The Common Ills

Isaiah's latest The World Today Just Nuts "Private Dancer Bambi." Barack Obama does his Gypsy Rose Lee dance while declaring, "Some people are trying to make a big deal out of my small donors using phoney names. When someone stuffs $10 in your g-string, you don't ask for I.D. But believe me, I know the face to every lap dance I gave."

the world today just nuts
comic
barack obama
private dancer bambi
the common ills
 

In today's New York Times, Sam Dagher's "Schools Open, And First Test Is Iraqi Safety" runs on the front page (and on A15) and it's all yada-yada-yada on the front page. Inside the paper the issue of internal refugees is raised. Then Dagher writes:

"In August, the number of Iraqis who returned home from abroad or from internal displacement soared to 37,835, compared with 20,546 in July and 16,338 in June." At that point you know the article is garbage and you can attempt to rescue bits but really what is the point?

It's time for another wave of Operation Happy Talk and Dagher's either unknowningly bought into it or bought into by choice and made the decision to repackage it and resell it. Yes, Jordan is busing and flying refugees back to Iraq (as a result of the sweet oil deal they made with Iraq). And, no, Dagher can't mention that. But your real tip off is that more people are leaving Iraq than returning.

No, that figure doesn't make it into the story. Nor does Dagher bother to note the issue of Iraqi Christians. Yes, the main crisis is Mosul but it is not the only location. And there's no defense that he's writing about Baghdad because the figures he's using (from the puppet government -- which he fails to note) cover all of Iraq.

With Vatican Radio reporting on the crisis, with the Pope concerned about the crisis, you might think that qualifies for the paper as a 'higher body' (not meaning religious, meaning 'authority') that could have some impact on the coverage but you would be wrong.

It's happy talk time and blood on your hands, Dagher, should any refugees struggling outside of Iraq stumble across your propagnada and assume it really is safe to return. The article doesn't even note that the UNHCR continues to maintain that it is not safe for Iraqis to return.

You can go through the article and look for anything resembling reality but you're searching in vain. Remember the free transportation covered last week? Iraqis in Syria were told, by the Iraqi embaassy there, that they could return and do so for free. And there were no takers. Doesn't fit in with the happy talk so Dagher doesn't mention it.

From Wednesday's "Iraq snapshot:"

The UNHCR estimates Iraq has 4.7 million refugees (internal and external). On the heels of Jordan getting the oil gifts from Iraq and deciding to bus and fly some Iraqi refugees out (who did not want to leave), attempts took place in Syria to 'ease out' the Iraqi refugees. AP reports that they were offered "free journeys" by Iraq's Embassy in Damascus but "there have been no takers" and "Adnan al-Shourifi, the commercial secretary at the Iraqi Embassy, said that free convoys and plane tickets would be provided for the returnees, along with about $1,300 in cash to each family from the Iraqi government and $500 from the United Nations." Sudarsan Raghavan (Washington Post) notes that "[o]nly a small fraction [of refugees] have returned," cites the Baghdad neighborhood of Hurriyah where only 325 "of the more than 7,000 Sunni families who fled in late 2006" have returned and notes that "U.N. officials and human rights groups are concerned that a speedy resettlement could touch off new strife, in part because sectarian segregation has helped to reduce violence".

None of that reality makes it into Dagher's article. It's just happy-happy in yet another wave of Operation Happy Talk.

Now let's go back to the crisis in Mosul (which Dagher can't find) because it is a serious crisis and when the Vatican is concerned that's generally enough for the Times to at least mention a humanitarian crisis if not file an article on the topic itself. This is from Patrick Cockburn's "Police pour into Mosul to protect Christians from sectarian killings" (Independent of London):

The Iraqi government was yesterday rushing 1,000 police to Mosul to try to stop a murderous campaign against Christians which has forced thousands to flee the northern city.
Officials say about 4,000 people have taken flight in the past week to escape the killings being carried out by Islamic extremists intent on wiping out one of the oldest Christian communities in the world. "The violence is the fiercest campaign against the Christians since 2003," said the provincial governor of Mosul, Duraid Kashmula. "Among those killed over the last 11 days were a doctor, an engineer and a handicapped person." At least three houses belonging to Christians were blown up in the Sukkar district of Mosul, regarded as a bastion of al-Qa'ida in Iraq, on Saturday night.
Since 28 September, at least 11 Christians have been killed in the mostly Sunni Muslim city that lies on the river Tigris some 200 miles north of Baghdad. Most of the refugees fleeing the violence are moving to Christian villages, schools and monasteries elsewhere in the Nineveh province.
"We left everything behind us. We took only our souls," said Ni'ma Noail, a middle-aged Christian civil servant, who has taken refuge with his three children in a church in Bartila, a Christian village east of Mosul. "Relatives in other cities and friends in Mosul, including Muslims, advised me to leave after recent events."

