Howard,

One of my interests for over 20 years is forensic anthropology. 1000lbs of high explosives within 100 feet of the target a body will be reduced to but bone fragments. Sitting on the roof would've made him literal stain on the ground.

He's intact from the waist up, which also isn't what's found in even a high impact jetliner crash (read the TWA 800 report to show what physics can do to body, for example. Most of the bodies recovered lost limbs and heads). See the arms torn off at the shoulder (no)? Head decapitated by the shock wave (no)? See signs of a major crush injury to the head (indicating the roof collapsed on him -- to show he had some shelter from the blast to describe his intact upper body) (no)? See deep impact wounds (no)?

I know folks are glad he's dead (I know I am), but how he really died doesn't pan out, considering the amount of explosives used (the bombs were much worse than an IED, which could cut a person into two from the blast).

SandyK

TRFKA wrote:

"You are d-e-g-u-s-t-i-n-g, go back to your chains!"

...wow, you're an illiterate tool. Talk about being chained. Can't stand it can you? No way you can bear this good news. It can turn out this way! Noooo! Are you going to sit there and sulk with you Che tshirt on? Go away before I taunt you a second time.

FYI, to Spooky Pete, the details that Mr. Arkin wrote about the soldiers attached to JSOC were publicly released on the Pentagon's Web site. For example, here is the link to the press release announcing the deaths of Army Master Sgt. Robert M. Horrigan, 40, and Army Master Sgt. Michael L. McNulty, 36, killed in hostile combat in Al Qaim, Iraq:

http://www.defenselink.mil/releases/2005/nr20050621-3743.html

Note the release says the soldiers were assigned to Headquarters, U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C., which typically means the soldiers were operators with Delta Force or another covert special operations unit attached to the JSOC. In fact, the U.S. Army Special Operations Command press release refers to the two men as "special operations team members:"

http://news.soc.mil/releases/05JUN/050620-01.htm

my take on the condition of the body?
could have been that they were sitting on the roof at night, which is typical of how Iraqis welcome the cool of the evenings and the bombs were set (fused) to penetrate the ceiling and explode inside the lower levels, collapsing the structure.

he could have been blown off the roof and not badly burned with the roof as a cushion under him.

If Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was alive when found, I hope that someone tried to get some operational intelligence out of him before he expired. My guess is that if alive, he wasn't very alive. I expect that the intelligence gathering ideas were going through the S/G/J-2's little minds as the ground forces moved onto the target.

Well the bastard was alive after 1000lbs of high explosives were dropped on his house. That he survived the ordeal says more about HOW, than not.

Does anyone else wonder about deliberately not telling the media he was alive yesterday? Notice his body was largely intact, as well? Think about the bodies of Palestinians killed by just helicopter missiles (let alone suicide bombers) and they're badly deteroriated. But look at Uday and his brother's photos, and you'll see some similiarities, huh?

I'm not going to speculate in public (to feed conspiracy nuts) but that he survived mostly intact with 1000lbs of direct hit high explosives appears to be incredible to say at least (especially considering the house wasn't a bunker).

SandyK

Al-Zaqarwi or U.S.Aqarwi - THE AMERICAN SUPER-POWER COSMOLOGICAL DEMON: Both were and are guilty of the same behaviors and attitudes in Iraq, invasion, murder, kidnapping, destabilization and hegemony!

I would recommend that all Americans, particularly those who are open to considering a difference of opinion, read the book, The God That Failed. There you will learn how people who placed their trust and faith in their substitute god, their own government(s), in lieu of the true and living God, ended up being not only dissappointed, but also dissaffected.

In this writer's opinion, many Americans have placed too much of their faith and trust in the American Cosmological Super Deity, i.e., America itself, hoping that both its self-made god, along with its attendant soldier-angels, will feed, lead and protect Americans from any and all outside concerns.

I am concerned about the future of this country, and where the new-age secular humanist American cosmological idol-worshippers, will be taking this country.
For too many Americans are drunk on too much of its BITTER wine!

I am also concerned about what sacrifice, the American Cosmological Super Deity will require next, Iran or Korea? Americans, the expression, SuperPower, that Americans love to spew from their lips, is blasphemous and a challenge to The Supreme God. I believe that the God will eventually confront the American Cossmological Super Deity, U.S.Aqarwi!

TRFKA

For uncensored news please bookmark:

www.wsws.org
www.onlinejournal.com
www.takingaim.info
otherside123.blogspot.com

THE UNTOLD STORY ABOUT THE ZARQAWI BASTARD!!!

UNREPORTED: THE ZARQAWI INVITATION
by Greg Palast

They got him -- the big, bad, beheading berserker in Iraq. But, something's gone unreported in all the glee over getting Zarqawi ... who invited him into Iraq in the first place?

If you prefer your fairy tales unsoiled by facts, read no further. If you want the uncomfortable truth, begin with this: A phone call to Baghdad to Saddam's Palace on the night of April 21, 2003. It was Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on a secure line from Washington to General Jay Garner.

The General had arrives in Baghdad just hours before to take charge of the newly occupied nation. The message from Rumsfeld was not a heartwarming welcome. Rummy told Garner, Don't unpack, Jack -- you're fired.

What had Garner done? The many-starred general had been sent by the President himself to take charge of a deeply dangerous mission. Iraq was tense but relatively peaceful. Garner's job was to keep the peace and bring democracy.

Unfortunately for the general, he took the President at his word. But the general was wrong. "Peace" and "Democracy" were the slogans.

"My preference," Garner told me in his understated manner, "was to put the Iraqis in charge as soon as we can and do it in some form of elections."


But elections were not in The Plan.

The Plan was a 101-page document to guide the long-term future of the land we'd just conquered. There was nothing in it about democracy or elections or safety. There was, rather, a detailed schedule for selling off "all [Iraq's] state assets" -- and Iraq, that's just about everything -- "especially," said The Plan, "the oil and supporting industries." Especially the oil.

There was more than oil to sell off. The Plan included the sale of Iraq's banks, and weirdly, changing it's copyright laws and other odd items that made the plan look less like a program for Iraq to get on its feet than a program for corporate looting of the nation's assets. (And indeed, we discovered at BBC, behind many of the odder elements -- copyright and tax code changes -- was the hand of lobbyist Jack Abramoff's associate Grover Norquist.)

