A Stand For Justice
Obama tells Barak US committed to Israel's security
Monday's meeting with Obama and Jones was the first in a series of meetings Barak is scheduled to hold with administration officials. The talks are expected to focus on the Iranian nuclear threats, the developments in Lebanon and Syria and the stalled peace negotiations with the Palestinians.
Israel warns against giving Iran too much time
Iran and the rearming of the Hezbollah militia were major topics of Barak's session at the Pentagon. He met earlier Tuesday with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Mideast peace would thwart Iran ambitions: Obama aide
While acknowledging disagreements with Israel, Jones said the U.S. commitment to its ally was "unbreakable." "There is no space –– no space –– between the United States and Israel when it comes to Israel's security," he said.
Netanyahu: Iran provoking Israel-Syria conflict
Netanyahu says Iran is trying to convince Syria that an Israeli attack is imminent, which he says is a "lie."
Demonizing Iran: US Media Continue Beating War Drums
Aside from the fact that there is no hard evidence that Iran is trying to make a nuclear bomb or even to refine uranium to obtain nuclear-grade material, the paper ignored one crucial point: Israel cannot "go it alone" in any strike on Iran, since its key weapons--F15 and F-16 fighter-bombers--are supplied to it, and kept flying, thanks to the equipment and spare parts provided by the United States
U.S. lawmaker: Obama should deal with Iran nukes, not criticize Israel
Ros-Lehtinen lashed out at Obama for neglecting to deal with the "urgency" of Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons: "After months of generous offers and repeated rejections with one deadline after another passing without action, nothing of substance has been accomplished and Iran continues to relentlessly move forward. Ros-Lehtinen is one of Israel's top agents in Congress. She spends more time on all matters Israel than she does on those of America, evidently.
'All options' open if Syria gives Hezbollah missiles: US
US: Missile transfers could lead to war
Earlier, Israeli officials have warned of the grave consequences of Scud missile transfers to Hezbollah. No kidding? Say I wonder who our lawmakers take their cues from?
Biden: Israel won't attack Iran before sanctions allowed to work
On Wednesday, the Obama administration said that progress toward Middle East peace would help thwart Iran's ambitions by preventing it from "cynically" using the conflict to divert attention from its nuclear program.
An Act Of War By Congressman Ron Paul
Mr. Speaker I rise in opposition to this motion to instruct House conferees on HR 2194, the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability and Divestment Act, and I rise in strong opposition again to the underlying bill and to its Senate version as well. I object to this entire push for war on Iran, however it is disguised. Listening to the debate on the Floor on this motion and the underlying bill it feels as if we are back in 2002 all over again: the same falsehoods and distortions used to push the United States into a disastrous and unnecessary one trillion dollar war on Iraq are being trotted out again to lead us to what will likely be an even more disastrous and costly war on Iran. The parallels are astonishing. Ron Paul- one of the few to stand up to Israel's lobby and its minions on Capitol Hill.
U.S. Nuclear Option on Iran Linked to Israeli Attack Threat
Although administration officials have carefully refrained from drawing any direct connection between the new nuclear option and the Israeli threat, the NPR broadens the range of contingencies in which nuclear weapons might play a role so as to include an Iranian military response to an Israeli attack.
Egypt: Scud controversy ups Israel-Lebanon tension
Egypt's Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit traveled to Beirut on Saturday to discuss the issue and later told reporters there the scud allegations are "lies and are laughable."
Iran a Threat? I Mean, Really? By Ray McGovern
All right. Secretary Clinton concedes that Iran does not directly threaten the United States. Now who are these "friends" to whom she refers? First and foremost, Israel, of course. How often have we heard Israeli officials warn that they would consider nuclear weapons in Iran's hands an "existential" threat?
US Senate leader: Iran is 'festering sore'
Reid's comments came as the US Congress took a key step towards imposing new sanctions targeting Iran's imports of gasoline and other refined petroleum products to force the Islamic republic to halt its suspect nuclear program.
Sanctions on Iran's gasoline imports? That's war talk.
there’s a big problem: The only way to really enforce such a crippling sanction against the Iranian economy would be through an American-led naval blockade which, by international law, is an act of war.
McKeon, House reaffirm support for crippling sanctions against Iran
Iran to give UN better access to nuclear sites, say diplomats
US official: Iran military strike 'off the table'
"Military force is an option of last resort," Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Michele Flournoy said during a press briefing in Singapore. "It's off the table in the near term."
Smoke and Mirrors from the Washington Post by Philip Giraldi
There were two odd intelligence related articles in today’s Washington Post. The first , on the front page, was “Discontented Iranian Officials Provide Wealth of Intelligence.” The article relies on unnamed intelligence sources to claim that the CIA has been receiving so much information from disgruntled Iranians that it has delayed the completion of the next National Intelligence Estimate on Iran. Having worked as a CIA case officer against the Iranian target, I am deeply skeptical of the article’s thrust and suspect that the piece is itself disinformation designed to convince the Mullahs that Washington knows just about everything going on inside Iran.
Option of striking Iran never off the table: Pentagon
"We are not taking any options off the table as we pursue the pressure and engagement tracks," Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell said. "The president always has at his disposal a full array of options, including use of the military ... It is clearly not our preferred course of action but it has never been, nor is it now, off the table."
Is Iran Running Out of Uranium?
Wait now, I thought they were so close to having the bomb that we need to act immediately, so our Israeli overlords tell us.
Iran begins war games in Persian Gulf oil route
Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell said "they don't seem out of the ordinary" from what Iran's military has done in the past. He also said Tehran often makes exaggerated claims about its weapons testing.
Diplomats: Iran agrees to more IAEA overview
Iran has agreed to give the U.N. nuclear monitoring agency greater inspection and monitoring rights to a sensitive site where it is enriching uranium to higher levels, diplomats said Friday.
Hezbollah vows to continue amassing 'arms of resistance'
Israel and the U.S. have accused Syria of supplying Hezbollah with Scud missiles, which are capable of striking deep into Israel. BothBeirut and Damascus have denied this.
Firm Run by Ex-Israeli Special Forces Soldier Wants US Security Contracts in Jerusalem, Iraq, Afghanistan
Abrams: U.S. must address Iran’s threat to Israel
“Israelis are living under the threat of annihilation every day," Elliot Abrams, the Bush administration's National Security Council senior director for Near East and North African Affairs, said April 25 at the Baltimore Zionist District’s "U.S.-Israel Relations In A New Era" symposium, the Baltimore Jewish Times reported. "If the world does not act, I believe Israel will act, and I hope the U.S. will.”
Scuds or no Scuds, south Lebanon beckons tourists
"We are defying Israel with projects like these," said Moussa Nasrallah, the Lebanese engineer in charge of the park project. "The idea was to show that this area that was leveled and where Israeli tanks were once positioned is now a booming place." ....."This is a form of civilian resistance, which is even more important than military resistance," he told The Associated Press. "Resistance can be in going to have lunch, dinner or just a drink along the border."
Lies and Wars
Once more the threat is a polemical invention, intended to frighten American, Israeli (and European) voters, and prompt a preemptive attack on Iran. The reason Mr. Gates reports his uncertainties to the president is that he too recognizes that the conflict with Iran is constructed from fictions – which, as with the lies about Iraq, may turn into another war, whose consequences are sure to be worse for all concerned than the fiasco and tragedy of America’s invasion of Iraq.
Video: Tyranny & Politics of Fear, Loyalty to Israel vs. US
Post presents an exclusive interview with Colonel Larry Wilkerson on the tyrannical presidency and politics of fear, Israel’s interests versus US interests and the question of loyalties, and more: A great video. Five minutes long. Watch it.
Hezbollah slams US accusations
In comments published Wednesday in the Arabic–language newspaper As–Safir, which is close to Hezbollah, Fadlallah said Hezbollah's arms do not compare to "the level of armament of the United States, which it used in its crimes against peoples around the world, from Hiroshima to the more than 100,000 martyrs killed in Iraq and the tens of thousands killed in Palestine, Lebanon and Afghanistan."
Tectonic Shifts at CIA by Philip Giraldi
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Headlines for April 15 - April 21
A Stand For Justice
Top Military Brass Concur Mideast Conflict Affects All
U.S. Army general David Petraeus might have shocked some pro-Israel activists when he openly spelled out the difficulties caused to American military efforts by the lack of progress in the Middle East, but fellow generals were not taken by surprise. “CENTCOM commanders had always said this was the No. 1 issue that affects everything that goes on in the region,” said Anthony Zinni, who headed the U.S. Central Command, known as CENTCOM, a decade before Petraeus.
State Dept.: U.S. unsure whether Syria sent missiles to Hezbollah
Earlier Tuesday, Lebanon's Western-backed prime minister Saad Hariri denied Israeli allegations that Hezbollah has obtained Scud missiles, comparing them to the false American charges that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction ahead of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. Israel: the monkey on America's back, constantly feeding us phony intel.
Dr. Strangelove, Made in Israel by Philip Giraldi
While it is perhaps not unusual for American citizens to volunteer with the Israel Defense Forces as White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel did in 1991, it would have to be considered unprecedented for a senior Israeli military officer to obtain a high level position at the Pentagon. In fact, it is hard to imagine that anyone carrying out a security background investigation would approve such a transition under any circumstances, suggesting the possibility that Kass’s ascent to high office might have been aided or even godfathered by friends in key positions who were able to override or circumvent normal procedures.
Iran nuclear conference urges Israel to join NPT
Netanyahu urges 'crippling sanctions' against Iran
In an interview broadcast Monday on ABC's "Good Morning America," Netanyahu said he worries that the international community isn't acting aggressively enough to thwart Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Obama affirms 'unbreakable' US-Israel ties
President Barack Obama has said on the Jewish state's 62nd anniversary that the United States shares an "unbreakable bond" with Israel and he was confident the relationship "will only be strengthened" into the future.
Sick. Our support for Israel got us 9/11.
Presence of Brzezinski, Scowcroft at White House Meeting Draws Muted Comment – Forward.com
The two, both former national security advisers of previous administrations, are known as supporters of the realist doctrine in foreign policy — a doctrine viewed by many in the Jewish community as unsympathetic to the case of Israel......Realism in foreign policy is seen as an approach that puts a country’s own interests first when determining its path in the world, before any other considerations, including moral views of other countries. When it comes to the Middle East, Realists are usually considered to be those who believe that America’s interest lay in strengthening ties with the Arab world rather than in supporting Israel unconditionally. Based on an appropriate inference of the above excerpt, then it's safe to presume that the policy that Israel's lobby seeks America to adopt is one that puts Israel's interests over our own. I call that TREASON. Read on.
Strain in U.S.-Israel Ties Spurs Anxiety About ‘Dual Loyalty’
So totally aligned have the United States and Israeli governments been for most of the past 20 years that American Jews have not been forced to seriously consider that these two identities could be in conflict The issue here is though - that this alignment was brought about by the overwhelming influence of the Israeli lobby.It's more than dual loyalty though. Advocating for policies that put THIS nation, America, in danger, is not dual loyalty. It's TREASON.
Syria denies it gave Hezbollah Scud missiles
Syria warned Thursday that Israel was paving the way for new military action by alleging that that Damascus is providing Scud missiles to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Israel warns Syria over Hezbollah attacks
Israel has delivered a secret warning to Syrian President Bashar Assad that it will respond to missile attacks from Hezbollah, the militant Lebanese-based Islamist group, by launching immediate retaliation against Syria itself.
From December: No-Fault Espionage by Philip Giraldi
FBI counter intelligence officer John Cole has reported on the frustration of his colleagues over the many cases of Israeli espionage that are dropped under orders from the Justice Department. He provides a "conservative estimate" of 125 worthwhile investigations into Israeli espionage in the US involving both American citizens and Israelis stopped due to political pressure from above. Israeli citizens and diplomats who are caught in the act spying are routinely freed without criminal charges and allowed to return home.
Iran wins regional support for its nuclear programme
Syria, Lebanon and Iraq backed Iran's atomic programme on Saturday, which they said has "peaceful" aims, and insisted that Israel be stripped off its nuclear arsenal. ....The three leaders, however, strongly urged for Israel to join the NPT.
Iran exports 'revolutionary principles' to Venezuela, report claims
The report on Iran's military states that paramilitaries from the Quds Force, a special paramilitary unit attached to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, have "an increased presence in Latin America, particularly Venezuela".
It also alleges that Iran is continuing to supply weapons and explosives to the Taliban to help them kill American and British troops in Afghanistan.
Let us see this alleged report. I don't buy it.
Netanyahu: Less Time to Act on Iran with Each Passing Day
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu sounded an urgent note regarding the Iranian threat in a Monday interview on America's ABC network, saying that “we have a lot less time with each day that passes.” Who's we?
Veterans of "Wikileaks" Incident Announce "Letter if Reconciliation" to Iraqis Injured in Attack
Two former soldiers from the Army unit responsible for the Wikileaks "Collateral Murder" incident have written an open-letter of "Reconciliation and Responsibility" to those injured in the July 2007 attack, in which U.S. forces wounded two children and killed over a dozen people, including the father of those children and two Reuters employees.
