Colin,
Do you know if Blair Mountain is on the list? It has apparently been approved for historic preservation, but the governor has de-approved it. You’d think that the site of the largest post civil war, civil insurrection in U.S. history would claim some importance – but hey, since it was also one of the few examples of the illegal use of U.S. federal troops and air force (using WWI poison gas bombs) against the rights of labor to organize, it seems they’d rather like to plow it under with the rest of W Virginia. This country hates its memory, as well as its land.

Posted by: anna missed | May 19 2009 9:26 utc | 4

Hersh was careful not to say which foreign leaders were actually assassinated by Cheney’s assassination team . . . plausible deniability reigns!

Posted by: Gaianne | May 19 2009 10:17 utc | 6

Speaking of NuCuLar power: Mini reactors
A little business propaganda from Monday’s Denver Post. “The Voice of the Rocky Mountain Empire”

Posted by: DavidS | May 19 2009 11:31 utc | 8

Tony Karon explains in very clear and concise language why Obama needs to do everything in his power to put the brakes on Bibi. Let me also add that if Israel were to use its military might to undermine Iran, Iran would retaliate by blocking oil from being shipped out of the Middle East, thus causing oil prices to soar. Because cheap oil is one of the few bright spots in our less-than-bright economy, if oil prices were to take flight, especially with little to no end in sight, whatever green shoots that are trying to take roots in our economy will suddenly turn brown and fall to the ground, causing our already depressed economy to collapse into a full-blown depression.

Posted by: Cynthia | May 19 2009 15:17 utc | 10

I wanted to comment on the map of Israel that shows one colored block, no “Palestine” in one of the previous links threads.
For its purposes the map is perfectly adequate (no great ambitions) and correct within conventions of political mapping on a geographical substrate.
The country is Israel, the occupied territories, are just that, occupied by Israel, and such a map is not supposed to enter into the complexities of different administrative statuses / regions.
I am not in favor of a 2-state solution, just to be clear. I know Yossi Beilin and others have devoted their lives to working it out, and that the Swiss Gvmt. has pushed it as hard as it could. So much so, in fact, that at one point I hesitantly, at least in public, joined the ‘least bad solution’ camp that is a common feature of thinking around here. As a supposed quote unquote solution, it is logical and respectable, and it is hard to argue against it. It seems simple, and fair. No doubt that is why Obama can make noise about it.
(I have not read what he has said at different times in detail..)
A dead end. It will never happen. If Palestine becomes a country, it will immediately be recognized by every country in the world including the US who will, perforce, have been the organisors /enforcers.
When, if, Palestine becomes an official entity it will have all the rights of a Nation State, they will have a seat at the UN, and all the protection that statute confers. The fur will fly immediately, to put it mildly, and Israel will be in deep doo-doo. Its supporter, enabler, the US, will be cut off at the knees, and if Palestine is just Bantustans, Israel will be that *as well.*
Israel will never accept it. Never. They, the military, the Zionists, the financial ganstas in charge who manipulate these attitudes, will prefer any other outcome, including giving up and moving away… or more serious actions, whatever.
So B.O. mouthing about what is on the face of it a step forward, a fair deal, is fake, it is PR, it looks good at first blush but smells like dead fish. It is media hullaballoo, temporising gloss, obfuscation. Bullsh*t with smooth smiles and gestures, etc.

Posted by: Tangerine | May 19 2009 17:23 utc | 12

B, Anna Missed, intelvet, or other of you knowledgeable folks at the bar, what do you make of the fake Sy Hersh story re B. Bhutto? Is it a CIA faction (via ISI) sending a shot across Cheney’s bow? Trying to deepsix the McChrystal promotion as some sort of payback?
I’m just trying to map out who is doing what to whom in this dark world.

Posted by: Maxcrat | May 19 2009 17:37 utc | 14

@Maxcrat – what do you make of the fake Sy Hersh story re B. Bhutto? Is it a CIA faction (via ISI) sending a shot across Cheney’s bow?
Certainly not. This was an attempt to de-legitimize Hersh by presenting him as a lunatic.
Guess who arranged for that …

Posted by: b | May 19 2009 18:41 utc | 16

@b
Irrespective of the possibility that this story was done to cast Hersh as a lunatic. It put the US in a more difficult position in winning the hearts and mind of the pakistani population. The rebuttal from Hersh was printed as a much smaller news. The people of Pakistan would think that Hersh was on to the truth, but changed his position later to save himself from the umreekan beast. The story that the US was behind the BB murder (although still quite prevalent in Pakistan) has gotten further traction.
It is unfortunate that, in an implicit manner, you cast the US to be the center of the universe wrt all that goes around in the world. Especially information warfare.

Posted by: a | May 20 2009 5:20 utc | 18