POV: "The Reckoning."

Please take a minute to mark your calendar for this coming Tuesday, July 14th, so you can watch PBS's new documentary on the International Criminal Court, "The Reckoning." The documentary should air at 10 pm in most areas, but check here to see your local listing.

Synopsis: "Over 120 countries have united to form the International Criminal Court (ICC) - the first permanent court created to prosecute perpetrators, no matter how powerful, of crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide. The Reckoning follows dynamic ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo and his team for three years across four continents as he issues arrest warrants for Lord's Resistance Army leaders in Uganda, puts Congolese warlords on trial, shakes up the Colombian justice system, and charges Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir with genocide in Darfur. Like a deft thriller, The Reckoning keeps you on the edge of your seat. Will the prosecutor succeed? Will the world ensure that justice prevails? An Official Selection of the 2009 Sundance Film Festival." Read the full Description here

Use this link for more information "THE RECKONING": The Battle for the International Criminal Court.

Watch the trailer {warning - it is graphic}


So spread the word, invite your friends over, and spend this Tuesday night learning more about "the Battle for the International Criminal Court!"

I checked my local listings, here in North Carolina, and it isn't scheduled for the local PBS channel in the next two weeks. The other PBS channel we can receive, out of the University of North Carolina, has it scheduled for two nights, not the 14th, at 2AM. Typical of these PBS stations here, I've noticed, on important and possible controversial subject matter, especially not following a right wing agenda, so much for Public Broadcasting!!

Yet most places one goes, especially certain area's of these states motels, FOX is either on or exclusive to the cable hookups of these motels.

Another Doc to watch online.

SOA/ WHINSEC

House Votes to Publicize Names of Infamous School of the Americas Graduates

U.S. House of Representatives Votes 224:190 to Force the School of the Americas/ WHINSEC to Release the Names of Graduates and Instructors.

Washington, DC – the U.S. House of Representatives voted today to force the School of the Americas (renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation - WHINSEC) to release the names, ranks, country of origin, courses and dates attended of students and instructors at the institute. >>>>>Rest Here

Keep Up the Pressure - Tell your Senator to Take a Stand for Human Rights and Transparency

Such helpers in the world...

There are such helpers in the world, who rush to save
anyone who cries out. Like Mercy itself,
they run towards the screaming.

And they can't be bought off.
If you were to ask one of those, "Why did you come
so quickly?" he or she would say, "Because I heard
your helplessness.

These words were written in the 13th century by the great Persian poet, Rumi. In the last week we have seen the cries of many Iranian people and most of us stand in solidarity with the people of Iran. The heated debate among our politicians will continue to rage about what we should say and what we should do as Iranians raise their voices. Though Rumi did not explicitly say it, my belief is that he implied that we should come as allies to stand next to the people of Iran, listening to their concerns and alert to their ideas and ready to do what they ask—not what we think they need......

The poems that follow...>>>>>

Voices Education Project

Angelina Jolie on Behalf of Refugees

For this years World Refugee Day on June 20th UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador actress Angelina Jolie recorded a public service
announcement (PSA) to draw attention to the plight of the millions of people who have been forced to flee their homes because of war or persecution.



World Refugee Day 2009

World Refugee Day
20 June
For years, many countries and regions have been holding their own Refugee Days and even Weeks. One of the most widespread is Africa Refugee Day, which is celebrated on 20 June in several countries.

Help UNHCR recognize and celebrate the contribution of refugees around the world on World Refugee Day. Learn how you can make a difference.

Rachel Corrie: "Rachel" the Documentary

Rorschach "Rachel"

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Simone Bitton's documentary "Rachel," which premiered this week at the Tribeca Film Festival, is what's not in it. Bitton, a Moroccan-born Jewish filmmaker who spent many years in Israel and now lives in France, conducts a philosophical and cinematic inquiry into the death of Rachel Corrie, the 23-year-old American activist who was killed under ambiguous circumstances in the Israeli-occupied Gaza Strip in March 2003. But the political firestorm that followed Corrie's death, which saw her beatified as a martyr for peace by some on the left and demonized as a terrorist enabler by some on the right, is virtually absent from the film....>>>>>Much More Here

Listen to interview with Simone Bitton at Tribeca


Rachel's mother and father, a brother 'Nam Vet, were living and working for a stop to the impending illegal invasion of Iraq, here in Charlotte, at the time of Rachel's Murder by the Israeli Army!!

