I ADORE THE SUNDANCE CHANNEL

THE TIGER AND THE SNOW

I had never seen this movie. But it was on the fantastic TV channel, The Sundance Channel, today. With subtitles. I especially liked Tom Waits singing You Can Never Hold Back Spring and the poetry of the movie. Some great art - this movie.

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The Opening Scene of the movie
Tom Waits sings You Can Never Hold Back Spring from his Orphans CD.
Uploaded by scavosauras
To view in larger screen ~
Double click the video and it will take you to youtube

Tom Waits was great in the Terry Gilliam movie
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

After creating LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL, the Oscar-winning comedy set during the Holocaust, actor/filmmaker Roberto Benigni takes on a no-less-audacious project: a romantic comedy set during the opening days of the Iraq War. Benigni plays a madcap poetry professor hopelessly infatuated with an elegant writer (Nicoletta Braschi). When he learns his beloved is wounded and lying near death in a Baghdad hospital, our hero impersonates a doctor and is soon dodging bullets and bombshells to win her heart. "Winsome, charming and irresistibly romantic" -Salon.

The Sundance Channel schedule - airing The Tiger and The Snow

Tuesday, October 5 11:15 AM

Tuesday, October 5 4:20 PM

Monday, October 11 11:00 AM

Monday, October 11 2:50 PM

Tuesday, October 12 6:25 AM

Thursday, October 21 10:35 AM

Thursday, October 21 3:30 PM

Sunday, October 31 1:30 PM

Cast and Crew

Director	Roberto Benigni
Screenwriter	Roberto Benigni
Screenwriter	Vincenzo Cerami
Cinematographer	Fabio Cianchetti
Editor	Massimo Fiocchi
Composer	Nicola Piovani
Actor	Roberto Benigni
Actor	Nicoletta Braschi
Actor	Tom Waits

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The Tiger and The Snow
The trailer
Uploaded by EuropaFilmes
To view in larger screen ~
Double click the video and it will take you to youtube

GULF OF BP OIL DISASTER - NEW NAME REQUESTED FOR GULF OF MEXICO - UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE

Since I began this blog, I have had this quote at the top:

"People who shut their eyes to reality simply invite their own destruction, and anyone who insists on remaining in a state of innocence long after that innocence is dead turns himself into a monster." James Baldwin

It is fitting for the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. I do not understand why many still call it "oil spill". Perhaps we should have the map makers rename it as the Gulf of BP Oil Disaster. We put names on all the corporation-supported sports arenas and what not. Why not the Gulf-sponsored disaster?

The crazy comments being made by so many elected politicians* and not-elected USA citizens scare the living daylights out of me. They say things that only a thoughtless human being could say. It is like they believe since they say "it", then it is true, regardless of any truth or supporting evidence. They hold things simply are not true...in their brains: the economy disaster born of GW Bush and Cheney "daze", global warming, environmental damage, just anything "they" don't want to believe . Check out Sharon Angle

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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No End in Sight - the movie

Over $1.8 Trillion of our tax dollars going to the Iraq War

My opinion: at best good citizenship means we not only vote, we " know" who we vote for and we are aware of what our government does in our name and we are continually involved in our government by "communicating" our values to our elected politicians. Also, ...my opinion: we are wrong to have gone to war in Iraq.

Obama keeps Blackwater to fight USA war - $120 Million Contract

Just some examples of our madness becoming what seems mainstream.

Just because we ignore what is done in our name in the USA, doesn't mean we won't have to reap the harvest of what we have sown with our stupid actions.

What will the price of our collective stupidity or lack of involvement in our government's accountability be?

And ...

