... it needs to change it's focus in foreign policy as well as it's economy while reining in it's WAR MACHINE !
The USA is not under attack from any sovereign country whereby conventional weapons apply.
The five permanent nations of the Non-Proliferation Treaty have to live up to their pledge to disarm from nuclear weapons. If they don't, the rest of the world won't either.
End of discussion.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Dow Jones Indexes - Bush '41 thru Clinton
...The economy was in a recession -- albeit one that wasn't declared until it was already over -- and worries about Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's aggression in the Persian Gulf ran high. The industrial average fell all the way back to 2365.10 in October. Investors saw eerie reminders of 1966, when the Dow industrials broke 1000 intraday, only to take six years before they pierced that level at the closing bell.
Finally, in the spring of 1991, after the U.S. had overwhelmingly vanquished Saddam Hussein's forces and the recession (still undeclared) was over, the industrial average rallied and broke the 3000 barrier, closing at 3004.46. The date was April 17, 1991, a little more than four years after the 2000 barrier fell. By contrast, it took the average 14 years to get from 1000 to 2000 (a larger percentage move).
George Bush, who had presided over the Gulf War against Mr. Hussein's forces, was president when the milestone was reached. But the economic weakness of 1990 and early 1991, among other things, weakened his standing with the electorate and he lost the 1992 presidential election to Bill Clinton....
So, with Saddam on his balcony at the palace with a smoking gun...
... and Bush on his White House balcony claiming to capture the smoking gun, the Iraq invasion began a full day before the UN Security Council met to vote on the proposed invasion by Bush.
In essence, what Bush did, was to completely disregard the UN Security Council, an act of Congress by the USA which stated invasion was the last resort, and simply proceeded to cause havoc and anarchy which today still is the condition of the nation or better said, the one time nation of Iraq.
...on March 20, 2003, hell would be unleashed in Iraq. Unjustified. Without regard for life of any kind. Out of pure unadultered greed.
800 missiles to hit Iraq in first 48 hours
By Andrew West and agencies
January 26 2003
The US intends to shatter Iraq "physically, emotionally and psychologically" by raining down on its people as many as 800 cruise missiles in two days.
The Pentagon battle plan aims not only to crush Iraqi troops, but also wipe out power and water supplies in the capital, Baghdad.
It is based on a strategy known as "Shock and Awe", conceived at the National Defense University in Washington, in which between 300 and 400 cruise missiles would fall on Iraq each day for two consecutive days. It would be more than twice the number of missiles launched during the entire 40 days of the 1991 GulfWar.
"There will not be a safe place in Baghdad," a Pentagon official told America's CBS News after a briefing on the plan. "The sheer size of this has never been seen before, never been contemplated before."
The plan has emerged just as American diplomats at the United Nations hinted that the US Administration might be willing to give UN weapons inspectors another month to complete their task.
Chief inspector Hans Blix is due to report back to the UN on Tuesday.
President George Bush has been displaying increasing impatience with the pace of inspections and is eager to start the bombing. But according to UN sources he has resigned himself to the fact that the US lacks enough votes on the Security Council to wage a military campaign.
Mr Bush's belligerence yesterday found a match in comments by Uday Hussein. In a rare public appearance, the son of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein said the consequences of American attack on his country would make the September 11, 2001, terrorist strike look like a picnic.
He warned: "If they come, September 11, which they are crying over and see as a big thing, will be a real picnic for them, God willing.
"They will be hurt and pay a price they will never imagine. They can get much more from Iraq without resorting to the logic of force and war."
According to the architect of "Shock and Awe", military strategist Harlan Ullman, the plan would rely on an extensive array of precision-guided weapons.
"We want them to quit, not to fight," Ullman said, "so that you have this simultaneous effect - rather like the nuclear weapons at Hiroshima - not taking days or weeks but minutes."
The main objective was not just to disable Iraq's fighting capacity but to leave the population dispirited and unwilling to support Saddam's regime.
"You're sitting in Baghdad and, all of a sudden, you're the general and 30 of your division headquarters have been wiped out," Mr Ullman said. "You also take the city down. By that I mean you get rid of their power and water. In two, three, four, five days they are physically, emotionally and psychologically exhausted."
The American war plans will cause even greater angst in Europe, where the French and Russian governments, reflecting wider international fears, are threatening to veto any US rush to military action.
French President Jacques Chirac and Russia's Vladimir Putin have agreed "their positions [on a US strike] are very close", a French spokeswoman said. Both countries are permanent members of the UN Security Council, and either could veto any UN approval of an American attack.
Mr Putin has also co-opted German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder into supporting a diplomatic solution to the crisis in Iraq. Germany is now the major power in Europe and the Chancellor's reluctance, if not outright refusal, to endorse a unilateral US strike would be a major setback to the Bush Administration.
The dossier by Dr Blix, and the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency Mohamed ElBaradei, is expected to report that Iraqi
co-operation with inspectors has been "satisfactory" and they could find no "smoking gun", no evidence that could be used a pretext for war.
But the pair will also say Iraq could offer even greater co-operation in the search for nuclear, chemical or biological weapons, or materials that could be used in their construction, within its borders.
But America's increasingly aggressive stance is isolating opinion around the world. Late on Friday, his Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld drove a wedge further into US-European relations when he dismissed Germany and France as representing "old Europe".
He comments drew a sharp rebuke from the foreign ministers of both countries.
If the US wants UN approval for any strike it will have to wring votes out of the 15 Security Council members. At the moment, it can count only on the solid support of Britain, the likely support of Spain and Bulgaria, and the possible support of Guinea and Cameroon.
China, France, Russia, Germany and Syria were most opposed and likely to influence Angola, Chile, Mexico and Pakistan.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/01/25/1042911596206.html
1992
A southern no-fly zone is created to protect the Shiite population from Saddam Hussein and provide a buffer between Kuwait and Iraq ( Aug. 26).
What followed were years of UN inspectors, assaults against central Iraq where all the majority of the unrest is today.
The 'lead up' to the illegal invasion of Iraq was all to obvious to many Americans. Half the nation, actually.
There appeared in mid-2002 articles published in Chemical Abstracts's environmental journal that would prove without any provocation, biological weapons (WMD) would degrade into benign elements after exposure to cement, sand, basically any carbon element even though it was not a human body. The research was part of an effort by the USA Department of Defense to realize the time cities would be rendered useless after exposure to WMD. It provide, quite by accident as the findings were not expected, the VX liquid of which gas was produced would not only readily degrade it would degrade within four to twelve hours. It was proof that what Saddam Hussein was saying about not having any of the WMD on old inventories was very, very plausible.
Over the course of time, the UN inspectors would be kicked out, put back and then in March of 2003, would be kicked out again, but, not by Saddam, but by Bush.
A southern no-fly zone is created to protect the Shiite population from Saddam Hussein and provide a buffer between Kuwait and Iraq ( Aug. 26).
What followed were years of UN inspectors, assaults against central Iraq where all the majority of the unrest is today.
The 'lead up' to the illegal invasion of Iraq was all to obvious to many Americans. Half the nation, actually.
There appeared in mid-2002 articles published in Chemical Abstracts's environmental journal that would prove without any provocation, biological weapons (WMD) would degrade into benign elements after exposure to cement, sand, basically any carbon element even though it was not a human body. The research was part of an effort by the USA Department of Defense to realize the time cities would be rendered useless after exposure to WMD. It provide, quite by accident as the findings were not expected, the VX liquid of which gas was produced would not only readily degrade it would degrade within four to twelve hours. It was proof that what Saddam Hussein was saying about not having any of the WMD on old inventories was very, very plausible.
Over the course of time, the UN inspectors would be kicked out, put back and then in March of 2003, would be kicked out again, but, not by Saddam, but by Bush.
1988
Iraq retaliates against the Kurds for supporting Iran during the Iran-Iraq war, and through "Operation Anfal" slaughters civilians or forces them to relocate. Thousands flee to Turkey (Feb.–Sept.).
Iran-Iraq war ends in a stalemate. An estimated 1.5 million died in the conflict (Aug. 20).
1990
August 2, Iraq invades Kuwait.
August 9, UN places sanctions.
The Persian Gulf War begins when Operation Desert Storm launched by a U.S.-led coalition of 32 countries under the leadership of U.S. Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf. A campaign of air strikes against Iraq begins (Jan. 16–17).
Ground forces invade Kuwait and Iraq, vanquish the Iraqi army, and liberate Kuwait. President George H. W. Bush declares a cease-fire on the fourth day (Feb. 24–28).
Shiites and Kurds rebel, encouraged by the United States. Iraq quashes the rebellions, killing thousands (March).
Formal cease-fire is signed. Saddam Hussein accepts UN resolution agreeing to destroy weapons of mass destruction and allowing UN inspectors to monitor the disarmament (April 6).
A no-fly zone is established in Northern Iraq to protect the Kurds from Saddam Hussein (April 10).
This would be followed by a successful Oil for Food Program by the UN that we know today contained Saddam all too well. A successful Oil for Food Program in the face of corruption. It was a huge program, it was destined for issues of corruption. Many countries, many borders, too many rules to bend, etc., etc., etc. If I am not mistaken, it is still in effect today. It was George Walker Bush that asked the United Nations to continue the program. Let's face it, Bush never planned for any domestic bliss for the now conqured Iraqi nation. All Bush and Cheney had their eyes on were the oil fields, within days of the invasion, Halliburton moved to the Iraqi oil fields and took over operation, all in the name of securing them.
Right.
Securing the oil wealth of Iraq without securing the safety of the people of Iraq. One might want to ask oneself, what good has the oil wealth done to secure the Iraqi people to date?
Iraq retaliates against the Kurds for supporting Iran during the Iran-Iraq war, and through "Operation Anfal" slaughters civilians or forces them to relocate. Thousands flee to Turkey (Feb.–Sept.).
Iran-Iraq war ends in a stalemate. An estimated 1.5 million died in the conflict (Aug. 20).
1990
August 2, Iraq invades Kuwait.
August 9, UN places sanctions.
The Persian Gulf War begins when Operation Desert Storm launched by a U.S.-led coalition of 32 countries under the leadership of U.S. Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf. A campaign of air strikes against Iraq begins (Jan. 16–17).
Ground forces invade Kuwait and Iraq, vanquish the Iraqi army, and liberate Kuwait. President George H. W. Bush declares a cease-fire on the fourth day (Feb. 24–28).
Shiites and Kurds rebel, encouraged by the United States. Iraq quashes the rebellions, killing thousands (March).
Formal cease-fire is signed. Saddam Hussein accepts UN resolution agreeing to destroy weapons of mass destruction and allowing UN inspectors to monitor the disarmament (April 6).
A no-fly zone is established in Northern Iraq to protect the Kurds from Saddam Hussein (April 10).
