Source: Page 147 of White Noise Keywords: "under," "shivering," "light," "there"

From: "maff" <maff91@yahoo.com> Subject: OT: Democrats who oppose illegal wars and torture want to reclaim the party Date: 7 Aug 2006 Newsgroups: alt.atheism

Democrats who oppose illegal wars and torture want to reclaim the party http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1838659,00.html A grassroots revolt by voters has sparked a struggle for the party's soul, and a New England senator is in the firing line Gary Younge in Bristol, Connecticut Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian In 1998, Connecticut's senator, Joseph Lieberman, broke ranks with his Democratic colleagues and railed against the "premeditated" deception of the commander-in-chief. Back then the enduring legacy of this presidential deceit could be found on the dress of a White House intern, Monica Lewinsky. And Lieberman, who went on to be Al Gore's vice-presidential running mate, was hopping mad. "Such behaviour is not just inappropriate," he told the Senate, referring to Bill Clinton's affair. "It is immoral." Britain is better, but Blair and Brown have stymied Labour http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1838671,00.html This has been a good government, but Iraq and the feud over leadership have fatally weakened the party Tom Bentley Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian Britain is a better place than a decade ago. It is a more relaxed, open, wealthy and interesting society. Most of its people are much better off, and many know how to enjoy it. Yet the atmosphere of decay and hysteria currently swirling around British politics only heightens the extreme disappointment that many people now feel in Tony Blair and his government. Blair's public authority was battered, perhaps fatally, by Iraq. Now the final elements of his political standing are being consumed by allegations of political corruption, and made obsolete by his weak response to the crisis in the Middle East. The logic of force http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1838669,00.html The doves who demand that Israel withdraw its troops fail to grasp the reality of border security Jonathan Chait Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian Let's face it, Israel's counter offensive in Lebanon doesn't seem to be going very well. Liberals are saying it. Conservatives are saying it. Plenty of Israelis are saying it. But here is the odd thing: nobody is paying very careful attention to the alternative. The criticism of Israel's ground campaign - however sound much of it may be - takes place against an assumption that peace could be at hand if only Israel stopped fighting. How I rattled the deniers http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1838672,00.html The venom that greeted my speech on religious prejudice was the work of Scotland's bigoted press James MacMillan Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian Seven years ago this week I delivered a speech at the Edinburgh Festival entitled Scotland's Shame - Anti-Catholicism as a barrier to genuine pluralism. I was aware that the speech was potentially convulsive, but was unprepared for the full visceral shock of Scottish press vitriol. Before I even got home that day, a tabloid had burned a path to my door. Other redtops followed. It was clear they were in an awkward situation. No paper could claim that bigotry was a good thing, but I had included a critique of press attitudes and they wanted to fight back. My three kids were so terrified by the sequence of sullen visitors they were packed off with the childminder. The global battle for ideas cannot be fought with guns http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1838670,00.html Bush and Blair's belief that Islamism could be bombed into submission was deluded. We need to find a middle way Jackie Ashley Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian Tony Blair is right. Tony Blair is disastrously wrong. Where he is right is to insist, in his recent speech, that the tragedy of Lebanon is not a single one-off event but part of a much larger confrontation with an "arc of extremism". I have friends so angry about Israel's behaviour that they are beginning to fall for the idea that Hizbullah is an admirable resistance army, a movement of social workers, philosophers and urban guerrillas, to be supported "objectively", as the Marxists used to say - the Guardian in the sunshine with rockets. We read admiring reports about the wit and verbal brilliance of Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, who is sometimes portrayed as a mix of Che Guevara and Groucho Marx. UN truce plan under threat as conflict spirals http://www.guardian.co.uk/syria/story/0,,1838703,00.html Israel suffers deadliest day yet and Arab states reject draft resolution Ewen MacAskill, Oliver Burkeman in New York, Rory McCarthy in Kfar Giladi and Simon Tisdall in Tehran Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian A UN ceasefire initiative for Lebanon ran into almost