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Today's
Stories
August 21,
2004
Landau / Hassen
Failing
the Mission? Form a Commission
Brian Cloughley
The
Bush Team in Iraq: Moral Cowardice, as Practiced by Experts
Josh Frank
Nader as David Duke? The ADL Wants You to Think So
Mike Whitney
Reincarnating Mengele: the Torture Doctors of Abu Ghraib
Ron Jacobs
Day Labor Blues
Mickey Z.
Shooting at Whales: 40 Years After Tonkin
Fred Gardner
Dr. Wolman Comes Out: The Cannabis Consultants
Dave Zirin
Uprising in Athens: Iraqi Soccer Team Gives Bush the Boot
Josh Saxe
Witnessing Police Brutality in LA
August 20,
2004
Jennifer Van
Bergen
National
Security Courts and Torture Warrants
Lisa Taraki
Boycotting the Israeli Academy
Greg Bates
Racial
Profiling and National Security: Back with a Vengeance
Joshua Frank
Monkeywrench Hope: an Interview with Jeffrey St. Clair
John L. Hess
Play It Backward
Norman Solomon
Rumsfeld's Return
Diane Christian
Holy
Places
Website of the Day
Go Tell Cerebus: 50,000 Dogs Slaughtered for Olympics?
August 19,
2004
Lance Selfa
To
ABB or Not to ABB?
Christopher
Brauchli
The Edicts of President Bush
Mike Whitney
The "Rebel Cleric" and the Siege of Najaf
Jason Leopold
The
Oily Parachute: How Cheney Got Away with $35 Million Before the
Feds Launched a Probe into Halliburton
Jeff Nicholson-Owens
Why We Need "Free Software" Voting Machines
Bill Linville
If
the Republicans Are Funding Nader, Who is Funding the Democrats?
Well, Try Halliburton for Starters
Diana Barahona
In the Minds of the Rich, the Venezuelan Poor Aren't Even Members
of Society: Guess Who's Laughing Now?
Alan Cisco
The
Discreet Charm of the Venezuelan Opposition
Dave Lindorff
Gitlin
Tells Anti-Bush Protesters to "Cool It"
Sex,
Drugs & the Blues!
Serpents in the Garden
CounterPunch's
Sizzling New Book on Culture and Sex is Now Available
Click here to purchase
August 18,
2004
Amy Goodman
An
Interview with Mordechai Vanunu
Adrian Kuzminski
The
Death of American Politics: Why Perot Was the Last Serious Challenger
of the Political Duopoly
Uri Avnery
Israel
and the US Elections
Dave Lindorff
Librarians as Wimps: "Sorry, Sir, Some Readers May Find
Your Book Inflammatory"
Toni Solo
After the Venezuela Referendum: Bush's Dien Bien Phu?
John L. Hess
Laying Odds on Armageddon: a Midtown Hiroshima?
Rodney Thomas
Patti Smith, Another Take
Sean Donahue
Kerry
and Bolivia: To the Right of Bush?
Website of the Day
Presidential Polls: David Cobb (at 0%) is Exceeding Expectations
August 17,
2004
Norm Dixon
Darfuris
Made Pawns in Western Power Play for Oil
Alan Farago
In
Charley's Wake: Opportunity from Misfortune
John L. Hess
The
Meaning of Venezuela
Lisa Taraki
/ Omar Barghouti
Presbyterian Church Divests from Israel
Allen Thompson
Et Tu, Patti? An Open Letter to Patti Smith
John Ross
Mexicans
Dying in Bush's War
Website of the Day
List of Civilian Contractors Killed or Missing in Iraq
August 16,
2004
Gary Leupp
The
Attack on Najaf: the Ultimate Stupidity
Ron Jacobs
Iran
Through an Iraqi Mirror?
Mike Whitney
The
Guantanamo Mock Trials
Zvi Bar'el
Theater
of the Absurd in Iraq: Chalabi, Feith and Israel
John Blair
A
Culture of Waste
Sharmini Peries
Chavez
Triumphs; Crushes Opposition
Tariq Ali
The Importance of Hugo Chavez
Website of
the Day
Hurricane City
August 14 /
15, 2004
Justin Delacour
/ Diana Barahona
The
Venezuela Referendum: Can the Carter Center's McCoy be an Impartial
Observer?
Cockburn /
St. Clair
War
on the Poor: "A Risk No Sane Person Would Take"
M. Shahid Alam
The Civilizing Mission: Some Economic Results
Saul Landau
God and Botox
John Ross
Echoes of Mexico City, 1968
Fred Gardner
Is California Spying on Pro-Pot Doctors?
Jonah Girdin
The Opposition Strategy in Venezuela: Subvert Democracy in the
Name of Democracy
Katherine Lahey
"Uh!
Ah! Chávez No Se Va!": Democracy and Venezuela
Medea Benjamin
Hugo Chavez and the Poor of Venezuela
Yves Engler
The Media and the Venezuela Referendum
Zeynep Toufe
The NYTs and Chavez: More Than the Usual Bias
Mike Whitney
The Trouble in Najaf: What Was al-Sadr's Crime?
Eric Drooker
Gaza Stripped
Dave Zirin
Olympic Sized Horror in Greece: 150 Workers Died Building the
Facilities
Dave Lindorff
A29 Could be a Very Slow Day
Rebecca Brigham
The Aftermath of Guatemala's Strike: Promises Still Unfulfilled
Wayne Madsen
The McGreevey Scandal: an Israeli Connection?
David Krieger
Nuclear Disarmament in a Time of Globalization: the US Double
Standard
Tracy McLellan
The Illegality of Pot is a Crime: a Personal Account
Christina Gerhardt
Confronting Capitalism: What Has Changed Since Seattle 1999?
Poets' Basement
Adler, Albert Vijayalakshmi, Gilliam
August 13,
2004
Lee Sustar
Report
from Caracas
Mickey Z.
