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POPSThe sleazy advocacy of a leading "liberal hawk" What Galbraith kept completely concealed all these years was that a company he formed in 2004 came to acquire a large stake in a Kurdish oil field whereby, as the NYT put it, he "stands to earn perhaps a hundred million or more dollars." In other words, he had a direct -- and vast -- financial stake in the very policies which he was publicly advocating in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and countless other American media outlets, where he was presented as an independent expert on the region. As Cobban wrote: Galbraith has never expressed any such regrets, and last November, he was openly scornful of Bush's late-term agreement to withdraw from Iraq completely. The revelation that for many years Galbraith had a quite undisclosed financial interest in the political breakup of Iraq may now further reduce the clout, and the ranks, of the remaining liberal hawks.
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POPSOur Tax Dollars At Work-Blackwater
More from the article as follows: "The Nisour Square shooting was the bloodiest and most controversial episode involving Blackwater in the Iraq war. At midday on Sept. 16, 2007, a Blackwater convoy opened fire on Iraqi civilians in the crowded intersection, spraying automatic weapons fire in ways that investigators later claimed was indiscriminate, and even launching grenades into a nearby school. Seventeen Iraqis were killed and dozens more were wounded." "Those responses deeply worried Blackwater officials. Before the Nisour Square shootings, the company had operated in Iraq without a license largely because the Iraqi government had never enforced the rules. Being blocked from the country would have been costly — the State Department deal was Blackwater’s single biggest contract. From 2004 through today, the company has collected more than $1.5 billion for its work protecting American diplomats and providing air transportation for them inside Iraq." "
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POPSKeep the government out of the news business
Turning to Washington for help to save the declining news business says much about the mentality of mainstream journalism leaders, an attitude that we and the government are on the same side. This is the mentality that led to the news establishment’s acceptance of the Iraq War. Go to the clip to learn what happened to Mother Jones after becoming a tax exempt non-profit after it reported on lobbying in Washington. Once you allow the government or private corporation to have any controlling link to the media you lose independence. Editors become fearful of criticizing the hand that feeds it. Publishers and benefactors become cozy and unbiased reports become fewer and fewer. Journalism becomes a de facto advertisement for consumer products. We hope in the future we’ll see more I.F. Stones, more guerrilla warriors on the Web, in print and on the air. Because of them—and not because of a government handout—great reporting will survive, as it always has.
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POPSTexas military shooter a Muslim convert As a group of soldiers were preparing to be deployed to Iraq from Fort Hood in a special commissioning ceremony today, the officer opened fire killing 12 follow soldiers and injuring 32 others. A local police officer who was on contract with the military to provide law enforcement at the base shot and killed the suspect. At least 2 others involved in the shooting have been apprehended. It is unclear as to the level of involvement of the 2 or whether or not other suspects are at large.
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POPSMatt Damon in 'Green Zone', Movie With Message About Iraq War "Bourne Goes to Iraq" or Loyal Army officer finds out truth and the real enemy which changes his mission against the "powers that be". Note in the clipmark from Wiki the producer intends this to be not merely entertainment but relevant commentary: "Film shouldn't be disenfranchised from the national conversation. It is never too soon for cinema to engage with events that shape our lives. Perhaps this is like Clooney and Damon in Syriana in that respect. Allegedly based upon this book here. , which has some real interesting "reviews" worth considering.
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POPSH1N1 Vaccine The "science" behind vaccination is garbage. The consequences of getting it wrong are catastrophic. The people pushing this the hardest are the same criminals who brought you the Iraq War and the meltdown of the US economy through financial fraud. Just say "no" to being railroaded into allowing a dodgy set of chemicals, metals, and live viruses injected into your blood stream by venal idiots who have so little confidence in what they're doing they won't participate without getting total legal immunity in advance. If you or a loved one are crippled by this vaccine, you will shoulder the burden yourself. The pharmaceutical companies and the government have exempted themselves from all liability.
