Thursday, July 3, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, war resistance in
Puerto Rico (long going on) becomes more public, the White House continues to
twist arms in Iraq, sexism watch and more.
Starting with war resistance. Corey Glass is a US war resister in Canada.
Yesterday, Russell Goldman (ABC News) reported: "Unbeknownst to him and
his legion of supporters, Glass, 25, was actually discharged from the U.S. Army
shortly after he went AWOL in 2006. . . . According to U.S. Army documents and
officials Glass was discharged from the California National Guard on Dec. 1,
2006, four months after he arrived in Canada and six months after he failed to
show up to a required muster." Matthew Campbell (Globe & Mail)
reports, "Like thousands of other discharged American soldiers, once back in
the United States Mr. Glass coulld still be called up as part of the Indvidual
Ready Reserve, a program in which former soldiers can be forced to re-enter
service." War Resisters
Support Campaign's Lee Zaslofsky terms the announcement by
the military "spin." David Wylie (Canwest News Service) notes
that the announcement did not derail a planned event tonight in Toronto where
supporters are to gather at the May Robinson Building. UPI notes
the recent poll which found 64% of Canadians are in
favor of allowing US war resisters safe harbor status. Workers World
files "Iraq veteran faces deportation, wins support" observes, "The
struggle to make Canada a sancurary for war resisters takes on greater
importance as more soldiers refuse to return to Iraq. The increasing support
for resisters demonstrates widespread opposition to the war and determination to
stop it the simplest way: by helping the troops refuse to fight." They also
note that IVAW
chair Camilo Mejia wrote a letter of support for war resisters in Canada which
noted that "it is because of what we saw and experienced [in Iraq] that we
support our brothers and sisters seeking a new home in Canada. They are
avoiding participation in a criminal, illegal and immoral occupation so that
other families can live in peace in their own land. They are doing the right
thing! . . . We call upon the Canadian government to implement the motion
stopping all deportations of U.S. war resisters and allowing them to stay in
Canada, not only because it is your duty to the people you represent to heed to
their will, but also because it is a clear statement of support and solidarity
for the people of Iraq."
As Camilo's letter makes clear, Corey Glass is not the only US war resister
in Canada and he is also not necessarily in the clear. But all war resisters in
Canada (and in the US) deserve support. In the US, Courage to Resist is planning
"July 9th actions at Canadian Consulates
nationwide:"
Join a vigil and delegation to a Canadian
consulate near you on Wednesday, July 9th to support war resisters! On the eve
of Corey Glass' possible deportation, we will demand, "Dear Canada: Abide by the
June 3rd resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" More details and cities
to be confirmed soon!
Washington DC - Time TBA - 501 Pennsylvania Ave NW
(map). Sponsored by Veterans for Peace. Info: TBA
San Francisco - Noon to 1pm - 580 California St (map). Sponsored by Courage to Resist. Info:
510-488-3559; courage(at)riseup.net Seattle - Time TBA - 1501 4th Ave (map). Sponsored by Project Safe Haven. Info:
206-499-1220; projectsafehaven(at)hotmail.com Dallas - Time TBA - 750 North
St Paul St (map). Sponsored by North Texas for Justice and
Peace. Info: 214-718-6362; hftomlinson(at)riseup.net New York City - Noon to
1pm - 1251 Avenue of the Americas (map). Sponsored by War Resisters' League. Info:
212-228-0450; wrl(at)warresisters.org Philadelphia - Time TBA - 1650 Market
St (map). Sponsored by Payday Network. Info:
215-848-1120; payday(at)paydaynet.org Minneapolis - Time TBA - 701 Fourth
Ave S (map). Info: TBA Los Angeles - Noon to 1pm -
550 South Hope St (map). Sponsored by Progressive Democrats LA.
Info: pdlavote(at)aol.com Help organize a vigil at one of these other
Canadian Consulates: Atlanta, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Miami,
Anchorage, Houston, Raleigh, Phoenix, or San Diego. Please contact Courage to
Resist at 510-488-3559. Veterans for Peace issued a joint call with Courage
to Resist and Project Safe Haven for July 9th vigils at Canadian Consulates:
"Dear Canada: Do Not Deport U.S. War Resisters!" Contact us if you can help
organize a vigil, or can otherwise get involved. Locations of the 22 Canadian Consulates in the United
States. Recently on June 3rd the Canadian Parliament passed an historic
motion to officially welcome war resisters! It now appears, however, that the
Conservative government may disregard the motion. Iraq combat veteran turned
courageous war resister, 25-year-old Sgt. Corey Glass of the Indiana National
Guard is still scheduled to be deported July 10th. We will ask that the
Canadian government respect the democratic decision of Parliament, the
demonstrated opinion of the Canadian citizenry, the view of the United Nations,
and millions of Americans by immediately implementing the motion and cease
deportation proceedings against Corey Glass and other current and future war
resisters. Join Courage to Resist, Veterans for Peace, and Project Safe
Haven at Canadian Consulates across the United States (Washington DC, San
Francisco, New York City, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles confirmed--more
to be announced). We mailed and delivered over 10,000 of the original letters
to Canadian officials. Please sign the new letter, "Dear Canada: Abide by
resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" http://www.couragetoresist.org/canada
And in the US, AP's "Mothers
of 2 US soldiers say their sons left bases to hide in Puerto Rico,"
addresses Maria Santiago and Luz Eneida Morales -- two women in San Juan,
Puerto Rico who have stated their two sons are there, not going back to the US
military and that the police need "to stop searching" for the men. Hiram Lozada
is representing the two families. Santiago states she went to Fort Campbell
("last March) and she and her son returned to Puerto Rico while Morales went to
her son's base in Colorado and returned to Puerto Rico with him.
There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which
includes Megan Bean, Chris Bean, Matthis Chiroux, Richard Droste, Michael
Barnes, Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck
Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess,
Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin
Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross
Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther
Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara
Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera,
Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin
Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala,
Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey
Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark
Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo
Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders,
Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey,
Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel,
Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris
Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian
Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La
Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war
resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.
Friday is July 4th, in the US, the day of independence. Kelly Dougherty
(IVAW) reflects, "Just a few days ago Independence Day came and went, and
did anyone notice? June 28th was the day the US returned sovereignty to Iraq in
2004, and it should be a day of celebration, a day when Iraqis mark their equal
status among nations, just as America did more than two centuries ago. But even
when, finally, the Iraqi people are truly able to steer their own course and run
their country as they see fit, I doubt that June 28th will be celebrated as a
true Independence Day in Iraq. Would we be celebrating if our Declaration of
Independence had been edited by King George III? What if Britain maintained
troops and military bases inside our major cities? Would we mark the day this
'independence' began with fireworks and parades?"
As Dougherty explains, there is no independence in Iraq for Iraqis. Alissa J. Rubin (New York Times)
reporting on the efforts by the White House to push through a treaty and
notes that the complications include "political currents in both countries.
Iraqi officials facing elections in the fall do not want to be seen as
capitulating to the United States." The White House is pushing the notion that
they want a "Status Of Forces Agreement" and not a treaty. By not calling it a
"treaty," they hope to bypass the US Senate and the Constitutional provision
that the Senate must ratify all treaties. In Iraq, Nouri al-Maliki already
stated he would follow Iraq's Constitution and send the treaty to Parliament.
(However, this is the same al-Maliki who pushed through last year's United
Nations renewal of the authorization for the occupation -- after promising the
Parliament that doing so in 2006 was a mistake he wouldn't make again.) With
the White House timeline now 'iffy' (they want the treaty by the end of this
month), Rubin reports that Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zerbari has began
pushing the notion of a "memo." Doug Smith and Raheem Salman (Los Angeles
Times) report that (regardless of what is called) the Iraqi Parliament
isn't too high on the agreement and quote MP Rashid Azzawi stating, "He was like
an American negotiator and not an Iraqi one. He didn't specify many details"
and MP Nassar Rubaie declaring, "It is an unequal convention between an occupier
and an occupied country." Again, as Kelli Dougherty noted, the Iraqis have no
independence today. Sudarsan Raghavan (Washington Post)
quotes Mirembe Nantongo ("U.S. Embassy spokeswoman") stating that the White
House and it's occupied, client-state of Iraq are speaking to one another with
"a constructive spirit." Raghavan also notes Zebari's excitement over the
possiblity that Iraq might maybe, fingers-crossed, deep breath, control their
own airspace . . . if the White House lets them. Hiba Dawood (UPI) surveys the landscape
and notes an Al-Basaer editorial entitled "Al-Maliki's dilemma between Tehran
and Washington" which Dawood sums up as: "Maliki, the paper said, is in a state
where he must choose between his old ally and main support, Iran, or his new
ally that placed him at the premiership, the United States. The influential
Sunni newspaper said that satisfying the United States means accepting the
establishment of 50 permanent military bases, handing over Iraq's oil wealth to
American companies, granting amnesty to thousands of U.S. troops and security
contractors as well as granting the United States authority over Iraq's land and
airspace. The paper said that among the various Iraqi political blocs opposing
the status-of-forces agreement, only the Sunni Iraqi Accordance Front supports
it because it would deter Iranian influence in Iraq." While everyone pretends
the White House is playing it above-board on this issue, James Glanz and Richard
A. Oppel Jr.'s "Panel Questions State Dept. Role in Iraq Oil
Deal" (New York Times) details Henry Waxman's House committee's
findings that the US State Dept, despite denials to the contrary, actively
assisted Hunt Oil in their contract with the Kurdish region of Iraq -- a
contract called out by the central government in Baghdad and one that benefits
Ray L. Hunt ("a close political ally of President Bush"). Meanwhile Reuters notes that the TSCs (technical
support contracts) that were no bid, that the US State Department had a role in
(despite denying) and which still have not been signed are in jeopardy with
"payment terms" being one of the issues for the Iraqi Parliament.
Turning to some of today's reported violence . . .
a Baghdad home bombing targeting Iraqi Parliamentarian Shatha al-Musawi (of
the "majority Sunni bloc") which "destroyed the house" (the house was empty),
"damaged two adgjacent houses and injured four civilians" and a Nineveh Province
roadside bombing left two police officers injured. Reuters notes a Tikrit roadside bombing that left five
convoy guards injured, and a cafe bombing outside of Hilla claimed 4 lives.
Shootings?
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports that "late
Wednesday" unknown assailants shot dead a police officer in Nineveh Province and
left another person wounded. Reuters notes 2 people shot dead in a Mosul armed
clash, another person shot dead in Mosul "inside a computer games arcade" and 1
police officer shot dead in Mosul as well.
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports 4 corpses
discovered in Baghdad. Reuters notes the US military says the bones of 2
corpses were discovered in Samarra but that local officials state it was "14
decaying corpses" and they note (with no conflicting accounts) 2 corpses were
discovered in Suwayra.
On the sexism front, notice the new target? We don't highlight Maureen Dowd
at this site. I'm not a Dowd fan. But, if you missed it, it's time for Bash
the Bitch and it's Dowd's turn. Maybe you didn't notice that? Maybe you think
David Brooks or Frank Rich just isn't deserving of calling out for their own
problems -- which really do exceed Dowd's. (And for the record, leaving facts
aside, Dowd can out-write either of them -- both of whom also leave facts
aside.) It's brewing. You saw Judith Miller take the fall not just for her own
bad work but for Michael Gordon and a hundred others. Now it's time to throw
another woman on the fire and it appears it will be Maureen Dowd. Can
____ honestly say he's referred to a male journalist being "spanked" before?
Can ____ pretend that they've focused on any male the way they're focusing on
Dowd now? Watch them try to if anyone calls them out. More than likely, no one
will. Dowd's not above criticism. But we're not talking about criticsm. We're
talking about (nod to Blondie) "Rip Her To Shreds" and note the "her." Dowd's
got a twice-weekly column. Are we honestly supposed to believe that anything
she could do the MSNBC no-stars don't out do her on? There's a free floating
rage over a number of issues and it appears it's about to glom on Dowd. As
usual, the woman's male peers will remain exempt. And let's see when anyone
will stand up and say: "That's about enough." I doubt they will. And this
nonsense of you have to like Dowd to defend her is nonsense. All you have to
support is fairness and equality. But that's never existed online and let's
stop pretending it will by magic. In the meantime try to pretend that Dowd's
actions are worse than Keith Olbermann or Chris Matthews, et al. And try to
pretend that sexual degredation that's aimed at her would be used to 'critique'
a man. (That's not a tone argument. We came up with Todd S. Purdum 'cupping' the story here in
response to all the 'knee pads' nonsense about Elisabeth Bumiller. It's noting
that, regardless of the 'tone' you choose to use, you apply it fairly regardless
of gender or you're a sexist pig.) If it's summer, it's Bash The Bitch.
Turning to the US race for president, Dominic Lawson (Independent of London)
reflects on Primary Barack and the flip-flops that have ensued of late,
"Those who actually supported Obama during this process now divide neatly, if
unevenly, into two groups. The first, smaller, group is full of buyer's
remorse. The blogosphere is hissling like a catherine wheel with their anger
with Obama, obviously, but above all with themselves. The second, much bigger
group, continues to buy Obama's story. They argue that everything and anything
is justified if it helps to get a Democrat back in the White House; some of them
add that 'of course' Obama doesn't believe any of the things he is now saying to
woo the 'redneck states' and that once in the White House he will revert to his
'true beliefs'. To this group we must address a simple question. How do you
know what Obama really believes in, other than his own destiny -- and, of
course, his conscience?" As Brian Montoli (CBS News) observes today, "What a
difference a presidential campaign makes." Yeterday, Montopoli was notingTime's report of the religious right
coming together in Denver to support Senator John McCain (the presumptive GOP
nominee).