immediate trouble last night after it was rejected by key Arab countries and provoked Hizbullah's deadliest strike on Israel so far. Hours after the draft security council ceasefire resolution was published, the US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, also issued a sobering warning that she expected fighting to continue once the text was formally adopted today or tomorrow. The prediction came as Lebanon and Hizbullah dismissed the deal and Israel, Syria and Iran embarked on a fresh war of words highlighting the potential for the war to turn into a regional conflict. Iran threatens to use 'oil weapon' in nuclear standoff http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,1838645,00.html  Energy crisis would leave people 'shivering in cold'  UN deadline looms for Tehran to accept deal Simon Tisdall in Tehran Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian Iran warned Britain and the US yesterday that the international community could face a new oil crisis if the United Nations security council imposes sanctions on Tehran over its alleged attempt to acquire a nuclear weapons-making capability. Speaking in Tehran, Ali Larijani, the country's chief nuclear negotiator and head of the supreme national security council, said Iran would be reluctant to cut its oil exports. "We do not want to use the oil weapon. It is them who would impose it upon us." Bush and Blair complicit in war crimes, says Tehran http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,1838816,00.html Simon Tisdall in Tehran Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian Tony Blair and George Bush are "co-defendants" in war crimes committed by Israel in Lebanon and should be made to answer for their actions before an international court, a senior Iranian government leader said yesterday. Manouchehr Mottaki, Iran's foreign minister, also said British and US leaders had foreknowledge of Israeli plans to launch a "campaign of aggression" in Lebanon which he claimed was part of a "war on the whole Middle East". But Iran did not fear an American attack, he said, and Washington's plans to transform the region in its image were certain to fail. Lost document reveals Columbus as tyrant of the Caribbean http://www.guardian.co.uk/spain/article/0,,1838823,00.html Giles Tremlett in Madrid Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian Christopher Columbus, the man credited with discovering the Americas, was a greedy and vindictive tyrant who saved some of his most violent punishments for his own followers, according to a document uncovered by Spanish historians. As governor and viceroy of the Indies, Columbus imposed iron discipline on the first Spanish colony in the Americas, in what is now the Caribbean country of Dominican Republic. Punishments included cutting off people's ears and noses, parading women naked through the streets and selling them into slavery. Anti-terror laws alienate Muslims, says top policeman http://www.guardian.co.uk/terrorism/story/0,,1838844,00.html  Call for judicial review into causes of extremism  Ghaffur says racism has curtailed his own career Riazat Butt and Vikram Dodd Monday August 7, 2006 The Guardian One of Britain's top police officers will today warn that anti-terrorism laws are discriminating against Muslims and law enforcement agencies are running a "real risk" of criminalising ethnic minorities. Tarique Ghaffur, assistant commissioner in the Metropolitan police, will also call for "an independent judicial review" of why some young British Muslims turn to extremism. He warns that more work is needed to stop the "flight, fright or separation" of British Muslim communities after the July 7 2005 bombings in London. Prominent Hamas politician is seized http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article1217433.ece By Anne Penketh, Diplomatic Editor Published: 07 August 2006 Israel has arrested a senior Hamas leader at his home in Ramallah, expanding its original front against the Palestinians in Gaza. The Israelis may try to trade Abdel Aziz Dweik, the speaker of the Palestinian parliament, for Cpl Gilad Shalit, who was seized in a cross-border raid by Islamic fighters on 25 June. Robert Fisk: This draft shows who is running America's policy... Israel http://news.independent.co.uk/world/fisk/article1217413.ece Published: 07 August 2006 So the great and the good on the East River laboured at the United Nations Security Council - and brought forth a lemon. You could almost hear the Lebanese groan at this draft resolution, a document of such bias and mendacity that a close Lebanese friend read carefully through it yesterday, cursed and uttered the immortal question: "Don't these bastards learn anything from history?" And there it all was again, the warmed-up peace proposals of Israel's 1982 invasion, full of buffer zones and disarmament and "strict respect by all parties" - a rousing chortle here, no doubt, from Hizbollah members - and the need for Lebanese sovereignty. It didn't even demand the withdrawal of Israeli forces, a point that