Da Vinci Code

Several months ago I read Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code and considered it a very intriguing read. Lots of historical references to some interesting individuals and groups. I thought, "Cool! Let me follow up on some of these to see how much is fact and how much is fiction."

Well, life with a family sometimes has a way of taking you away from the things you would like to do for yourself... needless to say, I never had a chance to research any of it. Then, these come up:

In the BBC, The Da Vinci Code put 'on trial'.

Another article in the BBC, Dan Brown: Decoding the Da Vinci Code author.

And, yet a third article in the BBC, Da Vinci Code is 'lousy history'.

In the Malaysian Star, Clerics, experts to put ‘Da Vinci Code’ on trial.

All this interest in whether the content in the book is factually accurate or not. Interesting how much effort continues to be focused on debunking the statements made in Dan Brown's book. Maybe they're accurate, maybe not. What's really piqued my interest is why all the fuss?

Sure looks to me like some one or groups are a little bit sensitive about the veracity of this information. Could there be kernels of truth which, if revealed as truth, undermine the foundation of certain well-established institutions who benefit from the blind faith of their members?

Then, continuing to search, I come across this gem of an analysis:

The True Identitiy of Fulcanelli, The Four Elements and The Da Vinci Code

Unexpectedly, while looking to validate the authenticity of the material presented in Dan Brown's book, I am led to an analysis on Fulcanelli, alchemy, and the grail quest! Never a dull moment!

Technorati Categories: Alchemy, Da Vinci Code, Fulcanelli

Thank You, Peter Benenson

Amnesty International founder Peter Benenson died Friday evening at John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford. Thanks to Mr. Benenson for following his core belief in the right of every human being to be treated humanely.

The motivation for taking action came from a 1961 article Mr. Benenson read about two students arrested and imprisoned for drinking a toast to liberty in a cafe in Lisbon, Portugal. His outrage led to the formation of Amnesty International.

For information on Mr. Berenson's life and his contributions, refer to the BBC's Obituary: Peter Benenson .

For more information about Amnesty International, go to www.amnesty.org .

About Amnesty International:

Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights.

AI’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards.

In pursuit of this vision, AI’s mission is to undertake research and action focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of the rights to physical and mental integrity, freedom of conscience and expression, and freedom from discrimination, within the context of its work to promote all human rights.

AI is independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion. It does not support or oppose any government or political system, nor does it support or oppose the views of the victims whose rights it seeks to protect. It is concerned solely with the impartial protection of human rights.

AI has a varied network of members and supporters around the world. At the latest count, there were more than 1.8 million members, supporters and subscribers in over 150 countries and territories in every region of the world. Although they come from many different backgrounds and have widely different political and religious beliefs, they are united by a determination to work for a world where everyone enjoys human rights.

AI is a democratic, self-governing movement. Major policy decisions are taken by an International Council made up of representatives from all national sections.

AI’s national sections and local volunteer groups are primarily responsible for funding the movement. No funds are sought or accepted from governments for AI’s work investigating and campaigning against human rights violations.

Technorati Tag: Human Rights

Abortion Records Privacy

In an story today on CNN, Kansas AG demands abortion records, the state's Attorney General, Phill Kline, is attempting to obtain complete medical records of 90 patients. Mr. Kline's reason? According to Mr. Kline:

"I have the duty to investigate and prosecute child rape and other crimes in order to protect Kansas children."

All well and good, except in the process he is requesting information on women who have had abortions, legally, and most likely would like for that information to remain private. After all, isn't there something personal about one's medical history that should not be shared without one's consent?

From the article:

The clinics said Kline demanded their complete, unedited medical records for women who sought abortions at least 22 weeks into their pregnancies in 2003, as well as those for girls 15 and younger who sought abortions. Court papers did not identify the clinics.

So, while Mr. Kline may have good intentions, or not, he is attempting to cast a wider net than he should be using to catch his fish. Perhaps, an ulterior motivation may be to catch those abortion providers breaking the law, which, in Kansas it is illegal for doctors to perform abortion after 22 weeks of gestation, unless there is reason to believe the mother's health is at risk. Why else would he include the records of those over age 15 based on SPECIFIC criteria (i.e. "women who sought abortions at least 22 weeks into their pregnancies")

On the surface, this may appear to be a valiant objective, to prosecute those who sexually assault or abuse children. But, it seeems to me at least, this is an after-the-fact event which does not prevent sexual abuse of children. It does not protect children because it only identifies those that have gone to seek abortions AFTER the abuse has occurred.

