A song about Waterboarding by Jonathan Mann (video)

Jonathan Mann is writing a song a day often based on current events. In this case he uses the actual words from the waterboarding memo. It's actually has a beat and you could dance to it.




Bush Torture Memos Recut In Song (VIDEO)


Jonathan Mann, the guy who brought you the "Paul Krugman" song is back putting the Bush torture memos to music. This is the 109th video in Mann's "one song a day" project. He uses hot-button topics in the news to inspire him on his surely wearying journey, and this time he took disturbing language detailing the waterboarding technique used against Khalid Sheikh Mohammed 183 times to create a song.

Last week the Department of Justice released the memos from the Office of Legal Counsel that discussed the CIA's use of torture under Bush. This decision by President Obama has been lauded by some, but several members of the last administration and their supporters have been less enthusiastic about the choice.

Click here to read the memos. Scroll down for the transcript of Mann's song.


WATCH:

The detainee is lying on a gurney
That's inclined at an angle: 10 to 15 degrees
A cloth is placed over the detainee's face
Cold water is poured on the cloth

The wet cloth creates
A barrier through which
It is difficult or in some cases not possible
For the detainee to breathe

If the detainee
Makes an effort to defeat the technique
By twisting his head to the side and breathing
Out the corner of his mouth
The interrogator may cup his hands around
The detainees nose and mouth
In which case it would not be possible for him to breathe!

As we explained
In the Section 2340A Memorandum,
"Pain and suffering"
(As used in Section 2340)
Is best understood as a single concept,
Not distinct concepts
Of "pain" as distinguished from "suffering"...

The waterboard,
Which inflicts no pain or actual harm whatsoever,
Does not, in our view inflict "severe pain or suffering".
Even if one were to parse the statute more finely
To treat "suffering" as a distinct concept,
The waterboard could not be said to inflict severe suffering.

The waterboard is simply a controlled acute episode,
Lacking the connotation of a protracted
Period of time generally given to suffering.

New Music :"Christmas In Fallujah," Video, Lyrics & Links

New Music :"Christmas In Fallujah," Video, Lyrics & Links



About This Video:
Live In Chicago, Billy Joel & Cass Dillon performing "Christmas In Fallujah".
Became Available on iTunes Dec. 4th

Proceeds to Benefit: Homes for our Troops

Billboard Magazine writes: Up-And-Comer Voices New Billy Joel Song

November 30, 2007, 12:50 PM ET
Jeff Vrabel, Savannah, Ga.

Billy Joel has broken his self-imposed retirement from pop for the second time in a year, but he'd almost rather you didn't know that.

The second new Joel-penned single since his last pop album, 1993's "River of Dreams," is called "Christmas in Fallujah" and hits iTunes Dec. 4. There are two major differences between it and the classics that have made him one of the best-selling artists of all time. First, there's no piano on it, and second, there's barely any Billy Joel on it, either.

Instead, for what Joel says is a first, he's written a song expressly for another singer, a 21-year-old Long Island native named Cass Dillon. Joel tells Billboard the inspiration for "Fallujah" was partly born of letters he's received from service personnel overseas, but also simply from years of the realities of war.

The song came to him quickly, Joel says, as did the realization that he wasn't the guy to record it. "I thought someone with a young voice should be singing this, someone just starting out in life," he says. "Plus, you know, I'm 58 years old. My voice isn't the voice I was thinking of when I was writing; I was thinking of a soldier, someone of that age."

Enter Dillon, a young singer/songwriter who'd spent a few years under the wing of Tommy Byrnes, Joel's longtime musical director. Dillon left college two years ago to pursue a musical career, and has spent the intervening years on the coffee-shops-and-bars circuit. Byrnes had played Joel several of Dillon's songs, and when it came time to find a singer for "Fallujah," Joel says Dillon "popped right into my head."

Compare it to Nirvana - In Bloom: Sub Pop Version Very similar music.



Billy Joel introducing Christmas In Fallujah,



The song benefits Homes for our Troops

http://www.homesforourtroops.org

Homes for our Troops is a non-profit organization that provides specially adapted homes for our nation’s wounded soldiers. We live in a world where “stringent” standards dictate that 60% of donations should be spent on program activities. According to their FAQ, Homes for our Troops spends 84% of donation dollars directly on the program activity it sells.

The Lyrics to Christmas in Fallujah by Billy Joel

"Christmas In Fallujah"
Words & Music By Billy Joel
Preformed By Cass Dillon
2007

It's Evening In the Desert
I'm Tired and I'm cold
But I'm just a solder
I do what I am told

We Came with the Crusaders
to save the holy land
It's Christmas In Fallujah
and no one gives a damn

And I just got your letter
And this is what I read you said

I'm fading from your memory
so I'm just as good as dead

We are the armies of the empire
We are the legionnaires of Rome

It's Christmas In Fallujah
and we ain't never coming home

We came to bring these people freedom
we came to fight the infidel

there is no justice in the desert
Because there is no god in hell

They say osama's in the mountains
deep in a cave near Pakistan

But there's a sea of blood in Baghdad
A sea of oil in the sand

Between the Tigris and Euphrates
another day comes to an end

it's Christmas In Fallujah
Peace on earth goodwill to men

it's Christmas In Fallujah
hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

it's Christmas In Fallujah
hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

it's Christmas In Fallujah
hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

it's Christmas In Fallujah
hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

Merry Christmas from Fallujah
hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

Merry Christmas from Fallujah
hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

hallelujah hallelujah
(hoorah)

hallelujah hallelujah
Hoorah!



