Stephen Lendman: Libya's Great Man-Made River

America's NATO war on Libya was long planned. All military interventions require months of preparation, including strategy and conflict objectives, enlisting coalition partners, selecting targets, promoting political and public support, deploying troops, recruiting, funding, and arming so-called "rebels", and post-conflict "imperial plans". As always, Washington wants one despot replaced with another, a useful puppet to salute and obey orders, "not independent-minded ones" like Gaddafi, who went along most often, but not always on all issues, some major enough to want him ousted. Other objectives are to colonize Libya, balkanize it like Yugoslavia and Iraq, prevent democracy from emerging, privatize its state enterprises, exploit its people, establish new Pentagon bases, and control its oil, gas and other resources, a key one getting little attention - Libya's Great Man-Made River: The Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System lies beneath four North African countries - Chad, Egypt, Sudan and Libya, called the world's largest fossil water system because it's ancient and non-renewable. In fact, the Koran - Surah 2, Verse 74 says: "For among rocks there are some from which rivers gush forth; others there are which when split asunder send forth water." In fact, three major aquifers lie beneath the Sahara, NSAS the largest, containing an estimated 375,000 cubic km of water.

Joel Skousen: Setting The Stage For Inserting US Troops Into Libya

Right now, the US is falsely claiming that it has taken a back seat role to NATO in the offensive operations in Libya, but even the "normally" pro-government NY Times revealed "that Pentagon officials disclosed Wednesday that American warplanes had continued to strike targets in Libya, even after the Obama administration said the United States was stepping back from offensive missions and letting NATO take the lead." But, there's more deception and provocation to come, in order to justify the the intervention of US and NATO troops in Libya. After all, there has to be a reason the 2nd Marine Division is already in transit to the Mediterranean. Rebel leaders in the besieged city of Misrata are claiming that a "massacre" is going on because of some 23 civilian casualties harmed in an artillery barrage. (The US regularly kills that many civilians in Afghanistan during air strikes and offensive operations, and yet they have been beating the drums about this "humanitarian crisis", and claim this level of casualties justifies ground troops.) Army General Carter Ham told CBS news that while "ground forces wouldn't be ideal, they may be a possible way to aid rebels." He admitted that the current operation is largely stalemated. Former CIA Analyst Michael Scheuer also says that US air strikes have done almost all they can do, and Gaddafi can't be dislodged without ground troops, and that is why the US must conjure up a worse humanitarian crisis to justify troops on the ground.

Ann Coulter: A Glowing Report on Radiation? What's She Bin Smokin?

According to Ann Coulter, anyone exposed to excess radiation from nuclear power plants is now "probably" much less likely to get cancer. There is, just in time, "burgeoning evidence" that excess radiation operates as some sort of "cancer vaccine". Youse jus gots to belive! As the New York Times science section reported in 2001, an increasing number of scientists believe that at some level-much higher than the minimums set by the US government, radiation is GOOD fo yu! According to the Times, "these doses protect against cancer by activating cells' natural defense mechanisms." Among the studies mentioned by the Times was one in Canada, finding that tuberculosis patients subjected to multiple chest X-rays had much lower rates of breast cancer than the general population. In addition, a $10 million Department of Energy study from 1991 examined 10 years of epidemiological research by John Hopkins School of Public Health on 700,000 shipyard workers , some of whom had been exposed to 10 times more radiation than the others from their work on the ships' nuclear reactors. The workers exposed to excess radiation had a 24 percent lower death rate and a 25 percent lower cancer mortality than the non-irradiated workers.

Reason for War Against Libya: Gaddafi Wanted to Nationalize Oil

The Libyan leader proposed the nationalization of US oil companies, as well as those of UK, Germany, Spain, Norway, Canada and Italy in 2009! On January 25, 2009, Muammar Al-Gaddafi announced that his country was studying the nationalization of foreign companies: "The oil- exporting countries should opt for nationalization because of the rapid fall in oil prices. We must put the issue on the table and discuss it seriously," said Gaddafi. "Oil should be owned by the State at this time, so we could better control prices by the increase or decrease in production," said the Libyan leader. These statements have worried the main foreign companies operating in Libya: Anglo-Dutch Shell, British Petroleum, US ExxonMobil, Hess Corp, Marathon Oil, Occidental Petroleum and ConocoPhillips, the Spanish Repsol, Germany's Wintershall, Austria's OMV, Norway's Statoil, Eni and Canada's Petro Canada. In 2008, the Libyan state oil company, National Oil, prepared a report on the subject in which officials suggested modifying the production-sharing agreements with foreign companies in order to to increase state revenues. As a result of these contract changes, Libya gained 5.4 billion dollars in oil revenues. On February 16, 2009, Gaddafi took a step further and called on Libyans to back his proposals to dismantle the government and to distribute the oil wealth directly to the 5 million inhabitants of the country. However, his plan to deliver oil revenues directly to the Libyan people met opposition by senior officials who would lose their jobs due to a parallel plan by Gaddafi to rid the state of corruption.

