Monday, March 24, 2003

I always feel like somebody's watching me Remember that cleverly titled, Constitution eviscerating piece of legislation called the USA PATRIOT Act that Congress passed in the wake of 9/11 without so much as a second thought (after all, how could you vote against such a nationalistic acronym)? Well, the Supreme Court just refused to weigh in on the ACLU & Arab-American's groups challenges to vastly broadened powers the P-Act gives to the ultra-secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. For those of you who haven't been keeping up, this secret court grants wire tap requests from law enforcement agencies. Before the P-Act these wire taps had to be first reviewed and approved by a judge, and could only be used on suspected criminals & terrorists, but that's not necessarily the case anymore. Keep this one in mind: on May 17, 2002 the Foreign Intelligence surveillance Court itself harshly criticized the FBI & DOJ for providing misleading information" in 75 cases they had presented to the tribunal and argued that the P-Act didn't justify the use of some FBI & DOJ surveillance tactics. You know you're really treading civil liberties under foot when even a secret government tribunal disagrees with you. My lord. - M.C. No Shame 5:01:09 PM    comment []

Welcome to Baghdad 2:56:22 PM    comment []

Anecdotal Evidence for Freedom Fries in Oregon! Hang your head in shame, Oregonians. Key hillbilly states Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama have not fallen the the onslaught of Freedom Fries; how could you? - Consider Arms 1:11:16 PM    comment []

War Update Du Jour: Advancement to Baghdad: Coalition troops are about 60 miles south of Baghdad and could soon encounter a Republican Guard division guarding the city, British PM Blair told Parliament Monday. U.S. Gen. Tommy Franks warned that Saddam's regime may feel more pressure to use WMD as coalition forces tighten ring around capital. New explosions were heard in Baghdad about 7:05 p.m. Monday (11:05 a.m. ET), indicating that another wave of U.S.-led airstrikes was under way. Iraq/northern front: U.S. Marine Maj. Gen. Henry Pete Osman arrives to take command in northern Iraq. Number of U.S. forces in region jumps to over 200 and appears to be growing as U.S. aircraft arrive steadily in apparent opening of northern front after Turkey grants flyover rights. Evacuated wounded: Ten U.S. troops -- four Marines and six soldiers -- "with combat-related injuries," were settling in Monday at Landstuhl Regional Medical center, where they will be soon joined by wounded members of the 101st Airborne Division, according to European Command spokesman Capt. Norris Jones. A soldier from the 101st in northern Kuwait attacked his fellow soldiers with a grenade Sunday, wounding 15, three of them seriously. Arab League: Arab League foreign ministers consider a draft resolution Monday on war, calling for urgent U.N. Security Council meeting. Some Arab leaders charge Iraqi war is against the Arab nation, an example of renewed Western imperialism, and a plan to change Middle East maps and remove their leaders, such as Yasser Arafat and Saddam Hussein. Humanitarian aid: U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Monday he is determined to restore Iraq's oil-for-food program "as soon as possible." "Urgent measures" should be taken in Basra, where water and electricity supplies have been cut off for more than two days, Annan