Wednesday August 11th 2010

Freedom Rider: Public Theft and the End of Empire
Must Read - Quote of the Day...."Americans are a people living on the precipice of economic disaster, both as individuals and as a group. The continued precariousness of their situation is a direct result of government connivance in stripping them of public assets and the distribution of those assets to the corporate sector. Retired public employees are literally having money they earned stolen from them. Children are losing days  in public schools and counties are eliminating public transportation because political leaders are firmly committed to expanding empire abroad, assisting rapacious individuals and corporations at home and keeping workers and people of color in their place."

Saving Women and Preventing Genocide: The Real Reasons We’re in Afghanistan Now
Must Read - A quote...."So now the cheerleaders for war would have us believe that they are more concerned for the welfare of Afghan civilians than are those who wish to end the US occupation. -- First we have White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs sanctimoniously imploring the editors of Wikileaks not to post more information that the administration believes might endanger the lives of local Afghan informants..." - also posted at ICH

Timebends: The Further Fruits of Revelation
Special Note - A quote...."As the media froth surrounding the initial appearance of the documents recedes, the nuggets of hard truth become clearer, with diligent researchers digging through the trove. For example, Bretigne Shaffer finds  some of the underpinning for the media blitz now obviously under way to reverse the growing public discontent with the war in Afghanistan. -- The most glaring emblem of this campaign, of course, is the recent Time Magazine cover of the horrifically mutilated Afghan girl, which was accompanied by the headline: "What Happens If We Leave Afghanistan." (As Shaffer notes, this was posed not as a question, but as a stark statement of fact, with this not-so-subtle-implication: "If you oppose this war, you are objectively pro-mutilation.") Of course, the atrocity committed against this young woman is indeed a wicked, sickening crime. But it has nothing to do with "our" presence in Afghanistan. -- No wait, strike that; it has everything to do with our presence in Afghanistan -- a presence which is greatly exacerbating the societal breakdown and empowering the kind of retrograde extremism that together lead to the perpetuation of such practices."

What They Do in Our Name
A quote...."Thanks to Wikileaks and heroic leakers inside the military, we now know the U.S. government has killed many more innocent Afghan civilians than we were aware of heretofore. We also know that American military and intelligence personnel roam Afghanistan assassinating suspected bad guys. Sometimes they kill people they later acknowledge weren’t bad guys at all. “Bad guys,” like “Taliban,” is implicitly defined as anyone who resists the U.S. occupation force and the corrupt puppet government it keeps in power." - also posted at ICH

“The Military is Keeping this Information Secret, to Prosecute the War and to Hide Abuse”
GVideo - Alt - (GYuTb - 4 min 38 sec - July 25, 2010) - Source:  TheVildbasse -- A quote...."Julian Assange on the Afghanistan war logs: 'They show the true nature of this war'Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, explains why he decided to publish thousands of secret US military files on the war in Afghanistan."

Change That's Not: 'Obama On Bush Route'
Must View RTVideo - Alt - (RTVideo - 12 min 39 sec - August 11, 2010) - Source:  RussiaToday -- A quote...."Recent sanctions against Iran are an attempt by the US to return the country to its sphere of influence, claims veteran journalist John Pilger. "Iran was a pillar of the American empire in the Middle East. That was swept away in 1979 by the Islamic revolution, and it has been American foreign policy to get that back," he said. "It has absolutely nothing to do with so-called nuclear weapons."
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Lebanon rejects US concerns over military help
A quote...."BEIRUT – Lebanon will reject any American military assistance to the nation's army if it comes with conditions that the weapons not be used against Israel, the defense minister said Wednesday."

Syria, Iran underline support for Lebanon against Israel
A quote...."DAMASCUS - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki underlined on Wednesday their joint support for Lebanon in the face of Israeli "aggression," state news agency SANA said. -- The two met at Lattakia on Syria's northern coast and discussed the situation in Lebanon "following the Israeli aggression against Lebanese sovereignty," it said. -- They affirmed "their support for Lebanon in the face of such aggression," SANA said of an August 3 clash on the Lebanon-Israel border between the two countries' troops."
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*Updated* The Campaign to Turn Iran Into an "Existential Threat"
A quote...."There is an old saying:  “Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice, shame on me.”  Many of the same writers, thinkers, political actors, and organizations that persuaded the American people and others to support invading Iraq in 2003 are now working to build public support for the United States to initiate a war with the Islamic Republic of Iran.  Will the American people allow themselves, to their shame, to be fooled once again on a foreign policy matter of life-and-death importance?"

Iranian Carmaker: Sanctions Ineffective
A quote...."TEHRAN (FNA)- Head of a leading Iranian car-manufacturer announced on Wednesday that the sanctions imposed on Iran by the West have left no negative impact on his company."

Iran downplays US war option
A quote...."Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of Iran’s Armed Forces Major General Hassan Firouzabadi says the United States is keeping the “war option” open to justify its huge military budget."

Gas deal with Iran still on, EGL says
A quote...."The Swiss energy group EGL [bravely] says its €18 billion gas contract with Iran is still on, [and they are sticking to their word, along with the contract they SIGNED, unlike the world's biggest stupid-power one could mention] despite the [blatantly thuggish] US[-NRE] threats of sanctions over the gas deal with Tehran. -- In 2007, the Elektrizitaetsgesellschaft Laufenburg (EGL) signed a 25-year agreement with the National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) to import around 5.5 billion cubic meters of gas per year from Iran. -- The €18 billion gas contract was criticized in [by] the US[-NRE] [& the AIPAC-Israeli Consortium's bought and paid for lackeys in] Congress because of possible violations of [illegal] US[-NRE] sanctions [which are a violation of the NPT treaty] against firms active in Iran's gas and oil sectors." - edited by mpg - also posted at AlethoNews

Four Ghadir [mini]-submarines join Iran fleet
A quote...."Amid efforts to boost security in the Persian Gulf, the Iranian Navy has been equipped with four domestic-made Ghadir class mini submarines. -- Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Vahidi hailed the delivery as a sign of progress in Iranian military ingenuity."
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Iraq to facilitate Iranian gas pipeline to Syria - minister
A quote...."BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahrestani announced on Thursday Iraq’s readiness to facilitate extending Iranian gas pipeline to Syria through the Iraqi territories."

Libya to fund Gaza homes after deal to free Israeli
A quote...."(Reuters) - A rare deal between foes Israel and Libya to free an Israeli photographer will let Libya underwrite the rebuilding of 1,250 Gaza Strip homes destroyed in Israel's offensive there last year, U.N. officials said on Tuesday."

Turkey sets up its own inquiry into Israeli raid
Special Note - A quote...."Turkey has set up a commission to carry out its own investigation into Israel's raid on Gaza-bound aid ships that left eight Turks and one Turkish American dead, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday. -- The commission, which will work under the prime minister's office, will "investigate the attack and the treatment the activists faced" before writing a report on its findings, the ministry said in a statement."

Turkey’s first ever drone plane rolled out
A quote...."Turkey’s first ever drone airplane rolled out from Air Force hanger on Friday July sixteen. Presently it’s a surveillance craft able to fly for 24-hour. Turkish drone Anka, with a 56-feet wingspan and an ability to fly at a speed of 75 knots (140 mph=225.3 kph) per hour at maximum height of 30,000 feet (9,144 meters)"

Armenia to upgrade weaponry, develop domestic defense industry
A quote...."Armenia’s Defense Minister Seyran Ohanian says the government plans to acquire long-range, precision-guided weapons for possible armed conflicts with hostile neighbors, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Armenian Service reported."

Russia deploys missiles in Abkhazia
A quote...."Russia has placed an air defence missile system to in the breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia, bringing almost immediate condemnation from the government in Tbilisi."

Su-25 attack aircraft. Specifications
InfoGraphics

Viewpoint of the Chinese Military: The Chinese People Won't Stand for US Naval Provocation
A quote...."A US Defence Department spokesman confirmed to the Xinhua News Agency on Friday that the US would send the aircraft carrier George Washington to participate in the US-South Korean joint military exercise in the Yellow sea."

Ecuadorian FM Favors Stronger Links with China
A quote...."Beijing, Aug 11 (Prensa Latina) Ecuador's minister of foreign affairs, commerce and integration, Ricardo Patiño, expressed his desire for more Chinese young people to visit his country and strengthen bilateral links."

Venezuela and Colombia agree to renew diplomatic ties
OH MY GAWD!! - What just happened to the US-NRE's best little lap-dog south of the border?  Could it be the US-NRE didn't cough up enough cash?  Perhaps the parasites here were demanding too much of a cut from Columbia's cocaine trade?  Maybe the shut down of Wachovia and the other drug trade supporting banksters got some elements in Columbia's government ticked off?  Whatever the case may be, peace might actually break-out in Latin America.  It's the worst news our war mongering parasites have heard for years. - mpg

El Salvador Welcomes Venezuela-Colombia Ties
A quote...."San Salvador, Aug 12 (Prensa Latina) The Salvadoran government today welcomed the restoration of diplomatic relations between Colombia and Venezuela, and the decision of both countries to promote joint programs in various fields."
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The Hidden Tragedy of the CIA's Experiments on Children
Special Note - A quote..."Bobby is seven years old, but this is not the first time he has been subjected to electroshock. It's his third time. In all, over the next year, Bobby will experience eight electroshock sessions. Placed on the examining table, he is held down by two male attendants while the physician places a solution on his temples. Bobby struggles with the two men holding him down, but his efforts are useless. He cries out and tries to pull away. One of the attendants tries to force a thick wedge of rubber into his mouth. He turns his head sharply away and cries out, "Let me go, please. I don't want to be here. Please, let me go." Bobby's physician looks irritated and she tells him, "Come on now, Bobby, try to act like a big boy and be still and relax." Bobby turns his head away from the woman and opens his mouth for the wedge that will prevent him from biting through his tongue. He begins to cry silently, his small shoulders shaking and he stiffens his body against what he knows is coming." - also posted at Uruknet

Gagged for 6 Years, Nick Merrill Speaks Out on Landmark Court Struggle Against FBI’s National Security Letters
A quote...."For six years, the FBI has barred a New York man from revealing that the agency had ordered him to hand over personal information about clients of his internet start-up. Finally allowed to speak, Nick Merrill joins us in his first broadcast interview to talk about how he challenged the FBI’s use of national security letters. We also speak with Connecticut librarian George Christian. He and three other librarians also sued the US government after receiving a national security letter demanding information about library patrons. [includes rush transcript]"  --  ||  Real Video Stream  ||  Real Audio Stream  ||  MP3 Download  ||  More…  || 

Woman shot by G20 police speaks out
A quote...."Over one billion dollars of tax payer's money funded the weekend's tragedy, which was executed by 20,000 police officers and their artillery. Over one thousand demonstrators, media and passersby were indiscriminately incarcerated and subjected to abuses similar and in many cases worse than what I experienced. As demonstrators, we were in the streets to resist the systemic and violent oppression of people here at home and around the world caused by the capitalist, corporate strategies solidified, agreed upon and celebrated by the leaders at the G8 and G20 summits. We got a brief taste this weekend of the very human rights abuses we were there to oppose. Here's my story."

WHO list reveals flu advisors with financial ties to pharma, vaccine manufacturers
A quote...."(NaturalNews) After months of stalling, the World Health Organization (WHO) has finally revealed the names of key pandemic advisors who influenced its decision to declare a phase six pandemic last year -- a decision that resulted in a financial windfall for vaccine manufacturers. As you'll see here, that list includes at least five expert advisors received money from vaccine companies. -- Here's who received money from Big Pharma and then influenced the WHO decision to declare a pandemic...." -- also posted at LewRockwell
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Israel does damage control over Hariri hit
A quote...."At a press conference on Monday, Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah presented new evidence of Israeli involvement in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri in a massive car bomb attack on February 14, 2005. Twenty-two others also died in the incident. -- The evidence included footage from Israeli spy drones of routes used by Hariri and recorded confessions by Israeli spies substantiating that the assassination of Hariri was carried out on orders from Tel Aviv." -- For more on this issue see article shown below....

Nasrallah's press conference
Special Note - Contains Video - Alt - A quote...."In Arab political culture, this press conference will be regarded as a great political show. Nasrallah ended the conference by admitting that he did not present an evidence. Indeed, he has not. He presented circumstantial evidence to lobby the Hariri court to at least investigate the Israeli possibility. But that is not the matter here: personally, as you all know: I don't give a damn about who killed Rafiq Hariri and don't believe that Lebanon should spend a penny to find out. Israel has a history of killing Lebanese and Palestinians in Lebanon and I would rather investigate other Israeli murders in Lebanon. I don't want Hariri to be more valuable than other victims. But Hizbullah did something entirely different in this press conference: it recaptured Arab political opinion. It was great TV: the production was so well-done: with images, and visual effects and background music and graphics. The most important revelation is that Hizbullah was able to intercept the footage of Israeli spy planes. That is an incredible coup for Hizbullah. This will most impress Arab audiences worldwide." - posted 08-10-10

An interview with Luisa Morgantini: From the Jordan Valley, once the breadbasket of Palestine

Interview - A quote...."Deprived of water and electricity, surrounded by settlements and imprisoned in a large closed military zone under occupation since 1967, the Jordan Valley’s residents resist. Plagued by home demolitions and land confiscation, they represent one of the most vulnerable communities in the entire C area of the West Bank (area under complete Israeli military and administrative control). Today, the population numbers approximately 56,000; before 1967 it counted over 300,000—a sharp decline provoked by a long process of expulsion and evictions that has taken place far from the public eye and received virtually no media attention."
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Netanyahu rejects '67 borders as basis for talks - Of course. - mpg
A quote...."JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his request that direct peace talks with Palestinians go ahead without preconditions, during a meeting with US envoy to the peace process George Mitchell on Wednesday."

Interview with "Salt of This Sea" star before nationwide premiere in NYC
A quote...."Award-winning Palestinian-American poet Suheir Hammad plays Soraya, a woman who comes to Palestine for the first time in her life, curious about her roots and determined to redeem the ghosts that have haunted her family for three generations. Born in Brooklyn to a working-class Palestinian family exiled from Jaffa, Soraya discovers that her grandfather's savings were frozen from his bank account during the Nakba -- the expulsion of the Palestinians -- in 1948, and the money was eventually absorbed by Israeli financial institutions."

Destruction, Destruction, Destruction
A quote...."2 Palestinians and 1 Israeli have been arrested during a protest which took place on Monday afternoon against the repeated demolitions of the village of Al Arakib in the Nakab-Negev. During the night Israeli authorities demolished the village of Al-Arakib for the third time in two weeks. Nicky Elliott witnessed the demolition."

Children remember their loved ones
Photo Gallery - A quote...."As the Muslim world welcomes the holy month of Ramadan, orphans in Gaza remember their parents and loved ones who were killed during Operation Cast Lead." - also posted at Uruknet

BDS court victory in London: ‘Ahava four’ found not guilty of trespass in Israeli store - Victory!!
Boycott, Divest and Sanction, because what the Israelis are doing is commonly called theft and murder.  BDS is the LEAST the world's people can do to stop their crimes. - mpg -- A quote...."Four campaigners against Israeli apartheid were acquitted yesterday (August 10th) of all charges related to two direct action protests against the Israeli cosmetics retailer Ahava in Covent Garden, London. The campaigners locked themselves onto concrete-filled oil drums inside the shop, closing it down for two days in September and December of 2009." - bold by website editor - 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. -- For more on this type of issue see article shown below....

