Noam Chomsky on the Economy and Democracy

theRealNews.com

What Sakib's Reading

Osama and Orientalism: Where Islamophobes Meet Al-Qaeda | Religion and Theology | ReligionDispatches [www.religiondispatches.org] Posted: 30 Mar 2009 05:27 AM PDT The deeper problem is that many Muslims, at least in the United States, are internalizing this Orientalism. The result is that the Muslim community is not fighting this fight as equals and partners, but instead act as mere bystanders. They remain frustrated, wishing to do more, but do not have the capacity to get involved. Their understanding of the faith can be defined as much by CNN as anything else.

Drone Count: March 2009

Barack Obama ramped up his drone war on western Pakistan in the month of March. The frequency of attacks has increased since our previous update. Here are the most recent documented bombings on the allegedly sovereign state of Pakistan:

Mar 1 2009 - At least 8 people killed and 9 wounded in the village of Hebat Khan in the Sararogha area of South Warizistan, after 2 consecutive missiles were fired.

Mar 12 2009 - Obama's drones strike upon the Kurram agency with at least 24 new deceased. 4 missiles struck a residential building.

Mar 15 2009 - US unmanned Predator aircraft attacked in the Bannu district of NWFP in Pakistan. The village of Chota Janikhel was hit killing at least 5 people.

Mar 25 2009 - 2 missiles from a US drone kill at least 8 in Makeen, south Warizistan.

Mar 26 2009 - The town of Mir Ali in Sokhel, north Warizistan was attacked by a drone missile strike killing 5 and injuring the same number. It marked a drone attack on consecutive days.

These attacks have resulted in at least 50 killed since our prior report--for a total of 134 deaths from 8 strikes since the beginning of the Obama administration. Drones are undeniably an efficient killing machine. However, the efficacy of the amplification of this Bush-Obama policy that has resulted in the murder of dozens of innocent civilians, remains unproven.

What Sakib's Reading

The secret war against American workers [Salon] Posted: 30 Mar 2009 03:40 AM PDT

Jim Webb's courage v. the "pragmatism" excuse for politicians [Salon: Glenn Greenwald] Posted: 28 Mar 2009 06:02 AM PDT

Palestinian Land Loss

The above is a simple graphic of Palestinian land loss. Green represents Arab (Muslim and Christian) land that is inhabited by and belongs to the Palestinians. White represents Jewish controlled territory. The first snapshot is from 1946, the last from 2000. The picture speaks for itself.

The Guardian (UK) Investigates Israeli War Crimes in Gaza

Palestinian children used as human shields

Medics, ambulances, and hospitals targeted

Drones used to kill children, civilians

The Sweet Science

Can we all at least agree that Mike Tyson is the "baddest man on the planet"? Iron Mike was the most dominant heavyweight fighter ever and arguably the best of all time. In his prime, Tyson was absolutely unstoppable--raw, relentless, brute, and powerful. His entrance into the arena--shirtless or in a cut-out towel draped around his neck sent a bone-chilling fear into this opponents. They cowered in the ring, in anticipation of the most vicious uppercuts in the history of mankind. Referees counting to ten and the relative comfort of being face-down on the mat, were the only sense of relief and escape, for those that dared to face him.

Tyson created an aura that was unmatched. The ringside was electric, closed circuit/PPV homes at a premium, and kids with Mike Tyson's PunchOut, the most popular. Heavyweight boxing was at a pinnacle because simply put, Tyson was there and boxing mattered. The spectre of impending doom of his opponents filled the seats and minted money. A strong argument can be made that Muhammad Ali was equally entertaining, and the best heavyweight champion ever. Ali, was the polar opposite of Tyson--nimble, quick, flashy, and full of guile. He was without a doubt equally important for the sport and brought it to the heights that enabled Tyson to become a superstar.

Who's the best of all-time? We'll never know but this can be argued until the end of day. The mythical Tyson-Ali fight remains the most desired of matchups. You can't go wrong with the butterfly quick Ali, but I'll hang my hat on the man who eloquently stated: "Everybody has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth." Iron. Mike. Tyson.

The Fast and the Furious: Audi R8

Construction America

Driving to work yesterday, I passed 2 separate construction crews. The first was a 6-man team with large trucks and lumber equipment. In this group, 2 members were being used to direct traffic holding "STOP/SLOW" signs on the road, on either ends of the site. They were not more than 25 yards apart. 1 member was cutting a log, or at least looked like he was partaking in some sort of actual physical activity. Around him, 3 other men who were huddled together watched. About 15 miles down the road another crew had 4 members and one piece of heavy machinery. The machine operator cleared some debris from the side of the excavated road. The other 3 members carefully watched the machine operator.

