The best political comment I have ever seen was the man that threw his shoes at W in Iraq, in 2008. The MSM was unable to ignore that story, and none of their bias could undermine the basic truth we all witnessed.
This blog is dedicated to the People's Right to Know.
Dedicated to Terry Anderson
The story of Terry Anderson is central to understanding the dynamics of the Mid-East. He is Christian, an ex Marine who served in Viet Nam, and a professional journalist, and was the longest held hostage during Lebanon's attempt to drive US Military out during the lebanonese Civil War. Two weeks before his release I spoke publically with the wife of an important Lebanese Official. My blog, shoe08, affirms Terry Anderson's experience, and is an attempt to explore the search for truth.
We learn from the piece in the New York Times that faked photos are nothing new to journalism.
"“The very nature of photography was to record events,” said Hany Farid, a professor of computer science at Dartmouth University and a detective of photographic fakery. "
what an opportunity for manipulation. It didn’t take long for schemers to discover that with a little skill and imagination, photographic realism could be used to create manufactured realities.
But faking or manipulating photo images is not the only way editors and reporters alike distort reality to "sell" their "version" of the "news." In this story posted on the Cambridge Chronicle website, Wickedlocal/cambridge, it is noted that the headline, or title, if you will, of an op-ed piece by the CEO of Whole Foods was replaced by the Wall Street Journal's own staff.
"the title of the piece was changed by Wall Street Journal staff from Health Care Reform to Whole Foods Alternative to ObamaCare, giving the impression that Mackey is actively opposing the Presidents plan. "
Certainly, for many reporters, letter to the editor writers, and now in an op-ed piece on an important issue, changing the 'title' of the piece is one way the editors of MSM can skew or distort both the purpose and the meaning that people get from reading the piece.
In some cases, like this one, the title results in inciting emotional bias to the point that those who 'support' Obama's plan, cannot give a fair reading to what Mackey wrote.
I found Mackey made several extreemly excellent points and suggestions, while other points fell well short of the mark. I am thrilled that he put himself 'out there,' in the current enviornment that has been poisoned by the two Ps in a pod, Palin with her death panel remarks, and Pelosi calling Americans who express different views, 'Unamerican!' We not only need a discussion of health care reform, we can all learn from such discussion, and learn about how others are actually doing in America.
The substtuted headline for the op-ed piece being is emotionally disruptive it generates outrage rather than considered discussion. It might sell papers, but it won't further civil discourse.
For what purpose does manipulation like this occur?
In my opinion, this kind of distortion constitutes a denial of free speech, or should I say, a denial of the people's right to know. The reader is robed of his "mind" by being supplied a false "truth" and therefore is unable to form his own opinions. This is the true danger of propaganda like this. people fail to understand where and how they develop their "own" opinions.
Walter Cronkite, one of the greatest investigative journalist of all time, died today. His presence and voice are oftn inseperable from the great events of the 50s through the 70s. After the US fled Vietnam, there were those who blamed the media, and especially Cronkite for causing the American people to stop supporting the war. This is often the excuse that has been used by the Pentagon to refuse to permit journalists to report in the theatre of war, today. However, the result is harmful to the US. because, as a democracy we need to know what is going on.
Freedom of the press has limitations, with PR campaings, propaganda, and biased reports replacing true acurate and unbiased reporting, Americans have never before been so ignorant about what is happening in the world.
We have lost a great reporter, and he will be missed. perhaps now we can reconsider the People's Right to Know, especially in light of new revelations that the CIA was operating a secret program. I wonder how Cronkite would report this, and the rank buildup for regime change in Iran.
Take care, Walter, and thanks for your honest opinions.
Many Americans are surprised to find out that Uighurs in China are caucasian, not Asian. Most are Muslim, and China is the only country in the world that has preserved and protected their culture, traditions and language. A ethnic Turkish group, China provides for education in reading and writing Arabic script. In Turkey and other countries where Turkish groups live, they either speak and write a Russian or Latin language.
Uighurs migrated to China some 1000 years after Han Chinese. Claims by some human rights groups that Xinjiang is East Turkistan, the homeland belonging to Uighurs, and that Chinese are the invaders are unfounded. before arriving in Xinjiang, in the 8oos, Uighurs lived in Mongolia and Uzbeckistan.
There are Christian Churches, Buddhist Temples and Muslim Mosques in Xinjiang.
China has 56 "nationalities. Han make up 40% of the population of Xinjiang, with "minorities making up the other 6o% there are other ethnic groups that are Muslim, including Hui, Asian Muslims. There are many different native languages spoken in Xinjiang, not only Turkish. The common language is "Mandarin." this enables the widely diverse population to communicate with one another.
China has strong laws that give equal rights to women. No religious or traditional practice may deny women their equal rights in China.
China also has a right to work law.
There are 37 million Muslims in China, that is more than the total population of Iraq. Most Muslims are not Uighurs.
There are some seperatist groups that try to stir up support for their political cause, but not all Uighurs agree with the seperatists, and other minorities do not want to live under Uighur rule, they want to live in China. China has worked diligently to listen to the many voices, their hopes and dreams, and has brought improvements in education, medicine and economics to all nationalties in Urumchi. china, and the people living in Xinjiang are dedicated to continue to improve the lives of all nationalities.
"Three members of Iran's elite Quds Force who were seized in Iraq by the United States were held for more than two years even though they had not been involved in anti-U.S. activities and were functioning as diplomats at the time, a former and a currently serving senior U.S. official said Tuesday."
The Washington Times ran an exclusive news report today, stating US officials claim that the Iranians just released were held hostage by US. Iran claims they were diplomant, while the US claims they were terrorists. The US also states they have no evidence of any wrongdoing by the Iranians, who worked issuing visas at Iran's consulate in Northern Iraq.
"Both Iran and Iraq protested the arrests and prolonged detentions, which attracted worldwide attention. The Quds or Jerusalem Force is an elite unit in Iran's military and intelligence establishment. Many of its officials and veterans serve in top Iranian government positions.
U.S. officials have repeatedly suggested since the arrests that the three Iranians had been directly involved in support of anti-U.S. violence in Iraq but provided no specific evidence. The three were never charged with any wrongdoing.
Lt. Col. Mark Ballesteros, a spokesman for U.S.-led Multinational Forces in Iraq, which was responsible for the arrests and detentions of the three, declined to comment Tuesday on the reason the men were held for so long. "
There is much speculation as to why the diplomats were released.
