Fast-Tracking Toward War on Syria

Fast-Tracking Toward War on Syria

by Stephen Lendman

America's run by sociopaths. They're out-of-control criminals. They're traitors. They menace humanity. They violate their sacred oaths of office. 

Presidents "do solemnly swear (or affirm to) faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of (their) Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

Congressional members "do solemnly swear (or affirm to) support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; (to) bear true faith and allegiance to the same; (to) this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and (to) well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which (they are) about to enter: So help (them) God."

Straightaway in office they spurn them. Presidents do most of all. Wealth, power and privilege alone matter. It shows in how they govern.

Thomas Jefferson said "When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty."

He also said "Experience hath shewn (sic), that even under the best forms of government, those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny."

Thomas Paine said "The duty of a true patriot is to protect his country from its government."

According to James Madison, "If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy." 

America's "war on terror" explains. When nations have no enemies, they invent them. Washington does so in the extreme. 

Benjamin Franklin warned that sacrificing freedom for security assures losing both.

New administrations and congressional members exceed the worst of their predecessors. Governance today is out-of-control. Rogue state extremism explains it. War on humanity's institutionalized.

It's shocking how bad things are. Ahead expect worse. Obama's already fighting multiple direct and proxy wars. He's got more death and destruction in mind.

He's escalating war on Syria. He intends doing more than already. He bears full responsibility for tens of thousands of deaths. Assad's wrongfully blamed for his crimes. Rogue states operate this way.

Shameless pretexts are invented. John Kerry's more mad bomber than diplomat. He replicated Madeleine Albright's moment. 

"What's the point of having this superb military that you're always talking about," she asked then Joint Chiefs Chairman Colin Powell, "if we can't use it?" Her comment urged war on Yugoslavia.

Kerry wants Syria bombed. He wants Joint Chiefs Chairman General Martin Dempsey launching it. Doing so requires taking out Assad's sophisticated air defense systems. It involves neutralizing his command and control capability.

It means Yugoslavia or Libya 2.0. Take your pick. It assures destroying another country. It's doing so for power and profit. It doing it by hundreds of sorties. 

It means unconscionable mass killing and destruction. It risks genocide. It assures destroying essential infrastructure. It guarantees longterm environmental contamination. 

It ensures vast numbers of birth defects, cancer and other diseases. It means potentially millions displaced on their own.

Albright told 60 Minutes' viewers that half a million dead Iraqi children was a small price to pay. She referred to lawless sanctions responsible for killing them.

Kerry matches her roguishness. Power-hungry officials ignore horrific consequences. Mass killing and destruction don't matter. 

Crimes of war and against humanity reflect business as usual. Imperial priorities count most. Another country will be entirely destroyed.

Albright got what she wished for. So may Kerry. Events seem headed that way. Replacing Assad remains policy. Western-sponsored death squads alone can't do it. They need air support. They need round-the-clock terror bombing.

US policymakers understand. Replicating Yugoslavia and Libya looks likely. Pretexts are in place to do it. Others will be invented if needed. War winds blow more strongly. They're heading toward gale force strength.

What will freedom loving people tolerate before they react. Rogue states have no legitimacy. America's by far the worst. War on Syria risks embroiling the region. Doing so risks WW III.

Putin drew Russia's red line. He sent Assad sophisticated air defenses. He promises more. He supplied other weapons. He'll ship what's needed. He's aiding a valued ally. He's got every right to do so. Friends in need are friends indeed.

Russian warships patrol the Mediterranean. They're delivering needed supplies. They're protecting Moscow's regional interests. Doing so leaves no ambiguity. Imperial madness must be stopped.

Washington positioned Patriot missiles, F-16s, and US troops inside Jordan. They're on Syria border. Israel has its Golan forces mobilized. They're not for defense. 

Their presence is menacing. Perhaps they'll be used aggressively. Syria and Russia have no illusions. AP cited Interfax saying Moscow's planning to send marine units to Syria.

Ostensibly it's to protect Russian citizens and remove property from Tartus. It's Moscow's sole Mediterranean naval facility. It's strategically important to protect. Showing the flag supports Assad.

Putin opposes no-fly zone imposition. He won't tolerate one. He committed to protect Syria. He wants conflict ended diplomatically. He wants Syrian sovereignty respected. He wants Syrians alone to decide who'll lead them. He wants rule of law principles observed.

He knows who's friend and foe. Diplomats choose words carefully. Putin's more outspoken than most. He's concerned about reckless US belligerence. If regional allies fall, Russia and China are next.

He not on the sidelines idle. He's acting in Moscow's best interests. He may have more aggressive measures in mind. Deterring America demands confrontation. Hopefully it stops short of greater conflict.

Best to prevent it before initiated. Perhaps it's Putin's plan. Events going forward bear watching. They'll unfold in the fullness of time. Hopefully a clear red line will explain best. Drawing it may get Washington to back off. It's time to go all out and see.

At issue is lots more than Syria. It's New World Order harshness. It's state-sponsored terrorism writ large. It's globalized central control. It's madness instead of sanity. 

It's claiming war is peace. It's monied interests pushing conflicts. It's manufactured crises and permanent ones. It's profiteering from human carnage. It's living with the threat of mushroom-shaped cloud destruction.

It's plundering the earth for profit. It's exploiting people the same way. It's neoliberalism on steroids. It's giving capital divine rights. It's money power in private hands used destructively. It's out-of-control corporate power. 

It's giving corporations the same rights as people. It's freeing them from equal responsibilities. It's letting them become private tyrannies. It's government of, by and for privileged elites alone. 

It's popular needs gone begging. It's social America on the rocks and dying. It's holding farcical elections. It's back room deal making in charge. It's duopoly power running things. 

