Russia-China war games boost ties

Russia-China war games boost ties
The exercises are aimed at boosting military ties in an increasingly important region [AP]
Russian and Chinese troops have staged a series of dramatic war games in Russia's Ural Mountains at the close of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

The event marks the culmination of a nine-day exercise dubbed "Peace Mission 2007" that began in the north-western Chinese province of Xinjiang.
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It brings together some 6,000 military mostly Russian and Chinese personnel, but also includes troops from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
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The exercise is not the first time Russian and Chinese forces have trained together, but it is the first time the exercises have been held in Russia and they are by far the largest to date.

Officials say future exercises will grow both in scale and frequency.

"Peace Mission 2007" is being seen as a display of strength against the West and comes a day after the meeting of leaders from the six-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

Power block

Russia's President Putin and other SCO leaders watched the exercises [AP] The bill for the exercises is mostly being footed by Russia, but the symbolism of the event is expected to strike a chord well beyond the region, particularly in Washington.

The SCO was established in 2001 by Moscow and Beijing to foster security and economic ties in central Asia.

But the group is increasingly being seen as an eastern power block aimed at curbing US dominance in world affairs.

At their meeting in the Kyrgyz capital, SCO leaders underlined their opposition to perceived US hegemony.

The concluding communique issued at the end of the summit included what was seen as a thinly-veiled warning to the US to stay out of the region.

"Stability and security in Central Asia are best ensured primarily through efforts taken by the nations of the region on the basis of the existing regional associations,'' the statement said.

Attending the summit as an observer was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, who lashed out what he called US "interference" in the region.

Losing ground

The SCO is increasingly being seen as a counterbalance to US influence [AP]Al Jazeera's Moscow correspondent, Jonah Hull, says Friday's military exercises will also be closely watched by the United States, albeit from a distance.

He says Washington is keen to improve its own ties in the strategic and energy rich central Asian region, but the presence of Ahmedinejad at Thursday's summit meeting showed the US is clearly losing ground.

Ahmedinejad also had observer status at last year's summit of the SCO in Shanghaim and there is now talk the group may consider inviting Iran to join as a full member at some point in the future.

Our correspondent says another US concern to come out of the SCO meeting is the increasingly warm relations between Russia and China.

The two former Cold War rivals have developed what they call a strategic partnership, with the curbing of US dominance in world affairs topping their shared interests.
Background briefing: The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)
The SCO grew out of a regional effort in the mid-1990s to reduce military forces along common borders between China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan – the so-called Shanghai Five

Joined by Uzbekistan, the six countries formally established the SCO on June 14, 2001.

Since then the group has rapidly evolved from a little-known regional body, to one attracting growing international attention as it focuses on military and economic cooperation in the Central Asian region.

Several other nations have been given observer status in the SCO, among them powerful regional states Iran, India and Pakistan, alongside states such as Mongolia and Turkmenistan.























Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

ussia delivers air defence units to Syria:

Russia delivers air defence units to Syria: Report17 Aug 2007, 1407 hrs IST,AFP


MOSCOW: Russia has begun delivery of modern air defence units to Syria while rejecting speculation that some of the weapons could be forwarded secretly to Iran, a newspaper reported on Friday. "The first part of the delivery to Syria has started," the centrist daily Nezavissimaya Gazeta reported, quoting information from a domestic military information agency. A spokesman for Russia's arms export agency Rosoboronexport, however, declined to comment on the newspaper report. The report acknowledged that the delivery of the weapons, the Pantsyr-S1E self-propelled short-range missile air defence system, was particularly sensitive in light of Israeli claims last year that Russian arms sold to Syria had ended up in the hands of militant group Hezbollah. Israel fought a brief war with Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon in July 2006 and afterwards accused Russia of indirectly supplying Hezbollah with relatively sophisticated anti-tank weapons, an accusation Moscow denied. Nezavissimaya Gazeta quoted an official involved in Russian arms export policy as describing concerns that Russian air defense weapons could be re-exported to Iran as "silly rumours". "This is not possible," Vitaly Shlykov, a member of the state committee on foreign and defence policy, was quoted as saying. "One of the conditions for every deal is the prohibition on transfer of the weaponry to a third country." Officially, the contract was for the sale of 50 Pantsyr units for about 900 million dollars (670 million euros). Media reports have put the number of units sold to Syria at around 36. In May, the London-based arms specialist magazine Jane's Defence Weekly reported that Syria had agreed to send Iran at least 10 of the Pantsyr units. That report was categorically denied by a range of top Russian officials including First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World/Rest_of_World/Russia_delivers_air_defence_units_to_Syria_Report/articleshow/2287976.cms

refusing to answer questions about his agency's failure to enforce safety regulations that might have saved 14 West Virginia miners

WSWS : News & Analysis : North America

Bush mine safety official walks out of Senate hearing into Sago disaster:

David Dye, the acting director of the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), walked out halfway through a two-hour Senate hearing Monday on the Sago Mine disaster, refusing to answer questions about his agency's failure to enforce safety regulations that might have saved 14 West Virginia miners


Bush mine safety official walks out of Senate hearing into Sago disaster
By Samuel Davidson and Jerry Isaacs
27 January 2006
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David Dye, the acting director of the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), walked out halfway through a two-hour Senate hearing Monday on the Sago Mine disaster, refusing to answer questions about his agency’s failure to enforce safety regulations that might have saved 14 West Virginia miners who were killed in two separate accidents this month.

Dye rejected a direct request of US Senator Arlen Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania and chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee that oversees the mine safety agency, to stay for the full hearing and respond to issues that might arise from the testimony of other witnesses. Dye claimed the hearing had “diverted” him and other MSHA officials from more pressing matters, including a mine fire in Colorado, which, he conveniently did not mention, had been burning since November.

The actions by the Bush appointee underscore the utter contempt the White House has for the welfare and safety of the coal miners. If this is how the head of the agency charged with protecting miners’ lives responds to US senators, it is obvious what kind of treatment miners receive when they risk victimization and ask MSHA officials to investigate deadly conditions in the coal mines.

Dye’s walkout also highlights the well-known fact that the White House considers itself unaccountable to the US Congress or anyone else, aside from corporate America. The same arrogance and obstruction has been shown in regard to the investigation of the administration’s response to Hurricane Katrina and the incompetence and negligence of its political cronies at the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Dye announced his departure after Senator Robert Byrd, Democrat of West Virginia, asked him whether MSHA and the coal industry have become too close under the Bush administration. “There’s no cronyism between me and anyone in this agency,” said Dye, who took the acting MSHA post in December 2004 after the departure of Dave Lauriski, a former coal company executive who was forced to leave after revelations that MSHA had awarded no-bid contracts totaling more than $500,000 to two companies with ties to Lauriski and one of his lieutenants.

Alerted to Dye’s intention to walk out, Senator Specter said, “Mr. Dye and Mr. McKinney [another top MSHA official, administrator of coal mine safety and health], I’m advised that you would like to leave. Your presence will be required here for at least one more hour while we move ahead with the next panel. Questions may arise, and we want you here to answer the questions. We’ve assembled four senators who—well, they need your responses.”

Dye responded, “Senator, we’ve still got a mine fire going. We have a rescue team that’s in the Sago Mine. They have another mine fire—which no one was hurt—burning in Colorado. We have really urgent matters that we need to go back to attend. We’ve been diverted dealing with these matters. We were happy to prepare for the hearing, but we really need to get back and attend to all this. There’s 15,000 mines in the United States, and we’ve got some really pressing matters.”

Senator Specter answered, “Well, Mr. Dye, I can understand the press of your other business. It may well be that some of the senators here have other pressing matters, too.” The senator added, “That’s the committee’s request, but you’re not under subpoena.”

With that, Dye—with a cell phone to his ear—got up and walked out, accompanied by McKinney.

Specter later said of the departure, “I can’t recollect it ever happening before.” He added rather pathetically, “We’ll find a way to take appropriate note of it.”

Senator Byrd later commented, “They don’t want to answer questions—that’s why this man left the hearing. That’s at the bottom of the problem.”

The arrogance of the MSHA official’s conduct was matched by his testimony. During a perfunctory opening statement and in answers to questions, Dye rejected criticisms that recent budget cuts, staff reductions and a “culture of cronyism” at MSHA had undermined the safety of coal miners and contributed to the deaths of 12 workers at the Sago Mine and two others who were killed after a conveyor belt fire last week at the Aracoma Alma Mine near Melville, West Virginia.

Ignoring the long history of serious safety violations at both mines and the lack of enforcement of existing safety procedures by his agency, Dye said it was far too early to identify the cause of the accidents and suggested that there was no reason to believe the safety violations contributed to the miners’ deaths.

A long-time government functionary with no mining experience, but with close relations to Capitol Hill and the White House, Dye could not answer why the agency had allowed the Sago Mine to continue to operate after being issued more than 200 citations for safety violations over the last two years. Nor was he able to answer why it took more than two hours for the federal mine safety officials to learn that an explosion had taken place, a delay that set back the rescue effort several precious hours.

