AS THE WORLD SQUIRMSâ

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

"The 'common good' of a collective a race, a class, a state was the claim and justification of every tyranny ever established over man. Every major horror of history was committed in the name of an altruistic motive. Has any act of selfishness ever equaled the carnage perpetuated by the disciples of altruism? The most dreadful butchers were the most sincere. They believed in the perfect society reached through the guillotine and the firing squad. Nobody questioned their right to murder since they were murdering for an altruistic purpose. It was accepted that man be sacrificed for other men."

~Ayn Rand~

(Speaking through the character Howard Roark - The hero in The Fountainhead)

 

 

ARCHIVES

As The World Squirms

 

~Videos~

 Commentaries & Interviews

U.S. Israel Lobby

&

General

 

 

Political Music & Music Videos

 

 

 

 

 

US death toll in Iraq passes 3500

June 8, 2007

 

 

 

Tuesday: 1 Marine, 34 Iraqis Killed; 29 Iraqis Wounded

 

 

 

 

 

DC Notes: Disability claims from Iraq, Afghanistan vets top 176,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

---

 

 

 

 

BREAKING THE BANK! WASHINGTON’S PYRRHIC VICTORY

Analysis says war

could cost $1 trillion

Budget office sees effect on taxpayers ‘for decade

 

(Excerpt)

WASHINGTON -- The war in Iraq could ultimately cost well over a trillion dollars -- at least double what has already been spent -- including the long-term costs of replacing damaged equipment, caring for wounded troops, and aiding the Iraqi government, according to a new government analysis.

 

The United States has already allocated more than $500 billion on the day-to-day combat operations of what are now 190,000 troops and a variety of reconstruction efforts.

 

In a report to lawmakers yesterday, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that even under the rosiest scenario -- an immediate and substantial reduction of troops -- American taxpayers will feel the financial consequences of the war for at least a decade.

 

The calculations include the estimated cost to leave some US forces behind for at least several years to support the Iraqi government, but they also predict other long-term costs, such as extended medical care and disability compensation for wounded soldiers and survivor's benefits for the families of the thousands of combat-zone fatalities.

 

The cost of the war in Iraq and other military operations has soared to the point where "we are now spending on these activities more than 10 percent of all the government's annually appropriated funds," said Robert A. Sunshine, the budget office's assistant director for budget analysis.

 

Those costs -- both to sustain the current mission in Iraq and to pay longer-term "hidden" expenses like troop healthcare and replacement equipment -- are far more than US officials advertised when Congress gave President Bush the authority to launch the invasion in March 2003.

 

At the time, the White House and then-defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld predicted a quick, decisive victory and counted on Iraqi oil revenues to pay for the war. And when Lawrence Lindsey, one of Bush's top budget advisers, estimated in 2003 that the entire undertaking could cost as much as $200 billion, he was fired.

 

 

 

 

---

 

 

When Will We Have Had Enough?

(Thanks to SS – ED)

James Spader In A Dramatization Excerpted From Boston Legal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bush lied about extent of domestic spying

President approved far-reaching program

 Capitol Hill Blue

August 1, 2007 - 6:27am.

 

(Excerpt)

In an executive order signed by Bush in 2001, the efforts of all of America's extensive intelligence communities were turned inwards, monitoring the day-to-day activities on U.S. citizens on a level that rival's Russias famed KGB.

 

And, as with most activities of the Bush administration, most of the details of the domestic spying operation remain secret, hidden behind the cloak of "national security." When Bush previously admitted the NSA's role in domestic spying he was, as usual, telling only part of the real story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When “Officer Friendly” Comes Home…

Be Afraid Citizen, Be Very Afraid!

The Militarization Of America’s Police

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Americans WANT Mass Surveillance Cams! 

 

ABC News

7.29.07

 

 

 

 

HERE WE GO AGAIN!

~COMMANDER OBAMA~

U.S. TROOPS INTO NUCLEAR ARMED PAKISTAN

 

By Nedra Pickler

 Associated Press Writer

August 1, 2007

 

(Excerpt)

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Wednesday that he would possibly send troops into Pakistan to hunt down terrorists, an attempt to show strength when his chief rival has described his foreign policy skills as naive.

 

The Illinois senator warned Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf that he must do more to shut down terrorist operations in his country and evict foreign fighters under an Obama presidency, or Pakistan will risk a U.S. troop invasion and losing hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. military aid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bush and US Congress work to expand government's surveillance authority

 

By LAURIE KELLMAN

 

The Associated Press
Monday, July 30, 2007; 8:31 PM

 

(Excerpt)

WASHINGTON -- Congress and President Bush's aides worked Monday to expand the government's surveillance authority without jeopardizing citizens' rights [?!?!], aides to lawmakers and the White House said.

