Senators Gave Immunity to Foreign Airport Security Firms, Face Voters in 2004 January 5, 2004 By Tom Flocco Lack of a public criminal investigation of the largest mass murder case in United States history has raised worldwide questions about why career prosecutors and grand juries are not permitted to interrogate public officials about their prior knowledge of reports about "Arabs training to use planes as weapons to fly into U.S. buildings," why multiple legislators and government officials met with the Pakistani general funding the terrorists during the week prior to and on the morning of the attacks, and why the President, the Defense Secretary and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff did not take immediate action. All three knew a half-hour before the first crash that hijacked planes were headed to New York City, via Secret Service secure phone communication bridges. This, as Congress voted, in effect, to tie up evidence linked to foreign airport security companies which would shed light on any 9-11 investigation. tomflocco.com

Quarantining dissent How the Secret Service protects Bush from free speech January 5, 2004 When President Bush travels around the United States, the Secret Service visits the location ahead of time and orders local police to set up "free speech zones" or "protest zones," where people opposed to Bush policies (and sometimes sign-carrying supporters) are quarantined. These zones routinely succeed in keeping protesters out of presidential sight and outside the view of media covering the event. sfgate.com

Worst environmental exploits of the year January 5, 2004 Sierra Club readers rank Bush Administration's 2003 attacks on the environment: 1.Issued public health warnings to pregnant women and children about mercury after announcing policy changes to triple amount of mercury pollution allowed from power plants. 2.Became first administration to support shifting burden of Superfund toxic waste cleanups from polluters to taxpayers. 3.Dismantled provision of Clean Air Act that requires oldest, dirtiest power plants and refineries to curb soot and smog pollution. 4.Proposed a national Energy Bill that did nothing to reduce dependence on foreign oil, repair or address antiquated electricity grid, or protect special places from oil and gas drilling. 5.Opened nearly 9 million pristine acres in Northwest Alaska to the oil and gas industry for exploration and drilling. 6. Continued to withhold documents from secret meetings between Bush/Cheney Energy Task Force and energy industry lobbyists. 6.Promoted a wildfire policy that expanded commercial logging in the backcountry but did little to protect people where they live. 7. thru 15.

The Cloaking of Evil Jesus vs. the Beast of the Apocalypse January 5, 2004 By GLEN MARTIN Recently, I have been reading the gospels of Jesus Christ once again (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). The teachings of Jesus about how to live our lives are astonishing. Essentially, Jesus says that all our worldly values must be turned upside down, for God's judgment is on the rich, on "the nations" and on the powerful of the world. God's love and mercy are for the poor, the downtrodden and the oppressed. counterpunch.org

Dollar May Extend Decline Against Euro, Yen, Survey Indicates January 5, 2004 (Bloomberg) The dollar may extend its decline as interest rates in Europe remain higher than in the U.S., and on speculation international investors will increase their purchases of Japanese stocks, according to a Bloomberg News survey. More than 70 percent of 32 strategists, traders and investors polled last week from New York to Tokyo advised buying or holding the euro versus the dollar. Almost 90 percent favored buying or holding the yen. quote.bloomberg.com

Rest of world gets sick of propping up Bush's deficit January 5, 2004 The US economy is reflating fast. Too fast? Much depends on Asia, John Garnaut writes. The global flirtation with deflation is already last year's story. It has been washed away by torrents of money that the US Federal Reserve and the White House have let loose on the world. The US central bank has never been so committed to keeping the price of money low. Few American presidents have been so profligate. smh.com.au

Fireballs Falling Over Spain January 5, 2004 By J. Wheelock The windows of local houses shook according to some witnesses. The event was also witnessed in the city. To the north of the province of Palencia, a loud noise was heard, accompanied by a strong explosion, causing mayhem among the inhabitants of the towns of Guardo, Saldaa, Cervera de Pisuerga and Velilla del R,o Carri"n. Authorities are now checking to see if the event could have been caused by the desintegration of a meteorite. rense.com

Meteorite hits Iran January 2, 2004 (Reuters) TEHRAN A meteorite has hit northern Iran causing minor damage to property but there were no immediate reports of casualties, state radio has said. It said the impact sent locals in panic onto the streets in the northern town of Babol in Mazandaran province. "A meteorite which hit Babol on Friday morning caused only some minor damage to residential units," radio said, without giving further details or citing any source. It said the impact was felt up to one kilometre away. news.yahoo.com

