The Empire in Turmoil

My one page blog becomes too long after six months, so jump to the second half of 2012 here.

Jun 30, 2012 - Obamacare Logic

The basic controversy about Obamacare is odd. If people don't have health insurance, the IRS will impose an additional 2.5% tax on income, or around $700 a year for the average uninsured American worker. However, individual health insurance costs around $800 a month, or $9,600 a year, which is the real problem. So people who earn the average annual income of around $40,000, yet do not have government or company subsidized insurance, will be taxed because they cannot afford to devote 25% of their income for health insurance. Where is the logic in this? And this assumes that person is single, family coverage costs twice as much.

I agree with the idea of expanding Medicaid for Americans who make less than most, which is more efficient than private insurance since it bypasses the 30% fee imposed by the insurance racket middlemen. However, find another way to pay for it, like eliminating the outdated Bureau of Indian Affairs. Tribes can operate just like county governments without 8700 feds overseeing them. 

The most bizarre inequity is that insurance premiums are not tax-deductible, unless one is lucky to have employer provided insurance, where the employee contribution is not counted as income for tax purposes. Congressmen claim that allowing individuals who must pay for their own to deduct insurance premium costs from their taxes is unaffordable. That's nuts, cut spending or raise taxes elsewhere, because those unfortunate people who must pay for their own health insurance deserve the same tax break as those with employer funded insurance, like everyone in Congress. They shouldn't be fined! You've been forced to watch hours of corporate "news" coverage about Obamacare, but I doubt anyone explained this basic issue.

Jun 25, 2012 - Madness at The Schinnen

Our generals often act crazy, like Jack Nicholson in "The Shinning." ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES JACK A DULL BOY. At our small U.S. Army Schinnen base in the Netherlands, little work and mostly play makes for this latest recommendation to my overseas base closure list:

Close USAG Schinnen ASAP - it has no military purpose

Jun 24, 2012 - Sinking Our Aircraft Carriers

Here is a great, short video clip from a movie that shows what would happen if our admirals send an aircraft carrier near China in a future war. Our Navy pretends that it can shoot down incoming ballistic missiles with its SM-3 missiles, but those only work in tests where the missile launch time and flight path are known. In a real war, China would launch two dozen anti-ship ballistic missiles at the same time, with different guidance systems: heat seeking, radar emission seeking, radio wave emission seeking, radar image seeking, image contrast seeking, and even video controlled. By the time the SM-3s are launched, the ballistic missiles would be zooming downward at Mach 5 and our Navy would be lucky to hit any of them head on. A single hit would explode an aircraft carrier filled with aviation fuel, missiles, and bombs, alongside 6000 sailors. 

One hit below deck and the ship blows up like an ammo ship - killing everyone! Or carriers may be sunk by a single lurking submarine, or a volley of long-range cruise missiles, or any commercial ship whose captain decides to ram a carrier in a harbor, which would cause fires and likely set off that floating power keg. Recall what happened in 1967 when the accidental firing a small rocket that didn't even explode started a fire on the USS Forrestal. It set off explosions that killed 134 sailors and destroyed 21 aircraft as crews fought to save the ship from itself.

Aircraft carriers are useful, but not for sea control. They must hide until aircraft and submarines clear the seas of enemy subs and destroy enemy long-range missile sites and airbases. Then they can escort amphibious groups to support an invasion. They are also useful against poor defenseless nations, which the USA often attack. However, we don't need 11 supercarriers, in addition to the 10 large carriers used by the Marines, which are larger than our World II carriers. I'd shrink to 8 supercarriers next year, pulling the one from Japan and two from Norfolk. This solves all our Navy's funding problems and preserves the rest of the fleet. Pulling back the super-carrier from Yokosuka and amphibious carrier from Sasebo, Japan is common sense, because it's foolish to berth a carrier for most of the year within range of Chinese and even North Korean missiles that can use simple GPS to destroy them sitting pierside.

If our admirals foolishly send carriers to secure the Western Pacific in time of war, they will suffer the fate of the mighty British battleship HMS Prince of Wales along with the heavy cruiser HMS Repulse when they sailed from Singapore to confront the Japanese Navy at the beginning of World War II.  As their respected admiral executed World War I era tactics for a great ship battle, his first class warships were attacked by a swarm of pesky land-based aircraft, and quickly sunk! This may be the fate of some of our mighty supercarriers, as one retired U.S. Navy officer warned. So why do admirals insist on keeping 11 ultra-expensive supercarriers, the same number that we had when the Soviet navy roamed the seas? Fred Reed offers the best explanation of this madness. 

Jun 23, 2012 - Second Hulled Warship

One of my ideas for a future warship is a second hull. The upper part of the ship (superstructure) that contains the bridge should have its own hull, so it can serve as a large lifeboat. If the crew must abandon ship, they simply dash up to the superstructure. There would be a release mechanism that allows it to slide off the sinking or burning ship. This is far, far safer than jumping off the side or launching small open boats. The bridge of the ship is packed with expensive computers, which could be reused.

Jun 17, 2012 - Our King Issues Another Decree

Jon Stewart publicized how low our nation has sunk in regards to human rights, American law, and international law. The national press reported that the White House keeps a secret "kill list" of persons ordered assassinated, which includes U.S. citizens. Stewart played news clips of outraged Senators from both political parties promising hearings and demanding a special prosecutor. However, the Senators were not outraged by the kill list, but by the leak of that classified information.

The first American citizen that Obama is known to have ordered killed was Anwar al-Awlaki. He was born in the USA and graduated from Colorado State, then moved to his father's country of birth Yemen. He was never tied to any specific terrorist attack, but had a blog and website where he encouraged attacks against foreign forces in the Middle East. Three weeks after his murder, CIA contractors killed his 16-year old American born son (pictured) along with his teenage cousin who were barbequing at night in Yemen. Obviously, his son was supportive of his father's blogging, so he was executed. More recently, Obama okayed the bombing of funerals held for dead al Qaeda suspects, using the logic that everyone in attendance is guilty of supporting terrorism.

Obama recently issued a decree granting amnesty to nearly a million illegal aliens. His corporate allies had tried to legalize them with the DREAM act, but public opposition to another amnesty is so strong that they couldn't even ram it through our corrupted Congress. Obama showed loyalty to his bosses and his disregard for working Americans and democracy by issuing an "order" implementing the rejected DREAM act. Obama claims it's not amnesty, but he grants work visas with social security numbers, so it's the same thing. He claimed he just issued prosecutorial guidance, but that has nothing to do with granting work visas, and there is no legislative authority for him to give away extra work visas. 