"We had feared such a deal was in the works. On April 22, we noted in these pages that "the Iranian government is maneuvering to trade Ms. Saberi's freedom for that of five Revolutionary Guards captured by U.S. forces while training insurgents in Iraq."
The same day that Iran's chief judge, Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, ordered a "quick and fair" appeal for Ms. Saberi, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met with Swiss President Hans-Rudolf Merz and called for the immediate release of the "Irbil Five." This was a clear diplomatic signal of a potential deal."
"There is a whiff of "arms for hostages" in the air. It would be a mistake to reprise that failed attempt by the Reagan administration to curry favor with Iran in the mid-1980s by sending weapons in hopes Tehran would release U.S. hostages held by Iranian proxies in Lebanon.
The opening did not improve U.S.-Iranian relations, and President Reagan later admitted it was a mistake. In 1987, E.J. Dionne, writing in the New York Times, quoted then-Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. as saying that Mr. Reagan had been "blinded by the illusion" that there was "an easy solution" to the hostage crisis and had been misled "by people who had no competence in the area of foreign policy." Ironically, Iran expert Michael Ledeen reports that the deal for the release of the Irbil Five was coordinated through Vice President Biden's office."
The US State department denies any "deals" and claims the hostages diplomate, or detainees, held for 2 1/2 years without any charges were released in accord with the US - Iraqi accord signed on Jan 1st of this year. Why it took 7 months for their release, and why they are being released at this time remains unclear, as the Obama administration is not being transparent on this affair. http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=50908
"The State Department said the handover was not linked to the Obama administration’s effort to engage the regime in Tehran, but that it was an obligation contained in a U.S.-Iraq security agreement that came into effect on January 1."
"Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said earlier that the transfer could help improve dialogue between the U.S. and Iran after a long adversarial relationship.
Iran and Iraq have enjoyed better relations after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 toppled the government of Saddam Hussein, who launched an eight-year war against Iran in the early 1980s.
Many current Iraqi leaders were in exile in Iran and still have close ties with the Islamic Republic.
The release of the five has been portrayed in Iran as a victory at a time when the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is under domestic and international criticism after the disputed June 12 presidential election and the ensuing government crackdown on protests"
The humanitarian aid ship with medical supplies was stoped in international waters and Israeli Navy bordered, and at gunpoint took humanitarian 21 activists in handcuffs to Israel against their will. Although 2 Israeli activists have been released, the others, who are not Israelis, are being held until they sign a "confession," which they are refusing to sign under duress.
Prior to leaving Cyprus, the ship was inspected by Cypriot authorities in response to Israeli demands to determine whether it carried any weapons, according to the U.N. investigator. "None were found and Israeli authorities were so informed."
The US Embassy states that they will not be returned to the US until they either sign a confession, or after 3 days the Israeli athoritise decide to return them.
Not all imprisoned are American, Israeli, or European citizens, and their is fear for those who are Muslims, and who are being held elsewhere.
"In a statement, Irish Foreign Minister Micheál Martin called for the immediate release of Maguire and another Irish citizen also being detained.
Two of the passengers, an American film maker and a Danish activist, were released on Wednesday and sent home. Freegaza.org, the web site of the Free Gaza Movement, reported their release, which the Israel government has not confirmed."
So, do I understand that the American filmaker was released because he signed the confession, or because he is Jewish, and an Israeli? Or do not understand what is being said?
"Cyprus-Gaza, July 2, (Pal Telegraph) - Lubna Masarwa and Huwaida Arraf, both organisers of the Free Gaza Movement, have now been released from Ashdod Detention Facility.
Military authorities had held them from 9.00 p.m. on 30th June until 1.00 p.m. on 1st July, 2009, having arrested and detained them while in Gazan territorial waters (approx. 20 nautical miles from Gaza Port) at 3.00 p.m. on 30th Jun
Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Mairead Maguire have given telephone interviews from their prison cells, where they await deportation. To arrange such interviews, contact Free Gaza Movement (either Greta Berlin or Caoimhe Butterly, at +357 99 081 767), who will also supply current news or information as to the whereabouts of those Free Gaza 21 who are awaiting deportation, or the current status of legal negotiations as to those deportations."
Whan will the Obama administration condemn this action by Israel, and demand their release? Obama's silence is reverberating all around the world. He has neither called the coup in HGonduras a coup, nor has he called for the release of those imprisoned by Israel. He has, however, demanded the release of the girls imprisoned in No Korea and Iran.
Does Obama believe the same behavior is wrong when some countries do it, but ok when Israel does it? Is this not a double standard, not the rule of law?
Is this the change we voted for? Or is this more of the same?
Is this the Obama blockade of Gaza?
BUSH THIRD TERM
* * * * * * U P D A T E * * * * *
Two days after the boarding of the Humanitarian Aid ship bound for Gaza, and the siezing of the 21 Free Gaza activiata at gunpoint, and the cargo meant for Gazans, who have lived under siege by Israel for more than two years now, the New Your Times finally reports the stroy, this evening, Thursday, July 2, 2009, at 8pm. One must shake one's haed and ask, why has the MSM ignored this story? Other than FOX news, this story has not been reported, and the Obama administration continues it's silence, as reported by the NYTs, by their complete lack of info on what Obama has to say about this. Do folks believe that the purpose of the free press has been compromised, and the MSM has failed in it's duty to the People's Right To Know? How can a democracy function when the media selectively reports the news, especially when the MSM is enthralled to the Israeli Narrative? Is the Jewish donominated press capable of unbiased and acurate news coverage of topice about Israels treatment of the Palestinians?
"JERUSALEM — Nineteen foreign activists of the pro-Palestinian Free Gaza Movement were being held in Israel awaiting deportation on Thursday, two days after the Israeli Navy seized control of their boat off Gaza.
A former United States Representative, Cynthia McKinney, and an Irish peace activist and Nobel laureate, Mairead Corrigan Maguire, were among those being held. Two additional Israeli activists were released without being charged on Wednesday, according to the group ....................
The Israeli military said the aid would be transferred to Gaza subject to security authorization.
Ramzi Kysia, an activist with the Free Gaza Movement, said the 19 people being detained were likely to be deported by Friday, once deportation procedures were complete. But he said some might refuse deportation unless all of those being detained were released together and all the equipment of journalists with the group was returned.
Speaking by telephone from Cyprus, Mr. Kysia said that five of the detainees were Bahraini citizens and that they were being held apart from the others in a cramped facility.
In a report issued earlier this week, the International Committee of the Red Cross criticized the Israeli-imposed embargo, saying that Gaza’s 1.5 million residents were “trapped in despair.”
