Wednesday, November 30, 2005

http://www.aegisiraq.co.uk/


What is that website? and who is Aegis? Aegis is a 'risk management company' aka Mercenaries. They are a British outfit, subcontracting in Iraq. The website listed above www.aegisIraq.co.uk is not 'officially' sanctioned by Aegis. It's more of a place that their employees can blow off some steam, post pics and videos of their exploits in Iraq and unwind...sort of an on-line bar.
So this website made news headlines this week when a 'trophy' video was posted on it (since removed) which allegedly shows members of a private security firm shooting at civilians...Here is a link to the Truthout page which has the video (GRAPHIC VIOLENCE)

Stay Naked.

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

...most foolish war since Emperor Augustus in 9 B.C sent his legions into Germany and lost them...


Yikes!...What war is the author of that quote talking about? C'mon..you know...that's right...Iraq! And who is this lilly livered peacenik? His name is Martin Van Creveld. He is considered one of the preeminent military historians on the planet. He is the ONLY non-American whose books are required reading for officers of the US Army. His book, "Transformation of War" is considered one of the finest treatises ever written. The full article quoted here can be found at Forward Magazine.

"For misleading the American people, and launching the most foolish war since Emperor Augustus in 9 B.C sent his legions into Germany and lost them, Bush deserves to be impeached and, once he has been removed from office, put on trial along with the rest of the president's men. If convicted, they'll have plenty of time to mull over their sins."

Stay Naked.

Your ID or your Freedom?



The woman in the picture above is Deborah Davis. Why is she my hero today? Deborah takes a bus to work every day. That bus passes through The Federal Center in Denver, Colorado. When the bus stops at the Federal Center, Federal Police Officers board the bus and check ID's. Deborah complied the first few times but became increasingly disturbed by this practice. She spoke to a lawyer...did some research and then (from Rocky Mountain News article):

"For a few subsequent days, she told the guards she wasn't getting off in the Federal Center and didn't have an ID. They let her stay on the bus.

Finally, on a Friday, a guard told Davis she had to have an ID the next time. Davis said she spent part of the weekend studying her rights and e-mailing Scannell.

That Monday, when a guard asked if she had her ID with her, Davis just said, "Yes."

"And he said, 'May I see it?' " she recalled, "and I said no."

The guard told her she had to leave the bus, but she refused. Two officers with the Federal Protective Service were called.

"I boarded the bus and spoke with the individual, Deborah N. Davis . . . asking why she was refusing," wrote the first Federal Protective Service officer in an incident report posted on Scannell's Web site. The officer was not identified.

"She explained she did not have to give up her rights and present identification," the officer wrote. "I informed her she was entering a federal facility and that the regulations for entrance did require her to present identification, before being allowed access."

"She became argumentative and belligerent at this time," the officer wrote.

Eventually, one officer said, "Grab her," and the two officers took hold of her arms and removed her from the bus, Davis said."

So she was removed from the bus, handcuffed and deprived of about 100 rights...I think she nailed it when she was asked why?

"It's wrong," she said Monday. "It's not even security. It's just a lesson in compliance - the big guys pushing the little guys around."

We here at the Zoo love the little guy...and gal...

Stay Naked.

Monday, November 28, 2005

Who is Susan Ralston?



Susan B. Ralston
is a Special Assistant to the President of the United States and Assistant to Senior Advisor Karl Rove. She has been descrbed as Roves 'right hand'. She is in the news today because of her involvement in the Valerie Plame investigation. Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald has called her back to testify again. She originally testified that Time Magazine reporter Matthew Coopers calls were not logged because they went through the White House switchboard. But, according to todays Raw Story, Fitzgerald called her back as he ,"...obtained documentary evidence showing that other unrelated calls transferred to Rove’s office by the switchboard were logged."

Susan Ralston came to work for Karl Rove directly from the inner office of much-investigated super lobbyist Jack Abramoff!

We can't make this stuff up:)

Stay Naked.

