whitebeard

Don't curse the darkness, light a candle.

 

 

 

  Listen

When I was 17 my mother, bless her heart, fulfilled my summer dream
She handed me the keys to the car
We motored down to Paris, fuelled with Dexedrine and booze
Got bust in Antibes by the cops
And fleeced in Naples by the wops
But everyone was kind to us, we were the English dudes
Our dads had helped them win the war
When we all knew what we were fighting for
But now an Englishman abroad is just a US stooge
The bulldog is a poodle snapping round the scoundrel's last refuge

 

 

 

posted by: Whitebeard at 09:44 | link | comments |

Before eleven/two

Cast a glance

This is no time to be shy. This is not a time when men and women of good conscience can afford to be politcally correct or be guided by anything except a willingness to discard every “cherished” belief or opinion which stands in the way of an accurate and fearless appraisal of the world around us. as I have said so many times in the last three years while delivering more than 40 lectures on the truth and lies of 9/11 and peak oil, in eight countries: the events in the five years following the attacks of September 11th will determine the course of human history for the next 500 years or more.

Follow here

posted by: Whitebeard at 17:49 | link | comments |

Project Censored 2005 Book Release Celebration
Keynote: Catherine Austin Fitts

Where/When:

  King Middle School, 1781 Rose Street in Berkeley, CA, October 23, at 6:30

  For questions contact: Tricia Boreta, Project Censored, 707-664-2500
  Admission $15 sliding scale at the door.

Sonoma State University's Project Censored will celebrate the release
of Censored 2005, the annual issue of the most significant
undercovered news
stories of the year. The Book Release Celebration will be held at
King Middle School, 1781 Rose Street in Berkeley, CA, October 23, at
6:30 to highlight this
year's censored news and to honor the investigative reporters who
brought it forward, including Dennis Bernstein, Amy Goodman, Greg
Palast,  Michele
Chossudovsky, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and many more.

Catherine Austin Fitts, Founder/President of Solari and
whistleblowing former Assistant Secretary of HUD, will keynote the
event.

The Censored 2005 Top 25 Censored Stories reveal critical issues
facing the American public this election year, such as the conflict
of interest existing between the largest suppliers of electronic
voting machines in the U.S. and key leaders of the Republican Party;
wealth inequality and how it threatens economies and democracy;
censored 911 litigation, high levels of uranium contamination in
troops and civilians; new taxpayer-supported nuke plants for private
profit;censored science; reinstatement of the draft, Cheney's
  Energy Task Force, the destabilization of Haiti, and other stories
focusing on US politics, economics, foreign policy, food and health,
the environment, energy,domestic policy, and the military.

A provocative and informative evening will include awards and
reception with authors, journalists, publishers, and Project Censored
Judges - Michael Parenti, Liane Castin, Norman Solomon, Robin
Andersen, Project director Peter Phillips, as well as video art
performance by Ben Sheppee, live music, light hors d'oeuvres, and
booksigning.

This event will be televised by Link TV and is cosponsored by Media
Alliance, San Francisco Bay Guardian, The Nation Institute and KPFA's
Flashpoints.
--
Peter Phillips Ph.D.
Sociology Department/Project Censored
Sonoma State University
1801 East Cotati Ave.
Rohnert Park, CA 94928
707-664-2588
http://www.projectcensored.org/

Found in my email

posted by: Whitebeard at 06:42 | link | comments |

American people, ballots against bullets.

go ahead

It's very important, also for us (Italy). Courage.

 

posted by: Whitebeard at 14:52 | link | comments |

 

No corre la madrugada en las montañas del sureste mexicano.

 

Como si no tuviera prisa, se regodea en todos y cada uno de los rincones, como amante paciente y dedicada. La niebla le va de la mano, con su largo vestido de nube, y consigue asfixiar la luz más empecinada, le tiende cerco, la rodea de su nívea pared, la encierra en un aro difuso. Desde la mitad del cielo, la luna se bate en retirada. Una voluta de humo se confunde con la neblina, despacio, con la misma lentitud con la que la nube arropa, bajo el amplio vuelo de su nagua, las champas dispersas. Todos duermen. Todos menos la sombra. Todos sueñan. Sobre todo la sombra. Apenas extiende la mano y atrapa una pregunta.

