Governor's Proclamation Declaring Sept 21 a Day of Peace

SPECIAL NOTE: State Delegate Algie Howell of District 90 will read the Governor's Proclamation during the 3rd Annual United Nations International Day of Peace Interfaith Service. See the post below this one for more info.

United Nations International Day of Peace Soccer Tournament and More This Weekend (Sept 20-21)

Sunday, September 21 has been officially declared the International Day of Peace in Norfolk, as proclaimed by Mayor Fraim in recognition of the annual UN Peace Day. It has also just been declared the Day of Peace in the Commonwealth of Virginia by Governor Kaine.

This year the local organization, of which I am a part, the United Nations International Day of Peace, Hampton Roads, is holding the two following events to celebrate this annual call for a 24-hour global ceasefire by all nations, as well as the promotion of peace and reconciliation:


1) The third annual interfaith celebration of UN Peace Day to be held at the Unitarian Church of Norfolk, 739 Yarmouth Street, at 5:00 PM on Sunday, September 21. The church is located right across from Norfolk’s Chrysler Museum on the Hague. We will again have a program of prayer, speeches, music and dance, followed by a reception in the church hall with food and refreshments. SPECIAL NOTE: State Delegate Algie Howell of District 90 will read the Governor's Proclamation near the start of this service. Call Sonia at 717-0063 or Mac at 489-0769 for further information.


2) The first annual United Nations International Day of Peace Soccer Tournament at Larchmont Recreation Park in Norfolk, near Old Dominion University, on Saturday, September 20 and Sunday, September 21. This is in response to an international call by English film director Jeremy Gilley (who is the one who convinced the UN General Assembly to declare UN Peace Day) to hold soccer games around the world on or around UN Peace Day as way to bring peoples together through the world's most popular sport. Our motto is one day, one goal, one vision.

There will be games Saturday and Sunday, starting at 8:00 AM each day. There will also be musical and dance entertainment during the halftimes, as well as vendors and information booths. This is not merely a soccer tournament but a festive weekend event. The park is right behind WHRO near Bolling Avenue and Hampton Blvd in Norfolk. The trophy presentation will be during the above mentioned interfaith service on Sunday at the end of the service. The tournament is free, of course, to all spectators.

We are looking for eight teams, and still have a couple of berths left. Since this is our first year we are the new kid on the block and have to "prove" ourselves to the soccer leagues, so if you want to be in on the proof, please contact Dave, the soccer coach of West Indies United, at 675-1226, immediately to inquire about registering. Or call Sonia at 717-0063 or email her at Savanegas@yahoo.com. Or even leave a comment here and I will get back to you. Also see the soccer flyer below for Dave's email address and the registration site. Note that the player's fee is now $25. So many people were pleading hardship that we cut it in half. The West Indies United Site is at http://www.westindiesunitedva.org/. Scroll down until you get to the United Nations International Day of Peace blurb and click for more info.

Is The Republican Party Really Cruel?

Barack Obama and the Democratic Party are taking the Michigan Republican Party to court.

The Republican Party is using Mortgage Foreclosure Lists to try to keep people from voting. YIKES, If you are on a foreclosure list the Republicans want to keep you from voting. (I guess they figure that you might want to vote for change because of the deregulations that Republican Phil Gramm masterminded that has resulted in this mortgage crisis.)

Well it seems the Republican Party wants you to lose your right to vote right along with the loss of your home.

This is truly disgusting....here's the link.

CONSERVATIVES TURN ON McCAIN

Republican candidate--John McCain--may have connected with the extreme right wing neocon wing of the Republican Party. However, conservative columnists are letting it be known that they are upset with McCain over his VP choice. The proof is in this link.

McCain endorses Bush to make this a better place

Just look at the record (not the lying spin) and realize it comes down to this....

Are you better off now than you were 8 years ago? If so you may want to keep the Bush/Cheney policies and you will vote for McCain/Palin Republican Ticket.
\
If you aren't better off and want change than you will vote for an alternative change agent....Barack Obama the Democratic Candidate, Cynthia McKinney of the Green Party, or Ralph Nader (Independent) are my top three choices for a change agent.

You can go here to get a complete list of third party candidates to choose from.

CONSERVATIVE BLOG ACCUSES MOSQUITO OF HATE SPEECH

P W Conservative refused to post my factual blog comment and accused me of hate speech. So if someone states the fact that John McCain wrecked FIVE planes (the first one while he was in training school the second and third ones were also during peace time and one was deemed to be due to his "hot dogging" and created an international incident)...all of this before McCain ever flew in wartime conditions....this is hate speech?

You have to wonder what are the Republicans thinking? They are displaying a double standard. It was perfectly fine to go to extreme links, to "swiftboat" John Kerry's military record, it was acceptable to accuse Max Cleland of not defending America, and it was appropriate to suggest that Iraq vet Tammy Duckworth was connected to Al Jazeera. However, it is hate speech to present facts and question John McCains military record?

John McCain is a Republican politician who promoted his military experience as a reason to vote for him. Therefore it is appropriate to examine McCain's military record. This is made difficult by the fact that John McCain refuses to release his military records. Another double standard....John Kerry released all of his military records when he ran for president. John McCain refuses to release his military records...What is is McCain's military record that he doesn't want the American people to know?

Wow....I guess some Republicans will continue to insist that we march in lock step and never question the fact that John McCain has not released all of his military records as John Kerry did when he ran for the presidency. We should be "silenced" whenever possible and allow the Republican double standard to prevail.

Buzz...Buzz....

Mosquito

So you be the judge...here's the blog post I commented on.

How to save the Government almost $5,000,000.
A president's pension currently is $191,300 per year, until he is 80 years old. Sen. McCain would receive ZERO pension as he would reach 80 at the end of two terms as president. Sen. Obama would be retired for 26 years after two terms and would receive $4,973,800 in pension. Therefore it would certainly make economic c sense to elect McCain in November. How's that for non partisan thinking???

Here's the comment I sent (that was NOT posted..the truth must hurt):

You obviously don't realize that taxpayers paid for FIVE planes that
McCain wrecked in his military career...one while he was in school "training" to be a pilot (how did he graduate? oh yeah his grandfather was a very famous admiral and his daddy was a big time admiral when McCain got accepted into Annapolis and served in the military.
The second and third crashes involved McCain "hotdogging" and wrecking his plane b/c he was flying too low...also caused an international incident b/c of the power lines he took down....and he crashed flying his Navy plane home from an Army Navy game.

The fourth crash was on that aircraft carrier where McCain was hotdogging and then a missile from the plane behind him hit his plane. Allegedly this was not McCain's "fault" it had a variety of factors but McCain was the only person on that aircraft carrier who was whisked away by helicopter....allegedly b/c the crew was very unhappy with McCain.

They still allowed McCain to fly....any other pilot would have been put behind a desk long ago...heck any other pilot would have failed the pilot school....but then there granddaddy and daddy weren't admirals. And the Fifth crash that one was when McCain was actually in a wartime condition and he was shot down. Allegedly McCain admits that he did "push it" so he may have put himself in greater danger than the situation warranted.

And then there's the 100 percent military disability that he has taken for many years while serving in the Senate. McCain does not meet the written military criteria to draw that 100 percent disability....and at the same time McCain votes against bills that really supports our troops.

Me First McCain...what a guy....and he has sure cost the taxpayers a fortune.

buzz...buzz...

P W Conservative did not post my comment and gave this reason for not posting it:

Mosquito
Your comment was deleted because this blog has a strict no-tolerance policy for those who attack our Soldiers and Veterans.
In the future please refrain from hate speech.
Thank You.
September 13, 2008 11:03 PM

I DISAGREE WITH YOUR POST...McCAIN HAS COST US TAXPAYERS LOTS OF MONEY. I also disagree with your censorship of my comment....it was NOT hate speech.

