Junkies of War

By Uri Avnery
August 6th, 2006

– FOR ME it was a moment of shocking revelation.

I was listening to one of the daily speeches of our Prime Minister. He said: “We are a wonderful people!” He said: We have already won this war, it is the greatest victory in the history of our state. He said: We have changed the face of the Middle East. And more to that effect.

Well, I told myself, that’s Olmert.

I have known him since he was 20-something. At that time, I was a member of the Knesset, and Olmert was the book-carrier (literally) of another member. Since then I have followed his career. He has never been anything but a party functionary, a small-time politician specializing in manipulations, a run-of-the-mill demagogue. On the way changed parties several times and served as a mayor with a grade of D minus, until he climbed on the bandwagon of Ariel Sharon. More or less by accident he was given the empty title of “Deputy Prime Minister”, and when Sharon suffered his stroke, something happened that took Olmert too by surprise: he became Prime Minister.

Throughout his career he has remained a complete cynic, basically a right-winger but willing to pretend to be a liberal when faced with leftists.

So, I told myself, this is just another cynical speech. But suddenly a ghastly thought struck me: No, the man believes what he is saying! (more…)

Morale Collapsing for Many Military Families

By Jeff Davis
August 6th, 2006

A Zogby poll taken in February reports that 72 percent of US troops in Iraq think the occupation should end in 2006. 51 percent of US troops in that poll think the occupation should end in six months or less. These soldiers are on the ground in Iraq and they are seeing first hand how the occupation is going. They aren’t in some air-conditioned think tank in suburban America with Israeli flags on the wall, cheering on Rumsfeld and Cheney.

Our volunteer military joined to defend the United States, not the interests of Israel and Halliburton. There are some truly soulless people in America today, who don’t care one bit about these soldiers. Many of these people parrot the words “Well, those soldiers deserve to keep getting sent to Iraq, they volunteered, didn’t they?” (By the way, every time a neocon says those words, a devil gets his horns.) Most of these amoral Americans never served in the military. They are confusing the US military with a pack of mercenaries. Mercenaries should expect to be sent to fight for private corporations for evil purposes and deserve whatever happens to them. American soldiers deserve better.

(more…)

Indigenous Population Soon to be a Minority in London

By BNP news team
August 6rd, 2006

The latest figures from the Office of National Statistics show that London now plays home to more than 2.5 million from ethnic minorities.

The results of the Annual Population Survey, which is based on returns from 65,000 homes is seen as more reliable than the national census conducted every ten years.

The ONS survey says non-whites made up 33.5 per cent of the population of London last year, compared with just under 29 per cent four years earlier.

In inner London, the proportion rises to 39.4 per cent, almost four in ten. Those counted as non-white include black Caribbeans and Africans, Asians, Chinese, and a series of categories ranked by statisticians as ‘black other’. (…Full Article)

The Dirty Work Of Zionism is Unfinished

By Curt Maynard
August 5th, 2006

Setting precedent could loosely be defined as establishing a pattern. In today’s world when we turn on the television we are constantly and consistently bombarded by pro-Israeli propaganda, there is no two ways about it, it’s a fact, manifestly evident to anyone with the capacity to think. On the one hand we are currently being subjected to a smear campaign against Mel Gibson, who allegedly made some so called “anti-Semitic” comments about the Jews being behind all the wars in the world today, and on the other we are being told that no matter how many Lebanese children die, it’s all Hizballah’s fault and/or the fault of their so called sponsors, Syria and Iran. There is one consistency in all this, a common denominator that never changes, the Israeli’s and Jews in general are always faultless, they are inevitably the victims of others, never the perpetrators, and anyone that questions this special status is a no good anti-Semite and/or, a terrorist. (more…)

The Yoke of Zion

By Israel Shamir
August 6th, 2006

A small band of determined warriors takes on and fights off the mightiest army of the region: this is the stuff history is made of. Thermopylae, move over, Bint Jbeil is coming in! Bishop Philip of Antioch compared the levelling of this small Lebanese town with the destruction of Stalingrad, but these cities are also comparable by courage of their defenders. Seldom is a generation able to witness such a shining example of valour: for three long weeks a handful of Hezbollah warriors – two thousand by the most optimistic count – fought to standstill ten, twenty, thirty times more numerous Israeli troops. Forty years ago, Israelis defeated three armies in one week, but now the invader’s charm has worn off, or it has passed over to the vanquished. In today’s somewhat feminine victim-centred narrative, suffering attracts more attention than masculine gallantry. Thus Qana massacre has overshadowed a greater going-on, and that is the steadfast resistance of the Lebanese fighters. (…Full Article)

Israeli Tank Losses Could Foil Occupation

By James Buchanan
August 6th, 2006

An Associated Press article reports “Hezbollah’s sophisticated anti-tank missiles are perhaps the guerrilla group’s deadliest weapon in Lebanon fighting, with their ability to pierce Israel’s most advanced tanks. Experts say this is further evidence that Israel is facing a well-equipped army in this war, not a ragtag militia. Hezbollah has fired Russian-made Metis-M anti-tank missiles and owns European-made Milan missiles, the army confirmed on Friday. In the last two days alone, these missiles have killed seven soldiers and damaged three Israeli-made Merkava tanks — mountains of steel that are vaunted as symbols of Israel’s military might, the army said. Israeli media say most of the 44 soldiers killed in four weeks of fighting were hit by anti-tank missiles. ‘They (Hezbollah guerrillas) have some of the most advanced anti-tank missiles in the world,’ said Yossi Kuperwasser, a senior military intelligence officer who retired earlier this summer. ‘This is not a militia, it’s an infantry brigade with all the support units,’ Kuperwasser said.”

(more…)