Clipmarks | papananook's 'peace' clips

Some great sons from Raul Midon

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 21:19:40 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: beautiful songs, neh?

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Guitarist and singer Raul Midon plays "Everybody" and "Peace on Earth" during his 2007 set at TED.

Guitarist and singer Raul Midon blends flamenco, jazz and R&B to create a category-defying sound. His life story is as inspiring as his musical vision. Full bio and more links »

Peter Diamandis on Stephen Hawking in zero g
Length: 04:01
Filmed: Feb 2008
Posted: Jun 2008

Adam Grosser and his sustainable fridge
Length: 03:31
Filmed: Feb 2007
Posted: Jun 2008

McCain's volatile temper

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 19:28:19 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: What really annoys me about McCain is his kinda shrug-off attitude to anyone challenin his ideas or his so-called hero status...I'd like to know what missions he flew in Vietnam and who he bombed before he was shot down.

Clip Source: www.mcclatchydc.com

GULFPORT, Miss. — John McCain engaged in a physical confrontation in 1987 with a left-wing Sandinista leader during a diplomatic meeting in Nicaragua, according to one of his colleagues, Sen. Thad Cochran, a Mississippi Republican.

Still, Cochran told the Sun Herald of Biloxi, Miss., on Monday that he'd witnessed a confrontation between McCain and a Sandinista leader that shocked him, in which McCain "got mad at the guy and he just reached over there and snatched him."

"The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine," Cochran told the Globe. "He is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."

The two senators have since made peace. Cochran said McCain had included him on a recent campaign visit to Mississippi. He told the Sun Herald on Monday that McCain is the best man for the job.

But he drew wide national notice in January when he told The Boston Globe his judgment of his longtime Senate colleague McCain.

For sale: one used country - cheap

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 14:47:19 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks:
The US news media didn't think this post 9/11 "mercy" flight for Bush's personal friends was worth investigating.

==============================

How deep the connection goes

"September 13, 2001 - Thousands of Americans were dead. They have been killed in a terrorist operation largely run by Saudis. Nonetheless the two men (Bush and Prince Bandar Of Saudi Arabia) each lit up a Cohiba cigar (on the Truman balcony of the White House)...

Few Americans realized that these two dynasties had a history dating back more than twenty years. Not just business partners and personal friends, the Bushes and the Saudis had pulled off elaborate covert operations and gone to war together...

They had been involved in the Iran-contra scandal, in secret U.S. aid in the Afghanistan War that gave birth of Osama bin Laden."

From: House of Bush, House of Saud: The secret relationship between the world's most powerful dynasties by Craig Unger. Page 15

Clip Source: www.brasschecktv.com

[Video]

For sale: one used country - cheap

Over the years, the Saudi Royal Family has put at least $1.4 billion into the hands of the Bush family and its friends.

Even in these days of inflation, that's real money.

Did Bush go to Saudi Arabia to ask for lower oil prices or to assure the Saudis they could keep sticking it to us as long as he and his family were given their cut?

In the days right after 9/11, all commercial flights in US air space including those for Congressmen and the FBI, the private jets of billionaires, and transportation for donated organs were shut down.

There was one exception...

The White House arranged for dozens of still unnamed Saudi Arabians living in the US - including members of the House of Saud and the Bin Laden family - to be flown out of the country in style.

The FBI didn't think it was necessary to get a passenger list...but if you show up at a peace rally, they'll be sure to get your face on video and add your name to their database if you're arrested at one.

Elite US Army Academy Lures Kids With Mud and Duty

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 00:43:37 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: this sickening;
Kathleen Engle, 16, from Fairfield, California, said she had looked into the Peace Corps and other options but decided on the military.

“I was in fifth grade when 9/11 happened and that’s when I decided the best thing I could do for my country was this,” she said, playing a video game called “America’s Army.”

“I guess it’s going to be hard to kill someone, but if that’s your job and that’s what our commander tells us we need to do, I’m going to do that in order to protect my country.” Brainwashed at 16, or sooner

Clip Source: www.commondreams.org

WEST POINT, New York - Climbing ropes and crawling in the mud under barbed wire, dozens of American high school kids at an unusual summer camp vied to see who could get most dirty as they tackled an Army obstacle course.