Past Defeat and Personal Quest Shape Long-Shot Kucinich Bid January 5, 2004 By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG Dennis J. Kucinich was 33 when, having been drummed out of the Cleveland mayor's office, he set out on what he calls his "quest for meaning." His city was in financial default — the embarrassment of the nation. His political career was in tatters, his bank account dangerously low. Not even the radio talk shows would hire him. So he left the Rust Belt in the winter of 1979, headed west to California and, eventually, New Mexico, to write and think. There, in the austere beauty of the desert outside Santa Fe, he sought out a spiritual healer who, he says, led him on a path toward inner peace. "That," Mr. Kucinich said, "is where I discovered that war is not inevitable." nytimes.com

Numbers - Surreal Press Conference January 5, 2004 By Dahr Jamail Statements taken from three boys and five men who witnessed the US military clean-up and medical evacuations all reported the same story: The US military flew in medical choppers to air lift 2 wounded soldiers from the scene. They all witnessed at least five bodies loaded into US vehicles and driven from the scene. These statements were taken from some scene of the incident the day after it occurred, as well as taken from several men from other areas of Al-Dora. A phone call from the scene of the incident to the Coalition Public Information Center (CPIC) provided information that the US military reported two dead and three wounded soldiers. rense.com

Let's Play Pretend January 5, 2004 by Ward Reilly Okay. Let's pretend that there was no misrepresentation as to why we had to go to war with Iraq. Let's pretend the $200,000,000,000 we just spent, was spent well, for our "safety." Two hundred billion dollars in one year. Let's pretend that we were told that the war and occupation in Iraq were going to unfold exactly as it is unfolding, and that our soldiers have been placed in a strange land and are now being worshipped by the locals. Let's pretend our children aren't acting as policemen against a people that do not want us to be occupying their country. Let's pretend our troops are not "sitting ducks" in effect, targets for about 900,000 Iraqi citizens who were previously soldiers in Hussein's army, now doing what they consider to be "defending  their country". informationclearinghouse.info

Why Bush must be captured and tried alongside Saddam Hussein January 4, 2004 Bob Fitrakis As the new year unfolds, one unmistakable fact remains unreported in America’s submissive mainstream media: our President George W. Bush is a war criminal. Any attempt to state this obvious fact is ignored and any Democratic Presidential hopeful who suggests we repudiate the new Bush doctrine of American imperialism and instead, work for world peace, is dismissed as a “vanity” candidate and told to drop out of the race. The case against President Bush is overwhelming. The nonprofit American Society of International Law, consisting mainly of scholars, has laid out the case against the President in article after article in a dispassionate fashion. freepress.org

North American companies eyeing India for high-tech jobs January 4, 2004 Press Trust of India India is likely to benefit from exodus of high tech jobs from North America as over six million jobs are expected to shift overseas in a decade. "The shift of North American technology jobs to low wage countries like India cannot be stopped because not only are Indian companies a third of the cost, but they actually are better," hindustantimes.com

British soldiers 'kicked Iraqi prisoner to death' January 4, 2004 Robert Fisk in Baghdad – The Independent His body was returned to them, covered in bruises and with his nose broken, after he and seven colleagues were arrested by British forces in Basra last September and held in military custody for three days. One of the other workers has given a frightening account of their ordeal. Baha Mousa, he says, was tied and hooded and then repeatedly kicked and assaulted by British troops, begging all the while to have the hood removed because he could no longer breathe. One of the survivors suffered "acute renal failure" after "he was assaulted. thetruthseeker.co.uk

Is This Your Child's Future? January 4, 2004 By Judith Moriarty Auto plants-textile mills-founderies-steel plants boarded up. Farms sold at auction-fishing fleets rotting in echoing ports (no fishing with ocean lands leased to oil companies - not on news) -mining now done with mountain removing machines-machine shops turned into strip malls-McSwill fast 'food' replacing town restaurants/diners-logging given over to multinationals-teachers drone change agents-et.al. Take a good look at your child today-really look. And then see - for God's sakes - see the future in this short video clip what is being prepared for them on the Global Plantation, being constructed (while we watch the Specter from Never-Never Land) www.rense.com

