October 2003
Latest News
Posted: Friday, October 31, 2003
¤ Defense Dept.'s deadly garage sale
¤ The time of withdrawal
¤ Oh what a stupid war
¤ Iraqis are Naming Their Babies "Saddam"
¤ The Time of Withdrawal
¤ The Public Revolt Against Monopoly Media
¤ Bush's Half-Full Glass Looks Mighty Empty
¤ Mark Twain in Iraq?
¤ Bush's Trade Policies Anger Latin America
¤ Top Gun Fires Blanks on the Economy
¤ A Matter of Intelligence
¤ U.S. warns of 'day of resistance' in Iraq
¤ U.S. Special Force Soldier Killed in Afghanistan
¤ Israeli Government Attapmts To Legalize A Number Of Settlements
Flashback Traces of poison
¤ Israel's age of austerity
¤ U.S. Troops Clash With Rioters in Baghdad
¤ US policy has isolated only one extremist group - its own
¤ Victory banner comes back to bite Bush
¤ Our strategy helps the terrorists - army chief warns Sharon
¤ U.S. Government prosecutes Greenpeace over protest
¤ Anti-war activist charged for 'misusing phone' to protest to US
¤ Afghanistan Welcomes U.S. Aid Package
¤ Who's Behind Iraq Attacks Up for Debate
¤ U.S. Soldier Dies From Afghan Wounds
¤ Bush election donors share $8bn bonanza
¤ UN to pull staff out of Iraq in wake of suicide bombings
¤ UN says war in Congo is fuelled by foreign firms
¤ A Court Martial Is In Order
¤ Pentagon Hawk Released - Straws in the Wind?
¤ Mahathir retires with fresh attack on Jews
¤ Mahathir steps down
¤ White House accused of overpaying 'cronies'
¤ Congress backs multi-billion Iraq package
¤ More mystery over missing Iraqi millions
¤ Britain must confront shameful trade that ruins Congolese lives
¤ Antiwar hecklers ruffle Bush hawk
¤ Blast rocks Baghdad, kills two
¤ 'Bush has to manufacture another 'threat' to US for re-election'
¤ Weapons search takes back seat to hunt for guerillas
¤ US pushes for quick fix on security crisis
¤ Now 'political Islam' draws fire
¤ Look who's not coming to dinner
¤ Rumsfeld accuses press of "ignoring" progress in Iraq
¤ Rumsfeld unsure of missing 'mojo'
¤ Rumsfeld, Warner try to shrug off tiff over Army official's comment
Latest News
Posted: Thursday, October 30, 2003
¤ Mission Unaccomplished
¤ Bush Alone in Insisting "Nothing Wrong with Iraq War"
¤ Israel and US labelled biggest threats to World peace
¤ EU denies suppressing Israel poll finding
¤ Iraq Hit by String of Deadly Explosions
¤ Police Question Sharon About Corruption
¤ Commanders Doubt Syria Is Entry Point
¤ Iraq Guerrillas Adopt a New Strategy: Copy the Americans
Flashback "Mission Accomplished": Anatomy of a Deadly Lie
¤ Winning Contractors
¤ Does split in death toll mask war's real story?
¤ Bolivia in Historical and Regional Context
¤ Denigrating Critics of Israel
¤ If You Start War, You Should Fight War
¤ Pentagon Manages War Coverage By Limiting Coffin Pictures
¤ 'Sounds of Silence'
¤ Another U.S. Foreign-Policy Failure
¤ Memo to the President: Subject: A Failed Foreign Policy
¤ Bush Lies Again
¤ Iran Demands Concessions From U.S. in Return for Cooperation
¤ Baghdad on edge as unrest continues
¤ Afghan opium production flourishes
¤ Red Cross cuts Iraq staff
¤ UN to pull out of Baghdad for now
¤ An Inspector Calls
¤ Israel destroys shipment of vitamins for disabled Palestinian children
¤ Ramadan Revenge - A Message Sent and a Lesson Learned
¤ We got it wrong over weapons of mass destruction
¤ Death toll figures reveal high civilian casualties
¤ US soldiers kill four workers after bomb blast
¤ Afghanistan 'at the mercy of narco-terrorists'
¤ Afghanistan can become failed narco-state: UN
¤ Huge Afghan opium harvest brings fears of new terrorism
¤ Our friends, the warlords
¤ 2 GIs Killed in Iraq Amid Rising Attacks
¤ Attack on US tank brings post-war death toll to 117
¤ U.N. Says It Will Withdraw Baghdad Staff
¤ Frontline aid agency joins Baghdad exodus
¤ Postwar US combat toll tops invasion deaths
¤ Oil firm linked to Cheney gets Iraq boost
¤ Arabian nightmare
¤ Jihad rising in Islamic holy month
¤ The dark art of deception
¤ Support for Bush ebbs away because of growing violence
¤ Extremists 'plotted to expel blacks from South Africa'
¤ Silenced witnesses
¤ World Bank 'to approve' $4bn central Asian pipeline
¤ Bush's challenge: a somber optimism
¤ Anti-Syria vote exposes real Bush world
¤ Bush's Muslim Troubles
¤ Is Albania Sponsoring 'Freedom Fighters' Next Door?
¤ Iran says US can act to improve ties
¤ CIA officer acquitted after 20 years in prison
¤ The wrong Ayoub
¤ US aid threat fails to faze Malaysia
¤ Bush may have to cut and run
¤ Cheney's hawks 'hijacking policy'
¤ Master of Fiction
¤ Bush banner banter embarrasses White House
¤ Subdued Bush defends Iraq policy
¤ Fractured Tories oust leader
Latest News
Posted: Wednesday, October 29, 2003
¤ Dark Forces? The Military Steps Up Recruiting of Blacks
¤ Prosecutors as Therapists Phantoms as Terrorists
¤ This is your brain on public relations
¤ Cheney's Backdoor to Halliburton
¤ Strange Bedfellows
¤ The Anti-war Camp Has Been Proved Right on Every Point
¤ In Asia, the Web is Routing Power to the People
¤ 'Mission Accomplished' Whodunit
¤ 115 soldiers have died in combat since May 1, more than during war
¤ Angry, disillusioned and frustrated, families of some GIs seethe
¤ 'Cease fire'
¤ This Week’s Question: Why Are We in Iraq?
¤ Having a Bad Day, Wolfie?
¤ America-s Love Affair with Anti-Personnel Mines
¤ Red Cross plans partial pullout
¤ Another Roadside Bomb Kills 2 More US Soldiers in Iraq
¤ 2 US soldiers dead as toll beats war figure
¤ Weapons Searchers May Switch to Security
¤ Intelligence war is trouble for Bush
¤ Rumsfeld's sticky wicket
¤ An Empire for America
¤ Rumsfeld Wants a Ministry of Truth
> When deceit catches up with a government,
> officials take refuge in propaganda.
¤ Powell begs aid agencies to stay in Baghdad
¤ Bush is steadfast on his Iraq policy
¤ Bush Falls From Favor Abroad, Too
¤ A bad day in Baghdad
¥ When has it been 'good'?
¤ Arabs are of two minds on Iraq
¤ Saddam not directing attacks: US general
¤ Suicide bomber prolongs recent Iraq bloodbath
¤ Up to 15,000 people killed in invasion, claims thinktank
¤ Suicide bomber kills six in raid on Iraqi police station
¤ Six more killed in Iraq car bomb blast
¤ 2 CIA Operatives Killed in Afghanistan
¤ Rumsfeld and the 'long, hard slog'
¤ Bush blamed for terror
¤ Bush blames foreigners for Iraq woes
¥ He also blamed the Easter Bunny and some of Santa's loyalist
¤ Guantanamo question mark over Briton
¤ Jessica Lynch snubs Iraqi who helped to free her
¤ Washington opts for low-key solution
¤ Israel will not kill Arafat, says Sharon
¥ Be afraid Arafat, be very Afraid.
¤ Baghdad's tale of two councils
¤ Doh! Murdoch's Fox News in a spin over 'The Simpsons' lawsuit
¤ A grim wake-up call for US in the fight to build democracy
¤ Do as the US says, not as it does
¤ Not all of us Americans are evil
¤ Twenty Killed in Sudan Helicopter Crash
¤ 7 Ukrainian Peacekeepers Wounded in Iraq
¤ Iran and Syria told to stop foreign fighters going to Iraq
¥ The next two countries America wants to Invade gets the blame
¤ Student shot by Israeli soldier to have life support turned off
¤ Solar flares aimed at Earth
Latest News
Posted: Tuesday, October 28, 2003
¤ Incident in Gaza Whom to Believe? Well...
¤ Resisting the Monster Wishing Death
¤ Halliburton in Iran
¤ The Seeds of Iraq's Future Terror
¤ Who's Afraid (Of) The Big Bad Bush?
¤ Stopping the Cycle of Dictatorship
¤ Random Thoughts, More Questions
¤ A Willful Ignorance
¤ Tony Blair's New Friend
¤ A Willful Ignorance
¤ Iraq through a filter
¤ See no protest
¤ The news from Iraq: Reality versus spin
¤ Mafia Tactics Extorting Weaker Nations
¤ Paranoia Is Home Spun Policy Makers Beware
¤ Sophistication of attacks challenges military
¤ The Ramadan Offensive
¤ Two CIA Contractors Killed in Afghanistan
¤ Bush Defends Iraq Progress
¤ Latest Attacks Underscore Differing Intelligence Estimates
¤ Seeing Mideast Democracy As More Than 'Pie in the Sky'
¤ Two From CIA Killed in Afghanistan Ambush
¤ Baghdad bombing blitz mocks US mission
¤ Rocket-Propelled Grenades Kill U..S Soldier in Iraq
¤ Arabs Blame United States for Baghdad Bloodbath
¤ U.S. Prepared to Resume Contacts with Iran
¤ Two American GIs are under friendly fire for marrying Iraqis
¤ Iraq situation not very good: EU
#164; US warfare equation 'full of baloney'
¤ 35 killed and 224 injured in Baghdad bomb attacks
¤ Suicide bombings kill 42 in Baghdad
¤ Iraqis celebrate. Then brutal reality dawns
¤ Wave of Bombings Kills Dozens in Baghdad
¤ Bush voices optimism despite setbacks and spectre of Vietnam
¤ Wolfowitz's wakeup call in Baghdad
¤ Spoilers gatecrash the Iraq spoils party
¤ Hotel strike a reminder of Washington's struggle
¤ No target beyond reach as beleaguered coalition grapples with unknown enemy
¤ US admits to 'bad day' at blast hotel
¤ The locals
¤ Iraq's guerrillas adopt new strategy: copy the Americans
¤ Violence will not change US mission in Iraq: Bush
¤ Iraq problem
¤ The seeds of Iraq's future terror
¤ Tony Blair's new friend
¤ Israel ignores road-map over illegal outposts
¤ Hizbullah rockets hit Israeli posts
¤ Return to Waco
¤ Red Cross rethinks mission to Iraq
¤ The axis of oil
¤ The Axis of Hubris
¤ The White House whine: 'It's all the media's fault'
¤ The Myth of Media Watchdogs
¤ Too Much Secrecy
¤ Who Are the Bombers?
¤ 16 killed in Kashmir violence
¤ Jessica snubs her rescuer
¤ Snub for war widow
¤ Prime Minister John Howard must apologise for nuclear evidence claim
Latest News
Posted: Monday, October 27, 2003
¤ Up to 40 die in Baghdad attacks
¤ 40 Killed in Iraq Suicide Bombings
¤ Striking at a Key Symbol of U.S. Power
¤ Attack Drives U.S. Forces From Baghdad HQ
¤ Volley of Rockets Shatters a Life and Images of Stability
¤ Banging your head into walls
¤ Credibility showdown: Bush&Co. deceived the public and itself
¤ False Claims Led to Attacks on Grenada, Iraq
¤ Hoon: We won't be deterred by Iraq attacks
¤ Attack Is a Media Coup for Iraq Resistance, Experts Say
¤ Still Waiting for the Euphoria
¤ Iraqi Violence Unnerves Nations and Aid Groups
¤ U.S. blames foreigners for Baghdad bombs
¤ Iraq: Renewed Attacks
¤ Unrest in Iraq
¤ We're staying, says defiant Wolfowitz
¤ Man whose aim was regime change
¤ Israel breaks pledge on disputed settlements
¤ What will make them stop?
¤ Bush blasted for Sept. 11 secrecy
¤ Halliburton employees urged to defend Iraq contracts
¤ Make war, not love
¤ Occupational Schizophrenia
¤ George Bush, the Anti-Family President
¤ Patriotism? Or Just Conformity?