To truly protect the children, Mr. Kline should invest the time and money to educate families in how to identify the signs of potential sexual abuse so families can proactively seek help when the signs are there. The best way to stop a sexual predator is to have the victims speak-up about the incidents, not wait until one of them seeks an abortion.

Mr. Kline, I for one can clearly see that this is not about protecting Kansas children from sexual abuse, but about pushing the agenda of the pro-life crowd by attempting to catch abortion clinics breaking the law so you can begin to shut them down.

Technorati Tag: Privacy

Is the US the Biblical "Beast"?

Based on the events that have unfolded over the last few years, an analysis of the actions taken by the current US administration reveals a striking similarity to the story of the Beast as told in the Book of Revelations in the New Testament.

For a thorough analysis of the Bush administration's actions as compared to the story of the Beast, refer to an article by Laura Knight-Jadczyk, "The Beast and His Empire", which takes the Biblical story of the Beast and disects it on a verse by verse basis.

Here are some astonishing observations wrapping up the first article:

The prophecies of Revelation state that the two beasts will be cast into the lake of fire along with the false prophet. That would suggest that the geographical area of the Beast Empire, and those who are doomed throughout the globe for their lack of spiritual "clothing," may have some problems, to say the least.

Now, you ask, Who -- or What -- is the Beast? Which world empire fits the descriptions of Revelation 13?

Which world empire began on a foreign shore, formed of many races and tongues; (primarily people from the area of the old Roman Empire -- the "Little Horn" of Daniel, which made war with three of the ten divisions of the Roman Empire: England, France and Spain)?

Which nation on the earth rapidly became the richest and most powerful empire on earth, using the name of God as its motto?

Which nation suffered a military attack - Pearl Harbor - which seemed to be devastating, but was, in fact, a political manipulation designed to engender popular support for a war of greed -- a wound which healed so quickly that one can't help but wonder if all preparations were made in advance?

Which nation rose up after such an attack and went on to lead an adoring world in a global war, winning on two fronts simultaneously? A war which involved this empire for a period of exactly 42 months on one of those fronts?

Which empire developed and used "fire falling from the sky in the sight of men" -- atomic weapons -- to awe and intimidate the peoples of the world - and did so via the offices of a group of elite controllers of the world, a second beast that appeared as a lamb and spoke as a dragon?

Which nation used such a blasphemous power on a people already defeated, the Japanese, after having deliberately drawn them into war?

Do we dare to suggest that the United States, has "manipulated" the perception of an attack by Palestinians in order to generate support for a war against them - with the intention of nuclear destruction? Destruction that would simultaneously destroy Israel? After all, in the "dress rehearsal" of WW II, the Japanese were manipulated to attack the U.S. in order to engender support to enter the war - and the REAL objective was Germany - an ally of Japan - the "Axis Powers." And today, we have George Bush talking about the "Axis of Evil." Are we getting a chill up our spine yet?

Which nation, after this war, established, and still maintains, military presence and industrial outposts over all the globe and has made the world its marketplace -- a financial bonanza -- propagating materialism as though it were manna from heaven or the word of God in order to satiate its voracious appetite for money and power?

What nation on the earth is ruled from behind the political stage by the industrial-military complex -- a group so powerful they can politically (or literally) assassinate public and private figures with impunity; a group of wealthy elitists who know no bounds to their greed; a group which foments social unrest, political strife, unstable economies, wars and revolutions; a group which stimulates technology and promulgates materialism, to keep their pockets full and the strings of power in their hands?

What nation on earth has been manipulated by the electronic media -- under the control of the motivation masters hired by the industrial-military complex (the false prophets of materialism and technology) -- so that they have lost sight of the spirit and meaning of those ideals which gave birth to their empire?

Continuing to the second part of the article, "The Beast and His Empire", we find the following related to Biblical prophesies:

Years ago it occurred to me that it was most peculiar that the United States was not taught as being included or mentioned in the great Biblical prophecies. Since it was apparent to me that it has become the most powerful and influential nation on the face of the planet, I thought this rather strange. This was due, as it was explained to me, to the fact that the prophecies concerned, mainly, the Jews and, having been delivered through Jews, primarily concerned those events which affected the Israeli people. Yet, we are talking about prophecies which are global in import.

John, having brought the United States into his prophecy in Revelation 13, continues with his theme, describing the destructions of war and cosmic upheaval in chapters 14, 15, and 16. He then moves in for a close-up of an interaction which is very important for it further amplifies the roles of various participants in the end-time events. Chapters 17 and 18 deal with the identification and descriptions of destruction of an entity known as the "Great Harlot".

