Peace and Justice Post

Syrian security forces seize IDs and cellphones from those gathered at the soccer arena, activists say. Five people are killed, and the U.N. is worried about Palestinian refugees in the area.

Syrian security forces continued hammering opposition strongholds in Latakia, especially in the district of Ramleh, which has been pummeled with tank, gunboat and automatic weapons fire. (AFP/Getty Images / August 15, 2011)

Syrian security forces cracking down on opposition strongholds in Latakia herded thousands of people into a stadium and took away their identification cards and cellphones, activists said Monday.

Forces loyal to the regime of President Bashar Assad continued hammering opposition strongholds in the country’s main port city, especially in the district of Ramleh, which has been pummeled with tank, gunboat and automatic weapons fire after unusually large antigovernment demonstrations broke out there Friday.

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U.S. Congressman Steny Hoyer (D-MD) said Wednesday that financial challenges “will not have any adverse effect on America’s determination to meet its promise to Israel.” The blunt statement by the second-highest ranked Democrat in the House of Representatives underscored recent news that subsidies to Israel remained untouched by the debt crisis.

Hoyer is currently leading a delegation of 26 US Democratic congressmen on a tour of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, funded by an affiliate of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. He insisted his message was bipartisan and that a similar message will be brought to Israel next week when House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) leads a Republican delegation to the country, numbering 55 congressmen.

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by Richard Falk, Foreign Policy Journal, August 15, 2011

On January 31, 1968, the combined forces of North Vietnam (DRV or Democratic Force of Vietnam) and the NLF (National Liberation Front) launched a spectacular series of attacks throughout the contested territory of all of South Vietnam. As many as 100 Vietnamese cities and towns were simultaneously attacked, 36 of 44 provincial capitals were captured, and the impregnable American Embassy complex in Saigon was penetrated. These attacks were all repelled in a few days, with the Vietnamese taking huge losses, 37,500 estimated deaths, which came on top of 90,000 lost soldiers in the preceding months. The American commander, General Westmoreland, had confidently predicted prior to the Tet Offensive that the NLF would never be able to replace such losses, and victory for the United States in the Vietnam War was near at hand.

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Stephen Lendman, MWC News, Aug. 13, 2011

Eighty-one House members, one fifth of the chamber, will visit Israel during the traditional summer recess, instead of addressing festering local issues at home during the nation’s gravest economic crisis too serious to ignore.

Arriving first were 26 Democrats together, including Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (MD). Another 55 Republicans will follow in two groups, including 47 freshmen.

Heading each are House Minority Leader Eric Cantor (VA) and House Whip Kevin McCarthy (CA). Spouses are also going at an estimated cost of $8,000, including business-class flights, first-class hotels, meals, transportation, side trips, guides and incidentals.

Red carpet treatment is assured along with considerable pro-Israeli messaging, especially for new incoming freshmen. They’ll meet with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Shimon Peres, as well as PA President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Salam Fayyad in Ramallah. Legitimate Hamas leaders are excluded.

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“The Bible is like a person, and if you torture it long enough, you can get it to say almost anything you’d like it to say.”

– Rev. Dr. Francis H. Wade

I’ve been watching the drama unfolding in the United States over who’s going to be running for elections in November 2012, on the off chance that it’s actually going to matter to anyone, including Americans, which clowns get elected. As an American comedian explains it, ‘When you go into the booth, your choice is between two bowls of shit. The only difference, is the smell’.

But I’ve become even more agitated than I used to be because of all the damn Bible thumping. The United States is currently polarized between multiple views of the greatest con job ever – religion. In this case, it’s mostly Christianity. And it’s getting worse.

So here’s the thing – ‘The Bible’ is the authoritative text for Christianity. The first part of it is holy to the Jews; even the Muslims make some concessions to it and actually think Jesus was a pretty decent fella.

In the United States – and to a lesser but still powerful degree here in Canada – the Bible is THE authority. The Bible is the Word of God (always capitalized). It is referenced constantly as the sole arbiter on what is right or wrong, and is frequently used to back up an amazing array of arguments – whether or not the Bible actually refers to the issue at all. In the US, it is almost inconceivable that anyone could hold high public office without making clear that this book guides his or her every thought. That’s not so much of a problem in Canada, although there is a frightening increase in the evangelical movement here.

