Peter Symonds

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praises
EU oil sanctions on Iran. (Amsterdam, January 18.)

Using Iran’s nuclear programs as a pretext, the US is escalating its confrontation with Iran. Both US and Israel have repeatedly made clear their preparedness to unilaterally attack Iran on the basis of unsubstantiated claims that it is acquiring nuclear weapons.

European Union (EU) foreign ministers meeting in Brussels yesterday imposed far-reaching economic sanctions on Iran, including an embargo on Iranian oil imports that will come into full force in July. The embargo is an act of economic war that heightens the danger of a slide into military hostilities in the Persian Gulf.

The EU sanctions are comprehensive, hitting every aspect of Iran’s oil industry. The 27 member countries will halt the signing of any new oil contracts with Iran immediately, and end existing ones by July 1. The ban will cover imports of crude oil, petroleum products and petrochemical products, and will extend to the export of equipment and technology to, and new investment in, Iran’s energy sector.

The EU has also targetted Iran’s central bank, freezing the bulk of its assets in Europe. There are limited exceptions to allow for what is still regarded as legitimate trade. The European measures complement legislation signed into law by President Barack Obama on December 31 providing for penalties against any company, including foreign corporations, having business dealings with Iran’s central bank. The US measures seek to block all Iranian oil sales internationally, crippling the country’s economy.

Last year, the European Union purchased nearly a quarter of Iran’s exported oil. Several southern European countries—Greece in particular—have been heavily dependent on oil imports from Iran and resistant to the imposition of a full embargo. They have been pulled into line with the vague promise of a review by May 1 of any adverse economic impact from the sanctions.

If implemented, the embargo will have a severe impact on the Iranian economy, which relies substantially on oil exports. Iran’s currency has dropped 14 percent in value against the US dollar since Friday, adding to high levels of inflation inside the country.

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Adnan Al-Daini

The British people are rightly proud of their NHS and will campaign to save it from confused, misinformed and ideologically driven changes.

Long ago in the late fifties, in Iraq, as an eleven year old boy, I developed osteomyelitis after a fall from a bicycle.  My poor parents had to borrow the money to pay for many doctors’ visits before the correct diagnosis was made. They then needed to borrow more money to pay for an operation without which my leg would have had to be amputated, or I probably would have died.  Many families in the village who were poorer than my family would not have been able to borrow the money, and had it happened to their son he would have almost certainly died.  My poor family had to suffer a few years of hardship to repay the loans.  I will always be grateful and humbled by my family’s sacrifice.

The year 1970/71 I spent in Russia, which was under communism at the time.  In a discussion with some Russian friends about Russia versus the UK, they conceded that when it came to consumer goods, washing machines, cars ...etc. the people of Britain were far better served than their counterparts in Russia, but they continued, “If we are ill or have an accident, however, we do not have to worry about medical bills”.  I said, “Neither would you if you were a British citizen; Britain has the NHS”. That came as a complete surprise to them; it was never reported in their government controlled media.

The National Health Service is just about all that is left from the mixed economy that characterised Britain not long ago.  Utilities (gas, water, electricity) have all been privatised, sold cheaply with enormous profits to multinational corporations.  Social (council) housing all but disappeared under Margaret Thatcher’s “right to buy” scheme, selling council houses at an enormous discount.  The railways were fragmented and sold, with commuters frequently now packed in like sardines, often having to stand for hours and paying a fortune for the privilege. All these sell-offs happened under Conservative governments.

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Stephen Lendman

Africans in US-NATO occupied Libya have been arrested,
beaten, tortured and killed by the CIA, MI-6 trained counter-
revolutionary rebels. The armed groups have targeted dark-
skinned people for liquidation. (Pan-African News Wire)

Occupied Libya isn't pretty. Libya SOS said its government "recognize(d) the presence of the forces belonging to 14 different nationalities in the country under the umbrella of the training, assistance and advice."

In mid-January, 12,000 US troops sent to Malta readied to occupy Libya. Around 6,000 or more now guard oil facilities. Perhaps contingents from other nations guard other strategic locations. People needs aren't addressed. Exploiting, not helping, them is planned.

On January 5, London's Independent headlined, "Libya's leader warns of civil war after Tripoli gun battles," saying:

Mustafa Abdul Jalil, Washington's man in Libya, commented after rival militia gun battles left "a trail of dead and injured."

According to Jalil:

"We are now between two bitter options. We deal with these violations by brigades strictly and put the Libyans in a military confrontation which we don't accept, or we split and there will be civil war. If there's no security, there will be no law, no development and no elections."

At issue are turf battles, anger about being left out of NTC plans, and promises made, then ignored or broken.

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Paul Craig Roberts

If Ron Paul’s libertarian handlers and support base could escape their ideology, Ron Paul could be much better positioned to win the Republican nomination. Here are some suggestions.

Ron Paul should be making the point that Social Security and Medicare are threatened by multi-trillion dollar wars that are funded by debt, by bailouts of a deregulated banking system, and by money creation to keep the banks afloat. Libertarians support deregulation, but their position has always been that deregulated industries must not be bailed out with public subsidies, much less subsidies that are so extensive that they threaten government solvency and the value of the currency.

Instead of hitting hard on the serious threat to Social Security and Medicare posed by Obama and Republican candidates for the nomination, all of whom serve Wall Street, the military/security complex, and the Israel Lobby, Ron Paul has been positioned both by his supporters and his opponents as the danger to Social Security and Medicare. This is an amazing strategic mistake by the Ron Paul campaign.

The mistake is somewhat understandable. Ron Paul’s supporters are mainly among the young. The importance to them of Social Security and Medicare will not register for many years, but for the vast majority of the population Social Security and Medicare are essential for survival. A candidate who is positioned as the destroyer of what scant economic protection the American elderly have is not positioned to win an election for president.

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