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The Guardian,UK * Michael Kinsley * Eugene RobinsonAll worth reading and thinking about. First, the leader in the Guardian: Iraq Ungoverned and ungovernable. "In the meantime, and in the absence of effective national security forces, the quarrelling factions are taking matters into their own hands, through the use of militias. This, as the US ambassador in Baghdad recognises, provides the "infrastructure of civil war". Though the daily suicide bombings still attract most of the media's attention, a far more sinister trend is developing. This is the growing number of mutilated bodies that turn up - people who have been abducted and killed, simply because they belonged to the wrong sect."What have we achieved in Iraq for the lives lost,cities destroyed and the daily carnage? Michael Kinsley in the Post: "So, after more than a half-century of active meddling -- protecting our interests, promoting our values, encouraging democracy, fighting terrorism, seeking stability, defending human rights, pushing peace -- it's come to this. In Iraq we find ourselves unwilling regents of a society splitting into a gangland of warring militias and death squads, with our side (labeled "the government") outperforming the other side (labeled "the terrorists") in both the quantity and gruesome quality of its daily atrocities. In Iran, an irrational government that hates us with special passion is closer to getting the bomb than Iraq -- the country we went to war with to keep from getting the bomb -- ever was."The more interesting part about the role of the United States as a king maker comes later in his op-ed piece Where do we Meddle Next? No wonder that we are not liked by the Iranians. Half a century ago, Iran was very close to a real democracy. It had an elected legislature, called the majlis, and it had a repressive monarch, called the shah, and power veered uncertainly between them. In 1951, over the shah's objections, the majlis voted in a man named Mohammad Mosaddeq as prime minister. His big issue was nationalizing the oil companies. But in 1952 the United States had an election for president, and the winner (Dwight Eisenhower) got more votes than anyone in Iran. That must explain why in 1953, in the spirit of democracy, the CIA instigated a riot and then staged a coup. Mosaddeq was arrested, the majlis was ultimately dissolved and the shah ran things his way, which involved torture and death for political opponents, caviar and champagne for an international cast of hangers-on, and no more crazy talk about nationalizing the oil companies. Then there is immigration, a hot-button issue. Eugene Robinson presents the case for legal recognition of the wetbacks,illegal immigrants. After all, we invited these people to come here and pick our strawberries, clean our offices, pluck our chickens, bus our tables, wash our cars and perform a host of other jobs for which our society no longer wants to shell out working-class wages and reasonable benefits such as health insurance. By "invited" I mean that we left the Mexican border essentially open, gave employers the luxury of no-questions-asked hiring without any credible threat of sanctions, and failed to make clear who was supposed to enforce the immigration laws and how. That adds up to an invitation.

Blogs * Russ Feingold's Censure Resolution * Republican LiteHendrik Hertzberg's comments in the Talk of the Town Section of The New Yorker are always a pleasure to read. In Disarray This, in the March 27th issue Mr. Hertzberg wrote: "Meanwhile, the left-populist blogosphere--—a reliable barometer of the Democratic equivalent of the famous Republican "“base"--—erupted with praise for Feingold and contempt for his cautious Party colleagues. The adjectives used to limn the latter were pungent: "“Spineless."” "“Sluggish."” "“Weak."” There is truth in it. I,myself, have used "gutless" and "craven" to describe the Democrats in Congress long before Russ Feingold proposed the censure resolution. Perhaps the majority of Democratic bloggers are left of center and our frustration surfaces in the posts that appear in the blogosphere. I make no apologies.Mr. Hertzberg went on to say: "There is very little doubt that Bush deserves censure, not only for the warrantless wiretapping but also for the many other catastrophes his Administration has generated, including the manipulation of intelligence to justify the Iraq war, the willful failure to heed warnings of what the invasion'’s aftermath would entail, the sanctioning of torture, and the neglect of "“homeland security"---—to say nothing of a set of domestic policies that sacrifice solvency, safety, the environment, and elementary fairness on the altar of enriching the rich in the name of Christian compassion. And there is scarcely less doubt that, ever since 9/11, Democratic opposition to Bush'’s war-related policies has been inordinately muted. (Even a figure as non-populist as Zbigniew Brzezinski protested last week that "“Democratic leaders have been silent or evasive."”) But none of that means that those who prefer strategies different from Feingold'’s are, ipso facto, spineless, sluggish, and weak.And further on: A poll taken last week by the American Research Group showed that a plurality of voters--—forty-eight per cent--—actually favor Feingold'’s resolution, with forty-three per cent opposed. Among Democratic respondents, support was seventy per cent. For senators whose seats are safely Democratic, supporting the resolution is a personally cost-free choice. (The same is true of the thirty-one members of the House who have endorsed an impeachment resolution: in 2004, all won with at least fifty-seven per cent of the vote. The average was seventy-five per cent.) That A.R.G. poll also showed independent voters narrowly opposing censure. The midterm election will be decided in places where no Democratic candidate can prevail without overwhelming independent support. Tactical calculations like these are never pleasant. But they are not always sordid, and sometimes they are necessary. Yes,even left-leaning bloggers recognize that in making political decisions expediency is unavoidable. Such tactics,however, are sordid....always. It is too bad that to unseat the amoral politicians we have to go down to their level and become Republican Lite.*An Uphill Battle For the Democrats, outlooks for the mid-term elections are far from rosy but the president is floundering and reports about Iraq and other matters continue to shed a harsh light upon the Bush administration. Jonathan Weisman in the Post: "An 18-month recruitment drive by the Democrats has produced nearly a dozen strong candidates with the potential for unseating House Republicans, but probably not enough to take back control of the House absent a massive anti-incumbent wave this fall, according to House political experts."

