The Plug Nickel Times is proud to bring you archived website links to news information that you may not find through your local media. All links are offsite unless otherwise noted- followed links should open in another browser window. Links can become dated or otherwise fail to function, for this reason we quote the actual headline of an article. This may allow you to find an alternate copy of the article through a news index or search engine. Some sites we link to may require a registration process to view an article- this website may be useful to you in those instances. Comments, corrections and submissions are welcome- an email link is at the bottom of the page.
July 16-31, 2004
July 31, 2004
Rebels' writ runs large across the troublesome Sunni triangle
US forces hunt down al-Qa'eda in Sudan
"American special forces teams have been sent to Sudan to hunt down Saudi Arabian terrorists who have re-established secret al-Qa'eda training camps in remote mountain ranges in the north-eastern quarter of the country."
Canada now involved in New Zealand passport fiasco
Canada to probe use of its passport in New Zealand affair
Suspect dies after Taser use by Mesa police
"Since 1999, more than 50 people have died in police custody in the United States and Canada after being shocked with Tasers"
Bush camp solicits race of Star staffer
"All the information requested of staff, volunteers and participants for the event has been done so to ensure the safety of all those involved, including the vice president of the United States,"
Some Democrats seeking Cheney tickets had to sign oath
"Some Democrats who signed up to hear Vice President Dick Cheney speak here Saturday were refused tickets unless they signed a pledge to endorse President Bush."
Tucson-Phoenix Mosques under FBI Investigation
"Officials for the Islamic Center of Tucson (ICT) and Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Arizona met with FBI officials in Tucson July 29 to discuss the recent questioning of members of the Muslim communities in Phoenix and Tucson."
Cheney Visits Arizona
"We are doing everything in our power to defend against a terrorist attack on our homeland," Cheney told a sea of about 2,500 supporters chanting "four more years" and thrusting Bush-Cheney signs into the air to match the beat.
He said terrorists like those who orchestrated the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States are sophisticated, patient, disciplined and lethal. America needs a president who can stand up to them, he said.
"As we saw on the morning of 9/11, this enemy is perfectly prepared to slaughter anyone -- man, woman or child," he said as wife Lynn Cheney looked on. "This is, to put it simply, an enemy we must vanquish ... and that is exactly what we're going to do."
Also in article, another 'public menace'- a person wearing a t-shirt with unapproved lettering on it - 'escorted from the building'... and sat firmly on the 'Group W Bench', I'm sure!
Muchas Raspberries for you, Dick!
July 30, 2004
Man said to be Zarqawi captured: report
Kuwaiti newspaper: Zarqawi captured on Syrian - Iraq border
The Secret File of Abu Ghraib New classified documents implicate U.S. forces in rape and sodomy of Iraqi prisoner
"Rolling Stone obtained those files in June and offers this report on their contents"
NATO sidesteps command dispute to send Iraq training mission
"The 26 NATO envoys Friday de facto postponed until September any decision on the thorny question of links between the NATO mission and the US-led multinational force on the ground in Iraq."
Why is Mr Blair still in Downing Street?
"Given what we now know about Iraq, says Malcolm Rifkind, it is intolerable that the PM remains in office while journalists have been forced to resign"
Successful missile test heralds new strategic superiority for Israel
"Israel's successful test-firing of its Arrow II anti-missile missile in the United States goes well beyond technological prowess as it grants the Jewish state a new strategic and defensive asset in the volatile Mideast region, media and officials said Friday."
Israel's antimissile system passes first test on a Scud
"Military sources say Israel has more than 200 Arrows, costing $3 million apiece, deployed at two bases. Half the Arrow system's research, development and production costs from the project's inception, in 1988, have been borne by the United States."
Israeli Copters Destroy Building in Gaza
"Israeli helicopters destroyed a three-story building in a crowded district of Gaza City on Friday, gutting a structure owned by the family of a young mother who blew herself up in a suicide bombing."
Bush Administration Misleads About Afghanistan
"Vice President Dick Cheney claimed yesterday that under the President's leadership we "closed down the training camps [in Afghanistan] where terrorists trained to kill Americans." His comments are not only bold, but a look at the record shows they are deliberately misleading. Just two weeks ago the Bush administration essentially contradicted the claim, warning Americans of an imminent attack on the U.S. homeland from terrorists operating in Afghanistan."
