By Larry O'Hara | Fascinating fall-out recently following the publication of Ron Suskind's new book  'The Way of the World' (Simon & Schuster 2008) in which he argues two things of interest.  Firstly, the the US regime leant on Iraqi informer (Tahir Habbush) to help manufacture evidence there were 'Weapons of Mass Destruction' in Iraq, when there weren't.  No surprise there.  Second in the course of writing ...

By Andrew Brown | HUNDREDS of people across Merseyside have been under surveillance by local authorities using powers under so-called “terror laws”, according to details released under the Freedom of Information Act. An investigation has revealed that organisations ranging from local councils, including Sefton, to Merseytravel have used the powers created by the Government under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa). The use of the laws by local councils and organisations ...

From the Blog of Kev: I will refuse to comply with any compulsary ID card scheme. but only if 1,000 other UK people will do the same. Deadline to pledge 31st December 2008, pledge creator Ken Hall In light of the government's proven incapability to guarantee the security of personal data and the ...

The Pentagon: Some-Things-Never-Change Department Tomgram | What a difference four and a half years makes. When I first penned "The Wild Weapons of DARPA," in March 2004, I was a new TomDispatch writer; the war in Iraq was not yet a year old; the war in Afghanistan had been bubbling for less than two and a half years, and I suggested that "what's left of the USSR is a collapsed ...

Fascism’s principles are wafting in the air today, surreptitiously masquerading as something else, challenging everything we stand for. By Laurence W. Britt  | The cliché that people and nations learn from history is not only overused, but also overestimated; often we fail to learn from history, or draw the wrong conclusions. Sadly, historical amnesia is the norm.  We are two-and-a-half generations removed from the horrors of Nazi Germany, although constant reminders jog ...

By Stephen Lendman - RINF | For the West, everything changed but stayed the same, hard-wired and in place. Things just lay dormant in the shadows during the Yeltsin years, certain to reemerge once a more resolute Russian leader took over. If not Vladimir Putin, someone else little different. Russia is back, proud and reassertive, and not about to roll over for America. Especially in Eurasia. For Washington, it's back ...

London Progressive Journal | Buzzwords abound in the rhetoric of politicians and never more so than when the talk is of public sector reform. Of the current phrases spewing forth ‘choice’ and ‘empowerment’ are two of the favourites but whose choice and whose empowerment? And while MP’s try to frame these words as synonyms of ‘public benefit’, is choice always a good thing? Health and education are the ...

Open Democracy | In a key intervention in the 42 days debate last month, the former head of MI5, Baroness Manningham-Buller stated: “arguments can be made to justify any time of detention, just as in other countries, although mercifully not here, they can be made to justify any method of interrogation.” That remark elided key questions about how far the security services are complicit in interrogation practices overseas, ...

By Ruth Conniff | If the all-too-familiar sight of a slightly paunchy Joe Biden jogging to the podium, his white comb-over waving gently in the breeze (think "energy!") to accept the job as Barack Obama's Vice Presidential pick wasn't enough to give you pause, there was the Bidenesque speech that followed. The "change" campaign is now co-chaired by one of the longest serving members of the Senate, who voted ...

By Rep. Ron Paul | We've heard how the value of the dollar affects gas prices – and indeed the price of everything. I was pleased that my request for a hearing on such was granted by the Financial Services committee and we were able to hear some very informative testimony. Certainly domestic policies, regarding off-shore oil drilling bans, ethanol mandates, refining capacity, and CAFE standards are interventionist and ...

Barack Obama has chosen Joe Biden as his running mate. It’s an interesting choice, given that Obama is running a change campaign and Biden has been a Washington fixture for decades. Also because the two ran against each other in the primary, during which Biden famously had to apologize for unfortunate comments about his rival. The Obama campaign is likely to exploit Biden’s experience, particularly in the ...

By Marcus Morgan | After the worst Spanish air tragedy in 25 years on Wednesday, accident investigators have begun examining the wreckage of the plane that crashed at Madrid’s Barajas airport, killing 153 passengers. Just 19 passengers have survived the crash, 5 of whom are said to be in a critical condition, with horrific injuries. The captain and co-pilot are confirmed among the dead. Flight JK5022 was bound for Las ...

With less than three months before the presidential election, the hotly contested state, Ohio, along with others, continue to have problems with E-voting technology By Larry Greenemeier  In their rush to avoid a repeat of the controversy that plagued the 2000 presidential election, and to meet the requirements of Congress's hastily mandated 2002 Help America Vote Act (HAVA), states and counties flocked to electronic voting systems they hoped would eliminate ...