Articles By: Winter Patriot

wasted days and wasted nights

another non-item

blogging into a black hole. part 562

By Winter Patriot on 11/28/2005 10:58pm PT

A B C as easy as
1 2 3 as simple as
do-re-mi, A B C
1 2 3 baby you and me

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Leaked UK Memo: Bush Wanted To Bomb Aljazeera; Blair Talked Him Out Of It

Britain Rolls Out 'Official Secrets Act' to Prevent Disclosure of Memo or Further Details

UK Source: 'The memo is explosive and hugely damaging to Bush'

By Winter Patriot on 11/23/2005 10:57pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

We're probably not supposed to talk about this. So here goes.

As Chris Floyd explains:

This week, the UK's Daily Mirror ran a story about a leaked UK government document that apparently detailed an astounding episode from 2004: George W. Bush planning to bomb the Al-Jazeera headquaters in Qatar � a U.S. ally � and Tony Blair managing to talk him out of it. Downing Street refused to comment on the memo, and British officialdom tried to laugh it off, literally � an anonymous Blair spokesman said Bush had just been joking.

But there is obviously some fire beneath all that smoke. Several MPs took it seriously indeed, including Blair's former defence minister, Peter Kilfoyle, who called for the document to be made public. Then late yesterday [Tuesday], the Blair government unleashed Britain's draconian Official Secrets Act � which is far in excess of anything in the US � threatening to prosecute any paper that published the actual contents of the memo. (The Mirror story was a paraphrase.)

This is highly unusual, given the fact that the Blair camp did not invoke the Secrets Act to stop the extremely embarrassing "Downing Street Memos" which revealed the cynical pre-invasion machinations by Bush and Blair to "fix the intelligence around the policy" of aggressive war. In fact, as the Guardian points out today, "the [Blair] government has never prosecuted editors for publishing the contents of leaked documents." The invocation of the Secrets Act in this case essentially confirms the substance of the Mirror's allegations; if it was all fluff, just a "joke," why try to quash it in such a heavy-handed fashion?

It seems likely then that the story is true: Bush seriously contemplated launching an attack on Al-Jazeera's headquarters � in the business district of Doha, Qatar's capital � and had to be dissuaded from this madness by Blair.

As you can probably see, Chris explains things much better than I can. To tell you the truth, the whole affair leaves me practically speechless. But you can follow the story as it has developed so far, using the links and quotes below:

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Maureen Farrell: 'Tired of Being Lied to? Modern History You Can't Afford to Ignore'

It's A Lesson In Contemporary American History, Without The Usual Blinders

'The only thing new in the world is the history you don't know.' --- Harry S Truman

By Winter Patriot on 11/22/2005 1:38am PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Holy Cow! A blast and a half from Maureen Farrell. Although it's only the first in a three-part series, she's floored me already!

Or, as Gandhi writes:

If I took four weeks off work to put together an article saying everything I wanted to say about Bush & Co, with lots of URL links to back up the facts, it might look something like this (I wish!).

I'll give you a short excerpt, which I hope will entice you to read the whole thing.

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William Frey: 'Confessions of a Repentant Republican'

a potential bridge to those who are still ~~on the right~~ in the wrong

By Winter Patriot on 11/20/2005 12:05pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Robert Parry's Consortium News has recently posted a beautifully-written piece by William Frey, M.D., called "Confessions of a Repentant Republican".

Dr. Frey is a former Bush supporter who has torn himself away from the propaganda and re-engaged with reality. And now he's writing about it. He can really write, too. Look at this:

I supported George W. Bush in the presidential election in 2000, believing then that he best reflected my love for America and for our tradition of liberty. I supported the war in Afghanistan. In March of 2003, I believed that the invasion of Iraq was justified based upon pre-war revelations presented to Congress and to the American people. Accordingly, the indictments contained herein apply, first and foremost, to myself.

Many Americans whom I know and love, including many current supporters of President Bush, remain conflicted over both his ultimate intentions in Iraq as well as domestic curtailment of civil liberties.

