Engaging Hamas: Will History Repeat Itself? By Ramzy Baroud

The political outcomes of the Gaza war are yet to be entirely decided with any degree of certainty. However, the obvious political repositioning which was reported as soon as Israel declared its unilateral ceasefire promised that Israel’s deadly bombs would shape a new political reality in the region.

In the aftermath, Hamas can confidently claim that its once indisputably ‘radical’ political position is no longer viewed as too extreme. “Hamas” is no longer menacing a word, even amongst Western public, and tireless Israeli attempts to correlate Hamas and Islamic Jihadists’s agendas no longer suffice.

The Israel war against Gaza has indeed proven that Hamas cannot be obliterated by bombs and decimated by missiles. This is the same conclusion that the US and other countries reached in regards to the PLO in the mid 1970’s. Of course, that realization didn’t prevent Israel from trying on many occasions to destroy the PLO, in Jordan (throughout the late 1960’s), getting involved in the Lebanese civil war (1976), and then occupying south Lebanon (1978), and then the entire country (1982). Even upon the departure of PLO factions from Lebanon, Israel followed its leadership to Tunisia and other countries, assassinating the least accommodating members, thus setting the stage for political ‘dialogue’ with the ‘more acceptable peace partners’.

The history of the Arab-Israeli conflict has taught us that political ‘engagement’ often follows wars; the military outcome of these wars often determines the course of political action that ensues afterward. For example, a war, like that of 1967 (the astounding defeat of the Arabs), strengthened the notion that a military solution is the primary option to achieve ‘peace’ and ‘security.’ Of course, this logic is erroneous when it is applied to popular struggles. Conventional armies can be isolated and defeated. Popular struggles cannot, and attempts to do so often yield unintended and contradictory results. Israel’s victory (thanks in part to US and European military, financial and logistical support) drove Israel into the abyss of complete arrogance. Arabs responded in kind in 1973, and were close to a decisive victory when the US, once again came to the rescue, providing Israel with the largest transport of arms recorded since WWII.

via The Palestine Chronicle

A reality check on Iran and the ‘bomb’ By Richard M Bennet

There now appears to be a growing consensus of expert opinion that Iran is but a few short months away from being capable of producing its first crude nuclear weapon. Some may choose to see this event as “crossing the red line” and even as a trigger for military action as the threat of a nuclear capable Iran may well simply not be tolerated in some quarters. However before such an argument can be easily accepted it would be wise to consider just what actually constitutes a threat. So is Iran now or likely to be anytime soon a genuine “clear and present danger” to either Israel or the West To many within the Intelligence community only a genuine capability and a clear intent equates to an actual threat. Failing to learn the lesson of Iraq Failure to stick to this essential truth sadly provided the backdrop to the gross mistake made over Iraq and Saddam Hussein s supposed weapons of mass destruction WMD program. British premier Tony Blair and president George W Bush in their head-long gallop towards war made much of the claim that there was a threat and it would seem perverted such intelligence information that was available to support this otherwise unsubstantiated claim. Their respective national intelligence services the Central Intelligence Agency and SIS MI6 had significantly failed to provide incontrovertible proof of either a genuine Iraqi WMD capability or a clear intent to use such weapons. This factor was deliberately ignored or perhaps even suppressed by the US and British governments and this deceit would only emerge much later in the aftermath of the 2003 invasion. In the time-honored political blame avoidance game both Bush and Blair moved quickly to ensure that the intelligence services themselves would carry the main responsibility for this failure neatly sidestepping any serious chance of being held to account for their own incompetence and culpability by their respective electorates.

via Asia Times Online

Kucinich: Obama extending war chapter

Democratic congressman Dennis Kucinich criticizes President Obama for stretching a chapter of war by relocating troops from Iraq to Afghanistan.

“We must bring a conclusion to this sorry chapter in American history where war was waged under false pretense against an innocent people,” Kucinich said.

President Barack Obama has decided to assign 17,000 American troops to Afghanistan contingents, while laying out plans for a full withdrawal of troops from Iraq.

Congressman Kucinich, however, was critical of the plan.

“Taking troops out of Iraq should not mean more troops available for deployment in other operations,” he said. “You can’t be in and out at the same time.”

Obama plans to keep some 35,000 to 50,000 of the 142,000 troops currently stationed in Iraq in the country after the withdrawal date to advise Iraqi forces, target terror potentials and protect US interests.

The US president did not mention how long the remaining troops would stay in the country.

via Press TV

American taste for soft toilet roll ‘worse than driving Hummers’

The tenderness of the delicate American buttock is causing more environmental devastation than the country’s love of gas-guzzling cars, fast food or McMansions, according to green campaigners. At fault, they say, is the US public’s insistence on extra-soft, quilted and multi-ply products when they use the bathroom.