But Garner didn't think much of The Plan, he told me when we met a year later in Washington. He had other things on his mind. "You prevent epidemics, you start the food distribution program to prevent famine."

Seizing title and ownership of Iraq's oil fields was not on Garner's must-do list. He let that be known to Washington. "I don't think [Iraqis] need to go by the U.S. plan, I think that what we need to do is set an Iraqi government that represents the freely elected will of the people." He added, "It's their country ... their oil."

Apparently, the Secretary of Defense disagreed. So did lobbyist Norquist. And Garner incurred their fury by getting carried away with the "democracy" idea: he called for quick elections -- within 90 days of the taking of Baghdad.

But Garner's 90-days-to-elections commitment ran straight into the oil sell-off program. Annex D of the plan indicated that would take at least 270 days -- at least 9 months.

Worse, Garner was brokering a truce between Sunnis, Shias and Kurds. They were about to begin what Garner called a "Big Tent" meeting to hammer out the details and set the election date. He figured he had 90 days to get it done before the factions started slitting each other's throats.

But a quick election would mean the end of the state-asset sell-off plan: An Iraqi-controlled government would never go along with what would certainly amount to foreign corporations swallowing their entire economy. Especially the oil. Garner had spent years in Iraq, in charge of the Northern Kurdish zone and knew Iraqis well. He was certain that an asset-and-oil grab, "privatizations," would cause a sensitive population to take up the gun. "That's just one fight you don't want to take on right now."

But that's just the fight the neo-cons at Defense wanted. And in Rumsfeld's replacement for Garner, they had a man itching for the fight. Paul Bremer III had no experience on the ground in Iraq, but he had one unbeatable credential that Garner lacked: Bremer had served as Managing Director of Kissinger and Associates.

In April 2003, Bremer instituted democracy Bush style: he canceled elections and appointed the entire government himself. Two months later, Bremer ordered a halt to all municipal elections including the crucial vote to Shia seeking to select a mayor in the city of Najaf. The front-runner, moderate Shia Asad Sultan Abu Gilal warned, "If they don't give us freedom, what will we do? We have patience, but not for long." Local Shias formed the "Mahdi Army," and within a year, provoked by Bremer's shutting their paper, attacked and killed 21 U.S. soldiers.

The insurgency had begun. But Bremer's job was hardly over. There were Sunnis to go after. He issued "Order Number One: De-Ba'athification." In effect, this became "De-Sunni-fication."

Saddam's generals, mostly Sunnis, who had, we learned, secretly collaborated with the US invasion and now expected their reward found themselves hunted and arrested. Falah Aljibury, an Iraqi-born US resident who helped with the pre-invasion brokering, told me, "U.S. forces imprisoned all those we named as political leaders," who stopped Iraq's army from firing on U.S. troops.

Aljibury's main concern was that busting Iraqi collaborators and Ba'athist big shots was a gift "to the Wahabis," by which he meant the foreign insurgents, who now gained experienced military commanders, Sunnis, who now had no choice but to fight the US-installed regime or face arrest, ruin or death. They would soon link up with the Sunni-defending Wahabi, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was committed to destroying "Shia snakes."

And the oil fields? It was, Aljibury noted, when word got out about the plans to sell off the oil fields (thanks to loose lips of the US-appointed oil minister) that pipelines began to blow. Although he had been at the center of planning for invasion, Aljibury now saw the greed-crazed grab for the oil fields as the fuel for a civil war that would rip his country to pieces:

"Insurgents," he said, "and those who wanted to destabilize a new Iraq have used this as means of saying, 'Look, you're losing your country. You're losing your leadership. You're losing all of your resources to a bunch of wealthy people. A bunch of billionaires in the world want to take you over and make your life miserable.' And we saw an increase in the bombing of oil facilities, pipelines, of course, built on -- built on the premise that privatization [of oil] is coming."

General Garner, watching the insurgency unfold from the occupation authority's provocations, told me, in his understated manner, "I'm a believer that you don't want to end the day with more enemies than you started with."

But you can't have a war president without a war. And you can't have a war without enemies. "Bring 'em on," our Commander-in-Chief said. And Zarqawi answered the call.


**********

Greg Palast is the author of Armed Madhouse out this week from Penguin Dutton, from which this is adapted.

Al-Zaqarwi or U.S.Aqarwi - THE AMERICAN SUPER-POWER COSMOLOGICAL DEMON: Both are guilty of the same behaviors and attitudes in Iraq, invasion, murder, kidnap, destabilization and hegemony!

I would recommend that all Americans, particularly those who are open to considering a difference of opinion, read the book, The God That Failed. Learn about people who placed their trust and faith in their substitute god, their own government(s), in lieu of the true and living God.

For in my opinion, many Americans have placed too much of their much faith and trust in the American Cosmological Super Deity, i.e., itself, hoping that both its self-formed god, and its attendant soldier-angels, will feed, lead and protect Americans from any and all of their perceived evils.

I am concerned about the future of this country, and where the new-age secular humanists American cosmological idol-worshippers are taking this country.

For too many Americans are drunk on too much of her bitter wine! Even the phrase, SuperPower, is blasphemous, and a challenge to The Supreme God!

TRFKA

I've been forced to blog tonight--something I've never done. In fact, I wanted to blog another blog and couldn't figure out how to do it. This one's easy.

Does anyone besides me think that the money promised (by the USA) for information leading to Al-Zarqawi, if paid, will be going to al Qaeda? From what I've concluded from listening today, al Qaeda was through with him . . . or maybe he sacrificed himself so the money could be acquired. I sound cynical.

and the drain on the Nations Resources, need to look at these fabrications as National Security Issues....

what country can stand when it's resources are misused?

how did we defeat the Soviet Union?

we harassed them with the IDEA of a Star Wars defense position....they spent all of their money on DOD....

and their country went to s-hit...

NOW THINK ABOUT THIS:

almost all factory jobs, have been eliminated....moved overseas

they want to give all the little Pedros, the trade and blue-collar jobs that are left in the United States because they cost less...seems smart right?

well they send their money home to Mehico, so it's not good for the country...