It's preventing democracy by doing so. It's mocking rule of law principles. It's consigning them to history's dustbin.

It's ignoring growing poverty, unemployment, hunger, homelessness and human misery. It's sacrificing healthcare, education, clean air and water, safe food, social safety net protections, and other vital services and needs.

It's leaving worker rights unprotected. It's creating ruler-serf societies. It's militarizing them for control. It's substituting managed news misinformation for truth and full disclosure.

It's transferring wealth disproportionately to corporations and rich elites already with too much. It's entrapping people and nations in debt. It's sacrificing civil and human rights. It's substituting wage for chattel slavery.

It's filling prisons with societies' unwanted. It's institutionalizing torture as official policy. It's power without accountability. It's heading America and other Western societies toward tyranny. It's making them unfit to live in.

It's ignoring deep-seated corruption, special interests over common ones, failed families, basic needs, ecocide, and global injustice. It's letting unconscionable wrongdoing metastasize beyond control. 

It's making wrong choices. It's living in a world unsafe to be in. It's heading down a path toward oblivion. It risks destroying ourselves in the process.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. 

His new book is titled "Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. 

Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.

It airs Fridays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.

http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour 

Big Brother Writ Large in America

Big Brother Writ Large in America

by Stephen Lendman

Spying on its citizenry reflects one of the most defining police state characteristics. Post-9/11, America crossed the line.

Unconstitutional mass surveillance became official US policy. Bush began it. Obama accelerated it. He did so straightaway as president. 

He promised otherwise. He pledged transparency and openness. He promised no more Bush/Cheney lawlessness. He lied. He exceeded the worst of his predecessors.

Free societies don't tolerate these practices. Obama authorized them secretly. He subverted constitutional law. He violated the public trust. He broke a key campaign pledge.

He declared war on freedom. It's more illusion than reality. It's fast disappearing. It may entirely vanish on Obama's watch. Big Brother is real. It's no longer fiction. Privacy no longer exists.

Web site visits are tracked. Cell phones log our movements. Emails and social network communications are monitored and stored. Sweeping warrantless spying is policy.

Government is shrouded in secrecy. Constitutional protections don't matter. Police states operate this way. America's by far the worst. Everyone's suspect unless proved otherwise. Guilt by accusation is policy.

Snowden provided a vital service. He did so at great risk. Lots of what he revealed was previously known. Too few people knew it. Many more now do. How they react matters most.

On June 17, Snowden engaged live with London Guardian readers. He answered questions they posed.

"All I can say right now is the US government is not going to be able to cover this up by jailing or ­murdering me. Truth is coming, and it cannot be stopped," he said.

"The US government, just as they did with other whistleblowers, immediately and predictably destroyed any possibility of a fair trial at home, openly declaring me guilty of treason and that the disclosure of secret, criminal, and even unconstitutional acts is an unforgivable crime." 

"That's not justice, and it would be foolish to volunteer yourself to it if you can do more good outside of prison than in it."

"Ask yourself: If I were a Chinese spy, why wouldn't I have flown directly to Beijing? I could be living in a palace petting a phoenix by now."

More on what he said below. He's a marked man. He knows it. He fled America for his safety. He's in Hong Kong. It provides a "cultural and legal framework to allow me to work without being immediately detained," he said.

He'll be hounded wherever he goes. His life's in danger. Washington called him a traitor. 

Bipartisan rogues accused him of espionage. He aided the enemy, they said. A mock show trial was held. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence members did so.

It was called "How Disclosed NSA Programs Protect Americans, and Why Disclosure Aids Our Adversaries." Orwellian best explains it. Rep. Mike Rogers (R. MI) chaired it.

He represents the worst of rogue governance. He menaces freedom. He supports Washington's permanent war agenda. He endorses police state lawlessness. He's against social justice. 

Whatever corporate America wants, he's for. He's against government of, by and for everyone. 

He calls openness and transparency threats to national security. Sunshine is "damaging," he says. "(I)t paints an inaccurate picture and fosters distrust in government."

It gives aid and comfort to America's enemies, he claims. Snowden's guilty as charged. Rogers and committee co-conspirators hung him out to dry.

He committed no crimes. He exposed them. He did what's vital to do. He revealed US lawlessness. NSA operations harm "millions of innocent people," he said.

He denounced Obama, saying:

"(H)e closed the door on investigating systemic violations of law, deepened and expanded several abusive programs, and refused to spend the political capital to end the kind of human rights violations like we see in Guantanamo, where men still sit without charge."

Dick Cheney duplicitously called him a traitor. Snowden responded, saying:

"It's important to bear in mind I'm being called a traitor by…. a man who gave us the warrantless wiretapping scheme as a kind of atrocity warm-up on the way to deceitfully engineering a conflict that has killed over 4,400 and maimed nearly 32,000 Americans, as well as leaving over 100,000 Iraqis dead." 

"Being called a traitor by Dick Cheney is the highest honor you can give an American."

He did nothing illegal. "I did not reveal any US operations against legitimate military targets."

"I pointed out where the NSA has hacked civilian infrastructure such as universities, hospitals, and private businesses because it is dangerous. These nakedly, aggressively criminal acts are wrong no matter the target."

"NSA is running network operations against (the rights of) millions of innocent people. And for what?" 

"So we can have secret access to a computer in a country we're not even fighting? So we can potentially reveal a potential terrorist with the potential to kill fewer Americans than our own Police?" 

"No, the public needs to know the kinds of things a government does in its name, or the 'consent of the governed' is meaningless."

More information is coming, Snowden said. Lots more needs to be told. 

"(T)he reality is (that) if NSA, FBI, CIA, DIA, etc analyst has access to query raw SIGINT databases, they can enter and get results for anything they want," he said.

