tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40303886663829182032024-03-13T15:28:38.305-04:00Future News TodayA place to read tomorrow's headlines todayFrank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.comBlogger185125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-961790059973502952010-03-27T10:53:00.004-04:002010-06-05T10:06:33.698-04:00Rachel Corrie and the People of Gaza<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64P0c5EBYI/AAAAAAAAAVg/1vIyZGTbPw0/s1600-h/Rachel%20Corrie%20flowers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64P0c5EBYI/AAAAAAAAAVg/1vIyZGTbPw0/s400/Rachel%20Corrie%20flowers.jpg" width="380" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64Pzt0irPI/AAAAAAAAAVQ/sS7yR08l-BM/s1600-h/Rachel%20Corrie%20smiling.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64Pzt0irPI/AAAAAAAAAVQ/sS7yR08l-BM/s400/Rachel%20Corrie%20smiling.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br />
<b>UPDATE - June 5, 2010</b><br />
<br />
How appropriate that the latest <a href="http://www.freegaza.org/">Free Gaza</a> ship is named "the Rachel Corrie". And once again Rachel Corrie is murdered and raped by the Israeli Forces while offering her own body in defense of Gaza.<br />
<blockquote><a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article7144671.ece"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: none;">ISRAEL</span></span></a>: "Our forces boarded the boat [Rachel Corrie] and took control without meeting any resistance from the crew or the passengers. Everything took place without violence."</blockquote>Isn't this exactly what a rapist would boast about his victim after holding a knife to the woman's throat in order to force her to succumb to his will? - "There was no resistance... everything took place without violence."<br />
<br />
What will it take for the nations of the world to send warships to accompany and defend aid ships en route to Gaza? - not unlike the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy#Civil_rights">federal troops which John F. Kennedy sent</a> to force racial desegregation of southern schools in the U.S. <br />
<br />
Racism has many faces - Apartheid, Zionism, Jim Crow. We should not be deceived by the <i>de facto</i> appearance of legality in any of these situations.<br />
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"We hold these truths to be self evident... <a href="http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html">All men are created equal!</a>"<br />
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Jesus said: "Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. This is the law and the prophets." - <a href="http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/matthew/matthew7.htm">Matthew 7:12</a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> ************</div><br />
[I'm sorry I could not bring myself to write in commemoration of Rachel Corrie at the time of the anniversary of her death on March 16, 2003. (The subject is just too close to my heart and I was not able to express my feelings.) But now as the Israeli tanks once again roll into Gaza which Rachel courageously defended with her own body, I finally feel compelled to speak out and join my voice to the chorus of others demanding Justice not just for Rachel but also for the Palestinian People which she grew to know and love. Rest In Peace, Rachel. Our thoughts and our prayers are with you, and with your family, and with the Palestinian People. And also with the Jews of Israel and all Jews all around the world. We pray for Peace and for an end to Zionism. ]<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">[Warning: There are graphic pictures of Rachel Corrie at the time of her death at the end of this post.]</span><br />
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Once more Pharaoh's chariots are invading Palestine. Once more Caesar's Legions are mercilessly slaying the Children of Palestine.<br />
<br />
Again, and again, and again the People of Palestine are asked to sacrifice their lives. When will it end? When will the world put an end to this insane bloodshed?<br />
<br />
The Caesar in Washington turns a blind eye while the criminal gang in Jerusalem proceeds in raping and pillaging. And when the criminals are finally condemned in the court of Justice, the Senators in Washington step up to defend them. And when the Palestinians rise up to defend themselves, they are called terrorists and are mercilessly slaughtered.<br />
<br />
There is no Justice!<br />
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There is only the rule of Might makes Right. Might gives them the Right to "defend" themselves from stones and shouts with bullets and bombs. And tanks, and helicopters, and jet fighter craft and navy warships. Killing indiscriminately men, women, and children. Young and old. Weak and strong.<br />
<br />
There is no mercy! There is no forgiveness!<br />
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There is only ruthless killing and more killing. Resulting in an endless river of blood. The Lion of Judea is on a rampage, devouring its victims by the thousands to satisfy its never ending hunger for conquest.<br />
<br />
This is insanity!<br />
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Has the world lost its mind? Is there no one who will stand up against the madness? Not just speak up, but stand up. It is well past the time for this bloody sacrifice to end.<br />
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<b>Jesus of Palestine</b><br />
<br />
The Palestinians have been imprisoned behind walls and turned into little more than slaves and beggars. Bethlehem, where Jesus was born, is in the militarily occupied West Bank and was attacked only a few short years ago. The Church of the Nativity itself was a target. Although there is no one in the media that seems to want to recall this bit of unpleasant recent history. Nazareth, where Jesus grew up, is also in the occupied West Bank and suffers the same fate as the rest of the militarily occupied lands of the Palestinians.<br />
<br />
The fishermen of Gaza, which sits along the shore of the Mediterranean, are not allowed to go out and cast their nets as they did in Biblical times. It is not a mighty storm they fear, but the Israeli Navy which fires upon them and seizes their boats and imprisons them for no reason at all - only for the crime of wanting to make an honest living and to feed their families.<br />
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The olive trees and orange orchards of Palestinians are deliberately destroyed in order to impoverish them and to symbolically castrate them as a society. Their homes are bulldozed indiscriminately, with only the weakest pretense of legality.<br />
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<b>Rachel Corrie</b><br />
<br />
Rachel Corrie who stood up against the Israeli bulldozers in Gaza was yet another victim of the brutality of the Zionist state. And to this day no one has been punished for this blatant act of murder. Her parents in their implacable quest for Justice have taken their case to the Israeli courts. This is after their requests for Justice have been ignored time and time again by Israeli officials and - even worse - American officials.<br />
<br />
It is as though the family members of a brutal rape-murder victim were forced to kneel down before a judge and beg for Justice for their daughter. Does not the system of Law already have a duty to seek Justice on its own? Must the victim's family plead for the State to carry out its duty?<br />
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Rachel Corrie was not just murdered - she was brutally raped; just as the Palestinian People have been the victims of a systematic rape at the hands of the Israelis for over sixty years.<br />
<br />
How long, Lord? How long? How long must the Palestinian People suffer?<br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> ************</div><div><br />
</div><div>An interview with Rachel Corrie conducted by Middle East Broadcasting Company on March 14th, 2003, two days before she was murdered by the Israeli Defense Forces.</div><br />
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************<br />
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Please visit the following websites for information on Rachel Corrie and the ISM (International Solidarity Movement) which she belonged to. I've also included a link to the Free Gaza Movement which has successfully broken through the Israeli Naval blockade of Gaza in the past.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://rachelcorriefoundation.org/">The Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice</a><br />
<a href="http://palsolidarity.org/">The International Solidarity Movement (ISM)</a><br />
<a href="http://www.freegaza.org/"> Free Gaza Movement</a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> ************</div><br />
I also highly recommend the blog called "In Gaza" which is written by a member of ISM named Eva Bartlett. She is an American-Canadian following in the footsteps of Rachel Corrie. Her blog contains many beautiful pictures of daily life in Gaza, along with pictures showing the horrors which Gazans must face as a result of the Zionist military occupation of Palestine.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://ingaza.wordpress.com/"> In Gaza</a><br />
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Here is an article about Eva Bartlett, of "In Gaza".<br />
<a href="http://www.paltelegraph.com/palestine/gaza-strip/4824-eva-bartlett-follows-in-the-footsteps-of-rachel-corrie">Eva Bartlett follows in the footsteps of Rachel Corrie</a><br />
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And finally here is an interview with Eva during the Israeli attack on Gaza in December 2008 to January 2009. One can only imagine what it would have been like to hear a similar report from Rachel Corrie, had she not been murdered by the Israelis in 2003.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64Pz9wRnpI/AAAAAAAAAVU/gJ98erhr4JE/s1600-h/Rachel%20Corrie%20standing%20up%20to%20bulldozer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64Pz9wRnpI/AAAAAAAAAVU/gJ98erhr4JE/s400/Rachel%20Corrie%20standing%20up%20to%20bulldozer.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64P0CPqh5I/AAAAAAAAAVc/hqSEmX0KaWQ/s1600-h/Rachel%20Corrie%20after%20bulldozer%20attack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="333" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64P0CPqh5I/AAAAAAAAAVc/hqSEmX0KaWQ/s400/Rachel%20Corrie%20after%20bulldozer%20attack.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64P0CNuqSI/AAAAAAAAAVY/dVPZtEh8ddw/s1600-h/Rachel%20Corrie%20flag%20shrouded.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S64P0CNuqSI/AAAAAAAAAVY/dVPZtEh8ddw/s400/Rachel%20Corrie%20flag%20shrouded.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br />
</div>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-92024489822669988212010-03-16T12:31:00.000-04:002010-03-16T12:31:25.474-04:00Kabuki - US and Israel style<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S56qzJzGTuI/AAAAAAAAAU0/_MQk0_l02Rs/s1600-h/Kabuki.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S56qzJzGTuI/AAAAAAAAAU0/_MQk0_l02Rs/s400/Kabuki.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><blockquote><i><b>Kabuki</b> - a form of traditional Japanese drama with highly stylized song, mime, and dance, now performed only by male actors, using exaggerated gestures and body movements to express emotions, and including historical plays, domestic dramas, and dance pieces.</i></blockquote>In a <a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2010/02/china-made-in-america.html">recent post</a> I described how the apparent conflicts between the US and China are highly dramatized for the consumption of the local audiences. Now it is time for the US to take on Israel in a WWF style showdown. [Please pardon my liberal mixing of metaphors.]<br />
<br />
<b>The US vs. Israel</b><br />
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Round 1: The US wrestler "Zionist Joe" heads to the Israeli corner to congratulate top Israeli wrestler "Bulldozer Bibi". Bibi pretends to shake hands with Joe, but then slams him to the mat! And the crowd goes wild. Joe gets up and tries to poke Bibi in the eye, but Bibi is to quick for him and fends him off by holding his hand up between his eyes. He then taunts Joe by saying, "Na, na, na-na-na." Rather than taking offense, Joe once again stretches out his hand in friendship and laughs. "You old rascal," he says. "That was some move. I never saw <i>that</i> coming."<br />
<br />
The judges huddle as bikini clad girls prance around the ring announcing the upcoming Round 2. After a brief delay, the judges award 2 points to the Israeli side. Normally only 1 point is awarded for winning the round, but they award an extra point for the spectacular takedown.<br />
<br />
Round 2: Emerging from the US corner is the formidable "Hillary the Obliterator". The Israeli corner looks slightly concerned and at first refuse to come out of their corner. After a brief huddle, they once again send out Bibi. The two meet in the center of the ring. Hillary stares down Bibi, but Bibi stares right back at her and never blinks. Then Hillary dances around the ring, wildly gesturing and beating her breast in imitation of an enraged female gorilla. Bibi sits in a stool in his corner and mostly ignores the outburst. Soon the bell rings to end the round.<br />
<br />
Once again the judges huddle. Their seems to be some hesitation, but after a brief discussion the judges declare the round to be a draw and award 1 point to each team. The judges explain that they were highly entertained by Hillary's display of raw emotion, but that ultimately the tactic inflicted no harm on the Israeli wrestler.<br />
<br />
The announcer steps to the middle of the ring. He holds up Bibi's hand as he shouts out, "and the winner by unanimous decision and still cham-pi-on is IS-RA-EL!" The mostly pro-Israel crowd goes wild, as the losing US team kneels and kisses the feet of the Israeli champion as is customary.<br />
<br />
<b>But seriously folks...</b><br />
<br />
If you thought that you were seeing anything like a real conflict between the US and Israel over the issue of Israeli "settlements" in East Jerusalem, you're sadly mistaken. This whole controversy was scripted out in advance. Bibi needed an excuse to be able to tell his local ultra-right wing supporters that the US was pressuring him on settlements. Obama needed to be able to act like he was getting tough on Israel. Biden messed up the US response so badly, that Clinton had to be brought in to convince the Israelis and Arabs that the US was really angry over the incident. Of course we weren't, but it was important to pretend that we were.<br />
<br />
As the Jerusalem Post reveals, the whole incident was designed to put a stop to a <a href="http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=170995">Likud Central Committee meeting on unfreezing settlement construction</a>. Well, alright the article doesn't come right out and say that, but if you read between the lines the truth becomes apparent.<br />
<blockquote>Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu received backing from his ministers and the parties in his coalition Sunday as he faced a deepening crisis in Israel’s relations with the American administration.<br />
<br />
While <b>officials in Washington were quoted as saying that Netanyahu would have to choose between his ties with US President Barack Obama’s government and his coalition partners</b>, ministers and MKs took steps to ensure that he would not have to make such a difficult choice.<br />
<br />
Despite American pressure, <b>not one of the 30 ministers in Netanyahu’s cabinet has expressed support for freezing construction</b> over the pre-1967 border in Jerusalem. A check among <b>the five Labor ministers found that they were all in favor</b> of continuing to build in neighborhoods like Ramat Shlomo and Gilo, where the American administration opposes building.<br />
<br />
“The consensus in Israel supports continuing to build in Jerusalem and that’s not going to change,” a Labor minister said.<br />
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In a speech to the Labor Party’s executive committee at the Tel Aviv Fairgrounds, Defense Minister Ehud Barak denied the charge made by Obama adviser David Axelrod that a decision to build 1,600 housing units in Ramat Shlomo was intentionally announced during US Vice President Joe Biden’s visit in order to humiliate him.<br />
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“<b>The technical mistake during Biden’s visit was not intentional</b> but it was undoubtedly superfluous and dangerous,” Barak said. “Our connection with the American people and our relationship of respect with the American administration and the president are important components of Israel’s security and foreign relations. <br />
<br />
“While we are ultimately responsible for our fate, our friendship with America is important for our security and for the chance to calm down the region, and this friendship requires us to behave with mutual respect and responsibility.”<br />
<br />
National Infrastructures Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer suggested at the event that the <b>escalating pressure from the Obama administration on Netanyahu would only increase the prime minister’s popularity ratings</b>.<br />
<br />
“The more Bibi is scolded, the more Right the people will go,” Ben-Eliezer said.<br />
<br />
Netanyahu <b>already received a political boost</b> from the American pressure. <b>He used it as an excuse to pressure hawkish Likud MK Danny Danon to postpone Thursday”s Likud Central Committee meeting that was set to focus on stopping the construction freeze in Judea and Samaria.</b><br />
<br />
Danon had hoped that the central committee would pass a proposal demanding that the 10-month freeze that ends September 25 not get extended. But he <b>caved into pressure</b> from Netanyahu and agreed to postpone the forum on the condition that <b>a new date for it be set within 30 days</b>.<br />
<br />
“I have no doubt that my proposal to restart building in Judea and Samaria would win a majority, but the prime minister is in the middle of an eternal struggle for Jerusalem, so I accepted the prime minister’s request to delay the meeting,” Danon said.<br />
<br />
<b>Netanyahu could receive another political boost from Obama if Kadima MKs use the American pressure on Israel as an excuse to split the party and join the coalition.</b></blockquote>So Netanyahu postponed the Likud party's decision to extend the West Bank settlement "freeze". But at the same time he <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1156570.html">announces that</a>, "<b>The building in Jerusalem - and in all other places - will continue in the same way as has been customary over the last 42 years.</b>" It doesn't sound as if he is shaking in his boots after Clinton's rebuke.<br />
<br />
And this is nothing new. Unfortunately, the corporate media has a selective memory. As recently as November of last year I highlighted a similar situation with regards to Israeli "settlements" in East Jerusalem in a post I called, "<a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/battle-for-east-jerusalem.html">The Battle for East Jerusalem</a>". Back then the State Department said it was "dismayed"; Clinton calls the latest Israeli move an "insult".<br />
<br />
Maybe if Obama had done something to punish Israel for its assault of Gaza just before his taking office, then the Israelis would actually take the US seriously. Let's face it. The US doesn't get angry over Israel bombing Palestinians. The US doesn't get angry about Israel demolishing Palestinian homes. The US doesn't get angry over the Apartheid Wall through the West Bank. And the US never got angry before about the illegal Zionist takeover of East Jerusalem.<br />
<br />
The only reason the US is angry now is because their is a perceived direct insult towards us by Israel. They can kill and maim as many Palestinians as they want and the US will remain silent. They can destroy Palestinian homes by the hundreds and the US will remain silent. They can even murder a US citizen - as in the case of Rachel Corrie - and the US will remain silent.<br />
<br />
<b>The show must go on...</b><br />
<br />
The "peace process" must go on - not for the benefit of the Palestinians, but for the benefit of the Zionists. You might come to the conclusion that this is a battle between two factions of Zionists. Not even! They are not "battling" anymore than pro wrestlers are battling. They are just putting on a show. Either way, the Zionists win.<br />
<br />
You see they need their "peace process" to maintain their cover for the Zionist expansion. And they pay their flunkies in the P.A. like Abbas well to play their part. Anyone Palestinian who offers real resistance is labeled a "terrorist", like Hamas. And that allows others who resist Israel to be labeled as "terrorist sympathizers" - like Rachel Corrie and the ISM (International Solidarity Movement).<br />
<br />
So don't get all excited about these recent events and expect them to result in any substantive change in the US-Israeli relationship. Real change would be the US Navy breaking the siege of Gaza to deliver much needed food and supplies. And that's just not going to happen. Real change would be the US permanently cutting off all aid to Israel - especially military aid. Again, not happening.<br />
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Some have suggested that the US military is behind this new push. Well yes, the US military would like to see Israel give more credence to the "peace talks". This helps to soothe the feelings of the local Arab dictatorships. But there is no desire to see the creation of a real "Palestinian state" - even if such a thing were possible. The only goal is the very limited one of calming the feelings on the "Arab street". They don't want a group of "radicals" challenging the status quo dictatorships of such loyal US allies as Saudi Arabia, Jordan or Egypt. You already have some "radical" talk from the government of Turkey, and they don't want that spreading through other Arab and Muslim countries.<br />
<br />
So yes "the show must go on". Next week there will be an AIPAC conference in Washington. Hillary and Bibi will go another round of fake combat. Eventually there will be new "talks about talks" between the sell-out P.A and Zionist Israel. More Palestinian children will be killed because they are "Hamas terrorists". The Goldstone Report will be forgotten in the midst of all this.<br />
<br />
Eventually Israel will sufficiently provoke Palestinian anger to the point where there will be a new "terrorist attack" on Israelis that will result in deaths. No mention will be made in the US Corporate Media about how many Palestinian homes were destroyed or children imprisoned to cause this reaction. The names of the dead Israelis will feature prominently in the reports, while all the Palestinian victims over the years remain anonymous.<br />
<br />
The Israelis will use these "terrorist attacks" against them to justify a new wave of violence and murder against the defenseless Palestinians. The media will depict this as a "cycle of violence", but in reality it is a carefully planned script. It is a cycle of gross deliberate provocation, followed by a minor retaliatory attack, followed by a wave of brutal state violence against the Palestinians.<br />
<br />
Lights, camera... action!Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-49043243539111605752010-03-10T09:28:00.000-05:002010-03-10T09:28:43.993-05:00The fall of Wall Street's Temple<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S5esTxLANVI/AAAAAAAAAUw/9cNKccjZTZY/s1600-h/New%20York%20Stock%20Exchange%20-%20Wall%20Street%20Temple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S5esTxLANVI/AAAAAAAAAUw/9cNKccjZTZY/s400/New%20York%20Stock%20Exchange%20-%20Wall%20Street%20Temple.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The New York Stock Exchange - Wall Street's Temple</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
[NOTE: I wrote a comment over at <a href="http://www.deepcapture.com/">DeepCapture</a> yesterday and I so thoroughly enjoyed it that I decided to repost here and share it with others.]<br />
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Comment in response to "<a href="http://www.deepcapture.com/evidence-of-murder-at-383-madison-ave/">Evidence of murder at 383 Madison Ave.</a>" (The article discusses the use of Naked Short Selling to accelerate the fall of Bear Stearns.)<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-author vcard" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><cite class="fn" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="url" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/03/phantoms-of-stock-market.html" rel="external nofollow" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline;">Frank Hope</a></cite> <span class="says" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">says:</span></div><div class="comment-meta commentmetadata" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; font-size: 0.8em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.deepcapture.com/evidence-of-murder-at-383-madison-ave/comment-page-1/#comment-174577" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline;">March 9, 2010 at 9:12 pm</a></div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">If you ask me the game is deliberately made more complicated than it needs to be. In addition it appears that there are loopholes that are only available to a limited number of players with privileged positions. And you call that a free market?</div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">If this market were anything close to being free, there would be hundreds of companies lined up to take over the top spot from Goldman Sachs. But because of barriers to entry created and maintained by government regulators, there is no competition in sight.</div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">The game is rigged and on top of that the participants are gaming the system. Look at High-Frequency Trading, for example. Naked Short Selling appears to be only a symptom of a system that is corrupt through and through. We don’t need reform, we need a revolution. Too bad the system was not allowed to crash and burn in 2008. The term “<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_destruction" rel="nofollow" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline;">creative destruction</a>” was never more appropriate.</div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">The heads of the Wall Street aristocracy must roll and there must be a new and open system put in place to replace it. With today’s computer and networking technology, this should be a snap. Give the job to Google and I’m sure they could come up with a better, more fair and equitable system in a month’s time. Heck it’s hard to imagine a worse system than what exists on Wall Street today.</div><div style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Of course this would expose the King’s New Clothes and would send shock waves through the financial sector exceeding <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richter_magnitude_scale#Richter_magnitudes" rel="nofollow" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline;">10.0 on the Richter scale</a>. Wall Street’s Temple would be completely destroyed – hopefully forever. And the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_of_London" rel="nofollow" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: black; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: underline;">City of London</a> would disappear into the ocean along with it. Good riddance!</div>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-22413927299980752732010-03-09T11:49:00.000-05:002010-03-09T11:49:51.506-05:00Bye bye Max and Stacy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S3xBrPQDxGI/AAAAAAAAAUY/_GuwYsOErDk/s1600-h/Fantasy%20Island%20farewll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S3xBrPQDxGI/AAAAAAAAAUY/_GuwYsOErDk/s400/Fantasy%20Island%20farewll.jpg" width="317" /></a></div><br />
[NOTE: I held off publishing this article for a few weeks to see if I would get a reply from Max and Stacy saying they had fixed the problem that does not allow me to post comments on their site.]<br />
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It's funny how things work out online. I started out as a big fan of Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert over at <a href="http://MaxKeiser.com/">MaxKeiser.com</a>. What happened?<br />
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I'll tell you what happened. I was suddenly and inexplicably blacklisted from commenting on their website. I'm sure you'll agree that's kind of a big insult and slap-in-the-face in the online world if it's done intentionally, but I'm sure you'll also agree that there are all kinds of technical issues that could cause something like this to happen unintentionally. And I have absolutely no reason to believe that this was done intentionally.<br />
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So I made repeated pleas for help to Stacy and Max to restore my commenting privileges. I exchanged multiple emails with Stacy on the subject. (Max doesn't usually reply to emails.) Despite her best efforts, the problem was not fixed.<br />
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Finally Stacy suggested that the problem was not a local problem with the MaxKeiser website, but a problem with the spam filter which is a service provided by <a href="http://akismet.com/">Akismet</a>. If what she was suggesting was true then that would lead me to be banned from commenting not only on MaxKeiser, but also on many Wordpress blogs and other sites that use Akismet as a spam filter.<br />
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So I contacted Akismet and after running a simple test, it was determined that they were not the cause of the problem. I let Stacy know the results, but she just (virtually) threw her hands up in the air and said there was nothing she could do about it. In the process she accused me of "threatening" her because I said that if they were unable to fix this problem, that I would no longer be able to support their site.<br />
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It's kind of like my saying to Toyota that if they don't fix their problems with cars that accelerate out of control leading to crashes and deaths, that I'm not going to buy any more of their cars. (I don't own a Toyota by the way, I buy strictly cars from American manufacturers.) That seems like a reasonable reaction that most people would have. You either fix your product or I'm going to take my business elsewhere.<br />
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I would hardly call that a "threat". Here's the definition of "threat" for reference:<br />
<blockquote><i>a statement of an intention to inflict pain, injury, damage, or other hostile action on someone in retribution for something done or not done</i></blockquote>I guess I should feel flattered in a way to think that somehow my lack of endorsement of MaxKeiser.com could cause some sort of "damage" to Max and Stacy. For all the lack of manners when attacking others displayed by many on the web (including you - Stacy and Max), most people online remain amazingly thin skinned when they feel somehow insulted.<br />
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But then maybe they <i>should</i> feel threatened because Future News Today does appear on the first page of results on a Google search for "Max Keiser YouTube". It's true. I wrote a <a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/04/max-geiser-goldman-sachs-aig-and-dark.html">very flattering article about Max and Stacy</a> back in April 2009 and it became fairly popular. Someone even "tweeted" it.<br />
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But that was long ago and Max and Stacy have become ever more popular since then. They attract hundreds of comments to every post. (And yes I'm envious.) They even have a new show on Russia Today.<br />
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Maybe this is a sign that in the "Year of the Tiger" it's time for me to move on. I mean, I could practically do the MaxKeiser show myself. I pretty much know what he will say before he even says it. And it does get frustrating after a while to here people speak the truth about the criminal fraud perpetrated by the Wall Street cabal over and over again, and yet nothing changes. Geithner has not even been fired. So it does feel as if Max and the rest of us have been pretty ineffective in our criticisms.<br />
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Of course I don't have any economic stake in this fight. I have never had any ads on my site, so I'm not making a nickel off this. For Max and Stacy, it's a way of making a living. I don't begrudge them that, it's just a fact. If I don't feel like their have been any significant developments to report, then I just don't post. Whereas Max and Stacy have to continually come up with new material to fill in their various shows.<br />
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Fortunately for them, there have been plenty of new economic developments of the "gloom and doom" variety which they specialize in. The latest of course being the problems in Europe - especially Greece. And Goldman Sachs seems to be everywhere at once whenever it comes to sleazy - if not criminal - business dealings which inevitably cause the rest of us to have to pay up for their crimes. (While they continue to get record bonuses with the blessings of President Obama.)<br />
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Maybe it's time to start paying more attention to humanitarian issues like the plight of the Haitians devastated by the earthquake, or the conditions of people living in Gaza a year after Israel's brutal assault. Or the horrible dilemma that the people of Afghanistan have been put in, with the never-ending American occupation of their country and the resulting corrupt puppet government of Karzai.<br />
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Finally, I'd be more than happy to be welcomed back into the family over at MaxKeiser.com, but I'm not holding my breath. Too bad the internet can't be like Fantasy Island, where there is always a happy ending.Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-47347063017241350042010-03-06T00:59:00.006-05:002010-03-06T01:33:11.573-05:00Police State USA preview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S5HvIm2DVCI/AAAAAAAAAUk/0pQbz8yXd_U/s1600-h/Police%20State%20preview%201.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S5HvIm2DVCI/AAAAAAAAAUk/0pQbz8yXd_U/s400/Police%20State%20preview%201.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S5HvIkBetQI/AAAAAAAAAUo/G11EBQleyVw/s1600-h/Police%20State%20preview%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S5HvIkBetQI/AAAAAAAAAUo/G11EBQleyVw/s400/Police%20State%20preview%202.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
If you want to get a feel for what a Police State in the USA would look like, take a look at this video.<br />
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As I mentioned in my last post, I like college basketball. This is a scene from the University of Maryland following the <a href="http://www.testudotimes.com/2010/3/3/1336093/vasquez-wills-terps-to-win-on">victory of the Men's Basketball Team against their hated rival Duke</a>. The Terp fans were out celebrating the win and have a reputation of getting rowdy and even breaking a few windows or setting a few fires.<br />
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One of the time honored traditions is to shut down Rte. 1 which passes right in front of the university. Now if you ask me, this is just a bunch of college kids out having fun. And most of it is harmless. It's a big spontaneous drunken street party. Yes, there is some relatively minor destruction of property, but so what!<br />
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Why not have the police shutdown the street so the kids can party harmlessly? Instead the police come in with full riot gear, beating their batons against their shields in a display of macho force.<br />
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And as can be seen on the video [5:20, 8:15], the result is the police getting out of control and needlessly beating up some college kids.<br />
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So instead of a few random acts of violence by students having a good time, we have organized violence by police getting their kicks they way they like it. You can't tell me these goons could not have arrested these kids that are shown on video without beating them with their batons. You can actually hear the cracks of the batons at 8:15. And there are a few extra gratuitous blows after the kid is already down on the ground and has already been beaten up by a gang of cops. If anyone else did this, it would be called a mugging. But when the police commit a senseless act of violence like this, it is always justifiable. And good luck ID'ing the cops that actually took part in this beating. They're all dressed like Darth Vader.<br />
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And what exactly was the point of bringing out the police helicopter? [7:20] They're college kids, not a bunch of terrorists. Oh right, it's the cops that are the terrorists. Now I get it. Use the helicopter to create a climate of fear of the authorities. Very 1984-ish. Nice one. And how much are we paying in taxes for that military-style helicopter? It's nice to know that all that Homeland Security money is being put to good use keeping a bunch of college kids in line. The sweeping spotlight was a nice touch. Too bad they couldn't have fired off a few rounds over the heads of the running kids. That would have made some nice video for the late night news.<br />
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And of course what would a police riot be without the traditional tear gas? [7:55] If the cops can't shoot live ammunition, then they have to find other things to shoot at their victims - "non-lethal" of course. It's not as much fun as actually beating them, but it's the next best thing as far as sadistic pleasure.<br />
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What would have happened if the police hadn't shown up to "keep the peace" and "maintain law and order"? Instead of a few broken windows, we have broken bones. Instead of a few college kids acting out violently, we have a gang of cops engaging in organized violence.<br />
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The main difference is that the cops are engaging in legal state sanctioned violence. Well actually it's not legal, but the chance of any of them getting punished for it by the legal system is near zero so it is <i>de facto</i> legal.<br />
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Personally, I am actually encouraged when I see a group of American young people out defying authority. It shows there is still a rebellious spirit in this country, and that they are not all a bunch of sheep whose souls have been crushed by the machine. There is plenty of time for that later when they get a job and become part of the corporate establishment.<br />
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You have to be a rebel to become a revolutionary. And we need revolutionaries in America more than ever. We need young people that will celebrate their victories out in public, physically, passionately. And not hide in their dorm rooms and celebrate by typing a few lines into a blog. That's not how you change the world!<br />
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One last note. Just as most of the kids were just out having fun and not causing any destruction of property, most of the cops acted professionally and were not out their cracking heads. On the other hand, I have to say that what the police did was provocative. And I think it could have been handled in a better way. In the words of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/frozenphoenixprod">frozenphoenixprod</a>...<br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">"If you bring out the riot gear before people riot, you're telling people they should be rioting..."</span></i><br />
