WHY IS AN UNJUST, UNPROVOKED ATTACK ON IRAN EVEN BEING CONSIDERED???
WHY IS AN UNJUST, UNPROVOKED ATTACK ON IRAN EVEN BEING CONSIDERED???
SUCH AN ATTACK WOULD SURELY RESULT IN RETALIATION UPON U.S. TROOPS AND SUCH AN ATTACK IS ACTUALLY VERY BAD FOR ISRAEL.
An attack on Iran? That would be disaster..must be a neocon idea, theyr'e always disasters.
http://www.amconmag.com/blog/the-road-to-war-with-iran/
http://original.antiwar.com/porter/2010/08/13/israeli-generals-and-intel-officials-oppose-attack-on-iran/
http://original.antiwar.com/engelhardt/2010/08/24/the-bomb-iran-debate-from-hell/
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1072
http://antiwar.com/radio/2010/08/25/glenn-greenwald-28/
Ok, time for a geography lesson, folks: Iran is situated between Afghanistan and Iraq...if Iran is attacked by the United States or Israel, how do you think the Iranians will respond? They will likely respond by sending agents into Afghanistan and Iraq to attack U.S. forces in retaliation so if you give a damn at all about the lives of U.S. troops in theater, then you should vigorously oppose any war or attack on Iran.
http://original.antiwar.com/giraldi/2010/08/25/boxed-into-a-corner-on-iran/
"As is so often the case with the neoconservatives, the thinking is based on false assumptions, optimistic assessments, and leaps of the imagination about what might occur. One might recall neocon predictions of a "cakewalk" in Iraq, a war that still embroils tens of thousands of US troops and that kills Americans nearly every day."
~Philip Giraldi, Former CIA counter-terrorism specialist and military intelligence officer
As if two useless, unjust, immoral wars weren't enough.....the neoconservative jackass idiots are planning another war on Iran which the CIA said is not pursuing nuclear weapons (NIE 2007): (no threat).
http://original.antiwar.com/mcgovern/2010/08/03/a-warning-to-the-president/
http://original.antiwar.com/giraldi/2010/08/04/a-cakewalk-against-iran/
http://www.amconmag.com/blog/2010/08/02/no-blank-checks-for-the-gop-or-likud/
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/LH05Ak02.html
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/05
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/05-3
http://www.counterpunch.com/porter07302010.html
http://original.antiwar.com/doug-casey/2010/08/05/doug-casey-war-is-coming/
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/05/having-just-rejected-them-obama-now-open-to-iran-talks/
Eventually the U.S. will go bankrupt and insolvent by waging all these perpetual unnecessary wars and when that occurs, the U.S. economy will contract considerably thus severely limiting the ability of the U.S. to project its power globally and this inability to project power could leave Israel somewhat isolated so it is in Israel's best interest to see the that U.S. is not rapidly accelerated toward insolvency. The greatest existential threat to Israel is not Iran rather it is the prospect of U.S. economic insolvency.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mj-rosenberg/pro-bombing-iran-is-anti_b_697161.html
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/27/mullen-national-debt-is-top-national-security-threat/
The national debt is certainly a top a national security threat, but we got into debt by overspending on the military so Mullen's attempted justification for additional military spending is somewhat odd. We cannot dramatically reduce military spending immediately since doing so would irreparably harm the U.S. economy but over time we must begin dramatically reducing our economic dependence on military spending, which I might add, will also help reduce our dependence on foreign oil since the military is one of the larger consumers of oil. http://energybulletin.net/node/13199
Let's hope this is true:
http://www.truth-out.org/obama-resists-pressure-red-line-irans-nuclear-capability62737
Our common cause:
Our common cause is to save lives, ours and theirs, from dying for nothing in a useless war and occupation--both of them.
Secondarily our common cause is to save the cause of liberty in our own country and save our country from moral and financial ruin.
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/14-6
The reality, folks, is that one of Osama bin Laden's stated objectives was to draw the U.S. into a long-protracted war and financially bleed the United States slowly to death. And our great United States Federal Government, idiots that they are, are giving to Osama exactly what we wants by remaining in Afghanistan which is bleeding us financially and morally. Don't give the terrorists what they want.....get out of Afghanistan!!!! The Afghan war is lost. Staying in Afghanistan gives both comfort and aid to the terrorists by giving them what they most want: to financially and morally bleed America dry.
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't give the terrorists the gift of American financial ruin.
"Power always thinks it has a great soul and vast views beyond the comprehension of the weak."
~John Quincy Adams
Any person willing to risk placing the needs of their country or their world, as they see it, before their own needs can lead their fellow citizenry in a new direction. You must first believe in yourself, you must have faith in your own sense of self-empowerment and you must trust your fellow citizens to see the rationale of the principled stand you take by choosing to make up their own minds to follow your cause. So whatever cause is dear to your heart, I know you can make a difference. Do it.
Stop placing your faith in politicians to change things and start placing faith in yourself to change things.
My sense of duty, honor and country compel me to speak out. You can too. There is nothing to fear. You own this government, you pay for it, it is yours. You should never fear the government, however, you should participate in it----that is the way a democracy works. If you work all day, obey just laws (not all laws are just...where there is no victim, there is no crime) and participate in democracy in your evenings and weekends by speaking out, getting involved and voting actively in every election...local, state and federal, like I do, well, then I have good news for you, my fellow Americans: You are a model American citizen in a functioning democracy. Yes, you can. Yes, I can. Yes, we can.
If we oppose Tyranny to be visited upon our lives at home in America, then we must also oppose Tyranny to be visited upon the lives of others abroad!! There's no such thing as bombs of benevolence. End the war!!! A principled patriot opposes war. A principled patriot extols liberty. A principled patriot thinks for himself. A principled patriot is willing to risk putting the needs of his country before his own. A principled patriot tells the truth. Try to be a principled patriot, we each have flaws, but we can try.
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/08/27/a_tea_party_foreign_policy
"Over grown military establishments are under any form of government inauspicious to liberty, and are to be regarded as particularly hostile to republican liberty."
~George Washington
Why is the First Amendment first? It is first because it is the most important amendment of them all.
If Free Speech was always pleasant to hear, never challenged anything and was never rude or upsetting, then it would be Limited Speech wouldn't it? Free Speech is sometimes unnerving, upsetting and difficult to listen to, difficult to absorb and sometimes rude but that is also what makes it Free Speech.
"Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves."
~Abraham Lincoln
"Language exerts hidden power, like a moon on the tides."
~Rita Mae Brown
Be a good patriotic citizen and share these websites, pass them along to all of your friends and family.
http://www.amconmag.com/
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/
http://www.lewrockwell.com/
http://www.reason.com/
http://www.cato.org
http://www.fff.org
http://www.antiwar.com/
http://www.wikileaks.com (the best way to disinfect is to shine light upon the filth)
http://www.bradleymanning.org/
"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."
~John Adams
http://www.consortiumnews.com
http://www.commondreams.org/
http://www.thenation.com
http://www.buzzflash.com/
http://www.tompaine.com/
http://www.truthout.com/
http://www.motherjones.com/
http://www.alternet.org/
http://www.thinkprogress.org/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
http://www.democracynow.org/
http://www.savetheinternet.com/
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/
http://www.fpif.org/
http://jstreet.org/
http://www.truthdig.com/
http://www.dailykos.com/
http://www.tomdispatch.com/
http://www.counterpunch.com/
http://www.veteransforpeace.org
http://www.ivaw.org
http://honeste--djoftruth.blogspot.com/2006/10/websites-to-help-you-stay-informed.html
In reality, a corporation is not a citizen, not a person, not a human being....neither is a union. What does this mean? It means that corporate entities have a right to do business by making money but they should have no Bill of Rights protections because these protections were conferred solely upon human beings at the foundation of the Republic. So despite the justice-system corrupting this principle, to be a human being, one must have a beating heart and we all know that a corporation does not have a heart.
