Though less violent than in Iraq, recent times haven't been good for the administration either. With some polls putting Bully Boy's approval ratings as low as 32%, it's not been good news. Scotty McClellan was kicked to the curb while Rove was "repositioned" either due to the possibility that he may be indicted by Patrick Fitzgerald in the Plamegate scandal or because the 2006 elections are approaching and the Bully Boy needs his Head Trickster to ensure that the GOP keeps both houses of Congress. (Losing one might mean Congressional committee hearings!)
Two weeks ago, Bully Boy got a "warm" welcome that's worth noting:
"Protesters At Stanford Univ. Block Bush Motorcade" (Democracy Now!):
In California, over 1,000 protesters greeted President Bush on Friday during his visit to Stanford University. Protesters blocked the only street to the site of the president's meeting at the Hoover Institution. This forced the White House to move the planned meeting to the residence of former Secretary of State and Hoover Fellow George Shultz on the outskirts of the campus. Over 100 police dressed in riot gear attempted to clear the street. Three students were arrested for blocking the road. On Saturday, another 2,000 protesters lined the streets of Sacramento where the president gave an Earth Day speech on fuel cell technology. 500 protesters also gathered in San Jose where Bush met with California governor Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and high-tech leaders at Cisco Systems.
Last week Condi Rice also had a warm welcoming:
"Thousands Protest Condoleezza Rice in Greece" (Democracy Now!):
In Greece, thousands of demonstrators tried to march earlier today to the U.S. embassy in Athens to protest a visit by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Police dressed in riot gear fired tear gas and clashed with demonstrators. On Monday, protesters managed to hoist a giant poster reading "Condoleezza Rice Go Home" from the central Athens Music Hall, next to the U.S. embassy. Two years ago Rice's predecessor Colin Powell had to cancel a visit to Athens in order to avoid mass protests.
May the Henry Kissinger fate (where he has to check on extradition policies before traveling out of the United States to avoid risking prosecution) await Bully Boy, Condi, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Alberto Gonzales and the whole gang. Lies from their lips and blood on their hands.
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Iraq: Five snapshots show a deadly week
If you haven't heard the news yet, American military fatalities in Iraq have hit (official count) 2400. It seems like moments ago when our press organs were predicting a 'corner turned' and citing figures and shuffled decks as proof that things had changed. Things have changed. The violence only increases.
If you weren't following the events last week, we'll offer a Monday through Friday recap via C.I.'s "Iraq Snapshot."
Monday:
Iraq?
The Associated Press notes that on Sunday "at least three U.S. soldiers and 31 Iraqis were killed, including seven who died when mortars hit just outside the heavily guarded Green Zone." The Chicago Tribune reports that private contractors in Iraq have been confiscating passports from labor brought in (from outside Iraq) and that General George Casey has ordered that all passports must be returned by May 1st. Reuters notes that Iraqi firefighters are fighting "a large blaze" at an oil center between Kirkuk and Baiji. Australia's ABC notes that John Howard, that country's prime minister who is saying the illegal war is not "a disaster," stated today that the prospect of US troops was conditional (and didn't appear optimistic it would happen).
Ian Bruce, with the UK Herald, reports that Carle Selman, James Cooke, Joseph McCleary and Martin McGing will stand trial (court martial) in Colchester, Essex for their actions in the death of Iraqi Ahmed Jabber Kareem. Seventeen-year-old Kareem was beaten along with three others and then ordered "into the Shatt al Basra waterway." Kareem, who could not swim, drowned. Bruce notes that an estimated 30 British soldiers "have either been convicted, are awaiting court-marital, or are being investigate" for their actions in Iraq. China's People's Daily Online reports that the costs of the (illegal) Iraq war are rising to one trillion in US dollars. Meanwhile, New York Daily News notes that costs for Iraq and Afghanistan will hit $117.9 billion and that the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments is predicting the cost could reach 660 billion dollars by the year 2016.
In Tikrit, four Iraqi police officers were killed during a gun battle and two more were killed after the attack on the police station. In Mosul, Sandra Lupien noted, three corpses were found andAl Jazeera notes that at least seven car bombs have gone off in Baghdad ("two of them at a Baghdad university"), CNN reports eight (a more recent report). The Los Angeles Times (going with the figure of seven) reports the death of at least 14 civilians and the wouding of at least 139 -- Sandra Lupien noted that the 139 included "a ten-year-old boy."Seventeen corpses were found in Iraq today, the Associated Press reports. Sandra Lupien (a more recent report) noted at least 20 from secratarian violence with many, if not all, showing signs of torture.
Sandra Lupien does newsbreaks on KPFA in the early half of the day, including during one of Ruth's favorite programs: The Morning Show. Please note audio reports whenever one stands out -- not all members have the same abilities -- and Lupien has four news breaks in the now archived broadcast of The Morning Show, click on the links in the previous paragraphs and you'll be taken to today's two hour broadcast -- Lupien comes in on the hour and half hour. Lloyd has reminded me to add a radio show to the permalinks -- added last night. It's not showing up. But as I dictate this, nothing is showing up. Hopefully members are using the mirror site where this morning's entries (thanks to Jess) are up and VISIBLE.
Tuesday:
While Bully Boy uses current oil prices to push "the appearance of a gas shortage to push for the drilling" in ANWR (as Sandra Lupien noted), chaos and violence continues in Iraq. Yesterday, in Baghdad, eight bombs went off and CNN puts the toll at "at least eight people died and 90 others were injured."
Today? First, not a roadside bomb, but one inside a "minibus" exploded in Baghdad leading to at least two deaths and at least five wounded, according to Reuters. Also in Baghdad, the Associated Press notes that two more corpses have been found (with signs of torture). Reuters reports that Ibrahim al-Hindawi, "a senior judge in Baghdad," has been kidnapped by gunmen. Still in Baghdad, along with the bomb in the minibus, two roadsides bombs did go off -- at least three Iraqis were wounded. A "car bomb" in Baghdad resulted in at least four Iraqi police officers being wounded.
Police officers were targeted elsewhere as well. In Tal Qasir, four were killed during an attack on a police station, and "near Kirkuk," two Iraqi soldiers and a police officer were killed. Another Iraqi soldier was killed on "the main road between Tikrit and Kirkuk" -- the oil blaze, for those following (obviously the New York Times isn't).
At least three American soldiers were wounded when a roadside bobm went off in Haqlaniyah. And if you check the current tally, you'll see we're not that far away from another milestone: 2390 dead from the illegal 'cake walk.' This as Borzou Daraghi reports for the Los Angels Times that American ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad (the US ambassador to Iraq) has declared that America "must, perhaps reluctantly, accept" that US forces will continue to occupy Iraq for . . . "Long stay" is the the term that pops up in the headline. Permanent bases and the lust for the emerging markets would seem to indicate the need for a stronger term.
Wednesday:
Iraq snapshot.
Chaos and violence continue.
The Associated Press notes that "[m]ore than 100 Iraqi civilians or police have been killed . . . since [Jawad] al-Maliki was tapped as Iraq's prime minister designate on Saturday . . ." Not a pretty picture. Thank goodness the word's premier video popped up to distract everyone with instead. (Has so much time been consumed covering a video since Madonna's "Like a Prayer"?) South of Baghdad (to use the 'location' favored by the BBC here and CNN here -- Reuters identifies it as Yusufiya), a US air strike (and "ground forces") have attacked a house in Baghdad an twelve people are dead including one woman. The media's running with the US military's statements (presented not as quotes) that it was a "safe house." The facts are, as known now, a US air strike and "ground forces" has resulted in 12 deaths "south of Baghdad." In Baghdad? China's People's Daily reports that a minibus contained a bomb which killed at least three Iraqis and wounded at least four while a roadside bomb "hit a passing police patrol" and killed at least one person and wounded at least two others.
The AP notes that four corpses were found in Baghdad. Reuters notes that the four bodies had "signs of torture and . . . gun shot wounds to their head".
Corpses continue to surface all over Iraq. As noted last week by Knight Ridder, the US administration didn't take the militia issue seriously. That may be the nicest explanation. Jawad al-Maliki is calling for the militias to disarm according to Reuters.
Knight Ridder's Lelia Fadel reports that sectarian lines are forming in Iraq's university system as well. KUNA reports that a "decomposed dead body in a bag" was discovered in Kirkuk. Reuters notes six corpses found "signs of torture and gunshot wounds" in Kerbala. In Kirkuk, "a wealthy trader" was kidnapped while, in Mahmodiya, "a bomb blast" has wounded three police officers.
Thursday:
Iraq snapshot.
Thursday, as Pacifica broadcasts the Iraq Forum, things remain the same in Iraq: violence and chaos. Condi and Donnie took the PR Express to Iraq. And did anything change?
CNN reports that "many of the troops stationed north of Baghdad, in Balad and Dujail, say either they didn't know about it or didn't care." No, nothing changed. But it's an election year and nothing's more likely to put the dove in the pants of an Nixon or Bully Boy than an election year. Which is why there are the grumbles of maybe we'll draw down the numbers of some troops (while increasing the air strikes). The AFP reports Muwaffaq Bubaie, national security chief of Iraq, made noises of "a sizeable gross reduction of troops" at year's end.
Far from Fantasy Island, in Baquba, at least one Iraqi civilian and four Iraqi police officers died while at least two police officers were wounded in attacks on checkpoints today. As the day continued, the number of dead would rise to at least eleven.Reuters notes a Romanian soldier and three Italian soldiers died due to a roadside bomb (Italy's Minister of Defence had revised the figures from three to two but AFP notes that the third has died and that a fourth is wounded). In Ramadi, two missiles were fired by a US plane. In Ramadi,an Iraqi soldier died from gun fire.
The Associated Press notes that today, sixteen more corpses were found (signs of torture).
As noted by Australia's ABC and WBAI's Wakeup Call, Jake Kovco remains in Iraq. Kovoco died in Iraq last week. Jacob Bruce Kovco was twenty-five years old and was to be honored this week in the Gippsland community of Briagolong. For that to happen, Kovco's body would need to make it to Australia. The wrong body was in the coffin. Brendan Nelson, Australia's Defense Minister, tells of breaking the news to Shelley Kovco and when the widow demanded to speak with Prime Minister John Howard, Nelson dialed the number. Nelson then angered family members (brother of the deceased, Benn Kovco, and mother of the deceased, Judy Kovco) by making statements regarding the death (which is still under investigation).
And in England, the Telegraph of London reports, the government's attorney general has backed off from the prosecution of of any British soldiers in the shooting death of Steven Roberts. Like the Kovco family, Samantha Roberts (wife of the deceased) continues to seek answers and feels that the government has been little help to her.
Friday:
Iraq snapshot.
The Associated Press notes that despite the hoopla of the Elections Come To Iraq! spin things have not improved on the ground. Using their figures, in the last year "8,000 people have been killed and there are increasing cases of civilians being kidnapped, killed and dumped in public places." This comes while US military officials are trumpeting the death of a "key insurgent" demonstrating that, after all this time, they still fail to grasp the cycle they're in. (It's called "occupation.")
The violence continues. The AFP reports that an Iraqi army headquarters in Del Abbas was "attacke by more than 100 rebels" resulting in four resistance fighters dying, six Iraqi army soldiers dying, eight Iraqi army soldiers wounded, two civilians killed and four wounded. Baquba is under curfew after yesterday's events which included, as Reuters notes, an attack of a police station and checkpoints in Baquba which resulted in the death of at least 17 resistance fighters and one Iraqi soldier (and two more wounded). The US military credits "Iraqi forces" with coming to the aid of the police; however, "Baquba police say US forces came to aid of the police."
The BBC notes that two Iraqi police officers were killed in Falluja. Later, Reuters would report that number would rise to three.
In Baghdad, a roadside bomb claimed the life of one Iraqi police officer and wounded at least two others. In addition, two more corpses were found in Baghdad ("handcuffed, blindfolded and bullet-ridden"). CNN notes that "[t]wo mortars or rockets were fired at downtown Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone."
And, as reported yesterday by David Enders, on Free Speech Radio News and The KPFA Evening News, violence continues to target the schools in Iraq. Road blocks, traffic and loss of friends and family are among the reasons leading to absences (teachers and students). The system itself needs 4500 new schools. Fatalities have included 400 teachers and school employees, casualties include at least 170 wounded. 417 schools in Iraq have been attacked.
That was some of the known activity, some of the reported activity, in Iraq from last week. We're at 2400. Official count. No official count on the number of Iraqis who have died. Concerned?
How about this item from Democracy Now!:
Iraq War Costs Approach $320B
A new Congressional report says the cost of the war in Iraq will soon top $320 billion dollars -- a figure that will likely more than double by war's end. According to the Congressional Research Service, the ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan stand to cost nearly as much as the departments of Education, Justice and Homeland Security combined.
C.I. adds that, despite Mike's refusal to take credit, Mike probably came up with the "Iraq snapshot" title.
If you weren't following the events last week, we'll offer a Monday through Friday recap via C.I.'s "Iraq Snapshot."
Monday:
Iraq?
The Associated Press notes that on Sunday "at least three U.S. soldiers and 31 Iraqis were killed, including seven who died when mortars hit just outside the heavily guarded Green Zone." The Chicago Tribune reports that private contractors in Iraq have been confiscating passports from labor brought in (from outside Iraq) and that General George Casey has ordered that all passports must be returned by May 1st. Reuters notes that Iraqi firefighters are fighting "a large blaze" at an oil center between Kirkuk and Baiji. Australia's ABC notes that John Howard, that country's prime minister who is saying the illegal war is not "a disaster," stated today that the prospect of US troops was conditional (and didn't appear optimistic it would happen).
Ian Bruce, with the UK Herald, reports that Carle Selman, James Cooke, Joseph McCleary and Martin McGing will stand trial (court martial) in Colchester, Essex for their actions in the death of Iraqi Ahmed Jabber Kareem. Seventeen-year-old Kareem was beaten along with three others and then ordered "into the Shatt al Basra waterway." Kareem, who could not swim, drowned. Bruce notes that an estimated 30 British soldiers "have either been convicted, are awaiting court-marital, or are being investigate" for their actions in Iraq. China's People's Daily Online reports that the costs of the (illegal) Iraq war are rising to one trillion in US dollars. Meanwhile, New York Daily News notes that costs for Iraq and Afghanistan will hit $117.9 billion and that the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments is predicting the cost could reach 660 billion dollars by the year 2016.
