Wednesday, May 30, 2007

BUSH REGIME & NEOCONS IGNORE IRAQI INITIATIVES TO BRING PEACE TO IRAQ

And so it goes here is a video to the music of The Rolling Stones singing their song " MY SWEET NEOCON "



Americans claim they want to liberate the people of Iraq & bring them democracy but it looks more like a conquest & a land-grab .What the Bush Regime has done is to destroy Iraq as a unified nation & leave its people in a weakened position so that the Americans can have control over the country & use it as a base of operations for controlling the Middle East Now they are forcing the Iraqi government to privatize the oil fields & turn a large proportion of the oil-rights over to American corporations on long term leases of 30 years or more-

Anyway here is an example of how the Bush Regime is trying to win the hearts & minds of the Iraqi people - I jest of course - In this video American soldiers blow up a mosque for no apparent reason & the soldiers have a good laugh & this is their way to build up the trust of the Iraqi people one mosque at a time but it looks more & more like the Crusades rather than the liberation of a people from tyranny -
Why should the Iraqi people support the Americans when they have shown no concern or respect for the people of Iraq or for their culture & religion ???



Note: there are more videos at Liveleak of US troops goofing around & their cowboy style antics...as if they were in some sitcom on tv...

And here is the song " MONEY " from Bob Fosse's CABARET this song could be the anthem for the Neocons :



While war rages & the poor get poorer & the rich become the Super-rich just forget it & don't let it affect you as long as you are content & happy that's all that matters while freedom is stripped from your neighbors & the jails are filled & some are tortured all in the name of securiy & the Homeless are removed from the city streets who cares where they go to whether to Gulags or to another part of the city out of your sight out of your mind just go to the Cabaret or stay home & watch the glittering HD Plasma tv for instead of just Cabarets we now have " American Idol " & other reality type shows for our amusement...



The U.S. media would have us believe that the Iraqi people are a bunch of barbarians who have no interest in peaceful solutions but this is far from the truth as the following article from AlterNet points out U.S. Imperial Ambitions Thwart Iraqis' Peace Plans

By Joshua Holland and Raed Jarrar . May 21, 2007.

Iraq's resistance groups have offered a series of peace plans that might put an end to the country's sectarian violence, but they've been ignored by the U.S.-led coalition because they're opposed to foreign occupation and privatization of oil.


Last week,( May 14) a majority of Iraqi lawmakers demanded a timetable for U.S. and other foreign troops to leave their country. The very next day, the Al Fadhila party, a Shi'ite party considered moderate by the (often arbitrary) standards of the commercial media, held a press conference, in which it offered a 23-point plan for stabilizing Iraq.


The plan addressed not only the current situation in Iraq -- acknowledging the legitimacy of Iraqi resistance, setting a timetable for a complete withdrawal of occupation troops and rebuilding the Iraqi government and security forces in a nonsectarian fashion -- but also the challenging mission of post-occupation peace building and national reconciliation. It included provisions for disbanding militias, protecting Iraq's unity, managing Iraq's natural resources, building relationships with other countries based on mutual interest and the principle of non-intervention in domestic issues, and healing the wounds of more than 30 years of dictatorship, war, sanctions and foreign occupation....


... More significant even than proposals made by Iraqi political parties are those put forth by the country's armed resistance groups --- the very groups that have the ability to bring a halt to the cycle of violence. Comprehensive plans have been offered by the Baath party, which ruled Iraq for three generations, the Islamic Army in Iraq and other major armed resistance groups and coalitions. The plans vary on a number of points, but all of them shared a few items in common: the occupation forces must recognize them as legitimate resistance groups and negotiate with them, and the United States must agree to set a timetable for a complete withdrawal from Iraq. That's the key issue, but Iraq's nationalists see it only as the first step in the long path to achieving national reconstruction and reconciliation.



But these plans are unacceptable to the Coalition because they (a) affirm the legitimacy of Iraq's armed resistance groups and acknowledge that the U.S.-led coalition is, in fact, an occupying army, and (b) return Iraq to the Iraqis, which means no permanent bases, no oil law that gives foreign firms supersweet deals and no radical restructuring of the Iraqi economy. U.S. lawmakers have been and continue to be faced with a choice between Iraqi stability and American Empire, and continue to choose the latter, even as the results of those choices are splashed in bloody Technicolor across our TV screens every evening.


Last year, a comprehensive, 28-point proposal for stabilizing Iraq was offered by the nascent Iraqi government itself after long meetings with different Iraqi groups. According to local polls and political leaders, most Iraqis believed it was the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel -- the plan was attractive to the vast majority of the public, even those Iraqis affiliated with violent resistance groups. But the plan wasn't acceptable to Washington, and was watered down so as to be unrecognizable under U.S. pressure.


...But while the commercial press focuses on the bloody scenes created by those who have taken up arms against the occupation and the fledgling Iraqi government, the reality is that a significant opposition has been expressed in nonviolent means such as regular demonstrations on the streets of Baghdad and other cities, petitions signed by Iraqis, strikes organized by Iraqi unions, parliamentarian work to create binding legislation, and opinion articles in the dozens of Iraqi newspapers that have proliferated since the invasion. This nonviolent demonstration of Iraqis' anti-occupation sentiment reflects large majorities of all of Iraq's major ethnic and sectarian groups -- more than eight out of 10, according to many polls.


