Sanders isn't going to play hardball with Hillary. His suggestion to forget about Hillary's emails proved that. Several people who have been skeptical of Sanders believe he will fold and turn his supporters over to Hillary. Whether that is some scheme they have concocted or just the way the balls bounces is obscure at this point. Similarly, it remains to be seen if Sanders' more enthusiastic supporters who like his anti-Wall Street rhetoric will switch to Hillary who will clearly be as pro-Wall Street as Obama and Slick Willie proved to be.
... and I will do everything that I can to make sure that the United States does not get involved in another quagmire like we did in Iraq, the worst foreign policy blunder in the history of this country.
Despite promoting and supporting that "worst foreign policy blunder" which was, surely, a war crime and a crime against humanity Clinton is now running for president and many others are in high positions of power and influence. If Iraq had won that war and applied the same principles to the US and UK that the Allies applied to the Nazis at Nuremberg they would, at least, all be in prison. Psychiatrists, presumably, have a term for this state of affairs that should be considered bizarre but is accepted as normal.
Two columnists at Asia Times differ from the mainstream media peddlers in Washington on Putin - a sign the former probably know what they are talking about:
"Grading the Putin school of international affairs": Codevilla By Angelo Codevilla - link to atimes.com
and
"Russia outflanks Turkey in Syria" By M.K. Bhadrakumar - link to atimes.com
Patrick Cockburn, one of the more astute correspondents in the Middle East, has a very interesting commentary: "Why We Should Welcome Russia’s Entry Into Syrian War_ by Patrick Cockburn - link to counterpunch.org
In such efforts the United States will always do our part. We will do so, mindful of the lessons of the past. Not just the lessons of Iraq but also the example of Libya, where he (we?) joined an international coalition under a U.N. mandate to prevent a slaughter. Even as we helped the Libyan people bring an end to the reign of a tyrant, our coalition could have and should have done more to fill a vacuum left behind.
What lessons did Obama and his neocon advisers learn from Libya?
We are grateful to the United Nations for its efforts to forge a unity government.
Lotsa luck on the one. You'll need it.
We will help any legitimate Libyan government as it works to bring the country together.
A Libyan government will be deemed legitimate if it is a vassal state of the Empire.
But we also have to recognize that we must work more effectively in the future as an international community to build capacity for states that are in distress before they collapse.
Why, when I listen to these warmongering charlatans am I reminded of Germany in the early 1930s? When I listen to Donald Trump, why does Mussolini come to mind? Mussolini got the trains to run on time. Trump will build a wall along the US-Mexico border.
If Cruz had promoted the idea of sending the prime ministers of the UK, Canada, Australia, Israel, etc. to their gods - Mammon in most cases - would any of our various law enforcement agencies have called him in for questioning?
In addition to Israel's external threats discussed above, the internal threat of the settler movement may prove to be a Frankenstein monster that will bring down Netanyahu and fellow right-wing actors and, perhaps, eventually Israel.
Now, that's an endangered species, but every once in a while alleged conservatives will tell the truth. There was Donald Trump recently while claiming to be a conservative confirmed campaign donations are bribes. Then there were most of the GOP presidential candidates who engaged in a bout of truth-telling when they were criticizing each other.
Among the perversities of the human condition are: (1) people with exceptional intelligence in one sphere exhibiting low intelligence in another, and (2) people who are victims of racial, ethnic or other forms of abuse having no problem abusing others.
Christian-European violence goes back much more than 150 years - at least to the Crusades - and with the likes of Trump and his questioner will continue for many more. While we are at it, let's not forget those good christians in the Bush2 administration responsible for the deaths and other forms of destroyed lives if hundreds of thousands of people in the Middle East.
Unfortunately, the debate's transcript has nothing funny about it. It is another chronicle of recycled BS and hypocrisy. The arch-hawk Ted Cruz tossed in the discredited story about Iran's self-inspection of nuclear facilities that was echoed by others on the stage. Same with the charge of Iran wanting to build a nuclear bomb even though that was refuted by Israeli and US intelligence agencies years ago. None of them was called on these lies by CNN's appointed trio of moderators. Then there was all the talk about immigration that was limited to building walls. Nothing about the disease and crimes that encourage people to leave their families for the lesser evil of the United States.
Maybe I’m just funny that way, but I object to allying with allies of al-Qaeda. Al-Qaeda killed nearly 3,000 Americans in a single day.
But morally denuded politicians don't work that way. They do whatever is politically expedient for whatever short-term gain they perceive and never mind the blowback.
Former general and former CIA director David Petraeus advocates wooing the Support Front away from their allegiance to al-Zawahiri and then deploying them against Daesh.
Lotsaluck on that one with al-Qaeda associates and their long memories.
I don't know how apt this is or might prove to, but for some reason the march of folly that became the First World War that begat the Second World War came to mind. The actions taken then by the various national leaders made sense to them from their particular viewpoint, but they morphed into that century's greatest disasters. The actions taken now in the Middle East presumably make sense to the various participants from their viewpoints, but the consequences appear to be worsening inexorably. A Third World War becomes more plausible with each step along the present march.
If ever there was a time for diplomacy, surely it is now, but where are the diplomats truly worthy of being called statesmen to be found?
If we consider the number of religions and sects and variants within each religion it would be sheer anarchy to try to organize a society based on religion. I would pity residents of Rowan County in Kentucky of they were of a different faith than Ms. Davis. Despite the hypocrisy attached to much of American law, the United States is not the disaster that Europe was during several centuries of religious wars.
Given the fact (according to snopes.com) that Kim Davis has been married four times this appears to be another case of selective religious bias. What would she or Mike Huckabee have said if some very devout Catholic had refused her one of her, presumably, three divorces?
Woe is the United States with theocrats, neo-fascists and proto-fascists trying to take over.
In the 1930s many people and their governments became inured to abuse of the Jews by the Nazis and did nothing to their everlasting shame. Fast forward to the second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st and it's deja vu all over again. Just change the names of the victims and the perpetrators. The morally bankrupt collaborators are mostly the same.
It is interesting that that the drowning of three-year old Aylan Kurdi got global attention as it should have, but very few in the same audience know of the 18-month old child burned to death in Palestine allegedly by Israeli settlers who remain at large.
But would it not be fair to say that once the trouble started the US and its allies (France, UK, Saudi Arabia, etc.) joined in on the brawl and made matters much worse?
"Turning the Cradle of Civilization Into its Graveyard" by Diana Johnstone- link to counterpunch.org … "Western leaders share major responsibility for making much of the world unfit for normal human habitation."
Christian, like liberal, conservative and other labels, has evolved to mean almost anything and consequently nothing. Among the more astonishing aspects of the refugee crisis is the apparent ignorance of many people in the United States and in western Europe and the indifference of their leaders and would-be leaders to the causes of so many millions of people being displaced. Support of a right-wing coup in Honduras and wars throughout the Middle East, North Africa and Afghanistan. Nevertheless, our neocons and other warmongers call for more war. Kind of evokes thoughts of Einstein's definition of insanity.
