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10/2/06 - 10/31/2006

Tuesday 10/31/2006

Voters challenged in NY state race 10/31/2006 AP: "The Stewart-Cousins campaign said more than 5,000 of the challenges filed during this election were to Democrats - mostly blacks, Hispanics and other minorities. Ciampoli said that the challenged voters were from every political party but that he did not know how many were Democrats. Stewart-Cousins, who is black, set up a telephone hot line for any challenged voter to call. Spano is white. "They cannot win in a fair fight, so they are trying to scare registered voters into staying away from the polls," Stewart-Cousins said."

Jail fees a cruel twist to ‘paying your dues’ 10/31/2006 Final Call

Monday 10/30/2006

Pakistan destroys al Qaeda school  10/30/2006 AP: "Pakistani troops backed by missile-firing helicopters destroyed an al-Qaeda-linked training facility in a northwestern tribal area near the Afghan border Monday, killing "many" militants, officials said. The pre-dawn attack targeted a religious school -- known as a madrassa -- holding 70-80 militants in Chingai village near the town of Khar, the main town in the Bajur tribal district, said army spokesman Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan."

Will a shocking new GOP court victory and Karl Rove's attack on Ohio 2006 doom the Democrats nationwide?  10/30/2006 Columbus Free Press: "With a major GOP federal court victory, the Ohio 2006 election has descended into the calculated chaos that has become the trademark of a Karl Rove election theft, and that could help keep the Congress in Republican hands nationwide. Through a complex series of legal maneuvers, and now a shocking new decision from the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the GOP has thrown Ohio's entire process of voting and vote counting into serious disarray. The mess is perfectly designed to suppress voter turnout, make election monitoring and a recount impossible, and allow the Republican Party to emerge with a victory despite overwhelming evidence the electorate wants exactly the opposite. The disaster in Ohio began immediately after the theft of the presidential election here in 2004. Though the majority of Ohioans are registered Democrats, the gerrymandered state legislature is overwhelmingly Republican. Soon after John Kerry conceded, it passed House Bill 3, a draconian assault on voter registration drives, voting rights and the ability to secure reliable recounts of federal-level elections. In brief, HB3 stacked a virtually impossible set of requirements onto the voter registration process. As elsewhere nationwide, voting has traditionally involved citizens coming to the polls and signing a poll book. Upon a signature check from a poll worker, a ballot has been given. A similar process has been in effect for absentee ballots. There is no recent evidence this method has encouraged significant voter fraud. But the GOP's HB3 has imposed a series of draconian requirements for voter ID, including the demand for certain documents very difficult to obtain by many poor, homeless, elderly or other largely Democratic demographic groups."

Global warming to cost trillions  10/30/2006 News 24: "Global warming will cost the world up to seven trillion dollars in the next decade unless governments take drastic action soon, according to a major British report. Former World Bank chief economist Sir Nicholas Stern was commissioned last year by finance minister Gordon Brown to lead a review into the economics of climate change. The Observer newspaper on Sunday published excerpts from the 700-page report, which adds that unchecked global warming could make 200 million people refugees from drought or flood. Publication of the report is likely to fuel debate in Britain over whether the government should introduce a tougher regime of "green taxes" to cut carbon emissions. According to the Observer, the Stern report says unchecked climate change would cost up to 3.68 trillion pounds (6.98 trillion dollars) - more than World Wars I and II and the Great Depression of the 1930s."

Sunday 10/29/2006

Afghanistan war is 'cuckoo', says Blair's favourite general  10/29/2006 Guardian: "The decision by Guthrie, an experienced Whitehall insider and Blair confidant, to go public is likely to alarm Downing Street and the Ministry of Defence more than the recent public criticism by the current army chief Sir Richard Dannatt. 'Anyone who thought this was going to be a picnic in Afghanistan - anyone who had read any history, anyone who knew the Afghans, or had seen the terrain, anyone who had thought about the Taliban resurgence, anyone who understood what was going on across the border in Baluchistan and Waziristan [should have known] - to launch the British army in with the numbers there are, while we're still going on in Iraq is cuckoo,' Guthrie said."

Sandinista comeback alarms US  10/29/2006 Guardian: "But in Washington he is still seen as a threat. US ambassador Paul Trivelli and senior Bush officials have warned Nicaraguans of dire consequences if he wins. 'Their reaction to the prospect that he may well come back now sometimes borders on the hysterical,' said Michael Shifter, of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington-based think-tank."

Bolivia-Venezuela military deal raises red flags  10/29/2006 Miami Herald: "A recently revealed pact that calls for Venezuela to help Bolivia build military bases -- and perhaps prop up President Evo Morales in the event of civil unrest -- has prompted alarm among some of Bolivia's neighbors. Bolivian Defense Minister Walker San Miguel says the flap is much ado about nothing. ''There's been a lot of disinformation put out intentionally by opponents of Venezuela and President Morales,'' he told The Miami Herald. But some of Bolivia's neighbors have been expressing concerns since local newspapers reported earlier this month that the agreement called for Venezuela to provide up to $22 million to build 20 military bases in Bolivia. The reports did not say whether Venezuela would station troops in Bolivia. Peruvian President Alan García said the accord created mistrust and left his country ''offended'' and ''uneasy.'' Officials also expressed concern in Paraguay, which fought the 1930s Chaco War against Bolivia."

Mexican Federal Police, Backed by Army, Retake Oaxaca  10/29/2006 NYT

New tools for a new world order - Nuclear forensics touted as method to trace bomb materials, deterrent for rogue nations  10/29/2006 SF Chronicle

Saturday 10/28/2006

U.S. journalist killed in Mexico's Oaxaca conflict  10/28/2006 Houston Chronicle

Tapes Depict Proposal to Thwart Bomb Used in Trade Center Blast  10/28/2006 NYT: "Mr. Salem, a 43-year-old former Egyptian army officer, was used by the Government to penetrate a circle of Muslim extremists now charged in two bombing cases: the World Trade Center attack and a foiled plot to destroy the United Nations, the Hudson River tunnels and other New York City landmarks. He is the crucial witness in the second bombing case, but his work for the Government was erratic, and for months before the trade center blast, he was feuding with the F.B.I."