After surgeries in Mich., Iraqi teen to head home
A 13-year-old Iraqi boy brought to Michigan a year ago by a National Guardsman so he could get plastic surgery to repair scars from a house fire no longer is shy about pulling off his beloved Detroit Tigers baseball cap.
Gates says US is prepared on Iran's nuclear plan
US officials: Usable Iran bomb not imminent
Having said that Iran could amass sufficient highly enriched uranium to build one bomb in roughly a year, Gen. James Cartwright, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that a nation driving for a weapon generally needs three to five additional years to make the leap to a bomb it can field.
More hype about Iran?
Despite what some alarmists think, Iran is not the reincarnation of Nazi Germany and not about to unleash some new Holocaust against anyone.
Iran reveals air defense system
The parade in Tehran showcased Iran's surface-to-surface Ghadr, Sajjil and Shahab-3 missiles, which have a range of up to 1,250 miles (2,000 kilometers), putting Israel and US bases in the region within Iran's reach.
US top military official says strike against Iran would halt nuclear programme
Moyers on the Cost of Wars
In his closing essay this week Bill Moyers talks about Binghamton, New York's Mayor Matt Ryan and his effort to make manifest the costs of war to his town and its citizens. The mayor has installed a "cost of war" clock that keeps a running tab of how much in tax dollars Binghamton citizens collectively and individually have contributed to the war effort.
Israeli president: Iran threatens whole world
From December: Christians United for War by Philip Giraldi
Democrats and Republicans Each Believe That American Jews Are Leaning Their Way – Forward.com
Republicans say that friction between the Obama administration and Netanyahu’s government in Israel is taking its toll on Jewish support for the president and his party. Jewish voters, they argue, feel uncomfortable with Obama’s pressure on Israel and will make their concerns known by shifting toward the Republican side.
The Latest Scare Story About Iran: Missiles Targeting US by 2015
Today, the papers are full of a claim that the new Ballistic Missile Defense Review Report (PDF) from the US Dept. of Defense says Iran could have the missile capability to reach the U.S. by 2015. You'll find the claim being repeated by the UK's rightwing Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph, by NewsMax, Israel's press, Pakistan's "Dawn", ABC News, Reuters and more.
Graceful Decline: The end of Pax Americana
The end of Pax Americana
U.S.-ISRAELI RELATIONS TAKE ANOTHER TURN
More and more since the failure of the Oslo Accords in the 1990s and the virtual takeover of Israeli politics by the Far Right, often represented by natively anti–American Russian Israelis and ultra–conservative Sephardics from the Arab world, relations have deteriorated between the two countries. Israel has become the petulant and demanding dependent, and the U.S. has become the long–suffering Sugar Daddy, often angry and insulted but afraid to say anything because of the power of the lobbies.
World poll: Only 19% see Israel in positive light
Only Iran, North Korea, and Pakistan are viewed in a more negative light than Israel, according to a poll conducted in 28 countries and published Tuesday by the BBC.
Video- A Closer Look at Israel's Role in Terrorism
Game theory war-planners rely on mathematical models to anticipate and shape outcomes with staged provocations. For the agent provocateur, the reactions to a provocation—as well as the reactions to those reactions—thereby become predictable within an acceptable range of probabilities. With ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan poised to expand to Iran and Pakistan, it is time to take a closer look at how conflicts are catalyzed—by way of deception.
Well worth watching all three parts.
YouTube - Dancing Israelis Arrested on 9-11, Interviewed by Ch. 4
From January: Review: Iran Never Halted Nuke Work in '03
A senior U.S. military officer who spoke on the condition of anonymity last week revealed that the new argument among analysts is over Iran's decision to move forward with weaponization.
"There is a debate being held about whether the final decision has been made. It is fair to argue that the supreme leader has not said, 'Build a nuclear weapon.' That actually does not matter, because they are not at the point where they could do that anyway." Somebody is trying to make the case for war with this piece.
Picnicking on Mount Vesuvius?
On March 29, 2010 the US Embassy instructed Americans not to travel to Lebanon citing ’safety and security concerns.” Simultaneously it warned those who are in Lebanon to seriously consider leaving.....It comes following Opposition charges, emphasized by Hezbollah’s Secretary Hassan Nasrallah the preceding week, that the US Embassy in Beirut engages in espionage activities for Israel and cautioning that the collaboration was very dangerous for Lebanon. America is doing Israel's bidding in Lebanon too. Read on.
Video: Antiwar Panel at CPAC
Report: Assad due in Egypt to discuss fear of Israel-Syria war
Syrian President Bashar Assad was due Tuesday night to land in Egypt "within hours," his first visit in four years, several Arab media outlets reported. The urgency of the surprise trip stems from a fear of war between Israel and Syria.
Malaysia suspends gasoline supplies to Iran
The announcement of the suspension by Petronas came after Najib held talks with US President Barack Obama, who called for the world to move "boldly and quickly" on new Iran sanctions on the sidelines of a 47–nation nuclear security summit this week.
Top Military Brass Concur Mideast Conflict Affects All
U.S. Army general David Petraeus might have shocked some pro-Israel activists when he openly spelled out the difficulties caused to American military efforts by the lack of progress in the Middle East, but fellow generals were not taken by surprise. “CENTCOM commanders had always said this was the No. 1 issue that affects everything that goes on in the region,” said Anthony Zinni, who headed the U.S. Central Command, known as CENTCOM, a decade before Petraeus.
State Dept.: U.S. unsure whether Syria sent missiles to Hezbollah
Earlier Tuesday, Lebanon's Western-backed prime minister Saad Hariri denied Israeli allegations that Hezbollah has obtained Scud missiles, comparing them to the false American charges that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction ahead of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. Israel: the monkey on America's back, constantly feeding us phony intel.
Dr. Strangelove, Made in Israel by Philip Giraldi
While it is perhaps not unusual for American citizens to volunteer with the Israel Defense Forces as White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel did in 1991, it would have to be considered unprecedented for a senior Israeli military officer to obtain a high level position at the Pentagon. In fact, it is hard to imagine that anyone carrying out a security background investigation would approve such a transition under any circumstances, suggesting the possibility that Kass’s ascent to high office might have been aided or even godfathered by friends in key positions who were able to override or circumvent normal procedures.
Iran nuclear conference urges Israel to join NPT
Netanyahu urges 'crippling sanctions' against Iran
In an interview broadcast Monday on ABC's "Good Morning America," Netanyahu said he worries that the international community isn't acting aggressively enough to thwart Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Obama affirms 'unbreakable' US-Israel ties
President Barack Obama has said on the Jewish state's 62nd anniversary that the United States shares an "unbreakable bond" with Israel and he was confident the relationship "will only be strengthened" into the future.
Sick. Our support for Israel got us 9/11.
Presence of Brzezinski, Scowcroft at White House Meeting Draws Muted Comment – Forward.com
The two, both former national security advisers of previous administrations, are known as supporters of the realist doctrine in foreign policy — a doctrine viewed by many in the Jewish community as unsympathetic to the case of Israel......Realism in foreign policy is seen as an approach that puts a country’s own interests first when determining its path in the world, before any other considerations, including moral views of other countries. When it comes to the Middle East, Realists are usually considered to be those who believe that America’s interest lay in strengthening ties with the Arab world rather than in supporting Israel unconditionally. Based on an appropriate inference of the above excerpt, then it's safe to presume that the policy that Israel's lobby seeks America to adopt is one that puts Israel's interests over our own. I call that TREASON. Read on.
Strain in U.S.-Israel Ties Spurs Anxiety About ‘Dual Loyalty’
So totally aligned have the United States and Israeli governments been for most of the past 20 years that American Jews have not been forced to seriously consider that these two identities could be in conflict The issue here is though - that this alignment was brought about by the overwhelming influence of the Israeli lobby.It's more than dual loyalty though. Advocating for policies that put THIS nation, America, in danger, is not dual loyalty. It's TREASON.
Syria denies it gave Hezbollah Scud missiles
Syria warned Thursday that Israel was paving the way for new military action by alleging that that Damascus is providing Scud missiles to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Israel warns Syria over Hezbollah attacks
Israel has delivered a secret warning to Syrian President Bashar Assad that it will respond to missile attacks from Hezbollah, the militant Lebanese-based Islamist group, by launching immediate retaliation against Syria itself.
From December: No-Fault Espionage by Philip Giraldi
FBI counter intelligence officer John Cole has reported on the frustration of his colleagues over the many cases of Israeli espionage that are dropped under orders from the Justice Department. He provides a "conservative estimate" of 125 worthwhile investigations into Israeli espionage in the US involving both American citizens and Israelis stopped due to political pressure from above. Israeli citizens and diplomats who are caught in the act spying are routinely freed without criminal charges and allowed to return home.
Iran wins regional support for its nuclear programme
Syria, Lebanon and Iraq backed Iran's atomic programme on Saturday, which they said has "peaceful" aims, and insisted that Israel be stripped off its nuclear arsenal. ....The three leaders, however, strongly urged for Israel to join the NPT.
Iran exports 'revolutionary principles' to Venezuela, report claims
The report on Iran's military states that paramilitaries from the Quds Force, a special paramilitary unit attached to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, have "an increased presence in Latin America, particularly Venezuela".
It also alleges that Iran is continuing to supply weapons and explosives to the Taliban to help them kill American and British troops in Afghanistan.
Let us see this alleged report. I don't buy it.
Netanyahu: Less Time to Act on Iran with Each Passing Day
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu sounded an urgent note regarding the Iranian threat in a Monday interview on America's ABC network, saying that “we have a lot less time with each day that passes.” Who's we?
Veterans of "Wikileaks" Incident Announce "Letter if Reconciliation" to Iraqis Injured in Attack
Two former soldiers from the Army unit responsible for the Wikileaks "Collateral Murder" incident have written an open-letter of "Reconciliation and Responsibility" to those injured in the July 2007 attack, in which U.S. forces wounded two children and killed over a dozen people, including the father of those children and two Reuters employees.
After surgeries in Mich., Iraqi teen to head home
A 13-year-old Iraqi boy brought to Michigan a year ago by a National Guardsman so he could get plastic surgery to repair scars from a house fire no longer is shy about pulling off his beloved Detroit Tigers baseball cap.
Gates says US is prepared on Iran's nuclear plan
US officials: Usable Iran bomb not imminent
Having said that Iran could amass sufficient highly enriched uranium to build one bomb in roughly a year, Gen. James Cartwright, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that a nation driving for a weapon generally needs three to five additional years to make the leap to a bomb it can field.
More hype about Iran?
Despite what some alarmists think, Iran is not the reincarnation of Nazi Germany and not about to unleash some new Holocaust against anyone.
Iran reveals air defense system
The parade in Tehran showcased Iran's surface-to-surface Ghadr, Sajjil and Shahab-3 missiles, which have a range of up to 1,250 miles (2,000 kilometers), putting Israel and US bases in the region within Iran's reach.
US top military official says strike against Iran would halt nuclear programme
Moyers on the Cost of Wars
In his closing essay this week Bill Moyers talks about Binghamton, New York's Mayor Matt Ryan and his effort to make manifest the costs of war to his town and its citizens. The mayor has installed a "cost of war" clock that keeps a running tab of how much in tax dollars Binghamton citizens collectively and individually have contributed to the war effort.
Israeli president: Iran threatens whole world
From December: Christians United for War by Philip Giraldi
Democrats and Republicans Each Believe That American Jews Are Leaning Their Way – Forward.com
Republicans say that friction between the Obama administration and Netanyahu’s government in Israel is taking its toll on Jewish support for the president and his party. Jewish voters, they argue, feel uncomfortable with Obama’s pressure on Israel and will make their concerns known by shifting toward the Republican side.
The Latest Scare Story About Iran: Missiles Targeting US by 2015
Today, the papers are full of a claim that the new Ballistic Missile Defense Review Report (PDF) from the US Dept. of Defense says Iran could have the missile capability to reach the U.S. by 2015. You'll find the claim being repeated by the UK's rightwing Daily Mail and Daily Telegraph, by NewsMax, Israel's press, Pakistan's "Dawn", ABC News, Reuters and more.
Graceful Decline: The end of Pax Americana
The end of Pax Americana
U.S.-ISRAELI RELATIONS TAKE ANOTHER TURN
More and more since the failure of the Oslo Accords in the 1990s and the virtual takeover of Israeli politics by the Far Right, often represented by natively anti–American Russian Israelis and ultra–conservative Sephardics from the Arab world, relations have deteriorated between the two countries. Israel has become the petulant and demanding dependent, and the U.S. has become the long–suffering Sugar Daddy, often angry and insulted but afraid to say anything because of the power of the lobbies.
World poll: Only 19% see Israel in positive light
Only Iran, North Korea, and Pakistan are viewed in a more negative light than Israel, according to a poll conducted in 28 countries and published Tuesday by the BBC.