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[A hat tip to "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/frozenphoenixprod">frozenphoenixprod</a>" for posting this high quality video on YouTube. That's what citizen journalism is all about. Another hat tip to <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/users/Ben%20Broman">Ben Broman</a> for <a href="http://www.testudotimes.com/2010/3/5/1358127/more-high-quality-footage-of-the">posting this at Testudo Times</a> which is where I first saw it.]Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-18574013270984073592010-03-02T13:35:00.002-05:002010-03-02T16:38:14.264-05:00A little March Gladness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S41TuDJPugI/AAAAAAAAAUg/KGUrivoZwlI/s1600-h/Elizabeth%20and%20Elena%20Delle%20Donne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="302" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S41TuDJPugI/AAAAAAAAAUg/KGUrivoZwlI/s400/Elizabeth%20and%20Elena%20Delle%20Donne.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Here's a story that I hope will cheer everyone up. As it turns out I love women's college basketball. I was looking up some stats on some of my favorite players and came across an <a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/wcbk/sortableStats?table=scoring&div=93&stat=ptsAvg&dir=descending">excellent page at Fox Sports</a>. Yeah, I know I have sworn to boycott Fox News, but there just isn't very good coverage of women's basketball - to say the least. So you get your information wherever you can.<br />
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The great thing about this Fox webpage is that you can sort dynamically by whatever stat your interested in. (I know that's a given in men's sports, but try finding this information for the women.) One of my beefs with the men's game is how badly they shoot free throws. When I watch the women play they seem to be making a higher percentage of foul shots. It's true that the women's ball is slightly smaller, but the free throw line is at the same spot and the height of the basket is the same.<br />
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There are a few women that are hitting over 90%, which is way excellent. Another thing that bothers me is players that hit a high percentage of 3-point shots and then miss their free throws. Well there was one woman that was hitting 91% of her free throws and 44% of her 3 point shots. She was one of the leaders in both categories. So why is she playing for Delaware?<br />
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Then I looked at her points per game: 26.9! That's Michael Jordan territory. Sure she's making that against inferior competition, but surely the free throw numbers can't lie. So finally I decided to do a Google search. I expected to find an undersized guard that couldn't make it into the big conferences because of her size. Wrong. She's 6' 5''!<br />
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Her name is Elena Delle Donne - not exactly a household name - but if she was playing in one of the major conferences she would be as well known as <a href="http://www.courant.com/sports/college/hc-uconn-women-notre-dame-0302.artmar02,0,2501996.story">Tina Charles</a>. So there's got to be a story here, right? And sure enough there is - and a great one at that.<br />
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I like to give credit to my fellow bloggers whenever I can, so here's a shout-out to Michael Lewis at <a href="http://michaeljlewis.wordpress.com/">Wide World of Stuff</a>. He has one of the <a href="http://michaeljlewis.wordpress.com/2010/01/08/elena-delle-donne-an-athlete-to-root-for-the-power-of-the-press-and-mariah-carey-drunk/">top ranked articles on Elena</a> and provides some great links to stories in the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/sports/ncaabasketball/19athlete.html?_r=2&sq=Elena%20Delle%20Donne&st=cse&scp=1&pagewanted=all">New York Times</a> and <a href="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/selena_roberts/11/11/burning.to.play.again/index.html">Sports Illustrated</a>.<br />
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If you still think I'm overhyping this female athlete, just take a look at this. In a recent game against one of the top teams in her conference, Elena <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncw/news/story?id=4926595">scored a whopping 54 points</a>! That's <i>just</i> the most points scored this season in a Division I game - no biggie. That's more points than the whole Notre Dame team scored in their <a href="http://www.und.com/sports/w-baskbl/recaps/030110aaa.html">recent loss to Connecticut</a>.<br />
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Somehow Delaware lost that game against James Madison, which tells you something about the caliber of the team as a whole. In fact Delaware is not even headed for the NCAA tournament. And they are in the middle of the pack in their CAA conference. At least they have a winning conference record at 10-7.<br />
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Of course you can't put up those kind of numbers and go unnoticed. And Elena has been recruited by colleges throughout the nation since she was in middle school. Eventually she chose to go to Connecticut, one of the top women's basketball programs in the country. So what happened? Why is Elena currently playing at Delaware?<br />
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ESPN did an excellent job of letting Elena tell the story herself in this mini-documentary on their "Outside the Lines" program.<br />
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Elena describes herself as "burnt-out". We're all familiar with that term. We talk about being burnt-out at work or burnt-out at school. It's almost a cliché. But I'm going to go out on a limb and speculate on the particular nature of being "burnt-out" as it applies to an elite athlete of the caliber of Elena.<br />
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I've been watching the Vancouver Olympics. There was one story in particular that grabbed my attention. It's an oft repeated <a href="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/si_online/news/2002/02/13/launch_of_apolo/">story about Olympic short track skater Apolo Ohno</a>. The story has become almost legendary and who knows the true details behind it, but the gist of the story is that Apolo's dad, Yuki, disgusted with his son's performance dropped him off at a remote cabin. There Apolo was left for eight days alone. His father had given him the task to decide at the age of 15, whether he was going to commit himself to a career in skating. According to the legend, Apolo came out with the resolve to commit himself to his sport and never looked back.<br />
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That's the way the story is told by the sports media. It is used as an inspirational story of the love of a father, and the dedication of a son. But I'm not so sure. I wonder about how young children are molded into elite athletes in the US sport system. I wonder about the pressures put on young, vulnerable kids to perform at an early age.<br />
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American society is all about pressure. How much pressure can you handle? The amount of pressure you can take seems to correlate to how successful you will be in life. Americans revel in rising to meet the ever increasing expectations. We take pride in our ability to handle life's challenges without complaining, as we push ourselves to the breaking point.<br />
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American society is all about competition and winning. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winning_isn't_everything;_it's_the_only_thing">"Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing."</a> Perhaps this explains American's obsession with being the best. It's a culture that perhaps can be compared to ancient <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparta">Sparta</a>. This wouldn't be so bad if this spirit of competition weren't then translated into militarism. But that's exactly what I'm afraid has happened to American society.<br />
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And this is what intrigues me about this story. This connection between athletics and militarism. I can't help but thinking that part of the training that a young athlete goes through is a kind of brainwashing. Similar to the initiation process that a young recruit goes through in the military. They are broken down mentally and physically until they are totally subservient. Then they are reshaped into the mold of a soldier.<br />
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It seems to me that something similar went on with Elena. It wasn't so much that she was burnt-out, but that she refused to fit the mold. She wanted time to find out who she really is outside of basketball. She wanted to be able to spend time with her older sister, <a href="http://hoopgurlz.com/story/delle-donne-takes-hiatus-hoops">Elizabeth, who has autism and cerebral palsy</a> and was born deaf and blind.<br />
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Everyone told her she was making the biggest mistake of her life. How hard must it have been to walk away from all of that. It's not everyone who gets the kind of opportunities that she has had in life. And yet I applaud her for standing up to the pressures and deciding to live a simpler life.<br />
<br />
If Elena had been born 50 years earlier, before the rise of women's sports, she would perhaps have been happy. She would have been "a natural", a skilled player at her game who would not have attracted that much attention. She would have excelled at basketball or some other sport and would probably have competed in college. Maybe she would have even participated in the Olympics as an amateur.<br />
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She would have received accolades from local newspapers and others in her sport. And after graduating from college, she would have pursued a "normal" life. Perhaps, inspired by her older sister, she would have become a special education teacher as she has talked about in interviews. Times were simpler back then. I'll let you be the judge as to whether they were "better". They were certainly different.Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-16905071322573336182010-02-04T11:26:00.003-05:002010-02-08T13:15:39.833-05:00China - Made in America<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S3BSRgLfkVI/AAAAAAAAAUU/wO-cIZjnteY/s1600-h/Nixon%20greets%20Mao.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S3BSRgLfkVI/AAAAAAAAAUU/wO-cIZjnteY/s320/Nixon%20greets%20Mao.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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China is making headlines recently - and it's not good news. Here are a few of the stories making headlines in the past month.<br />
<ul><li>Avatar pulled from the movie screens in China.</li>
<li>Google accuses China of spying on US companies.</li>
<li>China criticizes US over military aid to Taiwan.</li>
<li>US criticizes China for undervaluing it's currency.</li>
<li>China demands that Obama not meet the Dalai Lama.</li>
</ul>Increasingly it seems that the US and China are at odds. But are they really? Regular readers of Future News Today (FNT) will know the answer to that.<br />
<br />
Today's China was made in America. What do I mean by that? Starting with the Nixon administration, the US policy has been to strengthen China economically. This coincided with the death of Mao and the rise of a new more pragmatic leadership within the Chinese Communist Party. To be sure, the CIA had a hand in making sure that the right Chinese leaders were put in place that would favor liberalization of the economy.<br />
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It was easy really. Mao had made a total mess of the country. China was poor and needed Western money to develop. The Rockefeller dominated White House guaranteed that money on the condition that the candidates they favored would rise to power in China. The Communist Party elite quickly realized that they could profit enormously from this arrangement.<br />
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In some ways this was the usual dirty politics, except on a global scale. The same thing happens in every town and city in the world. Some developers come in with a proposal, but they need cooperation from the city council in the form of a new road. Certain key politicians are made partners in the deal and in exchange they make sure the road is built. And as a result the developers and the politicians become fabulously wealthy. Now multiply that by a factor of a trillion and you have the basic picture of what happened in China at the end of the 20th century.<br />
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And there was one more thing that the Western Elite and China's Elite could agree on - the Communist Party would remain in power. Democracy was never part of the plan. Human rights were never part of the plan. Building a sizeable Chinese middle class was never part of the plan. Totalitarianism was always the plan.<br />
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This fit in perfectly with the Elite's larger plan. They wanted to take down the United States - specifically the US middle class. It had gotten too big and too powerful and did not suit their purposes any longer. For many years the model of a large middle class was touted as the basis for a strong economy that would provide continued technological progress - but no more.<br />
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The new model was one of a small Elite separated by a huge and almost insurmountable gulf from the poor masses. There would still be a sort of middle class, but greatly reduced in size. And political power would be concentrated in the hands of the Elite. Gradually, the US would shift towards a Totalitarian model - the same one adopted by China.<br />
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In fact China would be at the vanguard. In China, the Global Elite would create their model for the future and from there it would be exported around the world. The Chinese Communist Party was the perfect tool for this purpose. It already had complete control over the country. This was Mao's legacy, and David Rockefeller wholly approved. After visiting China in 1973, he had this to say.<br />
<blockquote>"The social experiment in China under Chairman Mao's leadership is one of the most important and successful in history."</blockquote>Slowly but surely the Global Elite chipped away at the US middle class by dismantling the unions. Slowly but surely the rights of Americans were stripped away by associating freedom with vulnerability to terrorism. Meanwhile the power of the government was eroded by selling the idea that "free markets" were more important than "free men".<br />
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Even the environmental movement was co-opted through the Global Warming agenda. Once again, the goal of the Elite was to destroy the power of the American middle class. It should be no surprise then that American middle class is seen as the main enemy in the Global Warming diatribe.<br />
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And China was setup to be the main beneficiary of the fall of the US. American wealth poured into China to build factories. China's banks were turned into the world's largest. China's oil companies suddenly became the world's most powerful.<br />
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China became the Elite's proxy state to force the US to surrender power. The Elite knew that if they tried to take over power directly in the United States, that they would face strong opposition. But by creating a proxy in China, they were able to divert attention from themselves. And it worked perfectly.<br />
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Meanwhile America was weakened from within. Huge deficits were created as a result of useless wars being fought in the Middle East. Rather than reinvesting America's wealth as had been done throughout its history, that wealth was squandered.<br />
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Consumers were also encouraged to build up huge debts as a housing bubble was deliberately created by the sustained low interest rate policy of the Greenspan Federal Reserve. And at the same time, an enormous trade deficit with China was encouraged to grow through government policies. This trade deficit was sustained by the selling of billions of dollars worth of US Treasury Bonds to China.<br />
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And then in September 2008, the bubble was deliberately burst. In the ensuing panic, the American government was forced to hand over hundreds of billions of dollars to the bankers. And as a result the US budget deficit grew even larger.<br />
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Just a month earlier on 8/8/8 (August 8, 2008) China celebrated its "coming out party" - the Beijing Olympics. We were told that it would encourage China to shift towards democracy and human rights, but did it? Not surprisingly, the answer is no - just as China's entry into the WTO did not enhance democracy. In fact China's Communist Party has a firmer grip on power than ever.<br />
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Which brings us to the present. As China flexes its muscles, one should remember who gave China this extraordinary power - it was the Global Elite. And the same Global Elite is continuing to do everything in its power to destroy the United States.<br />
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Is it too late? No, but time is running out. China is still a relatively poor and backwards country which would collapse without constant stimulus from the outside. And China does not have the military strength to back up its demands. A determined US could still influence China to shift towards openness and democracy so that all Chinese could benefit from its riches and not just the powerful few.<br />
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If you judge by outward appearances, it would seem that the US is heading for a collision course with China. But this all depends by what you mean by the US. If you mean the US government, then you would be wrong. But if you mean the US middle class, then you would be more or less correct. In fact if things continue on their present course, then the US middle class will be crushed between the US government and China. And if this happens, then we can say goodbye to the global experiment in freedom and democracy that began in 1776.<br />
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The trick is not to be fooled. The American people have finally woken up to the deception of the bankers and have learned not to trust them as a result of the Great Bailout of '08. But we have still not woken up to the way in which the bankers are colluding with China to destroy the American way of life.<br />
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This is a war. It is not a war fought with bullets and bombs, but a war fought with trade and currencies. It is a financial war. And there are many traitors in our midsts. Many have already made fabulous profits by selling out the US. And many are expecting to make much more by betting that the US will be the loser in this battle.<br />
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If the US is to win this battle, then it must rebuild its industries. It cannot do this under the current restrictions imposed by the WTO. The US must withdraw from the WTO. I see no other choice. Once it has withdrawn, then it can make appropriate trade agreements with other countries.<br />
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These new trade agreements must be fair. They must not be dictated by the interests of the multi-national companies, but by the interests of the people of the countries of the world.<br />
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Yes we are living in a globalized world and nothing is going to change that, but we must find a way to create a global community that respects the sovereignty of countries. Otherwise we will end up in a <i>de facto</i> global dictatorship.<br />
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This is what we are fighting against. And as the US goes, so goes the world.<br />
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<b>Related Posts</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/09/david-rockefeller-china-free-trade-wto.html">David Rockefeller, China, Free Trade, the WTO and the New World Order</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2008/10/china-syndrome.html">The International Banker's China Syndrome</a></li>
</ul>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-7755755983282057942010-01-06T22:07:00.009-05:002010-01-10T20:05:00.734-05:00Avatar - Life vs. Death<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S0VPySACy0I/AAAAAAAAAUI/_XvgKL7_6C0/s1600-h/Avatar%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/S0VPySACy0I/AAAAAAAAAUI/_XvgKL7_6C0/s400/Avatar%202.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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I saw Avatar nearly a week ago. I thought I would write a review earlier, but I haven't been able to get a full grasp of the movie. There is so much information online; and I didn't want to just repeat someone else's observations. And yes, there will be spoilers; so watch the movie first.<br />
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<b>Bio vs. Mecho</b><br />
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One idea that popped out at me even as I watched the movie, which has not been explored, is regarding technology - but not technology in the ordinary sense. I'm referring to an alien technology which our human science is unable to fully comprehend. That technology is all around us and yet we take it for granted. It is the technology that allows you to read this page. It is the technology of Life.<br />
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We don't often think of Life as a technology. And honestly that is perhaps appropriate. Life is more than a technology. Life is a mystery.<br />
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I can say this without offending any religion or even science, because it is true. Life is a mystery. It is a puzzle without an answer. And at the same time, the answer is looking at you in the mirror.<br />
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Life <i>is</i>.<br />
<br />
It is undeniably true. It is an everyday miracle. No one can claim to understand Life. It is a mystery and it is the source of all religion.<br />
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Science which bases its existence on the idea that everything can be studied and understood cannot explain Life. And Science simply ignores the question that the means of understanding is through the human brain which is itself a product of Life.<br />
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In the movie Avatar, the struggle between Bio and Mecho - or perhaps I should say Life and Death - is woven throughout the story. But it really becomes apparent during the final battle scene.<br />
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Here we see Life battling directly against the Death machines. And Life wins. Life wins because it can move in ways that the Death machines can never imagine - even when those Death machines are piloted by Life organisms.<br />
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Here we see the beauty of the motion of Life; the agility; the ferocity. The teaming masses.<br />
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James Cameron could have chosen some force of nature to destroy the invaders of Pandora - like a giant Hurricane - but instead he chose Life. It is the animals that ultimately come to the rescue of Pandora.<br />
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<b>Balance of life</b><br />
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Which brings up the question, why didn't the living inhabitants of the planet Pandora rise up against the invaders earlier? And the reason is that Life does not normally respond this way.<br />
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In a normal ecosystem Life destroys other Life for food, or in order to protect itself from a threat. This creates a balance - but not a rigid balance. It is more like a pendulum swinging back and forth around its resting spot. As it swings too far in one direction the natural forces pull it back; and it may overshoot. Overtime even the equilibrium point slowly changes as the system evolves.<br />
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You don't expect to revisit a forest one thousand years later and see the exact same pattern of trees. And as a result you wouldn't expect to see the exact same types of birds nesting there.<br />
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Life is constantly changing. It is dynamic. It responds to the natural forces. A volcano may destroy the natural landscape, but Life will recover. It will adapt.<br />
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And so Pandora does not respond immediately by destroying the invaders. Perhaps it thinks that the Death and destruction created by the invaders is part of a natural and organic process. Perhaps it thinks that in the healing of this deep wound created by the invaders a new Life will flourish.<br />
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What Jake Sully shows Pandora is that this invader is capable of causing wounds so deep and so extensive, that the planet will not be able to recover from them.<br />
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<b>Choices</b><br />
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One reviewer I read points out that the Na'vi have not even discovered the wheel. This is true.<br />
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But let's think about this. How does the wheel stack up as an invention? Do you notice that in nature there are no wheels? There are cycles, but no wheels. Is this because nature is stupid - or just primitive?<br />
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What good is a wheel in a forest? A man on foot can go places that a wheeled vehicle can never go. In fact the latest technology seeks to recreate the locomotive methods of two and four legged animals. Can a wheel go up stairs?<br />
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Wheels need roads.<br />
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The big invention is not the invention of the wheel, it is the invention of the road. The wheel was easy. Some guy in a cave probably came up with it and then chucked it out as impractical. The only thing that makes wheels practical are roads.<br />
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And how do you make a road? You make a road by destroying the natural landscape which is beautifully irregular and covered with living trees and grasses and flowers, and then replacing that with a flat, sterile surface composed of crushed dead materials.<br />
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And then you can take your car and drive around on that road. Just stick to the road. Because if you get off the road, you may find yourself stuck. Which means we need to build more roads, and more roads, and more roads...<br />
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<b>A very dangerous technology</b><br />
<br />
But I detect a flaw in Cameron's creation. And that flaw is embodied in the very title.<br />
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Avatar.<br />
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Cameron has taken this word and given it a meaning of its own. In the virtual world of the network an avatar has come to mean a virtual representation of yourself.<br />
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In the "real" physical world of Pandora the Avatar is a real physical body.<br />
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What disturbs me is the way this body was created in the story. It was created by combining human DNA with DNA from a Na'vi. This implies the use of highly advanced biotechnology. And it is this biotechnology which I'm referring to when I speak of "a very dangerous technology".<br />
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Look at the the way that mechanical technology is developed. It is created from inanimate objects. It is energized by burning dead fossil fuels. Its limited decision making capabilities come from inanimate silicon circuits.<br />
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And most importantly it's employed with the goal of conquering Life and submitting it to the service of man. In other words, it is a Death machine.<br />
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Now biotechnology is following along this same path. Do not be fooled by the 'bio' terminology. This is being employed as another technology to conquer Life. It is following along the same path as mechanical technology to become another part of the Death machine.<br />
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It is no doubt a deliberate decision on the part of Director Cameron to not employ biotechnology as a weapon against the Na'vi people. This would ruin his narrative of Life against Death. And rest assured that Cameron's intent is to create a sort of mythical tale, so the symbolism is paramount.<br />
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I would compare Cameron's storytelling to that of the Tall Tales of Paul Bunyan or John Henry. Only in those cases it is man against machine. Here we have alien against machine. And of course the end is diametrically opposite, because in Cameron's fairy tale Life wins. Yes it is a fairy tale; it is a legend; it is a parable.<br />
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But getting back to the biotechnology. Maybe in part deux we will see the humans come back with biotechnology weapons. Perhaps they will assemble an army of Avatars. No doubt.<br />
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No doubt because biotechnology is perhaps the most disruptive technology towards Life. Even without malicious intentions biotechnology is capable of destroying Life totally and utterly. Imagine a virus that can destroy all Life forms. Or a bio-engineered mutation that overwhelms the naturally existing species.<br />
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And the Avatars are just such a bio-engineered mutation. What will their offspring be like? Could they come to dominate the native population? Stay tuned for the next episode.<br />
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<b>Real world vs. virtual world</b><br />
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One thing that struck me as I learned about the process of creating the movie, was that the process was not unlike the way that Jake entered into Pandora through his Avatar.<br />
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Cameron had to create a whole virtual world inside his computers in order to make the movie. He created something similar to a computer game. And inside that game he directed the action.<br />
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What's really interesting is that the way he controlled the action was through the actors. The actors movements were captured and transferred into the virtual reality of the computer to bring to life their virtual characters. Sound familiar? Yes it's similar to the way that Jake controls his Avatar.<br />
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In the process Cameron blurs the line between the real and the virtual. Cameron constantly mixes in elements of the real and the virtual. Even though Jake Sully's Avatar actually exists in the reality of Pandora, for Jake it might as well only exist in a virtual world.<br />
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I actually think that Cameron would have originally liked to make that movie where the Avatar is alive in a virtual world, but of course that movie was already made a few years back and called The Matrix.<br />
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There is a difference in the way that the Avatar is controlled which is that it is directly through the mind. Which give us an idea that Cameron is suggesting that eventually he would like to be able to control his virtual movie actors directly through his director's mind. For now he has to beat and cajole his actors to do the things that he envisions and then watch the results appear on a computer monitor.<br />
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And I have no doubt that Cameron as a director is a bastard. He would need to be to bend everyone to his will. Avatar was a huge project - not unlike a military campaign - and Cameron was the General in charge.<br />
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In the case of the movie Avatar, the making of the movie is as much a part of the story as what we see onscreen. And again, the reality and virtual reality are intertwined. Watch this documentary on the making of the film and I'm sure you'll get the idea of what I'm talking about.<br />
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<b>Jake as Messiah</b><br />
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Is Jake Sully Jesus? Has Cameron created a sort of Na'vi second coming story? Yes. Isn't it obvious? But then I suppose all Hero stories could be compared in some way to the story of Jesus. Still let's look at some of the parallels.<br />
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We can start with the name. Both start with a 'J'. Not a coincidence in my book. And the full name Jake Sully contains all the letters in Jesus. Again, not a coincidence. Remember how Neytiri says his name, "Jake Sully". If I remember correctly she pronounces the 'u' more like 'oo' than 'uh', in the same way that we pronounce Jesus.<br />
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But that is trivial stuff. Let's look at the story for more clues.<br />
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Jake has an immaculate conception - or at least his Avatar does. He is 'born' in an artificial womb.<br />
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Jake's mother is a virgin. That is if you consider Dr. Grace Augustine - the Sigourney Weaver character - to be his mother. She is childless and while maybe not technically a virgin, she at least does not conceive Jake - but at the same time she does bring Jake to life through the Avatar.<br />
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Speaking of names, how about Dr. Grace Augustine. Grace is obvious. And Augustine alludes to <a href="http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02084a.htm">St. Augustine</a> - one of the <a href="http://catholicism.about.com/od/history/a/Doctors_Church.htm">Doctors of the Catholic Church</a>. In fact St. Augustine is accredited with clarifying the principle of <i><a href="http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1503.htm">grace</a></i> in Christian religion. It is through Christ's sacrifice of his life that souls are redeemed, and not through the good works of man. And it is through Dr. Grace Augustine's sacrifice of her life that the planet Pandora is ultimately saved.<br />
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And then I suppose there is the question of whether the Na'vi have committed the original sin of Adam and Eve. Everything about their innocent way of life implies that they have not. They even live in a Paradise. (I suppose that Cameron was tempted to have them running about naked, but was hampered by the Motion Pictures rating system. But notice that he only provides them with the absolute minimal amount of clothing.) Like Adam and Eve, the Na'vi are innocent and unashamed of their nakedness - in the same way that children are innocent. There is even a Tree of Souls which is reminiscent of the Tree of Life in Genesis. What more proof do you need that Pandora is intended to represent Eden?<br />
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And going back to Jake, notice that his last name is Sully. This sounds like a shortened version of Sullivan - a typical Irish Catholic last name. But note also that 'sullied' refers to something that has lost its purity. And in the beginning of the story Sully is just that. But through 'grace' (and no action of his own), he is able to regain his purity in a new body.<br />
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Jake gets lost on his first trip into the jungles of Pandora much as Jesus is lost on his first trip to Jerusalem. Jake ends up at the Hometree just as the young Jesus ends up at the Temple. Remember that even though Jake is an adult, his Avatar is only days old. So he could be considered to be a child at this point in the story.<br />
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Jake goes through a series of rituals in order to be accepted into Na'vi society. Perhaps these are similar to the sacraments of the Catholic Church.<br />
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Contemplating more on the name Jake, it is clear that this is a shortened form of Jacob. In the Bible, Jacob is famous for his dream of a ladder that goes from Earth to Heaven. Jake also has a dream. In his dream he is flying - perhaps flying up into Heaven. Pandora then is Heaven or Paradise. In Jacob's dream he sees Angel's ascending and descending the ladder, while on Pandora the Na'vi fly through the air like Angels on the backs of their Banshees.<br />
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Not only that, but in the Bible Jacob had a twin brother - just like Jake Sully. And also in the Bible, Jacob takes the place of his brother Esau in the sense that he becomes the family heir. Finally after wrestling with an Angel, Jacob becomes Israel and becomes the father of the Hebrew people. Perhaps this Angel is represented in the movie Avatar by the Toruk - the enormous flying creature that Jake 'wrestles' in order to tame it.<br />
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Jake dies and then is resurrected. This happens towards the end of the movie - before the final battle. When the evil Colonel pulls the plug on Jake he 'dies' in the arms of Neytiri. Later Jake manages to escape and get back into his Avatar thus completing the resurrection.<br />
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The final battle scene is reminiscent of a Book of Revelations style Apocalypse where Good triumphs over Evil. I'm no expert on Revelations and I'm not about to go and research this, but I think the parallel fits in this case.<br />
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And at the very end of the tale, Jake "ascends into heaven" when he gives up his earthly body and fully adopts the body of his 'half human - half Na'vi' Avatar body. There he becomes a King just as Christ would be in Heaven.<br />
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Isn't it odd that Cameron would insert so much Christian symbology into his story? I assume that Cameron was raised as a Christian. (I couldn't find any information online about his early religious experience, but it is a safe bet.) It's interesting to me that in a story so infused with elements of Pantheism, that there are also elements of Christianity. No doubt that Cameron is hearkening back to his upbringing.<br />
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And if Jake is Jesus, what does that make Cameron?<br />
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<b>The final verdict</b><br />
