ACTION: Oppose Oregon House Bill 4110 imposing sanctions on Iran

AUPHR
Dan Handelman

Friends

Yesterday, the Oregon House Revenue Committee approved a bill that will be heard very soon by the full House, that calls for divestment from any company connected to Iran's oil industry. Ostensibly, this is to fall in line with already-imposed (draconian, mostly unilateral) sanctions imposed by the US against Iran. As with Iraq in 1990 (-2003), sanctions will hurt the people more than the government. This is actually part of the drum-beat to war that must be reversed.

The vote could take place as soon as Friday, so contact your legislator as soon as  you can; if you don't know who they are, here's a place to get information:
http://www.legislatorpro.com

Leah Bolger of Veterans for Peace in Corvallis-- who, I should add, is also now the President of the National Veterans for Peace-- wrote an excellent letter to her legislator which I include as a generic letter below for you to use to contact yours.

Here is the link to find out more information about the bill:
http://apps.leg.state.or.us/MeasureInfo/Measure/AtGlance?session=36&MeasureNumber=HB4110

This is pretty depressing after a nice turnout of about 300 people at Sunday's "No War on Iran!" demonstration.
--dan handelman
peace and justice works iraq affinity group

Dear Representative ______:

I am writing today in opposition to House Bill 4110.

The main opposition against the bill comes from an argument that has been made in support of it "...the impact of this bill would be to make sure that Oregon funds are not used to build a nuclear weapons program..." This statement implies that Iran is building nuclear weapons.  There is no evidence to that, and in fact the opposite is true.

In a memorandum written on behalf of Veterans for Peace, ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern wrote: "Defense Ministers Provide Context--Recent accusations that Iran is developing a nuclear weapon lack credibility. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and his counterpart, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak have both said (on Jan. 8 and Jan. 18 respectively) publicly that Iran is not.

"On Face the Nation, Panetta asked: 'Are they [the Iranians] trying to develop a nuclear weapon?' and immediately answered his own question: 'No.' Ehud Barak followed suit ten days later. He added that only if Iran expelled the U.N. inspectors would there be 'definite proof that time is running out' and that 'harsher sanctions or other action against Iran' might be in order."

But what we DO know for certain is that Israel has hundreds of nuclear weapons, is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and has never let International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors into their country.  Pakistan and India have not signed the NPT either, and they both have fully developed weapons.  For the U.S. to impose sanctions of any kind on Iran is provocative, hypocritical, and inhumane.
Those sanctions the U.S. has already put in place are already having a crippling effect. There is superinflation and it is hurting the average Iranian.

Though I do not even support the development of nuclear power (there is too much danger of a catastrophe like Chernobyl or Fukushima), I acknowledge that every country has the right to develop nuclear energy. There is no evidence to show that Iran is doing anything more than that. But even if they were developing a nuclear weapon, how can we say that they have no right to, when Israel has them, we have them, India and Pakistan have them...?  If our state government wants to pull Oregon money away from all countries who are developing nuclear energy and/or have nuclear weapons, then I am all for that.  But this bill adds fuel to the fire that Iran is our enemy, and is not a positive step.

I am also bothered by the final portion of the bill:  "SECTION 9. This 2012 Act being necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety, an emergency is declared to exist, and this 2012 Act takes effect on its passage."  This is just more alarmist language to make people think that the U.S. is in imminent danger at the hands of Iran, when actually the opposite is true.

I would like to see the Oregon legislature pass a bill that says that they do not support any military attack on the nation of Iran.  That would do a lot more to calm the rush to war that we are hearing from everywhere. Though its crafters believe this is a very narrowly written bill, its implications are very harmful. I hope you will not support this bill.

Thank you,

Webster Tarpley: Hillary Clinton’s “Enemies of Syria” Conference a Total Fiasco: Many No-Shows, No Russia, No China, No Presentable Syrians, Reviled by Arabs

New Video Showing Israeli Soldiers Abusing A Cuffed, Blindfolded Palestinian

IMEMC
Saed Bannoura

Snap Shot From The Video On Youtube

A new video showing Israeli soldiers abusing a cuffed and blindfolded Palestinian detainee was released after being shot by a hidden camera in Ni’lin village, near the central West Bank city of Ramallah.

The video shows a cuffed and blindfolded Palestinian youth who was kidnapped during the weekly nonviolent protest against the illegal Israeli Annexation Wall and Settlements. These protests are organized by the local residents, along with Israel and International peace activists.

