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Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Wednesday,
September 10, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, Barack gets
semi-called on sexism and makes more insulting remarks in response to
being called out, the House Armed Services Committee holds a hearing,
Ron Paul holds a press conference with Chuck Baldwin, Cynthia McKinney
and Ralph Nader, and more. Today the US House
Armed Services Committee held a hearing on the Security and Stability
in Afghanistan and Iraq: Developments in US Strategy and Operations and
the Way Ahead. Appearing before the committee were US Secretary of
Defense Robert Gates, the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm
Michael Mullen, DoD's Under Secreatry of Defense for Policy, Eric S.
Edelman and the Director of Strategic Plans and Policy for the Joint
Chiefs of Staff Vice Adm James Winnefeld. Ike Skelton is the chair of
the committee and his opening remarks included that "I remain concerned
about the pace of political progress. The Iraqis have still not been
able to even come to an agreement on holding provincial elections, much
less address more fundamental questions like the future of Kirkuk.
Given this, I have a real question of why we are not redeploying
additional forces -- both to bolster our efforts in Afghanistan and to
keep the pressure on the Iraqis to come to a sustainable political
accomodation." Later in the hearing he would note the "Sun Tzu
precept that says 'A war should not be entered into without considering
the end of that war'." The highest ranking
Republican on the committee, Duncan Hunter, made a fool of himself as
was expected. His dubious statements included, "We are winning in
Iraq. The United States is going to be leaving in victory." During
Robert Gates' opening remarks he noted these "challenges:" *
Political progress remains too slow -- as seen recently by the
inability of the parliament to pass an election law. This means that
provincial elections, which we believe will continue and enhance the
process of reconciliation, will in all likelihood be pushed back until
at least December. Elections also mean the possibility of increased
violence. *
There have been some worrisome reports about sectarian efforts to
either disrupt or slow the process of assimilation of the Sons of Iraq
["Awakening" Council] into the Iraqi Security Forces. It is a reminder
that sectarin tenaions still exist and have the potential to undo
recent progress at the local and national level. *
Despite Iran's pledges last year to stop providing weapons, training
and funding to armed militias, evidence suggests that this support
continues. [These are Gates' words. There is no proof/evidence that Iran has supplied anything. There has never been proof of that.] *
Iraqi security forces still lack many key capabilities. Many of their
operations would simply not have been possible without Coalition
enablers. That will remain the case for some time to come. *
The threat from al Qaeda and other militant groups has receded, but is
still very real. In the last few months, we have seen a number of
suicide attacks -- as well as tactical shifts, such as the increased
use of women. This is a reminder that al Qaeda still retains the
ability to inflict mass casualties, the operational capacity to assess
and change strategies and is still trying to sow chaos and reassert
itself. [Again, Gates' words. al Qaeda in Iraq has always
been inflated and was not present until after the illegal war started.
The administration tends to blame any and all violence on "al Qaeda in
Iraq" unless they're targeting Iran for blame that day.] * Similarly, there is the possiblity that Jaish al-Mahdi could return. Gates
insisted the US had "now entered that end game" in Iraq "and our
decisions today and in the months ahead will be critical to regional
stability and our national security interests for the years to come." Chair
Skelton had serious concerns about a number of issues and they included
where the US money is going and why the Iraqi billions are not being
spent. He noted two chief concerns, first that "they [Iraqis] have a
lot of money on their own and number two the choice of projects" on
which they spend money. At this point he requested that the committee
be supplied with a list of all US expenditures over $120,000. He
expressed concern over Iraq's stated plan "to build the world's largets
ferris wheel" and wondered "why are we funding" construction such as
hotels with US tax payer money when the central government in Baghdad
sits on so many billions that are not being used? No surprise, no one had an answer for Skelton though a list might be workable at some point. US
House Rep Susan Davis also wanted to know what was happening with the
money. She pointed out that the Iraqi air force is lacking in training
and equipment and that it went far beyond that with Iraqi security
forces stating that even "batteries that are needed for communication"
aren't in supply and "they're saying it's just not getting to them."
Was it an issue of corruption, she wanted to know, where was the
breakdown? Edelman replied, "We're now in the process of getting to
those issues." Now? Five years after the illegal war began? There
were no answers supplied to the questions and neither side seemed
overly surprised by that (Congress or the witnesses). Gates spoke of
success while also maintaining that the United States would be in Iraq
for many "years to come -- although in changing and increasingly
limited ways." US House Rep Solomon Ortiz wondered, "What planning and
work has been done to enable the next administration to make its own
decision about force levels upon taking office after who wins the
presidency? And what limits does the president's recent decision place
on force level changes?" Robert Gates:
Mr. Ortiz, I think first of all, that the new president will have a
full array of options when he enters office in terms of troop levels in
-- in -- in Jan- in Iraq. Uhm. As I indicated in my opening remarks, I
hope that whoever the new president is will listen closely to the
commanders in the field and senior military leaders. I've made the
comment before that those who worry and are concerned that the military
view was not taken sufficiently into account at the beginning of the
war would not neglect it as we get deeper into the end game. But-but
there is nothing in place that would contrain the decisions of a new
president in terms of policies or anything else that, uh, that a new
president could not -- could not change. So new president will have
complete flexibility and constrained only by his view of our national
security interests. He? There is a
woman running for president. (Rep Michael Conway also referred to "our
guys" repeatedly in the hearing. Just as Gates can't picture a woman
as president, Conway is unaware that women serve in the US
military.) Ron Paul ran for the Republican Party's presidential
nomination and lost to John McCain. Last week, he held a rally with his
supporters in Minnesota. NOW on PBS has an online exclusive with Paul and they also examined his campaign in 2007. Today, he held a press conference with Ralph Nader (independent presidential candidate, now to be on the ballots in 45 states), Cynthia McKinney (Green Party presidential candidate), Chuck Baldwin (Constitution Party's candidate) and Bob Barr
(Libertarian Party presidential candidate). Ralph Nader explains,
"Today, along with other third party candidates, I joined Congressman
Ron Paul to endorse a common agenda
that stands up for the US Constitution by ending illegal wars, and
protecting the privacy and civil liberties of all persons under US
jurisdiction. We also jointly called for an immediate halt to the
increase in the national debt, an end to corporate subsidies and
taxpayer bailouts of corporations, and to start aggressively pursuing
prosecution of corporations that commit crimes and frauds. Both
Congressman Paul and I also support holding President Bush and Dick
Cheney to account for their transgressions against our Constitution.
Today's coming together of third party candidates marks the beginning
of the realignment of American politics." Third Party Watch reports: Dr.
Paul turned the podium over to the others, and Cynthia McKinney, the
Green Party's presidential candidate, thanked him for bringing this
group together. She recalled that "it took 72 years of struggle and
sacrifice, from the beginning of the women's suffrage movement, for
women to get the right to vote. I believe today we are starting a new
movement of independence from the orthodoxy of our day." (Let's hope it
doesn't take 72 years to achieve most of this group's goals!) Chuck
Baldwin, the Constitution Party's presidential candidate, said "the
real issue in 2008 is not between Republicans and Democrats, liberals
and conservatives, but between globalists and constitutionalists.
McCain and Obama are globalists. Baldwin is a constitutionalist." McCain,
Baldwin said, always refers to the U.S. as an "interdependent nation."
"But the Founders didn't sign a Declaration of Interdependence. We are
fighting for the preservation of our very form of government, and
that's why what Ron Paul is doing today is so important, and why our
coming together today is so important." And, as Baldwin always reminds his audiences: "I supported Ron Paul. It's because the GOP rejected Ron Paul that I'm here today as a candidate." Ralph
Nader, the Independent candidate for President, seemed the most
enthusiastic and optimistic about Paul's coalition. "I think when
McKinney, Barr, Baldwin and Nader agree with Ron Paul on these four
major areas--I think that's the beginning of a realignment in American
politics." And later: "I'm very proud that we've been able to put aside
our differences on other subjects--such as health and safety
regulations [chuckles from the audience]--to come together on these
four important subjects."
"Awakening" Councils were cited by Gates. Tom A. Peter (Christian Science Monitor) argues
that female members are essential: "To combat this threat, Iraqis have
begun recruiting women for the Daughters of Iraq, a female counterpart
to the Sons of Iraq community policing program largely credited with
reducing violence in Iraq. While female security guards remain a small
minority, they've stopped many female insurgents. And, some say their
example could help change perceptions about the role of women in
Iraq." That's a nice little fantasy since female members are paid 20%
less than their male peers and, remember, all "Awakening" Council
members have been and are currently paid by the US government.
Translation, the White House has said a man doing the same job as a
woman is worth more. Moving over to provincial elections which were mentioned repeatedly in today's hearings. Nicholas Spangler and Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) explain the
stalemate remains the oil rich city of Kirkuk, "A loose but powerful
coalition of Arab parties is wary of Kurdish control prior to
elections; Kurds remain adamentally opposed to any law mandating power
sharing in Kirkuk, as the current [election] bill does. The reporters
explain the stalemate has some floating the option of going with the a
2005 election law. The United Nations is working on their proposal
which is to be presented later this month or at the beginning of
October. The United Nations' Staffan de Mistura met with Grand
Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani on Sunday as part of the research required for
the plan they intend to present. Yesterday Bully Boy gave his speech on Iraq. Nancy A. Youssef and Jonathan S. Landay (McClatchy Newspapers) examine
it and note, "President Bush's announcement Tuesday that he'll maintain
troop levels in Iraq through the end of his presidency suggests that
despite his claim that the surge of additional U.S. troops in Iraq has
succeeded, the security gains could be temporary, defense officials and
experts said." Michael Abramowitz (Washington Post) noticed
that the speech also indicated that other countries are leaving the
so-called 'coalition': "The presence of other countries in Iraq, even
if the troop contribution was modest, has long been used by the Bush
administration as a way of deflecting criticism that its actions in
Iraq were "unilateral." Now, Bush is portraying their departure as a
sign of "return on success," his policy of bringing home troops as
conditions improve in Iraq." Turning to some of today's reported violence . . . Bombings? Shootings?
Corpses?
Back
to the race for the US presidency. War Hawk Barack Obama's in trouble
for doing something so it was time for all his lovers in the press to
come out in full force and defend their Christ-child. Here's what he said. Barack
Obama: Let-let's just list this for a second. John McCain says he's
about change too. Exc-and-and so I guess his whole angle is 'Watch out,
George Bush. Except for economic policy, health care policy, tax
policy, education policy, foreign policy and Karl Rove style politics,
we're really going to shake things up in Washington." That's not
change. That's-that's just calling some the same thing something
different But you know you can't e-e-e-e You know you can put uh
liptick on a pig, it's still a pig. When
he says "You can put lipstick on a pig," what is Barack doing? What is
he physically doing? Chicago's gutter boy is flipping the bird and
when the finger goes up the howls start. You can see it in the video his campaign/campaign surrogates issued as a response. We see Dick Cheney speak, no bird flipping. You can watch it at Joe Garafoli's post (San Francisco Chronicle)
which reads like "He's Sure The Boy I Love." Barack goes on to make a
comment about fish smell. It's not in the video, they cut it before
that point. CBS contributes,
"CBS News reporter Maria Gavrilovic reports that as the crowd laughed,
Obama added: 'You can you can, wrap an old fish in a piece of paper
called change, it's still going to stink after 8 years. We've had
enough of the same old thing'." Last week, Ruth took on sexist pig Ellen Susman who also had a "fish" 'joke' in her smear of Palin. Writing as if she was Susman, Ruth observed,
"And let me call my post 'A Fish Called Sarah.' I will pretend like I
think it is a Monty Python film and mention other Monty Python films.
