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Feb 10, 2011

Mubarak Refuses to Step Down!

 


Thursday 10 February 2011 

Mubarak Refuses to Step Down
Anthony Shadid and David D. Kirpatrick, The New York Times News Service: "President Hosni Mubarak told the Egyptian people Thursday that he would delegate more authority to his vice president, Omar Suleiman, but that he would not resign his post, contradicting earlier reports that he would step aside and surprising hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered to hail his departure from the political scene. In a nationally televised address following a tumultuous day of political rumors and conflicting reports, Mr. Mubarak said he would 'admit mistakes' and honor the sacrifices of young people killed in the three-week uprising, but that he would continue to 'shoulder my responsibilities' until September, and did not give a firm indication that he would cede political power." 
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Egypt Protests: Watch for the Demands
Robert Naiman, Truthout: "Four key demands have been constantly lifted up by protesters and opposition parties, which are essential for a credible transition to democracy: ending the arbitrary detention and harassment of journalists, human rights activists and peaceful demonstrators and freeing those who have been detained; ending the state of emergency; allowing free electoral competition in elections; and restoring full judicial supervision of elections.... Without these reforms, any 'orderly transition' in Egypt is likely to be a transition not to democracy, but a transition to dictatorship under a different face." 
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The Palestine Papers, or How Everything You Thought You Knew About the Peace Process Was Wrong
Max Ajl, Truthout: "Common wisdom is that the 20-year-old peace process has been edging toward a two-state solution, based on a formula that half the world can recite verbatim: borders following the pre-1967-war armistice line with minor and mutual adjustments, a Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem and a land bridge between Gaza and the West Bank, with refugees either repatriated or given adequate compensation." 
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Why Bradley Manning Is a Patriot, Not a Criminal: An Opening Statement for the Defense of Private Manning
Chase Madar, TomDispatch: "Bradley Manning, a 23-year-old from Crescent, Oklahoma, enlisted in the U.S. military in 2007 to give something back to his country and, he hoped, the world. For the past seven months, Army Private First Class Manning has been held in solitary confinement in the Marine Corps brig in Quantico, Virginia. Twenty-five thousand other Americans are also in prolonged solitary confinement, but the conditions of Manning's pre-trial detention have been sufficiently brutal for the United Nation's Special Rapporteur on Torture to announce an investigation."
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John Pilger | The Revolt in Egypt Is Coming Home
John Pilger, Truthout: "The uprising in Egypt is our theater of the possible. It is what people across the world have struggled for and their thought controllers have feared. Western commentators invariably misuse the words 'we' and 'us' to speak on behalf of those with power who see the rest of humanity as useful or expendable. The 'we' and 'us' are universal now. Tunisia came first, but the spectacle always promised to be Egyptian." 
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Jordan Feels a Jolt
Mona Alami, Inter Press Service: "The wave of political protests that has struck parts of the Middle East and North Africa over the past few weeks has also affected the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The protest movement here, initiated in the wake of the Tunisian Jasmine revolution, underscores the population's demand for political reform. A movement of discontent over rising prices kicked off early in January in the city of Theiban, south of Amman. Some 200 demonstrators demanded that the government take greater control over prices and initiate more anti- corruption efforts. The movement gained momentum with protests erupting in Karak and Irbid." 
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House Republicans Battle Turmoil in Their Ranks
Carl Hulse, The New York Times News Service: "Under pressure to make deeper spending cuts and blindsided by embarrassing floor defeats, House Republican leaders are quickly discovering the limits of control over their ideologically driven and independent-minded new majority. For the second consecutive day, House Republicans on Wednesday lost a floor vote due to a mini-revolt, this time over a plan to demand a repayment from the United Nations."
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News in Brief: HuffPost Bloggers Threaten Boycott Over AOL Merger, and More ...
Bloggers and writers for the Huffington Post feel betrayed by HuffPost founder Arianna Huffington's decision to sell her left-leaning news site to AOL; Republicans in Congress are promoting bold plans to curtail the Environmental Protection Agency's expanded power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions; Republicans launched a new effort to defund Planned Parenthood this week; in the past week, the number of Americans filing for state unemployment benefits fell 36,000 from the previous week.
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Egypt Demonstrates for Democracy; Americans Contemplate PATRIOT Act Extension
Shahid Buttar, Truthout: "In spite of our own interests, Americans and the US government are supplying the boots that rest on the necks of citizens of Egypt and dictatorships around the world. Meanwhile, we remain silent as the impending reauthorization of the PATRIOT Act threatens to speed the momentum of repression in our own country."
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Hungry Gazans Feed Egyptian Troops
Mohammed Omer, Inter Press Service: "Mustapha Suleiman, 27, from J Block east of the Rafah crossing with Egypt, crosses through gaps in the iron fence on the border carrying bread, water, meat cans and a handful of vegetables for Egyptian soldiers stationed on the other side. 'Whatever you offer on Saturday you will receive on Sunday,' Suleiman says. 'I am ready to help with what I have, for all the work they do.' Egyptian troops have run short of essential supplies, caught up in clashes involving Bedouin groups. Serious clashes have erupted between riot police and Bedouin groups over the past two weeks."
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Paul Krugman | To Get Back on Track, Grow That Economy
Paul Krugman, Krugman & Co.: "Advanced countries' economies still have plenty of room to grow, yet some economists have been arguing lately that global growth is hitting supply-side limits, and that not much can be done through policy to fix it. The argument has arisen because high unemployment and low inflation prevail in advanced economies, while the rest of the world is facing accelerating inflation, together with rising commodity prices." 
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Time to Divest From the War Machine; Drones First?
Nick Mottern, Truthout: "On January 12, 2011, the investment world thrilled to the announcement that ITT Corporation, one of the top ten US military contractors, will disengage from its 'defense' business as part of a planned split into three new companies. The move points to ITT as a possible canary in the coal mine for military contractors, and a signal to those of us who want to stop our current wars that the time is right to mount a divestment campaign on the war industry." 
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Click here for more Truthout articles

