The Scallion

Disclaimer: this online political & social satire webzine is not suitable for the decerebrate (translation: our illustrious bonehead, his benighted administration, neo-ultraconservative Republicans, rabid Catholics, sheep, or their sympathizers) or for readers under age 18. As satirists, we take no responsibility if what we say is dangerously close to the truth. If you're under 18, stop reading this NOW & go turn yourself in to your Mommy for a well-deserved spanking, you no-good little whelp.

Monday, April 02, 2007

Greetings, fellow Freedom Fighters™ and Defenders of Democracy™!


We have another jam-packed edition this week--so much injustice and outrage; so little time! Here are this week’s top stories:


-- Look for important petitions and other action items in our “Sign here” department!


-- “War on drugs” = “war on minorities” ... duh!


-- March! March! March! We bring you more news from the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition. Apparently, an op-ed in the San Francisco Chronicle was needed to present THE TRUTH that the anti-war movement is GROWING. A.N.S.W.E.R. also wrote a letter to WaPo to tell the Bushies to keep their filthy paws off Latin America, since we all know that they have their sights set on Cuba, Venezuela, and others.


-- Project for a new American century: socialism for the rich, where our tax money goes as much to help the have-plenties as the have-nots (and where, in addition to all the tax-funded hand-outs, the rich enjoy deeper and deeper tax cuts). That must be what they mean when they say, “It takes money to make money.”


-- Insurance companies profit by waiting until claimants die so that claims do not have to be paid.


-- The betrayal of Cpl. Pat Tillman for PR may have had even uglier roots as some suggest that he was deliberately shot by fellow soldiers in an effort to remake him into a battle hero in the media.


-- Across the nation, the Trojan horse of creation “science” attempts to reinvent science in education in its own irrational image and likeness.


-- Journalists have forgotten that they are the watchdogs, not cheerleaders, for government; debunking Bush's spun reality for women in Afghanistan; toppling Saddam was a mistake according to those for whom the American occupation is a far deadlier threat.


-- Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely: the Stanford prison study showed that even the healthiest members of society will become cruel, inhuman sadists when placed in the role of prison guard; soldiers who have committed torture are now stepping forward to describe the horrible inner evil that is released when they torture their fellow human beings.


-- The resignation of Diane Feinstein under the cloud of war profiteering scandal shows that imperialism is often bipartisan.


-- Last week, it was who, Tony Snowjob? This week, it's Trent Lott saying that it was wrong for President Bill Clinton to invoke executive privilege but it's a-okay for Mr. Bush to do so. Sounds like YET ANOTHER REPUBLICAN FLIP-FLOP to us!


-- Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah turns down Mr. Bush's state dinner invitation while the Pentagon invites right-wing bloggers to visit Iraq. Both of those sound like pretty good ideas to us!


-- On all counts, Kyle Sampson sets the record straight where Alberto Gonzales LIED.


-- Gov. Butch Otter (R) signs "into law a bill that requires minor girls to get permission from a parent or guardian for an abortion." in our Sign Here department, we of The Scallion are sponsoring a drive to contact Gov. Otter, asking him to sponsor and sign a bill to require teenage boys to get adult permission to impregnate teenage girls. Fair is fair!


-- Australian David Hicks: first, a victim of the Gitmo dragnet ... now, a victim of the kangaroo courts. We of The Scallion can't even begin to imagine what it will take to rehabilitate this man psychologically and emotionally ... and we'd be willing to bet a year's salary that he was innocent of any crimes from the get-go.


-- The U.S. is sponsoring Kurdish guerilla attacks inside Iran; Iran continues to hold British sailors. Sounds like a recipe for war if ever we heard one. How much ya wanna bet that Britain deliberately penetrated Iranian waters in the hopes of goading Iran into capturing the sailors so that Toady Blair could whip up support to invade Iran in Britain, where over 85% of people were against Britain's participation in George W. Bush's decimation of Iraq from the get-go?


-- DN! features a must-read interview with presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich


-- DN! headline reads “Retired General: U.S. Military in 'Strategic Peril'”


-- Another DN! must read: Naomi Klein outlines how MORE PRIVATIZATION makes WAR EVEN MORE PROFITABLE, which ELIMINATES THE INCENTIVE FOR PEACE! Unless we-the-people cut the purse strings and start holding the war mongers in our government accountable through impeachment, permanent war is a VERY REAL possibility! If this doesn't scare the bejeebers out of you, it's too late—you've already been lobotomized!! (See the last DN! entry for this piece.)


-- The NYPD spied widely on peace groups prior to the GOP Convention ... as Dot Calm says, “Nice, huh?” Yeah—we're having an increasingly difficult time recognizing this as America.


-- The TRUTH about sex before marriage: roughly 9/10 individuals report having had vaginal intercourse prior to marriage, reports Planned Parenthood. We of The Scallion have seen similar reports elsewhere of late. Kinda knocks George W. Bush's abstinence-only “concept” into a cocked hat, eh?


-- “Some people”--actually, lots of people, including us at The Scallion--are saying that Katie Couric is an insensitive bitch who ought to take responsibility for HER personal attack words against John and Elizabeth Edwards.


-- “WAR IS A RACKET!” says General Smedley Butler. His speech is well worth reading. Air America's Randi Rhodes published it in a message from September 2006, and it rings true then and today.


Keep the faith and keep fighting: together, we WILL win our nation back!


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Interesting things we found in our travels


From our cousin, The Onion, a Secret Service takes one (question) for Mr. Bush:

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/heroic_secret_service_agent_takes

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Eating beef during pregnancy damages male fetuses' ability to produce sperm:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6496977.stm

... now there's one you won't see in the American media, gentle Readers: heaven forbid that our media should threaten the profits of our beef industry by printing THE TRUTH!


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From the Oldie but Goodie department: the stolen 2004 elections.

http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/10432334/was_the_2004_election_stolen

... a depressing read but worth it to brace ourselves for 2008.


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The brown shirts aren't coming--they're already here.


City Police Spied Broadly Before G.O.P. Convention


Todd Heisler/The New York Times

By JIM DWYER

Published: March 25, 2007


For at least a year before the 2004 Republican National Convention, teams of undercover New York City police officers traveled to cities across the country, Canada and Europe to conduct covert observations of people who planned to protest at the convention, according to police records and interviews.


