James Landrith - Taking The Gloves Off

Neocon Exodus?

Dr. Ivan Eland, an anti-interventionist libertarian and Senior Fellow and Director of the Center on Peace & Liberty at the Independent Institute, on Tenet Now, Rummy and Wolfie Soon

The resignation of CIA Director George Tenet comes on the eve of a Senate committee’s release of a very critical report on intelligence gathering surrounding Iraq’s pre-war “weapons of mass destruction.” Tenet was a very political CIA director, who was eager to skew intelligence to the policy predilections of both Democratic and Republican administrations, and deserves to go. But Tenet’s failures, although great, pale in comparison to those at the high levels of the Pentagon.

Read the rest here.

Courting Disaster

Dr. Ivan Eland, an anti-interventionist libertarian and Senior Fellow and Director of the Center on Peace & Liberty at the Independent Institute, on Courting Disaster: Bush’s Real Strategy in Iraq

President Bush’s strategy in Iraq is now clear. And I don’t mean the five-point rehash of existing platitudes found in his recent “major” speech at the Army War College. I’m talking about the real, behind-the-scenes plan. In the battles for the Sunni town of Falluja and the Shiite cities south of Baghdad, the Bush administration has essentially capitulated—hoping to reduce, until the U.S. election is over, images of fighting, mayhem and U.S. blood streaming to the American public.

In Falluja, the U.S. military has withdrawn its forces, and the town is being run by anti-U.S. guerrillas and a former general from Saddam Hussein’s regime. Similarly, the United States has agreed to pull out most of its forces from towns in the south and allow the rebellious militias of Moktada al-Sadr to remain armed and intact. The U.S. military has also agreed to suspend its arrest warrant for al-Sadr (there is even talk of offering this “villain” or his supporters a place in the interim government, which will be instituted on June 30). This most recent Bush administration flip-flop is a far cry from earlier boasts to “kill or capture” al-Sadr and “destroy” his militia. In fact, in an implicit admission that a unified and democratic Iraq will never happen, the United States has elected to avoid the risk of disarming the many armies and militias all over the country.

Read the rest here.

Invitation to Loving Day party: this Sat, Jun 12

FYI, from EurasianNation.

----- Forwarded message from update@eurasiannation.com ----- Date: Mon, 7 Jun 2004 11:11:48 -0400 (EDT) From: update@eurasiannation.com Reply-To: update@eurasiannation.com Subject: Invitation to Loving Day party: this Sat, Jun 12

Did you know that marriage, sex and co-habitation between interracial couples only became legal in the US in 1967?

This Saturday, June 12, is the 37th anniversary of the Loving v. Virginia Supreme Court decision, and we’re going to celebrate this ground-breaking civil rights victory on both coasts. EurasianNation will be representing at the NYC party, so come out and join us!

If you’re not in Seattle or NYC, organize your own Loving Day celebration! Read on for more info and ideas.

Props to Ken Tanabe for this terrific initiative! Learn more about The Loving Day Project at http://www.lovingday.org/

Take care,

Carmen

----------------------------------
EAST COAST LOVING DAY PARTY: NYC
----------------------------------
From 6-9 pm, come party at the Remote Lounge with drinks, DJs, video, multimedia, and a room full of hand-picked fly people in the privacy of the ultra-wired party space downstairs. We’re celebrating the 37th anniversary of the legalization of interracial couples in America, and we’re doing it in style. Get down for a good cause as DJ Kesto and DJ’s Los Aggravators rock the old school and the eclectic soul. And when it’s over, you’re right in the East Village on a Saturday night. Come make history as we celebrate a holiday of our own invention.

Location: Remote Lounge
Time: 6-9pm
Address: 327 Bowery (at 2nd Street), New York, NY Directions:
by subway, take the F/V train to 2nd avenue.
Contact: info@lovingday.org or call 212.361.9756
For more information about the Remote Lounge, visit http://remotelounge.com/parties.php

P.S. - The after party will be at Mannahatta, which is across the street from the Remote Lounge at 316 Bowery. Cocktails and tapas -
http://www.mannahatta.us/

-------------------------------------
WEST COAST LOVING DAY PARTY: SEATTLE
-------------------------------------
A chill house party - come for food, drinks, multiple generations of interracial and mixed race people, and live music from Seattle's hottest young musicians.

