"I am a black South African, and if I were to change the names, a description of what is happening in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank could describe events in South Africa." - Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
"I am a black South African, and if I were to change the names, a description of what is happening in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank could describe events in South Africa." - Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
The situation in Israel has become more murderous and unjust than ever in the sixty year life of that nation. Founded over the bodies of an indigenous population, and rationalized as somehow permissible because of the Nazi persecution of European Jews in World War Two, the Jewish state has been treated by the USA as a holy land beyond criticism, and often beyond rational thought. The Palestinian people were thrown out of their homeland, into refugee camps, or forced to live in Israel as second class citizens, maligned and forgotten souls who had done nothing to incur the vengeful wrath that was visited upon them, and has grown worse over the years.
Israel’s birth at the expense of indigenous people was really not that different from America’s and in keeping with the ancient and bloody history of one people attacking another and taking over their habitat. But this new nation was supposed to somehow be uniquely based on justice, to serve a people who had survived persecution, abuse, loss of their homelands and massacres at the hands of oppressors. Result? They persecuted, abused, expelled from their homeland and massacred the inhabitants of Palestine. And this was treated with uncritical support and financing by much of the guilty west, never with more passionate and unquestioning devotion than by the USA.
We have been the major financial and military sponsor of the Jewish state, far surpassing aid it received from Germany, which at least had reason to atone for its previous dreadful treatment of Jews. Why has the USA given tens of billions of dollars and thousands of lives as well, to help perpetuate a Jewish apartheid state? The answer is the American Jewish lobby, which uses the power of money, and guilt, and sees to it that our government responds to Israeli interests first, by often placing American interests second. This charge usually provokes frenzied accusations of anti-Semitism, even when it is made by supposedly safe establishment figures like academics or ex presidents. Though the anti-Semitic label is losing some of its power, it still can make presidential candidates and the American congress tremble in fear. Why? How?
The White Anglo-Saxon Protestant (WASP) power structure that exercised much control over the U.S. government through the middle of the twentieth century has since been replaced by the Jewish Lobby. And though many critics insist on calling it just another lobby, it is unlike any other, past or present. It doesn't support industries, as most commercial lobbies did under WASP control, nor does it represent ethnic, racial or religious groups, as do lobbies which originated after the WASP era ended and identity group politics, no threat to their power, began. It stands exclusively for the interests of a foreign country, and it exercises an antidemocratic control over the American political process to an extreme that has become more threatening with time.
The worst political and military excesses of the USA in the Middle East are rationalized by some as simply being about control of oil. But whether they are sincerely ignorant, cynical apologists, or cringing cowards, they are in a state of treacherous denial. Our uncritical support for Israel is not only the cause of much hatred for our nation in the rest of the world, but could inflict future damage on the USA far beyond the tragedy of 911.
It is irresponsible to think, as some do, that a small minority of American Jews who speak out against Israeli policies can change the situation. They are relatively meaningless, not only in number and financial clout, but in that they rarely if ever identify the lobby, often in fear of being called self hating Jews. It is for the American people as a whole to speak in a democratic voice and demand an end to the existence of a Jewish state, perpetuated on the backs of a conquered people, and surviving in its present form only because of American dollars and military might. And to do so in no uncertain terms.
The economic policy of divestiture, boycott and sanctions worked to make the world aware that change had to come in the apartheid state of South Africa, and that kind of movement must be brought to bear on American support for the apartheid state of Israel. Many church, community and campus groups have already begun to take such action and need the support of new groups, to literally join in a democratic lobby against the lobby. And to do so with what power fears almost as much as the barrel of a gun; that is, the contents of a wallet.
Our federal tax dollars supporting Israel are not the only ones we should be conscious of, though we need to pressure our government in Washington most of all. States, counties and municipalities, as well as labor unions and pension funds use our taxes to invest in Israel Bonds and financial paper, as well as private Israeli firms. We need to exercise control of our money and divest it from those sources that are under the sway of the lobby and are used to strengthen injustice. Funds supposedly under public and not private control need to be the first, but not the only targets of this campaign. And it must be conducted with all deliberate speed, to end a human rights atrocity and help bring about a democratic state of Palestine with equal rights for all its people; Jews, Christians and Muslims.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Israel: Time to Boycott, Divest and Sanction
Iran Masters RADAR Technology
TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Iranian Defense Ministry Saturday said it has launched production of a new generation of long and medium-range RADAR systems.
TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Iranian Defense Ministry Saturday said it has launched production of a new generation of long and medium-range RADAR systems.
The hi-tech system has been designed and produced by SA-Iran Industries affiliated to the Defense Ministry.
SA-Iran, which has been studying the project for several years, said that the system is capable of tracing various types of flying objects and missiles to very high altitudes, helping the country's high-precision military devices to target flying objects at different altitudes.
The technological advancement was achieved following the success of Iranian experts in designing and manufacturing parts with fuzzy structures, an area of hi-tech mastered by very few countries in the world.
Following the said stride, Iran could accomplish a key chain of knowledge and is not capable of providing for all its needs to RADAR systems and devices.
Iran to buy Russian jet engines
Tehran is negotiating a deal with Moscow to purchase helicopters and, fighter jet engines in a bid to help balance power in the region.
Tehran is negotiating a deal with Moscow to purchase helicopters and, fighter jet engines in a bid to help balance power in the region.
Following a meeting between Russian and Iranian military officials in Tehran last week, the intergovernmental commission is discussing a deal on Russian helicopters and deliveries of modified RD-33 engines for a new fleet of Iranian fighter jets.
The engines will power multipurpose supersonic Iran made fighter jets called the Azarakhsh (Lightening) to replace American F-5 models.
Modifying the Ka-32 helicopter has also been taken into consideration.
Head of the Russian Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation, Mikhail Dmitriev stated that 'Russia and Iran are promoting regional stability.'
Dmitriev said that all arms sold to Iran are and will be for 'defensive' purposes adding that Tehran had never asked for offensive weapons.
Navy sends 3 warships to Persian Gulf
VICTORIA -- The Canadian navy is deploying three war ships to the Persian Gulf, one of the largest single naval
VICTORIA -- The Canadian navy is deploying three war ships to the Persian Gulf, one of the largest single naval contribution to the war against terrorism since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
About 850 sailors, soldiers and air force personnel will sail from June to September with an international coalition of ships from the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Pakistan and the Netherlands, the navy announced Friday. The group mainly conducts security patrols and searches suspicious ships.
A large portion of the contingent, some 500 Canadian Forces personnel, will come from Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt, outside Victoria. HMCS Calgary, a patrol frigate, and HMCS Protecteur, a supply ship, depart from the West Coast in the next few months, sailing through the Panama Canal to meet HMCS Iroquois somewhere in the Caribbean, navy spokesman Lt. Mark MacIntyre said.
The three ships then join the international group, called Task Force 150, which will run missions in the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. The Canadians plan to take a Sea King helicopter detachment with them.
Canada will also assume command of the task force, a responsibility that is handed out on a rotating basis.
It is the fourth deployment of ships for Operation ALTAIR, Canada's naval contribution to what it calls the American-led coalition against terrorism.
Iran S-200 missile system optimized
The Iranian Air Force defense specialists have optimized and successfully test-fired the S-200 surface-to-air missile system.
The optimized missile system was successfully test-fired on Sunday morning in the presence of senior army personnel and government
The Iranian Air Force defense specialists have optimized and successfully test-fired the S-200 surface-to-air missile system.
The optimized missile system was successfully test-fired on Sunday morning in the presence of senior army personnel and government
Elaborating on the significant capabilities and advanced features of the S-200 missile, the commander of the Iranian Air Force Brigadier General Ahmad Miqani described the project's main objectives as examining the efficiency level of passive defense systems against probable threats as well as improving the level of skill and knowledge of the staff.
Touching on the air force specialists' efforts to domesticate the world's advanced sciences in line with the imperative to gain the ability to effectively defend the country's air space, General Miqani said that Iran's military capability serves the cause of peace for Iran and the entire region.
The praiseworthy history of the Islamic Revolution testifies to the vital importance of reliance on domestic capabilitie
Kilo Class (Project 877)
The Kilo Class (Project 877) submarine was designed for anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare in the protection
The Kilo Class (Project 877) submarine was designed for anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare in the protection of naval bases, coastal installations and sea lanes, and also for general reconnaissance and patrol missions. The Kilo is considered to be to be one of the quietest diesel submarines in the world. The submarine consists of six watertight compartments separated by transverse bulkheads in a pressurised double-hull. This design and the submarine's good reserve buoyancy lead to increased survivability if the submarine is holed, even with one compartment and two adjacent ballast tanks flooded. The foreplanes are positioned on the upper hull in front of the fin or sail. The command and control systems and fire control systems are located in the main control room which is sealed off from the other compartments.
