Free Iraq

A Google search on Zarqawi dead yields 1,230,000 results. Now, I know full well that this proves nothing; further, for the purpose of "terror" reporting, 1,230,000 cannot even be taken as suggestive. But this result at least raises the possibility that Zarqawi's prior death previously has been the subject of speculation!
 

Al qaeda looks more like a franchise operation than a traditional dark hedgmony ala Dr. Evil in the Spy Who Shagged Me. The who concept of a #2 seems silly. Like most franchise operations, the independent units do pretty much what they please, although they do receive training manuals and such. The beauty of a franchise system is that the brand can live on long after the original frachisor is dead. Take Cornel Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame.

Al Qaeda has become the brand of choice for all of those who hate America or Western civilization in general. Instead of selling soft drinks or toilet paper, Al Qaeda sells hate, and it seems like there are plenty of buyers. Marketing for this brand consists of killing people, Westerners preferably, but just about anyone will do in a pinch. The news media cover the killing, thereby allowing for yet greater name recognition.

I doubt that many of the people in Iraq actively resisting the US really care what Osama wants them to do, but there are very willing to use violence to get rid of the Americans just the same. They are probably also willing to let Arabs come in and help them kill some Americans. Who cares, as long as they all hate America and Americans, right? With enough hate America will be forced to leave. And then what? Can you rebuild a country with people who hate?
 

toobad4US
My next posting will most probably be on "Why do they hate us?"
 

toobad4us,
The question remains: How does a country "induce" the departure of an unwelcome occupier? Asking nicely that they go seems a nonstarter. I don't know about you, but I think I just might "hate" any combination of invaders perpetrating upon my homeland what has been visited upon Iraq. Do I correctly understand you to mean that Iraqis should just make the best of things and get on with the foreign "nation-building" plan?
 

Chavez: Venezuela Moves Reserves to Europe (This sort of move might focus our attention!)
 

US launches sweep for Al-Qaeda in western Iraq: "Operation Iron Fist aims 'to root out Al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorists operating in the area and to disrupt terrorist support systems in and around the city' of Sadah, near Al-Qaim, in the western Al-Anbar province, a US military statement said Saturday.

"Al-Qaeda in Iraq, led by Jordanian-born Abu Musab al-Zarqawi*, is said to be well-implanted in the upper Euphrates Valley where, according to the US military, they obtain arms, supplies and reinforcements from nearby Syria."

"Meanwhile, some 500 detainees were released Saturday from the US-run Abu Ghraib prison on the outskirts of Baghdad, the second such group to be released in the past week ahead of Ramadan festivities.

"Those set free were given new white jelabas, copies of the Koran and the equivalent of 25 dollars in cash.**"
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* "Resurrected"
** Stunningly generous. But why are they being released?
 

Iraq Kurds set for new constitution oil deal role: "Division of responsibilities over the oil sector is a major concern for multinationals, which are keen to tap into Iraq's reserves, seen as the world's third largest.

"The current wording of the charter leaves the door open to interpretation, competition by various provinces and a weakening of the central government's role in tapping new oil resources, which may jeopardize much-needed investment, analysts have said.

"Oil revenues would be redistributed to the whole Iraqi population under the new constitution, Omer Fatah said, but the Kurdish government hopes to see Kirkuk, Iraq's main oil center in the north, and just south of the Kurdish territory, annexed to the regional government."
 

Think Tank Issues Two-Year Iraq Exit Plan: ". . . [T]he plan . . . calls for Washington to enlist regional states, including Iraq's next-door neighbours, in a major diplomatic initiative to ensure Iraq's stability. Such an initiative should include both Syria and Iran, both of which are considered by the George W. Bush administration to be high-priority targets for 'regime change'.

"'Strategic Redeployment rejects calls for an immediate and complete withdrawal, which we conclude would only serve to further destabilise the region and embolden our terrorist enemies,' the authors write.

"'Now is not the time to falter or fade,' Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told a Princeton University audience Friday."
 

Saudi-U.S. Pact Eases Israeli Boycott: "But now the deal with the United States requires Saudi Arabia to end a 'secondary boycott' of businesses operating in Israel, and a 'tertiary boycott' that shuns third-party businesses that have relationships with Israel-based companies."
 

The Tal Afar Files (updated): "Worse, the American invasion has actually created this terrorism because it substantiated over time all the ugliest scenarios that the radical clerics were warning about. People being crushed by tanks, U.S. soldiers breaking down doors, violating the sanctity of the home, abusing civilians, etc., seeing all this go down has an effect. And so the strong anti-American attitude of the clerics started to seem justified to previously disinterested local people by events on the ground, and you have religion emerge as the single cause capable of uniting members of ethnic groups who'd previously been fighting only one another."