They made friends, shared meals, swapped e-mail messages and then filed daily reports with the department’s Intelligence Division. Other investigators mined Internet sites and chat rooms.


From these operations, run by the department’s “R.N.C. Intelligence Squad,” the police identified a handful of groups and individuals who expressed interest in creating havoc during the convention, as well as some who used Web sites to urge or predict violence.


But potential troublemakers were hardly the only ones to end up in the files. In hundreds of reports stamped “N.Y.P.D. Secret,” the Intelligence Division chronicled the views and plans of people who had no apparent intention of breaking the law, the records show.


These included members of street theater companies, church groups and antiwar organizations, as well as environmentalists and people opposed to the death penalty, globalization and other government policies. Three New York City elected officials were cited in the reports.


In at least some cases, intelligence on what appeared to be lawful activity was shared with police departments in other cities. A police report on an organization of artists called Bands Against Bush noted that the group was planning concerts on Oct. 11, 2003, in New York, Washington, Seattle, San Francisco and Boston. Between musical sets, the report said, there would be political speeches and videos.


Activists are showing a well-organized network made up of anti-Bush sentiment; the mixing of music and political rhetoric indicates sophisticated organizing skills with a specific agenda,” said the report, dated Oct. 9, 2003. “Police departments in above listed areas have been contacted regarding this event.”


Police records indicate that in addition to sharing information with other police departments, New York undercover officers were active themselves in at least 15 places outside New York — including California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montreal, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas and Washington, D.C. — and in Europe.


The operation was mounted in 2003 after the Police Department, invoking the fresh horrors of the World Trade Center attack and the prospect of future terrorism, won greater authority from a federal judge to investigate political organizations for criminal activity.


To date, as the boundaries of the department’s expanded powers continue to be debated, police officials have provided only glimpses of its intelligence-gathering.


Now, the broad outlines of the pre-convention operations are emerging from records in federal lawsuits that were brought over mass arrests made during the convention, and in greater detail from still-secret reports reviewed by The New York Times. These include a sample of raw intelligence documents and of summary digests of observations from both the field and the department’s cyberintelligence unit.


Paul J. Browne, the chief spokesman for the Police Department, confirmed that the operation had been wide-ranging, and said it had been an essential part of the preparations for the huge crowds that came to the city during the convention.


Detectives collected information both in-state and out-of-state to learn in advance what was coming our way,” Mr. Browne said. When the detectives went out of town, he said, the department usually alerted the local authorities by telephone or in person.


Under a United States Supreme Court ruling, undercover surveillance of political groups is generally legal, but the police in New York — like those in many other big cities — have operated under special limits as a result of class-action lawsuits filed over police monitoring of civil rights and antiwar groups during the 1960s. The limits in New York are known as the Handschu guidelines, after the lead plaintiff, Barbara Handschu.


All our activities were legal and were subject in advance to Handschu review,” Mr. Browne said.


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Sign here!


Below are important petitions and action items we'd like to share with our readership. We encourage you to participate--make your voice heard!


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From The Scallion: contact Gov. Butch Otter and ask him to require teenage boys to get adult permission to impregnate teenage girls if he is going to require teenage girls to get adult permission for abortions!


Idaho's Republican governor, Butch Otter, recently signed into law a bill that requires female minors to obtain permission from a parent or guardian before getting an abortion. In the interest of fairness, we of The Scallion are hereby inviting our Readers to contact Governor Otter and request him to sponsor and sign a bill that would require male minors to obtain permission from a parent or guardian to impregnate female minors. The burden of pregnancy should not rest on females alone because, the last time we looked, females do not get pregnant alone.


http://gov.idaho.gov/WebRespond/contact_form.html


Concerned Citizen

123 Faux St

Boise, Idaho 83720


I hear that you recently signed into law a bill that requires minor girls to get permission from a parent or guardian for an abortion.


Please now sponsor and sign into law a bill that requires minor boys to get permission from a parent or guardian to have sexual intercourse with minor girls.


I'm sure you realize that this is only fair. The entire burden of pregnancy should not rest on girls alone because they do not become pregnant alone. I hope you realize that, too.


If you are requiring girls to have adult permission for abortions, then it is high time to hold the boys accountable, too.


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From the ACLU


ACLU Special Alert: Close Guantanamo

Take Action to Close the Prison at Guantanamo Bay:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=qwrm1YOsvLWcS_efg85XzA..

You can view this message with graphics on the web at:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=ke4fnFKgGf9nV4h13teCQg..
***************************************************************
Dear Friend,

No president should ever be given the unilateral power to
designate people enemy combatants and then have them
locked away indefinitely with no prospect of being charged
or tried.

The prison at Guantanamo is damaging American values,
and our reputation in the eyes of our enemies and our allies
alike. It's time to end indefinite detention without charges
and shut down Guantanamo.

Email your Members of Congress: Tell them to close the
Guantanamo prison:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=BB6ftJc5pPYuH7vGD3UwvQ..

Last week, The New York Times reported that President
Bush's new Defense Secretary Robert Gates favors closing
Guantanamo and transferring the prisoners there to the
United States.

And Senator John McCain (R-AZ) said, if elected president,
he "would immediately close Guantanamo Bay, move all
prisoners to Fort Leavenworth and truly expedite the judicial
proceedings in their cases."

The Constitution makes the president subject to the rule of
law. Its drafters rejected dungeons and monarchies and chose
a system of due process and checks and balances.

Take action: Tell Congress to close Guantanamo and end
indefinite detention without charges:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=9-0Ep6nRRCzF5_oBaUIFFg..

At the Guantanamo prison, detainees languish with no access
to courts, no meaningful contact with their families and no
prospect of being charged or tried.

Nearly 400 men have been held indefinitely and without charge
at Guantanamo for as long as five years. The government has
already released more than 300 men, and admits that
approximately 100 of the current prisoners shouldn't be there.
Officials also admit that no more than a few dozen of them will
ever be charged.

But Congress is listening to us. ACLU activists like you recently
helped stop the construction of a massive $125 million "legal
compound" at Guantanamo, designed to enable round-the-clock
trials using unconstitutional trial procedures. Thousands of
concerned members and activists like you took immediate action
and within 24 hours, the project was dead.