The Project 636 design is a generally improved development of the Project 877EKM Kilo class that represents an interim design between the standard 'Kilo' and the new Lada project. The Project 636 is actively promoted for the world market by the Rosvoorouzhenie state-owned company. This submarine has improved range, firepower, acoustic characteristics and reliability. Visually distinguished by a step on the aft casing, the length of the hull is extended by two frame spacings (2 x 600 mm). The additional length permitted increasing the power of diesel-generators and mounting them on improved shock-absorbing support, and reducing twofold the main propulsion shaft speed. Owing to these improvements, the submarine speed and sea endurance were increased, while the noise level was radically decreased. The low noise level of the submarine has been achieved with the selection of quiet machinery, vibration and noise isolation and a special anti-acoustic rubber coating applied on the outer hull surface.
The Project 636 is equipped with six 533 mm forward torpedo tubes situated in the nose of the submarine and carries eighteen torpedoes with six in the torpedo tubes and twelve stored on the racks. Alternatively the torpedo tubes can deploy mines. The submarine can carry 24 mines with two in each of the six tubes and twelve on the racks. Two torpedo tubes are designed for firing remote-controlled torpedoes with a very high accuracy. All torpedo tubes and their service systems provide effective firing from periscope to operational depths. The computer-controlled torpedo system is provided with a quick-loading device. It takes only 15 seconds to prepare stand-by torpedo tubes for firing: The first salvo is fired within two minutes and the second within five minutes.
The Russian fleet operates three variants of the Kilo 877: the basic 877; the 877K that has an improved fire-control system; and the 877M that has wire-guided torpedoes from two tubes. Export models, designated with an 'E' suffix, are generally similar though with some reduced features. A total of at least 26 and perhaps as many as 30 were built for the Russian navy, one of which was subequently exported to Iran. All the 30 Kilo-class submarines built for service with the Russian Navy are designated Project 877, although 15 of these are the earlier-developed 877EKM and 15 the later 636 versions. As of early 2000 as many as 14 units were believed to remain active, with an additional 7 in reserve, though specific identities are not known.
As of early 1998 construction of the Project 877EKM submarines was nearly completed, with only one submarine left under construction in St.Petersburg for the Indian Navy. Russia exported 21 Project 877 and 636 submarines, including: India - 10, and China - 4, Iran - 3, Algeria - 2, Poland - 1, Romania - 1.
On 04 August 1993, Iran took delivery of a second Russian Kilo-class diesel submarine, and the third arrived 18 January 1996. Russia went ahead with the first two deliveries despite vigorous US protests. In response to Administration pressure and US sanctions legislation, Russia formally pledged in June 1995 not to enter any new arms contracts with Iran, although prior arms contracts could be implemented.
India took delivery of the first of the two additional Russian-built Kilo class submarines in January 1999. On 17 August 2000 the Sindhushastra began the two month voyage from St Petersburg to India. The 877EKM submarine was the last in a series of 10 submarines built at Russian shipyards for Indian customers. In August 2000 the Zvezdochka engineering enterprise at Severodvinsk started the work of servicing and modernizing the Indian series-877EKM submarine Sinduratna, the second Indian sub to have had a refit at Zvezdochka. In 1999 the Indian Navy took delivery of the Sinduvir, the first submarine to have been modernized at Severodvinsk. The Sinduratna will be the second Indian submarine to be fitted with four ZM-54E1 missiles, with a range of 300 km. The missiles are part of the latest Klab-S anti-ship missile complex designed by the Novator bureau at Yekaterinburg.
In the spring of 1997, the first Project 636 submarine was launched, and China became the first customer for this submarine. The last of four export Kilo-class boats for China, the second improved model Project 636 unit, was launched on 17 June 1998 and departed the Baltic aboard a heavy-lift ship on 11 December 1998, bound for the submarine base at Ning-bo. China is also said to be interested in purchasing several more 636 series submarines, one of which is now in an unfinished state at the Krasnoye Sormovo yard in Nizhniy Novgorod, while others may be built at the Admiralteyskiye Verfi [Admiralty Shipyards] in St Petersburg.
The Road to 'Operation Iraqi Freedom'
The Iraq War, which was predicated on the existence of weapons of mass destruction and fear of another 9/11
The Iraq War, which was predicated on the existence of weapons of mass destruction and fear of another 9/11, has resulted in the deaths of nearly 4,000 US troops and has cost taxpayers roughly half-a-trillion dollars. (Estimates of Iraqi dead range into the hundreds of thousands.)
Yet, the invasion of Iraq was conceived prior to 9/11, according to Paul O'Neill, President Bush's first Treasury Secretary. In the book, The Price of Loyalty, journalist Ron Suskind interviewed O'Neill who said that the Iraq War was planned just days after the president was sworn into office.
"From the very beginning, there was a conviction, that Saddam Hussein was a bad person and that he needed to go," O'Neill told Suskind, adding that going after Saddam Hussein was a priority 10 days after the Bush's inauguration and eight months before Sept. 11.
"From the very first instance, it was about Iraq. It was about what we can do to change this regime," Suskind said. "Day one, these things were laid and sealed."
As Treasury Secretary, O'Neill was a permanent member of the National Security Council. He says in the book he was surprised at the meeting that questions such as "Why Saddam?" and "Why now?" were never asked.
O'Neill was fired from his post for disagreeing with Bush's economic policies. In typical White House fashion, senior administration officials have labeled O'Neill a "disgruntled employee," whose latest remarks are "laughable" and have no basis in reality.
But a little known article in the Jan. 11, 2001, edition of the New York Times entitled "Iraq Is Focal Point as Bush Meets with Joint Chiefs" confirms that the incoming Bush administration was working on a plan to topple Saddam Hussein's regime, even before Bush’s inauguration on Jan. 20, 2001.
"George W. Bush, the nation's commander in chief to be, went to the Pentagon today for a top-secret session with the Joint Chiefs of Staff to review hot spots around the world where he might have to send American forces into harm's way," the Times story says.
Bush was joined at the Pentagon meeting by Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice.
The Times reported that "half of the 75-minute meeting focused on a discussion about Iraq and the Persian Gulf, two participants said. Iraq was the first topic briefed because 'it's the most visible and most risky area Mr. Bush will confront after he takes office, one senior officer said.'"
"Iraqi policy is very much on his mind," one senior Pentagon official told the Times. "Saddam was clearly a discussion point."
WMDs Cited for "Bureaucratic Reasons"
On Sept.13, 2001 – two days after the terror attacks – during a meeting at Camp David with President Bush, Rumsfeld and other Bush administration officials, Wolfowitz said he discussed with President Bush the prospects of launching an attack against Iraq, for no apparent reason other than a “gut feeling” Saddam Hussein was involved in the attacks, and there was a debate “about what place if any Iraq should have in a counter terrorist strategy.”
“On the surface of the debate it at least appeared to be about not whether but when,” Wolfowitz said during a May 9, 2003, interview with Vanity Fair. “There seemed to be a kind of agreement that yes it should be, but the disagreement was whether it should be in the immediate response or whether you should concentrate simply on Afghanistan first. ...
"The decision to highlight weapons of mass destruction as the main justification for going to war in Iraq was taken for bureaucratic reasons."
When the United Nations chose Hans Blix, the chief United Nations weapons inspector, in January 2002 to lead a team of U.N. weapons inspectors into Iraq to search for weapons of mass destruction Wolfowitz contacted the CIA to produce a report on why Blix, as chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency during the 1980s and 1990s, failed to detect Iraqi nuclear activity, according to an April 15, 2002, report in the Washington Post.
The CIA report said Blix "had conducted inspections of Iraq's declared nuclear power plants fully within the parameters he could operate as chief of the Vienna-based agency between 1981 and 1997," according to the Post.
Wolfowitz "hit the ceiling" because the report failed to provide sufficient ammunition to undermine Blix and, by association, the new U.N. weapons inspection program," according to the Post, quoting a former State Department official familiar with the report.
"The request for a CIA investigation underscored the degree of concern by Wolfowitz and his civilian colleagues in the Pentagon that new inspections – or protracted negotiations over them – could torpedo their plans for military action to remove Hussein from power," the Post reported.
Blix accused the Bush administration of launching a smear campaign against him because he did not find evidence of WMD in Iraq. He said he refused to pump up his reports to the U.N. about Iraq's WMD programs.
In an interview with the London Guardian newspaper, Blix said "US officials pressured him to use more damning language when reporting on Iraq's alleged weapons programs."
"By and large my relations with the US were good,'' Blix told the Guardian. "But toward the end the (Bush) administration leaned on us.'"
White House Iraq Group
The Bush administration needed a vehicle to market a war with Iraq. So, in August 2002, Bush's former Chief of Staff Andrew Card formed the White House Iraq Group (WHIG) to publicize the so-called threat posed by Saddam Hussein.
The WHIG was not only responsible for selling the Iraq War, but it took great pains to discredit anyone who openly disagreed with the official Iraq War story.
The group's members included Deputy White House Chief of Staff Karl Rove, Bush's former adviser Karen Hughes, then Senior Adviser to the Vice President Mary Matalin, former Deputy Director of Communications James Wilkinson, Assistant to the President and Legislative Liaison Nicholas Calio, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, Deputy National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, chief of staff to the vice president and co-author of the administration's pre-emptive strike policy.
Rove chaired the group's meetings. Moreover, Rove's "strategic communications" task force, operating inside the group, was instrumental in writing and coordinating speeches by senior Bush administration officials, highlighting in September 2002 that Iraq was a nuclear threat, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal in October 2005.