Many have interpreted this woman to represent the Catholic Church, all denominational churches, occultists, and so forth. However, careful analysis of this and related portions of scripture will show that this is neither appropriate nor in keeping with the global sense of the prophecy. (And, in a previous chapter, we described the apostate condition of the Christian Churches.)

Scripturally, "Woman" means either the spiritual half of the human totality -- the union of male and female -- or, in an expanded view, "woman" symbolizes the socio-cultural-political manifestations of a group, a city, a nation.

The gold, the jewels and the pearls adorning the Harlot tell us that all the mental and spiritual achievements of the earth are centered upon materialism -- this includes science, education, arts, culture, music and all other aspects of human potential -- including religion.

Many books have been written which expose the fact that governments do not wage war for moral or even ideological reasons -- wars are simply acts of greedy materialism -- but this is not commonly known among the masses for most of them do not read.

Materialism is the mother of war, famine, disease, ignorance, drug addiction, murder, robbery, rape, and a host of assorted other evils of our day.

The fate of the Harlot, the Beast, the False Prophet, all aspects of the same national entity, are cataclysmic as described by John.

Go read the articles and decide for yourself if such is the case...

Books by Laura Knight-Jadczyk

Iran next?

In Brussels yesterday, President Bush spoke about the question of any US plans to attack Iran.

Bush says talk of attacking Iran "ridiculous"

"This notion that the United States is getting ready to attack Iran is simply ridiculous," Bush told a news conference after talks with European Union leaders.

"Having said that, all options are on the table," he added, drawing laughter at a clear reference to military action.

Interestingly, Bush's statement follows recent statements made by Scott Ritter on February 19 about how Bush has already approved an attack on Iran scheduled for June 2005.

Scott Ritter Says U.S. Plans June Attack on Iran, ‘Cooked’ Jan. 30 Iraqi Election Results

Scott Ritter, appearing with journalist Dahr Jamail yesterday in Washington State, dropped two shocking bombshells in a talk delivered to a packed house in Olympia’s Capitol Theater. The ex-Marine turned UNSCOM weapons inspector said that George W. Bush has "signed off" on plans to bomb Iran in June 2005, and claimed the U.S. manipulated the results of the recent Jan. 30 elections in Iraq.

The same Scott Ritter who, after serving as a United Nations UNSCOM weapons inspector in Iraq, stated there was no evidence of any weapons of mass destruction to be found in Iraq before the US invasion of Iraq.

From a September 2002 CNN article, Former weapons inspector: Iraq not a threat

Ritter denied that Iraq possessed any weapons of mass destruction but acknowledged that concerns exist about the country's weapons programs.

"These concerns are almost exclusively technical in nature and do not overcome the reality that Iraq, during nearly seven years of continuous inspection activity by the United Nations, had been certified as being disarmed to a 90 [percent] to 95 percent level," he said.

He warned that if the United States unilaterally launches any military action against Iraq, it would "forever change the political dynamic which has governed the world since the end of the second World War, namely the foundation of international law as set forth in the United Nations charter, which calls for the peaceful resolution of problems between nations."

Let's not forget, Scott is in a position of someone who should know.

Ritter resigned as chief weapons inspector for the United Nations in August 1998, saying that the U.N. Security Council and U.S. government had fatally undermined his team's attempts to locate and eliminate Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.

He has said U.S. intelligence agents used the weapons inspectors as a cover for spying and destroyed the inspection teams' credibility.

A couple of excerpt from a Times piece in response to accusations (Exclusive: Scott Ritter in His Own Words
The former weapons inspector explains his switch from getting up Saddam's nose to picking fights with Bush).

Some on the right call you the new Jane Fonda, and joke about what you'll call your exercise video.

(Long pause?) Those on the right who say that disgrace the 12 years of service I gave to my country as a Marine. I love my country. I'll put my record of service up against anyone, bar none. If they want to have an exercise video then why don't they come here and say it to my face and I'll give'm an exercise video, which will be called, "Scott Ritter Kicking Their Ass."

In 1998, you said Saddam had "not nearly disarmed." Now you say he doesn't have weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Why did you change your mind?

I have never given Iraq a clean bill of health! Never! Never! I've said that no one has backed up any allegations that Iraq has reconstituted WMD capability with anything that remotely resembles substantive fact. To say that Saddam's doing it is in total disregard to the fact that if he gets caught he's a dead man and he knows it. Deterrence has been adequate in the absence of inspectors but this is not a situation that can succeed in the long term. In the long term you have to get inspectors back in.

The idea of an impending attack on Iran has been presented by New Yorker columnist Seymour Hersch, on January 17, 2005, in his article "The Coming Wars". Here is a snippet from the article to give you an idea:

According to a former high-level intelligence official, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld met with the Joint Chiefs of Staff shortly after the election and told them, in essence, that the naysayers had been heard and the American people did not accept their message. Rumsfeld added that America was committed to staying in Iraq and that there would be no second-guessing.

