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NuclearHypocrisy * BushTorture * MooreVOTES


23 June 2004


"I have never ordered torture."

George W. Bush

(22 June 2004)


1) "World's Nuclear Powers Decried as Hypocrites"
2) "Bush Claimed Right to Waive Torture Laws"

- - Pentagon Memo Undermines the U.S. Constitution
- - Support for Bush's War on Terror Slips, Poll Shows
- - Will the 9/11 Commissioners Cave?
3) Democracy Now! -- Headlines for June 21, 2004
- U..S. Exaggerated Danger of Gitmo Detainees
- U.S. Running Two Dozens Secret Detention Centers
- Al Qaeda Says Saudi Officials Helped Abduct U.S. worker
- NLG: Bush Should Be Prosecuted for War Crimes
- Hersh: Israeli Mossad Operating in Iraq, Iran & Syria
4) Register Voters at Fahrenheit 9/11
- - "Breaking The Silence: Truth and Lies in the War on Terror"
5) Rhino Blog's bottom line - Gambling on Voting
- - Black Box Backlash
- - One Million Black Votes Didn't Count in the 2000 Presidential Election
6) Kucinich: Amazing Results from Texas
- - Kucinich visits Browning and Montana's Indian reservations
7) Leonard Peltier - eagle soars in the circle for freedom
- - Message from Leonard
- - Leonard Peltier: America's Political Prisoner
- - Oglala and other June 26 Commemoration Events
- - Amherst MA Peltier Circle June 26 gathering
- - Now to the opposition for a pseudo reasoning of justice
- - Leonard Peltier for the Nobel Peace Prize

Editor's Notes:

Originally heard Election Day 2000 – the Democracy Now! interview with then-sitting president was recently re-broadcast.".. They discussed many topics you won't likely hear raised this week: Leonard Peltier, racial profiling, the Iraqi sanctions, Ralph Nader and the Israeli-Palestinian situation. At one point Clinton accused Amy of being "hostile and combative." On the next day the president's aides threatened to ban Amy from the White House. Amy and her brother David Goodman wrote about the interview in their new book, The Exception to the Rulers: Exposing Oily Politicians, War Profiteers, and the Media That Love Them."

For excerpts see this link to part of the Chapter titled: "Not On Bended Knee."

Following is the segment regarding Amy's question on Leonard Peltier -

Amy Goodman Interviews Bill Clinton

GOODMAN: President Clinton, what is your position on granting Leonard Peltier, the Native American activist, executive clemency?

CLINTON: I know it's very important to a lot of people, maybe on both sides of the issue. And I think I owe it to them to give it an honest look-see. . . . And I pledge to do that.

GOODMAN: And you will give an answer in his case?

CLINTON: Oh, yeah, I'll decide one way or the other.*

[*Clinton did not act on Peltier's application for clemency. The
Native American activist, who is serving two life sentences for
the shooting death of two FBI agents, has been imprisoned
since 1977. Peltier continues to maintain his innocence.
Amnesty International has appealed for his release.]


People don't realize the significance of Bill Clinton's mentioning the name "Leonard Peltier" in public. Leonard was the only one named, too, for executive clemency consideration prior to his granting the last wave of about 100 pardons in his last day in office. Clinton wanted to give Clemency to Leonard Peltier and sought the public and activists' support for this decision. We had 3,000 marching in the streets of NYC, with little media, the FBI had 500 agents march to the White House to encourage Clinton's consideration of their serious feelings on this case. This march by law enforcement, though they said they were off-duty, was praised by superior FBI members as a good deed. Well, how else will you know who to promote to continue a load of scandalous hidden-affairs? This distortion of national security interests goes against the heart of the US Constitution. This is why Leonard Peltier being free is so important – he represents a turnaround from the current state of illicit affairs, which have many of their roots in COINTELpro and the National Security Act of 1947. It was on the day of Lord Bush's inauguration that President Clinton signed an agreement for four conditions to avoid possible prosecution for lying under the oath in the Clinton-Lewinsky affair. The FBI and "Justice Department" had plenty of leverage to get what they wanted out of Clinton before the Bush Neocons took over. Based on the evidence this group is more than just ruthless, but reckless, and connected to the nuclear weapon oil congress media pharmaceutical industry – which leads in to our first item on this issue of nuclear hypocrisy and the danger it represents.

Please note events on June 26 in commemoration for Leonard Peltier - and update on Congressman Dennis Kucinich – congratulations, too, to the Texas Democratic legislature - that chose to endorse the Department of Peace Department as a Plank in the Party's Platform for the 2004 Presidential Election. If all the good people unite, we can lead John Kerry in the direction of peace, and in the importance to free Leonard Peltier. Kudos to Michael Moore and John Pilger for their flicks – please note the important drive to help your neighbors and friends register to vote at the movies. Don't let them be cynical. We are aware of the vote fraud, but it is time to call them on it! We can join in such great numbers that no one will dare question the majority of real votes - - increasing the nonvoter turnout is critical and Michael Moore's movie may be just the best ticket to amass the multitudes. Take Action!