This story belongs to den of thieves category like the reports about lawmakers and lobbyists. "Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co. recently funded five studies that compared its antipsychotic drug Zyprexa with Risperdal, a competing drug made by Janssen. All five showed Zyprexa was superior in treating schizophrenia. But when Janssen sponsored its own studies comparing the two drugs, Risperdal came out ahead in three out of four." Anyone surprised? In fact, when psychiatrist John Davis analyzed every publicly available trial funded by the pharmaceutical industry pitting five new antipsychotic drugs against one another, nine in 10 showed that the best drug was the one made by the company funding the study. Comments Anonymous — 2006-04-13 ZYPREXA cause your DIABETES? Victims networking site. Have you taken Zyprexa and developed diabetes?Information and news site for Victims. Zyprexa, which is used for the treatment of psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, accounted for 32% of Eli Lilly's $14.6 billion revenue last year. Zyprexa is the product name for Olanzapine,it is Lilly's top selling drug.It was approved by the FDA in 1996 ,an 'atypical' antipsychotic a newer class of drugs without the motor side effects of the older Thorazine.Zyprexa has been linked to causing diabetes and pancreatitis. How does Zyprexa cause diabetes? It has been theorized that Zyprexa causes diabetes by poisoning the pancreatic beta cells causing them to die off. Did you know that Lilly made nearly $3 billion last year on diabetic meds, Actos,Humulin and Byetta? Yes! They sell a drug that causes diabetes and then turn a profit on the drugs that treat the condition >that they caused in the first place! I was prescribed Zyprexa from 1996 until 2000. In early 2000 i was shocked to have an A1C test result of 13.9 (normal is 4-6) I have no history of diabetes in my family. MY www.zyprexa-victims.com site documents my efforts to seek recovery and compensation from the Eli Lilly drug company for causing my diabetes. I did not make legal discovery until Dec 2005 when i saw a Television advertisement,only then did i make my Zyprexa/diabetes connection and was shocked. A special hardship in my case is an ileostomy from long-standing ulcerative colitis,this prevents me from eating a high fiber diet to control my blood sugar and adds to the cost of my diabetes management. Some featured topical listings at my site: *Best info page on zyprexa *Resource page for Zyprexa Victims *Latest Zyprexa news from google news wire *Yahoo Zyprexa search websites,news & blogs *MSN news wire for Zyprexa *Zyprexa discussion forum NEW Yes,help today is only a mouse click away-Daniel Haszard http://www.zyprexa-victims.com

Casualties of War In the first 11 days of April, 36 American soldiers have died in Iraq. The total: 2364. Taking the numbers into consideration the report that on May 29,2003, the president crowed "We have found the weapons of mass destruction" leaves no doubts as to what length the president was determined to go to justify the war. There was no evidence to support announcement of the finding of WMD and he knew it. Joby Warrick's report in the Post details the facts. The claim, repeated by top administration officials for months afterward, was hailed at the time as a vindication of the decision to go to war. But even as Bush spoke, U.S. intelligence officials possessed powerful evidence that it was not true. A secret fact-finding mission to Iraq -- not made public until now -- had already concluded that the trailers had nothing to do with biological weapons. Leaders of the Pentagon-sponsored mission transmitted their unanimous findings to Washington in a field report on May 27, 2003, two days before the president's statement. Silence of the families of soldiers is deafening.The 15th Annual Jefferson Muzzle AwardAnd the winner is G.W. Bush. There can be no argument about it. The President received the recognition that was due to him for his tireless efforts to curb our rights to protect us from evil doers.RICHMOND, Va. -Apr.11 President Bush and the Justice Department are among the winners of the 2006 Jefferson Muzzle awards, given by a free-speech group to those it considers the most egregious First Amendment violators in the past year. Bush led the list, compiled by the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression, for authorizing the National Security Agency to tap the phones of U.S. citizens who make calls overseas. The wiretaps were conducted without authorization from a federal court. The White House defended the warrantless wiretapping program as necessary to fight terrorism. The Justice Department earned a Muzzle for demanding that Google turn over thousands of Internet records, prompting concerns that more invasive requests could follow if the government prevails. "If individuals are fearful that their communications will be intercepted by the government, such fears are likely to chill their speech," the Jefferson center said.

