US President leading nation into quagmire: "The White House squatter, who refuses to visit hospitalized U.S. soldiers he's sent needlessly to their maiming, remains safely ensconced in his reality vacuum, trafficking in the narcotic of denial many of his countrymen seem happy to ingest... The world today is a safer place because of me, babbles this absurd little man, as yet another car bomb rends flesh and terrorist recruitment basks in its Bush boom.

"Osama bin Laden can only hope for four more Bush years... New heights of hatred of a rogue America is just jealousy, opines the oblivious 'leader' who boasts of spurning newspapers in favour of 'objective' news reports from close aides."

US President leading nation into quagmire: "The White House squatter, who refuses to visit hospitalized U.S. soldiers he's sent needlessly to their maiming, remains safely ensconced in his reality vacuum, trafficking in the narcotic of denial many of his countrymen seem happy to ingest... The world today is a safer place because of me, babbles this absurd little man, as yet another car bomb rends flesh and terrorist recruitment basks in its Bush boom.

"Osama bin Laden can only hope for four more Bush years... New heights of hatred of a rogue America is just jealousy, opines the oblivious 'leader' who boasts of spurning newspapers in favour of 'objective' news reports from close aides."

"Geneva" peace plan building momentum: "Already this 'virtual agreement' is building momentum. The Israeli op-ed pages are full of it; soon the document will be sent to every Israeli household, so that citizens can read it for themselves (an idea inspired by the mass distribution of Northern Ireland's Good Friday agreement). Public meetings to explain the accord have been standing-room only. Among the Palestinians, the indications are similarly positive: when al-Ayyam printed the Geneva text in Arabic for the first time at the weekend, the paper sold out; a reprint is on the way. Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela and FW de Klerk have shown interest in attending the signing ceremony in Geneva later this year."

"Geneva is not a revolutionary document. It merely takes the solution most assume to be the only one possible - partition of Palestine into two states, one for each people - and spells out the details."

"Proof of the accord's significance has come in the vehemence of its condemnation by Sharon and his ministers. They have denounced it, branding Beilin and friends as virtual traitors for daring to contact the enemy "behind the government's back at a time of war". More serious [?] criticism has come from those who should be allies. Former PM Ehud Barak told me yesterday that Geneva was "the peace of ostriches, a plan that only serves Arafat". For him, signing a deal while terror continues rewards violence: "It is capitulation," he said."

"But the greatest role belongs to the people of Israel and Palestine. For too long polls have shown both sides desperate to make a deal, yet backing leaders who hesitate to do what's needed. Israelis and Palestinians need to break through that paradox. They need to read this agreement, word for word, and then, if they can live with it, demand that the politicians make it happen. Neither side can say any longer that there is "no partner on the other side". Geneva shows there is. All it takes is the will."

"Geneva" peace plan building momentum: "Already this 'virtual agreement' is building momentum. The Israeli op-ed pages are full of it; soon the document will be sent to every Israeli household, so that citizens can read it for themselves (an idea inspired by the mass distribution of Northern Ireland's Good Friday agreement). Public meetings to explain the accord have been standing-room only. Among the Palestinians, the indications are similarly positive: when al-Ayyam printed the Geneva text in Arabic for the first time at the weekend, the paper sold out; a reprint is on the way. Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela and FW de Klerk have shown interest in attending the signing ceremony in Geneva later this year."

"Geneva is not a revolutionary document. It merely takes the solution most assume to be the only one possible - partition of Palestine into two states, one for each people - and spells out the details."

"Proof of the accord's significance has come in the vehemence of its condemnation by Sharon and his ministers. They have denounced it, branding Beilin and friends as virtual traitors for daring to contact the enemy "behind the government's back at a time of war". More serious [?] criticism has come from those who should be allies. Former PM Ehud Barak told me yesterday that Geneva was "the peace of ostriches, a plan that only serves Arafat". For him, signing a deal while terror continues rewards violence: "It is capitulation," he said."

