What's Up, Blogging Tories? Arms for Arabia

Daimnation has an interesting post today, emphasis mine:

Arms for Arabia

More evidence, as if any were needed, that it's back to pre-9/11 business as usual in the Middle East:

Two New York congressmen say they plan to introduce legislation to stop the Bush administration's proposed $20 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia.

Standing in front of the Saudi Consulate, Reps. Anthony Weiner, a Democrat of Brooklyn and Queens, and Jerrold Nadler, a Democrat of Manhattan and Brooklyn, yesterday condemned Saudi Arabia as a sponsor of terrorism unworthy of American military support.

"The folly of this arms deal is beyond belief," Mr. Nadler said." Saudi Arabia is the no. 1 exporter of terrorism in the world today."

He continued: "They are not our friends. We cannot trust how they will use their arms. Â... We don't have to give them high-tech weapons which may be turned against our friends or us."

Secretary of State Rice is expected to announce today that America is entering into discussions with the Saudis on the specifics of the deal. The arms package is expected to include Joint Direct Attack Munitions and satellite-guided bombs, which Mr. Weiner said would be "accurate enough to shoot through the window of a building."

[...]

"They are paying the bills for the suicide bombers," Mr. Weiner said. "It is not an accident that 15 of the 19 suicide attackers here on our soil were Saudis." He added that 70% of the most-wanted international terrorists, and 40% of foreign fighters combating American troops in Iraq, are Saudis.

While military aid to Saudi Arabia has often been justified by the need to cultivate allies in the Arab world, Mr. Weiner said that "looking for the moderate Arab state might be akin to looking for the unicorn."

Damian P.

Update: more here. I don't think it's a question of whether this will come back to haunt America, but when.

Of course there's always an idiot commenter left on BT:

Comment by Crispytoast:
I must've missed the Saudi naval vessel shelling the WTC on 9/11.

Ontario MMP Referendum (video)

Here’s a few recent articles on the up-coming referendum on MMP:

Ottawa Sun - System Would Balance Ontario Legislature
Ottawa Sun - Trio pushes for female legislators
CTV News - ‘More Janes, less Dicks’ needed in politics
Niagara Falls Review - Ontario can make history with new voting system
Toronto Star — Campaigns for referendum on electoral reform gear up
St. Catharines Standard - Power to the people: Reforming government is in your hands
Kingston Whig Standard - Changing how we vote
Kingston Whig Standard - No ‘radical’ change: prof
Huntsville Forester — Are you informed on electoral reform?
InterGovWorld - Ontario test-drives new brand of democracy
Guelph Tribune - Referendum Pivotal in Provincial Election

- H/T DemocraticSpace.com

Why Americans Hate the Media

1. Because major media figures show no sense of ethics.
2. Because they do not care how the stories they cover affect people's lives.
3. Because they're wrong all the time and never have to admit it.
4. Because they have boring, one-track minds.
5. Because they are pampered, lazy know-nothings.
6. Because they think that the normal rules of civilization do not apply to them.
7. Because they think that everyone else is as dumb as they are.
8. Because they are so out of touch with the people that they don't even know that they're out of touch with the people.
9. Because they wouldn't care if they did know they're out of touch with the people.
10. Because they take nothing seriously and can't imagine why anyone else would.

- the Vanity Press
- John

Obesity in Africa

Bill O’Reilly wants Hillary Clinton to die (video)

Yeb, you've read it right, Bill wants Hillary Clinton to die. Here's why:

The well-known hate site BillO’Reilly.com is being investigated by the Secret Service for threatening Hillary Clinton’s life. Well, actually it was just some commenter, but by Billo’s own standards, if the comment is on his site, that means he condones it.

This is where it all started:



It only took very little research to find out that Bill O'Reilly's own website is FULL of hate-speech, even when he says it's not so.

Mediamatters.org:

In fact, as of 5 p.m. ET on July 27, several comments about Clinton that were documented by Americablog (here, here, and here) remain on O'Reilly's website, including one that has led Huffington Post blogger Lane Hudson to ask for a Secret Service investigation.

And what about Bill O'Reilly's own hate speech? The Daily Kos is keeping a "Bill O'Reilly says the Daily Kos is just like..." checklist.

• David Duke -- Check.
• Al Capone -- Check.
• Benito Mussolini -- Check.
• Nazis -- Check. Double check. Triple Check.
• KKK -- Check. Double check. Triple Check.

Nice list. And it's highly convenient that rather than having to rummage through the cesspool of BillO's officially unmonitored web site, he provides the hate speech straight from his own snarling lips.

So where is this going??????

Well, O'Reilly got JetBlue to change it's Daily Kos sponsorship, so Daily Kos is returning the favour:

Lowe's pulls advertising from O'Reilly show:
A reader emailed Lowe's about their ads on O'Reilly's show. They got this response:

[...] Lowe's constantly reviews advertising buys to make certain they are consistent with its policy guidelines. The O'Reilly Factor does not meet Lowe's advertising guidelines, and the company's advertising will no longer appear during the program.