This would be followed by a successful Oil for Food Program by the UN that we know today contained Saddam all too well. A successful Oil for Food Program in the face of corruption. It was a huge program, it was destined for issues of corruption. Many countries, many borders, too many rules to bend, etc., etc., etc. If I am not mistaken, it is still in effect today. It was George Walker Bush that asked the United Nations to continue the program. Let's face it, Bush never planned for any domestic bliss for the now conqured Iraqi nation. All Bush and Cheney had their eyes on were the oil fields, within days of the invasion, Halliburton moved to the Iraqi oil fields and took over operation, all in the name of securing them.
Right.
Securing the oil wealth of Iraq without securing the safety of the people of Iraq. One might want to ask oneself, what good has the oil wealth done to secure the Iraqi people to date?
This is one of the few articles that mention the 'ethnic' divides of the region. The divide that radicalizes the Shia.
FOR THE MOST PART. Arabia is viewed by most Americans and in their text/newsprint as neither Sunni or Shia so much as simply oil. At least that was the case until the recent year or so in Iraq. Bush called the violence in Iraq an insurgency rather than the Civil War it actually is. It wasn't until recently the words 'sectarian violence' dominated the descriptions of the unrest in Iraq.
It was/is the Arabs that make the delineation far more than The West ever has. The illegal invasion into Iraq by George Walker Bush over 21 years after the article below would fail for several reasons, but, the most major reason was the lack of committment to the 'shadowed' idea that ethnicity would play a huge role in any instability of Iraq.
NOTED:
This article states FEAR ran through the Sunni Arab nations at 'the thought' of a successful Iran in the Iran-Iraq war. That 'fear' guided Bush's propaganda in closing the newsprint of Cleric al Sadr. Bush never once put forward the thought of equity in dealing with the ethnicities of Iraq; he simply carried the same fear forward from so many years before. A long time ago, the Bush Power Brokerage tucked itself into bed with Saudi Arabia. It would derive all it's 'beliefs' about the region from that limited understanding and reality.
There would be an attempt to settle the Iran-Iraq war with diplomatic resolve but it would fail. I believe it was destined to fail as the negotiating Iranian, President Abolhassan Bani-Sadr, was also the man who resided over the return of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. It was this man and the Ayatollah, the USA would most seek to destroy. Literally, they ran the Shah out of town and took American hostages to prevent retaliation against the new dictator of a completely Shia nation. Quite a plan. Well thought out. Interesting people. The Shia.
The Sunni nation element of 'fear' would be meet with a loyality from the USA to oppress/destroy Iran and it's leadership. Basically, after the Westernized Shah fell, Iran became an enemy of the USA. So, there we were standing in alliance with Sunni nations in exchange, of course, for oil security.
Where is the planet in all of this?
Nowhere !
The point however is, the 'fear' which is met in Iraq today on a daily basis is so entrenched in the societies of the region that it is a huge wedge by which the current war in Iraq has been propagated. It would seem all to clear, the 'fear' element of the societies of the region and within Iraq are all too clear and should have been a 'no brainer' before the illegal invasion ever took place. Perhaps, it was. Perhaps, Bush sincerely and decidedly chose to commit genocide against the Shia to resolve the conflict for the Sunnis forever. This stark reporting of the issue in 1982 just seems too clear in hindsight of the reality we have today in Iraq.
The instability in the region where 'fear' dominates decisions has to end. The nations of Arabia have to resolve themselves to live together as neighbors realizing the USA War Machine (Halliburton, Bechtel, USA Military Hardware Contractors and USA Military Personnel Contractors) are the only people profitting by this war. The people of the entire region, including the Israelis and the American military personnel are suffering while the profits of war are benefitting those that regard it their right.
ALL the Arab nations are capable of reaching out to each other to end such fear and appreciate their Islamic heritage together. They are also capable to make peace with Israel through recognition and economic benefit. Utilizing Israel as a scapegoat to radicalism the Shia, only serves the war and violence, and serves a greater atrocity. The right to annihilate the Shia in order to achieve peace in the region.
The Middle East and it's very, very possible peace is up to those that live in the region. The Sunnis, whom hold the power. The Shia which are so radicalized they are targets of hatred and violence in return for their strikes against their arch enemy, Israel. And Israel, that nearly had the perfect peace with the Palestinians under Sharon.
The fear of each other has to stop. The nations of the UN will not allow any one people to be destroyed or live in oppression. The oil wars and their perverted justifications have to stop.
June 1, 1982
PERSIAN GULF: IRAN AROUSES FEAR IN ARABS; News Analysis
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN, SPECIAL TO THE NEW YORK TIMES
If the war between Iran and Iraq ended today, the wider battle for political and psychological domination of the Persian Gulf would be just beginning.
This is the second time in the last three years that the balance of power in the Middle East has undergone a radical transformation. The first was in March 1979, when Egypt signed its peace treaty with Israel and effectively relinquished its role as leader of the Arab world.
Since then the role of regional Moslem leader has been up for grabs. Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi President, made a play for the role, but it now seems clear that his reach exceeded his grasp.
Judging from the tones in which Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran has been lecturing his Arab neighbors in the last week - instructing them on how they should treat everything from the Saudi Arabian peace plan, to Egypt, to Koranic law - he sees Iran as filling this role.
Whether President Hussein started the Gulf war, it was clearly a battle that both he and the conservative Arab oil-producing nations, which pumped an estimated $22 billion into the effort, felt was inevitable.
In the last few weeks Iraqi officials have dispensed with the pretense that the war was fought to recover Arab territorial rights. The battle, they now make clear, was waged to contain the ''aggressive and expansionist'' Islamic revolution of Iran.
As long as Iraq was in a predominant position, Iran was on the defensive and the effect of the Khomeini revolution on the neighboring Arab Gulf nations was limited.
With its army now having virtually driven the Iraqi Army out of Iran after 20 months of fighting, the Iranians have both the opportunity and the inclination to project their influence around the Gulf in a way they have never been free to do before.
No one is more keenly aware of this than the Gulf Arabs, who were warned last week by Ayatollah Khomeini to ''repent and return to Islam,'' or face the consequences.
The foreign ministers of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, which are grouped in a conservative alliance called the Gulf Cooperation Council, ended two days of talks in Riyadh today that had been organized to forge a united Arab stance on dealing with Iran.
But given their own differing approaches and the fact that Arab radicals such as Syria and Libya continue to support Teheran, the ministers failed to formulate any unified policy and could only issue a final communique that reaffirmed ''its belief that ending the war is an essential factor in securing the peace and stability in the region.''
The communique added, ''Stability in the region is the responsibility of the states of the region only, and the essential factor in avoiding foreign intervention is to put an end to the continuing war between Iraq and Iran.'' Syria Improves Its Position
That could change if Iranian troops cross into Iraq - a move that could be expected to galvanize Arab radicals and conservatives. Just what Iran is planning in this regard is impossible to predict, but Iraq's reported bombing Sunday of the northern Iranian town of Tabriz, well outside the battle zone, may well encourage the proinvasion elements in Teheran.
Subtle shifts in stature as a result of Iran's victory can already be detected. Syria, for the last few years an outcast in Arab politics because of its backing for Ayatollah Khomeini and its hardline approach to the Arab-Israel conflict, now moves back to center stage. Already Prince Saud al-Faisal, the Saudi Foreign Minister, has flown to Damascus to urge President Hafez el-Assad of Syria to restrain his Iranian friends.
In the Gulf itself, the Iranian victory seems to be pulling Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, both countries with large Shiite populations of Iranian origin, out of the Saudi orbit. Neither nation reportedly has been willing to join the Saudis in an armed alliance against the Iranians, with whom these small sheikdoms may soon have to negotiate their own futures.
Iran's oil minister boasted in a recent interview that Saudi Arabia's ''pretentions to power and influence in the Persian Gulf will fade very quickly.'' Groups Maintain Identities
Maybe not as quickly though as Iran might think. Since the overthrow of the Shah, the authorities in Iran have repeatedly threatened to ''export'' their revolution. It would seem the time has now come to find out if indeed that revolution is marketable.
If history is any guide, revolutions do not export well in the Middle East, which for all of its pan-Arabism or pan-Islamism remains at heart a region of tribal societies not given to surrendering their individual identities to distant powers.
Nasserism in its heyday also seemed like an unstoppable revolutionary snowball, until it was put to the test by being exported to Syria, where it quickly melted in the heat of clashing cultures.
The Iranian revolution is burdened by an additional handicap: the example of the last two years. The turmoil and economic disarray in Iran is hardly something the Gulf Arabs would care to import. Two years ago, in the flush of the Iranian revolution, it might have been possible, but today may be a little too late.
It was/is the Arabs that make the delineation far more than The West ever has. The illegal invasion into Iraq by George Walker Bush over 21 years after the article below would fail for several reasons, but, the most major reason was the lack of committment to the 'shadowed' idea that ethnicity would play a huge role in any instability of Iraq.
NOTED:
This article states FEAR ran through the Sunni Arab nations at 'the thought' of a successful Iran in the Iran-Iraq war. That 'fear' guided Bush's propaganda in closing the newsprint of Cleric al Sadr. Bush never once put forward the thought of equity in dealing with the ethnicities of Iraq; he simply carried the same fear forward from so many years before. A long time ago, the Bush Power Brokerage tucked itself into bed with Saudi Arabia. It would derive all it's 'beliefs' about the region from that limited understanding and reality.
There would be an attempt to settle the Iran-Iraq war with diplomatic resolve but it would fail. I believe it was destined to fail as the negotiating Iranian, President Abolhassan Bani-Sadr, was also the man who resided over the return of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. It was this man and the Ayatollah, the USA would most seek to destroy. Literally, they ran the Shah out of town and took American hostages to prevent retaliation against the new dictator of a completely Shia nation. Quite a plan. Well thought out. Interesting people. The Shia.
The Sunni nation element of 'fear' would be meet with a loyality from the USA to oppress/destroy Iran and it's leadership. Basically, after the Westernized Shah fell, Iran became an enemy of the USA. So, there we were standing in alliance with Sunni nations in exchange, of course, for oil security.
Where is the planet in all of this?
Nowhere !
The point however is, the 'fear' which is met in Iraq today on a daily basis is so entrenched in the societies of the region that it is a huge wedge by which the current war in Iraq has been propagated. It would seem all to clear, the 'fear' element of the societies of the region and within Iraq are all too clear and should have been a 'no brainer' before the illegal invasion ever took place. Perhaps, it was. Perhaps, Bush sincerely and decidedly chose to commit genocide against the Shia to resolve the conflict for the Sunnis forever. This stark reporting of the issue in 1982 just seems too clear in hindsight of the reality we have today in Iraq.
The instability in the region where 'fear' dominates decisions has to end. The nations of Arabia have to resolve themselves to live together as neighbors realizing the USA War Machine (Halliburton, Bechtel, USA Military Hardware Contractors and USA Military Personnel Contractors) are the only people profitting by this war. The people of the entire region, including the Israelis and the American military personnel are suffering while the profits of war are benefitting those that regard it their right.