Another artist, Jefferson Pepper, with am CD song by same title: http://www.sonicbids.com/epk/epk.asp?epk_id=41253

In general, holiday albums do not get confused with vehicles for social change. If you don't like in-your-face, change-the-world music, then stop reading now. Far removed from the typical bouquet of carols, Jefferson Pepper's Christmas in Fallujah is a holiday music anomaly. This is protest music at its finest, exploring the dark underbelly of America's social and political landscape. As for the artist's unusual name, I'm imagining some cross between Jefferson Airplane and Sgt. Pepper, but I could be wrong.

Jefferson Peppers MySpace :http://www.myspace.com/jeffersonpepper

Christmas in Fallujah
Written by: Jefferson Pepper
c2005 Jefferson Pepper

It's Christmas in Fallujah, to the victors go the spoils
We came to help the people, it's not about the oil
I came here to Fallujah with presents in my sack
I bring the gift of freedom through unprovoked attack

That's not the sound of reindeer up on your roof at night
We're coming down your chimney with guns and blinding lights
We're gonna take your husband, I'd like to tell you why
But I can't speak your language, I'm too overwhelmed to try

But Uncle Sam made a list, he's checking it twice
He's gonna find out who's naughty or nice
But sometimes the names, they get mixed up
If we get it right half the time that's close enough

It's Christmas in Fallujah, children snuggle in their beds
While the corpses of their parents dance around in their heads
Palaces and bridges, we burned them to the ground
'Cause someone got a contract to rebuild the whole damned town

It's Christmas in Fallujah, hear the bells begin to toll
I'm sorry about your mother, she's somewhere down in the hole
We came here to Falujah to win your hearts and minds
But when we bombed your building your family was inside

Don't blame it on us soldiers, we're only doing what we're told
Never had a spoon of silver, now I've got a broken heart of gold
And I'm gonna have to live with all these nightmares that I've seen
Never taught to know the difference between Osama and Hussein

But Uncle Sam made a list, he's checking it twice
He's gonna find out who's naughty or nice
But sometimes the names, they get mixed up
If we get it right half the time that's close enough

British Soldier Gordon Gentle Iraq death ruled unlawful

Soldier Gordon Gentle Iraq death ruled unlawful
Wed Nov 7, 2007 2:47pm GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - An inquest into the death of a British soldier in Iraq concluded on Wednesday that his killing was unlawful and the result of communications failures within the military.

Gordon Gentle, 19, was killed in June 2004 when his Land Rover was hit by a roadside bomb near Basra. He had been sent to Iraq 10 days after ending training.

His mother, Rose Gentle, waged a three-year campaign for a full inquest into the incident, arguing that a failure to supply her son with the correct equipment had led to his death.

At the end of the eight-day inquest, coroner Selena Lynch found that Gentle's death might have been prevented but for a series of miscommunications and logistics errors by the Ministry of Defence.

"He died as a result of injuries caused by the explosion and was unlawfully killed," Lynch said in her verdict.

"It is probable that the device would not have been detonated if the escort had been equipped with an ECM," she said, referring to Electronic Counter Measures, which the military uses to detect bombs.

The necessary equipment had arrived in Iraq in mid-June and should have been available to Gentle's unit at least a week before his death, but a clerical error with the military logistics unit meant it wasn't distributed.

"Effective action to recognise and rectify the error was not taken by the units responsible for storage, issue and fitting and efforts taken by Fusilier Gentle's unit to obtain (the ECM) were not sufficient to alert them to its availability.

"These errors were exacerbated by a lack of robust tracking and back-up systems," the coroner ruled.

Speaking immediately afterwards, Rose Gentle said she felt vindicated by the coroner's findings and said the Ministry of Defence bore responsibility "from top to bottom".

"I'm proud of Gordon but I am disgusted at the way he was treated," she told BBC television.

"They say when you join the army, it's a brilliant career. At the same time you should be looked after. They should never be sent out without the right equipment.

"The responsibility's from chain-of-command right down to the bottom -- from top to bottom. The equipment was there. Why didn't they communicate with one another to take it up?"

She also joined the coroner in criticising the difficulty and time it had taken to convene an inquest, obstacles that the coroner blamed on the Ministry.

"The MoD have a policy of disclosure that I would argue is both illogical and based on faulty points of law," Lynch said.

In a statement, the Ministry of Defence said it regretted the events that had led to Gentle's death.

"Our thoughts and sympathies remain with the family," a spokesman said.

"We were immensely saddened at (Gentle's) loss through an attack by insurgents in Basra in June 2004 and we deeply regret the series of events that contributed to it."

(Reporting by Luke Baker)

© Reuters 2006. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by caching, framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.

