Super Committee Going After Your Social Security? That Was the Point
Tuesday, November 1, 2011 at 04:56PM 
It was clear from the inception of the deficit reduction Super Committee that it was designed for the purpose of cutting entitlements, especially Social Security benefits. The Super Committee proposal was given the same protection from a filibuster as debate on a reconciliation bill, but the Super Committee proposal is not subject to the same Byrd Rule (PDF) that prevents the Senate from using reconciliation to fast track Social Security cuts. The procedural rules governing the Super Committee couldn’t have been more purposely designed to make cutting Social Security as easy as procedurally possible.
So the latest report confirming that the members of the Super Committee are actively trying to cut your Social Security benefits isn’t surprising. From Politico:
As a critical deadline for the supercommittee nears, Social Security appears to be on the negotiating table.
In private conversations, and now in public, the idea of changing the social program as part of a deficit-reduction deal is gaining some traction — a move that has been politically unthinkable for years.
[...]
This is on top of proposals inside the panel. Last week saw a slew of plans put forth by Democrats and Republicans on the supercommittee. Democrats unveiled a plan that would cut the deficit by roughly $3 trillion, which was declared not “serious” by Republicans because of $1.3 trillion in new tax-based revenue — their plan did include changes to Social Security. Republicans rolled out a $2.2 trillion plan, which generates $640 billion in nontax revenue. Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) have discussed a $1.2 trillion plan, and changes to Social Security alongside it could show they are reaching for a broader scope.
Rogue U.S. army unit leader saw Afghans as ‘savages’
Monday, October 31, 2011 at 09:55PM JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Washington — The ringleader of a rogue US army unit accused of killing Afghan civilians for sport treated the locals like “savages,” a court martial heard Monday.
The so-called “kill team” led by Staff Sergeant Calvin Gibbs was “out of control,” prosecutors added as grisly photos of soldiers posing with a corpse were shown in court.
Gibbs faces life in prison if convicted on charges including three counts of premeditated murder, in a scandal that has threatened Abu Ghraib-style embarrassment for the US military.
Gibbs, the fourth member of the rogue unit to face court martial, is accused of staging killings between January and May 2010 to make them look like legitimate combat casualties.
Jeremy Morlock, described as Gibbs’ “right hand man,” said his 26-year-old former boss had frequent conversations about “drop weapons,” or weapons found on the battlefield which could be planted on a body.
“He had a general disdain for Afghans, and called them savages,” Morlock — who agreed to testify against Gibbs as part of a deal in which he pled guilty in March — told the court martial, expected to last a week.
Morlock told how Gibbs took over the platoon, stationed in volatile Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan, in November 2009, after its previous leader suffered serious injuries in a roadside bomb attack.
Iran demands apology from US over Saudi ambassador 'assassination plot'
Monday, October 31, 2011 at 09:50PM 
Iran has raised the stakes in its row with the US over the alleged plot to kill the Saudi ambassador to Washington by demanding an official apology from the Obama administration over the claim that Tehran was responsible.
The Swiss embassy in Tehran, which hosts the US interests section in the Islamic republic, passed a letter from the Iranian government to US officials on Friday outlining Iran's formal complaint over accusations that military factions inside the regime were directly linked to the alleged plot.
"In a recent letter to the US government, Iran has insisted that American authorities must publicly apologise to the Iranian government and its citizens for the false accusations they publicised against Tehran in violation of international norms and regulations," Iran's state-run Press TV reported.
US officials claimed to have uncovered an Iranian plot to assassinate Adel al-Jubeir in a sting operation involving the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The US said Iran was attempting to hire a member of a Mexican drug cartel to carry out the killing but failed because the gang member was actually a US informant.
The Man Nobody Knew (CIA Documentary 2011) - Official Trailer [HD]
Monday, October 31, 2011 at 09:41PM Greece throws euro bailout into fresh crisis
Monday, October 31, 2011 at 09:39PM The Greek prime minister, George Papandreou, stunned Europe's leaders on Monday after he proposed that his country should hold a referendum on the landmark European debt deal reached last week.
A Greek vote against the deal could scupper weeks of negotiations over how to rescue the country's economy and prevent a debt crisis to match the Lehman Brothers crash of three years ago.
Stock markets, which have rallied in recent weeks after a sustainable deal looked more likely, reacted immediately to the news with a sell-off of shares. In New York, the Dow Jones index of leading companies fell sharply as Papandreou's plan was revealed. The euro fell 2% against the dollar and the US Volatility index – the so-called "index of fear" – climbed 22%, its biggest one-day rise since mid-August.
Papandreou gave no date or other details of the proposed referendum, though the interior minister, Haris Kastinidis, said it would most likely be in January.
Last week, under intense pressure from global leaders fearful of the repercussions of Europe's mounting debt crisis, eurozone members agreed to cut Athens's debts by 50% and provide €130bn (£112bn) in additional rescue loans to supplement a bailout fund put together with the International Monetary Fund last year.
100,000 Rally Against Pakistan's US Alliance
Monday, October 31, 2011 at 09:08PM A popular but largely powerless politician for years, former cricket star and Tehreek-e Insaf leader Imran Khan has parlayed his long-standing opposition to US drone strikes into a massive rally today on the streets of Lahore, where some 100,000 demonstrators marched to condemn the current US alliance and the Zardari government.
“Our leaders owned this war on terror for the sake of dollars,” Khan declared, “let me curse you. You sold out the blood of innocent people.” The ruling Pakistani Peoples Party (PPP) condemned Khan, saying it made “no sense” to call for public protests and civil disobedience when the country’s “democratic institutions are functioning independently.”
Khan’s call appears to have found some new currency with the Pakistani public, however, and that is something new for his party, whose platform centers around tackling corruption and reducing the power the nation’s security forces have over ordinary citizens.
Khan concedes that in many ways the rally is an effort to build up his party, saying that given the backroom deals and powerful dynasties inherent in the Pakistani political system the Tehreek-e Insaf was “never going to win the traditional way.”
But with US missiles falling on Pakistani soil on almost a daily basis, the Tehreek-e Insaf has a built-in issue that resonates across much of the nation, and while both the ruling Zardari government and the major opposition faction of Nawaz Sharif have given lip-service to calling for an end to US drone strikes, neither seems to be willing to force the issue with the Obama Administration, unsurprising since Pakistan’s current economic system depends largely on foreign aid.
Occupy protesters clash with police in Denver and Portland
Sunday, October 30, 2011 at 06:24PM 
Violent clashes between Occupy protesters and police broke out in Denver, Colorado, and Portland, Oregon, over the weekend.
Police arrested 20 people and fired pepper spray and pepper balls as they moved to tear down tents set up by Occupy Denver demonstrators on Saturday. Amid angry scenes, two protesters were held on felony charges after police said an officer was knocked off his motorcycle and other officers were kicked.
Two Controversies Threaten to Derail Obama’s Re-Election Bid
Sunday, October 30, 2011 at 06:16PM 
With the controversies over Solyndra and Fast and Furious showing no signs of going away anytime soon, President Obama faces an uphill battle of staying focused on winning re-election next November.
The White House announced Friday that it has ordered a review of the Energy Department’s loan guarantee program as multiple investigations swirl over Solyndra, the California-based solar company that went bankrupt after receiving a $528 million federal loan.
And at least eight Republican lawmakers are calling on Attorney General Eric Holder to resign over the botched federal gun-trafficking program known as Fast and Furious.
The developments come as Obama tries to convince voters that his top priority is turning the economy around and that he deserves a second term despite his low approval ratings.
Obama’s $447 jobs bill failed to advance in the Senate and now he is trying to get Congress to pass the package piece by piece. But the first piece, a $35 billion bill to help local governments keep teachers on the job and pay the salaries of police and firefighters, has stalled in the Senate.
Obama has begun bypassing Congress and taking steps on his own through executive actions that he says will encourage economic growth. On Friday, he directed government agencies to shorten the time it takes for federal research to turn into commercial products in the marketplace. The goal is to help startup companies and small businesses create jobs and expand their operations more quickly.
CIA Criminal Revolving Door: CIA Officer “Albert” Involved in False Intelligence Linking Al-Qaeda to Iran, Iraq
Saturday, October 29, 2011 at 01:00PM 
A recent book by former FBI agent Ali Soufan shows that the same CIA officer was involved in generating intelligence that falsely linked al-Qaeda to first Iran and then Iraq. The officer was also involved in a notorious torture episode and was reprimanded by the Agency’s inspector general.
The officer, who Soufan refers to as “Fred,” but whose real first name is “Albert” according to a February 2011 Associated Press article, served at the CIA station in Jordan in 1999. During that time, al-Qaeda, aided by a collection of freelance terrorists headed by Abu Zubaidah, attempted to commit a series of attacks in the country, known as the Millennium Plot. However, the attacks were foiled by the local Jordanian intelligence service, working with the CIA and FBI.
During the investigations of the plotters, Albert drafted a series of official cables that were later withdrawn. Although the withdrawing of the cables was first mentioned in a July 2006 article by Lawrence Wright for the New Yorker, Wright did not mention what was in the cables or by whom they were drafted. The content of one of them and the drafter were first revealed upon the publication of Soufan’s book in mid-September 2011.
According to Soufan, one of the twelve withdrawn cables falsely stated that the group of terrorists later arrested for the Millennium Plot in Jordan was linked to Iran. Albert’s reasoning for this was that the group had trained in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, an area of high activity by the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah. Therefore, the group in Jordan had to be working with Hezbollah and be backed by Iran.
Has America Become an Oligarchy?
Saturday, October 29, 2011 at 12:54PM 
SPIEGEL.DE
At first, the outraged members of the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York were mainly met with ridicule. They didn't seem to stand a chance and were judged incapable of going up against their adversaries, Wall Street's bankers and financial managers, either intellectually or in terms of economic knowledge.
