Monday, December 31, 2007
Friday, December 21, 2007
Oh Do Shut Up
Iran needs to "confess" to running a past nuclear weapons program or its claims of cooperating with a U.N. investigation of its past clandestine activities will be a sham, the chief U.S. envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency said Friday. In Washington, meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Tehran must do even more to end present U.N. sanctions and avoid new ones — halt uranium enrichment and related activities that could make the ingredients for a bomb.
Fantastically illogical, astronomically arrogant and just plain batshit warmongeringly insane. But y'know persistent & dedicated and they wrote 'bomb' result! So they have that going for them. Empires don't expand themselves people.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
American Jews Oppose Military Action against Iran
This just in: American Jews are opposed to any military attack on Iran, by a large margin, according to the American Jewish Committee's 2007 Annual Survey of American Jewish Opinion (6-25 November 2007).
The rest of the survey is just as good.
No, this doesn't surprise us: the fact obscured by both the Israel lobby and some of its most foolish critics is that, after all these years, Jewish Americans still largely lean to the Left, thinking more like oppressed Blacks than privileged whites, and adjusted for income differences (lower incomes tend to correlate with more progressive opinions on foreign policy as well as economics), Jewish Americans are probably the most progressive group in the USA; and that neo-conservatives are a tiny minority at odds with a great majority of Jewish Americans they claim to represent (Glenn Greenwald, "New Poll Reveals How Unrepresentative Neocon Jewish Groups Are," Salon.com, 12 December 2007). Now, isn't it great to have what we know confirmed by the American Jewish Committee again?
Update
"Two-Thirds of Israelis Oppose Attack on Iran: Poll" (Agence France Presse, 6 December 2007). Take that, neo-cons!
| 7. Would you support or oppose the United States taking military action against Iran to prevent it from developing nuclear weapons? | |
| Support | 35 |
| Oppose | 57 |
| Not Sure | 8 |
The rest of the survey is just as good.
No, this doesn't surprise us: the fact obscured by both the Israel lobby and some of its most foolish critics is that, after all these years, Jewish Americans still largely lean to the Left, thinking more like oppressed Blacks than privileged whites, and adjusted for income differences (lower incomes tend to correlate with more progressive opinions on foreign policy as well as economics), Jewish Americans are probably the most progressive group in the USA; and that neo-conservatives are a tiny minority at odds with a great majority of Jewish Americans they claim to represent (Glenn Greenwald, "New Poll Reveals How Unrepresentative Neocon Jewish Groups Are," Salon.com, 12 December 2007). Now, isn't it great to have what we know confirmed by the American Jewish Committee again?
Update
"Two-Thirds of Israelis Oppose Attack on Iran: Poll" (Agence France Presse, 6 December 2007). Take that, neo-cons!
Friday, December 7, 2007
Tapes? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Tapes!
The CIA has destroyed interrogation tapes, news agencies are reporting. According to MSNBC:
"WASHINGTON - The CIA destroyed videotapes it made in 2002 of the interrogations of two top terror suspects because it was afraid that keeping them "posed a security risk," Director Michael Hayden told agency employees."
That security risk is alleged to be the identity of CIA agents and operatives:
"In his message to agency workers, Hayden said that House of Representatives and Senate intelligence committee leaders had been informed of the existence of the tapes and the CIA's intention to destroy them to protect the identities of the questioners."
Because with all of our modern day technology, there is no other way to protect the questioner's identities other than destroying the tapes altogether. Riiight.
It would have nothing to do with the fact that questionable interrogation techniques such as waterboarding were being used. Or the fact that people are coming forward and admitting that suspects were "confessing" to crimes only because they were being tortured."Current and former intelligence officials told NBC News' Robert Windrem that one of the videos included the waterboarding of Abu Zubaydah, the person in charge of al-Qaida's training camps and the group's first major leader to be captured."[...]"Dec. 7: Abu Zubaydah says the only reason he gave up certain information during an interrogation was because he was being tortured, according to transcripts obtained by NBC News. NBC's Bob Windrem reports.MSNBC"
Be sure to watch the video on the linked page. Perhaps one of these days we will see a copy of one of these videos on YouTube, under "Operatives Gone Wild!"
It is my opinion, however, that the tapes will never surface - not legally anyway - and the CIA will never be held responsible for torturing suspects, nor will the suspects ever get anything for having been tortured, and confessing under said torture.
This administration's use of tactics as torture - like the infamous London Tower - is just proof that we, as a nation are behaving badly. Worse yet, this bad behavior is all being defended so we can continue to behave badly - start wars, increase Xenophobia, and take over the world.
In the face of the threat of an attack on Iran, support the people of Iran!
via Renegade Eye
Renegade Eye Note: This was written by Alan Woods : However, it would appear that the prospects of an air strike against Iran have receded - at least for the present. This does not suit Ahmadinejad at all. His support is rapidly eroding inside Iran, and his only hope was to keep beating the drum about the danger of US aggression in order to divert the masses' attention away from their most pressing problems and thus save his regime. He has made a public statement to the effect that the new revelations expose Bush as a liar (which they do) and completely justify the policies of his regime (which they do not).
