[Powderworks] Lotsa' stuff
Kate Parker Adams
kate@dnki.net
Fri, 28 Mar 2003 16:22:00 -0500
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Well said Tom. You Rock!
I will be willing to believe this war is about human rights when Kissenger
is extradited in connection with Allende's murder, when aid to
Israel/Palestine is tied to human rights monitors and weapons inspectors
policing both sides, when China's MFN status is openly questioned, when
abuse in the Maquiladoras is not business as usual, when we rethink our
escalating School of the Americas strategy in Columbia (the present one
being the same as that which begat previous Latin American quagmires), when
women in INS detention centers have sanitary napkins and all detainees have
toilet paper, when the President puts aid to Afganistan in his budget
request (rather than congress having to add it in), when public health aid
is unfettered by puritanical family planning restrictions, so on, so
forth. But that would, of course, require that we look into human rights
abuses on our own soil ... and address our own weapons of mass destruction
that I grew up so wonderfully close to.
But hey!, we do have ample justification to bomb France. They did send
clandestine operatives to another sovereign nation (New Zealand) without
permission and blew up a ship a few years ago. REMEMBER THE RAINBOW
WARRIOR! Yeah, that's the spirit! U.S.A.! U.S.A!
At 01:51 AM 3/29/03 +1100, Tom Spencer wrote:
>Dear Dan, Jacques and fellow Powderworkers,
>
>Hello! I live in Australia, where, as in 99.9999% of
>the world, most people watch American TV shows, listen
>to American music, pick up on American ideas and
>phrases and have heard of the American Constitution
>and the wonderful values such as free speech that it
>embodies. Most non-Americans like America. After 911
>France's daily newspaper 'Le Monde' said, in sympathy,
>'We are all American'. So the suggestion that
>America's political opponents such as France hate
>American culture and its freedoms is just nonsense.
>
>What people overseas find nauseating is the hypocrisy
>of certain aspects of the US Government. For years the
>US Govt (and other western governments such as that of
>Australia) said NOTHING about human rights abuses in
>Iraq, just as it said NOTHING about human rights
>abuses in other countries, but in fact for years sold
>dictators such as Saddam Hussein the materials with
>they did their worst.
>
>The West is so sure that Iraq has weapons of mass
>destruction, perhaps because its defence contractors
>kept the receipts.
>
>Jacques points out the terrible suffering Saddam
>inflicted during the Iran-Iraq war. But the US backed
>IRAQ during that war. It feared the Iranian religious
>fundamentalism of the Ayatollah. It much preferred the
>secularist Saddam, and was happy to let him stay in
>power afterward, which was when he performed many of
>the atrocities Jacques referred to.
>
>That secularism of Saddam's is the precisely why Osama
>Bin Laden calls Iraq 'infidel', and why, again, there
>is absolutely NO evidence connecting Iraq to 911.
>Saudis, not Iraqis, were overwhelmingly predominant
>that day. Bush is simply bullshitting the American
>people in suggesting otherwise, just as Clinton
>deceived America by bombing a Sudanese pharmaceuticals
>factory the day that Monica Lewinsky gave testimony
>against him.
>
>Given that free speech and human rights are vital,
>isn't 'embedding' the media in Iraq a disgusting
>restriction of free speech, a reaction to the vivid
>news coverage that stopped the Vietnam War? And isn't
>the detention at Guantanamo Bay without lawyers or
>contact with the outside world a denial of the human
>rights guaranteed by the Geneva Convention, which Mr
>Rumsfeld now wants Iraq to apply (quite rightly) to US
>soldiers held by Iraq? (Not to mention the buckets of
>money that US companies are pouring into China, a
>terrible violator of human rights) The current Bush
>agenda is not really about protecting free speech and
>human rights, but a distraction from the 'war on
>terror', which should uphold these things.