The cuffed Palestinian is seen on the ground while the soldiers are just moving him around, dragging his feet sometimes, and placing him in a sitting position against a wall next to another blindfolded and cuffed Palestinian.

It also shows the one of the soldiers standing next to him with his foot raised close to the head of the youth, posing as if he is going to crush his head while filming the abuse using what seems to be his mobile phone.

There have been several incidents where soldiers filmed themselves abusing detained Palestinians at roadblocks, and in other areas in the occupied territories.

In many other incidents, soldiers were caught on tape abusing the Palestinians, similar to the case of Ashraf Abu Rahma who was kidnapped in 2008, during a nonviolent protest against the Wall in Bil’in village, near Ramallah, and one soldiers had him stand near the military jeep while another soldier shot him in the leg at a close range.

Several soldiers even posted on Facebook videos they took of themselves or fellow soldiers while abusing Palestinians in the occupied territories.

In 2010, Israeli soldier Eden Abergil posted pictures on her personal Facebook page posing in front of Palestinians detained, cuffed and blindfolded at a roadblock in the West Bank.

Towards the Creation of the US-Canada Police State. "Counterterrorism" and War on Drugs used to Justify Sweeping Reforms

Global Research
Dana Gabriel

In a move that went largely unnoticed, the U.S. government unveiled a new counter-narcotics strategy for the northern border which will work towards closer cooperation with Canada in the war on drugs. This includes both countries strengthening integrated cross-border intelligence sharing and law enforcement operations. Canada has also released a comprehensive counter-terrorism plan aimed at combating the threats of domestic and international violent extremism. The separate U.S.-Canada undertakings are both tied to the Beyond the Border deal and efforts to establish a North American security perimeter.

In January, the Obama administration announced the National Northern Border Counternarcotics Strategy. A press release by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) described how the plan seeks, “to reduce the two-way flow of illicit drugs between the United States and Canada by increasing coordination among Federal, state, local, and tribal enforcement authorities, enhancing intelligence sharing between counterdrug agencies, and strengthening ongoing counterdrug partnerships and initiatives with the Government of Canada and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).” Senator Charles Schumer proclaimed, “I pushed so hard for this strategy to be finalized because we have to immediately stop the flow of drugs from Canada into New York, and it’s going to take an inter-agency and international effort.” He added, “I’m pleased that this agreement lays the groundwork for Canadian and American law enforcement to work hand-in-glove to fight the drug trade.” Schumer has also endorsed the new cross-border action plan. In addition, he is pushing to establish a Northern Border Intelligence Center in Franklin County, NY to better coordinate efforts to fight drug smuggling and other cross-border criminal activities.

While commenting on the new plan to disrupt the flow of drugs over the U.S.-Canada border, ONDCP Deputy Director of State, Local and Tribal Affairs, Ben Tucker explained that, “By strengthening integrated cross-border law enforcement between our two countries, the Strategy supports a key area of cooperation outlined by President Obama and Prime Minister Harper in the Beyond the Border declaration.” In December of last year, the leaders issued the follow up Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness Action Plan. The deal focuses on addressing security threats early, facilitating trade, economic growth and jobs, integrating cross-border law enforcement, as well as improving infrastructure and cyber-security. As part of the agreement, both countries will, “create integrated teams in areas such as intelligence and criminal investigations, and an intelligence-led uniformed presence between ports of entry.” The U.S. and Canada continue to expand the nature and scope of joint law enforcement operations, along with intelligence collection and sharing.

The new northern border drug strategy also called for increasing judicial cooperation, improving information-sharing and extradition arrangements, as well as better coordinating cross-border undercover operations and investigations with Canada. It recommended working towards, “operational fusion with Canadian partners in interoperable communications, technology, and activities. The ability to integrate Canadian and U.S. technology, including sensors, videos, radio communications, and radar feeds, will permit automated sharing of timely information.” The document also argued that, "It is imperative that Canada and the United States work together to expedite the sharing of information from electronic communication service providers; and share information necessary to lay the foundation for intercepting internet and voice communications.” While various new measures are being put in place to thwart illegal drug, terrorist and other criminal activity, they could easily be used to target anyone else the government deems a threat.

Does the White House Only Love Good Journalism When It's Not About Them?

The Atlantic Wire
Dashiell Bennett

In a briefly interesting moment in an otherwise ho-hum press briefing, the Obama administration was called out on its double standard of praising journalists who take down other governments, while simultaneously stifling them here at home.

