Stephen Lendman

Voting in stolen land: Jewish squatters casts their illegitimate vote
in the occupied West Bank town of Hebron during so-called legis-
lative elections. The Palestinians were, and still are, irrelevant.

Israeli election results hardened fascist rule. Dominant right-wing parties control 102 of 120 Knesset seats. Israelis have themselves to blame. They elected Israel's most extremist government in history. Militarism, belligerence, state-sponsored terrorism, occupation ruthlessness, settlement expansions, and neoliberal harshness reflect official policy.

Peace is a non-starter. A so-called process never existed and doesn't now. Israel won't tolerate it. Netanyahu scorns it. He calls it a waste of time.

Palestinians and Israeli Arabs have the greatest cross to bear. They're marginalized, denied, persecuted and brutalized. Institutionalized racism terrorizes them. Their rights are off the table. Israeli Arabs are enfranchised in name only. Millions of Occupied Palestinians are entirely denied. They're disenfranchised. They had no say in Tuesday's election. Around 600,000 West Bank/East Jerusalem settlers alone got to vote.

Imagine holding an election excluding millions. Imagine calling fascism, colonization, apartheid and militarized occupation democratic. Imagine extolling the results. Imagine ignoring police state terror. Imagine coverup and denial. Imagine the world community and scoundrel media turning a blind eye. Imagine ignoring what demands headlines.

Don't expect media scoundrels to explain. They spurn journalistic ethics. They mock truth and full disclosure. They’re pro-Israeli apologists. They sanitize and conceal its worst crimes. They call hardline fascism “centrist.”

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Adnan Al-Daini

So Michael Gove, the education secretary, is "minded to accept the recommendations from the Teachers' Review Body". He was referring to the introduction of performance-related pay for teachers. Does he really think this is what is needed in schools to improve the performance of teachers?

Teaching in a school is not for the fainthearted. I should know, for I taught mathematics in a school, taught engineering in a university and worked in industry. School teaching was the most demanding, the poorest paid, and the least appreciated, and that was before government interference in the minutiae of education became fashionable.

It is an all-consuming job that requires your best endeavour at all times. Moreover, you need the support of your colleagues, particularly if you are just starting. Their advice, and possibly some of their teaching materials are invaluable.

Not everything can be measured, and any system you use to say teacher A should be rewarded and not teacher B will be flawed. It will be divisive, destroying the cooperative, collaborative dynamic among the teaching staff, which is at the heart of a good school.

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Stephen Lendman

Lynne Stewart during happier days. Now US prison
authorities have denied her a cancer treatment that
could save her life.

Lynne Stewart's Appeal Brief
Lynne Stewart Transferred to Texas
Lynne Stewart Appeal for Justice
Updating Lynne Stewart's "Love Struggle"
Updating Lynne Stewart's "Love Struggle:" Part II

Numerous previous articles discussed her case, character, and dedication to rule of law principles. She's an internationally recognized human rights lawyer. She tirelessly worked for justice. She devoted her life and work to upholding principles too important to reject. She knew the risks and took them. She did so because it matters. For 30 years, she defended America's poor, underprivileged, unwanted, and forgotten. Without advocates like her, they never have a chance for due process and judicial fairness. She was targeted for representing clients prosecutors want convicted.

One case made her especially vulnerable. At former US Attorney General Ramzy Clark's request, she joined his Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman's defense team. In 1995, he was wrongfully convicted of seditious conspiracy, solicitation of murder, solicitation of an attack on American military installations, conspiracy to commit murder, and conspiracy to bomb in connection with the 1993 World Trade Center attack. He was bogusly accused. He was innocent of all charges. It didn't matter. He never had a chance. Prosecutorial injustice framed him. It's standard Justice Department practice.

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Rodney Shakespeare

Bahraini police guards stand ready for the arrival of King Hamad
bin Issa al-Khalifa (portrait) during a National Day ceremony at
the University of Bahrain in Zallaq, South of Manama. (12/16/12)

When it comes to blatant hypocrisy, the King of Bahrain takes the cake. Outrageously ignoring the fact that he ordered citizens to be shot in the face, tortured and killed, he now poses as a man of peace who would like to have a “national dialogue”.

