Clipmarks | pokkets's 'iraq' clips

BBC: $24 BILLION missing in Iraq

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 23:23:51 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Equal stack of $1's would rise 1500 miles.

A BBC investigation concludes that as much as $24 billion has gone missing in Iraq, and much of it may have been embezzled by private companies and corporations brought there by Bush:

Henry Waxman who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said: "The money that's gone into waste, fraud and abuse under these contracts is just so outrageous, its egregious. "It may well turn out to be the largest war profiteering in history." . . '

If you stacked singles up into the air in the amount of $24 billion, it would rise 1500 miles high. That is roughly the distance between New York City and Dallas, Texas-- one dollar bill at a time.

In fact, all the $2 trillion or more that the US will spend on the Iraq War, including a lifetime of medical and psychiatric care for thousands of damaged veterans, will have been spent for no national purpose, but only so as to line the pockets of Friends of George and Friends of Dick. War is welfare for the right wing of the Republican Party.

Tags: war, iraq

Ex-Rumsfeld deputy describes Iraq as 'major debacle'

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 18:37:08 GMT

clipped by: BobbyDelray

Clip Source: blogs.usatoday.com

The Iraq war has turned into a "major debacle," a former Pentagon official writes in a report published by the National Defense University in Washington.

"Measured in blood and treasure, the war in Iraq has achieved the status of a major war and a major debacle," Joseph Collins writes at the beginning of his 60-page article.

Collins, a retired Army colonel, served as a senior DoD official under Paul Wolfowitz and Donald Rumsfeld.

Among the conclusions he reaches in Choosing War: The Decision to Invade Iraq and Its Aftermath:

To date, the war in Iraq is a classic case of failure to adopt and adapt prudent courses of action that balance ends, ways, and means

Globally, U.S. standing among friends and allies has fallen. Our status as a moral leader has been damaged by the war

At the same time, operations in Iraq have had a negative impact on all other efforts in the war on terror

The central finding of this study is that U.S. efforts in Iraq were hobbled by a set of faulty assumptions

Tags: iraq, war, rumsfeld, joseph collins

Iraq war spurs effort to regrow new limbs

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 06:43:43 GMT

clipped by: pokkets

Clip Source: www.abc.net.au

The Iraq war has triggered a massive injection of US government funds to fast-track efforts to grow replacement ears, noses, limbs, skin, muscles and other body tissue.

Lost limbs, burns and other traumatic injuries suffered by soldiers in war have triggered the US$250million research effort

The US Pentagon this week launched a US$250 million initiative to address its unprecedented challenge of caring for troops returning from war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

US soldiers are returning with amputations, burns, spinal cord injuries and vision loss, many injuries being of the kind that would have been fatal years ago.

A new Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine will develop stem cell and other therapies for burn repair, scar-less wound healing, facial reconstruction and limb reconstruction or regeneration.

US authorities say the effort will also benefit civilians with traumatic injuries and Australian burns expert, Professor Fiona Wood, of the Royal Perth Hospital, agrees.

Official Says Fraud Loophole Was A ‘Mistake’

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 22:13:44 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: The U.S. has spent about $102 billion on rebuilding Iraq and Afghanistan over the last five years. Federal investigators have uncovered about $14 million in fraud.
WTF?--there's gotta be a LOT more than that missing or corrupted.

Clip Source: www.commondreams.org

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration inadvertently exempted foreign contracts in Iraq from fraud oversight, a top administration official said Tuesday, resulting in a loophole that Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., said could have protected private firms that steal taxpayer money. The admission follows weeks of controversy surrounding the exemption’s mysterious appearance in a new rule guiding contractors being paid billions for government work in the U.S. and in foreign countries around the globe.

The administration removed the single paragraph exemption on Monday, hours before a House panel convened a hearing to question officials about its origin and to debate legislation introduced by Welch to close the loophole and punish fraudulent contractors.