¤ Nukes, Fools, and Asteroids
¤ Our Friends, The Israeis
¤ Skin disease infects U.S. soldiers in Iraq
¤ Baghdad rocket attack targets US hawk
¤ New explosions hit Baghdad
¤ Two explosions inside coalition control zone in Baghdad
¤ Three dead in Iraq blast
¤ Attack shows growing sophistication
¤ Rocket strike shows new bravado
¤ They're Getting Better
¤ U.S. surprised in Iraq by insurgents' fight
¤ U.S. Case for Helping Iraq Suffers a Setback
¤ Attack Drives U.S. Forces From Baghdad HQ
¤ US vows to crush resistance after Iraq attack
¤ Rafah, a buffer zone of rubble
¤ Calif. Wildfires Kill 13, Char 650 Homes
¤ UN cuts details of Western profiteers from Congo report
¤ Bush is not welcome in Britain
¤ Wolfowitz, in Iraq, sees mixed picture
¤ Cracks in support for Sharon
¤ A Holocaust in the Making
¤ Relief for US troops stalls after Turkish troop imbroglio
¤ Man whose aim was regime change
¤ 'Russia may join Nato to fight common enemy'
¤ 'Pakistan ready for talks or war with India'
¤ Japanese forces in Iraq would defend themselves: FM
¤ Seven killed in held Kashmir violence
¤ Two-Party Slavery
¤ Can Afghanistan survive without foreign aid?
Latest News
Posted: Sunday, October 26, 2003
¤ After Iraq, the guilt of killing tears a life apart
¤ Why are we back in Vietnam?
¤ Military supremacy is never eternal
¤ Fight war on terror by giving Iraq back to Iraqis
¤ Reply to Rumsfeld memo
¤ Vietnam killing spree revelations shock US
¤ Amec bids for £1.5bn Iraq contract
¤ Wolfowitz Escapes Deadly Baghdad Strike
¤ 12 Wounded in Kashmir Grenade Attack
¤ GI Killed in Strike on Baghdad Hotel
¤ US forces hit hard in Iraq
¤ Jamaica bids to break the spiral of violence strangling a nation
¤ Israeli Military Kills Two Palestinians
¤ Israelis Kill Palestinian in Gaza Clash
¤ Peace workers shot by Israelis
¤ Israel destroys Gaza buildings
¤ PNA condemns Israeli demolition of high-rises in Gaza
¤ Syria threatens to attack Golan settlers if Israel strikes again
¤ Thousands Rally to End Iraq Occupation
¤ Anti-war marches in Washington
¤ Tens of thousands protest against Bush's Iraq policies in Washington
¤ Anti-Iraq war protest in Washington
¤ Jury Awards $70M Against Halliburton
¤ Search in Iraq Fails to Find Nuclear Threat
Flashback One, two, three, what are they fighting for?
¤ UN suspends operations in four Afghan provinces
¤ Darkening of a nation
¤ Intelligence Problems in Iraq Are Detailed in Internal Army Report
¤ Saudi Arabia attacks UK over terror warning
¤ Deadly rise of mortar strikes
¤ Africa emerging as oil hub
¤ Embattled US troops kill civilians
Latest News
Posted: Saturday, October 25, 2003
¤ War of the Words
¤ All Part of the Plan
¤ Pearl Harbor Mother Of All Conspiracies
¤ El Al threat blamed on Al-Qaeda
Flashback Anti-Semitic is wrong term
¤ Palestinian olive farmers' tragic tale...
Flashback How US infiltrates "civil society" to overthrow governments
Flashback Too many Journalists parrot the establishment's spin on 9/11
¤ Families of US soldiers in Iraq lead anti-war protests
¤ New Board Details Iraq Fund Monitoring
¤ Everyone else can go to hell, Americans say
¤ Bush defied over Cuba
¤ Cuba Vote Shows Bush's Waning Authority
¤ The planet's polluters should be put in the dock
¤ Japan's Africa aid has strings attached
¤ Gulags, grievances and North Korea's WMD
¤ It's snowing on Rumsfeld's parade
¤ Why we are here
¤ Israel's new wall plan for the Jordan valley
¤ Three shot dead in Gaza raid
¤ Israel's new wall plan for the Jordan valley
¤ Curfew in Baghdad set to be lifted
¤ Nations pledge additional $13bn to help rebuild Iraq
¤ Global pledges mask real cost of recovery
¤ OCTOBER 25th: March for an end to the occupation of Iraq!
¤ Anti-War Rallies Today on Both Coasts
¤ Insult to injury: Raw deal for Jessica Lynch's black comrade-in-arms
¤ C.I.A. Disputes Accusations That Its Prewar Conclusions Were Flawed
¤ The Ottoman umpire
¤ America Versus the World
¤ Is America copying Israel's mistakes?
¤ Wolfowitz Visits U.S. Soldiers in Iraq
¤ Blinded by celebrity
Latest News
Posted: Friday, October 24, 2003
¤ Lie after lie after lie
¤ Confusing occupation with liberation
¤ Bush's Afghanistan predicament
¤ GOP spin says media makes Iraq look bad -- but death is sad reality
¤ Associated Press Deletes Crucial Portion of Witness Statement
¤ Israel's Attack on the Liberty, Revisited
¤ Cover-up of the Attack on the Liberty
¤ Weapons of Mass Destruction Found in DC
¤ It's Palestine, Stupid!
¤ The Politics of Public Humiliation in Northern Ireland
Flashback US Puts Blood Ban on Soldiers Returning from Iraq
¤ Airport trick or treat
¤ The Death of Responsibility
¤ Candyman
¤ Thieves Like Us: Cheney's backdoor to Halliburton
¤ It's snowing on Rumsfeld's parade
Flashback Jewish lobby does 'rule' the US
Flashback US 'undermined Chile's democracy'
Flashback Chavez accuses CIA as bombings rock Venezuela
¤ Indonesian papers tell Bush where to go
¤ Gunmen kill three Israeli soldiers
¤ Big solar storm will hit Earth Friday
¤ Road to ruin
¤ U.S. Soldier Killed in Northern Iraq
¤ US soldier, four Iraqis killed
¤ Iran 'has no nuclear secrets left'
¤ Indonesian papers tell Bush where to go
¤ George Won’t Be Reading This
¤ Rumsfeld's Ruminations Reinforce Reservations
¤ Australia strengthens role as link between US and Asia
¤ Rumsfeld: mainly a style thing
¤ Parsing official lies
¤ Rumsfeld plays down war memo
¤ ‘CIA plotting to topple Venezuelan govt’
¤ The United Nations: a golden dream shattered
¤ Blair terms N Korea N-arms drive unacceptable
¤ ‘Israelisation’ of US Middle East policy proceeds apace
¤ Alarm over melting Arctic ice cap
¤ Alliance should not be a sacred cow
¤ A war of words but still far from WMDs
¤ Senate Approves Easing of Curbs on Cuba Travel
¤ Intelligence Report for Iraq War Was 'Hastily Done'
¤ U.S. Is Confident Conference Will Produce Enough Donations
¤ World spurns US appeal for $30bn to rebuild Iraq
¤ Bush Drops Opposition To Building Of Barrier
¤ Israel ignores international laws
¤ US in Iraq for 'at least one year'
¤ US troops release three Iraqi women
¤ Israeli soldiers inherit pre-loved US army long johns
¤ Bush heckled as he thanks Australia and vows the war on terror will go on
Latest News
Posted: Thursday, October 23, 2003
¤ Think Again
¤ Charity says Iraqi billions missing
¤ Imperial Indifference
¤ Bush Heckled in Australia as He Defends Iraq War
¤ Ruthlessness
¤ Protesters to Bush: How Dare You?
¤ Criticizing Zionism It Is Forbidden to Say Such Things
¤ Opposing the Occupation
¤ Cheney's the One
¤ The National Defense Myth
¤ Rumsfeld says he meant every word of leaked US memo
¤ Rumy Reinterprets the War on Terror
¤ New Iraq fund needs donors
¤ Saudis reveal favors to U.S. in terror war
¤ Roadside Bombs Kill Soldier, Two Iraqis
¤ Turkish Officials Question Sending Troops to Iraq
¤ Kuwait to offer Iraq aid; France, Germany decline
¤ Press Underreports Wounded in Iraq
¤ Truth About War Casualties
¤ 11 US soldiers wounded in Iraq Wednesday
¤ The Politics of Media Filtration
¤ Iran Tells U.N. It Has No More Nuclear Secrets
¤ Good Versus Evil Sells Violence To Serve the American Empire
¤ Why the Rumsfeld Memo Matters
¤ Altering the Rules When Convenient
¤ Bush Bizarro world
¤ Why U.S. intelligence failed
¤ Israel Plans New Apartments in Settlements
¤ Galloway expelled as Blair takes revenge
¤ Did Israel deliberately allow 241 American Marines to die?
¤ Cultural gaffes of GI's lead to isolation in Iraq
¤ Israeli forces kill three Palestinians
¤ Why Sharon Is Wailing
¤ Israel fired missile into crowded street
¤ Barrier turns holy city into hostile fortress
¤ Israel vows to keep on building
¤ Security lapses blamed for UN bomb
¤ Blair envoy warns Iran on 'meddling'
¤ Bush Thanks Australia for Support in Iraq
¤ Texan 'fair dinkum' about Howard
¤ Bush Heaps Praise on Australian Leader
¤ Two Australian Anti-War Senators Protest Bush Speech
¤ 41 Australian Labor MPs put protest in writing
¤ Mr Bush, here is why we opposed the Iraq war
¤ Bush departs Australia after whirlwind tour
¤ Grenada detainees still in jail, 20 years on
¤ Leaked memo exposes Rumsfeld's doubts about war on terror
¤ Iran conservatives hail deal
¤ Rwanda has the most women MPs
¤ Blasts injure seven US soldiers in Iraq
¤ Schoolboys hospitalised after taking Viagra
¤ A history lesson for the allies
¤ Bush counts cost as Iraq polarises US
¤ U.S., Iraq Plead for Billions to Rebuild
¤ Bolivian Leader's Ouster Seen as Warning on U.S. Drug Policy
¤ $4bn Iraq cash has vanished, claims charity
Latest News
Posted: Wednesday, October 22, 2003
¤ Former Tank Gunner
¤ After grim Rumsfeld memo, White House supports him
¤ Pyrrhic Victories on Iraq?
¤ Crusader rhetoric disastrous for diplomacy
¤ Wilson's Crusade and Bush's Crusade
Flashback The Language of Control
¤ A Hegemon No More
¤ Traces of poison
¤ Israel dismisses U.N. vote
¤ Israel vows to go on with fence, despite UN condemnation
¤ Protests greet Bush in Australia
¤ Vietnam, Again?
¤ How the Poll Results on Iraq Were Manipulated
¤ US Ignores Soldiers' Killings of Civilians
Flashback The Folly of Invading Iran
¤ At the start of each of Bush's bad ideas is Dick Cheney
¤ Bush criticized in Bali over Israel, Iraq and more
¤ Lost in Translation
¤ U.S. Soldiers Bringing Media to Tikrit
¤ Pentagon Says It Will Call Up Added Reserves
¤ Baffled Occupiers, or the Missed Understandings
¤ Rumsfeld's war-on-terror memo
¤ U.S. Reports Increase in Daily Attacks in Iraq
¤ Anti-war protests planned
¤ New Information May Bolster Questions on Halliburton
¤ Why is Bush avoiding the Australian media?
¤ The not-so-friendly reality of US casualties
¤ As R&R Ends, Some Don't Return to Iraq
¤ EU turns 'rogue state' into conditional friend
¤ Bush Visits Bali Under Tight Security
¤ U.N. Assembly Condemns Israeli Barrier
¤ China Emerges As Possible U.S. Partner
¤ Iran's Nuclear Genie
¤ Race mix slow to change
¤ Stop West Bank wall, UN orders Israel
¤ 'War on terror' takes a strange turn
¤ Cheney's new adviser has sights on Syria
¤ Bush has Asia in mind
¤ Watch the hypocrisy meter if MPs protest
¤ The neocons from Vietnam to Iraq
¤ Cutting out the diamonds that kill
¤ U.S. warns against traveling to Israel
¤ Israeli cabinet members criticise raids on Gaza
¤ U.S. forces raid mosque and arrest supporters of defiant Iraqi cleric
¤ Civilians pay with lives under Gaza's skies of death
¤ Bush visits his stalwart but parochial Aussie 'sheriff'
¤ US troops still fighting for control of border town
¤ Iran Will Allow U.N. Inspections of Nuclear Sites
Latest News
Posted: Tuesday, October 21, 2003
¤ So What Happened to Iraq's WMD?
¤ 'W's PR offensive is a sign of desperation'
¤ $87 Billion, Final Offer
Flashback Mr. Barnum And The American Sucker
¤ Calling a Lie a Lie
¤ Raids In Tense Iraqi Town
¤ Military Goes to Extraordinary Lengths to Avoid Civilian Deaths
¤ US soldiers trigger happy in Iraq
¤ Iraqi Civilians Fall Victim to Hair Triggers
¤ US soldiers fire in air to disperse Baghdad protest
¤ Mahathir: Jew comment out of context
¤ Bush rebukes Mahathir over 'divisive' remarks
¤ Wrong and Divisive
¤ Cults, Idols, Infidels and Bigots
¤ Man faces charges after surviving Niagara Falls jump
Flashback Bush owes activist apology in FBI flap
¤ America's too prudish for real politicians
¤ Bremer is Deaf to History
¤ Justice on the Streets
¤ Will the Next War Be Against the Palestinians?