Another member of WHIG, John Hannah, along with former Defense Policy Board member Richard Perle, Under Secretary of Defense Douglas Feith and Wolfowitz, were interviewed by FBI officials in 2004, according to a report in the Washington Post, to determine if they were involved in leaking US security secrets to Israel, former head of the Iraqi National Congress Ahmed Chalabi, and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
A senior official who participated in the WHIG called it "an internal working group, like many formed for priority issues, to make sure each part of the White House was fulfilling its responsibilities," according to an Aug. 10, 2003, Washington Post investigative report on the group's inner workings.
During its very first meetings, Card's Iraq group ordered a series of white papers showing Iraq's alleged arms violations. The first paper, "A Grave and Gathering Danger: Saddam Hussein's Quest for Nuclear Weapons," was never published. However, the paper was drafted with the assistance of experts from the National Security Council and Cheney's office.
"In its later stages, the draft white paper coincided with production of a National Intelligence Estimate and its unclassified summary. But the WHIG, according to three officials who followed the white paper's progress, wanted gripping images and stories not available in the hedged and austere language of intelligence," according to the Washington Post.
Judith Miller and the Mushroom Cloud
The group relied heavily on New York Times reporter Judith Miller, who, after meeting with several of the organization's members in August 2002, wrote an explosive story that many critics of the war believe laid the groundwork for military action against Iraq.
On Sept. 8, 2002, Miller wrote a front-page story for the Times, quoting anonymous officials who said aluminum tubes found in Iraq were to be used as centrifuges. Her report said the "diameter, thickness and other technical specifications" of the tubes - precisely the grounds for skepticism among nuclear enrichment experts - showed that they were "intended as components of centrifuges."
She closed her piece by quoting then-National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, who said the United States would not sit by and wait to find a smoking gun to prove its case, possibly in the form of a "a mushroom cloud."
After Miller's piece was published, administration officials pressed their case on Sunday talk shows, using Miller's piece as evidence that Iraq was pursuing a nuclear bomb, even though those officials had helped supply Miller with the story.
Rice's comments on CNN's "Late Edition" reaffirmed Miller's story. Rice said Saddam Hussein was "actively pursuing a nuclear weapon" and that the tubes - described repeatedly in US intelligence reports as "dual-use" items - were "only really suited for nuclear weapons programs ... centrifuge programs."
Cheney, on NBC's "Meet the Press," also mentioned the aluminum tubes story in the Times and said "increasingly, we believe the United States will become the target" of an Iraqi atomic bomb. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, on CBS's "Face the Nation," asked viewers to "imagine a September 11th with weapons of mass destruction."
The Cincinnati Speech
In October 2002, President Bush gave a speech in Cincinnati and spoke about the imminent threat Iraq posed to the US because of Iraq's alleged ties with al-Qaeda and its endless supply of chemical and biological weapons
"Surveillance photos reveal that the (Iraqi) regime is rebuilding facilities that it had used to produce chemical and biological weapons," Bush said. "Iraq possesses ballistic missiles with a likely range of hundreds of miles -- far enough to strike Saudi Arabia, Israel, Turkey, and other nations -- in a region where more than 135,000 American civilians and service members live and work.
“We've also discovered through intelligence that Iraq has a growing fleet of manned and unmanned aerial vehicles that could be used to disperse chemical or biological weapons across broad areas. We're concerned that Iraq is exploring ways of using these UAVS for missions targeting the United States.
“And, of course, sophisticated delivery systems aren't required for a chemical or biological attack; all that might be required are a small container and one terrorist or Iraqi intelligence operative to deliver it."
Also in October 2002, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld ordered the military's regional commanders to rewrite all their war plans to capitalize on precision weapons, better intelligence, and speedier deployment in the event the United States decided to invade Iraq.
The goal, Rumsfeld said, was to use fewer ground troops, a move that caused dismay among some in the military who said concern for the troops requires overwhelming numerical superiority to assure victory.
Rumsfeld refused to listen to his military commanders, saying that his plan would allow "the military to begin combat operations on less notice and with far fewer troops than thought possible - or thought wise - before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks," the New York Times reported on Oct. 13, 2002.
"Looking at what was overwhelming force a decade or two decades ago, today you can have overwhelming force, conceivably, with lesser numbers because the lethality is equal to or greater than before," Rumsfeld told the Times.
Rumsfeld said too many of the military plans on the shelves of the regional war-fighting commanders were freighted with outdated assumptions and military requirements, which have changed with the advent of new weapons and doctrines.
It has been a mistake, he said, to measure the quantity of forces required for a mission and "fail to look at lethality, where you end up with precision-guided munitions, which can give you 10 times the lethality that a dumb weapon might, as an example," according to the Times report.
Through a combination of pre-deployments, faster cargo ships and a larger fleet of transport aircraft, the military would be able to deliver "fewer troops but in a faster time that would allow you to have concentrated power that would have the same effect as waiting longer with what a bigger force might have," Rumsfeld said.
Critics in the military said there were several reasons to deploy a force of overwhelming numbers before starting any offensive with Iraq. Large numbers illustrate US resolve and can intimidate Iraqi forces into laying down their arms or even turning against Hussein's government.
The new approach for how the US might go to war, Rumsfeld said in a speech in 2002, reflects an assessment of the need after 9/11 to refresh war plans continuously and to respond faster to threats from terrorists and nations possessing biological, chemical or nuclear weapons.
Silencing Experts
One of the most vocal opponent of the administration's prewar Iraq intelligence was David Albright, a former United Nations weapons inspector and the president and founder of the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), a Washington, D.C.-based group that gathers information for the public and the White House on nuclear weapons programs.
In a March 10, 2003, report posted on the ISIS website, Albright accused the CIA of twisting the intelligence related to the aluminum tubes.
"The CIA has concluded that these tubes were specifically manufactured for use in gas centrifuges to enrich uranium," Albright said. "Many in the expert community both inside and outside government, however, do not agree with this conclusion.
“The vast majority of gas centrifuge experts in this country and abroad who are knowledgeable about this case reject the CIA's case and do not believe that the tubes are specifically designed for gas centrifuges. In addition, International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors have consistently expressed skepticism that the tubes are for centrifuges."
"After months of investigation, the administration has failed to prove its claim that the tubes are intended for use in an Iraqi gas centrifuge program," Albright added. "Despite being presented with evidence countering this claim, the administration persists in making misleading comments about the significance of the tubes."
Albright said he took his concerns about the intelligence information to White House officials, but was rebuffed and told to keep quiet.
"I first learned of this case a year and a half ago when I was asked for information about past Iraqi procurements. My reaction at the time was that the disagreement reflected the typical in-fighting between US experts that often afflicts the intelligence community. I was frankly surprised when the administration latched onto one side of this debate in September 2002. I was told that this dispute had not been mediated by a competent, impartial technical committee, as it should have been, according to accepted practice," Albright said.
"I became dismayed when a knowledgeable government scientist told me that the administration could say anything it wanted about the tubes while government scientists who disagreed were expected to remain quiet," he said.
Albright said the Department of Energy, which analyzed the intelligence information on the aluminum tubes and rejected the CIA's intelligence analysis, is the only government agency in the US that can provide expert opinions on gas centrifuges (what the CIA alleged the tubes were being used for) and nuclear weapons programs.
"For over a year and a half, an analyst at the CIA has been pushing the aluminum tube story, despite consistent disagreement by a wide range of experts in the United States and abroad," Albright said. "His opinion, however, obtained traction in the summer of 2002 with senior members of the Bush Administration, including the President. The administration was forced to admit publicly that dissenters exist, particularly at the Department of Energy and its national laboratories."
But Albright said the White House launched an attack against experts who spoke critically of the intelligence.
"Administration officials try to minimize the number and significance of the dissenters or unfairly attack them," Albright said. "For example, when Secretary Powell mentioned the dissent in his Security Council speech, he said: ‘Other experts, and the Iraqis themselves, argue that they are really to produce the rocket bodies for a conventional weapon, a multiple rocket launcher.’ Not surprisingly, an effort by those at the Energy Department to change Powell's comments before his appearance was rebuffed by the administration."
The 16 Words Were False
Eleven days before President Bush's Jan. 28, 2003, State of the Union address in which he stated that the United States learned from British intelligence that Iraq had attempted to acquire uranium from Africa, the State Department told the CIA that key intelligence behind the uranium claims may have been forgeries.
The revelation of the warning was contained in a closely guarded State Department memo, which didn’t surface until April 2006. On Jan. 12, 2003, the State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR) "expressed concerns to the CIA that the documents pertaining to the Iraq-Niger deal were forgeries," the memo dated July 7, 2003, says.
Moreover, the memo said that the State Department's doubts about the veracity of the uranium claims may have been expressed to the intelligence community even earlier.
Those concerns, according to the memo, are the reasons that former Secretary of State Colin Powell refused to cite the uranium claims when he appeared before the United Nations in Feb. 5, 2003, a week after Bush's State of the Union address.