This will make it easier for the development of a widespread movement of opposition by the Iranian workers and students, which has already begun and is destined to transform the whole political life of the region in the coming period. The Iranian Revolution will cut across the stagnant and unbreathable atmosphere of reaction that hangs over the region. It will cast off the yoke of religious fundamentalism and resolutely take the road of socialism and workers' power. I think Allen's words compliment Maryam's.
In the face of the threat of an attack on Iran, support the people of Iran!
The threat of a US attack and the devastating consequences of economic sanctions are looming over the people of Iran. US's war with the Islamic Republic is not the war of the people. People of Iran and their interests are not represented in this conflict. They want neither the Islamic Republic, nor a military attack, nor economic sanctions. For years, they have been fighting the Islamic Republic and the unbearable conditions that this ultra-reactionary regime has imposed on society.
Iran is a society where people sing the Internationale anthem in their protest gatherings and chant "One earth, one humanity" and "One race, the human race". It is a society where the slogan "Freedom, equality, human identity" has adorned the banner of its struggles. A society where the International Day of the Child is celebrated in large gatherings in scores of cities, and where its manifesto in defence of the rights of homeless children and child workers declares: "for children to be free, this inverted world must be changed". It is a society where prisoners on death row, from deep inside the jails, call on the people of the world to fight for the universal abolition of the death penalty. Iranian people in their numerous demonstrations have repeatedly stated that they want neither war, nor a nuclear programme, nor the Islamic Republic.
People of the world!
To end the threat of a military attack on Iran, support the struggle of the people of Iran! The overthrow of the Islamic Republic by the will and power of the people is the only human and civilised way to end the threat of war and the deadly race that Islamic terrorism and US militarism and state terrorism are waging in Iran, the Middle East and globally. The Islamic Republic does not represent the people of Iran. This regime is their enemy, not their representative! This is a regime that has been able to survive only by executing tens of thousands of people and carrying out the most ghastly medieval tortures and punishments such as stoning to death, flogging and amputating. The Islamic Republic must be rejected and isolated internationally. The world must treat this regime of sexual Apartheid like it treated the racist Apartheid regime in South Africa. Demand that the world's states and international bodies not to recognise the Islamic Republic as the government of Iran. Demand that they cut off their diplomatic ties with this medieval regime.
In the fight against the US government's warlike, inhuman and brutal policies, the Iranian people are on your side; they are asking you to be on their side in the fight against the Islamic Republic! To defeat the American government's and its allies' bullying and militarism, to defeat the reactionary and terrorist political Islamic movement and to overthrow the Islamic Republic, support the struggle of the people of Iran.
Hamid Taqvaee
Secretary of WPI Central Committee
30 November 2007
Maryam Namazie
-765755-740203.jpg)
Renegade Eye Note: This was written by Alan Woods : However, it would appear that the prospects of an air strike against Iran have receded - at least for the present. This does not suit Ahmadinejad at all. His support is rapidly eroding inside Iran, and his only hope was to keep beating the drum about the danger of US aggression in order to divert the masses' attention away from their most pressing problems and thus save his regime. He has made a public statement to the effect that the new revelations expose Bush as a liar (which they do) and completely justify the policies of his regime (which they do not).
This will make it easier for the development of a widespread movement of opposition by the Iranian workers and students, which has already begun and is destined to transform the whole political life of the region in the coming period. The Iranian Revolution will cut across the stagnant and unbreathable atmosphere of reaction that hangs over the region. It will cast off the yoke of religious fundamentalism and resolutely take the road of socialism and workers' power. I think Allen's words compliment Maryam's.
In the face of the threat of an attack on Iran, support the people of Iran!
Maryam Namazie
The threat of a US attack and the devastating consequences of economic sanctions are looming over the people of Iran. US's war with the Islamic Republic is not the war of the people. People of Iran and their interests are not represented in this conflict. They want neither the Islamic Republic, nor a military attack, nor economic sanctions. For years, they have been fighting the Islamic Republic and the unbearable conditions that this ultra-reactionary regime has imposed on society. Iran is a society where people sing the Internationale anthem in their protest gatherings and chant "One earth, one humanity" and "One race, the human race". It is a society where the slogan "Freedom, equality, human identity" has adorned the banner of its struggles. A society where the International Day of the Child is celebrated in large gatherings in scores of cities, and where its manifesto in defence of the rights of homeless children and child workers declares: "for children to be free, this inverted world must be changed". It is a society where prisoners on death row, from deep inside the jails, call on the people of the world to fight for the universal abolition of the death penalty. Iranian people in their numerous demonstrations have repeatedly stated that they want neither war, nor a nuclear programme, nor the Islamic Republic.
People of the world!
