Hatchet faced Lila Garrett was never an attractive woman. From photos some of her friends have snailed me (or "friends"), she was always homely. In fact, she reminds me of Lillian Hellman (whom I did know) without the sparkle.
That may have created the intense hatred that causes the host of PDA's weekly informercial on KPFK called Connect Spots with Lila Garrett.
Her first guest repeatedly called the organization "the Tea Party."
Not Lila The Homophobe. (She was a huge homophobe in the late sixties and early seventies.) She can't not say tea b**ger. She also insults them as stupid. But the only stupid person was the one we were hearing on our radios.
Bob Somerby on Rachel Maddow (can be used on Lila Garrett as well):
But instead of addressing the various claims by which conservative-leaners get disinformed, Maddow spent some time last year insulting such voters with dick jokes, while pretending that this conduct made her embarrassed, of course.Can we tell you a secret? When you rudely insult groups of voters, other voters will start assuming that you’re insulting them as well, even if they’ve never been to a tea party event. We can think of few better ways to consolidate conservative opposition. (In the profiles, Maddow constantly gushes about how polite and civil she is.)Maddow clowned and played last year, telling her dick jokes and chasing Republican sex scandals all around town. (John Ensign gave an internship to his chief of staff’s teenage son! Good God.) In the past few weeks, she has finally risen up on her horse, authoring long, embarrassing rants about what Republicans have allegedly said about the (year-old) stimulus program. The only problem: Instead of attacking real things Republican leaders have said, she has invented bogus statements, pretending that lesser players have made this foolish statements. This has been gonzo, embarrassing work. For the record, no one seems to enjoy making silly misstatements quite as much as Maddow does. At times, she makes Sean Hannity seem like an obsessive truth-telling self-flagellator.
Who does she thinks she's helping with her broadcast hatred?
She's not helping the left. Lila Giggles isn't helping the left.
She's not helping the left, she's only egging on hatred. We don't need her and we can't afford her. If she had any sense, she'd check herself into a rehab and start dealing with her problems.
"TV: Animated Blackface" (Ava and C.I., Third Estate Sunday Review):
In the commentary for "Family Gay," the creative team reveals that the 'joke' of the episode is that the gay characters are so ridiculous. It's funny, they insist, because it's a straight guy's idea of what gay is. And looking at the writing credits for this season's The Cleveland Show we're guessing they think it's funny to use Anglo White writers for a show that's supposed to be focused on an African-American family.
And that brings us full circle. If you don't laugh at the cruelty, you're overly sensitive. If you don't laugh at what a bunch of straight, Anglo White males think is funny, you're overly sensitive. You're spoiling their fun. Like so many straight, Anglo White males before them, they really think they and only they have a right to define 'funny' or, for that matter, the universe. And it's for that reason that no one would ever accuse them of being overly -- or even remotely -- sensitive.
I love Ava and C.I.'s piece. The Cleveland Show would be called "racist" (because it is) if it were a live action show. Instead, you've got a White actor voicing racist portrayals and no one's supposed to complain.
"Iraq snapshot " (The Common Ills):
Monday, March 1, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, the elections approach, Nouri al-Maliki gets caught 'gifting' but swears it is no bribe, Christians stage demonstrations throughout Iraq in response to the persecution, Ahmed Chalabi proves strangely touchy and explosive when his boypal Ali al-Lami's name is raised, and more.
On the latest installment of Inside Iraq (Al Jazeera), which began airing Friday, Jasim al-Azawi spoke with one-time CIA asset Ahmed Chalabi who is also a convicted felon in Jordan, a very close and personal friend of boypal Ali al-Lani and, it turns out, a non-stop, yelling and shouting diva.
Jasim al-Azawi: And now I'm delighted to welcome from Baghdad, Ahmed Chalabi, chairman of the Accountability and Justice Commission and a candidate of the Iraqi National Alliance for Parliament. Ahmed Chalabi, welcome to Inside Iraq. And let me start from the beginning and that is Prime Minister [Nouri] al-Malliki has decided to rescind a recent act issued by your commission. Lately you have submitted a list of 376 members of the army, the police and the intelligence. They are supposed to be Ba'athists and you are going to remove them. al-Maliki is saying, "Stop it, Ahmed Chalabi. You have no idea the damage you are cuasing."
Ahmed Chalabi: The prime minister has no authority on his own to exempt anyone from the decisions of the Justice and Accountability Commission. Article 12 of Law Number 10 from 2008 specifies that the Council of Ministers has the authority to request exemption for anybody who is uh subject to the Justice and Accountability law provided he gets the approval of the Parliament.
Jasim al-Azawi: What makes you think that he cannot get the ministers to sanction his authority and more significantly --
Ahmed Chalabi: He may get the ministers to sanction his authority but he needs to get Parliament to approve what he does.
Jasim al-Azawi: Well since you mentioned Parliament, in that case let me turn the table on you. Parliament has never sanctioned your commission -- the Justice and Accountability -- that bill never went to Parliament and more importantly you and your executive director Mr. Ali al-Lami were never appointed by Parliament so on what authority you are expunging people and banning people?
Ahmed Chalabi: On the authority of Law Number 10, Justice and Accountability Law of 2008. This argument has been settled by the uh Appeals Commission of the uhm uh Justice and Accountability that was appointed by Parliament a few weeks ago. In their ruling on the case of Mr. Saleh al-Mutlaq, they said that the Justice and Accountability Commission is valid and is active and is authorized by the law --
Jasim al-Azawi: Ahmed Chalabi, you know very well, you know very well,
Ahmed Chalabi: -- so therefore this argument does not hold water anymore because the highest court in Iraq has approved the legality of the current commission.
Jasim al-Azawi: Ahmed Chalabi, that is -- that is absolutely not right, not true. Parliament has --
Ahmed Chalabi: How do you know that!
Jasim al-Azawi: Because --
Ahmed Chalabi: I read you -- I read you the statement!
Jasim al-Azawi: Before you read me that statement, Parliament has never voted on the Accountability and Justice Commission --
Ahmed Chalabi: I will tell you! I will read the statement!
Jasim al-Azawi: -- and --
Ahmed Chalabi: I will readyyou the statement! It doesn't matter what you say. It's just an argument to detract from the legality of the commission. It says here that the law, Law Number 10 will only specify that they rename the de-Ba'athification Comission into the Justice and Accountability Commission -- rename. Therefore, this commission is working according to the law and has the legality for the reasons specified above.' That's the decision of the court.
Jasim al-Azawi: At any rate, we don't want to get into the legal aspect, we will let the viewers to judge -- We will let the viewers and the Iraqis --
Ahmed Chalibi: It's not the viewers! It's the Iraqi court!
[too much cross talk and too much shouting by Ahmed]
Jasim al-Azawi: -- by Parliament, but the federal government has not given it's final verdict yet.
[too much cross talk and too much shouting by Ahmed, we'll skip ahead]
Jasim al-Azawi: Fine. Let us go to the second gentleman in this commission. I am talking to you but there is somebody behind you, your executive director, Mr. Ali al-Lami. Just for the viewers to know who Mr. al-Lami is, correct me if the statement and the story I'm going to tell is wrong. This gentleman was released by US forces back in August of 2009 [Ahmed giggles -- giggles is the term, watch and see] under the charges of terrorism. He was --
Ahmed Chalabi: [Waving finger] No charges!
Jasim al-Azawi: He was -- he was released from prison --
Ahmed Chalabi: No charges!
Jasim al-Azawi: I will come to the story completely, but now let's just say, now he finds --
Ahmed Chalabi: He was kidnapped!
Jasim al-Azawi: He was captured by the Americans because they think --
Ahmed Chalabi: He was kidnapped!
Jasim al-Azawi: Hold on --
Ahmed Chalabi: By contractors at the airpot.
Jasim al-Azawi: Hold on, Mr. Chalabi. He was -- he was not charged directly --
Ahmed Chalabi: He was not charged.
Jasim al-Azawi: I am the first one to say that. Mr. Odierno --
Ahmed Chalabi: He was not charged!
Jasim al-Azawi: I said that. I said that. Let me finish the story. He was believed to be the mastermind of a terrorist act that happened in al-Sadr City where American forces and civilian administrations along with Iraqi officials, they were meeting with some council members in Sadr City the American officials they were on the way out there was an IED and there was an explosion and many people killed. Odierno believes that Mr. al-Lami is directly responsible for that.
Ahmed Chalabi: This is patent nonsense. There is no charge. They have no evidence. And it is based on an intelligence report of one unreliable informer for the American tactical units in the area. They -- Mr. Lami was not arrested. He was kidnapped at the airport by US contractors, taken to a US prison, put under pressure and almost tortured for 38 days and they could get nothing from him on this issue. They have no evidence. He stayed 351 days in jail. And the Iraqi government has no case, n-n-n-n-n-o authority, no legal entity and no intelligence entity of the Iraqi government, there is any charge against Mr. Ali --- Ali al-Lami. And the US has not charged him and he was released without charges. Therefore, legally, he was kidnapped. And as for this issue of the uh-buh-uh-uh people who were killed by-by the IED, he had nothing to do with it. I am certain he had nothing to do with it. And this charge has not been proven.
