LAHORE: Of the 60 cross-border predator strikes carried out by the Afghanistan-based American drones in Pakistan between January 14, 2006 and April 8, 2009, only 10 were able to hit their actual targets, killing 14 wanted al-Qaeda leaders, besides perishing 687 innocent Pakistani civilians. The success percentage of the US predator strikes thus comes to not more than six per cent.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/wo…..p?id=13726

These are war crimes. They are occurring on Obama’s watch. What does that make Obama?

Phillipe Sands is on democracrynow this morning, as is Jane Mayer. The topic for the whole hour is torture.

thanks
live stream here

Mornin’ Everyone

thanks! i was reading something else and forgot to turn it on.

thanks.

(not the accent I would expect to be hearing from a “Phillipe”)

call me please.

Can something be done about Harry Reid?

What – you have a problem with Harry perfectly laying out the R talking points?

Maybe he *could* change the number for his fax machine….

more links – audio only live stream for itunes, etc here:

http://www.wpfw.org/index.php?…..&id=1

more live pacifica radio streams (top right of page):

http://www.pacifica.org/

(i stream through my stereo)

I misspelled it. It’s Philippe Sands.

sadly dahlins, this is the kind of move that endears him to his craven caucus. lemme see, the opposition is now a regional rump of a party and falling, but yes, by all means, let’s go all NIMBY so they can’t attack us in 16 months for letting scary ’sploding terrorists move in to the district – whatever

re: democracy now! program with sands and mayer. that was too long a clip of cheney (works for the report, but makes me feel nauseous)

Since I don’t have the stomach to watch Cheney when he was on originally, I found the clip interesting in just how extremely he is willing to lie.

yep.

mark perry, while giving us vital information, makes a huge mistake, claiming the reasaon we did’t persue the path toward piece was that “those in the administration were filled with such self rightousneess”

that gives them far too much credit, they were filled with greed, they were filled with war profiteering but not “rightousness”

selise, I got those links you left for me a few days ago on protectionism, great stuff, thanx

yeah, Harry’s always been spineless, but he’s now descending more into teh Stoopid depths. Harry is addressing the idea of Gitmo detainees coming here and being released, like they’re all going straight to Disneyland or something.

Like any good R, Harry’s now arguing against things, or ideas, that simply don’t exist.

Harry is getting to the point where he needs something like the Dean’s statement from Animal House to the effect – “Son – fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life.”

Mornin’, selise, BT, pups

Secrets arrived yesterday. I’m into Chap 2. Why have I not read this book before? Looking on the copyright page I find this tome is in its 25th printing. Even with minimum runs in each printing 25 is quite impressive. Great read.

I am personally not happy at all with obama’s drunk stupid flip flops either

they are both being fed the kool aid and believe what they are being fed

off to work all, later

What book? More info please.

oh, good!

i kept forgetting to give them to you, then when i remembered and posted them i missed you and then i went and forgot again – this time to look for you to give you the link to those comments. oh well, so glad you found them!

so v glad you like it. i’m finding it fascinating (although i wish some of the endnotes were more explicit and easy to check up on – but one can’t really expect that from a book from 20 years ago).

What’s the book?

Fascinating is a good description. Really shows me how uninformed I’ve been on the subject. Didn’t start until late last evening and only put it down when the words started running together. These old eyes don’t work like they useta.

Secrets of the Temple by William Greider

Secrets of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs the Country by William Greider

recommended by naomi klein as the book to read to begin to understand the fed and also one of jane’s libertarian friends during a visit here (when i asked him if he’d read it and if so what he though of it)

Thanks. I haven’t read it.

No one can ’splain what we’re doing in Afghanistan because as the Nation link says, “major news outlets report that a scant 0.6 percent of reporting has been devoted to Afghanistan,” and why is that? It’s so goddamned dangerous, that’s why.

Karzai’s brother threatened McClatchy writer reporting Afghan drug story
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/world/story/67823.html

And then with “reporters” like Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson giving airtime to thugs such as Karzai’s brother who tell us “this is a war for justice and for freedom and for democracy, and we’re not going to just run away from it. So it’s tough but we will continue with our struggle against the terrorists and al-Qaeda,” well, you see the problem.

http://nprcheck.blogspot.com/2…..rting.html

at that rate, you’re going to finish it before me!

The negative reviews on amazon say that all it does is go into excrutiating details on the FRB’s deliberations & how they influence the economy. Is that accurate. (I only read negative reviews because they are usually the ones that provide insight.)

should have thought of it before when you were looking for reading suggestions. also, grieder said he will come back here for a book salon on it, even though it’s not his current book (to say the least *g*)

Easy to see how American rifles are ending up in the Taliban’s hands when our allies are only our allies when it is convenient for them to be so, something Obama apparently does not comprehend.

I’m off. I’ll check back later to see if you answered my q selise.

well it’s long as i’m just starting (disclaimer). i really like the cultural and political context. for example from the first chapter, gives a completely different interpretation response to carter’s “malaise” speech as i’ve heard elsewhere (both CW and irrc andrew bacevich).

p.s. mayer and sands staying with amy goodman (being carried on wpfw) for pacific fund raising. more interviewing inbetween requests for support.

lol Prolly not cuz I’m also reading David Harvey’s The Limits to Capital, Marx’s Grundrisse and just started Capital, Vol 2, none of which read like a dragon fantasy novel.