Tell Congress to shut down Guantanamo and end indefinite
detention without charges. Go to:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=9wryBp3Kz9F3enRB5FM9eg..

The House Armed Services Committee will be holding hearings
on Guantanamo and the Military Commissions Act this Wednesday.
Your senators and representatives need to hear from you.

The only thing more frightening than a President who ignores
the Constitution is a Congress and a people who grant him
permission. Please, help end this terrible chapter in our history.

Write now to urge your Members of Congress to shut down
Guantanamo Bay:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=jG253hkgUFLyKdyPtJlgAw..

Together, we can restore fairness and bring back American values.

Thank you for everything you do.

Sincerely,

Anthony D. Romero
Executive Director, ACLU

Caroline Fredrickson
Director, ACLU Washington Legislative Office


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From our information clearinghouse


These are items we receive from the countless mailing lists to which The Scallion collectively subscribes. They are worth the effort of at least a good skim.


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From the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition



Antiwar movement sets the record straight
Read ANSWER's Op-Ed in the SF Chronicle below

*Please forward widely to your email lists, friends and family*


San Francisco front banner, March 18
(Photo: Bill Hackwell)

After a week of pressure exerted by angry people in Northern California, the San Francisco Chronicle agreed to publish an Op-Ed by the ANSWER Coalition that tells the truth about the March 18th demonstration in San Francisco. The demonstration, like others around the country, was a sign of a growing antiwar movement. You would never have known it from reading the San Francisco Chronicle report.

Background information

On the fourth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, people took to the streets in more than 1,000 U.S. cities and towns. The largest demonstrations took place in Washington, DC at the March on the Pentagon, in San Francisco, and in Los Angeles, all initiated by the ANSWER Coalition and co-sponsored by a wide array of progressive organizations. These demonstrations reached people in the U.S. who had never participated in a protest before and also included many Iraq war veterans, active-duty servicemembers, family members, and veterans of other wars.

This resurgence of the anti-war movement, and the breadth of its makeup, signifies a sharp turn by the public against the war. But just as tens of thousands were marching in these major city demonstrations, the corporate mass media were fine-tuning their atrocious coverage and providing huge undercounts. As we all know, mass demonstrations have a major ripple effect. Many who are not there learn about the actions and seeing a vibrant anti-war movement feel that they too can be a part of it. A number of major media outlets across the country made tens of thousands of people disappear from the demonstrations and provided often hostile, misleading and false coverage.


San Francisco crowd shot, March 18
(Photo: Peter Maiden)

This isnt the first time the media has attempted to rewrite the reality of a major political protest. As many will remember, when the ANSWER Coalition organized the first major national demonstration against a looming war in Iraq on October 26, 2002 that brought 200,000 people into Washington, D.C., NPR announced the number to be in the hundreds. Deluged with phone calls and letters, NPR was forced to issue a correction. The New York Times said the demonstration was in the thousands.Only after it received thousands of angry faxes, phone calls and emails, did the New York Times write a second article a few days later stating that the anti-war movement had been invigoratedby a massive turnout.

On the weekend of March 17-18, among the most egregious coverage was the crowd countput out by the San Francisco Chronicle for the March 18 rally. The Chronicle article on the march, which was picked up the Associated Press and distributed worldwide, reported that just 3,000 people participated -- less than 10% of the number who actually marched. The reporters claimed to have countedthe march, and to back up their ludicrous number, falsely asserted that the march organizers had announcedthe same number from the stage. The Chronicle report provoked hundreds of angry emails, calls and letters to the editor in the next 48 hours.

Under growing pressure, the Chronicle agreed to publish an Op-Ed written by the ANSWER Coalition in yesterday's newspaper (Monday, March 26).

This is an important victory, one that was only achieved because of many people taking action to express their outrage. It must also be said that publishing the Op-Ed is a step, but it does not mitigate the damage done by the wide distribution of the Chronicle false report.

Our movement must create and strengthen our own media, while continuing to pressure the corporate media to tell the truth about the growing antiwar struggle in the United States.

Please read ANSWER's Op-Ed, which is
available by clicking this link. Please send this Op-Ed to every one in your email address book, and forward it to other email lists.

Please take a moment to donate to support the important work of the ANSWER Coalition. You can make a much-needed donation right now by
clicking on this link.



ANSWER letter in yesterday's Washington Post
The antiwar movement sets the record straight again
Also: April 7 "Hands Off Cuba, Venezuela, Bolivia" Protest in New York City

Yesterday the Washington Post carried a letter by Brian Becker, National Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition (see below). Following on the huge success of the March on the Pentagon, the anti-war movement has seen a resurgence of attacks and slanders by pro-war, pro-Bush followers who are worried about the growing power of the movement. The letter below was written to clarify the facts of the march on the Pentagon and expose the lies of the pro-war organizations. This letter follows on the heels of ANSWER's Op-Ed in the San Francisco Chronicle published on March 26.

Also, below the letter is an important notice about a protest on April 7 in New York, which will condemn the U.S. threats on Cuba, Venezuela, and Bolivia -- countries which have the right to self-determination without U.S. intrusions.


To read the letter on the Washington Post site, click on this link.

The Facts of the Pentagon March
The Washington Post
Friday, March 30, 2007; Page A16

The overwrought March 27 pro-war letter, "Points on the Antiwar Protest," including its false attack on the Answer Coalition, had the same credibility as President Bush's explanations for going to war in the first place.

Tens of thousands of people marched on the Pentagon on March 17, led by a large contingent of active-duty soldiers and Marines, Iraq war veterans, parents whose children died in Iraq and other veterans. They were joined by people from across the political spectrum.

Mr. Bush's pro-war supporters assaulted these peaceful protesters. They spat on Iraq war veterans and others. They screamed racist obscenities at a Latino father carrying a picture of his son who was killed in Iraq. Muslim women were taunted. The pro-war supporters shoved and hit elderly people and high school students and ripped signs from their hands. The Post cited the "passion" of this relatively small pro-war mob. If antiwar demonstrators had done the same, they would have been described as "violent" and "extremists."