"Dear Mrs.Blair" (a short film by Camcorder Guerillas with music by Belle and Sebastian) A video letter to Cherie Blair from Glaswegian mother Rose Gentle, whose son Gordon was killed in Iraq on 28 June 2004. Gordon was 19 years old; he'd joined the Army just six months earlier at his local Job Centre. Thursday 23rd of December 2004 would have been his 20th birthday.

President Bush on Blackwater (video)

A flashback of Bush dodging a college freshman's question about what laws govern our mercenaries (Blackwater).

The President admits to not knowing, but assures that someone else must know.

This administration has continually sought ways to go outside of the law in programs such as Secret Prisons, Torture, Prisoner Rights and even Domestic Spying,


PREVIOUS POST ABOUT BLACKWATER:

Blackwater manager blamed for 2004 massacre in Fallujah July 9th 2007


US Private mercenaries Mutilated in Fallujia


Video :BLACKWATER the US Secretive Mercenary Firm

Video- Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers (part 4 of 8)

Please post commnents

Will Turkey attack Northern Iraq ?

Many of the Kurds wish to have an independent Kurdish state, either in northern Iraq or Southern Turkey. Rebels (called PKK)trying to archive that aim, are hiding in the mountains of northern Iraq.

Turkey doesn't want an independent Kurdish State. Nor does Iran.

The PKK is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, NATO, the EU and Turkey. Washington opposes any major operation into north Iraq, which could destabilize the region. The US claims to be taking action against the PKK to appease Turkey, but actually most `coalition' troops are still bogged down in central Iraq dealing with the rebels there.

The Turkish military wants to attack the rebels in the Kurdish controlled northern Iraq. "It would be a catastrophe, very clearly...there are already enough people fighting in Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan is one of the few places where things are still under control," Alain Deletroz of the International Crisis Group think-tank said in Brussels. Financial markets were rattled last week by reports of a major incursion into northern Iraq, which Turkey denied had happened. Military sources said there had been a limited raid.

To further complicate the situation the Islamic-rooted Turkish government and the staunchly secular military of Turkey are not on the same page. "Has the fight with the 5,000 terrorists finished domestically, that we should now be talking about Iraq?" asked Turkey's Prim Minister Tayyip Erdogan said when reporters asked him about a cross-border operation against separatist PKK rebels. Analysts said the threat of an incursion into northern Iraq was as much to do with domestic politics ahead of a July 22 national election as with security.






Before World War I, most Kurds lived within the boundaries of the Ottoman Empire in the province of Kurdistan. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, the Allies agreed and planned to create several countries within its former boundaries. Originally Kurdistan, along with Armenia, was to be one of them, according to the never-ratified Treaty of Sèvres. However, the reconquest of these areas by Kemal Atatürk and other pressing issues caused the Allies to accept the renegotiated Treaty of Lausanne, accepting the border of modern Republic of Turkey and leaving the Kurds without a self-ruled region. Other Kurdish areas were assigned to the new British and French mandated states of Iraq and Syria under both treaties.

The Kurdish delegation made a proposal at the San Francisco Peace Conference in 1945, showing the geographical extent of Kurdistan as claimed by the Kurds. This proposal encompasses an area extending from the Mediterranean shores near Adana to the shores of Persian Gulf near Bushehr, and it includes the Lur inhabited areas of southern Zagros[10][11].

Since World War I, Kurdistan has been divided between several states,largest portions of the land being respectively in Turkey (43%) , Iran (31%), Iraq (18%), Syria (6%) and the former Soviet Union (2%), in all of which Kurds are minorities. At the end of the First Gulf War, Allies established the safe haven in northern Iraq. Amid the withdrawal of Iraqi forces from three northern provinces, Iraqi Kurdistan emerged as an autonomous entity inside Iraq, with its own local government and parliament in 1992.

Iraq War: John Bolton interview on BBC (video)

BBC Newsnight's Jeremy Paxman interviews neocon former US ambassador to the UN John Bolton.

Bolton speaks about the consiquences of the Iraq war. Interestingly he states that he belives that it does not matter what type of Iraq emerges from it's current struggle as long as the country is not a home to terrorist who are against the US.

He claims that he was loyal to the man `who got elected', and not necessarily to the policy, which now he seems to be distancing himself from.

The interview get's a little hostile.

Iraqi Refugees - Should they be brought into the US

Anderson Cooper host this short debate between Edina Lekovic and Congressman Tom Tancredo of Colorado about Iraqi Refugees coming to United States. Tancredo is against allowing Iraqi's coming to our country, because the Iraqi government will not take back Iraqi's who have committed crimes here. We are reminded that Tancredo did suggest that bombing the holy city of Mecca might be something to consider if Muslems attack us.

