Waiting for the results

Tuesday. Elaine and I were hoping to have something to write about the primary. C.I. called me to ask why everyone was wondering about community sites? I think we're all waiting to find out how it goes. :D C.I. said for Texas there's no point in waiting and that districts Tony Sanchez carried heavily will most likely be carried by Hillary. I said, "Okay. But who's Tony Sanchez?" He ran for governor on the Democratic side. It took forever for the results to come in. C.I. says unlike Ron Kirk (who lost the US Senate to John Corny Cornyn), Sanchez refused to conceed until the votes were pretty much in which required waiting until the next day. So we may not know who won Texas for a while but Hillary won Rhode Island.

I voted for John Kerry in the 2004 general election but I don't think I was as nervous then as I am tonight. Did you catch Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Pinocchio Obama"?



Community member Dallas phoned in a report from his caucus and C.I. has that posted, by the way.

Hey, it's not just Rhode Island now. This is Lindsay Levin's "March 4th Open Thread:"

3/4/2008 8:36:10 PM
UPDATE: Hillary Wins Ohio!
Hillary wins Rhode Island!
The results have started to come in -- use this open thread to discuss the returns.

Yea! Kat just called and said, "You still haven't posted!" She has. I'm surprised. :D She says C.I. recommended the Texas Secretary of State's page for results on the Texas race. Obama may have won Vermont. I wasn't following that one.

She said the results weren't complete but Obama trailed Hillary by 20,000 or so when she posted. And right now, it's more like 40,000. :D Let's hope that holds. As I understand it, they're listing early votes and the other tally is total votes. I'm basing that on scrolling down and seeing some counties with just early votes listed. (Meaning the other total -- from today's voting -- hasn't come in.) I have that right, Hillary currently has 937,647 and Obama has 889,477.

Boston Globe says Obama won Vermont -- guess using homophobia in the South Carolina campaign didn't mean a thing in Vermont. That was his "Sister Souljah moment," if anyone had bothered to pay attention. This is from their article:

According to exit polls, Clinton led 54 percent to 45 percent among union households, and 50 percent to 49 percent among non-union households in Ohio. Also, Clinton and Obama did well among their core constituencies -- white women and blue-collar voters for Clinton and young, African-American, and college-educated voters for Obama, according to the exit polls done for the TV networks and the Associated Press.


Rebecca just called and said to check my e-mail. Olive passed this on to her. It's from Australia's Herald-Sun:

HILLARY Clinton is back in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination with American media calling wins for her in the Rhode Island and Ohio primaries.
But just as the Democratic race gets more interesting, the Republicans' is over. Eight years after he first set out to hold the position, John McCain is officially the Republican Party's presidential candidate.
Senator McCain has had the nomination all but sown up, but internal rival Mike Huckabee's refusal to withdraw from the race has stopped Senator McCain from claiming the title. Until now. While Senator McCain has already turned his attention from Mr Huckabee to potential Democratic opponents, he can now claim the support of the entire Republican party.
If Senator Clinton takes Rhode Island and Ohio as early counts suggest, she will have broken a 12-state winning streak by rival Barack Obama.

Okay, I'm freaking out. I keep checking the Texas results and I was so nervous, I read the numbers wrong. Hillary's still ahead. But for a moment, I thought she was behind. I need to post this. I'm punch drunk. I could never run for public office. This is too nerve-racking! As I wind down, the results are Hillary: 1,102,600; Barack: 1,039,570.

I mentioned:

Rebecca of Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude,
C.I. of The Common Ills and The Third Estate Sunday Review,
Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills),
Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz

Here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"

Tuesday, March 4, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, a US service member dies in Iraq, Carl Levin wastes time in the Senate, Iraqi soldiers attack journalists and more

Starting with war resistance. Agustin Aguayo was wrongfully denied CO status. Aguayo served in Iraq and, while serving, had a spiritual awakening/strengthening that led to him refusing to even load his pistol. Instead of granting him the CO status he so obviously qualified for, the US military decided to deploy him to Iraq a second time. To demonstrate how seriously he took his beliefs, Aguayo self-checked out. Though gone for less than the 30-day rule (Aguayo turned himself in), he was prosecuted for desertion in a court-martial in Germany. (You generally have to be gone for more than 30 days to be prosecuted for desertion, otherwise the status is AWOL.) Aguayo continues to pursue his CO status. And he continues to speak out. This Thursday (March 6th) he and his wife Helga Aguayo will be speaking at UCLA Riverside, in the Interdisciplinary Building at 6:00 pm.

And outside the US, war resisters who have moved to Canada were dealt a serious set-back when the Canadian Supreme Court refused to hear the appeals of Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey. Today, Canada's Parliament remaining the best hope for safe harbor war resisters have, you can make your voice heard by the Canadian parliament which has the ability to pass legislation to grant war resisters the right to remain in Canada. Three e-mails addresses to focus on are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration. A few more can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use. That is the sort of thing that should receive attention but instead it's ignored.


There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.
Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).

Meanwhile IVAW has a DC action this month:
In 1971, over one hundred members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War gathered in Detroit to share their stories with America. Atrocities like the My Lai massacre had ignited popular opposition to the war, but political and military leaders insisted that such crimes were isolated exceptions. The members of VVAW knew differently.
Over three days in January, these soldiers testified on the systematic brutality they had seen visited upon the people of Vietnam. They called it the Winter Soldier investigation, after Thomas Paine's famous admonishing of the "summer soldier" who shirks his duty during difficult times. In a time of war and lies, the veterans who gathered in Detroit knew it was their duty to tell the truth.
Over thirty years later, we find ourselves faced with a new war. But the lies are the same. Once again, American troops are sinking into increasingly bloody occupations. Once again, war crimes in places like Haditha, Fallujah, and Abu Ghraib have turned the public against the war. Once again, politicians and generals are blaming "a few bad apples" instead of examining the military policies that have destroyed Iraq and Afghanistan.
Once again, our country needs Winter Soldiers.
In March of 2008, Iraq Veterans Against the War will gather in our nation's capital to break the silence and hold our leaders accountable for these wars. We hope you'll join us, because yours is a story that every American needs to hear.
Click here to sign a statement of support for Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan


March 13th through 16th are the dates for the Winter Soldier Iraq & Afghanistan Investigation. Dee Knight (Workers World) notes, "IVAW wants as many people as possible to attend the event. It is planning to provide live broadcasting of the sessions for those who cannot hear the testimony firsthand. 'We have been inspired by the tremendous support the movement has shown us,' IVAW says. 'We believe the success of Winter Soldier will ultimately depend on the support of our allies and the hard work of our members'." IVAW's co-chair Adam Kokesh will, of course, be participating and he explains why at his site, "But out of a strong sense of duty, some of us are trying to put our experiences to use for a good cause. Some of us couldn't live with ourselves if weren't doing everything we could to bring our brothers and sisters home as soon as possible. The environment may be unking, but that is why I will be testifying to shooting at civilians as a result of changing Rules of Engagement, abuse of detainees, and desecration of Iraqi bodies. It won't be easy but it must be done. Some of the stories are things that are difficult to admit that I was a part of, but if one more veteran realizes that they are not alone because of my testimony it will be worth it." The hearings will be broadcast throughout at the Iraq Veterans Against the War home page an on KPFA March 14th and 16th with Aimee Allison (co-host of the station's The Morning Show and co-author with David Solnit of Army Of None) and Aaron Glantz hosting and the KPFA live stream will also be available at Glantz' War Comes Home.


Today Navy Admiral William J. Fallon appeared before the US Armed Services Committee and he was present to give an update/assessment on the ongoing, illegal war but the senators largely wasted the hearing by whining about the visit of Iranian president to Iraq and no one whined louder than the committee chair Carl Levin. Fallon delivered his [PDF format warning] prepared remarks which included claiming he was able "to report significant progress in security in Iraq. . . . The most significant development in Iraq over the last year has been a dramatic decrease in violence. By almost every measure, the security situation has improved significantly." Had Levin and others paid attention they could have questioned that laughable assertion. Fallon also praised the 'importance' of the "Awakening" council and claimed there were over "90,000 Iraqi men" who had signed up -- left unstated were issues involving the crimes those thugs are accused of as well as the walk-out so many of them are taking part in. But Carl Levin wanted everyone to know he did not like the fact that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visited Iraq -- a country that borders Iran. And isn't that more important than examining what's being 'achieved' by the illegal war? Fallon was spinning wildly: "The recent passage of the 2008 National Budget, Provincial Powers, Amnesty, and de-Ba'athification laws are significant accomplishments. The Presidency Council returned the Provincial Powers Law to the Council of Representatives but with the assurance that preparations for provincial elecitons this fall should continue." Where to begin? How about the fact that the "Provincial Powers" legislation was not 'returned' -- the Presidency Council said "NO." Call it a veto, call it whatever, but it was not 'returned' as though it just needs a little fine tuning. Why Carl Levin couldn't do his damn job is a question only he can answer; however, while he spent today frothing at the mouth over Iran, it should be noted that the US State Department's deputy flack Tom Casey came off calm by contrast in a State Dept press confrence yesterday when he noted of Iran that it "has an oustanding offer on the table to negotiate with us and to work out an arrangement that allows them to have a full civilian nuclear program while assuring us that they're not using that as a diversion or cover for building a nuclear weapon." There is no proof that Iran is attempting that and there's no strong evidence that even indicates it is likely. But even raising those elements (of administration spin), Casey still came off less foaming at the mouth than did Levin.

On Ahmadinejad, Liz Sly (Chicago Tribune) reports today that, "During his visit, the first by an Iranian president since the Islamic revolution of 1979, Ahmadinejad was feted by Iraq's Shiite and Kurdish leaders. Even the Sunni vice president, Tariq al-Hashimi, turned up to greet him, though he was an hour late. In addition to the $1 billion loan, the two countries negotiated seven deals on economic and cultural cooperation. In a statement on his Web site, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said the two sides also reached an agreement 'to secure their borders ... to prevent infiltration of terrorists and smugglers'." Leila Fadel (McClatchy Newspapers) explains, "To have Ahmadinejad safely cruise around Baghdad, the capital shut down. I walked into the office on Sunday and our newsroom was empty, nearly our entire staff didn't make it to work. Hussein, one of our Iraqi reporters, tried to take a taxi. No vehicle traffic was allowed on the roads to secure Ahmadinejad's path to President Jalal Talabani's compound." Allen Pizzey (CBS News) observes, "For a send-off, Ahmadinejad didn't get just one 'kiss for luck'; he got four, when he was welcomed by U.S.-backed Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who threw in a symbolic hug by standing impassive while the Iranian leader told a joint press conference: 'The Americans have to understand the facts of the region. Iraqi people do not like America." Joining Carl Levin in frothing at the mouth today was Lt. General Ray Odierno who met with the Bully Boy of the United States at the White House yesterday and spoke at the Pentagon today. Aamer Madhani (Baltimore Sun) quotes Odierno stating today of Iran's influence on Iraq that it was "what I worry about most." Andrew Gray (Reuters) notes that Odierno accused Iran of being behind rocket attacks in Iraq as he stated, "That's because it was being done by Iranian surrogates. And when the government of Iraq holds a meeting, there tends to be rocket attacks. Why's that? Because it's done by Iranian surrogates." Good of Carl Levin to help Odierno advance his itch for war with Iran today. He might have better used his time -- and the committee's -- by questioning the measures of 'success' because there is no progress in Iraq, there is no advance.

Violence didn't disappear, didn't vanish. The escalation Bully Boy pushed through last year -- with Dems in Congress waving through (symbolic measures do nothing) -- reduced some violence as did the cease-fire with Muqtada al-Sadr. But only in sections of Iraq. The "Awakening" Councils are fueling more tensions and Mosul's been in the US military's cross-hairs for how long now? More US troops were put on the ground in Iraq and not only did the puppet government not accomplish anything, but violence didn't go away.

