A world mourns

Benazir Bhutto
1953-2007
Assassinated December 27 in Pakistan

Her loss to Pakistan and other Middle Eastern nations is akin to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy November 22, 1963

She and her family worked tirelessly for Democracy in Pakistan for decades. Her father, also a former Prime Minister, was assassinated, as were two of her brothers. Tyrants and terrorists hated and feared her because of her innate popularity and adoration by the people of Pakistan.

If you are too young or haven't studied the assassination of President Kennedy, I can tell you that only those responsible for killing him did not suffer a broken heart, a broken spirit, on the day he died.

It will shock many people who know me to hear that I worked for President Kennedy because I almost never talk about my experiences when I was in the Air Force and particularly about my experiences surrounding the assassination.





I worked in his public relations office at Otis Air Force Base (Cape Cod, Massachusetts) as a photographer, reporter and PR rep. I was 18 years old and learned my trade by fire; in the military you're expected to do the job, they don't care how old - or young - you are.

Because I was 18, a "girl," and an Airman Third Class (one stripe), I didn't exist in the minds of people around me (sort of like people don't realize that servants, janitors, and food servers are real people with eyes, ears and minds), so I was witness to a number of things over the months I was assigned there that definitely influenced my knowledge and opinions of how government and the military work at the top levels.

The assassination was not only a horrific, traumatic experience for the nation, but those of us who believed he was a leader who could give us a nation of which to be proud, who could make the US live up to its image and promise. We had no idea of his extra marital activities - if we did, our hearts would have broken all over again. We believed he had integrity in every aspect of his life.

Bhutto left an email to be opened in the event she was murdered by CNN News anchor Wolf Blitzer. In it she directly blamed Pakistani "President" Pervez Musharraf She noted that the security she was provided by Musharraf, when she needed more, in fact decreased. She noted that as she requested more - she was given less, listing chapter and verse of how the security ought to have been organized - as she requested - and what had actually been provided.

Musharraf is holding a three day mourning period for Bhutto. While he says elections will go on as planned in a few days, it is doubtful if they can be carried out in light of Pakistanis being in such a state of grief and upheaval.

Here's something to consider: President Bush and Secretary of State Rice ignored direct threats of al qeda befroe 9-11. It's not *all* their fault, but had they heeded the warnings, there's a decent chance it could have been prevented.

The so-called hawks - kill all terrorists, detain all potential terrorists, pro-war US leaders somehow didn't understand one was coming our way.

The most troubling, threatening nation in the world right now is: Pakistan. Musharraf is a dictator, considered a tyrant by any civil thinker. It is a muslim nation with active nuclear weapons which can be fired (thanks to the US).

Pakistan is next to Afghanistan. It's where bin Laden is hiding - has been hiding for 7 years.

When our military was hot on his trail in the mountains bordering Pakistan, Bush and Cheney redeployed the American military from Afghanistan into Iraq - a nation that did not have weapons of mass destruction (just as the UN reported it did not), a nation with a tyrannical, sadistic leader - Saddam Hussein - who kept terrorists and Islamic extremists out of his country because they would try to form a theocratic government. Christians were free to practice their religion in that Iraq - they are not today because Islamic terrorists rushed into Iraq when the US invaded.

Meanwhile, whom did Bush befriend? Musharraf in Pakistan. Supposedly to help us find and erradicate terrorists along the Afghanistan border. Didn't happen. Terrorists have camps set up in Pakistan now. Bush calls Musharraf a friend of the US.

No, Bhutto was the real friend of the US. At least of its principals and desire for democracy and defender of the promise of being a land of laws and a Constitution.

Here's a reasonable statement: The hawks who are so pro-war, who have a kill all the terrorists mentality, are on the job NOW. And have been.

Watch for those who try to tap into your fears and make you feel like we are next - who will try to get you to vote for them next year. Understand that more of the same will. not. work.

Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is the definition of insanity.

But get this: because they are not only on duty now and have been before 9-11 (which, by the way was the *second* attack on New York's twin towers by al qeda and our national security folks didn't take that as a crucial warning), we must understand their efforts, their tactics and their mentality have failed. Failed.