And as they ran between obstacles in the woods, the kids shouted Army chants. Asked by a cadet if they were motivated, they shouted back in unison: “Motivated, motivated, downright motivated. Ooh, aah, ooh, aah, I want to kill somebody.”

Each summer, 800 high school kids hoping to become soldiers spend a week at West Point to see what life is like at the prestigious U.S. military academy for future army officers.

With the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan straining the U.S. military and public support low for the Iraq war, recruiting future officers might seem a tough sell. But officials say applications to the summer program are at a record high.

West Point says it recruits “scholars, leaders and athletes.”

Is a voting boycott in order?

Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:32:56 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: This group may go to far but they make good points. We have a rigged political system and Obama is NOT a peace candidate.

Clip Source: truthawaits.com

But there has been some change among the U.S. electorate. We are becoming better informed. And some of us have realized that we cannot bring about peace by continuing to vote for war. We know that a vote that is not counted or is flipped to another candidate is not a voice in government. We know that once in office, candidates cannot be held accountable. And we have decided to boycott the war and express our sincere yearning for peace by not voting in the November election.

If you really want a voice in government, stop voting in rigged elections where you cannot be sure if your vote is even counted.

If you really want peace, don't vote for war criminals.

[Video]

r Long National Nightmare Of Peace And Prosperity Is Finally Over'

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 11:58:45 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: Onion Prophecy of Bush era nailed it...a nd 8 yrs later we gasp...Way to go, 'Murrika!

Clip Source: www.theonion.com

WASHINGTON, DC–Mere days from assuming the presidency and closing the door on eight years of Bill Clinton, president-elect George W. Bush assured the nation in a televised address Tuesday that "our long national nightmare of peace and prosperity is finally over."

President-elect Bush vows that "together, we can put the triumphs of the recent past behind us."

"My fellow Americans," Bush said, "at long last, we have reached the end of the dark period in American history that will come to be known as the Clinton Era, eight long years characterized by unprecedented economic expansion, a sharp decrease in crime, and sustained peace overseas. The time has come to put all of that behind us."

During the 40-minute speech, Bush also promised to bring an end to the severe war drought that plagued the nation under Clinton, assuring citizens that the U.S. will engage in at least one Gulf War-level armed conflict in the next four years.

State of Emergency: The US in the Final Six Months of the George W. Bush Administration

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 01:15:14 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: Despite time constraints, there are clear signs that the president, the vice-president and their neocon collaborators are not finished. The constant saber-rattling toward Iran, with strong support from Israel, should send a chill down the spine of any peace-loving American. Military chiefs who oppose the president are “retired,” as observed most recently with the March dismissals of CENTCOM commander Admiral William Fallon and 6th Fleet commander Vice-Admiral John Stufflebeem. Public opinion counts for nothing. In a March 24 interview with ABC’s Martha Raddatz, vice president Dick Cheney responded to a question about the war weariness of Americans with a languid “So?”

Clip Source: www.commondreams.org

In short, we are living in an on-going state of emergency whose exact limits are unknown, on the basis of a controversial deep event — 9/11 — that is still largely a mystery.
- UC Professor Emeritus Peter Dale Scott

The current administration has taken unto itself unprecedented, nearly hegemonic powers since the events of 9/11. On that day, George W. Bush issued his “Declaration of Emergency by Reason of Certain Terrorist Attacks” under the authority of the National Emergencies Act. This declaration, which can be rescinded by joint resolution of Congress, has instead been extended six times. In 2007, the declaration was strengthened with the issuance of National Security Presidential Directive 51 (NSPD-51) which gave the president the authority to do whatever he deems necessary in a vaguely defined “catastrophic emergency” including everything from canceling elections to suspending the Constitution to launching a nuclear attack.

Global Military Spending Soars 45 Percent in 10 Years

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 15:09:49 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: Madness and insanity. And we blithely stand by and let this happen. Impeach before they bomb Iran outta some mistaken Neocon idiocy!

Clip Source: www.commondreams.org

STOCKHOLM - World military spending grew 45 percent in the past decade, with the United States accounting for nearly half of all expenditures, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said Monday.