The Israeli government has said it is reviewing the embargo policy, but it has not yet made any decisions.
The Israeli military said the aid would be transferred to Gaza subject to security authorization.
Ramzi Kysia, an activist with the Free Gaza Movement, said the 19 people being detained were likely to be deported by Friday, once deportation procedures were complete. But he said some might refuse deportation unless all of those being detained were released together and all the equipment of journalists with the group was returned."
It is my opinion that the New York Times needs to examine to whom they owe their loyality, the American public, or to the Israel Zionists. (Not all Jews are Zionists)
BTW: The NYTs story only appeared after I made two several phone calls to WBZ 1040 Radio News to complain of the news balckout on this issue.
Folks, why has Obama not condemned this action as a coup? Here is an interesting description of what went down in Honduras, clearly showing the US is behind this.
"President Obama has made a statement regarding his "concern" for the situation in Honduras and a call to all political leaders and parties to "respect democratic norms." However, this statement is NOT a clear condemnation of the coup d'etat that has taken place during the early morning hours on Sunday. Nor did Obama indicate, as other countries have done, that Washington would not recognize any other government in Honduras other than the elected government of Manual Zelaya.
Opposition forces in Honduras, led by a U.S.-funded NGO Grupo Paz y Democracia, have stated via CNN that a coup has not occurred, but rather a "transition" to democracy. Martha Diaz, the coordinator of the NGO, which receives USAID funding, has just declared minutes ago on CNN that "civil society" does not support President Zelaya nor his "illegal quest" to hold a nonbinding referendum on a potential future constitutional reform. She justified his kidnapping, beating and removal from power as a "democratic transition."
Again, this is eerily reminiscent of the coup d'etat in Venezuela in April 2002, when so-called "civil society," along with dissident military forces, kidnapped President Chávez and installed a "transition government." The groups involved also received funding from the U.S. government, primarily via the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and later from USAID as well." http://socialistworker.org/2009/06/29/coup-in-honduras
This video speaks for itself, but leaves out Negroponte, a terror torture mad Bush holdover, as well as a host of Iran Contra Honduras operators.
Is this the change we voted for, or is it more of the same?
I have not seen any mention of the issue of Iran's planned gas pipelines. The video above describes a gas pipeling from Iran to Pakistan and India, and China has invested heavily in the development of the port infrastructure so gas could also be shiped. There are pipelines planned, and Ahmadinejad, far from being a "hardliner," is an engineer who has shown the ability to get projects that have been stalled for years, finished. One pipeline, from Azerbijian south thru Iran, and another from Turkmenistan to China, may indeed have freeked out Cheneys Haliburton. Are they in Iran? What is their relationship to Rafisjani, the uber rich Iranian millionair? Would a regeim change be enough, or woud there be a coup, with the Shaw's son in power? Isn't that what the US planned for Afghanistan?
Who was behind the attacks on the Chinese who are constructing the gasline port in Pakistan? Could iy be Jundullah, or al Quada trained Chinese Uighurs?
Is Obama the Change We Can Believe In? Or is he Bush third term? Or is it Clinton third term? At anyrate, is this the change we voted for?
Dennis Ross Prepares For War On Iran
Jim Lobe suspects Dennis Ross is trying to maneuver Obama into attacking Iran:
"According to a variety of sources, Ross was the main drafter of Obama’s pander (except on the settlers) to AIPAC’s annual convention here in May and has since raised his hopes for a top post in an Obama administration, possibly even secretary of state. Frankly, I doubt that the latter prospect is realistic, but — and here’s the main point — I have it from several sources close to the campaign that he is more eager to gain control over the Iran portfolio (possibly special envoy) than to work on the problem that he knows best from his long experience, the Israel-Palestinian conflict. If he succeeds in his quest and if this report is any reflection of his views, then the U.S. could very well find itself at war with Iran within a remarkably short period of time."
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Everybody needs to worry about Dennis Ross having the president’s ear, day to day in the Obama White House, promoting an attack on Iran. .............
It should be repeated again and again: the National Intelligence Estimate concerning the question of Iran’s nuclear program, representing the consensus of the 16 different U.S. intelligence agencies in 2007 concluded in “high confidence” that Iran does not even have an active nuclear weapons program. (The report appeared after nearly a year’s delay due to apparent obstruction by Dick Cheney’s office, the neocon headquarters). .............
Dennis Ross is an NIE-denier. With no real expertise on Iran or Persian linguistic competence, and no understanding of nuclear science---but lots of experience in U.S.-Israeli relations and settler advocacy garnering him the nickname “Israel’s lawyer”---Ross was principal author of an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal eight months after the NIE appeared.
Sensationalistically entitled “Everybody Needs to Worry about Iran,” it alluded blithely, offering no evidence, to the Iranian regime’s drive to become “a nuclear state” and announced a drive to “mobilize the power of a united American public in opposition.” Co-signators included Richard Holbrooke, currently Obama’s special envoy to “Af-Pak;” former CIA director and Project for a New American Century operative James R. Woolsey and Mark D. Wallace, a former UN ambassador who heads up with Woolsey and others something called “United Against a Nuclear Iran.” (All were major proponents of the Iraq War.)
This group, in other words, wants to mobilize and unite U.S. public opinion against the consensus of the intelligence community about the nature of empirical reality, substituting for it the need to worry about Iran. ..............
Ross’s change of jobs was announced in the midst of the street demonstrations following the contested election results in Iran last week. He will now literally move into the White House and provide day to day counsel to Obama on how to “deal” with a leadership he wants to topple. ..............
Gary Leupp is Professor of History at Tufts University, and Adjunct Professor of Religion. He is the author of Servants, Shophands and Laborers in in the Cities of Tokugawa Japan; Male Colors: The Construction of Homosexuality in Tokugawa Japan; and Interracial Intimacy in Japan: Western Men and Japanese Women, 1543-1900. He is also a contributor to CounterPunch's merciless chronicle of the wars on Iraq, Afghanistan and Yugoslavia, Imperial Crusades.
He can be reached at: gleupp@granite.tufts.edu
"Who is Dennis Ross, what does he advocate, how was he positioned to become the adviser on Iran in the Obama Administration and what will he do to Iran if he gets the chance? Let me briefly review the case.
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Who Is Dennis Ross?
