- Peace Garden: 11/01/2007 - 12/01/2007

Venezuela instead of Iran?

Friday, November 30, 2007


2007.11.30: Greens, citing revealed memo, urge Bush to cancel CIA plans to interfere in Venezuelan referendum and destabilize the Chavez government
Green Party leaders called on President Bush to cancel an order directing the CIA to interfere with a December 2 voters' referendum in Venezuela and to cease actions intended to destabilize the Chavez government.
The Venezuelan government uncovered an alleged confidential memo on November 26 from US embassy official Michael Middleton Steere to the CIA director Michael Hayden which reveals clandestine operations to influence the referendum and to coordinate a military overthrow of the elected Chavez government. The referendum will measure public approval for constitutional amendments proposed by Chavez and the National Assembly; polls show 60% support for the amendments.
How can an overthrow of a sovereign government bye justified? How can this memo not be front page news?

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Reason to bomb?

Iran's Revolutionary Guards patrol Persian Gulf, U.S. says

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps has taken command of Iranian naval operations in the Persian Gulf, the U.S. military has revealed.
That means U.S. naval forces are operating in the same waters as an organization the United States considers a major supporter of terrorist activity.
The move is of concern to the U.S. Navy, which has long viewed the IRGC's forces as more antagonistic than Iran's regular navy.
Several U.S. Navy officials said the move is militarily significant for the United States because of the IRGC's terrorist affiliation. U.S. Navy ships would not want IRGC vessels sailing too close to them because of that concern, they said.
So let's get this straight. We declare them terrorists. They patrol their waters. Our ships are patrolling on the edge of their waters. They are "terrorists." We blow them out of the water because they are "too close?"

Yeah, this sounds like good logical diplomacy.

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Get rid of them now

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Presidential Hopeful Pushes Impeachment At Dartmouth Forum
“Our constitution is in trouble,” Kucinich said. “Are we supposed to wait for George Bush and Dick Cheney to attack Iran before we take action? We can’t wait. They’re already rattling the sabers of war against another nation. They lied to get us into a war against Iraq. They’re lying to push us into war with Iran. Why should we wait?”
Kucinich has sponsored two resolutions in Congress to impeach Vice President Dick Cheney: H. Res. 333 and H. Res. 799. He said he’s drafting an extended version relating to President Bush.
The madness that is gripping this regime (as evidenced in Iraq and soon-to-be Iran) is a problem for this country and the world. The regime's madness threatens everyone's future. Shocks to get the heart pumping in rhythm, "peace" talks that will go nowhere, and doctored reports of success in Iraq (how can there be success when our troops are still there getting killed) are not enough to stop the madness. Out of Office is the remedy. I don't think we can survive the last 18 months. That gives them too much time to venture into Iran.

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Don't mess with my veggieburger!

Monday, November 26, 2007

As you are munching on your granola, guess who owns the company?

Phil Howard, from M(ichigan)SU, gives you the details of the "greening" of corporate America. Where they see money to be made, the titans will swoop in. Keep your eye on the ingredients and sources when you purchase your products. As consumers, let's make sure they stay organic and healthy.

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Kucinich TV

Q: When the media does not cover your campaign, what do you do?

A: Create....

Tune in for the schedule and be prepared to hear truth.

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Iraq - 51st State?

White House Releases "Principles" for Permanent Iraqi Presence

So it begins. After years of obfuscation and denial on the length of the U.S.'s stay in Iraq, the White House and the Maliki government have released a joint declaration of "principles" for "friendship and cooperation." Apparently President Bush and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki signed the declaration during a morning teleconference.
Iraq's leaders have asked for an enduring relationship with America, and we seek an enduring relationship with a democratic Iraq. We are ready to build that relationship in a sustainable way that protects our mutual interests, promotes regional stability, and requires fewer Coalition forces.
Not stated, of course, is that Iraq would represent a military commitment opposed by most of the American people. Nor that it would represent codifying an unpopular war into an unpopular, indefinite war. Nor even what that commitment would entail.
Good jumping off base for the Tehran Express.

Wonder what Congress will say? Let's hope they have some backbone to stop the madness.

