Still Stealing Fire and handing it to mortals

The animal which is the state of Israel and their cheerleaders here in the u.s ought to be ashamed of the latest massacre committed by the IDF.

Israeli missiles hit several buildings in a southern Lebanon village as people slept Sunday, killing at least 56, most of them children, in the deadliest attack in 19 days of fighting.

Listen to the lies of the Devils:

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed "great sorrow" for the airstrikes but blamed Hezbollah guerrillas for using the area to launch rockets at Israel, and said he would not halt the army's operation.

"We will not stop this battle, despite the difficult incidents this morning," Olmert said said during Israel's weekly Cabinet meeting, according to a participant in the meeting. "We will continue the activity and if necessary it will be broadened without hesitation."

One must understand the Hezbollah is using their own civilian population as human shields," said Israeli Foreign Ministry official Gideon Meir. "The Israeli defense forces dropped leaflets and warned the civilian population to leave the place because the Hezbollah turned it into a war zone."

Rice said she was "deeply saddened by the terrible loss of innocent life" in Israel's attack. But she did not call for an immediate cease-fire in the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah militias.
"We all recognize this kind of warfare is extremely difficult," Rice said, noting it comes in areas where civilians live. "It unfortunately has awful consequences sometimes."
"We want a cease-fire as soon as possible," she added.

This are the lies of the Devil. Notice how they are trying to make the Victims the guilty party, while the ones dropping the bombs are the innocent. Lies, Lies and More lies....that's all we get from the blood-thristy mob that drops the bombs on innocent people and their enables here in America.

Just came accross this article in the NY Times about a Church in Minnessota Pastored by the Rev. Gregory A. Boyd (a fellow PTSonian), and the struggles that come with disowning and criticizing "far-right, politicized christianity (you know, the John Hagees, James Dobsons, and Tony Perkins of this world).

So what was it that got him into trouble?

Before the last presidential election, he preached six sermons called “The Cross and the Sword” in which he said the church should steer clear of politics, give up moralizing on sexual issues, stop claiming the United States as a “Christian nation” and stop glorifying American military campaigns.

Sounds like my kind of preacher!

On a more serious note. A few years back a Pastor friend of mine whispered in my ears how every time we place the Stars and Stripes next to the Cross of Christ we're committing idolitry. Our alligience as Christians, is not to a nation, a system, a political ideology, a President (mr. Bush), our alligience is to a King and His Kingdom.

There is a lot of discontent brewing,” said Brian D. McLaren, the founding pastor at Cedar Ridge Community Church in Gaithersburg, Md., and a leader in the evangelical movement known as the “emerging church,” which is at the forefront of challenging the more politicized evangelical establishment.

More and more people are saying this has gone too far — the dominance of the evangelical identity by the religious right,” Mr. McLaren said. “You cannot say the word ‘Jesus’ in 2006 without having an awful lot of baggage going along with it. You can’t say the word ‘Christian,’ and you certainly can’t say the word ‘evangelical’ without it now raising connotations and a certain cringe factor in people.

I'm glad that more and more people are beginning to realize this. Something's terribly wrong when you got Navy Seals pretty much recruiting at rallys where Jesus is being glorified (as soon as I get the links I'd update).

It's very important that we as Christians do not forget our mission and our roots. Our duty is to love God above all things, and to love our neighbors and enemies as love ourselves.

Nahhh, you mean to tell me that in certain U.S cities I could end up in jail for feeding homeless people? I dont believe you. That's against our "values" and all America stands for. Right? Right? Right?

Look at what the sponsored of the bill says:

The commissioner who pushed for the ordinance, Patty Sheehan, said it was not an "easy day" for her at all. She said the new ordinance against feeding homeless people has been "wrongly cast" as anti-homeless. "I've been an advocate [for the homeless]," she said. "Even though you'll call me an enemy, I'll still be your friend."

That's what I call Spin! Just look how she's able to play with words so to give the perception that she isnt truly against the homeless when she actually is.