"Dennis Ross is best known as the dishonest broker who led the so-called negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians during the Clinton Administration. He was “Israel’s lawyer,” to use Aaron David Miller’s apt description of the role that Ross’s “negotiating team” played in the Clinton era, particularly in 1999-2000. [2]" http://www.counterpunch.org/sasan02272009.html
How we got into Iraq after 9/11 "After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Ross supported the advocacy work of PNAC, a neoconservative-led letterhead group that advocated overthrowing Saddam Hussein in response to the attacks, even if he was not tied to the them. 31 Ross signed two PNAC open letters on the situation in post-war Iraq, both published in March 2003. The first of these, “Statement on Post-War Iraq,” was issued on March 19, 2003, the day before the United States began its invasion. The letter argued that Iraq should be seen as the first step in a larger reshaping of the region’s political landscape, contending that the invasion and rebuilding of Iraq could “contribute decisively to the democratization of the wider Middle East.” Other signatories included Max Boot, Eliot Cohen, Thomas Donnelly, Joshua Muravchik, and several other core neoconservatives. 32 "
Road Map To War With Iran
"Calling the report a “roadmap to war,” Jim Lobe of the Inter Press Service wrote, “In other words, if Tehran is not eventually prepared to permanently abandon its enrichment of uranium on its own soil—a position that is certain to be rejected by Iran ab initio—war becomes inevitable, and all intermediate steps, even including direct talks if the new president chooses to pursue them, will amount to going through the motions (presumably to gather international support for when push comes to shove).… What is a top Obama advisor [Dennis Ross] doing signing on to it?” 46"
Top Obama Adviser Signs on to Roadmap to War with Iran
If you haven’t seen it already, check out the op-ed by former Sens. Daniel Coats and Charles Robb in the Washington Post today, entitled “Stopping a Nuclear Tehran.” It is the summary of a report issued last month by an organization called The Bipartisan Policy Center (at whose website you can find the full report), and it amounts to a roadmap to war with Iran to which a senior Middle East adviser in the Obama campaign — namely, Dennis Ross — has apparently signed on.
[UPDATE: Make sure you also read in this connection today’s New York Times article by David Sanger, particularly the part about the purported e-mail from Obama that was routed through an unidentified “aide,” who I presume to be Ross. The coincidence of the appearance of this article with the Coats-Robb op-ed suggests an effort to box Obama into a pre-election position. The Iran part of the story by Sanger, who considers himself a foreign-policy player, as well as a reporter, tracks the report’s narrative quite nicely.]
The 9/11 commission found that those who planned the attack on the World Trade center, did so because of Israel's treatment of the Palestinians, and the US's support of that agression.
I believe there will be no peace in the Mid East until just solution is reached. That would, and must include a meaningful resolution to the right of return, as well as removal of Israeli's from all settlements in Palestinean areas. Any two state solution must be just that, two sepearte, but EQUAL, states. Not one state, and one reservation.
In the case of a failure to achieve an equitable two state solution, a one state solution will be the final result, with an end to unequal treatment, an end to Jewish supremacy supported in the law, an end to aphartide, and ultimately, an end to Zionist Israel.
The fundamental problem causing instability in the Mid East is Nakba. It is not essentially different from the removal of the Jews in Germany. The silence of the Arab states is not unlike the silence of the European states.
Now, there will be those who will say that I am not allowed to say that because it is anti semitic. These are the same people who critize Iran, but not Saudi Arabis, of not allowing freedom of speech. The fact is Israel, and her supporters like the US, are opposed to Iran using it's free speach, and walked out of the UN meeting because of Ahmadinejad's comments. charging Israel with racism and human rights abuses.
Where is the outrage?
Israel has shot, killed, and imprisoned hundreds, if not thousands of palestinian children, little children, but folks are up in arms over a contested election in Iran. Chasing red herrings. What a convenient distraction from the real and fundamental problem.
Ahmadinejad's Disagreement with the US Embassy Hostage Crisis in Tehran
In this video BBC interviews Ibrahim Asgharzadeh, Students Leader about the hostage crisis. He explains that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, present president of Iran opposed the movement. Ahmadinejad was against this because he feared that Soviet Union and Marxist will become more powerful as an outcome.
در این ویدیو تلویزیون بیبیسی با ابراهیم اصغرزاده، طراح و سرگروه حرکت تسخیر سفارت امریکا در تهران مصاحبه میکند. او توضیح میدهد که محمود احمدینژاد مخالف این حرکت بوده چرا که این را عامل قوت گرفتن شوروی و گروههای مارکسیست در ایران میدانسته.
The Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 U.S. diplomats were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students took over the American embassy in support of the Iranian revolution.
تصرف سفارت آمریکا، که به نامهای بحران گروگانگیری در ایران یا تسخیر لانهی جاسوسی هم یاد میشود، به دوران ۴۴۴ روزهای از تخاصم میان دولت آمریکا و ایران گفته میشود که با حملهی تعدادی از دانشجویان پیرو خط امام و تصرف سفارت آمریکا در تهران و به گروگان گرفتن ۶۶ دیپلمات آمریکایی در ۱۳ آبان ۱۳۵۸ (برابر با ۴ نوامبر ۱۹۷۹) آغاز گردید، دو هفته یعد تمام 13 زن و سیاهپوست و چندی بعد یکی از افرادی که مریضی جدیای داشت آزاد شدند، و در ۳۰ دی ۱۳۵۹ (برابر با ۲۰ ژانویه ۱۹۸۱) با پذیرش قرارداد الجزایر از سوی دولتهای ایران و آمریکا با آزادی بقیه 52 گروگان پایان یافت.
The provincial visits and the concept of social and economic justice through the perfection of the Islamic State. Ending sectarian divisions, and working togethre in the service of One God. Hard work, cooperation, and sharing the power as well as the wealth. Why would Iranians vote for Ahmadinejad?
Right after Ahmadinejad took office in 2005, he started his regular provincial trips as he had promised earlier in his presidential campaign.
The aim of these trips was visiting the masses to diagnose and get to know their shortages and deprivations directly. People who have been deprived from their most basic needs thanks to the negligence of former administrations.
He started his trips from the poorest provinces and blew a new air of hope in the hearts of the forgotten people.
These trips have been considered an administrative revolution towards discovering the shortages of the poor and decision-making for rectifying them.
indeed....
Peace love and respect with all cultures and beliefs - that is the reason we are an Islamic Republic. to share our culture without invading any country, to show respect for others while being disrespected, to stand up for the oppressed and to make this world into a beautiful place for all that is good to co-exist
Here is a video, that looks like a campaign video, that shows Ahmadinejad's visits to the rural and ethnic areas of Iran. I am posting this for those who have expressed frustration at not knowing more about these rural areas.
