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EX-STATE DEPT.SECURITY OFFICER SPELLS OUT 9/11 COVER-UP
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Today's Stories March 1, 2006 Tom
Reeves February 28, 2006 Sen.
Russ Feingold Ralph
Nader Joshua
Frank Aziz
Haniffa Benjamin Dangl Norman Solomon Mike
Ferner Sharon
Smith Website
of the Day
February 27, 2006 Buncombe
/ Cockburn Paul
Craig Roberts Ingmar
Lee Ron
Jacobs Dave
Lindorff Pat
Wolff Lila
Rajiva Website
of the Day
February 25 / 26, 2006 Alexander
Cockburn Lila
Rajiva Lee
Sustar Jennifer
Van Bergen / Madis Senner Justin
E.H. Smith Paul
Craig Roberts Jason
Leopold Gilad
Atzmon Zahid
Shariff Fred
Gardner Dick
J. Reavis David
Stocker John
Bomar Mike
Marqusee Pratyush
Chandra Ben
Tripp Dr.
Susan Block Poets'
Basement Website
of the Weekend
February 24, 2006 Alan
Maass William
S. Lind Dave
Lindorff Pierre
Tristam Meg
Bannerji Robert
Jensen Mark
Engler Jennifer
Loewenstein Website
of the Day
February 23, 2006 Chet
Richards Jonathan
Feldman Joshua
Frank Ron
Jacobs Amira
Hass Samah
Sabawi Norman
Solomon Christopher
Reed Website
of the Day
February 22, 2006 Robert
Pollin Phil
Doe Pirouz
Azadi Saul
Landau Brian
McKinlay Sam
Smith Niranjan
Ramakrishnan Diane
Farsetta Website
of the Day
February 21, 2006 Paul
Craig Roberts Franklin
Spinney Dave
Lindorff Alevtina
Rea Bruce
K. Gagnon Dave
Zirin Bill
Quigley Website
of the Day
February 20, 2006 Jennifer
Van Bergen Rachard
Itani Gideon
Levy Joshua
Frank Newton
Garver Pratyush
Chandra Seth
Sandronsky Cockburn
/ St. Clair Website
of the Day
February 18 / 19, 2006 Werther Uzma
Aslam Khan Joe
DeRaymond Edward
F. Mooney Paul
Craig Roberts Elaine
Cassel P.
Sainath Thomas
P. Healy Brian
Concannon, Jr. Fred
Gardner Rep.
Cynthia McKinney Brian
Tokar Chan
Chee Khoon Andrew
Freedman St.
Clair / Walker Poets'
Basement Website
of the Weekend
February 17, 2006 Floyd
Rudmin Gervasio
Rodríguez Gary
Leupp Ramzy
Baroud Amira
Hass Matthew
Koehler Niranjan
Ramakrishnan Debbie
Nathan Website
of the Day
Febrauary 16, 2006 Lila
Rajiva Norman
Solomon Ron
Jacobs Paul
Craig Roberts Website
of the Day
February 15, 2006 Brian
Conacnnon, Jr. Dave
Lindorff Saree
Makdisi Joshua
Frank Amira
Hass CounterPunch
Wire Robert
Bryce Website
of the Day February 14, 2006 John
Sugg Don
Santina William
A. Cook Ray
McGovern John
Ross Website
of the Day
Lila
Rajiva Christopher
Brauchli Dave
Lindorff Ron
Jacobs Mike
Whitney Michael
Neumann Website
of the Day
February 11 / 12, 2006 Alexander
Cockburn Ralph
Nader Paul Craig
Roberts Pat Williams Fred Gardner Saul Landau John Chuckman Roger Burbach Seth Sandronsky Website of
the Weekend
February 10, 2006 Carl
G. Estabrook Sen.
Russell Feingold Roxanne
Dunbar----Ortiz Saree Makdisi Website of
the Day
February 9, 2006 Dave Lindorff Mike Marqusee Paul Craig Roberts Peter Phillips William S. Lind Christine Tomlinson Innocent Targets in the "Long War": False Positives and Bush's Eavesdropping Program Will Youmans Robert Robideau Richard Neville Peter Rost Website of the Day
February 8, 2006 Ron Jacobs Stan Cox Sen. Russ Feingold Robert Jensen Rep. Cynthia McKinney Niranjan Ramakrishnan Don Monkerud David Swanson C.L. Cook Christopher
Fons Jeffrey Ballinger Website of
the Day
February 7, 2006 Edward Lucie-Smith Robert Fisk Paul Craig Roberts Neve Gordon Joshua Frank Peter Montague Jackie Corr Jeffrey St.