¤ Who Turned This Idiot Loose?
¤ American Jihad
¤ Bend Over and Grab Your Ankles, America, Things May Get Worse
¤ Rush In Rehab
¤ The privatization of war and peace
¤ Inside Bush's diary
¤ Pentagon deleted part of Boykin's apology
¤ Bush got it wrong on Indonesia, says official
¤ Iraq Occupation Faces New Challenge
¤ For G.I.'s in Isolated Town, Unknown Enemy Is Elusive
¤ Soldiers Miss Flights Back to Iraq
¤ Important History Lessons for the President
¤ Is the Pope Crazy?
¤ No end to US troubles
¤ US failure to count civilian deaths 'incredible'
¤ Meeting with Bush a waste of time
¤ Many dead, scores hurt in Israeli air raids
¤ Doctor killed as he helps wounded
¤ Israeli jets kill 10 in wave of attacks on Gaza
¤ Eleven killed in Israeli air attacks
¤ U.S. Hopes Iraq Fund Will Attract Donors
¤ US, Israel accused of maltreating media personnel
¤ Israel, Palestinians Spar Over Wall
¤ Our tribe's alpha male no longer
¤ Justice on the streets
¤ Viewers trusted BBC's war coverage less than its rivals
¤ Bleak Arab progress report
¤ For tough places, a softer US line
¤ US soldier, two civilians killed in Iraq
¤ Bush rebukes Mahathir over 'divisive' remarks
¤ Mahathir renews attack on Jews
¤ US's daunting task of rebuilding
¤ Democrats and Iraq
¤ The U.S. may regret its antiterror excesses
¤ Nukes, subs, and (not so) black ops
¤ More talk, less action
¤ Pre-emptive strikes carry hidden dangers
¤ Threading the needle: UN and the Iraqi occupation
¤ Whose god is 'real' and 'bigger'?
¤ Army Investigates Treatment of Ill Iraq Veterans
¤ Bush got it wrong on Indonesia, says official
Latest News
Posted: Monday, October 20, 2003
¤ US soldier dies as Bush seeks donors
¤ Media watchdog slams US, Israel
¤ 10 killed in Kashmir violence
¤ Six dead in new Israeli missile attack
¤ Circus Maximus
¤ Arabs and Democracy: Bush May Not Like It At Home
¤ The Domino Quagmire
¤ Soldiers Ripe to Resist?
¤ Misleading America
¤ White House lied on Iraq
¤ Rafah in Miniature
¤ Holding Leaders Accountable for Untruths About War
¤ U.S Senate Backs War Profiteering
¤ Slaughterhouse of Civilization
¤ There Is No Freedom in Iraq
¤ Danger welcomes Americans abroad
¤ The Iraqi Monkey Trap
¤ US Post-War Casualties Pass 100 Amid Disarray
¤ Bush's 'dream team' plagued by infighting, backstabbing
¤ War lite: Six months after the fall of Baghdad
¤ U.S. Posts Record $374 Billion Budget Gap
¤ Gunmen kill nine in Afghanistan
¤ China and Japan reject Bush's currency pleas
Flashback ¤ For Lack Of A "Beautiful Mind"
Flashback ¤ FBI: Moussaoui not involved
¤ The new Great Game
¤ Ruling the world is a family affair
¤ Families seek truth over Israeli deaths
¤ 8 Qassams hit Negev; boy killed, 20 houses demolished in Rafah
¤ Castro Talks With U.S. Tour Operators
¤ Powell Seeking Money to Rebuild Iraq
¤ Pentagon was warned of Iraq chaos after war
¤ Bush offers deal to end North Korea crisis
¤ Israeli soldiers killed in ambush
¤ Presidents fall out over money
¤ Banner hides the real Bangkok
¤ Iraq awash in military weapons
¤ Bush in Asia: all about security
¤ America Must Let Iraq Rebuild Itself
¤ Virtue is its own drawback
¤ Blair's Evangelical belief sent Britain to Iraq war: Cook
¤ U.S. Set to Cede Part of Control Over Aid to Iraq
¤ Tribes inflamed by Qaeda hunt
¤ Bush seeks Pacific war on terror
¤ Howard's friendship with America does not go as far as China
¤ Iraqis 'must ask' for Saudi and Pakistan troops
¤ Irai council fights rising lawlessness
¤ British arrest pair in plot to kill Putin, says paper
¤ North Korea peace pact ruled out
¤ Two US soldiers, five Iraqis killed
¤ Three Israelis killed in West Bank ambush
¤ Six dead in Afghan blasts
¤ A dangerous rush to award the peace prize
Latest News
Posted: Sunday, October 19, 2003
¤ Israeli soldiers in West Bank ambush
¤ Chirac Thwarts EU Condemnation of Anti-Semitism
¤ Bush faces snub in bid to drum up Iraq cash
¤ Bush Behind the Smiles
¤ Bin Laden urges terror blitz
¥ More like U.S terror blitz
¤ Bush pushes for war on terror following bin laden tape
¥ Why is this not surprising...
¤ Bush: Bin Ladin tape backs my stand
Flashback A Double? A Fake?
Flashback Osama bin Surplus - Fake Osama In al-Jazeera Video?
Flashback Swiss institute brands latest bin Laden tape a fake
Flashback Another Phony Bin Laden Tape
¤ Jenin revisted in devastated Rafah
¤ From Gaza to Iraq: nothing but headaches for Bush
¤ How the old world rejected the new
¤ Accent axed with a snip
¤ The UN's Big Five supply 88% of all killer arms
¥ US, Britain, Russia, France and China
¤ Bush: Terrorists Won't Intimidate U.S.
¤ Two US soldiers killed in Iraq
¤ State Dept. Study Foresaw Trouble Now Plaguing Iraq
¤ Bush Cites Philippines as Model in Rebuilding Iraq
¤ Bush's News War
¤ Gulf War disinformation PR promotes Private Jessica memoir
¤ Our cultural papier-mâché needs more layers of truth
¤ Bush: No N. Korea Nonaggression Treaty
¤ Bush rules out North Korea invasion
¥ Probably because he knows they HAVE nuclear weapons
¤ US Marine reservists charged with brutality
¤ Israeli soldiers kill three Palestinians
¤ Israeli army withdraws from Rafah leaving death and destruction
¤ Report: Unit Killed Hundreds in Vietnam
¤ US marines accused of killing prisoner
¤ Venezuela's Chavez Warns on Referendum
¤ Malaysia accuses west of over-reacting
¤ Malaysian Official Defends Prime Minister
¤ About That $87 Billion . . .
¤ China Stands Ground in Currency Dispute
¤ Angry Kosovars call on 'colonial' UN occupying force to leave
¤ Arrest of Iraqi Cleric Sparks Confrontations With Shiites
¤ No palace parade for Bush as Blair gets cold feet
¤ Allies offer Bush few troops and little cash to ease Iraq burden
¤ Hundreds protest Bush visit in Bangkok
¤ U.S selected Iraqi leaders tells bin Laden to stay out of its affairs
¤ Australian PM snaps back in spat with Mahathir
Flashback Bush says Australia is U.S. 'sheriff' in Southeast Asia
Latest News
Posted: Saturday, October 18, 2003
¤ Call It What It Really Is: Sick
¤ Lieberman heckled at Arab forum
¤ Israel's Raid on Syria Stage Four in the Terror War
¤ Shock Therapy and the Israeli Scenario
¤ Public Propaganda and the Iraq War
¤ US Missiles for Israeli Nukes?
¤ I Hope My Corpse Gives You the Plague
¤ Postwar Casualties Rise Amid Disarray in US Plans
¤ Hamza's War
¤ Raids, arrests near Baghdad follow bloody day in Iraq
¤ Canadian PM Says No More Afghan Troops
¤ Sick and wounded U.S. troops wait in squalor
¤ Karbala firefight raises fears as rift with Shia grows
¤ The global redlining of America Bush plunges U.S. into rapid decline
¤ What's black and white and not read by Bush?
¤ Iraq: The Money Pit
¤ Khidhir Hamza: The Bogus Intelligence Source
¤ Wanton Israeil Gaza Destruction Is A War Crime
¤ Senate won't oblige Cheney to refuse Halliburton money
Flashback Bolivia's 'Texan' President Does U.S. Bidding
¤ Australian fixation with America
¤ France warns against Iran action
¤ Straw to join EU foreign ministers on nuclear mission to Tehran
¤ The price of controlling Iraq
¤ Ten killed in firefight as tension grows in Iraq
¤ Four U.S. Soldiers Killed in Iraq Clashes
¤ A crowded House of Yankee lackeys
¤ No troops for Iraq until conditions met: Musharraf
¤ India says no decision yet on troops to Iraq
¤ US plans more troops for Iraq next year
¤ Bush rocked by Senate rebellion on Iraq
¤ Senate defies Bush over reconstruction costs
¤ It's all about the Iraqi people
¤ US trying to divert attention from its errors in Muslim world
¤ Russia plays its hand in the OIC
¤ Bush gets UN vote, but no troops or money
¤ General promises to stop talking of Satan and Islam
¤ Anti-Jewish outburst clouds Bush's Asia trip
¤ Eight Marines Charged in Iraq Death
¤ Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Mr President
¤ Thousands Protest Bush's Visit to Manila
¤ Bush's 'spirit' cursed, tossed into Thai river
¤ Women of Terror
¤ Bush Promises U.S. Help for Philippines
¤ US defence ties come with cash-back guarantee
¤ Anti-empire forces strike back
¤ Thai mouse to risk life for Bush in last line of bio-chemical defence
¤ Megawati applauded Mahathir attack on Jews
¤ West accuses Malaysian PM of racism
¥ It cannot be 'racism', Jews are not a RACE
¤ Moulin Rouge loses race case
¥ Now this is racism
¤ Bolivia swears in new president
¤ India: The world's parade ground
¤ Sit, stand, or crouch; but don't forget the easy-read name tags
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Posted: Friday, October 17, 2003
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¤ Sharon Suggests Future Attacks on Syria
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¤ Bolivian president resigns under fire
¤ Musharraf presses for peace talks with India
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¤ Up to 13 killed in gun battle
¤ Iraqi council blocks motion on US troops
¤ Spain will contribute $300M for Iraq reconstruction effort
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¤ Many Japanese See No Choice on Iraq
¤ An undercurrent of distrust awaits Bush in Southeast Asia
¤ God put Bush in charge, says the general hunting bin Laden
¤ Syrian Leader Condemns Iraqi War
¤ Taliban resurgence worries US
¤ Iraqis force rethink on Turkish help
¤ Halliburton Defends Iraq Sales, Contracts
¤ US combat deaths pass 100
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¤ Bush Talks But Says Nothing What Is He Hiding?
¤ 'We hate the president'-UK protesters promise 'to humiliate Bush'
¤ Will the US one day regret its post-9/11 excesses?
¤ Georgie's other war
¤ U.S. should accept inevitable, return Iraq to the Iraqis
¤ The picture which shames US army
¤ US troops question presence in Iraq
¤ US troops' morale down in Iraq: survey
¤ 'Bush's foreign policy not good for world'
¤ US troops killed in Kerbala gun battle
¤ Three US soldiers, 2 Iraqi policemen killed
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¤ US troops kill four Jordanians in Baghdad
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¤ CIA and Pentagon split over uranium intrigue
¤ Iraqi cleric emerges as tricky enemy for US
¤ The general and his divine mission
¤ Explosion damages pipeline in northern Iraq
¤ Thinkers Launch Anti-Empire Drive
¤ Sick Of Conflict
¤ UN meeting on Israeli apartheid wall
¤ Orchards and American Integrity
¤ Security council backs Iraq force
¤ Malaysia defends Mahathir speech
¤ Violence erupts at disputed religious site
¤ Nuclear watchdog reports progress after talks with Iran
¤ India, Pakistan walk a fine nuclear line
¤ Three arrested as Palestinians move to track bombers
¤ Proven: the environmental dangers that may halt GM revolution
¤ Some GM crops harm wildlife: scientists
¤ Brewing power struggle in Kabul
¤ Blindness of another kind
¤ Senate Defies Bush On Iraq Assistance
¤ Howard denies Australia has 'sheriff' role
¤ Sheriff comments were a joke, PM says
¤ When 500-pound gorillas fight
¤ IDF kills Palestinian policeman, wounds five in Rafah operations
¤ UN council unanimous - a win for Bush
¤ Why Iraqis abroad are reluctant to return
¤ US-backed 'president of Najaf' put on trial
¤ Halliburton accused of fleecing US taxpayers by overcharging for oil
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Posted: Thursday, October 16, 2003
¤ US world leader in arms sales, India spends $900 mn
¥ In case you're wondering why the U.S. is always looking for another war
¤ Syrian military put on alert
¤ US diplomacy overcomes resistance to Iraq accord
¤ Halliburton accused of overcharging for oil
¤ Mahathir attack on Jews condemned
¤ Attack on Americans Should Doom Palestinian Terrorists
¤ Lies about Iraq rise to level of the absurd
¤ I See Dumb People
¤ A Cruel and Unusual Embargo
¤ "Getting Better" in Iraq
¤ The American Prison Camp
¤ Kofi Annan Warns Against Rising Hostility Between Islam and the West
¤ On the Administration's Failure to Provide a Realistic Plan
¤ Orwellian Strategy Used to Sell the War
¤ We Don't Understand Propaganda Americans Better Learn Fast
¤ Life, Liberty, and...What Was That Last Part?