TRUTHOUT'S BUZZFLASH DAILY HEADLINES

While the right wing claims that American capitalism leads the world, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is about to be acquired by new owners in Germany.

That's right, long the symbol of the so-called "free market," the likely sale symbolizes that Wall Street is no longer the center of the financial universe.

As of February 9, a New York Times article predicts, "A merger would potentially let customers trade stocks in New York, options tied to those shares in Paris and derivatives linked to them in Frankfurt."

The NYSE has long offered a favorite photo opportunity for US politicians and presidents, who would ring the famous opening bell of the market, symbolizing their support of the American "free enterprise system."

But it looks like, in the near future, the financial transactions of the global elite will officially be disbursed more and more around the world.

The right-wing nostalgia for the financial might of America that characterized the post-WWII generation is becoming increasingly exposed as a mirage.

The national boundaries of investment are being made ever more negligible by an international marketplace that owes no allegiance to any individual nation.

The NYSE, which was founded in 1792, will no longer be owned by Americans.

This single act won't stop the Tea Party from sipping on its cup of delusions, but at some point the reality will set in.

America's financial destiny is inextricably intertwined with that of the world.

Mark Karlin
Editor, BuzzFlash at Truthout

Obama Says History Unfolding in Egypt
Read the Article at CNN

WikiLeaks: Egyptian "Torturers" Trained by FBI
Read the Article at The Telegraph UK

Obama and Bush Killing Public Education Softly With Their Songs and Slogans
Read the Article at BuzzFlash

Let Them Breathe Carcinogens: Gingrich Calls for Eliminating EPA
Read the Article at The Washington Post

Arizona Sen. Jon "Right Wing" Kyl (R) Announces His Retirement
Read the Article at The Washington Post

Afghan Proposal Would Clamp Down on Women's Shelters
Read the Article at The New York Times

Obama Promotes Plan for Near Universal Wireless
Read the Article at AP

Click here for more BuzzFlash headlines








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Michael Santomauro 
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Why US, Israel want Suleiman in...

 


WikiLeaks: Suleiman told Israel he would 'cleanse' Sinai of arms runners to Gaza
Omar Suleiman, the new vice-president of Egypt, told the Israelis he wanted to start "cleansing the Sinai" of Palestinian arms smugglers, according to leaked cables.
suleiman_1822392c.jpg
Suleiman promised personally to take responsibility for 'cleansing the Sinai' Photo: REUTERS

ChristopherHope_60_1805027j.jpg
By Christopher Hope 9:00PM GMT 09 Feb 2011



Peace.
Michael Santomauro 
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"The Occidental Observer Newsletter" - 1 new article

 


 



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IBM and the Holocaust http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_and_the_Holocaust

 

IBM and the Holocaust



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Michael Santomauro 
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JAY LENO'S PATHOLOGICAL CONDITION

 

 JAY LENO'S PATHOLOGICAL CONDITION 

Feb 10, 2011

On last night's "Tonight Show with Jay Leno," the host made the following joke about the new Confession application:
 
"Well, the Catholic Church has come out with a new app for the iPhone. This is real. You can confess right on the phone. How perfect is that? You can now cheat and atone for your sins all on the same device. Perfect for Bret Favre. Fantastic. You know what the name of the app is? I'm not making it up. It's called 'Priest in Your Pocket.' Really. Is that the best name they could come up with?"
 