Location: Song House
Time: 6-10pm
Address: 2418 East Roy Street (between 24th and 25th Avenue),
Seattle WA 98112
Directions: Capital Hill neighborhood, 3 blocks east from Holy Names Academy. Take 23rd Avenue and turn down the hill (east) on Roy Street. House is green with purple door.
Contact: e.song@nyu.edu

-------------------------------------
HAVE YOUR OWN LOVING DAY CELEBRATION
-------------------------------------
Loving Day is about remembering and celebrating your rights in any way you see fit. You can invite your friends over for a barbeque or a dinner party, make a toast, or spend some time with someone you love. The important thing is to make Loving Day your own, and to spread the word to others who might not
know about it yet. Loving Day is a great day for a party.

_________________________
Carmen Van Kerckhove
carmen@eurasiannation.com

Co-Founder of:
EurasianNation
The Fusion Series
Mixed Media Watch

Visit our site here:
http://www.eurasiannation.com/

Robot Stories

FYI, from Mavin Foundation.

----- Forwarded message from Matt Kelley ----- Date: Tue, 8 Jun 2004 08:54:23 -0700 From: Matt Kelley Reply-To: mavin@yahoogroups.com Subject: [mavin]

Interesting indy film by hapa filmmaker, Greg Pak in Seattle...

ACCLAIMED INDEPENDENT FILM "ROBOT STORIES" RETURNS TO SEATTLE WITH FILMMAKER GREG PAK IN ATTENDANCE

SEATTLE, WA -- ROBOT STORIES, the closing night feature from last year's Northwest Asian American Film Festival, is coming back to Seattle for a theatrical run at the Varsity Theatre in Seattle's University District from June 11 to June 17.

Writer/director GREG PAK will be in Seattle to introduce the evening shows on Friday June 11th and all the shows on Saturday June 12th. Support Asian American cinema by coming to see Greg's film, and get a chance to chat with the director himself!

Critics speak out about ROBOT STORIES:
> "Fairly close to perfect." -- Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle
> "Impeccably staged and acted." -- Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
> "A quietly impassioned, genuinely stirring indie rarity." -- Mark Holcomb, Village Voice
> "One of the most moving pieces I've seen all year." -- John Petrakis, Chicago Tribune

For more information about ROBOT STORIES, visit www.robotstories.net
For show times, visit www.landmarktheatres.com or call (206) 781-5755.

*** RECEPTION FOR FILMMAKER GREG PAK ON JUNE 12 ***

After the screenings on June 12, Northwest Asian American Film Festival and the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame invite you to a reception with guest of honor Greg Pak at the stylish District Lounge in the University Tower Hotel. Bring your ROBOT STORIES ticket stub to the reception for a complimentary beverage!

Reception details are as follows:
> Date and time: Saturday, June 12, 9pm to 1am
> Location: The District Lounge in the Best Western University Tower Hotel, 4507 Brooklyn Ave. NE, Seattle
> Admission is free. Reception guests must be 21 or over.

Matt Kelley
Founder/President

MAVIN Foundation
600 1st Av, Suite 600
Seattle, WA 98104
Ph: 206 622 7101
Fx: 206 622 2231
www.mavinfoundation.org
matt@mavinfoundation.org

MAVIN Foundation creates innovative projects that celebrate and advocate for mixed race people and families.

Invitation to Jun 20 Event "Parenting Mixed Race Children"

FYI, from the good folks at Anomaly, EurasianNation and Swirl:

----- Forwarded message from update@eurasiannation.com ----- Date: Fri, 4 Jun 2004 13:56:38 -0400 (EDT) From: update@eurasiannation.com Reply-To: update@eurasiannation.com Subject: Invitation to Jun 20 Event "Parenting Mixed Race Children"

If you’re in NYC, please join EurasianNation as we co-host a discussion panel entitled “Parenting Mixed Race Children” on Sunday, June 20, 2004 from 2-4 pm. The event is part of a discussion series called “Fusion: Ethnicity and Identity in a Changing Society.”

***Please RSVP at rsvp@fusionseries.com***

PARENTING MIXED RACE CHILDREN
There are nearly 166,000 multiracial children living in New York City. What are the issues that parents face in providing safe, happy homes that value inclusiveness? Parents, mixed individuals and interracial couples address the impact of family dynamics, schools, neighborhoods, and societal racism in
raising children that have a well-rounded sense of their mixed cultural heritages.