By “national”, of course, he does not mean everybody but rather a tiny section of the population i.e., those creepy-crawly individuals who adhere to the belief that the al-Khalifa regime represents civilised behaviour instead of barbarism.

By “dialogue” he means conversation with sycophants who will not only agree with everything he says but avow that their deepest desire is to have the King kick them in the face.

And, alas, the sycophants exist. Let nobody think that they, desiring nothing but their own advancement at the expense of everybody else, will not soon be crawling out of the woodwork to prostrate themselves before the duplicitous King. Yes, there are plenty of sycophants who are only too willing to sell their souls for a mere glimpse of the monarch’s face. Indeed, for a position of influence in the regime, most of them are only too willing to sell their bodies as well.

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Stephen Lendman

A previous article discussed America's quadrennial exercise in hypocrisy. It's institutionalized. It conceals the nation's dark side.

Pomp and circumstance hide neoliberal harshness. War is portrayed as peace. Lawless government is called legitimate. Democracy never existed and doesn't now. Freedom in America is endangered. Bipartisan complicity plans destroying it altogether. America is on a fast track toward tyranny and ruin. Police state laws threaten everyone.

Activism and dissent are marginalized. Increasingly they're not tolerated. Supporting what's right is called dangerous to national security. Peaceful demonstrations are attacked and disrupted. Protesters are called terrorists. They're arrested and jailed for expressing constitutionally guaranteed First Amendment and other rights. Authorities claim doing so gives material support to enemies. None exist except invented ones.

Monied interests run America. Obama's their front man. Doublespeak duplicity conceals his dark side. He supports wrong over right. Liberalism, progressive change, and populism are ideologically opposite his agenda. Militarism, corporatism, elitism and privilege reflect it. Don't expect media scoundrels to explain.

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Eric Peters

If you’ve ever lived in a big city, you’ve probably had to deal with the squeegee man. He approaches your car – even though you have not called him over. Without asking your consent, he commences to wiping your windshield with his greasy rag. In a moment, he will demand payment for his “services” – which you’d better hand over, if you don’t want him to attack you (or damage your car).

This vignette encompasses everything that is subsumed under government: Random people accosting you with demands for payment – for “services” you never asked for, don’t approve of and don’t use – with the menace of violence looming over everything. Neither the squeegee man nor the politician nor government “worker” ever asks whether you’re interested in what they have to offer – not really. Because they never give you the option to decline. To say, “no thank you.” And have them leave you alone.

Both take the position that “services” having been provided – asked for or not, used or not – translates to pay up! The only difference between the squeegee man and your local county commissioner, school board – or governor or president – is that some of them have better teeth (usually).

And of course, more “resources” (read: violence) at their disposal. After all, you can still roll up your windows – or better yet, just drive away – when you see the squeegee man. You’re even allowed to fight him off if he physically attacks. No such luck with the representatives of government.

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Stephen Lendman

Israel never was democratic and isn't now. One-fifth of its citizens are enfranchised in name only. They have no say. Nor do most Jews.

On January 22, Israelis voted. Over 5.6 million were eligible. About 1,000 polling stations accommodated them. In most places, they stayed open until 10PM. Rural areas, small towns, and hospitals closed theirs at 8PM. Voting required presenting a valid ID, passport or driver's license. Anyone not sure where to go can check. Israel's Central Elections Committee posted relevant information online. A hotline was set up for the same purpose. Voters further than 20km from assigned polling stations got free rides or public transportation there and back. Tickets were supplied. Getting them required presenting valid IDs or other form of identification. Specially adapted polling stations accommodated disabled voters. For the first time, Israelis could follow ballot counting online in real time. Special cell phones permitted it. Within hours after polls close, an estimated 85% of votes were counted. Before end of day January 23, they'll all be. They'll be published as soon as available.