One of today's biggest 'surge' cheerleaders is US Senator John McCain who is running to become the GOP's presidential nomination for the November general election. He loves the escalation. He thinks it's both amazing and a miracle. Or that's what he says. Or what he says now. Dropping back to the August 4, 2006 snapshot for this from the August 3, 2006 US Senate Armed Services Committee:


Senator John McCain: So, General Abizaid, we're moving 7,500 troops into Baghdad, is that correct? General John Abizaid: The number is closer to 3,500. [. . .] McCain: And where are these troops coming from? Abizaid: Uh, the troops, the Styker Brigade, is coming down from Mosul. McCain: From Mosul? Is the situation under control in Ramadi? Abizaid: Uh, the situation in Ramadi, is better than it was two months ago. McCain: Is the situation under control in Ramadi? Abizaid: I think the situation in Ramadi is workable. McCain: And the troops from Ramadi came from Falluja, isn't that correct? Abizaid: I can't say senator, I know that -- McCain: Well that's my information. What I' worry about is we're playing a game of whack-a-mole here. We move troops from -- It flares up, we move troops there. Everybody knows we've got big problems in Ramadi and I said, "Where you gonna get the troops?" 'Well we're going to have to move them from Falluja.' Now we're going to have to move troops into Baghdad from someplace else. It's very disturbing.

A functioning press would be asking Senator Crazy how the 'surge' is in any way different than what he was complaining about in August 2006? Answer: It isn't. There has been no peace. There has been no end to the violence. What's happened is a cease-fire and a huge addition of US troops added on the ground still couldn't stop the daily violence. Is Senator Crazy cheerleading today to be a 'good soldier' for the White House or is he unable to remember the criticism he offered in 2006?

Today Solomon Moore and Mudhafer Al-Husaini (New York Times) report: "Iraqi soldiers attacked a group of Iraqi and American journalists as they photographed the area. Five soldiers stomped on an Iraqi journalist with their combat boots as he lay on the ground, reporters there said. They said that he cried, 'Why are you doing this?' and added, 'I am an Iraqi too!' Iraqi soldiers confiscated the cameras of many Iraqi journalists at the scene. When they tried to do the same with a photographer for The New York Times, American soldiers intervened and prevented the Iraqi soldiers from arresting his bodyguard." Let's drop back to January 25, 2007 when Damien Cave and James Glanz (New York Times) reported: "One Iraqi soldier in the alley pointed his rifle at an American reporter and pulled the trigger. There was only a click, the weapon had no ammunition. The soldier laughed at his joke." Where would anyone get the idea that attacks on the press are okay? Yes, the US military has attacked the press but Iraqi thugs employed by the puppet government in Baghdad need only look to their puppet-head. Nouri al-Maliki's really lucky most Americans don't give a damn about him. If they did, the puppet would have been thrown out of office long ago because he's 'leadership' has been an absolute failure. Let's look at one of his early 'plans,' no, not the 24-point 'plan' he announced as he was being installed prime minister. Let's focus on the 4-point 'plan' and it's easy to forget that 'plan' because the press certainly did. But even when they had a little interest in it, they refused to note all four parts of the 'plan.' As noted in the October 3, 2006 snapshot, the third plank in the al-Maliki's 'peace' 'plan' was an attack on journalism and journalists. And if you drop back to a 'great day' (according to al-Maliki) you'll see that on September 7, 2006 al-Arabiya satellite network was shut down by Iraqi police on the orders of al-Maliki. The puppet's reign has been about very little but one hallmark has been the disdain (to put it mildly) for a free press. At the start of the month, Iraqi correspondents Laith and Jenan (Inside Iraq, McClatchy Newspapers) wrote that "no protections measures have taken by Iraqi government to stop this series" of jounalist killings "I thought that the Iraqi government is watching this killing series with careleness and they don't do much to protect the life of journalists except for condemning and condolences which do nothing to save the precious lives of the Iraqi journalists but today I found out that I was wrong." What had changed? Najaf announced land set aside for journalists -- for dead journalists. Meanwhile on the most recent attack, Middle East Online is recommended by Laura posting to Laith and Jenan's post and, at MEO, they note that the Iraqi soldiers' attack on a journalist took place in front of a photographer for AFP and that the country's Journalistic Freedom Observatory wants an immediate investigation after journalists "were beaten, insulted and humiliated". Reporters Without Borders notes, "Reporters and cameramen working for various Iraqi and foreign news media were beaten and insulted by Iraqi soldiers yesterday in the central Baghdad district of Al-Ghadir. Associated Press cameraman Saad Kazem Hussein told the Journalistic Freedoms Observatory that an Iraqi general ordered his troops to attack the journalists, who were photographing the scene of a bombing. 'The soldiers also fired in the air,' said an AFP phographer who was there. Four camers were confiscated, according to a third journalist who asked not to be identified." In addition, Reporters Without Borders notes, "Omar Ashti, a reporter with Hawlati, an independent weekly based in the Kurdish city of Suleimaniya (330 km north of Baghdad), was released on bail following his arrest on 10 February by security forces controlled by the Kurdish autonomous government, Reporters Without Borders learned [Monday]. He is now awaiting trial on a charge of libel in connection with an article at the end of last year in which he criticized the Kurdish government." And on a similar note the Associated Press' Bilal Hussein remains imprisoned. Bilal, a Pulitzer winning photographer, was taken into US military custody on April 12, 2006 and has been a prisoner ever since. Next week, he will have been imprisoned 23 months. Free Bilal


At the Pentagon today, Lt. General James Dubik gave a press briefing via videolink from Iraq. He was chatty and happy sharing that today was "the anniversary" of his engagment to his wife and "I did remember that it was in Hawaii". Yet when asked at what point the Iraqi military would take over their own air space, he took a lenghty pause. Possibly he was wondering how much was known about the Iraqi helicopter that went missing? Reuters notes that it crashed and 8 people died including a US service member.

In other violence reported today . . .

Bombings?

Mohammed Al Dulaimy (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad roadside bombing that wounded two police officer and a civilian, a Diyala Province roadside bombing claimed the life of 1 Iraqi soldier and left two more wounded. Reuters notes a Mosul roadside bombing that left five people wounded.

Shootings?

Mohammed Al Dulaimy (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a man shot-dead outside of his Baquba home, while unknown assailants ("wearing Iraqi army uniforms") grabbed a man in Diyala Province and later disposed of his dead body, 1 police oficer and 3 bodyguards were shot dead in Basra, 2 people ("relatives of a leader of an awakening council") were shot dead in Salahuddin. Reuters notes a police officer was shot-dead outside his Mosul home.

Corpses?

Mohammed Al Dulaimy (McClatchy Newspapers) reports 2 corpses discovered in Baghdad.

Archbishop Paulos Faraj Raho was kidnapped Friday. The Arab American Institute (AAI -- via UN Observer) states, "Sadly, this incident is evidence of a grave situation faced by most Iraqis since the U.S.-led invasion. The suffering of the entire Iraqi people is widespread, defining daily life in most areas of the country. This is due to the lack of a plan to secure the peace. While all Iraqis live in fear, the circumstances facing minority populations is worse. With no political factions or large private militias to protect them, Iraq's embattled minorities are at the mercy of their environment. As the abduction of Archbishop Paulos and the murder of his colleagues show, when there is no security, there is too little mercy." Reuters reports that Nouri al-Maliki is making noises that Archbishop's release is "a top priority." But Asia News' reporting indicates that a lot more is known than al-Maliki lets on including a ransom. Asia News reports, "The men who have the fate of Msgr. Paulos Faraj Rahho, Chaldean Archbishop of Mosul in their hands since February 29th last, have raised the ransom and dictated 'political conditions' for his release, according to AsiaNews sources in Iraq, close to mediators who are negotiating his safe return. Late yesterday afternoon another phone call was made. The group which holds the bishop hostage, used Msgr. Rahoo’s mobile phone to communicate, but has still given no proof of his wellbeing. 'It almost seems as if his release -- anonymous sources in Mosul tell -- is of secondary importance in their demands and the conditions which they have imposed greatly complicate matters, leading us to think that they are not just simple criminals interested in money'. Concern is increasing for the 67 year-old hostage who suffers ill health, for which he needs daily treatment."

Maria Lauterbach is the US marine who vanished while pregnant. She was murdered. See the January 10th snapshot, the January 11th snapshot, the January 14th snapshot, the January 16th snapshot and the January 22nd snapshot. Maria's presumed murderer wasn't just anyone, he was someone she had stated raped her, stated to her commanding officers and she wasn't protected. They can argue that point all they want but Maria did accuse the man thought to have murdered her with rape and the US military didn't do anything. A hearing was coming up when she disappeared but . . . strangely . . . that didn't make the military take any more interest in him than they did prior. They treated it like it wasn't their problem. They acted as if it was Maria's problem. Jessica Pupovac (In These Times) examines the effects Maria's story is having which includes activist Susan Avila-Smith currently advising those who have experienced Military Sexual Trauma (MST) to be temporarily silent: "It breaks my heart to do that but I want to get them out alive and that's my main goal." Sgt. Myla Haider explains how investigations work (or don't) and notes, "The investigators themselves, when working on cases, tended to focus on reasons a victim could be lying. . . . [and use] tag team interviews [where] one agent after another is sent in there to 'get the truth' out of the victim. On occasion, that results in the victims becoming very upset." VETWOW is one organization that helps those with MST and Suzanne Swift is a strong example of how the US military refuses to do anything (Swift was assaulted and harassed, went through channels and was sent to 'training' on how not to be 'tempting' -- when the military refused to stop the abuse, Swift self-checked out).


the common ills
like maria said paz
kats korner
sex and politics and screeds and attitude
mikey likes it
iraq
agustin aguayo
dee knight
iraq veterans against the war
aimeee allisondavid solnit
aaron glantz
kpfa
leila fadelmcclatchy newspapers
the new york timesdamien cavejames glanz
solomon moore
bilal hussein
liz slythe chicago tribune
borzou daragahithe los angeles times
suzanne swift
jessica pupovac

NAFTA-Gate and more

Monday, Monday, can't trust that day, Monday, Monday, Bambi's going to lie all the way. :D I'm beginning to wonder if Barack Obama ever tells the truth. Check this out from Hillary's campaign:

NAFTA-Gate: False Denials from the Obama Campaign
Over the last few days, the Obama campaign has made a number of false claims about its communication with the Canadian government regarding Sen. Obama's position on NAFTA.
We now find that there is a memo from the Canadian government that makes clear that the Obama campaign did in fact communicate with the government, making assurances to the Canadian government that are different from what he has told voters.
The following is a compilation of the false denials:
2/27/08 – "Earlier Thursday, the Obama campaign insisted that no conversations have taken place with any of its senior ranks and representatives of the Canadian government on the NAFTA issue." [CTV, 2/29/08]
2/28/08 – Burton: "Again, this story is not true. There was no one at any level of our campaign, at any point, anywhere, who said or otherwise implied Obama was backing away from his consistent position on trade." [ABC, http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/Story?id=4365922&page=1 2/29/08]
2/28/08 - Rice: "The Canadian ambassador issued a statement that was absolutely false. There had been no contact. There had been no discussions on NAFTA. So we take the Canadians at their word…period." [MSNBC, 2/28/08]
2/29/08: Anchor: "So, completely inaccurate, did not happen, end of discussion." Sen. Obama: "It did not happen." [WKYC TV, 2/29/08]
2/29/08 - Goolsbee: "It is a totally inaccurate story…I did not call these people and I direct you to the press office." [New York Observer, 2/29/08]
2/29/08 -- Burton: "There was no one at any level of our campaign, at any point, anywhere, who said or otherwise implied Obama was backing away from his consistent position on trade." [Politico, 2/29/08]

How do you know when Bambi's lying? He's smiling and assuring you he cares. :D

Think about what he said in that debate last week and then grasp that before he said a word, his campaign was telling Canada's government not to worry because he didn't mean it.

