Media Malpractice 2-29-2016

29, February 2016         Media Malpractice

A number of prominent TV pundits continue to commit media malpractice, lavishing praise for Hillary Clinton without disclosing their close financial ties. For example, Stephanie Cutter in a recent interview on "Meet the Press"  gushed “I think Hillary Clinton has done everything right," but conveniently failed to disclose she co-founded, Precision Strategies, which was retained by the Clinton campaign for "digital consulting." Cutter has appeared multiple times on multiple channels in support of her client falsely introduced as a neutral campaign expert. Another example is the appearance of one of CNN contributors, Maria Cardona. What wasn’t disclosed is her lobbying firm, Dewey Square Group, has multiple financial ties to the Hillary Clinton campaign. Both Cutter and Cardona have been retained by the pro-Hillary super PACs. Cardona is also a campaign contributor to the Hillary campaign and pledged her additional support as a super delegate. These pundits appear under the radar working for the “Hillary for America” campaign or paid by Hillary’s super PACs. What is most disturbing is that CNN and other networks have failed in the obligatory duty to maintain neutrality and weed out these ‘hired guns.’

Clinton also found herself in hot water confronting an angry ‘Black Lives Matter’ representative who demanded an apology from Clinton for her description of black youth as super predators at a speaking engagement at Keene College in New Hampshire.

Close Guantánamo 2-28-2016

28, February 2016         Close Guantánamo

President Obama is right to call for the closure of Gitmo. President George W. former secretaries of state Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell, and former secretaries of defense, Robert Gates and Leon Panetta, and many others have called for the closure of the detention facility. It has long been a dark stain in America’s treatment of prisoners and continues to serve as a massive recruitment for our enemies. To incarcerate large numbers of prisoners without due process is a complete abdication of our core values as a nation. The prisoners who have been declared innocent of any crimes should be released immediately – with compensation. The remaining prisoners should be tried in U.S. courts with proper legal counsel. Congress should stop stonewalling Obama’s efforts which is costing us billions of dollars and is a major threat to our national security. How can we justify spending $2.5 million per detainee?

During the Bush administration, 779 people were brought to Guantánamo, all without charge. Over time we’ve learned that most were innocent and were incarcerated to provide comfort to the Bush-Chaney cabal that progress was being made in the ‘war on terror.’ Only 10 were convicted of any crime by military commissions. The five co-conspirators charged with planning the Sept. 11 attacks have still not gone to trial.

It is no coincidence that ISIS dresses its prisoners in orange jump suits before conducting their ghastly beheadings. We continue to lose the moral high ground by keeping Gitmo open. 

The fall of Dan Rather 2-28-2016

28, February 2016                  The fall of Dan Rather

The Sundance Film Festival has produced an explosive film tracing the rise and fall of CBS reporter, Dan Rather. The film’s director, legendary actor, Robert Redford played the lead role in, ‘All the President's Men’, investigating the Watergate scandal that led to the resignation of President Nixon. In his new film, TRUTH, Redford portrays CBS reporter, Dan Rather who was forced to resign along with his producer, Mary Maples’ after they reported that George W. Bush received favorable treatment in the U.S. Air National Guard to escape being drafted to Vietnam. Rather and Maple’s investigation bears a close similarity to the investigation portrayed in All the President's Men with one major exception. The Washington Post vigorously supported reporters Woodward and Bernstein whereas CBS shamelessly abandoned their premier anchor and producer. This is a tragic failure of CBS to hold those accountable for gross abuse of power. If the truth had been exposed there is every likelihood, George Bush would never have been elected president. Any tragic example of the watchdogs of political power being cowered to silence and offering their anchor and producer to be the fall guys.

The Republican Debate 2-27-2016

27, February 2016                 The Republican Debate

At long last, just days before Super Tuesday, the remaining anti-Trump caucus found their collective voices to out trump Trump.

In a series of jabs, reminiscent of the great boxer Mohammed Ali, Rubio felled his opponent exposing his double talk on immigration reminding the audience and viewers of Trump’s penchant for hiring large numbers of illegal immigrants. Cruz followed with several body blows recalling how the federal court found Trump guilty of a conspiracy of hiring illegal workers fining him $1 million. Sensing the hostility, Trump pouted that the audience were filled with lobbyists, special interest groups and donors.

All this comes on the heels of a report that Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, sought more than 500 visas for foreign workers, hiring hundreds of foreign workers, rather than hiring U.S.- born workers who applied for the same jobs.

It’s ironic that all the talk of building walls and tightening immigration belies the fact, that according to The Center for Migration Studies, immigration is down. Glaringly omitted was the impact of Asian-Americans which are the fastest growing immigrant population in the U.S.