Bombs hit 3 targets in Uzbekistan
"Coordinated bomb attacks struck the perimeters of the U.S. and Israeli Embassies in the capital of Uzbekistan Friday, killing at least two people and wounding several, government officials said."
CFR to Bush: Stop Israeli strike on Iran's nuke sites
"A report by the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations urged the Bush administration to stop any Israeli attempt to strike Iran's nuclear facilities. The council warned that such an Israeli attack would be blamed on the United States and hurt its interests in the region."
CFR report: Iran: Time for a New Approach
(.pdf format)
Stepping on Big Brother's Toes
"Cars that report your every false move to local law authorities. Huge databases with detailed information on every citizen. Companies that only honor privacy guidelines when it's profitable for them to do so. These were some of the winners of Privacy International's sixth annual U.K. Big Brother Awards, announced Wednesday. The awards are an annual attempt to publicly name and shame the government and private-sector organizations that have done the most to invade personal privacy in Britain."
Ashcroft targets protesters to pad antiterror record
"Ironically, the problem may not be Ashcroft's use of arbitrary indictments but that he is not nearly arbitrary enough. At the moment, the Justice Department seems to naturally gravitate to political critics, protesters and Muslims as the usual suspects for its body counts. While they all may be certifiably suspect in Ashcroft's America, they seem more of an indictment than evidence of Ashcroft's vaulted campaign on terror."
Fear of Death Wins Minds and Votes, Study Finds
Relationship Between Fear of Death, Political Preferences
"For their current research, the scientists asked students to think about their own death or a control topic and then read campaign statements of three hypothetical political candidates, each with a different leadership style: charismatic, task-oriented or relationship-oriented. Following a reminder of death, there was almost an 800 percent increase in votes for the charismatic leader, but no increase for the two other candidates."
'Sieg Heil' website gives Holocaust lesson
"All traffic to the former neo-Nazi website "siegheil.de" has been redirected to "shoa.de", a site providing information on the origins of anti-Semitism and a detailed account of the Nazis' murder of some six million Jews."
Doug Clifton Defends His Paper's Action on Guns on NRA Radio Program
"Editor Doug Clifton of The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, who drew attacks from a gun rights group after publishing lists of local residents who carry concealed weapons permits, defended his position Thursday during an appearance on a National Rifle Association radio program, in which he admitted owning a pistol and appreciating gun rights."
Target: Green pools
"But the state health department recently invoked an emergency measure that gives inspectors authority to treat a pool suspected of breeding mosquitoes without consent from the property owner."
Show and run: 'Guerrilla drive-ins' thrive
"Part of why we're doing this is to reclaim public space and give people a way to use the nighttime that's not mediated by commerce," he said. "In our town, the parks close at sundown, you have to buy something at coffee shops. We wanted to give people a way to interact with each other outdoors without having to spend any money."
July 29, 2004
At Least Nine Iraqis Killed in Falluja Clashes
US Document Reveals Scale of Conflict by Robert Fisk
"This account of the insurgency across Iraq over three days last week provides astonishing proof that Iraq under its new, American-appointed Prime Minister has grown more dangerous and violent"
Two Palestinian militant leaders killed in Israeli strike in Gaza
Franco-US discord blocks NATO Iraq training mission
"The United States wants the mission to come under the US-led coalition force already in the country for the sake of efficiency. But France, which opposed the US-led invasion of Iraq, is against NATO becoming in any way absorbed into the coalition."
Two US soldiers, one Afghan injured in army, militia clash
U.S. Lacks Records for Iraq Spending
"U.S. civilian authorities in Baghdad failed to keep good track of nearly $1 billion in Iraqi money spent for reconstruction projects and can't produce records to show whether they got some services and products they paid for, a new audit concludes."
Powell says Iran nuclear program likely to be referred to UN
Dem lawmakers split on military draft
Homeland Security Given Data on Arab-Americans
Military spending bolsters U.S. defense contractors
"Defense is still a good area to be in," said Frank Giove, an analyst at Trusco Capital Management in Atlanta. "No matter who is elected president, homeland security, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, that stuff is going to happen."