http://freespeechforpeople.com
http://www.movetoamend.org
http://www.reclaimdemocracy.org/political_reform/proposed_constitutional_amendments.html
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/27-8
On tolerance:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/opinion/22rich.html?ref=opinion
http://www.alternet.org/rights/147920/fallout_of_hate_is_spreading_across_america_from_9_11_site
http://newsfeed.time.com/2010/08/26/the-mosque-rage-boils-over-anti-muslim-attacks-increasing-across-us/?artId=?contType=?chn=
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/27-9
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE67J45U20100825?type=domesticNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews&rpc=76
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2010/082410a.html
Sometimes truth sucks to hear, but better the truth to hear than be drunk on the Koolaid of delusion:
http://www.fff.org/blog/jghblog2010-08-26.asp
http://www.amconmag.com/tactv/2010/08/27/amen-to-the-imam/
http://www.lewrockwell.com/rep/wikileaks-cia-release.html
http://www.fff.org/whatsNew/2004-02-09a.htm
http://www.harpers.org/archive/2002/11/0079384?pg=1
http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/2010/08/26/offended-man-shouts-terrorists-urinates-on-mosques-prayer-rugs/
http://www.alternet.org/rights/147935/are_the_right-wingers_stoking_islam_fury_invested_in_a_never-ending_war/
http://www.libertarianstandard.com/2010/08/23/another-u-s-inflicted-ground-zero-in-pakistan/
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/08/27/99769/why-are-so-many-americans-hostile.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-bromwich/cordoba-house-and-religio_b_697316.html
http://original.antiwar.com/levesque-alam/2010/08/27/christopher-hitchens-and-the-quest-for-grade-a-muslims/
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/religion/116065-president-obama-and-all-former-presidents-should-visit-a-mosque-together
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-feldman/lie-about-auschwitz-fuels_b_688070.html
You know when I see some people use the Holocaust for cheap-political posturing on certain issues of war and peace, like Jeffrey Goldberg recently did with his invade Iran advocacy article, or on issues of religious freedom, like Charles Krauthammer recently did, I have to ask does your cheap politicization of one of the greatest tragedies in human history reflect an inner self-hatred? I hope it does not. You see, I think hatred against others is always wrong even when that hatred directed inwards at oneself.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703589804575445841837725272.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_sections_newyork&om_rid=CZthPx&om_mid=_BMdCGNB8TsRmyZ&
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2010/082410b.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/opinion/22kristof.html?src=un&feedurl=http%3A%2F%2Fjson8.nytimes.com%2Fpages%2Fopinion%2Findex.jsonp
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/faith/2010/08/ground_zero_mosque_jewish.html
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/aug/18/opinion/la-oe-tarin-mosque-20100818
http://reason.com/archives/2010/08/23/a-reality-check-in-the-ground/1
http://www.thenation.com/article/154147/terrorists-win
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/22-2
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-0825-rutten-20100825,0,762268.column
http://www.lewrockwell.com/grigg/grigg-w165.html
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/26-7
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/doug-bandow/america-home-of-the-free_b_690768.html
The crime of mass murder that was carried out on September 11, 2001 (that's what it was, a crime, and not a military attack) was carried out by violent-extremists who use a corrupt interpretation of their faith to justify murder. Most Muslims are peaceful religious people. And because that is true, Islam and Muslims had nothing to do with September 11 except in the minds of those who choose to hate. Conflating the crime of mass-murder that occurred on September 11 with the 1.5 billion Muslims in the world is truly nothing short of simple, ugly, bigotry. That said, I have also heard a number of Muslim leaders express forms of anti-Semitism and this also needs to be called-out and criticized for it also simple, ugly, bigotry. Expressed hatred of any group of people by anyone is always uniformly wrong. It should be evident to reasonable-minded Americans and anyone else that what drove the violent-extremists of Al-Qaeda who cowardly corrupt and cower behind what is otherwise a religion of peace, Islam, to commit the horrendous crime of mass-murder that they did on September 11, what drove them to commit this ghastly crime was hate and hate alone. And in that sense, I find Al-Qaeda to be indistinguishable from a bunch of cowardly white-hooded thuggish racist white people roaming the countryside lynching black people from trees (or those who now act as if we should do the same to Muslims) and doing it all while cowardly corrupting and cowering behind what is otherwise a religion of peace, Christianity. Also, I find both of these extremist-violent-hate groups to be indistinguishable from a bunch of cowardly thuggish yamulka wearing people roaming the countryside randomly shooting Palestinians, uprooting olive trees, demolishing homes, demolishing entire communities and vandalizing mosques and doing it all while cowardly corrupting and cowering behind what is otherwise a religion of peace, Judaism. The common motivating factors that drives each of these violent, murderous extremists is hatred, bigotry and racism. Extremist-terrorism is found in all three religions. Racism is wrong. Stand up against hate. Stand for peace. Stand up for the U.S. Constitution. Advance tolerance.
Do you know what I find most troubling, disconcerting and highly unnerving in the world today? I find it most troubling and unnerving that the violent-extremist elements do seem to bear as much influence on policy that they do. In my view, sound government policy should be chiefly driven by the moderates.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/09/0925_TVkoran.html
http://www.trinitygnv.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=604&Itemid=246
This is a must-read:
http://www.truth-out.org/near-ground-zero-a-shameful-intolerance62699
http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/02/25/foreign.policy.religion/index.html
http://www.haaretz.com/news/international/leaked-cia-memo-cites-u-s-jews-among-exporters-of-terrorism-1.310391#send-friend-popup
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/23/AR2007032301613.html
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/08/settlers-gone-wild.html
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/08/25/new.york.muslim.stabbed/index.html?hpt=T2
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/26/us/26gainesville.html?ref=us
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20100826/ARTICLES/8261022/1118?Title=Local-clergy-coming-together-for-a-response-to-Dove-World-s-Sept-11-plans
One of few principled politicians, Ron Paul:
http://original.antiwar.com/paul/2010/08/22/mosque-demagoguery-is-bipartisan/
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/religion/115535-ron-paul-speaks-truth-to-hate
http://freedomsyndicate.com/fair0000/latimes00302.html
http://www.commondreams.org/video/2010/08/23-0
Refusal to construct the Islamic Community Center two-blocks away from the criminal event of mass-murder that occurred on 9/11 amounts to nothing short of mere discrimination based on hate:
The First Amendment:
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
'The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment prohibits the establishment of a national religion by the Congress or the preference of one religion over another, non-religion over religion, or religion over non-religion.'
No where does the U.S. Constitution call for a 'sensitivity to others.' That's why Hate-Speech is tolerated under the First Amendment. Harsh criticism of Hate-Speech is also tolerated. The whole argument of 'sensitivity to others' is merely a way of trying to place limits on Free Speech and Freedom of Religion (including Freedom from Religion), but Free Speech and Freedom of Relgion are largely without limits because that is what makes it 'Free Speech' and not 'Limited Speech.'
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution
http://reason.com/archives/2010/08/23/republicans-for-religous-freed
"I hold it to be the indispensable duty of all government, to protect all conscientious professors thereof, and I know of no other business which government hath to do therewith."
~Thomas Paine
"Question with boldness even the existence of a god; because if there be one he must approve of the homage of reason more than that of blindfolded fear."
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Peter Carr, August 10, 1787
"Religious controversies are always productive of more acrimony and irreconcilable hatreds than those which spring from any other cause."
~George Washington, letter to Sir Edward Newenham, June 22, 1792
"The government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion."
~George Washington
"My country is the world, and my religion is to do good."
~Thomas Paine
"Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst; every other species of tyranny is limited to the world we live in; but this attempts to stride beyond the grave, and seeks to pursue us into eternity."
~Thomas Paine
"Fear is the foundation of most governments."
~John Adams
"Courage, then, my countrymen, our contest is not only whether we ourselves shall be free, but whether there shall be left to mankind an asylum on earth for civil and religious liberty."
~Samuel Adams
"It is in the religion of ignorance that Tyranny begins."
~Benjamin Franklin
On the Conservative principle of property-rights with respect to the Islamic Community Center:
(I don't agree with everything in the article but I do a agree with a lot of it):
http://www.lewrockwell.com/franke/franke13.1.html
Being principled is not always popular, folks. Sometimes it is wildly unpopular. But I think it is still very important to try to be principled. I make mistakes too and sometimes I inevitably veer from principle, I mean c'mon who amongst us is perfect? Nobody. But I keep trying to be principled and you can too. I remember back in March of 2003 on the night when the troops were ordered to invade Baghdad, a night in which I was writing and publishing a piece against the war on Iraq about the duty of citizens to protest the war as the troops fight. My piece was torn down from where I posted it numerous times and I received many nasty emails. But I took refuge in my principles and continued to write and publish. Being principled isn't always easy and sometimes it is wildly unpopular but in the end, I still strongly believe that it is very important to try to be principled.
http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2010/08/26/a-credit-score-for-pundits/
http://original.antiwar.com/paul/2009/10/05/instead-of-bombs-and-bribes/
Some politicians can be principled too:
"We must do what is right, not what is easy."
~Mayor Michael Bloomberg, New York on the building of the Cordoba House controversy
http://wire.antiwar.com/2010/08/24/ny-mayor-stopping-mosque-compromises-terror-fight/
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/pro_mosque_mike_kos_compromise_SzQcRzaYlcIFVwJAfguV7K#ixzz0xcmimNcK
Good job, Mayor Bloomberg, good job indeed sir.