Trump should take small comfort from the endorsement of Governor Chris Christie and the former grand wizard, David Duke. Perhaps, the final coup de gras came when the dynamic duo of Rubio and Cruz exposed Trump’s scheme of offering worthless diplomas to predominantly poor Americans at his infamous Trump University.

Israeli Shin Bet guilty of Torture 2-25-2016

25, February 2016                  Israeli Shin Bet guilty of Torture

A new report by two Israeli human rights groups, B’Tselem and HaMoked, accuses the Israeli internal security agency, Shin Net of appalling treatment of Palestinian prisoners at the Shikma interrogation facility.  Dozens of prisoners are exposed to extreme heat and cold, deprived of sleep, spat on, put in stress positions causing extreme pain and given sub-standard food. Many were denied shower facilities for days or weeks at a time. The report also highlighted the complicit nature of other security branches such as the Israeli prison system IPS), which turns a blind eye to these abhorrent practices.

The report concludes that "The combination of conditions both in and outside the interrogation room constitutes abuse and inhuman, degrading treatment, at times even amounting to torture." By its actions Shin Bet has violated a Supreme Court injunction banning torture. The IPS purpose is to break a prisoner’s spirit and military judges invariably rubber stamp motions for remand in custody.

This dovetails with statement by the U.S. ambassador to Israel, Daniel Shapiro, in which he accused Israel of the abominable treatment of Palestinians. He accuses Israel “having two standards for adherence to the rule of law in the West Bank—one for Jews and one for Palestinians. He added "Too many attacks on Palestinians lack a vigorous investigation or response by Israeli authorities. Too much vigilantism goes unchecked. And at times there seem to be two standards of adherence to the rule of law—one for Israelis and another for Palestinians."

Flint 2-24-2016

24, February 2016                               Flint

A new report has recently surfaced to underscore the gross mismanagement of Flint’s water supply.

In 2001 and 20012, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality issued permits to Nestlé, allowing them to pump up to 218 gallons of water per minute from aquifers that feed Lake Michigan. What is so egregious about this deal is no cost was levied on Nestlé other than a small permit fee and leasing cost to a private landowner. The pumped water is then bottled and shipped all over the world generating millions in profits for the company. Outraged residents, of Mescosta County, where Nestlé’s plant is located, filed suit raising the necessary legal fees from bake sales. In an attempt to intimidate one of the litigants, Nestle’ dispatched a private investigator, the FBI and filed a SLAPP suit (strategic lawsuit against public participation).

Nestles’ received $13 million in tax breaks from the state to relocate the plant to Michigan. To make matters worse the investigation revealed a blatant conflict of interest between Nestlé and the governor’s office. The spokesperson for Nestlé is Deborah Muchmore whose husband is Governor Rick Snyder’s chief of staff who just retired to become a lobbyist. Nestlé posted $14 billion in profit in 2014. Meanwhile, Flint residents, who are predominantly African-American, are paying approximately $140 a month for lead invested poisoned water.

Response to letter writer A.K. Sharma 2-23-2016

23, February 2016            Response to letter writer A.K. Sharma

A.K Sharma, ‘A Tale of Two Sikhs’ (I-W Feb 19, 2016) seems to be confused with the basic tenets of Sikhism. In his letter he acknowledges the courage of Amish Singh who held up a “Stop Hate” sign at a recent Trump rally in Iowa to protest his Islamophobia policies but then goes on to criticize Bhajan Singh Bhinder who held a sign outside the Indian Consulate in San Francisco protesting the tragic suicide death of a Dalit student at Hyderabad University.

Contrary to his assertion that Bhinder acted inappropriately, his actions should be applauded as they were conforming precisely to the basic tenets of Sikhism. Sikhism is unequivocal in rejecting separation of people based on their caste. The death of the Dalit student should have been a wakeup call for the whole of India to remove the scourge of caste which affects 200 million Indians.

Out founder, Guru Nanak, denounced the caste system as a complete violation of God’s laws which enjoins his people to treat all human beings with dignity and complete equality. 

Sharma makes the preposterous argument that Bhinder should have booked a flight to India where he could have more appropriately protested the disgusting practice of caste apartheid. Sharma seems more concerned that India’s ‘great image’ was being indelibly tarnished by exposing caste injustices in the U.S. Sharma would be well advised to support all efforts to eradicate the caste system and diffuse his own insecurities for the greater good of human-kind.  

