BULLY BOY
PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID
TABLE
IN A SHOCKING DEVELOPMENT, ALLEGED REPORTERS JANE ARRAF (THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR, AL JAZEERA) AND PRASHANT RAO HAVE BEEN EXPOSED OF DISCIPLES OF A CRACKPOT.
THE TWO HAVE LONG QUOTED AND NOTED REIDER VISSAR AND USED HIM TO BACK UP THEIR OWN CRACKPOT CONCLUSIONS ABOUT IRAQ. NOW IT TURNS OUT REIDER VISSAR IS HIMSELF IN NEED OF MENTAL HELP.
HE'S NUTTIER THAN MR. PEANUT, CONVINCED THAT A NORWEGIAN CRIMES UNIT HAS FOLLOWED HIM ALL OVER THE GLOBE, INTO RESEARCH LIBRARIES, TURNING PEOPLE AND PATRONS AND POLITICIANS AGAINST HIM. THIS CRIME UNIT HAS GOTTEN THE FBI TO POSE AS THE CIA WHEN REIDER DECIDED TO DO AN IMPROV APPLICATION FOR THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY.
HE'S NOT CRAZY, VISSAR INSISTS, AND OFFERS AS PROOF THE FACT THAT THE PSYCHIATRIST HIS PARENTS FORCED HIM TO SEE FOUND HIM NOT "PSYCHOTIC."
WHATEVER YOU SAY, NOW DROP THE SHARP OBJECTS.
FROM THE TCI WIRE:
Is Iraq Veterans Against the War doing parody? I'm about to pull their link because of the crap that just went up under Patrick McCarthy's name.
Brother Barrack, I'm really proud of you sir! I was wavering for a moment because of the drone thing-(nightmare). Children being killed by American air assets is a touchy subject for me but, we've all done things we're not proud of; we just need to make amends for them, that's being a man. Y'all are making sure the bombing suspect gets a fair trial. By maintaining the rights of all humans you can show the nay sayers what give me liberty or give me death means. Americans are supposed to be a people of peace that believe unconditionally in fairness and justice.
"Enemy combatants"- criminals-(Men) deserve a fair trial sir, lets retake the moral high ground with superior integrity not firepower and force.
Okay, Marcia's already called IVAW out recently for the sexism. "That's being a man"? Oh the faux macho of those males who turn against war. Not all but we're clearly miles from the 2008 IVAW. I'm not supporting this crap. Nor do I pretend that killing people with drones can be forgiven by anyone else getting a fair trial.
IVAW has wasted and withered in the last four years. I've stood by them and avoided slamming them. But they've lost many of the core members, people who haven't left no longer identify as IVAW in public and they're a nothing group.
Where were they on any damn issue to do with veterans? I'm really sorry but if you want a make an impact, you start addressing veterans issues. I speak to groups of veterans who can't stand me or my politics -- and I'm aware of that, that's fine -- but they will listen because I'm addressing veterans issues. IVAW has failed to do so. They do not lead on any health issue. They have allowed IAVA to become the premiere and sole organization for today's young veterans.
When Marcia's post went up, I heard about it over and over. From female veterans who were tired of IVAW's "macho s**t" and tired of the fact that it provides no leadership or advocacy on Military Sexual Trauma -- that includes a female veteran who was part of Winter Solider. You are pissing off everyone who once supported you. Today you allow a member to post that a fair trial for someone wipes away The Drone War. Really? Is that a gift from Barack Obama? Because I kind of thought that was guaranteed in the Constitution of the United States of America -- or have you never heard of the Sixth Amendment?
I've already had three phone calls on this and has it even been up a half hour? Four. Ava's handing me a phone, hold on. Okay. Four IVAW members furious with the garbage that went up. Can't say I blame them.
So now we praise people for following the Constitution -- as opposed to demanding that they do? Oh, how low to the ground you crawl.
IVAW has made itself useless. It has alienated women veterans, it has allowed itself to be ripped apart by arguments between Democratic members and Socialists (IVAW has members of all political stripes -- but in 2008 the fissure emerged between Democrats and Socialists and it never went away -- though it did leave many members to exit). It has failed to lead on any issue. It's failed to lead on veterans suicides, it's failed to engage with Congress, they couldn't even offer a statement on burn pits. As the last months of 2012 saw Barack send in more US troops to Iraq, IVAW couldn't even acknowledge it -- not even a link to Tim Arango's first report on the issue in September of last year. You've failed to get your house in order. As Rebecca noted in March, when she dubbed them "the useless:"
but until they start standing for veterans, veterans have no use for them. i'm sorry that no 1 ever explained p.r. to the group. 1st clue? don't elect a 9-11 truther to be your leader. i'm not insulting 9-11 truthers. i'm saying when your leader's 1, that's a distraction. they should have been working on disability issues, they should have been working on claims issues. instead, everything out of their mouth is political. do they not get how sick the country - and veterans in particular - has become with politics?