But even as stupid as I, Ellen Susman, am, I know it is not. Even as
dumb as I am, I do know the "two things smell fish" 'joke.'" And so
does Barack. They weren't even his own words he was speaking -- which is why he stumbles (no teleprompter). Joseph (Cannonfire) explains, "His comments were cribbed -- word for word -- from a Washington Post
cartoon. Why is Obama allowed to plagiarize when others are not?" Why
indeed and this isn't the first time he's been caught stealing. As Susan (Random Notes) sums up,
"Well, Barack, if you'd have paid attention to presidential campaigns
of the past, you would know better than to consider yourself immune to blasphemy, er, criticism, even fake criticism, from the other side." Delilah Boyd (A Scrivner's Lament) lays it out
as plain as day, "Before you Obots go all 'Obama didn't call Palin a
pig' on me, hear this: How much longer will men get away with 'I was
just kidding,' 'I wasn't talking about you,' and 'What's the matter?
can't you take a joke?'" miq2xu (Klownhaus)
[language warning], "Regarding Obama's 'Lipstick on a Pig' comment, I
call bull**it on Christy Hardin Smith, Marc Ambinder, D-Day, Taylor
Marsh and Whoever Kidnapped Jeralyn Merritt (WKJM˛) Each of these
people has taken the position that not only were Obama's comments
completely innocent, but that the McCain campaign is trying to
manufacture a controversy because no reasonable person could
possibly get the idea that Obama was calling Sarah Palin a pig. Even if
someone truly believed that it was an innocent gaffe (I don't) it is
easy to see how that connection could easily be made. I didn't need
anyone to explain it to me, nor did most former Hillary supporters,
because we 'periodically' saw these types of misunderstandings
before." Lambert (Corrente) weighs in on Barack's pig remarks, "You know, if Obama hadn't indulged himself by getting snarky in front of a friendly crowd, he could be talking about the economy right now -- and winning P.T.A. moms too, who like those kitchen table issues." madamab (The Confluence) advises, "Case in point: When you call your opponent's vice president a pig and say she smells like fish,
you do not try to pretend you didn't do it. You did it, in front of God
and YouTube. So apologize and move on, otherwise you will engender
anger and resentment." On the topic of sexism, it bears noting that Feminist Wire Daily finally got active calling out sexism against
Palin, "Donny Deutsch recently made sexist comments about Republican
Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin and former Democratic
Presidential contender Hillary Clinton. Deutsch appeared on CNBC's
Squawk the Street (Watch the video here)
and made several misogynistic comments including praising Palin for
earning respect through her ability to make men 'want to mate with her'
and calling Senator Clinton's loss in the Democratic Primaries a direct
result of the fact that she 'didn't put a skirt on.'" Egalia (Tennessee Guerilla Women) points to another with a need to sexualize Palin Salon's Gary Kamiya who needs to Palin as "a whip-wielding mistress". Last night Kat took on 'progressive' Ed Garvey's need
to compare Palin to erectile medications, "The comparison is insulting;
however, it may indicate what's in Garvey's own medicine cabinet." Now before we get to today's remarks by Barack (which are even more insulting to women -- if anyone actually listens), Kirsten Powers (New York Post) provided the backstory leading up to Palin's speech last week, "No, Obama didn't engage in the mass sneering at Palin - but he did
fall into the trap of disrespecting her. When McCain chose her, the
Obama campaign's first response was to ridicule the size of her town.
Then the candidate himself began referring to her as a "former mayor"
when she is in fact a sitting governor. When she retaliated
(justifiably) by mocking his stint as a organizer, the Obama camp was
clearly rattled. Obama himself actually began arguing about the
importance of community organizing. His supporters amplified this cry -
claiming Palin's attack was a racist slur and passing around e-mails
titled 'Jesus was a community organizer, Pontius Pilate was a
governor.' Meanwhile, the rest of the country was probably wondering
what being a community organizer has to do with being president." Today,
Barack spoke. And what did the Christ-child say? It's wowed some of
the usual PIG MEN, Queen Bees and Gender Traitors. From CNN (text and video), this is Barack:
"We have real problems in this country right now. The American people
are looking to us for answers, not distractions, not diversions, not
manipulations. They want real answers to the real problems we are
facing." Sexism isn't a real problem to Barack
Obama. It's an annoyance for him to have to address sexism. He's
laughing in the video. He finds it all so funny. (I find his attempt
to grow a mustache hilarious. That's day two by the way.) "This is
what they want to talk about," insists Barack. And talking about it
means he's not able to address "the issues that matter to you."
Barack, you sad PIG, sexism matters to me and to many. It's not a
"diversion" or a "distraction" (his words), it is a very real issue. He
has two daughters and he can't address sexism? He said of Hillary
Clinton that "periodically" when Hillary was "feeling blue" "the claws
come out." He's now going after Sarah Palin and wants yet another
pass? He can't address sexism but, as Marie Cocco's " Obama's Abortion Stance When 'Feeling Blue'" ( Washington Post Writers Group) pointed out, he's got plenty of time to speak to anti-women men: Obama
says that these women should not be able to obtain a late-term
abortion, because just "feeling blue" isn't the same as suffering
"serious clinical mental health diseases." True enough. And totally
infuriating.
During the recent Obama pander tour -- the one
in which he spent about a week trying to win over conservative
religious voters -- the presumptive Democratic nominee unnecessarily
endorsed President Bush's faith-based initiative, a sort of patronage
program that rewards religious activists for their political support
with public grants. Then in a St. Louis speech, Obama declared that "I
let Jesus Christ into my life." That's fine, but we already have a
president who believes this was a qualification for the Oval Office,
and look where that's gotten us.Obama's verbal meanderings on the issue
of late-term abortion go further. He has muddied his position. Whether
this is a mistake or deliberate triangulation, only Obama knows for
sure.
One thing is certain: Obama has
backhandedly given credibility to the right-wing narrative that women
who have abortions -- even those who go through the physically and
mentally wrenching experience of a late-term abortion -- are frivolous
and selfish creatures who might perhaps undergo this ordeal because
they are "feeling blue." When Palin
entered the race and made her "lipstick" line, the game changed. If
Hillary had been the Democratic nominee and had chosen Joe Biden for
her running mate, John McCain could declare that they were negative and
refer to their "dark vision" for America's future. With Barack as the
nominee, his use of that term would be called out immediately. With
Barack in the race, the game changes. It's the same thing with Sarah
Palin being in the race. Barack's remarks yesterday were pre-pared as
evidenced by the fact that he stole a huge chunk from a cartoon. If he
and his team are too stupid to grasp how those remarks would play,
that's their own damn fault. He should have apologized. Instead,
he hides behind women and has them trot out to offer excuses and
attacks. It's not going to work anymore than it does in a court room
when a rapist hires a female attorney or a rapist's defense team uses
the sole woman to cross examine the rape victim. If Barack can't even
address sexism what does that really say about him? And what does it
say about the women who allow him to hide? President of NOW's New York state chapter Marcia Pappas offers " To Women Who Love Their Political Party Too Much" and all -- men and women -- would benefit from reading that. And on a similar note, Women can be sexist, too, you know, just like persons of color can be racist. As the media debate
whether Gov. Sarah Palin's public treatment is sexist or not, take this
punch, socked to Palin by a woman, that's as clearly out of bounds as a
husband slapping his wife in the face in public. My
colleague Sally Quinn put it most provocatively. "Is she prepared for
the all-consuming nature of the job?" Quinn wondered. "When the phone
rings at three in the morning and one of her children is really sick,
what choice will she make?" Has
Quinn ever asked the same question of a man running for vice president?
Of course not, nor would she. What if the answer is, Sarah Palin would
take the call at 3 a.m. and jump on any plane to anywhere in the world,
confident that her husband would care for the sick child? To pose the
question is to promote idiotic and sexist media viewpoints, while
ignoring the much more important flaws in the Palin candidacy.
Posted at 04:49 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
President
Bush's announcement Tuesday that he'll maintain troop levels in Iraq
through the end of his presidency suggests that despite his claim that
the surge of additional U.S. troops in Iraq has succeeded, the security
gains could be temporary, defense officials and experts said.
"Here
is the bottom line: While the enemy in Iraq is still dangerous, we have
seized the offensive, and the Iraqi forces are becoming increasingly
capable of leading and winning the fight," Bush said Tuesday in a
speech before the National Defense University.
Bush, however,
announced that he'll order only 8,000 more combat troops to leave Iraq
by February, the month after his presidency ends, reducing the number
there to about 138,000.
A Marine battalion and an Army brigade
combat team from the Army's 10th Mountain Division that had been
scheduled to deploy to Iraq will go to Afghanistan instead, Bush said.The above is from Nancy A. Youssef and Jonathan S. Landay's " Experts: Bush's Iraq withdrawal small because gains are, too" ( McClatchy Newspapers) and another worthy article to check out today on that topic is Michael Abramowitz' " Most Members of Iraq Coalition Preparing to Pull Up Stakes" ( Washington Post):
President
Bush tucked a little extra news yesterday into a speech largely devoted
to informing the public that he plans to withdraw 8,000 more troops
from Iraq: He also announced that most of the countries that have been
partnering with the United States in Iraq over the past five years will
be pulling their troops out as well.
[. . .]
The presence of
other countries in Iraq, even if the troop contribution was modest, has
long been used by the Bush administration as a way of deflecting
criticism that its actions in Iraq were "unilateral." Now, Bush is
portraying their departure as a sign of "return on success," his policy
of bringing home troops as conditions improve in Iraq.
It's also a
sign that the U.N. mandate permitting foreign troops to operate in Iraq
expires at the end of the year. Any country that remains will have to
negotiate a bilateral agreement with the Iraqi government, as the
United States is now trying to do. The United Kingdom is negotiating their own treaty currently to allow British forces to remain in Iraq. Turning
to the US presidential race. Ron Paul ran for the Republican Party's
presidential nomination. Last week, he held a rally with his supporters
in Minnesota. NOW on PBS has an online exclusive with Paul and they also examined his campaign in 2007.
Today, he will be in DC holding a rally with Ralph Nader (independent
presidential candidate, now to be on the ballots in 45 states), Cynthia McKinney (Green Party presidential candidate) and Bob Barr (Libertarian Party presidential candidate. Team McKinney notes: McKinney at Press Event, Ron Paul to Endorse Voting for Third Party Candidates | Wednesday, 10 September 2008 06:03 | | Cynthia
McKinney will appear at an event hosted by Representative Ron Paul at
the National Press Club Ballroom, September 10, at 10:00 am to
encourage the public to vote for a Third Party candidate rather than
mainstream contenders Barack Obama or John McCain. Cynthia McKinney,
Bob Barr, Ralph Nader and others are scheduled to speak about their
campaigns as independent or third party candidates. The event is open
to press and public. "In a press conference scheduled for
Wednesday, September 10, at the National Press Club in Washington D.C.,
Congressman Ron Paul is expected to urge supporters to reject John
McCain and Barack Obama and vote for “any” of the four smaller-party
contenders in the coming presidential elections: Libertarian Party
nominee Bob Barr, Green Party contender Cynthia McKinney, independent
Ralph Nader or Constitution Party standard-bearer Chuck Baldwin.
So
far, none of these alternative candidates has gained considerable
traction or support, which is why Ron Paul’s endorsement could prove
very significant to one, several, all or none of them.
Ron Paul
today repeated his assertion that he has no plans to run as a
third-party candidate himself. However, as of late Tuesday Ron Paul
supporters remained hopeful and did not rule out the possibility of a
last minute surprise announcement of any kind."
http://www.ronpaul.com/2008-09-09/ron-paul-announcement/ |
Team Nader notes, "Watch it on C-Span. ( Check schedule here) And on Thursday, Ralph Nader will appear on CNN with Lou Dobbs for his Independent Convention." Micah notes this from Team Nader: Ralph Nader Takes Questions  Karen
Kilroy of the Nader/Gonzalez web team is posting video of recent
Question & Answer sessions at the "Open the Debates" rallies in
Minneapolis and Columbus, Ohio.
You'll find this all new and thought-provoking footage in our Issues Playlist at YouTube.
Bookmark the page and keep checking back, because there's more video on the way.
Also available online is a transcript of Ralph's remarks at the August 27 Denver Super Rally. Our sincere thanks to Swan's Commentary and Jan Baughman, co-editor, who prepared the transcript. And
our thanks to you. Your contributions are making it possible for us to
bring America the coverage that the corporate media continues to ignore. Onward to November!