Venez Extols African Contribution  10/28/2006 PL: published 5/06 - "The Catedra Libre Africa, a conference to exchange information about Afro-descendants in Venezuela, opened in Caracas on Thursday as part of endeavors to understand and work toward South-South cooperation."

US Works to Delegitimize Venezuela's December Presidential Election  10/28/2006 Znet: "Venezuela's ambassador to the Organization of American States (OAS) and Vice Foreign Minister Jorge Valero told us, "The enemy is not the opposition but Mr. Bush. Millions of dollars have been channeled into the opposition parties and leaders, not only formally through the NED (National Endowment for Democracy and AID (US Agency for International Development) but informally. What right does the US have to fund parties in other countries when that is illegal if done in the US?" And Jose Albornoz, General Secretary of the Patria Para Todos party and member of National Assembly where he chairs the Committee for the Investigation of NGO Funding added, "Under Clinton we talked. When Bush came in the decision seemed to be to get rid of Chavez rather than work out our differences." The issue of US military intentions is not far from the thoughts of many Venezuelans. The US war against Iraq is intensely unpopular across the political spectrum. Freelance journalist Gregory Wilpert said many members of the Chavez government "from the top on down" are convinced the US will invade Venezuela. Several people we met with said that the US either participated in or knew in advance about the short-lived coup of April 11, 2002. Golinger told us that the US is building a new military base on Curacao, the Dutch colony off Venezuela's coast and near the oil state of Zulia. She speculated that one possible outcome of the December election would be for the US to refuse to recognize Chavez' election and for Rosales to go back to Zulia and refuse to recognize the central government. There is already a secession movement in Zulia. With US forces in Colombia, on Curacao, and nearly constant navy war games in the Caribbean, it is possible that Venezuela could be stripped of its major oil producing state."

Wednesday 10/25/2006

Old rivals unite in new Nicaragua - With a boost from former Contras, Sandinista icon Daniel Ortega's latest bid for president is promising. 10/25/2006 NYT: "If you want to be a friend of Daniel Ortega, the once and perhaps future president of Nicaragua, it helps if you were once his enemy. An intimidating nom de guerre doesn't hurt either. "The Godfather," "Commander Bull's-Eye" and "the Alligator" — to a man, they either fought in or backed the Contra war that sought to overthrow Ortega's revolutionary Sandinista government in the 1980s. Now all three are working to get him elected president, 16 years after Nicaraguans voted the mustachioed hero of the Latin American left out of office. "In the battle between realism and idealism, realism has won out," Jaime "the Godfather" Morales Carazo said, explaining why he and so many other Nicaraguan conservatives have joined the Sandinista camp. "If you think about the future, you can't look back at the past." Once the Contras' top political negotiator, Morales lost his palatial home in Managua, the capital, when the Sandinistas expropriated it and handed it over to Ortega, who still lives there. Now Morales is Ortega's running mate in the Nov. 5 presidential election."

Tuesday 10/24/2006

Lebanon's ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was killed in a car bombing arranged by Israel's Mossad 10/24/2006 Wayne Madsen Report: third entry for October 24, 2006 - "A senior French DGSE -- Direction générale de la sécurité extérieure -- intelligence officer has told WMR that Lebanon's ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was killed in a car bombing arranged by Israel's Mossad. The revelation from French intelligence is significant as the French government of Jacques Chirac joined the Bush administration and the neo-con policy establishments in Washington and Israel in blaming Syria for the attack."

US Air Force official's past raises eyebrows 10/24/2006 Wayne Madsen Report: second entry for October 24, 2006 - "On December 7, 2005, the US Air Force officially recognized "cyberspace" as one of its warfare domains -- along with air and outer space. In early November, Air Force officials will gather in Washington to form a new US Air Force Command -- the Air Force Cyberspace Command. It will have authority to launch wars in cyberspace. The new command is largely the brainchild of Dr. Lani Kass, director of the Air Force Cyberspace Task Force. Kass' past has many US government computer security officials puzzled and concerned. From 1979 to 1981, Kass served as a Major in the Israeli Defense Forces. This was at a time when Israel was targeting America's most closely held secrets through its Navy spy, Jonathan Pollard. After her service in the IDF, Kass integrated into the Washington national security establishment, the private sector serving as an entree. From 1982 to1985, Kass was Director of the Russian Research Center at Booz-Allen and Hamilton, Bethesda, Md. (an odd name considering that Russia was then called the Soviet Union by every national security entity). From 1985 to 2005, Kass was Professor of Military Strategy and Operations at National War College at National Defense University in Fort McNair, Washington. Kass previously served in the Dick Cheney Defense Department, having worked from 1992 to 1993 as Special Assistant to the Director, Strategic Plans and Policy Directorate (J-5), Joint Staff at the Pentagon. She returned to the Pentagon under Defense Secretary William Cohen and continued to serve under Donald Rumsfeld. From 2000 to 2001, Kass was Senior Policy Adviser and Special Assistant for Strategic Initiatives to the Director, Strategic Plans and Policy Directorate (J-5) and from January 2006 to the present, she has been the Special Assistant to the Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force, and Director of CSAF’s Cyberspace Task Force."

Friday 10/20/2006

Climate Extremes Are Coming, Study Says 10/20/2006 AP: "The world _ especially the Western United States, the Mediterranean region and Brazil _ will likely suffer more extended droughts, heavy rainfalls and longer heat waves over the next century because of global warming, a new study forecasts. But the prediction of a future of nasty extreme weather also includes fewer freezes and a longer growing season. In a preview of a major international multiyear report on climate change that comes out next year, a study out of the National Center for Atmospheric Research details what nine of the world's top computer models predict for the lurching of climate at its most extreme."

U.S. skinhead violence on the rise: watchdog group 10/20/2006 Reuters: "The gangs consist mainly of young white men and some women who are bonded around music, racist ideology and violence, according to the center, which is based in Montgomery, Alabama, and has tracked far-right groups for decades. "The skinhead scene is both growing and is very much destabilized (because of splits in its ranks) and that presents a danger to the public," Potok said in an interview after the center published a report on skinhead gangs. Skinheads became active in the United States in the early 1980s. Their violence reached a peak between 1988 and 1992 before falling off because of a crackdown by law enforcement agencies. The gangs are mainly active in cities like Los Angeles, Portland, Salt Lake City, Denver, Boston and in the Midwest. The groups have links to similar gangs in Europe."