Meanwhile Hillary Supporters Vote Nader lists four reasons
why: "(1) Single Payer Health Care will be back on the table, (2) The Wasteful,
Bloated and Secretive Military Budget will be brought back to the forefront of
the American People's minds. (3) Renewable Energy and American Jobs back on the
front burner. (4) Persecution Protection From Corporate and Political Criminals
will be spotlighted. This includes: Net Neutrality, Telecom Spying and the
outrageous lies that put the American and Iraqis People in harms way, destroyed
the US economy and our children's future. McCain and Obama have taken all these
issues off the table." This as Honolulu's KITV notes Ralph Nader will be at the University of
Hawaii tonight while Barack "has no immediate plans to campaign here" and the
McCain campaign says "Hawaii is not on his schedule."
Thanks to you, Nader/Gonzalez will be on the ballot in ten states, as
promised, by July 6.
Our goal - 45 states by September 15.
We must now thank all of our roadtrippers. (Pictured above - our
Illinois road trip crew turning in their signatures last week.)
You help fund them.
But they go out - day in and day out - and collect the necessary
signatures to put Nader/Gonzalez on the ballot.
Our nationwide team has been busting it all around this
country.
Today, our crew in Nevada will turn in 12,000 signatures - more than
twice the 5,000 needed.
As they say - what was collected in Nevada, stays in
Nevada.
And as a result, Nader/Gonzalez will be on the ballot in that key
swing state.
Thank you and congratulations Nevada road trip crew.
Finally, why we are doing all of this?
We are doing this because we have no alternative.
McCain is the candidate of perpetual war.
Obama is the corporate Democrat and panderer in chief. (Still doubt
it? Check out this article in the New York
Times documenting his flip-flop on telecom immunity and the political
fallout.)
Let's keep our eye on the ball.
And get it done.
By the way, Ralph is in Honolulu, Hawaii tonight for a campaign
speech and rally. If you are in the area, please stop by.
The
man who has become the symbol of a movement to block the deportation of
American soldiers avoiding Iraq service is not actually in the U.S.
military, ABC News reported yesterday. Corey
Glass, an Iraq veteran who deserted the American National Guard and
fled to Toronto in 2006, was apparently discharged later that year, ABC
News said. Mr. Glass failed to secure refugee status earlier this year,
and is currently facing deportation. A rally on his behalf will nonetheless go ahead in Toronto's Parkdale neighbourhood today, organizers say. Like
thousands of other discharged American soldiers, once back in the
United States Mr. Glass could still be called up as part of the
Individual Ready Reserve, a program in which former soldiers can be
forced to re-enter service.
The above is from Matthew Campbell's "U.S. veteran seeking asylum in Canada not technically a deserter, report says" (Globe & Mail) and Russell Goldman's "Canada Ready to Deport U.S. Deserters" (ABC News) and, as we noted yesterday,
"Corey Glass should inquire about his IRR status before attempting to
visit or return to the US." The War Resisters Support Campaign's Lee
Zaslofsky terms the military's statements to ABC "spin" and you have to
wonder if he's hitting the issue no one's grasping and Campbell just
doesn't get it? (That's the topic we're covering at Third
this Sunday.) It is indeed "spin." Lee should know what he's talking
about having lived through the period so let's assume Campbell's the
one who dropped the ball -- in fairness, did anyone in Panhandle Media (US) bother to cover this?
Protesters
are gathering in Toronto's Parkdale community tonight to oppose the
Conservatives' decision to deport Glass, despite Parliament passing a
non-binding motion on June 3 calling for an end to deportation
proceedings against Glass and other war resisters.
That's at 7:00 pm, at the May Robinson Building (20 West Lodge) in Toronto.
Here's the press release from the War Resisters Support Campaign:
With no word yet from the federal government, neighbours, concerned citizens, residents of Toronto's Parkdale community, and Iraq War resisters will hold a rally to stop the deportation of Corey Glass, 7 p.m., Thursday, July 3 at the May Robinson Building, 20 West Lodge (1 block east of Lansdowne, north of Queen W.) Glass joined the Indiana National Guard in 2002 and was told he would not have to fight on foreign shores but in 2005 was sent to Iraq. "I signed up to defend people and do humanitarian work such as helping out when there was a hurricane or tornado. I should have been in New Orleans after Katrina, not in Iraq," he said. "We have seen an outpouring of support from the residents of Parkdale for Corey and all the conscientious objectors living in our neighborhood," said Dirk Townsend, President, Parkdale Residents Association, one of the endorsing organizations. "Many organizations and people have come together to help organize this rally. We can only hope the government is listening and will take action and bring a halt to the deportation order," he concluded. The War Resisters Support Campaign is calling on the federal government to respect the democratic decision of the Canadian Parliament. On June 3rd Parliament passed a motion calling for an end to deportation proceedings against Corey Glass and other war resisters. On June 27, AngusReid published its poll results showing three in five Canadians (64%) in favour of giving U.S. soldiers the opportunity to remain in Canada as permanent residents.
UPI notes the recent poll which found 64% of Canadians are in favor of allowing US war resisters safe harbor status. That's the poll noted Tuesday:
The Angus Reid Poll finds:
"A majority of Canadians would agree with the decision to let American
military deserters stay in Canada as permanent residents, a new Angus
Reid Strategies survey reveals. . . In the online survey of a
representative national sample, three-in-five Canadians (64%) say they
would agree to give these U.S. soldiers the opportunity to remain in
Canada as permanent residents. Quebec (70%) houses the highest
proportion of respondents who agree with the motion, while Alberta
(52%) has the fewest supporters. A gender breakdown reveals that while
both males and females would agree to let U.S. military deserters
remain in Canada, females are much more sympathetic (69% versus 57%)."
But
John Schum, who has been practising military law in the U.S. since
1992, said last night Glass has only been discharged from the service's
active duty, placing him in the reserves, and can be called back to
fight at any time. Schum
also said that if the U.S. military is pursuing the return of Glass --
who faces deportation on July 10 -- there's a good chance there are
already plans to deploy him back to Iraq.
Some you can
count on for silence when the topic is war resisters, others you can
count on to cover it. A few others, very few. One is Workers World
which always makes the time. This is their "Iraq veteran faces deportation, wins support" and Braeden noted it.
The
Canadian government is facing a surge of pressure and protest by
supporters of U.S. war resisters in Canada as it moves to deport the
resisters, even after a majority vote in Parliament that it "should
immediately cease any removal or deportation actions." The pressure and
protest campaign is having an impact: The first resister the Canadian
government ordered to leave, Corey Glass, saw his deadline to leave
extended from June 12 to July 9. Since then Glass and others facing
deportation have publicly announced plans to stay, with widespread
Canadian support. Supporters
across Canada and the U.S. have sent thousands of letters to Canadian
Prime Minister Stephen Harper (email pm@pm.gc.ca) and Minister of
Citizenship and Immigration Diane Finley (email finley.d@parl.gc.ca)
demanding that the resisters be allowed to stay. In the U.S. the
campaign is led by Veterans for Peace, Iraq Veterans Against the War,
Courage to Resist and Project Safe Haven. Gerry
Condon of Project Safe Haven noted that Amnesty International has also
weighed in, stating that Corey Glass should be considered a
conscientious objector and that if he were returned to the U.S. to be
court-martialed and imprisoned, AI would consider him a prisoner of
conscience. Veterans for
Peace is encouraging its 7,000 members to contact the Canadian
government directly through a July 2 International Phone-In to Canadian
Immigration Minister Finley. The War Resisters Support Campaign, based
in Toronto and Vancouver, expects thousands of calls from both Canada
and the U.S. on July 2. (See resisters.ca/actions.html.) In
addition, vigils and delegations to Canadian consular offices
throughout the U.S. are planned on July 9, led by VFP, Courage to
Resist and Project Safe Haven. Courage
to Resist is also spearheading a letter-writing campaign. Find sample
letters and contact information at www.couragetoresist.org/canada. Camilo
Mejia, national chairperson of Iraq Veterans Against the War, sent a
powerful open letter to Canada supporting the resisters. He wrote on
behalf of IVAW that it is because of what we saw and experienced [in
Iraq] that we support our brothers and sisters seeking a new home in
Canada. They are avoiding participation in a criminal, illegal and
immoral occupation so that other families can live in peace in their
own land. They are doing the right thing! The
letter concluded: "We call upon the Canadian government to implement
the motion stopping all deportations of U.S. war resisters and allowing
them to stay in Canada, not only because it is your duty to the people
you represent to heed to their will, but also because it is a clear
statement of support and solidarity for the people of Iraq." In
addition to the Parliamentary resolution, a poll in early June by
Canada AM on Canadian television recorded that 63 percent of Canadians
favor letting U.S. war resisters stay. The
struggle to make Canada a sanctuary for war resisters takes on greater
importance as more soldiers refuse to return to Iraq. The increasing
support for resisters demonstrates widespread opposition to the war and
determination to stop it the simplest way: by helping the troops refuse
to fight. Articles copyright
1995-2008 Workers World. Verbatim copying and distribution of this
entire article is permitted in any medium without royalty provided this
notice is preserved.
Your contribution could be doubled. Public campaign financing may match your contribution total up to $250.
Bill Moyers Journalwill
reair the program revolving around Tomas Young, an Iraq War veteran and
a member of IVAW, including interviews with Ellen Spiro and Phil
Donahue who made the documentary Body of War which tells Young's story which is strong way to note the Fourth of July. The Journal's
Michael Winship shares his thoughts on the Fourth of July in an online
essay entitled "What Patriotism Is, and Is Not" and below is an excerpt:
Which
brings me to what I think was an unusual and especially fine expression
of American patriotism. It's the June 19 closing argument of Air Force
Reserve Major David J.R. Frakt, arguing for the dismissal of charges
against Mohammed Jawad, a young detainee at Guantanamo, charged with
throwing a hand grenade that wounded two GI's and their interpreter in
Afghanistan. Frakt argued that Jawad should be released because sleep
deprivation -- two weeks worth -- was used to torture him. You can
read it on the website of the ACLU
(http://www.aclu.org/safefree/detention/35753res20080619.html). Frakt
stood before the military commission upholding the inviolability of the
American principle of due process, even for an alleged enemy of the
United States. "Under the Constitution all men are created equal, and
all are entitled to be treated with dignity," he said. "No one is
'undeserving' of humane treatment. It is an unmistakable lesson of
history that when one group of people starts to see another group of
people as 'other' or as 'different,' as 'undeserving,' as 'inferior,'
ill-treatment inevitably follows "After
six and a half years, we now know the truth about the detainees at
Guantanamo: some of them are terrorists, some of them are foot
soldiers, and some of them were just innocent people, caught in the
wrong place at the wrong time. But the detainees at Guantanamo have one
thing in common -- with each other, and with us -- they are all human
beings, and they are all worthy of humane treatment." Thus,
in the face of adverse public opinion and White House opposition, Frakt
bravely defended a constitutional principle as all-encompassing,
including under its protections even those who might seek to destroy us
and the very constitutional principles for which we stand. In fact, he
said, It is a testament to the continuing greatness of this nation,
that I, a lowly Air Force Reserve Major, can stand here before you
today, with the world watching, without fear of retribution,
retaliation or reprisal, and speak truth to power. I can call a spade a
spade, and I can call torture, torture." To me, that makes Major David Frakt a patriot and this a great country. Happy Fourth of July.
Tomorrow is the Fourth. New entries will be posted here. I will do a snapshot of some form. It may got late in the evening. Kat
plans to have a CD review posted (probably late -- and that's dependent
upon her having time to write it when we all get on the plane later
today) and that would be one of two (she says possibly three) CD
reviews that would go up this weekend. Thank you to Elaine for grabbing a topic in "Barack's sweetheart deal" -- she did a wonderful job with it. Rebecca' "lies and truth" explores the illegal war and the presidential candidates. Marcia's "This and that" also explores the campaigns. As does Ruth's "Who called the Iraq War 'a severe scar on our democratic fabric'?" Mike notesCedric's "Teaching 'progressives'" and Wally's "THIS JUST IN! TEACHING 'PROGRESSIVES' TO READ!" (joint-post) which is a reply to Tom Hayden's e-mail whine to Cedric. Also Ruth's "Ruth's Report" went up Sunday and Bonnie e-mailed to ask for it to be mentioned again ("Great report" enthuses Bonnie). I think that covers everything. All community newsletters will be published this weekend at their usual times.
Lastly, on the front page of the New York Times this morning is James Glanz and Richard A. Oppel Jr.'s "Panel Questions State Dept. Role in Iraq Oil Deal"
which details Henry Waxman's House committee's findings that the US
State Dept, despite denials to the contrary, actively assisted Hunt Oil
in their contract with the Kurdish region of Iraq -- a contract called
out by the central government in Baghdad and one that benefits Ray L.
Hunt ("a close political ally of President Bush"). From the article:
In
an e-mail message released by the Congressional committee, a State
Department official in Washington, briefed by a colleague about the
impending deal with the Kurdistan Regional Government, wrote: "Many
thanks for the heads up; getting an American company to sign a deal
with the K.R.G. will make big news back here. Please keep us posted."
Negotiations
are complicated by political currents in both countries. Iraqi
officials facing elections in the fall do not want to be seen as
capitulating to the United States. At the same time, they are eager for
some form of agreement to prevent any rapid departure of American
forces. In the United States, President Bush has pushed hard for a
deal to be completed by July 31. But Democrats in Congress are
reluctant to sign off on an agreement before the presidential
elections, and Republicans are split.
The above is from Alissa J. Rubin's "Iraq Hints at Delay in U.S. Security Deal" in this morning's New York Times.
