Flyby News
"News Fit to Transmit in the Post Cassini Flyby Era"
Media Nix to Blix, Kucinich, and Dixie Chicks
09 August 2003
1) "MEDIA NIX TO BLIX, KUCINICH AND DIXIE CHICKS"
2) Kucinich Campaign Update- - Lessig's Blog
- - Dennis J. Kucinich endorses Campaign Reform and IRV
- - Kucinich NH Campaign Headquarters Grand Opening
- - Kucinich Stirs Union Activists
- - Huge MeetUp, Iran Policy Statement, Dennis Media Events
3) Greg Palast: WAMY and Saudi funding of terror
Editor's Notes:This is another important issue with time related information in the quickly passing post Cassini flyby era. Item 1 is one cool article from The American Reporter, "MEDIA NIX TO BLIX, KUCINICH AND DIXIE CHICKS." That title describes the sad fate of current media-political controls, but this won't last forever.
Item 2 is an update on the Kucinich campaign, including the opening of the first field office in New England this Monday in Manchester, NH. To counter-act media controls, Flyby News recommends your actions in viewing and sharing 3 films with discussions for an awareness-producing forum to reclaim a rapidly disappearing US democracy. (1) "The Peace Candidate" is an intimate look at the most qualified and inspirational American leader to emerge in decades. In the film, we see Dennis Kucinich captivating, inspiring, and energizing audiences by discussing crucial issues in a way which actually provides hope for the future of our planet. (2) "What I've Learned About US Foreign Policy: The War Against the Third World," is a film compilation by Frank Dorrel that documents CIA covert operations and US interventions since World War II. (3) "A Prayer for America" is from a speech given by Dennis Kucinich to the Southern California Americans for Democratic Action, on February 17, 2002. These films together unravel a story of heroic proportions, and you can join in this production. This campaign of grassroots needs everyone possible to choose the best person for the job in transforming an incredibly dangerous US government. Dennis Kucinich is the only candidate running for President that voted against the Patriot Act. He offers a whole new direction for national and world security with principles and ideals embodied in the US Constitution. For more on this film/discussion program, see CAMPAIGNS * ACTIONS & EVENTS or go to the link
== > Kucinich-Democracy Films -- Make a Difference!. Item 3 is an excellent article from Greg Palast offering his explanation of the ‘containment' of information related to the Saudi-US relations regarding the 9-11 attacks
1) "MEDIA NIX TO BLIX, KUCINICH AND DIXIE CHICKS"(Volume 9, No. 2152)
The American Reporter August 5, 2003
MEDIA NIX TO BLIX, KUCINICH AND DIXIE CHICKS
by Norman Solomon
American Reporter Correspondent
Washington, D.C.
WASHINGTON -- Hans Blix, Dennis Kucinich and the Dixie Chicks are in very different lines of work -- but they're in the same line of fire from big media for the sin of strongly challenging the president's war agenda.
Let's start with Blix, who can get respectful coverage in American media -- unless he's criticizing the U.S. government. Belatedly, in mid-April, he went public with accusations that the Bush administration faked evidence on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. And Blix declared that the United Nations - not the U.S. government - should deploy arms inspectors in Iraq now.
But presidential spokesman Ari Fleischer retorted"I think it's unfortunate if Hans Blix would in any way criticize the United States at this juncture." The White House message was clear - and it reached the media echo chamber.
So, on the April 22 edition of CNN's "Moneyline" program, host Lou Dobbs (with an American flag pin in his lapel) summed up a news report this way"Blix appearing for all the world to look like a petulant U.N. bureaucrat about a month to go before his retirement."
Mainstream U.S. reporters rarely apply an adjective like "petulant" to petulant administration officials like, say, Ari Fleischer. But then again, Fleischer doesn't challenge U.S. foreign policy. Dennis Kucinich does. The four-term U.S. representative from Ohio is now running for the Democratic presidential nomination. And some media pundits find his anti-war views outrageous.
A few weeks before President Bush launched an undeclared war on Iraq, "liberal" Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen declared his own war on Kucinich. The main trigger for Cohen's wrath was that the member of Congress had dared to identify oil as "the strongest incentive" for the impending war.