Nice article:
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/real-americans-please-stand-up/?hp
Great article:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/23-2
http://www.trentonian.com/articles/2010/08/20/opinion/doc4c6f408435638409342124.txt
On the incredibly potent power of diplomacy (smart soft power as opposed to brute hard power):
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/28/world/asia/28korea.html?ref=jimmy_carter
On the faux WOT (which is actually a war on the U.S. Constitution):
http://thebrandeishoot.com/articles/8108
On truth-telling and the great fallacy of hero-worship:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/23
On war-profiteering:
http://www.truth-out.org/war-profiteers-corner-steven-r-loranger62704
I'd wager that if so mandated by Congress that all profits made by war-profiteering-corporations were required by law to be used to pay the costs of all injured troops including those suffering from PTSD and the remainder of funds given to families of dead troops, that there would be fewer useless, unjust wars.
On closing Guantanamo and restoring American honor:
http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/foreign-policy/4364-obamas-order-to-close-guantanamo-19-months-and-counting
"It doesn't matter what they do, it's what we do. We don't lower ourselves to the level of this terrible enemy we are fighting. It's about what our standards are."
~Lt. General Harry E. Soyster, USA Ret.
http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/news/2008_fall/torture.htm
http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/us_law/military/history.aspx
On religious freedom inside the U.S. Military:
http://www.truth-out.org/troops-punished-after-refusing-attend-evangelical-concert62504
On reductions in war spending:
http://www.fff.org/blog/jghblog2010-08-16.asp
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-korb-partners-20100818,0,1348817.story
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/26/generals-push-back-on-gat_n_696224.html
Yet another reason in the growing mountain of reasons to completely abolish the Department of Homeland Security:
http://washingtonindependent.com/35337/the-new-mccarthyism?disqus_reply=7491526
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1072
Your tax dollars at work......and you wonder why they hate us? Puuuleezzzz, pull your head out of your ass and see the light of day for a change.
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/23/us-drone-strike-destroys-house-full-of-children-in-pakistan/
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/27/nato-kills-six-children-in-afghanistan-air-strike/
Why are we in Afghanistan?
On the incredibly sad and terrible cost of our useless, lost war in Afghanistan, a mother speaks out:
http://www.tampabay.com/news/military/fallen-m...arines-mother-airs-grief/1117688
Another VIPS/Ray McGovern must read:
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2010/082610b.html
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/08/troops-wonder-wtf-are-we-doing-in-afghanistan-again/
http://www.htrnews.com/article/20100818/MAN06/8180555/Guest-commentary-Afghan-war-is-no-humanitarian-endeavor
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/27-0
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/27/admiral-olson-wars-hurting-hunt-for-wmds/
http://nationalinterest.org/blog/afghanistan-obama%E2%80%99s-war-president-thinking-3906
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/27-0
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/23-2
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-oped-0823-afghanistan-20100823,0,723083.story
http://original.antiwar.com/boyea/2010/08/25/nobody-should-die-for-coin/
Only beginning Afghanistan, huh Mr. Biden? Well, we're only beginning to throw your ass out of office..
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/23/biden-too-soon-to-declare-afghan-war-a-failure/
The continuing war on and Occupation of Iraq:
http://www.foreignpolicyjournal.com/2010/08/20/deconstructing-the-official-narrative-on-the-u-s-withdrawal-from-iraq/
http://motherjones.com/politics/2010/07/US-iraq-withdrawal-left-behind
End of war in Iraq? No, folks, they're just shining you on....that's what liars do, they lie:
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/26/us-officials-raise-possibility-of-staying-in-iraq-past-2011/
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/22-3
http://original.antiwar.com/kevin-b-zeese/2010/08/24/old-war-in-new-bottles/
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/08/23-0
http://www.stripes.com/news/soldiers-remaining-in-iraq-expect-little-will-change-as-mission-evolves-1.115926
http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/constitution/4395-in-defiance-of-the-constitution-49000-troops-still-deployed-in-iraq
http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/constitution/4395-in-defiance-of-the-constitution-49000-troops-still-deployed-in-iraq
http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/08/22/cole.iraq.withdrawal/index.html?eref=rss_politics&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A%2Brss%2Fcnn_allpolitics%2B%28RSS%3A%2BPolitics%29
http://original.antiwar.com/toensing/2010/08/23/rebranding-the-iraq-war/
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-iraq-20100822,0,5149845.story
http://www.amconmag.com/tactv/2010/08/24/iraq-and-the-big-picture/
With so many Iraqi's and American troops killed in the war, with so much ongoing civil violence since removing Saddam Hussein, with such ongoing everyday turmoil and with everyday Iraqi's still lacking basic services or electricity, can we really even say that toppling Saddam Hussein was a good idea? I don't think so. The ruthless dictatorship of Saddam Hussein, for all its ills, did keep that country together, kept the lights on and kept basic services in operation so I think that the war in Iraq is a complete, total failure and waste. A difficult truth is that sometimes dictatorships keep the peace.
After reading Tom Friedman's piece in the New York Times entitled, "Surprise, Surprise, Surprise" where he continues to defend the invasion and occupation of Iraq as such a great venture that will eventually prove its worth, I was left wondering whether the article was written by Friedman or Gomer Pyle.
On Wikileaks:
http://www.harpers.org/archive/2010/08/hbc-90007522
Let's hope he means it this time:
http://www.truth-out.org/obama-plays-down-plan-post-2011-iraq-troop-presence62573
Exactly what Karen says and in the future, it is not more taxes that we need, it is less spending:
http://www.lewrockwell.com/kwiatkowski/kwiatkowski254.html
On transparency in government:
http://www.fff.org/freedom/fd1001c.asp
Why are we an Empire?
http://www.harpers.org/archive/2007/01/0081346
http://www.amconmag.com/blog/how-washington-rules/
http://www.fpif.org/articles/review_the_american_way_of_war_how_bushs_wars_became_obamas
On the infantile smear tactics employed by the idiots in government:
http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2010/08/22/dirty-tricks/
On the noble action of Civil Disobedience---the noble, time honored action in the tradition of Thoreau of intentionally and repeatedly violating unjust laws----authentic Israeli patriots stepping up to the plate: Big cheers for the writer, Ilana Hammerman, and those joining with her....BRAVO!! Bravo, indeed!!!
http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100824/FOREIGN/708239920/0/LIFE
The reality:
http://original.antiwar.com/sherri-muzher/2010/08/25/middle-east-sound-of-music/
If the state of Israel cannot stop building settlements then the U.S. should twist arms to make it happen but since the cowards in Washington probably don't have the gonads to do that, then countries worldwide should maintain a vigilant boycott of all products produced in the Israeli-settlements.. The same is true for Hamas to release Gilad Shalit, so Washington should apply maximum pressure to push for the release of him. Lastly, the Palestinian demand for a right-of-return to land inside the border of 1967 is completely unrealistic....that's never going to happen so the Palestinian leadership should drop that demand immediately. Israel is a Jewish state that should, in my opinion, award all of its citizens equal rights.
http://original.antiwar.com/avnery/2010/08/29/the-boycott-israel-movement-needs-to-rethink-tactics/
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2010/082510a.html
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/26/israel-looks-for-alternative-to-renewing-settlement-freeze/
http://consortiumnews.com/2010/071610b.html
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2010/082510a.html
This is a must read:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/27/opinion/27indyk.html?_r=1
And this one too:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-08-22/obamas-silent-jewish-majority/full/
http://jstreet.org/
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
~Martin Luther King, Jr.
"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."
~President John F. Kennedy
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
~Margaret Meade
"We must remember that one determined person can make a significant difference, and that a small group of determined people can change the course of history."
~Sonia Johnson
Wage peace!!!
WHY DOES OBAMA SPEND NEARLY 400 MILLION DOLLARS PER DAY IN IRAQ & AFGHANISTAN??? HOW IS THE ECONOMY WORKING FOR YOU??
WHY DOES OBAMA SPEND NEARLY 400 MILLION DOLLARS PER DAY IN IRAQ & AFGHANISTAN???
I can tell you why but this time I’m not going to tell you. You can figure it out yourself. So do it.
Our common cause:
Our common cause is to save lives, ours and theirs, from dying for nothing in a useless war and occupation--both of them.
Secondarily our common cause is to save the cause of liberty in our own country and save our country from moral and financial ruin.
Our cause is chiefly about saving the lives of people who are engaged in combat right now as we speak and as I write. And as such, we must be willing to open our mass-movement to the widest number of persons and make it accessible to them. That is why I often strongly advise to avoid ideological approaches to building a mass antiwar movement. While some do possess a noble vision of what could be the future of this country and vigorously and nobly express it, what the future may or may not portend does not actually help save lives of those now in the present. People are dying in two feckless wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and they are dying now and so saving their lives, in my view, trumps anything even remotely ideological. We should be doing whatever is possible to help save their lives including working with people we would not otherwise consider working with across the spectrum.