Video- A Closer Look at Israel's Role in Terrorism
Game theory war-planners rely on mathematical models to anticipate and shape outcomes with staged provocations. For the agent provocateur, the reactions to a provocation—as well as the reactions to those reactions—thereby become predictable within an acceptable range of probabilities. With ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan poised to expand to Iran and Pakistan, it is time to take a closer look at how conflicts are catalyzed—by way of deception.
Well worth watching all three parts.
YouTube - Dancing Israelis Arrested on 9-11, Interviewed by Ch. 4
From January: Review: Iran Never Halted Nuke Work in '03
A senior U.S. military officer who spoke on the condition of anonymity last week revealed that the new argument among analysts is over Iran's decision to move forward with weaponization.
"There is a debate being held about whether the final decision has been made. It is fair to argue that the supreme leader has not said, 'Build a nuclear weapon.' That actually does not matter, because they are not at the point where they could do that anyway." Somebody is trying to make the case for war with this piece.
Picnicking on Mount Vesuvius?
On March 29, 2010 the US Embassy instructed Americans not to travel to Lebanon citing ’safety and security concerns.” Simultaneously it warned those who are in Lebanon to seriously consider leaving.....It comes following Opposition charges, emphasized by Hezbollah’s Secretary Hassan Nasrallah the preceding week, that the US Embassy in Beirut engages in espionage activities for Israel and cautioning that the collaboration was very dangerous for Lebanon. America is doing Israel's bidding in Lebanon too. Read on.
Video: Antiwar Panel at CPAC
Report: Assad due in Egypt to discuss fear of Israel-Syria war
Syrian President Bashar Assad was due Tuesday night to land in Egypt "within hours," his first visit in four years, several Arab media outlets reported. The urgency of the surprise trip stems from a fear of war between Israel and Syria.
Malaysia suspends gasoline supplies to Iran
The announcement of the suspension by Petronas came after Najib held talks with US President Barack Obama, who called for the world to move "boldly and quickly" on new Iran sanctions on the sidelines of a 47–nation nuclear security summit this week.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Headlines for April 8 - April 14
A Stand For Justice
U.S., Israeli attack on Iran would be 'unacceptable' - Russia military
Military Suicides Up Among Soldiers in Repeat Army Tours
The surge in suicides, which have risen five years in a row, has become a vexing problem for which the Army's highest levels of command have yet to find a solution despite deploying hundreds of mental–health experts and investing millions of dollars. And the elephant in the room in much of the formal discussion of the problem is the burden of repeated tours of combat duty on a soldier's battered psyche. We need to bring our troops home now.
How to eat well on a food stamp budget $68.88
At the end of last year, roughly 1 in 8 Americans received food stamps, the highest rate ever America can ill afford going to war with another country (Iran).
Canceled Netanyahu trip spotlights Israel nukes
Muslim countries have long complained of a double standard when the West asks them to stay nuclear-free while turning a blind eye to Israel's program. Many Israelis see atomic weapons as their ultimate defense against annihilation in a hostile Middle East.
Clinton defends role of Israel at nuclear summit
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says Israel has much to contribute to this week's nuclear security summit even though Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is skipping the Washington conference.
Israel viewed as world's sixth nuclear power: analysts
Analysts at British defence specialists Jane's believe the Jewish state has between 100 and 300 nuclear warheads, putting them among the more advanced nuclear weapons states and roughly on a par with Britain.
Israeli officials say Syria gives Hezbollah Scuds
In Washington, the Syrian Embassy dismissed the allegations and accused Israel of trying to divert attention from questions about Israel's nuclear program.
Netanyahu cancels trip to Obama's nuclear summit
Nuking the Mullahs by Philip Giraldi
The truth is that Israel is fast becoming a pariah nation, like South Africa before the final collapse of apartheid, because no one any longer accepts the legitimacy of its settlement growth and occupation policies. Like South Africa, the Israeli response to criticism has been to become more reactionary and inward looking, constructing a police state internally and waging unending war against its neighbors to maintain cohesion against foreign enemies....To be sure, there is a certain danger in isolating the Israelis too much as it could easily feed the always present Masada complex that might influence a dangerously unstable government to take action that might include exploiting its nuclear arsenal in search of Armageddon
Obama: Israel should sign NPT
US Generals and Admirals Who Have Accepted Free Trips to Israel
We, the undersigned, have traveled to Israel over the years with The Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA). We brought with us our decades of military experience and, following unrestricted access to Israel's civilian and military leaders, came away with the unswerving belief that the security of the State of Israel is a matter of great importance to the United States and its policy in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean Anyone that signed onto that is a traitor to the United States of America.
Commentary: Armchair warriors
Three former CENTCOM commanders, now retired, with expert knowledge of the Middle East and all the key players, have said that learning to live with Iran as a nuclear power is wiser than bombing Iran. Israel wants us to attack Iran. Beware.
US confident it could intercept an Iranian missile
The Pentagon is "very confident" that it could defend the U.S. against the threat of an Iranian ballistic missile strike, the Defense Department's chief spokesman said Wednesday. A recent Defense Department report to Congress concludes that Iran could develop a missile capable of striking the United States by 2015.
Iran announces batch of higher enriched uranium
The uranium has been enriched from around 3.5 percent to 20 percent purity, needed to fuel a medical research reactor, Salehi said, according to the ISNA news agency. That level is far below the more than 90 percent needed to build a nuclear weapon, but U.S. officials have expressed concern Iran may be moving closer to the ability to reach weapons-grade level.
Obama, Hu in Iran sanctions breakthrough: US
US President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao have agreed to jointly push for new nuclear sanctions on Iran, US officials said, heralding an apparent diplomatic breakthrough.
Iran Could Get Bomb Uranium, Block Oil, Pentagon Says
Iran probably would need three to five years to complete a bomb, Marine Corps General James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in Washington. Cartwright said U.S. officials have no evidence Iran has decided to build a weapon and noted the timeline was based on historical estimates.
US officials: Iran could be a year away from bomb
Sen. John McCain, R–Ariz., complained that the U.S. has been a paper tiger, threatening Iran but never fully confronting it.
"We keep pointing the gun. We haven't pulled a single trigger yet, and it's about time that we did," McCain said. McCain should be sent to the front lines in Iraq if/when he gets his wish that America attack Iran. Let him put his money where his mouth is.
US Developing New Non-Nuclear Missiles
The Prompt Global Strike program, which the Pentagon has been developing for several years, is already raising hackles in Moscow, where Russian officials predict it could trigger a nonnuclear arms race and complicate President Obama's long-term vision of ridding the world of nuclear weapons.
The Crime of Silence
China offered oil for sanctions deal over Iran
China is being privately reassured that its supplies of oil would be guaranteed in the event that it supports tough new UN sanctions on Iran, its third largest supplier of crude.
China cools US hopes of Iran sanctions breakthrough
Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld Knew They Were Innocent
it's devastating to have a former high Bush-Cheney official state under oath that the last administration knew it had countless innocent prisoners, lied about it, and tortured many.
Iran says it is ready for uranium exchange if IAEA is guarantor
One Marine’s ‘Liberty Walk’ for the Rest of Us
EFF Backs Yahoo! to Protect User from Warrantless Email Search
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) along with Google and numerous other public interest organizations and Internet industry associations joined with Yahoo! in asking a federal court Tuesday to block a government attempt to access the contents of a Yahoo! email account without a search warrant based on probable cause.
Pentagon: Iran needs 3-5 years to build usable atom bomb
Cartwright said taking military action against Iran might delay its nuclear development but was unlikely to be decisive in stopping the program for good.
Iran: We will join 'world nuclear club' within a month
Soltani added that the construction of a 360 megawatt nuclear power plant and a 40 megawatt research reactor in Iran's central city of Arak are 70 percent finished.
Anat Kam: I stole IDF documents to expose West Bank war crimes
Israel's nuclear standoff
What Israeli officials are not talking about is the most probable reason behind this cancellation – Netanyahu's unwillingness to stop settlements in East Jerusalem, despite US requests.
Why Netanyahu Canceled His DC Visit, and Why the GOP Is Applauding
Ever since Netanyahu's government took office, there has been a never-ending stream of stories from unnamed sources taking shots at the Obama administration, trying to undermine its standing with the Israeli public, and sending the signal to the Likud echo chamber stateside to swing into action. This would appear to be the latest example and who better today than Liz Cheney to be on the receiving end of the Netanyahu long ball.
Turkey: World is turning a blind eye to Israel's nuclear weapons
Recep Tayyip Erdogan remarked that Iran's nuclear program is being scrutinized because of its membership in the International Atomic Energy Agency whereas Israel, which has not signed a nonproliferation treaty, is free to do what it wants.
Obama recalls bunker-buster bomb kits to bar Israeli strike on Iran
Medvedev: Israeli strike on Iran to lead to global catastrophe
Lieberman: U.S. Should Attack Iran's Nuclear Program If All Else Fails
Regarding Israel, Lieberman says some of the steps Obama has taken, such as demanding a freeze on the building of Israeli settlements, don’t help the peace process and are in fact “missteps.” Come again?
America’s Loose Nukes in Israel
In the early 1960s, the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) began documenting suspicious lapses in NUMEC’s security, inexplicably lax record-keeping, and the ongoing presence of large numbers of Israelis at the plant. Very interesting article.
Worry That New Sanctions Will Not Curb Iran’s Nuclear Goals
As another set of sanctions against Iran makes its way through the United Nations — the fourth in as many years — heads of American Jewish organizations and pro-Israel foreign policy analysts are wondering if these or any other measures will really be able to change the behavior of the regime in Tehran.
Joe Lieberman Strikes Again by Philip Giraldi
Ah, those crafty Iranians. Threatening to destroy the world yet again. Thank God Joe is around to remind us over and over and over again about the global threat coming from the Mullahs
Netanyahu: Iran wants to destroy Israel and the world remains silent
Israel=Chicken Little
Can Obama erase ‘Bush nostalgia’ in the Middle East
Now as then, US policy continues to be anchored by a cynical bargain with Arab autocrats: If they faithfully support US regional objectives, the US turns a blind eye to their suppression of domestic dissent. It’s business as usual.
U.S., Israeli attack on Iran would be 'unacceptable' - Russia military
Military Suicides Up Among Soldiers in Repeat Army Tours
The surge in suicides, which have risen five years in a row, has become a vexing problem for which the Army's highest levels of command have yet to find a solution despite deploying hundreds of mental–health experts and investing millions of dollars. And the elephant in the room in much of the formal discussion of the problem is the burden of repeated tours of combat duty on a soldier's battered psyche. We need to bring our troops home now.
How to eat well on a food stamp budget $68.88
At the end of last year, roughly 1 in 8 Americans received food stamps, the highest rate ever America can ill afford going to war with another country (Iran).
Canceled Netanyahu trip spotlights Israel nukes
Muslim countries have long complained of a double standard when the West asks them to stay nuclear-free while turning a blind eye to Israel's program. Many Israelis see atomic weapons as their ultimate defense against annihilation in a hostile Middle East.
Clinton defends role of Israel at nuclear summit
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says Israel has much to contribute to this week's nuclear security summit even though Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is skipping the Washington conference.
Israel viewed as world's sixth nuclear power: analysts
Analysts at British defence specialists Jane's believe the Jewish state has between 100 and 300 nuclear warheads, putting them among the more advanced nuclear weapons states and roughly on a par with Britain.
Israeli officials say Syria gives Hezbollah Scuds
In Washington, the Syrian Embassy dismissed the allegations and accused Israel of trying to divert attention from questions about Israel's nuclear program.
Netanyahu cancels trip to Obama's nuclear summit
Nuking the Mullahs by Philip Giraldi
The truth is that Israel is fast becoming a pariah nation, like South Africa before the final collapse of apartheid, because no one any longer accepts the legitimacy of its settlement growth and occupation policies. Like South Africa, the Israeli response to criticism has been to become more reactionary and inward looking, constructing a police state internally and waging unending war against its neighbors to maintain cohesion against foreign enemies....To be sure, there is a certain danger in isolating the Israelis too much as it could easily feed the always present Masada complex that might influence a dangerously unstable government to take action that might include exploiting its nuclear arsenal in search of Armageddon
Obama: Israel should sign NPT
US Generals and Admirals Who Have Accepted Free Trips to Israel
We, the undersigned, have traveled to Israel over the years with The Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA). We brought with us our decades of military experience and, following unrestricted access to Israel's civilian and military leaders, came away with the unswerving belief that the security of the State of Israel is a matter of great importance to the United States and its policy in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean Anyone that signed onto that is a traitor to the United States of America.
Commentary: Armchair warriors
Three former CENTCOM commanders, now retired, with expert knowledge of the Middle East and all the key players, have said that learning to live with Iran as a nuclear power is wiser than bombing Iran. Israel wants us to attack Iran. Beware.
US confident it could intercept an Iranian missile
The Pentagon is "very confident" that it could defend the U.S. against the threat of an Iranian ballistic missile strike, the Defense Department's chief spokesman said Wednesday. A recent Defense Department report to Congress concludes that Iran could develop a missile capable of striking the United States by 2015.
