Friday, May 06, 2022

The highfin dragonfish

Isaiah's latest THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Biden's Last Remaining Supporter" just went up a little while ago.


bidens last supporter


Biden better pray yellow dog Democrats are breeding because that's all he's got left and he doesn't have many of those.


Now to the hifhgin dragonfish.  LIVE SCIENCE reports:


Marine biologists aboard an expedition in Monterey Bay in California recently spotted a brilliant and rare deep sea fish named for a mythical creature: the highfin dragonfish (Bathophilus flemingi). This species is the rarest of all dragonfish, and scientists have previously spotted living individuals only a handful of times. 

For three decades, researchers with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) have scoured the bay's depths with remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), finding many wondrous beasties, including several species of dragonfish. However, the highfin dragonfish has proven to be the most elusive. This particular fish was found at a depth of 980 feet (300 meters). 

"They are just amazing animals, and part of what is appealing is that color pattern," said Bruce Robison, a senior scientist with MBARI and research lead for the team that made the discovery. The dragonfish's scales shimmer with a metallic bronze hue that is unlike that of any other fish living in the deep sea, Robison told Live Science. The pigments that lend color to the fish’s brassy, bronze skin might actually be a form of camouflage, as these shades absorb the remnants of blue light that make it down to the depths, rendering the fish nearly invisible in its environment. "But when we shine our white lights on it, it’s just gorgeous," Robison said.


Here's video so you can see the dragonfish for yourself.



Maya Yang (GUARDIAN) adds:

The Bathophilus flemingi, also known as the highfin dragonfish, was captured on video by a team of researchers in Monterey Bay, California. Named after the mythical creature, the torpedo-shaped fish is a predator that roams the depths of the ocean.

The fish can grow up to 16.5 cm in length and has long thin rays for fins. Scientists think the wing-like filaments can detect vibrations and can alert the fish of oncoming predators and prey.

The dragonfish uses a sit-and-wait tactic in which it hangs motionless in midwater and waits for unsuspecting crustaceans and fish to feed on, according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI). It also uses a bioluminescent filament that extends from its chin.


Please check out  Trina's post "Coyote" about coyotes.  And we'll be seeing more and more animals that used to confine themselves to the woods because climate change is destroying their homes forcing them to venture out into densely populated people areas.



"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):

 Friday, May 6, 2022.  Another severe sandstorm hits Iraq as it still struggles with the political stalemate, Margaret Kimberley and Ajamu Barack ask serious questions about intent and purpose in their latest commentaries, and much more.


Let's open with this from Margaret Kimberley's latest at BLACK AGENDA REPORT:


On April 4, 1967 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave one of the most significant speeches of his career. In “Beyond Vietnam - Time to Break Silence ” King declared his unequivocal opposition to the war in Vietnam. His very public break with Lyndon Johnson was greeted with derision, including from his own allies, who believed that the president was an ally who should not be attacked. The NAACP board passed a resolution calling King’s statement a “serious tactical mistake” that would neither “serve the cause of civil rights nor of peace.” The media joined in the condemnation, with the New York Times characterizing his comments as “facile” and “slander.” Even Black newspapers such as The Pittsburgh Courier judged his remarks to be “tragically misleading.”

It is important to remember this speech in which he declared that the United States was “the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today.” There are individuals and organizations who routinely claim King’s mantle until they fall prey to the war propaganda promoted by the present day purveyors of violence.

The Rev. Dr. William Barber is sadly one such person. In an April 30, 2022 email on the subject Moral Clarity About Our Own Atrocities he made many specious arguments on the issue of war as it pertains to U.S. policy in Ukraine.

“To see the butchery at Bucha or the massacre at Mariupol and do nothing would be to forfeit any claim to moral authority. We know this instinctively. It is why, despite the political gridlock on Capitol Hill, Republicans and Democrats have acted swiftly to approve historic military aid to Ukraine. In the face of such a moral imperative, it would be anathema for either party to ask, “How are we going to pay for it?”

There is no independent investigation of what the Biden administration and corporate media label as “massacres.” No one who claims to act in the interests of humanity should praise the historic levels of military aid to Ukraine, an oligarchic kleptocracy under U.S. control which depends upon military and police support from openly neo-Nazi formations. So blatant are the connections that in past years members of congress have moved to ensure that these groups are denied U.S. aid .