...One of the few laws left on the books from the Saddam Hussein era is one that severely limits the rights of Iraqi workers to organize. As journalist David Bacon reported in the winter of 2003, coalition forces "escalated their efforts to paralyze Iraq's new labor unions with a series of arrests" that left one of the few surviving segments of Iraq's once-vibrant secular civil society toothless.


In addition, Iraqi newspapers and T.V. stations have been repeatedly targeted. The major clashes between U.S. forces and the Mehdi Army in 2004 were sparked by the closure of the Sadrists' official newspaper, and a number of broadcast stations have been shut down because of their anti-occupation stands. Eighty-two Iraqi journalists have been killed since 2003.


The unreported -- or at least underreported -- story is that Iraqi nationalists are not just "insurgents"; there are many who still believe in political solutions and nonviolent resistance. They continue to work against the occupation through diplomacy and nonviolent opposition, but the Al-Maliki regime, which is dominated by Iraqi separatists, has joined the White House, the Pentagon and the bulk of the U.S. Congress in marginalizing their voices. It is the latest in a long series of examples of American officials backing only the worst horses in Iraq -- a theme that began with the embrace of proven fraudsters like Ahmed Chalabi.


(...and the opression of ordinary non-violent Iraqis continues:)


Much of the violence in Iraq has been fueled by this systematic disregard for nonviolent means of opposing the occupation. Before they sink down the memory hole, let's recall what just a few of the headlines from the very early days of the occupation were saying:


* "U.S. Soldiers Kill 13 at Iraq Protest Rally, Hospital Reports," Associated Press, 29 April 2003.
* "At Least 10 Dead as U.S. Soldiers Fire on School Protest," Independent (U.K.), 30 April 2003.
* "Two More Die During Protest at U.S. Killings: Mayor Wants Troops to Leave Town Where 14 Were Shot Dead Day Before," Guardian, 1 May 2003
* "More Protesters Fall to U.S. Guns in Falluja; Commander Says Americans Will Remain," Associated Press, 1 May 2003.
* "[During a Demonstration] U.S. Soldiers Are Said to Kill Iraqi Policemen by Mistake," New York Times, 12 September 2003


Nonviolent resistance in Iraq continues to be met with violence today. Iraqi nationalists have faced repeated attacks by both Coalition forces and Iraqi separatists -- from the bombing of the National Dialogue Front's headquarters in Baghdad to attacks by Shia separatists like SCIRI on Sadr loyalists. At the same time, U.S. officials have heaped praise on -- and the White House has feted -- Iraqi separatists while dismissing Iraq's nationalists as "extremists" or members of "anti-government forces."





Take care,
GORD.

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

RELIGIOUS RIGHT & THE GREAT COMMISSION : WORLD CONGRESS OF FAMILIES

Here's another funny clip from the Simpsons about Creationism & Evolution :



Anyway as seen in my last post on the opening of the 27 million dollar Bible based " CREATION MUSEUM " the fundamentalist evangelicals are in fact thriving in the current political climate in the United States . These politicized evangelicals are not content to merely spread their beliefs within the United States but believe it is their duty to spread their particular brand of Christianity to the rest of the world. This they refer to as the Great Commission which they believe the Bible endorses & to fail to attempt to convert every person on earth would be to fail God or even to go against God's Word .
This brings us to the recently held " World Congress of Families " which met in Poland .

A series of articles at Reality Check .org illustrates how the US Religious Right is spreading its Evangelical Political agenda world-wide through umbrella organizations like The World Congress of Families which is endorsed by the Bush Regime as one of the speakers at the conference was Ellen Sauerbery, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration .." who opened her speech by saying to the audience "I bring you greetings from President Bush!" She then went on to say that this Administration "values strengthening the family as an important goal for the sake of our common humanity" and congratulated Poland on its own courageous "pro-family" policies "...


What do the Vatican, U.S. Right Wing, and the Bush Administration have in common? The World Congress of Families...and it's not pretty


As Tyler LePard of Reality Check writes on May 10, 2007 in her article
" Introducing World Congress of Families "




The event that extreme conservatives have been waiting for is finally here! Get out your scarlet letters, chastity belts and witch feminist-poking sticks. The World Congress of Families (WCF) begins Friday and will be attended by fundamentalist conservative representatives from around the world (with a large faction from the United States, of course). The theme of this 4th Congress is "The Natural Family—Springtime for Europe and the World." (Anyone else hear a song from The Producers in your head? I wonder if they'll play that in the musical interlude on opening day...)


On a more serious note, the WCF and participating groups represent a real threat to sexual and reproductive health and rights; our special series covers the congress and its implications for these important issues. Two of our allies will be writing anonymously (names withheld to protect their safety) with RH Reality Check while they attend the event; this first post provides excellent background on the WCF (including the first three congresses) and why the right-wing chose Poland. More reports from the congress will be published over the weekend. Additionally, Andrea Lynch provides a reality check on the way in which WCF excludes real families around the world.


The list of WCF speakers and participants is an impressive collection of radical conservatives who are anti-abortion (duh), anti-feminist, anti-contraception, xenophobic and homophobic. The main impetus for focusing on the "natural family" is based on conservative Christian ideology, and they use declining birth rates, dwindling church attendance and growing immigration as motivation to push discriminatory policies and restrict tolerance and reproductive rights.