Senator Specter criticized the administration for not keeping up with inflation in financing mine safety and said that over the last 10 years the agency’s budget had been cut by $2.8 million, which led to the loss of 183 staff members. Dye responded by saying the budget cuts and staff reductions had not affected mine inspections or safety, going so far as to claim that enforcement had been strengthened, pointing to an increase in the amount of fines levied by MSHA.

This last claim was particularly cynical given the fact that it is a regular practice for MSHA officials to sharply reduce the initial fines mine operators are assessed during the review and appeal process. After an investigation into the 2001 explosion at the Jim Walter Resources mine near Brookwood, Alabama, local MSHA officials imposed $435,000 in fines for safety violations that led to the deaths of 13 miners. The fine was later reduced to $3,000, or $230 for each miner killed.

The only suggestion offered by Dye to improve mine safety was to increase maximum fines from the current level of $60,000 to $220,000. This proposal was just as hypocritical. Rarely does MSHA ever issue the maximum penalty to a mine operator. Among the more than 200 citations issued to the owners of the Sago Mine, 96 were categorized as “serious and substantial”—the highest level of MSHA violation—and 16 were “unwarrantable failure” citations, meaning the company knew or should have known they were in violation of safety standards and ignored it. Yet, the highest fine MSHA assessed the owners of the Sago Mine was only $440, with the average less than $120. Many of the fines were the lowest amount—$60.

During the hearing, the Bush appointee was asked why miners trapped underground are not able to communicate with the rescue teams, and whether technology exists that can help rescue teams better locate trapped miners. Dye stated for the record that such technology does not exist. Minutes later, the subcommittee heard from a former MSHA secretary, Davitt McAteer, who said such communications technology certainly does exist, and placed tracking and communication devices on the table in front of the subcommittee.

One device used in only 14 of the nation’s 15,000 mines allows people above ground to send text messages to miners below. Dye had claimed the devices had some “problems with reliability,” but McAteer rejected this claim, saying, “These devices have proved to be reliable.”

There is also electromagnetic technology—available since the 1970s—that would enable rescuers to locate trapped miners. At that time, nearly three decades ago, the Bureau of Mines tested and deemed the low-cost equipment reliable, but MSHA has never mandated its use.

Dye’s predecessor, Dave Lauriski, encouraged MSHA to establish a “partnership” with the coal companies and provide “compliance assistance” to the coal bosses. In practice, this has meant rewriting or watering down safety regulations so that unsafe companies can be in “compliance.” As President Bush’s head of mine safety, Lauriski attempted to rewrite federal rules on dust control to suit his former employer, Energy West Mining Co. of Utah, and was involved in a cover-up of MSHA failings that contributed to a massive coal waste spill in eastern Kentucky by Massey Energy, a major contributor to Bush and the owner of the Alma mine where two miners died last week.

Before being forced to leave MSHA, Lauriski also scrapped 18 proposed rules the agency was developing concerning coal dust exposure, self-rescuers, mine rescue teams, accident investigations and safety training. During this period, MSHA also secretly changed its long-standing policy of releasing the notes of its safety inspectors under the Freedom of Information Act, a policy that had been in place since 1977, giving miners and the public access to the safety records of the coal operators.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2006/jan2006/msha-j27.shtml

Recession fear forces hand of US central bank

Recession fear forces hand of US central bankPressure grows on world's largest economy BY Larry Elliott and Ashley Seager08/18/07
"The Guardian" -- -- The Federal Reserve, America's central bank, made a dramatic intervention to support share prices yesterday as it took fright that this week's meltdown in global financial markets could tip the United States into recession.In a move that surprised the markets, the Fed responded to the week-long battering of stocks by cutting one of its key interest rates to help banks.
It hinted that it might cut its main base rate to help homeowners and businesses next month.Earlier this week, one of the Fed's key policy makers, Bill Poole, had said it would take a "calamity" to force it into an emergency base-rate cut but it opened the door to such a move yesterday when it expressed concern about the fallout from panic-stricken global markets.The move prompted an immediate surge in share prices in the City, and relieved dealers turned a 40-point fall in the FTSE 100 at lunchtime into a 205 gain by the close of business. It ended at 6064.2 points - a slight gain on the week.Wall Street also made hefty early gains, rising more than 300 points at the opening, but concern that the Fed had been forced into action by a looming downturn in the economy or a yet-to-be announced problem for a major financial institution later reduced the surge. The Dow Jones industrial average was up almost 150 points by lunchtime in New York.Overnight, stock markets in the far east had suffered fresh losses amid concerns that exports to the US would be hurt by the crash. With the American economy counting for more than 20% of global demand, a recession there would have knock-on effects round the world, especially on countries in Asia which supply flat-screen TVs and computers to US consumers.The Fed cut its "discount" rate - the rate at which it will lend to commercial banks - by half a percentage point to 5.75% in an attempt to oil the wheels of the global banking industry.The Fed, whose chief Ben Bernanke had been under severe pressure to act all week, also said the outlook for the US economy had worsened - something dealers described as a coded warning that it would be prepared, if necessary, to cut its main interest rate from its current 5.25% level when it next meets on September 18."Financial market conditions have deteriorated, and tighter credit conditions and increased uncertainty have the potential to restrain economic growth," the Fed said.In a concerted European effort to talk up the markets, Alistair Darling sought to soothe fears that growth in the UK would be jeopardised by the market turmoil. "The UK economy is strong and stable. The global economy is also strong at this time," the chancellor said. He added, however, that there was "certainly an argument" for greater transparency in markets and noted this would be discussed by G7 nations in the coming months. Finance ministers in France and Germany issued their own messages of reassurance.City analysts disagreed over the significance of yesterday's rescue bid. "The Fed will now do whatever it takes to re-establish financial stability. The worst is now over," said Sherry Cooper, chief economist at BMO Capital Markets.Diana Choyleva, economist at Lombard Street Research, said markets still did not know the full extent of the losses from the US sub-prime mortgage sector - loans to uncreditworthy borrowers that have turned sour."Investors and lenders alike are scrambling to figure out what the size of the problem is and whether they are exposed to it. There is no authority on the global scene to come out with a credible estimate of the overall exposure," she said.



I was just wondering if the Federal Reserve could be sued since it is a private entity doing the peoples' business as it were. I am thinking along the lines of some sort of negligence in the mismanagement of the economy. They are after all earning billions of dollars for their role as caretakers of the economy.Why should we the innocent consumer have to put up with irresponsible market activity? Cheap money causes all kinds of problems and these professionals at the Federal Reserve should know that. They have lots of experience since 1913 in guiding an economy, as it were. They know how to create depressions and the things that make a recession happen.Allowing economic bubbles to occur all over the place can be blamed on Federal Reserve policy; they know through experience that certain asset classes are going to be inflated as a consequence of monetary policy and that events can unravel in devastating ways as a funciton of lack of regulation of the financial markets. I am thinking about derivatives and leveraging as well. If these things are not managed then all kinds of collateral damage can occur. The recent sub-prime business just represents a lack of regulation and the policy makers should know, or ought to have known what the results would be when you loan money to bad risks in an inflated economy. ( some people cannot afford to own a home yet they were allowed to become home owners- this is negligence or fraud - take your pick. ) Someone is going to lose. Wasn't the Savings and Loans scandal during the Reagan years just another example of lack of regulation in the financial markets?Citizens of the U.S. or anywhere else should not have to worry about their life savings because of mismanagement or negligence. The government is irresponsible enough, but the problem is certainly exacerbated when a group of private bankers, supposedly in the know about financial matters allow matters to get out of control. Someone is responsible for these economic messes. I am just trying to point a legitimate finger at one of the culprits.Carl Baydala Homepage 08.19.07 - 3:42 pm #

Over the past six-seven years the Cheney-Bush cabal (and previous similarly-minded administrations) "paid" governments, military huntas, mercenaries, around the world to satisfy its lust for carnage, destruction, and loot. It pays dollars that previously didn't exist. Those dollars are bound to weaken economies around the world. The amount of money printed far exceeds productive labor and goods. It is money paid for the labor required to destroy people and goods. Ultimately the more money not backed in any way with labor and products, the fewer goods or services available. That's why, under similar conditions, it required a wheelbarrow of money to buy a loaf of bread.Steve 08.19.07 - 4:00 pm #

ARE YOU READY TO VOLUNTEER?ARE YOU READY TO STOP TALKING AND START WORKING?http://www.meetup.com/search/?ke...ch& jsCountry=usFind your local Ron Paul meetup group. This is great for entry-level folks getting into the world of activism.http://ronpaulrevolution.comThe place for independent hardcore activists.http://freedomtofascism.comA gateway organization to the whole movement and the movie that provided a new foundation.http://restoretherepublic.comSame people but kept up to date and it has a forum. You volunteer for one, you are in both. Also, check out Oyate's editorial section in Latest News!http://thefreedomfellowship.blog...p.blogspot.com/ Hard core activists. Less fluff.This is just a few of the right-radical stuff. If you are a dedicated leftist, go activate with them and God bless you. We'll see you in the streets!LET 2008 BE REMEMBERED AS THE YEAR THE PEOPLE SAVED AMERICA.Oyate. Homepage 08.19.07 - 5:04 pm #