“This is a war against terrorism, and Iraq is just one campaign. The Bush Administration is looking at this as a huge war zone,” the former high-level intelligence official told me. “Next, we’re going to have the Iranian campaign. We’ve declared war and the bad guys, wherever they are, are the enemy. This is the last hurrah—we’ve got four years, and want to come out of this saying we won the war on terrorism.”

Behind the scenes are those who have been planning the direction of the current administration and slowly executing their plans.

The Administration has been conducting secret reconnaissance missions inside Iran at least since last summer... Defense Department civilians, under the leadership of Douglas Feith, have been working with Israeli planners and consultants to develop and refine potential nuclear, chemical-weapons, and missile targets inside Iran. . . . Strategists at the headquarters of the U.S. Central Command, in Tampa, Florida, have been asked to revise the military's war plan, providing for a maximum ground and air invasion of Iran. . . . The hawks in the Administration believe that it will soon become clear that the Europeans' negotiated approach [to Iran] cannot succeed, and that at that time the Administration will act.

Moving to attack Iran would be the most obvious, indisputable signal of the current US administration's belief that the world is their's for the taking.

NATO Revamp

This morning an interesting article appears on the wire, via Reuters, which indicates (to me, at least) there is a widening gap between members of NATO, specfically between the US and the European members.

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has called for a revamp of NATO. Today, French President Jacques Chirac endorsed Schroeder's call for a reform of how "transatlantic partners discuss and coordinate strategies."

Based on the US administration's actions toward Iraq, specifically invading the country without the support of NATO alliance members, the EU is aware of the significance of the event and is positioning to make sure they (current NATO members) are viewed as members of the international community and not as passive supporters, at best, or powerless members, at worst, of NATO.

In the article, Chirac Backs German Call for Revamp of NATO, the following quotes are worth close analysis for the deeper meaning behind the message:

Schroeder said in a speech delivered to a Munich security conference 10 days ago that NATO was "no longer the primary venue where transatlantic partners discuss and coordinate strategies" and suggested a high-level panel should recommend how it could be reformed.

Some analysts interpreted Schroeder's call as implying that the EU, rather than NATO, should be the main partner in future transatlantic cooperation.

and this

Chirac too pointed to the EU's growing defense cooperation and said it was an asset, not a threat, to NATO.

"European defense is progressing. This development is an opportunity for our alliance, because a stronger, more united Europe, obviously means a stronger, more efficient Atlantic alliance," he said.

Realignments are taking place, not only with the EU, but also with Russia and China. All of us should be paying close attention to all of these maneuvers as they may have critical long-term repercussions for the US.

Hariri Assassination: Who Benefits?

Here's the single most important question that must be asked to find those behind the murder of the former Lebanese Prime Minister, Radiq al-Hariri:

Who benefits?

These are some of the organizations and individuals bold enough to ask...

Asia Times Online

Baghdad to Beirut By Pepe Escobar

Only Israel appears to benefit from Hariri's assassination. Significantly, one of Hariri's consultants, Mustafa al-Naser, told Iranian state news agency IRNA on Monday that "the assassination of Hariri is the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad's job, aimed at creating political tension in Lebanon". An array of Arab Middle East analysts, as well as the Lebanese government, point out that the blast was eerily similar to previous Israeli-orchestrated bombings against former Palestinian leaders.

Al Jazeera

Who benefits from al-Hariri's death? By Ahmed Janabi

"If we look at the way the assassination has been conducted, it is very sophisticated, I knew al-Hariri's security measures - no local system could have breached them."

"The question is, who stands to benefit from his death? Syria's enemies. I think al-Hariri's death is part of the plan to divide the region into tiny helpless sectarian states. This plan has started in Iraq and it will continue to hit all other Arab countries."

WSWS

The Assassination of Rafiq Hariri: who benefited? By Bill Van Auken:

The powers that most clearly stood to advance their strategic aims by having Hariri assassinated and blaming the crime on Syria are the US and Israel.

Could this have been pre-planned? It appears some were thinking along these lines for quite some time.

The killing of Hariri has set the stage for the implementation of plans for US aggression against Syria that have long been nurtured by a group within the US administration that is closely tied to Israel and the right-wing Likud bloc, in particular. Prominent among them is David Wurmser, Vice President Dick Cheney's adviser on the Middle East. Wurmser played a leading role in the creation of a Pentagon intelligence unit that sought to fabricate a case for linking the Iraqi regime with Al Qaeda in the months leading up to the US invasion.