When they wrongly distanced themselves from Matthis Chiroux, Jose Vasquez issued a statement that ended with, "Our messaging is important and in the future we should all make an effort to reach consensus with those we organize with in an open way about how we represent IVAW." They may not be 'members in good standing,' but I've already heard from four IVAW members complaining about the crap that went up at the website tonight -- and that was less than 30 minutes ago -- stating it doesn't represent them. Matthis was run out for burning a flag -- his own individual decision, representing only himself. But you continue to put the half-baked 'wisdoms' of Patrick McCarthy up at your site including that now The Drone War is forgiven? You've made yourself a joke.
On this week's Voices of the Middle East and North Africa (KPFA, Wednesday nights, 7:00 pm PST), the last segment featured Iraqi poet and Gallatin School of NYU professor Sinan Antoon reading his poetry. He is a novelist and poet and, of his three books of poetry, the one widely available in the US is The Baghdad Blues. Excerpt.
I sit before one of those screens
Death in all languages.
The tower of Babel has disintegrated
Into a shore littered with corpses
My body is a tired boat
Silence is its mast.
I turn the channels
And corpses toss and turn.
Through yesterday, Iraq Body Count counts 462 violent deaths in Iraq for April. Over a fourth of those deaths have taken place this week (as of last Saturday, IBC's count was 328).
National Iraqi News Agency notes rebels clashed with Nouri's federal forces in Hadeetha and Kubaisa, 1 police officer was shot dead in Falluja, 5 Sahwa were shot dead outside of Tikrit, a Baquba bombing left one person injured, a Mosul bombing left twelve people injured, one civilian was injured in a Falluja shooting, a Sadr City car bombing claimed 1 life and left seven others injured, a bombing in southern Baghdad left seven people injured, a Mosul roadside bombing left twelve injured, and two Baghdad bombings -- both targeting mosques; Malik al-Ashter Mosque and al-Qubeisi Mosque -- left 2 dead and thirty injured. NINA also notes "that all the units of federal police withdrew from inside the city of Falluja" and quotes a security source stating, "The withdrawal came in the wake of violent clashes between insurgents and police."
At Anbar University today, protesters condemned the Hawija massacre. National Iraqi News Agency reports that sit-ins took place in Falluja and Ramadi. Alsumaria reports thousands turned out in Ramadi (look at the picture even if you don't read Arabic -- the size of the crowd is impressive) and they decried the killing of peaceful protesters in Hawija. NINA reports, "Preachers in Diyala denounced storming arenas of sit-in Haweeja by the army and the killing of protesters, strongly condemning the government for what happened in Hawija of Kirkuk province." They quote a coordinating member of the Anbar demonstrations stating "the Maliki government has lost its legitimacy when ordered army to open fire against unarmed people." Alsumaria covers the protesters in Mosul (check out the picture) noting the demonstration expressed its solidarity with the people of Hawija and called for one Iraq of one people where the people are safe from Nouri's forces.
On Tuesday, Nouri's forces took to the air in helicopters to shoot at them and rolled over them with military vehicles, shot at them, arrested them. All for the 'crime' of taking part in a sit-in. Ned Parker (Los Angeles Times) quoted Anbar Salvation Council's Sheik Ahmed abu Risha stating, "Maliki should be prosecuted like Saddam Hussein for what he does to the people." Mushreq Abbas (Al-Monitor) explores the Hawija attack, the 50 dead and 110 injured and offers:
Ultimately, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki might be to blame for what occurred in his capacity as head of the government, commander in chief of the armed forces and the official directly in charge of running the interior and defense ministries, as well as the national security and intelligence services, which have lacked directors for the past three years.
Nouri's State of Law crony Sa'ad al-Muttalibi took to Press TV today -- knowing that they would let him lie as Iranian government's Press TV always lets State of Law lie -- to smear the dead, "those who were killed in Hawijah, they were not civilians, they were armed groups belonging to the Nagshebendi organization or Ba'ath Party members and definitely they were not civilians." He wasn't done smearing -- please remember Nouri al-Maliki only remains in power because the White House props him up -- al-Muttalibi also wanted to link the US to these events in Hawija, he then went on to smear cleric and movement leader Moqtada al-Sadr and his supporters, "The Sadrists are definitely against Maliki, they are Shia but they are against the will of the Shia people in Iraq." Also State of Law only holds 89 seats in Parliament, al-Muttalibi tries to fudge the issue and imply otherwise.
Iraqiya MP Liqaa Wardi speaks with NINA and states Nouri's reckless actions in Hawija have "created unprecedented reactions of anger."
Tim Arango (New York Times) reports on the efforts of "Western diplomats" noting:
The continuing battles on Thursday, which by late afternoon had left nearly 50 people dead, most of them described by security official as militants, came as Western diplomats intensified efforts to persuade Mr. Maliki and his government to back away from a military solution to the Sunni uprising. The urgings were met with justifications for the heavy hand, partly out of fears that the situation would otherwise deteriorate into another Syria, according to one Western diplomat and an official close to Mr. Maliki, both of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity. Another diplomat, who also agreed to speak only on the condition of anonymity, said a fierce disagreement had erupted within the military command between Sunnis who opposed the military response and Shiite officers who directed it.
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