Admission: $5 adults; free for students and children under 18

Sunday, June 20, 2004
2-4 pm

Jasmine Gallery
873 Broadway, Suite 202
(corner of 18th Street)
New York, NY

To RSVP for the panel discussion, email rsvp@fusionseries.com.
For more information about this event or the Fusion Series,
email team@fusionseries.com or visit http://www.fusionseries.com.

***Please RSVP at rsvp@fusionseries.com***

The Fusion Series focuses on issues that are relevant to mixed adults, mixed
families, transracial adoptees, and interracial/cultural/faith couples. It
provides an open and honest forum in which different communities can come
together for meaningful dialogue and coalition building. To read transcripts,
view photos, and download fact sheets from our previous events, please visit
our Web site at http://www.fusionseries.com.

The series is spearheaded by the documentary film Anomaly, the online magazine
EurasianNation.com, and the community organization Swirl, Inc., which all
focus on giving voice to, and bringing together multiethnic and multicultural
communities.

Take care,

Carmen

Visit our site here:
http://www.eurasiannation.com/

Some Leathernecks Have Let Me Down

I was really hoping there would be no Marines implicated in this shit.

Devildogs, you can't do this kind of thing. Remember, we are better than this. It isn't about "they'd do the same thing to us!" Its about our own sense of honor, pride and adherence to the rule of law. We don't torture our prisoners of war. We. Just. Don't. We treat them according to our training, the Geneva Conventions and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Why? Because we come from a country that is supposed to boldly stand for justice and liberty, not the shameful imitation of dictators and Banana Republic thuggery.

Now then, these two Marines had the right, as they and every other Marine have been instructed in the past, to disobey an unlawful order. That may seem like an impossible task to a young PFC, so I partially sympathize with them on that part. The consequences would have been heavy and possibly career-ending, but they wouldn't be heading to jail for prisoner abuse right now. Further, they wouldn't be looking shamefully at themselves in the mirror ten years from now, asking "why didn't I refuse that order?" As hard as it would have been, they still had the right and the responsibility to say "not me." They carried out the unlawful order when they could have refused, unpleasant as that would have been. There is a price to be paid for such.

As far as the sentences for the two PFCs go, I am fine with that, so long as the officers, SNCOs and NCOs in their chain of command (assuming they knew of the abuses) get slapped down three times as hard. Don't stop with these two young Marines and let the old salts get away with giving the order for the abuses, looking the other way or doing the "wink-wink." The higher up the chain of the command this goes, the more severe of a penalty should be attached.

I don't want to to hear about these two PFCs going to jail while their supervisors simply get off with career-ending Fitness Reports. That would be completely unsat. My real anger and disgust is directed at those NCOs, SNCOs and officers who sanctioned this behavior. They should have never put these two young Marines in the position of having to carry out an unlawful order in the first place.

And it had better cost them more than their careers.

Semper Fi.

Sergeant James Landrith
United States Marine Corps
and Gulf War Veteran

Dr. No on Appointing "Representatives"

The Honorable Ron Paul on "H.J.Res. 83, which amends the United States Constitution to allow appointed persons to fill vacancies in the House of Representatives in the event of an emergency" in The House of Representatives Must Be Elected!

Mr. Speaker, there are those who say that the power of appointment is necessary in order to preserve checks and balances and thus prevent an abuse of executive power. Of course, I agree that it is very important to carefully guard our constitutional liberties in times of crisis, and that an over-centralization of power in the executive branch is one of the most serious dangers to that liberty. However, Mr. Speaker, during a time of crisis it is all the more important to have representatives accountable to the people making the laws. Otherwise, the citizenry has no check on the inevitable tendency of government to infringe on the people’s liberties at such a time. I would remind my colleagues that the only reason we are reexamining provisions of the PATRIOT Act is because of public concerns that this Act gives up too much liberty for a phantom security. Appointed officials would not be as responsive to public concerns.

As Rep Paul said later in his statement, "...it alters the Constitution to deny the people their right to elect their representatives at a time when having elected representation may be most crucial."

Call me crazy, but maybe that's the whole point.