The Web Team
ShareThisShareThis Turning to Pravda on the Hudson. Amy Goodman's trashed her own reputation. Yes, it is a whine-fest this morning. Ava and I will grab that segment for Third
on Sunday. Whiney, out of touch, cry babies who need to grow up and
also need to grasp NYC is not the center of the universe. It's
interesting that she chooses to emphasize ABC's This Week today. She doesn't go with what should have gotten attention which was the exchange below: Barack Obama: You're absolutely right that John McCain has not talked about my Muslim faith --George Stephanopoulos: You're Christian faith.Barack Obama: My Christian faith.People
of faith know their faith and don't usually make mistakes like the
above. Either Barack's not up to the campaign trail or he's not a
person of faith. (Of either Muslim or Christian faith. ) As for Barack's phrase yesterday, read Rebecca (she's correct) and it will also be addressed at Third on Sunday. The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraq mcclatchy newspapers nancy a. youssef jonathan s. landay michael abramowitz the washington post now on pbs pbs abc this weeksex and politics and screeds and attitude
Posted at 04:48 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
NYT's frustrated creative writing majors
In
parliament Tuesday, there was no sign that negotiation will be easier
than it was this summer. A loose but powerful coalition of Arab parties
is wary of Kurdish control prior to elections; Kurds remain adamantly
opposed to any law mandating power sharing in Kirkuk, as the current
bill does.
"The struggle in Kirkuk is not only over who controls
people but who controls the great natural wealth in Kirkuk," said
Nassar al-Rubaei, a high-ranking member of the Shiite Sadrist party. "I
do not support the stand of the Kurdistan Coalition in this matter."
Abdul
Khalik Zengena, a Kurdish MP, said in meetings Wednesday, the coalition
will argue for building on suggestions offered by United Nations
special representative to Iraq Staffan de Mistura over the summer.
According to Zengena, these include distributing Kirkuk's
administrative posts equally among the region's Kurd, Arab and Turkmen
populations and investigating voter rolls and postponing voting.
Zengena said Kurds favored holding Kirkuk's elections along with the
rest off the country's.
"The Kurds speak from the vantage point of
controlling Kirkuk," countered Osama al-Nijiefi, of the secular Iraqiya
Party. "Of course, based on their actions, they are ready to
participate in elections to be held in Kirkuk . . . " He said he
believed the power-sharing clause of the current bill will resolve the
issue. "It will bring a situation of cooperation and understanding
between components of the city, and that is why I will push for it," he
said.
Another option floated Tuesday was simply to abandon the new
election law and adopt an election law originally approved in 2005. But
even that is problematic, said Hashim al-Taei of the Tawafuq Party,
because of disagreements over closed versus open-list voting. "We
didn't have accord about the former law, only opinions," he said. "And
we still haven't discussed any of them."That's Nicholas Spangler and Sahar Issa's " Iraqi parliament still gridlocked over provincial-election law" ( McClatchy Newspapers)
offering some reality regarding the still-postponed provincial
elections in Iraq. For a more fictional and fanciful take refer to
Campbell Robertson and Atheer Kakan's " Iraqi Parliament Returns to Tackle Issue of Election Law" ( New York Times, A10) which makes for 12 highly creative paragraphs. Mahmoud al-Mashhadani is not liked by the New York Times
who long ago falsely reported he was on his way out and that he would
be arrested and blah, blah, blah he was hiding out in his home when the
reality was he was out of the country on a diplomatic mission [see
below for those who missed the never ending nonsense in real time]. So
they whine about al-Mashadani and refuse to note he's the one steering
today's meeting to resolve the issue of the Parliamentary elections.
Equally cute is this: "Several options are on the table, lawmakers
said. Parliament could adopt the plan drawn up by the United Nations
last month, which would simply put aside the Kirkuk issue and let the
election take place in the rest of the country." What? While the UN has
said that could be considered, that's not the plan of the United
Nations. The UN is working on a plan. Before we get to the plan, from Monday's snapshot: On the legislative front, Qassim Abdul-Zahra (AP) reports
that the Iraqi Parliament resumes sessions this week and that they hope
to address both the issue of provincial elections and the treaties with
the US but that provincial elections have been discussed while the the
Parliament was on break and trial ballons floated were not embraced
("But weeks of private meetings and contacts among Sunni Arab, Shiite
and Kurdish lawmakers have failed to produce any breakthrough on the
issue, and it was unclear whether the bill would win speedy
approval."). Sunday Erica Goode (New York Times) reported
that the UN's special envoy to Iraq, Staffan de Mistura, had met with
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and that he "said later that in the
meeting the two men discussed the problems that have blocked passage of
a provincial election law by Iraq's Parliament." When the Parliament's
regular session proved unable to pass a law for provinical elections,
the United Nations announced they would study the issue, speak with
various Iraqis and try to offer a proposal by the end of September of
early October. Yet, as noted in the September 4th snapshot,
Iraqi's Shi'ite vice president Adel Abdul-Mahdi has declared that
provincial elections will take place regardless of whether a law is
passed or not. Why was Staffan de Mistura meeting with
al-Sistani? Because the UN is working on a plan -- they have not yet
presented a plan. From Hurriyet's " U.N. hopes for 'grand deal' to resolve Iraq's Kirkuk" August 21st: The
United Nations will publish an analysis of territory disputes between
Iraq's Kurd, Arab and Turkmen communities by October in a bid for a
"grand deal" to end tension over Kirkuk, its Iraq mission chief said on
Wednesday.
"We will present between September and October options
for a grand deal for the disputed areas including Kirkuk, which is the
hottest issue in Iraq these days," said Staffan de Mistura,
representative in Iraq for U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
Twelve regions in northern Iraq, including oil-rich Kirkuk province, are currently disputed by various ethnic sects.The "grand deal" would be the plan and it is still being worked on. Mahmoud
al-Mashhadani is the Speaker of Iraq's Parliament. For those who missed
the propaganda attacks on him that have been ongoing for over two years
now, we'll dip back into the recent past. From a Sept. 25, 2006 entry: Richard
A. Oppel and Abdul Razzaq al-Saiedi take a look at the delay (it's not
stopped, just delayed) in the move from nation to federation in "Iraqis to Debate Bill on Creating Autonomous States:"
Moreover,
Sunni negotiators emphasized that they did not agree to support the
legislation that would be introduced this week but only to allow it to
be debated, said Dhafir al-Ani, a leading Sunni lawmaker. “The issue is
just to consider it and go with the process,” Mr. Ani said.
The deal
does allow supporters to put the issue before Parliament with a promise
from rivals to debate the issue in good faith. When the bill was
brought up earlier, it spurred an acrimonious fight. Mahmoud
Mashhadani, the speaker of Parliament and a Sunni Arab, accused
supporters of trying to sneak the bill past him, while other Sunni
legislators said they had been double-crossed.
The political
progress came as violence continued throughout Iraq. Two marines were
killed as a result of “enemy action” in Anbar Province on Sunday, the
United States military said.
The (US) administration is
still kicking themselves over their failed attempt to oust
al-Mashhadani. They almost pulled it off. Big media reported the
'shame' and left you with the impression that he was off licking his
wounds in private while the parliament was in their August recess.
(Little media? This was August, there was no interest in Iraq.) Reality
was that he was off in Jordan working on trade negotiations. Reality is
that he's still around. Reality is that the administration's plan for a
(physically) divided Iraq have to wait a little longer. (They despise
al-Mashhadani for a number of reasons including the statements he made
preceeding the puppet of the occupation's visit to DC where al-Maliki
parroted the Bully Boy. al-Mashhadani's statements included: "Just get
your hands off Iraq and the Iraqi people and Muslim countries, and
everything will be all right. What has been done in Iraq is a kind of
butchery of the Iraqi people." -- and they were made at a UN conference
on July 22nd -- click here for Al Jazeera's report.) And it wasn't just the New York Times pushing that nonsense. From the August 17, 2006 snapshot: Moving
to an item a friend's wanted noted for the last two days: Where is
Mahmoud al-Mashhadani? On Tuesday, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani was 'the' news in many Iraq reports. Was he on his way out? One report noted that al-Mashhadani didn't return a phone call -- why was that? Marie Cocco (Truthdig) offers today that he's "openly toying with relinquishing his post". From where? From where is he openly toying with the idea? Juan Cole (Salon) offers
that "when the Iraqi parliament reconvenes next month, the first item
on the agenda will be firing Mashhadani." Cole feels that al-Mashhadani
"has put his foot in his mouth too many times." al-Masshadani may very
well be on the way out next month but right now he is in Jordan working
on a trade agreement. It's an interesting part of the story left out of
the mainstream media's he's-so-out-of-here narrative. Whether or not he remains speaker after the parliament reconvenes may be influenced by what's going on in Jordan. We
could go on and on. al-Mashhadani clearly bothers the White House and
he has been the subject of numerous rumors intended to weaken his
position. Despite (repeated) reports that he would be forced out,
stepping down, arrested, etc., he remains the Speaker. Ralph Nader is the independent presidential candidate and he will be taking part in a press conference this morning: Ralph Nader, Ron Paul Press Conference This Morning Posted by The Nader Team on Wednesday, September 10, 2008 at 07:12:00 AM ShareThisShareThis  Drop $10 on Nader/Gonzalez now.
Why? It's September 10. And we're calling it Independents Day. The day when Ron Paul and Ralph Nader will join together. At the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. With other independent minded candidates.
To call out the two party system. Watch it on C-Span. (Check schedule here) And on Thursday, Ralph Nader will appear on CNN with Lou Dobbs for his Independent Convention. Over the past month, the Democrats and Republicans had their convention. This week, we're having ours. With Ron Paul. And Lou Dobbs. Nader/Gonzalez will be on 45 ballots on election day. We're positioned to bring it home. So, drop a 10 spot now on Nader/Gonzalez. Help push our Get Out the Vote Fund to $80,000 by September 17.
(By the way, on day one -- yesterday -- you pushed us over $12,000. What a start!) Now, declare your independence from the two parties. Donate ten dollars to Nader/Gonzalez. Then watch Ralph Nader and Ron Paul on C-Span today and Ralph Nader on Lou Dobbs Thursday.
Onward to November. The Nader Team PS: Remember, if you give $100 or more now, we will send you In Pursuit of Justice,
the 520-page book of essays by Ralph Nader -- essays on corporate
power, the Constitution, and transforming our country. If you donate $100 now,
we will send you this historic collection -- autographed by the man
himself -- Ralph Nader. (This offer ends at 11:59 p.m. September 17,
2008) ShareThisShareThis Lily notes this from Team Nader: Breaking News -- Nader/Gonzalez on in 45 States!  Drop $11 on Nader/Gonzalez. Why? We're celebrating. At the beginning of this campaign, we made a promise: Nader/Gonzalez on the ballot in 45 states by September 20. Today -- Tuesday, September 9, 2008 -- eleven days ahead of schedule -- we declare victory. We have completed our ballot access efforts and we're set to be on in 45 states.
On in more states than in 2000 (43). On in more states than in 2004 (34). On in 45 states. Now, the American people will have a choice. To vote for a campaign free from corporate influence. But, as you probably have figured out by now, we are not a campaign that rests on its laurels. So, today we are proud to announce the launch of our eight-week Nader/Gonzalez Get Out the Vote drive. We need to raise $80,000 by September 17. This money will be used to reach out to Americans throughout this country. We're planning on deploying 30 full-time field staff. Ordering tens of thousands of lawn signs. Printing hundreds of thousands of pamphlets. And making hundreds of thousands of phone calls. To inform the American people that they now have a choice in November. And to get them to vote for Nader/Gonzalez. Want health care for all? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Need a living wage? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Want to transform the country to a solar energy economy? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Want to reverse course in the Middle East? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Help us celebrate this historic opportunity the only way we know how. With action for a change. So, donate $11 now to the Nader/Gonzalez Get Out the Vote Fund. (If you give $100 or more now,
we will send to you In Pursuit of Justice, the 520-page book of essays
by Ralph Nader -- essays on corporate power, the Constitution, and
transforming our country. If you donate $100 now, we will send you this
historic collection -- autographed by the man himself -- Ralph Nader.
(This offer ends at 11:59 p.m. September 17, 2008)) So, let's start to spread the word. Nader/Gonzalez on in 45 states. Time to crank it up. And get out the vote. Let's get it done. Onward to November. The Nader Team ShareThisShareThis The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraqmcclatchy newspapers sahar issa nicholas spangler the new york times campbell robertson ateer kakanrichard a. oppelabdul razzaw al-saiedierica goode
Posted at 04:46 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Tuesday,
September 9, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, Bully Boy lies about
the illegal war (again), the puppet 'government' continues their tag
sale on Iraqi resources, Kuwait is all over the map, Iraq's Parliament
resumes sessions, Ralph Nader has big news, and more. Today
Bully Boy spoke at Eisenhower Hall at the National Defense University.