Give Elana Kagan a break...Sessions said she isn't forth-coming....let's compare her forth-coming behavior and answering to this....(Sessions is even in this video)

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Contact President Obama

http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact

202-456-1111

Contact Elected Officials

NEEDED LESS CORPORATE OWNED MEDIA AND ELECTED OFFICIALS

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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Bush, Torture and Cheney
Aired February 22, 2010

The show -Body of War - was re-aired today on The Sundance Channel, which shows it without the PBS' comments, which are included in the clips below.
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West Virginia's Senator Robert Byrd
Senate floor speech of March 19, 2003 opposing the Iraq War
Part 1
Uploaded by DemRapidResponse

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West Virginia's Senator Robert Byrd
Senate floor speech of March 19, 2003 opposing the Iraq War
Part 2
Uploaded by DemRapidResponse

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Interview Part 3 of 7
Q & A with Phil Donahue about Body of War
See the interview in its entirety
Read the Transcript
Uploaded by 913Tripolis44

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Body of War - Part 1
Uploaded by democracynoworg

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Body of War - Part 2
Uploaded by democracynoworg


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Body of War - Part 3
Uploaded by democracynoworg


Rhode Island Sudan Sham 2010 campaign action day is this Thursday, February 25, 2010.
Rhode Islnd actions will be posted tomorrow.

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HONORING VETERANS

WITH TRUTH
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BODY OF WAR

Tomas Young ~ Text from www.bodyofwarmusic.com

When Tomas Young saw President Bush on television speaking from the ruins of the Twin Towers, his life changed. Just two days after 9-11, he responded to the call to defend his country by enlisting in the Army. He was 22 years old and lived in Kansas City.

As his basic training began at Ft. Hood, he assumed that he would be shipped off to Afghanistan where the terrorist camps were based, routing out Al Qaeda and Taliban warriors. But soon, Bush ordered the invasion of Iraq and everything changed.

Tomas arrived in Iraq in late March of 2004, almost exactly one year after the war officially began and ten months after President Bush had declared, "Mission Accomplished." On April 4, he was sent on his first mission to Sadr City. While riding with fellow soldiers in an unarmored Humvee with no canvas covering, he was shot just above his left collarbone. He later described it as "shooting fish in a barrel." He was instantly paralyzed. In his very brief tour of duty, he had not fired a single shot.

Paralyzed and unconscious, Tomas was first evacuated to Kuwait, then Germany and finally moved to Walter Reed Army Medical Center near Washington, D.C. for more long-term treatment.

As he slowly came back to consciousness and his new life paralyzed from the chest down, Tomas began to question the entire premise of the Iraq war. As he lay in his hospital bed watching the near constant reports of those killed and wounded, the war didn't make any sense to him. What did Iraq have to do with the attacks of 9-11 or Islamic terrorists? If there were no weapons of mass destruction, what was the U.S. still doing in Iraq? He knew that everyday young men just like himself were dying and being severely wounded, Iraqis and Americans. And to what purpose?
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Body of War is an intimate and transformational feature documentary about the true face of war today. Meet Tomas Young, 25 years old, paralyzed from a bullet to his spine - wounded after serving in Iraq for less than a week.

Body of War is Tomas' coming home story as he evolves into a new person, coming to terms with his disability and finding his own unique and passionate voice against the war. The film is produced and directed by Phil Donahue and Ellen Spiro, and features two original songs by Eddie Vedder. Body of War is a naked and honest portrayal of what it's like inside the body, heart and soul of this extraordinary and heroic young man.

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Body of War - Phil Donahue on Bill Moyers Journal
Uploaded by riphotpotatomash

PBS' Bill Moyers Journal webpage regarding Body of War



Related pages:

Buying the War at www.pbs.org/moyers/journal

Cost of the War at www.pbs.org/moyers/journal
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Senator Byrd's speech opposing Iraq War March 19, 2003 Part 1
Uploaded by DemRapidResponse

Text taken from byrd.senate.gov

"The Arrogance of Power"

I believe in this beautiful country. I have studied its roots and gloried in the wisdom of its magnificent Constitution. I have marveled at the wisdom of its founders and framers. Generation after generation of Americans has understood the lofty ideals that underlie our great Republic. I have been inspired by the story of their sacrifice and their strength.

But, today I weep for my country. I have watched the events of recent months with a heavy, heavy heart. No more is the image of America one of strong, yet benevolent peacekeeper. The image of America has changed. Around the globe, our friends mistrust us, our word is disputed, our intentions are questioned.