McProtests R Us: Why are the Dems Trying to Gag Anti-War Protesters?
Stan Goff
There
He Goes Again: Kerry's "Energy" Plan
Norman Madarasz
Thoughts on Najaf: How Could the US Ever Be Considered a "Terrorist"
State?
Victor Kattan
Press Freedom, Censorship and the War on Terror
Oscar Heck
Is Mendoza Off His Rocker? Chavez Opponents Pledge to Post Results
Online Before Polls Close
CounterPunch
Wire
Military Families File "Stop Loss" Suit
Milan Rai
Najaf: Bush Started It
Website of
the Day
The Yes Men
August 12,
2004
Jeffrey St.
Clair
How
Bush Got (and Lost) His Wings
Lenni Brenner
Take
It on Faith: Kerry's See-Through-Monk's Robe
Lee Ballinger
The Coors and the Kerrys: Drink Up, Kids!
Tariq Ali
The
Handover Fiction
Yves Engler
What's at Stake in Venezuela
William S.
Lind
Seeing
Through the Other Side's Eyes
Christopher Brauchli
Getting Bush's Goat
Website of
the Day
The Sucker Puncher
August 11,
2004
Ceylon Mooney
Who
Woke Up Sen. Joe?: Watchers of the NJ Turnpike
Voices in the
Wilderness
Hands
Off Najaf
Ray McGovern
Porter
Goss as CIA Director?
Robert Jensen
US
Supports Anti-Democratic Forces in Venezuelan Recall
Annie Higgins
In Memory of Nick Pretzlik: As Good as It Gets
Alexander Cockburn
Bush
v. Kerry: Not Even a Dime's Worth of Difference
Website of the Day
Nick Pretzlik
August 10,
2004
William A.
Cook
Silencing
the Voice of the People
Todd Chretien
California Greens at the Crossroads: Will It Be Nader or Cobb?
Dave Lindorff
Chicago on the Hudson?
Richard Gott
Loathed
by the Rich: Why Chavez is Headed for a Big Win
Toni Solo
Bluebeard's
Castle: Disappearing the Right to Development
Dave Zirin
Carl Eller's Plea
Rep. Ron Paul
Police State, USA
Patrick Cockburn
If the Chalabis Were Corrupt, They Weren't Alone
Website of
the Day
The Surveillance-Industrial Complex
August 9, 2004
Tito Tricot
Pinochet
Must Still be Tried: a Murderer and a Thief on the Loose
Ron Jacobs
In
Memory of Deep Throat: the Day Nixon Was Gone
Norm Dixon
Crisis in Sudan: Oil Profits Behind West's Tears for Darfur
Kurt Nimmo
The Politics of Entrapment
Elaine Cassel
Welcome to Bush's America
Gary Leupp
Why
Iraqi Christians are Moving to Syria
August 7 /
8, 2004
James Petras
The
Anatomy of "Terror Experts": Meet the Mandarins of
Abu Ghraib
Fred Gardner
Run
Ricky Run: Football, Pot and Pain
Justin Delacour
Anti-Chavez Pollsters Panic: Fix Numbers; Reinvent Venezuela
Brian Cloughley
Persecuted by All; Supported by None: Who Would Be A Kurd?
Joshua Frank
The
Outsider: a Talk with Ralph Nader
Iain A. Boal
On "Shame": Warmed-Over Orientalism and Racist Projection
Chris Floyd
All About Eve: Open Season on Women in DC and Rome
Andrew Fenton
Fighting for Democracy and Justice in Haiti
Aseem Shrivastava
Saga of an Anguished Afghan
Neil Corbett
See Cuba: Sometimes a Cigar is Just a Cigar, Mr. Bush
Carol Miller
/ Forrest Hill
Rigged Convention; Divided Party: How David Cobb Won with Only
12% of the Vote
Tarek Milleron
Breaking the Principled Voter
Donald Macintyre
The
Battle of Najaf
Ron Jacobs
Spirits of The Dead: Why I Love My Petty Bourgeois Tendencies
Mickey Z.
Kid
Gavilan's Grave: Propaganda Scores a TKO
Poets' Basement
Adler, Ford and Albert
August 6, 2004
Joshua Frank
David
Cobb's Soft Charade: the Greens and the Politics of Mendacity
Derek Seidman
An
Interview with Stan Goff
Mike Whitney
The
Arbitrary Imprisonment of Jose Padilla
William S. Lind
Corruption in the Marine Corps
David Price
In
the Shadow of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
August 5, 2004
Mike Ferner
The Kerry Show: When Peace is Off
Message
Bruce Anderson
Two
Rejections
Robert Fisk
The Tale of Saddam's Cameraman
Todd Chretien
Florida
Comes to California: the Democrats' Plot Against Nader
Peter Linebaugh
Doing Time for Political Crime:
Paul and Silas, Bound in Jail
August 4, 2004
Mickey Z.
Two
Traditions: WMD and Disinformation
Justin Huggler
The Hunt for Bin Laden
John Ross
Mexico's
Dirty War Never Ended: Inside Puente Grande Prison
August 3, 2004
Uri Avnery
The
Oligarchs
Ray McGovern
The 9/11 Commission Chimera
Jack McCarthy
Sexual Politics in Jeb's Florida
Eric Ruder
Meet Barak Obama: the Democrats' New Liberal Star
John L. Hess
Crying Wolf: Orange Alert!
Elaine Cassel
Civil Liberties Elections: 1800 v. 2004
Jules Rabin
The Man Who Didn't Walk By
Website of the Day
No Wall
August 2, 2004
Robert Jensen
Kerry's
Hypocrisy on the Vietnam War
Joshua Frank
Greens, Kerry and the Politics of Mendacity
Mike Whitney
The 9/11 Commission and Civil Liberties: "We Need an American
Police State"
Gary Leupp
Beyond
Good and Evil: Some Thoughts on Invasions
July 31 / Aug.
1, 2004
Alexander Cockburn
Kerry:
He's the (Any) One
Merlin Chowkwanyun
Five Questions with Noam Chomsky: "The Savage Extreme of
a Narrow Policy Spectrum"
David Lindorff
The Shame of the DNC
John Chuckman
The
Disturbing Words of John Edwards
Brian Cloughley
All Slam and No Dunk; All Blame and No Responsibility
Christopher Brauchli
"Being Poor is a State of Mind": the Frowning Face
of Compassionate Conservatism
Fred Gardner
A World of Pain
Michael Donnelly
How Big Pharma Bilks the Elderly
David Nally
Genocide in Darfur?
Joshua Frank
Forest Battles Escalate in Oregon
Sam Bahour
Colin Powell and My Grandmother
Diane Farsetta
The IMF and the Indonesian Elections: The Invisible Hand in the
Voting Booth
Harold Gould
Was Iraq a Mutual Charade?
Van Bergen / Stephens
Election 9/11: Surreal Political Theater
Lee Sustar
A New Model for the Labor Movement?
Ron Jacobs
The Lost Art of Hitchhiking
M. Junaid Alam
An Interview with Palestinian-American Rapper, The Iron Sheik
Poets Basement
Albert, Ford, Krieger, St. Clair
Website of
the Weekend
Cross Cultural Poetics
July 30, 2004
Kolhatkar /
Ingalls
Shattering
Illusions: Kerry's Speech Tells Anti-War Activists They're Not
Wanted
Dave Lindorff
Murder
Not So Foul?
Bruce Jackson
Walt Whitman on the Sound of Wolf Blitzer's Voice
Fidel Castro
The
Pathology of George W. Bush
Maximilien Robespierre
Memo to Kerry and Bush: Why They Resist
Saul Landau
Bush
Charges Castro with Sex Tourism; JFK Rolls Over in His Grave
July 29, 2004
Cockburn /
St. Clair
Hail,
the Conquering War Criminal: What Kerry Really Did in Vietnam
Frank Bardacke
What
Michael Moore Left Out of F9/11
Tom Barry
Shallow and Formulaic: Kerry's Latin America Plan
Ron Jacobs
Kerry
and Lennon: Hawking the CounterCulture
Robert Fisk
The Unreported War
Lichtman /
Kellis-Borok
What Kerry Must Do to Win (But Probably Won't)
William S. Lind
The 9/11 Commission Report: Cashing in on Failure
CounterPunch
Wire
Doonesbury Onto John Kerry in 1971!
Website of
the Day
Jabbing JibJab: Copyright Madness
July 28, 2004
Robert Fisk
The
Occupation at 114 Degrees: Baghdad is Swamped in the Smell of
the Dead
Kevin Mink
Kerry's Misperception of Palestine
Ray McGovern
Israel and the Iraq War: How the 9/11 Report Soft-Pedals Root
Causes
United for
Peace & Justice
An
Open Letter to John Kerry: Winter Soldiers and Summer Patriots
Mike Ferner
Vets Demand End to Occupation: "Pull the Troops or Face
Impeachment Mvt."
Imraan Siddiqi
Turning Tricks with Ann Coulter
Alexander Cockburn
Candidate
Kerry
Website of
the Day
Iraq Vets Against the War
July 27, 2004
Alexander Cockburn
Why
the Democrats Deserve Nader
Dave Lindorff
Back to the 19th Century: Globalization's Coming!
Mike Whitney
Control Room: Inside Al Jazeera
Ali, Anderson, Bello, et al.
If We Were Venezuelan, We'd Vote for Chavez
Stefan Wray
Texas Plan to Grab Los Alamos Takes Hold, as DOE Shuts Down Labs
Louis Proyect
Reflections on Nicaragua: First Came the Contra Butchers, Then
the Sweatshops
Rick Giombetti
Faith in Freedom: the Challenge of Thomas Szasz
Bill and Kathleen
Christison
The
9/11 Report and Its Weak-Kneed Consensus: Dogding Israel/Palestine;
Blinkered on Causes of Terrorism
July 26, 2004
Todd Chretien
Green
Resistance: a Reply to Normon Solomon & Medea Benjamin
Robert Fisk
Terror
by Video
Richard Forno
Security
Theater in Boston: Security Expert Harrassed by DHS for Exposing
Flaws at the Fleet Center
Mitchel Cohen
Report from a Boston Demo: Arresting the Curious
Richard Moreno
Rockers
for Justice: an Interview with Tom Morello and Serj Tankian
Alexander Cockburn
Boston
Awaits a Dead Party
July
24 / 25, 2004
Alexander
Cockburn
The Democrats and Their Conventions:
Part One
Dennis
Hans
Those 16 Words Still Smell, Mr. Bush
Patrick
Cockburn
The Struggle for Iraq is Only Beginning
Josh
Frank
The War Path of Unity: Dems Reject
the Peace Movement
Justin
E.H. Smith
Christianity and the Left: the Latin
American Experience
Tariq
Ali
What's at Stake in Venezuela
Fred
Gardner
The Politics of Pot: Year of the
Antagonist
Mark
Scaramella
There's Dope and There's Dope
Ron
Jacobs
The Weather Underground's Prairie
Fire Statement...35 Years On
July
23, 2004
Lee
Sustar
Revolution in Nicaragua: 25 Years
On
Dave
Lindorff
Battle for NYC: Bush 1, Protesters
0
Saul
Landau
Zaniest President in US History: Bush
Beats Reagan
Mike
Whitney
The 9/11 Whitewash: Blaming No
One
Mickey
Z
Get On the Bus: 150 Years After Elizabeth
Jennings
Gary
Leupp
The 9/11 Commission and the Looming
War on Iran
July
22, 2004
M.