No sólo, también hablo de ésta a la que nosotros llamamos "IV Guerra Mundial", que se libra por el neoliberalismo y contra la humanidad. La que transcurre en todos los frentes y en todas partes, incluyendo las montañas del Sureste Mexicano. Lo mismo en Palestina que en Irak, en Chechenia o en los Balcanes, en Sudán o en Afganistán, con ejércitos más o menos regulares. La que, de la mano de éstas, el fundamentalismo de uno y otro bando lleva a todos los rincones del planeta. La que, asumiendo formas no militares, cobra víctimas en América Latina, en la Europa Social, en Asia, en África, en Oceanía, en el Lejano Oriente, con bombas financieras que hacen volar en pedazos Estados Nacionales enteros y organismos internacionales.
Esta guerra que, según nosotros (insisto: tendencialmente), pretende destruir/despoblar territorios, reconstruir/reordenar las geografías locales, regionales y nacionales, y crear, a sangre y fuego, una nueva cartografía mundial. Ésta que, en el camino, va dejando su firma de identidad: la muerte.
Tal vez la pregunta "¿Cuál es la velocidad del sueño?" debería ser acompañada de la pregunta "¿Cuál es la velocidad de la pesadilla?"
Todavía unas semanas antes de los atentados terroristas del 11 de marzo de 2004 en España, un periodista-analista político mexicano (de ésos a los que les dan un dulce y se sueltan cantando loas ridículas) alababa la visión "de Estado" de José María Aznar.
El analista decía que, al acompañar a Estados Unidos y a la Gran Bretaña en la guerra contra Irak, Aznar había conseguido un campo promisorio para la expansión de la economía hispana, y que el único costo que tenía que pagar era el repudio de una "pequeña" parte de la población española, "los radicales que nunca faltan, incluso en una sociedad tan boyante como la española", dijo el "analista". Y más, señaló que entonces a los españoles sólo les tocaba esperar sentados a que el negocio de la reconstrucción de Irak se echara a andar, y entonces sí, a recibir carretadas de dinero. En suma, un sueño.
La ideología neoconservadora en Norteamérica tiene un sueño: construir la "disneylandia" neoliberal. En lugar de una "aldea modelo", reflejo de los manuales de contrainsurgencia de los 60´s, se trataba de edificar una "nación modelo". Se eligió entonces el territorio de la antigua Babilonia.
El sueño de la construcción de un "ejemplo" de lo que debe ser el mundo (siempre según los neoliberales), se nutrió de "(…) la más apreciada creencia de los arquitectos ideológicos de la guerra (contra Irak): que la codicia es buena. No buena sólo para ellos y sus amigos sino buena para la humanidad, y ciertamente buena para los iraquíes. La codicia crea ganancias, las cuales crean crecimiento, el cual crea trabajos, productos y servicios, y cualquier otra cosa que alguien pudiera posiblemente necesitar o querer.
El papel de un buen gobierno, entonces, es crear las condiciones óptimas para que las corporaciones prosigan su codicia sin fondo, de modo que, a su turno, puedan satisfacer las necesidades de la sociedad.
El problema es que los gobiernos, aún los gobiernos neoconservadores, raramente tienen la oportunidad de probar lo correcto de su sagrada teoría: a pesar de sus enormes esfuerzos ideológicos, aún los republicanos de George Bush son, en sus propias cabezas, eternamente saboteados por entrometidos demócratas, obstinados sindicatos y alarmados ambientalistas. Irak iba a cambiar todo esto. En un lugar de la tierra, la teoría finalmente sería puesta en práctica en su más perfecta e incomprometida forma.
Un país de 25 millones no sería reconstruido como era antes de la guerra; sería borrado, desaparecido. En su lugar aparecería una deslumbrante sala de exposiciones para las políticas del laissez-faire, una utopía como el mundo jamás había visto. (Bagdad Año Cero. El pillaje de Irak tras una utopía neoconservadora. Naomi Klein, en Harper's Magazine, Septiembre 2004. Traducción: Julio Fernández Baraibar).