He really thinks he can put one over on America, doesn't he?

Here's Hillary's comments on Bambi lying to the American people:

I think that after days of denial, the Obama campaign was confronted with a memo of a meeting - it was my understanding - in which there was a discussion of NAFTA. And it raises questions about Senator Obama coming to Ohio and giving speeches about NAFTA and having his chief economic advisor tell the Canadian government that it was just political rhetoric.
I don’t think people should come to Ohio and tell the people of Ohio one thing and then have your campaign tell a foreign government something else behind closed doors. That’s the kind of difference between talk and action and that I've been pointing out in this campaign. I think the questions should be directed at Senator Obama.
I don’t think people should come to Ohio and you both give speeches that are very critical of NAFTA and you send out misleading and false information about my positions regarding NAFTA and then we find out that your chief economic advisor has gone to a foreign government and basically done the old wink-wink, don’t pay any attention this is just political rhetoric.

Bambi thinks it's okay to LIE to us. Do you get that he's lying before he even gets into office? Do you realize what a nightmare presidency Bambi would give America? He should be called to the carpet on this. He's a LIAR and it's out there for everyone to see. Only the idiots will ignore it. Idiots? Did someone say Amy Goodman? How does that MEDIA WHORE ignore this story? This is huge and Amy Goodman didn't say one word about it today.

And exactly when is Bambi going to answer questions about his relationship with "Big Tony" Rezko? This is "MEMO: Questions Sen. Obama Should Answer About Tony Rezko:"

To: Interested PartiesFrom: Clinton CampaignDate: Monday, March 03, 2008Regarding: Questions Sen. Obama Should Answer About Tony Rezko
The trial of indicted influence peddler Tony Rezko - longtime friend and political patron of Sen. Barack Obama -- starts today . Sen. Obama's name has already surfaced in pre-trial documents submitted by the prosecution and, according to media reports, is likely to surface again as the trial progresses. Democrats deserve the answers to these questions as they consider their votes:
1. Will Sen. Obama release all documents related to his relationship with Tony Rezko, including all documents related to his controversial land transaction?
Howard Wolfson asked top Obama strategist David Axelrod this question on ABC's This Week and the campaign has yet to respond. [ABC's This Week, 3/2/08]
2. When, specifically, did Sen. Obama become aware of Mr. Rezko's legal problems?
On national television this January, Sen. Obama said "no one had an inkling" of Rezko's legal troubles during the course of their relationship. Actually, it was already widely reported that Mr. Rezko was under investigation for participating in a kickback scheme prior to their controversial land transaction. [CBS, 1/23/08; Chicago Sun-Times, 9/16/05]
3. Sen. Obama has returned money from several individuals who are publicly associated with Mr. Rezko. How much money did Mr. Rezko bundle for Sen. Obama's campaigns in total, including people who are not business associates of Mr. Rezko? How many fundraisers did Mr. Rezko hold for Sen. Obama? Has there been an internal investigation to determine how many straw donors Mr. Rezko used to funnel money to Sen. Obama?
The Obama campaign has returned money from people who are publicly associate with Mr. Rezko. But they have not revealed who much Mr. Rezko bundled for Sen. Obama in total. The Chicago Sun Times reported that the Obama campaign "declined to say" whether they maintained a list of the money that Mr. Rezko raised for Mr. Obama over the course of his career. [Chicago Sun Times, 1/23/08]
4. Much of the upcoming trial involves Mr. Rezko's efforts to control state boards as a means to defraud the state government. Have Sen. Obama and Mr. Rezko ever communicated about potential appointments to Illinois boards and commissions? It's been publicly reported that Sen. Obama lobbied these same state boards to secure contracts for campaign donors. Did Sen. Obama ever confer with Mr. Rezko concerning how to successfully lobby state boards?
The indictment alleges that Mr. Rezko manipulated state government boards to defraud the people of Illinois. At the same time, "Mr. Obama met with three state pension boards," urging them to give contracts to specific firms. Later, employees of these companies "donated more than $300,000 to help Mr. Obama win his seat in the United States Senate in 2004 and set fund-raising records early in the 2008 presidential race." [New York Times, 10/01/07]
5. The New York Times reported that Sen. Obama attended a business meeting on behalf of Mr. Rezko to impress potential investors for his business schemes. How many events did Sen. Obama attend on behalf of Mr. Rezko to impress investors? What was his role? Why did Sen. Obama agree to attend?
The New York Times reported in June that "Former Rezko associates said that Governor Blagojevich attended one of the dinners, and that at Mr. Rezko’s request, Mr. Obama dropped in at one for Middle Eastern bankers in early 2004, just as he was starting to pull ahead in the Senate primary. The visits, Mr. Rezko’s partners said, helped impress foreign guests." [New York Times, 6/14/07]
6. How many times did Senator Obama visit Tony Rezko's house? What was the purpose of these visits?
The Times of London reports that "The court is also expected to hear from John Thomas, an FBI mole, who reportedly witnessed Mr Obama and Mr Blagojevich making frequent visits to Mr Rezko." [The Times, 3/3/08]
7. Did Sen. Obama intercede on behalf of Mr. Rezko in any governmental capacity?
The Chicago Sun Times reported that "As a state senator, Barack Obama wrote letters to city and state officials supporting his political patron Tony Rezko's successful bid to get more than $14 million from taxpayers to build apartments for senior citizens." They have not said whether there were any other actions that Obama took for the benefit of Rezko. [Chicago Sun Times, 6/13/07]

He was asked about Big Tony and NAFTAgate today and he had a hissy fit.

Let's talk Third Estate Sunday Review:

Truest statement of the week -- Margaret Kimberley asks the needed question: Why did The Nation endorse Bambi?

Truest statement of the week II -- Juan Gonzalez points out that a record isn't one speech. Bambi groupies snarl.

A Note to Our Readers -- Jim breaks down the edition.

Editorial: While You Were Distracted -- This really is a strong editorial. We were so tired, it was so long writing this weekend. This topic was going to be covered somewhere and Dona and Jim said, "Let's make it the editorial and knock it out that way." It really did end up being a good one. And I like the fact that Senator Jim Webb got some praise. I'm not fan of his, know very little about him, but he did stand up and I'm glad that we were able to note that because he really didn't get credit for it (outside of C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" last week).

TV: Recyling the tired and the damaging -- Ava and C.I. were so sick. One runs off, then the other. They're both puking. They didn't have the flu, they just didn't have any sleep. They push so hard each week, speaking here and there and here and there and here. Kat will tell you, when it get lates, she heads to the hotel. But they keep going. And they had no sleep. At first they were throwing up about every hour or every 45 minutes and then it was pretty much repeatedly every hour. So no one was thinking they'd have anything. It was really a surprise to read their commentary this week and discover that they'd pulled off something so strong.

Roundtable -- This isn't a real "roundtable" in that we were all trying to watch the time. No complaints about C.I. at the end (a) it's the best thing in there and (b) C.I. increased the speed to try to make sure the roundtable didn't go over. C.I.'d be on the third sentence when I'd be getting the first. Ruth and I both jumped into one topic we probably shouldn't have but we both had some strong feelings and I think we both (especially Ruth) made some strong statements. Wally and Cedric gave the report on the ground from Texas in this and they did a great job too.

Why Marcia started her own blog -- This is usually a transcript piece but it was done as a brief feature. If you don't think it works as well that way, e-mail Third and let them know. I think it works pretty good this way but I know that (a) we didn't want two long transcript pieces and (b) this allowed us to hit on the strongest sections.

Fool On The Hill -- What happened to the Cockburn family? Do they need to be tested?

Dumb Ass of the Week -- It's a tie! -- The Airs. Who wrote the piece that earned "Dumb Ass of the Week"? Who knows and who cares, the Airs may as well be one person.

It's still called The Progressive, right? -- Hey, The Progressive added two new columnists and . . . they're both White men. (One's Dave Zirin.)

A mini-note to the readers -- Jim explaining that Ava and C.I. are sick and they're taking a break. Roundtable and highlights were posted with this note and the rest went up in the evening when the gang got some sleep.

Highlights -- Betty, Kat, Rebecca, Elaine, Wally, Cedric and I wrote this. Jim, Dona and C.I. added another highlight at the end. We had left Wally & Cedric with only one highlight (at their request). I'm glad Dona, Jim and C.I. added one more (it was Wally & Cedric).

So here's who worked on the above along with Dallas:

The Third Estate Sunday Review's Dona, Jess, Ty, Ava and Jim,
Rebecca of Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude,
Betty of Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man,
C.I. of The Common Ills and The Third Estate Sunday Review,
Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills),
Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix,
Mike of Mikey Likes It!,
Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz,
Ruth of Ruth's Report,
Wally of The Daily Jot,
and Marcia SICKOFITRDLZ.

Okay, here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"

Monday, March 3, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, the US military and the British military both say "Woopsie," the US embassy in Iraq is a safety hazard, IVAW gears up for this month's action, and more.

Starting with war resistance. Brad McCall is a US war resister in Canada. Saturday and Sunday he offered original poetry at his site. From Sunday's poem:

You just don't realize,
The damage your really inflicting,
You say you're doing your job,
But I know, your really creating pain and suffering.

You wake up at 4 in the morning,
Preparing for a brand new day,
In this hell that they've put you in.
All these people are creating is enmity, and suffering.

McCall made the decision he could not participate in an illegal war. Currently he is in Canada attempting to be granted safe harbor. Just entering Canada was difficult for McCall. He was detained in September by Canadian authorities when he attempted to enter. And, as noted Friday, Courage to Resist interview with war resister Robin Long during which Long shares that McCall had a friend return his car to the US and that when the car crossed the border back into the US "they were holding him at gun point, the guy that was bringing his car back, thinking he was the war resister."

War resisters who have moved to Canada were dealt a serious set-back when the Canadian Supreme Court refused to hear the appeals of Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey. Today, Canada's Parliament remaining the best hope for safe harbor war resisters have, you can make your voice heard by the Canadian parliament which has the ability to pass legislation to grant war resisters the right to remain in Canada. Three e-mails addresses to focus on are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration. A few more can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use. That is the sort of thing that should receive attention but instead it's ignored.


There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.
Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).

Meanwhile IVAW has a DC action this month:
In 1971, over one hundred members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War gathered in Detroit to share their stories with America. Atrocities like the My Lai massacre had ignited popular opposition to the war, but political and military leaders insisted that such crimes were isolated exceptions. The members of VVAW knew differently.
Over three days in January, these soldiers testified on the systematic brutality they had seen visited upon the people of Vietnam. They called it the Winter Soldier investigation, after Thomas Paine's famous admonishing of the "summer soldier" who shirks his duty during difficult times. In a time of war and lies, the veterans who gathered in Detroit knew it was their duty to tell the truth.
Over thirty years later, we find ourselves faced with a new war. But the lies are the same. Once again, American troops are sinking into increasingly bloody occupations. Once again, war crimes in places like Haditha, Fallujah, and Abu Ghraib have turned the public against the war. Once again, politicians and generals are blaming "a few bad apples" instead of examining the military policies that have destroyed Iraq and Afghanistan.
Once again, our country needs Winter Soldiers.
In March of 2008, Iraq Veterans Against the War will gather in our nation's capital to break the silence and hold our leaders accountable for these wars. We hope you'll join us, because yours is a story that every American needs to hear.
Click here to sign a statement of support for Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan


March 13th through 16th are the dates for the Winter Soldier Iraq & Afghanistan Investigation. Dee Knight (Workers World) notes, "IVAW wants as many people as possible to attend the event. It is planning to provide live broadcasting of the sessions for those who cannot hear the testimony firsthand. 'We have been inspired by the tremendous support the movement has shown us,' IVAW says. 'We believe the success of Winter Soldier will ultimately depend on the support of our allies and the hard work of our members'." IVAW's co-chair Adam Kokesh will, of course, be participating and he explains why at his site, "But out of a strong sense of duty, some of us are trying to put our experiences to use for a good cause. Some of us couldn't live with ourselves if weren't doing everything we could to bring our brothers and sisters home as soon as possible. The environment may be unking, but that is why I will be testifying to shooting at civilians as a result of changing Rules of Engagement, abuse of detainees, and desecration of Iraqi bodies. It won't be easy but it must be done. Some of the stories are things that are difficult to admit that I was a part of, but if one more veteran realizes that they are not alone because of my testimony it will be worth it." The hearings will be broadcast throughout at the Iraq Veterans Against the War home page an on KPFA March 14th and 16th with Aimee Allison (co-host of the station's The Morning Show and co-author with David Solnit of Army Of None) and Aaron Glantz hosting and the KPFA live stream will also be available at Glantz' War Comes Home.