McCain says he's out of touch

Wow, John McCain sometimes says something that is true. Surprising.

McCain said mayors and governors aren't prepared...

QUOTE OF THE WEEK
According to John McCain:

I am prepared. I am prepared. I need no on-the-job training. I wasn't a mayor for a short period of time. I wasn't a governor for a short period of time.

If you want to view the entire context it is here.

Sara Palin Camouflage

My gracious with the way conserbative bloggers are carrying on you'd think Sarah Palin was running for President.

She is just the camouflage so folks will vote for her and end up with at least 4 more years of Bush/Cheney.

What's the difference between Sarah Palin and Dick Cheney? LIPSTICK

Listen to Palin's Best Friends

Sometimes a likeable and popular person is better off being your friend and not your boss....Palin fired a childhood friend of 30 years because he was dating the wrong woman (who used to "belong" to a friend of her husband's)....

This woman should not be our Vice President. So what if George Bush, Dick Cheney and John McCain want her to be the next VP for lots of reasons. Among the reasons:

1--Her environmental record is worse than the
href="http://www.motherjones.com/news/featurex/2003/09/we_531_01.

html">Bush White House Environmental record (and that is a

disaster).
2--The OIL MEN IN THE WHITE HOUSE LOVE HOW Sometimes a likable and popular person is better off being your friend and not your boss....Palin fired a childhood friend of 30 years because he was dating the wrong woman (who used to "belong" to a friend of her husband's).... This woman should not be our Vice President. So what if George Bush, Dick Cheney and John McCain want her to be the next VP for lots of reasons. Among the reasons: 1--Her environmental record is worse than the Bush White House Environmental record (and that is a disaster). 2--The OIL MEN IN THE WHITE HOUSE LOVE HOW PALIN WORKS WITH THE BIG OIL COMPANIES.">PALIN WORKS WITH THE BIG OIL COMPANIES.

3--S

ara Palin BELIEVES the US is fighting a HOLY WAR in the Mideast.

She also attends a church with the most radical extremist preacher to emerge in the campaigns to date. (The church often has anti-semi tic sermons)

Arrested at the RNC

Amy Goodman and others like her are one of our last defenses against a total Matrix, a total Orwellian Police State in America and this week the Beast briefly dragged her into its belly. After thousands of phone calls and emails of protest, she was back out, thank God. Listen carefully to what she has to say and then go to http://www.democracynow.org/ if you want to support her directly.

Sara Palin--Another Michael Vick?

Congress outlawed hunting wolves from planes and Palin found a loophole so that Alaska "supports this horrible brutal sport"...HMMM...in Virginia the FEDS came in to take on Michael Vick's animal cruelty. Vick ended up in jail and lost his career over cruelty to an animal--pitbull.

Someone want to tell me what's the difference in Palin's cruelty to animals and Michael Vick's?

Heaven help us.

Warning the video is graphic.

John McCain's Alaska First Problem

The country first slogan exposed for the lie it is.

Department of Homeland Security is in charge of RNC POLICE STATE in St. Paul

That's right folks....the Dept of Homeland Security is in charge of what's happening in St. Paul...that's why journalists are being arrested and detained and folk are being beaten for simply exercising their constitutional rights.

Contact the senators and congresspeople on the Homeland Security Committees and see how much they care about your constitutional rights. You might be surprised at who is not providing oversight on the POLICE STATE that Homeland Security has enacted in our country....

Some of the staffers are sympathetic and in tune with what is c0nstitutional or not....others act like you have called in to report that your neighbor's dog is peeing in your vegetable garden,,,,goes to show why the Congress's approval rating is so low.

Want to see what the homeland security is up to? Check out democracynow.org, buzflash, huffington post....

Amy Goodman Released But Needs Support

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 1, 2008

Contact:
Mike Burke: mike@democracynow.org

**UPDATE**

Democracy Now!'s Amy Goodman, Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar Released After Illegal Arrest at RNC

Goodman Charged with Obstruction; Felony Riot Charges Pending Against Kouddous and Salazar

ST. PAUL--Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman and producers Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar have all been released from police custody in St. Paul following their illegal arrest by Minneapolis Police on Monday afternoon.

All three were violently manhandled by law enforcement officers. Abdel Kouddous was slammed against a wall and the ground, leaving his arms scraped and bloodied. He sustained other injuries to his chest and back.
Salazar's violent arrest by baton-wielding officers, during which she was slammed to the ground while yelling, "I'm Press! Press!," resulted in her nose bleeding, as well as causing facial pain. Goodman's arm was violently yanked by police as she was arrested.

On Tuesday, Democracy Now! will broadcast video of these arrests, as well as the broader police action. These will also be available on:
www.democracynow.org

Goodman was arrested while questioning police about the unlawful detention of Kouddous and Salazar who were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman's crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher told Democracy Now! that Kouddous and Salazar were arrested on suspicion of rioting, a felony. While the three have been released, they all still face charges stemming from their unlawful arrest. Kouddous and Salazar face pending charges of suspicion of felony riot, while Goodman has been officially charged with obstruction of a legal process and interference with a "peace officer."

Democracy Now! forcefully rejects all of these charges as false and an attempt at intimidation of these journalists. We demand that the charges be immediately and completely dropped.

Democracy Now! stands by Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and condemns this action by Twin Cities' law enforcement as a clear violation of the freedom of the press and the First Amendment rights of these journalists.

During the demonstration in which the Democracy Now! team was arrested, law enforcement officers used pepper spray, rubber bullets, concussion grenades and excessive force against protesters and journalists. Several dozen demonstrators were also arrested during this action, including a photographer for the Associated Press.

Amy Goodman is one of the most well-known and well-respected journalists in the United States. She has received journalism's top honors for her reporting and has a distinguished reputation of bravery and courage. The arrest of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and the subsequent criminal charges and threat of charges are a transparent attempt to intimidate journalists.

Democracy Now! is a nationally-syndicated public TV and radio program that airs on over 700 radio and TV stations across the US and the globe.

Video of Amy Goodman's Arrest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ

= = = = = = = = =
ABOUT DEMOCRACY NOW!
Democracy Now! airs on over 650 radio and TV stations, including Pacifica, NPR, community, and college radio stations; on public access, PBS, satellite TV stations (DISH network: Free Speech TV ch. 9415 and Link TV ch. 9410; DIRECTV: Link TV ch. 375); on the World Radio Network's European Service and on the Community Broacasting Association of Australia service; as a "podcast", automatically downloaded to your computer or portable audio player; and streams live M-F at 8am EST at www.democracynow.org = = = = = = = = = Now real-time CLOSED CAPTIONED on TV!
You can also view/listen/read all Democracy Now! shows online:
http://www.democracynow.org
To bring Democracy Now! to your community, go to:
http://www.democracynow.org/get_involved/bring_to_station

Democracy Now calling on concerned citizens and jouirnalists

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
www.democracynow.org

September 1, 2008

Contact:
Dennis Moynihan
Mike Burke

ST. PAUL, MN—Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman was unlawfully arrested in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota at approximately 5 p.m. local time. Police violently manhandled Goodman, yanking her arm, as they arrested her. Video of her arrest can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ

Goodman was arrested while attempting to free two Democracy Now! producers who were being unlawfuly detained. They are Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. Kouddous and Salazar were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman’s crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.

Ramsey County Sherrif Bob Fletcher told Democracy Now! that Kouddous and Salazar were being arrested on suspicion of rioting. They are currently being held at the Ramsey County jail in St. Paul.