"After considerable back and forth between the CIA, the (State) Department, the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Association), and the British, Secretary Powell's briefing to the U.N. Security Council did not mention attempted Iraqi procurement of uranium due to CIA concerns raised during the coordination regarding the veracity of the information on the alleged Iraq-Niger agreement," the memo further states.
Iraq's interest in the yellowcake uranium caught the attention of Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Association. ElBaradei had read a copy of the National Intelligence Estimate and had personally contacted the State Department and the National Security Council in hopes of obtaining evidence so his agency could look into it.
Vice President Dick Cheney, who made the rounds on the cable news shows in March 2003, tried to discredit ElBaradei's conclusion that the documents were forged.
"I think Mr. ElBaradei frankly is wrong," Cheney said. "[The IAEA] has consistently underestimated or missed what it was Saddam Hussein was doing. I don't have any reason to believe they're any more valid this time than they've been in the past."
As it turns out, ElBaradei was correct, the declassified State Department showed.
The declassified State Department memo was obtained by The New York Sun under a Freedom of Information Act request the newspaper filed in July 2005. The Sun's story, however, did not say anything about the State Department's warnings more than a week before Bush's State of the Union address about the bogus Niger documents.
The memo was drafted by Carl Ford Jr., the former head of the State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research, in response to questions posed in June 2003 by "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, about a February 2002 fact-finding trip to Niger that former Ambassador Joseph Wilson undertook to investigate the uranium claims on behalf of the CIA.
The Ambassador Emerges
A day after Bush's Jan.28, 2003, State of the Union address, Wilson said he reminded a friend at the State Department that he (Wilson) had traveled to Niger in February 2002 to investigate whether Iraq attempted to acquire yellowcake uranium from Niger, according to Wilson’s July 6, 2003, op-ed published in the New York Times.
In his book, The Politics of Truth, Wilson's said his State Department friend replied that "perhaps the president was speaking about one of the other three African countries that produce uranium: Gabon, South Africa or Namibia. At the time, I accepted the explanation. I didn't know that in December, a month before the president's address, the State Department had published a fact sheet that mentioned the Niger case."
But Wilson was certain that the administration was trying to sell a war that was based on phony intelligence. In March 2003, Wilson began to publicly question the administration's use of the Niger claims without disclosing his role in traveling to Niger in February 2002 to investigate it. Wilson's criticism of the administration's pre-war Iraq intelligence caught the attention of Cheney, Libby and Hadley.
In an interview that took place two-and-a-half weeks before the start of the Iraq War, Wilson said the administration was more interested in redrawing the map of the Middle East to pursue its own foreign policy objectives than in dealing with the so-called terrorist threat.
"The underlying objective, as I see it - the more I look at this - is less and less disarmament, and it really has little to do with terrorism, because everybody knows that a war to invade and conquer and occupy Iraq is going to spawn a new generation of terrorists," Wilson said in a March 2, 2003, interview with CNN.
"So you look at what's underpinning this, and you go back and you take a look at who's been influencing the process. And it's been those who really believe that our objective must be far grander, and that is to redraw the political map of the Middle East," Wilson added.
During the same CNN segment in which Wilson was interviewed, former U.N. weapons inspector David Albright made similar comments about the rationale for the Iraq War and added that he believed U.N. weapons inspectors should be given more time to search the country for weapons of mass destruction
A week later, Wilson was interviewed on CNN again. This was the first time Wilson ridiculed the Bush administration's claim that Iraq had tried to purchase yellowcake uranium from Niger.
"Well, this particular case is outrageous. We know a lot about the uranium business in Niger, and for something like this to go unchallenged by the US - the US government - is just simply stupid. It would have taken a couple of phone calls. We have had an embassy there since the early 1960s. All this stuff is open. It's a restricted market of buyers and sellers," Wilson said in the March 8, 2003, CNN interview.
"For this to have gotten to the IAEA is on the face of it dumb, but more to the point, it taints the whole rest of the case that the government is trying to build against Iraq," Wilson said.
Less than two weeks later, on March 19, 2003, the US attacked Iraq.
Power Struggles in Tehran and Washington
A comparison of two authoritative ‘strongmen’ - Ahmadinejad and Bush - reveal similar travails and problems for their leadership. But it looks as though Ahmadinejad is proving more successful than Bush - at least where they are pitted against each other, says Patrick Seale.
A comparison of two authoritative ‘strongmen’ - Ahmadinejad and Bush - reveal similar travails and problems for their leadership. But it looks as though Ahmadinejad is proving more successful than Bush - at least where they are pitted against each other, says Patrick Seale.
Who is, politically, in better shape? Iran’s President Mahmud Ahmadinejad or his implacable opponent, US President George W. Bush?
Both leaders are conservative hawks. Both have recently crushed dissent at home and imposed their authority. But both face very considerable difficulties -- political, economic and strategic. Of the two, however, the Iranian leader seems more buoyant and perky than his American Nemesis.
In both Tehran and Washington, hard-line conservatives have recently won a trial of strength over their more open-minded opponents. But it is by no means clear that they will retain this advantage for very long. In both countries, change is in the air -- if not immediately, then certainly next year.
In Iran, this month’s legislative elections have temporarily cemented the grip on power of Ahmadinejad and his allies. Following next month’s second round run-offs, they are likely to control three quarters of the 290 seats in Parliament. The remaining seats will be divided between moderate conservatives, critical of Ahmadinejad’s populism, and reformist followers of former President Mohammad Khatami.
The relatively poor showing of the reformists is not because they have lost popular support, but because the Interior Ministry and the Council of Guardians -- the regime’s theocratic watchdog -- disqualified hundreds of reform-minded candidates in pre-vote vetting, earning accusations from Washington and the European Union that the elections were neither free nor fair.
In Washington, however, the sudden resignation of Admiral William Fallon, overall commander of US forces in the Middle East, has been widely interpreted as a victory for the neo-cons over the realists in America’s corridors of power. Indeed, it is seen as a crushing of dissent, not quite like Iran’s perhaps, but just as significant in terms of strategic options.
Fallon was heard to argue -- all too publicly for his own good -- in favour of engagement with Iran, rather than the present policy of threats, sanctions and bluster; for a faster withdrawal of US troops from Iraq than Vice-President Dick Cheney and General David Petraeus, the commander in Iraq, were prepared to accept; and, in general, for a shift of America’s strategic focus away from Iraq and Iran and towards Pakistan and Afghanistan, two theatres of conflict which Fallon seems to consider pose a greater danger to the United States.
It remains to be seen whether the conservative victories in both Washington and Tehran can endure or whether they will soon be overturned. George W. Bush is a discredited, lame-duck president, struggling to retain some measure of authority in his last months in office. If Barack Obama were to win the Democratic nomination -- and then the Presidency -- US relations with Iran could well be transformed, on lines that Admiral Fallon might approve. Relations might at least be normalized, a dialogue started and ambassadors exchanged, even if the improvement does not go so far as the "grand bargain," which some commentators have hoped for.
Ahmadinejad, in turn, is under attack at home, largely because of his ruinous economic policies. To win popular support he has plundered Iran’s oil revenues with generous handouts. But the resulting inflation at over 20 per cent, as well as rocketing food and housing prices, have harmed the very people he hoped to help at the bottom of the social pyramid.
He may very well be held to account at next year’s presidential elections. Powerful critics of his policies -- like Tehran mayor Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf, former chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani (who was elected to parliament at Qum with a landslide majority), and Parliamentary Speaker Gholam-Ali Hadad-Adel -- are all waiting to challenge Ahmadinejad for President, as indeed is the leading reformer, former President Muhammad Khatami.
Ahmadinejad’s economic woes are bad, but they are nothing compared to those of the American president. George W. Bush is crippled by a US banking and credit crisis, unprecedented since the Second World War.
The once almighty dollar has collapsed under his watch, and threatens to fall further. The US economy is in recession. Iraq has gobbled up uncounted billions -- perhaps as much as two or three trillion dollars! A major US financial firm, Bear Stearns, has been sold for a song, while a major fund, Carlyle Capital Corporation, has been forced into liquidation. Other prestigious financial institutions -- household names like Lehman Brothers -- are in danger. Wall Street is in panic. Now is the time for the rich and brave to pick up assets at bargain prices.
Against this background, the efforts of Stuart Levey, the neo-con undersecretary of the US Treasury, to undermine Iran’s economy seem laughable. The US has imposed sanctions on two leading Iranian banks, Bank Melli and Bank Saderat, and last week froze the US assets of another bank -- Future Bank of Bahrain -- two thirds owned by Melli and Saderat.
These punitive measures are part of a wrong-headed US attempt to isolate Iran by undermining its relations with its principal trading partners across the Gulf. The figures, however, suggest that Levey’s campaign has failed. Trade between Iran and Dubai, worth $7.8bn in 2005, rose to over $11bn in 2006, and is thought to have soared to close to $14bn in 2007.
America’s attempts to mobilize moderate Arabs politically against Iran -- a theme of Vice President Dick Cheney’s visit to the region this week -- have been even less successful than its economic sanctions. Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the Gulf States do not want to join America’s ill-conceived campaign against Iran.