"Some people are going to say that we're not upholding our patriotic duty to America, that we're just demoralizing the troops, but if anything we want to make sure that our troops are taken care of the way they should," Vermont's WCAX (text and video) quotes Iraq veteran Adrienne Kinne explaining at the University of Vermont to a crowd of over 150 as she and three other veterans explained the upcoming Winter Soldier Investigation. Matthew Howard speaks to WCAX's Bianca Slota abouth how service members are encouraged to see "every Iraqi's a threat or terrorist or insurgenty. You know we never hear the term civilian over there." Howard speaks of "the feelings of betrayal, of ultimate betrayal" after serving in a war based on lies. Slota notes, "Their stories ranged from tales of intelligence intercepts from listening in on conversations of aid workers or journalists to tales of leaving injured Iraqi civilians on the side of the road." Sara Buscher (Burlington Free Press) speaks with Matthew Howard who previews the DC action, "We have footage. We have digital cameras and cell phones. The public doesn't know what dead Iraqis look like, what little children look like when they have their brains blown away by 50-caliber machine guns -- what a mosque look like when we use it for target practice." Andy Potter (WCAX text and video) interviewed Drew Cameron last week and Cameron shared his thoughts on the illegal war, "It's sending very young people to do atrocities, things based not on any reality of the security of this country. If anything, it's destroying the military. It's destroying peoples' lives and families' lives, not to mention all the innocent civilians. Massive amount of destruction."

"The soldiers and marines are just doing their jobs, doing what they were trained for or what they were told to do when they got over there. Things that seem really horrible just become routine -- and they are implicitly or explicitly condoned, or encouraged, by the commanders and the policy-makers," Iraq War veteran Kelly Dougherty states walking Ariel Leve through for a major report in the Sunday Times of London which also includes Afghan War veteran Perry O'Brien recalling, "Anyone carrying a shovel or any sort of implement that could be used to bury an IED could be considered a target. After dark, you can shoot anyone who is outside. Or anyone who puts anything on the side of the road can be considered a target. You won't find it in writing, but it's an order indicated to soldiers." Iraq War veteran Jason Washburn remembers one mission: "We kick down the door and all we find are a few women holding babies and a couple of kids. We were ordered to take the babies away and put sandbags on the women's heads, tie their hands behind their backs, put them on their knees facing the wall. Here I am zip-tying these women, and my buddy is standing next to me holding these babies asking what do I do with these kids? We stood there, like, oh s**t, what do we do? The squad leader came in and shouted, 'Everybody is bagged and tagged -- everybody!' So we did it." Michael Kramer (Workers World) reports today on an NYC event last month to get the word out on IVAW's action this month and notes, "IVAW member and war resister Ryan Johnson was able to take part in the program from Canada via a live video feed. He is a member of the Winter Soldier Organizing Committee and described the situation of more than 50 absent without leave war resisters in Canada as they courageously struggle for human rights and against deportation. There is now an IVAW chapter in Toronto. More ominously for the Bush administration and Pentagon generals, an IVAW chapter has recently been formed on the Fort Hood, Texas, army megabase."

Starting with news from the weekend. On Saturday, the UK Ministry of Defence announced, "It is with deep regret that the Ministry of Defence must confirm that a British airman was killed in Basra, southern Iraq yesterday, Friday 29 February 2008. The ariman, who was attached to 903 Expeditionary Air Wing, Royal Air Force, died as a result of a rocket attack on the Contingency Operating Base in Basra." They identified him as Sgt. Duane "Baz" Barwood who is survived by his spouse Sharon and their two children Leanna and Rebecca. Since the start of the illegal war, ICCC's total for British forces who have died in the Iraq is 175. Also on Saturday, Warren P. Strobel (McClatchy Newspapers) reported, "None of the 26 buildings in the new $740 million U.S. Embassy complex in Baghdad is ready to be occupied. Fire alarms intended to safeguard more than 1,000 U.S. government employees aren't working. Kitchens in some of the buildings are fire hazards. A senior State Department official in December certified that embassy construction was 'substantially complete,' but department inspectors found 'major deficiencies' at the unoccupied embassy, according to their inspection report, which Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif, released Friday." Waxman is the chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Goverment Reform and at the committee's website they have a list of the "documents," all in PDF format, released by Chariman Waxman identify 'critical' and 'major' deficiencies in the construction of the new U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, raising question about the decision of the State Department to certify in December that the Embassy compound was 'substantially complete'." These documents include the letter he sent to US Secretary of State Condi Rice Friday where he informs her that he's scheduling a committee hearing March 12th that State Dept employees -- specifically the Acting Director for the Office of Overseas Building Operations Richard J. Shinnick -- should be present for and "to advise you that if the State Department does not commit by the close of business on March 3 to provide by March 7 the documents the Committee has repeatedly requested and subpoenaed, I will initiate steps to require the Deputy Secretary to appear with the documents at the Committee's March 12 hearing." Waxman's letter summarizes key events including the July 26, 2007 testimony by the State Dept.'s Charles E. Williams (director for Officie of Overseas Building Operations) which declared that the embassy would be completed in September of that year (cost $592 million). Waxman writes that "Williams's testimony turned out to be highly misleading. The Embassy did not come in on time and under budget in September. Although the price tag has increaed to $736 million, the Embassy is still not complete." He notes the letter he sent October 9th of last year (to Condi) where the issue of the fire protection system was raised, "quoted extensively from a report issued in September 2007 by State Department inspectors who documented widespread deficiencies in the Embassy's fire protection and electrical system" and noted an alleged kickback scheme that was ongoing (one person involved in the alleged kickback scheme "pleaded guilty in federal cout in July 2007"). In terms of the State Dept.'s failure to provide information and produce documents, Waxman notes requests made on July 10th, again on October 9th and again on October 19th; that Rice herself stated in her October 25, 2007 testimony to the committee that "we will get the documents to you, Mr. Chairman" but nothing; which led to the issuing of a subpoena on February 9th requiring that the State Dept produce the documents within seven days. That February 15th deadline passed with no documentation being provided and Waxman is now requesting a commitment (received by today) that the State Dept will produce the requested material by March 7th.

Also on Saturday, Sheryl Gay Stoblerg (New York Times) reported on the trial ballon being floated by the White House and US military command (presumably on orders from the White House) that US troop reduction in Iraq will conclude shortly but may pick back up "before Mr. Bush leaves office, a senior administration official said Friday." For those still not grasping it, Deb Riechmann (AP) reported, "President Bust declined Saturday to promise more U.S. troops withdrawals from Iraq before he leaves office". Sunday saw the arrival in Iraq of Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Alissa J. Rubin (New York Times) noted that military and security checkpoints were already set up throughout Baghdad on Saturday in anticipation of Ahmadinejad's Sunday visit and Mike Mullen, US Joint Chiefs of Staff chair, visiting on Saturday and that both "visits come as violence, which in December reached its lowest level in more than a year, has begun to rise." The BBC puts the Iraqi death toll at 633 for the month of February (an undercount). Leila Fadel (McClatchy Newspapers) notes that Ahmadinejad's visit makes him "the first Iranian head of state to visit Iraq in three decades," that some Sunnis protested his trip in Falluja, that the "Shiite ruling elite" listenend attentively, "clearly comfortable" and without need of translation while the US "officials stayed far way from the visiting Iranian delegation" and Ahmadinejad declared in a joint-press conference with Nouri al Maliki, "Iraqis don't like Americans." Michael Theodoulus (The Scotsman) draws a contrast between Ahmadinejad's trip and the trips that the Bully Boy of the United States makes, "The Iranian leader arrived yesterday amid great fanfare on a two-day visit that was pre-announced. By contrast, the US president's visits were hurried and almost furtive. His presence was never revealed before hand for security reasons -- even though the US has 158,000 troops in Iraq -- and he has never stayed overnight." Borzou Daragahi (Los Angeles Times) quotes Ahmadinejad stating, "Iran and Iraq are two friendly nations. Both have a common history and civilization. Both of them have deep, intimate sentimental and social relations." AFP reports that the Iranian president "accused the US on Sunday of bringing terrorism to the Middel East". Caesar Ahmed (Los Angeles Times' Babylon & Beyond blog) offers a partial transcript of the press conference Ahmadinejad held today ("at the home of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani") including the following:

QUESTION: Are Iranian elements targeting members of the Sunni militias of the so-called Awakening movement? AHMADINEJAD: We did not witness nor did we get any complains from the Iraqi side about this issue. There may be a few incidents along the borders. And this is normal. We have laws and everything will be conducted under the umbrella of our laws.
Q: What about the fate of Iraqi soldiers missing from the time of the Iran-Iraq war?
A: There are few missing. Both sides are cooperating to discover the fate of those who are missing.
Q: What about about the American accusations that Iran supports militias in Iraq?
A: We discussed with the Iraqi side the issues that serve the interests of the two countries. We are not committed to answer the demands of others.

AFP reports that "seven pacts" were signed with the Iraqi government today and that Ahmadinejad recommended US forces leave Iraq: "Without the presence of the foreign troops, the region will live in peace and brotherhood." Deborah Haynes (Times of London) quotes Ahmadinejad stating, "We believe that the major powers who have come to the region from thousands of kilometres away should respect the will of nations and leave this region. That's the best service they can offer these nations." CBS and AP cite the network's Allen Pizzey's call that the visit sends the message "that Iran can't be ignored, or even short-changed as a player here."

Friday's snapshot noted the Mosul kidnapping of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho who remains missing. Independent Catholic News reports, "He had just celebrated the rite of Via Cruis and was on his way back to the Holy Spirit Cathedral when his car was attacked. His driver, Faris, and one of his guards, Rami, were killed. The other guard, Samir, was wounded and was in a very critical condition at the time of this posting. It is not known who has kidnapped 67-year-old archbishop, who is believed to be in poor health and requiring daily medication." ZENIT notes that the funerals for the three men accompanying the Archbishop Friday (all were shot dead) were held on Saturday and that Pope Benedict XVI has repeated his appeal calling for the kidnappers to release Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho. Melissa Gonzalo (Arizon's 12 News -- link has text video) reports on Iraqis in Arizona and Peter Oraha states, "Make me feel that I want to do something but I'm too far. I couldn't do anything to be honest."

Bombings?

Alexandra Zavis (Los Angeles Times) reports Baghdad bombings claimed 24 lives today and left at least sixty people injured. Reuters notes a Shirqat car bombing claimed the lives of 2 police officers and left nine civilians injured. Today CBS and AP report that US military command is stating "regret over the killing of a teenager Friday by a helicopter gunship" while Reuters reports the British military declared today they were "invetigating whether a woman had been killed and three children wounded by a defective artillery shell it had fired in defence of its base in the Iraqi city of Basra" and there is apparently another child who may dead from that assault according to Iraqi authorities "and a hospital source".

Shootings?

Reuters notes police col. Qassim Abid Filaih and 3 guards were shot dead in Basra.