He hailed the 'handover' of Al Anbar Province as a "remarkable event,"
referred to the followers of Moqtada al-Sadr as "Shia extremist groups"
and more blah blah before he got to the only reason anyone was paying
attention to him: drawdowns. "By November," he declared, "we'll bring
home a marine battalion that is now serving in Anbar Province. And in
Feburary of 2009, another army combat brigade will come come home.
This amounts to about 8,000 additional American troops returning home
without replacement." Reality, Bully Boy leaves the White House in
January. Anything done prior to that he is over, anything after that,
he can't promise. So today's announcement went beyond what many were
expection in that he's promising a marien battalion will be brought
back in November without a replacement sent back in. And that's the
only thing he announced regarding Iraq. Thom Shanker (New York Times) reported
before the speech and didn't grasp that Bully Boy cannot make any
promises regarding what the incoming president will do. Not only does
Bully Boy not have that power, considering stop-loss and tour
extensions, reporters should be a little less quick to repeat hollow
'announcements' when it is the service members and their families that
are harmed when 'announcements' don't come to pass. Dan Eggen (Washington Post) demonstrated
how you report 'announcements' of events that would take place after a
new president was sworn in: "President Bush will announce today that
the number of U.S. combat brigades in Iraq will remain steady until
after he leaves office, deferring any further decisions about troop
withdrawals to his successor, according to a copy of his speech
released by the White House." That is what Bully Boy did, he left it
in the hands of the next president. The illegal war he started over
five years ago is one he will leave office without ending and without
any major reductions in the number of US troops stationed in Iraq. The point is not lost on all. CQ Politics reports,
"Missouri Democrat Ike Skelton, chairman of the House Armed Services
commitee, said the president's action merely defers decisions until the
next administration." The point is lost on Senate Majority Leader
Harry Reid who is quoted foaming at the mouth, "Given the increasingly
violent situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan, I am stunned that
President Bush has decided to bring so few troops home from Iraq and
send so few resources to Afghanistan." 146,000 US service members are
stationed in Iraq and Harry Reid's big concern is not ending the
illegal war it's getting them out of Iraq . . . to ship them off to
Aghanistan. Let's drop back to the 90s, via Caroline Frost (the BBC), to remember what War Hawk Democrats (Reid is one) really think: " UN
ambassador Madeleine Albright asked him, 'What's the point of having
this superb military you're always talking about if we can't use it?' For
General Colin Powell, this most military of politicians who has watched
men die, the answer was, and remains, simple. 'American GIs are not toy
soldiers to be moved around on some global game board'." Someone needs
to tell that to Harry Reid -- not Powell, of course, he destroyed his
name long ago. At the White House today, Dana Perino had laughs at
Harry's expense with remarks during a press briefing which included:
"Look, I don't know who briefs Senator Reid and I don't know what sort
of staff work he gets or the updates he gets. . . . Well, you know,
when Senator Reid becomes Commander-in-Chief he'll have a little bit
more credibility on that score." Also during the briefing, Perino was
asked why Bully Boy didn't announce a large draw-down and she pushed US
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Admiral Mike Mullen and Gen David
Petraeus' recommendations before declaring, "So I can't say why he
didn't choose something else. But he accepted their recommendation."
Asked why the number of the draw-down wasn't larger after the White
House has repeatedly sold the 'success' in Iraq (and Bully Boy sold it
in his speech today) which resulted in a jumbled response by Perino:
"Well one thing President Bush has said, and he asked his commanders,
is how do we make sure that the gains that we have made in security are
cemented enough so that when we do pull back, it won't be -- it won't
mean that terrorists come back and fill that space. So President Bush
thinks that taking 8,000 troops out is the recommendation from the
Pentagon, and the one that is prudent right now. And Secretary -- I'm
sorry, General Petraeus believes that further reductions are possible
in the first half of 2009, but it's going to have to depend on
conditions on the ground. And so we'll continue to look at it. I think
that either way, the President -- people would question -- should he
send more/should he send less? He thinks that he hit it just right,
that the Pentagon's recommendation was about the right size." What she
eventually gets out are the talking points the White House repeats over
and over. The news is in the stumble it took for her to arrive at them. Like Thom Shanker, CBS News fails to grasp
that the Bully Boy has no control over the next presidency so his
'promises' for 2009 are meaningless. They do point out that prior to
the escalation (the so-called 'surge'), the US had 136,000 service
members stationed in Iraq. Ther are approximately 146,000 stationed in
Iraq today. Not only does what Bully Boy can promise not bring the
number down to pre-'surge' levels, even including what he 'promises'
someone else will do does not bring it down to pre-'surge' levels. AFP notes,
"The decision means the president's successor will take office in
January with the US military presence in Iraq at about 140,000 troops
-- still a bigger deployment than two years ago despite the deep
unpopularity of the war." US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi bungles it with her statements
almost as badly as Reid does, "After five and a half years of war,
President Bush will leave office with nearly as many U.S. troops in
Iraq as were there before the 'surge' began in January 2007. The
continued heavy commitment of U.S. forces is hampering our ability to
fight the real war against terrorism in Afghanistan, is hurting our
military readiness, and is extending the strain of long deployments on
our military families. The President is incapable of finding a way to
make our troops the beneficiaries of whatever improvements there have
been in security in Iraq." Pelosi, facing a serious challenge in the
November election from Cindy Sheehan,
had no reason to toss in Afghanistan. Strip that out and her only word
problem is minor (there will be more US forces in Iraq than prior to
the 'surge'). The larger problem -- that she herself has done little
(though Pelosi blames that on the US Senate) -- may make her statements
hard for many to believe in but when she starts playing the idiot on
Afghanistan, she's begging the eighth district to send Cindy to
Congress. And let's drive this point home
because not only can Bully Boy not make promises for the next
president, the situation changes all the time and the ones hurt are the
service members and their families. For those with short (or
non-existant) memories in the press corps, August 2006, AP reported:
"About 300 Alaska-based soldiers sent home from Iraq just before their
unit's deployment was extended last month must now bo back, the Army
said Monday, setting up a wrenching departure for troops and families
who thought their service there was finished." So instead of propping
up a lame-duck on his way out, the press should be very careful about
how they 'report' announcements. Bully Boy can turn around tomorrow
and decided that the November return (the only one in his speech he has
any control over) won't happen. The same urge to treat every stammer
out of his mouth as gospel was present in the lead-up to the illegal
war. Wasn't the press have supposed to learned from that? For those
still confused, follow the example of Demetri Sevastopulo (Financial Times of London):
"George W. Bush plans to withdraw 4,000 troops from Iraq before the end
of his presidency as the Pentagon starts to shift its focus to
Afghanistan, the White House said yesterday." While
on the topic of service members, yesterday the US Defense Dept
announced a new service, Wounded Warrior Resource Center for service
members and their families who "have concerns or other difficulties
during their recovery process" and the WWRC can be contacted via e-mail
at wwrc@militaryresource.com or by phone at (800) 342-9647. Turning
to the topic of fleecing, the US installed puppet government continues
signing deals on behalf of the occupied country of Iraq. Nicholas Spangler and Hussein Kadhim (McClatchy Newspapers) report an agreement was reached "with Royal Dutch Shell to exploit the immense amount of natural gas in souther Iraq". AFP notes
the deal is to be finalized in October and "Royal Dutch Shell will form
a gas venture with energy-rich Iraq worth up to four billion dollars,
the oil ministry said Tuesday of the first Western oil major to do a
deal with the central government since the 2003 invasion." Yesterday
the Jerusalem Post noted,
"The United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait are sending
ambassadors to Iraq, and other countries are considering following
suit." Waleed Ibrahim (Reuters) reports
today that Abdullah Ibrahim al-Shehhi, UAE's Ambassador to Iraq,
arrived in Baghdad today and was welcomed by Iraq's Sunni
vice-president Tareq al-Hashemi who stated, "It is a message to all
states which are still hesitant to open their diplomatic missions in
Iraq. This new, heavy diplomatic presence in Iraq is proof that Iraq
has started to recover from the last five years of crisis." But let's
not pretend it was all about the diplomacy and not about the coin. Azzaman explains,
"Foreign investors from Germany, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq are
offering to set up oil refineries in southern Iraq." And the renewal
of diplomatic ties also comes as UPI reports,
"Officials in the United Arab Emirates are examing a proposal to build
a $200 billion, 112-mile canal to transport oil around the volatile
Strait of Hormuz." Staying with the topic of coin, Erica Goode and Muhafer al-Husaini (New York Times) note
the Sunni thugs who stopped attacking the US and Iraqis when the US put
them on the payroll ("Awakening" Council) heard Brig Gen Tarek Abdul
Hameed declare that the puppet government in Baghdad would indeed pick
up their payrolls. Meanwhile on the legislative front, Iraq's Parliament is back in session after their summer recess. Robert H. Reid (AP) observes,
"Tuesday's session was held in the Baghdad Convention Center inside the
U.S.-protected Green Zone, despite an announcement last June that the
assembly would meet in the former National Assembly building outside
the zone." Mohammed Abbas and Waleed Ibrahim (Reuters) report
Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, Speaker of Parliament, is calling a meeting of
"the heads of political parties" tomorrow to address the stalled
provincial elections. Meanwhile Sunday Nicholas Spangler (McClatchy Newspapers) reported
that Iraq sent their finance minister to Kuwait today re: Iraq's
invasion of Kuwait in 1991 in order to discuss "payment of debts and
compensation" for that action. The visit was put on hold. CNN reports
Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammed al-Ahmed al-Sabah, Prime Minister of Kuwait,
will visited Baghdad "soon". Well that is interesting . . . as is [PDF
format warning] this: " The
Defense Security Cooperation AGency notified Congress of a possible
Foreign Military Sale to Kuwait of AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM Missiles as well
as associated equipment and services. The total value, if all options
are exercised, could be as high as $178 million. . . . The proposed
sale will improve Kuwait's capability to meet current and future
threats of enemy air-to-air weapons. Kuwait will use the enhanced
capability as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its
homeland defense. . . . The prime contractor will be Raytheon Missile
Systems Corporation, Tucson, Arizona." Tina Susman and Caesar Ahmed (Los Angeles Times) report
on yesterday's attack on civilians in Baghdad, "Bodyguards of the
minister of displacement and migration, who has been telling Iraqis it
is safe to come home after five years of war, were involved in a
rush-hour shooting Monday that police said killed a woman and injured
six other people. Circumstances surrounding the incident were unclear.
The ministry said traffic police fired toward the minister's convoy and
that the bodyguards only fired into the air. Police said the bodyguards
were trying to clear traffic by shooting into the air and that one of
them accidentally aimed his gun into nearby cars. Witnesses said the
shooting was the result of a dispute between the ministry bodyguards
and traffic police." Nicholas Spangler and Hussein Kadhim (McClatchy Newspapers) quote
an eye witness (unnamed police officer) who states, "I saw guards
carrying maching guns shooting randomly. First, they killed a woman
who was trying to cross the intersection. After that they opened fire
on the traffic policeman who was doing his job. They shot him twice
and he was injured. He fell down on the street. Then they left the
cards and were walking with machine guns and pistols in their hands." Turning to some of today's reported violence . . . Bombings? Sahar Issa (McClatchy Newspapers) reports
the latest assasination attempt on an official via a Baghdad bombing
targeting Gen Hasen Maeen ("Prime Minister's office") that wounded him
"and two of his security personnel" while journalist Jawad al-Hattab
("bureau chief of al-Arabiyah") was targeted with a car bombing as well
but discovered it before it detonated and was unharmed, a Baghdad
roadside bombing claimed 1 life and left six people wounded and a
Salahuddin Province bombing claimed the life of 1 police officer and
left three more wounded. Shootings? Reuters notes
1 person shot dead and another wounded outside of Mussayab, 1 "local
aid agency" official shot dead in Mosul, 1 police officer shot dead in
Mosul, 1 person shot dead in Kut and 1 person shot dead outside Suwayra. Corpses? Turning
to the US presidential race. Independent presidential candidate Ralph
Nader can announce that the plan for the Nader-Gonzalez ticket to be on
the ballot in 45 states by September 20th happened nine days early.