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Stepping it up

Saturday, November 24, 2007

Iran in Crosshairs as Fuel Delivery to Gulf Forces Increases
he U.S. military has stepped up chartering of tankers and requests for extra fuel in the U.S. Central Command area, which includes the Gulf, shipping and oil industry sources say.
A Gulf oil industry source said the charters suggested there would be high naval activity, possibly including a demonstration to Iran that the U.S. Navy will protect the Strait of Hormuz oil shipping route during tensions over Tehran's nuclear programme.
Hmmmm, what could "high naval activity" and "demonstration" be code words for?
Fuels specified to be moved between Gulf ports include JP5, high flashpoint jet fuel, used to power F18 fighters aboard aircraft carriers.
Say no more - we know now.

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Setting the stage - again

It was quiet for a few weeks. Even reports that Iran was backing off. But now...Iraq blast pinned on Iran-linked militants

The U.S. military on Saturday blamed the deadly bombing of a pet market in Baghdad on Iranian-backed Shiite militants, raising concerns that Shiite extremist activity could escalate and jeopardize waning violence in Iraq.
"I'm not saying that yesterday Iran ordered the bombing of the pet market," Smith said. But, he said, the attack had the "fingerprints" of a group that had been trained, equipped and facilitated through Iranian connections.
So what you are really saying is - no proof. But what the hell - blame Iran and get the public pumped and angry and ready for an attack.

Now if Pakistan doesn't throw a wrench into the machine - Tehran here we come.

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We Need Billy Jack Today

Friday, November 23, 2007

Tom Laughlin writes about his new movie:

Imagine Billy Jack in a live heated debate with the real George Bush over whether Bush lied – and continues to lie – to sell the Iraq War.
Just as in the original Billy Jack, Billy Jack for President will be a non-stop powerful melodrama. Billy Jack and Jean will be “Obewon Kenobis” passing down their wisdom and mantle to a younger Billy Jack and Jean, giving today’s idealistic rebels and outcasts powerful tools they will need in the struggle against all of the enormous and unprecedented pressures assaulting young people today.
"Billy Jack for President" will End the War and change the 2008 election? We can hope and dream.

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Which do you choose - death or life?

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

White House warns of Xmas military furlough notice

With Congress balking at continued war funding, the White House says the Defense Department will issue furlough notices to about 100,000 civilian workers at military bases in mid-December.
The choice between keeping the killing machine going and people's livelihood - which would you choose?

Seems the regime must keep that war machine rolling along. The solution - withdrawal.

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Playing with Lives

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Israel’s Syrian Airstrike Was Aimed at Iran

Until late October, the accepted explanation about the Sep. 6 Israeli airstrike in Syria, constructed in a series of press leaks from U.S. officials, was that it was prompted by dramatic satellite intelligence that Syria was building a nuclear facility with help from North Korea.
But new satellite evidence has discredited that narrative, suggesting a more plausible explanation for the strike: that it was a calculated effort by Israel and the United States to convince Iran that its nuclear facilities could be attacked as well.
Both Israeli and U.S. officials dropped hints soon after the Israeli raid that it was aimed at sending a message to Iran. Ten days after the raid, Israeli’s military intelligence chief Amos Yadlin declared to a parliamentary committee, “Israel’s deterrence has been rehabilitated since the Lebanon war, and it affects the entire regional system, including Iran and Syria…”
The official’s suggestion that the strike was a joint U.S.-Israeli message about a joint policy toward striking Iran’s nuclear sites was the clearest indication that the primary objective of the strike was to intimidate Iran at a time when both Israel and the Cheney faction of the Bush administration were finding it increasingly difficult to do so.
Big boys playing games. But these games KILL!

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Criminals in the White House

McClellan points finger at Bush, Rove

Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan names names in a caustic passage from a forthcoming memoir that accuses President Bush, Karl Rove and Vice President Cheney of being "involved" in his giving the press false information about the CIA leak case.
But McClellan lists five top officials as having allowed him inadvertently to mislead the public.
“I stood at the White house briefing room podium in front of the glare of the klieg lights for the better part of two weeks and publicly exonerated two of the seniormost aides in the White House: Karl Rove and Scooter Libby,” McClellan wrote.
“There was one problem. It was not true.”
McClellan then absolves himself and makes an inflammatory — and potentially lucrative for his publisher — charge.
“I had unknowingly passed along false information,” McClellan wrote.
“And five of the highest ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the vice president, the president's chief of staff and the president himself."
And while Rome burns, Congress throws Kucinich's impeachment move under the bus.

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He was right the first time...

