Puppet MastersS


Rocket

Another bogus argument for war with Iran

Stephen M. Walt
Foreign Policy
Fri, 02 Mar 2012 05:53 UTC
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© unk
You know a case for war is weak when its advocates have to marshal blatant untruths in order to convince people that their advice should be followed. Exhibit A is today's alarmist op-ed in the New York Times, in which former IDF general Amos Yadlin argues for a preventive strike against Iran's nuclear facilities.

He recites the by-now familiar arguments for an attack, and makes it clear that he thinks Obama should make an "ironclad" pledge to do it if Iran doesn't cease its nuclear activities. But the big historical howler comes in the middle of the piece, where he attempts to deal with the counter-argument that an attack would only delay an Iranian program, and probably not for all that long. He writes:

"After the Osirak attack and the destruction of the Syrian reactor in 2007, the Iraqi and Syrian nuclear programs were never fully resumed."
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Cut

Flashback Not Surprising: Mossad agent 'brought down Egypt's internet'

Samer al-Atrush and Adrian Blomfield
The Telegraph
Tue, 28 Dec 2010 04:46 UTC
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© MossadMossad is Israel's foreign intelligence agency
An Egyptian national accused of spying for Mossad has allegedly told his interrogators that Israeli sabotage brought down the country's internet network two years ago.

The purported confessions of Tareq Abdul Razzaq Hassan, a businessman, represent the latest evidence of growing public tensions between Israel and Egypt.

Severe disruptions to Egypt's internet service in December 2008 were blamed at the time on damage to underwater data cables caused by a ship's anchor.

But Hassan told police that the incident was, in fact, the work of Israel's foreign intelligence agency, according to interrogation records leaked to an independent Egyptian newspaper.

It is not the first time that Israel has been linked to politically motivated cyber attacks, with a number of experts suggesting that Mossad was the most likely culprit behind Stuxnet, a powerful computer worm that caused serious damage to Iran's nuclear programme.

Few details about the alleged Israeli sabotage operation on Egypt have been disclosed.
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Attention

Ex-Senators Say Saudi Arabia May Be Linked to 9/11

Rym Momtaz and Trevor J. Ladd
ABC News
Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:00 UTC
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© ABC News
Two former Senators who led inquiries into the 9/11 attacks have issued sworn statements that they believe the government of Saudi Arabia, a key U.S. ally in the fight on terrorism, may have played a role in the terror attacks ten years ago.

"I am convinced that there was a direct line between at least some of the terrorists who carried out the September 11th attacks and the government of Saudi Arabia," said former Senator Bob Graham, a Florida Democrat, in an affidavit filed as part of a lawsuit brought against the Saudi government by families of Sept. 11 victims and others. Graham led a 2002 Congressional probe of the attacks.

Bob Kerrey, a Nebraska Democrat who served on the 9/11 Commission, said in a separate affidavit that "significant questions remain unanswered" about the role of Saudi institutions. "Evidence relating to the plausible involvement of possible Saudi government agents in the September 11th attacks has never been fully pursued."

Families of the 9/11 victims released a statement praising Kerrey and Graham for their affidavits, which were filed in a New York federal court Friday to rebut claims by the Saudi government in recent court papers that the 9//11 Commission had "exonerated" it of any connection to 9/11.
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Chess

Russian Foreign Minster Accuses U.S. Of Meddling In Vote


Radio Free Europe
Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:00 UTC
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
Russia has accused the United States of trying to influence its election process by funding opposition groups.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made the comment on March 3 in an interview published in the online edition of "Rossiyskaya Gazeta," a government daily, ahead of the March 4 presidential election.

Lavrov said the United States was following Cold War-era stereotypes and that "the days when Russia could be lectured or preached to are over."
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Eye 1

Hysteria! US Citizens Spying on Each Other

Marina Portnaya
RT America
Thu, 01 Mar 2012 20:43 UTC
The United States is known as the land of liberty, but lately it seems it is becoming the land of fear and suspicion. In a post 9/11-America, the slogan "if you see something, say something" has become a national campaign to prevent another terrorist attack. According to FBI pamphlets, people who pay with cash, wear backpacks and use cameras could be potential terrorists. Recent reports also confirm that the NYPD has covertly been monitoring and spying on Muslims. Marina Portnaya looks into why the US government wants citizens spying on citizens.
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Take 2

First Amendment (1791-2012) R.I.P.

