Sunday, December 30, 2007

Huckabee's Jesus Nation



I don't often write about Republicans for the GOP nomination, mostly because they're so boring and predictable. However, Mike Huckabee is both interesting and scary. He often comes across as an affable Gomer Pyle type and gives you the impression he's a well rounded guy, even if not the sharpest knife in the drawer. But his increasing efforts to Christianize the wingnut field of candidates is both odd and a little worrisome. I don't ever remember any other candidate as audacious as he in placing their religious beliefs front and center of their campaigning. That would include the likes of Pat Robertson or Gary Bauer, when they ran in past elections. Of course, they emphasized their policy choices that lined up with the Christian Right but didn't go as far Huckabee in pushing the Jesus factor as the countries national identity. Maybe he's just focusing in on the evangelical vote in Iowa which is rather large in Iowa's presidential caucus. Anyways, the following article
deals with Huckabee's "Jesus Nation".


Huckabee stands by 'Christ' comment

By LIZ SIDOTI, Associated Press Writer Sun Dec 30, 5:19 PM ET

DES MOINES, Iowa - Mike Huckabee, a Republican relying on support from religious conservatives in Thursday's hard-fought presidential caucuses, on Sunday stood by a decade-old comment in which he said, "I hope we answer the alarm clock and take this nation back for Christ.

read on.

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Saturday, December 29, 2007

Good Walls Make Good Neighbors


RePrintPrint Email
Baghdad's wall-building surge makes reconciliation less likely
By Rosa Brooks
Article Launched: 12/28/2007 01:38:19 AM PST

From Baghdad to Tall Afar, our military has been busily constructing walls between and around Iraqi neighborhoods. In Baghdad, 12-foot-high walls now separate Sunni and Shiite communities. Broken by narrow checkpoints, the walls turn Baghdad into dozens of replica "green zones," dividing neighbor from neighbor and choking off normal commerce and communications.

The military isn't building walls as a training exercise, of course. The walls are meant to make it harder for militias, insurgents and death squads to coordinate and reach their intended victims. With enough troops and enough concrete, the theory goes, you can keep the bad guys from operating effectively and gradually reduce the sectarian violence that has been tearing Iraq apart.

So far, it looks as if the wall-building strategy is paying dividends. Civilian deaths in Iraq are down significantly. And although 2007 has been the deadliest year of the war for U.S. troops, attacks on them have dropped sharply in recent months. After so many years of escalating violence, it's almost eeri

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This is a form of ethnic cleansing and, as the article points out, effectively separates Sunni's and Shia so it's harder for them to kill each other. Is this the face of success in Iraq, or just a temporary solution? What happens when we draw down our forces? These are questions war supporters don't want asked and surely don't want to answer. Republicans are playing a tragic and desperate game of willful ignorance to the reality that is Iraq. They have staked there parties future on achieving "victory" in Iraq and are using America's blood and treasure to feed their great neocon experiment in nation building. They can't rationally explain what "victory" even looks like. It's a day by day kicking the can down the road for a democratic President to have to take the steps necessary to extricate ourselves from a 1400 year civil war. What kind of victory has the capital city of Iraq partioned with 12 foot high walls so it's residents won't kill each other en masse. I hope and believe the American people see through this cynical charade. We will see, come November 2008.
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It's Always Been About Pakistan






I haven't written anything on Pakistan and Bhutto's assassination in order to let the dust settle on what actually is going on. I don't know who killed Ms. Bhutto, but it looks like Musharraf didn't exactly make an acceptable effort to protect her. I will say the scenario in Pakistan is not historically unfamiliar with many instances of dictaors who may have started out well meaning and became enamored with themselves and their power. As an American it is becoming more obvious this situation was fueled by the ever incompetent Bush Administration. Even uber neocon John Bolton is complaining about Bush's "micromanaging" Pakistan's internal politics. And several experts have commented on the folly of Bush's pushing for elections and the return of Bhutto and Shariff, the other major political figure who was in exile. Everything I've read about Pakistan's history is that when the country begins to come apart the best solution is to exile some of the leaders in conflict with one another.

How many times now have we seen George W. Bush get it wrong in foreign affairs. Whether it be Iraq, or allowing Hamas to take power in Palestine, and now with Pakistan.

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Friday, December 28, 2007

Our Man Ron Paul

More From the Gang That Can't Shoot Straight

Bush Will Veto Defense Policy Measure, Spokesman Says (Update2)

By Lorraine Woellert and Roger Runningen

Dec. 28 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush will veto a measure giving pay increases to U.S. troops because it has a provision that would open up the Iraqi government to lawsuits for crimes committed under Saddam Hussein, the administration said.

The provision ``would potentially tie up billions of dollars in Iraqi assets in lawsuits for crimes committed in the prior regime,'' White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said. ``It is not in the interest of the U.S. or Iraq.''

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Well isn't this just peachy. After all the rants and raves about Democrats holding up money for the troops and wounded vets The Defense Appropriations Bill still doesn't suit The Decider. Or more accurately, doesn't suit the Iraqi's. Seems some Americans might want some compensation from being tortured by Saddam and instead of standing up for our guys, the Bushies sell them out to a foreign government. Damned bloodsucking trial lawyers anyway.

Does anyone else out there think this is beyond strange even for the Bush Administration. A foreign government essentially given defacto veto power over American lawmaking. You'd think the wingnut nativists would be all over this demanding America sovereignty or some such. But then again Iraq is their special project for Americanizing the Middle East. Nothing is to good for Iraq. No amount of American blood nor treasure shall be spared to achieve their glorious victory over the Islamofascists. Who cares about the constitutional rights of a few, no doubt liberal, bellyaching torture survivors.

Of course the Democrats will fall all over themselves to give His Highness whatever is demanded. The whole bunch are making me more ill every day.

UPDATE: From Flopping Aces-predictable as always

"Trial Lawyers Rear Their Ugly Heads

For months, hell years, they have done their best to derail any progress in Iraq and now they've slipped in a provision they surely must of known would cause a veto.

Why would they do that?

To score political points. A pathetic attempt to say "hey, it's not our fault, it's his."

Nancy and Harry say that the President should of said something earlier and then make this idiotic statement:

"We understand that the president is bowing to the demands of the Iraqi government, which is threatening to withdraw billions of dollars invested in U.S. banks if this bill is signed."

Bowing to the demands? The freakin gall of these people. Iraq is on the right track, violence is down, and they are now doing their best to reconcile but Nancy and Harry want much needed money to be frozen in place....to score political points.

We cannot let the reconstruction of that country be stopped by hundreds of trial lawyers.

The Democrats who bowed to the trial lawyers and slipped this in should be ashamed.

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Aside from the odious viewpoint that the Iraqi government should have anything to say about our countries legislative actions, the Bush administration was micromanaging every detail of this bill from the beginning, threatening a veto if they didn't get everything they wanted. To blame this on dems is beyond pathetic.
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UPDATE 2;
From the WAPO
In a "statement of disapproval," or pocket veto that lets the bill expire Dec. 31, Bush said the provision could result in preliminary injunctions freezing Iraqi assets in American banks - $20 billion to $30 billion, according to a senior administration official - and even affect commercial ventures with U.S. businesses.
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So we get the real reason for the Bushies angst. It could be bad for American Bidness. It never ends, it seems.

Iris DeMent : My Life

Just heard this on the radio in my little town of Silver City NM. If you like Americana Folk this tune might be for you. Anyways, I think I'm in love.

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Rough Day In Iraq

Wednesday: 3 US Soldiers, 36 Iraqis Killed; 17 Iraqis Wounded

Updated at 6:35 p.m. EST, Dec. 26, 2007

At least 31 Iraqis were killed or found dead and 17 more were wounded in the latest round of violence. Seventeen of the dead were from a mass grave near Baquba. Meanwhile, Turkey continues to send warplanes into Iraq, but the only casualties were reported on the Turkish side of the border. Also, three U.S. soldiers were killed in separate incidents

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And this at the height of the surge. The longer we delay stepping back and letting the Iraqi's solve their own problems, the harder it will be to extricate ourselves from the latest sectarian battle in a 1400 year old civil war. What a bloody pickle the neocons have got us into.