Iran announces batch of higher enriched uranium
The uranium has been enriched from around 3.5 percent to 20 percent purity, needed to fuel a medical research reactor, Salehi said, according to the ISNA news agency. That level is far below the more than 90 percent needed to build a nuclear weapon, but U.S. officials have expressed concern Iran may be moving closer to the ability to reach weapons-grade level.
Obama, Hu in Iran sanctions breakthrough: US
US President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao have agreed to jointly push for new nuclear sanctions on Iran, US officials said, heralding an apparent diplomatic breakthrough.
Iran Could Get Bomb Uranium, Block Oil, Pentagon Says
Iran probably would need three to five years to complete a bomb, Marine Corps General James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in Washington. Cartwright said U.S. officials have no evidence Iran has decided to build a weapon and noted the timeline was based on historical estimates.
US officials: Iran could be a year away from bomb
Sen. John McCain, R–Ariz., complained that the U.S. has been a paper tiger, threatening Iran but never fully confronting it.
"We keep pointing the gun. We haven't pulled a single trigger yet, and it's about time that we did," McCain said. McCain should be sent to the front lines in Iraq if/when he gets his wish that America attack Iran. Let him put his money where his mouth is.
US Developing New Non-Nuclear Missiles
The Prompt Global Strike program, which the Pentagon has been developing for several years, is already raising hackles in Moscow, where Russian officials predict it could trigger a nonnuclear arms race and complicate President Obama's long-term vision of ridding the world of nuclear weapons.
The Crime of Silence
China offered oil for sanctions deal over Iran
China is being privately reassured that its supplies of oil would be guaranteed in the event that it supports tough new UN sanctions on Iran, its third largest supplier of crude.
China cools US hopes of Iran sanctions breakthrough
Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld Knew They Were Innocent
it's devastating to have a former high Bush-Cheney official state under oath that the last administration knew it had countless innocent prisoners, lied about it, and tortured many.
Iran says it is ready for uranium exchange if IAEA is guarantor
One Marine’s ‘Liberty Walk’ for the Rest of Us
EFF Backs Yahoo! to Protect User from Warrantless Email Search
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) along with Google and numerous other public interest organizations and Internet industry associations joined with Yahoo! in asking a federal court Tuesday to block a government attempt to access the contents of a Yahoo! email account without a search warrant based on probable cause.
Pentagon: Iran needs 3-5 years to build usable atom bomb
Cartwright said taking military action against Iran might delay its nuclear development but was unlikely to be decisive in stopping the program for good.
Iran: We will join 'world nuclear club' within a month
Soltani added that the construction of a 360 megawatt nuclear power plant and a 40 megawatt research reactor in Iran's central city of Arak are 70 percent finished.
Anat Kam: I stole IDF documents to expose West Bank war crimes
Israel's nuclear standoff
What Israeli officials are not talking about is the most probable reason behind this cancellation – Netanyahu's unwillingness to stop settlements in East Jerusalem, despite US requests.
Why Netanyahu Canceled His DC Visit, and Why the GOP Is Applauding
Ever since Netanyahu's government took office, there has been a never-ending stream of stories from unnamed sources taking shots at the Obama administration, trying to undermine its standing with the Israeli public, and sending the signal to the Likud echo chamber stateside to swing into action. This would appear to be the latest example and who better today than Liz Cheney to be on the receiving end of the Netanyahu long ball.
Turkey: World is turning a blind eye to Israel's nuclear weapons
Recep Tayyip Erdogan remarked that Iran's nuclear program is being scrutinized because of its membership in the International Atomic Energy Agency whereas Israel, which has not signed a nonproliferation treaty, is free to do what it wants.
Obama recalls bunker-buster bomb kits to bar Israeli strike on Iran
Medvedev: Israeli strike on Iran to lead to global catastrophe
Lieberman: U.S. Should Attack Iran's Nuclear Program If All Else Fails
Regarding Israel, Lieberman says some of the steps Obama has taken, such as demanding a freeze on the building of Israeli settlements, don’t help the peace process and are in fact “missteps.” Come again?
America’s Loose Nukes in Israel
In the early 1960s, the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) began documenting suspicious lapses in NUMEC’s security, inexplicably lax record-keeping, and the ongoing presence of large numbers of Israelis at the plant. Very interesting article.
Worry That New Sanctions Will Not Curb Iran’s Nuclear Goals
As another set of sanctions against Iran makes its way through the United Nations — the fourth in as many years — heads of American Jewish organizations and pro-Israel foreign policy analysts are wondering if these or any other measures will really be able to change the behavior of the regime in Tehran.
Joe Lieberman Strikes Again by Philip Giraldi
Ah, those crafty Iranians. Threatening to destroy the world yet again. Thank God Joe is around to remind us over and over and over again about the global threat coming from the Mullahs
Netanyahu: Iran wants to destroy Israel and the world remains silent
Israel=Chicken Little
Can Obama erase ‘Bush nostalgia’ in the Middle East
Now as then, US policy continues to be anchored by a cynical bargain with Arab autocrats: If they faithfully support US regional objectives, the US turns a blind eye to their suppression of domestic dissent. It’s business as usual.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Headlines for April 1 - April 7
A Stand For Justice
Thousands of vets missing out on better benefits
Only a fraction of wounded veterans who could get better benefits have applied in the two years since Congress, acting on concerns the military was cutting costs by downplaying injuries, ordered the Pentagon to review disputed claims.
Defense secretary warns Iran and North Korea
Gates told a Pentagon briefing that a new policy restricting the use of nuclear weapons did not apply to countries such as Iran and North Korea, which are pursuing nuclear weapons in defiance of the international community.
What War with Iran Means by Patrick J. Buchanan
As to who starts it, we know the answer. Tehran has not started a war in memory and is not going to launch a suicide attack on a superpower with thousands of nuclear weapons. As with Iraq in 2003, the war will be launched by the United States against a nation that did not attack us — to strip it of weapons it does not have. We know who is behind this war too. Can't say you weren't in the know this time.
Obama: Evidence Shows Iran is Developing Nukes
U.S. and Israeli efforts are focused on convincing Beijing that the best alternative to preventing a nuclear Iran and a military operation targeting it would be to agree to more severe sanctions - without actively supporting these.....The head of Israel's Military Intelligence, Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin, recently traveled to China and relayed to his hosts details of the Iran's progress toward nuclear arms.
White House in calming message to U.S. Jews: Obama is Israel's friend
National Security Council Middle East Senior Director Dan Shapiro stressed to American Jews that that the U.S. did not intend to insist that Israel halt construction in East Jerusalem................Shapiro said that Iran is the most important national security issue facing the United States and that no one should doubt the determination of the U.S. to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. Really now. And how did Iran become the number 1 American national security issue? Two words: Israeli lobby. Israel's problems become OUR problems.
Ambassador Oren Israel protects US troops
Speaking in an interview with CNN, Oren said that if Israel did not exist, extremists in the region would join Al-Qaeda in its anti-American sentiment. "The US is much safer thanks to Israeli-American cooperation," he said. Is this some kind of a sick joke? America is a target of Al-Qaeda because of our support for Israel. It was the primary motivation of Khaled Shaikh Mohammed, the mastermind of 911.
Iran vows to strike Israel immediately if attacked
Obama Claims ‘All Evidence’ Supports Allegations Iran Developing Nukes
Indeed, less than two months ago Obama’s own spokesman Robert Gibbs claimed Iran didn’t even have the ability to enrich uranium beyond 20 percent, let alone to rich to weapons grade, which would be above 90 percent. Just days after Gibbs made this statement he insisted that the US would not rule out attacking Iran.
Dismantling the Constitution One Step at a Time by Philip Giraldi
The act would make it possible for the US military to seize and imprison anyone anywhere in the world, including American citizens, on suspicion of involvement in terrorism. This includes “material support” which is not otherwise defined.
To Pressure Iran, the U.S. Leans on Dubai
Kristol: ‘Better’ for US to attack Iran than if Israel did
The Obama administration should be seriously considering a strike on Iran, according to neoconservative Fox News contributor Bill Kristol. An Israeli Deputy Defense Minister said last week that he expected Israel would have to attack Iran within a year. Kristol believes it would be better for the US to attack first.
Kristol should be deported to his true homeland - Israel. Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.
How the Corporations Broke Ralph Nader and America, Too
Nader’s status as a pariah corresponded with an unchecked assault by corporations on the working class. The long-term unemployment rate, which in reality is close to 20 percent, the millions of foreclosures, the crippling personal debts that plague households, the personal bankruptcies, Wall Street’s looting of the U.S. Treasury, the evaporation of savings and retirement accounts and the crumbling of the country’s vital infrastructure are taking place as billions in taxpayer subsidies, obscene profits, bonuses and compensation are enjoyed by the corporate overlords. We will soon be forced to buy the defective products of the government-subsidized drug and health insurance companies, which will remain free to raise co-payments and premiums, especially if policyholders get seriously ill. Take a read about the influence of CORPORATE interests on our lives. When corporate and foreign interests are better represented on Capitol Hill than YOU, the American taxpayers are, then we've got serious problems. That is NOT what this country was supposed to be about (read, no taxation without representation).
The Iraq war still a massive mistake
First are the sacrifices in terms of blood and treasure. The broad consensus is that the war has cost the US economy well over $700 billion – with the meter still running. The Iraq war has also left nearly 4,400 American troops dead, more than 31,000 physically disabled, and countless more psychologically traumatized. The war on Iraq was conceived in Israel and put forth by Israel's minions - the neocons.
Israel's deadly legacy still lurks in Lebanon
Most of the victims are sappers, farmers and unsuspecting children, who mistake the shiny objects for toys.
An Israeli General Explains Why Stopping Iran Requires a Real Settlement Freeze
Haaretz has two opinion essays right now arguing that Israel should freeze construction because it needs to stop Iran’s nuclear project and it needs America to lead the effort. Bingo. See last news batch for more. Also take notice of reason number 9.
The WaPo’s Frum Forum
Getting fired from the American Enterprise Institute might have been the best thing that’s ever happened to David Frum.
Thousands of vets missing out on better benefits
Only a fraction of wounded veterans who could get better benefits have applied in the two years since Congress, acting on concerns the military was cutting costs by downplaying injuries, ordered the Pentagon to review disputed claims.
Defense secretary warns Iran and North Korea
Gates told a Pentagon briefing that a new policy restricting the use of nuclear weapons did not apply to countries such as Iran and North Korea, which are pursuing nuclear weapons in defiance of the international community.
What War with Iran Means by Patrick J. Buchanan
As to who starts it, we know the answer. Tehran has not started a war in memory and is not going to launch a suicide attack on a superpower with thousands of nuclear weapons. As with Iraq in 2003, the war will be launched by the United States against a nation that did not attack us — to strip it of weapons it does not have. We know who is behind this war too. Can't say you weren't in the know this time.
Obama: Evidence Shows Iran is Developing Nukes
U.S. and Israeli efforts are focused on convincing Beijing that the best alternative to preventing a nuclear Iran and a military operation targeting it would be to agree to more severe sanctions - without actively supporting these.....The head of Israel's Military Intelligence, Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin, recently traveled to China and relayed to his hosts details of the Iran's progress toward nuclear arms.
White House in calming message to U.S. Jews: Obama is Israel's friend
National Security Council Middle East Senior Director Dan Shapiro stressed to American Jews that that the U.S. did not intend to insist that Israel halt construction in East Jerusalem................Shapiro said that Iran is the most important national security issue facing the United States and that no one should doubt the determination of the U.S. to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. Really now. And how did Iran become the number 1 American national security issue? Two words: Israeli lobby. Israel's problems become OUR problems.
Ambassador Oren Israel protects US troops
Speaking in an interview with CNN, Oren said that if Israel did not exist, extremists in the region would join Al-Qaeda in its anti-American sentiment. "The US is much safer thanks to Israeli-American cooperation," he said. Is this some kind of a sick joke? America is a target of Al-Qaeda because of our support for Israel. It was the primary motivation of Khaled Shaikh Mohammed, the mastermind of 911.
Iran vows to strike Israel immediately if attacked
Obama Claims ‘All Evidence’ Supports Allegations Iran Developing Nukes
Indeed, less than two months ago Obama’s own spokesman Robert Gibbs claimed Iran didn’t even have the ability to enrich uranium beyond 20 percent, let alone to rich to weapons grade, which would be above 90 percent. Just days after Gibbs made this statement he insisted that the US would not rule out attacking Iran.
Dismantling the Constitution One Step at a Time by Philip Giraldi
The act would make it possible for the US military to seize and imprison anyone anywhere in the world, including American citizens, on suspicion of involvement in terrorism. This includes “material support” which is not otherwise defined.
To Pressure Iran, the U.S. Leans on Dubai
Kristol: ‘Better’ for US to attack Iran than if Israel did
The Obama administration should be seriously considering a strike on Iran, according to neoconservative Fox News contributor Bill Kristol. An Israeli Deputy Defense Minister said last week that he expected Israel would have to attack Iran within a year. Kristol believes it would be better for the US to attack first.
Kristol should be deported to his true homeland - Israel. Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.