Unless and until we understand how to interact with people around the world in a way that will inspire people within the nations that house terrorists to stop and flay them where they stand? We're in for more of these international horrific incidents.

Unless and until we find a leader who has this understanding and knowledge of how to deal directly with the people who can make the difference within their own nations?

Again, we're in for more of these international horrific incidents. The only people who benefit from these calamities are the multinational corporations, as eloquently described in Naomi Klein's book, The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism.

Unless and until we start listening to people who *predicted* this incident for the very reasons listed here - namely Senator Joe Biden - who actually spoke to Bhutto the night before she was assassinated and in fact asked Musharraf to increase her security - we're in for more of these international horrific incidents, and ultimately the US being a target once again.

I repeat: this will happen while the current shoot 'em up, try to manipulate the rest of the world mentality is allowed to rule the US diplomacy and military.

Meanwhile, in death - as with the deaths of Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Ghandi, Benazir Bhutto has found immortality.

A spiritual woman, her last word: "Allah"

Shocking new book!

Naomi Klein, a noted Canadian journalist, has written a book that will shock and awe you and make you mad as hell. But it will also empower you because you'll understand what the heck is going on instead of feeling bamboozled or at the mercy of US decision makers who spend our hard earned tax dollars only to set up their multinational corporate friends to profit from disasters, attacks and news that stuns us.

The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism is the meticulously researched story of how those in power have used it to take advantage of the most vulnerable among us after a disaster of any kind (including war), giving huge rebuilding contracts to their multinational corporate friends while using tax dollars, well-intended volunteers and even the American military to assist in this process.

Essentially it describes creating a socialist nation with the multinational corporations benefiting from and sustained by government decisions and money that strives to privatize *everything* without any regulation or oversight.

Like Blackwater, one of the private armies (run by a right wing Christian extremist) hired by the Bush administration to fight on behalf of the US, which has been free to do as it wishes without any accountability, even when it is accused of killing innocent civilians in Iraq.

Did you know that the horrific torture of Iraqi citizens in Abu Ghriab (almost none of whom had anything to do with terrorists, but who were arrested off the street in hopes of torturing information out of them) was instigated by a private company? Interestingly, only soldiers were photographed with the abused prisoners and held responsible while little or no mention was made of the private company involved.

A nation that instilled this Milton Friedman free-for-all economic template, Chile, saw its economy implode from greed, malfeasance and misfeasance since everyone was out for himself without any regard to the nation or the welfare of its people. The US supported its abusive anti-democracy leader, Augusto Pinochet, called a tyrant by even conservative The Economist magazine.

Please do not take my word for any of this. Read the book and be enlightened so you need not feel victimized again when folks like Bush and Cheney tell you what is happening when you see for your own eyes what they say is not true. Like when Louisiana was still neck deep in water months after the levees broke (money to fix the levees had been diverted to Iraq) while we were told by "the authorities" that progress was being made.

Suddenly, unhappily, after reading "The Shock Doctrine," we can see that we're really not crazy. That we really are seeing the truth of this outright treasonous corruption, no matter what "authorities" tell us to deny that truth. Klein explains this so clearly with so many examples, we'll actually be able to predict what "they" will do next when they attempt to manipulate us, usurp our democratic power and misuse our tax dollars.

The idea is to scare you so you'll give up any decision-making powers you might have to those "in charge;" in fact, going on to manipulate you to actively support their decisions, especially when they ask for more tax money.

They then go on to cavalierly pick the pockets of us average folks while lining the pockets of the multinationals and those in charge.

In case you haven't heard the latest attempt to rewrite history, Karl Rove - the architect of the Republican mess we're in - is now writing a book insisting that Congress made the mistake of voting us into Iraq, not the Bush administration. Sort of like those who deny the holocaust, he's trying to deny his role, as well as that of President Bush and Vice President Cheney in pushing us into the bloodletting quagmire.