Obama feels empowered to do whatever he wants because the nation has been under martial law ever since President Bush declared a one-year "national emergency" on Sept. 14, 2001. The President has declared a one year extension every year since. This is no conspiracy theory, it's announced on the White House website every year. Here is the last:

TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:

Section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1622(d), provides for the automatic termination of a national emergency unless, prior to the anniversary date of its declaration, the President publishes in the Federal Register and transmits to the Congress a notice stating that the emergency is to continue in effect beyond the anniversary date.  Consistent with this provision, I have sent to the Federal Register the enclosed notice, stating that the emergency declared with respect to the terrorist attacks on the United States of September 11, 2001, is to continue in effect for an additional year.

The terrorist threat that led to the declaration on September 14, 2001, of a national emergency continues.  For this reason, I have determined that it is necessary to continue in effect after September 14, 2011, the national emergency with respect to the terrorist threat.

BARACK OBAMA

THE WHITE HOUSE,
September 9, 2011.

This DREAM decree should greatly increase illegal immigration, which had been declining due to a poor economy and public hostility about declining wages caused by a flood of desperate foreign workers. Now the door has swung open for millions more desperate refugees who can ensure a steady decline in wages. They can walk across the border, and if caught, simply claim to have a visa and demand a hearing. If they pass a criminal check, they are released without bail and continue onward, which has been SOP for decades. If they are ever caught or hassled, they play the "family separation" card, claiming they will have to leave their children behind, which allows them to stay based on an Obama decree from last year.

They enroll their teenage children in overcrowded public schools, and after graduation they get DREAM visas. Then family members can use that Social Security number to apply for better jobs and government benefits. Some may assume Obama did this because he's a politician, and this is an election year. However, this will hurt is reelection chances because it angers working American and only pleases a small group of confused "activists" who have no compassion for poor Americans. They would have voted for him anyway, so it's odd that Obama did this before the November elections, unless he is certain he will win. 

Jun 16, 2012 - Sub Pens

The Germans hid their U-boats in submarine pens during World War II and Allied airpower was unable to hit them. As I discuss in my book, all submarine bases should be underground. It's ridiculous to spend over $2 billion on a modern attack sub and then leave it tied up at an open pier. Pens were built at a few places during the Cold War, like the one pictured in Norway, which its government is insanely trying to sell for a measly $17 million. Our U.S. Navy should buy that one for future use and build more. I'd go a step further and make the entrance invisible by moving it below sea level so that subs would surface inside the bunker, just like a beaver lodge. This makes non-nuclear attacks impossible, and an enemy never knows if four subs are inside or none.

The U.S. Navy should build a dozen of these at its naval bases around the world. An added bonus is that subs can rearm and replenish in secret, no matter the weather. Security costs far less because only the entrance need be guarded, and the facility can be locked like a safe at the first sign of trouble. The only option for an enemy is to try to disrupt the base by bombing the steel doors at the truck entrance to the tunnel leading to the subs. But that debris can be quickly cleared.

Compare this concept to our Navy's current bases. The photo at left is our Navy's submarine base on Guam, within range of Chinese missiles and bombers. Since most of the crew is ashore, it would take hours to get these subs underway and undersea should war suddenly erupt. Chinese tourists/agents can rent boats or small aircraft and take pictures, or potshots. It would not be difficult to conduct a commando attack and knock out several subs. A small fire or small hole can cause enough damage to ruin a modern high-tech sub. The attack sub USS Maine recently suffered major fire damage caused by a spark from a vacuum cleaner, and will be scrapped.

The ship in the picture is a "sub tender", which provides logistics support to deployed subs. That's an outdated concept since an enemy can simply track a sub tender and wait for a $2 billion sub to surface and tie up alongside, then sink both. Building an underground sub base on Guam and several other locations in the Pacific is the solution. That is much better than building new sub tenders and spending $5.5 billion on family housing and other buildings to move 5000 Marines and their families from Okinawa to Guam. At the very least, the Navy should immediately build ship hangars over those piers.

Jun 12, 2012 - More Immigrant Propaganda

I just watched a nauseating propaganda program by corporate spinmaster Fareed Zararia, masquerading as a "reporter" for CNN. This was another sleek mindbender about how we need to import more skilled immigrants, because Americans are too lazy and stupid to work. He claims our nation needs 250,000 more skilled workers each year in the graduate-level fields of mathematics, engineering, and computer science. Assuming this is the case, he should propose a government program to produce those from the millions of unemployed (or lesser employed) college graduates each year. This would cost nothing if our leaders redirected funding for college programs away from dead ends, like: art history, library science, and paleontology. 

Mr. Zararia's solution (read from his corporate teleprompter), is to import foreigners. Anyone familiar with the H-1B "skilled" visa program knows that we should eliminate it, not expand it. It's a "temporary visa" program used by corporations to import 66,000 skilled foreign workers each year  and pay them $40,000 a year, so they can lay off Americans workers earning $80,000 and boost corporate profits. Hewlett-Packard is one of America's high-tech employers, is making big profits, but just announced that it would layoff 27,000 workers in California to "streamline" and boost profits. There is no doubt that some of these workers will be replaced by H-1B immigrants, and HP wants a bigger quota for more.

Jun 10, 2012 - Unmanned Aerial Kite

I see Israel developed an idea that I once described in the old G2mil magazine. It's a UAV tethered to a vehicle, which provides stability, a secure data link, and power, so it is much smaller and can stay "on station" forever, like a kite. It is nearly silent since it can use electric motors powered by the ground vehicle below. I suspect that it's too simple, and therefore too unprofitable, for our Pentagon to copy.

Jun 3, 2012 - The Euro Crisis?

Our corporate news media tells us that Europe is near bankrupt, because of their socialism. The facts don't back that up. If you glance at the stats in the current issue of the "Economist", the budget balance as a percent of GDP for Greece is -7.8%, but it's -7.6% for the USA! The combined figure for the Euro zone is -3.5%, so the USA's debt/budget problem is twice as bad as Europe. What about trade balances, another indicator of currency strength? In the past 12 months, the Euro zone had a surplus of $11.5 billion, while the USA had a deficit of -$473.4 billion. 

So why all the dire "news" about Europe? First, American billionaires use every opportunity to bash what they call socialism, i.e. government guaranteed health care and food. They don't want the USA to raise their taxes to European levels in order to guarantee a basic standard of living to all Americans. Second, American bankers want to create a feeling of crisis, so governments will bail them out when Greece and Spain default on their bonds, which were sold and insured by big American banks. Third, the economic figures are so bad for the USA that Asian nations were beginning to use the Euro as an international currency. If the Euro is destroyed, then everyone must continue to use American dollars, helping keep our fiat currency afloat.

Jun 2, 2012 - Food Stamps for Coke

New York mayor Bloomberg's attempt to limit the size of soft drinks that can be sold has made news. It's too bad an idea that he proposed in 2010 was ignored. Americans on food stamps (now called SNAP) are more obese since they are less educated and less active, since most don't work. Studies show that SNAP users consume 40% more sugary drinks and weigh 5.8 lbs. more than other Americans. Bloomberg wanted to ban the use of "food stamps" to buy sugary drinks. The idea was quietly blocked for political reasons, as it would hit sales of our nation's powerful sugar pushers, like Coca-Cola and Pepsi. 

