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unhappycamper
unhappycamper's Journal
unhappycamper's Journal
September 23, 2013
Add It Up: The Average American Family Pays $6,000 a Year in Subsidies to Big Business
by Paul Buchheit
Published on Monday, September 23, 2013 by Common Dreams
That's over and above our payments to the big companies for energy and food and housing and health care and all our tech devices. It's $6,000 that no family would have to pay if we truly lived in a competitive but well-regulated free-market economy.
The $6,000 figure is an average, which means that low-income families are paying less. But it also means that families (households) making over $72,000 are paying more than $6,000 to the corporations.
~snip~
Overall, American families are paying an annual $6,000 subsidy to corporations that have doubled their profits and cut their taxes in half in ten years while cutting 2.9 million jobs in the U.S. and adding almost as many jobs overseas.
This is more than an insult. It's a devastating attack on the livelihoods of tens of millions of American families. And Congress just lets it happen.
Add It Up: The Average American Family Pays $6,000 a Year in Subsidies to Big Business
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/09/23Add It Up: The Average American Family Pays $6,000 a Year in Subsidies to Big Business
by Paul Buchheit
Published on Monday, September 23, 2013 by Common Dreams
That's over and above our payments to the big companies for energy and food and housing and health care and all our tech devices. It's $6,000 that no family would have to pay if we truly lived in a competitive but well-regulated free-market economy.
The $6,000 figure is an average, which means that low-income families are paying less. But it also means that families (households) making over $72,000 are paying more than $6,000 to the corporations.
~snip~
Overall, American families are paying an annual $6,000 subsidy to corporations that have doubled their profits and cut their taxes in half in ten years while cutting 2.9 million jobs in the U.S. and adding almost as many jobs overseas.
This is more than an insult. It's a devastating attack on the livelihoods of tens of millions of American families. And Congress just lets it happen.
September 23, 2013
Graffiti in Athens: The Greek government is expected to have a budget shortfall of €11 billion over the next two years.
Little Left to Cut: Lower Interest Rates Won't Help Greece
An Analysis by David Böcking
September 19, 2013 – 04:53 PM
Compared with the Social Democratic Party's chancellor candidate Peer Steinbrück, the conservatives have sailed through the election campaign with relatively few problems. The closest the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) came to a real snafu was when Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble admitted in August for the first time that Greece would require further financial aid.
The admission immediately gave rise to the question of where this money is supposed to come from given that the German government has already categorically rejected the possibility of another debt haircut for Athens. The governor of the state of Hesse, Volker Bouffier, likewise a member of the CDU, offered an answer shortly after Schäuble's appearance, suggesting that the maturity on loans to Greece could be extended and interest rates lowered.
At first glance, reducing interest rates appears to be a reasonable idea. The Greeks would be given more time and room to maneuver and donor countries like Germany wouldn't lose any of the money they lent to Athens. But if you take a closer look, it's not such a great deal. A lowering of interest rates wouldn't have a major influence on Greece and it could also prove costly for creditors, just as a haircut would be. The problem is that interest rates are already so low that only certain elements could be reduced at all.
At best, a reduction of interest rates could save Greece a few hundred million euros a year -- far too little to cover the country's anticipated budget shortfalls. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is estimating a total of €11 billion in financing shortfalls during the next two years.
Little Left to Cut: Lower Interest Rates Won't Help Greece
http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/an-interest-rate-cut-will-do-little-to-solve-greek-budget-trouble-a-923281.htmlGraffiti in Athens: The Greek government is expected to have a budget shortfall of €11 billion over the next two years.
Little Left to Cut: Lower Interest Rates Won't Help Greece
An Analysis by David Böcking
September 19, 2013 – 04:53 PM
Compared with the Social Democratic Party's chancellor candidate Peer Steinbrück, the conservatives have sailed through the election campaign with relatively few problems. The closest the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) came to a real snafu was when Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble admitted in August for the first time that Greece would require further financial aid.
The admission immediately gave rise to the question of where this money is supposed to come from given that the German government has already categorically rejected the possibility of another debt haircut for Athens. The governor of the state of Hesse, Volker Bouffier, likewise a member of the CDU, offered an answer shortly after Schäuble's appearance, suggesting that the maturity on loans to Greece could be extended and interest rates lowered.
