Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

LATE UPDATE: Since the following item was posted, we have seen a drastic change in the behavior of email filtering for both Comcast and users of other email services. We do not know what was causing the problem, or why the symptoms have disappeared. We may be forgiven, I suppose, if we suspect the rapid change of status had something to do with the amount of noise generated over this issue. Thanks to you, the blogosphere is working. And we will post further updates if and when we learn more. Thanks again to all who have contributed to the effort.

We no longer need readers to perform the tests described below. But if you wish to do them for your own interest, we have no desire to stop you

UPDATE: After the following speculative item was somewhat tentatively posted, we have been able to confirm reports of emails being blocked by other ISPs as well as Comcast. We'll post more when we know more. In the meantime, please try the tests described below, regardless of your e-mail provider, so we can get some sense of the scope of the problem. Thank you very much, as always.

Five weeks ago The BRAD BLOG ran a report indicating that Comcast, the nation's most popular email provider, was automatically deleting emails containing the web address "www.afterdowningstreet.org". Shortly after the report was published, 6 or 7 people made such a commotion that the problem was suddenly fixed. Various explanations were given, none of which cut any ice in the opinion of this lowly and nearly frozen blogger, but at least the problem went away.

Why am I telling you this? Background info. Today we have received a report indicating that something similar is happening again, but this time the address that triggers Comcast's automatic deletion is "www.meetwithcindy.org".

Personally, I do not have Comcast service, nor do I know anyone who does. So I cannot test this report for myself. I can ask for a bit of help, though. If you are a Comcast subscriber, please help us out by doing the following simple test.

Are you with me so far? I want you to send yourself four emails and tell me how many actually arrive. The four emails will be very simple, as described below:

• one with "www.meetwithcindy.org" in the subject line, and the words "test #1" in the body
• one with "meetwithcindy.org" in the subject line, and the words "test #2" in the body
• one with "www.meetwithcindy.org" in the body, and the words "test #3" in the subject line
• one with "meetwithcindy.org" in the body, and the words "test #4" in the subject line

Send these messages, wait a little while, then check for incoming messages and find out for yourself. According to our source, you will receive "test #4" but not "test #3". Apparently the "www." prefix is necessary to trigger the automatic deletion. If this makes no sense to you, please recall that in the previous episode, the address in question, "afterdowningstreet.org", triggered the automatic deletion only if it carried this prefix. In other words, emails containing "afterdowningstreet.org" passed through cleanly, while those containing "www.afterdowningstreet.org" were dispatched to the nearest black hole.

Most of the time the prefix "www." is insignificant; but apparently the prefix is very important in this case. But we don't know for sure, and that's why we're asking you to do some testing.

We don't know what to expect regarding tests #1 and #2. That's why we're asking you to perform them. After we collect more information, we can take it to Comcast and request a correction in their software --- or in their censorship policy, as the case may be. The more information we can present, the better it will be --- not only for us, but also for the people at Comcast (or Symantec) who will have to solve the problem.

I emphasize that this is not the time to make a lot of noise --- not publicly, at least. This is the time for gathering data. We can make noise soon enough, if we can confirm the report we received earlier today.

UPDATE: Go ahead and make some noise if you like. We've seen enough to know that something terribly fishy is going on.

CONTACT INFO for COMCAST:
Abuse Dept: phone 856-317-7272 – ext 1 or email: Secure-port25@comcast.net
Mike: phone 856-324-2415 or email abuse_99@comcast.net or email abuse99@gmail.com
Jim Janco [Manager of abuse dept]: cell 856-297-3548

We will post more contact information as soon as possible.

If you're still not sure about your e-mail provider, or if you'd like to help us gather more data, please participate in our informal study. I'll be watching this thread to see the results of your testing.

To repeat: Please send yourself four emails as described above, then come here and tell us how many --- and which ones --- you received.

Thanks, as usual, for your cooperation.

Guest blogged by Joseph Cannon

The right continues to make disturbing use of the Able Danger story --- which holds that a secretive DIA unit had identified Atta well before 9/11.

Rush Limbaugh and a number of right-leaning newspapers have continued to spread the lie, first published in NewsMax, that Jamie Gorelick of the Clinton Justice Department somehow forced the DIA to refrain from sharing the unit's discoveries. John Podhoretz at National Review has also given respectful attention to this tale, although he has steered clear of the NewsMax spin.

Now CNN and other sources have given us a name for that mysterious DIA officer who told this tale to Representative Curt Weldon. Meet Army Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer:

More:

These excerpts address one of the more important questions to arise out of this controversy. Were the commission members informed of Able Danger, or were they not? We've received about three different accounts so far.

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

This thread is intended as a place to talk about vigils in your area, your plans for this evening, and any de-briefing you may feel like contributing afterwards.

Please don't go OT on this thread. There's an open thread immediately below for everything else.