On 'Torture', 'Torture Team' and the 'Torture Memo's'

Spanish Court To Investigate Bush's 'Torture Team'

A book about the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay has led to an investigation by the Spanish court. In Torture Team, Philippe Sands alleges that high-ranking members of the Bush administration were responsible for instituting harsh interrogation tactics.

Rest Here with Audio to Listen

His Book ' Torture Team '

Reporter Scott Shane On 'Torture Memo' News

New York Times writer covers national security issues; he discusses what the newly discovered documents reveal about Bush Administration policy, and what the fallout from their release may be.

Rest Here with Audio to Listen

The 'Torture Memo's'

Memo to President Obama on Torture

By Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity
April 29, 2009
MEMORANDUM FOR: The President

FROM: Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity

SUBJECT: Torture

This memorandum is VIPS’ first attempt to inform you on a major intelligence issue, as we did your predecessor; thus, some background might be helpful.

Five former CIA officers established Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS) in January 2003, when we saw our profession being corrupted to justify an attack on Iraq. Since then, our numbers have grown to 70 intelligence professionals, mostly retired, who have served in virtually all U.S. civilian and military intelligence agencies.

In our first Memorandum for the President (George W. Bush), dated February 5, 2002, we provided a same-day commentary on Colin Powell’s U.N. speech. We warned the president that “an invasion of Iraq would ensure overflowing recruitment centers for terrorists into the indefinite future [and that] far from eliminating the [terrorist] threat, it would enhance it exponentially.”

We strongly urged the former president to widen the discussion on Iraq “beyond the circle of those advisers clearly bent on a war for which we see no compelling reason and from which we believe the unintended consequences are likely to be catastrophic.” >>>>>Much More Here

Tortured by the past

There's a disturbing link between Gitmo and the interrogation tactics I used in Vietnam.

When Bush administration lawyers wrote their memos authorizing extreme interrogation tactics at Guantanamo, they had to conjure up horrible images: Prisoners gagging and sputtering as their interrogators reproduced the sensation of drowning. Human heads slammed repeatedly into walls. Insect-phobic prisoners cowering in fear in 8-by-10-foot cages.

How can the lawyers live with those images? And what damage did the interrogators who used the techniques sustain to their souls? >>>>>Rest Here

Torture Advocates Will Set the Military Back for Generations

Know what these photos are?



These are Iraqi troops surrendering by the thousand to U.S. forces during the first Gulf War in 1991. These drafted Iraqi fighters chose to turn themselves over to Americans in droves because they knew they'd be treated better by U.S. troops than by their own government. They had faith in us that we wouldn't execute them, that we'd feed them and give them water, and that we'd provide them with shelter. >>>>>Rest Here

The 'Architects' The CIA's $1,000 a Day Specialists on Waterboarding, Interrogations

As the secrets about the CIA's interrogation techniques continue to come out, there's new information about the frequency and severity of their use and a new focus on two private contractors, Bruce Jessen ...

cheney/bush Tried to Absolve themselves of their sins "In Our Names!!"

Gitmo detainee asked to drop torture claim

British court documents claim U.S. asked man not to speak of ordeal
U.S. authorities asked a Guantanamo Bay detainee to drop allegations of torture and agree not to speak publicly about his ordeal in exchange for his freedom, according to British court documents.

A ruling by two British High Court judges, issued in October but released only on Monday, said the U.S. offered former detainee Binyam Mohamed a plea bargain last year — six years after he was first detained as an enemy combatant.

Gitmo Slide Show with the report.