Democracy Now! is calling on all journalists and concerned citizens to call the office of Mayor Chris Coleman and the Ramsey County Jail and demand the immediate release of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar. These calls can be directed to: Chris Rider from Mayor Coleman’s office at 651-266-8535 and the Ramsey County Jail at 651-266-9350 (press extension 0).

Democracy Now! stands by Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and condemns this action by Twin Cities law enforcement as a clear violation of the freedom of the press and the First Amenmdent rights of these journalists.

During the demonstration in which they were arrested law enforcement officers used pepper spray, rubber bullets, concussion grenades and excessive force. Several dozen others were also arrested during this action.

Amy Goodman is one of the most well-known and well-respected journalists in the United States. She has received journalism’s top honors for her reporting and has a distinguished reputation of bravery and courage. The arrest of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar is a transparent attempt to intimidate journalists from the nation’s leading independent news outlet.

Democracy Now! is a nationally-syndicated public TV and radio program that airs on over 700 radio and TV stations across the US and the globe.

Video of Amy Goodman’s Arrest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ

Amy Goodman Arrested at RNC Convention

Brokaw Has Some Gall

Brokaw Has Some Gall
Tom Brokaw said, "But I think especially you have to be careful about how you go after John McCain because of that Vietnam experience." Funny, he didn't talk that crap when the Republicans were going tooth and nail after Kerry's war time service in Viet Nam. What an asshole.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6872152/

Does someone have to dress John McCain each morning?

Probably so.....just check out this McCain statement on an essential qualification for US President. Did ANY of our US Presidents meet this criteria? OMG....NONE of our presidents were qualified according to John McCain.

According to John McCain:

The Presidency of the United States of America is the toughest job on the planet. And my friends, the best testing ground for that job is being the mayor of a 5,000-person town in Alaska.

Wow a new laughingstock to put on the world's stage...George Bush wasn't bad enough?

No wonder the Republicans are being forced to bus people in so they can "try" to get 10,000 people to hear McCain accept the Republican nomination.

LOL, McCain picked her as VP b/c she can shoot the caribou who wander onto the White House Lawn. How can anyone take McCain seriously?

An even bigger story,,,THIS is how McCain responds when his competitor challenges him? Talk about cut and running.....

McCain has a track record on disaster

LET THEM EAT CAKE...says it all....

Chickens Coming Home to Roost

FINALLY...Fox News is sowing what it reaps...and they aren't happy. Someone needs to tell Fox News that Freedom of Speech INCLUDES the right NOT to talk to a propaganda outfit like Fox.

I'd love to see this happen more often. Fox reporters are so histrionic....this crowd is vocal NOT out of control.

Kennedy Stamp of Approval

Caroline Kennedy said the VP search with Obama strengthened her endorsement:

I’ve campaigned with him and seen him in large settings, but to see the way he asked questions, listened, brought people together, with his leadership style and the kind of judgments he was making, really made me think he was even better than I thought he was. Source

Iraq Demands Deadline Date for U.S. Troops to Withdraw

According to the AP:

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Monday no security agreement with the United States could be reached unless it included a "specific deadline" for the withdrawal of all American troops from Iraq.

George Bush has always stated that if Iraq asked us to leave we would leave. Just another Republican lie.

Eliza Jane - SOS

Eliza Jane kicks ass!

Who is Eliza in case you don't know. From her website, http://www.elizaschneider.com/:

Eliza Jane Schneider: singer, fiddler, author, actress, voice artist, dialectologist, composer, oral historian and playwright. You may be familiar with her work as most of the female voices on Comedy Central's animated hit "South Park." She currently tours the world with her band, “Eliza Jane and the Barnyard Gypsies,” while collecting dialect recordings and also performing her award-winning multiple character solo shows. Her diverse background also includes starring roles in two CBS Saturday Morning live action television series, including the Emmy-Award winning "Beakman's World" as "Liza." Please explore this site to hear sound clips, reviews and examples of her work. Enjoy!

And about SOS, this is from the song's YouTube site:

Eliza Jane's timely and entertaining song SOS is a patriotic country music video about America's democracy, rigged elections, stolen votes, vote fraud, cowardly Chickenhawks who've hijacked America's democracy, American democracy hero Clint Curtis, and more. Like the Dixie Chicks she ain't afraid to step forward and renounce fascism. Enjoy!

McCain Doesn't Need to Do Campaign Ads

Not with the corporate controlled press acting as a McCain Campaign resource.

Vietnam Vets Against John McCain??

This raises a number of interesting questions....Since John McCain is running on his POW and military experience...why isn't anyone allowed to look at his military record?

Are these outrageous charges or are they true? Will we ever know? Why did McCain FIGHT so hard to keep records classified? Why does McCain have 100 percent disability (approximately 50 or 60 K per year) when he doesn't meet the military's criteria for this?

How can someone be a "maverick" and BLOCK legislation that would require government bureaucrats to face consequences if they lie (or hide info) from the congress and the public?

911 FALSE FLAG - GERMANY LOOKS AT 911

Part 1 of 911 False Flag



Part 2 of 911 False Flag


When Germans, with their meticulous and logical, probing minds, start thoroughly investigating something, look out. Unpleasant truths will sooner or later get uncovered. And such it is with 9/11, which is perhaps, if we agree with our German brethren, the greatest False Flag crime in history, clearly a rival to the Reichstag Fire and the Nazis' false flag op against Poland in 1939, when Hitler's agents faked a Polish attack on the Gleiwitz radio station in Germany to justify the invasion of Poland and hence the start of WWII.

Here is the whole, very powerful German series, entitled 911 False Flag, which came out in February of this year, for your erudition:

911 False Flag, Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YcF_jRHBoY

911 False Flag, Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HL1V-4AKLeM&NR=1

911 False Flag, Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvW03LEqDZk&feature=related

911 False Flag, Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SONVkobfRUU&NR=1

911 False Flag, Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5877yoUZX1o&NR=1

911 False Flag, Part 6: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3R2s_bkdPU&NR=1

911 False Flag, Part 7: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8Dfs8md4hA&NR=1

911 False Flag, Part 8: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UllQ-MF9Bfk&NR=1

Full Spectrum Dominance or "Real Men go to Moscow"

Check out this brilliant analysis of the crisis between the US, NATO and Russia by Pepe Escobar of Asia Times and The Real News Nertwork:



We are clearly headed for a new Cold War at this point, and if Russophobic, consumed by war fantasies John McCain assumes the presidency, tensions will only be exacerbated. Meanwhile, Russia's eyes are wide-open that the American ruling class's endgame is to checkmate her power, and perhaps even launch a catastrophic first strike once American missiles and radar are ringing Russia's borders within the next few years. I put nothing past Washington, which routinely revels in rivers of blood. The game is no longer one of friendly rivalry, if it ever was. In fact the last Soviet Union president, Mikhail Gorbachev, who oversaw the end of the first Cold War, now states that he feels totally betrayed by the United States, whom he said has broken every promise it made to end the Cold War. First and foremost, there was to be no attempt to extend NATO eastward into Russia's traditional sphere of influence. But the real goal of our Imperialists, so it seems, was always to do just the opposite.

Gorbachev should have asked the American Indians about all the treaties broken by the Great White Father in Washington before he signed on the dotted line. But all that is water under the bridge. It is up to Putin and his Lieutenants now to save the day for Russia. By blatantly spilling Russian blood (yes Russian citizens were slain) in the sneak attack on South Ossetia, the White House and its spastic puppet in Georgia have crossed the already thin line of diplomatic protocol into outright militarism.

Russia certainly knows this and realizes they are going to have to respond in kind from here on out. Meanwhile, I don't think our spaced-out warmongers in Washington and its many satellites realize that Russia is not Iraq; Russia is not Iran; Russia is simply lethal bad news when you poke her.