¤ Bush says Australia is U.S. 'sheriff' in Southeast Asia
¤ Four Jordanians Killed at U.S. Checkpoint in Iraq
¤ US occupiers compared to Mongol looters
¤ 12 million Iraqis out of work
¤ Definitely NOT O-Kay
¤ We Know Nothing
¤ Misinformation about Iraq suits Bush
¤ Bush demands better press, more starch
¤ U.S. blocks a Security Council resolution condemning Israel's wall
¤ Bomb attack highlights pivotal role of US in region
¤ U.S. loses interest in the road map
¤ Palestinians: U.S. was warned of the dangers
¤ US urges citizens to leave Gaza
¤ Israeli troops gun down Palestinian
¤ Arafat's popularity surges after Israeli expulsion threat
¤ Peres wants to see Arafat remain
¤ Palestinians Dread America's Wrath After Bombing
¤ Palestinians bomb US convoy
¤ 10 killed as Staten Island ferry crashes into dock
¤ Pilot 'slit wrists' after 10 killed in ferry disaster
¤ Pentagon to Confront Radical Iraqi Cleric
¤ Iraq war has swollen ranks of al-Qaida
¤ Saddam's name more popular than ever in Iraqi oil town
¤ 'Beware Mad Max world of US'
¤ Kennedy to assail Bush over Iraq war
¤ Powell dismisses accusations
¤ On their feet and applauding without a second thought, sadly
¤ Anti-Government Protests Sweep Bolivia
¤ Stop America's war on Bolivian farmers
¤ Schröder and Chirac flaunt love affair at summit
¤ Crops giant retreats from Europe ahead of GM report
¤ Subsidies keep poor nations poor
¤ Haitian Protesters Trade Shots With Police
¤ Six die in held Kashmir violence
¤ US troops kill militants on Syrian-Iraqi border
¤ Muslim nations strike a discordant note
¤ Time for Iraqis to run Iraq
¤ At Least 30 in U.S. Are Suspected of Selling Iraq Arms Before War
¤ Bush ready to steamroller $87bn package through Congress
¤ The original theory of evolution, were it not for the farmer....
¤ Same story, different war
¤ China's first space flight ends in success
¤ The American era is ending. The Asian century is dawning.
Latest News
Posted: Wednesday, October 15, 2003
¤ Two Measures of American Desperation
¤ War and Peace in Bolivia
¤ How GIs in Iraq are Used to Spread Bush Propaganda
¤ Guantánamo: Isolation and Despair in a Legal Limbo
¤ One Person Can Make a Difference
¤ US Bullies Europeans on Chemical Testing
¤ No Wonder Bush Doesn't Connect With the Rest of the Country
¤ An Occupied Country
¤ Bush's Cuba focus smacks of Reagan's Grenada stunt
¤ The truth about our good intentions
¤ 14 Dead, 34 Hurt in Staten I. Ferry Crash
¤ Attack kills 3 in U.S. diplomatic convoy in Mideast
¤ Three Countries Give U.S. a Key Iraq Concession
¤ Two Egyptian officers killed in botched assassination
¤ Those who broke Iraq should pay to fix it
¤ Car bomb kills one near Turkish embassy in Iraq
¤ Arafat Protests Israeli Expulsions to U.N.
¤ U.S. Vetoes U.N. Condemnation of Israel
¤ Israel launches raids in Gaza, West Bank
¤ Israeli PM sneers at watershed peace bid with Palestinians
¤ Rafah camp hit again by Israeli bulldozers
¤ Bush takes aim at media
¤ The Widening Crusade
¤ Straw hints at military action against Iran
¤ Polish defence official blamed for false Iraq missile claims
¤ The March on Damascus
¤ Opposition mounts to draft Iraq resolution
¤ U.S. Seems Assured of U.N.'s Approval on Plans for Iraq
¤ Doubts over Iraq put Bush on the PR offensive
¤ Good news from the front - over and over
¤ African tribe wins rights to diamond-rich land
¤ First Japan, now China is the culprit
¤ U.S. Rejects Timetable Proposal for Iraq
¤ Iraqi Shiite split widens
¤ Who Sets Iraq's Benchmarks?
¤ Bush's second-best friend?
¤ Bush's Cuban quandary
¤ 11 killed in Indian shelling on NAs, AJK
¤ US explores its Afghanistan exit options
¤ Benn pledges more cash as criticism mounts over Iraq
¤ US soldier found dead in Euphrates
¤ Hambali apparently telling US tall tales
Dominance and Its Dilemmas
Posted: Tuesday, October 14, 2003
By Noam Chomsky, smh.com.au
The past year has been a momentous one in world affairs. In the normal rhythm, the pattern was set in September 2002, a month marked by several important and closely related events. The most powerful state in history announced a new National Security Strategy asserting that it will maintain global hegemony permanently: any challenge will be blocked by force, the dimension in which the US reigns supreme. (See Manifesto for world dictatorship.)
At the same time, the war drums began to beat to mobilise the population for an invasion of Iraq, which would be "the first test [of the doctrine], not the last," the New York Times observed after the invasion, "the petri dish in which this experiment in pre-emptive policy grew." And the campaign opened for the mid-term congressional elections, which would determine whether the administration would be able to carry forward its radical international and domestic agenda.
The new "imperial grand strategy," as it was aptly termed at once by John Ikenberry (a leading US academic on international relations) presents the US as "a revisionist state seeking to parlay its momentary advantages into a world order in which it runs the show," a "unipolar world" in which "no state or coalition could ever challenge" it as "global leader, protector, and enforcer". These policies are fraught with danger even for the US itself, he warned, joining many others in the foreign policy elite.
What is to be "protected" is US power and the interests it represents, not the world, which vigorously opposed the conception.
Within a few months, polls revealed that fear of the United States had reached remarkable heights, along with distrust of the political leadership, or worse. As for the test case, an international Gallup poll in December, barely noted in the US, found virtually no support for Washington's announced plans for a war carried out "unilaterally by America and its allies": in effect, the US-UK "coalition".
The basic principles of the imperial grand strategy trace back to the early days of World War II, and have been reiterated frequently since. Even before the US entered the war, planners and analysts concluded that in the postwar world the US would seek "to hold unquestioned power," acting to ensure the "limitation of any exercise of sovereignty" by states that might interfere with its global designs. They outlined "an integrated policy to achieve military and economic supremacy for the United States" in a "Grand Area," to include at a minimum the Western Hemisphere, the former British empire, and the Far East, later extended to as much of Eurasia as possible when it became clear that Germany would be defeated.
Twenty years later, elder statesman Dean Acheson instructed the American Society of International Law that no "legal issue" arises when the US responds to a challenge to its "power, position, and prestige". He was referring specifically to Washington's post-Bay of Pigs economic warfare against Cuba, but was surely aware of Kennedy's terrorist campaign aimed at "regime change," a significant factor in bringing the world close to nuclear war only a few months earlier and resumed immediately after the Cuban missile crisis was resolved.
A similar doctrine was invoked by the Reagan administration when it rejected World Court jurisdiction over its attack against Nicaragua. State Department Legal Adviser Abraham Sofaer explained that most of the world cannot "be counted on to share our view" and "often opposes the United States on important international questions." Accordingly, we must "reserve to ourselves the power to determine" which matters fall "essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of the United States" - in this case, the actions that the Court condemned as the "unlawful use of force" against Nicaragua; in lay terms, international terrorism.
Their successors continued to make it clear that the US reserved the right to act "unilaterally when necessary," including "unilateral use of military power" to defend such vital interests as "ensuring uninhibited access to key markets, energy supplies and strategic resources."
Even this small sample illustrates the narrowness of the planning spectrum. Nevertheless, the alarm bells sounded in September 2002 were justified. Acheson and Sofaer were describing policy guidelines, and within elite circles. Other cases may be regarded as worldly-wise reiterations of the maxim of Thucydides that "large nations do what they wish, while small nations accept what they must."
In contrast, Cheney-Rumsfeld-Powell and their associates are officially declaring an even more extreme policy. They intend to be heard, and took action at once to put the world on notice that they mean what they say. That is a significant difference.
The imperial grand strategy is based on the assumption that the US can gain "full spectrum dominance" by military programs that dwarf those of any potential coalition, and have useful side effects. One is to socialise the costs and risks of the private economy of the future, a traditional contribution of military spending and the basis of much of the "new economy."
Another is to contribute to a fiscal train wreck that will, it is presumed, "create powerful pressures to cut federal spending, and thus, perhaps, enable the Administration to accomplish its goal of rolling back the New Deal," a description of the Reagan program that is now being extended to far more ambitious plans.
As the grand strategy was announced on September 17, the administration "abandoned an international effort to strengthen the Biological Weapons Convention against germ warfare," advising allies that further discussions would have to be delayed for four years. A month later, the UN Committee on Disarmament adopted a resolution that called for stronger measures to prevent militarisation of space, recognizing this to be "a grave danger for international peace and security," and another that reaffirmed "the 1925 Geneva Protocol prohibiting the use of poisonous gases and bacteriological methods of warfare." Both passed unanimously, with two abstentions: the US and Israel. US abstention amounts to a veto: typically, a double veto, banning the events from reporting and history.
A few weeks later, the Space Command released plans to go beyond US "control" of space for military purposes to "ownership", which is to be permanent, in accord with the Security Strategy. Ownership of space is "key to our nation's military effectiveness," permitting "instant engagement anywhere in the world... A viable prompt global strike capability, whether nuclear or non-nuclear, will allow the US to rapidly strike high-payoff, difficult-to-defeat targets from stand-off ranges and produce the desired effect... [and] to provide warfighting commanders the ability to rapidly deny, delay, deceive,
disrupt, destroy, exploit and neutralise targets in hours/minutes rather than weeks/days even when US and allied forces have a limited forward presence," thus reducing the need for overseas bases that regularly arouse local antagonism.
Similar plans had been outlined in a May 2002 Pentagon planning document, partially leaked, which called for a strategy of "forward deterrence" in which missiles launched from space platforms would be able to carry out almost instant "unwarned attacks". Military analyst William Arkin comments that "no target on the planet or in space would be immune to American attack".
"The US could strike without warning whenever and wherever a threat was perceived, and it would be protected by missile defenses." Hypersonic drones would monitor and disrupt targets. Surveillance systems are to provide the ability "to track, record and analyze the movement of every vehicle in a foreign city." The world is to be left at mercy of US attack at will, without warning or credible pretext. The plans have no remote historical parallel. Even more fanciful ones are under development.
These moves reflect the disdain of the administration for international law and institutions or arms control measures, dismissed with barely a word in the National Security Strategy; and its commitment to an extremist version of long-standing doctrine.
In accord with these principles, Washington informed the UN that it can be "relevant" by endorsing Washington's plans for invading Iraq or it can be a debating society. The US has the "sovereign right to take military action," Colin Powell informed the January 2003 Davos meeting of the World Economic Forum, which also strenuously opposed Washington's war plans. "When we feel strongly about something we will lead," Powell informed them, even if no one is following us.
Bush and Blair underscored their contempt for international law and institutions at their Azores Summit on the eve of the invasion. They issued an ultimatum - not to Iraq, but to the Security Council: capitulate, or we will invade without your meaningless seal of approval. And we will do so whether or not Saddam Hussein and his family leave the country. The crucial principle is that the US must effectively rule Iraq.
Since the mid-1940s, Washington has regarded the Gulf as "a stupendous source of strategic power, and one of the greatest material prizes in world history" - in Eisenhower's words, the "most strategically important area of the world" because of its "strategic position and resources". Control over the region and its resources remains a policy imperative.
After taking over a core oil producer, and presumably acquiring its first reliable military bases at the heart of the world's major energy-producing system, Washington will doubtless be happy to establish an "Arab faade," to borrow the term of the British during their day in the sun. Formal democracy will be fine, but only if it is of the submissive kind tolerated in Washington's "backyard," at least if history and current practice are any guide.