"We are the 99 percent," is the continuing chant of the protestors, who are now in their seventh week of marching through the streets of Manhattan. And, surprisingly, they have hit upon the crux of America's problems with precisely this sentence. Indeed, they have given shape to a development in the country that has been growing more acute for decades, one that numerous academics and experts have tried to analyze elsewhere in lengthy books and essays. It's a development so profound and revolutionary that it has shaken the world's most powerful nation to its core.
Americans Drowning In Spin
Saturday, October 29, 2011 at 12:44PM PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS
I have come to the conclusion that Big Brother’s subjects in George Orwell’s 1984 are better informed than Americans.
Americans have no idea why they have been at war in the Middle East, Asia and Africa for a decade. They don’t realize that their liberties have been supplanted by a Gestapo Police State. Few understand that hard economic times are here to stay.
On October 27, 2011, the US government announced some routine economic statistics, and the president of the European Council announced a new approach to the Greek sovereign debt crisis. The result of these funny numbers and mere words sent the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to its largest monthly rally since 1974, erasing its 2011 yearly loss. The euro rose, putting the European currency again 40% above its initial parity with the US dollar when the euro was introduced.
On National Public Radio a half-wit analyst declared, emphatically, that the latest US government statistics proved that the recovery was in place and that there was no danger whatsoever of a double-dip recession. And half-brain economists predicted a better tomorrow.
Europe is happy because the European private banks, the creditors of the European governments, have agreed to eat 50% of Greece’s sovereign debt and to be recapitalized by public money handed to them by the European Financial Stability Facility rescue fund. The President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, thinks that Greece’s debt is the only sovereign debt to be written down and that the debt of Italy, Spain, and Portugal will somehow be bailed out through other means, including a Chinese contribution to the EFSF rescue fund.
West Sees Libya as Opportunity for Businesses
Saturday, October 29, 2011 at 12:37PM 
NY TIMES
The guns in Libya have barely quieted, and NATO’s military assistance to the rebellion that toppled Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi will not end officially until Monday. But a new invasion force is already plotting its own landing on the shores of Tripoli.
Western security, construction and infrastructure companies that see profit-making opportunities receding in Iraq and Afghanistan have turned their sights on Libya, now free of four decades of dictatorship. Entrepreneurs are abuzz about the business potential of a country with huge needs and the oil to pay for them, plus the competitive advantage of Libyan gratitude toward the United States and its NATO partners.
Syrian forces kill 40 as Arab League denounces attack
Saturday, October 29, 2011 at 12:30PM Syrian security forces opened fire on protesters following Friday afternoon prayers, killing at least 40 civilians, according to activists.
After what was one of the bloodiest days in seven months of protests, Arab ministers sent their strongest message yet calling for an end to civilian killings.
The Arab League's committee on the Syrian crisis said it had sent an "urgent message ... to the Syrian government expressing its severe discontent for the continued killing of Syrian civilians".
The committee said in a statement it had "expressed the hope that the Syrian government would take action to protect civilians".
Forces acting for President Bashar al-Assad were reported to have chased protesters and conducted house-to-house raids following the end of prayers in the central cities of Hama and Homs, which have seen an emerging armed insurgency.
One activist, Mustafa Osso, told the Associated Press that Syrian forces opened fire on as many as 2,000 people who had gathered to protest. "There was a very fierce reaction to the protests in Homs. There are many injured as well. Hospitals are having a hard time coping with the casualties," he said.
The USAF has been secretly flying Reaper drones on counterterrorism missions from a remote civilian airport in southern Ethiopia
Friday, October 28, 2011 at 01:59PM 
The Air Force has been secretly flying Reaper drones on counterterrorism missions from a remote civilian airport in southern Ethiopia as part of a rapidly expanding U.S.-led proxy war against an al-Qaeda affiliate in East Africa, U.S. military officials said.
The Air Force has invested millions of dollars to upgrade an airfield in Arba Minch, Ethiopia, where it has built a small annex to house a fleet of drones that can be equipped with Hellfire missiles and satellite-guided bombs. The Reapers began flying missions earlier this year over neighboring Somalia, where the United States and its allies in the region have been targeting al-Shabab, a militant Islamist group connected to al-Qaeda.
On Friday, the Pentagon said the drones are unarmed and have been used only for surveillance and collecting intelligence, though it would not rule out the possibility that they would be used to launch lethal strikes in the future.
Mindful of the 1993 “Black Hawk Down” debacle in which two U.S. military helicopters were shot down in the Somali capital of Mogadishu and 18 Americans killed, the Obama administration has sought to avoid deploying troops to the country.
As a result, the United States has relied on lethal drone attacks, a burgeoning CIA presence in Mogadishu and small-scale missions carried out by U.S. Special Forces. In addition, the United States has increased its funding for and training of African peacekeeping forces in Somalia that fight al-Shabab.