In 1996, Wurmser co-authored a report drafted for incoming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, entitled "A Clean Break: a New Strategy for Securing the Realm." It called for a repudiation of the "land for peace" formula that had served as the basis for Middle East peace negotiations, in favor of a plan to "roll back" regional adversaries. It advocated the overthrow of the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein and recommended Israeli strikes against "Syrian targets in Lebanon" and within Syria itself.

The co-authors of the report included Douglas Feith, the current undersecretary for policy at the US Defense Department, and Richard Perle, the former chairman of the Pentagon's Defense Policy Board.

Finishing with these ominous words:

The murder of Rafiq Hariri constitutes a brutal warning that the US war in Iraq is only the beginning of a far broader campaign of military aggression aimed at crushing resistance to US and Israeli domination. This escalating militarism is creating the conditions for a conflagration throughout the region.

If only Western media had the balls... Wait a minute, they do! They're just in the grips of the Zionists.

Life on Mars

For a long time, I truly believed I would never see the day where proof of life, no matter in what shape, form, or size, outside of our planet Earth would ever be found. Or, if found, made known to the public.

It appears as if two NASA scientists have admitted publicly that life on Mars may very well exist TODAY (refer to the following article, Exclusive: NASA Researchers Claim Evidence of Present Life on Mars):

A pair of NASA scientists told a group of space officials at a private meeting here Sunday that they have found strong evidence that life may exist today on Mars, hidden away in caves and sustained by pockets of water.

Now, this comes as no surprise to me that life exists "out there". It's a no-brainer that in all of the vastness of all the universes, we should be the only intelligent (this point is debatable at times) life, or life of any kind. But, religion states otherwise.

What is the implication of this revelation to the religious and political institutions? Huge!

With this little bit of information, that we are not the only life in our area of the universe (and right next door no less), it puts into doubt the belief systems of the monotheistic religions and the belief that our governments can protect us from anything out there if it were more advanced, and there more likely are more advanced civilizations, from coming in and making a colony or vacation spot out of our little planet.

Take it to the bank this is just a glimpse of what will be revealed later. Perhaps a little more about Mars, something small so as not to scare the crap out of the average believer in mans' uniqueness in the universe, then a few more revelations, until all of a sudden... the visitors arrive and they ain't so friendly.

Former Lebanese PM Taken Out

Yesterday the former Prime Minister of Labanon, Rafik al-Hariri, was murdered. Al-Hariri served two terms as Lebanon's Prime Minister, viewed as a man of peace and credited with bringing to an end a 15-year civil war.

"...was widely credited with getting the country back on its feet after the devastating 15-year civil war."

"Using his financial clout, the billionaire entrepreneur attracted foreign investment and set up private redevelopment firms to rebuild the business heart of Beirut."

BBC News Online article Rafik Hariri: Billionaire Politician

"Hariri, 60, had been a leading figure in Lebanon's reconstruction in the aftermath of that country's long and devastating civil war and was appointed prime minister five times, most recently in 2000.

CNN article Hariri: Vision of Prosperous Lebanon

The media would like you to believe this was some radical group wanting to kill a successful, capitalistic politician. Perhaps, even the work of some suicide bomber.

But... the level of sophistication involved in the explosion has the signature of a group with far more expertise and access to materials than your average radical group. Looks more like a well-organized intelligence organization. Here's an excerpt from The Economist:

Some detect the work of an intelligence service—if not Syria’s, some other foreign power’s—in the method of the attack. Certainly, the size and sophistication of the bomb suggest it was the work of a well-organised and experienced group, or a government. The blast was big enough to leave a huge crater and shatter windows hundreds of metres away. Moreover, it was sophisticated enough to defeat jamming mechanisms, which the billionaire Mr Hariri’s convoy always used while travelling, to forestall such remotely triggered attacks. Mr Hariri, who made his fortune in construction in Saudi Arabia, knew he had many enemies and took what countermeasures he could.

Economist article Hariri’s Killing Shatters Lebanon’s Calm

Go read the compilation of news articles at Signs-of-the-Times, yesterday's and today's (this one is especially revealing!), for a perspective which draws on sources from throughout the world. Several key observations and comments are presented which one would do well to seriously consider.

As for my opinion? Here are some things about this event which make no sense to me:

• Why would someone remove an individual trying to spur economic growth in the region?
  
• Why would someone assisinate a voice for peace in the region?
  
• Why try to associate the event with a suicide bomber when the evidence clearly indicates a more sophistication and organized execution?
  
• Why the pressure on Syria when no link has been found between Syria and the bombing?
  