(Numerous related links)
 

Pepe Escobar, Asia Times, Who's in charge, Qom or Najaf?: "This is not about religion - or a Shi'ite crescent. It's about power. A civil war in Iraq is already on. And the Holy Grail is power. The US wants power over the whole Middle East. The Sunnis don't want to lose the power they thought was theirs in Iraq by divine will. Other Sunni Arab regimes in the Middle East obviously hate to see a Shi'ite renaissance. The Shi'ites are about to reach power after centuries of suffering. And al-Qaeda in the Land of the Two Rivers wants power as well, in the form of an Islamic emirate of Iraq, Taliban-style, possibly controlled by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi*, who may or may not be a cipher."
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* What to make of this Asia Times reference?
 

Al Jazeera on 'Operation Iron Fist': "A doctor in the main hospital in the border town of al-Qaim, Amir al-Obedi, said 10 people had been killed and 15 wounded since fighting began.

"He said relatives of the wounded told him they had been attacked by US helicopters in al-Sada. The US military had no information about US or Iraqi casualties."
 

AUDIO Interview with Fisk (plays well): Robert Fisk Has Not Been Banned From The U.S.
 

LISTEN to the Fisk interview (above). Incredibly informative, time well spent.
 

Ralph Nader, "Gutless, Spineless and Clueless; Bush is Falling, But the Democrats are Sinking Faster" (Posted for the title, an accurate article summary.)
 

Alesander Cockburn & Jeffrey St. Clair, From Lynndie England to Shaq; Democrats Sink Deeper into the Ooze: "If there was a real party of opposition, maybe those who mandated the new torture system would face some sanction. ...

"While Interstate 45 from Galveston to Houston was clogged with evacuees fleeing the wrath of hurricane Rita, there was a similar jam on the beltway round Washington DC as Democrats fled the city on the eve on the September 24 antiwar rally, panic-stricken lest their presence in Washington might somehow be construed as endorsement of the rally's antiwar message.

"Here's a war which the voting population of the United States views a hostility that is soaring by the day. The latest CNN poll released on September 26 shows 67 per cent disapproving of Bush's Iraq strategy. ...

"For those interested in some of the reasons for this incredible abdication, we can cite former National Security Agency staffer and muckraker Wayne Madsen who reported two days after the rally that 'according to Democratic insiders on Capitol Hill AIPAC put out the word that any member of Congress who appeared at the protest, where some speakers were to represent pro-Palestinian views, would face their political wrath.'

"Madsen wrote that three members of Congress had been scheduled to speak at the rally ­ McKinney, Woolsey and John Conyers. 'Word is that AIPAC will direct its massive campaign to Wolsey's neo-con and pro-Iraq war primary challenger, California state assemblyman Joe Nation, who has strong connections to the RAND corporation.'"
 

Dr. Elias Akleh, British Terrorism in Iraq: "It had been long known to the Iraqis, to the Arabs, and to all Moslems in countries bordering Iraq that the majority of the terrorist attacks in Iraq, especially car bombing, are perpetrated by covert British, American, and Israeli operatives. It is also well known to them that the terrorist Abu Musab Al Zarqawi and his “Al-Qaeda in Iraq” are just inventions of the coalition forces to justify their existence. More and more evidences are coming out of Iraq to support this fact. The arrest of two undercover British SAS operatives last week, disguised as Arabs trying to plant a car bomb in the middle of Basra during the Karbala Festival, which draws as many as 3 million pilgrims to the city, is just the latest of such revelations.

"SAS (Special Air Service) is a secret regiment in the British Army. It was formed in 1941 to conduct raids behind the German lines in North Africa. At the present it forms part of the United Kingdom Special Forces alongside the Special Boat Service and the Special Reconnaissance Regiment. The role of the SAS includes intelligence gathering, behind enemy lines target attacks, counter revolutionary warfare, guarding of senior British dignitaries, conducting military missions without official British Government involvement, training special forces of other nationalities, and counter-terrorism operations. ..."

(Well documented article)
 

WILL YOUMANS, "Free the P" - Hip-Hop for Palestine: "Last month, the Palestinian-American hip-hop crew The Philistines announced the release of a CD dedicated to the youth of Palestine. The compilation CD, titled 'Free the P,' brings together over 20 hip-hop and spoken word artists. Its aim is to promote awareness about the Palestinian struggle for freedom while raising funds to support an upcoming documentary film--SlingShot Hip Hop--about hip-hop in Palestine.

"This is likely the first musical collaboration of its kind. 'Free the P,' shows the cool side of globalization--the grassroots version that undermines corporate power. Conscious American MC's and poets of diverse backgrounds put down verses exposing the plight of the Palestinians and showing solidarity with Palestinian artists. According to executive producer Ragtop, while dedicated to Palestine, the CD was inspired by 'the global struggle for peace and justice.'"

Visit the "Free the P" website: www.freethep.com
SlingShot Hip Hop: www.slingshothiphop.com
The Philistines: www.thephilistines.com

Will Youmans is a writer with a blog: www.kabobfest.com.
 

