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Bad Guys

Strauss-Kahn Twist May Change Stakes in France

Catherine Bremer
Reuters
Fri, 01 Jul 2011 10:00 UTC
Image
© AP Photo/Allan Tannenbaum
Former IMF leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn, right, appears at his arraignment on charges of sexually assaulting a Manhattan hotel maid, at State Supreme Court in New York. Attorney William Taylor is at left. A person familiar with the case says former International Monetary Fund Leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn will have his bail substantially reduced in his sexual assault case because of issues with his accuser's credibility.
Paris - News that the sex assault case against Dominique Strauss-Kahn could collapse hit France like a thunderbolt on Friday, raising prospects of his return to French politics, though probably not to the 2012 presidential race.

Socialists, who saw Strauss-Kahn as their best chance of winning power after years in opposition until his arrest in May, rejoiced at news that prosecutors in New York now doubt the credibility of the hotel maid who alleged he tried to rape her.

The dramatic twist revived anger among his supporters over the way the former IMF chief was paraded handcuffed and unshaven by U.S. authorities, and locked up in the grim Rikers Island prison, before having a chance to defend himself.

But others in France said that even if his name were cleared, too much damage may have been done to Strauss-Kahn's reputation for him to be electable, although he could return gradually to politics and take a lesser post in government.

Comment: For more information concerning the Strauss-Kahn situation, see this Sott - Best of the Web link:

Strauss-Kahn simply had to be eliminated - The Amerikan Police State Strides Forward

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Vader

Russia to deploy 2 army brigades in Arctic


Associated Press
Fri, 01 Jul 2011 16:14 UTC
Moscow - Russia's defense minister says the military will deploy two army brigades to help protect the nation's interests in the Arctic.

Anatoly Serdyukov says his ministry is working out specifics, such as troops numbers, weapons and bases, but a brigade includes a few thousand soldiers.

Serdyukov was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying Friday the brigades could be based in Murmansk, Arkhangelsk or other areas.

Russia, the U.S., Canada, Denmark and Norway have been trying to assert jurisdiction over parts of the Arctic, believed to hold up to a quarter of the Earth's undiscovered oil and gas.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Russia "remains open for dialogue" with its polar neighbors, but will "strongly and persistently" defend its interests in the region.
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Vader

Was Israeli unit Shayetet 13 behind the sabotage of Gaza-bound flotilla ships?

Max Blumenthal
MaxBlumenthal.com
Thu, 30 Jun 2011 13:59 UTC
Image

Shayetet 13, the Israeli naval commando unit, contains an underwater sabotage division

Two boats among the fleet of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla have been sabotaged. Passengers scheduled to sail on the second boat, the Saoirse, which hails from Ireland, discovered that the propelled had been cut and "dangerously bent." "If this boat would've gone to sea, it's almost certain we would've lost lives, this boat would've sank," said Fintan Lane, an Irish coordinator of the flotilla.

While Israel has not taken credit for the sabotage, all signs point in its direction. The Israeli military boasts an elite underwater sabotage division, Yaltam, that operates out of Shayetet 13, the naval commando unit that raided the Mavi Marmara last year and killed 9 of its passengers. According to SpecWarNet, an online database of international special forces units, "For underwater sabotage missions, each [Shayetet 13] diver can carry a limpet mine to attach to the hull of enemy watercraft or docks."
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Vader

9/11: Hijacking the Air Defense

inside911films
YouTube
Tue, 28 Jun 2011 00:00 UTC
This film contains a short summary of the publicly available - but still widely unnoticed - evidence for a supposed attempt to obstruct the air defense on September 11th, 2001.

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Mail

BP tries to put positive spin on negative report with 'Orwellian tweet'

Eric W. Dolan
Raw Story
Thu, 30 Jun 2011 10:56 UTC
Image

Energy giant BP tried Wednesday to put a positive spin on a new report that highlights the devastating impact of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill using their official Twitter account.

"Annual #Beach Water Report released today includes info on improved conditions since #BP #oilspill," the company tweeted.

But the report by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) said there had been more than 9,474 oil-related beach closings, advisories and notices in Gulf states since the spill and that the clean-up effort was still underway in Alabama, Louisiana, Florida and Mississippi.
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Star of David

Tear-Gassing Children: The Shame of Israel

jeaunkes
Activist Post/YouTube
Fri, 01 Jul 2011 00:00 UTC
Activist Post Editor's Note: This is a must-see video to add to the catalog of abuse taking place by Israeli forces. As the video states, "Every friday there is a peaceful demonstration in Nabi Saleh. Last Friday, it was a colorful children's day with clowns, spidermans, kites and . .. . tear gas."