Junaid Alam
Ten Ways to Build a Better Democrat
Brian
McKinlay
Rusted On Down Under: Howard, Bush and Sharon
Jason
Leopold
Cheney Lobbied for Easing of Sanctions on Terrorist Regimes While
CEO of Halliburton
Chris
Floyd
Mob Rule: Ripping the Lid Off of America's Pious Myths
Uri
Avnery
Chirac v. Sharon
July
21, 2004
Paula
J. Caplan
The Emotional Casualities of War:
Psychologists Can't Heal All the Damage
Joshua
Frank
Nader Sleeping with the Enemy? Let's
be Fair
Ron
Jacobs
American Exceptionalism
Reza
Ghorashi
The Elections, Iran and al-Qaeda
Amy
Martin
Will Congress Rearm the Guatemalan Generals?
John
Ross
Bush May Lose, But His Wars Will Go
On and On
July
20, 2004
Stan
Cox
The Bush / Kerry War Ticket
Chris
Randolph
An Open Letter to Dr. Ehrenreich: It's Over, Barb!
Forrest
Hylton
The Ghosts of Gonismo: "Popular
Patricipation" and Bolivia's Gas Referendum
Mark
Scaramella
It's Official! Mendocino County is Crazier and Fatter Than the
Rest of California
Sam
Bahour
The World is Knocking on Israel's Door
George
Reiter
A Defense of David Cobb
John
Ross
Burying Iraq, Burying Bush
John
L. Hess
Girlie Stuff: Media Tolerance of Arnold & Co.
Website
of the Day
This Land is Your Land
July
19, 2004
Uri
Avnery
Marie and the Ghosts: the Hoax of
Paris
Col.
Dan Smith
What Has Been Accomplished?
Mike
Whitney
Allawi: Our Puppet with a Pistol
Karyn
Strickler
Just Marriage, Not Gay Marriage
Robert
Fisk
The Crisis of Information in Baghdad
David
Swanson
Media Blackout of US Labor Opposition
to Iraq War
Jennifer
van Bergen
The Death of the Great Writ of Liberty
July
17 / 18, 2004
Gary
Leupp
Apocalypse Now: Why the Book of Revelations
is Must Reading
Ghada
Karmi
Vanishing the Palestinians
Lenni
Brenner
When Cattle Unite, Lions Go Hungry: Notes for Ralph Nader
Ben
Tripp
Man on a Bridge: a Ghost Story
Brandy
Baker
What Would Elizabeth Cady Stanton Make of John Kerry?
M.
Shahid Alam
Israel Builds Another Wall
Sasan
Fayazmanesh
Nuclear Hypocrisy: Israel, Iran and the IAEA
Patrick
Bond
The George Bush of Africa
Fred
Gardner
Politics of Marijuana: Cannabiniod Therapuetics
William
Blum
Bush and Thucydides
Ben
Terrall
Carter and the Indonesia Elections: "I Don't See Anything
Wrong with a General Running the Country"
Tom
Barry
John Lehman on the War Path
David
Vest
Dylan Without the Music
Phyllis
Pollack
Return to Sin City: Keith Richards Does Gram Parsons
Ron
Jacobs
Smearing Muhammad Ali: Bob Feller Strikes Out
Joshua
Frank
Kerry to Edwards: "Let's Lose!"
David
Nally
A Call for Sudan: Our Georgraphical Blindspot
Toni
Solo
Bolivia's Gas Referendum
Landau,
Hassan, Prashad & Lindorff
Three Reviews of Moore's F911
Poets's
Basement
Ford, Smith and Albert
July
16, 2004
Dave
Zirin
Adonal Foyle: Master of the Lefty Lay-Up
Shervan
Sardar
Dershowitz, the ICJ and Jim Crow Laws
Ron
Jacobs
The Lil' Engine That Couldn't: Kucinich Surrenders on Anti-War
Plank
Robert
Fisk
Iraq, According to Edgar Allen Poe:
Coffin Bombs in Baghdad
Greg
Moses
The Forts of Iraq
Mickey
Z.
Ad Infinitum?: Presidential Campaigns in the Age of TV
Dan
Bacher
A Landmark Win for Salmon and the Tribes
Dave
Lindorff
The Mumia Case: Support from NAACP,
But a Movement in Shambles
Paul
McGeough
Did Allawi Shoot Inmates in Cold Blood?
Website
of the Day
10 Reasons to Fire Bush (and 9 Reasons Kerry Won't Be Any Better)
July
15, 2004
Heather
Williams
McMissing
the Point: Supersize Me Crashes on Its Message
Werther
Iraq: Follow the Money
Tom
Crumpacker
The Birds of Guantanamo
Brian
Cloughley
What Does the Bush Regime Object To?
Bill
Christison
Reorganize the CIA? Of Course,
But...
July
14, 2004
Jeffrey
St. Clair
Chronicle of a Nomination Foretold:
the Green Deceivers
Neve
Gordon
Of Socrates and the Apartheid Wall
Diane
Christian
The Priesthood of Death
Stefan
Wray
Who Benefits from Missing Data at Los Alamos Nuclear Lab?
Josh
Frank
The Nader / Dean Debate
Conn
Hallinan
Divide and Conquer as Imperial Rules
Elizabeth
Weill-Greenberg
Bring My Brother Home!: Class, War
and Education
Website
of the Day
Hijacking Catastrophe: 9/11, Fear and the Selling of US Empire
July
13, 2004
Ray
McGovern
The CIA and Iraq: an Intelligence
Debacle...and Worse
Mark
Donham
The Sierra Club's Inexplicable Treatment of Cynthia McKinney
Ben
Tripp
Politus Interruptis: With Friends Like
These, Who Needs Electorates?
Mark
Gaffney
Slipping Towards Armageddon: Israel
in Iraq
Dave
Lindorff
Osama Wins! Election Postponed!