@ Carl Baydala,You are on the right track. To get up to speed with the latest legal actions in this regard, please consult the We The People Foundation athttp://givemeliberty.org/These guys formed the prototype of a national patriot network and provided a real backbone for the new movement. Most of the early Freedom To Fascism (AFTF) or Restore The Republic (RTR) coordinators are WTPC coordinators.Since then, there are tons of spinoffs into groups focussing on Real-ID, North American Union, RFID, property rights, IRS-attack units, you name it.But the basic magic we're just beginning to understand is this matrix, this power we are that is larger than any of us understands. We've become a true grassroots power. But this distributed system has a downside: we're disorganized as hell. There's no central anything. Go ahead, try and dictate a structure to the core libertarian activists, I dare you. I double-dare you.This is why I consider the R3VOlUTION to be the paramount influence. R3VOlUTIONARIES don't wait for instructions or permission, we just do. We know we have it right because the whole nation is copying us.An Arizona motto is "I just do what I do and sometimes others do it with me".Another Arizona motto is "if it's not fun, you ain't doing it right".And the motto of the R3VOlUTION, "when we say revolution, we say it with love" because that's the whole point of the strange lettering in our banners. the EVOL spells love in mirror-writing. There's a secret "I love you" in every R3VOlUTION statement.See that? I did it again. I just told you I love you. My days are spent making money about 30% of the time. The rest of it is all activism. I'm kind of like a nodal point in the movement, one of many. I never know what's going to happen next, but mostly I facilitate contact and action by communications. I try to get out and do direct-contact activism at least twice a week or I totally bug out. In Arizona, we've set a precedent for national activists and our friendly challenge has been well received.WANT TO SEE WHAT WE CAN DO?http://www.youtube.com/results?s...n& search=SearchWHAT THE HECK ARE YOU PEOPLE WAITING FOR?IT'S WAY MORE FUN TO FIGHT FOR FREEDOM THAT LIVE IN FEAR!Oyate. Homepage 08.19.07 - 5:23 pm #

Maybe I missed something in the article, but I have the impression that the scope is extremely limited, like waking up from a trance, and wondering what's really going on!I wonder if the so-called "financial profressionals" really know much of anything, or maybe the brightest of them have already scamed the system and now are playing dumb.Most of us unqualified dumbies expect the repercussions of this bursting, "stupid" bubble to be working through the bowels of the world economic system until at least 2009.
My impression is that this problem is so big that I doubt that the "system" won't be recovering for years. Right not, attempts to deal with it are really like trying to stop the bleeding from the amputations with bandaides. Rots of ruck!And so "good luck" to all you aware and excellent people who seek the truth!Patrick Hickey Homepage 08.19.07 - 5:25 pm

War Profiteering and Corruption

War Profiteering and CorruptionBy Tom Turnipseed08/19/07 "Counterpunch" -- -- A businesswoman in my home county of Lexington, South Carolina, pleaded guilty on August 16, 2007 to defrauding U.S. taxpayers of $20.5 million in shipping costs for Pentagon supplies. According to a front page story in The State newspaper,
"Charlene Corley, 46, pleaded guilty to a nine-year fraud that included charging the Pentagon $998,798.38 for shipping two 19 cent bolt washers."The State reported Pentagon records showed that C&D Distributors, co-owned by Ms Corley and her sister Darlene Wooten, received $455,000 to ship three machine screws costing $1.31 each to Marines in Habbaniyah, Iraq. Ms. Wooten committed suicide in October, 2007 and Ms. Corley's attorney contended Corley was a victim of her deceased sister's activities, but federal prosecutors said Corley "knew the shipping costs, worked with local suppliers to get equipment for the Pentagon, corresponded with the Defense Department and was a contact on the computerized forms used to bid on the contracts." Federal prosecutor Kevin McDonald said, "These twin sisters split the assets. Charlene Corley and Darlene Wooten equally shared in the proceeds of this fraud." With the proceeds the sisters bought 4 beach houses; 3 Mercedes S and SL models; a 2007 BMW 550i; 5 slightly older Lexus models; a 23 foot outboard Suntracker boat; a 10 foot inboard Kawaski jet, and a vacation to Alaska.The sisters followed a long tradition of war profiteering that has existed in human history and myth since biblical times. As children in Sunday school we studied Joshua and the battle of Jericho. God told Joshua to totally destroy the enemy. Joshua 6: 21 says, "...they [the forces of God led by Joshua] utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, ox, sheep and donkey, with the edge of a sword." Then God's forces burned the city and took the silver, gold, bronze and iron and put it in the "treasury of the house of the Lord".But Ms. Wooten have Corley and Ms. a present day role model for war profiteering. The booty of a war that put treasure in the pockets of Charlene Corley and Darlene Wooten has also enriched Vice-President Cheney, who, in his reelection win with George W. Bush in 2004, received better than 72% of the vote here in Lexington County.Cheney personifies war profiteering. He slid through the revolving door connecting the public and private sectors of the defense establishment on two occasions in a career that has served his relentless quest for power and profits.As Defense Secretary, Mr. Cheney commissioned a study for the U.S. Department of Defense by Brown and Root Services (now Kellogg, Brown and Root), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Halliburton. The study recommended that private firms like Halliburton take over logistical support programs for U.S. military operations around the world. Just two years after he was Secretary of Defense, Cheney stepped through the revolving door linking the Department of Defense with defense contractors and became CEO of Halliburton. Halliburton was the principal beneficiary of Cheney's privatization efforts for our military's logistical support and Cheney was paid $44 million for five year's work before he slipped back through the revolving door of war profiteering to become Vice-President of the United States. When asked about the money he received from Halliburton, Cheney said. "I tell you that the government had absolutely nothing to do with it"Before the Iraq War began, Halliburton was 19th on the U.S. Army's list of top contractors and zoomed to number 1 in 2003. Cheney stated he had, "severed all my ties with the company, gotten rid of all my financial interests."Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) said that Cheney's stock options in 2004 were worth $241,498 and were valued at more than $8 million in 2005-- for an increase of 3,281%. Cheney has pledged to give the proceeds to charity. Cheney continues to receive a deferred salary from the company. He was paid $205,298 in 2001; $162,392 in 2002; $178,437 in 2003; and $194,852 in 2004.I've lived in Alabama, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina where much of the economy depends on military bases and businesses that thrive on military activities. Since I was a child , I've heard folks say that when the economy gets shaky and unemployment rises, a war can put people back to work and make others rich.Media have always abetted war profiteering with their tradition of romanticizing war because it sells papers, raises ratings, and makes profits for war-related businesses who advertise with them. Peace doesn't make news for long. There are innumerable examples of media efforts to sell war. A well known one is newspaper mogul William Randolph Hearst, whose "Remember the Maine" jingoism manipulated public opinion to support the Spanish American War.War profiteering causes corruption from Lexington County to the White House.Tom Turnipseed is an attorney, writer and peace activist in Columbia, South Carolina www.turnipseed.net


Of course there has been huge war profiteering; that's what it's all about. Please view this short video:http://exposure.cbc.ca/video/recruiterjohn Homepage 08.19.07 - 2:20 pm #

Something makes me think these ladies should have been working with haliburton and it would have been a non-crime.john k. riggs 08.19.07 - 3:07 pm #

Of course. It's the American Way to let the biggest swindlers and murderers off scott free (Scooter Libby, Rove, Rumsfeld for starters)i.e. those who have oppressed millions of people. US prisons are filled with petty criminals who oppressed a small number of people, if any.Steve 08.19.07 - 3:44 pm #

At least one of them had the good grace to kill herself.blizzard 08.19.07 - 4:22 pm #

HEY CATHOLICS, Don't look now, but your Pontiff is getting ready to tell you that tax resistance is a sin.

