Working people are now being ordered to pay the price for plugging the massive holes in public finances that are the result of various rescue measures for the banks and the euro."

Dow Ends Worst May Since 1940
A quote...."U.S. stocks slid, capping the worst May for the Dow Jones Industrial Average since 1940, while the euro slumped and Treasuries rose as a downgrade of Spain’s debt rating and escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula triggered a flight from riskier assets."

The Wall Street Journal's War On Gold
Gold Bug Alert - (For all you gold bugs out there) -- A quote...." Brett Arends writes for the Wall Street Journal. He is a standard Establishment financial journalist. They are all anti-gold. I have read these people for 50 years. They never change. Their arguments never change: stupid. Their timing never changes: bad. - They ignore gold when it is at the bottom. They ignore it when it has doubled. When it has tripled, they write articles on why it's not a good investment, because it is overbought. When it has quadrupled, they call it a bubble. - Arends takes anti-gold hackery to a new level. He calls gold a Ponzi scheme."
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Oil spills unimpeded after 40 days [and forty nights.  Almost biblical, don't you think?]
A quote...."The massive oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico is spreading out as the oil is still gushing out from the BP's damaged well 40 days after the explosion. -- The so-called "top kill" method, which British Petroleum has employed since Wednesday, has proven to be a failure with the company's top executive Tony Hayward saying the chances to plug the leak are only 60 to 70 percent."

Top kill’ has failed, BP admits
A quote...."Oil giant BP admitted on Saturday that its fourth attempt to stop the oil leak at the Deepwater Horizon -- known as "top kill" -- has failed. -- "I don't think the amount of oil coming out has changed," BP's chief operating officer, Doug Suttles, told reporters. "Just by watching it, we don't believe it's changed."

Friday May 28th 2010

No posts. - mpg

Thursday May 27th 2010

Stopping Orwell's Nightmare
Must Read - A quote...."The God of War doesn't dine on raw shank bone or bellow orders quite like he used to. When he talks to Congress, say, it goes more like this:   "And, oh, while you're up, I'm going to be needing, uh (cough, cough) . . . $159 billion this go-around, you know, for the troops. Thanks."  --  It works. -- With the war on terror in its ninth year and disappearing from even the pretense of national debate, let alone outrage and protest, and with the President of Hope prosecuting it so quietly most of us no longer notice, we could be at an eerie national transition point, beyond which war is no longer controversial or a big deal but just the way things are: "normal," like background noise. And the enormous transfusions of cash it requires - well, nice people don't talk about it."

Horowitz the Flim Flam Man -- Among the Teabaggers
Special Note - A quote...."I had less fun than Voltaire and am not a philosopher but a certain curiosity found me at a dinner a few evenings ago held by the Albuquerque Tea Party featuring as guest speaker the right’s own aging billy goat, David Horowitz. Flim flam man, wannabe Borscht Belt entertainer and pint-sized demagogue, Horowitz held forth for two hours in a room at the Albuquerque Convention Center, thoroughly teabagging the credulous crowd of middle-aged and older white folks, ordinary Americans justifiably outraged at the mendacity, hypocrisy and sheer elitist arrogance of their own government, whether Republican or Democrat, and who, to their credit, are actively seeking avenues for a redress of grievances.  --  The gathering was overwhelmingly white—no African Americans and very few even moderately brown faces. Unusual was a tall young man who looked Central Asian, a Pakistani, or Indian, maybe, certainly not a Muslim. Horowitz expelled half his verbal gas hatefully excoriating the Muslim religion, which the crowd seemed to accept routinely and in some cases with vociferous approval. The vibe in the room when Horowitz talked about immigration and the “corrupt culture” of Mexico (“culture,” not “system,” or even “culture of corruption”) was palpably ugly. Our waiters and waitress were mostly brown skinned people who served us impassively. When Horowitz praised the “great governor of Arizona” the crowd cheered heartily." - For more on this issue see....The Tea Party - Another False Front

Silenced for speaking the truth about Guantanamo - Unfair trials
A quote...."I began my column last week with the words "We know all about Guantanamo". I was wrong. Courtesy of the Toronto press – until a few days ago, when half of them were censored out of the drumhead courts martial that pass for "justice" in this execrable place – I have been learning a lot more." -- For more on this issue see....9/11-Iraq-Torture Fables

