At the time, much was made of the capture of Saddam Hussein. Touted by the US government-controlled American mainstream press as a fatal blow to the insurgency that would lead to rejoicing in the streets of Baghdad, the reality, as we have seen, has turned out to rather different. Iraqis, logically enough, seem to be less concerned about Saddam's capture and trial than about the fact that a brutal US military force of occupation has essentially taken possession of their country and its resources and has caused the deaths of 655,000 of their fellow citizens.

~ Read More ~

Gold rose sharply last week while oil dropped. Oil is dropping in reaction to a number of reports indicating an economic slowdown. Stock prices may have also begun to reflect that as the Dow dipped below 12,000 last week after six days of losses. And don't underestimate the importance of tomorrow's elections...

~ Read More ~

~ Read More ~

"A man may build himself a throne of bayonets, but he cannot sit on it." William Ralph Inge

"What's the point of having this superb military... if we can't use it?" Madeleine Albright, former American ambassador to the UN and former Sec. of State

"It is not an exaggeration to say that it is clearly in the interests of the world's leading arms exporters to make sure that there is always a war going on somewhere." Marilyn Waring (Counting for Nothing)

As far as nuclear arms proliferation is concerned, we all know about the efforts by a growing number of countries to obtain them. This is happening even though the 1968 Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). was designed to limit the spread of nuclear weapons. Far from contracting, the club of countries with nuclear capabilities (USA, Russia, China, France, United Kingdom, India, Pakistan, Israel) is expanding, while the goal of nuclear disarmament has become a dead letter.

~ Read More ~

~ Read More ~