The main problem we have today is that few people know anyone who serves in the military. I served in the military and I know people in the military. So I ask you this, “If it was your friends, your brothers, your sister, your mother, your father, your husband, your wife, your son or your daughter getting killed, maimed, paralyzed and slaughtered in the war, would you give a rat’s-ass whether the people you joined with to end this slaughterhouse were of an ideological ilk that you found acceptable???? I don’t think so. There are lives being wasted and lives being lost right now so join together, all citizens together, to end these stupid, asinine, feckless wars that are killing good people right now as we speak. This issue is about life and death here and now. Ideology is irrelevant compared to saving lives now. Can you step outside your own selfish interests and righteous opinions to come together across the ideological spectrum and join together and work together to save lives now and bring the troops home? Citizens who act solely based on ideology are usually citizens who don’t know anyone in the military. They act righteously born more from a hatred of bad policy than a love of good people dying right now. Step outside yourself and your opinion for a moment to join the wider movement to end the wars!!!! Ideology is irrelevant. Bonding together in common purpose to end the wars is immediately relevant.
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!!!!
Whichever politicians get in our way of saving lives, be they Democrats, Republicans, Left, Right, Center, Liberal or Conservative, we’re going to roll over them with the gusto of a tank commander!!! Dear politicians: You better get the hell out of our way because we are bringing the troops home and whoever gets in our way gets run over, gets run down and gets what exactly what they deserve. We show no favor to any party, we only show favor to ending the war. We act in the interest of saving lives now by bringing the troops home from a feckless war without a clearly defined mission. Get out of our way. Who’s in power is irrelevant to joining together to save lives now. And if the Democrats lose seats in November, SO BE IT!!! And if Obama doesn’t get re-elected and instead gets replaced by a Republican, SO BE IT!! And if the same thing happens to Republicans in future years, SO BE IT!!!!
“Lead me, follow me, or get the hell out of my way.”
~General George S. Patton
Didn’t think an anti-war activist could quote Patton? I guess you were mistaken….
My personal aim and purpose is to save the lives of those whom I love. I will not necessarily tell you what you want to hear but instead I will tell you the truth as I see it. I refuse to blow hot smoke up your ass just to make you feel good……….I’m a truth-teller who tells it like it is and not a politician…..so if you want feel-good rhetoric, then I suggest you turn on your TV and listen to everything the politicians have to say on Corporate News Channels and eat it all up. I find it disturbing that some of my more liberal friends were so grateful and admiring when I was actively speaking out against Bush and the useless wars he began only now to treat me with disdain because I actively stand upon principle to harp on Obama as he perpetuates the same policy of the previous administration. And so to them I ask: Where the hell are your principles, people?
“Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” Go look it up.
As far as the extremes are concerned, look, the reality is that if you dare profess even a single Conservative opinion, many of the hard-Lefties point at you and scream “Right-Winger!!!”…….and if you dare profess even a single Liberal opinion, many of the hard-Righties point at you and scream “Left-Winger!!!!,” and this is because for both the hard-Left and the hard-Right, they both think in binary, narrow terms. Conformity, as opposed to independent thought, seems essential to both of them. Disagreement seems intolerable amongst them. And in that way, they are both peas of the same pod. Thinking in binary terms is ridiculous, stupid and fails to reflect the many shades of gray that define cold reality. It’s as if for them that any point of view that differs from their own is evil and any view they agree with is good………and their embrace of this good and evil binary dichotomy basically amounts to an absolutist way of thinking which I think is utterly and completely ridiculous and has no bearing on harsh reality. You can embrace views from both sides because joined together they form a clearer picture of reality and to me this is natural, perfectly acceptable, does certainly exemplify open-mindedness and is above all, balanced and moderate. It depends on independent thought rather than on callous conformity. What is a moderate? A moderate is typically a fair, open-minded individual who is willing to listen and perhaps embrace any rational point of view. A moderate is one who listens more to reason than to emotion while understanding the powerful appeal of emotion too. Moderates generally think for themselves. Moderates generally do not feel compelled to conform to a singular ideology. Moderates generally reject ridiculously framed arguments which are proffered equally by those on the hard-Right and those on the hard-Left. Moderates tend to resist extremes. And it is moderates who ultimately decide elections because most people do not think for themselves, instead they vote either reflexively Left or reflexively Right, so if you wish to build a mass-movement instead of just preaching to the choir, you should strive to appeal to moderates. In appealing to moderates, you will ultimately appeal to the widest number of people. Moderates are the key to change. In my view, the smartest people in America are the moderates and independents. The real question then becomes: Do you care more about hearing the truth or do you simply just want hot smoke blown steadily up your ass to make you feel good? I will tell you the truth as I see it and that is the truth as I see it….I am simply not in the business of blowing hot smoke and displaying pretty mirrors. If that means I’m uniformly disliked by both of the extremes, so be it. Ideological rigidity is our disunity if we let it be. Instead, unite in common purpose against the war. We are all Americans together.
This is a must read:
http://original.antiwar.com/giraldi/2010/08/18/tales-from-the-northwest-frontier/
~Philip Giraldi, former CIA officer, counter-terrorism specialist and military intelligence officer.
Do you know why they haven't killed or captured Osama bin Laden yet?
Because doing so would end the larger effort...........what larger effort is that, you ask? Their effort at propping up the military-national-security-industrial-welfare-complex...........that's what the faux WOT is all about.....to give a purpose where none exists. Faux WOT for what? The reality, folks, is that one of Osama bin Laden's stated objectives was to draw the U.S. into a long-protracted war and financially bleed the United States slowly to death. And our great United States Federal Government, idiots that they are, are giving to Osama exactly what we wants by remaining in Afghanistan which is bleeding us financially and morally. Don't give the terrorists what they want.....get out of Afghanistan!!!! The Afghan war is lost. Staying in Afghanistan gives both comfort and aid to the terrorists by giving them what they most want: to financially and morally bleed America dry.
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't give the terrorists the gift of American financial ruin.
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/14-6
"Power always thinks it has a great soul and vast views beyond the comprehension of the weak."
~John Quincy Adams
"Over grown military establishments are under any form of government inauspicious to liberty, and are to be regarded as particularly hostile to republican liberty."
~George Washington
Any person willing to risk placing the needs of their country or their world, as they see it, before their own needs can lead their fellow citizenry in a new direction. You must first believe in yourself, you must have faith in your own sense of self-empowerment and you must trust your fellow citizens to see the rationale of the principled stand you take by choosing to make up their own minds to follow your cause. So whatever cause is dear to your heart, I know you can make a difference. Do it.
Stop placing your faith in politicians to change things and start placing faith in yourself to change things.
My sense of duty, honor and country compel me to speak out. You can too. There is nothing to fear. You own this government, you pay for it, it is yours. You should never fear the government, however, you should participate in it----that is the way a democracy works. If you work all day, obey just laws (not all laws are just...where there is no victim, there is no crime) and participate in democracy in your evenings and weekends by speaking out, getting involved and voting actively in every election—local, state and federal, like I do, well, then I have good news for you, my fellow Americans: You are a model American citizen in a functioning democracy. Yes, you can. Yes, I can. Yes, we can.
Why is the First Amendment first? It is first because it is the most important amendment of them all.
If Free Speech was always pleasant to hear, never challenged anything and was never rude or upsetting, then it would be Limited Speech wouldn't it? Free Speech is sometimes unnerving, upsetting and difficult to listen to, difficult to absorb and sometimes rude but that is also what makes it Free Speech.
If we oppose Tyranny to be visited upon our lives at home in America, then we must also oppose Tyranny to be visited upon the lives of others abroad!! There's no such thing as bombs of benevolence. End the war!!! A principled patriot opposes war. A principled patriot extols liberty. A principled patriot thinks for himself. A principled patriot is willing to risk putting the needs of his country before his own. A principled patriot tells the truth. Try to be a principled patriot, we each have flaws, but we can try.
You can lead in a principled manner from any ideological direction you wish (including no ideological direction since good leadership is not limited to the realm of political action) or you can lead in a principled ideological direction of your own creation or adoption, one which may engender a variety of views from a range of wide perspectives, you are not obligated to conform to any prefabricated ideological conception. Resist conformity, resist the extremes, embrace self-definition, embrace the common good and individualistic choice, be open to a variety of viewpoints, resist narrow definitions, listen to others but don’t let them do your thinking for you, question everything you read and feel free to disagree with any of it at any time….just because someone once said something that you agreed with does not mean that everything they say is right……do your own thinking, know your own values--know thyself and to thine ownself be true. Remember, that while it is good and noble and right to strive to keep an open-mind, one must also remember not to be so open-minded that your brain falls out. Balance is key.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/postpartisan/2010/08/the_principled_left_obama_need.html
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/17-1
Speaking truth to power…..another great article by Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS).
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2010/081510a.html
"If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear."
~George Orwell
http://www.fff.org/comment/com1008d.asp
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/15-2
It became Obama’s war when he decided to escalate.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/16-4
Good article here, I don’t agree with everything Scott says because I think laws must be just. Obeying unjust laws is not required and in the tradition of Thoreau, I think unjust laws should be violated often.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig10/lazarowitz11.1.html
I do not believe in absolutes but I do think we each bear an internal moral compass, our conscience, and we should first choose to follow our conscience before following the empty words of legislators.