Instead of reasoning with those with whom we disagree, we demand obedience or threaten recrimination. Instead of isolating Saddam Hussein, we seem to have isolated ourselves. We proclaim a new doctrine of preemption which is understood by few and feared by many. We say that the United States has the right to turn its firepower on any corner of the globe which might be suspect in the war on terrorism. We assert that right without the sanction of any international body. As a result, the world has become a much more dangerous place.

We flaunt our superpower status with arrogance. We treat UN Security Council members like ingrates who offend our princely dignity by lifting their heads from the carpet. Valuable alliances are split. After war has ended, the United States will have to rebuild much more than the country of Iraq. We will have to rebuild America's image around the globe.

The case this Administration tries to make to justify its fixation with war is tainted by charges of falsified documents and circumstantial evidence. We cannot convince the world of the necessity of this war for one simple reason. This is a war of choice.

There is no credible information to connect Saddam Hussein to 9/11. The twin towers fell because a world-wide terrorist group, Al Qaeda, with cells in over 60 nations, struck at our wealth and our influence by turning our own planes into missiles, one of which would likely have slammed into the dome of this beautiful Capitol except for the brave sacrifice of the passengers on board.

The brutality seen on September 11th and in other terrorist attacks we have witnessed around the globe are the violent and desperate efforts by extremists to stop the daily encroachment of western values upon their cultures. That is what we fight. It is a force not confined to borders. It is a shadowy entity with many faces, many names, and many addresses.

But, this Administration has directed all of the anger, fear, and grief which emerged from the ashes of the twin towers and the twisted metal of the Pentagon towards a tangible villain, one we can see and hate and attack. And villain he is. But, he is the wrong villain. And this is the wrong war. If we attack Saddam Hussein, we will probably drive him from power. But, the zeal of our friends to assist our global war on terrorism may have already taken flight.

The general unease surrounding this war is not just due to "orange alert." There is a pervasive sense of rush and risk and too many questions unanswered. How long will we be in Iraq? What will be the cost? What is the ultimate mission? How great is the danger at home? A pall has fallen over the Senate Chamber. We avoid our solemn duty to debate the one topic on the minds of all Americans, even while scores of thousands of our sons and daughters faithfully do their duty in Iraq.

What is happening to this country? When did we become a nation which ignores and berates our friends? When did we decide to risk undermining international order by adopting a radical and doctrinaire approach to using our awesome military might? How can we abandon diplomatic efforts when the turmoil in the world cries out for diplomacy?

Why can this President not seem to see that America's true power lies not in its will to intimidate, but in its ability to inspire?

War appears inevitable. But, I continue to hope that the cloud will lift. Perhaps Saddam will yet turn tail and run. Perhaps reason will somehow still prevail. I along with millions of Americans will pray for the safety of our troops, for the innocent civilians in Iraq, and for the security of our homeland. May God continue to bless the United States of America in the troubled days ahead, and may we somehow recapture the vision which for the present eludes us.

The Senators Recorded Votes on going to war in Iraq

Grouped By Vote Position

YEAs ---77
Allard (R-CO) Allen (R-VA) Baucus (D-MT) Bayh (D-IN) Bennett (R-UT) Biden (D-DE) Bond (R-MO) Breaux (D-LA) Brownback (R-KS) Bunning (R-KY) Burns (R-MT) Campbell (R-CO) Cantwell (D-WA) Carnahan (D-MO) Carper (D-DE) Cleland (D-GA) Clinton (D-NY) Cochran (R-MS) Collins (R-ME) Craig (R-ID) Crapo (R-ID) Daschle (D-SD) DeWine (R-OH) Dodd (D-CT) Domenici (R-NM) Dorgan (D-ND)	Edwards (D-NC) Ensign (R-NV) Enzi (R-WY) Feinstein (D-CA) Fitzgerald (R-IL) Frist (R-TN) Gramm (R-TX) Grassley (R-IA) Gregg (R-NH) Hagel (R-NE) Harkin (D-IA) Hatch (R-UT) Helms (R-NC) Hollings (D-SC) Hutchinson (R-AR) Hutchison (R-TX) Inhofe (R-OK) Johnson (D-SD) Kerry (D-MA) Kohl (D-WI) Kyl (R-AZ) Landrieu (D-LA) Lieberman (D-CT) Lincoln (D-AR) Lott (R-MS) Lugar (R-IN)	McCain (R-AZ) McConnell (R-KY) Miller (D-GA) Murkowski (R-AK) Nelson (D-FL) Nelson (D-NE) Nickles (R-OK) Reid (D-NV) Roberts (R-KS) Rockefeller (D-WV) Santorum (R-PA) Schumer (D-NY) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Smith (R-NH) Smith (R-OR) Snowe (R-ME) Specter (R-PA) Stevens (R-AK) Thomas (R-WY) Thompson (R-TN) Thurmond (R-SC) Torricelli (D-NJ) Voinovich (R-OH) Warner (R-VA)