Dubai’s ruler, Shaykh Muhammad bin Rashid, was recently in Tehran, while Ahmadinejad was given a warmer and more spontaneous welcome in Iraq than George W. Bush, during their recent respective visits to Baghdad.
Worse still, from Washington’s point of view, far from wanting to shun the Islamic Republic, the notion seems to be gaining ground among Gulf policy-makers that it might be a good idea to include Iran in some form of regional security structure.
The main reason Ahmadinejad is riding high lies in his controversial, high-risk nuclear policy. He has so far successfully resisted US attempts to force him to halt Iran’s nuclear activities, in particular its programme of uranium enrichment, which could, potentially, lead to nuclear weapons. But this resistance comes at a price: an economic price because of the international sanctions, and a strategic price because of the faint, but still real, possibility of a US or Israeli attack.
No one really believes that Iran would actually use atomic weapons, if it ever managed to manufacture them. After all, any such use would result in instant annihilation of the Iranian nation. Nevertheless, possession of nuclear weapons, rather than their use, would have undoubted advantages from an Iranian perspective. It would not only protect Iran from attack by the United States and/or Israel, but would also curb the hegemonic regional appetites and power- projection of these two countries -- which is the real reason Iran’s nuclear programme is seen as such a threat in Washington and Tel Aviv.
One way and another, Iran seems better placed than the United States to retain and exercise long-term influence in the Gulf region. Once America’s troops return home, and its calamitous neo-colonial adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan are brought to a close -- as they must be sooner or later -- Iran will be the neighbour with whom the Arabs will have to live, trade, work and coexist. Geography cannot be denied.
NSLs and the National Surveillance State
The FBI has increasingly used administrative orders to obtain the personal records of U.S. citizens rather
The FBI has increasingly used administrative orders to obtain the personal records of U.S. citizens rather than foreigners implicated in terrorism or counterintelligence investigations, and at least once it relied on such orders to obtain records that a special intelligence-gathering court had deemed protected by the First Amendment, according to two government audits released yesterday.
The episode was outlined in a Justice Department report that concluded the FBI had abused its intelligence-gathering privileges by issuing inadequately documented "national security letters" from 2003 to 2006, after which changes were put in place that the report called sound.
A report a year ago by the Justice Department's inspector general disclosed that abuses involving national security letters had occurred from 2003 through 2005 and helped provoke the changes. But the report makes it clear that the abuses persisted in 2006 and disclosed that 60 percent of the nearly 50,000 security letters issued that year by the FBI targeted Americans.
Because U.S. citizens enjoy constitutional protections against unreasonable searches and seizures, judicial warrants are ordinarily required for government surveillance. But national security letters are approved only by FBI officials and are not subject to judicial approval; they routinely demand certain types of personal data, such as telephone, e-mail and financial records, while barring the recipient from disclosing that the information was requested or supplied.
According to the findings by Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine, the FBI tried to work around the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which oversees clandestine spying in the United States, after it twice rejected an FBI request in 2006 to obtain certain records. The court had concluded "the 'facts' were too thin" and the "request implicated the target's First Amendment rights," the report said.
But the FBI went ahead and got the records anyway by using a national security letter. The FBI's general counsel, Valerie E. Caproni, told investigators it was appropriate to issue the letters in such cases because she disagreed with the court's conclusions.
France Adds Nuclear Sub and Vows to Cut Warheads
PARIS — Dedicating France’s fourth nuclear-armed submarine, President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday defended his country’s arsenal as vital to deter a range of new threats, including the prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran with intercontinental missiles.
PARIS — Dedicating France’s fourth nuclear-armed submarine, President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday defended his country’s arsenal as vital to deter a range of new threats, including the prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran with intercontinental missiles.
“The security of Europe is at stake,” he said, conflating the Continent’s interests with those of France.
“Countries in Asia and the Middle East are rapidly developing ballistic capacities,” he said. “I am thinking in particular of Iran,” which is “increasing the range of its missiles while serious suspicions weigh on its nuclear program.”
Mr. Sarkozy, stung by defeats in local elections in some large French cities, stuck to traditional presidential themes of national security and defense. His sudden divorce and remarriage, and his tendency to flit from one scheme to another, have made him seem slightly unserious, contributing to his party’s losses.
His mood on Friday was somber, as he inaugurated a new generation of nuclear submarine of the “Triomphant” class, this one named Le Terrible, which could be best translated as The Fearsome. It will be equipped with a new, nuclear-tipped missile, the M-51, whose range is secret but is understood, according to Le Monde, to be some 4,970 miles, able to reach Asia.
Clearly trying to balance nuclear modernization with gestures toward a European population more interested in eliminating nuclear weapons than improving them, Mr. Sarkozy said France would continue to reduce the number of warheads on airplanes, bringing its total nuclear force to fewer than 300 warheads, half the number during the cold war.
The actual number of warheads France possesses is secret. This year, the Federation of American Scientists, which tracks nuclear arsenals, said France had 348 warheads — 288 on submarines, 50 on air-launched cruise missiles and 10 bombs.
Mr. Sarkozy also called for all nuclear powers to sign and ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, as France had done, and he proposed talks on a treaty banning nuclear-armed short- and medium-range ground-to-ground missiles, a category that includes Scud-type missiles, and an idea likely to go nowhere in a world of Hezbollah, Hamas and the like. He also called for an immediate moratorium on the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons and a treaty banning its production, similar to an American proposal of 2006.
Mr. Sarkozy has been criticized, especially by Germany, for leaping ahead without consultation with European allies on major initiatives, like the “Mediterranean Union,” a looser grouping than the European Union and modified after Berlin’s protests. On Friday, he offered a “dialogue” on the role of French nuclear weapons in Europe’s collective defense.
“Regarding Europe, it is a fact that France’s nuclear forces by their very existence are a key element in its security,” he said. “Let’s together draw the logical conclusions: I propose to begin, with those of our European partners who wish to, an open dialogue on the role of deterrence and its contribution to our common security.”
Britain also has nuclear weapons, the main reason that Britain and France remain permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. Neither country has been willing to cede its seat to the European Union. The United States provides most of Europe’s nuclear deterrence through NATO and its doctrine of collective defense.
At the same time, Mr. Sarkozy described the French “force de frappe” as a weapon of self-defense. He was vaguer about France’s national interests than his predecessor, Jacques Chirac, who made a similar speech in January 2006, in which he appeared to broaden the list.
Then, Mr. Chirac delivered an unexpected and controversial warning to “rogue” states sponsoring terrorism by threatening to use nuclear weapons against any state that supported attacks on his country or considered using unconventional weapons.
“The leaders of states who use terrorist means against us, as well as those who would consider using, in one way or another, weapons of mass destruction, must understand that they would lay themselves open to a firm and adapted response on our part,” Mr. Chirac said. “This response could be a conventional one. It could also be of a different kind.”
Mr. Sarkozy, an aide told Le Monde, wanted to “return to the ‘fundamentals’ ” of deterrence.
Barack Obama QUICK FACTS
QUICK FACTS
Born: August 4, 1961 (Hawaii)
Lives in: Chicago, Illinois
QUICK FACTS
Born: August 4, 1961 (Hawaii)
Lives in: Chicago, Illinois
Zodiac Sign: Leo
Height: 6' 1" (1.87m)
Family: Married wife Michelle in 1992, 2 daughters Malia and Sasha
Parents: Barack Obama, Sr. (from Kenya) and Ann Dunham (from Kansas)
Religion: United Church of Christ
Drives a: Ford Escape hybrid, Chrysler 300C
Education:
- Graduated: Columbia University (1983) - Major: Political Science
- Law Degree from Harvard (1991) - Major: J.D. - Magna Cum Laude
- Attended: Occidental College
Career: U.S. Senator from Illinois sworn in January 4, 2005
Government Committees:
- Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee
- Foreign Relations Committee
- Veterans Affairs Committee
- 2005 and 2006: served on the Environment and Public Works Committee
Books:
- Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance (1995)
- The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream (2006)
- It Takes a Nation: How Strangers Became Family in the Wake of Hurricane Katrina (2006)
Israelis and Palestinians today
Americans have grown so accustomed to the disastrous
dynamics operating between Israelis and Palestinians today
that the failure to reach a peace deal amid the soaring death
tolls assumes an aura of normalcy in their minds.
This reflects a situation we imagine ourselves to be
powerless to help change and only adds to the tragedy
unfolding in the Occupied Territories and Israel as well.
Today the world's attention has turned to the aftermath
of the murder of eight students of an ultra-Zionist Mercaz
HaRav yeshiva, established by the founder of religious
zionism, Rabbi Avraham Isaac Kook in 1924.
Americans have grown so accustomed to the disastrous
dynamics operating between Israelis and Palestinians today
that the failure to reach a peace deal amid the soaring death
tolls assumes an aura of normalcy in their minds.
This reflects a situation we imagine ourselves to be
powerless to help change and only adds to the tragedy
unfolding in the Occupied Territories and Israel as well.
Today the world's attention has turned to the aftermath
of the murder of eight students of an ultra-Zionist Mercaz
HaRav yeshiva, established by the founder of religious
zionism, Rabbi Avraham Isaac Kook in 1924.