Chris
White
Double Think: the Bedrock of Marine
Indoctrination
July
10 / 12, 2004
Kathleen
Christison
The Problem with Neutrality Between
Palestinians and Israel
Janine
Pommy Vega
Trail of the Comet: a Gathering of the World's Poets Against
War
Sherry
Wolf
From Maverick to Party Attack Dog: Howard Dean Gay-Bashes Nader
Saul
Landau and Farrah Hassen
A Transfer of Power, Sort Of
Michael
Donnelly
How to Steal an Election: the Green Version, 2004
Stanton
/ Madsen
Iraq Survey Group: Rumsfeld's al-Qaeda?
Richard
Lichtman
The End of Innocence: Reflections on American Pathology
Gila
Svirsky
Thank You, Your Honors: a Legal Blow to the Wall
Kurt
Nimmo
Clinton's Life
Toni
Solo
Empire-Speak: What Roger Noriega Really Means
Ron
Jacobs
The Black Panthers and the Rest
Camelo
Ruiz Marrero
Gene Warfare in Oaxaca: Genetic Mutation of Mexican Maize
Omar
Barghouti
Wither the Empire: Rise of a Global Resistance
Poets'
Basement
Curtis and Albert
July
9, 2004
Dave
Zirin
Carlos Delgado on Deck: Blue Jays Slugger
Stands Up Against War
Justin
Delacour
Wishing Kerry Would Shut Up About
Latin America
Robert
Fisk
Iraq in Reverse: Martial Laws Fuel Insurgency
Boris
Kagarlitsky
Two Congresses and a Funeral
William
S. Lind
The October Surprises
Sibel
Edmonds
Our Broken System: John Ashcroft's War on Truth
Ron
Jacobs
Reading Tea Leaves: What Vietnam Tells Us About Iraq's Future
Gary
Leupp
The Lie That Will Not Die: Cheney and
the Iraq/al-Qaeda Link
July
8, 2004
Niranjan
Ramakrishnan
The Inexplicable John McCain
Toufic
Haddad
Protesting Israel's Apartheid Wall:
a Letter from the Hunger Strikers' Tent
Dave
Lindorff
Liberation as Martial Law
Joshua
Frank
The Fall: How Beltway Dems Sank Howard
Dean
Christopher
Brauchli
Bush & Cheney Play the Hitler Card
James
Petras
The Truth About Jimmy Carter
July
7, 2004
John
Chuckman
Kerry's BBQ: a Deafening Silence
of Meaning
Virginia
Tilley
A Line in the Sand: Azmi Bishara's
Hunger Strike
Susan
Martinez
A Letter to Bill Cosby
Mickey
Z
Elie Wiesel's Strange Parade
Michael
Donnelly
Our Own Private Wilderness: Trusting the Land in the Inland Empire
Sean
Donahue
Boston Social Forum: the Dems aren't the Only Show in Beantown
Diane
Christian
Sovereignty and Freedom in Iraq
July
6, 2004
Lisa
Viscidi
Fleeing Guatemala: Central Americans
Risk Lives to Reach El Norte
Marc
Norton
The Felonious Five Ride Again: the
Supreme Court and Enemy Combatants
James
Brooks
Chemical Warfare on the West Bank?
Ray
McGovern
Porter Goss as CIA Director?
William
Cook
Legacy of Deceit: If Dante Knew of Bush and the Neo-Cons...
July
5, 2004
Forrest
Hylton
US Imperialism in Latin America: Sept.
11, July 4 and Systematic Torture
Chris
White
A Former Marine Sgt. on the Meaning
of Independence Day
Joe
Bageant
Cranky Reflections on the 4th of July
Robert
Jensen
Stupid White Movie: What Michael Moore
Misses About the Empire
Kathy
Kelly
"Two Days an' a Wake-Up"
July
3 / 4, 2004
Elaine
Cassel
Bush's Police State and Independence
Day
Stan
Goff
ABC of Opportunism: "Progressive"
Latin American Leaders Support the Coup in Haiti
Snehal
Shingavi
"We Want Real Justice for Bhopal": Two Survivors Speak
Out
Bruce
Anderson
The Cheney-Leahy Metaphor and the Greens
Sharon
Smith
Twilight of the Greens: the Chokehold of "Anybody But Bush"
Josh
Frank
Ralph Nader's Revolt: an Interview with Greg Bates
Robert
Fisk
Pentagon Tried to Censor Saddam's Hearing
Joe
Bageant
Sons of a Laboring God: Leftnecks Unite!
Brian
Cloughley
Fortress Bush and the One Law Doctrine
Justin
Delacour
The Anti-Chavez Echo Chamber: Venezuela's Media Tycoons
William
S. Lind
Saudi Spillover
Linda
S. Heard
A Joke Called "Justice"
Greg
Moses
"It's Illegal, But It's Our Right": Korean Labor Won't
Back Down
Ron
Jacobs
"Ain't You Proud to be White on Independence Day?"
Toni
Solo
Weary of Indigenous Resistances? Just Pretend They're Not There
Dan
Nagengast
Chicken Manure as Cattle Food: Safe, But Do We Want to Eat It?
Stew
Albert
Brando, a Personal Recollection
Dave
Zirin
From the Black Panthers to Sacheen Littlefeather: a Eulogy for
Our Brando
Patrick
W. Gavin
The Progressive Case for Dodgeball
Steven
Rosenthal / Junaid Ahmad
The Problem is Bigger Than the Bushes: a Review of F911
Poets'
Basement
Kearney, Ford and Davies
Website
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August
21 / 22, 2004
A
Taste of Reality from Baghdad
Ali's
Story
By
HELEN WILLIAMS
Baghdad.
I am furious. Ali, one of the boys, just
came to visit and have some lunch with us. He is 18 and had problems
in the 'Big Boys' House in Adhimaya and left there and ended
up back on the streets. When he was back on the streets he used
to come and see us most days--sometimes twice a day for some
food, a shower etc. He often leaves his sack of cans with us
which he collects from off the streets--he gets 500 dinar (20
pence) a kilo. He leaves them with us so that they do not get
stolen when he is sleeping--usually up on Karamana roundabout
in Kerrada. He is a really nice boy--shy, mild mannered and polite
and totally honest about his use of drugs.
