Peace Process to Nowhere

Peace Process to Nowhere By FRANKLIN C. SPINNEY

"If, as is likely, this report is true, Israel has humiliated the United States once again -- a fact that will no doubt be deemed irrelevant by Israel’s shills on both sides of the aisle in Congress, not to mention the mainstream media.

...

In fact, Israel learned it could get away with murder and could treat the United States with utter contempt when (1) its air and naval forces not only attacked the USS Liberty -- a high priority US Navy signals intelligence ship -- on 8 June 1967 during the Six-Day War, killing 34 and wounding 171 US sailors, but (2) was able to secure a cover up of its perfidy by the highest levels of the US government, including President Johnson, Secretary of Defense McNamara, and most of the senior military officers in the Pentagon, despite the misgivings of Dean Rusk, the Secretary of State and Admiral Thomas Moorer, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (neither of whom chose to resign in protest, however)."

(I've added the link to the book on the attack of the USS Liberty to the quote above)


20 Signs that the Economic Collapse Is Already Upon Us By Michael Snyder

"Not that there is anything wrong with a safety net. But the "safety net" was never meant to hold 50 million people on Medicaid and 40 million people on food stamps. The number of Americans on food stamps has more than doubled since 2007. So do we just double it again as things get even worse?

...

Both political parties need a big wakeup call. There is a tsunami of poverty sweeping the United States, and somebody better wake up and do something about it. More handouts will help people get by in the short-term, but there is no way that the federal government can financially support tens of millions more poor Americans.

How long is it going to be before the "safety net" simply collapses under the weight of all this poverty?

...

How anyone can look at those numbers and think that things are about to "get better" absolutely boggles the mind.

It is time to wake up.

Things are not going to get better.

Things are only going to get worse.

The United States is rapidly becoming a nation where poverty is absolutely rampant.

As poverty continues to spread, crime will not be far behind.

Meanwhile, the international community wants to impose a global tax on us so that they can "redistribute" even more of our wealth around the world."

There are 2 related points to consider:

1. Israel's control over our information supply and BOTH parties in Congress produced not only produced the requisite support for the invasion of the Middle East, but also the drubbing of our middle class. A warmongering attitude and a contemptuous disregard for anyone who gets in the way of the mission are related.

There is a direct linkage between money and war. Among so many other things, it appears that our information supply has duped Americans into not seeing this otherwise totally obvious connection.

2. It's been clear from the beginning that Israel "firsters" (I call them "Soldiers of Israel" because Israeli or Jew or Zionist is debateable, which dilutes the attempt to assign a label for the entity we're dealing with, so something is needed) have bet our farm on their crusade for authority in the Middle East. It's been a long, slow burn, and now the chickens are starting to come home to roost.

Any serious student of what's happening in the Middle East knows that we're not winning, and that winning hasn't even been defined (who do we expect to sit down and negotiate a surrender with? Bin Laden?). No, it's a never-ending war, picked on with a religion with over a billion followers, something like 1/4 of the world's population.

3. Raise your hand if you see the connection between what happened behind the scenes of the greatest rip-off of all time, the "bailout" and the Soldiers of Israel who manipulated changes in laws that allowed banks to start gambling with taxpayer backed money? And gamble they did, and lose we did.

Now, add the cost of the "bailout" together with the cost of the invasion of the Middle East. What do you think about this kind of money?


Bill

Iraq's cost

Iraq’s Cost by Hendrik Hertzberg

"But it was also a reminder, gentle but pointed, that the war was a war of Bush’s choice—a choice that has left Obama with no good choices, only the responsibility of withdrawing in a way that mitigates, or at least does not needlessly extend, the harm this war has done to Iraq and its people and to American interests, American honor, and American power."

Here's the rub: The invasion of Iraq was an unmitigated disaster for America from the time the pump-up for war started, through the invasion, and now it's haunting us today - and it will continue to haunt us into the future - until some God-awful event happens that shakes people awake and into the reality of what happened.

Who to blame? There's lots of blame to spread around, but let's start with the Neocon-infested propaganda machine that stretches from Hollywood through the TV and into the newspapers - the machine that marched in lockstep to drum up support for the invasion and force-fed Americans daily appetite with the evils of Saddam and the urgent need to invade Iraq.

What to do? Let's start with putting Bush on trial for murder - and let the trial go where it must.

What if we do nothing? Suppose we stay the course and do nothing? What will happen in Iraq?