What is the "Official Justification" for OUR War Against Libya?

During their "rebellion" Libyan "rebels" took time out to create a central bank. CNBC senior editor John Carney indicated that this is the first time a revolutionary group, has created a central bank while still in the midst of fighting the entrenched political power. Another anomaly involves the official justification for taking up arms against Libya. Supposedly, the war is about human rights violations, but the evidence is contradictory: According to an article on the Fox News website on February 28: As the United Nations works feverishly to condemn Libyan leader Muammar al- Qaddafi for cracking down on protesters, the body's Human Rights Council is poised to adopt a report chock-full of praise for Libya's human rights record. The review commends Libya for improving educational opportunities, for making human rights a "priority", and for bettering its "constitutional" framework. Several countries, including Iran, Venezuela, North Korea, and Saudi Arabia, but also Canada, give Libya positive marks for the legal protections afforded to its citizens -who are now revolting against the regime and facing bloody reprisal. Whatever might be said of Gaddafi, the Libyan people seem to be thriving!

Michael Klare:Our Avenging Planet

Last Monday, Yukio Edano, chief cabinet secretary of Japan, defended the Japanese government's response to the nuclear disaster at Fukushima, insisting that the plant complex is in "a stable situation, relatively speaking." That's somewhat like the official description of 11,500 tons of water purposely dumped into the ocean waters off Fukushima as "low-level radioactive" or "lightly radioactive". It is, of course, only "lightly" so in comparison to the even more radioactive water being stored at the plant in its place. But that's the thing with descriptive words: They can leave so much to to the eye of the beholder - and the Japanese hasn't been significantly more eager than the Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco), which runs the complex, to behold all that much when it comes to Fukushima. On Tuesday, the government finally raised the Fukushima alert level on the International Nuclear Event Scale from 5 to 7 (a major accident) - the highest category possible, only previously used for the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster, (which resulted in a 15,000-square mile "dead zone" in the Ukraine). Though Japanese government officials rushed to play down the Chernobyl comparison, a Tepco official offered this ominously bet-hedging comment: "Our concern is that the amount of leakage could eventually reach that of Chernobyl or exceed it!"

Michael Hudson: Our Military Expansion Funded By Foreign Banks.

Our country tis of thee? Give me a break. As a matter of fact, Obama needs to give all of our citizens, who struggle daily, in order to provide the manpower and money to whack the innocent nations of our world, who once believed that America is a land of "freedom" a break. Large amounts of surplus dollars towards the purchase of US Treasury bonds, which serve to finance the federal US budget deficit. Strange as it may seem, and irrational as it would be in a more logical system of world diplomacy, the "dollar glut" is what finances America's global military build-up. It forces foreign central banks to bear the cost of America's expanding military empire - "Effective taxation without representation". Keeping international reserves in "dollars" means recycling their dollar inflows to buy US Treasury Bills, namely US government debt issued largely to finance our military. To date, countries have been as powerless to defend themselves against the fact that this compulsory financing of US military spending is built into the global financial system. Neo-liberal economists applaud this bizarre method of financing as if it were part of the nature of economics, and "free markets", rather than bare-knuckle diplomacy wielded with increasing aggressiveness by US officials.

Japanese Government is In Denial over Fukushima Reactors

Speaking at a news conference to mark one month since the massive earthquake and tsunami devastated the northeastern coast of his country, Japanese Prime Minister Kan said: produce from the region around the Fukushima plant is safe to eat despite radiation leaks. In fact, from now on, people should live life as before the extreme disaster. To consume products from the areas that have been affected, is another way to support the area. "We should enjoy the use of such products and support the areas that have been affected. I ask you to do this." A spokesperson for the International Atomic Energy Agency agreed: According to him (or her), said that the latest food sample data indicates levels of contamination are below the limits set by domestic authorities. Denis Flory, IAEA spokesperson, also said yesterday Japan's nuclear crisis was not comparable to Chernobyl. When I served as Intelligence Operations Officer of our 4th US Armored Division, and later as Advisory Team Leader in Trung Lap, I must have become much more skeptical about the unwanted happy talk of our higher-ups. As I told my team: I am not buying their stories: One of our "geniuses" will give me a positive report of what is happening in this country, and those standing nearby will swear to it!

