CRIMINAL JUSTICE

Ordered to just walk away

The national guardsman peering through the long-range scope of his rifle was startled by what he saw unfolding in the walled compound below. From his post several stories above ground level, he watched as men in plainclothes beat blindfolded and bound prisoners in the enclosed grounds of the Iraqi Interior Ministry. He immediately radioed for help. Soon after, a team of Oregon Army National Guard soldiers swept into the yard and found dozens of Iraqi detainees who said they had been beaten, starved and deprived of water for three days.
In a nearby building, the soldiers counted dozens more prisoners and what appeared to be torture devices -- metal rods, rubber hoses, electrical wires and bottles of chemicals. Many of the Iraqis, including one identified as a 14-year-old boy, had fresh welts and bruises across their back and legs.
The soldiers disarmed the Iraqi jailers, moved the prisoners into the shade, released their handcuffs and administered first aid. Lt. Col. Daniel Hendrickson of Albany, Ore., the highest ranking American at the scene, radioed for instructions. But in a move that frustrated and infuriated the guardsmen, Hendrickson's superior officers told him to return the prisoners to their abusers and immediately withdraw. It was June 29 -- Iraq's first official day as a sovereign country since the U.S.-led invasion.

PULL MY CHENEY

Pentagon says it can't document $1.8 billion

Pentagon auditors have found that Halliburton Co. cannot properly document more than $1.8 billion worth of work done under its contracts in Iraq and Kuwait, US Army officials said yesterday. The latest setback for the Houston-based oil services company came in an audit by the Defense Contract Auditing Agency, which also found that the company's system for generating cost estimates used in negotiations with the government was ''inadequate."

BIG BROTHER

Biometrics extending into everyday life

Stuffing something in a public locker is not usually a memorable experience. You drop a coin, take the key and move on. 'Biometric seemed the most logical choice... people don't lose their finger.' But at the Statue of Liberty, recently reopened after a two-year closure, stashing a package offers a glimpse into the future. To rent and use lockers, visitors touch an electronic reader that scans fingerprints. 'It's easy,' Taiwanese visitor Yu-Sheng Lee, 26, said after stowing a bag. 'I think it's good. I don't have to worry about a key or something like that.'

INTIMIDATION RULES

FBI goes knocking for political troublemakers

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has been questioning political demonstrators across the country, and in rare cases even subpoenaing them, in an aggressive effort to forestall what officials say could be violent and disruptive protests at the Republican National Convention in New York.
But some people contacted by the F.B.I. say they are mystified by the bureau's interest and felt harassed by questions about their political plans.
"The message I took from it," said Sarah Bardwell, 21, an intern at a Denver antiwar group who was visited by six investigators a few weeks ago, "was that they were trying to intimidate us into not going to any protests and to let us know that, 'hey, we're watching you'."

NEW WORLD ORDER

CIA may soon operate withing US borders

Porter Goss, President Bush's nominee to head the CIA, recently introduced legislation that would give the president new authority to direct CIA agents to conduct law-enforcement operations inside the United States—including arresting American citizens.
The legislation, introduced by Goss on June 16 and touted as an "intelligence reform" bill, would substantially restructure the U.S. intelligence community by giving the director of Central Intelligence (DCI) broad new powers to oversee its various components scattered throughout the government.

[The Goss bill would also redefine the authority of the DCI in such a way as to substantially alter—if not overturn—a 57-year-old ban on the CIA conducting operations inside the United States.]

BANKING WORLD

The Herman Daly farewell speech

A decade ago, Herman Daly, Senior Economist in the Environment Department of the World Bank resigned after six years of work at the institution. He invited a number of World Bank economists and the press to a farewell speech in which he prescribed that the Bank take 'a few antacids and laxatives to cure the combination of managerial flatulence and organizational constipation giving rise to such a high-pressure internal environment' and to improve interactions with the external world he prescribed 'new eyeglasses and a hearing aid.'

ALERT AND ALARMED

Reports that led to terror alert were years old, officials say

Much of the information that led the authorities to raise the terror alert at several large financial institutions in the New York City and Washington areas was three or four years old, intelligence and law enforcement officials said on Monday. They reported that they had not yet found concrete evidence that a terrorist plot or preparatory surveillance operations were still under way.
Frances Fragos Townsend, the White House homeland security adviser, said on Monday in an interview on PBS that surveillance reports, apparently collected by Qaeda operatives had been "gathered in 2000 and 2001.'' But she added that information may have been updated as recently as January.

["But we must understand that the kind of information available to us today is the result of the president's leadership in the war against terror, the reports that have led to this alert are the result of offensive intelligence and military operations overseas, as well as strong partnerships with our allies around the world, such as Pakistan." -- from a news conference by Homeland Security Cheif Tom Ridge]

NEW WORLD ORDER

Silencing dissent in America

The 'disorderly conduct' arrest will stay on my record forever. My prints are now in the 'system,' whatever that is. My name is on some shit list somewhere (it probably was before this anyway). My neighbors think I'm crazy, and I've spent many hours writing, talking and agonizing over this arrest. These are all part of the price I pay and continue to pay for speaking my mind in this fascist, fear driven country.
We hear a lot of simplistic rhetoric about how our soldiers are in Iraq protecting our freedoms. The simple truth of the matter is, Iraq never threatened our freedom. Neither did Osama bin Laden, for that matter.
Our freedoms can only be denied by those who hold direct power over us, our own leaders, our own police, and our courts.
Our freedoms can only be protected by standing up to bullies and petty tyrants, whether uniformed or flag draped. That's how freedoms are gained, and that's how they must be maintained. To do otherwise is a dereliction of revolutionary duty.