Mr. Bush lied when he took the country to war. His supporters lie when they try to demonize those working to stop a war that has taken the lives of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and more than 3,200 U.S. service members. It is the antiwar movement, not Mr. Bush or his fringe ultra-right supporters, that cares about the lives of U.S. troops. Their lives, and the lives of Iraqi people, are too precious to be squandered in a war of aggression.

More than 1,000 antiwar protests swept the country from March 17 to March 20. Veterans and military families were in the forefront everywhere.

This is a major story that was greatly underreported by The Post.

BRIAN BECKER

National Coordinator, Answer Coalition
Washington, D.C.

To see the letter on the Washington Post site,
click on this link.

The above follows an opinion piece published last week in the San Francisco Chronicle, protesting the inadequate press coverage given to the March 18 Anti-war march in San Francisco.
Click to read the SF Chronicle piece.


April 7 Protest in NYC: U.S. Hands Off Venezuela, Cuba, and Bolivia!

The ANSWER Coalition is joining with dozens of other organizations for an important protest on April 7th in New York City. Now is the time to take to the streets to press Congress and the White House to end all sanctions and threats against Cuba, Venezuela, and Bolivia! Join us and the rest of the April 7th Coalition in New York City on April 7 to demand:

- End Washingtons Economic and Political War Against Cuba!
- End Threats and Sanctions Against Venezuela and Bolivia!
- Freedom for the Cuban Five!
- End U.S. Colonialism in Puerto Rico!
- Free Puerto Rican Political Prisoners!

Well gather in Bryant Park, 42nd St. @ 6th Ave. between 10am-noon then march past the New York Times up 8th Ave. to Central Park for a Public Rally: at the statues of Simon Bolivar and Jose Marti, 59th St. & 6th Ave., (south end of Central Park). The rally will be followed by a reception with Cuban, Venezuelan, and Bolivian ambassadors and diplomats at Martin Luther King Labor Center, 1199/SEIU Building, 310 West 43rd St. (betw. 8th & 9th Ave.)

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From AlterNet


The War on Drugs Is Really a War on Minorities
By Arianna Huffington, Los Angeles Times
Democratic presidential candidates crave the Latino and black vote, but ignore the Drug War's unfair toll on people of color.
Read more

American Socialism for the Already Rich
By Christopher Howard, Democracy: a Journal of Ideas
Call it phony universalism, Robin Hood in reverse, or socialism for the rich -- the United States spends almost as much helping the have-plenties as the have-nots.


Americans in the Opinion Polls, Not in the Streets
By Tom Engelhardt, Tomdispatch.com
If so many people are fed up with the war, why is everyone so silent? Is this the way it usually feels in the heartlands of great empires until the barbarians actually do come knocking at the gates?

Organic Food: The Farmer's Conundrum
By Tom Philpott, Grist Magazine
If organic food is so popular, why are so few farms transitioning their land?

Who Controls the News?
By Gemma Puglisi, Women's Media Center
For the third time in history, a woman has been hired as a nightly news executive. That's a sorry commentary in 2007 considering the first network newscast aired sometime just after Adam and Eve.

Seize the Momentum
By Bill McKibben, Grist Magazine
Where does a new consensus come from? How does the zeitgeist suddenly start to shift?

Vote Mac?
By Annalee Newitz, AlterNet
The new attack ad against Hillary Clinton seems to blur the lines between what we should be buying and who we should be voting for.

Partisan Witch Hunts on YouTube
By Will Durst, AlterNet
We got ourselves a Battle Royale between the two gnarliest branches of government that a tree has ever see. Watch Executive Privilege do battle with the People's Right to Know.

Iraqi Woman to John Bolton: Who are you fooling? [VIDEO]
By Evan Derkacz
... and Bolton laughed at on the Daily Show... A double feature!

Beyond the pale: anti-gay, racist emails from Army recruiter
By Pam Spaulding
"Go Back to Africa and do your gay voodoo limbo tango..."

Insurance fraud: "If they wait long enough... the policyholders will die."
By Amy Traub
Insurance companies make money when they don't pay claims...

Hillary steals the health care show...
Taylor Marsh: You mean there's more than Iraq?


Creation "Science" Is the Christian Right's Trojan Horse Against Reason
By Chris Hedges, Truthdig
From California to Florida, a string of Creation "Science" museums are springing up across the country as part of the Christian Right's attempt to rewrite the past and make it conform to the Bible.
Read more

Health Care Is Finally a Priority
By Jacob S. Hacker, TomPaine.com
Leading Democratic presidential candidates made clear on Saturday that "stay the course" is no longer a viable strategy on the health policy battlefield.

Quality of Life: Who Should Decide for Disabled People?
By Patricia Williams, The Nation
The parents of a severely disabled 9-year-old girl subjected her to a series of nonessential surgeries. Though their decision was made out of love, this case raises too many troubling questions about medical ethics and public policy to withhold judgment.

Progress Report: Media Think They Know Best
By Faiz Shakir, Nico Pitney, Amanda Terkel, Payson Schwin, Satyam Khanna, Center for American Progress
Journalists seem to have forgotten that they are supposed to be watchdogs -- not cheerleaders of government corruption.

New Efforts to Predict When Polar Ice Will Melt
By Gregory M. Lamb, Christian Science Monitor
A new study finds that as Arctic warming accelerates, polar waters could become ice-free by the turn of the century, or, under one scenario, as early as 2040.

Debunking Bush Administration Bull About Afghanistan
By Katherine Spillar, Ms. Magazine
Human rights advocate Sima Samar gives a from-the-field perspective on the daily lives of men and women in Afghanistan since 2001.

Yes, overthrowing Saddam WAS a mistake [VIDEO]
By Evan Derkacz
According to Iraqi who pulled down Saddam's statue, "the Americans are worse than the dictatorship..."

Apollo's Fire: Seeking stories about the energy revolution
By Tara Lohan
Calling all world changing companies, organizers, communities ...

Tillman case; a failure of duty
By Philip Barron
The Army's unacceptable response to the family of Cpl. Pat Tillman is a call to action -- for citizens and Congress.

Olbermann does Attorneygate [VIDEO x 2]
By Richard Blair
The last 12 hours have been full of new twists & turns...


Committing Torture Wakens Inner Evils -- A Soldier's Tale
By Tara McKelvey, The American Prospect
Interrogator Tony Lagouranis says he discovered and indulged in his own evil at Abu Ghraib prison, and now fears that it will be his constant companion for the rest of his life.

