A US congressman plans to brief fellow members of Congress and the Obama administration about his recent trip to Gaza, saying the US should pressure Israel regarding border closures and reassess its military support for the Jewish state.
Rep. Brian Baird, a Democrat from Washington state, visited Gaza last week with fellow Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota and was struck by “the level of destruction, the scope of it, specifically the civilian targets - schools, hospitals, industry.”
Baird also said Israel had “apparently willfully destroyed any capacity of the Palestinians to rebuild their own infrastructure.”
CONGRESSMAN WANTS MILITARY AID TO ISRAEL REASSESSED
Amnesty International: Gaza white phosphorus shells were US made
White phosphorus bombs used by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip were produced and supplied by American arms manufacturers, according to an Amnesty International report that called for a comprehensive arms embargo on Israel.
The report documented dozens of weapons used by Israel and Hamas during the three-week offensive, concluding that both groups had carried out attacks on civilians constituting war crimes punishable by international law.
The human rights group said that weapons experts in Gaza found white phosphorus artillery shells marked M825 A1 – a US-made munition – throughout the coastal strip. The Times published photographic evidence that Israel was using the M825 A1 shells on January 8. At that time, Israeli military spokesmen denied that the weapon was being used, saying: "This is what we call a quiet shell – it has no explosives and no white phosphorus".
TVNL Comment: What the hell is a "quiet shell?" Look it up; there is no such thing. The term was simply made up to answer the question posed about the illegal weapons used by Israel.
FBI whistleblower Sibel Edmonds spills her secrets.
Most Americans have never heard of Sibel Edmonds, and if the U.S. government has its way, they never will. The former FBI translator turned whistleblower tells a chilling story of corruption at Washington’s highest levels—sale of nuclear secrets, shielding of terrorist suspects, illegal arms transfers, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, espionage. She may be a first-rate fabulist, but Edmonds’s account is full of dates, places, and names. And if she is to be believed, a treasonous plot to embed moles in American military and nuclear installations and pass sensitive intelligence to Israeli, Pakistani, and Turkish sources was facilitated by figures in the upper echelons of the State and Defense Departments. Her charges could be easily confirmed or dismissed if classified government documents were made available to investigators.
Read more...
Obama picks anti-Iran man for Iran post
The White House names controversial Middle East negotiator Dennis Ross as its special foreign policy adviser for Persian Gulf affairs.
Ross, as a member of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, also put his signature on a September report saying that "the Europeans make war more likely if they do not strengthen sanctions against Iran and effectively end all commercial relations."
Straw blocks UK Cabinet Iraq minutes
Justice Secretary Jack Straw said he could not permit the release of records from 2003 discussions over the invasion of Iraq because it would cause too much "damage" to democracy.
He told MPs he had signed a certificate vetoing rulings by the Information Commissioner and Information Tribunal that key records should be disclosed. Mr Straw said he had signed a certificate under section 53 of the FOI Act, "the effect of which is that these Cabinet minutes will not now be disclosed".
Obama HURTS 100 Million to Help 9 Million
Dear President Obama,
HI!, yoo-hoo, over here, we are 100,000,000 men, women and children who rent and we seem to be invisible to you and the media (including NPR, New York Times and the Wall Street Journal) but clearly our numbers make us important. We are wondering why you are helping 9 million people at the expense of me and my 99,999,999 friends, neighbors and fellow countrymen. Not to mention the additional millions of former homeowners who will soon join us because they rationally decided to live within their means and rent.
But how is your plan hurting 100,000,000 renters? It is hurting them in three major ways:
Will TV News Ever Apologize for Condit Hoax?
For four months beginning in May 2001, major U.S. media outlets, including all three cable news channels, took the American public for a ride -- perpetrating a hoax that a married congressman was somehow involved in the disappearance of a female intern.
As I witnessed the farce from inside cable news, I could see it was all about ratings and had nothing to do with journalism.This week -- with these same outlets reporting a "break" in the 8-year-old murder case -- would be a good time for TV news executives to look back and give the public a big, fat apology.
CBS News Pick Claimed Democrats are Bad People
A decade ago, I debated Ballabon in New York. I represented the Democratic Jewish community while he spoke on behalf of Republican Jews. During the debate, Ballabon claimed that, after his most recent job in Washington, he became convinced that Democrats are inherently bad people and Republicans are fundamentally good people.
What planet does this guy come from? It's astonishing that CBS News would name Ballabon to its senior management.
Call to relax Guantanamo regime
A US defence department review of conditions at Guantanamo Bay detention camp has called for an easing of the isolation of prisoners there.
The Pentagon report says inmates should be allowed more social interaction and opportunities for recreation.
TVNL Comment: Yeah, let's turn it into Country Club Guantano. These men have had NO charges pressed against them for all these years, and they are still prisoners. Just end it..
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