To fail in this endeavor would take real talent. Even under far less propitious circumstances, military occupations have commonly been successful. It would be hard not to improve on a decade of murderous sanctions that virtually destroyed a society that was, furthermore, in the hands of a vicious tyrant who ranked with others supported by the current incumbents in Washington: Romania's Ceausescu, to mention only one of an impressive rogues gallery.
Resistance in Iraq would have no meaningful outside support, unlike Nazi-occupied Europe or Eastern Europe under the Russian yoke, to take recent examples of unusually brutal states that nevertheless assembled an ample array of collaborators and achieved substantial success within their domains.
The grand strategy authorizes Washington to carry out "preventive war": Preventive, not pre-emptive. Whatever the justifications for pre-emptive war may sometimes be, they do not hold for preventive war, particularly as that concept is interpreted by its current enthusiasts: the use of military force to eliminate an invented or imagined threat, so that even the term "preventive" is too charitable. Preventive war is, very simply, the "supreme crime" condemned at Nuremberg.
That is widely understood. As the US invaded Iraq, Arthur Schlesinger (historian and biographer of John F. Kennedy and Franklin D. Roosevelt) wrote that Bush's grand strategy is "alarmingly similar to the policy that imperial Japan employed at Pearl Harbor, on a date which, as an earlier American president said it would, lives in infamy." FDR was right, he added, "but today it is we Americans who live in infamy."
It is no surprise that "the global wave of sympathy that engulfed the United States after 9/11 has given way to a global wave of hatred of American arrogance and militarism" and the belief that Bush is "a greater threat to peace than Saddam Hussein".
For the political leadership, mostly recycled from more reactionary sectors of the Reagan-Bush I administrations, "the global wave of hatred" is not a particular problem. They want to be feared, not loved. They understand as well as their establishment critics that their actions increase the risk of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and terror. But that too is not a major problem.
Higher in the scale of priorities are the goals of establishing global hegemony and implementing their domestic agenda: dismantling the progressive achievements that have been won by popular struggle over the past century, and institutionalizing these radical changes so that recovering them will be no easy task.
It is not enough for a hegemonic power to declare an official policy. It must establish it as a "new norm of international law" by exemplary action. Distinguished commentators may then explain that law is a flexible living instrument, so that the new norm is now available as a guide to action. It is understood that only those with the guns can establish "norms" and modify international law.
The selected target must meet several conditions. It must be defenseless, important enough to be worth the trouble, and an imminent threat to our survival and ultimate evil. Iraq qualified on all counts. The first two conditions are obvious. For the third, it suffices to repeat the orations of Bush, Blair, and their colleagues: the dictator "is assembling the world's most dangerous weapons [in order to] dominate, intimidate or attack"; and he "has already used them on whole villages leaving thousands of his own citizens dead, blind or transfigured....If this is not evil then evil has no meaning."
President Bush's eloquent denunciation surely rings true. And those who contributed to enhancing evil should certainly not enjoy impunity: among them, the speaker of these lofty words and his current associates and those who joined them in the years when they were supporting the man of ultimate evil - long after he had committed these terrible crimes and won the war with Iran with decisive US help.
We must continue to support him because of our duty to help US exporters, the Bush I administration explained. It is impressive to see how easy it is for political leaders, while recounting the monster's worst crimes, to suppress the crucial words "with our help, because we don't care about such matters."
Support shifted to denunciation as soon as their friend committed his first authentic crime: disobeying (or perhaps misunderstanding) orders by invading Kuwait. Punishment was severe - for his subjects. The tyrant escaped unscathed, and his grip on the tortured population was further strengthened by the sanctions regime then imposed by his former allies.
Also easy to suppress are the reasons why Washington returned to support for Saddam immediately after the Gulf war as he crushed rebellions that might have overthrown him. The chief diplomatic correspondent of the New York Times explained that "the best of all worlds" for Washington would be "an iron-fisted Iraqi junta without Saddam Hussein", but since that goal seems unattainable, we must be satisfied with second best. The rebels failed because Washington and its allies held that "whatever the sins of the Iraqi leader, he offered the West and the region a better hope for his country's stability than did those who have suffered his repression".
All of this is suppressed in the commentary on the mass graves of the victims of Saddam's US-authorized paroxysm of terror, crimes that are now offered as justification for the war on "moral grounds." It was all known in 1991, but ignored for reasons of state: successful rebellion would have left Iraq in the hands of Iraqis.
Within the US, a reluctant domestic population had to be whipped to a proper mood of war fever, another traditional problem.. From early September 2002, grim warnings were issued about the threat Saddam posed to the United States and his links to al-Qaeda, with broad hints that he was involved in the 9-11 attacks. Many of the charges "dangled in front of [the media] failed the laugh test," the editor of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists commented, "but the more ridiculous [they were,] the more the media strove to make whole-hearted swallowing of them a test of patriotism".
As often in the past, the propaganda assault had at least short-term effects. Within weeks, a majority of Americans came to regard Saddam Hussein as an imminent threat to the US. Soon almost half believed that Iraq was behind the 9/11 terror. Support for the war correlated with these beliefs. The propaganda campaign proved just enough to give the administration a bare majority in the mid-term elections, as voters put aside their immediate concerns and huddled under the umbrella of power in fear of the demonic enemy.
The brilliant success of "public diplomacy" was revealed when the President "provided a powerful Reaganesque finale to a six-week war" on the deck of the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln on May 1. The reference, presumably, is to Reagan's proud declaration that America was "standing tall" after conquering the nutmeg capital of the world in 1983, preventing the Russians from using it to bomb the US. Reagan's mimic was free to declare - without concern for skeptical comment at home - that he had won a "victory in a war on terror [by having] removed an ally of Al Qaeda."
It is immaterial that no credible evidence was provided for the alleged link between Saddam Hussein and his bitter enemy Osama bin Laden and that the charge was dismissed by competent observers. Also immaterial is the only known connection between the victory and terror: the invasion appears to have been a "huge setback in the 'war on terror', by sharply increasing al-Qaeda recruitment, as US official concede.
More astute observers recognized that Bush's carefully-staged Abraham Lincoln extravaganza "marks the beginning of his 2004 re-election campaign," which the White House hopes "will be built as much as possible around national-security themes." The electoral campaign will focus on "the battle of Iraq, not the war," chief Republican political strategist Karl Rove explained : the "war" must continue, if only to control the population at home.
Before the 2002 elections, he had instructed Party activists to stress security issues, diverting attention from unpopular Republican domestic policies. All of this is second-nature to the recycled Reaganites now in office. That is how they held on to political power during their first tenure in office, regularly pushing the panic button to evade public opposition to the policies that left Reagan the most unpopular living President by 1992, ranking alongside Nixon.
Despite its narrow successes, the intensive propaganda campaign left the public unswayed in more fundamental respects. Most continue to prefer UN rather than US leadership in international crises, and by 2-1 prefer that the UN, rather than the United States, should direct reconstruction in Iraq.
When the occupying army failed to discover WMD, the administration's stance shifted from "absolute certainty" that Iraq possessed WMD to the position that the accusations were "justified by the discovery of equipment that potentially could be used to produce weapons". Senior officials suggested a "refinement" in the concept of preventive war that entitles the US to attack "a country that has deadly weapons in mass quantities". The revision "suggests instead that the administration will act against a hostile regime that has nothing more than the intent and ability to develop [WMD]." The bars for resort to force are significantly lowered. This modification of the doctrine of "preventive war" may prove to be the most significant consequence of the collapse of the declared argument for the invasion.
Perhaps the most spectacular propaganda achievement was the lauding of the president's "vision" to bring democracy to the Middle East in the midst of a display of hatred and contempt for democracy for which no precedent comes to mind. One illustration was the distinction between Old and New Europe, the former reviled, the latter hailed for its courage. The criterion was sharp: Old Europe consists of governments that took the same position as the vast majority of their populations; the heroes of New Europe followed orders from Crawford Texas, disregarding an even larger majority in most cases.
Political commentators ranted about disobedient Old Europe and its psychic maladies, while Congress descended to low comedy. At the liberal end of the spectrum, Richard Holbrooke (whoi was Bill Clinton's Balkan's expert) stressed "the very important point" that the population of the eight original members of New Europe is larger than that of Old Europe, which proves that France and Germany are "isolated." So it does, if we reject the radical left heresy that the public might have some role in a democracy. Thomas Friedman (New York Times columnist) urged that France be removed from the permanent members of the Security Council, because it is "in kindergarten," and "does not play well with others". It follows that the population of New Europe must still be in nursery school, judging by polls.
Turkey was a particularly instructive case. The government resisted heavy US pressure to prove its "democratic credentials" by overruling 95% of its population and following orders. Commentators were infuriated by this lesson in democracy, so much so that some even reported Turkey's crimes against the Kurds in the 1990s, previously a taboo topic because of the crucial US role - though that was still carefully concealed in the lamentations.
The crucial point was expressed by (Bush deputy defence secretary) Paul Wolfowitz, who condemned the Turkish military because they "did not play the strong leadership role that we would have expected" and did not intervene to prevent the government from respecting near-unanimous public opinion. Turkey must therefore step up and say "We made a mistake...Let's figure out how we can be as helpful as possible to the Americans." Wolfowitz's stand is particularly instructive because he is portrayed as the leading figure in the crusade to democratize the Middle East.
Anger at Old Europe has much deeper roots than contempt for democracy. The US has always regarded European unification with some ambivalence, because Europe might become an independent force in world affairs. Thus senior diplomat David Bruce was a leading advocate for European unification in the Kennedy years, urging Washington to "treat a uniting Europe as an equal partner" - but following America's lead. He saw "dangers" if Europe "struck off on its own, seeking to play a role independent of the United States".
In his "Year of Europe" address 30 years ago, Henry Kissinger advised Europeans to keep to their "regional responsibilities" within the "overall framework of order" managed by the United States. Europe must not pursue its own independent course, based on its Franco-German industrial and financial heartland.
In the tripolar world that was taking shape at that time, these concerns extend to Asia as well. Northeast Asia is now the world's most dynamic economic region, accounting for almost 30% of global GDP, far more than the US, and holding about half of global foreign exchange reserves. It is a potentially integrated region with advanced industrial economies and ample resources. All of this raises the threat that it too might flirt with challenging the overall framework of order which the US is to manage permanently, by force if necessary, Washington has declared.
Violence is a powerful instrument of control, as history demonstrates. But the dilemmas of dominance are not slight.
Noam Chomsky is professor of linguistics at Princeton University and author of the media classic 'Manufacturing consent'. He is the American international relations commentator the US right most loves to hate. This is an extended version of an article which appeared in Le Monde diplomatique in August 2003.
Reproduced for fair use only from:
http://smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/14/1065917419475.html
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¤ US attempting to deceive UN for aggression: N Korea
¤ Why the French back sovereignty for Iraqis
Latest News
Posted: Monday, October 13, 2003
¤ Terrorists and engineers of war on terror are codependent
¤ The spin isn't taking
¤ Newspapers sent same letter signed by different soldiers
¤ A War Party Using The Troops For Propaganda
¤ Jay Leno's dangerous liaison with California's new governor
¤ The happy face offensive
¤ Dick Cheney gone wild
¤ Iraq stands at Syria's side
¤ How safe are war reporters?
¤ Afghanistan's government shuts down top daily
¤ Iraq oil minister, Chalabi aide escape assassination bid
¤ Iraqis' guerrilla tactics blur terms of battle
¤ 1/4 of U.S. Troops Lack Body Armor
¤ British soldiers injured in blasts
¤ Islamic nations cite U.S. 'threat'
¤ Bush Insists He's 'In Charge' of Iraq Policy
¤ Bush Goes Around Media to Make Iraq Case
¤ What Did We Do to Deserve This?
¤ Powell in final push to win UN support on Iraq
¤ Of Quagmires and Dominoes
¤ The Iraqi weapons puzzle
¤ An Illegitimate Occupation
¤ Iraqi resistance targets CIA, killing six in suicide bomb
¤ Another day in Iraq, another bomb
¤ Seventh car bombing brings toll to 140
¤ Suicide Car Bomb Kills Eight in Baghdad
¤ Eight killed in Baghdad suicide bombing
¤ Land Mine Kills U.S. Soldier in Iraq
¤ Inside the resistance
¤ Democrats Denounce Bush's Iraq Policies
¤ War without end
¤ Theatre of war
¤ U.S. installed Iraqi Minister: Muslims Must Accept U.S. in Iraq
¤ Turks will bring chaos, say Kurds
¤ UN official: 2,000 Palestinians made homeless by Rafah raid
¤ Rafah counts its dead as Israeli tanks pull out
¤ 1,500 homeless after Israeli raid on Rafah
¤ 27 Die in Nepal Fighting, Authorities Say
¤ Growth and stupidity
¤ Kabul Cops Move Into Northern Afghan City
¤ Taliban claim killing 13 militiamen
¤ Guerrillas kill eight Afghan police in raid
¤ Bush's Aids 'gift' has been seized by industry giants
¤ Nobel intentions
¤ Japan and the US turn to each other
¤ China seeks greater UN role in Iraq
¤ US may abandon new Iraq resolution
¤ Bush's war strategy criticized
¤ Senators slam infighting on Iraq
¤ U.S. Dollar in crisis
¤ President Bush Warns of Cuban Peril
¤ The Devil's Dictionary. . . The Neocon Edition
¤ Attack on Syria Has Neocon Fingerprints
¤ Five Protesters Die in Bolivia After President Calls in Troops
Chavez urges Columbus Day boycott
Posted: Sunday, October 12, 2003
english.aljazeera.net
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has urged fellow Latin Americans not to mark Columbus Day, calling it a celebration of "genocide".