"Phone number(s), email(s), user id(s), cell phone handset id(s) (IMEI), and so on - it's all the same. The restrictions against this are policy based, not technically based, and can change at any time."

Lawless surveillance is institutionalized. "The reality is that due to the FISA Amendments Act and its section 702 authorities, Americans’ communications are collected and viewed on a daily basis on the certification of an analyst rather than a warrant." 

"They excuse this as 'incidental' collection, but at the end of the day, someone at NSA still has the content of your communications." 

"Even in the event of 'warranted' intercept, it's important to understand the intelligence community doesn't always deal with what you would consider a 'real' warrant like a police department would have to." 

"The 'warrant' is more of a templated form they fill out and send to a reliable judge with a rubber stamp."

America's Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) overseas government monitoring requests. More on that below. Out-of-control spying is policy. 

It's extrajudicial. It's longstanding policy. Post-9/11, it accelerated. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) provisions are spurned.

Bush administration officials lawlessly authorized NSA to compile millions of emails and phone calls into a database for analysis.

Obama officials claim no court or judge can challenge them. Legal considerations don't matter. 

Last September, Congress overwhelmingly passed the 2012 FISA Amendments Reauthorization Act. Obama signed it into law. He called doing so a national security priority.

He lied. It reflects police state harshness. It's lawless. It extends the 2008 FISA Amendments Act (FAA). It's for another five years.

It authorizes warrantless spying. It does so without naming names or probable cause. Fourth Amendment protections are violated. Lawless privacy invasions are permitted.

Overseas and domestic phone calls, emails, and other communications of US citizens and permanent residents are monitored without court authorization. Anything goes is policy.

Probable cause isn't needed. Warrantless electronic eavesdropping is intrusive and lawless. Everyone is vulnerable for any reason or none at all. Vague language allows virtually anything. 

Constitutional protections don’t matter. They’re null and void. What Bush began, Obama accelerated. Things are worse than ever. Diktat authority is policy.

America's Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) is rubber stamp. It gives kangaroos a bad name. A previous article explained. It approves virtually all government warrant requests. 

It's longstanding policy. Eleven US district court judges serve staggered terms up to seven years. They're chosen from at least seven judicial circuits. Supreme Court Justice John Roberts selects them.

The process is rigged against justice. It doesn't have a chance. Police state operate this way. Obama lied claiming otherwise. On Charlie Rose June 17, he lied. He did so egregiously.

On the one hand, he said we "don't go with a query (without) a pretty good suspicion." Not so!

On the other, he claimed few annual FISA warrants are sought. False again! From 1979 through 2004 alone, 18,761 warrants were granted. Five requests were rejected. Some sources say four.

From 2005 through 2012, another 15,200 were approved. Seven were rejected. It gets worse. Few Americans know about National Security Letters (NSLs). They're intrusive and lawless.

They've been around since the mid-1980s. They involve abusive police state intrusions. Pre-9/11, they had more limited authority. They were used to secure records and other personal information on alleged terrorists and spies. 

The USA Patriot Act's Section 505 changed things. It permits expanded FBI's authority to obtain personal customer records from ISPs, financial institutions, credit companies, and other sources without prior court approval.

At issue is claiming information sought relates to alleged terrorism or espionage investigations. No proof is required.

Innocent people are targeted. Virtually all public and private records can be obtained. Gag orders prevent targeted individuals or groups from revealing the information sought. Doing so violates core First Amendment rights.

Service providers are gagged. They're prevented from telling affected customers or the public what's going on.

Constraining them violates the First Amendment's procedural prior restraint provision. It lets federal authorities issue prior restraints of their own. It forces service providers to comply.

Judicial authority is bypassed. Legal challenges are virtually impossible. DOJ officials react aggressively. Countersuits are filed. Contesting government authority isn't tolerated.

Post-9/11, NSL use increased exponentially. Between 2003 and 2006 alone, the DOJ's inspector general reported nearly 200,000 NSLs issued. 

By now, they may exceed a million. Using them violates constitutional freedoms. They're disappearing in plain sight.

Obama said the FISC is "transparent." He lied again. The ACLU calls it "a secretive intelligence court created to authorize government wiretaps." Its "procedures, hearings and decisions are conducted in secret."

Despite numerous ACLU and other public advocacy group FOIA challenges, DOJ refuses to disclose "even the most basic information about the court's activities."

In 2010 and 2011, Obama promised to declassify FISC rulings. He lied again. He hasn't done so. He spurns transparency. He claims no one's listening to your phone calls. Doing so requires probable cause, he says. A warrant must be obtained.

False on all counts! Warrantless spying is policy. It's sweeping and intrusive. Law Professor Jack Balkin calls it "vacuum cleaner" surveillance. No probable cause is needed.

Obtaining FISC permission requires only providing general guidelines. Allegedly they determine what individuals or groups may be targeted.

Rubber stamp approval follows. A pro forma statement does so stating:

NSA's request "contains all the required elements, and the revised NSA, FBI and CIA minimization procedures submitted with the amendment are consistent with (US statute) requirements and with the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States."

Once approval is gotten, monitoring follows. So does anything goes. Constitutional protections don't matter. Enormous amounts of communications and other information is lawlessly obtained.

Millions of ordinary people guilty of nothing are most harmed. On June 18, NSA head General Keith Alexander testified before House Intelligence Committee members. He claimed surveillance programs foiled more than 50 terror plots post-9/11.

He lied saying so. America's at war with Islam. It rages out-of-control. Dozens of innocent victims were wrongfully targeted, arrested, prosecuted, convicted and given long prison terms. They rot in America's gulag. 

None, repeat none, committed terrorism or conspiracy related to it. No plots or crimes existed. Fabricated charges substituted for legitimate ones. Witch hunt justice followed.