Last week the focus was the ongoing war in Gaza,
which will likely be the centre of attention next week as well.
The attacks on religious students in the midst of
study and prayer - coupled with the ongoing rocket
attacks from Gaza on the Israeli towns of Sderot and
Ashkelon - are already being offered as the latest
examples of continued Palestinian unwillingness
to make peace with Israel more than two years after
its unprecedented withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
activist injured in protest against the wall
World's largest prison
But there are many problems with this argument; firstly,
most of the acts of Palestinian resistance to the occupation
have always been non-violent.
Equally important is the fact that while Israeli civilians no longer
live in Gaza, Israel's military presence has never ended.
Tel Aviv withdrew civilian settlers and then threw away the key
to what has now become the world's largest prison.
Ariel Sharon, the former Israeli prime minister and the architect
of the settlement movement, was willing to sacrifice Gaza in order
to ensure Israel held onto the major settlement blocs of the West
Bank, which today house more than 250,000 settlers
(almost double that number if one includes the Jewish
settlements in East Jerusalem).
The settler population of the West Bank also doubled during
the years of the Oslo "peace" process - which began when
Abu Dahim was about 12 and ended when he was 19 -
without a whimper of complaint from the United States.
By the time Yitzhak Rabin, the former prime minister,
was assassinated in 1995, Palestinian leaders were warning
that the continued settlement expansion was "killing" the peace
process and would sooner or later lead to a "revolution"
from the street.
Matrix of control
The presence of well over 100 settlements
has necessitated a matrix of control in which
80 per cent of the West Bank be declared off
limits to Palestinians.
It also meant the destruction of thousands of homes
and olive and fruit trees (the backbone of an otherwise
closed Palestinian economy), the confiscation
of 35,000 acres of Palestinian land, and the creation
of a network of bypass roads, military bases.
The 400-kilometre, 8-metre-high "separation
wall" also pierces deep into Palestinian territory, cutting
into at least three isolated cantons.
Together, the settlement system has made the idea of
creating a territorially and economically viable Palestinian
state impossible to implement.
With the eruption of the al-Aqsa intifada in September 2000
whatever infrastructure of peace had been created during
Oslo was quickly dismantled by both sides.
By mid-2002 Israel began deploying a strategy of managed
chaos, in which a near total closure of the Territories, coupled
with a destruction of much of their economic and political
infrastructure, turned the intifada into what Palestinians term
an "intifawda," a neologism that brings the violence of the
intifada together with the chaos, or "fawda" of a society
living in a barely functioning state and economy.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
GPS
GPS is one of the newest crazes on the Market today. GPS or global positioning system tracks your
GPS is one of the newest crazes on the Market today. GPS or global positioning system tracks your locations from a satellite which makes it a popular feature in cars. When you’re on a trip it can also help you find your way around with out getting lost. While GPS tracking can help track your location it also works in another way. You can use GPS tracking to track some ones location.
Cell phones have become something that everyone now carries. Cell phones are becoming more and more technologically advanced with more and more features. One of the newest features on cell phones is GPS. GPS is now available in almost everything from cars to cell phones. Cell phone GPS tracking is the newest feature on many cell phones. Locating someone is a popular job for a lot of detectives and cell phone GPS tracking is one thing that can make this task a lot easier.
Taking advantage of cell phone GPS tracking can help with the location of someone if they should come up lost. Cell phone GPS tracking can track their exact location. This can make locating the lost much faster and more efficient.
Corporate Users can also rely on Grid Iden Network for GPS Based walkie talkie. The GPS Walkie talkie is used widely by many large organisations in the world. These GPS Devices acts like a phone while allowing the control centre to pinpoint the exact location of their mobile workforce and communicate with them through the Walkie-Talkie voice feature.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
mesothelioma
Oklahoma woman claims mesothelioma in asbestos filing
2007-05-14 22:04:00
An Oklahoma woman who suffers from mesothelioma
Oklahoma woman claims mesothelioma in asbestos filing
2007-05-14 22:04:00
An Oklahoma woman who suffers from mesothelioma filed an asbestos suit against 84 defendant corporations in Madison County Circuit Court May 10, alleging she was exposed to airborne asbestos fibers from her father's and husband's clothing.Lisa Rawlings claims her husband, Luke, was employed as a welder at various locations across the country including McCombe, Ill.Her father, Harold Winton, worked as a mechanic."Dust created by working with and around asbestos and asbestos-containing products would permeate the person and clothing of the plaintiff's family members," the complaint states. "This dust contained asbestos fiber."Rawlings claims her father and husband would carry the asbestos dust on their clothing home with him where it would again become airborne. "The plaintiff would be repeatedly exposed to this asbestos dust from her family members' person and clothing," the complaint states.Rawlings was employed as a postal worker and teacher at various locations including Illinois
Minnesota Iron Miners Developed Mesothelioma
2007-04-20 17:37:00
ST. PAUL, MN — April 20, 2007 — Fifty-two workers employed in Minnesota 's iron mining industry have developed mesothelioma since 1998, according to Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) statistics (News Release, March 28, 2007). From 1988 through 2005, the total number of mesothelioma sufferers in the northeastern mining region of the state numbered 136. These figures are twice as high as in other parts of Minnesota, the MDH said, and may be underestimates because prior to 1999, mesothelioma was often coded on state death certificates as another cancer.Mesothelioma is almost always caused by asbestos. An earlier MDH study found 17 iron workers with mesothelioma; the agency discovered 35 more workers among that group with the disease last month. Mesothelioma does not develop until several decades after initial asbestos exposure, so even more miners could be affected.The study authors suggested that the miners may have been exposed to "commercial asbestos," defined as asbestos
El Centro, Calif. firm pays $9,027 for federal asbestos violations
2007-05-22 23:36:00
A firm based in El Centro , Calif . has agreed to pay $9,027 for demolishing a structure without notifying the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as required by federal Clean Air Act asbestos regulations.CT EL Centro, LLC, owner of a property located at 1523 W. Main Street in El Camino, and its contractor, Action Environmental Enterprises, Inc., failed to notify the EPA of a demolition taking place at said location as required under the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants regulations.“When a building is demolished, asbestos must be properly removed in order to protect the health of the public and immediate community,” said Deborah Jordan, director of the EPA’s Air Division for the Pacific Southwest. “Appropriate regulatory agencies must be notified in advance so they can ensure that the required safeguards are in place.”The EPA has classified asbestos, a known carcinogen, as a hazardous air pollutant. Individuals exposed to asbestos fibers are at risk of
Canada continues to mine and export asbestos, despite rise in related cancers
2007-05-22 19:22:00
Asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma and asbestosis are on the rise in Canada , yet the country continues to mine and export the deadly mineral. Canada is the second largest producer and exporter of asbestos worldwide, producing 200,000 tons of asbestos per year. Most of Canada’s asbestos is exported to third world countries with no regulatory systems in place to ensure the safe use of asbestos. Over 40 countries, including the EU, have banned asbestos.Asbestos mining occurs in Quebec, where the $97 million per year industry employs approximately 800 asbestos miners. Last year, the Canadian government introduced new regulations allowing for asbestos to be used in children’s toys, crayons, dry wall compounds and spray-on insulations.A motion has been introduced into the House of Commons to impose a ban on the mining, production, sale, use and export of asbestos in Canada.To read the full article, go to http://en.epochtimes.com.
Read more: despite , cancers
South Africa considers asbestos ban
2007-05-22 11:21:00
South Africa n legislators will likely pass a country-wide asbestos ban in June, according to South Africa ’s deputy director-general of environmental affairs. A ban on asbestos products in the country will have a significant effect on asbestos product manufacturer Turnall Fibre Cement, which is one of Zimbabwe’s largest asbestos producers. South Africa is currently Zimbabwe’s largest market for asbestos, consuming approximately 40 percent of its annual production. Asbestos products in South Africa are used mainly for roofing materials for low-cost housing, car exhaust pipes, and irrigation systems.For the full story, go to allafrica.com.
Read more: South
Minnesota Iron Miners Developed Mesothelioma
2007-05-21 18:52:00
ST. PAUL, MN — May 21, 2007 — Fifty–two workers employed in Minnesota ’s iron mining industry have developed mesothelioma since 1998, according to Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) statistics (News Release, March 28, 2007). From 1988 through 2005, the total number of mesothelioma sufferers in the northeastern mining region of the state numbered 136. These figures are twice as high as in other parts of Minnesota, the MDH said, and may be underestimates because prior to 1999, mesothelioma was often coded on state death certificates as another cancer.Mesothelioma is almost always caused by asbestos. An earlier MDH study found 17 iron workers with mesothelioma; the agency discovered 35 more workers among that group with the disease last month. Mesothelioma does not develop until several decades after initial asbestos exposure, so even more miners could be affected.The study authors suggested that the miners may have been exposed to “commercial asbestos,” defined as asbestos u
Moffitt Cancer Center awarded $8.95 million research grant
2007-05-21 09:21:00
Tampa, Florida-based H.Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute has been awarded a research grant for $8.95 million from the National Cancer Institute. The five-year grant will focus on research to disrupt the pathways that help feed cancer cells. The goal of the research is to develop drugs that stop the growth of cancer by preventing tumor cell division and new blood vessels that fuel cancer cell growth. Researchers involved with the project hope it will lead to drugs to treat all types of cancer, including lung cancer.For more information, go to www.moffitt.org.