Berlusconi vs Prodi * Price of Oil and the Stock Market * End of Reverend Robertson's Empire Oil, How High Will It Go An item in Yahoo Finance reads: "Skilling Speaks, and Oil Spikes. Enron's former chief declares his innocence. Oil prices surge on fears of a military strike on Iran." President's friends on Wall Street are not happy about news of plans for a first strike against Iran and neither are ordinary Americans across the country. High price of oil affects us all although I have no sympathy for those who drive ugly behemoths. Uncertainy Over Polls in ItalyRomano Prodi, leader of the center-left party, is claiming victory but the very narrow margin (49.8% for Prodi to 49.7% for Berlusconi) raises questions about the final outcome. Allegations of irregularity have been made. Silvio Berlusconi,an autocratic buffoon, is a survivor, adept at dirty tricks. He has been a strong ally of President Bush. This morning the Italian financial market fell almost 1%.Pat Robertson and the Christian Coalition Soon after the fall of Tom DeLay comes news that Rev. Pat Robertson's Christian Coalition is facing money crunch. What went wrong? "The once-mighty Christian Coalition, founded 17 years ago by the Rev. Pat Robertson as the political fundraising and lobbying engine of the Christian right, is more than $2 million in debt, beset by creditors' lawsuits and struggling to hold on to some of its state chapters." Apparently, higher powers have not come to his aid and his followers are holding on to their wallets. With his valiant work to spread the Lord's words and tireless campaign on behalf of conservative Republicans one would think that he deserves a Federal bail out. Right now the president has other things on his mind. Once the dust settles--if the dust settles--perhaps he would take care of the reverend.

The President's approval rating in a free fall. The news made me see a silver lining in the rain clouds. Good news for those of us who opposed the war before the bombs fell on Baghdad. Good news for the Democrats hoping to be the majority party after the mid-term elections although I am not too sure of their success. Republicans are vulnerable but the Democrats' failure to stand up against abuses of power when it mattered has made it difficult for them to take advantage of the situation.One saving grace for the president is the support of the soldiers and their families. If they have doubts they do not publicly voice them.*"Colonel Walter E. Kurtz: Did they say why, Willard? Why they wanted to terminate my command? Did they tell you?Captain Benjamin L. Willard: They told me you had gone totally insane and, uh....., that your methods were unsound.Colonel Walter E. Kurtz: Are my methods unsound?Captain Benjamin L. Willard: I don't see ... any method ... at all."~APOCALYPSE NOW

Hit them all at once or according to his needsIran,Venezuela. Perhaps Cuba. Cuba will be good for Brother Jeb. Drum beat getting louder. The ground was laid with the preemption policy reiterated in March 2006. Timing is right. Now,more than ever, the president needs something to divert the nation's attention from reports about abuses by his administration. "According to current and former officials, Pentagon and CIA planners have been exploring possible targets, such as the uranium enrichment plant at Natanz and the uranium conversion facility at Isfahan. Although a land invasion is not contemplated, military officers are weighing alternatives ranging from a limited airstrike aimed at key nuclear sites, to a more extensive bombing campaign designed to destroy an array of military and political targets."The villains have been created. An air war will minimize casualties on our side. Then he will read a speech about another mission accomplished. No, he is not going put on a flight suit.Seymour Hersh has a report,"The Iran Story",in The New Yorker, about the Bush administration's plans for a nuclear strike against Iran.

