Filed under: Afghanistan, bailout, bankruptcy, Congress, Credit Crisis, DEBT, Dollar, Economic Collapse, economic depression, Economy, George Bush, global economy, Great Depression, Greenback, House, hyperinflation, Inflation, Iraq, Military, nation building, national debt, neocons, occupation, Pentagon, Senate, Stock Market, Uncategorized, US Economy, us national debt, Wall Street, war funding, war spending, weapons trade
House Passes $1 Trillion Defense Budget
Alternet
September 28, 2008
On Wednesday, the House passed a mammoth defense bill by a 392-39 vote. It’s expected to clear the Senate with little difficulty next week.
It was part of a trillion-dollar stop-gap measure to keep programs running through next March, allowing lawmakers to skip town without passing a final budget. The Associated Press reports, “The legislation came together in a remarkably secret process that concentrated decision-making power in the hands of a few lawmakers.”
In keeping with the tradition of recent years, Bush held a gun to his own head and threatened to pull the trigger if his demands weren’t met. According to the AP, “To earn President Bush’s signature rather than a veto, House and Senate negotiators dropped several provisions he opposed. They include a ban on private interrogators in U.S. military detention facilities and what would have amounted to congressional veto power over a security pact with Iraq.”
In other words, Congress also maintained recent tradition, swearing not to give Bush a blank check and then whipping out their pens and signing a blank check.
The number that the House sent to the Senate for “defense” — $612 billion for the coming year — is eye-popping. Imagine a stack of 612,000 million-dollar bills. Quite a pile.
http://www.alternet.org/story/100801/
’If we don’t cut back military spending, the bankruptcy of the United States is inevitable’
http://www.tomdispatc..nson_the_pentagon_bailout_fraud
The Pentagon Bailout Fraud
http://www.wakeupfromyourslumber.com/node/8379
Bush Administration Adds $4 Trillion To National Debt
http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2008/09/29/couricandco/entry4486228.shtml
Filed under: Afghanistan, al-qaeda, Congress, False Flag, FBI, House, inside job, Iraq, nation building, Neolibs, occupation, Senate, State Sponsored Terrorism, war funding, War On Terror, war spending, weapons trade | Tags: Salam Adhoob
U.S. Funds Sent To Al-Qaeda
Russia Today
September 23, 2008
A former Iraqi investigator said more then $US13 billion of the money allocated for reconstruction projects in Iraq was wasted or stolen, with some of it ending up in al-Qaeda’s coffers.
Salam Adhoob, a former chief investigator for Iraq’s Commission on Public Integrity – which U.S. officials call Iraq’s equivalent of the FBI – was reporting to the Senate Democratic Policy Committee, an arm of the Democratic caucus.
He said many of the projects funded by the U.S. ‘were not needed, and many were never built’ like an electricity project in Nineveh province that an oversight agency found ‘existed only on paper’, reports the Washington Post newspaper.
Embezzlement schemes were widely used for arms procurement, according to Adhoob. In one case Iraqi Defence ministry officials helped set up two front companies to buy combat vehicles and other equipment with $1.7 billion in U.S. funds. The companies were paid, but for some items only ‘a small percentage’ of the order was delivered and, in one case, the delivered bullet proof vests were defective and absolutely useless.
The ex-investigator said the Iraqi government was not interested in investigating such cases and many investigators feared for their lives. Adhoob said 32 of his colleagues have been killed over the three years he worked for the Iraqi agency, and he eventually fled the country himself because of death threats.
Adhoob said he reported the situation to the U.S. agency charged with detecting and rooting out cases of waste and abuse – the U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. A spokeswoman for the agency commented that it continues to ‘actively follow up’ on the tip but would not discuss ongoing investigations.
Speaking along with Adhoob was an Iraqi American who worked as an adviser to Defense and State department officials in Iraq for five years. He testified in silhouette by a video link from an undisclosed location because, he said, he feared for his safety. In a modified voice, he accused Iraqi government officials of working with al-Qaeda members at the Baiji refinery to steal oil to sell on the black market.