A nation that mandates the primacy of one ethnicity or religion over all others will eventually become psychologically dysfunctional. Narcissistically obsessed with its own image, it must strive to maintain its racial superiority at all costs and will inevitably come to view any resistance to this imagined superiority as an existential threat. Indeed, any other people automatically becomes an existential threat simply by virtue of its own existence. As it seeks to protect itself against phantom threats, the racist state becomes increasingly paranoid, its society closed and insular, intellectually limited. Setbacks enrage it; humiliations madden it. The state lashes out in a crazed effort, lacking any sense of proportion, to reassure itself of its strength.


That's Former CIA analyst Kathleen Christison, and I fully recomend that you read the whole thing so that you'd have a better understanding of the current state of Israel and American society.

This is another reason why the Anglican church of the U.S cant be taken serious; for as they continue to crubmle over gay sex, other Christians are looking at the evil one in his face.


Dear Friends, For the past forty years we have been largely alone on this desert fighting a predator that not only has robbed us of all but a small piece of our historic homeland, but threatens the traditions and holy sites of Christianity. We are tired, weary, sick, and wounded. We need your help.

We have seen and we have been the recipients of the generosity of our American and British friends. We cherish the support of everyone throughout the world who stands with us in solidarity. Daily, I hear from many of them who express outrage at the arrogant and aggressive positions of President Bush, Secretary Rice, Senator Clinton, and Prime Minister Blair. I am saddened to realize just how much the deserved prestige of the United States and Britain has declined as a result of politicians who seem to devalue human life and suffering. And, I am disturbed that the Zionist Christian community is damaging America’s image as never before.

Little more than a week ago, we were focused on the plight of the Palestinian people. In Gaza, four and five generations have been victims of Israeli racism, hate crimes, terror, violence, and murder. Garbage and sewage have created a likely outbreak of cholera as Israeli strategies create the collapse of infrastructures. There is no milk. Drinking water, food, and medicine are in serious short supply. Innocents are being killed and dying from lack of available emergency care. Children are paying the ultimate price. Even for those whose lives are spared, many of them are traumatized and will not grow to live useful lives. Commerce between the West Bank and Gaza has been halted and humanitarian aid barely trickles into some of the neediest in the world.

Movement of residents of the West Bank is difficult or impossible as “security measures” are heightened to break the backs of the Palestinian people and cut them off from their place of work, schools, hospitals, and families. It is family and community that has sustained these people during these hopeless times. For some, it is all that they had, but that too has been taken away with the continued building of the wall and check points. The strategy of ethnic cleansing on the part of the State of Israel continues.

This week, war broke out on the Lebanon-Israeli border (near Banyas where Jesus gave St. Peter the keys to heaven and earth). The Israeli government’s disproportionate reaction to provocation was consistent with their opportunistic responses in which they destroy their perceived enemy.

In her recent article, “The Insane Brutality of the State of Israel,” American, Kathleen Christison, a former CIA analyst says, “The state lashes out in a crazed effort, lacking any sense of proportion, to reassure itself of its strength.” She continues, “A society that can brush off as unimportant an army officer’s brutal murder of a thirteen year old girl on the claim that she threatened soldiers at a military post (one of nearly seven hundred Palestinian children murdered by Israelis since the Intifada began) is not a society with a conscience.” The “situation” as it has come to be called, has deteriorated into a war without boundaries or limitations. It is a war with deadly potential beyond the imaginations of most civilized people.

As I write to you, I am preparing to leave with other bishops for Nablus with medical and other emergency supplies for five hundred families, and a pledge for one thousand families more. On Saturday we will attempt to enter Gaza with medical aid for doctors and nurses in our hospital there who struggle to serve the injured, the sick, and the dying.

