9
POPSKashmir - Journey To Freedom In a rare look at the region, Udi Aloni filmed his protagonists as they launched their new struggle. Finally refused re-entry by the Indian government, Aloni was forced to tell the rest of this story far from the land and people he had come to admire.
8
POPSBarack "Houdini" Obama Promises were broken with no apology, the same creative legalese that infested the Bush administration, in the form of John Yoo and Alberto Gonzalez, was again used to deny justice to the inmates of Guantanamo, It was used to justify more torture, more destruction of the Constitution and more illegal surveillance of U.S. citizens
5
POPSHouse passes health care reform bill! This is our first victory of historical significance. We did it! It will be much less injustice and suffering in the society, where taking advantage off weak and defenseless is not viewing as breaking the right of every human for decent existence.
6
POPSEuropean Court bans classroom crucifixes "Those societies which cannot combine reverence to their symbols with freedom and revision, must ultimately decay either from anarchy, or from the slow atrophy of a life stifled by useless shadows" - A.N. Whitehead
8
POPSOpium, Rape and the American Way
Truth from the women in Afghanistan: (read the whole article for the real story) "In eight years less than 2,000 Talib have been killed and more than 8,000 innocent civilians has been killed," she went on. "We believe that this is not war on terror. This is war on innocent civilians. Look at the massacres carried out by NATO forces in Afghanistan. Look what they did in May in the Farah province, where more than 150 civilians were killed, most of them women and children. They used white phosphorus and cluster bombs. There were 200 civilians on 9th of September killed in the Kunduz province, again most of them women and children. You can see the Web site of professor Marc Herold, this democratic man, to know better the war crimes in Afghanistan imposed on our people. The United States and NATO eight years ago occupied my country under the banner of woman's rights and democracy. But they have only pushed us from the frying pan into the fire. They put into power men who are photocopies o
6
POPSIt's Never Easy {{iamonetoo}} told me once that she didn't understand why it had to be so hard to be herself. She could have taken the easy way. But she didn't and I admire her. Social change is hard, long and difficult work. It will often spawn hatred by other's who are just ignorant of human differences. That's ok; the struggle of civil rights for everyone is always worth it :)
6
POPSJewish Settlers Move Into East Jerusalem Home, Evict Arab Family Israel has built homes for more than 180,000 Jews in new east Jerusalem neighborhoods since the 1967 annexation. The U.S. and others have criticized Israeli settlement in east Jerusalem and urged Israel to stop evicting Palestinians and demolishing their homes there, saying such moves disrupt peace efforts.
5
POPSItaly Convicts 23 Americans In CIA Terrorist Kidnapping Case 
One of those convicted, former Milan consular official Sabrina De Sousa, accused Congress of turning a blind eye to the entire matter. "No one has investigated the fact that the U.S. government allegedly conducted a rendition of an individual who now walks free and the operation of which was so bungled," she said, speaking through her lawyer Mark Zaid. Despite the convictions capping the nearly three-year Italian trial, several Italian and American defendants – including the two alleged masterminds of the abduction – were acquitted due to either diplomatic immunity or because classified information was stricken by Italy's highest court. The case has been politically charged from the beginning, with attempts to mislead investigators looking into the cleric's disappearance and derail the judicial proceedings once the trial was under way. But the Italian-American relationship, conditioned on such issues as participation in the Afghan campaign, is unlikely to be hurt by the convic
6
POPSUS House: UN report on Gaza 'war crimes' is biased The Goldstone report lambasted both sides in the war, which killed up to 1,387 Palestinians and 13 Israelis, but was harsher toward Israel. It gave Israel and Palestinian Hamas militants six months to mount credible investigations or face possible prosecution in the Hague. Both Israel and Hamas have denied committing any war crimes. Israel has criticized the report as unbalanced and says the 47-nation Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council, which commissioned the report, is biased against the Jewish state. (Additional reporting by Louis Charbonneau in New York; editing by Todd Eastham)
3
POPSEmergency! Congress Debates Burying the Goldstone Report! "TELL CONGRESS TO RESPECT US AND INTERNATIONAL LAW!" "What message are we sending to the rest of the world when we grant Israel complete impunity? This legislation has very important implications beyond the war crimes committed in Gaza. Israel has responded to the report by demanding the Western powers rewrite international and US law, warning that acceptance of the Goldstone report will mean that the US’ military campaigns in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan will be subject to similar scrutiny. (Judge Goldstone has drawn a distinction – stating that his report finds that Israel deliberately targeted civilians). This legislation also ignores serious allegations that Israel has violated the US Arms Export Control Act."
