September 30, 2004
Resource for the Debate
Well get out your shovels and your hip boots, Bush and Kerry have their first debate tonight at 9pm EST. I image the rhethoric , distortions, distractions, hyperbole, and outright lies will fly thick and fast. A resource I would...
September 29, 2004
"Call To Action" Update
For all of you who participated in creating our collaborative submission to Dale Pfeiffer's "Call to Action" the Surviving Peak Oil site is now up and running. All of the articles, including our contribution Community is Necessary to Survival are...
A New Take on Eminent Domain
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that may totally reframe the law of "eminent domain". Eminent Domain allows a government to take private property (with compensation) for the public good or public use. The case that will...
September 28, 2004
Saddam May Run for President
Well wouldn't this be a true irony if Saddam Hussein runs for President of Iraq and Wins? Outrageous you say? Well according to Zaman Online, Saddam is planning to Declare his Candidacy for the Iraqi Elections (thanks to Information Clearing...
September 27, 2004
Let's Talk Plots Shall We?
There was, and still is, quite a flap about Dan Rather and CBS using "false" documents regarding Bush's "service" records. Personally, I believe that whole thing was a setup, and one has to ask about the pressure to air that...
The Bush Administration Has A Cavilier Attitude Towards Democracy
The upcoming January election in Iraq has been making a lot of news. WIll it happen? Won't It Happen? Will it be endlessly "delayed" as Afghanistan's elections have been? This morning on the way to work I heard an announcement...
September 26, 2004
Poverty Up; Welfare Down; Middle-Class Evaporates
For many the banner Poverty Up as Welfare Enrollment Declines looks like a conundrum. Most folks think that they are the same thing poverty=welfare. Those who don't see it as a major improvement - at least there are less folks...
September 25, 2004
Sociopathic Self-interest Runs in The Family
It is not a big secret, though the family and its supporters have said it is fabrication. It's not, but I can hardly wait to see where this story goes - How Bush's grandfather helped Hitler's rise to power. No,...
September 24, 2004
One Way or Another They Will Get Their Database
The Bush administration is bound and determined to create the mother of all databases. It makes no difference that it would violate privacy rights. It makes no difference that it is unworkable and unmanageable. It makes no difference that they...
"Protected" Statutes?
US government is founded upon a separation of powers - executive, legislative, and judicial. This is called the "balance of powers." This division provides a check on any branch gaining undue power and unbalancing the system. So what do we...
September 23, 2004
And the Beat Goes On
Watching our elected representatives in action, I am getting deja vu of the legislative flurry after 9/11/01. When the public complained about things such as the U.S.A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act, or giving Bush a blank check, or abdicating the Congress's Constitutional...
September 22, 2004
US Intelligence Missed China Subs
When I saw this headline - China's new submarines caught U.S. intelligence off guard - I got really nervous. How could they "miss" the fact that China was building submarines? One would think that all of the military activity and...
September 21, 2004
The "Work" of Capital
Last year about this time, the Bush regime was busy opening up Iraq "for business." This did not (and still does not) mean that they were stimulating Iraq's economy by providing small business loans, rebuilding infrastructure, and stimulating Iraqi employment....
September 20, 2004
The Lynching of Dan Rather
The following article is by Greg Palast, and sent to me by Oliver Sykles with permission to reprint. To access other works by Mr. Palast, you may go to his website The Writings of Greg Palast. "It's that fear that...
September 19, 2004
Too Weird to Not Share
As if folks in Florida didn't have enough to deal with as Ivan roared through, one group had to deal with an anger mangaement counselor who ordered his pit bulls to attack the folks he was sheltering with....
Where Lies the Truth? You Decide
There is an article in the Washington Post - 35 Guantánamo Detainees Are Given to Pakistan. According to the article, the Guantanamo detainees were turned over to Pakistan after "extended negotiations." Negotiations about what one might ask. Perhaps something related...
September 18, 2004
Covert Conscription - Iteration Three
Well, everybody knows that the number of US troops in Iraq is inadequate. Everybody knows that enlistment is down. Everybody knows that US force deployments are nearing a breaking point. But it is an election year and the "D" word...
September 17, 2004
Global Warming - Severe Storms
I am apparently no the only one who is looking at the recent flurry of huricanes - Ivan May Just Be a Messenger, and Weather Makes Lawmakers Antsy. As Ivan continues to roll through the southeastern US, eyes are turning...
Apocalips
Thanks to Bill for this pic that needs no introduction....
September 16, 2004
He Said What?