It's the wrong time to be Muslim in America. Everyone's just as vulnerable. Constitutional protections no longer matter. They lie in history's dustbin.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. 

His new book is titled "Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. 

Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.

It airs Fridays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.

http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour 

Putin Alone at G8

Putin Alone at G8

by Stephen Lendman

On June 17, G8 leaders began two days of talks in Northern Ireland. Seven nations want escalated war on Syria. Putin's alone. He's an outlier for peaceful conflict resolution.

Obama's hands are bloodrenched. He bears full responsibility for ravaging Syria. It's been ongoing since early 2011. It was planned many years earlier. 

On Monday, Obama lied saying:

"We're not taking sides in a religious war. Really, what we're trying to do is take sides against extremists of all sorts and in favor of people who are in favor of moderation, tolerance, representative government, and over the long-term, stability and prosperity for the people of Syria."

"We share an interest in reducing the violence, securing chemical weapons and ensuring that they are neither used nor are they subject to proliferation."

"We want to try to resolve the issue through political means if possible, so we will instruct our teams to continue to work on the potential of a Geneva follow-up."

Since conflict began, America's been arming, training, funding and directing death squad fighters in Syria. They're imported from dozens of regional and other countries.

According to Mossad-connected DEBKA file (DF):

"NATO and a number of European governments, most significantly the UK, have started airlifting heavy weapons to the Syrian rebels poised in Aleppo to fend off a major Syrian army offensive."

On June 17, "first shipments" arrived. They were airlifted to Turkey and Jordan. They include "anti-air and tank missiles as well as recoilless 120 mm cannons mounted on jeeps."

They're heading for insurgents in southern Syria and Aleppo. More weapons arrived Tuesday.

According to DF,  "27 aircraft landings were counted in the last few days." Expect more to follow.

Obama's in Northern Ireland talking peace. He does so duplicitously. He prioritizes war. He bears full responsibility for raging conflict. He's doing it in multiple theaters. He's escalating it in Syria. 

America's on a precipitous slippery slope. Obama's heading it for full-blown tyranny. He leads a nation in decline. It began long before his presidency. He's escalating what others began. He's menacing humanity in the process.

According to Immanuel Wallerstein, Syria's a "no win for the West."

"Whatever the United States and western European states do (will) have dire negative consequences for them. This is a perfect lose-lose situation for the dominant forces in the world."

"The war is already spreading and could get totally out of control. It is not at all impossible that the interveners win out, and the whole of the Middle East finds itself in one gigantic, uncontrollable, endless war."

"The key phrase is 'out of control.' " America and complicit partners can't succeed. Escalated conflict is a lose-lose for the West and regional nations.

Gideon Rachman is Financial Times chief foreign affairs commentator. On June 17, he headlined "The west's dominance of the Middle East is ending," saying:

"Those calling for deeper US involvement in the Syrian conflict are living in the past." America's military is still the world's mightiest. It's influence is ebbing.

It ravages and destroys countries easily. It's inept at nation-building. Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya explain best. Puppet regimes are hated. Daily violence persists. US dominance is resisted.

People want their sovereignty respected. "The era of direct colonialism in the Middle East ended decades ago," said Rachman. 

"The era of informal empire is now coming to a close."

The late Chalmers Johnson perhaps explained best. "We have met the enemy and he is us," he said. He quoted Pogo saying so. America's policies have been arrogant and misguided for decades. It's too late for scattered reforms.

Hegemonic overreach is too deep-seated. America's plagued by the same dynamic that doomed past empires. It's unwilling to change. It's headed for isolation, bankruptcy and tyranny.

It's permanently at war despite no enemies. It's secretive, lawless, duplicitous and unaccountable. It's totally out-of-control. It's republic hangs by a thread. It makes more enemies than friends.

Paul Craig Roberts calls Washington "insane." It's "double-speak is now obvious to the world." Obama threatens possible WW III. Doing so "means the end of life on earth."

Russia and China know if Syria falls, Iran's next. If puppet leaders replace the Islamic Republic's independent government, Moscow and Beijing are Washington's next targets.

Roberts believes both countries are preparing for an eventual showdown. The prospect should terrify everyone.

"Washington’s crazed, demented drive for world hegemony is bringing unsuspecting Americans up against two countries with hydrogen bombs whose combined population is five times the US population. In such a conflict everyone dies."

Obama's heading America for more war. He's doing so unconscionably. He's doing it based on lies. He blames Assad for US-sponsored crimes. He's done it since conflict began.

Putin's alone among G8 leaders. He wants him stopped. He and Obama met privately for two hours. They're deeply divided on Syria. London's Telegraph highlighted their differences.

On June 17, it headlined "G8: Barak Obama and Vladimir Putin grim-faced on Syria disagreements," saying:

Their views are polar opposite. "In a photo-op after talks there was no sign of the chumminess that characterised meetings between Obama and Medvedev, who once went for lunch at a burger joint outside Washington."

Relations are increasingly frosty. Brave face pretense can't conceal it. Obama demands Assad must go. Putin insists Syrians alone must decide who'll lead them.

He wants escalated conflict stopped. Obama prioritizes it. Libya 2.0 looms.

On June 18, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) headlined "President al-Assad gives interview to the German Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper."

Syria's "dealing with a form of guerrilla warfare," he said. Government forces are prevailing. They're doing so decisively.

"We are confident that we can successfully fight terrorism in Syria, but the bigger issue is the ensuing damage and its cost." 

"The crisis has already had a heavy toll but our biggest challenges will come once the crisis is over."

"(F)oreign interference" bears full responsibility for ongoing conflict.

"Nobody can know what the Middle East will look like should there be an attempt to re-draw the map of the region." 

"However, most likely that map will be one of multiple wars, which would transcend the Middle East spanning the Atlantic to the Pacific, which nobody can stop."

