PICTURES OF IRAQ BEHIND CLOSED DOORS HIDDEN HONORS, HIDDEN HORRORS
As of the end of April, 732 U.S. soldiers have died in the Iraq occupation, 594 of them since May 1, 2003, when President Bush declared that major combat operations in Iraq had ended. But until now, the public had no chance to see the flag-draped aluminum coffins -- the "transfer tubes" in Pentagon-speak -- of the casualties return home. How did Schwarzkopf's 1991 refusal to count enemy dead turn into today's fetish about controlling photographs of U.S. coffins returning from Iraq -- photos that demonstrate the dignity and respect with which the remains are treated? As powerful as those photographs were, their impact was eclipsed just a few days later when CBS and The New Yorker released shocking pictures of American soldiers torturing and humiliating Iraqi captives, images that have inflamed anger throughout the Arab and Muslim world. The footage shows nude Iraqi prisoners forced to simulate sex acts by Army reservists in violation of the Geneva Conventions. With these pictures, America has forever lost the chance of claiming a higher and moral ground for the invasion

Taguba Report On Abuses May Be Tipping Point In Iraq War The U.S. Has Lost Battle Of The Photographs "Coffingate" A Scandal Of The Pentagon's Making Abuse Of Iraqi Prisoners May Be Widespread UN Calls For Probe Of Iraq Prisoner Abuse Bloody Hands, Bloody Minds Top Pentagon Official Acknowledges Violation Of Geneva Conventions Senator presses Wolfowitz, General Pace during on Iraq prisoner mistreatment War On Iraq Allowed Al-Qaeda To Regroup, Study Says An effective "middle management" in place around the globe Analysis: Bush "Clear Strategy" Speech Offers Same Old Fuzzy Vision Once again, rewriting history to match fantasy Colin Powell called Feith's Pentagon operation the "Gestapo Office" Prison Abuse Another Scandal Leading To Neo-Con Feith His Pentagon office housed the future undersecretary for intelligence, Stephen Cambone History Predicts Iraq's Endgame May Be Bloody Affair Bush will likely launch a massive terror attack in Iraq before June 30 Abu Ghraib Appears To Be Tip Of Iceberg Widespread and systemic violations of the Geneva Conventions U.S. Contractors In Iraq Not Subject To American Or Iraqi Law Rights groups alarmed that employees of private firms are interrogating prisoners Amnesty Says British Have Killed "Many" Iraq Civilians Including deliberate murder of 8 year-old Iraq Prison Abuse Scandal Making Europe Uneasy Over Ties With U.S. Much of Europe beginning to distance itself further from U.S. Zarqawi's Role In Beheading Is Ominous Turn Ruthless Jordanian determined to start Jihad with West Berg Execution Escalates Iraq Media War Unlike prison photos, beheading was intentional media event aimed at both Iraqi and U.S. audiences CIA Has Taught Use Of Torture Photos For 30 Years Even making videos of beheadings was taught by the CIA in the 1980s Calls For Rumsfeld To Quit Over Prisoner Scandal Both sides of Congress blame Defense Secretary for sitting on news until TV broadcast Red Cross Says Leak Of Iraq Prison Abuse Report Threatens Its Mission Bush White House first to break Red Cross confidentiality in 145 years Afghanistan Chaos Starting To Mirror Iraq Warnings that Sept. elections could spark civil war Iraq Prison Abuse Mirrors Problems In Afghanistan Lockups Rights groups have complained about mistreatment there since 2001 Women Shocked By Female Role In Iraq Torture Scandal Five women, from Private to Major General, under intense scrutiny Oklahoma Stops Execution Of Mexican National At Nearly Last Minute State was under intense international pressure White House Distances Itself From Neo-Con Policies After Iraq's Bloody April Thousands of blacklisted ex-Ba'athists now being hired in droves Fallujah Claims Victory, Mourns Dead "For 25 days they used everything they had...They couldn't enter this heroic city" The Lesson Of Fallujah: We Don't Understand Iraq America has ignored Iraqi pride at its peril Fallujah Is Rallying Cry For An Iraq United Against U.S. "They were counting on a Sunni-Shiite split in Iraq, but we are one hand" GIs Killed Shiite Leaders In Cold Blood, Witnesses Say At meeting of human rights group that Wolfowitz had recently praised As U.S. Targets Al-Sadr, Cleric Gains Followers Children throw stones at soldiers tearing down pictures of Shiite leader Many Hired Guns In Iraq Have War Crime Backgrounds "At what point do we start scraping the barrel? Where are these guys coming from?" Serb Mercenaries Strike It Rich In Iraq 500-1000 believed to be working in Iraq as bodyguards Washington Facing 'Hatred Like Never Before' In Arab World Rooting for Iraqi insurgents against U.S. as they cheer Hamas against Israel Soldiers Returning From Iraq With Radiation Poisoning Exposure to depleted uranium assumed Al-Sadr Influence Spreading Through S Iraq Via Local Elections Building Shiite power base by organizing elections, threats of violence