NAYs ---23
Akaka (D-HI) Bingaman (D-NM) Boxer (D-CA) Byrd (D-WV) Chafee (R-RI) Conrad (D-ND) Corzine (D-NJ) Dayton (D-MN)	Durbin (D-IL) Feingold (D-WI) Graham (D-FL) Inouye (D-HI) Jeffords (I-VT) Kennedy (D-MA) Leahy (D-VT) Levin (D-MI)	Mikulski (D-MD) Murray (D-WA) Reed (D-RI) Sarbanes (D-MD) Stabenow (D-MI) Wellstone (D-MN) Wyden (D-OR)

Vote Summary

By Senator Name

By Vote Position

By Home State

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The House of Representatives vote on going to war in Iraq 296 for and 133 against (3 didn't vote)

VOTE - LET'S GIVE PEACE A CHANCE - OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT

Today, in my state there is a TV ad running with Wright as the only subject. Of course, the reason it is running is to drum up votes for whom I consider ~ the Wrong candidate.

Last Friday night a story was illegally leaked that was for the purpose also to steer people toward the Wrong candidate. I have been disappointed before with the USA being fickle and attaching themselves to what amounts to non-issues ~ so we will see what effect this has on the election.

There is some man who is claiming on Youtube that he has proof that Barack Obama was born in Kenya. The problem is that Barack's mother would have had to be in Kenya for that to happen. And she wasn't.

It will be a very sad day if we don't get a chance to see a change.

I sent this email out today to USA citizens who want the genocide on the Darfuri people to end:

Dear Person of Conscience,

If you have voted already - Thank you. If you are planning to vote election day, please don’t allow anything to keep you from it. As someone who has been active in trying to bring our politicians along regarding the well-being of the Darfuri families and the genocide, you know how important it is to have a President who actually will do what needs to be done.

As someone who has never volunteered before in an election before this one, I know first hand - millions of hours by volunteers are presently and have been working in the primaries and the general election months to get people to the polls. It is startling to realize that we have to work so hard to get people informed and then get them to actually vote.

Please, vote. And encourage all you know to vote. And make sure you know your rights: http://www.aclu.org/votingrights/gen/36695res20080909.html

I have information below for my home state of Rhode Island, as well as Massachusetts and Connecticut.

If you want to help out, contact me and I will give you the phone number to call and address where you can go today, tonight and/or tomorrow to help out all the over-worked volunteers here in Rhode Island. This work includes calling to battleground states, as well as standing out with signs for visibility.

Thank you.

Let’s give peace a chance.

Rhode Island voters
https://www.ri.gov/SOS/vic//

http://www.sec.state.ri.us/

and
http://www.sec.state.ri.us/elections/news-items/last-minute-options-for-voting

There are last-minute alternatives for Rhode Islanders who missed the deadline to register to vote or who find they will be out-of-town unexpectedly on November 4.

"Same-day" Ballots

If you missed the October 4 deadline to register to vote, you will not be able to vote for statewide or local races on Election Day. However, you will be able to cast a "same-day" ballot for President and Vice President if you are otherwise eligible to register to vote. In most places, just to go to your community's city or town hall on November 4.

Four cities and towns have set up special locations instead of town hall on Election Day: Coventry Town Hall Annex, 1675 Flat River Road; Little Compton, Wilbur McMann School, 28 Commons; Providence, Dunkin Donuts Center, 1 LaSalle Square; and Smithfield Senior Center, 1 William J. Hawkins Jr. Trail.

