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Morning headlines brought to you by Carolyn Kay MakeThemAccountable.com Top StoryOops, We Invaded The Wrong Country (by David Kurtz at Talking Points Memo)
(What) the new Iran NIE … really means is that faced with two neighbors in the spring of 2003 who both harbored nuclear ambitions, we invaded the country without an active WMD program while ignoring the one that did. I'm not suggesting we should have invaded Iran instead, but by the Administration's own reckoning, we should have. It puts an exclamation point on the colossal folly of our Iraq adventure. Disttessed American at Seeds of Doubt
The WorldFemale suicide bomber in Iraq kills 15
BAGHDAD - A female suicide bomber detonated an explosives belt Friday outside the offices of an anti-al-Qaida group that has joined forces with the U.S., killing at least 15 people, police said. It was Iraq's second suicide attack involving a woman in less than two weeks.
Baghdad may be safer, but few Iraqis in Syria risk returning
Despite reports of more Iraqis returning to Baghdad in response to the drop in violence there, there's no flood of Iraqis leaving Syria to go home. Interviews with refugees and aid workers indicate that most Iraqis share Jawad's opinion — that the current letup in violence is fleeting and that it's wiser to stay put than return to neighborhoods still controlled by the same unpredictable militants who forced them to flee.
Israeli officials reject U.S. findings on Iran
Israeli officials, who've been warning that Iran would soon pose a nuclear threat to the world, reacted angrily Tuesday to a new U.S. intelligence finding that Iran stopped its nuclear weapons development program in 2003 and to date hasn't resumed trying to produce nuclear weapons.
Two-thirds of Israelis oppose attack on Iran: poll
Two-thirds of Israelis oppose their country launching on its own a military attack against nuclear installations in arch-foe Iran, said a poll published on Thursday. When asked "should Israel alone attack the Iranian nuclear installations," 67.2 percent said no, while 20.9 percent said yes and 11.9 percent had no opinion, said the survey aired on public radio.
EU, NATO to keep pressure on Iran despite report
PARIS (Reuters) - Germany and France said on Thursday Iran's nuclear program was still a threat and the search for more U.N. sanctions should go on despite a U.S. intelligence report that Tehran was no longer trying to build an atomic bomb.
Pakistani opposition struggles to agree poll tactics
ISLAMABAD (AFP) - Pakistan's two main opposition leaders have failed to overcome key differences preventing them forging a united front ahead of general elections in January, party officials said Friday.
Warships head to Mediterranean in Russian show of strength
Russia has dispatched an 11-ship aircraft carrier group to the Mediterranean Sea as a first step towards re-establishing a naval presence in the region.
Chavez says he will govern until 2013 after losing referendum
CARACAS (AFP) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said on Thursday he will govern until 2013 when his mandate ends, now that voters rejected constitutional reforms that would have allowed him to seek endless reelection. The NationAs debate rages, U.S. intelligence official defends new Iran report
WASHINGTON — A senior U.S. intelligence official on Thursday defended a new intelligence report that Iran had halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003 as "one of the most well-sourced" assessments ever produced, even as critics charged that it was rife with flaws.
Haaretz: Israelis knew of Iran NIE before Bush?
According to Haaretz, Israel has known about the Iran NIE “for more than a month. The first information on it was passed on to Defense Minister Ehud Barak, and to Shaul Mofaz, who is the minister responsible for the strategic dialog with the Americans. The issue was also discussed at the Annapolis summit by Barak and U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, and it seems also between Bush and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.” But Bush claims he didn’t get briefed on the NIE until last Wednesday.
The Israelis knew about the imminent attacks prior to 9/11, too, and the administration claims it didn’t know.—Caro
US presses on with missile defense plan
WASHINGTON - The United States says it will not alter plans to build a missile defense system in Europe despite findings by U.S. intelligence agencies that Iran does not have an active nuclear weapons program.