ALL the Arab nations are capable of reaching out to each other to end such fear and appreciate their Islamic heritage together. They are also capable to make peace with Israel through recognition and economic benefit. Utilizing Israel as a scapegoat to radicalism the Shia, only serves the war and violence, and serves a greater atrocity. The right to annihilate the Shia in order to achieve peace in the region.
The Middle East and it's very, very possible peace is up to those that live in the region. The Sunnis, whom hold the power. The Shia which are so radicalized they are targets of hatred and violence in return for their strikes against their arch enemy, Israel. And Israel, that nearly had the perfect peace with the Palestinians under Sharon.
The fear of each other has to stop. The nations of the UN will not allow any one people to be destroyed or live in oppression. The oil wars and their perverted justifications have to stop.
June 1, 1982
PERSIAN GULF: IRAN AROUSES FEAR IN ARABS; News Analysis
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN, SPECIAL TO THE NEW YORK TIMES
If the war between Iran and Iraq ended today, the wider battle for political and psychological domination of the Persian Gulf would be just beginning.
This is the second time in the last three years that the balance of power in the Middle East has undergone a radical transformation. The first was in March 1979, when Egypt signed its peace treaty with Israel and effectively relinquished its role as leader of the Arab world.
Since then the role of regional Moslem leader has been up for grabs. Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi President, made a play for the role, but it now seems clear that his reach exceeded his grasp.
Judging from the tones in which Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran has been lecturing his Arab neighbors in the last week - instructing them on how they should treat everything from the Saudi Arabian peace plan, to Egypt, to Koranic law - he sees Iran as filling this role.
Whether President Hussein started the Gulf war, it was clearly a battle that both he and the conservative Arab oil-producing nations, which pumped an estimated $22 billion into the effort, felt was inevitable.
In the last few weeks Iraqi officials have dispensed with the pretense that the war was fought to recover Arab territorial rights. The battle, they now make clear, was waged to contain the ''aggressive and expansionist'' Islamic revolution of Iran.
As long as Iraq was in a predominant position, Iran was on the defensive and the effect of the Khomeini revolution on the neighboring Arab Gulf nations was limited.
With its army now having virtually driven the Iraqi Army out of Iran after 20 months of fighting, the Iranians have both the opportunity and the inclination to project their influence around the Gulf in a way they have never been free to do before.
No one is more keenly aware of this than the Gulf Arabs, who were warned last week by Ayatollah Khomeini to ''repent and return to Islam,'' or face the consequences.
The foreign ministers of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, which are grouped in a conservative alliance called the Gulf Cooperation Council, ended two days of talks in Riyadh today that had been organized to forge a united Arab stance on dealing with Iran.
But given their own differing approaches and the fact that Arab radicals such as Syria and Libya continue to support Teheran, the ministers failed to formulate any unified policy and could only issue a final communique that reaffirmed ''its belief that ending the war is an essential factor in securing the peace and stability in the region.''
The communique added, ''Stability in the region is the responsibility of the states of the region only, and the essential factor in avoiding foreign intervention is to put an end to the continuing war between Iraq and Iran.'' Syria Improves Its Position
That could change if Iranian troops cross into Iraq - a move that could be expected to galvanize Arab radicals and conservatives. Just what Iran is planning in this regard is impossible to predict, but Iraq's reported bombing Sunday of the northern Iranian town of Tabriz, well outside the battle zone, may well encourage the proinvasion elements in Teheran.
Subtle shifts in stature as a result of Iran's victory can already be detected. Syria, for the last few years an outcast in Arab politics because of its backing for Ayatollah Khomeini and its hardline approach to the Arab-Israel conflict, now moves back to center stage. Already Prince Saud al-Faisal, the Saudi Foreign Minister, has flown to Damascus to urge President Hafez el-Assad of Syria to restrain his Iranian friends.
In the Gulf itself, the Iranian victory seems to be pulling Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, both countries with large Shiite populations of Iranian origin, out of the Saudi orbit. Neither nation reportedly has been willing to join the Saudis in an armed alliance against the Iranians, with whom these small sheikdoms may soon have to negotiate their own futures.
Iran's oil minister boasted in a recent interview that Saudi Arabia's ''pretentions to power and influence in the Persian Gulf will fade very quickly.'' Groups Maintain Identities
Maybe not as quickly though as Iran might think. Since the overthrow of the Shah, the authorities in Iran have repeatedly threatened to ''export'' their revolution. It would seem the time has now come to find out if indeed that revolution is marketable.
If history is any guide, revolutions do not export well in the Middle East, which for all of its pan-Arabism or pan-Islamism remains at heart a region of tribal societies not given to surrendering their individual identities to distant powers.
Nasserism in its heyday also seemed like an unstoppable revolutionary snowball, until it was put to the test by being exported to Syria, where it quickly melted in the heat of clashing cultures.
The Iranian revolution is burdened by an additional handicap: the example of the last two years. The turmoil and economic disarray in Iran is hardly something the Gulf Arabs would care to import. Two years ago, in the flush of the Iranian revolution, it might have been possible, but today may be a little too late.
Burning Tank from the Iran-Iraq War
If one can figure out the make of the tank, then it might be determined whom supplied it.
Why would the USA and Russia simply arm both sides of this heinous war?
Why the war at all?
Why was the USA supplying in larger measure Iraq?
Russia was a trading partner with Iraq. It supplied some arms to Iran to keep them from causing trouble in Afghanistan where the Russians were also engaged with a USA backed force called the Mujahideen.
This was completely nuts. The reason the Iran - Iraq War sustained was due to the hatred of the Sunnis and Shias.
More than hatred.
Fear.
Fear that primarily surrounded the Shia. Fear they would be destroyed by the Sunnis. Fear by the Sunnis the Shia would be Allah's 'chosen' faith and they would be vanquished. To many in The West that seems silly. Such deep seated fear of other human beings based in faith. The West has been able to put all faiths together under a shield of protection to exist and worship in fervor without retaliation.
But.
To those in Iran, Iraq and all the other countries of Arabia, faithfulness is deadly serious. People under seige with the committment to kill in the next split second along with sacrific of their own lives.
Ah, to be able to instill the sentiment of The West into the hearts of all those in Islam would be a dream come true.
But.
Without the benefit of education, policies of tolerance, equity in government and financial structures.
Without basic services such as clean air, clean water and safe food to eat, the people of the Mideast have a long way to go before any progress can be made to bring their societies to a pinnacle with policies of tolerance and freedom.
The best outcome today in Iraq is the outcome currently within the power of the Iraq Constitution. Partitioning of the ethnicities, sharing the treasury of the Central Authority and reconstuction of communities. The damage done to Mosques alone is profound.
With communities secure, they can begin to rebuild a life of hope. Until that occurs there will never be policies of tolerance that will allow people to live together in Iraq. There is too much fear in these people and the war continues to validate it everyday.
1985 - 86 Iran Iraq War
The main tool by which U.S. policy makers sought to secure their position in Iran in 1985 and 1986 was secretly providing arms and intelligence information. As a proclaimed neutral in the Iran-Iraq war, the United States was not supposed to supply weapons to either side. Nevertheless, U.S. allies kept the combatants well-stocked. Israel transferred vast quantities of U.S.-origin weapons to Iran; to what extent U.S. permission for these shipments was obtained (as required by U.S. law) is not known, but surely the U.S. had enough leverage to prevent the transfers if it had wanted to.
This was the period of time when Israel bombed a nuclear reactor Saddam's Iraq was building. Iran and Israel were 'friendlies' but not allies. As every other nation that calls itself an ally of the USA, Israel was as much a pawn as Saddam would come to be.
Today, it is in Israel's best interest to rekindle peace with all nations of Islam. After all, Ur (click on) is in Iraq and who wants to leave the place where the first writings of the Hebrews to chance of a return of a dictator or Ayatollah.
We know this picture all too well.
It almost seems as those this is somekind of 'game' already now that Saddam is dead. It isn't as though Saddam was really the enemy so much as a pawn.
This is when the Republican administrations of the USA were profoundly in denial of an even greater enemy. That would be the ever increasing danger of Human Induced Global Warming. That was assigned to the future when all they could see as a reason for living was securing economic booms from the Gulf.
During the Iran-Iraq war both the USA and Russia were involved in the region. The USA backed both governments with an emphasis on Iraq. We all know the huge weapons stores that fell into the hands of the Iraqis after the USA illegal invasion in March 2003. Well, the knowledge of what weapons went to Iraq from the USA was known to Don Rumsfeld. There was no guessing about what Iraq had in those desert warehouses. Besides the United Nation Seals, the USA knew full well what the UN Inspectors would find.
At any rate, besides the USA, Iraq was a trading partner with Russia. Russia would also trade to some extent with the Iranians as a bargain to not meddle in Afghanistan. The Russians were involved in a confrontation battle with the all too familiar USA backed Mujahideen, of which Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar were soldiers.
Amazing.
You know how Human Induced Global Warming stems from problems decades ago?
Not to be surprised. The problems that the USA caused in the Middle East for it's oil fix started right along with the distress Earth is facing. Decades of government policy that was damaging to our nation in more ways than one.
When people rant about how the USA has to fight dictatorships and despots be sure to ask if this is the same dictator or despot the USA government put in power.
It needs to be said. The Persian Gulf has a long history of violence.
1979
Al-Bakr resigns; his vice-president, Saddam Hussein, succeeds him (July 16). Hussein swiftly executes political rivals.
1980
The bloody eight-year Iran-Iraq war begins. The main issue is control of the Shatt al Arab waterway, an essential resource providing for water and transportation that runs along the border of both countries (Sept. 22).
THE CHRONIC 'RUB' BETWEEN IRAN AND IRAQ and the rest of the region has always been access to water rights for shipping and commerce. It was the trouble during the Iran-Iraq war as well as the hatred that exists between Sunni and Shia. Iran is/was Shia and Iraq under Saddam was under Sunni influence.
Additionally, the invasion into Kuwait that Bush 41 faced was for the same reason. Water rights for shipping and commerce. Although, by now that was getting to be more of an excuse than a reason. See, Kuwait is Shia as well.
Al-Bakr resigns; his vice-president, Saddam Hussein, succeeds him (July 16). Hussein swiftly executes political rivals.
1980
The bloody eight-year Iran-Iraq war begins. The main issue is control of the Shatt al Arab waterway, an essential resource providing for water and transportation that runs along the border of both countries (Sept. 22).
THE CHRONIC 'RUB' BETWEEN IRAN AND IRAQ and the rest of the region has always been access to water rights for shipping and commerce. It was the trouble during the Iran-Iraq war as well as the hatred that exists between Sunni and Shia. Iran is/was Shia and Iraq under Saddam was under Sunni influence.
