MARINE CORPS TIMES: SHOULD GIS BE AWARDED PURPLE HEART FOR PTSD?

Idea sparks debate among troops, defense officials

A quick question tossed at Defense Secretary Robert Gates — Should veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder receive the Purple Heart? — has created a maelstrom in the blogosphere.

By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writerPosted : Monday May 19, 2008 11:59:13 EDT
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2008/05/army_purpleptsd_051908w/

It seems the reasoning behind the idea — to lessen the stigma of mental health disorders — also works against the proposition.
“It would lessen the meaning of the award,” a Marine said about the military’s oldest combat medal.
“I’d be ashamed to wear it,” chimed in a soldier.

“It’s an insult to those who have suffered real injury on the battlefield,” wrote an Army intelligence officer.

The dust-up began May 2 when Gates was on a visit to Red River Army Depot, Texas. During a brief media availability, a reporter asked Gates if the Pentagon might consider awarding Purple Hearts to troops with combat-related PTSD.

“It’s an interesting idea … I think it’s clearly something that needs to be looked at,” Gates said.
John Fortunato, who directs the Restoration and Resilience Center in Fort Bliss, Texas, added fuel to the fire by saying the medal could help service members understand that PTSD is a common by-product of war.

“These guys have paid at least as high a price, some of them, as anybody with a traumatic brain injury, as anyone with a shrapnel wound,” Fortunato said, adding that not recognizing PTSD as a wound deserving of the Purple Heart “says this wound isn’t worthy.”
Fortunato made his comments to the Pentagon’s internal American Forces Information Service, which folded them into an article posted May 5 on the official Defense Department Web site. But by Thursday, calls to Fortunato were being referred to the Pentagon — he was no longer talking about the issue.

At a news conference Thursday, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said Gates will, in fact, look into the issue.

“I should point out that they’ve looked at this before and they determined ... that it was not appropriate to make PTSD a qualification for the Purple Heart,” Morrell said. “But I can tell you that the department is exploring PTSD as a qualifying wound through the [Defense Department] Awards Advisory Group. There is no timetable at this point for them to provide a recommendation.”

Gen. George Washington created the Badge of Military Merit to honor anyone who served with distinction during wartime. In 1932, Gen. Douglas MacArthur decided it would go only to those wounded or killed in action. Rules for who may receive it are strict: The injury must occur during combat, can’t be self-inflicted and can’t result from an accident.

But illnesses don’t qualify — and PTSD is considered an illness, not an injury.

“I thought it was a brilliant idea when it first came up,” said Charles Figley, who co-edited “Combat Stress Injury Theory Research,” and is a professor at the Florida State University Traumatology Institute. “But the science is just not there to be able to determine if there was an injury.”

Figley had hoped that considering PTSD a combat injury would reduce some of the stigma associated with it. In fact, many of the bloggers attacking the idea say it would denigrate the medal — and they don’t consider PTSD the same thing as a battle wound.

Click on link: http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2008/05/army_purpleptsd_051908w/ to read the full story.

CNN REPORTS: IRAQ PARTY WANTS TO PUNISH US SOLDIER WHO USED QURAN FOR TARGET PRACTICE

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraq's most powerful Sunni Arab political party on Monday said a U.S. soldier's desecration of the Quran, the Muslim holy book, requires the "severest of punishments," not just an apology and a military reassignment.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/05/19/iraq.quran/index.html

The Iraqi Islamic Party, the movement of Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, condemned what it said was a "blatant assault on the sanctities of Muslims all over the world."
An American staff sergeant who was a sniper section leader used a Quran for target practice on May 9.

The U.S. commander in Baghdad on Saturday issued a formal apology and read a letter of apology from the shooter.

The sergeant has been relieved of duty as a section leader "with prejudice," officially reprimanded by his commanding general, dismissed from his regiment and redeployed -- reassigned to the United States.

LATEST US CASUALTY REPORT: UPTICK IN VIOLENCE IN AFGHANISTAN

The Chicago Tribune is reporting the death of a soldier, Staff Sgt. James P. Snyder was wounded in a roadside bombing, in Baghdad in January, 2008. He died Sunday, May 10th at Fort Benning Georgia six surgeries in three weeks. No other details were released.

Marine Sgt. Jake Knospler has endured 22 surgeries since a grenade tore through his face during the Battle of Fallujah in Iraq in 2004. He has many more operations to go.

Source: http://warnewstoday.blogspot.com/

Reported Security incidents:Baghdad:#1: Iraq’s oil exports in April dropped by more than two million barrels mainly because of the ongoing violence in the country, said Oil ministry in a statement. The ministry says that oil exports stood at 57.06 million barrels for April, down from 59.4 million the month before.
#2: U.S. soldiers killed three militants after coming under attack on Sunday in Sadr City, in eastern Baghdad, the U.S. military said.

#3: Three bodies were found in various districts of Baghdad on Sunday, police said.

#4: A roadside bomb wounded three people in Doura district in southern Baghdad, police said.

#5: One Katyusha rocket wounded five people near Hurriya district in northwestern Baghdad, police said.Five civilians were wounded when a Katusha rocket hit Adan intersection in Kadhemiyah neighborhood in north Baghdad around 12:00 p.m.

Nasiriyah:#1: Monday's bombing killed Lt. Col. Farhan Qassim, chief of police in Suq al-Shiyoukh, an area outside Nasiriyah, 200 miles southeast of Baghdad. The blast went off inside Qassim's office as he entered it in the morning, police in Nasiriyah said. The police officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they feared becoming targets themselves.

Basra:#1: Gunmen killed two policemen in a drive-by shooting on a police patrol on Sunday in central Basra, 420 km (260 miles) southeast of Baghdad, police said.

#2: Iraqi solders and police launched pre-dawn raids in four neighborhoods of Basra, including two Shiite militia enclaves, arresting several suspects, Basra's operations command Maj. Gen. Mohammed Jawad Huwaidi said, without giving a precise number of arrests. The sweep was targeting gunmen believed to be behind Sunday's attack on a police checkpoint in the center of the city that killed a policeman and wounded three others, Huwaidi said.

Tikrit:#1: A car bomb killed one person and wounded six others in central Tikrit, 175 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.

Ninevah Prv:#1: Iraqi security forces arrested 56 wanted men during operations in in Nineveh province in northern Iraq, Interior Ministry spokesman Major-General Abdul-Karim Khalaf said.

Sulaimaniya Prv:#1: Iranian artillery shells were fired at the border area of Iraq's Sulaimaniya province. There were no casualities, a local government official said.Al Anbar Prv:Ratba:#1: Two dead bodies were found with gunshot wounds and signs of torture in a deserted area near Rutba, 360 km (220 miles) west of Baghdad, police said.Fallujah:#1: A man was killed with his wife while she was wearing an explosive vest. The incident took place in al Mukhtar area north Falluja city west of Baghdad. Police said that they got intelligence information that the man has an explosive vest. The man gave the vest to his wife when the house was raided by the security forces. After police left the house, the explosive vest detonated killing the woman and casing serious wounds to the man who dies later, police said.

Afghanistan:#1: An official says a suicide bomber in eastern Afghanistan has wounded four Afghan troops and a civilian translator. A provincial government spokesman Ghamai Mohammadyar said the bomber struck the troops on patrol in Bermel district of Paktika province on Monday. He said four Afghan soldiers and a civilian translator working with the U.S.-led coalition troops were wounded. The bomber died in the blast.

#2: A suicide bomber blew himself up next to a police convoy in southern Afghanistan Sunday, killing four civilians and wounding eight other people, an official said. The suicide bomber was targeting the district police chief in Musa Qala in Helmand province, but instead killed four civilians, said provincial police Chief Mohammad Hussein Andiwal. Eight other people, including five policemen were wounded, he said. The bomber also died. Several shops were damaged in the blast. The police chief was not harmed, Andiwal said.

#3: A U.S.-coalition member and another civilian died in a separate roadside blast, also in the south. Also Sunday, a roadside bomb hit a U.S. military vehicle in the southern Zabul province, killing one coalition service member and an Afghani. A statement from the U.S.-led coalition said another service member was seriously injured in the attack. It did not give any further details about the casualties, or say if the civilian killed was a bystander or working with the coalition

.#4: In eastern Nangarhar province, suspected Taliban militants shot and killed two police officers Sunday in Khogyani district, said Mohammad Hashim Ghamsharik, spokesman for the provincial governor.

#5: The attack came a day after insurgents hit a NATO helicopter carrying the Helmand's Gov. Ghulab Mangal into the volatile town. The helicopter was damaged in the rocket-propelled grenade attack, but no one was injured.

#6: The Australian military on Monday said it had launched a "major push" to clear out extremist Taleban fighters from their heartland in southern Afghanistan. A series of operations would be carried out north of the soldiers' base near Tarin Kowt to clear out insurgents, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) said. "Australian soldiers have begun a major push into the Taleban heartland of Uruzgan province in southern Afghanistan with the intent of pushing out the Taleban, restoring vital infrastructure and creating a safe environment for the Afghan people," the ADF said in a statement. The push would be spearheaded by engineers, infantry, cavalry and support troops, it said. Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Yeaman, commanding officer of the 4th Reconstruction Task Force, said the Australians had moved into the Baluchi region as part of joint operations with the Dutch.

#7: One Indian and one Nepalese kidnapped by a criminal gang have been released in western Afghan province of Herat after 27 days in captivity, Indian embassy in Afghanistan said Sunday. "We are pleased to inform that Mr. Sarang Mohammed Naeem, an Indian national, along with his Nepalese colleague, K.B. Gurung, abducted by a criminal gang on 21st April, have been released late last night (May 17, 2008)," the Indian embassy said in a statement.

#8: A suicide bomber killed 10 people on Sunday after attacking a bakery on a Pakistan army base near the northwestern city of Peshawar, according to police and the Pakistani military. Nineteen others were wounded in the suicide attack in Mardan, in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province, according to a Pakistani military news release. The bomber also died in the attack, which happened between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. local time (1500-1600 GMT, 1000-1100 ET), police said. Four Pakistani security personnel were among those killed, and four others were among the injured, the military said.

#9: AN Australian soldier seriously hurt in a roadside bomb attack in southern Iraq is to be transferred to Germany for specialist treatment. The soldier suffered shrapnel wounds to his arms, neck and face when the bomb exploded near his Bushmaster vehicle outside the city of An Nasiriyah on Saturday. No other soldier was injured in the attack and the Bushmaster vehicle, although damaged, was driven from the scene.

#10: A convoy of 79 commercial trucks loaded with WFP food left southern Afghan city of Kandahar for western Herat and Nimroz provinces on May 17, Aleem Siddique, a UNAMA spokesman told a weekly press briefing here. "The convoy, which was escorted by the Afghan National Police, was attacked by anti-government elements using small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades on the main ring road in Maiwand district of Kandahar province," he said. In the attack, he added, two trucks loaded with WFP food were hit by rocket-propelled grenades and burned down, which resulted in the loss of 84 tons of wheat for 10,500 people. "Thankfully, no human casualties have been reported," the UNAMAspokesman further said.

#11: In a separate incident on May 8, a commercial truck with 48 tons of WFP wheat for 6,000 people went missing on the way from Kandahar to Herat, he added.

REUTERS: US APOLOGIZES FOR QURAN SHOOTING: GI SHIPPED BACK TO US

Muslim holy book was found riddled with bullet holes at Baghdad range

GI who used Quran for target practice is shipped back to US

Reuters
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24693647/

BAGHDAD - An American sniper was removed from Iraq after he used a copy of the Quran for target practice, the military said Sunday, a day after a U.S. commander held a formal ceremony apologizing to Sunni tribal leaders.

The elaborate ceremony — in which one U.S. officer kissed a new copy of Islam's holy book before giving it to the tribal leaders — reflected the military's eagerness to stave off anger among Sunni Arabs it has been cultivating as allies.

The tribesmen have become key in the fight against al-Qaida in Iraq militants, who depict the American forces as anti-Islamic occupiers. One anti-U.S. Iraqi Sunni group condemned the Quran shooting, calling it "a hideous act." Similar perceived insults to Islam have triggered protests throughout the Muslim world. Iraqi police found the bullet-riddled Quran with graffiti inside the cover on a firing range near a police station in Radwaniyah, a former insurgent stronghold west of Baghdad, U.S. military spokesman Col. Bill Buckner said.

An American soldier was killed Sunday by a roadside bomb that hit his vehicle north of Baghdad, raising to at least 4,080 the number of U.S. service members who have died since the Iraq war began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

FIGHTING RESUMES IN SADR CITY: ONE US SOLDIER KILLED

Clashes reignited in Sadr City, but otherwise Iraq was relatively calm today. At least 28 Iraqis were killed and 56 more were wounded in violence limited mostly to the capital. One American soldier was killed and another wounded in Salah ad Din province when their patrol struck a roadside bomb.

http://www.antiwar.com/updates/?articleid=12857

Fighting resumed in Sadr City where four people were killed and 38 more were injured. An al-Sadr source said that Iraqi forces opened fire on people at a marketplace, killing seven of them. Three others were killed when they attacked U.S. forces

In Baghdad, a car bomb killed two Iraqi soldiers and wounded six others in Zayouna. Four people were wounded when a mortar struck Iskan. Two gunmen were killed after they attacked U.S. forces in northwestern Baghdad. No casualties were reported after rockets fell in the Green Zone. Two civilians were injured during an IED attack in Ataifiyah. An IED targeting a U.S. patrol near al-Kindi hospital injured two civilians instead. Also, a fire consumed a number of stores in the Amil marketplace, but no casualties were reported after U.S. forces detonated an IED found there. Also, four dumped bodies were found.
A U.S. air strike in Khan Bani Saad killed six suspects and destroyed a weapons cache.
Coalition forces in Mosul prevented a car bombing, and a large arms cache was found separately.
Fifteen suspects were detained in central and northern Iraq.
Four suspects were captured in Makhmour.
The police chief in al-Rashad was arrested under suspicion of collaborating with gunmen.
Fifty people were detained in Maysan province.
No casualties were reported near Suleimaniyah where Iranian sources continue to bomb suspected Party for Free Life in Kurdistan (PJAK) rebel locations.
In Basra, a grenade was tossed at an entertainment store. No one was hurt. Another bomb blasted a building housing the Iraqi Labour Union and the Iraqi Communist Party, but no casualties were reported. Clashes between police commandos and and gunmen left four people with injuries.