Cheney bashes top Democrats (Politico)
Vice President Cheney warned in an interview Wednesday that a premature withdrawal from Iraq would invite “further attacks” against the United States and said he has been surprised by the weakness of the Democratic Congress… (T)hroughout the interview, Cheney left no doubt that he takes pride even in some of the most-criticized policies of the Bush administration, including the wiretapping of suspected terrorists, and the long-term imprisonment and aggressive interrogation of suspected terrorists at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
He faulted the Democrats for listening to a girl—Nancy Pelosi, that is. The man is clearly delusional.—Caro
Cheney: ‘I’d Have To Go Back And Do A Lot Of Research’ To See If Rove Is Right About War Vote (from the transcript of the interview written about above)
Like Karl Rove, Dick Cheney seems to have forgotten how the Iraq War got started. In an exclusive interview with Mike Allen, Jim Vandehei and John Harris of Politico.com, he said he’d have to do a little research to figure out just who was pushing whom to war.
Military Families Question Iraq War as Support for Bush Slips
Dec. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Kent Fletcher, an Iraq war veteran, says he enthusiastically voted for President George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004. Now, he is a registered Democrat who questions the need for the war, the way it has been managed and the treatment of returning veterans.
More than $1 billion in military equipment missing in Iraq.
A new Government Accountability Office report details “massive failure in government procurement,” revealing that there is “more than $1 billion in unaccounted for military equipment and services provided to the Iraqi security forces.” According to the analysis, the military, for example, “could not account for 12,712 out of 13,508 weapons, including pistols, assault rifles, rocket propelled grenade launchers and machine guns.”
State Dept. retains manager of troubled embassy project
WASHINGTON — A State Department project manager banished from Iraq by the U.S. ambassador and under scrutiny by the Justice Department continues to oversee the construction of the much-delayed new American embassy in Baghdad from nearby Kuwait, State Department officials disclosed Thursday.
Tax, spending issues frustrate Democrats
WASHINGTON - Cracks are emerging in congressional Democrats' solidarity, as frustrated lawmakers concede their majority status is not enough to overcome Republican resistance on taxes, spending, Iraq and a host of other issues.
Democrats are only frustrated because THEY REFUSE TO USE THE FILIBUSTER, for which they only need 41 votes. How many times do we have to say it?—Caro
Senate-passed bill blocks tax increase
WASHINGTON - The Senate voted Thursday to block a looming tax increase averaging $2,000 for millions of taxpayers after Senate Republicans succeeded in thwarting a Democratic plan to also raise taxes on investors.
Lawmakers agree on defense policy bill
WASHINGTON - House and Senate lawmakers on Thursday agreed on a Pentagon policy bill that would authorize $696 billion in defense spending, including $189 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
House passes energy bill but Bush set to veto
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed an energy bill that would boost vehicle fuel economy requirements by 40 percent by 2020, raise ethanol use by five-fold by 2022 and impose $13 billion in new taxes on big energy companies.
Skeptical Supreme Court ponders major Guantanamo case
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court justices sounded skeptical Wednesday about the Bush administration's treatment of foreign-born prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay, raising questions about the future of White House war-on-terrorism tactics.
Hayden says CIA videotapes destroyed
WASHINGTON - The CIA videotaped its interrogations of two top terror suspects in 2002 and destroyed the tapes three years later out of fear they would leak to the public and compromise the identities of U.S. questioners, the director of the agency told employees Thursday.
Trust them. He says Congress was briefed.—Caro MediaPermanent link to MTA daily media news
Presidential coffers set to boost ad spending
Political campaigns likely will spend more than $4.5 billion on ads and marketing in the 2008 election season, a 64% leap from 2004 — the last cycle with a presidential race — research and consulting firm PQ Media says in a report out Thursday.
Please don’t ever forget that most of the money donated to political campaigns, including those for Democratic candidates, ends up in the pockets of the very media moguls who pay their employees well to say derogatory things about Democrats and to puff up Republicans. We’re paying for our own destruction.—Caro
MoveOn.org Shouldn't Attack Petraeus BUT Bolton Can Smear Entire National Intelligence Establishment? (by Steve Clemons at The Washington Note)
When MoveOn.org ran full page ads just before the Congressional testimony of General David Petraeus and Ryan Crocker with huge headlines saying "General Petraeus or General Betray Us?", John Bolton's fellow travelers went great lengths to condemn Move On for its lack of appropriate respect for dedicated national security leaders… But in (Thursday’s) Washington Post, John Bolton -- who in addition to his own State Department team was infamous for trying to mine raw intelligence and manipulate it towards political ends -- essentially accuses the entire national security intelligence establishment of betraying American interests in the 2007 Iran National Intelligence Estimate.