Furthermore, Rev. Barber ought to know that questions of funding for domestic needs must always be raised. Joe Biden is requesting $33 billion in aid to Ukraine, which means money for the military industrial complex, after ending stimulus payments and other support for struggling people in this country. Barber opens his email with the story of a woman who lost children in her care to a child welfare agency after the termination of the child tax credit program plunged her into poverty. It is disturbing to see Barber’s attempt to have it both ways, demanding help for the poor while also supporting the system that keeps them in their condition.

The child tax credit which kept families afloat disappeared, along with enhanced unemployment benefits, anti-eviction protection, and free covid related treatments to the uninsured. The much vaunted Build Back Better bill is dead and Biden seems uninterested in resurrecting it. It is reasonable to ask the Biden administration for a monetary accounting  and for an explanation of how their actions led to a humanitarian disaster for the Ukrainian people, mass theft from Americans’ public resources, and a risk of hot war with the Russian Federation.

Barber and the Poor People’s Campaign are preparing for a  Poor People’s and Low-Wage Workers Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls taking place on June 18, 2022. His ill conceived email was meant to bring attention to this event but instead he brought attention to the deep connections that liberal politics has with right wing forces. 


Another severe sandstorm has hit Iraq.



There have already been two severe sandstorms in Iraq in the last five weeks -- see "AFP needs to learn to count -- over 429 is not 'dozens'"  and "Iraq snapshot."   Their frequency is on the rise and this is not by chance but an effect of climate change. Sandstorms "increased from 243 to 272 days per year over the past two decades, and is expected to reach 300 dusty days annually in 2050."  Louise Franco (NATURE WORLD NEWS) notes:


Although sand storms are common in Iraq, they have become more frequent over the years due to various weather and climatic factors, such as declining rainfall, desertification, and drought, according to Amer al-Jabri, director of Iraq's meteorological office, as cited by France 24 news.


And PHYS.ORG adds, "In November, the World Bank warned that Iraq could suffer a 20 percent drop in water resources by 2050 due to climate change."

BBC notes:


One person has died and more than 5,000 people have been admitted to hospitals with breathing problems in Iraq after a seventh severe dust storm in a month.

A health ministry spokesman said 2,000 of the cases of "suffocation" had been reported in Baghdad province, according to the official Iraqi News Agency.

He advised people with asthma and other chronic diseases to stay indoors.


AFP observes, "Residents of six of Iraq's 18 provinces, including Baghdad and the vast western region of Al-Anbar, awoke once again to a thick cloud of dust blanketing the sky.  As the storm swept across Iraq, it shrouded the capital Baghdad and the holy city of Najaf in ghostly orange clouds of choking dust."  Click here for a photo essay.  Australia's ABC adds, "State media reported Thursday's sandstorm was the seventh to hit the country in the past month."  Isabella Kwai files a report for THE NEW YORK TIMES which includes:


Although it is difficult to directly link individual weather events with climate change, experts say it is one driver behind sandstorms that are growing in frequency and intensifying. And climate change will likely compound the challenges ahead for a country like Iraq, which is already facing water shortages after low rainfalls and increasing temperature.

Twenty years ago, Iraq could expect about two sandstorms each year, said Professor Jaafar Jotheri, a geoarcheologist at the University of Al-Qadisiyah. This year, it is expected that about 20 sandstorms will hit Iraq, he said.

Visibility was so poor during a sandstorm this week that flights from the Baghdad and Najaf airports had to be grounded, according to the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority.

“It is a disaster,” Professor Jotheri said, adding that sandstorms were becoming a regular feature of TV weather forecasts in Iraq. The increase in sandstorms could cause respiratory problems, road accidents and changes to the economy — pushing people to consider migrating away from the country’s drier west, he said. “The sandstorms are changing the Iraqi way of life.”


Mary Gilbert (ACCUWEATHER) explains:


In April, environment ministry official Issa al-Fayad warned Iraq could face "272 days of dust" per year in the coming decades, according to INA, the Iraqi state news agency.

This projected increase in the overall number of dusty days is due to Iraq and much of the surrounding areas becoming hotter and drier over time due to climate change. A lack of rainfall has led to a lack of moisture in the area soils and sands for Iraq. 


And PRESS TV points out, "The World Bank has already warned that Iraq - a country of 41 million people - could suffer a 20 percent drop in water resources by 2050. "


Iraq is no different from most countries in the world when it comes to not dealing seriously with climate change.  Around the world, citizens lives are devalued and the earth destroyed by faux actions and outright ignorance on the part of their so-called representatives.