At first glance, reducing interest rates appears to be a reasonable idea. The Greeks would be given more time and room to maneuver and donor countries like Germany wouldn't lose any of the money they lent to Athens. But if you take a closer look, it's not such a great deal. A lowering of interest rates wouldn't have a major influence on Greece and it could also prove costly for creditors, just as a haircut would be. The problem is that interest rates are already so low that only certain elements could be reduced at all.
At best, a reduction of interest rates could save Greece a few hundred million euros a year -- far too little to cover the country's anticipated budget shortfalls. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is estimating a total of €11 billion in financing shortfalls during the next two years.
September 23, 2013
Syria and the Global Hegemony of the US
Argenpress, Argentina
By Marco A. Gandásegui
Translated By Olivia Szymanski
12 September 2013
Edited by Brent Landon
To understand what U.S. interests are in Syria at this present juncture, it is important to first put the relations in place between Latin America, particularly Panama, and the U.S. The rhetoric that President Barack Obama’s administration is using to “soften” Syria’s defenses on the international stage is the same that the U.S. used in its relations with Latin America. In Guatemala, the U.S. eliminated President Arbenz’s democratic government in 1954.
A decade later, the U.S. invaded the Dominican Republic in order to overthrow the democratically elected president Juan Bosch. Another 10 years passed by and again in 1973 the U.S. intervened in Chile to bathe President Allende’s democratic government’s experiment in blood. In the 1980s, the U.S. turned Central America into a battlefield. In 1989, the U.S. military invaded Panama, bombing urban communities with terrorist-like effects. In 1995, the U.S. invaded Haiti and exiled the democratically elected President Aristide. In 2002, the U.S. led a failed attempt to overthrow the democratically elected president Hugo Chavez. All of these experiences have a common underlying factor: lies. For 70 years, the U.S. has had the military power to stand before any adversary.
For more than 10 years, it has built a castle of lies around the reality of the Arab people in order to demonize them. The invasion and destruction of Afghanistan (a non-Arab country) that was unleashed in 2001 was preceded by a campaign that transformed the Taliban (students of the Quran) into terrorists. A little while later, the U.S. invaded Iraq in order to occupy its oil fields. In 2011, the U.S. invaded Libya and assassinated its leader, Gadhafi. In the case of the countries of the Middle East, the U.S. invasion created a context for redefining of the balance of power on a global scale. Washington is aware of the problems posed by the space left by the Soviet Union, China’s emergence and the decline of Europe for its global strategy. It also has to come face to face with the consolidation of Iran, the region’s permanent instability caused by Israeli politics and the weakening of America’s closest allies, such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
Ten years ago, the “New American Century” project began, which consisted of converting the U.S. into the only hegemonic power of the 21st century. To make this a reality, it contemplated holding China back and subordinating the oil-rich region of the Middle East. The new rhetoric served to present the Islamic people to the world as the enemies of the 21st century. The military objective is to destabilize the countries of the Arab region and reconstruct them according to their own vision of the world. This change on the geopolitical board would allow it to corner China, since it has become a country that is dependent on its energy imports (oil). Building off the campaigns based on lies, repeated over and over again, the U.S. managed to put doubt into the minds of the majority of people regarding the intentions of the White House. In the case of Syria, Washington’s spokespersons argue that the bombing and destruction of Syria is inevitable (the same for Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya) in order to punish the Syrian government for using chemical weapons. According to President Assad, “We have challenged them to present a shred of legitimate evidence, which they have not been able to do …. We have challenged them to present legitimate evidence to their own public opinion to substantiate their claims.”
Syria and the Global Hegemony of the US
http://watchingamerica.com/News/221223/syria-and-the-global-hegemony-of-the-us/Syria and the Global Hegemony of the US
Argenpress, Argentina
By Marco A. Gandásegui
Translated By Olivia Szymanski
12 September 2013
Edited by Brent Landon
To understand what U.S. interests are in Syria at this present juncture, it is important to first put the relations in place between Latin America, particularly Panama, and the U.S. The rhetoric that President Barack Obama’s administration is using to “soften” Syria’s defenses on the international stage is the same that the U.S. used in its relations with Latin America. In Guatemala, the U.S. eliminated President Arbenz’s democratic government in 1954.