Corpses?
Reuters reports a discovery of a mass grave in Samarra containing 14 corpses believed to have been "either Iraqi police of members" of one of the "Awakening" Councils.

Turning to US politics. Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island and Vermont hold Democratic Party primaries tomorrow. Campaigning in Ohio Sunday, US Senator Barack Obama had an Iraqi talking point and it was one David Axelrod (Bambi's Karl Rove) was repeating the same day on ABC. Steven Thomma (McClatchy Newspapers) reports facts aren't Bambi's strong point since he declared that Senator Hillary Clinton should have followed the example of Senator Jay Rockefeller -- chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee at the time -- on the 2002 Iraq vote; Bob Graham was the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee and Rockefeller voted in favor of the 2002 resolution leading Thomma to penalize them "Five yars for sloppy fact checking." The Chicago Tribune's Frank James disagrees, "I think this is more like 15 yards and loss of a down. The Iraq War vote is only the central premis of Obama's argument for why he should be president. Given that, it seems like he would have absolute command of the facts surrounding the vote. That he doesn't seems curious." Niall Stanage (New York Observer) reports on Gloria Steinem campaigning for Hillary in Austin, Texas. From the article:

There is, she said, "a great deal of pressure at play for her to act like her gender and give in." Several shouts of "No!" came from the crowd. Steinem went on: "It's a way of reinforcing the gender roles, right? Men are loved if they win and Hillary is loved if she loses…But maybe we shouldn't be so afraid of an open convention that actually decides something. After all, it was an open convention in New York City that gave us Abraham Lincoln."

Meanwhile Roseanne Barr notes, "Pigdom lives on. Obama doesn't want to end the war, HE just wants to movie it to pakistan, and those men have nukes . . . our leaders have us at war with a country that has NO ARMY, and they are kicking our asses. . . . YOU NEED TO LISTEN TO WOMEN, NOT SILENCE THEM!!!! HELLOOOOO....!!! HILLARY'S HEALTH CARE PROGRAM IS THE BETTER ONE!!! SHE DIDN'T START THE WAR, AND SHE DIDN'T BLOW ANYBODY!!! SHE DIDN'T VOTE FOR NAFTA, AND SHE DIDN'T INVENT AIPAC." On the issue of Iraq, Joe Wilson (The Huffington Post) explains it:

Barack Obama argues that he deserves the Democratic nomination and Hillary Clinton doesn't because he possesses superior "judgment," as he calls it, on the key issues we face as a nation. As definitive proof he offers one speech he made in 2002 during a reelection campaign for an Illinois senate seat in the most liberal district in the state, so liberal that no other position would have been viable. When he made that speech, Obama was not privy to the briefings by, among others, Secretary of State Colin Powell, in support of the Authorization of Use of Military Force as a diplomatic tool to push the international community to impose intrusive inspections on Saddam Hussein. Would Obama have acted differently had he been in Washington or had he had the benefit of the arguments and the intelligence that the administration was offering to the Congress debating that resolution? During the 2002-2003 timeframe, he was a minor local official uninvolved in the national debate on the war so we can only judge from his own statements prior to the 2008 campaign. Obama repeated these points in a whole host of interviews prior to announcing his candidacy. On July 27, 2004, he told the Chicago Tribune on Iraq: "There's not much of a difference between my position and George Bush's position at this stage." In his book, The Audacity of Hope, published in 2006, he wrote, "...on the merits I didn't consider the case against war to be cut-and- dried." And, in 2006, he clearly said, "I'm always careful to say that I was not in the Senate, so perhaps the reason I thought it was such a bad idea was that I didn't have the benefit of US intelligence. And for those who did, it might have led to a different set of choices." I was involved in that debate in every step of the effort to prevent this senseless war and I profoundly resent Obama's distortion of George Bush's folly into Hillary Clinton's responsibility. I was in the middle of the debate in Washington. Obama wasn't there. I remember what was said and done. In fact, the administration lied in order to secure support for its war of choice, including cooking the intelligence and misleading Congress about the intent of the authorization. Senator Clinton's position, stated in her floor speech, was in favor of allowing the United Nations weapons inspectors to complete their mission and to build a broad international coalition. Bush rejected her path. It was his war of choice.

the common ills
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sex and politics and screeds and attitude
the daily jot
cedrics big mix
ruths report
mikey likes it
thomas friedman is a great man
the third estate sunday review
iraq
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iraq veterans against the war
aimeee allisondavid solnit
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colum lynchthe washington postborzou daragahithe los angeles timesalexandra zavis
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Lambert the dirty bird

Friday and usually I'd put a ":D" but not tonight.

Marcia wrote "Community note and Hillary" last night and I didn't see it. I usually read the evening and night posts the next day before blogging. At work, Tony's dad (my boss) asks me, "Who the hell ripped off C.I.?" I didn't know what he was talking about. I texted Marcia and she was explaining what was what and I was really pissed. Then I got a text from Liang and then I called Martha and by the time I got done at work and headed for campus Martha was calling me and telling me about an e-mail Eddie got and to call him.

So here's what happened, and Marcia outlines it in "Community note and Hillary." Tuesday was the Democratic debate. Ava, Kat and C.I. were speaking about Iraq during the debate. Rebecca hears something that puzzles her so she leaves a voice mail for C.I. When Ava, Kat and C.I. are done speaking, C.I. calls Rebecca and Rebecca reads the statement Bambi made in the debate. C.I. explains how it is a HUGE lie. C.I. writes about it in "Barack Obama lied in the debate" and Rebecca in "obama caught lying again." C.I. hadn't heard it so, while on the phone with Rebecca, looks for a transcript online and finds three: MSNBC, Washington Post and New York Times. C.I. goes with the Times because some members have problems with Washington Post (shock message or something in their browser) and because after NBC did the trash Katie Couric before she left NBC, MSNBC only gets a link or a mention if a friend at NBC asks C.I. for it. (Like when C.I. gives a heads up to what's going to happen on the Today show.) C.I. was on the laptop and didn't have time to page down, page down and knows that members hate that so when there's a link to a transcript at NYT, it's always the "single page" option.

So that was Tuesday and C.I. outlined how Bambi lied and Rebecca wrote for everyone to go check out C.I.'s piece on it.

So Wednesday night/Thursday morning, Lambert at Corrente suddenly discovers the lie. He's Columbus showing up in America and thinking he's found something.

Now the back story there, Kat, Betty, Elaine, Rebecca, Cedric, Wally and I do "Highlights" each week. Most of the time I'm typing. I'm the worst and slowest typist. But everyone's tired. But that's why you see ":D" for instance. I've typed that for sure. And a lot of times stuff has more than I type because I'm going "Hold on, hold on" because I'm so darn slow at typing. It's the last thing written every week. The gang (Jim, Dona, Ty, Jess, Ava and C.I.) are editing and polishing stuff already written. But the rest of us go off and write "Highlights" and then the edition is done. Read Sunday's "Highlights" and you'll find this:

"Lambert and the Cult" -- Elaine addresses the Cult of Obama (and notes right now, as she did in the post, that it's based on comments she and C.I. have been making to each other). She also reminds us of a truest so we need to write this quickly to get that in before everyone forgets and the edition's put to bed.

We had finished all but highlights. "Truest statement of the week" was done and it was Julie Christie. I go tell them we're done (everyone else working on Highlights is off sleeping or whatever) and tell them about Lambert's quote. Jim goes, "Mike, do you know how tired we are?" Dona goes, "Maybe we can mention it next week." But next week (now this weekend) there's always new stuff and it would have to fight with every other idea. Everyone is exhausted and of course the gang's going to the Oscars. Jim (as he points out in his "A Note to Our Readers") got an extra Ava and C.I. feauture out of them (they did "TV: The strong and the weak" and "Radio: Panhandle Media") by promising it would mean that the edition was done sooner and they could actually get some real sleep before having to go to the Oscars. (That's also why Elaine and I subbed for C.I. Sunday night -- and again, I did the typing and I'm the worst at that.) So C.I., who still has to do a morning entry for The Common Ills and post Isaiah's latest comic is tired and will have to continue when everyone else can grab some breakfast, unwind and get ready to grab some sleep. But C.I. goes, "No, Corrente does good work. If Lambert's got a statement that qualifies for a 'truest,' we need to make the time to note it."

And that's how and why Lambert got "Truest statement of the week II." The easiest thing in the world would have been to blow it off and it almost got blown off. There was a big debate about whether to link to just Corrente (Lambert was commenting at someone else's post) or link to the post? They hated the post. (So apparently did Lambert.) But they finally figured link to the comment. This was AT LEAST A 15 MINUTE DELAY on a day they had no time. On a day where C.I. still had to do an entry for The Common Ills and post Isaiah's comic (and Flickr is a pain in the ass -- I don't think C.I. made that announcement, by the way, but Flickr said "full" and that may mean come Sunday that C.I. has to create a new account which will delay the posting even more). Jim, Dona, Jess, Ty and Kat are just going for fun. Ava and C.I. know people there and they want to look good. But even with that, C.I. made time to give credit to someone who earned it.

But Lambert gave C.I. no credit. And when members saw it they got pissed. That's how Marcia found out Thursday. I didn't know a thing until this morning at work. Martha and Liang had both either called or e-mailed her (or maybe both). They saw it on Thursday and they complained about Lambert's post not crediting C.I. using Corrente's contact form. They never heard a damn word. Martha even registered with Corrente to leave a comment and she never got "approved" by Lambert.

Eddie found out about it today and was pissed. Rightly so, and you know I mean that because why did this blog start? Because I got tired of the rip off artists and the assholes treating C.I. like this. So Eddie e-mails and he gets these replies from Lambert.

Liang and Martha (and Liang especially) wants it noted that Lambert never wrote them back. So not only is he comfortable ripping off a woman, he's comfortable ignoring other women.

Now I need to be really clear here because when this has happened before, C.I. has issued orders, "Do not ask for links to The Common Ills." We all follow that. We no longer ask. Any member asking is going to tick C.I. off if it gets back. Eddie didn't ask for a link.

Eddie just told Lambert it wasn't right to rip off anyone.

Now there was another blogger who was involved from a distance. Eddie also wrote him. That guy wrote back that he hadn't seen it and had he seen it he would have credited C.I. and asked what he needed to do? Eddie wrote him back that all was cool. And it was. And it is. The guy didn't know and had credited Lambert as having discovered something.

But Lambert wasn't cool in his e-mails.

He's writing crap like "reset" the conversation. "Reset"? Does he think he's the US military? Is he Bobby Gates and George Casey? Maybe he's Davey BetrayUs?

He's using stuff like "slippery little scut." Eddie asked me what that was and I have no idea. Maybe he meant "slut"? Maybe that's the way Lambert talks? He calls people "sluts." Maybe "slippery little slut" was supposed to be C.I.? I don't know, I don't care. His e-mails are insulting.

He writes about "a big blogosphere" and then it's like he's accusing Eddie of being C.I.

Sorry to break it to you Lambert, but C.I. doesn't ask for links, doesn't beg for links and doesn't contact blogs. C.I.'s got a real life. And wants to get back to it hence the announcement that The Common Ills will probably go dark in November. C.I. made that announcement in the summer of 2005 and C.I. really does have a life to get back to -- as Elaine's pointed out many times, when the illegal war was starting and C.I. was already speaking out against it, C.I. ended a promising relationship because it wasn't fair to that guy to have a relationship and be traveling at least twice a month for two weeks to speak out against the Iraq War. C.I. hasn't worked since then either. Everything's been put on hold to try to end this illegal war. (And Ma would kill me if I didn't again say thank to C.I. for paying my college tuition.) That's why Elaine posted last summer that she told C.I. no more giving to every charity in the world. Elaine remembers Vietnam and how C.I. was a soft touch for every sob story and at the end of that war, C.I. was broke-busted. It took a lot of work to make money starting from scratch but luck, talent and hard work allowed it to happen. C.I. could be at home sitting by the pool every damn day instead of going on the road Monday through Friday to speak to high school students and college students and women's groups and labor groups about the illegal war. But Elaine was really concerned because money was going out and none was coming in. And C.I. will give to anyone, any one with a dream that just needs X to pull it off, anyone at all. So Elaine pointed out, "We're not that young anymore and it's not going to be as easy to start all over." So now C.I. gives to nothing but feminist causes. Anyone else asks, C.I. says "Let me think about it" and then calls Elaine who says it's a good idea or a bad idea. C.I.'s very wealthy (so is Elaine) and that's not the issue, the issue is C.I. would give it all away without blinking like during Vietnam and where would that lead? Elaine does not give to indymedia (they both give to peace groups and to individuals who are resisting) and the reason is she saw those beggars bleed C.I. dry. And when the money was gone, they had no use for C.I. That's why she doesn't give to 'independent' media. She'll pledge a few dollars for NPR and sometimes Pacifica but she's not giving up her money to the ungrateful beggars and that was before we all saw what liars they could be as they launched their attacks on Hillary while lying about Bambi. (And Elaine saw it coming. She said that's happening and could tell you how it happened before.) So my point here is that C.I. has a real life. C.I. has an offline life. And C.I. doesn't give a damn about if someone does a write up or not. C.I.'s always avoided the press offline and only cared about the photos. That's the most C.I. will ever check out.

Though Betty wrote about a book once and I won't do the link because I think it embarrassed C.I. It was raining, C.I. was in Atlanta visiting Betty while speaking to some groups there, this is 2006 and Betty was filling in for Rebecca who was on her honeymoon. And C.I. was just so tired and Betty and her kids went off to look at other books in the store and C.I. pulls this book off the shelf by someone -- someone who wasn't close -- and Betty comes back -- she jokes it's like Soap Dish -- and C.I. was just so touched because this guy had written nice stuff and they had never gotten along. Jess has talked about the magazine cover July 4, 2005 when he was helping C.I. clean out some stuff in the big walk-in closet in C.I.'s bedroom and he goes, "You kept this because you're on the cover!" And C.I. looks at the magazine and says, "Flip to the letter section, the fourth letter . . ." and it was about a Republican C.I. hates and that's why it was kept. As Jess has talked about in roundtables, C.I. ripped off the cover because heaven forbid a magazine be kept that might make people think, "I only kept this because I'm on the cover.)

Rebecca will tell you that when C.I. gives a rare interview, the person's checked out in depth ahead of time. C.I.'s never going to read it, will look at the photos (due to having photo approval) and that's that. Now that's offline.

Do you know how many times C.I.'s been mentioned as "C.I."? A lot. When NPR mentioned something C.I. had written (it was a friend who swears "I didn't know it was you" but C.I. still thinks a friend was just trying to work in a plug to be a good friend), C.I. never covered that topic again (it was about the Supreme Court nominee) and never wrote like that again. There was no, "Oh, let me get mentioned on NPR again!" Instead it was more like, "If NPR's mentioning me, I'm not writing left enough." Or how about the books that have mentioned The Common Ills? C.I. doesn't, for instance, offer up slug line (I don't know what that is but C.I. always uses that and it sounds right here) at The Common Ills saying, "As Daniel Okrent, the first NYT ombudsman said . . ." Not on Okrent, not on anyone. In fact, since Okrent's book came out, he's never mentioned again. And short of dying, he won't be.

C.I.'s not looking for attention, C.I. turns any praise back to the community giving them full credit for whatever makes it online. When friends offer links, C.I. begs them not to link. And I've written before about how when Ava and C.I.'s TV commentaries get too much attention, they immediately scale back to chase away the non-regulars. C.I. grew up in a newspaper family and doesn't have any illusions about the press, doesn't want any more press than is necessary for an issue or for a project (political or work related). There's a young actor who is really a great person and he will tell you (he's told me when I've met him out in California) that he learned to draw a wall between the press and himself because of C.I. (Yes, that's the one that everyone saw in ____ last summer who was talking like C.I. when asked personal questions.) C.I.'s children have never been used for publicity, there's a strict wall between what is off-limits and what isn't.

So it's really insulting that when Lambert's caught ripping off, he wants to accuse Eddie of being C.I. C.I. doesn't give a damn about being ripped out (we all know the mantra: "It's about the work, not the person."). C.I. doesn't give a damn about links. C.I. only de-linked from Lotta Links in July when members said they'd tried to get The Nation study highlighted. In that instance, we'd all worked on that article. And to turn it down (and on July 4th which is a slow day since most people are off) was to turn me, Jim, Dona, Ava, Jess, Ty, Betty, Rebecca, Elaine, Wally, Cedric, Ruth, etc. down. That pissed off C.I. Lotta Links wasn't linking to C.I. and C.I. couldn't care less. (And was still providing Lotta Links links everytime their crappy editor would e-mail and ask for them.) But that the rest of us weren't linked pissed C.I. off. (Elaine will tell you that C.I. doesn't care. C.I.'s attitude comes from being raised with money and it being instilled that the role was to help others not be a glory hog. Elaine can tell you stories -- their families knew each other but they didn't become friends until college, although Elaine's brother and C.I. were friends before that -- about how it was so important not to be a glory hog or vain that C.I. never got a compliment on beauty from anyone growing up. And C.I. was and is beautiful. Attention that others seek makes C.I. uncomfortable and it goes to being raised with money and to having it instilled that if you got a compliment for anything it was something you did and you had better have worked your ass off before a compliment came in.) (C.I. is, however, the freest with compliments of anyone I know. They are sincere. And if you ever feel down on yourself, C.I. is the first person you want to call.)

So I am really pissed that Lambert wanted to deflect from his mistake/error/theft by accusing Eddie of being C.I. (Eddie's pissed for the same reason. Martha, who's had that happen to her before, can laugh about it. But it pisses Eddie off and it really pisses me off.)

Sorry Lambert, but while you spent the day scratching your ass and figuring out what you could "discover" today, C.I. woke up from about four hours sleep, went for a morning run, showered, did the entries at The Common Ills (one of which was dictacted) and was speaking on campuses with Kat and Ava. Lunch was probably a glass of water while dictating the snapshot. There was no time to e-mail you and I know C.I. wouldn't because C.I.'s line whenever a rip off takes place is, "I didn't e-mail [blogger/organization/website/newspaper], they e-mailed me." Which means: I don't care.

And would you if you had a ton of money, a huge house, a life to get back to? No, you wouldn't.

But Lambert doesn't have those things, I guess. I don't have a ton of money or a huge house but I'm not jealous of people who do.

So Lamb Chops writes, "I don't recall reading your post, having just checked it, although I read a lot of them, and a lot of them look alike." Yeah, what you wrote Wednesday night/Thursday morning LOOKED A LOT LIKE what C.I. wrote Tuesday night.

"I don't read you regularly." C.I. will be so crushed.

C.I. who has repeatedly turned down solo interviews for "C.I." and who, with Ava, has regularly turned down interview requests from entertainment sites and magazines will be so crushed that you don't read The Common Ills "regularly."

(Although the line is actually, "I don't have time to visit websites." That's what C.I. would say, if asked. And has said many times.)

Lamb Chops isn't done with his e-mailing, his last message is "I added a link, which is no admission that I "ripped you off."Is "kiss my ass" Texian enough for you? Good. Thought so."

Eddie's from Texas and "texaseddie" is in the first part of his e-mail address. Eddie had asked him what "scut" was and said it didn't sound "Texan." So that's Lamb Chops' little insult at Texas. That should help Hillary going into the primary and caucus there on Tuesday, right? And Lamb Chops is all about Hillary, supposedly.

Lamb Chops, kiss my Irish-American ass. In my eyes, you are not just someone who ripped off C.I., you're someone who didn't have the decency to correct your own action. And when called on it (by a man, he ignored Liang and Martha), you immediately attack C.I. I guess that's how he was taught to be a man. Guess he didn't have a father like mine because I wouldn't get away with that crap as a kid or today. I'd hear about it from my father. (And I know better than to act that way.)

So that's the story of Lamb Chops who wrote a post on Wednesday night/Thursday morning 'strangely' like (try exactly including where he linked for the transcript) C.I.'s entry on Tuesday night and, when Lamb Chops was repeatedly called out, he finally responds to a man by putting down the site who beat him to it, the site that had it in real time, the site that had his entire post and then some on Tuesday night which would be long before Lambert wrote it.

I knew a kid in school, 8th grade, who got caught cheating. He screamed and yelled too. I didn't respect him because if you're caught, you're caught. You just admit it and own up to it. If you can't do that, you're just a whiney little brat.

Again, another blogger responded to Eddie's e-mail. And from what Heather had said, she tried to tip the blogger off that Dave Lindorff had said we should vote for Bambi "because he risked jail to do drugs as a Black man," he thought the first e-mail wasn't read, that you got an auto reply and had to register. So he just scribbled it and would have written nicer (as he did at Corrente) if he'd known it was going to be read. But that guy had the decency to say, "I didn't know about it" and how can I make it right and stuff like that. So there's no problem with that guy and C.I. doesn't want anyone asking for links. (I will trade links, most of us will, C.I. doesn't. If you're appropriate for the community, C.I. links to you. And you're told you don't have to link back. And many don't. Go through blogs and websites that offer links at The Common Ills and see how many bother to link back.) So the matter was taken care of in one e-mail and Eddie replied not to worry about it.

Lambert could have shown some maturity and it wouldn't have been an issue. But he'd already ignored Martha and Liang who wrote the day before. And then he wants to be insulting and snide? It's like that kid in 8th grade who got busted and wanted to have a fit instead of being mature and accepting what was coming.

The thing that really ticks off Eddie and everybody else is the fact that Lambert (a) can't respond to women and (b) thinks it's okay not to credit a woman for her work. That sucks. And Eddie commented at another blog -- on Tuesday night -- about C.I.'s thing on Bambi lying. Because it was important. Bambi's lying about his 'record' on the illegal war. And excuse me, but Elaine and C.I. have called that out since long before Bambi announced. They met him when he was running for the Senate. Elaine got an invite and called C.I. to say, "Come with." They were, as they've written at their sites over and over, thrilled and prepared to max out with their donations. They get there. Bambi gives a questionable speech and afterward, they ask him about the illegal war. He's not for troops out. He's for "us" to stay there because "we" are there now. Elaine's written about that over and over and she tells each time that she was shocked and speechless. C.I. wasn't and Elaine writes about how C.I. pinned Bambi down on what he was saying and what he was saying was that he wasn't for withdrawing troops. Elaine and C.I. left immediately. It's why they weren't taken by the 'beauty' of his War Hawk speech at the DNC convention. (Rebecca says they openly boo-ed. C.I. doesn't comment but Elaine always says Rebecca's being "colorful" and that she doubts she and C.I. were booing in the convention hall while Bambi was making his speech.)

C.I.'s "I Hate The War" last night dealt with Bambi and I loved this part:

Now Hillary Clinton's judged by her advisors. That's not the case for Bambi. One of his advisors is Zbigniew Brezezinski. ZB's claim to fame is turning Afghanistan into a slaughter field (to draw the USSR in!) and creating the climate for the current Afghanistan War all before 1981. Somehow, that's not a major concern. And though Bambi's been a Senate schill and lackey for the nuclear industry, we're told by liars like Sammy Power that Bambi's a no-nuker. Does a no-nuker have Brezezinski as an advisor?
Am I the only one who ever visited the Carter White House? I remember it very clearly, the little "toys" (replicas) of nuclear weapons decorating Brezezinski's office. Has he ever publicly rejected those "toys" he took so much pride in, the ones he maintained were the only things keeping the United States "free"? No, he never has. And that's still his attitude but for some strange reason, Bambi's advisors don't lead to probing of Bambi.