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Immanuel Wallerstein, Commentary No. 311, Aug. 15, 2011

A decade ago, when I and some others spoke of U.S. decline in the world-system, we were met at best with condescending smiles at our naivety. Was not the United States the lone superpower, involved in every remote corner of the earth, and getting its way most of the time? This was a view shared all along the political spectrum.

Today, the view that the United States has declined, has seriously declined, is a banality. Everyone is saying it, except for a few U.S. politicians who fear they will be blamed for the bad news of the decline if they discuss it. The fact is that just about everyone believes today in the reality of the decline.

What is however far less discussed is what have been, what will be the consequences worldwide of this decline. The decline has economic roots of course. But the loss of a quasi-monopoly of geopolitical power, which the United States once exercised, has major political consequences everywhere.

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More than 30,000 people staged a march in the northern city of Haifa on Saturday, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported on its website.

“We want there to be a welfare state here, and a welfare state is not just a slogan,” said Yossi Baruch, the representative for the largest tent city in Haifa.

“It means free education for every boy and girl, from the moment their mother finishes her maternity leave until they finish their doctorate. A welfare state is a place where its citizens receive fair wages,” he added.

In Be’er Sheva in southern Israel, over 20,000 demonstrators poured into the streets near the tent city.

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Dr. Vandana Shiva	Christiane Amanpour

“If people want more courage and inspiration to fight the Monsantos and the Cargills, to deal with the corporations, to deal with the GMO’s, to deal with the economic slowdown, I think coming to India and seeing what is happening will give you renewed confidence.”

– Dr. Vanana Shiva

CNN continuously promotes itself as “The Network that Goes Beyond Borders.” They sell programs like the “CNN Freedom Project” in which they expose “Modern Day Slavery” (with particular emphasis on human slavery when it exists among enemies of western countries). Other CNN programs like “Inside Africa” and “Inside the Middle East” expose poverty and “terrorism,” respectively. All these programs are shot through with heart-rending stories of people suffering, replete with music that moves the emotions and a message that moves the mind – of the viewer. Meanwhile, the same multi-billion dollar media funded by George Soros supports the US/NATO wars and occupations against Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and continues to push for war on Iran and Syria, villainizing the enemies of western governments.

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Among Republican presidential hopefuls, several – such as Rep. Michele Bachmann and Gov. Rick Perry – have stressed their commitment to fundamentalist Christianity, which bases its approach to cultural issues on a literal reading of the Bible. But the Rev. Howard Bess notes that many of those ancient traditions are repugnant to modern society.

By the Rev. Howard Bess, Consortium News, Aug. 10, 2011

The essential messages of the Bible are justice, peace, love, reconciliation and hope — messages that have the power to operate in every age and every culture. But the list of clashes between the Bible and modern culture is long.

For instance, the Bible reflects an absurd understanding of the structure of the universe; it shows little understanding of physical and mental illnesses; and it was and is on the wrong side of patriarchal authority, marriage, equality for women, homosexuality, slavery, and the rights of an older son.

That is because the Bible is a collection of writings by many authors who wrote in ever-changing circumstances in ancient times. Today’s Bible readers live in circumstances that could not have been imagined by the original writers.

Family, social, economic and government structures today are completely different from those of the authors of the original writings. The place of women in Bible settings is a prime example of this dilemma, since that status during early Judaism is defined in the property codes of Leviticus.

Women were property owned by men. They were bought and sold. The most famous example of this law is the story of Jacob and Laban.

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Egypt military quizzes activist after ‘defamation’. No tolerance to insults directed at armed forces.

Middle East Online, Aug. 14, 2011

The face of the revolution CAIRO – Egypt’s military prosecution on Sunday detained activist and blogger Asma Mahfuz for questioning for allegedly defaming the military council on Facebook and Twitter, the official MENA news agency reported. Mahfuz — one of the leaders of the Egyptian revolution that unseated former president Hosni Mubarak — was released on bail of 20,000 pounds (around 3,300 dollars, 2,300 euros) but the investigation continues, MENA said. She is being questioned for “speaking inappropriately about the military council and for using defamatory and offensive insults against the council on Facebook and Twitter,” MENA said. Continues >>