War & politics: Sept 11th, bin Laden, Middle East news, from my own perspective.
"Bush has promised that if re-elected in November he will make regime change in Iran his new target."
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Other title(s) for this story: Regime change in Iran now in Bush's sights
"There's an atmosphere of fear in America right now that is deadly. Everyone is too career-conscious."
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Other title(s) for this story: BBC: Elton attacks 'censorship' in US
This was reported on Minnesota Public Radio on March 21st. The introduction here. Apparently, this private contractor from the Titan Corporation has gotten away with it, he's not been prosecuted, he maybe exempt. Paul Bremer has let him go.
It seems from the MeFi thread that the CIA pulled out of Abu Ghraib as it was too bad. Then, when they left it turned worse.
Washington Post May 12th: SEN. BILL NELSON (D) Fla. said one poor-quality video appeared to show Iraqi prisoners about to be sodomized, although "it's not clear that the actual act of sodomy was being perpetrated on the videos that I've just seen."
"RUMSFELD: There are other photos that depict incidents of physical violence towards prisoners, acts that can only be described as blatantly sadistic, cruel, and inhuman.
JIM MIKLASZEWSKI, NBC PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): U.S. military officials tell NBC News, the unreleased images, show American soldiers severely beating one Iraqi prisoner to near death; apparently, raping an Iraqi female prisoner; acting inappropriately with a dead body; and Iraqi guards apparently videotaped by U.S. soldiers raping young boys.
SEN. LINDSAY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: We're talking about rape and murder here, we`re not just talking about giving people a humiliating experience, we're talking about rape and murder and some very serious charges.
MIKLASZEWSKI: Senator Carl Levin raised questions about one photo which appeared to show the abuse of prisoners may not be random, but part of routine operations.
SEN. CARL LEVIN (D), MICHIGAN: That the conduct we were witnessing and watching was not aberrant conduct of a few individuals, but part of an organized and conscious process to extract information.
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Other title(s) for this story: The dogs of war
An excerpt: "Some of the worst things that happened you don't know about, okay? Videos, um, there are women there. Some of you may have read that they were passing letters out, communications out to their men. This is at Abu Ghraib ... The women were passing messages out saying 'Please come and kill me, because of what's happened' and basically what happened is that those women who were arrested with young boys, children in cases that have been recorded. The boys were sodomized with the cameras rolling. And the worst above all of that is the soundtrack of the boys shrieking that your government has. They are in total terror. It's going to come out."
He said that after he broke Abu Ghraib people are coming out of the woodwork to tell him this stuff. He said he had seen all the Abu Ghraib pictures. He said, "You haven't begun to see evil..." then trailed off. He said, "horrible things done to children of women prisoners, as the cameras run."
He talked about how hard it is to get the truth out in Republican Washington: "If you agree with the neocons you're a genius. If you disagree you're a traitor." Bush, he said, was closing ranks, purging anyone who wasn't 100% with him.
The outrages have cost us the support of moderate Arabs, says Hersh. "They see us as a sexually perverse society."
Well, I've just watched it. He talks about Bush's and Wolfowitz's strangle hold on the US and though the tone was very frightening, I see many similarities with Blair's leadership of the UK. Certainly the US is becoming more fascist — the media aren't interested in the deeper stories, the military are cowed and so is the justice system.
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Other title(s) for this story: The world's a safer place?
Hans Blick on the BBC 24 summed it up for me, "Blair put exclaimation marks where there were question marks." He has to resign for me to vote Labour again. He tricked me. He tricked Parliament. He tricked his Cabinet.
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Other title(s) for this story: Butler report: 'oh well, nevermind'
If there's one thing you want to do today to cheer yourself up...
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Other title(s) for this story: Funny song about Bush and the other one
I saw 'Failure of Intelligence'—the BBC's Panorama programme last night. Though I wasn't confused anymore. I know that Blair has been 'lying' or exaggerating the truth. There was very, very little information.
As a life long good socialist I'm saddened that I will not be voting for my party with him at the head, more, I will be campaigning against Labour, just so Blair will be removed from power.
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Other title(s) for this story: Stand down Tony Don't trust Blair
"His smile faded, and he raised his left arm in our direction. And then, George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States of America, extended his middle finger. Read that last sentence again. I got flipped off by George W. Bush.
Didn't Cheney the VP do a similar thing to Congress? Get the t-shirt here.
If he stays on for another term, what does that say about the US?
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Other title(s) for this story: Bush, the statesman
Osama bin Laden and his chief lieutenants are directing a Qaeda effort to launch an attack in the U.S. sometime this year.
Pretty general stuff. What worries me, is that the attack, when it
comes, and it will, will be a mega, probably biological. It wouldn't
need to be very successful in itself, but the fear of some awful
disease could tear the country apart. (Or, would the US as a nation
pull together?)
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Other title(s) for this story: Bin Laden Is Said to Be Organizing for a U.S. Attack
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Other title(s) for this story: More Steve Bell cartoons
Saddam: Ask Aziz, he knows
Aziz: Tiger Hand always beats paper
Saddam: I'm sayin' bro!
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Other title(s) for this story: Rock Paper Saddam