Well, nobody can predict the future, especially particular events, but one can see trends, and there's a "megatrend" at work with Iraq. The vast majority of Iraqi's want the occupier out, and those who have suffered at our hand hate us and no doubt many want revenge. Translated: I see Iraqi's working together to oust their common enemy, the occupier, before they get on with the business or re-organizing Iraq their way, probably with the separation of a Kurdish state and then the break-up of the rest between the Sunni's and Shite's, with the Shite south aligning with Iran.

Now think about that Green Zone, that cost more then a stack of bills reaching from here to the moon, and it's fate. How many rockets have to be fired at it from how many different directions before they realize that air power can't protect it - and trying is eating up and destroying the city around it.

Will Americans be pulled out of the Green Zone on helicopters? It's easy to see it coming to that.

Regardless, the cost to us for the invasion of Iraq is headed our way. It's time we woke up and realized that we have been massively duped - and do something about it.

Once again, I say support Mr Bugliosi's effort to put Bush on trial for murder. That's one that we can all agree on - now anyway.

Neocons in Retreat by Jack Hunter

Please read this article and especially the very informative reader comments.


Bill

Obama and Iraq: ‘Through a Glass, Darkly’

Obama and Iraq: ‘Through a Glass, Darkly’ By Scott Ritter

As you may be aware, Scott Ritter is the target of a smear campaign, similar to what's happening to Julian Assange (and anyone else taking a public stand against the Neocons). In both cases, all they had to do was raise the specter of some sex-related scandal in the "news", and walla, the target's reputation is dirtied and now everything they say is suspect. Works every time.

In this article, Scott summarizes the Iraq debacle, and notes that "The president and the American people will all too soon come to recognize that the quagmire in Iraq is far from over. In fact, one might say it has only just begun"

He's right, of course. We can't just wish away the criminal invasion and destruction of Iraq.

There are many bad things yet to happen in and around Iraq, culminating perhaps (I think likely) with our billion-dollar embassy becoming a modern incarnation of the Alamo.

And that's not all.

Surely you've noticed that it's been almost 10 years since any significant attacks have occurred here at home. I, for one, find this fact incredible. How is it possible, I ask, that we have millions of enemies out there, and none of them have been able to strike back? Is it because our many-billion dollar security apparatus actually works? Is it a matter of luck? Both? Or are our enemies just taking their time, putting together some sort of modern-day Tet offensive? I don't know, of course, like everyone else, but I have a very strong sense of foreboding for the future of America if we don't set ourselves straight, if we can at all.

I believe Vincent Bugliosi is right to call for putting Bush on trial for murder. I think this is the best action we can take, because such a trial will invariably expose the Neocons behind it all for their many criminal acts, most notably the invasion of Iraq, but also the corruption of our information supply.

The neocons own the narrative.

Where are the calls for putting Bush and his cronies on trial? Why isn't this a debate at the national level?

It's because the Neocons have effective editorial control over our information supply, and they exercise this control for certain issues, such as the culpability of people responsible for the criminal invasion of Iraq, the financial crimes committed by the barons of banking, and the sacrosanct treatment of Israel.



Bill

Iraq - the end game

Just two of today's articles on the subject of our military and Iraq:

Iraqi forces struggling, forcing U.S. troops to fight By Shashank Bengali and Mohammed al Dulaimy

As Iraq winds down, U.S. Army confronts a broken force By Nancy A. Youssef

Where is it all headed?

It's so obvious, isn't it? If not, why?

- could it be that the mainstream media perpetuates it's illusions, already proven to be manipulative and flat out wrong, but because it's in print and on the TV screen, people buy it and they continue to get away with it.

- people have either forgotten Vietnam and other historical accounts, are really apathetic. Maybe they don't have time to study, or maybe they feel so helpless that they just can't deal with it.

We're entering a new phase in Iraq, that much is certain. How long will this new phase last, and what will it lead to?

My analysis, based on experience and study, is that the Neocons have bet our farm on their mission to establish military authority in the ME for Israel's benefit. They will not let us pull our troops out of the ME in a wind-down because that will be perceived by all as defeat and leave Israel surrounded by enemies.

So they are waiting for another opportunity, any attack on us anywhere will do. Like 9/11 they will pump it to sound like the end of the world, and then they'll re-ignite their crusade with a grander attack on their enemies. For them, it's a race between America's desire to bring our troops home, and the event they can use to keep them fighting.