In 2007, 1,339 billion dollars (851 billion euros) was spent on arms and other military expenditures, corresponding to 2.5 percent of global gross domestic product, or GDP, and 202 dollars for each of the world’s 6.6 billion people.

The United States spends by far the most towards military aims, dishing out 547 billion dollars last year, or 45 percent of global expenditure.

Britain, China, France and Japan — the next in line of big spenders — lag far behind, accounting for just four to five percent of world military costs each.

“By 2007, US spending was higher than at any time since World War II,” the SIPRI report said.

In the past decade, the Middle East has boosted military expenditures by 62 percent, South Asia by 57 percent and Africa and East Asia by 51 percent each.

Maine Jury Says It's Legal to Protest an Illegal War

Sun, 08 Jun 2008 12:07:02 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: But just when I was feeling tempted to settle for the paltry encouragement in something as entirely meaningless as the demise of yet another administration enabler like Katz, who, for all his weasely ways, is finally only the dull instrument of his boss's heartlessness, a story came my way that gave me a moment of hope.

But first, the bad news. The bad news is that this hopeful story -- one that illustrates a constructive and effective direct action for change -- was reported only in the Bangor Daily News. Period.

The good news, which that paper reported on April 30, is that six peace activists were acquitted on charges of criminal trespass for failing to obey a police request that they abandon their sit-in outside U.S. Sen. Susan Collins' office in the Margaret Chase Smith Federal Building in Maine.

The defendants, Doug Rawlings, Henry Braun, Jimmy Freeman, Dud Hendrick, Rob Shetterly and Jonathan Kreps -- dubbed the Bangor Six -- were arrested in March 2007 for protesting Bu

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

A rare bit of good news for the anti-war movement goes largely ignored by the media.

The stink leaking out of Ira Katz's office at the Veterans Affairs just doesn't stop. Every day some callous new email shows how little he cares that the stunning statistics about soldier and veteran suicides he is trying to suppress represent real lives that were his responsibility; some flat-footed attempt is made to convince Congress -- again -- that he didn't mean to "mislead." As the widow of a Vietnam vet who took his own life after coming home, all the skulduggery and frightening indifference that agents of this government have exhibited in its attempt to keep it all out of sight has been particularly hard to take. But even given my deep personal connection to these stories, I'm finding it increasingly difficult to sustain an appropriately high-decibel level of outrage. I am so very tired of it all. A little good news would go a long way.

Israel's Influence on US Foreign Policy

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 15:44:05 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: Please remember the distinction between the War Party and individuals or even the nation.

Clip Source: www.brasschecktv.com

[Video]

Former U.S. Marine Corps officer and UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter talks about the unique influence that the Israel war lobby has on the U.S. news media and U.S. foreign policy.

Can anything be done to turn this around?

Ritter has written an important new book "Waging Peace" which answers this question realistically and comprehensively.

It's the peace manual for our times.

By they way, please note that the is a HUGE difference between the Israeli War Lobby (an alliance of the Israeli war party and corrupt politicians in the US) and Israelis, Jews, and even Zionists.

Many Israelis oppose the behavior of their government as do many Jews in the United States and elsewhere. Also, many "Zionists" are naive people whose idealism has been co-opted by corrupt elements.

To talk of "Israel", "Jews" and even "Zionists" as the problem is ignorant and counterproductive. It is the Israeli war party and their supporters in the US that is the problem.

Slash Global Warming Gases Now Urge 1,700 Scientists, Economists

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 17:27:19 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: The statement affirms the scientific evidence for global warming, saying, "the strength of the science on climate change" compelled the signers to warn policymakers of climate change's growing risks, including "sea level rise, heat waves, droughts, wildfires, snowmelt, floods and disease, as well as increased plant and animal species extinctions."

Clip Source: www.ens-newswire.com

WASHINGTON, DC, June 2, 2008 (ENS) - Hundreds of the nation's most prominent scientists and economists have issued a first-ever joint statement calling on policymakers to require immediate, deep reductions in heat-trapping emissions that cause global warming.

"Failure to act now is the most risky and most expensive thing we could do," warns statement co-author James McCarthy, president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

The more than 1,700 signatories, compiled by Union of Concerned Scientists, include six Nobel Prize winners in science or economics, 31 National Academy of Science members, and more than 100 authors and editors of the 2007 climate reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, who all shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore.