A decade later, the U.S. invaded the Dominican Republic in order to overthrow the democratically elected president Juan Bosch. Another 10 years passed by and again in 1973 the U.S. intervened in Chile to bathe President Allende’s democratic government’s experiment in blood. In the 1980s, the U.S. turned Central America into a battlefield. In 1989, the U.S. military invaded Panama, bombing urban communities with terrorist-like effects. In 1995, the U.S. invaded Haiti and exiled the democratically elected President Aristide. In 2002, the U.S. led a failed attempt to overthrow the democratically elected president Hugo Chavez. All of these experiences have a common underlying factor: lies. For 70 years, the U.S. has had the military power to stand before any adversary.
For more than 10 years, it has built a castle of lies around the reality of the Arab people in order to demonize them. The invasion and destruction of Afghanistan (a non-Arab country) that was unleashed in 2001 was preceded by a campaign that transformed the Taliban (students of the Quran) into terrorists. A little while later, the U.S. invaded Iraq in order to occupy its oil fields. In 2011, the U.S. invaded Libya and assassinated its leader, Gadhafi. In the case of the countries of the Middle East, the U.S. invasion created a context for redefining of the balance of power on a global scale. Washington is aware of the problems posed by the space left by the Soviet Union, China’s emergence and the decline of Europe for its global strategy. It also has to come face to face with the consolidation of Iran, the region’s permanent instability caused by Israeli politics and the weakening of America’s closest allies, such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
Ten years ago, the “New American Century” project began, which consisted of converting the U.S. into the only hegemonic power of the 21st century. To make this a reality, it contemplated holding China back and subordinating the oil-rich region of the Middle East. The new rhetoric served to present the Islamic people to the world as the enemies of the 21st century. The military objective is to destabilize the countries of the Arab region and reconstruct them according to their own vision of the world. This change on the geopolitical board would allow it to corner China, since it has become a country that is dependent on its energy imports (oil). Building off the campaigns based on lies, repeated over and over again, the U.S. managed to put doubt into the minds of the majority of people regarding the intentions of the White House. In the case of Syria, Washington’s spokespersons argue that the bombing and destruction of Syria is inevitable (the same for Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya) in order to punish the Syrian government for using chemical weapons. According to President Assad, “We have challenged them to present a shred of legitimate evidence, which they have not been able to do …. We have challenged them to present legitimate evidence to their own public opinion to substantiate their claims.”
September 23, 2013
Orwell’s ‘Big Brother’ Was less Intrusive than our own Feds & We OK’d That (Calabrese and Harwood)
Posted on 09/23/2013 by Juan Cole
For at least the last six years, government agents have been exploiting an AT&T database filled with the records of billions of American phone calls from as far back as 1987. The rationale behind this dragnet intrusion, codenamed Hemisphere, is to find suspicious links between people with “burner” phones (prepaid mobile phones easy to buy, use, and quickly dispose of), which are popular with drug dealers. The secret information gleaned from this relationship with the telecommunications giant has been used to convict Americans of various crimes, all without the defendants or the courts having any idea how the feds stumbled upon them in the first place. The program is so secret, so powerful, and so alarming that agents “are instructed to never refer to Hemisphere in any official document,” according to a recently released government PowerPoint slide.
You’re probably assuming that we’re talking about another blanket National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance program focused on the communications of innocent Americans, as revealed by the whistleblower Edward Snowden. We could be, but we’re not. We’re talking about a program of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a domestic law enforcement agency.
While in these last months the NSA has cast a long, dark shadow over American privacy, don’t for a second imagine that it’s the only government agency systematically and often secretly intruding on our lives. In fact, a remarkable traffic jam of local, state, and federal government authorities turn out to be exploiting technology to wriggle into the most intimate crevices of our lives, take notes, use them for their own purposes, or simply file them away for years on end.
“Technology in this world is moving faster than government or law can keep up,” the CIA’s Chief Technology Officer Gus Hunt told a tech conference in March. “It’s moving faster I would argue than you can keep up: You should be asking the question of what are your rights and who owns your data.”
