added videos from Rachel Maddow & Keith Olbermann on the issue of US government spying on journalists .
Is Obama started to sound like the same old same old or what - dropping bombs on civilians - refusing to recognize Hamas which was democratically elected - defending Israel's WAR CRIMES - defending corrupt & criminal Americans who worked for Bush and His Gang of Thugs ??? Defending the torturers and those who mass murdered the citizens of Iraq -
FLOBOTS - The Same Thing
IN CASE PRESIDENT OBAMA MISSED IT- Crimes Mr. Obama were committed !!!
Olbermann list the crimes and misdemeanors and lies of the eight years of the Bush Regime.
Keith Olbermann- 8 years in 8 minutes
In the clip below it is absolutely incredible and unbelievable that President Obama says " no one has broken the law " Bush and Cheney broke US laws and International Laws. Where was he the last eight years. Did he purposely avoid watching Keith Olbermann or Rachel Maddow or Amy Goodman at Democracy Now! Did he spend too much time watching the apologists on the Mainstream Media such as CNN and Fox News etc.
The Real News Network - A New Sheriff in Town ?
January 23, 2009
President Obama announces plans for Guantánamo, Afghanistan and the Middle East
So it appears detainees could still be held indefinitely but not at Guantanamo. Obama also referred to the US Military Field Manual but it nis a flawed document which allows for enhanced interrogation techniques which are not permitted under the Geneva Conventions . Is President Obama aware of this or is he just playing the same old shell game that Bush played that is by making something legal under American law which in fact contravenes International Law. It is also not the case that just a couple of detainees were abused and tortured but that thousands may have been abused and tortured by American personnel or their proxies. For instance it is against the Geneva Conventions to hand over a detainee to any organization or state which it is believed torture or abuses prisoners.
"Official: UN May Prosecute Bush Administration, Regardless Of US Action" By David Edwards Raw Story , Jan. 23, 2009
-- The UN's special torture rapporteur called on the US Tuesday to pursue former president George W. Bush and defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld for torture and bad treatment of Guantanamo prisoners.
"Judicially speaking, the United States has a clear obligation" to bring proceedings against Bush and Rumsfeld, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture Manfred Nowak said, in remarks to be broadcast on Germany's ZDF television Tuesday evening.
He noted Washington had ratified the UN convention on torture which required "all means, particularly penal law" to be used to bring proceedings against those violating it.
"We have all these documents that are now publicly available that prove that these methods of interrogation were intentionally ordered by Rumsfeld," against detainees at the US prison facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Nowak said.
"But obviously the highest authorities in the United States were aware of this," added Nowak, who authored a UN investigation report on the Guantanamo prison.
Bush stepped down from power Tuesday, with Barack Obama becoming the 44th president of the United States.
Asked about chances to bring legal action against Bush and Rumsfeld, Nowak said: "In principle yes. I think the evidence is on the table."
At issue, however, is whether "American law will recognise these forms of torture."
A bipartisan Senate report released last month found Rumsfeld and other top administration officials responsible for abuse of Guantanamo detainees in US custody.
It said Rumsfeld authorized harsh interrogation techniques on December 2, 2002 at the Guantanamo prison, although he ruled them out a month later.
The coercive measures were based on a document signed by Bush in February, 2002.
French, German and US rights groups have previously said they wanted to bring legal action against Rumsfeld.
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If the UN or some other International Body or Organization could in fact bring these people to justice this would mean to the rest of the world that the Rule of Law does mean something.
This in effect would take the pressure off of President Obama. But it still shows President Obama to not have the courage to take such action that is to apply the Rule Of Law to anyone who has committed a criminal act whether under American Law or International Law . And further he could show the world that America applies the law equally to former Presidents or military personnel whether generals or privates to those who are even among the rich and powerful . Many people had hoped President Obama would make those who committed crimes accountable including those Americans who voted for him and those around the world who had high hopes for his presidency. For some reason he seems to feel more obligated to the political hacks and the elite and other vested interests in Washington than to his own supporters.
The Bush/ Cheney Regime is probably going to go unpunished for its myriad of crimes and misdemeanors with President Obama's help. The ultraconservatives and the Neocons are delighted and are sounding triumphant . They either now feel vindicated because if they had really done anything illegal then President Obama would surely as a man of principle and integrity would be forced to do something about it. But President Obama has not and says he will not so the Bushies were not that bad afterall. Or the Bushies believe President Obama doesn't have enough proof of wrong-doing so the Bushies can claim victory for having done a good job covering their tracks. But maybe President Obama is afraid to take action because some Democrats and even some who are connected with his administration might be implicated in all the crimes and misdemeanors and cover-ups of the Bush Regime. One of the other rationalizations President Obama may consider is that he fears that prosecutions might harm America's reputation. As far as the International community goes America's reputation would be restored if President Obama was willing to take action.