Coming Soon:

Declassified Bush-Era Torture Memos

Over objections from the U.S. intelligence community, the White House is moving to declassify—and publicly release—three internal memos that will lay out, for the first time, details of the "enhanced" interrogation techniques approved by the Bush administration for use against "high value" Qaeda detainees. The memos, written by Justice Department lawyers in May 2005, provide the legal rationale for waterboarding, head slapping and other rough tactics used by the CIA. One senior Obama official, who like others interviewed for this story requested anonymity because of the issue's sensitivity, said the memos were "ugly" and could embarrass the CIA. Other officials predicted they would fuel demands for a "truth commission" on torture.>>>>>>

Inside Guantanamo


Guantanamo Detainee: Freedom Feb '09:

"In Our Names", As Our Countries Policy!!

Ex-Guantanamo Guard Details Prison Abuse

Brandon Neely was a military police officer at Guantanamo when the camp opened. He's now out of the Army, and unlike other former guards, he has been speaking about what he saw there.

NPR Player to Listen

The Guantánamo Testimonials Project

According to Rachel Maddow, on her MSNBC show of 2.18.09, after the testimony of former Guantanamo Bay prison guard, Specialist Brandon Neely, Three More Former Guards have contacted the UC Davis Guantanamo Testimonial Project to offer their testimony as to their serving at the Guantanamo Prison Camp.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

If you want to share your story with the UC Davis Project, e-mail them at: UC Davis Guantanamo Testimonial Project

Visit the UC Davis Project Site for more information and many links to previous testimonials they have listed.

Guantanamo - Human Rights - Torture - War Crimes

Gitmo Guard Brandon Neely Speaks

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Waterboarding ‘Far Down The List Of Things They Did’

Gitmo Detainee’s ‘Genitals Were Sliced With A Scalpel,’ Waterboarding ‘Far Down The List Of Things They Did’

Last week, two British High Court judges ruled against releasing documents describing the treatment of Binyam Mohamed, a British resident who is currently being held at Guantanamo Bay. The judges said the Bush administration “had threatened to withhold intelligence cooperation with Britain if the information were made public.”

But The Daily Telegraph reported over the weekend that the documents actually “contained details of how British intelligence officers supplied information to [Mohamed’s] captors and contributed questions while he was brutally tortured.” In fact, it was British officials, not the Americans, who pressured Foreign Secretary David Miliband “to do nothing that would leave serving MI6 officers open to prosecution.” According to the Telegraph’s sources, the documents describe particularly gruesome interrogation tactics:

Read Rest Here

When we, as a Nation who Condemns Others for 'Human Rights Violations, join those who participate in the degradation of others, leading to the rise of Hatreds, We Lose Any and All Moral Standings, Our Words Mean Nothing, Our Actions Bring the expected 'Blowback' that will follow!! And torturing others does not work as the propaganda tries to assume it does, it does quite the opposite, as we show in our own rhetoric of those that practice this degradation!!

January 12, 2002: Israel's "Courage to Refuse"

The "Refusenik" movement began when 53 Israeli soldiers signed an ad refusing to serve in the West Bank or Gaza Strip.
Their letter concluded:
• We shall not continue to fight beyond the 1967 borders in order to dominate, expel, starve and humiliate an entire people.
• We hereby declare that we shall continue serving in the Israel Defense Forces in any mission that serves Israel’s defense.
• The missions of occupation and oppression do not serve this purpose – and we shall take no part in them.
{The term originally referred to Jews in the Soviet Union who had applied to emigrate but were delayed or refused by the Communist government, in one case for more than 22 years.}

Full text of the letter with name and rank of the signatories

Video interview with Yonatan Shapira, refusenik and former captain in the Israeli Air Force


Courage To Refuse

You may also want to visit the Israelli-Palestinian: "Combatants For Peace"!

As well as The Shministim – Israel's Young Conscientious Objectors

The Price of Silence [music video]

One World - Human Rights

WASHINGTON, Dec 19 (OneWorld.net) - As the world celebrates the 60th birthday of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this month, a new music video is circulating on the Internet, bringing together 16 of the world's top musicians -- some of whom have fled oppressive regimes -- in a rousing musical plea to world leaders to guarantee human rights for all.

There's abit more, with backlinks at the top link.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights 60th Anniversary

On December 10, 1948, five days prior to my birth:
The General Assembly of the United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Following this historic act the Assembly called upon all Member countries to publicize the text of the Declaration and "to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded principally in schools and other educational institutions, without distinction based on the political status of countries or territories."
Since 1950 the anniversary of the declaration has been known as Human Rights Day.