Veterans for Common Sense News Update

Tens of Thousands Ask Bush to Honor the Legacy of World War II
Posted: 2004-05-31 11:36:00.000

The Bush orthodoxy is in shreds: FBI Questions Neo-Cons about Chalabi Treason Case
Posted: 2004-05-31 11:46:00.000

Marine General: Top Bush Aides Should Resign due to Iraq War Failures
Posted: 2004-05-31 12:50:00.000

Cheney Approved Multi-Billion No-Bid Iraq War Contract for Halliburton
Posted: 2004-05-31 12:55:00.000

Administration Relied on Iranian Spy as Source to Start Iraq War
Posted: 2004-05-31 13:45:00.000

Veterans for Common Sense News Update

The "Tuguba Report" - ARTICLE 15-6 INVESTIGATION OF THE 800th MP BRIGADE
Posted: 2004-05-06 19:38:00.000

**U.S. Casualties Soar: 767 Killed and 40,000 Medical Evacuations**
Posted: 2004-05-06 22:32:00.000

Sometimes They Pretended to Kill Me
Posted: 2004-05-08 17:29:00.000

More Disturbing News About Abu Ghraib
Posted: 2004-05-09 22:56:00.000

New Bill Introduced to Assist Iraq and Afghanistan War Veterans
Posted: 2004-05-12 21:52:00.000

Kerry Says Bush Broke Faith With Veterans
Posted: 2004-05-13 21:57:00.000

New Iraq War Policy: Bush Plans to Cut and Run
Posted: 2004-05-15 09:40:00.000

U.S. Holds 10,000 in Secret Prisons
Posted: 2004-05-15 09:49:00.000

Bush Knew of Rumsfeld's Torture Plans
Posted: 2004-05-16 13:37:00.000

As many as 22,000 Iraq, Afghan war veterans already seek care from VA system
Posted: 2004-05-16 19:13:00.000

U.S. Military Accused of Beating TV Reporting Staff
Posted: 2004-05-19 06:08:00.000

Secret White House Memos Advised Bush that His Torture Policy was a "War Crime"
Posted: 2004-05-19 06:12:00.000

Pentagon Stonewalls ACLU - VCS Request for Iraq War Torture Documents
Posted: 2004-05-21 22:05:00.000

The Wheels Fall Off: Iraq War Goes to Hell in a Hand Basket
Posted: 2004-05-22 11:17:00.000

Higgs on War Crimes

Robert Higgs, an anti-interventionist libertarian and Senior Fellow at the Independent Institute, on Has the U.S. Government Committed War Crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq?:

If today the U.S. government were to put itself on trial, on the same basis it employed to try the Nazis at Nuremberg, for actions taken in Afghanistan and Iraq in recent years, it might have to convict itself—if only for the sake of consistency. Justice is no respecter of person. Can anyone sincerely maintain that what was a crime for Hermann Goering and Alfred Jodl is not equally a crime for Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney?

Read the rest here.

VCS/EPIC Petition

The Education for Peace in Iraq Center and Veterans for Common Sense - two organizations founded by Gulf War veterans - have launched a joint petition inspired by the inhumane treatment of some of the prisoners of war in Iraq. As I've done in the past, I'll be serving as one of the media contacts for this campaign. So, get thee to signing this petition and spread the word so we can generate some decent media coverage.

That is all.

Thanks

Special thanks to Stephanie Lenz of Toasted Cheese for her mention of Taking The Gloves Off and A Mixed Blog in her May 15 column for Absolute Blank titled Begin The Blogging. Stephanie has a blog as well - so anyway... Thanks again.

Lost in Space

Dr. Ivan Eland, an anti-interventionist libertarian and Senior Fellow and Director of the Center on Peace & Liberty at the Independent Institute, on Mr. President, What Planet Are You On?

In “Spin City,” the nation’s capital, presidential administrations often believe their own propaganda. The Bush administration, however, has been especially self-delusional—particularly when it comes to the invasion and occupation of Iraq. Not since the Johnson and Nixon administrations during the Vietnam War and Watergate has an administration been in such denial about its policy course. Like a naïve fawn caught in the headlights, the Bush crowd seems paralyzed and condemned to the oncoming crash.

Legislative hawks such as John McCain (R-AZ) and John Murtha (D-PA), neither of whom may have the president’s best interests at heart, have advocated sending more troops into the quicksand of Mesopotamia. But even with an additional 300,000 troops, the U.S. would still be unable to pacify a country in which public opinion has largely turned its back on the occupation. The burgeoning prison torture scandal has driven the last nail into the coffin of a botched U.S. occupation. It is unlikely that the anti-U.S. feelings of the Iraqi population—instigated by more than a decade of grinding U.S.-led economic sanctions and an invasion—can now be reversed.