BOTTOM LINE:

lower to blue collar middle class jobs are disappearing...spending is down, income is down, debt is up....

people without jobs don't pay taxes, people with lower paying jobs (retail) pay less taxes

NEXT LINK:

white collar jobs are being farmed out to other countries....outsourcing,

middle class is leaving,

used to be the biggest tax paying segment in society....

starting to ring any bells yet?

after the aholes that are in power have eliminated citizens from income producing jobs by giving them to citizens from other countries....

they will start parasitizing the UPPER MIDDLE CLASS, and start paring down the UPPER CLASS....

and then seriously start selling the United States out from under you to pay for

whatever it is that they want.

similar to what is going on now, but it's mostly people that don't live in Washington that have been deeply affected...

for example: the Billy Joel song "Allentown"
the Bruce Springsteen song "Born in the USA,"

the demise of the United States Auto industry....

not a simple thing, I know, but a totally unnecessary thing.

you're next.

.

when you start believeing this president, it's because you've got media induced

Alzheimers...

but regarding

gawd inspired issues.....to some but actually hate, or should I say _hate_ masquerading as gawd...

you know, like the Romans, stealing your religion and fabricating something like the Holy Roman empire as they feed your a-ss to the lions....in this case internationals...

oh cloven hoofed pushers of deceit, I smell your sulfurous words and I rejoice, for I shall have something to destroy: "you shall know them by their works,"

don't mush mouth me boyah...I'll be eating your liver for the week is ovah...

there is something called seperation of church and state, as a constitutional thing...

the gawd using tend to forget that, if you had some stones you could just tell them that they next time they bring up stupid issues to get you distracted.

I'm kind of tired of some ahole continually bringing up irrelevant things like

homophobia, false patriotism, and CIA agents that masquerade as dead Al Queenda leaders....

has the president recently told the truth?

alright.

in case it isn't obvious to you

the only solution is education...

to some extent, party members that allow themselves to be manipulated loose their power...

the people that are victims of the manipulation, the voters, the newscasters, the writers, the honest politicians

honest politicians, such that exist, need to speak directly about the manipulation and how it's being done, rather than attacking the manipulators...

it's sort of like explaining to the kids that are too wrapped up in the movie....those "bullets," are called squibs...if you watch closely you can see they look like packets of ketchup being exploded on people...

that's the way to explain the media orchestration that occurs with this administration...

start complaining about _illegals_ and a week or so later "he" promises to send 6,000 untrained National Guard troops to the border...

it's always after, never before,

say that you want to have employers arrested for hiring illegals, a couple of weeks later "he" starts saying it...

as I understand it Al Zachariah was a fabrication, I can find a finger in my chili that disappeared from a med-school...

I believe the president like I believe any other liar, not at all....

it's like explaining a magicians trick, it has to be done every couple of years as the rubes forget what re-direction is....

going to market, you tell your younger brother, not to play the shell/cup and pea game...

you tell him to watch the sequence of events....next thing you'll be hearing that they caught Obama Bin Laiden...

schtuppin laura...

regarding raising issues that are media events, and don't have a lot of relevancy...

I mean who started the whole El Zachariah fabrication? CIA, mebbee...check out Early Warning for the whole story...there's a whole couple of articles about that boogie man...

and how much money, in cash, did Saddam walk out of Bagdhad with in full day light and three tractor trailer trucks? approximately one BILLION friggin dollars..

that's on record people.

how many fingers havea you got on your hand? checked your chili lately?

.

"There is no denying, nonetheless, that an Iraqi national military, government and people are slowly moving in the direction of some semblance of normalcy and security."

Who says? By what measure? What total out of your anus crap. All objective measures point in exactly the opposite direction. Do you like totally make up everything you write, Arkin?

Susan in Iowa---
I think it is also unlikely that someone would survive a bombing so intact. But rather than jumping to the conclusion that this is a massive gov't cover-up with a refrigerated body, I prefer to draw the more logical conclusion. The airstrike was done in conjunction with a ground raid by soldiers ---this is common practice. Bombs are dropped to make the target scared to leave the house, then 30 sec to a minute later the house is stormed and the target is killed or taken captive.
You've seen too many movies.

Shabby

Thanks for your concurrence.

Dick

Forrest Gump would have corrected your coolness.

Pete

Satan,

How did you get loose from your chains? Save some room on your plate, because if America has its way, there will be more, including some USAqarwi's joining him. And besides that, I understand that one day there will be a big BBQ, with liquid smoke, held in the lake just for you! Bon appetit!

You are d-e-g-u-s-t-i-n-g, go back to your chains!

TRFKA

PJ's sleight, on the subject of categorical determinism.

According to PJ,
...regardless of the reason for which we went into Iraq the outcome will none the less be a nation in a far better place than it was before we came in...

Many Americans, sadly enough, would agree with PJ's folly. There is an article in the Washington Examiner today that explains why people in Iraq hate the USA. These individuals must not have spoken with PJ today, or perhaps they are too dumb to know whether they are better off or not.

As I recall, it seems to me that the people of Kuwait and S. Korea, to name a few countries, share similar sentiments about the country that once defended them, i.e., America,learn to mind your own business, and stop meddling in the affairs of other nations!

No one told the Iraqi people, I suppose, that they are better off with their leaders driven from power and some jailed and some murdered; their country ripped to pieces given the ravages of terrorism from all sides; soldiers standing or patrolling their neighborhoods on a daily basis; rolling blackouts; hunger; unemployment, uncertainty and despair; poor sanitation in some areas; being caught in between invaders and fighting factions from the north, south, east and the west who are kidnapping, murdering and telling Iraqi's what they can and cannot do in their own land; being a country that is engaged in an internecine civil war that will worsen once USAqarwi departs.

And last but not least, I am certain that the Iraqi people will be pleased to have some distant American, who is likely sitting in his living room thousands of miles away, watching all of this on TERROR-VISION, pontificating and intonating that Iraqi's are better off given USAqarwi's, illegal and unjust rampage into their country. They aren't blaming the late Al-Zaqarwi, Saddam, or Osama Bin Forgotten for their long nightmare, they blame the good old USA.