Toxins lead to healthier lives? 'Revolutionary' research suggests billions can be saved in cleanup costs January 4, 2004 By John Pike Hormesis, the scientific theory that humans actually need small amounts of poison in their diets, could be the most important environmental event of the 21st century if proved valid. Billions of dollars could be saved in environmental cleanup costs, say researchers, while at the same time improving the health of all organisms, including humans. According to the theory, a little arsenic, dioxin or radiation peppered on the spaghetti sauce may be just what we require to live long and healthy lives. And since humans need more toxins in our environment than allowed under current government regulations, so the theory goes, future efforts to clean up the environment could be greatly reduced. worldnetdaily.com

US denies killing Iraqis in car January 4, 2004 The US-led occupation force has denied charges that American troops were involved in a shooting incident in the northern town of Tikrit that killed four Iraqi civilians in a car. Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt said that US troops found three people - a man, woman and child - dead in a vehicle on Saturday morning on a road in Tikrit and that it appeared they were victims of gunshot wounds. english.aljazeera.net

Crying Wolf On Terrorism? January 4, 2004 (CBS) Even as they demonstrated stepped up security at their airports, foreign governments expressed frustration with U.S. demands for greater scrutiny of their flights. Terrorism expert Paul Beaver tell Chen, "We've got to the stage in Western Europe where nobody actually takes any notice of American alerts anymore because there's so many of them." news4colorado.com

Spotlight falls on Bush brother's share dealing January 4, 2004 By David Rennie in Washington Neil Bush, the scandal-struck younger brother of President George W Bush, is under the spotlight once more, after it emerged that he made more than £100,000 in a single day, buying and selling shares in an obscure company where he had been a consultant. telegraph.co.uk

Bulgarian soldiers refuse duty in Iraq after deadly attack January 4, 2004 SOFIA (AFP) Some 30 Bulgarian soldiers have pulled out a 500-man battalion heading for Iraq following attacks there in which five Bulgarian soldiers died, the chief of staff of the army said Friday. spacewar.com

The Conspiracy is Against God January 4, 2004 By Henry Makow, Ph.D. Ask God What to Do Have you noticed? Each year, there is a little less Christ in Christmas, a little less Christian spirit. The spirit of giving now is confined to gifts. Scarcely is there mention of Christian love. That might offend some people, Satanists perhaps. God is Love. Satanists aren't big fans of Love. They have a lot of clout. Incredible and bizarre as it sounds, a Satanic cult, the Illuminati rules the world. George W. Bush is a member, as is much of the world's political and economic elite. (See “A Conspiracy Too Monstrous to Conceive" www.savethemales.ca/000166.html and “Rothschild Conducts Red Symphony.” www.savethemales.ca/000275.html ) The Illuminati consist of the Jesuits and some of the world's richest families including the Rothschilds, the Rockefellers and the Windsors. While they pay lip service to religion, they worship Lucifer. thetruthseeker.co.uk

Is America Becoming Fascist? January 04, 2004 by Anis Shivani The similarities between American fascism and particularly the National Socialist precedent, both historical and theoretical, are remarkable. Fascism is home, it is here to stay, and it better be countered with all the intellectual resources at our disposal. Since mainstream left-liberal media do not seriously ask this question, the analysis of what has gone wrong and where we are heading has been mostly off-base. Investigation of the kinds of under-handed, criminal tactics fascist regimes undertake to legitimize their agenda and accelerate the rate of change in their favor is dismissed as indulging in "conspiracy theory." Liberals insist that this regime must be treated under the rules of "politics as usual. Liberals are quick to note certain obvious dissimilarities with previous variants of fascism and say that what is happening in America is not fascist. It took German justice minister Herta Daeubler-Gmelin to make the comparison explicit (under present American rules of political discourse, she has been duly sacked from her cabinet post); but at the liberal New York Times or The Nation, American writers dare not speak the truth. informationclearinghouse.info