In Tikrit, four Iraqi police officers were killed during a gun battle and two more were killed after the attack on the police station. In Mosul, Sandra Lupien noted, three corpses were found andAl Jazeera notes that at least seven car bombs have gone off in Baghdad ("two of them at a Baghdad university"), CNN reports eight (a more recent report). The Los Angeles Times (going with the figure of seven) reports the death of at least 14 civilians and the wouding of at least 139 -- Sandra Lupien noted that the 139 included "a ten-year-old boy."Seventeen corpses were found in Iraq today, the Associated Press reports. Sandra Lupien (a more recent report) noted at least 20 from secratarian violence with many, if not all, showing signs of torture.
Sandra Lupien does newsbreaks on KPFA in the early half of the day, including during one of Ruth's favorite programs: The Morning Show. Please note audio reports whenever one stands out -- not all members have the same abilities -- and Lupien has four news breaks in the now archived broadcast of The Morning Show, click on the links in the previous paragraphs and you'll be taken to today's two hour broadcast -- Lupien comes in on the hour and half hour. Lloyd has reminded me to add a radio show to the permalinks -- added last night. It's not showing up. But as I dictate this, nothing is showing up. Hopefully members are using the mirror site where this morning's entries (thanks to Jess) are up and VISIBLE.
Tuesday:
While Bully Boy uses current oil prices to push "the appearance of a gas shortage to push for the drilling" in ANWR (as Sandra Lupien noted), chaos and violence continues in Iraq. Yesterday, in Baghdad, eight bombs went off and CNN puts the toll at "at least eight people died and 90 others were injured."
Today? First, not a roadside bomb, but one inside a "minibus" exploded in Baghdad leading to at least two deaths and at least five wounded, according to Reuters. Also in Baghdad, the Associated Press notes that two more corpses have been found (with signs of torture). Reuters reports that Ibrahim al-Hindawi, "a senior judge in Baghdad," has been kidnapped by gunmen. Still in Baghdad, along with the bomb in the minibus, two roadsides bombs did go off -- at least three Iraqis were wounded. A "car bomb" in Baghdad resulted in at least four Iraqi police officers being wounded.
Police officers were targeted elsewhere as well. In Tal Qasir, four were killed during an attack on a police station, and "near Kirkuk," two Iraqi soldiers and a police officer were killed. Another Iraqi soldier was killed on "the main road between Tikrit and Kirkuk" -- the oil blaze, for those following (obviously the New York Times isn't).
At least three American soldiers were wounded when a roadside bobm went off in Haqlaniyah. And if you check the current tally, you'll see we're not that far away from another milestone: 2390 dead from the illegal 'cake walk.' This as Borzou Daraghi reports for the Los Angels Times that American ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad (the US ambassador to Iraq) has declared that America "must, perhaps reluctantly, accept" that US forces will continue to occupy Iraq for . . . "Long stay" is the the term that pops up in the headline. Permanent bases and the lust for the emerging markets would seem to indicate the need for a stronger term.
Wednesday:
Iraq snapshot.
Chaos and violence continue.
The Associated Press notes that "[m]ore than 100 Iraqi civilians or police have been killed . . . since [Jawad] al-Maliki was tapped as Iraq's prime minister designate on Saturday . . ." Not a pretty picture. Thank goodness the word's premier video popped up to distract everyone with instead. (Has so much time been consumed covering a video since Madonna's "Like a Prayer"?) South of Baghdad (to use the 'location' favored by the BBC here and CNN here -- Reuters identifies it as Yusufiya), a US air strike (and "ground forces") have attacked a house in Baghdad an twelve people are dead including one woman. The media's running with the US military's statements (presented not as quotes) that it was a "safe house." The facts are, as known now, a US air strike and "ground forces" has resulted in 12 deaths "south of Baghdad." In Baghdad? China's People's Daily reports that a minibus contained a bomb which killed at least three Iraqis and wounded at least four while a roadside bomb "hit a passing police patrol" and killed at least one person and wounded at least two others.
The AP notes that four corpses were found in Baghdad. Reuters notes that the four bodies had "signs of torture and . . . gun shot wounds to their head".
Corpses continue to surface all over Iraq. As noted last week by Knight Ridder, the US administration didn't take the militia issue seriously. That may be the nicest explanation. Jawad al-Maliki is calling for the militias to disarm according to Reuters.
Knight Ridder's Lelia Fadel reports that sectarian lines are forming in Iraq's university system as well. KUNA reports that a "decomposed dead body in a bag" was discovered in Kirkuk. Reuters notes six corpses found "signs of torture and gunshot wounds" in Kerbala. In Kirkuk, "a wealthy trader" was kidnapped while, in Mahmodiya, "a bomb blast" has wounded three police officers.
Thursday:
Iraq snapshot.
Thursday, as Pacifica broadcasts the Iraq Forum, things remain the same in Iraq: violence and chaos. Condi and Donnie took the PR Express to Iraq. And did anything change?
CNN reports that "many of the troops stationed north of Baghdad, in Balad and Dujail, say either they didn't know about it or didn't care." No, nothing changed. But it's an election year and nothing's more likely to put the dove in the pants of an Nixon or Bully Boy than an election year. Which is why there are the grumbles of maybe we'll draw down the numbers of some troops (while increasing the air strikes). The AFP reports Muwaffaq Bubaie, national security chief of Iraq, made noises of "a sizeable gross reduction of troops" at year's end.
Far from Fantasy Island, in Baquba, at least one Iraqi civilian and four Iraqi police officers died while at least two police officers were wounded in attacks on checkpoints today. As the day continued, the number of dead would rise to at least eleven.Reuters notes a Romanian soldier and three Italian soldiers died due to a roadside bomb (Italy's Minister of Defence had revised the figures from three to two but AFP notes that the third has died and that a fourth is wounded). In Ramadi, two missiles were fired by a US plane. In Ramadi,an Iraqi soldier died from gun fire.
The Associated Press notes that today, sixteen more corpses were found (signs of torture).
As noted by Australia's ABC and WBAI's Wakeup Call, Jake Kovco remains in Iraq. Kovoco died in Iraq last week. Jacob Bruce Kovco was twenty-five years old and was to be honored this week in the Gippsland community of Briagolong. For that to happen, Kovco's body would need to make it to Australia. The wrong body was in the coffin. Brendan Nelson, Australia's Defense Minister, tells of breaking the news to Shelley Kovco and when the widow demanded to speak with Prime Minister John Howard, Nelson dialed the number. Nelson then angered family members (brother of the deceased, Benn Kovco, and mother of the deceased, Judy Kovco) by making statements regarding the death (which is still under investigation).
And in England, the Telegraph of London reports, the government's attorney general has backed off from the prosecution of of any British soldiers in the shooting death of Steven Roberts. Like the Kovco family, Samantha Roberts (wife of the deceased) continues to seek answers and feels that the government has been little help to her.
Friday:
Iraq snapshot.
The Associated Press notes that despite the hoopla of the Elections Come To Iraq! spin things have not improved on the ground. Using their figures, in the last year "8,000 people have been killed and there are increasing cases of civilians being kidnapped, killed and dumped in public places." This comes while US military officials are trumpeting the death of a "key insurgent" demonstrating that, after all this time, they still fail to grasp the cycle they're in. (It's called "occupation.")
The violence continues. The AFP reports that an Iraqi army headquarters in Del Abbas was "attacke by more than 100 rebels" resulting in four resistance fighters dying, six Iraqi army soldiers dying, eight Iraqi army soldiers wounded, two civilians killed and four wounded. Baquba is under curfew after yesterday's events which included, as Reuters notes, an attack of a police station and checkpoints in Baquba which resulted in the death of at least 17 resistance fighters and one Iraqi soldier (and two more wounded). The US military credits "Iraqi forces" with coming to the aid of the police; however, "Baquba police say US forces came to aid of the police."
The BBC notes that two Iraqi police officers were killed in Falluja. Later, Reuters would report that number would rise to three.
In Baghdad, a roadside bomb claimed the life of one Iraqi police officer and wounded at least two others. In addition, two more corpses were found in Baghdad ("handcuffed, blindfolded and bullet-ridden"). CNN notes that "[t]wo mortars or rockets were fired at downtown Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone."
And, as reported yesterday by David Enders, on Free Speech Radio News and The KPFA Evening News, violence continues to target the schools in Iraq. Road blocks, traffic and loss of friends and family are among the reasons leading to absences (teachers and students). The system itself needs 4500 new schools. Fatalities have included 400 teachers and school employees, casualties include at least 170 wounded. 417 schools in Iraq have been attacked.
That was some of the known activity, some of the reported activity, in Iraq from last week. We're at 2400. Official count. No official count on the number of Iraqis who have died. Concerned?
How about this item from Democracy Now!:
Iraq War Costs Approach $320B
A new Congressional report says the cost of the war in Iraq will soon top $320 billion dollars -- a figure that will likely more than double by war's end. According to the Congressional Research Service, the ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan stand to cost nearly as much as the departments of Education, Justice and Homeland Security combined.
C.I. adds that, despite Mike's refusal to take credit, Mike probably came up with the "Iraq snapshot" title.
10 most played CDs this week
CounterPunch offers a list of CDs each week and we're not above stealing good ideas from the sources we read. (To check out their latest playlist click here.) More importantly, it was a busy weekend and we've got a mammoth, epic roundtable (main focus of which is music) going up as one of our main pieces (the other is Ava and C.I.'s TV review -- and the editorial that we know the topic of but still, at this late hour, haven't written!). Dona wanted some short pieces to round out the edition and we love music so here's our tabulated poll of our most played CDs from last week (in alphabetical order).
Cowboy Junkies: Early 21st Century Blues
Ani DiFranco: Carnegie Hall 4.6.02
Ben Harper: Both Sides of the Gun
Etta James: All This Time
Bob Marley and the Wailers: Gold
Melanie: Beautiful People: The Greatest Hits of Melanie
Laura Nyro: New York Tendaberry
Pink: I'm Not Dead
Josh Ritter: The Animal Years
Bruce Springsteen: We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions
Cowboy Junkies: Early 21st Century Blues
Ani DiFranco: Carnegie Hall 4.6.02
Ben Harper: Both Sides of the Gun
Etta James: All This Time
Bob Marley and the Wailers: Gold
Melanie: Beautiful People: The Greatest Hits of Melanie
Laura Nyro: New York Tendaberry
Pink: I'm Not Dead
Josh Ritter: The Animal Years
Bruce Springsteen: We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions
Pacifica programming today
This is the feature where we note some Pacifica programming. If there's a show you would like noted, feel free to e-mail. Renee wondered if it had to be a program we agreed with? We're not sure if Renee's got something hidden (is Christopher Hitchens about to host a show?) or not, but no, for the most part, we can't imagine it having to be something we're fully on board for. Are point in this feature is to note what you could be hearing if you're listening to Pacifica. (Monday, stations will have updates and coverage on the immigration rights demonstrations.)
The point is to let you know there is public radio and to get the word out on Pacifica. If it's something "controversial," controversy doesn't scare us. So feel free to let us know what you know, Renee.
There is a wide range of programs offered and our point is really to demonstrate that. All the highlights air today. (You can check the archives if you're reading this late.) The first starts in four hours. You'll see some drama. Did you know that Sidney Blumenthal wrote a play? How about Lawrence Fishburne? You can hear both. We noted Judy Garland's album being played last week and that was largely because Betty said, "Come on, it's Judy! Dorothy! It has to be noted." We got two e-mails on that. The first, from Sandra, said she had always been curious about the Carnegie Hall live album but with the price (it's a double disc) and the fact that she's twenty-six ("and that was some time ago"), she figured she'd go through life curious. Seeing the heads up allowed her to listen and she ended up buying the album this week. ("There's nothing out of date about it!") The second e-mail, from TZ, said, "I read it and thought, I'm listening." TZ also thanked us for the heads up. So Sandra and TZ, and anyone else who enjoys music, what do you think of Patti Lupone? She's the focus of this week. There's that, immigration issues, African-American issues and much more.
KPFA today, times given are Pacific:
9:00 am
Sunday Salon with Larry Bensky
In our first hour... The immigration debate has sparked some of the largest mobilizations in American history. Borders, legislation, and preparation for the May 1st national day of action: To boycott and walk out or not -- that is the question. Guest include: Bill Bigelow, Angie Crouse, and An Trahn.
In our second hour... West Oakland: Caught up in a cycle of violence? What's really happening and how does it affect the area's students? Guests include: Jesse Douglas Allen-Taylor and staff and students from McClymonds High School.
6:30 pm
Radio Chronicles
See all Drama and Literature Programming
In Celebration of International Workers Day, The Radio Chronicles presents "The Invisible Men: Immigrant Day Laborers in San Francisco," which explores the lives and livelihood of immigrant day laborers, and "From Homeboys to Hollywood," which documents how Suspect Entertainment recruits and trains ex-gang members to work as actors and extras. Both produced by Vini Beacheam and the California Audio Arts.
7:30 pm
Act One Radio Drama
This Town - By Sidney Blumenthal, starring Richard Kind, Gates McFadden, and John Randolph. Former political journalist and Presidential advisor Sidney Blumenthal gives us a fly-on-the-wall look inside the well-groomed Washington Press Corps. They yawn when they hear about peace treaties - but snap to attention at the chance to uncover a little dirt on the First Dog! An on-the-money political satire! So, down and relax, you have the best seat in the house.
WBAI today, times given are Eastern:
11am-noon: The Next Hour
Real People Theater, an ensemble originated at Brooklyn's Bushwick High School, performs Part Two of the radio premiere of Lawrence Fishburne's play, "Riff-Raff." The cast includes Cinthia Candelaria as Mike and 20/20, Albert Young as Torch and Billy, and Modesto "Flaco" Jimenez as Tony T. Director Jim Fletcher plays the Narrator. Executive Producer of "Riff-Raff" is Kate Valk.
6:30-7:00 pm: Equal Time for Freethought
Tim Wise: The Uncut Interview: during the last Marathon Drive, we had to edit our interview down to eight minutes and even interrupt those minutes to pitch his book. Now, for the first time, the originally planned 23 minute interview will air!