In Iraq, a country still at war and still occupied by the US, it may be a little worse because (a)  they are predicted to be one of the fie most harmed countries in the world by climate change over the coming decades and (b) they really don't have a government.


October 10th.  That's when the country held elections.  Since then, the only high level position filled was Speaker of Parliament with the same person who held the office before the election).  They have yet to name a president or a prime minister-designate.


In four days, it will be seven months since the election.  As we speak to students, they ask how does this not get huge coverage?


The answer can be found in 2010.  The western press bent over backwards to ignore what was taking place.  In the US that was to protect the administration.  A cable news friend explained at the time that they couldn't cover it too prominently because it would look like they were attacking Barack Obama, the sitting president.


In march 2010, Iraqis had voted.  The western press had whored for Nouri al-Maliki who was the incumbent seeking a second term.  They did that despire the fact that it was already known he was running secret prisons and torture chambers and despite the fact that it was clear the CIA's projection that Nouri's paranoia would make him easy to control was not the case.  


That political stalemate lasted eight months with Nouri refusing to tep down and Barack -- on the advice of Samantha Power and Susan Rice -- deciding that demoncracy sidn't matter, toss out the Iraqi votes and give Nouri a second term.  He lost the election.  But the US government crafted a contract, The Erbil Agreement, that they got various political parties and blocs to sign off on which gave Nouri a second term.  The day after that contract was signed, Parliament held a session and named a president who immediately named a prime minister-designate (which was Nouri).


Now when THE GUARDIAN did an editorial calling out the comments by Barack about what a success the election was, a cable network finally felt that they could seriously cover what was gongon.


That's who a 'free' press works in the US.


As bad as the coverage in the US was prior to THE GUARDIAN editorial, it did get a tiny bit of attention.  Thats really not the case with this stalemate which, again, hits seven months in four days.


The Iraqi people are suffering and there is no government assembled all this time later.  That's a detail that the western press  is normalizing -- again normalizing.


Harry Istepanian Tweets:


#Iraq - The local media reports: the name of Abdul Latif Rashid, the former Minister of Water Resources is emerging as compromise candidate for Iraq presidency.


Another topic the western press loves to ignore is the way Turkey is committing Acts of War in northern Iraq as they continue to bomb the Kurdistan, continue to maintain ground troops and bases in the Kurdistan and continue to violate Iraq's national sovereignty.   PERSECUTION.ORG notes:


As a result of the Turkish offensive and conflict with the PKK, at least eight predominantly Christian villages in the Amedi region of Duhok province have been completely abandoned. Turkey announced its latest air and ground offensive, Operation Claw Lock on April 18, which follows twin offensives in 2021 and 2022.

Though the PKK is also dubbed a terrorist group by the United States and the European Union, Turkey’s indiscriminate bombing of Iraqi Kurdistan has led to the displacement of residents of many Christian villages. As reported by Rudaw, more than 500 villages have been emptied in the Kurdistan Region in the past three decades of Turkey-PKK fighting.

Simultaneously, the Iraqi army is combatting the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and its affiliates, resulting in the displacement of over three thousand residents as of earlier this week from Sinjar. The majority of the displaced fled to Duhok. The army later declared control of a Sinjar village that had been controlled by armed groups post-Islamic State.



We'll wind down with this from Ajamu Baraka's latest column (BLACK AGENDA REPORT):


Rev. William Barber, an indisputable champion of the poor and a consistent voice demanding an end to poverty, may have made a serious moral and ethical error that effectively placed him outside of the “Kingian” framework that informed Dr. King’s work especially during the last year of his life.  

In an attempt to make a point about the flawed priorities of the duopoly, Dr. Barber wrote in an email to the “movement family” on Saturday, April 30, 2022 that, “despite the political gridlock on Capitol Hill, Republicans and Democrats have acted swiftly to approve historic military aid to Ukraine. In the face of such a moral imperative, it would be anathema for either party to ask, “How are we going to pay for it?”

He then went on to suggest that the “moral clarity” that informed the decision to provide military support to Ukraine was contradicted by the lack of moral clarity or support for addressing the pressing needs of the poor. He identified those two contradictory policy orientations – money for war but no money to pass “Build Back Better” legislation, for example, as representing the moral and ethical contradiction at the heart of U.S. politics.