It takes a lot of dumb, and Dagher looks really dumb right now, to file the garbage he did in light of the above. And the crisis in Mosul didn't just happen in the last hours. We noted in Thursday night and in Friday's snapshot. The crisis didn't go away over the weekend, it only got worse. And yet we get Dagher with his head up his ass. Mosul isn't just a little town in Iraq, it's the country's third largest city. The paper that helped sell the illegal war has a duty, after the mea culpa, not to further endanger Iraqis. (Sam Dagher only recently moved over to the paper from the Christian Science Monitor. He is not among the ones at the Times who sold the illegal war.) Here's the BBC on the Mosul crisis: "Mosul's provincial governor said hundreds of Christian families had fled the city in the past week to seek refuge in outlying villages." Need more? From Ned Parker's "IRAQ: Christians flee Mosul" (Baghdad and Beyond, Los Angeles Times):

New violence this week against Christians in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul has sparked an outcry from the country's religious minority. In the last week, officials said, Christian families have fled the city after coming under attack from Sunni militants.
Christians have been targeted in the city along with other sects and ethnic groups since 2003. An estimated 933 Christian families have fled Mosul in the last week, said Jawdat Ismail, director of the ministry of displacement and migration in Nineveh province.
Nineveh, whose capital is Mosul, has been a front line in the simmering conflict between Kurds and Arabs over northern Iraq’s future boundaries. The tensions have fueled violence that has targeted Christians, along with other ethnic and religious groups, including Kurds, Shabaks and Yazidis. Sunni Arabs have also been targeted.

Gulf Daily News filed their story on Sunday:

Militants blew up three empty Christian homes yesterday in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, where more than 3,000 Christian families have fled in the past two days.
The governor of northern Ninevah province, Duraid Mohammed Kashmoula, said more than 3,000 Christians have fled Mosul over the past week alone in what he called a "major displacement."
This is despite months of US and Iraqi military operations to secure the city.

CNN wasn't caught being silent. From Mohammed Tawfeeq's "Christians flee Iraqi city after killings, threats, officials say:"

At least 900 Christian families have fled Mosul in the past week, terrified by a series of killings and threats by Muslim extremists ordering them to convert to Islam or face possible death, officials said Saturday.
The attacks may have been prompted by Christian demonstrations ahead of provincial elections, which are to be held by the end of January, the deputy governor of Nineveh province said.
Deputy Gov. Khasro Goran said 13 Christians have been slain in the past two weeks inMosul, about 260 miles (420 kilometers) north of Baghdad. Fleeing Christians have sought refuge in monasteries and churches and with family members in other towns, an Interior Ministry official said.
The attacks began after hundreds of Christians took to the streets in Mosul and surrounding villages and towns, seeking greater representation on provincial councils, whose members will be chosen in the local elections.

The New York Times has covered this crisis when? But they've got time to push another wave of Operation Happy Talk? Remember the point earlier about how Dagher's using the puppet government figures (and ignoring reliable ones)? It is not a minor point. From Basil Adas' "UN-Iraq dispute over refugees returning home" (Gulf Daily News):

Baghdad: A dispute is raging between the United Nations and the Iraqi government on the number of Iraqi refugees living abroad - particularly in Jordan, Syria and Egypt - who have returned to Iraq.
While the UN report said that the number of returning refugees is less than the number of those departing, Major General Abdul Karim Khalaf, director of the operations at the Interior Ministry, denied this.

But that didn't make into Dagher's article. He just utilized the puppet government's figures (without attribution). The puppet government is not for the Iraqi people and that is why it is not popular with the Iraqi people. It's a nice little racket for them, installed and propped up by the US, sitting on billions of dollars (this year's surplus should reach $79 billion). And the only thing keeping the puppet government in place is the US military. In November the US holds elections and in January a new president will be sworn in. It is to the benefit of the puppet government to have the US remain in Iraq. As calls from the US Congress for accountablity increase, it's really interesting how yet again the puppet government shows up with creative figures on alleged 'progress.' It's deplorable that the New York Times chooses to repeat those claims as 'factual'. They'll waive the British bye-bye, they know Gordon Brown has wanted to pull out (and has slowly been doing that -- largely due to Afghanistan), but the US means protection and money and they won't give either up without a fight.

They're just there to try and make the people free,
But the way that they're doing it, it don't seem like that to me.
Just more blood-letting and misery and tears
That this poor country's known for the last twenty years,
And the war drags on.-- words and lyrics by Mick Softly (available on Donovan's Fairytale)

Last Sunday, ICCC's number of US troops killed in Iraq since the start of the illegal war hit the 4,177 was the number. And tonight? 4181 is ICCC's count. Yesterday the US military announced: "A Multi-National Division – Center Soldier died Oct. 11 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle south of Amara in Maysan province." Just Foreign Policy's counter estimates the number of Iraqis killed since the start of the illegal war to be 1,273,378 up from 1,273,376 up. (No, it is not correct. Friday alone you had 24 reported deaths so I have no idea where they get that only two people died in all of last week.) Turning to some reported violence . . .

Bombings?

Reuters reports a Baghdad car bombing claimed 9 lives and left thirteen people injured, a Mosul roadside bombing that claimed 3 lives and left two more injured, a Sulaiman Pek roadside bombing "wounded an army major," a Baghdad roadside bombing wounded seven people (five are police officers) and another Baghdad roadside bombing wounded four people (three are police officers). AP reports 2 Mosul "suicide" car bombing that claimed the lives of 6 people (plus the drivers of the car) and wounded at least twenty-four people. Dropping back to Saturday, Reuters noted a Kirkuk car bombing injured "Sheikh Azad Khorsheed, deputy head of the Sunni endowment".

Shootings?

Reuters notes 2 Iraqi service members were shot dead in Baghdad. Saturday Retuers reports 1 police officer shot dead in Mosul (one civilian wounded), 2 "gunmen" shot dead in Samarra, 1 police officer shot dead in Hilla and 3 "suspected insurgents" shot dead in Balad.