Beer cannot be purchased with food stamps, even though it provides better nutrition than Pepsi. Why does our government fund the sale of harmful drinks while a diabetes epidemic sweeps the nation? I'd go further, banning the purchase of ALL liquid drinks with "food stamps" because they are not food. Some will argue that a few exceptions must be  made for drinks like V-8. However, once exceptions are allowed, the goalposts move, the rules get complicated, and the idea dropped. I'd argue that there are some exceptions, but healthy liquid drinks are too expensive for poor Americans. They can easily get that nutrition from cheaper fresh food.

Diet drinks are not sugary, but they have no nutritional value! This ban should include bottled water, since tap water is free. Why should taxpayers pay for the convenience or status of bottled water?  Milk? Powdered milk is the same, just add water, and its cheaper and doesn't go bad. Same with orange juice, frozen concentrate is cheaper. Forcing the poor to buy cheaper food, provides them with more food! 

Of course millions of poor Americans would be upset, but SNAP is a "food" program, and they don't have to use it. Politicians should know that the louder food stamp recipients scream about this change, the more support they gain from working Americans. If someone asks why they can't buy a coke with food stamps, they can be told -- because it's not food! It's for their own good anyway, and all educated Americans should agree that our government should not fund free harmful drinks for the poor, instead of food. With 47 million Americans buying groceries with SNAP, this simple change would quickly result in a notable reduction in obesity and diabetes in the USA. 

May 27, 2012 - Three Felonies a Day

I just finished "Three Felonies a Day", a good book about our corrupt legal system. It details several recent court cases in our oppressive "justice" system, which this respected criminal defense lawyer, Harvey Silverglate, compares to that of the Soviet Union. The title reflects his observation that federal interpretations of criminal law have become so broad that the average professional (doctor, lawyer, administrator, officer, congressmen) commits three felonies a day. 

If federal authorities want to dispose of someone, they investigate their recent activities and concoct vague charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, false statements, racketeering, mail fraud, or wire fraud. The target is indicted, demeaned by the cooperative corporate press, forced to resign, and usually imprisoned for years after a lengthy kangaroo court. Prosecutors routinely bribe witnesses through extortion or threats of imprisonment, while the judge pretends all is proper.

A recent example is that of former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich.  I'm not sure why he was targeted for removal, but on December 8, 2008 he threatened to stop the state’s dealings with Bank of America after it suddenly ended its line-of-credit to a local business, which was forced to shutdown its factory in Chicago and layoff hundreds of workers. He directed all state agencies to stop conducting business with Bank of America to pressure the company to make the loans. John Douglas, a former general counsel for the FDIC and attorney for Bank of America, publicly called Blagojevich "dangerous."

The very next day, Governor Blagojevich was arrested at his home by federal agents and charged with corruption. The Justice Department's 20-count felony complaint alleged that the Governor conspired to "to obtain personal gain ... through the corrupt use" of his authority to fill Obama's vacated Senate seat, claiming that in wiretapped recordings Blagojevich discussed his desire to get something in exchange for an appointment to the seat. The Feds had wiretapped him for months, and all they learned is that he had a foul  mouth. Perhaps the "powers that be" directed Blagojevich to appoint someone, and he refused. Then he threatened profits of Bank of America, which like most large American banks is quasi-criminal organization.

Blogjevich was charged with trying to trade political favors, something all American politicians do on a daily basis. One can review President Obama's foreign ambassador appointments to learn that most were major donors to his political campaign, yet that is not considered criminal. Congressmen push through "earmarks" to reward specific political backers with federal contracts, but that is not considered corrupt. 

Blagojevich was never charged with taking a bribe, like suitcase of cash. The criminality of the charges were so vague that his first trial resulted in a hung jury, so he was put through the ringer for a second year and finally convicted. The prosecutor's key witness was his former chief-of-staff who was arrested and threatened with five years in prison for "conspiracy." He agreed to plead guilty and testify against Blagojevich in return for just a 10-day jail sentence. As in all cases, his plea agreement was contingent on satisfactory testimony that resulted in a conviction of his former boss, an open form of extortion that the judge endorsed.  

Blagojevich is now in federal prison for 14 years, as a non-violent, first-time offender -- for what? Trading political favors, something everyone in Congress and the White House does every day? He never even received a favor for filling the senate seat; he was convicted of conspiring to get something in return, which was never specified. One thing is certain, no one in power has threatened a major U.S. bank since Blagojevich was crucified. And who ended up in that Senate seat? CIA agent Mark Kirk.

May 20, 2012 - An 8.6mm Machine Gun

One of my old proposals has become reality. We brag that our modern body armor can stop a 7.62mm bullet, so what happens when our enemy wears it? While the .50 (12.7mm) is great, it's too heavy for infantry. Merging the 7.62mm and .50 cal. ammo, weapons, and training into one system that fires a .338 (8.6mm) round is a great solution.

May 15, 2012 - The V-22 Scandal

After the recent crash of a V-22 in Morocco, I felt pressure to expose more. Here is the latest: 

CV-22 Crash Caused by Flight Manual - bogus HOGE chart

May 13, 2012 - The Poor South

I was perusing census data and was surprised at the income disparity among states. The people of New Hampshire average income is nearly twice as high as the people of Mississippi. Citizens of New Jersey earn almost $20,000 more a year than citizens of Florida.

May 12, 2012 - California Pension Nightmare

"Sense on Cents" is a great blog that describes the growing legal corruption in the USA. For example, a recent post reveals that California's near bankrupt public pension plan pays 12,199 people over $100,000 a year, a 25% increase in one year! Here are the top mobsters:

The information below was obtained under the Freedom of Information Act from the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS). 

THE TOP 10 LIST

I have long argued for a state or federal law that caps the pension of all government employees at the average earnings of its citizens. For California, that would be $55,000 a year. Keep in mind these guys also qualify for social security benefits.

As I've written before, the way in which America's public and corporate pensions are allowed to operate is a ponzi scheme. They are funded depending on the whims of elected officials and corporate chiefs, which is why many are underfunded by more than half. Necessary monthly payments should be mandatory, just like the employees contribution. It should be no different than a bond debt; it must be paid in full or promised payments are automatically reduced.

May 6, 2012 - Chinese Military Power

The best resource about Chinese military power is the website Airpower Australia. When I have time, I'll write about the need to realign our military forces in the Pacific. We need to move forces further from China, and outside their surprise/easy attack range (to Guam and Australia).