This might be a good place to remind you that tonight's gatherings will be ideal places to spread the word about The Whispering Campaign ... And please bring a few pages with you. Or, better yet, stop by Kinko's along the way, and bring a whole stack of them!

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

There's a half-open thread just above, for discussion of tonight's vigils. You can talk about anything else here.

And you might as well...

All three guest-bloggers may be tied up at the same time today and/or tonight, but we'll be with you again as soon as possible.

Cheers to all!

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Click here or on the photo for the latest!

Thanks again, Larisa!!

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

I don't usually talk about my dreams, much less write about them. They're usually so unintelligible they don't even interest me. But last night I had a dream that seemed very clear.

In my dream, I called CNN and said "When are you going to interrupt your normal programming to cover tomorrow's terrorist attacks?" ... and the voice said "9:30" ... and I said "that's 9:30 Eastern, right? Tomorrow morning?" ... and the voice said "That's right, sir. 9:30 A.M. Eastern time tomorrow."

The last time I checked the TV, it was nearly noon eastern time, and CNN was still talking about Cindy Sheehan and the price of oil ... and something about an actress ... and something about an athlete. This is good. We need them to keep talking about stuff like this all day.

My, how times have changed! Just a few months ago I was pointing out, derisively, the amount of attention CNN was giving to the trial of a former pop singer. Today I'd be happy if they talked about that trial all day, just as long as they don't interrupt their normal programming for live coverage of the terrorist attacks, and the new nuclear war.

What's that, you say? Have I lost my mind? Well maybe I have, but that has nothing to do with this.

In case you haven't noticed, the internet has been abuzz lately with talk of impending terror attacks against the USA, on a scale heretofore unimaginable; such attacks to trigger the imposition of martial law at home and a full-scale, conventional and nuclear, attack on Iran. And according to some sources, the attack was supposed to come --- if it did come --- today.

After that dream, I couldn't very well sleep, and I've been checking the TV regularly --- something I never do --- just to see what CNN is doing. Everything seems absolutely normal. So I'm starting to believe that one of the following things may be true:

• The dream was wrong. Hey, sue me! It happens to everybody.
• The whole story was a hoax. There were no "distracting" war games on 9/11. There was no terror-response drill going on in London on 7/7. All the stories about Operation Northwoods were hoaxes too. Move along, folks. There's nothing to see here.
• They've changed the date and/or the time of the attack, and we are still in grave danger. What's the probability of this one? I wouldn't hazard a guess.
• They know we know, and it's holding them at bay. How likely is this? I can't estimate it; can't see it clearly. I have a conflict of interest: I want to live a long and happy life, and I want the same for my kids.

That's why I'm whispering. And it seems to me that maybe 6 or 7 other people are whispering along with me. And maybe ... just maybe ... if we whisper loud enough, we can keep the terrorists from striking again. Maybe.

LAST MINUTE UPDATE: The kids are home now, and I don't have access to the TV. That's all right with me, as long as the internet connection is working. And I can see from CNN's home page that everything is still normal; there's fresh carnage in Baghdad but none here. Oh yawn!

And by the way, who will be the next James Bond?

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

According to this story from the Star Tribune:

Star Tribune writers Dane Smith and Greg Gordon make the de rigeur attempt at balance, and inadvertently throw a bright light on the sleaze-mongers and spin-meisters who support this war and the chickenhawks who started it.

Honestly, I don't understand why the opinions of "a Republican state leader" are necessary to the telling of this essentially news story. But then again how would we know what a crass hypocrite he is unless we hear his "side" of the "story"?

Which, not surprisingly, goes like this:

I don't imagine we should expect Walsh to explain why he doesn't "think you should question the president's motives", which to all indications are highly questionable, if not outright criminal, and in my opinion Walsh would have a very difficult time proving that Bush is "fully aware of the ramifications of sending people's children into battle". Maybe Walsh is clairvoyant. But according to all the signs we ordinary humans can see, Bush is entirely unaware of said ramifications.

Still less do I understand what difference it makes if a pro-war politician accuses an anti-war politician of having "a political agenda". Do the pro-war "people" not have an agenda of their own? And is it not political?

I have always had a problem with people who pluralize the names of individuals and organizations, as if to imply that there are many of them. Who are all the other "Michael Moores" and why haven't we heard of them? Where are all the other "MoveOn.orgs" and how do they differ from the original? You won't find any answers to questions like these in the remainder of the article, but you can click on the photo to read the rest of it anyway.

But please be careful. The pro-war spin is enough to make you dizzy, especially early in the morning.

On the other hand, you can do your part to resist the media spin by clicking here and taking some unspun truths to the streets. Being The Media has never been easier, or more fun. Which is a damned good thing because it has never been more necessary, either.

Knowledge Is Power! Pass It On!!