We encourage this honesty by
telling the boys that we are not judging them or that we are
not going to think they are bad just because they sniff some
thinner. In this way we can monitor how much they are using--if
we do not shout at them or judge, they tell us. Ali was using
thinner about twice a week (when he become depressed) and arten
tablets about once a week. When he told us, about, 10 days ago
that he wanted to move back with his mother and 8 year old little
brother to a new home in Shula, Bagdad, we were overjoyed for
him. His parents are divorced and were living separately in Sadr
City -he found getting on with either side difficult and this
is how he originally ended up on the streets.
He came to see us the morning
he left to go to his mum. He had a shower, some nice new clothes
(we washed his old ones so he could take them with him), breakfast
and we gave him a package of food items to take to his mum--things
like tins of beans, fruit, nuts, bread and crisps for his little
brother. And we made sure that he had no thinner on him to take
to his mum's.
Today Ali came to visit us.
He is looking fantastic--clean, happy, off thinner and said he
was pleased to be living with his mum and young brother. His
brother is going to school, Ali is still collecting cans, but
now in Shula, to raise some money and his mother sews for a living.
They are renting a small house with one bedroom, a sitting room,
kitchen and bathroom. Doesn't this sound like a beautiful success
story--well, it is--even if it only lasts for a month or two
it is something, a chance for a better life.
But all is not well. Ali wanted
to leave us before 3 pm. Why? Shula is coming under attack from
the Americans. Last night no one slept in Shula as the Mahdi
Army resisted an onslaught from American rockets and helicopter
gunships. Ali told us how two minibuses and one 25 seater bus
(like the ones we have here in Kerrada) were hit yesterday by
American rockets--luckily none of the buses had passengers, but
all three drivers died--these were separate incidents. Ali reported
that there were many casualties--mainly civilian, though there
were 5 or 6 definite dead from the Mahdi Army. He said his mum
was okay, but his little brother was so scared and cried and
cried all night. He knows of three American soldiers being killed.
The Mahdi Army have set up checkpoints into Shula and will close
down the area at 4 pm. This is when they expect to receive reinforcements
and more weapons and it is also the time when the Americans do
their 'shift change'. Ali is expecting a big battle, lots of
death and destruction and lots of problems. He wanted to get
home by 4 pm, otherwise the Mahdi Army won't let him in and he
needs to be with his mum and brother to look after them. We asked
Ali about the Shula, which is situated past Khadimaya to the
north-west of Bagdad. He said it was a big district with a mixture
of Shia and Sunni Muslims, but mainly Shia. At first it was just
the Shia fighting, but now the Sunni men have joined in. There
is staunch support for Moqtada Al Sadr--his photos are everywhere.
Have you heard about Shula
in the news? No.
And here is our poor Ali trying
to make a new life, while the Americans terrorise the area--but
it is not big enough news for TV--you just need to know the big
things that go on.
And did you know that the Public
Security (secret service) Centre near New Bagdad was bombed--No?
And did you know that yesterday, the Ministries of Oil, Sport
and Youth came under attack form the Resistance--No.
Over the past few days, since
the church bombings, there have been many many more bombs in
Bagdad. Many of them have been closer and louder than before.
We had one a few nights ago at around midnight, followed by a
gun battle (we could hear reply fire). Then five mortars were
heard, probably towards the Green Zone. Then two mornings running
there were huge explosions at around 6.45 am--the 'morning bombs'
don't usually go off that early, they are usually between 7.45
am and 9.30 am. Then last night, at about 11 pm, there was a
big bomb not far away and this was followed by the definite sound
of a rocket attack, also close by--we didn't know what was being
hit though. At midnight there were 3 more explosions. One was
huge and extremely close. I have told you before how Iraqis don't
even look around if there are bombs going off, unless they are
close. Well, all of these, initiated a response--people looking
and stopping what they were doing. The last one in particular
got our whole street up and about. People were on their roofs
and balconies looking out. The Baker Boys went to see, one of
them went off on his push bike. Wassim, opposite us, went on
the roof and told us it was in the next street. And indeed it
was. We don't know why, but a bomb hit an air-conditioning unit
shop in that street. Maybe it went off there by mistake. Maybe
it was just to drive more terror into the mainly Christian community
in that street. As so often is the case--we just don't know.
The felafel shop in that street lost its glass front in the blast.
The brothers who run it are really nice men, Christians, who
used to do all the felafel sandwiches for us when we first started
to feed the boys when they were on the street, back in November
2003. These bombs were not reported on TV--not on BBC, Al Jazeera
or Al Arabia--although Al Jazeera did report that the rocket
we heard had hit the Sheraton Hotel--about 800 metres away. Al
Jazeera were also the only station to report that the recent
upsurge in resistance has also been occurring in Kut (the Ukranian
army base was hit by 28 rockets!), Amara, Nasyriah and Samawa.
But you have been told about an Irish woman winning $32 million
on lottery and the Russian film industry taking off. There seems
to be a concerted effort to take Iraq off the news. Indeed, I
heard an American Republican Party woman on the radio the other
day saying that Iraq was old news, that is it not headlines anymore.
Well, while Moqtada and his men make that virtually impossible
and churches coming under attack have to be reported, there is
still a huge swathe of goings on, deaths, bombs and so on that
are not being reported. I know that, to me, Iraq is the centre
of the world, but can you imagine a bomb or a gun going off not
being reported on if it happened in America or Britain. No--well
that's what's going on here.
You have all heard that it
has been 'kicking off' in Basra, Nagaf and Sadr City. I went
to Sadr City on Monday with 3 of my translator's friends--all
guards at the Sheraton/Palestine Hotel complex and all supporters,
in name at least, of Moqtada Al Sadr. In the taxi on the way,
the driver was playing a music tape of a woman singing for Saddam.
