As Economy Reels, Tariq Ali Calls for “Reimagining Socialism”

Dandelion Salad

Democracy Now!
March 19, 2009

As Economy Reels, Tariq Ali Calls for “Reimagining Socialism”

The British author Tariq Ali weighs in on the economic crisis with an appeal to reject the taboos on discussing socialism in the United States. Ali says the popular movements in South America provide a model for US activists to follow in pushing for changes such as socialized healthcare. [includes rush transcript]

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via Democracy Now! | As Economy Reels, Tariq Ali Calls for “Reimagining Socialism”.

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US intelligence alerts Turkish police to possible al Qaeda attacks

Propaganda Alert

compiled by Cem Ertür
Featured Writer
Dandelion Salad
19 March, 2009

http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/english/domestic/11236813.asp?scr=1

excerpts from:

US intelligence alerts Turkish police to possible al Qaeda attacks: report

Hürriyet, 19 March 2009

Turkish police have received U.S. intelligence that militants from the extremist al Qaeda network could be plotting attacks on foreign targets in Turkey, the Milliyet newspaper reported Wednesday. […]

Milliyet said a team of 15 militants trained in bomb-making — among them Lebanese, Palestinians, Moroccans and Syrians — were reported to have entered Turkey from neighboring Syria in January or February.

The group, believed to be operating in the central provinces of Konya and Aksaray, could be planning attacks against foreign missions in Turkey, the daily said.

And in a separate development, it said that a suspected militant who had come from Norway was believed to have been tasked with coordinating an attack against U.S. or Israeli aircraft.

According to the information supplied by U.S. intelligence services, senior al Qaeda militants had decided at a recent meeting in Pakistan to focus on attack plans in Turkey and northern Afghanistan.

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related link:

https://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2008/12/28/the-cover-for-unjust-detentions-in-turkey-al-qaeda/

The cover for unjust detentions in Turkey: Al Qaeda

December 2008

see

https://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2009/02/04/turkish-jewish-community-denies-reports-of-synagogue-vandalism/

Hopes and Dreams by Richard C. Cook

by Richard C. Cook
Featured Writer
Dandelion Salad
richardccook.com
March 19, 2009

People who have been reading my books and articles can probably tell that I try to approach my writing on world affairs from a spiritual perspective. Not that I am any more “spiritual” than anyone else, because I believe that in our core we are all One with God. Rather I have always felt that action in the world is a duty for at least some of those who strive for enlightenment. I guess one term for this is “Karma Yoga.”

In the field of economics, for instance, I believe that the purpose of business is not to “get rich quick” but to perform an honest and useful service for our fellow human beings while earning a fair recompense to support ourselves and our loved ones. This is why Dividend Economics and a Basic Income Guarantee are such important concepts for me, because they show the way to provide everyone in the world with a decent living.

But for me to maintain this vision has required periods of withdrawal. So for many years I have meditated every day, have met many spiritual teachers, and have attended various spiritual groups and gatherings. I also got a great deal from my retreat last winter and plan to continue periodic retreats. And I respect those who sincerely practice any organized religion that embraces the inner search and values the fellowship of all people.

In the last couple of years I have come into contact with several teachings that have meant a lot to me and that I would recommend to others to investigate. One is the Infinite Way as practiced and taught by the late American spiritual teacher Joel Goldsmith. Recently I have been reading the writings of Eckhart Tolle, including his book The Power of Now. I am also working closely with Australian mystic Omna Last, who has a page now on my website. Omna has sent me a shipment of his book The LITE in the Heart which is due to arrive any day and will be available through my website and on Amazon.

Finally, I have always wanted to be part of a community of people who combine their inner search with service in the world, including political and social action. I have never felt comfortable among those who feel that spirituality places them “above” such endeavors. I feel it is noble to want to help the Earth become a better place to live for human beings and others of Mother Nature’s creation.

Retirement from my career job gives me a lot more freedom than I used to have, so I have been engaged with friends in seeking a place in the Appalachian Mountains where such an endeavor might bear abundant fruit. In following this inner impulse, we are trying to “turn it over” to the Spirit to show the way. But we feel we are getting some hints about when and where to make the move. If this happens, there may be interest among the many people I have gotten to know through my writings, so we’ll keep you informed. Please stay tuned!