Orwell’s ‘Big Brother’ Was less Intrusive than our own Feds & We OK’d That (Calabrese and Harwood)
http://www.juancole.com/2013/09/orwells-intrusive-calabrese.htmlOrwell’s ‘Big Brother’ Was less Intrusive than our own Feds & We OK’d That (Calabrese and Harwood)
Posted on 09/23/2013 by Juan Cole
For at least the last six years, government agents have been exploiting an AT&T database filled with the records of billions of American phone calls from as far back as 1987. The rationale behind this dragnet intrusion, codenamed Hemisphere, is to find suspicious links between people with “burner” phones (prepaid mobile phones easy to buy, use, and quickly dispose of), which are popular with drug dealers. The secret information gleaned from this relationship with the telecommunications giant has been used to convict Americans of various crimes, all without the defendants or the courts having any idea how the feds stumbled upon them in the first place. The program is so secret, so powerful, and so alarming that agents “are instructed to never refer to Hemisphere in any official document,” according to a recently released government PowerPoint slide.
You’re probably assuming that we’re talking about another blanket National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance program focused on the communications of innocent Americans, as revealed by the whistleblower Edward Snowden. We could be, but we’re not. We’re talking about a program of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a domestic law enforcement agency.
While in these last months the NSA has cast a long, dark shadow over American privacy, don’t for a second imagine that it’s the only government agency systematically and often secretly intruding on our lives. In fact, a remarkable traffic jam of local, state, and federal government authorities turn out to be exploiting technology to wriggle into the most intimate crevices of our lives, take notes, use them for their own purposes, or simply file them away for years on end.
“Technology in this world is moving faster than government or law can keep up,” the CIA’s Chief Technology Officer Gus Hunt told a tech conference in March. “It’s moving faster I would argue than you can keep up: You should be asking the question of what are your rights and who owns your data.”
September 21, 2013
UPDATE 1-Pentagon test-fires two SM-3 missiles on one target
hu Sep 19, 2013 5:04pm EDT
By Andrea Shalal-Esa
(Reuters) - The U.S. military conducted the second test of the ship-based Aegis missile defense system in a week, firing two SM-3 missiles on Wednesday to intercept a separating target in space, the U.S. Defense Department said.
The Standard Missile-3, built by Raytheon Co, was the highest-ever intercept in space, meaning that a larger area can be defended, the company said on Thursday.
"You want to engage the enemy at the farthest point away from you that you can," said Mitch Stevison, Raytheon's SM-3 program director. Another SM-3 test involving an even more sophisticated target will take place soon, he said, without giving further details.
~SNIP~
She said the first test involved the SM-3 Block IA missile that is currently deployed, while Wednesday's test used the company's next-generation SM-3 Block IB missile. Company officials said the next test would pave the way for full-rate production of the new missiles.
unhappycamper comment: Since wikipedia notoriously under reports military hardware costs the $25 mill is just a starting point for what these things really cost.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SM-3
UPDATE 1-Pentagon test-fires two ($25+ million) SM-3 missiles on one target
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/19/usa-military-missile-defense-idUSL2N0HF1LP20130919UPDATE 1-Pentagon test-fires two SM-3 missiles on one target
hu Sep 19, 2013 5:04pm EDT
By Andrea Shalal-Esa
(Reuters) - The U.S. military conducted the second test of the ship-based Aegis missile defense system in a week, firing two SM-3 missiles on Wednesday to intercept a separating target in space, the U.S. Defense Department said.
The Standard Missile-3, built by Raytheon Co, was the highest-ever intercept in space, meaning that a larger area can be defended, the company said on Thursday.
"You want to engage the enemy at the farthest point away from you that you can," said Mitch Stevison, Raytheon's SM-3 program director. Another SM-3 test involving an even more sophisticated target will take place soon, he said, without giving further details.