For example, should war erupt, our bases on Okinawa near China would get hammered and prove useless after just a couple of days. Then we would face the crisis of thousands of American civilian employees and family members stranded on Okinawa. Yet we keep a squadron of 15 large KC-135 tankers parked on the ramp at Kadena, which would be destroyed on day one, unless they are lucky to escape. It is obvious that we should move that squadron further away, along with their family members. And as I wrote recently, we should:  Vacate Sasebo  

Some Americans think the Chinese can never produce the high tech military goods that we use, without realizing their dazzling new Ipad and Iphone are made in China. Even if one assumes our aircraft are vastly superior, studies have shown that our limited number of high-tech fighters flying from a few bases in the Western Pacific would be overwhelmed by thousands of Chinese fighters flying from dozens of bases.

Apr 26, 2012 - A Billionaire African-American Businessman 

The term "African-American" is rarely used anymore. One reason is because not all Africans are black. Elon Musk grew up in South Africa and moved to the USA to become one of America's most successful entrepreneurs. Should he be praised as a successful African-American? Likewise, are Egyptians "Africans"?  

I really enjoy the PBS series by Professor Henry Gates who explores the DNA of "black" Americans, and finds all are racially mixed, and shocks many "blacks" when his tests show they are mostly white, or when many white Americans learn their DNA shows a mixed racial background. For example, President Obama has Irish ancestors, just like Professor Gates. This really breaks down the "us verses them" attitude of many Americans.

Apr 25, 2012 - Killer Swans

Last year I linked an article about a killer mountain goat. I've just learned that swans may kill you too! A swan just killed a guy in Chicago!

Apr 15, 2012 - The Fog of War

I continue to read debates about the Gulf of Tonkin incident, which was used by President Johnson to formally send American forces into the Vietnamese war for independence. It seems some Americans do not know that Johnson's former Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, appeared in a 2003 film where he provided details that incident never happened. That ended the debate. It was part of the great documentary "Fog of War", which I highly recommend and was pleased to learn can be watched on youtube in its entirety.

Apr 11, 2012 - The Dragon's New Teeth

The latest issue of the "Economist" has a cover story about China's rising military power. It's the only print magazine that I still subscribe. I like one old fashion paper mag that I can read while prone or on the move. Despite our faulty "education", China is not keen on taking over the world, at least not overtly.

I expect China will gradually exert its military/economic influence for economic reasons, absorbing Taiwan as it did Hong Kong. It will use "soft power" to gain puppet "ally" control of Myanmar, and perhaps Singapore, the Philippines, and Indonesia to secure access to raw materials and sea routes. Chinese immigrants/colonists from decades past already control half the corporations in those nations today. The USA must play its own "soft power" game, lest it face defeat by an equal power whose legions are not dispersed around the world.

Apr 9, 2012 - Korea's Fourth Attempt

Apr 8, 2012 - Legacy of Ashes

I just finished this highly recommended book about the history of the CIA. It consists of story after story of incompetence and bungling, in which hundreds of billions of dollars and thousands of lives were wasted by the CIA since it was formed after World War II. CIA operations usually made the situation worse for the USA. I've read a lot about the CIA, so there was little new for me, but I was surprised to read on page 512 about how the infamous blind Egyptian sheik, Omar Abdel Rahman, gained entry into the USA. He travelled often to Brooklyn and began to agitate radical Muslims in the New York area with angry speeches. Rhaman was later convicted of organizing the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center.

Rahman had helped the CIA recruit Muslim fighters for Afghanistan to fight the Soviets. He later spent time in Egyptian prison because of his role in plotting the assassination of Egyptian leader Anwar Sadat. He was an outspoken supporter of terrorism against the West. When he applied for a visa to visit the USA, our State Department rejected him seven times. However, the CIA has authority to grant visas for national security reasons, and overruled State and granted his visas six times. This allowed a known anti-American terrorist into the USA, to conduct terrorist attacks!

The only thing I didn't like about the book was outright censorship of the greatest lie of the decade. Allow me to refresh memories from my classic: Oil From Iraq:

"Invading Iraq had nothing to do with “Weapons of Mass Destruction” (WMDs). One of President Bush's more outrageous lies is that he did not deceive the American people to justify the invasion of Iraq. "We were fooled by bad intelligence" is the excuse accepted by most Americans. They cannot recall that in 2003, as U.S. forces prepared to invade Iraq, President Bush demanded that Saddam Hussein permit UN inspectors "free and unfettered access" to search Iraq for WMDs. Saddam Hussein surprised everyone by agreeing, and UN inspectors were allowed to roam Iraq at will and check all the locations that Colin Powell had recently told the UN Assembly were actively producing illegal weapons.
 
After several weeks, the dozens of UN inspector teams had found nothing, and the dirty, rusty conditions of the suspect sites showed nothing had been made there for years. The Bush administration insisted they had other proof that WMDs were in Iraq. Chief UN inspector Hans Blix publicly stated that if they would send him a clue, he would have UN teams inspect the next day. Iraq even proposed that U.S. military officers join the UN inspectors. As a result, President Bush had perfect intelligence that Iraq had no WMDs. The US military had complete freedom to fly anywhere in Iraq to observe activity. UN inspectors were on the ground to check any suspect site, and were permitted to stay in Iraq as long as they liked to pursue new leads. 
 
This confirmed what General Hussein Kamel, Iraq's weapons chief who defected from the regime in 1995, told UN inspectors and the CIA, that Iraq had destroyed its entire stockpile of chemical and biological weapons and banned missiles.[9]"

The author of this book was a long-time reporter for the New York Times, which was complicit in deceiving the American people into thinking Iraq had WMDs. He didn't mention the sordid work his fellow reporter, Judith Miller, in spreading these lies under direction from the Pentagon. The book details the CIA's "bad intelligence" on Iraq's suspected WMDs with no mention of Blix and the UN inspectors. It's like a couple pages of history were just deleted because the truth is too much for the citizenry to handle. As I wrote in "Oil From Iraq."

"Anyone who doubts the President misled the American people and Congress need only read Bush's Oct. 7, 2002 public speech made a week before Congress voted to support the Iraq invasion.[11]  That speech leaves no doubt that Iraq had tons of WMDs. This was the main topic he addressed; the word "democracy" was not used.  Reports from Hussein Kamel were not mentioned, and later firsthand reports from UN inspectors on the ground that no WMDs existed failed to halt the invasion of Iraq. The fact that Bush lied to justify a war is hard for most Americans to accept. It is rarely mentioned in the corporate media because they fear upsetting Americans who prefer to think their leaders are incompetent, rather than dangerous and heartless.

Apr 3, 2012 - Remember Pearl Harbor

Here's the latest addition to G2mil's overseas base closure list: Vacate Sasebo  

Congressmen from both political parties are joining this effort, and recently demanded more base closings in Europe.