As I have said before, with the arrogant, already morally bankrupt Neocons still commandeering the American Plutocracy with all the folly and hubris of, say, Flaminus trying to take out Hannibal, there will very likely be more bloodshed. How much is the question.

Vietnam POW won't vote for McCain

THIS is a must read....especially if you are thinking of supporting John McCain.

John McCain is The Lying Elitist....McSame as Bush

McCain was also born with a silver spoon in his mouth...how else did he obtain a "coveted" aircraft carrier flight assignment when he graduated from Annapolis 894 out of 899?

Do you know any pilot in the Navy that got to stay in AFTER wrecking FIVE jet planes? The first four "wrecks" had nothing to do with combat....How does John McCain rate a 100 percent disability pension from the Navy? He doesn't meet the criteria?

And worst of all...McCain consistently votes against legislation that attempts to provide military disabled veterans the medical care they are entitled to.

The truth about South Ossetia War, Georgia attack

Listen carefully to what this Russian citizen, who has been living in America for the last ten years, is telling you, the American people, about what really happened in Georgia and South Ossetia. He has seen the American media reports, but he just happens to be in Russia now, and watched the Georgian attack unfold over there, so he is able to say that much of the American media, especially CNN, is lying to you about Russia.

Time for a Look at the Caucasus: PEPE ESCOBAR ON WHO'S TO BLAME FOR RUSSIAN-GEORGIAN CONFLICT?

Well much of the corporate media is trying to frame what is happening in the Caucasus, particularly Georgia, in terms of the worn-out old stereotypes of the Cold War: Russia, the ex-Red Menace, is at it again, gobbling up its democratic neighbors, and of course, we MUST stop them.

That, however, is a fiction. The exact opposite has been happening. Russia, after all but collapsing in the 1990s, has been watching its borders being slowly encircled, borders which are now even on the verge of having American "anti-missile" missile systems installed along them, a truly existential threat to Russia's well-being, despite the Whtie House canard that the missiles are to protect Europe from Iran. (What an hysterical laugh that is! Iran is about as interested in attacking Europe as Cuba is in invading America).

How many of you have even learned that Georgian troops, fresh from training with over a thousand American troops, suddenly invaded South Ossetia, on the Southern Russian border, in the middle of the night on the first day of the Olympics, only a few hours after agreeing to a cease-fire with South Ossetia, which has had ongoing low-level clashes with Georgia for years? How many of you know that Georgian troops shot 10 or more mandated Russian Peacekeepers and simultaneously attacked the civilian population of the capital of South Ossetia, commencing a wholesale slaughter? Many of the 1500 or more subsequent dead were Russian citizens or had Russian passports. Russia was as incensed as we would be if the Mexican Army suddenly attacked a scores of Americans south of the border. Within hours, Russian forces were headed south to drive out the Georgian invaders. The rest is still playing out now.

But don't take my word for it. Here is the analysis of Pepe Escobar, one of the leading journalists in the world:

John McCain IS an anti-abortion Zealot

IF you have any doubts about this check it out here.

George Washington is relevant today

I had the opportunity to spend a few days with a conservative Republican who occupied a tent next to me at Floydfest. We were in agreement on many things, especially civil rights and liberties. This young man voted for George Bush in 2000 and 2004. This young man feels betrayed by the Republican party and will NOT be voting Republican this year. He is currently considering voting for a libertarian or democratic candidate for president. This young man is a social studies teacher who has avidly studied George Washington. He gave me an education on the relevance of George Washington's Farewell Address to crucial issues facing us today. Here are a few choice tidbits....

George Washington on Foreign Policy

Observe good faith and justice towards all nations; cultivate peace and harmony with all. Religion and morality enjoin this conduct; and can it be, that good policy does not equally enjoin it 7 It will be worthy of a free, enlightened, and at no distant period, a great nation, to give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a people always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence. Who can doubt that, in the course of time and things, the fruits of such a plan would richly repay any temporary advantages which might be lost by a steady adherence to it ? Can it be that Providence has not connected the permanent felicity of a nation with its virtue? The experiment, at least, is recommended by every sentiment which ennobles human nature. Alas! is it rendered impossible by its vices?

In the execution of such a plan, nothing is more essential than that permanent, inveterate antipathies against particular nations, and passionate attachments for others, should be excluded; and that, in place of them, just and amicable feelings towards all should be cultivated. The nation which indulges towards another a habitual hatred or a habitual fondness is in some degree a slave. It is a slave to its animosity or to its affection, either of which is sufficient to lead it astray from its duty and its interest. Antipathy in one nation against another disposes each more readily to offer insult and injury, to lay hold of slight causes of umbrage, and to be haughty and intractable, when accidental or trifling occasions of dispute occur. Hence, frequent collisions, obstinate, envenomed, and bloody contests. The nation, prompted by ill-will and resentment, sometimes impels to war the government, contrary to the best calculations of policy. The government sometimes participates in the national propensity, and adopts through passion what reason would reject; at other times it makes the animosity of the nation subservient to projects of hostility instigated by pride, ambition, and other sinister and pernicious motives. The peace often, sometimes perhaps the liberty, of nations, has been the victim.

So likewise, a passionate attachment of one nation for another produces a variety of evils. Sympathy for the favorite nation, facilitating the illusion of an imaginary common interest in cases where no real common interest exists, and infusing into one the enmities of the other, betrays the former into a participation in the quarrels and wars of the latter without adequate inducement or justification. It leads also to concessions to the favorite nation of privileges denied to others which is apt doubly to injure the nation making the concessions; by unnecessarily parting with what ought to have been retained, and by exciting jealousy, ill-will, and a disposition to retaliate, in the parties from whom equal privileges are withheld. And it gives to ambitious, corrupted, or deluded citizens (who devote themselves to the favorite nation), facility to betray or sacrifice the interests of their own country, without odium, sometimes even with popularity; gilding, with the appearances of a virtuous sense of obligation, a commendable deference for public opinion, or a laudable zeal for public good, the base or foolish compliances of ambition, corruption, or infatuation.

As avenues to foreign influence in innumerable ways, such attachments are particularly alarming to the truly enlightened and independent patriot. How many opportunities do they afford to tamper with domestic factions, to practice the arts of seduction, to mislead public opinion, to influence or awe the public councils 7 Such an attachment of a small or weak towards a great and powerful nation dooms the former to be the satellite of the latter.

Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence (I conjure you to believe me, fellow-citizens) the jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake, since history and experience prove that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of republican government. But that jealousy to be useful must be impartial; else it becomes the instrument of the very influence to be avoided, instead of a defense against it. Excessive partiality for one foreign nation and excessive dislike of another cause those whom they actuate to see danger only on one side, and serve to veil and even second the arts of influence on the other. Real patriots who may resist the intrigues of the favorite are liable to become suspected and odious, while its tools and dupes usurp the applause and confidence of the people, to surrender their interests.

The great rule of conduct for us in regard to foreign nations is in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible. So far as we have already formed engagements, let them be fulfilled with perfect good faith. Here let us stop. Europe has a set of primary interests which to us have none; or a very remote relation. Hence she must be engaged in frequent controversies, the causes of which are essentially foreign to our concerns. Hence, therefore, it must be unwise in us to implicate ourselves by artificial ties in the ordinary vicissitudes of her politics, or the ordinary combinations and collisions of her friendships or enmities.

Our detached and distant situation invites and enables us to pursue a different course. If we remain one people under an efficient government. the period is not far off when we may defy material injury from external annoyance; when we may take such an attitude as will cause the neutrality we may at any time resolve upon to be scrupulously respected; when belligerent nations, under the impossibility of making acquisitions upon us, will not lightly hazard the giving us provocation; when we may choose peace or war, as our interest, guided by justice, shall counsel.