Read the Declaration in any one of 337 languages

Celebrate Human Rights Day and the 60th anniversary of the UDHR. Stand up with people all over the world who want to make human rights a reality for everyone.

The UDHR declaration sets down the basic principles at the very heart of the human rights movement. It has enabled remarkable progress in human rights, inspiring international human rights standards, laws and institutions that have improved the lives of many around the world.

For each month of the anniversary year, Amnesty International has highlighted one aspect of its campaigning work.

Take Action

Fire Up!

On this significant anniversary, people will be gathering together in hundreds of places all over the globe, to light a candle, fire or flame as part of a mass demonstration

Sign up! The Passport

As global citizens, we should all consider what we are doing in our daily lives to make human rights a reality. Sign up and you’ll receive an email with a link to download your PDF Passport for Human Rights.

UDHR Articles

Every human has rights. That is the essence of our humanity. It places on each of us the duty to stand up, not just for our own rights but also for those of others - and to help turn the vision of the UDHR into a reality.

Watch and Listen

Afropop Artists celebrate UDHR's 60th Anniversary

In celebration of the 60th anniversary of the landmark Universal Declaration of Human Rights, proclaimed on 10 December 1948 in the wake of the horrors of World War II, the artists share their songs which were inspired by the struggle for human rights.

UDHR film

The 20-minute video brings to life the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in brilliant colour.

Sixty years of human rights failure



Amnesty International has challenged world leaders to apologize for six decades of human rights failure and re-commit themselves to deliver concrete improvements.

Over these last years, Especially, our Country, the United States, has lost any Moral Authority we thought we possessed, in our description of ourselves and our condemnation of others!

It will take the coming generations years to build back to what we did posses, many years, and it will take all of us to do the very hard work that will entail, To Get Back Any Of What We Call Moral Authority, Real Moral Authority!

Obama's Human Rights Opportunity

By Jimmy Carter
Wednesday, December 10, 2008

The advancement of human rights around the world was a cornerstone of foreign policy and U.S. leadership for decades, until the attacks on our country on Sept. 11, 2001.

Since then, while Americans continue to espouse freedom and democracy, our government's abusive practices have undermined struggles for freedom in many parts of the world. As the gross abuses at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay were revealed, the United States lost its mantle as a champion of human rights, eliminating our national ability to speak credibly on the subject, let alone restrain or gain concessions from oppressors. Tragically, a global backlash against democracy and rights activists, who are now the targets of abuse, has followed.

Obama, the Middle East

Nobel peace laurate urges Mideast focus for Obama

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Martti Ahtisaari urged U.S. President-elect Barack Obama on Wednesday to delve into solving the Middle East conflict in his first year in office, calling it a knot that could be untied.

U.S. Weapons at War

Major New Report Details the Global Impact of Arms Sales and Military Assistance

As the world marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this week, a new report from The New America Foundation finds that U.S. arms transfers are undermining human rights, weakening democracy and fueling conflict around the world.

What Image Opened Your Eyes...

to Human Rights?

Torture!!

After the Torture Era

"We will look back on the Bush years and find it incredible, and disgraceful, that individuals were captured in battle or "purchased" from self-interested tribal warlords, whisked to Guantanamo, classified as "enemy combatants" but not accorded the rights that that status should have accorded them, held for years without charges -- and denied the right to prove that they were victims of mistaken identity and never should have been taken into custody."

Years from now, we will be shocked to see those pictures of naked prisoners being humiliated and abused at Abu Ghraib -- and we will be ashamed of a U.S. government that punished low-level troops for their sadism but exonerated the higher-ups who made such sadism possible.

Years from now, we will know the full truth of the clandestine, CIA-run prisons where "high-value" terrorism suspects were interrogated with techniques, including waterboarding, that both civilized norms and international law have long defined as torture. From what we already know, it's hard to say which is more appalling -- the torture itself or the tortured legal rationalizations that Bush administration lawyers came up with to "justify" making barbarity the official policy of the U.S. government.

