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From the blogs

Ivana Trump, Second Nigerian Man Escorted Off Airplanes

by Joshua Holland, AlterNet

It's like there's something in the H2O on these flights.

X-Mas Terror Elicits the Expected Response from Greater Wingnuttia

by Tintin, Sadly, No!

Nigeria!

Crazy Idiot Sets Off Firecrackers on an Airplane ... You Know What this Means, Right?

by Thers, Whiskey Fire

Thanks, Jerk

Ridiculous "Study" Supposedly Finds Widespread Anti-Semitism on Progressive Websites

by Joshua Holland, AlterNet

As intellectually dishonest as one could get.

Jailtime For Pregnant Soldiers? The Army Has Made Getting Pregnant a Punishable Offense

by Amanda Terkel, Think Progress

Under a new policy enacted by Major Gen. Anthony Cucolo, troops expecting a baby face court martial and possible prison -- and so do the men who made them pregnant.

As Military Launches New Attack In Afghanistan, U.S. Ambassador Suggests Extended U.S. Occupation

by , Democracy Now!

Speaking before an Afghan audience on Thursday, Karl Eikenberry said, "This is not a deadline despite what some people in the United States and Afghanistan have said."

The Violent Repression of Peaceful Palestinian Protests Continues

by Jonathan Pollak, AlterNet

8,000 Palestinians currently inhabit Israeli jails on purely political grounds.

Climate Talks on Verge of Collapse in Final Hours

by Nick Berning, Open Left

A leaked UN documents is among a number of news items as the climate talks reach the home-stretch.

WTF? $26 Software Being Used to Hack Drone Program in Iraq & Afghanistan

by Liliana Segura, AlterNet

The Wall Street Journal calls it a "potentially serious vulnerability in Washington's growing network of unmanned drones."

Honduran Gay Activist Walter Trochez Assassinated

by Doug Ireland, Direland

The best-known LGBT activist in Honduras was assassinated on Sunday after speaking out against homophobic crimes and killings by the forces behind the coup there.

Israel Declares War on NGOs and Human Rights Groups

Jerrold Kessel, Pierre Klochendler, IPS News. December 26, 2009.
One year after its devastating siege of Gaza, Israel's efforts to discredit peace groups have intensified, while settlement activity has expanded.

Have Americans Traded Freedom For Security?

Paul Craig Roberts, CounterPunch. December 25, 2009.
According to polls, Americans support torture and don't mind that their government spies on them without obtaining warrants from a court.

'Neocon-ing' Obama

Robert Parry, Consortium News. December 25, 2009.
In his Nobel speech, Obama slipped decades of violent U.S. foreign policy behind the phrase "whatever mistakes we have made," while asserting the morality of U.S. interventions.

I Volunteered For Obama in 2008, But His Support of Landmines Is the Last Straw

Clancy Sigal, Comment Is Free. December 24, 2009.
Obama's cruel and pointless refusal to ban child-killing landmines was my personal breaking point against the candidate I worked hard to elect.

War Vet: I Served 40 Months in Iraq, After Which I Didn't Want to Go Back Home

Anonymous, New America Media. December 24, 2009.
Veteran with PTSD: "I don't feel comfortable at home anymore. My threat tolerance and response to perceived threats is so finely tuned that I felt safer in Iraq. "

Afghanistan War: The Soviet Lesson Not Learned

Rep. Eric Massa. December 23, 2009.
Make a difference, become a Peacemaker: http://rethinkafghanistan.com/peace.php

The Great Afghan Gem Heist: How the War Led to the Pillaging of Afghanistan's Precious Stones

Lal Aqa Sherin, IPS News. December 23, 2009.
In the last eight years, Afghanistan's precious stones and artifacts have been stolen at record levels.

Obama's Af-Pak War is Not Just Deadly and Counterproductive: It's Illegal

Marjorie Cohn, AlterNet. December 23, 2009.
Some 30 percent of all U.S. deaths in Afghanistan have occurred during Obama's presidency. His escalation of that war is not what the Nobel committee envisioned.

Is It Possible to Cobble Together 10 Good Things That Happened in 2009? You Better Believe It!

Medea Benjamin, AlterNet. December 22, 2009.
It was a tough year, but there is still much to celebrate -- now a majority of Americans oppose war in Afghanistan, the war on drugs is waning, and more.

Guantanamo Was "Hell On Earth": Former Gitmo Detainee

Agence France Presse. December 22, 2009.
"Some of my colleagues in the prison lost their sight, some lost their limbs and others ended up mentally disturbed," recalls Mohamed Saleban Bare. "I'm OK compared to them."

For Obama, No Opportunity Is Too Big to Blow

Naomi Klein, TheNation.com. December 21, 2009.
No President since FDR has been handed as many opportunities to transform the U.S. into something that doesn't threaten the stability of life on this planet. Is he blowing it?