Clair Website of the Day
February 6, 2006 Christopher
Brauchli Robert Fisk John Chuckman Jenna Orkin Paul Craig
Roberts
February 4 / 5, 2006 Alexander Cockburn Mike Ferner James Petras Alan Maass Fred Gardner Ralph Nader Bill Glahn Saul Landau Laura Carlsen James Brooks Mike Roselle John Holt Sarah Ferguson William S.
Lind Niranjan Ramakrishnan Seth Sandronsky Derrick O'Keefe Michael Donnelly Ron Jacobs Elisa Salasin St. Clair / Vest Stew Albert Poets' Basement Website of
the Weekend
February 3, 2006 Toufic Haddad Heather Gray Tim Wise Conn Hallinan Eva Golinger Daniel Ellsberg Dave Zirin Robert Bryce Website of
the Day
February 2, 2006 Winslow T.
Wheeler Stan Cox Rachard Itani Mike Whitney Amira Hass Norman Solomon Michael Simmons Christopher
Reed Website of the Day
February 1, 2006 Sharon Smith Jason Leopold Cindy Sheehan Joseph Grosso Earl Ofari Hutchinson Steven Higgs Robert Robideau R. Siddharth Jim Retherford Rep. Cynthia
McKinney Paul Craig
Roberts Website of
the Day
January 31, 2006 Jeffrey St.
Clair Clancy Chassay Dave Lindorff Niranjan Ramakrishnan Oren Ben-Dor Winslow Wheeler John Ryan Mike Marqusee Ron Jacobs Andrew Cockburn Website of
the Day
January 30, 2006 Paul Craig
Roberts Winslow Wheeler Niranjan Ramakrishnan Marcus Dam John Bomar Ben Beachy Gideon Levy Michael Carmichael Missy Comley
Beattie Norman Solomon Brian Concannon,
Jr. Michael Ratner Website of
the Day
January 28 / 29, 2006 Alexander Cockburn
Ralph Nader Col. Dan Smith Paul Craig Roberts Tammara Rosenleaf Ron Jacobs Harry Browne Fred Gardner Christopher
Reed Bernard Chazelle Daniel Wolff Tom Kerr Asad Abu Khalil Chris Murphy Dr. Susan Block Kathy Deacon St. Clair /
Walker / Palmer / Shields Poets' Basement Website of
the Weekend
Suren Pillay Lawrence R.
Velvel J.L. Chestnut,
Jr Uri Avnery Gary Leupp Samar Assad Jeffrey St.
Clair Website of the Day
January 26, 2006 Robert Robideau Paul Craig
Roberts Gilad Atzmon Jason Leopold Joshua Frank Dave Lindorff Susan Lee Missy Comley Beattie Michael Carmichael Michael Neumann Website of
the Day
January 25, 2006 Saul Landau James Petras Lawrence R.
Velvel Vijay Prashad Kevin Zeese Alison Weir Bruce K. Gagnon Joan Roelofs Website of
the Day
January 24, 2006 Paul Craig
Roberts Kathy Kelly Jorge Mariscal Winslow T.
Wheeler John Walsh Youmans / Muaddi Roger Burbach Fr. Gerard
Jean-Juste Noam Chomsky Website of
the Day
Uri Avnery Susan Pynchon William Loren
Katz Christopher Brauchli Chris Floyd Joshua Frank Norman Solomon Jackie Corr Paul Craig
Roberts Website of the Day
January 21/22, 2006 Tim Shorrock Ralph Nader Peter Feng Brian Cloughley Michael Donnelly Tom Kerr Dave Lindorff Daniel Wolff Fred Gardner Jason Leopold Matthew Koehler John Bomar Ron Jacobs Becky Akers Joanne Mariner St. Clair / Walker / Pollack Poets' Basement Website of the Day
Brian J. Foley Richard Gott Joshua Frank Pierre Tristam Bernstein /
Allegretto Elizabeth Schulte Website of
the Day
January 19, 2006 Paul Craig
Roberts Bill Simpich Kevin Alexander
Gray Sam Husseini Sam Smith Monica Benderman Winslow T.
