Updated twice.
Here is Antiwar.com‘s archive of the newly released Abu Ghraib photos, and this is the complete version of the video Australian SBS TV news program. The one BradBlog has cuts right to the chase. Salon.com has even more.
Shame on you fools who think you can have an empire without torture and murder. This is your fault.
Hooray! An American newspaper has finally decided to cover the plan that Bush and friends had cooked up in early 2003 to make it look like Iraq had started the war by deliberately getting a U-2 spy-plane painted in UN colors shot down, as revealed in the book “Lawless World,” by British author Philippe Sands, UK Channel 4, the BBC, the London Times and, of course, Antiwar.com (9 days ago).
Says the LA Times,
“Bush told Blair that ‘the U.S. was thinking of flying U2 reconnaissance aircraft with fighter cover over Iraq, painted in U.N. colors. If Saddam fires on them, he would be in breach’ of U.N. resolutions.
Bush also was quoted as saying an Iraqi defector might make a public presentation about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and that there was a small possibility the Iraqi leader would be assassinated.”
I wonder if this is a reference to Douglas Feith’s hit teams that Larisa Alexandranova wrote about for Rawstory.
Blair replied that he was ‘solidly with’ the president.”
Wow, the shame that supporters of this stupid war feel must be soul-crushingly horrible.
Good luck with that.
Thursday night I met a guy who, it turns out, was a soldier in town (Austin) from Ft. Hood. He was a nice chap. We chatted for a while, then when he complained about the overwhelming show of force by the local cops on their taxpayer horses, I took the opportunity – of course – to say something to the effect of, “All government does is tax, torture and murder people.”
Then he asked me, “See this haircut?”
I nodded.
He said, “That means I’m a murderer.”
To which I responded, not sarcastically, just surprised, “Oh. … Really?”
“Yup.”
I asked, “Who do you murder?”
He answered in one word: “Hajis.”
I wondered aloud if that meant everybody east of Jerusalem or what?
He said “Iraqis. Hajis.” His girl grabbed his arm and off they went.
Via Sibel Edmonds:
February 9, 2006
Greetings,
The hearing on National Security Whistleblowers by the House Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats & International Relations (Chairman: Christopher Shays) is set to go. The list of witnesses on three panels includes: Professor William Weaver (NSWBC), POGO, GAP, Mark Zaid (WB Attorney); DOJ-IG, DOD-IG, DOE-IG; Russ Tice (NSWBC member, NSA), Tony Shaffer (DIA), Mike German (FBI), and Major Provance (Army).
We are working on getting coverage by C-SPAN; we’ll keep you posted on that.
You are strongly encouraged to attend; this is the first hearing dealing exclusively with National Security whistleblowers. Here is the information:
Hearing Date: Tuesday, February 14
Hearing Time: 1:00 pm
Hearing Location: Rayburn House Office Building, Room #2154
For those of you who are planning to attend, we will gather in front of the Rayburn House Building Cafeteria (First Floor) at 12:00 p.m.
We will issue our press advisory on Monday, February 13; and will be available to answer questions by the press after the hearing.
Best,
Sibel Edmonds
www.nswbc.org
From Feingold’s speech to the US Senate:
“The President’s claims of inherent executive authority, and his assertions that the courts have approved this type of activity, are baseless. …
None of the President’s arguments explains or excuses his conduct, or the NSA’s domestic spying program. Not one. It is hard to believe that the President has the audacity to claim that they do. It is a strategy that really hinges on the credibility of the office of the Presidency itself. If you just insist that you didn’t break the law, you haven’t broken the law. It reminds me of what Richard Nixon said after he had left office: “Well, when the president does it that means that it is not illegal.” But that is not how our constitutional democracy works. Making those kinds of arguments is damaging the credibility of the Presidency.”
So there just might be a silver lining after all.
