Despite the U.S. led NATO mandate of protecting civilians in Libya, they’ve managed to kill 2,000 civilians in the past 17 days.
NATOs been bombing the crap outta the city of Sirt, and a couple of other cities. The latest air strike, on September 18 Libya time, hit a major hotel, and an apartment complex in Sirt. At least 700 people are wounded, and 89 missing.
These numbers don’t include the people killed by the rebels!
On September 16, the United Nations Security Council approved a ground mission for Libya. The mission, called Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), is expected to last three months.
Unlike previous UN peacekeeping missions, the key element of the UNSMIL lies in its political nature.
UNSMIL is to assist and support Libyan national efforts in restoring public security and order and promoting the rule of law; undertaking inclusive political dialogue, promoting national reconciliation and embarking upon the constitution-making and electoral process; restoring public service; promoting and protecting human rights; taking the immediate steps required to initiate economic recovery as well as coordinating supports that may be requested from other multilateral and bilateral actors.
UNSMIL will include an estimated 200 political advisers.
On September 16, in a scene reminiscent of what sparked the recent Tunisian Revolution, a Greek man who lost his business set himself on fire. Police put out the fire and the man is in the hospital.
On September 17, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, suddenly canceled his trip to the United States. He claims it’s to ensure that all of Greece’s bailout loan commitments are fulfilled. That doesn’t make sense because those loans just didn’t suddenly materialize, they’ve been in the works for awhile now. So why the sudden cancellation of his trip to the U.S.?
Some analysts think it’s because Greece is too close to default now: “It’s a sign that things are very tight. Papandreou’s presence is crucial to make sure there are no setbacks with issues that need to be resolved.”-Theodore Krintas, Attica Bank.
“You need a scorecard to keep track of all the things that corporations have done that are bad for this country.”-Bill Steyert, 68, Queens, New York
New York Times reporting that Day of Action Against Global Capital (aka Occupy Wall Street) demonstrators are finding some of the routes blocked.
New York City officials decided to block off sections of Wall Street near the New York Stock Exchange and Federal Hall.
“When you idealize financial markets as salvific you embrace the idea that profit is all that matters. You start thinking only as yourself.”-Dave Woessner, 31, Harvard Divinity School
Protestors are being threatened with arrest, simply because no permits to hold a public demonstration were acquired.
“If you look at history and you look at recent history, ancient history, even the middle road, this is what creates revolution and this is what causes everything.”-Anna Lekas Miller, freelance writer
September 17 was supposed to be marked by protests in the United States and Europe. Some foreign media are reporting thousands of people across the U.S. are protesting, but most U.S. media is reporting only hundreds (Business Week claims at least 1,000 people around Wall Street).
The people of Poland are putting to shame any U.S. protests; the Washington Post reports that 50,000 people are peacefully protesting in the streets of Wrocław.
“Serious questions about Mr. Davis’ guilt, highlighted by witness recantations, allegations of police coercion and a lack of relevant physical evidence, continue to plague his conviction.”-William S. Sessions, former FBI Director
Former FBI Director William S. Sessions is joining Pope Benedict XVI, former President Jimmy Carter and thousands of protestors demanding the release of a man about to be executed on September 21, for a murder he didn’t commit.
In a stereotypically racist trial in Georgia, in 1991, the black man was convicted of killing a Georgia cop. Since then seven of the nine witnesses have changed their stories, and there was no gun or other physical evidence presented!
William S. Sessions served as Director of the FBI under Presidents Ronald Regan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
Many people in the U.S. state of Georgia are planning more than 100 protest marches and events: “It becomes less about who did it and less about the search for truth, and more about holding someone accountable, because people of African descent and minorities and people who don’t have money are treated as expendable, it doesn’t matter if we get to the truth.”-Deirdre O’Connor, activist
Fact: New prescription drugs have a really bad track record regarding safety and effectiveness.
Fact: Most U.S. citizens think new prescription drugs are safer, and more effective than proven older drugs.
Researchers at the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, and the Veterans Administration Outcomes Group, asked people about the difference between benefits and risks of new medications, and old medications.
In one study people were asked about taking a heart disease drug. 41% of those that were not told about side effects picked the newer but less effective drug. Yet when they were told about the side effects, 71% picked the older more effective drug with less side effects.
In the other study people had to choose between an old heartburn drug, and a new heartburn drug. The older drug had the better track record, yet only 34% picked the older safer drug when not told about the track records of both drugs. When told about the safety record of both drugs 53% picked the older drug.
The conclusion of the U.S. studies is that if people don’t know the track record, or side effects of a drug, they automatically assume the newer drug is safer and better!
Also, the studies show that four out of ten U.S. citizens think an FDA approval means the drug is “extremely effective”! One in four think the FDA would never approve a drug that has bad side effects! Fact: The FDA constantly approves drugs that have not been fully proven, and have extremely bad side effects! Look how many approved drugs being advertised today have stated “may cause death” as a side effect!
The South American country of Bolivia has sent a trade delegation to Iran. They want the Iran Tractor Manufacturing Company to set up shop in Bolivia.
Bolivian officials say they’re impressed with Iran’s industrial advancements, despite all the decades of sanctions from the United States and Europe.
The building of an Iranian tractor factory in Bolivia, is part of the South American country’s agriculture modernization program.
Iran has economic agreements with numerous Latin American countries, like Venezuela, Bolivia, Cuba, Brazil and Ecuador.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta met Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd and defense chief Stephen Smith in San Francisco, California, for talks on September 15.
The subject was cyber attacks. Panetta called cyberspace the battlefield of the future, and most of the intensive cyber attacks in the past year are believed to have originated in China.
The new cyber war policy involves putting U.S. troops in Australia, for training purposes.
Starting with the October 12, and then the November 9 and December 7 loan tenders, the European Central Bank will make U.S. dollars available for three-month loans.
The Bank of England, the Bank of Japan and the Swiss National Bank made similar announcements. This is being done in coordination with the U.S. Federal Reserve (the privately run central bank for the United States).
The European banks will trade their money (Euros, Pounds, Yen and Swiss Francs) for U.S. dollars, for a fixed exchange rate. This is an attempt to prevent money markets in Europe and Japan from locking up.
The U.S. Department of Justice says Japanese tire maker Bridgestone has agreed to plead guilty to bid rigging, and bribing Latin American governments.
It involves giant hoses used to transfer oil from oil tankers to storage facilities.
The illegal practice of bribing and bid rigging went on for ten years, from 1997-2007. Bridgestone admitted that it bribed government officials in Mexico and other Latin American countries to secure deals. They are facing a fine of only $28 million.