Seymour Hersh: America Covertlly Funding Al Qaida

Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh ("New Yorker") on plans by the Bush administration for the invasion of Iran. Covert operations have already begun in order to destabilize Iran, among other things by supporting Al Qaida affiliated groups against the Shiites in Iran.
Aired 2/25/07

Music Video: Jackson Brown - Lives in the Balance

Bob Woodruff Reports on our Ijured returning Solsdiers

Short outtake from the ABC News Special -- Iraq and Back: Bob Woodruff Reports. Tuesday, February 27, 2007. Reporting on the numbers of soldiers who seek medical help (many for traumatic brain injuries). This comes on the heels of the damaging Washington post revelation about the poor care the soldiers receive at Walter Reed Hospital.

This also opens up the accusation that the Defense department is issuing gag orders to stop the release of the problems that our returning soldiers are suffering from.

President has not Issued any Special Orders to fix Problems at Walter Reed Hospital

White House Press Secretary tries to dodge a continual brutal attack by the press, questioning him about the The Walter Reed problem. It goes on for ten minutes.

Text after video.

Update of:

The mistreatment of our wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital



Q The administration's mantra for a long time has been "support the troops." What is the reaction, then, when you read this series of stories in The Washington Post about troops coming home from Iraq, Afghanistan and being treated so poorly, apparently, based on this long investigation? What's the President's reaction?

MR. SNOW: There are a couple of things. First, it's not a mantra. I would really choose words carefully. It's a commitment to support the troops. And the President, as you know, has visited the wounded many times at Walter Reed and we are concerned about it. And the people who --

Q Were you aware?

MR. SNOW: We are aware now, yes. And I would refer you to the Department of Defense, which I know is taking a very close look at it, too.

Look, the men and women who have gone and fought for our country over there, they deserve the best care.

Q So why has that not been guaranteed, then?

MR. SNOW: I'm not sure that -- you know, when you find a problem, you deal with it.

Q So you're saying the President learned about this from The Washington Post?

MR. SNOW: I don't know exactly where he learned it, but I can tell you that we believe that they deserve better. And, again, Ed, this is something where I'd suggest you give DoD a call, because I know they've taken a good, hard look at it.

Q Tony, can I follow on that? As Bob Dole might ask, where's the outrage?

MR. SNOW: There's plenty of outrage.

Q Is there?

MR. SNOW: Yes.

Q So the President responded how when he learned about this? What, specifically -- did he order something to be done?

MR. SNOW: What I'm suggesting -- there's a reason I'm suggesting -- DoD is the proper place in which we'll be taking care of these issues. And I would refer you to them for comment. But this is something that's going to have to be an action item.

Q But is there any evidence that it was even looked at before the paper printed its two stories?

MR. SNOW: Yes.

Q Then tell us about that evidence.

MR. SNOW: That's why -- again, I would refer you, Bill, to the Department of the Army, which runs the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. This is the place where if you want to get --

Q That's just an easy way for you not to have to talk about it.

MR. SNOW: Well, it's also a way of pointing to the proper authorities, which is what you would want.

Q The White House doesn't want to be on record with a more emphatic expression of amazement and upset about this?

MR. SNOW: No. David asked where the outrage -- of course there's outrage that men and women who have been fighting have not received the outpatient care -- if you read the stories, there are many who are happy with it, some who are unhappy, and it's important that we show our commitment to the people who have served. I don't know what more you want me to do.

Q In December NPR ran a series looking at the quality of mental health care for Iraq veterans who have returned, showing that it's shocking how little care is provided to them. And several congresspeople -- Obama, Boxer and Bond -- sent a letter to the Pentagon, which you're referring us to, asking for an investigation, which they have not agreed to conduct. So you're referring us to the DoD, but they're not acting quickly on this. So does the President want them to act quickly?

MR. SNOW: Well, again, you've asked me about two separate stories.

Q It seems there's a problem that's endemic to the system.

MR. SNOW: Well, rather than leaping to a conclusion, as I said, I would suggest you call them, and then we can talk about it later.

Q Off camera this morning you said that you would have something at noon; you said, I'll talk about it then. And now you're not really --

MR. SNOW: Well, that's because -- again, I think that you may see some activity on it. And at this point I would refer you to the Department of Defense.

Q Is the system working?

MR. SNOW: Well, I'll tell you what -- is the system working? Yes. Is it working perfectly? No.

Q It's good enough?

MR. SNOW: No, I said, it's not good enough. I just told you it's not working perfectly. But there are also thousands of people who have been through the system who have been cared for. But it is important that we maintain a commitment to following up or providing the treatment that these men and women deserve.

Q Do you think the President is going to say something about this later?

MR. SNOW: No.

Q You responded to me a moment ago that the administration was aware of this before the articles appeared in the paper.

MR. SNOW: That is my understanding. But, again, this is something that's an action item over at the Department of Defense and, in particular, the Department of the Army. I am not fully briefed on the activities or who knew what, when. And I suggest --

Q Was the President aware of it? Was the White House aware of it?

MR. SNOW: I am not certain --

Q May I follow on --

Q What is the President's --

MR. SNOW: -- when we first became aware of it.* Now the President certainly has been aware of the conditions in the wards where he has visited, and visited regularly, and we also have people from Walter Reed regularly over to the White House as guests, sometimes in fairly large numbers. So as I said, the President is committed -- committed to these people, committed to men and women who have served. We need to make sure that whatever problems there are get fixed. I couldn't be any stronger or plainer about it.