THE DECLINE AND FALL OF AHMAD CHALABI It was just last January that Ahmad Chalabi occupied the coveted balcony seat next to First Lady Laura Bush and gazed out at Washington's glittering elite who had gathered to hear President George W. Bush deliver his State of the Union Address from the Capitol's imposing rostrum. So how is it that exactly five months later Chalabi was rudely interrupted when U.S. agents and soldiers burst into his bedroom as part of a series of coordinated raids at his residence and offices? Chalabi: From White House To Dog House In Five Short Months The Long Knives Come Out For Chalabi The CIA Is Trying To Discredit Me, Chalabi Says

Laura Bush applauds her special guest, Dr. Adnan Pachachi, President of the Iraqi Governing Council, during the State of the Union Address, Jan. 20, 2004. Ahmad Chalabi was seated directly behind the President's wife

UN Posts List Of Top Ten Neglected News Stories
Media obsessed with Iraq

Media Shunned Largest March In Human History
The three major networks aired a combined total of six stories
Sarin Discovered In Iraq Was A Relic, Not A Weapon
Probably a dud shell fired in the desert over 15 years ago, but Pentagon has not released details of discovery

Business Giants Hold Summit On Iraq's Future
"The conference is a carve-up of Iraq's assets, minerals and wealth"

Pakistan Clamps Down On Its Sham Democracy
Quick 3-minute meeting turns government into "permanent martial law"

Likud Vote A Slap To Sharon And Bush
Bush "Road Map," Israel pullout from Gaza now up in the air

Ariel Sharon's Gaza Plan A Roadblock To Peace
Complete withdrawl from Gaza was never proposed

Israelis Resurrecting Old Deeds To Seize Palestinian Property
Reclaiming Jewish property owned a hundred years ago

Israel Attack On Rafah Was War Crime, Amnesty Says
Wholesale attacks on civilian neighborhoods

Israel Attacks Protesters, Killing Ten
2,000 were marching against military actions in city of Rafah

In China, Old Fears Return About 'Quality Of Race'
Prevention of "inferior births" a cornerstone of the state's eugenics policy

Homeless From Iraq War, Refugees Face Tent City Future
Homes destroyed by bombing of Fallujah just the beginning
U.S. Must Act Fast Or Afghanistan To Become "Narco-State"
Warlords and drug trade control most of the country as elections approach

60 Former Diplomats Condemn Bush For Total Support Of Sharon
Followed similar protest against Blair from 52 former British ambassadors
Schwarzenegger Refuses To Identify Who Helped Draft State Energy Plan
Arnold pulls a Cheney on the public

Monsanto Shelves Plans For GMO Wheat In U.S. And Canada
Almost 90% of Canadian farmers refused to buy Roundup-ready grain
Monsanto Shelves Plans For GMO Canola In Australia
Had invested millions of dollars in research project