Yeah, stuff happens- all the way to the bank.
GSA queries Lockheed Martin on interrogation contracts
"The contract was not the first that Lockheed won for work at Guantanamo, nor was it the first that raised questions. The company sought out the National Business Center after a prior interrogation contract was canceled in February. That contract was awarded by a division of GSA. The agency's Federal Technology Service, which also administers contracts for other groups, placed an order for interrogators using an information technology services contract in November 2002. That award went to Affiliated Computer Services Inc., a company that Lockheed purchased a year later."
Former Defense secretary calls for more Homeland Security funding
"Who decides who is going to be watched? Who makes these decisions, and what kind of oversight is there?" asked Cohen, adding that one of the federal government's primary roles is to protect its citizens, which has led to a clash. "The role of government also is to protect your civil liberties. These two roles are now coming into conflict."
I.R.S. Says Americans' Income Shrank for 2 Consecutive Years
"The total adjusted gross income on tax returns fell 5.1 percent, to just over $6 trillion in 2002, the most recent year for which data is available, from $6.35 trillion in 2000. Because of population growth, average incomes declined even more, by 5.7 percent. Adjusted for inflation, the income of all Americans fell 9.2 percent from 2000 to 2002, according to the new I.R.S. data"
Unhappy Workers Should Take Prozac --Bush Campaigner
"A campaign worker for President Bush said on Thursday American workers unhappy with low-quality jobs should find new ones -- or pop a Prozac to make themselves feel better."
Nanotechnology Precaution Is Urged
"Minuscule Particles in Cosmetics May Pose Health Risk, British Scientists Say"
Nokia, Schmokia: Meet the Low-Tech Pokia
July 28, 2004
120 Dead in Bombings, Clashes in Iraq, 4 US Troops Killed by Juan Cole
Baghdad is Swamped in the Smell of the Dead by Robert Fisk
"Almost a year ago, there were sometimes 400 violent deaths a month. This in itself was a fearful number to follow the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq. But in the first 10 days of this July alone, the corpses of 215 men and women were brought to the Baghdad mortuary, almost all of them dead from gunshot wounds. In the second 10 days of this month, the bodies of a further 291 arrived. A total of 506 violent deaths in under three weeks in Baghdad alone."
Lawyers: 'Saddam suffered minor stroke'
"Our information is that he's in very poor health. We understand from the International Committee of the Red Cross that our client has had a brain scan to discover how badly he has been affected by the stroke."
Top charity to abandon Afghanistan over deaths
"The relief agency Médecins Sans Frontières said Wednesday it was pulling out of Afghanistan, discouraged by a fruitless investigation into the slayings of five of its workers and fearful of new attacks."
Alleged coup leader pleads guilty
"Mann, a former member of Britain's elite SAS special forces unit, has been identified as the leader of a group of 70 men who have been detained since March in Zimbabwe on charges of plotting a coup in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea."
Yukos and Kremlin go to the brink
"The wheels of justice in the Yukos case are grinding slowly and confusingly, and analysts said it was becoming increasingly likely that Yukos would not stop producing oil. The company may, however, lose control over how its oil is exported."
Bones resting on bones of AIDS victims: South Africa cemeteries cannot keep up
"Gasa has dug graves on this lumpy, unkempt hilltop for two years now, five holes a week, 52 weeks a year, more than 500 holes in all. Which may seem peculiar, since S Cemetery exhausted its last space for new graves five years ago."
Bush Using Drugs to Control Depression, Erratic Behavior
"Veteran White House watchers say the ability to control information about Bush’s health, either physical or mental, is similar to Ronald Reagan’s second term when aides managed to conceal the President’s increasing memory lapses that signaled the onslaught of Alzheimer’s Disease. It also brings back memories of Richard Nixon’s final days when the soon-to-resign President wandered the halls and talked to portraits of former Presidents. The stories didn’t emerge until after Nixon left office."