For those who cannot stream or would not benefit from streaming, Ahmed Chalabi has a a wide grin on his face when Jasim al-Azawi is saying, "He was believed to be the mastermind of a terrorist act that happened in al-Sadr City where American forces and civilian administrations along with Iraqi officials, they were meeting with some council members in Sadr City the American officials they were on the way out there was an IED and there was an explosion and many people killed. Odierno believes that Mr. al-Lami is directly responsible for that." He finds that very humerous for some reason. Others will find it humor in Chalabi whining that "it is based on an intelligence report of one unreliable informer" -- Chalabi, the original unreliable informer.
Over the weekend, Ernesto Londono and Leila Fadel (Washington Post) reported on Chalabi and noted his tarring people as "Ba'athists" "is reprising a role he played after the U.S.-led invasion -- which many critics believe he helped facilitate with faulty intelligence -- and, in the process, is infuriating American officials and some Iraqis, who suspect his motive is to bolster his own political bloc." While Hannah Allam (Miami Herald) reported, "Cheeky opponents of Ahmad Chalabi, the onetime U.S. ally and perennially controversial Shiite Muslim politician, are sending out e-mails of a faux poster with Chalabi's face superimposed on an ad for the classic 1940 film, 'The Thief of Baghdad'." Liz Sly (Los Angeles Times) observes, "As chief architect of the move to disqualify hundreds of candidates accused of ties to the outlawed Baath Party, Chalabi has defined the agenda for the upcoming Iraqi national elections. In doing so, he has thwarted five years of U.S. policy in Iraq aimed at reconciling the Sunni and Shiite Mulsim sects and gotten his revenge against America for dumping him as its favorite back in 2004."
Chalabi is only one candidate in the elections. Another is Ayad Jamal Aldin of the Ahrar Party and they issued the following today:
At the start of a week that has been dominated by news of the continuing and expanding 'de-Baathification' programme, Ahrar 374 Leader Ayad Jamal Aldin noted that the issue continues to distract voters' attention from the Maliki government's failure to deliver on jobs, public services and security. He urged voters to send the government a message and participate in Sunday's election.
De-Baathification is intensifying. Over the past five days, professors at the University of Karbala and Iraq's Southern Oil Company have been targeted. The level of fear-mongering has reached such a fever pitch that large numbers of highly competent professionals that Iraq desperately needs to run government and industry, are afraid for their lives and livelihoods. Just yesterday, it emerged that that violence had surged by 80 percent last month, when compared to January.
Ayad Jamal Aldin - leader of Ahrar 374 - said today, "It is clear what is happening here; the government is attempting to bully the people away from the ballot box. We should not accept it. Where we see these bullying tactics, we must see them for what they really are: an attempt to divert the Iraqi people's focus from the government's chronic failure to deliver jobs, running water and real security."
"The only answer can be to stand up to bullies. And this week, we have the best possible response to them - to take part in this election and vote for change."
For further information, contact:
Ahrar Media BureauTel: +964 (0)790 157 4478 / +964 (0)790 157 4479 / +964 (0)771 275 2942press@ahrarparty.com
About Ayad Jamal Aldin:
Ayad Jamal Aldin is a cleric, best known for his consistent campaigning for a new, secular Iraq. He first rose to prominence at the Nasiriyah conference in March 2003, shortly before the fall of Saddam, where he called for a state free of religion, the turban and other theological symbols. In 2005, he was elected as one of the 25 MPs on the Iraqi National List, but withdrew in 2009 after becoming disenchanted with Iyad Allawi's overtures to Iran. He wants complete independence from Iranian interference in Iraq. He now leads the Ahrar party for the 2010 election to the Council of Representatives, to clean up corruption and create a strong, secure and liberated Iraq for the future.
Another running in the elections in Nouri al-Maliki, the current prime minsiter. Steven Lee Myers (New York Times) notes Nouri's many problems including that he "appears isolated, imperious and impetuous" He adds that Nouri "is neither a charismatic leader nor a polished campaigner" but he may be short changing Nouri on the latter. Martin Chulov (Guardian) reports that Saad al-Alusi, formerly of Iraq's National Intelligence Service, has accused Nouri of giving southern tribal leaders huge numbers of guns (apparently 10,000) in order to buy their votes. Chulov reports it as an accusation but it's reality and that's confirmed in his own story. Nouri's mouthpiece Ali al-Dabbagh insists that, yes, the guns were given, but it was long planned for them to be given so this wasn't a bribe and had nothing to do with the elections. He's handing out the guns days before the election (and again, his own spokesperson confirms he is)? It's a bribe -- and it's not just Nouri. For example, an Iraqi tells War News Radio, "Many are doing this like the Iraqi National Alliance. They distributed blankets, clothes and even shoes. They distributed these in poor neighborhoods. I saw them doing it in front of me." Back to Nouri, Hannah Allam (Miami Herald) reported that Nouri's campaign posters are a popular target in Baghdad: "One of al-Maliki's campaign posters shows him standing shoulder to shoulder with the education minister. The men are wearing matching gray suits. The joke on the street: 'Which one's the groom?'" Of the candidates in general, Laith Hammoudi (McClatchy Newspapers' Inside Iraq) observes:Suddenly, our politicians talk only about the people suffering. They all talk about the lack of services, lack of electricity, the housing crisis, the unemployment crisis and the security issues. Suddenly, most of them who were gaining millions during the last four years started thinking about the financial situation of the poor families who never dreamed of earning even one million Iraqi Dinars ($850). Suddenly, many politicians started visting the rural areas and meeting the innocent poor who were begging for a visit by one of the officials to listen to them or to tell him about a sewage problem or lack of drinking water or the absence of any medical services.
On the most recent episode of Swarthmore College's War News Radio, Gabriel Ramierz spoke to Iraqis about what they're hoping for in the elections.
Saif Adnan, college student in Mosul: We hope the upcoming elections can change the bad conditions in Iraq but the problem is past elections have been one failure after another. This has a negative impact on people's view of the elections. In spite of this we hope that there will be good and fair elections that can take the country to a better level.
Kadeem Hussein, 24-year-old college graduate looking for work: I'd like to see more jobs provided and an improvement in security.
Today AFP interviews Iraq's National Security Adviser, Safa Hussein, who shares some post-election day concerns: "If it takes a long time, we will have some difficulties." If what takes a long time? Creating a new ruling government. Elections are held March 5th through 7th. Then the counting beings. Expect a minimum of one week before results are announced (and those probably won't be certified results). The elections are not to elect a prime minister, they are to elect members of Parliament. MPs -- members of Parliament -- will then elect a prime minister. This can be done quickly if one political party sweeps the elections or it can take awhile if one political party that sweeps has several people who want to be prime minister or if the results spread the votes out amongst many parties. If it's the latter, the MPs of various parties begin working on coalition sharing argreements. This is what concerns Safa Hussein who states, "I would begin to be concerned if it was not established by July." It? We're not even to it yet in the description. After a prime minister is agreed upon, the prime minister then needs to appoint a cabinet. That becomes the central government out of Baghdad. Nouri missed both his own announced deadline in 2006 for appointing a cabinet as well as the Constitutionally mandated deadline. And those wondering about July should remember that the Parliamentary elections were held in December 2005 and Nouri was announced prime minister in April 2006. Aseel Kami, Missy Ryan, Michael Christie and Myra MacDonald (Reuters) report that other candidates include Salama al-Khafahi and Masoun al-Damalouji -- among the women running for the Parliament and details how, despite being a country in which women became doctors as far back as the 1930s and they appointed their first woman governmental minister in the 1950s, post-invasion, Iraqi women are having to start over. Others will be a position of greater power, Jack Kimball, Shamal Aqrawi, Michael Christie and Matthew Jones (Reuters) report that, as in 2005, the Kurds are "expected to emerge as powerful kingmakers" since no party is expected to win a majority of the votes -- therefore no party would be able to select the prime minister by themselves without first forming some coalition sharing agreements. Michael Jansen (Irish Times) reports from the KRG and quotes a clerk named Muhammad stating that the PUK/KDP alliance has governened them since 1991: "Nineteen years is enough. We have only six hours of government electricity a day. We have to buy electricity from a private company with generators. Salaries are low. Mine is only $300 a month. Scools and hospitals are bad. There are no jobs. Although security is better here, we have the same problems as Arab Iraqis."
John Catalinotto (Workers World) offers his take on the elections:
The March 7 election -- should it take place as scheduled -- will be as much a farce as the one held in Afghanistan last summer. A complete client state, which was only able to take power with the force of the occupation behind it, is organizing the elections. It is organizing them in order to consolidate power for the groupings that support Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.