But America has always talked out of both sides of its mouth, even before it became the US of A. Then came the great classic about all men being created equal written by slave owners.
A psychiatric evaluation of presidential candidates seems to be in order, but who would conduct it? The American Psychological Association? "Three senior officials lose their jobs at APA after US torture scandal: American Psychological Association framed the departures of its chief executive officer, deputy CEO and communications chief as ‘retirements’ and resignations" by Spencer Ackerman - link to theguardian.com
It is beyond the realm of possibilities for a world inhabited by people to ever become perfect, but we can reduce the number and degree of its defects.
... your vision for a perfect world garners a miniscule fraction of the vote.
And, what does that say about Americans who are eligible to vote?
In a debate or negotiation, it is better to push for the highest desired level of success. Facing reality and conceding a willingness to accept a lower goal as a starting point guarantees failure or something close to it.
The problem wasn't so much that so many people voted for Nader instead of Gore, the problem was that so many people voted for Gore instead of Nader. There wouldn't have been a war on Iraq under President Nader, but there could have been one under the Gore-Lieberman administration. Gore was vice president when Clinton and Madeline Albright administered the sanctions that cost an estimated half million Iraqi children their lives. Presumably, Gore agreed with Albright that "it was worth it."
But lets go even further back: the left’s love of Nader gave us Bush 2.
It wasn't that simple or simplistic. The right wing of the Supreme Court, the machinations in Florida under then-governor Jeb Bush, and the contemptible campaign run by Al Gore and vice-presidential candidate Joe Lieberman (D-CT and Israel) were much bigger factors. Ralph Nader's role is tossed in as a red herring to obscure the facts. I once thought the criticism of Nader had been put to rest but apparently not.
Compromise is essential in politics, but some people appear to fail to recognize there are times when they need to draw a line. This would be an excellent topic to engage at this time. In the case of the Israel Lobby it might be political suicide for candidates to be critical of Israel so mealy-mouth statements might be in order, but surely when elected they should draw a line when it comes to endorsing Israeli actions that are deemed international crimes by eminent international authorities.
Sanders' virtue is that he gives voice to concepts ordinary citizens care about - income inequality, etc.. But there are other aspects to consider. Obama gave a fair number of signals that he was in the pocket of the Establishment, but in the tradition of hope prevailing over reality Obama supporters bought into the illusions he presented. Some people might have learned from this experience so will question which Bernie Sanders they will be voting for - the "people's Sanders" or the Sanders who has gone along with the Israel Lobby and the M-I complex and is a friend of Hillary? One thing is certain. The plutocrats and the oligarchs they own in both parties will gang up on Sanders if he is elected. The question then will be will Sanders compromise or fight. I say compromise.
"The West likes to think that 'civilisation' will defeat Isis, but history suggests otherwise: We cling to our belief that barbarism will never outlast the power of the righteous" by Robert Fisk - link to independent.co.uk
Apparently, Turkey can be added to the list of gainers: "Turkey’s euphoria over Iran nuclear deal: While the Iran nuclear deal sparked optimism around the world, Turkey appears to be the one country where both the enthusiasm and expectations related to this new era with Iran are the highest. The overall mood in Ankara is positive,… " By Altay Atli - link to atimes.com
Follow up article: "Not everyone is allowed to have a ‘Good Life in Germany’" by Rebecca Burkert - link to mondoweiss.net
It would be interesting to know how much the policies of Germany, the US, and other European nations and their corporations have contributed to this refugee crisis.
Holt was just doing his job, what he is paid to do. Just like all the others at NBC post-Huntley-Brinkley. Same for CBS, ABC, CNN, Fox and any others in the fawning corporate media.
To the 12% of Republicans supporting Trump it is probably a good bet that we can add a sizable number of working class Democrats and independents who fear immigrants taking their jobs.
"Donald Trump’s demagoguery is a gauge of America’s demoralization": Spengler By David P. Goldman - link to atimes.com … "A demagogue tries to sound as stupid as his listeners, so that they will think they are as smart as he is, quipped Karl Kraus, the fin-de-siecle Viennese gadfly. Donald Trump’s claim that illegal immigration into the United States is “decimating the country” is a case in point. Illegal immigration is a bad thing, and the social costs of a mass influx of poor and uneducated migrants from Mexico and Central America are significant, but that is not one of America’s bigger problems. Migration actually fell after the 2008 crash because construction jobs disappeared."
Merkel didn't gain any points in this debate: "Angela Merkel makes a 14-year old Palestinian girl cry by telling her she is not welcome in Germany" by Allison Deger - link to mondoweiss.net
We get to hear from Donald Trump, who has never been elected to anything and represents no one at all.
Given recent polling data, it appears The Donald does represent a sizable portion of the American people who should be a cause for concern.
Given one commentator's suggestion that the P5+1 should be relabeled P1(US)+5 and given Merkel's submission to US spying and Cameron's lapdog status, perhaps your speculation on a robust debate from that lot is unwarranted.
A consequence of US double-dealing during the Iraq-Iran war that is surprisingly overlooked was the firing of two Exocet missiles from an Iraqi jet very shortly after Saddam Hussein learned the US had been helping the Iranians. Despite 37 US Navy personnel being killed Washington and the Pentagon bought into the "story" that this was an "accident." Yeah, right.
The US military budget is roughly 80 times that of Iran.
Only 80 times Iran? The Pentagon had better send some of its bemedalled top brass to Congress to get a raise. How can they sleep at night leaving us to face such overwhelming odds?
While there is much to be said for paying attention to what is happening in Greece and Europe, let's not forget other areas, such as Latin America: "Ecuador, Greece and the Left In Ecuador, Fight for Mankind; In Greece, Fight for Greece!" by ANDRE VLTCHEK - link to counterpunch.org
A majority of the Greek people voted for democracy and economic justice, but the potentates in charge of European finance are not having anything to do with that civilized nonsense.
"Trump’s Fixation on Rape and Color: Real estate and entertainment mogul Donald Trump has soared to the top tier of Republican presidential candidates after a rant about Mexican immigrant “rapists” – not the first time that Trump has mixed the explosive topics of rape and color, leading Jeff Cohen to ask if Trump is a “serial racist.”" - link to consortiumnews.com
If the Republican Party can choose McCain and Palin as their candidates for the White House, we shouldn't be surprised if The Donald is the party's next choice. All we need then is to have Hillary foisted on us by the Democratic (?) Party to alert the American people as to how far this mighty nation has fallen.