Here's a headline to capture the eye - Bush rebukes move by Putin to limit Russian democracy. Yes, friends, after pushing the U.S.A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act, and being the most secretive administration in the history of the US, Bush is saying...
State Department Report on Religious Freedom
The US State Department has released its sixth annual International Religious Freedom Report for 2004, and for the first time Saudi Arabia is on the list....
More on the Illegal Iraq War
Iraq war was illegal and breached UN charter, says Annan. Yes Kofi Annan joins the list of folks who have acknowledged that GW invaded Iraq illegally. Who does he join? Well Richard Perle, and Hans Blix. And me of course....
September 15, 2004
Civil War in Iraq?
The rumblings for months have been that "civil war" is brewing in Iraq. That news is coupled with reports of the "ineffectiveness" of Iraqi police and troops. Both are not so subtle arguments for why the US needs to stay...
September 14, 2004
Rest Easy. We Will Be Protected
It is said that international terrorism is like a hydra, so it only makes sense (I guess) that the defense against terrorism is as diverse. One of those pulled out of the moth ball strategies was the defunct and debunked...
September 13, 2004
Tell Us Something We Don't Know
I guess that I should feel validated or reassured when the headlines confirm what I already know, but somehow it just ticks me off. For example, despite the Bush administration constantly reiterating they had no "torture" policy (I've already flogged...
September 12, 2004
Letter from Sam Hammil - Poets Against the War
The following letter is posted from Poets Against the War. It was written by Sam Hammil. September 11, 2004 "Extending the war into Iraq would have incurred incalculable human and political costs. We would have been forced to occupy Baghdad...
Portland Peace Action
On Thursday, September 16, Living Earth and a coalition of peace groups and faith congregations will gather at 7:30 pm at Terry Shrunk Plaza (SW Third and Madison) for a Candlelight Vigil for a Thousand Soldiers....
September 11, 2004
Abuse Excuse
I am really tired of hearing, from Bush administration officials and from the average Jane, "what we did isn't as bad as what they did." In Iraq, the US occupation is "better" than Hussein; US run prisons (even with abuse...
September 10, 2004
Notable News
Well I hate to say "I told you so," but I did. Dramatic and unfocused collection of data does not make us any safer. Now the outspoken FBI agent Coleen Rowley is saying the FBI Overwhelmed and Can't Handle the...
September 9, 2004
The Health Costs of "Advanced" Society
It is hard to believe that most folks, don't know (or deny) that there is are costs associated with an industrial and high tech society. We see this in the avoidance of human contribution to global warming, and we see...
September 8, 2004
A Frightening Combination
Sometimes news seems to form a nexus, and there are four articles today that combine in an ugly way. There has been lots of talk over the last few months about an October surprise. I certainly have my concerns about...
September 7, 2004
More Economic Recovery Hype
The new job numbers came out last week for August 2004. Heralded by Bush and some economists as a sign of (continued) positive news, 144,000 jobs were created. After the significant downward revision of July's figures to 32,000, I am...
September 6, 2004
Propaganda Alert
After spending most of the last year reading and writing about the problems with computerized voting, the following headline caught my eye as a warning - Problems Abound in Election System. My immediate response was "tell me something new." As...
September 4, 2004
Secret Trades before 9/11
To the best of my knowledge, none of the various official reports on 9/11 even mentioned the issue and it is a glaring omission in those reports. It is an omission that dramatically undermines the credibility of the various investigations,...
Beslan Tragedy
The tragedy of the hostage situation in Beslan, Russia at Middle School No. 1 continues its grisly unfolding. On Wednesday, an unknown number of armed people slipped into the school and took students, parents, and staff hostage. It was the...
September 3, 2004
Bush's Acceptance Speech
Did any of you watch Bush's acceptance speech last night? It was very odd. Apparently a couple of people were vocal in their opposition to Bush's comments on Iraq. In totally inappropriate places, the delegates started shouting "4 more years."...
September 2, 2004
War Hoorah
I've kept quiet about the whole Vietnam service hype. I've basically kept quiet about the wishy-washy DNC hype on the war in Iraq and Kerry's convoluted argument about giving Bush authority for preemptive engagement. I'm sick of the entire charade...
September 1, 2004
9/11: The Day the World Ended, Three Years On
By: John Chuckman [John's pieces appear in Counterpunch, Online Journal, Yellow Times, Media Monitors, Scoop, and many other sites. This was sent as a guest submission to Uncommon Thought. John Chuckman can be reached at
[email protected] A lot can happen...