Army Order Aims To Stretch Ranks January 4, 2004 By Esther Schrader LOS ANGELES TIMES Desperate to stretch its limited ranks, the U.S. Army is expected this week to prohibit still more soldiers now in Iraq and soon to be deployed there from leaving military service. Army officials declined to say which or how many soldiers would be affected when it expands its "stop-loss" program, which already prevents soldiers in certain heavily used specialties from leaving the military or being reassigned to other units. newsday.com

Black Hawk helicopters over Las Vegas, snipers in Times Square 2004 begins with massive military mobilization in US cities January 4, 2004 By David Walsh The new year began in the US under conditions of an unparalleled mobilization of police, army and federal law enforcement agents in major urban centers. Alleging a heightened threat of terrorist attacks and operating under the Department of Homeland Security’s “Orange Alert,” the Bush administration undertook measures such as were never seen during the Second World War or at the height of the Cold War. wsws.org

America: The real danger lies within January 4, 2004 By ERIC MARGOLIS The year 2003 dramatically and dolefully illustrated Lord Acton's famous dictum that absolute power corrupts absolutely. An almighty United States, unrestrained by any rival, international body, or world opinion, bestrode the globe, a belligerent colossus determined to monopolize global oil reserves and use its vast military power to crush lesser nations or malefactors that disturbed the Pax Americana. canoe.ca

Baby teeth offer radioactive clues January 4, 2004 By Gary Stoller USA TODAY A new study concludes that counties within 40 miles of six nuclear power plants have higher levels of radioactive strontium-90 than other counties in their states. Strontium-90, a byproduct of uranium fission, is one of the pollutants emitted into the air by nuclear reactors. If inhaled or ingested, it collects in bones and tissue and increases the risks of cancer and leukemia, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. usatoday.com

The Great American Job Giveaway Jan 4, 2004 rescueamericanjobs.org "The question is whether America can remain a great power or a dominant power if it becomes a primarily service economy. I doubt that. A country must have an industrial base to play a significant role in the world. I am concerned." - Henry Kissenger July-2003 "When my colleagues get a letter from a constituent who has been displaced by foreign workers, they should write back to them & say, 'It is the policy of this government to displace you, to move you into a lower economic income category, because we believe in cheap labor & we believe the politics of open borders helps our party." - Congressman Tom Tancredo rescueamericanjobs.org

Pat Robertson: God told me Bush will win January 3, 2004 NORFOLK, Va. Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson said Friday he believes God has told him President Bush will be re-elected in a "blowout" in November. "I think George Bush is going to win in a walk," Robertson said on his "700 Club" program on the Virginia Beach-based Christian Broadcasting Network, which he founded. "I really believe I'm hearing from the Lord it's going to be like a blowout election in 2004. It's shaping up that way." Robertson told viewers he spent several days in prayer at the end of 2003."The Lord has just blessed him," Robertson said of Bush. "I mean, he could make terrible mistakes and comes out of it. It doesn't make any difference what he does, good or bad, God picks him up because he's a man of prayer and God's blessing him." infoshop.org

Bush drug proposal enrages veterans January 3, 2004 By DALE EISMAN The Bush administration is considering dramatic increases in the fees military retirees pay for prescription drugs, a step that would roll back a benefit extended 33 months ago and risk alienating an important Republican constituency at the dawn of the 2004 campaign season. Pentagon budget documents indicate that retirees may be asked to pay $10 -- up from $3 -- for each 90-day generic prescription filled by mail through Tricare, the military's health insurance program. Tricare's current $9 co-pay for a three-month supply of each brand-name drug would jump to $20. The proposal also would impose charges for drugs the retirees now receive free at military hospitals and clinics. There would be a $10 fee for each generic prescription and a $20 charge for brand-name drugs dispensed at those facilities. chron.com

Out Of Work, Out Of Sight January 3, 2004 (CBS/AP) A falling unemployment rate may be spurring President Bush's prospects for reelection, but it is masking millions of Americans who do not have full time jobs, a newspaper reports. The Los Angeles Times reports that while the nation's unemployment rate of 5.9 percent is relatively low, it fails to include the 4.9 million people who want full-time positions but are working part-time jobs. The figure also omits 1.5 million people who have stopped looking for work. Taken together, the total number of jobless reaches 15.1 million — or 9.7 percent, up from 9.4 percent a year ago, the Times reports. cbsnews.com