As it pressed for congressional approval, the Bush administration sought to soothe a sore spot in its relationship with lawmakers over a related matter _ whether Attorney General Alberto Gonzales misled a Senate panel about internal dissent concerning the program, which nearly prompted mass resignations at the Justice Department.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Britain Will Take Troops Out of Iraq Regardless of US, Brown Tells Bush

 

By Andrew Grice, Political Editor at Camp David

The Independent – London, UK

Published: 31 July 2007

 

(Excerpt)

Gordon Brown has paved the way for the withdrawal of British troops from Iraq by telling George Bush he would not delay their exit in order to show unity with the United States.

 

After four hours of one-to-one talks with the US President at his Camp David retreat, Mr Brown told a joint press conference he would make a Commons statement in October on the future of the 5,500 British troops in the Basra region.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10 Reasons Why Russia Can’t Trust Uncle Sam

 

By Robert Bridge

MNWeekly.ru – Russia

July 26, 2007

 

The West says that it is perplexed by Russia's "aggressive" behavior of late, and suggests that Moscow is desirous to regain its past super-power status, and even a little empire. But if cashing in on oil is imperialism, how do we explain the following U.S. moves:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Merkel party warns US arms for Gulf could set off 'powder keg'

"If you add more explosives to a powder keg, you increase the risk and do not make the region more secure."

 

The Anatolian Times

July 30, 2007

 

(Excerpt)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats are worried that reported US plans to send a major arms package to Gulf states could inflame a volatile region, a party leader was quoted as saying Monday.

 

The chairman of the German parliament's foreign affairs committee, Ruprecht Polenz, told the daily Frankfurter Rundschau that the Middle East was already a "powder keg" and that an influx of weapons could set off.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current News & Views

U.S.

·        US envoy accuses Saudis on Iraq

·        US to arm Israel and Arab states in $60 billon deal

·        Israel hails US military aid rise

·        Arms for Arab Authoritarians, as US Turns Back Clock

·        A mishmash of US regional contradictions

·        US House of Representatives to Tighten Economic Sanctions on Iran

AFGHANISTAN

·        Afghanistan fighting kills at least 75 militants

·        Taliban set new deadline for Korean hostages in Afghanistan

·        Taliban rebels turn back on deal and kill second Christian hostage

CHINA

·        China backs Iran over nuclear energy program

·        China, U.S. Reject North Korean Demand to Lift UN Sanctions

·        US-China talks will not erase trade tensions, says US Treasury Secretary

·        Water levels set to peak at China's Three Gorges Dam

·        Worlds largest army turns 80 with a show of strength and weakness

·        Chinese servicemen arrive in Russia for regional security exercise

FRANCE

·        Two swans die of H5N1 in northeast France - agriculture ministry

·        France to continue to "facilitate" resolution of political crisis [in Lebanon]...

·        France Eyes 2.3 Percent Deficit for 2008

GERMANY

·        The Miracle of Merkel -- Is There Anything Angela Cannot Do?

·        European Superstate Nears

·        Debate erupts on Germany's three Afghan deployments

GREECE

·        Russia sends in firefighters as Greek minister says sorry for losing the battle against 3,000 forest fires

IRAN

·        Iran opens nuclear site to UN inspectors

·        Guns for sale - just point them at Iran

·        Iran lashes out at US arms sales package

·        US House backs Iran divestment legal protections

IRAQ

·        Eight U.S. troops die in fighting

·        US Iraq commander wants troops until 2009

·        US joins Turkey's war against rebel Kurds

·        US braced for bloody pull-out from Iraq

·        Suicide Bomber Strikes Major Shiite City Killing At Least 24

·        U.S. `brand identity' tarnished in Iraq

·        Half Billion Dollar U.S. Embassy in Baghdad 'Not Big Enough'?

·        Iraqis blame U.S. depleted uranium for surge in cancer

·        One in seven Iraqis joins human tide spilling into neighboring countries

·        Third of Iraqis 'need immediate emergency aid'

ISRAEL

·        Israel Backs U.S. Arms Sale to Saudis

·        Olmert, Abbas holding secret talks on final status agreement

·        Jews behind Darfur conflict, says Sudan

·        Lebanon Warns against US Military Aid to Israel

PALESTINE

·        Arab ministers in Israel for land-for-peace talks

·        Arab League skeptical of Bush's peace proposal, demand Israel return Golan

·        Syrian diplomat scorns Bush Mideast proposal

·        Israel restores contacts with official Palestinian representatives abroad

RUSSIA

·        Putin camp looks to return in 2012

·        Putin insists on coordinating missile defence work with US, Europeans

·        Russia, U.S. may reach common ground on missile defense, says Foreign Minister

·        Putin-Abbas talks will accelerate Middle East settlement

·        Russian prosecutors request arrest warrant for Boris Berezovsky on new charges

·        Moscow court arrests Berezovskys real estate in France

·        As icecaps melt, Russia races for Arctic's resources

TURKEY

·        Turkey and Iraq: Threat of war

·        Turkish Army wants secular president amid mounting tensions

·        Turkey Ends Visa Regime For Five Eurasian Countries

UK

·        British Military Spending Millions on Spin Doctors

·        UK Consumer Confidence Increased in July, Nationwide Says

 

 

 

that the Shebaa Farms