The DISH

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Volume 9 Issue 7…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…February 17, 2004

Intuit’s Vibe

Armageddon!!

By Yohannes Sharriff

War comes

Riding like the four horsemen

Its approach is swift, restless

Anxious to consume this nation.

The same grim tales repeated on the evening news.

The blues are the only fruits our seeds reap

While we watch uncles,

Tom and Sam crumble.

Under this overwhelming stress,

Politicians emanate

The festering stench of rotting flesh.

Throughout time,

This end has been prophesied,

And, now it is here!

Listen...listen....listen carefully to what is said.

Hear the anger and confusion in our voices.

See the sadness and oppression in faces,

First seen as races.

Feel the pain that reigns

From slums to Sugar Hill.

All searching from the same thing

A better way to exist.

Then become aware of the wretched lies

This country willfully rests upon.

This foundation of inadequacy

Male insecurity steadily dissipates

Under pressure of commonsense

Replacing mass ignorance,

Intelligence soon to reveal

Its deadly weapon

Drafting the constitution

Of revolution in red ink.

Comments from the Bat Cave

The Dark Knight-Batman/White Ninja/Zorro has mere months before he is officially a teenager. With emotions set on hair trigger, he is quick to anger. And, he is just as easily mollified. With decision-making so irrational, too often his response is to lash out without thinking. Like too many men, he prefers the swift and deadly sword to the tedium of dialogue and diplomacy. Peace is just a word; action is preferred, especially when the opposition is physically non-threatening. When told of an insult hurled at his sidekick – Boy Wonder, by a second grader, the Dark One/Ninja/Zorro declared, “I would’ve knocked his block off!”

Politics Y2K6

Mission Iran

Inside the Beltway, it is commonly assumed that it is only a matter of time before the US goes to war against Iran. Without opposition, the George W. Bush cabal has been working overtime to create conditions on the ground to warrant an attack. Tragically, it is assumed a principle ingredient will be a 9-11 event to garner US public support.

There is no credible intelligence that Iran has or has ever had a nuclear weapons development program or that it can produce nuclear weapons in the near future. Indications are Mission Iran plans involve the illegal transfer of nuclear technology to Turkey and the use of nuclear weapons.

In the final analysis, Mission Iran has nothing to do with nuclear anti-proliferation. Analysts cite other motives, including protecting the US dollar’s role as the world’s reserve currency. Iran plans to open an oil bourse in March and trade oil in euros. This is a direct petrodollar threat.

Should the US succeed in a war against Iran, it would effectively control the world’s second largest oil and gas reserves. In addition, with the areas already under US control, the sole superpower would control the world’s oil and gas production and reserves.

Just watch for a 9-11 event to trigger Mission Iran!

Bit of History

Daniel "Chappie" James, Jr. (1920-1978)

"This is my country and I believe in her. I'll protect her against all enemies, foreign and domestic."

Daniel James was born on February 11, 1920 in Pensacola, Florida. In June 1937, he graduated from Washington High School. From September 1937 to March 1942, he attended the Tuskegee Institute, where he received a bachelor of science degree in physical education and completed civilian pilot training under the government-sponsored Civilian Pilot Training Program.

James entered the Army Air Corps Aviation Cadet Program and received his commission as second lieutenant in July 1943. He trained pilots for the all-Black 99th Pursuit Squadron during WWII. Following the war, James served in Ohio. In September 1949, James went to the Philippines as a pilot in the 12th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 18th Fighter Wing, at Clark Field.

One of the renown Tuskegee airmen and fighter pilot during the Korean War, James flew more than 100 combat missions in F-51 and F-80 Shooting Star aircraft. He returned to the United States (1951) and stationed at Otis Air Force Base, Massachusetts, where he was assigned as an all-weather jet fighter pilot, and later as squadron commander. He rose to the rank of Major.

After graduation from the Air Command-Staff School (1957), James was assigned to staff duty in Washington, DC. Starting in 1960, James did tours of duty in England and Arizona, before going to Thailand (1966); he flew 78 combat missions into North Vietnam. Vice commander of the 33rd Tactical Fighter Wing, James led a flight in the Bolo MiG sweep, destroying seven Communist MiG-21s, the highest total kill of any mission during the Vietnam War. Promoted to Brigadier General, James returned from Vietnam to become an eloquent spokesman on US military and racial policies.

After serving as base commander at Wheelus Air Force Base in Libya (1969), where he stared down Muammar al-Qaddafi, leader of the coup that overthrew King Idris and declared Libya a republic, James received his first star. Two more stars followed his four-year tour at the Pentagon.

On March 31, 1970, James became Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs and advanced to Major General. In September 1974, with the rank of Lieutenant General, he became Vice Commander of the Military Airlift Command at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois.