How the Corporations Broke Ralph Nader and America, Too
Nader’s status as a pariah corresponded with an unchecked assault by corporations on the working class. The long-term unemployment rate, which in reality is close to 20 percent, the millions of foreclosures, the crippling personal debts that plague households, the personal bankruptcies, Wall Street’s looting of the U.S. Treasury, the evaporation of savings and retirement accounts and the crumbling of the country’s vital infrastructure are taking place as billions in taxpayer subsidies, obscene profits, bonuses and compensation are enjoyed by the corporate overlords. We will soon be forced to buy the defective products of the government-subsidized drug and health insurance companies, which will remain free to raise co-payments and premiums, especially if policyholders get seriously ill. Take a read about the influence of CORPORATE interests on our lives. When corporate and foreign interests are better represented on Capitol Hill than YOU, the American taxpayers are, then we've got serious problems. That is NOT what this country was supposed to be about (read, no taxation without representation).
The Iraq war still a massive mistake
First are the sacrifices in terms of blood and treasure. The broad consensus is that the war has cost the US economy well over $700 billion – with the meter still running. The Iraq war has also left nearly 4,400 American troops dead, more than 31,000 physically disabled, and countless more psychologically traumatized. The war on Iraq was conceived in Israel and put forth by Israel's minions - the neocons.
Israel's deadly legacy still lurks in Lebanon
Most of the victims are sappers, farmers and unsuspecting children, who mistake the shiny objects for toys.
An Israeli General Explains Why Stopping Iran Requires a Real Settlement Freeze
Haaretz has two opinion essays right now arguing that Israel should freeze construction because it needs to stop Iran’s nuclear project and it needs America to lead the effort. Bingo. See last news batch for more. Also take notice of reason number 9.
The WaPo’s Frum Forum
Getting fired from the American Enterprise Institute might have been the best thing that’s ever happened to David Frum.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Headlines for March 25 - March 31
A Stand For Justice
A Defining Moment by Philip Giraldi
Earlier this week a letter signed by 300 Congressmen pledged commitment to the “unbreakable bond that exists between the US and the State of Israel.” The public, God bless them, have no ability to overturn Congressional knee jerk support for Israel, and besides, the ability of the MSM to control the coverage of the issue means that most Americans will have no clue that there is any school of thought that Israel constitutes a liability.
Dispute with Israel underscores limits of U.S. power, a shifting alliance
President Obama and his aides have cast the settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, not just the relationship with Israel, as a core U.S. national security interest. Gen. David H. Petraeus, the head of the military's Central Command, put it starkly in recent testimony on Capitol Hill: "The conflict foments anti-American sentiment due to a perception of U.S. favoritism toward Israel." His comments raised eyebrows in official Washington -- and overseas -- because they suggested that U.S. military officials were embracing the idea that failure to resolve the conflict had begun to imperil American lives. Petraeus speaks the truth. Our support for Israel (and its policies of apartheid and colonialism) has cost us Americans dearly - in more ways than one.
Six powers to start work on Iran sanctions: U.S. envoy
"China has agreed to sit down and begin serious negotiations here in New York with the others in the (group of six) ... as a first step toward getting the entire Security Council on board with a tough sanctions regime against Iran,"
Nearly 300 Congress members declare commitment to 'unbreakable' U.S.-Israel bond
Read the letter they signed contained in the article. This is treason. Our support for Israel was the reason given by the mastermind of the attack on 911.
Bibi’s Hollow Victory by Patrick J. Buchanan
“This is starting to get dangerous for us,” Biden reportedly told Netanyahu. “What you’re doing here undermines the security of our troops who are fighting in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.”
Yedioth Ahronoth further reported: “The vice president told his Israeli hosts that since many people in the Muslim world perceived a connection between Israel’s actions and U.S. policy, any decision about construction that undermines Palestinian rights in East Jerusalem could have an impact on the personal safety of American troops.”
Barak: US Gives Israel Aid, Ammunition and Vital Spare Parts
"Even when there are disagreements between friends – and there are also disagreements – it is vital that we remember that the US is friendly toward Israel in a deep and basic sense,” Barak explained. “It is the US we turn to when there is a Goldstone Report; it is the US we turn to when an intervention or veto is needed in the [UN] Security Council and it was there that we found support and backing in every central crisis in Israel's history, from the War of Independence onward.” They use us to abet their crimes against their neighbors. It got us 911. And it's all possible thanks to the Israeli lobby and its overwhelming influence over our government.
Clinton: China to play role in Iran sanctions push
Muslim scholars recast jihadists' favorite fatwa
Prominent Muslim scholars have recast a famous medieval fatwa on jihad, arguing the religious edict radical Islamists often cite to justify killing cannot be used in a globalized world that respects faith and civil rights.
Obama says wants Iran sanctions within weeks
Iran nuclear scientist Shahram Amiri 'defects to US'
ABC News said Shahram Amiri had been resettled in the US and was helping the CIA in its efforts to block Iran's nuclear programme.
The Crisis That Wasn’t by Philip Giraldi
Clinton did make one intriguing comment, perhaps not completely understanding the implications of what she was saying: "We cannot escape the impact of mass communications." She meant that many people have now become concerned about what is going on in Israel and Palestine because of what appears on the internet. But if Israel were truly the cowboy in the white hat upholding truth and justice that would hardly matter, would it? In reality, the narrative of Israeli exceptionalism and entitlement that has been carefully shaped by the Israeli government and its friends in the mainstream media has been thoroughly discredited by alternative sources of information made available through the internet
Scott Horton Interviews Lt. General Robert G. Gard, Jr.
Lt. General Robert G. Gard, Jr., Chairman of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, discusses Israel’s ability to drag the US into a war with Iran, the difficulty of destroying Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility even with bunker-busting bombs, Pentagon war games that exposed serious US vulnerabilities to Iranian retaliation, the need to vastly reduce the number of nuclear weapons in the US and Russia and why the aircraft carrier-based US Navy is becoming obsolete.
Arab League chief urges closer ties with Iran
The push to engage Tehran seems to be at least partly fueled by Arab frustration over Washington's failure to get Israel to back down on plans for more Jewish settlements on land the Palestinians want for a future state.
Video: An Act of Treason by Members of the United States Congress?
Short, but good. The link to the letter appearing in Haaretz is included in this news batch.
The Ugly Head of America
The hatred and anger towards Muslims in this country and around the world has gone beyond the tipping point. This is not acceptable. The hatred of Islam, Muslims and Arabs is fostered and put forth, in my opinion, by Israel's lobby here in America. It is a means to conflate Israel's enemies with our own, thus making Israel's enemies our enemies.
Exclusive / Despite row, U.S. and Israel sign massive arms deal
Each aircraft costs $70 million. The aircrafts were manufactured specifically for Israeli needs, and include a large number of systems produced by Israel's defense industry. The deal will be covered by American foreign assistance funds.
Saudi: Israel's arrogance challenges the world
Mullen added that he had been in contact with IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi twice this week and that the U.S. was concerned with Israel's security because:
"It is in our national interests obviously or we wouldn't be so engaged... the United States has considered peace in the Middle East to be a national security interest for decades." To further demonstrate the obeisance to Israel on the part of America's government officials. Petraeus (and Mullen) drop into a low kowtow.
Israeli Intelligence, Our Constant Companion
The 21 documents, obtained by Grant F. Smith, a Washington, D.C. author who has made a career out of writing critical books on Israeli spying and lobbying, detail the FBI’s investigation into the theft of a confidential U.S. document on the Reagan administration’s position going into the 1984 U.S.-Israel Free Trade Area Negotiations.
Acting on a complaint that the document was circulating on Capitol Hill, the FBI discovered that an Israeli diplomat had acquired the paper and given it to officials at AIPAC, the lobbying group whose annual convention drew both Netanyahu and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton this week.
Turkey makes case against sanctions on Iran
In an apparently veiled reference to Israel, the Turkish leader referred to another country in the region that possessed nuclear weapons.
Netanyahu and Obama are at point of no return
Defense Secretary Robert Gates has decisively supported General David Petraeus, the first American military man in years to describe Israel as a strategic burden on the U.S. Gates said America's rivals in the Middle East are abusing the standstill of the political process between Israel and the Arabs. He stressed that he had no doubt a lack of peace in the region was influencing American interests there.
"Reporting" on Iran Should Seem Familiar
This misleading "reporting" is hardly confined to Fox News Israel's friends in the media are beating the drums of war.
Sarah Palin, Neocon Messiah
Sarah Palin has a passionate attachment to Israel and is thus the darling of the neocons.
Helen Thomas on Obama, the WH Press Corps, and More
DC's most experienced journalist says Obama lost credibility when he dodged question on Israeli nukes
Senor Decides Against Running for Senate, Citing Family and Business
“Start-up Nation” presents Israel in an extremely positive light as a bastion of entrepreneurial spirit and technological achievement. It skirts a discussion of the conflict with the Palestinians, or even the wealth inequality within Israel, thereby dovetailing nicely with recent public relations efforts by Israel to shift attention away from its problems and toward its achievements. Isn't it nice how so many of our current and would-be politicians - particularly those that push and have pushed us to take on Iraq and Iran- have such strong ties to Israel?
A Confrontation That Was Inevitable
Either way the message is the same: America has gone to great lengths to defend Israel’s security. How far will Israel go to protect America’s security? They won't do a damned thing.
The Four Questions About Israel’s Future
Unlike the days of my parents, Israel, stronger than ever, now has peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, who, along with other Arab states, also fear Iran. We also have a strong bond with the United States, which is determined to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. What we need to do is quickly restore trust between Jerusalem and Washington, so we can face the Iranian threat together. Oh hell no. Someone needs to tell these people to fight their own battles. America has enough problems of its own right now.
Moscow metro bombings Russia should reinvent how it handles terrorism
Russia’s foreign-policy responses to terror in the North Caucuses have failed as well. The Kremlin maintains contacts with Hamas and Hezbollah and, until now, has resisted meaningful sanctions against the biggest state sponsor of terrorism – Iran. Notice that the author of this piece is from The Heritage Foundation, a neocon thinktank.
Israel could use tactical nukes on Iran: thinktank
Preparing the US sheep for the war we're about to get dragged into?
A Defining Moment by Philip Giraldi
Earlier this week a letter signed by 300 Congressmen pledged commitment to the “unbreakable bond that exists between the US and the State of Israel.” The public, God bless them, have no ability to overturn Congressional knee jerk support for Israel, and besides, the ability of the MSM to control the coverage of the issue means that most Americans will have no clue that there is any school of thought that Israel constitutes a liability.
Dispute with Israel underscores limits of U.S. power, a shifting alliance
President Obama and his aides have cast the settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, not just the relationship with Israel, as a core U.S. national security interest. Gen. David H. Petraeus, the head of the military's Central Command, put it starkly in recent testimony on Capitol Hill: "The conflict foments anti-American sentiment due to a perception of U.S. favoritism toward Israel." His comments raised eyebrows in official Washington -- and overseas -- because they suggested that U.S. military officials were embracing the idea that failure to resolve the conflict had begun to imperil American lives. Petraeus speaks the truth. Our support for Israel (and its policies of apartheid and colonialism) has cost us Americans dearly - in more ways than one.
Six powers to start work on Iran sanctions: U.S. envoy
"China has agreed to sit down and begin serious negotiations here in New York with the others in the (group of six) ... as a first step toward getting the entire Security Council on board with a tough sanctions regime against Iran,"
Nearly 300 Congress members declare commitment to 'unbreakable' U.S.-Israel bond
Read the letter they signed contained in the article. This is treason. Our support for Israel was the reason given by the mastermind of the attack on 911.
Bibi’s Hollow Victory by Patrick J. Buchanan
“This is starting to get dangerous for us,” Biden reportedly told Netanyahu. “What you’re doing here undermines the security of our troops who are fighting in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.”
Yedioth Ahronoth further reported: “The vice president told his Israeli hosts that since many people in the Muslim world perceived a connection between Israel’s actions and U.S. policy, any decision about construction that undermines Palestinian rights in East Jerusalem could have an impact on the personal safety of American troops.”
Barak: US Gives Israel Aid, Ammunition and Vital Spare Parts
"Even when there are disagreements between friends – and there are also disagreements – it is vital that we remember that the US is friendly toward Israel in a deep and basic sense,” Barak explained. “It is the US we turn to when there is a Goldstone Report; it is the US we turn to when an intervention or veto is needed in the [UN] Security Council and it was there that we found support and backing in every central crisis in Israel's history, from the War of Independence onward.” They use us to abet their crimes against their neighbors. It got us 911. And it's all possible thanks to the Israeli lobby and its overwhelming influence over our government.
Clinton: China to play role in Iran sanctions push
Muslim scholars recast jihadists' favorite fatwa
Prominent Muslim scholars have recast a famous medieval fatwa on jihad, arguing the religious edict radical Islamists often cite to justify killing cannot be used in a globalized world that respects faith and civil rights.
Obama says wants Iran sanctions within weeks
Iran nuclear scientist Shahram Amiri 'defects to US'
ABC News said Shahram Amiri had been resettled in the US and was helping the CIA in its efforts to block Iran's nuclear programme.