Why forego the advantages of so peculiar a situation? Why quit our own to stand upon foreign ground? Why, by interweaving our destiny with that of any part of Europe, entangle our peace and prosperity in the toils of European ambition, rivalship, interest, humor or caprice?

It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world; so far, I mean, as we are now at liberty to do it; for let me not be understood as capable of patronizing infidelity to existing engagements. I hold the maxim no less applicable to public than to private affairs, that honesty is always the best policy. I repeat it, therefore, let those engagements be observed in their genuine sense. But, in my opinion, it is unnecessary and would be unwise to extend them.

Taking care always to keep ourselves by suitable establishments on a respectable defensive posture, we may safely trust to temporary alliances for extraordinary emergencies.

Harmony, liberal intercourse with all nations, are recommended by policy, humanity, and interest. But even our commercial policy should hold an equal and impartial hand; neither seeking nor granting exclusive favors or preferences; consulting the natural course of things; diffusing and diversifying by gentle means the streams of commerce, but forcing nothing; establishing (with powers so disposed, in order to give trade a stable course, to define the rights of our merchants, and to enable the government to support them) conventional rules of intercourse, the best that present circumstances and mutual opinion will permit, but temporary, and liable to be from time to time abandoned or varied, as experience and circumstances shall dictate; constantly keeping in view that it is folly in one nation to look for disinterested favors from another; that it must pay with a portion of its independence for whatever it may accept under that character; that, by such acceptance, it may place itself in the condition of having given equivalents for nominal favors, and yet of being reproached with ingratitude for not giving more. There can be no greater error than to expect or calculate upon real favors from nation to nation. It is an illusion, which experience must cure, which a just pride ought to discard.

In offering to you, my countrymen, these counsels of an old and affectionate friend, I dare not hope they will make the strong and lasting impression I could wish; that they will control the usual current of the passions, or prevent our nation from running the course which has hitherto marked the destiny of nations. But, if I may even flatter myself that they may be productive of some partial benefit, some occasional good; that they may now and then recur to moderate the fury of party spirit, to warn against the mischiefs of foreign intrigue, to guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism; this hope will be a full recompense for the solicitude for your welfare, by which they have been dictated.

How far in the discharge of my official duties I have been guided by the principles which have been delineated, the public records and other evidences of my conduct must witness to you and to the world. To myself, the assurance of my own conscience is, that I have at least believed myself to be guided by them.

In relation to the still subsisting war in Europe, my proclamation of the twenty-second of April, I793, is the index of my plan. Sanctioned by your approving voice, and by that of your representatives in both houses of Congress, the spirit of that measure has continually governed me, uninfluenced by any attempts to deter or divert me from it.

After deliberate examination, with the aid of the best lights I could obtain, I was well satisfied that our country, under all the circumstances of the case, had a right to take, and was bound in duty and interest to take, a neutral position. Having taken it, I determined, as far as should depend upon me, to maintain it, with moderation, perseverance, and firmness.

The considerations which respect the right to hold this con duct, it is not necessary on this occasion to detail. I will only observe that, according to my understanding of the matter, that right, so far from being denied by any of the belligerent powers, has been virtually admitted by all.

The duty of holding a neutral conduct may be inferred, without anything more, from the obligation which justice and humanity impose on every nation, in cases in which it is free to act, to maintain inviolate the relations of peace and amity towards other nations.

So why can't we have a real debate on our middle east policy especially how we hurt ourselves with excessive "favoritism" of Israel at the expense of Palestine? The Israel lobby appears to be running both the debate within our country as well as our foreign policy in this region. This situation is hurting the people of the US, the people of Israel, and the people of Palestine. So who is really benefiting from this situation? The folks invested in making profits off of war and chaos?

Washington's Thoughts on Political Parties....

I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the State, with particular reference to the founding of them on geographical discriminations. Let me now take a more comprehensive view, and warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the spirit of party generally.

This spirit, unfortunately, is inseparable from our nature, having its root in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less stifled, controlled, or repressed; but, in those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy.

The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty.

Without looking forward to an extremity of this kind (which nevertheless ought not to be entirely out of sight), the common and continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it the interest and duty of a wise people to discourage and restrain it.

It serves always to distract the public councils and enfeeble the public administration. It agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption, which finds a facilitated access to the government itself through the channels of party passions. Thus the policy and the will of one country are subjected to the policy and will of another.

There is an opinion that parties in free countries are useful checks upon the administration of the government and serve to keep alive the spirit of liberty. This within certain limits is probably true; and in governments of a monarchical cast, patriotism may look with indulgence, if not with favor, upon the spirit of party. But in those of the popular character, in governments purely elective, it is a spirit not to be encouraged. From their natural tendency, it is certain there will always be enough of that spirit for every salutary purpose. And there being constant danger of excess, the effort ought to be by force of public opinion, to mitigate and assuage it. A fire not to be quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into a flame, lest, instead of warming, it should consume.

We need more independents and third party candidates running for office.

It will be interesting to compare George "Worse" Bush's farewell address to George Washington's address.

Check out George Washington's Farewell Address at the Yale Law School's Avalon Project.

McCains has a gimmick "not" a solution

The Commander in Chief Test

I didn't think it was possible that the Republicans would choose a candidate who makes George Bush look intelligent and who is willing to campaign in the dirty Rove style--the do anything approach to obtain the Presidency.

It's amazing that the Lamestream Corporate Press ignores McCain's amazingly numerous stupid statements and his record of corruption and incompetence. (i.e. the Keating Five and crashing 4 airplanes during his military career....his last crash landed him in the Hanoi Hilton.)

Thank heavens for YOU Tube so that McCain's numerous lies and flip flops are documented.

The BIG question is....why isn't the news media reporting on the issues of importance and the Candidates positions on these issues to the American people? Instead this presidential election is being covered like it's just one big game show and the "weirdest, wildest, most unbalanced" contestant gets handled with kid gloves for ratings and profits.

The Rich are Cheating....

The Rich have been cheating for a long time and the Bush Administration ordered the IRS to concentrate on middle and lower class American citizens and leave the wealthy alone... George Bush looks after his base of rich elitists....

Now lots of wealthy tax dodgers are suddenly being exposed due to one lone whistle blower.

Mock Trial of Karl Rove in Virginia Beach: Videos

It was a good day in Virginia Beach on Friday, July 18, when local activists confronted Karl Rove at a Thelma Drake fundraiser, attracting considerable media attention. Here are two activist videos of the event:

Does McCain Know Anything about Anything

I'm so glad he isn't our Senator....this man is worried about expressing an opinion about healthcare? No wonder he is a whiner; it's a sorry attempt to keep folks from asking him legitimate questions. Maybe someone should let McCain know that "we" are supposed to be asking lots of questions since he decided to run for President.

This is just so pathetic...

I'm thrilled he stands almost no chance at all of being NOT our next President.

buzz...buzz

Czechoslovakia, McCain, and Bush

If Presidents were chosen on who is the "oldest" John McCain would be our next president. Unfortunately for John McCain a President needs to be reality based.

John McCain keeps forgetting that Czechoslovakia is not a country. John McCain maybe planning to visit Narnia in the near future. In case you think this is being picky....remember President George W. Bush said this was an issue when McCain made this same mistake in 2000. Eight years later McCain continues to believe that Czechoslovakia exists.

According to Steve Clements:

Second, before Republicans condemn Dems for being picky on this, let's not forget that in the 2000 campaign, when McCain also screwed up Czechoslovakia, it was none other than George W. Bush who said it deserved to be a campaign issue: "A guy gets up and quizzes me [on world leaders] ... but John McCain says something about the 'ambassador to Czechoslovakia.' Well, I know there is no Czechoslovakia [there's a Czech Republic and a Slovakia], but yet it didn't make the nightly national news." Huffington Post

' Looks like John McCain is like an old dog who can't learn new tricks....these old dogs just "stay the course."