Trump and others would do well to ask why there is so much emigration from Central America. They might find that the vast majority of these emigrants really don't want to leave home, but in great part the evil side of capitalism (local and American) has made life hell for many Central Americans. One of the more egregious and more recent of many horrific events was the overthrow of the democratically-elected government in Honduras approved by President Obama and secretary of state Hillary Clinton. Honduras is now another human rights and economic basket case.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the political spectrum: "What Scott Walker’s Tenure Has Done to Wisconsin’s Workers: As he prepares for a presidential run, the governor’s labor legacy deserves inspection. Are his state’s “hardworking taxpayers” any better off?" By Donald Kettl - link to theatlantic.com
In the unlikely event Sanders is elected president he will find another and bigger challenge before him - the Washington Establishment. The oligarchs from both parties through their agents in Congress will gang up on him. The media won't let up. The only way he can succeed is for the American people to do something mostly alien to their character - stand up for what is right. What is left of the union movement had better get its head out and quit supporting the candidate anointed by the contemptuous oligarchs of the Democratic (?) Party.
Despite your scholarly points, Huckabee, Cruz and their ilk will believe whatever they want to believe. Scientists say climate change is a monstrous threat. They don't care. They believe the scientists are wrong because that is not what they want to believe. The war on drugs has been a disaster, but the evidence won't change their minds.
Check page 7 on "Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: How the performance of the U.S. health care system compares internationally" by Karen Davis, Kristof Stremikis, Daved Squires and Cathy Schoen - link to commonwealthfund.org
Best of all, the flag has the word “Liberty” written into the crescent moon, underscoring this key American value, so important for all peoples living in the South.
Unfortunately, in our Orwellian world "liberty" on this flag would most likely prove to be as meaningless as "liberty" in the pledge of allegiance.
We have tens of millions of people living in poverty and they have little to no liberty at all.
It's not just South Carolina. We need a national revolution based on morality and ethics. We need to make the Pledge of Allegiance - especially "one nation, ..., indivisible, with liberty and justice for all" - a reality instead of its recitation being an act of national hypocrisy.
"The Confederate battle flag is what makes America stupid" By David P. Goldman - link to atimes.com - in which he notes "As the New York Times reports this morning, not a single Republican presidential candidate has the courage to tell South Carolina to stop flying the Confederate battle flag from its state capitol."
I believe many that come from wealthy and powerful families have proven to lack real honesty, wisdom, heart, intelligence and common sense.
Gov. Scott Walker (R-Wisconsin and the Koch Brothers) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-ditto) are two examples of working class progeny who have sold and continue to sell workers down the river.
And Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is a prime example of why politicians are no help. Despite reports of the shooter making racist statements, Graham claimed the shooter was anti-Christian:
Lindsey Graham: Charleston Shooter May Have Been ‘Looking for Christians to Kill’
by Matt Wilstein - link to mediaite.com
The question to be asked now is, "WHY?" Hopefully, some independent journalists will provide honest answers explaining what led this young man to commit this despicable crime. No point in checking the mainstream media or politicians for answers.
The massacre of nine good and decent citizens in Charleston was a cowardly and dastardly act that will be made more despicable when the course of events that follow will most likely render these deaths, like many others before them, in vain.
How many massacres over the last ten, twenty or thirty years do average, or even above-average, American citizens remember? Or, conversely, how many have they forgotten? How about the 1984 massacre at a McDonald’s in San Diego that took the lives of 21 people? How about the 1966 slaughter of 16 people by a sniper in the tower at the University of Texas in Austin? How many people pass that tower every day without giving this tragedy a thought?
How about the Pentagon’s revision of the history of the Vietnam War in which their hired historians referred to the My Lai Massacre as the “"My Lai Incident"? After protests this distortion was revised, still somewhat innocuously, to "American Division Kills Hundreds of Vietnamese Citizens at My Lai." The uninformed will conclude that is the way wars go. Maybe assume it was an American victory.
If Sandy Hook (20 school children and six staff members) didn’t make a meaningful national impact, what are the prospects for some enlightened consequence resulting from Charleston? Removal of the offensive Confederate battle flag from the state capitol grounds would be a small step in the right direction but one not likely to be taken.
Larry: It appears you missed my point that most people will forget this horrible event and go along with something like Obama's dismissive line about "that's not who we are" or "these are not our values" and we are really all good and virtuous people. We do have lots of good and virtuous people, but most of us need reminders many among us are not and that has been the case for a long time. Americans are notoriously deficient in history and their being exposed to a modest measure of erudition might help. Perspective is another way of looking at this event. Then there is:
‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens link to theonion.com
Charleston shooting: Five charts that show the ugly truth about hate crimes: Hate crime rate remains steady and blacks remain the racial group most likely to experience racially-motivated violence by Christopher Ingraham - link to independent.co.uk
This latest atrocity is "breaking news"? In the grand scheme of American history it probably won't even register as a footnote in most history books. The few honest history books, such as Howard Zinn's "Peoples History of the United States" are replete with records of much more abominable massacres. How about the ethnic cleansing of the Native American population? How about the workers who died as a consequence of deplorable working conditions in factories, mills and mines? How about the hundreds of thousands slaughtered in the Spanish-American War and making Central America safe for United Fruit and Wall Street? How about the countless dead and maimed in Panama, the Balkans and the Middle East as a consequence of orders from Papa Bush, Bill Clinton, Dubya and now Obama? How about the recurring slaughters of innocent Gazans endorsed by the moral wretches in Congress? Those non-white victims don't count? Then how about the naive young and white American men and women whose lives were sacrificed in vain in those wars?
Why are people so exasperated with the Orwellian language applied to this incident? The dominant and loudest voices in the United States have been talking out of both sides of their mouths for generations.
Fortunately, Governor Haley has the answer, "Please join us in lifting up the victims and their families with our love and prayers.” Just as soon as I click on the "Post Comment" key I'll get down on my knees and join you Governor Haley in prayer. And I'll also pray that no more dipstick fathers give their emotionally-troubled kids .45 caliber guns for a birthday present.
But the Republican Party establishment is appalled, because Trump will create an image for the party ...
Make that "Trump will make the GOP's loony fringe more obvious."
The good news is because the American people are taking the 2016 presidential election seriously, Trump will help provide an antidote and expose this election for the farce it really is.
Syrian civil war: Jabhat al-Nusra's massacre of Druze villagers shows the group is just as nasty as Isis: The incident last week suggests that the US have let the al-Qaeda affiliate off lightly by Patrick Cockburn - link to independent.co.uk
Given the Israel-Saudi Arabia collusion you probably are wrong.
"The Saudi-Israeli superpower: Exclusive: Egypt’s counterrevolution and Syria’s civil war could herald the arrival of a new superpower coalition, an unlikely alliance between Israel and Saudi Arabia, one with great political clout and the other with vast financial wealth, together flexing their muscles across the Middle East," writes Robert Parry. - link to consortiumnews.com
And let's not forget the Arabs in Egypt collaborating with Israel in their abuse of the people of Gaza.
Nobody thinks Israel will agree to a Palestinian state as long as Netanyahu has anything to say about it.
Ditto for Netanyahu's allies and rivals.
Once Netanyahu admitted that there wouldn’t be a Palestinian state, it was like dropping a fig leaf. He stood naked before the world.