Whether you go to town hall or a special location, local elections officials will be on hand to help. You can register to vote and cast a ballot in the presidential race on the spot. And you are officially registered in Rhode Island for future elections.

Emergency Ballots

If you unexpectedly find you will be out-of-town on Election Day, you can go to your community's city or town hall and request an Emergency Ballot. You must be eligible to vote on Election Day in order to qualify. You will fill out a ballot at town hall and seal it in a privacy envelope. Your vote will be counted on Election Day the same as absentee and voting-machine ballots.

Massachusetts voters

http://www.sec.state.ma.us/

and

http://www.wheredoivotema.com/bal/myelectioninfo.php

Connecticut voters

http://www.ct.gov/sots/cwp/view.asp?a=3179&Q=411292&sotsNav=|47610|&sotsNav_GID=1846

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Dick Cheney "delighted to endorse McCain"
Uploaded by ElPresidenteNuevo

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GENOCIDE STOPS WITH US - LET'S MAKE IT PAST HISTORY

From www.savedarfur.org:

Daily News: Monday, November 2, 2008

Reuters: Darfuris march in The Hague to back court's action. More than 100 Darfuris marched through The Hague on Friday to show their support for the International Criminal Court's (ICC) move to indict Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir. "We've come here to support the ICC and to support justice because without justice, there will be no peace," said Mohammed Ismail from the Darfur Union, a civil society group that helped organise the demonstration. The ICC's top prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo asked the global court's judges to issue the warrant in July, accusing Bashir of orchestrating a campaign of genocide in Darfur that has killed thousands and forced millions from their homes.

Agence France-Presse: JEM to mull Qatar proposal for Sudan peace talks. The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), militarily the most powerful rebel group in Darfur, will send delegates to Qatar to sound out plans for possible talks with Sudan, a JEM official said on Saturday. "JEM has made it very clear that its delegation will go to Doha to give a first-hand explanation, and the position of JEM regarding the Darfur problem, and the Sudan problem as a whole, and at the same time listen to the Qataris to see what their initiative is," Tahir el-Faki told AFP by telephone from London. Darfur rebel groups have been critical of Arab-led peace efforts, saying they were designed to save Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir from international court proceedings for alleged war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity.

Daily Press Briefing: Friday, October 31, 2008

THE WHITE HOUSE

The daily press briefing by conducted by Deputy Press Secretary Tony Fratto did not mention Darfur.

THE STATE DEPARTMENT

The daily press briefing conducted by State Department spokesman Sean McCormack did not mention Darfur.

UNITED NATIONS

The noon briefing by Michelle Montas did not mention Darfur.

UNMIS

Daily Media Monitoring Report for October 31:

http://www.unmis.org/english/2008Docs/mmr-oct31.pdf

DOWNING STREET

The morning press briefing from the Prime Minister’s Spokesman did not mention Darfur.

Richard M. Stazinski

National Outreach Coordinator

Save Darfur Coalition

www.savedarfur.org

WISDOM OF KNOWING WHAT OTHERS THINK ABOUT USA NEEDS TO BE PART OF USA'S STRENGTH

OTHERWISE OUR IGNORANCE BECOMES STRONGER THAN OUR WISHFUL THINKING

THAT WE STILL ARE IN CHARGE

WHAT EXACTLY ARE WE IN CHARGE OF?

I am not supposed to be here. I am supposed to be where anyone should be at midnight who is not working at a job. But just as I was trying to wind down my internet obsession, I went over to what has become a "must" website for me ~ Watching America - News

I found this article and had to post it.

Die Welt, Germany

Osama Obama

By Philipp Neumann, Political Editor

But then what really stunned me were the arguments Carl and his three companions brought out against Obama.

Translated By Ron Argentati

28 October 2008


Germany - Die Welt - Original Article (German)

What some McCain fans say about the Democratic presidential candidate.

“Where are you from? Germany? That’s really nice! I was stationed there in 1972.” It’s hard to believe how easily one can get into a conversation in the United States, especially when you look as un-American (and as German) as I do. Most people guess it right off the bat. Some have to work their way through Holland or Switzerland before they peg me as German. A few others think I come from England – something really astounding considering my accent – but maybe it’s because I persist in pronouncing the “a” in “can’t” as if it were spelled “cawnt.” But I digress.