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POPSI've been betrayed by this Government, says Iraq War hero who won George Cross He said that when he received his George Cross, ‘the Queen told me she had not presented a GC for “such a long time” and that it was “a privilege” to give it to me’. Now 25, he tells the MAIL ON SUNDAY with typical bravery how his pride was soon eclipsed by anger at the Government's mistreatment of the Armed Forces and why he took the drastic step of quitting army life earlier this year... Read more: http://www.mailonsunday.ie/news/article-1224283/Ive-betrayed-Government-says-Iraq-War-hero-won-George-Cross-works-centre.html#ixzz0VeDJEqdd
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POPSReal men don't read D.C. pundits
Even worse than Krauthammer's column today, though, was David Brooks in the New York Times. Partly it's because Brooks likes to pretend to be open-minded and reasonable, while spouting neocon talking points, and occasionally liberals get pulled in by him. But today was trademark lazy ideological Brooks. As Glenn Greenwald notes, unbelievably he bragged about "doing what journalists are supposed to do" -- which he defined as talking to a handful of anonymous pro-war sources, who uniformly criticized Obama's inaction to date on McCrystal's troop request. That's some brave shit. Not quite David Rohde brave, but hey, he made the calls! If it was unanimous, that means he didn't call retired Marine Matthew Hoh, who resigned from a civilian post in Afghanistan this week because he said we can't win, and our presense is only fueling the insurgency. Hoh told the Washington Post's Karen de Young he's "not some peacenik, pot-smoking hippie who wants everyone to be in love" and that he believes
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POPSInvested In War n 2004, the first full year after the current Iraq war began, Republican and Democratic lawmakers-both hawks and doves invested between $74.9 million and 161.3 million in companies under contract with the DoD. No wonder the Democratic congress kept approving the enormous spending bills on the war, since a significant portion of it happens to end up in their deep pockets. Interestingly, the report also mentioned that members of the senate foreign relations and armed services committees which oversee the Iraq war had between $32 million and $44 million invested in companies with DoD contracts. The burning questions for many people are the following: Are there any ethics left in politics? Could the universe ever exist without wars? The answer is no, because wars have been a major part of our social make up, in addition they force geostrategic changes, make profits for the elite, and reduce population.
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POPSAlternate Iraq War Universe … Obama Won!
Never mind that the surge was initiated by President George Bush, and the current withdrawal was negotiated by the Bush administration with a sovereign, elected Iraqi government which his actions allowed to come into being, in place of the prior despot he had deposed, while Democrats, including Obama, were howling for abandonment. Obama deserves some credit, of course. For staying Bush’s course and throwing his own boneheaded pandering demands for a precipitous pullout under the bus. OK, I thought Friedman had got about as weird as he could. Silly me. This next step is particularly important, which is why we cannot let Afghanistan distract U.S. diplomats from Iraq. Remember: Transform Iraq and it will impact the whole Arab-Muslim world. Change Afghanistan and you just change Afghanistan. Fascinating. The big clamor for the last few years of course has been that Iraq was distracting us from Afghanistan, and now every jackanape out there, to include Friedman . . .
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POPSNow Pakistan - Sequential Destruction of Muslim Nations Many Western policymakers rarely see Muslim nations, including allies, with any inherent respect. Vice President Dick Cheney described the Muslim world as "brute and nasty." Obama advisers, though more guarded in their word choices, see Muslim nations no differently. The idea that Islam is inherently violent, openly expressed during the Bush administration, continues to animate foreign policy. The White House holds a new President but Congressional leadership and Washington policymakers are more or less the same. Anti-Islamic policies of warfare and destabilization are intact.
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POPSVirtual reality tackles 'shell shock "But I'd hit the point in my life where I felt I had zero control and was about to lose the one thing in my life that meant the most which was my family, so I was prepared to try anything." Sergeant Butler demonstrates the computer scenario which was used to help him. On a computer screen I can see the same image projected onto Sergeant Butler's visor. He is in the front seat of a Humvee armed vehicle patrolling the streets of Iraq; each time he turns his head, the viewpoint on the screen changes.
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POPSAmreeka: The Movie As luck would have it, Muna has come to the US at the start of the Iraq War. Anti-Arab sentiment is raging in some quarters. Her brother-in-law, a doctor, has lost patients due to backlash, and her sister is quickly losing patience with the hatred and fear that mars their lives. Though educated and with experience in banking, Muna is unable to find work in her field, but knowing that she must become independent, continues to search for employment, finally finding a job at a local fast food restaurant. Tensions build as Muna, ashamed, tries to hide her place of work from her son and sister; as Fadi deals with bullying bigots at school; and as her sister's family begins to unravel in response to the pressures of the war, and the enormous hardships resulting from anti-Arab bias. Through it all, Muna not only survives, but remains hopeful and thankful for each kind gesture from strangers and new-found friends who come to her assistance in ways small and not so small.
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POPS Wartime President Supported Back to the matter at hand. Theoretically it means he’s actually free to do the right thing. Now, all he needs to do is make a decision. Or announce it. Whatever.