A Young Karl Rove plots for College Republicans [VIDEO -- 1972]
By Evan Derkacz
An old CBS newscast reveals a predilection for tricks... and more hair...

How Analysts in the Arab World View the Occupation of Iraq
By Helena Cobban, Christian Science Monitor
Iraq: still not all about the U.S.

Will Humanity go the Way of the Dinosaur?
By Robert B. Reich, The American Prospect
A new NASA report on killer asteroids ought to spook people into action.

Why we're in Iraq: Not oil... not oil... not oil... [VIDEO]
By Evan Derkacz
Jim Hightower unravels the mystery of an unfolding plan

Dianne Feinstein resigns committee post amid scandal; accused of war profiteering
By Joshua Holland
Often, the whole imperial project is a bipartisan endeavor ...


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From the Center for American Progress


GOOD NEWS

The House yesterday followed the Senate and
voted to repeal a Patriot Act provision "that grants the Attorney General the authority to make indefinite interim appointments of U.S. Attorneys, who can then serve indefinitely without Senate confirmation."

STATE WATCH

TEXAS: Lawmakers urge the state to follow the lead of other states that have formally apologized for their roles in slavery.

IOWA: State Senate approves legislation prohibiting discriminatory practices based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

FLORIDA: State is considering legislation that could criminalize stem cell research.

BLOG WATCH

THINK PROGRESS: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales says he may "find out" that attorneys were purged for political reasons.

PAM'S HOUSE BLEND: Anti-gay, racist e-mails from an army recruiter.

BOB GEIGER: Will a major Swift Boat donor become a U.S. ambassador this week?

SUNLIGHT FOUNDATION: "Citizen journalists find majority of congressional web sites are not tools for transparency."

DAILY GRILL

"I think if the President would agree for his close advisers in the White House to testify before Congress under oath, he'd be making a huge mistake. There is a thing called executive privilege."
-- Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott (R-MS),
3/25/07, on President Bush invoking executive privilege in the prosecutor purge

VERSUS

"I think they've made a mistake by [invoking executive privilege]. I think it will damage the credibility. It looks like they are hiding something, so I think they shouldn't have done it."
-- Lott,
3/24/98, on President Clinton invoking executive privilege in the Monica Lewinsky saga


GOOD NEWS

Yesterday, the House unanimously
voted to "improve the care of wounded soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan," adding caseworkers and counselors to the military's overburdened medical system.

STATE WATCH

ARKANSAS: "A proposed ban on homosexuals adopting or fostering children collapsed in the Arkansas Legislature on Tuesday."

NEW HAMPSHIRE: State House defeats proposed constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.

HAWAII: U.S. House votes to reauthorize housing funding for Native Hawaiians.

GEORGIA: State House votes to restrict number of new enrollees in children's health care program.

BLOG WATCH


THINK PROGRESS: Video Montage: GSA administrator Lurita Doan has a horrible memory (except about cookies).

BELTWAY BLOGROLL: Pentagon invites right-wing bloggers to visit Iraq.

THE CRYPT: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) urges President Bush to "take a deep breath" before vetoing Iraq spending bill.

FP PASSPORT: Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah turns down President Bush's state dinner invitation.

DAILY GRILL

"The [Justice] Department is not aware of Karl Rove playing any role in the decision to appoint Mr. Griffin."
-- Former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales Kyle Sampson,
2/23/07, in a letter to senators on the appointment of Tim Griffin as U.S. attorney in Arkansas

VERSUS

"[G]etting him [Tim Griffin] appointed was important to Harriet, Karl, etc."
-- Sampson,
12/19/06


GOOD NEWS

Eric Keroack was appointed in November by President Bush to oversee federal family planning programs, despite having worked for a religious pregnancy counseling group that
opposes contraception. After months of protests, Keroack has resigned.

STATE WATCH

DELAWARE: State Senate approves legislation permitting embryonic stem cell research.

IDAHO: Gov. Butch Otter (R) signs "into law a bill that requires minor girls to get permission from a parent or guardian for an abortion."

INDIANA: State House is considering a "proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage."

BLOG WATCH


THINK PROGRESS: Kyle Sampson admits he made call to silence FBI complaints about firing of U.S. attorney.

ACS BLOG: President Bush nominates judge who once blocked a Texas television station "from broadcasting information about a renowned televangelist," a move critics called an "'intolerable' violation of the First Amendment."

POLITICAL RADAR: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales still hasn't gone to Capitol Hill to "correct" his mistakes.

DAILY GRILL

I was not involved in seeing any memos, was not involved in any discussions about what was going on.
-- Attorney General Alberto Gonzales,
3/12/07

VERSUS

"I don't think it's entirely accurate what he said. ... I spoke with him every day, so I think [we had] at least five [discussions]."
-- Kyle Sampson, Gonzales' former chief of staff,
3/29/07


GOOD NEWS

On Palm Sunday, 1,436 churches
distributed "364,000 eco-palm stems," which are "collected in a way that helps preserve the forest" and benefits local workers.

STATE WATCH

NEW YORK: Legislature agrees to put a major expansion of children's health insurance into state budget.

MASSACHUSETTS: Gov. Deval Patrick (D) orders the reversal of a restrictive same-sex marriage rule made by his predecessor, Mitt Romney.

HEALTH CARE: In response to a lack of federal action, several states "have been taking bold steps to improve access to health care and lower costs."

BLOG WATCH


THINK PROGRESS: Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) strolls through Baghdad market, accompanied by 100 soldiers, 3 Blackhawks, 2 Apache gunships.

BLOGGERNISTA: Right-wing ex-porn star in trouble.

TALK LEFT: Newt Gingrich on Spanish -- "the language of living in a ghetto."

ONE BLOG A DAY: Profile of ThinkProgress.org.

DAILY GRILL

"But what we're doing today is different. And to say it's not different is just really not being fair. ... We went to the market and were just really warmly welcomed. I bought five rugs for five bucks. And people were engaging, and just a few weeks ago, hundreds of people, dozens of people were killed in this same place."
-- Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC),
4/1/07, on visiting the Shorja market in Iraq

VERSUS

"Just yesterday, an Iraqi soldier was shot in his shoulder by a sniper, and the day before, two civilians were shot by a sniper as well. ... Everybody closes their shops by 2:30 p.m. ... It is not even 10 percent of our work before the bombings, because people are afraid to come."
-- Amir Raheem,
4/2/07, a floor carpeting merchant at the Shorja market


-----

From “Democracy Now!”