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Gilad Atzmon

Israel, with not a single Jewish party that encompasses empathy towards Palestinians in its political agenda, defies the very notion of universal equality. It is [only] concerned with the interests of the chosen people.

Most commentators on Israeli politics fail to see that notions of Left and Right are pretty much irrelevant to the understanding of Israeli politics. Israel defines itself as the Jewish State and, as the years pass, Israel does indeed become more and more Jewish. Naftali Bennett, who, for a while, appeared to be the rising star of the current election, realised this all too well. He re-invented Jewish Home, a political party that celebrates the Israeli aspiration to fulfill his or her true Jewish destiny – He promised his followers that they can live as chosen’s in their Jew-only state, regardless of ethical or moral concerns.

But then most, if not all, Jewish participants in the Israeli political game are committed to the ‘Jewish State’ dream. Of course they differ on some minor practical and pragmatic issues, but on the basics, they clearly agree. Here is an old Israeli joke: ‘an Israeli settler suggests to his lefty friend “Next summer we should put all Arabs on buses and get them out of our land”. Lefty: “Okay, but make sure the buses are air-conditioned.”

In Israel there are no hawks or doves. Instead, all we have is a mild debate between a few interpretations of Jewish tribalism, nationalism and supremacy. Some Jews want to be surrounded by towering ghetto walls – they like it, it’s cosy, it feels safe – others prefer to rely on the IDF power of deterrence. Some would support the excessive use White Phosphorous, others would like to see Iran wiped [out].

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Ernst Wolff

French tanks wait to be loaded onto an aircraft and sent to northern
Mali, on January 20, 2013, at the 101st airbase near Bamako.

Amid continuing offensives by French troops in Mali, the imperialist powers are making clear that the assault on Mali is part of a lasting, neo-colonial escalation of military intervention throughout Western Africa and beyond.

“This is a global threat and it will require a global response...that is about years, even decades, rather than months,” British Prime Minister David Cameron said over the weekend.

French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian defined his aim in Mali as “the total re-conquest of the country,” using troops provided by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). France, which is currently spearheading the war in Mali, plans to expel Tuareg and Islamist fighters from Mali to pursue its agenda. Its goal is to stabilize the corrupt regime in Bamako, currently led by the military junta of Captain Amadou Sanogo, as its stooge regime in Mali, where France has significant corporate interests.

Similarly, British Foreign Secretary William Hague held up the current war in Somalia as an example for Mali on how to create space for a “legitimate government” to function. He said, “This has led to a lot of progress in Somalia. What we don’t want in countries like Mali is the twenty years of being a failed state that preceded all of that in Somalia.”

Such a comment could not be more chilling. In fact, Somalia continues to be a deeply impoverished country, torn by civil war, and which Washington regularly targets with drone strikes. Hague’s comment signifies that the NATO powers view such an outcome as perfectly acceptable, even desirable, for Mali.

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Stephen Lendman

Straightaway in office, Obama fell from grace. His priorities revealed a Judas. He betrayed constituents who trusted him. Their hopes went unfulfilled. On January 20, Obama began term two.

Obama used Lincoln’s bible for his oath of office in a disgraceful
attempt to imbue the speech with a Lincolnesque aura.

■ He broke every major campaign promise made. He mocks legitimate governance. He lawlessly serves powerful monied interests. They own him.
■ He spurns peace. He's waging multiple direct and proxy wars. He's got new targets in mind. He supports some of the world's most ruthless despots.
■ He spends more on militarism than all other countries combined. He's done it when the only enemies America has are ones it invents.
■ He institutionalized tyranny. He targets dissent. He elevated abuse of power to a higher level. He imprisoned some of America's best and brightest. He's got others in mind.
■ He decides who'll live or die. His kill list chooses targets. He designated himself judge, jury and executioner.
■ He supports the worst of Israeli crimes of war, against humanity and genocide. They partner in ravaging one country after another.
■ He authorized indefinite detention without charge or trial. He approved doing it to Americans. He wants them held in military prisons out of sight and mind.
■ He promised to close Guantanamo. It's still open. He endorses torture by permitting it. He invents nonexistent security threats as justification.
■ He ignores political corruption at the highest levels.
■ He prioritizes serving Wall Street and other corporate favorites. He ignores popular needs. He's force-feeding austerity when stimulus is needed. He destroyed hard won labor rights.
■ He wants education made another business profit center. He rationed healthcare to enrich insurers, drug companies and large hospital chains.
■ He put bankers in charge of financial reform. It's a stealth system for global money control. They game the system for profit. Their business model is grand theft.
■ He increased poverty, unemployment, homelessness, hunger, and despair. He plans more of the same in term two.
■ He wants America's social contract destroyed. He wants ordinary people on their own sink or swim. He conspired with Republicans and key Democrats to assure it. He pretends otherwise. He conceals what too few understand.

