The Total Collapse » Obama Administration http://www.thetotalcollapse.com World War III guaranteed Thu, 09 Feb 2012 10:07:20 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Juan Cole: Top Russian General: An American Attack on Iran would lead to US Collapse http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/juan-cole-top-russian-general-an-american-attack-on-iran-would-lead-to-us-collapse/ http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/juan-cole-top-russian-general-an-american-attack-on-iran-would-lead-to-us-collapse/#comments Mon, 22 Feb 2010 12:17:36 +0000 TheTotalCollapse.com http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/?p=2107

Saturday, February 20, 2010 

Top Russian General: An American Attack on Iran would lead to US Collapse;
Wants to Block It;
Kremlin Rejects Crippling SanctionsIt appears that, the International Atomic Energy Agency is at least allowing for the possibility that documents allegedly found on a laptop some years ago –but discounted by the US Central Intelligence Agency and the Defense Intelligence Agency as of dubious provenance and incompatible with other intelligence gathered in Iran — point to a nuclear weapons program that no one has been able to locate. Some close observers have concluded that the laptop documents are forgeries. A new IAEA report that declines to dismiss the alleged documents will certainly cause the war lobby in the United States to redouble its efforts to get up an attack on Iran.

Forged documents on the supposed purchase of yellowcake uranium by Iraq from Niger were used by George W. Bush to promote a war on Iraq. It was at that time the Intelligence and Research division of the Department of State that attempted to throw cold water on these “documents,” but was ignored by the president. Then head of the IAEA, Mohammed Elbaradei, was able to show them false in one afternoon.

The UN inspectors have a right to be frustrated with Iran, which has allowed inspections of its Natanz nuclear enrichment site, but which has not been completely transparent or adhered to the letter of its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. But the sum of those frustrations does not point to a nuclear weapons program, unlike the disputed laptop documents. In statements to the press this fall, US intelligence officials have said that they stand behind the conclusions first reached in 2007, that Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

The Obama administration wants stricter sanctions on Iran, and the Sarah Palin/ Daniel Pipes lunatic fringe wants a military attack on Iran.

But Russia’s General of the Army Nikolay Makarov, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, warned that an American attack on Iran now, when the US is bogged down in two wars, might well lead to the collapse of the United States. He said that such an attack would roil the region and have negative consequences for Russia (a neighbor of Iran via the Caspian Sea). And, he said, the Russian military is taking steps to forestall such an American strike on Iran. Makarov made the remarks in Vzglyad on Friday, February 19, 2010, and they were translated or paraphrased by the USG Open Source Center:

‘Makarov also commented on the recent rumors about the possibility of an attack upon Iran by the United States. In his opinion, this would be complete madness on the part of the American military. He said: “Admiral Michael McMullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently said that, in the United States, there is a plan for carrying out strikes against Iran but the United States clearly understands that now, when it is conducting two military campaigns, one in Iraq and the other in Afghanistan, a third campaign against Iran would simply lead to a collapse. It would not be able to withstand the strain.”

Nevertheless, in proportion to the winding down of the campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan, (the plan for) a war with the Islamic Republic of Iran, in the opinion of General Makarov, may again come out to the foreground.

General Makarov, Chief of the General Staff, said: “The consequences of such an attack will be terrible not only for the region but also for us. Iran is our neighbor and we are very carefully following this situation. The leadership of our country is undertaking all measures in order not to allow such a (military) development of events.” ‘

The less potentially catastrophic path, tougher United Nations Security Council sanctions, however, depend on Russia and China going along. Despite Washington’s optimism that Russia is softening toward the idea of stricter sanctions, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov cast the severest doubts on that idea on Friday.

In a radio interview on Friday with Ekho Moskvy Radio, which was translated by the USG Open Source Center, Lavrov was asked, “What is the situation with Iran’s foreign policy today? And is it true that we now have as a whole a united position with the United States on Iran?”

The foreign minister replied, “I don’t think that we have a united position.” He said that both Washington and Moscow agree on the importance of not allowing “a violation of the regime of nonproliferation of nuclear weapons.” He said the two countries have the same position on this issue, “although we do not coincide 100 per cent in methods of implementing it.”

So what Lavrov is saying is that the US and Russia do not actually have a common position or agree on really tough sanctions. They just both have a vague similar position that proliferation is bad.

Lavrov said that Moscow’s independent stance toward Iran is rooted in the two countries’ historical relationship as well as in Russian desire to get Iranian cooperation on such issues as the disposition of resources in the Caspian Sea. (For a quick overview of Russian-Iranian relations, see N.M. Mamedova, who also mentions Iran’s tacit support for Russia against Georgia in the Caucasus.) Lavrov said:

‘ But Iran for us, unlike the US, is a close neighbour, a country with which we have had a very long, historically conditioned relationship, a country with which we cooperate in the economic, humanitarian and military-technology fields alike and, let me note this particularly, a country that is our partner in the Caspian along with three other Caspian littoral states.