Sunday, November 27, 2005

Another Point of View


The buzz from the Christian Right is that our media is drenched with pro-Palestinian, anti-Israeli propaganda.

At the the Zoo, we keep in touch with Sam Bahour, an American of Palenstinian descent now residing in Ramallah. He is a businessman and has been trying to wade through Israeli red-tape and investor reluctance to get a small shopping center started.

He maintains a newslist which you can subscribe to here. Or you can just "find out about it" here.

Sam is a decent guy, moderate enough that he'll be interviewed by NPR from time to time (and is tickled when you email him to say you heard him).

If you are interested in a Palestinian voice that (a) is from "the front"; (b) is not awash in rhetoric; (c) that realistically conveys the nature and scope of Israeli activities on the West Bank and the consequent suffering of the Palestinians and (d) with an "American accent", give Sam a try. If there is a future for Israel and Palestine that doesn't involve bloodshed, it will involve folks like Sam.

Try his posts and see if they sound like everything else you get in the msm.

Death before Dishonor...


The bizarre war that is Operation Iraqi Freedom claimed another victim. Last June, Col. Ted Westhusing took his own life. Col. Westhusing was an Army ethics experts, a full professor at Westpoint, knew Greek and Italian, had a PhD in Philosophy. This is all from an amazing article in the LA Times.

In his suicide note:

"I cannot support a msn [mission] that leads to corruption, human rights abuse and liars. I am sullied," it says. "I came to serve honorably and feel dishonored.

"Death before being dishonored any more."

"Westhusing's body was flown back to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. Waiting to receive it were his family and a close friend from West Point, a lieutenant colonel.

In the military report, the unidentified colonel told investigators that he had turned to Michelle, Westhusing's wife, and asked what happened.

She answered:

"Iraq."

One more death for what?

Stay Naked.

Saturday, November 26, 2005

Naked Zoo...LIVE and On fire...



Hey Zooheads...

For those of you who missed this weeks show...See info on how to listen to us

Over there:)

We did a Date of the Week which will forever be known as "Kittygate":) We also talked some NFL picks (Go Dallas) and lots of politics...

-Who is John Rendon and why should I care? Great Rolling Stone article..
-Jack Abramoff scandal mushrooms...
-Former Canadian Defense Minister demands UFO talks...
-USA Death Penalty...1,000 Killed since 1977 and still serving...

Stay Naked...

Friday, November 25, 2005

Which Turkey will be pardoned next?

A wonderful article out of Tunisia by M'Hamed Ben Youssef of Tunis Hebdo. It's titled 'The Agonizing Political Decline of George W. Bush...one gets the sense that at least this journalist out of Tunisia feels sorry for George Bush self-immolation...a sense of pity and empathy not exactly shared by the Zoo but we're here to show all sides...

From the "What the F... file?"

Mike Brown, disgraced former head of FEMA and a man roundly criticized for his professional failures has announced he's opening a consulting firm. How is this news? Well, he is going to specialize in 'disaster preparedness' consulting...ummm...Note to Brownie: This is akin to asking George Bush to explain how a doorknob works:)



Stay Naked.

Thursday, November 24, 2005

More Reprehensible Irresponsibility


For those who enjoyed our recent post on Vice President Cheney's tongue lashing of any who would suggest the Administration misled the American people into the ongoing unpleasantness in Iraq, we have a new offering.

It now appears that ten days after 9/11 (that would be 9/21/01 for the fastidious) the CIA handed President Bush a thorough analysis of all available evidence regarding a link between Saddam and Al Queda and or the 9/11 attacks. Oddly enough, there wasn't any. Then. Now. Ever.

This document, the President's Daily Briefing for 9/21/01, is obviously incredibly damaging to Bush's case for war and to Cheney's campaign to prove there was no misleading. So the recently awakened Dems in Congress would like a peek. "Not gonna happen", says the Whitre House, whose spokesmen will not go beyond admitting the document exists.