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Dennis makes the most of his limited time in CNN debate
Kucinich noted that most of the other candidates who previously voted in favor of those measures recently have changed their positions. "You've seen here tonight people who voted for the war, voted to fund the war, now they have a different position. People voted for the Patriot Act. Now they have a different position. People voted for China trade. Now they have a different position. People who voted for Yucca Mountain. Now they had a different position.
"Just imagine what it will be like to have a president of the United States who's right the first time. Just imagine," Kucinich said to thunderous applause."
The media keeps ignoring him but the people are not...
Last week, Kucinich was the top vote-getter in 47 of 50 states in an online poll sponsored by Democracy for America, the grassroots Democratic organization founded in 2004 by former Vermont Governor, former Presidential candidate, and current chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Howard Dean. Kucinich even out-polled former Vice President and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Al Gore, whose supporters mounted a huge write-in campaign to encourage Gore to enter the race. This week, Kucinich is far ahead of fellow candidates Sen. Barack Obama and former Sen. John Edwards in a poll sponsored by the progressive “The Nation.”

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What our media doesn't mention

Friday, November 16, 2007


DEBKAfile - Bush to Go Public on Iran’s Secret Nuclear Arms Activities
The US president and his spokesmen have reiterated their commitment to pursuing diplomacy. On the other hand, declaring Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps al Qods Brigade a global terrorist group has placed the US military option squarely on the table, which all the European are anxious to avert.
They will have noticed that military tensions in the region are rising again. US naval, air and marine forces are again beginning to pile up around Iran’s Gulf shores, while Tehran threatens to unleash “wave upon wave” of suicide fighters against “aggressors.”
DEBKAfile’s military sources report that in recent months, the USS Enterprise was the only US nuclear carrier cruising Gulf waters with its strike force. On Nov. 5, a second nuclear carrier, the USS Harry S. Truman set out quietly from its Norfolk base for the Gulf with 7,500 sailors and marines aboard the carrier and its strike force. It will be followed by the USS Nimitz .
All three carrier groups are escorted by fast nuclear submarines, cruisers and missile destroyers.
Upon its arrival, the Enterprise will head out of the Gulf, unless is departure is delayed by significant security concerns in the Gulf or Middle East regions. It will leave behind the two US Marine carriers the USS Wasp and the USS Kearsage , with thousands of marines and landing craft on their decks.
According to our sources in Washington, the event which galvanized the US president into launching a new initiative on Iran was the Pakistan crisis. He calculated that, if Pervez Musharraf were to be overthrown, a new regime in Islamabad, whether or not it is Islamist, could well opt for close military and political ties with Tehran. The menace of a nuclear axis between Islamabad and Tehran must be prevented at all costs. Therefore, the pressure on Iran must be ratcheted up with all speed.
The rulers of Tehran are fully aware of the sense of urgency in the White House about curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions by exposure and crippling sanctions and, DEBKAfile’s Iran sources report, are preparing counter-measures.
Have we heard from FAUX News about the Truman movements? Has Hannity mentioned this? If they did they were probably applauding and drooling at the possibility of military action.

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What has Bush created?

The Inevitable 'Union of Four': Turkey-Iran-Syria and Russia
Surprisingly, American strategists seem to be encouraging Turkey and Iran to join forces to stop the violent attacks by the Kurds at the cost of losing Turkey as a faithful ally. Sympathy by the Turkish people for the U.S. has plummeted over recent years and will take decades to recover.
The next stage will be escalating high-level cooperation between Turkey, Iran and Syria, and this is moving forward as well.
And the political strategies of Russia and Turkey will merge due to common allies in Syria and Iran, shared economic interests and a shared aversion to America's global policies - in particular its actions in Iraq. Countries that were once historical opponents will become partners as a new Eurasian coalition comes into force.
The final result of the region's aversion to American policies will be the formation of the "Union of Four:" Russia, Turkey, Iran and Syria. Of course, this rapprochement between Ankara, Moscow, Damascus and Teheran will certainly affect Washington's position in the Middle East.
And the US? Still in Iraq, still threatening Iran, in the throes of a major economic downturn, unable to help our own because of the military budget and the dollars lost in the war...

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On the other hand...

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Rice accuses Iran of spreading extremism

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday accused Iran of spreading "violent extremism" across the Middle East and said a strong Palestinian state could act as a bulwark against this threat.
Speaking to American Jewish leaders at a conference in Nashville, Tennessee, Rice reassured them of Washington's commitment to protect longtime ally Israel against threats from Tehran and said successful Palestinian statehood negotiations could counter Iran's power in the region.
Meanwhile, a short distance away, Iranian leaders were accusing the US of trying to cram their style of Western democracy down the throats of...