BDS 2-21-2016

21, February 2016               BDS

It is profoundly disturbing that letters writers, who support the BDS movement targeting Israel, are vilified as being anti-Semitic. Nothing could further from the truth. These are cheap shots aimed at silencing Israel’s policies. The U.N. Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, has repeatedly vented his frustration at Israel’s polices. Human Rights Watch has called for all companies to cease doing business with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. The group’s new report, titled "Occupation, Inc.," also calls on countries like the United States to "withhold funding to the Israeli government in an amount equivalent to its expenditures and related infrastructure in the West Bank." The report comes on the heels of a statement by the U.S. ambassador to Israel, Daniel Shapiro, in which he accused Israel of abominable treatment of Palestinians. He stated that Israel “having two standards for adherence to the rule of law in the West Bank—one for Jews and one for Palestinians. He added "Too many attacks on Palestinians lack a vigorous investigation or response by Israeli authorities. Too much vigilantism goes unchecked. And at times there seem to be two standards of adherence to the rule of law—one for Israelis and another for Palestinians." The BDS is a legitimate grass roots movement aimed applying economic pressure to persuade Israel to abandon its decades old illegal occupation. To support such polices is not an act of loyalty but one of betrayal which will only hasten Israel’s isolation.

Justice Antonin Scalia 2-17-2016

17, February 2016         Justice Antonin Scalia

The death of Justice Antonin Scalia, the most important voice on the Supreme Court in decades, has plunged the nation into a constitutional crisis. With the Supreme Court evenly divided across ideological grounds, a virtual stalemate exists until another judge is appointed. President Obama has pledged to nominate another justice but will undoubtedly be hindered by the Republicans in the Senate. In the current term there will be an immediate impact on how the eight-person court will rule in several important cases, including abortion, contraception, union voting rights, affirmative action, immigration and the status of Puerto Rico. The next justice could well sway the balance.

There is a strong precedent appointing Supreme Court justices during an election year. According to ThinkProgress, the Senate has confirmed 17 Supreme Court justices during an election year, most recently in 1988 when the Senate confirmed Anthony Kennedy.


Scalia was an aggressive proponent of the concept of "originalism," claiming the U.S. Constitution should be interpreted in the context of the 18th century era when it was written. Perhaps his most galling decisions was to vote with the majority in Bush v. Gore case to stop the recounting of ballots in Florida, securing the presidency for George W. Bush – and voting with the majority in the Citizens United case, opening the floodgates for unlimited corporate spending on election campaigns driving a stake into our crumbling democracy.

Super delegates & media malpractice 2-15-2016

15, February 2016              Super delegates & media malpractice

The whole democratic process has been corrupted by dark money and a slewed system of allocating delegates. Consider the recent election in Iowa and New Hampshire. Bernie Sander’s trounced Hillary Clinton with a double-digit victory in New Hampshire 60 to 38 percent but they split the delegates evenly thanks to super delegates who pledged their support for Clinton. These super delegates, senators, governors and other elected officials often represent the Democratic Party elite. In early August of last year, the Clinton campaign claimed a super delegate count of 400 out of a total of 712.

The Democratic Party implemented the super delegate system in the early '80s in an effort to produce an electable candidate and discourage insurgents like Bernie Sanders. Sanders’s supporters complain that the system is undemocratic because it skews the election in favor of an establishment candidate and the outcome might be decided in the back room rather the voting booth. 

It is possible for Sanders’s to win the popular vote but lose the election.

The super delegates make up about 15% of the 4,800 total delegates which could still result in the defeat of a more popular insurgent.

According to the Tyndall Report which tracks the flagship nightly news programs on NBC, CBS and ABC there is been an almost total blackout of the Sanders campaign amounting to media malpractice. In 2015 in the 261 minutes that ABC devoted to the campaign, Trump got 81 minutes, while Sanders got only 20 seconds.

Notes: To add to the confusion, each state has its own rules. The Republicans have a similar system but more benign, only three per state.

It’s likely that the system was contrived following the defeat of George McGovern who was roundly defeated by 20 points in the general election.

Private Prisons 2-13-2016

13, February 2016                          Private Prisons

A shocking new report released by the Nation has revealed dozens of men have died in extremely disturbing circumstances inside private prisons. Sifting through 9,000 pages of medical records, uncovered the death of 100 detainees since 1998. Independent doctors estimated that more than two dozen premature deaths occurred because of inadequate medical care. One man died shackled to his bed from a HIV infection; others died from untreated cancer and liver diseases. Traumatized by a lack of medical care drove others to suicide.