Scott Horton Interviews Stephen Vladeck
Audio Interview - Related Interview - A quote...."Stephen Vladeck, Professor of Law at American University Washington College of Law, discusses the legal challenges brought to bear against unconstitutional government actions, the Obama administration’s so-far successful effort to keep Bagram prison free from judicial oversight, the high burden of proof on a prisoner to show the location of his detention was explicitly chosen to skirt the law and language in the National Defense Authorization Act that potentially criminalizes defense lawyers who represent terrorist suspects." -- ||  MP3 here. (25min:31sec)  ||

[Obama's] Justice Dept. cracks down on leaks
A quote...."The Obama administration’s crackdown on leaks to the press has snared a high-profile conviction of an FBI linguist, who was sentenced to 20 months in prison Monday after pleading guilty to giving classified information to a blogger."

Censorship of the Internet courtesy of Eircon, sorry Eircom
A quote...."Editor’s comment: When I bought my PC I was under the impression that it was my PERSONAL COMPUTER. Now it seems that it’s not. Under a new law as shown in the article below it seems that information on your PERSONAL computer is not private and that Eircom and presumably anyone, including government agencies, can access your PERSONAL computer at any time without a search warrant of any type to see what you have stored there." - also posted at BLN
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Dropping COIN - McChrystal Returns to His Roots
Special Note - A quote...."For the past several years Americans have been inundated by reams of journalistic puff pieces extolling the virtues of the new US Counterinsurgency (COIN) Strategy documented by General Petraeus in his much ballyhooed COIN manual -- which for the most part was a merely regurgitation of the failed thinking of French Marshal Lyautey's ink spot strategy (that counterinsurgent forces should aim to secure an ever expanding geographic zone of security with each new area secured providing a basis for further spreading, and so on.)  -- It is becoming clear, however, the showpiece of this new strategy, the Marjah operation, has failed to deliver on the promised security improvements to the people, and in the words of the theater commander, General Stanley McChrystal, has become a "bleeding ulcer.""

Afghanistan: Reading between the lines - posted at OnlineJournal
A quote...."The movement to “get the troops out now!” has found unlikely converts in the form of the Conservative-Liberal Democratic coalition in Britain. The election campaign suggested nothing new could be expected from any of the parties on Afghanistan, despite the fact that over 70 percent of Britons want the troops home. - So eyebrows were raised with the news that Afghan President Hamid Karzai was Prime Minister David Cameron’s first visitor at Chequers. They went higher still when Foreign Minister William Hague made his first foreign destination Kabul, where he called for the withdrawal of troops as soon as possible."

Mesopotamia's "Paradise Lost": The Destruction of an Oasis of Beauty, Music, Art and Culture
A quote...."The hand that signed the treaty bred a fever,
And famine grew and locusts came,
Great is the hand that holds Dominion,
Over Man, by a scribbled name." -- *Dylan Thomas*, 1914-1953.

Iraq vote results face another possible delay
A quote...."BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq's Supreme Court asked election officials on Thursday to clear up legal issues surrounding an appeal against a candidate, a move that could further delay the certification of March 7 election results."

Brazil writes to Western leaders on Iran
A quote...."Amid intensified Western efforts for new sanctions against Iran, the Brazilian president writes to his US, French and Russian counterparts underlining the importance of a fuel swap declaration by Tehran." - also posted at WarInIraq

Russia vows support for Iran fuel swap
A quote...."Russia has pledged to "actively support" the Tehran Nuclear Declaration on condition that the landmark fuel swap proposal is fully implemented." - also posted at AlethoNews & WarInIraq

Russia considers buying back missile cruiser Ukraina
A quote...."The Russian and Ukrainian presidents have agreed that Russia will help Ukraine complete the building of the guided missile cruiser Ukraina, which has been docked unfinished at the Nikolayev (Mykolaiv) shipyard in Ukraine. -- The question right now is, what fate does the future hold for this cruiser, the last commissioned unit of a class of warships known as Project 1164, and, in particular, who will the ship ultimately belong to?"

Ukraine-NATO marriage off the to-do list
RTVideo - Alt - (RTYuTb - 4 min 24 sec - May 27, 2010) -- A quote...."Ukraine says it's abandoning its pursuit of NATO membership. The announcement was made by the country's foreign minister."