My plan is that I will be able to go to Lebanon next week - where we are presently without a resident priest - to bury the dead, and comfort the victims of war. Perhaps as others have you will ask, “What can I do?” Certainly we encourage and appreciate your prayers. That is important, but it is not enough. If you find that you can no longer look away, take up your cross. It takes courage as we were promised. Write every elected official you know. Write to your news media. Speak to your congregation, friends, and colleagues about injustice and the threat of global war. If Syria, Iran, the United States, Great Britain, China and others enter into this war - the consequence is incalculable. Participate in rallies and forums. Find ways that you and your churches can participate in humanitarian relief efforts for the region. Contact us and let us know if you stand with us. I urge you not to be like a disciple watching from afar.

2 Corinthians 6.11: “We have spoken frankly to you Corinthians, our heart is wide open to you. There is no restriction in our affections, but only in yours. In return - I speak as to children - open wide your hearts also.”

In, with, and through Christ, The Rt. Rev. Riah H. Abu El-Assal Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem

http://www.j-diocese.com/DiocesanNews/view.asp?selected=234#slbl234

From the Church of England's Newspaper:

"The Episcopal Church retreated further into ecclesiastical anarchy this week with fears mounting that the institution as it now stands will not survive the year. The latest development concerns four California bishops who have filed legal charges against a fifth — the Bishop of San Joaquin — seeking to depose him out of fear he may lead his diocese out of the Episcopal Church.

All of this due to gay sex. It is that simple. The church will eventually crumble because of a small group's fascination with gay sex. Pitiful!

"The Rev. Talmadge Holloway had just opened his Bible and was warming up with the tale of Jesus' calming a storm when his own tempest erupted on a Snellville sidewalk. A Snellville police car approached the Canton resident, then a second cruiser, said Holloway, who was standing at Wisteria Drive and U.S. 78 early Saturday afternoon. An officer asked to see his permit to preach on the sidewalk; Talmadge said he had none."

If you dont think that one day, in the near-distant future, they'll try to gut out your right to free spech and worship, you're very mistaken.

that's what some U.S Soldiers are saying about their Iraq-war experience.

how about this for troop morale:

"Think of what you hate most about your job. Then think of doing what you hate most for five straight hours, every single day, sometimes twice a day, in 120-degree heat," he said. "Then ask how morale is."

Frustrated? "You have no idea," he said.

containing depleted-uranium warheads.

What's worse is the fact that our u.s politicians support such a thing. In the meantime, go and read Five Myths that Sanctions Israel's war crimes.

Here's myth:


The first myth is that Israel was forced to pound Lebanon with its military hardware because Hezbollah began “raining down” rockets on the Galilee. Anyone with a short memory can probably recall that was not the first justification we were offered: that had to do with the two soldiers captured by Hezbollah on a border post on July 12.


Go and read the whole thing

U.S. forces killed two suspected militants as well as two women and a child in a raid in the Iraqi city of Baquba on Friday, the military said.


For some reason these type of stories no longer surprise me. This is bound to happen when you have a rogue military corps with the freedom to do whatever the heck they want to the population of Iraq. Here's the question: Did that woman and child ask to be liberated by georgie bush's grandious idea of a u.s controlled iraq?

or so says this article from the SF chronicle.

Both the U.N's chief humanitarian officer, and Britain's Foreign officer came out speaking against the disproportionate attacks that israel's inflicting on the Lebanese population. Both of them are on the ground, so they know first hands what those israelis Missiles (purchased with U.S tax money) are doing to women, children and the innocent that never attacked israel.

Speaking in Beirut, Mr Howells said: "I very much hope that the Americans understand what's happening to Lebanon. The destruction of the infrastructure, the death of so many children and so many people. These have not been surgical strikes. And it's very difficult, I think, to understand the kind of military tactics that have been used. You know, if they're chasing Hezbollah, then go for Hezbollah. You don't go for the entire Lebanese nation."

Go attack Hezbollah, but dont attack the innocent

It's terrible. I see a lot of children wounded, homeless, suffering. This is a war where civilians pay a disproportionate price in Lebanon and northern israel. I hadn't believed it would be block by block leveled to the ground," he said. "A disproportionate response by Israel is a violation of international humanitarian law."