Read the whole story by Murray Waas in the National Journal here for the complete disclosure. I knew there would be something to be thankful for today besides turkey.

Needless to say, the truth provided by the CIA did not stand in the way of Bush & Co. linking Saddam to 9/11 at every opportunity, a practice that has continued up to this week in Cheney's speech to the American Enterprise Institute.

"Believing they could strike us with impunity . . . , they attacked us on 9/11 here in the homeland, killing 3,000 people. Now they are making a stand in Iraq --"

You see ? "They" attacked us on 9/11 and now "they" are making a stand in Iraq. See the whole sorry transcript here.

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

A History Lesson


Once in a while somebody writes a piece that summarizes and encapsulates a stretch of history in a way that illuminates the present day. Such is Judith Coburn's piece on "The Return of Watergate" in TomDispatch.

Watergate, secret Cambodian bombing, Iran-Contra, excesses of executive power, White House obsession with secrecy, enemy lists, fear, deception. Sound familiar ?

The message is that this hour is darker than those and the reasons why.

If there can be such a thing as "must reading", this is it.

Friends of Jack Abramoff...come on down..


To jail that is...or at least a very unpleasant public hearing. The Zoo takes a gander at some of the members of Team Abramoff.

Dana Rohrabacher
(R-CA) told the New York Times that he ate at Signatures "once or twice a month" on the house but said, "Just because you are a member of Congress doesn't mean you have to give up your friendships ... it was dinner with a friend and I didn't think of it as a gift."

Bob Ney (R-OH)'s representative said "There were times when meals and/or drinks were bought by him or for him by other members, lobbyists, or other persons, all within the limits of the gift rules." But former employees say Ney frequently ate and drank without paying while spending evenings talking with staffers and lobbyists. Signatures' records also show that the restaurant hosted a fundraiser for Ney in April 2002. According to PoliticalMoneyLine.com, neither Ney's campaign nor his PAC paid Signatures for the event.In recent days, the Justice Department claimed a "Representative #1," later identified as Ney, was a major player in a conspiracy of political corruption. According to court filings, Abramoff and Scanlon provided Ney with "a stream of things of value," including "a lavish trip to Scotland to play golf on world famous courses, tickets to sporting events and other entertainment, regular meals at [Abramoff's] upscale restaurant, and campaign contributions." Ney or his staff also received tickets to the 2001 Super Bowl in Tampa, Fla., frequent golf expenses for greens around Washington, D.C., and a 2000 trip to the Northern Mariana Islands, an American territory in the Pacific that had hired Abramoff as a lobbyist. In an apparent exchange, prosecutors claim that Ney agreed "to perform a series of official acts" like placing statements in the Congressional Record, meeting with Abramoff's clients and trying to arrange a cellphone business deal for one of the lobbyist's clients.

John T. Doolittle (R-CA)'s spokeswoman said "To his recollection, any meal the congressman had at Signatures was either paid for personally or paid for in compliance with House rules by someone with whom the congressman was dining."

And don't forget the booby prize winner who is still trying to get his power back...Tom DeLay...

Stay Naked.

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

DOTW (Date of the Week: Coming Attractions)

this is an audio post - click to play


Hey Zooites...this is my first audioblog...check it out.

Stay Naked.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, May 29, 1917–November 22, 1963


It was 42 years ago today that John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th President of the United States, was murdered in Dallas, Texas.

The men who create power make an indispensable contribution to the Nation’s greatness, but the men who question power make a contribution just as indispensable, especially when that questioning is disinterested, for they determine whether we use power or power uses us.
-John F. Kennedy, Amherst College, Oct 26, 1963 - Source JFK Library, Boston, Mass.

The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all.
-John F. Kennedy, speech at Vanderbilt University, May 18, 1963

And so, my fellow americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.
-John F. Kennedy, Inaugural address, January 20, 1961

You and your profoundly humane vision are missed.

-The Zoo

Stay Naked.

Monday, November 21, 2005

Who is John Rendon?