It's happening now, he said. Ahead he expects much worse. We're "witness(ing) the domino effect of widespread extremism, chaos and fragmentation."

America, Britain and France want regional "puppets and dummies to do their bidding and serve their interests without question." 

"We have consistently rejected this. We will always be independent and free."

Escalating conflict will backfire. Heavier weapons sent terrorists assure blowback. "Europe’s back garden will become a hub for terrorism and chaos, which leads to deprivation and poverty." 

"Europe will pay the price and forfeit an important market. (T)errorism will not stop here. It will spread to your countries." 

"It will export itself through illegal immigration or through the same terrorists who returned to their original countries after being indoctrinated and trained more potently."

Allegations of Syrian chemical weapons use are "ludicrous," Assad said. Where's the proof, he stressed?

"Had they obtained a single strand of evidence that we had used chemical weapons, do you not think they would have made a song and dance about it to the whole world?" 

"Then where is the chain of custody that led them to a such result?"

"The terrorist groups used chemical weapons in Aleppo. Subsequently we sent an official letter to the United Nations requesting a formal investigation into the incident." 

"Britain and France blocked this investigation because it would have proven the chemical attacks were carried out by terrorist groups and hence provided conclusive evidence that they (Britain and France) were lying." 

"We invited them to investigate the incident, but instead they wanted the inspectors to have unconditional access to locations across Syria, parallel to what inspectors did in Iraq and delved into other unrelated issues."

"We are a sovereign state. We have an army and all matters considered classified will never be accessible neither to the UN, nor Britain, nor France." 

"They will only be allowed access to investigate the incident that occurred in Aleppo."

Chemical weapons allegations reflect "an extension of the continuous American and Western fabrication of the actual situation in Syria." 

"Its sole aim is to justify their policies to their public opinion and use the claim as a pretext for more military intervention and bloodshed in Syria."

Assad wants conflict resolved diplomatically. He's eager for legitimate dialogue to do so. He won't negotiate with terrorists. No one should! Doing so assures greater conflict, not less.

He calls legitimate opposition parties ones against terrorism. Their aims are political, not belligerent. He rejects foreign interference. 

He wants Syria's sovereignty respected. He wants Syrians alone to choose who'll lead them. International law supports him.

In 2014, his term ends. "When the country is in a crisis, the president is expected to shoulder the burden of responsibility and resolve the situation, not abandon his duties and leave."

He calls doing so "treason." Syria's "biggest challenge is extremism," he says. He's committed to defeating it. Polls show Syrians overwhelmingly support him. 

They do so for good reason. The alternative is Western domination. It assures protracted violence and instability. It'll replicate conditions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Palestine. 

Syrians want peace and stability. Achieving them requires routing death squad invaders. It means thwarting imperial Washington. 

It menaces humanity wherever it shows up. Imagine if Syria was its Waterloo. If that's not worth fighting for, what is?

Note: Summit leaders ended two days of talks. Their final communique stressed holding peace talks as soon as possible.

No mention of Assad was made. Putin won't endorse his stepping down. Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov explained. He did so separately, saying:

"This would be not just unacceptable for the Russian side, but we are convinced that it would be utterly wrong, harmful, and would completely upset the political balance."

The final communique text  can be read in full.

A Final Comment

Dam Press' June 17 Arabic language article was translated into English. It's important reading.

Ahead of meeting G8 leaders, Putin visited David Cameron in London. He delivered a message. It's meant for America, Britain, France, and other anti-Assad belligerents.

It's unambiguous. Russian S-300 missiles in Syria will target Washington's Patriot installations if used against Assad.

More advanced S-400s may be delivered. They're by far the most advanced air defense system. They exceed anything America or other Western countries have. They're extremely effective. So are S-300s.

Moscow will also supply Assad with state-of-the-art 24-Barrell rocket launchers. They're considered the most advanced artillery weapon of its kind. They able to destroy threatening targets on Syria's borders.

He may send other sophisticated weapons. He opposes arming insurgents. He deplores sending them heavier weapons. He's against Obama's planned escalation. He's drawn his own red line. He won't tolerate crossing it.

Russia's a powerful adversary. It's nuclear arsenal matches America's. It's weapons are very sophisticated. It has regional interests vital to protect.

It's concerned about Washington's longstanding intentions. If Syria, Iran, and other independent countries become US vassal states, targeting Russia and China follow. 

Assad wants Syria's sovereignty respected. Iran's President-Elect Hassan Rohani demands the same. Both leaders have every right to do so. They prioritize independence and freedom. So do Moscow and Beijing. It remains to be seen what follows.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. 

His new book is titled "Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. 

Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.

It airs Fridays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.

http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour 

High Level Opposition to Escalating Syria's Conflict

High Level Opposition to Escalating Syria's Conflict

by Stephen Lendman

Dozens of responsible world leaders oppose Washington's war on Syria. They do so for good reason. They want peaceful conflict resolution. They're against greater escalation. Few say so publicly.

On May 15, the UN General Assembly adopted an anti-Assad resolution. It's non-binding. It was Arab League-led. Washington co-sponsored it. It followed four others since 2011.

It passed 107 - 12. Over 70 nations refused support. They endorse peace, not war. They oppose greater foreign intervention. Russia called the measure "counterproductive and irresponsible."

Assad expressed views many other leaders share. Few air them publicly. He warned about longterm regional destabilization, saying:

"If the unrest in Syria leads to the partitioning of the country, or if the terrorist forces take control….the situation will inevitably spill over into neighboring countries and create a domino effect throughout the Middle East and beyond."

Most Americans oppose greater intervention. Most polls consistently say so. Pew Research shows overwhelming Arab street unease. At issue is Syrian violence spreading cross-borders.