© 2009 by Richard C. Cook

Richard C. Cook is a former federal analyst, now a writer and consultant on public policy issues. His new book is We Hold These Truths: the Hope of Monetary Reform. His website is www.richardccook.com. He recently made a series of six videos that will be available soon on Google and DVD. The title: Credit as a Public Utility: The Solution to the Economic Crisis. He will also be appearing in a new feature-length documentary Future for Sale directed by award-winning European filmmaker Maja Borg. See http://futureblog.net/wordpress/.

see

Richard C. Cook on Alex Jones 03.03.09

Bailout for the People: “The Cook Plan” by Richard C. Cook

The Cook Plan (video)

Apocalypse? by Omna Last

Cook-Richard C.

The Economy Sucks and or Collapse 2

Mosaic News – 3/18/09: World News From The Middle East

Dandelion Salad

Warning

This video may contain images depicting the reality and horror of war/violence and should only be viewed by a mature audience.

linktv

Mosaic needs your help! Donate here: http://linktv.org/contribute

“Korea grapples with second attack in Yemen,” Dubai TV, UAE
“Iraqi Elections Highlight Tribal Tensions,” Al Arabiya TV, UAE
“Iranian Products Flood Iraqi Markets,” Alsumaria TV, Iraq
“Baghdad Command Center Continues Security Crackdown,” Al-Iraqiya TV, Iraq
“Hamas accuses Israel of hindering prisoners exchange,” Al Jazeera TV, Qatar
“A Battle For Shalit, In Jerusalem,” IBA TV, Israel
“Lebanon Opens Embassy in Damascus,” Future TV, Lebanon
Produced for Link TV by Jamal Dajani.

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IDF killed civilians in Gaza under lax rules of engagement

Dandelion Salad

By Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondent
19/03/2009

During Operation Cast Lead, Israeli forces killed Palestinian civilians under permissive rules of engagement and intentionally destroyed their property, say soldiers who fought in the offensive.

The soldiers are graduates of the Yitzhak Rabin pre-military preparatory course at Oranim Academic College in Tivon. Some of their statements made on Feb. 13 will appear Thursday and Friday in Haaretz. Dozens of graduates of the course who took part in the discussion fought in the Gaza operation.

via IDF killed civilians in Gaza under lax rules of engagement – Haaretz – Israel News

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Israeli soldiers say killing of civilians ‘allowed’ – 19 March 09

AlJazeeraEnglish

Israel’s army is accused of war crimes after more than 1,300 Palestinians were killed in the war on Gaza.

In interviews published by a leading Israeli newspaper, Israeli soldiers say killing Palestinian civilians and destroying their homes was allowed in Israels rules of engagement during the war.

Al Jazeera’s Sherine Tadros reports from Jerusalem.

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Gaza deaths dog Israeli military

Al Jazeera English
Friday, March 20, 2009
01:53 Mecca time, 22:53 GMT

Reports have surfaced in the Israeli media suggesting that Israeli forces killed Palestinian civilians under what may have been lax rules of engagement during the Gaza offensive.

Quoting Israeli soldiers who fought in the offensive, the Haaretz newspaper reported on Thursday that soldiers had also ransacked and destroyed civilian property.

[…]

via Al Jazeera English – Middle East – Gaza deaths dog Israeli military

see

Report back from Gaza

Israel to Gaza: A ghetto you will remain + Israel to raze 1,700 Palestinian homes

Israel’s American Chattel By Paul Craig Roberts

Israel-Palestine-Gaza-Occupation

White House And Pentagon: Change, Continuity And Escalation by Rick Rozoff

by Rick Rozoff
Featured Writer
Dandelion Salad
Stop NATO
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/stopnato/message/38022
March 19, 2009

Few of his contemporaries and far fewer since knew of the nineteenth century French journalist and novelist Alphonse Karr, but most everyone is familiar with some variant of his quip plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose: The more it changes the more it’s the same thing.

Anyone driving the streets of major American cities over the past year or more has seen a bumper sticker that simply read 01-20-2009.

The numbers indicated the date that George W. Bush would leave the White House.

Until last November no one knew who his replacement would be or even with which of the two major political parties he or she would be affiliated; it was enough to anticipate Bush’s departure as an end in itself.