Charlie Sheen: A Man for all Seasons!

For many years, my wife and I have enjoyed Charlie's Show: "Two and a Half Men", and we have purchased almost all of the videos which are currently available for that program. Unfortunately, Charlie appears to be struggling to keep his outstanding show alive - hence his current web site, and my foolish attempt to give him a hand with his career: If you will enter "Charlie Sheen" in your browser, you are certainly going to find his outstanding web site, and be able to project his whirlwind tours of our nation. Besides his outstanding acting credentials in "Two and a Half Men" he has distinguished himself with a great performance in representing the dismal lot of the American Soldier, who must pay with his young life for the idiotic whims of our Presidents and General Officers. Before I left the home of my parents, near Lancaster, Texas, my father, who had served in Hitler's Army, warned me to place the needs of my men before thinking of my own welfare. Even though he had no great love for Hitler, he told me that there was an unspoken code in Hitler's officers, to put the needs of their men before their own welfare. He warned me, that if I could not measure up to their high standards, not to return to his home. Fortunately, all did go well in Vietnam, and I was able to report that I brought all of the men who served with me, NOT only alive, but also with all of their limbs in one piece. My documentation to that effect is at:
http://home.earthlink.net/~wolfgangpmay/

Tomgram: Obama Still Hammering Away, But not for LONG!

The paperback edition of Andrew Bacevich's bestselling book Washington Rules: America's Path to Permanent War, is being published this week. When Washington Rules came out in hardcover, it was reviewed, and many of you read its introductory chapter. A devastating anatomy of the narrowness of Washington's thought processes, the book challenged the idea that American security requires the United States to maintain a permanent armed presence around the world, and be ready to intervene anywhere at any time. Unfortunately, given recent events, Washington Rules remains unbearably timely. As a gesture of support, Bacevich has agreed to send a personalized, signed copy of his new paperback to anyone who gives a contribution of $75, or more, to TomDispatch. Was there ever an American president (except Obama), who publicly told more people on this planet what they "must" do more than George W. Bush, unless it is our moron Obama? Just the other day, I noticed a lead paragraph in the New York Times about Yemen, a country boiling with protests aimed at unseating its autocratic ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh: "The United States, which long supported Yemen's president, even in the face of of recent widespread protests, has now quietly shifted positions and has concluded that he is unlikely to bring about the required reforms, and must be eased out of office, according to American and Yemeni officials." We be talking, let's face it, bullshit here, since "our" US needs the "puppet" we installed on his throne now that he has some clout among his people.

The Curse of American "Presidents"!

The scar on the head of the American president Barack Obama that extends from the top of his head to his right ear, has generated plenty of rumors. Bloggers from the US put forward their own version - he has been zombied by aliens, or the "Masons"conducted a secret surgery on his brain, reports The Daily Mail. Blogger Ben Hart wrote: "Maybe it was brain surgery? It is possible that this influenced his style of thinking. Is he "really" an alien from another planet? While bloggers continue to build a conspiracy theory, Yoki offers its own investigation of mystical events in the lives of American presidents. It is hard to say who was the first one to pay attention to the enigma of the untimely death of American presidents elected in years divisible by 20. This phenomenon is now the subject of numerous studies of specialists in magic and numerology. They are still concerned whether this is a coincidence or regularity. In 1840 William Henry Harrison was elected the US president. He died before the end of his term in office. In 1860, Abraham Lincoln became president, and was later assassinated. Heads of the White House elected James A Garfield in 1880.

Dr. Michio Kaku: Hanging by your Fingernails- The Fukushima Meltdown

Hanging by Your Fingernails Indeed: There is no more poignant way to describe the terrible agony which those who are the guardians of Japan's future must feel, especially when the family offspring are threatened by the Fukushima disaster. Right now the disaster is "relatively" stable, if you can project that you are stable, hanging by your fingernails off a cliff, while watching your fingernails breaking one by one. As we know this disaster, so far the accident in Fukushima is progressing in three acts. First, is the earthquake and tsunami, which immediately wiped out all emergency cooling systems simultaneously at all three reactors, and ALL HELL has broken loose. Act II was the enormous damage done to the cores of these three reactors. With the loss of cooling water, temperatures began to rise rapidly, causing the hydrogen gas explosions and fuel melting. We know that about 70% of Unit I's core was damaged, and that 33% of Unit 2's core was also damaged. All computer simulations done by various laboratories all show the same thing - that we came perilously close to a full scale meltdown at all three reactors, including a spent fuel pond accident in Unit 4.

Beware the Ill Winds - Something Very Wicked This Way Comes!