US SOLDIER WHO DEFACED QURAN REMOVED FROM IRAQ

BAGHDAD_A U.S. Army soldier was removed from Iraq after he shot a Quran full of bullets and marked it with graffiti, the U.S. military announced Sunday.

By Raviya H. Ismail McClatchy Newspapers

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/iraq/

U.S. military officials, fearing a backlash as a result of the desecration moved quickly to resolve the case after Iraqi police found the desecrated book May 11 at a shooting range in the predominantly Sunni Muslim area of Radwaniya in western Baghdad.

They briefed tribal leaders on their investigation and expressed regret for the damage to the Quran, the Islamic holy book. » read m

MORE ON US SOLDIER USING QURAN FOR TARGET PRACTICE AND INCIDENTS OF VIOLENCE ACROSS IRAQ AND MORTAR ATTACK ON GREEN ZONE

Here is the latest information on the US soldier who used the Quran for target practice. We also have reports of violence across Iraq and another attack on the Green Zone.

Despite all this that is happening in Iraq, the mainstream media and FOX NEWS continue to BS the American public that the "surge" is working.

Reported Security IncidentsBaghdad Reports on the violence overnight in Sadr City are sketchy. Reuters merely reports that "Four people were killed and 38 others wounded in clashes between security forces and Shi'ite militiamen in Sadr City in eastern Baghdad, police and hospital sources said. However, Israel News says specifically that "Mortar shells slammed into a residential area north of Baghdad, killing at least four people and wounding 30, most children playing outside, officials said Sunday." The AP photo caption above http://warnewstoday.blogspot.com/ says that 5 children were killed in a mortar strike in Sadr City, which is not "north of Baghdad," but rather in the northeastern part of Baghdad. Whether these reports all refer to the same incident, and how many total casualties there were, is not clear at this time. The AP has numerous other photos of children with severe injuries in the hospital. Xinhua now reports a total of six dead in Sadr City. If the situation becomes clearer, I'll post an update later in the day.

-- C Reuters also reports:
A mortar bomb wounded four people in Iskan district in western Baghdad, police said.
Five bodies were found in various districts of Baghdad on Saturday, police said.
U.S. forces killed two militants who tried to attack them in northwestern Baghdad, the U.S. military said.A fire erupted in al-Amil neighborhood souk (market), southwestern Baghdad, on Sunday after U.S. forces detonated an improvised explosive device (IED), gutting a number of stores in the area, an Iraqi police source said. The U.S. had no comment on the matter.

Two soldiers were killed and four others wounded when a roadside car bomb went off near an Iraqi army patrol on al-Rubaie street, eastern Baghdad, on Sunday, an Iraqi police source said.

KUNA reports three dead.Four katyusha rockets strike Green Zone, no casualties reported.Roadside bomb targeting a U.S. convoy in central Baghdad injures three civilians.Bomb in a minibus injures twoAt least one civilian was killed and another wounded on Saturday evening when a roadside bomb exploded near an Iraqi army vehicle patrol in northern Baghdad, a police source said. This was reported too late to make yesterday's post.

Khan Bani Saad (south of Baquba)A senior officer from the Iraqi army was killed on Saturday during clashes with armed groups in Diala province, central Iraq, a security source said. The deceased held the rank of colonel. Two other soldiers were injured. Again, this was reported too late for yesterday's post.U.S. forces killed six militants and destroyed a weapons cache in an airstrike in the town of Khan Bani Saad, near Baquba, the U.S. military said. Presumably supporting the Iraqi army action in that town which resulted in the casualties yesterday.al-Rashad, Kirkuk areaIraqi troops arrest police chief on charges of collaborating with "armed groups." No explanation is given, but it's a fair bet this has something to do with the Arab-Kurdish territorial dispute.

-- CBasraIraqi police say they have carried out raids and confiscated mortar rounds and automatic rifles. Actually the list of confiscated weapons doesn't sound very impressive -- 88 mortar shells and 40 rifles. -- CNotable by its absence: any news from Mosul. The big operation there apparently turned out to be a wet firecracker. We'll see what happens in the days ahead. Other News of the DayA U.S. Army staff sergeant in Radhwaniya writes "Fuck yeah" inside a Koran, draws a target on the cover, uses it for target practice, and leaves it for Iraqis to find. It's too soon to tell what the wider reaction will be. CNN's Michael Ware describes the apology by Maj. Gen. Jeffery Hammond, which appears to have been accepted by the local Shawa, at least for now.

Excerpt:
A former college quarterback, Maj. Gen. Jeffery Hammond, commander of the 4th Infantry Division, stood facing the angry crowd. His face was grim and fixed as tribal sheikhs swirled around him."I am a man of honor, I am a man of character. You have my word, this will never happen again," the general told the angry crowd through loudspeakers, pounding the makeshift podium three times with his fist."In the most humble manner, I look in to your eyes today and I say, please forgive me and my soldiers." The act of his sniper was criminal, he said. "I've come to this land to protect you, to support you...this soldier has lost the honor to serve the United States Army and the people of Iraq here in Baghdad."Martin stood before the crowd next, opening his address with an Islamic blessing. He announced the sergeant had been relieved of duty with prejudice; reprimanded by the commanding general with a memorandum of record attached to his military record; dismissed from the regiment and redeployed from the brigade.Holding a new Quran in his hands, he turned to the crowd. "I hope that you'll accept this humble gift." Martin kissed the Quran and touched it to his forehead as he handed it to the tribal elders. The crowd's voice rose, "Yes, yes, to the Quran. No, no, to the devil."But would it be enough to appease the mood in Radhwaniya? A local sheikh came to the microphone. "In the name of all the sheikhs," he said, "we declare we accept the apology that was submitted."This news has just broken, so I have found very little commentary about it. No doubt there will be further discussion as the day goes on. This Muslim American blogger expects serious repercussions.

Iraqi military spokesman announces intention to restore basic services to Sadr City. We'll see.Iraqi oil exports fell by nearly 3 million barrels in April, ostensibly because of the fighting in Basra. Nancy Pelosi leaves Iraq, with minimal public comment.

Quote of the Day
[J]ump to September 11, 2001 and its aftermath -- and you know the Tai Chi version of history from there. Think of it as a grim cosmic joke -- that the 9/11 attacks, as apocalyptic as they looked, were anything but. The true disasters followed and the wounds were largely self-inflicted, as the most militarily powerful nation on the planet used its own force to disable itself.