Judging by other bumper stickers that often accompanied this one on a given vehicle, it was assumed that those who so adorned the back of it looked forward to the end of eight years of an aggressive foreign policy, one marked by the war in Iraq and, for anyone who had paid attention to other matters, that in Afghanistan and assorted counterinsurgency and proxy wars such as those in Yemen, Somalia and the Philippines.

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Was the Bailout Itself a Scam? By Paul Craig Roberts

Dandelion Salad

By Paul Craig Roberts
March 19, 2009 “Information Clearing House

Professor Michael Hudson (CounterPunch, March 18) is correct that the orchestrated outrage over the $165 million AIG bonuses is a diversion from the thousand times greater theft from taxpayers of the approximately $200 billion “bailout” of AIG. Nevertheless, it is a diversion that serves an important purpose. It has taught an inattentive American public that the elites run the government in their own private interests.

Americans are angry that AIG executives are paying themselves millions of dollars in bonuses after having cost the taxpayers an exorbitant sum. Senator Charles Grassley put a proper face on the anger when he suggested that the AIG executives “follow the Japanese example and resign or go commit suicide.”

Yet, Obama’s White House economist, Larry Summers, on whose watch as Treasury Secretary in the Clinton administration financial deregulation got out of control, invoked the “sanctity of contracts” in defense of the AIG bonuses.

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Take Action!: New Networks Must Be Neutral

Dandelion Salad

Update: Mar. 27, 2009

Short video:

Your Net Neutrality Message Delivered

www.savetheinternet.com
March 19, 2009

Just as Washington is deciding to spend billions of dollars to connect Americans to a fast, accessible and open Internet, phone and cable company lobbyists are swooping in to change the rules, scrap the Net Neutrality requirements and stamp out consumer choice.

Please fill out the form below to sign the petition and we will deliver your comments to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

[…]

via Save the Internet: Take Action!

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From an email from www.savetheinternet.com:

Buried deep in President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus package is a line that should bring a smile to your face.

It says that billions of dollars must be spent to connect Americans to Internet services that meet “nondiscrimination and network interconnection obligations.”

What does that mean? It means that we have won a key battle in our fight for Net Neutrality. The government must now demand that this money — your money — is spent the right way: on projects that abide by Net Neutrality principles.

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We Have Seen the Enemy… By Timothy V. Gatto

By Timothy V. Gatto
Featured Writer
Dandelion Salad
liberalpro.blogspot.com
March 19, 2009

The United States continues to show its ignorance to the rest of the world by grouping everyone into friends, enemies, and potential friends or enemies. This translates loosely into categorizing the nations or cultures around the world into friend or foe. The worst part of this whole scenario is that many in this country actually believe all this rhetoric. We are a nation that has elevated national opinion into a fine art. In reality, we are a country that has a media that tells us how to think. It tells us what we like, what we approve of, what we despise and how we should act. We have become what we once hated. Politically correct Americans today have become the “plastic people” we criticized in the sixties and seventies.

This has made life easier. We can join the conversation around just about any water cooler and fit right in. We know what we can say safely and what opinions to keep to ourselves. We have developed an entire vocabulary that enables us to sound wise and learned while not really saying anything of consequence. We have come to the realization that the only people who have valid opinions are in the media. If it hasn’t been uttered in front of a camera or written about in a newspaper or magazine, it just isn’t a valid opinion and not fit for public discussion. We have changed from the most innovative and revolutionary nation on Earth from our beginnings, into a nation of that has perfected the art of “group-think”. We have perfected the art of acquiescence and learned the waypoints to the paths of least resistance, and we have done so willingly.

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Bernanke’s Hammer by Cameron Salisbury

by Cameron Salisbury
Featured Writer
Dandelion Salad
Opedinfo.com
March 19, 2009

If you only have a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.

And so it is with Ben Bernanke, Timothy Geithner, Henry Paulson, the entire East Coast financial establishment, innumerable Ivy League economists including Paul Krugman, and people who really should know better, like the media, Congress and the President.

Truly mindless fuzz continues to flow out of Washington, accepted as gospel by both its inhabitants and the media. For example, there’s the idea that the worldwide financial crisis can only be solved by the same institutions and people that created it; that the banking sector needs lots and lots of additional money and political support to solve problems that trillions of dollars so far have not; that months of nonexistent positive results means only that we haven’t handed financiers sufficient loot; that the failure to bail out Lehman’s is what caused this whole mess; that reinvigorating casino capitalism is the way out of the dilemma; that public outrage shows that the rest of us just don’t get it.