As for its claim to moral leadership, US support for Israel's violations of international law and crimes against humanity means the US is exposed as a naked moralist.
Daniel Ellsberg credits Edward Snowden with catalysing US surveillance reform: Prominent US whistleblowers applaud Snowden’s Patriot Act revelation for inciting Congress to take action, though they doubt he can ever return to the US - link to theguardian.com
but as far as the Obama Administration is concerned
Charges against Edward Snowden stand, despite telephone surveillance ban: The former NSA contractor revealed the banned surveillance programme, but an Obama administration spokesman says they will not review his charges by Dan Roberts - link to theguardian.com
Apparently, true patriotism is in the eye of the beholder
Even senators like Ron Wyden of Oregon, who knew what the US government was doing in secret, could not openly blow the whistle because they would have instantly been arrested.
But what about their oaths to uphold the Constitution? Similarly, as Dick Durbin revealed in a speech in the senate, the members of the senate intelligence (sic) committee were told a different version of the intelligence leading up to the Iraq war that contradicted the propaganda out of the Bush-Cheney white house, but his oath to keep these briefings secret overrode his oath to the Constitution. It doesn't appear the senate is a place to look for profiles in courage. Which might help to explain why Snowden is in exile.
On the other hand, given the prevailing indifference and, in some cases, hostility to the sacrifices made by whistleblowers such as Snowden, Kiriakou, Manning, etc. it would take an enormous measure of altruism with which few are endowed to make this ultimate sacrifice.
Rand Paul has the unfortunate tendency to come up with occasional preposterous Ayn-Randian ideas, but he does appear to be the the only presidential candidate on the GOP side to take his oath to uphold the Constitution seriously.
As for Obama and his relationship to the Constitution it appears to be non-existent unless it involves his primary role of taking care of the plutocrats and oligarchs that helped him get elected.
Finally a candidate I can vote for and not have to choose between the lesser of two evils. I think Bernie is going to do a lot better than the MSM give him credit for.
Two points: (1) Sanders is probably genuine in his populist statement, but, like Elizabeth Warren and others who give hope to the people, he is caught in the tentacles of the Israel Lobby and, possibly, the war armaments industry, and (2) In the unlikely event he were elected president he would be like Jimmy Carter and have the Establishment - mainstream media, GOP, Wall Street AND the oligarchs in the Democratic Party gang up on him and he would go nowhere. But I'll probably vote for him in the primary against HRC.
For some reason the story of Ben Franklin emerging from the constitutional convention in Philadelphia and his reportedly being asked, "What have you wrought?" came to mind. A good question to pose to Dubya, Darth Cheney and their warmongering cohorts.
So it completely escapes me why John McCain, Lindsey Graham, John Boehner or Tom Cotton (who helped personally with the berlinization of Iraq) think that if only US troops had remained in country after 2011, the people of Ramadi would have been delirious with joy and avoided throwing in with radical anti-imperialist forces.
Because what they say sustains their beliefs no matter how out of touch with reality they are.
How about performance reports? Does anyone have any idea of how many medals and citations for outstanding performance were issued to the trainers who appear to have achieved very little, if anything, to brag about?
Well other than the war being slightly over budget, (one and a half trillion dollars as opposed to the two hundred million projected cost),...
Joseph Stiglitz and Linda Bilmes estimated some time ago that the total costs for the Iraq war would be in the range of three TRILLION dollars. Stiglitz more recently has revised that number upward to around $5 TRILLION - link to bloomberg.com.
Mitch Daniels, Dubya's budget director, estimated the war would cost around $60 billion. Subsequently, Daniels was elected by the people of Ohio to be their governor - and Ohio is a swing state in presidential elections. Go figure.
And our "leaders" in Washington will make more obvious their moral deficits by continuing to endorse whatever cruel and usual punishment Israel's right wing inflicts on their prisoners in Gaza and the West Bank.
The politicians in Congress are occasionally exposed to profiles in courage. The words of one, Joseph Welch, appear to be in order today: " You've done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?" And that also goes for the female members.
As a student of World Wars One and Two, I find the hate speech emanating from Geller and her friends to echo the anti-Jewish vendetta in Germany in the 1930s. Hate speech condemning an entire race amplified by squalid cartoons.
"You see, the Russians have already experienced what it is like to comply with U.S. economic edicts. That was tried during the 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union when experts from Harvard University descended on Moscow with “shock therapy” for the post-communist society. What happened was that a handful of well-connected thieves plundered the nation’s resources, making themselves into billionaire oligarchs while President Boris Yeltsin stayed drunk much of the time and many average Russians faced starvation." . - link to consortiumnews.com
"As Defense Minister in the Guatemalan army, Gramajo played an integral role in the genocide against the country’s indigenous Mayan population. Not only was he given free entry, but Harvard University granted him a fellowship at the John F. Kennedy School of Government." - link to counterpunch.org
But it isn't just Harvard. It's a good bet if you check the culprits who gave us the Wall Street debacle of 2008 and the war on Iraq you'll find a large number of graduates of other Ivy League schools and other so-called top universities such as the University of Chicago were involved.
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Sanders isn't going to play hardball with Hillary. His suggestion to forget about Hillary's emails proved that. Several people who have been skeptical of Sanders believe he will fold and turn his supporters over to Hillary. Whether that is some scheme they have concocted or just the way the balls bounces is obscure at this point. Similarly, it remains to be seen if Sanders' more enthusiastic supporters who like his anti-Wall Street rhetoric will switch to Hillary who will clearly be as pro-Wall Street as Obama and Slick Willie proved to be.
... and I will do everything that I can to make sure that the United States does not get involved in another quagmire like we did in Iraq, the worst foreign policy blunder in the history of this country.
Despite promoting and supporting that "worst foreign policy blunder" which was, surely, a war crime and a crime against humanity Clinton is now running for president and many others are in high positions of power and influence. If Iraq had won that war and applied the same principles to the US and UK that the Allies applied to the Nazis at Nuremberg they would, at least, all be in prison. Psychiatrists, presumably, have a term for this state of affairs that should be considered bizarre but is accepted as normal.
He is giving up on a Pentagon plan to train thousands of “moderate” Syrian fighters to take on Daesh (ISIS, ISIL).
But CNN claimed this morning the US is dropping supplies of ammunition to rebels.
Two columnists at Asia Times differ from the mainstream media peddlers in Washington on Putin - a sign the former probably know what they are talking about:
"Grading the Putin school of international affairs": Codevilla By Angelo Codevilla - link to atimes.com
and
"Russia outflanks Turkey in Syria" By M.K. Bhadrakumar - link to atimes.com
Patrick Cockburn, one of the more astute correspondents in the Middle East, has a very interesting commentary: "Why We Should Welcome Russia’s Entry Into Syrian War_ by Patrick Cockburn - link to counterpunch.org
US policy is to overthrow Assad? Does anyone, including Obama, know who will replace Assad? Sounds like Libya all over again. Maybe on steroids.