STARS AND STRIPES REPORT ON US SOLDIER USING QURAN FOR TARGET PRACTICE

US military says soldier shot at Quran

By KIM GAMEL Associated Press Writer
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ?SITE=DCSAS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

BAGHDAD (AP) -- A soldier used a Quran, the Islamic holy book, for target practice in a predominantly Sunni area west of Baghdad, prompting an apology from the military, a spokesman said Sunday.

Iraqi police found the bullet-riddled Quran with graffiti inside the cover on a small-arms range near a police station in Radwaniyah, a former insurgent stronghold west of Baghdad, U.S. military spokesman Col. Bill Buckner said.

American commanders then launched an inquiry that led to disciplinary action against the soldier, who has been removed from Iraq, Buckner said.

The action, which happened May 9 and was discovered two days later, threatened to further strain relations between the Americans and Sunni allies who have joined forces with them against al-Qaida in Iraq in Radwaniyah and other areas.

The incident was first reported by CNN, which broadcast a ceremony at which the top American commander in Baghdad apologized to tribal leaders in Radwaniyah. The military confirmed the details in an e-mailed response to a query.

"I come before you here seeking your forgiveness," Maj. Gen. Jeffery Hammond was quoted as saying. "In the most humble manner I look in your eyes today and I say please forgive me and my soldiers."

The commander also read a letter of apology by the shooter, and another military official kissed a Quran and presented it to the tribal leaders, according to CNN.

The military statement called the incident "serious and deeply troubling" but stressed it was a result of one soldier's actions and "not representative of the professionalism of our soldiers or the respect they have for all faiths."

Separately, mortar shells slammed into a residential area north of Baghdad, killing at least four people and wounding 30, most of them children playing outside, officials said Sunday.
The shelling occurred as clashes broke out in Shiite areas late Saturday despite a truce reached last week by Shiite politicians and followers of anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

The Sunni alliances have been key to a steep decline in violence over the past year, along with a U.S. troop buildup and a longer term cease-fire by al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia.

Bandaged girls and boys with bloodstained clothes cried as they were packed two to a bed at a hospital in Sadr City, a Shiite stronghold where most of the recent fighting has occurred.

At least three mortar rounds struck a house, an open area and a street where boys were playing soccer in the Maamil neighborhood on Baghdad's northeastern outskirts, witnesses said.
Those killed included a man and three children, according to police and hospital officials who also said at least 30 people were wounded.

CNN WAR CORRESPONDENT MICHAEL WARE WRITES ABOUT THE DESECRATION OF QURAN BY US MILITARY OFFICER

When a gunshot-riddled Quran is found, a tenuous partnership is threatened
U.S. military officers apologize to authorities, citizens in Iraqi village

In our Behind the Scenes series, CNN correspondents share their experiences in covering news and analyze the stories behind the events.

CNN's Michael Ware covers the Iraq war.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/05/17/btsc.ware/index.html

CNN's Michael Ware says the Quran incident could have become a crisis.

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- What the Iraqi fighter found threatened America's vital alliance with Sunni militia.

A week ago in a police station shooting range on Baghdad's western outskirts, the American-allied Iraqi militiaman found what one or more GIs had been using for target practice -- a copy of the Quran, Islam's holy book.

Riddled with bullets, the rounds piercing deep into the thick volume, the pages were shredded. Turning the holy book in his hands, the man found two handwritten English words, scrawled in pen. "F*** yeah."

The discovery was incendiary. It was an affront to Islam and a serious challenge to the religious credentials of the U.S-allied militias, or Awakening Councils, who turned on al-Qaeda and are now on the U.S. government payroll. Watch villagers protest the incident »

Largely moderate Sunnis, the American-backed militias face constant accusations from Islamic groups that they have turned against Islam to support the cause of the infidels, or nonbelievers. If this indignity had gone unanswered, the Islamists' case would have been won.

Abdullah, the militiaman who found the defaced Quran, complained to his superiors. Soon, there was outrage among the tribes and population of Radhwaniya, a semi-rural area long home to loyalists of the former regime of Saddam Hussein.

Word of what the Americans had done rippled throughout the district and the fury spread. Honor was at stake, and the urge for a violent response against the insult was strong. However, tribal leaders made an approach to American commanders in the region. "Honestly, we have to defend our religion," said Sheikh Saad al-Falahi, "and relations [with the U.S.] would deteriorate if they did not apologize."

Don't Miss
Soldier uses Quran for target practice
Having fought and then negotiated so hard and for so long to quiet the insurgency in Radhwaniya, American commanders were wary of the potential crisis.

The U.S. 4th Infantry Division is posted in Baghdad and surrounds; many of its commanders and soldiers are veterans of the Iraq campaign. Col. Ted Martin, commander of the Division's 1st Brigade, immediately launched an investigation, promising the tribal leaders a swift outcome.
Investigators soon identified the Army section that had been at the police station's small arms range, and a staff sergeant, a sniper section leader from the 64th Armor Regiment, was the primary suspect. After denying involvement, the sergeant eventually confessed, though he claimed he had no idea the book used for target practice was a Quran. Martin dismissed the excuse.

On Saturday, about a week after the incident (locals say the shooting practice was on May 9, U.S. forces say the Quran was discovered May 11), CNN was present for the showdown in Radwaniyeh as the Americans faced the tribes.

U.S. commanders arrived at a police outpost in heavily armored vehicles to be met by a human tempest; hundreds of chanting tribesmen lined up behind razor wire, offering their blood and souls in sacrifice for the Quran.

A former college quarterback, Maj. Gen. Jeffery Hammond, commander of the 4th Infantry Division, stood facing the angry crowd. His face was grim and fixed as tribal sheikhs swirled around him.

"I am a man of honor, I am a man of character. You have my word, this will never happen again," the general told the angry crowd through loudspeakers, pounding the makeshift podium three times with his fist.

"In the most humble manner, I look in to your eyes today and I say, please forgive me and my soldiers." The act of his sniper was criminal, he said. "I've come to this land to protect you, to support you...this soldier has lost the honor to serve the United States Army and the people of Iraq here in Baghdad."

Martin stood before the crowd next, opening his address with an Islamic blessing. He announced the sergeant had been relieved of duty with prejudice; reprimanded by the commanding general with a memorandum of record attached to his military record; dismissed from the regiment and redeployed from the brigade.

Holding a new Quran in his hands, he turned to the crowd. "I hope that you'll accept this humble gift." Martin kissed the Quran and touched it to his forehead as he handed it to the tribal elders. The crowd's voice rose, "Yes, yes, to the Quran. No, no, to the devil."

But would it be enough to appease the mood in Radhwaniya? A local sheikh came to the microphone. "In the name of all the sheikhs," he said, "we declare we accept the apology that was submitted."

With hands shaken and sheepish thank-yous made, the general and the colonel returned to their armored convoy. The crisis, it seems, was averted.