McCain Needs To Be Vetted

John McCain is using his wife's jet airplane....yet his wife Cindy refused to release her tax returns. She made millions off of "insider short-sale profits involving Swiss re-insurance put option stock orders placed prior to the September 11 attacks-profits of death which have remained untaxed by the U.S. government and raise questions as to her 9/11 tip-off."

This alone is disturbing....heap onto this possible off shore accounts (to avoid taxes?) and allegations of "war profiteering" and it starts to make sense why Cindy McCain REFUSES to release her tax returns. Tax returns that contain valid information for anyone "considering" voting for John McCain for president....even though they maybe few and far between hopefully these folks care enough about their vote that they will demand to see these tax returns so they will have the info they need to vote intelligently.

buzz...buzz....

"Thinskinned" McCain needs to know...

when you run for President you are going to be asked questions. Unfortunately, McCain screams "foul" when legitimate questions are asked or legitimate points raised. McCain is using his military service to "say" this is a reason he should be President.

Now George McGovern has joined the fray. We both agree with Wesley Clark. Flying combat missions, being a courageous war hero, doing your duty as a military person, and/or being a POW does NOT utilize the skills and knowledge that a President needs. McGovern flew numerous bombing missions in Europe and he did not "rely on this or promote this" in his run for the presidency. (I would also add that graduating 894 out of a class of 899 at Annapolis is just another reason folks should question you ALOT about your presidential qualifications.)

Note: No one is "disparaging" McCain's military service. We just want him to tell us "how" this military service qualifies him to become the next President of the USA...a question that McCain has NOT answered. Instead his people (who McCain obviously can NOT control IF he is NOT behind the swiftboat attacks) will go on point to attack the questioner....This is entitlement politics at its worse.

If McCain wanted to be President so bad maybe he should know what skills a U.S. President needs BEFORE he decided to run. He should at least realize that when someone runs for office folks SHOULD be asking questions.

For McCain to say that ALL the vets organizations are for him, then to say that is NOT true (later in the same town hall meeting) and then declare that he will no longer tolerate questions about vets? This surely does not sound like anyone that I know with the skills necessary to be President.

Oh yeah and then there was that McLAME (h/t to the Daily Show) "joke" that is NOT a joke--about U.S. cigarette exports being a way to "kill" Iranians. It sounds like McCain has never met an Iranian he can treat like a human being. His foreign policy seems to be America is always right, always good and all the other countries should bow down before us...or we will kill you.

McCain himself has stated that the economy is not his strong suit (no joke!), denied he made the statement and then said it was "taken out of context" (it wasn't). This man is lying and/or flip flopping on the issues often, maybe daily.

How can anyone take this man's run for the White House seriously? Why does the media treat this candidate with kid gloves? Are they scared he will hit them if they ask him the questions that need to be asked?

Buzz....Buzz....

John McCain LIES to Vet in his Town Hall Meeting

According to Think Progress:

McCain has made the exact same claim before — and it is just a false today as it was then. As ThinkProgress documented, McCain’s so-called “perfect” record has been roundly criticized by prominent veterans groups: He received a grade of D from the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America and a 20 percent vote rating from the Disabled Veterans of America; Vietnam Veterans of America noted McCain had “voted against us” in 15 “key votes.”

As for the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars — with whom McCain claims to have a “perfect voting record” — both groups vigorously supported Sen. Jim Webb’s (D-VA) GI Bill that McCain tirelessly opposed.

Later in the town hall, McCain admitted he does “not have a perfect voting record,” but then declared that questions about veterans issues were off limits: “I will be glad to debate a lot of things, but not that one,” McCain said.

So McCain is following Bush's example to Lie instead of tell the truth. Appears that McCain will continue to "flip flop" and lie and do whatever he thinks he has to to become President and continue the Bush and neocon legacy.

He already thinks he is a "king." It seems that McCain thinks only he an mention military matters and no one should question him on this. This "status quo" mindset has got to go!!

Thank heavens most of the folks in the army and air force (that I've spoken to) think McCain is a liar and has failed to support military people and their families.

BUSH LIES For Big Oil Again and Again!!!

George Bush said that when the Iraqi's asked us to leave he would then bring the troops home. Is anyone surprised that George Bush lied? The Iraqi's want the US occupation troops to leave asap....at the very least they want a withdrawal timetable they can count on.

The majority of Americans and the majority of Iraqi's have said again and again that US troops should stop the occupation and return home.

Is anyone surprised that George Bush has used our State Dept to negotiate oil deals with Iraq?
George Bush LIES again and again...he said this war had nothing to do with Oil...PSYCH!

Once again, WE end up footing the bill an BIG OIL rakes in the profits. That's what we get for putting two oil men in our White House. Now they are asking for McCain to be elected to continue the Big Oil legacy. The end of this horrible Big Oil reign will soon be over.

Buxx...Buzz

Ball Girls, Big Lies and Bombing Iran

I originally posted this at OpEdNews on June 28, 2008 and here it is now for Mosquito Blog viewers:

Ball Girls, Big Lies and Bombing Iran

The Distortion of Reality

Take a look at this video for a minute: click here. Pretty amazing, pretty fantastic, right? When I first saw it I remarked to myself that that has got to be the most amazing catch I've seen since Willie Mays' famous catch in 1954. And then later in the day, very curious about the amazingly talented ball girl, I ran across Snopes.com's exposure of the whole video sequence as an extremely clever, viral Gatorade commercial. The ball girl had been flung into the air by stunt men above who hoisted her up with cables, and digitized editing and speech had done the rest, even adding the ball, to create an apparently seamless, very real sports event. Ball girl, I am pained to say, is a phony. To read how the producers did it, click here. And what is the moral here? We can no longer believe our own eyes in the media.

Now what has this got to do with Iran exactly? Actually, it has something to do with the entire fabric of modern civilization, with the media, with politics, with our perception of reality, for this little video is so convincingly real to the average eye, so minutely nuanced in every little detail that it is stark proof-positive that technology has now ushered in limitless horizons for propaganda, falsehood and deception. Let us think back to Colin Powell in February 2003 giving his infamous Power Point presentation that was essentially setting up Iraq for the kill. At one point he had to revert to some 3-D animations to show those supposed mobile biological/chemical warfare labs in the desert. That software technology in and off itself wowed millions, but some of us knew then and there, because Powell was really resorting to fancy cartoons, that something was definitely not right.

Indeed, nothing was right, as it turned out. But if they had gone to the extent taken in making the Ball Girl video, with actual video footage, they would have possibly fooled everybody at that point in time. Maybe they had that capacity but thought better of it, because the White House, State Department and Pentagon still would not have found their fantasy mobile labs in the desert, and this would have exposed the fact that they had utilized cutting edge video technology to create great new levels of deceit.

But in light of the proven capabilities of media technology to now manipulate or fabricate reality, we have to start asking ourselves, what else might we have been shown in the media in the last few years that just isn't real, that is pure lies, pure propaganda, pure wizardry? What readily comes to mind is the veracity of the infamous Osama bin Laden "Confession Tape" in late 2001, in which a healthy, suddenly plump and rounder-faced bin Laden is sandwiched, chronologically, between an earlier and then later al Qaeda video showing an increasingly gaunt and sickly bin Laden.