The 1492 discovery of the Americas triggered a 150-year slaughter of native Indians by foreign conquerors who behaved "worse than Hitler", the populist president told a meeting in Caracas of representatives of Indian people from across the continent.
"Christopher Columbus was the spearhead of the biggest invasion and genocide ever seen in the history of humanity,"
Columbus Day on 12 October is celebrated as a holiday in the United States and several Latin American nations, but Chavez said it should be remembered as the "Day of Indian Resistance."
"We Venezuelans, we Latin Americans, have no reason to honour Columbus," he added.
Massacre
The Venezuelan leader said Spanish, Portuguese and other foreign conquerors had massacred South America's Indian inhabitants at an average rate of roughly "one every 10 minutes". He described Spanish conquistadors like Hernan Cortes and Francisco Pizarro, as "worse than Hitler".
He said even the continent's geographical names, like America and Venezuela, were imposed by foreigners.
"Long live Sitting Bull!"
Chavez's opponents, who are seeking a referendum to try to vote him out of office, say his self-styled "revolution" in the world's fifth largest oil exporter is aimed at installing an anti-US communist system like the one in Cuba. Chavez says his brand of left-wing nationalism will make Venezuela more independent.
The Venezuelan leader hailed as heroes Indian chiefs who had fought against the invaders, such as Guaicaipuro who resisted the Spanish founders of Caracas, and American Indian chief Sitting Bull, who defeated US general George Armstrong Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876.
"Long live Sitting Bull!" Chavez declared, drawing applause from his audience, many of whom wore traditional native clothes and head-dresses.
Reproduced from:
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/71D35D51-868B-46AB-BB2D-1EDE551F6DA9.htm
Latest News
Posted: Sunday, October 12, 2003
¤ Israeli plans for Iran attack
¤ Israeli offensive against Rafah continues
¤ US environment policies under fire
¤ UN delays Africa arms visit
¤ Suicide Blast Kills 6 Near Baghdad Hotel
¤ Dumbing down U.S. politics
¤ Bush's once-mighty empire springs a serious leak
¤ Has Bush lost control of his own government?
¤ U.S. Military Largely Comprised Of Rural Americans
¤ Israeli airstrike puts secret deal in jeopardy
¤ Baghdad bombing condemned by United States
¤ I saw the driver. He was not an Iraqi
¤ America can't make Iraq's black gold flow
¤ Israel deploys nuclear arms in submarines
¤ U.S. to veto UN resolution against security fence
¤ Sharon Acts Tough, Sensing U.S. Assent
¤ IDF planning to attack nuclear sites in Iran
¤ Israel warned over separation fence as Syria threatens revenge
¤ Palestinian shot dead in Gaza Strip as Israeli town bombed
¤ Hizbollah warns: We'll open new front on Israel
¤ Cheney's former company in probe
¤ Why in-fighting is losing Iraq and could cost Rumsfeld his job
¤ Rice Fails to Repair Rifts, Officials Say
¤ Bush-Blair ratings slide further
Flashback Iraq oil - the target for years
¤ Bush launches PR salvo on Iraq
¤ Bush insists US has clear Iraq strategy
¤ Bush Says Iraq Life Returning to Normal
¤ Blast rocks central Baghdad
¤ Huge blast rocks Baghdad
¤ US forces hit in Baghdad blast
¤ At least 10 killed in Iraq explosion
¤ Violence in Iraq Spreads to North
¤ Aid Workers Leaving Iraq, Fearing They Are Targets
¤ Ex-SAS flock to Iraq - and earn £1,000 a day as bodyguards
¤ An Anti-American Iraqi Cleric Declares His Own Government
¤ US soldiers bulldoze Iraq farmers' crops
¤ Chavez urges Columbus Day boycott
¤ Mixing up John Major with their Australian 'ally' John Howard
¥ The U.S can't even get present history correct
¤ The revenger's tragedy: why women turn to suicide bombing
¤ U.S. Soldier Hurt Fighting Afghan Rebels
¤ Islamic Summit Prepares to Welcome Iraq
¤ Flaw in crop trials destroys government case for GM
¤ Bliar? IDS was right
¤ Eight die in Sulawesi attacks
¤ The Indian trap
¤ Restructuring the UN Security Council
Latest News
Posted: Saturday, October 11, 2003
¤ Grasping for straws on Iraq
¤ Iraq: More Spin, Bureaucracy
¤ A Year on the Wrong National Path
¤ Cuba and the "Necessary Viciousness" of the Bushites
¤ Duplicity at Home and Abroad
¤ Screw You Right Back
¤ Straw 'censors' anti-US speech
¤ Syria and Israel trade words
¤ Call for US to exit Iraq
¤ Bush may rewrite rules on endangered animals
¤ WMD Report cries out for new dreaded 'L' word: Lie!
¤ Bush Touts New Iraq Currency as Sign of Progress
¤ Many soldiers, same letter
¤ Gaza raid violates international law: UN
¤ UN estimate for rebuilding Iraq half that of Bush's
¤ Iraq divisions, anger at Israeli strike in Syria, mark Islamic summit
¤ Stalking Syria
¤ Regime change, the prequel
¤ Row over where Turk troops will go in Iraq
¤ Red Cross continues its criticism of the U.S. prison at Guantánamo Bay
¤ White House Officials Say Iraq Is Improving
¤ Bush closer to getting Iraq money...
¤ Getting It Straight On Iraq
¤ Free-Fire Zones -- Baghdad and D.C.
¤ U.N. veto tradition is 'policy of doing nothing': Cheney
¤ Crime puts Iraqi women under house arrest
¤ Islamic nations want U-S troops out of Iraq
¤ Two U.S. soldiers, one Iraqi killed as events of clash disputed
¤ Two soldiers killed, 4 wounded in nighttime fight with Iraqis
¤ Annan condemns Israeli action in Gaza
¤ Israel Continues Gaza Military Operation Despite UN Criticism
¤ Palestinian envoy warns of more violence unless Israel halts barrier
¤ Paying to Make Enemies of America
¤ Six die as Israelis seek tunnels
¤ French sleaze inquiry targets US oil subsidiary
¤ Tensions rise after GI's fight Shiites
¤ Bush steps up anti-Cuba campaign
¤ U.S., Israel Say Bombed Camp Was Active
¤ British, US and Iraqi dead honoured
¤ Crime puts Iraqi women under house arrest
¤ So, was it worth it?
¤ The Always Unstable Afghanistan
¤ The right to know is gaining around the world
¤ How Blair got Britain into a war it didn't want
¤ A fig leaf the United Nations won't provide
¤ The Bush way
¤ Arms sales fuelled by logic of my enemy's enemy is my friend
¤ US spy satellite identified Syrian camp
¤ Threat to Iran
¤ Turkey disturbed by Iraqi opposition
¤ Seven killed in held Kashmir violence
¤ Two Iraqis, two US soldiers killed
¤ Anti-terrorism scorecard: US vs Bali
¤ Imperialism and fragmentation
¤ The hammer poised to strike in Pakistan
¤ A Shi'ite warning to America
Latest News
Posted: Friday, October 10, 2003
¤ Us War Propaganda Is Pathetic
¤ When War Fails, Launch a PR Campaign
¤ Bush touts the wonderful job he's done on Iraq
¤ Deaths, violence surges in Baghdad
¤ Baghdad Shiites bury their "martyrs" and tell Americans to get out
¤ Bush Joins Worldwide War on Women
¤ Good Morning Vietnam
¤ Image Vs. Reality: Daddy Will Take Care of You
¤ Lessons in Civility
¤ Total Recall
¤ Citizen Van Winkle Awakes
¤ Hard Sell on Iraq
¤ Iraq reconstruction needs $55 billion
¤ Spain's Chief Assailed at Home After Killing of Spaniard in Iraq
¤ Muslim Army Chaplain Charged With Disobeying Orders
¤ Israeli Forces Continue Major Gaza Raid
¤ Many killed in Israeli invasion
¤ Wolfowitz Says U.S. Will Not Be Driven from Iraq
¤ India buys radar systems from Israel
¤ Guantanamo opposition on the rise
¤ Afghan warlords cease fire as toll swells to 80
¤ No money, no play: US on the brink in Iraq
¤ The decline of the American presidency
¤ War on terror fuels small arms trade
¤ One death a minute: toll of the booming arms trade
¤ I was protecting you from a madman, Bush tells America
¤ Six months after Saddam
¤ Iraq, six months on
¤ 3 Killed in Israeli Sweep of Refugee Camp
¤ Republicans accused of electoral bugging
¤ Lights, petrol, schools and a theatre - morsels of hope in a dark city
¤ 2 GIs Killed After Deadly Baghdad Bombing
¤ Clashes resume between Afghan rival militias
¤ Oil may be a mixed blessing for impoverished Chad
¤ Ignoring Iraqis comes with a terrible price
¤ Rising tide of lawlessness in Basra
¤ Baghdad Suicide Blast Kills 10, Wounds 45
¤ Turkish troops would make things worse in Iraq
¤ Iraqi police in the cross hairs of anti-US forces
¤ Spanish attaché killed in Baghdad
¤ Ambush kills 2 U.S. soldiers in Baghdad
¤ Suicide bomber hits Israeli post
¤ Israeli govt can’t go on without war, says Assad
¤ Palestinians ask UN to ban Israeli fence
¤ Aggression by proxy
¤ Rumsfeld shares his thoughts
¤ Rumsfeld scrambles to paper over rift
¤ . . . And the Infighting
¤ Two control freaks in a tug of war
¤ The real danger is the fantasy in Washington
¤ Grumbling in Pakistan Spells More Trouble for the US
¤ What Is News?
¤ Qurie 'quits as Palestinian Prime Minister'
¤ The transformation of Donald Rumsfeld
¤ Imperialism as modernity
¤ China feels sting of unwanted Afghan export
¤ Right reserved for pre-emptive strike if practice spreads: Putin
World Report
Posted: Thursday, October 9, 2003
Venezuela's US Ambassador rejects US News & World Report as outrageous, false! www.vheadline.com
Venezuelanalysis.com reports that Venezuela's Ambassador to the United States, Bernardo Alvarez Herrera has sent a letter to the editors of the US News & World Report following an article entitled "Terror Close to Home" published in the October 6 issue of that magazine, in which author Linda Robinson links Venezuela's democratic government to terrorist organizations.
Latest News
Posted: Thursday, October 9, 2003
¤ Seeing the Iraqi People
¤ President Schwarzenegger?
¤ Welcome to Arnold, King for a Day
¤ America, swept to war on a lie
¤ Impeach Bush Now
¤ Think You're Hearing Spin? You're Wrong
¤ Bush Officials Bend Iraq Facts Till They Break
¤ Weapons of Mass Deception
¤ Bush Says Iraq Is 'Better Than You Probably Think'
¤ Disgusting Our Pentagon Sells WMDS
¤ Of mice and mountains
¤ It Isn't What It Is
¤ Just the (Documented) Facts, Ma'am
¤ House Panel Approves $87 Billion for Iraq
¤ Rice says report on Saddam validates move to wage war
¤ US forces pull out of Iraqi town after repeated attack
¤ UK oil firm targets Afghanistan
¤ Stay in Bed
¤ Animal experts question Siegfried's version of tiger attack
¤ Car Bombing and 2 Other Attacks in Iraq Leave at Least 10 Dead
¤ Spanish diplomat shot dead in Baghdad
¤ Amid Iraq unrest, a force of children takes over security
¤ America may abandon quest for UN backing
¤ Rival Warlords Fighting in Afghanistan
¤ 60 killed in Afghan factional fighting
¤ Rice leaves Rumsfeld hot under the collar
¤ Rumsfeld says White House kept him in dark over Iraq issue
¤ Bush, Rice Defend Administration's Iraq Policy
¤ In Iraq, Push Is on for Detainees' Rights
¤ Protests greet Turkey troop plan; 112 Iraqis arrested
¤ Bush Pushes Ahead With Iraq Initiative
¤ Bush: U.S. 'Did the Right Thing' in Iraq
¤ US 'empire' and its limits
¤ New world disorder
¤ US suffers new setback at UN
¤ US moves closer to sanctions against Syria
¤ Syrian envoy causes alarm as Israel cuts short military leave
¤ Strike again and we will strike back, Syria vows
¤ Sharon: Left wing is collaborating with the Palestinians
¤ Groping for victory
¤ Arnie, the humiliator
¤ Some mistake?