I will give our dear brother the benefit of the doubt. He was making the point that the duopoly will support in a bipartisan manner those items that it deems a priority. For Rev. Barber and the Campaign, the issue of poverty and its devastating social consequences should be a priority for the U.S. state. However, in trying to make that point Rev Barber seemed to support the Biden’s administration’s war policies which as a follower of Dr. King would seem like a major contradiction. It would seem that to equate a moral imperative for providing military aid to Ukraine to wage war, no matter if it is claimed to be defensive, would be a dramatic departure from the non-violence ethos at the center of Dr. King's worldview.

Dr. King said himself that it was his silence on the war that presented a moral contradiction that could only be ultimately resolved by him speaking out in opposition to the Vietnam war . It is unimaginable that Dr. King would give his blessings to a military aid package that Rev. Barber’s language appears to do while simultaneously not demanding an end to the conflict as Rev Barber clearly failed to do in his communication to the movement family. We must now ask Rev Barber if his characterization of the military aid package as a moral imperative was just a clumsy use of words or does he actually support the ultimate expression of violence – war?  

We all know the history. After the student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and all the radical Black liberation and socialist organizations had condemned the war in Vietnam, Dr. King finally broke his silence, as he framed it, and began to speak out against the war in early 1967 with the most extensive and important speech on April 4, 1967, at the Riverside Church in New York. The capitalist rulers understand symbols and so on April 4, 1968, Dr. King was murdered in Memphis where he was supporting a strike of Black sanitation workers against the Memphis city government.

Rev. Barber claims that “King was gunned down for his efforts to build a Poor People’s Campaign.” There is no doubt that the poor people’s campaign was a significant factor. The rulers understood the danger of Dr. King venturing into class politics, especially with his social democratic positions becoming more evident. But what Barber glosses over is that while the poor people’s campaign was seen as a threat, it was King’s break with the democratic party establishment, and at that time the majority position of the U.S. public who supported the war effort, that made Dr. King the most hated man in the country.


Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "The Experts" went up last night and his "21 DUMPSTER" the night before.  He's planning on posting one tonight and one Saturday as well. The following sites updated:





Thursday, May 05, 2022

What promted the Court draft opinion

BULLY BOY PRESS CEDRIC'S BIG MIX & THOMAS FRIEDMAN IS A GREAT MAN & ANN'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL AID TABLE  

experts

 (PICTURED ABOVE, SUPREME COURT JUSTICES SAMUEL ALITO, BRETT KAVANAUGH AND CLARENCE THOMAS DISCUSS HOW TO PROTECT NEWBORN JUSTICE NEAL GORSUCH.)

 

REAL REASON BEHIND THE SHOCKING DECISION.

NOW IT CAN BE TOLD IN AN EXCLUSIVE -- MUST CREDIT BULLY BOY PRESS CEDRIC'S BIG MIX & THOMAS FRIEDMAN IS A GREAT MAN & ANN'S BIG MIX   -- SUPREME COURT JUSTICE BRETT KAVANAUGH HAS REVEALED THE REAL REASON BEHIND THE DRAFT OPINION THAT WOULD OVERTURN ROE V. WADE -- MUST CREDIT .BULLY BOY PRESS CEDRIC'S BIG MIX & THOMAS FRIEDMAN IS A GREAT MAN & ANN'S BIG MIX

PER KAVANAUGH, THE JUSTICES HAD TO INTERVENE WHEN NEWBIE JUDGE NEIL GORSUCH ATTENDED A PARTY WITH A VERY PERSISTENT SENATOR JOSH HAWLEY AND, YES, IT WAS ONE OF THOSE PARTIES THAT HAWLEY HAS BEEN WARNING ABOUT. NEWBIE NEIL WAS HALF-WAY THROUGH HIS MALIBU COCONUT WHEN HE REALIZED SOMEONE SLIPPED SOMETHING IN THE DRINK.

NEXT THING HE KNEW, HE WOKE UP SPRAWLED IN FRONT OF THE TOILET IN A POSITION KAVANAUGH WOULD ONLY DESCRIBE AS "PRESENTING."