In fact, some of us have intuited that bin Laden likely died in December of 2001, which would mean that somebody has been pulling the Ball Girl routine on the world for some seven years now, with artistic renditions of bin Laden in audio and video format. This is why I am rather convinced that bin Laden will never be captured and never be prosecuted, despite the melodramatic pledges of both Senators McCain and Obama to do so. Good luck Senators! Meanwhile, both Pro-Taliban tribal warlord Baitullah Mehsud recently and the late Benazir Bhutto, in an interview before she died, have stated that bin Laden is dead. But this kind of fly in the ointment news never reaches the mainstream media, with its ever-fleeting relationship with truth.

Regurgitating Hitler

The media's pathetic acquiescence to White House/Pentagon propaganda in the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq was part and parcel of the grand Neocon strategy to capture the media and play it like a talking puppet. The Neocon strategy in turn is lifted right out of the pages of Mein Kampf, and let us never forget that. Hitler's autobiographical manifesto is actually one of the first extensive works on mass psychology and how to manipulate the masses. His propaganda principles are now time-tested and proven to work, and work well, so long as you are dealing, of course, with ignorant and authority-craving people, eager to believe whatever their rulers throw at them. That they were so effective in 2002 and 2003 during the propaganda onslaught against Saddam Hussein doesn't speak well of the sophistication of the American people or of much of the planet for that matter, for Bush had his cheerleaders in many, many countries brainwashing their citizens, particularly those that became the Coalition of the Willing.

Let us recall Hitler's core tenets, repetitiveness and simplicity, the Big Lie, and a unified organization, with the following quotes, first with:

"But the most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly and with unflagging attention. It must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over. Here, as so often in this world, persistence is the first and most important requirement for success." -Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf (Ralph Manheim translation, p.184)

Then there is what can only be described as the Nazis' grandest propaganda principle:

"All this was inspired by the principle - which is quite true in itself - that in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie, since they themselves often tell small lies in little matters but would be ashamed to resort to large-scale falsehoods. It would never come into their heads to fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously. Even though the facts which prove this to be so may be brought clearly to their minds, they will still doubt and waver and will continue to think that there may be some other explanation."
-Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf (James Murphy translation, p. 134)

Finally, Hitler points out the need to have a focused, overbearing and passionate organization:

"Propaganda tries to force its doctrine on the whole people.....Propaganda works on the general public from the standpoint of an idea and makes them ripe for the victory of this idea, while the organization achieves victory by the persistent, organic, and militant union of those supporters who seem willing and able to carry on the fight for victory."
-Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf (Ralph Manheim translation, p. 582)

Thus, all of the above principles must be implemented to be truly effective, and done so by a strong propaganda apparatus, dedicated and single minded, that brooks no internal dissent, and ultimately no external dissent. When you stop to analyze the last seven years of the Bush Administration in general, and the strategy and tactics employed to drag America into war against Iraq in particular, then you will see all these principles at work.

We indeed saw the effort to purge the government of all dissent, as whistle-blowers and contrarians were forced out on the street or resigned in disgust, while true believers were hired by the droves to fill the ranks of the various departments of the Executive Branch. We saw the corollary attempt to stack all the Federal courts with the same true believers. And we saw the Republican Party become ascendant, for a time at least, in the Legislative Branch, although even when later back in minority status, the Neocon Republicans still seem to frame the debate and control the issues.

Furthermore, the effort to create a united front marching for the victory of the "Idea", the comic-book "War on Terror", extended well into the ever-consolidating and petrified-of-being-lambasted-as-unpatriotic, corporate media. And once Iraq was actually invaded, we then saw the spectacle of the embedded reporter who seemed to do everything except take a gun and shoot some "Hajis" to fit in with the troops, and who waited around expectantly, much as a dog waits for crumbs to be thrown at it, for the next press conference by some puerile officer who would present the latest Pentagon adjustment of reality.

We also saw two Big Lies arise, the great WMD myth, followed up by the great Saddam-al Qaeda-link myth. These were hammered into our heads daily, relentlessly, with evidence even being fabricated, during and after the buildup to war, fulfilling the third essential component to propagandizing the masses, repetitiveness.

Applying the Principles to Iran

Thus first we saw the perfect propaganda storm engineered to invade and occupy Iraq, not to mention Afghanistan, and now we are witnessing the same phenomenon being put into play again against Iran. There is absolutely no doubt that the Neocon movement wants to attack and emasculate Iran, and so, as all inherent Fascists would do by instinct, they have crafted three key Big Lies about the Republic of Iran: 1) that Iran is a terrorist state threatening the Middle East and actually the entire world. 2) that the Iranian government is training and supplying various Iraqi elements to kill Americans inside Iraq as well as destabilize the Iraqi government, and 3) that Iran is Hell-bent to create weapons-grade uranium and nuclear weaponry.

To support the first allegation, the Bush Administration depends to a great extent on the support Iran gives to Hamas and Hezbollah, whom the State Department ritually declares terrorist organizations annually, and thus to paint Iran as guilty of terrorism by association. Yet the fundamental reality that even Israel tacitly admits to is that both Hamas and Hezbollah are popular resistance movements, not al Qaeda-like terrorist organizations, that are borne from the Israeli occupations, past or present, of Palestine and Lebanon respectively. Israel, to underscore this point, has just negotiated a ceasefire, however unstable, with Hamas, recognizing that Fatah leader, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, is basically a politician without a constituency, utterly weak and compromised, propped up only by Israeli and American support. It is Hamas that represents the majority of the Palestinian people.

Then there have been vague and shadowy reports and rumors surfacing in the media that Iran is in league with al Qaeda, not only historically absurd, but again without confirmable substance. But this serves the purpose of reinforcing the image of Iran as a terrorist state, guilt by insinuation.

Regarding the second Big Lie, that Iran is supplying lethal explosive devices to the Iraqi resistance, this has been debunked rather regularly by various independent journalists, who also point out that what weapons do reach Iraq from Iran are largely bought from the Black Market and then smuggled in. Meanwhile, Iraqis are fully capable of manufacturing their own IEDs and EFPs. Gareth Porter has also just written a devastating piece in Alexander Cockburn's Counterpunch Newsletter entitled "The Story of Gen. Petraeus' Deception and How It Easily Duped the Press and Congress", which has not been released to the public yet, so I will not try to quote from it, but the crux of it is that General Petraeus, who is an embarrassment to the memory of men like Eisenhower and MacArthur, has been colluding with Dick Cheney in a full scale propaganda campaign against Iran with no real substance, one that has been consistently exposed and debunked by Iraqi officials, including Kurdish Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, as well as by foreign reporters. Even the American military has had to renege on some of its past accusations against Iran publicly, they were so patently untrue.

Petraeus has taken his own Faustian plunge into the world of lies, fabrications and deceit, and how the Devil gets his due from him will remain to be seen.

If you are frantic to read Porter's article, by the way, go to http://www.counterpunch.org/ The first paragraph of the home page tells you how to subscribe to the newsletter. The newsletter you want is Volume 15, Number 11.

Regarding the third Big Lie, that Iran is developing weapons-grade uranium for a secret nuclear weapons program, Kaveh L Afrasiabi, PhD, has written a hard-hitting, well-researched article for Asia Times eviscerating this canard. It is entitled "The myth of 'weapons-grade' enrichment".

First he points out the almost abject servility of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon toward one of the worst longtime offenders of various United Nations statutes and resolutions over the decades, Israel, one of those statutes being that member nations do not threaten each other. Ban is very quick to criticize Iranian President Ahmadinejad's rhetoric against Israel, but is totally silent while Israel has repeatedly, over the past few years, threatened to bomb Iran, not in self-defense from any attack, but as a preemptive strike against some hypothetical future threat.

This is uttered while the head of the IAEA, Mohammad ElBaradei, has stated, fatalistically, that an Israeli attack on the Middle East will provoke a regional fireball. Yet Ban is doing nothing to defuse tensions, and is actually tacitly taking sides in the confrontation, another blow to the credibility of the United Nations.