And many thanks to regular BRAD BLOG commenter, Valley Girl, for the pointer to this article among other things. Keep up the good work, VG. You're fascinating!

UPDATE: The Star Tribune article I've been quoting, which was freely available just a few minutes ago, now seems to be available via registration only. I hate when that happens.

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

I wouldn't want you to miss this excellent new column by Tom Engelhardt. I'll even give you a few excerpts to get you started:

Please read more.

Guest blogged by Chris Floyd

INTRODUCTION {by Winter Patriot} Once again we are honored to present a massive contribution from one of the English-speaking world's most literate truth-tellers, the honorable Chris Floyd. An American journalist living in England, whose column on world affairs, "Global Eye", is published weekly in The Moscow Times, proprietor of the excellent blog Empire Burlesque, and a good friend of both The BRAD BLOG and The Whispering Campaign, Chris Floyd joins us here for the third time. In July, his excellent essay, "The Dream Of Unlimited Swag", inspired a very interesting thread. The same sort of thing happened last week when we featured his newest column from The Moscow Times, Grease Monkeys: The Speaker, The Spigot and the Slitherer-in-Chief.

Here's Chris:

What would you call people who paid sadistic torturers for the information they had gleaned from macabre medical experiments on their helpless captives � and then used these evil findings to make biological weapons?

Why, you'd call them members of "the greatest generation," of course!

As we learn from ABC News (Australia) this week, the American victors in World War II "gave money and other benefits to former members of a Japanese germ warfare unit two years after the end of World War II to obtain data on human experiments the unit conducted in China.

U.S. military intelligence showered millions of dollars on these Mengeles � along with "food, gifts, entertainment and other kinds of rewards" (emphasis added). One shudders to think what this unnamed largesse entailed � "comfort women," perhaps? It seems nothing was too good for these "top-flight pathologists" who murdered more than 3,000 Chinese, Russians and others in their torture chambers.

Their patron was Brigadier General Charles Willoughby, head of the G2 intelligence unit of the US occupation forces in Japan. In his reports to his superiors, Willoughby waxed lyrical on the cost-efficient benefits of his war-criminal wooing. The killers' "data on human experiments may prove invaluable," and was "only obtainable through the skilful, psychological approach" to the torturers � i.e., buying them off.

"All of these actions did not amount to more than 200,000 yen, netting the [United States] the fruit of 20 years' laboratory tests and research," Willoughby wrote. The cost of obtaining the data, said the general, was "a mere pittance."

Guest blogged by David Edwards

In the opening segment of last night's edition of The Daily Show, Jon Stewart called attention to George W's vacation and Cindy Sheehan's attempts to meet with him.

Just when we were in need of some comic relief, Jon Stewart and Ed Helms nail the right-wing hypocrisy and tickle our funny bone at the same time.

Watch video in Windows Media streaming format

Watch video in Real Media streaming format

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Click the photo for the rest of the article. And thanks again to Larisa, who has been very busy today!

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Click the photo for the rest of the article. And thanks to Larisa for the good news!

Guest blogged by David Edwards

Last night, around 10 PM local time, a pick-up truck ran over about 500 crosses at Camp Casey in Crawford, TX. The crosses, provided by Arlington West, each represent a soldier who has died in Iraq. The Associated Press published a preliminary story on the desecration of the memorial crosses early this morning.

Japhet Els and Emily Sharpe of truthout.org reporting from Crawford:

This morning, NBC's Today show reported that the driver will be charged later today with criminal mischief. This video from NBC's Today show provides a drive-by view (Windows Media) that really highlights the destruction of the cross memorials.

Today may prove to be bring even more challenges as a few local residents vow to challenge Camp Casey in the Waco courts.

Guest blogged by Joseph Cannon

The Democratic National Committee has responded to the false charges posted by the allegedly non-partisan American Center for Voting Rights.

As most of you should know by now, the ACVR is crawling with Republican operatives, many of whom have strong links to indicted sleazoid Jack Abramoff.

AVCR chairman Brian Lunde has a particularly troubling history...

A lobbyist for a democracy-phobic dictator dares to give the rest of the world a lecture on voting rights? Outrageous!

Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

Doug Thompson, writing for Capitol Blue, asks: Is Bush Out of Control? His answer? Heavily edited excerpts follow.

Do I think the President is losing it? No. I think he lost it a long time ago. However, the entire piece is worth a read: not too long and very well-written. Thompson quotes a prominent psychiatrist calling Bush an untreated former alcoholic. Take a look at the photo [of Bush with Dennis Hastert] and decide for yourself whether the word "former" seems appropriate. Click on the photo if you're not sure. And please share your thoughts below.

Thanks to Peg C. for many things, including the pointer to this article.

You seein' everything OK, Georgie? Georgie?? GEORGIE???

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