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by Stephen Lendman
Ukraine is being attacked. Kiev resembles a war zone. Obama bears full responsibility for months of conflict. What's ongoing was planned long before violence erupted.
Washington wants all independent governments toppled. Ukraine is the most important former Soviet republic. At stake is its national sovereignty. Its future is up for grabs.
It's low-hanging fruit. It's geopolitically important. America wants it plundered for profit. So do EU partners. They want it at Russia's expense.
Business as usual defines Western policy. Obama warned Ukraine. He threatened "consequences if people step over the line."
"We hold the Ukrainian government primarily responsible," he said. "We expect the Ukrainian government to show restraint, to not resort to violence in dealing with peaceful protesters."
by Stephen Lendman
Obama is obsessed with secrecy. He wants government wrongdoing suppressed.
Whistleblowers are criminalized for doing their job. Independent journalism is threatened.
Helen Thomas (1920 - 2013) covered five decades of US administrations. She began during the Kennedy years.
In July 2009, she complained about Obama. She called his press-controlling efforts unprecedented.
"It's shocking. It's really shocking," she said. "What the hell do they think we are, puppets?"
"They're supposed to stay out of our business. They are our public servants. We pay them." Press control is worse than ever before, she said.
Michael Collins
But, wait a minute! Wouldn't that title go to president number 43, George W. Bush? He attacked a nation that never threatened us. The attack and occupation of Iraq resulted in over one million dead Iraqi civilians, tens of thousands dead and injured United States soldiers, and a cool three trillion added to the federal deficit. (Image)
If not Bush for the worst ever slot, what about number 31, Herbert Hoover? He fed the country a rosy scenario as the country entered the Great Depression. Hoover's statements and actions were as harmful as they were delusional. Just say no to Hoover too.
Obama takes the title hands down. The worst ever president doesn't refer to the personal or moral qualities of the person in office. In that case, there would be no contest at all. Number 7, Andrew Jackson, codified acts of genocide against entire nations of Native Americans through the Indian Removal Act.
By Nicola Nasser*
The recent two-day first official visit in forty years by an Egyptian defense minister to Russia of Egypt’s strongman Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, accompanied by Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy, was indeed an historic breakthrough in bilateral relations, but it is still premature to deal with or build on it as a strategic shift away from the country’s more than three-decade strategic alliance with the United States.
The US administration sounds not really concerned with this controversy about an Egyptian strategic shift as much as with the Russian President Vladimir Putin’s welcome of al-Sisi’s expected candidacy for president.
“Egypt is free to pursue relationships with other countries. It doesn't impact our shared interests,” said State Department deputy spokeswoman, Marie Harf, on this February 13.
by Stephen Lendman
Sister Megan Rice is a Roman Catholic nun. She's an anti-nuclear activist. She's aged 84. She's committed for peace.
She's been involved in numerous anti-war protests. She was arrested more than three dozen times. She was imprisoned twice before. Each time for six months.
On February 18, she was sentenced to 35 months more for anti-nuclear activism. On May 9, 2013, she, Michael Walli and Greg Boertje-Obed were convicted.
Sentencing was scheduled for January 28. Inclement weather forced postponement.
In trial testimony, Sister Megan said "I regret I didn't do this 70 years ago." More on her case below.
Howard Zinn called dissent the highest form of patriotism. So is civil disobedience against government wrongdoing.
Sister Megan reflects exemplary patriotism. America honors its worst. It persecutes its best. It's longstanding policy. It's worse than ever now.
El análisis de James Petras
Hay dos ejemplos en el tratamiento con oposiciones violentas. El caso de (Salvador) Allende en Chile, que toleró la oposición violenta hasta que dieron el golpe de Estado; y la otra es la respuesta de Fidel Castro en Cuba frente a los ataques violentos, que terminó quebrando la espalda al terrorismo y consolidó la revolución”, recordó el sociólogo norteamericano James Petras al analizar en CX36 (*) lo que está pasando en Venezuela. En ese sentido dijo que “o se rompe la cabeza de esta oposición para permitir la democracia o peligra que pase en Venezuela lo que pasó en Chile y otros países democráticos, que toleraron demasiado. Y las consecuencias de un golpe en Venezuela son terroríficas, porque lo que llaman fascistas van a lanzar una purga masiva y sangrienta. Yo prefiero 300 terroristas encarcelados que 30.000 militantes y pobres muertos”. En la oportunidad, Petras también analizó el fracaso de las negociaciones por la paz en Siria, la visita del presidente François Hollande a Estados Unidos y el creciente apoyo al levantamiento del bloqueo estadounidense a Cuba. A continuación transcribimos el análisis que Usted puede escuchar aquí: http://www.ivoox.com/james-petras-pide-carcel-para-leopoldo-lopez-por-audios-mp3_rf_2841456_1.html
James Petras: Estamos muy bien.
