CIA Releases Its Instructions For Breaking a Prisoner's Will --With the release late Monday of guidelines for interrogating high-value detainees, the agency has provided -- in its own words -- the first detailed description of the step-by-step procedures used to systematically crush a prisoner's will to resist by eliciting stress, exhaustion and fear. 26 Aug 2009 As the session begins, the prisoner stands naked, except for a hood covering his head. Guards shackle his arms and legs, then slip a small collar around his neck. The collar will be used later; according to CIA guidelines for interrogations, it will serve as a handle for slamming the detainee's head against a wall. After removing the hood, the interrogator opens with a slap across the face -- to get the prisoner's attention -- followed by other slaps, the guidelines state. Next comes the head-slamming, or "walling," which can be tried once "to make a point," or repeated again and again. "Twenty or thirty times consecutively" is permissible, the guidelines say, "if the interrogator requires a more significant response to a question." And if that fails, there are far harsher techniques to be tried...
CIA prisoners faced chilling interrogation methods --The "black sites" were run with the singular goal of extracting potentially valuable information from some of the most high-profile terror suspects in US custody, and there was a clear theory about how that should be done. 26 Aug 2009 The first detailed picture of how so-called high value detainees spent their days inside secret Central Intelligence Agency-run prisons overseas has emerged in dozens of previously classified documents released this week. And the picture is chilling. A detainee could be forced to stand, almost naked, handcuffed, going days without sleep, and if that failed to break his will, there were other methods for interrogators at secret prisons to try.
CIA probe shields architects of US torture regime By Bill Van Auken 27 Aug 2009 The Obama administration’s release of a 2004 internal CIA report on torture and the announcement by the Justice Department of an extremely limited investigation into actions by individual interrogators is part of an elaborate attempt to cover up the scale of the crimes carried out under the Bush administration, while shielding its top figures from prosecution.
UK to stay in Afghanistan for 'a generation' 27 Aug 2009 The British Ambassador to Afghanistan Mark Sedwill expects his country's presence in Afghanistan to last for at least "a generation." "We would expect there to be a British presence here (Afghanistan) ... trying to bring this country up for at least a generation," Sedwill said on Wednesday, adding that they would be active in the "training and mentoring" role for many years. [See: 'Afghan drug trafficking brings US $50 billion a year' 20 Aug 2009.]
10 soldiers died and only 150 Afghans voted: Low election turnout in area seized in British troops' bloodiest campaign 27 Aug 2009 Ten British soldiers died in Afghanistan for the sake of just 150 votes in the country's selection. Operation Panther's Claw, which claimed their lives in ferocious fighting, was meant to improve security in the Babaji district of Helmand. But only 150 of the 80,000 potential voters there braved Taliban threats to vote last week, it was reported yesterday.
General slams 'muddling' MoD 27 Aug 2009 A former head of the Armed Forces has launched a scathing attack on the Ministry of Defence over its handling of the war in Afghanistan. General Lord Charles Guthrie said our brave servicemen and women were starved of single-minded leadership because of ministers who "sit frozen in indecision". The former UK Chief of Defence Staff said: "Britain is at war, but one would never know it walking around Whitehall... The conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan appear no more than inconvenient blips - something to be muddled through until things return to normal."
Water shortage threatens two million people in southern Iraq --Electricity supply to Nasiriyah has dropped by 50% because of falling levels of Euphrates river 26 Aug 2009 A water shortage described as the most critical since the earliest days of Iraq's civilisation is threatening to leave up to 2 million people in the south of the country without electricity and almost as many without drinking water. An already meagre supply of electricity to Iraq's fourth-largest city of Nasiriyah has fallen by 50% during the last three weeks because of the rapidly falling levels of the Euphrates river, which has only two of four power-generating turbines left working. If, as predicted, the river falls by a further 20cm during the next fortnight, engineers say the remaining two turbines will also close down, forcing a total blackout in the city.
US military acknowledges keeping tabs on reporters' work 27 Aug 2009 The US Army in Afghanistan admitted Thursday to keeping files on journalists and classifying reporting on the war as positive, negative and neutral, but insisted reporters had never been denied access on the basis of past reporting... US forces in Afghanistan acknowledged in a statement that it uses public relations group Rendon for "several analytic reports, to include characterization of specific topical stories/events as positive, negative or neutral, as well as whether media reporting is an accurate portrayal of the facts as we know them." [The liars at the Pentagon wouldn't know a 'fact' if it jumped up and kissed them.]
Israel calls for 'crippling' sanctions against Iran 27 Aug 2009 The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for "crippling sanctions" against Iran to halt the country's nuclear program. "There is not much time" to halt Tehran's nuclear ambitions, Netanyahu [nut_ n'_yahoo] told reporters after talks with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Thursday.