~SNIP~
She said the first test involved the SM-3 Block IA missile that is currently deployed, while Wednesday's test used the company's next-generation SM-3 Block IB missile. Company officials said the next test would pave the way for full-rate production of the new missiles.
unhappycamper comment: Since wikipedia notoriously under reports military hardware costs the $25 mill is just a starting point for what these things really cost.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SM-3
September 21, 2013
US Embraces Cruel Dictators Who Host the Navy and Supply Our Oil
Friday, 20 September 2013 08:20 MARK KARLIN, EDITOR OF BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT
Although normally the Washington Post (WP) editorial board hawks war, it sharply criticized the White House for its hypocrisy on denouncing cruel dictators who defy the United States while embracing cruel dictators who are pro-US, particularly when they ship us a lot of oil and allow the Navy's 5th fleet to establish headquarters there.
The case in point here is the Obama administration's ongoing support for the reigning al-Khalifa family in Bahrain:
~snip~
As for the 5th Fleet anchored in Bahrain, don't forget that the Pentagon is the largest consumer of oil in the world. That's an important yardstick to consider when looking at different standards for US policy toward dictators.
US Embraces Cruel Dictators Who Host the Navy and Supply Our Oil
http://truth-out.org/buzzflash/commentary/item/18205-us-embraces-cruel-dictators-who-host-the-navy-and-supply-our-oilUS Embraces Cruel Dictators Who Host the Navy and Supply Our Oil
Friday, 20 September 2013 08:20 MARK KARLIN, EDITOR OF BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT
Although normally the Washington Post (WP) editorial board hawks war, it sharply criticized the White House for its hypocrisy on denouncing cruel dictators who defy the United States while embracing cruel dictators who are pro-US, particularly when they ship us a lot of oil and allow the Navy's 5th fleet to establish headquarters there.
The case in point here is the Obama administration's ongoing support for the reigning al-Khalifa family in Bahrain:
Bahrain’s leaders regularly assure the Obama administration that they are open to reforms and compromise with their opposition. But massive human rights violations, including the torture of detainees, continue. Leading political figures and human rights advocates remain imprisoned.
~snip~
As for the 5th Fleet anchored in Bahrain, don't forget that the Pentagon is the largest consumer of oil in the world. That's an important yardstick to consider when looking at different standards for US policy toward dictators.
September 21, 2013
Israeli official: 'No more time for negotiations' with Iran
Don't Be Fooled, Says Israel, Bomb Iran Instead
- Andrea Germanos, staff writer
Published on Friday, September 20, 2013 by Common Dreams
A senior Israeli official has said that "there is no more time for negotiations" with Iran and that the U.S. should deliver stronger military threats to the country. Israel's prime minister joined the offical in dismissing comments from Iran's new president as a mere "charm offensive" designed to fool the West.
In an interview that appeared in Friday's Israel Hayom, Israeli Minister of Intelligence, International Relations and Strategic Affairs Yuval Steinitz was asked, "Is there still time for diplomacy with the Iranians?"
teinitz replied, "There is no more time for negotiations." He also repeated a message made by U.S. officials including President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry, as well as Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, that the deal on Syria's chemical weapons was only reached "when there was a real military threat."
Iran's new president, Hassan Rouhani, was interviewed this week by NBC's Ann Curry and said that his country has "never pursued or sought a nuclear bomb, and we are not going to do so.” These comments echo those by his predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Don't Be Fooled, Says Israel, Bomb Iran Instead
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/09/20-3Israeli official: 'No more time for negotiations' with Iran
Don't Be Fooled, Says Israel, Bomb Iran Instead
- Andrea Germanos, staff writer
Published on Friday, September 20, 2013 by Common Dreams
A senior Israeli official has said that "there is no more time for negotiations" with Iran and that the U.S. should deliver stronger military threats to the country. Israel's prime minister joined the offical in dismissing comments from Iran's new president as a mere "charm offensive" designed to fool the West.
In an interview that appeared in Friday's Israel Hayom, Israeli Minister of Intelligence, International Relations and Strategic Affairs Yuval Steinitz was asked, "Is there still time for diplomacy with the Iranians?"
teinitz replied, "There is no more time for negotiations." He also repeated a message made by U.S. officials including President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry, as well as Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, that the deal on Syria's chemical weapons was only reached "when there was a real military threat."