Organization Honors Asbestos Victims
2007-05-30 19:33:00
The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO), an organization dedicated to serving as the voice of asbestos victims, today, on International Workers Memorial Day, honors and remembers the 100,000 workers killed due to asbestos-caused diseases. Asbestos is still the number one carcinogen in the world of work and causes 54% of all deaths from occupational cancer. "Given that we are in the 21st century and the hazards of asbestos have been known since the 19th Century, and further revealed in the 20th, it is outrageous that the Congressional tunnel workers were subjected to asbestos exposures over a protracted period of time. Given their exposures and the absence of adequate protection, they have an elevated risk of lung cancer, mesothelioma, and all the other diseases related to asbestos, on top of the asbestosis that has been diagnosed among of members of this group," said Arthur L. Frank MD, PhD and Co-Scientific Director of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization. "As we pay
Read more: Honors , Victims
Japan’s Environment Ministry reports rate of asbestos-related mesothelioma 14 times higher in Amagasaki than national average
2007-05-29 10:48:00
Japan’s Environment Ministry reported on Monday that residents of Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture who lived there between the 1950s and the 1970s suffered a rate of mesothelioma–a rare cancer caused by asbestos–14 times higher than Japan’s national average. For women who lived around area factories that used asbestos, the rate of mesothelioma was an astounding 69 times the national average. The Environment Ministry conducted the epidemiological survey covering around 180,000 people who lived in Amagasaki between 1955 and 1974–the time period in which area plants released asbestos into the air.For more information, read the full story at www.asahi.com.�
Read more: Japan , related
Company fined for pollution breach
2007-05-28 19:06:00
A WASTE disposal firm has been fined £15,000 for failing to properly treat asbestos waste.Hills Minerals And Waste was fined for a serious breach of its pollution prevention and control permit.The firm was prosecuted at Swindon Magistrates' Court for offences committed in July and August 2005.They took place at its Chapel Farm asbestos-handling site near Blunsdon.On July 29 the Environment Agency conducted a routine site inspection that revealed a breach of the PPC permit.Asbestos material was not being properly covered.Environment Agency officers spoke to the assistant site manager about the breach and were assured that site operators would operate in accordance with the permit.But a second inspection on August 11 revealed two lorries were tipping waste containing asbestos into a storage cell at the same time.One of the site diggers was also seen driving over the deposited pile of asbestos before it had been covered with suitable inert waste.This caused clouds of dust containing asb
Shipyard worker wins £1m mesothelioma damages
2007-05-26 19:29:00
A former Tyneside shipyard worker has won almost £1m damages after developing a fatal asbestos-related lung cancer.Grandfather Raymond Shanks sued Newcastle-based Swan Hunter, where he worked as an electrician for four years from 1965.The 59-year-old was diagnosed with mesothelioma two years ago and is only likely to live until early 2009. He was awarded £948,565 at the High Court on Thursday for pain, suffering, loss of earnings and other expenses.Mr Shanks, of Grindon Close, West Monkseaton, North Tyneside, was diagnosed two years after his son, Michael, died of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at the age of 28. Before Michael died, Mr Shanks promised him that he would support his two children, now aged nine and seven.Giving his ruling on the amount of the claim, disputed by the company, Judge Hickinbottom said he was in close proximity to insulation fitters and others working with asbestos at the Wallsend yard. This was his only exposure to asbestos during his working life.He emigrated to
Read more: Shipyard
Asbestos found in 21 buildings on campus of California State University, Northbridge
2007-05-26 17:32:00
Twenty-one buildings on the campus of California State University , Northbridge (CSUN) contain asbestos, according to a May 21, 2007 article appearing in the campus paper. The affected buildings contain asbestos-containing floor tile and thermal pipe insulation. The Environmental Health and Safety Department has notified the affected areas but has no plan to remove the asbestos from the buildings. Asbestos is related to diseases such as mesothelioma, which can develop many years after exposure to asbestos.For the full article, go to http://sundial.csun.com
Health and consumer watchdog groups voice concerns about proposed asbestos advisory board panelists
2007-05-25 23:31:00
Health and consumer watchdog groups have raised concerns about potential panelists for a federal asbestos advisory board because of their financial ties to companies that have mined and manufactured asbestos-containing products, according to a May 23, 2007 article published in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The asbestos advisory board, which will operate under the auspices of the Environmental Protection Agency, will have the task of drafting a risk assessment for asbestos fibers to define exposure safety. The assessment would in turn be used as a guide in the cleanup of asbestos-contaminated sites. Asbestos has been linked to the cancer mesothelioma and other diseases.The 65 people named to the “short list” of possible board panelists include scientists who own or work for consulting firms hired by companies that have manufactured asbestos products and related trade associations, with the goal to influence policy. Some potential panelists have worked for W.R. Grace & Co., wh
Read more: Health , proposed
Sioux City, Iowa receives settlement in asbestos debris case
2007-05-24 13:30:00
Sioux City, Iowa has received a $7,500 settlement from Wisconsin-based Old Republic Surety Company for asbestos-containing rubble resulting from the demolition of part of the Livestock Exchange Building. The pile of asbestos debris was discovered in 2004 when the rest of the building was demolished. The pile has been covered and fenced since 2004, and the city is awaiting EPA approval for a cleanup plan, which is estimated to cost $500,000. The company responsible for the debris is out of business with no assets to pursue; the settlement was paid with bond monies the company was required to carry to insure the work.For the full story, go to www.siouxcityjournal.com.
Elgin, Illinois Office Building workers temporarily displaced for asbestos removal
2007-06-01 11:19:00
Employees of the 25 tenants occupying office space in a downtown Elgin building were displaced over a recent weekend to remove asbestos and ensure the air quality was safe. The Tower Building , a 15-story structure that is over 90 years old, contained water lines insulated with asbestos. New city water lines being installed nearby required that the building’s drinking and sprinkler water supplies be separated, necessitating the asbestos removal work. The building was closed for a weekend in mid-May to test the air to ensure the safety of the building’s occupants. Asbestos has been linked to mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs, abdomen, and heart, as well as other diseases.For the full story, go to www.dailyherald.com.
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Greensburg tornado victims and clean-up workers likely being exposed to asbestos
2007-05-31 10:37:00
People sifting through the rubble of the nearly 1,000 homes destroyed by the May 4th tornado that ravaged the town of Greensburg, Kansas are likely being exposed to asbestos, according to an article published by the Kansas City Star. According to a local asbestos abatement expert, many of the destroyed homes were built before 1980 and therefore are likely to contain asbestos, when the toxic fiber was common in construction materials.Asbestos can cause illnesses such as mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lungs, heart, or abdomen.The Environmental Protection Agency is powerless to monitor the situation under federal and state law, however. The EPA took air samples in eight locations around Greensburg, all of which came back negative for asbestos. If they had tested positive for asbestos, the EPA would legally be able to take further action to protect residents and workers. But without positive samples, the EPA does not have legal authority to require homeowners whose homes we
Pemetrexed combined with cisplatin or carboplatin shows promise as a treatment for malignant pleural mesothelioma
2007-06-08 22:45:00
The results of a recent medical study confirmed results from earlier studies demonstrating that the chemotherapy drug pemetrexed combined with either cisplatin or carboplatin showed promise as a treatment for previously untreated, inoperable pleural mesothelioma. Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a form of cancer associated with exposure to asbestos.The study, which was reported at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting being held in Chicago, was derived from data on 1,704 mesothelioma patients who were among the more than 3,000 patients worldwide who received pemetrexed alone or in combination with a platinum agent such as cisplatin or carboplatin. Pemetrexed is known by the brand name Alimta in the U.S. and other countries.For the full story, go to www.medpagetoday.com
Philippine Navy Veterans With Cancer
2007-06-07 11:40:00
Tens of thousands of Philippine veterans who served with the US Navy were exposed to Asbestos, it was announced today, by Veteran Helping Veteran, President, Ken Smith.We think that veterans from the Philippines were exposed to asbestos and have the same rates of mesothelioma as other veterans in the US Navy, said Smith. We have set up a new web site Http://www.mesothliome.ph and request that any former navy veteran, or family member of a veteran who has been diagnosed with this cancer, contact us so we can begin to help.Veteran Helping Veteran was established to help veterans who were exposed to toxic substances while in the serive and we want to ensure that the veterans of the Philippines are not left behind. They served with pride and honor, and like thier American counterparts, were exposed to asbestos.Mesothelioma is a cancer that is caused by exposure to Asbestos. We are requesting that veterans and family members of veterans contact us immediately to gain some help and support
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New fund for asbestos victims
2007-06-06 11:38:00
Relatives of those who suffer from asbestos-related diseases will find it easier to claim government compensation in the North under legislation being considered today.The Welfare Reform Bill will allow dependants to claim from a special fund administered by the Department for Social Development and relax the criteria for claiming.Hundreds of workers have already died after contracting crippling lung diseases, leaving family struggling to cope.Chairman of the Justice for Asbestos Victims lobby group, Brian Lee, said it was a welcome step."Hopefully people and their families will benefit from this. They don't have a good quality of life at present so this money that they get will be a help," he said."This will help people to get a car or some form of transport and will make life a lot easier."The aid includes those who worked in the housing industry but are unable to claim against a former employer.Onset of the disease can be delayed by up to 40 years. By that time many employers are g
