NYCLAW Antiwar Digest OVERVIEW

Nominees have similar views on use of force
Both accept what Andrew Bacevich, a retired Army colonel and professor at Boston University, calls the "unspoken consensus which commits the United States to permanent military primacy". . . . [H]e regards this consensus as "far more important than any apparent differences" between the candidates and their advisers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/26/AR2008102602179.html

Obama's job
Obama's job is to present a benign, even progressive face that will revive America's democratic pretensions, internationally and domestically, while ensuring nothing of substance changes.
http://www.newstatesman.com/international-politics/2008/10/pilger-obama-british-foreign


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AFGHANISTAN & PAKISTAN

US Predators kill again in Pakistan
Through Sunday, there were at least 18 Predator strikes since the beginning of August, some deep inside Pakistan's tribal areas, compared with 5 strikes during the first seven months of 2008. . . . [T]he intensified operations have failed to shake Al Qaeda's hold on the tribal areas.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/27/washington/27intel.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

Resistance brings down US helicopter
Insurgents shot down a U.S. helicopter after exchanging fire with its crew in central Afghanistan on Monday, while a suicide bomber in the north killed two U.S. soldiers inside a police station, officials said.
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-AS-Afghanistan.html?ref=world

Taliban refuses to compromise with occupation
"As we said before, as long as the invader forces are in Afghanistan, we won't participate in any negotiations."
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/world/international-us-afghan-usa.html

Afghanis prefer Taliban
"If you ask people, they don't want Taliban; but if it's a choice between them and corrupt, predatory government, they prefer Taliban."
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article4925036.ece


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IRAQ & SYRIA

US attacks Syria & kills nine civilians near Iraqi border.
The targets reportedly were construction workers and were civilians, including five people from one family.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/128087

Washington Post undercounts Iraq deaths
The Washington Post's weekly Saturday feature on "Iraq War Casualties" has consistently listed a "maximum count" of Iraqi civilian deaths that is dramatically lower than the likely civilian death tolls assessed through surveys of the Iraqi public.
http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=3636

US raids only ensure resistance
"In the States, if police burst into your house, kicking down doors and swearing at you, you would call your lawyer and file a lawsuit. Here, there are no lawyers. Their resources are limited, so they plant IEDs (improvised explosive devices) instead."
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/10/13/MNG39F7MNI1.DTL


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PALESTINE

UN: Israel violated Geneva conventions
The UN's special rapporteur on human rights in the territories has accused Israel of failing to halt settlement expansion in keeping with the Annapolis protocols and of violating the Geneva Conventions in Gaza.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1222017624172&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Palestinian farmers face ethnic cleansing
"We are at the mercy of the settlers, who yell at us that the groves belong to them and that we should relocate to Iraq and Egypt."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3613466,00.html

Tortured in PA's prisons
"They are using the same torture techniques used by Israeli occupation forces, such as Shabh and sleep deprivation."
"http://palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=14300

AIPAC's mask
AIPAC is good at putting on a moderate face, but make no mistake about it, there is nothing moderate about its militaristic agenda.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Confronthing-the-Neocons-i-by-Jim-Harris-081026-125.html

Carousel of Hope Ball signals collapse of Leviev PR strategy
In a stunning reversal, Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev will not be sponsoring the Children's Diabetes Foundation's (CDF) 2008 Carousel of Hope Ball in Beverly Hills this Saturday evening.
http://adalahny.org/index.php/press-releases/247-carousel-hope-collapse-leviev-pr


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DOMESTIC REPRESSION AND INJUSTICE

'Ft. Dix Six' informants are dirty
[T]he informants created the conspiracy out of nothing, fingering his brothers and two of his friends as participating in a terrorist plot when such a plot never existed.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-fortdix19-2008oct19,0,5615585.story

FBI's "war on terror" ignores unprecedented white-collar theft
[E]xecutives in the private sector say they have had difficulty attracting the bureau's attention in cases involving possible frauds of millions of dollars.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/washington/19fbi.html?hp

Prisoners' lose census count to their captors
"Do I consider them my constituents? They don't vote, so, I guess, not really."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/24/us/politics/24census.html?ref=us

Ex-Officer linked to Chicago police torture is arrested
Mr. Burge "well knew" he had participated in and was aware of "such events involving the abuse or torture of people in custody," including wrapping inmates' heads in plastic to make them feel as if they were suffocating.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/22/us/22chicago.html?hp


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ANTIWAR MOVEMENT

ANSWER: Mass actions on the 6th anniversary of the Iraq War -- March 21, 2009
Marking the sixth anniversary of the criminal invasion of Iraq, thousands will take to the streets of Washington D.C. and other cities across the U.S. and around the world in March 2009 to say, "Bring the Troops Home NOW!" We will also demand "End Colonial Occupation in Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine and Everywhere," and "Fund Peoples' Needs Not Militarism and Bank Bailouts." We also insist on an end to the war threats and economic sanctions against Iran.
http://answer.pephost.org/site/News2/496588697?abbr=ANS_&page=NewsArticle&id=8849&news_iv_ctrl=1621

Hayden: For Obama, anything goes
I have no problem with Barack Obama's supporting the bailout package as long as it keeps him on track to the presidency.
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20081013/hayden2

Liberals' pitch to the left
On the one hand, minimize or ignore Obama's gestures or actions that fly in the face of progressive values. On the other, accentuate the differences between him and McCain, no matter how small they might be on particular issues.
http://socialistworker.org/2008/10/24/ally-in-the-white-house



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