Left unsaid by Abbas but obvious to independent observers is US complicity in Israel's crimes against international law and Palestinian humanity.
On Monday, the Taliban swept into the provincial capital of Kunduz, taking it in half a day from a large and well-equipped Afghan National Army force.
And what did that "well-equipped Afghan National Army force" cost US taxpayers?
In such efforts the United States will always do our part. We will do so, mindful of the lessons of the past. Not just the lessons of Iraq but also the example of Libya, where he (we?) joined an international coalition under a U.N. mandate to prevent a slaughter. Even as we helped the Libyan people bring an end to the reign of a tyrant, our coalition could have and should have done more to fill a vacuum left behind.
What lessons did Obama and his neocon advisers learn from Libya?
We are grateful to the United Nations for its efforts to forge a unity government.
Lotsa luck on the one. You'll need it.
We will help any legitimate Libyan government as it works to bring the country together.
A Libyan government will be deemed legitimate if it is a vassal state of the Empire.
But we also have to recognize that we must work more effectively in the future as an international community to build capacity for states that are in distress before they collapse.
As in Ukraine?
Al-Assad is a war criminal
But he is in the minor leagues compared with the West.
Presumably, international law is irrelevant to this graduate of Harvard Law School.
Why, when I listen to these warmongering charlatans am I reminded of Germany in the early 1930s? When I listen to Donald Trump, why does Mussolini come to mind? Mussolini got the trains to run on time. Trump will build a wall along the US-Mexico border.
If Cruz had promoted the idea of sending the prime ministers of the UK, Canada, Australia, Israel, etc. to their gods - Mammon in most cases - would any of our various law enforcement agencies have called him in for questioning?
In addition to Israel's external threats discussed above, the internal threat of the settler movement may prove to be a Frankenstein monster that will bring down Netanyahu and fellow right-wing actors and, perhaps, eventually Israel.
An honest conservative.
Now, that's an endangered species, but every once in a while alleged conservatives will tell the truth. There was Donald Trump recently while claiming to be a conservative confirmed campaign donations are bribes. Then there were most of the GOP presidential candidates who engaged in a bout of truth-telling when they were criticizing each other.
Among the perversities of the human condition are: (1) people with exceptional intelligence in one sphere exhibiting low intelligence in another, and (2) people who are victims of racial, ethnic or other forms of abuse having no problem abusing others.
This appears to be another opportunity for US government leaders to show their lack of moral courage.
Christian-European violence goes back much more than 150 years - at least to the Crusades - and with the likes of Trump and his questioner will continue for many more. While we are at it, let's not forget those good christians in the Bush2 administration responsible for the deaths and other forms of destroyed lives if hundreds of thousands of people in the Middle East.
Unfortunately, the debate's transcript has nothing funny about it. It is another chronicle of recycled BS and hypocrisy. The arch-hawk Ted Cruz tossed in the discredited story about Iran's self-inspection of nuclear facilities that was echoed by others on the stage. Same with the charge of Iran wanting to build a nuclear bomb even though that was refuted by Israeli and US intelligence agencies years ago. None of them was called on these lies by CNN's appointed trio of moderators. Then there was all the talk about immigration that was limited to building walls. Nothing about the disease and crimes that encourage people to leave their families for the lesser evil of the United States.
Maybe I’m just funny that way, but I object to allying with allies of al-Qaeda. Al-Qaeda killed nearly 3,000 Americans in a single day.
But morally denuded politicians don't work that way. They do whatever is politically expedient for whatever short-term gain they perceive and never mind the blowback.
Former general and former CIA director David Petraeus advocates wooing the Support Front away from their allegiance to al-Zawahiri and then deploying them against Daesh.
Lotsaluck on that one with al-Qaeda associates and their long memories.
I don't know how apt this is or might prove to, but for some reason the march of folly that became the First World War that begat the Second World War came to mind. The actions taken then by the various national leaders made sense to them from their particular viewpoint, but they morphed into that century's greatest disasters. The actions taken now in the Middle East presumably make sense to the various participants from their viewpoints, but the consequences appear to be worsening inexorably. A Third World War becomes more plausible with each step along the present march.
If ever there was a time for diplomacy, surely it is now, but where are the diplomats truly worthy of being called statesmen to be found?
If we consider the number of religions and sects and variants within each religion it would be sheer anarchy to try to organize a society based on religion. I would pity residents of Rowan County in Kentucky of they were of a different faith than Ms. Davis. Despite the hypocrisy attached to much of American law, the United States is not the disaster that Europe was during several centuries of religious wars.
Given the fact (according to snopes.com) that Kim Davis has been married four times this appears to be another case of selective religious bias. What would she or Mike Huckabee have said if some very devout Catholic had refused her one of her, presumably, three divorces?
Woe is the United States with theocrats, neo-fascists and proto-fascists trying to take over.
And what does it say about the moral stature of the perpetrators' primary protector at the UN? What moral stature?
In the 1930s many people and their governments became inured to abuse of the Jews by the Nazis and did nothing to their everlasting shame. Fast forward to the second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st and it's deja vu all over again. Just change the names of the victims and the perpetrators. The morally bankrupt collaborators are mostly the same.
It is interesting that that the drowning of three-year old Aylan Kurdi got global attention as it should have, but very few in the same audience know of the 18-month old child burned to death in Palestine allegedly by Israeli settlers who remain at large.
But would it not be fair to say that once the trouble started the US and its allies (France, UK, Saudi Arabia, etc.) joined in on the brawl and made matters much worse?
"Turning the Cradle of Civilization Into its Graveyard" by Diana Johnstone- link to counterpunch.org … "Western leaders share major responsibility for making much of the world unfit for normal human habitation."
Christian, like liberal, conservative and other labels, has evolved to mean almost anything and consequently nothing. Among the more astonishing aspects of the refugee crisis is the apparent ignorance of many people in the United States and in western Europe and the indifference of their leaders and would-be leaders to the causes of so many millions of people being displaced. Support of a right-wing coup in Honduras and wars throughout the Middle East, North Africa and Afghanistan. Nevertheless, our neocons and other warmongers call for more war. Kind of evokes thoughts of Einstein's definition of insanity.
But America has always talked out of both sides of its mouth, even before it became the US of A. Then came the great classic about all men being created equal written by slave owners.
A psychiatric evaluation of presidential candidates seems to be in order, but who would conduct it? The American Psychological Association? "Three senior officials lose their jobs at APA after US torture scandal: American Psychological Association framed the departures of its chief executive officer, deputy CEO and communications chief as ‘retirements’ and resignations" by Spencer Ackerman - link to theguardian.com
... a perfect world ...
It is beyond the realm of possibilities for a world inhabited by people to ever become perfect, but we can reduce the number and degree of its defects.
... your vision for a perfect world garners a miniscule fraction of the vote.
And, what does that say about Americans who are eligible to vote?
... vision for a perfect world ...