Walid Moallem, Syria's Foreign Minister - and the man the Americans will eventually have to negotiate with - seized upon with more than alacrity. It was a dead UN resolution without a total Israeli retreat, he said on a strategic trip to Beirut. In search of the big bang: a cosmic event http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_technology/article1217380... A cosmic event High up in the Chilean Andes, more than 5,000 metres above sea level, astronomers are building a telescopic "time machine" that promises to offer a glimpse of the moment the universe was created 13 billion years ago. Steve Connor reports from Chajnantor Published: 07 August 2006 A short walk in the vast, dry plateau of Chajnantor in the high Andes of Chile is an arduous and light-headed experience. Here the air is so thin that day trippers have to carry oxygen canisters to avoid the debilitating symptoms of altitude sickness. Chajnantor does not invite strenuous activity and yet this is the site of the most ambitious high-altitude construction project in the world. By 2012, the plateau will be home to an astronomical "time machine" able to look as far back as the cosmic events that followed the Big Bang. Lieberman faces poll defeat after backing Iraq conflict http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article1217369.ece By David Usborne in New York Published: 07 August 2006 The political fate of Joe Lieberman, the Democratic senator who in 2000 was the vice-presidential running mate of Al Gore, may be decided tomorrow when Connecticut goes to the polls to vote on an unexpectedly tight and hard-fought primary contest. A three-term senator, Mr Lieberman has long been popular in Connecticut, and until a few months ago could have assumed an easy re-election. But that was before Ned Lamont, a cable television tycoon from Greenwich, took him on for the right to run for the Democrats for the Connecticut Senate seat this November. Counterinsurgency, by the Book http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/opinion/07shultz.html?pagewanted=all By RICHARD H. SCHULTZ Jr. and ANDREA J. DEW Based on our research and the lessons learned from centuries of counterinsurgency efforts, we recommend three major revisions for the Pentagon's new counterinsurgency manual. Livening Up Today's Lesson, Courtesy of Uncle Sam http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/world/asia/07indo.html?ref=world&pa... By JANE PERLEZ In the hope of promoting tolerance and counteracting extreme Islamic views, the U.S. is making education a focus of foreign aid to friendly Muslim countries. Arab World Finds Icon in Leader of Hezbollah http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/world/middleeast/07nasrallah.html?r... By NEIL MacFARQUHAR The success or failure of any cease-fire in Lebanon will largely hinge on Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah. Rocket Barrage Kills 15 Israelis Close to Border http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/world/middleeast/07mideast.html?ref... By RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr. and GREG MYRE Hezbollah rockets killed 12 Israeli Army reservists near the Lebanon border and 3 civilians in Haifa as Israel again pounded Lebanon with airstrikes. A Disciplined Hezbollah Surprises Israel With Its Training, Tactics and Weapons http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/world/middleeast/07hezbollah.html?r... By STEVEN ERLANGER and RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr. Hezbollah has sharply improved its arsenal and strategies in the six years since Israel abruptly ended its occupation of southern Lebanon. Cease-Fire Draft at U.N. Falters Amid Arab Criticism http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/world/middleeast/07diplo.html?ref=w... By WARREN HOGE and NEIL MacFARQUHAR Across the Middle East, the draft resolution was thought to address Israel's demands without addressing those of Hezbollah. Dread and Resignation in Israel http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/world/middleeast/07scene.html?ref=m... By RICHARD A. OPPEL Jr. Dozens of rockets have been falling in Kiryat Shmona each day, setting fire to the brush that surrounds what is normally a city of 25,000. As Shelling Continues, Few Residents Remain in Towns That Once Took Refugees http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/world/middleeast/07lebanon.html?ref... By JAD MOUAWAD The relentless Israeli assault is emptying southern Lebanon. Most who remain are either too old, too tired or too poor to leave. Facing Voters, Georgia Congressman Gets an Assist From Documentary http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/movies/07cynt.html?ref=us By BRENDA GOODMAN Representative Cynthia A. McKinney, who represents Georgia's Fourth District, has been counting on a movie for last-minute help with the Democratic primary runoff vote. Labyrinthine Complexities of Fighting a Terror War http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/arts/07conn.html?ref=arts&pagewante... By