Breaking News and Commentary from Citizens for Legitimate Government
12 December 2005
http://www.legitgov.org/
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Republican Congressman Says Totalitarian Regime a Danger --Bob Barr says military dictatorship close By Paul Joseph Watson & Alex Jones 11 Dec 2005 "Former Republican Congressman and CIA official Bob Barr says that there is a danger recent developments describe a trend of America slipping into a totalitarian society and that the Bush administration are doing everything in their power to see that this happens. During a radio interview with host Alex Jones, Barr outlined where the country is heading. 'Basically, as long as you smile when you demand to see somebody's ID at gunpoint sitting on a bus I guess it's OK for the government, that's sort of the way they operate. It can be a totalitarian type regime.'"
More secret Iraqi prison sites revealed 11 Dec 2005 Iraqi officials have named four additional prisons run by the Interior Ministry at which prisoners were secretly held and allegedly subjected to torture.
Abuse Cited in 2nd Jail Run by [US-installed] Iraqi Ministry --Official Says 12 Prisoners Subjected to 'Severe Torture' 12 Dec 2005 An 'Iraqi' government search of a detention center in Baghdad operated by Interior Ministry special commandos found 13 prisoners who had suffered abuse serious enough to require medical treatment, U.S. and Iraqi officials said Sunday night.
Iraqi general tells of prison torture horror 11 Dec 2005 An Iraqi general formerly in charge of special forces said he witnessed horrific scenes of torture in Iraqi prisons and accused a Shiite militia [probably a US militia] of being responsible. "It was horrific. Thousands of detainees, often teenagers, beaten, burned, receiving electric shocks, then the majority killed," Muntazar al-Samarrai, who fled Iraq for Jordan five months ago, told AFP.
Military's Information War Is Vast and Often Secretive 11 Dec 2005 The media center in Fayetteville, N.C., would be the envy of any global communications company. The center is not part of a news organization, but a military operation, and those writers and producers are soldiers. The 1,200-strong psychological operations unit based at Fort Bragg turns out what its officers call "truthful messages" to support the United States government's objectives, though its commander acknowledges that those stories are one-sided and their American sponsorship is hidden.
Straw: No record of CIA transfers 12 Dec 2005 There are no records of the US asking the UK for permission to use its airports to move CIA terror suspects, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has said. He was "as certain as can be" of that after detailed searches of records.
Lies, More Lies and the Lying Liars who tell them By ringverse 12 Dec 2005 "Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin, or rather Jack Straw will... The government line is that the 400+CIA flights that have are being reported have NOTHING TO DO WITH THE RENDITION PROCESS. It's all been a terrible misunderstanding..."
The US has used torture for decades. All that's new is the openness about it --By ignoring past abuses, opponents of torture are in danger of pushing it back into the shadows instead of abolishing it. By Naomi Klein 12 Dec 2005 "According to declassified training manuals, SOA students - military and police officers from across the hemisphere - were instructed in many of the same 'coercive interrogation' techniques that have since gone to Guantánamo and Abu Ghraib: early morning capture to maximise shock, immediate hooding and blindfolding, forced nudity, sensory deprivation, sensory overload, sleep and food 'manipulation', humiliation, extreme temperatures, isolation, stress positions - and worse."
Three Soldiers Killed During Separate Incidents in Iraq 12 Dec 2005 One Task Force Baghdad soldier was killed south of Baghdad today. Another died in western Baghdad on Dec. 11. Both soldiers were killed when their patrols struck improvised explosive devices, military officials reported.
Senators Unsure of U.S. Troop Withdrawal 11 Dec 2005 Turnout will be the key to success for Iraq ‘s first parliamentary 'election' this week, but significant U.S. troop withdrawals may not be possible until after consensus is reached on a constitution months later, senators said Sunday.
Two N.J. Congressmen regret their votes in favor of Iraq war 11 Dec 2005 Two of New Jersey's Democratic Congressmen who cast votes favoring the United States invasion of Iraq three years ago said this week they regretted their decisions.
Syria warns against sanctions 11 Dec 2005 Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, has warned that an attempt to impose sanctions on his nation would destabilise the region and the entire world.
Time: Rove's Lawyer Told of Conversation 11 Dec 2005 Months before Karl Rove corrected his statements in the Valerie Plame investigation, his lawyer was told that the president's top political adviser might have disclosed Plame's CIA status to a Time magazine reporter.
The Roving Investigator --In his continuing inquiry into the Valerie Plame leak, Patrick Fitzgerald questions another TIME reporter. 11 Dec 2005
Bush plans overhaul of US foreign aid system 11 Dec 2005 George W. Bush’s regime is drawing up plans to carry out the biggest overhaul of the US foreign aid apparatus in more than 40 years in an attempt to assert more political control over international assistance, according to officials and aid experts.
Saudi Billionaire Boasts of Manipulating Fox News Coverage (aim.org Press Release) 07 Dec 2005 Accuracy in Media (AIM) is urging a full inquiry into a report that a Saudi billionaire caused the Fox News Channel (FNC) to dramatically alter its coverage of the Muslim riots in France after he called the network to complain. The Saudi billionaire, Al-waleed bin Talal, is a friend of News Corporation chairman Rupert Murdoch and controls an influential number of voting shares in the company.
At F.B.I., Frustration Over Limits on an Antiterror Law 11 Dec 2005 Some agents at the Federal Bureau of Investigation have been frustrated by what they see as the Justice Department's reluctance to let them demand records and to use other far-ranging investigative measures in terrorism cases, newly disclosed e-mail messages and internal documents show.
Professor in Terror Case May Face Deportation 08 Dec 2005 Stunned by the acquittal of a former Florida professor on terrorism charges, federal law enforcement officials said Wednesday that they might seek to have him deported to the Middle East.