The coal-fired Bruce Mansfield power plant in Pennsylvania, like all coal-burning power plants, releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. (Photo by Kiyo Komoda)

West Coast Winter Soldier: “Enough Is Enough, It’s Time to Get Out”

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 23:59:44 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: Worth the read. Much courage here.

Clip Source: www.commondreams.org

SEATTLE - Dozens of veterans from the U.S. occupation of Iraq converged in this west coast city over the weekend to share stories of atrocities being committed daily in Iraq, in a continuation of the “Winter Soldier” hearings held in Silver Spring, Maryland in March.

At the Seattle Town Hall, some 800 people gathered to hear the testimonies of veterans from Iraq. The event was sponsored by the Northwest Regional Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), and endorsed by dozens of local and regional anti-war groups like Veterans for Peace and Students for a Democratic Society.

“I watched Iraqi Police bring in someone to interrogate,” Seth Manzel, a vehicle commander and machine gunner in the U.S. Army, told the audience. “There were four men on the prisoner…one was pummeling his kidneys with his fists, another was inserting a bottle up his rectum. It looked like a frat house gang-rape.”

Bush Leacy threatened by Israeli Intransigence

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 15:40:44 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: I wonder how Dana Perino keeps track of the lies?

Clip Source: www.japantoday.com

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert faced a chorus of international criticism over his government’s plans to expand Jewish settlements in Arab east Jerusalem on Monday as he prepared for a U.S. visit.

Olmert held talks with Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas ahead of his departure for Washington but they were overshadowed by Palestinian anger at the settlement expansion plans, announced ahead of the 41st anniversary on Monday of Israel’s occupation of the city’s eastern sector.

Even key ally Washington criticized the plans to build 884 new homes in two east Jerusalem settlements.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said: “We don’t believe that any more settlements should be built” because “it exacerbates the tensions when it comes to the negotiations with the Palestinians.”

“We want to reach a peace agreement before the end of 2008 but there is this continuing Israeli contradiction between pursuing the peace process and imposing facts on the ground.”

Antiwar Activists Clear Border

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 04:26:08 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: I love these women and their courage.

Clip Source: www.commondreams.org

Diane Wilson, an antiwar activist from Texas, drove over the U.S. border south of Vancouver on Sunday just to see if she could.Whether or not U.S. antiwar activists are allowed into Canada was key to Sunday’s Our Way Home Vancouver Peace Conference at Simon Fraser University’s Harbour Centre.

Wilson was part of a convoy on-hand to support two of the event’s participants.

The keynote speaker, retired U.S. colonel Ann Wright, who resigned from the State Department over the invasion of Iraq, and Medea Benjamin, another leading U.S. political activist, were not expected to make it across the border.

Both were denied entry to Canada last year, with Canadian authorities claiming they are named on a FBI watch list due to misdemeanor convictions stemming from participation in antiwar demonstrations.

But after more than two hours of Canadian questioning at the border crossing at Blaine, the pair arrived at the conference.

34 Convicted in Display At US Supreme Court

Sat, 31 May 2008 03:51:07 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: “We’re sad about the convictions, but we’re happy, moved and humbled to bring the stories, names and identification of the men in Guantanamo into a court of law,” said Frida Berrigan, 34, of Brooklyn. She is the daughter of the late Philip Berrigan, a former Roman Catholic priest who was a major figure in the American peace movement during the Vietnam War.

Clip Source: www.commondreams.org

Thirty-four people were convicted yesterday of misdemeanor charges stemming from a demonstration at the Supreme Court in January in which they decried conditions at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

D.C. Superior Court Judge Wendell P. Gardner Jr. said the demonstrators violated the law by protesting at the plaza of the Supreme Court, where such activities are banned. He rejected arguments that they were practicing free speech when they marched to the plaza, despite warnings from police, carrying banners and wearing T-shirts saying “Shut down Guantanamo.”

During the trial, many of the 21 men and 13 women wore orange jumpsuits to show solidarity with Guantanamo detainees. When the defendants spoke, they gave their name and then the name, age and a brief biography of someone they described as a Guantanamo detainee. Many wore a tag bearing the name of a detainee.