I suspect that many Iraqi's would resent your butting in, just as much as they resent America destroying their lives and livelihood. I read, and I suspect that you know you know where I read it, 'that the end of the thing is better than the beggining... And to every purpose there is time and judgment...'.

Don't be so quick to decide for other people whether they are better off than they were before.

Besides, as you will recall, the USA did not go into Iraq with the intent of making the Iraqi people better off, USAqarwi went in with the intention of making America better off (at the expense of the Iraqi people).

And the misdirection ploy apparently worked, for the Americans that I observed today, seem to be elated and overjoyed that some people, that they have never met, were murdered today at the behest of America's appointed government assasins.

Perhaps that is why America has the highest homicide rate in the world, because too many Americans are heartless, irrational and intellectually lazy. For Americans, without employing the convenience of thought, too often resort to violence, in order to solve their problems.

Aw shucks, using your logic, the person who gets murdered in America is probably better off, than they were before. All they had before was a spouse, kids, a job, a church and a purpose...shall I go on?

Its still murder PJ's of the world, and murder is never a justifiable means to an end. In America we put BLACK people, I mean criminals to death, for engaging in such behavior!

Rethink your position please...

Test

This is an excellent success in the war, and great news. The quality of comments on this site is very low.

To Moeursalen:

Hussein, Bin Laden and Al-Zaqarwi: All "Made in the USA"...

We propped up Hussein in the 70s, Bin Laden in the 80s against the USSR, and now we have a whole new group of home grown terrorists who have swarmed to Iraq, compliments of Bushs' decisions as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

It is you, sir, who is in denial. My father served in Normandy, and served well against a real enemy, but this war is a sham and a shame. Bin Laden is NO HITLER! And Al Quaeda is no Germany. We need to GET OUT OF IRAQ! NOW!

9-11 was an unfortunate aberration carried out by people who would have otherwise gone away to the religious junkpile of history had Bush not decided to invade Iraq. 9-11, as crazy as it was, was not a Japanese invasion of our shores. THAT was war, sir. Who do you think you kid when you attempt to call others in denial?

I just want to give my sincerest thanks to all those involved in sending this wretched soul Zarqawi to me. Right now I've got him on a skewer, turning slowly over a nice bed of coals. I have to say he looks particularly silly with an apple in his mouth..

Zarquawi wasn't looking well in his recent headshots of this a.m. He appeared somewhat detached.

Ahh...I admit to having regrets in regard to his early demise...he didn't suffer half so much as his victims, nor nearly as much as he deserved.

Even his sister said he deserved what he got.

I'm amazed at some of the commentary but then there are holocaust deniers, 9-11 deniers, and whatnot...

All praise to those who sacrifice to rid the earth of this scourge.

M.

Zarqawi was not Universal All-Powerful Emperor and Savior of All Things Anti-American. Neither is Bin Laden, or any group of 10, 100 or 10,000 individuals. The days of Divine Right of Kings and the "Great Man" theory of history are over, even if many petty dictators (and plenty of American voters) don't seem to realize it.
Yes, taking out a high-profile and important member of the opposition is always a VERY SMALL step toward victory, and psychologically satisfying for a VERY SHORT time. But compared to, even, knocking the opposing quarterback out of a high school football game, it's minor, indeed.
This thing's going to go on and on until we - Americans - have the sense to find a way out of it ("declare victory and go home?") and - more importantly - not allow its like to happen again.
Step One? Get to KNOW the candidates - and their records versus their rhetoric - and VOTE in November! Or else what's democracy worth?

Zarqwawi. So what? The German occupiers had many victories against the terrorists (known to some as the heroic resistance)in Occupied Europe. They also lost the war.

I am just tired of the death count. One more, two more, twenty four more dead. Thank you, Tom Canick, for words to describe my feelings: I am a (dispirited) cynic too.

The news media is kissing up to the generals again. What is their real mission anyway? To tell us the truth, or kiss their butts?

Like I said before, GET OUT! If you want to get so upset and preachy about people blowing up each others mosques, why don't you start with all the church burnings in the US?

Let me quote James McMurtry:

"We Can't Make it Here Anymore"
Lyrics

Vietnam Vet with a cardboard sign
Sitting there by the left turn line
Flag on the wheelchair flapping in the breeze
One leg missing, both hands free
No one's paying much mind to him
The V.A. budget's stretched so thin
And there's more comin' home from the Mideast war
We can't make it here anymore

That big ol' building was the textile mill
It fed our kids and it paid our bills
But they turned us out and they closed the doors
We can't make it here anymore

See all those pallets piled up on the loading dock
They're just gonna set there till they rot
'Cause there's nothing to ship, nothing to pack
Just busted concrete and rusted tracks
Empty storefronts around the square
There's a needle in the gutter and glass everywhere
You don't come down here 'less you're looking to score
We can't make it here anymore

The bar's still open but man it's slow
The tip jar's light and the register's low
The bartender don't have much to say
The regular crowd gets thinner each day

Some have maxed out all their credit cards
Some are working two jobs and living in cars
Minimum wage won't pay for a roof, won't pay for a drink
If you gotta have proof just try it yourself Mr. CEO
See how far 5.15 an hour will go
Take a part time job at one of your stores
Bet you can't make it here anymore

High school girl with a bourgeois dream
Just like the pictures in the magazine
She found on the floor of the laundromat
A woman with kids can forget all that
If she comes up pregnant what'll she do
Forget the career, forget about school
Can she live on faith? live on hope?
High on Jesus or hooked on dope
When it's way too late to just say no
You can't make it here anymore

Now I'm stocking shirts in the Wal-Mart store
Just like the ones we made before
'Cept this one came from Singapore
I guess we can't make it here anymore

Should I hate a people for the shade of their skin
Or the shape of their eyes or the shape I'm in
Should I hate 'em for having our jobs today
No I hate the men sent the jobs away
I can see them all now, they haunt my dreams
All lily white and squeaky clean
They've never known want, they'll never know need
Their sh** don't stink and their kids won't bleed
Their kids won't bleed in the damn little war
And we can't make it here anymore

Will work for food
Will die for oil
Will kill for power and to us the spoils
The billionaires get to pay less tax
The working poor get to fall through the cracks
Let 'em eat jellybeans let 'em eat cake
Let 'em eat sh**, whatever it takes
They can join the Air Force, or join the Corps
If they can't make it here anymore

And that's how it is
That's what we got
If the president wants to admit it or not
You can read it in the paper
Read it on the wall
Hear it on the wind
If you're listening at all
Get out of that limo
Look us in the eye
Call us on the cell phone
Tell us all why

In Dayton, Ohio
Or Portland, Maine
Or a cotton gin out on the great high plains
That's done closed down along with the school
And the hospital and the swimming pool
Dust devils dance in the noonday heat
There's rats in the alley
And trash in the street
Gang graffiti on a boxcar door
We can't make it here anymore

Music and lyrics © 2004 by James McMurtry

Many of you just cannot see any good in anything the Bush administration does. Saddam caught? Yeah, but Bin Ladin and Zarqawi are still alive. Zarqawi dead? Yeah but Osama's still alive. Osama caught? Yeah, but Al-Zawahiri's still alive. Al-Zawahiri dead? Yeah, but somebody will replace him.

I'm sure any good news regarding Iraq thoroughly disappoint people that hate Bush. They wish things could get worse so that the US and Bush will look bad. Repugnant events like Abu Ghraib and Haditha cheer these people up. The formation of a constitutional Iraqi government and its potential success, any dimunition or defeat of the insurgency, any progress in reducing or eliminating the threat of civil or sectarian war in Iraq, all these would inwardly frustrate these Bush-haters because they woul make the President look good. They'd rather the chaos in Iraq worsen, thousands more people die, than Bush benefit from any good news. They literally hope for the worst.

bill, i concur with spooky pete, but with a twist. i agree the names shouldn't have been used (you could have couched the seasoning of the teams in a different way) BUT i enjoy your musings and most of the debate that falls from it.

and dick - how revolutionary - america with a "k"! right on! solid! power to the people! let's all put our briefcases down and dig out our old dusty bellbottoms and bandanas and take to the streets! dick, maybe you could mimeograph some flyers we can hand out to "the man"? come on, everyone, steering committe meeting's in the dorm at 9 pm. god, you crack me up! wait'll i tell my dog, he'll love it!!

Mr. Arkin, I don't understand how a man can have two 500-pound bombs dropped on him and a house reduced to rubble all around him, yet we have a picture of his face in good condition. You would think they would have had to scrape it off the cinderblocks.

I'm not fond of conspiracy theories, but it does make me wonder whether he's been refrigerated for a while. Odd that the Iraqis finally manged to appoint cabinet ministers within hours of the bombs dropping and all this "good news" comes rolling out at once.

Mr. Arkin: Zarqawi was a violent man, no doubt about that. But that does not excuse the overall illegality and immorality of our war on Iraq. And, if you wonder why the rest of the world disdains us so....only NPR had the common decency to point out that an innocent woman and young child were also killed by this "heroic" attack. Yet again, "collateral damage" doesn't matter when Amerika gets its way.

Is there a deliberate time lag between when one posts and when it is posted on this board????

To boast of killing and loathe those who question it is about as childish as one can be.

So let me get this straight:
1. He is accused of leading terrorist campaigns against others.
2. He is accused of killing his fellow countrymen.
3. He is accused of killing countless innocent civilians.
4. He is accused of being an enemy of democracy.

Should we not hunt down all those accused of these things?

If this is true, then we are responsible to bring all those within our reach to accountability who are responsible, including those who willfully kill, maim or otherwise cause suffering.

Bush & Co. are guilty of all of these same things... and more.
Should we not bear the same justice on all? After all, (American) justice is supposed to be blind.

Are we going to draw the line and select who is worthy of taking another life?

As for preemptively labeling those who see the truth for what it is as having an "anti-everything view":
That has to be the most bizarre label I have ever heard coming from someone who claims to be a media professional and does nothing, but to clearly demonstrate your bias and ill-reporting ability.

Put down the talking points...... Quit being such a biased quasi-reporter...... Or get off the line....

PJ,

America is god to some of you, and America has already rendered its verdict, with regard to its own venal behavior, i.e., America can kill whoever, whatever and whenever it wants to, anyone else who acts in the same capacity is a terrorist or a thug, who must be dealt with swiftly!

There are some interesting comments recorded in the Washington Post today, about the USA, at least from the U.N.'s perspective. They noticed what I noticed, the U.S.A. likes to use the U.N. when the U.N. serves the purposes of the U.S.A., otherwise, as far as the U.S.A. is concerned, the U.N. is irrelevant!

How does a majoritarian society, that claims that it believes in majority rule, ignore all of the other nations of the worlds and its allies, when it acts itself, like a rogue nation. There are other ways to solve problems. Take away America's military might, and America would be more amenable to sitting down to discuss geopolitical problems, just as 180 other nations are willing to do.

Hans Blix was on Sunday's, Meet The Press. He chimed in on the American double standard as well. Is everyone else in the world wrong, except some Americans, I ask you? How can America criticize Puting for consolidating power, when all America has done since Mr. Bush has been in office is to dictate to the world what it must do to get along with the U.S.A.

Here's some trivia for you? Which country okayed the hit on the former President of the Congo, i.e. President Patrice Lamumba?
The good old USA again? Shall I name others. Save your indignation for someone else.

THE REAL GOD HAS ALREADY JUDGED the crime of murder, it is written in the book!

Sorry if I hurt your feelings!

TRFKA

Collins wrote:

"Why would a shiite terrorist want to continually bomb and orchestrate attacks in a nation that is being lead by a shiite dictator that is outspoken in his disdain for America."

Zarqawi was Sunni, not Shiite*. And which "shiite dictator" are you referring to? Saddam Hussein was a member of Iraq's Sunni minority, which oppressed the Shiite majority for decades.

* http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/05/18/opinion/main618114.shtml

For uncensored news please bookmark:

www.wsws.org
www.onlinejournal.com
www.takingaim.info
otherside123.blogspot.com

Spread the word!!!

Restoring the Draft: The Universal National Service Act of 2006

by Michel Chossudovsky

May 30, 2006
GlobalResearch.ca

Email this article to a friend
Print this article

Congressman Charles Rangel, a Democrat (NY), introduced on 14 February 2006 a bill in the US Congress which requires:

"all persons in the United States, including women, between the ages of 18 and 42 to perform a [two year] period of military service or a period of civilian service in furtherance of the national defense and homeland security, and for other purposes."