UK factory saboteurs acquitted
A must read article - (For the glorious legal concept!) -- A quote...."A group of activists who broke into an arms factory near Brighton last year and caused damage costing around £180,000 ($275,000) were found not guilty last week of causing criminal damage. - In a lawsuit filed in October, seven British activists claimed they were legally justified to break in and sabotage the factory of EDO MBM Technology near Brighton, on the south coast of England, in January 2009, at the time of Operation Cast Lead." - bold by website editor - posted 07-03-10

To Know is Not Enough: How Hampshire became the First to Divest
Contains Video - Alt - (note: size window to fit) - Boycott, Divest and Sanction, because might does NOT make right, and Israel must be taught that lesson. - mpg -- A quote....Hampshire College is often credited with being the first US college to divest for the occupation, and this video attempts to understand the group and the campaign that made it happen. The video is constructed from interviews with over a dozen student activists from Hampshire College’s Students for Justice in Palestine." - 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.

Three medical delegations enter Gaza
A quote...."Gaza, August 12, (Pal Telegraph) Three medical delegations from Britain, Canada and Scotland Arrived in the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing today."

On whose behalf is Egypt savaging the people of Gaza ?
A quote...."An influx  of  hair-raising stories keeps coming from the Egyptian side of the Rafah border terminal. Nearly all these stories underscore the degrading treatment meted out to Gazans, already thoroughly savaged by the manifestly criminal siege imposed by Israel on the coastal enclave in coordination with several regional and international players, including Egypt itself. -- In fact, according to testimonies collected from Gazans who have been in the "Egyptian hell," the Egyptian treatment of some Gazans is far worse than that which is accorded to them by the Israel. -- This is more than disgraceful. It is criminal."
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The Fed's New Round of Quantitative Easing Is Like Trying to Patch Leaking Pipes by Pumping in More Water
A quote..."Bernanke announced additional quantitative easing yesterday, primarily in the form of buying treasuries to monetize the U.S. debt. -- Jeff Harding points out that those worried about deflation within the Fed won out over the scared-of-inflation camp...."

15 Economic Statistics That Just Keep Getting Worse
A quote...."A little over a week ago, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner penned an article for the New York Times entitled “Welcome To The Recovery” in which he touted the great strides that the U.S. economy was making.  But with unemployment still dangerously high and with foreclosures and personal bankruptcies continuing to set all-time records, should we really be talking about a “recovery”?  The truth is that the numbers don’t lie, and statistic after statistic shows that the economic fundamentals continue to get progressively worse."

U.S. Is Bankrupt and We Don't Even Know It: Laurence Kotlikoff
A quote...."Let’s get real. The U.S. is bankrupt. Neither spending more nor taxing less will help the country pay its bills. -- What it can and must do is radically simplify its tax, health-care, retirement and financial systems, each of which is a complete mess. But this is the good news. It means they can each be redesigned to achieve their legitimate purposes at much lower cost and, in the process, revitalize the economy." - also posted at ICH

Reagan insider: 'GOP destroyed U.S. economy'
Special Note - A quote...."ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. (MarketWatch) -- "How my G.O.P. destroyed the U.S. economy." Yes, that is exactly what David Stockman, President Ronald Reagan's director of the Office of Management and Budget, wrote in a recent New York Times op-ed piece, "Four Deformations of the Apocalypse." -- Get it? Not "destroying." The GOP has already "destroyed" the U.S. economy, setting up an "American Apocalypse." - also posted at ICH

Deutsche Bank's Lavorgna Follows Revision Suit , Takes Q2 GDP Estimate Down To 1.1%
A quote...."Our expected economic groupthink revision by the sellside "strategists" is accelerating, as now even permabullish CNBC permaguest Joe LaVorgna "takes the knife" to his Q2 GDP estiamte. Yet despite presumably seeing the light, he only cuts Q3 and Q4 estiamtes to 3.0% and 3.3%, still hundreds of bps higher than Goldman, and even worse when compared to reality. David Bianco and his stratospheric GDP will stick out like a speedoless nudist in the middle of the liquidity ocean when the economic tide finally goes out. Luckily, Bianco has no credibility to begin with so the concept of discrediting surely does not apply."

From 2.4% To 1.1% And Dropping - Q2 GDP Gets Closer To Reality With Each Passing Day
A quote...."As we pointed out earlier today, today's latest deterioration in yet another overoptimistic assumption by the BEA, in the form of the balance of trade, means that the next GDP revision will likely be sub 1%, and may ostensibly drop to negative, confirming that the double dip, at least for NBER purposes, started sometime between April and June. Confirming our skepticism is JPM's Michael Feroli who now believes that real  Q2 GDP is trending at a 1.1% rate, less than half the official 2.4%, which, as readers will recall was expected by a battery of Ph.D.-clad optimists to come out to 2.7%. Less than two weeks after the announcement, it becomes clear that the world's "smartest" economists were off by 60%. And we are confident this is not the end of the downward revisions."

More Foreclosures, More Bank Failures, Big Trouble for the FDIC
A quote...."The U.S. housing market continues to send mix signals.  More homes continue to enter foreclosure but the number of homeowners carrying so-called “under water mortgages,” declined in the second quarter, Zillow.com reported Monday. -- 21.5% of homeowners owed more on their mortgage than their home was worth in the second quarter, that’s down from 23.3% in the first quarter and 23% a year ago. -- “There are a lot homes caught up in mortgage modifications,” explains Richard Suttmeier of ValuEngine.com, which he says results in a temporary stability in home prices.  The key word: temporary. -- “There’s waves of more foreclosures coming in the housing market because very few of the HAMP modifications are becoming permanent,” he says." - Source:  YahooFinance

Lack Of Stock Dispersion Hits All Time Record As Most Stocks Now Trade As One
Market Tech Note - Chart - A quote...."Fundamental analysis is no longer relevant as Alpha has just done one more revolution in its grave: today 1 Year Implied Correlation hit a new all time record, at 79.84 (out of 100 maximum possible), meaning the inverse of the metric, stock dispersion, or the measurement of the variation in individual stock prices, or broadly speaking alpha, is now completely irrelevant. As we have been saying for a year, "investing" is now all about a levered beta bet, using the maximum possible leverage, and sacrifices to Moloch, that the market does not turn before price targets are hit. At this rate we anticipate the next broad or acute selloff, will take us to 100 in implied correlation, at which point there will be no benefit whatsoever to trading individual stocks: the entire market will be one big ETF." - bold by website editor

Contrary To CNBC's Persistent Lies, Volume Surges
Chart - A quote...."Another day, another desperate attempt by GE's propaganda branch to keep its viewers disconnected with reality. Case in point: Bob Pisani, who has now said about 100 times that "volume was very low, no bids were hit, etc, etc." The truth: yes to the latter, and a blatant lie on the former. Exhibit A is below, where you can see that today's ES volume was the highest in 40 days! Maybe CNBC can hire an expert and analyze the chart below and advise us what it uses as the source for its lies, pardon, information."

U.S. Trade Deficit Unexpectedly Widens to $49.9 Billion in June
A quote...."The U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly widened in June by a record $7.9 billion as imports rose and shipments abroad declined. -- The $49.9 billion gap was the biggest since October 2008 and followed a $42 billion shortfall in May, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. Exports dropped by the most in more than a year."

U.S. posts $165 billion July deficit, spending ebbs
A quote...."WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States racked up a $165.04 billion budget deficit during July, 8.7 percent below the year-ago gap as economic stimulus and bailout spending subsided from peak levels, the Treasury Department said on Wednesday. -- So far in the first 10 months of fiscal 2010, which ends on September 30, the shortfall between the government's income and its spending totaled $1.169 trillion, smaller than last year's record 10-month deficit of $1.267 trillion."

In Stunning Decision, EU Orders Germany To Start Onboarding "Bad Debt" To Sovereign Balance Sheet: RBS, Fannie, Freddie Next? -- Special Note - A quote...."In what could be the most important news of the day, German Die Zeit reports that, in a stunning move, the EU has ordered Germany to count the holdings of WestLB and Hypo Real Estate (the latter of which failed the stress farce from last month which nobody cares about or remembers anymore) as government debt!  As Bloomberg notes, "That could raise Germany’s debt to 90 percent of gross domestic product, Die Zeit said." Of course the implications of this decision are massive, as it takes out all the guess work of whether insolvent institutions are or are not on the government's balance sheet. The net result, for Germany alone, is that just the addition of Hypo's debt would push German debt/GDP from 79% to 90%, both of which are well above the Maastricht limit of 60% "

Britain: Health inequalities widest since records began in 1921
DANG!!!  All of this unpayable, onerous, massive amounts of debt, just so one rouge, apartheid, racist, homicidal, genocidal state of only five million members of the "Jewish Community", along with its New Roman Empire colony, can run around the world murdering millions of people with impunity?!?!?  The Brits are pretty stupid when you think about it, it's not even their own empire they're spending all their treasure and commiting murdering for.  Now that's pretty sick. Maybe they're all masochists? - mpg

China Enters the Gold Market
A quote...."There was an editorial power struggle at Mogambo News Service over whether it was Big, Big News (BBN) or if it was Big Freaking News (BFN), or even if it was The Biggest Freaking News Of Your Life (TBFNOYL) that China has, officially through the People’s Bank of China, said that they have “seen the light” as concerns gold, and they see how gold is the only true money, and how worthless paper monies and computer blip monies are the Wrong Way To Go (WWTO), as evidenced by the Chinese merely looking at us Americans and what happened! Hahaha!"

Venezuela''s International Reserves Increase
A quote...."Caracas, Aug 12 (Prensa Latina) Venezuelan foreign exchange reserves rose to 28.376 billion dollars, slightly below the level considered optimal by the government (30 billion dollars), the Central Bank of Venezuela said."

Tuesday August 10th 2010

Israel Cannot be Both Jewish and Democratic
Must Read - A quote....""Information Clearing House" -- Israel continues to lurch and stagger in the darkened bog of tribal chauvinism. The Jewish state's further descent into the bellicose murk is being felt by the country's minorities. Home destructions and deportations are portentous of a bleaker future for non-Jews in Israel. -- Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have lived under an Israeli apartheid regime for decades now. Over the years, Israel has demolished homes, kidnapped thousands of political prisoners, transferred 500,000 settler-colonists onto the West Bank, conducted massive military operations in civilian areas, hoarded the vast majority of Palestinian water, and committed a host of other crimes under the apartheid banner."

The Death of Zionism
Special Note - A quote...."Zionism is a thorn in the world's side. Like all forms of politico-religious collective extremism, it is deceptive, cruel, and arrogantly self-righteous. Zionists have overstayed their welcome in the Middle East by about fifty years, and the longer they remain in power the worse off Israel, the Middle East, and the world will be. And they are not going anywhere, nor will they pursue a new policy, so it naturally falls on the injured party to remove a thorn from its side, and since America has the most powerful arm in the world, it must be the one to pull it out from the world's side, and stop the bleeding."

Is Time Magazine Part of CIA Strategy to Gain Support for Afghan War?
Propaganda Alert - A quote...."The August 9 edition of Time  featured a cover photo of an Afghan woman who had her nose chopped off, along with the headline: “What Happens if We Leave Afghanistan.” The implication was that, despite the increasing unpopularity of the war, the U.S. should continue the fight. As independent as Time may be, their position and timing fit in perfectly with the strategy proposed in a March CIA document that was released by WikiLeaks." - also posted at BLN

Obama Versus Obama
HFPVideo
- Alt - (HFPVideo - 4 min 55 sec)  - It's a funny video, because Obama not only lost the debate with himself, he totally trounced himself.  On the other hand it's not so funny after all because we all lost too. - mpg

The American Media Empire of Managed News
Audio - Special Note - A quote...."Propaganda model post 9/11 becomes deliberate disinformation; consolidation of media and public relations groups; prison torture across the US; domestic secret detention centers;  Operation FALCON mass arrests; suspension of habeas corpus by the Chief Executive; US and NATO as protectors of global capital; structure of inequality maintained by global capital and military empire worldwide; repression that addresses us all; the 1948 Declaration of Human Rights."

On Wikileaks (VII): Take Up the Wikileaks Challenge with Pride and Honor
A quote...."Three interconnected criticisms of Wikileaks, and of the recently released Afghanistan material, merit consideration. These particular criticisms can be summarized as follows:
"All three points were announced within a day of the latest Wikileaks story breaking in the news; sometimes, they were put forth within hours. This was true of both mainstream media and of the overwhelming majority of blog posts." - also posted at Uruknet

Reports: Obama Pressing Allies to Target Assange
Related Article - A quote...."A number of reports are emerging today suggesting that the Obama Administration is looking for a new approach in its attempts to crack down on whistleblower site WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange."

Gerald Celente On the Alex Jones Show – Double Dip Depression Will Lead Us Into War
Video - Special Note - Gerald Celente lets it rip!! - mpg - GC&AJ(1/4) - GC&AJ(1/4) - GC&AJ(1/4) - GC&AJ(1/4) - (AJYuTb - 10 min -  August 10, 2010) - Source:  DProgramTV  - Producer:  AJInfoWars -- A quote...."The white shoe boys are taking us into the worst depression in history."

Murder by the Numbers and Why kant i spel?
Contains Video - Alt - (YuTb 1m47s -  January 18, 2008) -- A quote....."In groundbreaking research, Nobel Prize economist Joseph Stiglitz and Harvard researcher Linda Bilmes, calculated that many other present and future costs were not included in operational costs. The additional costs include...."
"This breaks down to $720 million spent each day on Iraq only, or $500,000 per minute. The cost of sending one soldier to Afghanistan is $3 million per year when these additional costs are added."

30 Yrs Ago Poles Challenged Communist Rulers With “Solidarity Revolution”– Can Americans Learn From the Lesson? -- A quote...."I happen to be old enough to remember how difficult and dangerous it was to get some scraps of truth in the communist Poland. Even as late as the 70’s and 80’s you had to have good friends involved in underground publishing to get some independent, political material. Short wave radio was a window of sorts to the world; we listened to “Radio Free Europe” and “Voice of America” which gave some semblance of truth despite the fact that both were propaganda fronts for outfits like CIA. We knew it well but still, this was better than the Polish equivalents of “Pravda” newspaper. No Internet then…"

2010 Bohemian Grove Members List Revealed! And More..
A quote...."(NorCalTruth) – A 2010 Bohemian Grove members list has been given to members of Nor Cal Truth. As in the spirit of 2008 with Truth Action,  the Bohemian Grove actions of 2010  have paid off."

End of the Internet? Google-Verizon Pact: It Gets Worse
Web Under Threat - A quote....""So Google and Verizon went public today with their "policy framework" -- better known as the pact to end the Internet as we know it.-- News of this deal broke this week, sparking a public outcry that's seen hundreds of thousands of Internet users calling on Google to live up to its "Don't Be Evil" pledge. -- But cut through the platitudes the two companies (Googizon, anyone?) offered on today's press call, and you'll find this deal is even worse than advertised." - also posted at ICH & HuffPost

Cybersecurity Lie Exposed: Power Plants Are Not Connected To The Internet
Lieberman is at it again, he wants to strip Americans of their citizenship, destroy the freedom of the internet, and start a war with Iran.  Why doesn't he just move to Israel and leave the rest of us alone? - mpg -- A quote...."Senator Joe Lieberman’s draconian Internet takeover legislation, the 197-page Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act, is being promoted as a vital tool to protect vulnerable infrastructure hubs from terrorist attacks, but as a recent Wall Street Journal report makes clear, large industrial power and water plants are not even connected to the public Internet."

