The shameful Harry Reid

Hump day.  Closer to the weekend.  But not by much.  This is Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "The Taxer"




Harry Reid looks like a little bitch as he runs around saying 'someone told me Mitt Romney hadn't paid taxes!'

Is he the Majority Leader in the Senate or some little bitch playing a game of telephone?

He should be ashamed of himself.

And he needs to learn to act like a man.  How sad that at the age of 70, he's gotta act like one because he can't naturally be one.




And that's "Obama That I Used To Know" which is so funny and has gone from 20,000 views on Monday night to 255,000.

That's because we love to hear the truth.  And this video offers more truth than you'll find in an hour of MSM news.  It's hilarious.

And it really captures the disenchantment so many have with Barack

AP reports Barack's saying Mitt Romney would take health care back to the 50s.  I know Barack thinks that's an awful insult but he forgets what a shine people put on the 50s.  Does he not get how popular Fonzie and Happy Days are?

Meanwhile CBS is trying to predict three states.  By the margin, I'd say they're still too close to call.


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

Wednesday, August 8, 2012.  Chaos and violence continue, a government prosecutor is targeted in Iraq, Nouri betrays the latest agreement, Iraqi politicians worry what Nouri might have of them on tape, the withdrawal-of-confidence vote comes to a halt, and more.   The administration didn't want a welcome home parade for the veterans in December of later this year.  Some reasons were valid.  The country is supposed to be watching the spending and the money Congress had originally allocated for a national parade had actually been spent years ago.  Some reasons made no sense at all.  The administration claimed that since some Iraq War veterans were in Afghanistan currently, it wouldn't be right to have a parade for Iraq War veterans.  When the US finally leaves Afghanistan, what will the excuse be?  There will always be -- barring a major shift in foreign policy -- US troops stationed on something other than American soil.  The administration also felt the need to pressure NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg not to hold a parade.   What happened instead is that parades have taken place in local communities.  St. Louis is where it kicked off.  Craig Schneider and Tom Appelbaum got together and organized a parade for the veterans.  It was a huge success that spawned many other parades.  In July, many people were disappointed, some were outraged.  I was outraged (see "The violence and the whores" and "Iraq snapshot") and so was Trina ("Thanks Tom Appelbaum").  Across the country people worked very hard, inspired by the work in St. Louis to do something to acknowledge the veterans.  This was individuals working together.  And there were plans for future parades later in the year.  But the parades worked because they were about the veterans.   Tom Appelbaum decided to whore the parade in July (see Trina and my pieces).  He turned the  St. Louis parade into an advertisement for Barack Obama.  The ridiculous commercial credited Barack with the parade.  Barack didn't donate an hour of organizing or a dime from his bank account.  Nor did he attend the parade.  The parade was about the veterans and Tom Applebaum didn't (my opinion) have enough respect for the veterans to refuse to whore for the Obama campagin.  The parade had nothing to do with Democrats or Republicans or any label other than "veteran."   Craig Schneider co-organized the parade.  He did not take part in the Obama campaign commercial.  He has penned a column for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch entitled "People, not politics."  It is an intelligent and deeply felt column.  Please use the link to read the entire column.  Here is an excerpt.   The news was personally upsetting for two reasons. First because its message is in clear contradiction of the apolitical nature of the 501(c)3 organization that grew from the January event, upon which the two volunteers sat. The organization has asked for their resignation. But the bigger concern about the ad stems from how upside down it seemed to turn the very nature of the movement that began in St. Louis and has since spread to more than 20 cities. All around the country this year, a loose and unpaid coalition of volunteers from all sectors has come together in the universal understanding summarized by the motto of this grass-roots movement: Those who did and still serve are people. They aren't politics. Since the beginning of the post-9/11 age of combat, one of our greatest failures as a society has been the emotional distance we've allowed ourselves to keep between our wars and the people we send to fight them. We've placed the enormous burden of 10 years of multi-front warfare onto less than 2 percent of our population, forcing men and women to leave home and go risk death not once, but two or three or four times. Or more. While our sons and daughters have died, taken bullets and bombs for us and returned from multiple trips to hell with wounds both inside and out, the other 98 percent of us back here have bickered over "the troops" as if they were some abstract thing. They are not. They are people. They are us.   Again, it is a very important column.  Craig Schneider works to put veterans first.  In the Congress, the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee is an example where party label is not an issue of great importance and Democrats and Republicans who might not work together on any other issue find a way to come together over what's in the best interests of veterans.  Though all members of the Committee reach out to one another (including Senator Bernie Sanders who is neither a Democrat or a Republican), the largest credit for that has to go to Chair Patty Murray and Ranking Member Richard Burr who set such a strong example and such high standards.   Without that example and that desire to work together, this week's victory would not have taken place.  As Kat noted last night in "Camp Lejeune (justice finally)," the victims of Camp Lejeune finally got recognized with President Barack Obama signing into law the Honoring America's Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act of 2012.  This is an issue that Senator Burr has worked years on.  Chair Murray said it would get a floor vote and it did.  She said it would be signed this summer and it was.   The Senate is in recess allowing its members to return home.  That doesn't mean work stops.  Senator Murray's office notes:   FOR PLANNING PURPOSES Wednesday, August 8th, 2012 CONTACT: Murray Press Office (202) 224-2834   TOMORROW: VETERANS: Murray in Seattle to Discuss New Veterans Jobs Bill with Secretary of Veterans Affairs Senator Murray will outline Veterans Jobs Corps bill, legislation that helps veterans overcome barriers they face when finding employment   (Washington, D.C.) -- Tomorrow, Thursday, August 9th, 2012, U.S. Senator Patty Murray, Chairman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, joins Secretary of Veteran Affairs Eric Shinseki at the Port of Seattle for a press conference on veterans jobs.  Senator Murray will highlight a bill she is sponsoring in the Senate, the Veterans Jobs Corps bill.  Senator Murray's bill is modeled of successful job training programs across the country and in states like Washington.  The Veterans Jobs Corps bill would build on the gains already made with Senator Murray's VOW to Hire Heroes Act, and serves as a $1 billion investment in veterans and their capacity to strengthen America. Over the next five years, the Veterans Jobs Corps would: increase training and hiring opportunities for all veterans; help restore and protect national, state, and tribal forests, parks, coastal areas, wildlife refuges, and cemeteries.  It will also help hire qualified veterans as police, firefighters, and first responders at a time when 85 percent of law enforcement agencies were forced to reduce their budget in the past year.  Senator Murray will point out that this bill contains bipartisan ideas, is fully paid for with bipartisan spending offsets, and should not be controversial at a time when veterans continue to struggle. The Port of Seattle was recently recognized with The Freedom Award, the Department of Defense's highest recognition given to employers for exceptional support of our Guard and Reserve members.   WHO: U.S. Senator Patty Murray            Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki            Tay Yoshitani, Port of Seattle CEO             Veterans currently employed by the Port of Seattle   WHAT: Senator Murray and Secretary Shinseki discuss new veterans jobs legislation   WHEN: TOMORROW: Thursday, August 9th, 2012              10:00 AM PT   WHERE: Port of Seattle Marine Maintenance Facility                 25 S. Horton Street                 Seattle, WA 98134                 Map   ###   Kathryn Robertson Specialty Media Coordinator Office of U.S. Senator Patty Murray 448 Russell Senate Office Building Washington D.C. 20510 202-224-2834   Senator Patty Murray's office   Senator Murray's YouTube Channel   Senator Murray's Press Office Twitter Account   RSS Feed for Senator Murray's office   Tomorrow the high for the day in Baghdad is supposed to be 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit).  And as if Iraq didn't have enough hot air of late, two government spokespeople try to add to it.  Mohammad al-Qaisi (al-Shorfa) reports that Ministry of the Interior spokespersons Hikmat Mahmoud al-Masari and Adel Dahham see al Qaeda in Iraq 'imploding' and they know -- in their heart of hearts, they really, really know -- this is happening due to events like last month when they discovered the bodies of two leaders in one house -- both were dead!   The events of today have already slapped them across the face.  But, since thinking caps appear to be in short supply at the Ministry of the Interior, let's provide them the walk through that they're too dumb to see.   Whether it's a mafia movie or a vampire movie, when the 'bad guys' start turning up dead, that generally means that something even more violent and destructive has decided to move in and take over.  So rejoicing over those two dead leaders?  The Ministry of the Interior would be better off grasping something more powerful than those two leaders is now what they will be up against.     July 22nd, the Islamic State of Iraq released an audio recording announcing a new campaign of violence entitled Breaking The Walls which would include prison breaks and killing "judges and investigators and their guards." The last weeks have demonstrated that ISI is serious about pursuing those goals.  Their determination is also clear with an attack on a government prosecutor this morning. KUNA reports unknown assailants invaded a Baiji home (Salahuddin Province) and killed 8 members of one family.  Kitabat adds that a government prosecutor lived in the house and that one of the sons was also an attorney.  In addition, they note that the attack took place at five in the morning and that there was some effort to burn the corpses after.  Alsumaria quotes a police source stating that the assailants stormed the home, firing automatic weapons as they did, killing the government prosecutor, his father, his sisters and brothers and a family member that hasn't been identified so far.  