WE


DON'T


BELONG


IN


IRAQ !!!!


It's a matter of "the truth."

The Shia have a right to exist. They'll make their stand through war or peace, the choice is The Wests.

My views will never change. They are etched in the sandstone of the past in knowing the neglect of Western policy to deal equitably and treat all the ethnicities in esteem. The West created the crisis for the Shia and 'allowed' the radicalization. Now. They want to exploit it for more war and more killing and genocide the Shia in the name of ending violence.


Iran is a 'representative' homeland for the Shia, however, the true homeland for them is in southern Iraq. The Arab community of the Middle East is coming to terms with some of this reality by refusing to recognize 'the enemy' as the entire country of Iran, nor any of it's entities.

Iran should not be allowed to have nuclear weapons, but, neither should any other country including India and Pakistan under the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Currently, the only country recognizing the brevity of that treaty is Putin's Russia, which is attempting to create a voluntary network of those that desire peaceful use of nuclear technology through the sale of nuclear fuel rods for any reactor in operation today anywhere in the world. That initiative is a generosity of a peaceful intent and not necessarily one of profit either.



This is the rhetorical hate fomented by The West (click here)


The hopes of the Shia.

Islam (Shiite). Nahjul Balagha, Khutba 141, 187 (click here)
The Imam who will create a world state will make the ruling nations pay for their crimes against society. He will bring succor to humanity. He will take out the hidden wealth from the breast of the earth and will distribute it equitably amongst the needy deserving. He will teach you simple living and high thinking. He will make you understand that virtue is a state of character which is always a mean between the two extremes, and which is based upon equity and justice. He will revive the teaching of the Holy Qur'an and the traditions of the Holy Prophet after the world has ignored them as dead letters....


...Among the most commonly heard cries for more are the calls for more Iraqi troops to replace overstrained American combat forces; or more American advisers to insure the capability and growth of Iraqi combat units; or more American troops assigned to Baghdad to win back the streets of the Iraqi capital; or more marines in al-Anbar Province to quell the rising tide of violence in that heartland of the Sunni insurgency; or more Congressional oversight to ensure that the administration is following a constructive course in the Middle East.



Even the negative proposals being raised rest on demands for more. Demands that the U.S. set a timetable for withdrawal or redeployment to non-conflict areas are explained as a way to force the Iraqi government to take more responsibility for the country's security; and calls for that government to dismantle the religious militias all involve demands that more Iraqi police be assigned to the neighborhoods where these militias operate.



The terrible problem is that all these proposals and many others that pop up daily in the media rest on the assumption that the American presence, however much it has failed, is nonetheless ameliorating intractable internal problems among the Iraqis.


This is the fundamental fallacy of the Myth of More (click here)....

This man is not an enemy of the USA. He is a precious son of Allah.

Shia cleric Moqtada Al Sadr

The longer the USA takes to leave Iraq and 'disarm' the area, the more blood will be shed and the more lives will be lost to the current genocide existing in Iraq.

64 killed in Baghdad twin blasts (click here)
Atul Aneja
DUBAI: Two bomb blasts in Baghdad on Friday killed at least 64 persons — the highest death toll since the middle of 2007 when American forces were beefed up in Iraq.
Forty-six persons were killed in an explosion caused by a woman suicide bomber in a busy animal market.
Twenty minutes later, the second explosion rocked another crowded market area of Jadida in eastern Baghdad, killing at least 18 persons and injuring around 80.
The police and medical staff piled up the dead and the injured in wheelbarrows, pick-up trucks and cars, and took them to the five main hospitals in the city. The Al Kindi hospital alone received at least 30 bodies.
The twin blasts have dented the creeping sense of normality in Iraq. Analysts point out that violence had diminished partly on account of the decision by the Mahdi militia loyal to Shia cleric Moqtada Al Sadr to observe a ceasefire against American troops in August. Some of the Sunni tribes also reportedly decided to target Al Qaeda affiliates in Iraq, thereby bringing down violence.