And how the hell did I get this far without ever hearing about him? Ah well...great piece here on Rolling Stone about John Rendon...the man who helped sell the war...

Scary Rendon Quote:

"We lost control of the context," Rendon warned. "That has to be fixed for the next war."

Stay Naked.

Friday, November 18, 2005

Moyers in '08


O.K., I missed it in June, 2004 when Bill Moyers openly declared class war on the rich, the connected and the privileged. Actually, what he did was to acknowledge the fact that the R, the C and the P have been waging class war for decades and are winning. The transcript can be found here.

Rich with historical detail about the origins of this War On the Rest of Us, studded with telling detail and wrapped in Moyers' signature eloquence, this was a must read then and is a must read now.

He makes clear that both parties are complicit in the sale of our political process to the highest bidder, so there will be no comfort from the Dems.

So how about Moyers in '08 under a new banner ? The Zoo is open for suggestions for names for the new party and for running mates for Bill. I open with RFK, Jr.

First we had the Keating 5..now the Abramoff 36!


Remember the Keating 5? The five Senators bought and paid for by failed Savings and Loan exec. Charles Keating. Hell, do you remember the Savings and Loan Scandal?

Now we have the ever-expanding scandal of influence peddler Jack Abramoff. The most recent update has the Associated Press doing a review of campaign finance records, IRS records and congressional correspondence...Abramoff had his hands in lots of pies but one of them was Indian Gaming (he is currently being investigated for over-charging some tribes for his services...among a host of other deeds of malfeasance)

Turns out they found 36 congresspersons who wrote letters on behalf of his clients shortly after receiving donations. Their response:

"Lawmakers said their intervention had nothing to do with Abramoff, and the timing of donations was a coincidence. They said they wrote letters because they opposed the expansion of tribal gaming — even though they continued to accept donations from casino-operating tribes."

Yahoo News story found here.

======


Next time someone call you 'thick-headed'...just smile and say, 'Thank you' researchers have found that meditation makes the brain 'thicker'

Stay Naked.

Thursday, November 17, 2005

We're O.K., You're Irresponsible


In BushLand, that separate universe where the President and his close associates dwell, things are different than in the world where most of us live.

In BushLand:

Planning a war against Iraq even before you are elected is farsighted, worthy of praise and cannot be faulted; and

Targeting Iraq after 9/11, when Al Queda, a largely Saudi organization based in Afghanistan was widely held to be responsible for the attacks and there was zero evidence tying Iraq to the attacks or to Al Queda is . . . well, its just manly; and

It is perfectly alright to ignore the bulk of the evidence and the majority of the experts regarding Iraq's pre-war purchase of aluminum tubes in order to increase the apparent danger of Saddam aquiring nuclear weapons; and

There's no problem with relying on patently forged documents while ignoring the onsite report of a veteran diplomat to assert that Saddam was buying uranium in Africa; and

Who could object to relying on a defector codenamed "Curveball", who German intelligence had pegged as unreliable, to charge that Saddam had mobile weapons labs ready to churn out bio-weapons by the ton; and

The fact that your Secretary of State's critical speech to the United Nations has proved to be riddled with falsehoods and is now, in the Secretary's own words a "blot" on his record and "painful" is hardly worth mentioning; BUT

Don't let anybody suggest that the White House misled anybody about going to war because THAT would be "irresponsible" and "reprehensible".

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

This is so embarrassing...




So,
according to the Guardian, the British are attempting to build a coalition to staff counter-insuregency operations in AFGHANISTAN...as the US is going to pull out some 4,000 troops next year...so Osama Bin Laden is behind 9/11...he is supposedly in Afghanistan...we invade...can't find him...now we're leaving the country to the British? Weak...