Rubin covers the basics throughout and (for the Times -- meaning
officials are worshipped and their word gospel) does a strong job. Of
the stories this morning, Rubin's the only one who tackles the
elections -- not just in the US but the allegedly
finally-going-to-take-place-in-October Iraq elections. The treaty
(which is usually called a Status of Forces Agreement -- which it is
not) is not popular with the Iraqi people and signing one prior to the
elections could harm those pushing it. Signing it and approving it
because, in Iraq, Parliament is supposed to approve it. If they don't,
it would not go through. That's actually how the US Constitution
mandates it be done in the United States as well but the White House
thinks that by calling it a Status of Forces Agreement, they can bypass
a Constitutional provision. Congress is not in agreement with that
non-legal 'reading' of the law and that dispute with the White House
includes Democrats and Republicans. There is bi-partisan objection to
the White House attempt to circumvent the Senate and violate the US
Constitution.
No link for McClatchy.
Some articles we don't link to. We don't link to some reporters. That's
just the way it goes. You can use the link on the left and you'll be
taken to the main page for their Iraq section. You shouldn't make it
through very many sentences before grasping why we're not linking. If
you haven't gotten it by the time MT is informing that the treaty is
just like other SOFAs, you just won't get it today.
Rubin notes
that a "memo" is now being pushed. Hoshyar Zebari is among the pushers.
"Memo" is thought to be short-term but probably desirable just because
it sounds so 'minor.' Doug Smith and Raheem Salman's "Iraq official cites progress on U.S. security pact" (Los Angeles Times) explores that and also offers reaction within the Iraqi Parliament:
Acknowledging
that remaining differences could delay an agreement, he [Zebari] said
the government had short-term options, such as a memorandum of
understanding to keep U.S. troops in the country under existing rules. [. . .] Zebari
briefed members of parliament on the negotiations Tuesday. He said
Wednesday that he thought he had been able to dispel some of the
misunderstanding. But some ministers weren't satisfied. "He was like
an American negotiator and not an Iraqi one," said Rashid Azzawi of the
Iraqi Islamic Party, part of the main Sunni bloc. "He didn't specify
many details." A supporter of anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada Sadr said there was still a consensus in parliament to reject the agreement. "It is an unequal convention between an occupier and an occupied country," said Nassar Rubaie, chief of the Sadr bloc.
Yes,
who is Zebari working for? And who is giving the Iraqis legal advice?
Other than the US. The US government is offering legal advice . . . on
a treaty that the US wants Iraq to enter into . . . with the US. It's a
conflict of interest to put it the most mildly.
U.S.
Embassy spokeswoman Mirembe Nantongo said that she could not comment on
the ongoing negotiations but added that they were taking place in "a
constructive spirit." Negotiations
began in March on the two U.S.-drafted pacts: a status-of-forces
agreement that governs the legal protections and responsibilities of
U.S. troops, and a strategic framework for the overall U.S.-Iraqi
political and military relationship. Despite
the progress, many hurdles remain that could delay the signing of the
pacts, Zebari said. For instance, the two sides differ on the authority
and level of independence of U.S. troops in future military operations. But
Zebari said U.S. negotiators were open to the idea of Iraqis
controlling their own airspace, as long as they have proper air power
and technology.
"Their own airspace". Who is
representing the Iraqis and advising the Iraqis in this because it
looks like they think they're buying the Brooklyn Bridge when they're
actually getting nothing?
In a little noted AP article entitled "Mothers of 2 US soldiers say their sons left bases to hide in Puerto Rico,"
readers learn that Maria Santiago and Luz Eneida Morales two unnamed
women in San Juan, Puerto Rico has stated their two sons are there, not
going back to the US military and that the police need "to stop
searching" for the men. Hiram Lozada is representing the two families.
Santiago states she went to Fort Campbell ("last March) and she and her
son returned to Puerto Rico while Morales went to her son's base in
Colorado and returned to Puerto Rico with him.
TM:
I'll support him if he wins. I won't support him if he loses. [Laughs]
No, I don't support anybody. It's not my thing. And if I did, I
wouldn't say who it was publicly. I'll give you a hint who I'm voting
for in November. It rhymes with Seder. BSN: Oh, Ralph Nader. You don't worry about possibly wasting your vote? TM:
No, I sort of disagree with people who blame him for taking votes away
from Gore in 2000. Gore still won the popular vote. Nader wasn't the
reason why he lost the election. The Supreme Court cost him the
election. Plus, you don't know that all those people who voted for
Nader would've gone for Gore. I've met Ralph Nader
and I like him. And I've met John McCain, and he's a great guy, too. I
haven't met Barack, but I have met Oprah Winfrey. I would love to see
some change, and whatever the country decides, I'm behind it.
Richard Winger (Ballot Access News) reports,
"On July 2, the Missouri Secretary of State's office announced that the
Constitution Party petition has the required 10,000 signatures needed
for ballot access. The Constitution Party is the only party likely to
submit a successful petition in Missouri this year. It is likely that
independent Ralph Nader will also meet the requirement. The Libertarian Party had already been on the Missouri ballot automatically."
Wednesday,
July 2, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, Corey Glass gets big news,
'discussions' in Iraq (at the direction of DC), attacks on Iraqi judges
continue, and more.
Starting with war resistance. In a
dramatic development for US war resister Corey Glass, currently
residing in Canada, there are no charges against him. May 21st was when Corey Glass was told he would be deported.
Corey Glass is an Iraq War veteran and a US war resister. He went to
Canada seeking asylum -- the kind of welcoming Canada provided to war
resisters ("draft dodgers" and "deserters") during Vietnam. After being
told he was being deported, he's been 'extended' through July 10th. June 3rd Canada's House of Commons voted (non-binding motion) in favor of Canada being a safe harbor for war resisters. This morning Russell Goldman (ABC News) reported:
"Unbeknownst to him and his legion of supporters, Glass, 25, was
actually discharged from the U.S. Army shortly after he went AWOL in
2006. . . . According to U.S. Army documents and officials Glass was
discharged from the California National Guard on Dec. 1, 2006, four
months after he arrived in Canada and six months after he failed to
show up to a required muster." Goldman quotes Corey stating, "I had
absolutely no idea that I had been discharged. This is insane. This
is so weird. There are no warrants? No one is looking for me?"
According to Major Nathan Banks, the US military does not consider
Glass AWOL or a deserter, there are no charges against Glass and Glass
is out of the military.
Events planned are still being
held. Corey Glass is not the only US war resister in Canada and he is
also not necessarily in the clear. In the US, Courage to Resist is
planning "July 9th actions at Canadian Consulates nationwide:"
Join
a vigil and delegation to a Canadian consulate near you on Wednesday,
July 9th to support war resisters! On the eve of Corey Glass' possible
deportation, we will demand, "Dear Canada: Abide by the June 3rd
resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" More details and cities to be confirmed soon!
Washington DC - Time TBA - 501 Pennsylvania Ave NW (map). Sponsored by Veterans for Peace. Info: TBA San Francisco - Noon to 1pm - 580 California St (map). Sponsored by Courage to Resist. Info: 510-488-3559; courage(at)riseup.net Seattle - Time TBA - 1501 4th Ave (map). Sponsored by Project Safe Haven. Info: 206-499-1220; projectsafehaven(at)hotmail.com Dallas - Time TBA - 750 North St Paul St (map). Sponsored by North Texas for Justice and Peace. Info: 214-718-6362; hftomlinson(at)riseup.net New York City - Noon to 1pm - 1251 Avenue of the Americas (map). Sponsored by War Resisters' League. Info: 212-228-0450; wrl(at)warresisters.org Philadelphia - Time TBA - 1650 Market St (map). Sponsored by Payday Network. Info: 215-848-1120; payday(at)paydaynet.org Minneapolis - Time TBA - 701 Fourth Ave S (map). Info: TBA Los Angeles - Noon to 1pm - 550 South Hope St (map). Sponsored by Progressive Democrats LA. Info: pdlavote(at)aol.com Help
organize a vigil at one of these other Canadian Consulates: Atlanta,
Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Miami, Anchorage, Houston,
Raleigh, Phoenix, or San Diego. Please contact Courage to Resist at
510-488-3559. Veterans for Peace issued a joint call with Courage
to Resist and Project Safe Haven for July 9th vigils at Canadian
Consulates: "Dear Canada: Do Not Deport U.S. War Resisters!" Contact us
if you can help organize a vigil, or can otherwise get involved. Locations of the 22 Canadian Consulates in the United States. Recently
on June 3rd the Canadian Parliament passed an historic motion to
officially welcome war resisters! It now appears, however, that the
Conservative government may disregard the motion. Iraq combat
veteran turned courageous war resister, 25-year-old Sgt. Corey Glass of
the Indiana National Guard is still scheduled to be deported July 10th. We
will ask that the Canadian government respect the democratic decision
of Parliament, the demonstrated opinion of the Canadian citizenry, the
view of the United Nations, and millions of Americans by immediately
implementing the motion and cease deportation proceedings against Corey
Glass and other current and future war resisters. Join Courage to
Resist, Veterans for Peace, and Project Safe Haven at Canadian
Consulates across the United States (Washington DC, San Francisco, New
York City, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles confirmed--more to be
announced). We mailed and delivered over 10,000 of the original
letters to Canadian officials. Please sign the new letter, "Dear
Canada: Abide by resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" http://www.couragetoresist.org/canada
Canada's War Resisters Support Campaign will hold a "Rally to Stop the Deportation of Parkdale Resident Corey Glass"
July 3rd, begins at 7:00 p.m. (with doors opening at six p.m.) at the
May Robinson Building, 20 West Lodge, Toronto: "In 2002, Corey joined
the Indiana National Guard. He was told he would not have to fight on
foreign shores. But in 2005 he was sent to Iraq. What he saw there
caused him to become a conscientious objector and he came to Canada. On
May 21, 2008, he got his final order to leave Canada by July 10, 2008.
Then on June 3 Parliament passed a motion for all the war resisters to
stay in Canada. However the Harper government says it will ignore this
motion." They are also asking for a July 2nd call-in. Diane Finley is
the Immigration and Citizenship Minister and her phone numbers are
(613) 996-4974 and (519) 426-3400 -- they also provide her e-mail
addresses minister@cic.gc.ca ("minister" at "cic.gc.ca") and finled1@parl.gc.ca ("finled1" at "parl.gc.ca").
There
is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which
includes Megan Bean, Chris Bean, Matthis Chiroux, Richard Droste,
Michael Barnes, Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano
Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal,
Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall,
Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve
Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha
Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister,
Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada,
Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen,
Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman,
Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck,
Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine,
Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey,
Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua
Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell,
Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake,
Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres,
Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and
Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada
have applied for asylum.
Turning to Iraq, Alexandra Zavis (Los Angeles Times) reports
that, unlike the US Congress, the Iraqi Parliament is postponing the
summer vaction. Zavis reports that this is said to be in response to
the allegedly upcoming provinical elections and the failure to pass the
legislation that the US White House wants. For those remember last
summer, the Iraqi Parliament was under criticism last year for taking a
summer break. They ended up taking one resulting in some harsh
criticism from inside the US. Meanwhile Sabrina Tavernise (New York Times) paints
a portrait (intentionally or not) of Iraqis being conned: Hoshyar
Zebari (Iraq's Foreign Minister) declares that immunity for contractors
has been lifted and Iraq might have control of their own air space and
. . . . Who is advising Iraqis on these contracts? Attorneys for the
White House? The US State Department? Doubt it? James Hider (Times of London) speaks
with a contractor who explains what the 'law' says and the 'reality':
"But bringing to book any Western security guards accused of shooting
civilians would be difficult, the contractor noted. 'If it's someone
like Blackwater, nine times out of ten the individual is spirited out
of the country'." Zebari was talking it up in Baghdad again today. Sudarsan Raghavan (Washington Post) reports
that Zebari declared at a Baghdad press conference today, "We have
reached a comfortable stage of negotiations and the differences have
been narrowed." As Raghavan and the Los Angeles Times' Doug Smith and Raheem Salman
all note, Zebari is talking 'concessions' already (on both sides!).
That would put the US client-state in an even weaker position. And is
anyone else starting to note that 'progress' always 'happens' when
Jalal Talabani is absent? Fresh from having the Mayo Clinic unplog his
arteries, the ever-expanding Jalal Talabani is back in the news. BBC reports
that yesterday, in Athens, Jalal (attending a conference, he wasn't
there for sunbathing) shooks hands with Irsrael's Defense Minister Ehud
Barak. And that Talabani's office quickly issued a "statement [which]
said he was responsding to a request from Mr Abbas and was acting as
leader of his Kurcihs party and deputy president of the Sociliast
International, not as Iraq's president." Finishing the Talabani
portion, Turkish Daily News reports
he "was elected to a vice-chairmanship in the Socialist International
over the leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party, or
CHP, who avoided attending the summit in Greece and therefore was not
nominated". On the issue of the treaty, Watching America has translated Palestinian Writer's piece (written for al Jazeera):
The
first step in getting Iraq out from underneath its catastrophe is the
withdrawal of American troops. . . . The most stunning of those who
fear for an Iraq in which the Americans leave are those who want to
sign a security agreement with the Bush administration, or an
American-Iraqi treaty which is now on the agenda and of which some
items have already been leaked. It gives the right for the occupation
to stay in Iraq for an indefinite amount of time of up to several
years, or even a permanent occupation. And with a permanent occupation
would come a permanent catastrophe that would be renewed and
everlasting. Signing a security agreement or a
militay/political/security treaty alongside the crime that is the
proposed oil agreement would require a hand in treachery to Iraq, to
Arabs and to Muslims, under any and all circumstances.
Meanwhile the United Arab Emirates' The National sees talk
that the Sunni bloc -- (Tawafaq Front) boycotting for a year now --
might return to the Iraqi Parliament as a sign of optimism. Remember
that in a few weeks. (False hopes always die hard.) Closer to
reality, Sabrina Tavernise reported
today: "Another judge was the target of an intimidation campaign on
Tuesday, at least the sixth in two days, in a trend that has alarmed
Iraq's judiciary. A bomb was placed near the house of Judge Qusay
al-Bayati, of the Court of Appeals in eastern Baghdad. The judges
previously attacked were on the same court. The bomb was defused and
did not explode."
Turning to some of today's reported violence . . .
Bombings?
Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports
a US military camp in Baghdad was the target of an attack early this
morning which started with exchanges of gunfire and then had "two 107mm
rockets" fired at it (according to the US military) and 2 civilians
were killed when the US returned fire, three Baghdad roadside bombings
resulting in 2 deaths and nine people wounded
Turning
to the US presidential race. Barack Obama continues to attempt to
prove he is patriotic. Meanwhile this is how Ralph Nader described the
country to Jim Lehrer (PBS' NewsHour) in 2000,
"Well there are ups and downs. Obviously the slavery period was
counteracted by the antislavery movement, women got the right to vote,
workers got the right to form trade unions. They built the middle
class. As they say, they gave us our weekend, they gave us benefits.
The farmers' popular progressive movement against the banks and
railroads companies that leavened power more; it gave people a chance
to have more voice. So I think we have to look back at our history and
say why is it every time concentrated power got too much and social
justice movements opposed them, and the dominant business community
opposed a social justice movement and finally lost, America was better
as a result. Everybody benefited, including the businesses because
democracy tends to expand markets." In 2000 at this time, Nader was
coming in at four-percent in most polls. The most recent CNN-Opinion
Research Poll found him to be holding at 6%.
On the
Iraq War, while Barack wants credit for a speech he 'gave' in 2002
(online recording is a 're-creation'), what has he done since? While
Barack was supporting Bully Boy's illegal war throughout 2004 and
stating repeatedly that he didn't know how he would have voted if he
had been in the Senate, Ralph Nader knew where he stood in 2004: "Every
day our exposed military remains in war-torm Iraq, we impreil U.S.
security, drain our economy, ignore urgent domestic needs, and prevent
Iraqi demonstratic self-rule. We need to announace a withdrawal of our
troops, not increase them." In May of 2004, speaking to the Council
of/for/from Foreign Relations, he would explain (in the belly of the
beast): "After 9-11, it's now become quite clear that whatever emphasis
there was on the al Qaeda apparatus, there was a superior emphasis on
removing Saddam Hussein from Iraq. What's interesting about this is
the following. It illustrated -- in ways perhaps never before
illustrated in our country -- the fragility of our democratic
institutiatons. Here is a nation run by a tottering dictator presiding
over a diplated army, with troops not willing to fight for him,
surrounded by hostile Kurds to the north, hostile Shiites to the south,
surrounded by three very powerful countries compared to his military
ability: Iran, Turkey and Israel. And had he directed one aggressive
threat toward any of them, they would have obliterated his regime. And
yet Iraq under Hussein was viewed as a threat to the United States?
But what was most troubling was the lack of any deliberative process by
the US Congress which was stampeded into this situation, lack of any
deliberative or investigative process by the mass media which clicked
their heels and loved the graphics that they were given, and without a
deliberative attentiveness to the perceived concerns of the American
people. Before the invasion of Iraq, we tried to have Bush meet with
one or more distinct groups in our country who had knowledge and were
concerned about the invasion of Iraq. Thirteen of these groups, with
very little press attention, wrote open letters to President Bush in
February and early March, asking for a meeting. They included letters
signed by the National Council of Churches, former military officers,
former intelligence officials, student groups, women's peace advocates,
a business group, labor group. I don't know of any other impending
hostility that had such an ecumentical coming-together, expressing
doubt and opposition to the pending move. None of these letters were
answered by the White House. There were no meetings. President Bush,
being the messianic militarist that we've come to know so well, was not
interested in meeting with anyone who was critical of his proposed Iraq
policies. That was a severe scar on our democratic fabric."
Meanwhile Steve Holland (Reuters) notes Barack's "flexibility" and "nuance on Iraq". Glen Ford (Black Agenda Report), endorsing Cynthia McKinney (presumed Green Party nominee), observes,
" The true voices of peace speak clearly, in simple language. 'The U.S.
should withdraw all troops and mercenaries from Iraq in as orderly a
fashion as possible,' says former Georgia congresswoman Cynthia
McKinney, candidate for the Green Party's presidential nomination.
'This withdrawal should be quickly accomplished, since the troops and
the equipment were all pre-positioned in the area to start with, at the
start of the invasion'."
Unbeknownst
to him and his legion of supporters, Glass, 25, was actually discharged
from the U.S. Army shortly after he went AWOL in 2006. Glass
and about 40 other American deserters who like him sought refugee
status have prompted a national debate in Canada that last month
reached the floor of Parliament on where to draw the line between
cowardice and conscience. "I
had absolutely no idea that I had been discharged," said Glass when ABC
News informed him of his status. "This is insane. This is so weird.
There are no warrants? No one is looking for me?" According
to U.S. Army documents and officials Glass was discharged from the
California National Guard on Dec. 1, 2006, four months after he arrived
in Canada and six months after he failed to show up to a required
muster.
Army Major Nathan Banks is quoted stating the US
military does not consider Glass AWOL or a deserter, there are no
charges against him, he is out of the military.
The development
(similar developments happened during Vietnam) comes as polls show huge
support in Canada for US war resisters. From Jason Buckland's "Don't turf Iraq war deserters, poll says" (Toronto Sun):
Three
in five Canadians favour giving U.S. soldiers resisting the Iraq War a
chance to stay in Canada as permanent residents, a new poll said
yesterday. Results from the nation-wide Angus Reid survey showed 64% of Canadians support war objectors seeking refuge north of the border. "I
think Canadians were opposed to the Iraq War from the start," said Lee
Zaslofsky, national co-ordinator for the War Resister Support Campaign
(WRSC). "The fact that it
has dragged on so long -- is in shambles, really -- I think Canadians
understand why someone would want to stop fighting for that kind of
cause in that kind of place."
The news today includes a shocker for many reporters. Ebony Horton, whom we called out in May, and others quick to swallow, should damn well pay attention. Sarah Childress (Newsweek) reports,
"The number of active-duty soldiers who deserted the Army last year is
higher than previously reported -- at 3,301, the military said last
week. (The Army said the original figure was tallied incorrectly.)
Deserters are branded after abandoning their posts without permission
for 30 days. The tally is hardly at Vietnam War levels, but it's still
significant for an all-volunteer military."
As Rebecca noted Friday, we are discussing how to cover the illegal war at Third
and this news about Glass actually jumps a planned angle for Sunday.
What's happened isn't surprising historically. Corey Glass should
inquire about his IRR status before attempting to visit or return to
the US. For Glass and for others, action is still needed. So planned
actions should continue such as Canada's War Resister Support Campaign
calling for a "NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION, Wednesday July 2nd" -- that's today:
STOP THE DEPORTATION OF U.S. WAR RESISTER COREY GLASS
On July 2nd CALL MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION DIANE FINLEY!
Details
U.S.
Iraq War resister Corey Glass is still facing deportation on July 10th,
despite the Parliament of Canada having voted in favour of a motion to
let Corey and other U.S. war resisters stay.
The
federal government and the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration must
respect the will of Parliament and implement the motion which calls on
the government to "immediately implement a program to allow
conscientious objectors and their immediate family members [ ] to apply
for permanent resident status and remain in Canada; and the
government should immediately cease any removal or deportation actions
against such individuals."
On July 2nd, the War Resisters Support Campaign is calling on all supporters to call Minister Diane Finley and ask her to: STOP deportation proceedings against Corey Glass and all U.S. Iraq war resisters; and IMPLEMENT the motion adopted by Canadas Parliament to allow U.S. Iraq war resisters to apply for permanent resident status.
Here are the numbers to call: Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Diane Finley 613.996.4974
It
is more urgent than ever that we send a message to the Canadian
government that Canada needs to welcome US men and women who refuse to
participate in the illegal and immoral war in Iraq. There are three
actions you can take today to help support the war resisters.
Sign the petition in support of the war resisters;
Contact the federal government and make your views known; and
Petition Add
your name to the petition calling for the federal government to
implement a provision to allow war resisters to stay in Canada. Initial
signatories include June Callwood, David Suzuki, Maude Barlow, Shirley
Douglas, Naomi Klein, Ann-Marie MacDonald, and many others. Please download a copy of the petition, sign it, circulate it and return it to the campaign.
Write a letter to the editor Letters
to the editor are an important piece of the public debate on this
issue. The majority of Canadians opposed the war in Iraq and support
the provision of sanctuary for US soldiers. Send a copy of your letter
to the campaign to resisters@sympatico.ca.
Join
a vigil and delegation to a Canadian consulate near you on Wednesday,
July 9th to support war resisters! On the eve of Corey Glass' possible
deportation, we will demand, "Dear Canada: Abide by the June 3rd
resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" More details and cities to be confirmed soon!
Washington DC - Time TBA - 501 Pennsylvania Ave NW (map). Sponsored by Veterans for Peace. Info: TBA San Francisco - Noon to 1pm - 580 California St (map). Sponsored by Courage to Resist. Info: 510-488-3559; courage(at)riseup.net Seattle - Time TBA - 1501 4th Ave (map). Sponsored by Project Safe Haven. Info: 206-499-1220; projectsafehaven(at)hotmail.com Dallas - Time TBA - 750 North St Paul St (map). Sponsored by North Texas for Justice and Peace. Info: 214-718-6362; hftomlinson(at)riseup.net New York City - Noon to 1pm - 1251 Avenue of the Americas (map). Sponsored by War Resisters' League. Info: 212-228-0450; wrl(at)warresisters.org Philadelphia - Time TBA - 1650 Market St (map). Sponsored by Payday Network. Info: 215-848-1120; payday(at)paydaynet.org Minneapolis - Time TBA - 701 Fourth Ave S (map). Info: TBA Los Angeles - Noon to 1pm - 550 South Hope St (map). Sponsored by Progressive Democrats LA. Info: pdlavote(at)aol.com Help
organize a vigil at one of these other Canadian Consulates: Atlanta,
Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Miami, Anchorage, Houston,
Raleigh, Phoenix, or San Diego. Please contact Courage to Resist at
510-488-3559. Veterans for Peace issued a joint call with Courage to
Resist and Project Safe Haven for July 9th vigils at Canadian
Consulates: "Dear Canada: Do Not Deport U.S. War Resisters!" Contact us
if you can help organize a vigil, or can otherwise get involved. Locations of the 22 Canadian Consulates in the United States. Recently
on June 3rd the Canadian Parliament passed an historic motion to
officially welcome war resisters! It now appears, however, that the
Conservative government may disregard the motion. Iraq combat
veteran turned courageous war resister, 25-year-old Sgt. Corey Glass of
the Indiana National Guard is still scheduled to be deported July 10th. We
will ask that the Canadian government respect the democratic decision
of Parliament, the demonstrated opinion of the Canadian citizenry, the
view of the United Nations, and millions of Americans by immediately
implementing the motion and cease deportation proceedings against Corey
Glass and other current and future war resisters. Join Courage to
Resist, Veterans for Peace, and Project Safe Haven at Canadian
Consulates across the United States (Washington DC, San Francisco, New
York City, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles confirmed--more to be
announced). We mailed and delivered over 10,000 of the original
letters to Canadian officials. Please sign the new letter, "Dear
Canada: Abide by resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" http://www.couragetoresist.org/canada
Posted by The Nader Team on Tuesday, July 1, 2008 at 11:53:00 AM
We're having a party!
A Nader/Gonzalez House Party!
And we're inviting you to be one of 100 Nader/Gonzalez supporters to host a House Party on Saturday night July 26, 2008. Sign up now.
With the help of modern technology, you can have Ralph Nader right there with you in your living room.
If you choose to be one of the 100 to host a house party, we will send you a remarkable documentary DVD about Ralph Nader - An Unreasonable Man and the Awake from Your Slumber DVD starring Ralph Nader and Patti Smith - both autographed by Ralph Nader.
Plus, we'll throw in a special collector's edition Nader/Gonzalez button.
The purpose of the National Nader/Gonzalez House Party Day?
Raise $100,000 to help put Nader/Gonzalez on at least 45 state ballots.
To
reach our goal, we are asking that each house party host bring together
20 or more friends, family, and other party goers to donate $50 each.
But
you can organize your house party any way you want. If you want to
bring together 40 people at $25 a pop, that's great. Or four people at
$250 a pop, that's good too.
He'll be available that night - either by phone or through the wonders
of the Internet - to talk with you and answer your questions.
So, if you want to host a house party - click here. Our house party staff will answer any and all questions you may have.
If you can't host a house party, please donate now
to help fund our ballot access drive - remember, you can give
Nader/Gonzalez up to the legal limit of $4,600. And if you choose, your
name will appear on our home page!
While
McCain and Obama continue to flip-flop toward November, Ralph Nader
remains steadfast - standing firm on a platform to shift the power away
from the corporations and back to the people.
On Sunday, Ralph told ABC's George Stephanapolous that we intend to get on at least 45 states.
And we can't let Ralph down.
Stand by the candidacy that will stand by you.
By the way, yesterday, 319 of you kicked in $12,761.69. Thank you all very much.
As a result, we are now well on our way to our fundraising goal of $40,000.
This will help us secure ten state ballot lines by July 6. Together, we are making a difference.
Onward
The Nader Team
PS: We invite your comments to the blog.
Your contribution could be doubled. Public campaign financing may match your contribution total up to $250.
In "Iraq legislators seek to fine-tune a bill" (Los Angeles Times),
Alexandra Zavis reports that, unlike the US Congress, the Iraqi
Parliament is postponing the summer vaction. Zavis reports that this is
said to be in response to the allegedly upcoming provinical elections
and the failure to pass the legislation that the US White House wants.
For those thinking back to last summer, the Iraqi Parliament was under
criticism last year for taking a summer break. They ended up taking one
resulting in some harsh criticism from inside the US. Repeating, the US
Congress took their break last summer and are due to take their summer
break this year.
In the New York Times this morning, Sabrina Tavernise files the only Iraq report. It's entitled "U.S. Agrees to Lift Immunity for Contractors in Iraq"
and Hoshyar Zebari (Iraq's Foreign Minister) states that immunity for
contractors has been lifted but what it really indicates is that the
Iraqi government needs to get some attorneys to look over what is being
negotiated. For example, there's a sense of "We get control of our air
space!" but do they? From the article:
Mahmoud
Othman, a Kurdish member of Parliament, said the concession was simply
part of political maneuvering. Iraq does not have a full-fledged air
force and lacks the equipment and expertise to take control of air
traffic over the country. As a result, he said, the United States would
"keep control even if it was handed to Iraqis."
On Democracy Now!
this morning, you get the latest in "blackface," "Korean face." A
program that has such a sorry record on Asian-American issues has no
reason to parade that insulting clip of Anna Deavere Smith (Hazel from All My Children)
doing a stereotypical turn as a Korean-American. Not since Jerry Lewis'
early sixties work have you seen anything so insulting and degrading.
Amy Goodman, of course, is delighted with it. She also presents 'peace'
man Joseph Cirincione who is not a person of peace. But you'll grasp
that as he ranks priorities on air and also insists of nuclear energy,
"It's not the reactor you're worried about . . ." Did you miss Three
Mile Island. He's another Barack groupie on the fringes of the campaign
and if you waste your time with Amy Goodman's WORTHLESS CRAP this
morning, you'll grasp that quickly.
There is actual news in the
world (check out first item in next entry) and Goody could haul her
tired ass to Canada at any point but it's not about news, it's about
promoting Barack Obama. Every day. That's who she's selling it for.
Less and less are buying, thankfully, decreasing the risk of a social
disease turning into an epidemic.
Consumer
advocate Ralph Nader has identified a dozen issues, from single-payer
health insurance to cutting the military budget to repealing anti-union
laws, that distinguish him from the two major party candidates for
president. But the one that
separates him most, and that has defined his activism for much of his
life, is corporate influence on politics and government. "The
central issue in our country is the overwhelming power of global
corporations, on our government, on our elections, and on our economy,"
Nader said yesterday in a telephone interview from Washington, D.C.
"Commercialism is running riot over civic values that represent the
heart and core of a civilization." The
consumer advocate and attorney will bring his independent presidential
campaign to the Islands tomorrow night for a rally at the University of
Hawai'i-Manoa. Nader -- the second presidential candidate to campaign
here this election cycle, after U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio,
dropped by last September -- is dismissive of the way major party
candidates have traditionally bypassed Hawai'i and Alaska.
And
should be. The Dems had to rally at the last minute in 2004 in Hawaii
because they took the state for granted. We covered this in November of
2004. Joan lives in Hawaii.
Tuesday,
July 1, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, war resisters have greater
support in Canada than some may have thought as a new poll indicates,
tag sale on Iraqi oil continues, the Nader-Gonzalez campaign raises
over $10,000 yesterday, and more.
Starting with war
resistance. As Canada gears up for actions to demonstrate support for
US war resisters, a new poll is released. The Angus Reid Poll finds:
"A majority of Canadians would agree with the decision to let American
military deserters stay in Canada as permanent residents, a new Angus
Reid Strategies survey reveals. . . In the online survey of a
representative national sample, three-in-five Canadians (64%) say they
would agree to give these U.S. soldiers the opportunity to remain in
Canada as permanent residents. Quebec (70%) houses the highest
proportion of respondents who agree with the motion, while Alberta
(52%) has the fewest supporters. A gender breakdown reveals that while
both males and females would agree to let U.S. military deserters
remain in Canada, females are much more sympathetic (69% versus 57%)."
The findings come as Canada is on the verge of deporting the first US
Iraq War resister. May 21st was when Corey Glass was told he would be deported.
Corey Glass is an Iraq War veteran and a US war resister. He went to
Canada seeking asylum -- the kind of welcoming Canada provided to war
resisters ("draft dodgers" and "deserters") during Vietnam. After being
told he was being deported, he's been 'extended' through July 10th. June 3rd Canada's House of Commons voted (non-binding motion) in favor of Canada being a safe harbor for war resisters. Douglas Glynn (The Barrie Examiner) quotes
Corey stating, "The motion is not legally binding, though the majority
of Parliament voted for it. I realized innocent people were being
killed. I tried to quit the military while in Iraq," he said, "but my
commander told me I was just stressed out and needed some R and R (rest
and relaxation), because I was doing a job I was not trained to do. I
went home on leave and said I was not coming back." So that's where it
stands currently.
STOP THE DEPORTATION OF U.S. WAR RESISTER COREY GLASS
On July 2nd CALL MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION DIANE FINLEY!
DetailsU.S.
Iraq War resister Corey Glass is still facing deportation on July 10th,
despite the Parliament of Canada having voted in favour of a motion to
let Corey and other U.S. war resisters stay.
The
federal government and the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration must
respect the will of Parliament and implement the motion which calls on
the government to "immediately implement a program to allow
conscientious objectors and their immediate family members [ ] to apply
for permanent resident status and remain in Canada; and the
government should immediately cease any removal or deportation actions
against such individuals."
On July 2nd, the War Resisters Support Campaign is calling on all supporters to call Minister Diane Finley and ask her to: STOP deportation proceedings against Corey Glass and all U.S. Iraq war resisters; and IMPLEMENT the motion adopted by Canada's Parliament to allow U.S. Iraq war resisters to apply for permanent resident status.
Here are the numbers to call: Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Diane Finley 613.996.4974
Join
a vigil and delegation to a Canadian consulate near you on Wednesday,
July 9th to support war resisters! On the eve of Corey Glass' possible
deportation, we will demand, "Dear Canada: Abide by the June 3rd
resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" More details and cities to be confirmed soon!
Washington DC - Time TBA - 501 Pennsylvania Ave NW (map). Sponsored by Veterans for Peace. Info: TBA San Francisco - Noon to 1pm - 580 California St (map). Sponsored by Courage to Resist. Info: 510-488-3559; courage(at)riseup.net Seattle - Time TBA - 1501 4th Ave (map). Sponsored by Project Safe Haven. Info: 206-499-1220; projectsafehaven(at)hotmail.com Dallas - Time TBA - 750 North St Paul St (map). Sponsored by North Texas for Justice and Peace. Info: 214-718-6362; hftomlinson(at)riseup.net New York City - Noon to 1pm - 1251 Avenue of the Americas (map). Sponsored by War Resisters' League. Info: 212-228-0450; wrl(at)warresisters.org Philadelphia - Time TBA - 1650 Market St (map). Sponsored by Payday Network. Info: 215-848-1120; payday(at)paydaynet.org Minneapolis - Time TBA - 701 Fourth Ave S (map). Info: TBA Los Angeles - Noon to 1pm - 550 South Hope St (map). Sponsored by Progressive Democrats LA. Info: pdlavote(at)aol.com Help
organize a vigil at one of these other Canadian Consulates: Atlanta,
Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Miami, Anchorage, Houston,
Raleigh, Phoenix, or San Diego. Please contact Courage to Resist at
510-488-3559. Veterans for Peace issued a joint call with Courage
to Resist and Project Safe Haven for July 9th vigils at Canadian
Consulates: "Dear Canada: Do Not Deport U.S. War Resisters!" Contact us
if you can help organize a vigil, or can otherwise get involved. Locations of the 22 Canadian Consulates in the United States. Recently
on June 3rd the Canadian Parliament passed an historic motion to
officially welcome war resisters! It now appears, however, that the
Conservative government may disregard the motion. Iraq combat
veteran turned courageous war resister, 25-year-old Sgt. Corey Glass of
the Indiana National Guard is still scheduled to be deported July 10th. We
will ask that the Canadian government respect the democratic decision
of Parliament, the demonstrated opinion of the Canadian citizenry, the
view of the United Nations, and millions of Americans by immediately
implementing the motion and cease deportation proceedings against Corey
Glass and other current and future war resisters. Join Courage to
Resist, Veterans for Peace, and Project Safe Haven at Canadian
Consulates across the United States (Washington DC, San Francisco, New
York City, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles confirmed--more to be
announced). We mailed and delivered over 10,000 of the original
letters to Canadian officials. Please sign the new letter, "Dear
Canada: Abide by resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" http://www.couragetoresist.org/canada
Canada's War Resisters Support Campaign will hold a "Rally to Stop the Deportation of Parkdale Resident Corey Glass"
July 3rd, begins at 7:00 p.m. (with doors opening at six p.m.) at the
May Robinson Building, 20 West Lodge, Toronto: "In 2002, Corey joined
the Indiana National Guard. He was told he would not have to fight on
foreign shores. But in 2005 he was sent to Iraq. What he saw there
caused him to become a conscientious objector and he came to Canada. On
May 21, 2008, he got his final order to leave Canada by July 10, 2008.
Then on June 3 Parliament passed a motion for all the war resisters to
stay in Canada. However the Harper government says it will ignore this
motion." They are also asking for a July 2nd call-in. Diane Finley is
the Immigration and Citizenship Minister and her phone numbers are
(613) 996-4974 and (519) 426-3400 -- they also provide her e-mail
addresses minister@cic.gc.ca ("minister" at "cic.gc.ca") and finled1@parl.gc.ca ("finled1" at "parl.gc.ca").
There
is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which
includes Megan Bean, Chris Bean, Matthis Chiroux, Richard Droste,
Michael Barnes, Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano
Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal,
Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall,
Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve
Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha
Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister,
Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada,
Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen,
Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman,
Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck,
Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine,
Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey,
Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua
Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell,
Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake,
Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres,
Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and
Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada
have applied for asylum.
Turning to Iraq, where UPI notes the (five) attempted assassinations of (five) judges yesterday. You might think it was a big story. Not to the New York Times where Sabrina Tavernise and Andrew E. Kramer offer up seven sentences
on the assassination attempts -- seven sentences that begin in
paragraph 20 of a 25 paragraph story. The two conclude, "The attacks
seemed to be calculated to intimidate rather than to kill. It was not
clear who was responsible." More attention, to be fair, than PBS' The NewsHour gave it last night with Ray Suarez offering,
"In Iraq today, bombings in Baghdad targeted five judges; all escaped
unharmed." And for public television's NewsHour, that was that. The Gulf Daily News leads
with the assassination attempts, "Only one of the jurists was injured
in the attacks, which happened four days after senior judge Kamil Al
Showaili of the country's Higher Judicial Council was assassinated
while driving home in mostly Shi'ite east Baghdad. Police said it was
unclear whether Al Showaili's slaying was related to the latest
attacks." Of al-Showali, RTT notes
he was "[t]he President of the same court" and "one of Iraq's most
important judges, charged with handling criminal cases for eastern
Baghdad." Jordan's Al Bawaba explains
of the attacks "police believe may be part of a Shiite campaign to
force them to free jailed militants or reduce their sentences."
On the diplomatic front, Jordan Times reports
that Nayef Zeidan was sworn in yesterday as Jordan's ambassador to
Iraq. Previously, Zeidan was Jordan's ambassador in the United Arab
Emirates. Jordan's embassy in the Netherlands notes,
"The Jordian embassy in Baghdad has been run by a charge d'affaires for
three years and the Kingdom has not sent an ambassador, citing
'security concerns'." This follows King Abdullah II's public
statements in May -- as the US White House pressured Arab countries --
that Jordan would
wound send an official emissary to Iraq. The Jordan Times points out,
"Several Arab countries have linked sending back their ambassadors to
the restoration of security in Iraq. So far, Bahrain and the UAE have
decided to send back ambassadors to Baghdad after the security
situation improved following two 'successful' military campaigns
against Al Sadr militia and Al Qaeda." King Abdulla II, speaking with Lally Weymouth (Washington Post) last week,
offered, "I am actually optimistic for the first time on Iraq. I think
that Iraqi society is moving in the right direction. It's the first
time that I have felt that Iraqis have, as much as they can, bound
themselves together into a unity." From Jordan to another country that
shares a border with Iraq, Turkey. The Turkish Daily News reports,
"Turkey has proposed establishing a joint industrial zone with Iraq in
the border town of Ovakoy, a province in the country's southeastern
Anatolian region, State Minister Kursat Tuzmen told reporters
yesterday." Today's Zaman quotes
Tuzmen declaring, "We may establish a joint industrial zone at Ovakoy,
on the Turkish-Iraqi border. Both Turkey and Iraq could freely conduct
industrial and commercial activities there. We may concentrate on
energy production and sales at the planned industrial zone at first,
and later extend its scope to other fields." The comments are similar
to ones Tuzmen made Sunday while attending a business forum in
Baghdad's Green Zone. Last week, Tuzmen was also stating Turkey would
be increasing trade with Catalonia. Meanwhile Laith Hammoudi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports
that alcohol is being sold in Iraq ("retail only") and speak with
Yazidi Dawood and Christian Saif (who didn't want their full names
noted for publication) about their experiences selling alcohol
(previously Saif had a store fire bombed and nine of the thirteen
stores his family owned were taken over by "Islamist insurgents".).
As noted yesterday, the TSC (technical service contracts) -- which were no-bid contracts -- are on hold. Sudarsan Raghavan and Steven Mufson (Washington Post) report
Iraq's plan, announced by the country's Minister of Oil Hussain
al-Shahristani, to up "production by about 60 percent, or approximately
1.5 million barrels a day" via opening eight fields (six oil, two
natural gas) up to foreign partners and the bidders are "35 companies
-- including firms from the United States, Britain, France, Russia,
China and India". The New Zeland Herald estimates
this move "could lead to the biggest foreign stake in Iraq since the
industry was nationalised more than 30 years ago" while also noting
"concerns that a dominat role for Western firms could feed perceptions
that US-led forces toppled Saddam Hussein to grab the country's natural
resources." Doug Smith and Said Rifai (Los Angeles Times) explain,
"The bidding will proceed even though parliament has not yet ratified a
national oil law to regulate foreign contracts" and note that the
announcement took place during a "testy news conference" when the
Ministor of Oil "renewed his criticism of the Kurdish regional
government for signing deals with foreign companies that offer them a
share of oil they extract." Gina Chon and Russell Gold (Wall St. Journal) add
that Shahrastani called the "20 separate oild eals, with companies
including Hunt Oil," to be "a clear violation of the rules." Sam Dagher (Christian Science Monitor) observes,
"Major oil firms have been positioning themselves for years to gain
access to Iraq's vast oil reserves, which are estimated at 115 billion
barrels -- the world's second largest after Saudi Arabia." Janet McBride (Reuters) wonders,
"Are U.S. and British firms obvious choices as partners because of
their expertise? After all before the U.S.-led invasion Iraq often
preferrred Russian firms. Or are U.S. and British firms repeating the
benefit of their government's policies?"
Turning to some of today's violence . . .
Bombings?
Mohammed Al Dulaimy (McClatchy Newspapers) reports
a Baghdad car bombing that left five people wounded, a Diyala Province
roadside bombing that wounded "one policeman, three children and four
men" and aother Diyala Province roadside bombing that claimed the lives
of 3 brothers and left their father wounded a Nineveh Province truck
bombing that claimed the life of 1 person (plus the bomber) and left
twenty-five people wounded and, dropping back to Monday, a Diyala
Province car bombing that claimed 4 lives and left nine people
wounded." Reuters notes
a Mosul roadside bombing that claimed the life of 1 police officer and
a Sulaiman Pek bombing apparently attempting to assassinate "the mayor
of the town of Sulaiman Pek" that resulted in the death of 1 bodyguard.
Shootings?
Reuters notes Iraqi soldiers shot dead 2 people in Baghdad.
Hugh Eakin (New York Times) reports
one of the more alarming incidents of violence Iraqi documents from
Saddam Hussein's rule that are considered historic, important for
humanitarian and historical purposes and document human rights abuses
are not in Iraq. They are now in the United States and under the
control of the right-wing Hoover Institution. An Iraqi exile (Kanan
Makiya) 'claimed' themwhen he returned to Iraq after the start of the
illegal war. He set up the Iraq Memory Foundation. The files, which
were never Kanan Makiya's to claim, were being held in the Green Zone
until Makiya decided to take them out in 2006. Whether he had
permission is unclear but what is clear is that the Iraqi government
wants those documents back and most outside 'experts' believe the
papers should be housed in the Iraq National Library and Archive.
Meanwhile James Glanz (New York Times) reports
that at least 13 Americans have died in Iraq from electrocution caused
by the shoddy work done by KBR which knew of the problems but did not
fix them. Meanwhile, Adam Kokesh (Revolutionay Patriot) posts
an e-mail from a service member stationed at Camp Falluja in Iraq
revealing that "our sister units berthing area caught fire and burned
to the ground. It spread so fast and with 120 temps here today, there
was no way they could contain the fire in time. These Marines lost
everything that they had, all of their military issued gear as well as
personal gear."; while another explains that the loss is made harder
due to the fact that the PX is a problem and includes this quote, "Yeah
it is very hard to get stuff here, the shipments have really slowed
down. We pretty much resort to people back in the states sending us
shaving cream and s**t like that, or wait until someone goes to BIAP
and they bring it back in bulk. You can't even buy skivee shirts and
what not. It blows."
Turning to the US race for president. Alexander Mooney (CNN) reports
on the latest CNN-Opinion Research Corporation poll which finds Ralph
Nader with 6% of the vote, Bob Barr with 3% (Adam Kokesh is supporting Bob Barr),
John McCain with 43% and Barack Obama with 46% -- the poll does not
include Cynthia McKinney, the Green Party's presumed nominee. PBS' NewsHour has today added profiles of presidential candidates Ralph Nader and Bob Barr.
"We do need a more fundamental strategy here on giant corporate power," Ralph Nader declared in October of last year at the DC Green Festival.
That is the central political issue of our time. It's corporate power
and the takeover of our government and the spread of commercial values
into every nook and cranny of our culture including the
commercialization of childhood, the commercialization of universities,
the commercialization of almost everything these large companies touch.
. . . The other day there was a report saying that TORT lawyers were
having trouble suing nursing home chains for severe mistreatment of
elderly people and neglect. And the reason why is because these
nursing home chains are owned by tiers of corporations -- some of them
offshore. And the most immediate tier have very few assets so they
can't be responsible for paying the verdicts. And so the TORT lawyers
say, 'Well we just can't handle it.' And so more and more people can
be mistreated or neglected in these nursing homes with impunity."
Ralph Nader's running mate is Matt Gonzalez and the Nader-Gonzalez ticket is on the ballot in Illinois and The Hartford Courant notes:
"Campaign volunteer Peter Ellmer was able to solicit several pledges on
Sunday from people who are willing to collect signatures to get Nader
on the Connecticut ballot." Nader is working to be on the ballot and Team Nader notes that Monday saw $12,761.69 donated to the Nader-Gonzalez campaign. We'll close with Nader in a moment, but first, the Dems. Paul Bedard (US News & World Reports) notes that Barack's campaign is still suffering problems from Wesley Clark's remarks [see yesterday's snapshot or Deilah Boyd's (A Scriveners Lament) post here]
and now also from Barack's efforts to distance himself from Clark and
includes these observations by Suzi Parker, "Obama can kiss Arkansas
goodbye. A lot of Dems are mad that Obama threw Clark under the bus
and denounced his comments about McCain. If anything, they think the
Obama should have just let the comments lie. A lot of Dems I am
talking to are Clintonites but also supported Clark in 2004 [when he
ran for president]. Also hearing from Clark supporters who were in the
draft movement that the Obama folks must have forgotten Clark has a
massive database of supporters that has only gotten bigger since 2004
because Clark has been out campaigning for Dems since then." Susan (Random Thoughts from Reno) blogs,
"Now convince me, Obama supporters, your candidate is something other
than a ringer for the GOP. This guy is NOT, repeat NOT, a Democrat.
Now he wants to expand 'faight-based' programs . . . Yeah, give these
outfits federal money and allow them to discriminate. That's REAL
progress." Also noting the new support for 'faith-based' programs is Vasleftt (Corrente) who terms it
part of "Obama's bottomless pit of capitulation" and withdraws the
previous endorsement of Barack. This is on the heels of his cave-in on
illegal spying, his broken promise over public financing and, as Klaus Marre (The Hill) points out,
Barack's 'big speech' yesterday was a slap-down to MoveOn. If there is
a spine in there, presumably, it is collapsible. Finally, Team Nader notes:
We're having a party!
A Nader/Gonzalez House Party!
And we're inviting you to be one of 100 Nader/Gonzalez supporters to host a House Party on Saturday night July 26, 2008. Sign up now.
With the help of modern technology, you can have Ralph Nader right there with you in your living room.
If you choose to be one of the 100 to host a house party, we will send you a remarkable documentary DVD about Ralph Nader - An Unreasonable Man and the Awake from Your Slumber DVD starring Ralph Nader and Patti Smith - both autographed by Ralph Nader.
Plus, we'll throw in a special collector's edition Nader/Gonzalez button.
The purpose of the National Nader/Gonzalez House Party Day?
Raise $100,000 to help put Nader/Gonzalez on at least 45 state ballots.
To
reach our goal, we are asking that each house party host bring together
20 or more friends, family, and other party goers to donate $50 each. But
you can organize your house party any way you want. If you want to
bring together 40 people at $25 a pop, that's great. Or four people at
$250 a pop, that's good too.
He'll
be available that night - either by phone or through the wonders of the
Internet - to talk with you and answer your questions.
So, if you want to host a house party - click here. Our house party staff will answer any and all questions you may have.
If you can't host a house party, please donate now
to help fund our ballot access drive - remember, you can give
Nader/Gonzalez up to the legal limit of $4,600. And if you choose, your
name will appear on our home page!
While
McCain and Obama continue to flip-flop toward November, Ralph Nader
remains steadfast - standing firm on a platform to shift the power away
from the corporations and back to the people.
On Sunday, Ralph told ABC's George Stephanapolous that we intend to get on at least 45 states.
In
Canada, US war resisters need to be granted safe harbor status. That's
true of Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey whose cases the Canadian
Supreme Court refused to hear in November, that's true of Robin Long
who was nearly deported last year. That's true of all war resisters but
especially Corey Glass. May 21st was when Corey Glass was told he would be deported.
Corey Glass is an Iraq War veteran and a US war resister. He went to
Canada seeking asylum -- the kind of welcoming Canada provided to war
resisters ("draft dodgers" and "deserters") during Vietnam. After being
told he was being deported, he's been 'extended' through July 10th.
STOP THE DEPORTATION OF U.S. WAR RESISTER COREY GLASS
On July 2nd CALL MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION DIANE FINLEY!
Details
U.S.
Iraq War resister Corey Glass is still facing deportation on July 10th,
despite the Parliament of Canada having voted in favour of a motion to
let Corey and other U.S. war resisters stay.
The
federal government and the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration must
respect the will of Parliament and implement the motion which calls on
the government to "immediately implement a program to allow
conscientious objectors and their immediate family members [ ] to apply
for permanent resident status and remain in Canada; and the
government should immediately cease any removal or deportation actions
against such individuals."
On July 2nd, the War Resisters Support Campaign is calling on all supporters to call Minister Diane Finley and ask her to: STOP deportation proceedings against Corey Glass and all U.S. Iraq war resisters; and IMPLEMENT the motion adopted by Canadas Parliament to allow U.S. Iraq war resisters to apply for permanent resident status.
Here are the numbers to call: Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Diane Finley 613.996.4974
It
is more urgent than ever that we send a message to the Canadian
government that Canada needs to welcome US men and women who refuse to
participate in the illegal and immoral war in Iraq. There are three
actions you can take today to help support the war resisters.
Sign the petition in support of the war resisters;
Contact the federal government and make your views known; and
Petition Add
your name to the petition calling for the federal government to
implement a provision to allow war resisters to stay in Canada. Initial
signatories include June Callwood, David Suzuki, Maude Barlow, Shirley
Douglas, Naomi Klein, Ann-Marie MacDonald, and many others. Please download a copy of the petition, sign it, circulate it and return it to the campaign.
Write a letter to the editor Letters
to the editor are an important piece of the public debate on this
issue. The majority of Canadians opposed the war in Iraq and support
the provision of sanctuary for US soldiers. Send a copy of your letter
to the campaign to resisters@sympatico.ca.
Join
a vigil and delegation to a Canadian consulate near you on Wednesday,
July 9th to support war resisters! On the eve of Corey Glass' possible
deportation, we will demand, "Dear Canada: Abide by the June 3rd
resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" More details and cities to be confirmed soon!
Washington DC - Time TBA - 501 Pennsylvania Ave NW (map). Sponsored by Veterans for Peace. Info: TBA San Francisco - Noon to 1pm - 580 California St (map). Sponsored by Courage to Resist. Info: 510-488-3559; courage(at)riseup.net Seattle - Time TBA - 1501 4th Ave (map). Sponsored by Project Safe Haven. Info: 206-499-1220; projectsafehaven(at)hotmail.com Dallas - Time TBA - 750 North St Paul St (map). Sponsored by North Texas for Justice and Peace. Info: 214-718-6362; hftomlinson(at)riseup.net New York City - Noon to 1pm - 1251 Avenue of the Americas (map). Sponsored by War Resisters' League. Info: 212-228-0450; wrl(at)warresisters.org Philadelphia - Time TBA - 1650 Market St (map). Sponsored by Payday Network. Info: 215-848-1120; payday(at)paydaynet.org Minneapolis - Time TBA - 701 Fourth Ave S (map). Info: TBA Los Angeles - Noon to 1pm - 550 South Hope St (map). Sponsored by Progressive Democrats LA. Info: pdlavote(at)aol.com Help
organize a vigil at one of these other Canadian Consulates: Atlanta,
Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Miami, Anchorage, Houston,
Raleigh, Phoenix, or San Diego. Please contact Courage to Resist at
510-488-3559. Veterans for Peace issued a joint call with Courage to
Resist and Project Safe Haven for July 9th vigils at Canadian
Consulates: "Dear Canada: Do Not Deport U.S. War Resisters!" Contact us
if you can help organize a vigil, or can otherwise get involved. Locations of the 22 Canadian Consulates in the United States. Recently
on June 3rd the Canadian Parliament passed an historic motion to
officially welcome war resisters! It now appears, however, that the
Conservative government may disregard the motion. Iraq combat
veteran turned courageous war resister, 25-year-old Sgt. Corey Glass of
the Indiana National Guard is still scheduled to be deported July 10th. We
will ask that the Canadian government respect the democratic decision
of Parliament, the demonstrated opinion of the Canadian citizenry, the
view of the United Nations, and millions of Americans by immediately
implementing the motion and cease deportation proceedings against Corey
Glass and other current and future war resisters. Join Courage to
Resist, Veterans for Peace, and Project Safe Haven at Canadian
Consulates across the United States (Washington DC, San Francisco, New
York City, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles confirmed--more to be
announced). We mailed and delivered over 10,000 of the original
letters to Canadian officials. Please sign the new letter, "Dear
Canada: Abide by resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" http://www.couragetoresist.org/canada
Stacey wondered if we could note that the Nader-Gonzalez ticket has redesigned their issues page?
"I
think the two parties are hurting our country," said Nader of the
Democratic and Republican Parties, "and they need more competition. As
we see on our website VoteNader.org,
you will see the issues we have on the table are majoritarian issues:
single-payer health care, do something about the wasteful military
budget, labor law reform, consumer protection . . . living wage, etc. .
. . The problem is, George, there's too much political bigotry against
small parties and candidates. You see it in these huge ballot access
laws which we're trying to overcome now with our roadtrippers, very,
very costly. We're excluded from the debates. Why do we ration debates?
