Stand Up for Peace

The MoveOn.org Stand Up for Peace vigil in Boston this past Tuesday attracted an impressive array of committed individuals. This event, coordinated with hundreds across the country, solemnly commemorated the fallen soldiers of Bush's obscene war for oil and empire for the New American Century, the neocon project to force puppet democracies upon hostile governments through military conquest and/or intimidation. Basically, the policy is best summed up with this: "We have the world's greatest military, let's use it!" As always, it's our money they're borrowing for this colossal blunder, and our blood they are sacrificing. The MoveOn volunteers read the names of those who gave their lives with genuine dignity and respect, creating a moving moment of solemnity amid the flash and fragile posturing of our commercial culture. We only wish our Congress people were with us to honor them in person and cast their votes to end this mad war.

Click here to see a few more images.

Global Village

Blogs fall into two categories: those who repackage commercial media with an overlay of commentary, and those that speak directly and locally. I'm going to tell you about the latter. I fall into the first category because our culture is almost completely monetized and prepared with advertising dollars in mind. I try to direct you to comment and opinion that penetrates the commercial, corporate fog. There is another source of news and culture that usually doesn't reach us, mostly due to language and technological hurdles. The technological hurdles are fairly well addressed these days, now the language barriers are, too.

Global Voices is a blogging channel discovering feeds from local sources around the world who want to connect to the Western audience. They do the discovery and translation, you do the reading. This is the true global village. Dig in and support them, why don't you!

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Note to bloggers: Get involved with Global Voices. Find out how from their For Bloggers link.

Bonaparte and Bush, Great Expectations

It was the highest-tech military of its moment and its invasion of the Arab land was overwhelming. Enemy forces were smashed, the oppressive ruling regime overthrown, the enemy capital occupied, and the country declared liberated… then the first acts of insurgency began…

George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq in 2003? No, Napoleon Bonaparte's invasion of Egypt in June 1798. There are times when the resonances of history are positively eerie. This happens to be one of them

…Napoleon wrote a letter to one of his generals, well into the occupation, forbidding the beating of insurgents to extract information: "It has been recognized at all times that this manner of interrogating human beings, of putting them under torture, produces nothing good."

Quoted from:
Tomgram: Juan Cole, The Republic Militant at War, Then and Now

The neocons of the past century floated visions of rosy, sanitized, hi-tech invasions that would outsource democracy and freedom to welcoming masses, paid for by their own treasuries. Now they desert W en masse, realizing their dreams were floated by their own passed gas. The Party is in free fall, and it's solely up to Dick and George, oh and David, to salvage some dignity. Remember WWII! Remember Korea! Remember Vietnam! How about "Remember Napoleon"?

Raus! al-Maliki

Raus! Get out! Veterans of WWII would remember the phrase.

Bush basically said the same to Nouri al-Maliki for talking with Syria and Iran. We mustn't have our puppets courting the Axis of Evil, after all. Just like "Bring It ON", W, our Mr. Tough Guy, spoke impulsively, revealing his hand. So now, al-Maliki is a "good guy", as long as he doesn't do bad again by disobeying our wishes. That's democracy, Bush style.

One of the best writers to sort all the players, past and present, is Robert Fisk, writer for the Independent UK. He's been there, not just for brief tours, but for the duration. And his grasp of the history is lucid.

The Iraqis Don't Deserve Us, So We Betray Them
(August 23, 2007)

First, the Americans loved Ahmed Chalabi, the man who fabricated for Washington the"'weapons of mass destruction" (with a hefty bank fraud charge on his back). Then, they loved Ayad Allawi, a Vietnam-style spook who admitted working for 26 intelligence organizations, including the CIA and MI6. Then came Ibrahim al-Jaafari, symbol of electoral law, whom the Americans loved, supported, loved again and destroyed. Couldn't get his act together. It was up to the Iraqis, of course, but the Americans wanted him out. And the seat of the Iraqi government -- a never-never land in the humidity of Baghdad's green zone -- lay next to the largest US embassy in the world. So goodbye, Ibrahim.

Saddam Hussein: A Dictator Created Then Destroyed By America
(December 30, 2006)

Who encouraged Saddam to invade Iran in 1980, which was the greatest war crime he has committed for it led to the deaths of a million and a half souls? And who sold him the components for the chemical weapons with which he drenched Iran and the Kurds? We did. No wonder the Americans, who controlled Saddam's weird trial, forbad any mention of this, his most obscene atrocity, in the charges against him. Could he not have been handed over to the Iranians for sentencing for this massive war crime? Of course not. Because that would also expose our culpability.

You can see the trend line from reading more in these stories. We are the puppet master, and we will not be leaving, let the Devil take the hindmost.

…that is, until he takes our hindmost.