9:00-11:00 pm: Everything Old is New Again
Patti Lupone: Some of the songs from her career that we will hear include Cole Porter's I Get A Kick Out Of You; from the Baker's Wife, Where Is The Warmth; Storybook / Love Makes The World Go 'Round;and of course, Don't Cry For Me, Argentina.
You can listen online. There's no charge.
The point is to let you know there is public radio and to get the word out on Pacifica. If it's something "controversial," controversy doesn't scare us. So feel free to let us know what you know, Renee.
There is a wide range of programs offered and our point is really to demonstrate that. All the highlights air today. (You can check the archives if you're reading this late.) The first starts in four hours. You'll see some drama. Did you know that Sidney Blumenthal wrote a play? How about Lawrence Fishburne? You can hear both. We noted Judy Garland's album being played last week and that was largely because Betty said, "Come on, it's Judy! Dorothy! It has to be noted." We got two e-mails on that. The first, from Sandra, said she had always been curious about the Carnegie Hall live album but with the price (it's a double disc) and the fact that she's twenty-six ("and that was some time ago"), she figured she'd go through life curious. Seeing the heads up allowed her to listen and she ended up buying the album this week. ("There's nothing out of date about it!") The second e-mail, from TZ, said, "I read it and thought, I'm listening." TZ also thanked us for the heads up. So Sandra and TZ, and anyone else who enjoys music, what do you think of Patti Lupone? She's the focus of this week. There's that, immigration issues, African-American issues and much more.
KPFA today, times given are Pacific:
9:00 am
Sunday Salon with Larry Bensky
In our first hour... The immigration debate has sparked some of the largest mobilizations in American history. Borders, legislation, and preparation for the May 1st national day of action: To boycott and walk out or not -- that is the question. Guest include: Bill Bigelow, Angie Crouse, and An Trahn.
In our second hour... West Oakland: Caught up in a cycle of violence? What's really happening and how does it affect the area's students? Guests include: Jesse Douglas Allen-Taylor and staff and students from McClymonds High School.
6:30 pm
Radio Chronicles
See all Drama and Literature Programming
In Celebration of International Workers Day, The Radio Chronicles presents "The Invisible Men: Immigrant Day Laborers in San Francisco," which explores the lives and livelihood of immigrant day laborers, and "From Homeboys to Hollywood," which documents how Suspect Entertainment recruits and trains ex-gang members to work as actors and extras. Both produced by Vini Beacheam and the California Audio Arts.
7:30 pm
Act One Radio Drama
This Town - By Sidney Blumenthal, starring Richard Kind, Gates McFadden, and John Randolph. Former political journalist and Presidential advisor Sidney Blumenthal gives us a fly-on-the-wall look inside the well-groomed Washington Press Corps. They yawn when they hear about peace treaties - but snap to attention at the chance to uncover a little dirt on the First Dog! An on-the-money political satire! So, down and relax, you have the best seat in the house.
WBAI today, times given are Eastern:
11am-noon: The Next Hour
Real People Theater, an ensemble originated at Brooklyn's Bushwick High School, performs Part Two of the radio premiere of Lawrence Fishburne's play, "Riff-Raff." The cast includes Cinthia Candelaria as Mike and 20/20, Albert Young as Torch and Billy, and Modesto "Flaco" Jimenez as Tony T. Director Jim Fletcher plays the Narrator. Executive Producer of "Riff-Raff" is Kate Valk.
6:30-7:00 pm: Equal Time for Freethought
Tim Wise: The Uncut Interview: during the last Marathon Drive, we had to edit our interview down to eight minutes and even interrupt those minutes to pitch his book. Now, for the first time, the originally planned 23 minute interview will air!
9:00-11:00 pm: Everything Old is New Again
Patti Lupone: Some of the songs from her career that we will hear include Cole Porter's I Get A Kick Out Of You; from the Baker's Wife, Where Is The Warmth; Storybook / Love Makes The World Go 'Round;and of course, Don't Cry For Me, Argentina.
You can listen online. There's no charge.
NYT analysis on the coverage out of Ireland
Irish-American Mike begged for it and C.I. said, "Fine, Ava and I are trying to finish our TV review here. Do what you want." With that warm response, how could we not highlight this? Seriously, C.I.'s noting The New York Times' silence on a topic they're usually so interested in.
NYT: Grey Lady, check the slip, your bias may be showing
Dr. Lester M. Crawford, the former commissioner of food and drugs, is under criminal investigation by a federal grand jury over accusations of financial improprieties and false statements to Congress, his lawyer said Friday.
The lawyer, Barbara Van Gelder, would not discuss the accusations further. In a court hearing held by telephone on Thursday, she told a federal magistrate that she would instruct Dr. Crawford to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against compelled self-incrimination if ordered to answer questions this week about his actions as head of the Food and Drug Administration, according to a transcript of the hearing.
Dr. Crawford did not reply to messages seeking comment, and Kathleen Quinn, an F.D.A. spokeswoman, declined to comment.
The above is from Gardiner Harris' "Ex-Head of F.D.A. Faces Criminal Inquiry" in this morning's New York Times. The FDA is, of course, the Food and Drug Adminstration. I make that point because it's not a good news day for Republicans and a news search of "Republican" and "drug" would also probably turn up the news on Rush Limbaugh. In the Times, Jeff Leeds covers it with "In Legal Deal, Limbaugh Surrenders in Drug Case:"
Mr. Limbaugh's lawyer, Roy Black, said his client and prosecutors in Palm Beach County had reached a settlement in which Mr. Limbaugh would be charged with a single count in connection with allegations that he illegally obtained multiple prescriptions for a drug from more than one doctor.
As part of the agreement, which Mr. Black said would be filed with the court on Monday, the charge would be dropped in 18 months if Mr. Limbaugh continued to undergo treatment for drug addiction.
Mr. Limbaugh is also required to refrain from breaking the law during the 18-month period, pay $30,000 to Florida officials to offset the cost of the investigation and pay $30 a month for the cost of supervision, Mr. Black said.
It must be nice to get a prosecutor to agree with your demands. Limbaugh walks and doesn't even admit guilt (his lawyer says his client continues to maintain he's innocent). It must be nice to be able to break the law, refuse to admit you're guilty, force an agreement through, and, if you can keep your nose clean, be able to walk away with no charge on your record.
Will G. Gordon Liddy write a piece for the rag TV Guide smearing Limbaugh and his parents? No, that's only if the celeb isn't a righty. (Liddy smeared Winona Ryder and her family in print.) Well Rush is a "quota queen." Not in the sense that he uses the term. But he's part of the group that always comes out on top (while playing the victim for all it's worth). Less perceived power (and money) and he might be serving hard time. Instead, he gets to walk. But Rush isn't "guilty." It was never his fault. He tried to blame the maid (saying she'd blackmailed him), he tried to blame the authorities (saying he was a victim). He maintained he would be found innocent (which really hasn't happened). I'm not sure what kind of treatment he's taking part in but most treatment programs require "accountability" and there's been no indication that he grasps the concept.
Of course, this won't prevent him from lecturing others about accountability. For people like Limbaugh, accountability starts at home, just not your own home. Your neighbor's home, yes, but your own home never.
Accountability? Let's talk the Times for a bit.
Did Brian Lavery's doctor put his finger tips on bed rest? What other possible explanation could there be for his (and the paper's) silence on a story that others have covered this week? While Lavery's been playing "cute" with travel reporting ("Letter From Dublin: Want a Debate With That Drink," April 26, 2006; "Affordable Europe: Dublin," April 23, 2006) there has been real news out of Ireland, or, at least, other news organizations have seen it as news.
The Financial Times of London:
Peter Hain, the Northern Ireland secretary, welcomed the latest assessment yesterday of IRA moves to end its terrorist campaign. He said it should provide a "helpful contribution to the rebuilding of trust and confidence in Northern Ireland which is necessary for a return to full devolution".
What's he welcoming? New York Times readers might wonder since there hasn't been an article on it. If there hasn't been an article on it, maybe it doesn't matter?
Scotland's The Herald didn't think it was unimportant:
A GLIMMER of hope appeared in the Northern Ireland peace process yesterday after the Independent Monitoring Commission declared the IRA leadership was committed to following a political and peaceful path.
If the report had found the IRA had not reduced its criminal activity and intelligence gathering, the peace process would have been dead in the water.
The peace process would have been dead in the water? If the Independent Monitoring Commission had come to different conclusions? Sounds like news. Even Tony Blair thoughts so as evidenced by what the Toronoto Sun ran:
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said he hoped the experts‘ conclusions would promote "sufficient confidence and trust" in Northern Ireland for the province‘s legislature to elect a new power-sharing administration involving Sinn Fein, the IRA-linked party that represents most Catholics in the British territory.
The Independent of London reported the following:
In its most upbeat report ever, the Independent Monitoring Commission, which makes assessments of terrorist groups in Northern Ireland, said it was not aware of any current terrorist, paramilitary or violent activity sanctioned by the IRA leadership. It said: "There has now been a substantial erosion in the IRA's capacity to return to a military campaign without a significant period of build-up, which in any event we do not believe they have any intentions of doing."
Considering the Times' willingness to smear Sinn Fein and to lecture Ireland ("Bullies" was a popular term in one editorial), you might think the report would be of interest to them. Other reports from the Independent Monitoring Commission have been. (See reports that the Times ran on January 19, 2005 by Lizette Alvarez and numerous ones by Brian Lavery himself -- the most recent being February 2, 2006. The most interesting may be this one from 2005 penned by Lavery.) Of course the difference between previous IMC reports and this one is that they aren't as damning. When you've worked yourself into a righteous lather over the "Bullies of Belfast" (as opposed to the ones at West 43rd?) maybe you just choose to ignore what even the Associated Press reports? (Longer version here.) The BBC reported it but possibly Alan Cowell wasn't looking for stories that day?
Just as the paper somehow missed Bill Clinton's trip to Ireland, they somehow didn't hear this news. Readers who place their faith in the Times can be forgiven if they're caught off guard by the news, but can the paper be? The paper that sees a death and immediately knows the culprit, (Lavery's a one man Frank & Joe Hardy) is the same paper that's managed to report on parade violence. At least some parade violence. The reason that Irish and Irish-American members of this community wonder if the paper's hostile to Catholics or just Irish-Catholics has to do with which stories get reported and which ones do not. A parade where Irish Catholics are reported to be assaulted (by other outlets) doesn't make the Times. A little bit later, when anoter parade leads to reports of Protestants being assaulted does make the paper.
It's not balance. And if the "Bullies of 43rd Street" are at all interested in the peace process in Ireland (as opposed to just smearing), they have a strange way of demonstrating that. Bill Clinton's trip to Ireland was, in part, about the peace process. But, despite the fact that any trip abroad by a former president meets the Times' criteria for "news" (official + travel = "exotic"), that trip didn't. And Clinton wasn't hiding from reporters as coverage elsewhere demonstrated. The Times appeared to be hiding the news from their readers.
Why that was is anyone's guess. But in a week when their much cited IMC issues a report that's favorable to the peace process, it's very strange that the Times has no interest in reporting it.
That's sort of action is at the heart of charges of bias. I'm sure the paper would have another excuse for it. They usually do. But this was news . . . just not in the pages of the New York Times.
Now travel's all very well and good and it might even teach Lavery the name of towns he reports on (see his July 31, 2005 piece to grasp the necessity of that). But when he pops up with his latest bit of news, like it or not, the paper of record will have to know that some readers will be reading it closely. They have to, the paper's own actions make that necessary. (And did they ever run a correction of any form when they referred to Sinead O'Connor as "Mr."?)
Martha notes this information on RadioNation with Laura Flanders (airs Saturdays and Sundays, from seven to ten pm Eastern on Air America):
This Weekend, Telling Fact from Fiction
Saturday:
SCOTT GALINDEZ, Truthout.org Managing Editor, on United for Peace and Justice's New York City protest.
JEFF CHESTER, Executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy and Nation contributor on Congress shutting down Public Access TV and privatizing the Internet.
KIM STANLEY ROBINSON, noted Science Fiction author on his (very predictive) work looking at climate change.
Sunday:
MITCHELL ZYKOFSKY, the step-son of John Talignani, a passenger on 9/11's Flight 93, on the controversial film "United 93."
GLEN FORD, co-publisher of BlackCommentator.com, on challenging the conventional wisdom in news and politics.
KYRA GAUNT, author of "The Games Black Girls Play: Learning the Ropes from Double Dutch to Hip Hop," on reclaiming our history through music.Join us. Those guests and more. This weekend on Air America Radio.
It's all on RadioNation with Laura Flanders this weekend on Air America Radio.
That's from an e-mail the program sends out and you can sign up for the heads up (as Martha did) by using the link. Martha's not sure if Flanders' is back or not. (The e-mail didn't say.) But as she points out, Jeff Chester and Glen Ford are voices the community will probably want to hear.
Remember that today's the march if you're in the NYC area (and, wherever you are, remember to make yourself heard). From NOW (because peace is a feminist issue):
Saturday April 29 Proclaimed Peace Zone Day by New York City Council
With support for administration policies at an all time low, massive turnout is expected for the March for Peace, Justice & Democracy on Saturday, April 29 in New York City. The crowd, including representatives from a uniquely diverse coalition of groups, will call for an end to the war in Iraq and a new set of priorities at home.
The lead contingents in the march will include Hurricane Katrina survivors, Iraq war veterans and military families, immigrants' rights and racial justice activists, women's and LGBT rights advocates, labor organizers, environmental activists, students and other youth organizers, disability rights advocates, and others.
National artists and prominent figures marching include: Oscar winning actor Susan Sarandon; Oscar winning film director Jonathan Demme; writer/actor Malachy McCourt; Air America host Randi Rhodes; Michael Berg, whose son was the first U.S. civilian hostage killed in Iraq; Reverend Jesse Jackson; Gold Star mother Cindy Sheehan; Faiza Al-Araji, a peace and women's rights advocate from Iraq; John Wilhelm, president of the union UNITE/HERE; National Organization for Women President Kim Gandy; and Anne Wright, the first State Department diplomat to resign protesting the Iraq War, among others.