And the conference is dealt with in a series of articles which are informative & show that the Religious Right is far from dead & continues to influence policy makers & legislators in the United States & elsewhere :

World Congress of Families’ Legislative Aim
Elisha Dunn-Georgiou, SIECUS on May 14, 2007


The World Congress of Families IV ended on Sunday with Allan Carlson, of the Howard Center for Family, Religion and Society calling on the audience to make 2008 the real year of the international family by taking grassroots action to lobby parliamentary members to adopt policies that promote the natural family, criminalize abortion and further marginalize lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender citizens.


Despite the lower than desired media coverage and a lower than desired turnout of less than 3,000 people, the WCF organizers have accomplished what they ultimately set out to do—create a network of conservative civil society and parliamentarians who can influence European policy both at the national level and throughout the European Union. Unlike previous World Congresses whose aim was often to build cultural support for right-wing ideals, this WCF had a clear legislative goal from the beginning and several national (MP) and European Parliamentary members (MEP) were present throughout the conference, including Ana Zaborska (Slovakia), Head of Women's Rights and Equality Commission, and Carlo Casini (Italy), Head of Committee on Legal Affairs.


In conjunction with the standard WCF program of speakers and sessions on conservative social and cultural issues, this year the organizers also hosted an Inter-Parliamentary Forum that brought together 50 national and European Parliamentary Members from Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, France, and the United Kingdom to strategize on how to achieve the "globalization of pro-family ideals." Additionally, over 100 European Parliamentary members signed a declaration in support of the Congress and its conservative ideals. Presented to the audience as a response to the letter from 19 European Parliamentary leaders for Ellen Sauerbery not to attend, the declaration was read by Catherine Vierling of the European Forum for Human Rights and Family, one of the many right-wing groups already lobbying the European Parliament to change its policies.



To learn more go to the website of WORLD CONGRESS OF FAMILIES where you will find their mission statement & the WARSAW DECLARATION which was agreed upon at the end of this years conference - it is chilling stuff to read- which begins:

We the participants of the World Congress of Families IV commit ourselves to protect the Truth about the family, recalling its natural essence as a community of love and life, one bearing inalienable rights as it is written in the Charter of the Family Rights.[1]


The natural family, creation of God, is the fundamental human community, based on the life long marriage between a man and a woman, in which new individuals are conceived, born, and raised.[2]


"The future of humanity passes by way of the family"[3] and "there is no more efficient way for the rebirth of the society than its rebirth through healthy families"[4] that are faithful to their conjugal and parental vocations.


Such families bring to the world today:

• Faithfulness to the Divine Truth versus relativism;

• Real love, being the complete and impartial gift of oneself versus hedonism;

• Faithfulness in love throughout life versus lack of responsibility toward those closest to us;

• Respect for the life of every human being from conception to natural death versus discrimination against and extermination of the weakest;

• Joyful responsibility for every child-to-be, versus fear of the child expressed in the contraceptive mentality;

• A moral community in which young generations can grow versus false ideologies propagating demoralization;

• And, last but not least, the "springtime" of a civilization of love and life versus "demographic winter."

And from their website their stated purpose for the conference:

Our Purpose:

We assemble in this World Congress, from many national, ethnic, cultural, social and religious communities, to affirm that the natural human family is established by the Creator and essential to good society. We address ourselves to all people of good will who, with the majority of the world's people, value the natural family. Ideologies of statism, individualism and sexual revolution, today challenge the family's very legitimacy as an institution. Associated with this challenge are the problems of divorce, devaluation of parenting, declining family time, morally relativistic public education, confusions over sexual identity, promiscuity, sexually transmitted diseases, abortion, poverty, human trafficking, violence against women, child abuse, isolation of the elderly, excessive taxation and below-replacement fertility. To defend the family and to guide public policy and cultural norms, this Declaration asserts principles that respect and uphold the vital roles that the family plays in society.


Note for instance their references to " morally relativistic public education " statism " & " excessive taxation " which point to their anti-liberal pro-neoconsrvatism & their belief in the notion of an ongoing "Secular Humanist Conspiracy " to destroy what they consider to be true Christian values.

In a related story from Alternet Bruce Wilson discusses how the Religious Right distort historical facts & disseminate this Revisionist History to American students:

Aleternet
Department Of Defense Promotes Christian Right's Revisionist History in Public Schools, May 16, 2007.
Bruce Wilson: David Barton Material Found in National JROTC Program Curriculum


Last Saturday, I uncovered revisionist US History within the Unit 6 core curriculum for the national Junior ROTC program ; about 1/2 million American high school students each year are unrolled in the JROTC. I was astounded ; a passage paraphrased from the writing of David Barton, the leading historical revisionist claiming that the United States was founded as a "Christian Nation", has been embedded within a national educational curriculum produced by the Department of Defense and taught, across the nation, to American public high schools students enrolled in Junior ROTC...


and he goes on to argue why faked or mangled history being taught is of concern:

In fact, from the students in the nearly 400 public high schools across the US who are taking Bible classes taught from a fake-history larded curriculum created by the National Council on Bible Curriculum in Public Schools, to the 1/2 million public school students being taught fake history in the Junior ROTC curriculum, on to the hundreds of thousands and possibly even millions of children being taught falsified American history embedded in Christian homeschooling curricula, a sizable portion of an entire generation of Americans is being raised to believe in the falsified "Christian nation" myth.