• Is this the beginning of the setup to go after Syria?
  
• Who benefits from continuing to destabilize the region?
  

Food for thought.

Dresden & Hiroshima: Gone in the Blink of an Eye

Today is the 60th anniversary of the fire bombing of Dresden, Germany, by the Allied forces.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

Dresden, untouched by bombing just three months before the end of World War II, was bombed by two waves of British bombers on the night of 13 February 1945. The next day, and several times thereafter, US planes blasted the city. The following excerpts from a report at Wikipedia:

"The fire-bombing consisted of by-then standard methods; dropping large amounts of high-explosive to blow off the roofs to expose the timbers within buildings, followed by incendiary devices (fire-sticks) to ignite them and then more high-explosives to hamper the efforts of the fire services. This eventually created a self-sustaining 'fire storm' with temperatures peaking at over 1500 °C. After the area caught fire, the air above the bombed area became extremely hot and rose rapidly. Cold air then rushed in at ground level from the outside and people were sucked into the fire."

"Out of 28,410 houses in the inner city of Dresden, 24,866 were destroyed. An area of 15 square kilometers was totally destroyed, among that: 14,000 homes, 72 schools, 22 hospitals, 19 churches, 5 theaters, 50 bank and insurance companies, 31 department stores, 31 large hotels, and 62 administration buildings."

"The precise number of dead is not known. Estimates from most present day historians vary from 25,000 to more than 60,000."

America was the first country to drop a nuclear bomb on a city, heralding a new era. On August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan. The first time I read about the devastation was in my high school literature class where we read Hiroshima by John Hersey. I can still remember the deep impression it made on me mainly because of the many personal accounts of those who survived the initial blast. Highly recommended reading for anyone who still believes nuclear weapons have a place in any country's weapons arsenal.

Here are the events...

A nuclear bomb called "Little Boy" was dropped over the central part of the city and exploded with a blast equivalent to 12,000 tons of TNT. An estimated 80,000 civilians were killed immediately by the blast. Once again, from Wikipedia:

"By the end of 1945, it is estimated that 60,000 more people died due to radiation poisoning, bringing the total killed in Hiroshima in 1945 to 140,000."

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

Three days later, on August 9, 1945, a second atomic bomb, named "Fat Man", was dropped on the city of Nagasaki, Japan.

"Some 75,000 of Nagasaki's 240,000 residents were killed, followed by the death of at least as many from resulting sickness and injury. However another report issues a different residential number, speaking of Nagasaki's population which dropped in one split-second from 422,000 to 383,000, thus 39,000 were killed, over 25,000 were injured. If taken into account those who died from radioactive materials causing cancer, the total number of residents killed is believed to be at least 100,000."

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

These events should serve as vivid reminders of how cruel war can be. In a matter of seconds, tens of thousands can vanish.

Naturally occurring catastrophic events with large loss of life, as we have recently witnessed with the tsunami in the Indian ocean, remind us of how fragile our lives truly are. Yet, when compared with the above events, man-made and with lower loss of life in totality, these events are more horrific. They are brought about by man's own cruelness to man.

No excuse for such inhumanity.

Return of the Draft

Well, it appears that after years of the repeal of the draft, the current administration's vision of spreading democracy and freedom may require additional personnel. No surprise that discussions have been underway on how to get more troops to take care of coming needs (i.e. Iran).

An article by Tim Dickinson of the Rolling Stone reveals some very interesting details:

According to an internal Selective Service memo made public under the Freedom of Information Act, the agency's acting director met with two of Rumsfeld's undersecretaries in February 2003 precisely to debate, discuss and ponder a return to the draft.

The memo then proposes, in detail, that the Selective Service be "re-engineered" to cover all Americans -- "men and (for the first time) women" -- ages eighteen to thirty-four.

Testifying before Congress two weeks after the meeting, acting director of Selective Service Lewis Brodsky acknowledged that "consultations with senior Defense manpower officials" have spurred the agency to shift its preparations away from a full-scale, Vietnam-style draft of untrained men "to a draft of smaller numbers of critical-skills personnel."

According to the above, a shortage of any particular skill deemed as "critical" could mean your being drafted should you be so lucky as to possess that skill. This could severely impact the operations of companies, pratices, organizations of all sizes, from individual to corporate. Not to mention the impact on the livelihood of the individual's family.

But experts on military manpower say the focus on drafting personnel with special skills misses the larger point. The Army needs more soldiers, not just more doctors and linguists. "What you've got now is a real shortage of grunts -- guys who can actually carry bayonets," says McPeak. A wholesale draft may be necessary, he adds, "to deal with the situation we've got ourselves into. We've got to have a bigger Army."