Read the rest here. This entry also posted at Stand Down.

More on "Support"

Sergeant Major Michael Gaddy writing for The Price of Liberty on It Depends On Your Definition of "Support The Troops":

The absolute worse phrase to come out of this mess is “ supporting the troops.” Bush and the Neocons want to be sure we all support the war. In order to insure that in their minds, they must insist that supporting the war is supporting the troops. They actually don't give a damn about the troops, as the letter included in this article will show.

Someday, perhaps before it is too late, Americans will realize that all the people who run the State are concerned with nothing but money. If it takes the blood of our children to grease the wheels of the military industrial complex so it and their cronies can prosper financially, then so be it.

In other words, War is a Racket. The following quote is from a letter sent to the Sergeant Major by a real Soldier, not the discredited propaganda pieces written by an Army officer that have been published nationwide or the pro-war letter where a Navy Corpsman (Sailor) forgets what branch he enlisted in by repeatedly calling himself a Soldier:

On my way out of Iraq (due to medevac) I talked to alot of friends in elements coming and going from a Logistical Support Area. Many had the same story. Soldiers dying from senseless lack of proper equipment. I know and you know who is to blame for this. I know you had probably heard about the shortage. But this puts a face on the loss. I can give you the names of the casualties that night if necessary. It was a bad bad night, played out all over the shithole that is the quagmire we call Iraq.

The Soldier who wrote the letter above is specifically talking about the shameful lack of protection gear issued to our men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan. Read the rest of his letter as part of Sergeant Major Gaddy's commentary here.

Answer this if you dare pro-war crowd: If you truly support the troops, why did we rush to war, only to send them in with mostly Vietnam era flack jackets (like I wore in Gulf War I)? Why do you (hawks, LINOs, neo-cons and "realists") continue to ignore this shameful story while shouting "Support the Troops" from the safety of your sofas?

Because ya'll don't really care. Its all about politics and high school-esque bravado. You don't really give a shit about the men and women dying for your cause. If you did, you'd be raising Hell about this and a hundred other equipment, pay, housing and medical challenges facing the men and women you sent to die in the desert.

UPDATE: Taking The Gloves Off is getting mad, crazy traffic from WHATREALLYHAPPENED.COM, Antiwar.com Blog, and UnFairWitness. Thanks guys - if you aren't already blogrolled, I'll add you today.

Independent Institute Answers Administration

From my libertarian friends at the Independent Institute:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Brigid O'Neil (510) 632-1366 Tuesday, May 25, 2004

STATEMENT OF INSTITUTE'S SENIOR FELLOW FOR FOREIGN POLICY ON PRESIDENT BUSH'S SPEECH

"Like a deer caught in the headlights, the Bush administration is paralyzed in the face of imminent danger."

OAKLAND, CALIF. - Ivan Eland, senior fellow for foreign policy at the Independent Institute and director of the Institute's Center for Peace and Liberty, issued the following statement today regarding President Bush's speech at the Army War College:

"George W. Bush's May 24th speech on Iraq at the Army War College was designed to show that the president has a definite plan for Iraq's future. But the lack of details provided about the imminent transfer of 'full sovereignty' to the Iraqis indicates quite the opposite and that the word 'full' should be changed to 'minimal.' The only new detail provided was the symbolic fluff of pledging to destroy the Abu Ghraib prison, which will do little to repair the monumental damage to the coalition war effort by U.S. torture perpetrated there. Like a deer caught in the headlights, the Bush administration is paralyzed in the face of imminent danger. In the face of growing Iraqi hostility toward the U.S. occupation and eroding popularity of the war and president at home, Bush's speech indicates that he will merely try to muddle through. On the ground, the Bush administration has given up the risky goal of disarming the numerous Iraqi militias and is now attempting to co-opt them in order to hold down U.S. casualties until the U.S. presidential election. In a unified Iraq, this strategy is recipe for eventual civil war. Instead the president needs a bold plan of genuine Iraqi self-determination--what would probably amount to a loose confederation of Iraqi ethnic/religious groups or even three or more independent states--and withdrawal of U.S. forces."

- 30 -

Its always nice to hear from real libertarians, instead of the LINO apologists who view any criticism of the current Administration or the war as some form of new treason.