‘John Doe’ Who Fought FBI Spying Freed From Gag Order After 6 Years
A quote...."The owner of an internet service provider who mounted a high-profile court challenge to a secret FBI records demand has finally been partially released from a 6-year-old gag order that forced him to keep his role in the case a secret from even his closest friends and family. He can now identify himself and discuss the case, although he still can’t reveal what information the FBI sought."

Conspiracy theories like the 9/11 Commission Report will destroy us
A quote...."One of the most bizarre, incredibly wild stories is the officially sanctioned, multi-million dollar 9/11 Commission Report. If you like reading conspiracy theories, try that one! It’s even a little unusual as far as conspiracy theories go, since it includes statements made as fact that are known to be false and have been confessed false by the people that produced it. But that’s just another distraction leading to endless discussion over details that, while including uncontestable contradictions, never gets nailed into the whole piece well enough to satisfy everyone." -- also posted at DthShpAmrika - For more on this issue see....Reficultnias's 9/11 Central

Landmark Gitmo trial puts White House in tight spot
A quote...." GUANTANAMO BAY NAVY BASE, Cuba — A top United Nations official on Tuesday denounced the Pentagon's trial of so-called "child soldier" Omar Khadr at Guantanamo Bay, saying the proceeding was a violation of international legal norms and "may endanger the status of child soldiers all over the world." -- "Since World War II, no child has been prosecuted for a war crime," Radhika Coomaraswamy, the U.N.'s special representative for Children and Armed Conflict said in a statement distributed by the U.N. on the eve of Khadr's trial here." - also posted at Uruknet

Two Thirds Of Wall Street Donations Now Go To Republicans As Democrats Get Least Contributions Since May 2008 - Chart - If people keep voting for DemoRepubs, or RepubDemos, nothing is ever gonna change. - mpg -- A quote...."According to the most recent study by the Center for Responsive Politics, Wall Street has completely given up on Democrats, even as contributions to Republicans have surged to a near multi-year record, or 68% of total.
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U.S. and EU fail to isolate Iran
A quote...."Reporting from Washington — Efforts by the United States and its European allies to build a united front to halt Iran's nuclear program are facing increasingly bold resistance from China, Russia, India and Turkey, which are rushing to boost their economies by seizing investment opportunities in defiance of sanctions imposed by the West."

Israel unlikely to attack Iran before U.S.- Castro
A quote...."Israel will not be the first state to attack Iran, because such an act would make it an enemy of all nuclear powers, Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro said in his Reflections column on the Cuba Debate website."

Iran to dump dollar and euro reserves
War Alert - A quote...."Iran has announced plans to get rid of its US dollar and euro reserves in response to the latest UN sanctions over its contested nuclear program. -- Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi has also called Australians "a bunch of cattlemen" after it joined the 27-member European Union in imposing additional sanctions against Iran. -- The UN Security Council imposed a fourth round of sanctions on Iran in June because of its refusal to halt uranium enrichment. Tougher unilateral US and European Union sanctions followed in July."

Torpedo launcher boats join IRGC fleet
A quote...."Introducing 12 Zolfaqhar class speedboats to its naval fleet, Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) warns against the inspection of Iranian vessels. -- IRGC Navy Commander Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi announced on Tuesday that the Corps also plans to mass produce improved models based on the record holding speedboat, Bladerunner 51, by 2011. -- The Iranian speedboat will be capable of launching missiles and torpedoes, and sailing at a speed of 70 knots (82 mph)."

Israel frees Iran reporter after arrest
A quote...."Israel has released an Iranian reporter after keeping him in custody for more than three hours near the Israeli-built separation barrier in the West Bank. -- The IRIB reporter was detained in the city of Qalqilya, located in the northwest of the West Bank, on Tuesday morning near the separation barrier."

US Outraged as Iran Offers to Replace Military Aid to Lebanon
A quote...."The US State Department has reacted with outrage today after the Iranian government offered to provide military aid to Lebanon to make up for what was lost when the US pulled all such aid yesterday." -- Haaaaa, Haaaaaaa, Haaaaaaa.....this is Sooooooo funny.  Remember folks when the US-NRE destroyed Saddam, the man who happened to be one of Iran's biggest enemies, remember how the US-NRE than proceded to whine and complain ENDLESSLY about Iran's "undue influence" in Iraq after they had done so.  Now they're practically shoving Lebanon into the much more open and honest arms of Iran.  After all, the Iranians are perfectly willing -- in fact they're positively eager -- to help Lebanon defend itself against the Israelis.  Still it goes to show just how STUPID the US-NRE  must appear to the entire world when in constantly and repeatedly gets on bended knee to kiss the butt of the AIPAC/Israeli Consortium.  What a waste of time, tax-payer dollars, and lives this "relationship" has been for this nation, not to mention dignity. - mpg
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The Myth of the US Military Aid to Lebanon
Related Article - A quote...."Since 2006, the US has provided Lebanon some 500 million dollars in military assistance. Last year, the US approved 100 million dollars in assistance to the Lebanese military. The Obama administration has requested the same levels for 2011, with small increases for anti-terror and military training programs. --  However, the border incident of August 3 highlighted the fact that the US Administration does not consider that its military aid should be used to protect Lebanon against its only real enemy: Israel. “We have no indication that US equipment played any role in this incident earlier this week,” Crowley said. “In any US-origin equipment that has been provided to Lebanon, we have very strong end-use monitoring to make sure it is used appropriately.” 
  
Afghan militants return to arms
A quote...."HERAT - Militants in Herat province of eastern Afghanistan who laid down their weapons in response to government offers of aid and amnesty are rejoining the insurgency after officials failed to deliver on their promises."

Smog leaves Moscow
A quote...."The air in Moscow on Wednesday morning is clean at last, after overnight rain and winds blew away a thick layer of smog caused by the worst wildfires in Russian history, which had engulfed the capital for over a week."

Ecuador blames Uribe for damaging Ecuador-Colombia ties
A quote...."Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa has blamed Alvaro Uribe for wrecking trust between the two nations by ordering a military attack on Ecuador`s soil without asking permission from Ecuador."

Chavez Rejects Obama's New US Ambassador
A quote...."Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president, has said he will not allow the newly-nominated US envoy to take up his post in Caracas, following comments over Venezuela's alleged links with Colombian rebels."

Chavez agrees to meet Santos
A quote...."Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president, has said he will meet with his Colombian counterpart on Tuesday to try to end a diplomatic rift between the two countries. -- Juan Manuel Santos was inaugurated as the Colombian president on Saturday and immediately offered to talk with Chavez in hopes of mending Colombian-Venezuelan ties."
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Nasrallah's press conference
Special Note - Contains Video - Alt - A quote...."In Arab political culture, this press conference will be regarded as a great political show. Nasrallah ended the conference by admitting that he did not present an evidence. Indeed, he has not. He presented circumstantial evidence to lobby the Hariri court to at least investigate the Israeli possibility. But that is not the matter here: personally, as you all know: I don't give a damn about who killed Rafiq Hariri and don't believe that Lebanon should spend a penny to find out. Israel has a history of killing Lebanese and Palestinians in Lebanon and I would rather investigate other Israeli murders in Lebanon. I don't want Hariri to be more valuable than other victims. But Hizbullah did something entirely different in this press conference: it recaptured Arab political opinion. It was great TV: the production was so well-done: with images, and visual effects and background music and graphics. The most important revelation is that Hizbullah was able to intercept the footage of Israeli spy planes. That is an incredible coup for Hizbullah. This will most impress Arab audiences worldwide."

The "banality of evil" and Israel's destruction of al-Araqib
A quote...."In the early hours of 10 August, Israeli forces destroyed -- for the third time -- the Bedouin village of al-Araqib in the northern Negev desert. Israel had first destroyed the village on 27 July as EI reported, and each time the villagers have attempted to rebuild. Joseph Dana witnessed the latest destruction."

Ethnic cleansing continues: Bedouin village Al Araqib demolished for the third time
Contains Videos - Related Videos -  3rdTime(1/2) - 3rdTime(2/2) - Source:  ISM-Palestine -- A quote...."The Bedouin village of Al Araqib in Southern Israel was destroyed for the third time in two weeks this morning, Tuesday August 10th, by Israeli civil administration forces. -- At approximately 5.45 this morning around 50 Israeli police and 15 border police arrived in jeeps to guard 3 caterpillar bulldozers who razed the Palestinian Bedouin village near Beersheva, Negev to the ground in just over one hour. -- Six or seven makeshift houses which had been rebuilt by the families (following the two previous demolitions on July 27th and August 4th) were bulldozed, leaving the families, including women and children, homeless again on the eve of Ramadan." - bold by website editor - also posted at Uruknet
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Libya charity to rebuild Gaza homes devastated by Israel
A quote...."TRIPOLI - A charity group run by the Libyan leader's son Seif al-Islam Gathafi said on Monday it signed a 50-million-dollar deal with a UN agency to rebuild 1,250 refugee homes in the Gaza Strip. -- "We have signed an agreement with UNRWA to build 1,250 homes in Gaza for a total cost of 50 million dollars," the executive director of the Gathafi Foundation, Yussef Sawan, told AFP." - also posted at WarInIraq

Homeless Take On Israeli Forces
A quote...."RAMALLAH, Aug 10, 2010 (IPS) - A bruising battle of will is taking place between Israeli security forces and Palestinians recently made homeless after two Palestinian villages were razed and hundreds left homeless." - also posted at Uruknet

Gaza's emergency services battered
A quote...."GAZA CITY, occupied Gaza Strip - Outside the battered Civil Defense station in northern Gaza's Jabaliya region, Mohammed Zidan, a seven-year veteran of fire-fighting and rescue services, stands on crutches in front of battered Civil Defense vehicles."

Calling Gaza a prison camp is an understatement
A quote...."It's three years since I've been back to Gaza. Much has happened since my last visit. Fatah waged a failed coup and now rules only the West Bank, while Hamas is in charge of Gaza. Israel launched its deadly Cast Lead assault. Fuel shortages. Electricity crises. And so on. -- I needed to regain perspective. So I walked and I talked and I listened. I went to the beach where women – skinny jeans and all – were smoking water pipes, swimming and generally having a good time, irrespective of the purported Hamas ban on women smoking sheesha."
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Keiser Report on Bizarre Robot Traders - [#67]
Must View MKRTVideo - BzrRbtTrdrs - (RTMKYuTb - 26min 52 sec - August 10, 2010) - Source: - RussiaToday - Produced:  Max Keiser TV -- A quote...."In Episode 67 of his show Max Keiser and co-host Stacy Herbert look at the scandals of the summer sequel of bankers returning to the scene of the crime to demand another, bigger ransom in "Deflationary Black Hole: The Sequel." In the second half of the show, Max talks to documentary filmmaker, Bregtje van der Haak about her film "Time for Change", in which ordinary people respond to the crisis of banking and bankers with their own solutions."

Main Street's Boycott Of Capital Markets Succeeding: Barclays First Casualty, To Fire Hundreds Due To Plunge In Market Activity - A quote...."For the longest time it was consensus thought that only Wall Street could f-ck Main Street. The ride is now turning. After what the FT reports was a 16% decline in fixed income, currencies and commodities trading revenues for Q2, coupled with advisory revenues down 17%, the bank is now "planning to cut up to several hundred employees following a sharp fall in market activity in the second quarter. Sources close to the bank say that the job losses, which could be announced as early as Wednesday, will be spread across BarCap’s sales and trading staff as well as its back office support functions." Too bad the SEC has not, and will not realize that its only function is to restore the faith of the retail investors in the credibility of the capital markets. Yes, the same retail investor who both on margin and in total has always been the primary driver of stocks. Alas that has not happened and tens of thousands of Wall Streets will soon feel the wrath of Main Street as the boycott of stocks by the broader population comes to fruition, allowing the former "strategists" to experience just how real the difference between the U-3 and U-6 rate is first hand."

NFIB Survey Indicates Small Business Capitulates: "Owners Have No Confidence That Economic Policies Will “Fix” The Economy" - A quote...."The NFIB Small Business Report came in at 88.1, down from 89.0 but just beating the expectation of 88. Yet there was nothing optimistic in the index itself: "The Index of Small Business Optimism lost 0.9 points in July following a sharp decline in June. The persistence of Index readings below 90 is unprecedented in survey history. The performance of the economy is mediocre at best, given the extent of the decline over the past two years."

Peter Schiff: "We're in the Early Stages of a Depression"
A quote...."In August 2006, Peter Schiff, president of Euro Pacific Capital, offered what many considered to be an outlier prognosis for the economy: The exuberance would end, real estate prices would crash back down to earth, and consumers would revert to saving from spending. In short, a deep recession was in the works."

Another Revision Of The Q2 GDP Number By JPM: Firm Now Estimates That The Real Economic Performance Was 1.3% (From 2.4%) -- A quote...."Last week we noted that JPM's Michael Feroli estimated that due to a major downward revision of inventory build of non-durable goods, which the BEA had overaccounted for, the GDP print of 2.4% released two Fridays ago was actually 1.7%. Today, the stripping of the GDP print from upward biased data continues, and Feroli once again whacks the GDP number, which he now sees at 1.3%, or essentially 50% of the actual released number."

US Productivity Falls For First Time Since 2008 As Labor Costs Increase Less Than Expected
Chart - (click to enlarge) -- A quote...."In another indication that the impact of the existing trillions of stimulus have now expired and the economy is once again following the path of least resistance to massive deleveraging, elsewhere known as deflation, productivity declined by an annual rate of 0.9 percent after rising at a revised 3.9 percent rate in the first quarter, the first time since the fourth quarter of 2008 that output per worker fell. This was far weaker than the consensus seeking a 0.2% increase. Labor costs, which are watched by the Fed to gauge inflation, added a double whammy, increasing at a 0.2 percent annual rate after shrinking at a revised 3.7 percent rate in the first three months this year. This was also weaker than expectations of 0.9%, further confirming the deflationary phase of the current economic cycle, and further boxing the Fed which now needs to do something drastic before a full blown deflationary wave sweep the economy."

U.K. Housing Gauge Signals First Price Drop in a Year
A quote...."Aug. 10 (Bloomberg) -- A U.K. housing-market gauge signaled the first decline in prices for a year in July as demand for homes fell, a sign the economic recovery may be losing steam."

Study: Age that girls hit puberty keeps dropping
You are what you eat, including all those artificial hormones. - mpg -- A quote...."Researchers led by Frank Biro, director of adolescent medicine at Cincinnati Children's, found that the number of 7- and 8-year-old girls with breast development was higher than found in studies conducted 10 to 30 years earlier."

Monday August 9th 2010

US and Israel: Taking the world down with them
Special Note - A quote...."If and when the United States and Israel bomb Iran (marking the sixth country so blessed by Barack Obama) and this sad old world has a new daily horror show to look at on their TV sets, and we then discover that Iran was not actually building nuclear weapons after all, the American mainstream media and the benighted American mind will ask: “Why didn’t they tell us that? Did they want us to bomb them?”

Push for confrontation with Iran (sometimes) bears a Jewish stamp
Special Note - A quote...."This is at the Council for the National Interest  blog under the heading, "Full-page ad in New York Times in April demonstrates who is pushing for war against Iran." I wish I could say it's a canard. But I can't. Couldn't they have gotten some non-Jewish groups aboard? Oh and yes the organizers say they're actuated by fears of climate change, but  why the Netanyahu quote and the emphasis on missiles?"