5 US Soldiers Killed in N. Iraq (click here)
By KIM GAMEL and QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA – 5 days ago
BAGHDAD (AP) — In a daring ambush, insurgents blasted a U.S. patrol with a roadside bomb Monday and showered survivors with gunfire from a mosque in increasingly lawless Mosul. Five American soldiers were killed in the explosion — even as Iraqi troops moved into the northern city to challenge al-Qaida in Iraq.
Iraqi reinforcements, along with helicopters, tanks and armored vehicles, converged on Mosul for what Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki pledged would be a decisive battle against al-Qaida in its last major urban stronghold.
The attack on the U.S. patrol — the deadliest on American forces since six soldiers perished Jan. 9 in a booby-trapped house north of Baghdad — raised the Pentagon's January death count to at least 36.
The toll so far is 56 percent higher than December's 23 U.S. military deaths and marks the first monthly increase since August. But the figures remain well below monthly death tolls of more than 100 last spring.
Tensions in Mosul, Iraq's third largest city, have spiked after the explosion last week in an abandoned apartment that authorities say was used to stash insurgents' weapons and bombs. As many as 60 were killed and 200 injured....

Maliki will say anything to 'close out' the deal for an American withdrawal even saying this is the last major urban stronghold of Al Qaeda in Iraq. What kind of horse manure is that? These terrorist networks aren't 'located' in single facilities whereby destruction is simply destroying same. They are roving carpetbaggers with buried munitions where ever the need arises.

Maliki wants the USA out of Iraq, no less than the American people do. The Iraqi people want to get on with their lives under their own concept of freedom and justice. As long as the Americans are in Iraq there will be war. So long as there is war there will be an al Qaeda presence in Iraq and they will seek to do exactly as they have done here. They will kill innocent people to spark the outrage necessary to escalate a war of hate and continue to indulge the 'War of the Neocons' that continues to plague idiots in Washington DC that need to simply cut off funding.

The State of the Union address of 2008 was chocked full of every rhetorical 'word' and this paragraph mimics Bush 41 rhetoric nearly completely...

...of Saddam's Iraq.

...We are also standing against the forces of extremism embodied by the regime in Tehran. Iran's rulers oppress a good and talented people. And wherever freedom advances in the Middle East, it seems the Iranian regime is there to oppose it. Iran is funding and training militia groups in Iraq, supporting Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon, and backing Hamas' efforts to undermine peace in the Holy Land. Tehran is also developing ballistic missiles of increasing range and continues to develop its capability to enrich uranium, which could be used to create a nuclear weapon. Our message to the people of Iran is clear: We have no quarrel with you, we respect your traditions and your history, and we look forward to the day when you have your freedom. Our message to the leaders of Iran is also clear: Verifiably (Reagan) suspend your nuclear enrichment, so negotiations can begin. And to rejoin the community of nations (Bush 41 said this all the time about Saddam, all the flyin' time), come clean (come clean? What kind of language is that for a President of the USA to the people of this country and the global community? That must mean that Iran is 'up to' something sinister and underhanded.) about your nuclear intentions and past actions, stop your oppression at home and cease your support for terror abroad. But above all, know this: America will confront those who threaten our troops , we will stand by our allies and we will defend our vital interests in the Persian Gulf....


Bush's 'speech' wasn't about the USA, it was about promoting an agenda of war in the Middle East that will support Republican ideology and their cronies. Just that simple. It wasn't worth listening to as a Lame Duck as he simply limped through more rhetoric than ever before in attempts to lay the ground work for McCain in 2008.


Bush never stopped being the candidate in the entire time in office long enough to be a President.

That is irrelivant to the issue at hand. The rhetoric was to 'set the stage' for an invasion into Iran. But, why would an invasion into Iran be necessary by every measurable standard of American conflict of the past? Why isn't Iran at war already with violence trickling into that country and taking over it's infrastructure?


Why? Seriously, why isn't the entire region of the Middle East so destabilized that Osama bin Laden isn't sitting on a thrown in Jordan or Egypt or Saudi Arabia? Why? Why isn't Israel already overrun by Iran? By Hezbollah? By Hamas or the Islamic Brotherhood? Why?


Because when leaders identify with sovereignty over any other issue and 'contain' threats to that sovereignty and in the Middle East sovereignty is more important than nearly any other area of the world due to the chronic threat of terrorist networks. Virulent terrorist networks. The leadership of those nations react in appropriate measures to contain the threat to their nations. They act to protect their people.


Why are the borders with every nation of Iraq so porous? Why were Bremer's promises to 'close' the borders met with failure? Why? Because. Because it's easier to allow the warring parties their 'pleasure' in a well fueled environment rich in the resources 'the war' needs than to provide other areas of the region as tinderboxes of hatred. To contain the USA military in it's overt disregard of international infrastructure and it's snobbish treatment of peace directives was to contain the Neocons intent on expanding war to all corners of the Earth.