Iran's new president, Hassan Rouhani, was interviewed this week by NBC's Ann Curry and said that his country has "never pursued or sought a nuclear bomb, and we are not going to do so.” These comments echo those by his predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
September 21, 2013
White Noise: On Suspicious Activities Like Speaking Excitedly, Taking Pictures of Malls or Buying Large Amounts of Water While Brown-Skinned
by Abby Zimet
09.20.13 - 5:02 PM
Sorry, but it's not just electronic. A newly disclosed trove of "suspicious activity reports" filed by police at surveillance hubs, or fusion centers, under the post 9/11 "if you see something, say something" rubric - aka: be afraid, be very afraid - shows that domestic intelligence agencies spend much of their time and our money on racial profiling, privacy violations and dumb tips about people who may or may not be of Middle Eastern descent taking pictures of bridges or other things considered "not typical" by law enforcement officers who'd probably do us all a big favor if they got a real job. The ACLU published scores of summaries of real Suspicious Activity Reports from two California fusion centers, and they are doozies: "Suspicious ME (Middle Eastern) males buy several large pallets of water," a "Middle Eastern male adult physician who is very unfriendly," a "male artist (who) enjoys photographing buildings in industrial areas," a "suspicious upside down American flag seen on big rig," a "suspicious gathering" of individuals "of what appear to be Muslim faith," a “neighbor, one of 4 young clean cut Middle Eastern males, speaking excitedly in a foreign language," etc. Your tax dollars at work. The ACLU and 26 other organizations have called on the Justice Department, FBI and other agencies to set reasonable standards for "suspicious" activity so that innocent people who happen to like taking pictures of dams or shopping centers won't land in anti-terrorism databases for the rest of their lives. And so that our increasingly frayed Constitution might survive.
White Noise: On Suspicious Activities Like Speaking Excitedly, Taking Pictures of Malls or Buying La
http://www.commondreams.org/further/2013/09/20-2White Noise: On Suspicious Activities Like Speaking Excitedly, Taking Pictures of Malls or Buying Large Amounts of Water While Brown-Skinned
by Abby Zimet
09.20.13 - 5:02 PM
Sorry, but it's not just electronic. A newly disclosed trove of "suspicious activity reports" filed by police at surveillance hubs, or fusion centers, under the post 9/11 "if you see something, say something" rubric - aka: be afraid, be very afraid - shows that domestic intelligence agencies spend much of their time and our money on racial profiling, privacy violations and dumb tips about people who may or may not be of Middle Eastern descent taking pictures of bridges or other things considered "not typical" by law enforcement officers who'd probably do us all a big favor if they got a real job. The ACLU published scores of summaries of real Suspicious Activity Reports from two California fusion centers, and they are doozies: "Suspicious ME (Middle Eastern) males buy several large pallets of water," a "Middle Eastern male adult physician who is very unfriendly," a "male artist (who) enjoys photographing buildings in industrial areas," a "suspicious upside down American flag seen on big rig," a "suspicious gathering" of individuals "of what appear to be Muslim faith," a “neighbor, one of 4 young clean cut Middle Eastern males, speaking excitedly in a foreign language," etc. Your tax dollars at work. The ACLU and 26 other organizations have called on the Justice Department, FBI and other agencies to set reasonable standards for "suspicious" activity so that innocent people who happen to like taking pictures of dams or shopping centers won't land in anti-terrorism databases for the rest of their lives. And so that our increasingly frayed Constitution might survive.
September 21, 2013
Pentagon wants Guantánamo fiber-optic cable to someday serve Cuba
Posted on Friday, 09.20.13
By CAROL ROSENBERG
GUANTANAMO BAY NAVY BASE, Cuba -- The Pentagon plans to one day extend to the entire island of Cuba its under-construction $40 million fiber-optic cable linking this base to Florida, a senior Defense Department official testified Friday at the war court.
Ronald Bechtold, the chief information officer at the office of Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, was talking about Pentagon efforts to shore up computer security for defense attorneys preparing for the Sept. 11 death-penalty trial of alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed and four accused co-conspirators.