The Tears of Gaza Must Be Our Tears
Special Note - A quote...."When I lived in Jerusalem I had a friend who confided in me that as a college student in the United States she attended events like these, wrote up reports and submitted them to the Israel consulate for money. It would be naive to assume this Israeli practice has ended. So, I want first tonight to address that person, or those persons, who may have come to this event for the purpose of reporting on it to the Israeli government." - also posted at ICH & AmericanEveryman

Israel implicated in Hariri murder
Special Note - A quote...."Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, has implicated Israel for the murder of Rafiq al-Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister. -- In a video address to journalists from an undisclosed location on Monday, Nasrallah said he had evidence to prove Israel's complicity in al-Hariri's assassination in a bomb explosion in the Lebanese capital, Beirut." - also posted at Uruknet

It all boils down to oil -- U.S. won’t leave Iraq’s energy reserves untended after its troops pull out
Special Note - A quote...."Last week, U.S. President Barack Obama restated his vow to pull all U.S. combat troops out of Iraq by the end of this month, and the remaining U.S. garrison by the end of 2011. -- Has America’s long goodbye to Iraq really begun? -- The 50,000 U.S. troops left until 2011 [trust this website editor, they're not leaving in 2011] will supposedly “advise and assist” and perform “anti-terrorism” missions and training. -- These troops will likely be six armour-heavy combat brigades, backed by warplanes from U.S. air bases in the Gulf. -- A U.S. brigade withdrawn from Iraq will go to neighbouring Kuwait. Most of the rest will transfer to Afghanistan. -- No word about the 85,000 U.S.-paid mercenaries (a.k.a. “contractors”) in Iraq." - bold by website editor - also posted at Uruknet & LewRockwell

How Many Iraqis Did We "Liberate" From Life on Earth?
A quote...."Is there a man or woman in America today who is willing to stand at noon in the public square and claim that demands to bomb, invade, and occupy other people's countries have anything to do with human liberation? -- If such people can be found, let them answer a few simple questions about the US invasion and occupation of Iraq.
"If any American who claims to believe that indefinite continuation of the war in Afghanistan -- or a US/Israeli military attack on Iran -- is justified by humanitarian concerns cannot give a fact-based and intellectually coherent answer to the question of how many Iraqis have lost their lives as a result of the US invasion and occupation of Iraq, do not that person's claims for "humanitarian" war, bombing, and occupation deserve zero credence?" - also posted at ICH -- For more on the issue of Iraqi Deaths see....US Fake Intel / Propaganda- Iraq Deaths

Pfc. Manning and the Value of Truth
A quote...."August 09, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- We are living in a liminal time, that is to say we live on the threshold. So much that we have taken for granted is passing. -- In times like this we must be careful to keep our bearings, lest we come to love the chaos that passes for reality. -- This is why we need to honor our brother Bradley Manning. He was not afraid to face the unknown; not afraid to resist the seduction of conformity; not afraid to follow his conscience, AND not afraid to give us the wherewithal to distinguish truth from lies so that we, too, can follow our conscience. -- The principalities and the powers, including the Fawning Corporate Media, have no hold on citizens like Private Manning, who refuse to live in a moral vacuum. -- Bradley Manning dared to mock the falsity parading as reality after our country had a nervous breakdown as a result of 9/11 and the efforts of those who would use 9/11 to stoke our fear. -- THAT false “reality” has lost its power, because it cannot live in the light of truth. -- “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” THAT is the rock-solid truth."

Hurrah for Hugo Chavez
Special Note - A quote...."August 09, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- It's  no fun being on Washington's enemies list. Just ask Hugo Chavez. Last week, the Venezuelan president had to cancel a trip to Cuba after he was told that a coup was underway and his life was in danger. The information came from an anonymous source who had delivered a similar warning prior to the failed coup in 2002. The letter said: “The execution phase is accelerating..… There is an agreement between Colombia and the US with two objectives: one is Mauricio and the other is the overthrow of the government.… They will hunt down ‘Mauricio’ (and) try to neutralize part of the Armed Forces.” ("Venezuela Pushes for Peace", Coral Wynter, Green Left News)

British Petroleum: The Unfinished Crimes and Plunder of Anglo-American Imperialism
Special Note - A quote...."In  the light  of British Petroleum’s grotesque crime, as yet unfinished,  against  humanity   in the Gulf of Mexico it  is well  to recall briefly BP’s  no less  hideous  crime  perpetrated in its earlier  incarnation as  the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC) and  its further  name  change  to  the  Anglo Iranian Oil Company (AIOC) in 1936. At the century’s turn, William D’Arcy, financial tycoon and politician, pursuing the advice of his financial associate and empire builder Cecil Rhodes frantically began his quest for oil in the Persian Gulf. -- Little did the masters of British imperialism realize that one of the most dazzling El Dorado’s in the long and tortured history of British imperialism would soon be born?  Geo-politically it would have reverberations well beyond the region of the Persian Gulf. It was one of the most decisive steps in the march of imperial globalization, the speed-up the concentration of capital and the resulting imperialist rivalries."
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We Need to Continue to Seek the Truth About 9/11
Special Note - A quote...."Over the past three years, a group of concerned Bloomington citizens has worked to raise the public consciousness about the need for 9/11 truth. These folks are sometimes called “conspiracy theorists” because they do not believe the official version of events. Once people get by their initial reactions to 9/11 questioning, however, much can be learned in the process. -- To begin with, we all understand the definition of a conspiracy to be a secret plan, among two or more people, to commit a crime. Yet when faced with emotionally charged events like 9/11, many of us pretend that the definition of the word has changed. -- It is certain that unless you believe these crimes were committed by one person acting alone, you believe in a 9/11 conspiracy. But people today have been trained to use the word to mean only a small subset of conspiracies enacted by powerful people, like government officials." - also posted at PrisonPlanet -- For more on this sort of issue see....Acting Guilty - 12-01-09 - mpg -- See also....Reficultnias's 9/11 Central

Leading Republicans call for partial repeal of 14th Amendment
Special Note - A quote...."A constituency within the political establishment has been consolidating in recent months for a repeal of the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, which provides that every person born in the US is guaranteed citizenship. This reactionary proposal, ostensibly to combat “illegal” immigration, has broad and far-reaching consequences for democratic rights in the US." - bold/underline by website editor- How about we just call this Joe Lieberman's bill in disguise?  And we ALL know where he gets his ideas from, after all, being an honorary member of the Israeli Knesset, he's quite familiar with their recent proposals to do the same to their citizens. And everyone knows were the Israeli Knesset got its ideas from -- see the quote shown below.....

"...Bitter complaints have come in from countless places citing the provocative behavior of Jews....a certain amount of [conspiratorial] planning was involved....[To prevent] vigorous defensive action by the [Aryan] people[13], we have no choice but to contain the problem through legislative measures....it may be possible, through a definitive secular solution, to create a basis on which the German people can have a tolerable relationship with the Jews.[14] ... This law is an attempt to find a legislative solution....if this attempts fails, it will be necessary to transfer [the Jewish problem] ... to the National Socialist Party for a final solution (German: endgültige Lösung).[15]"

"The measures were unanimously adopted by the Reichstag. In twelve years of Nazi rule, the Reichstag only passed four laws: the Nuremberg laws were two of them.[16]  The Nuremberg Laws by their general nature formalized the unofficial and particular measures taken against Jews up to 1935. The Nazi leaders made a point of stressing the consistency of this legislation with the Party programme, which demanded that Jews should be deprived of their citizenship rights."

By the way, members of Congress who vote for this legislation, will by doing so become TRAITORS to this nation and all of its people.  Everyone should know however, that many of these scum, in what can only be described as a fit of utterly loathsome, despicable, demented, sycophantic depravity and prosecutable mis-conduct, have already betrayed their oath of office to the people of this nation and sworn allegiance and loyalty [here's the list....[Senators - PDF or (HTML) and Congressmen - PDF or (HTML)] to another.  That foul, degenerate, war-mongering, apartheid, racist state called the Israel/AIPAC Consortium . - mpg

First Gitmo conviction under Obama shrouded in secrecy: Judge seals sentence - And the cover-up continues. mpg
A quote...."The sealing of the sentence is a first for the military commissions system, which the Obama administration has pledged to make more transparent. [Well wadda'ya know, another Obama "pledge" bites the dust....again.] -- A spokesman for prosecutors, Navy Capt. David Iglesias, said he could not comment on the reasons for the secrecy. But he said it was consistent with federal courts' handling of matters involving national security and claimed it was also in al-Qosi's best interest." -- Did he say al-Qaeda?  SOunded like al-Qaeda to this website editor. - bold by website editor -- For more on this 9/11 cover-up see....9/11-Iraq-Torture Fables

Khadr 'torture' confessions allowed
Related Article - A quote...."The confessions [also known as self-incrimination] of Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen charged with terrorism, can be used as evidence in his trial, even though they may have been obtained through torture, [under torture] a US military judge has ruled. -- Lawyers for Khadr claimed statements to military interrogators were illegally obtained through torture and asked a US war crimes court to throw them out. -- That request was denied on Monday by a military judge at the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. -- US forces captured Khadr in Afghanistan in July 2002, when he was just 15 years old." - also posted at Uruknet -- What the founding fathers had always feared and exactly why they designed and wrote the consittution the way they did, has finally arrived.  Self-incrimination under torture.  Welcome folks, to the New Roman Empire. - mpg

Political Prisoners in America
A quote...."Noted journalist HL Menchen described "The most dangerous man to any government (as someone) who is able to think things out for himself, without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane, and intolerable," yet resisting, he faces recrimination - political imprisonment for his beliefs and activism, officials tolerating no opposition to their authority, no matter how extreme or lawless." - also posted at Uruknet

Seeds of Deconstruction
Must View Video - (outstanding) -- A quote...."A two and half hour investigative documentary on 7/7: Seeds of Deconstruction, which examines some of the questions and conspiracy theories about 7/7, the July 7th 2005 London Bombings."

Bin Laden Studios, HDQ in Tel Aviv, Wants YOU... to be Stupid
A quote...."Arabs with box cutters had nothing to do with 9/11. This is a cover story. It was all made up. There is no proof of their involvement and, quite to the contrary, six of the supposed dead terrorists are alive and well and screaming for press interviews. 9/11 had nothing to do with terrorism, nothing to do with Arabs and everything to do with money. Follow the money."

Detective who found David Kelly's body raises questions over his death
Paragraph quoted from CLG...."'There wasn't much blood about': Detective who found weapons expert David Kelly's body raises questions over his death 08 Aug 2010 The mystery surrounding the death of Dr David Kelly deepened yesterday after the detective who found his body claimed he didn't see 'much blood'. The revelation by Detective Constable Graham Coe casts further doubt on the Hutton Report's verdict that the Ministry of Defence scientist died of blood loss after slitting his wrist. In his first interview, Mr Coe, now retired, also said that police searched Dr Kelly's home the day after his death for papers 'of a sensitive nature' about Iraq. Dr Kelly, an expert on biological and chemical weapons, was found dead in woodland near his Oxfordshire home in July 2003. A week earlier he had been exposed by the Labour government as the source of a BBC report claiming No 10 'sexed up' reports of Iraq's ability to deploy weapons of mass destruction."
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The US tank crew wanted for murder
A quote...."The Spanish government wants a three-man US army tank crew to stand trial for the death of cameraman Jose Couso in Baghdad in 2003. -- High Court judge Santiago Pedraz has issued three international arrest warrants for the soldiers after they fired at the Telecinco employee, fatally wounding him." - For more on this issue see....US-Killing the Messenger

Pentagon to shut military command, cut jobs
A quote...."(Reuters) - Mon Aug 9, 2010 7:05pm EDT -- The Pentagon, trying to free up cash in the face of a yawning U.S. deficit, unveiled a series of cost-cutting measures on Wednesday that will shed thousands of jobs and shut down an entire military command."

Galloway slams West for ‘double standards’
A quote...."TEHRAN: British Member of Parliament and anti-war activists George Galloway has upheld Iran’s rights for peaceful nuclear energy as a signatory to the Nucler Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). -- “It is our duty to support Iran’s rights for civilian nuclear energy,” Gallow told a conference of Iranian expatriates in Tehran.  “The West’s behaviour towards Iran is strange since countries should not be treated based on double standards,” he told the meeting. -- Galloway said Iran has been loyal to international regulations, while Israel is not a NPT signatory, having hundreds of missiles. He said despite its many violations of international law,  Israel  is not subject to sanctions. He called the UN Security Council’s sanctions against Iran “unjust and illogical.”"

Who Says Iran is Becoming Isolated in the Middle East?
A quote...."The results from this year’s Arab Public Opinion Poll can hardly be comforting for those who want to believe that the Islamic Republic is becoming estranged from its regional neighbors and that Arabs are ready to stand side-by-side with Israelis to support military action (by Israel and/or the United States) against Iranian nuclear targets."

US, [and a few] EU states fail to isolate Iran
Related Article - A quote...."As the US and its European allies are trying to increase unilateral sanctions against Iran, other major states show bold resistance to the punitive measures. -- "China, Russia, India and Turkey move into the lucrative void left by US and EU sanctions that aim to halt Iran's nuclear program," Los Angeles Times wrote on Sunday." - also posted at WarInIraq

Iraq backs Iranian gas pipeline
A quote...."TEHRAN, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- Baghdad approved a measure to develop a pipeline to deliver natural gas from Iran across its country to Syria, an Iranian gas executive announced. -- Javad Oji, a managing director at the National Iranian Gas Co., led a delegation to Iraq last week to sign preliminary arrangements for natural gas exports through Iraq."
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US to sell F-15 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia
A quote...."Washington: A $30 billion (Dh110 billion) 10-year arms deal by the US to sell advanced F-15 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia looks set to go ahead, but following concerns by Israel the jets will not be equipped with long-range weapons systems and other arms, diplomats and officials were quoted as saying in the Wall Street Journal. -- The US newspaper reports that the deal, which would be one of the biggest single agreements of its kind, has been a source of behind-the-scenes tension during months of negotiations." - bold by website editor

Report: U.S. downgrades Saudi arms deal over Israeli concerns
Related Article - A quote...."Wall Street Journal says U.S. to sell Saudis 84 F-15 fighter jets in $30 billion deal, but without long-range weapons systems." - bold by website editor

Regarding the articles shown above many of you out there, who aren't goy-cattle, will ask, "why did Obama do this deal, isn't he the best little AIPAC/Israeli butt-kisser and sycophantic lackey ever selected as president?"  Indeed he is, the absolute best in fact.  After all, prior to his coronation as Emperor he stood around while 1,400 Palestinian men, women and children were needlessly slaughtered by the Israelis so they could prove what "menshes" they are after Hezbollah handed them a humiliating defeat during their second attempted invasion of Lebanon.

How bombing 1.5 million refugees penned up in what is effectively a large open-air prison and who are armed only with AK-47s, with US-NRE supplied DIME, Flechete, High Explosive, and White Phosphorous bombs, would prove Israeli competence at anything but brutal, cowardly, murder is a total mystery to this website editor
.

That said, Obama has a few, rather LARGE budgetary problems to contend with.  During the last several months somebody has been trying to help him with his spending problems and has been buying hundreds of billions worth of long term bonds from the US-NRE through the London market.  Rumor has it, it's the Saudi Royals.  Obviously they would have done so in an effort to ease this deal through Congress and Obama's administration.

