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SHOULD SCOOTER LIBBY'S LAWYER BE DISBARRED? Law school dean Lawrence Velvel says, Maybe he should, if he sat idly by while client Libby spouted lies. What lies at the core of Zionism? Michael Neumann tortures Alan Dershowitz, without a warrant! "Sex-mad adulterer from British aristocracy claims to have 'revolutionized' philosophy." Yes, Bertrand Russell, they mean you! Alexander Cockburn on Smearing 101 in the British press. Get the answers you're looking for in the subscriber-only edition of CounterPunch ... CounterPunch Online is read by millions of viewers each month! But remember, we are funded solely by the subscribers to the print edition of CounterPunch. Please support this website by buying a subscription to our newsletter, which contains fresh material you won't find anywhere else, or by making a donation for the online edition. Remember contributions are tax-deductible. Click here to make a donation. If you find our site useful please: Subscribe Now! or write CounterPunch, PO BOX 228, Petrolia, CA 95558 |
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December 6, 2005 Patrick Cockburn Paul Craig
Roberts December 5, 2005 John Walsh Brian Cloughley Mokhiber /
Weissman Robert Jensen Norman Solomon Peter Rost, MD Lila Rajiva Website of the Day
Alexander Cockburn Lawrence R.
Velvel Rev. William Alberts Saul Landau Ralph Nader Paul Craig
Roberts Mike Whitney Allan Lichtman Dave Lindorff Brian Concannon,
Jr. Fred Gardner Manuel Garcia,
Jr. Carol Wolman St. Clair /
Vest / Walker / Pollack Poets' Basement Website of
the Weekend
December 2, 2005 Stan Goff Mike Ferner Christopher Brauchli Niranjan Ramakrishnan Manuel Talens Peter Phillips J.L. Chestnut,
Jr. Website of
the Day
December 1, 2005 John Walsh,
MD Ron Jacobs Jenna Orkin Joshua Frank Tiffany Ten
Eyck Missy Comley Beattie Eli Stephens Elaine Cassel Website of
the Day
November 30, 2005 Allen / D'Amato Mike Whitney Kevin Zeese Norman Solomon Ramzy Baroud Dave Lindorff Stephen Soldz
November 29, 2005 Phil Gasper Behzad Yaghmaian Joshua Frank Walter A. Davis Gary Leupp Len Colodny Jeffrey St.
Clair Bill Quigley Website of
the Day
November 28, 2005 Chris Reed David Isenberg Ron Jacobs Norman Solomon Justin E.H. Smith Mickey Z. Mike Whitney David Swanson Paul Craig
Roberts Website of
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November 26 / 27, 2005 Alexander Cockburn Saul Landau Ralph Nader Brian Cloughley John Ross Gary Leupp Fred Gardner Christopher Brauchli Dave Lindorff P. Sainath Timothy J.
Freeman Lila Rajiva Eric Ruder Seth Sandronsky Joaquin Bustelo Lewis Alper Will Youmans Phyllis Pollack St. Clair /
Vest Barbara LaMorticella Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend
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November 24, 2005 James Petras Bob Shirley Mike Fox Niranjan Ramakrishnan Greg Moses Alexander Cockburn
November 23, 2005 Ramzy Baroud Mike Whitney Stan Cox Linda S. Heard November 22, 2005 Kevin Gray
/ Mike Hersh Ralph Nader Michael Donnelly Mike Ferner Pierre Tristam Marshall Auerback Website of
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November 21, 2005 Mike Marqusee Josh Frank Mike Whitney Norman Solomon Russ Baker Robert Jensen Paul Craig
Roberts
November 19 / 20, 2005 Fred Gardner Rep. Cynthia McKinney Ron Jacobs David Vest J.L. Chestnut,
Jr. John R. Bomar John Ross Phillip Cryan Dave Lindorff Dick J. Reavis Jeremy Scahill Dan Wright John Stanton St. Clair / Vest / Walker Phyllis Pollack Dr. Susan Block Poets Basement
November 18, 2005 Michael Neumann Dave Lindorff Michael Donnelly Mark Chmiel
/ Andrew Wimmer Don Monkerud Tom Kerr Trish Schuh
November 17, 2005 John Walsh Rep. John Murtha Brian J. Foley CounterPunch
News Service Dave Lindorff Mark T. Harris Cockburn /
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November 16, 2005 John F. Sugg Noam Chomsky Dave Lindorff Evelyn Pringle Sam Husseini Pierre Tristam Greg Bates Farrah Hassen Bill Christison Website of
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November 15, 2005 Todd Chretien Leah Caldwell Frederick Hudson Harry Browne Jason Leopold Ingmar Lee Diana Barahona Tom Andre Website of the Weekend
November 14, 2005 Diana Johnstone Paul Craig Roberts Conn Hallinan Joshua Frank Christopher
Reed
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Smith Ben Tripp St. Clair /
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November 10, 2005 Peterside,
Ogon, Watts and Zalik Pat Williams Steve Higgs Jimmy Massey Lucson Pierre-Charles Anthony Newkirk Lawrence R.