Afghan National Army: Afghan Police Are Doing More Harm Than Good

Ahmad Kawosh, Institute for War and Peace Reporting. December 21, 2009.
Some claim that member of the Afghan police force are colluding with insurgents, making deals and even fighting with the Taliban against the army.

Stunning Statistics About the War in Afghanistan Every American Should Know

Jeremy Scahill, Rebel Reports. December 21, 2009.
Contrary to popular belief, the U.S. actually has 189,000 personnel on the ground in Afghanistan right now -- and that number is quickly rising.

$57,077.60 -- That's What We're Paying Each Minute for the Occupation of Afghanistan

Jo Comerford, Tomdispatch.com. December 17, 2009.
The $30 billion cost of Obama's surge alone would place the US in the top-ten for global military spending, sandwiched between Italy and Saudi Arabia.

Neocons Must Be Pissed; China and Russia Are Getting the Sweet Oil Deals in Iraq

Pepe Escobar, Asia Times. December 17, 2009.
Cheney and Rumsfeld's script was never supposed to develop like this. Instead of US Big Oil getting the lion's share in Iraq, its top competitors turned out to be big winners.

Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman's Invictus Film Release Kicks Off New Campaign For Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Linda Milazzo, AlterNet. December 14, 2009.
The launch of Invictus will hopefully set of a wave of renewed interest in a proposal to recognize and protect the rights of humanity.

The 9 Surges of Obama's War

Tom Engelhardt, Tomdispatch.com. December 14, 2009.
The troop surge is only one part of the escalation of the Afghanistan war. Here are 8 more signs of how fully the President has committed us.

Big News from Copenhagen: Radical Cuts Urged, Deal In Jeopardy

Mark Hertsgaard, TheNation.com. December 12, 2009.
The divide between big emitters and at-risk nations deepened, threatening the prospects of reaching a climate deal.

Afghanistan: How the War Hawks Caged Obama

Robert Parry, Consortium News. December 12, 2009.
How a desire for bipartisanship and peace within his own party led Obama to appoint a hawkish cabal that pushed him to a renewed war in Afghanistan.

Bill Moyers: We Have a Nobel Peace President Who Won't Ban Land Mines

Bill Moyers, Michael Winship, Bill Moyers Journal. December 11, 2009.
The Nobel Committee said Obama won the prize for his respect of international law and his efforts at disarmament, yet he won't even sign on to end a barbaric weapon.

Explosions and Fraught Negotiations Show Iraq Struggling to Emerge From U.S. Shadow

Abeer Mohammed, Neil Arun, Institute for War and Peace Reporting. December 11, 2009.
This week, five car bombs near killed more than 120 people in Baghdad, one day after Iraqi lawmakers finally finished a convoluted debate over upcoming elections.

Why Do Airstrikes in Afghanistan Keep Killing Exactly 30 People?

Megan Carpentier, Air America. December 11, 2009.
Pentagon policy from the Rumsfeld days on acceptable kill rates still seems to be the guiding logic for what field commanders are telling the news media.

Does Obama's Road to Re-Election Run Through Kabul?

Christian Parenti, The Nation. December 10, 2009.
The real purpose of sending 30,000 soldiers to Afghanistan is to make Obama look tough as he heads toward his next election.

Obama Accepts Nobel Peace Prize With a Pro-War Speech

Norman Solomon, AlterNet. December 10, 2009.
Obama spoke of "the world as it is" and insisted that "war is sometimes necessary" -- but generalities do nothing to mitigate the horrors of war being endured by others.

Pentagon's Advice to Traumatized Veterans: Think Happy Thoughts!

Penny Coleman, AlterNet. December 10, 2009.
Hey, all you quitters and whiners: If it’s bad and it hurts, you have to try harder, have faith, and above all, think positive!

The Swiss Minaret Ban: What Are They Really Trying to Outlaw?

Laila Lalami, The Nation. December 9, 2009.
A voter referendum prohibiting the construction of minarets in Switzerland is part of a disturbing, anti-Muslim trend that's been working its way through Europe for years.

Obama Far Outdoes Bush in Escalating War -- The Numbers Will Surprise You

David DeGraw, Amped Status. December 9, 2009.
Increasing numbers of deployed soldiers, mercenaries and drones all add up to Obama being more of a war president than Bush, in terms of hard numbers.

Iraq-WMD Claim Came from ... a Cab Driver?

John Byrne, Raw Story. December 9, 2009.
News in the UK: Iraqi cab driver was source of an infamous claim made by Prime Minister Tony Blair that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

Is Erik Prince Threatening the U.S. Government?

Jeremy Scahill, The Nation. December 8, 2009.
Did Blackwater's owner speak to Vanity Fair to send a message to the Justice Department about government secrets he can reveal?

How Hyper-Capitalism May Hobble the Copenhagen Summit

Walden Bello, Foreign Policy in Focus. December 8, 2009.
Unless we re-think the export-oriented capitalism that's causing all of our climate problems, the Copenhagen conference will be nothing more than a Band-Aid.

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