And now Americans are petitioning Home Depot to stop its sponsorship to the O'Reilly "show", Hillary is fighting back and so should you.

Health Insurance: Americans vs Canadians (video)

The Real News investigates:



Donate to the Real News (I do) - It's Tax Deductible for US and Canadians.

- Wikipedia: Medicare Canada
- Wikipedia: Medicare (US) and Medicaid (US)
- Wikipedia: The Real News

Gorbachev says U.S. is sowing world disorder

An former Soviet president, introducer of glasnost, is saying how it is:

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev criticized the United States, and current President George W. Bush in particular, on Friday for sowing disorder across the world by seeking to build an empire.

Gorbachev, who presided over the break-up of the Soviet Union, said Washington had sought to build an empire after the Cold War ended but had failed to understand the changing world.

"The Americans then gave birth to the idea of a new empire, world leadership by a single power, and what followed?" Gorbachev asked reporters at a news conference in Moscow.

"What has followed are unilateral actions, what has followed are wars, what has followed is ignoring the U.N. Security Council, ignoring international law and ignoring the will of the people, even the American people. " [...]

Not a bad observation, I'd say.

- read the whole story: Gorbachev says U.S. is sowing world disorder
- Wikipedia: Gorbachev
- Wikipedia: Glasnost

North American News is DEAD

Remember this? (I do)

Then there was this.

And now there's this.

North American MainStream News is DEAD.

SPP Dion Update: Stephane Dion doesn't care about the environment

I wish I had made the following up - From "The Canadian"

Stéphane Dion continues to ignore New American Union project to take over Canada.

The Stéphane Dion led Liberal Party of Canada has totally abdicated supporting vital cross-Canada public discussions on the efforts of the Stephen Harper government to work with the U.S. Bush administration's effort to consolidate the continentalist agenda to create a "New American Union" (NAU). The NAU is a plan to replace democratically elected governments in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico, with a fascistic "capitalistocracy" run by a greed-driven North American political-military-industrial complex. [...]

Yeah, I thought so.

While Mr. Dion markets his leadership as pro-Canada and pro-environmentalistic [...] , the "New American Union" agenda [leads] to the accelerated destruction of Canada's environment.

Wasn't environment "THE" issue for Stephane Dion?
It sounds like Dion is becoming more of a hypocrite every day.

To be more specific, Liberal leader Stephane Dion said he "knew nothing about the SSP plan (Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America) to massively expand production in the Alberta oilsands to meet the demand in the U.S.". See no evil, hear no evil.

Neo-Liberalist Stephane Dion rather sticks his head in the (oil-)sand than to fight back against SPP and it's disastrous environmental consequences. Hypocrisy indeed.


- The Canadian: Stephane Dion ignores SPP's deep integration
- Wikipedia: North American Union
- Wikipedia: Neo-Liberalism
- Women at Mile 0: "Dion needs to come forward"

Bye, Bye, Canada; Stephane Dion doesn't see any problem with SPP's Deep Integration plans

Neo-liberals love SPP. It's secretive, exclusive (for government and big business only) and authoritarian (no citizens' involvement in the decision making; not even allowing a public forum on SPP). What neo-liberal would not fall for it?

Stephane Dion has been awfully silent on the SPP issue. And there's an obvious reason for the apparent indifference: Stephane Dion couldn't care less about deep integration with US and Mexico; SPP fits the Liberal's neo-liberal platform so why complain about it, why not let sleeping dogs lie? I see no evil....

Can we now say the Liberal Party of Canada is neo-liberal? Can we now, after Progressive Conservatives turning Conservatives, call the Liberal Party the Neo-Liberals of Canada?

Just wondering.

- Wikipedia: neo-liberalism
- Council for Canadians: IntegrateThis!

JimBobby's SPP Challenge: Count Me In

The latest news you won't find in the Globe and Mail. Why? Well, because it's on SPP.

- SPP?

Yeah, SPP, the so-called "Security and Prosperity Partnership"!

- Never heard of it.

No wonder you've never heard of it. And you won't be hearing much of it in the Canadian MSM either. It's the latest little secret of corporatists and those who are submissive to them (yes, corporate media and their submissive "gatekeepers are us" chief editors).

In fact, SPP has been in progress since March 23, 2005. For all this time it has been flying under the radar, hidden for most of us. Therefore several blogs (including Getting It Right) have joined JimBobby's "SPP Challenge - Blogosphere-Meatspace Crossover Poll" (read about the origins here).

I'm personally appalled by the main press of Canada (Globe and Mail, where are you?) completely ignoring the issue, including the latest squelching of the freedom of speech (by the RCMP and the US Army in Quebec.

So for all the Globe and Mail readers out there, here's the news on SPP you won't find in your paper:

From Vive le Canada:

RCMP, U.S. Army block public forum on the Security and Prosperity Partnership

The Council of Canadians has been told it will not be allowed to rent a municipal community centre for a public forum it had planned to coincide with the next Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) summit in Montebello, Quebec on August 20 and 21.