<br />
There are many other aspects of the movie that I could go into, but these have been covered very well in other places. With regard to the 'political' aspects of the story, some have suggested that Avatar is a sort of full-length 3D <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rorschach_test">Rorschach test</a>. I have to agree.<br />
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But where do I think this movie sits in the history of movie making? I think this is a ground breaking movie for its use of virtual characters and its ability to incorporate them into a whole world created on film - or perhaps more appropriately, inside a supercomputer.<br />
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[By the way, I've searched online and haven't been able to find any information on what kind of computer hardware the Avatar movie was made on. If anyone comes across this information, please leave a comment. Curiously enough, no one seems to even be asking the question.]<br />
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The movie has been described as "this generation's Star Wars". I am completely in agreement with that. <a href="http://draft.blogger.com/"><span id="goog_1262793091635"></span>Star Wars<span id="goog_1262793091636"></span></a> was released in 1977 - about 30 years ago. At the time it was a tremendous breakthrough in Sci-Fi on film. But if you watch it today, it will seem rather lame.<br />
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What I wonder is, how we will perceive Avatar in ten, twenty or thirty years. My impression is that this sort of virtual actor technology will evolve so quickly, that Avatar will seem rather technologically primitive in ten to twenty years.<br />
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And then the only thing left to prop up the film will be the story, the characters and the fictional world of Pandora where the story takes place. My feeling is that without multiple sequels, there is not enough of a story to achieve a prominent place in 21st century culture.<br />
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An example of a movie that was able to achieve cultural status almost immediately was The Matrix. But I don't think that Avatar has any elements in its story that are unique enough to grab a hold of the cultural consciousness in that way. Perhaps the strongest element is the world of Pandora itself. But to me there is no one characteristic of Pandora that is strong enough to stand out.<br />
<br />
But with two or more sequels, that could change. I would tend to expect a trilogy, which would require two sequels. And while expectations were not that high for Avatar, expectations will be through the roof for any sequels. Which means of course that if expectations are not met, then people will be disappointed. But if anyone can meet and even exceed expectations, it is James Cameron. After all he was the one that brought us the original Terminator, and then blew the lid off with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminator_2:_Judgment_Day">Terminator 2</a> - or simply T2.<br />
<br />
<b>Predictions for Avatar 2 - or simply A2</b><br />
<br />
Call these predictions or mere speculations. Here is what I am expecting from A2.<br />
<br />
Did you notice there were no Na'vi children on Pandora? This implies to me that the Na'vi children take on a different form and then go through a metamorphosis before becoming adults. I am guessing that they start off life as some sort of sea creature like a fish. Or perhaps more like a tadpole which loses its tail and grows limbs to become a frog.<br />
<br />
At any rate it will be interesting to see what the child of Jake and Neytiri looks like. Don't forget that they had some sort of sexual experience and presumably Neytiri is now pregnant with Jake's child. And also don't forget that Jake's DNA is composed of a combination of Human and Na'vi DNA.<br />
<br />
Which also brings up an interesting subject. The fact that Na'vi have DNA means that they are closely related to life on Earth somehow. That opens up a possible subject for a future sequel, but I wouldn't expect this to be explored very far in A2. This seems like a subject for the concluding chapter in A3.<br />
<br />
One more thought about the offspring of Jake and Neytiri. Don't be too surprised if Neytiri lays an egg instead of giving live birth. Again I would expect the birth to happen underwater. Of course Cameron would want an excuse to explore an underwater world where he could practice his craft of creating underwater animation. And also don't be too surprised if Neytiri gives birth to a litter of children instead of just one child. Remember that Jake is Jacob the father of the Hebrew tribes. Which means that each of his children will end up heading up a separate tribe. Or maybe Neytiri will give birth to twins, after all we know that Jake was a twin.<br />
<br />
Expect to see Dr. Grace Augustine appear as some sort of spirit. Remember that Jake was able to hear the ancestors voices through the Tree of Voices. And even though that tree was destroyed, I would expect that there will be an alternate way to communicate with the souls of the dead. And what about Jake's twin deceased brother - will Jake find a way to communicate with his soul as well?<br />
<br />
And I mentioned earlier that I expect that the Humans will be back to attack - this time as an army of Avatars. That will give them the agility that they lacked in their first battle with the Na'vi. They might also create their own animals for flying and riding. And of course they won't just be Na'vi style Avatars, but will be super versions of those with enhanced senses. But even though the Humans may out power the Na'vi, the Na'vi will always have the home field advantage.<br />
<br />
Like any great Hero, Jake will have to wrestle with his own <a href="http://catholic-church.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_first_deadly_sin_pride">Pride</a> or <a href="http://www.safnet.com/literae/html/hero.html">Hubris</a> as he leads the Na'vi people. Pride is in many ways the original sin that leads to the fall from Grace. Indeed, it is considered to be the first and most serious of the Seven Deadly Sins. Will Jake's Pride cause the Na'vi to be ejected from their Pandoran Paradise?<br />
<br />
There are many mysteries to be explored in the lush Pandoran world that Cameron has created. This provides ample material for a sequel. The most interesting for me are the seeds of the Tree of Souls. They have a jelly fish like appearance. This is in keeping with a sort of underwater theme in Pandora. Given that they are seeds, they must give birth some sort of new Life at some point. But don't just assume that a new Tree of Souls will emerge directly from the seeds. Take a look at this <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Id53jmsdxfQ">video of the lifecycle of a jellyfish</a> to see just how complicated a reproductive cycle can be even in our Earth bound real life world. Those who ridicule the nerve endings emerging from the pony tail of the Na'vi have obviously not spent much time appreciating the diversity of Life on Earth.<br />
<br />
Cameron's own imagination seems to have been fired up by his explorations of the Deep Ocean as part of his making of Titanic. It was Mark Twain who said that "Truth is stranger than fiction". The same could be said of Life. No matter what marvelous creations Cameron can create on the movie screen, it will never be as marvelous and mysterious as the creation of Life that exists right before our very eyes.<br />
<br />
To James Cameron: If you need anyone to consult on the script for A2, I'm available.<br />
<br />
[UPDATE - Jan 8 2010: I continue doing some editing to correct minor mistakes and to add bits of material. This post is sort of a work in progress. I may add some follow up posts. We'll see.]<br />
<br />
<b>My other movie reviews</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/06/spirit-of-pixars-up.html">The Spirit of Pixar’s UP</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2008/07/walle-post-fascist-utopia.html">WALL•E: A post-Fascist Utopia</a></li>
</ul><b>Other related posts</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/chief-sitting-bull-and-ghost-dancers.html">Chief Sitting Bull and the Ghost Dancers</a></li>
</ul>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-64996285468352347912009-12-03T18:46:00.002-05:002009-12-03T20:05:53.233-05:00An open letter to Jeremy Scahill regarding his appearance on the Rachel Maddow Show tonightHi Jeremy,<br />
<br />
I just got your tweet saying that you will be going on the Rachel Maddow show tonight. So here's some feedback from me to you to prepare you for the interview - for what it's worth.<br />
<br />
First you should carefully review Maddow's show in response to Obama's Afghanistan troop announcement. Here it is for easy reference.<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
Here's what I noticed about her views. First off, I think this is an excellent analysis. She is dead on with the point that President Obama has adopted the Bush Doctrine. And she is also correct to point out the role of the CIA. But what she doesn't seem to fully understand is the role of JSOC and Blackwater which you have pointed out in your article.<br />
<br />
So here are some talking points for your interview on tonight's Rachel Maddow show.<br />
<br />
<b>JSOC and Blackwater</b><br />
<br />
The part that you need to emphasize to her is the role of JSOC. And how that is used to get around congressional oversight. And then of course the connection between JSOC and Blackwater which is your area of special expertise.<br />
<br />
You can also point out to her the connection between your writing and the revelations of Seymour Hersh about Cheney's "secret assassination wing". And then there are the recent revelations about the "black" prison at Bagram which is also run by JSOC - probably in association with the CIA.<br />
<br />
<b>General McChrystal</b><br />
<br />
You should also make clear that General McChrystal was the commander of JSOC and so he is deeply involved in all of these covert operations - including the ones that involve Blackwater. JSOC people were punished for their roles in Abu Ghraib, yet McChrystal was promoted. It is very troubling that McChrystal was promoted to a full general by President Obama and put in charge of Afghanistan. McChrystal also has strong ties to Cheney and Rumsfeld.<br />
<br />
<b>Pakistan</b><br />
<br />
Finally, there is a nuanced point about Pakistan. There is a growing tendency to turn Pakistan into a new enemy of the United States. This seems to be following the pattern that all Muslim nations are alleged to be enemies of the US. This is a dangerous trap to fall into, and I see a little bit of that in Rachel's commentary.<br />
<br />
It's clear that Israel, AIPAC and the neo-cons had a plan to turn the US against Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran. It seems that it is now Pakistan's turn. You've already uncovered some covert operations in Pakistan. It's clear that they are covert because no one in the State Dept. will comment on them. It is not to the advantage of the US to use black ops to destabilize Pakistan.<br />
<br />
<b>Conclusion</b><br />
<br />
That's it. Easy, right? I'm glad it's you and not me. It's a lot of material to cover, but Rachel is a good person and I think she will give you a chance to make your point. If she tries to steer you off course and keeps emphasizing the CIA, you have to set her straight. Because that is the cover story that Blackwater and Erik Prick (nee Prince) are trying to use to deflect attention from the JSOC-Blackwater connection.<br />
<br />
Good luck!<br />
Frank Hope<br />
<br />
<b>[UPDATE: Dec 3 8 PM]</b><br />
<br />
I just got some information from Tofu Charlie about <b>Inter-risk in Pakistan</b>. Here are his posts on the subject.<br />
<br />
<ul><li><a href="http://catastrophist.wordpress.com/2009/12/03/pakistan-new-arrests-in-inter-risk-dyncorp-us-state-dept-scandal/">Pakistan: New Arrests in Inter-Risk / DynCorp / US State Dept Scandal…</a></li>
<li><a href="http://catastrophist.wordpress.com/2009/10/31/blackwater-kestral-logistics-arms-warehouse-in-pakistan-the-word-is-out/">Pakistan: Ali Zaidi and Inter-Risk; More US Diplomats “Arrested”; Kestral’s “Blackwater Arms Warehouse” in Islamabad…</a></li>
</ul><br />
Here is an article from The Nation (Pakistani newspaper) about Inter-risk<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/print/Politics/02-Dec-2009/PS-to-State-Minister-of-Int-in-FIA-custody">PS to State Minister of Int in FIA custody</a><br />
<br />
<blockquote>Now it would appear that these activities may be revived again and expanded to include the creation of a covert rapid intervention security force under DynCorp made up of retired Pakistani Special Services commandos. The US embassy is also seeking the release of the arrested persons of DynCorp and those linked to it, probably with the intent of having them quietly leave the country. For the security apparatus of the country, it is the importing into the country of a cache of sophisticated banned weapons without the knowledge of the country’s security officials.</blockquote><br />
Judging from this and the information Tofu Charlie provides, this appears to be related to what Seymour Hersh was saying about a secret US plan for Pakistani nukes.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/11/16/091116fa_fact_hersh?currentPage=all">In an unstable Pakistan, can nuclear warheads be kept safe?</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Related posts</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/blackwaters-aka-xe-exposed-by-scahill.html">Blackwater (aka Xe) exposed by Scahill... again!</a> </li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/all-news-except-blackwater.html">"All the news..." - except Blackwater</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/blackwater-and-jsoc-in-pakistan-going.html">Blackwater and JSOC in Pakistan going viral - then squashed</a></li>
</ul>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-85940214108240636842009-12-02T13:27:00.002-05:002009-12-02T14:36:10.460-05:00Live response to Obama's Afghanistan speech[Here are my comments as they went out live on <a href="http://maxkeiser.com/">MaxKeiser.com</a>. Thanks to Stacy and Max for being so tolerant. You can go to <a href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54950">this link</a> on their site and also see the comments from other users live as Obama was speaking. I wasn't expecting to do a minute by minute update live on the MaxKeiser site, but once I got started I just couldn't pullout. Obama apparently has the same problem in Afghanistan. I've also interspersed <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-address-nation-way-forward-afghanistan-and-pakistan">the text from Obama's speech</a> more or less in sync with my comments.]<br />
<br />
<object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oZLVqhsLgIw&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oZLVqhsLgIw&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Official White House video from their YouTube channel</span></i><br />
</div><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54950" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:01 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">I’m back on and off. Obama’s getting ready to talk. I’m watching it on a live stream from CNN.<br />
</div></div><span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54951" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:02 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">They just announced him.<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54953" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:06 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Prof. Obama is giving a history lesson. NATO which was set up to defend against Russia was being used in a way that had never been envisioned. Big mistake.<br />
</div></div>[Remarks by the President in Address to the Nation on the Way Forward in Afghanistan and Pakistan<br />
Eisenhower Hall Theatre, United States Military Academy at West Point, West Point, New York]<br />
<br />
8:01 P.M. EST<br />
<br />
THE PRESIDENT: Good evening. To the United States Corps of Cadets, to the men and women of our Armed Services, and to my fellow Americans: I want to speak to you tonight about our effort in Afghanistan -- the nature of our commitment there, the scope of our interests, and the strategy that my administration will pursue to bring this war to a successful conclusion. It's an extraordinary honor for me to do so here at West Point -- where so many men and women have prepared to stand up for our security, and to represent what is finest about our country.<br />
<br />
To address these important issues, <b>it's important to recall why America and our allies were compelled to fight a war in Afghanistan in the first place</b>. We did not ask for this fight. On September 11, 2001, 19 men hijacked four airplanes and used them to murder nearly 3,000 people. They struck at our military and economic nerve centers. They took the lives of innocent men, women, and children without regard to their faith or race or station. Were it not for the heroic actions of passengers onboard one of those flights, they could have also struck at one of the great symbols of our democracy in Washington, and killed many more.<br />
<br />
As we know, these men belonged to al Qaeda -- a group of extremists who have distorted and defiled Islam, one of the world’s great religions, to justify the slaughter of innocents. Al Qaeda’s base of operations was in Afghanistan, where they were harbored by the Taliban -- a ruthless, repressive and radical movement that seized control of that country after it was ravaged by years of Soviet occupation and civil war, and after the attention of America and our friends had turned elsewhere.<br />
<br />
Just days after 9/11, Congress authorized the use of force against al Qaeda and those who harbored them -- an authorization that continues to this day. The vote in the Senate was 98 to nothing. The vote in the House was 420 to 1. <b>For the first time in its history, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization invoked Article 5 -- the commitment that says an attack on one member nation is an attack on all.</b> And the United Nations Security Council endorsed the use of all necessary steps to respond to the 9/11 attacks. America, our allies and the world were acting as one to destroy al Qaeda’s terrorist network and to protect our common security.<br />
<br />
Under the banner of this domestic unity and international legitimacy -- and only after the Taliban refused to turn over Osama bin Laden -- we sent our troops into Afghanistan. Within a matter of months, al Qaeda was scattered and many of its operatives were killed. The Taliban was driven from power and pushed back on its heels. A place that had known decades of fear now had reason to hope. At a conference convened by the U.N., a provisional government was established under President Hamid Karzai. And an International Security Assistance Force was established to help bring a lasting peace to a war-torn country.<br />
<br />
Then, in early 2003, the decision was made to wage a second war, in Iraq. The wrenching debate over the Iraq war is well-known and need not be repeated here. It's enough to say that for the next six years, the Iraq war drew the dominant share of our troops, our resources, our diplomacy, and our national attention -- and that the decision to go into Iraq caused substantial rifts between America and much of the world.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54954" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:07 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">All troops gone from Iraq by end of 2011. Yeah right. What are all the caveats that go with that. Huge embassy. Military bases.<br />
</div></div>Today, after extraordinary costs, we are bringing the Iraq war to a responsible end. <b>We will remove our combat brigades from Iraq by the end of next summer, and all of our troops by the end of 2011.</b> That we are doing so is a testament to the character of the men and women in uniform. (Applause.) Thanks to their courage, grit and perseverance, we have given Iraqis a chance to shape their future, and we are successfully leaving Iraq to its people.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54955" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:08 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Tal-eee-ban. Is that like when Kennedy would say Cu-bahr.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>But while we've achieved hard-earned milestones in Iraq, the situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated. After escaping across the border into Pakistan in 2001 and 2002, al Qaeda’s leadership established a safe haven there. Although a legitimate government was elected by the Afghan people, it's been hampered by corruption, the drug trade, an under-developed economy, and insufficient security forces.<br />
<br />
Over the last several years, <b>the Taliban has maintained common cause with al Qaeda</b>, as they both seek an overthrow of the Afghan government. Gradually, the Taliban has begun to control additional swaths of territory in Afghanistan, while engaging in increasingly brazen and devastating attacks of terrorism against the Pakistani people.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54957" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:09 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Hear comes the sales pitch for Afghanistan. But first a progress report. Shouldn’t there be a Powerpoint presentation to go with the speech?<br />
</div></div>Now, throughout this period, our troop levels in Afghanistan remained a fraction of what they were in Iraq. <b>When I took office</b>, we had just over 32,000 Americans serving in Afghanistan, compared to 160,000 in Iraq at the peak of the war. Commanders in Afghanistan repeatedly asked for support to deal with the reemergence of the Taliban, but these reinforcements did not arrive. And that's why, shortly after taking office, I approved a longstanding request for more troops. After consultations with our allies, I then announced a strategy recognizing the fundamental connection between our war effort in Afghanistan and the extremist safe havens in Pakistan. I set a goal that was narrowly defined as disrupting, dismantling, and defeating al Qaeda and its extremist allies, and pledged to better coordinate our military and civilian efforts.<br />
<br />
<b>Since then, we've made progress</b> on some important objectives. High-ranking al Qaeda and Taliban leaders have been killed, and we've stepped up the pressure on al Qaeda worldwide. In Pakistan, that nation's army has gone on its largest offensive in years. In Afghanistan, we and our allies prevented the Taliban from stopping a presidential election, and -- although it was marred by fraud -- that election produced a government that is consistent with Afghanistan's laws and constitution.<br />
<br />
Yet huge challenges remain. Afghanistan is not lost, but for several years it has moved backwards. There's no imminent threat of the government being overthrown, but the Taliban has gained momentum. Al Qaeda has not reemerged in Afghanistan in the same numbers as before 9/11, but they retain their safe havens along the border. And our forces lack the full support they need to effectively train and partner with Afghan security forces and better secure the population. Our new commander in Afghanistan -- General McChrystal -- has reported that the security situation is more serious than he anticipated. In short: The status quo is not sustainable.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54958" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:11 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Here comes a personal note to the cadets. Touching.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div><b>As cadets, you volunteered for service during this time of danger.</b> Some of you fought in Afghanistan. Some of you will deploy there. As your Commander-in-Chief, I owe you a mission that is clearly defined, and worthy of your service. And that's why, after the Afghan voting was completed, I insisted on a thorough review of our strategy. Now, let me be clear: There has never been an option before me that called for troop deployments before 2010, so there has been no delay or denial of resources necessary for the conduct of the war during this review period. Instead, the review has allowed me to ask the hard questions, and to explore all the different options, along with my national security team, our military and civilian leadership in Afghanistan, and our key partners. And given the stakes involved, I owed the American people -- and our troops -- no less.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54959" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:13 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">We did due diligence and reviewed the situation.<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">30,000 troops going in. Coming home after 18 months.<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Check back with me in 18 months. Guantanamo still isn’t closed in a year. But in 1-1/2 years Afghanistan will be all taken care of. Opium, corruption – no problem.<br />
</div></div><b>This review is now complete.</b> And as Commander-in-Chief,<b> I have determined that it is in our vital national interest to send an additional 30,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan. After 18 months, our troops will begin to come home.</b> These are the resources that we need to seize the initiative, while building the Afghan capacity that can allow for a responsible transition of our forces out of Afghanistan.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54960" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:14 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Using the deceased troops as a cover – shameless.<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div>I do not make this decision lightly. I opposed the war in Iraq precisely because I believe that we must exercise restraint in the use of military force, and always consider the long-term consequences of our actions. We have been at war now for eight years, at enormous cost in lives and resources. Years of debate over Iraq and terrorism have left our unity on national security issues in tatters, and created a highly polarized and partisan backdrop for this effort. And having just experienced the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, the American people are understandably focused on rebuilding our economy and putting people to work here at home.<br />
<br />
<b>Most of all, I know that this decision asks even more of you -- a military that, along with your families, has already borne the heaviest of all burdens.</b> As President, I have signed a letter of condolence to the family of each American who gives their life in these wars. I have read the letters from the parents and spouses of those who deployed. I visited our courageous wounded warriors at Walter Reed. I've traveled to Dover to meet the flag-draped caskets of 18 Americans returning home to their final resting place. I see firsthand the terrible wages of war. If I did not think that the security of the United States and the safety of the American people were at stake in Afghanistan, I would gladly order every single one of our troops home tomorrow.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54962" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:14 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">9/11 is the reason. What about Saudi Arabia?<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div><br />
<br />
So, no, I do not make this decision lightly. I make this decision because I am convinced that our security is at stake in Afghanistan and Pakistan. This is the epicenter of violent extremism practiced by al Qaeda. <b>It is from here that we were attacked on 9/11, and it is from here that new attacks are being plotted as I speak.</b> This is no idle danger; no hypothetical threat. In the last few months alone, we have apprehended extremists within our borders who were sent here from the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan to commit new acts of terror. And this danger will only grow if the region slides backwards, and al Qaeda can operate with impunity. We must keep the pressure on al Qaeda, and to do that, we must increase the stability and capacity of our partners in the region.<br />
<br />
Of course, this burden is not ours alone to bear. This is not just America's war. Since 9/11, al Qaeda’s safe havens have been the source of attacks against London and Amman and Bali. The people and governments of both Afghanistan and Pakistan are endangered. And the stakes are even higher within a nuclear-armed Pakistan, because we know that al Qaeda and other extremists seek nuclear weapons, and we have every reason to believe that they would use them.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54964" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:15 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">We have allies. Really? 500 additional British troops and 30,000 more American troops.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>These facts compel us <b>to act along with our friends and allies.</b> Our overarching goal remains the same: to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and to prevent its capacity to threaten America and our allies in the future.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54965" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:16 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Al Qaeda conflated with Taliban. No mention of Osama Bin Boogeyman yet.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>To meet that goal, we will pursue the following objectives within Afghanistan. <b>We must deny al Qaeda a safe haven. We must reverse the Taliban's momentum</b> and deny it the ability to overthrow the government. And we must strengthen the capacity of Afghanistan's security forces and government so that they can take lead responsibility for Afghanistan's future.<br />
<br />
We will meet these objectives in three ways. First, we will pursue a military strategy that will break the Taliban's momentum and increase Afghanistan's capacity over the next 18 months.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54969" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:17 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Afghan’s will transfer responsibility. Just like with Vietnam. Yeah, that really worked. Helicopters to the embassy.<br />
</div></div>The 30,000 additional troops that I'm announcing tonight will deploy in the first part of 2010 -- the fastest possible pace -- so that they can target the insurgency and secure key population centers. They'll increase our ability to train competent Afghan security forces, and to partner with them so that more Afghans can get into the fight. And they will help create the conditions for the United States to <b>transfer responsibility to the Afghans</b>.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54970" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:18 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">this is a great fairy tale. Just like Brother’s Grimm. And they lived happily ever after.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>Because this is an international effort, I've asked that our commitment be joined by contributions from our allies. Some have already provided additional troops, and we're confident that there will be further contributions in the days and weeks ahead. Our friends have fought and bled and died alongside us in Afghanistan. <b>And now, we must come together to end this war successfully.</b> For what's at stake is not simply a test of NATO's credibility -- what's at stake is the security of our allies, and the common security of the world.<br />
<br />
But taken together, these additional American and international troops will allow us to accelerate handing over responsibility to Afghan forces, and allow us to begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011. Just as we have done in Iraq, we will execute this transition responsibly, taking into account conditions on the ground. We'll continue to advise and assist Afghanistan's security forces to ensure that they can succeed over the long haul. But it will be clear to the Afghan government -- and, more importantly, to the Afghan people -- that they will ultimately be responsible for their own country.<br />
<br />
Second, we will work with our partners, the United Nations, and the Afghan people to pursue a more effective civilian strategy, so that the government can take advantage of improved security.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54973" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:18 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Afghan government not getting blank check. That will go to Halliburton and Blackwater instead.<br />
</div></div>This effort must be based on performance. <b>The days of providing a blank check are over.</b> President Karzai's inauguration speech sent the right message about moving in a new direction. And going forward, we will be clear about what we expect from those who receive our assistance. We'll support Afghan ministries, governors, and local leaders that combat corruption and deliver for the people. We expect those who are ineffective or corrupt to be held accountable. And we will also focus our assistance in areas -- such as agriculture -- that can make an immediate impact in the lives of the Afghan people.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54974" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:19 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">We’re doing it all for the poor Afghan people. We are not occupying. Repeat. Not occupying. Not occupying. Got it?<br />
</div></div>The people of Afghanistan have endured violence for decades. They've been <b>confronted with occupation -- by the Soviet Union, and then by foreign al Qaeda fighters</b> who used Afghan land for their own purposes. So tonight, I want the Afghan people to understand -- America seeks an end to this era of war and suffering. <b>We have no interest in occupying your country.</b> We will support efforts by the Afghan government to open the door to those Taliban who abandon violence and respect the human rights of their fellow citizens. And we will seek a partnership with Afghanistan grounded in mutual respect -- to isolate those who destroy; to strengthen those who build; to hasten the day when our troops will leave; and to forge a lasting friendship in which <b>America is your partner, and never your patron</b>.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54975" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:20 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Now it’s Pakistan turn to get screwed. Cambodia redux?<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>Third, we will act with the full recognition that our success in <b>Afghanistan is inextricably linked to our partnership with Pakistan.</b><br />
<br />
We're in Afghanistan to prevent a cancer from once again spreading through that country. But this same cancer has also taken root in the border region of Pakistan. That's why we need a strategy that works on both sides of the border.<br />
<br />
In the past, there have been those in Pakistan who've argued that the struggle against extremism is not their fight, and that Pakistan is better off doing little or seeking accommodation with those who use violence. But in recent years, as innocents have been killed from Karachi to Islamabad, it has become clear that it is the Pakistani people who are the most endangered by extremism. Public opinion has turned. The Pakistani army has waged an offensive in Swat and South Waziristan. And there is no doubt that the United States and Pakistan share a common enemy.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54978" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:21 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Where’s Henry Kissinger when you need him? Hillary just pissed off everybody in Pakistan.<br />
</div></div>In the past, we too often defined our relationship with Pakistan narrowly. Those days are over. Moving forward, <b>we are committed to a partnership with Pakistan</b> that is built on a foundation of mutual interest, mutual respect, and mutual trust.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54979" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:21 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Those nasty terrrrrist!!!!<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div><br />
<br />
We will strengthen Pakistan’s capacity to target those groups that threaten our countries, and have made it clear that <b>we cannot tolerate a safe haven for terrorists</b> whose location is known and whose intentions are clear.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-6/#comment-54981" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:22 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Pakistan will be unleashed – more like destroyed.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>America is also providing substantial resources to support Pakistan’s democracy and development. We are the largest international supporter for those Pakistanis displaced by the fighting. And going forward, the Pakistan people must know America will remain a strong supporter of Pakistan’s security and prosperity long after the guns have fallen silent, so that <b>the great potential of its people can be unleashed.</b><br />
<br />
These are the three core elements of our strategy: a military effort to create the conditions for a transition; a civilian surge that reinforces positive action; and an effective partnership with Pakistan.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-54986" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:23 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Not Vietnam! Repeat. Not Vietnam! 40 partners. Really?<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>I recognize there are a range of concerns about our approach. So let me briefly address a few of the more prominent arguments that I've heard, and which I take very seriously.<br />
<br />
First, there are those who suggest that Afghanistan is another Vietnam. They argue that it cannot be stabilized, and we're better off cutting our losses and rapidly withdrawing. I believe this argument depends on a false reading of history. <b>Unlike Vietnam</b>, we are joined by <b>a broad coalition of 43 nations</b> that recognizes the legitimacy of our action. <b>Unlike Vietnam</b>, we are not facing a broad-based popular insurgency. And most importantly, <b>unlike Vietnam</b>, the American people were viciously attacked from Afghanistan, and remain a target for those same extremists who are plotting along its border. To abandon this area now -- and to rely only on efforts against al Qaeda from a distance -- would significantly hamper our ability to keep the pressure on al Qaeda, and create an unacceptable risk of additional attacks on our homeland and our allies.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-54987" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:24 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">We can’t pull out. Cannot pull out. OOOOH Baby.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>Second, there are those who acknowledge that <b>we can't leave Afghanistan</b> in its current state, but suggest that we go forward with the troops that we already have. But this would simply maintain a status quo in which we muddle through, and permit a slow deterioration of conditions there. It would ultimately prove more costly and prolong our stay in Afghanistan, because we would never be able to generate the conditions needed to train Afghan security forces and give them the space to take over.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-54990" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:25 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">OUR interests. What are our interests? Hmmmm. Oil. Pipelines. Just a place to spend military money.<br />