Ralph and his running mate Matt Gonzalez (and their team of supporters)
have already advanced the independent run further than in 2004 and have
had to jump through obstacles of ballot access that no one should have
to. Choosing
between the Republican and Democratic candidate would mean choosing
the lesser of two evils. Instead, I prefer to align myself with a
candidate who shares my views on stabilizing the economy, preventing
war, and downsizing the government. This candidate is Ralph Nader. Nader
is the only presidential candidate who has experience running his own
business. He has applicable knowledge of the economy and strives to
distribute wealth equally. He was quoted on "Meet The Press" as saying:
"There is a two-tier economy where the top 10 percent is doing quite
well, the top one percent spectacularly. But the top one percent of the
richest people in this country have financial wealth equal to the
combined 95 percent of the American people. That's a very unhealthy
inequality." In order to fix this, Nader proposes to repeal the Bush
administration tax cuts and adjust the federal income tax. This shows
that he is driven to help the average American survive the current
economic slump. Nader also wants to help
America move past Congress's war-happy regime. He proposes a "draft
from the top," meaning when an administration approves a war, the
service-aged children of all members of that Congress and Cabinet will
be the first to serve. This would ensure that elected officials think
carefully before declaring war. Nader also supports pulling out of Iraq
within six months and trying to negotiate with Iran. He wants to take
our men and women in uniform out of Iraq and bring them home where they
belong. Why? We're celebrating. At the beginning of this campaign, we made a promise: Nader/Gonzalez on the ballot in 45 states by September 20. Today -- Tuesday, September 9, 2008 -- eleven days ahead of schedule -- we declare victory. We have completed our ballot access efforts and we're set to be on in 45 states.
On in more states than in 2000 (43). On in more states than in 2004 (34). On in 45 states. Now, the American people will have a choice. To vote for a campaign free from corporate influence. But, as you probably have figured out by now, we are not a campaign that rests on its laurels. So, today we are proud to announce the launch of our eight-week Nader/Gonzalez Get Out the Vote drive. We need to raise $80,000 by September 17. This money will be used to reach out to Americans throughout this country. We're planning on deploying 30 full-time field staff. Ordering tens of thousands of lawn signs. Printing hundreds of thousands of pamphlets. And making hundreds of thousands of phone calls. To inform the American people that they now have a choice in November. And to get them to vote for Nader/Gonzalez. Want health care for all? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Need a living wage? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Want to transform the country to a solar energy economy? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Want to reverse course in the Middle East? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Help us celebrate this historic opportunity the only way we know how. With action for a change. So, donate $11 now to the Nader/Gonzalez Get Out the Vote Fund. (If you give $100 or more now,
we will send to you In Pursuit of Justice, the 520-page book of essays
by Ralph Nader -- essays on corporate power, the Constitution, and
transforming our country. If you donate $100 now, we will send you this
historic collection -- autographed by the man himself -- Ralph Nader.
(This offer ends at 11:59 p.m. September 17, 2008)) So, let's start to spread the word. Nader/Gonzalez on in 45 states. Time to crank it up. And get out the vote. Let's get it done. Onward to November.
Posted at 03:25 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
President
Bush has accepted the recommendation of his senior civilian and
military advisers to reduce the number of American troops in Iraq by
8,000 in the early months of next year.The
reduction will begin with a Marine Corps battalion set to leave this
fall from Anbar Province, once the center of the antigovernment
insurgency.The above is from Thom Shanker's laughable " U.S. to Pull 8,000 Troops From Iraq Early in '09" in today's New York Times.
It's not just lousy reporting, it's an indication that someone needs to
get their ass back to high school civics. Before January ends, the next
president will be sworn in. Bully Boy has not accepted anything
regarding "the early months of next year." It's not his to accept. All
he's done is decided no troop reductions while he's in the White House.
The next president will decide whether there is a reduction or not.
Bully Boy's made no decision about that and, in fact, cannot make any
decision about that. Again, it's not just bad journalism, it's a
complete lack of grasping the basics. Pay attention to the difference
between Shanker's opening and Dan Eggen's " Iraq Troop Levels to Remain Steady Until After Bush Leaves Office" ( Washington Post): President
Bush will announce today that the number of U.S. combat brigades in
Iraq will remain steady until after he leaves office, deferring any
further decisions about troop withdrawals to his successor, according
to a copy of his speech released by the White House. Grasp the difference? Mark Tran doesn't but he writes for the Guardian
of London and is excused for not grasping the American system. He does
reveal that today's reports are based on today's speech which the White
House released to the press last night. Check out Pravda on the Hudson
today to realize that we only cry "Off limits!" when it comes to some
people's religion. Listen as Amy Goodman spews lies (she's corrected on
one, no librarian was fired by Sarah Palin) and never feels the need to
say, "Oops." Listen as they work over time -- these people who do not
even know Sarah Palin -- that's she's this and she's that. While
rushing to assure that Bully Boy's not really a fundamentalist. Yes, Democracy Now!
wants you to believe Sarah Palin is scarier than the Bully Boy. It sure
is amazing that the same program never felt the need to explore what it
'mean' that Barack was present for certain speeches (including
anti-Semitic ones) feels the need to offer another standard for Palin.
They're hypocrites and they never even realize how it looks to the
outside world. They destroy their own potential audiences day after
day. Pravda on the Hudson. And
repeating, these things do not just emerge in the MSM, they bubble up
from the sewer. Which is why all the sewer rats gather to dish on Democracy Now! today. In other news from the US presidential race, independent candidate Ralph Nader has picked up an endorsement, Jaclyn E.'s " Ralph Nader for President" ( Teen Ink): Choosing
between the Republican and Democratic candidate would mean choosing
the lesser of two evils. Instead, I prefer to align myself with a
candidate who shares my views on stabilizing the economy, preventing
war, and downsizing the government. This candidate is Ralph Nader. Nader
is the only presidential candidate who has experience running his own
business. He has applicable knowledge of the economy and strives to
distribute wealth equally. He was quoted on "Meet The Press" as saying:
"There is a two-tier economy where the top 10 percent is doing quite
well, the top one percent spectacularly. But the top one percent of the
richest people in this country have financial wealth equal to the
combined 95 percent of the American people. That's a very unhealthy
inequality." In order to fix this, Nader proposes to repeal the Bush
administration tax cuts and adjust the federal income tax. This shows
that he is driven to help the average American survive the current
economic slump. Nader also wants to help America
move past Congress's war-happy regime. He proposes a "draft from the
top," meaning when an administration approves a war, the service-aged
children of all members of that Congress and Cabinet will be the first
to serve. This would ensure that elected officials think carefully
before declaring war. Nader also supports pulling out of Iraq within
six months and trying to negotiate with Iran. He wants to take our men
and women in uniform out of Iraq and bring them home where they belong.Jennifer Moore (WCPO) quotes
Nader explaining, "Whether its affordable housing, public transit,
solar renewable energy, you name it, how to produce good educational
outcomes, universal health care. They're on the shelf." Nader was
campaigning in Ohio yesterday. Bonnie e-mails to remind me to note that Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts " Barack Running Scared" went up Sunday. The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraq thom shanker dan eggenthe washington post teen ink jaclyn e. jennifer moorethe world today just nuts
Posted at 06:57 am by thecommonills
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Gathered
in the domed hall of a palace built by Saddam Hussein, Awakening
Council leaders in the Adhamiya neighborhood met with Iraqi and
American military officers on Monday to learn what the future holds for
them once the Sunni-dominated citizen patrols begin reporting to the
Iraqi government on Oct. 1.About
75 leaders and rank-and-file members from the western side of the
neighborhood listened and murmured as Brig. Gen. Tarek Abdul Hameed
explained what would happen when responsibility for paying and
directing 54,000 Awakening patrol members in and around Baghdad was
transferred from the Americans to the Iraqi government.The
meeting, the Iraqi and American officers said, was called in part to
quash rumors that there would be mass arrests of Awakening members and
that American forces would no longer be involved with the patrols.The above is from Erica Goode and Muhafer al-Husaini's " U.S. and Iraqi Officials Try to Reassure Citizen Patrols About Transfer" ( New York Times). Meanwhile Stephen Farrell ponders " Should U.S. Forces Withdraw From Iraq?"
(apparently it's a safer topic than should the illegal war have been
started but then the Times sold the illegal war and continues to do so): For
Iraqis, as for Americans, the answer is far more complex than a simple
"stay" or "go." For both it is about blood, treasure, pride, dignity
and a nation’s sense of itself and its place in the world.
But a lot
more Iraqi blood than American has already been spilled, and stands to
be spilled again, if the politicians get it wrong.Ending
the illegal war is "more complex than a simple 'stay' or 'go'"? Gee,
didn't they argue something in the lead up to the illegal war? It was
'complex' but, golly, thank goodness Colin Powell made such a
convincing case! (Before the blot, of course.) Despite offering
three articles today (the other one gets covered in the next entry),
the New York Times isn't at all interested in the issue of civilians
being harmed/terrorized yesterday. What they minimize, Tina Susman and
Caesar Ahmed's " Iraq official's bodyguards involved in rush-hour shooting" ( Los Angeles Times) explore: Bodyguards
of the minister of displacement and migration, who has been telling
Iraqis it is safe to come home after five years of war, were involved
in a rush-hour shooting Monday that police said killed a woman and
injured six other people.Circumstances
surrounding the incident were unclear. The ministry said traffic police
fired toward the minister's convoy and that the bodyguards only fired
into the air. Police said the bodyguards were trying to clear traffic
by shooting into the air and that one of them accidentally aimed his
gun into nearby cars. Witnesses said the shooting was the result of a
dispute between the ministry bodyguards and traffic police.The
head of the ministry's planning directorate, Ali Shaalan, called the
incident "totally unacceptable" but said the ministry guards had done
nothing wrong.McClatchy Newspapers is also interested in news and they cover the above topic in Nicholas Spangler and Hussein Kadhim's " Iraq signs a natural-gas deal; Iraqi guards shoot pedestrian:" "I
saw guards carrying machine guns shooting randomly," said a police
officer who was at the scene but asked not to be named because he is
not authorized to speak to journalists."First,
they killed a woman who was trying to cross the intersection. After
that they opened fire on the traffic policeman who was doing his job.
They shot him twice and he was injured. He fell down on the street.
Then they left the cars and were walking with machine guns and pistols
in their hands."Husam
Mazin, another witness, was selling sodas nearby when the shootings
took place. "How can we blame Blackwater and the American soldiers for
killing Iraqis in cold blood when today guards killed a woman and
injured others for no reason but to have the street clear for them?" he
asked.Iraqi media reported that some of the guards had been arrested, but this could not be confirmed.What topic isn't being covered? From yesterday's snapshot: Cholera is back in the Iraq news. Sunday Reuters reported
that cholera has claimed 1 life and that six more Iraqis have been
diagnosed with it ("More than 4,000 cases of cholera . . . were
diagnosed in Iraq last year.") Babylon & Beyond (Los Angeles Times) notes
of cholera: "The problem raises the question: How can a country with
two major rivers -- the Tigris and the Euphrates -- not have sufficient
clean water for its people? The problem stems from Iraq's aging water
treatment facilities, which were damaged or destroyed during the war
and have yet to be replaced or repaired." Mike Sergeant (BBC) reports
that the cholera outbreak had claimed 6 lives earlier today (the total
continued to rise) and that "Cholera is mainly transmitted through
contaminated water and untreated sewage. It can spread quickly in hot
weather." And it spread quickly last year. There's no reason for the
puppet government in Baghdad to pretend what's happened is shocking or
surprising. After last year, it was to be expected. The World Health Organization noted October 3, 2007:
"Since the cholera outbreak was first detected in Kirkuk, Northern
Iraq, on 14 August 2007, it has spread to 9 out of 18 provinces across
Iraq. It is estimated that more than 30 000 people have fallen ill with
acute watery diarrhoea, among which 3 315 were identified as positive
for Vibrio cholerae,
the bacterium causing the disease. A total of 14 people are known to
have died of the disease. The case-fatality rate has remained low
throughout the outbreak indicating that those who have become sick have
been able to access adequate treatment on time." Reuters reports
that Babil province is now under a state of emergy due to the outbreak
and that 8 people have died "in the past three days in Babil" with at
least twenty diagnosed as infected. Gulf News adds that 500 more people are suspected of already being infected. IRIN spoke
with Ihssan Jaafar (speaking on behalf of the puppet government)
yesterday and he stated, "The health ministry is trying to stop the
disease from spreading by early diagnosis of infection and distribution
of water sterilisation tablets and also through a pbulic awareness
campaign, but with the dearth of safe drinking water the disease will
stay around." Again it was completely predictable.Billie notes this from Team Nader: Breaking News -- Nader/Gonzalez on in 45 States! Drop $11 on Nader/Gonzalez. Why? We're celebrating. At the beginning of this campaign, we made a promise: Nader/Gonzalez on the ballot in 45 states by September 20. Today -- Tuesday, September 9, 2008 -- eleven days ahead of schedule -- we declare victory. We have completed our ballot access efforts and we're set to be on in 45 states.