$23 Billion Lost In Iraq
BBC
September 24, 2008
A BBC investigation estimates that around $23bn (£11.75bn) may have been lost, stolen or just not properly accounted for in Iraq.
The BBC’s Panorama programme has used US and Iraqi government sources to research how much some private contractors have profited from the conflict and rebuilding.
Filed under: Afghanistan, Congress, ethnic cleansing, Eugenics, fallen soldiers, friendly fire, Genocide, George Bush, House, Iraq, iraq deaths, nation building, neocons, occupation, Pentagon, Senate, war funding, War On Terror, war spending | Tags: MoD
Senate Passes $612B Defense Bill
Reuters
September 18, 2008
The U.S. Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved a $612.5 billion defense spending bill for fiscal 2009, including $70 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As passed on an 88-8 vote, the measure would authorize $103.9 billion for Pentagon procurement, $1.2 billion more than President George W. Bush’s request. Overall, Bush had asked for $611.1 billion for national defense.
http://www.editorandpub..splay.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003850908
MoD accused of covering up injuries to troops
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/new..f-covering-up-injuries-to-troops.html
“We Blew Her to Pieces”
http://www.zcommunications.org/znet/viewArticle/18859
‘US seeks secret bases in Iraq’
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=70001§ionid=351020201
Satellite Image: Ethnic Cleansing in Iraq Preceded Drop In Violence
http://newsgrist.typepad.com/underbelly/2008/09/satellite-image.html
Filed under: airstrikes, belgium, blockade, Britain, bulgaria, ceasefire, Condoleezza Rice, Dmitry Medvedev, Europe, european union, False Flag, federal crime, foreign aid, Genocide, georgia, Germany, Globalism, Iran, Iraq, Medvedev, Mikheil Saakashvili, Military, military strike, moscow, nation building, NATO, navy, neocons, Nuke, occupation, Oil, Pentagon, poland, Preemptive Strike, preemptive war, red cross, romania, Russia, Shock and Awe, South Ossetia, spain, staged provocation, Tehran, Troops, United Kingdom, War Crimes, war funding, war games, War On Terror, war spending, war training, WW3, ww4 | Tags: Dmitry Rogozin, Gerhard Schroeder, jaap de hood scheffer, nuclear war, nuclear warfare, port of Batumi, russian peacekeepers, soldiers, u.s. soldiers, USS McFaul, USS Taylor, warship
US warship anchors at Georgian port
Press TV
August 24, 2008
The guided missile destroyer USS McFaul has anchored at the Georgian port of Batumi, escalating tensions in the conflict-stricken region.
The US says the destroyer, which arrived at the Black Sea port on Sunday, contains humanitarian aid including baby food, diapers, bottled water and milk, AP reported.
This is while the USS McFaul is outfitted with an array of weaponry, including Tomahawk cruise missiles, which can carry both conventional or nuclear warheads, and a sophisticated radar system.
The US Embassy said the destroyer was the first of five American ships scheduled to arrive this week.
Earlier, Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn, deputy chief of Russia’s general staff said that the arrival of the ship and those of other NATO members would escalate tensions, adding that NATO is setting up a naval force in the Black Sea under the ’cover’ of aid deliveries to Georgia.
“Under the cover of needing to deliver humanitarian goods, NATO countries continue to boost their naval grouping,” Nogovitsyn told a news conference in Moscow on Saturday.
The US Navy does not say if the ships are carrying nuclear weapons for security reasons.
Georgian military forces attacked South Ossetia to retake control of the independence-seeking province on August 8. In response, Russia moved its forces to the region where most of the population holds Russian citizenship.
The conflict ended after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed a French-brokered ceasefire deal last week.