Apr 1, 2012 - Managed News

While NPR is often tagged as "left-wing", this great article by Greg Greenwald shows it to be just another propaganda rag produced by America's billionaires. So called "reporters" fail to use common sense and foreign news sources, but rely on Washington DC insiders who pretend to pass along special insight. Another example of managed news is the Jerry Sandusky case, which has been covered in depth. Yet when an active duty Air Force Lieutenant Colonel is arrested for having sex with a teenage boy, the major media ignores it. Then the Colonel is released without bail, and is arrested again for violating his a court order by seeing the boy again. It is obvious that our Pentagon is so powerful that major media outlets refuse to carry stories of misconduct by military officers, even when militarycorruption.com posts details of cases each week.

Mar 25, 2012 - Enlightened North Korean King

You may have heard that North Korea's new king, Kim Jong-un, is as crazy and unpredictable as his forefathers. Since North Korea passes down leadership through bloodlines, it has become a monarchy, and thus its dictator is a king. This confuses Americans who have been taught that kings are special humans, with the powers of a dictator. They have "royal blood", and were chosen by God, or so they claim.

Kim Jong-un terrifies our military because he may end North Korea's isolation. Our corporate media demonizes him in every report, but they do not tell you that he loves American basketball and speaks English. He attended a first-class private school in Switzerland for several years, and has a college degree in physics. His first step was to announce an end to North Korea's nuclear program. This outraged our warmongers, but they were relieved when  he announced a second attempt to put a satellite into orbit, something most modern nations have done. Our militarists are shouting that this is an attempt to improve weaponry, so we must impose sanctions, reminding us that we can never trust those red devils.

Mar 24, 2012 - Mobster Remains Free

Jon Corzine, a billionaire former U.S. senator and New Jersey governor as well as a former Goldman Sachs chairman, lost billions of dollars last year with high-risk gambles on the world bond market. To stay afloat, he illegally "borrowed" at least $1.6 billion from customer accounts at his firm (MF Global) to cover losses and stay in the game. As losses worsened, MF Global declared bankruptcy, and customers learned that money had been stolen.  The media plays along with the "missing" money excuse, as though the $1.6 billion was in cash that could disappear. MF Global has records. If money was taken from an account, it's right there in the transaction record, which shows where it went and who authorized the transfer.

Corzine said he didn't know where that money went. Now solid proof has emerged that he personally ordered $200 million taken from one account. Our major corporate news networks reported the story, but there was no outrage in the editorial pages or among the appointed pundits on TV and radio. Where are the cops, and the famous "perp walks"? This scandal is nearly as bad as the Bernie Madoff theft, but no one seems to care. Given that Corzine has close ties to the Obama crowd, one might expect Republican presidential candidates to express outrage, and demand an arrest. It seems that Corzine might be one of the untouchable mobsters who run America. Take note of how our corporate media covers this crime.

Mar 17, 2012 - America's Absurd Health Care System

For those fooled by our corporate media, America's health care system is a disaster. Compared to all other modern nations, ours costs twice as much and delivers below average care. Unfortunately, Obamacare makes things worse, since it was crafted by the insurance companies. It requires all Americans to buy their overpriced insurance plans. The great Wendell Potter recently wrote about a wealthy lady who sued Obama for the right not to be insured, but ended up in a hospital and skipped out on her bills. However, I do agree that citizens should not be required to buy private health insurance, or fined for not doing so. 

We don't need coercion, but do need a taxpayer funded national health health care plan, like all other modern nations, because its far too complicated to function in the "free market." Insurance companies are out to destroy the extremely successful Medicare program, claiming that it has failed to control rising costs. However, Medicare is in trouble because it has succeeded in providing low-cost health care to seniors, so they are living much longer, and driving up costs. Should we solve the problem by raising the Medicare payroll tax from 1.45% to 1.80% to account for its success at increasing our lifespan, or institute a maximum age of 80? After age 80, you're past your expected lifespan, so your Medicare coverage ends -- good bye and good luck. I suspect most Americans would choose the tax increase, if only Obama had the courage to propose this choice.

Fixing our dysfunctional health care system is complex. The first step is for the federal government to get its own house in order. It funds separate, confusing plans that should be combined. For example, several million Americans are covered by Veterans Health Administration, several million through the complex TRICARE system for military families and retirees, and several million through a system for federal employees. These systems don't share offices, hospitals, computers, or providers. Thousands of Americans are covered by all three systems, and hop around amongst them. The first step to fixing our national health care system is to establish "FEDCARE" to merge these three systems into one. That would save billions of dollars a year by cutting overhead and provide better care by sharing resources.

Mar 10, 2012 - Assassinating U.S. Citizens

One of the low points in American history was Attorney General Eric Holder recently explaining why he had the authority to assassinate U.S. citizens, even if they are never convicted of a crime, or even charged with one. Our corporate media made no comment after he spun a ridiculous argument that "due process" does not mean judicial process. His logic is that our government is engaged in a perpetual war that covers the globe, so it must quickly kill threats and hasn't the time to obtain judicial approval.

Most Americans refuse to accept that BS, so fascists in Congress have a new approach, The Enemy Expatriation Act. That law would allow someone in the executive branch to sign a decree to strip you of your citizenship before he signs the next form to kill you. This authority may be passed down "by direction" allowing any federal agent to kill whoever they consider a threat. No need to bother with facts or evidence or trials. They could just use their "gut instinct" for quick justice. This is something our right-wing dominated Hollywood TV shows and movies tell us is justice.

This reminds me of the great 1961 movie "Judgment at Nuremburg". In this video clip, an esteemed German judge explains why they ignored obviously illegal actions against political opponents and international law by new Nazi leaders when Germany was still a democracy. Eventually, these legal exceptions became the way of life, and no German had rights. When a government official proclaims the authority to kill any American without trial, we really have no rights left. When will some our judges become "good Americans" and slap down efforts by fascists in our government to eliminate all civil rights and international law?

Mar 3, 2012 - Where's the DEA Database?

More people die from prescription drug abuse than illegal drugs, something our corporate media meekly reported after Whitney Houston's death. I recall one expert offering a simple improvement (I can't recall his  name). The DEA requires all medical providers to acquire a DEA permit that they must update every three years. Since this database exists, they should expand it with internet access and require providers to punch in the last name, date of birth, and SSN of each person who they plan to write a script for commonly abused drugs like oxycodone.

In most cases, the DEA computer would give them an acceptance number. Sometimes it would include a warning about other narcotics recently prescribed, allowing a doctor to use his judgment considering what other medications their patient is taking from other providers. In many cases, they are the same drugs that he had planned to prescribe, but the patient "forgot" to tell him. In some cases, the DEA computer will deny the approval, because the person has been prescribed far more than is reasonable, even accounting for "lost" medications.

This would have a profound effect on the millions of Americans abusing prescription drugs. Hundreds of thousands of Americans visit several doctors to obtain narcotics, and there is no way the providers know what their patient is doing. Many sell them on the streets for a nice profit. Providers would love the system because it would help them address substance abuse. It would also deter some providers from selling drugs on the side, since the DEA database would accumulate records that could be matched to their patient records should an investigation ensue. This would prevent hundreds of thousands of Americans from developing addictions, since they could no longer simply visit any doctor to obtain yet another legal dosage of "pain killers" or buy them from a friend.