¤ Voter revolt could be bad news for Bush
¤ Britain Urges Speedup in Iraq
¤ Navy sonars blamed for beached whales
¤ 10 militants killed in held Kashmir
¤ Penny-Wise Aid
¤ Spending On Iraq Sets Off Gold Rush
¤ Fifty-one schoolgirls killed in bus inferno
Latest News
Posted: Wednesday, October 8, 2003
¤ Where Oh Where Are Those W.M.D.?
¤ Iraqi Shiite leader says US troops need to leave asap
¤ A Band of Brothers: The Rebuilding of Iraq(PDF)
¤ 1 Year Later, the President's Evidence for Going to War remains Illusory
¤ The Washington Post’s Cave-In on Moussaoui
¤ Listen to the pilots
¤ Operation Good News' last gasp
¤ Iraqis split on Turkish troops plan
¤ Polish forces threatened after Iraqi's death in shootout
¤ Turkey to deploy troops in defiance of new Iraqi leaders
¤ Terror suspect tortured
¤ Car Bomb Kills 6 at Colombia Market Area
¤ U.S. Can't Locate Missiles Once Held in Iraq Arsenal
¤ New CIA Logo for Dubya's CYA Policy
¤ Iraq and Corporate Patriotism: It's Time to Stop the War Profiteers
¤ Divvying up the Iraq pie
¤ Bush’s ‘New Deal’
¤ Arnold in Wonderland: Curiouser and Curiouser
¤ How Blair Lost by Winning
¤ Paying For Iraq
¤ $555 Billion The True U.S. Deficit
¤ The Real Criminals Are In The White House
¤ Truth In Media:An Oxymoron
¤ News, But Not As We Know It
¤ White House kicks off Iraq PR blitz
¤ AWOL state of mind
¤ The Governator rises
¤ Hunt for Leaker Lacks Inspiration
¤ Israel Increases Troops in Palestinian Territories
Flashback Sharon Planning Massive Gaza Raid in Early October
Flashback Israel Wants U.S. To Attack Syria
Flashback US Assures Israel That Syria And Iran Are Next
¤ White House OKs penalties against Syria
¤ Howard censured over push for war with Iraq
¤ Arab fury at Israel's 'terror acts'
¤ Gaddafi announces his separation from the Arabs
¤ Washington's warlord
¤ Sharon: Israel Will Strike at Enemies
¤ For Bush and Sharon, the options are steadily dwindling
¥ Partners in Crime
¤ Bush signals backing for Syria sanctions
¤ Bush Stance on Syria Hit Shows Neocons Still Hold Sway
¤ Neo-con fingerprints on Syria raid
¤ Jobless soldiers fuel anti-US riots in Iraq
¤ Damascus defiant in face of air strike, but options are limited
¤ The Road Map to Damascus
¤ Impotence of power
¤ Assad Faces First Test As Syria's Leader
¤ Raid has only delayed an inevitable confrontation
¤ The wall of shame
¤ Ankara appeases US by agreeing to deploy troops
¤ Turks vote to send troops, but Iraq says they're not welcome
¤ Iraqi leader attacks US over plan to use Turkish troops
¤ 3 US soldiers among 5 killed in Iraq
¤ U.S. May Drop Quest for Vote on Iraq in U.N.
¤ Pakistani cities hit by riots after killing of Muslim leader
¤ One killed as mob goes on rampage in Islamabad
¤ In an angry world, keep burnishing US image
¤ United States-backed warlords stand in the way
¤ Rich tourist trophy hunters are wiping out African lion population
¤ Schwarzenegger wins California governorship
¤ Arnie's goosing gets cooked-up outrage
¤ Endangered and dangerous
¤ Policemen accused of killing Biko will not be prosecuted
¤ Political outrage can be outrageously selective
Latest News
Posted: Tuesday, October 7, 2003
¤ The UN knew full well that no WMD would be found in Iraq
¤ Revelation casts doubt on Iraq find
> The test tube of botulinum presented by Washington and London
> as evidence that Saddam Hussein had been developing and
> concealing weapons of mass destruction, was found in an
> Iraqi scientist's home refrigerator, where it had been
> sitting for 10 years, it emerged yesterday.
¥ Another of Bush and Blair's weapon of mass distraction destroyed
Flashback Toxins found in Iraq, chief inspector says
¥ The Deception
¤ U.S. Propaganda: Selling America to the Muslims
¤ Saddam's elusive weapons
¤ Was Iraq a 'Gathering Danger'?
¤ Act of desperation or a cynical ploy?
¤ Selective reading and choice friends
¤ Bush Backs Israel
¤ Time for US to preempt Mideast instability
¤ Attack on Syria
¤ Syria accuses Israel of warmongering
¤ FBI sent money to Hamas while Clinton was negotiating Wye
¤ Damascus should answer Sharon’s challenge
¤ Bush asserts right of Israel to strike at Syria in self-defence
¤ US asserts Israel's right to self-defence after attack on Syria 'camp'
¤ Raid into Syria splits UN
¤ Training camp closed long ago
¤ The risk of a wider conflict increases
¤ Lebanese boy, Israeli soldier killed
¤ White House takes direct role in the running of Iraqi affairs
¤ New team to oversee Iraq effort
¤ White House challenges Pentagon's role in Iraq
¤ US sacks police chief: Sends more troops to restore calm in oil town
¤ Projectile explodes near Iraqi Foreign Ministry
¤ Explosion at the Iraqi foreign minister, demonstration at palace
¤ US troops kill two ex-Iraqi army men
¤ Putin warns US of decade-long war in Iraq
¤ Assad Says Air Strike Will Enhance Syria
¤ Detained Terror Suspect Kills 3 in Manila
¤ Face it, you'll never be rich
¤ And now, currency wars
¤ America's goodwill deficit
¤ Oil above $30 on Nigeria, Mideast supply fears
¤ Lebanese Boy Killed Near Israel Border
¤ Mulla Omar's aide killed
¤ Sunni chief killed
¤ Television journalist who quit over faked war report is found hanged
¤ Crisis heightens Iran's divisions
¤ Bollywood: Fiction stranger than truth
Latest News
Posted: Monday, October 6, 2003
¤ On the Auction Block
¤ Israel has right to defend itself - Bush
¤ Bush says Israel has right for self-defense
¥ So do the Palestinians
¤ Raid on Syria is a Lethal Step Towards War
¤ US to Hold Syria 'Accountable'
Flashback Bush warns Syria: Cooperate, or else
Flashback Syria denies hiding Iraqi weapons
¤ Answers please, Mr Bush
¤ Yes, Bush lied
¤ Mideast Tensions Surge
¤ Why Did They Kill My Child: Palestinian Mother
¤ Bush's Decision to Invade Iraq Happened Days after September 11th
¤ Vanishing credibility
¤ 'Bush 'missing homework' scandal unearthed'
¤ The spin is not holding
¤ Fair Game
¤ George W. Bush's medieval presidency
¤ Once-supportive, critical villagers now openly anti-American
¤ Prising open the Syrian file
¤ Tensions Mount in Iraq Oil-Refining City
¤ Two Iraqis demanding army pay shot dead by US forces
¤ U.S. Troops Occupy Iraq Oil Refining City
¤ Use of private security firms in Iraq draws concerns
¤ Critics see White House double standard on leaks
¤ FBI Sent Hamas Money in Late 1990's
¤ Inside the Boeing deal scandal
Flashback Judge Backs Student's Bush 'Terrorist' T-Shirt
¤ Sharing Opinion Shouldn't be Risky
¤ Dumpblair
¤ Israel Is The Problem
¤ Israeli jets hit Syria camp in blast revenge
¤ Syria calls on UN to condemn attack
¤ Israel threatens more air strikes against Syria
¤ Security Council adjourns without vote on Syria raid
¤ 'Road Map' Setbacks Highlight U.S. Pattern
¤ Israel's justification for attack on Syria
¤ Israel widens its war on terror
¤ Jerusalem's growing web of walls
¤ 'Seeking full details,' U.S. keeps its distance
¤ Stopping the Mideast Spiral
¤ Sliding towards chaos
¤ White House to Overhaul Iraq and Afghan Missions
¤ Afghanistan grappling with ever escalating instability
¤ West still failing to protect Afghan women
¤ Afghan women still suffer widespread abuses
¤ Former soldiers riot in Basra
¤ Police flee as Saddam loyalists fuel city revolt
¤ U.S. pays ex-Iraq troops a one-time 40 stipend
¤ Jordan denies WMDs crossed its borders
¤ 'Bluffs have to be taken seriously'
¤ Cook's diary revelations prompt calls for war inquiry
¤ WMD questions linger
¤ Pentagon ignored reports on dire state of Iraq's oil industry
¤ US estimates of Iraq’s oil contradictory: NYT
¤ This horror that can't be let lie
¤ For better - or worse
¤ American carefree tourists, beware
¤ Avoid quagmire, Putin tells U.S.
¤ Putin Says U.S. Faces Big Risks in Effort in Iraq
¤ The Cost of Empire
¤ An overstretched army
¤ What is Victory?
¤ Neocon Reckoning
¤ Neophyte Gorge
¤ Bush's sellout on Chechnya
¤ A first chapter in the history we sorely need
¤ Turkey to monitor US moves against Iraqi Kurds
¤ Destroying The Enemy
Latest News
Posted: Sunday, October 5, 2003
¤ This gang can't even steal straight
¤ U.S. 'years' from cut in Iraq force
¤ Iraqi council curious about US dealings
¤ A Rush to War-Now a Rush Out of One?
¤ Ex-Minister Says Blair Knew Iraq Had No Banned Arms
¤ Blair 'knew Iraq threat limited'
¤ Blair had doubts on Iraqi WMD prior to war
¤ Jordan denies US claims that Iraqi WMD moved to its territories
¤ The zealot who holds Bush's future in his hands
¤ Welcome to New York, Mr. President. Watch out for muggers
¤ Israeli retaliation against Palestinian leader won't serve peace
¤ Bush Struggling to Regain Political Footing
¤ Leaking With a Vengeance
¤ Syria: Israel attacked civilian area
¤ US claims Iraq vial is 'evidence'
¤ Is Iraq Another Vietnam Quagmire? No and Yes
¤ Iraqis' patience wears thin as America delays handover
¤ Bush under fire
¤ Beaten, abused, chained. This is one Afghan woman's 'liberation'
¤ Troops kill rioters in Baghdad and Basra
¤ Magician is critically injured on stage as tiger leaps at his throat
¤ Survey Group head's link to arms industry
¤ No uranium, no munitions, no missiles, no programmes
¤ Saddam's nuclear arsenal? A scattering of yellow powder
¤ Democrats warn of 'profiteering' in reconstruction contracts
¤ Report Offered Bleak Outlook About Iraq Oil
¤ Israel attacks Islamic Jihad base in Syria
¤ Blair 'not welcome' at war service
¤ FBI questions Bush officials over 'outing' of CIA agent
¤ Protesters fear nuclear arms in space
¤ US and Iran in secret peace talks
¤ School heads go into hiding after Baghdad teacher is killed
¤ Israel strikes at Palestinian training camp on Syrian soil
¤ Israelis lock Palestinians in
¤ Bomber kills 20 in holiday horror
Ethiopian Scholars: Products of Flawed History
Posted: Sunday, October 5, 2003
By Asmerom Kidane, www.biddho.com
Visiting Professor of Econometrics
University of Dar es Salaam
Posted: October 05, 2003
1. Introduction
Every country, nation or nationality is expected to have a history of its own. We have been repetitively told that we can all learn from history-emulate or replicate the positive aspects and making sure that the negative components are either rectified or not repeated. We learn from our or other's history provided that the sequences of historical events are correctly recorded and objectively analyzed. I happen to be an applied statistician by profession; in this field we have a sub discipline which we call Time Series Analysis. This discipline is nothing but an empirical analysis of historical data. For example one may wish to study past growth of GDP or aggregate income; the historical data are plotted on a graph in order to detect past patterns of growth or decline. Next the investigator tries to objectively identify the reasons or causes for the past growth or decline. This approach presupposes that to the best of the statistician's ability, the historical data is recorded with minimum errors or biases. Otherwise what ever conclusion the statistician makes could not only be misleading but he may be offering wrong income policy prescriptions. The same analogy should apply when scholars study and interpret a country's or peoples or event history. It goes without saying that historians bear a burden of heavy responsibility when documenting events of historical significance and it is incumbent upon them to interpret their findings as objectively as possible.