*David Hicks Becomes First Guantanamo Prisoner to Plead Guilty*

The Australian citizen David Hicks has become the first Guantanamo prisoner
to plead guilty under the Military Commissions Act passed last year. Hicks
entered the guilty plea Monday as part of a deal with military prosecutors.
Hicks has been held at Guantanamo Bay for the past five years. We speak with
Michael Ratner, president of the Center for Constitutional Rights. [rush
transcript included]

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/03/27/1356240


*Iran Continues to Hold 15 Captured British Sailors*

Iran said Monday it was questioning 15 British sailors and marines to
determine if their alleged entry into Iranian waters was "intentional or
unintentional" before deciding what to do with them. Iran maintains the
sailors and marines crossed over into Iranian waters while Britain insists
they stayed in Iraqi territory. We go to Tehran to get a report. [rush
transcript included]

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/03/27/1356245


*Report: U.S. Sponsoring Kurdish Guerilla Attacks Inside Iran*

We speak with independent journalist Reese Erlich about his report on
Iranian Kurdish guerillas based among their Kurdish bretheren in northern
Iraq. Erlich writes, "Kurdish and American sources say the United States has
been supporting guerilla raids against Iran, channeling the money through
organizations in Iraqi Kurdistan." [rush transcript included]

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/03/27/1356250


*Over 240 Arrested Since "Occupation Project" Launched to Call on Congress
to End War Funding*

The Senate prepares to vote this week on a $100 billion spending bill that
would give the President $100 billion more for the wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan.Last month, the group Voices For Creative Nonviolence launched
the Occupation Project. Activists around the country traveled to
congressional offices and conducted sit-ins while calling on lawmakers to
stop funding the war. We speak with veteran peace activist Kathy Kelly.

Listen/Watch/Read

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/03/27/1356254


* Headlines for March 27, 2007 *

- Hicks Becomes First Gitmo Prisoner to Plead Guilty
- Hicks's Attorneys Barred from Trial
- UK Ignored Experts' Endorsement of Lancet Study on Iraq Toll
- Iraq Considers Re-Instating Baath Members
- Arab League to Revive Israel Peace Offer
- Gonzales Aide Won't Testify About Attorney Firings
- CIA Links Colombian Army Chief to Paramilitaries, Traffickers
- Tillman Family Rejects Pentagon Probe into Shooting Death


*"This Isn't American Idol, We're Choosing the President of the United
States" - Kucinich on Corporate Media Campaign Coverage*

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D - OH) was one of eight Congressmembers to vote
against the House war-spending bill last week that set a timetable for the
withdrawal of troops from Iraq. We go to Capitol Hill to speak with Kucinich
about the bill, why he thinks impeachment "should be on the table," the
corporate media's coverage of the race for the Democratic presidential
nomination and more. [rush transcript included]

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/03/28/1335231


*Andre Schiffrin on 50 Years in Publishing World, From Corporate
Consolidation to Founding Independent Non-Profit*

Andre Schiffrin has been a leading figure in the book publishing world for
nearly 50 years. As head of Pantheon books Andre Schiffrin edited titles by
Jean-Paul Sartre, Studs Terkel, Art Spiegelman, Noam Chomsky and Michel
Foucault. In 1990 he resigned and set up the non-profit publishing house The
New Press. Schiffrin has also written several of his own books including,
his new memoir, "A Political Education: Coming of Age in Paris and New
York." [rush transcript included]

Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/03/28/1335236


* Headlines for March 28, 2007 *

- Senate Passes Amendment for Non-Binding Iraq Withdrawal
- Shiite Police Kill 45 in Revenge Spree for Car Bombing
- Retired General: US Military in “Strategic Peril”
- Judge Dismisses Rumsfeld Torture Suit
- Britain Unveils Evidence on Sailor Capture
- Reports: At Least 200 Killed in Congo Fighting
- FBI Head Acknowledges Breaches in National Security Letters
- Gonzales Bolts Press Conference Following Attorney Questions


Listen/Watch/Read
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/03/28/1335212


  • "As An Embedded First-Hand Witness in Iraq...I Want to Share Stories the
    American Public is Not Aware of and the Mainstream Media is Not Telling" -
    Iraqi-American Sami Rasouli *

    Iraqi American Sami Rasouli was a well-known restaurateur in Minneapolis. In
    2004, in the midst of the war and occupation - three decades after leaving
    Iraq - he returned to his home country to help it recover from the war and
    U.S. occupation. Rasouli has spent much of his time in the Shiite holy city
    of Najaf where he was born. He also helped establish the Muslim Peacemaker
    Team. He recently returned for a visit back to Minneapolis where he joins us
    today for an extended interview.

    Listen/Watch/Read
    http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/02/1345213


    * "The Worse Things Get in Iraq, the More Privatized This War Becomes, The
    More Profitable This War Becomes" - Naomi Klein on the Privatization of the
    State *

    Acclaimed author and journalist Naomi Klein spoke about the 'privatization
    of the state' at a recent talk in New York City. Klein is a widely read
    columnist for the Nation magazine and the London Guardian and author of the
    international bestseller, "No Logo." Her forthcoming book is titled "The
    Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism."