Need a Job? Steer clear of Halliburton...Salon.com has a great expose (Reprinted here at Truthout) about the hiring of illegal aliens in the wake of Hurricane Katrina...
Simitrio Martinez "They were going to pay seven dollars an hour, and the food was going to be free, and rent, but they gave us nothing, They weren't feeding us. We ate cookies for five days. Cookies, nothing else," he says

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

"W" is for "Women"


What do Karen Hughes, Condoleeza Rice, Barbara Bush and Laura Bush have in common ? According to Insight Magazine (an arm of the Moonie-owned Washington Times and therefore no liberal rag), they are the complete and entire short list of people who are permitted to see President Bush on a daily basis. Karl's in the doghouse over Valerie Plame, Scooter's on the street and Dick and Rummy are in disgrace over Iraq, so W is left with the ladies.

The drawbridge is up, the moat is filled and the bubble grows smaller. I wonder what the psycho-historians will make of Bush's exclusively female innner-inner-circle ?

Now, if there were just a nickel's worth of common sense and compassion among the four of them. Oh, well.

Prepare for Randomess...


Buckle up Zooites. We're going deeply personal. As loyal listeners know, I am a devout Dallas Cowboys fan. My boys were playing our hated divisional rivals the Philadelphia Eagles last night and I disgustedly went to sleep with the score 20-7 Philly late in the 4th quarter...
Well I woke up, flipped on ESPN and was amazed to see the Boys came back HUGE to win 21-20...but this is deeper than that folks.
Coach Parcells, aka The Tuna is the Coach of the Cowboys...he buried his younger brother earlier in the day. His brother, Don Parcells, died at the age of 62 after losing a battle to brain cancer..."Don Parcells was a retired banker and military veteran. He played football for Army, and served as a captain with the 25th Infantry during the Vietnam War, receiving a Purple Heart."

"He is my closest brother and I love him very much," Bill Parcells told the Star-Ledger two years ago. "We're 20 months apart, age wise. He is one of the closest people I have in this world."

Don Parcells wore the Number 31 when he played for Army...

Now it gets weird.

Dallas was trailing 14-20 with 2:43 left to play. They had just scored a miracle touchdown in the face of a ferocious blitz. Eagles QB Donovan McNabb was playing well but threw an ill-fated pass directly to Cowboys Safety Roy Williams...Williams ran 46 yeards for the go-ahead touchdown which ended up being the winning touchdown...

Williams wears #31...

Stay Naked.

Monday, November 14, 2005

Senate votes to overrule Supreme Court...



Weirdness begets weirdness.

Senate republicans voted on bar foreign terror suspects from challenging their detention in US courts...DESPITE A US SUPREME COURT RULING THAT GRANTED ACCESS!

Sen. Jeff Bingamen has proposed a corrective amendment. Sign and send a petition here.

Stay Naked...very naked.

Sunday, November 13, 2005

Buy Nothing Day. November 25th


Hey Folks! With Christmas rapidly approaching, a wild orgiastic homage to consumerism, don't you think it makes just a tiny bit of sense to consider an opposing viewpoint? That is...just buying stuff does not equal happiness.
Adbusters (one of our fave sites) is promoting BUY NOTHING DAY 2005 which is Officially November 25th...

Do you think you have it in you? One day...that's it.

Check out this editorial by Manuel Ignacio Gómez Lecaro of Ecuadors El Universo. He makes the point that Bush does not equal America (Thank God someone, somewhere sees this...it gives me hope.

"Hopefully, Latin America will see behind the incompetence of Bush and recognize that American institutions have a solid basis and are worthy imitation. That can see behind the charisma of Fidel and his imitators and recognize the suffering, the misery and the injustices that the Cuban people must endure."

One more for the road. Who is this guy?



His name is Andrew Stimpson and he was diagnosed with HIV in 2003 but found to be HIV free in October 2003?!?!? Testing error? Apparently not. Doctors want a closer look as his immune system may hold the key to unlocking the virus but so far he hasn't been very helpful (I didn't say he was heroic...just lucky;)

Stay Naked.

Saturday, November 12, 2005

Jesus on the Zoo?