“We did not knowingly, thinkingly put in the exemption,” said David Drabkin, the top acquisition officer at the General Services Administration. “The exemption language was a drafting error.”

“It was a mistake. Well, that’s not reassuring

The Myth of the Surge

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 02:29:19 GMT

clipped by: reganjo1955
clipper's remarks: Nir Rosen is amazing

Clip Source: www.rollingstone.com

The Myth of the Surge

Hoping to turn enemies into allies, U.S. forces are arming Iraqis who fought with the insurgents. But it's already starting to backfire. A report from the front lines of the new Iraq

REALITY CHECK!

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 14:03:39 GMT

clipped by: ouyangwulong
clipper's remarks: There is a frightening new global trend of denial...

Europeans think that they don't need to limit fishing...

Car companies don't think they need to improve fuel economy standards...

Bush thinks he can increase spending and cut taxes at the same time...

Jingoists think we are winning the war in Iraq...

Democrats think Hillary Clinton has enough experience to win an election...

Polluters think that Global Warming won't really happen...

Evangelicals think Jesus is coming back soon...

Fundamentalists think they can win the war against modernity...

The truth is: we're stuck with this world. The rules DO apply. No free passes. You have to face the music sometime.

We must choose realism over comfortable delusion. Unfortunately, for now, wistful thinking will rule the day until we let it all collapse around us.

Then we'll stand there scratching our heads saying: How could this happen?

Clip Source: www.iht.com

Fishing until all the fish are gone

Sharon LaFraniere showed how mechanized fishing fleets from the European Union and nations like China and Russia - usually with the complicity of local governments - have nearly picked clean the oceans off Senegal and other northwest African countries.

Clip Source: www.iht.com

U.S. agency says 17 states can't set car emission rules

WASHINGTON: The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday denied California and 16 other states the right to set their own standards for carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles.

Clip Source: www.iht.com

US deficit expected to grow even before economic stimulus package is unwrapped

The latest deficit projections from the Congressional Budget Office forecast a sea of red ink that will only deepen under plans to jump-start the economy with tax cuts and government spending.

Clip Source: www.iht.com

Published: January 21, 2008

BAGHDAD: A suicide bomber blew himself up inside a funeral tent Monday in a predominantly Sunni village, killing at least 14 people and wounding 17.

Tags: reality check, bush, democrats, big buisness, oil, iraq, environment, global warming, tax cuts

Web Site Assembles U.S. Prewar Claims

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:03:24 GMT

clipped by: spherepet

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Web Site Assembles U.S. Prewar Claims

By JOHN H. CUSHMAN Jr.

Published: January 23, 2008

Students of how the Bush administration led the nation into the Iraq war can now go online to browse a comprehensive database of top officials’ statements before the invasion, connecting the dots between hundreds of claims, mostly discredited since then

The Center for Public Integrity, a research group that focuses on ethics in government and public policy, designed the new Web site to allow simple searches for specific phrases, such as “mushroom cloud” or “yellowcake uranium,” in transcripts and documents totaling some 380,000 words, including remarks by President Bush and most of his top advisers in the two years after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks

Warnings about the need to confront Iraq

can be combed line by line, and reviewed alongside detailed critiques published after the fact by official panels, historians, journalists and independent experts.

no startling new information in the archive

Tags: iraq war, the center for public integrity, ethics

The Center for public integrity

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 11:18:34 GMT

clipped by: pokkets
clipper's remarks: I found the center for public integrity site through another article, but when I went to the site I found they had been doing investigative journalism projects into things that are frequently described as rumors or hearsay,
They are a non profit organization based in Washington D.C.
When I went to the home page, I thought there were a few more projects that deserved attention.
The investigations are ongoing.

Clip Source: www.publicintegrity.org

Study:False statements led to Iraq War

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 10:57:52 GMT

clipped by: pokkets

Clip Source: www.mail.com

DOUGLASS K. DANIEL

A study by two nonprofit journalism organizations found that President Bush and top administration officials issued hundreds of false statements about the national security threat from Iraq in the two years following the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The study concluded that the statements "were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses."