13
POPSTroubling Signals on Free Speech The ambiguously worded United Nations Human Rights Council resolution could plausibly be read as encouraging or even obliging the U.S. to make it a crime to engage in hate speech, or, perhaps, in mere "negative racial and religious stereotyping." This despite decades of First Amendment case law protecting such speech. To be sure, the provisions to which I refer were a compromise, stopping short of the flat ban on defamation of religion sought by Islamic nations, and they could also be construed more narrowly and innocuously. It all depends on who does the construing. Is it "negative stereotyping" to say that the world's most dangerous terrorists are Islamists, for example? Many would say yes. more at source
1
POPSDying to get to the USA We arrest and charge those trying to leave water and food for those who risk their lives crossing the desert to get here. Prior to 1848 - this was their ancestors land but we draw a line and say die if you cross without permission. From space, you cannot see those lines - just one earth.
8
POPSMurderous US drones condemned by UN. Americans who are confused by the grotesque transformation of the modest aim of capturing a few bad men into a conflagration that has destroyed the lives of millions echo the Guardian of the 1920s, which asked why the British government had to send "all this machinery, all these forces...if we were establishing a political system on the basis of popular consent?" Without distinguishing between drones that protect our troops and those that drop bombs and hover menacingly over an occupied people, The Economist taunts, "like them or not, drones are here to stay." Now, who are the terrorists here and which is the rogue state ?
7
POPSCrazy Sheriff Joe Arpaio facing FBI investigation for abusing his power by arresting his critics We described Arpaio's incredible thuggery late last year in his dealings with the public, especially those who dare criticize him. An anti-Arpaio group called Maricopa Citizens for Safety Accountability, which formed last year in response to investigative reports and studies demonstrating that Arpaio's insane obsession with illegal immigrants was destroying his office's ability to actually deal with real law enforcement work, began showing up at county board meetings and asking to speak. Arpaio actually sent out his deputies in force to patrol these meetings, and they arrested people for merely applauding Arpaio's critics. If that sounds fascist to you, that's about right -- after all, some of the local neo-Nazis are Arpaio's biggest fans -- and he's been known to return the love.
3
POPSUN War Crime Accusations called Anti-Semitic.
The first thing to point out is that the South African judge in charge of this UN report is Jewish. So calling the report "anti-Semetic," is bizarre. Secondly, all criticism of Israel gets called "anti-Semetic," and this is an extreme example of that. (Since the judge in charge of the report is Jewish). No? Third, Most people are making their judgements based on actions -- like the blockade genocide in the Gaza Strip. It's fair enough and in fact moral to condemn this blockade (and it has nothing to do with racism). If racist accusation were allowed to avoid any criticism then during the evil rule of Hitler in Germany, he should have deflected any criticism by calling it "anti-German racism." No? Distress at the genocide of the Palestinian people, the slow starvation of over a million and a half people in the Gaza strip, has nothing to do with racism. End the blockade and much criticism would also end. It's a shame this ploy distract from looking at the real issues
2
POPSU.N. Rights Official Backs Gaza Report We can't allow Zionism to equal genocide. Right now over one and a half million people are being slowly starved to death in the Gaza Strip. Encourage our politicians to stop that. All else is meaningless words. Stop the Blockade.
3
POPSUS warned on deadly drone attacks The dear ol' UN....helping Iran and concerned about how terrorists are eliminated. I wonder if they are concerned about the recent deaths perpetrated by terrorists in Kabul, Baghdad, and Pakistan.
1
POPSControl Arms Campaign Pipedream. Until you change the attitude of all those people who want to rule other people, or to kill other people for whatever reason, not one treaty will ever work. I would love to live in a world where guns would never be used against another person. But, as I said, it’s a pipedream.
4
POPSBurn the Bible! I just wanted to note that I am in no way endorsing this article. I am just posting it for it's content.