On in more states than in 2000 (43). On in more states than in 2004 (34). On in 45 states. Now, the American people will have a choice. To vote for a campaign free from corporate influence. But, as you probably have figured out by now, we are not a campaign that rests on its laurels. So, today we are proud to announce the launch of our eight-week Nader/Gonzalez Get Out the Vote drive. We need to raise $80,000 by September 17. This money will be used to reach out to Americans throughout this country. We're planning on deploying 30 full-time field staff. Ordering tens of thousands of lawn signs. Printing hundreds of thousands of pamphlets. And making hundreds of thousands of phone calls. To inform the American people that they now have a choice in November. And to get them to vote for Nader/Gonzalez. Want health care for all? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Need a living wage? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Want to transform the country to a solar energy economy? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Want to reverse course in the Middle East? Vote Nader/Gonzalez. Help us celebrate this historic opportunity the only way we know how. With action for a change. So, donate $11 now to the Nader/Gonzalez Get Out the Vote Fund. (If you give $100 or more now,
we will send to you In Pursuit of Justice, the 520-page book of essays
by Ralph Nader -- essays on corporate power, the Constitution, and
transforming our country. If you donate $100 now, we will send you this
historic collection -- autographed by the man himself -- Ralph Nader.
(This offer ends at 11:59 p.m. September 17, 2008)) So, let's start to spread the word. Nader/Gonzalez on in 45 states. Time to crank it up. And get out the vote. Let's get it done. Onward to November. The Nader Team ShareThisShareThis The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraq mudhafer al-husaini stephen farrell the los angeles times tina susman caesar ahmedmcclatchy newspapers hussein kadhimnicholas spangler
Posted at 06:32 am by thecommonills
Permalink
Monday, September 08, 2008
|
September 8, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, cholera's back, the Iraqi Parliament is going to back into session, and more.
Cholera is back in the Iraq news. Sunday Reuters reported that cholera has claimed 1 life and that six more Iraqis have been diagnosed with it ("More than 4,000 cases of cholera . . . were diagnosed in Iraq last year.") Babylon & Beyond (Los Angeles Times) notes of cholera: "The problem raises the question: How can a country with two major rivers -- the Tigris and the Euphrates -- not have sufficient clean water for its people? The problem stems from Iraq's aging water treatment facilities, which were damaged or destroyed during the war and have yet to be replaced or repaired." Mike Sergeant (BBC) reports that the cholera outbreak had claimed 6 lives earlier today (the total continued to rise) and that "Cholera is mainly transmitted through contaminated water and untreated sewage. It can spread quickly in hot weather." And it spread quickly last year. There's no reason for the puppet government in Baghdad to pretend what's happened is shocking or surprising. After last year, it was to be expected. The World Health Organization noted October 3, 2007: "Since the cholera outbreak was first detected in Kirkuk, Northern Iraq, on 14 August 2007, it has spread to 9 out of 18 provinces across Iraq. It is estimated that more than 30 000 people have fallen ill with acute watery diarrhoea, among which 3 315 were identified as positive for Vibrio cholerae, the bacterium causing the disease. A total of 14 people are known to have died of the disease. The case-fatality rate has remained low throughout the outbreak indicating that those who have become sick have been able to access adequate treatment on time." Reuters reports that Babil province is now under a state of emergy due to the outbreak and that 8 people have died "in the past three days in Babil" with at least twenty diagnosed as infected. Gulf News adds that 500 more people are suspected of already being infected. IRIN spoke with Ihssan Jaafar (speaking on behalf of the puppet government) yesterday and he stated, "The health ministry is trying to stop the disease from spreading by early diagnosis of infection and distribution of water sterilisation tablets and also through a pbulic awareness campaign, but with the dearth of safe drinking water the disease will stay around." Again it was completely predictable.
Sunday in Baghdad a press conference took place on the state of health care in Iraq. Iraqis participating were Dr. Essan Namiq (Deputy Minister of Health for Grants and Loans) and Dr. Kahmees al-Sa'ad (Administrative Deputy Minister of Health). For some reason, a medical press conference required the participation of two American generals.
We learned that, unlike the United States, Iraq has some form of universal health care (Dr. Essame: "Frankly, Ministry of Health has a heavy weight on the budget of the state for offering free treatment inside Iraq, for sending the patients outside Iraq. Very heavy budget that's affecting the budget of the state. There is no neighboring countries, or all over the world any country . . . there is not country like us that offers free treatment." ). Diyala Province has a shortage of medications (Dr. Essam: ". . . yeah, maybe we are facing a shortage") and there is a serious issue with the limited medications in Baghdad being smuggled out of the medical environments onto the black market (Dr. Essam stated that "we expect to see such problems" and "hope" that a plan to address the problem will emerge at some point by "the end of 2008 to 2009").
In addition there have been problems with "spoiled blood" -- which Maj Gen Mohammed al-Askari (press spokesperson for the Ministry of Defense) intentionally avoided in his response. This was pinned on the people coming into Iraq. Though Iraq's borders are porous, Dr. Essam put forward the laughable claim that anyone crossing the border into Iraq is "going to be tested. This is especially in HIV. The . . . once the passport has been stamped, the person is being tested." Not only did al-Askari avoid that specific issue, he grabbed that question that was tossed to Dr. Essam.
July ended and the press gave rah-rah coverage in their end of the month reports when the reality is that the medical conditions in Iraq are a nightmare. For example, Dr. Essam admitted that they did not have the necessary prosthetics for patients who have limbs amputated. Shortages of medication, shortages of prosthetics, shortage of beds and, yes, shortage of medical staff. Dr. Essam floated the laughable claim that "many" Iraqi doctors were about to return to the country -- any day now! -- and when pressed on it, put foward the dubious claim that "more than 80% of the Iraqi doctors, and even in the deterioration of the security situation, they were here in Iraq and working. It is a fact." No, it is not. They were among the first to flee, long before there was a refugee crisis. It was part of the 'brain drain' that first hit Iraq. The number fleeing only increased when they became kidnapping targets and were also targeted with violence. Any doctors that do return will neither be housed in the Green Zone, according to Dr. Essam, nor provided with government protection because, he explained, 2008 is not like 2007.
It was revealed that nurses were selling medications and Dr. Essam wanted to remind everyone that "it is not within their job description." Asked about the huge increase in cancer rates in Basra and Najaf since the start of the illegal war, Dr. Essam claimed that was true "all over the world, the number of people afflicted with cancer is increasing." The issue of improving the hosptials (beyond exterior work) was raised (and it was noted that Shahad Adnan Hospital has over 13 floors and only two elevators as well as a bed shortage). Dr. Essam responded that, "It is good for their psychological health . . . it is good to take care of the appearance, to see the building a new, clean." Though that's of no comfort to someone climbing over 13 floors of stairs or doing without a hospital bed, Dr. Essan wanted the reporters to know, "We ourselves face problems with elevators." CBS and AP offer an embarrassing (mis)report but they may be the only outlet that covered the press conference. To read their (mis)report is to grasp that the talking point about "doctors returning!" can be teased into several paragraphs with nothing to back it up and that all the very real and serious problems (brought up by reporters at the press conference) can easily be ignored.
80%? Today Karin Laub (AP) notes that an estimated 8,000 Iraqi doctors have fled their country since the start of the illegal war and that 800 have returned. Both figures are flawed. It is over 8,000 and the exit of doctors (male and female) was not just part of the 'brain drain' it was also the result of doctors (especially females) being targeted. 800 is the puppet government's latest figure and is not independently verified. They say whatever they want and no one bothers to verify it. It's also not true that "Doctors are just a tiny group among Iraq's more than 4 million refugees and displaced" because the doctors (and others) who left during the 'brain drain' are not considered refugees, they had the money to start over and left earlier in the illegal war before the sect divisions became as fixed. Though the figures Laub uses are incorrect, they are supplied by the puppet government and, no, 700 is not 80% of 8,000.
The largely ignored August press conference also saw a reporter raise the issue of counterfeit medicine and today Qatar's Peninsula reports that 90% of medicines in Iraq are imported and there are no tests of it leading the Ministry of Health's Inspector General Adel Muhsin to state, "It's not medicine. It's just boxes, and God knows what's in them."
On the legislative front, Qassim Abdul-Zahra (AP) reports that the Iraqi Parliament resumes sessions this week and that they hope to address both the issue of provincial elections and the treaties with the US but that provincial elections have been discussed while the the Parliament was on break and trial ballons floated were not embraced ("But weeks of private meetings and contacts among Sunni Arab, Shiite and Kurdish lawmakers have failed to produce any breakthrough on the issue, and it was unclear whether the bill would win speedy approval."). Sunday Erica Goode (New York Times) reported that the UN's special envoy to Iraq, Staffan de Mistura, had met with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and that he "said later that in the meeting the two men discussed the problems that have blocked passage of a provincial election law by Iraq's Parliament." When the Parliament's regular session proved unable to pass a law for provinical elections, the United Nations announced they would study the issue, speak with various Iraqis and try to offer a proposal by the end of September of early October. Yet, as noted in the September 4th snapshot, Iraqi's Shi'ite vice president Adel Abdul-Mahdi has declared that provincial elections will take place regardless of whether a law is passed or not.
Tomorrow the Bully Boy is expected to announce the latest US troops 'plan' for Iraq. Ann Scott Tyson and Karen DeYoung (Washington Post) reported Saturday, "Senior military officials said the 'consensus' proposal incorporated the final recommendation of Petraeus. He called for withdrawing 7,500 to 8,000 troops from Iraq by the end of January, including an 1,100-man Marine Corps battalion and a Marine aviation squadron of several hundred strong to depart this fall, an Army combat brigade of up to 4,000 soldiers to depart in mid-January, and more than 1,000 support troops, such as logisticians and forces, assigned to handle detainees."
Turning to some of today's reported violence . . .
Bombings?
Laith Hammoudi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad roadside bombing that left eleven people wounded, a Baghdad bombing that claimed 1 life and left two wounded, another Baghdad bombing that wounded two people, a Baghdad grenade attack that wounded two people, a Nineveh car bombing claimed the life of 1 police officer and left four people wounded, a Salahuddin Province car bombing that claimed the lives of 2 civilians with four more wounded and a Basra roadside bombing left one person wounded and a home invasion of "Awakening" Council leader Raad Rasheed in Diyala Province in which Rasheed was kidnapped and, in the chase that followed, three Iraqi military members were wounded by a roadside bombing.
Shootings?
Laith Hammoudi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad attack on "a vehicle for the ministry of displace people" which left four employees wounded while (elswhere in Baghdad), the same ministry's guards "opened fire randomly" shooting 1 woman dead and leaving six more people wounded, 1 police officer was shot dead in Mosul and the US military shot dead 1 person whose 'crime' was driving his car in Baquba.
Corpses?
