From blogdrop.posterous.com:
Just to put this into perspective, Ariana Huffington transported, for free, around 10,000 New Yorkers to Washington DC for the Rally for Sanity and/or Fear on October 30, 2010. That’s a third of the Taliban and more than Al Qaeda.
Here’s another graphic I nicked from blogdrop.posterous.com:
If you are pro-life you should be horrified by this. Of course, if you are pro-only-your-own-life, you’ve already rationalized this away. Sad, either way.
Wikileaks Iraq war logs: every death mapped…
Found via publicradiointernational:
We need to stop pretending this isn’t real or that it is forgivable.
Wikileaks Iraq war logs: every death mapped
also for reference Iraq Body Count
Can you mouseover and see pictures of the body? I think that might bring it home even more. Gah… no one in charge is providing moral (or even adequate) leadership. I really hate the whole of my country for it’s ignorance, laziness, and it’s truly shitty leaders who only want to take advantage of our laziness and our ignorance.
Livingathomenow says it all above: “We need to stop pretending this isn’t real or that it is forgivable.”
But who do we not forgive? Ourselves? Our leaders? Nobody cares enough.
How do we hold anyone accountable when the people in charge of holding people accountable won’t do it?
US Withdraws Last Combat Brigade from Iraq, But 56,000 Troops Remain
The US has officially withdrawn its last designated combat brigade from Iraq, two weeks ahead of a deadline for the withdrawal of some 14,000 troops. In a surprise announcement, the Pentagon said the last combat brigade crossed over into Kuwait earlier today. Although the withdrawal has been hailed as a major milestone in the Iraq war and an end to combat operations, most of the remaining 56,000 US troops are still trained in combat and will continue to carry out armed attacks. The Obama administration also plans to double its private military force in Iraq to an estimated 7,000 contractors. According to the New York Times, the bulk of the private military force will be deployed at five compounds across Iraq, where they’ll perform duties including operating drones, deploying reaction forces and operating radars to detect militant attacks. In an interview on Democracy Now! earlier this month, independent journalist Jeremy Scahill said the Obama administration’s withdrawal plan amounts to a rebranded occupation.
Jeremy Scahill: “What is essentially unfolding here is a downsized and rebranded occupation, Obama-style, that is going to necessitate a surge in private forces. The State Department is asking for MRAP vehicles, armored vehicles, for Black Hawk helicopters and for these paramilitary forces. So, yes, you can say that officially combat has ended, but in reality you’re continuing it through the back door by bringing in these paramilitary forces and classifying them as diplomatic security, which was Bush’s game from the very beginning.”
via democracynow.org
Sadly, this is what I was expecting. I’m sure anyone paying attention isn’t surprised by the fact that we’re leaving a huge stack of troops behind. What’s next from the O-man? A giant “Mission Accomplished” banner and an aircraft-carrier-based photo-op?
