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Now Available! Other Lands Have Dreams: From Baghdad to Pekin Prison by Kathy Kelly Click Here to Order the Hot New CounterPunch Book by 3-time Nobel Peace Prize Nominee Kathy Kelly! Today's Stories July 29, 2005 P. Sainath The Class War in Gurgaon   July 28, 2005 Paul Craig Roberts Departing Iraq William S. Lind The Duke of Alba and George W. Bush Gilad Atzmon Blair the Camera Man Joshua Frank Passing CAFTA: Blame the Democrats Lila Rajiva Vision Mumbai Submerged Amina Mire Pigmentation and Empire: the Emerging Skin-Whitening Industry Website of the Day Gateway to Underground News   July 27, 2005 Roger Morris The Source Beyond Rove: Condoleezza Rice at the Center of the Plame Scandal Gary Leupp Is Iran Being Set Up? Paul Craig Roberts US Falling Behind Across the Board Jackie Corr Class War on the Ruby River: the Billionaire with His Foot in His Mouth Mike Whitney The Coming End of the Housing Bubble Dave Zirin Why Lance Armstrong Must Break with Bush Christopher Bradley Why I Have Trouble Reading the News Norman Solomon Thomas Friedman, Liberal Sadist? Website of the Day Stormin' Norman     July 26, 2005 Suren Pillay The Enemy Within: When the "Other" is One of "Us" JoAnn Wypijewski Fission and Fizzle in Chicago: SEIU and Teamsters Quit the AFL Patrick Cockburn Iraq: the Unwinnable War David Anderson When the Greatest Outrage is the Lack of Outrage: NYC's Subway Searches Joshua Frank Hillary Clinton: Outflanking Bush from the Right Lenni Brenner Biography as Wish-Fulfillment: Jefferson, Hitchens and Atheism David Swanson Nuking Native Land   July 25, 2005 Paul Craig Roberts China-Mart Takes Over M. Shahid Alam Terrorism: America Defines Its Targets Uri Avnery March of the Orange Shirts Stan Cox Kreationism in Kansas Norman Solomon "Wagging the Puppy" Ramzy Baroud London Bombings: Barbaric, But Not Unexpected Mickey Z. No Gun Ri: 55 Years Later Website of the Day The Birth of a Hummingbird in 15 Images   July 23 / 24, 2005 Alexander Cockburn Islamo-Anarchs or Islamo-Fascists? Tariq Ali The War Comes Home Robert Fisk Something Happened Dave Lindorff Return of the Academic Witch Hunts Ricardo Alarcón Kidnapping in Miami: the UN, the US and the Cuban 5 Col. Dan Smith Living in a Twilight Zone: Troop Strength, Recruitment and the Draft Brian Cloughley The Pentagon's China Hypocrisy Kevin Zeese Growing Republican Opposition to Iraq War Bill Quigley Harrowing Hours in Haiti Fred Gardner The Reverberations of Raich Rep. Ron Paul The Patriot Act is a Threat to Liberty Joshua Frank Framing Abortion: Gonadal Politics and the Democrats Shivali Tukdeo Project Mumbai Makeover: Casualties of Development Gilad Atzmon Blair's "Evil Ideology" James Petras Baghdad: Barbarism and Civilization (a Fiction) Ben Tripp When Being American Was Fun Poets' Basement Krieger, Louise, Buknatski, Albert and Engel Website of the Weekend Remember the West Memphis 3 July 22, 2005 Heather Gray Home Grown Axis of Evil: Corp. Agribusiness, the Occupation of Iraq and the Dred Scott Decision David Domke The American Press and Credibility Lance Selfa Battle of the Insiders: No Heroes in the Plame Leak Scandal JoAnn Wypijewski Is This Really an "Insurgency" to Shake Up the Labor Movement?   July 21, 2005 Rose Ann DeMoro The Top 10 Problems with the "Crisis" in the Labor Movement William Blum London: Another Casualty in the War on Terror J.L. Chestnut, Jr. Whites Need to Learn Something: Dixie is Everywhere Christopher Brauchli Strange Affairs: Liberals and Alberto Gonzales Joshua Frank Plame Blame Game: the 5 Ws Brian Concannon, Jr. Haiti's Elections: Time for a Reality Check Patrick Cockburn The True, Terrible State of Iraq and the Link to London Website of the Day Who Blew Up the Murrah Building?     