Tuesday, December 23, 2003

Transparent Spoils Of War FEATURED ARTICLES - Baker Takes the Loaf, By Greg Palast, - Dems Are Throwing Election to Bush, kucinich.us QUOTE OF THE DAY "President Bush is an intelligent man. He is not going to declare an economic war against Iraq... I admire your extraordinary efforts to rebuild your country. I know you need funds. We understand that, and our opinion is that you should have the opportunity to rebuild your country. But we have no opinion on Arab-Arab conflicts like your border disagreement with Kuwait. James Baker [US Secretary of State] has directed our official spokesmen to emphasize this instruction... When we see the Iraqi point of view that the measures taken by the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait are, in the final analysis, tantamount to military aggression against Iraq, then it is reasonable for me to be concerned." - - April Glaspie,  (US Ambassador to Iraq, in conversation with Saddam Hussein,         US State Department transcripts, 25th July 1990, eight days before the invasion.) KNOW YOUR HISTORY - DECEMBER 23rd 1947 -- US President Harry Truman pardons 1,523 of the 15,805 World War II draft resistors. RHINO HERE: A bit of spotlight today on shrub team operative & modern day magician, Jimmy Baker 3, the spoils of war, and ways to try & turn it all around. Last Sunday night, which marked the Winter Solstice, The Rhino attended a fundraiser for Dennis Kucinich in Malibu, California. A packed house heard the Congressman lay out his plan for getting the U.S. out of Iraq in 90 days, honorably. That plan is RHINO'S BOTTOM LINE for the eve of Christmas Eve & it's a visionary blueprint for how things could be turned around, even now, if all concerned cared to make it so. Rhino is very grateful to the good Congressman for standing out on the front line like he does, so eloquently truthful. No matter which candidate you may be leaning toward at this point, if you haven't heard & seen Dennis Kucinich speak during this ongoing campaign, you owe it to yourself to find the opportunity. Here's 2 opportunities coming up: Michelle Shocked in Cleveland On December 28.  Michelle Shocked will perform at the Beachland Ballroom. Tickets available through the Beachland Ballroom at 216-383-1124. Tickets to a special pre-show reception with Michelle and other guests are also available.      http://www.kucinich.us/concerts/michelle_20031228/ Bonnie Raitt & Willie Nelson & Friends in Austin, On January 3 in Austin, Texas, Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt, Michael McDonald, Pat Simmons of the Doobie Brothers, Tim Reynolds, Michelle Shocked and Tish Hinojosa will perform. Purchase tickets online at www.startickets.com , or by phone at 512-469-7469. Tickets to a special celebrity dinner and reception are available at 512-296-6929. http://www.kucinich.us/concerts/willie_20040103/ A quick action you can take, even during the holidaze, to help clip the bushies wings. END WAR PROFITEERING Call To Action By Working Assets & Working For Change.com In November, Republican House negotiators blocked a provision that would have created criminal penalties for war profiteers and cheats who try to defraud American taxpayers and cash in on the relief and reconstruction efforts in Iraq. The provision has now been introduced as a stand-alone bill, and in light of recent questions about Halliburton and price-gouging, the bill should be passed quickly to ensure, as President Roosevelt once declared, that "a few do not gain from the sacrifices of the many." The War Profiteering Prevention Act would penalize war profiteers who defraud American taxpayers - its objective is "to prohibit profiteering and fraud relating to military action, relief, and reconstruction efforts in Iraq." This is hardly a radical or controversial proposal, as similar laws were enacted after World War I, World War II and the Korean War. But House negotiators stripped the provision from the measure providing $87 billion for Iraq and refused to either negotiate on a compromise or even provide a strong argument for removing the provision (although rumors indicate they took their direction from the White House on the matter). Send a message easily & quickly to your Senators & Representatives by clicking the link below: http://www.workingforchange.com/activism/action.cfm?itemid=16156 Investigative journalist, author & docu-movie-maker, Greg Palast  ( http://www.GregPalast.com ) offers an important look at an only slightly behind the scenes, shrub gang mover-shaker; the slicker than Texas owl shit  ( a nod to Molly Ivins) schiester lawyer James Baker the third of Baker Botts infamy. Baker Takes the Loaf By Greg Palast, AlterNet, December 9, 2003 Well, ho ho ho! It's an early Christmas for James Baker III. All year the elves at his law firm, Baker Botts of Texas, have been working day and night to prevent the families of the victims of the September 11 attack from seeking information from Saudi Arabia on the Kingdom's funding of Al Qaeda fronts. It's tough work, but this week came the payoff when President Bush appointed Baker Botts' senior partner to "restructure" the debts of the nation of Iraq. And who will net the big bucks under Jim Baker's plan? Answer: his client, Saudi Arabia, which claims $30.7 billion due from Iraq (plus $12 billion in "reparations" from the First Gulf war).  Puppet Strings Let's ponder what's going on here... MORE:    Baker Takes the Loaf 6:43:18 AM    comment

RHINO'S BOTTOM LINE - Dems Are Throwing Election to Bush Kucinich: Dems Are Throwing Election to Bush www.kucinich.us,  December 19, 2003 FT. DODGE, IOWA - Democratic Presidential Candidate Dennis Kucinich spoke today to gatherings of Democrats in Toledo, Marshalltown, and Ft. Dodge, Iowa, and said at each stop that if the Democrats side with President Bush on the military occupation of Iraq, they risk losing to Bush in next year's election. Kucinich made the following points: All of the other Democratic presidential candidates in the Iowa caucuses support continuing the U.S. military occupation of Iraq. If the Democratic presidential candidates concede the military occupation of Iraq to Bush, they will risk forfeiting the election. It is time for the United States to get out of Iraq, and the only way to do it is to go to the United Nations with a new approach. There is no legitimate reason for the United States to commit itself to a long-term military occupation. My plan would get the US out and UN peacekeepers in 90 days after UN approval: http://www.kucinich.us/statements.htm#100903 Ten days ago those of us who are running for the nomination gathered in New Hampshire for a debate. One of the moderators asked each candidate for a timeline for getting our troops out of Iraq. I said 90 days. Not a single other candidate provided a specific answer. Ted Koppel asked Dr. Dean how long he would leave troops in Iraq. Dean replied "a few years." The transcript: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A50859-2003Dec9?language=printer In 2002, we managed the unusual feat of losing seats in Congress in an off-year election. Much of our party's leadership had switched sides and joined President Bush in his promotion of an aggressive and illegal war. Democratic leaders, instead of leading the Democrats, went to the Rose Garden to celebrate war with the President. I led the effort in the House of Representatives that organized nearly two thirds of the Democrats to oppose their own leadership and oppose the war, but it was too late. The war began.  And the same war has not yet ended. THERE'S MORE AT:   http://www.kucinich.us/pressreleases/pr_121903.php "RHINO'S BLOG" is the responsibility of Gary Rhine. (rhino@kifaru.com) Feedback, and requests to be added or deleted from the list are encouraged. SEARCH BLOG ARCHIVES / SURF RHINO'S LINKS, AT: http://www.rhinosblog.info RHINO'S OTHER WEB SITES: http://www.dreamcatchers.org (INDIGENOUS ASSISTANCE & INTERCULTURAL DIALOG) http://www.kifaru.com (NATIVE AMERICAN RELATIONS VIDEO DOCUMENTARIES) Articles are reprinted under Fair Use Doctrine of international copyright law. http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html All copyrights belong to original publisher. Tell a friend about Rhino's Blog 6:18:41 AM    comment

© Copyright 2005 Gary Rhine.