The Crisis That Wasn’t by Philip Giraldi
Clinton did make one intriguing comment, perhaps not completely understanding the implications of what she was saying: "We cannot escape the impact of mass communications." She meant that many people have now become concerned about what is going on in Israel and Palestine because of what appears on the internet. But if Israel were truly the cowboy in the white hat upholding truth and justice that would hardly matter, would it? In reality, the narrative of Israeli exceptionalism and entitlement that has been carefully shaped by the Israeli government and its friends in the mainstream media has been thoroughly discredited by alternative sources of information made available through the internet
Scott Horton Interviews Lt. General Robert G. Gard, Jr.
Lt. General Robert G. Gard, Jr., Chairman of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, discusses Israel’s ability to drag the US into a war with Iran, the difficulty of destroying Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility even with bunker-busting bombs, Pentagon war games that exposed serious US vulnerabilities to Iranian retaliation, the need to vastly reduce the number of nuclear weapons in the US and Russia and why the aircraft carrier-based US Navy is becoming obsolete.
Arab League chief urges closer ties with Iran
The push to engage Tehran seems to be at least partly fueled by Arab frustration over Washington's failure to get Israel to back down on plans for more Jewish settlements on land the Palestinians want for a future state.
Video: An Act of Treason by Members of the United States Congress?
Short, but good. The link to the letter appearing in Haaretz is included in this news batch.
The Ugly Head of America
The hatred and anger towards Muslims in this country and around the world has gone beyond the tipping point. This is not acceptable. The hatred of Islam, Muslims and Arabs is fostered and put forth, in my opinion, by Israel's lobby here in America. It is a means to conflate Israel's enemies with our own, thus making Israel's enemies our enemies.
Exclusive / Despite row, U.S. and Israel sign massive arms deal
Each aircraft costs $70 million. The aircrafts were manufactured specifically for Israeli needs, and include a large number of systems produced by Israel's defense industry. The deal will be covered by American foreign assistance funds.
Saudi: Israel's arrogance challenges the world
Mullen added that he had been in contact with IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi twice this week and that the U.S. was concerned with Israel's security because:
"It is in our national interests obviously or we wouldn't be so engaged... the United States has considered peace in the Middle East to be a national security interest for decades." To further demonstrate the obeisance to Israel on the part of America's government officials. Petraeus (and Mullen) drop into a low kowtow.
Israeli Intelligence, Our Constant Companion
The 21 documents, obtained by Grant F. Smith, a Washington, D.C. author who has made a career out of writing critical books on Israeli spying and lobbying, detail the FBI’s investigation into the theft of a confidential U.S. document on the Reagan administration’s position going into the 1984 U.S.-Israel Free Trade Area Negotiations.
Acting on a complaint that the document was circulating on Capitol Hill, the FBI discovered that an Israeli diplomat had acquired the paper and given it to officials at AIPAC, the lobbying group whose annual convention drew both Netanyahu and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton this week.
Turkey makes case against sanctions on Iran
In an apparently veiled reference to Israel, the Turkish leader referred to another country in the region that possessed nuclear weapons.
Netanyahu and Obama are at point of no return
Defense Secretary Robert Gates has decisively supported General David Petraeus, the first American military man in years to describe Israel as a strategic burden on the U.S. Gates said America's rivals in the Middle East are abusing the standstill of the political process between Israel and the Arabs. He stressed that he had no doubt a lack of peace in the region was influencing American interests there.
"Reporting" on Iran Should Seem Familiar
This misleading "reporting" is hardly confined to Fox News Israel's friends in the media are beating the drums of war.
Sarah Palin, Neocon Messiah
Sarah Palin has a passionate attachment to Israel and is thus the darling of the neocons.
Helen Thomas on Obama, the WH Press Corps, and More
DC's most experienced journalist says Obama lost credibility when he dodged question on Israeli nukes
Senor Decides Against Running for Senate, Citing Family and Business
“Start-up Nation” presents Israel in an extremely positive light as a bastion of entrepreneurial spirit and technological achievement. It skirts a discussion of the conflict with the Palestinians, or even the wealth inequality within Israel, thereby dovetailing nicely with recent public relations efforts by Israel to shift attention away from its problems and toward its achievements. Isn't it nice how so many of our current and would-be politicians - particularly those that push and have pushed us to take on Iraq and Iran- have such strong ties to Israel?
A Confrontation That Was Inevitable
Either way the message is the same: America has gone to great lengths to defend Israel’s security. How far will Israel go to protect America’s security? They won't do a damned thing.
The Four Questions About Israel’s Future
Unlike the days of my parents, Israel, stronger than ever, now has peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, who, along with other Arab states, also fear Iran. We also have a strong bond with the United States, which is determined to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. What we need to do is quickly restore trust between Jerusalem and Washington, so we can face the Iranian threat together. Oh hell no. Someone needs to tell these people to fight their own battles. America has enough problems of its own right now.
Moscow metro bombings Russia should reinvent how it handles terrorism
Russia’s foreign-policy responses to terror in the North Caucuses have failed as well. The Kremlin maintains contacts with Hamas and Hezbollah and, until now, has resisted meaningful sanctions against the biggest state sponsor of terrorism – Iran. Notice that the author of this piece is from The Heritage Foundation, a neocon thinktank.
Israel could use tactical nukes on Iran: thinktank
Preparing the US sheep for the war we're about to get dragged into?
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Headlines for March 18 - March 24
A Stand For Justice
The Crisis That Wasn’t by Philip Giraldi
the truly amazing part was that the America Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) was so confident of the outcome that it didn’t even bother to hide very much of what it was doing, hardly deigning to engage in its usual clandestine arm twisting and slipped under the door "position papers." It immediately issued a public statement slamming the White House, asserting that "The Obama Administration’s recent statements regarding the US relationship with Israel are a matter of serious concern. AIPAC calls on the Administration to take immediate steps to defuse the tension with the Jewish State." It then unleashed its friends in Congress and the media. Its brazen campaign against the American president was executed all out on public view, right up front and recorded on the AIPAC website. I conjure you to read this excellent article by former CIA Philip Giraldi, my fellow citizens.
Medicating the military
At least one in six service members is on some form of psychiatric drug.
Ranks of amputees have risen steadily in 8 years of war
In the years since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, 967 American service members have lost at least one limb, as of March 1.
Obama to Iran: U.S. offer of dialogue still stands
A Third Muslim-World War?
"Secure in the support of its powerful friend, the weak ally can choose the objectives and methods of its foreign policy to suit itself," Morgenthau warned. "The powerful nation then finds it must support interests not its own and that it is unable to compromise on issues that are vital not to itself, but only to its ally." This is what George Washington warned us about in his Farewell Address - the evils of a passionate attachment. Read entire article if you can, paying attention to the last paragraph.
Iran sanctions may be secured with China abstention
Levitt said steps were being taken by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to increase their oil supplies to China, effectively weaning it off Iranian supplies. That might increase the likelihood of China backing a resolution.
US Department of Justice Asked to Regulate AIPAC as a Foreign Agent of the Israeli Government
2.AIPAC's founder Isaiah L. Kenen was the chief information officer for the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs in New York and for a time duly registered in that role. http://www.IRmep.org/Kenen.pdf The Justice Department ordered Kenen to personally re-register after he formally left the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs to head up private lobbying and publicity for the Israeli government at the nonprofit American Zionist Council. Kenen never complied with the order
Rupert Cornwell: Obama won't restrain Israel - he can't
power lies in the perception of power, and no organisation in Washington is perceived to wield more power than AIPAC, the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee. For proof, look no further than January 2009, when most of the rest of the world was horrified at the Israeli offensive in Gaza. At that moment the US House of Representatives, by a vote of 390 to five, chose to blame the entire crisis on Hamas.
US Lawmakers Stand Up Against Obama for Israel
For whom do they work?
Clinton: US wants biting sanctions on Iran
Headline should be changed to : 'Clinton: AIPAC said that the US wants biting sanctions on Iran'
Gen. Petraeus No Nukes for Iran ‘This Year’
Gen. Petraeus claimed this was because Iran’s efforts had been “delayed a bit.” He called for more international pressure against Iran, and declined to answer questions about a possible attack plan against the nation.
US, Russia clash over startup of Iran nuke plant
Lavrov forcefully asserted that, whatever the U.S. concerns, his country will finish its work on the Bushehr nuclear power plant shortly.
Report Claims Iran Arms Taliban
The allegation that arms from Iran are being supplied to the Taliban is not new. As my colleague Michael Gordon reported in 2007, Gen. Peter Pace, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon, told reporters, “We have intercepted weapons in Afghanistan headed for the Taliban that were made in Iran.” At the time General Pace added that it was not clear if the arms from Iran were coming from that country’s government. Still trying to make case for war.
Taliban fighters training in Iran, U.S. officials say
The officials who spoke with CNN did not say how many Taliban fighters have been trained in Iran, or whether the training was sanctioned at the highest levels of the Iranian government.
Israel to ask US for bombs in the fight against Iran's Nuclear sites
Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, will use a visit to Washington this week to press the US to release sophisticated bunker-busting bombs needed for a possible strike on Iran’s nuclear sites.
2nd mystery 'hit': Israeli jet flyover amid Hungary slay
In a possible sequel to the Dubai assassination, Israeli spy planes flew uninvited and unannounced over Budapest the same day a Syrian man was shot to death in his car, Hungarian media reported yesterday.
Syrian murder, Israeli planes not linked: official
Two Israeli airforce planes that made a low-level pass over Budapest this week had nothing to do with the killing of a Syrian man in the Hungarian capital on the same day, Hungarian officials said on Friday. Come on, really, Hungary?
The ADL targeting ….Gen. Petraeus
Israel Lobby Wants Iran, not the Peace Process to Top the U.S. Agenda
The amateur activists were preparing for Tuesday's blitz of Congress that has become a ritual of the annual policy conference of AIPAC, one of the nation's most influential interest groups. This year, according to Aserkoff, as many as 4,000 activists will hold roughly 500 meetings with their members of Congress or their staff.
This is possible, this overwhelming influence on Congress by the Israeli lobby, because YOU are not paying attention. The apathy on the part of the American people is half the problem. The lobby fills the void that should be filled by ordinary Americans that have no passionate attachment to Israel.
The American Conservative » Neocons Target Rand Paul
neoconservatives still set the foreign-policy agenda for the GOP. But they’re genuinely worried that the combination of a grassroots movement and an independently-minded candidate will deliver a blow to their power — especially if Rand Paul becomes only the first of many by showing that there is an alternative to Bushes and Kristols.
AIPAC's Talking Points On Iran and Palestinians
AIPAC has also posted their talking points memo regarding making the case for final passage of "crippling" Iran sanctions and pressing for better enforcement of existing sanctions - Crippling Sanctions Needed to Prevent Nuclear Iran .
Zionism’s Dark Forces Don’t Want the Lights On
blind though AIPAC is for that reason, it’s not completely out of touch with reality. It knows that the more Zionism’s on-going colonisation is exposed to the light, the more the world understands that Israel is the obstacle to peace. (The world now includes some of the U.S.’s top military men who are going on the public record with their view that support for Israel right or wrong is not in the best interests of America).
Netanyahu to AIPAC: Stop Iran or Israel Will
After the worst week in U.S.-Israel relations in 35 years, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to Washington Monday and gave a powerful and effective speech at the AIPAC gala dinner at the Washington Convention Center, warning the world to stop Iran — or Israel will — and respectfully but directly challenging the Obama administration on Jerusalem and the peace process.....Netanyahu received scores of standing ovations from the 7,800 guests in attendance, the biggest event in the history of AIPAC (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee). More than half of the members of the U.S. House and Senate were there Note the comments by Schumer and Graham.
Sen. Lindsey Graham: Any Attack on Iran Must Be Full-Scale
added Graham, a member of the Senate armed services committee, "sometimes it is better to go to war than to allow the Holocaust to develop a second time." And he told the crowd that "time is not on our side" and that this AIPAC conference could be the last of the lobby's annual get-togethers before Iran possesses nuclear weapons. Military action ought to be taken against Iran, he said, before the country acquires a nuclear bomb.
Lebanese army fires on Israeli warplanes: military
Lebanese anti–aircraft guns opened fire on two Israeli warplanes that were violating its airspace at medium altitude on Sunday, the military said....Israel's regular overflights into southern Lebanon, a Hezbollah stronghold, are a breach of Resolution 1701 Why no sanctions for Israel?
World will do "whatever it takes" to stop Iran nuke: Blair
"Iran must not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons capability. Iran must know that we will do whatever it takes to stop them getting it," Blair told the pro–Israel lobby AIPAC, adding it was a matter of global security.
Are Israel’s Policies a Threat to the U.S.?
Suggestions that Israeli policies might threaten American national security thus far seem not to have gained much traction among lawmakers, said an official with a pro-Israel organization in Washington, who spoke on condition of anonymity. He said that the prevailing attitude on Capitol Hill is still that Israel is a security asset in the Middle East, not a burden. Congress- AIPAC's overwhelming influence thereof - is the real problem. We've got Congressmen and women that have the passionate attachment to Israel, and the rest are beholden to Israel's lobby. Our support for Israel is in fact a danger to this nation. And anyone in Congress that supports this is betraying the majority of the American people.