>
>Finally, for Jacques to talk about Saddam starving the
>people of Iraq is to over-simplify matters. It was the
>US Govt that repeatedly insisted that Iraq had more
>weapons of mass destruction, despite the UN's UNSCOM
>weapons inspectors clearing 90% of such Iraqi weapons,
>by 1995, according to Scott Ritter, the head of 14
>inspections, in his film 'In Shifting Sands'. Thus,
>under the agreement made after the 1991 Gulf War, the
>UN did not lift the sanctions against Iraq which were
>starving children. Despite distinguished military
>service in the US Marines and elsewhere Ritter
>resigned from UNSCOM upon concluding that the US Govt
>was using the inspections process to try to provoke
>war with Iraq, rather than to rid Iraq of its weapons
>of mass destruction.
>
>The US was founded on the noblest traditions of free
>speech and human rights, but Bush and his posse are
>currently undermining those traditions, rather than
>applying them to the worldwide activities of the US
>Government, as the rest of the world would like to
>see.
>
>I would also like to endorse Geordie's suggestion that
>we read widely. Robert Fisk's web site is a cracker.
>An award-winning journalist, he is uniquely qualified
>in having been in the Middle East for longer than most
>other reporters.
>
>Tom Spencer
>
>=====
>Put down that weapon, or we'll all be gone.
>You must be crazy, if you think you're strong.
> - Midnight Oil
>
>I disown any ads associated with this email.
>
>http://mobile.yahoo.com.au - Yahoo! Mobile
>- Check & compose your email via SMS on your Telstra or Vodafone mobile.
>_______________________________________________
>Powderworks mailing list
>Powderworks@cs.colorado.edu
>http://www.cs.colorado.edu/mailman/listinfo/powderworks
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<html>
Well said Tom. You Rock!<br>
<br>
I will be willing to believe this war is about human rights when
Kissenger is extradited in connection with Allende's murder, when aid to
Israel/Palestine is tied to human rights monitors and weapons inspectors
policing <u>both</u> sides, when China's MFN status is openly questioned,
when abuse in the Maquiladoras is not business as usual, when we rethink
our escalating School of the Americas strategy in Columbia (the present
one being the same as that which begat previous Latin American
quagmires), when women in INS detention centers have sanitary napkins and
all detainees have toilet paper, when the President puts aid to
Afganistan in his budget request (rather than congress having to add it
in), when public health aid is unfettered by puritanical family planning
restrictions, so on, so forth. But that would, of course, require
that we look into human rights abuses on our own soil ... and address our
own weapons of mass destruction that I grew up so wonderfully close
to.<br>
<br>
But hey!, we do have ample justification to bomb France. They did
send clandestine operatives to another sovereign nation (New Zealand)
without permission and blew up a ship a few years ago. REMEMBER THE
RAINBOW WARRIOR! Yeah, that's the spirit! U.S.A.!