At least 2,000 people in South Osettia and about 150 in Georgia were killed in the conflict. Also, about 40,000 people were displaced in areas around the conflict zone, according to International Committee of the Red Cross.
NATO Ships Enter The Black Sea
IHT
August 22, 2008
NATO warships entered the Black Sea on Thursday for what the alliance said were long-planned exercises and routine visits to ports in Romania and Bulgaria.
The move is not linked to the tensions over Russia’s invasion of Georgia, which lies on the eastern shore of the Black Sea, about 900 kilometers (550 miles) from the Romanian coast, said officials at NATO’s military command in southern Belgium.
Three warships — from Spain, Germany and Poland — sailed into the Black Sea on Thursday. They are due to be joined by a U.S. frigate, the USS Taylor, later this week.
They are “conducting a pre-planned routine visit to the Black Sea region to interact and exercise with our NATO partners Romania and Bulgaria, which is an important feature of our routine planning,” said Vice-Adm. Pim Bedet, deputy commander at allied maritime headquarters in Northwood, England.
However, the move risks increasing tensions with Russia which has deployed ships from its Black Sea fleet to the Georgian coast.
The NATO flotilla includes Spain’s SPS Adm. Juan de Bourbon, Germany’s FGS Luebeck and the Polish ship ORP General K Pulaski. Romanian and Bulgarian ships will join them for exercises during a three-week deployment which NATO says has been planned for over a year.
The Russian ambassador to NATO played down the impact of the emergency meeting of the Western alliance.
“The mountain gave birth to a mouse,” said Dmitry Rogozin.
Although the allies said they would not convene any more meetings of the NATO-Russia Council until Russian troops withdraw from Georgia, they bowed to concerns from Europe — which depends heavily on Russia for energy — and stopped short of adopting specific long-term steps to punish Moscow for its actions.
“There can be no business as usual with Russia under present circumstances,” said Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, the alliance’s secretary-general, after NATO foreign ministers met here.
“We are not abandoning the NATO-Russia Council, but as long as Russian forces are occupying large parts of Georgia, I cannot see the NATO-Russia Council meeting,” he told reporters.
Russia, which has accused the United States of wanting to dismantle the council, asked for a meeting last week but has been rebuffed thus far.
De Hoop Scheffer said “the future will depend on concrete actions from the Russian side,” but he was forced to add that “no specific decisions on programs or projects (with Russia) have been taken.”
The Russians have agreed to a cease-fire deal that requires a troop pullback, but at the Pentagon on Tuesday evening officials said the latest assessment by U.S. intelligence was that the Russians had shown no sign of beginning a substantial withdrawal. Two officials, discussing the intelligence assessment on condition of anonymity, said separately that Russian forces were holding their positions.
In a small victory for the United States, NATO foreign ministers did agree to show support for Georgia’s pro-Western government by creating a NATO-Georgia Commission to oversee the former Soviet republic’s bid to join the alliance and begin providing military training to its army.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=67384§ionid=351020602
Russia Warns of Corpse Provocation
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/1010/42/370269.htm
Russian security source says Georgia planned attack year ahead
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20080823/116236332.html
Iraq invites Russian oil company back
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D92M5K900.htm
Georgia set for military action – Russian General Staff
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20080822/116215518.html
Russia to keep 500 troops in Georgia buffer zone
http://wiredispatch.com/news/?id=308583
US: Russia must return any US equipment
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5g..mQ9wB4_FnH5KXkA
Russia Seizes U.S. Vehicles
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/aug/23/georgia.russia
Germany’s Schroeder says Georgia sparked fighting
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/LG340681.htm
The History of the Georgia, Russia Conflict
http://www.unobserver.com/inde..ayout5.php&id=5057&blz=1
Medvedev Vies With Putin in Word War
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/600/42/369927.htm
Moscow: U.S. missile shield may spark arms race
http://www.russiatoday.com/news/news/29298
Filed under: Afghanistan, Ahmadinejad, airstrikes, arms sales, ceasefire, Coup, Dmitry Medvedev, False Flag, Hugo Chavez, Iran, Media, Medvedev, Mikheil Saakashvili, Military, military strike, missile defense, NATO, navy, Nuke, Preemptive Strike, preemptive war, Russia, Sarkozy, Sergey Lavrov, Shock and Awe, Syria, Tehran, Venezuela, War On Terror, war spending, weapons trade, WW3, ww4 | Tags: foreign military financing, Iskander missiles, missile shield, moskva, nuclear war, nuclear warfare, pantsyr-S1, russian peacekeepers, S-300 air-missile, tartus, warships
Syria: we’ll host Russian missile system
Russia Sends Aircraft Carrier To Syria
Barents Observer
August 20, 2008
The Russian aircraft carrier “Admiral Kuznetsov” is ready to head from Murmansk towards the Mediterranean and the Syrian port of Tartus. The mission comes after Syrian President Bashar Assad said he is open for a Russian base in the area.