    Listen/Watch/Read
    http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/02/1345218


    * Headlines for April 2, 2007 *

    - March US Military Death Toll Nearly Double Iraqi Forces
    - Iraqi Civilian Toll Rises 15%
    - Bush: British Sailors “Hostages”
    - US, South Korea Reach Trade Deal Amidst Protests
    - Olmert Calls for Peace Conference, Rejects Right of Return
    - West Underfunding Global Warming Recovery for Poorer Nations
    - Key Bush Insider Speaks Out, Calls for Iraq Withdrawal
    - Plea Deal Raises New Questions over Hicks's Jailing

    Listen/Watch/Read
    http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/02/1345201

-----

From the Christian Alliance


PEACE WITNESS BRINGS THOUSANDS TO WHITE HOUSE
CAP Leadership, 219 Others Arrested

Not a day's worth of sleet and snow, not the cancellation of over 3000 flights nationwide due to weather, not a nasty opposition press release on the day of the event by the right wing Institute for Religion and Democracy, not a deranged individual climbing the fence of the White House just hours before our peace action--none of these things could hold back the swell of Christians who gathered in Washington on Friday night in the name of the Prince of Peace to call our nation back to his values. Following a rousing worship led by the likes of Rev. Raphael Warnock of Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church, Rev. Jim Wallis of Sojourners and Rev Bernice Powell Jackson of the World Council of Churches along with a moving plea from Gold Star Mother Celeste Zappala, thousands of Christians marched to the White House and with their candles encircled it with the light of Christ. As the throng made their way around both of its sides more than 200 of their brothers and sisters, including me and CAP board member and co-founder Rev. Gwin Pratt, were arrested for singing and praying on the sidewalk outside of the White House while a host of national media looked on.

It was truly a transcendent moment which we believe, in the words of Jim Wallis, will mark the beginning of the end of this horrible war.

We thank you for your prayers and support during the months we have been planning this event. Much of our other efforts have been on hold because of the time and energy involved in putting on an event of this size and scope, but the importance of this witness demanded that we give it our full attention. We are making a terrible series of mistakes in Iraq which are being compounded by a sense that our national "manhood" is being challenged when anyone suggests that we pull out. That need to show how macho we are, coupled with the administration's inability to admit its errors, is killing our children and making Iraq less safe by the day, which even the Iraqis themselves no admit (see the latest
ABC/BBC/USA Today poll of Iraqi citizens just out this week).

But God is still working, moving the Church to once again embrace the peace which is at the heart of the teaching of Jesus, and all who worshiped with us Friday night, whether it was at the Cathedral or in the more than 200 worship services in communities all across America, felt that movement of the Spirit.

We Need To Hear From You

This has been a costly effort and we greatly need your support to continue our ministry of peace and reconciliation. From the very beginning of this project last September in a DC jail, the Christian Alliance for Progress has had a leading role in the planning and implementation of the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq, and this commitment has significantly taxed our financial resources. There were no funds for this in our budget. Instead there was the assurance of the Spirit that this was what CAP needed to be doing right now for the sake of the kingdom of God, thus our firm belief has always been that the people of God would support us in this crucial work, so now we need to hear from you. We have to pay the bills to keep the ministry moving ahead, and we can only do this if people who are moved by the public stands we have taken are willing to share in our ministry by their financial support. Please make a pledge of support today to underwrite the work that we are doing.

ALL OF US AT CAP ARE VOLUNTEERS. None of us receives a salary for what we do. It is a labor of love for the sake of the kingdom, so every dime which you pledge to this ministry goes directly to defray expenses. We ask that you please give generously, knowing that what you give is not being used to support the extravagant lifestyles of some high-paid personalities at the top of the organization, as is the case with some notorious outfits, but is instead being plowed completely right back into the work of the kingdom.

Support the Work of the Christian Alliance for Progress

or you can write to

Christian Alliance for Progress
PO Box 40495
Jacksonville, Florida 32203-0495

-----

From Media Savvy


For The First Newsroom Barometer, Nobody 'Killed The Newspaper'
By Editors Weblog
"Who killed the newspaper?" To gain an insiders view the World Editors Forum and Reuters launched an initiative to probe those most concerned: editors-in-chief, deputy editors and senior news executives.


Open Letter To Katie Couric: You Were Unfair To The Edwardses
By Linda Milazzo, MediaChannel.org
I watched your "60 Minutes" interview Sunday evening with Elizabeth and John Edwards. I found you insensitive and judgmental.


The Media Know Best
By Center For American Progress
For six years, conservative domination of Washington created a drought of oversight and accountability. Now, as Congress finally begins to take action and shed light on the executive branch, establishment media figures are aghast.


Onion News Network: Our Troops In Iraq
By Onion News Network
The nation's oldest and most respected news analysis program hosted by Clifford Banes, the nation's oldest and most respected newsman.
Watch Here


The FCC And Armstrong Williams' Continuing Legacy
By PR Watch
As you may remember, Armstrong Williams' $240,000 government contract and his failure to disclose it spurred public outrage and calls for accountability. To date, two government reports on Williams have been released -- both late on a Friday, presumably to limit media coverage of them.


Dahr Jamail Gives Iraq Update With Exclusive Video From Baghdad
By Free Speech TV
Dahr Jamail describes some of the origins of the "sectarianism" that the US corporate media is so apt to point to when discussing the violence in Iraq, and shows how the US has been involved in fueling the sectarian tensions.


-----

From Planned Parenthood


Message from the President

In the News
The Truth about Sex before Marriage
Sex Ed Bill Puts Parents and Teens First
Protecting Women from Violence

Ask Dr. Cullins
What is "safer sex"?

Message from Cecile Richards, President
Planned Parenthood Federation of America


Preparation and action those have been the two themes for the month of March. Planned Parenthood activists and volunteers have been laying the groundwork for a full-scale mobilization in response to the upcoming U.S. Supreme Court decision in our Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood case about protecting women's health and safety. Meanwhile, we've been organizing on several key grassroots organizing and legislative efforts.

Earlier this month, we asked for volunteers to join our Pill Patrol. The response was overwhelming more than 2,300 Planned Parenthood supporters signed up to visit their local pharmacies to check on store policies regarding stocking and dispensing emergency contraception. Stay tuned for important news about the outcome of this remarkable effort.

And that's not all. We've been mobilizing against state abortion bans ... working to advance REAL sex education ... supporting governors who refuse federal abstinence-only funds ... and pressing the case for the crucial Prevention First legislation.

With the energy everyone has shown in March, I know we're more than ready to meet the challenges that will come our way in the days and weeks ahead.

The Truth about Sex before Marriage
With President Bush working to give still more money to abstinence-until-marriage programs, Lawrence Finer, director of domestic research at the Guttmacher Institute, decided to investigate whether these programs are realistic. His investigation revealed some interesting facts about premarital sex in the United States ...
Read More

Sex Ed Bill Puts Parents and Teens First
Legislators in the U.S. House and Senate have introduced the REAL Act, which would fund medically accurate, comprehensive sex education programs ...
Read More

Protecting Women from Violence
Although violence against women is still widespread and culturally acceptable in many countries, during the past year some countries have passed laws to protect women and punish perpetrators ...
Read More

What exactly do people mean when they say "safer sex"? Is it always about condoms?
Read More

Dr. Vanessa Cullins is a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist and vice president for medical affairs at Planned Parenthood Federation of America.