Angorist Don
The Tireless Ahorist
Wed, 29 Feb 2012 19:13 UTC
first amendment

Lady Liberty, in her guise as the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, and specifically "the right of the people peaceably to assemble," has been dragged to the gallows by the Senate, the rope placed around her neck by the House of Representatives, and awaits only the President's signature to drop into the abyss of history.

On February 6, the Senate passed S.358 by Unanimous Consent, moving it on to the House of Representatives, where it became H.R.347.1 On February 27, it passed the House by a vote of 388-3.

The only "no" votes were from Reps. Justin Amash (R-Mich.), Paul Broun (R-Ga.), and Keith Ellison (D-Minn.). Forty-two Representatives were absent for the vote.
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Eye 2

America Slipping into a New Era of Totalitarianism


Russia Times America
Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:00 UTC
Many Americans criticize that their rights are slowly slipping away. Surveillance in the US has become more and more common and it is evident by the number of cameras going up on almost every street corner. In a post 9/11-America the national campaign slogan, "if you see something, say something" has been implemented in order to prevent another catastrophic occurrence. So is America slipping into a new era of totalitarianism? George Hemminger, founder of Survive and Thrive TV, joins us to answer this question.
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Stop

Anti-ACTA petition hits European Parliament

Dave Neal
The Inquirer
Tue, 28 Feb 2012 16:50 UTC
A petition drafted in opposition to the draconian Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) has ended up in the hands of the European Parliament, and it has a lot of signatures.

We are impressed to see that 2.5 million people have signed the Avaaz petition that asks that ACTA be rejected. The size of the protest, and no doubt the weight of the petition, has surprised the European Parliament, where the general reaction is that they must take the decision much more seriously now.

"Receiving a petition supported by more than 2 million people places an even bigger responsibility on us to listen to the European people and offer them a place to express their views to the European institutions," said Petitions Committee chair Eminia Mazzoni.

Responsibility for considering ACTA has only just landed at the European Parliament's feet, and in its statements it said that it had to consider both sides of the argument. The other being that ACTA is a force for good, a sentiment that comes out from media firms and rightsholders.

The Parliament must now decide whether the petition is admissible and should be included in its discussions.

The Petitions Committee will decide this in mid-March, after which time it will hold discussions with the petitioners, experts, the European Commission and other stakeholders. Then, if it listens to the people of Europe, it will reject ACTA.
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Coffee

Global Warming Sham - The Peer-Review Deception


YouTube
Mon, 08 Aug 2011 15:43 UTC
Great summary video of comments by various scientists and prominent individuals regarding man-made Global Warming and how the peer-review process failed.

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Star of David

America's aircraft carrier in the Middle East - Israel

Martin Argles
Guardian
Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:15 UTC
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© Martin Argles/GuardianJenny Tonge said Israel would ‘lose support and then they will reap what they have sown
Nick Clegg urged to act after Lib Dem peer says Israel will not last for ever

Party leader urged to condemn Lady Tonge, who said Israel would 'lose support and then they will reap what they have sown'

A Liberal Democrat peer has said Israel will not last for ever, with her remarks prompting calls for the party's leader, Nick Clegg, to take disciplinary action.

Lady Tonge, who was sacked as the Lib Dem children's spokeswoman in the Commons in 2004 when she suggested she could consider becoming a suicide bomber, made her remarks in a meeting at Middlesex University.

"Beware Israel," she said. "Israel is not going to be there for ever in its present form. One day, the United States of America will get sick of giving £70bn a year to Israel to support what I call America's aircraft carrier in the Middle East - that is Israel. One day, the American people are going to say to the Israel lobby in the USA: enough is enough."

She added: "Israel will lose support and then they will reap what they have sown."
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