Tuesday, January 26, 2010

The real wmd threat; Gov't massively unpopular; Social Security on the block; Robots doing our killing


Al-Qaeda seeks WMD, US unprepared: reports by Breitbart

"His report said Al-Qaeda's efforts to develop biological and nuclear weapons were not "empty rhetoric" and that the group's leaders appeared to have ruled out smaller-scale attacks with simpler devices.

"If Osama bin Laden and his lieutenants had been interested in employing crude chemical, biological and radiological materials in small-scale attacks, there is little doubt they could have done so by now," he wrote.

... in 2003 had called off plans for a chemical attack on New York's subways "for something better," a cryptic remark that remains a mystery. "


Poll: American public fed up with Washington. 70% say government isn't working well; Obama approval back at 50% By Mark Murray

"Only 28 percent believe the federal government is “working well” or even works “okay,” versus seven in 10 who think it’s “unhealthy,” “stagnant” or needs large reforms. ... What’s more, a whopping 93 percent believe there’s too much partisan infighting ... And the percentage who believe the country is headed in the wrong direction now stands at 58 percent ... 48 percent blame Republicans in Congress and 41 percent blame congressional Democrats. "



Obama Puts Social Security on the Chopping Block By James Ridgeway

"Under the agreement, President Obama would issue an executive order to create an 18-member panel that would be granted broad authority to propose changes in the tax code and in the massive federal entitlement programs — including Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security — that threaten to drive the nation’s debt to levels not seen since World War II.

...

The truth is that neither the $1.4 trillion deficit nor the nearly $12 trillion debt has anything to do with Social Security benefits.

For nearly three decades, Social Security has taken in more revenue each year than it has paid out in benefits. These excess funds have been invested in special issue U.S. government securities. Thus, Social Security has effectively been loaning its excess funds to the federal government to spend on other programs. Rather than increasing the federal deficit, Social Security’s annual surpluses have actually been covering up the true size of the deficit in the general fund."


Robots Will Soon Do All Our Killing for Us By Nick Turse

"In the years ahead, unmanned machines will increasingly fight our wars.

...

What were once unacknowledged, relatively infrequent targeted killings of suspected militants or terrorists in the Bush years have become commonplace under the Obama administration."



Oscar-winning US filmmaker Oliver Stone says Adolf Hitler was 'enabled by Western bankers'


"Adolf Hitler was a psychopath and a monster but rose to power thanks to big business leaders and other supporters who appreciated his vow to destroy communism and control workers, Hollywood filmmaker Oliver Stone said Monday.

...

He said the aim of his documentary, which two historians are helping him with, was to offer a fuller understanding of the 20th century and how some of those lessons may be relevant to President Barack Obama in 2010.

...

"What has America become? How can we in America not learn from Germany in the 1930s," the Oscar-winning director asked."



The Sanctity of Military Spending by Glenn Greenwald

"I'm sure if we just buy some more fighter jets, create some better underground bombs, invade a few more Muslim countries, keep more Muslims imprisoned forever with no charges, give the Pentagon, the CIA and their private contractors a lot more unaccounted-for cash and stay out of their way, expand our domestic spying networks even further through private sector telecom contracts, pour tens of billions of dollars more into the coffers of our Middle East client states, and kill a few more civilians with drones, this problem will be handled. It's just a matter of making sure we bulk up our military budget -- and Look Forward, not Backward to what was done in the past -- and we'll be able to Stay Safe from this Terrorist-WMD menace.

As for the deficit, no need to worry about that. We can just freeze programs for national parks and cut Social Security and Medicare."



Bill

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