Catholic League president Bill Donohue commented as follows:
 
When the app was released, we knew it would be fodder for comedians and pundits, but we decided to say nothing unless the remarks were insulting or totally misleading. That is why we said nothing about a joke made by George Lopez about the app, nor did we comment on Maureen Dowd's piece on the same subject. In fact, we never commented on Leno's app joke made a few days ago. That's because none of these quips were disrespectful. But last night's monologue by Leno is a different story.
 
The worst part of Leno's commentary was not that he deliberately misled the public—there is no such thing as Confession on the phone (the app is designed to help Catholics prepare for Confession)—it was his below the belt shot at priests: The name of the app is called, "Confession: A Roman Catholic app." It is not called "Priest in Your Pocket."
 
Why does this matter? Because Leno has an obsession with priestshe habitually portrays all of them as sexual predators. If you have any doubt about the man's pathological condition, click here to read about some of his previous remarks (we list more than 30 of them). There is no late-night host who even comes close to matching Leno's bigoted record.
 
 
 
 
Contact the executive producer: Debbie.vickers@nbc.com

 

Jeff Field
Director of Communications
The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights
450 Seventh Avenue
New York, NY 10123
212-371-3191
212-371-3394 (fax)
 
 

 

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Michael Santomauro 
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Placing terrorism in the dock

 

 

From: bbenny@optusnet.com.au

http://www.jewishnews.net.au/placing-terrorism-in-the-dock/

Placing terrorism in the dock

February 8, 2011 · No comments
National, News ·

Nisana Darshan-Leitner

Israeli lawyer Nitsana Darshan-Leitner (pictured) who has successfully sued a long list of international terror organisations over the past decade, netting more than $US1 billion in damages, is set to visit Australia this month.

The "lawfare" expert, who also runs the Shurat HaDin – Israel Law Centre – is being brought out for briefings by the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC). Among her addresses, she will deliver the Hans and Gini Bachrach Oration in Melbourne, co-hosted by AIJAC and the Jerusalem College of Technology, and also speak at Shalom College in

Sydney, co-hosted by AIJAC and the State Zionist Council of NSW.

Using Israeli and American leglislation, Shurat HaDin has waged a legal campaign against organisations, including Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, Fatah and the Iranian government in US and Israeli courts.

Darshan-Leitner explained that while terrorists and their sponsors do not pay up, US anti-terror laws allow Washington to freeze their assets and holdings, including bank accounts, stock holdings and real estate, mainly through banks in which these organisations do business. "Money is the oxygen of terrorism, and if we can stop the flow of money, we can reduce terrorism," she told The AJN in an interview from Israel.

Darshan-Leitner said that while terrorist weapons, such as home-made bombs, are relatively inexpensive, that does not hold true for the amounts of money needed to train and pay recruits working in terror cells.

The first plaintiffs to sue a terrorist outfit were the family of Leon Klinghoffer, a wheelchair-bound Jewish American who was murdered when thrown from the deck of the Achille Lauro ocean liner during a PLO terrorist attack in 1985.

As there was no PLO presence in the US at that time, US laws were amended to get around a lack of jursdiction.

Now Iran, Syria and North Korea, all on the US State Department's "watch list" of countries sponsoring terrorism, can be sued in the US.

Shurat HaDin began its litigation in 2000 after the outbreak of the Second Intifada. Since then, it has managed to prise major global banks from their terrorist
customers.

Israeli intelligence sources have told Shurat HaDin its lawsuits have reduced terrorism by around 60 per cent.
"The amount of money Hamas can smuggle through tunnels in suitcases is about a tenth of what can be wired through a bank," said Darshan-Leitner.

Despite battling major US and European law firms that represent the defendants, Shurat HaDin has an almost perfect strike rate in winning cases, she said.

Iran has been deprived of its financial resources in Italy, France and Germany, where nervous banks have cut ties with the rogue regime, but Tehran has transferred a lot of its banking to Asia, she said.

The Hans and Gini Bachrach Memorial Oration is at 8pm on Monday, February 14 at Caulfield Hebrew Congregation. Enquiries: AIJAC  (03) 9681 6660
Nitsana Darshan-Leitner will speak at Shalom College, Sydney. at 8pm on Tuesday, February 15. Enquiries: AIJAC (02) 9360 5415.

PETER KOHN



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