Velvel Website of the Day November 9, 2005 Gary Leupp Tariq Ali Chris Floyd Elaine Cassel Joshua Frank Alison Weir Diana Johnstone
Paul Craig
Roberts Roger Burbach Ron Jacobs Ralph Nader Jim McGrath David Bloom Stan Goff
November 7, 2005 Dick Reavis Jason Leopold Dave Lindorff Eli Stephens David Swanson M. Junaid Alam Matt Reichel Naima Bouteldja Jeff Halper Website of the Day
November 5 / 6, 2005 Alexander Cockburn Lawrence R.
Velvel Diana Johnstone Roosa / Nevins Niranjan Ramakrishnan John Ross Mike Whitney Mark Engler Juliano Mer-Khamis Ron Jacobs Jill S. Farrell Missy Comley
Beattie Mitchel Cohen Evelyn J. Pringle Reza Fiyouzat Charles Sullivan Zachary Richard Ben Tripp St. Clair / Vest
November 4, 2005 Jeffrey St.
Clair Dave Lindorff Phillip Cryan Christopher Brauchli William S.
Lind Daryl G. Kimball George Beres Peter Montague
November 3, 2005 James Petras Saul Landau Rep. Cynthia McKinney Michael Dickinson Joshua Frank Remi Kanazi Reza Fiyouzat Website of the Day
November 2, 2005 Cockburn /
St. Clair Robert Oscar Lopez John Walsh Brian J. Foley Ramzy Baroud M. Junaid Alam Todd Chretien Bruce K. Gagnon Website of the Day
November 1, 2005 Ron Jacobs Gary Leupp John Ross Bill Quigley Joseph Nevins Dave Lindorff Linda S. Heard Heather Gray Michael Dickinson Jeffrey St. Clair
October 31, 2005 Elaine Cassel Mark Weisbrot Mike Whitney Norman Solomon Farooq Sulehria Nicole Colson Madis Senner Paul Craig
Roberts
Cockburn /
St. Clair Peter Linebaugh Tim Wise John Chuckman Steven Higgs Brian Cloughley M. Shahid Alam Nikki Robinson Ralph Nader Joe DeRaymond Joshua Frank Laura Santina Fred Gardner Michael Dickinson Ron Jacobs Dr. Susan Block Vanessa S. Jones Jeffrey St.
Clair Poets' Basement Website of
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Saul Landau Stuart Hodkinson Ingmar Lee Lila Rajiva Ilan Pappe Niranjan Ramakrishnan Michael Donnelly Ron Jacobs Cockburn / St. Clair
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Christison
October 22 / 23, 2005 Alexander Cockburn Billy Sothern Saul Landau Ralph Nader Behrooz Ghamari Brian Cloughley Diana Barahona Fred Gardner Lee Sustar Patrick Cockburn Laura Carlsen James Petras Joshua Frank Manuel Garcia,
Jr. Michelle Bollinger Missy Comley
Beattie Kona Lowell Ben Tripp Jeffrey St. Clair Poets' Basement Website of
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October 21, 2005 Dave Lindorff Winslow T. Wheeler Col. Dan Smith Norman Solomon Madis Senner Michael Donnelly
Dave Lindorff Ray McGovern Jeremy Brecher
/ Patrick Cockburn Kevin Zeese Ross Eisenbrey Randy Shields Justine Davidson After Lucas
Cranach Joe Allen
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December 6, 2005 Debt, Unemployment, Privatization and WarHow Greenspan Skewered AmericaBy MIKE WHITNEY No one has done more to ensure the ultimate demise of the American middle class than Alan Greenspan. No one. In the stately pantheon of class-warriors, Greenspan's spectral-image looms larger than any other; the foremost proponent of hardnosed social-Darwinism and exclusionary economics. Even his carpet-bagging consort, G.W. Bush, pales in comparison. In just under 5 years the Fed-master has engineered a coup so vast and devastating that $1.3 trillion of borrowed revenue has been adroitly shifted from the beleaguered middle class to the privileged 1% that Greenspan represents. Whoa! It is the biggest heist in the history of the planet, and it was designed and executed within the leather-bound citadel of the Federal Reserve. Thanks, Alan. The partnership of Bush and Greenspan has been the moral equivalent of the sacking of Rome; maxing out the nation's credit card until every last farthing has been drained from the public till. Greenspan's tenure has left America bobbing atop an ocean of red ink ready to capsize with the first gust of recession. Greenspan was a key player in facilitating the Iraq war, pushing interest rates to their lowest level 6 months before the war to keep the economy on life-support while the propaganda campaign burst from the front pages of the New York Times and the Washington Post. It worked like a charm. The American people were hoodwinked by White House fabrications and anesthetized by cheap money. They began a borrowing frenzy that sluiced zillions into a hyper-inflated housing market that is timed to detonate just as wistful Alan picks up his gold watch and heads for the exit. Good thinking, Alan. Now, after years of mismanagement, Greenspan is offering caveats about the chaos he's leaving behind. In his typical gibberish the chairman has warned of "painful" adjustments if deficits are not brought under control. "Painful" or life threatening? It was Greenspan, the budget-busting tote for the patrician-class, who defended the lavish Bush tax cuts that put the country on the fast-track to doomsday. Now, he's joined Grover Norquist and the "privatization-kooks" who want to dismantle the tattered ruins of the social safety net and christen the new epoch of predatory capitalism. Alan is a big supporter of "survival of the fittest" economics; the notion that people at the bottom of the societal food-chain deserve to be there so their Nietzschean overlords, like the Fed-chair, can rule supreme. As Greenspan applies the last few turns of the screw (raising interest rates twice more before he leaves) we're bound to see the credit-shackled middle class begin an orderly march towards the nearest cliff where they will quickly disappear lemming-like into the