So money still talks
in the Empire's capital, even in the AIPAC/Israeli controlled corridors of power in Washington DC. - mpg -- For more on this issue see....One Vile, Venom Tipped, Taloned Hand Washes the Other -- (a.k.a. The Standard Model) - 07-28-10 - mpg
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'NATO armed Georgia for war, still denies the attack'
Must View RTVideo Interview- (RTYuTb - 9 min 53 sec - August 08, 2010) - Source:  RussiaToday - interviews South Ossitian Presidient EdwardKokoity -- A quote...."On the second anniversary of the war in South Ossetia, RT spoke exclusively to the country's President. Eduard Kokoity shared his experience of the conflict - and told us how he sees things now." - For more on this isseu see....American Selective Attention Deficit Disorder (ASADD) - 08-16-08 - mpg

Latin Leaders to Visit South Ossetia on its Independence Day
A quote...."The two progressive Latin leaders Hugo Chavez and Daniel Ortega will attend the 20th anniversary celebrations of South Ossetia’s deceleration of independence on September 20th."

New Poll Finds Merkel Government at Rock Bottom
A quote...."Germany's economy may be on the mend, but Chancellor Angela Merkel's government is less popular than ever. Fully 83 percent of Germans aren't happy with her coalition -- and the future of the opposition Social Democrats may be looking bright." - also posted at WarInIraq

US -- Venezuela: The Empire Strikes Back (and Loses)
A quote...."US policy toward Venezuela has taken many tactical turns, but the objective has been the same: to oust President Chavez, reverse the nationalization of big businesses, abolish the mass community and worker based councils and revert the country into a client-state." - also posted at AlethoNews

Israel Prohibiting the Right to Demonstrate
Special Note - A quote...."The 1907 Hague Convention's Article 43 and Fourth Geneva's Article 64 require that occupied territory penal laws stay in force, applicable to both occupier and occupied. However, since 1967, Israel issued over 2,500 Military Orders, controlling daily life solely for Palestinians, not settlers, the military commander having final authority over institutionalized discrimination, suppressing democratic freedoms, including free expression and right to gather peacefully to protest. -- Under Israel's 1967 Military Order No. 101 ("Order Regarding Prohibition of Incitement and Hostile Propaganda Actions" as amended), gatherings of more than 10 Palestinians are prohibited without advance IDF notice, including names of participants, those in violation subject to 10 years imprisonment, a heavy fine, or both. The order implies that Palestinians have no legal right to demonstrate, express views freely, or engage in nonviolent peaceful protests."
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Inside Gaza
A quote...."Life in Gaza is unique. Misery is mixed with joy, pain, happiness and suffering. Siege still suffocates people via different manners and tactics. Israel which indirectly pushed Hamas and Fateh towards the split is announcing day and night that siege has been lifted. But facts on the ground are obviously different. Siege is still on there with the same manner but with a different shape." - also posted at Uruknet

West Bank home demolitions continue
A quote...."The US as arbiter for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process has called on both parties not to take part in an inflammatory behavior, but Israel has demolished several West Bank structures as well as Arab homes within Israel with frequency over the past several months." - also posted at Uruknet

Israelis hold protests in 15 cities against demolition of Palestinian homes
A quote...."More than 1,000 demonstrators gathered in cities across Israel on Friday (6 August) for a day of solidarity marking the one-year anniversary of the eviction and settler take over of the Ghawi and Hanoun family homes in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah." - also posted at IP-MsngHdlns

Foundation says hundreds more tombstones disinterred
A quote...."JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israeli bulldozers entered the Mamilla (Ma'man Allah) cemetery in West Jerusalem on Monday night, and began taking down headstones from Muslim graves, a statement from the Jerusalem-based Al-Aqsa Foundation for Waqf and Heritage said."

Staying Human
A quote...."Vittorio Arrigoni has written an on-the-spot account of what occurred in Gaza during Israel’s Cast Lead operation. Arrigoni — who lived in Gaza working as an authentic journalist and volunteer with International Solidarity Movement — exemplifies what it is to be a humanist. This comes through in his Gaza: Stay Human  — an eyewitness chronicling of destruction, misery, courage, inhumanity, and humanity in Gaza during the massacre that was Cast Lead." - also posted at Uruknet

[Palestinian] Farmers reclaim land from [Israeli] settlement - Hip Hip Hooray!
A quote...."BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Aided by the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committee, farmers from a southern West Bank village have reclaimed lands inside an illegal Israeli settlement. -- Imad Ash-Shaer, 42, from Husan village, said he gave up hope 10 years ago that he would be able to farm his land, annexed by an Israeli military base at the entrance to Betar Illit settlement." - also posted at IP-MsngHdlns

Malaysian medical team arrives in Gaza
Action Update - A quote...."The team which includes 67 volunteers of doctors, directors and ten journalists will spend 13 days in the Gaza Strip. The team arrived in Gaza to make surgeries for patients in the Gaza Strip and deliver humanitarian service to them."
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Conservative vs. liberal = straw man
A quote...."This is a Class War going on today. It’s the rich vs. the middle and lower classes. The rich are getting away with this because corporations have mastered the technique of the “Straw Man argument.” -- Basically, a “Straw Man argument” is a cheap tactic, to get the focus of the debate OFF the subject you don’t want to argue, and instead ON to a different version of that argument where you can win. It’s a fallacy, and isn’t really arguing at all."

As the Obama Economic Team Bails, the System Fails to Generate Jobs. Are the Causes, Um, 'Structural'?
A quote...."In Washington, the Obama economic team has sprung a leak. First, Budget Director Peter Orszag, the calculating numbers savant, bailed. And now, "distinguished" economist Christina Romer, the only woman in that inner circle boys club has quit too. (Would you want to be around Larry Summers all day long?) -- Why this crew of losers wasn't fired eludes me despite their claims of having prevented a worse collapse. No doubt, they know more than they are saying, and, perhaps, now that they are no longer selling, they may be willing to do some telling on just how bad it is and what went wrong. -- Who's next?  Could Ben Bernanke be leaving the Fed for Fed-Ex?"

Gold and Systemic Crisis
From the History File - 09/05/2009 -- A quote...."To all; are you ready? Never in the history of financial markets have there been so many landmines in place, each one wired directly to a nuclear bomb that sits atop the ENTIRE global financial system. The 'masters of the financial universe' have postponed the coming day of reckoning for so long and in so many different ways that they have backed themselves into a corner where almost any movement at all will trip one of these numerous landmines."

Market Volume Tumbles To 50% Below Average As Dislocations Abound
Market Tech Note - Chart - A quote...."A quick look at market volume: in a word - deplorable. It confirms what Gillian Tett said last week, piggybacking on our ongoing fund outflow observations, that there is "a loss of confidence – not merely in the idea that the future will be a brighter place, but also, most crucially, about whether anybody is able to predict that future at all." She concludes: "it is bad for investors to feel confused about the outlook for government regulation or deflation; but it seems that nobody really understands how the basic mechanics of the equity market work any more, it is hard to trust that the stock markets are a good destination for your money. Little wonder, then, that those US equity mutual fund outflows have accelerated." Presenting exhibit A of precisely this phenomenon: today's ES volume is about the worst it has been in, well, ever, at 50% below average!"

The Horrific Derivatives Bubble That Could One Day Destroy The Entire World Financial System
Pssssst!  It already has, all they've done is just paper it over with more deirvatives. - mpg -- A quote...."Today there is a horrific derivatives bubble that threatens to destroy not only the U.S. economy but the entire world financial system as well, but unfortunately the vast majority of people do not understand it.  When you say the word “derivatives” to most Americans, they have no idea what you are talking about.  In fact, even most members of the U.S. Congress don’t really seem to understand them.  But you don’t have to get into all the technicalities to understand the bigger picture.  Basically, derivatives are financial instruments whose value depends upon or is derived from the price of something else.  A derivative has no underlying value of its own.  It is essentially a side bet.  Originally, derivatives were mostly used to hedge risk and to offset the possibility of taking losses.  But today it has gone way, way beyond that.  Today the world financial system has become a gigantic casino where insanely large bets are made on anything and everything that you can possibly imagine."

Economists Herald New Great Depression
A quote...."The world is currently experiencing the modern day equivalent of the Great Depression, according to a prominent economist who has added his voice to scores of others now forecasting ongoing economic doom on a scale not seen since the 1930s."

Growth in China's exports, imports slows down in July - They probably meant this headline as a joke....
A quote...."BEIJING, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- China's exports rose 38.1 percent year on year to 145.52 billion U.S. dollars in July, but the growth rate was down from a 43.9-percent surge in June, the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said Tuesday." - bold by website editor -- Gee....how awful, guess that means China will own the entire world's economy in about ten years instead of 9.8 years. - mpg

Sunday August 8th 2010

No posts. - mpg

Saturday August 7th 2010

Foreign Fighters in Iraq Are Tied to Allies of U.S.
Special Note - HOW IN THE HELL DID THE NEW YORK TIMES' EDITORS EVER LET THIS ONE SLIP THROUGH!!! - (well heck, it's only been about ten years, one supposes they gotta say SOMETHING about this sort of issue every once and awhile) mpg -- -- From the History File - Published: November 22, 2007 - A quote...."BAGHDAD — Saudi Arabia and Libya, both considered allies by the United States in its fight against terrorism, were the source of about 60 percent of the foreign fighters who came to Iraq in the past year to serve as suicide bombers or to facilitate other attacks, according to senior American military officials." - bold by website editor - For more on this issue see....One Vile, Venom Tipped, Taloned Hand Washes the Other -- (a.k.a. The Standard Model) - 07-28-10 - mpg

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How Low Can Reuters Go?
08-07-10
mpg

Iran's Ahmadinejad doubts Sept 11 attack toll
Propaganda Alert - Special Note - This is a deliberate, disingenuous, and premeditated hit piece penned by Robin Pomeroy and Ramin Mostafavi of Reuters News attempting to link people who question the events of 9/11 to Holocaust deniers.

Obviously the Holocaust happened, the Nazis were very good record keepers and documented each of the abhorrent and unique processes which lead to the holocaust. Essentially the industrialization of extermination on a mass scale. Pure, malevolent, evil on earth by any measure. Whatever erroneous information Ahmadinejad may have been fed about this issue is between him and his advisers and he should suspect immediately any adviser who is giving him false information on the holocaust of perhaps being under the influence of a foreign power.

That said, there are grounds to believe that "some" Israeli nationals or "Jewish Americans" may have received prior warnings regarding the events that occurred on 9/11.  Whatever the case may be there is OVER-WHELMING evidence of direct Israeli involvement regarding the events that occurred on that day.

This article is another, poorly designed attempt, to distract and befuddle people from searching out the truth regarding what really happened on 9/11.  And to distance some members of the "Jewish American" community and the state of Israel from their almost assured participation in a crime of unimaginable proportions.  Not only is it a crime because of the murder of those three thousand people on that fateful day, but much more importantly the millions who were murdered afterward using this terrible event as a pretext, according to plans drawn up many years before.  Plans which as of yet, no establishment reporters, certainly not these two, seem to want to discuss now or at anytime in the future.

What these "reporters", or perhaps we should say stenographers for the AIPAC/Israeli lobby have done is a disgrace to all the Reuters reporters who have lost their lives trying to actually report the truth in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.  Many of whom were deliberately targeted and killed by American forces while doing so.

Robin Pomeroy and Ramin Mostafavi have obviously learned nothing from the massive loss of credibility this nation's "journalistic" profession has suffered from the likes of Pamela Hess, Judith Miller, Jeff Gannon, Michael Gordon and Brian Ross.

This website editor will watch these two reporters careers with great interest from now on to see what other AIPAC/Israeli inspired drivel they'll pen in the future. - mpg

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There is NO Down side for Israel for the coming Zionist instigated, USA Attack on Iran
War Alert - Special Note - A quote...."Israel wanted Saddam gone and pulled their puppets strings in the WH and Congress to raze that nation to the ground, but by using American money and other people's lives and the horrible visions of the MOSSAD/CIA 9/11 false flag to scare the hell out of Americans into invading Iraq. -- Since then, the USA has been bogged down, stuck in Iraq with no clear signs or intent to exit. -- Israel's goal of removing Saddam was realized, along with the utter destruction of Iraq and the murder of millions of Iraqis."

Recent Israeli Provocations
War Alert - (War Provocation) -- A quote...."US, August 7, (Pal Telegraph – By Stephen Lendman) Perhaps suggesting a larger-scale planned offensive, recent violent Israeli outbreaks struck Gaza, the West Bank, and Israeli/Lebanon border, the first there since the summer 2006 war."

Lebanon bent on building up army after Israel clash - i.e. they're getting ready. - mpg
War Alert - (War Preparation) -- A quote...."BEIRUT (Reuters) – Lebanon said Saturday it was committed to building up its armed forces after complaints by Israel about Western assistance to the military following a deadly border clash between the two countries."

Scott Horton Interviews The Other Scott Horton
Audio Interview - A quote...."The Other Scott Horton (no relation), international human rights lawyer, professor and contributing editor at Harper’s magazine, discusses the only law explicitly defined in the U.S. Constitution: treason, why the founding fathers made treason prosecutions difficult by design, the very serious charges facing accused “WikiLeaker” Bradley Manning (but treason and espionage aren’t among them), Mark Thiessen’s Washington Post op-ed on why “WikiLeaks must be stopped” and the double standard that allows pro-war pundits to leak government-favorable classified information without rebuke." -- ||  MP3 here. (19m:24s)  ||
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Foreign mercs must leave, Karzai says
A quote...."Afghan President Hamid Karzai has called on the United States and its allies to stop supporting private security companies, saying the activities of these firms aggravate the country's problems."

Pakistan president willing to talk to Taliban
A quote...."Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan's president, has indicated he is willing to consider reopening negotiations with the Taliban in his country."
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Lebanon charges 3rd telecom spy
A quote...."A Lebanese prosecutor has pressed charges of spying for Israel against another employee of the state-owned Alfa mobile phone firm amid an anti-espionage crackdown in the Arab country."

3 Lebanese arrested for spying for Israel: report
A quote...."BEIRUT, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- Three Lebanese "high-ranking non- civilian employees" have been arrested in Lebanon on suspicion of spying for Israel, a local daily newspaper reported Saturday. -- The three men were arrested on Friday night, El-Shark said in a brief report. -- The report came in the middle of a political shock caused by the arrest of a retired army general on spying charges. -- General Fayez Karam was arrested on Monday, and he is being investigated on charges that could lead to death penalty."

Arrest of former army general shocks Lebanon
A quote...."BEIRUT: This week’s arrest of a well-respected retired general and politician allied with Hezbollah on suspicion of spying for Israel has sent shock waves through Lebanon and left many wondering how deep the Jewish state has infiltrated the country."
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Envoy Lauds 'Growing' Trend of Iran-Lebanon Ties
A quote...."TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian envoy to Beirut lauded the growing trend of ties between Iran and Lebanon, and underlined Tehran's determination to implement reconstruction projects in the East Mediterranean state."

Iran Warns of Tough Reaction to Enemy Reconnaissance Flights
Since the flights would be made for the sole purpose of developing a target list, any normal country would obviously make it a high priority that they be shot down. - mpg -- A quote...."TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi warned here on Saturday that Iran will show a tough reaction to enemy's reconnaissance flights over the country."

Analyst: Iran Likely to Hold Talks with Vienna Group in Two Weeks
A quote...."TEHRAN (FNA)- An Iranian top analyst said that Tehran is likely to attend talks with the Vienna Group (Russia, the US, France and the International Atomic Energy Agency) over the supply of nuclear fuel for its Tehran research reactor within the next two weeks."