"The world is a dangerous place,
not because of those who do evil,
but because of those who look on and do nothing"

-- Albert Einstein


Thank goodness for Bev Harris!

Thanks for everyone contributing to such critical campaigns.

Let's find the way to END THE WAR.



"A very great vision is needed and the [one] who
has it must follow it as the eagle seeks the
deepest blue of the sky."


– Crazy Horse




1) "World's Nuclear Powers Decried as Hypocrites"

Published by the Boston Globe
Tuesday, June 22, 2004

World's Nuclear Powers Decried as Hypocrites
UN agency chief says reliance cripples push to halt proliferation
by Bryan Bender

WASHINGTON -- The world's nuclear powers have failed to reduce their reliance on atomic weapons, creating a double standard that plagues international efforts to reduce their spread, the United Nations top nuclear watchdog said yesterday.

With the growing availability of weapons of mass destruction materials and expertise to states and terrorist groups, one of the largest obstacles to countering nuclear proliferation is the hypocrisy at the heart of global nuclear policy, said Mohamed ElBaradei, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency. The nuclear powers pressuring countries like Iran and North Korea to forgo nuclear arms are clinging to the weapons as the centerpiece of their own security, despite pledges more than 30 years ago to reduce their dependence on them, he said.

The time is long overdue to "abandon the unworkable notion that it is morally reprehensible for some countries to pursue nuclear weapons but morally acceptable for others to rely on them," ElBaradei said in a speech to the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington.

For the complete article, see:
commondreams.org/headlines04/0622-01.htm



2) "Bush Claimed Right to Waive Torture Laws"

- - Pentagon Memo Undermines the U.S. Constitution
- - Support for Bush's War on Terror Slips, Poll Shows
- - Will the 9/11 Commissioners Cave?


"Bush Claimed Right to Waive Torture Laws"

From Citizens for Legitimate Government

Bush Claimed Right to Waive Torture Laws --Bush claimed the right to waive anti-torture laws and treaties covering prisoners of war after the invasion of Afghanistan, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld authorized guards to strip detainees and threaten them with dogs, according to documents released Tuesday.

For AP news article, see:

story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=536&e=1&u=/ap/20040623/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_prisoner_abuse

[Excerpts]

"I have never ordered torture."

George W. Bush
22 June 2004

"..But critics said the developments left unresolved some questions about the administration's current guidelines for interrogating prisoners in Iraq [link] and around the world. For example, a 2002 order signed by Bush says the president reserves the right to suspend the Geneva Conventions on treatment of prisoners of war at any time.

"These documents raise more questions than they answer," said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. "The White House is better off coming clean and releasing all relevant and non-classified documents."'

For complete article with links, see:
story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=536&e=1&u=/ap/20040623/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_prisoner_abuse

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- - Pentagon Memo Undermines the U.S. Constitution
By Alia Malek
The Toronto Daily Star
June 22, 2004
truthout.org/docs_04/062304B.shtml

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- - Support for Bush's War on Terror Slips, Poll Shows
By Richard Morin and Dan Balz
Washington Post

21 June 2004

Public anxiety over mounting casualties in Iraq and the doubts about long-term consequences of the war continue to rise and have helped to erase President Bush's once-formidable advantage over Sen. John F. Kerry on who is best able to deal with terrorist threats, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Exactly half the country now approves of the way Bush is managing the U.S. war on terrorism, down 13 points since April, according to the poll. Barely two months ago, Bush comfortably led Kerry, the presumptive Democratic nominee, by 21 percentage points when voters were asked which man they trusted to deal with the terrorist threat. Today the country is evenly divided, with 48 percent preferring Kerry and 47 percent favoring Bush.

truthout.org/docs_04/062304D.shtml

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- - Will the 9/11 Commissioners Cave?
By Ray McGovern

Will the Sept. 11 Commission follow the example set by Congress and the Intelligence Community and let itself be intimidated by Vice President Dick Cheney?

Now that the commission's staff report has pulled the rug out from under the notion so successfully fostered by the administration that Iraq played a role in the attacks of 9/11, no one should be surprised if the commissioners pull the rug out from under the staff. There are disquieting signs that this has already begun to happen.

truthout.org/docs_04/062304A.shtml



3) Democracy Now! -- Headlines for June 21, 2004

- U.S. Exaggerated Danger of Gitmo Detainees
- U.S. Running Two Dozens Secret Detention Centers
- Al Qaeda Says Saudi Officials Helped Abduct U.S. worker
- NLG: Bush Should Be Prosecuted for War Crimes
- Hersh: Israeli Mossad Operating in Iraq, Iran & Syria

U.S. Exaggerated Danger & Importance of Guantanamo Bay Detainees
The New York Times is reporting today that the detainees held in isolation at Guantanamo Bay have produced little useful intelligence and that maybe no more than a dozen of the 600 detainees are sworn members of Al Qaeda. The Times concludes "government and military officials have repeatedly exaggerated both the danger the detainees posed and the intelligence they have provided. The Supreme Court is expected to rule soon whether the US government can legally detain the men there indefinitely without ever pressing charges.