Napolitano Cuts Loose on Bush

I know this guy is a Fox News acolyte, but his views on the Bush administrations shredding of the constitution is spot on. I watched most of this speech on c-span a while back and it is spellbinding from a conservative former judge no less. He pulls no punches and takes no prisoners.

William "teh gay" Kristol


Able to leap small buildings with a single snear!

Friday, December 21, 2007

Iraq Insanity 2.0

12/21/07 NPR: U.S. Troop Surge Quells Violence in Iraq
There's a lull in the fighting in Baghdad as the surge in American troops helps to stabilize the capital. The U.S. military struck deals for peace with Iraqi militias on all sides and in the process gave up on religious reconciliation...

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Here we go again. Building on my previous post on the US occupation in Iraq and how it is both causing the "violent differences" between warring factions while providing the solution to those "violent differences" due to the warring factions giving common cause in hating the American occupation more than each other.

The article here reveals more pretzel logic by the US military by making peace themselves with each of Iraq militias and giving up on Iraqi's reconciling with each other. This of course , defeats the most important goal for ending the Iraq quagmire, allowing American troops to leave and come home.

I will say, I think the military is aware of the silliness inherent in this approach but have few options to do otherwise.

Some day this crazy situation has to end with Iraqi's being left alone to settle their differences, like they've been doing for 1400 years give or take.

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Wednesday, December 19, 2007

More Unforgivable Negligence

The Last Days of Private Scheuerman
The following contain excerpts of an AP story
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Wednesday December 19, 2007 7:16 PM

By KIMBERLY HEFLING

Associated Press Writer

SANFORD, N.C. (AP) - Private First Class Jason Scheuerman nailed a suicide note to his barracks closet in Iraq, stepped inside and shot himself.

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What the soldier's father, Chris, would learn about his son's final days would lead the retired Special Forces commando, who teaches at Fort Bragg, to take on the very institution he's spent his life serving - and ultimately prompt an investigation by the Army Inspector General's office.


The documents, obtained by Freedom of Information Act requests filed by Chris Scheuerman, reveal a troubled soldier kept in Iraq despite repeated signs he was going to kill himself, including placing the muzzle of his weapon in his mouth multiple times.

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He is not alone. At least 152 U.S. troops have taken their own lives in Iraq and Afghanistan since the two wars started, contributing to the Army's highest suicide rate in 26 years of keeping track. For the grieving parents, the answers don't come easily or quickly.

For Jason Scheuerman, death came on July 30, 2005, around 5:30 p.m., about 45 minutes after his first sergeant told the teary-eyed private that if he was intentionally misbehaving so he could leave the Army, he would go to jail where he would be abused.

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The rest of the story.

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Just Priceless Wingnut Logic

All Iraqi Groups Blame U.S. Invasion for Discord, Study Shows

By Karen DeYoung
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, December 19, 2007; A14

Iraqis of all sectarian and ethnic groups believe that the U.S. military invasion is the primary root of the violent differences among them, and see the departure of "occupying forces" as the key to national reconciliation, according to focus groups conducted for the U.S. military last month.

That is good news, according to a military analysis of the results. At the very least, analysts optimistically concluded, the findings indicate that Iraqis hold some "shared beliefs" that may eventually allow them to surmount the divisions that have led to a civil war.

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So you see, because of the "Shared Belief " by all Iraqi's that getting rid of the American occupiers causing their "violent differences", it is a good thing necessary for national reconciliation. And of course it would follow that the ancient Arab axion of "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" would dictate that America must stay in Iraq to continue promoting the "violent differences" between Iraqi's so they can unite in their hatred of the US in order to reconcile their "violent differences'.

Wingnuttery in it's purest form.

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Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Life Cheap In Iraq



Unexplainable killings; yet another virtue of the US-led invasion


Bereaved Iraqi father thirsts for revenge


Death squads working in Iraqi police force continue committing murderers for no known reason.


By Ammar Karim – BAGHDAD

Since a death squad meted out a terrifying end to his football-crazy son in Baghdad two years ago, Abu Fuad has had only one thought in his mind -- revenge.

Surge This



Suicide bombing kills 14 in Iraq cafe - Xinhua
Xinhua, China - 29 minutes ago
... when a suicide bomber blew himself up inside a popular cafe near the volatile city of Baquba in central Iraq on Tuesday, a local police source said.



Monday, December 17, 2007

Our "Nothing To Lose" President Must Face Impeachment

Gail Russell Chaddock

Washington - Heading into the last days of the legislative session, Republicans in Congress and President Bush are chalking up some surprising victories on federal spending.

That has put Democrats on the defensive. From a campaign pledge to change the course of the war in Iraq to tax and spending plans, Democrats are now having to scuttle key elements of their agenda. The extent of their retrenchment will become clear this week as Congress moves to pass key spending bills.

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The secret behind the GOP's success? A show of unity between the minority party on the Hill and the White House.

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So here we are with a republican party in a death spiral dragging the country down with it. "A show of unity" with an approval at circa 30% which hasn't budged for nearly 2 years. It is a last big "fuck you" not only to the democrats but the country as well. After 2006, a sane party would reflect on why such sweeping losses in both chambers of congress and how to make the changes necessary to recover the respect of the American people. It should be obvious to every republican and democrat for that matter, that the public will not tolerate governance by rigid ideology. It is also obvious that congressional republicans have decided that belligerent unity will somehow save the day for 2008. Who knows, it might work, but I doubt it.

Then we have bewildered democrats who thought republicans would see the country clearly wanted the pendulum to swing back from the right wing governance of the past 7 years {12 years for congress} and moderate toward the middle. Problem is, nearly every moderate republican was purged and replaced with democrats in 2006, so what is left are mostly southern conservative ideologues who have broken all records for blocking almost every bill in the Senate with blanket filibusters across the board.

It has gotten so bad, that Majority Leader Harry Reid has capitulated by granting consent that every action taken in the Senate must have a 60 vote super majority to get passed. This applies not only to the final votes on the bills themselves but also to germaine amendments which appears to be unprecedented.
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"My biggest fear is that our troops won't be funded and that the Pentagon will start pulling funds from other sources, such as the National Guard and our bases here at home," says Sen. Ben Nelson (D) of Nebraska, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and the Senate Armed Services Committee. Without a war-funding bill this week, the Pentagon says it will be necessary to send out furlough notices affecting some 100,000 civilian employees almost immediately.


"There's an interesting cultural argument to be made that Republicans as a party are simply more disciplined than Democrats," says Ross Baker, a political scientist at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J. "There is also a very strong perception on the part of Republicans that the president is popular with the party base, and for that reason they don't want to desert him. The third factor is that you have a president with nothing to lose – and someone who has nothing to lose in this kind of showdown is going to win."

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Senator Nelson sums up democrats problem in a word and that word is fear. Fear of a petulant immature president who has "nothing to lose" and will go to any length to remain relevant, including shutting down the government just to get his way. Combine that with 41 republican senators to willing sink the ship of state out of resentment flowing from their own failures, and you have a totally dysfunctional government.

So what should democrats do at this stage? It is clear they've brought rubber knives to a right wing gunfight. Should they continue to capitulate to the republican scorched earth politics or should they engage the republicans with equal veracity and tactics. It is what the democratic base wants but what would it solve, other than to show they possess a spine. That way would be justified as a matter of fair play, but the country would suffer and Americans would likely hold democrats in equal contempt as they do republicans. The only other option is to begin impeachment proceedings forthwith. I have been against this option up until now. When a president has so broken his oath to abide by the Constitution as has Bush on so many levels, it is the only avenue left to restore the peoples faith in their government. As things stand presently, Bush and republican lawmakers have, for all practical purposes, lost any semblance of cooperation in doing the peoples business and seem only to serve their misplaced anger toward democrats in particular and the country as a whole.