After Hamas won the elections in Palestine, the Bush administration armed fatah, for the purpose of creating "civil war" or sectarian "divisions," among the Palestinians. Why would the US do that?
In a previous post, I reported that it had been reported in 2007, that Bush authorized $400 million for a black ops campaign against Iran. In the runup to the Iran election, American supported terror group, Jundull bombed a Mosque, band, and campaign headquartes, with the purpose of inciting ethnic and sectarian divisions in Iran, hoping to influence the outcome of the elections.
Although this is widely reported in Iran, the MSM, which is enthralled by the Israeli Narritive, fails to report news truthfully to the American people, substituting, instead, the propaganda from the black ops campaign. The result is Americans are grosly dis-informed, and have been robed of their right mind, as well as being robbed of their democratic rights.
The fallout from the Iran elections cannot be understood in a vacumn. The US has a long and ugly history of agression against Iran, while supporting Saudi Arabia. Why?
Also, recently, and reported in other posts on this blog, the US has been funding black ops, including propaganda, media, psy ops, etc, for the explicit purpose of inciting ethnic and sectarian divisions and violence.
Receently, the Obama administartion has stated their "soft power" approach. Is soft power, Velvet revolutions, black ops and psyc ops, behind the recent violence in the Mid East and Central Asia and So Asia? Are American people being brainwashed by the MSM enthralled with "The Israeli Narrative?" Is propaganda destroying the "free press?" Open minds want to know...
He may yet turn out to be the avatar of Iranian democracy, but three decades ago Mir-Hossein Mousavi was waging a terrorist war on the United States that included bloody attacks on the U.S. embassy and Marine Corps barracks in Beirut.
Lyons, sometimes called "the father" of the Navy SEALs' Red Cell counter-terror unit, also fingered Mousavi for the 1988 truck bombing of the U.S. Navy's Fleet Center in Naples, Italy, that killed five persons, including the first Navy woman to die in a terrorist attack.
Bob Baer agrees that Mousawi, who has been celebrated in the West for sparking street demonstrations against the Teheran regime since he lost the elections, was directing the overall 1980s terror campaign.But Baer, a former CIA Middle East field officer whose exploits were dramatized in the George Clooney movie "Syriana," places Mousavi even closer to the Beirut bombings."He dealt directly with Imad Mughniyah," who ran the Beirut terrorist campaign and was "the man largely held responsible for both attacks,"
Baer wrote in TIME over the weekend."When Mousavi was Prime Minister, he oversaw an office that ran operatives abroad, from Lebanon to Kuwait to Iraq," Baer continued.
While there is no doubt that the regime of Ahmadenijad is reprehensible and the feelings of many of the young protestors in Iran are genuine, you will forgive me for quesyioning the motives behind the monolithic media support for the overthrow of Iran’s government and the installation of Mir-Houssein “Butcher of Beirut” Mousavi.
"Mousavi government oversaw the mass execution of political opponents in 1988, and say he has been largely silent on human rights violations since. ... They also point to his support for Khomeini's fatwa against Salman Rushdie, the British author of The Satanic Verses." Source: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=4921
This second bit is from Chapter 1 of Walsh Iran/Contra Report: (http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/walsh/chap_01.htm) "On or about November 25, 1985, Ledeen received a frantic phone call from Ghorbanifar, asking him to relay a message from [Mir-Hossein Mousavi] the prime minister of Iran to President Reagan regarding the shipment of the wrong type of HAWKs. Ledeen said the message essentially was "we've been holding up our part of the bargain, and here you people are now cheating us and tricking us and deceiving us and you had better correct this situation right away.''[...]"In early May, North and CIA annuitant George Cave met in London with Ghorbanifar and Nir, where the groundwork finally was laid for a meeting between McFarlane and high-level Iranian officials, as well as financial arrangements for the arms deal. Among the officials Ghorbanifar said would meet with an American delegation were the president and prime minister [Mousavi] of Iran and the speaker of the Iranian parliament," (emphasis added).
Is it possible that the usual excuse, of Weapons of Mass Destruction, is not the real reason that the US is Targeting Iran? After all, the US and UK have been interferring with Iran for more than half a century, now. perhaps the real reason is that Iran has created itself into a "Model Islamic State." Is it the fear that Muslims can create a just and democratic society, based, at least in part, on Sharia Law, that is seen as a threat.
Just when you thought the US had stopped interferring with Iran, and took heart at Obama's resolve to "talk" first, by extending an open hand, we find out that the covert policies of the Bush administration, see video above, has continued into the Omama presidency? A Mosque, and bank in So East Iran, were bombed just 2 weeks before the Iran elections, purportedly to incite sectarian and ethnic divisions, to affect the outcome of the election. This was one week after the poll, done by a group backed by McCain and Frist, showed that Ahmadinijad would win the Iran election by a vote of 2-1.
Today, Iran continues to be rocked by charges of voter fraud and rigged election. Now I wonder if those who opposed Obama's announced policy of extending an open hand, rather than a clenched fist, and agreeing to talk first, before blowing a country off the map, I wonder if folks who oppose Obama's policy, had anything to do with the "demonstrations" in Iran?
Is This the Culmination of Two Years of Destabilization Are the Iranian Protests Another US Orchestrated "Color Revolution?" By PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS
Or is Obama continuing Bush's covert ops against Iran?
Who Put the ‘green’ in the Green Revolution? http://www.lewrockwell.com/blog/lewrw/archives/027782.html “Some of that money appears to have made it into the hands of pro-Mousavi groups, who have ties to non-governmental organizations outside Iran that the National Endowment for Democracy funds.”
Yes, you say, but what does a blow-hard propagandist like Timmerman know about such things? Well, he should know! His very spooky Foundation for Democracy in Iran has its own snout deep in the trough of NED’s “open covert actions” against the Iranian government.
How does the “Foundation for Democracy in Iran” seek to “promote democracy” in Iran with our tax dollars? Foundation co-founder Joshua Muravchik gives us a hint in his subtly-titled LA Times piece, “Bomb Iran.”
Is Iran right? Have outside forces interferred in the Iran elections and incited the demonstrations in the aftermath of charges that the election was rigged?
State Department Backs 'Reformists' in Wild Iranian Election By: Kenneth R. Timmerman http://www.newsmax.com/timmerman/Iran_election_Reformists/2009/06/11/224025.html
Why has the western MSM swarmed this story? Is there fair and unbiased news coverage?