I guess it all depends whose shoes you are wearing.

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Friends? Be careful what you wish for!

U.S. forces accused of shooting Sunni allies

Members of a Sunni Muslim group that was formed with American backing to fight Sunni militants charged Wednesday that a lengthy U.S. air and ground attack killed at least seven of its fighters.
Mansour abd Salem, one of the leaders of the Sunni Awakening council in Taji, north of Baghdad , charged in a television interview that U.S. forces had "deliberately" killed members of the group in a "hideous" assault.
As has been said so many times before on these pages - today's friends are tomorrow's enemies and today's enemies are tomorrow's friends.

Need proof? Taliban, Osama, Saddam, Libya....

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Still not enough

Withdrawal Not Required in Iraq Funding Bill
The House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday night that aims for a major withdrawal of troops from Iraq by next December, but that promise rides on the back of a $50 billion check to continue war operations. Moreover, the plan sets December 2008 as a "goal" for redeployment, instead of establishing it as a firm deadline.
"On one hand, the bill is a clear policy statement supporting quicker troop withdrawal," said Jeff Leys, co-coordinator of Voices for Creative Nonviolence. "On the other hand, it would allow troops to stay in Iraq and continue all the operations they're doing now; there would just be fewer troops doing them."
The bill passed Wednesday would maintain a "limited presence" of troops in Iraq beyond the December 2008 goal date. Those troops would conduct "targeted counterterrorism operations against al-Qaeda, al-Qaeda-affiliated groups and other terrorist organizations in Iraq."
Since "terrorist organization" is not defined in the bill, the administration could determine the targets of future combat operations, according to Leys.
In August, the Bush administration declared the Iranian Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization, and last week, President Bush applied the same label to the Kurdistan Workers Party.
Too many loopholes. Too little strength. No immediate withdrawal.
"The Iraq spending bill passed by the House is too weak and doesn't require the timely redeployment of our troops from Iraq," said Senator Russ Feingold Thursday on the Senate floor. "If the Senate does not strengthen the bill, I will oppose it. The American people want more than a 'goal' of redeploying troops."
Absolutely the right thing to do.

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Suppose they gave a war and nobody came

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Is World War III on Hold?

Is a Bush preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear enrichment plant at Natanz, or on the al-Quds force of the Revolutionary Guard, a more remote possibility today than it was several weeks ago?
So it would seem.
The latest indication is a candid interview in the Financial Times with Adm. William "Fox" Fallon, head of Central Command, who would be the Tommy Franks of any naval or air war on Iran.
"The Pentagon is not preparing a preemptive attack on Iran in spite of an increase in bellicose rhetoric from Washington, according to senior officers," concluded the FT in the lead of its story.
Why on hold?
First, Pakistan. With a nation of 170 million with nuclear weapons in a political crisis that could lead to civil war, igniting a war with Iran would seem suicidal – especially with the war in Iraq about to enter its sixth year this spring and the war in Afghanistan about to enter its seventh year next month.
Second, there is no guarantee U.S. air strikes could denuclearize Iran, except temporarily....
Third, no one can predict where an attack on Iran will lead....
Fourth, Congress seems to have found its voice, and 30 senators have written to inform President Bush that he does not have the authority, absent an Iranian attack on U.S. forces, to launch a war on Iran....
Fifth, there has been a downturn in roadside attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq, suggesting Iran may no longer be supplying the enhanced IEDs. And U.S. forces have released several Iranians held captive in Iraq. There may be progress behind the scenes, as both countries could suffer horribly in a war.
Or maybe just maybe it is all smoke and mirrors. Hell, we can be at war right now. We all know black ops are in Iran. Or maybe we are just waiting for the shoe to drop - an Israeli bomb followed by Iranian retribution - a terrorist attack that can be blamed on Iran...

Or a military revolt and coup in our nation? The Pentagon not taking orders from W and Uncle Dick? Pinch me, I must be dreaming. Maybe we will see the expression "suppose they gave a war and nobody came" become a reality.