Wheeler Website of the Day
January 18, 2006 Paul Craig
Roberts Norman Solomon Jonathan M.
Feldman Michael Carmichael Paul D'Amato Cynthia McKinney Norman Finkelstein Website of the Day
January 17, 2006 M. Shahid Alam John Ross Tariq Ali Michael Donnelly Amira Hass Doug Giebel Bill Quigley Ron Jacobs Mike Stark Werther
John Walsh Earl Ofari
Hutchinson Roger Burbach Norman Solomon Robert Jensen Sam Husseini Paul Craig
Roberts Website of the Day
January 14 / 15, 2006 Alexander Cockburn JoAnn Wypijewski James Petras Ron Jacobs Brian Cloughley Marianne McDonald Bruce Tyler Wick Fred Gardner Flavia Alaya Gary Leupp Dr. Susan Block Nicole Colson Jeffrey Kolakowski Missy Comley
Beattie Charles Thomson St. Clair /
Walker / Vest Poets' Basement Website of
the Weekend
January 13, 2006 Ralph Nader Leonard Weinglass Amira Hass Chris Kutalik
/ Jennifer Biddle Lawrence R. Velvel Dave Lindorff Mike Whitney David Price
January 12, 2006 Jennifer Van
Bergen Jeremy Brecher / Brendan Smith Lawrence R.
Velvel Ralph Nader / Robert Weissman Jackie Corr Jared Bernstein Russell D.
Hoffman Aubrey Streit Clancy Sigal Website of the Day
January 11, 2006 Kevin Zeese Ray McGovern Allan Maass
/ Joe Allen Earl Ofari
Hutchinson Annie Murphy Allan Lichtman Ramzy Baroud Joshua Frank Kathleen and
Bill Christison Website of
the Day
January 10, 2006 Uri Avnery Saul Landau Noam Chomsky Brian J. Foley Lenni Brenner Ronan Sheehan Paul Craig
Roberts
January 9, 2006 Behzad Yaghmaian George Bisharat Dave Lindorff Norman Solomon Christopher Brauchli Aharon Shabtai Andrew Cockburn
January 7 / 8, 2006 Lawrence Velvel James Petras J.L. Chestnut Mike Ely Andrew Wilson Lila Rajiva William Cook Ramor Ryan Thomas Kleine-Brockhoff Peter Montague Ron Jacobs Neve Gordon Fred Gardner Josh Mahon Dr. Susan Block Jeffrey St. Clair Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend
January 6, 2006 José
Pertierra Joe Allen Winslow T. Wheeler John Bomar Jason Leopold Norman Solomon Robert Pollin
January 5, 2006 Scott Boehm Zoltan Grossman Heather Gray Haninah Levine Pierre Tristam Remi Kanazi Gilad Atzmon Kathleen and
Bill Christison
January 4, 2006 Ron Jacobs Lila Rajiva Huibin Amee
Chew Pat Williams Linda Milazzo Nick Dearden James Petras Website of
the Day
January 3, 2006 James Ridgeway Laith al-Saud Dick J. Reavis Joshua Frank Rochelle Gause Missy Comley
Beattie Paul de Rooij
January 2, 2006 Paul Craig
Roberts Clancy Sigal Cindy Sheehan Alexander Cockburn
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March 1, 2006 An Open Letter to the NDP and Liberal MPsCanada and the American EmpireBy JOHN RYAN As a long time supporter of progressive political policies in Canada I was perplexed and dismayed by the results of our recent federal election. My consternation led me to write the article that is attached to this letter. The essence of my analysis is summed up in the opening comments:
The purpose of this letter is to urge the NDP and the Liberals to begin the process of forming a coalition and, if this turns out favourably, to consider the prospect, under the right conditions, of eventually merging the two parties into a centre-left Liberal Democratic Party. For years the minority of Canadians on the political right languished in the wilderness because of a split in their political movement. However, after a series of misadventures, they finally coalesced into a single party--albeit with some alienation and disaffection in their ranks. Basically, their strategy worked--and although they received only 36 percent of the vote, they now form the government. While in a minority position, we can rest assured that the Conservatives will not introduce any of the hardcore measures that form the basis of their raison d'etre -- measures that would change the face of Canada. For this they require a majority. Their strategy will be to survive a few months in a non-controversial manner to gain the respect and confidence of the public to enable them to get a majority in the next election. At present Canada has a dysfunctional political system in which the views of the majority of Canadians cannot be represented by a single political party. Although almost two-thirds of Canada's voters opposed the policies and platform of the Conservative party, it is the Conservatives who have formed the government. The majority vote was split amongst three parties, thereby thwarting the predominant will of the people and making a mockery of democracy. And this may very well continue into the future, especially if the Conservatives get a stronger foothold in Quebec. Furthermore, if the NDP should get progressively stronger, it will guarantee a split vote, and we may have an unending series of Conservative governments--until there's nothing left of Canada except a northern tier of quasi-American states. Of course the majority of Canadians would abhor any such a development--to have a minority right-wing faction force us to become part of the American Empire. But Tom d'Aquino's "deep integration" strategy would lead to just such a thing. And we already have Michael Wilson, a proponent of this policy, smugly in office on the front lines, as Canada's ambassador to the USA. So what do we do? How do we prevent the Conservatives from forming a majority government? In the best interests of Canada, it's up to progressive-minded citizens to urge the NDP and the Liberals to form a coalition, and eventually perhaps a complete merger of the two parties. It's only then the progressive majority in Canada would be in a position to vote for a political entity that would reflect their views, values, and interests. Undoubtedly, there are going to be strong opponents in both parties to any such suggestion. However, in the long run this would be in the best interests of both our country and the two parties. For the NDP, being the smaller entity, there's still the vivid memory of how the Progressive Conservatives were subsumed by the Reform/Alliance zealots. There's also the practical worry that such a political realignment might result in a horse and rabbit stew, strongly smelling of Liberal horse. However, at this stage, for either party to be an effective political force, they need one another. And stemming from this, both parties are in a position to exact compromises. In a coalition, both parties would retain their individual identities, but would have to agree on a common platform or agenda, not necessarily on all matters, but on some basic, fundamental issues. They would also have to agree on an election strategy, whenever an election might be called. The strategy should be a straightforward matter, and once agreed upon, it could be the driving force to hammer out a platform, and thereby create a coalition. A meaningful strategy, equally in the interest of both parties, would be an agreement to run all the incumbent candidates, Liberal and NDP, without opposition from the other party. Such a strategy would guarantee the reelection of every single member--surely this should be an enticement for a coalition! As for the seats held by the Conservatives, party strategists should be able to work out which party would have a better chance of winning, and then run just one candidate for that particular party. Such a maneuver would wipe out a great many Conservatives everywhere, except in Alberta, although even there they should lose some seats in Edmonton. Obviously, this would be a winning formula for a substantial majority government. The issue of a common platform could be a major divisive matter, and this could either make or break the prospects of a coalition. The resolve of a unified NDP could possibly create major strains within the Liberal party. The Liberals have never been a homogeneous party--many on the left were not much different from most NDPers, while many on the right were almost Conservative clones. In all likelihood, most progressive-minded small "l" Liberals would not be inherently opposed to an NDP coalition or even a merger. However, to accommodate some NDP basic positions, many on the right with strong corporate ties, would probably be prepared to bolt the party and join the Conservatives (like David Emerson), rather than agree to a coalition, let alone a merger. Those on the political left of the Liberal party may be faced with a considerable dilemma--should they persevere in trying to form a centre-left coalition or merger and try to bring the less doctrinaire right-wing with them--or should they maintain the status quo and go along with the right-wing upper echelon, strongly beholden to the corporate sector. If they choose the coalition/merger route, they'd be assured of forming a majority government, which could very well usher in a whole new political structure in Canada. On the other hand, if they stay with the status quo, further vote-splitting in subsequent elections would bring in Conservative governments--with dire consequences for Canada. The Liberals would not only remain as an opposition party, but driven by the right-wing, they could easily replicate the American experience where the Democrats have morphed into a Republican-lite caricature. And being in opposition, like the Democrats, they might try to emulate the Conservative success, thereby creating two wings of virtually the same party--exactly as