Eric Cantor to the Forward: Administration Is 'Bullying Israel'
Cantor and several other Republican lawmakers have criticized the administration’s tough stance on Israel in light of the dispute over the Jewish state’s approval of another 1,600 homes in contested East Jerusalem. Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman, an independent, and Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, have also said that the Obama administration was wrong in pressuring Israel. I'm going to remind readers what former CIA head of the Bin Laden unit has to say about Israel in this CSpan video. Long, but worth the watch.
Powell Says New Sanctions on Iran Won’t Stop Nuclear Program - Bloomberg.com
“The Iranians are determined to have a nuclear program,” Powell said in the interview, which will be broadcast on Bloomberg Television’s “Conversations with Judy Woodruff” this weekend. “Notice I did not say a nuclear weapon. But they are determined to have a nuclear program, notwithstanding the last six or seven years of efforts on our part to keep them from having a nuclear program.”
Israel & Aid By Ralph Nader
Since 1996, the American taxpayers are still sending Israel $3 billion a year and providing assorted loan guarantees, waivers, rich technology transfers and other indirect assistance. Before George W. Bush left office a memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Israel stipulated an assistance package of $30 billion over the next ten years to be transferred in a lump sum at the beginning of every fiscal year. Israel’s wars and colonies still receive U.S. taxpayer monies....the U.S. economy is mired in a recession, with large rates of growing poverty, unemployment, consumer debt and state and federal deficits. In some states, public schools are shutting, public health services are being slashed, and universities are increasing tuition while also cutting programs. Even state government buildings are being sold off. Read on.
The Crisis That Wasn’t by Philip Giraldi
the truly amazing part was that the America Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) was so confident of the outcome that it didn’t even bother to hide very much of what it was doing, hardly deigning to engage in its usual clandestine arm twisting and slipped under the door "position papers." It immediately issued a public statement slamming the White House, asserting that "The Obama Administration’s recent statements regarding the US relationship with Israel are a matter of serious concern. AIPAC calls on the Administration to take immediate steps to defuse the tension with the Jewish State." It then unleashed its friends in Congress and the media. Its brazen campaign against the American president was executed all out on public view, right up front and recorded on the AIPAC website. I conjure you to read this excellent article by former CIA Philip Giraldi, my fellow citizens.
Medicating the military
At least one in six service members is on some form of psychiatric drug.
Ranks of amputees have risen steadily in 8 years of war
In the years since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, 967 American service members have lost at least one limb, as of March 1.
Obama to Iran: U.S. offer of dialogue still stands
A Third Muslim-World War?
"Secure in the support of its powerful friend, the weak ally can choose the objectives and methods of its foreign policy to suit itself," Morgenthau warned. "The powerful nation then finds it must support interests not its own and that it is unable to compromise on issues that are vital not to itself, but only to its ally." This is what George Washington warned us about in his Farewell Address - the evils of a passionate attachment. Read entire article if you can, paying attention to the last paragraph.
Iran sanctions may be secured with China abstention
Levitt said steps were being taken by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to increase their oil supplies to China, effectively weaning it off Iranian supplies. That might increase the likelihood of China backing a resolution.
US Department of Justice Asked to Regulate AIPAC as a Foreign Agent of the Israeli Government
2.AIPAC's founder Isaiah L. Kenen was the chief information officer for the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs in New York and for a time duly registered in that role. http://www.IRmep.org/Kenen.pdf The Justice Department ordered Kenen to personally re-register after he formally left the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs to head up private lobbying and publicity for the Israeli government at the nonprofit American Zionist Council. Kenen never complied with the order
Rupert Cornwell: Obama won't restrain Israel - he can't
power lies in the perception of power, and no organisation in Washington is perceived to wield more power than AIPAC, the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee. For proof, look no further than January 2009, when most of the rest of the world was horrified at the Israeli offensive in Gaza. At that moment the US House of Representatives, by a vote of 390 to five, chose to blame the entire crisis on Hamas.
US Lawmakers Stand Up Against Obama for Israel
For whom do they work?
Clinton: US wants biting sanctions on Iran
Headline should be changed to : 'Clinton: AIPAC said that the US wants biting sanctions on Iran'
Gen. Petraeus No Nukes for Iran ‘This Year’
Gen. Petraeus claimed this was because Iran’s efforts had been “delayed a bit.” He called for more international pressure against Iran, and declined to answer questions about a possible attack plan against the nation.
US, Russia clash over startup of Iran nuke plant
Lavrov forcefully asserted that, whatever the U.S. concerns, his country will finish its work on the Bushehr nuclear power plant shortly.
Report Claims Iran Arms Taliban
The allegation that arms from Iran are being supplied to the Taliban is not new. As my colleague Michael Gordon reported in 2007, Gen. Peter Pace, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon, told reporters, “We have intercepted weapons in Afghanistan headed for the Taliban that were made in Iran.” At the time General Pace added that it was not clear if the arms from Iran were coming from that country’s government. Still trying to make case for war.
Taliban fighters training in Iran, U.S. officials say
The officials who spoke with CNN did not say how many Taliban fighters have been trained in Iran, or whether the training was sanctioned at the highest levels of the Iranian government.
Israel to ask US for bombs in the fight against Iran's Nuclear sites
Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, will use a visit to Washington this week to press the US to release sophisticated bunker-busting bombs needed for a possible strike on Iran’s nuclear sites.
2nd mystery 'hit': Israeli jet flyover amid Hungary slay
In a possible sequel to the Dubai assassination, Israeli spy planes flew uninvited and unannounced over Budapest the same day a Syrian man was shot to death in his car, Hungarian media reported yesterday.
Syrian murder, Israeli planes not linked: official
Two Israeli airforce planes that made a low-level pass over Budapest this week had nothing to do with the killing of a Syrian man in the Hungarian capital on the same day, Hungarian officials said on Friday. Come on, really, Hungary?
The ADL targeting ….Gen. Petraeus
Israel Lobby Wants Iran, not the Peace Process to Top the U.S. Agenda
The amateur activists were preparing for Tuesday's blitz of Congress that has become a ritual of the annual policy conference of AIPAC, one of the nation's most influential interest groups. This year, according to Aserkoff, as many as 4,000 activists will hold roughly 500 meetings with their members of Congress or their staff.
This is possible, this overwhelming influence on Congress by the Israeli lobby, because YOU are not paying attention. The apathy on the part of the American people is half the problem. The lobby fills the void that should be filled by ordinary Americans that have no passionate attachment to Israel.
The American Conservative » Neocons Target Rand Paul
neoconservatives still set the foreign-policy agenda for the GOP. But they’re genuinely worried that the combination of a grassroots movement and an independently-minded candidate will deliver a blow to their power — especially if Rand Paul becomes only the first of many by showing that there is an alternative to Bushes and Kristols.
AIPAC's Talking Points On Iran and Palestinians
AIPAC has also posted their talking points memo regarding making the case for final passage of "crippling" Iran sanctions and pressing for better enforcement of existing sanctions - Crippling Sanctions Needed to Prevent Nuclear Iran .
Zionism’s Dark Forces Don’t Want the Lights On
blind though AIPAC is for that reason, it’s not completely out of touch with reality. It knows that the more Zionism’s on-going colonisation is exposed to the light, the more the world understands that Israel is the obstacle to peace. (The world now includes some of the U.S.’s top military men who are going on the public record with their view that support for Israel right or wrong is not in the best interests of America).
Netanyahu to AIPAC: Stop Iran or Israel Will
After the worst week in U.S.-Israel relations in 35 years, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to Washington Monday and gave a powerful and effective speech at the AIPAC gala dinner at the Washington Convention Center, warning the world to stop Iran — or Israel will — and respectfully but directly challenging the Obama administration on Jerusalem and the peace process.....Netanyahu received scores of standing ovations from the 7,800 guests in attendance, the biggest event in the history of AIPAC (the American Israel Public Affairs Committee). More than half of the members of the U.S. House and Senate were there Note the comments by Schumer and Graham.
Sen. Lindsey Graham: Any Attack on Iran Must Be Full-Scale
added Graham, a member of the Senate armed services committee, "sometimes it is better to go to war than to allow the Holocaust to develop a second time." And he told the crowd that "time is not on our side" and that this AIPAC conference could be the last of the lobby's annual get-togethers before Iran possesses nuclear weapons. Military action ought to be taken against Iran, he said, before the country acquires a nuclear bomb.
Lebanese army fires on Israeli warplanes: military
Lebanese anti–aircraft guns opened fire on two Israeli warplanes that were violating its airspace at medium altitude on Sunday, the military said....Israel's regular overflights into southern Lebanon, a Hezbollah stronghold, are a breach of Resolution 1701 Why no sanctions for Israel?
World will do "whatever it takes" to stop Iran nuke: Blair
"Iran must not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons capability. Iran must know that we will do whatever it takes to stop them getting it," Blair told the pro–Israel lobby AIPAC, adding it was a matter of global security.
Are Israel’s Policies a Threat to the U.S.?
Suggestions that Israeli policies might threaten American national security thus far seem not to have gained much traction among lawmakers, said an official with a pro-Israel organization in Washington, who spoke on condition of anonymity. He said that the prevailing attitude on Capitol Hill is still that Israel is a security asset in the Middle East, not a burden. Congress- AIPAC's overwhelming influence thereof - is the real problem. We've got Congressmen and women that have the passionate attachment to Israel, and the rest are beholden to Israel's lobby. Our support for Israel is in fact a danger to this nation. And anyone in Congress that supports this is betraying the majority of the American people.
Eric Cantor to the Forward: Administration Is 'Bullying Israel'
Cantor and several other Republican lawmakers have criticized the administration’s tough stance on Israel in light of the dispute over the Jewish state’s approval of another 1,600 homes in contested East Jerusalem. Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman, an independent, and Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, have also said that the Obama administration was wrong in pressuring Israel. I'm going to remind readers what former CIA head of the Bin Laden unit has to say about Israel in this CSpan video. Long, but worth the watch.
Powell Says New Sanctions on Iran Won’t Stop Nuclear Program - Bloomberg.com
“The Iranians are determined to have a nuclear program,” Powell said in the interview, which will be broadcast on Bloomberg Television’s “Conversations with Judy Woodruff” this weekend. “Notice I did not say a nuclear weapon. But they are determined to have a nuclear program, notwithstanding the last six or seven years of efforts on our part to keep them from having a nuclear program.”
Israel & Aid By Ralph Nader
Since 1996, the American taxpayers are still sending Israel $3 billion a year and providing assorted loan guarantees, waivers, rich technology transfers and other indirect assistance. Before George W. Bush left office a memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Israel stipulated an assistance package of $30 billion over the next ten years to be transferred in a lump sum at the beginning of every fiscal year. Israel’s wars and colonies still receive U.S. taxpayer monies....the U.S. economy is mired in a recession, with large rates of growing poverty, unemployment, consumer debt and state and federal deficits. In some states, public schools are shutting, public health services are being slashed, and universities are increasing tuition while also cutting programs. Even state government buildings are being sold off. Read on.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Headlines for March 11 - March 17
A Stand For Justice
China envoy urges Iran to compromise, wary on sanctions
China faces mounting demands from Western powers to approve a proposed United Nations resolution imposing new sanctions on Tehran, which they say wants the means to make nuclear weapons and has broken non–proliferation safeguards.
Report: US shipping arms ahead of strike on Iran
Hundreds of powerful US “bunker-buster” bombs are being shipped from California to the British island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean ahead of a possible attack on Iran, The Herald reported Wednesday.
report US Sending Massive Amounts of Weaponry to Diego Garcia
The proximity is not lost on Iran’s state media, which is reporting that the bunker-busters are a clear move to threaten Iran’s nuclear facilities. The US has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran over its civilian nuclear program.
Petraeus says Iran nuke won't happen this year
The top U.S. commander in the Middle East says Iran's efforts to obtain a nuclear weapon have been delayed "a bit" and that Iran won't get a nuclear weapon this year.
Pentagon vs. Israel?
"Not surprisingly, what Biden told Netanyahu reflected the importance the administration attached to Petraeus's Mullen briefing: 'This is starting to get dangerous for us,' Biden reportedly told Netanyahu. 'What you're doing here undermines the security of our troops who are fighting in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. That endangers us and it endangers regional peace.'
“This is Starting to Get Dangerous”
“The vice president told his Israeli hosts that since many people in the Muslim world perceived a connection between Israel’s actions and US policy, any decision about construction that undermines Palestinian rights in East Jerusalem could have an impact on the personal safety of American troops fighting against Islamic terrorism.”
Poodle Biden Gets Kicked by Patrick J. Buchanan
Israeli and U.S. interests often run parallel, but they are not the same. Israel is concerned with a neighborhood. We are concerned with a world of 300 million Arabs and a billion Muslims. Our policies cannot be the same.
