WHO WILL GUARD THE GUARDS DEPT. In what was termed by military officers as a “highly unusual” move, Marines in Afghanistan were ordered to stack their arms and leave them behind when Defense Secretary Leon Panetta visited there. This order came on the heels of the controversy kicked up after videos of Panetta went viral in which he told Congress the U.S. military would only follow orders from foreign organizations such as NATO or the UN rather than the U.S. Congress. His treasonous and anti-Constitution statements may have had more to do with the disarming order than the recent killing spree of a U.S. soldier. It is swiftly becoming time for ...
MoreA HUXWELLIAN SOCIETY DEPT. The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution clearly states that Congress shall make no law prohibiting, or abridging, the right of the people to peaceably assemble and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Yet look at what your representatives have done recently. Perhaps Congress should be forced to take remedial Constitutional Awareness classes of, better yet, perhaps they should just all be impeached. Jim Goodbye, First Amendment: ‘Trespass Bill’ will make protest illegal Just when you thought the government couldn’t ruin the First Amendment any further: The House of Representatives approved a bill on Monday that outlaws protests in instances where some government officials are nearby, whether ...
MoreNEWS REAL DEPT. The Obama Administration, pledged by Obama to be more “transparent” than previous governments, has turned out to be the worst offender yet when it comes to government secrecy and punishment against whistleblowers of wrongdoing. Here William Blum details the numerous revelations revealed by Wikileaks, now the object of scorn and hatred in the Land of Liberty. Chances are you never read these in your newspaper or news magazine. Apparently no one sees the irony of a “free” country imposing draconian punishments against persons who simply honored their conscious which revolted at some of the news being embargoed by the corporate mass media. Recall that Wikileaks offered no ...
MoreWHAT’S GOOD FOR THE GOOSE DEPT. As we pause to catch our breath from cheering our troops overseas fighting – and dying – for...…what was it again? Let us think about what really going on. Let us listen to voices of reason like Glenn Greenwald here. If the Mongols, British, Russians and others have all failed to take Afghanistan, perhaps we should reconsider the role of the United States? Jim The causes of the protests in Afghanistan By Glenn Greenwald Salon.com February 26, 2012 Most American media accounts and commentary about the ongoing violent anti-American protests in Afghanistan depict their principal cause as anger over the burning of Korans (it’s just a book: why would people ...
MoreI’M SCARED, SARGE DEPT. Combine the film 1984 with all those WWII propaganda movies and you get what audiences are getting today. Here David Sirota explains why most Hollywood blockbusters are merely advocates for the military-industrial-Intelligence complex. Jim Forgetting the Past, One Military Movie at a Time When the entertainment industry gets in bed with the Pentagon, censorship is inevitable By David Sirota In These Times February 24, 2012 When philosopher George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,” he meant it as an admonition–not as an endorsement of mass amnesia or historical revision. This should be obvious. Yet those operating at the shadowy intersection of the Pentagon and Hollywood either don’t ...
MoreKILL FOR PEACE DEPT. No one wants to think of their country as a fascist Fourth Reich, but then, hiding from the truth has never accomplished anything either. Americans today, so anesthetized by TV and videos, should really give some thought to this piece by John Pilger, the Australian journalist and documentary maker who has twice won Britain's Journalist of the Year Award as well as academy awards in both Britain and the US. Pilger might not be entirely right in his views but he is not entirely wrong either. Jim The war on democracy By John Pilger NewStatesman January 19, 2012 From the Chagos Islands to Pakistan, innocent civilians are pawns to America, backed by Britain. ...
MoreWHO'S ON FIRST DEPT. This old Vaudeville routine by Bud Abbott and Lou Costello has always been a favorite of mine. Well, some wag has spruced it up for our times and it is moving around the Net. I pass it along to you because it is funny and because this is just about the way the Obama administration works the unemployment figures. Of course, this is not the true figure of unemployment. The true figure is closer to 22 percent! Jim COSTELLO: I want to talk about the unemployment rate in America. ABBOTT: Good Subject. Terrible Times. It's 9%. COSTELLO: That many people are out of work? ABBOTT: No, that's 16%. COSTELLO: You just said 9%. ABBOTT: ...
MoreTHE REICH STUFF DEPT. Contrary to the corporate mass media headline, this flag does not "resemble" the Nazi SS logo. It IS the Nazi SS logo. In this un-retouched, no-Photoshopped picture we see our troops posing in camouflage with weapons based on the German weapons, the MP 44 and the MG 34 machine gun. All they need is the German helmet..oh. wait, our GI's do wear German-style helmets, initially dubbed the "Fritz" by our troops. Is this simply an expression of militant enthusiasm as elite soldiers or could it be a subconscious understanding that they are playing the same role of the Nazi SS -- invading other countries unprovoked in search ...
MoreLAND OF THE FEE, HOME OF THE GRAVE DEPT. When your friends and neighbors explain to you that America has to attack every nation that we don’t like to bring them freedom, just consider this Washington Post piece. Perhaps this is why some refer to the USA as “the arsenal of hypocrisy.” Jim 10 reasons the U.S. is no longer the land of the free By Jonathan Turley The Washington Post January 13, 2012 Every year, the State Department issues reports on individual rights in other countries, monitoring the passage of restrictive laws and regulations around the world. Iran, for example, has been criticized for denying fair public trials and limiting privacy, while Russia has ...
MoreFOLLOW THE MONEY...EXCEPT THE GOP DEPT. Let's face it. The national political parties run on money. Why do you think there are so many millionaires in both major parties? So let's see now...Ron Paul has raised more campaign contributions that all the other candidates put together plus he has the support of the rank and file of the Army, Navy and Air Force. If the playing field was level, wouldn't that make him the superior candidate to unseat Obama? But no. The Republican hierarchy has continually dissed Paul and pulled every trick to try and keep him from being a real contender. To me this proves one of two things --- ...
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