Thousands Protest Bush Outside Westside Fund-Raiser
Posted Saturday, June 28, 2003 by vgdesign

Los Angeles Independent Media Center

Did someone say the Peace movement was dead? Well, if it ever was, it's now reborn, fully formed, as an anti-Bush, anti-imperialist, out of Iraq, social justice movement -- and it had it's coming out party Friday evening in Century City!

In a scene spectacularly reminiscent of this past winter's massive demonstrations -- a crowd of protesters, estimated as high as 10,000, gathered directly across the street from the Century City Hotel (where Bush the Imbecile raised $3.5 million from his fellow plutocrats with help from singer Johnny Mathis and comedian Dennis Miller).

The demonstrators, meanwhile, chanted, danced, carried signs, listened to speeches and song from the mainstage, and, most memorably, roared euphorically when a massive pink banner/dress/slip with a special message for W was lowered from an ninth floor balcony of the Century City Hotel. >>See Photos

US soldiers were main danger to journalists, says Simpson
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003 by vgdesign

By Ciar Byrne, Media Guardian

BBC world affairs editor John Simpson has called on the US government to investigate why more journalists were killed by American soldiers than by any other means during the Iraq war.

Simpson blamed the deaths of many of the journalists - what he called "the ultimate act of censorship" - on the system of embedding, which meant that journalists operating independently of US and British troops became "potential targets".

Of the 16 journalists who lost their lives within the space of just 21 days in the Gulf conflict, five died as a result of "depressingly explainable" accidents, three were killed by the Iraqis and seven died at the hands of the American forces, according to Simpson. >>More

US shooting in the dark in Afghanistan
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003 by vgdesign

By Syed Saleem Shahzad, Asia Times

KARACHI - Despite the best efforts of its military and intelligence apparatus and political manipulation in Pakistan, in the year and a half since the demise of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, the United States and its allies have failed to break the Taliban and al-Qaeda in that country. Indeed, the resistance movement in Afghanistan has fully re-organized itself, even setting up offices, and official claims to the contrary, US forces are fighting in the dark.

In an audio tape sent to the Pakistan daily The News, which is accepted as authentic, the leader of the Taliban, Mullah Omar, urges Muslims to step up their jihad against the US and other coalition occupation forces in Afghanistan. Omar issued the tape from his hiding place in Afghanistan, the daily reported, quoting Taliban spokesman Mohammad Mukhtar Mujahid. Omar has named a 10-member leadership council to organize the resistance against the US-led foreign troops in Afghanistan. >>More

Galloway sues 'Telegraph' for libel
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003 by vgdesign

By Marie Woolf, Chief Political Correspondent - The Independent

George Galloway issued libel proceedings against The Daily Telegraph and Christian Science Monitor yesterday in an effort to clear his name after they claimed he was in the pay of Saddam's regime.

The Labour MP for Glasgow Kelvin is seeking damages and a public apology from the Telegraph after it alleged that he received about £375,000 from the Iraqi regime and met an Iraqi intelligence officer during a visit to Baghdad.

Mr Galloway has consistently denounced the reports in the newspaper as a "lie". The MP's legal team hopes to bolster his fighting fund with damages from the Boston-based Christian Science Monitor, a publication that used as a source documents it has since admitted were forged. >>More

Bush’s Iraqi Albatross
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003 by vgdesign

By Sam Parry, Consortium News

Political adviser Karl Rove may have envisioned George W. Bush in his Top Gun costume as a killer 30-second TV spot for Campaign 2004. But the image of a swaggering Bush on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln is turning quickly into a political albatross as U.S. troops continue to die in what’s becoming a nasty guerrilla war in Iraq.

Bush’s flight-suit scene could become a reminder of Bush’s reckless over-confidence in declaring "Mission Accomplished," much as the image of Michael Dukakis sitting in a tank came to represent the Democratic nominee’s woeful 1988 presidential campaign. If the Iraqi violence continues at its recent pace, sometime later this year the number of American soldiers killed since May 1, when Bush donned the flight suit, will exceed the 138 soldiers who died during the so-called major combat. As of Friday, the Pentagon put the number of post-May 1 dead at 55. >>More

When Images Drown Out The Words We Need To Hear
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003 by vgdesign

By Floyd J. McKay, Seattle Times

At what point in the long history of politics and journalism did we make the great shift, from power of the word to power of the image? Few would dispute that words have given way to images.