US Navy base in Bahrain to double in size
A quote...."Mina Salman Port, Bahrain - Construction began Wednesday on doubling the sized of the US Navy base in Bahrain, with digging beginning on a 70-acre site leased from the Bahraini government. -- The four-phase, 580 million dollar project will massively increase the military capabilities of the US 5th Fleet based there, according to US officials."

China signs $23 billion oil deal with Nigeria
A quote...."China has signed a $23 billion deal with the new government of Goodluck Jonathan in Nigeria to build three oil refineries and a petrochemical plant. Goodluck Jonathan came to power on May 6 after the death of the former president, Umaru Yar’Adua."

Beijing suspects false flag attack on South Korean corvette - posted at OnlineJournal
Special Note - A quote...."(WMR) -- WMR's intelligence sources in Asia suspect that the March attack on the South Korean Navy anti-submarine warfare (ASW) corvette, the Cheonan, was a false flag attack designed to appear as coming from North Korea."

Second Korean War will drag nations into Global Bloodshed?
Related RTVideo - Alt - (RTYuTb - 3 min 32 sec - May 27, 2010) -- A quote...."Moscow is sending a team of specialists to investigate the sinking of a South Korean ship, amidst a deepening crisis between the two Koreas. Tensions escalated after an international investigation concluded a northern torpedo sank a South Korean warship in March - killing 46 sailors - an accusation vehemently denied by Pyonyang." - For more on this issue see the articles shown below....

Analysts question Korea torpedo incident
PCC-772 Cheonan: An Unacceptable Provocation by the United States of America....
Is the U.S. Government Planning War to Quell the Tide of Economic Unrest?
The Sinking of the Cheonan: We Are Being Lied To
German Made Torpedo Sunk South Korean Cheonan

A State of Emergency in Paraguay: The Risks of Militarization
A quote...."Since Apr. 26, a state of emergency has been in effect in five northern provinces of Paraguay, which represent a third of the nation’s territory. The government maintains that there is an active guerrilla presence in the region, although it has never been able to prove its existence.  However, what is certain is that acts of violence have been committed by mafia organizations and the government is trying to resolve the situation through militarization." - also posted at UpsideDwnWrld

Bolivia: Justice is Key to World Peace
A quote...."Cochabamba, Bolivia, May 27 (Prensa Latina) Bolivian President Evo Morales considered social justice a key aspect to achieve peace in the planet."

Barack Obama Admits US Guilt for Oil Spill
A quote...."Washington, May 27 (Prensa Latina) US President Barack Obama took responsibility for the U.S. response for the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in his Thursday speech and extended for six months a moratorium on offshore drilling."

Ecuador: ALBA Worries Big Powers
A quote...."Havana, May 27 (Prensa Latina) The Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) is cause for concern to big powers, said President of the Ecuadorian Parliament Fernando Cordero speaking about the single electronic currency (Sucre)."
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"A--hole of Evil" Country Has Massive Number of HIDDEN WMD's
A quote...."Mention the name of the secretive Israeli nuclear weapons lab at Dimona and some will recognize this is the place the Zionist entity enriches plutonium for military use so they can build thermonuclear, fission and neutron bombs.(Please, Israel, knock off the swastika spraying at your secretive, heavily guarded nuclear weapons site, damn near everyone is on to those ruses) -- But who knows about the top-secret Israeli biological and chemical weapons complex located in the Tel Aviv suburb of Nes Ziona, called the Israel Institute of Biological Research (IIBR)?"

Israel sold billions in arms to apartheid South Africa - posted at OnlineJournal
A quote...."In April 1976, Nazi sympathizer and South African Prime Minister John Voster visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem to lay a wreath to the victims of the German Reich he once saluted. They must have turned over in their graves."
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Tribute to the people of Gaza - posted at OnlineJournal
Must Read - A quote...."I never cease to be amazed at the power of the human spirit to survive. During my last visit to Gaza in October 2008, I was amazed and deeply moved by the power of the people I witnessed. In a triumph of hope over adversity and tremendous suffering, love still abides. -- Gaza comprises a small strip of land 27 miles long and 6 miles wide. This coastal strip is bordered by Israel on the one side, the Mediterranean Sea on the other and to a lesser extent by Egypt at the southern end. With one and a half million inhabitants Gaza is the fifth most densely populated place on the planet, 50% of which are under the age of 18. Two thirds of the total population hold refugees status, and comprise the victims and their descendants of previous acts of Israeli aggression." - also posted at CounterCurrents

Break The Israeli Siege Of Gaza or Attack At sea, Detention Camps And Deportation
Related Article - A quote...."By the time you read this, we will be on the high seas of the Mediterranean (we hope the seas will not be too high). -- Our two U.S. flagged Free Gaza boats, will join two other passenger ships, a 600 passenger ship from Turkey sponsored by the Turkish humanitarian organization, Insani Yardim Vakfi (IHH) and a 50 passenger ship from Athens sponsored by the European Campaign Against the Siege and the Greek/Swedish Ships to Gaza campaign, to sail to the shores of Gaza to break the Israeli naval blockade of the 1.5 million citizens in Gaza."