Additionally, the invasion into Kuwait that Bush 41 faced was for the same reason. Water rights for shipping and commerce. Although, by now that was getting to be more of an excuse than a reason. See, Kuwait is Shia as well.
NEWS ANALYSIS; REAGAN AND THE GULF
February 23, 1981
By PRANAY B. GUPTE, SPECIAL TO THE NEW YORK TIMES; FOREIGN POLICY LAST IN A SERIES OF OCCASIONAL ARTICLES ON INTERNATIONAL PROBLEMS FACING THE REAGAN ADMINISTRATION.THE FOLLOWING ANALYSIS IS BASED ON REPORTING BY MICHAEL T. KAUFMAN IN NEW DELHI, YOUSSEF M. IBRAHIM IN LONDON AND PRANAY B. GUPTE IN RIYADH. IT WAS WRITTEN BY MR. GUPTE.
By PRANAY B. GUPTE, SPECIAL TO THE NEW YORK TIMES; FOREIGN POLICY LAST IN A SERIES OF OCCASIONAL ARTICLES ON INTERNATIONAL PROBLEMS FACING THE REAGAN ADMINISTRATION.THE FOLLOWING ANALYSIS IS BASED ON REPORTING BY MICHAEL T. KAUFMAN IN NEW DELHI, YOUSSEF M. IBRAHIM IN LONDON AND PRANAY B. GUPTE IN RIYADH. IT WAS WRITTEN BY MR. GUPTE.
THE FOLLOWING ANALYSIS IS BASED ON REPORTING BY MICHAEL T. KAUFMAN IN NEW DELHI, YOUSSEF M. IBRAHIM IN LONDON AND PRANAY B. GUPTE IN RIYADH. IT WAS WRITTEN BY MR. GUPTE.
Concerned with the Iraqi-Iranian war and the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and the West's other major oil suppliers in the Persian Gulf area are seeking a way out of a major security predicament. They would like to depend on the United States for their security while giving the impression in the Arab and Islamic world that they do not.
In the view of most Persian Gulf rulers, one European diplomat said, ''too cozy a military relationship with the Americans at a time when anti-Western feeling is thick in the region may well put their own survival in doubt.''
''My warning to the Reagan Administration,'' said John C. West, the departing United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, ''is that the problems of the Gulf are many and very complex, and they are not capable of any easy solution. These problems could create major foreign policy setbacks for President Reagan.''
Stressing the dependence of Western nations on the Gulf region for oil, Mr. West said there was ''an absolute necessity for protecting these interests at any cost.'' No Quick Solution Foreseen
However, policy makers in the area say there is little hope that the security predicament will be resolved soon. Some of the traditionally conservative and pro-Western nations in the Gulf have recently espoused policies aimed at distancing themselves from American ties. At the conference of Islamic leaders held in the Saudi resort town of Taif last month King Khalid of Saudi Arabia urged all Moslem countries to avoid military alliances with the superpowers. This month Saudi Arabia and five other Arab countries in the Gulf area - Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates - announced the formation of an organization dedicated to economic unity but apparently aimed at planning a regional defense system.
Western and Arab diplomats and other specialists on Gulf affairs have suggested that the Reagan Administration should clearly outline how it plans to protect Western interests in the area formed by the Gulf countries.
Their comments did not, however, extend to possible future policies toward the two other oil-producing nations of the Persian Gulf region, Iraq and Iran. The United States has diplomatic relations with neither, and it has taken a neutral stance on their war. U.S. Advised to Heed Pressures
The analysts recommended that the United States, in formulating its policies for the region, should demonstrate a sensitivity to the internal pressures felt by the Gulf rulers. Those pressures include opposition from fundamentalist Islamic groups to rapid Western-style development and the potential for instability caused by the presence of large numbers of foreign nationals within their borders. Gulf rulers charge that the Carter Adminstration did not sufficiently show such awareness.
In fashioning its policy toward the Gulf nations, analysts said, the Reagan Administration should not be put off by the need of those countries to denounce what they perceive as automatic American support for the Israeli occupation of Arab territory. And the specialists stressed that the United States should make the ''American security umbrella'' as subtle as possible.
The Reagan Administration's policy, the analysts went on, could have an impact on the ability of the governments of some of the small countries to survive. But they said there were doubts among Gulf rulers that a meaningful new American approach would be developed. The Pakistani Position
Many of the concerns of the Gulf countries are shared by Pakistan, which has increasingly supplied Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations with laborers and military advisers.
At the same time, Pakistan is wary of provoking Moscow by providing too much military aid to Moslem insurgents in neighboring Afghanistan, and it has made clear that it is unwilling to increase assistance to the rebels unless it gets guarantees for its own security, presumably from the United States.
According to highly placed sources in Islamabad, what Pakistan means by guarantees are larger American arms sales than Washington has been willing to make and suspension or reduction of the opposition that the Carter Administration had to what it believed to be a Pakistani program to develop nuclear weapons.
There is a widespread hope among Pakistanis that under Mr. Reagan the United States will be inclined to discuss aircraft sales and provide economic aid without linking them to their nuclear plans. Pakistani authorities have repeatedly denied any intention of making nuclear arms, but Western informants say that such a program is under way and that nuclear weapons could be produced by 1983.
Suggestions that a new Pakistani-American relationship might develop have caused some alarm in neighboring India, which has twice fought and defeated Pakistani forces and which intensely distrusted the close ties between the United States and Pakistan that prevailed in the 1950's. Test Seen for Reagan
In the Gulf region itself, it is generally agreed among Arab officials and Western diplomats that the area is likely to provide a major test of the Reagan Administration's ability to devise a cogent foreign policy. A Saudi official said the test would be whether the United States could ''construct a coherent policy that will properly cope with the threats to our area.''
He was alluding to a fundamental Saudi concern that the preeminent danger stems from Soviet expansionist aims. Other concerns are said to be similar Iraqi ambitions and Iran's attempts to export its Shiite Islamic revolution.
The United States' traditional alliance with Israel, analysts say, will probably be a major obstacle to any new American policy approach. Gulf rulers are said to believe that Washington has not moved swiftly or forthrightly enough toward resolving the questions of Palestinian rights and Israeli withdrawal from occupied Arab territories.
One Western analyst said that the United States should try to find a way to make progress toward a comprehensive Middle East peace settlement that would not compromise the American commitment to Israel but would at the same time prove acceptable to the Arab countries of the Gulf area. Oil as an 'Instrument of Politics
He and other area specialists said the Reagan Administration should keep in mind that the Gulf countries could, by withholding oil, try to force the West to move faster toward a comprehensive Middle East peace settlement. Recalling that oil was last used as a political weapon after the Arab-Israeli war of 1973, the Saudi Oil Minister, Sheik Ahmed Zaki Yamani, warned recently that his country considered oil an ''instrument of politics.''
On another front, conservationists in the region have put pressure on Gulf rulers to decrease oil production and preserve their resources for future generations.
A further concern is the oilfields themselves. Saudi officials and their counterparts in the five other Gulf countries said in recent interviews that they recognized the fundamental vulnerability of the fields. 'Oilfields Not Defendable'
One Western military analyst in Dhahran, the major Saudi oil center, said the oilfields were ''simply not defendable.'' He noted that in the event of an air attack from the Iranian airfield at Bushire across the Gulf, the warning time for Saudi fighter planes would be barely 10 minutes.
Partly because of the recognition of oilfield vulnerability, partly because of the concern that they not be too openly identified with American security interests and partly because of the worry about what they view as Iraqi expansionist aims, Saudi Arabia and the five other countries formed a new organization this month called the Gulf Council for Cooperation.
Crown Prince Fahd described the purpose of the council as being to foster ''greater unity among the Gulf countries for the welfare of the peoples of this region.'' But while he stressed economic coordination, many Arab and Western diplomats believe that the nations will work to integrate their military abilities and establish air-defense links.
Western analysts question, however, how effectively the Gulf countries can coordinate their defense systems in view of the differences among their weaponry and the diverse sources of supply. Saudi Arabia, for example, has bought tanks and antiaircraft missiles from both France and the United States over the last year and has expressed interest in acquiring West German and Austrian tanks and other armored vehicles.
According to the International Peace Research Institute of Stockholm, Middle Eastern military spending is running at more than $40 billion a year, out of a world total of $500 billion. The biggest defense allocations are made by Saudi Arabia, with a outlay estimated at $20.7 billion last year, according to the London-based Institute for Strategic Studies.
On a per-capita basis, military spending in the Gulf region is the world's highest. Saudi Arabia spends $2,400 per person, the United Arab Emirates $2,100, Qatar $1,700, Kuwait $1,200 and Oman $1,060. The world's next-highest per-capita military spenders, according to the Stockholm institute, are the United States and Libya, at about $600 each.
Western and Arab analysts here say that one danger in such arms purchases is that they will inevitably strengthen the hand of the military forces in each country, a development that could pose problems for theior regimes.
The Saudis, however, have sought to guard against the possibility of a military takeover. More than 60 of the country's 5,000 royal princes hold high positions in the armed forces. Military personnel are given good salaries, free housing and excellent health care. Army units are dispersed around the country, which is one-third the size of the United States. Besides the Saudi Army, consisting of 45,000 men, there is a 12,000-man national guard, drawn mainly from Bedouin tribes loyal to the royal family. And the royal family is also protected by the three battalions of the Royal Guard Regiment.
American military advisers, of whom there are more than 1,000 in Saudi Arabia - a figure that does not include the 600 personnel associated with the four electronic surveillance planes lent to the Saudis because of the Iraqi-Iranian war -are involved in the training of Saudi forces. American advisers are likely to increase when 62 F-15 tactical jet fighters ordered by the Saudis arrive next year. The Islamic Factor
Still another factor that area specialists think the Reagan Administration should weigh is the continuing conflict between modernization trends and the tenets of fundamentalist Moslems.
Modernization is perceived by some Moslem leaders as inimical to Islam and as the harbinger of what they regard as decadent practices common in the West. The band of religious fanatics that seized the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Islam's holiest shrine, in November 1979 objected to the Westernization of Saudi Arabia.
In a recent interview Dr. Mahmoud Saraf, the Saudi Deputy Minister for Higher Education and an Islamic scholar, characterized that incident as isolated. Nevertheless, it serves as a reminder to some Saudis of what could happen if those in charge of development do not heed religious sensitivities.
In an apparent attempt to prevent a recurrence, King Khalid holds frequent consultations with Saudi religious leaders.The religious police strictly enforce laws banning the consumption of liquor and force shops to close during the prayer hours.
Another source of internal tension in Gulf countries that could affect their stability is the large number of foreign nationals who live in them. In Saudi Arabia, for instance, there are more than two million such workers, out of a population of 7.5 million.