Raisethefist's Sherman Austin Released
Panel urges passenger-screening plan similar to CAPPS II
"officials are reconfiguring the Computer-Assisted Passenger Prescreening System, known as CAPPS II, and are moving forward to develop an advanced way to check passengers' biographical data such as names, home addresses and birthdates against databases with names of suspected terrorists."
Surveillance cameras key to convention security efforts
"It really illustrates the irony that a political convention is being used not to promote true democracy but instead to enhance the power of the state..."
Study finds little risk in engineered crops
"Nevertheless, the report said that genetic engineering and other techniques used to create novel crops could result in unintended, harmful changes to the composition of food, and that scrutiny of such crops should be tightened before they go to market."
July 27, 2004
Bomb explodes at Iraqi police station, killing dozens
"A huge explosion caused by a suicide car bomb tore through police and government buildings in central Baqouba on Wednesday, killing 51 people and injuring scores more, U.S. military and Iraqi health officials said."
Afghan defence minister seen as brake on factions' disarmament
"So far, 11,770 troops out of an estimated 40,000 to 60,000 private militiamen have laid down their guns, although the aim is to disarm 60 percent of them before parliamentary elections in April 2005."
Bomb threat forces flight back to Sydney
If you consider the letters 'B-O-B' written on a sick bag left in the plane's rest room a 'bomb threat'...
Contractors expected to oversee interrogations
"CACI bought Premier in May 2003 to obtain its military intelligence business, and gained the rights to the contract. For the work in Iraq, the military didn't procure the services directly, but sought out a unit in the Interior Department, known as the National Business Center, that conducts procurement on behalf of other agencies for a fee. Military commanders in Iraq specifically requested that the business center hire the contractors from Premier, through CACI, according to Interior officials."
July 26, 2004
U.S. "outposts" hold line in Ramadi, Iraq
"Personally, I see this as a stalemate: We could keep fighting in this same manner forever," said Lance Cpl. David Goward, 26. "They have no shortage of weapons. And neither do we. As long as Americans are here, they're going to keep on fighting."
Tired of taking fire, Baghdad's police chief gets tough
"Someone shot two of his police officers. Killed one, wounded the other. So he gathered 650 Iraqi police officers and descended upon a quiet neighborhood in Baghdad. When it was over, he had nearly 100 Kalashnikov assault rifles and three suspects in custody. It's a new day in Iraqi law enforcement."
Police allowed to keep DNA of innocent people
"DNA samples taken from people who have not been convicted of crimes can be kept indefinitely by the police, England's highest court ruled yesterday."
Defence hot and bothered over Fahrenheit 9/11
The director of the Australian Defence Association, Neil James, backed the ban, saying "political propaganda films aren't allowed to be shown on base".
Israel will be 'wiped off earth' if it attacks Iran: Revolutionary Guards
Allawi: no unilateral peace with Israel
"Allawi also announced a new strategic Lebanese-Iraqi committee to consolidate political, economic and trade relations. His Lebanese counterpart, Rafik Hariri, said Iraq was ready to reactivate a pipeline that linked Kirkuk oilfield to Lebanon's northern port city of Tripoli, which has been closed since the 1970's."
Kiwi caper is worst of many blunders
"The Mossad has been entangled overseas in messy affairs over the years involving the use of foreign passports, but the current New Zealand debacle has taken on unusual proportions because the New Zealand police claim that local Jews are involved."
Army National Guard Recruiting Falling Short
"Soldiers from the Army National Guard and Army Reserve account for about 40 percent of the roughly 140,000 U.S. troops in Iraq. About 127,000 Army National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers are currently mobilized on active duty."
DNC Gov Security/Yahoo Muzzle Whistleblower
Democrats remove Aljazeera banner
"Organisers at the Democratic Party convention in United States have removed Aljazeera's logotype banner from its skybox without assigning reasons."
Security Theater: Security expert draws DHS ire in Boston
FBI agents come calling on Lawrence anarchists
Big Brother in Your Shopping Cart?
"RFID chips are tiny computer chips that can be embedded in almost any product. Unlike the UPC bar code pasted outside many products today, which identify the category of product for cash registers, the RFID chip emits an EPC (Electronic Price Code) that identifies the specific item. That's right, each Mars bar or pack of cigarettes can be individually tracked from its manufacture, through its sale, to your home, and the land-fill where the packaging ends up (if the chip is in the packaging)."
