The Supreme Court ruling yesterday that declared the Bush administration action n Guantanamo a violation of both the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Geneva Conventions has now set the stage for the impeachment of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. At a meeting in Raleigh last night, I co-appeared with Al McSurley — a veteran civil rights attorney, who reads these tea leaves as well as anyone I know.

In July 2004, Derek Seidman and I did an interivew for Counterpunch. Here is a brief comment from that interview.

“I think a lot about Nixon these days. It would be interesting to see that kind of crisis of legitimacy flowing into the second dip of a recession… maybe even another period of stagflation.”

A “network neutrality” amendment to the Senate’s telecommunications reform bill evenly divided the 22 members of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee yesterday, killing the heavily debated measure that needed a majority vote to pass.

One can’t be sure which is more emblematic of male domination of society: the “cut and run” meme currently underwriting the desperate political strategy of the Republicans, or the just-as-predictable resort to the “chickenhawk” meme by Democrats in reply.

Vandana Shiva is, with Maria Mies, the co-author of “Ecofeminism.” I am posting a portion of her latest article, with a link to the full article, not just because her work relates to many of the subjects with which this blog preoccupies itself, but because India, the world’s second most populous nation, is now at the center of some very momentous historical developments which are — at this point — completely unpredictable. The passage by the Senate yesterday of a US-India nuclear power pact has so many ramifications that are beyond the evidence of the naked eye, that I can’t begin to outline them now. We must begin to pay very close attention to India… which means — and I include myself here — we have to begin studying India very thoroughly and rigorously.

I write for From the Wilderness as the military affairs editor. Here is an announcement from the chief editor about a vandalism incident that will delay publication for a few days. Anyone who reads FTW, just pass this along, since they are incapable of informing subscribers until they get new equipment.

The arrest of seven mentally disturbed Black men in Miami by Alberto Gonzales’ Justice Department on the word of an informant who entrapped them was charcterized by Gonzales as arrest for being “aspirational, not operational.” The only aspiration I am seeing here is the kind that happens when a drunk aspirates his own vomit.

The US dollar holds value for more countries than any other world currency and comprises about two thirds of world’s official foreign-exchange holdings. This dependence allows the US to run large trade deficits in purchasing a cornucopia of goods – from Porsches to t-shirts – by distributing paper IOUs in place of actual dollars. Because of a global faith in the voracious appetite of the US consumer, many countries are complacent about the dollar’s reserve-currency role – and even profit on sales of US currency in their own economy.

This graphic is as good as any I’ve seen. Some of this we can start now… food not lawns!
(Open this… the graphic is bigger and better inside.)

The following article was sent by one of our cherished regulars, Audrey. Women who are raped are not the offended partyin the eyes of the law. The State is. Wait until you read this.