Such small talk is always nice, even if you don’t learn much about your partner. The subject of politics is generally avoided in small talk. At least that’s what I thought until I had my first political discussion last night in a restaurant. As usual, it began innocently. The two elderly couples and I exchanged glances, then came the “Where froms?” and then the “Where tos?” followed by a few sightseeing tips around New York City. And then came the question, “What do you think of the presidential election?” I admitted I was for Obama.

Silence.

One of the husbands, Carl, said they were against Obama. They were for McCain and asked whether I had thought about why Obama really wanted to be President. “Because he wants the power?” I guessed. “Exactly,” said Carl, “and McCain wants to be President because he wants to serve his country.”

Well, O.K. I don’t really believe anyone who’s looking to get the most powerful political job in the world is driven by pure altruism, but I have to admit there might be something to the idea that there could be other motivating forces besides just the desire for power. There may at least be another basic philosophy, but I don’t really know if that’s true. In Germany, it’s normal for politicians to have always been politicians; they’ve never had any other profession. In the United States, the idea of anyone planning a political career as thoroughly as Obama has is somehow distasteful.

But then what really stunned me were the arguments Carl and his three companions brought out against Obama. He has no character, he’s a Muslim, he hobnobs with terrorists – the whole palette of cheap right-wing propaganda. And besides, they said, Sarah Palin was more intelligent than Obama. Excuse me? I’d had about enough. I finished my beer, signed the credit card receipt and departed the way everyone here departs after some small talk: “Nice meeting you!” Source: http://watchingamerica.com/News/10031/osama-obama/

CLICK HERE FOR ORIGINAL VERSION

And this is worth reading

Original Article (German)	Die Welt, Germany The Unrepresentative American Election
	Surveys show that Democratic contender Barack Obama will likely be elected president. That’s not as certain as some polls indicate, however, because the electoral system in the U.S. wasn’t created to best represent the will of the people. It was created to create the most stable majorities...

Link to this article: watchingamerica.com/News/10131/the-unrepresentative-american-election

I have noticed the few Russian articles that I have read at Watching America are putting the USA and Russia at real odds, today. Russia is not keen on the USA. Anyone remember, not long ago, about the Russia - USA relationship that was called the Cold_War?

It is a wise thing to know what others are writing about the USA...

From Izvestia, Russia

The Dollar Is Being Inflated:
One Day It Will Burst…

By Anna Kaledina

As it turns out, the United States is inflating the demand for its currency and printing the dollars at full speed.

Translated By Irina Tanurcov

October 28, 2008

Link to the article listen-if-the-dollar-is-being-inflated-one-day-it-will-burst


And then there is this from

Die Zeit, Germany
That's Not What We Intended

the following is a portion of the article:


From Paul Wolfowitz to Richard Perle: How the American architects of the Iraq war explain their failure.

...Over lunch at the Bombay Club, Paul Wolfowitz, the Pentagon’s number two man at the time, begins with a surprising admission: “Contrary to what you read everywhere, I wasn’t the mastermind, the string-puller.” Richard Perle, known as the “Prince of Darkness” to opponents of re-armament in the eighties and who works today at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, says much the same thing: “We three had the least to say; Rummy (Rumsfeld) made all the decisions. We didn’t have any real influence, although I wanted it very much. He usually ignored our advice. Doug (Feith) had no operative power. I saw Rumsfeld perhaps only three or four times outside the Defense Policy Board.” The Defense Policy Board was an advisory forum where Rumsfeld appeared every six months...

...Surprise number two: The original objective wasn’t regime change and democracy. Regime change was “the result, and not the object of the war,” – although Wolfowitz himself believed whole-heartedly in the benefits of democracy. “Just think of democratic Poland, with its totally changed, western-oriented policies.”

...Why did it go so badly? Wolfowitz: “We didn’t know our enemy. Saddam had already been planning a revolt for two years. We had no idea of the internal infighting that would be stirred up.” Perle recounts another fiasco: “We wanted to be liberators but within five or six months we became occupiers and targets.”