Many have given the benefit of the doubt to President Bush, and, in a misdirected spirit of unity, have supported, as did I, Administration policies that conflict with our essential values.

This essay explores many of the issues that led me personally to the recognition that the policies I was supporting in Iraq were not consistent with the justifications made for the invasion in the spring of 2003, that implicit in our post-invasion actions was the goal of permanent occupation, which would ensure endless war and the resultant degradation of our liberty, our security, and our moral authority.

For me, recognizing that I could no longer support the President for whom I voted, and the occupation of a land we had invaded, remains personally painful.

I have learned that while it is difficult to admit being wrong, such recognition is a prerequisite for redemptive action, necessary both for individual growth and for the healing of our nation.

It is in this spirit that I submit these reflections.

A great introduction, is it not? Who could argue with such a reasonable presentation?

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Article Categories: Iraq War, Intellectually Honest Conservative Award

'The Man Who Sold The War', 'A Decent World Is Possible', and other Bedtime Stories

Selected Readings from a Friday night in The Empire

featuring James Bamford on John Rendon, Kurt Nimmo on Hugo Chavez and the CIA, and John Pilger on Latin America

By Winter Patriot on 11/19/2005 2:41am PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

There's a ton of important new material on the blog at the moment and I wouldn't want to distract you from it. But on the other hand I do want to share some of what I've been reading this evening, for those who are interested...

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Robert Parry Catches Bush Lying ...

... over and over and over and over ...

By Winter Patriot on 11/16/2005 7:52pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

If it feels like 1984, that's because it is. We're 21 years late but we're there all the same. The Ministry of Information is busy changing our past. Fiction has become the news. And Truth has become an enemy of the state.

Whether you measure by severity or frequency, it's clear that the falsification of our national history has recently reached an all-time high. Bush's declaration that we don't torture was a clear sign that the truth is definitely behind us now, and his assertion that his opponents are rewriting history raises the level of absurdity to a level one would prefer to call unimaginable.

The propaganda that has been catapulted lately --- like all good propaganda --- contains almost enough truth to make it somewhat slightly plausible. For example, the CIA has from time to time acted as a rogue agency, Congress did vote to grant Bush the power to do something to Iraq; and Bush may have believed some of what he was saying about Iraq before he started the war. So the lies are not totally false, and we can't dismiss them entirely. We have to pick them apart very carefully, in order to show that, even though said claims do contain an occasional nugget of half-truth, the claims themselves are overwhelming false.

It's hard work!

And in the meantime, like all good propagandists, the White House Spin Machine has a vast assortment of Spinnerettes at its disposal. [And make no mistake, the Spinnerettes are definitely disposable!] The Spinnerettes keep repeating the lies, over and over and over, generating an ocean of falsehood that comes at us in wave after wave after wave, until most of us must struggle to discern what is true and what is false.

Of course the wise men among us have no such trouble. So it's always a good idea to read Robert Parry, and his newest column, in my opinion, is one of his best.

Here's a sample [with emphasis added]:

In essence, Bush's argument is that he didn't lie the nation into war; he and his top aides were just misled by the same faulty intelligence that Congress saw. Plus, they say independent commissions already have cleared Bush of hyping the evidence.

However, as a Washington Post analysis politely observed in response to those two arguments, �neither assertion is wholly accurate.�

The White House sees far more detailed intelligence than what is shared with Congress, which found itself depending on a CIA-compiled National Intelligence Estimate that downplayed or left out objections to key pro-war assertions, the Post wrote.

The Post article also noted that neither the Senate Intelligence Committee nor a Bush-appointed commission, headed by retired Judge Laurence Silberman and former Sen. Charles Robb, gave much attention to how the intelligence was used � or misused � addressing instead how it was produced. [Washington Post, Nov. 12, 2005]

Kaboom! Game, set and match!

What's that? You want another game?

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If Detainees Don't Get Fair Trials, Who Can Trust The Verdicts?

and other reflections on Habeas Corpus, the cornerstone of free society currently under attack

featuring P. Sabin Willett in the Washington Post and Handy Fuse at Simply Appalling

By Winter Patriot on 11/15/2005 2:51pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Important words from P. Sabin Willett, from the Washington Post, Monday, November 14, 2005; A21. Emphasis added.

Detainees Deserve Court Trials

As the Senate prepared to vote Thursday to abolish the writ of habeas corpus, Sens. Lindsey Graham and Jon Kyl were railing about lawyers like me. Filing lawsuits on behalf of the terrorists at Guantanamo Bay. Terrorists! Kyl must have said the word 30 times.

As I listened, I wished the senators could meet my client Adel.

Adel is innocent. I don't mean he claims to be. I mean the military says so. It held a secret tribunal and ruled that he is not al Qaeda, not Taliban, not a terrorist. The whole thing was a mistake: The Pentagon paid $5,000 to a bounty hunter, and it got taken.

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Troubled Times for Habeas Corpus --- Can We Keep It Alive??

A Cornerstone of our Free Society is in Clear and Present Danger ...

but it isn't dead YET!!

By Winter Patriot on 11/13/2005 3:47am PT

Guess blogged by Winter Patriot

From Lectric Law Library

A writ of habeas corpus is a judicial mandate to a prison official ordering that an inmate be brought to the court so it can be determined whether or not that person is imprisoned lawfully and whether or not he should be released from custody
...
Habeas corpus is the fundamental instrument for safeguarding individual freedom against arbitrary and lawless state action. Therefore, the writ must be "administered with the initiative and flexibility essential to insure that miscarriages of justice within its reach are surfaced and corrected."

And from the Wikipedia:

The right of habeas corpus has long been celebrated as the most efficient safeguard of the liberty of the subject. Dicey wrote that the Habeas Corpus Acts "declare no principle and define no rights, but they are for practical purposes worth a hundred constitutional articles guaranteeing individual liberty".

Everybody clear on this? Good!

Now here's a call to action from hilzoy of Obsidian Wings, sent to us by a friend at Ohio University, via BRAD BLOG commentor Jazzolog (everyone clear on that, too? Good!!)...

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Armistice Day --- Remembrance Day --- Veterans' Day

By Winter Patriot on 11/11/2005 12:15pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

On November 11, 1918, World War I finally ended. Of course it wasn't called that at the time; it was called The Great War. How could anyone have known that it was to be the first of a series? Who could have guessed that barely twenty years would pass before the beginning of the next one?

The day when peace finally arrived was given the name Armistice Day. Thereafter, it was commemorated every year with solemn ceremonies and sacred vows of "Never Again". My, how things change.

In many English-speaking countries, November 11th is now called Remembrance Day, and it's still commemorated every year with solemn ceremonies.

I'm feeling extremely solemn myself. Disturbing and graphic content follows.

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Millions of Iraqis Believe Attacks on U.S. and British Troops Are Justified

Vast Majority Are 'Strongly Opposed' to the Presence of 'Coalition' Troops

Secret Poll Reveals What Iraqis Think of Their Ongoing 'Liberation'

By Winter Patriot on 10/25/2005 10:16pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

45% of Iraqis believe that attacks on U.S. and British troops are justified, and 82% are "strongly opposed" to the continued presence of "coalition" troops, according to a "secret poll" conducted in August by an Iraqi university research team. Results of the poll have been leaked to Britain's Sunday Telegraph.

Astute readers may recognize some of these conclusions after seeing articles on the weekend from Reuters or Yahoo. But Saturday's report from Reuters barely scratched the surface, and Yahoo did only a bit better on Sunday.

For the full report, you have to go to the source: Secret MoD poll: Iraqis support attacks on British troops.

Among the survey's other conclusions:

� less than one per cent of the population believes coalition forces are responsible for any improvement in security;

� 67 per cent of Iraqis feel less secure because of the occupation;

� 43 per cent of Iraqis believe conditions for peace and stability have worsened;

� 72 per cent do not have confidence in the multi-national forces.