Worse than senseless, the nonsense that passes for conventional wisdom in the corridor between New York and Washington, D.C., is worrisome on a number of levels.

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Our Shame by Cindy Sheehan

Cindy Sheehan for Congress
Cindy Sheehan

by Cindy Sheehan
Dandelion Salad
Featured Writer
Cindy Sheehan’s Soapbox Blog
Cindy Sheehan’s Soapbox
March 19, 2009

I remember sitting in my living room, six years ago, watching the “Leader of the Free World” announcing that the United States military had just embarked in “shock and awe” against the country of Iraq.

The images made me physically ill, as they had 12 years before when the criminal’s criminal father was bombarding Iraq.

I was also personally sick with fear as my family had “skin in the game,” our son/brother, Casey. On that night, Casey’s life clock starting ticking down: He had exactly one year and 15 days to live from “shocking and awful.”

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The Real AIG Conspiracy by Prof. Michael Hudson

Dandelion Salad

by Prof. Michael Hudson
Global Research, March 18, 2009

It may seem odd, but the public outrage against $135 million in AIG bonuses is a godsend to Wall Street, AID scoundrels included. How can the media be so preoccupied with the discovery that there is self-serving greed to be found in the financial sector? Every TV channel and every newspaper in the country, from right to left, have made these bonuses the lead story over the past two days.

What is wrong with this picture? Is there not something over-inflated about the outrage led most vociferously by Senator Charles Schumer and Rep. Barney Frank, the two leading shills for the bank giveaways over the past year? And does Pres. Obama perhaps find it convenient that finally, at long last, he has been able to criticize something that he believes Wall Street has done wrong? Even the Wall Street Journal has gotten into the act. The government’s takeover of AIG, it pointed out, “uses the firm as a conduit to bail out other institutions.” So much more greed is involved than just that of AIG employees. The firm owed much more to other players – abroad as well as on Wall Street – than the assets it had. That is what drove it to insolvency. And popular opposition has been rising to how Mr. Obama and Mr. McCain could have banded together to support the bailout that, in retrospect, amounts to trillions and trillions of dollars thrown “down the drain.” Not really down the drain at all, of course – but given to financial speculators on the winning “smart” side of AIG’s bad financial gambles.

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Preparing for Civil Unrest in America by Michel Chossudovsky + H.R. 645

Dandelion Salad

by Michel Chossudovsky
Global Research, March 18, 2009

Legislation to Establish Internment Camps on US Military Bases

The Economic and Social Crisis

The financial meltdown has unleashed a latent and emergent social crisis across the United States.

What is at stake is the fraudulent confiscation of lifelong savings and pension funds, the appropriation of tax revenues to finance the trillion dollar “bank bailouts”, which ultimately serve to line the pockets of the richest people in America.

This economic crisis is in large part the result of financial manipulation and outright fraud to the detriment of entire populations, to a renewed wave of corporate bankruptcies, mass unemployment and poverty.

The criminalization of the global financial system, characterized by a “Shadow Banking” network has resulted in the centralization of bank power and an unprecedented concentration of private wealth.

Obama’s “economic stimulus” package and budget proposals contribute to a further process of concentration and centralization of bank power, the cumulative effects of which will eventually resul in large scale corporate, bankruptcies, a new wave of foreclosures not to mention fiscal collapse and the downfall of State social programs. (For further details see Michel Chossudovsky, America’s Fiscal Collapse, Global Research, March 2, 2009).

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Report back from Gaza

Crossposted with permission from Jewish Peace News

Jewish Peace News
March 18, 2009

Rose Mishaan was a member of the National Lawyer’s Guild delegation to Gaza shortly after the ceasefire. Her devastating report is a must-read. Go to Mondoweiss, which originally posted it, to see pictures as well:
http://www.philipweiss.org/mondoweiss/2009/03/us-eyewitness-in-gaza-as-a-world-we-utterly-failed-the-palestinians-of-gaza-we-stood-and-watched-the.html

–rebecca vilkomerson

US Eyewitness in Gaza: ‘The reality of a very real bloodbath set in…’

By Roxe Mishaan

It took me a month to write this email. In that month, I’ve been through a whirlwind of emotions, trying to find away to process the things that I saw. I still haven’t figured it out.

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