"But the greatest role belongs to the people of Israel and Palestine. For too long polls have shown both sides desperate to make a deal, yet backing leaders who hesitate to do what's needed. Israelis and Palestinians need to break through that paradox. They need to read this agreement, word for word, and then, if they can live with it, demand that the politicians make it happen. Neither side can say any longer that there is "no partner on the other side". Geneva shows there is. All it takes is the will."

President Bush Sr: occupation Baghdad would be an error: "In his memoirs, A World Transformed, written more than five years ago, George Bush, Sr. wrote the following to explain why he didn't go after Saddam Hussein at the end of the Gulf War:

"'Trying to eliminate Saddam .. would have incurred incalculable human and political costs. Apprehending him was probably impossible ... We would have been forced to occupy Baghdad and, in effect, rule Iraq ...there was no viable 'exit strategy' we could see, violating another of our principles. Furthermore, we had been self-consciously trying to set a pattern for handling aggression in the post-Cold War world. Going in and occupying Iraq, thus unilaterally exceeding the United Nations' mandate, would have destroyed the precedent of international response to aggression that we hoped to establish. Had we gone the invasion route, the United States could conceivably still be an occupying power in a bitterly hostile land.'"

President Bush Sr: occupation Baghdad would be an error: "In his memoirs, A World Transformed, written more than five years ago, George Bush, Sr. wrote the following to explain why he didn't go after Saddam Hussein at the end of the Gulf War:

"'Trying to eliminate Saddam .. would have incurred incalculable human and political costs. Apprehending him was probably impossible ... We would have been forced to occupy Baghdad and, in effect, rule Iraq ...there was no viable 'exit strategy' we could see, violating another of our principles. Furthermore, we had been self-consciously trying to set a pattern for handling aggression in the post-Cold War world. Going in and occupying Iraq, thus unilaterally exceeding the United Nations' mandate, would have destroyed the precedent of international response to aggression that we hoped to establish. Had we gone the invasion route, the United States could conceivably still be an occupying power in a bitterly hostile land.'"

Electronic voting: Aussies Do It Right in ACT: "The machine does not include a voter-verifiable receipt, something critics of U.S. systems want added to machines and voting machine makers have resisted. A voter-verifiable receipt is a printout from the machine, allowing the voter to check the vote before depositing the receipt into a secure ballot box at the polling station. It can be used as a paper audit trail in case of a recount.

"Green said the commission rejected the printout feature to keep expenses down... Quinn, however, thinks all e-voting systems should offer a receipt. "There's no reason voters should trust a system that doesn't have it, and they shouldn't be asked to," he said. "Why on earth should (voters) have to trust me -- someone with a vested interest in the project's success?" he said. "A voter-verified audit trail is the only way to 'prove' the system's integrity to the vast majority of electors, who after all, own the democracy.""

""The only possible motive I can see for disabling some of the security mechanisms and features in their [Diebold] system is to be able to rig elections," Quinn said. "It is, at best, bad programming; at worst, the system has been designed to rig an election. I can't imagine what it must be like to be an American in the midst of this and watching what's going on," Quinn added. "Democracy is for the voters, not for the companies making the machines.... I would really like to think that when it finally seeps in to the collective American psyche that their sacred Democracy has been so blatantly abused, they will get mad.""

An otherwise excellent Wired article does not mention that the ACT electoral system is Hare-Clark Quota-Preferential with Robson Rotation, a model for parliaments and assemblies everywhere.

Electronic voting: Aussies Do It Right in ACT: "The machine does not include a voter-verifiable receipt, something critics of U.S. systems want added to machines and voting machine makers have resisted. A voter-verifiable receipt is a printout from the machine, allowing the voter to check the vote before depositing the receipt into a secure ballot box at the polling station. It can be used as a paper audit trail in case of a recount.

"Green said the commission rejected the printout feature to keep expenses down... Quinn, however, thinks all e-voting systems should offer a receipt. "There's no reason voters should trust a system that doesn't have it, and they shouldn't be asked to," he said. "Why on earth should (voters) have to trust me -- someone with a vested interest in the project's success?" he said. "A voter-verified audit trail is the only way to 'prove' the system's integrity to the vast majority of electors, who after all, own the democracy.""