Isaiah's latest comic goes up after this. New content at Third:

Truest statement of the week
Truest statement of the week II
A note to our readers
Editorial: Precious Time
TV: Some moments should stay undercover
Roundtable
Rehabilitated
The winner and top ten runner ups
Bombing of the Pentagon doesn't bother Barack?
Spectacular Dumb Ass Moments from Dumb Asses
Highlights

Pru notes "Capitalism isn't working" (Great Britain's Socialist Worker):

As billions of pounds are poured into a financial black hole Socialist Worker editor Chris Bambery says 'We won't pay for capitalist chaos'
This week our front page declares "capitalism isn't working" -- a subversion of the Tories' 1979 "Labour isn't working" election poster that reflected anger at growing unemployment.
Contrary to popular mythology, this poster did not swing the election for the Tories. The sitting Labour government had lost even before the polling stations opened -- because it had made workers pay the price for the economic crisis.
Unemployment stood at just over one million when Margaret Thatcher was elected. Today, before the current economic chaos has hit, it stands at
1.72 million. Unemployment is expected to rise by 350,000 during the next two years.
The scale of the crisis has reached every part of the financial markets, with governments from the US to Iceland bailing out and nationalising banks in the hope of preventing further chaos.
This is not the first time we have seen such a crisis, and the lessons of the 1970s must be learnt. A Labour government used its relationships with union leaders to drive through cuts the Tories could only dream of. This paved the way for Thatcher’s Tories to drive through the humiliation of the unions.
The turning point came in the mid-1970s when a Labour government was faced with a choice of either maintaining its commitment to full employment and the welfare state, or acting on the demands of the City of London and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to let unemployment rip and drive down living standards.
They chose the second option. Thatcher approved -- she just wanted more, much more.
Inflation
In 1976, with inflation at 20 percent and the pound collapsing amid a growing international recession, the Labour cabinet called on the IMF to deal with a yawning budget deficit.
Chancellor Denis Healey told Labour Party conference delegates, "It means sticking to a pay policy which enables us, as the TUC resolved a week or two ago, to continue the attack on inflation."
Healey had agreed to put bailing out Great Britain PLC above the interests of his party’s supporters.
This attack on workers' pay won the backing of the trade union leaders, right and left.
Unemployment had doubled within the first year of wage controls.
Anger over Labour’s pay policy eventually broke through, with widespread public sector strikes in 1978-79 -- the Winter of Discontent. But the mood was sullen rather than confident.
Racism was on the rise as people looked for scapegoats . The solidarity that had broken the previous Tory government had ebbed away.
Labour lost the 1979 election because its supporters could no longer bring themselves to vote for a government that had so recklessly betrayed them.
This is a warning from history. The crisis today is affecting economies worldwide.
Last November the United Nations found that Iceland was the best place to live in the world – based on income, education, healthcare and life expectancy.
Now, as its currency collapses and interest rates are hiked up, all of that could vanish in a puff of smoke. The government and trade unions in Iceland are expecting ordinary people to make sacrifices, touting the notion that everyone is in it together. But we’re not.
The poor will be forced to tighten their belts, but the rich in Iceland, and everywhere else, will be expecting to be bailed out of their crisis.
Resist
Here in Britain the question of who pays for the crisis has not been posed so brutally. But trade union leaders representing health and council workers have already agreed pay deals worth half of the official inflation figure. Some openly argue that a recession means you can’t fight on pay or even resist at all.
The compromises their predecessors made in the mid-1970s destroyed a vibrant working class movement. The resulting demoralisation paved the way for Thatcher’s election and the three decade love affair between British governments and the market.
Back in 1936 as the fascists bombed Madrid, the Spanish Republican government warned "If you tolerate this, your children will be next." Those words stand today. Across the country we need to take to the streets to demand, “No bail out for the bankers -- we will not pay for their crisis!†From small acts of resistance we can craft a political force that can knock back those running this destrutive system.
March on the City We won’t bail out the bankers Friday 10 October 4-6pm Assemble at the Bank of England, Threadneedle St, London EC2R
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The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.

iraq
and the war drags on
donovan
the new york times
sam dagher
patrick cockburn
the los angeles times
ned parker
mohammed tawfeeq
basil adas
the socialist worker
the world today just nuts
the third estate sunday review
 

The bomb blew up about 4:30 as shoppers were crowding the outdoor market, officials said. As residents began removing the bodies, national police arrived from a largely Sunni unit recently assigned to the area, witnesses said. The officers began firing their rifles in the air, apparently to clear away bystanders, they added.
Residents began hurling bricks at the police and setting tires ablaze, sending columns of black smoke into the air, according to the witnesses. Some protesters yelled slogans against Iraq's Shiite-led government and in support of Moqtada al-Sadr, a firebrand Shiite cleric known for his anti-American rhetoric, they said.
"The people were accusing them [police] of not protecting the neighborhood, and helping the insurgents," said a college student from the neighborhood, Hassan al-Obeidi.Three of the demonstrators were wounded by bullets, according to witnesses. U.S. military and Iraqi security forces cordoned off the area with armored vehicles, warning residents to stay inside, as American helicopters swept overhead.
Conflict between Sunnis and Shiites raged in central Iraq from 2005 to 2007, even as insurgents from both groups targeted U.S. forces. The violence has plummeted in recent months thanks to U.S. counterinsurgency efforts, a cease-fire declared by Sadr, and the decision of largely Sunni armed groups to switch allegiances and become U.S. allies.

The above is from Mary Beth Sheridan and Qais Mizher's "24 Killed, 45 Injured in Bombings and Shootings Across Iraq" (Washington Post). The New York Times? Oh, apparently nothing happened in Iraq yesterday to read the paper today. No story filed from Iraq.