The Municipality of Papineauville, which is about six kilometres from Montebello, has informed the Council of Canadians that the RCMP, the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) and the U.S. Army will not allow the municipality to rent the Centre Communautaire de Papineauville for a public forum on Sunday August 19, on the eve of the so-called Security and Prosperity Partnership Leaders Summit.

“It is deplorable that we are being prevented from bringing together a panel of writers, academics and parliamentarians to share their concerns about the Security and Prosperity Partnership with Canadians,” said Brent Patterson, director of organizing with the Council of Canadians. “Meanwhile, six kilometres away, corporate leaders from the United States, Mexico and Canada will have unimpeded access to our political leaders.” [...]

Footnote: The Liberal Party is noticably silent on SPP. A simple Google query (site:www.liberal.ca/ spp) will show you zero results on SPP. Here are the Google query results of political parties in Canada:
NDP (45), CPO(4), Green Party(21), Liberal Party(0). Do the Liberals simply not care?

- H/T to JimBobby Sez
- Wikipedia: SPP, or Security and Prosperity Partnership
- The Council of Canadians on SPP (pdf, but very useful)
- Canadian media publishing on SPP: Vive Le Canada, PEJ News, Rabble.ca
- Blogs participating in JimBobby Sez's SPP Challenge: Red Tory, StageLeft, Woman at Mile 0.

Update: Read my latest post too: "Bye, Bye, Canada; Stephane Dion doesn't see any problem with SPP's Deep Integration plans"

I LOVE PARIS HILTON (video)

I personally LOVE Paris Hilton. I think everything she does, she does extremely well and therefore all her actions are worthy of the news' lead story.

Not everyone agrees though.

MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski strenuously objected to covering Paris Hilton’s legal woes as a lead story, so much so that when her producer (and the teleprompter) refused to budge, she first tried to burn, then tore and shredded the copy. Here she explains her revolt: “I just don’t believe in covering that story, especially not as the lead story in a newscast when you have a day like today.”

Footnote: Don't you all think Joe Scarborough (mister "Morning Joe") will make a good replacement for Don Imus?

H/T to Truthdig.com
- Mika Brzezinski
- Joe Scarborough

Iraqi politicians call on civilians to arm themselves - The Independent

Interesting, this latest call by Iraqi politicians asking Iraqi civilians to take up arms to defend themselves; I'm sure the current occupying forces (mostly Americans) will look forward to the idea too, and Iraqi resistance, well, they will be terrified now, right?

By Robert H. Reid, Associated Press Writer
Published: 09 July 2007

Prominent Shiite and Sunni politicians called on Iraqi civilians to take up arms to defend themselves after a weekend of violence that claimed more than 220 lives, including 60 who died yesterday in a surge of bombings and shootings around Baghdad.

The calls reflect growing frustration with the inability of Iraqi security forces to prevent extremist attacks.

[...]

In the absence of enough security forces, al-Bayati said authorities should help residents "arm themselves" or their own protection.

The call for civilians to take up arms in their own defense was echoed Sunday by the country's Sunni Arab vice president, Tariq al-Hashemi, who said all Iraqis must "pay the price" for terrorism.

"People have a right to expect from the government and security agencies protection for their lives, land, honour and property," al-Hashemi said in a statement. "But in the case of (their) inability, the people have no choice but to take up their own defense."

- The Independent
- Wikipedia: Post-invasion Iraq, 2003-present
- Wikipedia: Iraqi Resistance Movement

One of the deadliest attacks in Iraq

It doesn't get much messier than this:

BAGHDAD (AP) — A flurry of bombings in Baghdad killed 26 people Sunday, and officials said the death toll from a giant suicide truck blast that devastated the market of a Shiite town north of the capital a day earlier could be more than 130.

Officials earlier had said Saturday's bombing in the town of Armili killed 115 people, one of the deadliest attacks in Iraq in months. The blast suggested Sunni insurgents are moving further north to strike in less protected regions beyond the U.S. security crackdown in Baghdad and on the capital's northern doorstep.

- USA Today

Where I'm blogging

I saw this post, and therefore I'm leaving the following:

Yes, my latest beer discovery is from Tree Brewing and their lager is called REBEL! And I use my webcam (on top of screen) for talking to my family in Holland through MSN. Did I mention before that I like IKEA?

Buckdog says: "Okay folks, show us where you do it!!!! We want to see your photos! The challenge is on!"

(amateur video) RCMP is pepper spraying infants now and doesn't see a problem with that

Buckdog: The logic of the RCMP was this - because it is unsafe for these boys to be standing in the back of the truck, we will pepper spray infants, toddlers, children, mothers etc.

See for yourself:



Here's a picture of Mr. "Pepper Spraying Infants is what I do for a Living":



- Buckdog: RCMP Spray Infant With Pepper Spray!