This typical scene of construction workers embodies the American work ethic. It is not the work ethic that Obama so glowingly praises and refers to all of the time. Construction serves as a microcosm of what is a nationwide epidemic. Unskilled laborers making $45/hour for simple assembly line jobs, business consultants spending over half their days chatting on AIM, corporate executives playing Ponzi with client's hard earned monies--this is the reality. Is it any surprise that jobs have been shipped overseas to places like India and China where workers actually work? Utter laziness is just one of many causes of America's diseased economy. Perhaps the one with the hardest cure.

Norman Finkelstein on Gaza Massacre

Crossing Rafah

The recent Israeli massacre in Gaza has resulted in the death, carnage, and destruction that has become a recurring theme for both the Palestinians and Lebanese. The barbaric crimes committed by the Israeli Defense Forces is obvious. What has often been overlooked is the complicity of neighboring Arab states, mainly Egypt, in this unrelenting assault.

Israel and Egypt have enforced the land-sea-air embargo which has been in effect since June 2007--after Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip. Under the pretext of declaring Hamas a terrorist organization, the war-torn coastal strip has been under a virtual siege for nearly two years. Very little goes in or out of Gaza through official border crossings. Nearly every consumer good from a can of Coke to oil, is smuggled through a series of tunnels along the Egypt-Gaza border. It is essential to the survival of people living in what is commonly referred to as the "world's largest outdoor prison."

The official border gate between Egypt and Gaza is in the town of Rafah. This border has been essentially sealed since the blockade was instituted in 2007--limiting the influx/outflux of both goods and people. Israel reduced the number of commodities allowed in, including foodstuffs such as lentils and macaroni, from 9000 to 20 during this time period. Furthermore, in late 2007, Israel began to cut fuel supplies to this embattled territory. In January of 2008, due to a lack of fuel, the only power plant in Gaza shut down its operations. This led to a breach of the wall at Rafah by Palestinians on January 23, 2008. It is estimated that almost half of the 1.5 Million residents of Gaza crossed into the Egyptian side of Rafah to purchase essential foods, medicines, and other goods of survival.

Crossing the Rafah border into Gaza remains a very difficult task, even for humanitarian aid or medical personnel. During the recent Israeli bombardment of Gaza, civilian refugees of war were not allowed into Egypt to escape air strikes and a looming ground invasion. An overstressed and embargo-weakened medical system was unable to adequately serve the Gazan population in the recent attacks that left over 1300 dead, and 6000 wounded. Egypt allowed a select few of the injured and maimed to cross the Rafah gates, to receive treatment in its own nation. Furthermore, Egypt denied passage for numerous casualties destined for treatment in Europe and abroad. These patients, predominantly children, were turned back to the inadequate care provided by the collapsing Palestinian health system. In addition, the Israeli border was completely closed as well, with an exceptionally limited number of people who even dared to venture near its checkpoints and heavily fortified Apartheid Wall.

To add insult to injury, Egyptian border officials made the entrance of humanitarian aid extremely difficult during this crisis. At the Rafah terminal, numerous international volunteer medical teams waited for weeks to gain entrance to Gaza, if they were allowed in at all. Convoys of donated aid from nations as wide-ranging as Venezuela to the United Arab Emirates, also waited for weeks before being allowed in. The Egyptian enforcement of the Israeli-led blockade undoubtedly led to preventable suffering, hunger, and death of the Palestinian population.

Despite claims of an open border by Egyptian officials--numerous first-hand accounts from American, South African, and Turkish medical teams prove otherwise. A litany of media reports by the international press also documents quite well, the virutal sealing of Rafah. There are a variety of reasons why Egypt may be enforcing this crippling, inhumane policy--covert agreements with the Israelis, US funding to an annual tune of up to $1.7 Billion, fear of populist ideology spreading to Egypt and threatening the established dictatorship, or profiteering from the smuggling industry. This much is clear--the underground tunnels will remain the lifeblood of the Gazan people until Crossing Rafah is no longer a myth, but a reality.

Crisis of Credit

Aspiring "polymaths",

Below is a video explaining the origin of the credit crisis. Who said economics is just for economists?


The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo