The MAeLstrom

[A scan of news articles and commentary on the internet.]

Adminstration Takes Aim at Troop Support: From the New York Times: Whenever and however American troops withdraw from Iraq, a flood of wounded and psychologically damaged veterans will present the nation for decades to come with costly needs that already are overwhelming government services. The backlog of disability claims stands at more than 405,000, with cases averaging 177 days to be processed — almost twice the backlog for civilians. Experts estimate that an additional 400,000 claims will be filed in the next two years. ... While talking a lot about supporting the troops and using them shamelessly in Congressional battles and election years, the administration has systematically shortchanged the wounded and maimed who make it back from harm’s way. The nation has a moral obligation to help them face a whole new challenge of survival.

Gore on Bush Propaganda: From Juan Cole’s Informed Comment: It is no surprise that Al Gore is attacking Bush in his new book, of course. Nor is it a surprise that Gore accuses Bush of ignoring all reasonable evidence in both making the decision to invade Iraq and in deciding to do nothing about global warming.What is important about what Gore is saying is his focus on how the pollution of America's information environment by 1) corporate media consolidation (all television news is brought to Americans by five private corporations, the CEOs of which all vote Republican) and 2) government propaganda …

Democracy and Muslim Sharia Law: Rob Kall asks at opednews.com if they can live together: “It doesn't look like democracy fares very well when Sharia Law is allowed much power. In supposedly democratic Malaysia, a country which describes itself as a Muslim country, the right of a person to choose his or own religion is no longer in question. You can't decide to stop being a Muslim if that's what you want to do.”

Israeli Foreign Minister: I voted for a one-day occupation of Lebanon: From Haaretz: Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni told the Winograd Committee investigating the Second Lebanon War that, in a cabinet vote at the war's outset, she believed she was approving an operation that would last one night."As far as I was concerned, we set out on July 12 on an operation that was supposed to end that night - or the next afternoon, at the latest," Livni said, according to testimony released by the committee Sunday.

Attacks on U.S. Troops in Iraq Grow in Lethality, Complexity: From The Washington Post: As U.S. troops push more deeply into Baghdad and its volatile outskirts, Iraqi insurgents are using increasingly sophisticated and lethal means of attack, including bigger roadside bombs that are resulting in greater numbers of American fatalities relative to the number of wounded.

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