Q Has he given any new orders?

MR. SNOW: No. At this point, Helen, I think the most important thing -- the way this would work is the Department of Army has its own investigation about what's going on at Walter Reed. They will be taking action. The President certainly wants to make sure that, as I said before, whatever problems there are get fixed.

Q On Walter Reed, a lot of the veterans, the medical community, the doctors, the neighbors who have worked at Walter Reed are very upset about this move, pending move to Bethesda. In light of everything that's happening, does the administration still support uprooting --

MR. SNOW: The Department of Defense has made the decision to consolidate the treatment facilities at the Bethesda Naval Medical Center.

Q Is there any chance of a second look? Some of the facilities at Walter Reed are brand new.

MR. SNOW: Well, again, I'm just going to refer you to that. This is -- all of a sudden people are trying to open up different avenues of inquiry. The fact is that those changes have, in fact, been decided upon by the Department of Defense. I am not aware of any decisions to change.

Q To clarify, were these -- any actions that the Pentagon has taken, these action items, were they done on its own, or did they do this in response to some order from here?

MR. SNOW: Again, I'm not aware that anybody has -- look, when you have a problem like this, the imperative is to fix it. I'm not sure that you have to issue orders; there are people there who know if they've got a problem they need to fix it. So I don't think that -- I will try to find out for you, but I'm not aware that the President has cut any special orders. But I will try to get for you additional information.

Q I think what we're --

MR. SNOW: I know what you're trying to do, you're trying to get a tick-tock on what did he learn and how did he respond and who did he call.

Q Yes, we're trying to determine if someone here built a fire under someone over there to do something.

MR. SNOW: You know, that's assuming that people there are callous about the fate of the people who are serving.

Q It isn't --

MR. SNOW: No, I think it is. When you say "light a fire," it's as if, you know, you find out that there's a problem and you don't move quickly to try to correct it. My sense is that there's plenty of fire for trying to get it right. But this is why I'm telling you if you want a more direct answer about this, you do need to talk to the people at the Department of the Army --

Q But, Tony, when you read --

MR. SNOW: -- who are at the ground level involvement here.

Q -- an account that says a commanding general, quotes a commanding general as saying, well, gee, we ordered repairs done, but they weren't done -- you'd think they would have known this hadn't been accomplished.

MR. SNOW: Well, again, that's why -- you've just made my point, which is you need to get back to them, and I will also get back for you with a tick-tock about what's going on at this end.

Q It's not just -- you're describing kind of a cold, detached bureaucratic process. We all know how this works. Something like this, this kind of story gets people's attention. You are now --

MR. SNOW: Well --

Q Wait a minute. You're now in the PR business, you know if something like this happens it's at odds with the commitments you make; the Commander-in-Chief might well stand up at a meeting and say, darn it, let's get to the bottom of this now and let's get answers. And this happened over the weekend, and you're saying you think the White House knew, but you're not sure; you're not sure when the President knew or if he said something to somebody. It just seems like you should have those answers.

MR. SNOW: Okay, but you also -- fine, I'll try to get them for you. But when you talk about cold detachment, I don't think saying that if it needs --

Q You're calling it an "action item"?

MR. SNOW: Well, yes, because what I'm telling you is that it is something that falls under the providence of the Department of the Army. Therefore, if you want the detailed answers about who knew what, when and how it's been handled, you do need to ask them, because they're going to have the information, David.

I can tell you that the President feels passionately about them, and you should have no doubt about it -- you've been at enough events where when he looks these people in the eye there is a commitment, a strong, profound emotional commitment to the people who serve this country. And it is one where the President is committed to doing right by the men and women who serve. There should be no doubt about that.

Q But, Tony --

MR. SNOW: Wait, wait. In that case, what I'm telling you is let's sort through the facts. I know that what you want is for me to tell you more than I know right now. So you keep at it --

Q But it would not be unreasonable for you or the President, through you, to express some kind of outrage over what has happened up there.

MR. SNOW: Well, it's also a matter of trying to figure out precisely what has happened. You have news stories, it is important to investigate. As you know, the most important thing is to fix a problem, correct? And there is absolute determination to fix the problem. The President is somebody, again, whose passion for these forces should never, ever be a topic of doubt on the part of the forces or the American people.

Q Right, but Tony, when you say he looks in the eyes of the families -- but what if the bureaucrats on the ground are not actually following through on the commitment you say he has? Doesn't he have a duty to follow through and say, what --

MR. SNOW: That's why I'm asking you to direct your questions to the people who are in direct line of responsibility for this, who are going to have more information on this than I do right now.

Q What is your reaction of Major General Weightman, who is the Commander at Walter Reed, also says in the bottom of the article on Sunday in The Washington Post, said that he's concerned and that they're bracing for, "potentially a lot more casualties," people coming to Walter Reed because of the surge. Does that cause the White House to think at all about that policy, because you have the Commander of Walter Reed --

MR. SNOW: There are a whole series of things, and, again, this is why you need to talk to people who are in the chain, because --

Q But this he said on the record.