In the song she was asking Saddam why he left 'us' and who did
he leave 'us' to? She was imploring Bashar Assad, the President
of Syria, to help Iraq. And she was detailing the mess that Bagdad
and Iraq has beome in the melancholic lyrics. I donned my chadoor
for the outing, just to be on the safe side--little wonder, but
Westerners are not entirely trusted in Sadr City. I felt safe
enough though, after all, I was with 4 young men, 3 of whom lived
there. Only one car bothered me a bit as it slowed down and stopped
for a better look. Moqtada Al Sadr picures adorned EVERY home.
Children played in the streets in a scene of peace and tranquility--in
safety and in great numbers. Sadr City is a place of children
and little ones at that. There are far far more children than
adults living in this poor neighbourhood--I am sure that they
beat the Iraqi average of 46% of the population being aged 15
years and younger. Here it seemed as though at least 50% were
under 10 years. And it is this scene of peace, tranquility and
little children playing in the streets that America is now pulverising.
These are the people that welcomed the 'liberation' brought to
them by America--these were the people most glad to see the back
of Saddam Hussein. And now these are the people that resist the
most fiercely--they want an end to the occupation and they want
America out of their neighbourhood. There is no question of who
is to blame for the recent fighting in these areas--let's face
it, if the Americans were not around, who would the Mahdi Army
attack and fire their RPGs at? Anyway, in Sadr City, we visited
the family home of one of Wejdy's friends, Ali. This home also
had plenty of snaps of Moqtada. I met two of Ali's tiny little
neices and then I met his new, two month old, nephew--his name
was Moqtada. We discussed many things over our meal of rice and
beans--from music to the current situation in Iraq. We were talking
about how children are being effected by the occupation and we
mentioned the 11 year old Mujahdeen fighter we had met in Fallujah.
Ali said "That's nothing, a few streets away from here is
an 8 year old boy. During the last attack from the Americans,
he got an RPG and fired it at a humvee and blew it up, then he
was shot at and injured, but he is still alive". Then we
left Ali's home and once again walked through the peaceful dusty
streets full of children playing to get our taxi home.
Incidentally, I heard a report
about the 11 year old Mujahdeen fighter in Fallujah from a man
who actually witnessed the boy's bravery and skill. there were
two American snipers placed one each end of the road on which
the hospital/clinic we visited was situated. In the darkness,
this child rolled his body across the road from one kerb to the
other. He called out to a man on the side of the road, under
the cover of a building, to throw something white out into the
middle of the road. This was done and the American sniper shot
at it revealing his position to the boy who then shot at him
and in the same movement he rolled back across the street to
the other side, just in case the sniper fired at him. No return
fire came and our 11 year old then took night vision binoculars
into the middle of the street and could see the American's snipers
body slumped over a wall--dead. My friend told me that the boy
then left and went down the road--he heard that he used the same
procedure there and attacked and shot at another American sniper.
What future is there for these poor children, whether fighting
or not? I hear, time and time again, how children are frightened
now, were frightened in the war and how some are not going to
school and how others now have temper tantrums, suffer from nightmares
or how they have become withdrawn and silent. This is a country
where almost half the popluation are under 16 years of age. I
attended a lecture about this at around Christmas time. The lecturer
estimated that half of the children in this country are suffering
from PTSD, and there are no trained child psychiatrists or counsellors
to deal with this enormous problem. Add to this the high levels
of unemployment, the continuing security problems, the ongoing
violence and the lack of electricity, clean water and petrol
and you have a country that is not years, but decades from recovery.
And all this goes unreported
in the news. What is actually happening here is simply not as
important as what MIGHT happen in Britain. Heathrow MIGHT come
under attack, but it has not happened yet and no one has been
killed by a 'terrorist' there. But people are being killed and
people are suffering daily here. But do you need to know about
things that are actually happening? No.
In the days following the bomb
attacks on the churches, I have spoken with many Christians in
the neighbourhood. At least 3 families we know, who usually attend
church on a Sunday, had had something else to do on this day
and, thankfully, they had not gone to church. One shopkeeper
told me that the Christians will be too afraid to worship now
and that many will want to leave Iraq. We heard how one vicar,
on hearing about the attacks, got his congregation out of the
church and to safety in great haste--although his church did
not then come under attack. And another vicar in another church
which was bombed, tried to keep the panicking worshippers inside
in relative safety, but away from the glass windows. The day
after the bombs, rumours were rife in Kerrada--5 more bombs had
been discovered and diffused in churches in the area, and also
a roadside bomb had been found and diffused in Kerrada. And we
consider this a safe area!
BAD ATTITUDES
I can give you two first hand
accounts of why the occupation is detested and why the Coalition
Forces and the Western Companies are despised.
One day last week, we were
returning from Allawi bus station in a taxi when we passed the
Ministry of Interior next to Assassins Gate. We ended up behind
two white Land Cruisers as we crossed over the Republic Bridge
over the beautiful Tigris River. The second Land Cruiser, that
is the one in front of us, had its hatchback door open. A pivate
security mercenary was sitting in the back pointing his gun out
ready for attack. Likewise a mercenary sitting in the passenger
seat--pointing his gun sideways. On Saduun Street we came a little
too close to them and the gun man in the back indicated to our
taxi dirver to slow down and back off. This our taxi driver did
and the gun man stuck his thumb up in thanks. I commented on
how these people behaved towards the local population when it
was not even their country. The taxi dirver said "What can
we do, we have no authority?" Mind you,when the Land Cruisers
turned off to go down to Abu Newas Street and the Palestine Hotel,
he hooted cheekily at them and we made signs to them. The mercenary
looked stunned!