DEA leaders may claim a lack of funding. Yet the DEA has ample funding, if it would pull some agents from pointless overseas duty and hire some IT folks to run a DEA database to better control "controlled substances."

Mar 2, 2012 - More Vote Fraud

For another example of blatant voter manipulation by our corporate media, read this. It seems that Mitt Romney did not narrowly win the Maine primary as widely reported. When the vote tallies were announced, votes from several counties were missing. After complaints, they were counted, but the Republican guy in charge said that he would not release the results until March 10, because people were upset. Everyone suspects Ron Paul won, but he is not permitted to win any state, at least not until March 6 (super Tuesday) when Mitt Romney secures the nomination.

March 1, 2012 - Judge Napolitano Fired

In my Nov 25, 2010 blog entry, I predicted Anthony Napolitano would be fired from Fox News for his politically incorrect comments. I was wrong, until last month when he was fired for politically incorrect comments. Watch this short video of him denouncing both political parties as frauds, just before his show was suddenly cancelled.

Feb 25, 2012 - More Alien Stories

I am convinced that evidence of alien visitations on Earth is widespread because I read about it all the time, but not in major corporate news rags. I stumble across verifiable stories on small internet websites that most Americans would find fascinating. People inside our government blow the whistle and no one listens, especially our corporate "news" editors who we are told will do anything to boost ratings. The only explanation is that these editors know they would be fired for informing the public of unauthorized information.

Here are two stories from last year that should have been front page news, followed by interviews, talk show appearances, book deals, and federal investigations:

NASA Whistleblower: Alien Moon Cities Exist

UFO Researcher Claims Air Force Not Revealing Truth About Communications Outage

Feb 20, 2012 - Vacant Two Army Bases in Germany

My Overseas Base Closure List has been growing these past few years. The Pentagon has just endorsed one recommendation Vacate Two Army Bases in Germany.  I can't take credit because the Bush administration had ordered them closed, yet Army Generals rebelled. I'd like to think that my case was read by people in the Obama administration, who grasped that armored units in Germany can't deploy any faster to conflicts than those based in the USA since they embark at German ports and must sail all the way around Spain. A good sign is that the two army brigades will be promptly disbanded (one this year and one next year.) In my proposal, I mentioned that civilian leaders must firmly demand prompt action, lest Generals stall until the end of the President's term, as they did with the Bush administration.

Feb 19, 2012 - Obsolete Tube Artillery

This video clearly shows why tube artillery is obsolete. It is difficult to move about and requires a dozen soldiers running about in a complex dance to fire the thing. The video shows rapid fire of a 155mm gun, but after a dozen rounds they must slow down to "sustained" fire of one every couple of minutes lest they melt the barrel. Simple counter-battery radar can quickly detect its exact location for immediate destruction. MLRS is far superior for large targets, while 120mm mortars are far better for small targets.

For mobile units, the U.S. Army's 120mm mortar mounted inside an M113 APC is great, which the U.S. Marines should copy and mount inside AAVs. For light forces, the BAE 326 mortar system (pictured) is great. It's simply a hydraulic arm that can instantly place or pick up the 300 lb. mortar with base plate, even if stuck in the mud after firing. As described in my book, mortars are far cheaper, far more mobile (they can be carried inside small helicopters or carried to rooftops), require smaller crews, and mortar rounds are more effective (especially in urban warfare) because they fall straight down.

Feb 12, 2012 - The Pueblo Surrender

You may recall photos of the captured crewmen of the USS Pueblo "shooting the finger." That was interpreted as mocking their North Korean captors, but as Robert Liston reveals in his 1988 book "The Pueblo Surrender", the insult was directed at the unknown Americans who sent them to be captured. The book details how the official Pueblo story is simply not believable, something I had read in obscure magazine articles. He provides the dry details that no one can challenge.

The ship was ordered to enter North Korean waters and sit there until boarded. At the last minute, its Captain made a feeble attempt to flee and call for help, perhaps as a cover story. No help came for hours, and he surrendered without a fight, and no help came for hours later as they made a slow trek toward North Korea. The book is written as a detailed, factual report, so its boring, but he explains that he is providing hard evidence, not a fictionalized account. Our cooperative media and Congress refuse to challenge the flimsy official explanation. When the crewmen were released a year later, they were ordered to never talk about what happened, under threat of imprisonment, and loss of retirement/disability pay.

The author can only speculate as to the purpose of sacrificing the Pueblo: 1) The Vietnam war was going poorly in 1968 and this reminded Americans of the evil communist menace. 2) The incident was used to create a possible World War III incident, so forced the Soviets, North Koreans, and Chinese to use their ultra-top secret emergency communications that were intercepted and studied. 3) The ship inexplicably carried tons of fake "classified" paper documents to confuse the communists. 4) The ship carried (and failed to destroy) an ultra-secret and high-tech crypto machine that was captured, even though someone could have easily tossed it overboard. It was hoped the communists would copy the design, which had a flaw that allowed Americans to read its encrypted messages.

One of many blatant holes was that these "ocean research" ships were never armed, because according to international law, they could not be seized if they accidentally drifted into a nation's 12-mile territorial limit. Just before the Pueblo sailed, the Navy mounted several .50 caliber machine guns on her, making her a warship. These were wrapped in tarp, yet easy to see as guns. However, the crew never trained to use them, and never took off the tarps or broke out ammunition during the hours of confrontation. During Navy hearings and press conferences, whenever the ships' captain was asked about that and a dozen other odd things that occurred, he always responded that he followed his "secret" orders to the letter. He repeated the same when asked why he remained dead in the water for hours while North Korean boats circled and threatened to board the ship unless it left the area. 

This is another example of how our media and political leaders refuse to challenge obvious cover-ups years after they have been exposed. Although I like Wikipedia for its concise accounts, it is heavily censored and mentions nothing of this. There must be hundreds of NSA/CIA/Pentagon employees assigned to monitor its content and work as volunteers to ensure its "accuracy." 

Feb 7, 2012 - Our Generals Lie

A U.S. Army Colonel just leaked the "Pentagon Papers" equivalent for our Afghan occupation: 

Truth, Lies, and Afghanistan

Feb 1, 2012 - The Marines Must Change

The Okinawa Solution - pull half our Marines off Okinawa

Jan 29, 2012 - Pictures You Rarely See

Here is a picture that rarely appears in American news. The Israeli government demolishing Arab homes in the occupied West Bank to make room for Jewish "settlers".  I use the term "Arab" because some crazed Americans like Newt Gingrich insist that "Palestinians" don't really exist, so I call them Arabs who have lived in Palestine for thousands of years, which leaves these crazies speechless. This gradual ethnic cleansing is an ongoing process. It is frequently denounced by UN resolutions, which the USA opposes. This is one reason why "they" hate us.