Al Jazeera reports that Turkey bombed nothern Iraq again ("sith Turkish air raid in northern Iraq since October 3 when PKK fighters attacked a Turkish border outpost, killing 17 soldiers") and that the Turkish government states the "31 suspected targets" have been bombed. UPI adds, "The PKK, labeled by both Turkey and Iraq as a terrorist organization, is continuing to operate in the Qandil Mountains in northern Iraq bordering Turkey and Iran, officials say." It is also considered a terrorist organization by the US government and the State Dept and the White House, in press briefings last week, have continued to note that the US sees Turkey as an ally.

The Bully Boy economy tanks and the apparent talking point is: Look for the hidden rainbow! From Nancy A. Youssef's "Economy's bust is a boon for military's recruiting effort" (McClatchy Newspapers):

The economic crisis could help the military recruit and retain troops, Pentagon officials said Friday, potentially ending years of extraordinary bonuses and waivers that have become necessary to keep enough troops to fight two wars.
"We do benefit when things look less positive in civil society," said David S.C. Chu, undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness. "That is a situation where more are willing to give us a chance. I think that's the big difference -- people willing to listen to us."

Meanwhile Reporters Without Borders notes yesterday's attack on 28-year-old journalist Diyar Abbas Ahmed in Kirkuk that left the young man dead. They state, "Ahmed was the 22nd media worker to be killed in Iraq since March 2003. What kind of political or spiritual victory can those who commit such horrible crimes hope to achieve?" The Committee to Protect Journalists
issued a statement from their deputy director Robert Mahoney: "We express our condolences to the family and colleagues of Dyar Abas Ahmed. We call on the authorities do everything in their power to track down Ahmed's ‎killers and bring them to justice."

On a related topic, Ernesto Londono and Amit R. Paley's "Western Journalists in Iraq Stage Pullback of Their Own" (Washington Post) notes the decline in foreign (non-Iraqi) journalists:

In a stark indication of the changing media focus here, the number of journalists traveling with American forces in Iraq has plummeted in the past year. U.S. military officials say they "embedded" journalists 219 times in September 2007. Last month, the number shrank to 39. Of the dozen U.S. newspapers and newspaper chains that maintained full-time bureaus in Baghdad in the early years of the war, only four are still permanently staffed by foreign correspondents.
CBS and NBC no longer keep a correspondent in Baghdad year-round.
"It remains important and it remains interesting," said Alissa J. Rubin, the New York Times' acting bureau chief in Baghdad. "But what's in front of us now is almost a static situation. There's not a clear narrative line. The stories are more complex."

The following community sites have updated since Friday morning:

Rebecca's Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude;
Betty's Thomas Friedman Is a Great Man;
Cedric's Cedric's Big Mix;Kat's Kat's Korner;
Mike's Mikey Likes It!;
Elaine's Like Maria Said Paz;
Wally's The Daily Jot;
Trina's Trina's Kitchen;
Ruth's Ruth's Report;
and Marcia's SICKOFITRADLZ

The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.

iraq
the new york times
alissa j. rubin
mcclatchy newspapers
nancy a. youssef
the washington post
amit r. paley
ernesto londono
mary beth sheridan
qais mizher
like maria said paz
kats korner
sex and politics and screeds and attitude
thomas friedman is a great man
trinas kitchen
the daily jot
cedrics big mix
mikey likes it
ruths report
sickofitradlz
 

Then, the housing market collapsed costing you billions.

In crisis, we need leadership, not bad judgment.

JOHN MCCAIN: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.

The benefits of American leadership in agriculture extend well beyond our borders -- America's contribution to meeting the food, fiber, feed and energy needs of a growing world population through efficient production and technology innovation are critical to our national security.

More details on John McCain's statement on "Prosperity for Rural America" can be found on the McCain-Palin 2008 web site at rural.JohnMcCain.com. 

MCCAIN-PALIN 2008 FARM & RANCH TEAM NATIONAL STEERING COMMITTEE*


 

Can the New York Times set a standard on billing? They have another front page story with a byline that reads like a movie credits scroll. And online, they bill another way. These are the people (in reverse alphabetical order) who are responsible for the article: Alissa J. Rubin, Erica Goode and Stephen Farrell. According to the print version. The online version hauls Sam Dagher into the mix. Did he go on Red Bull runs for the three? How did he earn his 'hair by' credit?

In the paper, the 'byline' reads: "This article was reported by Alissa J. Rubin, Stephen Farrell and Erica Goode, and written by Ms. Rubin and Mr. Farrell." The online version's credit reads: "By STEPHEN FARRELL, ALISSA J. RUBIN, SAM DAGHER and ERICA GOODE." And we're not done with the credits. Online and in print, this is tacked on at the end of the article: "Sam Dagher and Anwar J. Ali contributed reporting."

"'As Fears Ease, Baghdad Sees Walls Tumble' By Snwar J. Ali, Sam Dagher, Stephen Farrell, Erica Goode and Alissa J. Rubin". See? It's not that difficult. Why the paper insists on these convoluted credits is anyone's guess but they better get their print version and their online version reconciled because they continue to sell their online archives as a 'plus' and gear it towards parents by telling them what a great help it would be to their children on research papers.