</div></div>Finally, there are those who oppose identifying a time frame for our transition to Afghan responsibility. Indeed, some call for a more dramatic and open-ended escalation of our war effort -- one that would commit us to a nation-building project of up to a decade. I reject this course because it sets goals that are beyond what can be achieved at a reasonable cost, and <b>what we need to achieve to secure our interests</b>. Furthermore, the absence of a time frame for transition would deny us any sense of urgency in working with the Afghan government. It must be clear that Afghans will have to take responsibility for their security, and that America has no interest in fighting an endless war in Afghanistan.<br />
<br />
As President, I refuse to set goals that go beyond our responsibility, our means, or <b>our interests</b>. And I must weigh all of the challenges that our nation faces. I don't have the luxury of committing to just one. Indeed, I'm mindful of the words of President Eisenhower, who -- in discussing our national security -- said, "Each proposal must be weighed in the light of a broader consideration: the need to maintain balance in and among national programs."<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-54991" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:26 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Our economy. This should be good.<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div><br />
<br />
Over the past several years, we have lost that balance. We've failed to appreciate the connection between <b>our national security and our economy</b>. In the wake of an economic crisis, too many of our neighbors and friends are out of work and struggle to pay the bills. Too many Americans are worried about the future facing our children. Meanwhile, competition within the global economy has grown more fierce. So we can't simply afford to ignore the price of these wars.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-54994" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:27 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">How are we going to pay for all of this? 30 billion this year alone. Sounds like a low ball estimate. What about all the black ops that are off budget?<br />
</div></div>All told, by the time I took office <b>the cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan approached a trillion dollars</b>. Going forward, I am committed to addressing these costs openly and honestly. Our new approach in Afghanistan is likely to cost us <b>roughly $30 billion</b> for the military this year, and I'll work closely with Congress to address these costs as we work to bring down our deficit.<br />
<br />
But as we end the war in Iraq and transition to Afghan responsibility, we must rebuild our strength here at home. Our prosperity provides a foundation for our power. <b>It [our prosperity] pays for our military.</b> It underwrites our diplomacy. It taps the potential of our people, and allows investment in new industry. And it will allow us to compete in this century as successfully as we did in the last. That's why our troop commitment in Afghanistan cannot be open-ended -- because the nation that I'm most interested in building is our own.<br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-54996" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:28 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Not gonna be easy. We need all of you to sacrifice. Except no draft. No new taxes. Just give me your grandkids.<br />
</div></div>Now, let me be clear: <b>None of this will be easy.</b> The struggle against violent extremism will not be finished quickly, and it extends well beyond Afghanistan and Pakistan. It will be an enduring test of our free society, and our leadership in the world. And unlike the great power conflicts and clear lines of division that defined the 20th century, our effort will involve disorderly regions, failed states, diffuse enemies.<br />
<br />
So as a result, America will have to show our strength in the way that we end wars and prevent conflict -- not just how we wage wars. We'll have to be nimble and precise in our use of military power. Where al Qaeda and its allies attempt to establish a foothold -- whether in Somalia or Yemen or elsewhere -- they must be confronted by growing pressure and strong partnerships.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55000" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:29 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Tools of mass destruction? Nuclear terrrrrists? That was Bush’s WMD line. Didn’t we debunk that.<br />
</div></div>And we can't count on military might alone. We have to invest in our homeland security, because we can't capture or kill every violent extremist abroad. We have to improve and better coordinate our intelligence, so that we stay one step ahead of shadowy networks.<br />
<br />
We will have to <b>take away the tools of mass destruction</b>. And that's why I've made it a central pillar of my foreign policy to <b>secure loose nuclear materials from terrorists</b>, to stop the spread of nuclear weapons, and to pursue the goal of a world without them -- because every nation must understand that true security will never come from an endless race for ever more destructive weapons; true security will come for those who reject them.<br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55001" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:29 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Our Muslim friends. The ones we keep bombing.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>We'll have to use diplomacy, because no one nation can meet the challenges of an interconnected world acting alone. I've spent this year renewing our alliances and forging new partnerships. And we have forged <b>a new beginning between America and the Muslim world</b> -- one that recognizes our mutual interest in breaking a cycle of conflict, and that promises a future in which those who kill innocents are isolated by those who stand up for peace and prosperity and human dignity.<br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55002" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:30 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Guantanamo. Yeah that is who we are baby.<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div><br />
<br />
And finally, we must draw on the strength of our values -- for the challenges that we face may have changed, but the things that we believe in must not. That's why <b>we must promote our values</b> by living them at home -- which is why I have prohibited torture and will close the prison at <b>Guantanamo Bay</b>. And we must make it clear to every man, woman and child around the world who lives under the dark cloud of tyranny that America will speak out on behalf of their human rights, and tend to the light of freedom and justice and opportunity and respect for the dignity of all peoples. <b>That is who we are.</b> That is the source, the moral source, of America’s authority.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55005" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:31 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">New world order. UN, Nato, World Bank.<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div><br />
<br />
Since the days of Franklin Roosevelt, and the service and sacrifice of our grandparents and great-grandparents, our country has borne a special burden in global affairs. We have spilled American blood in many countries on multiple continents. We have spent our revenue to help others rebuild from rubble and develop their own economies. We have joined with others to <b>develop an architecture of institutions -- from the United Nations to NATO to the World Bank</b> -- that provide for the common security and prosperity of human beings.<br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55007" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:32 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">We are not an Empire. Repeat. We are not an Empire.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div>We have not always been thanked for these efforts, and we have at times made mistakes. But more than any other nation, the United States of America has underwritten global security for over six decades -- a time that, for all its problems, has seen walls come down, and markets open, and billions lifted from poverty, unparalleled scientific progress and advancing frontiers of human liberty.<br />
<br />
For <b>unlike the great powers of old, we have not sought world domination</b>. Our union was founded in resistance to oppression. We do not seek to occupy other nations. <b>We will not claim another nation’s resources or target other peoples because their faith or ethnicity is different from ours.</b> What we have fought for -- what we continue to fight for -- is a better future for our children and grandchildren. And we believe that their lives will be better if other peoples’ children and grandchildren can live in freedom and access opportunity. (Applause.) <br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55009" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:32 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Freedom. Freedom. Freeeeeedom.<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div><br />
<br />
As a country, we're not as young -- and perhaps not as innocent -- as we were when Roosevelt was President. Yet <b>we are still heirs to a noble struggle for freedom</b>.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55013" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:33 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">New age? Our people. The ones we just laid off.<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Peace Corps?<br />
</div></div>And now we must summon all of our might and moral suasion to meet <b>the challenges of a new age</b>.<br />
<br />
In the end, our security and leadership does not come solely from the strength of our arms. <b>It derives from our people -- from the workers</b> and businesses who will rebuild our economy; from the entrepreneurs and researchers who will pioneer new industries; from the teachers that will educate our children, and the service of those who work in our communities at home; from the diplomats and <b>Peace Corps volunteers who spread hope abroad</b>;<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55015" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:34 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Of the People, by the People? Lincoln? Gettysburg? Couldn’t the speechwriters do better than that cliche?<br />
</div></div>and from the men and women in uniform who are part of an unbroken line of sacrifice that has made <b>government of the people, by the people, and for the people a reality on this Earth</b>. (Applause.)<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55016" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:35 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">We’re all in this together…..<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Wasn’t that from High School Musical?<br />
</div></div>This vast and diverse citizenry will not always agree on every issue -- nor should we. But I also know that we, as a country, cannot sustain our leadership, nor navigate the momentous challenges of our time, if we allow ourselves to be split asunder by the same rancor and cynicism and partisanship that has in recent times poisoned our national discourse.<br />
<br />
It's easy to forget that when this war began, we were united -- bound together by the fresh memory of a horrific attack, and by the determination to defend our homeland and the values we hold dear. I refuse to accept the notion that we cannot summon that unity again. (Applause.) I believe with every fiber of my being that we -- as <b>Americans -- can still come together behind a common purpose</b>.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55018" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:36 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">In the midst of these storms. Great imagery.<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Not fear. But hope. Mr. Hope has spoken.<br />
</div></div>For our values are not simply words written into parchment -- they are a creed that calls us together, and that has carried us <b>through the darkest of storms</b> as one nation, as one people.<br />
<br />
America -- we are passing through a time of great trial. And the message that we send <b>in the midst of these storms</b> must be clear: that our cause is just, our resolve unwavering.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55020" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:37 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Threw in a little Roosevelt there with the nothing to fear but fear itself type line.<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Hope we can believe in. Now it’s the Marine Hymn. From the shores of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli. We are not an Empire. Repeat. We are not an Empire.<br />
</div></div>We will go forward with the confidence that right makes might, and with the commitment to forge an America that is safer, a world that is more secure, and <b>a future that represents not the deepest of fears but the highest of hopes</b>. (Applause.) <br />
<br />
Thank you. God bless you. May God bless the United States of America. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Thank you. (Applause.)<br />
<br />
END 8:35 P.M. EST<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55023" style="color: #333333; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:38 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">How can you tell when a politician is lying? His lips are moving.<br />
</div><div><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 31px;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
</div></div><span style="font-family: georgia, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<div class="comment-meta" style="float: left; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 4px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 1em; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 252px;"><a class="url vcard fn" href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 1.4em; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Frank Hope</a><br />
<div class="comment-time" style="color: #888888; display: block; font: normal normal normal 1em/normal Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a class="date" href="http://maxkeiser.com/2009/12/01/a-monetary-shtf-jibber-jabber/comment-page-7/#comment-55025" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" title="Permanent Link to this comment">Dec 1, 2009 at 6:39 pm</a><br />
</div><div class="comment_avatar" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><img alt="" class="avatar avatar-48 photo" height="48" src="http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/be025bdecaa9cc42f29579b7191e4995?s=48&d=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gravatar.com%2Favatar%2Fad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536%3Fs%3D48&r=G" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" width="48" /><br />
</div></div><div class="entry" style="font-size: 1.3em; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 256px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 16px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Gotta go now. Sorry.<br />
</div><div><br />
</div></div><br />
<br />
<b>Related posts</b><br />
<div><ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/12/mark-twain-responds-to-obama.html">Mark Twain responds to President Obama on Afghanistan</a></li>
</ul></div>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-25853877337013564232009-12-02T00:20:00.007-05:002009-12-02T01:08:28.951-05:00Mark Twain responds to President Obama on Afghanistan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SxX3joBnRhI/AAAAAAAAAT4/QSeGe2m1bho/s1600/Veteran.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SxX3joBnRhI/AAAAAAAAAT4/QSeGe2m1bho/s400/Veteran.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Twain">I have seen some scoundrels in my day</a>, but none smoother than Mr. Barack Obama - our President. It used to be when it was time to go to war, why we would just fire up the bands and make some big speeches about how our boys were going to whoop their boys and not make any bones about it. And we'd be sure to say that God was on our side, 'cause that made all the mothers feel better.<br />
<br />
But nowadays I see you got this newfangled television thing and the President gets on and he's not talking about blowing them to smithereens. He's talking about how we're doin' it all for their own sakes. Well come to think of it, I heard much the same speech when <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine-American_War">they were sending the boys to the Philippines</a> to kill the natives over there.<br />
<br />
That was back in 1900. They didn't call them "terrrrist" back then, but it's all the same thing. I think they called them insurgents if I remember right. Doesn't really matter much <i>what</i> you call them. It just matters how you treat them.<br />
<br />
Well those Filipinos didn't like being occupied any better than these Taleeban in Afghanistan do. They fought us tooth and nail. My point was that we didn't have any business bein' there in the first place. That's why we started the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Anti-Imperialist_League">American Anti-Imperialist League</a>.<br />
<br />
Now all those politicians on Capitol Hill, well they just hated us. They kept objecting to the name. Said we should change it. Said they weren't imperialists because they weren't <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_United_States_imperialism">trying to create an Empire</a>. Uh-huh we said. But we never changed the name. Because if you can't call a spade a spade, then how are you gonna explain to plain folks just what exactly is going on.<br />
<br />
And I consider myself one of those plain folks. Sure I've been to Paris and London, but I'm still just a <a href="http://etext.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/TwaYank.html">Connecticut Yankee</a>. Always will be. And you can't sweet talk us. No sir. Why the British tried that in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Declaration_of_Independence">1776</a> and we just didn't pay it any heed. Gave 'em a shot full of lead from our muskets is what we did. Guess they could understand that.<br />
<br />
And then there was the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_War_(United_States)">Civil War</a> where so many of our brothers died. What a terrible waste. The generals just couldn't kill off enough of our boys on both sides. Damn bloody mess. And what was the point of it all? Black people were hardly anymore free when it was over than they were before it began. Just killing for the sake of killing, if you ask me.<br />
<br />
If you ask a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_(United_States)">General</a> if he needs more troops, why the answer will always be yes. I've never met a General yet that didn't ask for more troops every chance he got. Gave them more options is what they'd say. Allowed 'em to fight on more fronts simultaneously. Got them all excited.<br />
<br />
That way they could kill off more of our boys - simultaneously. Cause that's what Generals do generally. That's what they get trained to do in that there <a href="http://www.usma.edu/">West Point</a>. Why they take classes in it. Graduate with degrees in it. They learn to count up the acceptable casualties. Not men or boys mind you. Nope. Casualties. As if each one of them didn't have a mother or a wife. Or a daughter or a son.<br />
<br />
And then there are the wounded. Damn nuisance those soldiers. Make a mess of the whole battlefield. And you can't tell the boys to just leave 'em behind because it would ruin the morale. That's what the Generals are taught at West Point. Have to keep up the morale.<br />
<br />
And stay in command. An officer in the field has to maintain the command. You have to maintain discipline. Orders are orders.<br />
<br />
So once you send those troops - those boys - over there, there's no turning back. Once they get shot at, they'll learn real fast to shoot back. And once one of their friends gets wounded or killed, well then the officers won't have to give them orders to kill anymore. More likely they'll have to make sure they don't start killing the women and children too.<br />
<br />
Revenge is something that's part of a man's nature. Nobody needs to be taught that. Whole religions have been created to try to unteach it without much success.<br />
<br />
It doesn't take a West Point graduate to figure out that revenge is the best motivator for a soldier. So the Generals send their troops out there into battle - in harms way. Knowing one or two of them will come back missing an arm or a leg, or paying "the ultimate sacrifice". And after that it's all you can do to keep them from going out there again and again.<br />
<br />
That's how the soldiers are taught who the enemy is. The enemy's not their commanding officer who's putting them through hell, it's that other guy that's shooting at them from the other end of the field. From then on the boys are turned into some kind of brutes. It's kill or be killed.<br />
<br />
And some of them, once they've tasted blood - well they get a liking for it. It becomes like a sport - hunting down their prey. And since we give them superior arms, they have the upper hand. So it's pretty much a turkey shoot once they get the hang of it.<br />
<br />
And then there are the prisoners of war. Sure there are supposed to be rules of war, and codes of conduct. The only real code is the code of silence. You don't reveal the secrets to the outside world. They wouldn't understand anyway. How could they? They weren't there. They don't know what it feels like to see your best friend gunned down in front of your face, or to hold him in your arms as he bleeds to death.<br />
<br />
There's no use trying to tell the story. You just had to be there. Damn it! You had to be there.<br />
<br />
No, there is no noble war. There is no good war. There is just one war. The same one. The one that is fought over and over again. For what? Nobody knows. The generals don't know. "Ours is not to wonder why..."<br />
<br />
War is like a giant infernal machine that once set into motion cannot be stopped. It swallows up our young men. It turns farmlands into battlefields. It gorges itself on the output of our industry. Like some old mangy dog, it remains just as hungry day after day - no matter how much you feed it.<br />
<br />
The private. The corporal. The sergeant. The lieutenant. The major. The general. All have their orders in the great campaign.<br />
<br />
One day those men will come home. Some of them at least. Tattered, torn. Shattered lives. To wives and mothers and daughters. To fathers and sons. Who will not recognize the boy that went away. Who will never know. Never know. They will seem distant, lost in their thoughts. A world away. Hearing bullets fly and cries of pain. The fierce thunder of artillery and the silence of the aftermath. The wild screaming emotions. The bitter pain. The brotherly love, the bond of friendship. The fear. The hatred. The unrestrainable passions.<br />
<br />
The vows of loyalty, the unbreakable vows of secrecy and silence. The vows written in the blood of a fallen comrade.<br />
<br />
The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medal#Military_medals_and_decorations">medals</a>. For heroism. For valor. For the wounded and the dead. In return for the unspoken promise to never tell the Truth. To hide with your silence the tears, the crying, the shame, the humiliation. The pain and fear. They wouldn't understand anyway.<br />
<br />
A soldier's sacrifice goes far beyond the horrors of the battlefield. Long after the guns are silent. Long after the last goodbyes. The past echoes in the mind. Why? You had no choice. You did your duty. That is enough. It has to be enough. Because there will never be answers to these questions. And you will never get a second chance to save a life. These are things you will have to live with. And hope that time will fade these memories. And heal these wounds.<br />
<br />
<i>Time is a </i><a href="http://www.vfw.org/"><i>veteran's</i></a><i> best friend.</i><br />
<br />
And so President Obama. <a href="http://www.bartleby.com/142/193.html">O Captain, my Captain</a>. Now you know, if you didn't already.<br />
<br />
There's no escaping the Truth. There's no running from it. When it comes to war. There are no good wars. Only inescapable wars. Wars of defense and necessity.<br />
<br />
When it comes to foreign wars. There's just one kind. That's Imperial wars. Which is why we call our group the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Anti-Imperialist_League">American Anti-Imperialist League</a>. You can deny it all you want. It won't change the Truth.<br />
<br />
You should at least have the courage to admit the Truth to the American People. They're not fools you know. They can see through your lies. And they'll hate you for it. They'll curse you like they would a stubborn old Missouri mule. And they won't forget either. Not even in their dreams.<br />
<br />
<i>Not even in their red, white and blue American Dreams.</i><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Related Posts</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/mark-twain-on-armistice-day.html">Reflections on Mark Twain on Armistice Day</a> </li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/us-military-use-of-torture-and-terror.html">US Military use of torture and terror: 1900 - Present</a></li>
</ul>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-27423313551571594322009-11-28T21:43:00.004-05:002009-11-29T11:44:00.239-05:00Blackwater and JSOC in Pakistan going viral - then squashed<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SxAVGTn1ZjI/AAAAAAAAATs/JaU9tyganVI/s1600/Mickey%20Mouse%20sorcerers%20apprentice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SxAVGTn1ZjI/AAAAAAAAATs/JaU9tyganVI/s400/Mickey%20Mouse%20sorcerers%20apprentice.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Mickey Mouse's brooms go viral in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantasia_(film)#The_Sorcerer.27s_Apprentice">The Sorcerer's Apprentice</a></span></i><br />
</div><br />
<b>[Dear Redditors - see update at the bottom of the page.]</b><br />
<br />
[On Thursday, my previous article <a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/all-news-except-blackwater.html">"All the news..." - except Blackwater</a> became the number one <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/a8ept/jeremy_scahill_says_pentagon_attempted_to/">article on Reddit</a>. The word was spreading like wildfire throughout the internet. The article got over 7,000 hits that day. It got picked up by aggregator sites and was being twittered and emailed around the web. Then the article was suddenly banned by Reddit. The next day the hits went down to a little over 1,000. And today, just two days later, the hits on the article were down around 100.]<br />
<blockquote><i>Wehe! Wehe!<br />
Beide Teile<br />
steh'n in Eile<br />
schon als Knechte<br />
<br />
<span style="font-style: normal;"> (Woe is me! Both pieces<br />
come to life anew,<br />
now, to do my bidding<br />
I have servants two!)</span><br />
[...]<br />
Die ich rief, die Geister,<br />
werd' ich nun nicht los.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-style: normal;"> (From the spirits that I called<br />
Sir, deliver me!)</span><br />
<br />
Excerpts from "<a href="http://german.about.com/library/blgzauberl.htm">Der Zauberlehrling</a>"<br />
written by Goethe in 1797 ("<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sorcerer's_Apprentice">The Sorcerer's Apprentice</a>")</i><br />
</blockquote><b>Going viral</b><br />
<br />
With the emergence of the internet came a new phenomenon - going viral. We all remember <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPPj6viIBmU">the video</a> of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars_Kid">Star Wars Kid</a> with the '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightsaber">lightsaber</a>'. Then there was the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsV2O4fCgjk">"Yes We Can" video</a> of 'will i. am' that helped launch Obama's campaign into the stratosphere.<br />
<br />
By this time, we all recognize the power of the internet to shape public opinion. There is even a nouveau name for this - an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_meme">internet meme</a>. Social media websites attempt to capitalize on this phenomenon by giving users a platform through which to popularize articles or videos which would otherwise go undiscovered. We're all familiar with some of the popular forms of social media.<br />
<ul><li>YouTube</li>
<li>Facebook</li>
<li>Blogs</li>
<li>Digg </li>
<li>Reddit</li>
<li>and most recently - Twitter</li>
</ul>Social media can be viewed as an alternative to mainstream media (MSM) that is inherently democratic and populist. In theory it is a bottom up movement - as opposed to the top down structure of the MSM. It is interactive and vibrant. And it is wildly popular.<br />
<br />
So how does an article or video go viral? It has to start out somewhere. I've had articles go viral in the past, so I can speak from my own experience.<br />
<br />
<b>A drop in the internet ocean</b><br />
<br />
There is an enormous amount of material being posted on the web on a daily basis these days. So how is it that some articles achieve viral status, while the vast majority sink into obscurity.<br />
<br />
There is a certain randomness to this process for sure. If the initial response from a few viewers is negative, then the story will never even get started. But once that first bunch of viewers anoints a story as newsworthy, then the fun really begins. If timing and the synergies are just right, then the story can move into the top spot on a particular social media site.<br />
<br />
There is a sort of snowballing/avalanche effect that helps this along. Once an article is popular, then more people will see it and the more likely it is to get more popular.<br />
<br />
From there a new process kicks in. Having reached the pinnacle of a particular site, the story then begins to appear on aggregator sites. These are sites that post the top stories on social media websites, and there are lots of them. Many more than you are probably aware of. In addition, some MSM-lite sites like Huffington Post and Wired post links to the top stories as well.<br />
<br />
Simultaneously, people that have read the story begin to re-post it on discussion forums (like <a href="http://www.democraticunderground.com//discuss/">Democratic Underground</a>), and on their Facebook pages or on their blogs and on twitter.<br />
<br />
All of this activity causes web search engines like Google to take notice. The article rises in priority on web searches which causes more traffic to the article and results in yet another positive feedback loop.<br />
<br />
This exponentially expanding process is what we mean when we say a story has "gone viral".<br />
<br />
<b>Closing the floodgates</b><br />
<br />
Now how would you stop this process. Simple. You just don't let it get started in the first place; you "<a href="http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/nip+it+in+the+bud.html">nip it in the bud</a>"; you squash it at an early stage. This way you cut off the feedback loop that sustains a story as it goes viral - much like a hurricane feeds off warm ocean waters. If you cool the water then you can stop the hurricane dead in its tracks.<br />
<br />
Now, cooling off the ocean is a tall task. After all the ocean is vast and is not under the direct control of man. But in the case of the internet, the idea that no one is control is a bit of an illusion. There are centralized pockets of control. And those in control can decide the fate of a story, by shutting it off quickly before it can sprout offspring.<br />
<br />
And even if the story isn't caught at its earliest stages of development, it can still be dampened by pulling the plug on it within the powerful social media sites that are the incubators of these viral media storms.<br />
<br />
Case in point - my article on Blackwater and JSOC black ops in Pakistan titled "<a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/all-news-except-blackwater.html">All the news... - except Blackwater</a>". This particular article had attained the number one status on <a href="http://www.reddit.com/">Reddit</a> in the <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/">worldnews section</a> which is one of the most popular 'subreddits' on the site. It was starting to show up on aggregators such as <a href="http://oursignal.com/">OurSignal</a>, <a href="http://www.jimmyr.com/">JimmyR</a> and <a href="http://glozer.net/trendy/">Trendalicious</a>.<br />
<br />
With a <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/a8ept/jeremy_scahill_says_pentagon_attempted_to/">phenomenal Reddit score of 1200</a>, it was riding high and was at the number 1 spot on in Reddit worldnews (and I assume on Reddit overall). And then suddenly, the plug was pulled on this article. It was banned and totally disappeared from the site rankings - even though you can still find the article on the site if you know the direct link.<br />
<br />
(The reason given for banning it from the worldnews subreddit was that it was more of a US story than a "world news" story despite the main issue being US involvement in Pakistan. By that criteria it would seem that any story about US involvement in Iraq or Afghanistan should not be considered a "world news" story either.)<br />
<br />
Normally a highly popular article like this would remain on the front page for about a day or two before gradually slipping down the rankings and being replace by newer articles. But in this case it was made to disappear in an instance - as if it had been taken out in a strategic hit by a smart guidance missile. And once it disappeared from Reddit, it also disappeared from all the real-time aggregators - so with one surgical strike, the article was '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappeared">disappeared</a>' from multiple internet outlets in a sort of virtual "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraordinary_rendition_by_the_United_States">extraordinary rendition</a>".<br />
<br />
(Also keep in mind that <a href="http://www.techcrunch.com/2006/10/31/breaking-news-conde-nastwired-acquires-reddit/">Reddit is the property</a> of <a href="http://www.condenast.com/">Condé Nast</a>[y] - a media empire that includes such well known brands as Vogue, Glamour, GQ, Vanity Fair, Wired and The New Yorker. Curiously enough, nowhere on the <a href="http://www.condenast.com/">Condé Nast[y] website</a> does it ever mention Reddit. The question in this case is: Was some high up muckity-muck in Condé Nast[y] involved in the decision to shut down this article? We'll probably never know.)<br />
<br />
Score one for the CIA/JSOC/Blackwater bad guys. But before the bad guys had a chance to act, the story was prominently displayed on the internet for a few hours. And hundreds of links were established and twitter messages were sent and resent.<br />
<br />
<b>America, the beautiful?</b><br />
<br />
And most importantly Jeremy Scahill's article, "<a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091207/scahill">Blackwater's Secret War in Pakistan</a>", is still available online. And the resistance continues. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_operation">Black ops</a> are the most evil part of the American War Empire. It is the part of the American Empire that most Americans are least aware of, but that everywhere else across the globe is well recognized. Torture, kidnapping and assassinations are being routinely used to squash political dissent around the world in our name.<br />
<br />
Why do they hate us? They hate us for our stupidity - our willing blindness to the facts. The Truth is out there, and it is the duty of every American citizen to uncover that Truth. We cannot endlessly blame the MSM for lying to us and deceiving us, when we are the ones who are unwilling to face the ugly facts head-on. It's time to look in the mirror America!<br />
<br />
"Mirror, mirror on the wall. Who's the fairest of them all?" You have been told all your life that it is you, America. You have been painted a glorious self-portrait of beauty beyond compare. You have been told a lie. Look at yourself as much of the world sees you - a hideous ogre that feeds on the blood of innocent children.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SxAM3MsmLUI/AAAAAAAAATk/8NCYsTNbMDY/s1600/BlackOpsSkull.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SxAM3MsmLUI/AAAAAAAAATk/8NCYsTNbMDY/s400/BlackOpsSkull.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<b>Related Posts</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/all-news-except-blackwater.html">"All the news..." - except Blackwater</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/blackwaters-aka-xe-exposed-by-scahill.html">Blackwater (aka Xe) exposed by Scahill... again!</a></li>
</ul><b>-------------------------------------------</b><br />
<br />
<b>[UPDATE - NOV 29 11:20 AM]</b><br />
<br />
This article has sparked a lively debate on Reddit. Go <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/a93bk/the_story_of_the_covert_operations_of_blackwater/">here to see the comments</a> and participate in the discussion.<br />
<br />
There is a Reddit administrator named <a href="http://www.reddit.com/user/jedberg">jedberg</a> that has joined in on the discussion. Here is a snapshot of all of his comments. (My apologies if I missed any.)<br />
<blockquote><b>jedberg</b> [A] -13 points(+15/-27) 6 hours ago[-]<br />
Why is it funny? It was banned by a moderator of worldnews for being off-topic.<br />
<br />
<b>jedberg</b> [A] (+39/-29)13 points 6 hours ago[-]<br />
We did not remove the link. One of the moderators of the worldnews community removed it for being off-topic.<br />
<br />
<b>jedberg</b> [A] -3 points(+22/-24) 6 hours ago[-]<br />
We don't censor. It was removed by one of the worldnews moderators for being off-topic.<br />
<br />
<b>jedberg</b> [A] -6 points(+25/-30) 6 hours ago[-]<br />
If we were "censoring" as all of you seem to believe, wouldn't we remove this article?<br />
The post was removed from worldnews for being off-topic.<br />
</blockquote>And here are some of the many supportive comments from redditors.<br />
<blockquote><b>anonymous-coward</b> (+38/-10)31 points 9 hours ago[-]<br />
Hmm.<br />
Go here to the article: <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/a8ept/jeremy_scahill_says_pentagon_attempted_to/">http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/a8ept/jeremy_scahill_says_pentagon_attempted_to/</a><br />
It is in worldnews.<br />
Now search for "Jeremy Scahill" - the article does not show up in /r/worldnews. Now search for "Jeremy Scahill Pentagon" and a repost shows up in /r/politics, with fewer points.<br />
So it is apparently correct that it was wiped from worldnews. Seems a <i>little</i> funny.<br />
<br />
<b>Atman00</b> 20 points(+26/-8) 6 hours ago[-]<br />
Because it's clearly not off topic. This is about a war between two countries that are thousands of miles apart. Just because an article also deals with the US doesn't mean it's not considered world news.<br />
<br />
<b>ClittyClittyGangBang</b> 6 points(+9/-3) 5 hours ago* [-]<br />
One would think that after amassing 1000+ points in the subreddit the mod(s) would accept the article was on-topic and relevant for their readers.<br />
Not to the worldnews mods - so much as use the letters "U" and "S" and it's deleted.<br />
Worldnews seems to be a little dictatorship where the mods get to exercise their own anti-U.S. inferiority complex.<br />
<br />