Xinhua identifies the prosecutor as Adnan Khayrallah and they note, "The attackers shot dead Adana, his father, three women, two children along with a guest, the source said without giving further details."   The Hong Kong Standard spells the name of the prosecutor as "Khayrallah Shati" and says he and his wife, their five sons and an unidentified 8th relative were killed. In addition, a Suwayrah car bombing left many dead and many injured, BBC News notes.  Prashant Rao (AFP) explains that "a vehilce packed with explosives ripped through a group of Shiite worshippers during a commemoration ceremony."  AFP counts 13 dead and thirty injured.  Also Alsumaria reports a senior officer in the Ministry of Defense was shot dead by unknown assailants in Baghdad and that robbers stole 53 million dinars from a Kirkuk banking center (ASE Banking).  (53 million dinars is about 46,000 in US dollars.)   The big story in Iraq today is a fear of political violence.  What would you do if you held public office in a fundamentalist nation and, privately, you did a few things you'd like to keep hidden?  And what would you do if you then found out that those private moments had been taped?     Both Kitabat and Al Mada report  the big rumor swirling around Baghdad:  Nouri plans to destroy political rivals via "sex tapes."  Spy equipment and technology have been used in the homes and offices of rivals -- Nouri's bugged them.  There has been talk of blackmail tapes being used as signatures were gathered for a withdrawal of confidence vote in Parliament.  The rumors tended to glom on Iraqi President Jalal Talabani -- that Nouri had persuaded him to switch sides via a meeting where he showed Jalal the fruits of his spying.  There are said to be sound and video recordings.  MP Haider Mullah states that this would be "cheap" and "undignified" if it has taken place.  The articles note an AKnews report on a female MP being taped having sex with her husband.  The article is in Arabic -- no English version at AKnews -- and it states that government employees have secretly filmed her having sex with her husband.  The rumors -- which have swirled since the end of May -- probably gathered heat as a result of an event earlier this week. Dropping back to Monday's snapshot: All Iraq News notes that someone has released a fuzzy (audio and video) taped meeting from last year between Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi and Iraqiya leader Ayad Allawi following Allawi's meeting with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.  Iraqiya is calling for an investigation into where the tape originated and who released it. As the rumors swirl, Alsumaria notes, Speaker of Parliament Osama al-Nujafi has declared that the move towards questioning Nouri before Parliament has now come to a halt.  Al Mada's report notes the CIA has taped many Iraqi politicians and that may remind some of when the US was spying on the United Nations in 2003.  Martin Bright, Ed Vulliamy and Peter Beaumont (Observer) reported: The United States is conducting a secret 'dirty tricks' campaign against UN Security Council delegations in New York as part of its battle to win votes in favour of war against Iraq. Details of the aggressive surveillance operation, which involves interception of the home and office telephones and the emails of UN delegates in New York, are revealed in a document leaked to The Observer. The disclosures were made in a memorandum written by a top official at the National Security Agency - the US body which intercepts communications around the world - and circulated to both senior agents in his organisation and to a friendly foreign intelligence agency asking for its input. The memo describes orders to staff at the agency, whose work is clouded in secrecy, to step up its surveillance operations 'particularly directed at... UN Security Council Members (minus US and GBR, of course)' to provide up-to-the-minute intelligence for Bush officials on the voting intentions of UN members regarding the issue of Iraq. A year later, Ewen MacAskill (Guardian) reported: The United Nations spying row widened on Friday when former weapons inspector Hans Blix revealed he suspected his UN office and his home in New York were bugged in the run-up to the Iraq war. Dr Blix said he expected to be bugged by the Iraqis, but to be spied on by the US was a different matter. He described such behaviour as disgusting, adding: "It feels like an intrusion into your integrity in a situation when you are actually on the same side." He said he went to extraordinary lengths to protect his office and home, having a UN counter-surveillance team sweep both for bugs. "If you had something sensitive to talk about, you would go out into the restaurant or out into the streets," he said. Dr Blix's fears were reinforced when he was shown photographs by a senior member of the Bush Administration that, he insists, could only have been obtained through underhand means. His accusations came after former British cabinet minster, Clare Short said US-British intelligence bugged the office of the United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Probably not a good idea for the US to be without a US Ambassador to Iraq currently.  Would the US tape Iraqi politicians and turn the goods over to their pet Nouri to allow him to blackmail other politicians?  Both the Bush administration and the Barack administration spent their waking hours with activities that ensured people would be ready to believe such a rumor. The US-brokered an agreement recently.  Remember?  It was going to lower tensions between the Iraqi military and the Peshmerga (KRG force).  That was Monday.  AKnews reports today that the agreement has yet to be signed.  In what the Kurds will most likely see as a huge betrayal of this new agreement, AKnews reports, "A force from the Iraqi army has been stationed at the borders of Saadiya, Diyala province, said a chief of Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in Saadiya.  The force from the 20th Army Brigade which was stationed in Meqdadiya before has been moved to Saadiya on the pretext that the security of Saadiya is deteriorating, said Hassan Abdul-Rahman, KDP chief of Khabat neighborhood in Saadiya."    'Security' Nouri style.  Blackwater once provided 'security' (terrorized the Iraqis) in Iraq.  They went on to become Xe and now Academi.  Like many a shady person, they employ mulitple aliases.  Joseph Neff and Jay Price (McClatchy Newspapers) report on how the US government has again betrayed the people: "The military contractor formerly known as Blackwater ended a long-running criminal investigation Tuesday by admitting to lawbreaking that ranged from possessing illegal machine guns at its Camden County, N.C., training grounds to attempting to land $15 billion in oil and defense contracts in southern Sudan while U.S. companies were barred from doing business there."  They broke the laws and all the multi-billion dollar business has to do is pay a measly fine of $7.5 million dollars.  They hurt Iraqis and no one will do jail time for this offense or any other.   Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2012/08/07/160843/contractor-formerly-known-as-blackwater.html#storylink=cpy Meanwhile the same administration that overseas letting Blackwater off scott free is the administration that wants to lock Bradley Manning away forever.  Bradley's court-martial was scheduled to begin September 21st.  Monday April 5, 2010, WikiLeaks released US military video of a July 12, 2007 assault in Iraq. 12 people were killed in the assault including two Reuters journalists Namie Noor-Eldeen and Saeed Chmagh. Monday June 7, 2010, the US military announced that they had arrested Bradley Manning and he stood accused of being the leaker of the video. Leila Fadel (Washington Post) reported in August 2010 that Manning had been charged -- "two charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The first encompasses four counts of violating Army regulations by transferring classified information to his personal computer between November and May and adding unauthorized software to a classified computer system. The second comprises eight counts of violating federal laws governing the handling of classified information." In March, 2011, David S. Cloud (Los Angeles Times) reported that the military has added 22 additional counts to the charges including one that could be seen as "aiding the enemy" which could result in the death penalty if convicted. The Article 32 hearing took place in December.  At the start of this year, there was an Article 32 hearing and, February 3rd, it was announced that the government would be moving forward with a court-martial.  Bradley has yet to enter a plea and has neither affirmed that he is the leaker nor denied it.   On this week's Out-FM (Tuesday nights, seven p.m. EST, WBAI), John Riley and Bob Lederer covered Bradley by speaking with two reporters covering the case.    Bob Lederer: This is Bob Lederer with John Riley reporting for WBAI 99.5 FM and we're here at Fort Meade, Maryland.  And today we've just finished the 6th pre-trial hearing in the court-martial of accused whistle blower Bradley Manning -- the openly gay Army intelligence analyst who is facing 22 charges stemming from his alleged disclosure of nearly 3/4 of a million documents and videos to WikiLeaks.  Some of these materials show evidence of War Crimes and other inappropriate conduct by the US government and its allies.  The pre-trial hearings have been presided over by military Judge Denise Lynd.  The actual court-martial trial over which she will also preside is not expected to begin until some time next year.    This is part two of Bob Lederer and John Riley's reporting.  We noted the first part in the August 1st snapshot.  Marcia pointed out that night that she was suprised (and angry) to learn that the court-martial was being postponed.  Apparently, to allow Barack to look his best before the election, the court-martial of a whistle blower must take place after America votes.  Bradley's already been imprisoned for over 800 days.   Bob Lederer:  Another ruling by the judge had to do with the next pre-trial hearing scheduled for August 27th through 31st at which Bradley Manning's lawyer will argue that Manning who has been held now in pre-trial detention for upwards of two years was subjected to eight months of illegal treatment in solitary confinement at the Marine Brig in Quantico, Virginia.  Kevin, can you summarize what that treatment was?  What witnesses and physical evidence his attorney moved to be require be provided during the upcoming hearing?  And what the judge ruled on this issue?   Kevin Gostola:  So the defense reported this in December 2010.  And he said, on his blog, he keeps a blog, and he updated everyone on the fact that Bradley Manning was in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day which is something that the government says he wasn't in solitary confinement.  That's just not what they call it.  He talked about how Bradley Manning was under confinement conditions that stemmed from something that the Marines or the military calls "prevention of injury watch."  Or suicide risk.  So a detainee can be placed under this restriction and that means that he's a maximum custody prisoner or it's believed that he could endanger himself. So they do these things to him that could be considered onerous or inhumane basically.  And one of these things has to do with having to wear a smock.  