What will qualify for such a major event? Well, given their proven ability to manipulate news, they don't need very much to work with. Any attack here will do. It is amazing that there haven't been attacks. This defies logic and common sense. There's another story there, I'm sure. But for the purpose of what happens with our invasion of the ME, only 1 attack will do. They will make it look like 9/11 all over again. The "news" will blast it before our eyes a hundred million times, and we'll be pumping up the military to save us again.

Will they use the Big Guns next time? Given their druthers, I have no doubt the Neocon gang will pull any trigger they believe will advance their cause. There is no morality, there is only winning (the 'ends justify the means' mentality, this time by grand example). After victory, they get to write the history books.

For the Neocons, there can be no losing. It's massively important that we understand this. They cannot and will not lose. They will kill everyone on Earth if they have to, but they will not lose their precious Israel and it's power over it's neighbors. This is not a bargaining chip, it's an absolute.

Maybe you have someone you care about in the Military, or maybe you are just curious and able to read. Whichever, once you connect these dots and you realize the seriousness of this, hopefully you'll be compelled to do something, no matter how small, if hundreds of millions of people just do something, we have a chance to stop them.

My suggestion is an Internet based, open source election process that removes the influence of money from the political equation. We have no shortage of education, wise and intelligent people that we can vote into office, given the chance.

We also must put Bush on trial for murder, which will invariably lead to prosecuting the Neocons for war crimes as well.

Do these things and we can save ourselves, our spirit, our country, and our world.

Don't do these things at our peril. What do you think will happen when the Green Zone comes under frequent attack for the purpose of finally ousting the occupier - a confrontation backed by the majority of Iraqi's?


Bill

The Transparent Cabal

The Transparent Cabal by Ed Warner

"History is full of examples of a determined minority prevailing over a more passive majority. A case in point is the neoconservative effort to bring the United States into war with Iraq largely for the protection of Israel. Despite the dubious reasons the neoconservatives advanced — Iraq has WMDs, ties to al-Qaeda — they managed to overcome the resistance of the military, the State Department and CIA partly by infiltrating them for their own ends. As the book title suggests, much of this was done in the open, a transparent cabal."

This book review starts out with the statement above, as other books and articles on this subject have done, but this particular book, this time, the accusations and the depth and breadth of supporting materials are reaching epic proportions. That is, there is now so much information available supporting this analysis that it can't be ignored.

The book being reviewed is on amazon, click here. Be sure to read the editorial and customer reviews at the bottom of the page, to see what I mean by saying the amount of supporting information has grown large enough to be astonishing to the uninformed.

There's another web site, click here, devoted to a press/tv interview with Dr. Stephen Sniegoski, the author of the book.


Bill

This Country Just Can't Deal with Reality Any More

This Country Just Can't Deal with Reality Any More By Robert Parry

Robert Parry's analysis is accurate and well worth the time to read. He is one of only a handful of people with the ability to stand back, see, and write about the big picture as it really is.

But how many people will actually read this and think about it? How many people actually care? I look around and see apathy among too many people. A sense of hopelessness, that we can't do anything about it. I'm reminded of the couple I had met in my travels who were children in Dresden during WWII, and how they pleaded with me to understand how helpless they were at the time.

I think what we're seeing is the results of years of propaganda duping by the "mass media" (I hate that term and would prefer to say "our information supply", but doubt most people would realize they are one and the same). People vote and behave a certain way - and it's connected to what they read in the papers and see on TV. It's this relationship that we live with, but like the elephant in the room, never talk about.

The Internet has the potential to change this, to be used as an "organizing force" by people who want to oust the control freaks from power. If this sounds libertarian and progressive, I'll take the labels. ANYTHING but the right wing and Zionist warmongers!

The question will boil down to whether the Internet belongs to the people or the Government and Corporations (today almost one and the same). If it belongs to the people, then we will be able to protect information we consider private, while also sharing that which we wish to make public, and nobody else has the right to violate our privacy in this regard.

Today the forces are at work against this, the notion of our having private information. They, I believe are already "harvesting" the Internet, saving it's contents in a mountain somewhere, for their future use against anyone who stands up to them. Take a close look at the contrived charges against Julian Assange for an example of how anyone can be brought down.


Bill

'The Great American Stickup': It Was The Economy, Stupid

'The Great American Stickup': It Was The Economy, Stupid by Robert Scheer

"If we as a people learn anything from this crash, however, it should be that there are no adults watching the store, only a tiny elite of self-interested multimillionaires and billionaires making decisions for the rest of us. As long as we cede that power to them, we can expect to continue getting bilked."