That's right. The Zoo welcomed famed Jesus/Resurrection scholar Dr. Gary Habermas to todays show. . He was on discussing his book, "The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus". It was rarity in talk radio...an interesting discussion on an incendiery topic in which no one yelled at anyone and no names were called:)
We want to thank Dr. Habermas for his appearance and encourage anyone interested in the topic of Jesus' resurrection to check out his book...

Please check out the great WaPo article by Dana Milbank and Walter Pincus on Bushs most recent trip into the Looking Glass...

Also, an open letter to President Bush from Iranian Journalist (Or governement stooge) Hassan Hanizadeh. It's a 'perhaps you're listening to the wrong Arabs' missive...it's also an interesting "History of Islam" (From a Pro-Iranian Shia perspective;)

Stay Naked.

If you like the pic above, please check out Jeff Faerber.com for more of the same...good stuff.

Friday, November 11, 2005

Veterans Day...


Today, the Zoo stops to remember those who served, those who are serving and those who gave their lives for their country.

Military.com has a beautiful flash tribute located here.

Here is a link to a .pdf file documenting how many of our brothers, sisters, fathers and mothers have died in Operation Enduring Freedom.

and here you will find a list of Iraqi civilians killed as a result of the US led invasion of Iraq (up to Sep. 12th, 2005)

From the, "Politics Make Strange Bedfellows" file...Patrick J. Buchanan says it better than I could.

"Thus, in March, 2003, Bush, in perhaps the greatest strategic blunder in U.S. history, invaded an Arab nation that had not attacked us, did not want war with us, and did not threaten us—to strip it of weapons we now know it did not have."

Stay Naked.

Thursday, November 10, 2005

Operation Steel Curtain...


Military operations always have such cool sounding names and 'Steel Curtain' is no exception. We here at the Zoo have come across a local web resource Azzman.com. They offer an Iraqi persepctive in an op-ed piece found here.

Here's a quick taste: "Not every man in these areas is a rebel or an insurgent, and even if he is found to be connected to the insurgency, his wife, children and parents should not suffer as a result. But unfortunately, that is exactly what is happening, fuelling more anger and fury against the occupiers and their supporters."

Seems like sound logic to me but then again I think calling Body Bags...Transfer Tubes to be a sign of true sickness...

GOOD NEWS: The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWAR)was saved yet again by some brave Republicans...but keep on your toes...Angry Republicans have vowed to continue pushing their ambitious energy plans...

Stay Naked.

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Is anyone listening? A-B-R-A-M-O-F-F...


This unfolding story is making Plamegate seem like the Watergate break-in...From" "I can't believe they outed a CIA agent!...to: "Our entire freaking government is for sale to the highest bidder"

Are you the Leader of a West African nation who wants to meet with President Bush?

Got NINE MILLION?

You're in.

Did I make that up? Not according to the NY Times. According to the aforelinked story, Jack Abramoff told West African President Omar Bongo of Gabon he could broker a meeting with Bush...10 months after making the offer Bush met with him....coincidence? Yes, according to the White House whose ability to lie shamelessly is well-documented...

Stay Naked.

Monday, November 07, 2005

Is Paris Burning ?




Well, not quite. But the suburbs are and lots of other cities. Coverage over here seems limited to counting burned vehicles and naming burning cities.

There are, of course, reasons why thousands of people in diverse locations suddenly decide to express their discontent in violence and destruction.

For a thoughtful and informed look at the legacy of colonial neglect, racism, ingratitude and inept government policies that provide the underpinning of the rioting, check out Doug Ireland's grim report.

The French have been in denial about the mistreatment of their Muslim citizens for decades. Looks like that phase is over.

Sunday, November 06, 2005

Oh, Yes . . . They Are Watching.


The F.B.I. wants information. Private information. About you. So they go to the source. The library where you use the computer. They have a letter. A secret letter. The letters tells the librarian to hand over your records. Books borrowed. Websites visited. And to never, ever tell anyone what they've done.