“This is a product that we use for less than three seconds and the ecological consequences of manufacturing it from trees is enormous,” said Allen Hershkowitz, a senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defence Council.

“Future generations are going to look at the way we make toilet paper as one of the greatest excesses of our age. Making toilet paper from virgin wood is a lot worse than driving Hummers in terms of global warming pollution.” Making toilet paper has a significant impact because of chemicals used in pulp manufacture and cutting down forests.

A campaign by Greenpeace seeks to raise consciousness among Americans about the environmental costs of their toilet habits and counter an aggressive new push by the paper industry giants to market so-called luxury brands.

via  guardian.co.uk.

All Troops Out By 2011? Not So Fast; Why Obama’s Iraq Speech Deserves a Second Look

Some anti-war analysts find hope in President Barack Obama’s address at Camp Lejuene in North Carolina on Friday, in which he appeared to spell out a clear date for withdrawal from Iraq.

“I intend to remove all U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of 2011,” Obama said in a speech that quickly generated headlines announcing that an end to the occupation is on the horizon. As far as rhetoric goes, Obama’s statement seems very clear. But in reality, it is far more complicated.

Obama’s plan, as his advisors have often said, is subject to “conditions on the ground,” meaning it can be altered at any point between now and 2011. Underscoring this point, a spokesperson for New York Rep. John McHugh, the ranking Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, said on Friday that Obama “assured [McHugh] he will revisit the tempo of the withdrawal, or he will revisit the withdrawal plan if the situation on the ground dictates it. … The president assured him that there was a Plan B.”

Despite Obama’s declarations Friday and the celebrations they have sparked on the liberal blogosphere, the Pentagon certainly seems to believe its forces may well be in Iraq after 2011. NBC’s Pentagon correspondent Jim Miklaszeswki reported on Friday that “military commanders, despite this Status of Forces Agreement with the Iraqi government that all U.S. forces would be out by the end of 2011, are already making plans for a significant number of American troops to remain in Iraq beyond that 2011 deadline, assuming that Status of Forces Agreement agreement would be renegotiated. And one senior military commander told us that he expects large numbers of American troops to be in Iraq for the next 15 to 20 years.”

via  AlterNet.

Shouldn’t MoveOn Oppose Obama on Afghanistan?

MoveOn.org became a meaningful force in American politics when it emerged as a muscular network of activists that was willing to challenge not just Republicans but Democrats when they were wrong about foreign policy.

Democratic leaders in Congress might have been willing to compromise with the Bush administration on Iraq back in 2002. But MoveOn said “no.”

And MoveOn was right.

Now, more than ever, we need MoveOn to remain true to its historic mission.

We need MoveOn to be right about Afghanistan.

For that reason, I certainly hope that Justin Ruben, the new MoveOn executive director, was wrong when he told my colleague Ari Melber that he did not think the group would be letting President Obama know he is wrong to be surging more U.S. troops into Afghanistan.

via  CommonDreams.org.

Ralph Nader: An Oscar for Activism

As the 2009 Academy Awards swept their way into history, the glitz and the massive global audiences show that across cultures fictional stories, mythologies and money go hand in hand.

As the nominees for the awards were briefly showcased for their artistic imagination in one category after another, it occurred to me that the saying “truth is stranger than fiction” has another meaning. Many people would rather see fiction than the real thing.

What if, permit a flight of fancy, there were the equivalent of the “Academy Awards” for the civic heroism that goes on every day here and abroad. The powerless valiant ones who challenge the powerful and corrupt in ways that throughout history have broken new ground for more justice, economic well-being, health, safety and freedom. They are mostly unsung. They are often marginalized or maligned.

The history books make reference to only a very few—anti slavery abolitionists, women fighting for the vote, workers for the right to organize, farmers for federal regulation of brazen banks and railroads. People take on, for example, corrupt city machines, company towns dominated by a single plant or mine, toxic contamination of drinking water supplies, corporate looters of worker pensions, manufacturers of defective cars and harmful medicines.

Recognition before large audiences keeps a highly nourished concept of the heroic before the people. It gives support to those who take the first step and who speak truth to power. Acclaim is protective and encourages more people to follow in the shoes of these citizen-pioneers. Civic heroism changes the culture and the dreams of youth.

via  CommonDreams.org.

Obama Sells Continuation of Iraq War as the New Pullout Plan

Then-President George W. Bush declared “Mission Accomplished” in Iraq, and then proceeded to keep the war going for the remaining five and a half years of his presidency. In a speech today at Camp Lajeune, North Carolina took a page out of his predecessor’s book when he declared that “by August 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end,” even as his administration prepares to keep the combat going until at least the end of 2011.

