Fraudonomics

Regarding those drone strikes

2012-01-31T17:13:00.002-06:00

Either Obama has not been fully briefed on the drone program or he is one of the greatest liars of modern times.

Noam Chomsky - Why are US Troops in Afghanistan

2012-01-16T09:50:00.001-06:00

Gulf of Tonkin

2012-01-14T11:32:00.001-06:00

8th-grader killed by Texas police had pellet gun

2012-01-04T21:11:00.001-06:00

(CBS/AP) BROWNSVILLE, Texas - Police say the weapon a Texas eighth-grader pointed at officers in a school hallway before they killed him was a pellet gun that looked like a real handgun.

Interim Brownsville Police Chief Orlando Rodriguez says 15-year-old Jaime Gonzalez had "plenty of opportunities" to lower the weapon but "didn't want to."

Rodriguez says two officers fired three shots and struck Gonzalez at least twice.

Police are awaiting the results of an autopsy.

Link

Standard Operating Procedure [Full Film]

2012-01-03T16:53:00.002-06:00

Fed Reserve bailing out Europe

2011-12-28T22:59:00.001-06:00

CNN bias exposed

2011-12-28T21:18:00.005-06:00

In my opinion, CNN cannot be trusted to provide factual information.

Look at the poll results.

Now look at this banner that was displayed throughout the interview.

Next, watch this disgusting hit job on Gary Johnson (if you can stand it).

These were all innocent mistakes and misunderstandings - must watch video

2011-12-26T21:13:00.006-06:00

“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.”
–Joseph Goebbels

Ever wonder why America has been declared to be part of the battlefield by the criminals in Congress? I think it is because they know that their lawlessness will eventually blow up in their faces. When it does, the mask will be totally removed and they will begin taking drastic action against dissenters.

Tortured and Murdered by the sheriff's department

2011-12-25T21:54:00.004-06:00

Although the coroner ruled the death a homicide, law enforcement determined that no crime was committed.

China, Japan to Back Direct Trade of Currencies

2011-12-25T09:21:00.000-06:00

Print Back to story

China, Japan to Back Direct Trade of Currencies

By Toru Fujioka - Dec 25, 2011

Japan and China will promote direct trading of yen and yuan without using dollars and will encourage the development of a market for the exchange, to cut costs for companies, the Japanese government said.

Japan will also apply to buy Chinese bonds next year, the Japanese government said in a statement after a meeting between Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in Beijing today.

The deals between the world’s second and third-largest economies come as the two-year-old European debt crisis keeps global financial markets volatile. Japan will start to buy “a small amount” of China’s bonds, a Japanese government official said on condition of anonymity because of the ministry’s policy, without elaborating on when and how much of the debt the nation plans to purchase.

“Given the huge size of the trade volume between the Asia’s two biggest economies, this agreement is much more significant than any other pacts China has signed with other nations,” said Ren Xianfang, a Beijing-based economist with IHS Global Insight Ltd.

Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Dec. 20 buying of Chinese bonds would be beneficial for Japan because it would help reveal more information about financial markets in China, the world’s largest holder of foreign currency reserves.

Biggest Trading Partner

Encouraging direct yen-yuan trades will aim to reduce currency risks and trading costs, Japan’s government said. Currently, about 60 percent of trade transactions between the two nations are settled in dollars, according to Japan’s Finance Ministry. China is Japan’s biggest trading partner.

Then-finance minister Noda said in September 2010 that Japan should be able to invest in China’s market given that China buys Japanese debt. Japan holds $1.3 trillion of foreign- currency reserves, the world’s second largest.

Austria has already been granted the eligibility to buy Chinese bonds, according to the Japanese government official. Central banks from Thailand to Nigeria plan to start buying yuan assets as slowing global growth has capped interest rates in the U.S. and Europe.

Investing in Chinese debt has become easier for central banks as issuance of yuan-denominated bonds in Hong Kong more than tripled to 112 billion yuan ($18 billion) this year and institutions were granted quotas to invest onshore.

China sold the second-biggest net amount of Japanese debt on record in October as the yen headed for a postwar high against the dollar and benchmark yields approached their lowest levels in a year. It cut Japanese debt by 853 billion yen, Japan’s Ministry of Finance said on Dec. 8.

Separately, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, JGC Corp., Mizuho Corporate Bank Ltd., the Export-Import Bank of China and other Chinese companies will establish a $154 million fund to invest in environment-related businesses such as recycling and energy, the Japanese government said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Toru Fujioka in Tokyo at tfujioka1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Paul Panckhurst at ppanckhurst@bloomberg.net

John Pilger answers Obama's claim that US military is "finest fighting force in history"

2011-12-24T11:49:00.000-06:00

What if China or Russia invaded America? (Just Imagine)

2011-12-22T18:56:00.001-06:00

We Killed Your Daughter; You're Under Arrest

2011-12-22T12:26:00.002-06:00

by William Grigg

Courtesy of LewRockwell.com

"Daniel Hiler ran out of gas during an evening motorcycle ride in Oildale, California on December 16. While walking his bike to a gas station, the twenty-year-old father of two ran into a family friend named Chrystal Jolley. The pair was crossing a street at a widely-recognized intersection when they were fatally blindsided by a vehicle traveling at a speed well in excess of the posted speed limit. Despite the fact that darkness had descended, the driver hadn’t turned on his headlights. The victims were killed instantly.

Within minutes, police swarmed the scene, and arrests were made — none of which involved the driver, Deputy John Swearengin of the Kern County Sheriff’s Office. The four people arrested were relatives of the victims, who got into what the Sheriff’s Office described as an “altercation” with California Highway Patrol officers when they attempted to identify the victims.

"I was at home on Friday night working on my car when someone came running over and told me that a deputy ran over my daughter in the street,” recalls Jimmy Clevenger, Jolley’s father. “I ran down here, I was very upset…. The next thing I know, they had me by the neck and threw me to the ground and said I resisted arrest. My daughter was dead in the street and it was their fault.”

The outraged relatives were taken to jail, and face criminal charges. Swearengin, the killer, was taken to the hospital and wasn’t compelled to undergo drug or alcohol screening

The posted local speed limit (for Mundanes, of course) is 45 miles per hour. According to several on-scene accounts from horrified witnesses, Swearengin blew through the intersection at a speed of 75–90 miles per hour. Despite the fact that he was obviously in a hurry, Swearengin didn’t activate his siren or running lights — or, according to at least one eyewitness, his headlights.

Sheriff Donny Youngblood told the Bakersfield Californian that the deputy “was responding to a report of a stolen vehicle with a suspect still at the scene” when he struck his victims. This would mean that he was not involved in a high-speed pursuit. Furthermore, as some skeptical witnesses pointed out, the main office of the Sheriff’s Department is about a mile or two west of the intersection where Swearengin killed Hiler and Jolley — and he was headed that direction at the time of the incident. This suggests that the deputy wasn’t motivated by an urgent call from an isolated and over-matched comrade, but rather engaging in a favorite pastime of uniformed adolescents — “Kickin’ ass and drivin’ fast.”