July 20, 2005 Cockburn / St. Clair Judge Roberts: Business as Usual Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz Red Christmas Ray McGovern Did Dick Finger Valerie?: the Hand of Cheney Chris Floyd Judge Dread: John Roberts and the "Enemy Combatants" Uri Avnery "Silence is Filth" Dave Lindorff Westmoreland's Body Count Goes Up by One Norman Solomon Gen. Westmoreland's Death Wish Bill Quigley Travels in Haiti with a Wanted Priest       July 19, 2005 Tariq Ali An Isolated Regime John Ross Jihad Meets G-8 Davey D. More Clear Channel Censorship: "Don't F--K Around with Tha Police" Greg Weiher Muzzling Saddam: the Old Bait-and-Switch in Iraqi Jurisprudence Brian McKinlay An "Arse Licker" Goes to Washington: John Howard's Grand Tour Norman Solomon Nukes for India; Threats for Iran Dave Lindorff Get Back to Where We Once Belonged Bill Christison Bush's Itinerary: First Stop Syria, Next Stop Iran Joshua Frank Laura's Justice?: Meet Edith Brown Clement   July 18, 2005 Joshua Frank An Interview with Ward Churchill M. Shahid Alam A Muslim Problem: Did Thomas Friedman Flunk History? Jude Wanniski Memo to Patrick Fitzgerald Ron Jacobs A Weekend to Stop the War Mike Whitney The Straight Line Between Falluja and King's Cross Station William MacDougall From "Bring It On" to "London Can Take It" Seth Sandronsky Temporary Recovery: New Frontiers in Labor Flexibility Richard Lichtman The Consolations of George Lakoff Paul Craig Roberts Can Congressional Republicans End Bush's Wars? Website of the Weekend Novels of the Neo-Cons   July 15 / 17, 2005 Alexander Cockburn Don't You Dare Call It Treason Jeffrey St. Clair Sticky Fingers: the Making of Halliburton Paul Craig Roberts Economic Treason Harry Browne "What They Do to Us, They Will Do to You": Shell Oil in Mayo, Ireland Uri Davis, Ilan Pappe and Tamar Yaron A Warning from Israel Andrew Rubin End of the Enlightenment: an Open Letter to Stephen Plaut Patrick Cockburn Iraq's Ghost Battalions J.L. Chestnut, Jr. Changes in Selma: Standing Up to Racism in the South Fred Gardner A Professional Bust Christopher Brauchli An Olympic Feat: How to "Double" Aid with No New Money Chris Floyd The Great Iraq Oil Giveaway Ben Tripp The Dark Incontinent Col. Dan Smith General Abizaid, I'm Glad You Asked Jason Leopold What Did Rove Say and When Did He Say It? Jack Random Miller Time Norman Solomon War and Venture Capitalism George Ochenski Liberate Montana's Rivers: Come One, Come All! Website of the Weekend Vote for CounterPuncher David Vest     July 14, 2005 Jeffrey St. Clair Sticky Fingers: the Making of Halliburton Subcomandante Marcos This is What Will Do and How We Shall Do It: the Sixth Declaration of the Selva Lacandona Dave Lindorff No More Moral Relativism: the US is a Terrorist State Joshua Frank Rove Agency: Liberals and the CIA Jude Wanniski Those 8 Black Pages: What's the Real Story on Karl Rove? Dave Zirin Storming the Castle Kevin Zeese Exit Strategy: Within Reach? Robert Jensen War Myths and the Press Reza Fiyouzat A Worldwide Call to Free Akbar Ganji Carol Norris Governor Paranoid: Schwarzenegger Comes Unhinged Website of the Day Nate Osborn: Heroic Human Rights Activist and CounterPuncher   July 13, 2005 Brian Cloughley Cold Blooded Murders in Iraq George Galloway We Can't Separate the London Bombings from the Political Backdrop Carlos Fierro A Supreme Waste of Time Sarah Knopp Hate on the Border Norman Solomon "Isolated Pockets of Problems": the Fake Optimism of Washington's Warriors Mickey Z. Water on the Brain Jim Minick The Right Tree in the Right Place Pat Williams American Indian Education for All Andrew N. Rubin Life Behind the Wall: "We are No Longer Able to See the Sun Set" Website of the Day "London's Burning": the Mikey Mix     July 12, 2005 Laith al-Saud Voices of Resistance: an Interview with Dr. Mohammed al-Obaidi of Iraq's Peoples' Struggle Movement Kara N. Tina "This is How We Do It": Report from the Gleneagles Battlefield William A. Cook The London Bombings: Why Has It Come to This? Jack Bratich 2 Live Cruise: Tom Cruise v. Big Pharma Amina Mire The Problem with Speaking in the Name of Others Dick J. Reavis Lessons from the Christian Jihadists: the Virtues of Burning Crosses and Colored Smoke Kevin Zeese Depleted Uranium: States Take Action to Protect Their Vets Paul Craig Roberts No-Think Nation Website of the Day Coke Gags Indian Artist     July 9 / 11, 2005 