said. American Red Cross and International Committee of the Red Cross are working on restoring the water. Bush/War budget: President Bush will have lunch Monday with the military's top officers to discuss the war in Iraq and later will brief key members of Congress on an emergency war budget request officials say will be for roughly $75 billion. U.S., Turkish negotiations: U.S., Turkish officials trying to hammer out an agreement on how to deal with northern Iraq. U.S. is concerned a build-up of Turkish troops in the area could spark another battlefront between the Turk and the Kurdish forces who control much of the region. Downed U.S. Apache helicopter: U.S. Central Command Monday confirmed that one U.S. Apache helicopter is missing in Iraq, CNN's Tom Mintier reported. Iraqi TV Monday showed video of what appeared to be a downed U.S. Apache helicopter, intact and upright. Pilots are still unaccounted for, the Pentagon said. Saddam/Iraqi TV appearance: Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein Monday appeared on Iraqi TV praising his troops and people, and promising victory against the U.S.-led coalition. British Defense Secretary Geoffrey Hoon said the appearance was not live. U.S. intelligence officials are looking "very skeptically" at the broadcast, with one saying, "He said nothing to prove it could not have been taped earlier." Iraqis report casualties: Iraqi information minister Mohamed Saeed al Sahaf told reporters that allied bombardment has caused many casualties throughout the country, listing at least 62 deaths and many more injuries in eight cities. Red Cross/POW visits: A Red Cross official Monday said that its officials are ready and willing to visit prisoners of war in the Iraqi war, and there are "ongoing" contacts with Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to make that happen. Putin/POW treatment: Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday directed his foreign minister to deliver an "urgent request" to Iraq to honor international law regarding prisoners of war. Firefight aftermath/Iraq's Republican Guard: Pilots with U.S. Army's V Corps, 11th Attack Helicopter Regiment reported substantial damage to their aircraft from an intense firefight early Monday with Iraq's elite Republican Guard units in southern Iraq. OPEC oil: Abdullah al-Attiyah, president of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries Monday said there is no shortage of oil on world markets. Possible WMD: U.S. military has secured a facility in southern Iraq that may have been used to produce chemical weapons, Pentagon officials say; the officials cautioned that it was not clear what suspect materials are still at the plant. Ba'ath Party document seizure: Marines capture the regional headquarters of the ruling Ba'ath Party in the port city of Umm Qasr; weapons cache, documents and other material seized, CNN Correspondent Jason Bellini reported. 2 Brit soldiers missing: Two British soldiers were missing after an attack on British vehicles in southern Iraq, officials say; earlier, two British pilots were killed when their aircraft was shot down by a U.S. Patriot missile. Top Iraqi officer surrenders: Iraqi lieutenant colonel surrendered to Marines in southern Iraq, CNN Correspondent Art Harris reported; the Iraqi was described as "quite a catch" in the hunt for people with possible knowledge about WMD. - M.C. No Shame (back from my "undisclosed location") 1:10:43 PM    comment []