The “Admiral Kuznetsov”, part of the Northern Fleet and Russia’s only aircraft carrier, will head a Navy mission to the area. The mission will also include the missile cruiser “Moskva” and several submarines, Newsru.com reports.
President Assad in meetings in Moscow this week expressed support to Russia’s intervention in South Ossetia and Georgia. He also expressed interest in the establishment of Russian missile air defence facilities on his land.
The “Admiral Kuznetsov” also last year headed a navy mission to the Mediterranean. Then, on the way from the Kola Peninsula and south, it stopped in the North Sea where it conducted a navy training exercise in the immediate vicinity of Norwegian offshore installations.
Syria: Time ripe for closer Russia military ties
Press TV
August 20, 2008
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says the conflict in the Caucasus underlines the need for Russia and Syria to expand military ties.
In an interview with Kommersant, President al-Assad said Damascus is prepared to ’speed up’ defense cooperation with Moscow.
“I think that everyone in Russia and in the world is now aware of Israel’s role and its military consultants in the Georgian crisis,” said President al-Assad, who will meet his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, on Thursday.
Such deals would irk Washington and Tel Aviv, which have long asked Moscow not to sell weapons to countries that share borders with the occupied territories.
Reports, however, indicate that Russia is eager to revive its defense ties with Syria following the South Ossetian conflict, in which Georgia used Israeli-supplied equipment.
An Israeli website reported that Moscow plans to deploy advanced missile systems – including the S-300 air-missile defense system as well as the nuclear-capable Iskander missiles – in Syria in the near future.
A Russian official was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying that a number of deals involving anti-aircraft and anti-tank missile systems are being prepared by Russia and Syria.
“Damascus is Moscow’s long-standing partner in military cooperation and we are expecting to reach an agreement in principle on new weapons deals,” said the source.
The official added that the Syrians are interested in acquiring Russia’s Pantsyr-S1 Air Defense Missile systems, BUK-M1 surface-to-air medium-range missile system, military aircraft, and other hardware.
Russia has condemned both Israel and the US for their role in arming the Georgian military with sophisticated weapons.
Israel claims it has not directly equipped or trained the Georgian military, and private Israeli firms – with the defense ministry’s approval- are responsible for such dealings.
Russia Looks To Send Navy Fleet To Caribbean
Bloomberg
August 18, 2008
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Russia has expressed interest in sending a naval fleet to the Caribbean. He said Venezuela would welcome the visit.
The naval fleet would come to Caribbean waters on a trip of “friendship and work,’’ Chavez said in comments on state television. Venezuela has bought Sukhoi fighter jets from Russia and is evaluating the purchase of submarines, Chavez said.
“We’ve been informed that the Russian government wants to visit Venezuela,’’ Chavez said. “They want a Russian fleet to come to the Caribbean. If they come, they’ll be welcomed.’’