It began with John F. Kennedy and Camelot, and I would contend that perfection was Ronald Reagan's "Morning in America" re-election campaign in 1984.

The Gipper was known for misstating facts, and CBS correspondent Lesley Stahl put together a piece showing Reagan making statements; then, as the pictures continued, she stated the true facts. Feeling good about setting the record straight, she got a call from Reagan's camp, thanking her for showing the pictures again, because people will remember them and forget the words.

A generation later, George W. Bush is banking on that. >>More

More on the “newspaper of record” and WMD lies
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003 by vgdesign

New York Times reporter Judith Miller accused of “hijacking” military unit in Iraq
By Bill Vann, World Socialist Web Site

Three months into their occupation of Iraq, US military forces have failed to find any evidence of the supposed stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons that Washington claimed as the principal justification for invading the country. It is no longer possible to conceal the fact that the Bush administration lied to the American people to promote an unprovoked war of aggression.

In a column published June 25, the Washington Post’s media critic Howard Kurtz sheds new light on the integral role played by the media itself, and, in particular, the “newspaper of record,” the New York Times, in this act of criminal deception.

In a war that saw “embedded” journalists functioning as cheerleaders for the American military and the media serving as a propaganda arm of the Bush administration, the Times  played an especially sordid role. Its duplicity was exemplified by one of its senior correspondents, Judith Miller, who is reputed in media circles to be an expert in weapons of mass destruction as well as on Islam, despite her lack of a science background and her inability to speak Arabic. When she initially joined the Times  staff, Miller’s beat was the banking and securities industry.

In her capacity as a Middle East and WMD “expert,” Miller has functioned as a conduit for stories originating in US military and intelligence agencies, particularly those elements promoting the war against Iraq. In her recent reporting from occupied Iraq, this relationship has grown even more incestuous. >>More

Pepe Escobar: Hell starts now
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003 by vgdesign

Winning the war was easy. Winning the peace will be a nightmare. The war on Iraq was "officially" over on May 1. But almost two months later, British Premier Tony Blair has been forced to admit that the security situation in Iraq is "serious". He missed the point though: there's no "security" (for Westerners) because of the widespread hostility of the Iraqi population towards the Anglo-American occupiers. And for most Iraqis, the occupiers are indistinguishable.

According to news reports, popular anger in Majar al-Kabir, in Shi'ite southern Iraq, was responsible for the death of six British military policemen on Tuesday (four Iraqis were killed and 17 wounded). The locals were reacting against British methods employed in the search for weapons - invading homes with dogs, disrespecting women and pointing guns towards children.

The British still don't get the point. >>More

'FAUX News' parody site draws FOX News lawyers
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003 by symbolman

A parody Web site called Agitproperties.com has drawn fire from FOX News legal beagles for selling an amusing line of 'FAUX News' and 'O'Reilly Youth' t-shirts and similar merchandise.

The Austin, Texas group of "graphics designers and musicians" behind the site had been selling the shirts at anti-war demonstrations, until these gatherings began to dwindle in the face of shock-and-awe footage flooding into TV sets across the nation, lulling the populace into complacency.

Agitproperties was fast losing steam. That is, until the humourless powers at FOX decided to crack a small nut with a very large hammer.

"We demand that you immediately cease displaying and selling merchandise on the Website. Fox is particularly concerned that its intellectual property not be used in a manner that will likely lead to the impairment of the goodwill represented by the name 'Fox News Channel,' as well as the likelihood of confusion as to an affiliation with and endorsement of the Network," the lawyers warn.

Hypocrisy notwithstanding, FOX is certain to win unless the Agitproperties crew can attract the attention a white-knight intellectual property lawyer. Sadly, it costs a lot of money to exercise free speech in America.