Mystery Lingers Over Damascus Bombing
Many believe Syrian authorities could have staged the attack

Islamic Fundamentalist Violence Spreading To New Countries
Syria, Jordan face attacks for first time

UN FEARS ENTERING IRAQ QUAGMIRE As the United Nations prepares to help organize elections and try to create a new interim government in Iraq starting in July, skepticism is growing about the wisdom of risking UN lives in a country swirling in violence and chaos. The UN mission in Iraq is bound to fail, predict many Middle East analysts and UN staffers, because the world body is being increasingly viewed "not as an independent broker but as a glorified sub-contractor to the United States." The 5,500-strong UN Staff Union, which has just adopted a unanimous resolution urging the world body to take immediate additional steps to address "the serious flaws in the security management system," warns "keep off Iraq" UN Staffers Don't Want To Go To Iraq 'Death Trap' As Iraq Falls Apart, UN Weighs What Role - If Any - It Wants UN Poised To Ignore Iraqi Prisoner Abuse Scandal

General Charged With Atrocities A Leading Candidate For Indonesia President
Held responsible for over 1400 civilian deaths in E Timor five years ago
Bush Nuclear Weapons Program Squandering Billions
Spending twice as much as we did 10 years ago

"Honor Killing" Of Women Returns To Middle East
Result of Israel tying hands of Palestinian police

Jamaica Welcomes Hundreds Of Haitian Refugees
By contrast, U.S. illegally intercepting boats at sea

Violence Against Journalists At 10-Year High
At least 250 have been threatened or attacked so far this year

Bush Tightens Cuba Embargo To Cheers Of Florida Voting Bloc
"It's a farce, pure political theatre"

Even Anti-Castro Cubans Knock Bush 'Hasten Democracy' Plans
Crackdown on money transfers from U.S. mainly hurts families

Boycott Of Coca Cola Over Colombia Spreads
Accused of torture, kidnapping and killing of union members

India's Election Results Confound Pollsters
A quiet victory for the average citizen

Child Mothers Put Over One Million Infants At Risk
Underlines huge gaps between wealthiest and poorest nations
Anxieties Grow For Olympics As Bomb Blasts Shake Athens
The risk level at these games is considered the highest ever

Iraqis, Americans Begin To Agree: Both Want U.S. Out
3 out of 4 Iraqis afraid to leave home after dark, see Americans as occupying force

Bush Calls For New Generation Of Nuclear Weapons -- For U.S.
Nukes are seen as a usable, necessary tool in the anti-terror arsenal

Artist's impression of Burj Dubai, which will be the world's tallest building when the Bin Laden family construction firm is expected to complete work in 2008

Bin Laden's Stature To Rise With World's Tallest Building
Will the buildings serve as a reminder that Dubai banks helped funnel money to Al Qaeda?

Venezuela's Chavez Says Invasion Plans Uncovered
Capture of 86 alleged Colombian paramilitary forces in country

Bush Signs Tobacco Control Treaty, But Many Expect No Serious Action
Fought treaty every step of the way while publicly claiminh to support it

White House Makes Super-Size Effort To Gut Obesity Report
Grocery lobby pressured Bush administration to act on its behalf
Flame Retardant Chemicals Common In Household Dust
Found in every home tested
Top Air Polluters Cozy With Bush Administration
$6.6 million to Bush campaigns and the RNC since 1999
Half Of Americans Breathe Unhealthy Air
Annual Lung Association's report now includes particle pollution

Rumsfeld Losing Support Of Military Brass
Army Times editorial even called for both Rumsfeld and Myers, to step down

Iraq A Certified Case of 'Chickenhawk Groupthink'
Study of how very smart people can collectively make very stupid decisions

Kerry Has To Step Up and Fight Patriot Act
Kerry quickly dropped his strong opposition after winning the primaries
The George W. Bitter-Enders
If end-times are just around the corner, why quibble over little details, such as an illegal war?
Bush Running The Ship Of State Aground
The time is over to stop playing "Let's Pretend" About Iraq