High-level Pentagon officials express concerns. Greater Syrian intervention's much more daunting than Libya. Last March, Joint Chiefs Chairman General Martin Dempsey said "We can do anything" if asked.

At the same time, he repeatedly opposed greater US involvement. He's against escalated conflict. Endgame consequences worry him most. Before acting, "we have to be prepared for what comes next," he warns.

Attacking Syria won't be easy, he added. Russian-supplied air defenses are formidable. They're located close to major population centers. 

Syrian opposition is splintered. Many insurgents are known terrorists. Hezbollah supports Syria. So does Iran. Russia may intervene supportively.

"Whether the military effect would produce the kind of outcome I think that not only members of Congress but all of us would desire - which is an end to the violence, some kind of political reconciliation among the parties, and a stable Syria - that's the reason I've been cautious about the application of the military instrument of power.... It's not clear to me that it would produce that outcome," he said.

On June 17, Al Manar headlined "Russia: We Won't Allow Imposing a no-Fly Zone in Syria," saying:

Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Ocahevch said:

"We will not permit such scenarios, and these maneuvers on a fly-zone and humanitarian passages in Syria are caused by the lack of respect for the International Law."

"We have seen how they imposed no-fly zones in Libya, so we will not allow repeating the same scenarios in Syria."

"The Syrian crisis cannot be settled by double stances - refusing the military track on one hand and arming the militants on the other."

A same day Al Manar article headlined "Putin: Russia Arming Legitimate Gov't in Syria, West Arming Organ-Eaters," saying:

"You will not deny that one does not really need to support the people who not only kill their enemies, but open up their bodies, eat their intestines in front of the public and cameras." 

"Are these the people you want to support? Is it them who you want to supply with weapons? Then this probably has little relation to humanitarian values that have been preached in Europe for hundreds of years."

He unequivocal on Russian policy. He wants conflict ended. He wants it diplomatically resolved. He wants Syrians alone to decide who'll govern them. Let them defeat foreign "extremists," he stresses.

On June 17, Lebanon's Daily Star quoted Assad saying:

"If the Europeans deliver weapons, the backyard of Europe will become terrorist and Europe will pay the price for it."

At issue is exporting "terrorism" to Europe. "Terrorists will gain experience in combat and return with extremist ideologies," he warned.

On June 16, London's Telegraph headlined "Boris Johnson: Don't arm the Syria maniacs," saying:

London's mayor warned David Cameron. Don't use Syria for "political point-scoring or muscle-flexing." Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg echoed similar sentiments.

So did former army head Lord Dannatt and Archbishop of York John Sentamu. Johnson urged "total ceasefire….This is the moment (to) end….the madness."

Cameron faces growing internal opposition. Associates warn he faces a no-confidence defeat.

Clegg insists Britain won't arm insurgents. "We’ve taken no decision to provide lethal assistance, so we clearly don't think it is the right thing to do now, otherwise we would have decided to do it," he said.

Tory MP Julian Lewis spoke for others saying arming insurgents would be "suicidal." Cameron will "struggle" to get parliamentary approval.

Shadow foreign minister Douglas Alexander said MPs from all parties express unease. 

"For months Labour has called on the government to answer basic questions about their approach, such as how the prime minister would ensure that weapons supplied did not fall into the wrong hands, and how this step would help to de-escalate the conflict rather than prolong it."

Unnamed US defense officials warn that creating safe or protected areas inside Syria involve enormous complexities. 

Thousands of US ground forces may be needed to enforce them. Deploying them involves invasion and occupation. A protracted quagmire may follow.

No-fly zone imposition is just as daunting. Justifiable Syrian responses will follow.

On June 14, Foreign Policy's Gordon Lubold headlined "Why the Pentagon really, really doesn't want to get involved in Syria," saying:

"Top Pentagon brass have been ambivalent in the extreme about getting involved in the Syrian crisis since it began more than two years ago." 

"And now, even as the Obama administration signals its intention to provide direct military aid to opponents of the Syrian regime, there remains deep skepticism across the military that it will work."

Escalating conflict entails enormous risks. Success is unlikely. "(T)op brass is extremely reluctant to commit assets."

According to an unnamed senior Pentagon commander:

"There is no way to ensure" that arming insurgents won't make matters worse. Supplying heavier weapons, no-fly zone protection and safe areas sound good on paper.

Reality suggests otherwise. Failure's more likely than success. Former head of US European Operation Command and Supreme Allied Commander, Europe General Philip Breedlove sees "no military value in no-fly zone imposition inside northern Syria. 

Northern and Southern Watch over Iraq was operationally exhausting and expensive.

Military intervention entails unintended consequences. Afghanistan and Iraq are protracted quagmires. Libya's a cauldron of violence.

Syria could be worse. Cross-border fallout could be disastrous. Escalated conflict affects Turkey, Iraq, Lebanon, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, and perhaps other regional countries.

On June 14, Politico headlined "DOD brass has long urged caution on Syria," saying:

Obama's planned greater involvement reflects what Pentagon brass warned against for months. At issue is another protracted quagmire.

"In hearings, speeches and interviews, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey have been deeply skeptical every time they've been asked about potential US involvement in Syria."

Unintended consequences worry planners most. They've seen it all before. They're loathe to repeat past mistakes. National security/military strategist Micah Zenko said:

"I’ve never spoken to anyone at the (military) O-5 level or above who thinks intervening in Syria is a good idea." 

Hagel warned that military intervention "could embroil the United States in a significant, lengthy, and uncertain military commitment." 

It could have "the unintended consequence of bringing the United States into a broader regional conflict or proxy war."

"You better be damn sure, as sure as you can be, before you get into something, because once you're into it, there isn’t any backing out, whether it's a no-fly zone, safe zone, protect these - whatever it is."