Press Secretary Jay Carney opened his daily briefing yesterday by saying a few words about the sacrifices of journalists who have given their lives covering the civil war in Syria. When it came time for his question, ABC News' Jake Tapper saw an opening to question the White House's own approach to protecting journalists, albeit in a much less dangerous context. Tapper asked, why, if the administration is so supportive of good journalism, they keep suing whistle blowers for violating the Espionage Act?

As you might expect, Carney's answer was not very instructive, but Tapper pressed the point again by asking, "So the truth should come out abroad; it shouldn’t come out here?" A good question that hits directly at the hypocrisy found in most governments — the idea that openness is always a good thing, except when it isn't. It's not just a question of good journalism either, when revolutionaries occupying Egyptian squares are praised and supported while college kids in California get pepper-sprayed in the face. It certainly feels like a double standard that benefits the U.S. government at the expense of everyone else.



No matter what Carney think of "aggressive journalism" it's a good bet that he's growing a little weary of seeing it come from Jake Tapper. Here's some of the phrases that seem to frequently appear in sentences featuring the name "Jake Tapper" and "Jay Carney"

* "Get Into It"

* "Grills"

* "Testy Exchange"

* "Vs."

* "Challenges"

* "Flummoxes"

Bill Maher donates $1M to Obama super PAC

Political Hotseat
Stephanie Condon

Comedian and HBO host Bill Maher on Thursday night announced he's donating $1 million to Priorities USA Action, the super PAC supporting President Obama.

Maher brought out a large check during a live performance of his show "StupidCrazyPolitics" in San Jose, California. The comedian tweeted that the donation was a surprise to Yahoo, which broadcast the standup performance.

There are no limits to the dollar amount donors can give to super PACs, and the rise of the third party groups has created a collection of well-heeled donors who are investing significant sums of money to influence the 2012 election. Maher isn't the only high-profile figure supporting the pro-Obama group -- Hollywood mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg, the fifth biggest super PAC player, gave $2 million to Priorities USA Action last May, and Steven Spielberg has also donated $100,00 to the group.

Still, Maher's donation is big news for Priorities USA Action -- the group raised only about $59,000 in January. Meanwhile, the pro-Mitt Romney super PAC Restore Our Future and the pro-Newt Gingrich group Winning Our Future raised a combined $17 million last month.
Meet the biggest donors of the 2012 campaign

Ambassador: US, Israel have ‘total cooperation’ on Iran

The Hill
Jeremy Herb

The U.S. ambassador to Israel said Thursday there is “total cooperation” between the United States and Israel on Iran, as he sought to downplay public divisions that have emerged in recent weeks between the two countries.

Speaking to the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations in Jerusalem, Ambassador Dan Shapiro said reports of distrust between Israel and the United States are “pure speculation, and much of it is wrong,” according to JTA.

“I cannot think of any issue on which we are better coordinated than on the issue of Iran,” Shapiro said.

U.S. and Israeli officials, however, have not presented such a unified front recently, in the lead-up to a meeting next month between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in an interview with CNN Sunday that an Israeli strike would have a “destabilizing” effect in the Middle East. 

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman then said in an Israeli television interview Wednesday that Israel’s decision to attack Iran is not the business of the United States or others.

Talk of a strike to prevent Iran’s nuclear program from developing a weapon has spiked in recent weeks, as Iran continues to show defiance in the face of sanctions. Iran said its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only, while the United States, Israel and their allies suspect Iran is trying to build a nuclear weapon.

The Washington Post reported recently that Defense Secretary Leon Panetta believes there’s a strong possibility that Israel will attack Iran in the spring, something Panetta did not deny.
Ahead of Obama and Netanyahu’s White House meeting, National Security Adviser Tom Donilon visited with Netanyahu and other top Israeli officials last week in Israel. Dempsey also made a trip to the country recently.

Both Obama and Netanyahu are scheduled to speak at the annual AIPAC conference the first weekend in March.

'SWIFT Boating' Iran: Economic War a Prelude to Military Attack

Global Research
Tom Burghardt

Despite, though likely because, Iran is ready to restart negotiations with the so-called P5+1 group (the five members of the UN Security Council plus Germany) over its civilian nuclear program, belligerent rhetoric and sharply-worded political attacks from Israel and the United States have escalated.

Indeed, as investigative journalist Robert Parry pointed out on the Consortium News web site, arch neocon Senator Joseph Lieberman "is leading a group of nearly one-third of the U.S. Senate urging that the red line on war with Iran be shifted from building a nuclear weapon to the vague notion of Iran having the 'capability' to build one."