According to Leslie Cagan, national coordinator of United For Peace & Justice, the nation's largest peace coalition and one of the march's initiating organizations: "The Bush administration hopes to diffuse pressure at home and in Iraq to end its occupation by bringing a portion of the troops home (maybe), but withdrawing some troops is completely unacceptable. It will not end the dying, the torture, and the misspending of billions of dollars on war. We need to withdraw all the troops, now. At the same time we are vigilantly opposed to any military action against Iran."
Lead organizers of the march are United for Peace and Justice, RainbowPUSH Coalition, National Organization for Women, Friends of the Earth, U.S. Labor Against the War, Climate Crisis Coalition, Peoples' Hurricane Relief Fund, National Youth and Student Peace Coalition, and Veterans For Peace. The number of endorsements has grown to more than 1,500 strong, and the list of invitees includes every member of Congress and other elected officials.
The contingents will gather starting at 10:30 am in the area stretching from 7th Avenue to Park Avenue South and 18th to 22nd Streets. The march will step off at 12 noon, and proceed south on Broadway to Foley Square for the Peace and Justice Grassroots Action Festival, ending at 6:00 pm.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
the new york times
gardiner harris
brian lavery
ireland
jeff leeds
glen ford
jeff chester
radionation with laura flanders
now
The lawyer, Barbara Van Gelder, would not discuss the accusations further. In a court hearing held by telephone on Thursday, she told a federal magistrate that she would instruct Dr. Crawford to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against compelled self-incrimination if ordered to answer questions this week about his actions as head of the Food and Drug Administration, according to a transcript of the hearing.
Dr. Crawford did not reply to messages seeking comment, and Kathleen Quinn, an F.D.A. spokeswoman, declined to comment.
The above is from Gardiner Harris' "Ex-Head of F.D.A. Faces Criminal Inquiry" in this morning's New York Times. The FDA is, of course, the Food and Drug Adminstration. I make that point because it's not a good news day for Republicans and a news search of "Republican" and "drug" would also probably turn up the news on Rush Limbaugh. In the Times, Jeff Leeds covers it with "In Legal Deal, Limbaugh Surrenders in Drug Case:"
Mr. Limbaugh's lawyer, Roy Black, said his client and prosecutors in Palm Beach County had reached a settlement in which Mr. Limbaugh would be charged with a single count in connection with allegations that he illegally obtained multiple prescriptions for a drug from more than one doctor.
As part of the agreement, which Mr. Black said would be filed with the court on Monday, the charge would be dropped in 18 months if Mr. Limbaugh continued to undergo treatment for drug addiction.
Mr. Limbaugh is also required to refrain from breaking the law during the 18-month period, pay $30,000 to Florida officials to offset the cost of the investigation and pay $30 a month for the cost of supervision, Mr. Black said.
It must be nice to get a prosecutor to agree with your demands. Limbaugh walks and doesn't even admit guilt (his lawyer says his client continues to maintain he's innocent). It must be nice to be able to break the law, refuse to admit you're guilty, force an agreement through, and, if you can keep your nose clean, be able to walk away with no charge on your record.
Will G. Gordon Liddy write a piece for the rag TV Guide smearing Limbaugh and his parents? No, that's only if the celeb isn't a righty. (Liddy smeared Winona Ryder and her family in print.) Well Rush is a "quota queen." Not in the sense that he uses the term. But he's part of the group that always comes out on top (while playing the victim for all it's worth). Less perceived power (and money) and he might be serving hard time. Instead, he gets to walk. But Rush isn't "guilty." It was never his fault. He tried to blame the maid (saying she'd blackmailed him), he tried to blame the authorities (saying he was a victim). He maintained he would be found innocent (which really hasn't happened). I'm not sure what kind of treatment he's taking part in but most treatment programs require "accountability" and there's been no indication that he grasps the concept.
Of course, this won't prevent him from lecturing others about accountability. For people like Limbaugh, accountability starts at home, just not your own home. Your neighbor's home, yes, but your own home never.
Accountability? Let's talk the Times for a bit.
Did Brian Lavery's doctor put his finger tips on bed rest? What other possible explanation could there be for his (and the paper's) silence on a story that others have covered this week? While Lavery's been playing "cute" with travel reporting ("Letter From Dublin: Want a Debate With That Drink," April 26, 2006; "Affordable Europe: Dublin," April 23, 2006) there has been real news out of Ireland, or, at least, other news organizations have seen it as news.
The Financial Times of London:
Peter Hain, the Northern Ireland secretary, welcomed the latest assessment yesterday of IRA moves to end its terrorist campaign. He said it should provide a "helpful contribution to the rebuilding of trust and confidence in Northern Ireland which is necessary for a return to full devolution".
What's he welcoming? New York Times readers might wonder since there hasn't been an article on it. If there hasn't been an article on it, maybe it doesn't matter?
Scotland's The Herald didn't think it was unimportant:
A GLIMMER of hope appeared in the Northern Ireland peace process yesterday after the Independent Monitoring Commission declared the IRA leadership was committed to following a political and peaceful path.
If the report had found the IRA had not reduced its criminal activity and intelligence gathering, the peace process would have been dead in the water.
The peace process would have been dead in the water? If the Independent Monitoring Commission had come to different conclusions? Sounds like news. Even Tony Blair thoughts so as evidenced by what the Toronoto Sun ran:
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said he hoped the experts‘ conclusions would promote "sufficient confidence and trust" in Northern Ireland for the province‘s legislature to elect a new power-sharing administration involving Sinn Fein, the IRA-linked party that represents most Catholics in the British territory.
The Independent of London reported the following:
In its most upbeat report ever, the Independent Monitoring Commission, which makes assessments of terrorist groups in Northern Ireland, said it was not aware of any current terrorist, paramilitary or violent activity sanctioned by the IRA leadership. It said: "There has now been a substantial erosion in the IRA's capacity to return to a military campaign without a significant period of build-up, which in any event we do not believe they have any intentions of doing."
Considering the Times' willingness to smear Sinn Fein and to lecture Ireland ("Bullies" was a popular term in one editorial), you might think the report would be of interest to them. Other reports from the Independent Monitoring Commission have been. (See reports that the Times ran on January 19, 2005 by Lizette Alvarez and numerous ones by Brian Lavery himself -- the most recent being February 2, 2006. The most interesting may be this one from 2005 penned by Lavery.) Of course the difference between previous IMC reports and this one is that they aren't as damning. When you've worked yourself into a righteous lather over the "Bullies of Belfast" (as opposed to the ones at West 43rd?) maybe you just choose to ignore what even the Associated Press reports? (Longer version here.) The BBC reported it but possibly Alan Cowell wasn't looking for stories that day?
Just as the paper somehow missed Bill Clinton's trip to Ireland, they somehow didn't hear this news. Readers who place their faith in the Times can be forgiven if they're caught off guard by the news, but can the paper be? The paper that sees a death and immediately knows the culprit, (Lavery's a one man Frank & Joe Hardy) is the same paper that's managed to report on parade violence. At least some parade violence. The reason that Irish and Irish-American members of this community wonder if the paper's hostile to Catholics or just Irish-Catholics has to do with which stories get reported and which ones do not. A parade where Irish Catholics are reported to be assaulted (by other outlets) doesn't make the Times. A little bit later, when anoter parade leads to reports of Protestants being assaulted does make the paper.
It's not balance. And if the "Bullies of 43rd Street" are at all interested in the peace process in Ireland (as opposed to just smearing), they have a strange way of demonstrating that. Bill Clinton's trip to Ireland was, in part, about the peace process. But, despite the fact that any trip abroad by a former president meets the Times' criteria for "news" (official + travel = "exotic"), that trip didn't. And Clinton wasn't hiding from reporters as coverage elsewhere demonstrated. The Times appeared to be hiding the news from their readers.
Why that was is anyone's guess. But in a week when their much cited IMC issues a report that's favorable to the peace process, it's very strange that the Times has no interest in reporting it.
That's sort of action is at the heart of charges of bias. I'm sure the paper would have another excuse for it. They usually do. But this was news . . . just not in the pages of the New York Times.
Now travel's all very well and good and it might even teach Lavery the name of towns he reports on (see his July 31, 2005 piece to grasp the necessity of that). But when he pops up with his latest bit of news, like it or not, the paper of record will have to know that some readers will be reading it closely. They have to, the paper's own actions make that necessary. (And did they ever run a correction of any form when they referred to Sinead O'Connor as "Mr."?)
Martha notes this information on RadioNation with Laura Flanders (airs Saturdays and Sundays, from seven to ten pm Eastern on Air America):
This Weekend, Telling Fact from Fiction
Saturday:
SCOTT GALINDEZ, Truthout.org Managing Editor, on United for Peace and Justice's New York City protest.
JEFF CHESTER, Executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy and Nation contributor on Congress shutting down Public Access TV and privatizing the Internet.
KIM STANLEY ROBINSON, noted Science Fiction author on his (very predictive) work looking at climate change.
Sunday:
MITCHELL ZYKOFSKY, the step-son of John Talignani, a passenger on 9/11's Flight 93, on the controversial film "United 93."
GLEN FORD, co-publisher of BlackCommentator.com, on challenging the conventional wisdom in news and politics.
KYRA GAUNT, author of "The Games Black Girls Play: Learning the Ropes from Double Dutch to Hip Hop," on reclaiming our history through music.Join us. Those guests and more. This weekend on Air America Radio.
It's all on RadioNation with Laura Flanders this weekend on Air America Radio.
That's from an e-mail the program sends out and you can sign up for the heads up (as Martha did) by using the link. Martha's not sure if Flanders' is back or not. (The e-mail didn't say.) But as she points out, Jeff Chester and Glen Ford are voices the community will probably want to hear.
Remember that today's the march if you're in the NYC area (and, wherever you are, remember to make yourself heard). From NOW (because peace is a feminist issue):
Saturday April 29 Proclaimed Peace Zone Day by New York City Council
With support for administration policies at an all time low, massive turnout is expected for the March for Peace, Justice & Democracy on Saturday, April 29 in New York City. The crowd, including representatives from a uniquely diverse coalition of groups, will call for an end to the war in Iraq and a new set of priorities at home.
The lead contingents in the march will include Hurricane Katrina survivors, Iraq war veterans and military families, immigrants' rights and racial justice activists, women's and LGBT rights advocates, labor organizers, environmental activists, students and other youth organizers, disability rights advocates, and others.
National artists and prominent figures marching include: Oscar winning actor Susan Sarandon; Oscar winning film director Jonathan Demme; writer/actor Malachy McCourt; Air America host Randi Rhodes; Michael Berg, whose son was the first U.S. civilian hostage killed in Iraq; Reverend Jesse Jackson; Gold Star mother Cindy Sheehan; Faiza Al-Araji, a peace and women's rights advocate from Iraq; John Wilhelm, president of the union UNITE/HERE; National Organization for Women President Kim Gandy; and Anne Wright, the first State Department diplomat to resign protesting the Iraq War, among others.
According to Leslie Cagan, national coordinator of United For Peace & Justice, the nation's largest peace coalition and one of the march's initiating organizations: "The Bush administration hopes to diffuse pressure at home and in Iraq to end its occupation by bringing a portion of the troops home (maybe), but withdrawing some troops is completely unacceptable. It will not end the dying, the torture, and the misspending of billions of dollars on war. We need to withdraw all the troops, now. At the same time we are vigilantly opposed to any military action against Iran."
Lead organizers of the march are United for Peace and Justice, RainbowPUSH Coalition, National Organization for Women, Friends of the Earth, U.S. Labor Against the War, Climate Crisis Coalition, Peoples' Hurricane Relief Fund, National Youth and Student Peace Coalition, and Veterans For Peace. The number of endorsements has grown to more than 1,500 strong, and the list of invitees includes every member of Congress and other elected officials.
The contingents will gather starting at 10:30 am in the area stretching from 7th Avenue to Park Avenue South and 18th to 22nd Streets. The march will step off at 12 noon, and proceed south on Broadway to Foley Square for the Peace and Justice Grassroots Action Festival, ending at 6:00 pm.
The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.
the new york times
gardiner harris
brian lavery
ireland
jeff leeds
glen ford
jeff chester
radionation with laura flanders
now
New Yahoo! Messenger with Voice. Call regular phones from your PC and save big.
Ruth's Public Radio Report
We're dropping the tags with the hope that this will allow us to get Ruth's most recent report up in one post. Ruth had planned to do a report Saturday but, as Mike and Wally pointed out, C.I. benched her. We were all focused on the protest this weekend and everyone, including Ruth, has given their all and then some.
Ruth's Public Radio Report
Ruth: I wanted to start tonight with some news.
*In Belgium, gay couples have won the right to adopt. Netherlands, Spain and England also allow gay couples to adopt.
*In the Massachusettes, Roman Catholic agencies are allowed to refuse to allow gay couples to adopt despite the fact that this contravenes the state's anti-discrmination law. Governor Mitt Romney is the reason. Catholic Charities of Boston threatened to end their adoption practices because of the anti-discrimination law.
*Religious fundamentalists in Iraq are targeting gays with kidnappings, murder and other violence. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission is calling on Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and the administration to begin investigating this issue immediately.
*Did you know that two CBS empolyees were assaulted? Dick Jefferson, news producer, and Ryan Smith, production secretary, were attacked with tire irons while having anti-gay slurs yelled at them? This happened in St. Maarten. Mr. Jefferson says that at least 25 people saw the April 6th attack so the police's ability to find only one witness seems to suggest that they are not seriously investigating the case. Mr. Jefferson had back and head injuries but is now back at work. Mr. Smith remains in the hospital, has suffered brain damage and has aphasia. My oldest son explained that this condition, a type of language disorder, is brought on by brain damage, generally to the left side of the brain, so the attack is the cause of it. Aphasia was not a condition I was familiar with, which is why I asked. My son also stated that there are two forms, in the first, the patient will have trouble with the speaking; in the second, the patient will have trouble understanding. In some instances, the patient has both forms. For those whose speech is effected, the condition can be mild, in which case longer sentences may be spoken, or severe, in which case the patient may only be able to respond in simple, often one-word responses. In terms of the second form, comprehension, it may take additional time to process what was said and, in some instances, a great deal may be lost.