En lugar de eso, Irak es un ejemplo sí, pero de lo que le espera al mundo entero si los neoliberales ganan la gran guerra, la IV guerra mundial: desempleo de casi el 70%, la industria y el comercio paralizados, aumento exorbitante de la deuda externa, muros antiexplosiones por todos lados, crecimiento geométrico del fundamentalismo, guerra civil… y exportación del terrorismo a todo el planeta.

Desde las montañas del Sureste Mexicano.
Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos.
México, Septiembre del 2004, 20 y 10.

The entire article

posted by: Whitebeard at 16:56 | link | comments |

Democracy for peace (and power without hegemony)

This, more or less, is why both administrations have opposed grassroots democracy. A democratic Saudi Arabia, for example, might ask the U.S. to dismantle all American military bases operating on its soil, or may even curtail the business of U.S. oil corporations stationed in the country. Such actions would, according to the prevailing logic, endanger U.S. control over the world's resources and therefore should not be tolerated. The solution, therefore, has been to support authoritarian regimes, simply because they appear to be more predictable and easier to handle.
Along the same lines, both administrations have been against the democratization of the international realm, excluding such bodies as the United Nations and the European Union from playing a meaningful role in the Middle East. Again, the rationale is that the international democratization of power would threaten U.S. hegemony.

...The ongoing occupation and control of Middle East countries, alongside U.S.'s unflinching support for brutal military dictators, oppressive feudal kings, and the occupation of Palestine, will eventually engender violent forces that will end-up attacking the U.S. Think of Osama Bin-Laden, who was initially trained by the U.S. to attack Soviet troops. Isn't he a clear manifestation of the idea that power creates its own vulnerability?

Finally, the democratization of power in the international sphere may seem at first to limit the U.S., but from a long-term perspective this is surely not the case.

Neve Gordon teaches politics at Ben-Gurion University, Israel.

posted by: Whitebeard at 15:54 | link | comments |

The Michigan Republican Party

is asking four county prosecutors to file charges against filmmaker Michael Moore, charging that he illegally offered underwear, noodles and snacks to college students in exchange for their promise to vote.

The GOP said Moore also offered students a clean dorm room, a year's supply of Tostitos and a package of Ramen noodles.

Here

posted by: Whitebeard at 08:33 | link | comments |

Poor Journalism Drives Nation to the Right

"The glass is both half full and half empty," said Marc Sapir, Retro Poll's Executive Director.Ê "Twenty nine percent of our sample still believes, in the face of no evidence at all, that Al Qaeda worked with Saddam's Iraq and this group heavily supports continuing the occupation.Ê But the group is getting to be a lonely place.Ê At the beginning of the war the media did little to dispel the neo-con myth, so over half the public held that view.Ê A year ago it was 41%; in May it was 39%; and now only 29% of our latest sample is holding on to this."

"Moreover," Sapir continued, "it's just one of many examples that expose how corporate media's weak journalism and inadequate defense of the truth drive the U.S. public to the right and away from support of democratic values and their own best interests."

Turning to the struggle between Israel and the Palestinians, only 11% knew-in the face of a consistently pro-Israeli media-that there are no documents of any Israeli offer to Yasser Arafat and the Palestinians from the Camp David 2000 meetings sponsored by President Clinton.Ê And 21% thought that Israel has been dismantling its settlements compared with 22% who knew that Israel has continued expanding its seizure of land and building of major population centers and army bases in the West Bank occupied territories. Nevertheless, 44% of respondents said Israel should remove all its settlements (28% no, 28% don't know).Ê And a hefty 70% said that Israel's treatment of the 3 million Palestinians it controls is not consistent with a democratic government (a direct slap at the U.S. media-government claim that Israel is the region's bastion of democracy).
Take a look here 

posted by: Whitebeard at 08:11 | link | comments |

   

 

  Gino Strada 

 

 

 

 

 

What do you think about this kidnapping and of the modality?