In Kuwait, there are 300,000 Palestinians, representing a third of the total population. How much of a danger are the Palestinians? One view is that they are an ever-present pool of manpower available to Palestinian extremists for possible moves to damage oilfields. But Western diplomats here say that many Palestinians have benefited too much from the general economic boom in the Gulf to engage in radical activities.
"Something's Gone Wrong Again" by the Bloodhound Gang
Tried to find my sock
No good it's lost
Something's gone wrong again
Need a shave
Cut myself need a new blade
Something's gone wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something's gone wrong again
Something's gone wrong again
Tried to fry an egg
Broke the yolk no joke
Something's gone wrong again
Look at my watch just to tell the time
But the hand's come off mine
Something's gone wrong again
Something's gone wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something's gone wrong again
Something's gone wrong again
Nothing ever happens to people like us
'Cept we miss the bus
Something goes wrong again
Need a smoke use my last 50p
But the machine is broke
Something's gone wrong again
Something goes wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Nothing ever happens to people like us
'Cept we miss the bus
Something goes wrong again
Need a smoke use my last 50p
But the machine is broke
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Turn up early in time for our date
But then you turn up late
Something goes wrong again
Need a drink go to the pub
But the bugger's shut
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something goes wrong again
Ah something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
No good it's lost
Something's gone wrong again
Need a shave
Cut myself need a new blade
Something's gone wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something's gone wrong again
Something's gone wrong again
Tried to fry an egg
Broke the yolk no joke
Something's gone wrong again
Look at my watch just to tell the time
But the hand's come off mine
Something's gone wrong again
Something's gone wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something's gone wrong again
Something's gone wrong again
Nothing ever happens to people like us
'Cept we miss the bus
Something goes wrong again
Need a smoke use my last 50p
But the machine is broke
Something's gone wrong again
Something goes wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Nothing ever happens to people like us
'Cept we miss the bus
Something goes wrong again
Need a smoke use my last 50p
But the machine is broke
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Turn up early in time for our date
But then you turn up late
Something goes wrong again
Need a drink go to the pub
But the bugger's shut
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
And again and again and again again and
Something goes wrong again
Ah something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Something goes wrong again
Happy St. Patrick's Day
I am confortable tonight at "The Connection" in Wilmington, North Carolina with a Chia Latte and a sprig of shamrock. The band doesn't start until 9PM.
So, for all the peace activists tonight I thought I'd take a meander through history. Validate our purpose in all this, while finding the root cause of the misuse of our democracy. This should not happen to the USA again.
I am confortable tonight at "The Connection" in Wilmington, North Carolina with a Chia Latte and a sprig of shamrock. The band doesn't start until 9PM.
So, for all the peace activists tonight I thought I'd take a meander through history. Validate our purpose in all this, while finding the root cause of the misuse of our democracy. This should not happen to the USA again.
Madagascar: Food Insecurity Rises in Aftermath of Cyclone Indlala
Tropical Cyclone Indlala (click on)
On March 14, 2007, storm-weary Madagascar braced for its fourth land-falling tropical cyclone in as many months. Cyclone Indlala was hovering off the island’s northeast coast when the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this photo-like image at 1:40 p.m. local time (10:40 UTC). Just over a hundred kilometers offshore, the partially cloudy eye at the heart of the storm seems like a vast drain sucking in a disk of swirling clouds.
According to reports from the Joint Typhoon Warning Center issued less than three hours after MODIS captured this image, Indlala had winds of 115 knots (132 miles per hour), with gusts up to 140 knots (161 mph). Wave heights were estimated to be 36 feet. At the time of the report, the storm was predicted to intensify through the subsequent 12-hour period, to turn slightly southwest, and to strike eastern Madagascar as a Category 4 storm with sustained winds up to 125 knots (144 mph), and gusts up to 150 knots (173 mph).
According to Reuters AlertNet news service, Madagascar’s emergency response resources were taxed to their limit in early March 2007 as a result of extensive flooding in the North, drought and food shortages in the South, and three previous hits from cyclones in the preceding few months:
Bondo in December 2006
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14052
Clovis in January 2007
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14055
Gamede in February
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=14145
Morning Papers
Newsline: Wrestling with Lent: A Brethren reflection on Iraq war
…"As I wrestled with Lent, I did what I do whenever I tackle an issue here at the Brethren Witness/Washington Office: I researched what the Church of the Brethren has said in the past about this issue. A quick look, although not exhaustive, did not uncover any real directive from Brethren policy.
"But I did find something very interesting from the minutes of the 1851 Annual Meeting: 'Considered, inasmuch as the gospel teaches us to fast and pray, to always pray, and never faint; and the Great Teacher says, a certain species of evil spirits cannot be cast out but by fasting and prayer, we hope that every Christian shepherd will teach (their) flock to pray and fast oftener than once a year as we do not know the time when the one that goeth about as a roaring lion may tempt or deceive us.'
"I knew I could count on the historical record. This gets me going. Pray and fast and watch for the roaring lion.
"I wrestle with Lent because I am afraid we have done too much reflecting already and not enough lion-hunting. We have had 300 years of reflection about who we are as a peace church; our continued prayers and reflection about how we live this out are imperative. Spend your Lenten season doing that, but wrestle with Lent as well. Do not just pray and reflect, but act.
"On the 17th day of Lent this year, you will have an excellent opportunity. Pray and fast and reflect and discern--and come and join us. It is time to name the lion and demand that the violence of this war in Iraq come to an end.
"Thousands of Christians from across the country will worship together to mark the fourth anniversary of the Iraq War. This Christian Peace Witness for Iraq, organized by a broad cross-section of denominational peace groups and organizations, is expected to be the largest peace gathering of Christians expressing opposition to the war since it began four years ago.
"Prominent religious leaders and peace activists including Jim Wallis, Celeste Zappala, and Bernice Powell Jackson will speak at a worship service at 7 p.m. at the National Cathedral. Then thousands of Christians will make a two-mile, candlelit procession to the White House, where a solemn, prayerful vigil will dramatize the Christian call for peace in Iraq. Following the vigil, hundreds of participants including many clergy will encircle the White House with a band of candlelight to express their conviction that the teachings of Jesus call unequivocally for an end to the war. Many will choose to participate in an act of nonviolence, risking arrest as a witness to their passion for bringing an end to the war.
"'We will...send a message to our leaders and the world that peace and reconciliation stand at the very heart of the Christian message and our respective traditions,' said Rick Ufford-Chase, convener of the national steering committee for the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq.
"Join in this season of Lent. Wrestle with the challenges of our faith. Pray and reflect and seek God's direction. Come and give witness in the nation's capital or in your own community. Say you are sorry for the culture of violence in our nation, and really mean it. Live out the teachings of Jesus, who came out of his 40 days with a roar of his own."…
http://www.wfn.org/2007/03/msg00247.html
Peace march recognizes start of war
Patriots for Peace, will hold a peace march this afternoon marking the anniversary of the start of the Iraq war for the fourth consecutive year.
Organizers Jeff Nall and Vicki Impoco expect the event to be the most successful peace march since 400-500 attended pre-war protests based on the interest generated by the event. The event is being held in solidarity with the National March On The Pentagon in Washington, D.C.
Participants will gather at the ‘Peace Corner’ located at 1700 West New Haven Ave, the northeast corner of U.S. 192 and Evans blvd. The march will begin shortly after 4 pm.
http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070317/BREAKINGNEWS/70317008/1086
Religious 'Peace' March Tonight Fails to Connect With Reality
WASHINGTON, Mar. 16 /Christian Newswire/ -- Several thousand activists are expected to protest the U.S. military presence in Iraq during a march on the White House tonight. "Christian Peace Witness for Iraq," organized by numerous religious left groups, including Sojourners/Call to Renewal and the National Council of Churches, seeks an immediate U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and calls upon the U.S. to "stop threatening other nations and Iran." Following an ecumenical service at the National Cathedral and a march to the White House, several hundred of the protesters will perform acts of civil disobedience and risk arrest, which they term "divine obedience."
Mark Tooley, IRD's UM Action Director, commented:
"It is important to note that the march's organizers are not merely opposing U.S. involvement in Iraq. In their promotional literature they advocate 'the principles of pacifism upon which Jesus based his life and ministry.' Quite simply, these groups oppose U.S. military action of any kind, no matter what the circumstances. This is a pacifist rally and an anti-U.S. rally, not an anti-Iraq War rally."
http://peacejournalism.com/ReadArticle.asp?ArticleID=17707
Peace march to converge in downtown area Saturday
Rally seeks local initiatives toward Bush impeachment
From Journal staff reports
ITHACA — A major peace march is planned for Ithaca and the surrounding area Saturday, two days before the fourth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war.
“Tompkins County Marches for Peace” parallels a national march at the Pentagon, also on Saturday, and a peace march in New York City on Sunday.
http://www.theithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?
AID=/20070316/NEWS01/703160347/1002
Thousands of Christians protest Iraq war
By Sarah Karush / Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Thousands of Christians prayed for peace at an anti-war service Friday night at the Washington National Cathedral, kicking off a weekend of protests around the country to mark the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq.
Afterward, participants marched with battery-operated faux candles through snow and wind toward the White House, where police began arresting protesters shortly before midnight. Protest guidelines require demonstrators to continue moving while on the White House sidewalk.
"We gave them three warnings, and they broke the guidelines," said Lt. Scott Fear. "There's an area on the White House sidewalk where you have to keep moving."
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9427
Peace march, rally to be held Saturday
BY PAUL FATTIG
MAIL TRIBUNE
A peace march and anti-war rally will be held Saturday in Medford.
Organized by Citizens for Peace & Justice, the event is intended to raise awareness about the human and financial cost of the war in Iraq, which began four years ago, on March 19, 2003.
A demonstration against the war is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. Saturday at the corner of Barnett Road and Riverside Avenue, followed by a noon march west on Central Avenue to Medford's Central Library, where members of the Rogue Valley Peace Choir will sing in support of the rally.
In addition to calling for removing U.S. troops, the theme is "fund books not bombs."
http://www.mailtribune.com/archive/2007/0316/local/stories/antiwarrally.htm
March 17th, 2007 1:25 am
U.S.: 2 more soldiers killed in Iraq
Associated Press
BAGHDAD - A U.S. soldier was killed by an explosion during fighting northwest of Baghdad, while a Marine died in a non-combat incident, the military said Friday.
The Task Force Lightning soldier died and another was wounded Thursday in an attack while they were conducting combat operations in Salahuddin, a mainly Sunni province, according to a statement.
A Marine assigned to Multinational Force — West died Wednesday in a non-combat related incident in Anbar province, a Sunni insurgent stronghold west of the capital, the military said separately. The incident is currently under investigation.
Identities were not released pending notification of relatives.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9426
DEMONSTRATION
At march, join movement for peace at home
By Dwight Fee
Michelle Malkin's column of Feb. 17 paints a grossly distorted and vicious description of the pro-peace vigils and demonstrations that are arising across America. Having attended the peace march in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 27, I saw none of the behaviors she attributes to those who call for an end to militarism in our national policy. My clearest memory is of whole families walking hand-in-hand.