None of the above new items is new or suprising if you listened to Monday's Queer Voices. This two hour program airs once a week on Houston's KPFT. The segments cover news, events to the Houston area, and the arts. My grandson Jayson just bought the solo CD of Martine Locke, On the Verge, after hearing her this Monday. Ms. Locke is from Australia and a member of the group The Velvet Janes. Two songs were played from the album, possibly three, "Hallelujah" and "Greyhound Bus." She has a wonderful voice and, in addition, she writes songs and plays the guitar.
Monday, on WBAI's Law and Disorder, Bill Brown was back for an update on the 505 New York City Police Department installing cameras to spy on people. Mr. Brown told Heidi Boghosian that they were going up first at the corner of First & Brooklyn and mostly concentrated in Brooklyn. $10 million in federal funds, for the so-called war on terror, are being used to install these cameras. Ms. Boghosian asked how effective the cameras were? "There are no guidelines what so ever for who monitors the cameras," Mr. Brown answered.
Mr. Brown: Eight different command centers can get the images from the cameras. . . . They've multiplied the amount of watchers . . . You can be vitually anywhere with the new techonology. . . [Homeland Security] just provides the grant.
Camera Eye was mentioned and Billie wondered about that because in her area there is a surveillance company called Digital Eye. She wrote to ask that I toss the company out here and see if anyone had any information on it.
The cameras used in NYC emit constant microwave radiation and health concerns, since the waves emit every hour of the day, are an issue that has not been addressed. Each camera costs approximately $20,000 per camera.
Instead of offering a web site (or "a list of URLs"), Mr. Brown suggested that those wanting more information google "surveillance camera players" or "walking tours"
George Washington University Librarian Jack Siggins spoke with Michael Ratner, Heidi Boghosian and Michael Smith about the issue of the FBI attempting to rifle through the late reporter Jack Anderson's papers and reserving the right to seize any papers they desired. A journalist cannot be prosecuted for a classified document that is turned over to them, Mr. Ratner pointed out. There are a 188 boxes that the FBI is wanting to rifle through. Ms. Boghosian, Mr. Ratner and Mr. Siggins pointed out that the Anderson family does not want to allow the FBI to snoop through the items because the late Mr. Anderson would not have agreed to turn documents over to the FBI.
The interview contained breaking news. (Though we may have to wait for it to be said a few months from now on Good Morning America for the press to notice.) During the interview, Mr. Ratner noted, "To say that they [FBI] want a blanket look at what people are checking out is a new one." After the interview, he and Ms. Boghosian discussed this.
Mr. Ratner: . . . He dropped a nugget that I had never heard before which was that the FBI has asked to see the book checkouts and the e-mails of every single student at GW [George Washington University] who uses the library.
Ms. Boghosian: That is extraordinary, yeah.
Mr. Ratner: I mean, because all we've seen so far is individual cases where they go after individual who they claim they need the information for a terrorist case.
Ms. Boghosian: But this is everyone.
Mr. Ratner: This is everyone and he said he didn't think it was the only library in the country. That is amazing to me and just demonstrates how far along the road to Big Brother we are.
The next segment was on Blackwater USA and Mike has discussed this on Monday and on Tuesday, so I would recommend his commentaries. Cedric also intends to write on this so check Cedric's Big Mix on Thursday. He told me his feelings are similar to Mike's but he wanted to toss it around a bit before writing on it.
Producer Geoff Brady recorded a speech given by attorney Donald Goldberg in Albany, New York on the issue of global warming. Mr. Goldberg, of the Center for International Environmental Law, represents the Inuits in a case that is filed with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
The broadcast closed with Mr. Ratner noting the demonstration taking place in NYC this Saturday, march begins at noon on 22nd Broadway. "Ending the war in Iraq, bringing the troops home now, standing up for women and immigrant rights," are the demands of this march.
Mr. Ratner: We should also understand there are demonstrations every day, all around this country, which is what it's going to take to end that war in Iraq.
Monday was also, of course, Jane Fonda's interview on Cover to Cover with Denny Smithson. I have read My Life So Far and enjoyed the book. I have also enjoyed Ms. Fonda's acting and politics over the years. The reason I bring that up is that it is one thing to read her autobiography at your own pace and another to attempt to cover such a wealth of experiences in a thirty-minute interview. Mr. Smithson managed to zero in on many key moments and the result was probably my favorite interview with Ms. Fonda since the book first came out in hardcover. Sasha Lilly did a wonderful interview with Ms. Fonda for Against the Grain but that segment of the interview, this was a best of broadcast celebrating three years of Sasha Lilly and C.S. Soong's show, zeroed in on the seventies, the Nixon years and the Nixon abuses. I believe, and I may be wrong, that Mr. Smithson was asking questions, setting up a past event and then taking it to the present, to demonstrate how activism impacted a life and how activism was a part of a life.
In thirty minutes, he could not cover everything, nor could Ms. Fonda in her book, it is an event filled life, and I believe, based on a statements during the interview as well as his questions, that this was an approach he took and did so intentionally. If that was not the case, it was the luck of a wonderful conversation. But he really seemed on top of his game in the interview, beyond doing the basic work. Mike wrote about the interview on Monday, Rebecca wrote about it on Tuesday, as did Elaine and C.I. I would agree with all of their points but I will pick up on C.I.'s point about Ms. Fonda's talk of the need for hope.
She was not being a Pollyanna. She did not say, "Oh, it's not that bad." To the contrary, she feels, that we are seeing some of the worst times we have seen. (I am only a few years younger than Ms. Fonda and, based on my own life, I agree with that conclusion.) My older grandchildren, all of them including Jayson and Tracey, realize that the country is headed in the wrong direction. Jayson would add "and then some!" There is nothing to be gained from pretending to them that the times are not as bad as they seem. With an executive branch that demonstrates little respect or comprehension of democracy, though eager to bandy the term about, and willing to resort to actions that those old enough to remember may have wrongly assumed left the capitol with Nixon, these are bad times. But I agree with Ms. Fonda that they need hope as do we. Be angry, be sad, be upset, but know that there is something we can work towards. A "Better Way" as Ben Harper sings on the CD Jayson and Tracey are so fond of. We won when we were up against one Bully Boy before. He left the White House in disgrace. The people can win again. Nina gave Mike the quote she felt was most important from the interview and I will note it here:
It's never up to an administration . . . It all depends upon what people force them to do.
If you missed the interview, remember that this can be heard via the archive of the broadcast. That is true of all the shows mentioned but keep in mind that the archives will not be up forever if they are at stations (as opposed to at the program's own website).
In addition to the coverage noted above, Mike covered WBAI's Wakeup Call on Monday and Tuesday; Rebecca covered KPFA's Flashpoints, throughout the week, early Tuesday morning, Tuesday night (wonderful interview with Rita Moreno) and Wednesday (Michael Ratner was one of the guests); Elaine covered WBAI's Cat Radio Cafe on Monday; and Kat covered the KPFA Evening News (Wednesday broadcast) and KPFA's Guns and Butter. On C.I.'s end, there are the heads up announcements and the efforts to work the news programs into the Iraq snapshot feature. This Sunday, The Third Estate Sunday Review will be covering Kris Welch's Living Room which airs on KPFA Thursdays and Friday. I do intend to do a brief report on Saturday. Brief because I will be in NYC for the Saturday demonstration and march that Mr. Ratner noted on Law and Disorder.
A heads up to something Wally first saw at Danny Schechter's News Dissector:
PACIFICA RADIO TO AIR IRAQ FORUM IN CONGRESS
David Swanson writes:
I'll be co-hosting with Verna Avery-Brown of Pacifica Radio, a live broadcast on Pacifica from 8:30-11 a.m. ET on Thursday, April 27, of a forum on Capitol Hill hosted by Congresswomen Lynn Woolsey and Barbara Lee.
Also a big thank you to the following for helping me pull together a report Saturday despite the posting problems:
My granddaughter Tracey;
Dallas who always locates the links even when I am less than clear;
The Third Estate Sunday Review's Dona, Jess, Ty, Ava and Jim;
Rebecca of Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude;
Betty of Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man;
C.I. of The Common Ills and The Third Estate Sunday Review;
Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills);
Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix;
Mike of Mikey Likes It!;
Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz;
and Wally of The Daily Jot
It was the combined work and encouragement of everyone above that allowed a report to be completed. Repeatedly losing the post was very discouraging and reason, or excuse, for me to stick to e-mailing in the entries and letting C.I. post them. Take action this weekend and make your voice heard, regardless of your location.
*In Belgium, gay couples have won the right to adopt. Netherlands, Spain and England also allow gay couples to adopt.
*In the Massachusettes, Roman Catholic agencies are allowed to refuse to allow gay couples to adopt despite the fact that this contravenes the state's anti-discrmination law. Governor Mitt Romney is the reason. Catholic Charities of Boston threatened to end their adoption practices because of the anti-discrimination law.
*Religious fundamentalists in Iraq are targeting gays with kidnappings, murder and other violence. The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission is calling on Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and the administration to begin investigating this issue immediately.
*Did you know that two CBS empolyees were assaulted? Dick Jefferson, news producer, and Ryan Smith, production secretary, were attacked with tire irons while having anti-gay slurs yelled at them? This happened in St. Maarten. Mr. Jefferson says that at least 25 people saw the April 6th attack so the police's ability to find only one witness seems to suggest that they are not seriously investigating the case. Mr. Jefferson had back and head injuries but is now back at work. Mr. Smith remains in the hospital, has suffered brain damage and has aphasia. My oldest son explained that this condition, a type of language disorder, is brought on by brain damage, generally to the left side of the brain, so the attack is the cause of it. Aphasia was not a condition I was familiar with, which is why I asked. My son also stated that there are two forms, in the first, the patient will have trouble with the speaking; in the second, the patient will have trouble understanding. In some instances, the patient has both forms. For those whose speech is effected, the condition can be mild, in which case longer sentences may be spoken, or severe, in which case the patient may only be able to respond in simple, often one-word responses. In terms of the second form, comprehension, it may take additional time to process what was said and, in some instances, a great deal may be lost.
None of the above new items is new or suprising if you listened to Monday's Queer Voices. This two hour program airs once a week on Houston's KPFT. The segments cover news, events to the Houston area, and the arts. My grandson Jayson just bought the solo CD of Martine Locke, On the Verge, after hearing her this Monday. Ms. Locke is from Australia and a member of the group The Velvet Janes. Two songs were played from the album, possibly three, "Hallelujah" and "Greyhound Bus." She has a wonderful voice and, in addition, she writes songs and plays the guitar.
Monday, on WBAI's Law and Disorder, Bill Brown was back for an update on the 505 New York City Police Department installing cameras to spy on people. Mr. Brown told Heidi Boghosian that they were going up first at the corner of First & Brooklyn and mostly concentrated in Brooklyn. $10 million in federal funds, for the so-called war on terror, are being used to install these cameras. Ms. Boghosian asked how effective the cameras were? "There are no guidelines what so ever for who monitors the cameras," Mr. Brown answered.
Mr. Brown: Eight different command centers can get the images from the cameras. . . . They've multiplied the amount of watchers . . . You can be vitually anywhere with the new techonology. . . [Homeland Security] just provides the grant.
Camera Eye was mentioned and Billie wondered about that because in her area there is a surveillance company called Digital Eye. She wrote to ask that I toss the company out here and see if anyone had any information on it.
The cameras used in NYC emit constant microwave radiation and health concerns, since the waves emit every hour of the day, are an issue that has not been addressed. Each camera costs approximately $20,000 per camera.
Instead of offering a web site (or "a list of URLs"), Mr. Brown suggested that those wanting more information google "surveillance camera players" or "walking tours"
George Washington University Librarian Jack Siggins spoke with Michael Ratner, Heidi Boghosian and Michael Smith about the issue of the FBI attempting to rifle through the late reporter Jack Anderson's papers and reserving the right to seize any papers they desired. A journalist cannot be prosecuted for a classified document that is turned over to them, Mr. Ratner pointed out. There are a 188 boxes that the FBI is wanting to rifle through. Ms. Boghosian, Mr. Ratner and Mr. Siggins pointed out that the Anderson family does not want to allow the FBI to snoop through the items because the late Mr. Anderson would not have agreed to turn documents over to the FBI.
The interview contained breaking news. (Though we may have to wait for it to be said a few months from now on Good Morning America for the press to notice.) During the interview, Mr. Ratner noted, "To say that they [FBI] want a blanket look at what people are checking out is a new one." After the interview, he and Ms. Boghosian discussed this.
Mr. Ratner: . . . He dropped a nugget that I had never heard before which was that the FBI has asked to see the book checkouts and the e-mails of every single student at GW [George Washington University] who uses the library.
Ms. Boghosian: That is extraordinary, yeah.
Mr. Ratner: I mean, because all we've seen so far is individual cases where they go after individual who they claim they need the information for a terrorist case.
Ms. Boghosian: But this is everyone.
Mr. Ratner: This is everyone and he said he didn't think it was the only library in the country. That is amazing to me and just demonstrates how far along the road to Big Brother we are.
The next segment was on Blackwater USA and Mike has discussed this on Monday and on Tuesday, so I would recommend his commentaries. Cedric also intends to write on this so check Cedric's Big Mix on Thursday. He told me his feelings are similar to Mike's but he wanted to toss it around a bit before writing on it.
Producer Geoff Brady recorded a speech given by attorney Donald Goldberg in Albany, New York on the issue of global warming. Mr. Goldberg, of the Center for International Environmental Law, represents the Inuits in a case that is filed with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
The broadcast closed with Mr. Ratner noting the demonstration taking place in NYC this Saturday, march begins at noon on 22nd Broadway. "Ending the war in Iraq, bringing the troops home now, standing up for women and immigrant rights," are the demands of this march.
Mr. Ratner: We should also understand there are demonstrations every day, all around this country, which is what it's going to take to end that war in Iraq.