in the USA. In drawing up a common platform, there should not be much difficulty in matters such as the preservation and improvement of Medicare, the retention and upgrading of the CBC, the establishment of a national childcare program, a pharmicare program, and other such social policy matters. There are two other crucially important issues--issues of enormous consequence to Canada--that must be included in the platform: first, the abrogation of NAFTA, and second, the rejection of "deep integration" with the USA. The significance and current status of both these matters are little understood by the general public and, I venture to say, the parliamentarians. Yet the urgency of these matters is a major reason for the formation of a coalition. Lest there be any doubt about this assertion, the rest of this letter is devoted to a careful analysis of these two issues. NAFTA and its precursor, the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), remain contentious, controversial, and desperately in need of an objective reappraisal. It was John Turner, a true Canadian patriot, who fully understood the dangers of the original Free Trade Agreement, and fought it heroically, while Ed Broadbent apparently never understood the long term consequences, and conducted an election strategy that ensured a Mulroney majority government and the enactment of the FTA. Since then, to put it bluntly, the NDP has been squeamish and chicken-hearted in dealing with the problems of NAFTA--afraid of an electoral backlash. However, with the prospect of a coalition government, where the NDP would be a participant in governing, it would be incumbent on them to stiffen their backbone and include the abrogation of NAFTA in their platform and to press left-wing Liberals to join them in this venture. There is a specified procedure for abrogation, whereas there is no provision for renegotiation, which is not what we would want in any event. Abrogation of NAFTA would have majority support from the Canadian public. The FTA and NAFTA, through clever propaganda, were forced on the Canadian public by the corporate elite, led by Tom d'Aquino, the head of Canada's 150 most powerful corporations--under the banner of the Business Council on National Issues, now renamed the Canadian Council of Chief Executives (CCCE). Underlying the public relations flim-flam, the corporate rationale behind the FTA was not about trade (most goods were already freely traded) but its prime function was to restrict the power of Canada as a nation state to be able to intervene in the economy, especially in the matter of energy resources and social and economic policy. Chapter 11 of NAFTA was the frosting on the cake, which allows corporations to sue the government if they think there is a restraint of trade or if our government should ever have the audacity to interfere with corporate profits, regardless of damage being done to the environment, human health, or the economy. Despite the constant corporate/media chest-thumping about the benefits and wonders of NAFTA, a closer examination of the data tell a different story. Of the great surge in exports and imports, government studies credit NAFTA with only nine percent of the growth in Canadian exports and two percent of the growth in imports from the USA--over 90 percent of the increased trade was the result of Canada's cheap dollar and the US boom, and it had practically nothing to do with "free trade." Per capita growth in Canada between 1989 and 2002 was 1.6 percent a year, but in the eight years preceding the FTA, it had averaged 1.9 percent per year. Although US direct foreign investment surged during the free trade era, it resulted in the takeover of more than 10,000 Canadian firms, with 96.6 percent of the investment going towards the takeovers, and with many of them being financed through borrowing in Canada--so our own capital was being used to buy us out. When it comes to foreign ownership, it's at legendary levels and far exceeds that of any other country. As for jobs, the FTA/NAFTA period created less than half as many full-time jobs as during the previous thirteen years. In fact, because of the trade agreements, Canada lost 280,000 of its best jobs, forever. An objective accounting shows that the promised benefits of the FTA and NAFTA were never realized. But it's in the energy sector that the FTA/NAFTA chickens have really come home to roost. As I pointed out in my article:
Canada desperately needs an independent energy policy to ensure a security of supply for Canadians. The USA and most countries have such a policy, but NAFTA effectively prevents Canada from doin |