Deadliest US year in Iraqi war with zero progress

As one CNN reporter put it, although the military "surge" in Iraq may have seen some temporary success, temporarily healing one isolated illness, the patient may be dying.

After six years, the Iraqi government, under a hand picked Bush "leader," has once again failed to reach any agreement or come up with any plan to work together for peace and the future of the country. The factions of the civil war there remain unmoved or unconvinced to change their stands or positions, so their war will continue with business as usual, with our soldiers caught in the middle.

Which means that US soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen are losing their lives and limbs in record numbers while the Iraqi government has made literally no political progress toward peace.

Political solutions are what make peace possible, but there are none because representatives of the factions there can't figure out how to get along. Just like they haven't for hundreds of years.

Capitalism is encouraged, however, hoping that business relationships can help Iraqis put salve on historical wounds with money. The US government is funding grants to individual Iraqis so they can open their own businesses.

I'd love for Americans to receive grants to open businesses as well, but then these Iraqis have had their nation and homes and commerce destroyed by President Bush starting a war there, so it's part of a massive, multi-billion dollar reconstruction attempt.

Unfortunately as soon as reconstruction happens, it's generally destroyed by civil war fighting.

For this, the Bush administration is spending more than 2.4 Trillion dollars on this never ending war that you and I and our kids must repay (approximately $40,000 for every one of us) because it's *borrowed.*

Many billions of dollars sent over to Iraq have literally been "lost." It's been handed out like cheap candy to win over people who only turned around and spent it trying to kill US soldiers and rid the nation of the US presence. Many more billions have been squandered on mercenaries like Blackwater, a private enterprise army hired by the Bush administration to beef up the lack of American soldiers needed to fight in Iraq. Mercenaries are paid far more than US soldiers.

Several members of Blackwater have been accused of killing innocent Iraqi civilians two months ago but have not even been questioned as of today by the FBI. The military has no control over them.

Mind you, the administration is demanding much more money from congress for the military to pour down that Middle Eastern black hole without spending money needed by US kids for health care, a decaying national infrastructure and other causes that would help the USA financially, socially, structurally and individually.

But the news is not bad for everyone - under Bush/Cheney priorities, the one group benefiting is multinational corporations, people who are their friends, comrades and peers.

Public expenses, private profits

Lots of folks are identifying what is so frustrating about the economic policies of the Bush administration:

All costs of his actions - whether for wars overseas or programs at home - are born by us taxpayers, while all the profits from his actions remain with private businesses, most of whom are selected without any bidding process.

How have he and Dick Cheney been able to get away with this?

The list is long, but it starts with an unquestioning news media whose profits depend on the advertisers who are the beneficiaries of those profits. I'm not saying the news media lapdogs were unquestioning because the advertisers are those flourishing war profiteers, but it just looks that way.

It started because they didn't do their job. They didn't question or challenge this administration because they actually believed the administration wanted to take care of a grieving nation. Nope, they only used the horror as leverage to push their agenda - go to war with Iraq.

There is proof that when our military had Osama Bin Laden in its sights for execution, they were called away from completing their task by orders from the Bush administration. Does that mean they kept Bin Laden alive to maintain the national emotional drive against Iraq?

If Bin Laden had been killed, perhaps the nation would feel a sense of relief - that a chapter was closed. That would not give Bush and Cheney the national emotional momentum they need to push the war on Iraq.

Fewer than 3,000 people - not all Americans and including many Muslims - were killed on 9/11.

Today, six years later? Nearly 4,000 American military men and women have been killed in Iraq; more than 25,000 have been injured, most of them seriously.

Hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis have been killed.

Iraq has nothing to do with 9/11. It has only something to do with Bush and Cheney and what they want to procure for their corporate and oil buddies, regardless of how much it drives our economy into the ground, how many lives are lost - American or any nationality for that matter.

What are they after? It is *not* freedom - ask any Iraqi how free he or she is - or feels.

So then what could it be? I've never been a conspiracy theorist, but I do believe what they're really after has nothing to do with freedom, no matter how much the President pleads it is.

What they're really after appears to be money to achieve more power. After all corporations are after money and have no allegiance to a nation, just to profits.

But it's almost impossible for me to believe even *they* would be *that* greedy.

So what could it be? Something grander that has nothing to do with the well being of the US?

I'd say it deserves investigating, because every time their real agenda is mentioned, the administration has been brilliant about distracting the media and us from the subject at hand. Hmmmmm.

Wanna get out of your jail sentence? Commit treason .. I mean, perjury ..

President Bush has commuted Lewis "Scooter" Libby's jail sentence of 30 months for perjury, obstruction of justice -- and other felonies -- because he thinks the term "excessive." And that Libby has suffered enough.

This despite 30 months being well within the specific sentencing guidelines under the law for the crimes he was convicted.

Which means Libby will be taken care of the rest of his life by right wing supporters because he lied to a grand jury when he was asked if he assisted in the outing of an active undercover CIA agent - who was dealing with some pretty bad guys.

She was outed because the Bush administration was upset with her husband for discovering that Iraq had *nothing* to do with Al Qaeda's attack on the Twin Towers September 11th.

Revealing the identity of an active undercover CIA agent is an act of treason, *especially* in time of war - a war that Bush literally lied us into with Iraq.

Treason is punishable by sentences up to and including death; he wasn't accused of treason even though the act of outing an agent is treasonous - he was accused only of perjury and obstructing justice.

Because he supported Bush and Cheney to the point of lying about the malfeasance and misfeasance of the Bush administration associated with Iraq, Haliburton, outing the CIA agent, etc., Libby is a hero to the right wing.

The next step may well be that Bush actually gives Libby a full out pardon for his crimes against the nation, not just commuting his sentence.

Despite the court's decision that Libby's crimes were bad enough to warrant serious jail time after he was convicted by a jury -- including the hard work of his top defense lawyers -- Bush takes it upon himself to supersede the court's jurisdiction and abuse his power to commute a sentence.

Bush has the right to do it - the president has the right to do just about anything, but it sounds like he's doing it to reward someone for lying and covering up the corruption that continues to erode the Bush administration and the US government.

It would be like Nixon setting the Watergate criminal mob - H.R. Haldeman, John Erlichman, John Colson, John Mitchell and many, many more - free. All were convicted and served jail terms for similar crimes.

It is stunning to think an American presidency is as corrupt, as destructive, as incompetent, as monolithic and as ignorant as the Bush administration is in 2007.

If you ever did not believe Bush and Cheney see themselves above the law - here's one more little clue if you're investigating.

I have to lay part of the responsibility of this outrage -- and it is an outrage, even though many are going to try to convince you otherwise -- on the media that has not reported extremely significant stories in a way that makes the American public aware of the massive abuse of the office of the presidency and vice-presidency.

Cheney and his henchmen have counted on an unquestioning media who will simply quote the lies of Bush, Cheney and others who so cavalierly pass on false information, then quote the people who disagree, leaving us with what is perceived as "two sides" of a story without any perspective or investigation.

If we had either perspective or investigation, we'd see that one "side" is an outright lie, not any side of any story.

So it's not a story at all, but unchallenging media still repeat statements of Bush and Cheney and their spokespeople as if they're facts when they have not the slightest basis in truth.

OK, maybe sometimes their statements have a slight basis in truth, but it's twisted beyond recognition of that truth.

I do not understand how good Republicans can tolerate what Bush and Cheney are doing to their party, how they are ignoring and obliterating the rule of law and why they would put up with Bush and Cheney's acts that disintegrate so many things that make our nation great.

On the other hand, it's outrageous actions like this that finally fire up an apathetic public; especially during a holiday that celebrates what makes this country the nation what it is supposed to be -- a nation where we are *all* - each of us - including the president and vice-president - supposed to be considered equals under the Constitution of the United States.

If it were not the Bush administration, this action would be absolutely unbelievable. But so many of us are so incredibly numb to the contempt this administration has for the Constitution, rule of law and common sense, all we can do is watch for their next even more ridiculous action which will leave us equally as speechless.

