Tuesday, March 25, 2003

Mystery Illness in S. China Has Killed 31 [AP World News] That's in addition to the people who have died elsewhere. 10:37:56 PM    comment () Vin Suprynowicz at the Las Vegas Review-Journal - When do we start negotiating the peace? - reflections on two recent killings by cops. [rrnd] Cops are necessary. Most cops are decent folk. But they should make a list of the laws that are turning our streets into a war zone of "Us Against Them," troop up to the state Legislature, and say, "Let's repeal about 90 percent of this stuff. My granddad walked a beat in an even bigger city 60 years ago; he used to whistle and say 'Hi' to all the folks and rescue kittens from trees, and he never had to pull his gun once, in 30 years on the beat. Something has gone seriously wrong in America. If this is a war, when do we start to negotiate the peace?" [End the War on Freedom] 10:25:17 PM    comment () Ominous Signs. Another piece of news that almost got lost in the onrush of events was the resignation of Rand Beers, the top National Security Council official in the war on terror. He timed his exit to the expiry of Bush's official ultimatum to Saddam (the US started sending Special Forces into Iraq 48 hours before the deadline UPI quoted "intelligence sources" as saying "the move reflects concern that the looming war with Iraq is hurting the fight against terrorism.""Hardly a surprise," UPI quoted one former intelligence official as saying. "We have sacrificed a war on terror for a war with Iraq. I don't blame Randy at all. This just reflects the widespread thought that the war on terror is being set aside for the war with Iraq at the expense of our military and intel resources and the relationships with our allies." [Counterpunch] 11:44:18 AM    comment () Heute Iraq, Morgen Die Welt!!. Contrary to this cover story about spreading democracy that the AmFasc have fed to the media, the U.S. attack on Iraq was really designed and articulated several years ago by a number of AmFasc, either unaffiliated or in groups. In any case, the ideas and recommendations are essentially the same, regardless of the author or proponent. One such group, the Project for the New American Century (PNAC), in a report entitled "Rebuilding America's Defenses," delineated a frightening policy of imperialism for the U.S., all cloaked under the veil of spreading democracy throughout the world. The list of those endorsing the PNAC's activities and PNAC's leading lights almost reads like a who's who of AmFasc. Other AmFasc, in different venues, have essentially subscribed to this view. According to the PNAC branch of the AmFasc, the overall goal for the U.S. should be to preserve and enhance U.S. military superiority and extend U.S. dominance around the planet, deterring the emergence of any potential new superpower. One does not have to be a genius to see that the AmFasc goal is to make the United States the modern-day equivalent of the Roman Empire or Hitler's 1,000-year Reich. And the real goal of the U.S. war on Iraq is to secure a permanent military base to dominate the region, thus giving the U.S. effective control over the Middle East oil fields. If George Bush follows the advice of AmFasc both within and outside of his administration, he will subsequently launch attacks on such nations as Syria, Iran, and Libya and help topple regimes in Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Such actions appear to be a de facto U.S. attack on Israel's enemies and would in all likelihood stir up Islamic terrorists to attack the United States. [LewRockwell.com] A look at what the goals of the Crusaders (the author calls them American Fascists, or "AmFasc") are in Iraq. There are also some suggestions (unrealistic I fear) on how they might be foiled. 9:59:37 AM    comment () Bush's strategic mistake (on a grand strategy level) was not to force the acceptance of the strategic roadmap for the creation of a viable Palestinian state.  That would have required a rollback of the settlements, a bitter and flamable pill.   However, it would have set in place a framework and reputation for fairness in dealing with Iraq.  [John Robb's Radio Weblog] I would say his mistake was not ending support for both sides of the Arab-Israeli conflict. We give huge amounts of money and supply weapons to both sides, and if we stopped doing that we would actually deserve a reputation for fairness. It would also remove the hobbles that the US imposes on the Israelis. 6:20:08 AM    comment () Losing her Bloginity: Claire Wolfe joins the blogosphere. A big welcome to Claire Wolfe! Took her long enough.... [Survival Arts] Claire Wolfe is the author of 101 Things to Do 'Til the Revolution. 6:15:52 AM    comment ()

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