Hey Lamb Chops, why don't you describe some White House offices? Why don't you offer us some of your experiences?

I have only a few. (I didn't even meet Mary Matalin -- sp? -- C.I. introduced Wally and Cedric to her when she came up to say hello to C.I. They swear, Wally and Cedric swear, she was a very sweet woman. They were all prepared to hate her and making little jokes when she waved and started walking over. But they swear she was one of the nicest people. They disagree with everything she believes in, but like they've pointed out somewhere at their sites, she has manners. Lamb Chops doesn't appear to have any manners.) Most of the people I meet through C.I. are when we're all at C.I.'s in the summer and that's people like actors and musicians (some cool ones, no question). And of course Ty works for ___ and he's a really cool guy. I did get to meet some people (including one "newsmaker") at Ava's father's news outlet. I like actors and stuff, I'm not insulting them. But I only met maybe three people in Congress but Wally and Cedric spend more time in DC with C.I. When we go up there for a rally or whatever, I'm usally arriving the day of and Wally will go up there as soon as C.I.'s going to be there. He knows a ton now. And it's not like I'm Ty's grandmother. Her favorite person in the world is Tina Turner so when Tina was doing the last concert and C.I. got her tickets and got her backstage to meet Tina, that was it for her. For me, that would probably be a politician or a writer, having a "that's it!" kind of experience.

On the topic of famous people, I think it's funny that actors, actresses, producers, writers, etc. never get too steamed about what C.I. and Ava write in their TV commentaries but when they cover news programs, they hear about it. People are pissed. People want to insist "that's private" or "that's gotcha!" or "you never should have written about that." They wrote about a woman in network programming once who is just basically a traitor to her own gender. That woman didn't care and even laughs about that piece. But the news people are so damn touchy. Talk about behind the scenes when the cameras stop rolling and it's, "How could you!"

So back to my point, Lamb Chops is no one in C.I.'s life. I mentioned that when I picked C.I., Ava and Kat up at the airport and C.I. had no idea (and said, "Michael, what the hell are you talking about?" :D). After it was over, C.I. had a comment and I go, "I'm writing about this tonight and I'm putting it in." C.I. rolled the eyes and said, "Well put in that you didn't have a pen and paper and whatever you're quoting me on is from memory." (Like Rebecca always has to say "That's how I remember it." :D) So here's C.I.'s quote, "We've highlighted Lambert, Leah and Farmer before and I'm sure we will again. Bambi lied and the important thing is that he got called out for it."

I'm not so high minded. I'm not as low-minded as Lamb Chops, but I'm not at the "Who cares?" level C.I. is.

I should also add, C.I. suddently had about a dozen topics "you might be interested in." :D They were interesting topics but I didn't take the bait and am writing about Lamb Chops tonight. (I may grab some of the other topics next week.) Lambert "is a dirty bird." I don't know what that means but my grandfather said it tonight when he showed up for the Iraq study group and I was telling him what happened. I'm thinking it's like the middle finger, you know, how it's the bird. Flip the bird. But I liked it and the meeting started before I could ask him what it meant and he's old so he left to go back to his home and get some sleep before I could ask him what it means. But Lambert is a dirty bird. :D

I've mentioned the following:

The Third Estate Sunday Review's Dona, Jess, Ty, Ava and Jim,
Rebecca of Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude,
Betty of Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man,
C.I. of The Common Ills and The Third Estate Sunday Review,
Kat of Kat's Korner (of The Common Ills),
Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix,
Mike of Mikey Likes It!,
Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz,
Ruth of Ruth's Report,
Wally of The Daily Jot,
and Marcia SICKOFITRDLZ.

And I'm sure I mentioned my mother (Trina's Kitchen) :D. Here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"

Friday, February 29, 2008. Chaos and violence continue, a priest is kidnapped in Mosul, the Turkish invasion of nothern Iraq apparently ends, and more.

Starting with war resistance. Courage to Resist interviews war resister Robin Long who is seeking safe harbor status in Canada. Long was stationed at Fort Knox and hearing stories from returning service members that didn't have a thing to do with democracy. "In the army you just want to fit in," Long explained noting how the US military uses collective punishment to discipline their own -- which is to create a shunning among the enlisted. Those returning from Iraq, "a lot of them were bragging about I guess you could say what was going on there," Long explained, and he was hearing and seeing things that weren't being covered in the media such as pictures of the first kill ("holding a head up" for the photo "and smiling with a peace sign," photos of an Iraqi run over by a jeep, etc.). After self-checking out of the military, he stayed in a friend's basement for two months and then went to Canada with two friends. At the border, Long was asked if he was AWOL ("which I found out later that they weren't allowed to do") and replied that he was on leave. About his decision, Long says he has no second thoughts. If he is deported would he be stopped at the US border and taken to jail? Long shared that war resister Brad McCall had a friend take his car back to the United States and when the car crossed the border into the US "they were holding him at gun point, the guy that was bringing his car back, thinking that he was the war resister. So that's a pretty good idea of what's going to happen to me if I try to cross the border. If I'm deported they're going to be waiting there."

War resisters who have moved to Canada were dealt a serious set-back when the Canadian Supreme Court refused to hear the appeals of Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey. Today, Canada's Parliament remaining the best hope for safe harbor war resisters have, you can make your voice heard by the Canadian parliament which has the ability to pass legislation to grant war resisters the right to remain in Canada. Three e-mails addresses to focus on are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration. A few more can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use. That is the sort of thing that should receive attention but instead it's ignored.


There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.
Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).

Meanwhile IVAW is organizing a March 2008 DC action:
In 1971, over one hundred members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War gathered in Detroit to share their stories with America. Atrocities like the My Lai massacre had ignited popular opposition to the war, but political and military leaders insisted that such crimes were isolated exceptions. The members of VVAW knew differently.
Over three days in January, these soldiers testified on the systematic brutality they had seen visited upon the people of Vietnam. They called it the Winter Soldier investigation, after Thomas Paine's famous admonishing of the "summer soldier" who shirks his duty during difficult times. In a time of war and lies, the veterans who gathered in Detroit knew it was their duty to tell the truth.
Over thirty years later, we find ourselves faced with a new war. But the lies are the same. Once again, American troops are sinking into increasingly bloody occupations. Once again, war crimes in places like Haditha, Fallujah, and Abu Ghraib have turned the public against the war. Once again, politicians and generals are blaming "a few bad apples" instead of examining the military policies that have destroyed Iraq and Afghanistan.
Once again, our country needs Winter Soldiers.
In March of 2008, Iraq Veterans Against the War will gather in our nation's capital to break the silence and hold our leaders accountable for these wars. We hope you'll join us, because yours is a story that every American needs to hear.
Click here to sign a statement of support for Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan


March 13th through 16th are the dates for the Winter Soldier Iraq & Afghanistan Investigation. Dee Knight (Workers World) notes, "IVAW wants as many people as possible to attend the event. It is planning to provide live broadcasting of the sessions for those who cannot hear the testimony firsthand. 'We have been inspired by the tremendous support the movement has shown us,' IVAW says. 'We believe the success of Winter Soldier will ultimately depend on the support of our allies and the hard work of our members'." As part of their fundraising efforts for the event, they are holding houseparties and a recent one in Boston featured both IVAW's Liam Madden and the incomprable Howard Zinn as speakers. IVAW's co-chair Adam Kokesh will, of course, be participating and he explains why at his site, "But out of a strong sense of duty, some of us are trying to put our experiences to use for a good cause. Some of us couldn't live with ourselves if weren't doing everything we could to bring our brothers and sisters home as soon as possible. The environment may be unking, but that is why I will be testifying to shooting at civilians as a result of changing Rules of Engagement, abuse of detainees, and desecration of Iraqi bodies. It won't be easy but it must be done. Some of the stories are things that are difficult to admit that I was a part of, but if one more veteran realizes that they are not alone because of my testimony it will be worth it."

Aaron Glantz (at IPS) writes about the March action:

Iraq Veterans Against the War is calling the gathering "Winter Soldier," after a quote from the U.S. revolutionary Thomas Paine, who wrote in 1776: "These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman." Organisers say video and photographic evidence will also be presented, and the testimony and panels will be broadcast live on Satellite TV and streaming video on ivaw.org. Winter Soldier is modeled on a similar event held by Vietnam Veterans 37 years ago. In 1971, over 100 members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War gathered in Detroit to share their stories with fellow citizens. Atrocities like the My Lai massacre had ignited popular opposition to the war, but political and military leaders insisted that such crimes were isolated exceptions. "Initially even the My Lai massacre was denied," notes Gerald Nicosia, whose book "Home to War" provides the most exhaustive history of the Vietnam veterans' movement. "The U.S. military has traditionally denied these accusations based on the fact that 'this is a crazy soldier' or 'this is a malcontent' -- that you can't trust this person. And that is the reason that Vietnam Veterans Against the War did this unified presentation in Detriot in 1971." "They brought together their bona fides and wore their medals and showed it was more than one or two or three malcontents. It was medal-winning, honored soldiers -- veterans in a group verifying what each other said to try to convince people that these charges cannot be denied. That people are doing these things as a matter of policy." Early this morning, Gareth Jones and Paul de Bendern (Reuters) were reporting that Turkey's invasion has "wound down" at least in terms of "ground offensive". Tim Butcher (Telegraph of London) states, "Turkey has pulled out of northern Iraq after a week-long offensive against Kurdish rebels. The Turkish army claimed to have killed 240 Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) members with the loss of 27 of its own troops." Mark Bentley and Camilla Hall (Bloomberg News) note that this was Turkey's "biggest military incursion into the country in 11 years." Suna Erdem (Times of London) observes, "The announcement came a day after President Bush urged Turkey, its Nato ally, to end the incursion, but the military statement said the start and end dates had been set by general staff without any outside influence."

On the Turkish Embassy (in the US) website, bulletin points include, "This operation" -- the invasion of nothern Iraq -- "will be limited in size, scope and duration. Turkey has been among the staunchest advocates of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and national unity of Iraq. Turkish civilian and military authorities have been in contact with the relevant Iraqi and US authorities at highest levels prior to the operations." AFP reports that the Turkish military began returning to Turkey this morning while AGI states, "All the soldiers that had taken part in the attack on the Iraqi part of Kurdistan are back in Turkey." AFP also notes that the PKK states they killed 100 Turkish soldiers during the invasion, "downed a Turkish attack helicopter" and their death toll was 5. So was the "limited . . . duration" always supposed to translate as the invasion ending today? One caught by surprise is the Turkish Daily News which, in a Friday article, notes, "NATO allies Turkey and the United States failed to reach a consensus yesterday over a timetable for the withdrawal of Turkish troops" and quotes Yasar Buyukanit, Turkey's Chief of General Staff General, stating, "Short term is a relative notion. Sometimes it is a day, sometimes it is a year." Al Jazeera quotes their corespondent Mike Hanna, "The Turkish military insists that the decision was taken by the military alone but reports we're receiving from across the border in Turkey is that questions are being raised about the Turkish withdrawal coming so soon after what appeared to be mounting US pressure on the troops to pull out" and notes that a PKK spokesperson (Ahmed Davis) confirms that the Turkish military has withdrawn. [Sidebar, Naomi Klein's husband, journalist Avi Lewis, is hosting a weekly program on Al Jazeera entitled Frontline USA. Click here for a YouTube clip and here for another YouTube clip.] However, Mark Tran (Guardian of London) quotes unnamed US officials in Baghdad who caution that all Turkish troops may not be out of Iraq. Tran notes US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and others note the comments of the Bully Boy of the United States but is anyone noting yesterday's approximately $6.2 billion four-year loan to Turkey from the World Bank?