His administration has been touting a military surge in Afghanistan which would bring the overall American force to roughly 50,000 troops. That is taking a war to the next level. Bringing the level of troops in Iraq to roughly the same level, somehow, is being sold to the public as the end of that war. Will anyone buy it?

It doesn’t appear to be the case, as many Congressmen from Obama’s own party are condemning the move. The only ones who seem satisfied with the plan and the 50,000 “residual” troops that will be engaging in combat operations after the administration’s official end of combat are hawks who weren’t exactly thrilled with the notion of ending combat in the first place.

But even the conclusion one would get from Obama’s speech, that the August 2010 “end” is really a December 2011 end, as mandated by the Status of Forces Agreement the Bush Administration agreed to last year with the Iraqi government, might not be the end of the matter. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates is already talking about what a good idea he thinks it is to keep a “modest US presence” in Iraq after 2012.

via News From Antiwar.com.

Citigroup’s Special Treatment

This new bailout follows on the heels of a Congressional Oversight Panel report revealing that Citigroup underpaid Treasury by about $19 billion in the first two bailouts. Congressman Brad Sherman is asking a couple of basic questions: When will it stop? Can we get some of that money back?

via The Real News Network

Israel planning mass expansion of West Bank settlement bloc

Despite the state’s formal commitment not to expand West Bank settlements, a government agency has been promoting plans over the past two years to construct thousands of housing units east of the Green Line, Haaretz has learned.

The plans, which have not yet been approved by the government, were drawn up by the Civil Administration, the government agency responsible for nonmilitary matters in the West Bank. Details of the plans appear in the minutes of the agency’s environmental subcommittee, which were obtained by the B’Tselem organization under the Freedom of Information Act.

The plans propose the initial construction of 550 apartments in Gva’ot, located near Alon Shvut in the Gush Etzion settlement bloc, followed by construction of another 4,450 units at a later stage. At present, Gva’ot is inhabited by 12 families. The neighboring settlement of Bat Ayin, which has about 120 families, is slated to receive another 2,000 apartments, according to the plans.

Rimonim will get another 254 apartments if the plans are approved, and expansion plans are also in the works for Einav and Mevo Dotan. All three of these settlements are east of the separation fence.

via Haaretz

World faces last chance to avoid fatal warming

Via: Reuters

BUDAPEST Reuters – The world faces a final opportunity to agree an adequate global response to climate change at a U.N.-led meeting in Copenhagen in December the European Union s environment chief said on Friday. World leaders from about 190 countries meet in Copenhagen in December to try to agree a global framework to replace the Kyoto Protocol on fighting global warming which expires in 2012. “It is now 12 years since Kyoto was created. This makes Copenhagen the world s last chance to stop climate change before it passes the point of no return ” European Union Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas told a climate conference in Budapest on Friday. “Having an agreement in Copenhagen is not only possible it is imperative and we are going to have it ” Dimas said. With greenhouse gas emissions rising faster than projected Dimas said it was essential that big polluters such as the United States and emerging economies in the Far East and South America also sign up for an agreement. “President Obama s commitment to re-engage the United States fully in combating climate change is an enormously encouraging sign that progress is possible. So are positive initiatives coming from China India Brazil and other emerging economies.

10 Reasons Why Conservatives’ Fiscal Ideas Are Dangerous. By Sara Robinson

Via: AlterNet.

Yes, it’s true. The conservatives — that’s right, the very same folks who just dragged us along on an eight-year drunken binge during which they borrowed-and-spent us into the deepest financial catastrophe in nearly a century — are now standing there, faces full of moral rectitude, fingers pointing and shaking in our faces, righteously lecturing the rest of us on the topic of “fiscal responsibility.”

I didn’t think it was possible. I mean, they were mean enough drunk — but hung over, in the clear light of morning, it turns out they’re even worse.

I know. The choice is hard. Laugh? Cry? Scream? All three at once? It would almost be funny, if it weren’t such clear evidence of a complete break with objective reality — and their ideas of what that “fiscal responsibility” means weren’t so dangerous to the future of the country.

The next episode in this surreal moral drama is set to take place next Monday, when President Obama will convene a “fiscal responsibility summit” at the White House to discuss the right’s bright new idea for getting us out of this hole: let’s just dismantle Social Security and Medicare.

As usual, this proposal is encrusted with a thick layer of diversions, misconceptions, factual errors and out-and-out lies. Here are some of the most pungent ones, along with the facts you need to fire back.

1. Conservatives are “fiscally responsible.” Progressives just want to spend, spend, spend.

The comeback to the first assertion is easy: Just point and laugh. Any party that thought giving cost-plus, no-bid contracts to Halliburton was fiscally responsible (and let’s not even get started on handing Hank Paulson $700 billion, no questions asked) deserves to be made fun of for using words that are simply beyond its limited comprehension.