Venezuela has spent billions of dollars in modernizing its armed forces in recent years, purchasing arms mainly from Russia. The South American country has also criticized the U.S.’s reactivation of the Navy’s Fourth Fleet to patrol the Caribbean on anti-narcotics missions.
Chavez said he’s interested in buying K-8 Chinese training jets after the U.S. stopped selling replacement parts for existing Venezuelan aircraft. He said he’ll visit China in September.
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=5513
Russia moving missile launchers into South Ossetia
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008120494_ossetia18.html
Syria Signs Defense Pact With Russia
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/t..iddle_east/article4573599.ece
Russia Checkmates the Neocons
http://www.infowars.com/?p=4071
Big Russian flotilla led by Admiral Kuznetsov carrier heads for Syrian port
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=5526
Filed under: airstrikes, army, Department of Defense, DoD, federal crime, foreign aid, Genocide, georgia, Globalism, Military, military strike, moscow, nation building, navy, occupation, Preemptive Strike, preemptive war, Russia, Shock and Awe, South Ossetia, staged provocation, Troops, UN, War Crimes, war games, war spending, war training, WW3, ww4 | Tags: military advisors, operation Immediate Response, soldiers, u.s. soldiers, u.s. troops, Valery Churkin, Washington D.C.
127 advisers from DoD working in Georgia
Ros Business Consulting
August 10, 2008
127 advisers from the US Department of Defense are working in Georgia, Valery Churkin, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, said at an extraordinary meeting of the UN Security Council in New York, which was initiated by the United States and Georgia. “I cannot name them, perhaps Georgia’s representative knows them,” Churkin noted. He said he was not surprised that the UN Security Council meeting had been initiated by the US and Georgia. “We all know about close ties between the presidents of the two countries,” he stressed.
Georgia unleashed its military campaign against South Ossetia on August 7, following the completion of a joint US-Georgian military exercise, in which 1,000 US military advisers took part, according to Churkin. The exercise was called “Immediate Response.” “Trained by their American colleagues, Georgian troops did just that, they responded immediately,” Churkin said. “When I speak about close relations between the United States and Georgia, I would not like to think that Washington gave the green light to the opportunistic actions of the Georgian leadership,” he remarked. Churkin said Russia was in contact with the United States, and this cooperation would be continued in order to restore peace in Georgia.
Filed under: Air Force, airstrikes, blockade, Britain, ceasefire, Europe, european union, federal crime, Genocide, George Bush, georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, Military, military strike, moscow, nation building, navy, neocons, occupation, Preemptive Strike, preemptive war, Robert Gates, Russia, Shock and Awe, South Ossetia, staged provocation, Taxpayers, Troops, United Kingdom, War Crimes, war funding, war spending, war training, WW3, ww4 | Tags: foreign aid, poti, soldiers, u.s. soldiers
Bush orders U.S. Navy into the Black Sea
DEBKAfile
August 13, 2008
He demanded that Russia open all routes to these deliveries and civilian transit.
DEBKAfile’s military sources report that the strong military actions a furious US president George W. Bush ordered Wednesday, Aug. 13, amount to a bid to break the sea, land and air blockade of Georgia Russia is maintaining in violation of the EU-brokered ceasefire. Flanked by the secretaries of state and defense, Bush said following orders to Robert Gates as head of the military, the first US Air Force transport was already in the air with humanitarian and medical aid for Georgia.
He accused Moscow of violating the less than one-day old ceasefire fire in its
in its conflict with Georgia, but sending Russian tanks and APC’s to the east of the Georgian town of Gori, threatening the capital Tbilisi and occupying the Black Sea port of Poti. Bush voiced support for Georgia’s democratically-elected government and territorial integrity and declared Russia must cease all military acts and withdraw to positions held before the conflict flared. Russian must keep its word and act to end this crisis.