But aside from all this "security" nonsense, things are going pretty well, right?

Um ... no!

The opinion poll, carried out in August, also debunks claims by both the US and British governments that the general well-being of the average Iraqi is improving in post-Saddam Iraq.

The findings differ markedly from a survey carried out by the BBC in March 2004 in which the overwhelming consensus among the 2,500 Iraqis questioned was that life was good. More of those questioned supported the war than opposed it.
...
Immediately after the war the coalition embarked on a campaign of reconstruction in which it hoped to improve the electricity supply and the quality of drinking water.

That appears to have failed, with the poll showing that 71 per cent of people rarely get safe clean water, 47 per cent never have enough electricity, 70 per cent say their sewerage system rarely works and 40 per cent of southern Iraqis are unemployed.

Any wingnut will tell you that these very inconvenient facts don't matter much, because they are only temporary, and the situation will surely change because we have brought "democracy" to Iraq, complete with a historic new "constitution".

However ...

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Larisa Alexandrovna: On Liberating Something

... in which a friendly Raw Story journalist enjoys the the liberating exercise of free speech

Use it or lose it, I guess!

By Winter Patriot on 10/15/2005 9:25pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Larisa's newest blog entry at Huffington Post is called On Liberating Something, and it all sounds extremely liberated, if you ask me.

It starts like this:

It seems that our dear President needs smoke blown up his ass regularly in order to maintain his fine swagger and shit-eating grin.

and I think you'll enjoy reading the whole thing (in other words, click here!).

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Patrick Fitzgerald is Trying to Determine Whether Dick Cheney had a Role in the Outing of Valerie Plame!

and the Special Prosecutor's Examination Centers on a Group which Operated out of the Vice President�s Office!

our friends at The Raw Story have the details

By Winter Patriot on 10/12/2005 10:11pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

According to a late-night e-mail from Larisa Alexandrovna, Raw Story is currently featuring an article by Jason Leopold which starts like this:

Special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald is trying to determine whether Vice President Dick Cheney had a role in the outing of covert CIA operative Valerie Plame-Wilson, individuals close to Fitzgerald have confirmed. Plame's husband was a vocal critic of prewar intelligence used by President George W. Bush to build support for the Iraq war.

The investigation into who leaked the officer's name to reporters has now turned toward a little known cabal of administration hawks known as the White House Iraq Group (WHIG), which came together in August 2002 to publicize the threat posed by Saddam Hussein. WHIG was founded by Bush chief of staff Andrew Card and operated out of the Vice President's office.

Fitzgerald's examination centers on a group of players charged with not only selling the war, but according to sources familiar with the case, to discredit anyone who openly �disagreed with the official Iraq war� story.

The group's members included Deputy White House chief of staff Karl Rove, Bush advisor Karen Hughes, Senior Advisor to the Vice President Mary Matalin, Deputy Director of Communications James Wilkinson, Assistant to the President and Legislative Liaison Nicholas Calio, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley and I. Lewis �Scooter� Libby - Chief of Staff to the Vice President and co-author of the Administration's pre-emptive strike policy.

Rice was later appointed Secretary of State; her deputy Hadley was made National Security Advisor. Wilkinson departed to become a spokesman for the military's central command, and later for the Republican National Convention. Hughes was recently appointed Undersecretary of State.

Several members of the group have testified before Fitzgerald's grand jury.

Read more here.

No kidding. There's a lot more to the story and you can read it here.

You gotta love her, don't you? Larisa Alexandrovna not only gave us a heads-up when Jason Leopold's article hit the net; she also contributed research to the article! So: three cheers for Larisa Alexandrovna! Hip Hip ... no, seriously: Read more here.

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Arizona: Election Standards Ignored! Secretary of State Ordered To Appear In Court!

Jan Brewer will be required to explain why she has not complied with the law regarding decertifying voting systems

the old Rule Of Law trap snares another one!