On September 1, 1975, James became a four-star general, the first black to attain this rank. He was assigned as commander in chief of the North American Air Defense Command (NORAD) with full responsibility for the air defense of the United States and Canada. His last position was special assistant to the Air Force chief of staff.

Recipient of numerous military decorations, awards and honors, General James was widely known for his patriotic speeches. Forced to retire from active service on February 1, 1978 due to declining health, James died later that month on February 25 of a heart attack in Colorado Springs. (Source: , and )

Blah! Blah!

Above the Law!

Accidents happen; they are an inescapable fact of life. In the real world, accidents have consequences beyond press curiosity. Victims of these mishaps die or are seriously injured. Those behind the wheels of vehicles involved in auto accidents or that accidentally shot another must answer to law enforcement officials. Now, there are accidents; then there are unfortunate incidents involving elites.

Regular folks that accidentally violate the law are arrested and fined and/or imprisoned for the offense. For example, a minor accidentally shot and killed a stranger. A black boy, he was treated as an adult in the criminal justice system and sentenced to prison. In another incident, a child found his father’s gun and accidentally shot his sibling. He was arrested and sentenced to juvenile detention.

It is an egregious double standard to allow elites, like Vice President Dick Cheney, that preach “law and order” and advocate stiff prison sentences for the poor and other mere mortals, to escape prosecution when they violate the law. Cheney accidentally shot an acquaintance while on a hunting excursion. He may have been drinking, but law enforcement was not immediately notified, and no one considered subjecting Cheney to a Breathalyzer. Moreover, Cheney reportedly did not have a proper license to hunt quail, but he has not been charged or fined for any violation of law.

Double standards send a dangerous message. If the US is a nation of laws, Cheney should be held to the same laws as other men. If not, he is above the law! Blah!

Hood Notes

Lawless World: Flawed Case for War

Nearly three years after the “shock and awe” military campaign to oust Saddam Hussein, we are beginning to learn more about the pre-war machinations and manipulation of intelligence to convince the international community that war was the proper course of action. We now know the war dossier was not a “slam dunk,” and the decision to overthrow Hussein was made even before George W. Bush received his favorable Supreme Court ruling in Bush v. Gore (2000). In fact, the intelligence assessments that did not support the decision to go to war were largely ignored.

According to Paul R. Pillar, former CIA national intelligence officer for the Near East and South Asia (2000-2005), “The Bush administration used intelligence not to inform decision-making, but to justify a decision already made. It went to war without requesting – and evidently without being influenced by – any strategic-level intelligence assessments on any aspect of Iraq.” (“Intelligence, Policy, and the War in Iraq,” Foreign Affairs, March/April, 2006 )

Bush, Dick Cheney and other administration officials cited information in support of the case for war that was at odds with intelligence estimates. The most striking example is the alleged effort by Iraq to acquire uranium from Niger. Long before Bush included the assertion in his 2003 State of the Union Address, the intelligence community questioned its credibility and advised the White House not to use it publicly. Possibly to quiet dissent in the intelligence community, but certainly to punish a war critic, CIA operative Valerie Plame was outed. Her husband, former ambassador Joseph Wilson, debunked the idea that Iraq tried to buy uranium from Niger.

According to British author Phillipe Sands in his book Lawless World, Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair were determined to go to war. So determined in fact, they were willing to manufacture an incident to force the United Nations to pass a war resolution. Documents cited by Sands show Bush proposed painting a US spy plane in UN colors to tempt Hussein to fire at it in violation of UN resolutions. Whether Hussein made the fatal error or not, Bush had “penciled” in the start of the war for March 10, 2003 with or without a second UN resolution. Blair agreed and they launched the illegal assault as planned.

As Sands notes, there was no specific UN use of force authorization. Thus, in invading Iraq, Bush and Blair violated international law, which limits engagement in warfare to self-defense or a UN war declaration. The Iraq incursion was tantamount to toppling the pillars of international relations such as the UN Charter, Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Geneva Convention. By pursuing a flawed case for war, the United States and Great Britain rendered this a lawless world.

News You Use

Impeachment 101

The US debt limit of $8.184 trillion has been breached; the US is in technical default. On the heels of this disturbing revelation, the Bush administration submitted its $2.7 trillion fiscal 2007 budget to Congress. While it contains cuts in some programs, particularly those that affect the elderly and poor, it provides tax cuts for the wealthiest citizens and increases defense spending. On top of the over $8 trillion in debt, this budget, which is the biggest in the nation’s history and sports the biggest deficit ever, is fiscally irresponsible. Its existence is one more reason to rein in an out of control administration.