Professor says he was forced out over comment 11 Dec 2005 A college professor who drew sharp criticism for comments deriding Christian fundamentalists over "intelligent design" said he was forced out as chairman of the university's religious studies department.
Professor blasts KU, sheriff's investigation 10 Dec 2005 Kansas University professor Paul Mirecki said he’s hired an attorney and is ready to go to the mat with KU and the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. "If I have to sue, I will," he said. Mirecki said he’s angry because KU didn’t back him after religious conservatives [nutballs] attacked him for his plan to teach a course dealing with intelligent design.
Neo-Nazis blamed for Sydney riots 12 Dec 2005 A man tries to hit police with a beer bottle at Cronulla Beach, Sydney. Photograph: Rob Griffith/AP The Australian prime minister today condemned yesterday's race riots in Sydney as "totally unacceptable" and called for ethnic and religious tolerance.
DA must prove DeLay purposely avoided fund ban 12 Dec 2005 To get a conviction against U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay and two associates, Travis County prosecutors will have to prove the men knowingly raised or converted corporate cash with the intent of getting around the state's ban on using such money in campaigns for elective office.
Supreme Court to Review Texas Redistricting 12 Dec 2005 The Supreme Court said Monday it would consider the constitutionality of a Texas congressional map engineered by [Reichwing] Rep. Tom DeLay that helped Republicans gain seats in Congress.
Gov. Bush picks major Republican donor to oversee state elections 08 Dec 2005 Gov. Jeb Bush turned to an old family friend and contributor Wednesday to succeed former Orlando Mayor Glenda Hood as Florida secretary of state.
Gov't Report: $50 - Plus Oil Here to Stay 12 Dec 2005 Oil prices are projected to remain well above $50 a barrel for years to come, resulting in a greater shift to more fuel efficient cars and alternative energy sources, according to an analysis released Monday by the Energy Department.
Rumor of levee dynamite persists 12 Dec 2005 There is general agreement: The destruction of the Lower 9th Ward started with a series of earthshaking explosions... Andrew Baker, who lost his Tennessee Street home, is not only certain that the explosions were caused by dynamite set by someone deliberately blowing up the levees, he has a theory as to why: The east side of the Industrial Canal was breached to save the French Quarter, Uptown and the Lower Garden District.
Arkansas housing thousands of empty FEMA trailers 11 Dec 2005 New stats from FEMA show that thousands of empty mobile homes the agency ordered to house refugees in the wake of Hurricane Katrina now sit empty at sites near Texarkana and Hope.
Judge Orders Extension of FEMA Hotel Plan 12 Dec 2005 A program that put Hurricane Katrina evacuees in hotels at government expense while they sought other housing must be extended until Feb. 7, a month beyond the deadline set by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, a federal judge ruled Monday.
Drowned city cuts its poor adrift 11 Dec 2005 The waters have receded but the mainly black, low-income citizens of New Orleans are now the victims of rising rents, forced evictions and plans that favour the better off, reports Peter Beaumont.
Workers clear track for strike 11 Dec 2005 Roaring "strike, strike" thousands of transit workers authorized their leaders yesterday to call the first illegal, city-crippling walkout in 25 years. More than 6,000 workers who move the city - many raising their fists in the air and waving red-and-yellow union bandannas - made the decision after their president delivered a blistering attack on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
Obama says Republicans practice "Social Darwinism" 11 Dec 2005 Republicans controlling the federal government practice Social Darwinism, a discredited philosophy that in economics and politics calls for survival of the fittest, according to a Democratic U.S. senator.
State considers special license plates for sex offenders 11 Dec 2005 Two state lawmakers want violent and repeat sex offenders to have to use specially colored license plates similar to those required for some people convicted of driving drunk.
Calif. High Court Refuses Williams' Stay 11 Dec 2005 The state Supreme Court late Sunday refused to grant a stay of execution for gang member and convicted killer Stanley Tookie Williams, meaning Williams will be executed early Tuesday unless the governor grants clemency or a last-ditch federal appeal succeeds.
[11 Dec lead stories:] DOD Collects 'Raw Data' On Suspicious Activity --'Raw Information' From Military, Civilians Is Given to Pentagon 11 Dec 2005 Day after day, reports of suspicious activity filed from military bases and other defense installations throughout the United States flow into the Counterintelligence Field Activity, or CIFA, a three-year-old Pentagon agency whose size and budget remain classified. The Talon [threat and local observation notice] reports, as they are called, are based on information from civilians and military personnel who stumble across [?!?] people or information they think might be part of a terrorist plot or threat against defense facilities at home or abroad.
EU concealed deal with US to allow 'rendition' flights 11 Dec 2005 The European Union secretly allowed the United States to use transit facilities on European soil to transport "criminals" in 2003, according to a previously unpublished document. The revelation contradicts repeated EU denials that it knew of "rendition" flights by the CIA. The section of the document (New Transatlantic Agenda, EU-US meeting on Justice and Home Affairs), and others referring to US policy, were deleted - as a "courtesy" to Washington, according to a spokesman for the EU Council of Ministers.
MI6 and CIA 'sent student to Morocco to be tortured' --An Ethiopian claims that his confession to al-Qaeda bomb plot was signed after beatings 11 Dec 2005 An Ethiopian student who lived in London claims that he was brutally tortured with the involvement of British and US intelligence agencies. Binyam Mohammed, 27, says he spent nearly three years in the CIA's network of 'black sites'.
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CLG Newsletter editor: Lori Price, General Manager. Copyright © 2005, Citizens For Legitimate Government ® All rights reserved. CLG Founder and Chair is Michael Rectenwald, Ph.D.