The article itself has many sections worth pondering. We'll emphasize the last section because it's the part that most likely won't be seen by many readers (it's a long article). Sawah, "Awakening" Councils, Sons Of Iraq (and Daughters too!). The Sunni thugs put on the payroll by the US and kept on the payroll by the US but, at the start of the month, some were turned over to the Iraqi payroll. A little over 50,000 of them were turned over but the US has guaranteed that even with that group, they will still pay for the "Awakening" members that the puppet government cannot find jobs for. Puppet of the occuptation Nouri al-Maliki does not trust them nor do most of the Shi'ite thugs now in charge. Gen David Petraeus has repeatedly cited the "Awakening" Councils as one of the reasons for 'progress' in Iraq.

Wednesday in the Green Zone US Maj Gen Jeffery Hammond declared:

Now, take for example, the transition or transfer of the Sons of Iraq to Government of Iraq control. Now, we have two phases to this plan. The first one is the transfer of the Sons of Iraq to the, to the Government of Iraq control, which will include the assumption and the payment of their salaries starting this month in October. We're working very closely with our Iraqi counterparts to make sure this works. The Government of Iraq has committed to accept responsibility for the Sons of Iraq and it's been mandated in the Prime Minister Order No. 118‑C, and we're going to be there to assist in the transfer. We spent the last few weeks working hand in hand with the Iraqi Security Forces, the IFCNR, our Iraqi partners and I'm confident ‑‑ I'm confident this is going to go well. But again, effective this month, the Government of Iraq will start paying the salaries for the Sons of Iraq.

Today the reporters note the tensions brewing among the "Awakeing"s including graffiti appearing that is "the motto of a feared paramilitary unit during Saddam Hussein's era": "Allah. Homeland. Salary" -- which "Awakening" Sgt. Alaa al-Janabi ("Dora Awakening") states is "our slogan." al-Janabi goes on to cite that the Iraqi government is not paying them enough money to live on and offer "We're not going to fight again. Unless they make us." Saleh al-Jubori ("a leader of the Awakening Council in Dora") states that "there is no trust between us and the National Police" and, "if the Awakening is let go, Dora will go back to worse than it was before. I hope you don't consider this a threat."

Gareth notes Robert Fisk's "Secrets of Iraq's death chamber: Prisoners are being summarily executed in the government's high-security detention centre in Baghdad" (Independent of London):

The Independent has learnt that secret executions are being carried out in the prisons run by Nouri al-Maliki's "democratic" government.
The hangings are carried out regularly – from a wooden gallows in a small, cramped cell – in Saddam Hussein's old intelligence headquarters at Kazimiyah. There is no public record of these killings in what is now called Baghdad's "high-security detention facility" but most of the victims – there have been hundreds since America introduced "democracy" to Iraq – are said to be insurgents, given the same summary justice they mete out to their own captives.
The secrets of Iraq's death chambers lie mostly hidden from foreign eyes but a few brave Western souls have come forward to tell of this prison horror. The accounts provide only a glimpse into the Iraqi story, at times tantalisingly cut short, at others gloomily predictable. Those who tell it are as depressed as they are filled with hopelessness.
"Most of the executions are of supposed insurgents of one kind or another," a Westerner who has seen the execution chamber at Kazimiyah told me. "But hanging isn't easy." As always, the devil is in the detail.
"There's a cell with a bar below the ceiling with a rope over it and a bench on which the victim stands with his hands tied," a former British official, told me last week. "I've been in the cell, though it was always empty. But not long before I visited, they'd taken this guy there to hang him. They made him stand on the bench, put the rope round his neck and pushed him off. But he jumped on to the floor. He could stand up. So they shortened the length of the rope and got him back on the bench and pushed him off again. It didn't work."

Turning to the US presidential race. Cynthia McKinney is the Green Party presidential candidate and Rosa Clemente is her running mate. Rosa has the following upcoming campaign events:

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10th, 2008

12:00 NOON
YES! to international assistance and solidarity to Haiti, NO! to the military occupation of Haiti and the attacks on Haitian sovereignty!
The Brecht Forum, 451 West St. @ Bethune St. in West Village, between W. X-Vandals, Emperor,
Rebel Diaz, The Wordstock Poetry Collective, Maroon Society,
Gist the Essence, Collective Flow, United Front

6:30pm

New York Univeristy (NYU)

Jericho 10th Anniversary Weekend of Resistance

www.jerichomovement.com

Saturday, October 11, 2008 @ 12 Noon

Rally at the Harlem State Office Building
(Corner of 126th St. & A.C. Powell Blvd.)

March through Harlem @ 1 p.m.

Closing Rally in Morningside Park @ 2 p.m.
Between 112th & 114th near Morningside Ave. entrances



The Republican party nominee is Senator John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin is his running mate. Oklahoma community member Randall (who will be voting McCain-Palin) notes a video Matt Lira (campaign blogger) has posted to the McCain-Palin blog:




And Becky also an Oklahoma community member and also voting for McCain-Palin notes this from Team McCain:

McCain-Palin 2008 Launches New TV Ad: "Ambition"

ARLINGTON, VA -- Today, McCain-Palin 2008 released its latest television ad, entitled "Ambition." The ad highlights Barack Obama's blind ambition that led him to work with unrepentant domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, but when running for president, lie about his longstanding relationship and his bad judgment. Like Barack Obama, his Congressional liberal allies demonstrated their bad judgment in fighting for risky sub-prime loans and against more regulation. Today, millions of Americans are paying for the bad judgment Barack Obama and Congressional liberals demonstrated concerning housing policy. The ad will be televised nationally.

VIEW THE AD HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9JNna5EmJg

Script For "Ambition" (TV :30)

ANNCR: Obama's blind ambition.

When convenient, he worked with terrorist Bill Ayers.