The bill applies to both US citizens and non-citizens, to men and women. There does not appear to be a provision which would exempt women who are pregnant and/or caring for infants/children in a young age.

While there was some media coverage of Rangel's initiative prior to the formal introduction of the bill, the matter has not been mentioned by the US media since it was introduced in February. There has been a deafening silence: since February 2006, not a single article or editorial has appeared in print on the Universal National Service Act of 2006.

Neither has it been the object of public debate. The bill has been referred to the House Armed Services Committee and the Subcommittee on Military Personnel. Ironically, in previous discussion leading up the bill, Rangel's initiative to restore the draft was described as "an anti-war tactic".

"Rangel opposes war with Iraq and seeks to make the point that many soldiers are volunteers from low-income and minority families. Political leaders, his reasoning goes, would think twice about sending into war the sons and daughters of a more complete cross-section of America. But whether or not one agrees with Rangel's rationale, many Americans would agree that universal service can be a great leveler and a unifying force in society."

Despite Rangel's antiwar resolve, the bill supports Washington's stated objective to extend the war into new frontiers and to ultmately send an entire generation of young Americans to fight an illegal, and unjust war. It is worth noting in this regard that the Neoconservative Project for a New American Century calls for increasing active duty strength from 1.4 to 1.6 million.

The bill also supports Big Brother. Those who are not sent overseas to the war theater would, according to the clauses of the bill, be inducted into the civilian homeland defense corps and other civilian duties, including the

For the rest of this article go to:
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=20060530&articleId=2535

Finally that bastard of Zarqawi is dead.

Congratulations to you all!!!

News flash!
Zarqawi´s dead!
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.
NOW, GET OUT!

I take Mill_of_Mn's point of view: good riddence to bad rubbish, but I do not see:

Turning point;

New chapter;

Begining of the end (or end of the begining);

Victory; or

Tomorrow's headlines being much different than yesterday's.

I am a cynic, but I wasn't born this way.

I think the average, level-headed American, who isn't looking for a fight on every media corner will realize that 1) this is a boost for American Military morale 2) it will boost morale for the 80% of Iraqis who just want to go to work and live their lives without intrusion, but 3) it's not a silver bullet to the extremists who refuse to accept anything beyond the complete destruction of those who disagree with them. Funny thing about those people, they're not just Iraqi insurgents, but apparently readers of the Washington Post as well...

Washingtonpost.com home page is broken because you guys are crapping yourselves over this! All I can do is laugh. It's great news and nothing negative you can say will change it. Courtesy of USAF - the ultimate snuff film starring Zarqawi himself along with his closest pals. I wonder what the last words were in that house:

"Hey, who's playing with the laser pointer?"

HEY LOOK, EVERYBODY!

Government says BOO...
...Arkin says BOO too!

Government says REPEAT WHAT I SAY...
...Arkin "REPEATS WHAT THEY SAY"!

Monkey see! Monkey do!

Arkin is a GOOD LITTLE MONKEY.

With all of these intelligence fabrications dying off on paper, it's NO WONDER the MONKEY continues to believe in the....

...OFFICIAL U.S. GOVERNMENT 9/11 STORY:

1 airplane crash (NY)
+ 1 airplane crash (NY)
---------------------------------
= 3 buildings falling down (NY)

I mean, you don't have to understand math to write government fiction at the grade one level.

Love,
God

I think we can take it as a given that the Iraqi war was a major blunder from the point of view of America's Middle Eastern Foreign Policy and not in our national interest. Al-Zarqawi became a major figure in the insurgency during the conflict, and it was only as an established leader of the foreign fighters that he swore alligance to Bin-Ladin.
What is important about his death is the information that led up to it came from within the insurgency. His usefulness to the National Iraqi insurgents may have come to an end.
Whatever ones viewpoint about the insurgency, it is important for the long term survival of Iraq as a nation state, that Iraqis, whatever their political orientation, end up in control of Iraq. I would therefore prefer dealing with an Iraqi insurgency as opposed to foreign fighters. They have a nationalist agenda that does not extend beyond their borders, and some agreements may be possible.

To The Reverend Formerly Known As,

Infatuated with the stench of death? Well no, but I do realise that lives are won and lost in wars and regardless of the reason for which we went into Iraq the outcome will none the less be a nation in a far better place than it was before we came in. And to the fact that you are amazed at the way in which we can spin our own killing into acceptability. Rational people accept that death is a neccessary evil of war. Though I am very saddened each day that I see American Armed forces are killed in Iraq I am not outraged becasue of that. It is war, and the men and women fighting for us have made the decision to put their lives on the line and for that I am greatful. As far as the "attrocities" you beleive that we have committed let me spin your biblical citation against you, do not judge the men and women of America who are in unifrom in Iraq, have you been there to witness the death, have you seen your friends and compatriouts that are fighting with you die right next to you, have you witnessed a suicide bomber kill many innocent people? Then do not judge these men and women. I do not advocate the killing of civilians by American soldiers, but at the same time I do not presume to be fit to judge them. Nor should you. Though shalt not murder, you are right death is horrible, but have you forgotten about the daily ritual of Suddam Hussein killing hundreds if not thousands of his own poeple. How do you weigh a a life? Is giving up a thousand for saving ten thousand acceptable. Once again I'll let God judge.... not you.

The argument that Zarqawi was bolstered up and in fact rose to prominence becasue of the US invasion is an obvious one. Why would a shiite terrorist want to continually bomb and orchestrate attacks in a nation that is being lead by a shiite dictator that is outspoken in his disdain for America. Of course Zarqawi's presence and imporatance increased after the US invasion, there wasn't much of a reason to be there before. However if those who beleive that the US invasion in fact "created" Zarqawi one can easily look into the past and see the fingerprints of numerous terrosit actions that Zarqawi either planned ot took an intrical part in the Middle East well before we came into Iraq.

Not blinded by my own dislike...

Then perhaps you are blinded by ignorance. The reason that America killed Al-Zaqarwi, was for doing the exact things that Americans were and are still doing in Iraq, occupying, terrorizing, murdering people and causing unrest. I have always been amazed at the American's ability to spin, rationalize and fantasize...