The Bennett Rule; Abort Every White Baby!: "I think the most interesting debate will be over the question of what to do with mixed race babies. Should we apply the 'one drop' rule, whereby one drop of white blood marks the fetus for termination? I doubt we'll need to take it to that extreme. If the baby is say, 1/8 white, then its more destructive tendencies should be sufficiently diluted. Nevertheless, police and homeland security should still apply increased scrutiny to individuals whose skin looks suspiciously pale."
 

Wayne Madsen, Rather was prevented by CBS (subsidiary of Viacom) from going after the GOP operatives who doctored the documents (Relevant to Nov. '04 'election')
 

Ghali Hassan, Gaza: A prison for Palestinians: "The 'world community' should be too familiar with Ariel Sharon genocidal policy not to abandon the Palestinian people to his 'evil ideology' of destroying the Palestinian people as an independent political and social entity. Every nation in a civilised community has an obligation to reject fascism, and support the Palestinian rights of return to their homeland and self-determination. To trust Ariel Sharon disengagement plan is to be complicit in Sharon's history of crimes against the Palestinian people."
 

WHY DO THEY HATE US? (Reposted)
Chris Floyd, On Captain Fishback's Revelations: "Quietly, firmly, relentlessly, the good captain laid out the list of atrocities committed at the order of the enemies of freedom: 'Death threats, beatings, broken bones, murder, exposure to elements, extreme forced physical exertion, hostage-taking, stripping, sleep deprivation and degrading treatment.' A catalogue of depravity, all of it designed -- with diabolical sophistry -- by self-exalted men cloaking their violent perversions with sham piety and righteous sputum. This was terrorism on a grand scale, chewing up the innocent and guilty alike.

"Fishback saw the fruits of this vile labor in the vast Bushist holding pens in Iraq, where thousands upon thousands of Iraqis were herded, beaten and tortured -- even though 70 to 90 percent of them were innocent of any crime, the International Red Cross reported in 2004. The incidents he and the other soldiers detailed took place before, during -- and after -- the photographic revelations of torture at Abu Ghraib. The mayhem 'happened every day,' said the soldiers, and it was committed 'under orders from military intelligence personnel to soften up detainees.'

"'They wanted intel,' said a sergeant, one of the ordinary, untrained grunts pressed into duty as interrogation muscle. 'As long as no [captives] came up dead, it happened. We kept it to broken arms and legs' -- sometimes with baseball bats, and occasionally augmented by scalding naked prisoners with burning chemicals. The soldiers learned their 'stress techniques' from CIA interrogators, dropping into Iraq from their 'unleashed' torture centers in Afghanistan, Diego Garcia and points unknown.

"But of course they didn't always 'keep it' to broken arms and legs. Fishback, who had been trying desperately to get his superiors to act on the atrocities he'd witnessed himself, discovered that a captive had been 'interrogated' to death. From that point on, while still urging official action, he also began gathering evidence and testimony from fellow officers about the nightmarish regimen, the Los Angeles Times reports. When at long last he began to realize 'that the Army is deliberately misleading the American people about detainee treatment within our custody,' he stepped out of the system -- and into the storm.

"What will come of the good captain's moral courage? Nothing much. A Pentagon investigation has been belatedly launched; no doubt a few more bad eggs will be fried, just as the hapless Lynndie England, poster girl for Abu Ghraib, was convicted this week for 'aberrations' that, as Fishback confirms, were countenanced and encouraged throughout Iraq."
 

Imad

The amount of censorship, underreporting, and brainless reporting is quite stunning.

The so-called free press is expert at not asking questions that the citizens of the great democracy should be hearing before they project their power around the world.

I certainly had noticed that Zarqawi lieutenants were dropping like flies and yet he never seems to run out of them.

But the much more serious unasked question is: “Does Zarqawi even exist or is he a bogey man designed to keep the public distracted from what their troops are doing to the ordinary Iraqis?”
 

Imad

"...Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Baines Johnson continued to support South Vietnam. In 1963 the United States tried to force peasants into barbed-wire compounds to isolate them from the Vietcong (South Vietnamese who supported a united Vietnam under Ho Chi Minh). Not surprisingly, this strategy strengthened opposition to Diem. Kennedy agreed to an American-sponsored coup that resulted in the capture and murder of Diem. In reaction to a questionable event in the Gulf of Tonkin, Congress granted the president wide latitude in conducting a war in theregion. American troop involvement peaked in 1969 with 543,400 soldiers. In 1967 U.S. warplanes dropped 226,000 tons of explosive materials on North Vietnam. A CIA-run program killed sixty thousand Vietcong leaders over several years."

Look at the bright side of it.

By the standards set above, our dauntless U.S. forces in Iraq only have about 59,999 "Al- Qaeda 'leaders'" (sic.) to go, before they achieve the same historic successes that they did in our last colonial war!