In a debate or negotiation, it is better to push for the highest desired level of success. Facing reality and conceding a willingness to accept a lower goal as a starting point guarantees failure or something close to it.
... the left’s love of Nader gave us Bush 2.
The problem wasn't so much that so many people voted for Nader instead of Gore, the problem was that so many people voted for Gore instead of Nader. There wouldn't have been a war on Iraq under President Nader, but there could have been one under the Gore-Lieberman administration. Gore was vice president when Clinton and Madeline Albright administered the sanctions that cost an estimated half million Iraqi children their lives. Presumably, Gore agreed with Albright that "it was worth it."
But lets go even further back: the left’s love of Nader gave us Bush 2.
It wasn't that simple or simplistic. The right wing of the Supreme Court, the machinations in Florida under then-governor Jeb Bush, and the contemptible campaign run by Al Gore and vice-presidential candidate Joe Lieberman (D-CT and Israel) were much bigger factors. Ralph Nader's role is tossed in as a red herring to obscure the facts. I once thought the criticism of Nader had been put to rest but apparently not.
Compromise is essential in politics, but some people appear to fail to recognize there are times when they need to draw a line. This would be an excellent topic to engage at this time. In the case of the Israel Lobby it might be political suicide for candidates to be critical of Israel so mealy-mouth statements might be in order, but surely when elected they should draw a line when it comes to endorsing Israeli actions that are deemed international crimes by eminent international authorities.
Sanders' virtue is that he gives voice to concepts ordinary citizens care about - income inequality, etc.. But there are other aspects to consider. Obama gave a fair number of signals that he was in the pocket of the Establishment, but in the tradition of hope prevailing over reality Obama supporters bought into the illusions he presented. Some people might have learned from this experience so will question which Bernie Sanders they will be voting for - the "people's Sanders" or the Sanders who has gone along with the Israel Lobby and the M-I complex and is a friend of Hillary? One thing is certain. The plutocrats and the oligarchs they own in both parties will gang up on Sanders if he is elected. The question then will be will Sanders compromise or fight. I say compromise.
Two articles worth considering:
"The West likes to think that 'civilisation' will defeat Isis, but history suggests otherwise: We cling to our belief that barbarism will never outlast the power of the righteous" by Robert Fisk - link to independent.co.uk
and
"Only Iraq’s Clerics Can Defeat ISIS" by Patrick Cockburn - link to counterpunch.org
Apparently, Turkey can be added to the list of gainers: "Turkey’s euphoria over Iran nuclear deal: While the Iran nuclear deal sparked optimism around the world, Turkey appears to be the one country where both the enthusiasm and expectations related to this new era with Iran are the highest. The overall mood in Ankara is positive,… " By Altay Atli - link to atimes.com
Follow up article: "Not everyone is allowed to have a ‘Good Life in Germany’" by Rebecca Burkert - link to mondoweiss.net
It would be interesting to know how much the policies of Germany, the US, and other European nations and their corporations have contributed to this refugee crisis.
Holt was just doing his job, what he is paid to do. Just like all the others at NBC post-Huntley-Brinkley. Same for CBS, ABC, CNN, Fox and any others in the fawning corporate media.
To the 12% of Republicans supporting Trump it is probably a good bet that we can add a sizable number of working class Democrats and independents who fear immigrants taking their jobs.
"Donald Trump’s demagoguery is a gauge of America’s demoralization": Spengler By David P. Goldman - link to atimes.com … "A demagogue tries to sound as stupid as his listeners, so that they will think they are as smart as he is, quipped Karl Kraus, the fin-de-siecle Viennese gadfly. Donald Trump’s claim that illegal immigration into the United States is “decimating the country” is a case in point. Illegal immigration is a bad thing, and the social costs of a mass influx of poor and uneducated migrants from Mexico and Central America are significant, but that is not one of America’s bigger problems. Migration actually fell after the 2008 crash because construction jobs disappeared."
Merkel didn't gain any points in this debate: "Angela Merkel makes a 14-year old Palestinian girl cry by telling her she is not welcome in Germany" by Allison Deger - link to mondoweiss.net
We get to hear from Donald Trump, who has never been elected to anything and represents no one at all.
Given recent polling data, it appears The Donald does represent a sizable portion of the American people who should be a cause for concern.
Given one commentator's suggestion that the P5+1 should be relabeled P1(US)+5 and given Merkel's submission to US spying and Cameron's lapdog status, perhaps your speculation on a robust debate from that lot is unwarranted.
A consequence of US double-dealing during the Iraq-Iran war that is surprisingly overlooked was the firing of two Exocet missiles from an Iraqi jet very shortly after Saddam Hussein learned the US had been helping the Iranians. Despite 37 US Navy personnel being killed Washington and the Pentagon bought into the "story" that this was an "accident." Yeah, right.
Here are some replies to Netanyahu’s silliness:
Silliness? Perhaps, you are being too kind.
The US military budget is roughly 80 times that of Iran.
Only 80 times Iran? The Pentagon had better send some of its bemedalled top brass to Congress to get a raise. How can they sleep at night leaving us to face such overwhelming odds?
While there is much to be said for paying attention to what is happening in Greece and Europe, let's not forget other areas, such as Latin America: "Ecuador, Greece and the Left In Ecuador, Fight for Mankind; In Greece, Fight for Greece!" by ANDRE VLTCHEK - link to counterpunch.org
A majority of the Greek people voted for democracy and economic justice, but the potentates in charge of European finance are not having anything to do with that civilized nonsense.
A past to remember:
"Trump’s Fixation on Rape and Color: Real estate and entertainment mogul Donald Trump has soared to the top tier of Republican presidential candidates after a rant about Mexican immigrant “rapists” – not the first time that Trump has mixed the explosive topics of rape and color, leading Jeff Cohen to ask if Trump is a “serial racist.”" - link to consortiumnews.com
Thank you for that excellent link.
If the Republican Party can choose McCain and Palin as their candidates for the White House, we shouldn't be surprised if The Donald is the party's next choice. All we need then is to have Hillary foisted on us by the Democratic (?) Party to alert the American people as to how far this mighty nation has fallen.
Trump and others would do well to ask why there is so much emigration from Central America. They might find that the vast majority of these emigrants really don't want to leave home, but in great part the evil side of capitalism (local and American) has made life hell for many Central Americans. One of the more egregious and more recent of many horrific events was the overthrow of the democratically-elected government in Honduras approved by President Obama and secretary of state Hillary Clinton. Honduras is now another human rights and economic basket case.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the political spectrum: "What Scott Walker’s Tenure Has Done to Wisconsin’s Workers: As he prepares for a presidential run, the governor’s labor legacy deserves inspection. Are his state’s “hardworking taxpayers” any better off?" By Donald Kettl - link to theatlantic.com
Perhaps if he had the backing of enough people he could tell The Lobby what he might really believe.
