Global
George W. Bush has his back to the wall. He just cancelled a speech in Switzerland due to fear of mass protests and his arrest for authorizing the torture of detainees at Guantánamo Bay.
Bush is afraid of another Pinochet incident. In 1998, late Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet was arrested in London on a warrant from Spain for multiple crimes committed during his brutal, bloody reign.
Human rights activists all over the world have pledged to seek arrest warrants wherever Bush travels outside the United States. Already, legal proceedings in Spain and Germany target Bush and his henchmen for their crimes. Bush cannot hide, just like Pinochet couldn’t.
We owe the people of Switzerland, Spain and Germany a debt of gratitude for their steadfastness and continued activity to bring Bush to justice. We can do no less.
This is truly a global movement for accountability and justice. The American people have a special responsibility to continue to expose Bush and keep the pressure on.
Bush and Cheney were hoping that the outrage against them would die, but it never will.
Bush is afraid of another Pinochet incident. In 1998, late Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet was arrested in London on a warrant from Spain for multiple crimes committed during his brutal, bloody reign.
Human rights activists all over the world have pledged to seek arrest warrants wherever Bush travels outside the United States. Already, legal proceedings in Spain and Germany target Bush and his henchmen for their crimes. Bush cannot hide, just like Pinochet couldn’t.
We owe the people of Switzerland, Spain and Germany a debt of gratitude for their steadfastness and continued activity to bring Bush to justice. We can do no less.
This is truly a global movement for accountability and justice. The American people have a special responsibility to continue to expose Bush and keep the pressure on.
Bush and Cheney were hoping that the outrage against them would die, but it never will.
The final gun sounded on last week’s Super Bowl and Green Bay had won it’s 14th National Football League Championship, the most of any NFL franchise. The city of Chicago is second, with 11, when you include the Bears, Staleys & Cardinals. I’m sure that there were few folks sitting in front of their TVs thinking; “I wonder why the tiny little working class town of Green Bay, Wisconsin has an NFL franchise?” However, to those interested in the history of our nation’s working class, there is an interesting story behind that question.
A TOUGH GAME PLAYED BY TOUGH GUYS!
A TOUGH GAME PLAYED BY TOUGH GUYS!
In the United States, a country with the greatest spying apparatus in world history, 80% of it used against its own people without "probable cause," Reagan's legacy as a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) snitch known as "T-10" must be honored. Having our very own "first snitch" is something to be proud of in a nation dedicated to surveillance and a security-industrial complex unmatched by any Constitutional government.
We should also pay homage to Reagan for all he did to advance the rights of unnatural corporate persons. His days as a corporate shill for General Electric when the company was engaged in massive price-fixing in violation of the free market and fundamental principles of capitalism have to be acknowledged.
Reagan and his former CIA director George Herbert Walker Bush both were elected in 1966 for the first time. They both sided against natural born black citizens by adopting the racist rhetoric of "state's rights." So while the Kennedys and King fought for natural people, Reagan's record demonstrates a shining commitment to Jim Crow in the U.S. and in support of the racist apartheid regime in South Africa.
We should also pay homage to Reagan for all he did to advance the rights of unnatural corporate persons. His days as a corporate shill for General Electric when the company was engaged in massive price-fixing in violation of the free market and fundamental principles of capitalism have to be acknowledged.
Reagan and his former CIA director George Herbert Walker Bush both were elected in 1966 for the first time. They both sided against natural born black citizens by adopting the racist rhetoric of "state's rights." So while the Kennedys and King fought for natural people, Reagan's record demonstrates a shining commitment to Jim Crow in the U.S. and in support of the racist apartheid regime in South Africa.
Socialism has again triumphed at the Super Bowl.
The only major sports team owned by the community in which it lives has toughed out its fourth modern-era National Football League championship.
But the billionaire bosses of the rest of the league may be about to again assault the players---and the rest of us---who make it all possible.
Predictably, though FOX broadcast the Super Bowl, CBS refused to air a player's union ad that was to air during another game on February 5.
The Packers' gritty win underscores the kind of ownership that should be in place for all major sports teams. As a part owner (3 shares) of the Packers, I hate watching greedy union-busting bosses blackmail whole cities for tax breaks and new stadiums. They whine about "losses" but won't open their books to the public or players.
The only major sports team owned by the community in which it lives has toughed out its fourth modern-era National Football League championship.
But the billionaire bosses of the rest of the league may be about to again assault the players---and the rest of us---who make it all possible.
Predictably, though FOX broadcast the Super Bowl, CBS refused to air a player's union ad that was to air during another game on February 5.
The Packers' gritty win underscores the kind of ownership that should be in place for all major sports teams. As a part owner (3 shares) of the Packers, I hate watching greedy union-busting bosses blackmail whole cities for tax breaks and new stadiums. They whine about "losses" but won't open their books to the public or players.
In his nationally syndicated column in December 2010, George Will defended the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Bush v. Gore. The infamous case halted the counting of votes in Florida 10 years earlier and handed George W. Bush the presidency.
In claiming that the Supreme Court got the decision right, the nonattorney Will made several incorrect statements. That’s probably the only way to defend what dissenting Justice Stephen Breyer has called “the most outrageous, indefensible thing” the court has ever done.