Great article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/15/opinion/15rich.html?_r=1&th&emc=th
What if we applied common-sense in our foreign policies? Don’t count on it because the idiots in government seem particularly prone to act in nonsensical ways. Perhaps, they can use a dose of truth.
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1064
David Gregory sure isn’t Tim Russert, is he? Not even close.
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/15-2
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/08/18-4
Hey, Mr. Obama, do you really think that you have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting re-elected with the American people turning against the war in Afghanistan? BRING THEM HOME NOW!!
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/20-8
Why are we an Empire?
http://www.amconmag.com/blog/this-is-the-way-the-empire-ends/
This one is a fun one to read, true and slightly rude as sometimes Free Speech is:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/17-10
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/17-8
As is this one:
http://www.lewrockwell.com/north/north877.html
http://www.youtube.com/user/rethinkafghanistan#p/a
Why are we in Afghanistan?:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/15-2
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/16/gates-dismisses-petraeus-comments-on-delaying-afghan-drawdown/
http://www.military.com/news/article/petraeus-no-success-without-taliban-talks.html
http://original.antiwar.com/huber/2010/08/16/in-for-a-penny/
http://reason.com/archives/2010/08/19/general-delay-us
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/20/poll-shows-growing-opposition-to-afghan-war/
http://freedomsyndicate.com/fair0000/latimes0029D.html
http://original.antiwar.com/pfaff/2010/08/17/there-can-be-no-graceful-exit/
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/18-7
http://www.allgov.com/Top_Stories/ViewNews/Military_Deaths_in_Afghanistan_under_Obama_Top_Those_under_Bush_100818
http://rabble.ca/columnists/2010/08/afghanistan-another-vietnam
I guess the Generals in the Pentagon don’t see that all this spending is ultimately killing America……..it’s kind of ironic that the very country they claim to defend, they working furiously to destroy:
http://www.tnr.com/blog/foreign-policy/77086/civilian-control-american-power-barack-obama
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/17/timetables-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-largely-a-myth/
Did you see when corporate news this week announced that the last of the brigades were leaving Iraq? They misled you again, (but corporate media is quite good at misleading the American people) because there are still 50,000 troops in Iraq……….hey, c’mon someone has to guard the oil wells, right?
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/18/us-hypes-iraq-withdrawal-combat-to-continue/
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/20-5
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/19-10
http://www.amconmag.com/article/2006/jul/03/00019/
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/8/20/iraq_war_vet_camilo_mejia_us
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN17129482
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/08/19-2
http://www.amconmag.com/blog/iraqs-dysfunctional-democracy/
http://www.truth-out.org/war-without-end62487
http://www.commondreams.org/further/2010/08/18-5
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/19/petraeus-were-not-leaving-iraq/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-dennis-kucinich/the-war-in-iraq-has-enter_b_688218.html
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/19/none-dare-call-it-combat-us-troops-still-fighting-war-in-everything-but-name/
http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2010/08/19/all-lies-all-the-time/
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20014104-503544.html
http://www.juancole.com/2010/08/an-israeli-attack-on-iran-would-reduce-barack-obama-to-a-one-term-president.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/world/middleeast/20policy.html?_r=3&hp&om_rid=CZthPx&om_mid=_BMbnfgB8S9m$$Q
Mission Accomplished (again)…….I’m surprised Mr. Obama didn’t deliver the news of this development from the deck of an aircraft carrier….
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/18/us-announces-second-fake-end-to-iraq-war/
Let’s hope that this is true, and let’s hope that Mr. Obama’s actions accurately reflect his breathy promises……….which means actually bringing most or all of the troops home……as opposed to what has been done in Iraq…….leaving 50,000 troops behind to guard the oil wells.
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/16/white-house-reaffirms-afghan-strategy-despite-petraeus-remarks/?nl=us&emc=politicsemailema1
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2010/08/15/iraq_withdrawal_success/index.html
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/08/05/the_ministry_of_oil_defense?sms_ss=email
But to be fair-minded, we should also recognize what has changed……though more needs to be done:
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/change_accomplished_20100819/
Pretty good article about advocacy journalism (which I think all journalism shares), traditional journalism usually advocates the position of the establishment whereas other forms of journalism, like from the websites below, advance a point-of-view not necessarily from the position of the entrenched elite.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/17-0
“Language exerts hidden power, like a moon on the tides.”
~Rita Mae Brown
“Words are the keys to the heart.”
Chinese proverb
Be a good citizen and share these websites………..pass them along to all of your friends and family.
http://www.amconmag.com/
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/
http://www.lewrockwell.com/
http://www.reason.com/
http://www.cato.org
http://www.fff.org
http://www.antiwar.com/
http://www.independentvoting.org
http://www.wikileaks.com
http://original.antiwar.com/pilger/2010/08/18/why-wikileaks-must-be-protected/
To hell with the government……keep publishing those leaks:
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/20/pentagon-looks-to-prosecute-wikileaks-for-leaks/
http://www.bradleymanning.org/
http://www.consortiumnews.com
http://www.commondreams.org/
http://www.thenation.com
http://www.tompaine.com/
http://www.truthout.com/
http://www.motherjones.com/
http://www.alternet.org/
http://www.thinkprogress.org/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
http://www.democracynow.org/
http://www.savetheinternet.com/
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/
http://www.fpif.org/
http://jstreet.org/
http://www.truthdig.com/
http://www.dailykos.com/
http://www.tomdispatch.com/
http://www.buzzflash.com/
http://www.counterpunch.com/
In reality, a corporation is not a citizen, not a person, not a human being....neither is a union. What does this mean? It means that corporate entities have a right to do business by making money but they should have no ‘Bill of Rights’ protections because these protections were conferred solely upon human beings at the foundation of the Republic. So despite the justice-system corrupting this principle, to be a human being, one must have a beating heart and we all know that a corporation does not have a heart.
http://freespeechforpeople.com
http://www.movetoamend.org
http://www.reclaimdemocracy.org/political_reform/proposed_constitutional_amendments.html
“It is not just a question of ISPs or wireless service, nor of new media versus old. This is a debate about whether the digital communications that shape our lives and choices in the 21st century will serve the bottom line of a few powerful corporations or the best interests, the ideals and the democratic aspirations of a people who have understood since the days when Tom Paine was penning pamphlets that there is no democracy unless all Americans have easy and equal access to all the information and all the ideas that are necessary to govern their own affairs and protect their own freedoms.”
~John Nichols, The Nation
http://www.thenation.com/blog/154042/what-if-we-google-democracy-and-get-oligarchy
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/16-3
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/20-2
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/08/20
Kudos to the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority by agreeing to restart peace talks:
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/20-3
http://www.jstreet.org/
“It is the duty of the patriot to protect his country from its government.”
--Thomas Paine
What’s good for goose is good for the gander………..patriotism means to protect one’s country from one’s government in any nation of the world…….and I highly commend Neve Gordon for being a true Israeli patriot……bravo, sir, bravo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://original.antiwar.com/neve-gordon/2010/08/18/and-the-state-is-it-loyal/
"Government is not reason; it is not eloquence; it is force! Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master."
~George Washington
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1070
Good article below, though I would argue that we should first get our financial house in order by paying down the national debt before finding other ways to spend money.
http://www.truth-out.org/how-much-enough-americas-runaway-military-spending62360
http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/in-afghanistan-whats-news/
http://wire.antiwar.com/2010/08/19/budget-analysts-see-2010-deficit-at-1-3-trillion-2/
I tell ya…..between Guantanamo and Military Commissions, our current country would make old King George III proud (that’s the guy the founding fathers revolted against) since we have finally returned to the old British Royal rules of governance under the king.
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorialopinion/article/849052--u-s-kangaroo-court-must-be-stopped
On tolerance:
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/08/17-7
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/religion/114405-conservatives-should-denounce-bigotry-that-hurts-american-troops
http://original.antiwar.com/eland/2010/08/17/histrionics-over-the-mosque/
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/18-1
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/17/us/politics/17mosque.html?_r=1&nl=us&emc=politicsemailemb1
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2010/08/16/ground_zero_mosque_origins/index.html
http://politicalcorrection.org/fpmatters/201008180002
http://original.antiwar.com/pena/2010/08/19/a-mosque-in-new-york-city/
http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/news/u-s-muslim-leaders-condemn-holocaust-denial-anti-semitism-1.308737
http://www.thenation.com/blog/154081/lesson-mosque-mania-its-our-values-stupid
http://www.military.com/news/article/retired-general-slams-ny-mosque-critics.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/21/world/21muslim.html?_r=1&ref=world
http://wire.antiwar.com/2010/08/18/fact-check-islam-already-part-of-wtc-neighborhood/
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig11/combs2.1.1.html
By the way, whatever happened to the Conservative principle of property rights? If a Muslim owns the land and wants to build an Islamic Cultural Center on that site, isn’t it their property and their choice?