Read Rest Here

An Addon Must Read

U.S. and U.K. 'vigilantes' in Iraq invasion

Former senior law lord condemns 'serious violation of international law'

After referring to mistreatment of Iraqi detainees in Abu Ghraib, Bingham added: "Particularly disturbing to proponents of the rule of law is the cynical lack of concern for international legality among some top officials in the Bush administration."

Iceland first, Iraq last

Iceland topped Vision of Humanity's Global Peace Index of 140 countries that analyzes how peaceful they are regarding international policy and domestic conditions, The Financial Times reported Tuesday.

Because of continued violence since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, Iraq ranked last in the index developed by the organization based in Australia.

So says annual study ranking nations on how peaceful they are

And where does the U.S. stand in this years study on Humanity's Global Peace Index List, well we're number 97th, down one from 96th last year.

And why:

Index officials said the United States' position reflects its military expenditures and engagement. It also has more citizens in jail than any other nation, proportionally.

Vision of Humanity

Vision of Humanity groups together a number of interrelated initiatives focused on global peace. It brings a strategic approach to raising the world’s attention and awareness around the importance of peacefulness to humanity’s survival in the 21st century. read more

Business & Peace

Peace is a powerful concept. However, the notion of peace and its value in the world economy is not well understood. One of the key findings of the Global Peace Index was that there is a strong relationship between peace, business and national wealth. read more

Sustainability & Peace

Peace and sustainability are the cornerstones of humanity's survival in the 21st century. The major challenges facing humanity today are global – climate change, lack of fresh water, ever decreasing bio-diversity and over population. read more

Much more can be found at the Vision of Humanity website.

So in celebration of our ranking this year we should all show our patriotism by doning those lapel U.S. flag pins and lets double the size for better viewing, so nobody misses the fact we're wearing them.

Torture and Guantanamo Bay, amoung all the rest of our 'Appeasement' prisons, should make us all proud for next years rankings, as we drop even further.

I would also suggest that a new Auto Magnetic Symbol campaign be formed, Everyone To Paticipate, we need to replace all those missing 'Support The Troops' magnetic ribbons on our vehicles, to show our pride in being in the second half of the Peace Index and Falling!

The new symbol should be a gravestone, in gray, with number 97 very prominant and followed with "We're Number 97th", "We're Number 97th", "We're Number 97th and Falling"!

Now a big hand, we could wear, with 97 fingers upraised, would be a tall order as another symbol, but if someone could come up with one just think how wealthy you would become and you'd be able to keep that wealth with your fast disappearing taxes not needed to be payed and offshoring the company you set up.

This Week in Peace History

Sign up for their Newsletter or just save their site as a favorite and visit each week to find just abit of the Real History that helps bring about needed Change and Corrective Direction of a Country, World, and Democracies, forcing Democracies to become so and maintain their Freedoms.

You can find this weeks newsletter here of which I've borrowed a few moments of to pass on to you, below.

April 14, 1988
The Soviet Union signed an agreement pledging to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan after ten years. The pact, drawn up in negotiations between the United States, the USSR, Pakistan and Afghanistan, was signed at a United Nations ceremony in the Swiss capital of Geneva.

April 15, 1967
Amidst growing opposition to the war in Vietnam, large-scale anti-war protests were held in New York, San Francisco and other cities. In New York, the protest began in Central Park, where over 150 draft cards were burned, and included a march to the United Nations led by Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

April 16, 1971
Members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) threw medals they had earned in Vietnam on the U.S. Capitol steps in protest of the Vietnam War.

April 17, 1960
Inspired by the Greensboro sit-in by four black college students at an all-white lunch counter, nearly 150 black students from nine states formed the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina, with Ella Baker, James Lawson and Martin Luther King, Jr., the founders set SNCC’s initial goals as overturning segregation in the South and giving young blacks a stronger voice in the civil rights movement. By that time, in mid-April 1960, 50,000 or more students had participated in sit-ins over just the previous three months.
At the Raleigh conference Guy Carawan sang a new version of “We Shall Overcome,” an adaptation of an old labor song. This song would become the national anthem of the civil rights movement. People joined hands and gently swayed in time singing “black and white together,” repeating over and over, “Deep in my heart, I do believe, we shall overcome some day.”
History of SNCC*****SNCC website

They have a few Historical events for April 17. The above is one of many events, in the civil rights movement that moved this Country in the Right Direction, but in many ways we haven't reached the goals We As A Democracy of Freedoms that should be the Natural of our Culture, as we Preach to Others about Democracy and Freedom, and Today We Bomb Others In The Name Of Democracy And Freedom! {Think they'll accept? Think Again!}

April 18, 1912
Members of the United Mine Workers of America on Paint Creek in Kanawha County, West Virginia, demanded wages equal to those of other area mines. The operators rejected the wage increase and miners walked off the job. Miners along nearby Cabin Creek, having previously lost their union, joined the Paint Creek strikers and demanded:
• the right to organize
• recognition of their constitutional rights to free speech and assembly
• an end to blacklisting union organizers
• alternatives to company stores
• an end to the practice of using mine guards
• prohibition of cribbing
• installation of scales at all mines for accurately weighing coal
• unions be allowed to hire their own checkweighmen to make sure the companies' checkweighmen were not cheating the miners.
When the strike began, operators brought in mine guards from the Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency to evict miners and their families from company houses. The evicted miners set up tent colonies and lived in other makeshift housing. The mine guards' primary responsibility was to break the strike by making the lives of the miners as uncomfortable as possible.

Mine workers came along way but also not as far as they should have. We've seen what the power of greed and collaboration between mine owners and goverment representatives have brought forth in these last few years, mine collapses with numbers of deaths, mountaintop mining which is destroying this countries natural enviroment and natural beauty doing extreme damage to the surrounding enviroment as well. And it isn't only in the mining industry, it's across the board for the once Proud Hard Working middle class Americans, as we've rapidly moved towards a slave labor mentality, with the wealthy gaining wealth well beyond any individual need and those who reap that wealth for them sliding backward in wages and benefits!

The Spirit of Solidarity -- a $1.3 million granite sculpture, plaza and fountain -- sits on the land of the Gerald Ford Presidential Museum on the banks of the Grand River near the Indian mounds
April 19, 1911
More than 6,000 Grand Rapids, Michigan, furniture workers – Germans, Dutch, Lithuanians, and Poles – put down their tools and struck 59 factories in what became known as the Great Furniture Strike.
For four months they campaigned and picketed for higher pay, shorter hours, and an end to the piecework pay system that was common in the plants of America’s “Furniture City.” Although the strike ended after four months without a resolution, Gordon Olson, Grand Rapids city historian emeritus, said once employees returned to work most owners did increase pay and reduce hours.

Also on April 19 but in 1971

As a prelude to a massive anti-war protest, Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) began a five-day demonstration in Washington, D.C. The generally peaceful protest was called Dewey Canyon III in honor of the operation of the same name conducted in Laos. They lobbied their congressmen, laid wreaths in Arlington National Cemetery, and staged mock "search-and-destroy" missions.

Led by Gold Star Mothers (mothers of soldiers killed in war), more than 1,100 veterans marched across the Lincoln Memorial Bridge to the Arlington Cemetery gate, just beneath the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. A memorial service for their peers was conducted by Reverend Jackson H. Day, who had just a few days earlier resigned his military chaplainship. In addition to his passages of scripture and citations of poetry was a personal statement, including the following:

April 20, 1853
Harriet Tubman began her Underground Railroad, a network of people and places that aided in the escape of slaves to the north.
read a brief biography of Harriet Tubman

Visit the Newsletter site page for more

Bullets aren't used to Force Others into Democracy and Freedom, the Freedom is within, the Democracy comes from that!

Bullets should Only Be Used as an Absolute Last Resort to Quell Violence and help maintain a Peaceful Order directly after as the people workout their differances, and Wars Of Choice should be Globally Condemned with those forcing others into Brought To Justice as Criminals Against Humankind!!

Baghdad City of Walls

Baghdad is more divided than ever - a short film courtesy of Guardian Films



In the first of Ghaith Abdul-Ahad's extraordinary series of films to mark the fifth anniversary of the Iraq war, he investigates the claims that the US military surge is bringing stability to Iraq. By travelling through the heart of Baghdad he exposes how, by enclosing the Sunni and Shia populations behind 12ft walls, the surge has left the city more divided and desperate than ever.