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Friday, December 14, 2007

The Party of Torture Strikes Again



By PAMELA HESS – 3 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans blocked a bill Friday that would restrict the interrogation methods the CIA can use against terrorism suspects.

The legislation, part of a measure authorizing the government's intelligence activities for 2008, had been approved a day earlier by the House and sent to the Senate for what was supposed to be final action. The bill would require the CIA to adhere to the Army's field manual on interrogation, which bans waterboarding, mock executions and other harsh interrogation methods.

Senate opponents of that provision, however, discovered a potentially fatal parliamentary flaw: The ban on harsh questioning tactics had not been in the original versions of the intelligence bill passed by the House and Senate. Instead, it was a last-minute addition during negotiations between the two sides to write a compromise bill, a move that could violate Senate rules. The rule is intended to protect legislation from last-minute amendments that neither house of Congress has had time to fully consider Although it's not unheard of for new language to be added in House-Senate negotiation

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Our Republicans, the often described party of faith and Christianity believes it's Ok! to torture people they think might be enemies scheming to attack the United States. And If they don't feel like torturing a particular possible bad guy, they just abduct him and render him off to a thug country that is all to happy to oblige a little testicle shock or waterboarding. It's all to protect the American People from attacks so it Ok!. Right. If questions arise the Bush administration assures us that Syria or Egypt promised not to torture our rendered suspects. So America don't worry the government is protecting you and no maybe enemy will be mistreated.

But wait, Republicans do have a conscience after all. Take the words of My Huckleberry Senator Lindsey Graham of the godly state of South Carolina.
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"I think quite frankly applying the Army field manual to the CIA would be ill-advised and would destroy a program that I think is lawful and helps the country," Graham said in an interview.

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Got that America. Waterboarding is a hideous act of torture and our soldiers in uniform are forbidden to practice it. But when the CIA does it it's hunky-dorry and we must not tie their hands in any way lest America might get attacked. I say this to the party of faith and God, and now torture. Some day you will meet your maker or so your wingnut preachers tell us. What will you say to the Lord about your behaviour here on earth. Maybe you'll just tell Him you were scared and couldn't help yourself. Or that democrats didn't do enough to stop you. It could get you thru the Pearly Gates--on the other hand.

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More Surge Success

New York Times
December 14, 2007
Violent Day in Iraq Begins With Liquor Store Bombings
By PAUL von ZIELBAUER


BAGHDAD — Homemade bombs hit two Baghdad liquor stores early Thursday, and attacks in several other parts of the city killed two people and wounded at least seven others. Eleven more deaths were reported from attacks outside Baghdad, and 19 bodies were found in Baghdad and elsewhere.

----------------------
Two improvised roadside bombs hit other Baghdad neighborhoods on Thursday but caused no deaths or injuries, the Interior Ministry official said.

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The president of a technical college in Baghdad, Dr. Sabah Ahmed al-Hasani, and his daughter suffered serious injuries after gunmen attacked their vehicle at a busy thoroughfare here.

The police in Baghdad also discovered the remains of three men who had gunshot wounds in the head, the ministry official said.

In Diyala Province, a violent region northeast of Baghdad where Sunni Arab militants have tried to gain a foothold, the police in the town of Muqdadiya discovered the bodies of 16 men, several of which had been decapitated.

Also, a roadside bomb near a gas station in the town of Khanaqin killed four people and wounded 10 others late Wednesday evening, and in Baquba, the capital of Diyala Province, gunmen killed a member of a neighborhood committee, a police official the

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On Thursday morning, many of the families of the 27 people killed in a triple car bombing Wednesday in the southern city of Amara transported the remains to a well-known burial ground in Najaf, the Shiite holy city south of Baghdad.

Most of the 20 vehicles that arrived with coffins lashed to their roofs were draped with Iraqi flags, said Hussein Abu Seiba, a gravedigger in Wadi al-Salam cemetery in Najaf, one of the largest Shiite burial grounds in Iraq.



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Thursday, December 13, 2007

Stray Bullets Kill Hearts and Minds

The following story is hardly new news. It is an event that has been repeated a thousand times since the US invaded and occupied Iraq. The details may be moderately different in each case but the result is usually the same. American GI's are attacked by some insurgent or militia group or individual and has one or more of their comrades killed or wounded. Then the human desire for revenge takes over and in their rage to seek justice for their fallen comrade they invade Iraqi homes, based some sort of intel, or hunch, or whatever. that the attacker may be at. As intel in a war zone is often notoriously lacking the result in too many cases ends with Innocent Iraqi's getting killed. Sometimes by adrenaline juiced soldiers and sometimes by the bad guys they seek. Who's to blame? Everybody and nobody. Unless you go to people who started this nightmare, the neocons, Bush, and Cheney.


Stray bullets

Leila Fadel

December 13, 2007 9:38 AM

McClatchy Newspapers

(MCT)

BAGHDAD - Suheila Hammad held her daughter in her arms before dawn on Tuesday. Outside she heard the U.S. Special Forces and the Iraqi army in her area just south of Fallujah.

First they raided a home two doors down, blew the doors out and went in looking for their target. The soldiers pulled the family out of the home and the second floor was destroyed, the family said. A picture shows a burned-out room and shattered glass.

The soldiers progressed to the second house, searching for their target, an al-Qaida in Iraq member who was believed responsible for attacks on U.S. and Iraqi forces.

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At the second house in this place, once an al-Qaida bastion, they blew the doors off and pulled the residents from the house. The Iraqi soldiers toyed with them, telling them to raise their arms up, drop their arms and raise them again.

A few soldiers walked away speaking a language the families didn't understand. It was then that a bullet pierced the window where Suheila held her daughter Hadil. The bullet pierced Hadil's neck and passed through her, embedding in the wall of the room. No one came into the house and Suheila was too afraid to call out for help, she said.

Hadil bled to death in her mother's arms. Three men were detained, two were later released. The U.S. military said the man detained is an al-Qaida in Iraq member. There were no reports of Hadil's death, they said.

Last month a child and two men were killed as they rushed through a military checkpoint while the U.S. military were conducting an operation in Bayji. A U.S. military official estimated the child was about 3 years old. In Baghdad up to four people were killed, including three women, when a minibus ended up on a road meant only for car traffic. Bank employees on the bus were killed when soldiers fired warning shots that fragmented and hit the bus.

These deaths were not deliberate. But Suheila does not have her daughter, a 3-year-old was shot as he huddled in the back of a car and two young people forever associate Americans with the fear they felt in the middle of the night when foreign soldiers burst into their home.

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When will this misbegotten war end?

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Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Simply Unbelievable

Hundreds of vehicles and 20 tons of lead disappear from government ware houses

By Mustafa al-Hashemi

Azzaman, December 12, 2007


Unidentified gunmen stormed government ware houses in the southern city of Basra and stole 375 government cars and 20 tons of lead, police sources say.

The robbery is reported to be the largest and most organized in the years since the U.S. invasion of the country.

The robbers were said to by carrying forged papers which enabled them to drive away with the vehicles, the sources refusing to be named said.

The lead has disappeared from government warehouses in central Iraq.

The lead robbers are also said to have used faked papers to empty the ware house of its contents. Lead can be used in the preparations of explosive materials and bombs.

The cars were in customs warehouses in Basra.

Political factions are hurling accusations at each other as reports of the robbery are leaking to the press.

The government in Baghdad is still silent as security officials express grave concern since cars and lead are the main ingredients of bombings in Iraq.


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Deep Purple - Child In Time

One of the great epic rock tunes

More Surge News, of Iraqi's killing Iraqi's

Wednesday: 71 Iraqis Killed, 152 Wounded

Updated at 4:05 p.m. EST, Dec. 12, 2007

A large triple bombing killed or wounded scores of people in the southern city of Amarah. Meanwhile a smaller blast in Baghdad left over a dozen casualties there. Overall, 71 Iraqis were killed and 152 more were wounded in the latest violence. No Coalition deaths were reported.

At least 42 people were killed and another 125 were wounded during a triple car bombing in Amarah. Although small arms attacks against civilians have been increasing in recent weeks throughout Maysan province, the news of a triple bombing in Amarah stunned Iraq this morning. The area had been relatively peaceful since the British handed over control to Iraqi forces in April. British forces promise that an expected handover of neighboring Basra province will go on schedule this Sunday despite the bombing.


This is not surprising to me. I still firmly believe that the only people who will solve the Iraq civil war are Iraqi's themselves. As long as our military are patrolling Iraqi streets they will not make the tough negotiating between the waring sides that is necessary for resolution. I doubt we can even be useful as mediators at this stage and any outside help for reaching a political settlement will have to come from someone other than the US.

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And So It Begins

Not us. We’re not going.’

Soldiers in 2nd Platoon, Charlie 1-26 stage a ‘mutiny’ that pulls the unit apart
Stories by KELLY KENNEDY - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Dec 8, 2007 14:32:57 EST

Spc. Gerry DeNardi stood at the on-base Burger King, just a few miles from downtown Baghdad, hoping for a quick taste of home.

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Just two weeks earlier, the 20-year-old DeNardi had lost five good friends, killed together as they rode in a Bradley Fighting Vehicle that rolled over a powerful roadside bomb.

As DeNardi walked up the three wood steps to the outdoor stand to pick up his burger, the siren wailed.

Wah! Wah! Wah! “Incoming! Incoming! Incoming!”

The alarms went off all the time — often after the mortar round or rocket had struck nothing but sand, miles from anything important. Many soldiers and others at Taji had taken to ignoring the warnings. DeNardi glanced around at the picnic tables to make sure everyone was still eating. They were. The foreign nationals who worked the fast-food stands hadn’t left; so he went back to get the burger he had paid for

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The mortar round hit before he could pick up his order.

“I turned around and all of Burger King and me went flying,” DeNardi said.

He’d lived through daily explosions in 11 months with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, at nearby Combat Outpost Apache, a no-frills fortress smack in the middle of Adhamiya’s hostile streets. He had rushed through flames to try to save friends and carried others to the aide station only to watch them die.

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“Lightning doesn’t strike twice,” DeNardi said, “so I went back. But there were body parts everywhere.” The first man’s leg had been blown off, his other leg was barely attached and he had a chest wound. “He was going to die,” DeNardi said.

The other wounded man had shrapnel to his neck. DeNardi peeled off his own shirt and fashioned a bandage out of it as other soldiers started streaming in to help.

Then, “all clear” sounded over the loudspeakers as medics arrived and took over.

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After these and other bloody attacks, killing this platoons soldiers, the remaining members got together and said no more. They told their commanders that their rage was so great that they feared committing a massacre if they went on patrol in Adhamiya, an especially violent place in Iraq. Some might say you can't have soldiers doing mutiny in a war zone. As a veteran myself, that was my first impulse. I despise the war in Iraq and have since the beginning, but it's normally bad business to refuse orders. However, after reading this article, I have to a large degree, changed my mind. This whole event is reminiscent of the latter days of Vietnam when entire units refused orders to patrol the country side. And as we know, MyLai happened. Please read this important article and mark of more to come in Iraq.


Triple Car Bombs in Iraq-But They say Al Quaida is Defeated

Today their was a triple car bombing in southern Iraq that as past events indicate has the hallmarks of Al Qaida in Iraq.. But wait a minute, hasn't Al Qaeda been wiped out of Iraq as declared by wingnut blogger The Strata-Sphere
Add to that this news about al-Qaeda’s migration back to Pakistan and Afghanistan and we see the retreat of a defeated movement.

But this horrendous event as reported by Reuters begs to differ that the defeat of AQ in Iraq have been greatly exaggerated.

By Aref Mohammed

AMARA, Iraq (Reuters) - Three car bombs ripped through a busy street in the Shi'ite city of Amara on Wednesday, killing 40 people and wounding 125 in one of the deadliest attacks in southern Iraq this year, police said.

The attacks came just days before Britain is to complete the handover of security for the four southern Iraqi provinces it has controlled since 2003, and tensions have been high among rival Shi'ite factions competing for influence.

The street was a scene of chaos, with cars torn apart. A blocked gutter along one street was red with stagnant blood washed from pools on the pavement next to a child's shoes.




Tuesday, December 11, 2007

The Anti-Theist/Terrorist Hordes Are Coming For You

I had not planned to blog about the tragic killings over the weekend at two Colorado churches. The young man responsible was obviously disturbed to do such a thing which unfortunately is happening in our country way to often. I don't know why this occurs, since I'm not any kind of expert in criminal sociology, and any ideas I have on the subject would be pure uninformed speculation. However, the wingnut brigades seem to claim wisdom on all things violent in and outside the United States. After stumbling across this gem of wingnuttery from the Vox Popoli I followed the first link as their main source and discovered that wingnuts have their own private Intelligence Service right here in the states that provides them with the latest on the terrorists hiding behind your tree.

Well, anyway, that is a subplot to this post. The main story is the analysis of our paranoid friends in the wingnutosphere. It seems, according to Vox Populi, this was a hate crime/terrorist attack by an atheist , and more sinister an anti-theist individual. I' not sure what the difference is but VP does so it's cool. Much of this, I suspect comes from an anonymous law enforcement source who stated the shooter, Mathew Murray "hated Christians".

Anyway VP deduces his hate crime/terrorist theory on this anonymous "law enforcement source" neglecting to consider several items of Mr. Murray's past that would tend to disprove his theory.

Things like the fact Mr. Murray wanted to be a missionary since being homeschooled within a very religious family. Also, that he had attended a program at one of the attacked churches and had been kicked out several years ago for health concerns. VP also fails to consider that Murray attended church regularly.

Now it's fair to say Murray was angry at the church for dropping him from a program that would have trained him to do what he'd dreamed about becoming --a missionary. You could even stretch that to say he hated Christian's or churches. However, this kind of anger or hatred does not seem to fit the meaning of hate crime as I understand it. His rage appears to come not from someone who has a broad ideological beef with religion but more of a specific disappointment that progressed into despair from a sense of personal failure. Any way, below is the first paragraph of the VP post with a link to the etire post.

Atheist killers
My, my, what a coincidence. As expected, yet another shooter turns out to be a militant anti-theist:


According to a law enforcement source, the man professed to "hate all Christians," and reportedly left a note or letter that he intended to murder as many Christians as possible


Following is a comment from one of VP commenters who is not buying VP's silliness.
But let's get the whole picture: "The gunman was identified as Matthew Murray, 24, who was home-schooled in what a friend said was a deeply religious Christian household."

Not sure how truly atheist he was, but he was certainly disturbed. Well, at least he didn't go to public skools--
Skillet

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The other fascinating nugget of info I mentioned is the wingnut intelligence bureau, or whatever. Their full title is

Our Mission:

The mission of the Northeast Intelligence Network consists of the following:

# To use our heavily screened and well-qualified informational and operational assets to investigate potential terrorist threats which threaten the safety and security of our nation, our neighborhoods, and our families.

# To provide accurate and well-sourced information via our web site to educate our site visitors to the true nature of the terrorist threats we face.

# To provide accurate information about incidents, events and potential terrorist threats by conducting on-site investigation by our qualified personnel.

# When appropriate, offer relevant political commentary and occasional satire where it serves to illustrate a defect in our security and defense against future attacks.

# Through a fee-based subscription to the HQ INTEL-ALERT Private Intelligence Report, we offer specific information about a variety of issues, events and security matters that we feel are too sensitive to place in the public domain. Although some of the information contained in our newsletter is obtained directly from confidential sources within various government agencies, we never violate any laws prohibiting the unlawful dissemination of classified government information. The cost of this newsletter helps us to underwrite the expenses involved in conducting on-site investigations.





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Winterpills - Threshing Machine

I just love this group. Their harmonies are unique and haunting

Monday, December 10, 2007

What We Are Fighting For In Iraq

Vigilantes kill 40 women in Iraq's south

By SINAN SALAHEDDIN, Associated Press Writer Sun Dec 9, 6:14 PM ET

BAGHDAD - Religious vigilantes have killed at least 40 women this year in the southern Iraqi city of Basra because of how they dressed, their mutilated bodies found with notes warning against "violating Islamic teachings," the police chief said Sunday.


The religious fanaticism for south Iraq Shia Islamists always make one cringe with horror. These events though are barbaric even by Iraqi standards. Fourty women killed simply because they were not dressed right. Mubarak of Egypt warned Bush before his invasion of Iraq that it would open Pandora's Box.

One more bit of good advice ignored by Bush and now Iraqi women are being murdered because of how they dressed. This is what you created in Iraq GWB. Their blood and the blood of thousands more civilians and US soldiers is on your hands for eternity. Some day you'll get to face the God you claim supports your bloody visions of democracy through the barrel of an M16 assault rifle.

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Sunday, December 9, 2007

Led Zepellin

Catch 22

Here's an example of our Constitutional governmental system stuck of stupid.
From the Washington Post :
In September 2002, four members of Congress met in secret for a first look at a unique CIA program designed to wring vital information from reticent terrorism suspects in U.S. custody. For more than an hour, the bipartisan group, which included current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), was given a virtual tour of the CIA's overseas detention sites and the harsh techniques interrogators had devised to try to make their prisoners talk

Congressional officials say the groups' ability to challenge the practices was hampered by strict rules of secrecy that prohibited them from being able to take notes or consult legal experts or members of their own staffs.

So our congresscritters get briefed on waterboarding and other fun and enhanced interrogation techniques, and are not allowed to tell anybody about what they were told. Please explain how congress is going to do oversight with this kind of non-sense. No wonder American's opinion of their government is at the barrels bottom.


Saturday, December 8, 2007

Wingnuts Say the Strangest Things

Does anyone see anything wrong with this enlightened comment from mouths of The Sundries Shack.
It’s an amazing country in which we live where we will 1) allow a suspected terrorist operating outside the bounds of the Geneva Conventions a civil lawyer, 2) allow someone who is not a U.S. citizen to act in our courts, and 3) allow such a case knowing that it follows exactly the instructions we know that al-Qaeda has given its operatives.
That's right, so it's just dandy to jail and use "enhanced interrogation techniques" torture suspected terrorists while holding them incommunicado from the world and a lawyer. I truly wonder what country the assholes grew up in.

Update
From the innertubes we get wisdom from Powerlie
That title reminds us that much of what the CIA does is supposed to be clandestine. In essence, the CIA was conceived as an organization that would do secret things to obtain information, and then analyze that information. It was always understood that some of the secret things would be unsavory. It was never understood that the CIA would keep recordings of these actions just in case a court, a congressional committee, or a newspaper might want to take a look. The idea was to win the Cold War, not to create an album.
"Some of these secret things would be unsavory. They can't even bring themselves to say torture. By all means the CIA should be beyond any accountability to do whatever the hell they it wants in our name. SCARY PEOPLE are the Torture Party GOP.

Wounded Warrior Project

You can oppose the war in Iraq, but not these guys and gals who have given so much.

The Bamboo Shute Party

Ok! we haven't heard if the GOP has defended the CIA for inserting Bamboo Shutes under anybodies fingernails lately. However, the broader point is that many of the current 35% Bush supporters would joyfully defend a whole range to torture methods to defeat the inhuman Islamofacsists. Yesterday's article in the New York Times has stirred the blogosphere, left and right into a gathering storm as to who, why and where destroyed what most consider videotape evidence of possible criminal acts of torture.

If you believe the Times and their "government officials" sources everyone one in the Bush government and especially Bush himself are completely innocent and many actually voiced opposition to CIA's plan to destroy the tapes of interrogations of two Al Quaida leaders Abu Zubaydah and ABD as-Rahim as-Nashiri reportedly involved in the 9-11 attacks. According to the Times sources a single individual, Jose A. Rodriguez, the then chief of the Directorate of Operations is responsible for defying the entire Bush administration , his superior at CIA and Congress to authorize the destruction of the tapes.

Of course, the pinko left-wing rag New York Times is now being quoted profusely by wingnuts as vindication of any White House involvement in the sordid affair. Here are some sample from our friends in fact-free quadrant of the blogosphere.

Here's Captain Ed, the sometimes reasonable voice on the right.

In other words, Rodriguez decided for himself what his legal obligations required in terms of retention. Despite the expressed will of Congress, the White House, and the CIA's own attorneys, Rodriguez destroyed the tapes -- even though his own boss had gone on record as demanding their retention. Afterwards, the agency didn't bother to inform anyone of the destruction for almost a year, and lied about the one-time existence of the tapes to federal prosecutors working on the Moussaoui case.

This clears the White House of responsibility for the decision and the cover-up. Mark Mazzetti reports that George Bush didn't know about the destruction until Hayden announced it publicly on Thursday



A different Twist from MacsmindHe goes after his own.


Honestly, I would expect the left to go ga-ga, but it’s the right leaning bloggers which reinforce my belief that some will do anything to appear “mainstream”. All the holding of principles and maintaining the “rule of law” sounds nice and it gets you hits - especially from the lefty blogs who scream - “See even they agree!”


And from Jules Crittenden, who once again so nobly points out operational ties between MoveOn.org, the Democratic National Committee and Al Quaida.
It is worth noting that not only would these tapes be of compelling interest to news organizations such as al-Jazeera, al-Arabiya, CNN, CBS, BBC, etc., they also could be very significant to the political operations of organizations such as MoveOn.org, the Democratic National Committee, and al-Qaeda.



And Gateway Pundit takes the bait hook, line and stinker.

Call Off the Dogs... White House Advised CIA Not to Destroy Tapes

Bum Deal.
The White House advised the CIA not to destroy the interrogation tapes of two Al-Qaeda killers but the CIA destroyed the tapes anyway.
Prairie Pundit has the latest on this from The New York Times.


The always reliable folks at the aptly named Hot Air

Pretty much everyone in Washington is claiming to have urged the CIA not to destroy
those DVDs
posted at 1:08 pm on December 8, 2007 by Bryan

More to follow.

UPDATE 1;

ThinkProgress is making the pushback with comment on the NYT story from Ron Susskind.


"The full blame for the destruction of the tapes has fallen on Jose Rodriguez, then the CIA’s head of the clandestine division. Rodriguez reportedly undertook the destruction of the tapes in a unilateral manner, without receiving any instructions from his bosses or giving them advance notice of his actions.

Last night on CNN, Ron Suskind — author of the One Percent Doctrine — said the idea that Rodriquez didn’t get “some authorization from above” is “hard to believe.” “It simply doesn’t work that way,” Suskind said, noting that “at this point, lots was being authorized from the White House in terms of the CIA.” Watch it:"

Friday, December 7, 2007

Al Quaida Back In Business?

22 killed in 2 suicide attacks in Iraq - Yahoo! News

22 killed in 2 suicide attacks in Iraq By HAMID AHMED, Associated Press Writer 2 hours, 29 minutes ago BAGHDAD - A female suicide bomber attacked the offices of an anti-al-Qaida group that has joined forces with the U.S., killing 12 people Friday in one of Iraq's most violent provinces, police and the U.S. military said. ADVERTISEMENT A second attack at a checkpoint manned by Iraqi soldiers and another of the U.S-backed groups killed 10 people, an Iraqi army officer said
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Suicide bombings seem to be increasing by the day. Today with the always chilling female
bomber.

Tragic, where is George W. Bush when you need him.

December 7, 2007Refugees Caught Between Deportation and Death Threatsby Ali al-FadhilyBAGHDAD - Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis driven out of their country by violence are now faced with detention abroad, or a homecoming to death threats.More than two million Iraqis, in a population of about 25 million, have taken refuge in many countries. Only a few have won official status as refugees. Most refugees in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and many other countries stay on as illegal residents, facing threats of deportation and imprisonment."To deport an Iraqi refugee is to issue a death warrant," Ali Jassim, an Iraqi journalist recently deported from Lebanon told IPS in Baghdad. "The Lebanese authorities are applying regular migration rules to Iraqis, meaning that most Iraqis in Lebanon will be deported."
Refugees Caught Between Deportation and Death Threats - by Ali al-Fadhily

Where is George W. Bush when you need him. Invade a sovereign country, turn it into a killing field and then drag his feet on bringing the lions share of these people into the US. The most vulnerable of Iraqi's are those who have helped the American's and will face certain death if they're deported back to Iraq. Most of these refugees are in the surrounding states such as Syria and Jordan. For 2007, the State Department has promised to process 7,000 application for asylum in the US. This out of 2 million Iraqi's displaced outside of Iraq, and 1.5 million displaced internally in Iraq. Many of which are in hiding to avoid murder by Al Quaida or Shiit death squads. Next are excerpts from ,excellent article from McClatchy, that although a bit dated, lays out the snails pace of the Bush Administration doing it's share to alleviate the huge refugee problem it created.




Published on Thursday, February 8, 2007 by McClatchy Newspapers
by Warren P. Strobel

One out of every seven Iraqis has fled his or her home or sought refuge abroad, the largest movement of people in the Middle East since the war that followed Israel's creation in 1948, according to United Nations officials and relief workers. Every day, violence displaces an estimated 1,300 more Iraqis in the country; every month, at least 40,000.

Last year, 202 refugees from Iraq were allowed to resettle in the United States.

Against that backdrop, the Bush administration is moving - belatedly, in the view of critics - to address a problem that it's widely seen as having created by invading Iraq in March 2003.

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In his just-released budget, President Bush asked for $35 million to help Iraq's refugees in fiscal year 2008, plus $15 million in supplemental funding for this year.

The U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, a private nonprofit group, had urged Bush to seek $250 million as part of a supplemental war funding request.

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The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees estimated in a report last month that there are as many as 2 million Iraqi refugees in neighboring countries, primarily in Syria and Jordan. Another 1.7 million people are displaced within Iraq, the UNHCR said.

Some of the refugees fled during Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's reign, before the U.S. invasion. But the exodus has accelerated since the bombing of a Shiite Muslim mosque in the city of Samarra last February.

Non-governmental groups working with refugees say that outside aid can't come fast enough, because Syria and Jordan are hinting at closing their doors. Other neighbors, such as Saudi Arabia, have accepted almost no refugees. The Saudis are building a barrier along the border with Iraq,

"In six months, it will be too late," said Kristele Younes of Refugees International, an advocacy group. "We're not seeing the U.S. do much, frankly."

Senior U.S. officials sidestepped the question of whether Washington bears special responsibility for Iraqis fleeing the violence.

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"Obviously what we're trying to do is to create circumstances to reduce the numbers of refugees who want to come to the United States or elsewhere," Tobias said.

Assistant Secretary of State Ellen Sauerbrey told a Senate hearing last month that the United States had admitted 466 Iraqi refugees since 2003. She ascribed the small number to the Department of Homeland Security's stringent security review of each applicant. She said that number could expand to as many as 20,000 this year.

The U.S. Committee for Refugees said Wednesday that it welcomed Rice's initiative and urged the administration to expedite resettlement of Iraqis who worked for the U.S. or allied militaries.

But even if the United States and other countries open their doors wider, only a small fraction of Iraq's legions of refugees would be resettled abroad.

The Geneva-based UNHCR last month asked for $60 million from foreign donors to protect and aid the refugees. Of that amount, $40 million has been pledged, and $9.1 million received, said agency official Tim Irwin.

The UNHCR acknowledged that even if the appeal is fully subscribed, it would help only a fraction of displaced Iraqi families.

It's "a drop in the bucket," Younes said.

The crisis is likely to get worse before it gets better. UNHCR projects that the number of internally displaced in Iraq could grow to about 2.7 million by year's end.

A recent report by the Washington-based Brookings Institution said that if Iraq spirals into all-out civil war, U.S. troops might have to establish "catch basins" along Iraq's borders to care for tens or hundreds of thousands of Iraqis fleeing the violence.

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This article was written in February, 2007 and the pace of asylum requests to the US has increased slightly, the number of displaced Iraqi's has soared to about 4 million'

Below are excerpts from a State Department press conference held just last month.
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State Department Briefing ON Iraq Refugees

Processing Iraqi refugees continues to be a priority for DHS, particular for USCIS. As of November 21st, 2007, we've completed approximately 5,600 Iraqi interviews. One point that I do want to make is that there's a difference between cases and interviews. A case can be composed of more than one person. A case can involve as many as five people. So when we talk in terms of cases, it's -- usually the numbers are always going to be smaller than the number of people that we're talking about. I just wanted to make sure everybody understood that.

QUESTION: Yeah, can I just ask both of you if the Administration still believes it has a moral obligation to assist these Iraqi refugees, particularly those who have worked for the U.S. Government as direct hires or those who have worked as contract workers and their families? And if it does, why is this so slow? You know, the previous examples of massive influxes of refugees, you're looking at almost 200,000 were admitted from Vietnam in nine months. In 1975, you had the situation with the Kurds who were taken en masse to Guam to be processed there. This case, these people are just sitting around and it's like wait and wait and wait in Casablanca. Why is it taking so long?

I should note in this respect that the Administration has a request before the Congress for $195 million in assistance for Iraqi refugees that we hope will be acted upon soonest. In fiscal year 2007, the PRM Bureau provided nearly $123 million in humanitarian assistance for Iraqi refugees, including $39 million towards the UN -- the Joint UN Education Appeal and $18.5 million to ICRC's Iraq appeal. We also gave another $18.5 million to NGOs providing health, education and other humanitarian assistance to Iraqi refugees in Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.
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Anyway you cut it, it is shameful the paltry efforts the Bush Administration has made to grant asylum to the lions share of Iraq refugees whose plight it created. It is downright criminal to not immediately grant asylum to those Iraqi's who have and are risking their lives by helping our country. These people have already been vetted by the US military so their is no excuse for holding up their application while they are being hunted by insurgents and death squads.
For instance, more than 22,000 refugees have been received by European counties, with more than 8000 of those to tiny Sweden.

Currently, we are spending 30 million a day for military operations alone in Iraq. To help alleviate the refugee problem we spent a meager 123 million in 2007 for assistance to aid Iraq refugees. Bush has requested the sorry amount of 35 million for fiscal year 2008. Meanwhile, the ranks of Iraq refugees has swelled to 4.5 million.

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Thursday, December 6, 2007

Tim Buckley -- Once I Was

Have you ever remembered a line or melody from a song that you loved, but can't quite recall the name of the song or the artist. This winsome tune about the expendability of the male of the species was like that for me. For about 20 years, I strained my memory and spent many hours on the web guessing at key words to google [for the past 10years] all to no avail. Then a few months ago I ordered a documentary from Netflix that I had viewed when it came out in 1988. The documentary was produced by HBO and was called Dear America, Letters Home From Vietnam. Of all the Vietnam docs, this one in my opinion is the best one. Well anyway, this Tim Buckley tune was part of the soundtrack and was likely where I had first heard it.

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Was Bush Behind the Iran Report? - Bob Baer

Was Bush Behind the Iran Report?Tuesday, Dec. 04, 2007 By ROBERT BAERGeorge Bush Iran nuclearPresident Bush discusses a National Intelligence Estimate that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003.Brooks Kraft / Corbis for TIMEArticle ToolsPrintEmailReprintsSphereAddThisRSSClick here to find out more!Bombing Iran, it seems, is now off the table. There's no other reasonable take on the latest National Intelligence Estimate that concludes Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003.Related ArticlesThe Fallout from the Iran Nukes ReportA US National Intelligence Estimate concludes that Iran is not an imminent nuclear weapons threat. What does this change?The Fallout from the Iran Nukes ReportThe Fallout from the Iran Nukes Report Monday, Dec. 03, 2007 By TONY KARON Ira...If North Korea, Why Not Iran?If North Korea, Why Not Iran? Thursday, Oct. 04, 2007 By TONY KARON Kim Jong I...Why the Tough Talk on Iran?President Bush must serve up a pretty convincing hamburger: Ever since his Kennebunkport cookout wit...More Bad Intelligence on Iran and IraqYou would think by now the Bush Administration would have drained the well of bad intelligence on Ir...But there is also no doubt that the Bush White House was behind this NIE. While the 16 intelligence agencies that make up the "intelligence community" contribute to each National Intelligence Estimate, you can bet that an explosive, 180-degree turn on Iran like this one was greenlighted by the President.And explode is what the hawks in and outside the Administration are about to do. They were counting on Bush being the one President prepared to take on Iran. As recently as last month, Bush warned of World War III if Iran so much as thought about building a bomb. Bush's betrayal is not going to go down well. The neocons, clinging to a sliver of hope, will accuse the intelligence community of incompetence, pointing out that as late as 2005 it estimated "with high confidence" that Iran was building a bomb.Bush's National Security Adviser, Stephen Hadley, put the best face on the new report, claiming that it was our diplomacy and saber rattling that forced the Iranians to back down. As for the intelligence community, it explained its reversal by hinting that new intelligence had surfaced.Neither explanation is entirely accurate. The real story behind this NIE is that the Bush Administration has finally concluded Iran is a bridge too far. With Iranian-backed Shi'a groups behaving themselves, things are looking up in Iraq. In Lebanon, the anti-Syrian coalition and pro-Syrian coalition, which includes Iran's surrogate Hizballah, reportedly have settled on a compromise candidate, the army commander General Michel Suleiman. Bombing Iran now would upset the fragile balance in these two countries. Not to mention that Hizballah has threatened to shell Israel if we as much as touch a hair on Iran's head.Then there are the Gulf Arabs. For the last year and a half, ever since the Bush Administration started to hint that it might hit Iran, they have been sending emissaries to Tehran to assure the Iranians they're not going to help the United States. But in private, the Gulf Arabs have been reminding Washington that Iran is a rabid dog: Don't even think about kicking it, the Arabs tell us. If you have to do something, shoot it dead. Which is something the United States can't do.So how far is Iran from a nuke? The new NIE says 10 to 15 years, maybe. But that's a wild guess. The truth is that Iran is a black hole, and it's entirely conceivable Iran could build a bomb and we wouldn't know until they tested it.Yet for now we should at least be happy with the good news: Armageddon is postponed.
Was Bush Behind the Iran Report? - TIME

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Tuesday, December 4, 2007

A Ray of Light

by Ray McGovernFor those who have doubts about miracles, a double one occurred today. An honest National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on Iran's nuclear program has been issued, and its "Key Judgments" were made public.With redraft after redraft, it was what the Germans call eine schwere Geburt – a difficult birth, 10 months in gestation.I do not know how often Vice President Dick Cheney visited CIA headquarters during the gestation period, but I am told he voiced his displeasure as soon as he saw the first sonogram/draft very early this year and is so displeased with what issued that he has refused to be the godfather.This time Cheney and his neocon colleagues were unable to abort the process. And after delivery to the press, this child is going to be very hard to explain – the more so since it is legitimate.
A Miracle: Honest Intel on Iran Nukes - by Ray McGovern

Ray McCgovern can seem sometimes like an absent minded professor, but I trust his judgments on CIA and intelligence matters.
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The main points of the NIE:

"We judge that in fall 2003, Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program…

"We assess with moderate confidence Tehran has not restarted its nuclear weapons program as of mid-2007.

"We do not have sufficient intelligence to judge confidently whether Tehran is willing to maintain the halt of its nuclear weapons program indefinitely…

"We judge with moderate confidence Iran probably would be technically capable of producing enough highly enriched uranium sometime during the 2010-2015 time frame.

"We judge with high confidence that Iran will not be technically capable of producing and reprocessing enough plutonium for a weapon before about 2015."

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I think we will learn in the days to come the reason for the delay will have a name - Dick Cheney. So much bullshit from the Bushies, sometimes it's hard to tell whether their that stupid or kicking up dust to fool the American people. Maybe this NIE is why he had to have his pacemaker jump started a while back. In the days to come, the neocons led by Darth Cheney, will be spinning their asses off trying to create all the mischief they can to push Bush into disregarding the NIE and launch the military strikes,on Iran they crave so passionately. Problem is with all 16 intellegence agencies stating their  likely is no Nuke program currently in Iran, what''s a neocon to bomb. But then it's never been about Iran's nuclear weapon ambitions. What they seek is regime change and a chance to vindicate their insane ideology that America's military power can be an instrument of diplomacy to force US hegemony on real and perceived enemies of the west. Bush's statement today that his opinion of Iran hasn't changed is not encouraging.

Ray McCgovern states the situation perfectly.
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Having reached these conclusions, it is not surprising that the NIE's authors make a point of saying up front (in bold type), "This NIE does not [italics in original] assume that Iran intends to acquire nuclear weapons."

This, of course, pulls out the rug from under Cheney's claim of a "fairly robust new nuclear program" in Iran and President Bush's inaccurate assertion that Iranian leaders have even admitted they are developing nuclear weapons.



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Monday, December 3, 2007

Just So Long As I'm The Dictator


Email|Print| Text size + By Charlie Savage Globe Staff / December 1, 2007

WASHINGTON - President Bush this month issued his first signing statement since the Democratic takeover of Congress, reserving the right to bypass 11 provisions in a military appropriations bill under his executive powers.

In the statement, which the White House filed in the Federal Register on Nov. 13 but which initially attracted little attention, Bush challenged several requirements to provide information to Congress.

For example, one law Bush targeted requires him to give oversight committees notice before transferring US military equipment to United Nations peacekeepers.

Bush also challenged a new law that limits his ability to transfer funds lawmakers approved for one purpose to start a different program, as well as a law requiring him to keep in place an existing command structure for the Navy's Pacific fleet.

"The Act contains certain provisions identical to those found in prior bills passed by the Congress that might be construed to be inconsistent with my Constitutional responsibilities," Bush's statement says.

"To avoid such potential infirmities, I will interpret and construe such provisions in the same manner as I have previously stated in regard to those provisions."

By referring only to objections voiced in past documents, Bush's new signing statement struck a less aggressive tone than those he issued during the years when his own party controlled Congress.

In the past, Bush's assertion that he could bypass laws was backed by the invocation of broad theories laying out the scope of a president's power to defy congressional statutes.

In a further sign that the White House adopted a muted tone, the new signing statement also said nothing about two higher-profile provisions in the bill that limit presidential power: One law prohibits the military from using foreign intelligence information that was collected illegally, and the other forbids expending funds to establish permanent US military bases in Iraq.

As lawmakers drafted the bill earlier this year, the White House warned Congress that the illegal intelligence and Iraq-base provisions "impermissibly" infringed "on the president's constitutional authority" over national security and foreign affairs.

But Congress kept the provisions in the final bill and Bush's statement did not mention them.

Analysts said the president's less aggressive tone may be an effort to avoid reigniting a controversy that erupted last year after it came to light that Bush had used signing statements to challenge more laws than all previous presidents combined - including a torture ban. Congress held hearings about signing statements and the American Bar Association called for an end to them.

"They have clearly edited themselves," said Christopher Kelley, a political science professor at Miami University of Ohio who first analyzed the new statement on his blog Thursday. "They've taken out all the rhetoric about executive power."

But Tony Fratto, a White House spokesman, denied that there was any "public relations" motive behind the change. Shorter signing statements, he said, are "just easier."


"It's been said," Fratto said. "It's our position and it hasn't changed."

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And wingnuts call Hugo Chavez a dictator.

GI - Expendable Government Issue

At Walter Reed Army Medical Center, 1st Lt. Elizabeth White-side listened last week as an Army prosecutor outlined the criminal case against her. The charges: attempting suicide and endangering the life of another soldier while serving in Iraq.

Isn't this just awful. A soldier tries to kill herself and instead of the help she needs gets a court martial. When I was in the Army, I saw shit like this all the time.
And I bet the prosecuter and judge claim to be God fearing Christian men.
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"Military psychiatrists at Walter Reed who examined Whiteside after she recovered from a self-inflicted gun wound in the stomach diagnosed her with a severe mental disorder, possibly triggered by the stresses of a war zone. But Whiteside's superiors considered her mental illness "an excuse" for criminal conduct, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post."
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And I wonder what "excuse" these soulless assholes use to call themselves human beings.
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"At the hearing, Wolfe, who already had warned Whiteside's lawyer of the risk of using a "psychobabble" defense, pressed a senior psychiatrist at Walter Reed to justify his diagnosis."
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Awe, yes. the "psychobabble" defense . Take the slacker out back and shoot her. She obviously is a drag on a Godly nation. And for the sake of mental health purity in the military we must erase this stain on America's correctly righteous image as a superpower only with super soldiers. This is what we get for an accountable volunteer military. It gets to create it's own sense of. justice even when it's opposite of what the average civilian would approve.
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"But outside the Pentagon, the military still often deals with mental health issues by relying on the judgment of combat-hardened commanders whose understanding of mental illness is vague or misinformed."
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Herein lies the fault of the military justice system in cases like these and others. The commander of a unit gets final say on all judgments of the military court. Kind of like the Mullah's in Iran.
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"Under military law, Soldiers who attempt suicide can be prosecuted under the theory that it affects the order and discipline of a unit and brings discredit to the armed forces. In reality, criminal charges are extremely rare unless there is evidence the attempt was an effort to avoid service or endangered others."
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"mens rea" or guilty mind is a bedrock principle of American criminal law. It doesn't matter in the military as the commander is the final arbiter on whether or not lt. Whiteside had a guilty mind. I am praying this case gets dropped. What a choice for Miss Whiteside of a dishonorable discharge or being prosecuted for a crime that could give her life in a military prison. I say the only crime here is for the American people to allow such horseshit to exist in their Army with knuckledraggers like the prosecutor, judge, and unit commander involved in this case.

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Sunday, December 2, 2007

Gunmen kill at least 20 in Iraqi village

Gunmen kill at least 20 in Iraqi villageBAGHDAD, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- A bomb killed one soldier and gunmen killed at least 20 people in two separate attacks in Iraq. The Multi-National Force soldier died Saturday when a bomb exploded near a combat patrol in eastern Baghdad, the Kuwait News Agency, KUNA, reported Sunday.North of Baghdad, dozens of gunmen Saturday raided the Shiite village of Duwaili, burning homes and killing at least 20 civilians, The Washington Post reported Sunday.Tribal elders blamed the attack on recent U.S. military withdrawals in an area where Iraqi security forces were not ready to assume responsibility for security.
Gunmen kill at least 20 in Iraqi village
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As I noted in a post yesterday, what happens when American troops leave an area they've pacified. Well, this is what happens and there few parts of Iraq where it won't happen. So the question remains. How long do we babysit Iraqi's bent on fighting and killing each other? Would it take 3 years, five, 10-15 years.?

This we won't hear from pro-surge pro-war republicans. Their vision extends to not much more than the length of their nose. And certainly not past next years election. Wingnuts are in a desperate struggle for political survival for the near future and cannot be trusted to do what's best for the country. Their only response is to sling their feces at the "surrender monkey defeatocrats". while rejecting out of hand any democratic alternatives. The "party of faith" is conducting the quagmire in Iraq on a "wing and prayer"  that realty of history in Iraq doesn't exist or is at least different than what it is.

Thirty eight dead GI'S last month. An acceptable level of casualties in America.? Not to most of America who will have a voice in Nov 2008.

 What a pretty pickle American is in, at least maybe until Jan 2009

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By all Means--Purge Away!

What’s needed for a GOP victory in 2008 - A true Conservative CandidateDec 2 at 7:07am by MacrangerI have long said that what the Republican Party needs to revive itself as the party of mention is to purge itself of all the “moss” that has gathered on the “stone” since 2000.To explain we have to go back about 30 years to the last purge.Back in 1974-1975 the President was what would be called a Republican in Name Only, or RINO. That of course was Gerald R. Ford, who passed away this year. Ford was in fact our last true RINO president, after the last president of the Rockefeller wing of the party. He was pro-abortion, tax raising and when it came to being tough on the Soviets he was a disaster.
What’s needed for a GOP victory in 2008 - A true Conservative Candidate by Macsmind - Blog of The MacRanger Show!

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Yes, Macsmind, I think your onto something healthy, wealthy and wise for the Grand Old Party to make it's grand old comeback. As you say, the current times and political landscape is Just like 1976 with another Ronald Reagoon waiting in the wings to sweep the wingnut hordes upward to that venerable "Shining City On A Hill". One question --Are you sure you're not confusing American politics with "The Rapture".?

The 35% of voters who now support the GOP wingnut coalition of the stupids, really needs some more paring down to reach ideological purity. I say throw the commie tax raising abortion loving, war hating RINO's out on their keisters .

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Then a “coup” in 1976 occurred when the “New Right”, conservatives moved to oust Ford for Ronald Reagan as the Republican nominee. It failed, but we didn’t give up. However that “failure” brought Jimmy Carter to the nation and we are still suffering the affects of that disaster. The way to lose to Democrats is not to “out liberal” them, that’s the lesson Ford learned.

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Drat, that damn peanut farmer is causing all the problems in America today.

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"While I both support and admire President Bush the fact is that his eight years have only blurred the lines of conservatism further. His “compassionate conservatism” was really nothing more than big government liberalism, and in retrospect he only adopted a few tenants of conservatism, and in retrospect his presidency might have in some ways been the worst thing to ever happen to our party."
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Everybody knows GWB is nothing but a big fat librul who kilt our party when we wasn't looking. "DAMN YOU JIMMA CARTER"
But Mark Finklestein will have not of it.
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Broder To Republicans: Take McCain-Huckabee

Photo of Mark Finkelstein.
By Mark Finkelstein | December 2, 2007 - 08:09 ET

"A camel is a horse designed by committee." -- ascribed to Sir Alexander Arnold Constantine Issigonis.

Perhaps the only thing more likely to yield ungainly results than a committee designing a horse is a Democrat designing a Republican presidential ticket. David Broder tries his hand at it in his WaPo column today, "Principles Amid the GOP Pack. The result is a double-humped dromedary known as McCain-Huckabee.
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My God, McCain-Huckabee -- "A double humped Dromedary". I was saying this just the other day, quite easily the most creative wingnut insult of the week.

So what bright wisdom's does the Beltway Oracle have on the GOP Angst in the year of our war 2008 [almost].

# for the those who wonder what's a Dromedary with two humps. Think Humphry the Camel.
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Principles Amid the GOP Pack

Sunday, December 2, 2007; Page B07

If the Republican Party really wanted to hold on to the White House in 2009, it's pretty clear what it would do. It would grit its teeth, swallow its doubts and nominate a ticket of John McCain for president and Mike Huckabee for vice president -- and president-in-waiting.

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The wise one never[always] disappoints. It's the dread Dromedary ticket for GOP salvation in 2008.

Further pontifications flesh out Broder's prescription of "pas de deux" for victory.

What will the little children say?

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