Tisk, tisk…..look at Newt Gingrich out stumping and sounding like a fascist sputtering off all kinds of racist remarks and catering to a mob of hate-mongers…..that is quite irresponsible of a former Speaker of the House, Mr. Gingrich. You should be ashamed of yourself and that brown-shirt you are wearing is quite demeaning to Conservatives. These hate-spewing people are nothing more than cowardly, weak-minded fascists. I saw one sign they were carrying that said ‘They can build a mosque at Ground Zero when Saudi Arabia allows churches to be built in Mecca’……yheah, great idea you jackasses…..lower us to their level…….maybe you haven’t noticed but America is better than that……...and our values which are embodied in the U.S. Constitution makes it that way. Respect the Constitution!!! Stand up against hate!!!! Advance tolerance.
It is those who oppose the building of the Islamic Cultural Center at Ground Zero that are most giving aid and comfort to Osama bin Laden by only proving what he has exclaimed about Americans…..that they all hate Muslims……..and we know that is not true………so Mr. Gingrich, I implore you, please stop giving aid and comfort to Osama and the terrorists by uttering your racist hatred!!! America is better than that.
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/spy-talk/2010/08/mosque_fight_helps_al-qaeda_sa.html?hpid=topnews
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2010/081810.html
http://www.amconmag.com/tactv/2010/08/20/let-freedom-watch-ring/
http://reason.com/archives/2010/08/17/two-cheers-for-american-tolera
http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/foreign-policy/4309-obamas-multigenerational-shadow-war
And herein lies one of the uncomfortable truths about the First Amendment: the people uttering their hate-filled speech have a right under the Constitution to express themselves and we have a right, and in fact a duty, to express our own acute criticism of their hate-filled speech. Principles aren’t always easy.
That’s why you see all these cowardly, yellow politicians all jumping on the bandwagon to condemn the building of the Cultural Center……because once again by their own actions they prove that politicians are followers and usually, though not always, devoid of principles. Whether the Islamic Cultural Center gets built or not, it is still important, moral and just to speak out for religious freedom and tolerance and against hate because doing so upholds fundamental values embodied in our founding principles.
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/18/dem-leaders-join-in-condemnation-of-ground-zero-mosque/
http://original.antiwar.com/levesque-alam/2010/08/17/bin-ladens-rising-influence-in-america/
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columns/_Mosque_-debate-is-a-red-herring-500293-100810999.html
http://www.truth-out.org/mosques-muslims-and-america-darkness62409
http://www.truth-out.org/gingrich-bolton-breitbart-team-with-muslim-basher-geert-wilders-911-rally62344
http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2010/08/17/cordoba-house-the-acid-test/
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0810/41196.html
Believe you me, I never thought I would ever be quoting this dude, but I do now because it is right:
“America counts millions of Muslims amongst our citizens, and Muslims make an incredibly valuable contribution to our country.
Muslims are doctors, lawyers, law professors, members of the military, entrepreneurs, shopkeepers, moms and dads, and they need to be treated with respect………………
Those who feel like they can intimidate our fellow citizens to take out their anger don't represent the best of America. They represent the worst of humankind. And they should be ashamed of that kind of behavior.”
~President George W. Bush
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/08/911-widower-ted-olson-obama-was-right-on-cordoba-house.php
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/19/AR2010081904427_pf.html
Updated for 2010:
First they came for the Muslims and I did not speak out because I was not a Muslim.
Then they came for the Arabs and I did not speak out because I was not an Arab.
Then they came for the immigrants and I did not speak out because I was not an immigrant.
Then they came for the gays and I did not speak out because I was not gay.
Then they came for the activists and I did not speak out because I was not an activist.
Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me.
“I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.”
William Penn (1644-1718)
Philanthropist and founder of Colony of Pennsylvania
“Better to fight for something than live for nothing.”
~General George S. Patton
I thought this was hilarious so I just had to include it:
"Why don't they pass a constitutional amendment prohibiting anybody from learning anything?
If it works as well as prohibition did, in five years Americans would be the smartest race of people on Earth."
~Will Rogers
When just one man says “No, I won’t!!” Rome begins to fear.
~Kirk Douglas in Spartacus (one of my favorite movies of all time)
Wage peace!!!
WHY DOES OBAMA SEND MORE TROOPS TO DIE IN A WAR THAT HE KNOWS IS LOST? (REAL CONSERVATIVES ARE AGAINST THE WAR!!)
Our common cause:
Our common cause is to save lives, ours and theirs, from dying for nothing in a useless war and occupation--both of them.
Secondarily our common cause is to save the cause of liberty in our own country and save our country from moral and financial ruin.
Do you know why they haven't killed or captured Osama bin Laden yet?
Because doing so would end the larger effort...........what larger effort is that, you ask? Their effort at propping up the military-national-security-industrial-welfare-complex...........that's what the faux WOT is all about.....to give a purpose where none exists. Faux WOT for what? The reality, folks, is that one of Osama bin Laden's stated objectives was to draw the U.S. into a long-protracted war and financially bleed the United States slowly to death. And our great United States Federal Government, idiots that they are, are giving to Osama exactly what we wants by remaining in Afghanistan which is bleeding us financially and morally. Don't give the terrorists what they want.....get out of Afghanistan!!!! The Afghan war is lost. Staying in Afghanistan gives both comfort and aid to the terrorists by giving them what they most want: to financially and morally bleed America dry.
BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't give the terrorists the gift of American financial ruin.
"Power always thinks it has a great soul and vast views beyond the comprehension of the weak."
~John Quincy Adams
"Over grown military establishments are under any form of government inauspicious to liberty, and are to be regarded as particularly hostile to republican liberty."
~George Washington
To be against the war, to be against nation-building and Empire, and to be against big-government and big government equals a big Pentagon budget and other entitlements programs, and to be in favor of preserving civil-liberties for all, including the right to bear arms, (I stand for all of the U.S. Constitution, not just the parts of it I like..hey, I used to go hunting as a young man too), to be these things is be a true-Conservative. If Republicans can reform themselves from borrow-and-spend Pentagon-Liberals, perhaps one day, they can be conservatives too. Don't confuse principles with ideological rigidity.
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1056
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1051
A party that espouses and embraces racial hatred while championing borrow-and-spend budgets, big-military and intelligence expenditures is not a conservative party. Did you know it was the Republican Party that issued the Emancipation Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln? How did this come to be? It came to be through a hundred years of abolition activism that produced that Republican Party, that American president, that American civil-war, and that Emancipation Proclamation. (Don't worry, activism influences policy quicker in the Internet Age). Activists are leaders and politicians are followers..if you don't like the current Republican Party, then change it.
Am I a Progressive or am I a Conservative?? Hmmmm....I don't know nor do I have to decide because at the end of the day, I am simply an American citizen with an opinion to offer...I mean, c'mon, if you can't speak your mind in America, then what can you do in America? There are many smart, politically independent Americans. Come together, people.....because at the end of the day, there really exists no Left or Right or Center, there really just exists us, we Americans together bonded in common purpose.
I simply care enough about my country to speak out in the pursuit of peace and justice to bring the troops home now!!! Furthermore, in my experience, if one leads by setting an example, I have learned that others are sure to follow. If one leads by standing upon principle, many others are sure to follow. My fellow Americans, I urge you to be that catalyst; be that leader; be that person who sets the example for others to follow. You can do it. You do have the power. You can inspire others. Any person willing to risk placing the needs of their country or their world, as they see it, before their own needs can lead their fellow citizenry in a new direction. You must first believe in yourself, you must have faith in your own sense of self-empowerment and you must trust your fellow citizens to see the rationale of the principled stand you take by choosing to make up their own minds to follow your cause. So whatever cause is dear to your heart, I know you can make a difference. Do it.
Stop placing your faith in politicians to change things and start placing faith in yourself to change things.