Freedom Fries In Texas! OK, I admit that I was kind of expecting this. Frankly, I'm surprised the trend didn't start there. -Consider Arms 1:00:47 PM    comment []

I Think I Know Why Bush Doesn't Watch TV Because then he'd have to see stories like this one, reported by a Baltimore TV station, in which the father of Marine Kendall Waters-Bey, who was killed in Kuwait, holds a picture of his dead son up for the camera. Key quote: "As he held a picture of his son, Waters-Bey's father, Michael, said: 'I want President Bush to get a good look at this, really good look here. This is the only son I had, only son.' He then walked away in tears, with his family behind him. Kenneth, the Marine's only son, was with the family." - Consider Arms 11:33:47 AM    comment []

Something Grisly Here's a site to bookmark: An online database collecting press reports of civilian casualties in Iraq. As I write this, the minimum number of civilians killed is reported to be 153, with the maximum at 209. These are from published press accounts, so they're both probably on the low side. I have mixed feelings about stuff like this. Thedor Adorno once said that when you start counting casualties you're already engaged in barbarianism; on the other hand, it's a useful corrective to the dominant discourse about Iraq, which so far has failed to mention civilian deaths much at all. - Consider Arms 11:25:18 AM    comment []

Freedom Fry Update! I'd like my hot dog with freedom sauce, please The company that makes French's Mustard has issued a statement pointing out that the mustard is not, in fact, french. "There's nothing more all-American than French's Mustard!" goes the statement. Before you chortle into your mocha lattes, remember: the reason they had to do this is because there are people in America so stupid they had stopped buying the mustard. Freedom Fry Variant Reaches New England! A bakery in Woonsocket, Rhode Island is now selling "freedom roast" coffee instead of "French roast." There was a slight layoff in Freedom Frying after the war started, but now it looks like the morons are back on the case. Watch this space for details. You see what I mean about satire being dead? Somebody put "freedom" stickers over the word "French" at Swarthmore College's Department of Modern Languages and Literature. What's funny is that college officials aren't sure whether it was a genuine expression of outrage or a prank to satirize such sentiments. Freedom Fries Return, and This Time They're Mandatory! Another government body, this one a Tennesee county school board, is spending tax money on a debate over whether to rename French fries in school. The Freedom Fry Backlash Starts Here! Well, in Calgary, actually. It seems a local restaurant's decision to "go Freedom" on their fries was so unpopular with customers that they had to change the name back. I feel almost like Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz," waking up at the end of the movie: "It was all just a strange dream." American Fries: Coming to a Grocery Store Near You The Potato Growers of Idaho are now calling for the general renaming of French fries to American fries. JR Simplot, the world's third-largest french fry supplier on Earth, is considering the change also. Dear God, we're back in Oz. I Understand the French's Mustard People Better Now A chain of dry-cleaners in California called French Cleaners was hit by "vandals" last week. One of the stores was torched - not really "vandalism," where I come from, more "arson." Boy, people sure are stupid and crazy. -Consider Arms 11:05:29 AM    comment []

Take That, Hitler Jr.! A high school in Murfreesboro, Tenn. has canceled an exchange of students with a German high school, ostensibly over "security" issues, but possibly also over the German government's refusal to support Bush's murderous war against the Iraqi people. Although this is unfortunate, as someone who has been to Murfreesboro (and was once hassled by the Sheriff's Department there), I can honestly say that the jerries should count their blessings on this one. -Consider Arms 10:03:55 AM    comment []

Musical Chairs Will Make Us Safe This AP story cites by name a report from the Journal Inquirer in Manchester about the possibility of "lock downs" in the event of a Code Red Terror Alert. What this would mean is that the government would tell everyone to stay in their houses; anyone who went outside would be arrested. As New Jersey's counter-terrorism chief puts it, ''What we're saying is, 'Everybody sit down.' If you are left standing, you are probably a terrorist.'' Among the many unexamined consequences of this insane plan, I submit just one: Why don't we assume that the terrorists have houses? -Consider Arms 9:43:31 AM    comment []

White House to Begin Bombing BBC OK, maybe not, but they did promise "strong retaliatory action" against the news service for broadcasting footage of President Dipshit gurning while stylists fussed over his coiffe, moments before telling the world why he had to order the murder of thousands. And these days, when the White House promises "strong retaliatory action," you run for the fuggin' hills. -Consider Arms 9:07:48 AM    comment []

More than 1,000 Demonstrators Arrested in SF Protest This just in: 1,025 protesters so far have been arrested in the massive demonstration in San Francisco. Millions of people are marching all over the world today to protest this insane war. In America, we just arrested a bunch of them, but hey - 1,025 is more than they have in total at most pro-war rallies! -Consider Arms 9:07:45 AM    comment []

U.S. Seizes $1.4 Billion in Iraqi Assets to Pay U.S. Companies to Rebuild U.S. Destruction of Iraq But this war IS NOT ABOUT MONEY. GOT THAT? It's about liberation and other good shit. Relevant quote from history: "I spent 33 years in active service as a member of our country's most agile military force - the Marine Corps. I served in all the commissioned ranks from second lieutenant to major general. And during that period I spent most of my time being a high class muscle man for big business, for Wall Street, and for the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer for capitalism." Who said it? It was Maj. General Smedley Butler, recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor and friend of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in 1935. 9:07:40 AM    comment []

This Must Be Read to Be Believed Richard Perle celebrates the death of the United Nations while Baghdad burns. To misquote Lord Gray: "The lights are going out all over the world; we shall not see them lit again in our time." -Consider Arms 9:07:35 AM    comment []

Operation Hammer Time This just in: The current air campaign over Baghdad is expected to strike "hundreds" of targets. It looks like the shock and awe phase has begun. Well, I'm glad to see that the Bush gang has promised $22 MILLION for aid to people fleeing Iraq. Let's see, that should be just about enough to pay for the body bags. -Consider Arms 9:07:09 AM    comment []

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