When discovered, he lied.

Obama. Blind ambition. Bad judgment.

Congressional liberals fought for risky sub-prime loans.

Congressional liberals fought against more regulation.

Then, the housing market collapsed costing you billions.

In crisis, we need leadership, not bad judgment.

JOHN MCCAIN: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.

AD FACTS: Script For "Ambition" (TV :30)

ANNCR: Obama's blind ambition. When convenient, he worked with terrorist Bill Ayers.

Barack Obama's Relationship With Ayers "Went Much Deeper, Ran Much Longer And Was Much More Political Than Obama Said." CNN'S DREW GRIFFIN: "Barack Obama confirmed during a primary debate that he knew Ayers and when pressed, said they served on a charitable foundation board together. And Obama condemned Ayers support of violence. But the relationship between Obama and Ayers went much deeper, ran much longer, and was much more political than Obama said." (CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360," 10/6/08)

Barack Obama First Met William Ayers In 1995 During His First State Senate Campaign, When Obama Held Event At Home Of Ayers And Wife Bernardine Dohrn, Which One Attendee Said Was Aimed At "Launching Him" In First Campaign For State Senate. "In 1995, State Senator Alice Palmer introduced her chosen successor, Barack Obama, to a few of the district's influential liberals at the home of two well known figures on the local left: William Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn. While Ayers and Dohrn may be thought of in Hyde Park as local activists, they're better known nationally as two of the most notorious -- and unrepentant -- figures from the violent fringe of the 1960s anti-war movement. ... 'I can remember being one of a small group of people who came to Bill Ayers' house to learn that Alice Palmer was stepping down from the senate and running for Congress,' said Dr. Quentin Young, a prominent Chicago physician and advocate for single-payer health care, of the informal gathering at the home of Ayers and his wife, Dohrn. '[Palmer] identified [Obama] as her successor.' ... Dr. Young and another guest, Maria Warren, described it similarly: as an introduction to Hyde Park liberals of the handpicked successor to Palmer, a well-regarded figure on the left. 'When I first met Barack Obama, he was giving a standard, innocuous little talk in the living room of those two legends-in-their-own-minds, Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn,' Warren wrote on her blog in 2005. 'They were launching him -- introducing him to the Hyde Park community as the best thing since sliced bread.'" (Ben Smith, "Obama Once Visited '60s Radicals," The Politico, 1/22/08)

CNN: The Meeting Was Widely Considered As "Barack Obama's Political Coming Out Party And It Was Hosted By Bill Ayers." CNN'S DREW GRIFFIN: "Anderson, this meeting at Bill Ayers home has been classified in many different ways. What I can tell you from the two people who were actually there, is number one, former Senator Alice Palmer says she, in no way organized this meeting and she was invited and attended it briefly. And Doctor Quentin Young, a retired doctor, told us this indeed was Barack Obama's political coming out party and it was hosted by Bill Ayers." (CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360," 10/6/08)

Barack Obama Led Education Foundation That "Poured More Than $100 Million Into The Hands Of Community Organizers And Radical Education Activists" And "Translated Mr. Ayers's Radicalism Into Practice." "Despite having authored two autobiographies, Barack Obama has never written about his most important executive experience. From 1995 to 1999, he led an education foundation called the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC), and remained on the board until 2001. The group poured more than $100 million into the hands of community organizers and radical education activists. ... The CAC's agenda flowed from Mr. Ayers's educational philosophy, which called for infusing students and their parents with a radical political commitment, and which downplayed achievement tests in favor of activism. In the mid-1960s, Mr. Ayers taught at a radical alternative school, and served as a community organizer in Cleveland's ghetto. ... CAC translated Mr . Ayers's radicalism into practice. Instead of funding schools directly, it required schools to affiliate with 'external partners,' which actually got the money. Proposals from groups focused on math/science achievement were turned down. Instead CAC disbursed money through various far-left community organizers, such as the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (or Acorn)." (Stanley Kurtz, Op-Ed, "Obama and Ayers Pushed Radicalism On Schools," The Wall Street Journal, 9/23/08)

From March Of 1995 Until September Of 1997, Barack Obama And Ayers Attended At Least Seven Meetings Together Relating To The Chicago Annenberg Challenge. (Chicago Annenberg Challenge, Board Of Directors Meeting, Minutes Of The Board, 3/15/95, 3/31/95, 4/13/95, 6/5/95, 9/30/97; National Annenberg Challenge Evaluation Meeting, List Of Participants, 5/24/95; Chicago Annenberg Challenge, Chicago School Reform Collaborative Meeting, Minutes, 10/23/96)

In 1997, Barack Obama Praised Ayers' Book On The Juvenile Justice System. "The two men were involved in efforts to reform the city's education system. They appeared together on academic panels, including one organized by Michelle Obama to discuss the juvenile justice system, an area of mutual concern. Mr. Ayers's book on the subject won a rave review in The Chicago Tribune by Mr. Obama, who called it 'a searing and timely account.'" (Jo Becker and Christopher Drew, "Pragmatic Politics, Forged On The South Side," The New York Times, 5/11/08)

From 1999 To 2002, Barack Obama Served With Ayers On The Board Of Directors For Woods Fund Of Chicago. "[Ayers] served with [Obama] from 1999 to 2002 on the board of the Woods Fund, an anti-poverty group." (Timothy J. Burger, "Obama's Chicago Ties Might Fuel 'Republican Attack Machine'," Bloomberg, 2/15/08)

