be just

US-backed gunmen stage massacre at Syrian TV station US-backed gunmen stage massacre at Syrian TV station By Bill Van Auken 28 June 2012 Gunmen stormed a pro-government television station in Syria Wednesday, slaughtering seven employees, wounding others and taking several people hostage. The attack came a day after President Bashar al-Assad declared Syria to be in “a real state of war.”

   Free Speech Under Attack for Muslim Americans          : Information Clearing House Sami Al-Arian, a professor at the University of South Florida, and an activist on behalf of Palestinian human rights, was arrested over 9 years ago on terrorism charges. His daughter, journalist Laila Al-Arian, tells The Nation how the FBI built a case against her father that was based on intimidation, coercion and pervasive fear. She wrote about the case and the FBI's infilitratration of Muslim communities in The Nation's special issue on Islamophobia."......"

Rabbi who called for slaughter of a million Palestinians is to supervise Israel's 'Red Cross' A notoriously racist rabbi who once called on Israel to slaughter a million Palestinian civilians has been appointed to head a supervisory committee for Magen David Adom (MDA) – Israel’s equivalent of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. Haaretz reported that under pressure from ultra-Orthodox Jewish groups MDA decided to set up a rabbinical committee to dictate religious guidelines – including gender relations – for volunteers in the rescue service. The committee is headed by Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the Chief Rabbi of Safad, whose salary is paid by the Israeli government. Eliyahu has a long, well-documented history of extreme racism and has called for violence against Palestinians. Since 2006, Magen David Adom – whose name means Red Star of David – has been a full member of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and is Israel’s internationally recognized agency for d...

Israel in Breach of International Law in Treatment of Palestinian Children -- News from Antiwar.com There is a “spiral of injustice” and breaches of international law in Israel’s treatment of child detainees in military custody, according to an independent report by a delegation of British lawyers backed by the British Foreign Office.

5 Reasons America Is Not -- And Has Never Been -- a Christian Nation 5 Reasons America Is Not -- And Has Never Been -- a Christian Nation By Rob Boston June 25, 2012 "Information Clearing House" -- "The United States is a Christian nation.” If I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard this statement at a religious Right meeting or in the media, I wouldn’t be rich—but I’d probably have enough to buy a really cool iPad. The assertion is widely believed by followers of the religious Right and often repeated—and, too often, it seeps into the beliefs of the rest of the population as well. But like other myths that are widely accepted (you use only 10 percent of your brain, vitamin C helps you get over a cold, and the like), it lacks a factual basis.

Your Tax Dollars at War   : Information Clearing House Your Tax Dollars at War "The most enormous war machine the world has ever known" US radio host Dennis Bernstein and investigative reporter Dave Lindorff illustrate just how much US tax money goes towards the country's war chest "People have to realize that 53 cents of every dollar that they are paying into taxes is going to the military to an astonishing figure there is an enormous, enormous amount of money being blown on war an killing and destruction."......

Film explores striking parallels between South African, Israeli apartheid Roadmap to Apartheid, a feature-length documentary by filmmakers Ana Nogueira (a white South African) and Eron Davidson (a Jewish Israeli), is an extremely ambitious project that is largely successful in achieving the difficult goals it sets for itself. Not only is Roadmap the first documentary to offer an in-depth exploration of parallels between the South African and Israeli forms of apartheid, but it presents the material in such a way as to serve as a fairly comprehensive and accessible introduction for audiences with no prior exposure to the issue.....

The UN’s expert on extrajudicial killings has described a tactic used by the CIA and first exposed by a Bureau investigation as ‘a war crime’. Earlier this year the Bureau and the Sunday Times revealed the CIA was deliberately targeting rescuers and funeral-goers in its Pakistan drone strikes. Those controversial tactics have reportedly been revived. Christof Heyns, the UN special rapporteur, told a meeting in Geneva on June 21: ’Reference should be made to a study earlier this year by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism… If civilian ‘rescuers’ are indeed being intentionally targeted, there is no doubt about the law: those strikes are a war crime.’".......

Afghanistan: The Top Ten Lies that Recur in the Mainstream Media   : Information Clearing House Afghanistan: The Top Ten Lies that Recur in the Mainstream Media By James O’Neill June 20, 2012 "Information Clearing House" -- Recent announcements by the leaders of several of the nations forming the international assistance force in Afghanistan regarding their involvement post 2014 and their reasons for staying at least until then make it appropriate to consider the ostensible reasons for the invasion and occupation of this strategically located country. In considering recent history and those stated reasons there are at least ten major lies that recur in the mainstream media.