More than a dozen members of Congress have signed a resolution, sponsored by US Rep. John Conyers, calling for a probe into grounds for impeaching George Bush. Possible crimes and misdemeanors include misleading the nation into war in Iraq and authorizing torture in violation of the Geneva Conventions and US law. With revelations of warrantless wiretaps, more members of Congress are expected to be at least willing to investigate possible wrongdoing. Coupled with public dissatisfaction with Bush’s handing of the Iraqi conflict and the economy, more, particularly those seeking reelection, may be willing to do more than rollover and play dead as the lame duck and quail hunter destroy the country.

A number of Internet sites have petitions calling on members of Congress to pursue impeachment and removal from office of Bush and Dick Cheney. Even city councils and citizen groups have adopted bills of particulars calling for impeachment. Their resolutions cite illegal acts from the war in Iraq and pandering to illegal immigrants to no-bid contracts for Cheney’s former employer, Halliburton, which has been cited for defrauding the government.

As of Monday, February 13, 2006, more than a dozen such resolutions have been passed or proposed. For more on these resolutions, log on to

Disgruntled feels: Staged! A leading Russian MP Vladimir Zhirinovsky recently voiced an opinion shared by many observers -- the Muslim riots, supposedly over cartoons of the prophet, is a manufactured psychological operation. According to Zhirinovsky, the United States wanted to enlist hardened EU support for a military strike against Iran. Fake and misleading caricatures were bundled in with the less offensive cartoons printed in Danish newspapers. Muslims were misled into believing all the images appeared in newspapers. And, if Muslims are as easily duped as US citizens, staging such a psychological operation to enlist hardened EU support for an Iranian invasion will be as easy as taking candy from a baby. Fact is EU nations seem to be lining up for the coming clash of civilizations.

Disgruntled says: Unemployment is a low 4.7%. The economy is strong; more than four million jobs have been created in the last three years, interest rates are low, etc. This is the Bush administration mantra, repeated by talking heads. Yet, Paul Craig Roberts, former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan administration, in an article published at , sees a different economy. From January 2001 through January 2006, job growth was the weakest on record. It failed by seven million jobs match population growth. Across the board, the economy experienced a net job loss. “US manufacturing lost 2.9 million jobs, almost 17% of the manufacturing work force. Not a single manufacturing payroll classification created a single new job. The declines in some sectors have more in common with a country undergoing saturation bombing during war than with a super-economy that is the envy of the world." For those who continue to parrot the rosy economic mantra, Roberts’ essay should be required reading.

Disgruntled wants to know: Obvious window-dressing, the Senate Judiciary Committee called Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to testify on the Bush administration’s justification for bypassing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. Whether we call it terror surveillance of domestic eavesdropping, warrantless wiretaps violate the law. Why did the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee refuse to swear in Gonzales prior to his testimony?

Mailbox: E-Mails, Faxes and Telephone Calls

Email There is a cancer of corruption in the Republican Party. Tragically, the cancer has metastasized throughout the Bush administration and the Republican legislative majority. The cancer of corruption has spread from Bush's top contributor and Dick Cheney energy advisor Ken Lay to another Bush Ranger Jack Abramoff and the scores of GOP politicians in his pocket to accusations against top GOP Congressman Tom Delay and GOP Senator Bill Frist to confessed crook GOP Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham to the K Street Payola Project to the young Republican Turks who flooded into Iraq to staff the Coalition Provisional Authority and "misplaced" over 9 billion dollars. And, that is just the beginning of the gleeful lawlessness that characterizes this regime.

Email Most folks simply assume Karl Rove, Lewis ‘Scooter’ Libby and Dick Cheney outed CIA agent Valerie Plame as an act of revenge for Joe Wilson’s public criticism of the war in Iraq. The rabbit hole goes deeper; Plame’s undercover non-proliferation work focused on nuclear technology transfers to Turkey, a violation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NNPT). Those involved in the illegal transfers include officials in the Bush administration. Conveniently, Plame’s outing ended her investigation into official corruption.

Email Cheney ‘Authorized’ Libby to Leak Classified Information....By Murray Waas...Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff, I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby, testified to a federal grand jury that he had been “authorized” by Cheney and other White House “superiors” in the summer of 2003 to disclose classified information to journalists to defend the Bush administration’s use of prewar intelligence in making the case to go to war with Iraq.

Email The US Army released documents that reveal that the American troops have in at least two incidents kidnapped and jailed the wives of Iraqi suspects in order to “leverage” their husbands to surrender.

Email In December, Congress speedily passed special immigration legislation to benefit just one person: an ice dancer. As a Canadian, she could not join the 2006 US Olympics team. But a law was written that lasted exactly two days, long enough for her to be fast-tracked for citizenship and sent to compete for the US. Others must adhere to the rigid application process.

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