Azad Aslan writes the Kurdish Globe's editorial which opens with, "Similar to previous incursions, the recent Turkish invasion into south Kurdistan has only one major goal: to diminish and belittle the sovereignty of Kurdistan Region." Hiba Dawood (whom many know from Free Speech Radio News but Dawood is also a UPI correspondent) notes another editorial from a Kurdish paper (Al Ahali) that was written "by Faisal Abdul Hassan, an Iraqi exile in Morocco, said the Iraqi central government had no efficient response to the assault except sending a 'bashful' demand to the Turkish government to withdraw from Kurdistan." At the White House today, Gordon Johndroe worded carefully regarding the end of the invasion when he told reporters, "We've seen those reports that are just coming out. I think there's one thing that remains clear, and that is the United States, Turkey and Iraq all will continue to view the PKK as a terrorist organization that needs to be dealt with. So we will continue to have cooperation with them on dealing with that organization." NPR offers an audio report via Ivan Watson on today's Morning Edition.


Yesterday's snapshot noted Turksih entertainer Bulent Ersoy who spoke out against the invasion and she was then the subject of criticism. Pelin Turgut (Time magazine) explains, "So pervasive is the nationalist climate that Ersoy has been vilified for declaring -- on a national TV equivalent of American Ido, where she is a judge -- that if she had a son, she would not have sent him to fight this war. She is now under investigation for being 'anti-military.' Ersoy is widely popular but the response to her declaration has been bellicose." Nicholas Birch (The Scotsman) offers the quote and news. The quote differs from Reuters' version yesterday only slightly, "I am not a mother, nor ever will be, but I would not bury my child for somebody else's war." At which point, Turkey's version of Dennis Miller (Erbu Gundes) exploded, "May God give me a son so that I can send him off to our glorious army" followed by a phrase trotted out for military funerals leading Ersoy to add, "Always the same cliched phrases. Children go, bitter tears, funerals . . . And afterwards, these cliched phrases." Birch reports, "An Istanbul prosecutor promptly opened an investigation into her for alienating the people from military service, a crime punishable by up to three years in jail." The Turkish Daily News explains the criminal sentence (if found guilty) is two years but it "could be increased by one-third because the crime was committed via public medium." They also add this to her quote, "These wars are not like ones in the past. It is all decided by people sitting at tables and deciding that some boys should die. I am not a mother so I cannot relate to a mother's pain when she hears her son has died. But I am a human being." Today's Zaman reports that she has the support of European Parliament member Cem Ozdemir who states, "Bulent Ersoy is voicing the pain felt by mothers, and she is also questioning the ongoing Iraqi occupation. . . . We hope that a period of suppression is not started in Turkey that will deal a heavy blow to freedom of thought."

Meanwhile, Amit R. Paley and Joshua Partlow (Washington Post) report that puppet of the occupation Nouri al-Maliki was talking big in Baghdad and they observe: Maliki's confidence seems untethered to political reality. Predicting when his government will fall has become a parlor game in certain circles in Baghdad. And some of his pronouncements -- like one on Thursday that "sectarianism has been eliminated" -- have struck Iraqi and American officials as bordering on the delusional. Sectarian killings are still common and political reconciliation remains elusive, a fact underscored by the veto this week of a law calling for nationwide elections, one of the few major pieces of legislation approved by parliament." They go on to quote "a senior U.S. official in Baghdad" who states basically, to replace the puppet at this time would mean even more "stagnation." The puppet as metaphor for the illegal war.

Noting al-Maliki's "unity" speech, Leila Fadel (McClatchy Newspapers) observes that violence continues in Iraq and that, "One of our Shiite Iraqi staffers asked if Maliki would go to Adil, a restive Sunni neighborhood in Baghdad where Sunni insurgents still operate and Shiites know they are not welcome. Maybe he can check out Hurriyah where Sunni residents have not returned. They were run out of the neighborhood in 2006 and some men were burned alive. Maybe he can ask the more than 88,000 mostly Sunni contractors that work with the U.S. to fight Al Qaida how they feel about the reconciliation effort. Many of them are former insurgents, very few have been absorbed into the government. People complain now that many act as warlords, in each neighborhood the law is in their hands."

Turning to some of today's reported violence . . .

Bombings?

Hussein Kadhim (McClatchy Newspapers) reports a Baghdad bombing that left two people wounded, a Diyala Province home bombing that went off during the midst of an Iraq military raid claiming the life of 1 corpse and a Mosul roadside bombing claimed 2 lives.

Shootings?

Hussein Kadhim (McClatchy Newspapers) reports Judge Abid Jassim and attorney Ahmed Al-Luizi were shot dead in Mosul.

Kidnappings?

Hussein Kadhim (McClatchy Newspapers) reports that the archbishop of the Cahtholic Church in Mosul was kidnapped and 3 "of his companisons" were killed. The BBC explains, "Archbisop Paulos Faraj Rahho was seized as he left a church in the eastern al-Nour district, it added. . . . Most of Iraq's estimated 700,000 Christians are Chaldeans -- Catholics who are autonomous from Rome but recognise the Pope's authority." Catholic World News states, "Bishop Paulos Faraj Raho was seized by terrorists who attacked his car as he left the Holy Spirit cathedral in Mosul after leading the Stations of the Cross on Friday, February 29. Three companions who had been in the car with him were killed." AP reports that Pope Benedict XVI has issued an appeal for "reason and humanity".

Corpses?

Hussein Kadhim (McClatchy Newspapers) reports 2 corpses discovered in Baghdad, Sameea Sofi's corpse was discovered outside of Kirkuk, General Mudhir Hadi Salih and General Amir Muhammad Al-Jibouri's corpses were discovered in Diyala province (blindfolded, shot to death) and the corpse of Ahmed Khalaf was discovered in Kirkuk (he was a local council member in Hawija).

Turning to US politics. "What I learned being in and out as you correctly point out is that there are a lot of people who have a lot of questions about the government and they don't exactly know where to turn to for answers because the corporate media don't tell the people the truth," so explains Cynthia McKinney to Kimberly Wilder (On The Wilder Side) in a video produced by Terry Morrone (a typo yesterday, it is "Terry Morrone"). Cynthia McKinney is running for the Green Party presidential nomination. In a wide ranging interview, former US Congress women McKinney explains why she became a member of the Green Party:

The Democrats are the ones who failed to repeal the Patriot Act, the Democrats are the ones who continue to fund the war. The Democrats are the ones who say that the Bush tax cuts are alright even though they railed against them when they were in the minority. Now that they are in the majority and they could do something about it they fail to do it. And so I decided on my birthday that I would declare my independence from the Democratic Party. And I would declare my independence from any national leadership that was complicit in war crimes, crimes against humanity, torture and all of the rest of it. I reject and I'm happy to have joined with other people in the Green Party who reject that as well.

And in terms of rejection, some Greens are less than pleased with Ralph Nader who announced his campaign for president on NBC's Meet The Press Sunday. The Green Party notes: "Green Party leaders expressed their disappointment in Ralph Nader's decision, announced on Thursday, not to seek the 2008 Green presidential nomination." They quote the party's co-chair Phil Huckelberry declaring, "A lot of Greens have supported Mr. Nader and wanted him to win the party's nomination. There has been an active effort by many Green leaders to 'draft' Mr. Nader as a Green candidate, and his success in recent Green primaries demonstrates that he remains a very popular figure within the Green Party. There is widespread disappointment among Greens that he chose to go a different route." Here's a tip, one that Jess (rightly) pointed out two Sundays ago -- no party holds primaries with a place-holders. That is ridiculous. If you can't declare you are running by a party's primary, you get no votes. You get no one holding your place. As Jess noted two Sundays ago, that needs to change immediately so that it never happens again. There's a chance of a roundtable at Third this Sunday to address this topic.

Ralph Nader's presidential website is up and running (and allowing comments). Among the topics written of thus far are impeachment and Palestinians. He has selected a running mate, Matt Gonzalez. Gonzalez is already doing what vice presidential candidates are supposed to do: hitting hard. Writing at CounterPunch, he takes on the myth of "anti-war" Barack Obama noting that, "I'm afraid to say I'm not just uninspired: I'm downright fearful. . . . First, he opposed the war in Iraq while in the Illinois state legislature. Once he was running for US Senate though, when public opinion and support for the war was at its highest, he was quoted in the July 27, 2004 Chicago Tribune as saying, 'There's not that much difference between my position and George Bush's position at this stage. The difference, in my mind, is who's in a position to execute.' The Tribune went on to say that Obama "now believes US forces must remain to stabilize the war-ravaged nation a policy not dissimilar to the current approach of the Bush administration.' Obama's campaign says he was referring to the ongoing occupation and how best to stabilize the region. But why wouldn't he have taken the opportunity to urge withdrawal if he truly opposed the war? Was he trying to signal to conservative voters that he would subjugate his anti-war position if elected to the US Senate and perhaps support a lengthy occupation? Well, as it turns out, he's done just that." The myth of "anti-war" Barack Obama was addressed here last night so we'll instead focus on Hillary Clinton.

Hillary is running for the Democratic presidential nomination. The following statement is from Senator Clinton's office, not her campaign:

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton announced today that she has cosponsored legislation to ban the use of Blackwater and other private mercenary firms in Iraq.
"From this war's very beginning, this administration has permitted thousands of heavily-armed military contractors to march through Iraq without any law or court to rein them in or hold them accountable. These private security contractors have been reckless and have compromised our mission in Iraq. The time to show these contractors the door is long past due. We need to stop filling the coffers of contractors in Iraq, and make sure that armed personnel in Iraq are fully accountable to the U.S. government and follow the chain of command," said Senator Clinton.The legislation requires that all personnel at any U.S. diplomatic or consular mission in Iraq be provided security services only by Federal Government Personnel. It also includes a whistleblower clause to protect contract personnel who uncover contract violations, criminal actions, or human rights abuses.

As KeShawn pointed out in an e-mail today, Hillary Clinton's endorsements do not get noted on Democracy Now! -- though Goodman can repeat in headlines (two days in a row this week) the same endorsement of Barack -- among her recent endorsers is Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba. He joins a lengthy list of retired military and defense officials who have endorsed her (active military cannot make endorsements) and you can read about that at her campaign site. Hillary was in Waco, Texas today and among the issues she addressed was reducing the strain on US service members so that they will be deployed for 12 months and not the 15 month tours that have become the norm. Bully Boy could stop that now. He could have stopped it before it began. As noted yesterday, US House Rep Patrick Murphy asked General George Casey if Congress needed to pass legislation to get the tour of duty down to 12 months and keep it there but Casey felt it would 'tie up' the military's hands. Today in Waco, Hillary pledged that any US service member serving a 12 month tour of overseas "will have at least 12 months at home." She also addressed the issue of veterans' care and the need for a new GI Bill of Rights. Meanwhile, her opponet Barack Obama's homophobia is the subject of Susan UnPC's recent post (No Quarter) which notes Bambi's heebie-jeebies when he came to the Bay Area. Don't worry, Laura Flanders grants him absolution or at least provides silence from her perch as "out lesbian" for Bambi. Meanwhile Taylor Marsh (TaylorMarsh.com) notes that the Canadian government was warned by Bambi's campaign prior to Tuesday's debate not to pay attention to Bambi's NAFTA remarks, they were just words. She covers it here as well and offers a video.

From video to radio. WBAI's pledge drive is ending and Sunday The Nex Hour offers "Post-Warholian radio artists Andrew Andrew host." That's at 11:00 am to noon EST Sunday on NYC airwaves and streaming on WBAI while Monday they offer Cat Radio Cafe from 2:00 to 3:00 pm EST: "Poet Marie Howe reads from her new collection, "The Kingdom of Ordinary Time"; actor/playwright Brian Dykstra on his new one-man show on religion, "The Jesus Factor"; and actor Paul Hecht and musician Lisa Terry on "Parthenia, a Consort of Viols, Presents Hot Off the Press Concert of New Music and Poetry." Hosted by Janet Coleman and David Dozer."

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