One of the key organizers of the upcoming pro-peace gathering Friday in Washington, D.C., and across the country is the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq.
Please share the following invitation to balance the "invitation" made by Malkin's angry column. Note especially the partners involved with the peace demonstration. These are the kinds of folks I saw in D.C. in January.
As followers of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, our faith compels us to make our voice heard - to repent of our complicity with the invasion and occupation of Iraq and renew our commitment to peacemaking.
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/myrtlebeachonline/news/local/16906578.htm
March 17th, 2007 1:53 am
Waxahachie vet, wife using heart to battle brain injury
Disorder from mortar blast has family in daily struggle
By J. Louise Larson / Dallas Morning News
WAXAHACHIE – Army Spc. Jason McCully was one month away from walking out of Iraq healthy when an insurgent's mortar changed all that.
Army Spc. Jason McCully suffers from frequent seizures as a result of wounds he received in Iraq. His wife, Marirose, quit her job to stay home and take care of him.
Spc. McCully, 33, was in his 11th month of deployment as a forward observer in Ramadi, west of Baghdad, when a mortar landed 10 meters away from him.
"We were in the wild West, man," the Waxahachie native said.
The Humvee in front of him bore the brunt of the impact, but Spc. McCully was knocked out and sustained a closed head-injury that wasn't immediately detected.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9428
Interfaith rally protests war
BY JILLIAN DALEY
Statesman Journal
March 17, 2007
A Vietnam veteran stood on the Marion Street Bridge on Friday holding a sign saying "Peace is Patriotic."
"War has never solved anything," said John Roy Wilson, who served for 399 days as a medic in a mobile U.S. Army hospital. "War is the most idiotic human behavior. It's horror beyond horror."
A crowd of about 50 people lined the pedestrian walkway on the bridge Friday, holding anti-war signs in anticipation of the March 20 fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq.
The Salem Fellowship of Reconciliation held a Christian/Interfaith Peace Witness for Iraq at the same time as one in Washington, D.C., and many more across the country, said Janet Brown, the Salem event organizer.
"It is a peace witnessing: To witness means you're visible publicly; it means you don't keep quiet; you don't keep still, but that you stand up and speak," Brown said.
What happens in Iraq is draining U.S. resources that could be spent on programs for children and health care, she said.
Fellowship member Kathy Campbell-Barton said the rising death toll, more than 3,200 soldiers, aggrieves her. "My heart's so broke that everybody's dying," she said.
jbdaley@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6714
http://159.54.226.83/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070317/NEWS/703170326/1001
Peace advocates must post $1 million bond for march
By ERIN SNELGROVE
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC
Members of a local peace group say they'll risk possible arrests and fines today by refusing to take out $1 million in liability insurance being demanded by the city of Union Gap.
Members of the Yakima Valley Peace Advocates Network, who plan to hold a protest marking the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, call the insurance requirement unfair.
The group held a similar protest three years ago and wasn't required to get insurance, nor was a gay rights group when it held a demonstration a few years ago, according to Larry Breer, a member of the group.
"If 125 people decide to have a picnic in the park, would the city make them put up a $1 million bond?" he said. "We think that's ridiculous."
Breer said his group -- comprised of 30 core members -- informed Union Gap last week it would be holding a peaceful demonstration starting at Cahalan Park and walking on sidewalks to the Valley Mall Boulevard area.
http://www.yakima-herald.com/page/dis/341645084183986
"I want you to be clear here: Don't be dropping it at the president's door." -- Tony Snow
March 17th, 2007 2:16 am
Republican support for Gonzales erodes
By Laurie Kellman / Associated Press
WASHINGTON - The White House dropped its contention Friday that former Counsel Harriet Miers first raised the idea of firing U.S. attorneys, blaming "hazy memories" as e-mails shed new light on Karl Rove's role. Support eroded further for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
Presidential press secretary Tony Snow previously had asserted Miers was the person who came up with the idea, but he said Friday, "I don't want to try to vouch for origination." He said, "At this juncture, people have hazy memories."
The White House also said it needed more time before deciding whether Miers, political strategist Rove and other presidential advisers would testify before Congress and whether the White House would release documents to lawmakers.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9429
Peace Marchers say City of Union Gap Infringing on 1st Amendment Rights
Union Gap, WA - The Yakima Valley peace advocates network says Union Gap city officials are infringing on their first amendment rights.
Marchers were originally supposed to gather at Cahalan Park in Union Gap for a peace march tomorrow afternoon, but now the city is saying they need to take out one million dollars in liability insurance to do that.
The group still plans to meet at Cahalan Park, but they'll meet on the sidewalk if they have to.
They have planned a two mile peace march through Union Gap and Yakima to protest the fourth anniversary of the Iraq War.
http://www.kndo.com/Global/story.asp?S=6240049&nav=menu484_2_10
Christians Gather in D.C. to Protest War
By SARAH KARUSH
Saturday, March 17, 2007 10:44 AM EDT
WASHINGTON - Thousands of Christians prayed for peace at an anti-war service Friday night at the Washington National Cathedral, kicking off a weekend of protests around the country to mark the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq.
Afterward, participants marched with battery-operated faux candles through snow and wind toward the White House, where police began arresting protesters shortly before midnight. Protest guidelines require demonstrators to continue moving while on the White House sidewalk.
"We gave them three warnings, and they broke the guidelines," said Lt. Scott Fear. "There's an area on the White House sidewalk where you have to keep moving."
About 100 people crossed the street from Lafayette Park _ where thousands of protesters were gathered _ to demonstrate on the White House sidewalk late Friday. Police began cuffing them and putting them on buses to be taken for processing.
http://www.auburnpub.com/articles/2007/03/17/ap/headlines/d8ntv5vo0.txt
Ramsey Clark?s Just a Peace Marcher
Tomorrow, according to organizers, tens of thousands of demonstrators protesting the war in Iraq will march on the Pentagon in what they are billing as “the 40th anniversary of the historic 1967 march to the Pentagon."…
Ramsey Clark, who as attorney general for President Lyndon Johnson helped oversee the administration’s preparations for the march, said that day shifted the ground under the government. “From that moment, I got the feeling that we’d reached a turning point in the commitment of many people to ending the war in Vietnam,” Clark said in an interview this week.
Whether today’s feelings match those of 40 years ago is another question. Clark will be among the speakers tomorrow. “I can’t tell you that we have the depth of passion or breadth of commitment today that we had then,” Clark said.
http://www.kxma.com/getARticle.asp?ArticleId=105070
3209 U.S. MILITARY DEATHS IN IRAQ
March 17, 2007, 12:58 pm
source: antiwar.com
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/deaths.php
Peace coalition plans march, tree planting
Published Friday, March 16, 2007
The Columbia Peace Coalition will have a rally and march Sunday afternoon at the Boone County Courthouse Square.
The event - dubbed "Peace is Growing!" - will mark the fourth anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq and will call for an end to violence, for no attack on Iran and for directing resources toward healing and rebuilding.
Organizers said they hope at least 500 people will participate. According to a news release from the coalition, 424 people had signed up to participate as of Wednesday.
Mark Haim, a member of the peace coalition, said he expects the event to be the largest peace rally in Columbia since U.S. troops entered Iraq in 2003.
The rally will begin at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Maureen Dickmann of Rock Bridge Christian Church and John Betz, a Vietnam War veteran and member of Veterans for Peace, speaking. At 2:30 p.m., participants will march through downtown to Douglass Park, where a tree will be planted to symbolize peace.
http://www.columbiatribune.com/2007/Mar/20070316News013.asp
23785 U.S. MILITARY WOUNDED IN IRAQ
March 17, 2007, 1:00 pm
source: antiwar.com
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/wounded.php
THIS PAGE REPRESENTS 26,200 OF THE 655,000 'EXCESS' IRAQI DEATHS SINCE WAR BEGAN
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/iraqi_deaths.php?page=25
Worldwide protests mark Iraq war
A series of anti-war demonstrations are under way, with protests scheduled in countries including the United States, Canada, Australia and Britain ahead of the fourth anniversary of the US-led war in Iraq.
Thousands of people are expected to converge on the centre of the US capital on Saturday and march on the Pentagon, organisers said.
The protests are timed to coincide with the fourth anniversary on Tuesday of the Iraq war, which has claimed at least 70,000 civilian lives and nearly 10,000 lives of soldiers and police officers from Iraq, the US and eight coalition countries.
The US military said on Friday it was sending some 2,600 soldiers to Iraq earlier than planned, raising the number of extra US troops being deployed, in a new effort to stabilise the country,to nearly 30,000.
Australia protest
Around 500 protesters marched through Sydney on Saturday to mark the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.
Similar rallies were held in cities around Australia.
http://mwcnews.net/content/view/13285&Itemid=1
Protest march passes peacefully
A march through Brighton city centre by campaigners defending the right to protest has passed peacefully.
Sussex Police said about 40 people took part, with one man being arrested for obstructing the highway.
The demonstration was organised by Sussex Action for Peace, which claims officers have been over-zealous in policing at other local demonstrations.
"We actively support the rights of individuals and groups to protest lawfully," said Supt Graham Bartlett.
"But we will always balance this support with ensuring that people who are not connected with the protest can go about their lawful business."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/sussex/6462589.stm
The headline in the January 8 issue of "Army Times" was stark:
"About Face On The War. After Three Years of Support, Troops Sour on Iraq."
It's not the first such declaration. Almost a year ago, a Zogby poll published by the military paper "Stars & Stripes" reported that more than seventy per cent of the troops on the ground wanted the U.S. to be out of Iraq within a year. More than twenty per cent wanted to be out of there tomorrow.
This year, on March 17, when the annual peace march and rally take place in Fayetteville, we will gather in an atmosphere very different from that of earlier years.
On this fourth anniversary of the Iraq invasion, only a small and diminishing minority even of those in uniform believe that the war is anything but a travesty and a waste of our blood and treasure.
Yet these same troops and their families now face a stupid and cynical "surge," that is gambling their lives and the lives of their loved ones for nothing more than an effort by a twisted leadership to avoid facing the truth of the fiasco that their war has been.
More than a thousand active duty soldiers and sailors have signed an Appeal for Redress, asking Congress to end the war and bring them home.
It is difficult and dangerous for those in uniform to speak their opposition openly in public. On March 17, let's gather in Fayetteville to add our voices to their chorus: End this war Bring Us Home!
This will be the fourth time voices for peace have gathered in Fayetteville to demand an end to this immoral war. But on March 17, 2007, we won't be speaking TO the troops this time we'll be saying it WITH them.
http://fayetteville-peace-rally.org/labels/FrontPage.php
…"As I wrestled with Lent, I did what I do whenever I tackle an issue here at the Brethren Witness/Washington Office: I researched what the Church of the Brethren has said in the past about this issue. A quick look, although not exhaustive, did not uncover any real directive from Brethren policy.