Fidel Castro Urges Obama Not to Attack Iran
A quote...."Havana, August 7 (Prensa Latina) The leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, today urged US President Barack Obama to consider and not give the order to attack Iran, and so avoid a nuclear conflagration."

MKO Remains in US Blacklist
A quote...."TEHRAN (FNA)- The anti-Iran terrorist group, the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO), remained in the US list of terrorist groups and organizations despite intense efforts by Zionist lobbies and a number of the Congressmen to delist the group."
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The U.S. and Yemen's President: A Lethal Cocktail
A quote...."How involved is the U.S. military in Yemen, and is the Obama Administration laying the groundwork for a new foreign adventure? According to several news agencies, including Agence France Presse, UPI and the Washington Post, very involved and likely to be more so in the future."

Russia Accuses US of Breaking Disarmament Agreement
A quote...."Moscow has accused the US of breaking a disarmament agreement between the two countries, the Russian foreign ministry said Saturday, according to local news agency reports, dpa reported. -- President Dmitry Medvedev and his US counterpart Barack Obama signed the most wide-ranging nuclear arms control treaty for decades in Prague in April, and Russian-US relations seemed to have improved."

Russia test launches second Sineva ballistic missile in two days
A quote...."NOVOROSSIISK, July 14 (RIA Novosti) - Russia has test-launched a second Sineva intercontinental ballistic missile from a submarine, the chief of the General Staff said on Tuesday. -- The first launch was conducted on Monday from a Delta IV class strategic nuclear-powered submarine of Russia's Northern Fleet."

War Wounds: 2 years since bloody attack on South Ossetia
RTVideo - Alt - (RTYuTb - 7 min 17 sec - August 07, 2010) - Source:  RussiaToday -- A quote...."South Ossetia is remembering the victims of the 2008 war with Georgia. Hundreds were killed when Tbilisi attacked the breakaway republic with artillery and tanks two years ago. Moscow sent forces to protect the people of the republic, many of whom are Russian citizens. After five days of bloody battles, the Georgian troops were pushed back to the border. Several countries have since recognised the independence of South Ossetia - Russia being the first. Moscow has also been helping rebuild the republic. But Georgia maintains the country is still part of its territory."

Bulgaria, Serbia decide on South Stream onshore route
A quote...."Bulgarian Prime Minister, Boiko Borisov and Serbian President, Boris Tadic have decided on onshore route of the South Stream pipeline designed to transport Russian gas to western Europe, Borisov told bTV channel on Saturday."

Will Poland’s Former Leaders Face War Crimes Charges for Hosting Secret CIA Prison?
A quote...."The mainstream media in the United States (and in the UK) has ignored the release last week of documents in Poland confirming that planes chartered by the CIA flew to the site of a secret CIA prison in north eastern Poland in 2002 and 2003. The documents, released by the Polish Border Guard Office, confirm previously released flight information disclosed by the Polish Air Navigation Service Agency, and also confirm that three “high-value detainees” — Abu Zubaydah, Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri and Ramzi bin al-Shibh — were flown from Thailand to Poland on December 5, 2002, as I reported exclusively here."

Fidel Castro addresses parliament after four-year gap
A quote...."Fidel Castro, the former Cuban leader, has delivered his first speech to the national assembly since resigning over ill health four years ago. -- The chamber erupted into applause at the sight of Mr Castro, dressed in his familiar olive-green fatigues but without his comandante's insignia. -- In an uncharacteristically short speech of just over 10 minutes, he urged the US not to allow a war with Iran."

Venezuela signals thaw with Colombia, tensions linger
A quote...."(Reuters) - Venezuela's foreign minister will attend the inauguration of Colombia's incoming president, Juan Manuel Santos, on Saturday, signaling a thaw between the Andean neighbors after relations broke over leftist rebels."
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WikiLeaks to Publish New Documents Despite US Threats
A quote...."BERLIN - The online whistle-blower WikiLeaks said it will continue to publish more secret files from governments around the world despite U.S. demands to cancel plans to release classified military documents." - Source:  AP

Mirroring Bush-era police state, Obama supports DNA sampling of public when arrested
A quote...."Obama told Walsh that he supports the position of the federal government and the 18 states that have passed laws requiring the collection of DNA samples from all people arrested for anything from a felony to a misdemeanor. These DNA samples then become part of law enforcement databases that can then be used in future investigations." - also posted at BLN
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Israeli Organ-trafficking Ring Busted
A quote...."Ukrainian police have smashed an Israeli-run organ-trafficking network illegally recruiting organ donors to send their body parts to Israel. -- Ukrainian authorities said on Friday that twelve people, most of them Israelis, were arrested for taking part in a scheme to recruit organ donors from Ukraine and other former Soviet countries via internet and transplant the organs into Israelis who had ordered them in advance." -- For more on this issue see....Israeli Organ Thefts

Was the tree really on Israeli territory? Not quite.
A quote...."The tree was located north of the Israeli self-erected ‘technical fence’, and south of the Blue Line. As Bart Peeters points out, the blue line is not an international border, nor an internationally recognised border, but simply an armistice line (and a contested one at that) set up by the UN in 2000 to mark the line of the Israeli withdrawal from its 18 year occupation of the south of Lebanon. The Blue Line is disputed by both Lebanon and Israel in many places. The tree, now removed, was located in a legal no-man’s land and apparently has no legal border status." - also posted at AlethoNews
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

On the Freedom Flight From Gaza, For a While
Special Note - Quote of the Day...."GAZA CITY, Aug 7, 2010 (IPS) - I tasted freedom for the first time in three years. After being stuck in Gaza since 2007 I travelled to Malaysia for a holiday. It was like visiting another planet. Being treated like a human being and being able to experience what many young people around the world take for granted, was a miracle."

Masked settlers attack international peace activists in Hebron
A quote...."Al-Buwayra, HEBRON - This morning, in a second day of violence in the village of Al-Buwayra, near Hebron, two international peace activists were attacked by three Israeli settlers wearing black masks. -- Both were left seriously injured and have been hospitalized following the unprovoked attack. -- The settlers knocked Canadian Peter Cunliffe, 26, to the ground then beat him in the face and body using metal poles and wooden sticks. He is being treated for a probable broken nose and serious back injuries. -- Danish peace activist Koba Soernesen. 23, is currently having his left foot examined as he is unable to stand." - also posted at AlethoNews

Media groups slam attacks against journalists
A quote...."NABLUS (Ma’an) -- Reporters Without Borders and a forum of Palestinian journalists separately condemned the recent wave of violence against journalists across the occupied Palestinian territories."

Anti-wall Protest In Ni'lin To Commemorate The Death Of One Of Its Activists
A quote...."The villagers of Ni'lin, near Ramallah, in the West Bank organized their weekly nonviolent protest Friday at noon.This week's activity was dedicated to commemorate the death of Yousef 'Amira who was killed by Israeli troops in 2008 during a nonviolent protest in the village. -- The villagers managed to hold their prayers on the lands slated for confiscation for the sake of building the wall." - also posted at IPMsngHdlns

EXCLUSIVE...Emily Henochowicz Speaks Out: Art Student Who Lost Her Eye After Being Shot by Israeli Tear Gas Canister in West Bank Protest Discusses Her Life, Her Art, and Why She Plans to Return -- A quote...."Today, a Democracy Now! global broadcast exclusive interview with Emily Henochowicz. She’s the twenty-one-year-old American art student who lost her eye in May after being shot in the face by an Israeli tear gas canister at a protest against Israel’s attack on the Gaza flotilla that left nine people dead. "I’m not ashamed of the fact that I lost my eye. I’m proud of who I am. I believed in the cause, and that’s why I came to that demonstration on that day," Henochowicz says. "I’m not going to be the same person that I was before this happened." [includes rush transcript]" -- ||  Real Video Stream  ||  Real Audio Stream  ||  MP3 Download  ||  More…  || 

Academic Boycott on Israel Flexes Its Muscles
Action Alert - Boycott, Divest and Sanction, because it's the ONLY way to get Israel to STOP! - mpg -- A quote...."WERE IT not for the eagle eyes of Nur Marsalha, a professor of religion and politics in England, perusing the program for the biennial conference of the International Society for Iranian Studies (ISIS), Israel might have won a small victory in its efforts to legitimize its military occupation of the West Bank." -- 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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Japan – America’s Lost Decade – InflationUS
Video - Alt - (YouTube - 12 min 36 sec - August 06, 2010) - Source:  InflationUS

Bob Chapman's Economic Report: The Elites Coordinated Global Currency Devaluation Agenda 1/3 - Part2 - Part3
Video - BC&AJ(1/3) - BC&AJ(2/3) - BC&AJ(3/3) - (AJYuTb - 10min - August 06, 2010) - Source:  TheAlexJonesChnl -- A quote...."A quote...."Quantitative easing, recovery not real, inflation to be reignited,even higher inflation expected by some, forces that control the money and politics from behind the scenes, a boiling cauldron of instability that could break loose at any time raising havoc with the system."

Dollar nears 15-year low versus yen
A quote...."(Reuters) - The U.S. dollar approached a 15-year low against the yen on Friday and fell against the euro after news that the United States shed twice as many jobs in July as expected added to worries about the economic recovery."
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Friday August 6th 2010

The War on Iraq : Five US Presidents, Five British Prime Ministers, Thirty Years of Duplicity, and Counting.... -- Must Read - A quote...."Twenty years ago this August, with a green light from America, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait. He had walked in to possibly the biggest trap in modern history, unleashing Iraq's two decade decimation, untold suffering, illegal bombings, return of diseases previously eradicated and what can also only be described as UN-sponsored infanticide." -- also posted at Uruknet

What collapsing empire looks like
Must Read - A quote...."As we enter our ninth year of the War in Afghanistan with an escalated force, and continue to occupy Iraq indefinitely, and feed an endlessly growing Surveillance State, reports are emerging of the Deficit Commission hard at work planning how to cut Social Security, Medicare, and now even to freeze military pay.  But a new New York Times article  today illustrates as vividly as anything else what a collapsing empire looks like, as it profiles just a few of the budget cuts which cities around the country are being forced to make.  This is a sampling of what one finds...." - also posted at ICH

Who will take out the garbage if our courts of justice won’t punish war crimes?
A quote...."Millions would love to see the present crop of war criminals dangling from lamp-posts. -- But somebody called "Ellie", writing on Medialens has put a damper on this happy prospect. She explained the difficulties in bringing the scum to book. One of the things the British government wants to do, she said, is "stop the possibility of private prosecutions for [international] crimes committed by foreign nationals, so that friendly war criminals can continue to sup tea in Buckingham Palace".

Top US court refuses to halt Khadr Guantanamo trial
A quote...."WASHINGTON, Aug 6 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court refused on Friday to block next week's trial at Guantanamo Bay of a young Canadian who had been captured in Afghanistan. -- Omar Khadr, now 23, was 15 years old at the time of his 2002 capture in Afghanistan at a suspected al Qaeda compound. He is scheduled to go to trial at the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba on Aug. 10 on charges that include conspiring to commit terrorism and murdering a U.S. soldier. -- His lawyers sought to put the trial on hold while they challenge the constitutionality of the military tribunals. But the Supreme Court rejected the request in a one-line order." - For more on this issue see....9/11-Iraq-Torture Fables

Scott Horton Interviews Andy Worthington
Audio Interview - Related Interview - A quote...."Andy Worthington, author of The Guantanamo Files, discusses the last ditch effort of Omar Khadr’s military lawyer to stop his client’s war crimes trial,  government use of the catch-all “material support for terrorism” charge when all other crimes won’t stick and why the popular outcry for “tough” military commissions trials for accused terrorists ignores the near-perfect conviction rate in federal courts." -- ||  MP3 here. (20min:33sec)  || - For more on this issue see....9/11-Iraq-Torture Fables

Letting Torturers Go Free - posted at Consortium News
A quote...."Although U.S. officials have attributed the torture of Muslim prisoners in American custody to a handful of maverick guards or limited to a few “high-value detainees,” such criminal acts were widely perpetrated, likely involving large numbers of military personnel, a book by a survivor suggests."

October Surprise Cover-up Unravels - posted at Consortium News
Special Note - For all those LOVELY, cud chewing, goy-cattle out there, as they would so succinctly put it - "A'nudder one ol'dem dare con....con....you'know, dat ting da keep as secret....got all kinds ol'blowed-upped!" -- A quote...."Not to belabor a point, but some die-hard defenders of the October Surprise cover-up continue to insist that there is real evidence debunking the now overwhelming case that Ronald Reagan’s 1980 campaign interfered with President Jimmy Carter’s negotiations to free 52 American hostages then held in Iran." -- Yeah, right on, and you know what folks, for all those people out there that still think the official explanation of 9/11 is correct, you really do deserve to be sheeple led to the slaughter. - mpg

RAF to shrink to World War One levels
Gawd Dang!  Being the New Roman Empire's (and Israel's) lackey is just so gawd darned expensive! - mpg -- A quote...."In the most significant changes to Britain’s defences since the post-Suez review of 1957, ministers and officials plan to scrap large parts of the Armed Forces. - The Services will lose up to 16,000 personnel, hundreds of tanks, scores of fighter jets and half a dozen ships, under detailed proposals passed to The Daily Telegraph."
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Exclusive Rethink Afghanistan Footage Exposes One of the Worst Civilian Casualty Incidents of the War
Action Alert - Petition to Congress - A quote...."For weeks, U.S. and allied forces in Afghanistan have denied they killed several dozen civilians in Sangin District of Helmand Province on July 23. But our new video exposes the truth about one of the worst civilian casualty incidents of the war. Watch our exclusive interviews with survivors and demand that your elected officials act to prevent future catastrophes like this." - also posted at Uruknet

Dismembering Afghanistan
Special Note - Quote of the Day...."Wars are rarely lost in a single encounter; Defeat is almost always more complex than that. The United States and its North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies have lost the war in Afghanistan, but not just because they failed in the battle for Marjah or decided that discretion was the better part of valor in Kandahar. They lost the war because they should never have invaded in the first place; because they never had a goal that was achievable; because their blood and capital are finite. -- The face of that defeat was everywhere this past month." - also posted at Uruknet

Afghanistan: how Nato forces gunned down peaceful protesters
A quote...."The release by WikiLeaks of over 90,000 secret documents has underlined the vicious nature of the occupation of Afghanistan. -- The papers give the lie to the claim that US-led forces are bringing peace and democracy to the country." - also posted at Uruknet

NATO helicopter goes down in southern Afghanistan
A quote...."NATO forces say a Canadian helicopter has gone down in southern Afghanistan but no one was injured. -- The craft went down Thursday afternoon in Kandahar province's Panjwai District, a volatile area under the command of Canadian forces. NATO forces spokesman Maj. Michael Johnson says the craft made a "hard landing" and then caught fire. -- Taliban spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi claimed the insurgent group shot the craft down with a rocket. Johnson said the cause of the incident is being investigated and hostile fire has not been ruled out."

9 mercs killed in Afghanistan
A quote...."At least nine members of a private security firm have been killed in a roadside bombing in eastern Afghanistan, local Afghan officials say. -- The bomb blast damaged a car carrying security firm workers in the village of Asmar in Kunar province late on Thursday, a Press TV correspondent reported."
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Isolating Iran is Part of the "Great Energy Game"
Must Read - A quote...."The Middle East is witness to continuous developments these days, such as Iran’s active diplomacy to attract the indispensable 118-member bloc of non-aligned countries to support its nuclear program, the growing isolation of Israel in European countries and within academic circles in the U.S., Arabs’ fears of losing the power game in the Persian Gulf region, and the expansion of illegal settlements of Israel in the West Bank and its unremitting disobedience to United Nations Security Council resolutions."

