Crossposted from Left Toon Lane, Bilerico Project & My Left Wing


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Reading back into Putin's recent political manipulations, and then, even further back, at how Putin seized, consolidated, and has used power in Russia, it is apparent that Putin will shortly seize power in Russia.

The collective power of the peace movement helped the Democrats take control of Congress and turn Nancy Pelosi from Minority leader into Madam Speaker. But in May the new Congress turned its back on the peace movement, granting Bush another $95 billion for war with no timetable for withdrawal. While the Speaker of the House herself voted against the war funding, she failed to put pressure on the conservative Democrats to form a united front against another blank check for war. She also failed to effectively use her power to decide what bills would come up for a vote. In the case of both the unrestricted war funding and the expanded FISA wiretapping, Pelosi had the ability to keep the bills off the floor but refused to do so.

(Updated below)

Alternate title: More war with those wars, Mr. President?

Operation Enduring Propaganda still rolls on, slowly but surely raising tempers to a frenzy against Iran - exactly as in the case of Afghanistan and, of course Iraq. All things considered, an Iran War is no more a question of "if", but now a question of "when" - regardless of how much the Afghan and Iraq War have become quagmires.

Because all that truly matters here is waging more war - whether with troops or without them.

During the Mid 1990s I was a student at Cal (that's a story in itself)and I met Ron, who was a pumped-up radical grad student researching History-Ethnic Studies.

I recently received a random email from Ron, and I thought y'all might find the subsequent correspondence amusing. The topics cover American History, NAFTA, immigration, and of course, politics. I can't wait to hear what y'all think of this...

(Updated below)

Operation Enduring Propaganda with regards to Iraq and the surge keeps in full swing, despite the rise of discordant voices rising louder and louder - voices largely ignored by the MSM, of course. This in turn begs the question: why must there be at least an appearance of success with regards to the surge in Iraq?

Short answer: Iran.

It has become cliché to say that this Iraq war cannot be won militarily. Equally comfortable with this admission are hawks who would turn on a dime if they thought the insurgency was capable of collapsing, and doves whose primary objection to the war is its "mismanagement".

Crossposted from Left Toon Lane, Bilerico Project & My Left Wing


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With the Iraq and Afghanistan wars causing much chaos while encouraging increased insurgency and terrorism, with a confrontation against Iran looming, and with Pakistan now being likewise targeted by the rattling of American sabers, the rest of the Middle East is in turn gradually destabilizing, hopelessly caught in a sinking vortex that will lead ultimately to more war and chaos.

Let's cut through the mustard and all that jazz, here. We all know that in the fevered minds of the Bushies, their neocon supporters and their far-right fundamentalist Christian allies, this is all about two things, and two things only: hegemony of Christian fundamentalism and complete control of oil productivity.

In other words: defeat of Islam + fall of the Middle East = Holy American Empire.

George W Bush, 4th of July. Independence Day

copyright © 2007 Betsy L. Angert. BeThink.org

BY BRYN LLOYD-BALLARD

In an age in which the democratic mask is essential to legitimate plutocratic power with the benighted masses of the Anglo-American empire, the manner in which imperial designs are carried out today may be less obvious than in ancient times, but the results are practically the same.