The stakes, though, had been high. If accord had not been found, says Sheikh Ayad Abd al-Jabbar, head of the local Support Council, it could have been dire.

"Then surely the situation would have changed in another direction and more tension will have risen up, after all the cooperation with the Americans to restore security."

BUSH REVIVES TALK ABOUT STRIKING IRAN

There are many insiders who tell me the Bush administration plan is to launch an air strike on Iran right after Labor Day. The idea is this will help John McCain get elected because the old "saw" of not changing a horse in mid-stream will then be used during the run up to the election.

Bush signaled as much when he was in Israel earlier this week His speech to the Israeli government was more important for what he didn't say than what he did say.

Bush was signaling that the United States is making preparations to go to war against Iran.

The media got it all wrong, as usual, and focused on what they assumed was Bush taking a swipe at Barack Obama. The mainstream press corps was once again duped by the Bush administration.

Bush visit to Israel revives talk of a strike on Iran

By Dion Nissenbaum McClatchy Newspapers

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/251/story/37422.html

JERUSALEM — President Bush's historic speech to the Israeli parliament was as telling for what it didn't say as for what it did.

In 22 minutes, Bush offered one of the strongest demonstrations of support for Israel ever made by an American president. And he reawakened lingering hopes among hawks in Israel or the United States for a U.S. military strike to thwart Iran's nuclear program.

Israel's Army Radio reported Friday that the possibility of an American strike on Iran was raised in private discussions during Bush's visit.

And Mark Regev, spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, said that the Israeli prime minister and American president were "on the same page" on the issue of Iran.

"Both Israel and the United States agree that tangible steps have to be taken, that we cannot sit idly by and see Iran develop a nuclear weapon and that the international community has an obligation to take tangible steps to prevent that from happening," said Regev.

Continue reading by clicking on this link: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/251/story/37422.html

CNN REPORTS: US SOLDIER USES QURAN FOR TARGET PRACTICE

U.S. soldier uses Quran for target practice; military apologizes

Story Highlights
U.S. soldier aims at Quran at police shooting range at Iraqi village
Soldier relieved of duty, sent to United States for reassignment
Officer apologizes in special ceremony at village
Residents protest with banners and by chanting slogans

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/05/17/iraq.quran/index.html

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The U.S. military on Saturday formally apologized to an Iraqi village after a soldier admitted using the Quran -- Islam's holy book -- for target practice.

Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Hammond, commander of U.S. forces in Baghdad, apologized to the Radhwaniya tribe for the staff sergeant, who was a sniper section leader assigned to the headquarters of the 64th Armored Regiment. He also read a letter of apology by the shooter.

"I come before you here seeking your forgiveness," Hammand said to tribal leaders and others at the apology ceremony. "In the most humble manner I look in your eyes today and I say please forgive me and my soldiers."

Another military official kissed a Quran and presented it as "a humble gift" to the tribal leaders.
The shooter, whose name was not released, shot at a Quran on May 9, villagers said. The Quran used in the incident was discovered two days later, according to the military.

A tribal leader said "the criminal act by U.S. forces" took place at a shooting range at the Radhwaniya police station. After the shooters left, an Iraqi policeman found a target marked in the middle of the bullet-riddled Quran.

Copies of the pictures of the Quran obtained by CNN show multiple bullet holes and an expletive scrawled on one of its pages.

A military investigation found the shooter guilty and relieved him of duty; he will be redeployed to the United States for reassignment away from the 1st Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division, Hammond said.

"The actions of one soldier were nothing more than criminal behavior," he said in the apology. "I've come to this land to protect you, to support you -- not to harm you -- and the behavior of this soldier was nothing short of wrong and unacceptable."

Tribal leaders, dignitaries and local security officials attended the ceremony, while residents carried banners and chanted slogans, including "Yes, yes to the Quran" and "America out, out."

GIS GIVE UP THEIR LIVES AND BUSH GIVES UP GOLF

Veterans all across the United States and around the world are furious because President Bush told Politico that he felt the only right thing to do was to give up golf during wartime.

What Bush didn't tell Politco is he had pulled a muscle in his leg and gave up running too.

But even after Bush said he gave up golf as his contribution to the troops in Iraq, he was seen playing golf three months later.

Bush's golf claim angers veterans

guardian.co.ukguardian.co.uk
May 15, 2008
http://wiredispatch.com/news/?id=172578

George Bush has angered US war veterans by declaring that out of solidarity with those who made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq he decided to make his own sacrifice: giving up golf.

In an interview with the Politico website, the president said he took the decision because of the war. "I don't want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the commander in chief playing golf. I feel I owe it to the families to be in solidarity. And I think playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal."

Brandon Friedman, a veteran US infantry officer who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, told the Press Association: "Thousands of Americans have given up a lot more than golf for this war. For President Bush to imply that he somehow stands in solidarity with families of American soldiers by giving up golf is disgraceful. It's an insult to all Americans and a slap in the face to our troops' families."

Friedman, who is vice chairman of the US veterans' organisation VoteVets, added: "It shows how disconnected he is from everyday Americans, especially those who are serving in Iraq."

Bush said he laid down his clubs after the August 2003 bombing of United Nations offices in Baghdad that killed the UN's top official in the country, Sergio Vieira de Mello. "I remember when de Mello got killed as a result of these murderers taking this good man's life. I was playing golf - I think in central Texas - and they pulled me off the golf course and I said, 'It's just not worth it any more'."

WHO WILL SIGN THE SURRENDER IN IRAQ? COMMENTARY BY BILL CORCORAN

Who is going to sign the surrender in Iraq?

Will it be the insurgents?

Will it be Al Qaeda?

Will it be the terrorists?

Will it be the Mehdi Army?

Sen. John McCain says we will not leave Iraq until we WIN in Iraq.

How do we know when we have WON in Iraq?

Let's look at the facts.

The "enemy" is not ONE army and doesn't even wear ONE kind of uniform.

So who the hell surrenders?

I was in the Army during the Korean war and the enemy wore uniforms and represented either North Korea or the Chinese. You could spot an enemy soldier a couple of hundred yards away because they were wearing a uniform unlike the one you were wearing.

This is not the case in Iraq.

Not one single group we are fighting in Iraq wears a uniform and they don't answer to any government.

So what I want to know from Senator McCain is who signs thesurrender in Iraq?

The readers of my blog, CORKSPHERE, at http://corksphere.blogspot.com/ have been asking me this question and I haven't got an answer for them because there isn't an answer.

Bill Corcoran, editor of CORKSPHERE

MARINE CORPS TIMES REVEALS E-MAIL FROM VET AFFAIRS DEPT.WANTS DOCTORS TO AVOID PTSD DIAGNOSIS FOR VETS TO SAVE MONEY

VA e-mail: Save money, do not diagnose PTSD

By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writerPosted : Friday May 16, 2008 10:24:47 EDT
http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2008/05/military_va_adjustmentdisorder_051508w/

Two veterans advocacy groups have asked for copies of all documents relating to the Veterans Affairs Department’s post-traumatic stress disorder policies after an e-mail surfaced asking VA doctors to keep costs down by giving diagnoses of adjustment disorder instead.