July 25, 2004
Saddam Spends Days Gardening, Reading, Snacking, Guardian Says
"Former Iraq President Saddam Hussein spends his days in solitary confinement gardening, reading the Koran, snacking on American muffins and cookies and writing poetry, including verse about U.S. President George W. Bush, the Guardian said, citing Bakhtiar Amin, an Iraqi human rights minister."
Army Inspector General Inspection Report on Detainee Operations
"This inspection report responds to the Acting Secretary of the Army's 10 February 2004 directive to conduct a functional analysis of the Army's conduct of detainee and interrogation operations to identify any capability shortfalls with respect to internment, enemy prisoner of war, detention operations, and interrogation procedures and recommend appropriate resolutions or changes if required."
(.pdf format 2.3mb)
200,000 Israeli Fascists Demand Colonization of Gaza
Iranian Court Acquits Agent in Kazemi Case, Globe Reports
"An Iranian court acquitted an intelligence agent who was charged in the 2003 death of Canadian- Iranian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi, the Globe and Mail reported..."
In a 'brain gain,' India's Westernized émigrés return home
China's 'steel mouse' is still roaring - warily
"But by September 2002, college administrators summoned her with a warning. "They said the postings I published on the Web went too far," she said. Terrified, she said, she scaled back on her online writing. But two months later, administrators ordered her to the campus police station, where officers took her to a Beijing prison."
Britain forms new special forces unit to fight al-Qa'eda
"It will at first be formed from members of a highly secret surveillance agency - the Joint Communications Unit Northern Ireland - which has worked in Ulster for more than 20 years. The unit, which worked with the SAS, MI5 and the Special Branch, perfected the art of covert surveillance in urban and rural areas and created a network of double agents who supplied the British security forces with intelligence on terrorist attacks."
Activists rip up corn to protest GMO crops
Norway work ethic slips on oil-coated slope
"On an average day, about 25 percent of Norway's workers are absent from work, because they have called in sick, are undergoing rehabilitation or are on long-term disability. The rate is especially high among government employees, who account for half the work force."
"It is also a sum that costs the government dearly: $12.3 billion a year for 2003. Such levels of absenteeism have started a national debate about its causes and how to address them."
DNC Security Goes Apeshit
U.S. 'Correctional Population' Hits New High
DEPT. OF EDUCATION: THE PET GOAT APPROACH
"Although you do not know his name, Siegfried (Zig) Engelmann is one of the most talked-about authors in the country right now. His most prominent work, which you have not read, is a story for second graders. It begins, 'A girl got a pet goat.'"
July 24, 2004
Iraq and Syria to Form Border Security Committee
"The two sides also reached agreement in principle on the return of Iraqi funds in Syrian banks"
Top British intelligence official sacked after Blair jibe: report
North Korea rejects US offer on nuclear issue
DR Congo will demobilise 200,000 combatants: official
"About 200,000 combatants are to be demobilised and reintegrated into civilian life in the Democratic Republic of Congo"
Former chief of oil firm in Mexico faces extradition
"Mexican authorities charged Rogelio Montemayor in May 2002 with funneling money through the Pemex workers' union to, among other things, the presidential campaign of the then-ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, in 2000. The charges are connected to three transactions involving $209 million in Pemex funds."
Ex-Counterterrorism Chief Clarke Makes Suggestions
"The jihadist enemy has learned how to spread hate and how to kill -- and it is still doing both very effectively three years after 9/11," Clarke wrote.
Well, the 'spreading hate' business is a bit more ambiguous- but as for the killing, it's pretty easy to see who's more successful, over 10,000 civilian casualties in Iraq can't be wrong... (not to mention Afghanistan)
CIA official says agents have infiltrated Al Qaeda
Most effective way to prevent terrorism is missing from 911 report, Libertarians say
"Unfortunately, the politicians who authored the 600-page report chose to overlook the simplest way to protect America, Badnarik says: Adopt a foreign policy of neutrality and non-intervention."