Iran acted to protect it's people and it's sovereign in the ONLY rational manner possible and that was to 'maintain' the war in Iraq to whatever extent it needed to by supplying humanitarian aid and more than likely munitions to those that would seek the path of the Ayatollahs rather than the West's 'ideology' that would allow the destruction of their mosques and assassinations of their Holy Men.




Whatever measures Iran has exercised to date to 'contain' the USA threat of expansive war into it's borders has worked and they had a God given right to do it ! Iran's leadership has an obligation to it's people and a right to defend itself even from a war yet undeclared but attempted by American forces and otherwise that seek to destabilize it's infrastructure to allow for chaos and anarchy.



Iran has assigned itself a larger role in the world it will not turn from and that is to INSURE the existance of the Shia forever on Earth. To that end it will seek every venue of opportunity to strengthen it's military and control the economy the Shia need to survive. Iran has looked high and low to find 'it's flock' no different than Israel has post WW II and it knows where they are and will defend them covertly until the world comes to terms of it's destruction to it's Holy Land, religious lineage and the fact they have a right to Islam as much as any Sunni nation or people in the region.


I am grateful for Russia, for it is a decent people (regardless of the economic rhetoric the Republicans count on to win elections - Russia does NOT need Iran's oil as the USA lusts after). Russia has taken all the risks internationally to align with 'unpopular' countries and seek to stabilize these nations while holding enough clout to curtail a larger 'war footprint' of the Bush Wars in the Middle East. Among nations? Putin's Russia has to be regarded as a country intent on a path of peace through stability. I am more than impressed by Putin's prowess with international dialogues that have lead to stability over chaos and his ability to muster the power of Russia post Soviet Era. He is more than admirable in the international community regardless of how he is 'dissed' by his peers. To be dissed as a Russian President must be an enviable status to obtain.

The Tri-State Area of Southeast Asia

The war that became The Vietnam Conflict started immediately after WW II. The division of Vietnam into north and south provided to great for the people there. Some of that same 'tension' exists with the Koreas, but, hopefully with China's guidance all that will resolve. The issue of nukes with the Koreas is also very different than that of Iran.

The point here is that the Vietnam War was escalated to enormous capacity by the Johnson Administration following the death of JFK. It was not a contained war. The war and it's deadly content moved outside of Vietnam into Cambodia and Laos and those countries still stuggle with the 'scar' of Vietnam even today. The current struggles of Thialand in the past year clearly illustrate the 'overwhelming' military presence in those countries that lend to violence.

Somehow, 'the war' never left Southeast Asia but simply changed faces. Peace there is quite a challenge, however, Vietnam has no desire to 'begin again' the tragedy that killed over a million people. It is easy to estimate if any of the four countries, including Thialand, were to embark on a regional peace initiative it would be Vietnam and they are learning well the lessons of economic cooperation to build better lives for their people.

But, enough said about that.

The point is, the Nixon White House justified it's warring through the 'concept' of the Domino Effect. Well, it was stupid theory and it holds no validity when countries place the importance of sovereignty before any other aspect of their governance.

What is more interesting and to the chagrin of Cheney/Bush the warring in Iraq has not flowed into the surrounding countries in the way it did in Southeast Asia. The question is why? Why with such desire to rid the area of 'ethnic conflict' hasn't the region simply erupted into flames? It doesn't make sense, does it?

Of does it?

Now this is what I call some real coping on Bush's part. He finally realized he can't beat Russia in a fight.

Now one might ask, what these three articles might have in common with each other? You ever get the feeling that Russia is in control here? I do.

See, these three articles are all interrelated. Yes they are. Absolutely they are. Condi is trying to prove to Russia that Iran is an evil nation with the capacity to strike Eastern Europe with WMD. Now, if you buy that, then, what the heck is Iran attempting to purchase short missiles for?

Additionally, the USA and Russia have been working together on a peace plan that includes disarming stockpiles of nuclear warheads while converting them to 'PEACEFUL USE' of nuclear material. Of course, the political 'dig' if you will, is to indicate that, like Iran, even the USA needs nuclear material for their Peaceful Purpose nuclear power plants.

While there is no reason for any nation to believe Iran has the capacity for WMD while creating a 'concern' for Israel, the Bush White House wants to exploit the USA Treasury even further by installing a missle defense shield which an be destroyed as soon as the station is due to be built in Eastern Europe.