....Was it a war to bring democracy to Iraq in the sense recounted by the eminent scholar Bernard Lewis? In truth, no. A distressed Feith writes in his book “War and Decision” that democracy “required Iraqi leadership, and there weren’t enough Iraqis with experience in democratic practice.” And so? It would be “naïve to think that democracy would have taken hold if we had just left Iraq alone.”

And, as misfortune would have it, the country really wasn’t left alone. Enter L. Paul (Jerry) Bremer in the role of Viceroy after Donald Rumsfeld called him out of retirement in Vermont. Bremer is no Lawrence of Arabia and proceeded with Plan F, which was to solve all the problems by dissolving the military and all the political parties. With that decision, the United States was transformed from liberator to conqueror. “We had the best intentions,” Richard Perle recalls, but under Bremer, the United States treated the Iraqis with “condescension and contempt.” The United States “was suddenly responsible for everything,” but without the expertise it needed. “All at once, 8,000 Americans had occupied one of Saddam’s former palaces in the Green Zone and half of them had never been in a foreign country before.”

Why did the plundering begin so early? The mind-boggling answer: “Tommy Franks (the top military commander) claimed he wasn’t responsible for internal security.” Perle’s conclusion: “I never thought we would botch it so badly.” And on the subject of democratization he added: “That wasn’t our main objective. If Saddam had brought out every bit of information he had on his WMD on the evening of the invasion, the whole war would have been called off. We were one hundred percent certain that Saddam had hidden all the stuff.”

So does the Iraq war shrink down to a saga of incompetence and ignorance? No other result than blood, tears and a big bill? $600 billion spent and 4,500 dead Americans so far? David Frum, coiner of the label “axis of evil” and member of the American Enterprise Institute, takes a protective stance with his colleagues: “Bush and Cheney really believed Saddam had WMD.” When asked why nobody bothered questioning this belief, Frum rages, “Do you know what would have happened if anyone had opposed him in February 2003 by saying ‘Mr. President, we’re not prepared to act. Please consider what will happen if anything goes wrong?’ He would have gone crazy and screamed, “I already told you we’re going in March!” That’s the way it was.

But the irony, Frum adds, is that “Iraq will become a stable, pro-Western country, it will return to the oil markets and it will play a positive role in the Middle East.” On the other hand, the war in Afghanistan, the one everyone called the one worth fighting, isn’t going well at all. Even if Frum wants to maintain he was right, it was an extravagant project that, despite all the talk in Washington, still has no clear meaning.

But why? An old Bush insider who absolutely refuses to be identified answers with the biggest surprise of all: “It was an act of imperial ego-boosting. We had to do something because we had been humiliated on September 11th and made into a laughing stock. We had to show our determination and power.” Would you do it all over again? The answer: “You would have to be crazy to do it again.”


CLICK HERE FOR ORIGINAL VERSION

Another story found at Watching America

Impoverished Americans Lean Toward Spoiled Food

Some of our best journalism in the USA is done by foreign journalists. They aren't pandering to our entertainment level of news so much as the USA media.

See TAXI TO THE DARK SIDE. INDICT CRIMINALS BUSH, CHENEY and RUMSFELD

"The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders.….All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger."
Hermann Goering, Luftwaffe Commander and Nazi Leader
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Find this ~ Taxi to the Dark Side~ see it and demand justice return to the USA
Uploaded by radio24

Please, make an effort to see Taxi to the Dark Side

I have found bits of it on Youtube which are included on this page.

The cable HBO schedule for its airings may be found at this link: Schedule ~ Taxi to the Dark Side
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Hear Dick Cheney talk about the "Dark Side"
and George Bush say: "One by one the terrorists are learning of American justice."
Uploaded by jigsawproductions
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"A Few Bad Apples .... " ~ Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Gonzales
Uploaded by THINKFilmNY

Youtube of Alberto Gonzales

In George W Bush's first Inaugural Address he said:
"Much time has passed since Jefferson arrived for his inauguration. The years and changes accumulate. But the themes of this day he would know: our nation's grand story of courage and its simple dream of dignity."