Veterans diagnosed with PTSD are eligible for health benefits and, in some cases, disability retirement pay. Adjustment disorder, on the other hand, is considered a short-term diagnosis, and does not qualify veterans for benefits, said Brandon Friedman, vice chair of VoteVets.org, one of the advocacy groups.

“They can say, ‘Ah, you’ve got something temporary, it’ll go away, so we don’t need to pay you for the rest of your life,’ ” Friedman said.

He said several veterans have told him they were diagnosed with adjustment disorder rather than PTSD, and that they felt they had received the wrong diagnosis.

“We hear anecdotal evidence all the time that VA is trying to cut costs by not diagnosing PTSD,” said Friedman, a former infantry officer who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. “But we’ve never actually seen proof that it was being done in an organized way.”

The e-mail, which Friedman said came from a VA hospital’s PTSD program coordinator, was apparently sent to several VA employees at that hospital. A psychologist from the hospital in turn sent it to VoteVets.org, Friedman said.

Click on link http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2008/05/military_va_adjustmentdisorder_051508w/ to read full Marine Corps Times story.

ALL THIS HAPPENED FRIDAY IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN AND STILL BUSH AND MCCAIN CLAIM THINGS ARE GETTING BETTER

The Bush administration, GOP candidate for POTUS John McCain and the mainstream media continue to LIE to the American public and say all is going great in Iraq and Afghanistan.

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED ON FRIDAY IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN.

SOURCE: http://warnewstoday.blogspot.com/

War News for Friday, May 16, 2008
Baghdad:#1: Gunmen ambushed an Iranian Embassy convoy in Baghdad, wounding three Iranians, including two diplomats, and an Iraqi. Iranian Embassy spokesman Manoucher Taslimi says the convoy was en route to a revered Shiite shrine in the northern neighbourhood of Kazimiyah when it came under fire. The attack happened at about 5:30 p.m. Thursday as the convoy approached a bridge that links Kazimiyah with the predominantly Sunni area of Azamiyah, according to Taslimi. He says those wounded, including two Iranian diplomats and an Iranian and an Iraqi administrative employee, were in stable condition.The Interior Ministry official said five people were wounded when the two-vehicle Iranian convoy exchanged fire with Iraqi soldiers at a checkpoint near the bridge after most of the Iranians failed to produce identification cards. "The checkpoint staff asked them for ID cards, but nobody had one except for one Iranian called Abu al-Fadhil," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information. Reports indicate the Iraqi security forces "handled the situation appropriately and with a high degree of professionalism, once again demonstrating their capability at maintaining security in their districts," Russell said in an e-mailed statement.#2: 3 unidentified bodies were found in Baghdad by Iraqi Police today. 1 in Fdhailiyah; 1 in Iskan and 1 in Bayaa.#3: A roadside bomb exploded at a bus station in central Baghdad, killing one civilian and wounding three others, police said.#4: A roadside bomb hit an Iraqi army convoy in southeastern Baghdad, wounding two civilians, police said.#5: The U.S. military said it killed one gunman and wounded another in eastern Baghdad on Thursday when their vehicle came under attack.#6: 3 mortar rounds slammed into the Ghazaliyah police station, west Baghdad, which is being used as a US military base at 11.15 am. No casualties were reported.#7: 3 mortar rounds slammed into the former Central Markets building in Shaab, North Baghdad, which is being used as a US military base at 11.15 am. No casualties were reported.#8: Medical sources inside Sadr city reported 11 injuries and 2 deaths including women and children brought in from al-Shamaiyah and Rashad neighbourhoods, two eastern suburbs of Baghdad, at 4 pm Friday.Diyala Prv:Khanaqin:#1: Five people were wounded when an improvised explosive device (IED) went off in northeast of Baaquba city on Friday, an official security source in Diala said. "The IED, planted in al-Aasry neighborhood in Jalawlaa, Khanaqin district, (155 km) northeast of Baaquba, wounded five civilians, including four children from the same family," the source, who did not want his name mentioned, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq.Mahaweel:#1: U.S. and Iraqi security forces detained nine gunmen during a raid on Thursday in Mahaweel town, 75 km (45 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.Iskandariya:#1: U.S. forces detained 12 suspects on Thursday in the town of Iskandariya, 40 km (25 miles) south of Baghdad, police saidTikrit:#1: 3 prominent doctors were kidnapped by gunmen on the way between Tikrit and Baiji, close to al-Hamra village, 20 km to the north of Tikrit. They are Dr. Sabbar Mahrooz Abdullah, administrator of Tikrit Teaching Hospital, his deputy and specialist Dr. Ahmed Salah.Mosul:#1-2: U.S. and Iraqi troops moved against al-Qaida on two separate fronts Thursday, with house-to-house searches in Mosul and an operation in the desert to stanch the flow of insurgents and weapons to that northern city.#1: There were no reported clashes during the searches in known al-Qaida strongholds in the western and eastern parts of Mosul, Iraq's third largest city, where insurgents are believed to use the cover of sheep and produce markets to smuggle cash, weapons and foreign fighters from nearby Syria.#2: American Marines were operating farther south, near Lake Tharthar, a remote desert region that has been a refuge for al-Qaida fighters and a back channel for supplying the network in the north. We're trying to shut down the rat lines,'' Marine Brig. Gen. Richard Mills, who is heading up the operation, told a briefing at a mobile command post set up in the Mameluke desert. U.S. Marines on Thursday searched an abandoned mud house, uncovering six weapons caches including material for building roadside bombs.Since the Marines' operation began five weeks ago, they have killed six Sunni insurgents in clashes - including five killed when a Harrier jet dropped two bombs on a desert house after a clash in which a U.S. Marine was wounded, Brig. Gen. Randolph Alles said.#3: A physician was killed by a stray bullet in his home in western Mosul. Dr. Muhammad Abdul-Hakim Lawind, a physician at the Ibn Sina Teaching Hospital, was killed when he received a stray bullet in the head while inside his home in al-Najjar neighborhood, western Mosul," the source, who refused to give his name, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq.#4: In the 17 Tamuz neighborhood, western Mosul, a child was wounded when an Iraqi army force detonated an IED," the source said, adding the child happened to be near the scene.#5: A woman was shot down inside her home in eastern Mosul during a late hour of Thursday night, a Ninewa police source said on Friday. A 30-year-old woman was shot down in her home in the eastern Mosul neighborhood of al-Bakr. The woman's brother said she was killed by stray bullets," the source, who did not want his name mentioned, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq.Al Anbar Prv:Fallujah:#1: A suicide bomber blew up his explosive vehicle near a police station in central Falluja city on Friday with no word yet on casualties, an official security source in Anbar province said. "A suicide bomber attacked a police station in the al-Dhubbat neighborhood in central Falluja on Friday afternoon. Fire broke out in the attack site," the source, who refused to give his name, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq.A suicide car bomb killed four policemen and wounded nine other people in Falluja, 50 km (32 miles) west of Baghdad, police said. Police beat up a Reuters cameraman and a photographer when they tried to film the aftermath of the bombing. The photographer had to be treated in hospital.#2: 1 policeman was shot at by gunmen in al-Ameriyah/Fallujah, 30 km to the south of Fallujah city at 4 pm. The bullet lodged in his stomach and his situation is critical.Afghanistan:#1: Two Canadian soldiers had a close call in Afghanistan on Friday, escaping a suicide attack with only minor injuries. Two Afghan soldiers were also injured in the attack just west of Kandahar City in Zhari district, said CTV's Paul Workman, reporting from Kandahar. The troops were on a foot patrol in a village when the attack took place.#2: In other violence, militants attacked the compound of a district chief in neighbouring Zabul province Thursday night. A one-hour gun battle broke out, leaving five Taliban dead and six wounded, said the district chief, Barat Khan, according to reports.#3: In Khost province in Afghanistan's east, troops comprising Afghan and foreign forces attacked insurgents who were planting roadside bombs in the early morning hours on Friday. Two militants were killed in the skirmish and another died later in hospital.#4: Suspected Islamic militants have killed a Pakistani soldier in revenge for an alleged U.S. missile strike near the Afghan border, an official said Friday. Authorities found the bullet-riddled body of the paramilitary soldier early Friday about 6 miles north of Damadola, a village in the northwestern tribal region of Bajur.