Worse still, Kaveh points out, is the American media's actively taking sides in the dispute by faithfully regurgitating all of the Neocon propaganda, from Bush to Cheney to Bolton to McCain to Olmert, ad infinitum, about Iran's phantom Nuke program. I quote:

Instead, the US media in particular have allowed themselves to become an unwitting accomplice of Israel's anti-Iran propaganda machine, dutifully recycling the line that Iran is actively pursuing nuclear weapons, has amassed "weapons-grade" enriched uranium, and is thus on the verge of arriving at "the point of no return" with respect to bomb-making.

In a word, the race to dupe public opinion about a "clear and present danger" posed by Iran's nuclear program, to justify Israel's threatened attack (with the US's tacit approval) is in full gear and the US media are by and large about to receive another "F" card, just as they did with the US's 2003 invasion of Iraq, when the "pluralistic" media became a shell of itself by blindly echoing the White House's spin about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. (Asia Times source)

Kaveh excoriates the corporate media, including the New York Times, Boston Globe, Wall Street Journal and the other usual propaganda channels for what is a cartoonish distortion of facts about Iran's legal nuclear energy program. To wit:

With leading nuclear experts, media pundits and members of the US Congress recycling it, this serious distortion has now acquired the status of a truism about Iran, and a dangerous one that lends itself to an unprovoked attack on Iran by Israel and or the US.

But, no matter what the influential position of their signatories, the narratives in the US media that persist in their claim that Iran has manufactured "weapons-grade" enriched uranium simply cannot stand the weight of scrutiny and are refuted by the IAEA's findings to the contrary. These narratives routinely refer to the IAEA's reports on Iran, yet turn a blind eye to those reports' explicit references to Iran's "low-enriched uranium" (up to 4%). (ibid.)

Meanwhile, Republican presidential nominee John McCain, speaks about the non-existent Iranian nuclear weapons program as if it already in place and being poised for launch against Israel, against Europe and against us, while, simultaneously, every little tidbit about any IAEA criticism against Iran is immediately blown out of proportion by disingenuous journalists like the smug Michael Gordon:

Thus, for instance, in a front-page article in the New York Times, [3] dated June 20, Michael Gordon and Eric Schmitt break the sensational news about Israel's extensive maneuvers in preparation for an attack on Iran, indirectly rationalizing Israel's belligerency by omitting any mention of the IAEA's latest report confirming the absence of any evidence of military nuclear diversion and, instead, confining themselves to the following comment: "In late May, the IAEA reported that Iran's suspected work on nuclear matters was a 'matter of serious concern' and that the Iranians owed the agency 'substantial explanation'."

What ought to have been added was that the same IAEA report states unequivocally that it had received "no credible information" regarding the alleged "weaponization studies", nor has the agency detected any nuclear activity connected to those alleged studies. Besides, the same IAEA report more than a dozen times stresses the evidence of peacefulness of Iran's nuclear program. (ibid.)

So Hell-bent are the Bush Administration, AIPAC, the Israeli government, and certain blood-sport Europeans to attack Iran that all of Hitler's tenets of successful propaganda have already come into heavy and ever increasing play: the full-court press against the public and media and the constant, daily repetitions of the "mushroom cloud" fear factor, "killing Americans" and "evil terrorist state" from multiple directions. Glaring contradictions to their hype, such as the recent NIE report, as well as regular IAEA reports, are simply ignored. For example:

Thus, Mike McConnell, the US national intelligence director, told the right-wing Fox TV last Sunday that Iran was a year or two from developing its first nuclear bombs. McConnell's alarmist estimate on Iran is clearly at odds with the US's National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on Iran, released late last year, that confirmed that Iran's nuclear program was, and had been since 2003, peaceful.

McConnell's own deputy, Donald M Kerr, has repeatedly defended the NIE report before the US Congress, stating that the US intelligence community does not plan to "revise" it. (ibid.)

If Iran was actually manufacturing weapons-grade uranium, Kaveh points out, the IAEA would certainly know it:

.....with the IAEA's robust inspection of Iran's enrichment facilities, any such diversion to "weapons-grade" enrichment would be instantly detected, simply because significant modifications, re-assembling and re-configuration of the cascades of centrifuges would be necessary and that could not possibly evade the IAEA's watchful eyes.

Yet, all of this is ignored, with the tacit suggestion that Iran's program is "unsupervised" when, in fact, it is one of the most exhaustively inspected and supervised nuclear programs in the world, in light of some 3,500 hours of inspection of its facilities since 2003. (ibid.)

Neocon Failure

Despite employing the Hitler paradigm again against Iran, the Neocon movement has been unable to maximize the tenet regarding a unified organization forcing its doctrine upon the public. The recent NIE report is a case in point. The Bush Administration is no longer able to repress dissent within the federal government and military. Too many people have woken up and are moving against the Neocons, just as within Nazi Germany during WWII, at a certain point, key generals and officers began plotting Hitler's overthrow. The only way the Neocons can whip everyone back into lockstep, and that may not work anyhow, is if another "9/11" occurs to provide the emotional drive to rally everyone around "the Fuhrer" once again.

And while the Neocons may control the corporate media, they are getting racked through the coals endlessly on the Internet. Their lies are being lacerated daily on various sites.

On the world stage, many governments, no longer enthralled with the "War on Terror", are disputing the Neocon agenda, in particular Russia, which has stated that it has asked the United States and Israel for any real proof of an Iranian nuclear weapons program and received none (see my diary entry, "Russia Calls Israel's and the White House's Bluff" (click here)) How damning a proof is that that the whole game is a charade?

What peace and truth-loving people have to do now is to continue to neutralize the three tenets of Hitler, by debunking the Big Lies, confronting the daily repetition of these lies with equal intensity, and resisting all attempts to beat and brow-beat, threaten and intimidate everyone into conformity, conformity to a sick death cult. For us to fail now invites further disaster. And, I might add, watch out for ball girls.

PSA--Speak Up to make the credit card corps play fair

You can air that gripe about the unexpected interest-rate increase on your credit card. The Federal Reserve is now accepting consumer comments on proposed rule changes to "begin" making credit card companies treat their customers more fairly....like charge the interest price promised and not hike the rate up on goods purchased under a lower rate......

Go Here for instructions on how to have your concerns heard.

Ain't Michelle Obama a Woman Too?

Remember Sojourner Truth's famous quote--Ain't I a Woman?

Where is the outrage?

Is it only received for "elite white women running for President?"

Believe it or not Hillary is NOT the only woman affected by sexism. ALL women are affected by it. That's where our focus should be--protecting ALL women from sexism not just a chosen few.

Misogyny is misogyny is misogyny.
Sexism is sexism is sexism.

Think about it all of us should be outraged whenever the media uses it's power to spread sexism, racism, or any other "ism."

I Agree with this Rush Limbaugh Statement

Limbaugh proudly says, “I consider myself a defender of corporate America.” (Source)

This is the first truthful thing Rush Limbaugh statement I have heard.

Our FISA Outrage Made Them Blink!!

Keep up the pressure and let all of the Congressional Scoundrels know that we understand they are trying to sell us a pig with lipstick and we are having NONE of it. IF we keep them blinking maybe they'll honor our July 4th celebration of Freedom by Killing this Outrageous FISA Bill and protecting our Freedom.

Bush/Cheney's Homeland Security Is Out Of Control

Check This Out

Why does our government have such a bad record of backing bad apples and opposing good folks???

REAL NEWS--Major News you WON'T See On TV

REAL NEWS--Something you WON'T See On TV

Check it out.....

Our Secretary of Defense--Robert Gates--believes that if we invade Iran our grandchildren will be fighting Islamists.....