For extra credit read this interesting book, written in 1999, just before the bubble burst:

D E V I L T A K E T H E H I N D M O S T
A History of financial speculation from the Roman Empire to the present brims with bad tidings.
BY EDWARD CHANCELLOR

"I daily hear such reports of advantages to be gaind by one project or other in the Stocks, that my Spirit is Up with double Zeal, in the desire of our trying to enrich ourselves."

: >)

Wars-R-Us, It Didn't Happen Overnight

I thought you'd want to read an essay by Norman Solomon posted on www.mediachannel.org.

Let's Face It: The Warfare State is Part of Us

A few excerpts:

Born 50 years before George W. Bush became president, I have always lived in a warfare state. Each man in the Oval Office has presided over an arsenal of weapons designed to destroy human life en masse. In recent decades, our self-proclaimed protectors have been able — and willing — to destroy all of humanity.

… One day in 1969, a biologist named George Wald, who had won a Nobel Prize, visited the Massachusetts Institute of Technology — the biggest military contractor in academia — and gave a speech. “Our government has become preoccupied with death,” he said, “with the business of killing and being killed.”

…The warfare state doesn’t come and go. It can’t be defeated on Election Day. Like it or not, it’s at the core of the United States — and it has infiltrated our very being.

Be sure to read his book, "Made Love, Got War: Close Encounters with America’s Warfare State". Go to: www.MadeLoveGotWar.com.

And see what you can do to prove him wrong.

Zombie Talking Heads Invade Fox

Really. This is no Orson Welles joke. They're at it again.



You can call Fox advertisers in your area to let them know you don't buy this anymore. While you're at it you can sign the open letter to Fox.

Go here:
Fox Attacks Iran

Nancy Calls for Impeachment

Yes !!! The winning entry from the Democrats.com "Dump Dick" video contest.

How do we persuade Speaker Nancy Pelosi to respond to Jen's excellent video? Share your ideas HERE.

Meanwhile,

Urge your Representatives to Sign the Pledge for Peace Petition

Dear Representative,

Please join the 70 members of Congress who pledged in an open letter delivered to President Bush: "We will only support appropriating funds for U.S. military operations in Iraq during Fiscal Year 2008 and beyond for the protection and safe redeployment of all our troops out of Iraq before you leave office."

The U.S. occupation of Iraq is the primary cause of the violence there. U.S. intelligence agencies have reported in multiple National Intelligence Estimates that the occupation of Iraq is recruiting more terrorists worldwide. Every dollar we spend in Iraq is making America less secure and taking funds away from urgent needs at home and abroad.

Your pledge to vote only for funding bills that end the occupation by January 2009 has the potential to send to the White House a bill that finally accomplishes what the current Congress was elected to do.

Your concomitant pledge to vote against any funding bills that do not end the occupation has the potential to force the president to use existing funds to bring the troops home.

There is nothing rash about commiting to ending this disaster in 17 months. Please contact the Progressive Caucus to join the 70-plus Congress Members taking this pledge.

Sign here:
http://www.democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/115

For more information visit Progressive Democrats of America.

Thanks!

Nuclear Power is Safe. Ha, ha!

What's that yellow liquid seeping under the doorway? Why it's highly enriched uranium!

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A three-year veil of secrecy in the name of national security was used to keep the public in the dark about the handling of highly enriched uranium at a nuclear fuel processing plant — including a leak that could have caused a deadly, uncontrolled nuclear reaction.

"Tenn. nuclear fuel problems kept secret", Houston Chronicle.

The leak was just one of nine problems since 2005 at privately owned Nuclear Fuel Services, which has most recently been turning the U.S. government's weapons-grade uranium stockpile into commercial reactor fuel. Over nine gallons of highly enriched uranium seeped out of a transfer line onto the floor and was first noticed by a passing employee when the yellowish liquid seeped into the hallway.

"We Put the Unclear in Nuclear", Grist.

It looks like "National Security" is back to its old tricks again. This is an administration that hates competent oversight of anything, needing secrecy to cover up its failings. Katrina, Iraq, the Utah mine disaster? (You do know that Richard Strickler, the Mine Safety and Health Administrator was a Bush recess appointment? Yes, even the Republicans didn't want him. Richie hated all those stupid mine safety regulations, coming from a mining industry family himself. Yep, just like Brownie, he was a Bushie-man, only W had to appoint him during the recess because nobody else wanted him.)

With that kind of a record, how can we possibly trust our President to protect us from a nuclear accident? Time to get busy and push your representative for impeachment. If immorality and criminal behavior don't motivate you, how about gross incompetence? How about a glowing, unapproachable Tennessee - for the next 20,000 years?

Get busy. Please. Dump Dick first. I'll show you the winning entry from the Dump Dick YouTube group in the next post.

Enjoy!

Patient Zero - The Real Flip Flopper!

Cheney '94: Invading Baghdad Would Create Quagmire C-SPAN

Here you go -- the REAL flip flopper! Makes you wonder who gave him the Kool Aid between 1994 and the 2000 election.