These private prisons house non-citizens with fewer facilities and poorly trained personnel. There has been an astronomical jump in the incarceration of non-citizens. In the early 90’s, 4,000 were criminally prosecuted; by 2013 the number jumped to 91,000. Many languish in these prisons for many years which generates tens of millions of dollars of additional revenue. These prisons are separate from ICE (Immigration, Customs, and Enforcement) detention centers that oversees immigration detention. 23,000 noncitizens are detained in these centers.

Private companies, such as the GEO Group and the Corrections Corporation of America, continue to lobby aggressively to obtain locative contracts with the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Under pressure from Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton said she would no longer accept money from private prison companies and would donate the money she has received to charity.

The report screams of the necessity of massive prison reforms.

  

BDS Legislation 2-11-2016

11, February 2016               BDS Legislation

Letter writers, Harry Roussard and Arthur Cohn (Daily 10, February 2016) wrongly conflate the BDS movement or criticism of Israeli policies to anti-Semitism. Nothing could be further from the truth. Ban Ki-moon, the secretary general of the United Nations (UNSG), in an ‘op ed’ in the New York Times, vented his frustration at Israel’s messianic zeal to displace more Palestinians, demolish their homes and build more and more settlements. Palestinians are living in appalling segregated conditions increasingly reminiscent of White apartheid South Africa. 

Thumbing their nose at US demands to halt settlement expansion, the Israeli government has approved plans for over 150 new homes in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank Last month, 370 acres in the West Bank were declared “state land,” a status that is typically a precursor for more settlements. Thousands more Palestinian homes are in danger of demolition subject to harsh discriminatory practices. Many young Palestinians are losing hope that Israel’s great benefactor, the United States, has abandoned its values and continues to support their oppressor. According to a new report by Human Rights Watch, Israeli enterprises are thriving on land stolen from the Palestinians. Confiscation of this land is declared illegal under international law. Israeli Jews receive many government incentives to move into these settlements such as, free land, low rents and unlimited water. In a growing apartheid system, the government routinely denies Palestinians permits to open their own businesses, demolishes their homes, drives them off their land and ignores settler violence. According to the World Bank, the restrictions imposed on the Palestinian cost them $3.4 billion a year. There are roughly 1,000 Israeli factories in the West Bank. Stifling the Palestinian economy has forced many Palestinians to work in these illegal settlement enterprises for less than the minimum wage adding to their humiliation. Many Palestinians are fearful of complaining lest they lose their work permits. If workers complain, employers retaliate by deeming them to be a ‘security threat’. Insensitive to the plight of the Palestinians, the United States, will soon approve new legislation known as the Customs Bill, which will void any distinction of goods made in illegal settlements.  Such a bill was drafted to blunt the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, a grass-roots movement aimed at combating Israel’s discriminatory practices. In a pushback to Israeli policies of discrimination, the pension board of the United Methodist Church declared that it will no longer support Israeli banks funding settlement activities. This comes on the heels of the decision by the European Union (EU) which declared that goods made in the settlements could not carry a ‘made in Israel’ label. 550 prominent Israelis supported the EU decision, including Avishai Margalit, a former recipient of the Israel Prize in philosophy, and Avraham Burg, a former speaker of the Israeli Knesset. Israel should take heed of its unlawful settlement policy, failing which it will inevitably suffer opprobrium and further isolation. Support of current Israeli policies by Roussard and Cohn is not an act of loyalty but utter betrayal and a shameful effort to stifle free speech.

The Last Republican Debate 2-9-2016

9, February 2016            The Last Republican Debate

Much of the debate focused on Marco Rubio’s verbal software malfunction where he was caught repeatedly reciting the same talking points about President Obama. In a race to the bottom, Trump aced all his contenders promising to bring back the hideous practice of torture and ‘much worse’. Cruz attempting some bizarre legal jujitsu claimed that waterboarding was not torture. President Obama shares some of the blame for giving the Bush cartel a free pass for condoning torture practices. 86 prisoners have been cleared for release but are still languishing in Guantanamo’s dungeons. This is a dark stain on America’s sense of justice and a massive recruitment for Al-Qaida, ISIS and other affiliates. It is ironic that all the tough talk (torture, carpet bombing) comes from a group of morally bankrupt Republicans who have never experienced the horrors of war.

The Democratic Debate 2--7-2016

7, February 2016                  The Democratic Debate

In their most contentious debate of the campaign, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders sparred days ahead of the New Hampshire primary. Sanders challenged Clinton’s progressive credentials and her cozy relationship to Wall Street. In the last quarter her super PAC’s have raised a staggering $15 million. The quid pro quo will surely prevail; big money invariably triumphs against poor and middle class Americans. This will be the death knell of democracy and accelerate an unhealthy plutocracy. Most members of Congress have already abandoned their constituents in favor of big money interests.   

