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Monday, July 27, 2009
Monday,
July 27, 2009. Chaos and violence continue with at least 6 dead and at
least nineteen wounded, the KRG held elections Saturday and no violence
reported, Nouri hopes to cut them out of Kirkuk, KBR continues to deny
responsibility in the electrocution deaths of US service members in
Iraq but a new Pentagon report emerges, the US government officially
denies any protocol signed with Iraqi exile leaders but the Los Angeles Times publishes the protocol, and more. Saturday
the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq held provincial and presidential
elections. Early voting started on Thursday. Ballots will be counted
in Baghdad and results are expected, at the earliest, on Tuesday but US
embassy staff are predicting Wednesday at the earliest. Alsumaria noted
on election day, "Kurdistan elections are the most intense since 1992
as parliamentary and presidential elections will be carried out on the
same day. Five candidates are competing for the presidency while 24
political entities including 19 lists are standing the test of people's
vote to occupy 111 seats in Parliament." Adam Ashton (McClatchy Newspapers) reported,
"Kurdish voters on Saturday packed polling places in Iraq's second
election this year, weighing the promises of a new party that pledged
to shake up the status quo by exposing corruption in the incumbent
regional government. . . . The mood at polling places remained calm
through the morning with many men walking to the polls in traditional
Kurdish attire and women filling in wearing colorful dresses.
Opposition party leaders complained about activity at the polls later
in the day, when they said supporters of incumbents tried to sway
votes." Liz Sly (Los Angeles Times) reports,
"Long lines snaked out of polling stations Saturday" which "attests to
the enthusiasm generated by the appearance for the first time, of a
viable challenge to the 18-year monopoly of the two ruling parties, the
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdish Democratic Party." Tim Cocks and Shamal Aqrawi (Reuters) explain voting was extended for one hour today and that the Electoral Commission estimates a turnout of 78.5%. The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq issued a statement today noting
they applaud "the people of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq for having
turned out in large numbers, especially among women, on July 23rd and
25th to exercise their right to elect new regional, parliamentary, and
presidential representatives, in an orderly environment, notably free
of violence." Saturday started with the region under curfew but the KRG lifted it after the first four hours when no incidents of violence were reported.
The January 31st provincial elections which took place in fourteen of
Iraq's 18 provinces required curfews and crackdowns. In Baghdad, for
example, voters had to walk to polls as a result of the vehicle ban --
and frequently had to then walk to another polling station and
sometimes a third. Don't remember it? Mohammed Hussein (New York Times) explained, "I
walked more than three miles and four polling centers to vote today. I
have lived in the same neighborhood for more than 30 years, but my name
was not on the list. With the sound of hovering American helicopters
filling the unusual silence on the streets I walked to the polling
center nearest my house to vote. First I had to be searched and take
off my wristwatch, my box of cigarettes and my mobile telphone because
an American patrol was watching the main checkpoint of the polling
center. I checked my name but I could not find it." He recounts the
trip to four polling stations only to note that at the fourth, where he
was allowed to vote, he didn't recognize the names of any candidates. Nasreen Yousif couldn't put up with it and she told Stephen Farrell and Alissa J. Rubin (New York Times),
that after her third Baghdad polling station, "Now I am going home.
Maybe there is a forth school, but it is too far and I can't walk
anymore." Back then, Tina Susman (Los Angeles Times) reported,
"The thousands of schools being used as polling places were ringed with
coils of razor wire days ago, and the police began 24-hour guard of
them earlier in the week." Stephen Farrell and Alissa J. Rubin noted,
"Driving was banned in most of the country to prevent suuicide bombers
from attacking any of the more than 6,000 polling places and security
checkpoints, often spaced just yards apart. The tight security, couples
with confusion over where voters should cast their ballots, appeared to
have reduced turnout in many districts across the country." And though
the claim quickly became that there was no violence at all on this
allgedly political holy day, in real time violence was being noted
including McClatchy's Laith Hammoudi reporting a Saturday tribal fight in Baghdad that resulted in one death and one person injured and Alissa J. Rubin and Stephen Farrell (New York Times) reporting security forces shot two people in Baghdad who "tried to enter a polling place carrying cameras and recorders". Reuters states,
"The vote was not entirely without incident. Kurdish Prime Minister
Nechirvan Barzani, the president's nephew, said that one person was
killed and 12 were wounded on Sunday evening when election revellers
began firing shots into the air." That's Sunday, the day after the
vote and, as described, also unintentional violence. So
the KRG calling off the curfew in the midst of voting Saturday is
actually news and it's a shame no one thought to report it as such or
to offer the obvious comparison of the three provincial elections over
the weekend with the fourteen provincial elections in January. Liz Sly (Los Angeles Times) reported
Saturday, "Kurdish President Massoud Barzani touched on an issue dear
to all Kurds when he cast his ballot on his mountain stronghold of
Salahuddin. 'I will never compromise on Kirkuk,' he said." That moment
resulted in one of the few complaints actually filed (as opposed to
complaints bandied to reporters by "Change" 'officials' and
their US-government backers). Tim Cocks, Shamal Aqrawi, Muhanad Mohammed and Mohammed Abbas (Reuters) explained
that Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission "did say Barzani had
broken a campaign deadline rule by speaking to reporters after voting"
and quotes IHEC's Qasim al-Sachet, "This is not important, it was a
very simple matter and has no effect on the elections." Liz Sly explained Sunday
that the parties were releasing their own tallies (these are not
official tallies) and that, "Iraq's Independent High Electoral
Commission, which is running the election, said it was investigating a
number of complaints lodged by opposition candidates but had not yet
found any serious enough to affect the outcome of the vote." The KRG adds,
"More than 320 international observers from more than 35 organizations
were registered by IHEC to monitor the election. This included
observers from the United Nations, the European Union, the United
States, the United Kingdom, Japan and a variety of other nations and
non-governmental organizations. In addition, more than 30
international media outlets were accredited to observe and report on
the election. More than 90 organizations based in Iraq and/or the
Kurdistan Region also participated in the observation, with more than
10,000 individuals receiving accreditation badges from IHEC. Political
parties were also granted the right to monitor the proceedings, with 47
groups and more than 27,000 individuals accredited for observation." Adam Ashton (Modesto Bee's The Hive) blogs
about visitng the "multimedia empire" which is the headquarters for the
"Change" Party, "I don't want to be cynical because the voting I saw
was free and full of healthy debate. I just couldn't help but hear
Roger Daltry singing 'Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss,' as we
drove away from the Change compound in Sulaimaniya." (He's referring
to the Who's
"Won't Get Fooled Again," written by Pete Townsend.) "Change" is a
US-creation. Founder (frontman) Nawshirwan Mustafa runs that US funded
"multi-media empire." Mustafa became a US favorite while allegedly
representing Kurdish interests to the US created and controlled
Coalition Provisional Authority (interim government run by Paul
Bremer). Though a strong voice in public, he was surprisingly weak in
protecting Kurdish interests. Despite his fiery words in public and
his apparent incompentence as an advocate for Kurdish interests, the US
quickly funded Dick Cheney's BFF providing Mustafa with the money
needed to start his paper and 'independent' radio station which is a
satellite of the US propaganda arm Voice of America (Mustafa's is
tellingly known as "Voice of Change"). In
addition to crying foul, "Change" has attempted to insist they are the
reason for the huge turnout. That claim cannot be backed up. But the
issue of Kirkuk's status became a very big part of the KRG elections.
Not just on election day with Barzani's remarks. Not just two Sundays
ago with a very public speech. For weeks, it has been the driving force
behind the elections with candidates from all parties attempting to
make the most convincing argument that they would bring Kirkuk under
the Kurdistan umbrella. Do not mistakenly think that this campaign talk
did not impact voter turnout. The Kurds have long seen Kirkuk as their
property and have a historical grievance over the region since Saddam
Hussein ran them out of the area. Alsumaria reports
the PUK kept a previously scheduled meeting yesterday: "Regardless of
the elections results, people's will ought to be respected and
whichever party wins, it will form the next government, said Mulla
Bakhtyar, PUK political office spokesman. Bakhtyar stressed that the
upcoming government will work on achieving major attainments in favor
of Kurdistan's people mainly the application of Constitution Article
140." That's the article pertaining to oil-rich Kirkuk which mandated
a census and referendum be held to resolve the issue by . . the end of
2007. Also in 2007, Nouri al-Maliki signed off on -- literally signed
his name to -- the White House benchmarks for Iraq which included
resolving the issue. It has not been resolved. Anthony Shadid (Washington Post) observes this morning,
"Since 2003, when U.S. forces barreled into Baghdad, toppling Saddam
Hussein, inspiring a Shiite revival and unleashing a Sunni insurgency
that drew on a communal sense of siege, the war in Iraq has been in
large part a sectarian conflict that pitted Sunni Arab against Shiite
Arab. That war has subsided, even if bitterness remains." He argues the
new conflict is between Arabs and Kurds. Liz Sly interviewed
Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih (and PUK member as well as a
candidate for prime minister in Kurdistan) and asked him what the
elections would mean in terms of the "strained relationship with
Baghdad?" Barham Salih responded, "In terms of relationships with
Baghdad, the impact should not be overestimated. This election is a
turning point in Kurdish political dynamics and Kurdish politics are
becoming more competitive and more focused on domestic issues –
services, quality of life, corruption, as opposed to the larger issues
of Kurdish nationalism. These issues remain important, such as the fate
of Kirkuk, the fate of the relationship with Baghdad. But I do not see
that there is much dissent on what I see as the mainstream Kurdish
position on these issues." Prime minister of Iraq and puppet of the
occupation Nouri al-Maliki has been visiting DC. Sami Moubayed (Asia Times) analyzes
the trip and observes that Nouri al "Maliki wants US and UN support to
solve an upcoming problem with Iraqi Kurds. During a honeymoon period
with the Kurds in 2007, Maliki promised to uphold Article 140 of the
constitution, which calls for a referendum in the oil-rich city of
Kirkuk (which holds 13% of Iraq's reserves), to see if its residents
want to remain part of Iraq or merge with Iraqi Kurdistan. It seemed
like the logical thing to do at the time, as Kurdish support was vital
for him to maintain a shaky cabinet coalition rocked by major walkouts
by Sunnis and fellow Shi'ites loyal to rebel leader Muqtada al-Sadr. .
. . That honemymoon is now a thing of the past, and Maliki wants to
make sure that so is the promised referendum on Kirkuk. The UN is
supporting Maliki's argument, claiming that if such a referendum did
take place, it could ignite a civil war between Arabs and Kurds.
Maliki could not afford this civil strife, nor could he afford having
Iran, Turkey, and Syria -- all of which oppose giving Kirikuk to
Kurdistan -- on the offensive." Friday, the press [see Nada Bakri (Washington Post) and Sam Dagher (New York Times)]
was covering the talks the US was having with Ba'athist exile leaders
and others and the claim that the central government in Baghdad was
left in the dark as they insisted they were "demanding explanations]
reported on the angry response of the puppet government in Baghdad to
the news (which emerged weeks ago in the Arab world) that the US was
negotiating with leaders of Iraqi groups opposed to the puppet
government the US installed. Elise Labott (CNN) reports
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated Friday that, supposedly
like the Iraqi government, she had been unaware of the negotiations
until "recently." Labott explains: "Iraqi officials said Friday they
were investigating reports of the meetings, calling them a violation of
Iraqi sovereignty. The reports, which detail a supposed signed
agreement between the Americans and insurgents, have angered Iraqis as
they seek to establish their authority in the wake of the withdrawal of
American troops from Iraqi cities." Officially the State Dept denies
the signing of any protocol. Unofficially, they admit to Labott one
was signed. The Los Angeles Times has posted the protocol both parties signed March 6th: IN THE NAME OF ALLAH THE BENEFICENT THE MERCIFUL PROTOCOL
ON ESTABLISHMENT OF NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
POLITICAL COUNCIL FOR IRAQI RESISTANCE AND US GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVES (Istanbul, 6 March 2009)
The
following has been agreed upon between the two parties, Political
Coundil for Iraq Resistance (PCIR) and the US Government
Representatives in this meeting:
1.
The PCIR will give the names of 15 representatives/political leaders in
their negotiation team to the Turkish side, in the case of detention or
problems in travel inside Iraq or leaving Iraq of this negotiating
team, the Turkish Government will inform the US authorities, who will
undertake to resolve the problem, in the case of detention by the Iraqi
forces inside Iraq or leaving Iraq of this negotiating team, the US as
well as the Turkish side will exert their best efforts with the Iraqi
Government in order to get release of the respresentative(s) of the
PCIR. 2. Both
parties agreed upon to take a decision regarding the level of the
participation in the negotiating teams (technical experts, politicians
and leaders), before the next session of negotiations in coordination
with the Turkish side. 3. Both negotiating teams should have the equal number of representatives, including the technicians and experts. 4.
The venue of the upcoming sessions will be determined at least 10 days
prior to the date of the meeting, in coordination with the Turkish
side. 5. dates of the upcoming sessions will be determined by the consent of both parties. 6.
This negotiation process is planned to be finalized before the end of
June 2009. However, upon agreement by both sides, the negotiation
process may be extended. 7.
Both parties agreed that the Turkish side to act as the facilitator and
guarantor throughout this negotiation process and the PCIR retains the
right to ask for other guarantors. 8.
Both parties agreed to maintain the confidentiality of the negotiations
and to leak information about the negotiations in full or in part to
the media, unless otherwise agreed by both parties. 9. Both parties agreed not to use cameras or any recording devices during the sessions. 10.
