Death in U.S. custody

A major human rights advocacy group is charging that of the 98 detainees who have died in U.S. custody in Iraq and Afghanistan since August 2002, 34 are suspected or confirmed homicides, another 11 suggest that death was a result of physical abuse or harsh conditions, but only 12 deaths have resulted in punishment of any kind for any U.S. official.

In close to half the deaths surveyed in a new report by Human Rights First, the cause of death remains officially undetermined or unannounced. Overall, eight people in U.S. custody were tortured to death.

The report, entitled “Command’s Responsibility”, says that of the 34 homicide cases so far identified by the military, investigators recommended criminal charges in fewer than two thirds, and charges were actually brought (based on decisions made by command) in less than half.

While the CIA has been implicated in several deaths, no CIA agent has faced a criminal charge, the report says, adding, “Among the worst cases -- detainees tortured to death – only half have resulted in punishment and the harshest sentence for anyone involved in a torture-related death has been five months in jail.”

An idea

Hello.

My name is Aaron Jasper, I'm a twenty year old Ohio man and I've got an idea.

We all know how big this race for governor is. And some of us know the possible future implications should Blackwell win the primary and be on the ballot in November. A few of us know that everything we can do should be done in order to prevent this man from taking office.

Which is where I come in.

After the 2004 election, I was furious. With Inkwell's help, we've got King George for a second stolen term! So I've been reading both sides of every story, keeping a mental tab on stories that surface in the Dispatch and other papers about J. Kenneth Blackwell. To be honest, I don't think this smear campaign is going to hurt him. This man's connections go all the way to the top. We, as individuals, must begin thinking like he does in order to destroy him.

I believe every progressive, liberal, democrat, patriot, concerned citizen, and registered voter should vote Blackwell out of the race. And while we cannot simply raise our hands and ask that he be off the ballot, we can, however, use the voting system against him. Here's how.

Huge march planned for eve of Katrina evictions

A march had been planned for February 28, the eve of the scheduled March 1 evictions of Hurricane Katrina victims.  FEMA moved the evictions to March 15, so activists have moved the march to March 14.  A press conference on Capitol Hill will be followed by a march through Washington, D.C., past FEMA, past the Department of Homeland Security, and to the White House, where a permit has been obtained to rally in Lafayette Square Park until midnight.  If Bush does not meet the marchers' demands, however, many plan not to leave.

The demands are for a serious housing plan for those already evicted and those still in hotels, and an end to evictions.  Another way of putting it is that the marchers will be demanding that the federal government cease violating the law by working to exclude people from a city on the basis of race and class. 

Last night Reverend Lennox Yearwood, whom many saw on television being tossed out of a Congressional hearing for questioning Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff, and who has received death threats for his activism, convened an organizing meeting and formed committees to put together as large a march as possible.

Time to disband Homeland security and renew democracy

In the aftermath of 9-11, American politics and government went slightly insane. America turned its collective back on 200 plus years of successful democratic government and turned toward its dark side. The national security state began to be seen as needed and desirable. This insane model of government always puts the State over the Individual and becomes both corrupt and dictatorial. Examples in history are numerous.

The United States of America began as a reaction to corrupt, dictatorial rule from the English monarchy. In modern times, the world has seen “national security” states arise in Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, the Soviet Union, Pinochet Chile, and Franco Spain. Other examples can be found all over the globe. Dictatorial powers were seized by corrupt political figures with ardent followers blinded by ideology following “national security” crises in every example. After 9-11, we started speeding down that slippery slope. It is not too late for us as a nation to come to a screeching halt and return to our American political traditions should we make that choice as a nation.

White House ‘discovers’ 250 emails related to Plame leak

The White House turned over last week 250 pages of emails from Vice President Dick Cheney’s office senior aides had sent in the spring of 2003 related to the leak of covert CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson, Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald revealed during a federal court hearing Friday.

The emails are said to be explosive, and may prove that Cheney played an active role in the effort to discredit Plame Wilson’s husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, a vocal critic of the Bush administration’s prewar Iraq intelligence, sources close to the investigation said.

Sources close to the probe said the White House “discovered” the emails two weeks ago and turned them over to Fitzgerald last week.  The sources added that the emails could prove that Cheney lied to FBI investigators when he was interviewed about the leak in early 2004. Cheney said that he was unaware of any effort to discredit Wilson or unmask his wife’s undercover status to reporters.

Help Katrina victims

Hotel Evictions - Turn Up the HEAT!
Just as we feared, most of those evicted on the 13th did not have alternative housing. Some were arrested for trespassing as they sought shelter in abandoned buildings, and many dispersed throughout the country, refugees once again. This cannot be allowed to happen again. March 1st will be another battle for thousands of NOLA families facing homelessness. It will only be organization and action that can avert this crisis – the courts have already failed the people. Federal Judge Duval refused to intervene, saying, "I'm not sure if I'm serving justice but at least I know I'm following the law." When the courts are not just, justice is up to the people!

On the 13th, private security firms, mercenaries, with shotguns stood ready to evict families with nowhere else to go. It was public pressure through the calls and emails sent in, the threat of an injunction, and our presence at the hotels that kept families housed until March 1st. We need everyone to continue calling and writing everyday before the March 1st evictions!

I pledge allegiance

Intelligence

Cartoon

Bush violated the law on port sale

The NY Times Wednesday reported that under a 1993 amendment to existing foreign investment law, the U.S. government is required to conduct a mandatory 45-day investigation if the investing company is owned and/or controlled by a foreign government. The key word here is mandatory. During this period, Defense, State, Commerce and Transportation department officials, along with the National Security Council and others, would get to put the deal under a microscope, ultimately reporting its findings back to the president. And, Congress would also have the opportunity to more deeply vet the transaction. But the great Bushevik Monarchy once again skirted the law. King Bush once again declared that "I am not above the law, I am the law." The most secretive administration in United States history has once again just flexed its unitary powers, telling Americans and Congress to screw off. So much for mandatory.

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