So in some instances he was stripped naked because he said something that a commanding officer did not like and the commanding officer.   A military police officer, John Riley explained, then interrupted the interview. "This is freedom of the press at Fort Meade," declares Kevin Gostola.  Today, Rob Kall (OpEdNews) interviewed Dr. Jill Stein and, among the topics they discussed was, her recent arrest.  Excerpt.   Rob Kall: Now from my understanding is that you came to Pennsylvania, went to Harrisburg.  You were involved in getting things finalized and then you got yourself arrested.   Jill Stein: That's right.  For the first time in my life, I have to say.   Rob Kall: Good.  Congratulations.    Jill Stein: That's right. I'm now a member of a very big club.  Yeah.   Rob Kall:  Well what happened?   Jill Stein: We -- You know we have a very strong network in Pennyslvania that Cherie Honkala is very much connected with.  And this is the Poor People's Economic Network.  And they and Cherie and the Green Party have been fighting the foreclosure crisis that is just raging in Philadelphia and other places around the country.  So we have been long supporting two women and their families that have been trying to hold onto their homes and are basically in the foreclosure process thanks to Fannie Mae which we as tax payers basically own.  They continue to throw families out of their homes.  And these two women in particular had very unjust cases against them.  One had inherited the house from her mother.  Yet when her mother died, the bank put it into foreclosure  and refused to deal with her.  She's a working woman. She lives in the house. She has the ability to absorb the mortgage which, by the way was a reverse mortgage in order to take of the mother's health problems in her final years.  Another example of what's broken -- our health car system.  And we're having to put our homes into hock in order to afford health care in this unjust health care system. And we're having to put our homes into hock in order to afford health care in this unjust health care system.  And then people are getting thrown out of their homes because the banks are looking to do that, looking for every excuse they can get to take possession of a home which is completely unjust and, you know, illegal.  Every legal means has been pursued including efforts to change these laws and nothing has been forthcoming.  So we went into Fannie Mae, along with a large group of supporters, had a demonstration outside on behalf of these two home owners.  And we basically went into Fannie Mae  to ask them to please sit down, to bargain in good faith to keep these home owners in their homes.   And they offered to basically  buy them off for a small fee. They offered them $2,000 if they would just go away bit did not offer really to negoiate and revise their morgates agreements and enable them to -- recognize them as owners of their homes and allow them to stay.  So we all sat down until such a time as they would do this and five of us were arrested -- basically for trespassing.   Rob Kall: Had you thought ahead and planned to do this?  Was this a decision that you made ahead of time?   Jill Stein:  Well we made the decision that we were going to go to the mat for these home owners and that we were going to do everything in our power to make the banks do what they're supposed to do -- which is negoiate to keep home owners in their homes.  That's why we bailed them out -- you know, to the tune of some four-and-a-half-trillion dollars  in bailouts.  Plus another 16 trillion in free loans.  You know that was in order to keep home owners in their homes and protect our communities from the devestation of foreclosure which is not just a problem for the home owner. It's really a problem for the whole community.  And it beomes really a blight of vacant buildings which is a real problem, brings down everybody's home.       In November, elections will be held in the United States.  Among the offices up for a vote? The White House.  Jill Stein is the Green Party's presidential candidate.  Yana Kunichoff (Truthout) interviewed Stein yesterday.  Excerpt.   YK: You have been running your campaign both at the grassroots level and the electoral level. Tell me about bringing those two together.   JS: It's about bringing the fight that's going on at the grassroots level, for our homes, for jobs, for affordable healthcare, to have tuitions that a student can afford. These fights are actively going on in our communities, but they are not currently represented in electoral politics. They are not on the horizon of two major parties, they are busy talking about Mitt Romney's tax forms or latest gaffes, anything but the real problems that Americans are struggling with and how we are going to fix them. Bringing the grassroots struggle into electoral politics and challenging the hijack of our electoral system and Wall Street gives me the liberty to talk about what we need and how we are going to fix these things. We need a green economy if we are going to survive. The public is aware that we need to bring the troops home now. It's so exciting to me that there is a kind of real focusing now of the public voice, and the public mindset, and to my mind it's very exciting to be able to provide a political vehicle for that consensus that has begun to really come into focus.   YK: The assumption that both the Republicans and Democrats work on is that Americans lean to the right, and therefore the national debate must constantly be moved rightward to engage the most people possible. But your experience seems to show a different consensus.   JS: I think it's pretty clear from polls across the country that there is a rapidly declining interest in the Democrats. The approval of Congress is in the single digits. It's no secret that people are not happy with what the two political parties are proposing. We launched our campaign at a middle of the road university in Illinois [Western Illinois University]. I was asked to come by a woman who was my campaign manager on campus and asked me to come on election night. So I thought it over and called her back and said 'Sure,' because young people are what our campaign is all about, the only campaign that is actually addressing the crisis that young people are facing. Of course we are going to come, we are going to kick off our campaign at your college. I had six minutes to explain to a group that had never voted green or lefty or independent.     Jill Stein will be on Let's Talk Radio tonight.  Tim Sullivan (WNYC) explains why he's voting for Jill Stein this time and not Barack Obama who had his vote in 2008:   He withdrew from Iraq, yes, but on Bush's timetable; he escalated the war in Afghanistan; he spent a billion dollars intervening in Libya; he continued the "extraordinary rendition" program; and failed not only to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, but even to prosecute its inmates in our civilian federal courts. Domestically, I don't even want to discuss Obamacare, which is not national health insurance by any stretch of the imagination, but we must. I still find it surreal that the Democrats, controlling the White House and both houses of Congress, failed to institute national health insurance, partly because the administration, and the party's recent vice-presidential nominee (Joseph Lieberman), bowed to the insurance lobby. On the energy front, the U.S. has not even begun a serious transition to alternatives to carbon fuels. And, somehow, the Democrats have become a party that supports capital punishment, despite massive evidence that it has failed miserably and is applied in a racist manner. Economically, the president extended the Bush-Paulson bailouts and acquiesced in renewal of the Bush tax cuts, despite repeated vows to the contrary. As for social spending, I expect the Republicans to advocate cuts in Medicare and Social Security, but I'm still trying to figure out how the Democrats can, with a straight face, do the same.  Furthermore, in a policy that boggles the mind, Obama brags about having cut the payroll tax, the primary source of funding for Social Security. The Green Party is on the other side of all those issues, foreign and domestic. I don't agree with everything the Greens advocate, but on the issues that I consider most significant for America's future, the Greens are on the right track.     Reality-Based Educator (Perdido Street School) confesses, "I haven't settled on my 2012 vote just yet, other than I will NOT be voting for either Mitt Romney or Barack Obama -- both of whom are corporatist whores looking to complete the nation's move to neo-feudalism.  I am debating voting for Jill Stein of the Green Party.  But I am intrigued by the Peace and Freedom Party, which is running Roseanne Barr and Cindy Sheehan on its ticket."  Lucas Grindley (Advocate) wonders if Roseanne will be seen as another choice for LGBT voters and notes her history on that issue:   The television star has long been an outspoken supporter of LGBT rights. She was named  The Advocate's "Person of the Year" in 1994 and included in its "Heroes" list for successfully fighting producers and network executives to include some of television's first realistic portrayals of gay characters. She has two siblings who are gay and who have long been in relationships. Barr's sister and partner have been together for 25 years and have twin daughters. Her brother and partner of 26 years have grandchildren. "They deserve every ounce of equality with any other Americans," Barr told The Advocate. "They are wonderful, productive human beings, and are the reason I am such an activist for LGBT issues and always will be." Always the comedian, she added, "I just wish one of my relationships had lasted as long as theirs!"   Third Party Politics notes that "Roseanne Barr has won the presidential nomination of the Peace & Freedom Party."  And Abigail Pesta (Daily Beast) interviews Roseanne about her campaign:     Among the key points in her platform, Barr says she wants to cut back on military spending and bases abroad, bring troops home, create a financial-transaction tax, crack down on corporate outsourcing of jobs overseas, and remove caps on taxes for the rich. She also wants to create a single-payer health-care system and legalize marijuana.  She believes prison time should be reserved for violent criminals—with the exception of the Wall Street bankers who have "defrauded the working class and middle class," she says. "Those people should be in jail." She thinks her history as a comedian works in her favor, not against. "In order to be able to write a good joke, you have to find the truth," she says. "I've spent 30 years as a comedian focused on working-class issues. Working-class people do not have a vote in this country. That's the real reason why I'm running and why I've put up my own money to seek ballot access in all 50 states. I will keep running till I win." Barr says the government is "not supposed to be run like a business" and is "supposed to protect people from fat cats." She adds, "They had the big bubble that they created. If you watched cable TV, you just saw all the time: 'Time for a second mortgage!' That was a scam, just theft." She calls the battle between Republicans and Democrats a choice between "Satan and Satan."          iraq kuna  kitabat al mada alsumaria xinhua the hong kong standard afp the observer martin bright ed vulliamy peter beaumont the guardian ewen macaskill

