Peter B. Collins guest hosted for Thom, who has gone home for his mother's funeral. Mothers Day is coming up, but don't wait until the obligatory day, contact her now.
Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai are meeting President Obama.
Guest: Dahr Jamail, independent journalist reporting from the Middle East. Author, "Beyond the Green Zone: Dispatches from an Unembedded Journalist in Occupied Iraq". Biden went to AIPAC, challenged some of its messages, for example the two state solution, settlements, lift blockade. He's skeptical of any real pressure, just rhetoric. There is so much international pressure against Israel, reparation, war crimes. Are they doing anything, like cutting funding? No. Without physical action it's just a slap on the wrist. Obama went to AIPAC during his campaign, supported their position, so this a step forward? No change on the ground in Iraq. People are believing Obama's rhetoric, not paying attention to what is going on in the ground, nor is the media, violence has gone back up, more deaths. They are detaining leaders.
Bumper Music: Jai Ho Slumdog Millionaire Soundtrack.
Peter B gave a talk at Coos bay at the weekend.
Welcome to new affiliate Revolution Boston, WWZN AM 1510 Radio.
Article: Schwarzenegger welcomes debate over legalizing pot.
Palestine. We are losing allies. They have been buying weapons from Russia, China.
Bumper Music: Give a Little Bit, Supertramp.
Book: "Deception: Pakistan, the United States, and the Secret Trade in Nuclear Weapons ", Adrian Levy, Catherine Scott-Clark.
"The shocking, three-decade story of A. Q. Khan and Pakistan’s nuclear program, and the complicity of the United States in the spread of nuclear weaponry."
Article: UK 'least wanted' list published.
Guest: Adrian Levy, a journalist and film maker specializing in foreign affairs and South East Asia at the Guardian. Co-author of "Deception". Britain has class and pace, because Michael Savage is on the list of people not welcome. Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai are meeting President Obama. Is it seen as a regional issue, or part of a greater war. A lot in Pakistan is blow back from Afghanistan, there should be AfPak policies. Looking at investment in infrastructure, democracy, not military. Talk to India. The Swat valley, government allowing Sharia law, the Taliban trying to take control, refugee crisis. There are lots of different Talibans, some are pro and some are anti the Pakistan army, not one big one that will grab nukes. Attempts at talks failed. There will be no military coup, the army's self image is too poor after Musharaff. Middle class, people protesting, democracy. What can the US do? Stop messing with internal politics. The uprising of lawyers, march six weeks ago, so Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry restored as chief justice. The judiciary is unpredictable. All of them have criminal records. Chaudhry is a chess player, will establish himself first. Civilians killed.
Article: Obey Issues A 'Vietnam' Warning, Robert Dreyfuss.
AIG bonuses details came out Friday.
Article: US interrogators may have killed dozens, human rights researcher and rights group say.
Article: Criminal Prosecution of Bybee, Yoo, Unlikely. But Disbarment?
Book: "The Trial of Donald Rumsfeld: A Prosecution by Book", Michael Ratner.
Book: "Guantanamo: What the World Should Know (Politics of the Living)", Michael Ratner.
Guest: human rights attorney Michael Ratner, president of the Center for Constitutional Rights and author of “The Trial of Donald Rumsfeld: A Prosecution by Book” and "Guantanamo: What the World Should Know (Politics of the Living)". Walling. Contradictions in Obama's administration between aspirations and actions, he's dismayed. We should be going forward with criminal prosecutions so we don't have more crimes. Cheney. Obama's executive order to close Guantanamo in a year, but will he carry on the policies elsewhere? Gates saying maybe 100 are in the preventative detention scheme, a very bad sign. Military commissions, Obama criticized them on his campaign, but some are floating the idea of using them. Obama suspended them for four months, which ends in late May. He's really dismayed.
Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri, a legal American resident, was arrested, held in Charleston for 6 years, was moved to the federal system and he immediately pled guilty. News reports in the Times and elsewhere, a report will not recommend prosecution, and for Bybee and Yoo will recommend disciplinary action that could lead to disbarment. Not even that for Stephen Bradbury. What is not being investigated, prosecuted?
With so many wanting independent investigations, why is there no movement to protest?
If they had so much evidence on Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri, why did they not bring him to trial?
What do you think of how the media handled swine flu?
Quote: "I don't want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub." Grover Norquist, May 25, 2001, to National Public Radio's Mara Liasson.
Arnold Schwarzenegger has been terrible on critical issues. His guys are faithful to Norquist. His ballot measures would make things worse. He is moving into fear mode. The polls show the measures losing, and he says that if they do, he will cut firefighters. Democratic leaders are complicit. May 20 ballot. Prop 1a. He's better on climate issues, marijuana.
Book: "The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy And Its Geostrategic Imperatives ", Zbigniew Brzezinski.
Problem, reaction, solution. Zbigniew Brzezinski wrote that a catastrophe on the order of Pearl Harbor needs to occur within the United States in order to galvanize the American people into an imperial mobilization, democracy being inimical to imperialism. Microbiologists disappearing? Waterboarding Abu Zubaydah, he mentioned KSM before he was waterboarded.
Keith McHenry called. He was tortured three times by special ops in San Francisco in 1994 for feeding the homeless.
There was terrorism in Afghanistan before 9/11, but the 9/11 official story is BS. Iraq. Condi told kids we were frightened. Read David Ray Griffin.
Geneva conventions. If we declared a cease fire, Muslims would be prevented from continuing by their religion.
Guest: John Nichols, The Capital Times, Madison, Wisconsin, and The Nation, author of "The Genius of Impeachment: The Founders' Cure for Royalism". Legal tax evasion by transnational corporations. Obama saying he wants to crack down on tax havens. Cisco. Selling stuff to a subsidiary elsewhere to avoid US tax on the profit. They do the same between states. Tax avoidance. Going after international tax avoidance will not save lots of jobs. We will have a hell of fight, for example Boxer. There are some companies that are truly global, others just go offshore to avoid tax. If corporations paid the taxes they owed, we would not need to raise taxes on people. This is a tiny step in right direction. Trade policies encourage companies to move overseas. Chrysler / Fiat deal, using US tax payer money to close down US plants. $4b tax money in Chrysler. Bankruptcy because of hedge funds. Fiat will be a dynamic force, but money will be $6b more from US taxpayers. Hidden information in the documents, 8 factories, including the most efficient, will be closed under the deal, and the will be building a new one in Mexico.
Bumper Music: Big Yellow Taxi, Counting Crows. (video).
Corporate taxation. Should they have the opportunity to pay taxes, or be called persons? If so, they should not be represented by lobbyists, etc. Humboldt County ballot measure bans them from participating.
Justice Souter resigned. Bush v. Gore. Obama needs to rebalance the court away from the right, we need a liberal.
Bumper Music: Beautiful Day (Don't let it get away), U2.
Two measures to prevent the passing of the budget, one requires 2/3 majority, and old prop 13 requires 2/3 majority for tax increases, but it was passed by a majority.
Health care, usage fee.
Guest: Former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman. Update on his case. For the story so far, please see the transcripts from April 29, May 08, June 17 and the show notes for 08 July '08, 25 July '08, 30 July '08, 29 August '08, 30 September '08, 19 November '08, 01 December '08, 09 December '08, 27 January '08, 01 April '09 and 22 April '09. As Attorney General, did he ever case dismiss a case in the interests of justice, like the cases of Ted Stevens, Jane Harman? His department supervised prosecutors, for example one withheld evidence and they made them pass it over. Summary of his case. It is important to find the truth, prevent this sort of thing from happening again.