Some residents of Oildale, a suburb of Bakersfield, describe the Kern County Sheriff’s Deputies as notorious for their habit of speeding through the town’s narrow streets, blithely ignoring speed limits without bothering to activate their lights or sirens.

“They have no consideration for the other public,” objects Michelle Cameron, a distant relative of Jolley. Her assessment is seconded by Forrest Faulkner, an 11-year resident of Oildale who claims to know and be on good terms with most of the department. “They’re great people,” Faulkner maintains, even as he criticizes the department’s habit of putting the public at risk by needlessly reckless driving. “I’ve seen sparks fly from the car’s undercarriage when they hit a dip,” Faulkner recounts.

Under section 192 [c][2] of California state law, the deaths of Hiler and Jolley resulted from an act of vehicular homicide -- one involving “gross negligence,” and therefore a felony. No charges have been filed against Swearengin, and the deputy faces only an “administrative” inquiry, rather than a criminal investigation. The outcome of the administrative procedure isn’t exactly shrouded in mystery.

“What gets me is we already know the outcome,” complained Anna Rodriguez, one of Hiler’s friends, to a local reporter. “The officer will go on paid suspension. Then they will say he didn’t do anything wrong. And that will be the end of it.”"

The Two-Minute Case for Ron Paul

2011-12-21T22:55:00.002-06:00

The Road to Tyranny

2011-12-08T23:17:00.001-06:00

All you need to know about Fast and Furious

2011-12-08T21:29:00.001-06:00

Newt Gingrich in 60 Seconds

2011-12-06T21:08:00.001-06:00

Dasht-e-Leili massacre? Never Heard of It

2011-12-01T21:59:00.000-06:00

Bush, Blair found guilty of war crimes in Malaysia tribunal

2011-11-27T11:32:00.001-06:00

Bob Schieffer, Ron Paul and journalistic “objectivity”

2011-11-25T07:21:00.002-06:00

This is a great article about the corruption of integrity within the mainstream press.

"CBS News‘s Bob Schieffer is the classic American establishment TV journalist: unfailingly deferential to the politically powerful personalities who parade before him, and religiously devoted to what he considers his own “objectivity,” which ostensibly requires that he never let his personal opinions affect or be revealed by his journalism. Watch how thoroughly and even proudly he dispenses with both of those traits when interviewing Ron Paul last Sunday on Face the Nation regarding Paul’s foreign policy views. In this 7-minute clip, Schieffer repeatedly mocks, scoffs at, and displays his obvious contempt for, two claims of Paul’s which virtually no prominent politician of either party would dare express: (1) American interference and aggression in the Muslim world fuels anti-American sentiment and was thus part of the motivation for the 9/11 attack; and (2) American hostility and aggression toward Iran (in the form of sanctions and covert attacks) are more likely to exacerbate problems and lead to war than lead to peaceful resolution, which only dialogue with the Iranians can bring about:

LINK."

John Perkins, "Our Economy has been Stolen by Robber Barons"

2011-11-21T20:40:00.000-06:00

SWAT Team Kills Marine Veteran at Home

2011-11-04T08:35:00.003-05:00

Courthouse News Service

"TUCSON (CN) - A widow says a regional SWAT team killed her husband, a Marine veteran, in a botched raid not even aimed at him, riddling their house with 72 bullets while she and their 4-year-old son were in it.
Vanessa Guerena says police refused to allow paramedics to help her husband, 26-year-old Jose Guerena, after the SWAT team shot him repeatedly while serving a search warrant on May 5.
"No shots were ever fired at members of the Pima Regional SWAT Team from inside the Guerena home," the widow says in her Pima County Court complaint. She says her husband was "peacefully sleeping in his bed" after returning home from the night shift at a mine when the police killed him.
"After the shooting, the Pima Regional SWAT Team denied entry to anyone, including paramedics, into the Guerena home for over an hour."
The raid apparently was aimed at her husband's brother, who did not live with them.
Guerena says that the affidavit in support of the search warrant "misrepresented and failed to include complete and material information about Joseph Guerena."
The complaint states: "The Pima Regional SWAT Team was serving a warrant based on an alleged investigation into the activities of Jose Guerena's brother, Alejandro Guerena, who was not a resident of Jose Guerena's home. No evidence was found that Jose Guerena was engaging in criminal activity, that any criminal activity was occurring at Jose Guerena's home, or that any evidence of criminal activity would be found in the Guerena home."
Tucson media reported that the SWAT team shot Guerena more than 20 times.
Guerena says that when she pleaded with officers to allow paramedics to care for her wounded husband, "Rather than provide help, the Pima Regional SWAT team forcefully and violently drug [sic] Vanessa Guerena from her home. A frightened, crying, and traumatized Joel Guerena, age four, exited a short time later of his own volition wearing his Spider-Man pajamas.
"Over an hour after the shooting and after sending in two robots, members of the Pima Regional SWAT Team finally entered the Guerena home where Jose Guerena was pronounced dead a short time later."
In addition to shooting the blazes out of their home, Guerena says the SWAT team took "many personal items" from the home and their car, which are "entirely unrelated to any investigation," and have refused to return them.
"After the shooting, the shooters were not immediately separated and were allowed to discuss amongst themselves what occurred. The officers who interviewed the shooters a short time after the shooting often asked the shooters leading questions improperly suggesting what testimony they should give about what occurred during the shooting," the widow says.
She sued Pima County and five members of the Pima Regional SWAT Team, the towns of Marana, Oro Valley and Sahuraita, and Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik.
Guerena seeks unspecified damages for negligence.
She is represented by Partick Broom with Haralson Miller of Tucson."

Tragedies such as this one would occur much less frequently if the people who are responsible for them were held accountable. In most cases, the worst possible outcome for the government is that after years of fighting in civil court a monetary penalty will be assessed and it will be paid by taxpayers. The laws should be changed so that people who commit murders, such as this one, are criminally prosecuted and held personally liable for damages.

I don't expect that this will happen anytime soon.

Clinton on Qaddafi: "We came, we saw, he died" - Political Hotsheet - CBS News

2011-10-24T22:33:00.002-05:00

I am convinced that Clinton is insane after watching the video.

Clinton on Qaddafi: "We came, we saw, he died" - Political Hotsheet - CBS News

"Secretary of State Hillary Clinton shared a laugh with a television news reporter moments after hearing deposed Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi had been killed.

"We came, we saw, he died," she joked when told of news reports of Qaddafi's death by an aide in between formal interviews.

Clinton was in Tripoli earlier this week for talks with leaders of Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC).

The reporter asked if Qaddafi's death had anything to do with her surprise visit to show support for the Libyan people.

"No," she replied, before rolling her eyes and saying "I'm sure it did" with a chuckle."

Michel Chossudovsky - NATO, Libya, OWS, Greece

2011-10-22T22:34:00.002-05:00

Michel Chossudovsky - OWS, Libya, and more

2011-10-22T22:18:00.003-05:00

Libya

2011-10-22T12:52:00.000-05:00

Occupy Minnesota

2011-10-09T19:21:00.000-05:00

Justification for the murder of an American?

