USA

When Will American's Have Had Enough?

Righthand 8-24-2007 5:09 PM

What we like about it, cherish about it, is it ability to insure that the power of the government is always in check. Often linked with the right to bear arms, somehow. But where is the recent evidence for this? Millions vote in a 'democratic' election and after chads etc, 5 politically elected judges get to decide the outcome.

...Ezsparky

You have played about on the margins with reform but it is more a case of one step forward then two backwards. You spend so much time naval gazing at the FF that any real chance of progress is impossible.

• For a country founded without previous baggage, you have done everything possible to stifle progress.
  

• You were blessed with brilliant FF but their brilliance for their time now seem to be a burden against progress in a modern world!

If your system was so perfect, why, when virtually imposing 'democracy' on liberated states, is it not your version of democracy that you impose. The reality is that why would impose a broken system on others that you are 'helping', so allow them have something that has some reasonable chance of success. Don't say theirs is a simpler system for an unsophisticated people. My evidence is based on voter participation. What's yours?

Having to trek many miles on none existent public transport to be challenged as to my right to vote often based on my skin colour, only to eventually be told that I'm in the wrong site, well, it's not my idea of democracy for all the people.

Justice Vs. Power - Chomsky Vs. Foucault, Part 2

clipped from www.youtube.com Justice Vs. Power - Chomsky Vs. Foucault, Part 2

The Oil Factor: Behind the War on Terror

clipped from video.google.com The Oil Factor: Behind the War on Terror Free-Will Productions 1 hr 29 min 17 sec - 2/09/2006 KenSolar.com

Chomsky on liberal media 1

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Chomsky on liberal media 2

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Chomsky on liberal media 3

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Religion

One Atheist's Take on Christianity
by Faberglas

righthand 8-21-2007 7.46pm

The real problem with believing in god or not, is the desire to convert others to your point of view.

First, I believe it may be morally wrong, to even try.
Second, you are more likely to reinforce the other in their belief. Religion does not lend itself to debate, particularly if you have widely varying view points.
Third, it is easier to believe in no god so those that do believe are at a big disadvantage when you require them to utilise logic. So have faith and fight fair.

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"The Great Communicator" Comments On "The Decider"
by BartendingBear

righthand 8-23-2007 1:45 PM

Ye, but the truth never got in George &Co's way in invading Iraq or any other issue. He's of the school that believes that if it's repeated often enough and by him in particular, then it becomes the truth. Think swift boats and Kerry.

Of course, what had it easier was the inability of his followers to use even the minimum amount of brain matter to discern what might be untrue. Blindly following an earthly leader is an easy progression from following an unearthly one!

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anti-Bush T-shirt ACLU case settled

clipped from www.msnbc.msn.com ACLU: Settlement in anti-Bush T-shirt case Federal government to pay $80,000 to Texas couple arrested at rally Nicole and Jeffery Rank of Corpus Christi, Texas, were handcuffed and removed from the July 4, 2004, rally at the state Capitol, where Bush gave a speech. A judge dismissed trespassing charges against them, and an order closing the case was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Charleston. “This settlement is a real victory not only for our clients but for the First Amendment,” said Andrew Schneider, executive director of the ACLU of West Virginia. “As a result of the Ranks’ courageous stand, public officials will think twice before they eject peaceful protesters from public events for exercising their right to dissent.” The ACLU said in a statement that a presidential advance manual makes it clear that the government tries to exclude dissenters from the president’s appearances. “As a last resort,” the manual says, “security should remove the demonstrators from the event.”

I always thought that the right to protest was not challenged in this country. I guess I was a little naive on this point. Amazing how you can just assume that you have rights in a free America......then, something comes along that makes you realize not to let your guard down, or you might find yourself in an America that you don't recognize anymore. Good thing we got the ACLU to counteract the bullies who want control over the masses....at any cost......including the degradation of the U.S. Constitution. Bush and the boys have been doing this sort of thing for the past seven years.

How Much Jail Time?

How Much Jail Time?

By Anna Quindlen

Newsweek

Aug. 6, 2007 issue - Buried among prairie dogs and amateur animation shorts on YouTube is a curious little mini-documentary shot in front of an abortion clinic in Libertyville, Ill. The man behind the camera is asking demonstrators who want abortion criminalized what the penalty should be for a woman who has one nonetheless. You have rarely seen people look more gobsmacked. It's as though the guy has asked them to solve quadratic equations. Here are a range of responses: "I've never really thought about it." "I don't have an answer for that." "I don't know." "Just pray for them."

You have to hand it to the questioner; he struggles manfully. "Usually when things are illegal there's a penalty attached," he explains patiently. But he can't get a single person to be decisive about the crux of a matter they have been approaching with absolute certainty.

............

Europe

EU and US miles of sensibility apart?
www.signandsight.com
righthand 8-07-2007 1.36pm

Many Europeans have seen the writing on the wall some time ago. "Go East, young man" is the way to go now for Europe. We have much better chances of arriving at full peace with our Arab neighbours when apart from the US ties with Israel. Our relationship with our Russian neighbour will determine our economic future. A good relationship with India and China may be more important that distant America.

When America shows itself to be capable of moral leadership then we could reconsider. I'm far for convince that whatever, if any, change of leadership happens in 2008 that there will be any real change in how the US 'leads'!

An ability to raise huge sum of money - and being an eunuch - is the first requirement for to be elected in both parties. This, combines with the necessity to receive funds from the gun and Zionist lobby, ensures that the majority of candidates are corruptible. This is the 'democracy' that America wishes to impose on the unfree world!?

Italian TV Examines WTC 7 Collapse - Dramatic Footage

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Can We Pursue Terrorists Without Becoming Like Them?

clipped from www.alternet.org From torture to warrantless wiretapping, the Bush administration's approach to terrorism has defied legal standards at all levels. Maher Arar's story illustrates the key problems with the Bush administration's approach to terrorism and how it has defied legal standards at all levels. In the United States, the administration suspended key civil liberties. It imprisoned over 5,000 foreign nationals, subjected 80,000 Arab and Muslim immigrants to fingerprinting and registration, sent 30,000 "national security letters "every year to U.S. businesses demanding information about their customers, and justified the large-scale, warrantless wiretapping of citizens. It denied the right of habeas corpus to both American and non-American detainees and plans to continue to restrict the legal rights of terrorism suspects by trying them in military tribunals rather than civilian courts. At the international level, the administration rationalized the use of torture and rendition.

Israel: Time has come to demand Pollard's release; US envoy's foolish words

clipped from digg.com Nearly true. Tenet's supposed threatened resignation was a concoction dreamt up by Clinton and Tenet so Bill could appear to get out of the pickle over Pollard's release. Pollard's release was not as exchange for Palestine prisoner release. Pollard's release deal was as the result of another Israeli spy's 'accomplishments' in blowing out a US president and blackmailing him. Pollard was responsible for the death of MANY MANY CIA agents, nearly all, from behind the Iron Curtain. Virtually the entire network was rolled up. More than a decade of very pains taken work by the CIA was wiped out based on the information supplied from Pollard. But not from him, DIRECTLY. He had NO knowledge or part in supplying the Soviets. The State of ISRAEL was directly responsible for the CIA agents' deaths. Or its agent Mossad. But Pollard is the fall guy. So what is new when it involves the state of Israel? You wer not expecting justice or fair play, were you?

"The declaration submitted to the court by former Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger, who claimed that the Israeli spy gravely undermined America's national security. President Clinton promised Prime Minister Netanyahu to release Pollard in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. The former US president changed his mind after CIA Director George Tenet threatened to resign should the president proceed with the plan. Meanwhile, almost 10 years have passed and Pollard is still imprisoned."...YnetNews
"Ambassador Jones said that Pollard was spared execution. Those are foolish words."...Ynetnet

Pollard only Indirectly responsible for 100s CIA agents deaths. Who's fully?

clipped from digg.com Yes, Pollard was responsible for the deaths of a GREAT MANY CIA agents -all- behind the Iron Curtain. BUT, he was not responsible DIRECTLY! Direct responsibility lay with the State of Israel, which knowingly traded the information of the agents names to the USSR in return for Russian Jewish emigree to bring to Israel. They were needed to counter the Arab population increases. Many turned out to have no Jewish pedigree , but proven criminal backgrounds.

http://www.sefer-torah.com/blog/2007/05/02/i-prevented-pollard-deal-excerpt-from-ex-cia-chief-tenets

Recently, the former CIA supremo, Tenet claimed that he vetoed the release of Pollard. Again, there is some truth in his version but it is not the full or all the truth as he knows it. I suspect that this is a concoction dreamed up by both Tenet and Clinton to explain Clinton's about face on the release of Pollard. The idea of the president being countermanded by the CIA chief is not plausible. So, how did it come about that a real smart cookie like Bill Clinton needed to have a plausible deniable excuse not to release Pollard as he had previously agreed with Israel. How did he agree the release in the first place for him to need Tenet to take the blame?

He was being BLACKMAILED in effect by little sweet Monica and her sidekick working for Mossad!

bring "Em Home

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That voice and these images cut right to your heart, if you have one! Awful, but brilliant!