Israeli war on freedom of Expression, Swedish paper to be sued By Sameh A. Habeeb 27 Aug 2009 New York lawyer sues Swedish newspaper: A lawyer in New York has sued the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet following its article accusing Israeli soldiers of smuggling dead Palestinians' organs. The Israeli lawyer Guy Ophir, based in New York, has submitted a civil action to the New York State Supreme Court, the TT news wire wrote. He's claiming $7.5 million in damages against Aftonbladet because of the harm the tabloid has caused Jews and Israelis, himself included, he wrote in his writ.
Boycott Israel's IKEA Boycott --Shop Till You Drop at IKEA to Counteract Israel's Boycott! --Posted by Lori Price, www.legitgov.org 24 Aug 2009 Thousands of Israelis petition to boycott Sweden retailer IKEA By Adi Dovrat and Irit Rosenblum, Haaretz 23 Aug 2009 Thousands of Israelis have signed an online petition to boycott the Swedish furniture retailer IKEA, in the wake of a controversial article published in the Swedish daily Aftonbladet that suggested that Israeli soldiers "harvested" the organs of Palestinians.
Homeland Security revamps guidelines for border searches of electronics 27 Aug 2009 The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Thursday it is developing new guidelines for searches of computers and other electronic devices at border crossings. That includes the use of high-tech data collection and surveillance equipment to scan laptops and other devices. The federal announcement comes a day after the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit against DHS in U.S. District Court in New York claiming such searches violate privacy and constitutional rights.
Korean students to have temperatures checked each morning 26 Aug 2009 South Korea's elementary and secondary school teachers will take the body temperature of all their pupils at school gates every morning and sterilize classrooms daily as part of the government's all-out campaign to stem the spread of the influenza A (H1N1) virus, government officials said Wednesday. In addition, the government will push to prioritize elementary and secondary school students in a national inoculation campaign against the flu set to go into full swing in November, they said.
Swine flu vaccine program in jeopardy 28 Aug 2009 (AU) The Federal Government's plan to immunise the population against swine flu is in chaos because doctors' insurers may not cover them to administer the jab, saying inadequate testing and the possibility of spreading other infections mean there is too high a risk that patients will sue them later. Despite weeks of crisis talks, the Government has refused to underwrite doctors' liability for the vaccinations, and medical groups say the program - due to start as early as mid-September - cannot proceed unless doctors are insured.
E.U. Officials Do Not Say Whether Vaccinations Could Be Mandatory 26 Aug 2009 European Union health officials issued a list Tuesday of people who should be the first in line for vaccinations against the H1N1, or swine flu, virus. The officials, who represent 27 E.U. countries and the European Commission, did not say whether vaccinations could be mandatory in some cases, although some governments, including Britain, have already ruled out that possibility.
Flu fascism in West Virginia: CAMC will require flu shots --Employees will be fired if they don't get vaccinated by Dec. 15 26 Aug 2009 (WV) Charleston Area Medical Center employees must get seasonal flu shots this year or risk losing their jobs. All CAMC Health System workers must get vaccinated by Dec. 15 or their employment will be terminated, CAMC said in its August newsletter Vital Signs.
100 suspected swine flu cases at Georgia Tech 26 Aug 2009 Georgia Tech spokesman Matt Nagel says there have been about 100 suspected cases in just one week on the Atlanta campus, with 12 of them confirmed as the highly contagious H1N1 virus. He said the 18,000-student university is asking those who have flulike symptoms to isolate themselves for a few days.
Carnegie Mellon confirms 26 swine flu cases --Ill students have been placed in isolation in on-campus facility 26 Aug 2009 Carnegie Mellon University has confirmed another eight cases of swine flu, bringing the total number of sick students to 26. CMU's director of student health services Anita Barkin says the H1N1 flu virus hit the campus just days before classes officially begin on Monday.
Report: 30 Texas college students sick 27 Aug 2009 At least 30 Texas Christian University students are sick with flu-like symptoms. Dallas-Fort Worth television station KTVT reports that number has nearly tripled in the past two days. The Fort Worth university posted a statement Monday on its Web site indicating at least 10 students were sick with the H1N1 virus.
Rep. Jenkins: GOP looking for 'great white hope' 27 Aug 2009 U.S. Rep. Lynn Jenkins told a recent gathering in northeast Kansas that the Republican Party is looking for a "great white hope" to help stop President Barack Obama's political agenda. Videotape shows Jenkins, a Republican, making the comment at an Aug. 19 forum. She was discussing the GOP's future after Democrats took control of the House and Senate and Obama became the nation's first black president. Jenkins is white.