When one reads or cruises over the various books and narratives written on Ethiopia's past by Ethiopian scholars, one may conclude that there is a lot to be desired. Not only are Ethiopian scholars subjective and selective but also their interpretation of historical events and personalities seems to be highly flawed. They fail to foresee the undesirable consequences of their flawed narratives on the future unity and sovereignty of their country. They may have to take joint responsibility for the sad state of affairs that Ethiopia is in.
In this exercise an attempt will be made to show how Ethiopian scholar/historians viewed their leaders over the past century and half (1855-2003). During this extended period, Ethiopia was ruled by four emperors, one colonel and the ones currently in power-the Weyanes. There were also three other leaders, Teklegiorgis, Eyasu and Zewditu but these were of little consequence - either their reign was brief or they were simply sidelined-. Ethiopian historians have made heroes out of the four so called emperors and Colonel Mengistu. Their verdict on the status of the Weyane leadership is not out yet. We will summarize the deeds/misdeeds of the four emperors along with the other two and check whether they deserve to be declared as heroes.
2. The Reign of Theodros (1855-1868)
Theodros ascended to power in 1855 at the age 33. He is believed to be from humble background and Ethiopian scholars credit him for uniting Ethiopia from the era of principalities (Mesafintis) without ever mentioning the means he followed to reach to the top. European travellers who were in and around Gondar during his reign have documented that Theodros was selfish and quick tempered.. Alan Morehead, in his book 'The Blue Nile' describes Theodros as '... a mad dog set loose...' in reaction of his treatment of both Ethiopians and foreigners.
Few months after he took power and after claiming that he had liquidated potential pretenders to the throne, the country begins to disintegrate again and moves towards anarchy. It is believed that Theodros spent most of his 13 years reign moving from one place to the other, killing most of his enemies and many of his friends. The way he was committing crimes against humanity is simply horrendous.- putting hundreds of would be conspirators in thatched huts, locking and then setting them on fire, throwing hundreds of prisoners and opponents into the deep precipice of Magdela, burning towns such as Gonder, imprisoning his brothers, relatives, foreign travellers and emissaries, looting and vandalizing villages. In the end he ended up being so unpopular and paranoid; he feared for his life and with his few remaining followers fortified and confined himself to the mountain top of Magdala. Finally he ended his life while resisting capture by Napier's British expedition. Theodros was succeeded by Teklegiorghis whose reign did not even last three years.
This is the personality of Theodros. One finds it difficult to comprehend why Ethiopian scholars admire, adore, glorify and make a hero out of such character. This is nothing but a flawed interpretation of history.
3. The reign of Yohannes (1871-1889)
Yohannes defeats Tekleghiorghis his brother in law (husband of his sister) captures him and literally blinds him by inserting a hot iron bar into his eyes! (What a moronic character!). This is not an allegation; it is simply the truth as it appears in a standard Ethiopian historical text authored by non other than Tekletsadik Mekuria, the so called Ethiopian historian. (In a later edition of the book the author withdraws the above allegation probably after protests and intimidations by the Yohannes royal house.) It should be noted that Yohannes victory over Tekleghiorgis was due to the fact that his army was equipped with modern weaponry; he was rewarded with armaments by the British Napier expedition for his anti Ethiopian services and for his treasonous activities against Theodros.
Once Yohannes ascends to power in 1871 he gives Ethiopian Moslems an ultimatum-either convert to Christianity or else. Many brave Ethiopian Moslems defied the edict; as a result thousands were massacred, disfigured and were forced to out-migrate to safe heavens such as Eritrea and Sudan. During the emperor's regime there was a rebellion in Gojjam region-Yohannes and his army march to the province, plunder and ravage the country side and leave the place completely ransacked. In the end Yohannes was defeated and beheaded in the battle of Metema while fighting the Mahdists of Sudan (1889). It is widely believed that the Ethiopian Moslems who were forced to leave their homeland because they did not wish to succumb to the Emperor's wild edict were responsible for his humiliating defeat. It is the Yohannes type misfits that the present day Ethiopian scholars admire and revere. They have named streets, airports and schools after them. This should not have been the case and that is why one can safely conclude that the Ethiopian history books are highly flawed.
4. The reign of Menelik
When Yohannes passes Menelik comes into the picture (1889-1913). Like Yohannes, Menelik came to power through treacherous and treasonable activities. He 'stabbed Yohanees in the back' by aligning himself with the Italians; at that time the latter were arch enemies of Yohannes; Menelik also failed to support Yohannes's bid to 'defend' Ethiopia from the Mahdists. He was probably praying that Yohannes would die in the battle field so that he will take over... and that is exactly what happened. Treason number one for Menelik. Current Ethiopian scholars and politicians regard Menelik as the architect of modern Ethiopia. This is not true; the stark reality is that, Menelik was a typical colonizer and an active participant in the scramble for Africa. He forcibly subdued the Oromos, the Welaitas, Kembatas, Afars, Somalis, Aderes and many other nations and nationalities in the South, Southwest and East of present day Ethiopia. He imposed an archaic Menz type culture on these otherwise proud people. He forced them to change their religion, values cultures and in some instances their truly democratic traditions (such as the Gada system). He treated the vanquished as slaves ready to be sold in an auction like market.
It should be noted that Menelik's conquest of the South was not a 'walk in'; he did encounter stiff resistance especially from the Welaitas, Arssi Oromos and the Aderes of Harar. He was able to defeat them using the relatively modern weapons he acquired from the Italians via Asseb. After defeating the southern nations and nationalities, he appointed his own native Amharas to be the warlords. Any historian with a slight semblance of objectivity cannot label Menelik as a hero. He is not – pure and simple. On the contrary many Ethiopian scholars admire this so called hero to the extent of almost worshiping him. This is nothing but a deliberate distortion of historical facts. Given this attitude, there is no way for the present day Ethiopian scholars to gain respect and credibility from the Oromos, Kambatas, and other oppressed nationalities.
5. The Reign of Haile Selassie
The next 'major' emperor of the Ethiopian empire is Teferi Mekonnen alias Haile Selassie (his imperial name is almost one km. long!). The real heir apparent to Menelik's throne was his grand son Eyasu. He was 17 years old when he became a national leader (what a shame) and only stayed in power for three years (1913-1916). As expected he was ousted by Teferi in the usual Abyssinian approach - through treason. This time Teferi's pretext for overthrowing Eyasu was his Islamic lineage and tendency as well as the fact that he was not a Shoan Menz par excellence! Once in power (1916-1930 as a regent 1931-1974 as an emperor) Teferi made a dummy out of Zewditu - the new empress - by sidelining her on the archaic pretext that she is a woman; he put his children and relatives in high places and placed behind the bars any would be opponent. Four years after he was crowned as emperor, Ethiopia was invaded by Fascist Italy. Instead of undertaking a protracted warfare, Haile selassie briefly appeared in Maichew battlefield not to fight but for a photo show; he abandoned his rug tag army and immediately returned to Addis; few days later he fled to Britain by a royal cruiser liner that was waiting him in Djiboutti. With him he took his family, relatives and what ever was available in the treasury.
Haile Selassie was residing in Bath, Britain waiting and praying for a miracle to happen... and... BINGO!!... miracle did happen. Italy along with Germany declared war on Britain. With the assistance of the British, Haile selassie was on his way to Ethiopia via Sudan after five years of seclusion.
Ethiopian scholars/historians declared Haile selassie as the liberator. Again this is far from the truth. The plain fact is that Italians in Ethiopia were defeated by the British not by Haile selassie and his forces. By the time he arrived in Khartoum in 1941 he did not have a credible army; he just assembled few hundred recruits from among the Ethiopian refugees in the Sudan and hired a military adviser in the name of Colonel Wingate (a weird character).
Before Haile Selassie crossed the Ethio Sudan border via Gojjam (he was scared to use Gonder as an entry point because there were many patriots waiting to capture him... remember Blata Takkele!!!... ) the British had already occupied most of Ethiopia by attacking Italian lines from the North that is from Sudan, via Eritrea... to Ethiopia and from the South, via Kenya and British Somali land to Ethiopia. In other words by the time Haile Selassie crossed into Ethiopia, he did not face any resistance. Every thing was 'ready made' for him. When Haile Selassie arrived in Debre Marcos, General Cunningham's British army had already occupied the capital Addis Abeba. The British officers instructed and warned Haile Selassie to stay in Debre Marcos and not move south to Addis. The British military were about to declare Ethiopia as a conquered enemy territory thereby establishing a colonial administration. Haile Selassie was believed to be in a state of depression. It was only through Churchill's instruction and the sympathy the British had for the Ethiopians that Haile Selassie was finally allowed to proceed to Addis Abeba and hoist the Ethiopian flag. Even then Ethiopia was still under British domination until 1944.
Contrary to what Ethiopian scholars lead us to believe Haile selassie cannot be a hero... this is another one of a series of making a hero out of a villains. As of late Ethiopian scholars also seem to be divided on whether Haile Selassie was a hero or not. Those who were active during hid reign label him as a hero; Mengistu and his intellectual followers call him a villain; Weyane and their sympasizers don't even know how to label him.
6. Mengistu and the Weyanes
We have two more 'villains' to go before we reach the twenty first century. This time I will try to be brief as many people know who Mengistu is and who the Weyanes are. One of the most vicious tyrants of the twentieth century is Mengistu (1974-1991). It will be time and energy consuming to narrate the atrocities and misdeeds of this psychopath. As usual he climbed to power through treason and deception by demystifying the invincibility of Ethiopian emperors; he simply murdered Haile selassie, massacred his grand children and relatives, his ministers and generals - one by one. He assassinated thousands of Ethiopians including many of the products of Ethiopia's flawed history. He launched the so called 'red terror' whereby thousands of children, adults and elders were massacred in broad day light; he charged a fee for parents who wish to take their dead relatives. In the end his half a million Ethiopian army was decimated by the gallant freedom fighters of Eritrea. Without showing any resistance he fled to Zimbabwe with his children and relatives. Mengistu is probably the most coward among Ethiopia's so called heroes.
Last and least we have the current leaders of Ethiopia-the Weyanes-. Fortunately they are not yet declared as heroes by the Ethiopian scholars. The ethnic group where the Weyane hail from constitute only 5% of the Ethiopian population making them unfit to lead a country of 65 million. Setting this aside for the moment, the Weyanes are the worst pathological liars of their kind. Because of this built - in habit, whatever they utter today is forgotten or denied the next day (witness Seyoum Mesfin's statements following the border ruling and afterwards). The Weyanes claim to have given Ethiopian ethnic groups their right to self rule and yet they arrest, torture and kill their best leaders; they claim that they are for free press and yet they are very brutal against journalists, they claim that the Ethiopian economy has shown magnificent progress and yet they have 14 million people on the verge of starvation and death, they claim that they have introduced a free market and yet they have depleted the Ethiopian treasury through capital flight to Tigrai and abroad. They claim that they stand for peace in the region and yet they opened war on a neighbor (Eritrea) whereby more than 100 000 mostly non Tigrean Ethiopians are believed to have been perished. They claim that they will abide by the decision of the boundary commission and yet they refuse to go along in the demarcation process. More can be said, has been said and will be said about the current misfits running the country. As usual they came to power through treason and deception. Chances are that they may not stay there much longer. It is every body's hope that, this may be the right time for Ethiopians to change leadership through democratic and peaceful means. Unfortunately this is doubtful.
7. Conclusion
We have gone over the true activities of six so called leaders that led Ethiopia down the drain over the past 148 years (1855-2003). They include four self styled emperors, one military dictator and the Weyanes. From their actions and reactions they cannot be declared as heroes. If at all there is anything to learn from them it is not to be or act like them and if possible not to remember them. One wishes that this tendency of 'wrong hero worship' should be put to a close. To the contrary this is not what the so called Ethiopian scholars and historians are propagating. It appears that there is little one can do because these same scholars are the product of Ethiopian flawed history. Because of this 'wrong hero worship' Ethiopian scholars, historians and their followers claim to be proud that they are Ethiopians. Surely they can be proud of Ethiopia's good climate, the hospitality of the people, its ethnic mosaic and her other positive attributes. To be proud of their villain leaders is simply an act of irresponsibility with symptoms of Fascism and Nazism.
Unless this 'wrong hero worship' is checked, unless the products of Ethiopia's flawed history come to their senses, unless they have a South African type truce and reconciliation, unless Ethiopian chauvinists atone, recant and publicly apologize for their ancestors' misdeeds Ethiopia will be there for more trouble. If the Ethiopians scholars - both within the country and in the Diaspora - do not return to their senses they will continue to be a problem, not only for Ethiopia but also for its neighbours. Their recent postings and utterances suggest that they are unlikely to return back to sanity. In my next posting I will try to summarize current activities of the so called Ethiopian scholars cum historians. God Bless.
Reproduced with permission from:
Asmerom Kidane, www.biddho.com
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Posted: Saturday, October 4, 2003
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Posted: Thursday, October 2, 2003
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¤ Tit for Tat: The major media gets their wartime kickback
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