These are parties that opposed the Ba'athist government led by Saddam Hussein. Al-Maliki signed the papers hurrying the execution of the Iraqi leader on Dec. 30, 2006. At that time Saddam Hussein was a symbol of struggle for a significant section of the Iraqi resistance to the U.S.-led occupation.
During the electoral campaign, al-Maliki's government outlawed the candidacy of 454 people who were running for national office, claiming that these individuals were too close to the Ba'ath Party. Some 171 of these candidates appealed the decision disqualifying them. In February a panel of judges appointed for the purpose rejected the appeals of all but 26 candidates.
Following this decision barring the most secular of the candidates, the Iraqi National Movement coalition led by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi announced it would temporarily suspend its campaign and demanded that the bans be reversed. On Feb 21, one of the parties in this coalition, the mostly Sunni National Dialog Front, announced that it would boycott the election.
There is still a chance the election will fall apart. Even if the vote takes place, as in Afghanistan, it will be a fraud having nothing to do with democracy. U.S. troops -- even if they are not engaged in daily battles in Iraq -- still remain the final arbiters of Iraqi politics.
Saturday, Zenit reported, "In a letter sent to the Iraqi prime minster, the patriarch of the Syriac Catholic Church accused the authorities of complicity with the perpetrators of the massacre of Mosul Christians. His Beatitude Ignace Joseph III Younan, 65, sent the letter on Wednesday to Nouri al-Maliki, decrying the murder of Christians in Mosul, northern Iraq." Nouri's announced a 'probe.' He announces that every time, doesn't he? Have his probes ever turned up anything? Nope. Not a thing. Again Iraqi-Christians are being persecuted in Mosul and again they're having to flee because no protection is provided for them. Zenit has published the letter sent by Archbishop Ignace Joseph III Younan, "We are astonished at the reasons given by government employees and from their failure we can deduce that there is complicity in the process of emptying the city of Christians, who have lived there for centuries. We raise our voices and ask: If the security forces in Iraq have not been able to protect the innocent and vulnerable, why in the name of God aren't weapons given to the innocent so that they can defend themselves instead of letting them be taken to the slaughter like sheep?"
It is in that climate that Iraqi Christians decided to forgo mass on Sunday and march. Spero News quoted Archbishop Georges Casmoussa stating, "The march will take place in Mosul and in a dozen Christian towns and villages of the surrounding territory. The community is shocked and wants to draw the attention of the authorities who so far have done nothing to stop this killing. The march has no political or electoral motives, only religious ones. The Christians want to stay in Iraq and live their faith in peace." But some have begun to flee for their lives. BBC notes, "The UN says more than 680 Christian families have fled Mosul since the recent attacks." New Zealand's Herald News states that's 4098 people. Marches took place yesterday in Mosul and Baghdad. Al Jazeera reports:Holding olive branches and the national flag, demonstrators vented their anger on Sunday over the poor security afforded them in the wake of a series of killings.Shouting slogans such as "stop the killing of Christians", hundreds of demonstrators called on authorities to guarantee their protection as they marched round al-Ferdus Square in central Baghdad. Bishop Shlemon Warduni, the second most senior Chaldean bishop, also took part in the protest and called for more to be done to protect his community. "The government has done nothing so far," he said, demanding that the United Nations, United States and European Union "defend the rights of Christians in Mosul". Catholic Culture reports, "In Kirkuk, Chaldean Archbishop Louis Sake led another prayer rally, saying that Christians there would also be fasting" and quoted him stating, "It is shameful that in a city like Mosul, with a million people, no one has spoken out against the slaughter of Christians." The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) issued a [PDF format warning] four-page report entitled "Iraq Displacement in Mosul, Situation Report No. 1" which notes the 683 families who have fled Mosul between Feb. 20 and 27, and notes that 12 Iraqi Christians have been killed during this time period. (At least one other was wounded but survived a shooting.) The displaced have scattered but the largest number, 331 families, have settled for now in Qaraqosh.
Vatican Radio (link has text and audio) provided Pope Benedict XVI speaking Sunday at St. Peter's Square where he addressed the persecution in Mosul:
Pope Benedict XVI: I have learned with profound sadness of the tragic news of the recent killings of several Christians in the city of Mosul, and I follow with great concern other episodes of violence, perpetrated in the troubled land of Iraq against defenceless people of different religious affiliation. In these days of intense meditation, I often prayed for all victims of those attacks, and today I wish to join in the spirit to pray for peace and the restoration of security, promoted by the Council of Bishops of Nineveh. I am affectionately close to the Christian communities of the entire country. Never tire of being a leaven for good in the country in which you have fully belonged for centuries. In the delicate political phase that Iraq is going through I appeal to the civil authorities, to make every effort to restore security to the population and, in particular, the most vulnerable religious minorities. I hope the temptation is not given into temporary and partisan interests allowing them to prevail over the safety and fundamental rights of every citizen. Finally, while greeting the Iraqis here in the square, I urge the international community to strive to give the Iraqis a future of reconciliation and justice, as I invoke Almighty God with confidence for the precious gift of peace.
Nizar Latif (UAE's The National Newspaper) observes, "Promises from the government to hold an inquiry into the incident [specifically the slaughter of Aishwa Maroki and his two sons] have done little to soothe the anger felt by Iraq's Christians, who point out that the killers never seem to be brought to justice." Latif also notes, "Large numbers of Iraqi refugees in Syria and Jordan are Christians, Yezidis or Sabaeans. The United Nations in Syria lists more than 30,000 registered refugees from minority groups, most of whom fled from sectarian violence in Baghdad, Basra and Mosul." KRG President Barzani tells Jane Arraf (Christian Science Monitor) of the persecution, "This also shows the incompetence of the local government in Mousl." Layla Anwar (An Arab Woman Blues) notes:FACT is Iraq's Christians have never experienced this violence before Christian America occupied us. I have already written about that extensively, just google my blog and you will see for yourself... FACT is that the targeting of Christians is a DELIBERATE policy by the sectarian Shiite puppet government installed by the USA in complicit agreement with the KURDS. And this is a continuation of the policy of ethnic cleansing leading to radical demographic changes. And that policy started with the ethnic and sectarian cleansing of Sunni ARABS. Every God fearing Muslim must , should condemn the targeting and killing of Iraq's Christian community. I know that the Association of Muslim Scholars AMSI has already issued a statement of condemnation to that effect. And just as true God fearing Christians stood by Iraq and her people, regardless of their religion and sect, it is incumbent upon every true God fearing Muslim to condemn LOUDLY the killing of Iraqi Christians. But not only them, every other minority whether they are Yazidis, Sabaeans- Mandaeans, Turkmen or any other,.. their killing should be condemned and STOPPED by any means necessary. All these communities are part of Iraq and Iraq is part of them since centuries...and by condemning this act, denouncing it and striving to STOP it, you are re-affirming the Mosaic of Iraq and its UNITY that no barbaric, godless occupation, be it American, Iranian or Israeli will manage to destroy.
In some of today's reported violence, Reuters notes 1 "member of the Kurdistan Islamic Group, a Kurdish election list," was shot dead outside his Tuz Khurmato home yesterday and that 4 Iraqi soldiers were wounded in a Mosul grenade attack yesterday.
Meanwhile the number of US service members who have died due to the Iraq War now stands at 4380. DoD issued the following late Friday: "The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. William C. Spencer, 40, of Tacoma, Wash., died Feb. 25 at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany, of wounds sustained Feb. 20 while supporting combat operations at Combat Outpost Marez, Iraq. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 146th Field Artillery Regiment, Olympia, Wash. For more information, media may contact the Washington National Guard public affairs office at 253-512-8481." The Washington Governor's office issued the following:OLYMPIA -- Gov. Chris Gregoire today issued the following statement on the loss of Sergeant William Spencer of Tacoma, who died from non-combat related injuries while serving in Iraq:"I stand with all Washingtonians today as we mourn the loss of Sergeant William Spencer. Sergeant Spencer was a proud member of the 81st -- and chose to stay in Iraq with the Mississippi Army National Guard when his unit came home. He is a true hero who sacrificed his life to protect our freedoms, and provide a better life for those living in the Middle East."I extend my deepest condolences to Sergeant Spencer's friends, family and loved ones. My family will certainly keep them in our thoughts and prayers."