U.S. missile defense cannot affect Russia nuclear capability-Rice (click here)
15:57
02/ 02/ 2008

WASHINGTON, February 2 (RIA Novosti) - The U.S. missile defense system in Europe is meant to deal with limited threats and cannot degrade the thousands of nuclear warheads Russia has, the U.S. secretary of state said.
Condoleezza Rice said the missile defense plan has nothing to do the strategic defense initiative (SDI) that "the United States once had."
"This is not that program. This is not the son of that program. This is not the grandson of that program. This is a very different program that is meant to deal with limited threats," she said at a press conference after a meeting with Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski.
"There is no way that a few interceptors in Poland and radars in the Czech Republic can degrade the thousands of nuclear warheads that the Russians have and there is no intent to do so," she said.
Rice said Russia and the United States are faced with the same threats, and cooperation in missile defense is vital for both "in a completely different environment."
"We are having discussions with the Russians that President Putin and President Bush have wanted to go ahead about how we can cooperate in missile defense because the Russians face some of the same threats; how can we talk about joint threat assessment, how can we talk about a system that would take advantage of the full geography so that we could have a way to counter these 21st century threats," she said....



Russia, U.S. sign $5 bln uranium sales deal (click here)
13:34
02/ 02/ 2008

MOSCOW/WASHINGTON, February 2 (RIA Novosti) - Russia and the United States have signed a trade deal allowing Russia to boost enriched uranium exports to the U.S., Russian state nuclear agency Rosatom said Saturday.
Rosatom director Sergei Kiriyenko made a one-day working visit to the United States on Friday, meeting in Washington with U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez. He also met with chief executives of U.S. energy companies affiliated with Ad Hoc Utilities Group, an industrial group comprised of owners and operators of U.S. nuclear power plants.
"The deal is worth $5-6 billion over the next 10 years," said Kiriyenko, after signing the document together with Carlos Gutierrez.
The deal allows for sales of Russian enriched uranium directly to U.S. utilities. Previously, such direct transactions were not permitted.
Gutierrez said: "The agreement will encourage bilateral trade in Russian uranium products for peaceful purposes. It will also help to ensure that U.S. utilities have an adequate source of enriched uranium for U.S. utility consumers."...



Iran says still negotiating purchase of Russia's S-300 systems (click here)
15:57
01/ 02/ 2008

TEHRAN, February 1 (RIA Novosti) - A non-official Iranian news agency quoted a top diplomat as saying on Friday that Iran is still in talks with Russia on buying advanced S-300 air defense systems, despite an earlier denial from Moscow.
In December 2007, Russia's Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation said that the issue of the delivery of S-300 air defense missile systems to Iran, raised by the media, was not a subject of current negotiations and had not been discussed with the Iranians.
"The statement that many considered to be a denial of the negotiations on S-300 was simply a statement by a Russian official who referred to the latest round of military cooperation talks in Tehran [in December 2007]," Mehdi Safari said in an interview with the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA).
"However, the sides [Iran and Russia] are continuing work to study the possibility of delivering these [S-300] systems to Iran," Safari said.
The issue was first raised in December last year when Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said that Iran and Russia had agreed to deliver an unspecified number of advanced S-300 air defense complexes to the Islamic Republic under a previously signed contract.
The advanced version of the S-300 missile system, called S-300PMU1 (SA-20 Gargoyle), has a range of over 150 kilometers (about 100 miles) and can intercept ballistic missiles and aircraft at low and high altitudes, making this system an effective tool for warding off possible air strikes on Iran....

The Arrogance to believe that they can vote on what is going to happen politically in Iraq is proof of how out of touch Americans are with reality.

The region of the Middle East is FINALLY coming out from under the dominance of the Western Influence that has destroyed so much of the Shia's place within Islam.

This action by Lebanon to show it's loyality to all it's citizens including those of the radicalized Shia organization of Hezbollah is proving to be a venue of acceptance. In the past, ANYTHING, any action connected with Hezbollah would be viewed as a reaction to terrorists. Today. In Lebanon. The Shia have their place of protection with citizens' rights to protest even if they are members of Hezbollah.