sea. Seriously, the American people have no idea of the economic firestorm that's just around the corner. The economy is underwritten by $8 trillion of debt, requiring massive $2 billion infusions of foreign capital EVERY DAY. As former Fed-chief Volker noted, "It can't go one for ever." No it can't. Besides, it's all part of a neoliberal plan that has been successfully executed throughout the third world; plunging the host nation into insurmountable debt with the help of crooked regime (Bush and Co.) and then pulling the rug out from under the shocked public. The massive and calculated deficits are intended to create a crisis of insolvency, resulting in the same type of "shock therapy" and "structural readjustment" programs the IMF applies to bankrupt nations around the world. Greenspan has moved the country closer to his goal of dismantling popular social programs so the captains of industry can privatize the public's assets. So, how did Greenspan pull it off? How did he keep the somnolent American public from noticing the widening deficits and the alarming transfer of wealth from one class to another? The answer is; low interest rates, the toxic elixir that can incapacitate an entire nation, leaving its people drowsy and indifferent to imminent disaster. Recently, Greenspan has begun warning of the difficulties ahead, cautioning that our problems will only be "compounded by a protectionist reversal of globalization". In other words, prepare yourself to compete with the lowest paid worker in Canton province. The hemorrhaging of high-paying jobs that sustain the middle class doesn't bother the Fed-chief. Greenspan has the same irksome sense of equity as his ideological-twin at New York Times, Tom Friedman. Friedman has been preaching the gospel of "free market" capitalism for years. Neither one tries to conceal their contempt for organized labor or the redistribution of profits. Friedman's Brigadoon is identical to Greenspan's; a land of milk and honey where 99% of the denizens live in abject poverty scraping to get by and where the not-so-invisible hand is savagely affixed to the throat of a permanent underclass. Welcome to Greenspan's nirvana. Greenspan also warned that the budget "will substantially worsen in the coming years unless major deficit-reducing measures are taken." "Deficit-reducing measures"? You mean, like rolling back the Bush tax cuts? Hell no; class-warrior Alan said "he did not believe that major increases in taxes were the solution". Of course, not. Why should the fat-cats in the silk suits and Ferraris have to pay their share? After all, we can just raise the payroll tax again (Greenspan's earlier plan) and take another pound of flesh from the middle class? No one will notice. Baby boomers retirement? Not to worry; Greenspan suggests we extend the age of retirement to some imaginary date when the wealthy will stop fleecing the poor and the national ledger will magically balance. Cradle to grave; Americans are being prepared for the slaughter. The chances for upward mobility or even subsistent living are being eclipsed by the day. The yolk that one shoulders at birth will follow him until his death. Greenspan's racketeers have absconded with the nation's bounty behind a smokescreen of low interest rates. They lulled us to sleep with soothing words of "no-interest loans", no down payments, and a real estate windfall for anyone bold enough to sign on the dotted line. Now, the grim reality has begun to set in. Interest rates are rising, the dollar is reeling, energy costs are skyrocketing, consumer confidence is plummeting, and gold is shooting through the roof. When China and Japan decide to jettison their worthless US Savings Bonds; Greenspan's mighty fortress will collapse in a heap. The American people are crazy to think that a privately owned institution like the Federal Reserve will ever function in the public interest. The Fed operates behind an iron-curtain of secrecy to protect the interests of its primary constituents; the parasite class. It was authorized under executive order by Woodrow Wilson who was coerced into putting the country's future into the hands of its central bankers so he could finance World War 1. Bankers have always understood that the one who holds the purse-strings calls the shots. This explains what Thomas Jefferson meant when he said, "Banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies." While Greenspan teeters off to retirement, he can be confident that his trap has already sprung. The country is dead-broke and will be forced to comply with the demands of its creditors. The impending "austerity measures" will be used to reshape the fabric of American life; a complete reordering of society to meet the standards of a modern capitalist utopia; Greenspan's paradise, the United States of Destitution. Mike Whitney lives in Washington state. He can be reached at: fergiewhitney@msn.com
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from CounterPunch Books! The Case Against Israel By Michael Neumann  Grand Theft Pentagon: Tales of Greed and Profiteering in the War on Terror by Jeffrey St. Clair          Sick of sit-on-the-Fence speakers, tongue-tied and timid? CounterPunch Editors Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St Clair are available to speak forcefully on ALL the burning issues, as are other CounterPunchers seasoned in stump oratory. Call CounterPunch Speakers Bureau, 1-800-840-3683. Or email beckyg@counterpunch.org.               |