2011-10-04T22:17:00.004-05:00

I think not. This is the first small step in what will someday be the murder of political enemies in the name of national security. This government has crossed the Rubicon in so many areas that it is hard to imagine how it can ever be unwound.

White shirt violence

2011-09-28T11:11:00.001-05:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

BBC Interview - "Goldman Sachs Rules the World"

2011-09-26T11:36:00.001-05:00

Keeping you safe in New York

2011-09-25T21:23:00.002-05:00

Welcome to Boston, Mr. Rumsfeld. You Are Under Arrest

2011-09-20T22:37:00.001-05:00

This is something that you must read if you are interested in the truth about how far this country has fallen.

Warning - if you have a soul, it will sicken you.

Welcome to Boston, Mr. Rumsfeld. You Are Under Arrest

Mom Says Prickly School Cop Killed Her Son

2011-09-14T20:51:00.001-05:00

Courthouse News Service

" SAN ANTONIO (CN) - A 14-year-old boy got into a fight at a school bus stop and the school district's police officer responded by shooting him to death, the boy's mother says. She says the cop had been reprimanded 16 times in the previous 4 years, suspended without pay 5 times, and "recommended for termination for insubordination," but the school kept him on the force "without remedial training.""

Massive CIA cover-up: 'US hushes blatant human rights violations'

2011-09-13T19:30:00.002-05:00

Lawrence Wilkerson - Day of Reckoning is Coming

2011-09-12T13:39:00.001-05:00

General Albert N. Stubblebine (retired)

2011-09-07T16:24:00.001-05:00

History of government experiments on humans

2011-09-02T22:28:00.000-05:00

Cables Reveal 2006 Summary Execution of Civilian Family in Iraq -- News from Antiwar.com

2011-08-30T11:13:00.002-05:00

Cables Reveal 2006 Summary Execution of Civilian Family in Iraq -- News from Antiwar.com

"As revealed by a State Department diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks last week, US forces committed a heinous war crime during a house raid in Iraq in 2006, wherein one man, four women, two children, and three infants were summarily executed.

The cable excerpts a letter written by Philip Alston, Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions, addressed to then Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice. American troops approached the home of Faiz Harrat Al-Majma’ee, a farmer living in central Iraq, to conduct a house raid in search of insurgents in March of 2006.

“It would appear that when the MNF [Multinational Forces] approached the house,” Alston wrote, “shots were fired from it and a confrontation ensued” before the “troops entered the house, handcuffed all residents and executed all of them.” Mr. Faiz Hratt Khalaf, (aged 28), his wife Sumay’ya Abdul Razzaq Khuther (aged 24), their three children Hawra’a (aged 5) Aisha ( aged 3) and Husam (5 months old), Faiz’s mother Ms. Turkiya Majeed Ali (aged 74), Faiz’s sister (name unknown), Faiz’s nieces Asma’a Yousif Ma’arouf (aged 5 years old), and Usama Yousif Ma’arouf (aged 3 years), and a visiting relative Ms. Iqtisad Hameed Mehdi (aged 23) were killed during the raid.

Alston’s letter reveals that a US airstrike was launched on the house presumably to destroy the evidence, but that “autopsies carried out at the Tikrit Hospital’s morgue revealed that all corpses were shot in the head and handcuffed.”

The details revealed in the cable are a valuable insight into how many of these house raids turn out. The raids, often carried out in the middle of the night, have become one of the primary strategies of the US war in Afghanistan, with tens of thousands orchestrated just in the last year.

In one notable and comparable incident in February of 2010, US Special Operations Forces surrounded a house in a village in the Paktia Province in Afghanistan. Two civilian men exited the home to ask why they had been surrounded and were shot and killed. US forces then shot and killed three female relatives (a pregnant mother of ten, a pregnant mother of six, and a teenager).

Instead of calling in an airstrike to hide the evidence, US troops, realizing their mistake, lied and tampered with the evidence at the scene. The initial claim, which was corroborated by the Pentagon, was that the two men were insurgents who had “engaged” the troops, and the three murdered women were simply found by US soldiers, in what they described as an apparent honor killing. Investigations into the incident eventually forced the Pentagon to retract its initial story and issue an apology.

Civilian deaths are a common occurrence in these commonly occurring raid operations. In May, NATO killed another four civilians in a night raid, and another three in early August. No soldiers or US officials have been held to account."

Trading video

2011-08-08T07:32:00.001-05:00

Debt Limit Debate

2011-08-01T21:44:00.002-05:00

Liars Loans, the IRS, and Wells Fargo

2011-07-26T20:41:00.003-05:00

Two very interesting articles which compare how an individual is punished versus how a too big to fail bank is punished for the the same offense. The manner in which the government developed its case against the individual is both terrifying and disgusting. America is not the land of the free anymore.

In Prison for Taking a Liar Loan

This is Considered Punishment?

Making America Safer

2011-07-15T22:30:00.000-05:00

Time to start paying attention folks

2011-06-11T22:15:00.000-05:00

Drop Weapons

2011-06-11T19:26:00.000-05:00

News or Propaganda?

2011-06-06T21:10:00.001-05:00

Bush Insider Talks about 9-11

2011-06-05T22:03:00.001-05:00

Miami Beach Police Ordered Videographer At Gunpoint To Hand Over Phone | Pixiq

2011-06-05T12:11:00.001-05:00

Miami Beach Police Ordered Videographer At Gunpoint To Hand Over Phone | Pixiq

"Miami Beach police did their best to destroy a citizen video that shows them shooting a man to death in a hail of bullets Memorial Day.

First, police pointed their guns at the man who shot the video, according to a Miami Herald interview with the videographer.

Then they ordered the man and his girlfriend out the car and threw them down to the ground, yelling “you want to be fucking paparazzi?”

Then they snatched the cell phone from his hand and slammed it to the ground before stomping on it. Then they placed the smashed phone in the videographer's back pocket as he was laying down on the ground.

And finally, they took him to a mobile command center where they snapped his photo and demanded the phone again, then took him to police headquarters where they conducted a recorded interview with him before releasing him.

But what they didn’t know was that Narces Benoit had removed the SIM card and hid it in his mouth, which means the video survived.

Benoit showed the video to Miami Herald reporters on Thursday, who described it in their article.

The three-minute video captured on Narces Benoit’s HTC EVO phone begins as officers crowd around the east side of Herisse’s car with guns drawn. Roughly 15 seconds into the video, officers open fire.

Benoit filmed the incident from the sidewalk on the northeast corner of 13th Street and Collins Avenue, close enough to see some officers’ faces and individual muzzle flashes.

Shortly after the gunfire ends, an officer points at Benoit and police can be heard yelling for him to turn off the camera. The voices are muffled at times. The 35-year-old car stereo technician drops his hand with the camera and hurries back to his Ford Expedition parked further east on 13th Street.

The video shows Benoit get into the car, where his girlfriend, Ericka Davis, sat in the driver’s seat. He raises his camera and an officer is seen appearing on the driver’s side with his gun drawn, pointed at them.

The video ends as more officers are heard yelling expletives, telling the couple to turn the video off and get out of the car.