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10616.shtml The Western media and Iran Matthew Cassel, The Electronic Intifada, 23 June 2009 "For years, Palestinians have organized weekly nonviolent demonstrations against Israel's wall in the West Bank. Each week protestors face the heavily-armed Israeli military and are beaten and shot at with rubber-coated steel bullets and tear-gas canisters, sometimes fatally. Yet, during his recent speech in Cairo to the Muslim world, Obama made no reference to these protests and instead called on Palestinians to "abandon violence" and adopt nonviolent means. Days after the speech a Palestinian was killed and a teenager wounded during the weekly protest, yet there has been no call by the US administration for Israel to "stop all violent and unjust actions" against the Palestinian people. And the media has followed and remained silent, even though covering the demonstrations would be as easy as a 30-minute drive from most Jerusalem-based news bureaus on any given Friday.
Why has the western MSM "forgotten" the recenttly and ongoing discussion of US covert ops in Iran in it's reporting of the Iran election? double standard?
Do we have a "free press" or is the press being used to propagandise American people?
Leader addresses nation in Friday prayers: Transcript http://www.presstv.com/detail.aspx?id=98610
This Sunday we will look at the Christian value of Forgiveness.
As I promised one week ago, I will try and post on each Sunday what values Christians take from their faith, and also, I should have said, what values Christians teach their children. Events of this past week lead us to consider the Christion value and teaching of Forgiveness. I would like to share with you the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant Matthew 18:
21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? 22 Jesus said to him, I say not to you, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened to a certain king, which would take account of his servants. 24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought to him, which owed him ten thousand talents. 25 But for as much as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay you all. 27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt. 28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellow servants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that you owe. 29 And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and sought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay you all. 30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. 31 So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told to their lord all that was done. 32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said to him, O you wicked servant, I forgave you all that debt, because you desired me: 33 Should not you also have had compassion on your fellow servant, even as I had pity on you? 34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due to him. 35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also to you, if you from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.
The endless slaughter in the Holy Land has all of us heartbroken. From the leaders in Israel we hear their justification of excessive violence that caused the death of 400 Palestinian children as they crouched for safety in their homes inside the Gaza Ghetto. Having lived under the Israeli siege for almost 2 years, and a blockade of two months, these children were often without food, water and medical care. Even as the UN and other international human rights groups called on Israel to recognize the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Israel arrogantly, and with extreem cruewlty, denied there was any humanitarian crisis.
Now, today, Israel is schreeching in anger and attacking the Pope, because he wants to rehabilitate 4 conservative Bishops, one of whom is a Holocost denier acording to Israel. No Mercy!! No forgiveness. No rehabilitation. No reconsiliation. Only ostrazitaion will satisfy the hate filled Jewish vendeta, bound and determined to teach the whole world the lesson they teach their children: We will never forget. We are the victims. Our tragedy trumps everyone else. Listen to us, or else. We will accuse you of anti-Semitism, and destroy your career. We have no choice, we must be ever vigilant, lest the holocast happens again. So goes the Israeli, or Jewish wail. Anger, hate and fear perpetrated into pertuity. No end in sight. No hope. No forgiveness. An endless Nuremburg trial.
Yes, it is true, I checked the news, and sure enough the Pope is going to talk with the 4 excommunicated Biships, and Jewish entities are attacking the Pope, even as gaza children continue to die of their wounds under the savage, barbaric and inhumane bombardment of the Gaza Ghetto, where Israel refused to allow innocent Palestinians and children to leave the Ghetto during the bombardment.
'Fifty years ago today, Pope John XXIII called a council," by Jason Petrosa, published on National catholic reporter on Line today, describes the thought behind the decision to excommunicate the 4 Bishops, and now the dicision to invite them back. http://ncronline3.org/drupal/?q=node/3175
"Weary and even heart-broken, let us consider forgiveness. Our ultimate model of forgiveness is Jesus Christ, and for a concrete, recent Christian example we have the Amish of Nickel Mines, Pa. In the fall of 2006, Charles Carl Roberts IV, a truck driver, entered the Amish community’s one-room schoolhouse and held 10 girls hostage for several hours. He then shot and killed five of the girls and seriously wounded the other five.
How the Amish community responded with forgiveness in so many ways is told in the book Amish Grace, How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy, by Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt and David L. Weaver-Zercher (Jossey-Bass). “Amish people are likely to say that they are simply trying to be obedient to Jesus Christ who commanded his followers to do many peculiar things, such as love, bless and forgive their enemies,” they write. These Amish people’s ongoing forgiveness, pardon and reconciliation are a model for us as we try to liberate the Catholic church from its current predicament.
Forgiveness is the way to make us whole again. It is the medium through which we tap into the transcendent power of the Holy Spirit. Forgiveness is the balm to ease our pain and restore our optimism. Forgiveness helps us avoid sinking into the ugly cancer of contempt. It frees us from the temptation to get even, to one-up or put down our adversaries. Forgiveness enables us to purify our intentions so that every step of our ecclesial crusade is marked with magnanimity."
In "Benedict and the SSPX: the backlash begins ," Damian Thompson shows us how quickly people responded, many of whom may not be able to understand the meaning of the lifting of the excommunication.
This anger is nothing more, in my opinion, than hatred, and it is being aimed at the Pope, who, on January 1st, World Peace Day, spoke up for Christians who were suffering persecution for bearing witness. His views went unnoticed due to the horror Israel was visiting on the Gaza Ghetto. http://www.zenit.org/article-24722?l=english
"The Pope also gave attention to another type of anti-Christian persecution, one he pointed to in the Western world. He expressed his hope that "prejudice or hostility against Christians will not be cultivated simply because, on certain questions, their voice causes disquiet."And he offered words of encouragement for "the disciples of Christ, in the face of such adversity," urging them not lose heart."
I myself have experienced this kind of persecution, for expressing my views on the current catastrophy in Palestine. Nakba continues, but the Holocost is over.
"Israel Condemns Vatican’s ‘Concentration Camp’ Remarks," the NYTs headline screams! How dare they compare the Ghetto of Gaza with a consentration camp, claims the "offended" Israeli's. Ooops, are we all anti-Semitic? I am having a hard time thinking of what to compare Israel's brutal, inhuman, barbaric "neutralization" of Palestinians as Israels punishment for their daring to elect Hamas. Livni bragged that "Israel has gone wild," and that they needed to be taught a lesson. Oh, my, whatever happened to the "self defense" excuse? http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/09/world/middleeast/09vatican.html?ref=world
So, it would seem from Israel's point of view, that Pope Benedict XVI is not going to parrot the Israeli narrative. I wonder why Israel ever thought anyone should, much less the Pope? We all have a right to exist, and we all have a right to define ourselves. The Israeli narrative is impossible for me to embrace, much less defend. In fact, it is indefensible. However, although not all Christians are Catholic, I am glad the Pope has taken a stand for our rights to express Christian values without being unfairly accused of anti-Semitism.