The month ended yesterday. Tolls are being issued. Thus far, 5 US service members have been announced dead for the month of February (many months end with late announcements made the first week of the next month). The Iraqi death toll? First, we'll recount the dead and wounded via Third Estate Sunday Review. From Third Feb. 7, 2010: "Sunday 2 people were reported dead and 14 wounded; Monday 57 were reported dead and 126 wounded; Tuesday 3 were reported dead and 12 wounded; Wednesday 27 were killed and 183 wounded; Thursday 4 were reported dead and 8 wounded and Friday 44 were reported dead and 161 wounded plus 1 person kidnapped; and Saturday 1 US contractor was reported kidnapped. That's 137 reported dead and 495 wounded." From Third on Feb. 14th, "Meanwhile, the violence continued in Iraq. Sunday 11 people was reported dead and 6 wounded; Monday 1 dead and 1 wounded; Tuesday 1 was reported dead and 6 wounded; Wednesday 4 dead and 19 wounded; Thursday 3 were reported dead and 7 wounded; Friday 18 dead and 40 wounded; and Saturday 2 were reported dead and 14 wounded for a total of 36 reported dead and 94 wounded." From Third Feb. 21st, "Sunday 8 people were reported dead and 10 were reported wounded; Monday 2 were reported dead and 4 were reported wounded; Tuesday 8 were reported dead and 16 reported wounded; Wednesday 3 were reported dead and 6 wounded; Thursday 13 were reported dead and 52 wounded; Friday 2 were reported dead and 1 wounded; and Saturday 6 were reported dead and 2 wounded. That adds up to 42 killed and 91 wounded -- reported killed and wounded, actual numbers are no doubt higher." From Third on Feb. 28th, "Sunday 9 Iraqis were reported dead and 20 were reported wounded, Monday 24 were reported dead and 16 injured, Tuesday 14 were reported dead and 9 wounded, Wednesday 1 judge was reported dead and 1 employee of the Independent High Electoral Commission was reported injured, Thursday 5 reported dead and 2 wounded, Friday 2 reported dead 12 reported wounded and Saturday 2 reported dead and 1 wounded. In total at least 57 reported deaths and 71 reported injured by Western media with many deaths and injuries going unreported." Those counts are short on McClatchy because McClatchy did not file a daily report in February. The totals are 272 dead and 751 injured. Xinhua (link has text and audio) reports that the Iraqi death toll climbed last month according to the Defense, Health and Interior Ministries with 352 people killed and 684 injured.
In financial and colonization news, last week, we noted BBC News reporting that the IMF will be 'loaning' $3.6 billion and "Analysts say the conditions attached to previous IMF loans have caused resentment among Iraqis as they have struggled to compete with neighbouring countries in trade." Now Reuters reports that Iraq will be receiving two $250 million loans from the World Bank -- which means Robert Zoellick's colonizing efforts continue. In other financial news, one country the US waged illegal war against teams up with another, Voice of Vietnam reports that Vietnam will sell "90,000 tonnes of five-percent broken rice to Iraq".
Want to end the wars? March 20th, marches in DC, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The Students for a Democratic Society are an organization that will be participating and they note:
While the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan is growing ever larger, the occupation of Iraq is still raging, nearing its seventh anniversary. With over 4,300 US soldiers and over 1.3 million Iraqi civilians estimated dead, something has to be done to stop this senseless slaughter.
This year Students for a Democratic Society will hold a national week of action March 15th to 20th where students will organize protests and direct actions at campuses across the country in opposition to the ongoing, brutal occupations.
The need for a vibrant anti-war movement has rarely been felt more than this very moment, while the United States drops trillions of dollars into unjust wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, during the worst economic crisis in 80 years. Students are struggling to pay for school while tuition skyrockets, and states lose billions of dollars to two continuing occupations.
On Saturday, March 20th, SDS will participate in a massive National March & Rally in D.C. hosted by A.N.S.W.E.R. to finish the week of action with tens of thousands of people in the street!
We're calling on students and youth from across the country to join us the week of March 15-20th in demanding: Fund Education, Not Occupation!
For more information visit: http://sdsantiwar.wordpress.com/
Winding down, Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Barack Renews The Patriot Act" went up last night and Kat's "Kat's Korner: The ultimate torch singer Sade" went up Saturday and her "Kat's Korner: Joanna Newsom's triumph" went up Sunday. And Amped Status has been working on an ambitious series of reports and part-six is now up, "Part VI: How to Fight Back and Win: Common Ground Issues That Must Be Won - The Economic Elite Vs. The People of the USA". And click here to see the daily video from the DPC, today being Senator Dick Durbin weighing in on Republican filibustering on the extension of unemployment benefits.
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inside iraq
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the washington posternesto londonoleila fadel
miami heraldhannah allam
the los angeles timesliz sly
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Monday, March 01, 2010
Friday, February 26, 2010
Iraq, films
"Updates on the Iraqi 'Elections'" (Layla Anwar, An Arab Woman Blues):
- A martial law/curfew will take effect in all of Iraq, starting on the eve of the 6th of March and that for 48 hours. That will include the closing down of ALL borders, airports, streets, etc...(some democracy huh !)
- Killings continue in Baghdad and its provinces. In Baghdad,- Hurriya district, 4 women gunned down by the silencer, Baghdad's morgue is receiving more bodies - total number so far 70, killing of a judge by the famous silencer and the number of judges killed since 2003 according to the puppet police is 15.
- a cheap ploy by Al.Maliki's government in encouraging 20'000 members of the ex-Iraqi army to apply for jobs in the government. A cheap ploy and a dangerous one because last time a similar offer was made, about 2 years ago, hundreds of ex army officers presented themselves for their pension and were murdered in broad daylight in front of the ministries. So if any of you are reading this - make sure you don't fall in this trap, however difficult your situation is now.
-3 mortars fell on Green zone and a "rain" of mortars fell on an unused airport now transformed into a joint American/Iraqi base in Al-Ammara in Mayssan province - Southern Iraq.
- Diyala - a US convoy was attacked with road explosives.
- Baquba - a joint US/Iraq force caught 4 members of Iranian special forces with another cache of explosives
- Mosul : a witch hunt against Iraqi Christians is taking place in the Nineveh province, 6 have been gunned down by the famous "silencer gun". Iraqi Christians are fleeing Mosul in droves.
- On the Kurdish front a serious split is taking place. A splinter group from the PUK of Jalal Tabalani calling itself the Party of Change is now in some alliance with the Kurdish Islamic group and a few Kurdish communists, their main grievances - lack of transparency, corruption and dictatorship by the Kurdish leadership.
On another note regarding the Kurds and this is an VERY IMPORTANT POINT so pay attention please.
In the past the Kurds managed to secure about 58 seats in the Iraqi parliament, this time around, they are aiming for more seats BECAUSE - MOSUL, KIRKUK and a part of DIWANIYA is placed under the Kurdish electoral list.
- Snoring General Odierno has asked has made a special preliminary request to Obama to keep a good number of troops notably in KIRKUK past their deadline to secure "peace in the area". Obama has given a preliminary OK.
- VP Tariq Hashimi during his visit to Egypt states that IRAQ needs an ARAB government. (No shit - Did he just discover dynamite or what ?!)
- Al- Lami (Chalabi's best friend) of the Justice and Accountability committee has not only banned Saleh Al-Mutlaq from the elections but is presenting him to Iraq's Higher criminal/penal courts. Dr.Al-Mutlaq has been urged by people who support him to leave Baghdad for his own safety, something which he refuses to do...
C.I. had to flip the template and the new one changes up the permalinks meaning that if someone posts, their site goes to the top until someone else posts, etc. So I saw that Layla Anwar was at the top and wanted to grab something from her.
- A martial law/curfew will take effect in all of Iraq, starting on the eve of the 6th of March and that for 48 hours. That will include the closing down of ALL borders, airports, streets, etc...(some democracy huh !)
- Killings continue in Baghdad and its provinces. In Baghdad,- Hurriya district, 4 women gunned down by the silencer, Baghdad's morgue is receiving more bodies - total number so far 70, killing of a judge by the famous silencer and the number of judges killed since 2003 according to the puppet police is 15.
- a cheap ploy by Al.Maliki's government in encouraging 20'000 members of the ex-Iraqi army to apply for jobs in the government. A cheap ploy and a dangerous one because last time a similar offer was made, about 2 years ago, hundreds of ex army officers presented themselves for their pension and were murdered in broad daylight in front of the ministries. So if any of you are reading this - make sure you don't fall in this trap, however difficult your situation is now.
-3 mortars fell on Green zone and a "rain" of mortars fell on an unused airport now transformed into a joint American/Iraqi base in Al-Ammara in Mayssan province - Southern Iraq.
- Diyala - a US convoy was attacked with road explosives.
- Baquba - a joint US/Iraq force caught 4 members of Iranian special forces with another cache of explosives
- Mosul : a witch hunt against Iraqi Christians is taking place in the Nineveh province, 6 have been gunned down by the famous "silencer gun". Iraqi Christians are fleeing Mosul in droves.
- On the Kurdish front a serious split is taking place. A splinter group from the PUK of Jalal Tabalani calling itself the Party of Change is now in some alliance with the Kurdish Islamic group and a few Kurdish communists, their main grievances - lack of transparency, corruption and dictatorship by the Kurdish leadership.
On another note regarding the Kurds and this is an VERY IMPORTANT POINT so pay attention please.
In the past the Kurds managed to secure about 58 seats in the Iraqi parliament, this time around, they are aiming for more seats BECAUSE - MOSUL, KIRKUK and a part of DIWANIYA is placed under the Kurdish electoral list.