This issue has become so divisive that we can hear the comments already, but if people claim to be for human rights, then ALL abuse must be condemned. Who can defend tear-gassing children? Please distribute widely.

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Bad Guys

Demystifying 9/11: Israel and the Tactics of Mistake

Alan Sabrosky
Veteranstoday.com
Fri, 01 Jul 2011 05:29 UTC
Image
© Unknown
Many years ago I read a fascinating discussion of the "tactics of mistake." This essentially entailed using a target's prejudices and preconceptions to mislead them as to the origin and intent of the attack, entrapping them in a tactical situation that later worked to the attacker's strategic advantage.

This is what unfolded in the 9/11 attacks that led us into the matrix of wars and conflicts, present (Afghanistan and Iraq), planned (Iran and Syria) and projected (Jordan and Egypt), that benefit Israel and no other country - although I concede that many private contractors and politicians are doing very well for themselves out of the death and misery of others.

I am also absolutely certain as a strategic analyst that 9/11 itself, from which all else flows, was a classic Mossad-orchestrated operation. But Mossad did not do it alone. They needed local help within America (and perhaps elsewhere) and they had it, principally from some alumni of PNAC (the misnamed Project for a New American Century) and their affiliates within and outside of the US Government (USG), who in the 9/11 attacks got the "catalytic event" they needed and craved to take the US to war on Israel's behalf, only eight months after coming into office.
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Camera

Photographer Allen Clark Granted Exclusive Access to Embattled WikiLeaks Editor Julian Assange


Digital Journal
Wed, 29 Jun 2011 00:00 UTC
Julian Assange
© unknown
Julian Assange
When Nashville-based photographer Allen Clark left for Europe in mid-June, he had no idea that he would soon find himself face-to-face with one of today's most controversial figures, WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange. An introduction through a mutual friend led to an unlikely friendship, and three days of rare and unprecedented access leading to an exclusive photo shoot in his home on June 22, 2011.

"Julian granted me a tiny peek behind the curtain where he has been living for this past year," says Clark. "Being a photographer has awarded me the luxury of meeting some interesting people over the years. I see myself as an observer who tries to remain neutral, so that I donʼt get in the way of a great portrait. But what I discovered was that Julian isn't the demon most people would want you to believe, and I found him to be very caring and kind to those around him. Protective, yes. But for someone in his position, I understand. People like their secrets, and they are not happy when you expose them."

Assange, who has been targeted by multiple governments for releasing large amounts of sensitive information via WikiLeaks, adamantly denies Swedish Judicial Authority claims that he committed sexual offenses in Sweden. Assange remains under house arrest at an undisclosed location in England, awaiting an extradition appeal hearing set for July 12-13, 2011 at the High Court in London.
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Hourglass

WikiLeaks: What Does it Cost to Change the World?

William Goodman
CBS News
Tue, 28 Jun 2011 06:28 UTC

It has been a while since we've seen or heard from Julian Assange. But WikiLeaks has just dropped a Vimeo video entitled "What Does it Cost to Change the World?" featuring none other than Assange himself in something of a MasterCard parody - take a look.

Okay, so it's still been a while since we've heard from Assange. The poster "WikiLeaks" writes about the video:

What do MasterCard, Visa, Bank of America, Paypal and Western Union all have in common? They help you pay for what you want? Well, yes... that is unless you want to help WikiLeaks make the world a better place. To see the shocking details, please go to wikileaks.org/?support.html.

Provocative, right? Though whatever your opinion about WikiLeaks and Assange, I would note that The Atlantic Wire provides the following info in terms of the various support that can be offered:

"potential donors should be aware that the WikiLeaks Legal Defense Fund does not directly support the activities of WikiLeaks. Instead it funds the legal defense of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, whose most pressing case is allegations of rape."
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Laptop

Government should use former hackers to boost cyber defences

Dan Worth
V3
Thu, 30 Jun 2011 00:49 UTC
The UK's former secretary of defence, Lord Reid, has argued that the government must use a combination of education, partnerships with businesses and even recruiting former hackers to shore up the nation's online defences.

Reid was speaking at the launch of a report titled Cyber Doctrine - towards a coherent evolutionary framework for learning resilience in his new role at the Institute for Security and Resilience Studies at University College London.
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