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Kucinich : Truth Party

Monday, November 12, 2007

Kucinich in Pelosi's House

Was it retaliation by the the Democratic Leadership that exempted Dennis Kucinich from appearing with fellow Presidential candidates at Friday’s Jefferson Jackson Day fundraiser in Iowa?
Was it Speaker Pelosi’s vindictive payback to Kucinich for his impudent dismissal of her “impeachment is off the table” dictum that kept Kucinich out of the Jefferson Jackson Day party? After all, hadn’t Kucinich introduced HR 333 on the House Floor just that week, calling for the impeachment of Vice President Cheney, in defiance of the prescripted cowardice in Pelosi’s House of Wacks?
Until that moment when Congressman Kucinich introduced impeachment resolution HR 333 on to the House Floor, members of Pelosi’s Democratic majority had fallen spinelessly in line, kowtowing to Pelosi’s disavowal of Article I Section 2 of the Constitution, which grants the House the authority to impeach.
Speaker Pelosi’s wanton subversion of the Constitution, which has subjected this nation and the world to the continued atrocities of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, will be far more relevant in the annals of history than her singular honor as the nation’s first woman Speaker of the House. Pelosi’s legacy (thus far), as the most powerful woman in the history of this land, has been shamefully tarnished by catastrophic failures in leadership and courage - predicated principally on her refusal to hold President Bush and Vice President Cheney accountable for their crimes.
His actions were one of conviction and truth rather than politics and party...
For Dennis Kucinich, nothing and no one will suppress his allegiance to his country and to his abiding principle of “strength through peace.”
So now it is on to Conyers.
Hopefully, Congressman Conyers will be the fortunate recipient of countless letters, phone calls, faxes and emails asking him to give HR 333 serious consideration when it comes to his committee. He can change the House of Wacks to a House of Facts - and restore his nation to sanity.
Et tu John Conyers? Will you remain silent, as you have, since winning re-election on November 7, 2006? Or will you remember Article I Section 2 of the Constitution and the oath you swore to uphold it?
Let's hope. If not, we all must remember who stood firm for the law of the land.

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Cat out of the Bag?

Israel on alert for Syria airstrike

THE defensive missile shield around Israel’s Dimona nuclear reactor was placed on red alert 30 times last week amid fears of an airstrike by Syria. A battery of American-made Patriot antiaircraft missiles has been moved to Dimona in the Negev desert following intelligence that a strike may be launched in retaliation for Israel’s bombing of a suspected nuclear site in Syria two months ago. In a highly unusual move, the officers in charge of the missiles were permitted to talk to Israeli state television about their preparations. “We’re ready to launch the missiles in seconds, once we’re on full alert,” said First Lieutenant Adi, a young female officer who is the deputy commander of the battery. Tension with Damascus has heightened since September 6 when Israeli fighters destroyed the suspected nuclear installation in northern Syria.
Protecting itself from retribution in regard to the September 6 bombing? Or preparing for retribution in regard to future bombings in Syria or Iran?

Do they know something our regime is planning that we should be aware of?

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Remember Peace

Sunday, November 11, 2007

On Veteran's Day it is important to remember the vets. But also important to strive for peace (everyday).

At a Veteran's Day Parade some antiwar vets participated...

Antiwar veterans passed out leaflets and carried signs opposing the war in Iraq yesterday after winning a last-minute right to march in this city’s annual Veterans Day parade.About 50 marchers displayed peace signs and banners with messages like “Iraq is Just Vietnam in the Desert,” “Bring Our Troops Home Where They Belong,” and “Bush Lies.”

They were greeted with bursts of applause by some parade-watchers and shouts of criticism by others.

“Go find another parade!” yelled one man.

They were at the correct parade. They had every right to participate. Though they don't agree with this war, they are still veterans. Maybe we should listen to them, their experiences, their feelings.

The parade is to honor them, not glorify war!

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Armageddon - Bush's Way

Those voices! Those messages! Those visions of greater glory! W, those are just flashbacks from those wild and crazy drug-filled years (a few weeks ago?). You are not being "called" to create the End Times - though you are leading the world down that path. Concentrate on spreading love and peace. That will get you into the Pearly Gates. Blood on your hands sure as hell won't!

Another great one from Mr. Fish.

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Send them all to jail

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Move to Impeach Not Another Distraction
While Welch and other Democrats continue to talk about impeachment being a distraction to more important priorities, such as ending the war in Iraq, the reality is that the Democrats haven’t figured out yet that none of the issues they hold dear will be accomplished until Bush and Cheney are removed from office.
A Democratic majority was elected to Congress last year to end the war in Iraq and rein in the Bush administration. Neither thing has happened. On issue after issue, the Democrats have caved in to Bush. And impeachment remains off the table.
Under House rules, Kucinich or any other member could introduce a motion for impeachment every day that Congress is in session. We think that sounds like a good idea. The administration has committed many crimes that rise to the level of impeachment — chief among them lying about the need to invade Iraq and sending this country into war based upon those lies. But Congress will not carry out its constitutional duties.
Bush and Cheney must not be allowed to leave office without being held accountable for their behavior. History will not look at the current members of Congress kindly if they fail to do what is right and necessary to preserve our democracy.
Send them all home - W, Uncle Dick, the regime and all elected officials who are allowing the regime to stay in power. Do our elected officials want to really get down to the people's business or do some of them want to continue funding the war machine and maybe line their own next-campaign coffers?

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Fortune tellers or planners?

US Fears Israeli Strike Against Iran Over Latest Nuclear Claim

A claim by President Ahmadinejad that Iran has 3,000 working uranium-enriching centrifuges sent a tremor across the world yesterday amid fears that Israel would respond by bombing the country’s nuclear facilities.
Military sources in Washington said that the existence of such a large number could be a “tipping point”, triggering an Israeli air strike. The Pentagon is reluctant to take military action against Iran, but officials say that Israel is a “different matter”. Amid the international uproar, British MPs who were to have toured the nuclear facility were backing out of their Iran trip.
Even before President Ahmadinejad’s announcement, a US defence official told The Times yesterday: “Israel could do something when they get to around 3,000 working centrifuges. The Pentagon is minded to wait a little longer.” US experts say 3,000 machines running for long periods could make enough enriched uranium for an atomic bomb within a year.
This was one of the scenarios we have been hearing about. Israel attacks, Iran responds, and we walk in to protect Israel.

So are just so good at predicting the future? Sure didn't work in Iraq. Or are we just letting the cat out of the bag - a bag of plans we have handed to Israel?

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Giving Us a Warm Feeling?

Thursday, November 08, 2007

US: Iran Attack Plans Ready if Needed

U.S. defense officials have signaled that up-to-date attack plans are available if needed in the escalating crisis over Iran's nuclear aims, although no strike appears imminent.
The Army and Marine Corps are under enormous strain from years of heavy ground fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. Still, the United States has ample air and naval power to strike Iran if President Bush decided to target nuclear sites or to retaliate for alleged Iranian meddling in neighboring Iraq.
Among the possible targets, in addition to nuclear installations like the centrifuge plant at Natanz: Iran's ballistic missile sites, Republican Guard bases, and naval warfare assets that Tehran could use in a retaliatory closure of the Straits of Hormuz, a vital artery for the flow of Gulf oil.
This might make W all warm and fuzzy but it scares the crap out of me.

Plans are set? What safeguards are there to make sure the plans are not set into motion? Clear we cannot expect Congress to act as a watchdog. And we sure can't expect W and regime to act with sanity...

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A War Crime In Motion

AfterDowningStreet.org reports:
In a debate on Defense spending on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives today, Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) warned against a bunker buster bombing of Iranian nuclear research labs.
“It has been well reported that there is a provision in this bill that will enable the modification of B-2 stealth bombers so that they can drop what is called a ‘bunker buster’ or Massive Ordinance Penetrators (MOP) that would destroy deep underground targets,” Kucinich said.
Kucinich voted against the conference report for Department of Defense FY08 spending because it includes $10 million to convert the 30,000-pound MOP for use on the B-2 bomber.
“Defense analysts have suggested that there is one reason and one reason only why this request was expedited by the Administration and that is retrofit these B-2 bombers so that they’ll be able to drop 30,000-pound bombs on Iranian nuclear research facilities,” Kucinich said.
“We cannot approve the Department of Defense Appropriations Conference Report without thinking about the consequences of the Administrations’ approach. If 30,000 pound bombs – bunker busters – are dropped on nuclear research labs, the release of radiation would create a humanitarian and ecological disaster.
“This is a war crime in motion. Dropping the bunker busters would have human health effects that could be catastrophic.
“Congress needs to think about the implications. Congress needs to oppose a strike in Iran. Diplomacy is the preferred path. That is why I am opposing this conference report today.”
For the past few days, pundits and media were reporting that the drums of war were being muffled - raising some hope. Maybe, just maybe, it was all a tactic to lull everyone into sleep. We'll all be brutally awakened by these bunker busters.

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Impeach them all

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Love it. Wish the other elected officials would listen to the electorate and support impeachment.

If not, maybe we as citizens should impeach them all. Citizen's arrests!

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Kucinich wins

Kucinich a Big Winner Today, Democratic Party a Loser Once More

Dennis Kucinich didn't manage to get Articles of Impeachment passed against Vice President Dick Cheney today but he sure got his point across. The Cleveland area Congressman is slowly picking up steam for his Presidential aspirations because his ideals are a modern day profile in courage. He voted against the war when it meant his political life but was proven correct in his position. Iraq proved to be a bloody mess that was orchestrated, not because of weapons of mass destruction or that Saddam Hussein was an imminent threat, due to the GOP's war mongering propaganda. That was the vote was about today and again his Democratic colleagues were afraid to go vote with their consicience. In the end, Kucinich came out smelling like roses because the GOP took the bait. They wanted to debate the issue to "show the Dems up" and boy wouldn't that have been fun. The Democrats, afraid of political backlash if the debate actually took place, quickly moved the resolution to the Judiciary Committee.
The articles of Impeachment will move to the a committee where they will probably die a slow death. While Kucinich's resolution won't pass or be debated in the full House of Representatives, one imagines that he most likely picked up a lot of strong public support.
He has shown the Party to be what it really is - Republican Lite. He has shown the way things should be done.
If you haven't been paying attention, Kucinich is now 4th in the nationally polling. In the big media his name still bears the label as a "long shot candidate" but the more reasonable people actually see what Kucinich actually stands for the better his chances become. For the record, Congressman Kucinich favors universal health care, college education for free, the end of NAFTA, and peace over war. Those things don't sound bad to me.
I couldn't agree more.

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Fight the PKK in Iran?

Monday, November 05, 2007

Former leader of Kurd rebels reveals retreat into Iran
Turkish Kurd guerrillas are leaving Iraqi Kurdistan for Iran in order to avoid an attack by the Turkish army according to a former leader of the Kurdistan Workers Party, the PKK.
Osman Ocalan, brother of the imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, said: "the PKK has decreased its forces in Iraqi Kurdistan and they are moving to Iran. It is part of PKK tactics that when they feel pressure in one country they move to another."
President George Bush and the Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, are to meet today in Washington to discuss what can be done about the PKK in Iraqi Kurdistan, from which it has been staging attacks on Turkish army units.
"So Recep. Tell you what. You help us, we attack the PKK in Norther Iraq and follow them into Iran. When Iran protests, you help us a little. Okay?"

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30 with brains

AFP: US senators warn Bush has no authority to attack Iran
Thirty US senators wrote to President George W. Bush, warning he had no authority to launch military action against Iran, and expressing concern about the administration's "provocative" rhetoric.
The senators, 29 Democrats and one independent, urged the resolution of disputes with the Islamic republic through diplomacy.
"We wish to emphasize that no congressional authority exists for unilateral military action against Iran," said the letter signed by senators including presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
Another Democratic presidential candidate, Senator Chris Dodd, signed the letter but Senators Barack Obama and Joseph Biden did not.
Hill trying to make up for her recent stupid vote on Iran. Barack - who knows?

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Musharraf borrowing a page from Bush?

Sunday, November 04, 2007

Musharraf: Suspending Constitution Will Help Transition to Democracy
PAKISTAN President Pervez Musharraf has said he has imposed emergency rule to help complete the transition from military to civilian-led democracy, appealing to the international community for understanding.
General Musharraf has suspended Pakistan's constitution, deploying troops and sacking a top judge in a bid to reassert his flagging authority against political rivals and Islamist militants.
Gen Musharraf said Pakistan needed time to reach the level of democracy enjoyed by the West.
Pakistan and the US. Two nation ruled by the military. Two nation's whose leaders totally disregard the Constitution.

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A different face but the same evil!

Mukasey Is (Much) Worse Than Gonzales

Judge Michael B. Mukasey, must be rejected by the Senate Judiciary Committee for the same reason that Gonzales should have been rejected in 2005.
Like Gonzales, Mukasey refuses to accept that the president of the United States must abide by the laws of the land, beginning with the Constitution. In fact, the nominee to replace the worst Attorney General since Calvin Coolidge forced Harry Micajah Daugherty to quit rather than face impeachment is actually takes a more extreme position in defense of an imperial presidency than did Gonzales.
When questioned by Judiciary Committee chair Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont and Constitution sub-committee chair Russ Feingold, D-Wisconsin, during the key hearing on his nomination, Mukasey embraces an interpretation of presidential authority so radical that it virtually guarantees more serious abuses of power by the executive branch.
I thought that W and the rest in DC took an oath to uphold the Constitution.

How does one make a citizen's arrest? I think it's time to put them all behind bars (including anyone voting for Mukie).

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The End of America

Take 45 minutes away from the news about Brit Spears, or O.J., or the latest Teacher-student sex scandal and watch Naomi Wolf talk about her new book (The End of America: Letter of Warning To A Young Patriot). From AlterNet:

Even though her message is frightening, Naomi Wolf wants to assure people that there can be a light at the end of the tunnel. The YouTube video to your right is a terrific speech by Wolf (at Kane Hall on the University of Washington campus) about her provocative new book "The End of America" which talks about the parallels between the Bush Administration's tactics and those of fascist dictatorships of the last century.
The same language, images, manipulation that would-be despots have used in the past to break down existing democracies are being employed now. From Italy in the 1920s, Germany in the 1930s, and on and on, Wolf finds that all these despots do that same things. Mussolini created the blueprint, Hitler followed suit, Stalin studied Hitler and these methods just get passed down to the next generation of dictators throughout the world. Wolf has summarized their method is ten points:
1. Invoke a terrifying internal and external enemy
2. Create a gulag
3. Develop a thug caste
4. Set up an internal surveillance system
5. Harass citizens' groups
6. Engage in arbitrary detention and release
7. Target key individuals
8. Control the press
9. Dissent equals treason
10. Suspend the rule of law
Wolf argues that all of these methods are underway in the United States right now.
A must watch/read for everyone.

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Thank you Vermonters

Friday, November 02, 2007


Calling the Question — In the House — on Impeaching Cheney
A fresh poll conducted for Vermont’s WCAX television station finds that citizens of that state enthusiastically believe that Congress beginning impeachment proceedings against President Bush.
Sixty-one percent of the Vermonters surveyed favor taking steps to impeach the president, while just 33% oppose doing so.
The numbers are even higher for impeaching Cheney. Sixty-four percent of Vermonters favor beginning the process of holding the vice president to account, where only 31 percent are opposed.

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Promise or threat?

Bush: No attorney general if not Mukasey
President Bush sought to save Michael Mukasey's troubled nomination for attorney general Thursday, defending the retired judge's refusal to say whether he considers waterboarding torture and warning of a leaderless Justice Department if Democrats do not confirm him.
"If the Senate Judiciary Committee were to block Judge Mukasey on these grounds, they would set a new standard for confirmation that could not be met by any responsible nominee for attorney general," Bush said in a speech at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
"That would guarantee that America would have no attorney general during this time of war," the president said.
Based on his choice of AGes - that works for me. Or else W can stop the war...

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How old will you be in 50 years?

Abizaid: Mideast wars may last 50 years

It might take as long as half a century before U.S. troops can leave the volatile Middle East, according to retired Army Gen. John Abizaid.
"Over time, we will have to shift the burden of the military fight from our forces directly to regional forces, and we will have to play an indirect role, but we shouldn't assume for even a minute that in the next 25 to 50 years the American military might be able to come home, relax and take it easy, because the strategic situation in the region doesn't seem to show that as being possible," Abizaid said Wednesday at Carnegie Mellon University.
Abi is correct if W stays in power or if we are stupid enough to elect someone wanting to continue the Iron Hand diplomacy we have seen these past 7 years.

You know, it really won't matter how old you will be. This nation will be so far in debt we'll all wish we were six feet under.

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15 years of hard labor for Bush

Thursday, November 01, 2007

President defends nominee’s refusal to say whether procedure is torture

President Bush, seeking to salvage the nomination of Michael Mukasey as attorney general, on Thursday defended the former judge’s refusal to say whether he considers waterboarding as illegal torture.
Bush said it was unfair to ask Mukasey about interrogation techniques on which he has not been briefed. “He doesn’t know whether we use that technique or not,” the president told a group of reporters invited into the Oval Office.
Further, Bush said, “It doesn’t make any sense to tell the enemy whether we use those techniques or not.”
No, don't tell the "enemy" but tell the world. It was declared a war crime before and it still is...
...in 1947, the United States charged a Japanese officer, Yukio Asano, with war crimes for carrying out another form of waterboarding on a U.S. civilian. The subject was strapped on a stretcher that was tilted so that his feet were in the air and head near the floor, and small amounts of water were poured over his face, leaving him gasping for air until he agreed to talk. "Asano was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor," Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) told his colleagues last Thursday during the debate on military commissions legislation. "We punished people with 15 years of hard labor when waterboarding was used against Americans in World War II," he said.
15 years of hard labor for W and regime sounds just about right.

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