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POPSThree Historical Lessons to Help the President Cope continued testing its missiles designed to deliver nuclear war heads to Tel Aviv. And the health care takeover is losing momentum. These issues require hard work for a hardened politician. Most that want to be President relish these days as the chance to make a real difference for the country. Obama chooses a flight to Copenhagen. Defense Secretary Gates furthered the concern over Afghanistan on the Sunday talk shows by pointing out that leaving that basket-case of a country would allow the Taliban and Al Qaida to regroup, rearm and re-attack the American homeland. Should that occur, of course the US military would be sent back into Afghanistan to hunt bad guys " at least until the next leftist liberal was elected President. The Prez though, is reluctant to get into a war that can’t be quickly won. The President’s preferred choice may be to fight the War on Terror on the streets of American cities rather than Afghanistan. Reasoning that we wouldn’t have to pay
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POPSHere We Go Again--Iran Is a Threat (but Not Nuclear Israel), blah, blah The propaganda machine about the "threat" of Iran has kicked into high gear, again, driven (as was the Iraq war) by not just the White House and both coerced parties in Congress (via AIPAC), but US Media, singing in complete unison. Who is really playing the aggressor? Who is threatening to attack whom , ....and based upon what ? The drum beat is identical to that about Iraq and Saddam Hussein, which we know was a lie, and part of the neocon agenda for a "new middle east". The morale of that story is do not trust the government when it comes to starting (or provoking) wars and conflicts, which always begins with sanctions , and gaining the UN Gang's support, rather easily swayed. They seek to overcome any resistance by incessant REPETITION of the same propaganda message as with Iraq.
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POPSGadhafi Gets His Tent, plus
The warmongers and hatemongers want distractions and smear. While one of the most extraordinary and exciting speech I have ever heard took place, I see more stories about failed efforts to stop Gadhafi from setting up a tent. This clip, for example, spent half it's time on that tent non-issue and falsefly claimed it was successful. But no, Gadhafi got to put up his tent, made his speech and despite all the poor translation, smears of it being "rambling," confused, outrageous, etc. -- he got his points across and apparently the web is abuzz about it. The headline of this clip for example, said the speech at the UN "confused," -- but that was not true. It made several clear points. -- especial the very clear point that five nations always having veto power over Security Council resolutions was unfair. D'uh. Other proposed UN charter reforms were suggested. Also talk about the terrorism of nations with nukes, imperialism, colonialism evils, etc. - all valid. & so
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POPSObama Will Spend More on Welfare "The Heritage study says, “Applying that same standard to means-tested welfare spending reveals that welfare will cost each household $560 per month in 2009 and $638 per month in 2010.”
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POPSKhadafy Speaks at U.N. The horrid translation on live TV are hard to believe. The following summary can't be any worse: 1. You folks in the General Assembly might as well be speaking at Hyde Park. 2. The veto power of five nations on the Security Council is unfair. 3. Continents and long recognized regional unions should have a permanent seat on the Security Council (like the African Union, EU, etc.) 4. General Assembly should be real power, not just Security Council. 5. No more Mickey Mouse 6. 65 wars since UN founded. 7. Nuclear power's do war/ terrorism too, killing millions. And they are pirates of resources. 8. Obama good ideas but could just be an shinning exception in the dark. 9. Cruel Colonialism of Africa ripped off $7.77 Trillion. Pay us back. 10. UN should Investigate Iraq War and many assassinations that favored imperialism. 11. Arabs didn't do the Holocaust. It was done by Europeans. 12. We're friends of Jews, but stop the aggression that poisons the worl
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POPSCongress has the votes to pass a public option And passing it with 51 votes in the Senate - a majority - abides by the same rule Republicans used to pass the Bush tax cuts and fund the Iraq war. Any bill passes with 51 votes unless the minority party filibusters it. Bills with significant budgetary impact can be shielded from a filibuster by the reconciliation process
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POPSExposed: GOP Congressman Who Yelled "You Lie" at Obama Speech Received $240,000 from Health Care Ind It was not the first time Wilson — attorney, U.S. Army vet and former aide to U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond — has raised eyebrows by shouting at political opponents. Seven years ago this month, the then-freshman Wilson appeared on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” with five-term Congressman Bob Filner (D-Calif.) to discuss whether to go to war in Iraq, action that Filner opposed but Wilson supported. In the course of the discussion, Filner noted that the U.S. supplied weapons to Saddam Hussein’s regime during the Iran-Iraq War — a fact revealed by the investigation into the Iran-Contra Affair, which discovered the Reagan administration secretly sold weapons to Iran, then under an arms embargo, to win support for freeing U.S. hostages in Lebanon and to fund the Nicaraguan contras, a counterrevolutionary rebel force that was fighting the country’s government.
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