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Ray McGovern

U.S. Defense Secretary Panetta speaks with Pope Benedict XVI
during an audience at the Vatican on Jan. 16, 2013.

Consortiumnews Exclusive: Leon Panetta returned to government in 2009 amid hopes he could cleanse the CIA where torture and politicized intelligence had brought the U.S. to new lows in world respect. Yet, after four years at CIA and Defense, it is Panetta who departs morally compromised, says ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, a practicing Catholic, sought a blessing on Wednesday from Pope Benedict XVI. Afterward Panetta reported that the Pope said, “Thank you for helping to keep the world safe” to which Panetta replied, “Pray for me.”

In seeking those prayers, Panetta knows better than the Pope what moral compromises have surrounded him during his four years inside the Obama administration, as CIA director overseeing the covert war against al-Qaeda and as Defense Secretary deploying the largest military on earth.

For me and others who initially had high hopes for Panetta, his performance in both jobs has been a bitter disappointment. Before accepting the CIA post, Panetta had criticized the moral and constitutional violations in George W. Bush’s “war on terror,” especially the use of torture.

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Philip Giraldi

Zionists are working overtime to steer US foreign policy in a
pro-Israel direction. - As always, it's all about Israel...

Something curious is taking place. The nomination of Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense came under fire from the friends of Israel even before it was certain that President Barack Obama would name him to the post. Hagel demonstrably has no particular animus towards Israel but he, while senator, refused to kowtow to the Israel Lobby, failing to sign on to letters and position statements, saying that he was first and foremost a United States Senator, not a representative of a foreign power. He also favors negotiations with Iran to end the nuclear standoff, which critics immediately latched onto as a sign of weakness and a further indication that he did not have Israel’s back. Bill Kristol, head of the Emergency Committee for Israel, quickly piled on to the Hagel nomination, followed by the Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin and Charles Krauthammer, convicted Iran contra felon Elliot Abrams, reliably liberal Rachel Maddow, Harvard’s own Israel firster Alan Dershowitz, Mitt Romney adviser Dan Senor, and Johns Hopkins’ Professor Eliot Cohen. Several critics, including the American Enterprise Institute’s Danielle Pletka, accused Hagel of being anti-Semitic and Islamophobe Pamela Geller described him as a "Jew hater." Transplanted American now-living-in-Israel Caroline Glick somewhat more confusingly wrote that he "hates Jews that think that Jews have rights."

Major Jewish organizations including the Anti-Defamation League and The American Jewish Committee, quickly followed suit, with ADL’s Abe Foxman saying "the sentiments he’s [Hagel’s] expressed about the Jewish lobby border on anti-Semitism in the genre of professors John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt and former president Jimmy Carter" while the AJC’s David Harris added "We’re not in the opposition camp, we’re in the concerned camp. We’re going to count on the Senate to examine, as it must, key issues of concern."

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Patrick Martin

President Obama is about to sign off on a manual that will institutionalize the process by which the White House orders and approves killings by remote-controlled drones, according to a report Sunday.

The so-called counterterrorism “playbook” will define the circumstances under which the CIA and the military’s Special Forces Command, the two agencies that operate drones in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia and other parts of the Middle East and Africa, may use lethal force.

The front-page article in the Washington Post amounts to a semi-official announcement by the White House and is based on statements by unnamed government officials. Its publication, on the same day that Obama officially took the oath of office for his second term as president, demonstrates the role of his administration as an instrument of the military-intelligence apparatus.

The US government is so deeply engaged in assassinations all over the world that top officials believe a manual is required to regularize the process. According to the Post account, the drafting of the drone warfare manual has been delayed by infighting between the CIA and other agencies, with the CIA seeking greater latitude to conduct missile strikes. These include “signature” strikes, in which the target is not an identified member of Al Qaeda or some other alleged terrorist group, but individuals who appear to be engaged in activity that bears the “signature” of terrorism, such as congregating with weapons, or loading vehicles with what appear to be explosives.

This means, in practice, targeting for murder people who appear to be engaged in resistance against US occupations or military actions in the Middle East, Central Asia and Africa. Moreover, since most drone strikes target rural areas of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen and other countries where tribal gatherings are common and weapons are omnipresent, the demand for “signature” strikes amounts to a license for the CIA to murder anyone in the population of these territories.

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Stephen Lendman

Working in a tin mine controlled by soldiers somewhere in Africa...

S. Lendman: Scrambling for Africa's Resources

At issue is scrambling for Africa's resources. They're vast. They're some of the world's largest and richest. They include oil, gas, gold, silver, diamonds, uranium, iron, copper, tin, lead, nickel, coal, cobalt, bauxite, wood, coltan, manganese, chromium, vanadium-bearing titanium, agricultural lands, and offshore fishing. AFRICOM was established to pursue them. Resource/mineral wars define America's agenda.

Mali is strategically located. It's West Africa's largest country. It's more than double the size of France. It borders on seven nations. They include Algeria, Niger, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Guinea, and Cote D'Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Its northwestern area is largely arid desert or semi-desert. The Sahel runs through its central region. Rainfall and rivers make southwestern territory marginally more lush than the rest of the country. The Niger River is its most important geographic feature. It traverses the Sahel and southeastern region. It's a major transportation artery.

Mali's resources matter. They comprise a treasure trove of discovered and yet to be developed riches. They include gold, diamonds, phosphates, bauxite, lignite, kaolin, salt, limestone, gypsum, granite, marble, diatomite, hydropower, iron ore, manganese, tin, lead, zinc, copper, oil, gas, and uranium. Mali is Africa's third largest gold producer after South Africa and Ghana. It's rich in uranium. It has an estimated 5,000 tons or more. It's neighbor Niger is the world's fourth largest producer.

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Paul Craig Roberts

Republicans and conservative Americans are still fighting Big Government in its welfare state form. Apparently, they have never heard of the militarized police state form of Big Government, or, if they have, they are comfortable with it and have no objection.

Republicans, including those in the House and Senate, are content for big government to initiate wars without a declaration of war or even Congress’ assent, and to murder with drones citizens of countries with which Washington is not at war. Republicans do not mind that federal “security” agencies spy on American citizens without warrants and record every email, Internet site visited, Facebook posting, cell phone call, and credit card purchase. Republicans in Congress even voted to fund the massive structure in Utah in which this information is stored.

But heaven forbid that big government should do anything for a poor person.

Republicans have been fighting Social Security ever since President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed it into law in the 1930s, and they have been fighting Medicare ever since President Lyndon Johnson signed it into law in 1965 as part of the Great Society initiatives.

Conservatives accuse liberals of the “institutionalization of compassion.” Writing in the February, 2013, issue of Chronicles, John C. Seiler, Jr., damns Johnson’s Great Society as “a major force in turning a country that still enjoyed a modicum of republican liberty into the centralized, bureaucratized, degenerate, and bankrupt state we endure today.”

It doesn’t occur to conservatives that in Europe democracy, liberty, welfare, rich people, and national health services all coexist, but that somehow American liberty is so fragile that it is overturned by a limited health program only available to the elderly. Neither does it occur to conservative Republicans that it is far better to institutionalize compassion than to institutionalize tyranny.

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