These people are barbarians, and what's really irking me is the fact that this is done with the full support of the United States.

I stumbled upon this website with pictures taken from the war-torn Lebanon. Some of these pictures are very graphic and disturbing, but the truth of what Israel is doing must be shown. The girls writing on the missiles arent lebanesses or from Hizbollah; they are israeli children writing on missiles (purchased with American tax-payers money) which will later be used on destroying innocent Lebanesse children.


Have at it!

or so says this article.

but it is another to remain silent when Israel commits crimes against humanity.

This is taken from the "Daily Progressive" (if you havent signed up for their daily newsletter, then you should do so). I felt the need to copy the entire thing, because it pretty much reflects how I feel about this whole "middle-east" thing. In other words, I could've written the dang thing. It is worth reading, and again, visit the "Daily Progressive.


Have at it!



Israel Not the Only ''Victim''

A. Alexander, July 19th, 2006


Sorry, but what Israel is doing isn't right and I think the American people know that. Israel as the "lone victim" is getting pretty old too. Israel has the finest military American taxpayer money can buy, and they wield that power with impunity. How is it possible that a country with the world's sixteenth largest, and probably the most technologically advanced military can be considered the only victim in the violence they help perpetuate?We in America, and I'm guilty of it too, have been programmed to view Palestinians specifically and Arabs in general, as something akin to subhuman. We've been programmed via biased television reporting and an ongoing government policy that has been anything but objective.

It might be hard for many Americans to believe, but we view Palestinians in the same light Nazi Germans viewed the Jews - as creatures something less than human beings.And before anyone even tries to label me "anti-Semitic", don't even start because you haven't a historical clue as to what you think or say. Israel was settled by Jews, but they weren't, for the most part, people that spent much time engaging their faith. The State of Israel came into being through the work of a group known as Zionists. No, they weren't evil creatures with some stygian goal. They simply grew tired of Jews being persecuted in Europe and began campaigning for a return to Jerusalem. What the original Zionists were, however, are mostly secularist and Marxist social thinkers. Many, if not most, despised fellow Jews who clung strictly to their faith and traditions.Jewish tradition, for those not aware, accepted that they had been pitched from their land by God and meant only to return around the coming of the Messiah. Zionists didn't have the patience or willingness to sit idly around awaiting the Messiah, while being made to suffer in Europe's ghettos so they pushed for an Israeli State.

Following World War II and Hitler's cruel and evil attempt at exterminating the Jews, many nations thought it time to return the Jewish people to the Middle East.The problem was, however, that the land meant to be Israel was all ready occupied by the Palestinians. As some of the cities held vital religious importance to all three major faiths, Israel didn't get everything they had wanted and hoped. Over time, however, not satisfied with forcing millions of Palestinians to live in perpetual refugee camps, Israel has slowly but certainly been taking the land and cities they have long coveted. With each grab of land more Palestinians have become squeezed out of their homes and left to rot in isolated camps or impoverished cities.Israel's military success has been bought and paid for by the U.S. taxpayer. They have the finest tanks, attack helicopters, nuclear weapons, fighter jets, communications, and precision guided bombs. It is through these weapons and nothing short of brute force, as is being witnessed today, that Israel has subjugated and defeated any and all who dare question their means or methods. No people, however, have been more abused by Israel than have the Palestinians.Nobody condones acts of terrorism, but if it were you and your family being forced from your land and sent off to refugee camps to live an impoverished life - honestly, how would you respond? Would you too, not eventually become desperate enough to strap a bomb around your stomach and attack those you see as being responsible for your families suffering? Perhaps, if the Palestinians had a military capable of rivaling Israel's they too, might consider dropping more precise bombs that, when they kill innocent women and children, aren't called acts of terror but rather, "collateral damage". Regarding the Palestinian and Israeli conflict, a war that has been raging 50 years, there are no innocent parties. And certainly, the Israelis are not the only "victims". Surely, the average Palestinian, like most Israelis, wishes the violence and death would end. The Palestinian people, just as much as the people of Israel, are victims of entities like the Israeli government that believe the hammer is the only tool in the box and the extremist groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas that see no problem killing for the sake of killing. Someone had said "Israel didn't start this one."