MR. SNOW: I understand, Ed. But there are a series of things. First, for Walter Reed, what you end up having is treatment of people who are wounded -- and also this is Bethesda, as you know, different sorts of injuries are treated at the two facilities. And many of those people are there for months. And this story deals with outpatient care after that treatment, right? So it's important, I think, to understand that you've got to be prepared for all things that are going to come your way, including getting the piece right when it comes to outpatient care, and continuing also to do well by inpatients.

But, again, I know you want me to -- I'm simply not going to go beyond what I know. And in this particular case, the people who do know the facts and do know what's going on, and do know how the investigations are proceeding are the guys over at DoD.

Q I think that's part of the question. It doesn't seem like -- beyond what you know, it doesn't seem like you're asking that many questions to find out. I mean, you have a limited knowledge about the situation.

MR. SNOW: It's because they're working the issue, and I'm telling you, those are the people to talk to, the DoD.

Q -- I mean, you keep putting me off on other people --

MR. SNOW: I know.

Q This is a commitment the President has made, you said, to the families, right?

MR. SNOW: Yes.

Q So why isn't the President, why isn't his staff saying, let's get to the bottom of it now?

MR. SNOW: We are trying to get to the bottom of it, and the people who are responsible for getting to the bottom of it work on the other side of the river.

The mistreatment of our wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital

A special report on the Walter Reed Hospital following the Washington Post article. Dana Priest co- author of the article (with Ann Hall) is interviewed about her two month study. She admits that she cried while investigating the story - the situation was so bad.

Only 30 soldiers are in the actual Walter Reed Hospital, but 700 hundred are in a outpatient role facing neglect and lack of follow up. These are soldiers that are not ready to go home. These vulnerable soldiers are the focus of the piece.

In this video we get to see Building 18 - built between the two world wars, which is a centerpiece of the story with mice, cockroaches, mold, broken elevators, lack of hot water and traumatizing isolation.

This video gives visuals to this great work of journalism. Because of the article- major improvements including hiring more people and promises to fix the situation have come about.




Here is Kieth Oberman's coverage of the story giving more visuals and analysis. In addition to Dana Priest, he brings on former soldier John Soltz of Votevets.org with more great insights:




Link to origional Washington Post article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/17/AR2007021701172.html

posted by paul Grant (follower of Basho)
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In Conflict takes a rare look at the Iraqi War through the words of those who have fought it. The book features more than two dozen veterans from all military branches, from fighter pilots, nurses, medics, and foot soldiers to prison guards, POWs, and reservists, each accompanied by a compelling photograph. Together they comprise a group portrait of American men and women located all over the country and from all age, race, and socioeconomic groups — men and women whose voices, surprisingly, are rarely heard in the din of discussion on this endlessly analyzed subject. They speak from veterans’ hospitals, homes, army bases, and homeless shelters. While their viewpoints are as diverse as their backgrounds — some supportive, some opposing, some simply confused — In Conflict captures one thing these eloquent commentators share: all have been irrevocably changed by their experience.

The Power of Nightmares -Documentary

A documentary about neoconservatives and radical Islamists by the BBC

Part One


Part two:

Video: The creation of the fake link bewtween 9/11 & Iraq

On June 20th, PBS aired the Frontline documentary "The Dark Side," about Vice President Dick Cheney's role in the War on Terror. Cheney's desire to attack Iraq and connect it to al Qaeda after 9/11 (despite a complete lack of evidence and the warnings of various counter-terrorism experts in the CIA and State Department) is discussed in this clip:

Video: Ehren K. Watada / His story & an interview

A Soldier's Duty? The Ehren Watada Story 18 min.
Excellent movie with views from both sides.

On June 22, U.S. Army First Lieutenant Ehren K. Watada became the first commissioned officer to publicly refuse deployment to the unlawful Iraq War and occupation.
For the first time since 1965, the military is prosecuting an objector for his opinions. He faces over eight years in prison - over six years for First Amendment speech alone!





The Interview


*posted by paul Grant (follower of Basho)

Video Documentary- Part 4 on the Neocons

1. With Hans Blix out of the way all that was necessary was to prove that Saddam was trying to buy enriched Uranium.
.. The information had to come from an irreproachable source.
3. The white house put foreward the name of Joe Wilson a friend of the Bush family.(he donated money to Bush I)
4. Joe Wilson was the last US diplomat to meet with Saddam Hussein and had been decorated for his bravery during the first Gulf war by Bush I.
5. The CIA contacted Mr. Wilson to go to Africa- He said he would only go as a representative of the US government and not as a representative of the CIA.
6. Wilson learned that Africa were not in contact with Saddam and that no Uranium had been given or sold to him. After returning and reporting this to the White House...
7. Bush during his State of the Union speech sighted this rumour and said that it was true.
8.Joe Wilson was upset because the White House used this misinformation as the basis of going to war against a soviern nation.
9. Wilson writes an OP- Ed piece in the Washington Post about his experience
10. So someone in the White House (Libby, Rove or Cheney) contacted their friendly news reporters and said that Joe Wilson's wife is a CIA agent and she sent her husband to the country of Niger. THIS IS A FEDERAL CRIME TO EXPOSE UNDERCOVER CIA OPERATIVES, and not only that- it was totally untrue.
11. Robert Novack publishes the false story first.