Turning to the US presidential race and starting with the pig holler Barack Obama. Shailah Murray (Washington Post) noted his comment last week on GOP vice presidential nominee Gov Sarah Palin "I assume she wants to be treated the same way that guys want to be treated" -- do you assume that? How very 'forward' of you, pig face. What an insulting thing for him to even say. Palin's run a real campaign. She didn't sniff her opponents panties to put them out of the race -- a claim Barack can't make for himself (see Jack Ryan especially). Barack went on to declare that he'd been vetted for 19 months unlike Sarah. Brack Obama vetted? Oh, that's hilarious. The only thing funnier than his claim to have been vetted is watching him nosedive in poll after poll. CNN offers the most optimistic findings from their poll with Opinion Research Corp: 3% undecided, 48% for Barack - [Joe] Biden, 48% for [John] McCain.- Palin. CBS News reports, " Sarah Palin's addition to the ticket probably exceeded her running mate's wildest expectations: McCain has turned an eight-point deficit in the Gallup daily tracking poll into a three-point lead." Dan Balz and Jon Cohen (Washington Post) report the results of the Washington Post-ABC News poll which find the two in a dead heat. Todd Spangler (Detroit Free Press) zooms in on Michigan and studies Public Policy Polling to determine, "From the data, it appears that the Palin pick is clearly helping McCain in the race against Obama in Michigan -- a state the Republican hopes to pick up in order to beat the Democrat." Michigan is, of course, the state Barack refused to have his name listed on the primary ballot and somehow managed -- via the 'rules' committee -- to come out with more delegates than Hillary from the primary she won -- the one he refused to compete in. Scott Conroy (CBS News) repeats the usual dumb ass garbage that concludes with, "Sarah Palin, by contrast, has repeatedly pointed to her son Track's service in the National Guard when making the case that John McCain should be the next president. Track Palin is scheduled to deploy to the Middle East later this week to begin his training for a tour of duty in Iraq." Let's speak slowly for the dumb asses. 1) Joe Biden's children's military service is stated and stretched. 2) Military service is not a private issue. For one thing, you're required to take a public oath. Scott Conroy sounds as idiotic as Jeannie Cummings and that's his own damn fault. And it's that dumb ass 'reasoning' that's going to have a sizeable number of people dismissing any 'scoops' (real or false) the media may come up with on Palin because it still sounds like they're gunning for her. Military service is public service. It is not about anyone's private life and -- unless you get a parental waiver -- only adults can enlist in the US. There's a big difference and Conroy looks like a real ass pretending there's not.
PBS' Independent Lens wrote of the now independent presidential candidate, "Ralph Nader was born on February 27, 1934 in Winsted, Connecticut. His parents, Nathra and Rose, were Lebanese immigrants. He received a B.A. from Princeton University in 1955 and graduated from Harvard Law School three years later. In 1963, he abandoned his Hartford, Connecticut law practice and hitchhiked to Washington, D.C. to embark on a lifelong career as a public citizen. He worked as a consultant to the U.S. Department of Labor and founded the Public Citizen research group." That was to promote their airing of the documentary An Unreasonable Man. And they also offered " Where's Nader?" as part of the promotion -- a photograph you could scroll across "to spot 18 things that can be attributed to his work."
At the Super Rally last week, he noted "three polls that will tell you that the Nader - Gonzalez agenda is a majority agenda. Inferentially and item by item. 81% of the American people think the country's going in the wrong direction. That's the highest level ever registered. 75% of the people in this country think corporations have too much control over their lives. And 61% of the people in this country in a Gallup poll say that the two major parties are failing." In response to a question regarding impeaching Dick Cheney and the Bully Boy after they leave office, Ralph explained ( here for video):
Ralph Nader: Well you can't impeach them once they leave office but they're subject on January 21, 2009 for criminal prosecution under federal law and it's possible. One of the most experienced prosecutors in the country, whose now retired, Vincent Bugliosi wrote that bestseller recently on the prosecution of George W. Bush [The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder]. Any district attorney, he claims, where a US soldier resideded and lost his or her life in Iraq due to a criminal war based on false pretenses by Bush and Cheney could bring a criminal homicide action and impanel a grand jury to indict both Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld. And it's often misunderstood that presidents and vice presidents do not escape the criminal laws after they leave office. When Nixon was accused of obstructing justice in the Watergate burglary back in the 70s, there was a Watergate task force of government attorneys that was just about to ask for his indictment and prosecute Nixon before [Gerald] Ford pardoned him. So for a one-time obstruction alleged in the Watergate burgalry, the arm of the criminal law was going to move forward. That is like tiny compared to the criminal behavior engendered day after day -- systemic torture, imprisoning thousands of people without charges and without lawyers, the signing statements, hundred of them, where George Bush would sign a bill and say "I will decide whether or not to obey it." Our Founding Fathers fought and got rid of King George III not to allow King George IV to take control of our country. And then of course there's spying in violation of the FISA Act without judicial warant on hundreds of thousands maybe millions of Americans. That's a first-class felony with a maximum penalty of a five-year jail term. And of course, there is the criminal war of aggression in Iraq -- probably the worst violation of international law other than genocide -- is a criminal war of aggression. So the question is: "Are there going to be any district attorneys in the country who are going to begin the process of holding presidents and vice presidents after they leave office accountable for their crimes or are Bush and Cheney going to set a precedent for their successors who then think that they can be above the law, beyond the law, violate the law with impunity?" That's the question that we all have to ask.
On Friday, Ralph spoke in Wisconsin and Kevin Bargnes (The Badger Herald) reports, "Nader and his running mate Matt Gonzalez support the establishment of a date for troop withdrawal from Iraq and an end to the imprisonment of nonviolent drug offenders.
A large portion of the attendees were University of Wisconsin students, and Nader painted a bleak future for a generation he believes will be worse off economically than its parents.
'You've got to wonder about whether you can get affordable housing, affordable health insurance, whether your white-collar skilled job dealing with software is going to be outsourced to China or India,' Nader said. 'And then in the moments of anxiety you're smoking a joint and you can be arrested and thrown in jail'." Michelle L. Quinn (Post-Tribune) reports on a sit-down interview with Nader and running mate Matt Gonzalez when they were in Indiana over the weekend, "Their platform includes items he says Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain have taken 'off the table,' such as a 6-month, comprehensive negotiated military and corporate withdrawal from Iraq; single-payer, Canadian style free-choice health insurance; a living-wage and repeal of the anti-union Taft-Hartley Act; and a no-nuke, solar-based energy policy supported by renewable and sustainable energy sources. Solar energy is a change he's touted for years, and many utility executives to whom he's spoken prefer wind power as the next energy source, he said." Ralph was also campaigning in Wisconsin over the weekend and among the speakers at Fighting Bob Fest. Matthew Ryno (Baraboo News Republic) reports he "gave a biting speech to kick off the morning's events. He targeted what he called, 'least, worst' voters, or voters who he says cannot tolerate another four years of a Republican as president. ' The question is whether or not we get a Republican in disguise,' Nader said, referring to Democrat Barack Obama. 'We're seeing similar parties.' Nader said. 'Measure the Democratic control of Congress and ask how much of Bush's legislature have they rolled back? Have they even tried to impeach?'"
Have they done anything? And what of Barack? Chris Floyd (Baltimore Chronicle) tackled the issue of 'anti-war' Barack over the weekend, "In short, he continued his relentless campaign to purge himself of any of that weak-sister 'anti-war' taint that got attached to him in the early days of his campaign -- which was, of course, responsible for his phenomenal rise in the first place. He rode that wave to national prominence -- trading on the desperate hopes of millions of Americans that the ungodly criminal nightmare in Iraq might finally end -- but it was obvious long ago that he was never going to dance with the ones that brung him. Once it was clear that he might really make it all the way to the top of the greasy pole, he began a dogged campaign to prove to our ruling elite that he would be a 'safe pair of hands' for the imperial enterprise." |
Posted at 06:54 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the Republican vice presidential nominee, has agreed to her first interview since last month, with ABC News anchor Charles Gibson later this week, the network and Sen. John McCain's campaign said yesterday. The above is from Anne E. Kornblut's " Palin to Give Interview to ABC This Week" ( Washington Post) and Lloyd e-mailed to note that and wants it paired with this from Ava and my " TV: More sexism, more self-promotion:" Let's go to what else Pravda on the Hudson did with regards to Palin speech, an attempted 'fact check'. (Goody provided no fact check for Barack and wisely chose not to air his comments on "universal health care" because even her devoted audience isn't so stupid to swallow that garbage.) First up, Goody repeatedly mispronounced Palin's last name throughout the Thursday broadcast (the day after Palin spoke -- when any journalist should have known how to pronounce her not so difficult last name). Goody brought on Pacifica wanna be/reject Shannyn Moore for the alleged fact check which only reminded us that when Goody goes north, facts fly out the window.Moore got in this unsubstantiated smear, "Certainly, I can tell you that in small-town Alaska, rumors abound. And this isn't any other case from that. And I know people in the media in Alaska who have known of Bristol Palin's pregnancy for, you know, over a month and didn't bring it into the press, because they didn't think it was any of their business. And certainly there have been rumors abounding regarding Trig and his--whether it was a decision or avoidance of some sort of 'how to get out of trouble' card. You know, I don't have anything to verify that, but that's certainly the small-town rumor that's gone about." 'Trig' Palin, the governor's son, who has signed up for military service, certainly doesn't deserve to be smeared by Moore or anyone else. If Moore thinks she has information, she might try producing it. Smearing someone who's joined the military with rumors? Not classy and not journalism. And it may remind some of how, when Barack was exposed by AP as having had his campaign tell Canada not to take his words on NAFTA seriously, The Nation's John Nichols showed up (from Canada!) to tell Goody that he was on the hot trail of a big scoop about how it was Hillary who was really talking to Canada. The big scoop went poop because there was never anything there. But when Goody goes north, she loves to air false rumors and try to pass it off as 'reporting' and 'fact.'For the record, Trig Palin? A newborn infant (born this year). For the record, Track Palin is the son who is in the military. A huge mistake and one an 'expert' on the topic shouldn't make; however, for the record, Moore isn't a journalist, she's Alaska's version of Randi Rhodes -- and don't we all know how that story ends?Lloyd offers that not only should the uninformed Moore be embarrassed but so should "Amy Goodman who brought her on as a guest and didn't even realize which child was Trig and which was Track but can you keep the facts straight when you're so busy promoting yourself? Amy proves you can't. " That's Pravda on the Hudson for you, no fact need interfere with Goody's efforts to provide propaganda. Today she offers "Highlights of the Democratic convention" and it's cute how that garbage is edited to make Barack a hero especially with regards to Iraq Veterans Against the War. You see IVAW members ecstatic. But that's not reality. Here's IVAW summarizing at their own site: When they arrived at the DNC, representatives of IVAW asked to meet with Barack Obama to present their message. After negotiations, the Former Texas Lt Governor Ben Barnes came out of the convention to accept a letter from the IVAW members. Jeff Key, a former Marine said the IVAW members intended to stay in place until a representative from Obama's campaign came out to talk with them."I'm a patient man. I'm not going anywhere,'' Key said.Key, a former Marine from Salt Lake City, and Liam Madden, a former marine from Boston, were then escorted into the convention where they met with Phil Carter, head of veterans affairs for the Obama campaign. IVAW is now waiting for a formal response to their request address the delegates from the podium. That request -- something Goody leaves out in her 'highlights' -- never came to fruition. It was never going to. The press was taking interest in IVAW's protest and asking the Obama campaign about it. They sent out a rep to stop the protest with some empty promises (lies) and IVAW stopped their protest. They never made it to the podium, they never got anything from Team Obama. But you'll never know that to catch the propaganda Goody offers this morning and, really, isn't that the point? Qassim Abdul-Zahra (AP) reports that the Iraqi Parliament resumes sessions this week and that they hope to address both the issue of provincial elections and the treaties with the US but that provincial elections have been discussed while the the Parliament was on break and trial ballons floated were not embraced ("But weeks of private meetings and contacts among Sunni Arab, Shiite and Kurdish lawmakers have failed to produce any breakthrough on the issue, and it was unclear whether the bill would win speedy approval."). Over the weekend two presidential candidates spoke at the Fighting Bob Fest gathering in Wisconsin. From Matthew Ryno's " Nader, Donahue bring star power to Fighting Bob Fest" ( Baraboo News Republic): Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader gave a biting speech to kick off the morning's events. He targeted what he called, "least, worst" voters, or voters who he says cannot tolerate another four years of a Republican as president."The question is whether or not we get a Republican in disguise," Nader said, referring to Democrat Barack Obama."We're seeing similar parties." Nader said. "Measure the Democratic control of Congress and ask how much of Bush's legislature have they rolled back? Have they even tried to impeach?"To the cheers of the audience, he praised Wisconsin U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold for introducing legislature to censure President Bush, and called Bush the "most impeachable president in American history."Nader said President Harry Truman first laid down an example for affordable health care, and European nations achieved health care, labor and trade reforms shortly after World War II because of strong political lobbying."The two parties, for 63 years, have yet to get that done. How many more votes are we going to give them?" Nader said.Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney spoke next. She called herself a "black woman who dares to dissent in a world that does not allow it."Michelle L. Quinn offers " Nader knocks outsourcing during campaign stop" ( Gary Post Tribune): Nader, who with his vice presidential candidate, Matt Gonzalez, stopped at the Cracker Barrel to talk exclusively with the Post-Tribune, pointed to the article before he even sat down.The two stopped in Indiana, then backpedaled to Lansing, Ill., as part of their weekend tour of the Midwest.The article, which discussed leasing public assets, chills him to the core every time."This 75-to-99-year leasing turns colonialism on its head and is very bad for consumers; in this article, it says the tolls will rise to $25 by 2050," he said. "It's the corporate takeover of America. We've outsourced the military with Blackwater and Haliburton, and now the contract specialists who wrote those contracts are outsourcing their work to different countries."And Kevin Bargnes offers " Running for his 5th time, Nader hopes for ‘3-way’ election" ( The Badger Herald): "By getting to the debates you can get to tens of millions of people," he said. "In no other way can you do that -- the way our system is now rigged with a two-party elected dictatorship and ballot access obstructions."Nader was highly critical of both political parties, characterizing them as agents of corporate America. He called for the impeachment of "King George IV" and said the Democrats were also complacent in national policies."I've never seen a bigger gap between knowledge and action," Nader said. "It's an even bigger gap than the inequalities of wealth and income, which have gotten pretty big."In his fifth run for president, Nader maintains many of the same platforms he had when he ran as a member of the Green Party. These include a Canadian-style public health insurance system, a minimum wage of at least $10, a carbon tax to help slow global warming and more direct democracy.Nader and his running mate Matt Gonzalez support the establishment of a date for troop withdrawal from Iraq and an end to the imprisonment of nonviolent drug offenders.Today the Nader - Gonzalez ticket makes campaign stops in Ohio. Eddie notes this from Team Nader:
Nader/Gonzalez on 3-stop Tour in Ohio
News Advisory
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Marc Abizeid, 831-818-7736, marcabizeid@votenader.org (national); Justin Jeffre, 917-881-9882, justinjeffre@votenader.org (local).