One damn liar

Tuesday and we've already found a HUGE liar.  You know people should be ashamed of themselves.  I say we take these political spinners -- on all sides -- and when we catch them lying, we rinse their mouths out with soap.

We can start with Mo Elleithee who was on The NewsHour (PBS) tonight and couldn't stop lying.  Barack, Mo The Moron insisted, doesn't have a money problem and he's doing very well among small donor.


Here's Mo The Moron:



One area where I think I would differ slightly from Rick is -- or actually agree with him is that giving does indicate a certain amount of support. And when you look at the small grassroots donations that the Obama campaign is receiving, there's no question a vast majority -- or a significant amount of his money is coming from small donors.
The majority of his donors are people that have given $200 or less. And that can't be said about the Republican Party. And I read some astonishing figure on the way over here about how -- I think it's like 17 -- or 80-some percent of all the money that has been given in this election campaign is coming from just a very, very, very small group of people. That says a lot about the shifting paradigm of campaign fundraising.


That would fly if we were stupid like Mo.

But most of us remember 2008 and the non-stop claims of the 'small donoors' who were funding Barack's run.

Mo, when you choose to lie, at least choose a new lie, you damn dirty liar.


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

Tuesday, August 7, 2012.  Chaos and violence continue, two more oil companies sign with the KRG, Bagdhad continues to fume,  the PKK reportedly kidnaps Turkish soldiers,  Bonnie Faulkner and Frank Morales talk NDAA, Medea Benjamin and Matthew Rothschild talk drones, and more.     On this week's Progressive Radio, Medea Benjamin is Matthew Rothschild's guest.  Excerpt.     Matthew Rothschild:  Today I'm delighted to have back in the studio with me the co-founder of CODEPINK, Medea Benjamin who's got a crucially important new book out called Drone Warfare: Killing By Remote Control. Medea Benjamin, welcome back to Progressive Radio.   Medea Benjamin:  Thank you, Matt.  Nice to be here.   Matthew Rothschild:  You know, you've been what I'd like to call "a witness to empire."  "A Witness to US Empire."  You've gone to Iraq during the war.  You've gone to Afghanistan.  What's it like to be A Witness to US Empire?   Medea Benjamin: It's very sad because it's, uh, an empire that the rest of the world sees and that the American people don't so you feel kind of living in a surreal world when you come back to the US and realize the ignorance of the American people --   Matthew Rothschild:  Why don't we see it?   Medea Benjamin:  It's not talked about by our media.  Certainly not talked about by our elected officials except maybe [US House Rep] Ron Paul or  [US House Rep] Dennis Kucinich and we don't even have Dennis talking about it. It's kind of one of those dirty words.  You certainly don't use the word impearlism.  Sometimes, people like Ron Paul will use the word empire but it's kind of like, you know, just don't talk about that part of things and it's such a reality that effects every budget in this country, every part of our lives but people don't understand that we've got these hundreds and hundreds of bases around the world that we spend these billions of dollars on -- things that we don't want and we don't need and people don't want us to have and yet it goes on as if there's something inexorable about this.   Matthew Rothschild:  And to the extent that it's talked about except by you and a few others, you know, it's talked about as though it's a benign empire.  There is this whole group of academics who are saying the United States is [laughing] the first benign empire in the history of foreign policy or some such.   Medea Benjamin:  That's a very twisted definition of what benign means.   Twisted?  Like a fact checker who doesn't understand that facts are facts and either you do what you say or you don't?  Molly Moorhead writes for the creative Politifact and the two of them want to spin for Barack Obama: "In Iraq, he ended the war as he said he would, closely following the plan set out by his predecessor, President George W. Bush.  Obama even kept troops there longer than he pledged during his campaign."  Oh, Moorhead.  Oh, Moorhead.   PolitiFact, you can't keep a promise to end the war in 16 months and also follow Bush's plan.  PoliWhore, you can't keep your own campaign promise and "even kept troops there longer than he pledged during his campaign."   Do you get that?   Do you also get how offensive it is to Iraqis -- especially after they just saw July become the deadliest month in two years -- to say that Barack ended the war?  The Iraq War is not over and you really have to have your head up your ass to think that it is.   PolitiFact and Molly Moorhead, as they delve further, get a little more honest.       They quote Barack stating in October 2011, "Our troops will definitely be home for the holidays."  And that was a lie.  Even PolitiFact notes, "A small force of a few hundred Marines would remain to help train Iraqi forces, as well as a large diplomatic contingent."  And let's drop back to the June 19, 2012 snapshot, the day  the Senate Foreign Relations Committee released [PDF format warning] "The Gulf Security Architecture: Partnership With The Gulf Co-Operation Council" and where we quote from page 12 of that report:       Kuwait is especially keen to maintain a significant U.S. military presence. In fact, the Kuwaiti public perception of the United States is more positive than any other Gulf country, dating back to the U.S.-led liberation of Kuwait in 1991. Kuwait paid over $16 billion to compensate coalition efforts for costs incurred during Desert Shield and Desert Storm and $350 million for Operation Southern Watch. In 2004, the Bush Administration designated Kuwait a major non-NATO ally. * U.S. Military Presence: A U.S.-Kuwaiti defense agreement signed in 1991 and extended in 2001 provides a framework that guards the legal rights of American troops and promotes military cooperation. When U.S. troops departed Iraq at the end of 2011, Kuwait welcomed a more enduring American footprint. Currently, there are approximately 15,000 U.S. forces in Kuwait, but the number is likely to decrease to 13,500. Kuwaiti bases such as Camp Arifjan, Ali Al Salem Air Field, and Camp Buehring offer the United States major staging hubs, training rages, and logistical support for regional operations. U.S. forces also operate Patriot missile batteries in Kuwait, which are vital to theater missile defense.     When U. S troops departed Iraq at the end of 2011, Kuawait welcomed a more enduring American ootprint.  Currently, there are approximately 15,000 U.S. forces in Kuwait, but the number is likely to decrease to 13,500.   When do those US troops come home, PolitiFact?  When do your crap-ass, faux fact checking acknowledge those?  Oh, that's right, never.    Molly Moorhead and PolitiFact want you to know that, okay, yeah, it wasn't the campaign promise but Michael O'Hanlon is okay with it and he's left (centrist, right-leaning) and Jim Phillips is okay with it taking longer too and he's on the right, so, see it's okay that Barack really didn't stick to what he promised.    A fact checker checks the fact.  A fact checker doesn't offer excuses.  Facts are facts.  You can pull 'em out and play with them all day and they're not going to change.  You can wrap you mouth around them and even swallow -- as the folks at PolitiFact are so prone to do -- but that doesn't change facts.  Apparently fact checking was an ambitious task for PolitiFact and they need someone to come in -- with flash cards -- and explain to them what facts are before they next attempt to fact check.   As ridiculous and shameless as PolitiFact is Nouri al-Maliki -- thug and prime minister of the ongoing occupation in Iraq.  Xinhua reports that thug and prime minister Nouri al-Maliki declared yesterday, "The battle with  terrorism has ended and the remaining are cells here and there looking for an opportunity or a gap." This despite the Islamic State of Iraq recorded threats released July 22nd. Since then an Iraqi military helicopter has been downed, a Taji prison has been attacked, a Baghdad counter-terrorism centre (which held a number of terrorists) have been attacked and July was the deadliest month in Iraq in two years.  In addition, Sunday saw an attempted breakout of the Abu Ghraib prison.  Of that attempt, Aseel Kami (China Daily) explains, " A spokesman for the justice ministry , Haider al-Saadi , said in a statement that 11 ' dangerous prisoners ' at Abu Ghraib dug down three meters and had tunneled along 20 meters using a frying pan and part of a ceiling fan before they were discovered . They had fashioned breathing apparatus from soft-drink cans stuck end to end . " Nouri's claim comes as mass arrests continue in Iraq.  Ahlul Bayt News Agency reports that 13 have been arrested in Basra today.   And it comes, Al Rafidayn reports, as someone circulates rumors that Moqtada al-Sadr is attempting to re-arm the Madhi Army (Moqtada denies the rumors).  And if the terrorism is over, why is Dar Addustour reporting that Nouri has just transfered a large number of security forces from the southern provinces to Baghdad in order to beef up protection of the Green Zone?     The violence never ends or fades in Iraq.  Today Al Rafidayn reports a Babel Province house bombing claimed the life of 1 woman and left four of her children injured.  Alsumaria reports the corpse of one man was discovered (strangled and tortured) outside Kikuk, a Tikrit motor cycle bombing claimed the life of 1 police officer and left four more injured, a Baquba roadside bombing injured two people, and an Iraqi miliarty aerial bombardment of a Salahuddin Province home early this morning has claimed the life of 1 female and left four of her family members injured -- all five were sleeping in the family garden. Why were they sleeping outside?  Severe heat and lack of dependable electricity.  Alsumaria reports that the high in Baghdad for the next five day is expected to be 46 degrees Celsius which is 114.8 degrees Fahrenheit.  AFP speaks with Salahedding provincial council member Adel al-Sumaidai who explains it was his home and the woman who died was his sister.  He states that an Iraqi military helicopter fired a rocket.  AFP identifies the location for the motor cycle bombing as Baiji and they report 2 Iraqi soldiers were shot dead in Baghdad, 2 government workers were shot dead in Baghdad (Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Agriculture), police Col Abdel Monam al-Juburi was shot dead in al-Qayara and 1 person was shot dead in Mosul.  Travis Brecher (Reuters -- link is video) reports 2 Hilla bombings have claimed the lives of 4 children with six more left injured.   AP drops back to Monday to note a Hilla mini-bus bombing which claimed 4 lives and left five more people injured.  Through yesterday, Iraq Body Count reports at least 70 people have died from violence in Iraq so far this month.   In the latest news on the Kurdish rebels and the Turkish military, Brussels News Agency reports that 3 Turkish soldiers were kidnapped last night by Kurdish rebels according to a Turkish governor, Mustafa Toprak, who states they were taken off a bus and kidnapped.   AFP adds that Toprak states "ground and air operations were under way to find the kidnapped soldiers."  "Kurdish rebels" in these stories usually means PKK.  Aaron Hess (International Socialist Review) described the PKK in 2008, "The PKK emerged in 1984 as a major force in response to Turkey's oppression of its Kurdish population. Since the late 1970s, Turkey has waged a relentless war of attrition that has killed tens of thousands of Kurds and driven millions from their homes. The Kurds are the world's largest stateless population -- whose main population concentration straddles Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria -- and have been the victims of imperialist wars and manipulation since the colonial period. While Turkey has granted limited rights to the Kurds in recent years in order to accommodate the European Union, which it seeks to join, even these are now at risk." Chris Marsden (WSWS)  notes, "In the past fortnight, up to 115 Kurdish fighters have been killed in a south eastern Turkey in military operations, including air strikes near the town of Semdinli. Sunday saw a counter-offensive in which Kurdish forces raided three military posts near the Iraq border that left at least six soldiers and 14 rebels dead. Turkish officials claim to be combating a 200-strong force of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. Kurds make up 17 percent of Iraq's 31 million people, including the semi-autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, nine percent of Syria's 21 million population, and seven to ten percent of Iran's 75 million people."     Yesterday, a pipeline was bombed:   Reuters notes an overnight bombing targeting the oil pipeline between Iraq's Kirkuk and Turkey's Ceyhan has "knocked out flows and repairs are expected to take up to 10 days."  Platts adds, "The latest bombing comes as the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Province is gearing up to resume oil exports at a rate of 100,000 b/d. The KRG had said in a statement last week that it would start exports during the first week of August but there has been no word since on whether they have resumed or whether the latest development would force the resumption of exports to be postponed."     Reuters notes that the flow of oil is supposed to resume tomorrow with "a second line unaffected by" the bombing.  From yesterday's snapshot:    KUNA reports, "Iraqi Vice Presidential Khudayr Al-Khuzai on Monday decried what he called flagrant intervention by Turkey in the domestic affairs of Iraq."  Last week, Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu visited the KRG and, on Thursday, visited Kirkuk which outraged thug and prime minister Nouri al-Maliki who couldn't stop flapping his gums in yet another attempt by Nouri to show the world just how insane and unstable he is.   Today AFP reports, "Iraq is to 'review' relations with Turkey after Ankara's foreign minister visited the disputed northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk without informing Baghdad, government spokesperson Ali al-Dabbagh said on Tuesday." Press TV quotes Nouri's spokesperson stating, "The cabinet studied recent developments in Turkish-Iraqi relations and decided to review these relations in light of recent developments in a new cabinet meeting as soon as possible."  Anadolu Agency offers the Turkish government's take on the visit:   Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Selcuk Unal has said that Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's visit to northern Iraq previous week was beneficial in terms of delivering messages to regional administration in north of Iraq on coping with terrorism. Spokesman Unal answered the questions on "disislerinesorun" twitter account on Tuesday. Relating to questions over Turkish FM Davutoglu's historic visit to northern Iraq a week before, "Mister Davutoglu's visit to Irbil and Kirkuk on August 1-2 was considerably beneficial in terms of delivering messages to the regional administration in north of Iraq on dealing with terrorism," said Unal.   