Journey to Baghdad killing fields
Is the surge working? City of Walls Part 2 - a short film courtesy of Guardian Films


On the fifth anniversary of the US/British-led invasion of Iraq, the Guardian's award-winning foreign correspondent Ghaith Abdul-Ahad has teamed up with ITV News to bring us a series of extraordinary films for the ITV News and guardian.co.uk. In these unprecedented films he, as an Iraqi, goes where foreign journalists can no longer go - to the heart of Baghdad's most dangerous sectarian zones. He uncovers Iraq's own killing fields where only the "killers and the killed" can visit; and he reveals the desperate truth of the trafficked children of Iraq.

If you were forced to live like this, What Would You Do!

What This Country Has Brought On Itself!

An Update to my post from last night, I also expect a Video report following a local TV Stations nightly news from the area, with the family press conferance.

Body identified as former Marine Hall
(Last updated: March 12, 2008 11:14 AM)

The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office has notified Eric Hall’s family this morning that the remains found in a culvert Sunday was the former Marine.

A detective from the agency notified the family at 10 a.m. and relayed the cause of death has not been determined.

Becky Hall, Eric’s mother, plans a press conference at noon.

The family scheduled a military memorial service at noon Thursday at the Faith Lutheran Church, 4005 Palm Drive, Punta Gorda.

I certainly hope this Country is out of it's collective Denial, about Vietnam, and it's Apathy as to this World we live in, much of it created by our past policies and now the present, for the Future is Here!

What is happening now, as to these Conflicts Of Choice, the Choice to invade Iraq, based on Lies and cherrypicked intelligence, and to walk away from Afganistan, once again, not fullfilling our promises, once again, not only as to bin Laden but putting the resources necessary to help this country that has long suffered the ravages of invasion and occupation, which after helping the Afgan's, bin Laden included, in the Soviet Invasion we up and walked away from the promises made than!

No one knows what may be coming from the rise of Hatreds we have created, the tens of thousands of Iraqi's killed and maimed, the country destroyed, the torturing of others {and don't tell me we've only done it three times, That's BullShit!}, the Millions Displaced........................................................................................!!

But we also better be prepared, and Pay the Cost of, as well as have an Understanding, of what we have created in some who we've sent into another 'Hell On Earth', for all of them they have been changed for life, for some they will live the present over and over!

The following is no excuse but it is one of many tragic incidents that have already occurred with more to follow. How do I know, and I'm not the only one, because we've been living with the results of another conflict from not long ago and some of us know the reasons why, we're a part of the 'Focus Groups', little georgie!

Mom of Auburn Slaying Suspect Apologizes
The mother of the man charged with killing an Auburn University student said her son was an Iraq war veteran who was changed after his service, and offered an apology to the freshman's family.

Catherine Williams, the mother of suspect Courtney Lockhart, made the apology to Lauren Burk's family in an interview with Columbus, Ga., television station WTVM.

Over at Police One we find part one, of a three part report Titled: Exclusive: Cops back from the war: What problems do they pose? By Chuck Remsberg, Senior PoliceOne Contributor

Thousands of American law enforcement officers have been called to military service in Iraq and Afghanistan, and authorities are increasingly focusing attention on how well some of those can reintegrate into domestic policing once they return home.

He adds a few instances of recent report:

• In Texas, an officer recently back from reservist deployment to Iraq, opened fire on a suspect who was running through a crowded shopping center. The rounds narrowly missed the officer’s partner and one lodged in a van occupied by two children. “Everyone believes he should not have fired,” the officer’s attorney told USA Today. “His assessment of the threat level was wrong. He was assessing as if he was back in the military, not [as] a police officer.”

• In Georgia, an officer who’d served in Iraq with the National Guard was sentenced to more than 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter. He was part of a misdirected drug raid in which an elderly woman was killed. His lawyer says he was undergoing treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition afflicting a significant percentage of returning vets.