"Once you’re in, you can't unwind it. You can't just say, 'Well, it's not going as well as I thought it would go, so we're going to get out.' "

Dempsey said supplying insurgents heavier weapons won't make a difference. "Not in my military judgment," he stressed. Don't expect Syria to take escalation lightly, he added.

"I have to assume, as the military member with responsibility for these kind of activities, that the potential adversary isn't just going to sit back and allow us to impose our will on them, that they could in fact take exception….and act outside of their borders with long-range rockets and missiles and artillery and even asymmetrical threats."

In other words, be careful what you wish for. Best laid plans often fail. US military history reflects failure. Quagmires more than victories result.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. 

His new book is titled "Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. 

Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.

It airs Fridays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.

http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour 

Lawless NSA Global Spying

Lawless NSA Global Spying

by Stephen Lendman

NSA is one of 16 known US spy agencies. Perhaps others operate secretly. Black budgets conceal what's spent. Amounts are enormous. They're unconscionable. 

Used responsibly, they'd relieve hunger, shelter the homeless, heal the sick, and educate young people hungry for knowledge.

Out-of-control, unregulated, unmonitored practices operate lawlessly. Enormous harm results. Rogue states operate that way. 

On June 1, 1952, Harry Truman authorized NSA. On October 24, revised National Security Council Intelligence Directive (NSCID) 9 followed. On November 4, 1952, NSA was established.

In 1957, its existence was briefly mentioned in the US Government Organization Manual. It called NSA:

"a separately organized agency within the Department of Defense under the direction, authority, and control of the Secretary of Defense…for the performance of highly specialized technical functions in support of the intelligence activities of the United States."

It's headquartered at Fort Meade, MD. It's operations are highly classified. General Keith Alexander heads them. Spies "R" Us, defines them. 

On December 4, 1981, Executive Order 12333, explained NSA/Central Security Service (CSS) responsibilities and purposes. Head of operations is charged with:

• "Collect(ing, including through clandestine means), process, analyze, produce, and disseminate signals intelligence information and data for foreign intelligence and counterintelligence purposes to support national and departmental missions;

• Acting(ing) as the National Manager for National Security Systems as established in law and policy, and in this capacity be responsible to the Secretary of Defense and to the Director, National Intelligence; (and)

• Prescrib(ing) security regulations covering operating practices, including the transmission, handling, and distribution of signals intelligence and communications security material within and among the elements under control of the Director of the National Security Agency, and exercise the necessary supervisory control to ensure compliance with the regulations."

On July 31, 2008, EO 12333 was amended to:

• "Align (it) with the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004;

• Implement additional recommendations of the 9/11 and WMD Commissions; (and)

• Further integrate the Intelligence Community and clarify and strengthen the role of DNI as the head of the Community; Maintain or strengthen privacy and civil liberties protections."

By law, NSA’s mission is limited to monitoring, collecting and analyzing foreign communications. Its dual missions include: 

• the Signals Intelligence Directorate (SID). It relates to foreign intelligence gathering, and 

• the Information Assurance Directorate (IAD). It protects US information systems.

Rule of law principles are systematically spurned. It's more true now than ever. It's far worse than most people imagine. Anything goes reflects policy. NSA's a power unto itself. It does whatever it wants covertly.

It spies globally. Big Brother is real. NSA reflects it writ large. Virtually everyone can be watched everywhere all the time. It's done with technological ease. No one's safe anywhere any time. There's no place to hide.

NSA calls its mission "cryptology that encompasses both Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) and Information Assurance (IA) products and services, and enables Computer Network Operations (CNO) in order to gain a decision advantage for the Nation and our allies under all circumstances."

Spies "R" Us explains it better. Telecom, Internet and thousands of  other corporations cooperate. They're complicit as willing partners. They're involved extrajudicially. They operate secretly. They're unapologetic.

In the 1950s and 60s, NSA spied on all US incoming and outgoing telegrams. In the 1970s, an independent Church Committee investigation discovered clandestine operations for the first time. 

Change was demanded. Lawless spying is intolerable. Decades earlier practices pale compared to what now goes on. Subverting fundamental law constitutes tyranny. Today it exists writ large.

America never was democratic. It's not now. It's secretive, ruthless, and unprincipled. It's hegemonically out-of-control abroad. 

It's domestic policies reflect police state lawlessness. Fundamental international, constitutional and US statute laws don't matter. Diktat power rules. Presidents, Congress and federal courts are complicit.

According to Representative Loretta Sanchez (D. CA), what's been publicly revealed reflects "the tip of the iceberg." She was "astounded" about information disclosed privately. 

She "can't speak to what" she now knows. It's vital others explain what everyone has a right to know. Sunshine is our first line of defense. Constructive change depends on how it's used. 

NSA does more than spy. It lawlessly hacks computer and telecommunication networks. It does so globally. It focuses heavily on strategically important countries.

Mathhew Aid's a US intelligence expert. On June 10, his Foreign Policy Article headlined "Inside the NSA's Ultra-Secret China Hacking Group."

It "actively engage(s) in cyber-espionage." It does so covertly and lawlessly. Rogue states operate that way. America's by far the worst.

Obama officials point fingers the wrong way. They accuse China of active cyber-espionage against America. Beijing hit back publicly. Senior Chinese officials accused Washington of hypocrisy.

Beijing's top Internet official, Huang Chengquing, said China has "mountains of data" revealing widespread US hacking. It's designed to steal government secrets.

According to Aid, NSA's Office of Tailored Access Operations (TAO) "successfully penetrated Chinese computer and telecommunications systems for almost 15 years, generating some of the best and most reliable intelligence information about what is going on inside the People's Republic of China."

Most NSA employees and officials know little or nothing about TAO. "(E)xtraordinary sensitivity" of its operations keeps them secret. Only those needing to know have full access. 