Palin supports Fox's Beck over boycott 26 Aug 2009 Former Alaska Gov. [polar bear-killing terrorist] Sarah Palin is jumping into the fray over Fox News talk show host Glenn Beck, whose assertion last month that President Barack Obama is "a racist" led to a boycott of the companies advertising on his show, and ultimately, led some to drop their sponsorship of his show. Palin on Wednesday had this to say on Facebook, the social networking Web site: "FOX News' Glenn Beck is doing an extraordinary job this week walking America behind the scenes of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and outlining who is actually running the White House."
Advertisers bail after US talk show host calls Obama 'racist' 26 Aug 2009 A conservative talk show host who called President Barack Obama a "racist" is facing a loss of advertisers after a group launched a campaign to persuade companies to pull their ads from his program. Fox News Channel's [sociopath] Glenn Beck sparked controversy last month when he said Obama, America's first black president, has a "deep-seated hatred for white people."
Study: Oil speculators dominate open interest in oil futures --Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy paper calls for enhanced regulation of noncommercial traders 27 Aug 2009 A new policy paper by Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy shows a clear increase in the size and influence of noncommercial traders, or "speculators," in the oil futures market since regulations were eased by the Commodities Futures Modernization Act of 2000. Speculators now constitute about 50 percent of those holding outstanding positions in the U.S. oil futures market, compared with only about 20 percent prior to 2002. The report also finds that the correlation between oil and the dollar has strengthened significantly over the past several years.
Will Halliburton Come Between You and Your Health Care? By Sandy LeonVest 26 Aug 2009 Would Americans who don’t want government coming between them and their health care prefer Halliburton play the role of the decider? ...If the Golden State’s reputation as a ‘trend setter’ holds true for health care, those in need of affordable health insurance could find themselves up against private contractors like Halliburton... or Maximus Inc... The news that California’s legislative leaders had agreed to consider Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s proposal to replace current county workers who assist Californians enrolling in Medi-Cal and other social services with a private contractor "like Maximus or Halliburton" was reported back in July, but with so many devastating budget cuts making headlines this summer in the state, it barely made the radar screens of most Californians – much less the rest of the nation. ['Those in need of affordable health insurance could find themselves up against private contractors like Halliburton.' ]
Health care industry contributes heavily to Blue Dogs 26 Aug 2009 As the Obama administration and Democrats wrangled over the timing, shape and cost of health care overhaul efforts during the first half of the year, more than half the $1.1 million in campaign contributions the Democratic Party's Blue Dog Coalition received came from the pharmaceutical, health care and health insurance industries, according to watchdog organizations.
1,000 Banks to Fail In Next Two Years: Bank CEO 27 Aug 2009 The US banking system will lose some 1,000 institutions over the next two years, said John Kanas, whose private equity firm bought BankUnited of Florida in May. "We’ve already lost 81 this year," he told CNBC. "The numbers are climbing every day."
FDIC: Number of troubled banks rises to 416 27 Aug 2009 The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Thursday that the number of troubled banks rose to 416 at the end of June from 305 at the end of March. FDIC said this is the largest number of banks on its "problem list" since June 30, 1994, when 434 banks were on the list. Assets at troubled banks totaled $299.8 billion, the highest level since Dec. 31, 1993, the agency said.
Previous lead stories: Group: US is monitoring journalists in Afghanistan [It's better than killing, arresting and detaining them --which the US has been doing since the invasion of Iraq.] 26 Aug 2009 The International Federation of Journalists complained Wednesday that news people covering the war in Afghanistan are being monitored by the U.S. military to see if they are sympathetic to the American cause. The federation said journalists seeking to travel under the protection of U.S. armed forces in Afghanistan may be screened first by an American public relations firm to see if their coverage portrays the military in a positive light. [What, exactly, *is* the American cause?]
Mohammed Jawad: 'I was 12 when I was arrested and sent to Guantanamo' --Human rights activists say that in one seven-day period, Jawad was subjected to 152 episodes of mistreatment. 27 Aug 2009 In December 2002, when Mohammed Jawad says he was only 12, he was arrested on suspicion of throwing a grenade into a Jeep carrying US special forces soldiers through Kabul, wounding two of them and an interpreter. He was taken first to an airbase north of Kabul, then to the US prison in Guantánamo Bay, where he remained until his release a few days ago after a ruling by a US judge that his confession had been obtained by force. Since returning, Mr Jawad has accused his captors of torturing prisoners, depriving them of food and sleep, and insulting Islam and the Koran.
Judge denies group's bid to block swine flu vaccine 26 Aug 2009 A judge on Wednesday denied an advocacy group's bid to prevent the government from giving pregnant women flu vaccines with a preservative that contains mercury. Leaders of the Coalition for Mercury-Free Drugs say their effort took on a new urgency when a government advisory committee recently recommended that pregnant women be among the first people to get swine flu vaccinations when the vaccine becomes available this fall.