"We have no illusions about the phalanxes of highly-paid attorneys that FOX has on retainer or about the time and money this case would require to fight in court. Sadly, if we cannot get an attorney to take our case pro bono, FOX will prevail," Luckett says.>> More

SUPPORT FREE SPEECH on the Internet! Go to >> THE SITE and spend some money - and tell all your pals! Fox has the NERVE to say something is in bad taste? Any Lawyers in Texas wanna help these guys?

Blind, Deaf, Dumb and Deluded:  White America unfit for global role
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003 by vgdesign

The Black Commentator

An exhaustive international survey shows conclusively that the planet has a great deal to fear from the people  of the United States. By this we mean the majority of the white people of America, a group so alienated from the rest of humanity that they represent a collective threat to the survival of the species.

Earthlings are awakening to the danger. In nearly every corner of the globe, perched or crouched in niches high and low, humanity hears the hounds barking and the master’s voice in the distance, shouting to the horizon, “This is all mine, and everybody in it!”

It would be comforting to believe that Massa Bush’s men are tearing around the planet on a private spree, without the blessing of the good folks back home. But such is not the case. Between 70 and 80 percent of Americans heartily applaud the general military role played by the U.S. in the world. They are the living, breathing, popular mandate for, not just George Bush’s adventures, but also those of other Presidents who follow. >>More

Must SEE Site - Bagnews!
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by symbolman

Bill Safire:   Big Media's Silence
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by vgdesign

Over the protests of 750,000 viewers and readers, three appointees to the Federal Communications Commission last month voted to permit the takeover of America's local press, television and radio by a handful of mega-corporations.

If allowed to stand, this surrender to media giantism would concentrate the power to decide what we read and see — in both entertainment and news — in the hands of an ever-shrinking establishment elite.

To the F.C.C.'s amazement, the Senate Commerce Committee said no. A bill put forward by Ted Stevens, Republican of Alaska, president pro tem of the Senate and defender of local control, would reinstate the limit of 35 percent of market penetration by any one company. A Democratic amendment reasserted the limitation on "cross-ownership" by stations and newspapers. The rollback bill, with bipartisan support, is likely to pass the full Senate this summer.
...
The F.C.C. chairman, Michael Powell, mocked his opponents' efforts yesterday by saying they had used a wide variety of media "to get out their message that media consolidation doesn't allow them to get out their message." But our message is getting through to Congress only because his media consolidation has not yet taken effect to muffle debate. >>More

Source was credible and senior, says BBC
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by vgdesign

By Paul Peachey, The Independent

The BBC came out fighting yesterday after Alastair Campbell's demand for an apology aggravated its long-running dispute with the Government over coverage of Iraq.

Mr Campbell, Tony Blair's director of communications, accused the BBC and its defence correspondent, Andrew Gilligan, of lying.

Mr Gilligan was singled out, in particular for some of his reports from Baghdad during the war when he infuriated ministers by suggesting that Iraqis were more frightened of looting than of Saddam Hussein's dictatorship.
...
The BBC has steadfastly defended its journalists. In a statement yesterday, the corporation said it did not have anything to apologise for. "We regret that Alastair Campbell has chosen to accuse Andrew Gilligan and the BBC of lying. We have always been clear in our reporting. >>More

Greenpeace:  Deadly waste returned to US forces
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by vgdesign

They claimed they were after weapons of mass destruction, but then allowed nuclear material to be carried off by the barrel. They said errant nuclear waste poses no health threat to the people in Iraq, but then denied access to experts.

Today we delivered a dose of reality to the occupying forces: villages surrounding the Tuwaitha nuclear complex, just south of Baghdad, are contaminated with deadly radiation. Clean up must begin now.

A convoy of vehicles bearing Greenpeace banners that read "Al Tuwaitha - nuclear disaster - Act now!" with a single activist walking at its head, carrying a white flag, returned a large uranium "yellow cake" mixing canister to the US military guards stationed at the heart of the nuclear plant.