Dignity is not something that describes the United States after Bagram in Afghanistan, Abu_Ghraib in Iraq and Guantanamo in Cuba. (A Growing Afghan Prison Rivals Bleak Guantanamo)

After seeing Alex Gibney's documentary Taxi to the Dark Side today with the free on demand feature, it was clear to me that George W Bush, Richard Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld need to be indicted. It is clear that they are criminals. I knew this before seeing the film, but it is so potent when seeing this documentary film. The three of them, as well as other Bush appointees have broken the U.S. Constitution and the oath they swore to. They have made us the United States citizens amoral bystanders. We have a corrupt government. The world knows it. The United States of America is bankrupt of accountability internationally.

There is no way that the behavior clearly shown in Taxi to the Dark Side wouldn't make the the USA targets of hate. Before the Bush administration, there were other acts done by the USA government that drew distaste and hatred toward the USA, but the Bush-Cheney administration has a case so deservingly merited to be tried in a court of justice somewhere. If not initiated by our apparently morally bankrupt congress, perhaps the International Criminal Court will indict the players. The buck stops at the administration's branch. And Bush and Cheney should not get away with their crimes.

Dennis Kucinich has been calling for Bush's impeachment. And you can sign the petition. Here is the text:

Kucinich Petition

WHEREAS, in his conduct while President of the United States, George W. Bush, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has committed abuses of power.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that President George W. Bush has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as President and Commander in Chief, and subversive of constitutional government, to the prejudice of the cause of law and justice and to the manifest injury of the people of the United States and that he be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors.

Personally, I believe Congress has been derelict to the extreme in their duty to oversee the Administration's criminal activity. International law (Geneva Convention) has been broken, as well as national law. I would like to see the Intermational Criminal Court (ICC) look into the crimes done by the Administration. According to the text at this ICC link victims "have the possibility under the Statute to present their views and observations before the Court".

The Book: Impeach the President - The Case Against Bush and Cheney

George W Bush gives a tour of the Oval Office - this is worth a look just for the irony of his attempt to appear....well, I'll leave it to you to decide.

Dick Cheney gives a tour of Vice President office.

George W Bush and Dick Cheney have been in office since January 20, 2001.

Donald Rumsfeld was Secretary of Defense overseeing the army, navy, air force, and marines from 2001 to December 2006 for the Bush-Cheney administration.
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Taxi to the Dark Side: Exposé on US Abuses in "War on Terror" Wins Oscar for Best Documentary.
Alex Gibney joins Democracy Now to talk about his Academy Award win for his documentary Taxi to the Dark Side. The film investigates some of the most egregious abuses associated with the so-called "war on terror." Uploaded by IWantDemocracyNow

A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn

Intel ops to expand at Bagram prison

By Peter Eisler - USA Today
Posted : Thursday Sep 18, 2008

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon plans to expand intelligence operations at its main prison in Afghanistan, records and interviews with military officials show.

Interrogators and analysts are being sought for a bigger Bagram prison scheduled to open next year. They will be hired to question prisoners and provide intelligence that can be used on the battlefield, according to contract solicitations reviewed by USA Today. The Army also is seeking a “trained Mullah” to conduct Islamic services for detainees and advise U.S. officials on religious issues...

“One thing we have not taken advantage of is just trying to understand what is motivating people to join the insurgency,” he said.

The new $60 million facility will also include more space for detainee religious services, education programs and family visits.

Read the full article.

Schedule ~ Taxi to the Dark Side

		HBO: Taxi to the Dark Side - Synopsis HBO Documentaries Online features show descriptions, interviews, video clips, and scheduling information.
		HBO: Taxi to the Dark Side - Interviews HBO Documentaries Online features show descriptions, interviews, video clips, and scheduling information.
		HBO: Taxi to the Dark Side HBO Documentaries Online features show descriptions, interviews, video clips, and scheduling information.
		HBO: Taxi to the Dark Side - Resources HBO Documentaries Online features show descriptions, interviews, video clips, and scheduling information.

"Violence with the detainees is a criminal act." from Taxi to the Dark Side documentary

"When justice isn't our compass, the USA no longer has national security."
Sandra Hammel