<b>cheap_black_hat</b> (+47/-27)24 points 12 hours ago[-]<br />
Conde Nast is part of the dreaded mainstream media. redditors seem to forget that reddit is someone's property, not a bastion of free speech.<br />
<br />
<b>shopcat</b> (+27/-3)24 points 5 hours ago[-]<br />
It seems that decision by a single mod hasn't reflected favorably on the reddit community as a whole. We aren't able to edit headlines for fear that we will manipulate them once they get to the front page and yet a single mod can wipe out a story with a score of over a thousand and hundreds of comments.<br />
<br />
<b>ItsAConspiracy</b> (+7/-1)7 points 1 hour ago[-]<br />
Might be a good idea to remove that power from moderators, once the community in that section judges a story that favorably.<br />
<br />
<b>minor9sharp11</b> (+17/-5)14 points 6 hours ago[-]<br />
Yeah I saw it in the worldnews feed and thought how that would be better placed in politics. I don't think it was not worldnews though since it deals with Pakistani and US relations.<br />
Ohh well.<br />
<br />
<b>outhere</b> (+6/-1)6 points 1 hour ago[-]<br />
Hmmm... all this time I thought regular redditors were supposed to downvote off-topic posts. Didn't know mods were editors/censors. My whole opinion of reddit has changed.<br />
<br />
<b>Tangurena</b> 15 points(+27/-11) 9 hours ago[-]<br />
People keep asking why newspapers in this country are dying. This story is why they're dying - they keep covering up for the corruption in our government, the newspapers keep covering up for the evil done in our name. They kept news about the illegal wiretaps covered up for more than a year - if they had reported it when it was still news then there would have been no 2nd term for bush. When the last newspaper dies in the US, I will rejoice.<br />
<br />
<b>therabbit</b> 5 points(+15/-11) 10 hours ago* [-]<br />
Of course reddit will never admit it and fain disgust when asked if they censor, when we all know they can shadow ban and they do on a daily basis.<br />
<br />
<b>ClittyClittyGangBang</b> 9 points(+12/-3) 5 hours ago[-]<br />
And they're effectively different...how?<br />
In particular, the article in question had received ~2000+ upvotes. So the opinion of relevance of thousands of redditors is less important than one moderator/censor?<br />
The pernicious thing about censorship is that the censors themselves rarely see it as such. It's almost always seen as "moderation," or some similarly right-thinking synonym.<br />
If it's effectively censorship - it's censorship.<br />
<br />
<b>sinn0304</b> (+9/-1)10 points 4 hours ago[-]<br />
I'm not sure the "censorship" is whats making people upset. It's the fact that 1 mod just overruled thousands of upvotes. You just told us, no matter how much we like a story, and how many upvotes we throw at it, you still reserve the right to remove it and squash the discussion. Nice job telling your users they're no longer important in the decision making process for what's relevant, and what's not.<br />
<br />
<b>jules_siegel</b> (+12/-2)11 points 4 hours ago[-]<br />
Please. I'm a journalist. I've been accustomed to hearing the "we just" excuse year after year. You didn't censor it. Of course not. You just buried it through a technical maneuver. And it wasn't you. It was just some moderator. Well, maybe you should have a little talk with that moderator and find out why he/she/it essentially killed a very popular story that just happened to expose official censorship by the powers that be. These incidents are always explained away as honest mistakes or differences of opinion. In my experience (vast, believe me), they rarely are.<br />
<br />
<b>sinn0304</b> 10 points(+12/-2) 4 hours ago[-]<br />
This needs to be said over and over again. Thousands of people deem it on-topic enough to upvote it, yet because 1 mod says its not, we all lose. Nice modding policy, jedberg.<br />
</blockquote>I love Reddit. I really do.Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-45701795791902958372009-11-25T23:44:00.009-05:002009-11-26T16:30:41.228-05:00"All the news..." - except Blackwater<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sw32_7eCmbI/AAAAAAAAATg/UnIGHiJiJcw/s1600/Blackwater%20in%20New%20Orleans.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="275" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sw32_7eCmbI/AAAAAAAAATg/UnIGHiJiJcw/s400/Blackwater%20in%20New%20Orleans.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Blackwater goons in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina</span></i><br />
</div><br />
[This article is a followup to the one I published yesterday - "<a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/blackwaters-aka-xe-exposed-by-scahill.html">Blackwater (aka Xe) exposed by Scahill... again!</a>"]<br />
<br />
<b>A threat</b><br />
<br />
Here's the latest interview of Jeremy Scahill that I could find discussing his article in the Nation titled "<a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091207/scahill">Blackwater's Secret War in Pakistan</a>".<br />
<br />
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<br />
In this interview (at ~8:00), Jeremy Scahill comes out and explicitly says that he felt that a call he received from the office of Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was "an act of intimidation" to keep him from publishing his story in the Nation. Here's how Wikipedia describes the position of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chairman_of_the_Joint_Chiefs_of_Staff">Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff</a>.<br />
<blockquote>The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is <b>by law the highest ranking military officer in the United States armed forces</b>, and the principal military adviser to the President of the United States, the National Security Council, and the Secretary of Defense.<br />
</blockquote>Any questions? Good. Let's continue.<br />
<br />
<b>No news is not good news</b><br />
<br />
The US ambassador in Pakistan, Anne W. Patterson, has called reports of a secret Blackwater operation in Pakistan "false and baseless". I know this because it appeared in a newspaper. Not an American newspaper mind you, <a href="http://www.samaylive.com/news/security-agency-blackwater-not-operating-in-pakistan-us/669001.html">but a Pakistani newspaper</a>. Somehow the New York Times and the Washington Post don't think this is worth reporting.<br />
<br />
Here's the <a href="http://islamabad.usembassy.gov/pr-09112501.html">official press release</a> on the State Department website.<br />
<blockquote><b>Correction For The Record</b><br />
<br />
November 25, 2009<br />
<br />
Islamabad - The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad <b>rejects as completely false the assertions made recently by a U.S. magazine alleging secret Blackwater operations in Pakistan.</b><br />
<br />
There is no secret operating base in Karachi or anywhere else in Pakistan being run, occupied, or otherwise operated by U.S. military personnel of any command or organization. <b>The article's assertions about U.S. government collusion with Blackwater or any other contracting firm are equally baseless and false.</b><br />
<br />
"<b>U.S. government programs for Pakistan are open and transparent</b> and function in partnership with the Government of Pakistan," said Ambassador Anne W. Patterson. "U.S. personnel and programs in Pakistan have only one purpose - to assist the government and people of Pakistan as they face the complex challenges confronting their nation."<br />
</blockquote>This is a flat denial of the Scahill article. Notice they never mention the article explicitly, but allude to "a U.S. magazine" making "false assertions". If not for a search I did of Google news for 'Blackwater' I would have never been aware of this press release which went unreported in the US media. Clearly this official press release from the US embassy in Islamabad was for local Pakistani consumption only, and was not meant to be repeated by the US mainstream press. Why hasn't this been reported in the US press?<br />
<br />
I'll tell you what I think. And you can take it or leave it because it's just my opinion. I don't have any facts to back this up. But I think there has been an edict handed down by the powers in the State Department and the Pentagon saying that Blackwater (aka Xe) is not a subject to be discussed openly in the news media.<br />
<br />
Just yesterday, at the <a href="http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2009/nov/132362.htm">State Department's daily briefing</a> the first question was about Jeremy Scahill's article.<br />
<blockquote>MR. KELLY: Okay. Well, let me give you a quick rundown on the Secretary’s events. You know she attended...<br />
[blah, blah, blah... blah, blah]<br />
...how the United States and India can work together to meet global challenges <b>like terrorism</b> and climate change and other matters of regional and bilateral interest. And with that, I’ll take your questions.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: <b>Do you have any response to the report in The Nation regarding what it says was a joint operation between the Joint Special Operations Command in Pakistan and Xe Services, nee Blackwater? </b><br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I do not. <b>I have not seen this article.</b><br />
<br />
QUESTION: So you have no response to that?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, I don’t know. I’m sorry, you’ve – <b>I just am not aware of this article.</b> We’ll look at it and we’ll see if we can get a response for you.<br />
<br />
Yeah, Andy.<br />
</blockquote>So I checked today's briefing to see if State Department spokesperson, Ian Kelly, would give "a response" to Jeremy's article. You can find it <a href="http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2009/nov/132433.htm">here</a>. And a quick search determines that the word 'Blackwater' never comes up. In fact there's no discussion of Pakistan at all. Is this a case of "don't ask, don't tell"?<br />
<br />
To me the message is clear. "Blackwater is not something we're going to talk about. We're not going to confirm it or deny it. In fact we're not even 'aware' of it. And if you want to continue to be invited to these briefings, you won't be aware of it either."<br />
<br />
Isn't it odd that with literally thousands of newspapers and radio and TV stations in the US, and the existence of a "free press" that not one has come out with any significant follow up to Jeremy Scahill's scathing exposé. Not one.<br />
<br />
Yes Jeremy was invited today <a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091214/scahill_video">on to MSNBC's Morning Joe show</a>, but the topic was quickly shifted in what was obviously a pre-arranged script. Sort of as if to say, "See... we do have a free press in the US. See... we gave Jeremy 2 or 3 minutes to talk about Blackwater. It's just that the American public isn't interested. They'd rather hear about how Sarah Palin is going to run for President in 2012."<br />
<br />
So as I said, I don't have any facts to back up my allegations of a coordinated coverup. But that's not exactly true because I can give you some statistical evidence courtesy of Google.<br />
<br />
In fact here's an experiment you can do yourself. Click on the link below to run a search of articles in the US that mention Scahill's Blackwater article.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://news.google.com/news/story?pz=1&cf=all&ned=us&hl=en&ncl=dKr_ktf2KwNnz2McDjrXbmkmZq72M&rfilter=3&sf_loc=840&hubgeo=United+States">Google news search</a><br />
<br />
When I tried this today, I got 15 results. And none of those could be considered mainstream media.<br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">When I do a similar search for <a href="http://blogsearch.google.com/blogsearch?hl=en&lr=&num=100&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=blackwater+scahill&as_maxm=11&as_miny=2009&as_maxy=2009&as_minm=11&as_mind=23&as_maxd=25&as_drrb=b&ctz=300&c1cr=11%2F23%2F2009&c2cr=11%2F25%2F2009&btnD=Go">blog articles</a> in the past 3 days since the article first appeared with the words 'blackwater scahill' I get 290 hits. (My FNT article from yesterday shows up on the first page.)<br />
</div><br />
And when I do a similar search for articles on the <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&cr=countryUS&tbo=p&num=100&tbs=cdr%3A1%2Ccd_min%3A11%2F23%2F09%2Ccd_max%3A11%2F25%2F09&q=blackwater+scahill&btnG=Search&aq=f&oq=&aqi=">web in general</a> in the past 3 days since the article first appeared with the words 'blackwater scahill' I get thousands of hits.<br />
<br />
<b>Conclusion - a news blackout</b><br />
<br />
My conclusion is that the State Department and the Pentagon don't want to talk about this because they know that they will be caught up by their own denials. I also conclude that the word has been sent out to the main stream media not to bring up this subject.<br />
<br />
And yet this is a crucial issue which should be discussed as President Obama prepares to send a request next week to Congress for 34,000 more troops in Afghanistan. We can only hope that some of our representatives in Congress will have the courage to bring this up in public hearings when <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/23/AR2009112303711_pf.html">General McChrystal goes before committees</a> to justify this troop build up.<br />
<br />
Jeremy Scahill has done his job in uncovering the basic information. Now it is up to the Congress to fulfill its obligation to investigate this further. And it would be a great assistance if the media would do its job of publicizing this issue. But if they won't, then "we the people" must take direct action and insist that Congress not shirk its Constitutional responsibilities. Please call your Congresspeople and urge them to bring up this issue of vital importance to the attention of the State Department and the Pentagon.<br />
<br />
It's bad enough that <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/11/world/middleeast/11blackwater.html?_r=4&sq=Blackwater&st=cse&scp=4&pagewanted=all">Blackwater is bribing Iraqi officials</a> "to silence their criticism and buy their support". Don't let something similar happen here in the US.<br />
<br />
<b>[UPDATE 1 - NOV 26]</b><br />
<br />
It seems the cat's out of the bag in Pakistan. The mainstream Pakistani press is featuring Scahill's article in today's papers.<br />
<br />
The Nation (a Pakistani newspaper - not the US magazine that originally published the story) has <a href="http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/26-Nov-2009/Blackwaters-Secret-War-in-Pakistan">reproduced the entire article</a>. It also has a short article titled "<a href="http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/26-Nov-2009/Will-Mr-Malik-resign-now">Will Mr. Malik resign now?</a>".<br />
<blockquote>ISLAMABAD – The Nation [Pakistani newspaper] has been exposing the Blackwater (now renamed Xe Worldwide) and DynaCorp presence in Pakistan for some time now with evidence, but <b>the Interior Minister has continued to deny this presence - although he has finally conceded the presence of Dynacorp.</b><br />
<br />
To begin with, <b>Rehman Malik was hiding behind the fact that Blackwater had altered its name</b>; but equally important Blackwater has also become a generic term for US military/security contractors, especially in the minds of most Pakistanis. <br />
<br />
But now an American journalist, <b>Jeremy Scahill, who has authored the definitive book on Blackwater has revealed the presence of this group in Pakistan</b> as well as all its activities here. Since Mr. Malik had publicly claimed he would resign if the Blackwater presence was proven in Pakistan, <b>we wonder whether he will do so now that his bluff has been called</b>.<br />
</blockquote>The Pakistan Daily Times also has an article on this subject titled "<a href="http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2009%5C11%5C26%5Cstory_26-11-2009_pg7_14">Blackwater launching missions from Karachi</a>", which gives a good summary of the Scahill article.<br />
<br />
Coincidentally, yesterday <a href="http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=25799">US Ambassador to Pakistan Anne W. Patterson announced</a> "the Obama Administration was going to release direct budgetary support of $175 million hard cash to Pakistan". Is this hush money which will be used to grease the palms of Pakistani officials to keep them from criticizing the role of Blackwater and the JSOC in Pakistan?<br />
<br />
Will the US mainstream press continue to ignore the Scahill article now that it has been widely publicized in Pakistan? I'll bet the State Department longs for the days before the internet. Personally, I'm hoping that Jeremy's revelations about Blackwater go totally viral on the web to the point where the MSM can ignore them no longer. And then the Pentagon and the State Department will be forced to come up with some answers, and the Blackwater goons will be forced out of the murky shadows in which they like to operate and into the glaring public spotlight.<br />
<br />
<b>[UPDATE 2 - NOV 26]</b><br />
<br />
Russia Today has picked up the story of Blackwater's secret operation in Pakistan as reported by Jeremy Scahill. There's no new revelations in this report which features investigative reporter Wayne Madsen, but it shows that the news is spreading. But what about pseudo-left MSM outlets like Rachel Maddow. Why hasn't she reported this story? Oh right, the military censors. I almost forgot.<br />
<br />
<object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/et_jgkNgBmM&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/et_jgkNgBmM&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-2539814503300933392009-11-24T02:39:00.010-05:002009-11-26T16:36:20.622-05:00Blackwater (aka Xe) exposed by Scahill... again!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwtvG5YdBhI/AAAAAAAAATY/rWB2CM9aFqQ/s1600/JSOC%20emblem.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwtvG5YdBhI/AAAAAAAAATY/rWB2CM9aFqQ/s320/JSOC%20emblem.jpg" /></a><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Swtwg-SnfYI/AAAAAAAAATc/-UhWdrYr1wQ/s1600/XE%20logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Swtwg-SnfYI/AAAAAAAAATc/-UhWdrYr1wQ/s320/XE%20logo.jpg" /></a><br />
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Jeremy Scahill has a <a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091207/scahill">new article in the Nation about Blackwater</a>. He's the journalist that first exposed Blackwater and has written <i>the</i> book on the subject, "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/156858394X/ref=nosim/?tag=nationbooks08-20">Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army</a>".<br />
<br />
[UPDATE - NOV 24: Jeremy Scahill <a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2009/11/24/blackwaters_secret_war_in_pakistan_jeremy">appeared this morning on Democracy Now</a> for his first interview on the subject. (I've added the video below.) As of this morning no MSM news source is reporting on this story - not even to deny it. They are just quietly ignoring it. Meanwhile, the blogosphere has exploded with this news. Of course the MSM has always tried to pretend that Blackwater doesn't exist, so at least they are consistent. As President Obama gets ready to announce <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/nov/24/barack-obama-us-troops-afghanistan">~34,000 new troops</a> to Afghanistan <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/24/AR2009112401010_pf.html">on December 1</a> following the corrupt "elections" there, the MSM doesn't want to spoil the party. Will General McChrystal be questioned about Scahill's Blackwater allegations in upcoming <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/23/AR2009112303711_pf.html">congressional hearings about the new troop request</a>?]<br />
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[UPDATE - NOV 25: The chattering idiots on MSNBC's Morning Joe show have Jeremy Scahill on to discuss his article. How did they manage to spin this into a story on anti-Latino Lou Dobbs running for President? Pathetic! What a bunch of morons.]<br />
<br />
<div><iframe frameborder="0" height="339" scrolling="no" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/34126145#34126145" width="425"></iframe><br />
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In his latest article Scahill reports that Blackwater is running a secret operation for the US military in Pakistan. You should read the whole story in the Nation titled "<a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091207/scahill">Blackwater's Secret War in Pakistan</a>". Here's an excerpt to whet your appetite.<br />
<blockquote>At a covert forward operating base run by the US Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, <b>members of an elite division of Blackwater are at the center of a secret program in which they plan targeted assassinations of suspected Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives, "snatch and grabs" of high-value targets and other sensitive action inside and outside Pakistan</b>, an investigation by The Nation has found. The Blackwater operatives also assist in gathering intelligence and help run a secret US military drone bombing campaign that runs parallel to the well-documented CIA predator strikes, according to a well-placed source within the US military intelligence apparatus.<br />
[...]<br />
"<b>This is a parallel operation to the CIA</b>," said the source. "They are two separate beasts." The program puts Blackwater at the epicenter of a US military operation within the borders of a nation against which the United States has not declared war--knowledge that <b>could further strain the already tense relations between the United States and Pakistan</b>.<br />
</blockquote>One thing you should know about this article - it's full of anonymous sources. If it was anyone other than Jeremy Scahill reporting this stuff, I would be quite leary. But given Scahill's track record, I am accepting as truth everything he says until someone proves it to be false.<br />
<br />
And you should also know that Scahill reports that the US Defense Dept. and Blackwater are denying everything he is saying. He includes quotes to this effect in the article.<br />
<blockquote>A defense official, on background, specifically <b>denied that Blackwater performs work on drone strikes or intelligence for JSOC in Pakistan.</b> "We don't have any contracts to do that work for us. We don't contract that kind of work out, period," the official said. "There has not been, and is not now, contracts between JSOC and that organization for these types of services."<br />
[...]<br />
Blackwater, which recently changed its name to Xe Services and US Training Center, denies the company is operating in Pakistan. "Xe Services has only one employee in Pakistan performing construction oversight for the U.S. Government," Blackwater spokesperson Mark Corallo said in a statement to The Nation, adding that <b>the company has "no other operations of any kind in Pakistan."</b><br />
</blockquote>So someone is not giving us the true story. As I said before, my money is on Scahill. Which means that Blackwater (aka Xe) and the US Defense Department have got a lot of 'splaining to do.<br />
<br />
Scahill strongly suggests that the Blackwater operation is being run in such a way to deliberately mislead Congress and public opinion in both the US and Pakistan. He even suggests that the whole operation has been hidden from the Obama administration. The whole structure of the operation seems to be designed for maximum deniability.<br />
<blockquote>The source said that the program is <b>so "compartmentalized" that senior figures within the Obama administration and the US military chain of command may not be aware of its existence.</b><br />
[...]<br />
While JSOC technically runs the operations in Karachi, he said, it is <b>largely staffed by former US special operations soldiers working for a division of Blackwater, once known as Blackwater SELECT, and intelligence analysts working for a Blackwater affiliate, Total Intelligence Solutions (TIS)</b>, which is owned by Blackwater's founder, Erik Prince. The military source said that the name Blackwater SELECT may have been changed recently. Total Intelligence, which is run out of an office on the ninth floor of a building in the Ballston area of Arlington, Virginia, is <b>staffed by former analysts and operatives from the CIA, DIA, FBI and other agencies.</b> It is modeled after the CIA's counterterrorism center. In Karachi, TIS runs a "media-scouring/open-source network," according to the source. Until recently, <b>Total Intelligence was run by two former top CIA officials, Cofer Black and Robert Richer</b>, both of whom have left the company. <b>In Pakistan, Blackwater is not using either its original name or its new moniker, Xe Services</b>, according to the former Blackwater executive. "They are running most of their work through TIS because the other two [names] have such a stain on them," he said.<br />
</blockquote>Another thing you need to know in order to fully appreciate this story is just what exactly the JSOC is. Scahill does get into it in the article, but its a bit buried and he doesn't get into great detail. So here's some <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joint_Special_Operations_Command">supplementary information from the ever reliable Wikipedia</a>. (You should give them a donation if you haven't already.)<br />
<blockquote>The <b>Joint Special Operations Command</b> (JSOC) also commands and controls <b>the Special Mission Units (SMU)</b> of United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). These units <b>perform highly classified activities</b>. So far, only <b>three SMUs have been publicly disclosed: The Army's 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment - Delta (Delta Force), the Navy's SEAL Team 6 or Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU), and the Air Force's 24th Special Tactics Squadron. Intelligence Support Activity (ISA)</b> which often operates under various cover names such as Royal Cape, Granite Rock and Powder Keg were some, Centra Spike and Torn Victor. However, its most recent known cover name was Gray Fox. The army once maintained the Activity, but <b>after September 11 attacks the Pentagon shifted direct control to Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) at Fort Bragg, NC.</b> If needed, Army Rangers and Night Stalkers can be transferred under the JSOC command. <b>JSOC’s primary mission is believed to be identifying and destroying terrorists and terror cells worldwide.</b><br />
<br />
USSOCOM/JSOC <b>cannot conduct covert action operations, as the CIA is the only organization that has the authority to conduct these actions</b>. However, USSOCOM has an <b>excellent relationship with the CIA's elite Special Activities Division and the two forces often operate together</b> with exceptional results. The CIA's Special Activities Division's Special Operations Group often selects their recruits from JSOC.<br />
</blockquote>The way I interpret this information is that the JSOC is in charge of all Special Forces within the military. These are elite units that are trained to do clandestine operations among other things. The relationship with the CIA is a little fuzzy - probably intentionally so. What does it mean that the JSOC cannot perform "covert action operations"? It seems to me like a large part of their mission is based on doing covert operations.<br />
<br />
As I said, I think there is an intent to keep secret from the public the full extent of JSOC operations. As for example, the information that Jeremy Scahill reveals in his article. For me, this was the first I'd ever heard of the JSOC and I suspect this will be true for most of the American public.<br />
<br />
Another thing you should know about the JSOC. General Stanley A. McChrystal, the current commander of US forces in Afghanistan, was the man in charge of JSOC from 2003 to 2008. (Yes that's the same General McChrystal that has been so adamant about the need to increase the number of US troops in Afghanistan by up to 80,000.)<br />
<br />
You can read more about McChrystal's term as commander of JSOC <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanley_McChrystal#Commander.2C_Joint_Special_Operations_Command">here</a>. If your in favor of torture and death squads, then you will be a huge fan of the JSOC. The whole Abu Ghraib thing keeps coming up.<br />
<blockquote><b>McChrystal's Zarqawi unit, Task Force 6-26, became well-known for its interrogation methods</b>, particularly at Camp Nama, where it was accused of abusing detainees.<b> After the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse scandal became public in April 2004, 34 members of the task force were disciplined.</b><br />
</blockquote>But apparently the disciplining never went up as far as Gen. McChrystal. In fact he got promoted on May 1, 2004 from a one star general to a two star general. And not long after that, on February 16, 2006, he got promoted to a three star general. So the whole Abu Ghraib "scandal" didn't seem to have any bad effects on McChrystal's career - in fact it seems to have earned him his promotions.<br />
<br />
His final promotion (this one under the Obama administration) was to a full four star general which occurred on June 15, 2009 as a result of his assignment to take command of US forces in Afghanistan.<br />
<br />
McChrystal also appears to be tightly connected through JSOC to the policy of drone attacks in Pakistan. Scahill talks about the connection between JSOC and the drone attacks in his article.<br />
<blockquote>The military intelligence source also confirmed that <b>Blackwater continues to work for the CIA on its drone bombing program in Pakistan</b>, as previously reported in the New York Times, but added that <b>Blackwater is working on JSOC's drone bombings as well</b>. "It's Blackwater running the program for both CIA and JSOC," said the source. When civilians are killed, "people go, 'Oh, it's the CIA doing crazy shit again unchecked.' Well, at least 50 percent of the time, that's JSOC [hitting] somebody they've identified through HUMINT [human intelligence] or they've culled the intelligence themselves or it's been shared with them and they take that person out and that's how it works."<br />
</blockquote>Scahill is saying that there are two separate (but no doubt related) targeted assassination drone programs - one run by the CIA and the other by the JSOC - and that one of the common links is Blackwater. But again, I can't do justice to all the information in Jeremy's article. I just wanted to provide some useful background.<br />
<br />
I do want to highlight what appears to be a similarity between the logo of JSOC and that of Xe/Blackwater which is the X pattern. Notice the X pattern in the JSOC logo formed by the crossed swords. I'm guessing that these swords are intended to represent a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gladius">gladius</a> - a type of relatively short sword used by the Roman Legions. Isn't it appropriate that the American Empire uses symbols from the Roman Empire? The bad news is that the Romans never conquered Afghanistan, and even Alexander the Great was unable to win a decisive victory there. On the other hand Alexander did fall in love with a local beauty - <a href="http://www.livius.org/ro-rz/roxane/roxane.htm">Roxane</a>.<br />
<br />
It shouldn't be that surprising that there would be similarities in the logos of the two organizations given that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xe_(Company)#Corporate_history">Blackwater was founded by a Navy SEAL</a> - Erik Prince. Remember that the Navy SEALs are one component of the JSOC. And one of the sources of recruitment for Blackwater is former Special Forces operative.<br />
<br />
Finally I would like to point out that Scahill's revelations about Blackwater in Pakistan may have significant repercussions on the local politics there. For one thing <a href="http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2009/11/20091116145058336650.html">the Taliban have been claiming</a> that some of the bombings that have been going on in Pakistan are the work of Blackwater.<br />
<blockquote><b>Attacks that have continued across Pakistani towns and cities are being blamed on Tehreek e-Taliban, Pakistan's Taliban.</b><br />
<br />
However, the group has issued its first video statement <b>denying involvement</b> in targeting civilians and has blamed external forces for at least two recent blasts.<br />
<br />
Azam Tariq, a spokesman of the Tehreek e-Taliban, posted the video statement on YouTube on Monday.<br />
<br />
The message refers to <b>a bombing at the Islamic University in Islamabad, which the spokesman said was orchestrated to prepare the ground for a military operation in South Waziristan</b>, a stronghold for Pakistan's Taliban fighters.<br />
<br />
He also said <b>his group had no role in the bomb blast in a Peshawar market that killed at least 100 people as well as an attack in Charsada</b>, a town located in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province.<br />
<br />
<b>Tariq said Taliban attacks never aimed to target civilians, but that the explosions were linked to Blackwater activities in the country.</b><br />
</blockquote>If Scahill is correct in his assertion that Blackwater and the JSOC are waging a secret war in Pakistan, then these claims by the Taliban need to be fully investigated.<br />
<br />
The other story related to this is <a href="http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/22-Nov-2009/More-troops-will-be-sent-to-Waziristan">the promise of a Pakistani Minister to resign</a> if it is found that Blackwater has been operating in Pakistan.<br />
<blockquote><b>Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik has made it clear he will resign from his slot if US security company Blackwater is found in Pakistan</b>, saying there is no Blackwater in Pakistan and we will not hide anything from the public. <br />
<br />
Talking to the media on Saturday, he said the DynCorp is working in Pakistan for assistance and transit to Afghanistan-based allied forces since 2003 but it is not working for Blackwater.<br />
</blockquote>So there is a lot riding on the Scahill story of a Blackwater presence in Pakistan. This is not a story that can be ignored, and you can be sure that Jeremy Scahill will be out publicizing this story in the days to come. It will be interesting to see the response not only from the US Defense Department and Blackwater, but from the Pakistani government and the Taliban as well.Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-38768372536086537172009-11-19T20:05:00.002-05:002009-11-19T20:12:30.466-05:00Another bioweapon unleashed on an unsuspecting public?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwXf-y-YIUI/AAAAAAAAATM/4nmGtXuxn6c/s1600/Nasal%20spray.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwXf-y-YIUI/AAAAAAAAATM/4nmGtXuxn6c/s400/Nasal%20spray.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
</div><br />
Got the flu? You might want to use some <a href="http://www.vicks.com/products/sinex-vapospray-moisturizing-12hr-decongestant-ultrafine-mist">Vicks Sinex nasal spray</a> to relieve your symptoms. Or maybe not.<br />
<br />
It seems that some 120,000 bottles of the popular nasal spray are <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE5AI4U220091119">being recalled for contamination</a> with a bacteria (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burkholderia_cepacia_complex">Burkholderia cepacia</a>) that causes <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacterial_pneumonia">pneumonia</a>. This type of pneumonia is associated with people with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cystic_fibrosis">Cystic Fibrosis</a> and has a 35% mortality rate.<br />
<br />
The manufacturer, Proctor and Gamble, <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6608952/Vicks-recalls-nasal-spray.html">says that</a>: "The bacteria poses little medical risk to healthy individuals but that clearly is not acceptable." Of course if your healthy, then why would you use a nasal spray like this?<br />
<br />
Maybe the pharmaceutical companies didn't feel like they were getting a high enough death count from the swine (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H1n1">H1N1</a>) flu to cause sufficient panic to get governments to keep wasting billions of dollars in public funds on vaccines and anti-viral medicines. So they decided to up the death count by spreading pneumonia causing bacteria in nasal sprays.<br />
<br />
You've got to admit that would be a really clever plan. What better way to target flu victims than with a nasal spray intended to alleviate their symptoms. And what better delivery system than a spray that the unknowing victim would breathe deeply into his already infected nasal cavities. From there the bacteria would have an easy time entering into the lungs where it could finish off its victim.<br />
<br />
And especially since <a href="http://articles.latimes.com/2008/aug/18/science/sci-flu18">most flu victims don't die from the flu itself</a>, but from bacterial infections which result in pneumonia. And this particular bacteria is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burkholderia_cepacia_complex#Treatment">resistant to most common antibiotics</a>, so by the time the results came back from tests the victim might already be dead.<br />
<br />
But our government and/or pharmaceutical companies would never conspire to do something like that - would they?<br />
<br />
Rest assured because P&G has taken complete responsibility and is offering "replacement coupons". See, they really do care about you. And of course they quickly updated their <a href="http://www.vicks.com/products/sinex-vapospray-moisturizing-12hr-decongestant-ultrafine-mist">product web page</a> to reflect the recall.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwXjA_2O74I/AAAAAAAAATQ/s9zsUZO2m-A/s1600/Vicks%20Sinex%20VapoSpray.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwXjA_2O74I/AAAAAAAAATQ/s9zsUZO2m-A/s400/Vicks%20Sinex%20VapoSpray.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
No? Uh, yeah, well I'm sure their working on that. Of course any good consumer would know to go down to the bottom of the page where there is a link in really tiny font to the recall page.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwXjts4Yi-I/AAAAAAAAATU/l8lyUR2ezXU/s1600/Recall%20link.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwXjts4Yi-I/AAAAAAAAATU/l8lyUR2ezXU/s320/Recall%20link.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
See that! "You're taken care of." Isn't that nice. And from there your only a few clicks away from the companies <a href="http://www.vicks.com/about/press-releases/vicks-sinex-recall">recall announcement</a>.<br />
<blockquote>CINCINNATI, Nov. 19, 2009 - The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) announced today it is voluntarily recalling three lots of its Vicks Sinex nasal spray in three countries: the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom.<br />
<br />
The company said it is taking this precautionary step after finding the <b>bacteria B. cepacia</b> in a small amount of product made at its plant in Gross Gerau, Germany. There have been no reports of illness. However, the bacteria could cause serious infections for individuals with a compromised immune system, or those with chronic lung conditions, such as cystic fibrosis. B. cepacia <b>poses little medical risk to healthy individuals.</b><br />
<br />
P&G detected this problem <b>during routine quality control</b> at the plant <b>and promptly took action</b>. The company's analysis to date shows this problem is limited to a single batch of raw material mixture involving three lots of product. These three lots were sold <b>only in the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom.</b><br />
</blockquote>So I guess its "routine" to not check a product for bacterial contamination until after its shipped and on the shelves of pharmacies worldwide. Uh-huh. That makes sense.<br />
<br />