Looks like the kids from less fortunate environments will once again be used as cannon fodder. Perhaps a nefarious plan to take advantage of all those who will be unable to find jobs under the current economic downward spiral.

So, just as the current administration created new terminology (i.e. enemy combatant) for getting around the treatment of prisoners of war as governed by the Geneva Convention, it appears they are preparing to pull the same slight of hand with the selective service.

Not only may your sons and daughters have to flee to Canada, so may you.

Attorney/Client Privilege Found Guilty

Today, a blow for attorney/client privilege. Attorney Lynne Stewart is found guilty of aiding terrorists.

Below are a few excerpts from a New York Times article (note that you will need to sign-up for a free NYTimes.com registered member login):

In a startlingly sweeping verdict, Ms. Stewart was convicted on all five counts of providing material aid to terrorism and of lying to the government when she pledged to obey federal rules that barred her client, Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman, from communicating with his followers.

In a case watched by lawyers nationwide, the jurors were persuaded that Ms. Stewart had crossed a professional line, from vigorously representing her client to conspiring in his followers' plans to launch violence in Egypt.

Ms. Stewart was convicted on two counts of conspiring to provide material aid to terrorists, by making the views and instructions of Mr. Abdel Rahman available to his followers in the Islamic Group, an organization in Egypt with a history of terrorist violence. She was also convicted of three counts of perjury and defrauding the government for flouting federal prison rules that barred Mr. Abdel Rahman, a blind Islamic cleric, from communicating with anyone outside his federal prison in Minnesota except his lawyers and his wife.

Jennifer Van Bergen's article in CounterPunch,
Lynne Stewart's Conviction Hurts Us All, presents a bit more substance to the items in the Time article which only superficially cover the case. Here are some comments to compare to the minimal coverage of the Times article:

Lynne Stewart never ever thought she could blow off the rules that apply to everyone else. She never thought she was above the law. She never supported or endorsed terrorism. Nor did she ever intend to provide material support to terrorists.

The words she spoke to her client were meant for her client alone and the one who has violated rights here is the Department of Justice. They violated something so sacred that it can hardly be spoken without somehow losing the value of it: they violated the attorney/client privilege. The DOJ violated this privilege by listening in on her conversations with her client, which they then took out of context and tried to make into a monstrous thing.

But is anyone prosecuting them for this violation? No.

The DOJ has violated something more, as well. They have violated the right of an accused to have zealous counsel represent them. This right is so fundamental that our Framers put it in the Bill of Rights: the Sixth Amendment right to counsel.

The DOJ has violated the last vestige of democracy: the judiciary, by using this system to destroy one of the watchdogs of liberty, our criminal defense lawyers. Without criminal defense lawyers, who will protect us from government incursions of our rights?

Now, the idea of a convicted terrorist having any sort of privilege is perhaps unfathomable to a jury. But that privilege is considered sacrosanct and we all have it, we all may call upon the attorney/client privilege because without it, we have no defense attorneys, we have no defense, and we have no witnesses to government abuse of our rights.

Another interesting, well-researched opinion, Lynne Stewart and the American Inquisition, ties in historical references to modern events. A very clever link which should remind us all that history does have a way of repeating itself.

For more information about Lynne Stewart, go her web site - www.lynnestewart.org .

Drip, drip, drip... little by little, each of our rights are being eroded.

Did someone say WMD?

Silence. That's what I'm hearing.

The biggest screw-up in recent history and none of the media outlets, other than the alternative media outlets on the Internet, dare say anything other than repeat the announcement. No, don't want to dig too deep or push the issue, might be labeled unpatriotic or have the Patriot Act applied against you. Or, they just don't want to bite the hand that feeds them.

William Pitt's recent blog, "Everyone to Blame, No One at Fault", is a concise reflection of the reality which no media outlet wants to face in the mirror:

100,000 Iraqis are dead, but we don't hear about it. We creep towards 2,000 American soldiers dead, but we don't hear about it. Tens of thousands of American soldiers have been horribly wounded, but we don't hear about it. The war has so destabilized our economy that the foreign governments we need to buy our debt are flocking to the Euro instead of the sinking dollar, but we don't hear about it. The Sunni city of Fallujah is a graveyard, a tableau of war crimes writ large, but we don't hear about it. There are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, but we don't hear about it. The new Iraqi government is about to become a Shi'ite fundamentalist regime that will likely ally itself with Iran, but we don't hear about it.

We don't hear about it because the media can't bring itself to tell us about it. To do so would be to admit, out loud and before the world, that they failed to do their jobs. They all failed, collectively. They are all to blame, which means none of them are at fault.