"But I did find something very interesting from the minutes of the 1851 Annual Meeting: 'Considered, inasmuch as the gospel teaches us to fast and pray, to always pray, and never faint; and the Great Teacher says, a certain species of evil spirits cannot be cast out but by fasting and prayer, we hope that every Christian shepherd will teach (their) flock to pray and fast oftener than once a year as we do not know the time when the one that goeth about as a roaring lion may tempt or deceive us.'
"I knew I could count on the historical record. This gets me going. Pray and fast and watch for the roaring lion.
"I wrestle with Lent because I am afraid we have done too much reflecting already and not enough lion-hunting. We have had 300 years of reflection about who we are as a peace church; our continued prayers and reflection about how we live this out are imperative. Spend your Lenten season doing that, but wrestle with Lent as well. Do not just pray and reflect, but act.
"On the 17th day of Lent this year, you will have an excellent opportunity. Pray and fast and reflect and discern--and come and join us. It is time to name the lion and demand that the violence of this war in Iraq come to an end.
"Thousands of Christians from across the country will worship together to mark the fourth anniversary of the Iraq War. This Christian Peace Witness for Iraq, organized by a broad cross-section of denominational peace groups and organizations, is expected to be the largest peace gathering of Christians expressing opposition to the war since it began four years ago.
"Prominent religious leaders and peace activists including Jim Wallis, Celeste Zappala, and Bernice Powell Jackson will speak at a worship service at 7 p.m. at the National Cathedral. Then thousands of Christians will make a two-mile, candlelit procession to the White House, where a solemn, prayerful vigil will dramatize the Christian call for peace in Iraq. Following the vigil, hundreds of participants including many clergy will encircle the White House with a band of candlelight to express their conviction that the teachings of Jesus call unequivocally for an end to the war. Many will choose to participate in an act of nonviolence, risking arrest as a witness to their passion for bringing an end to the war.
"'We will...send a message to our leaders and the world that peace and reconciliation stand at the very heart of the Christian message and our respective traditions,' said Rick Ufford-Chase, convener of the national steering committee for the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq.
"Join in this season of Lent. Wrestle with the challenges of our faith. Pray and reflect and seek God's direction. Come and give witness in the nation's capital or in your own community. Say you are sorry for the culture of violence in our nation, and really mean it. Live out the teachings of Jesus, who came out of his 40 days with a roar of his own."…
http://www.wfn.org/2007/03/msg00247.html
Peace march recognizes start of war
Patriots for Peace, will hold a peace march this afternoon marking the anniversary of the start of the Iraq war for the fourth consecutive year.
Organizers Jeff Nall and Vicki Impoco expect the event to be the most successful peace march since 400-500 attended pre-war protests based on the interest generated by the event. The event is being held in solidarity with the National March On The Pentagon in Washington, D.C.
Participants will gather at the ‘Peace Corner’ located at 1700 West New Haven Ave, the northeast corner of U.S. 192 and Evans blvd. The march will begin shortly after 4 pm.
http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070317/BREAKINGNEWS/70317008/1086
Religious 'Peace' March Tonight Fails to Connect With Reality
WASHINGTON, Mar. 16 /Christian Newswire/ -- Several thousand activists are expected to protest the U.S. military presence in Iraq during a march on the White House tonight. "Christian Peace Witness for Iraq," organized by numerous religious left groups, including Sojourners/Call to Renewal and the National Council of Churches, seeks an immediate U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and calls upon the U.S. to "stop threatening other nations and Iran." Following an ecumenical service at the National Cathedral and a march to the White House, several hundred of the protesters will perform acts of civil disobedience and risk arrest, which they term "divine obedience."
Mark Tooley, IRD's UM Action Director, commented:
"It is important to note that the march's organizers are not merely opposing U.S. involvement in Iraq. In their promotional literature they advocate 'the principles of pacifism upon which Jesus based his life and ministry.' Quite simply, these groups oppose U.S. military action of any kind, no matter what the circumstances. This is a pacifist rally and an anti-U.S. rally, not an anti-Iraq War rally."
http://peacejournalism.com/ReadArticle.asp?ArticleID=17707
Peace march to converge in downtown area Saturday
Rally seeks local initiatives toward Bush impeachment
From Journal staff reports
ITHACA — A major peace march is planned for Ithaca and the surrounding area Saturday, two days before the fourth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war.
“Tompkins County Marches for Peace” parallels a national march at the Pentagon, also on Saturday, and a peace march in New York City on Sunday.
http://www.theithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?
AID=/20070316/NEWS01/703160347/1002
Thousands of Christians protest Iraq war
By Sarah Karush / Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Thousands of Christians prayed for peace at an anti-war service Friday night at the Washington National Cathedral, kicking off a weekend of protests around the country to mark the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq.
Afterward, participants marched with battery-operated faux candles through snow and wind toward the White House, where police began arresting protesters shortly before midnight. Protest guidelines require demonstrators to continue moving while on the White House sidewalk.
"We gave them three warnings, and they broke the guidelines," said Lt. Scott Fear. "There's an area on the White House sidewalk where you have to keep moving."
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9427
Peace march, rally to be held Saturday
BY PAUL FATTIG
MAIL TRIBUNE
A peace march and anti-war rally will be held Saturday in Medford.
Organized by Citizens for Peace & Justice, the event is intended to raise awareness about the human and financial cost of the war in Iraq, which began four years ago, on March 19, 2003.
A demonstration against the war is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. Saturday at the corner of Barnett Road and Riverside Avenue, followed by a noon march west on Central Avenue to Medford's Central Library, where members of the Rogue Valley Peace Choir will sing in support of the rally.
In addition to calling for removing U.S. troops, the theme is "fund books not bombs."
http://www.mailtribune.com/archive/2007/0316/local/stories/antiwarrally.htm
March 17th, 2007 1:25 am
U.S.: 2 more soldiers killed in Iraq
Associated Press
BAGHDAD - A U.S. soldier was killed by an explosion during fighting northwest of Baghdad, while a Marine died in a non-combat incident, the military said Friday.
The Task Force Lightning soldier died and another was wounded Thursday in an attack while they were conducting combat operations in Salahuddin, a mainly Sunni province, according to a statement.
A Marine assigned to Multinational Force — West died Wednesday in a non-combat related incident in Anbar province, a Sunni insurgent stronghold west of the capital, the military said separately. The incident is currently under investigation.
Identities were not released pending notification of relatives.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9426
DEMONSTRATION
At march, join movement for peace at home
By Dwight Fee
Michelle Malkin's column of Feb. 17 paints a grossly distorted and vicious description of the pro-peace vigils and demonstrations that are arising across America. Having attended the peace march in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 27, I saw none of the behaviors she attributes to those who call for an end to militarism in our national policy. My clearest memory is of whole families walking hand-in-hand.
One of the key organizers of the upcoming pro-peace gathering Friday in Washington, D.C., and across the country is the Christian Peace Witness for Iraq.
Please share the following invitation to balance the "invitation" made by Malkin's angry column. Note especially the partners involved with the peace demonstration. These are the kinds of folks I saw in D.C. in January.
As followers of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, our faith compels us to make our voice heard - to repent of our complicity with the invasion and occupation of Iraq and renew our commitment to peacemaking.
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/myrtlebeachonline/news/local/16906578.htm
March 17th, 2007 1:53 am
Waxahachie vet, wife using heart to battle brain injury
Disorder from mortar blast has family in daily struggle
By J. Louise Larson / Dallas Morning News
WAXAHACHIE – Army Spc. Jason McCully was one month away from walking out of Iraq healthy when an insurgent's mortar changed all that.
Army Spc. Jason McCully suffers from frequent seizures as a result of wounds he received in Iraq. His wife, Marirose, quit her job to stay home and take care of him.
Spc. McCully, 33, was in his 11th month of deployment as a forward observer in Ramadi, west of Baghdad, when a mortar landed 10 meters away from him.
"We were in the wild West, man," the Waxahachie native said.
The Humvee in front of him bore the brunt of the impact, but Spc. McCully was knocked out and sustained a closed head-injury that wasn't immediately detected.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9428
Interfaith rally protests war
BY JILLIAN DALEY
Statesman Journal
March 17, 2007
A Vietnam veteran stood on the Marion Street Bridge on Friday holding a sign saying "Peace is Patriotic."
"War has never solved anything," said John Roy Wilson, who served for 399 days as a medic in a mobile U.S. Army hospital. "War is the most idiotic human behavior. It's horror beyond horror."
A crowd of about 50 people lined the pedestrian walkway on the bridge Friday, holding anti-war signs in anticipation of the March 20 fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq.
The Salem Fellowship of Reconciliation held a Christian/Interfaith Peace Witness for Iraq at the same time as one in Washington, D.C., and many more across the country, said Janet Brown, the Salem event organizer.
"It is a peace witnessing: To witness means you're visible publicly; it means you don't keep quiet; you don't keep still, but that you stand up and speak," Brown said.
What happens in Iraq is draining U.S. resources that could be spent on programs for children and health care, she said.
Fellowship member Kathy Campbell-Barton said the rising death toll, more than 3,200 soldiers, aggrieves her. "My heart's so broke that everybody's dying," she said.
jbdaley@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6714
http://159.54.226.83/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070317/NEWS/703170326/1001
Peace advocates must post $1 million bond for march
By ERIN SNELGROVE
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC
Members of a local peace group say they'll risk possible arrests and fines today by refusing to take out $1 million in liability insurance being demanded by the city of Union Gap.
Members of the Yakima Valley Peace Advocates Network, who plan to hold a protest marking the fourth anniversary of the Iraq war, call the insurance requirement unfair.
The group held a similar protest three years ago and wasn't required to get insurance, nor was a gay rights group when it held a demonstration a few years ago, according to Larry Breer, a member of the group.
"If 125 people decide to have a picnic in the park, would the city make them put up a $1 million bond?" he said. "We think that's ridiculous."
Breer said his group -- comprised of 30 core members -- informed Union Gap last week it would be holding a peaceful demonstration starting at Cahalan Park and walking on sidewalks to the Valley Mall Boulevard area.
http://www.yakima-herald.com/page/dis/341645084183986
"I want you to be clear here: Don't be dropping it at the president's door." -- Tony Snow
March 17th, 2007 2:16 am
Republican support for Gonzales erodes
By Laurie Kellman / Associated Press
WASHINGTON - The White House dropped its contention Friday that former Counsel Harriet Miers first raised the idea of firing U.S. attorneys, blaming "hazy memories" as e-mails shed new light on Karl Rove's role. Support eroded further for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
Presidential press secretary Tony Snow previously had asserted Miers was the person who came up with the idea, but he said Friday, "I don't want to try to vouch for origination." He said, "At this juncture, people have hazy memories."