It's as bad as Richard Nixon being rewarded for his work helping the hopelessly alcoholic, rabid, right wing Senator Joe McCarthy and his heinous work on the notorious un-American activities committee, destroying the lives of thousands of innocent Americans unjustly accused of being "communist."

Thanks to his loyalty and support of unfounded attacks on innocent Americans, Nixon was rewarded with unceasing support right through reaching the White House as president.

Come to think of it, so was Ronald Reagan.

The saddest part of all this is that as angry as we get about the abuse of the system, ignorance and hubris costing thousands of American lives, tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis, the Taliban and Al Qaeda become stronger in Afghanistan and of course Ben Laden is still nowhere to be found or captured.

And our economy continues to take an extraordinary hit thanks to Bush putting us more than a trillion dollars in debt to pay for his war with Iraq.

All of which, by the way, Ben Laden not only hoped for but predicted. He knew Bush well enough to count on his knee-jerk, ignorant and inappropriate response to Al Qaeda's attack.

Put simply, Bush simply doesn't care how we feel - why should he? He continues to do whatever the hell he feels like with no accountability. As in, none.

I mean, Bush probably thinks that if HE doesn't have to deal with any scrutiny or accountability, why should anyone else in his loyal circle of pals like "Scooter"?

Heck, I bet Bush thinks "Libby's doing a heck of a job!"

More, Bush and Cheney do not care that we don't like them - why should they?.

Bush and Cheney do not care that they "get to" flaunt the law whenever they feel like it -why should they?

Bush and Cheney do not care that they have corrupted our government and given the finger to the rule of law, voters and the idea that there are actually three branches of government. Why should they?

Bush and Cheney do not care about ordinary Americans, the economy (do they know how expensive milk is these days?), how to actually and honestly combat terrorism, corrupting the government at all levels, reality, stealing, lying, manipulating or whatever they want to do, whenever they want, where ever they want, however they want to do it, regardless of how many Americans and Iraqis are killed in the process.

Again, why should they? They continue to do anything they wish with no accountability.

Remember my blog on "disinformation" recently? How I said that the government releases information when the public is busy with other events - like the weekend, the Rose Bowl, Super Bowl, and say -- big holidays like the 4th of July?

Well, that's why they released the announcement of Bush's commutation of Libby's jail sentence Monday night, July 2, when most Americans are getting ready to celebrate the holiday, hoping that they will not be watching the news, hoping they'll be too distracted to care and that the unquestioning media will simply release the statement and get some typical "liberal complainers" to respond.

By the way, Fred Thompson and Rudy Giuliani both agree with Bush's action. They are Republicans hoping to be nominated to be a presidential candidate, and many Republicans are doggone pleased they do!

Congratulations, Democrats! You could not have had a sweeter election gift than this because, gosh, the rest of us realize that when we break the law, we get thrown in jail. Seriously, even Paris Hilton.

Come to think of it, thanks to DNA, we're seeing how many people are thrown in jail even when they don't commit a crime.

Iraq war horrors predicted, ignored

When US President Bush pushed the USA to attack Iraq back in 2001, anyone - Republican or Democrat - who opposed the (quite possibly illegal) incursion was called a traitor, anti-American, wimpy, voting for a "surrender" to terrorists ... and the lurid list of accusations by the Bush administration went on.

The result was that the Republican-dominated Congress easily passed the bill funding the military offensive.

With Friday's release of the shocking Prewar Intelligence About Postwar Iraq report by the US Senate Intelligence Committee, it turns out that all the horrific problems the US, Iraq and other nations currently face because of the ongoing, seemingly never-ending war instigated without cause by President Bush were predicted.

Predicted.

The report is 229 pages.

I swear, I don't know how those who engineered the Iraq attack can sleep at night, let alone continue to call people who object to this American-led and -fed bloodbath, "traitors" or un-American or "voting for surrender" if they elect a democrat.

But we have to note members of both parties who voted to give Bush authority to attack Iraq - had access to this report, and (fewer) members of both parties voted *against* it for the very reasons cited in this report.

The report says (all those years ago), an attack on Iraq feeds into the terrorists' plans to recruit members because the US will be seen as an aggressor and occupier if it invades Iraq, not "greeted as liberators."

As suggested by President Bush's father, former President George H. W. Bush, and others well versed on Middle Eastern culture and policies, even the attempt to establish a stable democracy in Iraq would be a "long, difficult and probably turbulent process."

The newly declassified documents carry plenty of evidence that Bush and members of his administration were well warned of the probability of a horrific conundrum if a war were started in Iraq.

US Senate Intelligence Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.VA) says, "Sadly, the administration's refusal to heed these dire warnings, and worse, to plan for them, has led to tragic consequences for which our nation is paying a terrible price."

President Bush says he remains steadfast about his decision to continue the war in Iraq, defending his desire to get rid of Saddam Hussein.

The National Intelligence Council's findings were most heavily used in the report, drawing its information and conclusions from a number of intelligence agencies (more than 80 are listed); the report was widely distributed to White House staff, national security, diplomatic and congressional offices.

In addition to playing into the hands of terrorists and creating mayhem in the nation, the invasion was predicted to detonate several tribal and civil wars within Iraq unless they were stopped by the "occupying force."

More, "Score settling would occur throughout Iraq between those associated with Saddam's regime and those who have suffered most under it."

The occupying force would have to provide massive military, economic and restructuring support to the nation destabilized by an attack because its only real resource is oil, and petroleum production has been significantly hindered by the war.

Instead of seeking bids for restructuring the nation - a hundreds of billions of dollars effort - Bush and Cheney gave the work outright to Cheney's former employer Halliburton, which is moving its main headquarters to the nation of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates to avoid paying taxes in the US.

Meanwhile, Iran and other neighboring countries were predicted to jockey for influence in Iraq if Saddam were deposed.

Iraq's so-called "weapons of mass destruction?" Were never found. Further, other nations proceeding with potential programs incorporating weapons of mass destruction had nothing to do with Iraq and continue to develop whatever they were developing before the invasion of Iraq.

By the way, did you know that Saddam's warehouses of standard weapons found in Iraq were not locked down by the US Military. One intelligence officer in Iraq after the invasion reported that because the US military was not prepared to assume responsibility for the huge inventory of weapons, insurgents raided the warehouses day after day following the declaration of "mission accomplished" by President Bush.

Despite suffering the slings and arrows of Bush administration bullies and arm twisting to manufacture the Congressional vote to put our soldiers in harm's way, I thought you'd like to see the names of the US Representatives and Senators who, way back when, voted against funding the original assault on Iraq,

Many of them quoted the very points cited in the Intelligence Report - and were ridiculed or dismissed as "typical liberals, loony lefties, and even anti-American." You'll have to scroll down the roll call to see the entire list.

Meanwhile, as Bush swears he supports our troops: why have the Marines just reported that they have only received 10% of the protective armor they requested months ago? Why aren't there enough resources to treat our wounded and maimed veterans here at home and that substandard and dilapidated VA treatment centers have been discovered? (BTW, the Washington Post reporter who broke this story was called "un-American" by some for her reporting). Why are so many coming home with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder - only to find, again, too few resources to treat them, leaving their families to suffer along with them.

Then there's the pesky problems of veterans committing suicide after their return from Iraq, which has been declared a problem but not studied well enough to know just how extensive it is.

Again, I ask. Why did President Bush invade Iraq when clearly he had no realistic military task, goal, plan ... or dare I say, even a clue?

He has had five years to attend one funeral of one soldier killed in Iraq and still refuses to. He's had five years to explain the real reason we invaded Iraq (all the reasons he has told us over the past five years that we entered this war turned out to be untrue), but instead he only uses rhetoric that he hopes will frighten us to control our behavior and our money.

Actually, I finally bought into the politics of fear.

What Bush, Cheney and their henchmen are doing to our nation scares the hell out of me.