Pipe Dreams: U.S. checking possibility of pumping oil from northern Iraq to Haifa, via Jordan

clipped from www.haaretz.com The United States has asked Israel to check the possibility of pumping oil from Iraq to the oil refineries in Haifa. The request came in a telegram last week from a senior Pentagon official to a top Foreign Ministry official in Jerusalem. The Prime Minister's Office, which views the pipeline to Haifa as a "bonus" the U.S. could give to Israel in return for its unequivocal support for the American-led campaign in Iraq, had asked the Americans for the official telegram. The new pipeline would take oil from the Kirkuk area, where some 40 percent of Iraqi oil is produced, and transport it via Mosul, and then across Jordan to Israel. The U.S. telegram included a request for a cost estimate for repairing the Mosul-Haifa pipeline that was in use prior to 1948. During the War of Independence, the Iraqis stopped the flow of oil to Haifa and the pipeline fell into disrepair over the years.

I always held the view that the war in Iraq is about more than oil, its really about Empire, but darnit, the oil makes for a nice bonus!

No, Jimmy, tell us what you REALLY think about Bush

clipped from www.cbsnews.com (AP) Former President Carter says President Bush's administration is "the worst in history" in international relations, taking aim at the White House's policy of pre-emptive war and its Middle East diplomacy. "I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history," Carter told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette "We now have endorsed the concept of pre-emptive war where we go to war with another nation militarily, even though our own security is not directly threatened, if we want to change the regime there or if we fear that some time in the future our security might be endangered," he said. "But that's been a radical departure from all previous administration policies." Douglas Brinkley, a Tulane University presidential historian and Carter biographer, described Carter's comments as unprecedented. "When you call somebody the worst president, that's volatile. Those are fighting words."

Not exactly a courteous endorsement of the Bush Legacy.

Oh, wait, it is.

Slavery and JP Morgan Chase

clipped from academic.udayton.edu Many insurance companies practiced the writing of slave life insurance policies in 19th Century United States. The effect of this practice was to provide the financial backing necessary to give potential slave owners motivation to purchase human chattel – a very expensive investment. The policies gave slave owners the security necessary to employ enslaved Africans in ultra-hazardous capacities. If there is no connection between JP Morgan Chase and slavery, what do we make of the circular from Aetna’s archives? What about the $2.5 million capital investment advertised in the 1852 circular – what became of that? Also, would fifty-five bankers, doctors, insurers, shippers, and others advertise a venture that was never launched?

You inherit what your ancestors experienced, both the rich and the poor. If people enslave your family, you inherit the aftermath. Why not apologize for being the beneficiary of slavery, even if the benefit may be diluted through the generations?

Bush Won't Allow Staff to Even Talk About Their Job Descriptions

clipped from www.truthdig.com Posted on Aug 2, 2007 Bush lackey Scott Jennings gives Sen. Pat Leahy the broken-record treatment, which has become so familiar. Witness Leahy’s frustration break as Jennings refuses even to describe his duties: “Let’s not be too contemptuous of this committee. ... You work at the White House. You’re paid for by taxpayers. You work for the American people. I’m just asking you what kind of work you do.”

Straight Talk from a lover of Roe

clipped from www.rhrealitycheck.org It is time to substitute straight talk for rights talk. Straight talk acknowledges that women themselves don't want to need abortions. They want to prevent pregnancies they can't bring to term. Legislatively that means an all out effort to increase funding for family planning and to end the idiocy of abstinence-only sexuality education. It means saying over and over again, that if you can't afford financially or emotionally to bring a child into the world, if you simply do not want children or a child, you have a responsibility to use contraception. Straight talk means accepting that however justifiable and whatever good comes from the decision to end a pregnancy, the act of abortion involves a departure from our common desire to live in a world where all positive forms of life can be nourished. On those grounds, it would be a better world if abortion were less frequently necessary. The Clinton formulation of "safe, legal and rare" is good ethics.

A lot of folks might find the whole article an interesting and possibly illuminating read.

Cutting Through Bush Propaganda

clipped from impolitical.blogspot.com Olbermann on Bush's veto and the anniversary of "mission accomplished"

Classic clear thinking by Keith Olbermann on the anniversary of "Mission Accomplished". I cannot imagine a rational and cogent conservative rebuttal of Keith's incisive commentary. Spin can't spin this truth in the hard light of day.

Condi Rice's inaccurate statements

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Olbermann kicks O'Reilly's ass

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Bill O'Reilly gets the smack down by Keith Olbermann.

Olbermann Debunks White House E-Mail Claims

clipped from www.truthdig.com Keith Olbermann interviews a computer forensics expert, who explains various ways the White House might uncover those pesky missing e-mails. All in all, the chances that up to 5 million e-mails have completely disappeared are very slim. The moral of the story: If you’re going to blame technology, you’d better know what you’re talking about first.