""The only possible motive I can see for disabling some of the security mechanisms and features in their [Diebold] system is to be able to rig elections," Quinn said. "It is, at best, bad programming; at worst, the system has been designed to rig an election. I can't imagine what it must be like to be an American in the midst of this and watching what's going on," Quinn added. "Democracy is for the voters, not for the companies making the machines.... I would really like to think that when it finally seeps in to the collective American psyche that their sacred Democracy has been so blatantly abused, they will get mad.""

An otherwise excellent Wired article does not mention that the ACT electoral system is Hare-Clark Quota-Preferential with Robson Rotation, a model for parliaments and assemblies everywhere.

Australia's bubble set to burst, warn experts: "Australia's housing market has been identified as one of the most vulnerable in the world, with international bankers warning that rising interest rates could trigger a collapse in residential property prices. The annual survey of 231 bankers, regulators and analysts in 31 countries by the British-based Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation said the biggest bad loan threat lay in soaring consumer debt.

"The most frequently mentioned 'dodgy' sector was property, specifically domestic housing ... 'The most vulnerable countries are the UK, Australia, Holland - also the US, though the bubble is less,' an economist with a US bank said." ... Last week Westpac's chief executive David Morgan warned that the property market was overvalued by 20 per cent. Official figures show that in the six years to June, capital city prices rose 92 per cent nationally and 119 per cent in Melbourne. In September, housing credit rose by 2.1 per cent, a level equalled only once in 27 years of monthly credit statistics. In real terms, excluding inflation, it is the highest monthly growth ever."

Australia's bubble set to burst, warn experts: "Australia's housing market has been identified as one of the most vulnerable in the world, with international bankers warning that rising interest rates could trigger a collapse in residential property prices. The annual survey of 231 bankers, regulators and analysts in 31 countries by the British-based Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation said the biggest bad loan threat lay in soaring consumer debt.

"The most frequently mentioned 'dodgy' sector was property, specifically domestic housing ... 'The most vulnerable countries are the UK, Australia, Holland - also the US, though the bubble is less,' an economist with a US bank said." ... Last week Westpac's chief executive David Morgan warned that the property market was overvalued by 20 per cent. Official figures show that in the six years to June, capital city prices rose 92 per cent nationally and 119 per cent in Melbourne. In September, housing credit rose by 2.1 per cent, a level equalled only once in 27 years of monthly credit statistics. In real terms, excluding inflation, it is the highest monthly growth ever."

Land Reform necessary for democracy in Iraq: "One point he made was that successful democratization, whether in Japan, India or elsewhere, has always been preceded by land reform. And, he pointed out, this sort of measure is completely absent from the American planning for the Iraqi economy. He said that the Baath years had seen enormous inequalities in landed wealth reemerge. We know that Saddam gave property to Sunni Arabs in Kurdish and Shiite regions, and rewarded the clan chieftains who supported him."

The importance of land reform in addressing inequality and making democracy possible is reasonably widely understood. 'Land reform' usually takes the form of either a partition of large estates or a land nationalisation: it is a tragedy the geonomic approach to this issue is almost never discussed, at the least as an alternative.

Land Reform necessary for democracy in Iraq: "One point he made was that successful democratization, whether in Japan, India or elsewhere, has always been preceded by land reform. And, he pointed out, this sort of measure is completely absent from the American planning for the Iraqi economy. He said that the Baath years had seen enormous inequalities in landed wealth reemerge. We know that Saddam gave property to Sunni Arabs in Kurdish and Shiite regions, and rewarded the clan chieftains who supported him."

The importance of land reform in addressing inequality and making democracy possible is reasonably widely understood. 'Land reform' usually takes the form of either a partition of large estates or a land nationalisation: it is a tragedy the geonomic approach to this issue is almost never discussed, at the least as an alternative.

Blair war criminal: "Tony Blair is facing a formal complaint to the international war-crimes tribunal by a panel of senior international legal experts for unlawfully waging war in Iraq. The panel of eight law professors, including experts from Oxford University and the London School of Economics, is studying evidence that alleges Britain has broken international treaties on war and human rights in Iraq... The panel will meet in London on Saturday to decide whether the evidence is strong enough for a formal complaint to the chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court in The Hague... The inquiry's organisers think it highly likely the panel will find enough evidence to justify a complaint, but it remains unclear how the court will react."

The concept of "warcrimes" trials is compromised by Victors' Justice, but Blair, Bush and Howard certainly should be made to face court, even if it is an ad hoc court with no power to convict. The evidence, the documents, the truth is what is important.

Blair war criminal: "Tony Blair is facing a formal complaint to the international war-crimes tribunal by a panel of senior international legal experts for unlawfully waging war in Iraq. The panel of eight law professors, including experts from Oxford University and the London School of Economics, is studying evidence that alleges Britain has broken international treaties on war and human rights in Iraq... The panel will meet in London on Saturday to decide whether the evidence is strong enough for a formal complaint to the chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Court in The Hague... The inquiry's organisers think it highly likely the panel will find enough evidence to justify a complaint, but it remains unclear how the court will react."

The concept of "warcrimes" trials is compromised by Victors' Justice, but Blair, Bush and Howard certainly should be made to face court, even if it is an ad hoc court with no power to convict. The evidence, the documents, the truth is what is important.

US General: My god is bigger than his god: "Speaking of why George Bush is president he said: 'Why is this man in the White House? The majority of Americans did not vote for him. Why is he there? And I tell you this morning that he's in the White House because God put him there for a time such as this.' ... Attending a National Prayer Breakfast, General Boykin described "a demonic presence in [Mogadishu, Somalia] that God revealed to me as the enemy." Speaking of Somali warlord Osman Ato, he said, "He went on CNN and he laughed at us, and he said, 'They'll never get me because Allah will protect me. Allah will protect me.' Well, you know what, I knew that my God was bigger than his. I knew that my God was a real God and his was an idol." Three days after Mr. Ato's television appearance, he was captured. General Boykin went into Mr. Ato's cell and said: "Mr. Ato, you underestimated our God.""

US General: My god is bigger than his god: "Speaking of why George Bush is president he said: 'Why is this man in the White House? The majority of Americans did not vote for him. Why is he there? And I tell you this morning that he's in the White House because God put him there for a time such as this.' ... Attending a National Prayer Breakfast, General Boykin described "a demonic presence in [Mogadishu, Somalia] that God revealed to me as the enemy." Speaking of Somali warlord Osman Ato, he said, "He went on CNN and he laughed at us, and he said, 'They'll never get me because Allah will protect me. Allah will protect me.' Well, you know what, I knew that my God was bigger than his. I knew that my God was a real God and his was an idol." Three days after Mr. Ato's television appearance, he was captured. General Boykin went into Mr. Ato's cell and said: "Mr. Ato, you underestimated our God.""

McGovern: Helicopter Down: "Most of those with a modicum of experience in guerrilla warfare and the Middle East are persuaded that the war is not winnable and that the only thing in doubt is the timing of the U.S. departure."

McGovern: Helicopter Down: "Most of those with a modicum of experience in guerrilla warfare and the Middle East are persuaded that the war is not winnable and that the only thing in doubt is the timing of the U.S. departure."

Mossad may have known in advance of September 11: "There is more than a little circumstantial evidence to show that Mossad – whose motto is “By way of deception, thou shalt do war” – was spying on Arab extremists in the USA and may have known that September 11 was in the offing, yet decided to withhold vital information from their American counterparts which could have prevented the terror attacks."

September 11 looks increasingly something like the Reichstag fire or Pearl Harbour - something the government (of both the US and Israel) didn't do itself but virtually knew would happen and which would then be exploited for certain political purposes.

Mossad may have known in advance of September 11: "There is more than a little circumstantial evidence to show that Mossad – whose motto is “By way of deception, thou shalt do war” – was spying on Arab extremists in the USA and may have known that September 11 was in the offing, yet decided to withhold vital information from their American counterparts which could have prevented the terror attacks."

September 11 looks increasingly something like the Reichstag fire or Pearl Harbour - something the government (of both the US and Israel) didn't do itself but virtually knew would happen and which would then be exploited for certain political purposes.

Israeli Chief of Staff criticism signals crisis in Israel's army and government: "[The criticisms] go to the core of a growing belief in Israel that the hardline policy against the Palestinians has failed and that, with the government’s failure to stop “terrorism” and tackle a persistent economic crisis, the nation is dangerously adrift. That Ya’alon’s comments characterise a deeper malaise are highlighted by his own credentials as a renowned hawk who once advocated a military crackdown to teach the Palestinians a psychological lesson that Israel is “invincible”.

"According to Professor Martin Van Creveld, a military historian at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University, Ya’alon’s criticisms are an admission that such an approach is bankrupt and has serious consequences. “I think people are beginning to realise that the ship is sinking, so they are deserting it and blaming each other,” he said. “Israel has been fighting people much weaker than itself for the past 20 years. This particular argument involving Ya’alon will pass over but it’s very symptomatic of what I would say is a disintegration of the Israeli army. We have God knows how many soldiers refusing to turn up for reserve duty and others preferring to go to jail. It compares to the disintegration the Americans experienced in Vietnam. This army is running out of people willing to fight and die."

Israeli Chief of Staff criticism signals crisis in Israel's army and government: "[The criticisms] go to the core of a growing belief in Israel that the hardline policy against the Palestinians has failed and that, with the government’s failure to stop “terrorism” and tackle a persistent economic crisis, the nation is dangerously adrift. That Ya’alon’s comments characterise a deeper malaise are highlighted by his own credentials as a renowned hawk who once advocated a military crackdown to teach the Palestinians a psychological lesson that Israel is “invincible”.

"According to Professor Martin Van Creveld, a military historian at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University, Ya’alon’s criticisms are an admission that such an approach is bankrupt and has serious consequences. “I think people are beginning to realise that the ship is sinking, so they are deserting it and blaming each other,” he said. “Israel has been fighting people much weaker than itself for the past 20 years. This particular argument involving Ya’alon will pass over but it’s very symptomatic of what I would say is a disintegration of the Israeli army. We have God knows how many soldiers refusing to turn up for reserve duty and others preferring to go to jail. It compares to the disintegration the Americans experienced in Vietnam. This army is running out of people willing to fight and die."

Warnings to no avail: Million ready to brave the housing bubble: "Nearly a million Australians say they will defy talk of a dangerous housing bubble and plunge into a residential property investment in the next year."

"More than 45 per cent of all new home borrowing is going to investors and the Reserve has warned that the apartment market favoured by investors is in danger of a shakeout. It has also pointed out that gross rental yields have plunged to a 40-year low of about 3.5 per cent. After expenses, the average return on a rental property is estimated to be about 2.5 per cent."

According to the George/Hoyt/Harrison 18yr cycle theory, the peak of the boom won't be until 2007. So there is plenty of time for the boom and bust to work up to being a real beauty. In extreme conditions rises of 100% in land values in the last year are possible. Everyone knows, or should know, that it can't last, but the gambling instinct kicks in. The price of land is fictional, in the sense that it can be detached from the real use of land, and inflate to almost any number, but what is not fictional is the debt people and banks carry, and the seeming necessity to service those debts. In other words, land value inflates happily, but reduces only under severe duress.

Warnings to no avail: Million ready to brave the housing bubble: "Nearly a million Australians say they will defy talk of a dangerous housing bubble and plunge into a residential property investment in the next year."

"More than 45 per cent of all new home borrowing is going to investors and the Reserve has warned that the apartment market favoured by investors is in danger of a shakeout. It has also pointed out that gross rental yields have plunged to a 40-year low of about 3.5 per cent. After expenses, the average return on a rental property is estimated to be about 2.5 per cent."

According to the George/Hoyt/Harrison 18yr cycle theory, the peak of the boom won't be until 2007. So there is plenty of time for the boom and bust to work up to being a real beauty. In extreme conditions rises of 100% in land values in the last year are possible. Everyone knows, or should know, that it can't last, but the gambling instinct kicks in. The price of land is fictional, in the sense that it can be detached from the real use of land, and inflate to almost any number, but what is not fictional is the debt people and banks carry, and the seeming necessity to service those debts. In other words, land value inflates happily, but reduces only under severe duress.

Pfaff: A Fiction Shattered by America's Aggression: "What actually has happened during the past nine months is something Americans have yet to grasp, and that others have yet to say out loud: People outside the United States have stopped believing the American story. They don't think terrorism is an Evil force the United States is going to defeat. They say instead that terrorism is a way people wage war when they don't have F-16's or armored divisions."

Its a remarkable and significant development: the American propaganda system is breaking down, helped of course by the naked aggression and particularly blatant, even stunning, lies of the Bush Administration.

Pfaff: A Fiction Shattered by America's Aggression: "What actually has happened during the past nine months is something Americans have yet to grasp, and that others have yet to say out loud: People outside the United States have stopped believing the American story. They don't think terrorism is an Evil force the United States is going to defeat. They say instead that terrorism is a way people wage war when they don't have F-16's or armored divisions."

Its a remarkable and significant development: the American propaganda system is breaking down, helped of course by the naked aggression and particularly blatant, even stunning, lies of the Bush Administration.

Israel Outraged as EU Poll Names It a Threat to Peace: "Israeli Ministers and spokesman have also been at pains recently to insist that a definition of modern 'anti-semitism' should include criticism of the way the state of Israel chooses to protect itself, defining that criticism as an overt attack on Israel's survival."

This Israeli state campaign has been the defacto situation for some time now, to the extent that whereas the term "anti-semite" once meant something like "racial hatred against jews, including a genocidal component", it now means something like "opposition to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories." Harldly anyone in the Jewish community seems willing to object to this travesty.

Israel Outraged as EU Poll Names It a Threat to Peace: "Israeli Ministers and spokesman have also been at pains recently to insist that a definition of modern 'anti-semitism' should include criticism of the way the state of Israel chooses to protect itself, defining that criticism as an overt attack on Israel's survival."

This Israeli state campaign has been the defacto situation for some time now, to the extent that whereas the term "anti-semite" once meant something like "racial hatred against jews, including a genocidal component", it now means something like "opposition to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories." Harldly anyone in the Jewish community seems willing to object to this travesty.

Our Strategy Helps the Terrorists - Israeli Army Chief Warns Sharon: "Gen Ya'alon had apparently hoped his anonymous criticisms would strengthen the army's voice, which has been subordinated to the views of the intelligence services in shaping policy. But the comments were so devastating that he was swiftly revealed as the source.

"The statements - which a close associate characterized to the Israeli press as warning that the country was "on the verge of a catastrophe" - will also reinforce a growing perception among the public that Mr Sharon is unable to deliver the peace with security he promised when he came to office nearly three years ago."

Our Strategy Helps the Terrorists - Israeli Army Chief Warns Sharon: "Gen Ya'alon had apparently hoped his anonymous criticisms would strengthen the army's voice, which has been subordinated to the views of the intelligence services in shaping policy. But the comments were so devastating that he was swiftly revealed as the source.

"The statements - which a close associate characterized to the Israeli press as warning that the country was "on the verge of a catastrophe" - will also reinforce a growing perception among the public that Mr Sharon is unable to deliver the peace with security he promised when he came to office nearly three years ago."

MediaLens explain why they target the 'liberal' media: The role of the 'liberal' media is to draw the boundaries of acceptable debate: this far and no further. Thus it is a crucial component of the propaganda system. Many people would agree that the rightwing press is propaganda but fail to see the 'liberal' media for what it is.

"In all the endless discussion about Iraq's recent history, the "liberal media" has almost completely buried former UN humanitarian coordinator Denis Halliday's damning references to the "genocidal" effects of US/UK sanctions. Halliday has been mentioned in 2 of the 10,811 Guardian and Observer articles mentioning Iraq this year. The list goes on...

"Instead the "liberal media" has been filled with literally tens of thousands of articles and news reports echoing US/UK propaganda."

MediaLens explain why they target the 'liberal' media: The role of the 'liberal' media is to draw the boundaries of acceptable debate: this far and no further. Thus it is a crucial component of the propaganda system. Many people would agree that the rightwing press is propaganda but fail to see the 'liberal' media for what it is.

"In all the endless discussion about Iraq's recent history, the "liberal media" has almost completely buried former UN humanitarian coordinator Denis Halliday's damning references to the "genocidal" effects of US/UK sanctions. Halliday has been mentioned in 2 of the 10,811 Guardian and Observer articles mentioning Iraq this year. The list goes on...

"Instead the "liberal media" has been filled with literally tens of thousands of articles and news reports echoing US/UK propaganda."

Chomsky: Bush Needs Fear for Reelection: "U.S. linguist and political dissident Noam Chomsky said on Wednesday that President Bush will have to 'manufacture' another threat to American security to win reelection in 2004 after U.S failure in occupying Iraq... "They have a card that they can play ... terrify the population with some invented threat, and that is not very hard to do," he said."

"Chomsky said the military occupation of Iraq ... was a failure. "The country had been devastated by sanctions. The invasion ended sanctions. The tyrant is gone and there is no outside support for domestic dissidence," he said. "It takes real talent to fail in this endeavor.""

Chomsky: Bush Needs Fear for Reelection: "U.S. linguist and political dissident Noam Chomsky said on Wednesday that President Bush will have to 'manufacture' another threat to American security to win reelection in 2004 after U.S failure in occupying Iraq... "They have a card that they can play ... terrify the population with some invented threat, and that is not very hard to do," he said."

"Chomsky said the military occupation of Iraq ... was a failure. "The country had been devastated by sanctions. The invasion ended sanctions. The tyrant is gone and there is no outside support for domestic dissidence," he said. "It takes real talent to fail in this endeavor.""

U.S. Contractors Reap the Windfalls of Post-War Reconstruction: Breakdown of the major war profiteers

U.S. Contractors Reap the Windfalls of Post-War Reconstruction: Breakdown of the major war profiteers

US policy has isolated only one extremist group: "The biggest damage that the Gulf War and its aftermath have inflicted is on the US. It has weakened its political credibility as the world's most powerful state and confronted it with more, rather than less, danger from international terrorism.

"Bush's policy approach, driven more by a minority of neo-conservative and Christian ideologues than the mainstream in US politics, has involved the US in a conflict from which al-Qaeda and its supporters stand to gain more than the world's only superpower. And those US allies [UK, Aus] who have supported this policy bear as much responsibility as Bush for dangerously enabling two pools of extremists - one from the Islamic side, another from Western side - to have a determining role in shaping our future."

US policy has isolated only one extremist group: "The biggest damage that the Gulf War and its aftermath have inflicted is on the US. It has weakened its political credibility as the world's most powerful state and confronted it with more, rather than less, danger from international terrorism.

"Bush's policy approach, driven more by a minority of neo-conservative and Christian ideologues than the mainstream in US politics, has involved the US in a conflict from which al-Qaeda and its supporters stand to gain more than the world's only superpower. And those US allies [UK, Aus] who have supported this policy bear as much responsibility as Bush for dangerously enabling two pools of extremists - one from the Islamic side, another from Western side - to have a determining role in shaping our future."

Bi-partisan Bush doctine: Congress passes "Syria Accountability Act": analysis by S.Zunes: "What is noteworthy about the vote, however, is that a careful reading of the bill reveals a rather frightening consensus in support of the Bush administration's unilateralist worldview... The answer may lie in today's unipolar world system where the US, rather than supporting comprehensive and law-based means of promoting regional peace and security, insists on the right to impose unilateral demands targeted at specific countries based largely on ideological criteria. As the one-sidedness of the vote on this resolution indicates, both the Republicans and the Democrats - including the most liberal wing of the party - now accept this vision of US foreign policy."

Bi-partisan Bush doctine: Congress passes "Syria Accountability Act": analysis by S.Zunes: "What is noteworthy about the vote, however, is that a careful reading of the bill reveals a rather frightening consensus in support of the Bush administration's unilateralist worldview... The answer may lie in today's unipolar world system where the US, rather than supporting comprehensive and law-based means of promoting regional peace and security, insists on the right to impose unilateral demands targeted at specific countries based largely on ideological criteria. As the one-sidedness of the vote on this resolution indicates, both the Republicans and the Democrats - including the most liberal wing of the party - now accept this vision of US foreign policy."