• In Nevada, a trooper who’d been in Iraq as an Army Guardsman, pleaded guilty to felony reckless driving and was sentenced to 2 to 12 years. According to the New York Times, he was driving 118 mph when he slammed into another car, killing four people and critically injuring another.

Adding the obvious, at least for some:

No one claims that all—or even a majority—of post-deployment veterans are menaces to society once they pin a badge back on and resume patrol duties. But by the same token, says Dr. Stephen Curran, a Maryland psychologist who counsels officers, “You can’t just put people back in [law enforcement] jobs, give them their guns and expect that things are going to be fine. Getting back into the flow of things is a challenge.”

A Symposium was put together where more than 200 police and mental health professionals representing 73 federal, state, county and city agencies in seven states attended.

Drawing on the panel’s presentations, Part 1 of this exclusive series examines the roots of post-deployment adjustment problems. Part 2 will explore the challenges these present to officers, their families and their departments when they come home. In part 3, we’ll look at measures knowledgeable observers believe are necessary to assure a successful transition back to the streets.

The subtitles of this report are WAR ZONE REALITIES. and CASUALTIES OF THE MIND.

You should go over and read the report, it isn't that long and touches on a number of points you should start understanding better, not only as those who serve in Law Enforcement but as to many of the Returning Veterans, serving Multiple Tours thus Mutiple Years in Combat Theaters!

I, or anyone, could add so many reports of Tragic incidents that have occurred, in these last Five Years, past to recent, and I'm afraid for Many Years To Come!

Some may have already seen this report from our State Department China's human rights rating upgraded by U.S. State Dept.
It takes the country off the list of worst human rights offenders but still notes serious concerns.

Once upon a time others paid attention to these reports, even those who knew we weren't as perfect as we believe we are.

Want to know what the rest of the World, most of which were Solidly Behind Us after 9/11, and felt our pain, many already having lived through their own tragedies of Criminal Terrorism or a better phrase long running Guerilla War on a Global Stage for many years, they will Laugh, not a Funny Laugh, but a Laugh of Sad Knowledge of our now Very Public Hypocrisy, not only as to 'Human Rights' but Total Disregard of the Human Life of Others as long as We Get What We Want and Need in our Arrogance and Materialistic Lives!!

Ever wonder the Why of No American POW's in either raging conflict, hint: They Knew What We Were Doing Long Before We Got The News!

What we practice opens wide what others can and will do, with impunity, to our Soldiers and Civilians wherever they may be!

We can No Longer Condemn others, nor seek sympathy from allies or the marginal, we have joined the ranks of the once Condemned!

Better start the realization Now, your children, your granchildren, and if you live long enough, your great granchildren will want answers as to the World We Have Left Them!!

One Reality will be able to start for you Tomorrow, visit Iraq Veterans Against The War - Winter Soldier to find out where you can View or Listen to the Testimony of Iraq and Afganistan Veterans

Untill than you may want to listen to this:

For Former Combatants, A Plan for Peace

Fresh Air from WHYY, March 10, 2008 · Bassam Aramin and Zohar Shapira, the co-founders of Combatants for Peace, talk about their mission to end the cycle of violence in Israel and Palestine by bringing together individuals who previously fought against each other.

A former member of the Palestinian Fatah movement, Aramin began a seven-year sentence in an Israeli prison at age 17. He now works as a clerk at the Palestinian National Archives.

Shapira served as combatant and commander in an elite unit of the Israeli army for 15 years. He now is a teacher in a Waldorf school in Israel.

Currently around 450 Palestinians and Israelis are members of the group.

You can Listen with this Link

In the above one of the Combatants For Peace talks about his 10yr old Daughters Death.

You can listen to a previous 31/2 min. NPR report, from January 22, 2007, on that tragedy with this link.

Both bring up the NRP Player.

A few, I'm sure, will understand why I've added these to the above, a Few!!

Combatants For Peace

I did two Posts on this group of Israelli and Palestinian Ex-Combatants shortly after they were formed and a Veterans For Peace member was invited to Israel to meet with them.

You can read those posts Here and Here

The YouTube Video's don't play no more in these posts, but you can find same at their site, link in the posts.