But certain crimes such as the abuse and torture of detainees and the invasion of Iraq under false pretenses and the various war crimes committed by the Bush Regime violated not just US Law but International Laws and the Geneva Conventions and the US forces would be accountable to the United Nations and other International bodies. I fear that President Obama as an American is unwilling to allow any foreign or International Court or body to be permitted to pass judgement on American policies and actions.
But it could be that President Obama has his own self-interest in mind as Paul Craig Roberts points out in this next article:
"In America, Speaking the Truth Is a Career-ending Event " By Paul Craig Roberts Information Clearing House, Jan. 26, 2009
...The same calculation of self-interest causes American journalists to serve as shills for Israeli and US government propaganda and the US Congress to endorse Israeli war crimes that the rest of the world condemns.
When US military officers saw that torture was a policy coming down from the top, they knew that doing the right thing would cost them their careers. They trimmed their sails. One who did not was Major General Antonio Taguba. Instead of covering up the Abu Ghraib prison torture scandal, General Taguba wrote an honest report that terminated his career.
Despite legislation that protects whistleblowers, it is always the whistleblower, not the wrongdoer, who suffers. When it finally became public that the Bush regime was committing felonies under US law by using the NSA to spy on Americans, the Justice (sic) Department went after the whistleblower. Nothing was done about the felonies.
Yet Bush and the Justice (sic) Department continued to assert that “we are a nation of law.”
The Bush regime was a lawless regime. This makes it difficult for the Obama regime to be a lawful one. A torture inquiry would lead naturally into a war crimes inquiry. General Taguba said that the Bush regime committed war crimes. President Obama was a war criminal by his third day in office when he ordered illegal cross-border drone attacks on Pakistan that murdered 20 people, including 3 children. The bombing and strafing of homes and villages in Afghanistan by US forces and America’s NATO puppets are also war crimes. Obama cannot enforce the law, because he himself has already violated it.
For decades the US government has taken the position that Israel’s territorial expansion is not constrained by any international law. The US government is complicit in Israel’s war crimes in Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank.
The entire world knows that Israel is guilty of war crimes and that the US government made the crimes possible by providing the weapons and diplomatic support. What Israel and the US did in Lebanon and Gaza is no different from crimes for which Nazis were tried at Nuremberg. Israel understands this, and the Israeli government is currently preparing its defense, which will be led by Israeli Justice (sic) Minister Daniel Friedman. UN war crimes official Richard Falk has compared Israel’s massacre of Gazans to the Nazi starvation and massacre of Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto. Amnesty International and the Red Cross have demanded Israel be held accountable for war crimes. Even eight Israeli human rights groups have called for an investigation into Israel’s war crimes.
Obama’s order to close Guantanamo Prison means very little. Essentially, Obama’s order is a public relations event. The tribunal process had already been shut down by US courts and by military lawyers, who refused to prosecute the fabricated cases. The vast majority of the prisoners were hapless individuals captured by Afghan warlords and sold for money to the stupid Americans as “terrorists.” Most of the prisoners, people the Bush regime told us were “the most dangerous people alive,” have already been released.
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as for other crimes committed by Bush it appears he and his thugs will get a free ride once again . But how could it be otherwise . All those for instance in the Media who did not speak out about the Bush Regime's crimes are themselves guilty of complicity in those crimes.
For instance Bush claimed he was not illegally wiretapping and was getting court orders for wiretaps and that any wiretaping that was done was related to terrorist activity. But he lied and was illegally wiretaping the phones of a large number of American citizens . But the conservatives defended him claiming Bush had every right to wiretap all those leftist and liberal journalists and any organization or individual who was critical of any of his policies or who might make fun of him in a conversation or in a Blog. Didn't Saddam also keep a close watch on the citizens of Iraq.
- Now Bush should be under investigation and if necessary be indicted and put in jail but Obama is not interested in applying American laws to Bush & Co. or International Law when applicable. So is Obama saying that the rule of law does not come into play after the fact- so when does one bring in the rule of law. Is Obama afraid that in the future in the name of America's Security and interests he may feel the need to break US law or International Laws for which he might be held accountable.
We can see why Hillary Clinton and President Obama are so obsessed with defending Israel in the commission of similar Criminal activities from spying on its own citizens to the abuse and torture of detainees to various war crimes. Heaven forbid an Israeli administration or its military forces have to act according to International Laws or the Geneva Conventions or to act morally or even with some common decency.
So their reasoning might be that if Israel were made to be accountable to the UN or any other international Body for its War Crimes the next thing you know the nations of the world might insist that the US also be held accountable for its actions and policies.
In that case a handful or a large number of people in the former Bush administration and the US military might have to appear before an International Body to answer for their crimes. Maybe as an American who believes in American exceptionalism even to President Obama this is unthinkable since no one dictates to Americans about what is or is not a crime. If this is so then this is a major character flaw on his part and all his talk about open government , honesty and integrity are just bits of empty rhetoric.
odd how terrorists target journalists and so does America and Israel and other not so democratic state.