In the past few days, since the world's 4th largest army withdrew from the Gaza Ghetto, the silence from the bombardment has been filled with whispering, op ed pieces, and a flurry of realization that the war on terror has no meaning.
Paul Woodward's piece "Did the 'war on terror' end, Jan 25, on The National, AbuDhabi, caught my eye. It is a brief review of several news reports and op ed pieces about Israel's attack on Gaza and Obama's change in foreign policy. Woodward notes that India was able to keep Kashmir out of the fray of diplomacy. http://www.thenational.ae/article/20090125/GLOBALBRIEFING/204543302/1009template=globalbriefing
Another piece, "This Is Not A Test," by Thomas friedman, Jan 25, NYT, points out that the window of opportunity to a two state solution is rapidly closing. He writes, "So if you believe in the necessity of a Palestinian state or you love Israel, you’d better start paying attention. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/25/opinion/25friedman.html This is not a test. We’re at a hinge of history."
"Hamas and Palestine's right to exist," by Tony Iltis, Jan 23, Green Left on Line, makes a case that unless the main grievences of the Palestinians are discussed and resolved, a just peace cannot be reached. "However, while Palestinian acceptance of the “right” of Israel to exist as an exclusively Jewish state was a precondition for talks, discussion of the geographic definition of the Palestinian state was deferred and Israel has refused to negotiate on crucial issues, such as the right of Palestinian refugees driven from territory claimed by Israel to return to their homelands." http://www.greenleft.org.au/2009/780/40198
After giving all these stories some thought, and it is hard to read them all in one day, I have come to the conclusion that Paul Woodward's headlin has more meaning in it than he realizes. Yes, Israel may not have destroyed Hamas, who has already risen from the ashes, stronger than ever, but Israel's slaughter of Gaza's children has destroyed the war on terror. It is clear that refusing to talk with one's enemy cannot get you what yopu want.
The war on terror is over. Now we need to find a way to listen to each others grievences. To those who still believe one can bring peace by bombing the brains out of children, I can only say you have failed to win their hearts and minds. It is for that reason that the war on terror cannot be won, and now Israel has ended it for us all. Let the building up begin.
With Vice President Biden and H. Clinton in tow, President Barack Obama worked the room and chatted with State Dept for more than 20 minutes today, his second day in office.
Sec of State Clinton announced that she and the president were announcing the appointment of Richard Holbrooke to coordinate US stragegic goals in the region of Afghastan and Pakistan., and george Mitchell as Special envoy for Middle East Paece. Former Ambassador Holbrooke stated clearly that he recognized the individual histories of each nation, and would work to bring an integrated strategy to solve the challenges the two nations face as they share a border in the troubled region.
Former Senator george Mitchell pledged his full effort to the search for peace and stability in the Middle East. He explained that there is no such thing as a conflict that cannot be ended, because conflicts are created by human beings. He aslo described the region as volitile, complex and dangerous. "I understand those of you who may be discouraged," he said, and described 800 years of struggle to achieve peace in Ireland.
H Clinton introduced the meeting by stating that diplomacy is the top priority of this administration, and that was demonstrated by President Obama coming to the State Dept on his second day in office. Vice president Biden stated that H Clinton was the right person at the right moment to head the State Dept, "She is uniquely qualified to put diplomacy back in the forefront of US policy."
President Obama smiled, but was serious and listed the first three actions he had taken since becoming President. "This morning I signed 3 orders:" 1. The US will not torture, 2. We will close Gitmo, and 3. We will hold a comprehensive review of our policies with the rule of law in mind. Obama said we must renew American leadership through principaled, focused and sustained diplomacy, "We cannot afford to drift and delay."
Cambridge Police report that at 11:30am this morning they responded to Harvard Law in response to a call that an envelope, addressed to Alan Dershowitz, was opened and found to contain a white powder. The return address was Knoxville, Tenn. AP reports that several similar letters, addressed to executives at the Wall Street Journal, in NYC were also sent from various addresses in Knoxville.
Dershowitz, who once referred to the '67 borders in Israel/Palestine as "Auschwitz borders," recently wrote an opinion piece published in the Wall Street Journal, defending Israel's agression in Gaza. He was one of the attornies on OJ's "Dream Team." To better understand the issue of the two state solution, the Israel/Palistine conflict, the contrast between the Holocost and Nakba, and the term "Auschwitz Borders," I offer this quote from Bradley Burston: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/940221.html {There was a time when the mention of 1967 lines was met with nothing more than one version or other of Abba Eban's 1969 comment to the German newspaper Der Spiegel: "We have openly said that the map will never again be the same as on June 4, 1967. For us, this is a matter of security and of principles. The June map is for us equivalent to insecurity and danger. I do not exaggerate when I say that it has for us something of a memory of Auschwitz." }
The Boston Herald is reporting that suspecious letters were also sent to Rockland Town Hall. Aparently the FBI is looking into any possible connections.
We are called to speak for the weak, for the voiceless, for victims of our nation and for those it calls enemy, for no document from human hands can make these humans any less our brothers .
Even when pressed by the demands of inner truth, men do not easily assume the task of opposing their government's policy, especially in time of war. Nor does the human spirit move without great difficulty against all the apathy of conformist thought within one's own bosom and in the surrounding world. Moreover when the issues at hand seem as perplexed as they often do in the case of this dreadful conflict we are always on the verge of being mesmerized by uncertainty; but we must move on.
Some of us who have already begun to break the silence of the night have found that the calling to speak is often a vocation of agony, but we must speak. We must speak with all the humility that is appropriate to our limited vision, but we must speak. Over the past two years, as I have moved to break the betrayal of my own silences and to speak from the burnings of my own heart, as I have called for radical departures from the destruction of Vietnam, ...
Nor is it an attempt to overlook the ambiguity of the total situation and the need for a collective solution to the tragedy of Vietnam. Neither is it an attempt to make North Vietnam or the National Liberation Front paragons of virtue, nor to overlook the role they can play in a successful resolution of the problem. While they both may have justifiable reason to be suspicious of the good faith of the United States, life and history give eloquent testimony to the fact that conflicts are never resolved without trustful give and take on both sides.