Jan 27, 2012 - Barack Obama is a Serial Liar

Here is a good overview of Obama's state of the union address. He is popular because he says what voters want to hear, but as Ralph Nader observed, "he says one thing and does another." His most blatant reversal was his promise to allow Bush's tax cuts for the rich to expire last year. He fought congressmen in his own party to extend them just before they were set to automatically expire. Then he went back on theme about the need to raise taxes on the rich.

Jan 26, 2012- Crash and Burn

Here is a great article about how often our high-tech drones often crash. This occurs fighting illiterate insurgents with no army. A modern army can easily jam drone links and cause them to crash or return to base. Basic anti-aircraft weapons, like Bofors 40mm guns, can shoot down these slow-flying multi-million dollar drones at ease. In contrast, a basic prop recon aircraft costs only around $200,000, while a new T-6B high-performance prop trainer costs about $4 million.

Jan 21, 2012 - Did Ron Paul Win Iowa?

A forbidden topic in our corporate media is vote fraud, or even suggesting that something is amiss. We all know that Mitt Romney won Iowa, unless you noticed a small article a few days later that the Iowa race is "unresolved" with details further down that Santorum probably won.  It is possible that "unelectable" Ron Paul won, but we'll never know, because votes from eight precincts are missing! Missing? Iowa vote counters had to "hunt down" the results from dozens of precincts, and found the results for 134 precincts had errors which "they" corrected. Is the Republican party in Iowa run by fools, or mobsters? After the hundreds of hours of corporate media coverage of the Iowa campaign, you might think our media would find that an interesting story to pursue. Where is the FBI investigation?

Jan 20, 2012 - 10 Reasons the U.S. is No Longer the Land of the Free

If you'd like a nice, professional account of how we've lost our freedoms, this recent article lays it out. I guess I'll have to lay off lambasting the "Washington Post" for a while due to this fine piece.

Jan 16, 2012 - Is Ron Paul Unelectable?

Your TV programmers continually remind you that Ron Paul is unelectable. What they mean is that he is unacceptable to the Republican/Democratic establishment. If he wins the Republican ticket, he is likely to beat Obama with his extremely popular anti-war/anti-empire message, drawing lots of support from what your TV tells you is "the left". They have decided to back Mitt Romney and inform everyone that with less than 1% of the votes cast, Romney is the winner! If Paul wins South Carolina, they will get aggressive, with smear campaigns and vote fraud. Recall the last threat to the establishment, Ross Perot, was very popular until relentless attacks by the corporate media convinced the public that he was unstable and kooky.

Jan 15, 2012 - What War with Iran Might Look Like

It would be a mess, as this outstanding article accurately describes. Notice how "tensions with Iran" have suddenly risen just after our troops were removed from vulnerable bases in Iraq. 

Jan 14, 2012 - Military Housing is for Military Families

Here is a classic story of military waste. Part of the outrage is that our military spends a over a billion a dollars a year boosting the English economy with unneeded bases. But the topic of this article is that our Air Force has allowed airmen to collect over $2000 a month to pay for off base housing, when free base housing was available, simply because they preferred to live off-base. That wasteful practice is ending, but demonstrates the arrogance of many military officers.

Jan 9, 2012 - Support Consumer Reports!

Consumer Reports magazine is a great American institution, which publishes an inexpensive monthly magazine about consumer products, with no advertising! It's like a government agency that requires no tax dollars. It wields great influence in consumer product and honesty issues. A yearly subscription will save you much more than its cost. For example, its recent review of AA batteries shows that some cost twice as much yet don't last any longer than other brands. Another article scolded ignorant Americans who insist on buying name brand prescription medications rather than generics, which have the exact same chemical content yet cost far less, one-tenth as much in some cases.

Jan 8, 2012 - America's Kangaroo Courts

Few Americans know that one in five American adults has a criminal record. One in eight American adult males has a felony conviction; it's one in three for blacks. Think about that the next time you walk through a crowd of people. Anyone with experience in America's criminal court system knows it's a sad joke. Anyone who objects is labeled a bleeding heart liberal, who is soft on crime. The only presidential candidate to object is Ron Paul, which is why our corporate media tells us Paul is crazy. The public gets hints when a friend or family member is arrested, or when a famous American does time for "crime." 

Actor Wesley Snipes is doing three years in the joint for a misdemeanor conviction of filing false tax returns, prepared by his state certified tax adviser. Barry Bonds' eight-year multi-million dollar legal battle just ended with a conviction for lying to a grand jury about steroid use. He was lucky to get two years probation after prosecutors demanded 15 months in prison for committing that felony. Two reporters who refused to testify before the grand jury were thrown in jail for a year, as was Bonds' personal trainer. Few Americans understand that a judge can immediately toss them in jail indefinitely without a trial for "contempt", even when its a petty case about someone taking a performance enhancing drug to hit a ball better.

Billionaire Conrad Black did time for fraud where he heard many stories of judicial outrage. He has the connections to speak out, and received a little attention with articles such as this: Prosecutors Gone Wild. Here is part: 

"The legal profession in the United States is a professional cartel where legislating lawyers and regulators produce thousands of new enforceable laws and regulations every year; judges, prosecutors, and private sector counsel lock arms to ensure that legal invoices, (which total almost 10 per cent of GDP -- almost $1.4 trillion annually), are paid as a priority surpassed only by the claims of government.

Unlimited incidences of what other legally serious countries would consider frivolous or vexatious litigation clog the civil courts, and prosecutors enjoy a stacked evidentiary and procedural deck which gives them a success rate in prosecutions of over 90 per cent. (The corresponding figure in Canada is about 65 per cent, and only about 40 per cent of those receive custodial sentences.)

The United States has just five per cent of the world's population, 25 per cent of its incarcerated people, and 50 per cent of its lawyers."

The USA has more people in prison than any other nation on Earth, in total and per capita. This means we have a larger percentage of our population behind bars than all those evil dictatorships around the world. Other modern nations imprison one-tenth of what the USA locks up. I was recently impressed to see footage of a British policeman executing an arrest warrant.  He politely knocked on the door, informed the man of fraud charges, and escorted him to his car. No SWAT team and no handcuffs! Our police are rated on the most arrests resulting in convictions, and often bring the press along to publicly humiliate the "suspect." Prosecutors compete for the most convictions with the longest sentences. Judges are political appointees seeking a reputation as tough on crime. 

The basic prosecutor strategy is to demand a person plead guilty, or face further charges like "obstruction of justice" or "lying to a federal agent." If that doesn't work, they threaten to arrest wives or friends under vague "conspiracy" laws, which require citizens to report crimes, lest they be considered part of the conspiracy. They are allowed to bribe witnesses with rewards for testimony, or reduced charges for crimes they have committed. If a troublesome citizen demands a trial, they drag out court proceedings for years until the person is broke and pleads guilty. If he still proclaims innocence, the legal cartel is upset that they must prove guilt, and seek the maximum punishment for every "crime" they can dream up. 