GORSUCH IMMEDIATELY HURRIED OVER TO JUSTICE CLARENCE THOMAS' HOME WHERE HE WAS LECTURED ABOUT THE VERY -- AND VERY REAL -- AND VERY MEDICAL ISSUE OF BUTT BABIES. WHAT FOLLOWED WAS A NEVEROUS TRIP TO THE GROCERY STORE BY GORSUCH WITH KAVANAUGH AND THOMAS ACCOMPANIYING HIM FOR MORAL SUPPORT.

TO EVERYONE'S RELIEF, THE TEST CAME BACK NEGATIVE.

HOWEVER, WHEN JUSTICE SAMUEL ALITO LEARNED OF THE CLOSE CALL, HE WAS MOST SHOCKED THAT THE JUSTICES HAD DISCUSSED TERMINATING A POTENTIAL PREGNANCY AND DONE SO WITHOUT HIM. TO PROTECT "LITTLE NEIL AND OTHERS LIKE HIM," KAVANAUGH EXPLAINED, ALITO INSISTED HE WAS OUTLAWING ALL

REACHED FOR COMMENT, GORSUCH CONFIRMED THE GIST OF THE CONVERSATION TO THESE REPORTERS -- MUST CREDIT BULLY BOY PRESS CEDRIC'S BIG MIX & THOMAS FRIEDMAN IS A GREAT MAN & ANN'S BIG MIX . HE FURTHER REVEALED THAT ALTHOUGH HE WAS SUPPORTING OVERTURNING ROE, SHOULD HE BECOME PREGNANT, HE WOULD STILL HAVE A D&C. HE ADMITTED HE WAS A LITTLE FOGGY ON SEX ED ("I WAS TAUGHT BY NUNS") BUT HE HAD NEVER HEARD OF BUTT BABIES BEFORE THOMAS ENLIGHTENED HIM ON THE TOPIC. "PRIOR TO THIS," GORSUCH EXCLUSIVELY TOLD US -- MUST CREDIT BULLY BOY PRESS CEDRIC'S BIG MIX & THOMAS FRIEDMAN IS A GREAT MAN & ANN'S BIG MIX -- "I NEVER REALLY UNDERSTOOD THE MEANING OF THE TERM BACK ALLEY ABORTIONS. BACK ALLEY. I GET IT NOW. LEAVE IT TO CLARENCE TO KNOW ALL ABOUT IT."

 

FROM THE TCI WIRE

 

But we do tend to write a lot of things to fit however we want to see things.


I'm not going to offer nonsense about this justice lied!!!  No.  Susan Collins is an idiot.  She proved that in 2002.  She's a dumb idiot who hears what she wants to hear.  Excepting her support for the Iraq War, I'm really not that vested in her one way or the other.  And it's not fair to pin all the blame on her.  The Democrats have done a lousy job and their work has been worse than Susan's.


But, for the future, don't hear what you want to hear.  Examine the response youre getting.


Roe v Wade is settled law?


Yes, it is.  Up until the Court chooses to hear a case on it.  At which point, it is any judge's role to figure out if there is a conflict in the law, if the law applies, if . . .  So you were an idiot -- this goes to various Democrats in the Senate and not just Republican Susan Collins -- hearing what you wanted to hear.


Quit nyou're whiing.


And if you produce a tape recording where some one on the Court promised you that they would enver vote to overturn Roe, first off we'd have ethical issues regarding your own behavior.


Second off, whether you like it or not Christian beliefs have had a significant role in the history of the US and one of those beliefs is redemption.  Meaning, you can change.  So let's use Alito.  Alito promised not to overturn Roe (he didn't, this is a hypothetical) and Chuck Schumer has a recording of that office visit and makes it public.


After the outcry against Chuck died down, the point would be that Alito made a promise before he was a sitting Justice and he can easily argue that his opinion changed as his faith was renewed, as his faith grew, as he discovered a new religion, etc, etc.


And he wouldn't even have to bring in religion (but Alito would).  He could merely argue that at that date in time, he meant what he said but that his years on the Court had increased his knowledge base and his opinons had changed.


So stop whining that you were lied to.  And stop insisting that you had some promise before the justice sat on the Court  Again, it's the law of the land (anything) up until you're asked to rule on it and then it is your role to interpret it and analyze it.


Again, don't ask for opinions if you 're not sure you want them.  I'm not going to offer easy, pleasing takes that are devoid of reality.  

If we're going to talk about this, we need to talk reality.


First off, no ruling has come down yet.  Drafts are circulated all the time.  The Justices confer and discuss and debate and some change their minds as a result of the give-and-take.