Sure to make Baghdad even angrier is the news from AP that Korea National Oil Corp and Posco Engineering and Construction Ltd. have just signed contracts with the KRG.     Lot of people want to do business with the KRG.  That has to do with resources but it also has to do with reputation.  (You'd think reputation concerns would have led Nouri al-Maliki to tone it down already -- not so far.)   Matteo Fagotto (alpha magazine) reports: This place is growing faster than Dubai. In four or five years Kurdistan will achieve what the Emirates did in 20. You will not be able to recognise it," says Cem Saffari. Looking down from the top floor of the 23-storey hotel where he works, overlooking a landscape dotted with construction cranes and new housing complexes, Saffari doesn't hide his pride and satisfaction when asked why he moved from a comfortable life in London to a job in Kurdistan, in the north-eastern region of Iraq. "It's a growing environment, which I like, and pioneers always win," he says. "There is a certain amount of risk in investing here, but we believe the turnover will be higher." Saffari is the Turkish business development manager of the luxury Divan Hotel in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. Open since May, the hotel is the Turkish group's first investment abroad. With 228 rooms priced from $500 (Dh1,836) to $15,000 a night, the hotel aims to host the growing number of business travellers willing to invest in a region that is experiencing one of the fastest rates of economic growth on earth. While the world was dealing with the global economic crisis, Kurdistan registered 8 per cent growth last year, driven by the exploitation of its gas and oil reserves estimated at 45 billion barrels. The region's per-capita GDP, at around $6,000, is 50 per cent higher than in the rest of Iraq. Erbil is enjoying the lion's share of a boom that has caused land prices to skyrocket. Housing complexes are springing up in the empty outskirts of the city, and some cost more than $1 million each. Shopping malls dot the city's landscape and luxury brands like Porsche are finally coming in to town. The city's stock exchange is scheduled to open in the coming months, together with a new business tower and several major hotels. The KRG was long ago dubbed "the other Iraq" by Western media early in the Iraq War.  Not only has violence been lower in the KRG than elsewhere in Iraq, its government has been more stable and demonstrated a desire to get along with and form ties with other surrounding countries while, in Baghdad, Nouri can't stop snarling one conspiracy theory after another about Saudi Arabia or Turkey or the UAE or Jordan or . . .  Hurriyet Daily News explains that the oil the KRG has is also part of the attraction: With one-third of Iraq's high-quality oil reserves buried under northern Iraqi soil, northern Iraq's lucrative oilfields have driven both small and large oil companies to risk angering Iraq's central government by entering into deals with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). Closer ties with Western companies and the possibility of exporting oil to further markets via Turkey are encouraging the KRG to operate even more independently of the central government. The 45 billion barrels of proven reserves, according to BP's annual estimates, have enticed the world's largest oil players, including Exxon Mobile, Total, Chevron and Gazprom, to make deals with the KRG despite the clear risks emerging from the lingering dispute between the autonomous administration in Arbil and the central Baghdad government, which has objected to being bypassed by recent deals. Peg Mackey and Andrew Callus (Reuters) add, "Executives say the move north by the big companies sends a message to Baghdad that its commercial terms on southern oilfield projects are unattractive, and that institutional chaos and the slow pace of postwar redevelopment are problems."      Turning to the United States where, as Matthew Rothschild and Medea Benjamin noted, too many important things are never discussed in most media.  Guns & Butter is a show that airs on KPFA.  Most of the time.  KPFA's been unable/unwilling to air the show since the middle of July (July 18th).  It's supposed to air tomorrow on KPFA (one p.m. PST).  The show has been airing Fridays on WBAI starting at nine a.m. as they've caught up on what they missed during their pledge drive.  Last Friday, WBAI broadcast the discussion with activist Priest Frank Morales about the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act.  Excerpt.   Bonnie Faulkner: With regards to this 2012 National Defense Authorization Act that President Obama signed, did government agencies request this legislation?   Father Frank Morales:  No.  As a matter of fact, most -- well large sectors of the military, elements within the Pentagon, within the Congressional Committees that are devoted to facilitating the Pentagon largess financially, state adjutant generals who oversee the National Guard operations in each state, its so-called intelligence professional within the "intelligence" community, etc. opposed this detention provision in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012.  I mean, obviously the American people and its representatives are not, at least publicly, agitating for being detained and doing away with habeas corpus -- namely the right to be accused in a court of law and shown the evidence of which you're accused and so forth.  So, no, it was not something that grew out of the call that would have been coming from governmental or military sectors.  [. . .]   Bonnie Faulkner:  Well right and the designation of a US citizen as an enemy combatant can simply be made by the White House, by who else?  I mean, every one is at risk, right, because that designation could be put on any of us.   Frank Morales:  Sure.  Practically speaking it may come down to a few folks in the White House who sit around with lists that are handed to them through various surveillance, Dept of Homeland Security, local CIA assets working within America, etc., etc.  who become targeted by this apparatus and done so in a legal way.  We have to remember that -- not to sound overly provocative -- but even during the Nazi period -- there's a great book called Hitler's Justice by Ingo Muller which talks about this -- the Nazis didn't come and just roll away the court system, push to negate it directly, they created a parrallel legal system.  So that, here in America, through the creation of military tribunals -- cause don't forget, these detained persons, would wind up in that particular venue -- and those structures created by Bush's executive orders and military orders back in 2002 and henceforth -- most recent 2009, the Obama people signed the Military Commissions Act which further consolidates this whole structure, legalizing if you will their whim after the fact.  Because that's the way power works. It doesn't play by the rules.  It creates rules and then sanctions them after the fact and that's what this military commission structure.  So that's -- that's the kind of thing we're looking at here with the NDAA.  So it's important that people not lose sight of the fact that [Judge] Katherine Forrest's decision is not the end of the road here.  We dodged a bullet, so to speak.  But it's very important that we now move pre-emptively as a movement throughout the country, in locales to de-legitamize and de-militarize our law enforcement.  And we can talk some more about that later.   Bonnie Faulkner:  Well, okay.  So then, for the moment, Judget Forrest's ruling stands --   Frank Morales:  Yes.   Bonnie Faulkner:  -- with regards to the NDAA and that American citizens, for the moment that is, cannot be picked up and held in indefinite detention with no charges, etc.  Now when we were talking about enemy combatants and that designation, that reminded me of that very famous New York Times article of a month or two ago about President Obama's Secret Kill List that he studies on 'Terror Tuesday.'  Every morning, he goes through an actual list of people supposedly in foreign countries but I suppose they could be anywhere -- American citizens for sure,  it's an assassinations list.  And that is how this American citizen in Yemen, [Anwar] al-Awlaki was actually assassinated by drones, right?   Frank Morales: Yeah, the Obama administration, as I said, the attempt by the administration to designate American citizens for detention without trial -- which is a naked violation of the Fourth and Fifth Amendments of the Constitution against unreasonable search and seizure and the guarantee of a trial --  we need to remember was preceded by this administration's "resolve" to assassinate at will Americans abroad and place them on a Kill List and eliminate them according to the New York Times, as you mentioned, secret kill list article on May 29th of this year.  The article in the New York Times speaks in terms of the president and his advisors having made it clear that they have the authority to "order the targeted killing of an American citizen in a country with which the United States was not at war, in secret and without the benefit of a trial."  Now the Justice Dept's Office of Legal Counsel rationalized such a move in a lengthy memo, justifying the extraordinary step, asserting that while the Fifth Amendment's guarantee of Due Process applied, it could be satisifed by internal deliberations in the Executive Branch.  Well according to what we've learned later, these internal deliberations allowed for Mr. Obama to give his approval and the cleric Anwar al-Awlaki was assassinated on September 2011 along with an associate, Samir Khan, an American citizen who is not even on the target list but happened to be traveling with Mr. al-Awlaki.      It is an election year in the US, a presidential election year in fact.  Jill Stein is the Green Party's presidential candidate.  Her campaign released the following this week:   The lackluster jobs and unemployment numbers released Friday contain a warning for America that is being missed by a media obsessed with their impact on President Obama's election chances, according to Jill Stein, presidential nominee of the Green Party. "Our economy is indeed floundering. It's not delivering for the American people. Mitt Romney is right on that. But we need to start a serious discussion that goes beyond whether this gives an edge to Mitt Romney in attacking the President. The sickness of our economy is directly attributable to misguided economic policies pursued by Republican George Bush and Democrat Barack Obama, who both consistently favored an economic system that is driving America into poverty." "Romney doesn't have a single credible solution. He just urges blind faith in trickle down policies that have failed time after time. And President Obama's approach is to keep the whole failing system going toward an ultimate meltdown that we won't be able to fix. We are in serious trouble if we don't recognize that both Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are leading us toward disaster." Stein explained her economic approach as follows: "Unemployment is a cancer that is destroying communities and sapping the lifeblood of our economy. The urgency to deal with it just isn't there in Washington. Both Democrats and Republicans fire public employees and cancel government contracts. Then they endlessly wait for some rich person to create decent jobs. It's not just the delay that is disastrous. A lot of the money going to the wealthy investors is used to move jobs overseas or to automate factories to eliminate jobs. This trickle-down thinking has to end." "In contrast, our Green New Deal uses direct job creation to end unemployment. We will create 25 millions jobs. We will give communities that are hardest hit by unemployment the green light to create the type of jobs they need in the quantities they need. Every unemployed person that we put back to work in this way will give a stimulus to the economy. The immediate result will be to end the Bush/Obama recession immediately and decisively." "It concerns me that the Obama stimulus plans are not effectively targeted to the urban areas where rampant unemployment is undermining the health of communities and creating social decay that will take generations to repair. This is an emergency. Building bridges in suburbia is fine, but if we lose these communities we will be paying the price for decades. The Green New Deal goes directly to where unemployment is worst with enough new jobs to stop the bleeding. The Obama/Romney approach leaves the targeting of investments up to self-serving CEO's, and that is usually a disaster for our distressed communities." "We also need to start talking about wages, a topic that you'll find in Green Party discussions but which is carefully avoided in the Obama/Romney dialogue. Americans deserve a pay raise. Worker productivity has risen, but the increased wealth thus created has gone into the pockets of the economic elite, and hasn't been reflected in increased wages. Younger workers are struggling under two-tier wage systems which amount to intergenerational discrimination. As the cost of living rises, Americans are being pushed out of the middle class." "Obama broke his promise to raise the federal minimum wage. As a result, inflation has reduced the effective minimum wage by over 27%, which is a cruel burden on low income workers. I support an immediate increase of the minimum wage to $10/hour, which would just about make up for the pay cuts imposed by inflation. And I support movement toward a national living wage guarantee, so that the minimum wage becomes a wage on which everyone can earn a livelihood. It's time for a President who will stand with workers and with organized labor as they seek a fair share of the wealth that their work is creating. I will be such a President."      Last week, Jill Stein was arrested as she took part in an anti-foreclosure rally.  Ian Wilder (On The Wilder Side) notes that Democracy Now! finally covered the arrest today.   Jill Stein is on one ticket that believes in peace and believes in the people.  Another such ticket is the Roseanne Barr - Cindy Sheehan ticket.  Cindy had (as usual) some wise words to share recently.  Here's Cindy on voting:   There have been a few people who have been appalled by our candidacy thinking that we may "take votes away from Obama" and "cause Romney to win" and there are responses to that one: Barack Obama does not own your vote. If you care about peace, justice and economic equality, he has not earned your vote. If Obama loses this November it's because he sucks and his presidency has been a failure for the 99% and a windfall for the 1% Besides, historically, after the US has constantly bounced from Democrat-Republican-Democrat-Republican-Democrat, etc., haven't you kind of noticed already that it really doesn't matter very much who is president?  It's the cyst-em of control that needs to be overthrown and socialist revolution can do that! Barr/Sheehan 2012 have two very important people to thank: Cat Woods, a member of the PandFP who worked so hard to get all the ducks in a row and former Georgia Congresswoman and GPUSA presidential candidate, Cynthia McKinney, for keeping the dream of Roseanne for President alive. Go to www.RoseanneforPresident2012.org for more information about the campaign.                  iraq progressive radio matthew rothschild china daily aseel kami al mada alsumaria xinhua kpfa bonnie faulkner guns and butter brussels news agency wsws chris marsden alpha magazine matteo fagotto hurriyet daily news reuters peg mackey andrew callus