Alexander Cockburn After the Bombings Uri Avnery War of the Colors in Israel Sheldon Rampton Blaming Galloway: Rhetoric vs. Reality in London Bill Christison Hiroshima's 60th Anniversary and Nukes in Iran: an Opportunity or Just More Hand-wringing from the Peace Movement? Robert Fisk Blair's Alliance with Bush Bombed Stephen Winspear Collateral Damage in London? Saul Landau Mission Accomplished: Iraq is Broken Behrooz Ghamari Thomas Friedman's Muslim Problem Karl Beitel False Promises and Real Debt Relief Brian Concannon, Jr. Throwing Gasoline on Haiti's Fires Fred Gardner Sentencing Season John Whitlow And What Does the Market Say? Niranjan Ramakrishnan The London Blasts: Who's Being Transformed, Them or Us? Lila Rajiva Witches and Bastards Laura Carlsen CAFTA: Deepening the Inequities Jackie Corr Ted Turner and Jiminy Cricket Dave Lindorff "My Brother Went Over There Gung Ho; Now He's Just Bitter" N. D. Jayaprakash Why the CIA Tried to Kill Chou En Lai at the Bandung Conference Seth Sandronsky Meet the "Truth Tour": Rightwing Radio Hosts Go to Iraq Norman Madarasz The Choking of Brazil's Worker Party Ben Tripp The Inevitability of George W. Bush Poets' Basement Louise, Albert, Landau, Davies and Engel Website of the Weekend The Mother of All Enemies Lists     July 8, 2005 Paul Craig Roberts Blowback Hits Britain: Londoners Pay Heavy Price for Blair's Deception Tariq Ali The London Bombings: Why They Happened Monica Benderman One Soldier's Fight to Legalize Morality Rick Jahnkow Beyond Opt-Out: the Counter-Recruitment Movement Christopher Brauchli Dear Vet: If You Want to Eat While You Recuperate, You Gotta Pay Extra Kim Peterson Bombs in the Underground: Terror Begats Terror Joshua Frank Leakers and Liars: Inching Toward Indictments? Norman Solomon Messages from the Carnage Website of the Day An Interview with Ray McGovern   July 7, 2005 Cockburn / St. Clair Judy Miller: the Luckiest Martyr John Walsh More Hawkish Than Bush: Dems in Full Battle Cry Mike Marqusee Message from London Gilad Atzmon London's Burning Nicole Colson Showdown at the Supreme Court Jack Random Judith Miller, Anti-Hero Norman Solomon Judith Miller, Drum Majorette for War Len Colodny Is Bob Woodward Still Protecting Al Haig? Cockburn / St. Clair Judy Miller: the Luckiest Martyr                                                             Hot Stories Alexander Cockburn Behold, the Head of a Neo-Con! Subcomandante Marcos The Death Train of the WTO Norman Finkelstein Hitchens as Model Apostate Steve Niva Israel's Assassination Policy: the Trigger for Suicide Bombings? Dardagan, Slobodo and Williams CounterPunch Exclusive: 20,000 Wounded Iraqi Civilians Steve J.B. Prison Bitch Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber True Lies: the Use of Propaganda in the Iraq War Wendell Berry Small Destructions Add Up CounterPunch Wire WMD: Who Said What When Cindy Corrie A Mother's Day Talk: the Daughter I Can't Hear From Gore Vidal The Erosion of the American Dream Francis Boyle Impeach Bush: A Draft Resolution Click Here for More Stories.     Subscribe Online

July 29, 2005 Oppression Breeds Violence America's Huge Racist Inventory By J.L. CHESTNUT, Jr. Why all this unspeakable violence in our Selma, in our nation and in our world at large? Selma is part of the nation and the world at large. Why are our children killing each other? Why is it becoming almost common in this little town for parents to bury their children? That is backwards, not the way it should be. Who, in the final analysis, is responsible for all this unspeakable bloodletting and black-on-black violence? What is desperately wrong in our little town? How can we fix it? I begin with an observation that a white friend was surprised when I said some black cab drivers in New York City act white and ignore blacks trying to hail a taxi even in the rain. My white friend recalled that Jesse Jackson once said if he were walking alone on a dark city street at night and heard footsteps he would pray it wasn't a young hip-hopper with baggy pants hanging down below his hips. I said if Jesse is