The trial judges are usually tough on crime political hacks, so once a person is arrested he is considered a lying criminal. The judge decides what evidence the defense can present and which witnesses he will allow. Defense lawyers must play along, or the judge will revoke their privilege to represent clients in "his" court system. The defendant is told not take the stand in his own defense because he may later be charged with perjury. The judge instructs the naive jurors what to consider, after having screened out knowledgeable citizens during the jury selection process. If a juror or two refuse to convict, they are often dismissed by the judge and replaced by alternates. Entrapment is no longer a defense. Most FBI terrorism convictions occur when the FBI uses undercover people to convince someone to agree to plan a terror act.

If the jury fails to convict resulting in a hung jury, the prosecutor starts the whole process over. Some defendants go through several trials before they are convicted. And if found innocent, the prosecutors may bring other charges. Notice that when a "terrorist" is charged with an attack that kills 20 people, he just just charged with killing a few, so that if found innocent, he can be charged again with killing a few more. A common tactic for less serious crimes is to deny bail and keep the defendant in jail for years, until he pleads guilty in exchange for release for timed served. 

Here is a typical case of a citizen with no criminal record accused of a minor non-violent crime, denied bail and kept locked up for 17 months until he pled guilty. Everyone knows he's guilty because he admitted it, but no one questions why he was not allowed bail or why he wasn't brought to trial within 90 days. The obvious answer is that prosecutors lacked proof of guilt. The "time served" plea deal is often used when it becomes apparent that someone was wrongly convicted of a serious crime, like the West Memphis Three. Prosecutors and their judge dodge blame for injustice by offering to release the innocent person immediately if they agree to plead guilty to new bogus charges in exchange for time served.

Recall the highly publicized Florida trial of Casey Anthony last year. She fought to remain free on bail as prosecutors added other petty charges like using a friend's check to pay for something and lying to a policemen. Her trial was delayed for three years, and when she was found innocent, our television corporate media commentators were outraged, and convinced many Americans that trial by jury was an outdated practice. (Every criminal defense lawyer will tell that you might as well plead guilty than ask for a trial by judge.) The judge sentenced her to three years in prison for lying to a policemen to justify her prior imprisonment, which delayed her release for several more weeks.

A more interesting court story last year received almost no corporate media attention. Federal judge Jack Kemp was caught in a drug sting buying cocaine for himself and his stripper girlfriend. He admitted having done so several times, and giving his prosty a government issued laptop. Camp and other federal judges usually sentence citizens to at least five years in prison for such behavior, plus several years more if they carried a firearm during their drug deals. Camp was arrested with two loaded handguns. Camp admitted that he frequently snorted cocaine, smoked marijuana, and shot up heroin during his previous four months while presiding over court cases, all of which must be retried, costing the government millions of dollars. There is normally extra prison time added to the sentence of public officials for betraying the public trust.

How many decades will Judge Camp serve? After expressing disgust with Camp's crimes, the prosecutor asked for 15 days. The presiding judge doubled that, and sentenced Camp to 30 days in jail. These are same people who routinely sentence young unemployed citizens to years in prison for their first drug offense. And since the presiding judge decided that none of his crimes were felonies, Judge Camp now enjoys a comfortable federal retirement pension, after being protected by what Conrad Black calls the "legal cartel." There was no public outrage because those in charge of our corporate media chose to ignore this case. 

Our "competitive" corporate media also decided to ignore the case of Las Vegas District Attorney David Schubert, who became famous prosecuting Paris Hilton for cocaine possession. He was arrested last year buying cocaine from a street corner drug dealer while armed with a 9mm pistol, an offense he routinely prosecuted and sent citizens to prison for years. The legal cartel chose to ignore that he admitted doing so for several months, that he was high while at work prosecuting drug users, was armed, and that he bought the drugs. Schubert got just three years probation for possession, and his record will be expunged if he stays out trouble. I'm not bothered by these sentences, but by the hypocrisy of these people who send hundreds of thousands of citizens to years in prison each year for similar "crimes" while our corporate media censors the truth.

Our corporate media also failed to report that regular citizens no longer have any constructional rights. If the IRS suspects you may have cash stashed overseas, it can now issue a grand jury summons ordering you to turn over all your foreign bank statements. If you refuse, citing a 5th amendment right against self-incrimination, or simply claiming that you have none, a judge can find you in contempt and order you jailed, indefinitely, without trial. And don't be surprised to encounter federal TSA agents conducting random highway checkpoints with warrantless searches of your car, bags, or groins. As a senior TSA official recently announced: “People generally associate the TSA with airport security…but now we have moved on to other forms of transportation, such as highways, buses and railways.” 

As a final blow, President Obama signed a law on Dec. 31st allowing our military to arrest U.S. citizens on U.S. soil and hold them without trial indefinitely. Comedian Stephen Colbert explained that is not true, because you will be released once you've died. The good news is that we no longer have to worry about losing our freedoms, because we  have none left. And we don't have to worry about trial costs or defense strategy. If charged with a crime, just plead guilty and do your time. I rarely address these issues, lest I be labeled as an anti-government "person of interest" subject to investigation.

Jan 5, 2012 - The "Rebellion" in Syria

Here is a good article about misinformation and the ongoing war against Syria.

Jan 2, 2012 - Bill Sweetman Sounds Off

Wow! Real reporting from the corporate media. If insight like this appeared in the print edition, I'd subscribe again. I got "Aviation Week" for many years, but tired of reading PR releases from its advertisers rewritten slightly by AvWeek stenographers. As Paul Fussel once wrote, "what someone doesn't want you to publish is journalism, all else is publicity."

My new year's prediction: "Mr. Sweetman will be forced to retire this year." Whilst we shed light on the F-35 racket, note the Marines AV-8Bs are only 15 years of age on average. They don't need replacement until after 2030. Their F-18C/D are old, but F-18E/Fs are in production, at half the cost of F-35B with similar capabilities with their new AESA radar.

Jan 1, 2012 - Oil From Irak

Let me start the new year with a repost of one of my best articles, published in 2007: Oil From Irak

Times have changed, but I still think the Turks may take advantage of chaos in Iraq to reoccupy their oil fields around Mosul. And since Syria now has troubles, the Turks may send "peacekeepers" to reclaim oil rich northeastern Syria, which is mostly Kurdish. Turks pay over $10 a gallon for fuel at the pump, so public support for a second Ottoman Empire is strong.

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Carlton Meyer  editorG2mil@Gmail.com

2011 Blog (second half) - The Empire Retreats

2011 Blog (first half) - The Empire Retreats

2010 Blog - The Empire Crumbles

2009 Blog - The Bankrupt Empire

2008 Blog - The End of the Empire

2000-2008 - Monthly Editorials

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