Wonder Woman?

Monday and what the hell?  Have you seen the list at Comic Movie World to play Wonder Woman?  Their top 5 actresses?

Olivia Wilde.  No, a Brit shouldn't play Wonder Woman and for all the 'heat' Wilde scared up playing a lesbian on House no one really gives a damn about her.  She's too long in the tooth and too pissy to really be sexy.  Besides, she really looks weird.

Charlize Theron.  I'll come back to her.

Evangeline Lilly.  Who?  Exactly.

Gemma Arterton.  Another Brit?  No.  She's a little nobody and she doesn't have the chops needed.

Gina Carona.  Did people not understand that DIana Prince has the beauty of Athena?

She can act but she's too plain and her skin is really bad.

Charlize Theron.  Not America.  On the plus side, she's an actual actress. She's an amazing actress.  I would be upset about the not-being-American but I'd still see it if Charlize was cast.  And she's the best choice on their list.

From comic book movies to comics, this is Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Dirty Debbie"




Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Harry Reid are about to get on my last damn nerve.


You know what we need to do?  Dance.



Isn't that hilarious! :D  I love it.

Okay, let's note Third.  Here's who worked on the latest edition.


The Third Estate Sunday Review's Jim, Dona, Ty, Jess and Ava,
Rebec
ca 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),
Mike of Mikey Likes It!,
Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz),
Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix,
Ruth of Ruth's Report,
Wally of The Daily Jot,
Trina of Trina's Kitchen,
Marcia of SICKOFITRDLZ,
Stan of Oh Boy It Never Ends,
Isaiah of The World Today Just Nuts,
and Ann of Ann's Mega Dub.


And what did we come up with:

• Truest statement of the week
• Truest statement of the week II
• A note to our readers
• Editorial: The very successful Islamic State of Ir...
• TV: The Good Whore
• The film rags
• Mailbag
• Comic book teams
• TV: When reality TV was too real
• Dear Barnes & Noble
• The presidential ticket that got busted
• Statement against FBI and grand jury repression (W...
• Highlights

And you know I'm sleepy so that's it for me tonight.