BUSH ADMINISTRATION CHARGES WOUNDED VETS $8 A DAY FOR FOOD (YOUTUBE VIDEO)

http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/319.html (CLICK TO WATCH THIS VIDEO)

The con job of the century If you are a US serviceman or woman and you fail to come back in one piece, you're pretty much on your own.If you do receive medical services, you'll have to fight for every penny and what you'll get will be substandard at best.

Recently, the military has been sending bills to wounded soldiers.

Why?Because of their injuries they failed to complete their tours of duty for which they received sign up bonuses. The government wants them to pay back the bonuses for the time they're not available for service. It pays to read the fine print when dealing with the government. It pays even better not to deal with the government at all unless you have a floor or two full of attorneys to deal with them...which is why the Fortune 500 et. al. have in essence taken over the country.

RANDOM THOUGHTS ABOUT THE WAR:

I was actually thinking of titling this post News of the Weird. Reuters, without further explanation, posts in its daily factbox "The Iraqi army said it arrested the manager of the Nineveh governor's office in a raid in southern Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad," and "The Iraqi army said it arrested the head of the facilities protection force in Mosul on Wednesday." So it appears that so far the main yield of the crackdown on "al Qaeda" in Mosul has been government officials. I find nothing about this anywhere else. Curious, and I'm not sure what to make of it.

The "Facilities Protection Force," in case you didn't know, has widely been accused of being controlled by Shiite death squads. Al Qaeda? I really don't think so. As for the governor's office, the governor of Ninevah Province, Duraid Kashmoula, is a darling of the U.S. occupation. As a matter of fact, it's rather surprising that Mosul turns out to be the main stronghold of al Qaeda in May, since in late January, according to Pentagon propaganda outlet Blackanthem Military News:

Maj. Gen. Benjamin R. Mixon, commander of MND-N, Col. Stephen Twitty, commander of 4-1 Cavalry, Ninewa Provincial Governor Duraid Kashmoula, and Provincial Director of Police Maj. Gen. Wathuk shared their thoughts of the current situation and future of the three prominent cities and the remainder of Ninewa Province. . . .“Amidst the turmoil and issues that persist in Iraq, there is a semblance of peace and normalcy in the north. Ninewa’s leadership works hard to provide its citizens security, build its economy, and implement programs that will continue to keep sectarian violence from the province,” said Twitty. “One thing we cannot do is attempt to put an American standard on any Iraqi city,” said Twitty. “We have to remember that this country lived under a dictator for more than 30 years. The major and significant difference between U.S. cities and Mosul is the use of improvised explosive devices, rocket-propelled grenades, and other military - grade weapons. Anti-Iraqi forces persist in their attacks, but the Iraqi security forces, consisting of the Iraqi Army, border patrol and police, continue to quell those attacks daily,” Twitty continued.Both Kashmoula and Wathuk agreed that their police and army are trained; they have enough equipment to do their jobs, and are securing their streets, cities, and province.“This province has more than 18,000 police and 20,000 Iraqi Army soldiers who provide security for its citizens,” said Kashmoula. “Both the 2nd and 3rd Iraqi Army Divisions have demonstrated that they are fully capable of assuming counter-insurgency missions by taking over operations in east and west Ninewa province. They conducted transfer of authority ceremonies, putting them under the control of Iraqi Ground Forces Command instead of Coalition Forces,” he continued.Mixon said he believes that with so many Iraqi security forces now working to secure their own cities in the province, it shows the diligence of the local government.“The leaders of this province continue to make progress standing up security forces to maintain domestic order and deny terrorists from using Mosul and the other cities as a safe haven,” said Mixon.Curiouser and curiouser,that's all I can say.

It seems that Ahmad Chalabi is finely, really and truly, cross my heart and hope to die, off the U.S. payroll. Apparently. Maybe. Or maybe NBC got this info from Curveball, who knows?
Sources in Baghdad tell NBC News that as of this week American military and civilian officials have cut off all contact with controversial Iraqi politician Ahmad Chalabi, the former favorite of Washington's once powerful neoconservatives.The reason, the sources say, is "unauthorized" contacts with Iran's government, an allegation Chalabi denies. Iran has been accused of arming and training rebel Shiite forces in Iraq....Since September 2007... American military officials and civilian officials working out of the U.S. Embassy had contacts with Chalabi. At that time he was installed as the head of a "services" committee for Baghdad that was to coordinate the restoration of services to the city's residents.Gen. David Petraeus, commander of the Multi-National Forces-Iraq, even escorted Chalabi on a trip, on U.S. helicopters, to address reconstruction issues. And American officials attended meetings with him and supported his efforts.