Will said problems with the vote count in Florida could have been mitigated “by adhering to a principle of personal responsibility: Voters who cast ballots incompetently are not entitled to have election officials toil to divine their intentions.” Will ignored the fact that tens of thousands of perfectly valid votes weren’t counted in Florida because of problems with voting machines, not voters.
In claiming that the Supreme Court got the decision right, the nonattorney Will made several incorrect statements. That’s probably the only way to defend what dissenting Justice Stephen Breyer has called “the most outrageous, indefensible thing” the court has ever done.
Will said problems with the vote count in Florida could have been mitigated “by adhering to a principle of personal responsibility: Voters who cast ballots incompetently are not entitled to have election officials toil to divine their intentions.” Will ignored the fact that tens of thousands of perfectly valid votes weren’t counted in Florida because of problems with voting machines, not voters.
Donald Rumsfeld began his new book tour with some frank comments, including these:
"War lies? Does anybody really give a rat's ass now? You know what? You know what? They do. They do because war lies are actually cool now. We began the invasion of Iraq in October 2001, but the invasion of Iraq paid off."
Rumsfeld revealed the strategy behind the revelations made in his book about the illegal secret operations he helped set in motion shortly after the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001:
"Former President Bush has not admitted to torture or fraud or aggression or the rest of it, and do you know why? You do know why, but it is an unknown known, if you know what I mean. Yes, it is funny. He hasn't admitted to any such things because he has chosen to claim them proudly instead.
"War lies? Does anybody really give a rat's ass now? You know what? You know what? They do. They do because war lies are actually cool now. We began the invasion of Iraq in October 2001, but the invasion of Iraq paid off."
Rumsfeld revealed the strategy behind the revelations made in his book about the illegal secret operations he helped set in motion shortly after the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001:
"Former President Bush has not admitted to torture or fraud or aggression or the rest of it, and do you know why? You do know why, but it is an unknown known, if you know what I mean. Yes, it is funny. He hasn't admitted to any such things because he has chosen to claim them proudly instead.
We received this from the Bradley Manning Support Network:
Please call the White House Thursday, February 3, 2011, to voice your support for accused WikiLeaks whistle-blower US Army PFC Bradley Manning. Express your concern that Bradley's human rights be respected by the Quantico, Virginia, brig authorities.
Bradley has been held in solitary confinement-like conditions for over eight months, and his trial is still months away. This American citizen-soldier has been convicted of no crime, yet continues to endure inhumane conditions of pre-trial confinement like no other inmate at the Marine Corps brig at Quantico.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs recently stated that the White House was not paying attention to Bradley Manning’s extreme confinement conditions, or the fact that recently pre-approved visitors of Bradley’s have been detained and interrogated by military police in order to block their scheduled visit. It is critical that we educate the White House of this ongoing injustice!
Please call the White House Thursday, February 3, 2011, to voice your support for accused WikiLeaks whistle-blower US Army PFC Bradley Manning. Express your concern that Bradley's human rights be respected by the Quantico, Virginia, brig authorities.
Bradley has been held in solitary confinement-like conditions for over eight months, and his trial is still months away. This American citizen-soldier has been convicted of no crime, yet continues to endure inhumane conditions of pre-trial confinement like no other inmate at the Marine Corps brig at Quantico.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs recently stated that the White House was not paying attention to Bradley Manning’s extreme confinement conditions, or the fact that recently pre-approved visitors of Bradley’s have been detained and interrogated by military police in order to block their scheduled visit. It is critical that we educate the White House of this ongoing injustice!
Andrew Kolin's new book "State Power and Democracy: Before and During the Presidency of George W. Bush" actually begins with the war for independence and continues into the Obama years. A 231-page monotone recounting of endless facts, it doesn't pick up with Bush the Lesser until page 137. Kolin chronicles a gradual slide into an imperial presidency that really got going after World War II. Along the way he chronicles the damage done to the forces of resistance, making a compelling case that our movements for peace and justice are weak in part because of the extreme repression of recent decades.
BANGKOK, Thailand -- In the royal splendor of the Grand Palace's Chakri Throne Hall, invited dignitaries included the prime minister, a princess, a former military junta leader, America's newly arrived ambassador and others at a black-tie awards presentation.
But while a scrumptious banquet dinner was cooking, many guests hungered for updates about the thousands of people protesting in the grimy streets a few miles away.
Under paintings of past monarchs, and in front of an exquisite 200-year-old pillowed throne on display, army officers chatted about the possibility of Thailand descending into a violent revolution, or yet another coup, or seemingly Machiavellian moves by the military-backed government and their opponents to win the next election.
Guests punctuated their remarks by acknowledging the invited dignitaries, who included Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and the 2006 coup's junta leader, retired Supreme Army Commander Gen. Surayud Chulanont, who is now a member of the king's Privy Council of personal advisers.
But while a scrumptious banquet dinner was cooking, many guests hungered for updates about the thousands of people protesting in the grimy streets a few miles away.
Under paintings of past monarchs, and in front of an exquisite 200-year-old pillowed throne on display, army officers chatted about the possibility of Thailand descending into a violent revolution, or yet another coup, or seemingly Machiavellian moves by the military-backed government and their opponents to win the next election.
Guests punctuated their remarks by acknowledging the invited dignitaries, who included Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and the 2006 coup's junta leader, retired Supreme Army Commander Gen. Surayud Chulanont, who is now a member of the king's Privy Council of personal advisers.