"In other words," Parry warned, "the next preemptive war could be launched not against Iran for actually building a bomb or even trying to build a bomb but rather for simply having the skills that theoretically could be used sometime in the future to build a bomb. The 'red line' has been moved from some possible future development to arguably what already exists."

Last week Iran's top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili wrote European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, reiterating that the Islamic Republic's willingness to return to the negotiating table "is tied to the P5+1's constructive approach to Iran's initiatives," Press TV reported.

In that letter, Iran voiced their "readiness for dialogue on a spectrum of various issues which can provide ground for constructive and forward-looking cooperation," and that talks should be approached "on step-by-step principles and reciprocity."

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, flanked by Ashton at a Friday press conference that was pure Kabuki theater said "We think this is an important step, and we welcome the letter," The Washington Post reported.

"I'm cautious and I'm optimistic at the same time for this," Ashton told reporters after a gabfest with Clinton at the State Department.

"It also demonstrates the importance of the twin-track approach," Ashton told The New York Times, "referring to the international effort to intensify sanctions while leaving the door open for a diplomatic resolution of concerns about the possibility of Iran developing nuclear weapons."

In essence what Ashton is saying is: We have a gun pointed at your head and can pull the trigger at any time; better to capitulate now and give up your right to enrich uranium for your civilian program rather than run the risk of war.

Undeterred by implicit Western threats, Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi "has reiterated Tehran's determination to continue with its peaceful nuclear program, insisting on the nation's willingness to even deal with 'the worst-case scenario'," Press TV reported Sunday.

Speaking at a news conference Salehi asserted, "Since we believe that we are right, we do not have the slightest doubt in the pursuit of our nuclear program. Therefore, we plan to move ahead with vigor and confidence and we do not take much heed of [the West's] propaganda warfare. Even in the worse-case scenario, we remain prepared."

Two Wall Street Players Ensnared in New Probe

Pro-Publica
Jake Bernstein

More than three years after the financial crisis, Wall Street watchdogs are still uncovering questionable actions rooted in that time. The latest revelation involves one of the more creative packagers of securities who contributed to a trail of billions in soured deals, as well as a much-maligned rating agency.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority — an independent, non-governmental regulatory body — has recommended disciplinary action against two men for “alleged misrepresentations in connection with the sale” of a complex security.

The recommendation is preliminary. No civil or criminal charges have been filed.
The men, Alexander Rekeda and Timothy Day, are both affiliated with Guggenheim Capital, a privately held, financial services company that does everything from trading securities to providing investment advice. According to its web site, the firm, headquartered in New York, has 1,700 employees in 25 offices located in 10 countries, and it manages about $125 billion.

A lawyer for Rekeda could not be reached for comment. ProPublica has learned that he is no longer with Guggenheim. Day, who is still at Guggenheim, did not respond to a request for comment. We will update this post when they are reached.

FINRA has been investigating the men over the sale of a type of security known as a collateralized loan obligation, or CLO. The investigation touches on a CLO called Nine Grade Funding II, although it remains unclear if this CLO is the main focus of the probe. FINRA’s filing did not elaborate on the type or character of the “alleged misrepresentations” it said were involved in the sale of the CLO it is investigating.

In a story published Monday evening, the Wall Street Journal reported that Rekeda was under investigation by FINRA for an unnamed CLO. The Journal also reported that Rekeda is being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission for a collateralized debt obligation, or CDO, he helped construct while employed by the Japanese bank Mizuho.
As we detailed in our series the Wall Street Money Machine [1], Rekeda was involved in the creation of several CDOs with Magnetar, a hedge fund that helped put together more than $40 billion of the securities. Magnetar often lobbied for riskier assets to be put into the CDOs and then placed bets against many of the investments, reaping tremendous profits when the deals soured. (Magnetar has never been charged with any wrongdoing, and has always maintained that it did not have a strategy to bet against the housing market [2].)

The investigation into Rekeda is one of the few public signs [3] that regulators are considering charges against a top banking executive involved in a Magnetar deal.
Nine Grade Funding was a CLO comprised of other CLOs backed by corporate loans. It was issued at a time when few such securities were being sold. The CLO was featured prominently in allegations by a whistleblower, Eric Kolchinsky, against the rating agency Moody’s. Kolchinsky alleged that Moody’s allowed bonds to be added to the CLO in January 2009 and that it allowed the CLO to keep its previous rating. Moody’s took these actions, according to Kolchinsky, despite plans already in the works by the rating agency to downgrade all such securities. Moody’s denied the allegations. After Kolchinsky was forced out of the firm, he testified about the deal before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Iraq attacks kill 60, raise sectarian fears

Editor's Note:  Notice the generic label, "Al Qaeda"

Reuters

(Reuters) - Simultaneous early morning attacks on mostly Shi'ite targets across Iraq killed at least 60 people and wounded dozens on Thursday in one of the bloodiest days of violence since U.S. troops pulled out in mid-December.