Monday was also, of course, Jane Fonda's interview on Cover to Cover with Denny Smithson. I have read My Life So Far and enjoyed the book. I have also enjoyed Ms. Fonda's acting and politics over the years. The reason I bring that up is that it is one thing to read her autobiography at your own pace and another to attempt to cover such a wealth of experiences in a thirty-minute interview. Mr. Smithson managed to zero in on many key moments and the result was probably my favorite interview with Ms. Fonda since the book first came out in hardcover. Sasha Lilly did a wonderful interview with Ms. Fonda for Against the Grain but that segment of the interview, this was a best of broadcast celebrating three years of Sasha Lilly and C.S. Soong's show, zeroed in on the seventies, the Nixon years and the Nixon abuses. I believe, and I may be wrong, that Mr. Smithson was asking questions, setting up a past event and then taking it to the present, to demonstrate how activism impacted a life and how activism was a part of a life.
In thirty minutes, he could not cover everything, nor could Ms. Fonda in her book, it is an event filled life, and I believe, based on a statements during the interview as well as his questions, that this was an approach he took and did so intentionally. If that was not the case, it was the luck of a wonderful conversation. But he really seemed on top of his game in the interview, beyond doing the basic work. Mike wrote about the interview on Monday, Rebecca wrote about it on Tuesday, as did Elaine and C.I. I would agree with all of their points but I will pick up on C.I.'s point about Ms. Fonda's talk of the need for hope.
She was not being a Pollyanna. She did not say, "Oh, it's not that bad." To the contrary, she feels, that we are seeing some of the worst times we have seen. (I am only a few years younger than Ms. Fonda and, based on my own life, I agree with that conclusion.) My older grandchildren, all of them including Jayson and Tracey, realize that the country is headed in the wrong direction. Jayson would add "and then some!" There is nothing to be gained from pretending to them that the times are not as bad as they seem. With an executive branch that demonstrates little respect or comprehension of democracy, though eager to bandy the term about, and willing to resort to actions that those old enough to remember may have wrongly assumed left the capitol with Nixon, these are bad times. But I agree with Ms. Fonda that they need hope as do we. Be angry, be sad, be upset, but know that there is something we can work towards. A "Better Way" as Ben Harper sings on the CD Jayson and Tracey are so fond of. We won when we were up against one Bully Boy before. He left the White House in disgrace. The people can win again. Nina gave Mike the quote she felt was most important from the interview and I will note it here:
It's never up to an administration . . . It all depends upon what people force them to do.
If you missed the interview, remember that this can be heard via the archive of the broadcast. That is true of all the shows mentioned but keep in mind that the archives will not be up forever if they are at stations (as opposed to at the program's own website).
In addition to the coverage noted above, Mike covered WBAI's Wakeup Call on Monday and Tuesday; Rebecca covered KPFA's Flashpoints, throughout the week, early Tuesday morning, Tuesday night (wonderful interview with Rita Moreno) and Wednesday (Michael Ratner was one of the guests); Elaine covered WBAI's Cat Radio Cafe on Monday; and Kat covered the KPFA Evening News (Wednesday broadcast) and KPFA's Guns and Butter. On C.I.'s end, there are the heads up announcements and the efforts to work the news programs into the Iraq snapshot feature. This Sunday, The Third Estate Sunday Review will be covering Kris Welch's Living Room which airs on KPFA Thursdays and Friday. I do intend to do a brief report on Saturday. Brief because I will be in NYC for the Saturday demonstration and march that Mr. Ratner noted on Law and Disorder.
A heads up to something Wally first saw at Danny Schechter's News Dissector:
PACIFICA RADIO TO AIR IRAQ FORUM IN CONGRESS
David Swanson writes:
I'll be co-hosting with Verna Avery-Brown of Pacifica Radio, a live broadcast on Pacifica from 8:30-11 a.m. ET on Thursday, April 27, of a forum on Capitol Hill hosted by Congresswomen Lynn Woolsey and Barbara Lee.
Also a big thank you to the following for helping me pull together a report Saturday despite the posting problems:
My granddaughter Tracey;
Dallas who always locates the links even when I am less than clear;
The Third Estate Sunday Review's Dona, Jess, Ty, Ava and Jim;
Rebecca of Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude;
Betty of Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man;
C.I. of The Common Ills and The Third Estate Sunday Review;
Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills);
Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix;
Mike of Mikey Likes It!;
Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz;
and Wally of The Daily Jot
It was the combined work and encouragement of everyone above that allowed a report to be completed. Repeatedly losing the post was very discouraging and reason, or excuse, for me to stick to e-mailing in the entries and letting C.I. post them. Take action this weekend and make your voice heard, regardless of your location.
How low will we go? Check out Yahoo! Messenger’s low PC-to-Phone call rates.
Blab-away for as little as 1¢/min. Make PC-to-Phone Calls using Yahoo! Messenger with Voice.
Blog Spotlight: Cedric noting Law and Disorder
Cedric's 2nd highlight this edition. Here he's joining Mike in going over a segment of Law and Disorder.
Tony Snow and a Law and Disorder guest
Snow: Black Underclass Is "Most Dangerous Thing In Our Lifetime"
Tony Snow is already coming under scrutiny for a series of controversial comments he’s made on his radio program. Just last week, he shared these views: "People like Jesse Jackson who have committed themselves to a view that blacks are constantly victims, have succeeded in creating in the United States the most dangerous thing that we've encountered in our lifetime; which is, an underclass that doesn't seem to be going anywhere." Tony Snow went on to criticize what he described as: "the idiotic culture of hip-hop": "You have people glorifying failure. You have a bunch of gold-toothed hot dogs become millionaires by running around and telling everybody else that they oughtta be miserable failures and if they're really lucky maybe they can get gunned down in a diner sometime, like Eminem's old running mate."
This is the man who would save the Bully Boy administration. (Item from Democracy Now!)
First off, Proof (DC12) wasn't at a "diner" but I know facts don't matter a great deal to the right wingers. But what this is really about is a White man who doesn't want to acknowledge that African-Americans do suffer racism. We suffer it all the time. It's not wallowing in victim-hood but it's also not denying a very real fact of life. I think that Snow should go to FX and ask to be in that show where the people switch races (via make up).
He's a White man who misses the good old days of separate water fountains and lynchings. He probably wets his pants anytime he's walking down a sidewalk and sees a "brother" up ahead.
If you're one of those people, let me continue my series of tips by offering you one. I'm not robbing anyone, I'm not mugging anyone. But if you see Black and think "crime," here's a tip, do not immediately pat your wallet to make sure it's still there.
You're saying to the world (of all races), "I got a wallet and it's right here. Must be something in it because I'm real worried about having it stolen."
For more on the laughable Tony Snow, check out Wally's ""THIS JUST IN! "BROKEBACK EACH OTHER'S MOUNTAINS!" SCREAMS SNOW."
Now let's talk Law and Disorder which aired Monday on WBAI. Heidi Boghosian had a remote (from the streets of NYC -- Brooklyn, I think) interview with Bill Brown about the spy cams going up all over NYC. And there was a lot more worth hearing. But Mike and I both were bothered by the contractor issue. I can feel bad when anyone dies. But I'm not going to work up a great deal of sympathy for the employees of Blackwater USA or any other contractor employee in Iraq. No, they aren't all torturing and killing.
But they went over to make money. On some level, whether they believed in the war or not, they had to grasp they'd be profitting while others suffered. The guy made a point to go over there. People are dying over there. He wanted to make a fast buck. He died in Falluja.
Like Mike, I was raised hearing how there was no such thing as an easy buck. The man had kids. He should have thought about them. You don't say, "Fast buck!" and rush to a war zone.
It was a mistake on his part. He lost his life largely because of what others had done. But to try to profit from a war is wrong and that's if it was Dick Cheney or Joe Blow down the street.
Had everything gone well, had he made it home, he would have made a fast buck off the suffering of others. I don't agree with doing that.
I'm sorry he's dead. I can pray for him. But whether or not contractor employees are screwed over isn't my concern. It's like debating the "strategy" for the war and not noting that the war is illegal. At the root, all the "fix its" that argue we can and should stay in Iraq, don't get to the root: the war was illegal.
Profitting from the suffering of others is wrong too.
That's a lesson he should have known just as surely as he should have known that there was no free ride. That doesn't mean he deserved to die a violent death. It just means that some things aren't all that surprising and I won't spend a lot of time worrying about someone being screwed over by a division of Haliburton when, at the heart of it, that person went to Iraq to make money.
Those are the breaks.
I also don't know that I feel he was targeted for being so smart. If he had conflict with his superior, well no one wants someone in a group that's always saying, "Oh, here's how it should be done." For a trained military person, he seemed to have a really hard time following orders.
If he was, as some of the stories seem to indicate, someone who "always knows best," it's not surprising that he had conflicts with his superior.
If his superior was petty and used that to put him at risk, that's not right either.
But there are some real problems in the world. I'm just not seeing this as one that I'll worry a great deal about. If he'd gone there to witness to people or to aid them or to report on what it was like in Iraq, I'd feel different. But his own mother was talking (on Democracy Now!) about how he needed to make some quick money.
I hear that a lot. Some of the guys I went to school with don't see their kids now because they wanted to make some quick money. They ended up behind bars. When one of them tells me that it's not fair, I tell them that they made choices (stealing mainly, one was armed robbery) without thinking them through. At the most basic, they should have realized that if something goes wrong, they won't see their kids.
Being blinded by dollar sides doesn't excuse your obligation to your children. Kids like things, no question. But ask a kid who has lost a parent and most (if not all) would tell you that they'd rather have a parent around.
We have a hideous economy, no question. And the way things are set up, the rule breakers and law breakers at the top get slaps on the wrists, while on the lower rung, they get sent to prison.
But when you have kids you need to give up the American b.s. fantasy of a "quick buck." That's the sort of nonsense you can hold out for when you're a kid. Growing up means learning that some responsibilites go beyond things and that maybe it's better to be poor and do without if you can be with your kids.
I don't blame him if he was focusing on the big easy because we're conditioned to. But that's as much a part of the story and to hear "Oh, it's awful, he just wanted to go to Iraq and make some fast bucks but he was killed" isn't really the story, not the whole story.
Mike and I agreed immediately when we discussed the show on Monday. I wanted to think about it a little before writing because I wasn't sure what I wanted to say here on this part but I'll share. My father died when I was little. He didn't die in Iraq. He did think he was going to make a quick buck. He worked himself crazy driving this route in really limited time and he had a car accident and he died. The only reason he pushed himself like that was because he thought, "Money for my kids!" We didn't end up with money but if we had, it wouldn't have brought him back or made it okay that he was gone. That influences how I'm seeing this (and may influence how Mike sees it because he knows my life story). My mother never said a word against him. But when I was 10, my grandfather (my dad's father) sat me down and explained the thing in terms of "lust and greed" (for money) and how that will lead you to make choices that are wrong for you and will hurt the people around you. I don't remember what the shoes were that I was whining about but I had been on my mom's case about it and how a real mother who loved me would get me those shoes. My grandfather didn't pull any punches. He told me that kind of thinking was the reason my dad, his son, wasn't with us. He really believed that he had to try to provide us with everything.
Given the choice, I'd go through life shoeless if I could just have my dad for even a year more than I did. So I don't blame the guy for thinking Iraq was a "quick buck" and I know it's conditioned in us. But I'm not going to sit here and act like he didn't have other options or he shouldn't have thought them through before he went over there.
I also don't get the whole, "He was supposed to be a bodyguard for Paul Bremer!" Was that supposed to be safer? Or is it that he didn't get what he signed up for? Talk to the soldiers over there and ask them if they got what their recruiters promised them.
Think about your own work and see if someone who's always arguing with the boss ends up getting the wanted task. There are other details to the story. I don't care for the lawyer representing the guy either. He did this with Amy Goodman (maybe Juan Gonzalez too, I think Juan was in that interview too) and he did it with Michael Ratner and Heidi Boghosian. It was a, "Oh good question, now instead of answering, let me get my soundbyte in." It's like he has a script whenever he appears. I think going to Iraq for a quick buck was foolilsh (my grandfather would call the guy a fool) and I think it was his choice. The same choice my father made in pursuing that quick buck. Those choices lead down a path and, at the end, there's no point in wondering how you got there.
I also thought if you were going to stress "He was a trainer for Demi Moore" you'd get her name right. If you're throwing out that detail (and it was tossed out over and over), learn the woman's name. It's not "Dem-me." It doesn't rhyme with Emmy. It'd be like saying, "He was a trainer for Cheryl Stone." Who? Sharon Stone isn't Cheryl Stone and Demi Moore isn't Demmy Moore.
(And Mike made me laugh when he noted that was a huge pet peever of C.I.'s. It really is.)
Tony Snow is already coming under scrutiny for a series of controversial comments he’s made on his radio program. Just last week, he shared these views: "People like Jesse Jackson who have committed themselves to a view that blacks are constantly victims, have succeeded in creating in the United States the most dangerous thing that we've encountered in our lifetime; which is, an underclass that doesn't seem to be going anywhere." Tony Snow went on to criticize what he described as: "the idiotic culture of hip-hop": "You have people glorifying failure. You have a bunch of gold-toothed hot dogs become millionaires by running around and telling everybody else that they oughtta be miserable failures and if they're really lucky maybe they can get gunned down in a diner sometime, like Eminem's old running mate."
This is the man who would save the Bully Boy administration. (Item from Democracy Now!)
First off, Proof (DC12) wasn't at a "diner" but I know facts don't matter a great deal to the right wingers. But what this is really about is a White man who doesn't want to acknowledge that African-Americans do suffer racism. We suffer it all the time. It's not wallowing in victim-hood but it's also not denying a very real fact of life. I think that Snow should go to FX and ask to be in that show where the people switch races (via make up).
He's a White man who misses the good old days of separate water fountains and lynchings. He probably wets his pants anytime he's walking down a sidewalk and sees a "brother" up ahead.
If you're one of those people, let me continue my series of tips by offering you one. I'm not robbing anyone, I'm not mugging anyone. But if you see Black and think "crime," here's a tip, do not immediately pat your wallet to make sure it's still there.
You're saying to the world (of all races), "I got a wallet and it's right here. Must be something in it because I'm real worried about having it stolen."
For more on the laughable Tony Snow, check out Wally's ""THIS JUST IN! "BROKEBACK EACH OTHER'S MOUNTAINS!" SCREAMS SNOW."
