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Weapons Sales to Iraq Move Ahead Despite U.S. Worries

Michael S. Schmidt and Eric Schmitt
The New York Times
Wed, 28 Dec 2011 00:00 UTC
Image
© unknown
The Obama administration is moving ahead with the sale of nearly $11 billion worth of arms and training for the Iraqi military despite concerns that Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki is seeking to consolidate authority, create a one-party Shiite-dominated state and abandon the American-backed power-sharing government.

The military aid, including advanced fighter jets and battle tanks, is meant to help the Iraqi government protect its borders and rebuild a military that before the 1991 Persian Gulf war was one of the largest in the world; it was disbanded in 2003 after the United States invasion.

But the sales of the weapons - some of which have already been delivered - are moving ahead even though Mr. Maliki has failed to carry out an agreement that would have limited his ability to marginalize the Sunnis and turn the military into a sectarian force. While the United States is eager to beef up Iraq's military, at least in part as a hedge against Iranian influence, there are also fears that the move could backfire if the Baghdad government ultimately aligns more closely with the Shiite theocracy in Tehran than with Washington.
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Dollar

US: Government of the rich, by rich and for the rich

Patrick Martin
World Socialist Web Site
Wed, 28 Dec 2011 21:46 UTC
According to a study reported Tuesday, nearly half the members of the United States Congress are millionaires. Of the 535 legislators (100 members of the Senate and 435 members of the House of Representatives), at least 250 are millionaires and the median net worth is $913,000.

Sixty-seven senators are millionaires and the median wealth of the body's 100 members is $2.63 million.

While the Senate has long been known as a millionaires' club, the transformation of the House is a relatively recent phenomenon. The median net worth of members of the House of Representatives, excluding home equity, has more than doubled over the last 25 years, from $280,000 in 1984 to $725,000 in 2009 in inflation-adjusted dollars. During that same period, the median net worth of an American family fell from $20,600 to $20,500.

Both the Washington Post and the New York Times gave front-page treatment to the data, derived from figures collected by the Center for Responsive Politics. The articles reflect nervousness in the corporate-controlled media over the degree to which the rising personal wealth of members of Congress is discrediting the institution.
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Eye 1

One Nation Under The Drone: The Rising Number Of UAVs In American Skies

Jillian Rayfield
Talking Points Memo
Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:54 UTC
Predator Drone
© Jack Kurtz/ZUMA Press/Newscom
A secret air show in Houston. An unmanned blimp in Utah. A sovereign citizen arrested in North Dakota.

Each of these is just one small part of the bigger story of the proliferation of unmanned aircraft use within the U.S., and each is likely to become smaller still if the FAA goes through with plans to loosen regulations governing domestic use of drones.

News reports about Predator attacks in Iraq and Afghanistan are common if not always complete, but what's gotten much less attention is the increase in unarmed drones that are buzzing around within the U.S. itself. Primarily, unarmed Predator B drones are only used by government agents to patrol the borders for illegal immigrants, but there are a (very large) handful of other agencies and companies that use smaller, unarmed drones for a slew of other purposes. And that number is only expected to grow.
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Handcuffs

FBI Says Activists Who Investigate Factory Farms Can Be Prosecuted as Terrorists

Will Potter
greenisthenewred.com
Tue, 20 Dec 2011 14:59 UTC
Image
© greenisthenewred.com
This recent investigation of a McDonald's egg supplier is an example of the type of activism the FBI calls terrorism.
The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force has kept files on activists who expose animal welfare abuses on factory farms and recommended prosecuting them as terrorists, according to a new document uncovered through the Freedom of Information Act.

This new information comes as the Center for Constitutional Rights has filed a lawsuit challenging the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) as unconstitutional because its vague wording has had a chilling effect on political activism. This document adds to the evidence demonstrating that the AETA goes far beyond property destruction, as its supporters claim.

The 2003 FBI file details the work of several animal rights activists who used undercover investigation to document repeated animal welfare violations. The FBI special agent who authored the report said they "illegally entered buildings owned by [redacted] Farm... and videotaped conditions of animals."
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Bad Guys

How Banks Cheat Taxpayers

Matt Taibbi
Rolling Stone
Tue, 27 Dec 2011 11:28 UTC
Bond Certificate
© Buyenlarge/Getty Images
A Municipal Bond Certificate

A good friend of mine sent me a link to a small story last week, something that deserves a little attention, post-factum.

The Bloomberg piece is about J.P. Morgan Chase winning a bid to be the lead underwriter on a $400 million bond issue by the state of Massachusetts. Chase was up against Merrill for the bid and won the race with an offer of a 2.57% interest rate, beating Merrill's bid of 2.79. The difference in the bid saved the state of Massachusetts $880,000.

Afterward, Massachusetts state treasurer Steven Grossman breezily played up the benefits of a competitive bid. "There's always a certain amount of competition going on out there," Grossman said in a telephone interview yesterday. "That's good. We like competition."