Right! They had a single soldier kidnapped and for that they went on a rampage knocking out the only station providing electricity to millions of people. For that single soldier, Israel killed scores of innocent Palestinian civilians. Day after day bombs dropped and innocent people died. An invitation for non-terrorists to become terrorists. Hezbollah then responded by kidnapping two more Israeli soldiers, so Israel began bombing Lebanon. Now there are bombs flying across Israel's borders and dropping on Beirut and Lebanon's airports and roads - not to mention killing hundreds of innocent Lebanese civilians.


Maybe Israel "didn't start this one", but through their outrageously grotesque response they've proven themselves equal partners in the madness.

It is time for the American people to realize Israel is not the only "victim" in the Middle East madness. There are millions of innocent Palestinians and now, too, Lebanese that have equal claim to the sad title of "victim".

Writing in Today's Washington Post, George Will, writer par excelence, drops the ether on the "evil" neo-conservative movement and their misguided (and racists perhaps--this is me talking) vision for the middle east.


This is the money quote:

"Neoconservatives have much to learn, even from Buddy Bell, manager of the Kansas City Royals. After his team lost its 10th consecutive game in April, Bell said, "I never say it can't get worse." In their next game, the Royals extended their losing streak to 11 and in May lost 13 in a row."


Go and read the whole thing.

Or so says Colin Powell's former Chief of Staff here.

From the Article:

Documents and memos that have already made their way into the public domain make it clear that the Office of the Vice President bears responsibility for creating an environment conducive to the acts of torture and murder committed by U.S. forces in the war on terror.



This, from the people that love to talk about American 'values'! Ha ha ha,. Values my @%%!

you can listen to it here.

Before Bush knows it, the United States would be embroiled in conflicts that stretch from the Mediterranean to the western edge of China.

Also, from the Nation:

With the spreading violence in Lebanon and Gaza, the Israeli doctrine of absolute security and massive retaliation--the notion that any attack or threat of attack on Israel will be met with a disproportionate response--is again proving counterproductive to Israel's own security as well as to the larger stability of the region.

This is the money quote from that Nation's article.

The events of the past two weeks should remind us that the peace and stability of the region is too important to be left to Israel and to Washington.

Go and read both articles.

leadership is responsible for the current standoff in the land of Palestine. Where's Christian (or just plain) Justice in this whole mess? And why are my tax$$ being spent on Israelis rockets, while schools in the Bronx are underfunded? How is it possible that america's political class can have it so backwards without any repercusion? Is the Lobby that strong?

can make more and more money is that we went to Invaded Iraq. If oyu dont know who David H. Brooks is, then go and read this article from Alternet so that you can see who is truly benefiting from the illegal invasion of Iraq.

Read this about tv evangelist john hagee and his new pro-zionist christian group. Then, so you can understand them, read this essay by former CU professor Edward Said in order to have a clear perspective about the disease which is far-right christian Zionism. here's my question to my fellow Christians: To whom would you rather extend your hand, a fellow palestinian Christian or a Zionist (probably godless with pagan inclinations) Jew?

for the most part mouthpieces of propaganda. Why am I not surprised by this story? after all, it is out there for the world to see how the white-collar axis of evil that run the U.S goverment control the news that make it to the masses.

From the article:

When it came to other stories that were clearly sympathetic to the U.S. side, such as funerals for American soldiers killed in combat, the U.S. military was extremely helpful—indeed, encouraging. In such cases, she was granted full access and allowed to film speeches by officials honoring the dead, the posthumous awarding of medals, and other aspects of the ceremony.