Thursday 10/19/2006

Republican Ad Calls Black Women "Ho's"  10/19/2006 Huffington Post: "This ad was financed by J. Patrick Rooney, a white billionaire notorious for funding several misleading anti-Kerry ads that ran on urban radio stations in 2004. The money for Rooney's newest ad flowed through a little-known group called America's PAC, which was founded by Richard Nadler, a veteran Republican consultant who pushed Intelligent Design in Kansas public schools, declaring, "Darwin is bunk." Nadler has an apparently dim view of the minorities he hopes to court. In 2000, he produced an ad in 2000 for school vouchers in which a white parent declared that his child's public school "was a bit more diversity than he could handle." The Republican National Committee flatly denounced that ad as "racist." But about Rooney and Nadler's latest creation, which portrays black men as promiscuous misogynists and black women as submissive "ho's," the RNC is silent."

Ohio Lawsuit to Reinstate hundreds of thousands of Purged Democratic Voters to be Filed Fri or Monday  10/19/2006 OpEd News: "Ohio voting rights activist and attorney, Bob Fitrakis, says the Ohio elections may have already been won, responding to reports of massive voter purges in Democratic precincts. Dr. Fitrakis, told OpEdNews, "Essentially, by purging these rolls, the Republicans, by shrinking the electorate, have already won in Ohio. If they can't win, which is what the polls show among registered voters, the way to win is to use their nuclear option-- to target black voters, young voters and the working poor-- by purging them so they can't vote. Reports indicate that starting as early as shortly after the 2004 presidential elections, but particularly recently, hundreds of thousands of voters-- mostly urban apartment dwellers (likely black) and students-- who are primarily Democratic-- were sent notifications that they would be purged from the eligible voter lists if they did not respond the letter. But, reportedly, the letter was designed to be easily overlooked, perhaps treated as junk mail. Failure to send in a response caused the voter to be removed from the voting roll. Fitrakis observes, "They aren't challenging voter eligibility in Republican areas. This is coming from the republican party. They're not targeting their own base."

Putting a halt to grassroots democracy  10/19/2006 Progresso Weekly: "“And the winner is … me” The New York Times recently wrote in its editorial pages on a political situation that may get stickier. It deals with the governor’s race in Ohio – the state which guaranteed George W. Bush’s presidential victory in 2004. The person with the power in his hand is Kenneth Blackwell, Ohio’s secretary of state, who may end up deciding if his opponent in the governor’s race, Congressman Ted Strickland, a Democrat, is not qualified to run for office in that state. This is the same Mr. Blackwell who in 2004 emulated Katherine Harris in Florida four years earlier and as the state’s chief election officer also served as the President’s Ohio co-chair in his reelection bid. Numerous studies clearly illustrate how Ohio 2004 had many things in common with Florida 2000. But that’s in the past and we’re looking ahead. For anyone who may have doubts, Mr. Strickland does live in Ohio. The mess started when someone discovered that the address under which he is registered to vote is that of a condominium he owns, but which some claim is not his home. He happens to be one of those lucky persons who own more than one home in the state. The law clearly states he has a right to register to vote in either one of them. If this situation sounds surreal, believe it. A decision whether to allow Strickland to run or not has yet to be reached. Party politics and dirty politics in general may put the decision in the hands of the secretary of state. Did I mention Secretary Blackwell trails in the polls by more than 20 percentage points? "

In the battle for the temporary Latin American UN Security Council seat between Venezuela and U.S.- and Israel-backed Guatemala  10/19/2006 Wayne Madsen Report: scroll to first entry for October 19, 2006 - "UN General Assembly votes are influenced by a number of countries' domestic politics. For example, even though Maoists and government officials in Nepal are engaged in a shaky truce, the talks between Nepalese Foreign Minister K. P. Sharma Oli and Guatemalan Foreign Minister Gert Rosenthal, likely secured Nepal's vote for Guatemala in the General Assembly. And that has the Maoists, who favor Venezuela, steaming mad. Chile's coalition government of pro-Venezuelan Socialists and pro-Guatemala Christian Democrats in the Concertation coalition ensured that nation's abstention. Lebanon's post-Syrian occupation coalition government, still outraged over Israel's attack and invasion, strongly backs Venezuela over Guatemala. A run-off presidential election in Ecuador between a pro-US billionaire and a populist leftist has resulted in that nation's continued abstention in the vote. For years, the Bush administration has leaned on tiny tax havens to open up their books to international law enforcement officials and tax inspectors. The Bush administration turned up the heat on Liechtenstein, Andorra, San Marino, Monaco, Nauru, Vanuatu, Tonga, Samoa, Luxembourg, Seychelles, and Mauritius to vote for Guatemala, or else. That equated to a quick 11 votes for Guatemala. Add the three former US Pacific territories of Palau, Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands (which are nothing more than American versions of the old Byelorussian and Ukrainian SSR UN seats of the Soviet Union), and Guatemala is ensured 14 votes. Paul Wolfowitz has used his World Bank to threaten poor nations with withdrawal of grants and loans unless they toe the line in supporting the United States -- yet more extorted votes for the US client banana republic of Guatemala."

Wednesday 10/18/2006

Spain cancels $620m Venezuela defence deal  10/18/2006 Financial Times: "Venezuela is likely to accelerate its arms procurement plans from Russia and China, defence experts predicted on Wednesday, in response to tightening US efforts to block countries such as Spain from selling military equipment to Caracas. Miguel Angel Moratinos, Spain’s foreign minister, said on Wednesday that EADS-Casa, a subsidiary of the European aerospace company, had cancelled a contract to sell 12 transport aircraft to Venezuela because of US pressure."