Judge upholds "free speech zone" at Democratic convention but O-K's march
"A federal judge has called a fenced-in "protest zone" at the upcoming Democratic National Convention "an affront to free expression" -- but rejected an effort to block its use."
It started as a routine flight from Detroit to LA. But what followed would plunge the US into another 9/11 panic
"But there was one problem in Jacobsen's account. The 14 men claiming to be musicians were, in fact, exactly that. Nour Mehana, a well-known Syrian singer, had been travelling on the plane along with his entire backing band."
July 23, 2004
US forces strike Fallujah as Iraqi radical cleric reappears
"US warplanes hit a suspected hideout of alleged Al-Qaeda operative Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi on Friday in this Iraqi flashpoint city as radical Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr reappeared to condemn the interim leadership."
The government rules only in the capital by Robert Fisk
'Mossad fiasco' in New Zealand should ring alarm bells
Senator seeks reasons for archivist's dismissal
"But Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., said he had trouble reconciling that philosophy with Weinstein's stated intention to defend the president's executive order against court challenge. "I think I know where your heart is, but I want to know where your lawyers will be. If your lawyers are restricting access to the presidential documents, I think you're on the wrong side," Durbin said."
Mental health plan forums end, parents concerned about findings
"Finishing up a week of public forums, the members of the Illinois Children's Mental Health Partnership ended early in Chicago today following testimony from an overwhelming number of program supporters who agree that mental health screening is needed for Illinois children ages zero through 18."
Children's Mental Health task force hearings continue through Friday
"As public forums continue this week throughout the state, more concerns are emerging as parents learn of a new mental health screening plan for Illinois' children ages zero through 18 and pregnant women."
IL launches compulsory mental health screening for children and pregnant women
"The $10 million plan for the setup of the Children's Mental Health Act of 2003 is being considered at this week's public forums starting Monday, July 18 in Champaign."
Florida Court Rules Transsexual Marriage Invalid
Putting the Bite on Mailman-Shaped Dog Treats
"Dogs chomping on mail carrier-shaped treats is no laughing matter for Canada Post."
July 22, 2004
Some Two Dozen Iraqis Killed in Baghdad, Ramadi, Baquba, Samarra Violence
Abu Ghraib Cover-up Intensifies
China Tells U.S. Not to Sell Arms to Taiwan
"Li told Fargo the United States should "clearly understand the seriousness and sensitiveness of the Taiwan situation, halt its arms sales to Taiwan and stop its relevant military exchanges aiming to upgrade substantial relationship with Taiwan," Xinhua news agency reported."
2,000 Marines pull out of Taliban stronghold
Trafficking with the Taliban: 9/11's Dirty Secret
Kerry: Israel Lacks Negotiating Partner for Peace
This phrase has come up a few times in the last week and could bear examination. The issue is land. This type of statement came up often too as native americans came to the treaty fires with conquering generals. 'Peace' was the euphemism, lost land was the consequence.
Congress Clears Final $416 Billion Defense Bill
"The Senate unanimously approved the huge bill to finance the Pentagon 96-0, its last major act before breaking for a six-week recess to campaign for Nov. 2 congressional and presidential elections. Also scrambling to complete business before the recess, the House of Representatives passed the measure 410-12."
Sept. 11 panel report
(in .pdf format)
9/11 Commission Report Takes on Patriot Act, Government Secrecy; ACLU Outlines Civil Liberties Problems With Cabinet-Level Spymaster
"The administration has yet to explain why it didn’t use its already expansive power to the fullest before 9/11," said Laura W. Murphy, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. "The commission’s report suggests that the White House claim that the worst parts of the Patriot Act are needed to stop terrorism is dubious, to say the least."
Court rules California student poem not criminal
"Of course, exactly what the poem means is open to varying interpretations because a poem may mean different things to different readers. As a medium of expression, a poem is inherently ambiguous."
Bigger Breasts for Free: Join the Army
"The magazine quoted an Army spokeswoman as saying, "the surgeons have to have someone to practice on."
And they get to trundle out the machine that goes 'ping'!
July 21, 2004
4 US Servicemen Killed, Bombing in Baqubah leaves 6 dead
Interim governor of Basra, two bodyguards shot dead; At least four killed in blast
U.S. Army Asking Guardsmen to Stay Longer in Iraq
"The Army is asking some National Guard troops serving in Iraq to volunteer to stay on active duty beyond a statutory two-year limit for such service"
American on trial for private "war on terror" claims Rumsfeld link
Blair ridiculed for fuzzy grasp of Iraq intelligence
"Can we imagine Baroness Thatcher being told at the time of the Falklands that the Argentinians had weapons of mass destruction that could be used in 45 minutes?" Hague asked. "The official who told her would have been pinned to the wall until he had worked out and told her every last little bit of intelligence, any point of detail about that claim."
Lebanese guns open up at overflying Israeli warplanes
"Lebanese army anti-aircraft batteries opened fire in the direction of Israeli warplanes that had broken the sound barrier at low altitude twice over Beirut Tuesday..."
China frees surgeon after 're-education'
New Niger/uranium tale flops
U.S. Underestimated War Costs by $12.3 Billion - GAO
House Leaders to Bush: Don't Even Think of Delaying Election
Bush Says: 'I Want to Be the Peace President'
"Despite a surge in attacks in Iraq and U.S. warnings that al Qaeda is plotting another major strike, Bush said U.S.-led wars in Afghanistan and Iraq had already made America safer, and that his re-election would let him finish the job."
DHS's NICC Calls Cryptome
"This morning Cryptome received a telephone call from a woman claiming to be a representative of the Department of Homeland Security's National Infrastructure Coordination Center."
July 20, 2004
Liberation for Iran: Kansas Style!
U.S. at crossroads on Iran policy
"In an even more dramatic move, Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., plans to introduce an Iran liberation act this fall, modeled on the Iraq Liberation Act that mandated government change in Baghdad and provided more than $90 million to the Iraqi opposition. The goals would be the same for Iran, including regime change..."
PM Sharon meets with Republican Senator Sam Brownback
(press release dated 7/19/04 at gov.il website)
"The two further discussed the issue of disengagement, opinions regarding the International Court of Justice at The Hague, world terror and Iran."
United States Senator Sam Brownback, Kansas
"Welcome to my on-line offices. This website is a great way to deliver my message of Reduce, Reform & Return in order to Restore the American dream for Kansans, and all Americans."
July 19, 2004
Nine killed as violence returns to Baghdad
July casualties rising for U.S. forces in Iraq
"Nearly as many U.S. soldiers lost their lives in Iraq in the first half of July as in all of June..."
How has the US been spending other people's billions?
"Officials from Congress's financial watchdog, the general accounting office, have pointed out meanwhile that while the CPA was keen to appropriate Iraqi oil revenues, it was much more reluctant to spend bilateral US aid funds."
Israel accuses Iran of resuming suspect nuclear activities
Report: Israel's 'first strike' plan against Iran ready
Blair and Blunkett launch crackdown on thugs
"He wants every traveller entering or leaving the UK to have a photograph taken, which could be compared with national and international suspect databases."
Thuggery or Buggery...?
So the disarmed Brits need special programs to keep the 'thugs' at bay, apparently the enforcement of existing law is not enough. Instead a new beurocracy will be created to keep everyone under mindful watch to curtail the activities of a small percentage of people.
Inquiry on airport file that turned up on road
Sharon's call for Jews to flee outrages France
Killing of editor casts doubt on future
"Oligarchs occupied much of Klebnikov's attention. Forbes Russia, which first appeared in April, published a list of Russia's 100 richest people in May. The magazine said that Moscow was home to 36 billionaires, more than any city in the world. Boris Berezovsky, who had become a billionaire during Boris Yeltsin's administration, suggested last week that such a roster carried risks. "To publish this list is like sending a letter to the prosecutor's office," he said in a telephone interview from London, where he lives. "It's different than in the United States. In Russia, those people go to jail.""
Brazil to shoot smugglers down
"Brazil is set to start, in 90 days, shooting down aircraft suspected of smuggling drugs across its jungles."