Will there be outrage?—Caro
Washington Post’s ‘fair and balanced’ op-ed page.
Gracing the Washington Post’s opinion page (Thursday) are two former Bush administration officials, two movement conservatives and a journalist-turned-columnist warning that “47 million uninsured” isn’t “our biggest health-care problem.” Hardly anyone’s idea of balance. Here’s how the page is advertised on the frontpage of the Post’s website:
Joe Klein Calls Bush’s Response To NIE ‘An Amazing Moment Of Candor By The United States’
This week Joe Klein authors Time’s front cover story on Iran, titled, “Iran’s Nukes: Now They Tell Us,” in reference to the recent intelligence revelations that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003. (Thursday) on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Klein cheered President Bush’s response to the NIE, stating that it was “an amazing moment of candor by the United States”.
If candor = lying, that is.—Caro
White House On Bush's Iran Lie: It Depends On What The Meaning Of "Was" Is (by Greg Sargent at TPM Horse’s Mouth)
Perino confirms … that the President was in fact told that the new intel might be saying that the nuke program was suspended. But she says Bush nonetheless wasn't lying. How is this possible, you ask. Well, the White House's absurd spin now is actually that Bush's phrase "he didn't tell me what the information was" actually meant, "he didn't tell me what the specifics of the information were." In other words, it depends on what the meaning of the word "was" is.
Neocon Job (by Keith Olbermann)
We have either a president who is too dishonest to restrain himself from invoking World War Three about Iran at least six weeks after he had to have known that the analogy would be fantastic, irresponsible hyperbole -- or we have a president too transcendently stupid not to have asked -- at what now appears to have been a series of opportunities to do so -- whether the fairy tales he either created or was fed, were still even remotely plausible.
Intel report sinks CNN Iran special
HOLLYWOOD -- The latest National Intelligence Estimate concluding that Iran discontinued its nuclear weapons program four years ago has claimed one casualty: CNN has postponed speculative documentary "We Were Warned -- Iran Goes Nuclear."
What the hell is a “speculative” documentary? If it isn’t presenting facts, doesn’t that make it “fiction”?—Caro
THEY COULD TELL US THAT—BUT THEY WON’T: (by Bob Somerby at the Daily Howler)
(W)hat Atrios said is perfectly accurate; the re-emergence of (the Mike Huckabee/Wayne Dumond) story gives the press a chance to tell you how “bat-shit insane” the Clinton-haters were in the 1990s. But let’s note an obvious point: The press corps isn’t going to do that! You simply won’t see the mainstream press corps exploring that part of the story… They won’t take the chance to tell that story because they were up to their ears in the lunacy too—and still are, right up to this day.
What happens when papers don't supervise unpaid bloggers
Sharon Gray, an unpaid blogger for billionaire Philip Anchutz's San Francisco Examiner, created the appearance of being an unusually prolific investigative reporter and photographer, when in fact much of her work was taken from elsewhere on the Internet, writes Matt Smith. "Gray's unsupervised, unpaid efforts may actually provide a glimmer of hope to us paid news hacks by showing that free isn't always a bargain."
The same is true of unsupervised or poorly supervised “real” journalists.—Caro
Watching What You See on the Web
The newer form of behavioral targeting involves placing gear called "deep-packet inspection boxes" inside an Internet provider's network of pipes and wires. Instead of observing only a select number of Web sites, these boxes can track all of the sites a consumer visits, and deliver far more detailed information to potential advertisers. Technology & ScienceIBM says breakthrough heralds supercomputer on chip
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - IBM says it has made a breakthrough in converting electrical signals into light pulses that brings closer the day when supercomputing, which now requires huge machines, will be done on a single chip.
Dell to Sell Computers in Best Buy Stores
Dell built its business around selling personal computers directly to customers, but it has been cutting deals with retailers as growth of PC sales slowed.
HDTV's clarity gives rise to new channels
It's a fresh dawn for television. In fact, it's Sunrise Earth, the daylight-breaking series that simply sets up cameras in some stunningly remote locale bison grazing in the prairies of Yellowstone, a canoe skimming the glossy surface of the Mother of God River in Peru, a butterfly emerging from its pupa in the Costa Rican rain forest — as the sun comes up.