Video Documentary part 3 :PNAC/Neocon Crusades - Pin 9/11 on Iraq

1. Cheny convinced Bush to attack Iraq
2. Paul Wolfowitz pushed for regimne change in Iraq constantly
3. The neoconservitives knew that there was no link between 9/11 and Iraq
4. Ricahard Pearl said on news interview that Saddam was responsable for 9/11- when he knew there was no bases for that statement
5. The administration knowinglly lied to the public- well organized and repetitive propoganda similiar to the German Nazi tactics. it was the Nazi Gerbals who said: If you repeat a lie often enough, people swallow it.
6. The administration had a two part plan - A. Get rid of weapons inspectors who keep saying that Iraq has no WMD and B> Find wepons
7. Bush Administration went on a smear campagien against Hans Blix - who angrilly left his post ( read his commnts here)

posted by Paul Grant (follower of Basho)

Video, Documentary: PNAC/Neocon Crusades - Who Pulls the Strings?

Notes on this section of the documentary.

1. Paul Wolfowitz and Richard Pearl and Bernard Lewis push the neocon agenda.
2. Richard Pearl, though he has an office in the Pentagon near Donald Rumsfeld and has access to top security documents- is just an average citizen.
3. Bush gets his information from what people tell him
4. Bush didn't have a passport till he was President- doesn't know the world
5. The neocons believe that they are justified in supporting any Democratic revolution in the world
6. The neocons wanted to crush Saddam Hussein for the benefit of Israel
7. The White House on 9/11- on the day- called Richard Clark and said: Pin it on Iraq

posted by Paul Grant (follower of Basho)

Video: Rajiv Chandrasekaran talks about the Green Zone

Brian speaks to Rajiv Chandrasekaran of the Washington Post about the sometimes-surprising policies put in place by civilian decision-makers like Paul Bremmer. He talks about how the decision makers hidden in their sanctuary were not listening to the soldiers who were out in the country experiencing the reality of the situation.

Chandrasekaran has written a highly regarded book on the subject. It's called "Imperial Life in the Emerald City". It's a fascinating look inside the "Green Zone", the heavily protected and lavish neighbourhood of the U.S. civilian force, a community that lives in relative safety, strangely remote from the violent city outside.

About the book:
As the Baghdad bureau chief for the Washington Post, Chandrasekaran has probably spent more time in U.S.-occupied Iraq than any other American journalist, and his intimate perspective permeates this history of the Coalition Provisional Authority headquartered in the Green Zone around Saddam Hussein's former palace. He presents the tenure of presidential viceroy L. Paul Bremer between May 2003 and June 2004 as an all-too-avoidable disaster, in which an occupational administration selected primarily for its loyalty to the Bush administration routinely ignored the reality of local conditions until, as one ex-staffer puts it, "everything blew up in our faces." Chandrasekaran unstintingly depicts the stubborn cluelessness of many Americans in the Green Zone—like the army general who says children terrified by nighttime helicopters should appreciate "the sound of freedom." But he sympathetically portrays others trying their best to cut through the red tape and institute genuine reforms. He also has a sharp eye for details, from casual sex in abandoned offices to stray cats adopted by staffers, which enable both advocates and critics of the occupation to understand the emotional toll of its circuslike atmosphere. Thanks to these personal touches, the account of the CPA's failures never feels heavy-handed

Video: Senator Jim Webb Responds to the President State of the Union

Text:

Good evening.

I'm Senator Jim Webb, from Virginia, where this year we will celebrate the 400th anniversary of the settlement of Jamestown - an event that marked the first step in the long journey that has made us the greatest and most prosperous nation on earth.

Senator Jim Webb
Senator Jim Webb replied on behalf of the Democrats

It would not be possible in this short amount of time to actually rebut the president's message, nor would it be useful.

Let me simply say that we in the Democratic Party hope that this administration is serious about improving education and healthcare for all Americans, and addressing such domestic priorities as restoring the vitality of New Orleans.

Further, this is the seventh time the president has mentioned energy independence in his state of the union message, but for the first time this exchange is taking place in a Congress led by the Democratic Party.

We are looking for affirmative solutions that will strengthen our nation by freeing us from our dependence on foreign oil, and spurring a wave of entrepreneurial growth in the form of alternate energy programmes.

We look forward to working with the president and his party to bring about these changes.

There are two areas where our respective parties have largely stood in contradiction, and I want to take a few minutes to address them tonight.

The first relates to how we see the health of our economy - how we measure it, and how we ensure that its benefits are properly shared among all Americans.

The second regards our foreign policy - how we might bring the war in Iraq to a proper conclusion that will also allow us to continue to fight the war against international terrorism, and to address other strategic concerns that our country faces around the world.

Economy

When one looks at the health of our economy, it's almost as if we are living in two different countries.


The President took us into this [Iraq] war recklessly

Some say that things have never been better. The stock market is at an all-time high, and so are corporate profits.