- Snoring General Odierno has asked has made a special preliminary request to Obama to keep a good number of troops notably in KIRKUK past their deadline to secure "peace in the area". Obama has given a preliminary OK.
- VP Tariq Hashimi during his visit to Egypt states that IRAQ needs an ARAB government. (No shit - Did he just discover dynamite or what ?!)
- Al- Lami (Chalabi's best friend) of the Justice and Accountability committee has not only banned Saleh Al-Mutlaq from the elections but is presenting him to Iraq's Higher criminal/penal courts. Dr.Al-Mutlaq has been urged by people who support him to leave Baghdad for his own safety, something which he refuses to do...
C.I. had to flip the template and the new one changes up the permalinks meaning that if someone posts, their site goes to the top until someone else posts, etc. So I saw that Layla Anwar was at the top and wanted to grab something from her.
She's a very interesting woman and I love her anger. If you're not angry, you're not paying attention.
Me?
I am just tired. Long sessions today. The elections, back to the elections.
The smartest move a crook like Nouri made to cover his own tracks was the insistance that journalists be registered. He knew that would take out most of the in depth reporting by the West since they really do rely on stringers -- both to go out throughout Iraq and also to find the promising leads.
I'm not sure how much truth we would have gotten anyway from, for example, the New York Times. But what's his little 'rule' has done is, in effect, turn the Western reporters into human veal. They're penned in and unable to move freely as usual but now they can't even rely on the Iraqi reporters working for their outlets.
I think there's going to be huge fraud (I base that on the fraud that took place in 2005) and I don't think anyone's going to care. I think international observers see their role solely as legitimatizing the vote by any means necessary.
Those are my thoughts, anyway.
"Where's the election coverage" (The Common Ills):
Turning to an idiot named Martha P. Nochimson whose life made her hateful and stupid. At Salon, she insists Kathryn Bigelow is a transvestite and means it as an insult. She's got her panties in a wad because Kathryn directed The Hurt Locker. And she's convinced herself that it's a 'macho' movie and 'unnatural' to women. Yes, folks, that's how disgusting Martha is, all these years after women have had to fight for equality, prove that could do any job they wanted to go out for, along comes Martha to trash Kathryn.
And where is the feminist outcry calling this out? For a second, let's pretend that Kathryn's a lesbian. (She's not, we're pretending.) Would it be politic for Martha to call her a transvestite? No. And if Kathryn had what was seen as a masculine appearance, would Martha get away with this 'critique'?
No, she wouldn't.
So why is she getting away with it now and she's not the only one pulling this s**t?
Martha wants to whine about Julie & Julia not getting 'respect.' She wants to compare Kathryn to Nora Ephron.
There is no comparison. First off, Julie & Julia was a flat movie. With the exception of Meryl, the performances are bad, the script is bad and the source material was bad. The direction is static. There are some wonderful shots of food due to Nora's historic obsession with food. That's really all it's got.
Nora is a former columnist and reporter (and media critic). She's very familiar with the word. And that hasn't translated to a visual talent. 'Her' best movie remains When Harry Met Sally . . .
which she wrote but Rob Reiner directed. Nora really doesn't have a visual sense. Not a problem for a writer but a problem for a director.
There are many directors with a visual sense -- Nora isn't one of them. Which is why she needs Meg Ryan to invest a visual into her material. Close ups create the visuals for Nora's film which is why the non-Meg Ryan films flop. There are few actresses or actors who can carry that kind of weight/burden. (Nora's worst films -- Mixed Nuts and Lucky Numbers -- tend to leave audiences exasperated and wondering what the director sees since it appears the camera meanders around with no rhyme or reason.) If you doubt Nora's lack of visual expertise, contrast the bookstore scene in WHMS, directed by Rob, where Meg and Carrie Fisher spot Billy Crystal. Rob uses the space and the framing aspect of the camera as well as angles to add a nice tension to the scene. Contrast that with Meg spying on Tom Hanks in Sleepless in Seattle and realize how the whole thing is basically a close up that exists with no care taken to angles or visuals other than push the camera into Meg's face and make her sell the whole damn scene. Remember too that it turns out her character is almost run over in that scene and there's no visual set up for it, there's nothing done to shape it. The whole scene depends on Meg. That's a big burden to carry and Nora's very lucky to get Meg to play those roles.
Nora has directing strengths. They include a rhythm that can't be topped when she's really going. It leads to scenes that really snap. But in terms of a visual feel, she's never had it. Fair or not, the directors nominated for Best Director (all but four have been men) are usually known for their visuals. A good craftsperson doesn't generally get nominated. That doesn't mean they aren't talented (and Nora is talented), it doesn't mean they can't make a profitable film (Nora's directed many hits) or one that reaches audiences (Nora's Sleepless reached in ways that many directors never do). It just means a writing award may consider the style and a directing award may focus on the visuals.
Kathryn has a visual sense, she's always had a strong visual. Whether it was Point Break, Blue Steel, Strange Days or what have you, the visual sense, a strong director's eye has always been present. There's really no reason to compare the two. It's amazing that Kathryn has to compete against four men for the title of Best Director AND Martha wants her to compete with every woman director as well. Martha's the one who raised the comparison to Nora or I would've kept quiet. I know Nora and I've never offered a take publicly on her films other than that I enjoyed them. But if Martha wants to go there, let's go there. (I'm not taking the bite on Nancy whom I also know and who does have a strong visual. But I like Nancy more than I like Nora -- a lot more.)
Kathryn has made films that speak to her interests and they don't speak to Martha's so Martha trashes her as being a man in drag and think she's offered a criticism of Kathyrn when all she's done is reveal how sexist she is and how determined she is to set the cause back for all women. I know Kathryn, leave that aside. I have campaigned (offline) with other voters, leave that aside. What Martha's done is say that a woman must do something 'girly' or not be considered a woman. That's sexism.
Martha's slobbering over Quentin Tarantino while trashing Kathryn. I'm not aware of any strands of racism running through Kathryn's films. I'm not aware of her attempting to make a buck off exploiting racial stereotypes. But Martha loves her some Quentin and thinks his movies -- violence and all -- are perfectly natural. I'm not remembering Kathryn doing such blantant rip offs of Brian DePalma that she should be sued in a court of law. (That would be Quentin for the Daryl Hannah hospital scenes in Kill Bill Vol. I.) I'm not remembering a scene in one of Kathryn's films where we're supposed to laugh as Bridget Fonda (or any woman) is shot dead because she won't 'shut up.' That doesn't bother 'feminist' Martha. Quentin, famous for comparing Madonna's vagina to "Bubble Yum" (implying Madonna's had 'too much' sex) in his first film, doesn't bother Martha. But Kathryn -- who has long been the female action director -- directing The Hurt Locker is 'unnatural.'
A woman and her work are being termed 'unnatural' because Martha P. Nochimson thinks women should just be interested in romantic coupling. And this sexism on Martha's part isn't being called out?
This is why women lose over and over. Not just awards but in real life. We let a Martha act bitchy (only term for it) and refuse to call her out. She needs to be called out. How dare she declare any woman to be a 'transvestite' (as an insult) in order to spit on that woman's choices. You better grasp that -- and the US is in multiple wars right now -- it's a very short step from trashing Kathryn as 'masculine' to trashing women in the military as the same. You better grasp that Martha's attack on Kathryn is of the same cloth and fabric. And it needs to stop, it damn well needs to stop.
Martha, in the supposed name of feminism, wants to tell all women to sit down and look pretty in a dress while the boys go outside and play. There's nothing feminist about that and there's nothing feminist about Martha. A functioning feminism would result in Martha P. Nochimson being loudly and repeatedly called out.
Jennifer Merin actually knows a thing or two about film. She offers a critique of The Hurt Locker for Women's eNews.
I read the above yesterday morning and thought, "Friday, I'm cross-posting or re-posting." That is just too good. I love C.I.'s writing. I always have and something like this, it reads like it's spoken. (Which is the feel C.I. went after online from the start, a conversation.)
I think she's saying something so amazing in the above and saying it amazingly well.
"Iraq snapshot" (The Common Ills):
Friday, February 26, 2010. Chaos and violence continue, election frenzy continues in Iraq, KBR gets a set back as well as a win (on a technicality), did Gordon Brown scream "You ruined my life" at a well known figure and why, Iraqi Christians flee Mosul, and more.