And the announcement fails to mention anything about the risk to people infected with the swine flu. That does seem a bit deliberate given the current "pandemic" and swine flu "emergency" declared by President Obama. I guess it just never occurred to P&G management that someone that is sick from swine flu might seek relief with its Vicks Sinex product. But I'm sure the ever vigilant mainstream media will be quick to bring this question up - or not.<br />
<br />
If you ask me this looks like an exercise in damage control. I wonder how many meetings they went through where managers insisted that the product not be recalled to avoid a panic, while low level technicians kept insisting that there was a real danger to the public. The press release continues.<br />
<blockquote>This lot number is listed on both the outer carton and the bottle. <b>Consumers should simply discard the affected product as they would any OTC medicine. </b><br />
<br />
P&G is removing the product in question from store shelves and has informed regulatory authorities in the affected countries. P&G said it found the bacteria B. cepacia in a small amount of product from U.S. lot 9239028831 and is conducting testing on the U.K. and German lots that have been produced from the same batch of raw material mixture. <br />
<br />
Anyone who has these specific lots of this product can call P&G for <b>a replacement coupon or refund</b> at the following numbers...<br />
</blockquote>Yes Mr. and Ms. Consumer you would really be helping us out here in destroying the evidence by just dumping it in the trash. We wouldn't want to have an actual investigation of the facts to turn up that the "small" amount of contaminated product actually turned out to be much more. How do they know it's just a "small" amount of product? And since when is 120,000 of anything considered "small"?<br />
<br />
But remember at P&G "You're taken care of." That's really all you need to know.Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-29553345002892811232009-11-19T14:11:00.002-05:002009-11-19T15:21:47.947-05:00Time's up for Tim Geithner<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwWYVEfcphI/AAAAAAAAATE/J-veAEQxrQw/s1600/Tim%20Geithner%20nervous.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwWYVEfcphI/AAAAAAAAATE/J-veAEQxrQw/s320/Tim%20Geithner%20nervous.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
</div><br />
The way I see it at this point Timothy Geithner has two choices - either he can resign or be fired. Congress is gunning for him and eventually Obama will be forced to offer him up as a sacrifice. Of course his friends over at Goldman Sachs will do everything in their power to weather this storm. Bernanke, too, must be sweating knowing that he's next to be brought up before the congressional firing line. And Larry Summers has been hiding out of sight - maybe in one of Cheney's old bunkers.<br />
<br />
Today Tim Geithner was asked point blank to resign by Representative Kevin Brady of (R-Texas).<br />
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<br />
Yesterday Representative Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon) called for Obama to axe Geithner. <a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2008/10/congressman-defazio-says-no-bailout.html">DeFazio is one of the good guys</a> in Congress. He's clearly lost his patience with Geithner's machinations in favor of Wall Street and to the detriment of Main Street.<br />
<br />
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<br />
The chorus of boos for Geithner is growing. This comes in the aftermath of <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/17/business/17aig.html?_r=1">new revelations from SIGTARP Neil Barofsky</a> regarding Tim's handling of the AIG bailout as President of the New York Federal Reserve Bank.<br />
<br />
My advise to Tim, watch your back. That knife in the dorsal area may come from someone that you least suspect. Think you've got friends watching out for you? Think again. They'll throw you to the lions to save their hides in a New York Wall Street minute.<br />
<br />
Maybe this episode will blow over <a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/03/geithners-dollar-gaffe.html">like previous criticisms of Geithner</a>. Maybe Obama will "stand by his [Gold]man" like he has in the past. But Geithner is increasingly being maneuvered into a corner. And there are growing calls for him to be sacrificed to the populist lions.<br />
<br />
Want some more advice Tim? Better to go quietly. If you attempt to take down some of your former friends with you, it could end up very badly for you. Yeah, watch your back and go quietly. That's always good advice to someone who is involved up to his neck in a criminal conspiracy that is about to be publicly exposed.<br />
<br />
<b>Related posts</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/10/timothy-geithner-goldman-sachs-fink-in.html">Timothy Geithner: The Goldman Sachs fink in the White House</a> </li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2008/10/congressman-defazio-says-no-bailout.html">Congressman DeFazio says NO BAILOUT</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/01/goldman-sachs-secret-handshake.html">The Goldman Sachs "secret handshake"</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/03/geithners-dollar-gaffe.html">Geithner's dollar gaffe</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/03/sigtarp-is-new-sheriff-in-town.html">SIGTARP is the new sheriff in town</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/04/bill-moyers-becomes-conspiracy-theorist.html">Bill Moyers becomes a "conspiracy theorist"</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/03/us-civil-war-in-reverse-fight-new.html">The US Civil War in reverse - fight the new slavery!</a></li>
<li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2008/10/china-syndrome.html">The International Banker's China Syndrome</a></li>
</ul><b>[UPDATE - NOV 19 2:30 PM]</b><br />
<br />
I was reviewing my previous posts on Tim Geithner. The list above is just a smattering. You can get a full list by using Google to <a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=site:futurenewstoday.blogspot.com+Geithner&sourceid=opera">search my blog for Geithner</a>. I just want to highlight one post because it emphasizes the extent to which Geithner is involved in what I believe is a conspiracy to destroy the United States economically and to transfer power to China. This should be especially apparent now in the wake of President Obama's trip to China to ritually pass the baton of world leadership over to the Chinese government. I understand this sort of conspiratorial thinking is not everybody's cup of tea. But I think it is worth considering in light of the catastrophic events of the past year. I wrote this back in March 2009 as part of an article titled "<a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/03/us-civil-war-in-reverse-fight-new.html">The US Civil War in reverse - fight the new slavery!</a>".<br />
<blockquote>I highlighted that group [G30 members] because the Governor of the People's Bank of China, Zhou Xiaochuan, had become a member in 2005. It's very interesting that out of that group of 28 people, three have become key members of Obama's economic team.<br />
<ul><li>Timothy Geitner is the new Treasury Secretary.</li>
<li>Lawrence Summers is the chairman of the National Economic Council.</li>
<li>Paul Volcker is the chair of the newly formed Economic Recovery Advisory Board.</li>
</ul>Again, the test of a theory is in its ability to make accurate predictions. It's clear to me that the actions of Zhou Xiaochuan are coordinated with those of Tim Geithner. While they may pretend to be at odds, as in when Geithner seemed to threaten China with the label of "currency manipulator", they are actually engaging in a coordinated action. They had 3 years together as members of the G30 to come up with their plans. And don't try to look for any notes from the meetings because the G30 is a highly secretive organization which does not provide the public with insight into its private discussions.<br />
<br />
The reason that the International Bankers appointed Geithner to be Obama's Treasury Secretary was not because of his great public speaking abilities - he has none. Or his ability to sell the new economic plan to the American public - he's a lousy salesman. <b>The reason he was appointed is because he is an insider. He is someone who has proved he can be trusted to follow orders and not go off on his own.</b> But just in case Geithner gets any wild ideas the International Bankers have insisted on placing in the position of Geithner's chief of staff another one of their own to keep an eye on him. I'm referring here to the controversial appointment of the Goldman Sachs ex-lobbyist Mark Patterson.<br />
<br />
It's left to Obama himself to be the chief salesman and head cheerleader for the economic plan. Even Bernanke has been drafted to help in the cheerleading as seen in his 60 minutes performance. That's how bad Geithner is at handling the public spotlight. Again, he wasn't chosen for his sales ability. <b>He was chosen for his proven allegiance to the International Bankers. He has been working for their cause as President of the New York Fed for years. He never challenged them or spilled the beans on their dubious investment schemes. He participated in planning the Paulson bailout, particularly with regards to the shady dealings involving AIG. He's part of the clan. His hands are dirty. If they go down, he knows that he'll go down with them. In a word, Geithner has been "initiated".</b><br />
</blockquote>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-80860365940584904062009-11-17T23:24:00.004-05:002009-11-18T00:49:17.775-05:00The Battle for East Jerusalem<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwN27vHbbCI/AAAAAAAAASo/ZHGsT9-acOs/s1600/Al%20Quds%20under%20Zionist%20threat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwN27vHbbCI/AAAAAAAAASo/ZHGsT9-acOs/s1600/Al%20Quds%20under%20Zionist%20threat.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
As today's news confirms, there is a battle going on for Arab East Jerusalem. Today Israel has declared that it will build <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSTRE5AG50920091117">900 new housing units in East Jerusalem</a> despite the protests of the United States.<br />
<blockquote>"We are <b>dismayed at the Jerusalem Planning Committee's decision to move forward</b> on the approval process for the expansion of Gilo in Jerusalem," [White House Press Secretary Robert] Gibbs said in the statement.<br />
<br />
"The U.S. also objects to other Israeli practices in Jerusalem related to housing, including the continuing <b>pattern of evictions and demolitions of Palestinian homes</b>," he said.<br />
</blockquote>In June of this year Al Jazeera did a series on the crisis in East Jerusalem. Without international support the Palestinians will be forced out of Jerusalem.<br />
<br />
Holy Land Grab - Part 1<br />
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<br />
Holy Land Grab - Part 2<br />
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<b>UPDATE - Nov 17 11:30 PM</b><br />
<br />
I found a State Department press briefing from today that goes extensively into the issue of the latest housing units authorized by Israel in Arab East Jerusalem.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.state.gov/video/?videoid=50881031001">Daily Press Briefing</a> by Department Spokesman Ian Kelly<br />
Nov. 17, 2009<br />
Discussion of developments in East Jerusalem 7:30 - 17:10<br />
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<br />
Section of <a href="http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2009/nov/132024.htm">transcript dealing with East Jerusalem</a> and related topics.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: On the peace process, Israel has approved today the construction of 900 new housing units in East Jerusalem. How do you view this approval at this specific time? <br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, I think, Michel, you’ve heard us say many times that we believe that neither party should engage in any kind of actions that could unilaterally preempt or appear to preempt negotiations. And I think that we find the Jerusalem Planning Committee’s decision to move forward on the approval of the – approval process for the expansion of Gilo in Jerusalem as dismaying. <br />
<br />
This is at a time when we’re working to re-launch negotiations, and we believe that these actions make it more difficult for our efforts to succeed. So we object to this, and we object to other Israeli practices in Jerusalem related to housing, including the continuing pattern of evictions and demolitions of Palestinian homes. <br />
<br />
And – just to repeat what we’ve said all along, our position on Jerusalem is clear. We believe that the – that Jerusalem is a permanent status issue that must be resolved through negotiations between the two parties. <br />
<br />
QUESTION: Can you tell us, did this come up in Ambassador Mitchell’s meetings in London yesterday? Apparently, we were told that he met an advisor to Netanyahu, asked them to not permit these new buildings, and then that request was flatly turned down. <br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Yeah. Andy, I just don’t want to get into the substance of these negotiations. They’re sensitive. I think you’ve seen the Israeli – some Israeli press reports that did report that this was raised in the meetings. This is – I mean, these kinds of unilateral actions are exactly the kind of actions that we think that both sides should refrain from at a time when we’re trying to start the negotiations again. But I don’t want to get into the substance of the discussions yesterday in London. <br />
<br />
QUESTION: Would you steer us away from not believing the Israeli press reports? <br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I just don’t want to get into the substance. I’m not going to steer you one way or the other on it.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Where’s Senator Mitchell today?<br />
<br />
QUESTION: How long is the U.S. going to continue to tolerate Israel’s violation of international law? I mean, soon it’s not even going to be possible – there’s not going to be any land left for the Palestinians to establish an independent state.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, again, this is a – we understand the Israeli point of view about Jerusalem. But we think that all sides right now, at this time when we’re expending such intense efforts to try and get the two sides to sit down, that we should refrain from these actions, like this decision to move forward on an approval process for more housing units in East Jerusalem.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: But should U.S. inaction, or in response to Israel’s actions, then be interpreted as some sort of about-face in policy – the President turning his back on the promises he’s made to the Palestinians?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: You’re – okay, you’re using language that I wouldn’t use. I mean, again, our focus is to get these negotiations started. We’re calling on both parties to refrain from actions, from – and from rhetoric that would impede this process. It’s a challenging time, and we just need to focus on what’s important here, and that’s --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Well, what actions (inaudible) the Palestinians taken recently that would impede progress?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, as I say, we would discourage all unilateral actions, and I think --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Fair enough. But the Palestinians --<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: We talked yesterday --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: -- don’t appear to be taking any unilateral actions. It seems to be (inaudible).<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, we did talk yesterday about the – and I want to make sure I get my language right here – about the – discouraging any kind of unilateral appeal for United Nations Security Council recognition of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. That would fall in that category of unilateral actions. <br />
<br />
QUESTION: Okay. So the Palestinian call for this, which was rejected by both the EU and yourself yesterday, you’re putting that on the same level as them building – as the Israelis building --<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: No, I’m not saying that. You just said that, Matt. I’m not saying that. I’m just saying that --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Well, you’re saying you’re calling on both sides to stop doing these things.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: We are.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Yeah. But the rhetoric from the --<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I’m not saying they’re equivalent.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: -- Palestinians is not actually constructed in a --<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I’m not saying they’re equivalent. I’m just saying that we – they – we have to treat these things as sensitive issues.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: You said a little bit earlier that we understand the Israeli point of view on Jerusalem. Can you explain what you mean by that?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, you have to ask – I’m not going to stand up here and characterize the Israeli point of view on --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: No. I’m just asking you, if you understand the Israeli point of view on Jerusalem, why are you saying that this is not a good thing?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I’m not saying we support the Israeli point of view. We understand it.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Right. And then, last one on this, you characterized this decision by the planning commission as dismaying.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Yes.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: You can’t come up with anything stronger than “dismaying”? I mean, this flies in the face of everything you’ve been talking about for months and months and months.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: It’s dismaying.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Yeah, you can’t offer a condemnation of it or anything like that? (Laughter.) I mean, who is in charge of the language here.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I have said what I have said, Mr. Lee.<br />
<br />
Yeah.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Would you say, though, that your own envoy has – does he have any leverage at this point, given the fact that the Israelis not only refuse, but blatantly have ignored his wishes on this?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, let’s take a step back and let’s also recognize that both sides agree on the goal, and that goal is a comprehensive peace. That goal is two states living side by side in peace and security and cooperation. So that is why we continue to be committed to this. That is why Special Envoy Mitchell meets with both sides at every opportunity, and why we are continuing to expend such efforts on this. So let’s remember that, that we do share a common goal.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Well, where’s Senator Mitchell today?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I believe Senator Mitchell is on his way back today.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Could you give us just a brief synopsis of the progress that Senator Mitchell has made in his months on the job?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, I think we have – we’ve gotten --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Yeah, maybe if the --<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: -- both sides to agree on this goal. We have gotten both sides --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Ian, they agreed on the goal years ago. I mean, that’s not --<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, I think that we – this government --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: You mean you got the Israel Government to say, yes, we’re willing to accept a Palestinian state? You got Netanyahu to say that, and that’s his big accomplishment?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: That is an accomplishment.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: But previous Israeli administration – previous Israeli governments had agreed to that already.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Okay, all right.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: So in other words, the bottom line is that, in the list of accomplishments that Mitchell has come up with or established since he started, is zero.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I wouldn’t say zero.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Well, then what would you say it is?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, I would say that we’ve gotten both sides to commit to this goal. They have – we have – we’ve had a intensive round or rounds of negotiations, the President brought the two leaders together in New York. Look --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: But wait, hold on. You haven’t had any intense --<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Obviously --<br />
<br />
QUESTION: There haven’t been any negotiations.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Obviously, we’re not even in the red zone yet, okay.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Thank you.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: I mean, we’re not – but it’s – we are less than a year into this Administration, and I think we’ve accomplished more over the last year than the previous administration did in eight years.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: Well, I – really, because the previous administration actually had them sitting down talking to each other. You guys can’t even get that far.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: All right. <br />
<br />
QUESTION: I’ll drop it.<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Give us a chance. Thank you, Matt.<br />
<br />
Yeah, in the back.<br />
<br />
QUESTION: It seems Senator Mitchell is focusing in his meetings on the Israeli side. Is he – does he have any plans to talk with the Palestinians, or there is no need now for that?<br />
<br />
MR. KELLY: Well, he, as I say, he had meetings yesterday with the Israelis. He’s coming back to the U.S. now. He always stands ready to talk to both sides. There are no plans at this moment to meet with the Palestinian side.Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-69349767418576795872009-11-17T14:08:00.002-05:002009-11-17T17:16:09.588-05:00Abbas outed by his Israeli 'friends'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwLr662gRLI/AAAAAAAAASY/Ud9IAoUdnLk/s1600/Abbas+and+Obama+BFF.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwLr662gRLI/AAAAAAAAASY/Ud9IAoUdnLk/s320/Abbas+and+Obama+BFF.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
"With friends like these who needs enemies?" That is what Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas must be thinking. But if the truth be told, Abbas is well deserving of the criticism he is receiving from his Israeli allies.<br />
<br />
As Abbas tries to squirm and wriggle his way out of his current crisis, it becomes ever more apparent that the P.A. President has been caught up in his own web of deceit. In his obsession to destroy his rivals Hamas he teamed up with the Palestinian people's enemies.<br />
<br />
This became glaringly obvious when Abbas attempted to squash the Goldstone Report at the United Nations. As Abbas' credibility plummeted, his backers in the US and Israel attempted to prop him back up. But as this only caused him to be the target of more contempt among his own people, he attempted to revive his image by striking out on his own.<br />
<br />
He then engaged in a series of moves designed to portray him as being independent from his Zionist handlers. Israel however was not amused by this show of independence by its puppet. The always outspoken Israeli Foreign Minister Avidgor Lieberman <a href="http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1128735.html">took the lead in attacking Abbas</a>.<br />
<blockquote>"During Operation Cast Lead the PA pressed us to crush Hamas, and then, a month later, they filed complaints against us at the International Criminal Court at The Hague,"<br />
</blockquote>In one fell swoop Lieberman exposed the complicity between Abbas' and the Israeli government, and denounced him as a hypocrite. In so doing he confirmed the rumors that Abbas had encouraged the Israeli attacks on Gaza and that the plan was for the P.A. to "ride into Gaza on the backs of Israeli tanks."<br />
<br />
(Of course Israel and the US are not alone in backing the Vichy government of the Palestinian Authority. The EU and Egypt have also joined in on this betrayal of the Palestinian people.)<br />
<br />
As world opinion turns against the Israeli occupiers following the blatant massacre of innocent civilians in Gaza, the Zionist's attacks on their detractors becomes ever more shrill. The latest to receive a public lashing by the International Jewish Lobby is Human Rights Watch.<br />
<br />
And of course Judge Richard Goldstone has not been spared, even though he is a fellow Jew and a self-proclaimed Zionist. But he has broken the unwritten law that no Jew is allowed to publicly criticize another Jew. And as such he is being treated as a pariah by the worldwide Jewish community.<br />
<br />
Surely he could not have expected anything less. Yet somehow he seems genuinely surprised by the personal nature of the attacks that have been hurled against him.<br />
<br />
In fairness, not all Jews or Jewish organizations have joined in this attack. And some brave Jewish voices have even been raised in public support of Judge Richard Goldstone. But the unwritten code of solidarity is well known and understood, and certainly he is not receiving much sympathy for his perceived betrayal of his own people.<br />
<br />
But let us never forget the true victims, who are the Palestinian people. Whose lives have been sacrificed for no reason. Who have been living in a perpetual punishment ever since the creation of the state of Israel. And if they dare to defend themselves, they are labeled "terrorists".<br />
<br />
But who strikes with overwhelming force and who responds with whatever meager weapons are at their disposal in their defense? Who are the terrorists and who are the victims? How many more Palestinian lives must be sacrificed before Justice is carried out?Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-87079221142845689832009-11-16T14:34:00.001-05:002009-11-16T14:35:56.327-05:00Pakistan is Israel's booby prize<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwGfUNv7-7I/AAAAAAAAASQ/GeeQIKXWz0Y/s1600/Nagasaki+Atomic+Bomb+Explosion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SwGfUNv7-7I/AAAAAAAAASQ/GeeQIKXWz0Y/s320/Nagasaki+Atomic+Bomb+Explosion.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<b>Introduction</b><br />
<br />
I was listening to <a href="http://antiwar.com/radio/2009/11/15/eric-margolis-24/">Scott Horton's interview of Eric Margolis</a> on Anti-War Radio and I was so struck by a quote from Margolis that I felt compelled to write this post. Here is the quote which appears at 14:20 in the interview.<br />
<blockquote>"Most Pakistanis believe that Washington is trying to destroy Pakistan and tear it apart as a way of getting at its nuclear weapons. And of undermining an important Muslim state. And that this is being done primarily at the behest of Israel."<br />
</blockquote>While Margolis goes on to say that he does not share this view. I for one think this is a highly plausible explanation for what is going on in Pakistan.<br />
<br />
<b>War on Islam</b><br />
<br />
Attack Iran, Bomb Iran, Invade Iran.<br />
<br />
This has been Israel's mantra for years. At the most recent AIPAC convention Iran was the number one topic on the agenda. What Israel and AIPAC have been given instead is a sort of Islamic booby prize - Pakistan.<br />
<br />
Iran is Islamic and it is <i>developing</i> nukes; Pakistan is Islamic and it <i>has</i> nukes. Iran borders Afghanistan and Iraq; Pakistan borders Afghanistan and Iran.<br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">While no American or Israeli bombs are exploding over Iranian territory, bombs aplenty are raining down on Pakistan. Muslims are dying and even fighting each other, and this is the ultimate goal of the neocon monsters embedded in the US government to do Israel's bidding - to divide and conquer Islam. It is the Balkanization of any Muslim country that is seen as a threat to Israel.<br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div>Hillary Clinton promised Israel a war with Iran. When she couldn't deliver, she opted for a war with Pakistan instead. Pakistan is Israel's consolation prize.<br />
<br />
With the CIA already controlling a large part of the Pakistani military it was relatively easy to get Pakistan to launch an invasion on it's own people - plunging Pakistan into a bloody civil war. The perfectly predictable radicalization of conservative Muslim elements in Pakistan has resulted in a wave of bomb attacks against government targets. The total destabilization of the country of Pakistan has begun.<br />
<br />
Happy Israel?<br />
<br />
And the US is poised to seize control of Pakistan's nukes if it deems that they are at risk of falling into the hands of Israel's enemies.<br />
<br />
Of course India is in on this as well. And China, which is sitting on the sidelines, will probably end up being one of the biggest beneficiary of this instability in Pakistan. And the biggest loser? The Pakistani people of course, but next in line are the American people.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">The invisible war</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><i>"Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."</i><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div>It is not just through nuclear weapons that America destroys worlds. The destruction can happen just as effectively through the spiritual world as through the physical world. An invisible spiritual nuclear war is being waged on the native civilizations of the planet.<br />
<br />
Islam is the one part of the world that has not fallen under the direct control of the International Bankers. They have steadfastly refused to modernize and to become totally dependent on the financial infrastructure of the "civilized" world. They have refused to allow free access to the filthy rotten propaganda that streams continuously from Hollywood and the rest of the western media.<br />
<br />
What is to be done? They are not seduced by the western Jezebel. The alternative is to unleash the military might of the west upon them. To physically destroy what could not be destroyed through propaganda. To crush their culture so that they will become enslaved and totally dependent on the outside western world.<br />
<br />
Then like so many other denigrated cultures throughout the world, they will follow the predictable descent down the path of violence and drugs - the inevitable result of a culture crushed and cast aside by the imperial Juggernaut.Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-18171567872386849012009-11-13T18:45:00.002-05:002009-11-15T16:26:21.694-05:00Chief Sitting Bull and the Ghost Dancers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv3FwsFE5_I/AAAAAAAAASA/_Us_y4dtSDg/s1600-h/Sitting+Bull.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv3FwsFE5_I/AAAAAAAAASA/_Us_y4dtSDg/s640/Sitting+Bull.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
I was thinking about LastStandistan - I mean Afghanistan. That's 'last stand' as in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Little_Bighorn">Custer's Last Stand</a> at the Little Big Horn. I wonder what <a href="http://www.indigenouspeople.net/sittbull.htm">Chief Sitting Bull</a> of the Lakota Indians would think of the US imperial invasion of Afghanistan. Yesterday's renegade Indians are todays Muslim terrorists. Why do they hate us?<br />
<br />
Will the US Empire keep expanding until it covers the whole globe? And then what? The Moon? Mars?<br />
<br />
Words of wisdom attributed to Chief Sitting Bull.<br />
<blockquote><i>Is it wrong for me to love my own? Is it wicked for me because my skin is red? Because I am Sioux? Because I was born where my father lived? Because I would die for my people and my country?<br />
<br />
The love of possessions is a disease in them. <br />
<br />
They claim this mother of ours, the Earth, for their own use, and fence their neighbors away from her, and deface her with their buildings and their refuse.<br />
<br />
They want us to give up another chunk of our tribal land. This is not the first time or the last time.<br />
<br />
When I was a boy, the Sioux owned the world. The sun rose and set on their land; they sent ten thousand men to battle. Where are the warriors today? Who slew them? Where are our lands? Who owns them?<br />
<br />
You think I am a fool, but you are a greater fool than I am.<br />
<br />
We did not give you our land; You stole it from us.</i><br />
</blockquote>Many years ago now, I saw a movie called <a href="http://www.koyaanisqatsi.org/">Koyaanisqatsi</a>. I'll never forget that . The title of the film is from a Hopi word meaning "life of moral corruption and turmoil" or "life out of balance." Somehow this movie without words or dialogue reached me. It touched an inner place in my spirit. It raised my consciousness.<br />
<br />
I wish I could say that it has changed my life. Perhaps in subtle ways, it has affected the decisions I have made in my life. But fundamentally, I still lead the same life of frivolous consumption that I would have otherwise. What choices do we have? What alternatives does our society offer?<br />
<br />
To go hungry and beg in the streets? Not even that. While in some societies beggars are at least tolerated, here in the heart of the empire they are hustled off to prison. It's considered unseemly to have beggars on the streets of the richest and most powerful nation on the planet. Better to hide them away in 'homeless shelters' and prisons. Where they can be out of sight and out of mind. So that we can continue to delude ourselves into thinking that we live in the most just and compassionate society in the history of mankind.<br />
<br />
Don't we give to charity? Isn't that enough? A sort of 'dollar diplomacy' for the average American household; a way to soothe the guilty soul of America.<br />
<br />
Why just yesterday there was <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/nov/12/un-investigator-us-neglect-homeless">a statement from the UN rapporteur for right to adequate housing, Raquel Rolnik</a>, condemning the US for its lack of compassion towards its poor. And today there are more poor people than ever in the United States; more homeless as a result of evictions from people who have had to foreclose on homes that they could no longer afford after losing their jobs in the worst economic depression since the Great Depression of the 1930's.<br />
<blockquote>A United Nations special investigator <b>who was blocked from visiting the US by the Bush administration</b> has accused the American government of <b>pouring billions of dollars into rescuing banks and big business while treating as "invisible" a deepening homeless crisis.</b><br />
<br />
Raquel Rolnik, the UN special rapporteur for the right to adequate housing, who has just completed a seven-city tour of America, said <b>it was shameful that a country as wealthy as the US was not spending more money on lifting its citizens out of homelessness and substandard, overcrowded housing</b>. <br />
<br />
"<b>The housing crisis is invisible</b> for many in the US," she said. "I learned through this visit that <b>real affordable housing and poverty is something that hasn't been dealt with as an issue</b>. Even if we talk about the financial crisis and government stepping in in order to promote economic recovery, there is no such help for the homeless."<br />
<br />
She added: "I think those who are suffering the most in this whole situation are the very poor, the low-income population. The burden is disproportionately on them and it's of course <b>disproportionately on African-Americans, on Latinos and immigrant communities, and on Native Americans.</b>"<br />
<br />
Rolnik toured Chicago, New York, Washington, Los Angeles and Wilkes-Barre, a Pennsylvania town where this year the first four sheriff sales – public auctions of seized property – in the county included 598 foreclosed properties. <b>She also visited a Native American reservation.</b><br />
[...]<br />
Rolnik said that while she saw difficult conditions in all the places she visited, <b>the worst was on the Native American reservation of Pine Ridge in South Dakota.</b><br />
<br />
"<b>You see total hopelessness, despair</b>, very bad conditions. Nothing I have seen in other cities compared to the physical condition of the housing at Pine Ridge. Nothing compared to the overcrowding. They're not visible, they're isolated, they're far away. <b>They're just lost</b>," she said.<br />
</blockquote>Can it be that America the Beautiful, the "home of the free and the brave", is being reduced to a nation of poverty and hopelessness -- except for those fortunate few Elite who frolic in their stolen riches.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://home.comcast.net/~zebrec/">Pine Ridge Indian Reservation</a> in South Dakota - which Raquel Rolnik speaks about - is the site of Wounded Knee. To see the connection to Sitting Bull we need to traverse various pages on Wikipedia.<br />
<blockquote><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakota_people">Lakota People</a><br />
<br />
<b>The Lakota signed a treaty in 1877 ceding the Black Hills to the United States</b>, but a low-intensity war continued, culminating, fourteen years later, in <b>the killing of Sitting Bull</b> (December 15, 1890) at Standing Rock and the <b>Massacre of Wounded Knee</b> (December 29, 1890) at Pine Ridge.<br />
</blockquote><blockquote><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sitting_Bull#Death_and_burial">Sitting Bull - Death and Burial</a><br />
<br />
<b>Sitting Bull returned to the Standing Rock Agency in South Dakota after 4 months in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show.</b> In 1890 James McLaughlin, the U.S. Indian Agent at Fort Yates on Standing Rock Agency, feared that the Lakota leader was about to flee the reservation <b>with the Ghost Dancers</b>, so <b>he ordered the police to arrest Sitting Bull. On 14 December 1890</b>, McLaughlin drafted a letter to Lt. Bullhead that included instructions and an outlined plan to capture the chief. The plan called for the attack to happen during dawn on December 15, and also advised the use of a light spring wagon to facilitate the chief's removal before his followers could rally. Lt. Bullhead decided, however, not to use the wagon. Instead, the police officers would force Sitting Bull to mount a horse as soon as the arrest was made.<br />
<br />
At around 5:30 a.m. on December 15, 1890, a freezing drizzle fell as 39 police officers and 4 volunteers moved towards Sitting Bull's house. <b>They surrounded the house, knocked and entered. Lt. Bullhead told Sitting Bull that he was under arrest and led him outside.</b> At this time the camp was awake and they converged at the house of their chief. As Lt. Bullhead ordered Sitting Bull to mount the horse, he explained that the Indian affairs agent needed to see him and then he could come back to his house. However, <b>Sitting Bull refused and the police used force on him.</b> The Sioux in the village were enraged. A Sioux man known as <b>Catch-the-Bear shouldered his rifle and shot Lt. Bullhead who, in return, fired his revolver into the chest of Sitting Bull.</b> Another police officer, Red Tomahawk, <b>shot Sitting Bull in the head</b> and the chief dropped to the ground. A terrible close-quarters fight erupted and within minutes it was over. Six policemen were killed immediately and two more died shortly after the fight. <b>Sitting Bull and seven of his supporters lay dead</b> along with two horses. As the guns went off, a circus horse presented to Sitting Bull at the conclusion of his tour with Buffalo Bill Cody's Wild West Tour responded to its cue, sitting down on its haunches and offering a hoof to "shake hands."<br />