Weekly Standard Falsely Claims Iran Is Starting Proxy War With Israel
Propaganda Alert - A quote...."It’s nothing unusual for the flagship neocon rag, the Weekly Standard, to try to start wars in the Middle East. But Gabriel Schoenfeld’s post today on the magazine’s blog was irresponsible even by the Standard’s… well, standards. -- Schoenfeld, a fellow at the neocon Hudson Institute, fabricates the details of incidents at the southern and northern edges of Israel in order to connect the attacks to the Islamic Republic."

China and Iran Cement Bilateral Cooperation
A quote...."  This morning in Beijing, Chinese Vice President Li Keqiang held a meeting with Iran’s Oil Minister Masoud Mirkazemi that aimed at further expansion of cooperation between the two historic neighbors. -- China’s Vice President Li expressed satisfaction over growing bilateral ties and hoped for better trade, economic and people-to-people ties between China and Iran. China as a fast emerging global superpower recognizes Iran’s right of access to a peaceful domestic nuclear program."

US Containment Strategy For China is Mere Pipedream
A quote...."Tensions have been building in recent weeks over events in the Yellow Sea and the South China Sea. Many  Chinese observers wonder if the US is trying to contain China's peaceful growth. The US is even improving its relationships with China's neighbors that were once former US opponents. -- There are signs that the US is trying to meddle and dominate issues involving China. For decades, US policy toward China wavered between containment and engagement."

Arab majority backs nuclear Iran
A quote...."A new poll shows that the percentage of the Arab world that thinks a nuclear-armed Iran would be good for the Middle East has doubled since last year and now makes up the majority. -- The 2010 Arab Public Opinion Poll found that 57 percent of respondents not only believe that Iran's nuclear program aims to build a bomb but also view that goal positively -- nearly double the 29 percent who thought so in 2009. The percentage of those who view an Iranian nuclear bomb negatively fell by more than half, from 46 percent to 21 percent." - also posted at ICH & TehranTimes

'Israel Will be Destroyed if Attacks Iran', Senior US Analysts Warn
A quote...." Veteran ex-CIA officials now forming a group a called the Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS), issued a blunt warning to US President Obama that any Israeli unilateral military action against Iran would ultimately lead to destruction of Israel itself. In a latest memorandum published by VIPS, US President was urged to watch for an Israeli ‘mousetrap’ that's being setup to drag the United States into a wider conflict. -- The ex-CIA officers who had accurately predicted US predicament following the 2003 illegal invasion of Iraq are calling on the US government to dismiss Israelis claims on dangers posed by Iran’s nuclear program. ‘Blindsiding has long been an arrow in Israel's quiver,’ VIPS said, adding, ‘during the emerging Middle East crisis in the spring of 1967, some of us witnessed closely a flood of Israeli surprises and deception, as Netanyahu's predecessors feigned fear of an imminent Arab attack as justification for starting a war to seize and occupy Arab territories.’" -bold by website editor

Chossudovsky on Iran: US winks, Israel bites
RTVideo - Alt - (RTYuTb - 2 min 14 sec - August 04, 2010) - Source:  RussiaToday -- A quote...."A group of former intelligence and military officials is demanding immediate action from Barack Obama - to prevent a war in the Middle East. They claim Israel's counting on Washington to offer unconditional support for an attack on Iran, as early as this month. It comes just days after U.S. top brass refused to rule out a strike on the Islamic state. The group - which includes former CIA agents - says a war in Iran will ignite a regional conflict, which could lead to the annihilation of Israel. Tehran has repeatedly refused diplomatic relations with Tel-Aviv, as it maintains the Jewish state has no right to exist. Michel Chossudovsky from the Canadian Centre for Research on Globalisation, thinks Israel won't strike until Washington tells it to."
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'US trying to destabilize Iraq'
Or it could be the Saudi Royals making trouble for Iraq's current Shia regime, or both the US-NRE & Saudi Royals. - mpg -- A quote..."An Iraqi cleric has accused US-led troops of attempting to extend their presence in Iraq by staging the recent terrorist attacks in the country.

AP: New al-Qaida leader knows US well
Paragraph quoted from CLG...."AP: New al-Qaida leader knows US well [He should! He likely spent most of the 15 years training at 'The Farm' at Camp Peary!] 06 Aug 2010 A suspected al-Qaida operative who lived for more than 15 years in the U.S. has become chief of the terror network's global operations, the FBI says, marking the first time a leader so intimately familiar with American society has been placed in charge of planning attacks. Adnan Shukrijumah, 35, has taken over a position once held by 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who was captured in 2003, Miami-based FBI counterterrorism agent Brian LeBlanc told The Associated Press. That puts him in regular contact with al-Qaida's senior leadership, including Osama bin Laden, LeBlanc said." - underline by website editor

Russia’s recognition of S.Ossetia was end of unipolar world - Kokoity
A quote...."Russia’s recognition of South Ossetia on August 26, 2008 could go down in history as the moment the world ceased to be unipolar, South Ossetian leader Eduard Kokoity has said."

Russia grants South Ossetia $950 mln in economic aid
A quote...."Russia has provided a total of 28 billion rubles ($950 mln) to facilitate South Ossetia's economic development, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said on Friday."

South Ossetia, August 2008
Photo Gallery

Daniel Ortega to Visit South Ossetia
A quote...."The President of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega, is expected to visit South Ossetia on 20th September to take part in celebrations dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the republic’s declaration of independence, the South Ossetian leader, Eduard Kokoity, said in an interview with the RIA-Novosti news agency on Thursday."

China urges ROK, U.S. to treat its concern seriously
A quote...."BEIJING, Aug. 6 (Xinhua)-- China on Friday urged the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the United States to treat its concern and position seriously on the ROK-U.S. military drills in the Yellow Sea."

Bolivia begins military training for civilians, opposition warns of pro-government militias
WHAT!!  They're not going to be trained at the US-NRE's School of the Americas to be shown how to commit torture, mass-murder and rape??  That's just down right Un-Amerikan!!  - mpg -- A quote...."LA PAZ, Bolivia  (AP) — Bolivia's leftist government said Thursday it has begun military training for civilians at army barracks in what the opposition called a first step toward creating pro-government militias. -- Weapons instruction and physical training began on Monday for hundreds at military bases in Bolivia's east, a stronghold of the pro-business opposition, and army officials said it would extend to all bases."

Spy scandal hounds Uribe's last days in office
A quote...."BOGOTA, Colombia — A domestic spying scandal has reached Alvaro Uribe's inner circle, complicating the legacy of the popular two-term Colombian president who leaves office Saturday with 75 percent approval ratings. -- Prosecutors have been questioning his closest advisers in recent weeks over allegations they illegally ordered warrantless wiretapping of the conservative president's political enemies by the DAS domestic spy agency. -- Uribe's chief of staff, Bernardo Moreno, was deposed last week after jailed former DAS intelligence chief Fernando Tabares said Moreno told him in late 2007 that "the president was interested in having the DAS keep him informed" about four targets."

Nearly 30,000 Dead in Mexican Drug War
A quote...."According to a report presented by the Center for Intelligence and National Security, nearly 30,000 people have died in incidents blamed on organized crime groups, mainly drug traffickers, in Mexico since late 2006, when President Felipe Calderon declared war on the country’s cartels."

Verizon & Google Enter Reported Deal for Tiered Internet Use, Is Net Neutrality in Jeopardy?
Special Note - Web Warning -- A quote...."The internet and telecom giants Verizon and Google have reportedly reached an agreement to impose a tiered system for accessing the internet. The deal would enable Verizon to charge for quicker access to online content over wireless devices, a violation of the concept of net neutrality that calls for equal access to all services. The deal comes amidst closed-door meetings between the Federal Communications Commission and major telecom giants on crafting new regulations. [includes rush transcript]" --  ||  Real Video Stream  ||  Real Audio Stream  ||  MP3 Download  ||  More…  || 
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Fareed Zakaria Returns Anti-Defamation League Award Over Ground Zero Mosque
Hey!!  A man of principals. - mpg - A quote...."Newsweek writer and CNN host Fareed Zakaria has returned an award he received in 2005 from the Anti-Defamation League over the Jewish group's opposition towards the Ground Zero mosque."

Polish court upholds Israeli 'spy' ruling
A quote...."A Polish appeals court has upheld a lower court's decision to extradite to Germany an alleged Mossad agent linked with the assassination of a Hamas official in Dubai."

Israel Plans Mass Forced Removals of Bedouin
A quote...."al-Araqib -- Israeli security forces destroyed a Bedouin village this week for the second time in a matter of days, leaving 300 inhabitants homeless again after they and dozens of Jewish and Arab volunteers had begun rebuilding the 45 homes."
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Israel's siege on freedoms
Must Read - A quote...."It's three years since I've been back to Gaza. Much has happened since my last visit. Fatah waged a failed coup and now rules only the West Bank, while Hamas is in charge of Gaza. Israel launched its deadly Cast Lead assault. Fuel shortages. Electricity crises. And so on." - also posted at Uruknet

Uribe's appointment to flotilla probe guarantees its failure
Must Read - (For the HILARITY of it all!!) - Yeah, the same death-squad leading, indigent-hobo-bum-vagrant snuffing, drug-peddling, US-NRE boot-licker from Columbia has been selected to serve as the vice-chair for Israel's new UN commission to "investigate" the Gaza Flotilla Massacre. -- It's stuff like this that makes you realize the AIPAC/Israeli consortium that owns and runs this country is deliberately rubbing everyone's nose in it and that they simply don't give a damn what anyone thinks about it.  Truly, and remarkably disgusting. - mpg -- A quote...."At the beginning of this month the Israeli government announced it would cooperate with one out of two international UN-sponsored investigation commissions into the 31 May Gaza Freedom Flotilla massacre, a move which UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon claimed was "unprecedented." However, the details of this commission and who will take part in it -- particularly the notorious outgoing president of Colombia, Álvaro Uribe Vélez -- cast doubt over its impartiality."

315 Palestinians including 37 children and 5 women arrested by IOF in July
A quote...."OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Supreme National Committee for the Support of Detainees said that at 315 Palestinians, including 37 children and 5 women, were arrested during the past month of July in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and Jerusalem."

Hamas Rejects Rocket Attack Charges
A quote...."Hamas has rejected allegations by Israeli and Egyptian leaders accusing the resistance movement of being behind rocket attacks on Israel and Jordan earlier this week. -- Egyptian security sources said on Wednesday that seven Soviet-style Grad rockets fired from Egypt's Sinai Peninsula have hit Israel's resort town of Elit and Jordan's port city of Aqaba, killing one civilian and injuring three others in the latter."

Palestinians Denied Access To Water
A quote...."Cara Flowers with the Emergency Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Group (EWASH - a coalition of almost 30 water and sanitation sector organizations in Occupied Palestine) said many vulnerable communities in Israeli-controlled Area C (covering 60% of the West Bank) are hardest hit, the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) having limited say over its own resources, ones Israel uses itself, an international water expert saying: --  It's "easy (making) the desert bloom by using someone else's water (and) denying them access to their fair share...." In some areas, it's easier denying them none except what they can obtain by other means or illegally. - bold by website editor - also posted at Uruknet

Settlers torch farmland east of Nablus
A quote...."NABLUS (Ma'an) -- Israeli settlers set fire to hundreds of dunums of farmland in the northern West Bank village of Beit Furik, locals said."  - also posted at Uruknet

For more on the two articles shown above see....
Israel's Scorched Earth - Updated

Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (29 July – 04 August 2010)
This is what the Israelis do, every day, week in and week out, for over sixty years....mpg
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Keiser Report on Walking Zombies
Must View MKVideo - Alt - (MKRTVideo - August 05, 2010) - Source:  RussiaToday & MaxTV A quote...."This time Max Keiser and co-host Stacy Herbert talk about the walking zombies of the world's largest"

Gerald Celente on US oligopoly and its lies
RTVideo - Alt - (RTYuTb - 2 min 33 sec - August 04, 2010) - Source:  RussiaToday -- A quote...."August marks the three year anniversary of the beginning of the financial crisis. The collapse continues today, said Gerald Celente of the Trends Research Institute."

Goldman Capitulates: Lowers GDP Forecast, Increases Unemployment And Inflation Outlook, Sees Imminent QE "Lite" - A quote...."It's official: the double dip is here. Goldman's Jan Hatzius just lowered his GDP forecast for 2011 from 2.5% to 1.9% (kiss goodbye all those 93 EPS estimates on the S&P), increased his unemployment forecast from 9.8% to 10.0%, boosted his inflation expectation from 0.4% to 1.0%, and said that QE lite is now on the table, as he expects that "the FOMC to announce that they will reinvest the paydown of mortgage-backed securities in the bond market at next Tuesday’s meeting." Look for all other sell-side "strategists" (here's looking at you Neil Dutta) to lower their economic outlook in kind, and the 2011 S&P consensus to decline accordingly." -- Editor's Note Regarding the "S&P consensus to decline accordingly".  The stock market (as apposed to the bond market) has so far paid absolutely no attention to macro-economic fundamentals whatsoever, and even has shrugged off stock market negatives like large mutual fund outflows.  It could conceivably continue to do so for the foreseeable future. (although you'd have to really use your imagination) - mpg

Disappointing NFP: Private Up Just 71k On Consensus Of 90k, Total Down -131K on Consensus -64K
A quote...."July Non Farm Payrolls miss expectations, coming in at -131,000, way below the consensus of -65,000, yet the unemployment rate drops once again to 9.5% as even more people drop out of the labor force. Total Private Payrolls rise only 71k, on consensus estimates of +90k. The June Jobs report is revised majorly downward to -221K, from -125K, as the double dip gets yet another validation. The 2 Year Treasury just hit another fresh all time low of 0.5136%. And the stunner: those working actually declined by 159,000 to 138.960 million, even as another 381 thousand left the labor force between June and July, resulting in an actual drop in the unemployment rate from 9.6% to 9.5%. Another NFP debacle which will certainly cause stocks to sur[g]e by at least 5% as QE 2 is now absolutely inevitable." - bold by website editor

Fannie Mae Seeks $1.5 Billion From U.S. Treasury After 12th Straight Loss
A quote..."A decline in costs from bad loans helped narrow the second- quarter loss to $1.2 billion from $14.8 billion in the same period a year earlier, the Washington-based company said today in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Fannie Mae has accrued more than $148 billion in consecutive losses since 2007, according to data compiled by Bloomberg."