The study counted 935 false statements in the two-year period. It found that in speeches, briefings, interviews

at least 532 occasions that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction or was trying to produce or obtain them or had links to al-Qaida or both

The study was posted Tuesday on the Web site of the Center for Public Integrity, which worked with the Fund for Independence in Journalism.

Bush led with 259 false statements, 231 about weapons of mass destruction

and 28 about Iraq's links to al-Qaida

second

to Powell's 244 false statements

Senate OKs $70B Dollars for Iraq,Afghanistan

Wed, 19 Dec 2007 02:36:31 GMT

clipped by: pokkets

Clip Source: www.mail.com

By ANDREW TAYLOR

The Senate voted Tuesday to provide $70 billion for U.S. military efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, handing a victory to President Bush and his GOP allies on Capitol Hill.

The 70-25 roll call paved the way for the Senate to pass a $555 billion omnibus appropriations bill combining the war funding with the budgets for 14 Cabinet agencies.

Bush was ready to sign the bill, assuming the war funding clears the House on Wednesday. Democrats again failed to win votes to force removal of U.S. troops or set a nonbinding target to remove most troops by the end of next year.

"Even those of us who have disagreed on this war have always

agreed on one thing: Troops in the field will not be left without the resources they need," said Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

The year-end budget dea

disappointed GOP purists who complained the bill spends too much money and contains about 9,000 pet projects sought by members of Congress.

$700 billion defense policy bill passes

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 15:08:15 GMT

clipped by: citizenbfk
clipper's remarks: Passed yesterday. Almost no mention of it. All efforts to halt or limit the war deleted. News report confusing.

The leaders of the Democratic Party appear to believe, as others have suggested, that there best way to win the most in the 2008 elections is to NOT do anything to oppose the war -- because that might backfire against them.

Yet, take advantage of the fact there IS strong anti-war feelings that will hurt the Republican Party. (With an assumption that the anti-war "lefties & liberals," have no choice but to vote for them anyhow; since there is no way the "lefties & liberals" would vote Republican.

This COULD BE very astute, and the way candidate/Senator Hillary Clinton would like the most, she being a "centralist," and not wanting to be labeled "lefty or liberal."

Those who die between now and then are dying for politics 2008.

Also in today's news: Obama was a drug dealer.

Clip Source: www.usatoday.com

$696 billion in military programs, including $189 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Senate intended to follow suit this week and send the bill to President Bush, who is expected to sign it. The House vote was 370-49.

Final action on the bill comes as Democrats struggle for a way to pay for combat operations overseas without appearing to support Bush's policies in Iraq.

Tags: house, war, defense, anti-war

Suicide Epidemic Among American Veterans

Tue, 27 Nov 2007 09:04:35 GMT

clipped by: syncopath
clipper's remarks: IAVA - Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Americans

Clip Source: www.cbsnews.com

They are the casualties of wars you don’t often hear about - soldiers who die of self-inflicted wounds

CBS News investigation discovered data that shows a startling rate of suicide, what some call a hidden epidemic

In 2005, for example, in just those 45 states, there were at least 6,256 suicides among those who served in the armed forces. That’s 120 each and every week, in just one year.

Clip Source: wwwimage.cbsnews.com

Clip Source: www.cbsnews.com

Diana Henderson’s son, Derek, served three tours of duty in Iraq. He died jumping off a bridge at 27.

"Going to that morgue and seeing my baby ... my life will never be the same," she said.

Clip Source: www.knx1070.com

Clip Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

Last week, IAVA officially endorsed legislation introduced by Congressman Jim Moran of Virginia, calling for the creation of a national veteran's suicide prevention hotline.