Then there's John McCain, who has a dream. Victory by 2013!. He doesn't say why he believes this will happen, how he plans to achieve it, or what he means by it, but just elect him, and feel the magic!The U.S. House of Representatives voted "NO" on the latest Iraq occupation funding bill. The war is over! Dancing in the streets! Sadly, no. They don't actually mean it. They sent a bill to the Senate, calling for withdrawal by mid-2009, with the expectation that the Senate will strip out the timetable for withdrawal, restore the funding, and then send it back to the House, which will pass it. You gotta love those Dems, if only they had vertebrae.He who shall not be named, in a speech before a foreign parliament no less, equates Democrats with appeasers of Hitler. Jellyfish Joe Biden grows a spine:

Joe Biden, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that if the president disagrees so strongly with the idea of talking to Iran, then he needs to fire his secretaries of state and defense, both of whom Biden said have pushed to sit down with the Iranians."This is bulls**t. This is malarkey. This is outrageous. Outrageous for the president of the United States to go to a foreign country, sit in the Knesset ... and make this kind of ridiculous statement," he said."He's the guy who's weakened us. He's the guy that's increased the number of terrorists in the world. His policies have produced this vulnerability the United States has." The president, at Israel's 60th anniversary celebration in Jerusalem, suggested that some Democrats were acting in the same way some Western leaders did when they appeased Hitler in the runup to World War II."As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: 'Lord, if only I could have talked to Hitler, all of this might have been avoided.' We have an obligation to call this what it is: the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history," he said while speaking to Israel's parliament, the Knesset. He called it a "foolish delusion" to think the U.S. can negotiate with terrorists. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called on Bush to "explain the inconsistency between his administration's actions and his words today." "Not surprisingly, the engineer of the worst foreign policy in our nation's history has fired yet another reckless and reprehensible round," he said in a statement.The president did not name Sen. Barack Obama or any other Democrat, but White House aides privately acknowledged to CNN that the remarks were aimed at the presidential candidate and others in his party.Nancy Pelosi also had some remarks: I think what the President did in that regard was beneath the dignity of the office of the president and unworthy of our representation at that observance in Israel. And I would hope that any serious person would disassociate himself from the President’s remarks who aspires to leadership in our country.”

And John Kerry (warning: Joe Lieberman remarks also included at link. Click at your own risk).

MEDIA IGNORES TESTIMONY ON HOW PRIVATE CONTRACTORS IN IRAQ ARE RAKING IN BIG PROFITS

Contractors Gone Wild, Media Gone Missing

Source: Mother Jones, May 2, 2008

Bruce Falconer is calling out the mainstream media for ignoring the disturbing testimony that dominated recent U.S. Senate hearings into corruption by private contractors in Iraq. The testimony came from whistleblowers Frank Cassaday, Linda Warren (both former employees of Kellogg Brown and Root) and Barry Halley (who worked in Iraq for Worldwide Network Services, the Sandi Group and CAPE Environmental Management.) They told stories of widespread theft of materials and supplies needed by soldiers, looting Iraqi treasures (in one case melting down Iraqi gold to make cowboy spurs), and a prostitution ring run by the manager of a "major defense contractor," which led to the death of a colleague whose armored car was diverted "to transport prostitutes from Kuwait to Baghdad." Cassaday, Warren and Halley say they were punished and harassed when they tried to alert their companies to these abuses. Aside from Mother Jones, the only news outlet to file a report on their testimony was David Ivanovich of the Houston Chronicle, although a transcript of the hearings is available on the Senate's website.

BUSH AND PETRAEUS PLAN TO "FIND" IRANIAN WEAPONS IN IRAQ FAILS

US plot to nail Iran backfires. Findings does not deter FOX NEWS who keep saying Iran is providing weapons to insurgents and Al Qaeda in Iraq to fight the war.

By Gareth Porter WASHINGTON
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/JE16Ak02.html

The George W Bush administration's plan to create a new crescendo of accusations against Iran for allegedly smuggling arms to Shi'ite militias in Iraq has encountered not just one but two setbacks.

The government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki refused to endorse US charges of Iranian involvement in arms smuggling to Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army, and a plan to show off a huge collection of Iranian arms captured in and around the central city of Karbala had to be called off after it was discovered that none of the arms was of Iranian origin.

The news media's failure to report that the arms captured from Shi'ite militiamen in Karbala did not include a single Iranian weapon shielded the US military from a big blow to its anti-Iran strategy.

The Bush administration and top Iraq commander General David Petraeus had plotted a sequence of events that would build domestic US political support for a possible strike against Iran over its "meddling" in Iraq, and especially its alleged export of arms to Shi'ite militias.

Click on this link for full story: http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/JE16Ak02.html

AUDIO OF RUMSFELD TALKING TO MILITARY ANALYSTS POSTED ON NEWSVINE

Ever since the New York Times broke the story about how the Pentagon rounded up a gaggle of former military officers and trained and coached them on what to say when they went on TV to talk about the war, the internet has been abuzz with people trying to find out more of what went on behind the closed doors of the Pentagon.

Now Newsvine http://www.newsvine.com/world-news , which is owned by MSNBC has obtained audio tapes of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld talking with the military analysts.

You can read the full story here:

Audio of Rumsfeld on Iraq creates buzz
Audio of luncheon with media military analysts posted on Newsvine

MSNBC
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24629509/

The blogosphere has been abuzz about the Internet posting of audio of a luncheon former Secretary of State Donald Rumsfeld held with media military analysts that provides insight into the relationship between those analysts and the Pentagon.
The Pentagon released the audio in response to requests filed by The New York Times under the Freedom of Information Act.
On April 20, The Times published "Behind TV Analysts, Pentagon’s Hidden Hand," in which reporter David Barstow detailed a "Pentagon information apparatus that has used those analysts in a campaign to generate favorable news coverage of the administration’s wartime performance.”
The government released the audio, which lasts nearly an hour, on May 8. Jack Gillis, a 55-year-old self-described news junkie, downloaded it over the past weekend and analyzed it.
His findings, which he posted Monday on his Newsvine account (MSNBC is the owner of Newsvine), include a review of eight clips totaling nearly 10 minutes. Gillis, an adjunct professor of composition and rhetoric at a community college, also provides a link to the full audio.
The luncheon was held in December 2006, a month after Rumsfeld resigned as defense secretary.
The clips Gillis provides include one in which the media analysts suggest, with Rumsfeld's agreement, that Iraq needs an authoritarian dictator. In another, Rumsfeld suggests that the American public lacked the "maturity" to understand that the nation remained under threat from terrorists and that the only "correction" would be another attack on the U.S.
Gillis said that since he posted the analysis and audio on Monday, he has been fielding e-mails and phone calls and has had his work picked up by other blogs, including huffingtonpost.com.
The full audio, clips, analysis and links to other blogs can be found on his Newsvine account.

WIREDISPATCH REPORTS TOP TALIBAN LEADER VOWS REVENGE ON US AFTER BOMBING KILLS CIVILIANS

Top Taliban leader vows revenge on America after alleged missile strike in Pakistan

HABIBULLAH KHANAP News
May 15, 2008 12:01 EST

http://wiredispatch.com/news/?id=170541

A top Taliban leader vowed Thursday to target the U.S. after an alleged missile strike killed several people in northwest Pakistan, a threat that could undermine the new government's efforts to negotiate peace deals with militants.

Blasts destroyed a compound Wednesday in Damadola village, a militant stronghold in the Bajur tribal region near the Afghanistan border. A similar attack in 2006 reportedly missed al-Qaida's No. 2 leader, Ayman al-Zawahri.

The governor of the turbulent North West Frontier Province condemned the incident as an "attack on the sovereignty of Pakistan" that would hamper the country's efforts against terrorism. He said the dead included an 8-year-old boy.

Residents said they saw a U.S. aircraft flying in the area before two explosions rocked the village. The U.S., which has not commented on the incident, is believed to operate unmanned drones out of Afghanistan.