What surprised me is that the majority of the book resulted from interviews with past Fed governors. I’m highlighting and intend to write down questions I may have. Hope it’s a while before the Book Saloon cuz I’m gonna be ready for this one. *g*

Off to swim in the great capitalist cesspool.

Be good to yourselves, and all other living things.

Namaste

ecahn – have a great day.
southern dragon – lol. well, my reading is pretty scattered right now too.

listening to the continuation of amy goodman with mayer and sands is fun, as they’re letting their hair down a little bit. and good for mayer and sands for helping to raise money for pacifica station wpfw and community supported media!

peace SD.

i’m off too….

Good morning, all.

I have a very dumb question.

Harry Reid says that he does not want “terrorists” to be released in the United States.

This is the question: If the decision is made to ‘release’ these human beings, then it must have been determined that they were not really terrorists after all, and, quite possibly are not ‘guilty’ of anything but being ‘fingered’ by somebody who might have just wanted the ‘bounty’ money we so generously were passing out, back in the day. Or else these supposed, one-time “terrorists” have been determined to no longer pose a ‘threat’?

But, I guess, in the estimation of dear old Harry, once a “terrorist”, always a “terrorist”.

Perhaps a more ‘neutral’ observer would point out that there is terrorism and then there is TERRORISM (on a ‘grand’ scale) and that, again, quite possibly, it is America which pursued the capital ‘plan’ and Harry’s ‘perspective’ is merely a continuation of that special sensibility of being above recognizing one’s own inhumanity. Certain Americans seem especially adept at that, some are even, apparently, proud of it.

Perhaps I am missing something?

DW

Can someone ’splain what the hell we’re doing in Afghanistan?

The land that is now Afghanistan has a long history of domination by foreign conquerors and strife among internally warring factions. At the gateway between Asia and Europe, this land was conquered by Darius I of Babylonia circa 500 B.C., and Alexander the Great of Macedonia in 329 B.C., among others. Mahmud of Ghazni, an 11th century conqueror who created an empire from Iran to India, is considered the greatest of Afghanistan’s conquerors.

Genghis Khan took over the territory in the 13th century, but it wasn’t until the 1700s that the area was united as a single country. By 1870, after the area had been invaded by various Arab conquerors, Islam had taken root. During the 19th century, Britain, looking to protect its Indian empire from Russia, attempted to annex Afghanistan, resulting in a series of British-Afghan Wars (1838-42, 1878-80, 1919-21).

1921
The British, beleaguered in the wake of World War I, are defeated in the Third British-Afghan War (1919-21), and Afghanistan becomes an independent nation. Concerned that Afghanistan has fallen behind the rest of the world, Amir Amanullah Khan begins a rigorous campaign of socioeconomic reform.
1926
Amanullah declares Afghanistan a monarchy, rather than an emirate, and proclaims himself king. He launches a series of modernization plans and attempts to limit the power of the Loya Jirga, the National Council. Critics, frustrated by Amanullah’s policies, take up arms in 1928 and by 1929, the king abdicates and leaves the country.
1933
Zahir Shah becomes king. The new king brings a semblance of stability to the country and he rules for the next 40 years.
1934
The United States formally recognizes Afghanistan.
1947
Britain withdraws from India, creating the predominantly Hindu but secular state of India and the Islamic state of Pakistan. The nation of Pakistan includes a long, largely uncontrollable, border with Afghanistan.
1953
The pro-Soviet Gen. Mohammed Daoud Khan, cousin of the king, becomes prime minister and looks to the communist nation for economic and military assistance. He also introduces a number of social reforms including allowing women a more public presence.
1956
Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev agrees to help Afghanistan, and the two countries become close allies.

and so on…

Okay this just bizarre:

REID: I’m saying that the United States Senate, Democrats and Republicans, do not want terrorists to be released in the United States. That’s very clear.

QUESTION: No one’s talking about releasing them. We’re talking about putting them in prison somewhere in the United States.

REID: Can’t put them in prison unless you release them.

QUESTION: Sir, are you going to clarify that a little bit? I mean (OFF-MIKE).

REID: I can’t — I can’t — I can’t make it any more clear than the statement I have given to you. We will never allow terrorists to be released in the United States. I think the majority — I speak for the majority of the Senate.

QUESTION: But you don’t want to (OFF-MIKE).

REID: Only until we get the plan.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE) of your position (OFF-MIKE)

REID: We’ll wait until we get the plan.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE) mean that Guantanamo will remain open indefinitely (OFF-MIKE)

REID: I repeat: I agree with McCain, Bush (?!?&*) and Obama: Guantanamo should be closed because it makes us less safe and it will be closed. We’re waiting for a plan from the president and (OFF- MIKE).

Harry reid, please define terrorist again. Again? Please? How’s that new medication going?
When I turn on C-Span and see reid looking like a whipped dog mumbling into the podium and talking about things going good for republicans and democrats, (and er therefore the country???) And then MMcconnell follows up praising reid like a schoolmaster, it looks like a weird S&M game.

Can someone ’splain what the hell we’re doing in Afghanistan?

Throwing good money after bad?

With terrorist being an extremely elastic term in Gitmo.

epu’d, but well said.

Can someone ’splain what the hell we’re doing in Afghanistan?

At the moment, we’re trying to keep the Taliban (and other assorted terrorists) out of the Pakistan nuclear cookie jar.