Cohen claimed to be shocked shocked shocked. The first word of his column was "liar." From there, the Post columnist peppered his piece with references to Kucinich as an "indomitable demagogue" and a "fool" who was "repeating a lie."
But Cohen would have done well to re-read a front page of his own newspaper. Five months earlier, on Sept. 15, a page-one Post report carried the headline "In Iraqi War Scenario, Oil Is Key Issue; U.S. Drillers Eye Huge Petroleum Pool." In the article, Ahmed Chalabi, the leader of the U.S.-backed Iraqi National Congress, said that he favored the creation of a U.S.-led consortium to develop oil fields in a post-Saddam Iraq "American companies will have a big shot at Iraqi oil."
The same Post article quoted former CIA Director James Woolsey - a Chalabi supporter who, according to a Legal Times story, has been on the payroll of Chalabi's group. Woolsey said: "France and Russia have oil companies and interests in Iraq. They should be told that if they are of assistance in moving Iraq toward decent government, we'll do the best we can to ensure that the new government and American companies work closely with them. If they throw in their lot with Saddam, it will be difficult to the point of impossible to persuade the new Iraqi government to work with them."
As many business pages have long highlighted, it's actually quite reasonable to identify oil as key to U.S. policy toward Iraq. But such talk from a presidential candidate causes some people to become incensed. That hardly makes Kucinich a "liar." On the contrary, it simply makes him a pariah in the media realms patrolled by the likes of Richard Cohen.
Similar media gendarmes are on patrol over the airwaves. The giant corporate owner of more than 1,200 radio stations, Clear Channel, syndicates talk radio host Glenn Beck to scores of stations nationwide -- and Beck is enraged about Kucinich. Days before the all-out war on Iraq began, Beck discussed spontaneous combustion and then said: "Every night I get down on my knees and pray that Dennis Kucinich will burst into flames."
Beck has been a chief on-air organizer of de facto pro-war rallies promoted by Clear Channel, a monopolistic corporation with close ties to President Bush. Those rallies included vilification of the Dixie Chicks, a country music group that earned the wrath of hyper-patriots several weeks ago when lead singer Natalie Maines, a Texan, said she was ashamed to be from the same state as Bush.
While the controversy did not do much harm to sales of their music, the Dixie Chicks have suffered a sharp drop in air play. Most fans don't seem to mind the anti-war sentiment, but some radio industry executives sure do. "What's clear is that in these days of highly concentrated media ownership," says the Chicago area's Daily Herald, "there is an immense amount of pressure to not make waves."
In a new statement that voiced support for the Dixie Chicks as "terrific American artists expressing American values by using their American right to free speech," rocker Bruce Springsteen condemned "the pressure coming from the government and big business to enforce conformity of thought concerning the war and politics."
Being a dissenter from conventional wisdom has always involved risks - but rarely have major media powerhouses in the United States been so eager to dismiss thoughtful opinions with the wave of a patriotic wand.
Norman Solomon is co-author of "Target Iraq: What the News Media Didn't Tell You." For an excerpt and other information, go to:
http://www.contextbooks.com/new.html#targetCopyright 2003 Joe Shea The American Reporter.
http://www.american-reporter.com/2152/117.html
2) Kucinich Campaign Update- - Lessig's Blog
- - Dennis J. Kucinich endorses Campaign Reform and IRV
- - Kucinich NH Campaign Headquarters Grand Opening
- - Kucinich Stirs Union Activists
- - Huge MeetUp, Iran Policy Statement, Dennis Media Events
- - Lessig's BlogThe Kucinich campaign recently announce that Dennis has been invited to guest-blog on Lawrence Lessig's site next week! Lawrence Lessig is a noted author and professor of law at Stanford -- his blog is considered one of the most thoughtful provoking sites for legal and technology policy discussions on the Internet. Dennis is particularly excited to contribute to this grassroots forum, and has a special interest in many of the issues covered on Lessig's blog, including those dealing with privacy, law, technology, and the rights of consumers.
Date: Monday 8/11 until Friday 8/15
Location:
http://lessig.org/blog/= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
- - Dennis J. Kucinich endorses Campaign Reform and IRVDennis J. Kucinich endorses Campaign Reform and IRV, see:
see:
http://www.fairvote.org/index.html= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
- - Kucinich NH Campaign Headquarters Grand Opening11 August 2003 9:00 A.M.