Report: U.S. Running Two Dozens Secret Detention Centers
While Guantanamo Bay is the most publicized U.S.-run detention center, the Washington-based group Human Rights First has issued a new report on how the U.S. is now running two dozen secret detention centers around the world. The report concluded "The U.S. government is holding prisoners in a secret system of off-shore prisons beyond the reach of adequate supervision and accountability of law." Some of the detention centers are believed to be located in Pakistan along the Afghan border; on the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia and in Jordan.

U.S. Military Judge: Abu Ghraib Is ‘Crime Scene'
Meanwhile a U.S. military judge has ordered the Abu Ghraib prison not be torn down because it is a crime scene.

Hersh: Israeli Mossad Operating in Iraq, Iran & Syria Investigative reporter Seymour Hersh has revealed in the pages of the New Yorker that hundreds of Israeli agents, including members of Mossad, are now operating in the Kurdish areas of northern Iraq. In addition Mossad is now conducting covert operations in Kurdish areas of Iran and Syria. One former Israeli intelligence officer told Hersh "It's Realpolitik. By aligning with the Kurds Israel gains eyes and ears in Iran, Iraq and Syria." In other news from northern Iraq, the New York Times is reporting mass numbers of Kurds are ignoring US orders and reclaiming land in the area that had been seized by Iraqi Arabs during Saddam Hussein's reign.

Iraqi PM Allawi: Martial Law May Soon Be Imposed
The appointed prime minister of Iraq Iyad Allawi announced Sunday the new unelected government may soon impose martial law and ban all public demonstrations. Other Iraqi officials said the government may set up more checkpoints, issue curfews and change the existing law to make it easier for police to search homes.

U.S. Attacks Kills 22 In Fallujah
In addition, Allawi defended the U.S. military attack in Fallujah that killed 22 people. The U.S. said it was attempting to kill Abu Musab Zarqawi, the Jordanian man who has been blamed for leading the Iraqi resistance. The U.S. claimed it hit a safehouse and that close associates of Zarqawi died but a member of the US-backed Fallujah Brigade told USA Today that the house contained ordinary families with women, children and elders.

Cheney Faces Possible Indictment in Halliburton Bribery Case
The Observer of London is reporting Vice President Dick Cheney could be indicted in a $180 million bribery investigation in Nigeria involving Halliburtion, the company that he headed before becoming the Vice President.

Kerry: Raise Minimum Wage To $7/hour
In campaign news, John Kerry has called for the minimum wage to be increased from $5.15 an hour to $7 an hour by 2007.

Enron's Ken Lay Could Soon Be Indicted
And sources close to the grand jury probing the collapse of Enron report the company's founder Kenneth Lay could be indicted on charges by the end of the month. Lay is a close friend of President Bush and was one of his top campaign backers during the 2000 election.

For more on these headlines see:
democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/06/21/1410218
or for today's show, see:
DemocracyNow.org



4) Register Voters at Fahrenheit 9/11

- - "Breaking The Silence: Truth and Lies in the War on Terror"

When voters walk out Fahrenheit 9/11 they will be ready to vote George Bush out of office. We recommend that you be waiting outside the theatre with voter registration cards. Hand them out, if someone wants 10 give them 10, people will be motivated to register their family and friends after this movie. Voice4Change is in contact with Lions Gate one of the distributors of the movie, and we are asking them to suggest to theatres to allow groups to set up voter registration tables inside the lobby or outside the theatre.

For more information, see:
voice4change.org/stories/showstory.asp?file=040621~v4c.asp

[ Also, please consider sending your snail mail address to info@flybynews.com for FlybyNews.com address-strips to share such resources as on "The Bush Conspiracy and 9/11 Investigative Reports, looking into the unanswered questions." ]

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- - "Breaking The Silence: Truth and Lies in the War on Terror"

Flyby News recommends getting this film from the distributor:
bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/break.html

But this movie is truly worth seeing, even online, thanks to Information Clearinghouse

Watch -- John Pilger's "Breaking The Silence: Truth and Lies in the War on Terror."
Online linked from following URL:
informationclearinghouse.info/pilger_breaking_the_silence_35mb.htm

Better yet, host a Flyby News co-sponsored presentation of Pilger's film followed by the 18-minute "A Prayer for America" speech by Dennis Kucinich of February 17, 2002.
{We can send you a PDF file for a flyer on such an event.}

These and other film programs are linked for: Films that Make a Difference!



For items 5-7

5) Rhino Blog's bottom line - Gambling on Voting
- - Black Box Backlash
- - One Million Black Votes Didn't Count in the 2000 Presidential Election
6) Kucinich: Amazing Results from Texas
- - Kucinich visits Browning and Montana's Indian reservations
7) Leonard Peltier - eagle soars in the circle for freedom
- - Message from Leonard
- - Leonard Peltier: America's Political Prisoner
- - Oglala and other June 26 Commemoration Events
- - Amherst MA Peltier Circle June 26 gathering
- - Now to the opposition for a pseudo reasoning of justice
- - Leonard Peltier for the Nobel Peace Prize

See: ==> VoteGamble * KucinTexasPeace. * PeltierJustice


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=====News Fit to Transmit in the Post Cassini Flyby Era====>

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