When Noam Chomsky Wept  : Information Clearing House

The School of the Americas, the CIA and the US-Condoned Cancer of Torture Continue to Spread in Latin America, Including Mexico The husband of Jennifer Harbury was tortured to death, over a two year period, by the Guatemalan military with the full knowledge of the CIA. (Photo: Mark Karlin) This is the seventh article in Truthout's series looking at US immigration and Mexican border policies through a social justice lens. Mark Karlin, editor of BuzzFlash at Truthout, visited the border region recently to file these reports. Jennifer Harbury Married an Armed Populist Leader, Who Was Tortured and Executed in Guatemala With CIA Involvement

Poverty In The USA:  Disposable Families in Ohio   : Information Clearing House Poverty In The USA: Disposable Families in Ohio By Greg Kaufmann June 16, 2012 "The Nation" - -  Since January 2011, Ohio has thrown nearly 70,000 people—including 40,000 children—off of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) cash assistance program, called Ohio Works First (OWF). That’s nearly 25 percent of the state’s TANF caseload. The reason? The state faces up to $130 million in federal penalties if 50 percent of the adults receiving assistance don’t meet the federal work participation requirement by September 30.

Abe Foxman's ADL lets its bigotry slip: in its view there are no Palestinian citizens of Israel Elsewhere on its website, the ADL apparently does recognize the existence of Palestinian citizens of Israel – calling them generically “Arabs”: Today, Israel’s Arab citizens are accorded full civil and political rights, entitled to complete participation in Israeli society. They are active in Israeli social, political and civic life and enjoy representation in Israel’s Parliament, foreign service and judicial system. Leave aside the ADL’s ludicrous claims that Palestinian citizens of Israel enjoy full rights and equality, why isn’t the ADL at least practicing what it preaches? If Palestinian citizens of Israel are fully active in Israel’s political life, how come they’re excluded from the ADL’s “comprehensive poll of Israeli public opinion”? It’s simple: The ADL’s poll is very much like a “comprehensive poll” of American public opinion that interviews only white people, or only Ch...

World Bank President Says President Hugo Chavez’s “Days Are Numbered”    : Information Clearing House World Bank President Says President Hugo Chavez’s “Days Are Numbered” By Paul Dobson June 14, 2012 "Information Clearing House" -- World Bank president Robert Zoellick said last week that the days of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez were "numbered" economically and politically following a wave of nationalisations. Zoellick spoke ominously of "an opportunity to make the western hemisphere the first democratic hemisphere" by exploiting Chavez's hypothetical downfall to force "rapid policy changes" on other countries, naming Cuba and Nicaragua...

Expert Panel Reports False Accounts of U.S. Political and Military Leaders on 9/11  : Information Clearing House New evidence shows that the September 11th activities of former President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld were falsely reported by official sources.   The 20-member 9/11 Consensus Panel analyzed evidence from press reports, FOIA requests, and archived 9/11 Commission file documents to produce eight new studies, released today.   The international Panel also discovered that four massive aerial practice exercises traditionally held in October were in full operation on 9/11. The largest, Global Guardian, held annually by NORAD and the US Strategic and Space Commands, had originally been scheduled for October 22-31 but was moved, along with Vigilant Guardian, to early September.   Although senior officials claimed  no one could have predicted using hijacked planes as weapons, the military had been practicing similar exerc...

California-Born Muslim Man Forced to Enter U.S. on Foot : Information Clearing House June 12, 2012 "Information Clearing House" -- It didn't seem terribly strange to Kevin Iraniha when an FBI agent showed up at his door in August 2011 just after he returned from a whirlwind trip through India, Egypt and Iran. The 27-year-old Iranian American says the agent was "very friendly" and just kept repeating that, "You have been to a lot more places than we have and our job is to build relationships so if you see anything out of the ordinary and since you're involved in certain things that we're not involved in, and have expertise in, feel free to come to us without hesitation." He even met with the FBI agent once more after that.

Colin Powell: Another War Criminal Cashes In   : Information Clearing House Colin Powell: Another War Criminal Cashes In By Charles Davis and Medea Benjamin June 12, 2012 "Information Clearing House" --  One could be forgiven for thinking there's anything honorable or honest about Colin Powell. For more than two decades now the Washington media has portrayed the former Secretary of State as something of a real life action hero, a reluctant warrior whose greatest fault – should they deign to mention any – was just being too darn loyal to a guy named George and his buddy Dick. What you might have missed is that Powell is a war criminal in his own right, one who in more than four decades of "public service" helped kill people from Vietnam to Panama to Iraq who never posed a threat to America. But don't just take some anti-war activists' word for it: Powell will proudly tell you as much, so long as he can make a buck from doing it in a book.