For that reason alone, the claim that the Christian right as a political movement should be discounted is a dubious one because an entire new generation of leaders, now coming to the fore and inculcated with Christian right ideas including a fake "Christian nation" version of history, will soon take over to devise new tactics and strategies that will advance the movement.


and from Talk To Action see article by Bruce Wilson October, 29, 2006 "New National Program to "temporarily transform churches into courthouses" under the program called "Fugitive Safe Surrender" ...' that would give federal grants to churches for encouraging fugitive felons to turn themselves in; "arraignments would then be conducted in church, by judges, with the participation of law enforcement officers and public defenders. These arrests would involve bail hearings that would lead to the arrest of some defendants." ' which illustrates once again how the notion of a Separation of Church & State is being eroded in the United States which goes against the core beliefs of the country's founders.

Also see article :

Media Finally Discovers Army of Pat Robertson Acolytes in Bush Administration

By Max Blumenthal , Huffington Post April 13,2007 .

When Monica Goodling's name erupted into the news last week in the attorney scandal, the mainstream press suddenly realized that Pat Robertson's Regent University exists -- and that it's got a big footprint in the Bush admin.


also see
MISSION AMERICA COALITION

About the Mission America Coalition
by Dr. Paul A. Cedar, Chairman/CEO


The Mission America Coalition (MAC) is an unprecedented Coalition of Christian leaders who have prayerfully come together to mobilize the Church for praying, caring and sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ in deed and word.

Since its inception, leaders from 81 denominations, over 350 ministries and dozens of ministry networks have been involved in the Coalition. MAC calls for active participation in The Great Commission of Jesus Christ to “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) and our Lord’s Great Commandment to “Love the Lord your God . . . and love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37, 39).

Our Mission Statement is:

"The Whole Church taking the Whole Gospel to the Whole Nation -
and to the World!”


and see Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization
& Lausanne World Pulse


Here is how they describe their organization & its mission:

The Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization (Lausanne) is an international movement that seeks to energize churches, mission agencies, networks and individuals to respond with vigor and courage to the cause of global evangelization. Lausanne grew out of the 1974 International Congress on World Evangelization called by a committee headed by the Reverend Billy Graham. For more than three decades, through the work of Lausanne, global Christian leaders have participated in regional, national and international consultations and conferences to develop biblical and strategic approaches to evangelism.

The Institute of Strategic Evangelism (ISE), the Evangelism and Missions Information Service (EMIS) and the Intercultural Studies Department (ISD) at Wheaton College, near Chicago, IL, USA, have come into existence through the efforts of many committed Christians seeking to evangelize various people groups and cultures. Although each separate department is housed at the Billy Graham Center (which is part of Wheaton College), all three are connected by a common goal to share the good news around the world. This is done through workshops, seminars, print and electronic media and classroom education.

Also of interest see:

Campus Crusade for Christ

Campus Crusade for Christ Statement of Faith

The sole basis of our beliefs is the Bible, God's infallible written Word, the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments. We believe that it was uniquely, verbally and fully inspired by the Holy Spirit and that it was written without error (inerrant) in the original manuscripts. It is the supreme and final authority in all matters on which it speaks.

We accept those areas of doctrinal teaching on which, historically, there has been general agreement among all true Christians. Because of the specialized calling of our movement, we desire to allow for freedom of conviction on other doctrinal matters, provided that any interpretation is based upon the Bible alone, and that no such interpretation shall become an issue which hinders the ministry to which God has called us.


and then goes on to list a number of doctrines which are the basis for their beliefs which ends with:

The Lord Jesus Christ commanded all believers to proclaim the Gospel throughout the world and to disciple men of every nation. The fulfillment of that Great Commission requires that all worldly and personal ambitions be subordinated to a total commitment to "Him who loved us and gave Himself for us.


Take care ,
GORD.

Monday, May 28, 2007

BIBLE BASED " CREATION MUSEUM" OPENS IN PETERSBURG KENTUCKY - " IGNORANCE IS BLISS "

Let us begin with a little music from South Pacific - so here is the cynical song " You've Got to be Carefully Taught " which is about teaching hate & bigotry & other negative values to children - many people miss one of the central themes of South Pacific which is about racism as being as American as 'apple-pie ' which the writers are criticizing & sometimes this song is completely dropped when high schools or others are performing this musical ...




Anyway so you think the " CREATIONISTS" are a bunch of
crackpots who only represent a minority of Americans well better think again for the new " CREATION MUSEUM " in Petersburg , Kentucky funded by Creationist organization " Answers in Genesis " at a cost of 27 million dollars opens today, Memorial Day in the United States .

So here a couple of items about this...


Here's a funny bit with Ned Flanders from the Simpsons on Creationism vs Evolution




Here is the director of the museum Ken Ham being interviewed & taken quite seriously on CBN, the Christian Broadcasting Network, arguing for " CREATIONISM " as scientific fact :




Next is a BBC item about THE CREATION MUSEUM founded by ANSWERS IN GENESIS ( AIG ) " TIME TO TAKE UP THE SWORD OF GOD " -



And for more information on the CREATION MUSEUM see their elaborate website with videos Answers In Genesis

Here is how the AIG describes their Museum & their Mission Statement:

The Creation Museum will be upfront that the Bible is the supreme authority in all matters of faith and practice, and in every area it touches upon. We’ll begin the Museum experience by showing that “facts” don’t speak for themselves . There aren’t separate sets of “evidences” for evolution and creation—we all deal with the same evidence (we all live on the same earth, have the same fossils, observe the same animals, etc.). The difference lies in how we interpret what we study. We’ll then explore why the Bible—the “history book of the universe”—provides a reliable, eye-witness account of the beginning of all things. After that, we'll take guests on a journey through a visual presentation of the history of the world, based on the “7 C’s of History”: Creation, Corruption, Catastrophe, Confusion, Christ, Cross, Consummation. Throughout this family-friendly experience, guests will learn how to answer the attacks on the Bible’s authority in geology, biology, anthropology, cosmology, etc., and they will discover how science actually confirms biblical history. The complex, near Cincinnati, Ohio, will also be the headquarters for AiG-USA and will house the ministry offices, recording studio and resource distribution center. The museum will also feature classrooms for use by school groups, pastors and others. Museum mission statement

*

Exalt Jesus Christ as Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer through a safe, wholesome, family-friendly center for learning and discovery that clearly presents major biblical themes from Genesis to Revelation. * This center will equip Christians to better evangelize the lost with a sense of urgency, through a combination of exhibits, research and educational presentations that uphold the inerrancy of the Bible. * This center will also challenge visitors to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord and to accept the authority of the Bible by providing culturally relevant biblical and scientific answers from a biblical worldview. Main theme The Bible is true from Genesis to Revelation!


Also see article critical of AIG & its " CREATION MUSEUM" from Christian Science Monitor :

Natural History, Bible-style

By Jane Lampman, Christian Science Monitor. Posted May 26, 2007.

A new creation "science" museum puts dinosaurs in the garden with Adam and Eve. Some 700 scientists have deplored its inaccurate exhibits, warning that students who accept them are "unlikely to succeed in science courses."



as the article points out :

Eugenie Scott, director of the National Center for Science Education, says, "This is freedom of speech, but it's unfortunate the public is going to be exposed to erroneous science presented with great flash and dash ... in an authoritative way. This is going to be detrimental to science literacy."


No doubt, AiG knew how to create an appealing experience, choosing a designer of amusement parks who created the Jaws and King Kong exhibits at Florida's Universal Studios. In a special-effects theater, the seats shake and visitors are sprinkled with water. There's a lush Garden of Eden, a partial re-creation of Noah's Ark, a slice of the Grand Canyon, lots of videos on plasma TVs, and a planetarium for exploring the universe. At Noah's Cafe, kids can saddle up on a triceratops.


Yet the main mission isn't entertainment; it's presenting a particular "biblical worldview" in which Genesis stands as literal history and true science.


"Genesis gives an account of the history of all basic entities ... from the One who knows everything," Ham says. "If you don't know everything, there could always be evidence that will lead to wrong conclusions."


And wrong conclusions is what AiG claims is behind evolution. Dividing science into "observational science" and "historical science," its theme is that the latter is simply interpretation based on one's presuppositions. In one exhibit, for instance, two paleontologists (a creationist and an evolutionist) are digging up a dinosaur skeleton, but they have two different interpretations -- one from a perspective of thousands of years and the other, millions of years.

And for another example of how influential the Religious Right is in America here is a related article from the organization " Americans United for The Separation of Church & State "about the United States military establishment & Evangelical Christians ... we see again how Evangelicals & the Bush Regime try to erase the lines between the Chrurch & State & to eventually make America into a truly Christian Nation - Christian that is as defined by Evangelical Fundamentalist :

Military Support For Evangelical Rally Raises Constitutional Issues, Says Americans United
Thursday, May 24, 2007

Religious Liberty Watchdog Groups Questions Armed Forces For Participating In Christian Event In Georgia

U.S. military participation in a three-day evangelical Christian gathering in Georgia violates the U.S. Constitution, according to Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

In a May 23 letter to Air Force Secretary Michael W. Wynne and Acting Secretary of the Army Peter Geren, Americans United says the military should not endorse or promote a festival arranged by evangelical Christian groups at Stone Mountain Park.

The event is being hosted by Task Force Patriot USA, as well as LifeWay Christian Stores, the publishing house of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), and Holman Bible Outreach International.

According to Task Force Patriot USA’s Web site, the organization exists “for the purpose of sharing the fullness of life in Jesus Christ with all U.S. military, military veterans and families,” and “Christ is our Commander-in-Chief.” The group’s logo is a shield centered with a Christian cross with its sides bracketed by an American flag and Christian flag.

The May 26-28 event at Stone Mountain Park is billed as a “Salute To The Troops, Memorial Day Celebration,” but the program includes a Christian worship service and heavy emphasis on evangelical outreach.


Note: in the end the military due to publicity by Americans United decided to distance itself from the Evangelical sponsored event but only at the last minute...


Take care,
GORD.

Saturday, May 26, 2007

RICK MERCER & " TRADITIONAL FAMILY VALUES " CHARLIE CHAPLIN & HITLER

And now for some Canadian content as we become more & more like the Americans & to borrow wholesale the agenda & programs of the Neocon Religious Right Bush Regime-

Anyway here is a funny bit by CBC's Rick Mercer about " Traditional Family Values " as envisioned by the " Religious Christian Right " & the Canadian Neocons & Stephen Harper & the usual suspects as it were :




This next clip is from Charlie Chaplin's wonderful film " The Great Dictator " which alternates between funny & sad to disturbing . In the film the main character who is Jewish is Hitler's double & is trying to escape Nazi Germany but ends up at a rally where he supposed to speak since the crowd believes he is Hitler and so this is the speech he gives:



And here's a funny bit about Hitler who saw himself as a " true Christian " and given direction he believed by God to return Germany & the World to " Traditional Christian Family Values " & that the use of force was sanctioned by Jesus. In his version of Jesus & God Jesus is not " meek & mild" but rather a strong-willed man of action as in Jesus going to the Temple in Jerusalem & over-turning the Money-changers table - & Jesus said " I bring not Peace but a Sword " . Hitler believed that the Family was the center of German Values & that the husband was the authority within the family & that women were to be subservient to men & that Homosexuality was an abomination .