LITEMPO: The CIA's Eyes on Tlatelolco - CIA Spy Operations in Mexico  10/18/2006 National Security Archives: "The CIA's reliance on high-level informants including the President of Mexico for "intelligence" about the student protest movement in 1968 that culminated in the infamous Tlatelolco massacre misled Washington about responsibility for the repression, according to documents obtained by journalist Jefferson Morley and posted today on the Web by the National Security Archive at George Washington University. The declassified U.S. documents reveal CIA recruitment of agents within the upper echelons of the Mexican government between 1956 and 1969. The informants used in this secret program included President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz and future President Luis Echeverría. The documents detail the relationships cultivated between senior CIA officers, such as chief of station Winston Scott, and Mexican government officials through a secret spy network code-named "LITEMPO." Operating out of the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, Scott used the LITEMPO project to provide "an unofficial channel for the exchange of selected sensitive political information which each government wanted the other to receive but not through public protocol exchanges." This posting also includes the article "The CIA's Eyes on Tlatelolco," written by Morley and published in the October 1, 2006 edition of Proceso magazine. The article uses first-hand accounts from former associates, friends and family of Winston Scott, detailing how Scott relied on his friendships with Díaz Ordaz, Echeverría and other senior Mexican officials to inform Washington about the student movement whose demands challenged the government's monopoly on power."

U.N. seat stalemate seen as a defeat for Venezuela  10/18/2006 USA Today

Tuesday 10/17/2006

State race signals big defeat for Mexican leftist  10/17/2006 CSM: "Andrés Manuel López Obrador jolted Mexico City when he moved protesters to close down main streets in the wake of the nation's disputed July 2 presidential election. The dissent reached its peak when supporters named the defeated leftist president of a "parallel government" at a mass demonstration this fall. But a month later, his supporters have packed up their tents, traffic is flowing, and many are wondering if his protest movement - which emerged amid allegations of massive electoral fraud - is now losing steam. This weekend, a gubernatorial race in Tabasco - which voted heavily for Mr. Obrador, a native of the southern state - ended in defeat for the Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) candidate, despite Obrador having campaigned hard for his fellow party member. The loss is being viewed as a referendum on the future of Obrador's national protest movement."

Link to Chávez May Have Hurt Ecuadorean Candidate  10/17/2006 NYT: "Rafael Correa, the charismatic economist who garnered a surprisingly weak showing Sunday in the first round of voting for president, finds himself in a situation that has plagued leftists in other Latin American elections this year: defending his ties to President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela. Álvaro Noboa, a conservative banking and banana magnate, surged ahead by attacking Mr. Correa’s admiration for Mr. Chávez and his advocacy of nationalistic economic proposals that seemed inspired by Mr. Chávez’s policies. The two candidates are expected to compete in a runoff election on Nov. 26."

Bolton invokes Florida 2000 in General Assembly battle for UN Security Council seat.  10/17/2006 Wayne Madsen Report: "It is clear that in its support for Guatemala, the Bush administration is using every means at its disposal, including National Security Agency/UK Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) "surge" eavesdropping against 190 UN missions. A similar NSA/GCHQ surge surveillance operation in January and February 2003 against UN Security Council members prior to a vote on the Council's unsuccessful Iraq war resolution was revealed by GCHQ analyst Katharine Gun, who reportedly acted with a "wink and nod" from members of Tony Blair's Cabinet. There are 192 members, however, the United States and Israel closely coordinate their activities at the UN and WMR has learned that the diplomatic pressure being brought by the two nations on some of the world's smallest and poorest nations not to support Venezuela in the General Assembly has been unprecedented. The U.S. and Israeli arm twisting has been most evident among African and Pacific nations. General Assembly voting resumes this morning. Between 122 and 125 votes are needed by either Venezuela or Guatemala to secure the Security Council seat. Although Guatemala is a client state of the United States, it is also a longtime recipient of Israeli security and military aid, much of which has been used to commit genocide against Guatemala's indigenous population. Many of Guatemala's leaders are members of evangelical and charismatic Protestant churches, which mirror the pro-Israeli policies of their U.S. counterparts. The disconnect between Guatemala's ruling elite and its native and mestizo citizens and the fact that Venezuela's government is highly representative of its population are highlighted by the names of the top three official of both nations."

Monday 10/16/2006

Guatemala, Venezuela even for U.N. seat  10/16/2006 AP: "Guatemala led in nine of the 10 ballots, but could not get the two-thirds majority necessary to win. Nonetheless, the results were a defeat for Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who had campaigned by railing against the United States and promised to use his nation's voice on the 15-member council to counter Washington's influence. The other four seats that will come open on the council were filled easily. South Africa, Indonesia, Italy and Belgium will start their terms on the council on Jan. 1, replacing Tanzania, Japan, Denmark and Greece. Neither Venezuela nor Guatemala appeared willing to drop out of the election, which resumes on Tuesday with another round of balloting. Venezuela's U.N. Ambassador Francisco Arias Cardenas complained the United States has pressured countries worldwide to prevent Venezuela from winning the two-year rotating seat. "Venezuela will not withdraw — we're fighting until the end," Cardenas said. "We are fighting against the first power of the world, the owners of the universe. We're happy, we're strong and we will continue.""

Target Iran  10/16/2006 Information Clearing House: "Scott Ritter talked about his book Target Iran: The Truth About the White House's Plans for Regime Change, published by Nation Books. He was joined by Seymour Hersh."

Venezuela Rising  10/16/2006 Nuestra America: new video - "As seen through the eyes of grandmother and community organizer Gladys Bolivar, the documentary follows her and her compatriots five days before it is to be decided by popular referendum whether Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez will continue in office or step down. The entire nation has been mobilized – will it be SI – yes he will be recalled, or NO – he will remain in office. Most in Venezuela feel that no less than the en tire future of their country is at stake. Issues of democracy and politics are addressed -- what consitutes a free and fair election -- and is that enough to ensure citizen participation? How are elections the ultimate measure of a thriving democracy? Venezuela Rising gets behind the headlines and into the neighborhoods of Caracas to find out how participatory democracy works on the ground."