To end the threat of a military attack on Iran, support the struggle of the people of Iran! The overthrow of the Islamic Republic by the will and power of the people is the only human and civilised way to end the threat of war and the deadly race that Islamic terrorism and US militarism and state terrorism are waging in Iran, the Middle East and globally. The Islamic Republic does not represent the people of Iran. This regime is their enemy, not their representative! This is a regime that has been able to survive only by executing tens of thousands of people and carrying out the most ghastly medieval tortures and punishments such as stoning to death, flogging and amputating. The Islamic Republic must be rejected and isolated internationally. The world must treat this regime of sexual Apartheid like it treated the racist Apartheid regime in South Africa. Demand that the world's states and international bodies not to recognise the Islamic Republic as the government of Iran. Demand that they cut off their diplomatic ties with this medieval regime.
In the fight against the US government's warlike, inhuman and brutal policies, the Iranian people are on your side; they are asking you to be on their side in the fight against the Islamic Republic! To defeat the American government's and its allies' bullying and militarism, to defeat the reactionary and terrorist political Islamic movement and to overthrow the Islamic Republic, support the struggle of the people of Iran.
Hamid Taqvaee
Secretary of WPI Central Committee
30 November 2007
Maryam Namazie
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Psychopathy
Something to make you say hmmmmmmmmmm
Charming but Callous
First described systematically by Medical College of Georgia psychiatrist Hervey M. Cleckley in 1941, psychopathy consists of a specific set of personality traits and behaviors. Superficially charming, psychopaths tend to make a good first impression on others and often strike observers as remarkably normal. Yet they are self-centered, dishonest and undependable, and at times they engage in irresponsible behavior for no apparent reason other than the sheer fun of it. Largely devoid of guilt, empathy and love, they have casual and callous interpersonal and romantic relationships. Psychopaths routinely offer excuses for their reckless and often outrageous actions, placing blame on others instead. They rarely learn from their mistakes or benefit from negative feedback, and they have difficulty inhibiting their impulses.
Not surprisingly, psychopaths are overrepresented in prisons; studies indicate that about 25 percent of inmates meet diagnostic criteria for psychopathy. Nevertheless, research also suggests that a sizable number of psychopaths may be walking among us in everyday life. Some investigators have even speculated that “successful psychopaths”—those who attain prominent positions in society—may be overrepresented in certain occupations, such as politics, business and entertainment. Yet the scientific evidence for this intriguing conjecture is preliminary.
Trita Parsi on the NIE & Israel
Excerpt-
Israeli decision-makers have been in a state of strategic paralysis, incapable of recognising the new chessboard and the necessary adjustments they need to make. They have feared recognising publicly that Iran is a rational actor and that even a nuclear Iran wouldn't be an existential threat to the Jewish state, out of fear that such admissions would take pressure off of Washington to act firmly against Iran -- the same argument Peres and Rabin used in the mid-1990s.
Politically, this is understandable. No Israeli leader wishes to be the one to declare to the Israeli public that a critical step in the strategic rivalry with Iran has been lost, even though it was never really winnable.
But some past politicians and decision-makers have started to speak up, arguably to end the strategic paralysis and cut Israel's losses. Shlomo Ben-Ami, Israel's former foreign minister, publicly argues that a U.S.-Iran dialogue could benefit Israel. Ephraim Halevi, the former head of the Mossad, echoed in the Washington Post what he told this analyst last year -- Iran is rational, it is not suicidal, it can be deterred, Israel can handle even a nuclear Iran and a dialogue is now needed between the Jewish State and the Islamic Republic.
Cross Posted MUST READ
I'm putting this up twice because it is that important. In light of all other problems in America - and the prosecution of people like "The Lyrical Terrorist" a bad poet in the UK this is IMPORTANT:
Senate Bill 1959 to Criminalize Thoughts, Blogs, Books and Free Speech Across America
Wednesday, November 28, 2007 by: Mike Adams
The end of Free Speech in America has arrived at our doorstep. It's a new law called the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act, and it is worded in a clever way that could allow the U.S. government to arrest and incarcerate any individual who speaks out against the Bush Administration, the war on Iraq, the Department of Homeland Security or any government agency (including the FDA). The law has already passed the House on a traitorous vote of 405 to 6, and it is now being considered in the Senate where a vote is imminent. All over the internet, intelligent people who care about freedom are speaking out against this extremely dangerous law: Philip Giraldi at the Huffington Post, Declan McCullagh at CNET's News.com, Kathryn Smith at OpEdNews.com, and of course Alex Jones at PrisonPlanet.com
This bill is the beginning of the end of Free Speech in America. If it passes, all the information sources you know and trust could be shut down and their authors imprisoned. NewsTarget could be taken offline and I could be arrested as a "terrorist." Jeff Rense at www.Rense.com could be labeled a "terrorist" and arrested. Byron Richards, Len Horowitz, Paul Craig Roberts, Greg Palast, Ron Paul and even Al Gore could all be arrested, silenced and incarcerated. This is not an exaggeration. It is a literal reading of the law, which you can check yourself here: http://thomas.loc.gov/home/gpoxmlc110/h1955_rfs.xml
The bill states:
'...ideologically based violence' means the use, planned use, or threatened use of force or violence by a group or individual to promote the group or individual's political, religious, or social beliefs...