This draft may be destined for the trash heap.


That is not offered to say, "Cease working on this issue."


That is offered to say: Work smart.


Christine Pelosi thinks  she's a feminist.  She's not.  Nepotism is not a feminist value.  She's got a ton of opinions and they're all the opinions of entitled woman who has garnered every break the rich can receive in this country.  She is not a learned mind.


As Margaret Kimberely has documented on her Twitter thread, when people were rightly noting that Ruth Ginsberg should step down, Christine showed up screaming sexism and ageism.


She was a stupid bitch then and she remains one today.  Shooting out of Nancy Pelosi's vagina did not make Christine an expert on anything and we really don't need her faux wisdom.


Ruth was ill and she should have retired.  She gambled and WE LOST.  A lot of today is on her.

 

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Wednesday, May 04, 2022

Artichokes

 Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "21 DUMPSTER" went up a few hours ago.

dump 

  

I always love Isaiah's comics.  Know what else I love?


Artichokes.  A perfect food, as far as I'm concerned.  I'm eating one as I type.  My throat has been killing me all day and it's been dry.  I'm reminded of how much water artichokes are packed with.  My throat right now is moist and it is no longer in pain. I pull the leaves off and eat each leaf before finally getting down to the sweet heart of the artichoke.


WEB MD notes:


Despite this prickly beginning, the ancients considered the artichoke full of health benefits, using it as an aphrodisiac, a diuretic, a breath freshener, and even a deodorant.

The artichokes we eat are actually the buds of a purple flower that can grow more than 3 feet tall. Because of their tough exterior, artichokes take some careful preparation. But your efforts will reap nutritional rewards -- the veggie is a good source of folate, dietary fiber, and vitamins C and K. Artichokes are also packed with antioxidants; they're number 7 on the USDA's top 20 antioxidant-rich foods list.

 

On the fiber in artichokes, WOMEN'S HEALTH adds:

 It’s no secret that fiber helps move your digestion along and keeps you feeling full, but it also offers more long-term benefits like a lower risk of heart disease. According to Sollid, a half cup of artichokes contains about seven grams of fiber, or more than a quarter of the amount recommended for women and nearly a fifth of the amount recommended for men. "Americans only eat about half the amount of fiber that's recommended per day," he says, so a serving of artichoke is certainly a step in the right direction.

 

I like to steam an artichoke but I will also eat it boiled.  For me, it can be dinner.  Just one artichoke.  I like to dip the leaves in butter or Helman's Mayo with avocado oil.  

 

"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):

 Wednesday, May 4, 2022.  Governments refuse to stand up for their own citizens (while giving their all to starting wars).


Around the world people are in need.  One such person is Robert Pether, a business person who is caught in nonsense between the Iraqi government and the company he works for.  Lured into Iraq over a year ago, he was promptly arrested and put behind bars.  Matthew Doran (Australia's ABC) reports:


Robert Pether, 46, has been locked up in a Baghdad prison since April last year, and an investigation by the United Nations raised concerns he had been "shown torture rooms, blindfolded, insulted and screamed at" while languishing behind bars.

Mr Pether, an engineer, was arrested alongside his Egyptian colleague Khalid Zaghloul while working on the development of the new $1 billion central bank of Iraq headquarters

Mr Pether's nine-year-old daughter, Nala, took to social media early on Wednesday to call for more help from the Australian government.

"He's been imprisoned in Iraq for over a year," she said clutching a toy rabbit.

"Please, Mr Morrison, can you help him?

"I really, really miss him."


THE JOURNAL Tweets:

Robert Pether, who lived with his family in Elphin, Co Roscommon, has been held in "dismal conditions" at a prison near Baghdad due to a contract dispute between his employer and the Iraqi government.


Ireland has done more to try to free the Australian native than has his own country's government.  That's only surprising if you haven't been following the persecution of Julian Assange.  The founder of WIKILEAKS is also an Australian citizen.  As US President Joe Biden continues to persecute Julian, the pathetic Australian government does nothing.  The message is clear, if you're and Australian citizens, you are on your own in this world because your cowardly government does not want to make waves to protect you.  They're too busy cowering with their tail between their legs to defend or stand up for their own citizens.  Pathetic and shameful.