But these benefits are not being fairly shared.

When I graduated from college, the average corporate CEO made 20 times what the average worker did; today, it's nearly 400 times.

In other words, it takes the average worker more than a year to make the money that his or her boss makes in one day.

Wages and salaries for our workers are at all-time lows as a percentage of national wealth, even though the productivity of American workers is the highest in the world.

Medical costs have skyrocketed. College tuition rates are off the charts. Our manufacturing base is being dismantled and sent overseas. Good American jobs are being sent along with them.

In short, the middle class of this country, our historic backbone and our best hope for a strong society in the future, is losing its place at the table.

Our workers know this, through painful experience.

Our white-collar professionals are beginning to understand it, as their jobs start disappearing also. And they expect, rightly, that in this age of globalisation, their government has a duty to insist that their concerns be dealt with fairly in the international marketplace.

'Recapturing spirit'

In the early days of our republic, President Andrew Jackson established an important principle of American-style democracy - that we should measure the health of our society not at its apex, but at its base.

Not with the numbers that come out of Wall Street, but with the living conditions that exist on Main Street. We must recapture that spirit today.

And under the leadership of the new Democratic Congress, we are on our way to doing so.

The House just passed a minimum wage increase, the first in 10 years, and the Senate will soon follow.

We've introduced a broad legislative package designed to regain the trust of the American people.

We've established a tone of co-operation and consensus that extends beyond party lines.

We're working to get the right things done, for the right people and for the right reasons.

Iraq war

With respect to foreign policy, this country has patiently endured a mismanaged war for nearly four years.

Many, including myself, warned even before the war began that it was unnecessary, that it would take our energy and attention away from the larger war against terrorism, and that invading and occupying Iraq would leave us strategically vulnerable in the most violent and turbulent corner of the world.

I want to share with all of you a picture that I have carried with me for more than 50 years.

This is my father, when he was a young Air Force captain, flying cargo planes during the Berlin Airlift. He sent us the picture from Germany, as we waited for him, back here at home.

When I was a small boy, I used to take the picture to bed with me every night, because for more than three years my father was deployed, unable to live with us full-time, serving overseas or in bases where there was no family housing.

I still keep it, to remind me of the sacrifices that my mother and others had to make, over and over again, as my father gladly served our country.

I was proud to follow in his footsteps, serving as a marine in Vietnam.

My brother did as well, serving as a Marine helicopter pilot. My son has joined the tradition, now serving as an infantry marine in Iraq.

Like so many other Americans, today and throughout our history, we serve and have served, not for political reasons, but because we love our country.

On the political issues - those matters of war and peace, and in some cases of life and death - we trusted the judgment of our national leaders.

We hoped that they would be right, that they would measure with accuracy the value of our lives against the enormity of the national interest that might call upon us to go into harm's way.

We owed them our loyalty, as Americans, and we gave it.

But they owed us - sound judgment, clear thinking, concern for our welfare, a guarantee that the threat to our country was equal to the price we might be called upon to pay in defending it.

'Hostage nation'

The president took us into this war recklessly.

He disregarded warnings from the national security adviser during the first Gulf War, the chief of staff of the army, two former commanding generals of the Central Command, whose jurisdiction includes Iraq, the director of operations on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and many, many others with great integrity and long experience in national security affairs.

We are now, as a nation, held hostage to the predictable - and predicted - disarray that has followed.

The war's costs to our nation have been staggering.

Financially.

The damage to our reputation around the world. The lost opportunities to defeat the forces of international terrorism.

And especially the precious blood of our citizens who have stepped forward to serve.

'New direction'

The majority of the nation no longer supports the way this war is being fought; nor does the majority of our military.

We need a new direction.

Not one step back from the war against international terrorism.

Not a precipitous withdrawal that ignores the possibility of further chaos.

But an immediate shift toward strong regionally-based diplomacy, a policy that takes our soldiers off the streets of Iraq's cities, and a formula that will in short order allow our combat forces to leave Iraq.

Class divisions

On both of these vital issues, our economy and our national security, it falls upon those of us in elected office to take action.

Regarding the economic imbalance in our country, I am reminded of the situation President Theodore Roosevelt faced in the early days of the 20th Century.

America was then, as now, drifting apart along class lines.

The so-called robber barons were unapologetically raking in a huge percentage of the national wealth. The dispossessed workers at the bottom were threatening revolt.

Roosevelt spoke strongly against these divisions.

He told his fellow Republicans that they must set themselves "as resolutely against improper corporate influence on the one hand as against demagogy and mob rule on the other."

And he did something about it.

Bush 'must act'

As I look at Iraq, I recall the words of former general and soon-to-be President Dwight Eisenhower during the dark days of the Korean War, which had fallen into a bloody stalemate.

"When comes the end?" asked the General who had commanded our forces in Europe during World War II.

And as soon as he became president, he brought the Korean War to an end.

These presidents took the right kind of action, for the benefit of the American people and for the health of our relations around the world.

Tonight we are calling on this president to take similar action, in both areas.

If he does, we will join him. If he does not, we will be showing him the way.

Thank you for listening. And God bless America.