Now let's talk Law and Disorder which aired Monday on WBAI. Heidi Boghosian had a remote (from the streets of NYC -- Brooklyn, I think) interview with Bill Brown about the spy cams going up all over NYC. And there was a lot more worth hearing. But Mike and I both were bothered by the contractor issue. I can feel bad when anyone dies. But I'm not going to work up a great deal of sympathy for the employees of Blackwater USA or any other contractor employee in Iraq. No, they aren't all torturing and killing.
But they went over to make money. On some level, whether they believed in the war or not, they had to grasp they'd be profitting while others suffered. The guy made a point to go over there. People are dying over there. He wanted to make a fast buck. He died in Falluja.
Like Mike, I was raised hearing how there was no such thing as an easy buck. The man had kids. He should have thought about them. You don't say, "Fast buck!" and rush to a war zone.
It was a mistake on his part. He lost his life largely because of what others had done. But to try to profit from a war is wrong and that's if it was Dick Cheney or Joe Blow down the street.
Had everything gone well, had he made it home, he would have made a fast buck off the suffering of others. I don't agree with doing that.
I'm sorry he's dead. I can pray for him. But whether or not contractor employees are screwed over isn't my concern. It's like debating the "strategy" for the war and not noting that the war is illegal. At the root, all the "fix its" that argue we can and should stay in Iraq, don't get to the root: the war was illegal.
Profitting from the suffering of others is wrong too.
That's a lesson he should have known just as surely as he should have known that there was no free ride. That doesn't mean he deserved to die a violent death. It just means that some things aren't all that surprising and I won't spend a lot of time worrying about someone being screwed over by a division of Haliburton when, at the heart of it, that person went to Iraq to make money.
Those are the breaks.
I also don't know that I feel he was targeted for being so smart. If he had conflict with his superior, well no one wants someone in a group that's always saying, "Oh, here's how it should be done." For a trained military person, he seemed to have a really hard time following orders.
If he was, as some of the stories seem to indicate, someone who "always knows best," it's not surprising that he had conflicts with his superior.
If his superior was petty and used that to put him at risk, that's not right either.
But there are some real problems in the world. I'm just not seeing this as one that I'll worry a great deal about. If he'd gone there to witness to people or to aid them or to report on what it was like in Iraq, I'd feel different. But his own mother was talking (on Democracy Now!) about how he needed to make some quick money.
I hear that a lot. Some of the guys I went to school with don't see their kids now because they wanted to make some quick money. They ended up behind bars. When one of them tells me that it's not fair, I tell them that they made choices (stealing mainly, one was armed robbery) without thinking them through. At the most basic, they should have realized that if something goes wrong, they won't see their kids.
Being blinded by dollar sides doesn't excuse your obligation to your children. Kids like things, no question. But ask a kid who has lost a parent and most (if not all) would tell you that they'd rather have a parent around.
We have a hideous economy, no question. And the way things are set up, the rule breakers and law breakers at the top get slaps on the wrists, while on the lower rung, they get sent to prison.
But when you have kids you need to give up the American b.s. fantasy of a "quick buck." That's the sort of nonsense you can hold out for when you're a kid. Growing up means learning that some responsibilites go beyond things and that maybe it's better to be poor and do without if you can be with your kids.
I don't blame him if he was focusing on the big easy because we're conditioned to. But that's as much a part of the story and to hear "Oh, it's awful, he just wanted to go to Iraq and make some fast bucks but he was killed" isn't really the story, not the whole story.
Mike and I agreed immediately when we discussed the show on Monday. I wanted to think about it a little before writing because I wasn't sure what I wanted to say here on this part but I'll share. My father died when I was little. He didn't die in Iraq. He did think he was going to make a quick buck. He worked himself crazy driving this route in really limited time and he had a car accident and he died. The only reason he pushed himself like that was because he thought, "Money for my kids!" We didn't end up with money but if we had, it wouldn't have brought him back or made it okay that he was gone. That influences how I'm seeing this (and may influence how Mike sees it because he knows my life story). My mother never said a word against him. But when I was 10, my grandfather (my dad's father) sat me down and explained the thing in terms of "lust and greed" (for money) and how that will lead you to make choices that are wrong for you and will hurt the people around you. I don't remember what the shoes were that I was whining about but I had been on my mom's case about it and how a real mother who loved me would get me those shoes. My grandfather didn't pull any punches. He told me that kind of thinking was the reason my dad, his son, wasn't with us. He really believed that he had to try to provide us with everything.
Given the choice, I'd go through life shoeless if I could just have my dad for even a year more than I did. So I don't blame the guy for thinking Iraq was a "quick buck" and I know it's conditioned in us. But I'm not going to sit here and act like he didn't have other options or he shouldn't have thought them through before he went over there.
I also don't get the whole, "He was supposed to be a bodyguard for Paul Bremer!" Was that supposed to be safer? Or is it that he didn't get what he signed up for? Talk to the soldiers over there and ask them if they got what their recruiters promised them.
Think about your own work and see if someone who's always arguing with the boss ends up getting the wanted task. There are other details to the story. I don't care for the lawyer representing the guy either. He did this with Amy Goodman (maybe Juan Gonzalez too, I think Juan was in that interview too) and he did it with Michael Ratner and Heidi Boghosian. It was a, "Oh good question, now instead of answering, let me get my soundbyte in." It's like he has a script whenever he appears. I think going to Iraq for a quick buck was foolilsh (my grandfather would call the guy a fool) and I think it was his choice. The same choice my father made in pursuing that quick buck. Those choices lead down a path and, at the end, there's no point in wondering how you got there.
I also thought if you were going to stress "He was a trainer for Demi Moore" you'd get her name right. If you're throwing out that detail (and it was tossed out over and over), learn the woman's name. It's not "Dem-me." It doesn't rhyme with Emmy. It'd be like saying, "He was a trainer for Cheryl Stone." Who? Sharon Stone isn't Cheryl Stone and Demi Moore isn't Demmy Moore.
(And Mike made me laugh when he noted that was a huge pet peever of C.I.'s. It really is.)
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Blog Spotlight: Mike discussing Law and Disorder
Mike and Cedric both covered Law & Disorder this week. (Mike actually covered the issue of two guests twice at his site). They didn't agree with the presentation/argument of one segment of the show, but they endorse the show strongly and urge to check it out. (Law and Disorder airs on WBAI.)
Law and Disorder, Iraq and more (including Jane Fonda quote)
Good evening. Quite a day online judging by the e-mails. I got a lot "where is C.I.?" e-mails. I really think C.I. could take a day off and people would be cool with it. But C.I. didn't take a day off. There were problems with Blogger the program we all use. C.I. did entries, they just didn't show. They were up at the mirror site for The Common Ills. So you should have checked there nah-nah-nah :D. Seriously, they were up around one p.m. at the main site and it is a headache. Me, Jim and Dona are lobbying C.I. to put something from this morning up by itself because we think it's worth noting. Now let's kick off the week with Democracy Now!
Land Dispute on Mohawk Land in Ontario Intensifies
In Ontario, a standoff between Mohawks from the Six Nations Territory has entered its 56th day. On Thursday, Canadian police arrested 16 people in a pre-dawn raid. Over the weekend the Mohawks decided to maintain a blockade of a local highway and to keep occupying land that is being developed into a new housing subdivision. The Six Nations Confederacy has been called the oldest living participatory democracy on earth.
This hasn't had a lot of attention so Elaine and me decided we'd make it first on our items. WBAI's Wakeup Call did an interview this morning with Hazel Hill who is a Mohawk and one of the people saying no more. She talked about some of the leases and the belief that they were forged with "900" added to the "99" years of the lease to make it "999." She didn't think her ancestors would've signed anything away for 999 years. I have a hard time believing that too. We don't make treaties with that kind of date today and I can't imagine anyone doing that back then. And if they were fine with 999, why not make it an even 1,000? It just smells funny.
By the way Wakeup Call's the program I'm going to mention here every now and then. Tracey (Ruth's granddaughter) loves it and always wants her grandmother to mention it but Ruth really wants to have notes on something to talk about it and Elijah (Ruth's infant grandson) is too active first thing in the morning (she watches him during the day) so there's no time for taking notes. I'd told Tracey Saturday I'd try to pick that up (that's the show I was talking about in The Third Estate Sunday Review's "About this edition") and she told me Dave Zirin's a guest each week so that will be cool. But I can't do everything that's on every show because I have work in the morning before I go to campus and there will be some mornings when I'll wake up late. But I will try to note it at least once a week. Ruth's got too much cover and, every weekend, she feels like she fails because she's missing so much. She's missing so much because she's attempting to cover two radio stations that broadcast programs 24/7. So we're all going to try to help out more so when the weekend rolls around she's not left to write an epic chapter.
Army Suicides Reach Highest Total Since 1993
In military news, the Pentagon has revealed 83 soldiers in the Army and National Guard committed suicide last year -- it marks the highest total since 1993.
Does that surprise anyone? How would you feel if you'd signed up and found yourself in an illegal war? Or if you were aware, like a lot of them are, that if it was Iraqis invading the US you'd be responding in the same violent way some respond to US troops? Or if you had to live with all the crap you see over there (stuff the corporate media never gets too worried about with their cheerleading coverage)?
Rumsfeld OKs Expansion of SpecialOps Forces Across Globe
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has approved plans to greatly expand the use of elite Special Operations forces to secretly take part in missions outside of war zones as part of the so-called war on terrorism. According to the Washington Post, the Pentagon has already dispatched teams of Army Green Berets and other Special Operations troops to U.S. embassies in about 20 countries in the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Latin America. The secret forces are instructed to carry out clandestine military activities including hunting down wanted individuals, gathering intelligence, attacking sites believed to be terrorist training camps and partnering with foreign militaries. The secret operations will be run off the books and largely free from Congressional oversight and legal restrictions imposed on the C.I.A.
Isaiah's latest The World Today Just Nuts is perfect for this. I'm going to call C.I. and ask that this item and the comic be combined because they are perfect for each other. (I'm not putting it in here because I got a lot to do and Blogger's got a message posted that they're going to have an outtage this evening.)
Law and Disorder aired today on WBAI and the segment I'm grabbing was the one with Jeremy Scahill and the lawyer Marc Miles who is the attorney for Katy Helvenston whose son Scott Helvenston was killed in Iraq while he worked for Blackwater USA.
Michael Ratner and Heidi Boghosian did the interview. I'm just going to talk my way through this. (And I'll note for C.I., "Demi" does not rhyme with "Demmy" -- pet peeve of C.I.'s.) I feel sorry for the mother that she lost her son. And I'm sad that anyone has died. If this lawsuit helps a lot of people, great. But this isn't my big issue. I understand that Iraqis may be helped by this. If this can go to trial and the "we're off limits" position of the contractors can be challenged (even better if it can be defeated -- but it is written into the Iraqi law thanks to Paul Bremer and others), great. But it's not my pressing issue.
I feel like kids get tricked into signing up today (I'm a kid, I know) and I feel like people who were already signed up got tricked. But the position I keep hearing on this guy that died was he needed to make money "quick" and who doesn't? But to go over there in 2004 when reality was pretty clear, I feel like -- no one deserves to die. And I think, or hope, he went there thinking he was going to help. I believe he was a Republican so I'll guess that he still believed the war wasn't based on lies. But with reality on the ground there, whether you realized the war was built on lies or not, you knew it was chaos. He was told he was going to be a bodyguard for Paul Bremer and apparently that was a good thing in his book.
It's not in mine. I'm sorry he's dead but, for me, there are other issues that I'll focus on.
I don't think the "I have kids to support" line makes it more sad. People are working here and all over the world trying to support their kids. I hope he thought he was helping and doing something worthwhile. I wouldn't have seen it that way but I'm not him.
But contractors are abusing Iraqis. (Not him, he was in Iraq like 48 hours before he was killed.)
I'm concerned about the Iraqis, I'm concerned about the troops. This guy seems like he was someone trying to help. So I'm sorry he's dead but it's not my issue.
I think you put what's on your plate, even overpile the thing, but there comes a time when nothing else fits. I can feel sorry for him and if he's someone's issue, cool, but I'm more concerned with the Iraqis and the troops.
Other contractors' actions probably play into it. And, let me repeat, he was only in the country for 48 hours and didn't abuse anyone. But a lot of others have and they were also out of control, same company, in New Orleans.
It's kind of like with South Park. It's not a show I watch and I'll hear, "Oh, you gotta watch it and support free speech." Supporting free speech doesn't mean that I have to watch the show.
I can be sympathetic to the guy and if a contrator's kidnapped, I'd probably talk about that. But the contractors aren't my concern. And Tony's brother got out last year and his stories probably have a lot to do with it because I heard all about how soldiers were getting less money, way less money, than the contractors and having to escort their caravans and a lot of other stuff.
It's just not an issue on my plate.
Nina was listening to a program (and taping, I'll listen later tonight) while I listened to the tape she made for me of Law and Disorder and she wants me to put this in here. She says the question was about how LBJ refused to run for a second term and Nixon left the White House in disgrace but the Bully Boy doesn't seem like someone who could make the decision to do that.
"It's never up to an administration . . . It all depends upon what people force them to do." Jane Fonda on KPFA's Cover to Cover with Denny Smithson today.
Pretty cool quote. I was hoping to hear it live but then I saw the note on Blogger going down for maintance and realized I was going to have to rush to get this done. I'll listen to the tape Nina made. I hope you listened because Jane Fonda's cool and Nina says it was a great interview. We'll probably listen to the show next week because Nina thinks Denny Smithson has a "really good interview style."
Now two quick highlights. First, here's C.I.'s Iraq snapshot for today:
Iraq?