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

Monday, August 6, 2012.  Chaos and violence continue,  the US brokers another agreement in Iraq, Moqtada posts a tell-all, an ancient church is discovered near Najaf, the continued targeting of Bradley Manning is put into context, and more.   At the start of the film Julia, Jane Fonda (playing Lillian Helman in a performance that won her the British Academy of Film and Televison Arts' award for Best Film Actress, the film based on a story in Hellman's Pentimento) observes:   Old paint on canvas, as it ages, sometimes becomes transparent.  When that happens it is possible, in some pictures, to see the original lines:  a tree will show through a woman's dress, a child makes way for a dog, a boat is no longer on an open sea.  That is called pentimento because the painter "repented," changed his mind.   Ali al-Fatli has discovered something similar in Iraq.  Kay Johnson (AP) reports that the construction of an airport in Najaf has allowed a structure to emerge.  Buried under sand for who knows how long is a church that archaeologist Ali al-Fatli tells Johnson "is the oldest sign of Christianity in Iraq" and scholars believe it to be Hira which Johnson explains "was founded around 270 A.D., grew into a major force in Mesopotamia centuries before the advent of Islam, and reputedly was a cradle of Arabic script.  Lying 160 kilometers (100 miles) south of Baghdad, it was lost to Iraq's southern desert for centuries after Christians were driven out of the area by Muslim rulers."    Iraqi Christians have been targeted throughout the Iraq War and a population that once number millions now is less than half a million.  Open Doors USA reports:   An Open Doors contact in Baghdad emailed that, "Each hour the news [in Iraq] gets worse. The violence is unbelievable. Please pray for Iraq and the remaining Christians." A modern-day exodus of Christians is going on in Iraq. Sectarian violence has caused tens of thousands of Christians to flee since the beginning of the war. An estimated 345,000 Christians live in Iraq today; there were nearly 850,000 in 1991. Those who remain feel that the government fails to protect them from the recent wave of threats, robbery, rape, kidnapping, and church bombings. Though Northern Iraq -- an area commonly called Kurdistan -- has long been known as a safe haven for Christians, even in this region the situation for Christians has deteriorated due to Islamic extremism. "The terror in Iraq recently is the worst in several years," continued the contact. "There have also been major Al Qaida threats to everyone, especially the Christians. After last week's violence, communication is terrible. It is not really possible to describe the devastation here in Baghdad. Over 100 have been killed. Security has been targeted…. We are used to bad problems here in Baghdad but the violence is just quite unbelievable; 12 car bombs, two suicide bombers on motor bikes. Scores of police and soldiers killed. We no longer have any security. While our people have not been killed, the injuries sustained to others are severe. There have also been new serious threats from Abu Baker Al Hussani, the head of Al Qaida in Iraq."   Catholic Online adds, "The most recent exodus began in Iraq as an indirect consequence of the Iraqi war. The exodus went into full swing after the horrendous massacre at Our Lady of Deliverance Church in Bagdad on October 31, 2010. This is the same massacre where a three-year-old child, Adam Udai, followed the terrorists around for two hours telling them to stop before they brutally murdered him. Adam joined his parents and approximately fifty other Christian martyrs that day, but his words lived on and were heard throughout the world (Adam, the Little Christian Boy Who Confronted Islamic Terrorists)."  The US State Dept breaks down religion in Iraq in a very superficial manner, "Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%; Sunni 32%-37%), Christian and others approximately 3%."  "Others" includes the decimated Jewish population.  Khaled Diab (Chronikler) speaks with Iraqi Jew Sasson Somekh:   Born in Baghdad in 1933 into a well-to-do, middle-class Jewish family, Somekh remembers summers spent swimming in and loungingby the majestic Tigris, the river along whose banks some of the first human civilisations were born. When temperatures soared and water levels dipped, a patchwork of small islets would emerge, providing ideal seclusion for family picnics, consisting primarily of fish grilled on a special covered Iraqi barbecue. "Those were the most enjoyable days of my life," he recalled wistfully. At the time, Baghdad was a very Jewish city, with Jews – who were active in all walks of life, including commerce, the professions, politics and the arts – comprising as much as a third of the Iraqi capital's population. "When you walked down Baghdad's main street, al-Rashid, half the names on the shops and offices were Jewish," he noted. Iraqi Jews were so enmeshed in their country's social fabric that they described themselves, and were regarded, as "Arabs", and viewed Judaism as a religion and not an ethnicity. As Somekh put it, he grew up with Arabic as his mother tongue and Arab culture as his reference point.   Another minority group would be the Yazidis.  Fryad Mohammed (AKnews and Ekurd) explains, "Mosul, capital city of Ninewa province in Iraq, near the border with Kurdistan region, lies 405 km north of Baghdad. The Yazidis are primarily ethnic Kurds located near Mosul. A Kurdish Yazidis are primarily ethnic Kurds located near Mosul. Some 350,000 Yazidis live in villages around Mosul near Kurdistan autonomous region border."   The Georgetown Journal of International Affairs notes today:   As misunderstood as Iraq is, there is perhaps no other group, and no other religion, more mysterious than the Yazidis. Simply mentioning the Yazidi faith to most Muslims in Iraq evokes an almost immediate condemnation of the "devil-worshipers in Ninawa" followed by a warning: don't trust them and don't eat their food. An ancient blend of indigenous-Mesopotamian religion with strong Islamic, Sufi and Christian influences, Yazidism centers its worldview in the belief that after creating the world, God left its care to seven Holy Beings, the most eminent of which, and the central figure of the Yazidi faith, is called Melek Taus. Melek Taus is also central in Islam and Christianity, where the mystical Peacock Angel, as Melek Taus is depicted, was said to have refused to bow to the authority of Adam, which is the source of Islamic and Christian claims that Melek Taus becomes Satan. The Yazidis, on the other hand, believe that God first created Melek Taus in self-emulation, commanded him not to bow down to any other creature. This contradiction has fueled an age-old and inaccurate depiction of Yazidism as "devil worshipping." As a consequence, the Yazidis have been the victims of hundreds of years of persecution and genocide, starting with the ancient Ottoman Empires and continuing well into the reign of Saddam Hussein. Their dwindling population, numbering roughly 500,000 in Iraq, is today only a fraction of its strength years ago.       While certain segments of Iraq's population decrease and dwindle, there is a new influx in the last weeks: refugees from Syria -- both Syrians and Iraqis.  Though Syria housed over a million Iraqi refugees from 2006 on, allowing for schooling and doing so without any aid from the Iraqi government -- though, of course, Nouri al-Maliki did announce that the Iraqi government would reimburse Syria and Jordan for the refugees, it never happened.  When the turmoil in Syria began resulting in refugees, Nouri announced that they could not come to Iraq.  Iraq, he said, couldn't handle the influx.  As the world's jaw hung open in disbelief and disbelief began to turn to condemnation, Nouri suddenly announced a policy switch.  Syrian refugees would be welcomed in!  But the living conditions he's provided for them have been less than hospitable -- and it's telling that he's placed then in the Sunni province of Anbar.  Omar Alsaleh (Al Jazeera -- link is text and video) reports on what awaits Syrian refugees who seek asylum in Iraq: Omar Alsaleh:  They fled the violence in Syria, expecting a warm welcome in Iraq.  These refugees are now safe from the bombardments and the killings but they feel locked up. Syrian refugee:  We became refugees and our country was destroyed because we demanded freedom.  But our freedom is now confisicated.  It would have been better if we had stayed in Syria.  We demand that the Iraqi government and NGOs take us out of here or takes us back to our country.  Let us die there. Omar Alsaleh:  More than 3,000 Syrian refugees have arrived in al Kahim over the last two weeks.  They've been given shelter in 12 shcol. Aid groups, tribal shieks and residents of Anbar Province offer them food, some cash and basic needs.  But they want to be allowed to move. That's the Baghdad-controlled Iraq.  The semi-autonomous KRG has been accepting refugees long before Nouri.  And Martin Kobler, UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy to Iraq, has visited the camps last month.  Hoda Abdel-Hamid (Al Jazeera -- link is text and video) reports today from a refugee camp in the Kurdistan Regional Government: Hoda Abdel-Hamid:  Rejin Hassan crossed into northern Iraq about a month ago.  She lived all of her life in Damascus but she was never considered a Syrian national. Rejin Hassan:  We were considered foreigners but they have given us nationality so we are Syrian.  But I wish we had our region. Hoda Abdel-Hamid:  So far Kurds have not joined the armed conflict.  They are Syrian's largest ethnic minority.  But many of them were never granted citizenship.  It's only after the uprising started that the government gave the nationality to an estimated 200,000 Kurds.  Ahmed and his family were stateless all their lives. They now hold Syrian i.d.s, but for Ahmed it's too little too late. Ahmed:  This is a ploy by the [Bashar al-Assad] regime. They try to calm the situation down making sure we don't join the uprising. It's a game they're playing.  But in the end they will lose. Lara Jakes (AP) notes that "at least 12,680 Iraqis" had returned in the last weeks from Syria.   RT notes, "Syrian state TV host Mohammed al-Saeed has been executed, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.  A militant Islamist group has claimed responsibility for the killing." This would be the Syrian 'rebels.' Those groups Kelly McEvers is always sobbing about on NPR while NPR pretends to be objective.  As Ava and I explained yesterday, Senator John Kerry has asked more questions of who the 'rebels' in Syria are than some in the media: Chair John Kerry:  Well there's been as you know in the meeting in Paris and other meetings, Istanbul and elsewhere, very significant efforts to flush out who is the opposition?  I mean, do you know exactly who you would provide weapons too? Andrew Tabler: Absolutely not.  But -- Chair John Kerry:  Don't you think we need to know that?   Andrew Tabler: Absolutely.  Ed Husain (Council on Foreign Relations) offers today, "The Syrian rebels would be immeasurably weaker today without al-Qaeda in their ranks. By and large, Free Syrian Army (FSA) battalions are tired, divided, chaotic, and ineffective. Feeling abandoned by the West, rebel forces are increasingly demoralized as they square off with the Assad regime's superior weaponry and professional army. Al-Qaeda fighters, however, may help improve morale. The influx of jihadis brings discipline, religious fervor, battle experience from Iraq, funding from Sunni sympathizers in the Gulf, and most importantly, deadly results. In short, the FSA needs al-Qaeda now."  In the midst of the turmoil, millions try to live their lives in Syria and that's not helped when the 'rebels' start targeting the media.  NPR reports an attack on a television building has left at least three people dead today (that was on their hourly news update so the link just goes to NPR).  Xinhua reports on that attack here. Yesterday, Anthony Khun (NPR's All Things Considered -- link is audio and text) reported on a group of Iranians the 'rebel' Free Syrian Army was holding and claiming they were some sort of military operatives (while the government in Tehran insists that they are pilgrims).  Shashank Joshi (Telegraph of London) observes, "Foreign powers did not invent Syria's uprising, but they are certainly helping it along. In recent months Turks, Arabs and Americans have embraced the rebel cause, pumping in a thickening flow of weapons and helping to discipline the once ragtag insurgents into a force that grows more potent by the day. "    While Syria simmers, the Baghdad-based government in Iraq and the semi-autonomous Kurdish Regional Government appear to have reached an understanding on one issue.  According to an Al-Monitor translation of an al-Hayat article, "The Ministy of Peshmerga in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has signed a US-sponsored seven-point agreement with Baghdad, which calls for the withdrawal of Iraqi army troops that were dispatched to Zumar on the Syria-Iraq border.  