Bill Ayers Was A Leader Of "The Violent Left-Wing Activist Group The Weather Underground." "Senator Obama's ties to a former leader of the violent left-wing activist group the Weather Underground are drawing new scrutiny as he battles Senator Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination." (Russell Berman, "Obama's Ties to Left Come Under Scrutiny," The New York Sun, 2/19/08)

In The 1970s, Weather Underground Bombed The Capitol And The Pentagon. "As an Illinois state senator in 2001, Mr. Obama accepted a $200 contribution from William Ayers, a founding member of the group that bombed the U.S. Capitol and the Pentagon during the 1970s." (Russell Berman, "Obama's Ties to Left Come Under Scrutiny," The New York Sun, 2/19/08)

In His Book, Bill Ayers Writes About Participating In The Bombings Of The Capitol And Pentagon. "Now he has written a book, 'Fugitive Days' (Beacon Press, September). Mr. Ayers, who is 56, calls it a memoir, somewhat coyly perhaps, since he also says some of it is fiction. He writes that he participated in the bombings of New York City Police Headquarters in 1970, of the Capitol building in 1971, the Pentagon in 1972." (Dinitia Smith, "No Regrets For A Love Of Explosives," The New York Times, 9/11/01)

In The September 11, 2001 New York Times, Ayers Was Quoted Saying "I Don't Regret Setting Bombs ... I Feel We Didn't Do Enough." "'I don't regret setting bombs,' Bill Ayers said. 'I feel we didn't do enough.' Mr. Ayers, who spent the 1970's as a fugitive in the Weather Underground, was sitting in the kitchen of his big turn-of-the-19th-century stone house in the Hyde Park district of Chicago." (Dinitia Smith, "No Regrets For A Love Of Explosives," The New York Times, 9/11/01)

ANNCR: When discovered, he lied. Obama. Blind ambition. Bad judgment.

Barack Obama On Bill Ayers At Democratic Debate: "This Is A Guy Who Lives In My Neighborhood." "This is a guy who lives in my neighborhood, who's a professor of English in Chicago, who I know and who I have not received some official endorsement from. He's not somebody who I exchange ideas from on a regular basis." (Sen. Barack Obama, ABC Democratic Presidential Debate, Philadelphia, PA, 4/16/08)

Barack Obama's Relationship With Ayers "Went Much Deeper, Ran Much Longer And Was Much More Political Than Obama Said." CNN'S DREW GRIFFIN: "Barack Obama confirmed during a primary debate that he knew Ayers and when pressed, said they served on a charitable foundation board together. And Obama condemned Ayers support of violence. But the relationship between Obama and Ayers went much deeper, ran much longer, and was much more political than Obama said." (CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360," 10/6/08)

ANNCR: Congressional liberals fought for risky sub-prime loans. Congressional liberals fought against more regulation. Then, the housing market collapsed costing you billions. In crisis, we need leadership, not bad judgment. JOHN MCCAIN: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.

The Community Reinvestment Act, Passed By A Democrat Congress And Enacted Under Carter, "Pushed Banks Into Making More Home Loans To Those With Low And Moderate Incomes - And Disproportionately Risky Credit." "[A]ll along, democrats have been particularly supportive of the Community Reinvestment Act, which pushed banks into making more home loans to those with low and moderate incomes - and disproportionately risky credit." (Editorial, "The Wrong Rx For Wall St.," The New York Post, 9/18/08)

Many Financial Experts Said The Groundwork For The Crisis Was Laid Decades Ago With The 1977 Community Reinvestment Act. "Though the roots of today's crisis began with the recent collapse of the subprime lending market, many financial experts said, some economists added that the groundwork was laid decades ago. The promotion of homeownership as a national policy during the days of Franklin D. Roosevelt, for example, as well as such legislation as the 1977 Community Reinvestment Act - encouraging banks to meet credit needs in low- and moderate-income communities - helped set the stage, they said." (Keiko Morris, "Wall Street Turmoil: Greed Wasn't Good, The Economists Say," [New York] Newsday, 9/16/08)

"But The Fact Is, President Bush In 2003 Tried Desperately To Stop Fannie Mae And Freddie Mac From Metastasizing Into The Problem They Have Since Become. Here's The Lead Of A New York Times Story On Sept. 11, 2003: 'The Bush Administration Today Recommended The Most Significant Regulatory Overhaul In The Housing Finance Industry Since The Savings And Loan Crisis A Decade Ago.' Bush Tried To Act. Who Stopped Him? Congress, Especially Democrats With Their Deep Financial And Patronage Ties To The Two Government-Sponsored Enterprises, Fannie And Freddie." (Terry Jones, "Congress Lies Low To Avoid Bailout Blame," Investor's Business Daily, 9/18/08)

"The Powerhouse Democratic Overseers Of The Banking Committees -- Rep. Barney Frank, Sen. Christopher Dodd And Sen. Chuck Schumer -- Protected Fannie And Freddie." (Robert Novak, Op-Ed, "Crony Image Dogs Paulson's Rescue Effort," Chicago Sun-Times, 7/17/08)

Sen. Dodd, Sen. Kerry, And Sen. Clinton -- All Top Recipients Of Fannie And Freddie Contributions -- Actively Opposed Reform Measures And Weakened Existing Regulations. "During this period, Sen. Richard Shelby led a small group of legislators favoring reform, including fellow Republican Sens. John Sununu, Chuck Hagel and Elizabeth Dole. Meanwhile, Dodd -- who along with Democratic Sens. John Kerry, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were the top four recipients of Fannie and Freddie campaign contributions from 1988 to 2008 -- actively opposed such measures and further weakened existing regulation." (Al Hubbard and Noam Neusner, Op-Ed, "Where Was Sen. Dodd?" The Washington Post, 9/12/08)