U.S. to take control of Georgian ports: Saakashvili
Reuters
August 13, 2008
President George W. Bush’s pledge to send aid to Georgia means that the U.S. military will take control of the ex-Soviet state’s ports and airports, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said on Wednesday.
“You have heard the statement by the U.S. president that the United States is starting a military-humanitarian operation in Georgia,” Saakashvili said in a television address.
“It means that Georgian ports and airports will be taken under the control of the U.S. defense ministry in order to conduct humanitarian and other missions. This is a very important statement for easing tension.”
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=66456§ionid=351020602
U.S. Denies Troops Fighting In Georgia
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/..C24173566-12377%2C00.html
Georgia president denies Israel halted military aid due to war
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1011298.html
U.S. Warns Russia And Sends Georgia Aid
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/08/13/georgia.russia.war/index.html
Russia says U.S. playing dangerous game in Georgia
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/2008..rgia-ossetia-usa-bd5ae06.html
U.S. Military Instructors Command Hirelings in Georgia
http://www.kommersant.com/p-13081/mercenaries_Georgia_U.S._instructor/
Filed under: army, DEBT, federal crime, human rights, IED, Iraq, Military, nation building, occupation, Pullout, Troops, War Crimes, War On Terror, war spending | Tags: soldiers, u.s. soldiers
U.S. soldiers laugh hysterically as they blow up bomb right next to an innocent woman
http://mparent7777-1.livejournal.com/1245836.html
U.S. Spent $85 Billion In Contractors In Iraq
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200..cJ7emFVH.8AopofqZ2wPIE
Iraq demands “very clear” U.S. troop timeline
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080810/ts_nm/iraq_dc
Filed under: airstrikes, arms sales, Empire, federal crime, foreign aid, gas prices, Genocide, georgia, gulf, Iran, Iraq, Israel, israeli soldiers, jews, Jordan, Mikheil Saakashvili, Military, military strike, moscow, nation building, NATO, occupation, Oil, Pentagon, Petrol, Preemptive Strike, preemptive war, putin, Russia, Shock and Awe, South Ossetia, Soviet Union, tel aviv, Troops, Turkey, War Crimes, War On Terror, war spending, war training, weapons trade, WW3, ww4, Zionism | Tags: Eilat, ethnic cleansing, pipeline, russian peacekeepers, Salome Zurabishvili, soldiers, tbilisi, Tskhinvali, Turkmenistan, u.s. soldiers, UTI Worldwide Inc.
US sends more arms to Georgia: Israeli media
Russia Today
August 11, 2008
The United States is sending fresh supplies of weapons to Georgia from its base in the Jordanian port of Aqabah. That’s according to the Israeli newspaper – Maariv.
The paper says the US began flying weapons from the transport hub on Saturday.
According to Maariv, the US is hiring Russian-made freight planes belonging to UTI Worldwide Inc. to transport arms and ammunition to Georgia. The paper says the Pentagon is redirecting supplies to Tbilisi that were earmarked for Iraq.
The Aqabah terminal is used by the US to supply troops in Iraq. The American military relies on the hub mainly because it’s safer to use Aqabah than Iraq’s own ports in the Persian Gulf.
Georgia stocks a wide range of weapons from many sources. This is a strategic move in case Russia were to block off the channels through which it gets its military supplies.
Israel ’has a hand in S. Ossetia war’
Press TV
August 10, 2008
Israel has provided Georgia with military assistance amid an ongoing armed conflict in the breakaway region of South Ossetia.
The Israeli web site Debkafiles which is believed to have close links with the regime’s intelligence and military sources, reported that last year, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili had commissioned from Israeli security firms up to 1,000 military advisers to train the country’s armed forces.
According to the report, the Israeli advisors also helped Tbilisi with military intelligence and security operations. Georgia also purchased weapons, intelligence and electronic warfare systems from Israel.
The report added the Israeli advisers were deeply involved in the Georgian army’s preparations to attack and capture the capital of South Ossetia on Friday.
