Category: News

Some of you may have noticed that we have resumed our relationship with Amazon.com. The reason is simple: it was dumb to boycott just Amazon when practically every banking institution and every hosting service in the country was caving in to pressure to refuse services to WikiLeaks. We thought it was important, however, to speak out against the intimidation tactics of the US government, and that we did: as George W. Bush would say – “Mission accomplished!” Seriously, though, we didn’t really think that one through: and I, for one, never thought that so many would be cowed into bowing to the dictates of the US government. Ever the optimist, I was shocked when so many caved. Live and learn.

And of course another reason for our return to the Amazon fold is financial: we just can’t afford the thousand or so dollars a month we make from the relationship, and several of our donors raised this question with us during the recent fundraising drive. It is a point well taken. We listen to you, our readers and supporters, and not only that, we respond.

…. so that the advocates of imposing a “No Fly” zone over Libya will be the first to perish for their arrogance and folly.

UPDATE: Maybe we should issue a call for volunteers to fold the parachutes of any congressmen willing to fly over Tripoli.

In the wake of announcing 22 additional charges against him, Pfc. Bradley Manning’s clothing was seized by the guards at the US Marine base at Quantico, Virginia, leaving him naked in his cell.

The seizure of Manning’s clothing was revealed by his lawyer, David E. Coombs, who said Manning’s clothing was seized at 5:00 AM and he was ordered to stand naked outside of his cell. Reports indicate his clothes weren’t returned for at least 7 hours.

Coombs’ report was later confirmed by Marines spokesman Lt. Brian Villiard, who insisted that he could not explain publicly why Manning’s clothes were taken because “I can’t explain it to you without violating the detainee’s privacy.”

“It would be inappropriate for me to explain it,” insisted Villiard. Pentagon Spokesman Geoff Morrell later insisted Manning’s treatment was appropriate because of “the seriousness of the charges he’s facing” and was done to protect national security.

Manning faces charges of leaking classified documents to “the enemy,” though the Pentagon never provided any indication of who “the enemy” actually is. He is assumed to be the source of WikiLeaks documents which embarrassed top US officials and revealed broad war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan.

from LobeLog: News and Views Relevant to U.S.-Iran relations for March 2nd, 2011:

The Wall Street Journal: The WSJ’s editorial board catalogs newspaper and blog commentary on “The ‘Israel First’ Myth: Obsessed with the Jewish state, Mideast ‘experts’ got the region all wrong.” The writers lash out at the New York Times’s Thomas Friedman for his history of endorsing “linkage” and for suggesting that, “If Israel could finalize a deal with the Palestinians, it will find that a more democratic Arab world is a more stable partner.” They write: “It was fanciful of Friedman to think that Arab dictators–whom he now acknowledges have depended on scapegoating Israel to maintain their hold on power–would have agreed to such plans,” and “The current regime in Iran is dedicated to Israel’s destruction. It’s hard to see how Israel would be better off today if it had entrusted its security to the Arab dictators whose own people have suddenly made them an endangered species.”

Tablet Magazine: Hudson Institute Visiting Fellow Lee Smith opines that “While protest rage across the Middle East, Israel stands as a regional model of resiliency, relevance and democratic stability.” Smith admits that this is an about-face from the position he took last week, when he claimed that “Israel is finished” and “the fall of Hosni Mubarak is only the latest setback in a decade of extraordinary strategic debacles for Israel.” This week, he argues, “The Arab model for success is not Iran, or Turkey, but Israel,” and, more specifically on Iran: “Iran’s nuclear program and full-throated opposition to the United States and the Zionist entity may make it the envy of some fans of resistance in the region, but the fact is that an Iranian bomb is the Hail Mary pass of a dying society where there’s been no economic development for 30 years.”

The Washington Post: The Post’s “Right Turn” blogger takes issue with the White House’s “tepid language” in denouncing the Iranian government for its detainment of opposition leaders Mehdi Karroubi and Mir-Hossein Mousavi. Jennifer Rubin observes that “[the administration’s statements] highlights perhaps the greatest failing of the Obama administration: its failure to seize the moment and provide support (rhetorical and otherwise) to the Green Movement in 2009.”

Statement from the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund

The charges against Ray McGovern have been dropped and the government has decided not to proceed with its prosecution. Mr. McGovern, age 71, was subjected to an outrageous and abusive arrest, which left him bruised and bleeding. He had been standing silently with his back turned to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton when she delivered her address on Feb. 15 at George Washington University, in which she insisted other governments around the world not stifle free expression.

McGovern was an Army officer and CIA analyst for almost 30 years. He was among the first to expose the corruption of intelligence to “justify” the ongoing wars. He was wearing a Veterans for Peace T-shirt at the time of his arrest.

“The Constitution lives. I am hugely grateful for the widespread condemnation of the brutal treatment I encountered two weeks ago for exercising my First Amendment rights. It strikes me as an empowering example of what we can do together in standing for Justice and against the violence of war. If Defense Secretary Robert Gates is spared arrest when he acknowledges the folly of committing U.S. troops to a land war in Asia, we too should be spared arrest and brutality at the hands of those for whom the Constitution is merely a piece of paper,” stated Mr. McGovern.

“This outrageous arrest laid bare the hypocrisy of Clinton’s presentation about free speech and free expression. While lecturing other governments, she never even paused while Mr. McGovern was brutally hauled out right in front of her and arrested while peacefully and silently expressing dissent,” stated Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, one of Mr. McGovern’s attorneys at the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund, which is representing Mr. McGovern.

Since Ray McGovern’s arrest, there has been a huge outpouring of support from people of conscience all over the country and widespread coverage in the alternative media in defense of free speech rights.

Mr. McGovern and his attorneys at the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund are evaluating his next legal options.

Rep. Ron Paul sparred with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in today’s House Committee on Foreign Affairs meeting.