Army officers arrested in Beirut killings (Click here)
Sun, 03 Feb 2008 01:39:00

Soldiers patrol the area during the clash in Shia Muslim suburb of Beirut
A Lebanese judge has ordered the arrest of three army officers and eight soldiers in the killing of Shia protesters in Beirut last week.
Authorities had listened to 85 civilian witness statements and questioned 120 military personnel, said a statement issued by Judge Jean Fahd on Saturday.
"The investigation is still continuing with a large number of civilian witnesses and a number of soldiers," it added. Lebanese troops had opened fire to break up an opposition protest over power cuts after the demonstrators burned tires and blocked roads in a mainly Shia Muslim suburb of Beirut last Sunday.
Seven supporters of Hezbollah and an ally from Amal were killed and some 30 protesters were also wounded in the violence, the worst clash in Beirut since a year ago. Hezbollah had criticized the army for mishandling the protest and demanded that those responsible for the deaths be punished swiftly.
In the first reaction to the results of the investigation, a senior opposition source told Reuters, "The initial results of the investigation show a high level of seriousness in (dealing with the matter) that assures us that things are going in the right direction."
Army commander General Michel Suleiman, who is also a presidential nominee, had been under pressure to identify those behind the violence.
The army's handling of Sunday's killings could tarnish its reputation as the only institution capable of keeping the peace in Lebanon.
The judge also ordered the arrest of six civilians for rioting and bearing unlicensed arms.
MHE/HAR

The Shia have never been 'granted' a legitimate homeland.

Patrolling Iraq Police near the Iman Ali Mosque. These are the police that were trained with USA dollars and military advisors. Do you actually think they are going to turn on their Holy Men? I don't.

They see their relative privilege as contingent on the good will of the ruling Sunni al-Khalifas and are reluctant to jeopardize their position. (click here)


I have followed the progression of an Iraqi Cleric since the invasion of Iraq. He first caught my attention when Bremer shut down his newspaper. As I witnessed a Shia. A Shia Cleric seek shelter in a Mosque in Najaf during the battle 'described from a Pro-American' point of view, I took greater and greater interest with the reality that the Grand Ayatollah al Sistani had been wisked away from Najaf for a 'procedure' at the very time this invasion to destroy the Mahdi Army and Cleric al Sadr was underway.

At the time, I had already made up my mind there was something grossly wrong in Iraq. I had been following the USA attempts to 'dog' Cleric al Sadr into being a scapegoat for the anarchy that existed in Iraq. The Cleric has never held a weapon in his hands. He is a Holy Man. Of course everyone wants to pretend he is some kind of 'Master Mind' when in fact he is a religious leader and nothing else.

When Bush embarked on the military actions necessary by the USA following 911, every Holy Man in the USA and otherwise recognized 'the need' for the people of the USA to defend themselves and move against their enemies. The Holy Men provided 'moral' context to war.

That is basically the role of Clerics such as al Sadr and his 'new best friend' Nasrallah in Lebanon. They are Shi'ites. And as Shia they have a different path to Mohammad. All the Holy Men of Islam have a 'genetic' lineage to Mohammad. All this has been discussed over the years of this blog to exhaustion in forums just like this every 'flyin' weekend since I moved from the New York Times Message Boards to this blog.

At the time when the USA was rolling tanks through the narrow streets of Najaf the propaganda playing in the USA to justify the destruction of the Iman Ali Mosque was that it was 'The Alamo' all over again. The 'crap' the media was putting out at that time was disgusting. All I could do was to get out on The Times Message Boards and rant and rave for someone, anyone to find the Grand Ayatollah and return him to Kufa and Najaf to stop the insanity of the American military in destoying not just the Mosque but causing the death of a 'precious' lineaged Cleric to Mohammad. A Cleric the Shia of Southern Iraq 'saved' from Saddam's assassins and a Cleric whom they loved and abided by.

It happened. I was watching CNN waiting for the other American shoe to drop; the destruction of the mosque and the death of STILL ANOTHER Cleric of the Shi'ite bloodline.

I remember it like it was yesterday.

All of a sudden as the statements about the USA military being within arms reach of the Iman Ali Mosque were rolling off the tongues of the CNN anchors, there comes this announcement by Kera Phillips I believe it was. There were thousands of Shi'ites marching the path that the Iman Ali had marched from Kufa to Najaf. I believe the number was 10,000. There were reports of small arms fire and some 25 people died that day on the road of the Iman Ali.

The Grand Ayatollah al Sistani had gotten up from his 'sick bed' in London where he was recovering from a cardiac procedure to reopen some heart vessels and flew to Kuwait and then by motor vehicle to Kufa for his return to his home in Najaf. He ordered his flock to march the path of the Iman. They did. He traveled without fear to his humble home in Najaf. The Grand Ayatollah had returned JUST IN TIME to stop the invasion and thwart any further actions by the USA military. What followed was the Iraqi leadership in Baghdad promising to meet the FIVE demands of Cleric al Sadr.