We ought to have staggered debates. You've got Wimbledon, the sixtieth
seed gets a chance, you've got the NCAA, the sixtieth team gets a
chance. You have a huge roll of wealth on it. We're appealing to the
people in this country. . . . We're appealing to the people in this
country who want more choices on the ballot and Nader-Gonzalez provides
those choices."
Illinois
marks the third state where Nader/Gonzalez will be on the ballot in
2008, but did not qualify in 2004. Arizona and Hawaii are the other
two. Presently, the Nader/Gonzalez Campaign has seven teams in seven
states collecting signatures for ballot access. Sunday, on ABCs This
Week with George Stephanopoulos, Mr. Nader announced his campaign will
be on the ballot in 45 states. In 2004 the Democratic Party and
their allies initiated frivolous lawsuits aimed at keeping the
Nader/Camejo ticket off the ballots in 18 states, denying voters the
choice of an Independent candidacy for President and Vice President. In
2008 the Nader/Gonzalez Campaign is cautioning the Democratic Party not
to misuse the court system with baseless political challenges and to
honor the will of the people for more choices on the ballot.
Meanwhile The Hartford Courant's "Nadar Makes Campaign Stop"
notes: "Campaign volunteer Peter Ellmer was able to solicit several
pledges on Sunday from people who are willing to collect signatures to
get Nader on the Connecticut ballot."
After
19 paragraphs on the oil 'story' (as noted in yesterday's snapshot, the
no-bid contracts that were supposed to be signed yesterday are now on
hold but Iraq is stating that six fields will be opened) Tavernise and
Kramer include this:
A spate of
violence against judges escalated sharply on Monday. Bombs exploded in
front of the houses of four judges from the Court of Appeals in largely
Shiite eastern Baghdad, a spokesman for the court said. A
fifth judge discovered a bomb in his car as he was leaving the same
court Monday afternoon. An Interior Ministry spokesman said the bomb
exploded and the judge, Hassan Fuad, was wounded in the blast. The attacks seemed to be calculated to intimidate rather than to kill. It was not clear who was responsible. "This
is an attack to destroy the state itself," said Wail Abdul Latif, a
member of Parliament who worked as a judge for decades. "These judges
were far from sectarianism and politics."
And that's
that. 19 paragraphs on 'nothing has happened with the oil, but we are
watching closely,' four paragraphs on five assassination attempts and
then a final paragraph noting some other violence from yesterday. If
five judges were targeted in the US, do you honestly think it would not
be news?
James Glanz' "After Deaths, U.S. Inspects Electric Work Done in Iraq"
runs on A10 along with Tavernise and Kramer's article. It can be summed
up as: at least 13 Americans have died in Iraq from shoddy work done by
contractor KBR which knew of the problem but did not fix it.
Which brings us to Michael Kamber's nonsense that starts on the front page "Wounded Iraqi Forces Say They've Been Abandoned."
Before you grab the tissues, who are these 'forces'? Sometimes Kamber's
writing about Iraqi police officers. Sometimes he's writing about Iraqi
soldiers. Sometimes he's writing about militias -- thugs. It should be
noted he's never writing about Iraqi civilians -- you know, the people
trapped in the illegal war. Turns out Nouri al-Maliki -- who sits on
millions -- won't apparently offer decent benefits to his hired thugs
after they're wounded. Boo hoo. Then you get a story of a police
officer and that should really bother you because the New York Times
never takes a victim's word for it. But there's a police officer saying
he was injured (verifiable) and that, while in the hospital, he was
fired (maybe verifiable) with the excuse that he'd been in a fight when
he was 16-years-old and therefore shouldn't have passed the background
check. That last part is not verified and it would be nice if the paper
would grant that same approach (believe everything) to all victims. But
they don't. It's curious that they would here. The article's a mess.
Its focus morphs throughout.
At one point it's dropping back to
2004, but the bulk of it is during al-Maliki's tenure (since April
2006). That's al-Maliki's problem. It's the same problem that has so
many Iraqi civilians struggling, it's the same problem that has the
Iraqi military under-armed. He's stockpiling, sitting on huge sums of
monies (millions) and he needs to address the issue. (The thugs of the
"Awakening" Council are paid with US tax dollars so the White House
would be over some sort of worker injury program.) The article's
offensive from the start with the approach that we hear about the
American wounded and dead -- we do? -- but what about the Iraqis! You
read on and you're not hearing about the Iraqis. You're hearing about
Iraqis who've decided to take part in the illegal war. And considering
the very real silence on US deaths and injuries (in Iraq) from the New York Times,
this is just offensive: "In the United States, the issue of war
injuries has revolved almost entirely around the care received by the
30,000 wounded American veterans." Oh, is the Times confusing itself with the Washington Post? The Times
doesn't believe it broke the Walter Reed Medical Center scandal, do
they? They haven't wrongly been sending checks to Dana Priest and Anne
Hull, have they? The New York Times has done damn little to cover the dead or the wounded in the five years and counting of this illegal war.
The strongest article runs on the front page . . . of the Times' arts section ("The Arts"), Hugh Eakin's "Iraqi Files In U.S.: Plunder or Rescue?"
which examines Iraqi documents from Saddam Hussein's rule that are
considered historic, important for humanitarian and historical purposes
and, yet, in the United States. In the United States and under the
control of the right-wing Hoover Institution. An Iraqi exile (Kanan
Makiya) 'claimed' themwhen he returned to Iraq after the start of the
illegal war. He set up the Iraq Memory Foundation. The files, which
were never Kanan Makiya's to claim, were being held in the Green Zone
until Makiya decided to take them out in 2006. Whether he had
permission is unclear but what is clear is that the Iraqi government
wants those documents back and most outside 'experts' believe the
papers should be housed in the Iraq National Library and Arachive.
Iraqi
Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said the government would seek to
tap Western technology and capital to increase Iraqi oil production by
about 60 percent, or approximately 1.5 million barrels a day, swelling
Iraqi oil revenue and potentially easing tight petroleum markets where
prices have doubled in the past year. Shahristani
said 35 companies -- including firms from the United States, Britain,
France, Russia, China and India -- had been selected to bid on
long-term contracts to provide services, equipment, training and advice
on the country's biggest oil fields, which have suffered from age,
technological neglect and mismanagement during years of war and
economic sanctions.
The video is among the videos at the campaign's video page. It is also from the documentary An Unreasonable Man (I'm not sure if it's bonus footage or actually part of the documentary) directed by Henriette Mantel and Steve Skrovan.
Monday,
June 30, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, attempts to assassinate
five Iraqi judges take place, four Abu Ghraib prisoners sue, and more.
Starting with war resistance. Henry Aubin's "Canada is wrong not to give asylum to U.S. war resisters" (Montreal Gazette) ran earlier this month. Today The Montreal Gazette notes
the column was very popular with readers explaining "most writers
supported Aubin's contention that welcoming U.S. war resisters would be
the right thing to do" and quotes Nadia Alexan writing that "if there
was ever a case made against an unjust immoral, manufactured war, the
agression against Iraq should take the cake."
Join
a vigil and delegation to a Canadian consulate near you on Wednesday,
July 9th to support war resisters! On the eve of Corey Glass' possible
deportation, we will demand, "Dear Canada: Abide by the June 3rd
resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" More details and cities to be confirmed soon!
Washington DC - Time TBA - 501 Pennsylvania Ave NW (map). Sponsored by Veterans for Peace. Info: TBA San Francisco - Noon to 1pm - 580 California St (map). Sponsored by Courage to Resist. Info: 510-488-3559; courage(at)riseup.net Seattle - Time TBA - 1501 4th Ave (map). Sponsored by Project Safe Haven. Info: 206-499-1220; projectsafehaven(at)hotmail.com Dallas - Time TBA - 750 North St Paul St (map). Sponsored by North Texas for Justice and Peace. Info: 214-718-6362; hftomlinson(at)riseup.net New York City - Noon to 1pm - 1251 Avenue of the Americas (map). Sponsored by War Resisters' League. Info: 212-228-0450; wrl(at)warresisters.org Philadelphia - Time TBA - 1650 Market St (map). Sponsored by Payday Network. Info: 215-848-1120; payday(at)paydaynet.org Minneapolis - Time TBA - 701 Fourth Ave S (map). Info: TBA Los Angeles - Noon to 1pm - 550 South Hope St (map). Sponsored by Progressive Democrats LA. Info: pdlavote(at)aol.com Help
organize a vigil at one of these other Canadian Consulates: Atlanta,
Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Miami, Anchorage, Houston,
Raleigh, Phoenix, or San Diego. Please contact Courage to Resist at
510-488-3559. Veterans for Peace issued a joint call with Courage
to Resist and Project Safe Haven for July 9th vigils at Canadian
Consulates: "Dear Canada: Do Not Deport U.S. War Resisters!" Contact us
if you can help organize a vigil, or can otherwise get involved. Locations of the 22 Canadian Consulates in the United States. Recently
on June 3rd the Canadian Parliament passed an historic motion to
officially welcome war resisters! It now appears, however, that the
Conservative government may disregard the motion. Iraq combat
veteran turned courageous war resister, 25-year-old Sgt. Corey Glass of
the Indiana National Guard is still scheduled to be deported July 10th. We
will ask that the Canadian government respect the democratic decision
of Parliament, the demonstrated opinion of the Canadian citizenry, the
view of the United Nations, and millions of Americans by immediately
implementing the motion and cease deportation proceedings against Corey
Glass and other current and future war resisters. Join Courage to
Resist, Veterans for Peace, and Project Safe Haven at Canadian
Consulates across the United States (Washington DC, San Francisco, New
York City, Seattle, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles confirmed--more to be
announced). We mailed and delivered over 10,000 of the original
letters to Canadian officials. Please sign the new letter, "Dear
Canada: Abide by resolution - Let U.S. war resisters stay!" http://www.couragetoresist.org/canada
Canada's War Resisters Support Campaign will hold a "Rally to Stop the Deportation of Parkdale Resident Corey Glass"
July 3rd, begins at 7:00 p.m. (with doors opening at six p.m.) at the
May Robinson Building, 20 West Lodge, Toronto: "In 2002, Corey joined
the Indiana National Guard. He was told he would not have to fight on
foreign shores. But in 2005 he was sent to Iraq. What he saw there
caused him to become a conscientious objector and he came to Canada. On
May 21, 2008, he got his final order to leave Canada by July 10, 2008.
Then on June 3 Parliament passed a motion for all the war resisters to
stay in Canada. However the Harper government says it will ignore this
motion." They are also asking for a July 2nd call-in. Diane Finley is
the Immigration and Citizenship Minister and her phone numbers are
(613) 996-4974 and (519) 426-3400 -- they also provide her e-mail
addresses minister@cic.gc.ca ("minister" at "cic.gc.ca") and finled1@parl.gc.ca ("finled1" at "parl.gc.ca").
There
is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which
includes Megan Bean, Chris Bean, Matthis Chiroux, Richard Droste,
Michael Barnes, Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano
Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal,
Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall,
Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve
Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha
Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister,
Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada,
Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen,
Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman,
Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck,
Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine,
Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey,
Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua
Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell,
Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake,
Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres,
Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and
Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada
have applied for asylum.
Over the weekend, Joseph G. Cote filed "Marine is arrested, turned over" (Nashua Telegraph)
which addressed the arrest of Marine Lance Cpl Jose Flores in Hudson,
New Hampshire." Citing Police Capt Donald Breault, Cote reported that
"[a] Marine representative had contacted Hudson police and asked them
to arrest Flores because he was deemed a deserter". Saturday AP's nonsense brief was filed and Sunday AP filed more nonsense.
Read the original article by Cote (which the first AP brief credits)
and then the AP stories which maintain Flores was arrested at a traffic
stop when there's not only no mention of that, what Cote reports is
that the marines contacted the local police and told the police to pick
up Flores. It does matter. When the military has told the police to go
to a parents' home in Colorado and search, when the military was
calling police stations up and down California to alert them to Kyle
Snyder, when 'traffic stops' turn out to be searching homes (one war
resister picked up at a 'traffic stop') was actually picked up at his
brother's home and discovered during the search. The military wants to
lie and pretend all they do is enter a name in a data base after thirty
days. The reality is an entire unit is patrolling the web looking for
tidbits, checking out MySpace pages, phoning in tips to local police.
It's time for the lying to stop and the AP has now made the same
mistake two days in a row. At this point, it is no longer a mistake, it
is a lie.
Turning to Iraq. Nothing to note. Didn't
you hear? The 'surge' worked. What's that? It didn't? It was nothing
but whack-a-mole on a larger scale? Well someone forgot to tell Nation
editor and publisher Katrina vanden Heuvel who declared the 'surge' a
"success" yesterday on ABC's This Week.
In the real world (your visa is revoked, Katrina), the targeting of
officials only increases in Iraq with today seeing an apparent record
number of assassination attempts on judges in Baghdad. Laith Hammoudi
(McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad bombing "targeting the house
of judge Suliaman Abdallah," " a Baghdad bombing "targeting judge Ali
Hameed al Allaq," a Baghdad bombing apparently targeting "Judge Ghanim
Abdallah al Shimmari, his wife and his daughter" (all three were
wounded), a Baghdad car bombing targeting Judge Hasan Fouad and a
Baghdad bombing that targeted Judge Alaa al Timimi. Other than al
Shimmari, no judge was noted to be injured in the bombing. Five
bombings today in Baghdad targeting judges. Friday, Mohammed Tawfeeq (CNN) was reporting on Judge Kamal al-Showaili being shot-dead while "driving home" in Baghdad. Today Tawfeeq notes,
"Hundreds of members of the Mehdi Army militia have been imprisoned in
recent months in the wake of an Iraqi-led military crackdown to stamp
out Shiite militants and establish authority in Shiite-dominated areas
of Iraq." Reuters quotes
High Judicial Council spokesperson Abdul Satar Birqadr declaring,
"These attacks were organised. ALl happened on the same day, in the
same way and the same part of Baghdad." (Reuters also states that the
only person injured in the bombings was wounded except for "[t]he wife
of Ali al-Alaq.") Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reported
last week that, since the start of the illegal war (March, 2003), "40
judges have been assassinated" according to the High Judiciary Council.