You don't have to be Mother Theresa, Rabbi Heschel, Martin Luther King, Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Harvey Milk, Cesar Chavez or Yitzhak Rabin to make a difference. Remember, these people were people just like you: Each of them did bear both positive and negative traits, each of them bore a variety, range and frequency of emotions; each of them bore varying degrees of love, of hate (they certainly hated oppression and injustice didn't they?) and of nonchalance. Each of them bore different sexual proclivities. Each of them achieved amazing feats. Each of them made many mistakes during of the course of their lives. Each of them had their own faults. Each of them slept, ate food, crapped, urinated and washed themselves. Each of them educated themselves and others. Each of them spoke out. Each of them pursued justice. Each of them led by example. Each of them stood upon their principles. What made them noted had much less to do with the eloquence of their words and much more to do with the fire in their hearts; much more to do with their willingness to take risks on behalf of their fellow human brethren; much more to do with their action of leading by speaking out and taking other actions. As a human being, remember that you share your common humanity with these people. You don't have to be Mother Theresa, Rabbi Heschel, Martin Luther King, Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Harvey Milk, Cesar Chavez or Yitzhak Rabin to make a difference. You need only be yourself. They were unique and you are unique. You can do it with principles, patience and perseverance. You can make a difference, yes you can. So if you care, then I hope you choose to do it. Believe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Activists, not soldiers, are the chief defenders of freedom, liberty and democracy. Activists are leaders and politicians are followers...so lead, speak out, take action and agitate and agitate and agitate!!!! And to be clear..I'm not a full-time activist, folks, I work a professional job at a corporation during the day...hey, you know, I have bills to pay too. I do my duty as a citizen of this nation during my evenings and weekends. I consider myself an evening and weekend activist and a principled patriot. My sense of duty, honor and country compel me to speak out. You can too. There is nothing to fear. You own this government, you pay for it, it is yours. You should never fear the government, however, you should participate in it----that is the way a democracy works. If you work all day, obey just laws (not all laws are just...where there is no victim, there is no crime) and participate in democracy in your evenings and weekends by speaking out and getting involved, like I do, well, then I have good news for you: you are a model American citizen in a functioning democracy. Yes, you can. Yes, I can. Yes, we can.
Why is the First Amendment first? It is first because it is the most important amendment of them all.
If Free Speech was always pleasant to hear, never challenged anything and was never rude or upsetting, then it would be Limited Speech wouldn't it? Free Speech is sometimes unnerving, upsetting and difficult to listen to, difficult to absorb and sometimes rude but that is also what makes it Free Speech.
If we oppose Tyranny to be visited upon our lives at home in America, then we must also oppose Tyranny to be visited upon the lives of others abroad!! There's no such thing as bombs of benevolence. End the war!!! A principled patriot opposes war. A principled patriot extols liberty. A principled patriot thinks for himself. A principled patriot is willing to risk putting the needs of his country before his own. A principled patriot tells the truth. Try to be a principled patriot, we each have flaws, but we can try.
"Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves."
~Abraham Lincoln
WAGE PEACE AND BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!!!!!!!!!!
http://www.amconmag.com/
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/
http://www.lewrockwell.com/
http://www.reason.com/
http://www.cato.org
http://www.fff.org
http://www.antiwar.com/
http://www.wikileaks.com (the best way to disinfect is to shine light upon the filth)
http://www.bradleymanning.org/
On the principled patriotism of Bradley Manning:
http://original.antiwar.com/mcgovern/2010/08/08/lancing-the-boil/
http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2010/08/10/smearing-bradley-manning/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/13/AR2010081305820_pf.html
Ignore their smears....keep publishing. Good news: we are winning the effort to inform and educate. Definitely keep publishing the VIPS stuff from Ray McGovern et al. Those articles are downright spectacular!!!...but would you expect anything less from former CIA analysts? I think VIPS is great!!! Did you know the first place I applied upon graduation from college? The Central Intelligence Agency.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/12-9
"We are not pacifists. We are transparency activists who understand that transparent government tends to produce just government. That is our modus operandi behind our whole organization: to get out suppressed information into the public where the press and the public and our nations' politics can work on it to produce better outcomes." ~Julian Assange, journalist
Go Wikileaks, go!!!
http://original.antiwar.com/thomas-knapp/2010/08/08/the-valley-of-the-shadow-of-wikileaks/
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/12-9
"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."
~John Adams
http://www.commondreams.org/
http://www.thenation.com
http://www.buzzflash.com/
http://www.tompaine.com/
http://www.truthout.com/
http://www.motherjones.com/
http://www.alternet.org/
http://www.thinkprogress.org/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
http://www.democracynow.org/
http://www.savetheinternet.com/
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/
http://www.fpif.org/
http://jstreet.org/
http://www.truthdig.com/
http://www.dailykos.com/
http://www.tomdispatch.com/
http://www.counterpunch.com/
http://www.veteransforpeace.org
http://www.ivaw.org
http://honeste--djoftruth.blogspot.com/2006/10/websites-to-help-you-stay-informed.html
A corporation is not a citizen and neither is a union.
http://freespeechforpeople.org/
http://www.movetoamend.org
http://www.reclaimdemocracy.org/political_reform/proposed_constitutional_amendments.html
Instead of delivering analysis, insights and critique this week, I would prefer to simply ask some questions. As you can see, I don't write articles in the traditional sense....a single topic with a neat introduction, body and conclusion--that's too formal for me, what I do is create written mosaic motifs that cover a lot of ground....that's what this is for me, this thing that I do....it is a form of art and I am an artist, a citizen, a patriot and a human being against the war. You can be a patriot against the war too.
Why is President Obama spending more of our money on the military than Bush?
http://www.truthdig.com/eartotheground/item/despite_new_cuts_obama_will_spend_more_than_bush_on_military_20100809/
Why do we need 100,000 troops in Afghanistan if there are only 50-100 terrorists there? Caspian oil?
Why do we need a Patriot Act if it does not prevent terrorist attacks? (Shoe-bombs, Times Square bombs, etc...)
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1061
Why do we need nearly 1 million Americans with top-secret clearance if we live in an open democracy?
http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=12042
Why do mainstream journalists not ask the government "Why?" more of the time?
Why do mainstream journalists not question official statements of foreign policy when they know all governments lie?
http://www.commondreams.org/video/2010/08/11-1
Why does Obama send more troops to die in a war that he knows is lost?
Why does the faux WOT seem more like a war on the U.S. Constitution?
http://www.fff.org/blog/jghblog2010-08-09.asp
The Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, number 6 on the Bill of Rights:
"In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district where in the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense."
Square that with Guantanamo and Military Commissions. Why do they make war on the Constitution?
Why do we think less liberty will grant us more security when liberty bestows security from tyranny?
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/14/us/14gps.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&hpw
Why, oh why, oh why? Because politicians are followers and followers follow and leaders lead. Lead!!
Why do some people think that to be Conservative one must hate? Some hate, some do not, I do not.
Why do some people think that Liberals are smart? Some are stupid, some are not.
Why do some people think that Conservatives are stupid? Some are smart, some are not.
Why does the Obama administration declare the Iraq war over but leaves 50,000 troops in Iraq?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/aug/04/us-iraq-rebranding-occupation
Why does the Obama administration act much like the Bush Administration before it?
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1058
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2010/08/10/gibbs
Why do the policies not change even when the administration changes....why stink like one-party rule?
http://www.amconmag.com/tactv/2010/08/12/how-partisanship-hurts-conservatism/
Why is there seemingly an invisible hand steering the course of government in a democracy?
Why is the government such an unwieldy, behemoth, uncontrollable beast of burden?
Why are all persons who are elected to the House or the Senate rich? Is that really representative?
Why are average common Americans barred from exercising true representation in Congress?
Why did the revolutionary-war era American patriots declare no taxation without representation?
Why does a country built on liberty imprison more of its citizens than any other country?
Why do our politicians constantly tell us that we are free? Why do we believe anything they say?
Why do we demand big government out of our lives at home, yet demand big government invade other people's lives abroad?
Why do we equate relevant defense with irrelevant offense? Why do we think they act for the good?
Why do we have troops on over 700 bases in over 130 countries worldwide? Why are we an Empire?
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0115-08.htm
Why do we spend more of our tax dollars on the military than all other countries combined?
Why do we spend countless dollars on contractors but fail to spend money on everyday ground troops?
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/11-9
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0831-06.htm
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20060728_worm_dirt/
Why do we keep paying taxes at all? Why do we succumb to fear? Why don't we unite and rise to the challenge before us?
Why do some people think that they are only one person and what can only one person do? Well, folks, I think that one person can do a whole lot if they act with courage, truth, justice, peace, passion, principle, patience and perseverance. And, I think if we unite we can accomplish great things together.
"There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why...I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?"
~Robert F. Kennedy
"It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope... and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."
~Robert F. Kennedy
Did you know that you can be a Conservative and be tolerant and loving toward your fellow man?
Did you know that you can be a Liberal and still be narrow? I've unfortunately met a few.
Did you know that you can be a Conservative and be atheist....that is, one who does not believe in G-d?
Did you know that you can be a Liberal and be a faithful, devout religious follower?
Did you know that you can be a Conservative and be against the war?
Did you know that you can be a Liberal and be a warhawk?
Did you know that you can be a gay Conservative, a black Conservative or a Latin Conservative?
Did you know that you can be a straight white-male Liberal?
Did you know that you can be Conservative yet still think that some government is good?
Some Conservatives do: they propose extremist-Conservative cuts like Social Security yet propose extremist-liberal Pentagon spending....and big Pentagon spending is big government, folks.
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/08/13
Did you know that you can be Liberal yet still think that too much government is bad?