The Bible warns us about judging people, when the one who is doing the judging, engages in the same behavior(s). The punishment that is prescscribed in scriptures for that person, is that he will be judged in the same manner that he judges others. Who gave America the right to invade a country, take down the leader and the government, and to kill, murder and to maim at will? I will say it again, if Al-Zaqarwi was guilty, so is Al-USAqarwi!

I was just watching the President on television. He looks like the same guy who was on television several years ago, who told the American people that the problem in Iraq was WMDs.

Then he subsequently reappeared to tell us that the problem was Saddam and regime Change, given that he could not find any WMDs.

And now he is exulting over the fact that he had Al-Zaqarwi executed, as if Al-Zaqarwi was the reason that America went to Iraqi in the first, and then the second place. Too many people are as exuberant,as the President is over yet another death.

Now Al-USAqarwi will have to find another poster child, who will it be this time? Oops, I heard planes circling overhead again, gotta go!

P.S. Do you folks recall the day when Ted Bundy was executed? There was a man carrying a sign outside of the prison that read, Roast In Peace! I am sure that many Americans feel the same way about this man, have they become blind to the stench of death?

In my opinion, you are blinded by your ignorance of the word, and the Bible reads, that if the blind lead the blind, whey will all fall into the ditch together. Perhaps you have already fallen into the ditch, along with our LEADER!

TRFKA

Archimedes

Saddam Husseing had no control over North Iraq where Zarqwari was, as that was controlled by the Kurds and the airspace was controlled by the US. So he could not have given him safe harbor there.

You have constructed a straw man here, and you usally do not. I am disapointed.

The seeds of Zarqwari's prominance was created by our invasion of Iraq and forseen by those who warned that invading Iraq was a bad idea. Without us, he would have been unimportant. In addition, we have kept on personalizing the war in Iraq, inflating the importance of Zarqwari. Zarqwari importance did not deserve the amount of media coverage he got

Hopefully, now that Zarqwari is dead, the US can concentrate on process. How do we decrease the violence? How do we improve how our soldiers deal with Iraqis? what are our benchmarks and how do we measure them and reach them?

Right now we have no way of seeing if we are improving.

Sorry - the link didn't take.

Here's the URL: http://www.windsofchange.net/archives/003681.php

Jaxas,
It's true Zarqawi wasn't a household name in the U.S. before the Iraq war, but he was active in global terrorism and known to the intelligence community (as was bin Laden prior to 9/11).

Here's a link detailing some of Zarqawi's history.

Whether or not Zarqawi's death has any affect on the outcome of the global war on terrorism, the U.S.--and the Jordanian and Iraqi civilians he targeted--are all better off without him. We should all say "thank you" to the special forces who took him out; well done, guys.

The comments I read here are ludicrous. This death is not about whether or not we went into Iraq for good reasons or not. Not one of you can argue even with the terrosit actions in Iraq since the war that the majority of people in Iraq are not better off for Hussein being gone. The death of this man if nothing more is a symbol to the terrorists in Iraq that they can only run and kill and hide for so long. This will not spell the end of the war in Iraq but it certainly is a step in the right direction. Perhaps some of you can pull your "I hate Bush" blinders away from your face long enough to see that the military that everyone thinks is committing unheard of attrocities in Iraq just put together with the Iraqi's a very successful and well organised plan of attack. For my part I say congratualtions troups and Mr. Bush you've done a whole lot wrong but at least for today congratulations in being commander in chief of a military we can be proud of.

Killing zarqawi - unambiguous good.
Connection to increasing "semblance of normalcy" - utterly unclear, unless of course "normalcy" is defined as a steady drumbeat of sectarian killings, rather than quiet-quiet-huge explosion!-quiet-huge explosion!-quiet-quiet...
And as numerous bloggers have noted, a number of journalists have reported and confirmed that the Bush administration passed up an opportunity to kill Zarqawi in 2002 so that his presence could be used to bolster the case for invasion (this really isn't a conspiracy theory, it's a fact).

IF YOU LIVE BY THE SWORD, YOU WILL DIE BY THE SWORD:

Will we sleep any better tonight knowing that Al-Zaqarwi is gone? Are the Iraqi people truly free of an outside oppressor? I remind you that the USA is still there murdering, kidnapping and maiming Iraqi citizens and freedom fighters, far more than Al-Zaqarwi ever could do!

All that Al-Zaqari's death means, is that the USA will be emboldened to continue along the path of war and assasination in order to accomplish its nefarious and hegemonic objectives.

Mr. Arkin, is Michael Berg, a part of the group with the anti-everything view? Does a difference of opinion matter anymore in this country?

I listened to two Joe's this morning on the cable news stations (the spin has begun), i.e., Scarborough and Lieberemann. I listened to their descriptions of what was wrong with Al-Zaqarwi, and all of those who are like him, i.e., killers, terrorists, invaders...the President expressed the same sentiments.

Someone should remind Americans of the true tally, i.e., in terms of the number of people who have been killed in Iraq by Saddam, Al-Zaqarwi, or the good old USA?

Frankly, it sounded, to me, like all three of these men were describing the actions, attitutdes and behaviors of the United States of America. American's don't get it yet, our actions are just the same as those that we criticize.

For the remaining outside agitator, the Al-America, has occupied, displaced, killed, maimed and murdered over 100,000 individuals in Iraq, over a period of 3 years, and they still are not finished.

No one asks, what legitimate right did the USA have to murder this man? And, for all of the money that America has invested in this debacle for the past three years, are you telling me that we should get excited about the news of America murdering one man. How much will we continue to invest in order to kill one more individual?

I am sure that all Americans will sleep better tonight, except for one thing. Al-Zaqarwi was 30 miles above Baghdad when he was assassinated; he was thousands of miles away. What are we going to do about all of the oppositions forces and individuals that are operating on North American soil, and working out at the local neighborhood Gold's Gym?

Allof this stuff about Al-Zaqarwi is simply political deflection, that will distract too many people from the danger that is surrounding us in America, that the government lacks the ability to do anything about. But at any rate, score a point for Mr. Bush. Going back to the days when this man was the Governor of Texas up to now, I wonder just how many people Mr. Bush has been responbile for being executed, on this planet?