The canister - the size of a small car - contained significant quantities of radioactive "yellowcake" and had been dumped on a busy section of open ground near the Tuwaitha plant. Despite the military being aware of its presence, locals say it has been left open and unattended for more than 20 days. >>More

Greg Palast:  Hugo Chavez Is Crazy!
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by vgdesign

Last June, on Page One of the San Francisco Chronicle, an Associated Press photo of a mass of demonstrators carried the following caption:

"TENS OF THOUSANDS OF VENEZUELANS OPPOSED TO PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ..."

The caption let us know this South American potentate was a killer, an autocrat, and the people of his nation wanted him out. The caption continued: "[Venezuelans] marched Saturday to demand his resignation and punishment for those responsible for 17 deaths during a coup in April. 'Chavez leave now!' read a huge banner."

There was no actual story in the Chronicle – South America simply isn't worth wasting words on – just the photo and caption. But the Chronicle  knew no story was needed. Venezuelans hated their terrible president, and all you needed was this photo to prove it. >>More

Michael Wolff:  WMD, FCC & Tina
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by vgdesign

There’s a reason big media has given Bush a pass on weapons of mass destruction, but it has to do with a Powell other than Colin. Plus: I love Tina Brown (really!).

I’m going to follow a thread linking the weapons of mass destruction to the FCC’s move to relax the media-ownership rules, and—trust me—through to Tina Brown.

First, the weapons: The Bush guys obviously played Saddam for a fool. He wanted to have those weapons. He was a broken man without them. The Bushies, by their wild accusations, conceded to him the very illusion of power that they knew he would happily and fiercely cling to and that they could then set out with appropriate fervor to protect us from and to take away from him.

Saddam had a get-out-of-jail-free card: He just had to reveal to the world that he was bereft of resources, spent as a force, bankrupt as a ruler. But Rummy and Wolfowitz and Perle, and everybody else in the Bush administration who has been obsessing about Saddam for fifteen years, understood that it would be at least as difficult for him to admit to not having such power as to get tarred for having it.

He needed to appear threatening. We needed him to appear threatening.

We needed him to dissemble. He needed to dissemble.

Everybody was party to the creation of an alternate—and, likely, entirely false—reality.
>>More

Eat it Tucker! Send Ties to the American Politics Journal
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by symbolman

By Gene Gaudette - Publisher, American Politics Journal

The extraordinary reader reaction to our campaign to collect bow ties so that CNN conservative pundit Tucker Carlson can fulfil his promise to "eat [his] tie" once Hillary Clinton's new book "Living History" hits the million mark in total sales has met with unprecedented and mostly positive feedback. Here's a sample of what we're hearing:

Laurie from Boston writes, "...since my husband no longer wears his, I'm sending it your way. Bon appetit, Tucker!"

DH, an AOL user, gave us this heads-up: "What better use for a fashion affectation I dropped around the time I outgrew being a Republican? Tucker's dinner is in the mail."

MikeyLikesIt "...can't wait to see that wacky conservative get a mouthful!">> More

We're with APJ all the way - send your ties to APJ and click on our banner above to send your SHOES to CNN and "Ducker" Carlson as a REMINDER that we demand he EAT HIS SHOES like he said or RESIGN as a Liar and a CHEAT if he does otherwise. He holds the Left up to the highest standards and should do so himself! NO CHEW TOYS - NO NOVELTY EDIBLE SHOES - NO EXCUSES.

US TV networks 'kissed ass', says Wolff
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by symbolman

Michael Wolff, the media commentator and New York Magazine columnist, has accused American television networks of "kissing ass" in their coverage of the Iraq war in return for a relaxation of media ownership rules in the US.

Wolff put forward what he described as the "semi-conspiracy theory" that major media companies in the US meekly followed the flag-waving agenda of the Bush administration in order to persuade the federal communications commission to change its regulations.

"Ass kissing has gone on to a profound degree. It's pervasive throughout all these news organisations. They need the FCC to behave in certain ways. In order to do this we have got to go along to get along," said Wolff, who delivered the keynote speech at today's MediaGuardian forum on war coverage.

He added the FCC's decision to relax media ownership rules came shortly after the end of the war.

"Any reporter in America who would see that quid pro quo in any other business says: 'No, that doesn't happen in the news business'," Wolff added.>> More

Remember - Whatever Happens...
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003 by symbolman