Does this really happen ? Only about 30,000 times a year under the Bush Admin guidelines.

Its all good. Says so right in the USA PATRIOT Act. So don't worry. Big Brother has it under control.

Don't believe me ? Believe the WaPo.

Saturday, November 05, 2005

Down Goes Cheney!


Or so says Former Nixon White House Counsel John Dean...whom you think is either a liar or a narc or some combination thereof:)
He's written an interesting piece about the Fitzgerald Indictment HERE at FindLaw.

Here's a little taste:

"In short, because Libby has lied, and apparently stuck to his lie, Fitzgerald is unable to build a case against him or anyone else under Section 793, a provision which he is willing to invoke, albeit with care.

And who is most vulnerable under the Espionage Act? Dick Cheney - as I will explain."

Gettin' excited? You will...

Stay Naked.

Friday, November 04, 2005

Sonic Boom for the Soul...


Ah you gotta love those Israelis. While this story is tough to believe at first blush...it's really not that tough. Israeli jets have taken to flying low over the Gaza Strip at supersonic speeds causing close to 30 sonic booms...Why? Read on:

"We are trying to send a message in a way that doesn't harm people. We want to encourage the Palestinian public to do something about the terror situation," he said. "What are the alternatives? We are not like the terrorists who shoot civilians. We are cautious. We make sure nobody is really hurt."

Said a "Senior Israeli Intelligence source"...

Ummm. I suggest we line up all the men at noon and kick them in the balls...that might 'encourage' them to 'do something' about the terror situation...

The UN's Middle East envoy, Alvaro de Soto, wrote to the Israeli high command this week saying "Sonic booms are an indiscriminate instrument, the use of which punishes the population collectively. We ask therefore that their use be stopped without delay"

Those UN bastards!...I bet he's French.

Stay Naked.

Thursday, November 03, 2005

It's the leak stupid...

...Of course it takes a nutjob Republican to point out the obvious...it's still about the freaking leak and the compromising of National Security...it's NOT about the run-up to the war or faulty intelligence...Patrick Fitzgerald is investigating the willful and deliberate leak of a covert CIA agent...the fact that Scooter Libby lied about the crime is not the crime...The Zoo wants to know the same thing William F. Buckley wants to know:

Who told Robert Novak and when are the two of them going to be tried for treason?

Enough said.

Stay Naked.

Wednesday, November 02, 2005

Your tax dollars at work...


What is this a picture of? It's of a place called 'Salt Pit' located in Afghanistan. It's a prison paid for with your tax dollars. Haven't heard of it? That's the point. It's part of a covert system of prisons used by US intelligence services (and God knows who else) to detain, interrogate and house 'terror suspects'.

It's these kinds of stories that take the wind out of my sails. I love my country. I really do. I think the American experiment is one of the high points in human history...but then you read about 'covert secret prisons' set up to house and interrogate 'terror suspects'. Who are these 'terror suspects' and what are the suspected of? We have no idea as this entire system is outside th united states judicial system. Here's a chilling quote from the Wapo article on these sites," intelligence officials defend the agency's approach, arguing that the successful defense of the country requires that the agency be empowered to hold and interrogate suspected terrorists for as long as necessary and without restrictions imposed by the U.S. legal system or even by the military tribunals established for prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay."

Do we occupy any moral high ground anymore? We argue, in practice, that we can detain and interrogate anybody for any reason for any length of time using any method...

And we wonder why 13 year old boys are deciding it's in their best interest to strap explosives to their chests and kill as many of us as possible?

What would we do if some entity was spiriting away our fathers and brothers to unknown locations for indefinite periods of time?

We would fight them with everything we had available to us.

Is this news new? No...the Washington Post has done a terrific job reporting on this. Here's a May 11th, 2004 article on this exact situation that put the number of 'terror suspects' in US custody at over 9000...that's 9000 families that are not-so-happy with the US led Jihad on Terror...do the math...

Stay Naked.