</blockquote><blockquote><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pine_Ridge_Indian_Reservation">Pine Ridge Indian Reservation</a><br />
<br />
<b>Pine Ridge Reservation was originally part of the Great Sioux Reservation established in the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868</b> and originally encompassed approximately 60 million acres (240,000 km²) of parts of South Dakota, Nebraska and Wyoming. In 1876, <b>the U.S. government violated the treaty of 1868</b> by opening up 7.7 million acres (31,000 km²) of the Black Hills to homesteaders and private interests. <b>In 1889 the remaining area of Great Sioux Reservation was divided into seven separate reservations</b>: Cheyenne River Agency, Crow Creek Agency, Lower Brule Agency, Rosebud Agency, Sisseton Agency, Yankton Agency <b>and Pine Ridge Agency</b>.<br />
<br />
<b>On December 29, 1890 at Wounded Knee, over 300 men, women and children were killed by the United States 7th Cavalry.</b> The Native Americans were being <b>transported to the Sioux reservation at Pine Ridge</b> (see: Wounded Knee massacre).<br />
<br />
<b>Starting on February 27, 1973, the reservation was the site of the Wounded Knee Incident</b>, a 71-day stand-off between entrenched American Indian Movement (AIM) activists and FBI agents and the National Guard. The AIM activists were led by Dennis Banks and Russell Means. During the firefight, two FBI agents were killed and a U.S. Marshal was paralyzed and two Oglala Lakotas were killed.<br />
</blockquote>But who were these "Ghost Dancers" that originally prompted the Indian Agent to arrest Sitting Bull and which led to his cold blooded murder? I will let <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Eastman">Ohiyesa</a> (Dr. Charles Alexander Eastman) a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santee_Sioux#Santee_.28Is.C3.A1.C5.8Byathi_or_Eastern_Dakota.29">Eastern Dakota</a> (or Santee Sioux) who knew Sitting Bull <a href="http://www.indigenouspeople.net/sittbull.htm">tell the story</a>.<br />
<blockquote>At this crisis a strange thing happened. A half-breed Indian in Nevada promulgated the news that <b>the Messiah had appeared to him upon a peak in the Rockies, dressed in rabbit skins, and bringing a message to the red race.</b> The message was to the effect that since his first coming had been in vain, since the white people had doubted and reviled him, had nailed him to the cross, and trampled upon his doctrines, <b>he had come again in pity to save the Indian.</b> He declared that <b>he would cause the earth to shake and to overthrow the cities of the whites and destroy them, that the buffalo would return, and the land belong to the red race forever!</b> These events were to come to pass within two years; and meanwhile they were to prepare for his coming by the ceremonies and dances which he commanded. <br />
<br />
<b>This curious story spread like wildfire and met with eager acceptance among the suffering and discontented people.</b> The teachings of Christian missionaries had prepared them to believe in a Messiah, and the prescribed ceremonial was much more in accord with their traditions than the conventional worship of the churches. Chiefs of many tribes sent delegations to the Indian prophet; Short Bull, Kicking Bear, and others went from among the Sioux, and on their return all inaugurated the dances at once. There was an attempt at first to keep the matter secret, but it soon became generally known <b>and seriously disconcerted the Indian agents</b> and others, who were quick to suspect a hostile conspiracy under all this religious enthusiasm. <b>As a matter of fact, there was no thought of an uprising; the dancing was innocent enough, and pathetic enough their despairing hope in a pitiful Saviour who should overwhelm their oppressors and bring back their golden age.</b><br />
</blockquote><span style="font-style: italic;">America, America</span><br />
<i>God shed his grace on thee</i><br />
<i>And crown thy good with brotherhood</i><br />
<i>From sea to shining sea.</i><br />
<br />
Remember that? Whatever happened to <i>brotherhood</i>? Is there a stock symbol for that? How much did it gain or lose on Wall Street today? Are their credit default swaps hedging against a rise in brotherhood in America? How much has Goldman Sachs invested in that in the black markets that hide the truth from the eyes of the unsuspecting American public?<br />
<br />
But now listen to Ray Charles' rendition of "America".<br />
<br />
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<br />
Maybe Ray Charles is correct in emphasizing one of the lesser known stanzas of the classic song America.<br />
<br />
<i>America, America</i><br />
<i>May God thy gold refine</i><br />
<i>Till all success be nobleness,</i><br />
<i>And every gain divine.</i><br />
<br />
Maybe life <i>is</i> all about the gold; whether its yellow gold or black gold. Or gold as in money; or gold as in land. It <i>sure</i> is in the America of today. Maybe it always was.<br />
<br />
Watch and listen to Koyaanisqatsi. Maybe it will change your life; even if it didn't change mine.<br />
<br />
<object><embed id=VideoPlayback src=http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docid=5539613947839465921&hl=en&fs=true style=width:400px;height:326px allowFullScreen=true allowScriptAccess=always type=application/x-shockwave-flash> </embed></object><br />
<br />
A closing thought from American philosopher and naturalist Henry David Thoreau from his book <a href="http://thoreau.eserver.org/walden02.html">Walden Pond</a>.<br />
<blockquote><i>"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."</i><br />
</blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv3UvlKOYwI/AAAAAAAAASI/Pef-wJx6Y88/s1600-h/Walden+Pond.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv3UvlKOYwI/AAAAAAAAASI/Pef-wJx6Y88/s400/Walden+Pond.jpg" /></a><br />
</div>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-77430859616156558542009-11-13T13:06:00.006-05:002009-11-13T14:25:28.282-05:00China's ghost economy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv2hHwU336I/AAAAAAAAARo/FPOd1tfK5Y0/s1600-h/China+sees+a+ghost.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv2hHwU336I/AAAAAAAAARo/FPOd1tfK5Y0/s400/China+sees+a+ghost.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<a href="http://www.zerohedge.com/article/other-side-chinas-8-gdp-growth-ghost-cities">China's empty 'ghost' city</a><br />
<blockquote><b>Ordos is a hyper modern city</b>, full of brand new glass walled residential and commercial buildings, yet <b>devoid of inhabitants</b>. In its attempt to present a "growing" economy, and to "invest" its $585 billion stimulus into anything and everything, courtesy of comparable idiocy on the other side of the Pacific, China's communist party is now ruling over ghost towns. One wonders just how many such "efficient" projects sustain China's magical 8% growth.<br />
</blockquote><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/0h7V3Twb-Qk&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/0h7V3Twb-Qk&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.pbs.org/pov/utopia/">The World’s Largest Shopping Mall - another 'ghost'</a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv2P1KEPXPI/AAAAAAAAARQ/HcWjM7pAiq0/s1600-h/South+China+Mall+empty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv2P1KEPXPI/AAAAAAAAARQ/HcWjM7pAiq0/s400/South+China+Mall+empty.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
Unfortunately this video cannot be embedded - watch it here.<br />
<a href="http://www.pbs.org/pov/utopia/">http://www.pbs.org/pov/utopia/</a><br />
<blockquote>The <b>largest mall in the world</b> turns out not to be the famous Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn. It’s the <b>South China Mall outside of Guangzhou, China</b>. Outdoing the techniques of American consumerism, South China Mall is Disneyland, Las Vegas and Mall of America rolled into one. There are carnival rides, mini-parks, canals and lakes amid classic Western-style buildings with space for hundreds of shops.<br />
<br />
But along with the glitz and glory of middle-class shopping, the mall’s Chinese developers seem to have imported something else — a cautionary tale of capitalist hubris. Alex Hu, a local Guangzhou boy who made it big in international business, wanted South China Mall to be a hometown monument to his success — even though Guangzhou has no major airports or highways nearby. And four years after its construction, <b>the mall sits virtually empty of both shops and shoppers</b>.<br />
</blockquote>At the root of all of this 'ghost' real estate development is corruption.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://en.secretchina.com/realchina/3488.html">Communist mantra leads to corruption in high places</a><br />
<blockquote>"To get rich is glorious" has been the mantra in communist China for 30 years,<br />
<br />
An example is Wen Qiang, a former head of the judiciary and ex deputy police chief in Chongqing, who amassed assets valued at over 100 million yuan (14.7 million dollars), but now stands accused of protecting crime bosses in exchange for 'gifts' and kickbacks.<br />
<br />
The 54-year-old is one of dozens of top judicial officials, including the former deputy head of China's top court, ensnared in high-stakes graft scandals, despite repeated Communist Party pledges and campaigns to stamp out corruption.<br />
<br />
<b>"When people like the deputy head of the Supreme Court accept bribes and engage in corruption, you can draw your own conclusions as to how serious the corruption in China's judiciary is,"</b> Beijing lawyer Mo Shaoping told AFP.<br />
<br />
Wen, who became Chongqing's top judicial official last year after 16 years on the police force, stands accused of protecting an intricate web of businessmen, officials and mobsters in the city of over 30 million people. According to state media, his misdeeds extend to shielding businesses in numerous sectors <b>such as real estate</b>, transportation, gambling and prostitution, as well as an illegal loan racket worth 30 billion yuan last year.<br />
<br />
Of the approximately 2,000 suspects who have been placed under investigation in the case, at least two dozen top city officials have been caught up in the crackdown, including Chongqing's high court deputy president, Zhang Tao.<br />
<br />
The China Youth Daily commented that: "What is more shocking than Wen Qiang's ties with businessmen and the mafia, is the role which government officials at all levels played." "If a string of government officials from top to bottom had not been linked together to form bridges, then Wen Qiang would not have had the power nor the ability to establish such a protectionism umbrella."<br />
<br />
But “that is how the country and it’s judiciary has been running since it was setup.” commented Mrs Ma, a former accountant at a state run company in China.<br />
<br />
"<b>The big issue for China is corruption</b> -- corruption is related to the fact there is no checks and balances mechanism on political power," Joseph Cheng, a political scientist at City University of Hong Kong, told AFP. "This is related to the Party wanting to maintain a monopoly on political power and not being ready to adopt restraints on power. So it is a vicious cycle that lets them not effectively fight corruption."<br />
<br />
Cheng said disclosure would be helpful, but suggested that <b>greater freedom of the press - to report on official corruption - and more oversight from the nation's rubber-stamp parliament would make anti-graft efforts more effective</b>.<br />
<br />
Mo, a high-profile Beijing rights lawyer whose firm often handles compensation cases tied to land acquisition, said <b>corruption was rife in both civil and criminal courts</b>, though bribery in civil cases was more common.<br />
<br />
Top court officials in Beijing as well as Guangdong, Hubei and Liaoning provinces have recently been convicted for taking money from attorneys in exchange for favourable rulings. The former deputy head of Beijing's Western District court, 58-year-old Guo Shengqui, was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve <b>for taking bribes and kickbacks from real estate developers</b> and lawyers.<br />
<br />
"You can know the law and you can have a clear-cut case, but <b>if the court is really corrupt, then the law does not matter</b>," said Mo.<br />
<br />
A Chinese political analyst, Jiang Weiping offered <b>a different insight</b>: The arrests of Wen Qiang and Li Qiang (another corrupt officer in Chongqing), were <b>mearly part of a political battle between Bo Xilai, He Guoqiang and Wang Yang</b>". Bo, He and Wang are all top leaders in the communist central committee.<br />
</blockquote>China's economy is a bubble just waiting to burst. The real estate development is being fueled by cheap government money and corruption. How many empty housing developments, office buildings and malls can China build before the real estate market there collapses?<br />
<br />
It would not be the first time. Back in the 1990's a similar boom in real estate in Hainan collapsed and resulted in lawsuits. Caught up in one of those lawsuits was Zhou Xiaochuan, the head of China's central bank. He and his partners were bailed out by Goldman's Sachs back when Hank Paulson was the CEO. Another person involved in this swindle was Wang Qishan, who is now Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China.<br />
<br />
Just take a look at this graphic from the New York Times.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv2cd1eUXXI/AAAAAAAAARg/WSjnejalEQw/s1600-h/Goldman+Sachs+China+connection.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Sv2cd1eUXXI/AAAAAAAAARg/WSjnejalEQw/s400/Goldman+Sachs+China+connection.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">click on image to expand</span></i><br />
</div><br />
The image comes from this New York Times article from March 4, 2005 - <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/04/business/worldbusiness/04goldman.html?pagewanted=all&position=">Horse Trading for a Venture in China</a>.<br />
<blockquote><b>What was so unusual about the Goldman deal is that a blueblood American firm was willing to pay $67 million to help the government dissolve an entirely unrelated state-owned enterprise, Hainan Securities</b>, whose officials have been accused in lawsuits of <b>embezzling millions of dollars</b> from investor accounts.<br />
<br />
Why the Chinese government chose Hainan Securities remains unclear. But Mr. Fang and another power broker at the dinner table that evening, Wang Qishan, the mayor of Beijing, had ties in Hainan Province - Mr. Wang had been Hainan's party secretary from 2002 to 2003. And Mr. Fang had overseen a <b>real estate investment</b> with Hainan Securities in the mid-90's. <br />
<br />
Goldman officials declined to comment on any aspect of the Hainan Securities money or the joint-venture loan, including what kind of collateral Mr. Fang pledged to back the loan.<br />
<br />
<b>But there is no evidence that Mr. Fang or Mr. Wang was involved in fraud at Hainan Securities, or that Goldman's donation money will benefit them in any way.</b><br />
</blockquote>No fraud? Right. The NYT's lawyers want to make it clear that they are not accusing anyone at Goldman or in China's government of fraud. It's called CYA. "Don't sue us. We never said anything about fraud. We're just reporting the facts." Then why bother even reporting this story if there is nothing fraudulent going on? Astute readers are expected to read between the lines.<br />
<br />
The corruption doesn't stop at China's borders. The corruption is in the US government, in the US Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve, in Wall Street - and especially in Goldman Sachs.<br />
<br />
<b>Related posts</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2008/10/china-syndrome.html">The International Banker's China Syndrome</a></li>
</ul>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-78510652066993218362009-11-12T11:59:00.013-05:002009-11-12T22:17:22.040-05:00US Military use of torture and terror: 1900 - Present<i>[I apologize to my readers for the inclusion of such gruesome photos. But I am afraid that without this type of photographic evidence, the point is lost. Notice that the US government has kept hidden from the public any photos of waterboarding in the current "war on terror". And have no doubt that they do exist in the files of the CIA and the US military.]</i><br />
<br />
<b>Contents</b><br />
<ul><li>Photographs of waterboarding</li>
<li>"Enhanced interrogation techniques"</li>
<li>ABC News: CIA's Harsh Interrogation Techniques Described</li>
<li>OLC Memos Define Official Waterboarding Procedure</li>
<li>The Water Cure: Debating torture and counterinsurgency—a century ago</li>
<li>The Philippine War of Independence</li>
<li>Mark Twain, New York Herald, Oct. 15, 1900</li>
<li>Conclusion</li>
<li>Related posts</li>
</ul><br />
<b>Photographs of waterboarding</b><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Water cure in Phillipines 1901<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvyQ_lXX93I/AAAAAAAAARA/LoCGfhCyKy4/s1600-h/Water+cure+in+Philippines.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvyQ_lXX93I/AAAAAAAAARA/LoCGfhCyKy4/s320/Water+cure+in+Philippines.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Waterboarding in Vietnam 1968<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvyRRs0Jg1I/AAAAAAAAARI/WBrmScvCTsE/s1600-h/Water+boarding+in+Vietnam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvyRRs0Jg1I/AAAAAAAAARI/WBrmScvCTsE/s320/Water+boarding+in+Vietnam.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<div id="sec1" style="text-align: center;">Demonstration of Waterboarding in "War on Terror" <a href="http://media.monstersandcritics.com/galleries/1120296/0129111650085.jpg">[1]</a> <a href="http://www.minnpost.com/client_files/alternate_images/2405/mp_main_wide_waterboarding.jpg">[2]</a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvwjBDJsAII/AAAAAAAAAQM/T_r2g70MwwI/s1600-h/Waterboarding+Iraq.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvwjBDJsAII/AAAAAAAAAQM/T_r2g70MwwI/s320/Waterboarding+Iraq.jpg" width="209" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Svw7llkKNhI/AAAAAAAAAQU/GnmlxFNXPyE/s1600-h/Waterboarding+demonstration.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Svw7llkKNhI/AAAAAAAAAQU/GnmlxFNXPyE/s320/Waterboarding+demonstration.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
"<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enhanced_interrogation_techniques" id="sec2">Enhanced interrogation techniques</a>"<br />
<blockquote>Enhanced interrogation techniques or alternative set of procedures were euphemisms adopted by the George W. Bush administration in the United States to describe torture and other interrogation methods used by US military intelligence and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to extract information from individuals captured in the "War on Terror" soon after the events of September 11, 2001.<br />
<br />
Many of these techniques were regarded by critics, both internationally and within the United States of America, to constitute torture or cruel and unusual punishment. In December, 2005, the United States eliminated use of these techniques by passing the Detainee Treatment Act, and limiting interrogation methods to those explicitly authorized by the United States Army Field Manual.<br />
</blockquote><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/m/screen?id=1322866" id="sec3">ABC News: CIA's Harsh Interrogation Techniques Described</a><br />
By BRIAN ROSS and RICHARD ESPOSITO<br />
November 18 2005<br />
<blockquote>The CIA sources described a list of six "Enhanced Interrogation Techniques" instituted in mid-March 2002 and used, they said, on a dozen top al Qaeda targets incarcerated in isolation at secret locations on military bases in regions from Asia to Eastern Europe. According to the sources, only a handful of CIA interrogators are trained and authorized to use the techniques:<br />
<br />
1. The Attention Grab: The interrogator forcefully grabs the shirt front of the prisoner and shakes him.<br />
<br />
2. Attention Slap: An open-handed slap aimed at causing pain and triggering fear.<br />
<br />
3. The Belly Slap: A hard open-handed slap to the stomach. The aim is to cause pain, but not internal injury. Doctors consulted advised against using a punch, which could cause lasting internal damage.<br />
<br />
4. Long Time Standing: This technique is described as among the most effective. Prisoners are forced to stand, handcuffed and with their feet shackled to an eye bolt in the floor for more than 40 hours. Exhaustion and sleep deprivation are effective in yielding confessions.<br />
<br />
5. The Cold Cell: The prisoner is left to stand naked in a cell kept near 50 degrees. Throughout the time in the cell the prisoner is doused with cold water.<br />
<br />
6. <b>Water Boarding</b>: The prisoner is bound to an inclined board, feet raised and head slightly below the feet. Cellophane is wrapped over the prisoner's face and water is poured over him. Unavoidably, the gag reflex kicks in and a <b>terrifying fear of drowning</b> leads to almost instant pleas to bring the treatment to a halt.<br />
<br />
According to the sources, CIA officers who subjected themselves to the water boarding technique lasted an average of 14 seconds before caving in. They said al Qaeda's toughest prisoner, Khalid Sheik Mohammed, won the admiration of interrogators when he was able to last between two and two-and-a-half minutes before begging to confess.<br />
<br />
"The person believes they are being killed, and as such, it <b>really amounts to a mock execution</b>, which is illegal under international law," said John Sifton of Human Rights Watch.<br />
</blockquote><a href="http://waterboarding.org/official_procedure">OLC Memos Define Official Waterboarding Procedure</a><br />
<a href="http://www.justice.gov/olc/">OLC (Office of Legal Counsel)</a> - By delegation from the Attorney General, the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the <b>Office of Legal Counsel provides authoritative legal advice to the President</b> and all the Executive Branch agencies. The Office drafts legal opinions of the Attorney General and also provides its own written opinions and oral advice in response to requests from the Counsel to the President, the various agencies of the Executive Branch, and offices within the Department. <b>Such requests typically deal with legal issues of particular complexity and importance or about which two or more agencies are in disagreement.</b> The Office also is responsible for providing legal advice to the Executive Branch <b>on all constitutional questions</b> and reviewing pending legislation for constitutionality.<br />
<blockquote>A recently declassified four memos has shed light on the recently banned practice of waterboarding. For the first time, the memos publicly describe the officially sanctioned waterboarding interrogation procedure:<br />
[...]<br />
<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Steven_G._Bradbury">Steven G Bradbury</a>, May 10 2005, p.13:<br />
<br />
13. The "waterboard". In this technique, the detainee is lying on a gurney that is inclined at an angle of 10 to 15 degrees to the horizontal, with the detainee on his back and his head toward the lower end of the gurney. A cloth is placed over the detainee's face and cold water is poured on the cloth from a height of approximately 6 to 8 inches. The wet cloth creates a barrier through which it is difficult - or in some cases not possible - to breathe. A single "application" of water may not last for more than 40 seconds, with the duration of an "application" measured from the moment when water - of whatever quantity - is first poured onto the cloth until the moment the cloth is removed from the subject's face. See August 19 Letter at 1. When the time limit is reached, the pouring of water is immediately discontinued and the cloth is removed. We understand that if the detainee makes an effort to defeat the technique (e.g. by twisting his head to the side and breathing out of the corner of his mouth), the interrogator may cup his hands around the detainee's nose and mouth to dam the runoff, in which case it would not be possible for a detainee to breathe during the application of the water. In addition, you have informed us that the technique may be applied in a manner to defeat efforts by the detainee to hold his breath by, for example, beginning an application of water as the detainee is exhaling. Either in the normal application, or where countermeasures are used, we understand that water may enter - and may accumulate in - the detainee's mouth and nasal cavity, preventing him from breathing. Either in the normal application, or where countermeasures are used, we understand that water may enter — and may accumulate in — the detainee’s mouth and nasal cavity, preventing him from breathing. In addition, you have indicated that the detainee as a countermeasure may swallow water, possibly in significant quantities. <b>For that reason; based on advice of medical personnel, the C.I.A. requires that saline solution be used instead of plain water to reduce the possibility of hyponatremia (i.e., reduced concentration of sodium in the blood) if the detainee drinks the water</b>.<br />
</blockquote>NOTE: The use of torture by the US military is nothing new. Torture and terror were routinely used during the American imperialistic war against the Philippines in the early 1900's.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/02/25/080225fa_fact_kramer?currentPage=all" id="sec4">The Water Cure: Debating torture and counterinsurgency—a century ago.</a><br />
by Paul Kramer<br />
February 25, 2008<br />
<blockquote>A letter by A. F. Miller, of the 32nd Volunteer Infantry Regiment [stationed in the Philippines], published in the Omaha World-Herald in May, 1900, told of how Miller’s unit uncovered hidden weapons by subjecting a prisoner to what he and others called the “water cure.” “Now, this is the way we give them the <b>water cure</b>,” he explained. <b>“Lay them on their backs, a man standing on each hand and each foot, then put a round stick in the mouth and pour a pail of water in the mouth and nose, and if they don’t give up pour in another pail. They swell up like toads. I’ll tell you it is a terrible torture.”</b><br />
[...]<br />
A letter from Riley had been published in the Northampton Daily Herald in March of the previous year, describing <b>the water-cure torture of Tobeniano Ealdama</b>, the presidente of the town of Igbaras, where Riley, then a sergeant in the 26th Volunteer Infantry, had been stationed. Herbert Welsh had learned of Riley, and enlisted him, among other soldiers, to testify before the committee. Amid the bullying questions of pro-war senators, Riley’s account of the events of November 27, 1900, unfolded, and it was <b>startlingly at odds with most official accounts</b>. Upon entering the town’s convent, which had been seized as a headquarters, Riley had witnessed Ealdama being bound and forced full of water, while <b>supervised by a contract surgeon and Captain Edwin Glenn, a judge advocate</b>. Ealdama’s throat had been “held so he could not prevent swallowing the water, so that he had to allow the water to run into his stomach”; the water was then “forced out of him by pressing a foot on his stomach or else with [the soldiers’] hands.” The ostensible goal of the water cure was to obtain intelligence: after a second round of torture, carried out in front of the convent by a “water detail” of five or six men, <b>Ealdama confessed</b> to serving as a captain in the insurgency. He then led U.S. forces into the bush in search of insurgents. After their return to Igbaras, that night, <b>Glenn had ordered that the town, consisting of between four and five hundred houses, be burned to the ground</b>, as Riley explained, “on account of the condition of affairs exposed by the treatment.”<br />
[...]<br />
The trial [of Glenn] lasted a week. When Ealdama testified about his experience—“My stomach and throat pained me, and also the nose where they passed the salt water through”—Glenn interrupted, trying to minimize the man’s suffering by claiming (incorrectly) that Ealdama had stated that he had experienced pain only “as [the water] passed through.” <b>Glenn defended his innocence by defending the water cure itself. He maintained that the torture of Ealdama was “a legitimate exercise of force under the laws of war,” being “justified by military necessity.”</b> In making this case, <b>Glenn shifted the focus to the enemy’s tactics</b>. He emphasized the treachery of Ealdama, who had been tried and convicted by a military commission a year earlier as <b>a “war traitor,” for aiding the insurgency</b>. Testimony was presented by U.S. military officers and Filipinos concerning <b>the insurgency’s guerrilla tactics, which violated the norms of “civilized war.”</b> Found guilty, <b>Glenn was sentenced to a one-month suspension and a fifty-dollar fine. “The court is thus lenient,”</b> the sentence read, “on account of the circumstances as shown in evidence.” (Glenn retired from the Army, in 1919, as a brigadier general.) Meanwhile, <b>Ealdama, twice tortured by Glenn’s forces, was serving a sentence of ten years’ hard labor</b>; he had been temporarily released to enable him to testify against his torturer.<br />
[...]<br />
Davis [one of the Judge advocates in the Glenn trial] conceded that, in a “rare or isolated case,” force might legitimately be used in “obtaining the unwilling service” of a guide, if justified as a “measure of emergency.” But a careful examination of the events preceding the tortures at Igbaras revealed that “no such case existed.” Furthermore, <b>Glenn had described the water cure as “the habitual method of obtaining information from individual insurgents”</b>—in other words, as “a method of conducting operations.” But the operational use of torture, Davis stressed, was strictly forbidden. Regarding a subsequent water-cure court-martial, he wrote, “<b>No modern state, which is a party to international law, can sanction, either expressly or by a silence which imports consent, a resort to torture with a view to obtain confessions</b>, as an incident to its military operations.” Otherwise, he inquired, “where is the line to be drawn?”<br />
[...]<br />
When, during the committee hearings, Senator Joseph Rawlins had asked General Robert Hughes <b>whether the burning of Filipino homes by advancing U.S. troops was “within the ordinary rules of civilized warfare,” </b>Hughes had replied succinctly, <b>“These people are not civilized.”</b> More generally, some people, while conceding that American soldiers had engaged in “cruelties,” insisted that the behavior reflected <b>the barbaric sensibilities of the Filipinos</b>. “I think I know why these things have happened,” Lodge [Senator Henry Cabot Lodge - Mass] offered in a Senate speech in May. They had “grown out of the conditions of warfare, of the war that was waged by the Filipinos themselves, <b>a semicivilized people, with all the tendencies and characteristics of Asiatics</b>, with the Asiatic indifference to life, with the Asiatic treachery and the Asiatic cruelty, all tinctured and increased by three hundred years of subjection to Spain.”<br />
[...]<br />
<b>[President Theodore] Roosevelt</b> was convinced that <b>“nobody was seriously damaged,”</b> whereas <b>“the Filipinos had inflicted incredible tortures upon our own people.”</b> Still, he wrote, <b>“torture is not a thing that we can tolerate.”</b><br />
[...]<br />
There was, of course, <b>an easier way than argument to end the debate</b>. On July 4, 1902 (as if on cue from John Philip Sousa), <b>Roosevelt declared victory in the Philippines</b>. Remaining <b>insurgents would be politically downgraded to “brigands.”</b><br />
[...]<br />
As early as April 16, 1902, the New York World <b>described the “American Public” sitting down to eat its breakfast with a newspaper full of Philippine atrocities</b>:<br />
<br />
<i>It sips its coffee and reads of its soldiers administering the “water cure” to rebels; of how water with <b>handfuls of salt thrown in to make it more efficacious</b>, is forced down the throats of the patients until their bodies become distended to the point of bursting; of how our soldiers then jump on the distended bodies to force the water out quickly so that the “treatment” can begin all over again. <b>The American Public takes another sip of its coffee and remarks, “How very unpleasant!”</b></i><br />
</blockquote>NOTE: What the CIA has done through waterboarding is to make this method more "efficient". Because in the old method too many prisoners died and could therefore not be further tortured. The salt was originally added because it was an irritant, but now the salt is added to keep the victim from dying from water poisoning. It is not more humane, in fact it is more sadistic.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_War" id="sec5">The Philippine War of Independence</a><br />
<blockquote>The shift to guerrilla warfare [by the Philippine army], however, only angered the Americans into acting more ruthlessly than before. <b>They began taking no prisoners, burning whole villages, and routinely shooting surrendering Filipino soldiers. Civilians were forced into concentration camps</b>, after being suspected of being guerrilla sympathizers. Thousands of civilians died in these camps. The camps and slaughter of civilians was excused by the fact that <b>the media told the American population that the savages were little children needing America's help and cleansing</b>. The guerilla warfare helped this case by giving a moral right to what the American's were doing since <b>the "savages" were cowardly uncivilized enemies.</b><br />
[...]<br />
In November 1901, the Manila correspondent of the Philadelphia Ledger reported:"The present war is no bloodless, opera bouffe engagement; <b>our men have been relentless, have killed to exterminate men, women, children, prisoners and captives, active insurgents and suspected people from lads of ten up, the idea prevailing that the Filipino as such was little better than a dog...."</b><br />
[...]<br />
<b>Private Charles Brenner</b> of the Kansas regiment resisted such pressure. He insisted that <b>Colonel Funston had ordered that all prisoners be shot</b> and that Major Metcalf and Captain Bishop enforced these orders. Otis was obliged to order the Northern Luzon sector commander, General MacArthur, to look into the charge. Brenner confronted MacArthur’s aide with a corroborating witness, Private Putman, who confessed to shooting two prisoners after Bishop or Metcalf ordered, <b>“Kill them! Damn it, Kill them!”</b> MacArthur sent his aide’s report on to Otis with no comment. <b>Otis ordered Brenner court-martialed</b> “for writing and conniving at the publication of an article which... contains willful falsehoods concerning himself and a false charge against Captain Bishop.” The judge advocate in Manila convinced Otis that such a trial could open a Pandora’s box because “facts would develop implicating many others.”<br />
<br />
General Otis sent the Brenner case to Washington writing: “After mature deliberation, I doubt the wisdom of court-martial in this case, as it would give the insurgent authorities a knowledge of what was taking place and they would assert positively that our troops had practiced inhumanities, whether the charge should be proven or not, as they would use it as an excuse to defend their own barbarities; and <b>it is not thought that his charge is very grievous under the circumstances then existing, as it was very early in the war, and the patience of our men was under great strain.</b>”<br />
[...]<br />
The most conclusive evidence that <b>the enemy wounded were being killed</b>, came from the official reports of Otis and his successor, General Arthur MacArthur, Jr., which claimed <b>fifteen Filipinos killed for every one wounded</b>. In the American Civil War, <b>the ratio had been five wounded for every soldier killed, which is close to historical norm</b>. Otis attempted to explain this anomaly by the superior marksmanship of rural southerners and westerners in the U.S. military, who had hunted all their lives. <b>MacArthur added a racial twist, asserting that Anglo-Saxons do not succumb to wounds as easily as do men of “inferior races.”</b><br />
</blockquote><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_War#Quotations">Mark Twain, New York Herald, Oct. 15, 1900</a><br />
<blockquote>I have read carefully the treaty of Paris, and I have seen that <b>we do not intend to free, but to subjugate the people of the Philippines. We have gone there to conquer, not to redeem.</b> It should, it seems to me, be <b>our pleasure and duty to make those people free</b>, and let them deal with their own domestic questions in their own way. <b>And so I am an anti-imperialist.</b> I am opposed to having the eagle put its talons on any other land.<br />
</blockquote><b id="sec6">Conclusion</b><br />
<br />
The parallels between the conduct of the US military in the Philippines War in 1900 and the current "war on terror" should be obvious. The lesson that has been learned by the military is not to declare an official war in the first place. This way the enemy need not be treated as an army and therefore the rules of conduct for war do not apply. This is what the US military did in the Philippines in 1902 by declaring victory and from thereon treating the Philippine army as "brigands" - the equivalent of today's "enemy combatants".<br />
<br />
<b id="sec7">Related posts</b><br />
<ul><li><b><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/11/mark-twain-on-armistice-day.html">Reflections on Mark Twain on Armistice Day</a></b></li>
<li><b><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/04/twilight-and-breaking-dawn-of.html">Twilight and breaking dawn of civilizations</a></b></li>
</ul>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-53597552167735039262009-11-11T15:53:00.012-05:002009-11-11T20:14:49.529-05:00Reflections on Mark Twain on Armistice Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Svsehk3UTNI/AAAAAAAAAPs/npGnr2gfpog/s1600-h/Mark+Twain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/Svsehk3UTNI/AAAAAAAAAPs/npGnr2gfpog/s400/Mark+Twain.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
I am a great admirer of Mark Twain. His real name was Samuel Clemens. I, in some sense, based my internet <i>nom de plume</i>, Frank Hope, on his familiar pseudonym. They both consist of two simple names of one syllable each. Both names are also words in their own right, and together they form a sort of poetic phrase.<br />
<br />
Twain lived from 1835 to 1910. And although he passed away nearly a century ago, his voice sounds fresh and modern to our ears. In fact, I think it is Twain that taught Americans how to write in a modern way. His terse simplicity and the conversational tone of his writing are elements that we take for granted today, but must have seemed like a revelation to his contemporary audience.<br />
<br />
Today is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veterans_Day">Armistice Day</a>. A day in which we should remember all the soldiers who fought on all the battlefields of the world. Whether in a winning cause or a losing cause, or more likely in a lost cause. Since all wars are by their nature lost causes. The ends can never justify the means, and nowhere is this more true than in the ultimate form of brutality practiced by humankind - which is war.<br />
<br />
I will let Kurt Vonnegut explain <a href="http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Kurt_Vonnegut">the true meaning of Armistice Day</a>.<br />
<blockquote><i>I will come to a time in my backwards trip when November eleventh, accidentally my birthday, was a sacred day called Armistice Day. When I was a boy, and when Dwayne Hoover was a boy, all the people of all the nations which had fought in the First World War were silent during the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of Armistice Day, which was the eleventh day of the eleventh month.<br />