The Plame Story Unfolds - It was the Veep, "Dr. Strangelove" CheneyFrom the information available,it can safely be assumed that his boss was not far behind. They are writhing,the slimy creatures of the Bush White House. Barton Gellman and Dafna Linzer write in the Post 'A Concerted Effort' to Discredit Bush Critic: "As he drew back the curtain this week on the evidence against Vice President Cheney's former top aide, Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald for the first time described a "concerted action" by "multiple people in the White House" -- using classified information -- to "discredit, punish or seek revenge against" a critic of President Bush's war in Iraq." Things are falling in place. Does not mean that the president and his aides will receive their just desserts but America and the world will know them for what they are. Thanks to Patrick Fitzgerald,the Bush administration's efforts to bluff,bully and subvert the nation are being exposed in full colors. It warms the cockles of my heart. Bluntly and repeatedly, Fitzgerald placed Cheney at the center of that campaign. Citing grand jury testimony from the vice president's former chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Fitzgerald fingered Cheney as the first to voice a line of attack that at least three White House officials would soon deploy against former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV. Sometimes the wheels of justice move in strange ways. Not hard to imagine the gnashing of teeth by the smarmy former AG John Ashcroft and the Republicans about the appointment of Patrick Fitzgerald. If they only knew.What made Tony Blair a member of the cabal for war is a mystery. Now his name,too, will be tied for ever to Bush and Cheney."Fair is foul and foul is fair: Hover through the fog and filthy air."---Wm.Shakespeare, The Three Witches, Macbeth Comments Unknown — 2006-04-09 This comment has been removed by a blog administrator. musafir — 2006-04-09 That is an extreme view and could result in a knock on your door at midnight. As long as the families of soldiers (dead and injured) remain quiet or supportive of the president he will continue to bluster through the end of his term. With the Republicans in control of Congress, impeachment is not in the scenario.

A gem in this morning's Washington Post---"Words and Music" by Alaka Basu. The first paragraph of her op-ed piece about National Security Language Initiative almost made me move to something else. The State Department's web site about NLSI reads :.....a plan to further strengthen national security and prosperity in the 21st century through education, especially in developing foreign language skills." While not all students of foreign languages will train to be spooks, the primary reason for establishment of NSLI was to create a pool from which to recruit.Glad that I stayed with the article. Caught mention of the Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason, a book that I had enjoyed a few years back, and continued following Ms Basu. "This project reminds me of a book I read recently, "The Piano Tuner," by Daniel Mason, in which the central character seeks and makes peace in late 19th-century Burma with music instead of guns. I want to believe the language initiative also is at least partly motivated by an interest in more nonviolent tools of negotiation, although I much prefer the word "conversation" to "negotiation." Yes, "negotiation" is a hard word, it implies confrontation. The world would be better off when those in power meet to talk rather than negotiate. Not likely to happen any time soon.What drew me to the article in the first place was the author's name. A Bengali if I'm not mistaken. The Indian sub-continent has produced great authors and works of literature. Perhaps I am partial but to me Urdu and Bengali are far superior to Hindi, the national language of India. Hindi lacks the lilt,the sweetness found in the other two. *"Language tethers us to the world; without it we spin like atoms."---Penelope Lively

Commanders in Chief, Current and PreviousThe news broke yesterday that the decision to smear ex-diplomat Joseph Wilson and leak the name of his wife,Valerie Plame,an undercover CIA officer, came down from the very top. "The court filing by Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald for the first time places Bush and Vice President Cheney at the heart of what Libby testified was an exceptional and deliberate leak of material designed to buttress the administration's claim that Iraq was trying to obtain nuclear weapons. The information was contained in the National Intelligence Estimate, one of the most closely held CIA analyses of whether Iraq had weapons of mass destruction before the war." Faced with lack of evidence to support their arguments for the war the Bushies were mad and struck back as they know how. Today the print media covered it on front page but just as another item. There is no sense of surprise and there is an absence of indignation. There is no firestorm.....not yet. What does that say about us?The President's supporters argue that he has the right to declassify information. The Washington Post: Legal scholars and analysts said yesterday that the president has the authority to selectively declassify intelligence reports But they also said it was highly unusual for senior officials at the White House to take such an action so stealthily, without notifying Cabinet officials or others in the administration, including the CIA authors of the National Intelligence Estimate. The War (G.W. Bush) and the Intern (William Jefferson Clinton)William Jefferson Clinton faced impeachment for diddling with Ms Lewinski and lying about it. The circus put up by Ken Starr and the Republicans (some of them probably drooled thinking about cigars and buxom females) cost the country about $30 million according to a CNN report. No one died although attempts were made to create a mystery around the suicide of Vince Foster.George Bush and the neocons engaged this nation in an unjust war. 2345 American soldiers have lost their lives, the number of severely injured is estimated to be 17469; number of Iraqi civilians killed: Minimum 33821 Maximum 37943, most of them from military action,i.e. "collateral damage". Based on estimates of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO),cost in dollars could exceed one trillion ($1,000,000,000,000). See left margin of this page for running costs.