Well, if anything, for a few days this news will get the Marines off of the front pages, as focus on the verifiable U.S. sanctioned murder of 7 or 8 sovereign individuals in Iraq. IT IS THE AMERICAN WAY!

For our children's sake, and if it is not too late, America needs to change its foreign policy objectives, its direction, and the murdering tactics that it uses to accompish its objectives!

TRFKA

How many times has this guy been killed!!!! he is like a cat with 9 lives for heavens sake, this is just another psyops. the pentagon use for the bogeyman is over?

you guys forget what you print?

http://prisonplanet.com/articles/june2006/080606alzarqawi.htm

I take Len's view

(who posted 6/8/06, 10:10 am)

"The anti-everything view cannot see beyond loathing for the war and for all things Bush to recognize an achievement, even if it is only a little step."

This is a logical fallacy, a total non-sequitur. Al-Zarqawi would not have been such a threat were it not for Bush's invasion of Iraq. It is just Frankenstein killing his own monster.

I too am glad he's dead but we've already seen so much cheerleading at these high-level kills already. Meanwhile the insurgency, in whatever form, only gets stronger.

It gets stronger for one reason: We are still there.

It's time to get out of Iraq.

Jaxas:

Realism is a nice word, except that in order for it to be realistic the positive as well as the negative must be acknowleged, otherwise it is just cynicism. As for the truly cynical "observation" that this news will help Bush, or more pointedly the Republicans, in the coming elections is quite naieve. Given the near-instantaneous nature of civilian media today the shelf life for positive effects from this story will not be long enough to aid the Republicans come November. No doubt some members of Congress will pull this out come election time, but Bush is a lame-duck and this doesn't solve his other problems, and Americans know that.

Secondly, Zarqawi wasn't an "unknown" thug, as you put it. Not being internationally infamous does not make one unknown, especially in the murky underworld of Islamic terrorism. He was, in intelligence circles, very much known, especially in Jordan, where he was a wanted man. Saddam allowed him refuge in northern Iraq to escape the Jordanians. Without doubt, we gave him the opportunity to make a name for himself beyond what he had already done. It is however, very cynical to say that Bush "made" him, since on its face this assertion excludes Zarqawi himself from the process, as if he had nothing to do with it and it was all Bush's doing. This strange arrogance of perspective, the same that fed the 9/11 Comission and ironically the 9/11 "Truth" Movement is both naieve and dangerous, as it dismisses the very real abilities and diabolical genius of our enemies.

Trust always in Reason

Archimedes

William

Obviously you want to be the first to BLURT out how much you know about Delta Force.

From "The American and British "head hunters" to
"Michael L. McNulty, 36, killed in hostile combat in Al Qaim, Iraq" is gratuitous grandstanding.

Looks like operational information (unavailable outside your special circle) that is potentially useful to terrorists.

Your list of those who died in the line of duty shows disrespect - whether they were in Delta Force or not.

I hope you contacted their next of kin before publishing the list.

Other than your Article it has been a good day.

For shame.

Pete
http://spyingbadthings.blogspot.com/

" ... The government says that Zarqawi was tracked down by tips from Iraqi citizens"

**

"Some experts believe that such an intelligence coup could lead to a bloodletting inside the organization, as the surviving members begin to suspect one another. That is what happened among the senior leaders of the terrorist organization led by Abu Nidal in the 1980's, when assassinations of senior members ignited a bloody struggle in the ranks, Mr. Hoffman said."

"This is the best way to undermine a terrorist group," Mr. Hoffman said. "Information that sows internal discord and disloyalty has a radiating effect in the organzation. That could set in motion the unravelling of Al Qaeda."

(http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/08/world/middleeast/08cnd-assess.html?_r=1&8dpc&oref=slogin)

AQ's investigation of exactly what happened to Mr. Al-Zarqawi and who may have had a hand in same will be of the utmost importance with regard to their response. IMHO, AQ won't be 'unraveling' anytime soon; they'll continue to learn from their mistakes and move the next pre-ordained leader into his pre-ordained position.

Bill, I think you in the media often tend to confuse realism with cynicism. I have often heard the term cynic used to describe those who bring up inconvenient realities that this administration has tried to avoid discussing.

Zarqwawi was an unknown thug before George W. Bush decided that Iraq was the main battleground in the war on terror. Bush, in a very real sense, made Zarqwawi. And that is a key point.

The other key "reality" here--which I assume you will see as "cynicism"--is that Zarqwawi was becoming less and less a factor in Iraq as the sectarian violence increased. He presently holds immense propaganda for Bush which, I have no doubt, he and his slavering devotees will seize upon to make the case that he can now yet again be seen as this great war hero President which seems to be really important to him and to them.

And the final reality/cynicism is this: Zarqwawi's propaganda benefit to Bush has a shelf life that will probably get this thoroughly incomptent leader through the elections. The media and the people have little wherewithal or inclination to engage in the headachy practic of critical thinking about what all of this means. It is instructive to remember all of the hype and bogus and as it turned out unwarranted cheeriness that occurred when whatshisname stepped up to the mike and said: "We got him!"

Two soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment were killed in May and were likely attached to the Joint Special Operations Command, Chief Warrant Officer 5 Jamie D. Weeks, 47, of Daleville, Alabama, and Maj. Matthew W. Worrel, 34, of Lewisville, Texas. Both were killed when their AH-6M Little Bird helicopter was shot down by enemy fire during combat operations in Yusifiya, south of Baghdad, on May 14, 2006. Don't know if they were hunting Zarqawi but Nightstalkers are usually not supporting regular Army units.

"Then there is the anti-everything view, the one that can not recognize that Zarqawi was a real foreigner terrorist in Iraq there to foment chaos and death. The anti-everything view can not see beyond loathing for the war and for all things Bush to recognize an achievement, even if it is only a little step."

There is a third view that you neglect to mention. It says "good riddance" to Zarqawi, as his death is indeed a win in The War Against Terror. However, this view also looks at the growing Iraqi civil war and sees that Zarqawi may have egged on long-suppressed sectarian divisions and violence, but they required little urging to gather their own momentum.

Ultimately, I think that Zarqwawi's death will make little difference.