Note that this means the "planned use of force to promote a political or social belief" would be considered an act of terrorism. This all hinges on the definition of "force," of course. Based on the loose use of logic in Washington these days, and the slippery interpretation of the meaning of words, "force" could mean:
• A grassroots campaign to barrage Congress with faxes
• A non-violent street protest
• A letter-writing campaign that deluges the Senate with too much mail
• A sit-in protest that blocks access to a business or organization
• A grassroots e-mail campaign that overloads the e-mail servers of any government department or agency
You get the idea. "Force" could be defined as practically anything. And since the "planned use of force" would be considered a criminal act of terrorism, anyone who simply thinks about a grassroots action campaign would be engaged in terrorist acts.
If you stopped someone on the street and handed them a Bible, for example, this could be considered an act of terrorism ("...use of force to promote the individual's religious beliefs...")
If you sent a barrage of angry letters to Washington about global warming and the destruction of the environment by the U.S. military, this could also be considered an act of terrorism ("...to promote the individual's political beliefs...")
If you believe in same-sex marriage and you wrote a letter threatning a sit-in protest in front of your state's capitol building, this could also be considered an act of terrorism, even if you never carried it out! ("...planned use of force to promote a social belief...")
The United States is on the fast track to fascism, and the Congress is working right alongside this nation's traitorous leaders to criminalize any thoughts, words or speeches that disagree with current government policies regarding war, terrorism, domestic surveillance and civil liberties. Simply speaking out against the war on Iraq could soon be labeled a crime. Merely thinking thoughts against the war on Iraq could be considered a criminal act.
Must-see video: Naomi Wolf's lecture on 10 steps to fascism
There's a video lecture you simply MUST watch. It's by Naomi Wolf, author of The End of America. She covers this topic with great elegance and a deep understanding of history. See her video on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjALf12PAWc
Click here to see her book on Amazon.com.
In her lecture and book, Naomi reveals the ten steps to fascist, then reveals how the United States of America is pursuing all ten! This S.1959 legislation, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act, represents one of the ten steps to achieve a fascist state!
It is designed to squash all opposition to the State's ongoing march towards blatant fascism, where secret police and secret prisons dominate the law enforcement landscape, stripping U.S. citizens of all civil liberties and Constitutional protections.
Thoughtcrimes are about to become a reality in the United States of America, and Congress is pushing this through as quickly as possible so that each individual member of Congress can claim that he or she is "against terrorism." But this bill doesn't merely target terrorism: It targets anyone who speaks or even thinks thoughts against the U.S. federal government.
With this bill, the U.S. government is officially labeling the People of the United States as criminals. It is drawing a line in the sand and stating that from now on, it's the Government vs. the People.
If we don't stop this bill from becoming law, we are lost as a nation.
There is no turning back from tyranny once the government turns its own citizens into criminals, enforcing only the thoughts, ideas, words and speeches that it approves or tolerates. Everything is at stake here!
Take action now, or lose your freedoms forever
If you live in the U.S., it is urgent that you call your senators right now and voice your strong opposition against this extremely dangerous law.
Here are the phone numbers for the U.S. Senate switchboard:
1-877-851-6437
1-800-833-6354
1-888-355-3588
1-866-220-0044
1-866-808-0065
1-877-762-8762
1-866-340-9281
1-800-862-5530
How to do this:
1) Make sure you know the names of your Senators.
2) Call the U.S. Senate switchboard using one of the numbers above.
3) Ask to speak to the offices of your Senators.
4) Tell them you are strongly opposed to S. 1959, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act
5) Ask for their fax number.
6) Follow up your phone call with a written, signed letter that you fax to your Senators.
Stopping this bill from becoming law is the single most important thing all Americans can do right now. If this becomes law, all free speech about health freedom, the crimes of the FDA, the crimes of the Bush Administration, America's role in global warming and any other topics could all be criminalized. YOU could be labeled a terrorist, kidnapped by government thugs, taken from your home, thrown in a secret prison, denied access to legal representation, denied due process and essentially "disappeared" into a system of such corruption and evil that it now begins to blatantly mirror Nazi Germany.
Think it couldn't happen here? It's happening right now! This is exactly how it happened in Nazi Germany. First, burn the Reichstag and blame it on the "enemy." Pass new police state laws. Disarm the people. Spread fear. Erect secret prisons and secret police. Call anyone who disagrees with you a "traitor." Control the mainstream media. Sound familiar? This is all happening right now in the United States of Amerika, and if we don't work to stop it, this nation will rapidly devolve into a fascist police state where no one is truly free.
We are but a few small steps away from it right now. All it would take is one dirty bomb in a major U.S. city. Bush would declare Martial Law and take over the National Guard. Troops on the streets. Anyone who writes a blog against the government would be arrested. Authors of "alternative" books would be kidnapped and have their books burned on the street. It could all happen at the stroke of a pen. The infrastructure for tyranny is in place right now, just waiting to be invoked.
Our best weapons: Non-violent protest and speaking the truth
How can we fight back against this onslaught of tyranny? We must use what remaining free speech freedoms we have right now to alert our fellow citizens to what's happening. We must rise up and tell the truth while urging our representatives in Washington to resist the temptation to vote for more "anti-terrorism" legislation that only works to enslave the American people.