Dear Friends, Volunteers and Political Activists:
On behalf of the Kucinich for President Campaign, I cordially invite you to join Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich, in person, on Monday, August 11, at 9 am for an exciting event, the
Gala Grand Opening of the Kucinich NH Campaign Headquarters2nd floor, 913 Elm Street, Manchester, NH.
Come shake the hand of the next President of the United States, the candidate of the people; hear his positions on the major issues, ask questions, meet staff and regional volunteers, pick up campaign material and, if you haven't already, sign up to work with us. Bring your friends and colleagues. Please circulate this announcement to your email lists.
For additional information, please contact
603-781-7215 or Trevor@Kucinich.us
Trevor Elkins,
New England Coordinator
Kucinich for President Campaign
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Please note:
Dennis Kucinich will be on National Public Radio at 7:30 AM, 11 August!
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- - Kucinich Stirs Union ActivistsC-SPAN viewers on Tuesday night watched Congressman Kucinich express fervent support for workers rights at the AFL-CIO candidates' forum.In case you missed it, here's the lead from Tom Curry's MSNBC.com report, sub-headlined: "Kucinich stands out at AFL-CIO event."
"The leaders of organized labor played host Tuesday night to a nine-candidate free-for-all among the Democratic presidential
contenders. Long-shot contender Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio stood out from the crowd, delivering a rousing performance, challenging former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean on why he wasn't willing to cut the defense budget and demanding that Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri tell the audience whether he'd revoke the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and pull the United States out of the World Trade Organization.
"After the debate Kucinich insisted that it wasn't impractical to cancel NAFTA and pull out of the WTO. 'No one here answered that question.... None of them would say it -- not even Dick Gephardt who is trying to rely on support from labor to become the next president.'"
Full article:
http://www.msnbc.com/news/948704.asp- - Huge MeetUp, Iran Policy Statement, Dennis Media EventsHUGE MEETUP FOR DENNIS
Last night, in the Kucinich Campaign's first concerted effort to meet nationwide through www.meetup.com, thousands of passionate activists gathered in cities and towns to plan local efforts to help Congressman Kucinich reach the White House. Our campaign started promoting MeetUp just 15 days ago; more than 7,000 people signed up, making it the third largest political MeetUp and gaining a link on the Meetup homepage. At this pace, our young campaign will quickly become the second largest and one day perhaps the largest.
Now is the time to sign up at
kucinich2004.meetup.com for the big September 4th Kucinich MeetUp. (It's always the first Thursday of the month.)
Local groups made plans to distribute flyers and posters, table events, and speak at community meetings. And they've planned smaller meetings for the next three Thursdays on topics such as college chapters, media response and fundraising. To get in touch with volunteers in your area, first sign up at
http://kucinich2004.meetup.com and then sign up at
www.kucinich.us/volunteer.php"REGIME CHANGE" IN IRAN
Today's Newsday reported that hawks in the Bush Administration are trying to instigate conflict between the U.S. and Iran. Here's the lead: "Pentagon hardliners pressing for regime change in Iran have held secret and unauthorized meetings in Paris with a controversial arms dealer who was a major figure in the Iran-contra scandal..."
Congessman Kucinich issued this statement: "Such actions by the Defense Department, without Congressional authorization or consent, send a dangerous signal to the world community and could lead to the further destabilization of the region. If such actions are unauthorized, as claimed by the White House, the President must act now to seek the resignation of those officials involved. To allow back channel conversations with arms dealers undermines US policy in the region and threatens to send our nation into another deadly war..."
www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/ny-usiran0808,0,432543.storyDENNIS ON CNN
This Sunday, Dennis will be on CNN's "Late Edition" with Wolf Blitzer
(scheduled for 20 minutes between noon -1pm Eastern)
MEDIA DISCOVER KUCINICH'S DISTINCT POSITIONS
There has been a flurry of articles in major outlets in recent days about how Rep. Kucinich has distinguished himself from Democratic rivals by standing forthrightly for workers, seniors and the environment. To find "Kucinich Takes Aim at Dean" and others:
www.kucinich.us/news.htm/#challenge= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
For a delightful LA Times article, related to the Seabiscuit-Kucinich campaign, see:
www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-et-johnson04aug04182420,1,5777546.storyIf you plan to go to this movie, make sure you download a great flier on the Dennis-Seabiscuit connection and help the campaign take off! We pasted in our MeetUp location and times for another good reason to post the Seabiscuit campaign flier around town. Cool photos!