Iraq elections start in less than seven days (voting lasts from March 5th through March 7th) and there's been very little coverage of the campaigns. In part that's due to the restrictive press environment in Iraq which has only gotten more restrictive. Ernesto Londono (Washington Post) speaks with Iraqi journalist Nadjha Khadum who made her name with repeated investigative reporting during Saddam Hussein's era. She says that back then, you only had to prove that it was true. Today, it's much worse and journalists are targeted for assassinations for exposes. (This is true throughout Iraq -- in the KRG as well as central and southern Iraq.) Since the start of the Iraq War, things have only gotten worse for the press. Londono notes, "The guidelines that Iraq's Communications and Media Commission issued last month bar journalists from withholding the names of sources and threaten action against those who publish information that incites violence -- a criterion that is ill-defined. The rules also say news organizations must apply for licenses, register equipment with the commission and provide a list of employees." Supposedly this elections (voting starts March 5th and ends the 7th) are monumental. The press and the US administration has invested all this meaning in them which, alone, would mean the campaigning would be covered. When you add in that the increase in violence as well as the bannings give it an increased 'timely' quality and news value (conflict is always news), you should expect to read tons of coverage on the campaigning. That's not happening. And it's in part because Nouri's insisting that those covering the elections register with the government. Most outlets rely on Iraqi journalists to be stringers and eyes and ears as well as to be the co- or sole reporter on news reports but many of the Iraqis cannot register as journalists due to threats that might follow as a result of their occupation being known. This has seriously curtailed a great deal of coverage news consumers would otherwise be receiving. And Reporters Without Borders releases an overview today of the problems in the north where the Kurdistan Regional Government rules. Awene newspaper's founder Asos Hardi states, "The authorities do not stop talking about freedom of expression, constantly boasting of media's independence. But these words are meaningless. In practice, the authorities in Iraqi Kurdistan do not believe in freedom of expression." AFP reports on the overview and also notes, "Iraq's election commission has imposed a 9:00 pm curfew on campaigning in Sulaimaniyah province after a number of violent incidents were reported. The province has been the focus of considerable tension between rival Kurdish parties, vying for maximum leverage in the event that the Kurds are kingmakers in the next Iraqi government." Sarwar Salar Chuchani (The Comment Factory) interviews Joost Hiltermann -- he's with the Crisis Group which makes him US government adjacent:
Chuchani: Do you believe the Kurdish participation in multi-list Iraqi elections will weaken their position in Baghdad?
Hiltermann: It will not affect the Kurds' position with regard to key questions concerning Kirkuk and other disputed territories, oil and gas, or the powers of the Kurdistan region. But it may have an impact on a host of other questions, such as most importantly the Iraqi presidency, unless -- I suppose -- the Kurdistani list make certain concessions to Goran that Goran is asking for. I don't know whether they will be able to reach an agreement.
Chuchani: What is the debate over Kirkuk leading to?
Hiltermann: Hopefully to a peaceful, negotiated, compromise solution that can be sustainable.
Chuchani: Do you believe Kurdish parties are committed to the establish of the rule of law, democracy and human rights?
Hiltermann: I don't know. But since they have said they are committed to this, they should be held to their word. In this respect, the opposition parties and the KRG's international sponsors could play a constructive role. International pressure has certainly contributed to a certain progress on this front since 1991.
Kirkuk is the disputed region claimed by both the KRG and the central government or 'government' in Baghdad. Each side argues historical rights to the area. The Kurds have repeatedly called for a census and a vote on the issue. In that call, they are on strong ground because the Iraq Constitution mandates that both take place -- both were supposed to have taken place by 2007 and still haven't. Missy Ryan, Mustafa Mahmoud, Khalid al-Ansary and Samia Nakhoul (Reuters) note today that, "The dispute over Kirkuk, which Kurds want to make part of their semi-autonomous northern region, is now seen as a chief threat to security as Iraq emerges from a bloody sectarian war and tests its fragile democracy in national polls on March 7."Voting will take place in 16 other countries besides Iraq due to Iraq's large refugee population. Bassel Oudat (Al-Ahram Weekly) reports from Damascus that no campaigning is going on there yet within the Iraqi refugee community and Oudat notes, "Many had expected changes in the electoral process, but their hopes have been dashed. Now, the refugees believe that the forthcoming Iraqi elections may well turn out to be a farce." In Iraq, Jane Arraf (Christian Science Monitor) reports, "A little over a week before the Iraq eleciton, the country is a cauldron of political attacks, sectarian divisions, and conspiracy theories that could limit the turnout in the country's most important national elections to date." Sami Moubayed (Asia Times) offers, "In Karbala, a massive turnout of poor people showed up at a rally for Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, breaking through security to present him with petitions, knowing that no time is better for ordinary Iraqis to reach out directly to top officials -- and have all their requests answered immediately."
Candidates are running to become one of the 325 members of Parliament. The Parliament elects the Prime Minister. Technically, the current Parliament and Prime Minister (Nouri) aren't 'in office' -- their terms have expired. Elections were supposed to take place in December and then moved back to January and now March. In Iraq, the process is such that the votes will not be counted for several days or weeks. After the vote tallies are released, the Parliament will be known. However, it could be (could be) weeks before a prime minister is named. The naming could take place quickly. If, for example, State of Law holds a large number of seats and enters into political alliance with other major blocs, Nouri could be re-named prime minister in a matter of days. How likely is that? Well, when you run off all your competition, you make it a lot easier. But naming any prime minister may take much longer. There are new factions and parties and the creation of those may have led to grudges that could be hard to put aside. December 15, 2005, the last Parliamentary elections were held (for only 275 seats back then). The election results were not 'official' until January 20, 2006. (They still weren't certified at that point.) And Nouri, who was not the first choice, was not named as prime minister until April 22, 2006.Something similar may take place this time around. If it took as long as last time (which most observers -- including at the UN -- do not expect), it would be July before a prime minister was selected. On the second hour of today's The Diane Rehm Show (NPR), Diane's panel was composed of Thom Shanker (New York Times), Farah Stockman (Boston Globe) and David Wood (Politics.Daily.com) and, discussing the arrest in Pakistan of Abdolmalek Rigi, Iraq came up.
Thom Shanker: [. . .] and this arrest came literally one week after Gen Ray Odierno, the senior American commander in Iraq, was in Washington spoke very forcefully and for the first time about Iranian influence in the upcoming elections in Iraq and the fact that two leading Shi'ite politicians had been in Iran recently meeting with Quods forces commanders who are on the terror watch list. So this is a lot of sort of, you know, tic-tac-toe and tit-for-tat going on here.
Diane Rehm: Now what about these elections scheduled for March 7th? We're told that the anti-American bloc is gaining power, Thom?
Thom Shanker: Well it's a very complicated situation. The Shi'ite majority have been trying to block some of the Sunni candidates on the grounds that some of their leaders were former members of the Saddam Hussein political party, the Ba'ath Party. Uh -- the Sunni were going -- many parties were going to stay out of the election. They just announced this morning [C.I. note, he means they announced yesterday] they got wisdom and they will participate after all. Although, you know, if it's a fair majority rule vote, they're going to lose. But the Shi'ite majority government did something else very interesting. It reinstated several thousands maybe 10 - 20,000 former Saddam era military officers not at the highest levels but at the mid-levels so there's lots of politicking going on which, overall, is healthy and it's probably going to be thirty, sixty or ninety days after the vote whether we see it will be a stable movement forward or whether things fall apart.
Diane Rehm: And how strong is Nouri al-Maliki right now -- the prime minister?
Thom Shanker: Well, he's in the driver's seat so he has all the advantages of incumbancy but the problem is again that we see in these very tense, kind of confrontations, it's the more radical people who always get the upper hand. In this case, it's Moqtar [Moqtada] al-Sadr who has -- I think the name "fire brand" is permanently attached to his name. He's an extremest, uh, Islamic cleric and led a militia which fought bitterly against US forces for years and was sort of based in Sadr City and so on. It's likely that he will have a major hand in the next government and so the interesting thing is: So what? He can have a lot of anti-American rhetoric and so forth which would be politically helpful but what will it actually mean? US Ambassador to Iraq Chris Hill said the other day that he'd gotten assurances from major Iraqi political features that whatever agreements Iraq had reached under the current government would still be held by who ever takes power next. Uh, he also said that they'd agreed during his campaign to be nice to each other, not to call each other names and abide by the outcome of the elections, so who knows?
Diane Rehm: Farah?
Farah Stockman: Well it's just fascinating to watch Iraqi politics unfold and if you go back to the days when we were orchestrating everything and the people we put in power and now it's just going to be a surprise to see what happens.
Programming note: Al Jazeera's Inside Iraq begins airing this evening and repeats throughout (and streams online) the weekend. The guest will be Ahmed Chalabi who will respond to comments by Odierno and others. One of the political parties competing in the elections is the Ahrar Party and they issued the following today:
Ayad Jamal Aldin unveils Ahrar plan for security, public services and employment within Iraq
Last night Ayad Jamal Aldin, leader of the Ahrar Party, cemented the Ahrar Party's electoral credentials in a live TV interview, with questioning from a three-man panel and the public, for Al Baghdadiya.
Revealing Ahrar's plan for security, public services and employment within Iraq, Ayad Jamal Aldin received an unprecedented reaction from the viewers.
Following the interview, Al Baghdadiya reported that they received over 1,000 callers and emails supporting Ayad Jamal Aldin and predicting that he could well be the future prime minister of Iraq.