In the unlikely event Sanders is elected president he will find another and bigger challenge before him - the Washington Establishment. The oligarchs from both parties through their agents in Congress will gang up on him. The media won't let up. The only way he can succeed is for the American people to do something mostly alien to their character - stand up for what is right. What is left of the union movement had better get its head out and quit supporting the candidate anointed by the contemptuous oligarchs of the Democratic (?) Party.
As the old saying goes, "It depends on whose ox is being gored."
If suspicions of white supremacist arson prove true, this will be another irremediable stain on the Confederate flag.
Despite your scholarly points, Huckabee, Cruz and their ilk will believe whatever they want to believe. Scientists say climate change is a monstrous threat. They don't care. They believe the scientists are wrong because that is not what they want to believe. The war on drugs has been a disaster, but the evidence won't change their minds.
But there is Obama's push for TPP:
"Health Care and the TPP: Attacking State Run Medical Schemes" by BINOY KAMPMARK - link to counterpunch.org
and
"Trans-Pacific Partnership Promises Health Care for Profits, Not Patients: Very Little to Do With Trade" by PETE DOLACK - link to counterpunch.org
Check page 7 on "Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: How the performance of the U.S. health care system compares internationally" by Karen Davis, Kristof Stremikis, Daved Squires and Cathy Schoen - link to commonwealthfund.org
Best of all, the flag has the word “Liberty” written into the crescent moon, underscoring this key American value, so important for all peoples living in the South.
Unfortunately, in our Orwellian world "liberty" on this flag would most likely prove to be as meaningless as "liberty" in the pledge of allegiance.
We have tens of millions of people living in poverty and they have little to no liberty at all.
It's not just South Carolina. We need a national revolution based on morality and ethics. We need to make the Pledge of Allegiance - especially "one nation, ..., indivisible, with liberty and justice for all" - a reality instead of its recitation being an act of national hypocrisy.
Another reason:
"The Confederate battle flag is what makes America stupid" By David P. Goldman - link to atimes.com - in which he notes "As the New York Times reports this morning, not a single Republican presidential candidate has the courage to tell South Carolina to stop flying the Confederate battle flag from its state capitol."
I believe many that come from wealthy and powerful families have proven to lack real honesty, wisdom, heart, intelligence and common sense.
Gov. Scott Walker (R-Wisconsin and the Koch Brothers) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-ditto) are two examples of working class progeny who have sold and continue to sell workers down the river.
Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina and Israel) is a robot and another example of what a farce the 2016 presidential election is.
And Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is a prime example of why politicians are no help. Despite reports of the shooter making racist statements, Graham claimed the shooter was anti-Christian:
Lindsey Graham: Charleston Shooter May Have Been ‘Looking for Christians to Kill’
by Matt Wilstein - link to mediaite.com
The question to be asked now is, "WHY?" Hopefully, some independent journalists will provide honest answers explaining what led this young man to commit this despicable crime. No point in checking the mainstream media or politicians for answers.
The massacre of nine good and decent citizens in Charleston was a cowardly and dastardly act that will be made more despicable when the course of events that follow will most likely render these deaths, like many others before them, in vain.
How many massacres over the last ten, twenty or thirty years do average, or even above-average, American citizens remember? Or, conversely, how many have they forgotten? How about the 1984 massacre at a McDonald’s in San Diego that took the lives of 21 people? How about the 1966 slaughter of 16 people by a sniper in the tower at the University of Texas in Austin? How many people pass that tower every day without giving this tragedy a thought?
How about the Pentagon’s revision of the history of the Vietnam War in which their hired historians referred to the My Lai Massacre as the “"My Lai Incident"? After protests this distortion was revised, still somewhat innocuously, to "American Division Kills Hundreds of Vietnamese Citizens at My Lai." The uninformed will conclude that is the way wars go. Maybe assume it was an American victory.
If Sandy Hook (20 school children and six staff members) didn’t make a meaningful national impact, what are the prospects for some enlightened consequence resulting from Charleston? Removal of the offensive Confederate battle flag from the state capitol grounds would be a small step in the right direction but one not likely to be taken.
Larry: It appears you missed my point that most people will forget this horrible event and go along with something like Obama's dismissive line about "that's not who we are" or "these are not our values" and we are really all good and virtuous people. We do have lots of good and virtuous people, but most of us need reminders many among us are not and that has been the case for a long time. Americans are notoriously deficient in history and their being exposed to a modest measure of erudition might help. Perspective is another way of looking at this event. Then there is:
‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens link to theonion.com
In our Orwellian world, "terrorist" means whatever politicians, media pundits and other propagandists want it to mean. Same goes for many other words.
Charleston shooting: Five charts that show the ugly truth about hate crimes: Hate crime rate remains steady and blacks remain the racial group most likely to experience racially-motivated violence by Christopher Ingraham - link to independent.co.uk
I should also have mentioned the Tulsa and other massacres perpetrated on black Americans in the past.
This latest atrocity is "breaking news"? In the grand scheme of American history it probably won't even register as a footnote in most history books. The few honest history books, such as Howard Zinn's "Peoples History of the United States" are replete with records of much more abominable massacres. How about the ethnic cleansing of the Native American population? How about the workers who died as a consequence of deplorable working conditions in factories, mills and mines? How about the hundreds of thousands slaughtered in the Spanish-American War and making Central America safe for United Fruit and Wall Street? How about the countless dead and maimed in Panama, the Balkans and the Middle East as a consequence of orders from Papa Bush, Bill Clinton, Dubya and now Obama? How about the recurring slaughters of innocent Gazans endorsed by the moral wretches in Congress? Those non-white victims don't count? Then how about the naive young and white American men and women whose lives were sacrificed in vain in those wars?
Why are people so exasperated with the Orwellian language applied to this incident? The dominant and loudest voices in the United States have been talking out of both sides of their mouths for generations.
Fortunately, Governor Haley has the answer, "Please join us in lifting up the victims and their families with our love and prayers.” Just as soon as I click on the "Post Comment" key I'll get down on my knees and join you Governor Haley in prayer. And I'll also pray that no more dipstick fathers give their emotionally-troubled kids .45 caliber guns for a birthday present.
America’s electoral farce by Chris Hedges - link to truthdig.com
But the Republican Party establishment is appalled, because Trump will create an image for the party ...
Make that "Trump will make the GOP's loony fringe more obvious."
The good news is because the American people are taking the 2016 presidential election seriously, Trump will help provide an antidote and expose this election for the farce it really is.
It speaks to the audacity and shamelessness of the Bush clan and their elite supporters ...
and to the low levels of intelligence and morality of a sizable portion of the American electorate.
So many candidates, each one worse than the next.
Add to that disastrous lot The Donald.
Syrian civil war: Jabhat al-Nusra's massacre of Druze villagers shows the group is just as nasty as Isis: The incident last week suggests that the US have let the al-Qaeda affiliate off lightly by Patrick Cockburn - link to independent.co.uk
It is extremely distasteful that US allies are willing to back a coalition like the Army of Conquest,...