It was a great day. A very great day. A precious lineage had been preserved and the only man that could stop the heinous act of the American military had come from his sick bed to an insane call from an admirer. I consider the Grand Ayatollah a man of peace. He has yet to prove me wrong.

The rantings at CNN at the discovery of the twarted and acclaimed attacks of the USA military were completely laughable and I did laugh for as long as I heard Kera Phillips turn to the 'talking head general' and say, "...but there isn't anything the our military can do right now, right.? I mean they can't kill all those people now marching from Kufa to Najaf. Right?" The talking general started to come up with alternative battle strategies that would occur after the people had dissipated. Of course that never happened. Idiots all.

I am not Anti-American. I am Pro Peace. There is a huge difference and if Bush's insane strategy had worked that day, the Shia would be even further radicalized and turning to someone that had not been mentored by 'a man of peace' but by still another and more radicalized Cleric in Lebanon. The 'extremes' of Iran would become more extreme and the 'calm' that mostly exists in Southern Iraq would never exist. See. The peace that exists in Southern Iraq is more proof of the power of the Ayatollah and his mentored Cleric than anyone wants to admit.

The American media always proclaims 'The Bush Surge' as the reason for the 'lull' in Iraq. The truth is simply that the militias decided to try a 'cease fire.' Just that simple. And the ones that are attempting a cease fire are those of the SHI'ITES. How about that, huh?

Iraqi cleric threatens to end militia freeze unless attacks stop (click here)
Michael Howard in Baghdad
Friday February 1, 2008
The Guardian
Senior aides to the powerful Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr yesterday warned the US and the Iraqi government that a six-month freeze on the activities of their militia may not be extended unless the prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, takes steps to halt attacks on Sadr's followers.
Sadr's order to his Jaish al-Mahdi militia is regarded as a vital component of the nationwide downturn in violence during the past half year. Fighters loyal to Sadr had been blamed for fuelling the sectarian violence that gripped Baghdad and religiously mixed areas to the north and south of the capital. A renewal of their activities could undo much of the recent progress in security on the ground and stir up tensions among Iraq's Shia Muslims....

In the year 2013, Michael Moore will release the film entitled, Fahrenheit 911 Revisited - The Aftermath of an Illegal American War

Hussein told Rather that Iraq was permitted to have missiles of a limited range under existing United Nations resolutions. As for weapons of mass destruction, Hussein offered a clear response:

RATHER: Saddam also rejected Bush administration allegations that besides the missile delivery system, he still has weapons of mass destruction.

HUSSEIN: I think America and the world also knows that Iraq no longer has the weapons. And I believe the mobilization that's been done was, in fact, done partly to cover the huge lie that was being waged against Iraq about chemical, biological and nuclear weapons. That is why, when you talk about such missiles, these missiles have been destroyed. There are no missiles that are contrary to the prescription of the United Nations in Iraq. They are no longer there.

Hussein explained that Iraq "was empty, was void of any such weapons," but that his government accepted U.N. resolutions "in order to make the case absolutely clear that Iraq was no longer in possession of any such...weapons." U.S. reporters treated such statements as patently false.

http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=3255


1,000,000
January 30th, 2008 7:32 pmMore than one million Iraqis dead since 2003 invasion: study
LONDON (AFP) - More than one million Iraqis have died because of the war in Iraq since the US-led invasion of the country in 2003, according to a study published Wednesday.
A fifth of Iraqi households lost at least one family member between March 2003 and August 2007 due to the conflict, said data compiled by London-based Opinion Research Business (ORB) and its research partner in Iraq, the Independent Institute for Administration and Civil Society Studies (IIACSS).
The study based its findings on survey work involving the face-to-face questioning of 2,414 Iraqi adults aged 18 or above, and the last complete census in Iraq in 1997, which indicated a total of 4.05 million households.
Respondents were asked how many members of their household, if any, had died as a result of the violence in the country since 2003, and not because of natural causes.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10846