Last year, Hillary Clinton called herself a moderate but sensing the winds of change now calls herself a progressive. The Democratic Party has to address an important existential issue: should they feed from the same super PAC money troughs as the Republicans enabled by Citizens United? During the debate questions were raised about the $675,000 Clinton received from Goldman Sachs. There is scant hope she will ever release the transcripts of her speeches. Sanders was right on target to expose the blatant illegal activities of Golden Sachs and other Wall Street banks which virtually bankrupt the US and the world economy and ruined the lives of millions of Americans. Golden Sachs was fined a paltry $5 billion; none of the white collar criminals served jail terms and were rewarded billions in tax-payer bailouts in a rigged economy, and a broken criminal justice system. Come election time, who will you support, the status quo or the geriatric sheriff?

HRW blasts Israel 2-7-2016

7, February 2016                     HRW blasts Israel

According to a new report by Human Rights Watch, Israeli enterprises are thriving on land stolen from the Palestinians. Confiscation of this land is declared illegal under international law. Israeli Jews receive many government incentives to move into these settlements such as, free land, low rents and unlimited water. In a growing apartheid system, the government routinely denies Palestinians permits to open their own businesses, demolishes their homes, drives them off their land and ignores settler violence. According to the World Bank, the restrictions imposed on the Palestinian cost them $3.4 billion a year. There are roughly 1,000 Israeli factories in the West Bank. Stifling the Palestinian economy has forced many Palestinians to work in these illegal settlement enterprises for less than the minimum wage adding to their humiliation. According to the H.R.W. report, many Palestinians are fearful of complaining lest they lose their work permits. If workers complain, employers retaliate by deeming them to be a ‘security threat’. Insensitive to the plight of the Palestinians, Israel’s long time benefactor, the United States, will soon approve new legislation known as the Customs Bill, which will void any distinction of goods made in illegal settlements.  Such a bill was drafted to blunt the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, a grass-roots movement aimed at combating Israel’s discriminatory practices.

In a pushback to Israeli policies of discrimination, the pension board of the United Methodist Church declared that it will no longer support Israeli banks funding settlement activities. This comes on the heels of the decision by the European Union (EU) which declared that goods made in the settlements could not carry a ‘made in Israel’ label. 550 prominent Israelis supported the EU decision, including Avishai Margalit, a former recipient of the Israel Prize in philosophy, and Avraham Burg, a former speaker of the Israeli Knesset. Israel should take heed of its unlawful settlement policy, failing which it will inevitably suffer opprobrium and further isolation.

The IOWA election 2-2-2016

2, February 2016                  The IOWA election

Out of the chaos of the Republican race emerged a probable centrist candidate. No, not Cruz and certainly not the loud, egotistical, bombastic bully, Donald Trump. The disaffected Republicans seem to have coalesced around Marco Rubio who adroitly wrapped himself in the mantle of God and the Bible thrilling the evangelicals which is altogether perplexing because none of the candidates have expressed concerns for the poor, a central theme of Jesus’s teaching. On the plus side Rubio is young, energetic, photogenic, highly articulate and Latino. Furthermore, Rubio polls well against the putative, Hillary Clinton.

In the Democratic election, the networks cautiously refrained from announcing a winner because the results were too close to call, but the Clinton campaign went ahead and declared victory. Conversely, Bernie Sanders decided to wait until the final count saying the results were a virtual tie. Which candidate displayed more maturity and judgment, a critical quality to those seeking the most coveted job in Washington? 

More Israel Settlements 2-2-2016

2, February 2016                  More Israel Settlements

Ban Ki-moon, the secretary general of the United Nations (UNSG), in an ‘op ed’ in the New York Times, vented his frustration at Israel’s messianic zeal to displace more Palestinians, demolish their homes and build more and more settlements. Palestinians are living in appalling segregated conditions increasingly reminiscent of White apartheid South Africa.

The UNSG stated “Palestinian frustration and grievances are growing under the weight of nearly a half-century of occupation. No one can deny that the everyday reality of occupation provokes anger and despair.”

Thumbing their nose at US demands to halt settlement expansion, the Israeli government has approved plans for over 150 new homes in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank Last month, 370 acres in the West Bank were declared “state land,” a status that is typically a precursor for more settlements. Thousands more Palestinian homes are in danger of demolition subject to harsh discriminatory practices.  Many young Palestinians are losing hope that Israel’s great benefactor, the United States, has abandoned  its values and continues to support their oppressor.