We must use our phones, faxes, emails and blogs to rally our friends, family members and anyone who will listen to oppose these police state laws, and we must organize mass (peaceful) protests against this government that is attempting to marginalize the rights and freedoms of our People.
We must not be lulled into a sense of false security by the purveyors of hatred and fear -- the Sean Hannitys, Rush Limbaughs and Bill O'Reillys of the world. Instead, we must listen to the voices of freedom. In terms of the upcoming election for U.S. President, there is only one candidate that actually believes in freedom: Ron Paul. He needs your support to win: www.RonPaul2008.com
All the other candidates are nothing more than tyrants of different political affiliations. Ron Paul is the only candidate that truly understands the fundamentals of freedom. That's why he's the only real choice for our next President. Can you imagine what Hillary Clinton would do with the police state powers that Bush has now created? That's the danger of all laws that centralize power in Washington: It's not necessarily what today's President will do with them, but what some future President will do with them.
That's why it's never good enough to say, "Well, we intend to only apply these laws to terrorists and not to U.S. citizens at home." That may be the intention right NOW, but virtually all such laws creep into areas of enforcement for which they were never intended. Just look at the application of RICO laws which were originally designed to fight organized crime operations but are now applied to virtually anyone (and yet they are never applied to Big Pharma, which operates almost exactly like organized crime!). All these anti-terrorism laws run the danger of expanding in enforcement to the point where they are applied against the People of this country. At first, it's only illegal for "terrorists" to think thought crimes, but before long, it's illegal for anyone to think those same thoughts. That when the domestic arrests of authors, journalists, bloggers and thought leaders will kick off, and the country will plunge itself into outright tyrannical fascism.
Again, we're on the track right now. This is happening, folks. You're LIVING through an amazing chapter of history right now. You're actually witnessing the downfall of a free nation and the rise of a superpower fascist state. You're actually part of it.
When it's all over, will you look back and realize you did nothing? Or will you now take a stand against tyranny and oppose these dangerous laws and lawmakers who threaten the Constitutional freedoms of you and your children?
Senate'>http://www.NewsTarget.com/022308.html">Senate Bill 1959 to Criminalize Thoughts, Blogs, Books and Free Speech Across America
Senate Bill 1959 to Criminalize Thoughts, Blogs, Books and Free Speech Across America
Wednesday, November 28, 2007 by: Mike Adams
The end of Free Speech in America has arrived at our doorstep. It's a new law called the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act, and it is worded in a clever way that could allow the U.S. government to arrest and incarcerate any individual who speaks out against the Bush Administration, the war on Iraq, the Department of Homeland Security or any government agency (including the FDA). The law has already passed the House on a traitorous vote of 405 to 6, and it is now being considered in the Senate where a vote is imminent. All over the internet, intelligent people who care about freedom are speaking out against this extremely dangerous law: Philip Giraldi at the Huffington Post, Declan McCullagh at CNET's News.com, Kathryn Smith at OpEdNews.com, and of course Alex Jones at PrisonPlanet.com
This bill is the beginning of the end of Free Speech in America. If it passes, all the information sources you know and trust could be shut down and their authors imprisoned. NewsTarget could be taken offline and I could be arrested as a "terrorist." Jeff Rense at www.Rense.com could be labeled a "terrorist" and arrested. Byron Richards, Len Horowitz, Paul Craig Roberts, Greg Palast, Ron Paul and even Al Gore could all be arrested, silenced and incarcerated. This is not an exaggeration. It is a literal reading of the law, which you can check yourself here: http://thomas.loc.gov/home/gpoxmlc110/h1955_rfs.xml
The bill states:
'...ideologically based violence' means the use, planned use, or threatened use of force or violence by a group or individual to promote the group or individual's political, religious, or social beliefs...
Note that this means the "planned use of force to promote a political or social belief" would be considered an act of terrorism. This all hinges on the definition of "force," of course. Based on the loose use of logic in Washington these days, and the slippery interpretation of the meaning of words, "force" could mean:
• A grassroots campaign to barrage Congress with faxes
• A non-violent street protest
• A letter-writing campaign that deluges the Senate with too much mail
• A sit-in protest that blocks access to a business or organization
• A grassroots e-mail campaign that overloads the e-mail servers of any government department or agency
You get the idea. "Force" could be defined as practically anything. And since the "planned use of force" would be considered a criminal act of terrorism, anyone who simply thinks about a grassroots action campaign would be engaged in terrorist acts.
If you stopped someone on the street and handed them a Bible, for example, this could be considered an act of terrorism ("...use of force to promote the individual's religious beliefs...")
If you sent a barrage of angry letters to Washington about global warming and the destruction of the environment by the U.S. military, this could also be considered an act of terrorism ("...to promote the individual's political beliefs...")
If you believe in same-sex marriage and you wrote a letter threatning a sit-in protest in front of your state's capitol building, this could also be considered an act of terrorism, even if you never carried it out! ("...planned use of force to promote a social belief...")