40% of Baghdad households have lost a family member
Find Out How Some of Them Died:
'Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan'
Thursday March 13 to Sunday March 16
Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan
Iraq Veterans Against the War:WINTER SOLDIER FACT SHEET
WHAT: Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan will feature testimony from U.S. veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, who will tell the hard truth about what is really happening, day in and day out, in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The four-day event will bring together veterans from across the country to testify about their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan - and present video and photographic evidence. In addition, there will be panels of scholars, veterans, journalists, and other specialists to give context to the testimony. These panels will cover everything from the history of the GI resistance movement to the fight for veterans' health benefits and support.
WHEN: Thursday March 13 to Sunday March 16
WHERE: National Labor College, 10000 New Hampshire Avenue,
 Silver Spring, MD (just outside of Washington, DC)
WHY: In 1776, Thomas Paine wrote: “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.”

http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=963



Thursday March 13th to Sunday March 16th
January 31st, 2008 1:25 pm
Soldier Suicides at Record Level
Increase Linked to Long Wars, Lack of Army Resources
By Dana Priest / Washington Post
Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside, a psychiatric outpatient at Walter Reed Army Medical Center who was waiting for the Army to decide whether to court-martial her for endangering another soldier and turning a gun on herself last year in Iraq, attempted to kill herself Monday evening. In so doing, the 25-year-old Army reservist joined a record number of soldiers who have committed or tried to commit suicide after serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.
"I'm very disappointed with the Army," Whiteside wrote in a note before swallowing dozens of antidepressants and other pills. "Hopefully this will help other soldiers." She was taken to the emergency room early Tuesday. Whiteside, who is now in stable physical condition, learned yesterday that the charges against her had been dismissed.
Whiteside's personal tragedy is part of an alarming phenomenon in the Army's ranks: Suicides among active-duty soldiers in 2007 reached their highest level since the Army began keeping such records in 1980, according to a draft internal study obtained by The Washington Post. Last year, 121 soldiers took their own lives, nearly 20 percent more than in 2006.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10847



January 31st, 2008 1:29 pm
Fort Carson soldier dies from brain injury
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A Fort Carson (Colorado)-based soldier who suffered a brain injury in Baghdad last summer has died at a Maryland hospital.
The Defense Department says 22-year-old Sergeant Mikeal Wayne Miller died Sunday at the National Naval Medical Center.
Pentagon officials say Miller was hurt when the vehicle he was in was hit by a roadside bomb in Baghdad on July 9th.
Miller was a native of Albany, Oregon. He was a member of the 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10848



January 30th, 2008 5:56 pm
Neenah soldier's death still remains a mystery to family
By Kate McGinty / Post-Crescent
NEENAH, WI — The U.S. Army remains tight-lipped about the November death of a Neenah soldier who was due to be discharged this month.
Sgt. James McDonald, 26, was found dead the morning of Nov. 12 in his barracks at Fort Hood, Texas.
Army officials still are silent about how McDonald, an armor crew member, died.
"That death investigation is still open. To protect the integrity of our investigation, I will not be releasing any details at this time," said Chris Grey, a spokesman for the Army Criminal Investigation Command.
Grey, who said the Criminal Investigation Command investigates all soldiers' deaths regardless of circumstance, declined to say whether he has McDonald's autopsy and toxicology reports.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10843



January 30th, 2008 5:19 pm
Lawmakers: Authority to use Guard troops in Iraq has expired
By Lisa Rathke / Associated Press
MONTPELIER, Vt. - Fed up that Washington hasn't done more to end the war, a group of Vermont lawmakers said Tuesday that the president no longer has the authority to use Guard troops in Iraq.
State Rep. Michael Fisher, D-Lincoln, said the authority to call up Guard members for Iraq duty has expired because that country no longer poses a threat to U.S. national security.
"The mission authorized in 2002 does not exist," said Fisher, who plans to introduce a bill backed by 30 colleagues Wednesday that calls on Gov. Jim Douglas to join the effort. "Unless Congress grants a new authorization, the Vermont Guard should revert back to state control."
Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin said the Senate would take up similar legislation.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10842

The Iraqi People are taking back their country. The USA is in the way.

Refugee Camp near Baghdad (click here)

This is an image of Baghdad from 2004. IF those boys are still alive they are close to four years older and very well rehersed to their purpose. The young people of Baghdad do no attend school regularly and the economy to support schools and infrastrcutrure cannot exist.

The USA has occupied Iraq for nearly five years. It's time to leave the people of that nation to decide their fate. The 'interactive' at the title to this entry makes it clear, the people of Iraq have been continually seeking their own existance as they define it and not Saddam or George Bush, Richard Cheney and Halliburton.