Will the Real Terrorist Please Stand Up:   : Information Clearing House Will the Real Terrorist Please Stand Up: Saul Landau on U.S.-Aided Anti-Castro Militants & the Cuban 5 By Democracy Now! June 11, 2012 "Information Clearing House" -- Award-winning journalist, filmmaker, author, professor Saul Landau has made more than 45 films and written 14 books, many about Cuba. His latest film is "Will the Real Terrorist Please Stand Up," about U.S. support for violent anti-Castro militants. Landau joins us to discuss the history of the Cuban Five and U.S. support for a group of anti-Castro militants who have been behind the bombing of airplanes, the blowing up of hotels and assassinations. Today they are allowed to live freely in the United States. "What did Cuba do to us?," Landau asks. "Well, the answer, I think, is that they were disobedient, in our hemisphere. And they did not ask permission to take away property. They took it away. They natio...

When Protector Turned Killer    : Information Clearing House June 11, 2012 "Information Clearing House" -- Back in January Faiz Fathi Jfara of Bani Walid asked a simple question, “I just need an answer from NATO: why did you destroy my home and kill my family?” NATO refuses to answer him.

Hollande: 4 French soldiers, interpreter killed in Afghanistan | National News - WCVB Home KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) - French President Francois Hollande mourned the deaths of four French soldiers and an Afghan interpreter killed in a suicide bombing and said his plan to withdraw combat forces by year's end will start next month.

Report: Syrian Rebels Responsible for Houla Massacre -- News from Antiwar.com The massacre of over 90 Syrians which caught the world’s attention and renewed calls for war against the regime of Bashar al-Assad may have been carried out by rebel fighters, according to a new report. A new report in one of Germany’s leading newspapers, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), the Houla massacre was in fact committed by anti-Assad Sunni militants, and most of the victims killed were members of the Alawi and Shia minorities, which have been largely supportive of Assad. The reports cites anonymous opponents of Assad who admitted their involvement in the massacre. According to the report, rebel fighters attacked Syrian army road-blocks in a 90 minute battle, in which dozens were killed on both sides. “According to eyewitness accounts,” the FAZ report continues, “the massacre occurred during this time. Those killed were almost exclusively from families belonging to Houla’s Alawi and Shi...

Don’t 30 Million Workers Deserve 1968 Wages?   : Information Clearing House By Ralph Nader June 08, 2012 "Information Clearing House" --Thirty million American workers arise, you have nothing to lose but some of your debt! Wednesday morning, Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-Ill.) introduced the “Catching Up to 1968 Act of 2012” (H.R. 5901) – legislation to raise the federal minimum wage to $10 per hour. The present minimum wage is $7.25, way below the unrealistically low federal poverty definition of $18,123 per year for a family of three. Adjusted for inflation, the 1968 minimum wage today would be a little above $10 per hour. Together with Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) and Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen, I was pleased to be with Rep. Jackson at a news conference to explain this long-overdue necessity for millions of hard-pressed, working Americans of all political persuasions. The policy behind the minimum wage, first enacted i...

Print This | Share This The controversy over Germany’s decision to give heavily-subsidized nuclear-capable submarines to Israel centered largely around Israel’s nuclear weapons program, and the concern that Germany would be helping them deploy WMDs abroad. This fear appears to have been warranted. It is now being reported that Israel is doing exactly that, loading the subs with nukes that are to be launched by a secret “hydraulic ejection system” that Germany installed for them. German officials have repeatedly insisted they were “unaware” of the plan. But now that they’re been caught out helping Israel in this manner, German officials are defending it, saying that they had “always assumed” Israel would load nukes on the submarines. Though Israel doesn’t officially admit to its widely known program, Defense Minister Ehud Barak didn’t appear to shy away from the matter either, saying that Germany “should be proud” of having helped Israel with the deployments.

Zionism A Rebellion Against Judaism    : Information Clearing House ZIONISM, AS I have often pointed out, was among other things a rebellion against Judaism, no less then Martin Luther’s rebellion against Catholicism. When Theodor Herzl raised his flag, almost all East European Jews were still living in a ghetto-like Orthodox atmosphere, ruled by the rabbis. All these rabbis, almost without exception, saw Zionism as the great enemy, much as Christians view the Antichrist. And not without reason. The Zionists were nationalists – adherents of the new European doctrine that human collectives are based primarily on ethnic origin, language and territory, not on religion. It was the opposite of the Jewish belief that Jews are the people of God, united by the obedience to his commandments.