Many years ago, in a very remote and beautiful universe, Wlliam Shakespeare wrote: "Beware the Ill Winds -Something Wicked This Way Comes". In order to light our way during these difficult times, he also admonished us: "Double, double, toil and trouble, Fire burn, and cauldron bubble. "What better describes the mess our nuclear industry has bequeathed to our mortal human race?" Doesn't that succinctly describe what is happening at Fukushima, Japan, where the hellish troika of General Electric, the Tokyo Electric and Power Company (TEPCO), and the Japanese government have whipped up a radioactive, boiling hot nuclear cauldron of Whup Ass Hell-Broth Trouble for the "benefit"of our entire humanity? Moreover, they have begun to pour their vile, radioactive brew into the ocean by unknown millions of gallons, flushing into the Pacific ocean the the radioactive brew into the pristine waters that are the home to an abundance of sea life. The government of Japan has said that the radioactive water would NOT be a threat to humans, but what the hell do they know - i's believen them thar rascals wens they's drinks thar one cuntaminaitid URIN!

Why Use our Airforce to Discipline Gaddafi: He Wanted to Nationalize Libyan Oil!

Gaddafi proposed the nationalization of US oil companies, as well as those of the UK, Germany, Spain, Norway, Canada and Italy in 2009. On January 25, 2009, Muammar Al Gadafi announced that his country was studying the nationalization of his country's oil due to lower oil prices. "Oil should be owned by the State, so that we can better control prices by the increase or decrease in production. His statements have not been welcomed by foreign companies operating in Libya, including Anglo-Dutch Shell, British Petroleum (who destroyed the entire environment south of New Orleans by polluting the Gulf and destroying the livelihood of its people!) Then, there is ExxonMobil, Hess Corp, Marathon Oil, Occidental Petroleum and ConocoPhillips, the Spanish Repsol, Germany's Wintershall, Austria's OMV, Norway's Statoil, Eni and Canada's Petro Canada. In 2008, the Libyan state oil company, National Oil, prepared a report on the subject in which officials suggested modifying the production-sharing agreements with foreign companies in order to increase state revenues. As a result of these contract changes, Libya gained 5.4 billion dollars in oil revenues. On February 16, 2009, Gaddafi took a step further, and called on Libyans to back his proposal to dismantle the government and to distribute the oil wealth directly to the 5 million inhabitants of the country. However, his plan to deliver oil revenues directly to the Libyan people met opposition by senior officials who could lose their jobs due to a parallel plan by Gaddafi to rid the state of corruption.
Sic Transit Gloria Mundi! Thus goes the glory of our world! Please click on my heading to read the outstanding article by Lisa Karpova, an outstanding journalist on pravda.ru

Syrian Rabbi Admits Corruption to FBI!

Rabbi Saul Kassin, the 89-year old "spiritual leader" of the nation's largest Syrian Sephardic Jewish congregation, admitted Monday his role in a scheme that uses religious charities to launder tens of thousands of dollars. Kassin, who pleaded guilty to one count of operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, admitted he transmitted between $200,000 and $400,000 through his charity Magen Israel Society between June 2007 and December 2008. The transactions were arranged by Solomon Dwek, a disgraced developer, who was secretly working for the FBI, after he was arrested in an unrelated $50 million bank fraud. The massive sting operation came to light in July 2009, when Kassin and four other Orthodox rabbis, along with three mayors, two assemblymen and dozens of other public officials, and many more in the "religious" community, were arrested on myriad charges ranging from money laundering to political corruption. One man was even charged with brokering black-market kidneys. Kassin said Dwek gave him bank checks and he made out checks payable - less 10 percent commission - to charitable organizations, knowing the money was NOT for charitable purposes.

Joel S. Hirschhorn: Despicable Lies, Delusional Economic Recovery, Hyped Unemployment Numbers

Most Americans gobble up false and misleading information, which is nothing less than political propaganda. For example, Obama's hyped unemployment "data" for March, 2011, supposedly at 8.8 percent, though "praised" by the media and democrat politicians, does NOT fairly describe current unemployment figures! The REAL unemployment figures are actually 17.7 percent! Surprise! These false figures have been carefully crafted to underestimate actual unemployment in our United States: Gallup polling takes into account those who have stopped looking for a job, because they realize that under the Obama Administration there are NO jobs available, though some are working part time. Gallup polling includes those who have stopped looking for a job, as well as those working part time, though they would really like a full-time job! Our "clever", meaning "deceptive" government, does not reveal that the real number of unemployed workers is somewhere around 28.2 million, meaning more hardship and suffering for our workers than our "government" wants us to know about.