Prosecute the Former Secretary to the Commerce (Economy), Don Evans. No one else. An oppressed nation has no will of it's own.

...The greater reliance of lower-income households on government-backed loans reflects several factors. Dollar limits on the amount of FHA loan insurance or VA loan guarantees make these government-backed loans unavailable or less attractive to households seeking to buy more expensive properties. Also, the low downpayment requirements and ability to finance closing costs make FHA and VA loans particularly attractive to lower-income households and first-time homebuyers, who are likely to have fewer financial resources than other homebuyers do....

American Troops don't want to fight this war. The American people don't....

...in a world of billions of people, the ONLY ones interested in fighting an unconsionable war are a handful of Neocons that found their way into the Executive Branch of the USA power structure and have fed their consitutency of promises through judicial assignments that undermine the USA Constitution, while Bush and Cheney seek through that access to promote more and more corrupt power. Sounds like Musharraf's mentor to me !

What came first, the coup in Pakistan or the planned assault on the Executive Branch of the USA Constitution? Oh. A Democrat I guess this is 'off message' - we should be focusing solely on 'the message of the candidates' and their 'control of the electorate.' "W"rong. As a country we should be focusing on impeachment based up on Human Rights abuses and the conscious abuse of government power which has resulted in complete degradation of the USA economy, both domestically and abroad.

While the Bush/Cheney White House seeks to 'blame' bad business AGAIN. The fault for this free for all economy of the USA is directly the responsibility of the 'deregulators' in the Republican Party that promoted corruption through spending programs designed to that end and the 'idea' that a 'Get Out of Jail Free' card awaited anyone darning enough to break the back of the American economy. Bush/Cheney floated their economy based on 'the hope' corruption would succeed 'enough' that no one would notice or CARE TO MAKE NOTE OF IT and the world would cooperate in being every American's oyster of personal profitability and early retirement.

Bush didn't see the need for the working class but simply the military class to export fiscal stability for any accessable global resource, allowing the 'wealthy class' it's 'maintenance allowances.'

....As I went through the process which led to my decision to refuse deployment to Iraq for the second time, I was torn between thoughts of abandoning the soldiers that I serve with, or following my conscience, which tells me: war is the ultimate in destruction and waste of humanity....

The Joint Chiefs of Staff need to stop the global escalation of USA terror. It's going to cause a world war.

The 'Axis of Evil' speech was the imputus to WW III. It was a speech intended to threaten and escalate. It was a speech designed to terrorize the global community and start 'grass roots' uprisings. Up to now, the global community has done magnificent work to oppress and contain that threat. But, if there is another Neocon in the White House after November 2008, all plans are off as McCain/Romney will ramp up the escalation to satiate their electorate and Iran will be the target. Not Pakistan as it should be, but, Iran and the propaganda to promote it.

By the way, what happened to the internet cables off Egypt to India? Iranian Stelth Sub? No? Sounds like a good reason to be more concerned with hate toward the only Shia nation on Earth though, doesn't it?

I believe World War III is about 15 months away if it's not consciously averted NOW ! The reason we are not at war on a global scale is because Russia isn't interested for several reasons.

While Russia is enjoying some of the best times that country has ever experienced, it's lazily put nulcear subs at sea, armed itself with advanced high speed bombers, but, left it's military in conscription and attempting to limit it's commitments to one year to enhance the 'optimism' of it's young people that seek peace above all else.

If necessary Russia and China will engage in a global war to defend themselves if the USA doesn't stop it's occupation in Iraq.

By Peter Spiegel, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
February 2, 2008 (click title to entry. thank you)

WASHINGTON -- The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Friday that no decision had been made to stop the withdrawal of troops in Iraq this summer, a subtle rebuke of the top U.S. commander there, who suggested that reductions would pause after the current round of cuts was completed in July....

It's a Pre-Mature Saturday Night

National Security by Abstinence

National security, a blanket phrase that conceals the deception
Billions extorted from the fearful masses
By creating a new adversary
The government tries to enforce civility
While a covert operation takes place
Destroying more countries in the name of capitalistic democracy
While we deplete the world's resources
Conservative or liberal is all irrelevant
To a starving child in a wealthy society such as ours
Timeless greed with little concern for the consequences
In 200 years homosapiens have morphed this planet
Into a world extremely difficult to survive within

There is no way I could locate much of an internet site for Abstinence. When one tries it comes up with all this 'mess' about promoting 'abstinence.' What are ya goin' to do?