So dumping your life's work into a government who regularly looses billions of dollars and is running up the tab on your great grand children with absolutely no accountability is the only way to serve God with honor?If one were to take Romans 13 literally, and submit that all authority on Earth is established by God, it follows that the Authority in the USA is the people, and the people have a right to fashion the government of their choosing.So in this, the Holy Father and I agree. We should work to eliminate laws we don't like, including the odious sham, the 16th amendment. Thus we relieve ourselves of the evil of income taxation while standing pure before the throne of the Most High.Two redemptions for the price of one. A nice message for the Christian sabbath.En nomen Patri Expirutu Sanctu,BenedictiOyate. Homepage 08.19.07 - 4:49 pm #

just going tp prove that America is one of the most corrupt nations on earth, causing death and misery worldwide in its rapacious search for profit.every day that Bush &Dick walk free only confirms the utter hypocrisy of your 'ideals' and 'way of life',...... more like 'way of death' because that's what Americans do to make money, kill other people and take their stuff.Zipperhead 08.19.07 - 5:11 pm #

Canada's Sovereignty in Jeopardy: the Militarization of North America

Canada's Sovereignty in Jeopardy: the Militarization of North America By Michel Chossudovsky08/18/07 "Global Research" -- -- Canadian jurisdiction over its Northern territories was redefined, following an April 2002 military agreement between Ottawa and Washington.
This agreement allows for the deployment of US troops anywhere in Canada, as well as the stationing of US warships in Canada's territorial waters.
Following the creation of US Northern Command in April 2002, Washington announced unilaterally that NORTHCOM's territorial jurisdiction (land, sea, air) extended from the Caribbean basin to the Canadian arctic territories.
"The new command was given responsibility for the continental United States, Canada, Mexico, portions of the Caribbean and the contiguous waters in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans up to 500 miles off the North American coastline. NorthCom's mandate is to "provide a necessary focus for [continental] aerospace, land and sea defenses, and critical support for [the] nation’s civil authorities in times of national need."
(Canada-US Relations - Defense Partnership – July 2003, Canadian American Strategic Review (CASR), http://www.sfu.ca/casr/ft-lagasse1.htm
NORTHCOM's stated mandate was to "provide a necessary focus for [continental] aerospace, land and sea defenses, and critical support for [the] nation’s [US] civil authorities in times of national need."
(Canada-US Relations - Defense Partnership – July 2003, Canadian American Strategic Review (CASR), http://www.sfu.ca/casr/ft-lagasse1.htm)
Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld boasted that "the NORTHCOM – with all of North America as its geographic command – 'is part of the greatest transformation of the Unified Command Plan [UCP] since its inception in 1947.'" (Ibid)
Canada and US Northern Command
In December 2002, following the refusal of (former) Prime Minister Jean Chrétien to join US Northern Command (NORTHCOM), an interim bi-national military authority entitled the Binational Planning Group (BPG) was established.
Canadian membership in NORTHCOM would have implied the integration of Canada's military command structures with those of the US. That option had been temporarily deferred by the Chrétien government, through the creation of the Binational Planning Group (BPG).
The BPG's formal mandate in 2002 was to extend the jurisdiction of the US-Canada North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) to cover sea, land and "civil forces",
"to improve current Canada–United States arrangements to defend against primarily maritime threats to the continent and respond to land-based attacks, should they occur."
Although never acknowledged in official documents, the BPG was in fact established to prepare for the merger of NORAD and NORTHCOM, thereby creating de facto conditions for Canada to join US Northern Command.
The "Group" described as an "independent" military authority was integrated from the outset in December 2002 into the command structures of NORAD and NORTHCOM, both operating out the same headquarters at the Paterson Air Force base in Colorado. In practice, the "Group" functioned under the jurisdiction of US Northern Command, which is controlled by the US Department of Defense.
In December 2004, in the context of President Bush's visit to Ottawa, it was agreed that the mandate of the BPG would be extended to May 2006. It was understood that this extension was intended to set the stage for Canada's membership in NORTHCOM.
In March 2006, two months before the end of its mandate, the BPG published a task force document on North American security issues:
"'A continental approach' to defense and security could facilitate binational maritime domain awareness and a combined response to potential threats, 'which transcends Canadian and U.S. borders, domains, defense and security departments and agencies,' (quoted in Homeland Defense watch, 20 July 2006)
The BPG task force report called for the establishment of a "maritime mission" for NORAD including a maritime warning system. The report acted as a blueprint for the renegotiation of NORAD, which was implemented immediately following the release of the report.
On April 28, 2006, an agreement negotiated behind closed doors was signed between the US and Canada. The renewed NORAD agreement was signed in Ottawa by the US ambassador and the Canadian Minister of Defense Gordon O'Connor, without prior debate in the Canadian Parliament. The House of Commons was allowed to rubberstamp a fait accompli, an agreement which had already been signed by the two governments.
"'A continental approach to defense and security could facilitate binational maritime domain awareness and a combined response to potential threats, "which transcends Canadian and U.S. borders, domains, defense and security departments and agencies,' the report says." (Homeland Defense Watch, May 8, 2006)
While NORAD still exists in name, its organizational structure coincides with that of NORTHCOM. Following the April 28, 2006 agreement, in practical terms, NORAD has been merged into USNORTHCOM.
NORTHCOM Commander Gen. Gene Renuart, USAF happens to be Commander of NORAD, Maj. Gen. Paul J. Sullivan who is NORTHCOM Chief of Staff, is Chief of Staff of NORAD.
With a exception of a token Canadian General, who occupies the position of Deputy Commander of NORAD, the leadership of NORAD coincides with that of NORTHCOM. (See photo gallery below). These two military authorities are identical in structure, they occupy the same facilities at the Peterson Air Force base in Colorado.
There was no official announcement of the renewed NORAD agreement, which hands over control of Canada's territorial waters to the US, nor was there media coverage of this far-reaching decision.
The Deployment of US Troops on Canadian Soil
At the outset of US Northern Command in April 2002, Canada accepted the right of the US to deploy US troops on Canadian soil.
"U.S. troops could be deployed to Canada and Canadian troops could cross the border into the United States if the continent was attacked by terrorists who do not respect borders, according to an agreement announced by U.S. and Canadian officials." (Edmunton Sun, 11 September 2002)
With the creation of the BPG in December 2002, a binational "Civil Assistance Plan" was established. The latter described the precise "conditions for deploying U.S. troops in Canada, or vice versa, in the aftermath of a terrorist attack or natural disaster." (quoted in Inside the Army, 5 September 2005).
Canadian Sovereignty
In August 2006, the US State Department confirmed that a new NORAD Agreement had entered into force, while emphasizing that "the maritime domain awareness component was of 'indefinite duration,' albeit subject to periodic review." (US Federal News, 1 August 2006). In March 2007, the US Senate Armed Services Committee confirmed that the NORAD Agreement had been formally renewed, to include a maritime warning system. In Canada, in contrast, there has been a deafening silence. In Canada, the renewed NORAD agreement went virtually unnoticed. There was no official pronouncement by the Canadian government of Stephen Harper. There was no analysis or commentary of its significance and implications for Canadian territorial sovereignty. The agreement was barely reported by the Canadian media.
Operating under a "North American" emblem (i.e. a North American Command), the US military would have jurisdiction over Canadian territory from coast to coast; extending from the St Laurence Valley to the Queen Elizabeth archipelago in the Canadian Arctic. The agreement would allow for the establishment of "North American" military bases on Canadian territory. From an economic standpoint, it would also integrate the Canadian North, with its vast resources in energy and raw materials, with Alaska.
Ottawa's Military Facility in Resolute Bay
Ottawa's July 2007 decision to establish a military facility in Resolute Bay in the Northwest Passage was not intended to reassert "Canadian sovereignty. In fact quite the opposite. It was established in consultation with Washington. A deep-water port at Nanisivik, on the northern tip of Baffin Island is also envisaged.
The US administration is firmly behind the Canadian government's decision. The latter does not "reassert Canadian sovereignty". Quite the opposite. It is a means to eventually establish US territorial control over Canada's entire Arctic region including its waterways. This territory would eventually fall under the jurisdiction of US Northern Command (NORTHCOM).
The Security and Prosperity Partnership Agreement (SPP)
The Security and Prosperity Partnership Agreement (SPP) signed between the US, Canada and Mexico contemplates the formation of a North American Union (NAU), a territorial dominion, extending from the Caribbean to the Canadian arctic territories.
The SPP is closely related to the Binational Planning Group initiative. An Independent Task Force sponsored by The Council on Foreign Relations calls for the transformation of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) into a "multiservice Defense Command". The CFR document entitled "North American Community" drafted on behalf of the SPP endorses the BPG March 2006 recommendations:
"As recommended in a report of the Canadian-U.S. Joint Planning Group [BPG], NORAD should evolve into a multiservice Defense Command that would expand the principle of Canadian-U.S. joint command to land and naval as well as air forces engaged in defending the approaches to North America. In addition, Canada and the United States should reinforce other bilateral defense institutions, including the Permanent Joint Board on Defense and Joint Planning Group, and invite Mexico to send observers.
(North American Community, Task Force documented sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) together with the Canadian Council of Chief Executives and the Consejo Mexicano de Asuntos Internacionales)
The accession of Canada to this Multiservice Defense Command, as recommended by the CFR, has already been established, signed and sealed, approved by the Canadian Parliament in May 2006, in the context of the renewal of the NORAD agreement.
In all likelihood, the formal merging of "the renewed NORAD" and US NORTHCOM will be on the agenda at the August Security and Prosperity Partnership Agreement (SPP) Summit meeting of President Bush, Prime Minister Harper and President Calderon at Montebello, Quebec. This decision would lead to the formation of a US-Canada NORTHCOM, with a new name, but with substantially the same NORTHCOM rhetorical mandate of "defending the Northern American Homeland" against terrorist attacks. The military of both the US and Canada would also be called to play an increasing role in civilian law enforcement activities.
The real objective underlying the SPP is to militarize civilian institutions and repeal democratic government.
"Integration" or the "Annexation" of Canada?
Canada is contiguous to "the center of the empire". Territorial control over Canada is part of the US geopolitical and military agenda. It is worth recalling in this regard, that throughout history, the "conquering nation" has expanded on its immediate borders, acquiring control over contiguous territories.
Military integration is intimately related to the ongoing process of integration in the spheres of trade, finance and investment. Needless to say, a large part of the Canadian economy is already in the hands of US corporate interests. In turn, the interests of big business in Canada tend to coincide with those of the US.
Canada is already a de facto economic protectorate of the USA. NAFTA has not only opened up new avenues for US corporate expansion, it has laid the groundwork under the existing North American umbrella for the post 9/11 integration of military command structures, public security, intelligence and law enforcement.
No doubt, Canada's entry into US Northern Command will be presented to public opinion as part of Canada-US "cooperation", as something which is "in the national interest", which "will create jobs for Canadians", and "will make Canada more secure".
Ultimately what is at stake is that beneath the rhetoric, Canada will cease to function as a Nation:
-Its borders will be controlled by US officials and confidential information on Canadians will be shared with Homeland Security.
-US troops and Special Forces will be able to enter Canada as a result of a binational arrangement.
-Canadian citizens can be arrested by US officials, acting on behalf of their Canadian counterparts and vice versa.
But there is something perhaps even more fundamental in defining and understanding where Canada and Canadians stand as nation.
By endorsing a Canada-US "integration" in the spheres of defense, homeland security, police and intelligence, Canada not remains a full fledged member of George W. Bush's "Coalition of the Willing", it will directly participate, through integrated military command structures, in the US war agenda in Central Asia and the Middle East, including the massacre of civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan, the torture of POWs, the establishment of concentration camps, etc.
Canada would no longer have an independent foreign policy. Under an integrated North American Command, a North American national security doctrine would be formulated. Canada would be obliged to embrace Washington's pre-emptive military doctrine, its bogus "war on terrorism which is used as a pretext for waging war in the Middle East. .
The Canadian judicial system would be affected. Moreover, binational integration in the areas of Homeland security, immigration, policing of the US-Canada border, not to mention the anti-terrorist legislation, would imply pari passu acceptance of the US sponsored police State, its racist policies, its "ethnic profiling" directed against Muslims, the arbitrary arrest of anti-war activists.