Ayatollah to Bush: No thanks January 3, 2004 Iranian Ayatollah Ahmad Janati has spoken out against the US and President George Bush, saying aid to the stricken Iranian city of Bam after it was devastated by an earthquake will not wipe the slate clean for the 'evil' American president. According to Iranian media, the Ayatollah said US aid was little more than a ploy to open the door on diplomatic relations with Iran, "But they got a slap in the face," he said, adding, "We cannot forget the problems (between the two countries) just for a few scraps of aid." He said: "Bush the evil one has completely dishonoured Christianity" with his "warlike policies in the Christian year which has just drawn to a close". "Is Jesus happy with the evil Bush, who invokes religion and Christianity?" he asked. nbr.co.nz

White man's burden January 3, 2004 By Ari Shavit The war in Iraq was conceived by 25 neoconservative intellectuals, most of them Jewish, who are pushing President Bush to change the course of history. Two of them, journalists William Kristol and Charles Krauthammer, say it's possible. But another journalist, Thomas Friedman (not part of the group), is skeptical. haaretzdaily.com

Earth orbit slows no more, baffling scientists January 3, 2004 BOULDER, Colorado (AP) In a phenomenon that has scientists puzzled, the Earth is right on schedule for a fifth straight year. Experts agree that the rate at which the Earth travels through space has slowed ever so slightly for millennia. To make the world's official time agree with where the Earth actually is in space, scientists in 1972 started adding an extra "leap second" on the last day of the year. For 28 years, scientists repeated the procedure. But in 1999, they discovered the Earth was no longer lagging behind. At the National Institute for Science and Technology in Boulder, spokesman Fred McGehan said most scientists agree the Earth's orbit around the sun has been gradually slowing for millennia. But he said they don't have a good explanation for why it's suddenly on schedule. cnn.com

"He terrorizes opposition party politicians into nervous silence when planes fall out of the sky with no explanation."- John Kaminski (Wellstone’s funeral)

LATEST GOVERNMENT REPORT ON WELLSTONE 'ACCIDENT' FINDS ITS SCAPEGOATS, MANY QUESTIONS REMAIN January 2, 2004 By: Jackson Thoreau Shortly before he died in a mysterious airplane crash 11 days prior to the 2002 elections, Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone met with Vice President Dick Cheney, probably the Bush administration's most evil public face. Cheney strong-armed opposing politicians like the most vindictive of mafioso leaders, and opponents usually gave in. But not Wellstone. At a meeting full of war veterans in Willmar, Minn., days before his death, Wellstone told attendees that Cheney told him, "If you vote against the war in Iraq, the Bush administration will do whatever is necessary to get you. There will be severe ramifications for you and the state of Minnesota." Wellstone cast his vote for his conscience and against the Iraq measure, the lone Democrat involved in a tough 2002 election campaign to do so. And a few weeks later on Oct. 25, as he appeared to be winning his re-election bid, Wellstone, his wife, Sheila, his daughter, Marcia Markuson, three campaign staffers, and two pilots died in a plane crash in Minnesota. liberalslant.com

Hawks tell Bush to invade Syria and Iran to win war on "terror" January. 2, 2004 By David Rennie News Telegraph   President George W Bush was sent a public manifesto yesterday by Washington's hawks, demanding regime change in Syria and Iran and a Cuba-style military blockade of North Korea backed by planning for a pre-emptive strike on its nuclear sites. The manifesto, presented as a "manual for victory" in the war on terror, also calls for Saudi Arabia and France to be treated not as allies but as rivals and possibly enemies. aljazeerah.info

Bush policies putting country in jeopardy January. 2, 2004 Paul Stoddard Congress A few years ago our country was living through the largest economic expansion in history. We were experiencing the first cash surplus in 35 years. The national debt was being paid down. Air and water pollution were at their lowest in decades. Crime was at a record low. We had nearly full employment. Israel and Palestine were talking peace. Life was good. Then something went awry. More than 3 million good-paying jobs lost. Mostly overseas. Billions were lost in the stock market crash. Thousands lost their retirement nest egg. Corporate crime ran rampant. Oil shortages. Price gouging. Health care insurance costs are beyond what most can afford. azcentral.com

THE ACCEPTANCE OF TORTURE BY THE AMERICAN PEOPLE January 2, 2004 The fact that American people appear to have accepted the use of torture is a sign that they do deserve what is coming to them. That the Nazi/like tactics of the Mosaad and Sharon police state have been adopted by USA is an ugly turn for that once great nation. rumormillnews.com

More school groups defying Bush education law January. 2, 2004 By Sam Dillon The New York Times READING, Pa. -- A small but growing number of school systems around the country are beginning to resist the demands of President Bush's signature education law, saying its efforts to raise student achievement are too costly and too cumbersome. dfw.com

This is what Karimov the boiler, good friend of Bush the Texacutioner, is doing with your tax dollars.

Three On Torture January 1, 2004 By John Bryant With the so-called War on Terrorism currently in full bloom, our country has been receiving calls for the employment of torture from at least two of America's Big Jews, Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz and CCNY philosopher Michael Levin. It is not an accident that these Jews call for the serious consideration of torture, because the only non-Third-World country to employ torture openly is Israel, that 'shitty little country' established on the basis of nazi persecution which is now the principal upholder and repository of nazi principles and behavior. There are several basic arguments in favor of the use of torture, as follows: rense.com

When will mainstream America wakeup? January 1, 2004 By Jay Shaft I had an amusing conversation with a so-called "normal" American the other day. It was like déjà-vu from all the other conversations and arguments I have had with the mainstream middle class Americans. The topic was how bad it has become in America and the fact that the situation is not improving. This well to do and very contented yuppie made the comment that it really wasn’t all that bad when you looked at the entire picture. I had to wonder what picture he had been looking at, and what amusement park had it on display. The facts he was quoting were in no way based on any current facts or figures on the plight of America. His facts painted a rosy picture of economic recovery, a winning trend in the war in Iraq, a victory over terrorism, and happy times for all Americans. thetruthseeker.co.uk

Review of 2003 With Noam Chomsky, John Pilger, Katha Pollitt, Martin Espada, Michael Parenti and Aarti Shahani January 1, 2004 Today on Democracy Now! We are going to look back at 2003, a year defined by war, invasion, occupation and resistance. Later in the program, we will be speaking with Noam Chomsky, with Katha Pollit of The Nation magazine , author Michael Parenti, Aarti Shahani of Families for Freedom and poet Martin Espada. But first we go all the way across the world to Australia, where it is already 2004. We are joined by veteran filmmaker, author and journalist John Pilger. informationclearinghouse.info

Rush Limbaugh should stop whining January 1, 2004 By Bill Press Stop! Don't touch that dial. There's nothing wrong with your radio. That piercing, high-pitched sound you hear is not a mechanical malfunction. It's just Rush Limbaugh, whining into the microphone. Silly me. And I thought conservatives were real men. You know: stand-up-and-take-your-medicine-like-a-man kind of men. Limbaugh is just the opposite. He's a crybaby conservative. He wants to take his medicine - mountains of those little blue pain pills - and suffer no consequences. tallahassee.com

Israel to deport Swedish lawmaker: reports January 1, 2004 Israel has decided to deport four foreigners arrested at a protest against a West Bank barrier, among them a member of the Swedish Parliament, Israeli radio stations have reported. Police said four Israelis were also arrested at the protest near a Palestinian village in the Ramallah area of the West Bank, and that 10 Palestinians and an Israeli were wounded in the confrontation. It was the second violent protest in five days against the barrier which Israel says is needed to keep suicide bombers from reaching its cities, but which Palestinians say is a land grab. abc.net

Instant Messages To Israel Warned Of WTC Attack January 1, 2004 By Brian McWilliams Newsbytes, Officials at instant-messaging firm Odigo confirmed today that two employees received text messages warning of an attack on the World Trade Center two hours before terrorists crashed planes into the New York landmarks. Citing a pending investigation by law enforcement, the company declined to reveal the exact contents of the message or to identify the sender. But Alex Diamandis, vice president of sales and marketing, confirmed that workers in Odigo's research and development and international sales office in Israel received a warning from another Odigo user approximately two hours prior to the first attack. propagandamatrix.com