What's missing from the intelligence report
"In fact, the sadly incomplete report does nothing of the kind. It takes the public up to the question of Bush's involvement and then ducks, announcing that an examination of the president's role is due after the election."
Halliburton Subpoenaed Over Unit's Iran Work
July 18, 2004
Our ISP was down for a good portion of the day. As a result, article links for the day are limited and posted late.
Women and children among 14 dead in US attack on Fallujah house
PM admits graves claim 'untrue'
"Downing Street has admitted to The Observer that repeated claims by Tony Blair that '400,000 bodies had been found in Iraqi mass graves' is untrue, and only about 5,000 corpses have so far been uncovered."
Americans Accused of Running Private Afghan Jail Tell Judge They Have Defense Department Links
Bushites are trying to rewrite history because they failed to see what millions did: There was no reason to attack Iraq
"Perhaps you recall how eager the Bush administration was to invade Iraq last year? If so, you're mistaken. Senior administration officials weren't determined to invade Iraq, they were simply the victims of faulty intelligence. There they were, just minding their own business, when incompetent underlings kept hounding them with false information showing Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and close links to Al Qaeda."
July 17, 2004
Now it's Coffin Bombs in Baghdad by Robert Fisk
Advocates of War Now Profit From Iraq's Reconstruction
US is obliged to support its 'old friend' Israel - Bush
"The US has a responsibility to defend the State of Israel, which is "an old friend" and a "democratic country," US President George W. Bush told the French daily Le Figaro in an interview published Saturday."
Satellites will track 5,000 of the worst criminals in Britain
"The radical new technology, which has been developed in the US, will enable law enforcement officers to pinpoint the exact location of criminals who have been released early from prison and fitted with electronic tags."
GSA canceled Guantanamo interrogator contract
How a gov't contract for 'professional engineering services' administered by the Interior Department buys Gitmo interrogators...
Shooing Away an Anonymice
"In Omaha, local reporters just say "no" to Wolfowitz's background request."
Classified Information Missing At Both Sandia, Los Alamos Labs
July 16, 2004
Chunderous Quotes of the Day
The president was introduced by Attorney General John Ashcroft as "a leader who has called us to an understanding of freedom not as America's gift to the world, but as the almighty's gift to humanity."
Additional quotes from the president at same engagement:
"Human life is the gift of our creator and it should never be for sale..."
"It takes a special kind of depravity to exploit and hurt the most vulnerable members of society..."
"Human traffickers rob children of their innocence," Bush said. "They expose them to the worst of life before they have seen much of life. Traffickers tear families apart. They treat their victims as nothing more than goods and commodities for sale to the highest bidder."
Bush vows strong action to end sexual slavery
HEADLINES
Sporadic violence erupts across Iraq
Car Bomb Hits Iraqi Minister's Convoy
Allawi shot inmates in cold blood, say witnesses
"Iyad Allawi, the new Prime Minister of Iraq, pulled a pistol and executed as many as six suspected insurgents at a Baghdad police station, just days before Washington handed control of the country to his interim government, according to two people who allege they witnessed the killings."
Blair 'oversold case for war with Iraq'
"The committee's 196-page verdict was far milder than the report published last week in Washington by the US Senate intelligence committee."
No 10 admits Hutton cover-up
Sailing Toward a Storm in China: U.S. Maneuvers Could Spark a War
US shrugs off China warning, will continue selling weapons to Taiwan
Schröder denounces pre-emptive war
Halliburton Emerges as Biggest Recipient of Iraqi Oil Money
Interviews Of Muslims To Broaden
"The new round of questioning is also far more targeted than an earlier program of voluntary interviews with men from Arab and Muslim countries..."
Gingrich calls for 'virtual public health service'
"Gingrich said the nation needs to create "a virtual public health service" that ties together literally every health facility."
Senate OKs Tobacco Buyout; More Government Regulation
"The measure empowering the Food and Drug Administration to oversee the sale, marketing and manufacturing of cigarettes was linked on the Senate floor Thursday to a $12 billion buyout of tobacco farmers."
Ohio Counties Can't Switch Vote Machines
"Three counties that were considering electronic voting machines made by Ohio-based Diebold Inc. cannot switch by November because tests have shown security problems..."