Julian exposed War Crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan which is why the US government has persecuted him ever since.  Joe Biden continues the persecution.  He wants Julian to stand trial in the US for the 'crime' of journalism.  This is the same Joe Biden who sat on his fat ass in the US Senate for years after Senate investigators discovered that torture was being carried out in the gulag on Guantanamo.  His oath of office as a senator actually required that he do soething but Sleepy Joe must have been taking another nap because he did nothing.


We also need to remember what was done to Chelsea Manning -- she is the one who leaked the news of War Crimes to WIKILEAKS.  Many things were done to Chelsea to humiliate her and to destroy her while in US custody.  I'm focusing here on one thing only.  


Chelsea had not transitioned at that point in her life.  


How do you antagonize and humiliate anyone -- let alone a transgendered person?  You hold them in a prison where the guards see them naked all day.  The lie the US government told back then 00 which we challenged at the time (shame others didn't pick up on it) was that Chelsea was a suicide threat and so she couldn't have clothes -- she might try to strangle herself.  As we pointed out in real time, paper scrubs.  If youre afriad someone might harm themselves in your custody, you don't strip them naked and put them on display.  You utilize paper scrubs.


This is the 'caring' US government that 'respects' human rights, the government the UK is preparing to turn Julian over to.



That's Julian's wife Sella speaking on the need to stand with her husband.


The US government is really good at destroying lives in their endless wars and at ignoring the needs of the American people.  It's just not good at democracy or at human rights.


In the war torn country of Iraq, destroyed by the US government and still occupied, KURDISAN 24 notes:


The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) on Monday commended “the courage of Iraqi and Kurdistan Region media workers” on World Press Freedom Day. 

UNAMI also called on “authorities to ensure their protection from intimidation and threats and to fully respect the right to freedom of expression and freedom to impart information.”


In Iraq, journalist are regularly rounded up by security forces, are regularly disappeared.  They risk a lot to try to cover the basic realities.  In the US, most journalists settle for being whores instead and just comfort those in power with puff pieces.  KURDISTAN 24 notes:


The freedom of the press in Iraq is declining, with hundreds of journalists facing "arrests, killings, and disappearance," the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights outlined in a report released on Tuesday, World Press Freedom Day.

"The freedom of the press in Iraq is much lower than it should be in a country that raised the slogan of democracy nearly 20 years ago," the report charges, pointing out that Iraq has a constitution that guarantees "the right to express an opinion and obliges the authorities to protect it."

"Since 2003, hundreds of journalists and media professionals were killed, arrested, and even disappeared," it said. Furthermore, media headquarters have been raided in response to their coverage or editorial lines.

"From May 3, 2021, to May 2, 2022, there has been an increase in the influence of parties that have an interest in antagonizing freedom of expression and undermining the space for journalistic work in Iraq," the report noted.


Meanwhile, the political stalemate continues.  Iraq held elections October 10th.  All this time later, they are still unable to name a prime minister or president.  And don't look for diplomatic assistance from the US.  Even were that possible, the outgoing Iraq Ambassador remains hostage to Joe Biden's lame duck status.  He nominated a new ambassador to Iraq back in December.  The Senate held confirmation hearings already.  But there's still no vote.  As the political stalemate continues, Chenar Chalak (RUDAW) notes:

The Coordination Framework has requested the Kurdish political parties to come to an understanding and agree on a candidate for the presidency of Iraq, as a part of its 18-points initiative announced on Wednesday attempting to bring an end to the political deadlock that has plagued the country, a week before Muqtada al-Sadr’s political “step-back” nears its 40-day completion.

The initiative from the Iran-backed parliamentary blocs consists of nine original points, in addition to nine further points which it requests all political parties adhere to in order to end the deadlock.

Lauding the role of the President of Iraq, referring to the position as “the protector of the constitution,” the initiative stresses that the person filling the position must be characterized by efficiency and good conduct and behavior, proceeding to urge the Kurdish parties to “make efforts to reach an understanding and agree on a candidate with these qualities and within the established contexts.”


Did you realize that the Kurds were the dominant population in Iraq?  Me neither.  I also didn't realize that they controlled politics.  It's an easy out to scapegoat the Kurdis politicians.  Not accurate, not fair, but it's easy.


Let's wind down with this Tweet from Margaret Kimberley:


I pointed out that democrats could have protected abortion rights with legislation. Their pro-choice stance is a scam to keep you voting for them. You're welcome. #RoeVWade blackagendareport.com/democratic-par
Image


And she pointed that out last year.



The following sites updated: