Friday 20 August 2010

News For August 21, 2010

A Disaster of Daunting Magnitude

By Miami Herald

The eyes see. The ears hear. Yet, somehow, the mind struggles to grasp the full dimension of this catastrophe. Almost 20 million people need shelter, food and emergency care. That is more than the entire population hit by the Indian Ocean tsunami, the Kashmir earthquake, Cyclone Nargis and the earthquake in Haiti -- combined. Continue

Some US Troops Say Goodbye to Iraq
Torture. Corruption. Civil war. America has certainly left its mark

By Robert Fisk

They are busy re-writing the narrative now. Up to a million Iraqis are dead. Blair cares nothing about them – they do not feature, please note, in his royalties generosity. And nor do most of the American soldiers. They came. They saw. They lost. And now they say they've won. Continue

Why The Wars Can't Be Won

By Prof. John Kozy

Americans are foolishly assuming that the peoples of the Middle East will change their attitudes if enough force is imposed for a long enough time and enough promises of a better future are made. History belies this assumption. Continue

Fox News Comes Out of the Closet

By Cenk Uygur

They don't just have a perspective, they have an agenda. And they drive that agenda until their political goals are met. Continue

U.S. Soldiers Punished For Not Attending Christian Concert

By Chris Rodda

Do the recently announced plans of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to trim defense spending include any trimming of the military's outrageous spending on the promoting of religion and evangelizing of our troops? This alone could save the DoD untold millions every year, and go a long way towards upholding our Constitution at the same time. Continue

Guns and Cameras.
A Case of Decency Deficit – An Analysis

By Professor Lawrence Davidson

Many Israelis are convinced that the Palestinians are barbarians, "beasts walking on two legs," who want to "push the Jews into the sea." The answer to this alleged threat is to convince the Palestinians that they are "a defeated people." Continue

Brazil and Venezuela:
Two Turning Point Elections this Fall

By James Petras

If Brazil “goes Right”, it will immeasurably strengthen US influence in the region, and eliminate an independent voice. Continue

Russia, Pakistan Show Need for Climate Action

By Simon Butler

If you are not at least a little bit scared about the Russian heatwave or the huge floods in Pakistan, then you really should be. Continue

Frozen in the Headlights
The Economy is in Big Trouble  

By Mike Whitney

As the stimulus runs out, unemployment will edge upwards, deleveraging and debt liquidation will gain momentum, and the economy will succumb to another vicious contraction. Continue

The Banksters Strike Again:
Chase Bank and Obama's "Make Home Affordable" Scam

By Ted Rall

would like to express my unvarnished admiration for the ruthless cynicism that led the executives at Chase Home Finance to conceive of a fake lending branch entirely dedicated to increasing foreclosures, improving their public image, and driving distressed homeowners crazy. Continue

18 Killed in Yemen Attack: : Fifteen soldiers and three Al Qaeda militants were killed in clashes in southern Yemen Friday, Xinhua reported.
Taliban kill 30 "security guards": Afghan police said Friday that 30 security guards had been killed in a day-long clash with Taliban fighters in one of the most volatile regions of the war-ravaged country.
Soldier, civilian woman killed in Afghanistan: NATO: The soldier was operating under NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and died following an Taliban-style bomb attack in the south of the country.
Two Australian occupation force soldiers killed in Afghanistan: The Defence Force has confirmed two Australian soldiers have been killed and two others wounded by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan.
Family, U.S. offer differing versions of deadly Afghan raid: Aman lay bleeding in his family guest room, alongside two of his brothers, all shot dead by U.S. special forces who were on the hunt for a Taliban leader.
Sniper in Afghan Town Puts Marines on Edge: Somewhere in this dusty town, concealed among the cornfields, irrigation canals and mud-walled compounds, is a man the Marines particularly want to kill.
Poll: Nearly 6 In 10 Oppose War In Afghanistan: A majority of Americans see no end in sight in Afghanistan, and nearly six in 10 oppose the nine-year-old war as President Barack Obama sends tens of thousands more troops to the fight, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll.
Pakistan: 9 killed in Orakzai clashes: Eight militants and a soldier were killed in clashes that ensued after militants attacked security forces’ base with rockets and heavy machineguns in Tapo Kalley area of Orakzai Agency on Friday, official sources said.
Pakistan to clamp down on Islamist militant charities: Pakistan said on Friday it will clamp down on charities linked to Islamist militants amid fears their involvement in flood relief could exploit anger against the government and undermine the fight against groups like the Taliban.
Next days are critical for Pakistani city of 1.5 million: Hyderabad braced as flooding continued to surge from the north to Pakistan's plains in the center and south.
An Estimated 20 Million Pakistanis in Desperate Need: Why So Little Media Attention?: Even more depressing is the fact that the number of people affected by the Pakistani floods is already far greater when compared to other recent major natural disasters; it is more than three times that of Haiti's earthquake or more than 10 times that of Hurricane Katrina.[1]
18 Killed in Yemen Attack: : Fifteen soldiers and three Al Qaeda militants were killed in clashes in southern Yemen Friday, Xinhua reported.
Iraq war was illegal, repeats Clegg: Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg today restated his view that the Iraq War was illegal, saying: "I don't think the legality of that invasion has been proven."
"Dr Kelly could not have bled to death": The Kelly Affair: Anatomy of a conspiracy theory: Claims that we have not been told the full truth about the death of Dr David Kelly have been circulating for years. This week, the fog of rumour thickened.
Prosecutors Eye WikiLeaks Charges: Pentagon lawyers believe that online whistleblower group WikiLeaks acted illegally in disclosing thousands of classified Afghanistan war reports and other material, and federal prosecutors are exploring possible criminal charges, officials familiar with the matter said.
See : New York Times Co. v. United States: The Supreme Court's decision legitimated the media's assaults against governmental secrecy and its self-assumed status as the people's paladin against official wrongdoing.
Mississippi Lawyer Drawn Into WikiLeaks Intrigue: A civil litigation attorney in Mississippi who has lent advice to WikiLeaks on occasion has found himself embroiled in intrigue and headlines after initiating conversation with the government over the secret-spilling site.
Filmmaker Moore gives to fund for Wikileaks accused: Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore has donated $5,000 (£3,900) to help defend Army Spc Bradley Manning, the man suspected of giving classified documents to the website Wikileaks.
Exposing War Crimes Is Not A Crime!: 10 Ways You Can Help Save Bradley Manning:
Cyberactivists Unblock Wikileaks For Thai Netizens: A group of anonymous Internet activists has set up a website to display information about Thailand that comes from the whistle-blower site Wikileaks, which is blocked to some viewers in the Southeast Asian country.
Iran says it may halt high-level fuel enrichment: President Ahmadinejad tells Japanese newspaper that Iran would stop enriching uranium to 20 percent if it is assured of nuclear fuel supplies for research reactor.
Russia: Israel need not fear reactor: Israelis should not be concerned about the uranium fueling of a Russian-built nuclear reactor in the southern Iranian city of Bushehr that is set to take place on Saturday, diplomatic officials at the Russian Embassy in Tel Aviv told The Jerusalem Post.
Iran test fires new surface-to-surface missile : - Iranian Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi said that the country on Friday test fired a new surface-to-surface missile named Qiam-1.
Clinton announces direct talks will resume on Sept. 2: Israel and the Palestinians have agreed to resume direct negotiations in Washington early next month, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Friday, with a goal of two sovereign states existing side by side in peace.
Settlements 'may halt' direct talks: The Palestinian Authority has accepted an invitation from the United States to resume direct negotiations with Israel, but warned that it will withdraw if Israel builds more settlements on occupied Palestinian land.
Negotiations under false pretenses : No one has been able to apply significant pressure on the Israeli government to continue the full settlement building freeze beyond the initial 10 months. It appears that it is much easier to apply pressure on the Palestinian side.
Fatah accepts Haniyeh unity invite: - Fatah officials, in Gaza to offer condolences to family members of a former PA intelligence chief, will begin meetings with Hamas officials to discuss Palestinian unity, sources confirmed Friday.
Is one-state solution an answer to Greater Israel dreams?: For the new Greater Israel proponents of a one-state solution, the 2005 withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, which they opposed vehemently, suddenly has become a strategic game-changer.
PLO defends Abbas statements on Jewish rights: "We regard this announcement, which adopts a central tenet of Zionism, as a grave betrayal of the collective rights of the Palestinian people. It is tantamount to a surrender of the right of Palestinian citizens," the letter said. "
Cyprus says will not allow Gaza-bound aid ship: Cyprus will not allow a ship carrying women activists and aid for the blockaded Palestinian territory of Gaza to sail from its ports, the island's police said on Friday.
Lebanon snubs Israel's aid ship threat: The Lebanese transport minister has ignored the latest threat of Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak for stopping a Lebanese aid ship bound for Ga
Palestinians: Arab states are not paying: Arab states have cut financial aid to the Palestinian Authority so far this year, according to PA figures seen by Reuters, and the United Nations has warned of a looming Palestinian cash crisis.
Gilad Atzmon: "Zionist editing".: United Against Knowledge: The Guardian reported today that two Israeli groups have set up training courses in subversive Wikipedia editing aiming to 'show the other side' of the Jewish State.
Australian politicians vie for family vote: . Prime Minister Julia Gillard yesterday promised two weeks’ paid leave for new fathers, matching her opponent Tony Abbott’s earlier promise.
Bolivia declares fires emergency: Evo Morales, the Bolivian president, has declared a state of emergency as firefighters contend with 25,000 separate blazes across the Andean country.
18-nation military maneuvers focus on Panama Canal security: Participants aside from host Panama and the U.S. Southern Command include Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.

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