So he sent six million Jews to their deaths but also another approximately six million others including Homosexuals , Communists & liberals & labor union leaders & Gypsies & Slavs & Poles & Russians & any who dared speak out against Hitler , the Nazis & their agenda . Meanwhile the churches backed most of his agenda until he turned on some of them . In that period it is often over-looked that most Europeans & Canadians & Americans also hated & discriminated against Jews & homosexuals & labor union organizers & liberals & treated all who were not Anglo-Saxon or white as a little less than human . Lest we forget African Americans were not given equal rights until 1966 or so & even then discrimination has continued to a greater or lesser extent since then - & it wasn't until 1949 that LYNCHING was made illegal --& the KKK in the South continued to active up through to the 1980s when they went through a bit of of a resurgence during the Reagan years -- & now other White Supremacists organizations are quite active & it is estimated that there may be as many as 20, 000 White Supremacists & other known racist serving in the current US military---

Now we have the Neocons & Radical Christian Right who hate Gays & Lesbians & atheists & liberals & secularists & Unions & Muslims & all other religions except for Jews who are seen as part of their plan to conquer the Middle East or as playing an essential part in " The End of Days " Armageddon & all that they claim to understand in The Book of Revelations in the Bible.

Hitler like the Neocons was a master of the use of Propaganda Techniques & claimed he was doing what he believed would in his view save Western Civilization from being destroyed by the Barbarians at the Gates . He effectively used the Media of his time Radio & newspapers & Mass Rallies for the promotion of his various programs , to stir up feelings of patriotism & nationalism & support for the German people & for the German Army that would protect German values- some of this does sound familiar- & so it goes as we now live in a " State of Perpetual War " & " The GREAT CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS & CULTURE " .

In the event whether Christian or secularist Hitler used the Nativist fears & bigotry & xenophobia & the well established & acceptable Anti-Semitism of his time to promote his own agenda .

The point is that Christians of the Religious Right claim Hitler did what he did because he was an atheist & a believer in Modernity in Freud & Darwin etc. but the facts are the opposite ...and so it goes . ( This is not to defend or excuse Hitler & the Nazi agenda in any way shape or form.)



Provided By:
bkwolfman Adolf Hitler - Killer For Christ - By... Adolf Hitler - Killer For Christ - By Brett Keane Tons of resources http://www.nobeliefs.com/Hitler1.htm (more)



Anyway here is a sampling of Quotes of Adolph Hitler & some of the similarities to the NEOCON belief system & their " PROJECT FOR THE NEW WORLD ORDER " ...

“The idea of struggle is as old as life itself, for life is only preserved because other living things perish through struggle. In this struggle, the stronger, the more able, win, while the less able, the weak, lose. Struggle is the father of all things. It is not by the principles of humanity that man lives or is able to preserve himself above the animal world, but solely by means of the most brutal struggle.” Hitler 1928 --- This is also like the Neocons who care only for " winners " and have no time for LOSERS like the Queen song ---& the term " LOSER " ( how I hate that term it is contemptible & the rot at the core of our decadent self-satisfied society ) has now infiltrated all parts of our society so we are told not to " pity " sympathize or empathize with " LOSERS "--- money, power & victory are all that matter ---- & the poor & the Homeless & the lower classes are to be shunned & forgotten --- & they claim this was the message of CHRIST who was just another middle-class elitist who proclaimed " the poor will be with you always " for they are just lazy or stupid or don't pray enough & mere brutes ...& that Jesus loved the rich & powerful most of all as is proven by the material success of the Neocons & the TV Preachers as they rake in their millions & spew hate & intolerance ...


“The chief function (of propaganda) is to convince the masses, whose slowness of understanding needs to be given time in order that they may absorb information; and only constant repetition will finally succeed in imprinting an idea on their mind ... The success of any advertisement, whether of a business or a political nature, depends upon the consistency and perseverance with which it is employed.” Hitler --- This is like the members of the Bush regime & their fanatical supporters are seen each Sunday on a myriad of " NEWS PROGRAMS" & they repeat their talking points over & over with each in a circular dance supporting each other & the MEDIA buys into it & the people are duped over & over again ...

“I shall give a propagandist reason for starting the war, whether it is plausible or not. The victor will not be asked afterwards whether he told the truth or not. When starting and waging war it is not right that matters, but victory.” Hitler

“There can therefore be but one slogan: Victory! If we win, the billions we have spent will weigh nothing in the scales.” Hitler 1942-

“Close your hearts to pity. Act brutally. Eighty million people must obtain what is their right. Their existence must be made secure. The strongest man is right.” Hitler 1939 - compare to American notions of " MANIFEST DESTINY " & America as " GOD'S CHOSEN NATION "

“The Führer is the supreme judge of the nation….there is no position in the area of constitutional law in the third reich independent of this elemental will of the Führer.” Hitler -- as Bush says he is THE DECIDER & Those around him claim that he is above the law especially as we are in a perpetual state of war against the Terrorists .


see: The psychology and development of
Adolph Hitler Schicklgruber


THE NIKOR PROJECT

CORNELL LAW LIBRARY Dr. Henry A. Murray
Analysis of the Personality of Adolph Hitler[1943 OSS Archives, DD247.H5 M87 1943]


Take care,
GORD.