Afghan War Myths by Ted Rall

Read the appalling truth about the Afghanistan invasion.

My theory continues to be that Afghanistan is nothing more or less then a parking lot for troops dispatched as part of the Neocon plan to establish military authority in the Middle East. Who knows what action/event will occur that re-starts the bigger campaign. Could be Iran or any of the other players in the region, but one thing we can count on: our troops aren't leaving the ME anytime soon - because that would not be good for Israel, and what Israel wants, Israel gets.

Bill

Los Angeles Launches Nation’s First Israel Divestment Campaign

Los Angeles Launches Nation’s First Israel Divestment Campaign by Linda Milazzo

The subject matter and the content of this article is relatively innocuous compared to the reader comments. Highly recommended reading.



Bill

The ‘Meaning’ of 9/11

The ‘Meaning’ of 9/11 by Justin Raimondo

"... Cameron’s noting that "more than sixty" Israelis had been arrested immediately after 9/11, along with and under the same legal rubric as thousands of Arabs, had also been noted here in this space, before the Fox News broadcasts. Why, I asked in a column, was the US government rounding up Israelis, of all people – unless there was some kind of Israeli connection to the attacks? The answer came in Cameron’s reporting, and subsequent stories in the "mainstream" media: the Israelis, whose intelligence services had been very active on our soil in the months leading up to 9/11, had been following the hijackers, shadowing their every move, without telling us – almost as if they were protecting them rather than trying to stop them."

Why Robert Rubin and Citibank Execs Should Be in Deep Trouble by Zach Carter

"Rubin’s involvement with Citi has always reeked of impropriety. Back when Rubin was still running the Treasury Department, he convinced Congress and President Clinton to sign-off on the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which repealed decades of Wall Street regulation. The bill allowed ordinary, boring banks to get into high-flying Wall Street securities trading, and was directly lobbied for by Citibank, which needed the legislation in order to go through with a key merger. Once the bill was passed, Ruin left Treasury for Citi, where he made $120 million before departing in disgrace after the crash."

Bill

Pointless war

Implications of a Pointless War by Robert Koehler

"What does it mean that the New York Times, upon the occasion of President Obama’s announced drawdown of forces in Iraq last week, called our seven and a half years of invasion and occupation of the country "a pointless war"?

...

But this was $3 trillion worth of pointless war, which left in its wake a wrecked and polluted country with millions of displaced people, soaring cancer and birth defect rates, "at least" 100,000 dead Iraqis and by some measures more than a million. If we’re actually at the point of acknowledging that the war was a "mistake," that all this carnage, all this wasted blood and treasure, were "pointless," isn’t an accounting of some sort required — a pause in governmental operations, a national soul-searching, an inquiry? How in God’s name does the largest military machine in human history get mobilized into a pointless war?"

...

But perhaps a door is opening. I repeat the question I asked at the beginning of this column. What does it mean that the New York Times is calling the Iraq disaster a pointless war? I know what it should mean: that such an awareness triggers an outbreak of responsible journalism throughout the corporate media, beginning with a curbing of military and disgraced neocon influence over what is proclaimed news.

For whatever reason, Robert Koehler elected not to suggest (although it's written between the lines) that Bush (and his cronies) be put on trial for murder and crimes against humanity.

US Leaving Iraq in Worse Shape Than Saddam by Michael O'Brien

"The excerpt above refers to projects done outside the oversight of MNSTC-I, but the problem with all the infrastructure in Iraq is the same, whether it’s for the two security ministries, or anything else built by the US there. As I say in my book: we broke it, so therefore we own it. We came in and bombed the place back to the stone age, then we hired US construction firms who hauled in money by the truck load and were then sent packing, and then had inexperienced US military officers or other bureaucrats running the whole thing who wouldn’t give a guy who wasn’t wearing a uniform the time of day. But that guy had been doing this type of work for over 20 years. And my position was originally thought of by two officers on the J-7 staff. But they were long gone by the time I got there."

Do Americans Know What Happened in Iraq? by Michael O'Brien

The above 2 articles are by Michael O'Brien, who very obviously cares about America. His questions are provocative and telling. Please read both articles.


How to Kill Goyim and Influence People: Israeli Rabbis Defend Book's Shocking Religious Defense of Killing Non-Jews (with Video) By Max Blumenthal

Get a load of this.


Bill