Well ... so what, right? Two banks fight over the right to be the government's underwriter, one submits a more competitive bid, the taxpayer saves money, and everyone wins. That's the way it ought to be, correct?
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Dollar

Stocks slide on signs of jitters at European banks


Associated Press
Wed, 28 Dec 2011 11:25 UTC
Image
© Unknown
New York - Stocks fell Wednesday after Europe's central bank reported that its overnight deposits hit another record, the latest indication of worry among European lenders.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell [over] 100 points in morning trading, and the Standard & Poor's 500 index fell after five days of gains.

The European Central Bank said the continent's banks parked a record $590.72 billion overnight. That means those banks are unwilling to take the risk of lending to each other in the short term, opting to earn low interest rates from the ECB instead. The disclosure also hurt the euro, which fell 1 percent against the dollar, to $1.29.

The worrying news from the ECB overshadowed two successful auctions of Italian government debt. Italy was able to pay much lower borrowing rates than it did in auctions last month. The strong demand from investors raised hopes that Italy would be able to avoid sinking into a financial crisis, as smaller countries like Greece and Portugal have.
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Boat

U.S. Fifth Fleet says won't allow disruption in Hormuz

Joseph Logan
Reuters
Wed, 28 Dec 2011 10:20 UTC
Image
© Unknown
The U.S.S. Enterprise and other 5th Fleet ships.
Dubai - The U.S. Fifth Fleet said on Wednesday it will not allow any disruption of traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, after Iran threatened to stop ships moving through the strategic oil route.

"The free flow of goods and services through the Strait of Hormuz is vital to regional and global prosperity," a spokesperson for the Bahrain-based fleet said in a written response to queries from Reuters about the possibility of Iran trying to close the waterway.

"Anyone who threatens to disrupt freedom of navigation in an international strait is clearly outside the community of nations; any disruption will not be tolerated."

Asked whether it was taking specific measures in response to the threat to close the Strait, the fleet said it "maintains a robust presence in the region to deter or counter destabilizing activities," without providing further detail.

Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk and Andrew Hammond; Editing by Louise Ireland

Comment: Slowly step by step, tensions are being built.

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Vader

Iraq War: Reaffirmation or the End of U.S. Exceptionalism?

Dr. Roberto Cintli Rodriguez
Information Clearing House
Tue, 27 Dec 2011 19:24 UTC
soldiers/iraq
© usmilitary.com
In the United States, the most significant event of 2011 hands down should have been the withdrawal of the last U.S. troops from Iraq. But for most Americans, the end of this illegal and immoral war and occupation hardly registers a ripple.

The reason: the continued belief in American exceptionalism.

In the United States, only U.S. casualties matter. According to the Iraq Coalition Count, almost 4,500 U.S. soldiers perished during the war and slightly more than 32,000 U.S. soldiers were officially listed as wounded. No U.S. agency officially keeps track of Iraqi numbers.

Not counting "enemy" casualties seems to be the ultimate form of dehumanization (The non-governmental Iraq Body Count group officially lists between 104, 308 - 113,962 Iraqi documented deaths). That's the point of a war; dehumanize and demonize the enemy. No need to count them because they are not worthy of being identified or even acknowledged.
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USA

US: Better than Obama: Why the Establishment is Terrified of Ron Paul

David Lindorff
Information Clearing House
Tue, 27 Dec 2011 19:16 UTC
ron paul
© n/a
Ron Paul says he'd end the wars, end the drug "war" and "war" on terror, and respect the Bill of Rights. Who else would do that?

It's fascinating to watch the long knives coming out for Texas Republican Rep. Ron Paul, now that according to some mainstream polls he has become the front-running candidate in the Jan. 3 GOP caucus race in Iowa, and perhaps also in the first primary campaign in New Hampshire.

Remember, we're talking about a guy who has been in Congress on and off for 12 terms, dating back to 1976. His views have been pretty consistent, and because he has run for president several times, also pretty well known. A practicing physician who claims to have helped in the births of over 4000 babies in his career, the 76-year-old Paul is a free-market advocate, an abortion opponent, an uncompromising defender of the Bill of Rights and the Constitution, an opponent of government regulation, the Federal Reserve and the IRS, and of big government in general--especially big federal government.

What's interesting is what he's being attacked for: being a racist, being "anti-Israel" and being an isolationist.
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Vader

How the US government will Justify Torture of US Citizens Under NDAA: Obama and the War Criminals


Activist Post
Tue, 27 Dec 2011 14:43 UTC
The Republicans and Democrats play for the same team. It is all window dressing to keep us divided cheering for our 'Red' team or our 'Blue' team when in reality, they are of the same cloth. There is no change. It is the same basic message only it is now delivered with a new eloquence. If we are to put our wedge issues aside and listen to our conscience to what is just, what is right and if we are to judge a tree by the fruit it bears we can clearly see that our government is rotting on the branch. The players of each team will never enact any accountability on each other. The people of this country must demand it.
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