The attacks that appeared to pitch al Qaeda-linked Sunni Muslim insurgents against Shi'ites raised fears of a return to the widespread sectarian carnage that tore Iraq apart and cost thousands of lives in 2006 and 2007.

The violence breaks weeks of relative calm as Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and Sunni leaders have sought to resolve a political crisis that threatened to unravel their power-sharing agreement following the U.S. withdrawal.

At least 32 people were killed in blasts in Baghdad where 10 explosions tore through mainly Shi'ite neighbourhoods during rush hour and other attacks targeted police patrols, commuters and crowds gathered in shopping areas.

"We were sitting at a restaurant having soup for breakfast when the bomb exploded. I lost consciousness and then saw smoke and dust when I came to. I saw people and body parts everywhere," police officer Ahmed Kadhim told Reuters.

Kadhim suffered shrapnel wounds to his left leg and back when a car bomb exploded near a restaurant killing six people and wounding 18 in Baghdad's northern Kadhimiya district.
The interior ministry blamed al Qaeda and affiliated armed groups for the attacks it said were an attempt to show that Iraq's security situation remained unstable.

The blasts hit just weeks before Baghdad plans to host an Arab League summit, which has been postponed because of regional turmoil and acrimony between Iraq's Shi'ite-led government and some Sunni Gulf states.

Holding a successful summit at the end of March would help Iraq restore its place in the Arab World since the U.S. withdrawal and help allay Sunni Gulf States worries over Iran's influence over Iraq's Shi'ite government.

"The attacks aimed to spark sectarian strife among the Iraqi people, and to prevent the Arab League meeting from being held," Parliament Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi said.

DOZENS OF BLASTS

More than a dozen blasts and attacks hit other cities across Iraq from Mosul in the north to Hilla, south of Baghdad, many of them targeting police.

The violence was aimed at Shi'ite neighbourhoods but also against security forces, a frequent target of Sunni insurgents. Iraqi officials had predicted such groups would try to stir sectarian tensions with attacks after American forces went home.

While violence has ebbed since the height of the war, Sunni insurgents affiliated to al Qaeda are still capable of large-scale assaults. Some rival Shi'ite militias have said they will cease fighting since the U.S. withdrawal.

Islamic State of Iraq, an umbrella group for al Qaeda-linked insurgents in Iraq, has claimed responsibility for recent large attacks on the capital, including a December 22 wave of bombings that killed at least 71 people.

In Thursday's violence, one car bomb in the capital killed at least nine people and wounded 27 in the upmarket Karrada neighbourhood, hurling shrapnel into the next street and blowing out glass from nearby buildings.

Witnesses saw at four wrecked cars full of shrapnel and bloodied seats near an ice-cream shop at the site of another blast.

In at least three Shi'ite neighbourhoods in Baghdad, nine policemen were killed, and in the capital's northwestern Kadhimiya district, a car bomb killed six people when it struck a street lined with restaurants.

In the biggest attack outside the capital, a car bomb killed seven people and wounded 33 in the town of Balad, north of Baghdad.

Iraq's political crisis erupted after Maliki moved against two senior members of the Sunni-backed Iraqiya political bloc shortly after the U.S. troop withdrawal in December, prompting a walkout by Iraqiya lawmakers that lasted until late January.

Tensions eased as Sunni, Shi'ite and Kurdish blocs tried to negotiate an end to the crisis. But a week ago a panel of judges detailed 150 attacks they said were carried out by death squads under Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi's command. Maliki sought Hashemi's arrest in December.

Hashemi, who has taken refuge in the autonomous region of Kurdistan, has denied accusations made against him, dismissing them as part of a plot to destroy Maliki's opponents.

The crisis was followed by a wave of attacks in December and January on Shi'ite neighbourhoods, including a suicide bombing on a Shi'ite funeral procession that killed 31 in Baghdad and an attack on Shi'ite pilgrims that left 53 dead in Basra.

Violence had ebbed until Sunday when a suicide car bomber killed 19 people in an attack on a Baghdad police academy.

(Writing by Yara Bayoumy and Francois Murphy; Editing by Patrick Markey and Giles Elgood)