U.S. Government asks appellate court to overturn rulings in criminal case against W.R. Grace over asbestos contamination
2007-06-05 11:31:00
Attorneys for the U.S. Government asked a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Court of Appeals yesterday to overturn rulings that hurt the government’s criminal case against W.R. Grace and some of its executives for exposing residents of Libby, Montana and others to asbestos from its vermiculite mine. Residents of Libby and others have developed asbestos-related mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases from exposure to W.R. Grace vermiculite, which is contaminated with asbestos. W.R. Grace and some of its executives are charged with criminal conspiracy and knowing endangerment among other counts, which together could result in sentences of 15 years or longer.U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy ruled last year that the government could not submit certain evidence, including data from Grace’s own testing of vermiculite products; an EPA asbestos sampling at Libby; and the results of a peer-reviewed government study of residents in and around Libby. The judge had also dismissed cha
Aboriginal community faces high rates of mesothelioma, other asbestos-related diseases
2007-06-04 11:29:00
The Aboriginal community of Baryulgil, which lies along the northwest coast of Australia, faces an epidemic of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases, according to an article appearing in The Australian on June 5th. According to a report commissioned by Hardie, which ran the asbestos mining operations in the region where much of the local residents once worked, more than ten percent of residents in the area will contract asbestos-related diseases in the future, in addition to the ten percent who have already contracted asbestos cancer and other diseases. Advocates for the residents believe the numbers affected by asbestos disease will prove to be much higher.Hardie, which operated the asbestos mine from 1942 to 1979, was cited by the federal parliament in the 1984 for exposing mine workers to unlawful levels of asbestos. The entire community was also exposed through tailings deposited by the mining company on local roads, the school playground, and at other locations. More re
SoCal Jury Orders N.J. Firm to Pay $5.2 Million in Asbestos Case
2007-06-03 11:37:00
A Los Angeles jury has ordered a New Jersey engineering and construction firm to pay $5.2 million in an asbestos exposure case, determining the company acted with malice.The verdict in Los Angeles County Superior Court ordered Foster Wheeler Corp. to pay the survivors of Richard Walmach, a career naval machinist who died in 2006 after being diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer related to asbestos exposure.Walmach died after filing the suit, which claimed the company failed to disclose asbestos risks. The company is a longtime supplier of boilers, steam generators and other power equipment to the U.S. Navy.The firm has faced 20 other asbestos-related suits and been found liable for $100 million in general damages, but this was the first time it was ordered to pay punitive damages, said lead plaintiff's attorney Sean P. Tracey.Of the $5.2 million total award, $2 million was for punitive damages. An attorney for Foster Wheeler said a motion was pending before the judge challenging juris
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Orange County high school teachers ask school board for new procedures to ensure protection from asbestos during school building renovations
2007-06-11 10:29:00
Teachers at Troy High School asked school board members this week to help ensure teacher and student safety during renovation on the high school building that includes asbestos and lead-based paint removal, according to an article appearing June 7 in the LA Times.The teachers are concerned about what they believe was sloppy asbestos removal that took place without notifying parents or teachers. A teacher at the school recently found a bundle of plastic-wrapped bags labeled “danger” and “asbestos” near equipment that circulates air in the building. Asbestos has been linked to the cancer mesothelioma and other diseases.For the full story, go to www.latimes.com
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Minnesota health commissioner apologizes for delay in releasing mesothelioma data during four-hour public hearing
2007-06-28 11:01:00
Minnesota's health commissioner apologized during a four-hour public hearing held Tuesday about her department's one-year delay in releasing to the public data about additional mesothelioma cases among Iron Range miners. Some lawmakers questioned whether Minnesota's governor was also involved in the decision to withhold information about the additional mesothelioma cases from the public. Mesothelioma is a rare cancer linked to asbestos exposure. To date, 58 mesothelioma cases have been identified among Iron Range miners, six of which were reported in the past week.The controversy regarding the delayed release of mesothelioma data involved 35 cases that were identified by the health department in March 2006 but not released to the public until March 2007. The health commissioner said that the department delayed the release of the information while waiting for federal funding for research into whether taconite dust from the mines may be a cause. A University of Minnesota environme
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Alimta®/Platinum-compound Combination Confirmed Active in Mesothelioma
2007-06-27 11:06:00
According to results recently presented at the 2007 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the chemotherapy combination consisting of Alimta® (pemetrexed) plus a platinum compound (Platinol® [cisplatin] or Paraplatin® [carboplatin]) has been confirmed as an active therapeutic regimen in the treatment of patients with previously untreated malignant pleural mesothelioma.Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a rare cancer that develops in the tissue that covers the lungs and lines the interior of the chest. It is often caused by chronic exposure to asbestos. The majority of patients are not diagnosed until the disease has progressed to an advanced stage; treatment with surgery or radiation is not an option at this stage. Patients with this disease often experience symptoms, such as shortness of breath, cough, pain, fatigue, and an inability to eat, which lessen their quality of life.Mesothelioma is fairly resistant to most therapies, including surgery, chemotherapy, a
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Ex-EPA head responds to criticism that the EPA mishandled information about asbestos and other toxins at Ground Zero
2007-06-26 11:00:00
Christie Todd Whitman, former chief of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), testified in response to critics' statements that the EPA misled the public about the levels of asbestos and other toxic substances at the World Trade Center site in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. Asbestos can cause mesothelioma and other diseases. Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York released a study in 2006 reporting that 70 percent of rescue workers at Ground Zero suffer respiratory ailments.In a hearing before the U.S. House Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Subcommittee, Whitman defended statements and press releases issued days after the attacks stating that asbestos levels are "unlikely to cause significant health effects" and "cause us no concern" She also defended her decision not to fight the White House for removing a recommendation from an EPA press release that professionals be hired to clean buildings in the area before they were re-occupied.Members of the
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Government report addresses risk of asbestos exposure post-Katrina
2007-06-25 10:58:00
The demolition of homes and other buildings damaged by Hurricane Katrina may pose a public health risk by exposing people to asbestos dust, according to a recent report by the U.S. Government and Accountability Office (GAO). Asbestos has been linked to mesothelioma cancer and other diseases.The report, which addresses the work of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in evaluating and controlling public health risks post-Katrina, notes the EPA is not monitoring the air in New Orleans neighborhoods where building demolition and renovation activities are ongoing, including the Ninth Ward. Air monitors would help determine whether asbestos fibers are being released into the air from demolition projects.For the full story, go to www.canadianunderwriter.ca.
Six more cases of asbestos-related cancer identified in group of former mine workers;
2007-06-23 11:05:00
As part of its preparation for a proposed study of mesothelioma in Minnesota mine workers, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has identified six additional cases of mesothelioma in a group of 72,000 people who worked in the state's iron mining industry between the 1930s and 1982.Discovery of the six new cases brings the total number diagnosed in the workers to 58. MDH officials learned about the new cases as they reviewed information about the workers and data from the Minnesota Cancer Surveillance System (MCSS).Mesothelioma is a rare, fatal form of cancer seen almost exclusively in people who have been exposed to asbestos. MDH officials say it's not surprising to see additional reports of the illness among the miners, since it can take as long as 40 or 50 years to develop mesothelioma following exposure to asbestos. They expect to find additional cases as they complete work on designing the proposed study, and prepare to seek grant funding for the project.MDH conducted an ea
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Government Accountability Office reports that EPA misled the public about asbestos levels following 9/11
2007-06-22 10:58:00
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a report stating that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) misled the public about asbestos levels in Lower Manhattan apartment buildings after 9/11. Asbestos can cause mesothelioma-a rare cancer-and other diseases. The EPA arranged for the professional cleanup of over 4,000 apartments during the two years following the attacks of 9/11. The agency reported that very few units had unsafe levels of asbestos; however, it failed to reveal that the air testing on the units was conducted after-not before-they were cleaned. The GAO report was released Wednesday during hearings conducted by the Senate Health Committee.For the full story, go so www.wnyc.org
Lawmakers, union leaders call for resignation of Minnesota Health Commissioner for year-long delay of mesothelioma data
2007-06-21 10:56:00
Union leaders and legislators representing Minnesota 's Iron Range called for the resignation of the Minnesota Health Commissioner Wednesday, after learning that she had delayed-for at least a year-informing the public about the discovery of 35 more cases of mesothelioma among Iron Range mine workers. The Health Department had discovered in March 2006 another 35 cases of mesothelioma-double the number previously identified-among Iron Range miners. However, news of the 35 cases did not come to light until March 2007. The agency also reported another six mesothelioma cases on Tuesday, bringing the total number of affected miners to 58. The Minnesota governor defended the commissioner, and his communications director said the commissioner should not be terminated for making a mistake.For the full story, go to www.twincities.com