Tonight, however, I wish not to speak with Hanoi and the NLF, but rather to my fellow Americans, who, with me, bear the greatest responsibility in ending a conflict that has exacted a heavy price on both continents.
Their questions hit home, and I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today — my own government.
[Dr. King gave this speech at Riverside Church, New York City, 4 April 1967, exactly one year before he was killed. Some excerps, please share Martin Luther King's dreams by reading this speech today. The whole speech can be found at the link below.] http://www.shalomctr.org/node/71
Today is Sunday, a day of rest. I will try and share my reflections, from now on, on the code I live by, and how that shapes my response to world affairs.
Here is a reply I recieved to one of my comments on a list serve in the midst of debate on Gaza, and my reply follows. My reply explains three reasons I believe, each and every one of us should take what is going on in Gaza personally.
First, the reply I recieved....
"Sorry, forgot that she is immoveable on a conflict that is so far from her own backyard that one wonders why this is her battle."
Here is my response:
1. Once again, as long as the US uses my tax dollars to finance this genocide, It will be my legitimate political concern. As for the genocide, why would those who did not live in Nazi Germany be concerned with Hitler's removal of the Jews?
2. Of course, we all care, as we are all members of the family of man. Perhaps Israel promotes itself as "apart," but no one else does. That's the humanitarian reason to be involved.
3. And religion does play a part. Aside from the true fact that Israel's treatment of the palestinians does not distinguisb between Arabs that are Christian or Muslim, since I was raised Christian, as were many others around the world, I have the following reason to make this my "battle." :
"Mat: 41} Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
{42} For I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
{43} I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
{44} Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
{45} Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
{46} And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal."
(please see also Mat:25:34 and Mat:25:40)
AND then there is the Parable of the Good Samaritan: Luke:10:25-37 which has this preceeding context:
"On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?". "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" asked Jesus. The man answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
Now, these are the basis for MY values. (I know the New testament is NOT the Torah.)
Growing up, I spent summers at the lake. After a storm, fish of all kinds could be found belly up, on the beach. Today, we see MSM on the beach...here are a few...The Tribune, NYT, CBS, and now the Seattle Post Intelligencer is up for sale. Who's buying?
On the other hand, Aljazeerza English is a hit on YouTube, where it lurks because the US refuses to allow it broadcast here in the USA. Now, Haaretz.com reports that Hamas has created a channel on YouTube?
Sad news from Gaza today, a very brave Palestinian journalist reports his house was hit today. There was slight damage, but Israeli's are moving into Gaza City, population 400,000 with tanks. Another report on NPR states of 900 killed, fully 1/3rd are children.
I am unable to upload the photos today, check back tomorrow.
Pajamas Media (OSM), reportedly named because citizen journalists sit at home and blog, has sent Samuel Wurzelbacher, aka, Joe the Plumber to the front as their war correspondent. He said that the MSM shouldn't be alowed to report on the war, because half the time they didn't know what was behind it.
Joe also expressed quite a few opinions of his own, so I am not sure if he will be repeating the Israeli narative, or if he will question the propaganda that is handed to him. Now don't get me wrong, I am not opposed to citizen journalists, but the issue is being able to tell the American people what the heck is going on over there in a fair and non biased way. We will have to see how he does, and he may set a few celebrity reporters on their heels.
Jan 8, 2009. Chestnut Hill, MA. In a rally to show people how to lobby for Israel, Nadav Tamir, Israeli consulate general to New England claimed Israel was fighting to liberate Palestinians from a terrorist group who had taken the people of Gaza hostage. http://tinyurl.com/6tcsqb Although the Boston Globe did mention the other Jews who protested at the Consulate in downtown Boston, the Globe, which is owned by the New York Times chose to run with the Israeli narrative.
The Metro showed this photo of the protest at the Israeli consulate in Boston on Jan, 8 2009. They, and several sources reported that 4 demonstrators were arrested for refusing to leave. Judith Glaubman, of Cambridge, a Jew, was the spoksperson, and stated their solidarity for the Palestinians who had elected Hamas in fair elections. http://www.metrobostonnews.com/us/article/2009/01/09/04/2549-72/index.xml
I offer these two photos and two stories to show the bias that is inherrent in the media as it tries to cover the Palestine/Israel conflict. One might wonder, how a paper of the status of the Boston Globe can allow itself to be a mirror for the israeli lobby. But then thay are not aware of the bias in the MSM as a whole. here is a blog post by Phillip Weiss, a Jew, describing how Jews dominate the MSM, and how he believes that MSM may not be able to fairly cover a story like the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
At issue here is a Free Press vs The People's Right to Know. In my opinion the American Public is poorly served by having over 90% of the MSM dominated by Jews, who, even if they do not support Zionist israel, are sympathetic, and do not want to write a story that would betray Israel. http://mondoweiss.net/2008/02/do-jews-dominat.html
I am also concerned that if a non Jew were to assert that jews dominate the media, and might be biased when reporting on this conflict thay might be accused of anti Semitism. But, many Jews also recieve pressure from the Zionists in the form of having their careers ruined unless they tow the line, and repeat the israeli narrative.
The losers are first the people, and democracy, because how can we exercice our rights when we are being misinformed, and then Israel is also a loser, as they do not get good feedback, then there are the babies and children being sacrificed on the alter of Zionist zeal and paranoia, that somehow the whole world is against them because they are Jews. For some reason they cannot tell the difference between their policies and there faith.
Well, I believe that we in the good ol' USA must not allow our MSM to be dominated by one ideology, especially when those who would try to report fairly are threatened. How can we make sure that we have more diversity in the media?
This is what a moment of truth looks like. Remember when you first saw this? That is what a moment of truth feels like. It kinda takes your breath away for a moment. Who is this man? What does he do? Where is this? Why did he throw his shoe at Bush? How could he do such a thing?
Journalists were rounded up at the last minute and frisked repetedly before an unannounced press conference held so President Bush could get in some good policity photos for his legasy in Iraq. The plan was to abuse the press, by getting some free publicity, and have them be the mouthpiece for Bush's propaganda.
One journalist, Muntadar al-Zaidi, a reporter with Cairo-based network Al Baghdadia Television made a durable and lasting statement by throwing his shoe at Bush. "Here is your goodby kiss, you dog. " The second shoe he dedicated to the widows and orphans.
In this singular act, Muntardar embarassed the MSM for failing their most sacred duty, to make sure the people know what their government is doing.
I am of the firm opinion he should recieve the top journalistc awards for this courageous act.