Last night my translator and
I were walking down Kerrada main street when a humvee passed
us going the other way. My translator made his usual cheeky,
rude gesture at them and we carried on our way. A minute or so
later he was roughly grabbed on his shoulder and pulled around
by a mad little jumped-up American soldier who obviously could
not control his temper. I intervened and shouted at the soldier
to stop and get away right now. He released his grip, but carried
on shouting. I explained to him that since America had 'freed'
this country, Iraqis were entiltled to make their feelings known
towards their occupiers in a peaceful manner. After all, isn't
that what democracy and free speech are all about? Well, not
according to this idiot. Free speech is only allowed if you are
saying nice things! His friend turned up then--the first soldier
had literally got the humvee driver to stop and had jumped out
in temper and had run over to us. Then along came his sergeant.
Now, he was nice. A huge towering, 6'6'' black guy with a very
pleasant way about him. He was furious with the crazy soldier,
who still could not control himself, and he was also angry with
their Iraqi translator. Their translator was busy lip servicing
the Americans saying that they got rid of Saddam and Iraqis owe
them--no wonder so many translators working with Americans are
targetted! Anyway, the nice sergeant explained that they couldn't
have Iraqis making cheeky signs at them--if they let one do it,
next time there will be ten!! I said that it was better to have
rude gestures than bullets and he agreed. He really started on
the idiot soldier then, who had still not calmed down and we
had a nice chat in all them mayhem!! I said that the actions
of this soldier did nothing to win the 'hearts and minds' of
the Iraqis and I explained that he had put all of them in great
danger by jumping out of the humvee in this way and coming down
onto the street where they were now surrounded by Iraqis. I mentioned
Abu Gharib and the sergeant tutted and said "Look Americans
put up with this shit in our prisons in America all the time".
I pointed out that America was supposed to be the shining example
of democracy, freedom and fairness--and things like this just
showed the USA Army's true colours. He agreed. In fact, he agreed
with most of what I said and I with him--in the end I actually
took a big risk and shook his hand in front of the assembled
onlookers. I wished him safety and I wished the idiot soldier
a long stay in Iraq. I think I shook his hand because he admitted
to me tht he had not agreed with the war and certainly did not
agree with the way things were going in Iraq right now. He had
such a kind face and dealt with the situation so well, that I
really felt for him. But in the idiot soldier, I could see all
the reasons why the American Army are hated here. His was the
face of the abusive soldiers in Abu Gharib, his was the face
of the lost temper which fires at a car load of civilains and
his was the face of the soldier that murdered Shafaq's dad and
blew away Abdul Azziz's leg, and his was the face of the murdering
snipers that kill 10 year old boys in Fallujah. I saw the hatred
and temper in his eyes--the hatred and temper that exists in
so many soldiers here. During this exchange a big crowd of onllookers
had gathered. AbuWalid (a man I was going to rent an appartment
off, but didn't in the end) joined in with us and was shouting
at the soldiers' translator. After it was all over, we turned
and walked away through the crowd to grins and 'thumbs up' signs--coy
and secret signs of appreciation--many Iraqis are as frightened
of American soldiers as they were of Saddam's secret police.
We all know the reasons why
America doesn't pull out of the disaster that is Iraq. But if
they did, there would be no roadside bombs, no Mahdi Army Resistance
in Nagaf, Sadr City, Basra etc and probably no kidnappings. I
wish they would go and give it a try--after all things can't
get much worse than they are now. Or can they?
* *
*
I wrote the above report on
Saturday afternoon. That evening we had lots of visitors--one
of them was a poor lady accompanied by her 2 children from further
up our street. She was asking me for help to pay her rent and
to buy food (more about this in a future report). We promised
to visit her tomorrow as it was now around 10 pm. She thanked
us and left. As she went down our appartment stairs, there was
a huge bang, which echoed through the sky, followed by another.
Mustafa, her 8 year old son, clung to her chadoor, keeping in
behind her, crying out "Come on, let's hurry, we're coming
under attack!" He was absolutely terrified. I knew children
were frightened by the bombs and bangs, but here I actually witnessed
it--Mustafa was actually trying to hide in his mum's chadoor
and biting his fingers while he did so. (When we viisited her
the next day, we found he small living quarters within a big
house without glass in the windows--her home is further up the
street than our appartment ie nearer the church and it also faces
the church--so there was no chance that the windows would keep
their glass in the blast from the church bomb--I wondered how
poor little Mustafa coped when that bomb went off.) 5 minutes
later, Qusay, one of the Baker Boys, called around. We talked
about his family in Nasyria--who he sees for 10 days every 20
days, as I explained before. We also discussed how he felt about
the Mahdi Army. He, like Hasan across the street, said he backed
the resistance, but would noly fight if Sistani gave the call.
And he felt that there were better ways for the government to
deal with Nagaf, other than getting the US military to attack
the resistance and population of Nagaf. He, like me, is also
angry at the lack of press coverage about the truth in Iraq.
He told us how a small earthquake had occurred in Nasyria at
1 am last night. Although no one died, there were many injuries
and many ruined and damaged houses. It is believed that the earthquake
happened because of natural gas created by the oil underground.
He had spoken to his wife earlier today on the telephone. His
family were fine after the earthquake and after the recent resistance
from the Mahdi Army which took place in the city. We were about
to sit on our balcony with him, as there was no electricity to
run the fans and the appartment was so hot, when there was yet
another loud bang, followed by another, then another. Qusay decided
that he was too scared to sit out there--the Baker Boys sleep
on the roof of the bakery and, after the church bomb, they had
discovered shrapnel on the roof--shrapnel had travelled that
far.
Indeed, the man in the exchange/telephone
shop opposite us and next to the fruit and veg shop, found a
cross shaped wheel spanner in the yard of his house after the
bomb. He lives on our street up nearer the church. One of the
crosses of the spanner had become embedded in one of the tiles
in the floor of his yard. I dread to think of the injuries if
that had hit a person.
Anyway, about 12 of these really
loud bangs occurred and people were looking out and fussing.
We heard the air raid sirens go off in the Green Zone and saw
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