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=6572

An awful lot of what is mentioned in this piece has already come to fruition.Canada has re-organized her Armed forces to integrate into the US Armed Services. Witness "Canada Command", the over-arching Canadian military HQ for north of the 49th parallel.Fits kinda neatly into the lexicon of existing US Commands, NorthCom, CentCom, SouthCom, and now CanCom.Whatever you thought of Jean Chretien, at least he had the interests of Canada at heart, very unlike our present treasonous, past-his-Prime Minister who, unsatisfied with our past role of being a middle power, wants very much to be a 'player' on the world stage, and will prostitute my country to any length to achieve his egoist aims.With the deliverance of Harper to the highest post in civil service in this country, we have, collectively, effectively renounced our sovereignty.It seems that our Loyal Opposition is no better than the US Congress.I feel like throwing up.rgl 08.19.07 - 1:54 pm #

You think this is bad?Wait until the next referendum in Quebec. Well, we were wondering what the corporatists' strategy might be, now we have it. When Quebec leaves, Canada without a contiguous border will naturally gravitate towards their economic masters. I can't help but think that this is what this is all about.Good luck Canucks!T.Turtle 08.19.07 - 2:11 pm #

rgl--this agreement was signed in 2002--under what is now the Opposition with Chretien as the signer. Don't forget he campaigned on the fact that he would not sign FTA and then as his first act as PM he signed it!Then the SPP was signed by the Corporate darling, Paul Martin as the leader of Canada and also a Liberal and member now, of the Loyal? Opposition! Yes, Harper has fallen in with the ultimate plan of Manifest Destiny for the US and we will lose our country.George 08.19.07 - 2:22 pm #

So, Canadians - what are you going to do about it?blizzard 08.19.07 - 2:34 pm #

I don't think the Pentagon consulted with anyone in Mexico as to Northcom's responsibility for Mexico's territory.A bit presumtuous, to say the leasst.The real terrorists are in the White House and the PentagonGustavo Caldas 08.19.07 - 2:37 pm #

Who says marx was not a prophet?History does repeat its self!This is anschuss mk 2paul 08.19.07 - 2:47 pm #

blizzard:(Name like that, I was sure you was a Canuck .. lol)Well. I cannot speak for any Canadian other than myself, but I think I will begin a letter campaign to the appropriate MPs, make sure that everybody I know is made aware of this, and encourage them to start bugging their MPs.I am somewhat more confident of this action in Canada, than I would be if I were an American, (and no, not because of some misbegotten idea that we are moral, and you are not) simply because we have five political parties, vice two.Not to mention a slew of 'fringe' parties that would be willing to take up any cause, if for no other reason than to get media exposure.You have to admit that five parties are a lot more difficult to subvert than two (one?).It is also somewhat of a comfort that a minority government is far and away more vulnerable than the monolithic one-party system that exists in the States.Will we have any better luck than our confreres south of the border? Will I find the same degree of apathy north of the border that seems to exist south of the border?I don't know. But I'm gonna find out.rgl 08.19.07 - 3:12 pm #

US Citizens can no longer count on taking refuge in Canada.Where are they to go?Ideas anyone.DeRein 08.19.07 - 3:12 pm #

It sounds like Canadians are being conditioned for their next prime minister, Mr. George Bush of the U.S. starting in 09. He's just too great and brilliant an asset to retire from public life. With Cheney/Ashcroft installed in the U.S. after a surprise election victory, U.S. - Canadian cooperation will reach cordial new highs.Professor Ku 08.19.07 - 3:14 pm #

I think I have made it plain that, done correctly, I am all for World Government. I still have to resolve my own issues with my nationality and the above statement, but it really is the only way forward to ensure not only the survival of the species, but as a means to a more equitable world. But by consent. Not coercion.I spent a quarter of my life as a rifleman in an infantry company. I thought I left that life behind, but if some group of pinheads tries to force this upon us without our consent, well then perhaps I should start boning up on past training.Double-tap, centre of mass, first.rgl 08.19.07 - 3:28 pm #

To my Canadian friends who are in the dark as much as American citizens: you have our sympathy. Believe me, we know as little about what is going on as you and certainly do not condone or support the dictorial realm that Bush has created and will continue to create....unless AMERICANS WAKE UP. So many people...so little awareness. How is this possible?...the educational system...the media..economics...lies and more lies..false flag operations ....arrogance...blind religious belief...on and on. We are being led by an administration and congress comprised of amoral, power hungry, greedy and thoughtless sub-humans. And those are the nice qualities. Tell your friends...speak up when you can. This is not a time to be tactful and quiet. Throw away your TVs and get ready to defend yourself against whatever is coming down the pike. DO NOT sit back and let it happen as they did in the Germany of the 30's. POWER TO THE PEOPLE! DON'T LET BUSH SUCCEED WHERE PRESCOTT BUSH FAILED. WE STOPPED THEM THEN AND WE CAN STOP THEM NOW.Willy Bill 08.19.07 - 3:48 pm #

Want to contact your MP? Find the SOAB here...http://www.parl.gc.ca/common/ind....asp? Language=EBe nice, T.Turtle 08.19.07 - 3:57 pm #

So even BAFFIN ISLAND will get a "port"!!! On the bright side anyone wanting to visit Baffin Island, which I hear is remote, might be a little more comfortable. Wow, I hope the Canadian people are paying attention. I would hate to see them become part of the U.S. just because they had their heads in the sand. It sounds like alot of this is happening while the populace is too busy with other things, sounds kind of familiar? But on a brighter note since the Canadian people are so much more superiour and moral than Americans, I'm sure they will be able to end the State Sponsored terrorists of the U.S. once they realize they are complicit also.I have heard several times by Canadians that "the Canadian people will never, ever allow the NAU and Amero". It would never pass parliament. But already it sounds like their parliament is back stabbing them. What will the Canadians do?Cat 08.19.07 - 4:09 pm #

Turtle,This is not time for the Canadian people to be "nice". They are being backstabbed....nice is not going to cut it. You guys need to stop it NOW, or you'll get swallowed real quick. This is a test for the Canadian people. You will either pass or fail.Cat 08.19.07 - 4:12 pm #

