The Unknown Candidate: PRE-ELECTION WEEKLY READER

Saturday, October 14, 2006

PRE-ELECTION WEEKLY READER

Some interesting food for the week while I'm on vacation; time to catch up on your reading before the November elections:

AlterNet: Socialism Is Alive and Well ... in Vietnam

War on Iraq: The Insanity of 'Staying the Course' in Iraq

9/11 Conspiracy Friday

911 Conspiracy theories: I'd Rather Be Smashing Imperialism (Dialogue with Noam Chomsky)

Report: Thousands Wrongly on Terror List

As Exemptions Grow, Religion Outweighs Regulation

FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive - Usama Bin Laden NOT wanted for 9/11?

Robert Dreyfuss: President Bush's phony "War on Terror"
President Bush not only created a fake "War on Terror" to scare voters into supporting his policies -- he is failing to address the real threat facing America
Rolling Stone : A History: False Alarms...

Rolling Stone :...VS. The News They Buried

Arnaud de La Grange: The Failures of George W. Bush's "War on Terrorism"
Arnaud de La Grange argues in the conservative Figaro that "everything takes place as though al-Qaeda's would-be destroyers had been unceasingly knocking themselves out to enlarge the terrorist organization's base of support the last five years."
Major Problems At Polls Feared - washingtonpost.com
An overhaul in how states and localities record votes and administer elections since the Florida recount battle six years ago has created conditions that could trigger a repeat - this time on a national scale.
McClatchy Washington Bureau: In a replay of Iraq, a battle is brewing over intelligence on Iran
In an echo of the intelligence wars that preceded the US invasion of Iraq, a struggle is brewing over Iran's suspected nuclear weapons program and involvement in terrorism. US intelligence and counterterrorism officials say Bush administration hardliners have manipulated information to portray Iran's nuclear program as more advanced than it is and to exaggerate Tehran's role in Hezbollah's attack on Israel in mid-July.
The Carpetbagger Report: Remember the anthrax letters?

The story that the ‘intelligence community’ doesn’t want you to hear

Rolling Stone : We Still Have No Idea Why 9/11 Happened

Ties to GOP Trumped Know-How Among Staff Sent to Rebuild Iraq
A 24-year-old who had never worked in finance -- but had applied for a White House job -- was sent to reopen Baghdad's stock exchange. The daughter of a prominent neoconservative commentator and a recent graduate from an evangelical university for home-schooled children were tapped to manage Iraq's $13 billion budget, even though they didn't have a background in accounting.
Mercury Contamination Moves Beyond Fish
Mercury contamination is making its way into nearly every habitat in the United States - not just oceans - according to a new report. Scientists found high levels of mercury in bald eagles, songbirds, polar bears, alligators and ducks. As birds like turkeys and chickens eat contaminated insects, mercury moves into the human food chain.
Weak EPA Plan Would Leave 77 Million Americans Vulnerable To Deadly Pollution, Lung Association Warns
More than 77 million Americans could be left vulnerable to deadly particle pollution if the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) follows through with a proposal to set weak public health standards for the pollutant, according to a new American Lung Association report.
Thom Hartmann | Needed: Workplace Democracy
"US workers have almost no right to organize. Every 23 minutes in the United States, a worker is either fired or harassed for trying to unionize. Our president goes around the world, talking about the importance of bringing democracy. We loved Lech Walesa and his union movement in Poland. But today, if the middle class is to survive, we need a Lech Walesa in the United States ..."
Chavez, Ahmadinejad solidify Iran-Venezuela ties
"Venezuela and Iran have demonstrated that together, out of the reach of hegemony and American imperialism, they can work and improve," Ahmadinejad said at the oil well in southeastern Venezuela.
Whistleblowers at Interior Department Cite Oil Lease Fraud
Four government auditors who monitor leases for oil and gas on federal property say the Interior Department suppressed their efforts to recover millions of dollars from companies they said were cheating the government. The auditors contend that they were blocked by their bosses from pursuing more than $30 million in fraudulent underpayments of royalties for oil produced in publicly-owned waters in the Gulf of Mexico.