September 30, 2006

THE THINKING SPOT

COMMENT: You know, every week it is something else thrown at us from the Bush administration. We are becoming reaction dulled. Is it any wonder? Every time we turn around, there is more crap coming at us from our own government – people we elected to watch for our care. I have never cried about my country before, but these years under Bush have seen many tears roll down my cheeks. I am going to plan for a day when I will be able to smile and laugh and be proud of my country once again. Excuse me while I get a tissue!

ALERT

Torture Bill States Non-Allegiance To Bush Is Terrorism - American citizens who breach their "allegiance" to President Bush and the actions of his government as terrorists subject to possible arrest, torture and conviction in front of a military tribunal.
http://tinyurl.com/hqvu7

WAR

2003 Iraq Postwar Planning Chief: “We've Made Three Tragic decisions”...Rumsfeld: Really?”...
http://tinyurl.com/meqyg

Over 800 attacks every week in Iraq
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1884383,00.html

Revolt of the Generals - Mesopotamia as another Vietnam-like, strategically failed war, and they blame the errant, arrogant civilian leadership at the Pentagon.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/0093006X.shtml

Not Worth a Camel - Eventually, after we leave, a new dictatorship will emerge, probably a Shi'ite version.
http://www.antiwar.com/reese/?articleid=9772

Previously Unknown Lawyer Central to Exposing Mistreatment
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0929-01.htm

Bush Appointees Browbeat Senior Military Officers on Geneva Conventions
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092806B.shtml

POLITICS

Kucinich to White House: share information on Iran - Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) plans to introduce a resolution Friday calling on the president to share information related to U.S. policy toward Iran with the House. Kucinich was a leading voice among Democrats who opposed the 2002 resolution authorizing the president to use force in Iraq.
www.TheHill.com

Selective Intelligence - how easy it is to publicly misrepresent intelligence-community findings - especially when almost all of the key documents remained shrouded in secrecy.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092806L.shtml

Bush Throws Down the Gauntlet – "Now honey, I would hate to and it would be hard but if you can't support me, I will lock you up and call you a terrorist combatant. Got that?"
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/093006D.shtml

I won't say "Republican pedophile ring" but feel free to think it...
http://tinyurl.com/gaa65

Bush Job Approval Climbs to 42% - New Reuters/Zogby poll shows Republicans, weekly WalMart shoppers, Catholics, and men help buoy the President, but Democrats retain edge in battle for Congress
http://www.zogby.com/methodology/readmeth.dbm?ID=1141

Bush and his friends cannot be punished for crimes they have committed, while others can be thrown in jail without even knowing what crimes they are accused of.
http://tinyurl.com/zoz3g

Sheppard Smith clashes with Kristol on the War: it’s “repulsive” that Bush won’t do anything till after the election in Iraq. (Kristol is the chairman of PNAC and one of the people beind the invasion of Iraq and our current insane foreign policy.)
http://tinyurl.com/huc9b

FEDERAL LEGAL ISSUES

Detainee law may not provide total immunity for CIA interrogators
http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/15642236.htm

Gonzales Cautions Judges on Interfering - federal judges should not substitute their personal views for the president's judgments in wartime.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/0093006Y.shtml

ELECTION ISSUES

Diebold Added Secret Patch to Georgia E-Voting Systems in 2002, Whistleblowers Say - ordered workers to install secret files to Georgia’s electronic voting machines shortly before the 2002 Elections
http://tinyurl.com/r44xc

AP, Networks Sue Over Fla. Exit Poll Law
http://tinyurl.com/l65no

ECONOMY

Free trade a myth, U.S. executive says
http://tinyurl.com/po6ny

Cost of Iraq War Nearly $2 Billion a Week - nearly twice as much as in the first year of the conflict three years ago and 20 percent more than last year
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092806G.shtml

Judge: Medicare must halt collection of accidental refunds - The federal government must stop reclaiming erroneously refunded Medicare premiums and inform beneficiaries they may be permitted to keep the money, according to a court order issued on Wednesday.
www.TheHill.com

Health Insurance Premiums Continue to Soar
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0927-09.htm

Post-election Recession – More Republican Chicanery – because we are probably looking at an economic recession soon – when will the lies stop and the truth start?
http://tinyurl.com/phs8y

911 STRANGER THAN FICTION –an independent investigation of 9-11 and the war on terrorism by Anonymous
http://www.signs-of-the-times.org/signs/Stranger_Than_Fiction.php