Before we go into other news emerging today, let's drop back to the weekend. Hannah Allem (McClatchy Newspapers) reported
Saturday on a Friday US raid in Karbala that resulted in at least one
civilian death, a relative of Nouri al-Maliki's. Allem continued
covering the story over the weekend. She noted,
"Outrage over the mysterious operation has spread to the highest levels
of the Iraqi government, which is demanding an explanation for how such
a raid occured in a province ostensibly under full Iraq command." And,
citing Iraqi sources, noted the raid was conducted by US special forces
and that this put the treaty (passed off as a Status of Forces
Agreement) in jeopardy. Allam and Qassim Zein reported
that the man's name was Ali Abdulhussein al-Maliki and he "was killed
at his guard post outside the villa belonging to Maliki's sister" and
the brother of the late al-Maliki, Abdulhussein al-Maliki, told
McClatchy US helicopters arrived before dawn and "about 50 American
ground troops in camoflage then stormed into Janaja". The death of
al-Maliki's relative follows last week's other known civilian deaths: 3 bank employees shot dead by US forces while returning to work and 4 members of a family killed in a US air bombing. Alissa J. Rubin (New York Times) reports
that the central government in Baghdad issued a "statement [which]
demanded that the [US] soldiers be held accountable in Iraq." Doug Smith (Los Angeles Times) reports that
the rumbles in Baghdad are that al-Maliki will announce "[t]he
appointmen tof a judge to hear evidence against U.S. soldiers" and
quotes Iraqi MP Haider Abadi (from al-Maliki's Dawa Party) stating,
"It's not acceptable, Iraqis getting killed without even knowing if it
is the result of a tragic incident or this is negligence on the part of
the U.S. military."
On the theft of Iraqi oil, Andrew E. Kramer (New York Times) reported today
that the US State Department took part in the awarding of no-bid
contracts to Big Oil despite previous claims that the Iraqis had made
the decision with help from Big Oil that the US paried them with (click here for Kramer's June 19th report).
Kramer notes that "any perception of American meddling in Iraq's oil
policies threaten to inflame opinion against the United States,
particularly in Arab nations that are skeptical of American intentions
in Iraq, which has the third-largest oil reserves in the world." Andy Rowell (Price of Oil) quotes
Greg Muttitt stating that "the contracts start to look very strange.
For a start, the deals are with the wrong companies. The companies
which usually carry out TSCs [technical service contracts] are
specialist providers, like Schlumberger, Sapem or Baker Hughes. They
are often hired in for geological, construction or drilling expertise,
or to install a piece of technology. In no other country are the likes
of BP or ExxonMobil carrying out such TSCs."
Though the contracts were supposed to be signed today, AFP reports
that they haven't been and that "Iraq is still negotiating with Shell,
BP, ExxonMobil, Chevron and Total" as well as Small Oil and quotes
Hussein al-Shahristani, the country's Oil Mister, declaring, "We did
not finalise any agreement with them because they refused to offer
consultancy based on fees as they wanted a share of the oil." This as CBS and AP report that the price of a barrel of oil hit $143 today.
In other news Daren Butler (Reuters) reports
that four Iraqis have announced they "are suing U.S. military
contractors CACI International Inc, CACI Premier Techonology and L-3
Services Inc (formerly Titan Corp) as well as three people who they
say tortured them while they were detained in Abu Ghraib prison." The Center for Constitutional Rights (Katherine
Gallagher), Burke O'Neil LLC (Susan L. Burke and William F. Gould) and
Akeel & Valentine (Shereef Akeel) are representing the four who are:
Mohammed Abdwaihed Towfek Al-Taee, a 39-year-old taxi driver who was
detained and horrifically abused for nine months before his May 2004
release. He later learned that he likely was the victim of a customer
who presumably turned him over in exchange for American money for
intelligence "tips."
Wissam Abdullateef Sa'eed Al-Quraishi,
a 37-year-old married father of three, who was hung on a pole for seven
days at the infamous Abu Ghraib "hard site" and subjected to beatings,
forced nudity, electrical shocks, humiliating treatment, mock
executions and other forms of torture during his incarceration at the
prison.
Sa'adoon Ali Hameed Al-Ogaidi, a 36-year-old Arabic
teacher and shopkeeper and father of four, who was held for a year,
caged, brutally abused at the prison "hard site," stripped and kept
naked, and was a "ghost" detainee hidden for a time from the
International Committee of the Red Cross.
Suhail Najim
Abdullah Al-Shimari, a farmer who was held for more than four years,
including at the prison "hard site," was caged, threatened with dogs,
and subjected to beatings and electrical shocks, and threatened with
death and being sent to a "far away" place.
The three people being sued are contractors for the companies: Adel Nakhla, Timothy Dugan and Daniel E. Johnson.
Turning to some of today's reported violence . . .
Bombings?
Laith Hammoudi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports
a Mosul car bombing that claimed 1 life and left thirteen people
wounded and a Baghdad car bombing that involved "an unidentified"
corpse.
Moving
to US politics. "It's political bigotry," independent presidential
candidate Ralph Nader explained to George Stephanopoulos ABC's This Week
yesterday when asked about (unfounded) anger at him for his 2000 run
being taken out against organizations he is no longer a part of. "Why
are all these people who agree with us on the issues behaving this way?
Because they believe that the two parties own the voters in this
country and you go for the least-worst party. And if you go for that
least worst-party, you don't make demands on that least-worst party,
your votes are going to be taken for granted and the corporate
interests are going to pull both parties in their direction. They can't
seem to figure that out. The Nation magazine for example and The Progressive
magazine have all these recommendations and reforms and they're hostile
or indifferent to the Nader-Gonzalez campaign which is the only one
that comes up 6%, 4% sometimes 8 and 10% in Michigan in the polls is
pushing their vergy agenda. They have no breaking point, George.
There's no moral imperative. They will forever put the ring in their
nose and provide the tether for the least worst Democrat." We'll
address Nader's appearance later in the section on the presidential
race; however, let's focus on the bigotry first. In the roundtable,
George would declare Katrina vanden Heuvel's "name was invoked in the
last" segment" (George invoked it, Ralph never mentioned her by name).
Katrina declared, "First of all let me say that Ralph Nader, great
citizen number one, but his great crusade against corporate power and
for consumer rights has come from outside the electoral system. The
Nation in 2004, again 2008 again said 'Ralph, don't run.' But the key
thing, and I think Ralph understand this, and he mentioned another
name, Bill Fletcher, Barack Obama is running for president, he is not
running for the messiah. I'm shocked that he's moving to the center.
I'm shocked. But we don't whine." If we did, we might whine, "Who
told her to wear that ugly eye shadow?" Should we stay with this issue
because Katrina didn't. She was asked about Nader's critique and she
instead bragged that the magazine she is editor and publisher of ran a
"Ralph, Don't Run" campaign in 2004 and again in 2008. That's
something to be proud of? If she can tear herself away from whatever
Russian bodice ripper she's currently thumbing through for a second,
could Katrina refer to the Constitution and examine Article II? Could
she try explaining how Ralph's criticism of her magazine and The
Progressive was wrong? It wasn't wrong. Barack's caved on illegal
spying and caved on public financing so far this month. Where's the
feet to the fire? If The Nation will not support third-parties, will
they even bother to hold Barack's feet to the fire? No. Nader's
criticism was that he's shut out by 'independent' media (The Nation and
The Progressive) whose stated beliefs and opinions are the ones his
campaign is built on while they go with the least-worst choice from the
Democratic Party. He is correct. Katrina refused to have that
discussion. Not only is he correct on that, it's equally true that
having decided to go with the least-worst of the two major parties,
they betray their own beliefs. You saw it in all of Katrina's excuses
(usually prefaced with "I'm not apologizing for" him as she went on to
do just that). There was no attempt to hold him accountable. But
Katrina doesn't dislike all third parties, she revealed. "The one who
I think is going to gain real traction in this country," she said
grinning like a demented fool, "is Bob Barr." So Bob Barr, whom
Katrina sees as not 'winning' votes but 'stripping them away' from
McCain is her kind of third party candidate. For Katrina, the 'good'
third party is the one who does 'damage' to the candidate she
dislikes. That's really more frightening than her pride over The
Nation's undemocratic "Don't Run!" nonsense.
Turning to the US race for president. The so-called 'unity' campaign keeps floundering. Yesterday on CBS' Face The Nation (link has text and video), Barack
Obama surrogate Wesley Clark was vouching for Barack's "good judgment"
and other ridiculous things that Clark can see with some sort of
decoder ring apparently. While the recordless Barack got a tongue bath
from Clark, fur balls seems to be coughed up as Clark turned his fire
on US Senator John McCain (the presumed GOP presidential nominee).
While claiming "I certainly honor his service as a prisoner of war,"
mere minutes later, 'honor' turned to 'trashing' as Clark declared,
"Well, I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is
a qualification to be president." CNN reports that McCain surrogate Rick Davis appeared on the cable network's American Morning
today and declared, "Sending Wesley Clark out as a surrogate for your
campaign and attacking John McCain and his war record and his military
experience and his service is, I think, just the lowest form of
politics." In the ongoing, illegal Iraq War, Byron W. Fouty, Alex R. Jimenez and Ahmed Quasai al-Taeli are classified by the Defense Department as "Missing or Captured." Rick Klein (ABC News) instructs,
"Please, find me a single Democrat who thinks it's good politics to
call into question the military credentials of a man who spent
five-and-a-half years as a prisoner of war." Brian Montopoli (CBS News) reports
the McCain camp assembled the following for a Monday morning conference
call with the press: "Sen. John Warner, POWs Col. Bud Day and Lt. Col.
Orson Swindle, McCain foreign policy advisor Bud McFarland, and Carl
Smith a retired Navy pilot who served with McCain". Indpendent
presidential candidate Ralph Nader was among the guests on ABC's This Week. The appearance preceded a Connecticut fundraiser which the AP reports raised $2000. AP also reported last week that 5% of Hillary Clinton supporters were now supporting Nader in the general election.
"If
you really want to cover everybody in health insurance and save
hundreds of lives and . . . hundreds of thousands of
illnesses," Nader declared to Stephanopoulos, "you would go for
single-payer which the majority of American people want and the
majority of doctors want. . . . The HMOS are opposed to single-payer,
the big health insurance compaines are opposed to single-payer. If you
want to give a hundred million Americans a break in terms of their
livelihood and wages, you would go for labor law reform. You'd repeal
Taft-Hartley and give them the opportunity -- low-income workers -- to
organize and collectively bargain. . . . If you want more jobs in the
innercity, you know, public works, schools, clinics, libraries, sewage
treatment systems, you've got to reduce the bloated, wasteful military
budget, George."
"I think the two parties are hurting
our country," said Nader of the Democratic and Republican Parties, "and
they need more competition. As we see on our website VoteNader.org,
you will see the issues we have on the table are majoritarian issues:
single-payer health care, do something about the wasteful military
budget, labor law reform, consumer protection . . . living wage, etc. .
. . The problem is, George, there's too much political bigotry against
small parties and candidates. You see it in these huge ballot access
laws which we're trying to overcome now with our roadtrippers, very,
very costly. We're excluded from the debates. Why do we ration debates?
We ought to have staggered debates. You've got Wimbledon, the sixtieth
seed gets a chance, you've got the NCAA, the sixtieth team gets a
chance. You have a huge roll of wealth on it. We're appealing to the
people in this country. . . . We're appealing to the people in this
country who want more choices on the ballot and Nader-Gonzalez provides
those choices." Team Nader states:
We need $10 from you to get Nader/Gonzalez on ten state ballots in ten days.
So, if you haven't donated to Nader/Gonzalez yet, now is the time - please give ten dollars now.
Our goal - $40,000 by July 6.
We
have more than fifty young, energetic roadtrippers busting it on the
ground all around the country for Nader/Gonzalez - the only candidacy
that will shift the power from the corporations back to the people.
(If
you think Obama is that guy, think again. Obama is moving in the other
direction - running away from the people into the arms of the
corporations. Check out Obama's most recent flip-flop
on giving immunity to telecom corporations under the government
surveillance and wiretapping bill. And then watch Ralph Nader say no to
wiretapping here.)
In Illinois we've collected and turned in more than twice the signatures we need.
In Arizona, we've collected and turned in more than three times the signatures we need.
In Nevada, we will turn in more than twice the signatures we need.
By
July 6, with your help, we'll be penciled in for ten states - Arizona,
Colorado, Illinois, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico,
Tennessee, and Utah.
And we're targeting 40 states by the end of the summer.
There is a reason the corporate Democrats and corporate Republicans are concerned about Nader/Gonzalez.
We're at six percent in the most recent CNN poll.
And we plan to be on 45 state ballots come November (up from 34 in 2004.)
iraq
corey
glass
workers
world
iraq
veterans against the war
matthew
campbell
david
wylie
brett
clarkson
abc
russell
goldman
ellen
spiro
phil
donahue
michael
winship
bill
moyers journal
tomas
young
pbs
now
on pbs
james
glanz
richard
a. oppel jr.
the
new york times
alissa
j. rubin
the
los angeles times
doug
smith
raheem
salman
the
washington post
sudarsan
raghavan
brian
montopoli
kam williams
tim meadows
alexandra zavis
sabrina tavernise
jason buckland
sarah childress
sex and politics and screeds and attitude
derrick depledge
james risen
andrew e. kramer
hugh eakin
steven mufson
this week
michael kamber
andy rowell
qassim zein