If they are, we will end up with all of Israel’s enemies, who are legion, and only Israel’s friends, who are few.
Report: Petraeus Warns Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mullen that Israel Is Jeopardizing US Security Interests
The Petraeus Briefing: Biden’s Embarrassment Is Not The Whole Story
UPDATE: A senior military officer denied Sunday that Petraeus sent a paper to the White House.
Supporting the War Instead of the Troops by Rep. Ron Paul
the vote was significant because it places every member of Congress on the record as supporting or not supporting the unconstitutional, costly, violent occupation of a country that never attacked us.
The Rogue Nation
Pakistani Scientist Khan Describes Iranian Efforts to Buy Nuclear Bombs
Manufacturing Consent For Attack On Iran
Petraeus Cites Progress, But Says Difficult, Uncertain Year Ahead in Afghanistan, Iraq
he called Iran "the major state-level threat to regional stability," accusing its leaders of supporting violent groups in Iraq, Lebanon, Gaza and, to a lesser extent, Afghanistan. The general said he believes Iran is working to develop a nuclear weapon, but he does not expect the process to be completed this year. Come on, really, Gen. Petraeus?
China: Iran Sanctions 'Counterproductive'
China's new Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva says his country does not want Iran to have nuclear weapons. But he says his country is opposed to sanctions against Iran, calling them counterproductive.
US to Turkey: Step up pressure on Iran, support IAEA
or you'll pass another bill iterating that the Armenian Genocide was in fact a genocide?...
Petraeus Confirms Link Between Israel-Palestine and U.S. Security
Petraeus’ willingness to publicly — and in uniform with all those decorations on his chest — make the connection between Israeli treatment of the Palestinians and the spread of “anti-American sentiment” and the deterioration of the U.S. position in the region — a connection which, of course, is completely evident to any casual observer of Middle East — marks what can only be considered a major breakthrough in the debate over the relationship between the United States and Israel.
Knesset to Biden For Smooth Relations, Free Pollard
With impeccable timing, a broadly representative group of Israeli Knesset members sent a joint letter to Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday and asked him to work to free confessed spy Jonathan Pollard from federal prison in honor of the Passover holiday and “as an expression of the good relations and friendship between our two peoples.” It was signed by party whips or representatives of eight of the nine Jewish parties in the Knesset
U.S. TELLS ISRAEL: “YOU ARE UNDERMINING AMERICA, ENDANGERING TROOPS”
the extent of Israeli involvement in areas that had taken the “special relationship” into an area of disaster for the United States. This is what was discovered: Read on.
Jerusalem Pitches Goldstone Report as a Threat to U.S. Military and its Allies
So far, based on the voting on the Feb. 26 U.N. resolution, many of the countries other than America toward whom Israel is aiming this argument seem unpersuaded. I wonder why that is?
Arab world says hopes in Obama are dwindling
the mistrust has already hurt U.S. policy. U.S. allies Saudi Arabia and Gulf nations have rejected U.S. pressure to make diplomatic gestures to Israel to encourage it in the peace process, citing its hard line on settlements.
It could bleed over into other realms, such as U.S. attempt to isolate Iran, which Washington and its allies accuse of seeking to develop nuclear weapons. Tehran denies the claims.
Biden steers past spat over Israel settlement plan
Addressing a key Israeli security concern, Biden also said the U.S. is "determined to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons."
Subservient Superpower by Philip Giraldi
The real indication of whether or not the White House will or can begin to break the chains that bind will come at the end of this week when AIPAC holds its annual conference. AIPAC is keenly aware of the need to pull the American colossus back in line and will do so by playing the evil Iran card over and over again and by demanding obeisance from a long line of politicians and media pundits. The AIPAC lovefest will conclude with an address by Hillary Clinton next Monday.
Gates appeals to Saudis to back sanctions on Iran
With China apparently the strongest holdout to sanctions among the five veto–wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council, the Americans have turned to their Saudi allies to persuade China to reconsider.
Washington hopes the Saudis could guarantee China stable oil supplies in the event of disruption from Iran. And the Saudis in turn probably want progress on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, progress which we cannot obtain because of Israeli intransigence with respect to illegal settlements. This is a supreme irony since it is Israel that is behind this whole Iran-sanctions push.
Taboo Thwarts Candor on Israel/Iran
Israel: Elephant Not Allowed in the Room
Knesset to Biden: For Smooth Relations, Free Pollard
With impeccable timing, a broadly representative group of Israeli Knesset members sent a joint letter to Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday and asked him to work to free confessed spy Jonathan Pollard from federal prison in honor of the Passover holiday and “as an expression of the good relations and friendship between our two peoples.” It was signed by party whips or representatives of eight of the nine Jewish parties in the Knesset
Foxman: Don't blame the Jews
Eytan Gilboa, a political science professor at Bar-Ilan University in Ramat Gan and a specialist on US-Israeli relations, said the government needed to frontally counter this argument because it risked eroding support for Israel among the US public.
Notice the knee-jerk reaction by Foxman to label this as anti-Jewish (read, anti-Semitic).
Israeli FM reportedly boycotts Brazil's President Lula
Mr Lieberman was reportedly upset that Mr Lula refused to visit the grave of the founder of the Zionist movement.
Mr Lula also opposes sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program
Oh dear.
Spy Takes US/Israeli Secrets to Grave
Extensive evidence now exists that Begin’s preference for Reagan led the Israelis to join in a covert operation with Republicans to contact Iranian leaders behind Carter’s back, interfering with the President’s efforts to free the 52 American hostages before the November 1980 elections.
David Kimche could have been a key witness to these events. Ben-Menashe identified the Israeli spymaster as a middleman between Begin and CIA veterans who initially supported former CIA Director George H.W. Bush, who ran against Reagan before ending up as his vice presidential choice.
China envoy urges Iran to compromise, wary on sanctions
China faces mounting demands from Western powers to approve a proposed United Nations resolution imposing new sanctions on Tehran, which they say wants the means to make nuclear weapons and has broken non–proliferation safeguards.
Report: US shipping arms ahead of strike on Iran
Hundreds of powerful US “bunker-buster” bombs are being shipped from California to the British island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean ahead of a possible attack on Iran, The Herald reported Wednesday.
report US Sending Massive Amounts of Weaponry to Diego Garcia
The proximity is not lost on Iran’s state media, which is reporting that the bunker-busters are a clear move to threaten Iran’s nuclear facilities. The US has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran over its civilian nuclear program.
Petraeus says Iran nuke won't happen this year
The top U.S. commander in the Middle East says Iran's efforts to obtain a nuclear weapon have been delayed "a bit" and that Iran won't get a nuclear weapon this year.
Pentagon vs. Israel?
"Not surprisingly, what Biden told Netanyahu reflected the importance the administration attached to Petraeus's Mullen briefing: 'This is starting to get dangerous for us,' Biden reportedly told Netanyahu. 'What you're doing here undermines the security of our troops who are fighting in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. That endangers us and it endangers regional peace.'
“This is Starting to Get Dangerous”
“The vice president told his Israeli hosts that since many people in the Muslim world perceived a connection between Israel’s actions and US policy, any decision about construction that undermines Palestinian rights in East Jerusalem could have an impact on the personal safety of American troops fighting against Islamic terrorism.”
Poodle Biden Gets Kicked by Patrick J. Buchanan
Israeli and U.S. interests often run parallel, but they are not the same. Israel is concerned with a neighborhood. We are concerned with a world of 300 million Arabs and a billion Muslims. Our policies cannot be the same.
If they are, we will end up with all of Israel’s enemies, who are legion, and only Israel’s friends, who are few.
Report: Petraeus Warns Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mullen that Israel Is Jeopardizing US Security Interests
The Petraeus Briefing: Biden’s Embarrassment Is Not The Whole Story
UPDATE: A senior military officer denied Sunday that Petraeus sent a paper to the White House.
Supporting the War Instead of the Troops by Rep. Ron Paul
the vote was significant because it places every member of Congress on the record as supporting or not supporting the unconstitutional, costly, violent occupation of a country that never attacked us.
The Rogue Nation
Pakistani Scientist Khan Describes Iranian Efforts to Buy Nuclear Bombs
Manufacturing Consent For Attack On Iran
Petraeus Cites Progress, But Says Difficult, Uncertain Year Ahead in Afghanistan, Iraq
he called Iran "the major state-level threat to regional stability," accusing its leaders of supporting violent groups in Iraq, Lebanon, Gaza and, to a lesser extent, Afghanistan. The general said he believes Iran is working to develop a nuclear weapon, but he does not expect the process to be completed this year. Come on, really, Gen. Petraeus?
China: Iran Sanctions 'Counterproductive'
China's new Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva says his country does not want Iran to have nuclear weapons. But he says his country is opposed to sanctions against Iran, calling them counterproductive.
US to Turkey: Step up pressure on Iran, support IAEA
or you'll pass another bill iterating that the Armenian Genocide was in fact a genocide?...
Petraeus Confirms Link Between Israel-Palestine and U.S. Security
Petraeus’ willingness to publicly — and in uniform with all those decorations on his chest — make the connection between Israeli treatment of the Palestinians and the spread of “anti-American sentiment” and the deterioration of the U.S. position in the region — a connection which, of course, is completely evident to any casual observer of Middle East — marks what can only be considered a major breakthrough in the debate over the relationship between the United States and Israel.
Knesset to Biden For Smooth Relations, Free Pollard
With impeccable timing, a broadly representative group of Israeli Knesset members sent a joint letter to Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday and asked him to work to free confessed spy Jonathan Pollard from federal prison in honor of the Passover holiday and “as an expression of the good relations and friendship between our two peoples.” It was signed by party whips or representatives of eight of the nine Jewish parties in the Knesset
U.S. TELLS ISRAEL: “YOU ARE UNDERMINING AMERICA, ENDANGERING TROOPS”
the extent of Israeli involvement in areas that had taken the “special relationship” into an area of disaster for the United States. This is what was discovered: Read on.
Jerusalem Pitches Goldstone Report as a Threat to U.S. Military and its Allies
So far, based on the voting on the Feb. 26 U.N. resolution, many of the countries other than America toward whom Israel is aiming this argument seem unpersuaded. I wonder why that is?
Arab world says hopes in Obama are dwindling
the mistrust has already hurt U.S. policy. U.S. allies Saudi Arabia and Gulf nations have rejected U.S. pressure to make diplomatic gestures to Israel to encourage it in the peace process, citing its hard line on settlements.
It could bleed over into other realms, such as U.S. attempt to isolate Iran, which Washington and its allies accuse of seeking to develop nuclear weapons. Tehran denies the claims.
Biden steers past spat over Israel settlement plan
Addressing a key Israeli security concern, Biden also said the U.S. is "determined to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons."
Subservient Superpower by Philip Giraldi
The real indication of whether or not the White House will or can begin to break the chains that bind will come at the end of this week when AIPAC holds its annual conference. AIPAC is keenly aware of the need to pull the American colossus back in line and will do so by playing the evil Iran card over and over again and by demanding obeisance from a long line of politicians and media pundits. The AIPAC lovefest will conclude with an address by Hillary Clinton next Monday.
Gates appeals to Saudis to back sanctions on Iran
With China apparently the strongest holdout to sanctions among the five veto–wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council, the Americans have turned to their Saudi allies to persuade China to reconsider.
Washington hopes the Saudis could guarantee China stable oil supplies in the event of disruption from Iran. And the Saudis in turn probably want progress on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, progress which we cannot obtain because of Israeli intransigence with respect to illegal settlements. This is a supreme irony since it is Israel that is behind this whole Iran-sanctions push.
Taboo Thwarts Candor on Israel/Iran
Israel: Elephant Not Allowed in the Room
Knesset to Biden: For Smooth Relations, Free Pollard
With impeccable timing, a broadly representative group of Israeli Knesset members sent a joint letter to Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday and asked him to work to free confessed spy Jonathan Pollard from federal prison in honor of the Passover holiday and “as an expression of the good relations and friendship between our two peoples.” It was signed by party whips or representatives of eight of the nine Jewish parties in the Knesset
Foxman: Don't blame the Jews
Eytan Gilboa, a political science professor at Bar-Ilan University in Ramat Gan and a specialist on US-Israeli relations, said the government needed to frontally counter this argument because it risked eroding support for Israel among the US public.
Notice the knee-jerk reaction by Foxman to label this as anti-Jewish (read, anti-Semitic).
Israeli FM reportedly boycotts Brazil's President Lula
Mr Lieberman was reportedly upset that Mr Lula refused to visit the grave of the founder of the Zionist movement.
Mr Lula also opposes sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program
Oh dear.
Spy Takes US/Israeli Secrets to Grave
Extensive evidence now exists that Begin’s preference for Reagan led the Israelis to join in a covert operation with Republicans to contact Iranian leaders behind Carter’s back, interfering with the President’s efforts to free the 52 American hostages before the November 1980 elections.
David Kimche could have been a key witness to these events. Ben-Menashe identified the Israeli spymaster as a middleman between Begin and CIA veterans who initially supported former CIA Director George H.W. Bush, who ran against Reagan before ending up as his vice presidential choice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)