But, by no means, not unusual.
Iraq has a human rights commission? Is it another Iraqi "ghost"?
Iraq needs another National Party
So, too, does the US
Given the Israel-Saudi Arabia collusion you probably are wrong.
"The Saudi-Israeli superpower: Exclusive: Egypt’s counterrevolution and Syria’s civil war could herald the arrival of a new superpower coalition, an unlikely alliance between Israel and Saudi Arabia, one with great political clout and the other with vast financial wealth, together flexing their muscles across the Middle East," writes Robert Parry. - link to consortiumnews.com
And let's not forget the Arabs in Egypt collaborating with Israel in their abuse of the people of Gaza.
Absent a response from Bernie Sanders, Joshua Frank appears to have a clue as to what Senator Sanders might say:
"Why Bernie Sanders is a Dead End: He's a Loser, Baby" by JOSHUA FRANK - link to counterpunch.org
Nobody thinks Israel will agree to a Palestinian state as long as Netanyahu has anything to say about it.
Ditto for Netanyahu's allies and rivals.
Once Netanyahu admitted that there wouldn’t be a Palestinian state, it was like dropping a fig leaf. He stood naked before the world.
As for its claim to moral leadership, US support for Israel's violations of international law and crimes against humanity means the US is exposed as a naked moralist.
Daniel Ellsberg credits Edward Snowden with catalysing US surveillance reform: Prominent US whistleblowers applaud Snowden’s Patriot Act revelation for inciting Congress to take action, though they doubt he can ever return to the US - link to theguardian.com
but as far as the Obama Administration is concerned
Charges against Edward Snowden stand, despite telephone surveillance ban: The former NSA contractor revealed the banned surveillance programme, but an Obama administration spokesman says they will not review his charges by Dan Roberts - link to theguardian.com
Apparently, true patriotism is in the eye of the beholder
Even senators like Ron Wyden of Oregon, who knew what the US government was doing in secret, could not openly blow the whistle because they would have instantly been arrested.
But what about their oaths to uphold the Constitution? Similarly, as Dick Durbin revealed in a speech in the senate, the members of the senate intelligence (sic) committee were told a different version of the intelligence leading up to the Iraq war that contradicted the propaganda out of the Bush-Cheney white house, but his oath to keep these briefings secret overrode his oath to the Constitution. It doesn't appear the senate is a place to look for profiles in courage. Which might help to explain why Snowden is in exile.
On the other hand, given the prevailing indifference and, in some cases, hostility to the sacrifices made by whistleblowers such as Snowden, Kiriakou, Manning, etc. it would take an enormous measure of altruism with which few are endowed to make this ultimate sacrifice.
Rand Paul has the unfortunate tendency to come up with occasional preposterous Ayn-Randian ideas, but he does appear to be the the only presidential candidate on the GOP side to take his oath to uphold the Constitution seriously.
As for Obama and his relationship to the Constitution it appears to be non-existent unless it involves his primary role of taking care of the plutocrats and oligarchs that helped him get elected.
Finally a candidate I can vote for and not have to choose between the lesser of two evils. I think Bernie is going to do a lot better than the MSM give him credit for.
Two points: (1) Sanders is probably genuine in his populist statement, but, like Elizabeth Warren and others who give hope to the people, he is caught in the tentacles of the Israel Lobby and, possibly, the war armaments industry, and (2) In the unlikely event he were elected president he would be like Jimmy Carter and have the Establishment - mainstream media, GOP, Wall Street AND the oligarchs in the Democratic Party gang up on him and he would go nowhere. But I'll probably vote for him in the primary against HRC.
The Israeli cancer continues to metastasize.
For some reason the story of Ben Franklin emerging from the constitutional convention in Philadelphia and his reportedly being asked, "What have you wrought?" came to mind. A good question to pose to Dubya, Darth Cheney and their warmongering cohorts.
So it completely escapes me why John McCain, Lindsey Graham, John Boehner or Tom Cotton (who helped personally with the berlinization of Iraq) think that if only US troops had remained in country after 2011, the people of Ramadi would have been delirious with joy and avoided throwing in with radical anti-imperialist forces.
Because what they say sustains their beliefs no matter how out of touch with reality they are.
How about performance reports? Does anyone have any idea of how many medals and citations for outstanding performance were issued to the trainers who appear to have achieved very little, if anything, to brag about?
Could it be the Iraqi troops don't have adequate reasons to put their lives on the line and be the equivalent of cannon fodder?
Does anyone have any numbers on what it cost to train this so-called Iraqi army?
Thank you for the correction. I got my states mixed, but it was Daniels who projected the $60 billion figure. link to businessinsider.com
Well other than the war being slightly over budget, (one and a half trillion dollars as opposed to the two hundred million projected cost),...
Joseph Stiglitz and Linda Bilmes estimated some time ago that the total costs for the Iraq war would be in the range of three TRILLION dollars. Stiglitz more recently has revised that number upward to around $5 TRILLION - link to bloomberg.com.
Mitch Daniels, Dubya's budget director, estimated the war would cost around $60 billion. Subsequently, Daniels was elected by the people of Ohio to be their governor - and Ohio is a swing state in presidential elections. Go figure.
Though they did get firm oral commitments, there is no prospect of formal treaty obligations binding the US to defend them.
If there were a treaty with the US, would it be worth any more than the treaties and conventions the US reneged on in the past?
Israel’s Government Ratchets even Further Right
And our "leaders" in Washington will make more obvious their moral deficits by continuing to endorse whatever cruel and usual punishment Israel's right wing inflicts on their prisoners in Gaza and the West Bank.
The politicians in Congress are occasionally exposed to profiles in courage. The words of one, Joseph Welch, appear to be in order today: " You've done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?" And that also goes for the female members.
As a student of World Wars One and Two, I find the hate speech emanating from Geller and her friends to echo the anti-Jewish vendetta in Germany in the 1930s. Hate speech condemning an entire race amplified by squalid cartoons.
Talking of Harvard:
"You see, the Russians have already experienced what it is like to comply with U.S. economic edicts. That was tried during the 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union when experts from Harvard University descended on Moscow with “shock therapy” for the post-communist society. What happened was that a handful of well-connected thieves plundered the nation’s resources, making themselves into billionaire oligarchs while President Boris Yeltsin stayed drunk much of the time and many average Russians faced starvation." . - link to consortiumnews.com
"Why do Harvard kids head to Wall Street?" By James Kwak - link to baselinescenario.com
"As Defense Minister in the Guatemalan army, Gramajo played an integral role in the genocide against the country’s indigenous Mayan population. Not only was he given free entry, but Harvard University granted him a fellowship at the John F. Kennedy School of Government." - link to counterpunch.org
But it isn't just Harvard. It's a good bet if you check the culprits who gave us the Wall Street debacle of 2008 and the war on Iraq you'll find a large number of graduates of other Ivy League schools and other so-called top universities such as the University of Chicago were involved.