The United States is on the fast track to fascism, and the Congress is working right alongside this nation's traitorous leaders to criminalize any thoughts, words or speeches that disagree with current government policies regarding war, terrorism, domestic surveillance and civil liberties. Simply speaking out against the war on Iraq could soon be labeled a crime. Merely thinking thoughts against the war on Iraq could be considered a criminal act.
Must-see video: Naomi Wolf's lecture on 10 steps to fascism
There's a video lecture you simply MUST watch. It's by Naomi Wolf, author of The End of America. She covers this topic with great elegance and a deep understanding of history. See her video on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjALf12PAWc
Click here to see her book on Amazon.com.
In her lecture and book, Naomi reveals the ten steps to fascist, then reveals how the United States of America is pursuing all ten! This S.1959 legislation, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act, represents one of the ten steps to achieve a fascist state!
It is designed to squash all opposition to the State's ongoing march towards blatant fascism, where secret police and secret prisons dominate the law enforcement landscape, stripping U.S. citizens of all civil liberties and Constitutional protections.
Thoughtcrimes are about to become a reality in the United States of America, and Congress is pushing this through as quickly as possible so that each individual member of Congress can claim that he or she is "against terrorism." But this bill doesn't merely target terrorism: It targets anyone who speaks or even thinks thoughts against the U.S. federal government.
With this bill, the U.S. government is officially labeling the People of the United States as criminals. It is drawing a line in the sand and stating that from now on, it's the Government vs. the People.
If we don't stop this bill from becoming law, we are lost as a nation.
There is no turning back from tyranny once the government turns its own citizens into criminals, enforcing only the thoughts, ideas, words and speeches that it approves or tolerates. Everything is at stake here!
Take action now, or lose your freedoms forever
If you live in the U.S., it is urgent that you call your senators right now and voice your strong opposition against this extremely dangerous law.
Here are the phone numbers for the U.S. Senate switchboard:
1-877-851-6437
1-800-833-6354
1-888-355-3588
1-866-220-0044
1-866-808-0065
1-877-762-8762
1-866-340-9281
1-800-862-5530
How to do this:
1) Make sure you know the names of your Senators.
2) Call the U.S. Senate switchboard using one of the numbers above.
3) Ask to speak to the offices of your Senators.
4) Tell them you are strongly opposed to S. 1959, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act
5) Ask for their fax number.
6) Follow up your phone call with a written, signed letter that you fax to your Senators.
Stopping this bill from becoming law is the single most important thing all Americans can do right now. If this becomes law, all free speech about health freedom, the crimes of the FDA, the crimes of the Bush Administration, America's role in global warming and any other topics could all be criminalized. YOU could be labeled a terrorist, kidnapped by government thugs, taken from your home, thrown in a secret prison, denied access to legal representation, denied due process and essentially "disappeared" into a system of such corruption and evil that it now begins to blatantly mirror Nazi Germany.
Think it couldn't happen here? It's happening right now! This is exactly how it happened in Nazi Germany. First, burn the Reichstag and blame it on the "enemy." Pass new police state laws. Disarm the people. Spread fear. Erect secret prisons and secret police. Call anyone who disagrees with you a "traitor." Control the mainstream media. Sound familiar? This is all happening right now in the United States of Amerika, and if we don't work to stop it, this nation will rapidly devolve into a fascist police state where no one is truly free.
We are but a few small steps away from it right now. All it would take is one dirty bomb in a major U.S. city. Bush would declare Martial Law and take over the National Guard. Troops on the streets. Anyone who writes a blog against the government would be arrested. Authors of "alternative" books would be kidnapped and have their books burned on the street. It could all happen at the stroke of a pen. The infrastructure for tyranny is in place right now, just waiting to be invoked.
Our best weapons: Non-violent protest and speaking the truth
How can we fight back against this onslaught of tyranny? We must use what remaining free speech freedoms we have right now to alert our fellow citizens to what's happening. We must rise up and tell the truth while urging our representatives in Washington to resist the temptation to vote for more "anti-terrorism" legislation that only works to enslave the American people.
We must use our phones, faxes, emails and blogs to rally our friends, family members and anyone who will listen to oppose these police state laws, and we must organize mass (peaceful) protests against this government that is attempting to marginalize the rights and freedoms of our People.
We must not be lulled into a sense of false security by the purveyors of hatred and fear -- the Sean Hannitys, Rush Limbaughs and Bill O'Reillys of the world. Instead, we must listen to the voices of freedom. In terms of the upcoming election for U.S. President, there is only one candidate that actually believes in freedom: Ron Paul. He needs your support to win: www.RonPaul2008.com
All the other candidates are nothing more than tyrants of different political affiliations. Ron Paul is the only candidate that truly understands the fundamentals of freedom. That's why he's the only real choice for our next President. Can you imagine what Hillary Clinton would do with the police state powers that Bush has now created? That's the danger of all laws that centralize power in Washington: It's not necessarily what today's President will do with them, but what some future President will do with them.