By Winter Patriot on 10/11/2005 9:54pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

According to Arizona Citizens for Fair Elections:

Secretary of State Jan Brewer has been ordered to appear in Pima County Superior Court on October 18, 2005 at 9:00 am to explain why she has not complied with the Arizona law that requires adoption of voting system decertification standards.

This order is the result of a Complaint for Special Action filed on October 6, 2005 for plaintiff Thomas W. Ryan, head of Arizona Citizens for Fair Elections.

A.R.S. �16-442C states

the secretary of state shall adopt standards that specify the criteria for loss of certification for equipment used at any election for federal, state or county offices and that was previously certified for use in this state.

In response to a public records request, State Election Director Joseph Kanefield, in a letter to plaintiff dated September 9, 2005, wrote:

based on a review of our records we do not have any of the specific records you request.

It is clear that the secretary of state has not complied with the statute.

With Arizona lacking standards for loss of certification, there is no criteria for determining that voting equipment should be evaluated for failure to accurately count every vote, as required in A.R.S. �16-446B(6).

This looks like good news. And there's more at the Arizona Citizens for Fair Elections website.

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NEWS Update on Brad and the Guest Bloggers

... Winter Patriot reporting from an undisclosed location ...

By Winter Patriot on 10/10/2005 6:00am PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Hi again. Brad's not here. It's just me, Winter Patriot, your lowly and nearly frozen concierge. I thought you might like a quick newsy update, or at least a fairly simple post to start your day. So, to press ... or to URL ... or something

Listen: Brad's still on the road. We've heard from him several times, always from undisclosed locations, [?!] since he left Portland and the National Summit To Save Our Elections. He says he'll be back soon.

How soon? Only a fool would hazard a guess. Maybe Wednesday.

In the meantime, as regular BRAD BLOG readers well know, the lunatics have recently taken a more active role in running the asylum. It started as a triumvirate --- yours truly working very quietly behind the scenes along with the now not so secret weapon David Edwards and the redoubtable Joseph Cannon. But lately we've also heard many other voices, including those of Stan Goff, Katrina Wilcox, and John Gideon. Personally, I've remained very quiet lately, building up a head of steam, it appears, before finally erupting Sunday morning in a blaze of rambling and disjointed fury which I am still trying to disassemble.

Quite a mixed bag, to say the least, and there's more where that came from. We might hear from Brad sooner than I think. He might even be back sooner. And I might be very bloggy in the near future. Or I might go very quiet again, like I have been lately. There's no way to tell. Brad will definitely be back in the chair soon --- but clearly The BRAD BLOG will never be the same again.

In case you missed it, I want to remind you that the audio portion of last Saturday's BRAD SHOW is now available in the archives. Click here to go straight to the good stuff.

We haven't had an open thread in a while and we probably need one. So please feel free...

Just click the bottom right hand corner of this post ... right there ===>

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Death Toll Rises In Asian Quake. Guatemalan Village Wiped Out. Chris Wilson Faces Obscenity Charges For Website.

It's A Three-Ring Disaster! ** UPDATED **

Earthquake, Mudslide, Snuff-For-Porn: Natural and Unnatural Disasters of the Moment

By Winter Patriot on 10/9/2005 12:10pm PT

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

UPDATE: Your lowly and nearly frozen blogger has added heavily to the original text of this post, and in so doing has realized that it was probably posted too soon. Apologizes to those who were confused and I hope the series of updates inserted here will help. And apologies to first time-readers of this text as well. if you think this is a mess, you should see what it looks like in here [points to own head].

Disaster everywhere.

I've been reading the BBC and I'm seeing this:

Quake crisis overwhelms Pakistan

Pakistan's president has appealed for international help, saying his country cannot deal with the aftermath of the massive earthquake on its own.

At least 19,000 people are thought to have been killed in Pakistan, and it is feared the toll could rise much higher.

With some towns and villages completely flattened, Pervez Musharraf told the BBC that Pakistan needed "massive cargo helicopter support" and aid supplies.

Some stricken parts of disputed Kashmir have still not been reached.

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