<br />
It was during that minute in nineteen hundred and eighteen, that millions upon millions of human beings stopped butchering one another. I have talked to old men who were on battlefields during that minute. They have told me in one way or another that the sudden silence was the Voice of God. So we still have among us some men who can remember when God spoke clearly to mankind.<br />
<br />
Armistice Day has become Veterans' Day. Armistice Day was sacred. Veterans' Day is not.<br />
<br />
So I will throw Veterans' Day over my shoulder. Armistice Day I will keep. I don't want to throw away any sacred things.<br />
<br />
What else is sacred? Oh, Romeo and Juliet, for instance.<br />
<br />
And all music is.</i><br />
</blockquote>Please pause and reflect upon these words.<br />
<br />
Kurt Vonnegut was one of those writers who, like Mark Twain, opened my eyes. I read quite a few of his novels as a young man. I don't remember them in any detail now. Sadly I lost the pleasure of reading novels. But I think it was in "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slaughterhouse-Five">Slaughterhouse-Five</a>" when Vonnegut described the bombing of Dresden that I first truly realized the horror of war. And not just that. But the fact that this true horror was being hidden from us. So that we could continue feeling good about ourselves and proud in our achievements of winning the war and slaughtering millions.<br />
<br />
I have been blessed and never had to face the horror of war. I never had to don the uniform of a national army nor endure the humiliation of "basic training". I have tried to avoid in my life any involvement in the mass-murder economy that nourishes the belly of the beast. And yet I have reaped the benefits of those mass slaughters by my very citizenship as an American.<br />
<br />
It took many years, but I finally came to realize that my opposition to the wars that America is addicted to fighting is a form of patriotism. And not only that, but it is a much truer form of patriotism than that practiced by those whose refrain is "Love it or leave it". America is much more than this global empire which dominates the world militarily and economically.<br />
<br />
America at its best, as Martin Luther King said, is a dream. It is a concept that "all men are created equal". It is a shining light among nations as symbolized by the Statue of Liberty. There is the America that lives in our hearts, like a heavenly vision in the clouds; and there is the America that rains death and destruction on innocent Iraqis and Afghans half way around the world.<br />
<br />
If liberty is just a cloak to hide the murderous monster that lurks beneath, then it loses all its virtue.<br />
<br />
Mark Twain wrote a story titled "<a href="http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_War_Prayer">The War Prayer</a>" in response to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine-American_War">Philippine war</a> launched by the United States to crush the Philippine independence movement in 1899. Twain's response reminds me of Henry David Thoreau's "<a href="http://www.transcendentalists.com/civil_disobedience.htm">Civil Disobedience</a>", which was his reply to the US invasion of Mexico a half century earlier in 1849. Both of these great Americans remind us of the deep longing for freedom and justice that is the essence of the American Dream.<br />
<br />
Twain did more than just write a story to protest the American invasion of the Philippines, he was also one of the founders of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Imperialist_League">American Anti-Imperialist League</a>. It is high time to revive the Anti-Imperialist League and turn it into a powerful political movement that encompasses people from the right and the left who truly understand the American Dream. And who understand how that dream is corrupted by the imperial lusting for new lands to conquer and rape.<br />
<br />
Mark Twain wrote in 1900<br />
<blockquote><i>I have read carefully the treaty of Paris, and I have seen that we do not intend to free, but to subjugate the people of the Philippines. We have gone there to conquer, not to redeem. It should, it seems to me, be our pleasure and duty to make those people free, and let them deal with their own domestic questions in their own way. And so I am an anti-imperialist. I am opposed to having the eagle put its talons on any other land.</i><br />
</blockquote>I have no doubt that if Mark Twain were alive today, he would be just as vehemently opposed to the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; and for exactly the same reasons.<br />
<br />
Here <a href="http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_War_Prayer">in its entirety</a> is<br />
<br />
<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">The War Prayer</span></b><br />
<i>by Mark Twain</i><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It was a time of great and exalting excitement. The country was up in arms, the war was on, in every breast burned the holy fire of patriotism; the drums were beating, the bands playing, the toy pistols popping, the bunched firecrackers hissing and spluttering; on every hand and far down the receding and fading spread of roofs and balconies a fluttering wilderness of flags flashed in the sun; daily the young volunteers marched down the wide avenue gay and fine in their new uniforms, the proud fathers and mothers and sisters and sweethearts cheering them with voices choked with happy emotion as they swung by; nightly the packed mass meetings listened, panting, to patriot oratory which stirred the deepest deeps of their hearts, and which they interrupted at briefest intervals with cyclones of applause, the tears running down their cheeks the while; in the churches the pastors preached devotion to flag and country, and invoked the God of Battles beseeching His aid in our good cause in outpourings of fervid eloquence which moved every listener. It was indeed a glad and gracious time, and the half dozen rash spirits that ventured to disapprove of the war and cast a doubt upon its righteousness straightway got such a stern and angry warning that for their personal safety's sake they quickly shrank out of sight and offended no more in that way.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Sunday morning came – next day the battalions would leave for the front; the church was filled; the volunteers were there, their young faces alight with martial dreams – visions of the stern advance, the gathering momentum, the rushing charge, the flashing sabers, the flight of the foe, the tumult, the enveloping smoke, the fierce pursuit, the surrender! Then home from the war, bronzed heroes, welcomed, adored, submerged in golden seas of glory! With the volunteers sat their dear ones, proud, happy, and envied by the neighbors and friends who had no sons and brothers to send forth to the field of honor, there to win for the flag, or, failing, die the noblest of noble deaths. The service proceeded; a war chapter from the Old Testament was read; the first prayer was said; it was followed by an organ burst that shook the building, and with one impulse the house rose, with glowing eyes and beating hearts, and poured out that tremendous invocation</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">God the all-terrible! Thou who ordainest! Thunder thy clarion and lightning thy sword!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Then came the "long" prayer. None could remember the like of it for passionate pleading and moving and beautiful language. The burden of its supplication was, that an ever-merciful and benignant Father of us all would watch over our noble young soldiers, and aid, comfort, and encourage them in their patriotic work; bless them, shield them in the day of battle and the hour of peril, bear them in His mighty hand, make them strong and confident, invincible in the bloody onset; help them to crush the foe, grant to them and to their flag and country imperishable honor and glory –</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">An aged stranger entered and moved with slow and noiseless step up the main aisle, his eyes fixed upon the minister, his long body clothed in a robe that reached to his feet, his head bare, his white hair descending in a frothy cataract to his shoulders, his seamy face unnaturally pale, pale even to ghastliness. With all eyes following him and wondering, he made his silent way; without pausing, he ascended to the preacher's side and stood there waiting. With shut lids the preacher, unconscious of his presence, continued with his moving prayer, and at last finished it with the words, uttered in fervent appeal, "Bless our arms, grant us the victory, O Lord our God, Father and Protector of our land and flag!"</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The stranger touched his arm, motioned him to step aside – which the startled minister did – and took his place. During some moments he surveyed the spellbound audience with solemn eyes, in which burned an uncanny light; then in a deep voice he said:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"I come from the Throne – bearing a message from Almighty God!" The words smote the house with a shock; if the stranger perceived it he gave no attention. "He has heard the prayer of His servant your shepherd, and will grant it if such shall be your desire after I, His messenger, shall have explained to you its import – that is to say, its full import. For it is like unto many of the prayers of men, in that it asks for more than he who utters it is aware of – except he pause and think.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"God's servant and yours has prayed his prayer. Has he paused and taken thought? Is it one prayer? No, it is two – one uttered, the other not. Both have reached the ear of Him Who heareth all supplications, the spoken and the unspoken. Ponder this – keep it in mind. If you would beseech a blessing upon yourself, beware! lest without intent you invoke a curse upon a neighbor at the same time. If you pray for the blessing of rain upon your crop which needs it, by that act you are possibly praying for a curse upon some neighbor's crop which may not need rain and can be injured by it.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"You have heard your servant's prayer – the uttered part of it. I am commissioned of God to put into words the other part of it – that part which the pastor – and also you in your hearts – fervently prayed silently. And ignorantly and unthinkingly? God grant that it was so! You heard these words: 'Grant us the victory, O Lord our God!' That is sufficient. the whole of the uttered prayer is compact into those pregnant words. Elaborations were not necessary. When you have prayed for victory you have prayed for many unmentioned results which follow victory – must follow it, cannot help but follow it. Upon the listening spirit of God fell also the unspoken part of the prayer. He commandeth me to put it into words. Listen!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"O Lord our Father, our young patriots, idols of our hearts, go forth to battle – be Thou near them! With them – in spirit – we also go forth from the sweet peace of our beloved firesides to smite the foe. O Lord our God, help us to tear their soldiers to bloody shreds with our shells; help us to cover their smiling fields with the pale forms of their patriot dead; help us to drown the thunder of the guns with the shrieks of their wounded, writhing in pain; help us to lay waste their humble homes with a hurricane of fire; help us to wring the hearts of their unoffending widows with unavailing grief; help us to turn them out roofless with little children to wander unfriended the wastes of their desolated land in rags and hunger and thirst, sports of the sun flames of summer and the icy winds of winter, broken in spirit, worn with travail, imploring Thee for the refuge of the grave and denied it – for our sakes who adore Thee, Lord, blast their hopes, blight their lives, protract their bitter pilgrimage, make heavy their steps, water their way with their tears, stain the white snow with the blood of their wounded feet! We ask it, in the spirit of love, of Him Who is the Source of Love, and Who is the ever-faithful refuge and friend of all that are sore beset and seek His aid with humble and contrite hearts. Amen.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">(After a pause.) "Ye have prayed it; if ye still desire it, speak! The messenger of the Most High waits!"</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It was believed afterward that the man was a lunatic, because there was no sense in what he said.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Related links</b><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/06/spirit-of-palestinians.html">The Spirit of the Palestinians</a> - Reflections on the Palestinians and Henry David Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience".</li>
</ul>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-81777861292475335822009-11-08T11:30:00.005-05:002009-11-09T15:27:53.863-05:00TAPI? No thanks, I just had lunch.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvbNd8J-hKI/AAAAAAAAAPU/_O1Qt7nyJCY/s1600-h/Major_ethnic_groups_of_Pakistan_in_1980.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvbNd8J-hKI/AAAAAAAAAPU/_O1Qt7nyJCY/s400/Major_ethnic_groups_of_Pakistan_in_1980.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">click on map to enlarge</span></i><br />
</div><br />
<i>Get ready to hear about Balochistan aka Baluchistan. What you won't hear about - but you should - is the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) pipeline.</i><br />
<br />
<b>Balochistan? Nope, never heard of it.</b><br />
<br />
Until recently no one in the US had heard of South Waziristan either. We were told that South Waziristan in Pakistan is where the Taliban is operating from, which is why we have been bombing it with drone attacks; and we have coerced the Pakistan Army into launching an offensive in the area. In the process thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes, creating a new refugee problem.<br />
<br />
In a major new piece of propaganda from the BBC, the US-UK axis of evil has announced its intention of expanding the AfPak war into Balochistan. Here is the insidious article from the BBC titled "<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8348796.stm">Pakistan's Taliban dilemma</a>".<br />
<br />
The article starts out innocently enough.<br />
<blockquote>Despite their fierce reputation, <b>Afghans are mostly gentle, thoughtful people</b> - deeply courteous, with warm humanity that radiates from luminous eyes.<br />
</blockquote>"How refreshing," you might think. But this is just a ploy - a trick in the handbag of the propagandist - to lower your defenses.<br />
<br />
The real article doesn't begin until a few paragraphs later. Despite the proclamation of how "gentle" the Afghan people are, the article quickly becomes another hate piece against the Taliban. That's curious because the Taliban are also Afghans - just not the "gentle, thoughtful" kind. Of course it is necessary to demonize the enemy in war. How else can we justify the murder of our fellow human beings?<br />
<br />
The real article begins here.<br />
<blockquote>The Afghan Taliban leadership and sources of supply are not even in Afghanistan, they are <b>in Pakistan - in Quetta</b>, a city just across the mountains from Kandahar where so many British and American troops have died.<br />
</blockquote>You would be justified in assuming that Quetta is in South Waziristan since this is where the public has been told previously that the Taliban is operating from; you would be wrong. Quetta is the capital of the Pakistani province of Balochistan - a fact the article fails to mention. But Balochistan has a dual meaning - it is also the name of the region inhabited by the Balochi people. In this sense it is a region encompassing areas of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq. Just take a look at the map at the top of this article.<br />
<br />
So now we're being told that the Taliban is in Quetta. So naturally the US-UK axis of evil must launch military attacks against the enemy. And of course all of this is being done to protect the "gentle, thoughtful" people of Afghanistan. Yes, of course. It's simply a coincidence that the proposed TAPI pipeline runs straight through Quetta. Yes, of course.<br />
<br />
<b>Welcome to Pipeline-istan</b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvbVF58KNwI/AAAAAAAAAPc/rRsZByPC9RM/s1600-h/TAPI+and+IPI+Pipelines.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvbVF58KNwI/AAAAAAAAAPc/rRsZByPC9RM/s400/TAPI+and+IPI+Pipelines.gif" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">click on map to enlarge</span></i><br />
</div><br />
The green pipeline on the map above is the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) pipeline. It will link the gas fields in Turkmenistan to the outside world - principally India. The red pipeline is the IPI (Iran-Pakistan-India) pipeline which is considered untenable by the US-UK axis of evil. The reason is plain from the map. It originates in Iran, which has been declared a pariah state by the US-UK.<br />
<br />
In order to secure the path of the TAPI pipeline, Balochistan must be under the control of the US-UK axis. This control will also ensure that the competing IPI pipeline from Iran will never be built.<br />
<br />
But as I stated previously, Balochistan is more than just a province of Pakistan - it is a whole region where the Balochis live that spills over into Afghanistan and Iran. So widening the war into Quetta will result in bringing the Balochis into the AfPak war.<br />
<br />
And the Balochis already have a resistance movement which is active in Pakistan and Iran. So this could horribly complicate things. I honestly cannot fathom how it can be worth the lives of so many Afghan and Pakistani people to bring gas from Turkmenistan to the world markets. And why is it mostly US troops that must fight this war when the gas will end up going to India. There must be huge sums of money and stake, but is that a reason to subjugate whole nations?<br />
<br />
And India must be gleeful to see Pakistan dissolving into a bloody civil war. Poor Pakistan has got the worst of it. For a while the ISI, the intelligence service of Pakistan, seemed to handle Afghanistan pretty well - even after 9/11. But it has literally blown up in their faces since the Obama administration took office.<br />
<br />
I'm sorry. I don't mean to be insensitive to the Pakistanis by saying it has "blown up". But how can one avoid the conclusion that the violence that has spread all over Pakistan has been caused by the Obama administration's decision to widen the war in Afghanistan into Pakistan?<br />
<br />
Oddly enough, in order for the US-UK strategy of controlling Balochistan to succeed, they will need the cooperation of Tehran. Otherwise the Iranians could easily arm the Balochis to fight the NATO forces. But Tehran's cooperation will probably not be that difficult to obtain. Tehran has been fighting a Balochi insurrection for years and will most likely be more than happy to cooperate in this area.<br />
<br />
Of course the Iranians will want something in return. Perhaps this is why there has been a cooling of rhetoric against the Iranians from Washington lately. Who knows what deals are being worked out in the corridors of power. And so the Great Game continues, and people in Central Asia continue to be cast aside like easily dispensable pawns.<br />
<br />
This article is just my humble attempt to summarize this information. To more fully understand the situation in Central Asia I highly recommend reading Pepe Escobar's series of article about what he calls 'Pipeline-istan'.<br />
<br />
Start with this article, "<a href="http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/KE09Df03.html">Balochistan is the ultimate prize</a>". <br />
Then I suggest reading this "<a href="http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/KF04Df04.html">The shadow war in Balochistan</a>". <br />
Then continue reading the <a href="http://www.atimes.com/atimes/others/Escobar.html">rest of Pepe's articles</a> at <a href="http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page.html">Asia Times Online</a>.<br />
<br />
<b>It's as real as it gets, baby</b><br />
<br />
And just in case you still don't think the TAPI pipeline is real or you think this is just some kooky conspiracy theory, here is an article that affirms its existence. Not surprisingly, this article is not from the mainstream media.<br />
<br />
From Turkmenistan.ru - <a href="http://www.turkmenistan.ru/?page_id=3&lang_id=en&elem_id=8859&type=event&sort=date_desc">Gas pipeline project Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India approved</a><br />
November 2006<br />
<blockquote>The participants of the regional conference held in New Delhi supported the project for constructing a <b>gas pipeline between Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India (TAPI)</b>, ITAR TASS reported. <br />
<br />
During the final press-conference, Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Rangin Dadfar urged Islamabad to give his country a transport transit through the territory of Pakistan to India. "<b>We hope that Pakistan will open its territory for an international pipeline to India</b> as soon as possible, so that we can strengthen cooperation in the region and implement recommendations of the conference," he said.<br />
<br />
According to the minister, it would <b>allow Afghanistan to realize its potential as an "energy bridge between Central and Southeast Asia"</b>. The two-day forum in the Indian capital was attended by officials from 18 countries, including Russia and about 10 international organizations. <b>The delegation of Afghanistan was headed by Afghan President Hamid Karzai. </b><br />
<br />
As Turkmenistan.ru already reported, in 2005, Asian Development Bank submitted to the ministers of oil and gas industry and mineral resources of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India the final version of feasibility study of the Trans-Afghan gas pipeline <b>designed by British company Penspen</b>. The pipes will be 1,420 mm in diameter and will transport gas at a working pressure of 100 atmospheres. It will have a capacity of 33 billion cu m of natural gas per year. The 1,680 km pipeline will <b>cost an estimated US $3.3 bln</b> (2.5 bln euro). <b>TAPI will run from the Dovetabat gas deposit in Turkmenistan to the Indian town of Fazilka</b>, near the border between Pakistan and India. 6 compressor stations are to be constructed along the pipeline.<br />
</blockquote>So now you know. It's not a secret anymore. Karzai and a select group of his friends will get fabulously wealthy from the transit fees, while the rest of the Afghans will not benefit at all. That's the way it works in an oligarchy.<br />
<br />
<b>Paid for by your tax dollars</b><br />
<br />
Yes, energy is power. And India will need lots of energy to continue its growth. And it is the US military that will be the ones that guarantee that this happens. And of course this will also mean big profits for the transnational oil and gas companies owned by the Elite. So our young men and women will continue to sacrifice their lives so that the rich can get richer. Will the American people come to realize this before it is too late?<br />
<br />
-------------<br />
<br />
<b>UPDATE: Nov 9</b><br />
<br />
By popular demand I'm adding the video of the <a href="http://www.countryjoe.com/">Country Joe McDonald</a> "Feel Like I'm Fixing To Die" rag performance from <a href="http://www.woodstockstory.com/">Woodstock</a> back in the summer of '69 at the height of the <a href="http://thewall-usa.com/">Vietnam War</a>.<br />
<br />
<object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/l4xD8j8ye9k&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/l4xD8j8ye9k&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />
<br />
<i>Come on all of you big strong men<br />
Uncle Sam needs your help again<br />
he's got himself in a terrible jam<br />
way down yonder in Viet Nam so<br />
put down your books and pick up a gun we're<br />
gonna have a whole lotta fun<br />
<br />
And it's one, two, three, what are we fighting for<br />
don't ask me I don't give a damn, next stop is Viet Nam <br />
And it's five, six, seven, open up the pearly gates<br />
ain't no time to wonder why, whoopee we're all gonna die<br />
<br />
Come on wall street don't be slow<br />
why man this war is a go-go<br />
there's plenty good money to be made by<br />
supplying the army with the tools of its trade<br />
let's hope and pray that if they drop the bomb,<br />
they drop it on the Viet Cong<br />
<br />
Come on generals, let's move fast<br />
your big chance has come at last<br />
now you can go out and get those reds <br />
cos the only good commie is the one that's dead and<br />
you know that peace can only be won when we've<br />
blown 'em all to kingdom come<br />
<br />
Come on mothers throughout the land<br />
pack your boys off to Viet Nam <br />
come on fathers don't hesitate<br />
send your sons off before it's too late<br />
and you can be the first ones on your block<br />
to have your boy come home in a box</i>Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4030388666382918203.post-54924912388399173012009-11-07T15:49:00.005-05:002009-11-07T19:44:25.694-05:00The Pirates of the Mediterranean aka Israel's Navy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvXZ5N-4k-I/AAAAAAAAAO8/0eGRDLN7PPE/s1600-h/Francop+London.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvXZ5N-4k-I/AAAAAAAAAO8/0eGRDLN7PPE/s320/Francop+London.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvXaDOokFUI/AAAAAAAAAPM/pgYsvAcijFk/s1600-h/Francop+St+Johns.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_O2JHv7M-9RE/SvXaDOokFUI/AAAAAAAAAPM/pgYsvAcijFk/s320/Francop+St+Johns.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<b>UPDATE</b>: In a statement today (Nov 7) UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon <a href="http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1101966&lang=eng_news">condemned recent Israel-Hezbollah violations</a>. What's strange about this statement is that the Sec-Gen does not mention anything about the Francop. Likewise the American government has not made any statements about this supposed arms shipment - no statements from President Obama or Secretary of State Clinton. All of this adds to my suspicion that this Israeli false flag operation has no credibility. Equally strange is that the prior alleged arms shipment to Syria aboard the Hansa India is not being mentioned in the context of the Francop. Why is the Hansa India shipment being quietly swept under the rug? Maybe there was some CIA connection with that shipment. Don't forget the Iran-Contra affair.<br />
<br />
<i>This is not a formal post, but a collection of my notes from investigating the Israeli pirates capture of the Francop in international waters. It started as a comment in response to Nolocontendere's excellent post on the blog </i><a href="http://piglipstick.blogspot.com/"><i>Piglipstick</i></a><i> titled "</i><a href="http://piglipstick.blogspot.com/2009/11/fish-grow-larger-too-with-each.html"><i>Fish Grow Larger Too With Each Retelling</i></a><i>". It got so long that it exceeded the 4,096 character limit, so I'm posting it here.</i><br />
<br />
<b>------ start of long comment -------</b><br />
<br />
<b>To: Nolocontendere of Piglipstick blog</b><br />
<br />
Since you have been so good at pointing out some of the glaring flaws and inconsistencies in this story, I want to give you some more information to see if you can decipher it.<br />
<br />
The MSM is saying that the Francop is a Cyprus based ship. But I found articles that say the Francop is operated by a German company.<br />
<br />
Spiegel [translated from German] - <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,659349,00.html&ei=1r_1SqKkEoHV8AaMxIH0CQ&sa=X&oi=translate&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CAwQ7gEwAQ&prev=/search%3Fq%3D%2522Reederei%2BGerd%2BBartels%2522%2Bcia%2B-italian%2B-italy%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dopera%26rls%3Den%26hs%3Dnjq">Stopped weapons freighter belongs to German shipping company</a><br />
<br />
Also I'm very suspicious that the crew knew nothing about this shipment. They are now saying it was 36 containers out of 400, and that it weighed 600 tons. That's a lot! And I'm guessing that containers full of arms - which contain lead - would be significantly heavier than normal containers.<br />
<br />
So what I'm suggesting is that the crew knew about the arms, and that this was a false flag operation run by Mossad, with perhaps CIA involvement.<br />
<br />
Also it's supicious that the ship was allowed to leave Israel so quickly. Again this points to a false flag operation. The ship was intercepted on its way from Israel through Lebanese waters on Friday.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jXxr0mi5ZJ2vhbAuFJZA6NZygcdQ">Lebanon probes Israeli-intercepted arms ship</a><br />
<br />
<i>"The Francop ship entered Lebanese territorial waters at noon today and, upon its arrival off Beirut port, the navy in cooperation with UN naval forces searched the vessel," an army statement said.<br />
<br />
"Military intelligence began interrogating the crew on the motives for the seizure of the vessel while the concerned authorities... will take all the necessary measures to ensure it does not carry banned goods," it said.</i><br />
<br />
The wording of the article implies that the ship's operators should bear responsibility for allowing arms to be carried on its ship. But Israel was happy with their excuse that they knew nothing about it. No questions asked. Do you see what I'm getting at?<br />
<br />
Also the UN was involved in the interrogations of the crew. This ship regularly visits Beirut and the captain should have been fully aware of the restrictions on arms shipments to Lebanon.<br />
<br />
Finally, here is a site which appears to be neutral, but which contains a lot of detailed information on this incident.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://convenientflags.blogspot.com/">Flags of Convenience</a><br />
<br />
Oddly, there are two pictures of the stern of the ship on this site. One has painted on the back of the ship "<a href="http://convenientflags.blogspot.com/2009/11/francop-antiguan-flag-boxship-enters.html">St. Johns</a>" and the other "<a href="http://convenientflags.blogspot.com/2009/11/ashdod-ship-francop-commercial-vessel.html">London</a>" indicating the registration of the ship.<br />
<br />
The more I dig into this the deeper it gets. Did you know there was another ship detained by the US military with Iranian arms in October - the Hansa India? Notice that this was also a German ship.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=107511">US troops find Syria-bound weapons in Suez</a><br />
<br />
<i>US soldiers discovered several containers of ammunition aboard a German ship bound for Syria and possibly Hizbullah earlier this month, German news magazine Der Spiegel reported on Monday. US troops stationed in the Gulf of Suez boarded the freighter Hansa India at the beginning of October and found eight containers of ammunition “apparently being shipped from Iran to Syria,” it claimed. Two US warships stopped the ship after receiving a tip-off from intelligence services.</i><br />
<br />
BTW, Israel's IDF has posted YouTube videos and slide shows related to the Francop. I'm wondering if it's normal for Iranian companies to label all their products in English. And also, the containers were clearly marked IRISL, which is the Iranian shipping company. Nothing like hiding in plain sight.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh-pnuMJh3o">Slide Show of Weaponry Found on The 'Francop' 5 Nov 2009</a><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXDCDPPeN_Q">Israel Navy Intercepts Iranian Weapons en route to Hezbollah, 4 Nov 2009</a><br />
<br />
Notice IDF Navy Commander getting off the Francop in the slideshow. Maybe it was Celine and Jacqueline's day off.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.aol.co.nz/tv/story/Israeli-navy-chief-apologizes-for-strip-club-visit/1757591/index.html">Israeli navy chief apologizes for strip club visit</a><br />
<br />
The Germans were asked if they were going to prosecute this case and their answer was no because the ship is registered in Antigua. How convenient.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1257455196357&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull">Germany: No case against ship's owners</a><br />
<br />
And from the same article it looks like this is the start of an Israeli campaign to boycott all shipping from Iran.<br />
<br />
<i>On Wednesday, in the aftermath of the Francop's capture, Israel's Foreign Ministry sent a memo to its ambassadors abroad urging them to speak to their governments about stepping up pressure against Iran. <br />
<br />
They were instructed to also ask the governments to be more vigilant with respect to commercial shipping and in particular to follow the example of the United Kingdom, which earlier this month banned companies from dealing with the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines.</i><br />
<br />
It just gets deeper and deeper...<br />
<br />
Enjoy! Sorry for the long comment. It started off really short and just kept growing. Kind of like Pinochio's nose.<br />
<br />
<b>-------- end of long comment ---------</b><br />
<br />
<i>As a bonus, here's a previous comment I made on the article "</i><a href="http://piglipstick.blogspot.com/2009/11/pot-kettle.html"><i>Pot, Kettle</i></a><i>" - also from the Piglipstick blog...</i><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 18px;">Another great article on the Israeli Pirates of the Mediterranean. I don't know how you do it. You really crank out the articles. Great stuff on the swine flu scam as well. I too wrote on this subject in little article I titled <a href="http://futurenewstoday.blogspot.com/2009/10/swine-flu-emergency-or-bunch-of-baloney.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Swine flu emergency or a bunch of baloney?</a>.<br />
<br />
But anyway, enough shameless promotion. I found a few links on the Israeli piracy case that you be interested in. I don't know what exactly what to make of them. So I'm hoping you can decipher them.<br />
<br />
First up a couple of articles from DEBKAfile. They pretend to go into detail about the supposed drug running operation, but I think they get slightly hysterical. Anyway, if your not bored with this whole farce yet take a look at these links.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=6358" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Captured Iranian arms ship tip of the iceberg of vast weapons sealift to Hizballah</a><br />
<a href="http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=6357" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Israel Navy commander: Hizballah arms ship carried hundreds of tons of hardware</a><br />
<br />
They go into a whole drama about how the arms passed through the Suez and were shadowed by the US and Israeli Navy in the Mediterranean. Very Tom Clancy.<br />
<br />
I decided to check up on some of their info and found this. On a site called MarineTraffic.com they have information on ships and they include the Iranian ship "Visea". There are links to maps of the exact location. So Iran is doing a great job of keeping this hidden. You don't need a satellite to track this ship - just a PC.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shipdetails.aspx?mmsi=422287000" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">MarineTraffic info on Visea</a><br />
<br />
And on another site called United Feeder Services I found information on the Francop. The ship apparently runs a regular schedule which includes Beirut, Lebanon.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.utdfeeder.com/scheduledetail.asp?ServiceTypeID=94" rel="nofollow" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Francop schedule</a><br />
<br />
My own theory is that when the Francop was at the Egyptian port of Damietta, the arms were smuggled on board. Egypt has been working alongside Israel to crush Hamas. This is well known. So it wouldn't surprise me to find out they were working with Mossad on this operation as well.<br />
<br />
I hope this helps.</span><br />
<br />
---------------<br />
<br />
UPDATE 2: Nov 7<br />
<br />
<b>More, More, More - How do you like it?</b><br />
<br />
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<br />
Yes there's more. (Sorry, I couldn't resist.)<br />
<br />
Where's the love? That's what Israeli newspapers want to know. The <a href="http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1257455195053&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter">Jerusalem Post just can't understand why</a> the world isn't going ga-ga over the weapons seized by the Israeli Navy.<br />
<blockquote><b>In January 2002, the IDF commandeered the Iranian Karine A weapons ship en route to Gaza</b>. The Karine A was carrying a 10th of the weapons that the Francop was carrying. But the impact the Israeli commando mission then had on Israel's political position was more than 10 times greater than the political impact of this week's successful operation. <br />
<br />
The exposure then of Iran's support for Palestinian Authority-backed terror forces caused the Bush administration to abandon its previous acceptance of Yasser Arafat as a legitimate political leader. That in turn <b>paved the way for Israel's launch of Operation Defensive Shield three months later</b>. In that operation Israel wrested military control over Judea and Samaria away from Palestinian militias and terror cells. <br />
<br />
Wednesday's raid has had <b>no discernible impact on American policy</b>. The US did not denounce either Syria or Iran for breaching the UN Security Council resolution barring Iranian arms shipments as well as the Security Council resolution prohibiting nations from arming Hizbullah. The US did not state that in response to what Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu called a "smoking gun," it will reconsider its decision to send an ambassador to Damascus or its commitment to appeasing Iran through its nuclear talks in Geneva. <b>The only thing a State Department official could bring himself to say was that the US is concerned about "Hizbullah's efforts to rearm in direct violation of various UN Security Council resolutions,"</b> and remark that the groups remains, "a significant threat to peace and security in Lebanon and the region." <br />
<br />
Despite the <b>government's energetic efforts to use the Francop interception as a means to convince the nations of the world to unite against Iranian-backed terror</b>, no one seems willing to acknowledge the clear strategic implications of Iran's exports of terror weaponry. Today no one is any more willing to treat Iran as the enemy of the international system it has been for 30 years than they were <b>before Israel exposed the Francop cargo of terror for all the world to see</b>.<br />
</blockquote>I couldn't agree more, more, more. Nobody is buying this false flag operation. Don't you think Madame Secretary "nuke Iran" Clinton would be heralding this if there was anything to it. She's never been shy about denouncing Iran or doing the bidding of her AIPAC handlers. As I said before, this just raises my suspicions even more that this was all a setup designed to divert attention from the Goldstone Report.<br />
<br />
And for those true blue conspiracy theorists, I'll give you one more possibility. It could be that the arms were destined to supply some CIA led operation. Maybe they were arms being sent through Turkey to supply CIA supported operations in Iran. Who knows? Somebody at the US State Department obviously knows something, and they're not telling.Frank Hopehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01610256051568976952noreply@blogger.com4