walking late at night in a white neighborhood for any reason he better pray even harder that the steps behind him don't belong to two so-called conservative white cops. Much inner city violence (like everything else) is learned from the larger society, and the police and the government have historically been excellent teachers in poor minority neighborhoods. Oppression breeds violence. Some Jews collaborated with Hitler's depraved SS troops and helped murder innocent Jews. During my childhood, at least one white appointed "Clarence Thomas type black" resided in each black neighborhood and they served oppressive white political interests by selling out the rest of us. One even gave correct directions to a lynch mob. Poor white Southerners, who died by the tens of thousands during the Civil War, were little more than slaves themselves. Violence is not new to Selma or America. In addition to the low self-esteem component in oppression, a small oligarchy in this country has always controlled the wealth, the education, the business, even the opportunities, indeed the life of this nation, and they have used bloody violence to maintain the status quo, and will use it again. That is what "Bloody Sunday" is really about? The vote is merely the icing on the cake, not the cake! Warehousing more than 4 million angry people today in dehumanizing prisons (more than 60% of them of color) is as violent as any act on the bloody streets of Baghdad. More than 90% of these angry people will, sooner or later, return to inner city streets and are usually then more desperate than ever; however, to keep them in prison in perpetuity would bankrupt the nation. Even in this stacked game of special privileges conferred by birth, by accident, by education, by luck, we African-Americans suffer an additional handicap, our skin color. The "playing field" remains tilted against us because we, our history and out status is different than other immigrant groups. We are the only immigrants brought here involuntarily, in chains, enslaved for 350 years, and to this very day, this very minute our skin color makes us highly visible and unique. We and one other people, also of color, Native-Americans, are the only people in a perpetually untouchable class. We are alone together. (Repeat). A white caller to this show pointed with pride to the difficulties her European ancestors overcame. Bill O'Reilly, the most successful shouter on the least fair and balanced celebrated Fox News, speaks with pride about how his Irish ancestors made it. The underlying message for we blacks, I gather, is to get over it, quit being a victim. You can achieve your dreams in this country. It is dishonest and insulting to compare the travails of white immigrants with the continuing, contemptible nightmare of African-Americans. 170 years ago, the Irish and the Germans were seen as the "unmeltable ethnics" along with, oh yes, a handful of free blacks. 125 years ago, the Italians, Jews, Poles, the Russians and, of course, of yes, the recently freed blacks were added to the unwanted list. All these people were vilified, excluded, abused and discriminated against and portrayed as less than human and much less desirable than the Anglo-Saxon white majority. Today in 2005, every single one of these groups, except, oh yes, the freed blacks, has been assimilated into the mainstream white American culture. Even Hispanic and Asian communities assimilate in relative rapid fashion, but not we blacks. Aside from a different taste in food and music, most second and third generation Hispanics and Asians are now almost indistinguishable from the grandchildren of other immigrants. Throughout American history, second-generation immigrants (except of course we blacks) became truly American. In 2005, the eighth-generation of involuntary black immigrants to these shores remains just black people, standing in a long line, and seemingly waiting forever on assimilation and true citizenship. Comedian Richard Pryor was only half joking when he said the first citizenship lesson taught white immigrants was the correct pronunciation of the word "nigger." This is much more than a "perception gap" or political disagreement. America's ugly race relations are built into all the daily interactions between blacks and whites, they shape what we are, how we see the world and how the world sees us. Blacks face that bitter truth every day, and I am often astounded by whites who themselves appear astounded after blacks have reacted with deep anger over a remark or incident that whites see as innocent. I also have little patience with pliable, self-serving blacks and whites who claim I place too much emphasis on today's and yesterday's race and racism. During the O.J. Simpson trial, a white politician tried to turn me against Simpson, but I wouldn't say a word. White folks made a hero out of this nutty "ethnic turn-coat" and a white politician didn't need to know I despised Simpson long before he and many whites had heard of him. Likewise, our past seems to have a stronger grip on Americans than does the future. A black father is speechless when his ten-year-old son asks why only a hand-full of white kids is left at his school. A conscientious white mother gropes for words when her daughter asks why Alabama passed laws that forced black people to use different bathrooms and drink from different water fountains --- and then the child asks the million dollar question why are we still separated if the laws no longer keep us apart. A white kindergarten teacher consoles my pretty grandbaby, the only black student in the school, after the child asks if brown is ugly and if that is why a little girl who isn't brown wouldn't play with her. Adults, black and white, try to remain numb to all the ugly racist realities in life and refuse to move beyond the myths, the evasions and the excuses. They would rather not plumb the ugly, disturbing depths of the racial chasm dividing us, but our dear innocent children deserve much better and they deserve honest answers. All things considered, my friends, the black taxi driver in Times Square with a strong sense of right and fair play who dares to serve black passengers is a sort of hero. Cabbies, black and white, who refuse to serve black people are, in a real sense, just being American and buying into America's huge racist inventory. It is not we blacks who need so much to get over it. America desperately needs to get over it! (Repeat). But now please understand, black folks, notwithstanding everything I just said it is also a fundamental, inarguable fact that no one is more responsible for our current and debilitating plight than we blacks. (Repeat). In the ultimate sense, it not so much what white folks do or don't do but what we do or don't do. And, it is absolutely imperative that we begin now to learn for the first time to really love one another, learn to really trust each other, learn to really work with each other and learn even to rely on one another --- and we must do so though that flies directly in the face of 500 years of brainwashing. In the end, only we can save us. We are already doing some of this, thank GOD, but not nearly enough, and don't fool yourself, we can't do it with our head stuck in the sand and running from the ugly truth day and night. In the end, only we can fix it. In fact, we are the only ones who should fix it. And, that is as it should be. Peace. J.L. Chestnut, Jr. is a civil rights attorney in Selma, Alabama. He is the founder of Chestnut, Sanders and Sanders which is the largest black law firm in Alabama. Born in Selma and, after graduating from Howard University Law School, he began practicing law in Selma in 1958. He started as the only black lawyer in the town and has been challenging the establishment since then. His law firm now owns two radio stations in Selma and Mr. Chestnut hosts a radio talk show three days a week touted as the most popular radio show in south and central Alabama. He is the author of "Black in Selma" with Julia Cass (1989 Farrar, Straus and Giroux), and writes a weekly column called the "Hard Cold Truth". He can be reached at tmarshall@csspca.com.