The US will not undertake negotiations with other Sunni resistance
groups during negotiation time, in order to allow PCIR to broaden the
negotiation with them (This is to be confirmed by the US delegation
after consulting with the US Government). Ned Parker (Los Angeles Times) explains,
"Iraqi officials have denied any knowledge of the meetings and have
lashed out at the United States about conducting such talks. The
reality is that U.S. officials most probably informed the Iraqi
government about the talks beforehand, as they have done in the past
when they explored discussions with groups that might be willing to
negotiate with Iraqi officials." Thomas E. Ricks (Foreign Policy) adds,
"Maliki also is shocked -- shocked -- that the U.S. government talked
secretly to insurgent leaders. Everyone, don't tell the prime minister
about the Sons of Iraq program, either!" Sami Moubayed (Asia Times) offers
on Nouri, "Once Maliki's image is transformed in Washington, he will be
able to market himself in different manner to ordinary Iraqis, who need
time to forget that he was originally brought to power in 2006 by the
United States" ahead of elections currently scheduled for next
January. Nouri has Barack supporting him (verbally) on the plan to end
UN sanctions on Iraq. Louis Charbonneau (Reuters) reports
that Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General, is backing a different plan, "I
strongly encourage Iraq and other stakeholders to actively discuss
alternative solutions to the issue of outstanding compensation and debt
payments, including through investments, in the mutual interest of
Iraq's people and the region as a while." The amount Iraq owes
currently is $25.5 billion of which $24 million is owed to Kuwait. Meanwhile what Gordon Brown couldn't do (despite promising to) the Iraqi Parliament may have due to its inaction. Deborah Haynes (Times of London) reports
British troops will likely have to leave Iraq as a result of the
Parliament failing to ratify the bilateral agreement between England
and Iraq "Bob Ainsworth, the British Defence Secretary, said that the
naval training personnel would wait in Kuwait until they were given
permission to return. It is an embarrassment to Britain, however, and
an illustration of the low regard in which its role in Iraq -- it once
had 45,000 troops based there -- is held." Turning to some of today's reported violence . . . Bombings? Mohammed Al Dulaimy (McClatchy Newspapers) reports
a Baghdad roadside bombing which claimed 1 life and left four people
wounded, a Baghdad sticky bombing which left five people injured, a
Mosul roadside bombing which injured six Iraqi soldiers, a Mosul
roadside bombing which injured one police officer and an Ameriyah
sticky bombing which claimed the life of police Captain Ibraheem
Khairallah. Reuters notes
a Mosul sticky bombing which claimed the life of 1 "local tribal
leader" (his driver was injured), a Kirkuk roadside bombing which left
one police officer injured. Shootings? Corpses? Reuters notes the corpse of 1 police officer ("shot in the head and chest") was discovered in Kirkuk. It was October 2007. A fellow soldier, Kenneth Eastridge, 24, watched it all from the passenger seat.
At
that moment, he said, it was clear that however messed up some of the
soldiers in the unit had been after their first Iraq deployment, it was
about to get much worse.
"I have no
problem with killing," said Eastridge, a two-tour infantryman with
almost 80 confirmed kills. "But I won't just murder someone for no
reason. He had gone crazy."
Hear the prison interviews with Kenneth Eastridge. All
three soldiers belonged to the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment,
part of Fort Carson's 4th Brigade Combat Team. The 500-soldier infantry
battalion nicknamed itself the "Lethal Warriors."
They
fought in the deadliest places in the war twice -- first in the Sunni
Triangle, then in downtown Baghdad. Since their return late in 2007,
eight infantry soldiers have been arrested and accused of murder,
attempted murder or manslaughter. Another two soldiers from the brigade
were arrested and accused of murder and attempted murder after the
first tour. Others have committed other violent crimes. Others have
committed suicide.
Many of the soldiers
behind bars and their family members say the violence at home is a
consequence of the violence in Iraq. They came home angry, confused,
paranoid and depressed. They had trouble getting effective mental heath
care. Most buried their symptoms in drugs and alcohol until they
exploded.
The article is part of a package following an investigation by the Gazette, part one is Phillips' " The hell of war comes home" and there's also Tom Roeder's " Fort Carson report: Combat stress contributed to soldiers' crimes back home" and " EDITOR'S NOTE: A note of caution about the Lethal Warriors package."
The series addresses what happened after they returned to the US and
what happened while serving in Iraq where Iraqi drivers were randomly
shot at, where those who didn't stop would be run "over with the
Bradley," where Iraqis post-interrogation were dumped from bridges and
more. Returning home? No concerns from the command except go-away, left
to fend for themselves, some afraid to get help, some targeted for
trying. Parents who attempted to get help for the children? Commanding
officers mocked the soldiers whose parents called, ridiculed them. It's
a complete breakdown in policies and procedures and the Gazette did a
wonderful investigation but what's needed is a Congressional one. Meanwhile at least 18 US service members have died in Iraq from shoddy electrocution. KBR always denies that's the case. Scott Bronstein (CNN) reports on the Defense Dept's inspector-general's
finding released today which states nine deaths resulted from "improper
grounding or faulty equipment" with five more still being
investigated. The nine deaths established to have been caused by
faulting work on KRB's part includes Sgt Ryan Maseth. KBR continues to
shirk responsibility and spokesperson Heather Browne tells CNN, "While
the death of Sgt. Maseth was tragic, KBR continues to maintain that it
was not responsible for his death. The building in which Staff Sgt
Maseth lived was built by Iraqi and other contractors under previous
Iraqi leadership." US Senator Bob Casey Jr.'s office released the following today: After
the Department of Defense Inspector General released its report on the
electrocution death of Staff Sergeant Ryan Maseth and 17 other
electrocution deaths in Iraq, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) released
the following statement: "I am
heartened that, after an exhaustive investigation, the Department of
Defense Inspector General has finally published its findings and
recommendations. The responsibility for the death of Ryan Maseth can
be attributed to many quarters. However, the Inspector General has
concluded that the water pump which shorted and caused his
electrocution was first installed by a KBR subcontractor less than two
years prior to Ryan's death. That water pump, located on the roof of
Ryan's building, was not grounded during installation. This deficiency
was not discovered during a subsequent inspection administered by
KBR. "We cannot stop with the
publication of this report alone. Those who failed to carry out their
contractual obligations in a way that contributed to the death of a
U.S. soldier should be held fully accountable for their negligence. I
also eagerly await the findings of the Army CID report." Staying with the US Congress, the issue of CERP funds has been raised repeatedly by Congress. The September 10, 2008 House Armed Services Committee hearing found Chair Ike Skelton pursuing the issue of the CERP funds with DoD's Under Secreatry of Defense for Policy Eric S. Edelman and explaining the process as Congress intended it. Ike
Skelton: The department's understanding of the allowed usage of CERP
funds seems to have undergone a rather dramatic change since Congress
first authorized it. The intent of the program was originally to meet
urgent humanitarian needs in Iraq through small projects undertaken
under the initative of brigade and battalion commanders. Am I correct?Edelman: Yes, sir.Ike
Skelton: Thank you. The answer was "yes." Last year the Department of
Defense has used millions of CERP dollars to build hotels for foreign
visitors, spent $900,000 on a mural at the Baghdad International
Airport and, as I understand this second piece of art, that CERP funds
were used for. I'm not sure that the American tax payer would
appreciate that knowing full well that Iraq has a lot of money in the
bank from oil revenues and it is my understanding that Iraq has
announced that they're going to build the world's largest ferris wheel.
And if they have money to build the world's largest ferris wheel why
are we funding murals and hotels with money that should be used by the
local battallion commander. This falls in the purview of plans and
policy ambassador.Edelman:
No, no, it's absolutely right and I'll shae the stage here -- I'll
share the stage quite willing with uh, with Admiral Winnefeld with whom
I've actually been involved in discussions with for some weeks about
how we provide some additional guidance to the field and some
additional requirements to make sure that CERP is appropriately spent.
U.S.
lawmakers and the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq
Reconstruction, which has released a report about the Caravan Hotel,
are increasingly scrutinizing the use of CERP and urging the Pentagon
to be more vigilant in its selection and oversight of projects.
The
success stories and cautionary tales of CERP initiatives in Iraq are
shaping the way commanders in Afghanistan use the program as they place
greater emphasis on counterinsurgency and keeping the civilian
population safe.
Since
2003, the U.S. Congress has appropriated more than $10 billion in CERP
funds for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"CERP
was meant to be walking-around money for commanders to achieve a
desired effect in their battle space," said the office's deputy
inspector general, Ginger Cruz. "Slowly, it has become a de facto
reconstruction pot of money."
Related, Walter Pincus (Washington Post) reports
Congress is questioning defense spending on 'hearts & minds'
campaigns (or spending hidden under that umbrella) and, "In Iraq, the
[US] military has awarded $100 million contracts to support elections
and the aims of the Baghdad government."
Posted at 03:18 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
4 dead and 12 wounded in Iraq today, KRG elections, and more
Louis
Khno is a city councilman whose city is beyond his control. In his
barricaded streets are militiamen -- in baseball caps and jeans,
wielding Kalashnikov rifles, with the safeties switched off. They
answer to someone else. Leaders of his police force give their loyalty
to their ethnic brethren -- be they Kurd or Arab. Clergy in the town
pledge themselves to the former. Khno and his colleagues to the latter.
"We're
far from the conflict, but now we've become the heart of the conflict
between Kurds and Arabs," Khno said. "We're now stuck in between them."That's the opening to Anthony Shadid's " Worries About A Kurdish-Arab Conflict Move To Fore in Iraq" ( Washington Post)
which attempts to chart the shifting dynamics as potential lines of
conflict are redrawn and a long neglected issue (who gets Kirkuk)
appears to move closer to center stage as the tensions between Kurds
and Arabs replace the usual narrative of tensions between Shia and
Sunni. Ben Lando usually reports for UPI; however, he has a piece that
went up at Time magazine Friday (one day before the elections in Kurdistan Saturday) entitled " Iraq's Kurds: Time to Prove Their Democracy:" The
Kurdish provinces of Iraq are a world apart from the country inhabited
by their fellow citizens. Basic services like electricity and fuel are
good and increasingly available to all Kurds. Booming foreign
investment has created a business culture complete with plans for a
golf course as part of a gated-community outside the capital city of
Erbil. There have been no U.S. combat fatalities in the autonomous
Kurdish region since the fall of Saddam Hussein, in 2003. But there's
one thing the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) can no longer lord over
the struggling central government in Baghdad: democracy."The KRG has a democracy gap with Baghdad," says Quil Lawrence, author of Invisible Nation: How the Kurds' Quest for Statehood Is Shaping Iraq and the Middle East.
"After years of counting on American support because of its
pro-Western, secular and, most importantly, pro-democratic image, the
Kurdish parliament looks like a rubber stamp shared by the two main
parties. Arab Iraq had peaceful provincial elections in January in
which some entrenched parties lost and stepped down quietly. The Kurds
need to show they can do the same." The Kurds, who speak a different
language and are a separate ethnic group from their Arab countrymen,
have a chance to do that on July 25, when locals will elect regional
members of parliament as well as a new president for the KRG. (See pictures of Kurdish guerrillas operating on the Turkey-Iraq border.)Quil Lawrence reports for NPR (not mentioned in the article). Anna Fifield (Financial Times of London) also weighed
in on Friday with the belief, that carping aside, Masoud Barzani would
be re-elected as president of the KRG because "[n]one of the four other
candidates for regional president is considered to be a serious
challenged to Mr Barzani, while the KDP and PUK are running in
coalition in the parliamentary election." The PUK (Talabani's party) is
thought to have done poorly in Saturday's election. "Thought to." No
one knows. The earliest that results could be released would be Tuesday
but US embassy staff thinks that the count might be released Wednesday.
Alsumaria reports
the PUK kept a previously scheduled meeting yesterday: "Regardless of
the elections results, people’s will ought to be respected and
whichever party wins, it will form the next government, said Mulla
Bakhtyar, PUK political office spokesman. Bakhtyar stressed that the
upcoming government will work on achieving major attainments in favor
of Kurdistan’s people mainly the application of Constitution Article
140." Article 140 is about resolving the fate of the disputed Kirkuk.
(It mandates a census be held and a referendum before the end of . . .
2007. Currently a census is scheduled for this October.) Almost 80% of
registered voters are said to have participated in the KRG provincial
and presidential elections, polls were required to remain open an
additional hour due to the number of voters. Results are not known.
Ballots will be counted in Baghdad. "Change" is making allegations of
fraud -- most of which have not resulted in people actually filing
claims -- and to read the press, you'd think they were the only ones.
Other minor groups (minor proportionally) including the Socialist Party
have made complaints but, unlike "Change," they don't have the US
government to act as their PR advance team. Election observers reject
the claims of frauds and already have dismissed the one concrete
charge: Barzani violated campaign rules Saturday by speaking to the
press immediately after he voted. It was a violation, observers have
ruled; however, it had little-to-no impact. The KRG released the following statement on the elections: Large turnout in peaceful Kurdistan Region elections Erbil,
Kurdistan - Iraq (KRG.org) -- The Kurdistan Region yesterday
successfully held historic parliamentary and presidential elections. The ballot for the president was the first direct presidential vote in the Kurdistan Region. The
vote has underlined the democratic character of the Region and
reinforced the process of peaceful elections through political
competition. The Independent High Electoral Commission of
Iraq (IHEC) said the overall turnout was 78 per cent. In Erbil 79 per
cent of eligible voters cast a ballot, in Suleimaniah 74 per cent, and
in Dohuk 85 per cent. The election was conducted by IHEC,
which was responsible for ensuring free and fair voting. IHEC oversees
all Iraqi elections. IHEC Commissioner Mr Faraj Al-Haidari, speaking at
a press conference yesterday evening, said the commission was pleased
with the conduct of the elections and that any complaints would be
studied. Ballots are being preliminarily tabulated in polling
stations and then moved to Baghdad for official tabulation.
International observers will accompany the ballots throughout the
transfer. Mr Karim Sinjari, the Kurdistan Regional
Government's Interior Minister, speaking at the same press conference,
said there had been no security incidents during the elections and a
curfew was lifted four hours after voting began as it became clear the
situation was normal and the curfew was not necessary.  After
casting his ballot, Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani remarked, "We
support this election as a chance for citizens to exercise their
democratic rights. I am proud to see so many people express their
political views through this election, in which we all have an equal
opportunity to be part of the decision-making process." More
than 320 international observers from more than 35 organizations were
registered by IHEC to monitor the election. This included observers
from the United Nations, the European Union, the United States, the
United Kingdom, Japan, and a variety of other nations and
non-governmental organizations. In addition, more than 30 international
media outlets were accredited to observe and report on the election. More
than 90 organizations based in Iraq and/or the Kurdistan Region also
participated in the observation, with more than 10,000 individuals
receiving accreditation badges from IHEC. Political parties were also
granted the right to monitor the proceedings, with 47 groups and more
than 27,000 individuals accredited for observation. The Head
of the Department of Foreign Relations, Minister Falah Mustafa Bakir,
said, "It is important that the outside world is aware of our continued
democratic development. We believe democracy is the best system, and we
very much welcome the high turnout" Minister Bakir noted that the
election is an important step not only for the Kurdistan Region but all
of Iraq. IHEC estimates that official results will be available in the next few days. Meanwhile violence continues in Iraq today. Reuters reports
a Baghdad roadside bombing which claimed 1 life and left four people
injured, a Falluja bombing targeting and killing 1 captain in the Iraqi
military, a Mosul car bombing targeting and killing 1 "local tribal
leader" (wounding his driver), a Mosul roadside bombing which injured
six Iraqi soldiers, a Kirkuk roadside bombing which injured one police
officer and the corpse of 1 police officer ("shot in the head and
chest") discovered in Kirkuk. Ernesto Londono (Washington Post) reports
how the millions in CERP funds have had little-to-no impact. (CERP
funds are US tax dollars which are handed out -- with little-to-no
documentation -- in Iraq by the US military.) Londono reports: U.S.
lawmakers and the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq
Reconstruction, which has released a report about the Caravan Hotel,
are increasingly scrutinizing the use of CERP and urging the Pentagon
to be more vigilant in its selection and oversight of projects.The
success stories and cautionary tales of CERP initiatives in Iraq are
shaping the way commanders in Afghanistan use the program as they place
greater emphasis on counterinsurgency and keeping the civilian
population safe.Since 2003, the U.S. Congress has appropriated more than $10 billion in CERP funds for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan."CERP
was meant to be walking-around money for commanders to achieve a
desired effect in their battle space," said the office's deputy
inspector general, Ginger Cruz. "Slowly, it has become a de facto
reconstruction pot of money." Moving to Iraq's borders, Arab Times reports
that Sheikh Mohammed Sabah al-Salem al-Sabah, the Foreign Minister of
Kuwait, has stated that Iraq is not respecting the border between it
and Kuwait and quotes the foreign minister stating, "Kuwait hopes that
the brothers in Iraq will solve a number of issues, starting with the
demarcation of the border because there are still Iraqi violations
there." The Tehran Times reports
that Iran is awaiting a report on the "attacks on Iranian pilgrims" and
quotes Hassan Kazemi Qomi, the country's Ambassador to Baghdad,
stating, "We hope that the Iraqi government, after (accomplishing) its
studies and investigations (into the attacks), informing us of the
results in case it achieves any information." Mia notes this from John Pilger's " Murdoch: A Cultural Chernobyl" (Information Clearing House): I
met Eddie Spearritt in the Philharmonic pub, overlooking Liverpool. It
was a few years after 96 Liverpool football fans had been crushed to
death at Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield, on 15 April 1989. Eddie's
son, Adam, aged 14, died in his arms. The "main reason for the
disaster", Lord Justice Taylor subsequently reported, was the "failure"
of the police, who had herded fans into a lethal pen."As
I lay in my hospital bed," Eddie said, "the hospital staff kept the Sun
away from me. It's bad enough when you lose your 14-year-old son
because you're treating him to a football match. Nothing can be worse
than that. But since then I've had to defend him against all the
rubbish printed by the Sun about everyone there being a hooligan and
drinking. There was no hooliganism. During 31 days of Lord Justice
Taylor's inquiry, no blame was attributed because of alcohol. Adam
never touched it in his life."Three
days after the disaster, Kelvin MacKenzie, Rupert Murdoch's "favourite
editor", sat down and designed the Sun front page, scribbling "THE
TRUTH" in huge letters. Beneath it, he wrote three subsidiary
headlines: "Some fans picked pockets of victims"... "Some fans urinated
on the brave cops"... "Some fans beat up PC giving kiss of life". All
of it was false; MacKenzie was banking on anti-Liverpool prejudice.When
sales of the Sun fell by almost 40 per cent on Merseyside, Murdoch
ordered his favourite editor to feign penitence. BBC Radio 4 was chosen
as his platform. The "sarf London" accent that was integral to
MacKenzie’s fake persona as an "ordinary punter" was now a contrite,
middle-class voice that fitted Radio 4. "I made a rather serious
error," said MacKenzie, who has since been back on Radio 4 in a very
different mood, aggressively claiming that the Sun's treatment of
Hillsborough was merely a "vehicle for others".Bonnie reminds that Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Barack The Magnificent" went up last night. The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraqthe washington postanthony shadidernesto londonoben landotime magazinenprquil lawrenceanna fifieldalsumariathe tehran timesthe arab timesjohn pilger
Posted at 06:59 am by thecommonills
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Iraq refugees and the war still drags on
Almost every day for three years, prison guards at one of Saddam Hussein's most notorious prisons tortured Sami Alkarim.Now,
in a cruel twist of fate, the accomplished Iraqi artist is being
treated like a terrorist by the U.S., the country where he sought
refuge.U.S. officials have
told him they can't give him permanent residency in Denver because of
messenger work he did as a teenager for the same political party that
counts the current prime minister of Iraq as a member. The above is from Marisa Taylor's " Why are U.S.-allied refugees still branded as 'terrorists?'" ( McClatchy Newspapers)
who also cites the case of a woman known as "Anna" who worked with the
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan -- the political party of Iraq's president
Jalal Talabani -- and is seen, by US laws such as the Patriot Act, as a
"terrorist" as a result. Russell Contreras (AP) also reports
on Iraqi refugees in the US, specifically in Worcester, MA where
approximately 151 members of Iraq's Mandaean community have settled and
notes a total of 1,200 have been settled in the US in the last two
years. Conservative columnist (formerly with The Atlantic) Ross Douthat shared thoughts on the Iraq War in a column for the New York Times entitled " The War We'd Like to Forget."
He notes the lack of attention to the Iraq War (the illegal war, not an
opinion he'd share) and points out that the current White House has
"inherited a timeline for pulling out our troops, instead of having to
negotiate their own" -- a point the peace movement would do well to
grasp (see Friday's snapshot for the idiot from A.N.S.W.E.R. who's pleased as punch with what she sees as Barack's plan). Douthat observes: Except
that the Iraq war isn't finished yet. There are still 130,000 American
troops in the country. As Maliki acknowledged during his visit to
Washington, there will probably be thousands of soldiers there after
2011, when the current Status of Forces Agreement states that our
troops must be withdrawn.No, the illegal war is not over. Amber Miller (Volunteer TV) notes that the Tennessee Army National Guard's 252 Military Police is sending seventy service members to Iraq. Jessica Stith (Daily Times) adds,
"About 40 men and women kissed and hugged their families during a
tearful goodbye Sunday as the Alcoa unit of the Tennessee Army National
Guard's 252nd Military Police Company left for training and a one-year
deployment for Operation Iraqi Freedom. The soldiers left on the bus
with a convoy of Humvees and Patriot Guard Riders following behind.
They waved goodbye to their families as they rode out of the Army
Aviation Support Facility 2 (AASF-2) on McGhee Tyson Air National Guard
Base. Their destination on Sunday was Cleveland, where they will meet
up with about 130 other member of the military police company." Tracy Madden (WOWT) reports
on a ceremony in Omaha for departing soldiers, "One-hundred-twenty-five
soldiers representing 24 states, including Sgt. 1st Class Paul Graham
on his third deployment, expect to be gone for 12 months." KETV adds,
"Hundreds of friends and family members joined the soldiers for a
sendoff ceremony at South High School, expressing a lot of mixed
emotions." Seattle also had a farewell ceremony. The Seattle Times explains,
"The 3rd (Stryker) Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division held a deployment
ceremony at Fort Lewis Friday as the unit's nearly 4,000 soldiers
prepare to head off to Iraq later this summer." AP notes the Stryker Brigade is making their third deployment to Iraq. Lindsay Cohen (KOMO) reports
on the ceremony ("military music") and a toddler who "darted in front
of a Stryker armored vehicle" which was moving and was rescued (I'm
using the term "rescued") by Sgt Mickey Robinson. Scott Fontaine (News Tribune) breaks down
the previous deployments to note they were sent to Iraq first in 2003
(November) and lost 20 service members, then they were sent in 2006
(June) and lost 48 members. And KSTP (link has text and video) reports on Minnesota's Fort Snelling ceremony yesterday "for 25 U.S. Army Reservists leaving for active duty in Iraq." Today, KSTP reports,
the funeral for James Wertish is held at St. Mary's Catholic Church --
he was killed in the mortar attack on the US base in Basra July 16th.
The war is not over and it's a shame that the only New York Times columnist who can grasp that is a conservative. Independent journalist David Bacon continues to report on labor issues and " Mixtec farm workers pick blueberries, melons and chiles" (Immigration Prof Blog) covers workers in San Pablo Tijaltepec. Bacon can be heard on KPFA's The Morning Show (over the airwaves in the Bay Area, streaming online) each Wednesday morning (begins airing at 7:00 am PST) and his latest book is Illegal People -- How Globalization Creates Migration and Criminalizes Immigrants (Beacon Press).Bonnie reminds that Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Barack The Magnificent" went up last night. The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraqmcclatchy newspapersmarisa taylorrussell contrerasross douthatthe new york timesamber millerjessica stithtracy maddenlindsay cohenscott fonatainekstpdavid baconkpfathe morning showthe world today just nuts
Posted at 06:57 am by thecommonills
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Sunday, July 26, 2009
Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Barack The Magnificent"
Posted at 11:01 pm by thecommonills
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And the war drags on . . .
It was October 2007. A fellow soldier, Kenneth Eastridge, 24, watched it all from the passenger seat.
At that moment, he said, it was clear that however messed up some of the soldiers in the unit had been after their first Iraq deployment, it was about to get much worse.
"I have no problem with killing," said Eastridge, a two-tour infantryman with almost 80 confirmed kills. "But I won’t just murder someone for no reason. He had gone crazy."
Hear the prison interviews with Kenneth Eastridge.All three soldiers belonged to the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, part of Fort Carson’s 4th Brigade Combat Team. The 500-soldier infantry battalion nicknamed itself the "Lethal Warriors."
They fought in the deadliest places in the war twice -- first in the Sunni Triangle, then in downtown Baghdad. Since their return late in 2007, eight infantry soldiers have been arrested and accused of murder, attempted murder or manslaughter. Another two soldiers from the brigade were arrested and accused of murder and attempted murder after the first tour. Others have committed other violent crimes. Others have committed suicide.
Many of the soldiers behind bars and their family members say the violence at home is a consequence of the violence in Iraq. They came home angry, confused, paranoid and depressed. They had trouble getting effective mental heath care. Most buried their symptoms in drugs and alcohol until they exploded.The above is from Dave Phillips' " Lethal warriors day 2" ( Colorado Springs Gazette) and it's part of a package following an investigation by the Gazette, part one is Phillips' " The hell of war comes home" and there's also Tom Roeder's " Fort Carson report: Combat stress contributed to soldiers' crimes back home" and " EDITOR'S NOTE: A note of caution about the Lethal Warriors package." The series addresses what happened after they returned to the US and what happened while serving in Iraq where Iraqi drivers were randomly shot at, where those who didn't stop would be run "over with the Bradley," where Iraqis post-interrogation were dumped from bridges and more. Returning home? No concerns from the command except go-away, left to fend for themselves, some afraid to get help, some targeted for trying. Parents who attempted to get help for the children? Commanding officers mocked the soldiers whose parents called, ridiculed them. It's a complete breakdown in policies and procedures and the Gazette did a wonderful investigation but what's needed is a Congressional one. They're just there to try and make the people free,But the way that they're doing it, it don't seem like that to me.Just more blood-letting and misery and tearsThat this poor country's known for the last twenty years,And the war drags on.-- words and lyrics by Mick Softly (available on Donovan's Fairytale) Last Sunday, ICCC's number of US troops killed in Iraq since the start of the illegal war was 4327 and tonight? 4328. Violence continued in Iraq today. Bombings? Laith Hammoudi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a bomber killed himself Khaldiyah and claimed the lives of 2 police officers while wounding thirteen bystanders. Reuters notes a Mosul roadside bombing which injured one police officer and a Mosul grenade attack which wounded one police officer. Reuters also notes a bomber just outside Falluja who took their own life and the lives of 4 other people while injuing nine. As noted yesterday, " BBC (link has text and video) reports on the bombing of the party offices of Iraq's Sunni vice president Tareq Hashemi in Falluja which resulted in multiple deaths and wounded. Citing the Interior Ministry, Reuters counts 5 dead and twenty-one injured." KUNA reports that as a result of Saturday's bombing, a curfew was put in place. Shootings? Laith Hammoudi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports 2 people shot dead outside Baquba. Reuters notes a Baghdad attack in which 3 police officers and 1 bystander were shot dead, a Baghdad attack "on a money exchange office" in which 3 police officers were killed and five more injured and 1 Christian shot dead in Mosul. Turning to the KRG where elections ended yesterday. No results are known. No surprise, the US-backed "Change" party is claiming they won and that there is cheating. Yes, it is the CIA-Iran operation all over again. Maybe hopeless saps can take to Twitter? Egged on by the actions of CIA agents, assets and dupes. And let's wonder which a certain reporter is? A Socialist from a family of Socialists and Communitsts. Working for an English language European daily, he's been doing the CIA work for them a lot lately, hasn't he? Long before the "Change" party. But he's back on the "Change" beat and he's telling you they had a "suprisingly strong showing". He knows that because? Votes haven't been counted. Real reporters (Liz Sly, Adam Ashton, etc.) were able to tell you how difficult it was to get Kurds to tell you how they planned to vote. But Euro Trash just knows "Change" did well. Oh look, the CIA-backed Institute for War and Peace Reporting. Euro Trash is quoting them as well. And failing to alert his readers about the organization's backing. And look, there's Euro Trash speaking to the 'founder' (frontman) for "Change, Nawshirwan Mustafa. He quotes Mustafa stating that most exist "on government salaries.' Mustafa does. His big 'media empire' in Kurdistan? Euro Trash forgets to tell the world that the US government funded it -- a detail even the Committee for the Protection of Journalists has covered. But Euro Trash missed it? At some point Euro Trash no longer comes off stupid -- it's impossible to be that stupid -- and comes off more like a CIA asset. Well it wouldn't be the first time the Agency's recruited form a cess pool. Let's talk Mustafa. Mustafa worked with the US (and was a favorite of Dick Cheney's) post-invasion. He was supposed to be representing the Kurds and their interests in Baghdad as a new post-war government was assembled. And he certainly made a lot of fiery, strong statements to the press. But while working with the US CPA, he didn't talk that way. In fact, as the lead-figure on the negotiations, it needs to be noted that he sold out Kurdish intrests and, despite his public criticism, he pushed the selling out of Kurdish interests. But he played along with the Americans and, as a result, he got funding for his radio station which is another US propaganda outlet, another Voice of America (telling called "Voice of Change"), despite the fact that it's presented as something else by the press -- "independent" and, goodness how brave, it critizes the two dominant Kurdish parties. People need to wonder why Euro Trash can't cover that and they need to wonder tomorrow morning when Euro Trash's garbage pops up at his brother's American outlet -- they need to wonder just how far the ties to the CIA go? Liz Sly (Los Angeles Times) covers the allegations of voter fraud during Saturday's elections and she's actually reporting. Al Jazeera reports that despite the claims of "Change" winning Sulaimaniya, "[t]he ballots are still being counted" and that while "Change" is crying fraud, "[e]lection officials in the region hailed the vote as transparent". Hey Euro Trash forgets the Socialist Party and there are estimates that it did rather well. But, when you're churning out CIA talking points passed off as reporting, when you're attempting to help secure an American foothold in an oil and gas rich region, you probably don't have time to remember the Socialist Party that everyone would expect you to note? Iran's Press TV notes, "The official vote counting is due to take place in Baghdad and final results will be known in three days." Tim Cocks, Shamal Aqrawi, Muhanad Mohammed and Mohammed Abbas (Reuters) report: Iraq's Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) said it would investigate officially submitted complaints of election violations, but told reporters late on Saturday the vote had been largely violation-free.
However, it did say Barzani had broken a campaign deadline rule by speaking to reporters after voting.
"This is not important, it was a very simple matter and has no effect on the elections," said IHEC's Qasim al-Sachet.We'll note Anthony Shadid (Washington Post) tomorrow, it's late and his article runs in Monday's paper. (It's reporting, not propaganda.) We will note right now that while some insist "Change" is the reason for the huge turnout, that's not only impossible to back up, it also fails to note -- because the bulk of them ignored Kurdistan in the lead up to the elections -- the fact that Kirkuk's status became a very big part of the KRG elections. Not just on election day with Barzani's remarks. Not just last Sunday with a very public speech. For weeks, it has been the driving force behind the elections with candidates from all parties attempting to make the most convincing argument that they would bring Kirkuk under the Kurdistan umbrella. Do not mistakenly think that this campaign talk did not impact voter turnout. The Kurds have long seen Kirkuk as their property and have a historical grievance over the region since Saddam Hussein ran them out of the area. It would be the same as political groups campaigning for Palestinian votes with the assertion that they would regain Palestinian lands. That talk was very important to this election and it resonated with voters. Much more so than the airy "change" slogans that Kurds who did go on record during the lead up -- with various outlets -- repeatedly questioned and mocked. We'll note this from Karen DeYoung's " Iraqi Officer Was 'Out of Line,' Maliki Says" ( Washington Post): An Iraqi officer who ordered the detention of U.S. soldiers last week after they killed three Iraqis while pursuing insurgents acted in error and was "out of line," Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Saturday.
The officer "did not understand the agreement" governing U.S. military activities since American combat troops withdrew from Iraqi cities last month, Maliki said in an interview, adding that it "clearly states that American forces have the right to defend themselves, and that's what they did." Four Iraqis, including two children, also were wounded when U.S. forces returned fire and raided nearby houses after insurgents attacked their convoy.
Maliki, at the end of a week-long U.S. visit, said he had telephoned Baghdad and "made clear that they understand that this demand of handing over the people who killed the Iraqis was wrong." For more on that Tuesday incident, you can see Saturday's report from Ernesto Londono (Washington Post). New content at Third: Truest statement of the weekA note to our readersEditorial: Repackaging the illegal warTV: Goody LiarComic-ConBought and paid for by the US militaryRoundtableTalking with Ann of Ann's Mega DubJim's WorldThe drama of Queen Al GiordanoMore foolishness from Liz SmithGroups Oppose US Training of Indoensia's KopassusImpunity at the Freeport Gold & Copper MineHighlightsIsaiah's latest goes up after this. Pru notes Tom Walker's " Vestas occupation is part of struggle for the future" (Great Britain's Socialist Worker): Workers at the Vestas wind turbine factory on the Isle of Wight have joined the fight against ordinary people being made to suffer for the recession.
They occupied their factory, which faces closure, on Monday evening. Around 30 workers were inside the plant as Socialist Worker went to press, while supporters picketed outside.
Ian, one of the occupying workers, spoke to Socialist Worker from the management offices, where the occupation is based. He said, “We’re standing up for the future. I think it’s essential not to close places like this down.”
There are few jobs available on the Isle of Wight, with 60 applicants for every vacancy.
Ian said, “We would all struggle to get another job on the island. The recession’s hit everyone, but here we’ve had hundreds apply for one bar job.”
Workers are angry that management promised to expand the factory, only to announce that they were going to close it.
“We’ve worked like dogs and we’re getting nothing,” he said. “I’ve worked here for two years but I’m only getting three weeks’ pay for my redundancy.
“And we’re not just fighting for ourselves. This is a fight for everyone. The environment should be everyone’s concern. We need the government to start investing in wind farms and keep us open.”
The workers are organising inside the factory. “We’re having regular meetings,” said Ian. “Everyone’s playing their part.”
After the site was occupied, managers locked down the
factory and turned away workers who were coming in to do their last few days. Many of them joined the support rally outside.
Luke, another occupying worker, said, “There are a lot of people outside the factory. They’ve been cheering us on, keeping our spirits high.
“When I first heard about the closure I was in shock. But when we got organised I saw hope.
“I’m here for the long haul.”
Police in riot gear blockaded the doors in an attempt to stop supporters from getting food to those in the occupation.
“There are police at every door,” added Ian. “But we’ve brought the factory to a standstill. Support us in our fight to save Vestas. We’re standing up and saying—if the government can nationalise the banks it can nationalise Vestas.”
The workers need a hurricane of solidarity from trade unionists and campaigners to back up their fight for jobs and the planet.
The following should be read alongside this article: » Vestas workers occupy: 'A fight for jobs and the planet'» Profits come first for bosses» Ford-Visteon workers back the fight for justice» Workers’ action can save the planet» How you can help the Vestas occupation» Don't let them starve Vestas occupiers out» Supporters of Vestas workers get food to the occupation» Solidarity and the siege of Vestas» Protest at the Department of Energy and Climate Change» Vestas occupation still going strong» Photos of Vestas occupation» Support grows for Vestas occupation» Workers occupying Vestas face court on Wednesday 29 July© Socialist Worker (unless otherwise stated). You may republish if you include an active link to the original.
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» comment on article » email article » printable versionThe e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraqand the war drags ondonovanliz slythe los angeles timeskaren deyoungthe washington posternesto londonomcclatchy newspaperslaith hammoudithe socialist workerthe third estate sunday reviewthe world today just nuts
Posted at 10:59 pm by thecommonills
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Saturday, July 25, 2009
Kurdish voters on Saturday packed polling places in Iraq's second election this year, weighing the promises of a new party that pledged to shake up the status quo by exposing corruption in the incumbent regional government.
The election appeared to take place smoothly without serious complaints from parties or voters, though two opposition parties raised questions late Saturday about whether soldiers tried to cast multiple ballots and whether greeters at polling places showed too much support for incumbents.
Those questions could lead to unrest in coming days when Iraq's Independent Electoral Commission discloses results, party leaders suggested.
Samad Mohamed, a candidate from the incumbent Kurdistani List, told Iraqi television that 80 percent of the region's 2.4 million eligible voters participated in the election. The Charge Party, which emerged as the leading opposition group, estimated the turnout at 55 percent.The above is from Adam Ashton's " Heavy turnout in Iraq's Kurdistan for contest of new vs. old" ( McClatchy Newspapers) and Ashton's back in Iraq and covering the KRG elections. January 31st, 14 of Iraq's eighteen provinces held elections. The KRG's three provinces did not nor was Kirkuk allowed to. Thursday early elections began for the KRG. These are provincial elections and also the election of a president -- incumbent Massud Barzani is running for re-election and facing challengers. Fu Yiming and Gao Shan (Xinhua) cover the conflict between the KRG and the central government in Baghdad and how "Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki is already not on speaking terms with Massud Barzani. . . . . On August 10 last year, the central government deployed army forces to northern Diyala and ordered the Kurdish Peshmerga militia to withdraw within 24 hours. They even forced KRG staff out of their government buildings a week later, and triggered a final crossfire between the two sides in late September." Liz Sly (Los Angeles Times) reports, "Long lines snaked out of polling stations Saturday" which "attests to the enthusiasm generated by the appearance for the first time, of a viable challenge to the 18-year monopoly of the two ruling parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdish Democratic Party." Tim Cocks and Shamal Aqrawi (Reuters) explain voting was extended for one hour today and that the Electoral Commission estimates a turnout of 78.5%. They note the counting of ballots may take three days and spend a great deal of time covering the US-backed "Change" Party. Most reporters and outlets have either avoided "Change" or taken a skeptical approach. Despite the money spent (US tax dollars), no credible observer expects them to be swept into a position of influence. For the US, that was never the point. This was more of a learning experience for them, a way to test various theories and figure out how to best influence a future election should they feel the 'need' to in the future. "Change" tried to present itself as homegrown but failed at that and, early on, the US scaled back plans of major gains for the 'party' and instead focused on utilizing a variety of techniques in different regions in order to gauge Kurdish reactions. Some 'reporters' (not Cocks and Aqrawi) were encouraged by officers and assets to tie "Change" into some sort of global revolution and did so. If you saw those stories you know who the gullible and/or assets are. (Don't scroll through the last two weeks here. When friends at the State Dept passed on that news last month, I made the decision anyone who pimped the line would not be worth highlighting. We ignored them. Even while others -- hopefully mistakenly -- promoted them.) Back to Liz Sly who notes: Kurdish President Massoud Barzani touched on an issue dear to all Kurds when he cast his ballot in his mountain stronghold of Salahuddin. "I will never compromise on Kirkuk," he said.The status of the oil-rich northern city of Kirkuk, which the Kurds regard as their capital, is at the heart of heightened tensions between the central government in Baghdad and Kurdistan that U.S. officials have said pose the most serious threat to the future stability of Iraq.The election was fought mostly over domestic issues, and is not expected to herald a change in the region's long-standing demand for a swath of bordering territory, including Kirkuk, to be incorporated into Kurdistan.All the candidates sought to portray themselves as fierce defenders of Kurdish claims to those territories. But once the election is over, some of the fiery rhetoric may subside, making possible a greater effort toward serious negotiations with Baghdad.Violence continued in Iraq today. BBC (link has text and video) reports on the bombing of the party offices of Iraq's Sunni vice president Tareq Hashemi in Falluja which resulted in multiple deaths and wounded. Citing the Interior Ministry, Reuters counts 5 dead and twenty-one injured. Al Jazeera adds, "On Tuesday, Iraqi officials declared a rare vehicle ban across Anbar after two bomb attacks killed three people in the Ramadi, the provincial capital. The previous day, an explosion had killed two police officers in the city." In addition, Mohammed al Dulaimy (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad sticky bombing which claimed 1 life, Qahtan Ahmed, and left his son wounded, a Kirkuk roadside bombing which wounded four police officers in the latest targeting of the police. The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraqmcclatchy newspapersadam ashtonliz slythe los angeles timesfu yiminggao shantim cocksshamal aqrawi
Posted at 07:57 pm by thecommonills
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Yesterday the press [see Nada Bakri (Washington Post) and Sam Dagher (New York Times)] that the central government in Baghdad states it is "demanding explanations] reported on the angry response of the puppet government in Baghdad to the news (which emerged weeks ago in the Arab world) that the US was negotiating with leaders of Iraqi groups opposed to the puppet government the US installed. Elise Labott (CNN) reports US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated yesterday she had been unaware of the negotiations until "recently." Labott explains: Iraqi officials said Friday they were investigating reports of the meetings, calling them a violation of Iraqi sovereignty. The reports, which detail a supposed signed agreement between the Americans and insurgents, have angered Iraqis as they seek to establish their authority in the wake of the withdrawal of American troops from Iraqi cities.
Al-Maliki said he was "satisfied" with what he heard from Clinton, who assured him the United States would not negotiate with any extremists who killed Iraqi or American troops.She goes not to note that officials confirmed to CNN such a protocol was signed. But notice Nouri's latest lies. He's pleased? That the US won't "negotiate with any extremists who killed Iraqi or American troops"? Are we all so stupid we forget the two brothers responsible for the worst attack on a US based which resulted in the deaths of 5 US soldiers? Or that they were just released weeks ago? Hillary met with Nouri at two-thirty yesterday for a bilateral meeting, at 3:15 (EST) they began a coorodinating committe meeting and at 4:30 they spoke to the press and we'll note this portion: SECRETARY CLINTON: Good afternoon. It is a pleasure to have this opportunity to meet with Prime Minister Maliki. We are continuing our work together to meet our goal of building a stable, sovereign and self-reliant Iraq. Our countries are on a long journey together, and obstacles, of course, remain, but we are making significant progress.
Today's meeting was the second of the Strategic Framework Agreement Higher Coordinating Committee. This agreement establishes the terms of our relationship beyond security cooperation. We are working to promote economic growth and human development and diplomatic efforts so that Iraq can play a very constructive role not only at home, but throughout the region.
We have had six months of work together, so today, we reported on that work. And I'd like to thank Deputy Secretary Jim Steinberg and Ambassador Christopher Hill for their ongoing leadership of our Iraqi policy. Implementing the strategic framework agreement will be the focus of our work here at the State Department for months ahead.
I very much appreciate the positive contributions that the prime minister and his team made today. We will partner with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to host the U.S.-Iraq Business and Investment Summit in October. And we're going to work to make sure that the investment and business climate is very attractive. There are many important issues, but let me just highlight our education exchange. I want to commend Iraq for the $2.5 million it has recently put into the Fulbright student exchange program. We're also working on justice issues to enhance law enforcement and strengthen the judicial and corrections systems. And we are also working to assist the Iraqi Government with the return of Iraqis who left their country but now wish to return home and be part of a new Iraq.
I am pleased to announce that the United States is contributing more than $100 million in new assistance this year to support the return and reintegration of displaced Iraqis. Again, thank you, Mr. Prime Minister, for your leadership.
PRIME MINISTER MALIKI: (Via interpreter) Thank you very much. I would like – in the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate, I would like to express my gratitude and thanks to you, Secretary Clinton, for your interest and your commitment to convene the second meeting for the Higher Coordination Committee as a part of the strategic framework agreement between us. And I thank you very much for managing this meeting and convening this meeting. There were so many ideas, commitments, principles, joint work ahead of us. All of us gives – all of that gives us the hope to look forward to a future that is bright for both.
The meeting that was convened today was a very strong launching to broaden the relationship under the strategic framework agreement that was signed between the two nations. Through the review and through the briefings that we heard during the meetings, there is tangible progress that actually happened and took place. But we also said that this is not enough. We still have to work more for more success and more achievements and cooperation throughout the various spheres that are covered in the bilateral relationship.
Madame Secretary, today's meeting, it was a declaration in itself that we're going into a new phase, from a previous phase of cooperation that focused on security and confronting terror and various groups into a phase where we expand our cooperation and relationship to economics, to trade, to higher education, to tourism, to every other sphere.
And I here would like to express my gratitude and thanks for the $100 million from the United States to support the efforts of the return of the Iraqis who left their places. And I am delighted by the level of seriousness and our agreement that the next meeting will be convened in Baghdad. And at the meantime, between now and the next meeting, all the various subgroups will continue their meetings in order to accelerate, in order to activate the various lines of cooperation.
And today's meeting with the Chamber of Commerce, where a number of American businessmen and corporations came, I believe that was a very strong prelude to the upcoming conference that will be convened in October here in the United States, which will be the launching pad for a massive work in order to reconstruct Iraq, in order to invite investments, and in order to rebuild the country.
And tomorrow, also, we will be signing an educational initiative agreement which would allow us to send the first group of Iraqi students to the United States. We hope that we will be able, through that program, to send 10,000 Iraqi students to receive their education here. And I would like to express our thanks and gratitude to your cooperation, Madame Secretary, in allowing that American visas will be issued out of the American Embassy in Baghdad.
Thank you so much.
QUESTION: Madame Secretary, first, have you provided the prime minister with any clarification regarding the meeting that been held in Istanbul between American officials and Iraqi insurgents? And have you signed any protocol with the insurgents during that meeting? (Speaking in Arabic.)
SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, let me say that I –
INTERPRETER: Can I say to the prime minister in Arabic? Can I give him the question?
SECRETARY CLINTON: He was asked a question in Arabic.
INTERPRETER: Please.
SECRETARY CLINTON: Oh, okay.
INTERPRETER: (Speaking Arabic.)
SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, I have discussed this matter, which was only recently brought to my attention, with our Ambassador and with other officials. And we intend to make sure that the Iraqi Government is fully informed of any such activities, whether they are sponsored by another party or come from any other source. So we want to be sure that we have a very close working relationship and we have a very clear line of communication, and that's what we intend to do going forward.
PRIME MINISTER MALIKI: (Speaking Arabic.)
QUESTION: Have you signed any (inaudible), Madame Secretary?
SECRETARY CLINTON: No, we have not authorized any to be signed.
STAFF: Elise.
INTERPRETER: One – just one second.
PRIME MINISTER MALIKI: (Via interpreter) In the spirit of bilateral cooperation and when the relationship between two parties who are equal and sovereign, I believe that constant dialogue – it's very important in order to achieve the desirable outcome. I am quite satisfied on terms of what I heard on this issue. And I have been given a commitment that the Administration will not negotiate or reach any agreements with those who killed American soldiers, Iraqi soldiers, and Iraqi people.Today the Boston Globe editorialized on Nouri's ongoing DC trip: But if Maliki is worried about Washington backing or opposing him in Iraqi elections early next year, Obama must make it clear America will do neither. The US role from now on is to support Iraqi efforts to resolve their disputes over who will award oil contracts and whether regional autonomy is preferable to a strong central government. Obama needs to transform the occupation of Iraq into a respectful friendship.With that in mind, we'll return to the State Dept release: QUESTION: Mr. Prime Minister, you came to Washington asking the Obama Administration for more political support in terms of helping Iraqis mediate over issues such as Kirkuk, between Arabs and Kurds, playing more of a mediative role on political reconciliation. Did you receive that political support? And are you satisfied that as the Obama Administration takes a military disengagement, that it will not undertake a political disengagement?
And Madame Secretary, if I might, on Honduras, President Zelaya is just feet from the Honduran border with Nicaragua. He seems to have a lot of cell phones in his hand, talking on the cell phone. Wondering if you had spoken to him and what you're urging him in terms of his planned return into Honduras. Thank you.
PRIME MINISTER MALIKI: (Via interpreter) First of all, I am very satisfied, because what happened between Iraq and the United States is that we achieved an agreement regarding security arrangements and not disengaging. And if what was intended here is the withdrawal of forces from cities and towns, I see this as a manifestation of success, where their work would not be needed.
My visit here to the United States came in order to meet with the leadership here and strengthening the relationship with them, and also to activate the strategic framework agreement through a relationship of mutual cooperation, covering all other issues on the economic front, commercial front, education front, tourism, and so on.
And of course, within the spirit of friendship and cooperation, a number of critical issues were discussed. One of them is Iraq's, under Chapter 7 and the various sanctions that were imposed on Iraq over the years, in addition to other bilateral issues. But we did not come specifically for any issues such as Kirkuk or anything else. And the issue of Kirkuk is an Iraqi issue. It will be settled among the Iraqis through the constitutions, through negotiations, through contacts, through dialogue, and it's inevitable that we will reach an Iraqi solution to it.An Iraqi solution? Like banning books? Khalid al-Ansary (Reuters) reports the Ministry of Culture is censoring books in 'free' Iraq and quotes the ministry Taher al-Humoud explaining that all publishers now must "submit lists of titles for approval". That's the 'freedom' millions of Iraqis died for, 4328 US service members, 179 British service members and 139 'other' troops have died for. They died so . . . Iraq could return to censorship. The following community sites have updated: Cedric's Big MixAsshole means never having to say you're sorry53 minutes ago The Daily JotTHIS JUST IN! ASSHOLES NEVER SAY 'I'M SORRY'!53 minutes ago Thomas Friedman is a Great ManFriday wrap up23 hours ago Mikey Likes It!FSRN, Hawaii23 hours ago Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitudeit's his party, he'll cry if he wants to, cry if he wants to23 hours ago SICKOFITRADLZGlen Ford, Iraq23 hours ago Trina's KitchenTeriyaki Potatoes in the Kitchen23 hours ago Ruth's ReportMoyers and Winship on health care23 hours ago Oh Boy It Never EndsJuniorGate23 hours ago Like Maria Said PazThe UN and Kirkuk23 hours ago Ann's Mega DubAngelina Jolie23 hours ago Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills)Kurds find out it sucks to be the good child23 hours ago The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraqcnnelise labottthe washington postnada bakrithe new york timessam dagherthe boston globeanns mega dublike maria said pazkats kornersex and politics and screeds and attitudethomas friedman is a great mantrinas kitchenthe daily jotcedrics big mixmikey likes itruths reportsickofitradlzoh boy it never ends
Posted at 07:54 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
Friday, July 24, 2009
Friday,
July 24, 2009. Chaos and violence continue, the US military announces
another death, Nouri makes a public statement the press treats like his
little secret, the KRG gears up for the vote, Angelina Jolie visits
Iraq, 7 US soldiers wounded on July 12th and that news comes from a
regional US paper and not M-NF or a big news outlet, and more. Today the US military announced:
"BAGHDAD – A Multi-National Division–Baghdad Soldier died, July 24, of
non-combat related injuries in eastern Baghdad. The Soldier's name is
being withheld pending notification of next of kin. The names of the
service members are announced through the U.S. Department of Defense
Official Website at http://www.defenselink.mil/ . The announcements are
made on the Website no earlier than 24 hours after notification of the
service member's primary next of kin. MND-B will not release any
additional details prior to notification of next of kin and official
release by the DoD. The incident is currently under investigation." The
announcement brings to 4328 the number of US service members killed in the Iraq War. That
number is not a complete count. Trejo Rivas just passed away and he was
a veteran of the Afghanistan War and the Iraq War. It was in Iraq that
a mortart attack October 12, 2006. As Sig Christenson (San Antonio-Express) explained
Tuesday, "Retired Army Reserve Lt. Col. Raymond Trejo Rivas died
Wednesday in San Antonio after battling to recover from head injuries
suffered nearly three years ago. He was 53." Meanwhile John Hacker (Carthage Press) speaks
with Isaac "Jerry" Conway who explains "his grandson, U.S. Army Spec.
David Conway II, was injured in the Iraqi city of Sharqat when an
improvised explosive device exploded near him while he was leaving a
meeting with local officials. Also injured were six other American
soldiers and two Iraqi civilians working with the soldiers." Conway
says the incident took place July 12th. I'm not doubting Conway, but I
am noting M-NF never noted it. They did have time, however, the day after, to issue a release
about "Facebook, [and] other social media." Priorities. Yesterday
Nouri al-Maliki announced US forces might stay in Iraq past 2011. And
who noted it? Margaret Talev's " Iraq's Maliki raises possibility of asking U.S. to stay on" ( McClatchy Newspapers)
may shock some readers since McClatchy is the only newspaper outlet
covering it. It's not because it just emerged or emerged late. The
comments are noted in yesterday's snapshot.
It's not ignored because it's not newsworthy. Three outlets rushed to
print articles yesterday morning on the topic . . . when they claimed
all US troops would be out in 2011. (See yesterday's entry.) It's only not news when it doesn't agree with their outlets spin purposes. To
recap, when you can pimp the lie that all US troops will be out of Iraq
in 2011 (and, apparently, pimp yourself as a psychic who can tell the
future), you run with it and call it news. When Nouri al-Maliki
publicly, in front of a crowd, declares not-so-fast, you duck your head
and pretend it didn't happen. Anne Gearan covers al-Maliki's remarks for AP. Though
most of the broadcast media ignores the Iraq War (and much of the print
media), there are many news items related to and coming out of Iraq.
It's Friday, so smart news consumers knew there was a good chance The Diane Rehm Show
would cover the Iraq War -- the only program to do so regularly.
Diane's on vacation. Steve Roberts filled in for her today. The
panelists for the second (international news) hour were: The Financial Times' Daniel Dombey, Washington Post's David Hoffman and CNN's Elise Labott. Steve
Roberts: Let's talk about a neighboring country, Iraq, and, David
Hoffman, Prime Minister Maliki in Washington this week. Interestingly,
not only in talks with President Obama but also talking a lot about the
economy of Iraq -- an issue we don't hear a lot about, but trying to
drum up interest among American investors and entrepreneurs. Give us
your take on his visit. David
Hoffman: Well I actually thought the most interesting thing was the
president pledged to help get rid of these UN sanctions. You know,
Iraq still has to pay billions of dollars to Kuwait in reparations. If
they get some of that money back, that will help them and, you know, I
think when Mal-Maliki goes home from Washington, it's going to look
grimmer on the ground there. There's a big election coming in
Kurdistan, it's very important. The parties that have led Kurdistan
are being challenged by an upstart party. I think Kurdistan is the
real new frontline, the real flashpoint, in potential sectarian
tensions in Iraq so Maliki's country's not all together yet. Steve
Roberts: Uh, well you mentioned, there are several issue here
including, in his conversation with President Obama, the whole issue of
the deadline of withdrawal of American troops. What did we learn? David
Hoffman: Well, I think, you know, we're committed to the deadline but
what's going to happen is the deadline is going to be tested and it was
just tested this morning. There's going be firefights and there are
going to be military conflicts involving all these rules and deadlines
and those things, you know, they're very, very sensitive and volatile. Steve
Roberts: Uh, talk Daniel, about this sense of national unity. David
raises this issue of Kurdistan. Over weeks now, there's been
increasing assertions of independence on the part of Kurdistan leaders,
there's a huge fight over the status of Kirkuk, an oil-rich area. Is
Iraq holding together? Is-is there a real threat to its national unity
hear. Daniel
Dombey: I think both are true. Iraqi is holding-holding together to
the moment but the Kirkuk is-is the biggest unsolved problem of-of Iraq
-- not least because of the oil revenue but also because of Kurds who
have come in and Turkmens who were there before. But I think just to
look at Maliki's visit, I think that you need to bear two things in
mind. This is a cold relationship rather like the relationship with
[Hamid] Karzai and if you looked at some of President Obama's comments
where he talked about wanting an Iraq where everyone could thrive --
Shia, Sunni and Kurds -- it didn't take a genius, it didn't take a
Sherlock Holmes, to see that the US worries that Maliki could be a bit
more of a narrow sectarian than it would like. There's that tension
there. There's also a little bit of tension about how much freedom of
maneuver the US military has following the June the 30th pull-out. And
I wonder Iraq's economic situation is hard. There biggest thing is
oil. They had a big auction to-to sell out rights to eight big oil
fields uh in, near Basra. Only one of those went through that seems to
be renegotiated -- it still -- the British are kind of less keen than
they were. They're not getting the investors they need at a time that
the oil price is going down. They need oil and money to grease
the wheels to make Iraq a more coherent place. Elise
Labot: Part of the issue has been that there hasn't been enough
national reconciliation in the country and the issue is part of the
reason for the surge was not just -- in 2007 -- was not just to improve
security but it was to give the political space for more reconciliation
and that never happened. And the kind of grand constitutional bargain
and the concessions that were necessary to make that were never
completed. So what President Obama was saying to Maliki: "You need to
do this, you need to not only include Sunnis into the political process
but you need to, uhm, settle some of these issues with the Kurds." And
Maliki said to him: "We need your help on doing this. We understand
that there will be a military disengagement but it can't be a political
disengagement because Iraq has a lot more challenges that not only are
of sectarian nature but go to the whole future of the country. Is the
power going to be in the central government? Is it going to be in the
provinces? Who's going to be in control over the oil and the natural
resources? I mean, these are major issues that the Iraqis are going to
have to resolve and they are looking for the United States in many ways
to help mediate these. Steve
Roberts: Well there were stories this week about this pact or protocol
that was apparently signed with Sunnis in Turkey, what was that all
about? David
Hoffman: It's not really clear. But there were two meetings between
Americans and representatives of the Sunni insurgency that were held in
Turkey. It's really -- the third meeting is the mystery. Why didn't it
happen? It was scheduled. The Americans didn't come. There's some
signs of some disenchantment maybe, that this wasn't really a very good
channel or it wasn't working. But I do think it's at least an indicator
that reconciliation's got to be the goal. During listener feedback, a panelist completely blew it. He had no idea what he was speaking of. Steve
Roberts: Let me read some e-mails from some of our listeners. This is
Randall in Cincinatti: "With the death toll rising in Afghanistan, I
want to know where the anti-war groups that were protesting during the
Bush administration -- the anti-war movement was seen and heard daily
during the few years but they seem to have disappeared in mainstream
media since Obama was elected. Could it be these were just anti-Bush
groups posing as anti-war groups?" What do you think? David
Hoffman: Well I think, also, you know Obama did endorse deadlines,
troops have pulled back, violence has gone down in Iraq, that may play
a big part. When we noted the Iraq
portion of The Diane Rehm Show on Fridays, there are things said by
panelists I disagree with. If it's not called out by another guest,
the issue is, can the person's remarks be seen? Could someone look at
the facts and conclude as the panelist did? If it's an opinion, it can
go in. But if someone is just factually wrong, we need to call it
out. So we will. David didn't know what the hell he was talking
about. Obama endorsed deadlines? You mean the June 30th 'pull-out'?
You mean the draw down? You mean the supposed 2011 departure? If
that's what you mean, you mean Obama "endrosed" Bush's "deadlines"
because those 'deadlines' are Bush's. Those are from the treaty
masquerading as a Status Of Forces Agreement which replaced the UN
mandate (that Bush didn't want to renew) and which required a full-on
push from the US government to pass through Parliament (with a huge
number of Iraqi MPs skipping the vote) on Thanksgivng day in 2008. What
was being asked was a fair question. More than fair.
And
the honest answer, which Randall wasn't given, was that a large number
of the 'anti-war' groups were nothing but anti-Bush groups -- and, more
importantly, anti-Bush groups who existed to put Democrats into
office. They weren't about ending the Iraq War. Look at MoveOn, for
example. These were not real peace groups -- which is why they
preferred the title "anti-war." These were not groups concerned with
ending the illegal war. Their answer, over and over, check those
stupid MoveOn e-mails from that time period, were: Stop the Iraq War by
voting Democrats into office! That was all they had to offer. That
and a few pathetic 'candle light vigils.' Randall asked a fair
question and he didn't get a fair answer.
That
got me wondering: would those folks (say the mainstream Bob Woodward or
Tom Ricks, let alone other people in the nuttier fringes of the
Bush-bashing chorus) who established a cottage industry lambasting Bush
Administration rhetoric as "happy talk" rise up and start calling a
foul on President Obama? President Bush regularly caveated his
statements of progress with reminders that there were "tough days
ahead" and, if memory serves, Rumsfeld was the guy who coined "long,
hard slog." In their coverage of Bush, sometimes the reporters would
include mention of the caveats and qualify their lede accordingly;
sometimes the reporters would include mention of the caveats and yet
stick to a "happy talk" lede; and sometimes the reporters would simply
omit any mention of the caveats, perhaps the better to advance the
"happy talk" lede. Regardless of how many times President Bush
presented carefully caveated assessments, the Bush-bashers could always
rest their indictment on one or two off-the-cuff uncaveated remarks.
They could have also steered Randall to independent journalist John Pilger who holds both administrations accountable and was on KPFA's Flashpoints
yesterday delivering a speech media and empire and covering for Obama,
"The Rise of Barack Obama and the Silencing of Much of the Left." For
the record, Elise Labott stuck to Afghanistan and stuck to her opinion
based on facts. (This isn't the Afghanistan snapshot so we're not
excerpting.) Daniel Dombey stuck to Afghanistan. (And was grossly
wrong -- protests continue in England against the Afghanistan War
including last week and it's damn stupid to use the pre-Iraq War global
protest, if that's what Dombey wants to argue, as a measure. That was
the largest global protest. And it was against the impending Iraq War
-- not the Afghanistan War.) Adil E. Shamoo and Bonnie Bricker (Foreign Policy In Focus) explain,
"Parliament members are afraid to attend meetings. Iraq's nascent
economy is deteriorating. Hundreds of armed militias are ready to
fight for their own interests. This is Iraq today." They also address
the SOFA: The current deterioration in
Iraq has made advisors and pundits (many of whom supported the initial
invasion) fearful of pulling out U.S. troops. The misleading terms of
the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) means U.S. troops are more
involved than expected. The terms of the SOFA called for withdrawal of
troops from the cities, for example, but the city limit lines were
drawn within previous borders of the cities, allowing troops to be
positioned in what was once considered part of the city. David was completely wrong. It's a shame that a peace activist wasn't able to call in. Well, it's shame that a peace activist with a brain wasn't able to call in and know what she was talking about.
Ann: Oh, yes. Uhm . . . Steve Roberts: You're on the air, please go ahead. Ann:
Thank you. I'm a member and have worked for the A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition
which is anti-war colation for the last seven years. It isn't a
question of who is in the White House. I personally support President
Obama except when it comes to Afghanistan and whatever support he still
gives to Israeli initiatives, um. I think you will be seeing more
anti-war, um, protests as time goes on because the money we're spending
in Iraq and the money we give to Israel could be better spent at home
for jobs and health care and education. What
a load of garbage. "I personally support President Obama"? If you
support him on Iraq -- which you are saying you do -- then you support
2008 George W. Bush on Iraq because Barack -- pay attention -- isn't
doing what he supposedly promised while campaigning, he's instead
embraced and is following Bush's Iraq timetable and SOFA. The same
SOFA, you grasp this, stupid idiot, that Barack was calling out while
campaigning for the nomination and then the presidency. Yeah, Barack
called it out, said it was wrong, said it shouldn't go through and he
wouldn't let it. But what's he doing? He's doing just what Bush did.
But you "personally support" him. If that's typical A.N.S.W.E.R.
membership, the peace movement's in a lot more trouble than any of us
realize. We're going to move right into an excerpt from from Debra
Sweet's " A Proposal for Actions Against (Obama's) War and Torture" (World Can't Wait) because the peace movement is in disarray: We've put out a proposal for actions
in early October, including Monday October 5 in Washington DC for
actions at the White House & Congress, and a national day of
resisting the recruiters in high schools Tuesday, October 6.
After
networking and consulting with other organizations and leaders, the
World Can't Wait Steering Committee will meet on August 1 to finalize
fall plans. We want your input. Please take the survey here by July 31. Or write me about the questions below...or what is on your mind.
1.
Do you feel the controversy over the Obama administration not
prosecuting anyone involved in torture has changed the political
climate in this country? If so, how so? If not, why not? 2.
What do you think of Obama's expansion of the war in Afghanistan? Why?
Do others you know agree or disagree? How much has that war been
successfully re-branded as the "good war"? 3.
In the past few months has your opinion of Obama changed? Favorably or
unfavorably? Why? How about people you know? 4.
After reading the October 5/6th proposal what do you think is possible
for these days of resistance? What do you think is necessary? What is
your vision of protest for those days?
Your input is needed! Please complete this survey by July 31 to feed into our discussions on August 1. To make all this possible, send along a donation, or become a sustainer 4RealChange. Adil E. Shamoo and Bonnie Bricker (Foreign Policy In Focus) explain,
"Parliament members are afraid to attend meetings. Iraq's nascent
economy is deteriorating. Hundreds of armed militias are ready to
fight for their own interests. This is Iraq today." Joe Piasecki (Pasadena Weekly) points out that Tuesday was "day 2,313 of the war in Iraq". While A.N.S.W.E.R.'s Ann isn't at all worried about the Iraq War, Angelina Jolie declared
yesterday, "There are still three million people displaced, innocent
families," she added. "We have still many young men and women from our
country who are fighting every day, there are men and women from all
countries who have lost their lives, and this is a time to try to make
some positive change." Angelina is the UNHCR's Goodwill Ambassador and made her third trip to Iraq yesterday. The above statement by her appears in CNN's coverage. The San Francisco Chronicle quotes
her stating, "There are some changes. There are returns of displaced
people, not a big number, but there is progress. This is a moment where
things seem to be improving on the ground, but Iraqis need a lot of
support and help to rebuild their lives." As
Angelina noted, the returnees are "not a big number." The displaced is
composed of targeted populations. A large number of Iraq's external
refugees are Iraqi Christians. Deutsche Welle reports
Baghdad's "Archbishop Jean Benjamin Sleiman told Deutsche Welle that
his country is slipping into a state of anarchy, and that the
government has no control of the violence within its borders. In
Germany he has spoken out against attacks on seven churches in Iraq,
which killed four people and injured some 30 others." AINA reports
Congressional Religous Minorities co-chairs, US House Reps Anna Eshoo
and Frank Wolf have written the following letter to Nouri al-Maliki on
the continued attacks on Iraq's Christian community: It
was with great sadness that we read recent accounts of targeted church
bombings in Iraq. Reuters reported on July 12 that, "Bombs exploded
outside five Christian churches in Baghdad on Sunday, in apparently
coordinated attacks that killed four people and wounded more than 30."
The New York Times reported that the bombings "appeared to be one of
the largest single coordinated assaults against churches and Christians
in Baghdad." As co-chairs
of the Congressional Religious Minorities in the Middle East Caucus, we
have long been concerned about the plight ofIraq's ethno-religious
communities including the ancient Chaldo-Assyrian Christian community.
We have written numerous letters to our own government urging that
there be a comprehensive policy to address the unique needs of these
vulnerable minorities. U.S. Ambassador Chris Hill has indicated that
the security ofthe Christian community is one of his paramount
concerns, and we hope his attitude signals a willingness to develop a
programmatic approach to dealing with this matter. When the new deputy
assistant secretary for Near Eastern Affairs assumes this post at the
end ofthe month, we will meet to discuss solutions to the problems
faced by ethno-religious minorities in Iraq. Our
ongoing commitment to alleviating this situation is shared by many of
our colleagues in the United States Congress. Two weeks ago, the House
of Representatives approved $20 million in funding dedicated toward
religious minorities in Iraq. This funding is intended to support a
range of programs such as security, economic development, health care
enhancement and democratization programs primarily in the Nineveh Plain
region. Bipartisan congressional support for these minority faith
communities remains strong. We understand
that it is your desire to see Iraqi refugees return to the land of
their birth. We share this hope. But news analysis following the
bombings indicates that Christians who were contemplating returning
will understandably reconsider given the fear gripping their community
in the wake of the attacks. As
the U.S. presence in Iraq draws down, the burden for protecting these
ancient faith communities rests increasingly with Iraqi forces.
Increased security at Christian places of worship and an investigation
into who is behind these most recent attacks will send a powerful
signal that your government is committed to preserving and protecting
Iraq's ethno-religious minorities. For those late the July 12 bombings, The Catholic Leader recaps
and quotes Chaldean Auxiliary Bishop Shlemon Warduni stating: "We cry:
Why? Why? What is our fault? That we are Christians?" In June 2006,
shortly after Nouri al-Maliki was installed by the US as prime
minister, the Green Zone was almost breached and it was a frightening
time for al-Maliki and American leadership. In the frenzy following
that, al-Maliki was advocating (as were some lower in the US military
brass) that trenches be dug around Baghdad, that the answer for Baghdad
was "moats." Those late to the party can see Edward Wong's " Iraqis Plan to Ring Baghdad With Trenches" ( New York Times, September 16, 2006). We bring that up for a reason. The waterless moats are back as a proposal. International Christian Concern advises
that they have "learned that Iraqi Security forces are building
trenches to protect Christians from further attacks following recent
church bombings that killed four people and wounded several others.
Iraqi officials are stepping up protective measures for Christians in
the largely Christian towns of Tilkaif and Hamdaniya, in the northern
province of Nineveh. The trenches come in the wake of a spate of bomb
attacks against seven Iraqi churches on July 11 and 12 in the cities of
Baghdad and Mosul." They quote Project Director of the Iraq
Sustainable Democracy Project Michael Youash stating, "These trenches
will require people to enter towns through 4 or 5 secure checkpoints
making it far more difficult to smuggle in weapons and bombs. The
construction of the trenches is a sad but necessary reminder of just
how desperate the situation of the Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac Christians
is becoming." UPI quotes
Abdul Raheem al-Shimari (the province's security head) stating that
"the trenches are roughtly 1.5 feet deep and are intended to prevent
potential car bombers from getting through without the necessary
security checks." Hazem al-Aisawi (Azzaman) adds, "It is not clear when the moat will be completed and who will be financing the dig." IRIN notes, " According to some reports, it is estimated that as many as half the Christian population has left Iraq since 2003." It
is clear that Iraq's Kurdistn Regional Government is holding provincial
and presidential elections. Early voting began Thursday. Voting ends
tomorrow. BBC News presents
the viewpoints of five voters: Mateen Dooski, Alan Ali, Savina Dawood,
Hassan Jalal and Ako Omer. Savina Rafaeel Dawood explains she's
Assyrian, not Kurdish and states she's voting for "the 'Mesopotamia'
list which will give me my rights." Hassan Jalal doesn't think the KRG
will ever be able to increase their region due to resistance from the
central government in Baghdad. Alan Ali is skeptical of the "Change"
party ("we don't know where their change would take us") and states,
"On Kirkuk - I think it should be part of Kurdistan. I'm not just being
selfish because I am Kurdish and want the oil money - Kirkuk is
connected to the region. Most of the people there are Kurdish, despite
the Arabs brought in by previous governments. And Kirkuk is just one of
many cities like this." And Mateen Dooski, who explains he's voting
for incumbent President Massud Barzani, declares, "The biggest task
facing the KRG is the implementation of Article 140 of the Iraqi
constitution (a referendum on whether Kurdish areas of Diyala, Kirkuk,
Salah ad Din and Ninawa provinces should become part of Iraqi
Kurdistan). This would bring the 60% of purely Kurdish areas not run by
the KRG: Kirkuk, Mosul, Diyala, under its control." Liz Sly (Los Angeles Times) reports
on the elections with an emphasis on the "Change" party, "Though
Change's leaders deny any conscious similarity to President Obama's
campaign, it is evident in the slate's movement's official campaign
slogan, 'Yes, We Can Change It.'" Adam Ashton (McClatchy Newspapers) reports
on the "Change" Party and also notes these basics, "The Kurdish
parliament has 111 seats, 80 of which are held by the alliance of the
KDP and the PUK. Eleven seats are reserved for minorities, such as
Christians and Turkomen." Salman Ansari Javid (Tehran Times) observes
that the political parties "Change, the KDP, and the PUK have the same
goals for Kirkuk". Kirkuk is the oil rich disputed region which is
claimed by both the KRG and the central government in Baghdad. Timothy Williams (New York Times) reports
that the Turkmen in Kirkuk Province are threatening to boycott a census
currently scheduled for October. That'll teach 'em, seems to be the
concept. The census, which was Constitutionally mandated to have been
conducted in 2007, will survey the contested region. Turkmen are
claiming Kurds are beefing up their population with transplants. They
are. They have been doing it for years. If you don't like it, you
probably should have demanded a census long ago. The shipping in of
Kurds? That was a concern in 2006. It's too late to whine about
something long on reported on. In 2005, some groups (largely Sunni)
felt they would be shut out of the electoral process. A decision was
made to boycott the elections. Some stood by that decision after the
elections, some felt it was a mistake. In the January 31st elections
this year, the real story was that the ones who had boycotted last time
turned out in large numbers (while the drop off came from the Shi'ites
who had participated in 2005). Now an election (or all elections) you
might or might not want to boycott. You can certainly say, "Don't blame
me, I didn't vote." But this isn't an election. This is a census. And
if you feel you are already going to be under-represented because of an
influx of Kurds, then your decision not to participate in the census
makes little sense. Unless you're attempting to stop the census, which
may be the point. In other news, the US has continued talks with Iraqi leaders living in exile. Nada Bakri (Washington Post) reports
on continued negotiations the US is having with former Ba'athists and
other groups currently excluded from political life in Iraq. Bakri
reports "two meetings this spring" held in Turkey and that the State
Dept's P.J. Crowley would only say that they met to address "a wide
range of Iraqi contacts with the purpose of promoting reconciliation
and national unity." Sam Dagher (New York Times) adds
that the central government in Baghdad states it is "demanding
explanations" on the meeting and declares the meetings (known for weeks
before they took place and covered in Arab media though the New York Times
seems unaware of that fact) were "an interference in Iraq's internal
political affairs". Dagher notes an Aljazeera interview aired on July
15th where Ali al-Juboouri (Political Council of the Iraqi Resistance)
"revealed that his council, which represents Sunni insurgent groups,
met in March with representatives of the American government in
Istanbul. He said a protocol was signed then to govern future
negotiations between the two sides. He said that a second meeting took
place in May" but ended over differences including that the US agree to
compensation and a public apology for the illegal war. Maliki's out of the country and Iraq has no violence? No, it's just Friday, when reports trickle out slowly. Mohammed Al Dulaimy (McClatchy Newspapers) does note a Baghdad car bombing which injured six people. Meanwhile Missy Ryan (Reuters) reports
on the drought effecting Iraq as the Tigris and Euphrates run dry,
"Tensions intensified earlier in the month when Turkey announced that
it would resume work on its controversial plan to build a hydroelectric
dam on the Tigris in its southeast." Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli explores the
issue in " Water Crisis in Iraq: The Growing Danger of Desertification" (Middle East Media Research Institute). Turning to the US, July 12th, Topeka, Kansas was in the news as a veteran had a standoff with police at the Colmery-O'Neil VA Medical Center. India's Thaindian reported, "An unknown gunman stormed a Topeka, Kansas hospital on Sunday afternoon, officials told BNO News." Taylor Atkins and Ann Marie Bush (The Topeka Capital-Journal) explained: Jim
Gleisberg, public affairs officer for the medical center, said no one
was injured when a veteran, whose name and hometown won't be released,
walked into the emergency room with a handgun at 12:10 p.m. and asked
to talk to a VA police officer. "The
veteran showed the officer he had a gun and threatened his own life,"
Gleisberg said. "The police officer acted very professionally. He got
the veteran to leave the emergency room area, and other staff members
on duty called the Topeka police."KTKA quoted
the VA's Jim Gleisberg stating the man is an Iraq War and Afghanistan
War veteran and, "Veterans are being stressed. The soldiers over there
now that are in the conflict that are coming back with issues just
because they've been deployed either once or twice at 12 or 15 months
at a time it's a very stressful situation and so they are going to have
issues." Michigan's WHMI reports
"a suicidal veteran" -- Iraq War veteran -- holed up at the Homoetown
Trailr Park and "held Howell Police at bay for more than nine hours". Jon Gunnells (Daily Press & Argus) reports
that the "veteran is undergoing psychiatric treatment" and quotes
police chief George Bassar stating, "He made statemens about suicide to
his mother who calle dthe sister to check on him. He threatened his
sister and she fled te home . . . He has some pretty good battle
injuires and post traumatic stress syndrome. This apparently was
something bubbling up." Steve Pardo (Detroit News) states
the veteran is thirty-four-years-old and that after hours of attempted
negotiations, "around 3:30 a.m., police threw tear gas into the house
and the man was taken without further incident. He remains in St.
Joseph Mercy Livingston hospital." TV notes. This week on NOW on PBS: The Obama Administration recently released its proposal for financial regulatory reform, but before change comes to Wall Street, a reform plan has to get through Congress with its teeth intact.This
week, David Brancaccio sits with Zanny Minton Beddoes, economics editor
for The Economist magazine, to review the proposal and its
ramifications for America. Beddoes encourages streamlining the
regulatory system, leaving fewer but more efficient overseers. But
where powerful interests are at stake, nothing is a sure bet."There
is some good stuff in [the reform plan]. But it's a relatively modest
rearranging of the financial supervisory structure ... I think it's
more interior design than a whole new foundation." On Bill Moyers Journal, health care is addressed with CJR's Trudy Lieberman (who has a strong article in the current CJR) and by Marcia Angell. My goodness, Bill found two women. Mark the calendars! As noted in Third's " Editorial: Taking sexism seriously," " In the first six months of this year Washington Week had 33 female guests and twice that number (66) of male guests while Bill Moyers featured 43 men and only 13 women."
And, for the record, I'm only noting that segment. In another Bill
floats his attacks on free speech. Free speech is something you support
or you don't. Believing in it doesn't mean you can't decry statements,
that you can't call them out, that you can't say they're offensive or
that they crossed a line. But it does mean that you support free speech
and grasp the difference between words and action and grasp that the
Constitution supports free speech for an important reason. Now did we just note Washington Week?
Usually four guests a week sit down with Gwen but as of the last week
of June, she'd spent the year with 66 men and only 33 women on her
program? How does it happen? By weeks like this one where she sits down
with three men and one woman: New York Times' Peter Baker, Washington Post's Michael Fletcher, National Journal's Marilyn Werber Serafini and Wall St. Journal's
David Wessel. Now how do you book that show and not notice that you
have three men and only one woman? You know it. You know it and you do
it on purpose. You don't accidentally end up with twice as many men as
women. PBS' Editorial Standards & Policies states:
"The goal of diversity also requires continuing efforts to assure that
PBS content fully reflects the pluralism of our society, including, for
example, appropriate representation of women and minorities. The
diversity of public television producers and funders helps to assure
that content distributed by PBS is not dominated by any single point of
view." Repeating, "Appropriate representation of women and minorities."
Why have a policy if PBS doesn't ensure that their programs follow it?
There's no excuse for Bill or Gwen to get away with the crap that they
continue to get away with. They are in direct violation of PBS' own
Standards & Policies and they need to get their shows in order and
PBS needs to provide the supervision to ensure that they do. Bonnie Erbe sits down with Eleanor Holmes Norton, Melinda Henneberger, Kathleen Parker and Tara Setmayer on PBS' To The Contrary. Check local listings, all four PBS shows begin airing tonight on many PBS stations. And turning to broadcast TV, Sunday CBS' 60 Minutes offers: Gun Rush
Americans
are snapping up guns and ammunition at an increasingly higher rate
despite the economic downturn. But as Lesley Stahl reports, the
economic downturn, as well as the election of Barack Obama, may be the
reason for the run on guns. | Watch Video
Poisoned
The
African lion, already down as much as 85 percent in numbers from just
20 years ago, is now in danger of becoming extinct because people are
poisoning them with a cheap American pesticide to protect their cattle
herds. Bob Simon reports. | Watch Video
Steve Wynn
The
casino mogul most responsible for taking Las Vegas to new heights of
gaming and glitter talks to Charlie Rose about his spectacular success
and the eye disease that's slowly robbing him of his ability to see the
fruits of his labor. | Watch Video
60 Minutes Sunday, July 26, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
Posted at 03:33 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
US military announces another death
Today the US military announced:
"BAGHDAD – A Multi-National Division–Baghdad Soldier died, July 24, of
non-combat related injuries in eastern Baghdad. The Soldier’s name is
being withheld pending notification of next of kin. The names of the
service members are announced through the U.S. Department of Defense
Official Website at http://www.defenselink.mil/ . The announcements are
made on the Website no earlier than 24 hours after notification of the
service member's primary next of kin. MND-B will not release any
additional details prior to notification of next of kin and official
release by the DoD. The incident is currently under investigation." The
announcement brings to 4328 the number of US service members killed in the Iraq War. That
number is not a complete count. Trejo Rivas just passed away and he was
a veteran of the Afghanistan War and the Iraq War. It was in Iraq that
a mortart attack October 12, 2006. As Sig Christenson (San Antonio-Express) explained
Tuesday, "Retired Army Reserve Lt. Col. Raymond Trejo Rivas died
Wednesday in San Antonio after battling to recover from head injuries
suffered nearly three years ago. He was 53." Nada Bakri (Washington Post) reports
on continued negotiations the US is having with former Ba'athists and
other groups currently excluded from political life in Iraq. Bakri
reports "two meetings this spring" held in Turkey: U.S.
officials declined to provide details of the meetings, which they said
took place in March and April. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley
said Thursday that military and diplomatic officials "meet with a wide
range of Iraqi contacts with the purpose of promoting reconciliation
and fostering national unity" and that "the meetings in question
occurred some months ago and with the knowledge of officials within the
Iraqi government." Sam Dagher (New York Times) adds
that the central government in Baghdad states it is "demanding
explanations" on the meeting and declares the meetings (known for weeks
before they took place and covered in Arab media though the New York
Times seems unaware of that fact) were "an interference in Iraq's
internal political affairs". Dagher notes an Aljazeera interview aired
on July 15th where Ali al-Juboouri (Political Council of the Iraqi
Resistance) "revealed that his council, which represents Sunni
insurgent groups, met in March with representatives of the American
government in Istanbul. He said a protocol was signed then to govern
future negotiations between the two sides. He said that a second
meeting took place in May" but ended over differences including that
the US agree to compensation and a public apology for the illegal war. Early
voting has begun but regular voting takes place Saturday in the KRG
which is holding provincial elections as well as electing a president.
The northern region of Iraq did not participate in the January 31st
provincial elections -- it was three of the four provinces not
participating. Liz Sly (Los Angeles Times) covers the attempts of one party to take Barry O's empty brand and use it in the KRG:
At
night, the streets of Sulaymaniya, Kurdistan's second city, come alive
with the honking of horns as cars and motorcycles trailing Change's
blue flag, emblazoned with a candle, hurtle through the streets. In the
city center, people gather and light candles on the sidewalks.
Though
Change's leaders deny any conscious similarity to President Obama's
campaign, it is evident in the slate movement's official campaign
slogan: "Yes, We Can Change It."
"We must have change because the
Kurdish people have suffered from corruption for the last 18 years,"
said Kamal Abdullah, 34, a private contractor who says he is out of
work because he cannot afford to pay the bribes needed to obtain
business.
"This government took all the money and sent it outside to
Swiss bank accounts, and they give all the jobs to their own children,"
he said.Change, as with Barry O, goes undefined. That's
what's so great about the slogan: Vapid people don't think past, "Yeah,
change!" Change to what? That's too much thought. Which is our transition to Timothy Williams ( New York Times). Williams reports
that the Turkmen in Kirkuk Province are threatening to boycott a census
currently scheduled for October. That'll teach 'em, seems to be the
concept. The census, which was Constitutionally mandated to have been
conducted in 2007, will survey the contested region. Turkmen are
claiming Kurds are beefing up their population with transplants. They
are. They have been doing it for years. If you don't like it, you
probably should have demanded a census long ago. The shipping in of
Kurds? That was a concern in 2006. It's too late to whine about
something long on reported on. Williams isn't much on thought
this morning so he can't provide an obvious comparison/contrast. In
2005, some groups (largely Sunni) felt they would be shut out of the
electoral process. A decision was made to boycott the elections. Some
stood by that decision after the elections, some felt it was a mistake.
In the January 31st elections this year, the real story was that the
ones who had boycotted last time turned out in large numbers (while the
drop off came from the Shi'ites who had participated in 2005). Now an
election (or all elections) you might or might not want to boycott. You
can certainly say, "Don't blame me, I didn't vote." But this isn't an
election. This is a census. And if you feel you are already
going to be under-represented because of an influx of Kurds, then your
decision not to participate in the census makes little sense. Unless
you're attempting to stop the census, which may be the point. But the census needs to take place, it's years late as it is. And reducing your official numbers in the census to zero isn't going to help you. If
you decide not to participate in a census, that doesn't make it
questionable. You have made a decision not to participate. You've made
that decision. You weren't blocked from participating, you weren't
prevented. You took yourself out. So there's really nothing you have to
complain about. I can understand boycotting a vote. This isn't a vote.
This is a census. And groups who threaten to boycott should be informed
that they're hurting their own interests and that the census will take
place with or without them. TV notes. This week on NOW on PBS: The Obama Administration recently released its proposal for financial regulatory reform, but before change comes to Wall Street, a reform plan has to get through Congress with its teeth intact.This
week, David Brancaccio sits with Zanny Minton Beddoes, economics editor
for The Economist magazine, to review the proposal and its
ramifications for America. Beddoes encourages streamlining the
regulatory system, leaving fewer but more efficient overseers. But
where powerful interests are at stake, nothing is a sure bet."There
is some good stuff in [the reform plan]. But it's a relatively modest
rearranging of the financial supervisory structure ... I think it's
more interior design than a whole new foundation."On Bill Moyers Journal, health care is addressed with CJR's Trudy Lieberman (who has a strong article in the current CJR) and by Marcia Angell. My goodness, Bill found two women. Mark the calendars! As noted in Third's " Editorial: Taking sexism seriously," " In the first six months of this year Washington Week had 33 female guests and twice that number (66) of male guests while Bill Moyers featured 43 men and only 13 women."
And, for the record, I'm only noting that segment. In another Bill
floats his attacks on free speech. Free speech is something you support
or you don't. Believing in it doesn't mean you can't decry statements,
that you can't call them out, that you can't say they're offensive or
that they crossed a line. But it does mean that you support free speech
and grasp the difference between words and action and grasp that the
Constitution supports free speech for an important reason. Now did we just note Washington Week?
Usually four guests a week sit down with Gwen but as of the last week
of June, she'd spent the year with 66 men and only 33 women on her
program? How does it happen? By weeks like this one where she sits down
with three men and one woman: New York Times' Peter Baker, Washington Post's Michael Fletcher, National Journal's Marilyn Werber Serafini and Wall St. Journal's
David Wessel. Now how do you book that show and not notice that you
have three men and only one woman? You know it. You know it and you do
it on purpose. You don't accidentally end up with twice as many men as
women. PBS' Editorial Standards & Policies states:
"The goal of diversity also requires continuing efforts to assure that
PBS content fully reflects the pluralism of our society, including, for
example, appropriate representation of women and minorities. The
diversity of public television producers and funders helps to assure
that content distributed by PBS is not dominated by any single point of
view." Repeating, "Appropriate representation of women and minorities."
Why have a policy if PBS doesn't ensure that their programs follow it?
There's no excuse for Bill or Gwen to get away with the crap that they
continue to get away with. They are in direct violation of PBS' own
Standards & Policies and they need to get their shows in order and
PBS needs to provide the supervision to ensure that they do. Bonnie Erbe sits down with Eleanor Holmes Norton, Melinda Henneberger, Kathleen Parker and Tara Setmayer on PBS' To The Contrary. Check local listings, all four PBS shows begin airing tonight on many PBS stations. And turning to broadcast TV, Sunday CBS' 60 Minutes offers: -
Coming Up On 60 Minutes Gun Rush
Americans are snapping up guns and ammunition at an increasingly higher rate despite the economic downturn. But as Lesley Stahl reports, the economic downturn, as well as the election of Barack Obama, may be the reason for the run on guns. | Watch Video
Poisoned
The
African lion, already down as much as 85 percent in numbers from just
20 years ago, is now in danger of becoming extinct because people are
poisoning them with a cheap American pesticide to protect their cattle
herds. Bob Simon reports. | Watch Video
Steve Wynn
The casino mogul most responsible for taking Las Vegas to new heights of gaming and glitter talks to Charlie Rose about his spectacular success and the eye disease that's slowly robbing him of his ability to see the fruits of his labor. | Watch Video
60 Minutes Sunday, July 26, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
If
you're rubbing your eyes, that was the lineup for last Sunday, however,
they used the first hour of prime time to air a tribute to CBS Evening News' former anchor and managing editor Walter Cronkite who passed away last Friday at the age of 92. Diane Rehm is on vacation but The Diane Rehm Show
continues with new broadcasts. Steve Roberts fills in for Diane this
morning. The first hour is devoted to domestic news and the panelists
scheduled are The Economist's Greg Ip, Wall St. Journal's Laura Meckler and NPR's David Welna. The second hour is the international hour and the scheduled panelists are The Financial Times' Daniel Dombey, Washington Post's David Hoffman and CNN's Elise Labott. The Diane Rehm Show begins airing on most NPR stations at 10:00 a.m. EST (and streaming online). We'll close with this from Debra Sweet's " A Proposal for Actions Against (Obama’s) War and Torture" (World Can't Wait): We've put out a proposal for actions
in early October, including Monday October 5 in Washington DC for
actions at the White House & Congress, and a national day of
resisting the recruiters in high schools Tuesday, October 6.
After
networking and consulting with other organizations and leaders, the
World Can't Wait Steering Committee will meet on August 1 to finalize
fall plans. We want your input. Please take the survey here by July 31. Or write me about the questions below...or what is on your mind.
1.
Do you feel the controversy over the Obama administration not
prosecuting anyone involved in torture has changed the political
climate in this country? If so, how so? If not, why not? 2.
What do you think of Obama's expansion of the war in Afghanistan? Why?
Do others you know agree or disagree? How much has that war been
successfully re-branded as the "good war"?3. In the past few months has your opinion of Obama changed? Favorably or unfavorably? Why? How about people you know?4.
After reading the October 5/6th proposal what do you think is possible
for these days of resistance? What do you think is necessary? What is
your vision of protest for those days?
Your input is needed! Please complete this survey by July 31 to feed into our discussions on August 1. To make all this possible, send along a donation, or become a sustainer 4RealChange. The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraqsig christensonthe washington postnada bakrithe new york timessam daghertimothy williamsliz slythe los angeles timesdebra sweetworld cant waitbill moyers journalwashington week60 minutescbs news
Posted at 06:15 am by thecommonills
Permalink
al-Maliki says US may stay in Iraq past 2011 and . . . silence
A
day after President Barack Obama said that the U.S. was on track to
pull its troops out of Iraq by 2011, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al
Maliki said Thursday that that timeline could change "if the Iraqi
forces required further training and support."That's the opening to Margaret Talev's " Iraq's Maliki raises possibility of asking U.S. to stay on" ( McClatchy Newspapers)
and some readers may need to give it a second look since McClatchy is
the only newspaper outlet covering it. It's not because it just emerged
or emerged late. The comments are noted in yesterday's snapshot.
It's not ignored because it's not newsworthy. Three outlets rushed to
print articles yesterday morning on the topic . . . when they claimed
all US troops would be out in 2011. (See yesterday's entry.) It's only not news when it doesn't agree with their outlets spin purposes. To
recap, when you can pimp the lie that all US troops will be out of Iraq
in 2011 (and, apparently, pimp yourself as a psychic who can tell the
future), you run with it and call it news. When Nouri al-Maliki
publicly, in front of a crowd, declares not-so-fast, you duck your head
and pretend it didn't happen.
Anne Gearan covers al-Maliki's remarks for AP. Speaking of AP:
"As the Obama administration struggles to handle the conflicts in
Afghanistan and Iraq, a majority of Americans are against the
long-fought wars, a new poll says. The AP-GfK Poll released on Thursday
showed that 63% of respondents oppose the war in Iraq and 53% oppose
the war in Afghanistan." You can learn about that poll from AP and it's
noted in Wednesday and Thursday's snapshots. But other than that? The quote's from Iran's Press TV. It's easier to learn of the poll of Americans from Press TV out of Iran than from the New York Times. Again, it's only news when it fits their latest wave of Operation Happy Talk. On that topic, Peter Feaver (Foreign Policy) examines
Barry O's Rose Garden remarks with Nouri by his side and wonders why so
many are so quick and eager to just go along with the words from
Barack's mouth -- whether they're factual or not: That
got me wondering: would those folks (say the mainstream Bob Woodward or
Tom Ricks, let alone other people in the nuttier fringes of the
Bush-bashing chorus) who established a cottage industry lambasting Bush
Administration rhetoric as "happy talk" rise up and start calling a
foul on President Obama? President Bush regularly caveated his
statements of progress with reminders that there were "tough days
ahead" and, if memory serves, Rumsfeld was the guy who coined "long,
hard slog." In their coverage of Bush, sometimes the reporters would
include mention of the caveats and qualify their lede accordingly;
sometimes the reporters would include mention of the caveats and yet
stick to a "happy talk" lede; and sometimes the reporters would simply
omit any mention of the caveats, perhaps the better to advance the
"happy talk" lede. Regardless of how many times President Bush
presented carefully caveated assessments, the Bush-bashers could always
rest their indictment on one or two off-the-cuff uncaveated remarks.In
this community, we held Bully Boy Bush accountable and we hold Bully
Boy Barack accountable. They're both War Hawks. Neither saw fit to
serve in the military but are really comfortable allowing Americans to
die in far away countries. Independent journalist John Pilger also holds both administrations accountable. KPFA's Flashpoints
yesterday broadcast a speech by Pilger about media and empire and
covering Obama, "The Rise of Barack Obama and the Silencing of Much of
the Left." Paul Walsh (Minneapolis Star-Tribune) notes funerals have been scheduled for Daniel Drevnick, James Wertish and Carlos Wilcox who died serving Iraq: On
Friday at 9:30 a.m. in Cottage Grove, a "Hero's Escort" for Wilcox will
start at Kok Funeral Home and end at Light the Way Church. Services
begin at 11 a.m., with visitation one hour prior at the church. Burial
is scheduled for Tuesday at New Albany (Ind.) National Cemetery, where
his father, Charles Wilcox Jr., is buried.Drevnick's
funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday at King of Kings Lutheran
Church in Woodbury, with burial at Fort Snelling National Cemetery at 1
p.m. A wake will be held Friday at the funeral home from 3 to 8 p.m.Funeral
services for Wertish will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at St. Mary's
Catholic Church in Bird Island, with burial to follow at St. Aloysius
Cemetery in Olivia. Visitation is at St. Mary's from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Sunday.Tim Pawlenty is the governor of Minnesota and My Fox 9 notes,
"The governor says the loss and pain that the families of the three
slain soldiers are feeling is 'unimaginable,' but he wanted to share
the state's gratitude for the soldiers' 'incredible courage'." Meanwhile Alex Dalenberg (Arizona Republic) reports,
"The Phoenix-based 3,666th Support Maintenance Company" is deploying to
Iraq. The illegal war is not ending and Douglas Cohn and Eleanor Clift
see that as a good thing. The two doofus pen " Recruitment of the possible in the U.S. Army"
which is a mish-mash of bad writing, even setting aside the argument
they're making which is 'Boom Time for US military! Let's get to
recruiting!' The following sentence is so confusing it took two bad
writers to pen, "If the Obama administration is serious about growing
the Army — and we believe it is — Gates would have gone for a much
larger number." Do you catch that they failed logic? If . . . then. If
Obama's serious than he would have done this and he didn't so . . .
Logic dictates that the construction ends with Barack not being
serious. But they "believe" he is. It makes no sense and maybe when
people reach a certain age that they find it exciting for others to
sign up, maybe that's when they need to stop putting their bad gas
baggery into text form? Hmm? Maybe? Journalist Rebecca Lipkin has passed away from breast cancer at the age of 48. Matt Schudel (Washington Post) covers Lipkin's accomplished career which included ABC News (World News Tonight and Nightline)
and Aljazeera: "Survivors include her mother, Gladys Lipkin of
Hollywood, Fla.; a sister, Harriet Lipkin of Washington; and a brother,
Dr. Alan Lipkin of Englewood, Colo." The following community sites updated last night: The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraqmargaret talevmcclatchy newspapersanne gearanpeter feavermatt schudelthe washington postjohn pilgerflashpointskpfaanns mega dubthe world today just nutskats kornersex and politics and screeds and attitudethomas friedman is a great mantrinas kitchenthe daily jotcedrics big mixmikey likes itruths reportsickofitradlzoh boy it never ends
Posted at 06:12 am by thecommonills
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