Join Us Live as a Witness In Gaza - (witnessgaza.com)
Related Video List - (updated continously) - A quote...."Join us as we travel to Gaza. Witness what happens on board the boats. Watch our videos everyday. Stay tuned for WitnessGaza."

IPSC: Freedom Flotilla of Aid expected to reach Gaza within 48 hours despite threats from Israeli Navy
Related Article - A quote...."The Freedom Flotilla to Gaza, which includes 11 Irish people, expects to arrive at its destination within 48 hours despite Israel’s vow to block the mission from delivering much-needed aid to the beleaguered coastal strip. A forum of seven senior Israeli ministers who met on Wednesday 26th May have decided that the Israeli Navy will enforce a twenty mile exclusion zone around Gaza and will arrest all 800 crew and passengers taking part in the Freedom Flotilla should they pursue their mission to break the ongoing siege of Gaza."

Hamas Accuses Israel of Piracy
Related Article - A quote...."The occupation's threat to prevent the Freedom Flotilla from arriving in the besieged Gaza Strip is Zionist piracy and a violation of international law," AFP quoted senior Hamas leader Ismail Radwan as saying in a statement on Thursday."

Israel indicts tortured rights activist Ameer Makhoul
A quote...."A leading human rights activist from Israel's Palestinian Arab minority was charged yesterday with the most serious security offenses on Israel's statute book, including espionage."

Air, artillery strikes hit northern Gaza
A quote...."Gaza - Ma'an - An Israeli Apache helicopter launched two missiles east of Gaza City and artillery fire hit Palestinians near the Zaytoun area of the northern Gaza Strip on Thursday, witnesses said."

ISRAEL'S BLUFF CALLED BY IRISH
The Irish politicians call Israel's bluff what a smart political move this is. As per the agreement offered by Shalit's family, I now except the family of Gilad to start supporting the flotilla in the media and callig on their government to allow it though...."

"Irish Parliamentarians offer to bring family's letters and parcels to Captured Israeli soldier Gilat Schalit May 27, 2010"

Rights group condemns attacks on Gaza civil society
Pseudo-Gang Alert - An Axis of Evil Pseudo-Gang Alert - A quote...."In a joint press conference held with the Palestinian Non-Governmental Organization Network (PNGO) on 24 May 2010, Al-Haq's director, Shawan Jabarin condemned two recent attacks on civil society organizations in Gaza. The incidents constitute serious violations of Palestinians' human rights and highlight an alarming trend with respect to the growing atmosphere of intolerance and incitement perpetuated by extremist religious groups in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The effects of this trend are of particular concern in the Gaza Strip, as they inflame an already tense situation arising from the continuing blockade and isolation of the people of Gaza."
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Keiser Report № 46: Social Fury builds up!
Must View MKVideo - Alt - (MKRTYuTb - 25 min 4 sec - May 27, 2010) -- A quote...."This time Max Keiser and co-host Stacy Herbert look at the scandals of guillotines and conspiracy theories, Fed rackets and capital flows. In the second half of the show, Max interviews Dr. Joern Berninger about the European "debt crisis", when France was "technically bankrupt" on May 7, and about the China bubble debate."

Credit Storm in Europe; Politics on Capital Hill
Special Note - A quote...."The Fed is operating far beyond its mandate to maintain price stability and full employment. It's applying its own arbitrary pricing mechanism and usurping the authority of the EU central bank.   Here's how Clifford Rossi explains the Fed's action in a recent post on Institutional Risk Analysis...."