THE OTHERS

Extraterrestrial visitor dies in Russian province

An alien given the name Aleshenka, found in the Ural region had a tiny onion-shaped head that looked like it was composed of five petals.
The 25cm high creature had no ears, huge slanting catlike eyes that occupied most of its face.
The elderly woman who found the creature took it to her home where she started examining the alien.
The body of Aleshenka was plump and was swaying like jelly.  The skin on the body was gray and with dark spots in brown on the head. No hair, small holes instead of ears. Small flat nose enabled the creature to breath. Dark-gray eyes. No eye-lids. The vertical pupils of the eyes were constantly narrowing and expanding. 
The creature died of neglect when its finder was hospitalised.
When its body finally discovered, doctors claimed the mummified creature has minimum 20 features distinguishing it from a human being.
Medical experts rejected the idea that Aleshenka could be a mutant child. The town of Kyshtym is situated in the area contaminated after the accident at a secret facility near the town of Chelyabinsk-40 in 1957. After the accident, birth defects have been occurring from time to time.

CHAINS OF COMMAND

Soldier's lawyers plan to summon top US officials

Attorneys representing Army Pfc. Lynndie England, charged in the torture-and-abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, said yesterday they plan to call Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld as witnesses in her preliminary hearing this month.
During a news conference in Denver, the defense team said it had assembled a list of 136 people to summon when England, 21, appears June 22 before a military Article 32 hearing in Fort Bragg, N.C. The hearing, similar to a grand jury, will determine whether there is enough evidence to prosecute her. If she is tried and convicted on charges of abuse, conspiracy and discrediting the armed forces, England, who is five months pregnant, faces 15-1/2 years in prison.
Her lawyers acknowledge they can't force Cheney or Rumsfeld to show up, because there is no subpoena power for Article 32 hearings. The best they can hope for is the pair might be required, as public servants, to come if called.
Attorney Rose Mary Zapor said she believes the chain of command ordered England and at least six other prison guards at Abu Ghraib to 'soften up' Iraqi detainees before interrogation. One guard, Army Spc. Jeremy Sivits, pleaded guilty last month to abusing prisoners and was sentenced to one year in prison.
England is not in custody and is doing clerical work at Fort Bragg.

Excerpt from an interview aired on the Australian ABC Radio network Text in square brackets may contain transcript errors due to poor quality of recording.

ENGLAND: I was instructed by a person in a higher rank to stand there, hold this leash, they took the picture, [first aisle, and that's all I know].
INTERVIEWER: [You had an] intention of using that picture in some type of psychological operation [that they're inmates].

PRESENTER: Private England was asked if she thought there was anything wrong with what she was doing.
ENG: Oh I mean they were for psyop reasons and the reason was ... I mean ... and so ... to us we were doing our job which meant we were doing what we were told and the outcome was what they wanted. They'd come back and they'd look at the pictures and they'd state, "that's a good tactic, keep it up, that's working, this is working. Keep doing it. Gettin' what we need".

PRES: She didn't name names, but said repeatedly that she was acting under orders.
ENG: We don't feel like we were doing thing that we weren't supposed to, because we were told to do ... we think everything was justified because we were instructed to do this and to do that.
INT: Did things happen in this prison to those Iraqi prisoners worse than [garbled] than being photographed.
ENG: Yes
INT: Can you tell me about that.
ENG: No.
PRES: There are still many questions about what that worse treatment may have involved.

NOTHING NEW

Meet Iraq's new boss...same as the old boss?

According to eyewitnesses, Iraq's new Prime Minister Iyad Allawi pulled a pistol and executed several suspects in a courtyard. The two eyewitnesses were tracked down by the Sydney Morning Herald and both gave their testimony without payment and without the knowledge of each other's existence. Their stories were nearly identical and both included the presence of several American security agents and vehicles.
More at AlterNet.com.

[Reports also said Allawi chopped the hand off another of the prisoners.]

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

The death of truth, the end of greatness

Today, our dominant international challenge is to restore the greatness of America—based on telling the truth, a commitment to peace, and respect for civil liberties at home and basic human rights around the world. Truth is the foundation of our global leadership, but our credibility has been shattered and we are left increasingly isolated and vulnerable in a hostile world. Without truth—without trust—America cannot flourish. Trust is at the very heart of our democracy, the sacred covenant between the president and the people.

Ex-President Carter speaks at 2004 Democratic National Convention

ANOTHER WHITE VAN

Man Sought for Photographing Texas City Refineries

Law enforcement officials are looking for a man seen taking pictures of two Texas oil refineries about 30 miles south of Houston.
The three refineries seen being photographed include the largest U.S. plant operated by BP, which is the third-largest U.S. refinery, processing 470,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
The man was seen taking pictures outside the refineries, all located on the same highway, said Bruce Clawson, emergency management and homeland security director for Texas City.
While it is not illegal to take pictures of a refinery from a highway or street, officials would like to talk to the man to find out his reason for taking the photographs.
'This is based on the idea that al Qaeda does its homework,' Clawson said. 'That's not to say we don't have enough home-grown idiots already who might want to do something.'
The man was seen driving a white van.

DRAFT DODGER

Talk of military draft persists despite denials: mandatory service on the horizon

Michigan's sons and daughters could soon be plucked without warning from their college dorms or their first full-time jobs to serve in Iraq. Or not.
Rumors about a possible draft have been circulating for months, fueled in part by Web sites such as StopTheDraft.com, which claims the draft is just "five minutes" away.
Lawmakers say it is unlikely Congress would call for compulsory service in an election year, and that the Bush administration has taken steps in the short term to shore up gaps in troop strength.

WAILING WALL

UN vote demands Israel tear down barrier

The UN General Assembly has voted overwhelmingly to demand Israel obey a World Court ruling and tear down its West Bank barrier, but Australia has joined Israel and the United States in opposing the resolution.
The vote in the 191-nation assembly was 150-6, with 10 abstentions. The tiny Pacific states of Marshall Islands, Micronesia, and Palau also voted 'no'.

MAD BUTCHER

Surgeon slices patient's penis in three

A Romanian surgeon underwent a fit of madness while operating on a patient's testicles and instead cut off the man's penis and sliced it into three pieces, hospital officials said on Friday.
The surgeon, Naum Ciomu, was described as a senior member of the hospital staff and a professor of anatomy.
He had been operating on a 34-year-old man for a testicular malformation when he committed the act, the officials said.
'We are shocked by what has happened. It is the first time we have had such a case,' said Sorin Oprescu, head of the Bucharest emergency hospital where the patient was rushed for emergency reconstructive surgery.
The operations have been entrusted to a highly respected Romanian plastic surgeon, Ioan Lascar, who said he would try to restore the man's urinary function but that he was unlikely to recover normal sexual activity.

CRYPTO HUMAN

 

Giant human skeleton found in Saudi Arabia

An enormous human-like skeleton has been uncovered by a gas exploration team in Saudi Arabia, according to a Bangladeshi independent news source.
Workers from the Saudi national oil company Aramco made the discovery in the deserts of south east Saudi in a region called Rab al-Qalee or Empty Quarter.
It has been reported that Saudi military have closed off the area allowing only Aramco personnel throught the perimeter.
 
EXPLANATION: The image first surfaced as an entry in an October 2002 Photoshop contest run by Worth1000.com. It was created by manipulating an actual photo of a Cornell University excavation of a mastodon skeleton.
The text, which is obviously bogus (apart from the loosely synopsized Qur'an story of the Prophet Hud and the people of Aad), was created much later and first found circulating with the photo in March 2004.

BRIEF ENCOUNTERS

Seven new-borns found dead in bins

Seven newborn babies were dumped dead in two wayside dustbins in the Bangladeshi capital, provoking outrage and concern among the city dwellers.
Ramna Police recovered six bodies from the dustbins near a playground.
The body of another newborn baby was also found in a dustbin at Sankar by Dhanmondi Police.

LAPSED REASON

Mormons, witches, the Playboy centrefold model and some grizzly murders

This week, a jury in Martinez, a small town outside San Francisco, will retire to consider the bizarre, brutally violent cult surrounding one Glenn Taylor Helzer, a lapsed Mormon accused of bludgeoning and dismembering five people in an elaborate extortion racket intended to hasten the second coming of Jesus Christ.
Helzer, a former stockbroker who has already pleaded guilty and faces the death penalty, exerted a charismatic hold over an eclectic group of followers including his younger brother, a former girlfriend turned Playboy centrefold model, and a self-described "good witch" who once offered to raise money for Armageddon by appearing in porn films.
The first two victims were elderly former clients of Helzer's, who were forced to write cheques for $100,000 (?55,000) while being tortured and held under the influence of the date-rape drug rohypnol. The third victim was Selina Bishop, 22-year-old daughter of the blues guitarist Elvin Bishop, who was initially part of the gang but was then slaughtered to ensure that she did not testify against the others. Her mother, Jennifer Villarin, and her mother's boyfriend were the fourth and fifth victims.
The star witness in the trial was a former housemate of Helzer's, Dawn Godman, who calmly described how she held up the severed heads of three of the victims while another member of the gang bashed their teeth out with a hammer and chisel to make them harder to identify.

LAW IS AN ASS

Free Mike Moore!

If Fahrenheit 9/11 shows up on broadcast, cable, or satellite TV after July 30, Michael Moore may well be in big trouble unless he financed the movie himself. If a corporation financed the movie, Moore will have broken the law.