But when this producer wanted to pursue a story that might have cast the war effort in an unfavorable light, the situation was entirely different. Every few days, she said, she would receive a call from the Reuters bureau in Baghdad and discover that reporters there had heard, via local news reports or from the bureau's network of Iraqi sources, about civilians being killed or injured by American troops. But when she asked to leave the compound to independently confirm such incidents, her requests were invariably turned down.

Another paragraph from the article:

"The producer said that it was impossible to pursue stories frowned upon by the military—for example, on how the local population viewed the occupation and American troops—because she was not permitted to leave the base on her own. The height of absurdity came when the Tikrit compound came under serious attack one evening and the producer was asked by the Reuters bureau in Baghdad to phone in a report on the situation. “We couldn't find out anything [from the U.S. military],” she said, so Reuters had to cover the fighting from Baghdad, despite having a TV producer and reporter on the ground at the compound in Tikrit. "


And what exactly are we doing in Iraq?

"The producer frequently filmed foot patrols and nighttime raids. She said that for the latter, the military and the embedded journalists would drive for long stretches in pitch darkness. The raids themselves, she said, were blurry and confusing, and afterwards soldiers would round up suspected insurgents and sympathizers for interrogation. It was routine for the producer to wait in one room of a house while detainees were questioned in another. “Not always, but there were times when I would hear detainees screaming during the questioning,” she said. “I'm not sure what was happening but they were screaming loudly—they weren't just being slapped around.” Because she obviously was not permitted to film the interrogations, none of that material could be included in her pool feeds."


I'm very glad this person is finally speaking about the way things are in Iraq. More independent voices need to be heard.

because we're moving to Princeton, NJ to begin graduate school. Two stories that caught my attention today are: 1-) The Mexican Elections, where the turmoil is getting steam. This elections have all the makings of a massive fraud. In fact, Lopez Lobrador is saying he's going to challenge the results. At this point, whoever candidate is declared the winner will be seem as illegitimate by at least 50% of the electorate ala George W. Bush in 2000. This is not what Mexico needed. If Calderon, who has been celebrating since Sunday, is declared the winner, his election wont be legitimate. Neither will be Lopez Lobrador's; however, of the two, Lobrador is the one that's getting the short end of the stick.

The second story, one that I'm very much welcoming, is that the NY State Supreme Court ruled against homosexual marriage. Here's the money excerpt from the majority's opinion:

"We hold that the New York Constitution does not compel recognition of marriages between members of the same sex," the appeals court said in its 70-page ruling. "Whether such marriages should be recognized is a question to be addressed by the Legislature."

That's how it should be. In contrast, check what the minority opinion says:

"It is uniquely the function of the Judicial Branch to safeguard individual liberties guaranteed by the New York State Constitution, and to order redress for their violation," she wrote. "The court's duty to protect constitutional rights is an imperative of the separation of powers, not its enemy. I am confident that future generations will look back on today's decision as an unfortunate misstep."

Ehrrrr, nope. It is the role of the Legislature, as the direct representative of the PEOPLE of the STATE OF NY to address such matters. We do not need All-Wise-Philosopher-King Judges addressing such issues for us. I am very happy with this decision, and to be honest, I wasnt expecting the case to turn out this way.

A partial victory for democracy and for majority rule; Now let's get back to the issues that truly matter, such as North Korea's Missiles, more Israeli killings and barbaric attacks against the palestinians and Iraq.

Be good and stay strong, always remembering that God isnt asleep.

Hat tip to the guys at Powerline for directing us to this fascinating website with Pictures from North Korea. I must confess: I've always been fascinated by that country. One day I'd love to go there.

Isaiah Poole at Tom Payne thinks so. He makes a compeling case, though I think it'd have been helpful had he thrown in some Biblical quotations in there.

Some excerpts from the article:

"Back in Sunday school, we were regaled with Bible stories about idol worship. You see, one sure way to make the Creator of the Universe mad was to imbue something with powers that actually resided in the Creator alone. The Old Testament is filled with stories of wrath directed at people who substituted fealty to a transcendent God with worship of their own creations."