In this case the Bush Regime spied on American journalists since they believed many Journalists were out to undermine the Bush Regime and were therefore acting as enemies of the United States. Bush personnel conflated any criticism of the Bush Regime as being enemies of America. Saddam and other dictators supported by the US government over the last sixty years have also had a similar attitude towards the Press (ie Pinochet of Chile, , Shah of Iran , Franco of Spain,Anastasio Somoza of Nicaragua,Col. Hugo Banzer of Bolivia,Papa Doc of Haiti, Trujillo of the Dominican Republic,Batista of Cuba, Gen. Branco of Brazil, Stressner of Paraquay, Gen. Jorge Rafael Videla of Argentina , Suharto of Indonesia see for instance US-sponsored Murderous Dictatorships:A List . According to conservative Americans these dictators were to be praised as the great defenders of Western Civilization and Christendom. But then again the Tzar of Russia and later the Communists of Russia also curtail the Freedom of the Press.
Olbermann Breaking News - Bush Adm. Wiretapped Reporters
The Young Turks commentary - Bush lied and broke the law
Rachel Maddow continues the examination of domestic wiretapping revelations 01-23-09
Rachel Maddow continues examining the newly revealed evidence that the Bush Administration was spying on journalists, politicians, soldiers, and other civilians without a court order. Most egregious seems to be that they were listening in on 'pillow talk' and marital fights among soldiers serving the US military.
KO Countdown : Wiretap : Journalist Reaction- Jan. 22, 2009
Journalist reacts to wiretapping revelations
The New York Times James Risen responds to the claims by former NSA intelligence analyst Russell Tice that journalists were targets of the Bush administrations wiretapping.
The US forces in Iraq have been accused of firing on Journalists which contravenes International Law. But there is testimony from a member of US Intelligence who was working in Iraq at the time and can testify on the facts.
Further evidence is that three of the American soldiers involved were found guilty in abstentia in a Spanish court but the US government refused to extradite these soldiers to Spain.
If these allegations are true then those responsible should be held accountable. This would mean that the soldiers and their commanders in the field and anyone above them who ordered the shelling of journalists would also be accountable. If there was a cover up of this incident at higher levels those people too should be indicted and incarcerated. Otherwise International Law has no force over the American military or the US administrations . So if Dick Cheney or Bush or Rumsfeld gave the order to fire on journalists President Obama is going to defend the criminals because Americans do not recognize International Law including the Geneva Conventions.
That the Bush Regime refused to turn these soldiers over to the Spanish government was to be expected . The question is will the Obama administration do the right thing and hand these soldiers over to the Spanish government .
We can see why Hillary Clinton and President Obama are so obsessed with defending Israel in similar Criminal activities. Otherwise a few hundred people in the Bush administration and the US military might have to appear before an International Body to answer for their crimes. Even to President Obama this is unthinkable since no one dictates to Americans about what is or is not a crime.
It is no wonder then that the Israeli's in their conflict in Gaza also feel they have no reason to adhere to International Law and the Geneva Conventions. The Israelis are also accused of targeting Journalists and other personnel such as medics and members of Human Rights organizations or the UN etc. If America can do what it likes during a conflict then Israel believes it should have the same rights.
Anyway American forces were accused of targeting journalists and there is concrete evidence of this but it doesn't register with the mainstream media or for President Obama. After all they only killed a couple of "liberal " or Left wing journalists who don't always buy into the lies those in power love to sell.
Former Military Intelligence Officer Speaks Out-1/5- Democracy Now!
American forces in Iraq deliberately target journalists in Hotel Palestine
DEMOCRACY NOW! EXCLUSIVE: Fmr. Military Intelligence Officer Reveals US Listed Palestine Hotel in Baghdad as Target Prior to Killing of Two Journalists in 2003
Former Military Intelligence Officer Speaks Out-2/5- Democracy Now
also see:
A CNN Executive Says G.I.s in Iraq Target Journalists
By RODERICK BOYD, Staff Reporter of the Sun | February 8, 2005
The head of CNN's news division, Eason Jordan, ignited an Internet firestorm last week when he told a panel at a World Economic Forum gathering in Davos, Switzerland, that the American military had targeted journalists during operations in Iraq.
Mr. Jordan, speaking in a panel discussion titled "Will Democracy Survive the Media?" said "he knew of about 12 journalists who had not only been killed by American troops, but had been targeted as a matter of policy," said Rep. Barney Frank, a Democrat of Massachusetts who was on the panel with Mr. Jordan.
In an interview with The New York Sun, Mr. Frank said Mr. Jordan discussed in detail the plight of an Al-Jazeera reporter who had been detained by American forces, was made to eat his shoes while incarcerated in the Abu Ghraib prison, and was repeatedly mocked by his interrogators as "Al-Jazeera boy."
and so it goes,
GORD.
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