Tail stem cells used to cure sickle cell anemia in mice
CHICAGO (AFP) - Stem cell research took another major step forward Thursday when scientists announced they had cured sickle cell anemia in mice using stem cells derived from adult skin.
Cell Transplants Hold Promise for Heart Attack Survivors
Studies in mice suggest they might prevent cardiac arrest
Green Tea, Fruit Extracts Touted as Potential Cancer Fighters
Preliminary research shows promise against colorectal, prostate and oral tumors.
Kids Eat More Fruits, Vegetables When Schools Offer Salad Bar
ScienceDaily (Dec. 7, 2007) — A new UCLA study has found that elementary schools can significantly increase the frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption among low-income students by providing a lunch salad bar.
Subliminal Smells Bias Perception About A Person's Likeability
ScienceDaily (Dec. 7, 2007) — Anyone who has bonded with a puppy madly sniffing with affection gets an idea of how scents, most not apparent to humans, are critical to a dog's appreciation of her two-legged friends. Now new research from Northwestern University suggests that humans also pick up infinitesimal scents that affect whether or not we like somebody.
Archaeologists uncover Jerusalem mansion
JERUSALEM - Israeli archaeologists uncovered a 2,000-year-old mansion believed to have been home to Queen Helene of Adiabene, whose clan ruled a region now in Iraq.
Singing might help whales find themselves
Humpback whales may sing not to court mates but to help explore the seas around them.
How to Destroy a Giant Planet
Theorists have what they think is a good handle on how rocky planets like Earth form. Leftovers of star formation collide, stick together and eventually form a ball of rock. However, the formation of gas giant planets is more mysterious. EnvironmentGlobal warming wreaks havoc with nature
BALI, Indonesia - More than 3,000 flying foxes dropped dead, falling from trees in Australia. Giant squid migrated north to commercial fishing grounds off California, gobbling anchovy and hake. Butterflies have gone extinct in the Alps.
Up to 60 pct of Amazon at risk from climate change: WWF
NUSA DUA, Indonesia (AFP) - Deforestation and climate change could wipe out or damage up to 60 percent of the vital Amazon forest by 2030, causing knock on effects across the globe, green group WWF warned Thursday.
Could Climate Change Fuel World Conflict?
From Nepal to Nigeria, Indonesia to the Arctic Circle, a warmer world brought on by climate change could fuel conflict and political turmoil in the decades to come.
Communities Across the Globe Getting to Grips with Adapting to Climate Change
Bali/Nairobi, 4 December 2007 - The way farmers in the Sudan, flood-prone communities in Argentina and dengue-challenged islands in the Caribbean are beginning to adapt to climate change are distilled in a new report launched today.
Binding emission caps on developing nations falling off table
Bali (Indonesia), Dec 7 - The preparation of the Bali roadmap for the future is going very well but a mandatory cap on the greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions on developing nations is nearly off the table, a top UN official said here Friday at the UN conference on climate change Dec 3-14.
Silver Lining to Climate Change - Green Jobs
Bali/Nairobi, 6 December 2007 - As representatives from over 180 countries gather in Bali to map a post 2012 agreement, new research shows the challenge of climate change also presents opportunities for new industries and employment.
Energy Bill Seeks to Overhaul Fuel Economy, Alternative Energy Use
WASHINGTON, D.C, Dec. 7, 2007 -- A House-approved energy bill aims to increase fuel-economy standards and the use of alternative fuels and renewable energy.
Combustion Of Waste May Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
ScienceDaily (Dec. 7, 2007) — A joint research project of VTT and Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) has proved that development of waste management is a cost-efficient means to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases. Considerable reductions can be achieved by combustion of waste and by collecting methane from landfills. The collected methane can either be used directly in energy production or flared off, i.e. eliminated through combustion without energy production.
Eco-friendly kangaroo farts could help global warming: scientists
SYDNEY (AFP) - Australian scientists are trying to give kangaroo-style stomachs to cattle and sheep in a bid to cut the emission of greenhouse gases blamed for global warming, researchers say.
Here honey, Merry Christmas!!!
YULEE, Fla. - Stumped about what to give that special someone this Christmas? How about some rhino poop? The International Rhino Foundation is auctioning separately on eBay four pieces of dung from the endangered species and will use the proceeds to fund conservation efforts. For more headlines, visit MakeThemAccountable.com.
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