During the interview, the outspoken leader once again challenged current Prime Minister, Nouri Al-Maliki, to a live TV debate where he promised to "demonstrate to the Iraqi people how corrupt the current government has become." So far, Maliki has yet to respond to any of Jamal Aldin's previous invitations.
Jamal Aldin, a descendent of the prophet Mohammed, was asked by viewers how his party's secular policies conformed with his clerical garments. "You make a big issue about my clothes. There are many men wearing clerical dress and they used to wear the military uniform during Saddam's time. It doesn't matter what you wear, what matters is how wear it."
Jamal Aldin's secular views and strong anti-Iranian stance have not made him popular amongst certain factions within the country. He's been the victim of six assassination attempts since 2003. However, he reassured viewers over Ahrar's stance on Israel. "Iraq is an Arabic nation and we are part of the Arab League. We take the same position on Israel as the rest of the Arab world."
The Ahrar Plan for reconstruction within Iraq includes inviting the leading construction companies in the world to pitch for business in the future development projects within the country.
One caller stated that other parties were offering free housing; which Jamal Aldin dismissed as frivolous lies. "If any politician says he will build you a housing compound and give it to the people for free, he is lying. Ahrar knows what needs to be done. We will create a new bank, specifically for these projects, and inject an initial $5 billion dollars. We will then ask rich companies from around the world to be part of the bank. This bank's role will be to provide low-interest loans to the Iraqi people to enable them to build their own houses."
Another viewer asked him about the financing of his campaign and the reported $10 million - of his own money - he was using to fund the party. "Would this money not be better off being spent on reconciliation projects for the poor?"
"$10 million is incomparable to the billions of dollars that the people of Iraq have been deprived of through the corruption and wastage of the current government. If my $10 million enables me to win a position where I am able to force changes within Iraq then it has been an extremely worthwhile investment."
When asked about the likelihood of this occurring, Jamal Aldin accepted it was probable that some cheating would occur however urged people to "come out and vote in order to ensure that corruption within the polls is less likely."
For further information, contact:
Ahrar Media Bureau Tel: +964 (0)790 157 4478 / +964 (0)790 157 4479 / +964 (0)771 275 2942press@ahrarparty.com
About Ayad Jamal Aldin:
Ayad Jamal Aldin is a cleric, best known for his consistent campaigning for a new, secular Iraq. He first rose to prominence at the Nasiriyah conference in March 2003, shortly before the fall of Saddam, where he called for a state free of religion, the turban and other theological symbols. In 2005, he was elected as one of the 25 MPs on the Iraqi National List, but withdrew in 2009 after becoming disenchanted with Iyad Allawi's overtures to Iran. He wants complete independence from Iranian interference in Iraq. He now leads the Ahrar party for the 2010 election to the Council of Representatives, to clean up corruption and create a strong, secure and liberated Iraq for the future.
Today, Reuters notes a Mosul dumpster bombing which claimed 2 lives and left ten people injured and a Mosul car bombing which wounded nine people (three were Iraqi soliders). Staying with violence, earlier this week Ruth offered "The assault on Iraq's Christians." She's not 'mass media,' but she's covered the topic. Edward Pentin (Catholic News Agency) notes the "mass media" silence on the attcks and on the fact that "Christian families are leaving the northern Iraqi city of Mosul in their droves to excape a concerted campaign of violence and intimidation." He writes:
Chaldean Bishop Emil Shimoun Nona has said that Mosul is experiencing a "humanitarian emergency" and that "hundreds of Christian families" left the city Feb. 24 in search of shelter, leaving behind their homes, property, commercial activities, according to Asia News. The situation "is dramatic", he said, and warned that Mosul could be "emptied completely of Christians".
The families have chosen to flee after a spate of violent attacks which left five Christians dead last week, and members of a whole family murdered on Tuesday. "In one house all the family members were killed -- five people," said an Iraqi member of Open Doors, a non-denominational charity helping persecuted Christians.
Adel Kamal (Niqash) explains how this may be tied into the elections:
Following the Archbishops' memorandum, the Naynawa governor, Osama al-Nujaifi, ordered the Naynawa Operations Command to restore security in Mosul. He called on the army command to "shoulder their responsibilities for protecting the Christian community and disclosing the results of the criminal investigations regarding the crimes committed against them." Al-Nujaifii told Niqash that after the earlier attacks on Christians he asked the Operations Command to set-up a joint security. They responded curtly: "Security is our responsibility." "In that case," al-Nujaifi said, "They must take that responsibility and restore security." The Kurds in the area have boycotted the Governorate Council since al-Nujaifi took office and the governor sees the violence as politically motivated. "There are sides wanting to draw the Christians into a conflict that they are not part of." The conflict he is referring to is between the Arab al-Hadba list, which al-Nujaifi heads, and the Kurdish List. Like al-Nujaifi, the Deputy Chairman of Naynawa Governorate Council, Dildar Zaybari, refused to accuse the Kurds.
Meanwhile Liz Sly (Los Angeles Times) reports on the extra-legal Justice and Accountability Commission's decision to remove 580 Iraqis from the country's security forces for being alleged 'Ba'athists.' Mohammed Tawfeeq and CNN report on the simultaneous announcement yesterday that 20,000 military officers under Saddam Hussein would be reinstated, "Kurdish lawmaker Mahmoud Othman said al-Maliki was simply trying to secure more votes. 'This contradicts his anti-Baathist election campaign and it is very obvious that he wants to appeal to voters'." Leila Fadel and K.I. Ibrahim (Washington Post) quote the extra-legal commission's Ali Falial al-Lami stating they have proof that banned candidate Saleh al-Mutlaq is a 'Ba'athist.' Apparently, they've forced some more confessions in Iraq yet again. Al Jazeera adds, "Mohammed al-Askari, the defence ministry spokesman, said on Friday the resinstatement would begin immediately."
On Monday the top US commander in Iraq, Gen Ray Odierno, gave a briefing in DC where he noted that the draw down could be slowed. This was a testing the water move (by the administration -- though some want to pretend Odierno was a 'loose canon' acting alone). Wednesday morning's New York Times featured a column by former journalist Thomas E. Ricks (speaking for Michele Flournoy to be sure) advocating for a longer US presence in Iraq. Thursday, it was learned that slowing the draw down was actually a request currently submitted to the administration. That's the background. Today Jason Ditz (Antiwar.com) observes that Barry O's "soft pullout" just got softer while Michael Hastings (The Hastings Report, True/Slant) takes on Rick's suck up to Australian -- who really needs to take his ass home -- David Kilcullen's assertion that entering stupidly doesn't mean you have to depart stupidly. Hastings observes, "So, if you never leave, there's no worry of acting stupid. Except that you never leave. Which seems kind of stupid, too."
Turning to the issue of one-time Haliburton subsidiary KBR, the Democratic Policy Committee earlier in this entry and we'll close with this news release:DORGAN: ARMY DECISION TO DENY MILLIONS IN BONUSES TO CONTRACTOR KBR IS "RIGHT CALL," BUT ONLY A "FIRST STEP" ( WASHINGTON , D.C. ) --- U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND), who chaired Senate hearings on electrocutions of soldiers in Iraq resulting from shoddy contracting work by KBR, said Thursday the Army's decision to deny million of dollars in bonuses to the firm for its 2008 work in Iraq "is the right call, but it is only a first step." Dorgan chaired two Senate Democratic Policy Committee (DPC) hearings in 2008 and 2009 on KBR's shoddy electrical work in Iraq . The hearings revealed widespread problems with KBR's electrical work there including countless electrical shocks including one that killed Staff Sgt. Ryan Maseth, and perhaps others, and injured dozens more on their own bases as they showered and engaged in other routine activities. Following the hearings, Dorgan and Senator Robert Casey (D-PA) wrote the Army asking that it review KBR's work and the electrocution death of Staff Sgt. Ryan Maseth. They also asked the Army to re-evaluate the millions of dollars in bonuses it has routinely awarded KBR for supposedly excellent work, even when the Army's own evidence made clear it was highly questionable. The Army's investigation of Maseth's January 2008 death found that KBR's work exposed soldiers to "unacceptable risk." A theatre-wide safety review that resulted from the Dorgan-Casey request -- Task Force SAFE -- also found widespread problems with KBR's electrical work that exposed soldiers to life threatening risks. "The decision to deny KBR millions in bonuses for its work in 2008 is welcome news, and is a significant change from the Army's past practice, but the Army clearly needs go much further," Dorgan said. "Specifically, it needs to review the $34 million bonus and other bonuses it awarded KBR for shoddy work that may have contributed to other electrocution deaths and other serious electrical shocks." Dorgan said the Army's decision "will send a long overdue message to military contractors that they will be held accountable for their performance. But the Army needs to send that message much more powerfully. Not awarding a bonus for widespread sloppy contracting work that killed soldiers is just the beginning, not the end point, of accountability." Dorgan has chaired 21 Senate DPC hearings on waste, fraud and corruption in military contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003. Evidence at those hearings he said, "has been overwhelming that KBR's work was shoddy and put the lives of U.S. soldiers at risk. KBR's electrical workers were often unqualified, poorly trained and poorly supervised. When questions were raised, they simply denied there was a problem and proceeded with the same shoddy business as usual."Senator Byorn Dorgan addresses the issue in a video at DPC as well. A large number of veterans and contractors have filed suit against Halliburton and/or its subsidiary KBR. Jon Murray (Indianapolis Star) reports that Judge Richard Young of the US District Court for the Southern District of Indiaina dismissed the case filed on behalf of 47 members of the Indiana National Guard with the finding that that he lacked jurisdiction due to KBR being based in another state (Texas) and the exposure (he would say "alleged exposure") took place in Iraq. He only ruled on jurisidiction and did not address the merits of the case. There are at least 22 cases against KBR/Halliburton filed in 22 different district courts across the country. Whether or not the judges in 21 of those will find as Judge Young did isn't known. 21? One of the cases is filed in Texas.