George W. Bush (must see)

clipped from www.metacafe.com

George Bush's watch stolen in Albania video+photos

clipped from www.washingtonmonthly.com THE PRESIDENT'S WRISTWATCH....Conspiracy theory of the day: Was George Bush's watch stolen while he was working the crowd in Albania this weekend? Or did he take it off himself? You be the judge! YouTube video is here. Selected frame grabs are below. At 51 seconds in, Bush has a watch. At 56 seconds he still has a watch. At 57 seconds hands are grabbing at his wrist. His hands are then obscured for a few seconds, and at 1:05 he doesn't have a watch. Bruce Schneier has collected three different denials that Bush was robbed. Denial 1: At about the one minute mark Bush put his hands behind his back so a bodyguard could remove his watch. Denial 2: It fell off. Denial 3: Bush took it off himself.

On U.S. Congress Mandate Part 2

clipped from www.prospect.org At this rate, Republicans will reach 153 filibusters by the end of the 110th Congress -- nearly three times the previous high of 58 the GOP has succeeded in sinking a popular agenda in this way without paying any real political price. In early July, Democrats began to demonstrate some understanding that Republican obstructionism would continue indefinitely "there's a growing consensus that we ought to" force Republicans to carry out their filibuster threats. The logic was clear. If Republicans were forced to actually filibuster these bills for 24 hours a day, the press would converge on a piece of true political drama: the spectacle of GOP senators standing up all day long in support of Big Oil, or Gonzales, or the president's war in Iraq Democrats now find The DOD appropriations bill has not passed the Senate and no Republican filibuster has been broken Democrats will have the perfect opportunity to make Republicans pay a political price for their intransigence

European lawmakers accuse CIA of running secret prisions

clipped from rawstory.com European lawmakers in the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly overwhelmingly approved a report that accused the CIA of having run secret prisons in Poland and Romania where terror suspects were interrogated from 2003 to 2005. The report also criticized Germany and Italy for having invoked a defense of state secrets to obstruct the investigation into the covert program. Marty claimed that NATO and the United States had reached a secret framework deal after the September 11, 2001 attacks CIA director Michael Hayden explained that the release of the previously secret report was part of the agency's "social contract with the American people," which included an obligation to "share with the public the information we can." taking exception to criticism, Hayden said the CIA of old is a far cry from the agency of today. "I don't think Americans need to look at these documents and say, 'Oh my God, what are they doing now?"

Poor and Sick? Too Bad You're An American!!

clipped from kucinich.us Citizens of 34 nations live longer than Americans. Same-day access to primary-care physicians in the U.S. (33%) is far less available than in the United Kingdom (41%), Australia (54%) and New Zealand (60%). Per capita spending for health care averaged $2,696 in countries without waiting lists and $5,267 in the U.S. "Health care costs are not just a burden and barrier to care for individuals; they are taking a heavy toll on American businesses." The strain on employers in 2005 was staggering. "The average total premiums for an employer-based family plan was $9,979 in 2005 ..." "The underlying problem is that we treat health care like a market commodity instead of a social service. Health care is targeted not to medical need, but to the ability to pay. Markets are good for many things, but they are not a good way to distribute health care. To understand what's happening, let's look at how the health care market works ... "

Go ahead ignore it....buy your HMO Doctor his new Lexus with your hard-earned cash....oh, well, that is if you can AFFORD the insurance! Otherwise, crawl away and get sick someplace else...its about profit here, not people.

The Pefect Limo for an Iraqi Prom

clipped from www.ebaumsworld.com

George Bush's Al Qaeda Lies Exposed

clipped from www.alternet.org clipped from www.alternet.org President Bush makes fallacious connections between Al Qaeda in Iraq and the Al Qaeda who attacked the US on 9/11. The nation's 16 intelligence agencies agree that Al Qaeda has regenerated its ability to strike at the United States through its bases on the Afghan-Pakistan Border. Al Qaeda in Iraq is not the same as Al Qaeda in Afghanistan. President Bush argues that "Al Qaeda is public enemy number one in Iraq. Al Qaeda in Iraq accounts for 15% of the violence in Iraq. Foreign Jihadist fighters make up less than 10% of the insurgency. The Al Qaeda Threat: Myth vs. Reality The nation's 16 intelligence agencies agree that Al Qaeda has regenerated its ability to strike at the United States through its bases on the Afghan-Pakistan Border. Pakistan bombings raise fears of Taliban, al Qaeda resurgence. The invasion of Iraq has created a new focal point for recruitment, fundraising, training and indoctrination of terrorists. Al Qaeda had no significant foothold in Iraq before the invasion.