"The mechanism for the bailout of Europe is the Fed's provision of dollar credit in virtually unlimited amounts via central bank swaps lines.....the Fed swap lines help the bankrupt nations of the EU ignore their mounting fiscal problems......Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is engaged in a little geopolitical engineering in Europe -- and the people of the EU do not yet realize that a political change in control has occurred.... the leaders of Europe now find themselves beholden to the Fed for their continued political existence.... Chairman Bernanke and the FOMC have but to terminate the Fed's swap lines with the various central banks of Europe or start selling the MBS portfolio in the US, and governments from Washington to Berlin will start to fall." ("More fed swap Lines for Europe and the End of Globalization", Clifford Rossi,  Institutional Risk Analysis)" - bold by website editor

The EU have doomed themselves, they borrowed from the IMF (at 5%....for now) & the Fed (at 1%....for now) and they've sealed their fates.  They had the chance to make the Euro an independent currency, instead they chose to subject their peoples to decades of austerity, for absolutely no reason but their own cowardice and lack of foresight. - mpg  - For more on this issue see....The First Salvos of the Currency Wars - 05-07-10 - mpg

World Bank sets Pakistan tight deadline - A case in point. - mpg
A quote...."KARACHI – The World Bank has set President Asif Ali Zardari a 48-hour deadline to force through a 6% increase in electricity tariffs and secure implementation of value-added tax (VAT) or face the withholding of US$300 million under a poverty reduction support scheme, according to reports. -- The government is “alarmed and clueless” about how to fulfill the conditions by the May 27 deadline, the PakTribune reported. Analysts say it will be hard for the government to take the required measures, both deeply unpopular, in such a short timeframe." - also posted at the GlobalRealm - For more on this sort of issue see....The International : Scene with Umberto Calvini - Transcript - 02-20-10 - mpg

French workers on strike over retirement
A quote...."Union workers in France have gone on a countrywide strike to protest against government plans to extend the minimum retirement age."

The Cult of Subprime Central Bankers
A quote...."The world is suffering from the worst downturn since the Great Depression. The crisis has left tens of millions unemployed in the U.S., Europe, and elsewhere. The huge baby boomer generation in the United States, now on the edge of retirement, has seen much of its wealth destroyed with the collapse of the housing bubble." - also posted at ICH

Banks Trim Debt, Obscuring Risks
A quote...."May 27, 2010 "WSJ" -- May 26, 2010 -- Three big banks—Bank of America Corp., Deutsche Bank AG and Citigroup Inc.—are among the most active at temporarily shedding debt just before reporting their finances to the public, a Wall Street Journal analysis shows. -- The practice, known as end-of-quarter "window dressing" on Wall Street, suggests that the banks are carrying more risk most of the time than their investors or customers can easily see. This activity has accelerated since 2008, when the financial crisis brought actions like these under greater scrutiny, according to the analysis." - Source: WSJ

Fiat Money Supply Contracting at Great Depression Level
A quote...."The bankster operative who helped destroy Glass-Steagall is back. --  Larry Summers, Obama’s top economic adviser, has told Congress to “grit its teeth” and approve a fresh fiscal boost of $200 billion to keep growth on track, reports the Daily Telegraph. [posted on this site 05-26-10]  “We are nearly 8m jobs short of normal employment. For millions of Americans the economic emergency grinds on,” he said. "

Are We About To Witness The Greatest Banking Consolidation In U.S. History?
A quote...."As the number of bank failures in the United States continues to accelerate, many analysts are warning that we could soon see unprecedented changes in the U.S. banking industry.  In fact, there are some economists that are warning that we could be about to witness the greatest banking consolidation in U.S. history."
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Matt Simmons: "Theres another leak, much bigger, 5 to 6 miles away".flv
Video - A Head's Up - (YouTube - 9 min 57 sec - May 26, 2010) -- A quote...."Matt Simmons: "Theres another leak, much bigger, 5 to 6 miles away"." -- For more on this issue see the article shown below....

Awful News From The Gulf: Explosions Collapse Seafloor At Deepwater Horizon Well Head
Breaking : Sunday May 23, 2010 8:31 pm  -- A quote...."A series of explosions appears to have collapsed the seafloor and blown up the BOP at the well head. Oil and gas are billowing out of a depression in the seafloor where the BOP used to be at an exponentially greater rate than anything seen before." - posted 05-22-10

"Top Kill" Has Failed
A quote...."Here's the scoop: BP's attempt to stop the oil spill using the "Top Kill" method has failed. -- How do I know? -- Well, as the New York Times notes...."

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052710-060210 - links page

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