The House Page Board, which oversees the page program, has some interesting members  10/16/2006 Wayne Madsen Report: scroll down to 5th story for October 16, 2006 - "Karen Lehman Haas, the House Clerk, also serves on the Page Board. She is a former executive legislative assistant to House Minority Leader Robert Michel, from Dennis Hastert's and House Page Board Chairman John Shimkus' home state of Illinois. From 1995 to 1998, Haas worked as the Director for Government Relations for ABC Television and from 1998 to 1999 as legislative analyst for the Walt Disney Company. ABC News' special investigations reporter Brian Ross was the first to report the story about Mark Foley and the House pages. More interestingly, Haas was at ABC/Disney during the 20/20 special investigation by Ross of Disney's practice of hiring pedophiles at its Florida theme parks. In September 1998, Disney and ABC killed Ross's 20/20's special on pedophiles at Disney World on orders from ABC News President David Westin and Disney's then-CEO Michael Eisner. Ross discovered that Disney routinely refused to conduct criminal background investigations on its employees, refused to cooperate with law enforcement investigations of child molestation incidents on Disney property, and was the only theme park to refuse to work with the Central Florida Child Exploitation Task Force upon its establishment in 1995."

Sunday 10/15/2006

Vargas Llosa: "un nuevo racismo"  10/15/2006 BBC Mundo: publicado 1/06 - "El destacado escritor peruano Mario Vargas Llosa publicó un artículo, reproducido en el periódico argentino La Nación, en el que califica de racistas los planteamientos del presidente electo de Bolivia Evo Morales, del presidente de Venezuela Hugo Chávez y del candidato presidencial peruano Ollanta Humala."

Death and Resurrection of the US Dollar  10/15/2006 Global Research

Latin America: the nuclear backyard that worries Bush  10/15/2006 Sunday Herald, UK: "Brazil is playing catch-up in the region. Its two reactors provide 4% of its energy, and it plans seven new plants . But Argentina’s two reactors provide 9% of its energy, while Kirchner has unveiled a $3.5 billion plan for a third plant, and studies for a fourth. Alarmingly for those who recall the former military regime’s efforts to pursue a nuclear arms programme, the plan involves reopening a uranium-enrichment facility in the Patagonian plains, which was closed after the return to civilian rule in 1983. Argentina has a history of exporting its nuclear technology. It is currently building a replacement reactor in Australia, and in the 1980s and 90s it built reactors in Libya, Albania, Algeria and Egypt. In 1992 it was ready to supply Iran with a plant capable of being used to build weapons-grade material until it came under pressure from the US. Argentina was also pressured by the US to abandon its Condor missile programme in 1992: the 600-mile range missile had been planned for export to Iraq and Egypt. While “domestic energy concerns” are voiced by Brasilia and Buenos Aires, the US may not see it like that. Although its is eye on Iran just now, it may soon take a closer look at its nuclear backyard. Chávez’s friendship with Iran is giving Washington cause for concern. The mere thought of the nuclear growth of Brazil and Argentina – led by leftist governments – and the chance that they might export nuclear know-how to Venezuela, is likely to cause sleepless nights."

Friday 10/13/2006

Part Two: Winning the Ground War - How Hezbollah Defeated Israel  10/13/2006 Counterpunch

The naval exercise to be held by US, Bahrain and allies later this month brings a massive concentration of American naval, air and marine might to the Persian Gulf  10/13/2006 Debka: "US officials said the exercise starting Oct. 31 will practice interdicting ships carrying weapons of mass destruction and missiles. DEBKAfile’s military sources report: US naval, air and marine forces are massing in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman and eastern Mediterranean opposite Lebanon and Syria. The big USS Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group (pictgure) arrives by Oct. 21. Facing these units are Iranian Revolutionary Guards naval, air and marine units together with the Iranian armed forces on full war preparedness."

Troops accused of gun-running for cocaine and cash  10/13/2006 London Times: "NINE British soldiers are facing a court martial for allegedly smuggling guns out of Iraq to sell for drugs and cash. Investigators fear that weapons and ammunition being trafficked by troops from war zones will end up in the hands of gangsters. The soldiers from the 3rd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment are accused of buying cocaine from gangs in Germany, where their unit was based. Royal Military Police have investigated claims that the alleged drugs were sold to other British troops still serving in Iraq."

Venezuela Will Defend Bolivia in the Event of a Coup  10/13/2006 Venezuela Analysis

Remark Roils Canadian Contest - Candidate Called Israeli Attack on Lebanese Town a 'War Crime'  10/13/2006 Washington Post

Sex scandal involving underage male congressional pages and ex-Rep. Mark Foley is reverberating in Florida's hotly-contested gubernatorial election  10/13/2006 Wayne Madsen Report: scroll down to October 13/14/15, 2006 - "WMR has received information from our Florida sources that Crist and Florida Governor Jeb Bush were well aware of Foley's "problems" in 2001 and possibly much earlier. In another sign that these concerns were passed by Tallahassee to the White House, the Orlando Sentinel reported yesterday that Foley complained in a Sept. 19, 2004 e-mail to Jeb Bush that the president was ignoring Foley during presidential post-hurricane visits to Florida. Foley wrote to Jeb Bush, ""I can't quite figure what I have done, but this is a continuing pattern of slights . . . Sorry to trouble you ... and I wouldn't if this wasn't so frequent . . . Have I done something to offend the White House? I am always getting the shaft." It was also revealed yesterday by The New Republic that Foley got the "shaft" more than once from the White House. After expressing a desire to retire from Congress and set up a lobbying firm on K Street, George W. Bush's chief adviser Karl Rove told Foley that if he did not run again for Congress, Rove would ensure that Foley's lobbying business failed."

Thursday 10/12/2006

DIA Report on Unification Church in North Korea  10/12/2006 Consortium News: redacted and declassified, from 8/04

Moon, North Korea & the Bushes  10/12/2006 Consortium News: "The Rev. Sun Myung Moon's business empire, which includes the right-wing Washington Times, paid millions of dollars to North Korea's communist leaders in the early 1990s when the hard-line government needed foreign currency to finance its weapons programs, according to U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency documents. The payments included a $3 million “birthday present” to current communist leader Kim Jong Il and offshore payments amounting to “several tens of million dollars” to the previous communist dictator, Kim Il Sung, the documents said. Moon apparently was seeking a business foothold in North Korea, but the transactions also raised potential legal questions for Moon, who appears to have defied U.S. embargos on trade and financial relations with the Pyongyang government. Those legal questions were never pursued, however, apparently because of Moon's powerful political connections within the Republican power structure of Washington, including financial and political ties to the Bush family."

Part One: Winning the Intelligence War - How Hezbollah Defeated Israel  10/12/2006 Counterpunch

Italian probe reveals war crimes: Israel used new weapon prototype in Gaza Strip  10/12/2006 Global Research: "An investigative report to be aired on Italian television Wednesday raises the possibility that Israel has used an experimental weapon in the Gaza Strip in recent months, causing especially serious physical injuries, such as amputated limbs and severe burns. The weapon is similar to one developed by the U.S. military, known as DIME, which causes a powerful and lethal blast, but only within a relatively small radius. The Italian report is based on the eyewitness accounts of medical doctors in the Strip, as well as tests carried out in an Italian laboratory. The investigative team is the same one that exposed, several months ago, the use by U.S. forces in Iraq of phosphorous bombs, against Iraqi rebels in Faluja. Israel Air Force Maj.-Gen (res.) Yitzhak Ben-Israel, formerly head of the IDF's weapons-development program, told the Italian reporters that "one of the ideas [behind the weapon] is to allow those targeted to be hit without causing damage to bystanders or other persons." The investigation, by Rai24news, follows reports by Gaza-based doctors of inexplicably serious injuries. The doctors reported an exceptionally large number of wounded who lost legs, of completely burned bodies and injuries unaccompanied by metal shrapnel. Some of the doctors also claimed that they removed particles from wounds that could not be seen in an x-ray machine. According to those who testified, the wounded were hit by munitions launched from drones, most of them in July."

Venezuela challenges U.S.-backed Guatemala for U.N. seat  10/12/2006 McClatchy Newspapers

Activist opposing the government's policies is charged with crimes against the state, declared mentally unbalanced, and forced to take psychotropic drugs in a military prison  10/12/2006 Wayne Madsen Report: scroll down to first entry for October 12, 2006 - "On September 8, Susan Lindauer, a one-time congressional staffer for Rep. Peter DeFazio and Sen. Ron Wyden or Oregon [Wyden is a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence], and journalist, was ordered released from incarceration from the Bureau of Prisons Carswell Federal Medical Center located at the Naval Reserve Air Station in Fort Worth, Texas. Lindauer, who was never convicted of any crime, spent seven months in the prison hospital and was transferred to New York City where she spent an additional four months in prison. Lindauer claims that from August 1996 to the outbreak of the Iraq war, she served as a back channel intermediary with the Iraqi Mission to the UN in New York and was constantly supervised by her handlers in the CIA and Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). In March 2004, Lindauer was arrested by the FBI at her Takoma Park, Maryland home and charged with acting as an unregistered agent for the Iraqi government from October 1999 to February 2004 and engaging in illegal financial transactions with the Iraqis. Federal prosecutors also charged Lindauer with meeting Iraqi intelligence agents during a 2002 trip to Baghdad, including a meeting at the Al Rashid Hotel. Lindauer claims that she was one of three CIA assets who were covering the Iraqi Mission to the UN. She said she and the other two assets, who were also being run by the FBI, were charged with being agents for Iraq. From the beginning, the government's case against Lindauer was unique. In his decision ordering Lindauer's release from federal custody, Judge Michael Mukasey of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan ruled that the government could not force Lindauer to take psychotropic drugs in order for her to stand trial in the case. In in a rare departure, Mukasey commented on the government's case against Lindauer before the trial. He stated, "There is no indication that Lindauer ever came close to influencing anyone or could have." The Justice Department maintained that Lindauer attempted to influence her cousin to prevent a U.S. military attack on Iraq. Lindauer's second cousin is none other than Andrew Card, who served as George W. Bush's Chief of Staff and who is a major source for Bob Woodward's revealing book about the Bush march to war, State of Denial. Lindauer's father is John Lindauer, the 1998 GOP candidate for governor of Alaska, who was defeated by Tony Knowles."

Wednesday 10/11/2006

The BBC and Israeli Propaganda - Israel's Plan for a Military Strike on Iran  10/11/2006 Counterpunch

Subcomandante Marcos Pays Homage to Che Guevara and Praises Cuba  10/11/2006 NarcoNews

Venezuela Admits Soldiers Fired at Guyanese Miners at Border  10/11/2006 VOA: "Guyana has said the Venezuelan soldiers killed a man believed to be smuggling fuel from Venezuela for his mining operations. Officials say troops fired at him along the Cuyuni River separating the two countries. Guyanese Foreign Minister Rudy Insanally Monday called on Caracas for an explanation and said an investigation is under way. The border between Venezuela and Guyana is disputed and the demarcation has been referred to the United Nations."

Tuesday 10/10/2006

There will be no attack on Iran this year 10/10/2006 Agora Vox

Monday 10/9/2006

Dave Lindorff: Iran Attack Looks More Likely as Eisenhower Carrier Group Sails for Iran Theater  10/9/2006 Buzzflash: "What is deeply troubling here is the total silence on the part of the Democratic Party opposition. Not one Democrat in Congress, and as far as I know, not one Democratic candidate for Congress -- not even anti-war insurgent Ned Lamont in Connecticut -- has demanded an answer from Bush and the Pentagon for the obvious military buildup around Iran, or about published reports that the U.S. already has special forces in side Iran backing the terrorist organization MEK, and selecting targets for U.S. bombardment. If and when the U.S. attacks Iran, leading to a predicable -- if temporary -- rallying around the flag by the American public, and to an upset win by incumbent Republican congressional candidates, Democrats will have only themselves to blame for the debacle."

Chile worried about President Chávez' military plan  10/9/2006 El Universal: "A military cooperation agreement entered into by Bolivia and Venezuela on the establishment of a base at the border between Bolivia and Chile put the Chilean Foreign Affairs Committee, Chamber of Deputies on the alert. They summoned both the Defense minister and the Foreign minister to brief on the impact of such move, AP reported. An extensive Sunday report in daily El Mercurio shows the agreement executed last May 26th by Bolivian President Evo Morales and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez. According to the story, the agreement provides for the establishment of military bases at the border between Bolivia and Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Chile."

Chavista with whip hand  10/9/2006 FT: Ecuador - "Mr Correa, 43, is the latest Latin American presidential contender promising to punish both discredited local elites and foreign investors. If opinion polls are correct, he will comfortably take first place in Sunday's election although he is likely to fall short of the 40 per cent needed to claim outright victory in the first round. Even so, the remote possibility that Mr Correa might avoid a second-round run-off in November caused a shiver of panic last week on Wall Street where Ecuador's sovereign debt spreads widened sharply."

Venezuela Oil Deal Is Bid to Aid Leftist Ortega  10/9/2006 LA Times: "Venezuela said it would ship 350,000 barrels of heavy diesel oil to Nicaragua under an energy deal aimed at helping leftist front-runner Daniel Ortega win that nation's presidential election next month. The announcement came a day after Venezuela delivered 84,000 gallons of cut-rate diesel fuel to help Nicaragua ease its daily power blackouts. The energy agreement allows Nicaragua to buy Venezuelan fuel at 60% of the price and pay the outstanding 40% over 25 years at 1% interest."

Sunday 10/8/2006

Mass Venezuela opposition rally  10/8/2006 BBC: "Tens of thousands of people have marched through the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, in support of the main opposition candidate, Manuel Rosales." [When the Chavistas march, add another 0]

Devil's on the Loose - Evil Hour in Colombia  10/8/2006 Counterpunch: "With the understanding that the two party system in Colombia is mostly a system that serves the country's elites (with occasional inclusion of the non-white and peasant members of the population), Hylton details the relationship of the rest of Colombian society--the Afro-Colombians, indigenous and other disenfranchised groups to the bourgeois democracy that is Colombia."

Full Statement of Those Who Occupied the Stage Why We Confronted the Minutemen at Columbia  10/8/2006 Counterpunch: "In the aftermath of the protest on the night of October 4 against Jim Gilchrist and the racist Minutemen at Roone Arledge auditorium, we want to state clearly: We are proud to send the message to the country that racist and fascist groups are not welcome at Columbia or in New York City. As Chicanos and Latinos, alongside African Americans and progressive people of other nationalities, we took it as our responsibility to give voice to the undocumented immigrant families who live in fear at terrorist vigilante groups like the Minutemen. Armed patrols by these groups force more and more people desperate for work to find even more hazardous ways into the United States. Over 3,000 people-including hundreds of children-have died in the desert. Their blood is on the hands of Gilchrist and his thugs. Fascist scapegoating is not up for academic discussion. Like Hitler in pre-Nazi Germany, Gilchrist and the Minutemen attempt to demonize foreign-born poor people, blaming "illegals" for society's problems. His group doesn't present reasoned debate. It spouts racism and hatred, aiming to divide people against one another."

How the FBI protected Al Qaeda’s 9/11 Hijacking Trainer New Revelations about Ali Mohamed by Dr. Peter Dale Scott  10/8/2006 Global Research: "It is now generally admitted that Ali Mohamed (known in the al Qaeda camps as Abu Mohamed al Amriki — "Father Mohamed the American")8 worked for the FBI, the CIA, and U.S. Special Forces. As he later confessed in court, he also aided the terrorist Ayman al-Zawahiri, a co-founder of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, and by then an aide to bin Laden, when he visited America to raise money.9 The 9/11 Report mentioned him, and said that the plotters against the U.S. Embassy in Kenya were “led” (their word) by Ali Mohamed.10 That’s the Report’s only reference to him, though it’s not all they heard. Patrick Fitzgerald, U.S. Attorney who negotiated a plea bargain and confession from Ali Mohamed, said this in testimony to the Commission Ali Mohamed. …. trained most of al Qaeda’s top leadership – including Bin Laden and Zawahiri – and most of al Qaeda’s top trainers. He gave some training to persons who would later carry out the 1993 World Trade Center bombing…. From 1994 until his arrest in 1998, he lived as an American citizen in California, applying for jobs as an FBI translator.11 Patrick Fitzgerald knew Ali Mohamed well. In 1994 he had named him as an unindicted co-conspirator in the New York landmarks case, yet allowed him to remain free. This was because, as Fitzgerald knew, Ali Mohamed was an FBI informant, from at least 1993 and maybe 1989.12 Thus, from 1994 “until his arrest in 1998 [by which time the 9/11 plot was well under way], Mohamed shuttled between California, Afghanistan, Kenya, Somalia and at least a dozen other countries.”13 Shortly after 9/11, Larry C. Johnson, a former State Department and CIA official, faulted the FBI publicly for using Mohamed as an informant, when it should have recognized that the man was a high-ranking terrorist plotting against the United States.14 "

Harriet Tubman  10/8/2006 PBS

Al-Qaeda terrorist duped FBI, Army  10/8/2006 Raleigh News & Observer: published 10/01 - ""This individual approached the CIA to offer information," a U.S. official told The News & Observer, speaking on condition that no further identification be provided. "Some time later, we found out he was talking to known terrorists and had identified himself as a CIA agent. We felt him to be untrustworthy, and we put him on the State Department watch list." The CIA also warned other U.S. government agencies about Mohamed and urged them to detain him if possible, the official said. The next year, 1985, Mohamed managed to get a visa to enter the United States. One year later, he enlisted as a regular soldier in the U.S. Army at the age of 34. He was assigned to the U.S. Special Operations Command in Fort Bragg. Fluent in Arabic, Hebrew, French and English, Mohamed brought extensive knowledge of the Arab world. Though officially a supply sergeant, he spent much of his time teaching soldiers about the Mideast. Robert Anderson, a retired lieutenant colonel, remembers him vividly. Anderson said Mohamed made no secret of his religious views. "He had identified himself as a fundamentalist, but after I interviewed him I identified him as a fanatic," said Anderson, who lives in Fayetteville, N.C."

Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Campaign Tom Reynolds was involved in the cover up of the Mark Foley Pagegate  10/8/2006 Wayne Madsen Report: scroll down to first entry for October 6/7/8, 2006 - "WMR's Capitol Hill sources report that chairman of the National Republican Congressional Campaign Tom Reynolds was involved in the cover up of the Mark Foley Pagegate scandal since at least October 4, 2005. That was the day Reynolds hired Foley's chief of staff Kirk Fordham as his own chief of staff. Our Hill sources report that Fordham was hired by Reynolds to provide Fordham "safe harbor" from the scandal that was enveloping Foley's office."

Friday 10/6/2006

Ban Ki-Moon certain to become UN chief 10/6/2006 AFP: [reported to be a follower of the Rev Sun Jung Moon, aiming to bring religion to the UN.]