You got that right, Cat. Wake up, Turtle, they are selling the Canadians down the tubes just like this admin. and the congress have sold out Americans. Wonder if you folks have a national ID yet?..ours comes in May 08; then comes the implant. George Orwell has nothing on G. Bush. Rise up against the stagnation of apathy. It's up to the people now...God is not listening. TAKE THE POWER BACK!!Willy Bill 08.19.07 - 4:21 pm #

being canadian makes me wanna puke. I warned so many people of this now i have to start putting up banners. i need some good lines from you people so that i can get these banners up and going. how about,good lord i suck at such things. comeon people i need some help.Helen from canada 08.19.07 - 4:23 pm #

ouch, how many of you have seen the natrual bbeauty of Canada?? I have and it's breath taking. ok if that is the way bush is gonna be i am gonna team up with canada to make sure bush doesn't screw up everything. someone please put a hole in his head.Bluetiger 08.19.07 - 4:28 pm #

What am I doing about it?-wrote my Minister of Parliament-wrote the Prime Minister-wrote to the major newpapers berating them their poor coverage of this issue.-sent this article to friends and family-going to a protest rally tomorrowThis would be a travesty to our country. However, the powers that be are easily bought. This time, bought with tainted, corrupt, dirty, dirty money.Disgusted Canadian 08.19.07 - 4:34 pm #

Turtle:You deserve nice. Politicians certainly do not.rgl 08.19.07 - 4:35 pm #

CANADIANS,Hey I graduated high school in Canada. Love you guys. I can still sing your national anthem and mean it.So for every time I've sung that I "stand on guard for thee", well, now's my chance to make good on the oath.Our antiglobalist people are starting to reach out and share research. Kids on YouTube are doing their best to show that Canada is alive and resisting.I know, either directly or indirectly, pretty much everybody in the movement.What do you guys need? Let's start talking. We'll build our own bridges and international cooperation. To tear these bastards downs we will.I know what Canadians are made of. Strong stuff and solid values. Time to rock! Don't tell me you can't do it, you guys paddled a bunch of canoes and burned our White House down in the 1800s. And lived to tell the tale. That was sheer balls.Oyate. Homepage 08.19.07 - 4:40 pm #

Cat:"...since the Canadian people are so much more superiour and moral than Americans."I don't think I ever heard any canuck say that Canadians were morally superior to Americans, but I will readily admit that we trash your government whenever the opportunity arises.I have myself complained about Americans boastful nationalistic nature, but I never said we were morally superior. Just a lot more laid-back. I think we do have a better healthcare system. Even with the NAU revelation(?) I still think we have a superior political system (five parties opposed to the two (one) party system the States employ.For that reason I think we might be able to enjoy more success opposing this than Americans opposing their gov't do.Time will tell.rgl 08.19.07 - 4:43 pm #

@ Oyate:You are a complete enigma to me. On one hand you can be the most callous, right-wing SOB I have ever heard.With your very next post, you show an uncommon amount of intelligence and compassion. A true humanist.What ARE you made of?rgl 08.19.07 - 4:47 pm #

Our neighbors to the north must get off their butts,and raise hell if they want to protect themselves and their country and its resources because Bush and company are out to dupe their leaders into agreements they will live to regret. As for those of us who reside in the lower 48, when the papers are signed,we're buying vans to haul millions "legals" to Canada at $1000 a clip to take your jobs and tankers by the 1000's to haul your resources back to the states, guarded all the way by U.S. troops who will have full access to both Canada and Mexico. You have been warned.Keith in NC 08.19.07 - 4:51 pm #

Oyate:Addendum to my last. If you have read the posts here, then you have read mine where I agree with one world government. Done by consent, not coercion.Up til right now, I thought I 'knew' you. Presumtious, but there you have it.I would like your thoughts on the matter, when you get a moment.rgl 08.19.07 - 4:52 pm #

The fact is that most of this already existed as administrative accords. For example, as inexplicable as it may be, Canadian F-16s patrolled the skies over New York after 9-11. A thousand hospital beds were made available in my region for victims of 9-11. Security cooperation has existed since the late 70s, including the sharing of personal and confidential information. NORAD has always evolved and gathered more power. There was no need for a Binational agreement, since these plans have existed now, for ages.NO.Canadians have always been blackmailed by our close friends and dear neighbors. If we do not comply with their wishes, there will be slowdowns at the border and businesses will lose money, the same businesses that contribute largely to the political structure. Consider the hardwood litigation. The US kept us in litigation for years and the money owed to Canadian companies was kept in trust. When these companies faltered financially, they were picked up by US companies at a bargain. The US lost its obviously bogus case, and still decided not to pay the entire sums owed. If we didn't accept, we could expect troubles at the border.The same for the bogus homeland security deal. We comply or else.This is but a symptom. Without globalization, there would be little need for such coordination.Yes be nice, since if you're not, you won't be taken seriously and may not be read. Running with your hair on fire may lose you calories, but you may get some awful dandruff from it. Be intelligent, that should be disconcerting to the lot of them.I doubt that Canadians require advise from people who would let their officials get away with such criminal behavior for so long. A people who would accept the condoning of torture, the abandonment of all human rights and of the Geneva principles. We are by no means perfect, but we hopefully will find a way to stay together and face down the barbarians at the door.T.Turtle 08.19.07 - 4:55 pm #

rgl,It sounds like you ought to start thrashing your own government around very quickly or you may be sorry. Now is not the time to be attacking average joe/janes of US. You may be able to hold it off, but I think you have alot of work cut out for you. Good Luck.Cat 08.19.07 - 4:57 pm #

Turtle,It should not matter if you are blackmailed or Corporations are doing this or that. The Canadian people should stand up to their government. You need to wake the Average Canadian up!! Isn't that what people say of Americans? Americans are guilty of the crimes the state commits? Already you guys agreed to Nafta. Well, I'm sure the nafta card will be played more and more. People do not realize that under Nafta a corporation's "rights" TRUMP all government's laws if it finds those laws interfere with profit. It Trumps all Jury decisions, parliamentary rulings, state laws, etc. The Canadian people allowed this, now they are going to start paying the price, like Americans have.If Canadians allow such as Nafta and any movement towards NAU they only have THEMSELVES to blame.Frankly, I don't care if we take you guys over. If we do its because "You deserve it for not standing up".Cat 08.19.07 - 5:06 pm #

Cat:Agreed. And again, just for the record, I think you will find that I don't trash John/Jane yank. I have defended your people in uniform. I have pointed out that America HAS done great things in the past. But I will readily admit that I have railed against your government's treatment of minorities, your sub-standard education system, healthcare system, and yes, the list goes on.But these are complaints against your government, not the people enslaved by that government.And in truth, I have verbally 'accosted' the occasional yank personally for spouting rightwing, neocon bullshit. Guilty as charged. But we have them up here too. And I have no problem bringing a fellow Canadian up short when I think (s)he needs it.But yes, it seems we have some dogshit we must scoop out of our own backyard now, doesn't it?rgl 08.19.07 - 5:12 pm #

From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli....Canada has oil and water. Additionally, thanks to global warming, Canada will soon, within ten to fifty years from today, be in possession of the mythical Northwest Passage. The wealth that will be generated in northern Canada from commerce and resource extraction is simply stunning to contemplate. Now Canada must yield those resources to U.S. corporate exploitation.GORBALT 08.19.07 - 5:19 pm #

Turtle:Actually, T, the security arrangement you speak of has been in existance since 1815.Upon the conclusion of the War of 1812, a bilateral military commission was enacted to settle border disputes, and like grievances and to prevent another war on this continent.Canada does not possess F16s. Our main combat aircraft is the F18 Hornet, Canadian designation, CF18.That is not to say that we did not have combat aircraft in the skies, we did, but I believe Canadian a/c were 'restricted' to Canadian airspace.Ditto, we may have had Canadian pilots tooling around in American F16s, but I am unaware of any joint combat squadrons in existance.I am not disputing you. I simply don't know the facts. But it would greatly surprise me to find Canadian pilots patrolling the skies of America, outside of the existing Canadian presence at NORAD.rgl 08.19.07 - 5:22 pm #

Convicting Padilla: Bad News for All Americans

Convicting Padilla: Bad News for All AmericansBy Dave Lindorff08/18/07 "ICH" -- -
With habeas corpus a thing of the past,
with arrest and detention without charge permitted
, with torture and spying without court oversight all the rage,
with prosecutors free to tape conversations between lawyers and their clients,
and with the judicial branch now infested by rightwing judges
who would have been at home in courtrooms of the Soviet Union or Hitler's Germany,
for all they seem to care about common law tradition,
the only real thing holding the line against absolute tyranny in the U.S. has been the jury.

Now, with Jose Padilla--a US citizen who was originally picked up and held incommunicado on a military base for three and a half years, publicly accused (though never charged) with planning to construct and detonate a so-called "dirty" nuclear device (this a guy without a high school education!), all based upon hearsay, evidence elicited by torture, and a few overheard wiretapped conversations where prosecutors claimed words like "zucchini" were code for explosive devices-convicted on a charge of "planning to murder," we see that juries in this era of a bogus "war on terror" are ready to believe anything.That last line of defense-the common sense or ordinary citizens in a jury box-is gone too.The jury in this case apparently accepted the government's contention that Padilla was a member of Al Qaeda, and had returned from a trip to Pakistan full of plans to wreak mayhem on his own country.
They cared not a whit for the fact that the government had used methods against Padilla (three years of isolation and total sensory deprivation that had driven him insane)
which would have made medieval torturers green with envy.
They cared not a whit that there was no real evidence against Padilla.
This was, in the end, a case that most closely resembled the famous Saturday Night Live skit in which witches were dunked underwater to "prove" whether they were in fact witches, and where if they drowned, they were found to be innocent. In the end, Padilla's jury simply bought the government's wild and wild-eyed story. They decided he hadn't drowned, so he must be guilty.
Padilla can now expect to spend what's left of his life in prison.
Since the government has already driven him insane, he will have the added burden of being mentally unbalanced from the outset of his incarceration. His survival prospects are not good.The president promptly thanked the jury for their "good judgment.
"We can no doubt expect many more Padillas now that the way has been paved for this kind of totalitarian approach to law enforcement.
Beginning today, we can expect the government to begin arresting people on an array of trumped-up charges, locking them away in black sites, on military bases, or maybe even overseas, subjecting them to all manner of torture, and then finally bringing them to trial on trumped-up charges. We can also expect juries, made fearful by breathless warnings that "evil ones" mean us and our nation harm, to buy the government's stories.Who is at risk? That's hard to say, but it's clear that it won't just be hardened terrorist types. A presidential executive order signed by Bush on July 17 declares that anything that "undermining efforts to promote economic reconstruction (sic) and political reform (sic) in Iraq" could be deemed a crime making the perpetrator subject to arrest. Would writing essays critical of the president, the war in Iraq, or the "reconstruction" effort in Iraq meet that standard? Who knows? Would being interviewed for commentary as part of a news story on English-language Al Jezeera TV (which Bush and Cheney have declared to be supportive of the Iraqi insurgency, and which Bush reportedly at one point considered bombing!)?And how about anti-war protesters? We already have Washington, DC, under pressure from Homeland Security, threatening the organization World Can't Wait with multiple $10,000 fines for posting flyers around the city announcing an anti-war march and rally on September 15. If they go ahead with the protest, will they be joining Padilla?I have little doubt that this administration would love to lock up journalistic critics and protesters in military brigs, so the question is: how would juries respond to charges that American journalists and protesters against the war were treacherously undermining the Bush war effort?I used to be confident that most juries would laugh such cases out of court. After the Padilla decision, I'm not so sure.You want to think that your fellow citizens have at least some measure of common sense, but this case suggests otherwise--that they are easily frightened, gullible, and willing to believe the most fantastic claims of the government.The future does not look good for freedom in America.Dave Lindorff's newest book is "The Case for Impeachment", co-authored by Barbara Olshansky.



One can never advocate democracy, freedom and liberty abroad if it is abandoned at home.America is not a good example of any of the above.Bush and Cheney are simply on the wrong side of history.Other leaders worldwide who do not speak up for the good of the world eg. Afghanistan and Iraq are complicit in the crimes and misdeameanors of Bush and Cheney.Mind you, many are probably afraid of the BULLIES!If America and Israel were children they would need a time out.Derek 08.19.07 - 1:26 pm #

Are you kidding America and Israel are children. But the people are afraid to punish this child.cuda 08.19.07 - 1:36 pm #

There is no reason whatsoever to believe that Americans are any differeng from Germans or Russians or any other culture that has allowed and even supported genocide. It is the nature of human cultures, from time to time, to allow the lust for domination, destruction, carnage and suffering to take over.Steve 08.19.07 - 2:25 pm #

Evidently the author has never sat through voir dire (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voir_dire) or he would have known that Padilla's guilt was never in question. The government knows that it can easily find a dozen extremely ignorant Americans who can be influenced in simplistic ways. For example, during this trial the prosecutors showed the jury utterly unrelated movies of Osama bin Laden - and by association the jurors of course conclude that Padilla works for bin Laden. As cheap and sleazy as George himself.O.J. Simpson got off because of an elaborate jury selection. Simpson retained a private consulting firm that does nothing but evaluate prospective jurors during voir dire for trials of the very wealthy clients who can afford this very effective juror evaluation service. Psychologists, sociologists and attorneys make a deep analysis of the personality, economic circumstances, personal history, and prejudices of every prospective juror in a sophisticated selection process that can just about predict how a juror will vote prior to presentation of any evidence at all!I expect that "Baretta" used much the same manipulative - and very expensive - technique to get off from charges of murdering his wife.On the other hand, in trials that are very important to the government, such as those of Manuel Noreiga and Carlos Lehder, the the government prosecutors expend enormous effort in voir dire. Harpers Magazine quite a few years ago published the questionaire that the prosecutors required prospective jurors to fill out for the Noreiga trial. Have you ever owned a motor boat? Does your neighbor own a motor boat? Have you ever vacationed in the Caribbean? Yes? Then you're disqualified. Do you think that the government would allow any remote possibility of Noreiga's exoneration after sending the marines to invade Panama? Not a chance. These trials are decided before they begin; the political price to the government of losing a such a high profile trial would be too great, and no chances are taken. Imagine that you are a juror for the trial of any of Padilla, Noreiga or Lehder. Imagine that by pretending stupidity and malleability you managed to get on one of these juries. Now imagine that you've evaluated the evidence and you are convinced that the defendant is innocent. Now bear in mind that eleven very stupid jurors, your fellows, are certain of his guilt and are beginning to wonder about your motivations; and don't forget that George Bush #1 is watching this trial very carefully, having loudly condemned the defendant in public speeches and having invaded a nation to extract him. Now just how long do expect you are going to live, wanting to set terrorists or drug dealers loose on society? You vote to convict - or else.The government has at its disposal some one hundred million absolute ignoramuses who can be manipulated easily. I myself sat through jury selection, as a spectator, for a murder trial. I saw one prospective juror after another testify that a defendant must prove his innocence to be set free. One of these ill informed candidate jurors felt that the more serious the charges then the more incontrovertible must be the defendant's alibi. Another of the candidate jurors who felt that proof of innocence was incumbent upon the accused was the wife of a cop! I can just imagine the conversation around that dinner table!The morons that I observed during this process were culled from a much larger group during a preliminary selection process. I don't know the criteria for selection here, but I will say that every single one of those selected to appear before the judge and the attorneys for further selection were without exception pathetic ignoramuses, and were, furthermore, impresses and somewhat intimidated by the formal procedures, afraid to say anything out of line and eager to please.With a hundred million morons at its behest, the government can do anything it wants. "Remember, for me all things are legal." -- CaligulaGORBALT 08.19.07 - 2:30 pm #

...and I thought Padilla gets a fair trial, and since there was no real evidence against him, he should be a free man!Today I must agree with this statement:"We can no doubt expect many more Padillas now that the way has been paved for this kind of totalitarian approach to law enforcement."WHY are not Bush and Cheney held responsible for their crimes against the Constitution and International Laws? All they have to do now, is to declare some group "terrorists" or "enemy combatants" to bomb, jail and torture them.America has become a Police State, and our elected officials let them do it. I am appalled how it could come to this, and I fear elections are manipulated in favor of the ruling powers.Noc41Noc41 08.19.07 - 2:36 pm #

If only one person had refused to convict this poor soul might have a different fate. I live in a town of 22000 people. I think I am the only person that has gone to the congressmans office to push impeachment. I am also the only one to go to the state representatives office to try and derail the realid.Why do I feel no victory in being alone here in this struggle and possibly the only person that cares? This kiddos means that if I am railroaded here I will probably have the same fate as Mr. Padilla. Far from relishing my new position as town seer, it is a curse that brings home the reality that we have stepped back in time to 1938 nazi Germany. I try to explain martial law pdd's to people and I hear "naw that could never happen" Ignorance is bliss and my fellow citizens are blistered. I will continue to fight the globalist new world order but I must admit folks the possibility of retaking this nation looks slim to none. With private jails hungry for new meat trivial misdemeanors have now blossomed into capital crimes. Framing and inflating charges by cops and prosecuters is widespread. Sometimes I think it is a miracle from GOD that I have spent a day more of freedom. We are all just 80 dlls. a day to geo or wackenhut.We are merchandise to be shelved and forgotten. I did my 6 months in solitary because of a crooked cop,but next time I dont want to be taken alive. Why give them the pleasure of torturing me with sensory depravation? Soon any hint of independant thought or dissention will make one a candidate for "re-education". Another sad part of this will be that good cops will be in the firing line if citizens defend themselves against the invisible enemy.Police will be the only visible arm of instititional tyrany.I remember the Cuban missle crisis. It didnt worry me half as much as bushco. I like my enemy to be of a foreign nature.john k. riggs 08.19.07 - 2:44 pm #

I was born in Chicago in 1943, and lived in California until we migrated to Australia in 1982. I'm stunned over the rot that has permeated the country of my birth, and won't set foot there ever again. Australia is far from perfect, but the Aus Govt haven't gone this far - yet!Ronald Homepage 08.19.07 - 2:45 pm #

Well said GORBALT. In The case against me there was no evidence. The grand jury just listen to the cop and bam the rubber stamp. The constitution that I hold so dear saved me and brought me out of dubyas dungeon. Yes folks, dubya was a stockholder in wackenhut correctional. How convenient to profit from ones victims.By my insistance on a jury trial I was vindicated, I wont have that option next time.john k. riggs 08.19.07 - 3:02 pm #

what a travasty of justice!!!! Padilla never had a chance!! This could happen to any American citizan why don't more people read ---get on the internet and learn the truth--if you don't we will end up with a fascist government--Kucunich is a great contender for president!!! Vote for him!! He is brilliant and very sage !! He is the only one that makes any sense!!!jeannette helman 08.19.07 - 3:26 pm #

I told you so, several times! Or, if not you some other American. What = to me = seems worse is that symptoms of this very infectious malady are showing up in Europe. That's caused by another thing I warned against: globalized, "free" trade.Hans 08.19.07 - 4:30 pm #

Prelude to an Attack on Iran

Prelude to an Attack on IranBy Robert Baer08/19/07 "Time" -- -
Reports that the Bush Administration will put Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the terrorism list can be read in one of two ways: it's either more bluster or, ominously, a wind-up for a strike on Iran. Officials I talk to in Washington vote for a hit on the IRGC, maybe within the next six months. And they think that as long as we have bombers and missiles in the air, we will hit Iran's nuclear facilities. An awe and shock campaign, lite, if you will. But frankly they're guessing; after Iraq the White House trusts no one, especially the bureaucracy. As with Saddam and his imagined WMD, the Administration's case against the IRGC is circumstantial. The U.S. military suspects but cannot prove that the IRGC is the main supplier of sophisticated improvised explosive devices to insurgents killing our forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. The most sophisticated version, explosive formed projectiles or shape charges, are capable of penetrating the armor of an Abrams tank, disabling the tank and killing the crew. A former CIA explosives expert who still works in Iraq told me: "The Iranians are making them. End of story." His argument is only a state is capable of manufacturing the EFP's, which involves a complicated annealing process. Incidentally, he also is convinced the IRGC is helping Iraqi Shia militias sight in their mortars on the Green Zone. "The way they're dropping them in, in neat grids, tells me all I need to know that the Shia are getting help. And there's no doubt it's Iranian, the IRGC's," he said. A second part of the Administration's case against the IRGC is that the IRGC has had a long, established history of killing Americans, starting with the attack on the Marines in Beirut in 1983. And that's not to mention it was the IRGC that backed Hizballah in its thirty-four day war against Israel last year. The feeling in the Administration is that we should have taken care of the IRGC a long, long time ago. Strengthening the Administration's case for a strike on Iran, there's a belief among neo-cons that the IRGC is the one obstacle to democratic and a friendly Iran. They believe that if we were to get rid of the IRGC, the clerics would fall, and our thirty-years war with Iran over. It's another neo-con delusion, but still it informs White House thinking. And what do we do if just the opposite happens — a strike on Iran unifies Iranians behind the regime? An Administration official told me it's not even a consideration. "IRGC IED's are a casus belli for this administration. There will be an attack on Iran." — Robert Baer, a former CIA field officer assigned to the Middle East, is TIME.com's intelligence columnist and the author of See No Evil and, most recently, the novel Blow the House Down

http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1654188,00.html


There are far too many commentators advising war on Iran.Neocons are pleading mea culpas for the ignorance shown in attacking Iraq.Surely such ignorant advisors would learn from their mistakes.
Alas, such is not the case.The former USSR had a time out when they went BROKE. Maybe it is time for America to get its priorities in line before going on another adventure.
While reparations are in order for the chaos created in Iraq, the American people will no doubt, continue to shop for bargains.
The debt is $850 billion and climbing.
America is going for broke.All troops should get out of Afghanistan and Iraq.
All countries that were committed to giving foreign aid to these countries should do so.Bush and Cheney,and other neocons are fools of the worse kind as they never learn from their mistakes.Derek 08.19.07 - 1:21 pm #

"The Iranians are making them. End of story." - No, not end of story.Says who and on what evidence?"The way they're dropping them in, in neat grids, tells me all I need to know that the Shia are getting help." - So we just believe what you believe, Mr CIA spokesman, hey? And the evidence?"And there's no doubt it's Iranian, the IRGC's,"- Oh, there's plenty of doubt but it won't voiced anywhere in mainstream media, from Fox News to the BBC, as well all these 'official spokesmen' are banking on. And the evidence?"The feeling in the Administration is that we should have taken care of the IRGC a long, long time ago". - Yes, we know all about Washington's deluded 'feelings'; but the evidence?"IRGC IED's are a casus belli for this administration. There will be an attack on Iran."- Looks like it, because the citizens of the USA are indifferent and apparently quite unwilling to or incapable of questioning their media's propaganda and their authorities' claims.It's left to rest of us to challenge every lie and soundbite attributed to 'official sources' in newspapers like the NYT and in TV news broadcasts, from CNN and BBC across the board to all the local stations.blizzard 08.19.07 - 1:56 pm #

If the economy is tottering right now,and the problems with junk mortgages have JUST started (there will be another whammy starting this Otober),what will happen if the U.S attacks Iran ,spreading panic in European and Asian markets,with all the traders dumping U.S. debt?.Are our Representatives going to allow it?.Are we as citizens going to allow it without protesting?.Gustavo Caldas 08.19.07 - 2:30 pm #

An astute observer I know well suggests that if H. Clinton is elected in 2008, there will be an attack on Iran, but not if R. Guliani wins the election. It would seem that the neocons are in for the longer run, and it won' matter who becomes president in 2009. They will continue pursuing their goals.Prospero 08.19.07 - 2:39 pm #

Check my blog and you will see I came up with the idea of Prelude to an Attack before this article was published. For real !andrew Homepage 08.19.07 - 3:07 pm #

http://andrewbnoselli.blogspot.comandrew Homepage 08.19.07 - 3:08 pm #

I feel it is neccessary to rebut the careless and unatributed comments of the 'CIA weapons expert' quoted. Firstly, mortaring is not rocket science. You start with a map, then overlay this map with a grid covering the target area(the Green Zone). Next,reproduce and distribute the map.
Set up observation points (to call in firing adjustments) and a communications net- cell phones would do. Now, canvas your area of operations for good firing points that your mortar crews can use. Write a Firing Plan for every point of fire, incorporating the firing tables for type of ammo used, meteorlogical adjustments, and of course distance to the various targets to be serviced. Gps is ideal for this, but a talented hand with navigational dividers can do the job. Lay out marks (spray paint or stakes) so the lads can get their guns laid quickly,and have your operations officer write out an operational plan.
Happy mortaring!Now, tell me that the thousands of professional soldiers in the former Iraqi army couldn't figure this out? they have been fighting over there since 1980! Iranian Revolutionary Guard my white ass!!Jim Norman 08.19.07 - 4:00 pm #

" A former CIA explosives expert who still works in Iraq told me"Who's he working for? What company? What government?hareli 08.19.07 - 4:35 pm #

Good for you, blizzard 08.19.07 - 1:56 pm.Because I dont buy the shit from this guy, either.hareli 08.19.07 - 4:36 pm #

"A second part of the Administration's case against the IRGC is that the IRGC has had a long, established history of killing Americans, starting with the attack on the Marines in Beirut in 1983."Oh yeah? Then why did Victor Ostrovsky, former Mossad agent, write in the early 90s that the Mossad were involved? [Google it. It's been out for years.] And Israel was so upset about the publication that it sought an a priori injunction against the book from the US Supreme Court.hareli 08.19.07 - 4:40 pm #

As far as the mysterious 'EFPs' these are are simply our old friend the platter charge. I won't tell you how to make one, but will list the neccessary tools and materials. Raw materials are steel pipe- 6" is a good size, and steel plate the same thickness as the pipe. A castable explosive (Comp B from a dud US bomb) and pure copper sheet complete the materials list.You need a welder, a band saw and a lathe to make the casing. Every machine shop and even many home shops have these tools.To fill the casing it's a thermometer and a double boiler. Real hi tech. Only a government could do this, right?The fragment is a little harder.You could make it various ways, but the best would be to use a copper sheet and form it with a press. This would require annealing, and is not something the average Hadjji could easily figure out. Engineering the annealment process is the only hard part though- once this was accomplished the quite simple instructions could be printed on a slip of paper.So- it's not a government that's required here- just a metalurgist, a weapons engineer and Bubbas' machine shop.Jim Norman 08.19.07 - 4:50 pm #

interesting - But I have to say I am so tired of the - US to invade Iran - senario - I mean its like every week since 2003 many articles come out about the potential attack by the US that now I feel burnt out on the whole thing - could this be the key as to why so much chicken little over the years?just a thoughtunity 08.19.07 - 5:00 pm #