The White House also said it needed more time before deciding whether Miers, political strategist Rove and other presidential advisers would testify before Congress and whether the White House would release documents to lawmakers.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9429
Peace Marchers say City of Union Gap Infringing on 1st Amendment Rights
Union Gap, WA - The Yakima Valley peace advocates network says Union Gap city officials are infringing on their first amendment rights.
Marchers were originally supposed to gather at Cahalan Park in Union Gap for a peace march tomorrow afternoon, but now the city is saying they need to take out one million dollars in liability insurance to do that.
The group still plans to meet at Cahalan Park, but they'll meet on the sidewalk if they have to.
They have planned a two mile peace march through Union Gap and Yakima to protest the fourth anniversary of the Iraq War.
http://www.kndo.com/Global/story.asp?S=6240049&nav=menu484_2_10
Christians Gather in D.C. to Protest War
By SARAH KARUSH
Saturday, March 17, 2007 10:44 AM EDT
WASHINGTON - Thousands of Christians prayed for peace at an anti-war service Friday night at the Washington National Cathedral, kicking off a weekend of protests around the country to mark the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq.
Afterward, participants marched with battery-operated faux candles through snow and wind toward the White House, where police began arresting protesters shortly before midnight. Protest guidelines require demonstrators to continue moving while on the White House sidewalk.
"We gave them three warnings, and they broke the guidelines," said Lt. Scott Fear. "There's an area on the White House sidewalk where you have to keep moving."
About 100 people crossed the street from Lafayette Park _ where thousands of protesters were gathered _ to demonstrate on the White House sidewalk late Friday. Police began cuffing them and putting them on buses to be taken for processing.
http://www.auburnpub.com/articles/2007/03/17/ap/headlines/d8ntv5vo0.txt
Ramsey Clark?s Just a Peace Marcher
Tomorrow, according to organizers, tens of thousands of demonstrators protesting the war in Iraq will march on the Pentagon in what they are billing as “the 40th anniversary of the historic 1967 march to the Pentagon."…
Ramsey Clark, who as attorney general for President Lyndon Johnson helped oversee the administration’s preparations for the march, said that day shifted the ground under the government. “From that moment, I got the feeling that we’d reached a turning point in the commitment of many people to ending the war in Vietnam,” Clark said in an interview this week.
Whether today’s feelings match those of 40 years ago is another question. Clark will be among the speakers tomorrow. “I can’t tell you that we have the depth of passion or breadth of commitment today that we had then,” Clark said.
http://www.kxma.com/getARticle.asp?ArticleId=105070
3209 U.S. MILITARY DEATHS IN IRAQ
March 17, 2007, 12:58 pm
source: antiwar.com
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/deaths.php
Peace coalition plans march, tree planting
Published Friday, March 16, 2007
The Columbia Peace Coalition will have a rally and march Sunday afternoon at the Boone County Courthouse Square.
The event - dubbed "Peace is Growing!" - will mark the fourth anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq and will call for an end to violence, for no attack on Iran and for directing resources toward healing and rebuilding.
Organizers said they hope at least 500 people will participate. According to a news release from the coalition, 424 people had signed up to participate as of Wednesday.
Mark Haim, a member of the peace coalition, said he expects the event to be the largest peace rally in Columbia since U.S. troops entered Iraq in 2003.
The rally will begin at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Maureen Dickmann of Rock Bridge Christian Church and John Betz, a Vietnam War veteran and member of Veterans for Peace, speaking. At 2:30 p.m., participants will march through downtown to Douglass Park, where a tree will be planted to symbolize peace.
http://www.columbiatribune.com/2007/Mar/20070316News013.asp
23785 U.S. MILITARY WOUNDED IN IRAQ
March 17, 2007, 1:00 pm
source: antiwar.com
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/wounded.php
THIS PAGE REPRESENTS 26,200 OF THE 655,000 'EXCESS' IRAQI DEATHS SINCE WAR BEGAN
http://www.michaelmoore.com/takeaction/iraqi_deaths.php?page=25
Worldwide protests mark Iraq war
A series of anti-war demonstrations are under way, with protests scheduled in countries including the United States, Canada, Australia and Britain ahead of the fourth anniversary of the US-led war in Iraq.
Thousands of people are expected to converge on the centre of the US capital on Saturday and march on the Pentagon, organisers said.
The protests are timed to coincide with the fourth anniversary on Tuesday of the Iraq war, which has claimed at least 70,000 civilian lives and nearly 10,000 lives of soldiers and police officers from Iraq, the US and eight coalition countries.
The US military said on Friday it was sending some 2,600 soldiers to Iraq earlier than planned, raising the number of extra US troops being deployed, in a new effort to stabilise the country,to nearly 30,000.
Australia protest
Around 500 protesters marched through Sydney on Saturday to mark the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.
Similar rallies were held in cities around Australia.
http://mwcnews.net/content/view/13285&Itemid=1
Protest march passes peacefully
A march through Brighton city centre by campaigners defending the right to protest has passed peacefully.
Sussex Police said about 40 people took part, with one man being arrested for obstructing the highway.
The demonstration was organised by Sussex Action for Peace, which claims officers have been over-zealous in policing at other local demonstrations.
"We actively support the rights of individuals and groups to protest lawfully," said Supt Graham Bartlett.
"But we will always balance this support with ensuring that people who are not connected with the protest can go about their lawful business."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/sussex/6462589.stm
The headline in the January 8 issue of "Army Times" was stark:
"About Face On The War. After Three Years of Support, Troops Sour on Iraq."
It's not the first such declaration. Almost a year ago, a Zogby poll published by the military paper "Stars & Stripes" reported that more than seventy per cent of the troops on the ground wanted the U.S. to be out of Iraq within a year. More than twenty per cent wanted to be out of there tomorrow.
This year, on March 17, when the annual peace march and rally take place in Fayetteville, we will gather in an atmosphere very different from that of earlier years.
On this fourth anniversary of the Iraq invasion, only a small and diminishing minority even of those in uniform believe that the war is anything but a travesty and a waste of our blood and treasure.
Yet these same troops and their families now face a stupid and cynical "surge," that is gambling their lives and the lives of their loved ones for nothing more than an effort by a twisted leadership to avoid facing the truth of the fiasco that their war has been.
More than a thousand active duty soldiers and sailors have signed an Appeal for Redress, asking Congress to end the war and bring them home.
It is difficult and dangerous for those in uniform to speak their opposition openly in public. On March 17, let's gather in Fayetteville to add our voices to their chorus: End this war Bring Us Home!
This will be the fourth time voices for peace have gathered in Fayetteville to demand an end to this immoral war. But on March 17, 2007, we won't be speaking TO the troops this time we'll be saying it WITH them.
http://fayetteville-peace-rally.org/labels/FrontPage.php
St. Patrick's Day first celebrated in America in 1762
The first St. Patrick's Day parade took place in New York City in 1762, only 14 years before the Declaration of Independence. It was organized by Irish soldiers serving with the British army.
During the Potato Famine of 1845-1846, close to a million Irish immigrants fled to America to escape starvation.
But they didn't find easy acceptance here.
When Irish Americans celebrated St. Patrick's Day, newspapers portrayed them in cartoons as drunken, violent monkeys.
However, the Irish Americans refused to let prejudice defeat them. They started to organize politically, and their voting bloc, the "green machine," was influential in deciding local and national elections.
Annual St. Patrick's Day parades became must-attend events for a slew of political candidates. In 1948 President Truman attended New York City's St. Patrick's Day parade, a proud moment for the Irish.
Wearing of the green goes global
Today in Ireland, the traditional religious observances are accompanied by events designed to attract tourism. Last year close to one million people took part in the St. Patrick's Festival in Dublin, a multi-day celebration featuring parades, concerts, outdoor theater productions, and fireworks shows.
St. Patrick's Day is celebrated by people of all backgrounds in the United States, Canada, and Australia.
Although North America is home to the largest events, St. Patrick's Day has been celebrated in other locations far from Ireland, including Japan, Singapore, and Russia.
St. Patrick’s Day Parade
2007 New York City Saint Patrick's Day Parade
http://www.saintpatricksdayparade.com/NYC/newyorkcity.htm
Pictures of 2006 Parade – there are three sets of really great photos
http://flickr.com/photos/saintpatricksdayparade/sets/72057594084708152/show/
Chicago St. Patrick’s Day Parade
http://www.chicagostpatsparade.com/
Chicago in the past has turned the river green. Every indication it will happen again this year.
http://www.chicagostpatsparade.com/river-dye.html
Washington, DC Parade
http://www.dcstpatsparade.com/
Philadelphia’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade
http://www.philadelphiastpatsparade.com/
The Irish Congress of Southern California and Guinness
are proud to present:
The 27th Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade
http://www.stpatsparade.org/
Welcome to the Bellco Denver Saint Patrick's Day Parade
Saturday, March 17th, Lower Downtown Denver
http://denverstpatricksdayparade.org/
The Irish Heritage Club of Seattle
ST. PATRICK'S DAY PARADE,
SEATTLE, WA
12:30 PM, SATURDAY, MARCH 17, 2007
starting from 4th Ave at Jefferson in downtown Seattle.
http://www.irishclub.org/parade.htm
N’ Orleans
St. Patrick's Day is celebrated in New Orleans and its suburb in the form of another parade! It's the perfect season for another celebration ... after all, ....it's New Orleans, and we love to parade!
http://www.experienceneworleans.com/stpat.html
2007 New York City Saint Patrick's Day Parade
http://www.saintpatricksdayparade.com/NYC/newyorkcity.htm
Pictures of 2006 Parade – there are three sets of really great photos
http://flickr.com/photos/saintpatricksdayparade/sets/72057594084708152/show/
Chicago St. Patrick’s Day Parade
http://www.chicagostpatsparade.com/
Chicago in the past has turned the river green. Every indication it will happen again this year.
http://www.chicagostpatsparade.com/river-dye.html
Washington, DC Parade
http://www.dcstpatsparade.com/
Philadelphia’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade
http://www.philadelphiastpatsparade.com/
The Irish Congress of Southern California and Guinness
are proud to present:
The 27th Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade
http://www.stpatsparade.org/
Welcome to the Bellco Denver Saint Patrick's Day Parade
Saturday, March 17th, Lower Downtown Denver
http://denverstpatricksdayparade.org/
The Irish Heritage Club of Seattle
ST. PATRICK'S DAY PARADE,
SEATTLE, WA
12:30 PM, SATURDAY, MARCH 17, 2007
starting from 4th Ave at Jefferson in downtown Seattle.
http://www.irishclub.org/parade.htm
N’ Orleans
St. Patrick's Day is celebrated in New Orleans and its suburb in the form of another parade! It's the perfect season for another celebration ... after all, ....it's New Orleans, and we love to parade!
http://www.experienceneworleans.com/stpat.html
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