"The Fourth of July is an excellent day to ponder the distinction between symbols and idols. Many residents will hang an American flag outside their home on this day to show their love and respect for America. But many of us who revere the symbol will recall our disgust that what the symbol represents is being debased at an accelerated pace. Meanwhile, many conservative lawmakers this summer and fall would have us idolizing what is, once the reality behind the symbol is lost, just a piece of fabric."


And the closing paragraph:


"The idols in the Bible were presented as objects of scorn because they were often used by immoral leaders to magnify their power at the expense of the people. I will honor the flag this week, but only because I honor this nation’s core principles of liberty and justice even more. Idols, on the other hand, are to be tossed in the fire."

Me: I remember a professor friend of mine pointing out to me that when the symbol that is the Starts and Stripes is put next to the Cross of Christ that, in itself, is an act of Idolatry. And you know what? it's tough to argue against that. As Christians, we're citizens of a Higher Kingdom; our alliagence is not to a system (American style of democracy), but to a King, His Kingdom and His Church. That's another reason why I dont understand how is it that American Christians seem to care so little over the plight of Palestinians Christians, to the point where they are willing to support a group of people/nation over their own bethren in Christ.

As Bush's continues parroding his lies to the American people about Iraq, the minister of Electricity was kidnapped along with 19 of his bodieguards. Also, in an interview with the BBC, the US Ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, said that Zarqawi's death has had 'little impact' on the violence affecting that country. Of course, you'll never hear that by listening to the war groupies of talk radio, or the MSM (Most Sucker Media).

Worthless. I'm stunned that number isnt even higher.

From the Angus Reid's article:

"The coalition effort against Saddam Hussein’s regime was launched in March 2003. At least 2,539 American soldiers have died during the military operation, and more than 18,600 troops have been wounded in action."

This is how you should read this paragraph: The illegal war of agression against Saddam Husseim and the Iraqi people (launched under false premises, mind you), has left more than 2539 American soldiers dead, and more than 18,600 maimed for life.

One thing that this article doesnt mentioned at all is the fact that at least 43, 251 iraqis are dead as a result (directly or indirectly) of Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld-Rice-Blair-the corporate profiteers behind them' War. To me, it is as if the Iraqi people DO NOT COUNT in the eyes of the American media.

So that Bush's war agitator they call Joe Lieberman is going to run as an independant when he loses the primary to Ned Lamont. I guess Lieberman is showing his true colors: A shrewd snake who wants to have have his cake and eat it too. What a hypocrite! I guess that's part of the Democratic mantra, after all, both Senators from NY, Schumer and Clinton support the [illegal] war of aggression against the Iraqi people started by Cheney-Bush-Rumsfeld-Rice-Blair and the corporate profiteers (is that even a word?) behind them. I am not surprised about the way the Democrats do their politics. In case you forgot, the Senate was evenly split when Bush decided he wanted to invade Iraq. If the democrats had any guts they'd had opposed this horrendous war that has cost the lives of 43K Iraqis, 2500 American Soldiers and has put a financial dent of more than $$ 293 Billions on our economy. But that's american politics for you. These are the politicians we have...It's up to us to boot them in, and kick them out; Lieberman will be a good place to start.

Update: Christi Hasti Smith at Firedoglake is calling Lieberman by what truly ought to be his name: LOSERMAN!

An Independent Republic Still?

From the Associated Press:

"The Supreme Court intervened Monday to save a large cross on city property in southern California."

Raping and killing Iraqis? From the BBC:

"The probe "will encompass everything that could have happened that evening," said a US military spokesman. The news follows a series of investigations into alleged abuses of Iraqis by coalition forces. "

The abuse and killing of Iraqi civilians by the US-led 'coalition' forces in Iraq has become the norm rather than the exception. Events such as this one no longer surprise me. Of course, you wouldnt know any of this by listening to war groupies such as this one; Please scroll down this link so you can see the face of Evil.

Remind me why we're in Iraq again; I forgot.