Some Liberals do: they propose we spend a lot of money on Healthcare yet propose small government by opposing extreme-liberal-Pentagon spending and on useless, unjust, needless wars of aggression.
Did you know that most Americans are a little of both Liberal and Conservative? That most are a blend?
Did you know that you can be neither a Liberal nor a Conservative?
Did you know that you can be both a Liberal and a Conservative at once? Yes, you can.
Did you know that you can embrace some Conservative views and some Liberal views at once?
I think ideological purity is bullocks. Rigidity is narrow. You can be a balanced, ideological centrist. How do I know? I am one. I share a few Conservative opinions and I share a few Liberal opinions. You can be a moderate-centrist and principled citizen. There is such a thing as principled ideological centrism. It is a place where conformity to a single ideology is not required. Resist conformity. Be whatever you wish to be.
Did you know that you can be whatever you wish to be?
Did you know that you can define yourself however you darn well see fit? I hope so.
Did you know that there are no absolutes, no cemented definitions of what it is to be an American?
Did you know that you can practice any religion, or none at all, and still be a good American citizen?
Perhaps, you already knew the answers to these questions but I just wanted to ask them anyway.
Again, I strongly advise against retreating into the Left-Right division that disunites us by building walls between us. Build bridges, not walls and remember that every strong bridge is anchored in the rock-face of commonality...what we share in common is the key to building enduring bridges. To be against the war, you do not have favor every other social cause in the world, you are not required to be either a Liberal or a Conservative or both or neither, you can just be a patriot against the war and that is enough. Resist the extremes. Their rigidity is our disunity if we let it. Unite in common purpose against the war.
http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2010/08/12/folly-left-and-right/
I have lived in the North, I have lived in the South, I have lived in the Rocky Mountain West and now I live in California and I can tell you this about the American people: They share a common thread amongst them: A sense of fairness that runs deep in their psyche. Americans, as a general rule, are a fair people who believe everyone has a right to be treated fairly. There are certainly occasions where individuals and small groups espouse hatred and prejudice but by and far, the majority of Americans are a fair-minded people. We are all Americans, folks, so despite all the definitions of what is this and what is that, you can be anything you wish to be. You define you. Don't let others define you...define yourself for that is true individual liberty, individual justice, individual peace and individual choice. Liberty, peace and justice are not always public domains; sometimes they are private, individualistic domains. You can choose, yes you can. Define yourself, be yourself, be flexible and open to change, listen and be heard, change and be changed. Know thyself and to thine ownself be true. And above all, never forget to ask, "Why?"
Who said that? Go look it up...
Resist their labels, resist any labels, resist influences from outside to define the person you are inside.
Is this a radical thought, do you think?
"We're caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly...I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. You can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be."
~Martin Luther King, Jr.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/09-0
Time for brief commentary:
If you care at all about democracy, liberty and freedom then you should care about Net Neutrality.
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/10
http://www.savetheinternet.com/
http://savetheinternet.com/fcc-comments
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/josh-silver/google-verizon-deal-the-e_b_671617.html
http://www.freepress.net/press-release/2010/8/9/300000-call-google-don%E2%80%99t-sell-out-open-internet
http://blog.buzzflash.com/contributor/3576
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/13-7
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/08/13-2
A great article here:
http://www.truth-out.org/the-war-terror-beyond-military62078
You could maintain Empire if it were based on principle, but principle has a high price, can you afford it? For crying out loud, enough already!!! Release Gilad Schalit, stop building settlements and start peace talks. Long-term peace is in everyone's best interest, well, everyone but the military-industrial-complex.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/11-6
http://original.antiwar.com/giraldi/2010/08/11/hillarys-enemies-list/
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/12-7
The price we pay for oil:
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/08/05/the_ministry_of_oil_defense
Let's hope this is true:
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/08/clinton-us-open-to-engagement-with-iran/
On tolerance and religious freedom:
http://www.opednews.com/populum/linkframe.php?linkid=116649
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/06/AR2010080602665.html
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/10-1
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/08/weekinreview/08bai.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=know%20nothings&st=cse
http://www.thenation.com/article/154008/ground-zero-free-speech
Bravo, Mr. Obama, bravo:
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/13/obama-breaks-silence-backs-nyc-mosque-project/
The majority of people in the world are peaceful, moderate people. Islam, Judaism, Christianity are largely religions of peace which each share a common thread: ABRAHAM. Wing-nuts and extremists can be found in each of these faiths, but largely, each of these faiths is noble, peaceful and just.
Hate crimes are un-American and wrong!!! Stand against hate!! Advance tolerance.
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/13-3
Updated for 2010:
First they came for the Muslims and I did not speak out because I was not a Muslim.
Then they came for the Arabs and I did not speak out because I was not an Arab.
Then they came for the gays and I did not speak out because I was not gay.
Then they came for the activists and I did not speak out because I was not an activist.
Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me.
Film:
http://original.antiwar.com/vlahos/2010/08/09/italian-film-captures-anger-at-us-bases/
Hope and reconciliation, building bridges, not walls....commendable indeed:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/11/AR2010081105979_pf.html
Obama bringing the troops home from Iraq? Not true:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/08
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/11/upbeat-white-house-faces-calls-for-long-term-iraq-presence/
http://www.lewrockwell.com/margolis/margolis199.html
http://antiwar.com/radio/2010/08/11/cindy-sheehan-5/
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/iraq
http://www.fff.org/blog/jghblog2010-08-05.asp
But Obama's legacy is not yet written...there is a way out, to a better future:
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/08/06/the_two_obamas
http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2010/jul/27/obamas-legacy-afghanistan/\
An attack on Iran? What a disaster that would be....must be a neocon idea...they're always disasters.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/12-9
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/eo20100808gd.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-bromwich/one-more-war-please_b_674357.html
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/08/11/the_weak_case_for_war_with_iran?page=0,0
http://original.antiwar.com/porter/2010/08/13/israeli-generals-and-intel-officials-oppose-attack-on-iran/
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/13-7
Why are we in Afghanistan?
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/opinon/2010/08/137_70943.html
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/11/pentagon-predicts-even-worse-violence-in-afghan-fall/
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/12-8
http://afpak.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/08/12/daily_brief_petraeus_wants_more_time_in_afghanistan
Hmmmmm. I wonder how this could have happened?
http://news.antiwar.com/2010/08/12/poll-shows-rising-public-opposition-to-afghan-war/
I don't know, Mr. Obama, do you really see yourself getting re-elected with Americans turning against the Afghan war?
Now off on a tangent:
Where there is no victim, there is no crime....the violence that the War on Drugs creates could instead be effectively relegated to the price-wars of the Free-Market. How do I know? American History. Today, you don't see gangs roaming the streets or people killing each other for a drink of alcohol, do you? No, you don't...at least not since the days of Al Capone and Prohibition anyway. What you choose to digest is your choice and your liberty alone...if you digest things that are good for you, good for you, and if you digest things that are bad for you, then that is your responsibility to deal with. Individual choice trumps the kind of moral indignation that uses the long-arm of the government to control you. That's the funny thing about the Puritanical Religious Right...they seem to be more concerned with what's going on in your backward that what is going on in their own..and that's not very Conservative, is it? I don't do drugs, not anymore, now I just drink, but I do maintain that what you choose to digest into your own flesh and blood is neither the business nor the purview of the government. Now, you may not agree with everything I say, but I still have every right to say it, and I would hope that you think for yourself because you can decide on your own. You have the power.
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
~Voltaire
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Voltaire
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Evelyn_Beatrice_Hall
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1045
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/05-0
http://www.truthdig.com/eartotheground/item/could_pot_topple_the_tea_party_20100804/
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/08/08
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/08/11-4
http://www.cato.org/drug-war
Question government. Question authority. Isn't military-industrial-complex part of government?
http://original.antiwar.com/paul/2010/08/09/the-cycle-of-violence-in-afghanistan/
http://www.cato-unbound.org/2010/08/09/glenn-greenwald/the-digital-surveillance-state-vast-secret-and-dangerous/
The Age of Information:
http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2010/08/08/the-information-war/
Exposing the truth:
http://freedomsyndicate.com/fair0000/latimes00287.html
"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."
~Albert Einstein
And Babe Ruth stepped up to the plate slowly and confidently, pointed his smooth, wooden bat toward and over the CENTERfield fence, and then as the pitch came rolling in fast and hard, he knocked that sucker right over the CENTERfield fence, outta the park!!! Oh my!!!!! Oh, Babe, how we art miss thou? Think for yourself, define you. Come together, people, come together. We are all Americans together.
The Score: War Party: 2 American people: 1; The American people are up to the plate, it's the bottom of the fifth, there is one out; runners are in scoring position on 2nd and 3rd.
We can do it, yes we can. We can if we unite as a team. Step up to the plate. Wage peace!!!
|