“They put guns to our heads and threw us on the ground,” Davis said.

Benoit has not posted it on Youtube because he is asking to be compensated. But it sounds as if he won’t have much trouble getting compensated through a settlement with the police department.

However, he first must post the video for the world to see.

Benoit and his girlfriend also said police smashed several phones from other witnesses, so hopefully they were able to recover the videos as well.

The new details emerged a day after police announced they had found a gun in the car they had shot up.

It took police two-and-a-half days to find the gun in the Hyundai but they still haven’t determined if it was discharged that night.

For all we know, it could have been locked away in the trunk of the car.

Four innocent bystanders were shot during that shooting, most likely from police bullets.

Also, an hour after that shooting, another officer shot at a man who she believed was driving towards her. But he turned out to be allegedly drunk, which is why he was driving erratically and eventually into a police cruiser."

The Future of Gold and the Dollar

2011-06-03T21:36:00.002-05:00

Dr. Morici is a bit grumpy in this interview but the information that he shares more than makes up for it.

WSJ: Goldman Traded $1.3 Billion in Libyan Funds

2011-05-31T20:42:00.000-05:00

WSJ: Goldman Traded $1.3 Billion in Libyan Funds

"Goldman Sachs invested more than $1.3 billion from Libya's sovereign-wealth fund in currency bets and other trades in 2008 and the investment lost more than 98 percent of its value, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing internal Goldman documents.

When the fund, controlled by Col. Muammar Gaddafi, made huge losses Goldman offered Libya the chance to become one of its biggest shareholders, the Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Goldman Sachs was not available for comment, outside of normal U.S. business hours.

Among the different proposals put forward by Goldman Sachs to recoup the losses was one in which Libya would get $5 billion in preferred Goldman shares in return for investing $3.7 billion into the securities firm, the paper added.

The documents also show that company Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein, its finance chief David Viniar and top executive Michael Sherwood were involved in discussions in this regard, the Journal reported.

The Libyan fund had apparently paid $1.3 billion for options on a basket of currencies and on six stocks — Citigroup Inc., Italian bank UniCredit SpA, Spanish bank Banco Santander, German insurance giant Allianz, French energy company Électricité de France and Italian energy company Eni SpA, the report said.

NATO Strikes Kill 32 Afghan Civilians and 20 Police -- News from Antiwar.com

2011-05-30T20:51:00.001-05:00

NATO Strikes Kill 32 Afghan Civilians and 20 Police -- News from Antiwar.com

"NATO air strikes have killed at least 52 Afghans over the past 24 hours, including 32 civilians and 20 members of the police. The deaths came in two strikes, one in the Helmand Province and another in Nuristan.

The Helmand strike, late Saturday, saw NATO attack helicopters destroy a pair of homes, killing 2 women and 12 children. The strikes also wounded six other civilians. Helmand’s governor’s office said the attack came after a nearby US Marine base was struck by insurgents.

The other strike came on Sunday, in the Nuristan Province. Here, US warplanes responded to reports of a battle between insurgents and security forces by opening fire on a group of people they assumed were insurgents. The people turned out to be a group of 18 civilians and 20 police.

The deaths, which Nuristan Governor Jamaluddin Badr termed “friendly fire,” came after the Taliban reportedly ran out of ammunition and fled the clashes in the district. NATO has promised to investigate both series killings."

Jefferson Memorial Follow-up

2011-05-30T18:53:00.000-05:00

Jefferson Memorial Arrests

2011-05-28T20:30:00.002-05:00

David Stockman on Bloomberg TV

2011-05-23T22:41:00.001-05:00

cryptogon.com » Fukushima: Workers Suffer from Internal Radiation Exposure

2011-05-23T19:30:00.001-05:00

cryptogon.com » Fukushima: Workers Suffer from Internal Radiation Exposure

"The government has discovered thousands of cases of workers at nuclear power plants outside Fukushima Prefecture suffering from internal exposure to radiation after they visited the prefecture, the head of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said.

Most of the workers who had internal exposure to radiation visited Fukushima after the nuclear crisis broke out following the March 11 quake and tsunami, and apparently inhaled radioactive substances scattered by hydrogen explosions at the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant.

The revelation has prompted local municipalities in Fukushima to consider checking residents’ internal exposure to radiation.

Nobuaki Terasaka, head of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, told the House of Representatives Budget Committee on May 16 that there were a total of 4,956 cases of workers suffering from internal exposure to radiation at nuclear power plants in the country excluding the Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant, and 4,766 of them involved workers originally from Fukushima who had visited the prefecture after the nuclear crisis. Terasaka revealed the data in his response to a question from Mito Kakizawa, a lawmaker from Your Party."

Monetary Policy

2011-05-22T16:19:00.001-05:00

Pastor Dowell

2011-05-20T14:54:00.001-05:00

Ron Paul on the NeoCons

2011-05-17T21:20:00.000-05:00

Afghan Boy Is Killed in NATO Raid - NYTimes.com

2011-05-14T18:12:00.000-05:00

Afghan Boy Is Killed in NATO Raid - NYTimes.com

"KABUL, Afghanistan — For the second time in three days, a night raid in eastern Afghanistan by NATO forces resulted in the death of a child, setting off protests on Saturday that turned violent and ended in the death of a second boy.

A NATO spokesman apologized for the child’s death, which took place early Saturday in western Nangahar Province in the Hesarek District, a remote poppy-growing area close to Kabul Province and Logar Province. There has been almost no NATO presence there throughout the war, and the area is thought to be heavily penetrated by the Taliban.

The district governor, Abdul Khalid, said he had feared a Taliban attack on the government center and had called for help from local Afghan security forces. At the same time, there was a raid, he said. “American forces did an operation and mistakenly killed a fourth-grade student; he had gone to sleep in his field and had a shotgun next to him,” he said.

“People keep shotguns with them for hunting, not for any other purposes,” Mr. Khalid said.

The boy was the son of an Afghan National Army soldier, according to Noor Alam, the headmaster of the school the student attended. Although the boy was 15, like many rural Afghans, he was in a lower grade because he had not been able to go to school regularly, local residents said.

When morning came, an angry crowd gathered in Narra, the boy’s village, and more than 200 people marched with his body to the district center. Some of the men were armed and confronted the police, shouting anti-American slogans and throwing rocks at police vehicles and the Hesarek government center, according to the district governor and the headmaster.

The police opened fire in an effort to push back the crowd to stop its advance to the district center. A 14-year-old boy was killed, and at least one other person was wounded, Mr. Khalid said.

“The police had to defend themselves; therefore, they fired some warning shots,” he said.

On Thursday, a night raid by international forces in Nangahar Province resulted in the death of a 12-year-old girl and her uncle, who was a member of the Afghan National Police.

Elsewhere in eastern Afghanistan, there was a car bombing directed at a joint Afghan and coalition patrol on Saturday. The explosion, in Yaqoubi District, injured eight civilians, including six children, according to Faisal Mohammed, a doctor at the hospital in Khost City."

Report: NATO Air Strike in Brega Kills 11 Imams -- News from Antiwar.com

2011-05-14T18:02:00.000-05:00

Report: NATO Air Strike in Brega Kills 11 Imams -- News from Antiwar.com

"According to reports coming out of the disputed city, a NATO air strike has hit a peace delegation in Brega, Libya, killing 11 Muslims clerics as they slept. Images of the slain imams were broadcast on Libyan state television.

The state media reported 16 people killed, including the imams, and 40 others wounded when an air strike hit the government “guest house” in the city. This was apparently where the peace delegation was staying.

NATO said it had no information about who was killed in Brega, but confirmed launching a number of air strikes against the city. They insisted the strikes targeted “command and control” centers and did serious damage to the military.

Control of Brega has been regularly contested by the rebels and the regime, and is currently mostly under regime control. It is one of only a handful of cities still being contested as the conflict has ended mostly in a stalemate."

Wilkerson: Capturing bin Laden not a priority for Bush

2011-05-12T10:53:00.000-05:00

Government secretly pays victims injured by vaccinations

2011-05-11T07:53:00.003-05:00

The degree to which the U.S. government routinely lies to the public is astonishing. It would be interesting to know why the government pays for these injuries rather than the manufacturers of the vaccines. This story is further evidence of a centrally-planned fascist economy rather than a capitalist economy.

Guernica / Noam Chomsky: My Reaction to Osama bin Laden’s Death

2011-05-07T21:05:00.000-05:00

Guernica / Noam Chomsky: My Reaction to Osama bin Laden’s Death

"It’s increasingly clear that the operation was a planned assassination, multiply violating elementary norms of international law. There appears to have been no attempt to apprehend the unarmed victim, as presumably could have been done by 80 commandos facing virtually no opposition—except, they claim, from his wife, who lunged towards them. In societies that profess some respect for law, suspects are apprehended and brought to fair trial. I stress “suspects.” In April 2002, the head of the FBI, Robert Mueller, informed the press that after the most intensive investigation in history, the FBI could say no more than that it “believed” that the plot was hatched in Afghanistan, though implemented in the UAE and Germany. What they only believed in April 2002, they obviously didn’t know 8 months earlier, when Washington dismissed tentative offers by the Taliban (how serious, we do not know, because they were instantly dismissed) to extradite bin Laden if they were presented with evidence—which, as we soon learned, Washington didn’t have. Thus Obama was simply lying when he said, in his White House statement, that “we quickly learned that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by al Qaeda.”

Nothing serious has been provided since. There is much talk of bin Laden’s “confession,” but that is rather like my confession that I won the Boston Marathon. He boasted of what he regarded as a great achievement.

There is also much media discussion of Washington’s anger that Pakistan didn’t turn over bin Laden, though surely elements of the military and security forces were aware of his presence in Abbottabad. Less is said about Pakistani anger that the U.S. invaded their territory to carry out a political assassination. Anti-American fervor is already very high in Pakistan, and these events are likely to exacerbate it. The decision to dump the body at sea is already, predictably, provoking both anger and skepticism in much of the Muslim world.

We might ask ourselves how we would be reacting if Iraqi commandos landed at George W. Bush’s compound, assassinated him, and dumped his body in the Atlantic. Uncontroversially, his crimes vastly exceed bin Laden’s, and he is not a “suspect” but uncontroversially the “decider” who gave the orders to commit the “supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole” (quoting the Nuremberg Tribunal) for which Nazi criminals were hanged: the hundreds of thousands of deaths, millions of refugees, destruction of much of the country, the bitter sectarian conflict that has now spread to the rest of the region.

There’s more to say about [Cuban airline bomber Orlando] Bosch, who just died peacefully in Florida, including reference to the “Bush doctrine” that societies that harbor terrorists are as guilty as the terrorists themselves and should be treated accordingly. No one seemed to notice that Bush was calling for invasion and destruction of the U.S. and murder of its criminal president.

Same with the name, Operation Geronimo. The imperial mentality is so profound, throughout western society, that no one can perceive that they are glorifying bin Laden by identifying him with courageous resistance against genocidal invaders. It’s like naming our murder weapons after victims of our crimes: Apache, Tomahawk… It’s as if the Luftwaffe were to call its fighter planes “Jew” and “Gypsy.”

There is much more to say, but even the most obvious and elementary facts should provide us with a good deal to think about.

US Drone Strikes Kill at Least 17 in North Waziristan -- News from Antiwar.com

2011-05-06T22:49:00.000-05:00

It is interesting how the U.S. claims to "protect" civilians in Libya while it routinely murders civilians in Pakistan. If the killing of civilians with missiles fired from drones is not a form of terrorism, what is it?

In my opinion, the "war on terror" should have ended with the alleged killing of Bin Laden. The perpetrators of 9/11 all died in the attack (suicide). Now the person who allegedly ordered the attack has been "brought to justice." Mission accomplished.

US Drone Strikes Kill at Least 17 in North Waziristan -- News from Antiwar.com

"Multiple missile strikes from US Predator drones hit the North Waziristan Agency today, killing at least 17 “suspects” and wounding an unknown number of others. The strikes destroyed a housing compound as well as a vehicle in Datta Khel.

The attacks targeted a region that is believed to have large numbers of militant factions, and was the first one to hit Pakistan since the Sunday raid into Abbottabad. The strikes have been hugely unpopular across Pakistan.

Increasingly the Pakistani military has been condemning the strikes, and several of the recent strikes killed large numbers of civilians and tribesmen allied with the government. This has added to anger about the attacks, which were already under renewed scrutiny after the Raymond Davis affair.

Today’s strike suggests that those demands to end the attacks have not been heeded, and the Zardari government, already embarrassed by the suggestion that Sunday’s bin Laden raid will become a precedent for a more aggressive collection of US ground attacks, will likely have to react, or face more loss of legitimacy."

Osama bin Laden dead: Blackout during raid on bin Laden compound - Telegraph

2011-05-05T15:02:00.000-05:00

As cynical as I am, I still cannot believe how many official statements regarding the raid on the "mansion/compound" in Pakistan have proven to be lies. How can we believe anything that they tell us?

Please do your own research.

Osama bin Laden dead: Blackout during raid on bin Laden compound - Telegraph

"Leon Panetta, director of the CIA, revealed there was a 25 minute blackout during which the live feed from cameras mounted on the helmets of the US special forces was cut off.

A photograph released by the White House appeared to show the President and his aides in the situation room watching the action as it unfolded. In fact they had little knowledge of what was happening in the compound.

In an interview with PBS, Mr Panetta said: "Once those teams went into the compound I can tell you that there was a time period of almost 20 or 25 minutes where we really didn't know just exactly what was going on. And there were some very tense moments as we were waiting for information."

NATO Air Strike Kills 10 Guards for Own Supply Convoy in Ghazni -- News from Antiwar.com

2011-05-04T11:36:00.000-05:00

NATO Air Strike Kills 10 Guards for Own Supply Convoy in Ghazni -- News from Antiwar.com

"The latest in a growing series of embarrassing air strike incidents in Afghanistan came early today, when forces attacked their own supply convoy, killing 10 guards. Local police say they are investigating the killings.