Sen. Dodd Called The President's Suggestions For Regulations "Inane" And Recommended The President "Immediately Reconsider His Ill-Advised" Proposals. "As recently as last summer, when housing prices had clearly peaked and the mortgage market had started to seize up, Dodd called on Bush to 'immediately reconsider his ill-advised' reform proposals. Frank, now chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said that the president's suggestion for a strong, independent regulator of Fannie and Freddie was 'inane.'" (Al Hubbard and Noam Neusner, Op-Ed, "Where Was Sen. Dodd?" The Washington Post, 9/12/08)

In September 2007, Barack Obama Called Subprime Lending "A Good Idea." OBAMA: "Subprime lending started off as a good idea - helping Americans buy homes who couldn't previously afford to." (Barack Obama, "Obama Calls For Greater Openness And Transparency On Wall Street," Press Release, 9/17/07)

"[C]ongress ... Gave Final Approval To What May Be The Biggest Government Bailout In American History, Authorizing The Bush Administration To Spend $700 Billion To Try To Thaw Frozen Credit Markets And Prevent A Deep Recession." (Lori Montgomery and Paul Kane, "Bush Enacts Historic Financial Rescue," The Washington Post, 10/4/08)

Becky and Randall are among the Oklahoma community members who participated in Gina and Krista's roundtable last night for the gina & krista round-robin. They explain their reasons for endorsing McCain-Palin. That is a decision on the part of Oklahoma community members and it is a decision that is respected by all community members regardless of where we live.

Community members not in Oklahoma have endorsed the independent presidential campaign of Ralph Nader. Matt Gonzalez is Nader's running mate. Lewis notes this on a Sunday Nader event:

Fairfax, VA: Ralph Nader Sunday, Oct 12 at George Mason University

News Advisory
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE RALPH NADER TO SPEAK IN FAIRFAX

WHO: Ralph Nader

WHAT: Press Conference and Rally

WHEN: Sunday, October 12 Press Conference at 5:00pm, Rally at 5:30pm

WHERE: Meeting Room 7 in the Student Union II and the ballroom in the same building at George Mason University

On Sunday, October 12 at 5:00pm, presidential candidate Ralph Nader will hold a press conference. Following the press conference he will hold a rally at 5:30pm. He will speak about the economic giveaway, single-payer health care, the Iraq War, the environment, and the state of the Presidential debates from which he was excluded.

The Nader/Gonzalez campaign will expose the unjust, restrictive, and undemocratic Commission on Presidential Debates. The CPD, a corporation headed since its inception by two former chairs of the Democratic and Republican parties, shuts third party candidates away from public view, maintaining a stranglehold on the two party system and stifling the political conversation in this country.

About Ralph Nader
Attorney, author, and consumer advocate Ralph Nader has been named by Time Magazine one of the "100 Most Influential Americans in the 20th Century." For more than four decades he has exposed problems and organized millions of citizens into more than 100 public interest groups advocating solutions. He led the movement to establish the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and was instrumental in enacting the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Motor Vehicle Safety Act, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and countless other pieces of important consumer legislation. Because of Ralph Nader we drive safer cars, eat healthier food, breathe better air, drink cleaner water, and work in safer environments. Nader graduated from Princeton University and received an LL.B from Harvard Law School.

About Matt Gonzalez
Matt Gonzalez was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 2000 representing San Francisco's fifth council district. From 2003 to 2005, he served as Board of Supervisors President. A former public defender, Gonzalez is managing partner of Gonzalez & Leigh, a 7-attorney practice in San Francisco that represents individuals and organizations in mediation, arbitration, and administrative proceedings before state and federal regulatory bodies. Gonzalez graduated from Columbia University and received a JD from Stanford Law School.

About the Nader/Gonzalez Campaign
The Nader/Gonzalez independent presidential candidacy will be on the ballot in 45 states, is polling at 5-6 percent nationally, and a new Time/CNN poll shows Ralph Nader polling 8 percent in New Mexico, 7 percent in Colorado, 7 percent in Pennsylvania, and 6 percent in Nevada -- all key battleground states.

For more information on the Nader/Gonzalez campaign, visit: votenader.org Contact: Ryan Mehta, 408-348-0681, rmehta@votenader.org (National HQ)

-End-

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TV notes. PBS programs begin airing tonight in some markets, check local listings. NOW on PBS notes:

With gas prices spiking and home values crumbling, the American dream of commuting to work from the fringes of suburbia has become an American nightmare. Many are facing a hard choice: Paying for gas or paying the mortgage. How did it come to this? It's not just about America's financial crisis; it's also about big problems with our national infrastructure. Overstressed highways and too few public transportation options are wreaking havoc on people's lives and hitting the brakes on our already-stretched economy.
This week, NOW on PBS takes a close-up look at our inadequate transportation network and visits some people paying a high price--in both dollars and quality of life--just to get to work. Do we have the means to modernize both our infrastructure and our lifestyles?
This is the first installment in "Blueprint America," a year-long, PBS-wide series focusing on the nation's infrastructure. "Blueprint America" is an initiative of Thirteen/WNET.

PBS' Washington Week finds Gwen sitting down with Washington Post's Dan Balz, National Journal's James Barnes, Wall St. Journal's David Wessel and mystery guest Karen Tumulty (Time magazine) who may or may not do her Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte impersonation.

The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.

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