RALPH NADER AND MATT GONZALEZ TO VISIT COLUMBUS, WILMINGTON AND CINCINNATI MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8
Columbus Information:
On Monday, September 8 at 12:30 p.m., Independent Presidential Candidate Ralph Nader and running mate Matt Gonzalez will hold a press conference followed by a 1 p.m. campaign rally at the Drexel Theatre, 2254 E. Main St., Columbus, OH 43209. For more information call Dan Whorton at 614-573-6986.
Wilmington Information:
On Monday, September 8 at 4:30 p.m., Independent Presidential Candidate Ralph Nader and running mate Matt Gonzalez will speak at a rally sponsored by the "Save Ohio Jobs" coalition which is demonstrating against the proposed closure of a DHL freight hub in Wilmington. Shutting down the hub, which is Wilmington's largest employer, would cost between 8,000 and 10,000 workers their jobs. The rally will be held at the Kelly Center of Wilmington College, 113 College St. Wilmington, OH 45177. For more information call Tony Olsen of the Save Ohio Jobs coalition at 913-707-2471.
Cincinnati Information:
On Monday, September 8 at 7 p.m., Independent Presidential Candidate Ralph Nader and running mate Matt Gonzalez will hold a press conference followed by a 7:30 p.m. campaign rally at the Cincinnati Memorial Hall, 1229 Elm St., Cincinnati, OH 45210. For more information call Justin Jeffre at 917-881-9882.
Topics at the Rallies:
At their campaign rallies in Columbus and Cincinnati, Nader/Gonzalez will address critical issues the major party candidates have taken "off the table" that the Nader/Gonzalez campaign has put on the table, including:
- a comprehensive, negotiated military and corporate withdrawal date from Iraq;
- a single-payer, Canadian-style, private delivery, free-choice public health insurance system for all;
- a living wage and repeal of the anti-union Taft-Hartley Act;
- a no-nuke, solar-based energy policy supported by renewable, sustainable, energy-efficient sources;
- a carbon tax to deter global warming;
- an end to the corporate welfare and corporate crime that has resulted in millions losing pensions, savings and jobs and squandered tax dollars; and,
- more direct democracy reflecting the preamble to our constitution which starts with "we the people," and not "we the corporations."
About Ralph Nader
Attorney, author, and consumer advocate Ralph Nader has been named by Time Magazine one of the "100 Most Influential Americans in the 20th Century." For more than four decades he has exposed problems and organized millions of citizens into more than 100 public interest groups advocating solutions. He led the movement to establish the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and was instrumental in enacting the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and countless other pieces of important consumer legislation. Because of Ralph Nader we drive safer cars, eat healthier food, breathe better air, drink cleaner water, and work in safer environments. Nader graduated from Princeton University and received an LL.B from Harvard Law School.
About Matt Gonzalez
Matt Gonzalez was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 2000 representing San Francisco's fifth council district. From 2003 to 2005, he served as Board of Supervisors President. A former public defender, Gonzalez is managing partner of Gonzalez & Leigh, a 7-attorney practice in San Francisco that represents individuals and organizations in mediation, arbitration, and administrative proceedings before state and federal regulatory bodies. Gonzalez graduated from Columbia University and received a JD from Stanford Law School.
About the Nader/Gonzalez Campaign
According to a CNN-Opinion Research Corp. poll conducted from July 27-29, Ralph Nader is at 6 percent nationally (equivalent to about 10 million eligible voters), higher than his highest major poll numbers during the same time period in 2000 and approaching the 10 percent threshold required for eligibility to participate in "America's Presidential Debate in New Orleans," a Google-sponsored event scheduled for September 18. In the key swing state of Michigan -- whose Democratic voters were partially disenfranchised by the Democratic National Committee -- an EPIC-MRA poll found Nader at 8-10 percent.
For more information on the Nader/Gonzalez campaign, visit: votenader.org.
-End-
ShareThisShareThis Cynthia McKinney is the Green Party presidential nominee, Rosa Clemente is her running mate. Team McKinney notes: Update on Ballot Access for McKinney/Clemente
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Update on Ballot Access for McKinney/Clemente - Four New States
Craig Seemans
Rosa Clemente wrote:
EVERYONE FANTASTIC!!!!!!!
UTAH
MINNESOTA
OHIO
WISCONSOIN, AMAZING!!! in the last few days!
Craig wrote:
Richard Winger of Ballot Access News is keeping score at this site. For a full list of the 30 states where you can vote for us directly, see this chart. He updated his list today (and does so frequently):
http://www.ballot-access.org/ballot-chart.html
Also see: www.gp.org
It's seems the states that still show as available but not official or filed yet are:
Alabama (doesn't look likely to me)
North Carolina (in court)
North Dakota (doesn't look likely to me)
Rhode Island (Greg Gerritt posted it's official today)
Tennessee (listed as "finished")
Vermont (listed as 0 with only 1000 needed so I can't figure out what's going on there)
Virginia ("finished")
So add Rhode Island to the list which makes 30 so far.
Ballot Access News is a GREAT resource for keeping track of all ballot access law suits and legislation around the country.
http://www.ballot-access.org/
If you have any trouble registering to vote Green or voting on election day, please contact the campaign at
www.talkback@runcynthiarun.org
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The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraq anne e. kornblutthe washington post qassim abdul-zahra matthew ryno michelle l. quinn kevin bargnes
Posted at 06:43 pm by thecommonills
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Iraq the medical nightmare
The
latest grim update comes from Hillah, the capital of Babil province
south of Baghdad, where health officials have begun using loudspeakers
to urge people not to eat ice cream or juice from vendors because it
might be made with dirty water. Dr. Ahmed Ajrash, the deputy director
of Babil's health directorate, said today that two people had died of
confirmed cases of cholera in Babil.There
are 10 suspicious cases, not yet confirmed as the water-borne disease.
In Hashimiya, about 18 miles south of Hillah, medical officials say
they have seen 250 cases of severe watery diarrhea, some of which may
turn out to be cholera. Dozens more suspected cholera cases have turned
up in other parts of the country.The
problem raises the question: How can a country with two major rivers --
the Tigris and the Euphrates -- not have sufficient clean water for its
people? The problem stems from Iraq's aging water treatment facilities,
which were damaged or destroyed during the war and have yet to be
replaced or repaired.The above is from Babylon & Beyond's " IRAQ: Lots of rivers, not enough water" ( Los Angeles Times). That's from the paper's Iraq blog. In the New York Times this morning, Iraq's not a news topic, no report filed from Iraq. No news from Iraq. Karin Laub (AP) finds some.
Laub notes that an estimated 8,000 Iraqi doctors have fled their
country since the start of the illegal war and that 800 have returned.
Both figures are flawed. It is over 8,000 and the exit of doctors (male
and female) was not just part of the 'brain drain' it was also the
result of doctors (especially females) being targeted. 800 is the
puppet government's latest figure and is not independently verified.
They were saying it was 700 in August. They say whatever they want and
no one bothers to verify it. It's also not true that "Doctors are just
a tiny group among Iraq's more than 4 million refugees and displaced"
because the doctors (and others) who left during the 'brain drain' are
not considered refugees, they had the money to start over and left
earlier in the illegal war before the sect divisions became as fixed. As noted last night, one Iraqi died yesterday of cholera. Also on the medical front, Qatar's Peninsula offers " Iraq moves to curb sales of counterfeit medicines:" The
Ministry of Health recently enforced drug laws in a deadline that
largely had been ignored since the ouster of Saddam Hussein in 2003.Although
the laws remained in effect, the invasion and its aftermath led to a
vacuum in enforcement while newly opened borders brought counterfeit
goods flooding into the country. The government said the deadline was
part of an effort to bring Iraq in line with international norms and
clean up the burgeoning trade in fake drugs. There are two state-run
pharmaceutical factories in Iraq, so 90 percent of the medications used
here are imported. Nearly all are made by companies not registered in
Iraq and are sold without being tested for efficacy."It's
not medicine. It's just boxes, and God knows what's in them," said Adel
Muhsin, the Health Ministry's inspector general. The laws requires each
drug manufacturer sending products to Iraq to get a stamp of approval
from the Health Ministry. Under the stepped-up enforcement, a sample of
each imported drug is to be tested for efficacy and approved before
going on the market. Teams of inspectors will do spot checks of
pharmacies and drug warehouses and step up raids on markets where
counterfeit dealers operate. The plan is to return to the medical topics above in the snapshot today. On
the US presidential race, Ralph Nader is the independent presidential
candidate and his running mate is Matt Gonzalez. The Nader - Gonzalez
team has set September 20th as their goal to be on the ballots in 45
states and they have already made the ballots in 38 states. That leaves
seven to go in six days. Kyle notes this from Team Nader: The Invisible Man  The Invisible Man, song by 98 Degrees - Justin Jeffre and Jeff Timmons. WATCH THE VIDEO The revolution will not be televised - but thanks to your help, it will be on youtube. We passed our media fund goal of $100,000 and brought in over $20,000 yesterday alone! This
video is our highlight reel from the "Open the Debates" super rally in
Minneapolis, Minnesota. The rally took place on September 4, at the
same time as the Republican National Convention in neighboring St.
Paul. I flew to Minnesota to shoot video of this exciting event, then
stayed up all night editing - I hope you enjoy the result. Also, because of your generous support, you will see much more coverage of future events. Please forward this video to your friends & family. Also please help us - subscribe to our youtube channel and rate our videos and comments! Haven't had a chance to help our media fund grow? There's still time...contribute to our campaign today. Onward, Karen Kilroy
ShareThisShareThis
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com. iraq karin laubthe los angeles times
Posted at 03:30 pm by thecommonills
Permalink
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Barack Running Scared"
Posted at 09:40 pm by thecommonills
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katie couric
the cbs evening news
julie bosman
bonnie erbe
dan balz