For a good place to download files, see kucinich.us or check the homepage, in left column for the homepage of a
discussion group on Dennis J. Kucinich for US President!For new websites supporting Dennis Kucinich, see:
www.dennisforamerica.organd
www.friendsofkucinich.com/= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
For the official Kucinich for US President in 2004 Website, see:
www.kucinich.us*********************************************************************
3) Greg Palast: WAMY and Saudi funding of terrorGREG PALAST SAYS:
And now, the New York Times tells us, the US Senate has been embarrassed into holding hearings on those Saudi charity fronts including one named WAMY.
Of course, this is ancient news to those who watched my report on WAMY and Saudi funding of terror -- broadcast on BBC's evening news on November 9, 2001.* (In the USA, that report earned me the title of 'conspiracy nut.' In America, a 'conspiracy nut' is defined as a journalist who reports the news two years before the New York Times.)
And here's the ugly little punchline to the story you WON'T read in the Times. Why has the Bush Administration covered up for WAMY and the Saudi's other blood-soaked 'charity' operations?
For the answer, let me take you back to Midland, Texas, 1986. A young old man, George W. Bush, seems to have trouble finding oil. But he strikes it rich when his flailing drilling partnership is bought out by Harken Oil. Despite the addition of the business acumen of Bush Jr., Harken faces collapse; but is pulled from the brink by a cash infusion from a Saudi, Sheik Bakhsh. The money from Arabia has nothing to do, we must assume, with Dubya's daddy at the time holding the post of Vice-President of the Free World.
The Bakhsh booty continued a pattern of the young Bush being saved from his dire business decisions by a line of Sheik angels. His first oil company, Arbusto, going bust-o, was aided by the American financial representative of the bin Ladin family.
And on BBC TV last month, I reported this: following the bombing of our embassies, the Clinton Administration sent two delegations to Saudi Arabia to tell their royal highnesses to stop giving money to the guys who are killing us. But Mr. Bush, once in office, put the kibosh on unfriendly words to the Saudis.
Furthermore, in the summer of 2001, Mr. Bush disbanded the US intelligence unit tracking funding of Al Qaeda. What is it our G-men were uncovering?
According to two separate sources speaking to BBC, the funders of Al Qaeda fronts include those who have previously funded Bush family business and political ventures.
Now that's a wee bit embarrassing. Something you wouldn't want in a congressional report. Something you may not want the FBI to dwell on. (And you can unlock the womens and children: the BBC reports will NOT be broadcast on US television.)
And there's this: a document marked "Secret" and "199I" (meaning 'national security') which found its way out of the offices of the FBI in into the office of our BBC/Guardian newspaper team. It indicates (and whistleblowers confirmed) that, prior to the September 11 attack, the Bush Administration held back agents of the FBI from tracking two members of the bin Laden family. According to the buried FBI report, the bin Laden lads were operating in the USA for "a suspected terrorist organization", WAMY.
But we mustn't ask too many questions of the Bush Administration's blindfolding the FBI, nor, Heaven forbid, discomfit the Saudis over their contributions to Terror-R-Us. After all, in BushWorld, Saudi Arabia and America have shared values: we want our boys to kill, not to kiss.
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Greg Palast is author of the New York Times bestseller, The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, which includes the award-winning report, "Did Our President Spike the Investigation of bin Laden?" View his report for BBC Television's Newsnight on Bush, WAMY and the bin Ladens at
http://www.GregPalast.com*WAMY and Saudi funding of terror –
(broadcast on BBC's evening news on November 9, 2001).
http://www.investigate911.com/pre911.ram= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Please note that Greg Palast will be a keynote speaker with Amy Goodman at the One World Fair. For more information on this and other key events, see
"Campaigns, Actions & Events" ==>
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