Friday, May 25, 2007

AMERICANS BETRAYED BY THEIR GOVERNMENT - KEITH OLBERMANN

Anyway so the people of the United States have been betrayed but do they know it & if they do will they do something about it - protest armed insurrection nah they'll just switch the channel ... so it goes
From: Countdown559MSNBC
Keith Olbermann - Special Comment 05/23/07

"The entire government has failed us on Iraq"




Video by YOUTUBE user : Allicat8318 of "Les Miserables " : scenes from 1998 film & music from the stage production of the song " Do You Hear The People Sing "...





" Do You Hear The People Sing" from the anniversary concert of " Les Miserables " ...if only it were true instead the song is performed for the rich & the well satisfied vapid yuppies in search of entertainment watching the poor do a little song & dance with sad-eyed idealist & that's how that goes but the irony is lost on them well that's at least what some cynic might think...



Take care,
GORD.

Thursday, May 24, 2007

IRAQI WAR & OCCUPATION SURGE & ESCALATION A RE-RUN OF VIETNAM - THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

Anyway before we begin our normal depressing program let's listen to a fun song by R.E.M. called " BAD DAY " care of Warner Brothers on YOUTUBE before they un-embed it as it were so for those who only want " GOOD NEWS " about firefighters saving cats & the child rescued from a well etc. so it goes...




Here's a revealing & disturbing video about Vietnam veterans who became part of the anti-war movement which then spread throughout the ranks of the American forces of whom many refused to fight & killed a number of their own officers by an act they refer to as " fraging "- they were also supposed to take part in a strategy of Vietnamization & surge after surge as the body count of US forces escalated daily & this was supposed to be the winding down of the war as US forces "carpet bombed " everything they could & Vietnam became a " FREE FIRE ZONE " " kill them all & we'll sort it out later... NOTE: Beware graphic images & language...






and the Bush Regime is using covert operations to destabilize Iran & making it a new front in the perpetual war against the Terrorists so why do so many innocents have to die as their surviving family and friends take up arms against the invader & occupier..

Bush Authorizes New Covert Action Against Iran
By Brian Ross and Richard Esposito
ABC News

Tuesday 22 May 2007

The CIA has received secret presidential approval to mount a covert "black" operation to destabilize the Iranian government, current and former officials in the intelligence community tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com.

The sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the subject, say President Bush has signed a "nonlethal presidential finding" that puts into motion a CIA plan that reportedly includes a coordinated campaign of propaganda, disinformation and manipulation of Iran's currency and international financial transactions.

"I can't confirm or deny whether such a program exists or whether the president signed it, but it would be consistent with an overall American approach trying to find ways to put pressure on the regime," said Bruce Riedel, a recently retired CIA senior official who dealt with Iran and other countries in the region.

A National Security Council spokesperson, Gordon Johndroe, said, "The White House does not comment on intelligence matters." A CIA spokesperson said, "As a matter of course, we do not comment on allegations of covert activity."

The sources say the CIA developed the covert plan over the last year and received approval from White House officials and other officials in the intelligence community.

Officials say the covert plan is designed to pressure Iran to stop its nuclear enrichment program and end aid to insurgents in Iraq.

"There are some channels where the United States government may want to do things without its hand showing, and legally, therefore, the administration would, if it's doing that, need an intelligence finding and would need to tell the Congress," said ABC News consultant Richard Clarke, a former White House counterterrorism official.

Current and former intelligence officials say the approval of the covert action means the Bush administration, for the time being, has decided not to pursue a military option against Iran.

"Vice President Cheney helped to lead the side favoring a military strike," said former CIA official Riedel, "but I think they have come to the conclusion that a military strike has more downsides than upsides."



Anyway here is a bit about Gonzales & his almost flippant attitude in regards to renditions & torture ...

This clip is of Attorney General of America Alberto Gonzales being questioned by Senator Leahy about the Maher Arar case of a Canadian Citizen detained by Americans & sent to Syria where he underwent torture - after being returned to Canada an Inquiry discovered Maher Arar was innocent of any terrorist charges ... Gonzales implies that he has some secret information about Maher Arar & that is why he is still on a " No Fly List " but Gonzales never produces such information on Maher Arar - Once accused the Bush Regime treats individuals as criminals even though the charges don't stick & even when there is no credible evidence against the accused - they simply refuse to accept that they make mistakes & that torture is wrong whether it is done by American soldiers, CIA or any other Americans or when it is done in secret prisons in Syria or anywhere else in the world -

It matters little to these Neocons that it is against American law & International law to deport an individual to a country where torture is practised & that it is likely that the deported person will be tortured - Cheney, Bush , Gonzales , Condoleeza Rice & Rumsfeld believe they are above the law & can make it up as they go along because the United States in their view is now in a perpetual state of WAR...shades of Orwell's 1984...note for instance how Gonzales seems to sneer & smirk & half-laughs at Sen. Leahy's insistence & is surprised that the Senator is onto Gonzales tactics of not really answering questions & asking for more time on a case that goes back three or four years - well he needs more time, I guess to polish up his lies or in the hope the Senator will just forget about this particular issue...besides Gonzales sees his loyalty to the Bush Regime as above his loyalty to the American people or the US Constitution or any oath he may have taken in this regard & so treats the Senator as some old backward fool for taking such things so seriously & as part of who he is & how he functions in his office & his position of authority etc.