He said the base now relies on slow satellite transmissions to the mainland. But, he added, in “probably two years” the base will be served by a fully functioning, fiber-optic cable funded by the U.S. Southern Command in South Florida — the Pentagon’s outpost for military operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
“It’s going to be for the entire island in anticipation that one day that they’ll be able to extend it into mainland Cuba,” he testified under questioning by the 9/11 case prosecutor Joanna Baltes, a Department of Justice secrecy expert.
Pentagon wants Guantánamo fiber-optic cable to someday serve Cuba
http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/09/20/3639244/pentagon-wants-guantanamo-fiber.htmlPentagon wants Guantánamo fiber-optic cable to someday serve Cuba
Posted on Friday, 09.20.13
By CAROL ROSENBERG
GUANTANAMO BAY NAVY BASE, Cuba -- The Pentagon plans to one day extend to the entire island of Cuba its under-construction $40 million fiber-optic cable linking this base to Florida, a senior Defense Department official testified Friday at the war court.
Ronald Bechtold, the chief information officer at the office of Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, was talking about Pentagon efforts to shore up computer security for defense attorneys preparing for the Sept. 11 death-penalty trial of alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed and four accused co-conspirators.
He said the base now relies on slow satellite transmissions to the mainland. But, he added, in “probably two years” the base will be served by a fully functioning, fiber-optic cable funded by the U.S. Southern Command in South Florida — the Pentagon’s outpost for military operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
“It’s going to be for the entire island in anticipation that one day that they’ll be able to extend it into mainland Cuba,” he testified under questioning by the 9/11 case prosecutor Joanna Baltes, a Department of Justice secrecy expert.
September 21, 2013
I lived to See the Day when the Pope and the President of Iran are more doctrinally Flexible than the GOP
Posted on 09/21/2013 by Juan Cole
The United States has all along been a society dominated by the wealth, and more especially by the business classes. But businesspeople are not all cut from the same cloth. You had high-minded responsible businessmen like Benjamin Franklin and you had mean-spirited businessmen, including the slave-owners.
In recent months we have been bombarded by news items emanating from the really, really do-absolutely-nothing GOP-dominated House of Representatives, which when it does do something usually does something downright mean. Also rigid and unthinking and narrow-minded and wrong-headed. There, I’ve repeated myself. It might have been enough to say “GOP.” And some of the Republicans in the Senate haven’t been much better.
At a time when Pope Francis I has called for the Church to be less rigid in its attitudes toward e.g. gays as persons, and when President Hassan Rowhani of Iran has sought a more reasonable tone toward the US and Israel, our hard line Republicans have become more and more blinkered.
The House of Representatives has just passed a budget that would keep the government operating until later this fall, as the fiscal year ends, but only if the Senate and President Obama agree to defund the Affordable Health Care Act, which is the law of the land and cannot be defunded.
I lived to See the Day when the Pope and the President of Iran are more doctrinally Flexible than th
http://www.juancole.com/2013/09/i-lived-to-see-the-day-when-the-pope-and-the-president-of-iran-are-more-doctrinally-flexible-than-the-gop.htmlI lived to See the Day when the Pope and the President of Iran are more doctrinally Flexible than the GOP
Posted on 09/21/2013 by Juan Cole
The United States has all along been a society dominated by the wealth, and more especially by the business classes. But businesspeople are not all cut from the same cloth. You had high-minded responsible businessmen like Benjamin Franklin and you had mean-spirited businessmen, including the slave-owners.
In recent months we have been bombarded by news items emanating from the really, really do-absolutely-nothing GOP-dominated House of Representatives, which when it does do something usually does something downright mean. Also rigid and unthinking and narrow-minded and wrong-headed. There, I’ve repeated myself. It might have been enough to say “GOP.” And some of the Republicans in the Senate haven’t been much better.
At a time when Pope Francis I has called for the Church to be less rigid in its attitudes toward e.g. gays as persons, and when President Hassan Rowhani of Iran has sought a more reasonable tone toward the US and Israel, our hard line Republicans have become more and more blinkered.
The House of Representatives has just passed a budget that would keep the government operating until later this fall, as the fiscal year ends, but only if the Senate and President Obama agree to defund the Affordable Health Care Act, which is the law of the land and cannot be defunded.
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