The web site quoted “its military experts” as saying a project to pump Caspian oil and gas to the Turkish terminal of Ceyhan instead of the Russian pipeline network is in the interest of Tel Aviv.
The regime therefore has been negotiating with Turkey, Georgia, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan to go ahead with the construction of pipelines to transfer oil to terminals in Ashkelon and Eilat.
The report added that Moscow had demanded Tel Aviv to halt its military assistance to Georgia and even warned the regime of a diplomatic row.
Israel, however, said that its military cooperation with Georgia had been “defensive.”
Georgia captured the capital of South Ossetia on Friday, triggering a response from Russia which has stationed its peacekeepers in the breakaway region since the 1990s conflicts.
Ties between the two former Soviet republics have been strained over several issues, including Georgia’s NATO membership bid.
US partly to blame – ex Georgian FM
Russia Today
August 11, 2008
Many experts say the military conflict between Georgia and South Ossetia is not in Russia’s interests. The Former Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zurabishvili says the United States could be partly responsible for the violence in South Ossetia.
In an interview with the France-Presse news agency she commented on the possible reasons behind the military conflict.
“There are many Americans in Georgia training the military forces of the country and monitoring the situation. As I understand, they also supervise the strategic corridor – the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1010187.html
Israel Linked To Georgia Security
http://www.thebulletin.us/site/index..AG=461&dept_id=576361&rfi=8
U.S. Releases $250K For Emergency Aid In Georgia
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D92GC5G80&show_article=1
Georgians: We Helped In Iraq, Now Help Us
http://www.guardian.co.uk/busines..orldbank.usa?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront
War in Georgia: The Israeli connection
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3580136,00.html
Putin Accuses U.S. Of Helping Georgia
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/..-details/Defiant+Putin+accuses+US+of+
Did the U.S. Prep Georgia for War with Russia?
http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/08/did-us-military.html
Did U.S., Israel Provocateur S. Ossetia Conflict? Does the Sun Come Up in the Morning?
http://www.infowars.com/?p=3860
Israeli soldiers who trained Georgia troops say war with Russia is no surprise
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=1010230
Israel won’t stop arms sales to Georgia
http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=27365
Filed under: Dana Perino, DEBT, Economy, George Bush, Iraq, Iraqnam, joe stiglitz, Military, nation building, neocons, occupation, Troops, US Economy, Vietnam, War On Terror, war spending, White House | Tags: Congressional Research Service, CRS
At $648 Billion, Cost Of Iraq War Almost Equal To Vietnam
Think Progress
July 26, 2008
In his 1999 book, A Charge To Keep, President Bush said he had “learned the lessons of Vietnam” about “never again ask[ing] the military to fight a political war.” After launching the Iraq war, in April 2004, Bush rejected the analogy that Iraq was turning into a quagmire like Vietnam:
Q: How do you answer the Vietnam comparison?
BUSH: I think the analogy is false.
Last August, however, President Bush reversed course and embraced the Vietnam analogy, stating Vietnam taught us that “the price of America’s withdrawal” is steep and painful.
In a new report, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) reveals that the real similarity between Iraq and Vietnam is in the price of staying. In constant FY2008 dollars, the Vietnam war cost the U.S. $686 billion. The Iraq war, at just over five years old, is priced at $648 billion:
CRS notes, “All estimates are of the costs of military operations only and do not reflect costs of veterans benefits, interest on war-related debt, or assistance to allies.” Thus, the actual costs of the Iraq war are likely much greater, as Nobel Prize economist Joe Stiglitz reported in his book, The Three Trillion Dollar War.
It is unlikely, however, that the White House is concerned about these mounting costs. In October, the CBO conservatively said the wars may cost $2 trillion over the next decade. “I’m not worried about the number,” White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said in response, calling the estimate “pure speculation.”
Indeed, “the price of America’s withdrawal” from Iraq may be an alternative that Bush should strongly consider.