The Associated Press notes that on Sunday "at least three U.S. soldiers and 31 Iraqis were killed, including seven who died when mortars hit just outside the heavily guarded Green Zone." The Chicago Tribune reports that private contractors in Iraq have been confiscating passports from labor brought in (from outside Iraq) and that General George Casey has ordered that all passports must be returned by May 1st. Reuters notes that Iraqi firefighters are fighting "a large blaze" at an oil center between Kirkuk and Baiji. Australia's ABC notes that John Howard, that country's prime minister who is saying the illegal war is not "a disaster," stated today that the prospect of US troops was conditional (and didn't appear optimistic it would happen). Ian Bruce, with the UK Herald, reports that Carle Selman, James Cooke, Joseph McCleary and Martin McGing will stand trial (court martial) in Colchester, Essex for their actions in the death of Iraqi Ahmed Jabber Kareem. Seventeen-year-old Kareem was beaten along with three others and then ordered "into the Shatt al Basra waterway." Kareem, who could not swim, drowned. Bruce notes that an estimated 30 British soldiers "have either been convicted, are awaiting court-marital, or are being investigate" for their actions in Iraq. China's People's Daily Online reports that the costs of the (illegal) Iraq war are rising to one trillion in US dollars. Meanwhile, New York Daily News notes that costs for Iraq and Afghanistan will hit $117.9 billion and that the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments is predicting the cost could reach 660 billion dollars by the year 2016.
In Tikrit, four Iraqi police officers were killed during a gun battle and two more were killed after the attack on the police station. In Mosul, Sandra Lupien noted, three corpses were found and
Al Jazeera notes that at least seven car bombs have gone off in Baghdad ("two of them at a Baghdad university"), CNN reports eight (a more recent report). The Los Angeles Times (going with the figure of seven) reports the death of at least 14 civilians and the wouding of at least 139 -- Sandra Lupien noted that the 139 included "a ten-year-old boy."
Seventeen corpses were found in Iraq today, the Associated Press reports. Sandra Lupien (a more recent report) noted at least 20 from secratarian violence with many, if not all, showing signs of torture.
Sandra Lupien does newsbreaks on KPFA in the early half of the day, including during one of Ruth's favorite programs: The Morning Show. Please note audio reports whenever one stands out -- not all members have the same abilities -- and Lupien has four news breaks in the now archived broadcast of The Morning Show, click on the links in the previous paragraphs and you'll be taken to today's two hour broadcast -- Lupien comes in on the hour and half hour. Lloyd has reminded me to add a radio show to the permalinks -- added last night. It's not showing up. But as I dictate this, nothing is showing up. Hopefully members are using the mirror site where this morning's entries (thanks to Jess) are up and VISIBLE.
By the way I'm begging C.I. to do a repost of "NYT: Tavernise is lost in Iraq and Weisman just lost period" because I think it really needs to be noted and with all the Blogger problems today, I'm afraid it won't be. Second highlight is Robert Parry's "Bush Brandishes Jail Time at Critics:"
Instead, what appears most keenly at stake in the escalating political rhetoric is the Bush administration's determination to stop its political fall by branding its critics -- even U.S. generals and CIA officers -- as unpatriotic and then silencing them with threats of imprisonment.
Bush is trying to mark the boundaries of permissible political debate. He also wants total control of classified information so he can leak the information that helps him -- as he did in summer 2003 to shore up his claims about Iraq's WMD -- while keeping a lid on secrets that might make him look bad.
The firing of CIA officer Mary McCarthy and the threats of criminal charges against various dissenters are just the latest skirmishes in the political war over who will decide what Americans get to see and hear.
The other signal to Bush's critics, however, is this: If they ever thought he and his administration would accept accountability for their alleged abuses of power without a nasty fight, those critics are very mistaken.
Go check out Like Maria Said Paz to get Elaine's take on the news.
democracy now
iraq
robert parry
wbai
wakeup call
law and disorder
heidi boghosian
michael ratner
the world today just nuts
donald rumsfeld
sandra lupien
kpfa
cover to cover with denny smithson
jane fonda
the common ills
the third estate sunday review
like maria said paz
mikey likes it
Land Dispute on Mohawk Land in Ontario Intensifies
In Ontario, a standoff between Mohawks from the Six Nations Territory has entered its 56th day. On Thursday, Canadian police arrested 16 people in a pre-dawn raid. Over the weekend the Mohawks decided to maintain a blockade of a local highway and to keep occupying land that is being developed into a new housing subdivision. The Six Nations Confederacy has been called the oldest living participatory democracy on earth.
This hasn't had a lot of attention so Elaine and me decided we'd make it first on our items. WBAI's Wakeup Call did an interview this morning with Hazel Hill who is a Mohawk and one of the people saying no more. She talked about some of the leases and the belief that they were forged with "900" added to the "99" years of the lease to make it "999." She didn't think her ancestors would've signed anything away for 999 years. I have a hard time believing that too. We don't make treaties with that kind of date today and I can't imagine anyone doing that back then. And if they were fine with 999, why not make it an even 1,000? It just smells funny.
By the way Wakeup Call's the program I'm going to mention here every now and then. Tracey (Ruth's granddaughter) loves it and always wants her grandmother to mention it but Ruth really wants to have notes on something to talk about it and Elijah (Ruth's infant grandson) is too active first thing in the morning (she watches him during the day) so there's no time for taking notes. I'd told Tracey Saturday I'd try to pick that up (that's the show I was talking about in The Third Estate Sunday Review's "About this edition") and she told me Dave Zirin's a guest each week so that will be cool. But I can't do everything that's on every show because I have work in the morning before I go to campus and there will be some mornings when I'll wake up late. But I will try to note it at least once a week. Ruth's got too much cover and, every weekend, she feels like she fails because she's missing so much. She's missing so much because she's attempting to cover two radio stations that broadcast programs 24/7. So we're all going to try to help out more so when the weekend rolls around she's not left to write an epic chapter.
Army Suicides Reach Highest Total Since 1993
In military news, the Pentagon has revealed 83 soldiers in the Army and National Guard committed suicide last year -- it marks the highest total since 1993.
Does that surprise anyone? How would you feel if you'd signed up and found yourself in an illegal war? Or if you were aware, like a lot of them are, that if it was Iraqis invading the US you'd be responding in the same violent way some respond to US troops? Or if you had to live with all the crap you see over there (stuff the corporate media never gets too worried about with their cheerleading coverage)?
Rumsfeld OKs Expansion of SpecialOps Forces Across Globe
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has approved plans to greatly expand the use of elite Special Operations forces to secretly take part in missions outside of war zones as part of the so-called war on terrorism. According to the Washington Post, the Pentagon has already dispatched teams of Army Green Berets and other Special Operations troops to U.S. embassies in about 20 countries in the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Latin America. The secret forces are instructed to carry out clandestine military activities including hunting down wanted individuals, gathering intelligence, attacking sites believed to be terrorist training camps and partnering with foreign militaries. The secret operations will be run off the books and largely free from Congressional oversight and legal restrictions imposed on the C.I.A.
Isaiah's latest The World Today Just Nuts is perfect for this. I'm going to call C.I. and ask that this item and the comic be combined because they are perfect for each other. (I'm not putting it in here because I got a lot to do and Blogger's got a message posted that they're going to have an outtage this evening.)
Law and Disorder aired today on WBAI and the segment I'm grabbing was the one with Jeremy Scahill and the lawyer Marc Miles who is the attorney for Katy Helvenston whose son Scott Helvenston was killed in Iraq while he worked for Blackwater USA.
Michael Ratner and Heidi Boghosian did the interview. I'm just going to talk my way through this. (And I'll note for C.I., "Demi" does not rhyme with "Demmy" -- pet peeve of C.I.'s.) I feel sorry for the mother that she lost her son. And I'm sad that anyone has died. If this lawsuit helps a lot of people, great. But this isn't my big issue. I understand that Iraqis may be helped by this. If this can go to trial and the "we're off limits" position of the contractors can be challenged (even better if it can be defeated -- but it is written into the Iraqi law thanks to Paul Bremer and others), great. But it's not my pressing issue.
I feel like kids get tricked into signing up today (I'm a kid, I know) and I feel like people who were already signed up got tricked. But the position I keep hearing on this guy that died was he needed to make money "quick" and who doesn't? But to go over there in 2004 when reality was pretty clear, I feel like -- no one deserves to die. And I think, or hope, he went there thinking he was going to help. I believe he was a Republican so I'll guess that he still believed the war wasn't based on lies. But with reality on the ground there, whether you realized the war was built on lies or not, you knew it was chaos. He was told he was going to be a bodyguard for Paul Bremer and apparently that was a good thing in his book.
It's not in mine. I'm sorry he's dead but, for me, there are other issues that I'll focus on.
I don't think the "I have kids to support" line makes it more sad. People are working here and all over the world trying to support their kids. I hope he thought he was helping and doing something worthwhile. I wouldn't have seen it that way but I'm not him.
But contractors are abusing Iraqis. (Not him, he was in Iraq like 48 hours before he was killed.)
I'm concerned about the Iraqis, I'm concerned about the troops. This guy seems like he was someone trying to help. So I'm sorry he's dead but it's not my issue.
I think you put what's on your plate, even overpile the thing, but there comes a time when nothing else fits. I can feel sorry for him and if he's someone's issue, cool, but I'm more concerned with the Iraqis and the troops.
Other contractors' actions probably play into it. And, let me repeat, he was only in the country for 48 hours and didn't abuse anyone. But a lot of others have and they were also out of control, same company, in New Orleans.
It's kind of like with South Park. It's not a show I watch and I'll hear, "Oh, you gotta watch it and support free speech." Supporting free speech doesn't mean that I have to watch the show.
I can be sympathetic to the guy and if a contrator's kidnapped, I'd probably talk about that. But the contractors aren't my concern. And Tony's brother got out last year and his stories probably have a lot to do with it because I heard all about how soldiers were getting less money, way less money, than the contractors and having to escort their caravans and a lot of other stuff.
It's just not an issue on my plate.
Nina was listening to a program (and taping, I'll listen later tonight) while I listened to the tape she made for me of Law and Disorder and she wants me to put this in here. She says the question was about how LBJ refused to run for a second term and Nixon left the White House in disgrace but the Bully Boy doesn't seem like someone who could make the decision to do that.
"It's never up to an administration . . . It all depends upon what people force them to do." Jane Fonda on KPFA's Cover to Cover with Denny Smithson today.
Pretty cool quote. I was hoping to hear it live but then I saw the note on Blogger going down for maintance and realized I was going to have to rush to get this done. I'll listen to the tape Nina made. I hope you listened because Jane Fonda's cool and Nina says it was a great interview. We'll probably listen to the show next week because Nina thinks Denny Smithson has a "really good interview style."
Now two quick highlights. First, here's C.I.'s Iraq snapshot for today:
Iraq?
The Associated Press notes that on Sunday "at least three U.S. soldiers and 31 Iraqis were killed, including seven who died when mortars hit just outside the heavily guarded Green Zone." The Chicago Tribune reports that private contractors in Iraq have been confiscating passports from labor brought in (from outside Iraq) and that General George Casey has ordered that all passports must be returned by May 1st. Reuters notes that Iraqi firefighters are fighting "a large blaze" at an oil center between Kirkuk and Baiji. Australia's ABC notes that John Howard, that country's prime minister who is saying the illegal war is not "a disaster," stated today that the prospect of US troops was conditional (and didn't appear optimistic it would happen). Ian Bruce, with the UK Herald, reports that Carle Selman, James Cooke, Joseph McCleary and Martin McGing will stand trial (court martial) in Colchester, Essex for their actions in the death of Iraqi Ahmed Jabber Kareem. Seventeen-year-old Kareem was beaten along with three others and then ordered "into the Shatt al Basra waterway." Kareem, who could not swim, drowned. Bruce notes that an estimated 30 British soldiers "have either been convicted, are awaiting court-marital, or are being investigate" for their actions in Iraq. China's People's Daily Online reports that the costs of the (illegal) Iraq war are rising to one trillion in US dollars. Meanwhile, New York Daily News notes that costs for Iraq and Afghanistan will hit $117.9 billion and that the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments is predicting the cost could reach 660 billion dollars by the year 2016.
In Tikrit, four Iraqi police officers were killed during a gun battle and two more were killed after the attack on the police station. In Mosul, Sandra Lupien noted, three corpses were found and
Al Jazeera notes that at least seven car bombs have gone off in Baghdad ("two of them at a Baghdad university"), CNN reports eight (a more recent report). The Los Angeles Times (going with the figure of seven) reports the death of at least 14 civilians and the wouding of at least 139 -- Sandra Lupien noted that the 139 included "a ten-year-old boy."
Seventeen corpses were found in Iraq today, the Associated Press reports. Sandra Lupien (a more recent report) noted at least 20 from secratarian violence with many, if not all, showing signs of torture.
Sandra Lupien does newsbreaks on KPFA in the early half of the day, including during one of Ruth's favorite programs: The Morning Show. Please note audio reports whenever one stands out -- not all members have the same abilities -- and Lupien has four news breaks in the now archived broadcast of The Morning Show, click on the links in the previous paragraphs and you'll be taken to today's two hour broadcast -- Lupien comes in on the hour and half hour. Lloyd has reminded me to add a radio show to the permalinks -- added last night. It's not showing up. But as I dictate this, nothing is showing up. Hopefully members are using the mirror site where this morning's entries (thanks to Jess) are up and VISIBLE.
By the way I'm begging C.I. to do a repost of "NYT: Tavernise is lost in Iraq and Weisman just lost period" because I think it really needs to be noted and with all the Blogger problems today, I'm afraid it won't be. Second highlight is Robert Parry's "Bush Brandishes Jail Time at Critics:"
Instead, what appears most keenly at stake in the escalating political rhetoric is the Bush administration's determination to stop its political fall by branding its critics -- even U.S. generals and CIA officers -- as unpatriotic and then silencing them with threats of imprisonment.
Bush is trying to mark the boundaries of permissible political debate. He also wants total control of classified information so he can leak the information that helps him -- as he did in summer 2003 to shore up his claims about Iraq's WMD -- while keeping a lid on secrets that might make him look bad.
The firing of CIA officer Mary McCarthy and the threats of criminal charges against various dissenters are just the latest skirmishes in the political war over who will decide what Americans get to see and hear.
The other signal to Bush's critics, however, is this: If they ever thought he and his administration would accept accountability for their alleged abuses of power without a nasty fight, those critics are very mistaken.
Go check out Like Maria Said Paz to get Elaine's take on the news.
democracy now
iraq
robert parry
wbai
wakeup call
law and disorder
heidi boghosian
michael ratner
the world today just nuts
donald rumsfeld
sandra lupien
kpfa
cover to cover with denny smithson
jane fonda
the common ills
the third estate sunday review
like maria said paz
mikey likes it
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