EDWARD ROTHSTEIN War usually requires absolute clarity about identities. But the battles now being fought in Lebanon represent a newer form of warfare. A New Brand of Power http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/06/AR200... By Sebastian Mallaby Monday, August 7, 2006; Page A15 Motorola used to be a manufacturer of cellphones. Then it came up with its ultra-slim Razr handset and became a lifestyle company as well. Apple made the same transition years ago: It is not so much a computer maker as a style iCon. At certain select nightclubs, Coca-Cola is selling its black sugar in funky bottles etched with glow-in-the-dark graphics. This redesign helped to propel Coca-Cola onto a recent BusinessWeek cover. So what, you might say: The cool quotient in products may boost profits and amuse consumers, but what's its significance for the nation's future? Quite a lot, actually. The rising power of brands has implications for public health, globalization and the environment. It may even be changing the political equation. Anyone for 'Tony's taters'? Jeremy Pelczer August 6, 2006 11:00 AM http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/jeremy_pelczer/2006/08/top_level_... Reports that the Capitol Hill cafeteria has dropped freedom fries from its menu and reverted to the traditional name French fries omit some of the careful, even tortuous, political consideration that went into the decision. My secret sources on the hill (which by happy coincidence happen to be frequently clustered around the dishwashing machine in the above-mentioned cafeteria) tell me of the deep philosophical and historical strategic wrangling at the highest level on the matter, most of it centred around the House Secret Committee for Foodspeak. Tyrant who stands between peace and catastrophe http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,1838261,00.html Curbing the martial and political aims of President Ahmadinejad of Iran should be the paramount concern of Western leaders Henry Porter Sunday August 6, 2006 The Observer With a shudder, I realise I am writing this on 4 August, 92 years to the day that my grandfathers, both serving officers and in the same regiment, learned they would probably be going to war. I do not know how long they thought they would be fighting for or if they expected to survive (both did), but I am fairly sure that neither had an exact idea of the complex forces that brought them to France and Mons by the end of month. The voices of the innocent must be heard above the din of war http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,1838230,00.html Rowan Williams Sunday August 6, 2006 The Observer The UN continues to deliberate about what kind of resolution might be possible to support and effect a ceasefire in Lebanon. The optimistic view is that this could be achieved 'in a few days', though the organisation of an international peacekeeping force is likely to take several weeks. Even a few days is a long time in the Middle East, not only because of the cycle of slaughter, but because of the mounting humanitarian crisis. Voices in the region - including local Christians and the Middle East Council of Churches - are increasingly desperate for even short-term goals; a brief ceasefire; a lifting of the naval blockade to allow in humanitarian supplies; anything that might ease the pressure on overwhelmed civilian hospitals. Every hour that passes, they say, is making the post-conflict prospect more and more unbearable - to the point where even the briefest and most nominal interruption of the carnage becomes hugely significant. Our men are dying at the hands of enemies abroad and friends at home http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,1838301,00.html Nick Cohen Sunday August 6, 2006 The Observer The awkward question for those who want an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon is what will happen if the Iranians order Hizbollah to start fighting again. The only way to escape the answer that we would be back to where we started is for the world to send in an effective international force and that may happen if we're lucky. With Tony Blair calling for an 'alliance of moderation' to combat the Islamist wave, a second question arises: should he order British troops to support moderates in Lebanon? You only have to ask it for objections to crowd in. British forces are overstretched and Britain is too close to America to be viewed as a neutral, but the strongest reason for keeping British troops out is one that is barely discussed: they are fantastically badly equipped to fight modern wars. Sergeant Steven Roberts, of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment, who died because the Ministry of Defence hadn't supplied body armour to the troops, is only the start. I know of officers in Iraq who buy medical supplies for their men and women with their own money, while everyone has heard soldiers in Afghanistan complain about the shortage of Chinook helicopters and armoured vehicles.

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