Well, it will only be a matter of time before the alternative sources either get bought-out or shut-out.

Visit other news outlets for a perspective other than what the cookie-cutters are dishing out. Check it out ...

T r u t h o u t
Aljazeera.Net
Signs of the Times
What Really Happened

By the way, anyone else notice the whole reason this War on Terror started was due to Osama bin Laden and there has been nothing in the news about him, nor attempts to catch him, or any inkling of his whereabouts? Nothing, silence...

Did someone say Osama?

Super Bowl Mind Control

When I was younger, I used to enjoy watching football. The athletism, the strategies, the emotion when the game came down to the last play or went into "sudden death" overtime, and the hits. Slow motion, momentum-shifting collisions. Back then, it was awesome.

Then I married, became a father in addition to being a husband, and, all of a sudden, there was a whole lot more to life than watching football. Spending time actively involved with the kids, being outdoors and enjoying the time with the family. Concerned more about my family than what was on the tube on Sunday.

I never looked back.

On Sunday, we went to my wife's family's home for an afternoon together and dinner.

I sit and talk with my wife's Dad, then begin to watch the start of the Super Bowl. Since I've been out of touch with football, I ask who's playing. Glad to hear it is the New England Patriots since, if the Miami Dolphins (I grew up during the years when the Dolphins were a dynasty) couldn't be there, the Patriots were as good any representative of the American Conference.

So, I'm watching the teams being announced and coming onto the field, noticing I'm beginning to enjoy this after so many years of abstinence. Then, out comes Michael Douglas (every time I see him, all I can think of is "Fatal Attraction") who starts talking about the 60th anniversary of the end of WWII.

That's okay. Paying our respects and reflecting on the sacrifices made during that period of time is okay. Then, this tribute is taken beyond the scope of the anniversary of WWII and extended to those serving in Iraq.

At this point, I can't recall if anything was mentioned about the Korean War, Vietnam War, Gulf War I, or Afghanistan. All I can remember feeling is the overall militaristic and nationalistic tone that overtook the monologue.

I look around to see if anyone around me was noticing the change, or if it is just me. Nobody seemed to show any expressions (other than my dumbfounded, "can't believe my ears", mouth-agape look).

Out come the ex-presidents: Bush, the elder, and Clinton.

Out come the choirs of ALL the armed services, except the Coast Guard.

Out come the trumpets.

Here come the fighter jets flying overhead.

Wow... a little too over-the-top, I thought. I look around again. Nothing. No comments or expressions.

Am I the only one that finds it completely outrageous to take a SPORTING EVENT and turn it into an opportunity to tug on peoples' emotional strings to further instill the thought that a military confrontation is HONORABLE???

Oh, but wait a minute, this is not just any sporting event. This event is viewed by MILLIONS (86 million). What a perfect way to slide in this reminder that war and militarism are a part of our culture and even honorable actions.

It is one thing to fight in defense of your country, your freedoms, your families. That is honorable. To go seek someone (individual or government) as a preemptive step, based on information that may or may not be reliable, impacting and destroying the lives of another group of innocent people... mothers, fathers, sons, daughters ... that is something else. That is NOT honorable. Those are the actions of a bully.

Are we, the American people, as a culture, mind-controlled by the media? Do we just sit back an accept everything that is being fed US? Unfortunately, I believe so. And so does Richard Dolan:

Fifty years ago, if you drove across the United States, you could listen to truly independent radio stations, which (can you believe it?) actually had local people reporting local news. You could read an independently-owned newspaper (which competed with several other independently-owned newspapers in the same city). Journalists competed to ‘scoop’ each other, to get that inside story no one else could get. In other words, muckrakers could still work for a major newspaper.

To put it mildly, that’s not how it works today. What people need to realize is that there is no longer a free market for news.

This is not a facetious remark, not hyperbole. America no longer has a free press. Not the kind, at any rate, we grew up believing in.

At that point, the game was over for me. No need to see the kick-off. I know who lost... you and me.

Writing on the Wall

So, the writing is on the wall. For everyone to see. If one pays attention, that is ...

Ever notice how many people you pass seem to be mentally somewhere else, oblivious to their surroundings? Their minds wandering off to who-knows-where. These are the same people you almost bump into, step into things, step out in front of moving vehicles, etc.

Well, one's awareness to events in the world around you is very similar.

The environment, geopolitics, world health, etc...

There are signs all over the place. Some ( Signs-of-the-Times ) are putting all the pieces together.

It behooves EVERY ONE OF US to be aware and interact with those who are also wide awake.

WAKE UP!!!