9/11 Commission Counsel: Bush Admin. May Have Covered Up Meeting Between Tenet And Rice...
http://thinkprogress.org/2006/09/30/911-meeting/

Special investigation: Leading up to 9/11- Did Bush try to stop bin Laden in his first eight months in office?
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15046240

CONGRESS

Port Security Bill Being Used As Dumping Ground By Frist-Led Senate GOP…http://tinyurl.com/qbbo7

Congress Tries to Break Logjam of Bills
http://fairuse.100webcustomers.com/fairenough/nyt493.html

Congress Approves 700 Mile Border Fence
http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=2510371

House GOP Leadership knew about Foley almost a year ago, let Foley remain in House leadership, let him remain as chair of House sex offender caucus
http://tinyurl.com/h4ov3

Legislating Violations of the Constitution
http://tinyurl.com/lt36k

DOMESTIC

World’s Largest Rice Company Halts All Imports from USA
http://www.commondreams.org/news2006/0929-12.htm

US warns charities on any links to terror groups
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2508524

Baskins out at Hewlett Packard - "There is no room in our society for pretexters getting your phone records. If it can happen to a member of the board of directors of a Fortune 500 company, like Hewlett-Packard, it can happen to any of us," Barton said
www.TheHill.com

SC Councilman: "Mothers Need To Be Spayed If They Can't Take Care Of Their” Kids...
http://tinyurl.com/fabnk

Ala. governor defends white Masonic unit
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060929/ap_on_el_gu/riley_masons

Paddle, Corporal Punishment Still Present In Many US Schools...
http://tinyurl.com/k9mxs

Abortion clinics still face violence
http://tinyurl.com/elc8o

Art Teacher Loses Job After Kids See Nude Sculpture during a trip to a museum
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/education/9936513/detail.html

ENVIRONMENT

$1,000,000,000,000: the cost of capping greenhouse gas emissions
http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article1772355.ece

Depleted Uranium: Far Worse Than 9/11 - In 1979, depleted uranium (DU) particles escaped from the National Lead Industries factory near Albany, N.Y.,
http://www.uruknet.de/?p=m27096&hd=0&size=1&l=t

INTERNATIONAL

Nato unable to find Afghanistan reinforcements - There was no offer of more troops.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,175-2381896,00.html

Secret US Deal 'Broke EU Privacy Law'
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0929-06.htm

Dictator Kim Jong Il Using Body Doubles In Assassination Fear...
http://tinyurl.com/fs3yw

India Economy Grows at Torrid Pace
http://tinyurl.com/ofw9v

MILITARY

Derelictions Of Duty: How George Bush Has Disrespected Commanders and Hurt Our Troops
http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/contributors/439

Uncomfortably Numb to Torture - convicted Army Reserve Pfc. Lynndie R. England convicted for nothing so awful as what the president and his flank have chosen to protect."
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/093006E.shtml

MEDIA AND JOURNALISM

ESPN denies silencing New Orleans's jeers for ex-president Bush
http://tinyurl.com/hj6hk

Ex-presidential aide confirms accounts in new book – A. Card suggested replacements for Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld and decided to quit his own post because ``I think America was crying out for some kind of change.
http://tinyurl.com/fpxw7

Ellsberg Named for Right Livelihood Award - Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked the Pentagon Papers, was announced today as a recipient of this year's Right Livelihood Award, sometimes referred to as the "alternative Nobel Peace Prize."
http://www.accuracy.org/http://www.rightlivelihood.org//recip/2006/daniel-ellsberg.htm

EDITORIALS - OPINIONS

Cry, Pray to Bush and Wash out the Devil: Welcome to Jesus Camp
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0929-08.htm

Terrorism and the Republican Way
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/092806J.shtml

A Self-Defeating War - Most Democratic politicians subscribe to the "war on terror" for fear of being tagged as weak on defense.
http://tinyurl.com/fsy5u

HEALTH

F.D.A. Says Bayer Failed to Reveal Drug Risk Study – a widely used heart-surgery medicine might increase the risks of death and stroke,
http://tinyurl.com/s6kdc

Tomato extract helps reverse "sticky" blood, improves heart health:
http://www.newstarget.com/020575.html

Phytochemicals in red wine may slow Alzheimer's disease:
http://www.newstarget.com/020576.html

Islet transplants for diabetics fail to live up to hype; patients are back on insulin within two years:
http://www.newstarget.com/020577.html

HUMAN RIGHTS

Global trade in human organs expands as cash buys body parts from prisoners, cadavers:
http://www.newstarget.com/020581.html