Thursday 10/5/2006

How to Steal an Election: The Inside Story of How George Bush's Brother and FOX Network Miscalled the 2000 Election and Changed the Course of History  10/5/2006 Buzzflash: "This book, by a career pollster who lost his job at Gallup for writing it, returns to the scene of the primal crime: the theft of the presidency from the votes of the American people in 2000. Through his professional contacts as a polling expert, David Moore pieced together how the calling of the election for George W. Bush by FOX News in 2000 was not motivated by data, but by a phone call to John Ellis -- a first cousin of George W. Bush -- from Jeb Bush, also Ellis's first cousin. It has been known for years that Ellis -- who just "coincidentally" headed the FOX election team that called the 2000 elections -- bragged about talking with George and Jeb throughout that chaotic election night. But what has not been revealed until now is that Ellis made the decision to declare Florida for Bush on the basis of Jeb telling him that George had won."

U.S. Government Caught Red-Handed Releasing Staged Al-Qaeda Videos  10/5/2006 Prison Planet

How Chomsky eclipsed the influence of the pro-Israeli lobby on the United States’ policy by Jeffrey Blankfort  10/5/2006 Voltaire Network

Wednesday 10/4/2006

War on Terror Returning to Its Cradle  10/4/2006 AntiWar: "But even as Musharraf sat down with Karzai for a peacemaking dinner hosted by Bush himself last Tuesday, an anonymous senior U.S. military officer was telling reporters in Kabul that cross-border attacks by Taliban forces had, in fact, tripled since the North Waziristan truce actually took effect in late June. Several days later, the Washington Post reported on a captured al-Qaeda document that strongly suggested that at least part of the group's top leadership is in fact living in North Waziristan, bolstering claims that the truce had created, in Newsweek magazine's words, a "'Jihadistan' … an autonomous quasi-state of religious radicals, mostly belonging to Pashtun tribes," stretching from central Afghanistan to much of northwestern Pakistan."

Britain: The mysterious case of the disappearing 'terror’ plots  10/4/2006 Global Research

Israel Lobby Initiates Hispanic Strategy: "Invadimos a Iran"  10/4/2006 Mideast Council: "The Israel lobby has recently begun strategizing how to influence the Hispanic vote in the United States. Already a $760 billion[i] powerhouse consumer market, the Hispanic share of US voters will reach 8.6% in 2006 according to the Pew Hispanic Center. Hispanics accounted for 50% of the US population between 2000 and 2004 but only 10% of the increase in the total votes cast.[ii] In the event of amnesty or other citizenship initiatives for undocumented immigrants, this segment of voters will become even more significant as population gains translate into voting power. Understanding and influencing the Hispanic vote will soon attract additional resources from many special interest groups. The Israel lobby clearly sees Hispanic voters as a new and largely untapped force in American politics in need of leadership harnessed to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's (AIPAC) foreign policy issue framework."

Tuesday 10/3/2006

Democrats Assail Frist's Afghan Comments  10/3/2006 AP: "Democrats accused Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of waving a white flag of surrender for saying the Afghan war against Taliban guerrillas can never be won militarily and favoring bringing "people who call themselves Taliban" into the government."

Oaxaca on Maximum Alert - "Federales" preparing to intervene militarily  10/3/2006 Aztlan: "At issue is the corrupt Oaxacan state government led by Governor Ulises Ruiz of the PRI political party. Governor Ruiz is a lackey of foreign interests who has allowed the plunder of the state's rich natural resources by US and other foreign corporations. Among these corporations is Rio Tinto, a subsidiary of Kennecott, that has plundered for decades the uranium in the Loxicha region of southern Oaxaca. Although rich in mineral resources such as silver, gold, coal, uranium, oil and onyx, and with fertile soil, Oaxaca's corrupt state government makes it one of Mexico's poorest states. The people of Oaxaca have stated that they want Governor Ruiz to resign and leave the state immediately. He has been hiding but last week returned prompting a shootout in the capital. Today, Governor Ruiz has recruited and organized a 2,000 strong "state police force" that is waiting just outside the city for orders to attack the insurgents camping out at the zocalo in the capital's center. The plunder of the state's natural resources by foreign interests, with the cooperation of a local corrupt state government, has left very few alternatives for the mostly Indigenous population. Many, out of economic need, have immigrated north of the border. Among the saddest situations is the many Oaxacans who live in makeshift camps in North San Diego County, California and who work in the area's many nurseries and tomato fields. In July of 2000, a group of 8 racists viciously attacked 5 elderly workers living in a migrant worker's camp located in the brush in McGonigle Canyon. Two nights before this incident, an immigrant from Oaxaca was lynched and dragged behind a vehicle in the same area. The story is published at: http://www.aztlan.net/lynched.htm "

U.S. General Says Chávez Worries Region  10/3/2006 NYT: "The commander of United States military activities in Latin America said Monday that Venezuela under President Hugo Chávez had become a destabilizing force, and that other countries in the Western hemisphere shared that concern."

Our Rigged Elections: The Elephant in the Polling Booth  10/3/2006 Washington Spectator: "If we get millions out to vote, without informing them they may well "lose" anyway, the blow will devastate them, just as Kerry's abrupt concession did in 2004. It took two years to get Americans mobilized again. If Bush and his allies steal the next election, we won't have years to start resisting. The resistance must start on Day One, just as in Ukraine and Mexico; and so the people must be ready for the fight—and so they need to know enough to wage it, and to win it."

Monday 10/2/2006

Frist: Taliban should be in Afghan gov't 10/2/2006 AP: "U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said Monday that the Afghan war against Taliban guerrillas can never be won militarily and urged support for efforts to bring "people who call themselves Taliban" and their allies into the government. The Tennessee Republican said he learned from briefings that Taliban fighters were too numerous and had too much popular support to be defeated on the battlefield."

"There is one safeguard known generally to the wise, which is an advantage and security to all, but especially to Democracies as against despots: suspicion." -- Demosthenes

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World News 10/2/06 - 10/31/2006

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World News
10/2/06 - 10/31/2006

Copyright © 1997 AfroCubaWeb, S.A.
Last modified: October 26, 2006