It's another step forward in this tunnel of horror. It is clear that by now whoever is a foreigner in Iraq, is a target. This, I must however say, is also a consequence of an intentional, meditated and programmed operation that is being carried out for some years now, of mixing humanitarian and military intervention.

Could you please explain yourself?

I mean, when the humanitarian war started, the countries that made war, at the same time, in order to try to alleviate their responsibilities said: "We are making aid available". The same has happened then in Afghanistan. The same is happening in Iraq in ever more marked ways, that is going as far as to say:"Our troops are carrying out humanitarian work". Well then if everyone is there to carry out humanitarian work, everyone becomes a target. I think that this kidnapping is a tragic consequence of this practice. I hope there are no other strategies underneath such as that of eliminating all uncomfortable testimonies, that is forcing all humanitarian organizations to go away from Iraq in order to be able to continue, undisturbed, this barbarity that we are witnessing every day.

But just to say it clearly: who would want the humanitarian organizations to leave the country?

For example all the occupying forces ...

That is to say Americans, English, Italians, ...

The Americans, the English, the Italians, all those who are participating in the aggression on Iraq. They have never approved the presence of external non-embedded critical observers. It has already happened in other places. It has happened in Chechnya. It has happened in Afghanistan. Perhaps the assassination of Enzo Baldoni can be read in the same key. The kidnapping of the two French journalists as well, who were certainly not journalists of a warmongering composition.

Listen, doesn't it seem a bit too much of a conspiracy to you?

You see, I believe that in that strange world over there of the secret services ... a friend of mine says that the cleanest has the scabies and I'm convinced that it is so. It is certainly not difficult for someone to infiltrate anyone. In the end it really becomes irrelevant who materially carried out that assassination. We need to see who benefits. Even though we don't have any proof, because it is a story that repeats itself, that of trying to eliminate possible voices of dissent or voices that denounce, it doesn't even seem strange or surprising to me that it is being attempted in Iraq.

What can happen now?

The problem is what will happen after this kidnapping affair will have been concluded, let's hope in a positive and not violent way. Another [kidnapping] will take place. There will be another bombardment and another car-bomb and there will be this chain of deaths to which we really risk getting accustomed to. Because watching the TV news is like this in Israel and in Palestine, in Chechnya and now also in Jakarta, then in Iraq, then in Afghanistan. Well, this world is becoming a world of blows and I believe this should make us all reflect...

Found here

posted by: Whitebeard at 08:15 | link | comments |

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, my god!

 

 

posted by: Whitebeard at 06:30 | link | comments |

 

Italian Twins

posted by: Whitebeard at 09:50 | link | comments |

 

 
  Experts laud US civil society but say the voting system is weak
 
 
  
 A group of experts from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has voiced concerns about US election procedures. OSCE monitors will observe voting in the US for the first time in November.
 American people, pay attention.

posted by: Whitebeard at 08:43 | link | comments |

2 november: ballots against bullets

VOTER REGISTRATION ENDS ON MONDAY IN Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia. Make no mistake, if you live in any of these states – realize now that WHAT YOU DO OR DON’T DO THIS WEEKEND will have an effect on this election!!!

Courage, american people: go and vote.

posted by: Whitebeard at 11:12 | link | comments |

 

 

To Bush and Kerry:

Why did you forget during your match?

 

 

 

Many thanks to Laurence of Cyberia

posted by: Whitebeard at 17:21 | link | comments |

 

 

 

 

 

 

  duel in the shadow

posted by: Whitebeard at 17:01 | link | comments |