U.S.A!<br>
<br>
At 01:51 AM 3/29/03 +1100, Tom Spencer wrote:<br>
<blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>Dear Dan, Jacques and fellow
Powderworkers,<br>
<br>
Hello! I live in Australia, where, as in 99.9999% of<br>
the world, most people watch American TV shows, listen<br>
to American music, pick up on American ideas and<br>
phrases and have heard of the American Constitution<br>
and the wonderful values such as free speech that it<br>
embodies. Most non-Americans like America. After 911<br>
France's daily newspaper 'Le Monde' said, in sympathy,<br>
'We are all American'. So the suggestion that<br>
America's political opponents such as France hate<br>
American culture and its freedoms is just nonsense.<br>
<br>
What people overseas find nauseating is the hypocrisy<br>
of certain aspects of the US Government. For years the<br>
US Govt (and other western governments such as that of<br>
Australia) said NOTHING about human rights abuses in<br>
Iraq, just as it said NOTHING about human rights<br>
abuses in other countries, but in fact for years sold<br>
dictators such as Saddam Hussein the materials with<br>
they did their worst.<br>
<br>
The West is so sure that Iraq has weapons of mass<br>
destruction, perhaps because its defence contractors<br>
kept the receipts.<br>
<br>
Jacques points out the terrible suffering Saddam<br>
inflicted during the Iran-Iraq war. But the US backed<br>
IRAQ during that war. It feared the Iranian religious<br>
fundamentalism of the Ayatollah. It much preferred the<br>
secularist Saddam, and was happy to let him stay in<br>
power afterward, which was when he performed many of<br>
the atrocities Jacques referred to. <br>
<br>
That secularism of Saddam's is the precisely why Osama<br>
Bin Laden calls Iraq 'infidel', and why, again, there<br>
is absolutely NO evidence connecting Iraq to 911.<br>
Saudis, not Iraqis, were overwhelmingly predominant<br>
that day. Bush is simply bullshitting the American<br>
people in suggesting otherwise, just as Clinton<br>
deceived America by bombing a Sudanese pharmaceuticals<br>
factory the day that Monica Lewinsky gave testimony<br>
against him.<br>
<br>
Given that free speech and human rights are vital,<br>
isn't 'embedding' the media in Iraq a disgusting<br>
restriction of free speech, a reaction to the vivid<br>
news coverage that stopped the Vietnam War? And isn't<br>
the detention at Guantanamo Bay without lawyers or<br>
contact with the outside world a denial of the human<br>
rights guaranteed by the Geneva Convention, which Mr<br>
Rumsfeld now wants Iraq to apply (quite rightly) to US<br>
soldiers held by Iraq? (Not to mention the buckets of<br>
money that US companies are pouring into China, a<br>
terrible violator of human rights) The current Bush<br>
agenda is not really about protecting free speech and<br>
human rights, but a distraction from the 'war on<br>
terror', which should uphold these things.<br>
<br>
Finally, for Jacques to talk about Saddam starving the<br>
people of Iraq is to over-simplify matters. It was the<br>
US Govt that repeatedly insisted that Iraq had more<br>
weapons of mass destruction, despite the UN's UNSCOM<br>
weapons inspectors clearing 90% of such Iraqi weapons,<br>
by 1995, according to Scott Ritter, the head of 14<br>
inspections, in his film 'In Shifting Sands'. Thus,<br>
under the agreement made after the 1991 Gulf War, the<br>
UN did not lift the sanctions against Iraq which were<br>
starving children. Despite distinguished military<br>
service in the US Marines and elsewhere Ritter<br>
resigned from UNSCOM upon concluding that the US Govt<br>
was using the inspections process to try to provoke<br>
war with Iraq, rather than to rid Iraq of its weapons<br>
of mass destruction.<br>
<br>
The US was founded on the noblest traditions of free<br>
speech and human rights, but Bush and his posse are<br>
currently undermining those traditions, rather than<br>
applying them to the worldwide activities of the US<br>
Government, as the rest of the world would like to<br>
see.<br>
<br>
I would also like to endorse Geordie's suggestion that<br>
we read widely. Robert Fisk's web site is a cracker.<br>
An award-winning journalist, he is uniquely qualified<br>
in having been in the Middle East for longer than most<br>
other reporters.<br>
<br>
Tom Spencer<br>
<br>
=====<br>
Put down that weapon, or we'll all be gone.<br>
You must be crazy, if you think you're strong.<br>
- Midnight Oil<br>
<br>
I disown any ads associated with this email.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://mobile.yahoo.com.au/" eudora="autourl">http://mobile.yahoo.com.au</a>
- Yahoo! Mobile<br>
- Check & compose your email via SMS on your Telstra or Vodafone mobile.<br>
_______________________________________________<br>
Powderworks mailing list<br>
Powderworks@cs.colorado.edu<br>
<a href="http://www.cs.colorado.edu/mailman/listinfo/powderworks" eudora="autourl">http://www.cs.colorado.edu/mailman/listinfo/powderworks</a> </blockquote></html>
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