That's why it's never good enough to say, "Well, we intend to only apply these laws to terrorists and not to U.S. citizens at home." That may be the intention right NOW, but virtually all such laws creep into areas of enforcement for which they were never intended. Just look at the application of RICO laws which were originally designed to fight organized crime operations but are now applied to virtually anyone (and yet they are never applied to Big Pharma, which operates almost exactly like organized crime!). All these anti-terrorism laws run the danger of expanding in enforcement to the point where they are applied against the People of this country. At first, it's only illegal for "terrorists" to think thought crimes, but before long, it's illegal for anyone to think those same thoughts. That when the domestic arrests of authors, journalists, bloggers and thought leaders will kick off, and the country will plunge itself into outright tyrannical fascism.
Again, we're on the track right now. This is happening, folks. You're LIVING through an amazing chapter of history right now. You're actually witnessing the downfall of a free nation and the rise of a superpower fascist state. You're actually part of it.
When it's all over, will you look back and realize you did nothing? Or will you now take a stand against tyranny and oppose these dangerous laws and lawmakers who threaten the Constitutional freedoms of you and your children?
Senate'>http://www.NewsTarget.com/022308.html">Senate Bill 1959 to Criminalize Thoughts, Blogs, Books and Free Speech Across America
Bush's Confession and Disinformation
The long-delayed release of the 2006 National Intelligence Estimate proves that Cheney, et. al., have been cooking the books on Iran just like they did in the run up to the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Everyone feels vindicated after six years of screaming at the top of their lungs that there were never any weapons of mass destruction. The war in Iraq was not about WMD. It was about the administration's profound ability to create reality - to completely reconfigure the Middle East. Zeus had a thought and Athena popped right out of his forehead, leaving an embarrassing wet spot in his lap.
Maybe this time the CIA isn't going to go along with the Cheney administration's efforts to Iraq Iran.
But wait! That's not all. If you call now, we'll send you twice as much bullshit for the same price. The recent White House confessions may be crazy like a fox, since they serve to move the subject of Iran's nuclear ambitions from the future into the past. Before there were doubts. Now there is certainty.
It's no longer merely a possibility that Iran might develop nuclear weapons. Now the public understands that Iran already had a nuclear weapons program and they suspended it. Want to see me me pull a rabbit out of my hat? Presto change-o. Was it too fast for you? Want to see it again?
Now we know Iran has a nuclear weapons program. We were just guessing before. Now every news outlet in the United States is repeating the meme: Iran had a nuclear weapons program and suspended it. Now the Judith Miller-like secret details are fed ever so slowly and carefully into the simulated-journalist centrifuges at The New York Times.
Note to Homer:
Iranian Military Officials = Curve Ball
Anyone remember Curve Ball? Or the cavalcade of Iraqi defectors produced by Chalabi who testified about Saddams' ability to secretly manufacture infinite quantities of deadly Hookah gas?
Now we have Iranian officials complaining about efforts to shut down their beloved nuclear weapons program.
Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Cuuuuuuurve Baaaaallll. Laaaaaggg.
This is your brain.
This is your brain after using American Intelligence.
Ron Suskind actually witnessed an unnamed Bush official in the act of creating reality:
"That's not the way the world really works anymore," he continued. "We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality -- judiciously, as you will -- we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do."
Muuuuuuuuaaaaaaaaaaaaahahahahahaha!
Maybe this time the CIA isn't going to go along with the Cheney administration's efforts to Iraq Iran.
But wait! That's not all. If you call now, we'll send you twice as much bullshit for the same price. The recent White House confessions may be crazy like a fox, since they serve to move the subject of Iran's nuclear ambitions from the future into the past. Before there were doubts. Now there is certainty.
It's no longer merely a possibility that Iran might develop nuclear weapons. Now the public understands that Iran already had a nuclear weapons program and they suspended it. Want to see me me pull a rabbit out of my hat? Presto change-o. Was it too fast for you? Want to see it again?
Under the current administration, it is increasingly difficult to know who the enemy is, but what is certain is that the latest NIE is a brilliantly executed psychological warfare by way of misinformation. This dastardly plan is so devious that even the anti-war groups are jubilant at its release, and they are naively sharing its contents. Perhaps none are as enthusiastic about the report as the most powerful lobby group in America hostile to Iran.
Now we know Iran has a nuclear weapons program. We were just guessing before. Now every news outlet in the United States is repeating the meme: Iran had a nuclear weapons program and suspended it. Now the Judith Miller-like secret details are fed ever so slowly and carefully into the simulated-journalist centrifuges at The New York Times.
American intelligence agencies reversed their view about the status of Iran’s nuclear weapons program after they obtained notes last summer from the deliberations of Iranian military officials involved in the weapons development program, senior intelligence and government officials said on Wednesday.
Note to Homer:
Anyone remember Curve Ball? Or the cavalcade of Iraqi defectors produced by Chalabi who testified about Saddams' ability to secretly manufacture infinite quantities of deadly Hookah gas?
Now we have Iranian officials complaining about efforts to shut down their beloved nuclear weapons program.
Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Cuuuuuuurve Baaaaallll. Laaaaaggg.
This is your brain.
This is your brain after using American Intelligence.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Courts Shouldn't Have Jurisdiction
And other nonsensical Bull-Pucky from our government.
Watching C-Span this morning, I caught a debate about the court's role, or jurisdiction if any, over the detainment of "Enemy Combatants" at Guantanamo Bay. The basic idea right now is that no, enemy combatants should not have access to our judicial system, and their cases, detainment, and sentencing (of which I'm sure they will be sentenced) should be controlled by the Executive Branch of our government.
Other sentiments that were expressed during this debate were that enemy combatants did not, or should not have the right to appeal to courts, prove their innocence, or sue the government.
When one of the men debating for the abdication of the court's rights in war time trials stated that no torture should ever be used and has not been used and that no one in our government supports the use of torture I am certain my morning coffee came out of my nose.
Freedom and Democracy are only for those who can pay for it with Cash or Oil. Everyone else can rot in jail.
Thats it for now, more later when I get to watch the actual court debates on this issue.
Watching C-Span this morning, I caught a debate about the court's role, or jurisdiction if any, over the detainment of "Enemy Combatants" at Guantanamo Bay. The basic idea right now is that no, enemy combatants should not have access to our judicial system, and their cases, detainment, and sentencing (of which I'm sure they will be sentenced) should be controlled by the Executive Branch of our government.
Other sentiments that were expressed during this debate were that enemy combatants did not, or should not have the right to appeal to courts, prove their innocence, or sue the government.
When one of the men debating for the abdication of the court's rights in war time trials stated that no torture should ever be used and has not been used and that no one in our government supports the use of torture I am certain my morning coffee came out of my nose.
Freedom and Democracy are only for those who can pay for it with Cash or Oil. Everyone else can rot in jail.
Thats it for now, more later when I get to watch the actual court debates on this issue.
Woohooo!
Somehow, it is only us who is cheering this news in Iran! People don't seem to be too surprised, or utterly thrilled about Bush's flop!
Life was good here in Tehran!
Now it's even better!
I go party some more! :)
A big virtual hug to you all!
Life was good here in Tehran!
Now it's even better!
I go party some more! :)
A big virtual hug to you all!
Monday, December 3, 2007
National Intelligence Estimate: Iran halted weapons program in 2003
A remarkable summary that diverges widely from what's commonly assumed:
 clipped from www.consortiumnews.com
This NIE does not (italics in original) assume that Iran intends to acquire nuclear weapons
|
NIE LIE
"Tehran's decision to halt its nuclear weapons program suggests it is less determined to develop nuclear weapons than we have been judging since 2005," says the unclassified summary of the secret report.Rand Beers, who resigned from Bush's National Security Council just before the Iraq war, said the report should derail any appetite for war on the administration's part, and should reinvigorate regional diplomacy. "The new NIE throws cold water on the efforts of those urging military confrontation with Iran," he said.
The spooks say Iran halted its nuclear weapon program in 2003, incidentally the year it proposed unconditional talks with the US and which the White house rejected point blank. They want war, ok, the Bush administration in the United States of America want war with Iran. So with this latest piece of reality impinging on their war pimping they spin it thusly- as they continue to enrich uranium (which they need for nuclear power) that means they actually are pursuing weapons. Lying war mongering bastard says-
U.S. National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley, said the risk of Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon remains "a serious problem." The estimate suggests Bush "has the right strategy: intensified international pressure along with a willingness to negotiate a solution that serves Iranian interests, while ensuring the world will never have to face a nuclear armed Iran," Hadley said. He was less interested in what the 2005 assessment missed than what it got right: that Iran had a covert nuclear program.
So even the entire intelligence community of the empire is saying for fuck's sake do not attack Iran, it poses no threat and the consequences of attacking to America would be disastrous. This is the NIE Cheney delayed for a year to force it to include as much anti Iranian propaganda as possible-
- intelligence analysts have had to review and rewrite their findings three times, because of pressure from the White House.
- The White House has now apparently decided to release the unsatisfactory draft NIE, but without making its key findings public.
- Frank J. Gaffney, a protégé of neoconservative heavyweight Richard Perle, complained that Negroponte was “absurdly declaring the Iranian regime to be years away from having nuclear weapons”.
- an unsubtle signal to the intelligence community that the White House was determined to obtain a more alarmist conclusion on the Iranian nuclear programme.
PS. As Hass a commenter at my blog added-
From IranAffairs.com:
Iran NIE report - Are you lying now, or were you lying then? If the 2005 NIE report was wrong, why should the 2007 NIE report be any more credible? If Iran really had a nuclear weapons program until 2003 as the new NIE says, then why has the IAEA found no evidence of it? WHy should we believe that Iran EVER had a nuclear weapons program at all?
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Iraq Is A Verb
Add Iraq to the list of nouns which can be used as transitive verbs: to Google something, to Bork someone.
Now, thanks to George Bush and the neocon Jews, we have to Iraq Iran.
It is perfectly clear what it means and therefore meets all the criteria for acceptable usage. Thanks go to a group of peaceful protesters who hang out at at Second Life.
And thanks to our friend in Tehran for sending it.
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