And you can help. Contact your elected officials and urge them to support this bill. This is just one step of many that will be necessary to ensure that all veterans get the care and treatment they deserve -- whether their wounds are hidden or not.

Tags: america, war, veterans, suicide, epidemia, iava

US, Iraq deal sees long term US prescence

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 22:02:14 GMT

clipped by: pokkets
clipper's remarks: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Malikai said there have, since 1990, been UN restrictions that have imposed on the leadership of Iraq as 'punishment' for the invasion of Kuwait, that need to be lifted, before the international forces mandate could be renewed.
Imposed on the Leadership in 1990? A lot has changed in then.
So why are the United Nations suddenly supposed to be calling the shots? Seems like so-one will be comig home, the name will just change from being Troops-To security forces.

Clip Source: www.mail.com

By BEN FELLER

President Bush on Monday signed a deal setting the foundation for a potential long-term U.S. troop presence in Iraq, with details to be negotiated over matters that have defined the war debate at home -- how many U.S. forces will stay in the country, and for how long.

The agreement between Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki confirms that the United States and Iraq will hash out an "enduring" relationship in military, economic and political terms. Details of that relationship will be negotiated in 2008

The U.S.-Iraq agreement will replace the present U.N. mandate regulating the presence of the U.S.-led forces in Iraq.

It also would help the Iraqi government thwart any attempt to suspend or repeal a constitution drafted with U.S. help and adopted in a nationwide vote in 2005.

Al-Maliki said the renewal of the multinational forces' mandate was conditional on the repeal of what he called restrictions on Iraqi sovereignty introduced in 1990 by the U.N. Security Council

Tags: us, iraq, troops, prescence, bush, al-malaki

Rumsfeld immune from French torture charges

Sun, 25 Nov 2007 01:44:24 GMT

clipped by: pokkets
clipper's remarks: Under French Law, people suspected of torture, can be charged while on French soil. Torture?, Immunity? Words. What it's called isn't as important as what it is. Names can be worthless

Clip Source: www.mail.com

A Paris prosecutor has thrown out a complaint against former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld for torture in Iraq and at the U.S. military detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, a lawyer for one of the four groups that filed the case said Friday.

The prosecutor dismissed the case on the grounds that Rumsfeld benefits from immunity, said attorney Patrick Baudoin, president of the International Federation of Human Rights. The organizations that brought the complaint have asked the prosecutor to reconsider.

The complaint was filed Oct. 25 during a visit by Rumsfeld to Paris.

The complaint said that Rumsfeld, in his former position as U.S. defense secretary, "authorized and ordered crimes of torture to be carried out ... as well as other war crimes."

It cited documents including memos from Rumsfeld, internal reports and testimony from former U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski -- the one-time commander of U.S. military prisons in Iraq.

Tags: rumsfeld, torture, charge, immunity

Iran: Is there even a smoking gun?

Sun, 25 Nov 2007 00:23:39 GMT

clipped by: pokkets
clipper's remarks: dejavous

Clip Source: www.mail.com

By SALLY BUZBEE

The accusations come almost every day from U.S. officials: Iran is seeking a nuclear weapon. Sponsoring terrorism. Killing Americans in Iraq. Intent on Israel's destruction. Yet, some officials add, its government will collapse if only given a push.

Does the U.S. have solid proof that Iran is guilty of such a long list of misdeeds? Or is the case against Iran -- and the certainty of its ill intent -- a bit fuzzy?

In the buildup to the Iraq war, the Bush administration made allegations against Saddam Hussein that polls show Americans believed, but which later proved wrong.

Now, with U.S. officials leading the pressure on Iran

many Americans are weighing the evidence. Is there a smoking gun or even a smoldering one?

"We can never be reconciled," Hossein Shariatmadari, a hardline supporter of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

"We are ideological enemies.

both countries have changed. Brushing away the strident ideology and the distrust, what now are Iran's weapons and its intentions?

Tags: iran, smoking gun

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