NATO confirmed the air strike but initially termed everyone “suspected insurgents.” Since they were all also NATO contractors protecting a supply convoy, this claim was eventually replaced with claims that officials were “aware” of the incident.

Deputy Provincial Policy Chief Mohammad Hussain Yaqoubi speculated that the NATO attack helicopters didn’t recognize their own guards, and launched the attack as a case of mistaken identity.

The slain were employees of the Watan Risk Management company, a popular contractor for international forces. NATO said they found several machine guns after the strike, but officials confirmed they belonged to the employees."

In bin Laden killing, media -- as usual -- regurgitates false Government claims - Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com

2011-05-03T23:26:00.000-05:00

In bin Laden killing, media -- as usual -- regurgitates false Government claims - Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com

"Virtually every major newspaper account of the killing of Osama bin Laden consists of faithful copying of White House claims. That's not surprising: it's the White House which is in exclusive possession of the facts, but what's also not surprising is that many of the claims that were disseminated yesterday turned out to be utterly false. And no matter how many times this happens -- from Jessica Lynch's heroic firefight against Iraqi captors to Pat Tillman's death at the hands of Evil Al Qaeda fighters -- it never changes: the narrative is set forever by first-day government falsehoods uncritically amplified by establishment media outlets, which endure no matter how definitively they are disproven in subsequent days.

Yesterday, it was widely reported that bin Laden "resisted" his capture and "engaged in a firefight" with U.S. forces (leaving most people, including me, to say that his killing was legally justified because he was using force). It was also repeatedly claimed that bin Laden used a women -- his wife -- has a human shield to protect himself, and that she was killed as a result. That image -- of a cowardly through violent-to-the-end bin Laden -- framed virtually every media narrative of the event all over the globe. And it came from many government officials, principally Obama's top counter-terrorism adviser, John Brennan.

Those claims have turned out to be utterly false. From TPM toda:

It was a fitting end for the America's most wanted man. As President Barack Obama's Deputy National Security Adviser John Brennan told it, a cowardly Osama bin Laden used his own wife as a human shield in his final moments. Except that apparently wasn't what happened at all.

Hours later, other administration officials were clarifying Brennan's account. Turns out the woman that was killed on the compound wasn't bin Laden's wife. Bin Laden may have not even been using a human shield. And he might not have even been holding a gun.

Politico's Josh Gerstein adds: "The White House backed away Monday evening from key details in its narrative about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, including claims by senior U.S. officials that the Al Qaeda leader had a weapon and may have fired it during a gun battle with U.S. forces." Gerstein added: "a senior White House official said bin Laden was not armed when he was killed."

Whether bin Laden actually resisted his capture may not matter to many people; the White House also claimed that they would have captured him if they had the chance, and this fact seems to negate that claim as well. But what does matter is how dutifully American media outlets publish as "news reports" what are absolutely nothing other than official White House statements masquerading as an investigative article. And the fact that this process continuously produces highly and deliberately misleading accounts of the most significant news items -- falsehoods which endure no matter how decisively they are debunked in subsequent days -- doesn't have the slightest impact on the American media's eagerness to continue to serve this role.

* * * * *

Mona Eltahwy has an excellent column in The Guardian today headlined: "No dignity at Ground Zero. As a US Muslim I abhor the frat boy reaction."

Speaking of "frat boy reactions," Leon Panetta is excitingly speculating about which actors should portray him in the movie about the Hunt for bin Laden, helpfully suggesting Al Pacino. It's been a long time since Americans felt this good and strong about themselves -- nothing like putting bullets in someone's skull and dumping their corpse into an ocean to rejuvenate that can-do American sense of optimism."

Not one dollar goes to waste

2011-04-28T07:29:00.002-05:00

Study: Gitmo Doctors Ignored Signs of Torture -- News from Antiwar.com

2011-04-27T11:28:00.001-05:00

Study: Gitmo Doctors Ignored Signs of Torture -- News from Antiwar.com

"A newly released study details a number of cases in which government doctors at Guantanamo Bay ignored strong evidence of torture and other signs of detainee abuse. The study cited nine cases in particular where the “enhanced interrogation” was in line with torture, all of which doctors explained away as “personality disorders.”"

Classic propaganda

2011-04-22T23:43:00.002-05:00

We either have the worst intelligence personnel in the history of the world or our government lies to us all the time. And what about the media? These clowns are more than happy to assist them without doing any research or follow-up. The Sunday morning shows seem to be particularly rife with disinformation.

Ethan McCord - Soldier from the Wikileaks video 'Collateral Murder'

2011-04-22T22:14:00.005-05:00

If you think you can handle the truth, listen to the entire video. You might learn something. In my opinion, it is worth your time.

HyperReport - 042211

2011-04-22T06:53:00.000-05:00

BRICS credit: Local currencies to replace dollar

2011-04-15T15:12:00.000-05:00

BRICS credit: Local currencies to replace dollar

"SANYA: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - the BRICS group of fastest growing economies - Thursday signed an agreement to use their own currencies instead of the predominant US dollar in issuing credit or grants to each other.

The agreement, the first-of-its-kind, was signed at the 3rd BRICS summit here attended by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, China's Hu Jintao, Brazil's Dilma Rousseff, Russia's Dmitry Medvedev and South Africa's Jacob Zuma."

Kucinich on Obama

2011-04-13T06:42:00.002-05:00

Is Obama a closet Republican?
Wealth transfer
Fiscal deficit
Moral deficit
Obama should lead
Wars
Taxes
Corporatism
Wall Street

Real Journalism

2011-04-12T22:47:00.004-05:00

Matt Taibbi is out with another outstanding article in The Rolling Stone. You need to read it.

Link

This is what happens when the people who control the money can create infinite amounts of it at no cost, with no oversight, and no accountability. The currency is corrupted. Wall Street, the Fed, and Washington are overflowing with criminals. If the dollar does indeed collapse someday, this will be the reason.

Government debt

2011-04-11T23:04:00.001-05:00

Jesse Ventura on The View

2011-04-08T00:22:00.001-05:00

Libya update

2011-04-08T00:04:00.001-05:00

Government shutdown?

2011-04-07T15:12:00.003-05:00

There is a risk that the President and the Congress face if they force a so-called "government shutdown." The risk is that the vast majority of the citizens will not notice any difference in their lives. Naturally, they will use the media to tell us how terrible life is without the non-essential government personnel. However, at the end of the day, anyone who thinks about it rationally will determine that nothing of value has been lost. Let's hope they shut it down for a long, long time.

Afghan Governor: NATO Kills Six Civilians in Night Raid -- News from Antiwar.com

2011-04-06T16:11:00.000-05:00

Afghan Governor: NATO Kills Six Civilians in Night Raid -- News from Antiwar.com

"Fueling the already enormous anger across Afghanistan over NATO night raids, Governor Rahmati of the Sar-e Pol Province has reported that a raid last night in his province killed six civilians and wounded four others.

The US insisted that everyone killed was an “insurgent,” while NATO said they were still looking into the identities of those slain but claimed that the slain men “fired at the forces first.”