Senators Give Negroponte A Pass On "Death Squad" Past
Activist interrupts hearings to ask that someone on panel quiz him on support of killings

THE LOST MORAL HIGH GROUND IN IRAQ

The photos from Abu Ghraib are so shocking because America always sees itself as a "redeemer nation" that would build "a city on a hill" for all the world to follow. This is the foundation of the Bush Administration Policy: In the view of U.S. "exceptionalists," that Washington retains its freedom of action and not be accountable to multilateral organizations, like the United Nations, or even international law. Moral exceptionalism dictates unilateral actions if deemed necessary. What will happen at upcoming courts-martial when the military defendants attempt to defend themselves by asserting they received encouragement from military intelligence operatives to "soften up" Iraqi prisoners in the appalling manner that photos show they did -- encouragement that the soldiers interpreted as orders? The answer to that question has not changed since My Lai, or since the Nuremberg trials of 1945

Outsourcing Torture and the Problems of "Quality Control" A Duty To Disobey: The Forgotten Lessons Of My Lai Abuse Scandals Ends The Myth Of U.S. "Exceptionalism" Greenpeace supporters form an image of Pablo Picasso's "Endangered Freedoms" on Miami Beach January 17   (Photo: Robert Visser / Greenpeace USA) Court Throws Out U.S. Charges Agains Greenpeace Justice Dept. effort to punish activists generated 100,000+ protest letters Is Revered Indonesian Cleric A Terrorist Leader Or "Village Preacher?" U.S. insists elderly Indonesian Muslim a high-ranking terrorist NIKE Accused Of Breaking Promise To UN Signed pledge in 2000 to uphold labor, environmental and human rights principles Neo-Nazi Threats Cause Concern Among Jews And Gays In Chile Plans to run national socialist candidates in Oct elections Mysterious Disappearance Of Colombia Top Paramilitary Chief Has admitted to plotting a large number of assassinations and mass killings Native Americans To Demand Compensation Appeal to UN does not ask for payment to individuals A Million Face Hunger As Sudan Fighting Continues Refugee camps in neighboring Chad becoming enormous Thailand Urged To Attack Islamic Militants Public still reeling from violence outbreak by mostly teenage Muslims Thailand Fears Its Own 9/11 In Attack On Bangkok "We are all waiting for a bomb to go off in Bangkok. If that happens, all bets are off" World Bank, IMF Can't Take Credit For World Poverty Drop Poverty actually when many countries followed IMF and World Bank lending plans U.S. Gives Public Lands Away for Pennies Investigation reveals "taxpayer rip-off of epic proportions" Latino Kids Face Unexpected Lead Poison Risks Mexican candy, homemade treats account for 75% of new cases Many Americans Carry Toxic Pesticide Cocktail in Their Blood Average child has 4x acceptable level for one pesticide After 20 Years In Court, Bhopal Survivors Ask UN For Help Dow says it has no moral or legal obligation for the incident that still kills one victim daily Film About "Accidental Mullah" Draws Boffo Crowds In Tehran Film of thief who poses as holy leader pointedly mocks the Shiite clergy California's Juvenile Prison System Needs Reform From Ground Up Judge says current system making situation worse Photos Don't Tell Lies Not the first time an administration at war has faced the power of the photographic image 50 Years After School Integration, A Major Step Backwards A perfectly legal, dramatic re-segregation of American schools Marching With A Million Women As A Pro-Choice Man It felt like one of those "stand and be counted" moments in life Outsourcing Torture and the Problems of "Quality Control" Hiring contractors, foreign governments to play "bad cop" for us NY Times' Mea Culpa Doesn't Cut It Only the tip of an iceberg of bad coverage on Iraq

The Ten Mistakes In Iraq
The Rot Of Abu Ghraib Began At The Top
How Dumb Do We Think Iraqis Are?
What Chalabi Wrought
This Misbegotten Occupation