To Kill Shiites. I wonder what on earth he's been smoking in those caves he's at? On a more serious note though: I think that telling muslims to kill muslims is just plain wrong. And not only that, it shows bin ladens as an egotistical maniac who doesnt care about muslims at all, so long as they do as he (OBL) pleases. I'm starting to have a gut feeling that Bin Laden is some sort of a puppet for the powers that be. I mean, everytime Bush and company are trying to scare the American people, a tape or video from OBL shows up to "remind" the American people of the "dangers" that "islamofascists" trying to blow up Springfield, MO represent.

Update: I just stumbled upon this Kevin Drum's WashingtonMonthly blog post, in which he quotes from Ron Suskind's book: The One Percent Doctrine, as some CIA analysts discussed OBL's tape that came out before the 04 election; Their conclusion? Bin Laden wanted Bush to win! Go figure.

Here's the excerpt quoted from the book quoted in the post.

What they'd learned over nearly a decade is that bin Laden speaks only for strategic reasons — and those reasons are debated with often startling depth inside the organization's leadership. Their assessments, at day's end, are a distillate of the kind of secret, internal conversations that the American public, and by association the wider world community, were not sanctioned to hear: strategic analysis. Today's conclusion: bin Laden's message was clearly designed to assist the President's reelection.

At the five o'clock meeting, once various reports on latest threats were delivered, John McLaughlin opened the issue with the consensus view: "Bin Laden certainly did a nice favor today for the President."

Around the table, there were nods....Jami Miscik talked about how bin Laden — being challenged by Zarqawi's rise — clearly understood how his primacy as al Qaeda's leader was supported by the continuation of his eye-to-eye struggle with Bush. "Certainly," she offered, "he would want Bush to keep doing what he's doing for a few more years."
But an ocean of hard truths before them — such as what did it say about U.S. policies that bin Laden would want Bush reelected — remained untouched....On that score, any number of NSC principals could tell you something so dizzying that not even they will touch it: that Bush's ratings [in the U.S.] track with bin Laden's rating in the Arab world.

From this week's New Yorker magazine:

"A senior military official told me, “Even if we knew where the Iranian enriched uranium was—and we don’t—we don’t know where world opinion would stand. The issue is whether it’s a clear and present danger. If you’re a military planner, you try to weigh options. What is the capability of the Iranian response, and the likelihood of a punitive response—like cutting off oil shipments? What would that cost us?” Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and his senior aides “really think they can do this on the cheap, and they underestimate the capability of the adversary,” he said. "

With this people in the White House, Iran may be Iraq all over again. They (Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld-Rice) are the ones creating the crisis. Im starting to believe that the current administration truly represents a danger to world peace and civilization.

Here come the Neo-cons (may sure you pay attention to the last names of the two men mentioned in this paragraph).

"In contrast, some conservatives are arguing that America’s position in Iraq would improve if Iran chose to retaliate there, according to a government consultant with close ties to the Pentagon’s civilian leaders, because Iranian interference would divide the Shiites into pro- and anti-Iranian camps, and unify the Kurds and the Sunnis. The Iran hawks in the White House and the State Department, including Elliott Abrams and Michael Doran, both of whom are National Security Council advisers on the Middle East, also have an answer for those who believe that the bombing of Iran would put American soldiers in Iraq at risk, the consultant said. He described the counterargument this way: “Yes, there will be Americans under attack, but they are under attack now.”

Another interesting paragraph:

"But Rumsfeld is not alone in the Administration where Iran is concerned; he is closely allied with Dick Cheney, and, the Pentagon consultant said, “the President generally defers to the Vice-President on all these issues,” such as dealing with the specifics of a bombing campaign if diplomacy fails. “He feels that Cheney has an informational advantage. Cheney is not a renegade. He represents the conventional wisdom in all of this. He appeals to the strategic-bombing lobby in the Air Force—who think that carpet bombing is the solution to all problems."


Tell me again, who runs the country? Go and read the whole thing.

And people are mad about it.