Which is fairly common in night raids, because the troops do not generally identify themselves and are often mistaken for burglars or kidnappers. When they see residents in the house with weapons drawn, this almost always ends in a mass killing.

Sar-e Pol Province is a northern province which has seldom seen fighting during the 10 year long Afghan War, and the night raid is probably considerably more troubling for locals here than in cities like Kandahar, where violence is a daily reality of life.

All the same, the night raids have been hugely controversial across Afghanistan, with locals angry that NATO is so willing to enter their homes uninvited and angrier still at how often these incidents end with civilian deaths and US denials."

Dennis Kucinich - 6/28/10 - pallets of cash

2011-04-05T22:25:00.002-05:00

They decided not to take Congressman Kucinich's advice. Instead of ending the war, they have started another one.

War coverage

2011-04-04T10:11:00.001-05:00

Ed Schultz - P.O.S.

War Journalism - Libya

2011-03-30T10:39:00.001-05:00

Dr. Dahlia Wasfi

2011-03-29T23:11:00.003-05:00

I'm not sure of the date of this video. It is at least seven months old, possibly older, but it is still relevant.

Building 7

2011-03-29T15:19:00.000-05:00

Is NATO using depleted uranium weapons in Libya?

2011-03-29T15:15:00.001-05:00

The Kill Team - Rolling Stone

2011-03-29T09:55:00.003-05:00

"How U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan murdered innocent civilians and mutilated their corpses – and how their officers failed to stop them. Plus: An exclusive look at the war crime photos censored by the Pentagon"

Link

Warning - Unless you are a member of the U.S. political class, this article and the accompanying photographs will make you ill.

Libyan rebel commander admits his fighters have al-Qaeda links

2011-03-26T21:20:00.002-05:00

"Abdel-Hakim al-Hasidi, the Libyan rebel leader, has said jihadists who fought against allied troops in Iraq are on the front lines of the battle against Muammar Gaddafi's regime.

In an interview with the Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore, Mr al-Hasidi admitted that he had recruited "around 25" men from the Derna area in eastern Libya to fight against coalition troops in Iraq. Some of them, he said, are "today are on the front lines in Adjabiya".

Mr al-Hasidi insisted his fighters "are patriots and good Muslims, not terrorists," but added that the "members of al-Qaeda are also good Muslims and are fighting against the invader".

His revelations came even as Idriss Deby Itno, Chad's president, said al-Qaeda had managed to pillage military arsenals in the Libyan rebel zone and acquired arms, "including surface-to-air missiles, which were then smuggled into their sanctuaries".

Mr al-Hasidi admitted he had earlier fought against "the foreign invasion" in Afghanistan, before being "captured in 2002 in Peshwar, in Pakistan". He was later handed over to the US, and then held in Libya before being released in 2008.

US and British government sources said Mr al-Hasidi was a member of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, or LIFG, which killed dozens of Libyan troops in guerrilla attacks around Derna and Benghazi in 1995 and 1996.

Even though the LIFG is not part of the al-Qaeda organisation, the United States military's West Point academy has said the two share an "increasingly co-operative relationship". In 2007, documents captured by allied forces from the town of Sinjar, showed LIFG emmbers made up the second-largest cohort of foreign fighters in Iraq, after Saudi Arabia."

That's odd. Some of the people we support in Libya are the same people who were killing our troops in IRAQ.

Syrian troops open fire on protesters - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

2011-03-25T10:24:00.000-05:00

That's odd, our "leaders" have started a war in Libya to "protect civilians," while civilians in Syria are openly murdered.

Syrian troops open fire on protesters - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

"Syrian security forces have opened fire on anti-government protesters near the city of Daraa, killing at least 20 people, residents have told Al Jazeera.

"There are more than 20 martyrs .... they (security forces)
opened fire haphazardly," the witness said.

Reuters also reported that heavy gunfire could be heard in the southern city, the focal point for demonstrations against Bashar al-Assad''s regime in recent days.

The incident comes as protesters demanding greater freedom called for a "day of dignity" on Friday following a week-long crackdown by pro-regime forces that has left dozens dead.

At least 200 people marched in the centre of Damascus after Friday prayers in support of the people of Daraa, scene of protests against Baath Party rule, a Reuters news agency witness said."

Senator Joe Biden speaks (2007)

2011-03-23T22:13:00.001-05:00

The Daily Show - Libya

2011-03-23T21:53:00.000-05:00

The Daily Show
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

More George Galloway

2011-03-23T16:47:00.003-05:00

Well said!

Why Libya and Why not Bahrain or Yemen?

2011-03-21T21:14:00.002-05:00

General Wesley Clark on the Middle East

2011-03-20T09:02:00.003-05:00

This clip was recorded on March 2, 2007. It is only 2 minutes long and it is worth your time.

Is the war against Libya really about protecting the citizens?

The moment nuclear plant chief WEPT as Japanese finally admit that radiation leak is serious enough to kill people

2011-03-18T17:56:00.002-05:00

Comprehensive coverage of the disaster in Japan at the link.

Officials admit they may have to bury reactors under concrete - as happened at Chernobyl

Government says it was overwhelmed by the scale of twin disasters

Japanese upgrade accident from level four to five - the same as Three Mile Island

We will rebuild from scratch says Japanese prime minister

Particles spewed from wrecked Fukushima power station arrive in California

Military trucks tackle reactors with tons of water for second day

Clinton: UN no-fly zone requires bombing Libya

2011-03-17T23:04:00.003-05:00

This reminds me of the time Bush said, "We have to intervene in the free markets in order to save them." In this case, the U.S. will apparently be required to bomb civilians in Libya in order to protect them. Makes sense.

"(03-17) 09:56 PDT TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) --

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Thursday that a U.N. no-fly zone over Libya would require bombing targets inside the country to reduce the threat posed by Moammar Gadhafi's forces.

Her assessment made clear the risk of possible military intervention as world powers consider broader steps to protect civilians and pressure the Libyan leader.

"A no-fly zone requires certain actions taken to protect the planes and the pilots, including bombing targets like the Libyan defense systems," Clinton said as she neared the end of a Middle East trip dominated by worries about Libya, where a rebel offensive is apparently flagging.

Clinton said discussions are going beyond specific actions toward broader authorization so countries can enforce any U.N. measures. No ground intervention is being considered, she said.

At Least 41 Killed as US Drones Attack Tribal Jirga in North Waziristan -- News from Antiwar.com

2011-03-17T21:30:00.002-05:00

At Least 41 Killed as US Drones Attack Tribal Jirga in North Waziristan -- News from Antiwar.com

"The latest US drone strike against North Waziristan Agency, Pakistan is amongst the deadliest in recent memory, with at least 41 people killed and other, unconfirmed sources speculating the toll may be upwards of 80.

Making matters worse, this strike isn’t coming with the usual pretense of everyone slain being a “suspected militant.” Rather, the attack struck a tribal jirga (official meeting) for the Madda Khel tribe, in the town of Datta Khel.

The casualties from the attack included six tribal elders who were overseeing the jirga, which was apparently to discuss the ownership of mineral rights, a number of children who were brought by their families to the gathering, and several members of a pro-government militia the tribe helped organize.

The US has been striking houses and vehicles in Datta Khel and elsewhere in North Waziristan for years, and such a large gathering must have seemed an appealing target. The fact that the gathering had nothing to do with militants, however, points again to just how little information they have about their targets before launching missiles at them."

UN OKs 'all necessary measures,' no-fly zone to protect Libyans

2011-03-17T18:54:00.006-05:00

"Military action could follow within hours; Gadhafi warns of harsh attack reprisals

The U.N. Security Council authorized a no-fly zone over Libya and called for Arab states and others to use "all necessary measures" to protect civilians from attacks by Moammar Gadhafi's forces.

The resolution passed 10-0 with five abstentions, including Russia and China.

The resolution establishes “a ban on all flights in the airspace of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya" while excluding an occupation force. It also calls for freezing the assets of the Libyan National Oil Corp. and the central bank because of links to Gadhafi.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe flew to New York Thursday to press the case for speedy Security Council approval.

The world is "living one of its great revolutions that changes the course of history," Juppe told the Security Council just before the vote.

The United States, France and Britain pushed for speedy approval because Gadhafi's forces are advancing toward opposition-held Benghazi. The Libyan leader vowed Thursday night to oust the rebels from their eastern stronghold.

Thousands of anti-Gadhafi protesters in Benghazi watched the U.N. proceeding on an outdoor TV projector and celebrate the vote by firing guns in the air, setting off fireworks and waving flags from the monarchy era in celebration, Al Jazeera TV showed.

Earlier, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said on France-2 Television that "time is of the essence" and that France would support military action against Gadhafi within a matter of hours if the Security Council approves the resolution.

Military action could include France, Britain, possibly the United States and one or more Arab states, the French diplomatic sources said.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the issue publicly, said France foresees a "coalition of the willing" that would include support from Arab states but would not involve a ground operation.

French officials have said Arab countries' support could come, for example, by providing use of their air bases, the official said.

The United States joined the resolution's initial supporters — Britain, France and Lebanon — not only in pushing for a speedy vote but also in pressing for action beyond creation of a no-fly zone to protect civilians from air, land and sea attacks by Gadhafi's fighters.

This marked a dramatic about-face by the Obama administration which for weeks hesitated about supporting a no-fly zone, fearing that the United States could get sucked into another war in a Muslim nation.

Congressional officials said the Obama administration is readying plans to participate in a no-fly zone with the help of Arab countries including Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

The participant list was designed to demonstrate that the effort to aid anti-Gadhafi rebels had support from other countries in the region.

Italy said it would make its military bases available to enforce the no-fly zone, government officials said.

Warning from Libya
In an interview broadcast just before the Security Council voted, Gadhafi dismissed its actions. "The U.N. Security Council has no mandate. We don't acknowledge their resolutions," he told the Portuguese public Radiotelevisao Portuguesa. He pledged to respond harshly to U.N.-sponsored attacks. "If the world is crazy, we will be crazy too," he said.

Earlier, Gadhafi told Benghazi residents in a radio speech, "We will come zenga, zenga. House by house, room by room."

"We are coming tonight" and "there won't be any mercy" for enemies.

Unarmed residents have nothing to fear, but every home will be searched, he said.

"Anyone who will throw away his weapon and stay home will get amnesty," Gadhafi said. "Whoever has a weapon in his apartment is considered one of the enemy."

Gadhafi spoke as his forces encircled Benghazi and his warplanes bombarded the rebel stronghold's airport, threatening an all-out offensive to bring down the rebellion.

Rebel forces vowed to stand firm.

"We will not be intimidated by these lies and claims," Libyan National Council head Mustafa Abdel Jalil said, Al Jazeera television reported. "Libyan cities from Ajdabiyah and all of the east are under rebel control.""

Link to the rest of the article.

Expert interviewed re Japan's nuclear plants

2011-03-14T22:28:00.003-05:00

This is the most informative interview that I have heard with regard to the nuclear reactors. Unfortunately, it occurred prior to the third explosion today, but nonetheless, it is worth watching.

End operations in Afghanistan, Karzai tells NATO

2011-03-12T21:01:00.002-06:00

End operations in Afghanistan, Karzai tells NATO

"ASADABAD, Afghanistan (AFP) – An emotional Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Saturday told international troops to "stop their operations in our land", his strongest remarks yet over mistaken killings of civilians.

Karzai's comments came after a week in which a relative of his was killed in a raid by foreign forces and he rejected an apology by the US commander of troops General David Petraeus for the deaths of nine children in a NATO strike.

"I would like to ask NATO and the US with honour and humbleness and not with arrogance to stop their operations in our land," Karzai said in Pashto as he visited the dead children's relatives in Kunar province, eastern Afghanistan.

"We are very tolerant people but now our tolerance has run out."

In an apparent reference to neighbouring Pakistan, where insurgents have hideouts in lawless border regions, Western-backed Karzai said international forces "should go and fight this war where we have showed them (it is)".

"This war is not in our land," Karzai added.

Karzai's spokesman Waheed Omer said the president's remarks had been urging an end to civilian casualties in international operations.

"The president, on behalf of the Afghan people, renewed his call on NATO to stop operations that bring about unnecessary losses to the Afghan people," Omer said.

"We have always maintained that the war on terror cannot be fought in the towns and villages of Afghanistan."

During his visit to Kunar, Karzai also met relatives of those caught up in another incident in the province in which Afghan officials say 65 people died but which ISAF says left nine people injured.

The Afghan president wept as he held a young child who he said had her leg amputated following the latter attack, an AFP reporter said.

The family of every person killed who attended was given 100,000 Afghanis ($2,300), while those injured received half that amount from the head of an official delegation investigating civilian casualties, the reporter added.

The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) did not respond to Karzai's comments.

However, in a tactical directive issued last year, Petraeus called on forces to step up their efforts to minimise civilian casualties, adding: "Every Afghan civilian death diminishes our cause."

The latest Kunar incident, which occurred this month as the nine children gathered firewood, forced the ever-sensitive issue of civilian casualties caused by international troops back to the top of the political agenda.

On Sunday, Karzai angrily rejected a public apology from Petraeus, the US commander of foreign troops, over the deaths.

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates also made a personal apology to Karzai during a visit to Afghanistan Monday.

Then on Thursday, it emerged that Karzai's father's cousin had been shot dead near his home in the family's village in Kandahar province, southern Afghanistan.

A UN report Wednesday revealed that the deaths of Afghan civilians in the war had increased 15 percent to a record high last year, adding that insurgents were responsible for three-quarters of the killings.

The report recorded 2,777 civilian deaths last year, underscoring the level of violence in the country as foreign troops prepare to start handing control of security to Afghan forces in some areas from July.

Afghan security forces are due to take responsibility for security across the country by 2014, allowing international combat forces to withdraw.

There are currently around 140,000 international troops serving in Afghanistan, around two-thirds of them from the United States."

All you need to know

2011-03-11T11:20:00.000-06:00

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