We're moving to England but, before we do, shouts of joy echo all over DC with this White House announcement. And have fun under the bus, dear. Monday the the Iraq Inquiry announced that the current Prime Minister of England, Gordon Brown, will offer testimony to the Inquiry on March 5th. When former prime minister Tony Blair's date was announced, BBC noted that "3,000 people have applied for seats at Tony Blair's appearance" and yesterday the BBC attempted to make it seem that Gordon Brown was 'in demand' as well by insisting, "More than 300 people have applied . . ." Alice Tarleton (Channel 4 News) points out that there are 120 seats available because Brown testifies in the morning and afternoon -- while there were only 60 available for Tony Blair's and that this is "a fraction of the 3,041" applying for Tony tickets. Is that why Gordon Brown screamed "You ruined my life!" at Tony Blair? No. Patrick Wintour and Andrew Sparrow (Guardian) report that "Gordon Brown repeatedly shouted at Tony Blayr: "You ruined my life" in the final confrontation that forced Blair to agree to announce a date by which he would stand down as prime minister, according to Andrew Rawnsley's new book" The End of the Party. The Telegraph of London adds that he also plotted to undermine Alastair Campbell and that Brown's response to the assertions is, "Given that they are both completely wrong, and that you can almost laugh them off, they are so ridiculous." The Iraq Inquiry is chaired by John Chilcot and Chris Ames (Iraq Inquiry Digest) reports today:
On Tuesday Labour MP Graham Allen met Sir John Chilcot. Allen was one of the organisers of the rebellion of Labour MPs against the war and wanted to highlight "the three fundamental institutional flaws which were revealed by the lead-up to the Iraq War so that they are not repeated."
Allen told me: "I wanted to give Sir John Chilcot a perspective he has not been exposed to before. I'm hopeful that the story of those who tried to stop the war will form part of the report. The three things I put forward, had they happened the first time round, would have significantly diminished, if not eliminated, the prospect of Parliament authorising the war." Although he declined to reveal what Chilcot's response was, Allen told me that he was "extremely generous with his time" and "open and frank and well-informed".
TV notes. NOW on PBS begins airing Friday on most PBS stations (check local listings):
In 1995 and 1996, 66 gray wolves were relocated from Canada toYellowstone National Park and central Idaho to help recover a wolfpopulation that had been exterminated in the northern Rockies. The graywolf relocation is considered one of the most successful wildliferecovery projects ever attempted under the Endangered Species Act; todaythere are more than 1,600 wolves in the region. But a debate has eruptedbetween conservationists and ranchers over the question: how many wolvesare too many?Last year, the Obama Administration entered the fray by removing federalprotection for some of these wolves, paving the way for controversialstate-regulated wolf hunts. The move has wolf advocates fuming, withmore than a dozen conservation groups suing the Interior Department torestore federal protections. On February 26 at 8:30 pm (check locallistings), NOW reports on this war over wolves and implications for thearea.
Staying with TV notes, Washington Week begins airing on many PBS stations tonight (and throughout the weekend, check local listings) and we'll note who joins Gwen around the table this are Naftali Bendavid (Wall St. Journal), John Dickerson (CBS News and Slate), David Shepardson (Detroit News) and Karen Tumulty (Time magazine). Meanwhile, has a president, in the 'modern era,' ever refused to deliver a State of the Union speech? Washington Week, as part of its site redesign and increased web presence provides an answer to that by dipping into the archives and making available a February 2, 1973 installment of Washington Week. You can also view the Webcast Extra for last week's show (or any other show this year or last year) which is an additional segment where Gwen and her guests discuss topics submitted by viewers of the show. Meanwhile Bonnie Erbe will sit down with Karen Czarnecki, Avis Jones-DeWeever, Melinda Henneberger and Tara Setmayer to discuss the week's events on PBS' To The Contrary. Check local listings, on many stations, it begins airing tonight. And turning to broadcast TV, Sunday CBS' 60 Minutes:
Stealing American Secrets"60 Minutes" has obtained an FBI videotape showing a Defense Department employee selling secrets to a Chinese spy that offers a rare glimpse into the secretive world of espionage and illustrates how China's spying may pose the biggest espionage threat to the U.S. Scott Pelley reports. Watch Video
Battle Over HistoryBob Simon reports on what the Armenians call their holocaust - the 1915 forced deportation and massacre of more than a million ethnic Armenians by the Turks - an event that the Turks and our own government have refused to call genocide. Watch Video
Kathryn BigelowLesley Stahl talks to Academy Award best-director nominee Kathryn Bigelow about her award-winning film, "The Hurt Locker." If she's chosen, she would be the first woman ever to win in that category. Watch Video
60 Minutes, Sunday, Feb. 28, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
Lastly the Salem-News has a feature on the questions regarding 9-11 (link has text and video) by Tim King and here's the opening, "The mainstream press is showing interest in a taboo, however glaring subject; the inconsistencies in the Bush White House 9/11 account. As The Washington Post reports today, 'A lingering technical question about the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks still haunts some, and it has political implications: How did 200,000 tons of steel disintegrate and drop in 11 seconds? A thousand architects and engineers want to know, and are calling on Congress to order a new investigation into the destruction of the Twin Towers and Building 7 at the World Trade Center'." Thank you for community member Mia for catching the above. I'd written it would be noted in Thursday's snapshot, I forgot. Others wondered if I was 'scared off' by the subject? Tim King covers Iraq and does a fine job. If he goes into another area, we can make a little space to note that from time to time. If he goes into this area? He's raising questions and, in a democracy, we should all welcome that. 9-11 is not our issue at this site (or my issue offline) but we do not attack people who question here (or people who offer theories -- for example, we've never attacked the 911 Commission and, yes, there 'findings' are a theory). If we were a religious site, we'd say, "Go with God." We're not so we'll just note that Tim King's a fine reporter and anytime we have the space to note him, we will. In my offline life, I have friends on all sides of this topic (there's more than just two sides) and I respect everyone's opinion (even those friends whose opinion is the same as the 911 Commission's). I know this is a controversial topic and I know people look for signs and indications. My forgetting on Thursday was just my forgetting. There was too much for that snapshot and I was trying to squeeze in the House Veterans Affairs hearing. That hearing was covered by Kat covered it last night in "Subcommittee on Oversight hears about Iraq," Wally filled in for Rebecca and covered it in "Filner asks the money question" and Ava filled in for Trina and covered it in "Stats aren't science." Back to the topic of King's articles about questions. This has been addressed here many times before but my forgetting led to e-mails (and I understand that but I did just forget, I wasn't trying to be 'respectable' -- no one who knows me would ever accuse me of that, trust me). Those who search for answers -- on any issue or question -- are not attacked here. Our fire is aimed at the gas bags and the politicians. There is enough frivilous in the country -- especially among so-called adults -- and anyone dedicating themselves to a 9-11 search has a worthy and admirable topic and, as with the researchers into the assassination of JFK, their work may never turn up a single answer but it will turn up many things of value, that's what research does. And in a democracy, we don't attack those who ask questions (we welcome a free exchange), and in terms of discourse and information, independent research has produced so much information throughout the history of this country. I hope that clarifies it (and if you wrote an angry e-mail, don't worry about it, this is a heated topic, I understand that but, no, we're not part of any clampdown here, nor do we think we're any better than any other citizens of the US, we'll leave the sneering at We The People to the gas bags of cable TV). If not, please e-mail again and I'll try to make it more clear. (And if you're late to the party and wondering what "my issue" is -- it's the word in the title before "snapshot.")
iraq
the washington posternesto londono
the christian science monitorjane arraf
nprthe diane rehm show
antiwar.comjason ditztrue/slantmichael hastings
the guardianandrew sparrow
patrick wintouriraq inquiry digest
chris ames
bbc news
cnnmohammed tawfeeqthe los angeles timesliz slyk.i. ibrahimleila fadel60 minutescbs newspbsnow on pbsto the contrarybonnie erbe
washington week
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