Special security clearances are required "to gain access to the unit's work spaces inside the NSA operations complex," said Aid. 

"The door leading to its ultramodern operations center is protected by armed guards, an imposing steel door that can only be entered by entering the correct six-digit code into a keypad, and a retinal scanner to ensure that only those individuals specially cleared for access get through the door."

TAO's mission involves "collect(ing) intelligence information on foreign targets by surreptitiously hacking into their computers and telecommunications systems, cracking passwords, compromising the computer security systems protecting the targeted computer, stealing the data stored on computer hard drives, and then copying all the messages and data traffic passing within the targeted email and text-messaging systems." 

"The technical term of art used by NSA to describe these operations is computer network exploitation (CNE)."

Last October, Obama authorized selecting overseas targets for cyber-attacks. He did so by secret presidential directive. He's playing with fire.

His Offensive Cyber Effects Operations (OCEO) claims to "offer unique and unconventional capabilities to advance US national objectives around the world with little or no warning to the adversary or target and with potential effects ranging from subtle to severely damaging."

Washington will "identify potential targets of national importance where OCEO can offer a favorable balance of effectiveness and risk as compared with other instruments of national power."

It suggests operating domestically the same way. Keith Alexander heads US Cyber Command (Cybercom). He's authorized to conduct these attacks.

TAO personnel are responsible for developing information needed to destroy, damage, or otherwise compromise targeted sites.

According to Aid, TAO "is the now the largest and arguably the most important component of the NSA's huge Signal Intelligence (SIGINT) Directorate…."

"(O)ver 1,000 military and civilian computer hackers, intelligence analysts, targeting specialists, computer hardware and software designers, and electrical engineers."

Their job is identifying computer systems and supporting telecommunications networks for attack.

TAO is "an industry unto itself." It's a virtual "wunderkind" of US intelligence. "They go places, get things (and do what) nobody else in the IC (intelligence community) can."

It keeps growing in size and scope. It's a global monster. It's exponentially expanding. It's so huge and menacing it's no longer possible to hide.

China's acutely aware of its activities. President Xi Jinping knows the threat. So do Russia, Iran, and leaders of other countries. 

They're reacting defensively and offensively. Two sides can play this game. Cyber-attacks constitute war by other means. Fallout can be disastrous.

America's an out-of-control menace. It's lawless, unprincipled, uncompromising, and unrelenting. It threatens freedom and world peace. According to Wired.com, a recent Pentagon report recommended nuclear war in response to cyberattacking America.

Former New York Times executive editor Bill Keller now write Times op-eds. He does so irresponsibly. He supports Big Brother lawlessness. Perhaps he has something to hide. He's been on the wrong side of issues for years. He disgraces his profession doing so.

On June 16, he headlined "Living with the Surveillance State." Spying is good, he suggests. Sacrificing privacy and other freedoms are small prices to pay.

Preventing terror attacks matter most. No threats exist. Claiming otherwise doesn't wash. Keller didn't explain.

"The danger," he says, "is not surveillance per se." He claims most people "decided….that life on the grid entails a certain amount of intrusion."

He arrogantly believes "most people" share his view. We're "adjusting to life in a surveillance state," he says. 

Big Brother writ large reflects police state lawlessness. No one understanding the stakes is comfortable.

Real danger, says Keller, exists without "rigorous, independent regulation and vigilant oversight to keep potential abuses of power from becoming a real menace to our freedom."

He's more out of touch than he admits. Democracy's more illusion than reality. So-called checks and balances. They eroded long ago. They're nonexistent. 

Diktat power runs America. Congress and federal courts are complicit. Tyranny's the law of the land. Police state statutes eroded most freedoms. Anyone can be targeted for any reason or none at all. 

Thousands of political prisoners rot in America's gulag. It's the world's largest by far. Permanent war is longstanding policy. So is torture, neoliberal harshness, out-of-control corruption, and whatever monied interests say goes. 

America's social contract is being destroyed. It's happening in plain sight. Thirdworldizing America is policy. A race to the bottom reflects it. Reality for most people is nightmarish. Today's young generation has no future.

Inequality is institutionalized. Wealth, power and privilege alone matter. Popular needs go begging. Mass surveillance reflects what Chomsky calls "keeping the rabble in line."

Media scoundrels like Keller don't explain. "I don't think we're on a slippery slope to a police state," he claims. Perhaps he didn't notice one already exists.

Times columnist Tom Friedman's no better. His articles reflect hack journalism. He's unprincipled and wrongheaded. He supported Bush's Iraq war. 

He's unconcerned about imperial aggression. He suggests America's "designated enemies" border on insanity. He's silent on Israel's worst crimes.

He supports Big Brother lawlessness. He did so in his article headlined "Blowing a Whistle."

"Yes, I worry about potential government abuse of privacy from a program designed to prevent another 9/11 - abuse that, so far, does not appear to have happened. But I worry about another 9/11."

Fact check

Gross privacy abuses exist. Free expression is compromised. Dissent is an endangered species. 9/11 is the Big Lie of our time. It was state-sponsored terrorism. It was a false flag. Overwhelming evidence proves it.

Friedman claims America's an "open society." He's paid to lie. He and other media scoundrels substitute managed news misinformation for truth and full disclosure.

Snowden's no "heroic whistle-blower," he says. Big Brother's protecting us, he believes. Sacrificing freedom for alleged security's worth it, he claims. He's unaware of any abuses. 

He's more out of touch than Keller. America's freedom rests in peace. It lies in history's dustbin. Police state lawlessness replaced it. Blowing that whistle matters most.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. 

His new book is titled "Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com. 

Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.

It airs Fridays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.

http://www.progressiveradionetwork.com/the-progressive-news-hour