-----

From HuffPo


Nora Ephron: Some People

From cbsnews.com

Excerpted from Nora Ephron's Blog:

...Last night on 60 Minutes, Katie Couric kept referring to "Some people." She said that "some" were saying the Edwardses were courageous, and "others" were saying they were callous and ambitious. She said that some people were wondering how someone could be president if he was "distracted" by his wife's health. (This question, in a year when there are two presidential candidates who are themselves cancer survivors, seemed particularly disingenuous.) (And never mind that it was being asked by someone who managed to keep working while dealing with her own husband's terminal illness.)...

...I don't know what some people think, but I myself think it's weird to question the Edwardses as if there's some right way to deal with cancer. There's no real way to know how one is going to deal with such things until they happen, and even then, there's no way to apply the way one person chooses to deal with mortal illness to another...
Click here to read more.


ON THE BLOG TODAY

Arianna Huffington: New HuffPost Project: The Wisdom of the Crowd Hits the '08 Campaign Trail

Steven Barrie-Anthony:
Obama's Poetry

Chris Mooney:
Why Republicans Distrust Mainstream Climate Science

Susan Madrak:
The Cancer Scolds Explain It All For You

-----

From Randi Rhodes

(Readers, this is an oldie but goodie. -Ed., The Scallion)


MESSAGE FROM RANDI
09.22.2006

As the dust begins to settle on the latest round of George Bush vs. American Values, it's important to emphasize just how little support this man has for the torturous way he operates.

While Senate Republicans now say that that they have reached some sort of Geneva Conventions-friendly "agreement" with the White House, the vehement backlash against Bush by the military this past week is well worth revisiting.

Five former Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff actually had to publicly stand up against a sitting President of the United States! Yeah, it's really gotten that bad.

Gen. Hugh Shelton

Chairman under Bill Clinton & George W. Bush

Gen. John Shalikashvili

Chairman under Bill Clinton

Gen. Colin Powell

Chairman under George Bush Sr. & Bill Clinton

Admiral William Crowe

Chairman under Ronald Reagan & George Bush Sr.

Gen. John Vessey

Chairman under Ronald Reagan

These men were joined by dozens of other Generals, Admirals, intelligence officers and the entire JAG Corp. Plus, the FBI (who refuse to be present while interrogations are taking place because they are too gruesome) and the CIA who recently said they would NOT continue these illegal interrogations.

They all rose up to protect America from its own President. Surreal...

This historic standoff comes on the heals of the ongoing revolt of the Generals against Bush's disastrous oil war in Iraq. These are honorable military commanders who are following in the fine tradition of General Smedley Butler.

In the first half of the 20th century, Gen. Butler was as well known as Colin Powell is today. He served 33 years in the US Marines and is one of only 19 people ever to receive TWO Congressional Medals of Honor - the highest decoration the US Military awards.

Gen. Butler served with unquestionable distinction on battlefields spanning three continents. And when his service was through and the only orders he followed were his own he did what all great men do: he asked himself "Why?"

History now remembers General Smedley Butler for his answer that very simple question. An answer that holds as true today as it did 73 ago:

WAR IS A RACKET!

The following is an excerpt from a speech Gen. Butler delivered in 1933--one of over 1,200 speeches he delivered in over 700 US cities.

"War is just a racket. A racket is best described, I believe, as something that is not what it seems to the majority of people. Only a small inside group knows what it is about. It is conducted for the benefit of the very few at the expense of the masses.

I believe in adequate defense at the coastline and nothing else. If a nation comes over here to fight, then we'll fight. The trouble with America is that when the dollar only earns 6 percent over here, then it gets restless and goes overseas to get 100 percent. Then the flag follows the dollar and the soldiers follow the flag.

I wouldn't go to war again as I have done to protect some lousy investment of the bankers. There are only two things we should fight for. One is the defense of our homes and the other is the Bill of Rights. War for any other reason is simply a racket.

There isn't a trick in the racketeering bag that the military gang is blind to. It has its "finger men" to point out enemies, its "muscle men" to destroy enemies, its "brain men" to plan war preparations, and a "Big Boss" Super-Nationalistic-Capitalism.

It may seem odd for me, a military man to adopt such a comparison. Truthfulness compels me to. I spent thirty- three years and four months in active military service as a member of this country's most agile military force, the Marine Corps. I served in all commissioned ranks from Second Lieutenant to Major-General. And during that period, I spent most of my time being a high class muscle- man for Big Business, for Wall Street and for the Bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism.

I suspected I was just part of a racket at the time. Now I am sure of it. Like all the members of the military profession, I never had a thought of my own until I left the service. My mental faculties remained in suspended animation while I obeyed the orders of higher-ups. This is typical with everyone in the military service.

I helped make Mexico, especially Tampico, safe for American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefits of Wall Street. The record of racketeering is long. I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-1912. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. In China I helped to see to it that Standard Oil went its way unmolested.

During those years, I had, as the boys in the back room would say, a swell racket. Looking back on it, I feel that I could have given Al Capone a few hints. The best he could do was to operate his racket in three districts. I operated on three continents."

In 1935, Gen. Butler published his famed short work titled War is a Racket.
Click here to read it in its entirety.

Thanks for listening and PLEASE VOTE!

Love ALLways,

Randi

URL to this newsletter:
http://www.therandirhodesshow.com/live/newsletter/09.22.2006.html

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2006 Air America Radio

-----

And now for something you'll really like!


Medieval tech support:

http://www.flixxy.com/medieval-tech-support.htm


The Helsinki Complaints Choir:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATXV3DzKv68


And don't forget to check out The Dilbert Blog:

http://dilbertblog.typepad.com/

... might we recommend the April Fool's Day edition, in which Scott Adams posts the best pranks pulled by or on him and solicits best pranks from his readers? (http://dilbertblog.typepad.com/the_dilbert_blog/2007/03/april_fools_jok.html)