HV: Hoy queríamos comenzar con la situación en Venezuela. Hoy, se reunió aquí en Montevideo la Mesa Directiva del Parlasur (Parlamento del Mercosur); y allí el presidente uruguayo José Mujica dijo que “hay un caldo de cultivo muy embromado en Venezuela” y la declaración aprobada lamenta “la escalada de violencia que se desató en el país” y exhortan al diálogo para terminar con la violencia. ¿Quçe reflexión le merecen estas declaraciones?
by Stephen Lendman
A previous article discussed multiple Obama regime change fronts. His rogue agenda exceeds the worst of his predecessors.
He heads a homeland police state apparatus. He's waging war on humanity. He's ravaging one country after another.
He wants independent governments in Syria, Iran, Ukraine and Venezuela toppled. He's got other targets in mind.
It's hard keeping track of his lawlessness. He's got multiple initiatives ongoing at the same time.
Tens of billions of taxpayer dollars fund efforts to destabilize governments en route to toppling them. Vital homeland needs go begging.
Paul Craig Roberts
The protests in the western Ukraine are organized by the CIA, the US State Department, and by Washington- and EU-financed Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that work in conjunction with the CIA and State Department. The purpose of the protests is to overturn the decision by the independent government of Ukraine not to join the EU.
The US and EU were initially cooperating in the effort to destroy the independence of Ukraine and make it a subservient entity to the EU government in Brussels. For the EU government, the goal is to expand the EU. For Washington the purposes are to make Ukraine available for looting by US banks and corporations and to bring Ukraine into NATO so that Washington can gain more military bases on Russia’s frontier. There are three countries in the world that are in the way of Washington’s hegemony over the world–Russia, China, and Iran. Each of these countries is targeted by Washington for overthrow or for their sovereignty to be degraded by propaganda and US military bases that leave the countries vulnerable to attack, thus coercing them into accepting Washington’s will.
Dr. Mahboob A. Khawaja
Secretive peace talks between PM Nawaz Sharif Government and Taharak Taliban Pakistan (TTP) groups overflowing conspicuous media headlines hardly tell the truth full of hatred and fear of the unknown. Both represent willing suspicion of disbelief that talks could render peace which none have to offer? After political fanfare, Sharif appeared vulnerable to credibility gimmick lingering to his past corruption and missing leadership. Talibans are ruthless convergent groups of unknown changing loyalties to all directions of political and economic maneuverability for their interests and survival. Who will stand on a solid ground for the reality check? There is no formal agenda for talks, no publicly engaged representatives directly at the table and no peace talks as such except rudimentary symbolic gestures carved out of the nowhere to ensure mutual distrust and time killing exercises to protect individualistic interests of the few warlords on both sides of aisle. Pakistani Taliban as media calls them owe their superfluous existence to the emergence of Taliban movement in Afghanistan that previously fought against the occupation of the former Soviet Union and now fighting against the US led NATO occupation of Afghanistan.
by Stephen Lendman
Washington bears full responsibility for three months of street protest violence. At issue is toppling Ukraine's democratically elected government. More on this below.
On Sunday, Ukraine offered amnesty to anti-government protesters. It did so provided they vacated occupied public buildings. An official statement said:
Amnesty "comes into force from February 17, 2014 and stipulates that charges against the people having committed offenses will be dropped."
It took effect after protesters met authorities half-way. They left some occupied Kiev buildings. They evacuated others in Lvov, Ivano-Frankovsk and Ternopol.
Ukrainian authorities agreed to let OSCE ambassadors control the buildings. Unblocking Grushevsky Street began. Traffic was partly restored.
Municipal services began removing debris. Under amnesty agreed on terms, 268 people arrested from December 27 - February 2 were scheduled for release.
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