From Keith Olbermann about the creation of an oversight independent entity as a result of the 9/11 Commission which instead of being independent from the Whitehouse is not treated any different than other offices within the control of the Executive & the current Whitehouse administration:

as youtube user heathr234 describes it : " Lanny Davis has resigned from the President's Privacy and Civil Liberties board, charging that the White House tried to influence the board's report to Congress."




As for the attack on freedom of speech which the Neocons see as important in the fight against Terrorism in this clip Keith Olbermann on COUNTDOWN examines Newt Gingrich as he jumps on the Neocon bandwagon to rip to pieces the US Constitution :



this is an excerpt of the transcript from the show.

" It’s in the quintessential movie about this city, “Chinatown.” Morty the Mortician turns to Jack Nicholson’s character and says, “Middle of the drought, and the water commissioner drowns. Only in L.A.” Tonight, a real-life equivalent. Middle of a dinner honoring the sanctity of the First Amendment, and the former speaker of the House talks about restricting freedom of speech. Only in the Republican Party.

Gingrich was the featured speaker at the annual Nackey S. Loeb First Amendment Award Dinner in Manchester, New Hampshire, Monday night, where he not only argued that campaign finance reform and the separation of church and state should be rethought, because they allegedly hurt the First Amendment, but he also suggested that new rules might be necessary to stop terrorists using freedom of speech to get out their message.

Here is his rationalization:



NEWT GINGRICH, FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER: " My view is that either before we lose a city, or if we are truly stupid after we lose a city, we will adopt rules of engagement that we use every technology we can find to break up their capacity to use the Internet, to break up their capacity to use free speech, and to go after people who want to kill us, to stop them from recruiting people before they get to reach out and convince young people to destroy their lives while destroying us."


OLBERMANN: " If you’re going to destroy freedom of speech, bub, you’ve already lost all the cities.
To paraphrase Pastor Martin Noemuller’s poem about Germany in the ‘30s and ‘40s: First they came for the Fourth Amendment, then they came for habeas corpus, then came for free speech, and there was no one allowed to speak up.
"



As for the Democrats standing up to the Bush regime concerning the US occupation of Iraq well it appears it is not going to happen even though the administration is at the moment in weak & vulnerable position all the scandals etc. for various reasons ie. fear of losing support from their constituencies or from their wealthy financial backers for their next election campaigns , or for being seen as not patriotic enough -not hawkish enough or whatever in the event they have caved in & accepted President Bush's deal to agree to funding for the Iraq Occupation without any caveats for instance to make the President more accountable or time tables for exiting Iraq - so with the Democrats help the war will continue spiralling out of control & becoming more & more looking like a rerun of Vietnam - so as reported on May 22 by Keith Olbermann with his discussion with Howard Fineman of Newsweek who says" It's worst than you think "...



Another Power Grab by the Bush Administration...

And here is another nail in the coffin of US Democracy as Bush even now is trying to put even more power into the hands of the Executive & himself & Cheney & their well-chosen hand-picked staff to create a more authoritarian form of government meanwhile the Regime is caught up in the middle of all these scandals & the Mess & quagmire that the Iraqi Occupation has become while Democrats sometimes claim they disapprove of his tactics yet do nothing about it while Fox News & the other Big Media outlets which are more akin to Fast Food Chains than they are to real news agencies with Independent , thoughtful & critical & well informed journalists whose analysis mean something or reporters who have spent years working & living in the countries they cover who are not just at the beck & call of the Party in power & those who support them :


This issue which has been under-reported is spelled out in an article by Mathew Rothschild in The Progressive on May 18, 2007: " Bush Anoints Himself as the Ensurer of Constitutional Government in Emergency "


In a new National Security Presidential Directive, Bush lays out his plans for dealing with a "catastrophic emergency."

With scarcely a mention in the mainstream media, President Bush has ordered up a plan for responding to a catastrophic attack.

Under that plan, he entrusts himself with leading the entire federal government, not just the Executive Branch. And he gives himself the responsibility "for ensuring constitutional government."

He laid this all out in a document entitled "National Security Presidential Directive/NSPD 51" and "Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-20."

The White House released it on May 9.

Other than a discussion on Daily Kos led off by a posting by Leo Fender, and a pro-forma notice in a couple of mainstream newspapers, this document has gone unremarked upon.

The subject of the document is entitled "National Continuity Policy."

It defines a "catastrophic emergency" as "any incident, regardless of location, that results in extraordinary levels of mass casualties, damage, or disruption severely affecting the U.S. population, infrastructure, environment, economy, or government function."

...The document gives the Vice President a role in implementing the provisions of the contingency plans.

"This directive shall be implanted in a manner that is consistent with, and facilitates effective implementation of, provisions of the Constitution concerning succession to the Presidency or the exercise of its powers, and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 (3 USC 19), with the consultation of the Vice President and, as appropriate, others involved."


As I've mentioned before maybe Americans really do want a " strong man " a benevolent Tyrant as it were in power who will guide them through the darkness & into a pre-democratic or post- democratic age as it were...with the radical Christian right at their side...

Take care,
GORD.