Thursday August 5th 2010

Joe Bageant,: "I Don't Like Liberals...
Must View Video - Alt - (YuTb - 3min 13 sec - July 26, 2010) - Source:  SLOWBOATFILMS777 -- A quote...."An interview with Joe Bageant, author of "Deer Hunting with Jesus", [GoglBkSrch]* and "Rainbow Pie", [GoglBkSrch]* taken from Slowboat Films' "THE KINGDOM OF SURVIVAL." - *links added

NATO And The US: Protectors of Global Corporate Capitalism
Must Listen Audio Interview - A quote...."NATO and the US with all these bases are the protectors of global corporate capitalism, they are the protectors of the world bank, that's the agenda. Those are the oppressors. -- Propaganda model post 9/11 becomes deliberate disinformation; consolidation of media and public relations groups; prison torture across the US; domestic secret detention centers; Operation FALCON mass arrests; suspension of habeas corpus by the Chief Executive; US and NATO as protectors of global capital; structure of inequality maintained by global capital and military empire worldwide; repression that addresses us all; the 1948 Declaration of Human Rights."  --  ||  Guns and Butter - August 4, 2010 at 1:00pm Mp3  || -- For more on the issue of Iraqi Deaths see....US Fake Intel / Propaganda- Iraq Deaths -- For more on torture see....US - Torture & Sex Perv.  --  For more on 9/11 see....Reficultnias's 9/11 Central

Whose Hands? Whose Blood? - Killing Civilians in Afghanistan and Iraq
A quote...."Now, if you were the proverbial fair-minded visitor from Mars (who in school civics texts of my childhood always seemed to land on Main Street, U.S.A., to survey the wonders of our American system), you might be a bit taken aback by Mullen’s statement.  After all, one of the revelations in the trove of leaked documents Assange put online had to do with how much blood from innocent Afghan civilians was already on American hands." - also posted at ICH & CommonDreams

Kabul: US-led raid killed 39 civilians
A quote...."The Afghan government has released the findings of an investigation into a deadly rocket attack by US-led forces in Helmand province last month. -- President Hamid Karzai's office said late on Wednesday the inquiry shows 39 civilians -- all women and children -- were killed in the attack." - also posted at ICH

Afghans Say NATO Strikes Killed [MORE] Civilians
BREAKING: - August 5, 2010 -- A quote...."KABUL, Afghanistan — NATO  officials acknowledged preliminary reports that four to a dozen or more civilians were killed in a coalition airstrike Thursday in Nangarhar Province. Afghan accounts put the civilian deaths as high as 32." - bold by website editor

Turkey kills 6 PKK terrorists in clash
A quote...."A Turkish soldier and six militants have been killed in the latest round of clashes between the Turkish military and members of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)."

A Coup in Turkey Before Any Attack on Iran?
A quote...."Before any attack on Iran, there may be a military coup in Turkey?  Turkey's government is friendly with Iran and has fallen out with Israel.  On 1 August 2010, Turkey's Supreme Military Council held the second day of its annual meeting to discuss promotions and dismissals of officers in the armed forces.  And, this Turkish Military Council seeks the promotion of coup suspects  The military wants to promote 11 generals who have been charged with plotting to bring down the government.  Reportedly, Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called for a cancellation of the promotions for the 11 generals.  But he lacks the power to cancel appointments wanted by the generals.  Abdullah Gul, the president, does have that power because Military Council decisions become law only after being signed by the president.  In the past, no president has dared veto the military’s plans.  Reportedly, Gul has asked the military not to go ahead with the promotions, hinting that he would not sign the Yas documents if the 11 generals were promoted." - also posted at WarInIraq

Why the United States Will Not Strike Iran Now
Must Read - A quote...."The reasons that there will be no US war or military strike against Iran, in the near future, and under the current political environment, are that the US military command, under the guidance of its political leadership, is implementing a strategy of “deterrence” to prevent Iran from continuing its nuclear program. This strategy is based on the latest US military concept of “Joint Operations” which was released on 15 January 2009." -- For more on this issue see....It's a Bit Early for Another War, But Then Again....  07-08-10 - mpg


Iran wants cooperation with Afghans, Tajikistan
A quote...."TEHRAN, Iran – Iran's president called Thursday for a stronger alliance with other countries in the region straddling the Middle East and Central Asia, saying NATO-led troops have failed to restore peace in Afghanistan."

Iran non-oil exports climb by 31%
A quote...."Iran's non-oil exports have witnessed a 31 percent growth from March to July 2010 despite sanctions, the head of Iran's Trade Promotion Organization says. -- Iran exported over 3,300 types of goods worth $7.7 billion to more than 160 countries in the first quarter of the current Iranian calendar year, which runs from March 21 to July 21, 2010, IRIB quoted Babak Afqahi as saying."

Russia to assemble Italian armored vehicles for its military - paper
A quote...."The LMV M65 is a light multirole armored vehicle developed in 2001 by Iveco Defense Vehicles. It is designed primarily for strategic and tactical mobility with a high level of protection against anti-tank and anti-personnel mines -- Italian LMVs have been used in Iraq, Afghanistan and other NATO missions, where their performance has been praised. -- The Russian state corporation Rostekhnologii is currently holding talks with Iveco on launching the joint venture with planned minimum capacity of 500 vehicles per year."

Russian nuclear-powered cruiser makes port call in Goa
A quote...."The Pyotr Veliky nuclear-powered guided-missile cruiser will visit the port of Mormugao in the Indian state of Goa on August 6-11, the Russian Embassy in India said."

Kyrgyz Troops Crush Opposition Protest, Arrest Leader
A quote...."Kyrgyz soldiers acting on orders of the interim government violently crushed an attempted protest in the capital city of Bishkek today, and police arrested key opposition leader Urmat Baryktabasov."

China launches 5th GPS satellite
A quote...."China has launched its fifth satellite from the Xi Chang Center in the southern Sichuan Province as part of its GPS satellite navigation system. -- BeiDou-2 IGSO-1 was placed into orbit via the CZ-3A Chang Zheng-3A (CZ3A-17/Y16) launch vehicle on Sunday at 5:30 a.m. local time."

Chinese developing missile that can destroy an aircraft carrier
Weapons Tech Alert - A quote...."U.S. naval planners are scrambling to deal with what analysts say is a game-changing weapon being developed by China — an unprecedented carrier-killing missile called the Dong Feng 21D that could be launched from land with enough accuracy to penetrate the defenses of even the most advanced moving aircraft carrier at a distance of more than 1,500 kilometers (900 miles)."
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AP Exclusive: CIA whisked detainees from Gitmo - And the 9/11 cover-up continues! - mpg
Special Note - A quote...."AP Exclusive: To keep program secret, CIA whisked 9/11 figures from Gitmo before court ruling. -- Four of the nation's most highly valued terrorist prisoners were secretly moved to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in 2003, years earlier than has been disclosed, then whisked back into overseas prisons before the Supreme Court could give them access to lawyers, The Associated Press has learned." - For more on this issue see....9/11-Iraq-Torture Fables

9/11: Why Hasn't the USA Tried & Convicted Bin Laden?
Special Note - A quote...."Americans have been told at least a gazillion times that 'Bynjamin' Laden was behind the 9/11 attacks. -- We've been told a trillion times that they had all the evidence needed to convict 'Binjamin' Laden. -- We've been told a billion times that 'Bennie' Laden must be caught, 'Dead or Alive.' -- So why not try 'Benjamin' Laden "In Absentia," convict him with all that evidence they proclaim to have and find him guilty? Or would that trial not be a 'slam dunk?' -- Would actually capturing the dead Bin Laden fug up some serious plans to wage "Wars for Wall Street and Israel?' "

Study: CIA doctors ‘gave green light to torture’
A quote...."A new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association reveals that physicians with the CIA's Office of Medical Services (OMS) played an even greater role in facilitating the torture of detainees than was previously recognized."

Google-Verizon Deal: The End of The Internet as We Know It
Web Red Alert - A quote...."For years, Internet advocates have warned of the doomsday scenario that will play out on Monday: Google and Verizon will announce a deal that the New York Times reports "could allow Verizon to speed some online content to Internet users more quickly if the content's creators are willing to pay for the privilege." - also posted at CommonDreams

Jane Bürgermeister – Bloggers Persecuted & Declared Insane to Silence Dissent – Vienna
Related Article - A quote...."(WeAreChangeAustria) – Jane Bürgermeister and other critical bloggers in and around Austria are being targeted, declared insane and stripped of their civil rights. As the cases pile up, a pattern of corruption and systematic persecution emerges. But Jane Bürgermeister, who has been a major force in educating the world about the dangers of the H1N1 vaccine, will not give up that easy. Ultimately, the power lies in our hands, as the past has shown. Stay tuned for updates."

A Full-Service Bank: R. Allen Stanford and the CIA
Special Note - A laundry list of bank swindles, drugs and covert operations. - mpg -- A quote...."In a scandal-plagued era such as ours, scarred by murderous wars, occupations and corruption that would make a Roman emperor blush, accused crooks have names; even juiced ones like R. Allen Stanford. -- Last year, when a federal court in Texas handed down indictments charging Stanford International Bank (SIB) and its officers with "orchestrating a fraudulent, multibillion dollar investment scheme," I wondered: was there more to the story? -- Indeed there was. - bold by website editor - also posted at Uruknet

Iowa Couple Sentenced to Prison for Burning Foreclosed Home
A quote...."The Associated Press recently reported that a LeClaire couple will spend up to 10 years in prison for burning down the house they lost in foreclosure and filing a fraudulent insurance claim. -- Lawrence and Patricia Atwood received their sentences this week and were ordered immediately into custody. -- The Atwoods lived in a house that was foreclosed upon in December 2005. After failing to finance the home, they were told on Feb. 22, 2006, that they would more than likely be evicted. The home was destroyed in a blaze March 5, 2006." - bold/underline by website editor
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Has the ADL Brainwashed Your Local Police Chief or Sheriff?
A quote...."They might have, since the ADL is hell bent on twisting the minds of every law enforcement official in America so they will mimic the deranged and murderous Israeli Army of Occupation that is slowly strangling Palestine to death and currently committing false flags against Lebanon in the lead up to the next Zionist invasion of that nation."

Only we're allowed
A quote...."Those bastards, the Lebanese, changed the rules. Scandalous. Word is, they have a brigade commander who's determined to protect his country's sovereignty. Scandalous. -- The explanation here was that he's "indoctrinating his troops" - only we're allowed to do that, of course - and that this was "the spirit of the commander" and that he's "close to Hezbollah." The nerve." - also posted at AlethoNews

Hanna urges churches worldwide to prevent Israeli decimation of historic Christian sites
A quote...."Theodosios Atallah Hanna, Archbishop of Sebastia from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, has called upon churches internationally to immediately intervene to prevent Israel from continuing to obliterate features of Christianity in the Palestinian town of Ein Karem situated west of Occupied Jerusalem." - also posted at Uruknet

Forgotten 1963 Survey: Majority Of Israeli Jewish Youth Could Support Genocide Against Arabs
A quote...."In my recent post about the “summer camp of destruction,” I cited figures from Israeli social psychologist Daniel Bar-Tal’s survey on the political attitudes  of Jewish Israeli high school students. In polling conducted in the aftermath of Operation Cast Lead, Bar-Tal found that a majority of Israeli high schoolers favored at least some form of apartheid, and that the desire for apartheid among religious nationalist youth was nearly universal."

Israel says ancient Muslim gravestones 'built illegally'
Special Note - Related Article - Israelis are just a sick bunch of people, they remember NOTHING!! - mpg -- A quote...."JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Israel's Jerusalem Municipality said Thursday that tombstones razed by authorities a day earlier in a 12th-century Muslim cemetery were "built illegally with the aim to take over the plot." -- At least 15 tombstones and structures were torn apart Wednesday in the Mamilla (Ma'man Allah) cemetery, the Al-Aqsa Foundation for Waqf and Heritage said. The latest demolitions follow the disinterment of over 1,500 graves in 2009 to make way for a controversial Museum of Tolerance. The foundation quickly denounced the move, describing it as a "heinous crime." - bold by website editor - also posted at Uruknet -- Here's a reminder for everyone in the "Jewish Community" ESPECIALLY Israelis.  See the quote shown below....

"Today is history. Today will be remembered. Years from now, the young will ask with wonder about this day. Today is history, and you are part of it. Six hundred years ago, when elsewhere they were footing the blame for the Black Plague, Kasmierz the Great, so called, told the Jews they could come to Krakow. They came. They trundled their belongings into the city. They settled; they took hold; they prospered in business, science, education, the arts. They came here with nothing. Nothing. And they flourished. For six centuries, there has been a Jewish Krakow. Think about that. By this evening, those six centuries are a rumor. They never happened. Today is history." -- *Amon Geoth*, SS Captain of the Kraków-Płaszów concentration camp as portrayed in the movie Schindler's List

"The Płaszów camp, originally intended as a forced labour camp, was constructed on the grounds of two former Jewish cemeteries in the summer of 1942 during [the] Nazi German occupation of Poland.[3]"
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More On The Palestinian Situation....

Palestinian cinema opens after 23 years - Hip Hip Hooray!
A quote...."The only cinema in the Palestinian city of Jenin has reopened after 23 years with a film festival that will show documentaries on the region's resistance against Israel."

Restricting freedom of movement: an Israeli attempt to silence leaders of the popular struggle
A quote...."On August 4, 2010 about 1 PM, Mohammed Khatib from Bil’in was denied exit to Jordan via King Hussein Bridge. Khatib was on his way to Spain via Amman when Israeli border officials prevented him from crossing the border to Jordan. Denying the leaders of the non-violent Popular Struggle to go abroad is clearly an attempt to silence Palestinians who speak about human rights violations committed by Israel."

International solidarity under attack
A quote...."From small beginnings and with few resources, the international movement in solidarity with the Palestinians has grown into a force that Israel perceives as a major threat. The assault on the Gaza aid flotilla was a lethal escalation in what has become an increasingly bitter campaign against that movement, whose constituents now range from dockworkers in South Africa refusing to offload Israeli goods to students at Berkeley demanding divestment." - also posted at AlethoNews
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And Then There Were Two: Rumor Romer Resigning From Obama Economic Think Tank
A quote...."First Orszag, now Romer? If the latest rumor about the imminent defection of one of the three remaining policy stalwarts is true, it means the administration's economic policy is on the verge of collapse."

Land of Squandered Opportunity - An Avoidable Depression
A quote...."The stock market has continued its highwire act due to corporate earnings reports that surprised to the upside. 75% of S&P companies beat analysts estimates which helped send shares higher on low volume. Corporate profits increased but revenues fell; companies laid off workers and trimmed expenses to fatten the bottom line. Profitability has been maintained even though the overall size of the pie has shrunk. Stocks rallied on what is essentially bad news."

US jobless claims, bankruptcies rise
A quote...."The barrage of grim US economic data continued Thursday with the Labor Department’s report that first-time claims for unemployment benefits jumped by 19,000 last week, bringing the total to 479,000, the most since April. Like virtually all of the recent US economic reports, the jobless claims figures were worse than analysts’ forecasts."

Jobless Claims in U.S. Unexpectedly Climb to Three-Month High
A quote...."Initial jobless claims climbed by 19,000 to 479,000 in the week ended July 31, the most since April and exceeding the highest estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News..."

Bankruptcies rise 9% in U.S.
A quote...."Economy - U.S. consumer bankruptcies, after rising nine per cent last month from June, might exceed 1.6 million this year, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute. -- The 137,698 bankruptcy filings in July also represent a nine per cent increase from a year earlier, the institute said yesterday in a statement posted on its website, citing data from the National Bankruptcy Research Center."

Food Stamp Use Hit Record 40.8m in May
A quote...."August 5, 2010 "Bloomberg" -- WASHINGTON — The number of Americans who are receiving food stamps rose to a record 40.8 million in May as the jobless rate hovered near a 27-year high, the government reported yesterday. -- Recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program subsidies for food purchases jumped 19 percent from a year earlier and increased 0.9 percent from April, the US Department of Agriculture said in a statement on its website. -- Participation has set records for 18 straight months." - Source:  Bloomberg

US Treasuries Lack Safety, Liquidity for China: Analyst Says
A quote...."The U.S. government has strong incentives to reduce its real burden of debt through inflation and dollar devaluation, Whichever way it is, the yuan-recorded market value of Treasuries will fall, causing huge capital losses to China’s central bank."

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