In the meantime, Kurdish forces will hold a meeting in the KRG parliament building, aimed at forming a 'supreme council' for negotations with Baghdad."  Fryad Mohammed (AKnews) adds, "The general secretary of the Ministry of Peshmarga in the Kurdistan Region announced that the Ministry of Peshmarga and Iraq's Defense Ministry signed a seven-point agreement to solve the current crisis of moving troops to border areas."  Patrick Markey (Reuters) also notes the "talks involving Iraq, Kurdistan and U.S. officials."   The 'agreement' demonstrates that the Kurds are (nice take) trusting souls or fools who have been tricked yet again.  The last time the US brokered an agreement for Nouri, it was the 2010 Erbil Agreement.  For those who've forgotten how that worked out, the Kurds got screwed.   So did everyone except Nouri.  In March 2010, Iraq held parliamentary elections.  Nouri al-Maliki's State of Law came in second to Ayad Allawi's Iraqiya.  Nouri wanted a second term that the elections results didn't grant him.  With the backing of the White House, Nouri then behaved like a spoiled child and refused to allow things to move forward.  This was Political Stalemate I and it lasted a little over eight months.    It ended November 10, 2010.  The US-brokered Erbil Agreement is what ended the stalemate.   Dropping back to the November 11, 2010 snapshot:     Martin Chulov (Guardian) reports one hiccup in the process today involved Ayad Allawi who US President Barack Obama phoned asking/pleading that he accept the deal because "his rejection of post would be a vote of no confidence". Ben Lando, Sam Dagher and Margaret Coker (Wall St. Journal) confirm the phone call via two sources and state Allawi will take the post -- newly created -- of chair of the National Council On Higher Policy: "Mr. Obama, in his phone call to Mr. Allawi on Thursday, promised to throw U.S. weight behind the process and guarantee that the council would retain meaningful and legal power, according to the two officials with knowledge of the phone call."        Wael Grace (Al Mada) reports that the airports and border crossings are becoming the latest turf wars among Iraq's various political factions.  The political stalemate continues in Iraq.  All Iraq News notes that someone has released a fuzzy (audio and video) taped meeting from last year between Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi and Iraqiya leader Ayad Allawi following Allawi's meeting with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.  Iraqiya is calling for an investigation into where the tape originated and who released it. The tape may end up being of little interest next to what could be Moqtada Tells All.  Al Mada's covering what they dub a memoir of Moqtada al-Sadr which is a diary of the last months including his thoughts on Nouri al-Maliki (said to believe he's a dictator) and his disappointments with the National Alliance and its refusal to stand up for Iraqis against Nouri's power grab. He is said to name Ammar al-Hakim and Ibrahim al-Jaafari as two who met with him repeatedly prior to the end of April meeting in Erbil about the no-confidence vote.  Prior to that meeting, the two (al-Hakim and al-Jaafari) were on board with a no-confidence vote.  Moqtada is said to write that he knows his efforts to launch a no-confidence vote have cost him some popularity but that it was the right thing to do for Iraq. Moqtada published the memoir at his website. An agreement on one aspect of a disagreement doesn't end the entire disagreement and problems remain between Baghdad and the KRG. -- problems, as Sri Lanka's Nation notes, and tensions. KUNA reports, "Iraqi Vice Presidential Khudayr Al-Khuzai on Monday decried what he called flagrant intervention by Turkey in the domestic affairs of Iraq."  Last week, Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu visited the KRG and, on Thursday, visited Kirkuk which outraged thug and prime minister Nouri al-Maliki who couldn't stop flapping his gums in yet another attempt by Nouri to show the world just how insane and unstable he is. AFP reports, "Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday defended his foreign minister's visit to the disputed northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk last week, which infuriated Baghdad."  While in Kirkuk, Davutoglu met with Turkmen and Rudaw publishes the speech he gave in full.  Excerpt: "After 75 years I am come to Kirkuk as the first Turkish Foreign Minister," Davutoglu said. "You waited for us too long, but I promise you won't wait for us that long in the future." The Turkmen crowd responded to the foreign minister's words by cheering, "Welcome Davutolgu," "Before I came here I listened to the great master [singer and poet] Abdulwahid Guzelioglu," Davutoglu continued as he repeated a line from one of his poems. "The mountain learned perseverance from me. Iron chains couldn't tie me down, but Kirkuk tied me down." Hearing the poem, the crowd cheered, "Kirkuk is Turkmen and will remain Turkmen." "Kirkuk is as important to us as it is to a Kirkuki singer," said the foreign minister. "Iraq is a close friend of Turkey," he said. "Iraqi people are our brothers: Turkmen, Assyrians, Kurds and Arabs. All Iraqis are dearer to us than life. Whenever a tragedy or a sad news happens in Iraq our heart breaks. When a terrorist attack takes place in Kirkuk and our Kirkuki brothers come to harm, believe me that our hearts are set on a fire that nothing can put it out. If you live in happiness and peace, we too in Turkey will be happy. If a thorn pricks your fingers, we in Turkey will feel your pain." Reuters notes an overnight bombing targeting the oil pipeline between Iraq's Kirkuk and Turkey's Ceyhan has "knocked out flows and repairs are expected to take up to 10 days."  Platts adds, "The latest bombing comes as the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Province is gearing up to resume oil exports at a rate of 100,000 b/d. The KRG had said in a statement last week that it would start exports during the first week of August but there has been no word since on whether they have resumed or whether the latest development would force the resumption of exports to be postponed."        Whether they were or were not involved, it is assumed the PKK is responsible for the attack.  The PKK is one of many Kurdish groups which supports and fights for a Kurdish homeland. Aaron Hess (International Socialist Review) described them in 2008, "The PKK emerged in 1984 as a major force in response to Turkey's oppression of its Kurdish population. Since the late 1970s, Turkey has waged a relentless war of attrition that has killed tens of thousands of Kurds and driven millions from their homes. The Kurds are the world's largest stateless population -- whose main population concentration straddles Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria -- and have been the victims of imperialist wars and manipulation since the colonial period. While Turkey has granted limited rights to the Kurds in recent years in order to accommodate the European Union, which it seeks to join, even these are now at risk."  Anadolu Agency reports that Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister of Turkey, has rejected Nouri's calls that cross border raids into Iraq stop and quotes Erdogan declaring, "It should be known that as long as the region remains a source of threat for Turkey we will continue staging operations wherever it is needed.  That was exactly the terms we had agreed upon with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who personally told me that he lacked the power to deal with [terrorist PKK organization] in Iraq's north." AFP reports that Sunday saw a raid by the PKK across the Iraq border, into Turkey on a military post which resulted in the deaths of 2 village guards, 14 PKK rebels and 6 Turkish soldiers and another five civilians, one village guard and fifteen Turkish soldiers were left injured.  RTT News adds, "Turkish military jets are currently pursuing the retreating militants and bombing their escape routes." As for the residents of the area of the attack?  Dogan News Agency reports that the people were first forced out of their homes by a 5.3-magnitude earthquake at 11:57 pm.  As they fled the area, they encountered the PKK attack forcing them to flee back towards their home and "Red Crescent teams were sent into the quake zone to assess the damage and the needs of quake victims."   In other violence, Alsumaria reports a Babel roadside bombing today has resulted in the death of 1 Iraqi soldier with anothr ten left injured.  In addition, AFP reports a Baghdad car bombing claimed 3 lives and left thirteen injured, a Khanaqin home bombing claimed 2 lives with two more left injured, Lt Col Ghanem Sabah was shot dead in Baghdad, 1 Ministry of Electricity employee was killed in Baghdad and a Baghdad roadside bombing left two government workers injured.     Moving over to the US where Bradley Manning's court-martial is scheduled to begin September 21st.  Monday April 5, 2010, WikiLeaks released US military video of a July 12, 2007 assault in Iraq. 12 people were killed in the assault including two Reuters journalists Namie Noor-Eldeen and Saeed Chmagh. Monday June 7, 2010, the US military announced that they had arrested Bradley Manning and he stood accused of being the leaker of the video. Leila Fadel (Washington Post) reported in August 2010 that Manning had been charged -- "two charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The first encompasses four counts of violating Army regulations by transferring classified information to his personal computer between November and May and adding unauthorized software to a classified computer system. The second comprises eight counts of violating federal laws governing the handling of classified information." In March, 2011, David S. Cloud (Los Angeles Times) reported that the military has added 22 additional counts to the charges including one that could be seen as "aiding the enemy" which could result in the death penalty if convicted. The Article 32 hearing took place in December.  At the start of this year, there was an Article 32 hearing and, February 3rd, it was announced that the government would be moving forward with a court-martial.  Bradley has yet to enter a plea and has neither affirmed that he is the leaker nor denied it.  Philip Fornaci (Washington Blade) offers an important column on Bradley today:     The military's treatment of Manning is undeniably a hate crime. He has been singled out for abuse — what the United Nations has characterized as "cruel and inhuman treatment" — for his alleged whistle blowing, yet the perverse sexual humiliation and degradation inflicted upon him is inextricably linked to his sexual orientation. In an attempt to "break" Manning, to get him to divulge information about Wikileaks (which he likely does not possess), the specialized torture regimen focused on isolation and sexual humiliation. When the mainstream media cover the Manning case at all, reports tend to highlight his sexuality and paint him as unstable and weak. PBS's "Frontline" special on Manning devoted significant time to Manning's coming out struggles. Similar reports appeared in the New York Times and The Guardian. New York magazine emphasized Manning's gender identity struggles, describing him as "disturbed" and unstable. The link between Manning's sexual orientation and his alleged offenses is presented in virtually all mass media accounts as pathological. It is somehow inconceivable that Manning could have any motivation beyond psychological weakness for releasing to the world massive evidence of the U.S. military's lawlessness. While the national LGBT advocacy organizations shamelessly shower President Obama with praise for allowing openly gay men and lesbians to enlist in the military, their complete silence on the Manning case is indefensible. This is particularly true in light of Obama's repeated endorsements of the brutal and homophobic treatment doled out to Manning. But the persecution of Manning is a "gay issue" not simply because his abuse at the hands of the military and the mass media has been decidedly and viciously homophobic. If Manning did in fact leak information to Wikileaks as he is accused, he has displayed enormous courage. He is a role model for how gay and lesbian service members should behave in the face of violations of the U.S. Constitution by the government entrusted with defending it.             iraq the associated press kay johnson the wall st. journal sam dagher ben lando the guardian martin chulov margaret coker afp rudaw anadolu agency the nation rtt news dogan news agency al jazeera omar alsaleh hoda abdel-hamid the telegraph of london shashank joshi npr all things considered anthony kuhn lara jakes all iraq news rudaw al mada alsumaria xinhua the telegraph of london