Our Daily Dissector Forum

November 16th, 2005 - by: danny

ON MY SCOOP YESTERDAY ON US ATTEMPTS TO SCUTTLE THE UNESCO TREATY.

Serena wriites:

” I just recently stumbled across your blog. It is one of the more informative on some subjects that have not been reported in MSM and many blogger sites. I think you may be the only one to cover the UNESCO story …

It is reprehensible that this administration talks about freedom yet they are the very ones who try their best to minimize it. The manner in which they use language one must be aware of what they don’t say. And yet they have the audacity to complain about the UNESCO convention wording.

“Due to its extraordinary reach and and the ambiguity of of its language, the convention, IF adopted, COULD (emphasis mine) be misread to impair rights under existing trade agreements and derail progress towards global trade liberalization at the WTO.”

I wonder if Condi even explained what was ambiguous or how it “could be misread to impair rights…” I would assume not because the bush administration often uses that as an excuse without qualifying it.

Their penchant for promoting free trade based on American [corporate] control without oversight hurts other countries and their citizens instead of helping them. It lowerstheir quality of living. But most Americans do not realize the effect it has. Bush likes to talk of freedom a lot. He likes to remind people falsely that terrorists hate our freedom! Yet it is that very idea of freedom which scares them.

Competition evidently scares “American” corporations. There is a large corporate sector that could care less about the ideals on which America was built. In that bush lacks the leadership and the balance required between people and business; it shows in his domestic and international policies, trade agreements and treaties. UNESCO is just another example of how they deal on the international level — just like they do here at home — thru the use of fear and promoting the economic interests of America. In doing so they narrow the field competition thus killing two birds with one stone; it erases cultural ties and ensures profits. (actually 3 birds– fewer companies to compete with).

Their arrogance and lack of respect compounded with their ignorance of the importance of cultural diversity are staggering. Of course bush never traveled before he took up residence at the WH so it is doubtful at best he would have any depth of understanding about such things, but moreover it is absolutely astonishing that others in his administration don’t either or if they do, they do not place any importance on it.

Their priorities are economic profits for big business period at the expense of the people. As long as corporations write our policies and continue to become monopolies eventually people will become enslaved and cultural diversity will be forgotten. (it might be better just to clone people giving them only the part of the brain that controls motor skills!)

This is my impression. Please correct me if I am mistaken.Thanks for posting information not readily found. You are doing a great service.”

THE “INTELLIGENCE” OF NO INTELLIGENCE

Eugene Duran writes:

“Danny, if the administration is using bad intelligence as the reason for our war isn’t this the same argument for 9-11? When does and administration start to question the intelligence it receives? Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Or rather, when does the press start to question why intelligence is used at all? Since the Downing street memo has revealed the intelligence was fixed around the policy we now know that intelligence and policy are enmeshed. Does the Bush administration really think we are that stupid? And yet at least 1/3 are because they continue to believe him.”

WATCH THE NUMBERS FALL

Jack Schultz writes from Canada:

“Not only have 60% of Americans turned against the war in Iraq, calling it a mistake, but a majority (52%) of Americans now believe that they were lied into the war. It looks as though Bush and the Republicans are caught in a black hole of collapsing poll numbers that, I think, will be impossible to reverse.”

A WALKOUT IN THE WHITE HOUSE?

Susie Taft from Minneapolis considers my idea of walkout by journalists at the White House.

“It seems like years ago I was pondering a White House Press Corps theatrical gesture of some sort. The walkout would be ideal. Nothing wrong with the idea. However, if a walkout is not possible, I’d like to revive the idea I sent you way back when: That reporters simply wait an awkwardly long time after they have been called upon and before they speak. McClennan et al become increasingly queasy, the effect is more like political nausea than head-on collision.

“A statement could be made by having all the questions at a particular press conference be utterly banal, like “How are the White House canines doing?”, or “What kind of stuffing does the First Family prefer for Thanksgiving turkey?”

“A walkout would signal to the nation and the world that some kind of coup is underfoot. If it were covered dramatically and at a stretch of 18 hours or more in headlines it would be a rallying cry to both sides”. Um, I ask myself, then what?

“My background raises the image of the Mothers of the Plaza in Buenos Aires, who marched every Thursday on the plaza circle in front of La Casa Rosada in white scarves with photos of their disappeared children until the atrocities of the Dirty War ceased, even though justice was not attained.

“I’m dead serious about this sudden interest in protest theatre and I love you for the instigation.

“ps you wouldn’t believe how stretched I am these days.I just need to READ your books. No matter what, I read.It’s how I get to sleep – NO OFFENCE! Seriously, always a book under my pillow, and I’m just finishing Brothers Karamozov (which isn’t all that special, actually)

FOR INFORMATION ON MY BOOKS:

http://www.newsdissector.org/store.htm

MORE ON AMSTERDAM

Betsy Fiske writes from Lodi California:

“Thank you for a good “story” on the media conference. You’re right – it is encouraging to hear that they are at least talking about what’s wrong with the media.

As for your suggestion that reporters walk out of the White House press room – I agree with that but also suggest that the reporters use what I term “derisive laughter” when confronted with obvious misdirection, lies, etc. by Scott McClellan and others. It’s past time that these “thugs” were thrown out of the White House and people need to know exactly what they’ve been doing. If we were to believe McClellan and those “others,” I wouldn’t have been having heart aches and belly aches since 2000.

SEASONS GREETINGS

Da’ud X Mohammad wishes me an early Merry Christmas.

“Although its been sed many times many ways…

At heart, the “Journalism in the Age of Bush” story is that the rubber-stamped New York Times editorials, and articles (by Judith Miller) that originated as Rove (Goebeles-like propaganda) talking points from the Cheney-Bush neocon White House were picked up on and then published by papers all over the country without anybody questioning anything.

“Those of us who never bought into their lies don’t have purple fingers or blood on our hands – or so it would be nice to think – unless we don’t agitate for the US media to make restitution for their misdeeds by their henceforth supporting (anti-war) peace, the poor, and the rebuilding of New Orleans fairly

“So, let me be the first to wish you a Merry Christmas anyhowÃ¢â‚¬Â¦

ACCEPTED.

CASTOR WEEK

Ilona Joerden writes from Germany:

“An interesting confrontation, hardly ever reported by the media, takesplace every year in Wendland near the Elbe river in Northen Germany,
when “hot” radioactive containers, called “Castors” are brought from their origin in Northern France to Gorleben for temporary deposit.

“During “Castor Week”, as many as 20,000 police from all over Germanycrowd into this tiny province for their annual training in crowd suppresion. Although the police methods, often (later)adjudged illagal, can hardly be believed, the Wendlanders still offer what resistance they can. Your readers can follow this action in real time by going to http://castor.de/ticker/index.html. The page is in German but a translation link will appear..

MISSING AARON

Ray Yerkes writes from the Commonwealth of MA:

“I emailed you while you were away. I am interested in why Aaron Brown, CNN Domestic 10 pm new has dissappeared from CNN as there wasn’t a time space for his programs as announced by the New Director. Was he getting too hot to handle? I bears investigating. I see nothing but quotes from the guy who fired him on the CNN website and got spin in return for my email.
Enjoyed your visits to Newburyport.”

AGENT ORGANGE VICTIMS IN THE USA

Note to reporters, editors, assignment desks: delegation of Vietnamese people who are victims of Agent Orange is beginning a 10-city U.S. tour and will be in NYC from Nov. 15-17.

For further information about availabilities contact Merle Ratner – 917-733-2100 or Ngo Thanh Nhan – 646-338-8523.

PROTEST FOR FREE PRESS IN BELARUS NOV 16

“When fingers of a fist are clenched, it would be much stronger. The same happens with people. When we would become united, helping each other, nothing could be possibly done to us. We cannot be defeated while we hold together. That is why I certainly light a candle on November 16. Let us become the first step to overcome our atomism.”

Comment by Ryhor Baradulin, the “People’s Poet of Balarus.”
www.charter97.org/eng/news/

RESOURCE: TIMELINE OF RECENT EVENTS (thanks to Raymond McInnis)

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1115/p01s04-uspo.html

QUOTE OF THE DAY – Thanks to Sarah Meyer:

“”Climate change needs economic growth to be sustainable in its environmental effects.” Tony Blair at the Lord Mayor’s Reception, ll/14.

ALI G: YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

Reuters reports:

Kazakhstan’s Foreign Ministry threatened legal action Monday against a British comedian who wins laughs by portraying the central Asian state as a country populated by drunks who enjoy cow-punching as a sport.
Sacha Baron Cohen, who portrays a spoof Kazakh television presenter Borat in his “Da Ali G Show,” has won fame ridiculing Kazakhstan, the world’s ninth largest country yet still little known to many in the West, on British and U.S. channels.
Cohen appears to have drawn official Kazakh ire after he hosted the annual MTV Europe Music Awards show in Lisbon earlier this month as Borat, who arrived in an Air Kazakh propeller plane controlled by a one-eyed pilot clutching a vodka bottle.
“We do not rule out that Mr. Cohen is serving someone’s political order designed to present Kazakhstan and its people in a derogatory way,” Kazakh Foreign Ministry spokesman Yerzhan Ashykbayev told a news briefing.”

PODCAST AVAILABLE

Via Eric Olson of Deep Blade Journal:

A new podcast featuring Stan Goff on “Iraq and Exterminism” is now available

http://peacecast.us>peacecast.us.

THANKS FOR TUNING IN TO MEDIACHANNEL

If I can get some help, I hope to be doing a podcast soon as well.

Comments to dissector@mediachannel.org

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