Therefore, we are not at all indifferent to what happens in Iran and around it. This applies to our economic interests and our security interests alike. This also applies . . . to the task of early settlement of the legal status of the Caspian Sea, which is not an easy task and in the approaches to which the Iranian position is close enough to ours.

Therefore, speaking of the proliferation threats, yes, we are concerned about Iran’s reaction. ‘

Lavrov is less convinced there is anything sinister about Iran’s civilian nuclear research, though he admits that questions remain:

‘ in the process of work, questions arose both from the IAEA’s inspectors themselves and on the basis of the intelligence which the IAEA obtains from various countries. They were questions that aroused suspicion as to whether there might in reality be some military aspects to Iran’s nuclear programme.

These questions were presented to the Iranians, as required by the procedures applicable in such cases. And, some time ago, Iran answered most of them. In principle, its answers were satisfactory, in a way that was considered by the professionals in Vienna normal. However, some of the questions are still on the table. ‘

So Lavrov thinks Iran’s answers are largely ‘satisfactory,’ though there remain small areas of uncertainty.

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was in Moscow earlier this week calling for ‘crippling sanctions on Iran.’ Lavrov’s remarks clearly indicated that Moscow disagreed that that situation was so perilous as to call for such a step.

But just to be sure there was no misunderstanding, Lavrov sent out his own deputy foreign minister, Sergei Ryabkov, to denounce any such talk.

Ryabkov said, according to Xinhua, “The term ‘crippling sanctions’ on Iran is totally unacceptable to us. The sanctions should aim at strengthening the regime of non- proliferation . . . We certainly cannot talk about sanctions that could be interpreted as punishment on the whole country and its people for some actions or inaction . . . ” He said that Russia sought to settle differences with Iran through dialogue and engagement. He also pledged that Russia would honor its deal to provide Iran S-300 air defense systems. He said, “There is a contract to supply these systems to Iran and we will fulfil it. The delays are linked to technical problems with adjusting these systems . . . ”

So on Friday, even as the hawks in Washington watered at the mouth at the prospect of being able to use the new IAEA report as a basis for belligerency against Iran, Russia’s foreign policy establishment was engaged in a whirlwind of activity aimed at challenging the notion that Moscow is was in Washington’s back pocket on Iran sanctions. The chief of staff predicted American collapse in an Iran conflagration, and vowed in any case to try to block any such attack. The foreign minister pronounced himself largely but not completely satisfied with Iran’s answers concerning its nuclear activities, and underlined that Russia needs Iran because of Caspian issues (and he could have added, because of Caucasus and Central Asian ones). And then the deputy foreign minister was enlisted to slap Netanyahu around a little, presumably on the theory that it would sting less coming from someone with ‘deputy’ in his title.

Those who have argued that Russia’s increasing willingness to acquiesce in tougher UNSC sanctions might influence China to go along, too, should rethink. Russia doesn’t seem all that aboard with a brutal sanctions regime. China not only has its own reasons not to want its own deals with Iran to be declared illegal, but its leaders doubt Iran has the capacity to construct a nuclear warhead anytime soon.

Postscript: The head of Iran’s nuclear program, interviewed on Aljazeera, warns the US against pressuring Iran.

Source: ICH.
]]> http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/juan-cole-top-russian-general-an-american-attack-on-iran-would-lead-to-us-collapse/feed/ 0 China Warns US Relationship Turning Increasingly Sour http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/china-warns-us-relationship-turning-increasingly-sour/ http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/china-warns-us-relationship-turning-increasingly-sour/#comments Tue, 09 Feb 2010 16:33:41 +0000 TheTotalCollapse.com http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/?p=1982

China’s Foreign Ministry warned again today about the possibility of worsening ties with the United States, slamming the Obama Administration for its plan to meet the Dalai Lama in a pending visit.

The Chinese spokesman cautioned that the US should “realize the high sensitivity of Tibet-related issues” The Dalai Lama visit is far from the only incident in recent weeks causing tension.

China is also furious at an Obama Administration plan to sell several billion dollars worth of weapons to Taiwan, a plan announced last week. There have been calls for boycotts of American arms companies in retaliation.

Read the full article.



]]> http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/china-warns-us-relationship-turning-increasingly-sour/feed/ 0 2010: “The Year of Severe Economic Contraction” http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/2010-the-year-of-severe-economic-contraction/ http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/2010-the-year-of-severe-economic-contraction/#comments Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:22:25 +0000 TheTotalCollapse.com http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/?p=1494

By Mike Whitney

URL of this article: Global Research, December 15, 2009

Upbeat reports in the financial media, belie the effects of the ongoing credit contraction. Massive injections of central bank liquidity have prevented the collapse of financial markets, but have done little to ease the deleveraging of households or stimulate activity the broader economy. The crisis has stripped $13 trillion in equity from working families who now find their access to credit either cut off or severely curtailed by the same banks that received hefty taxpayer-funded bailouts. The fiscal strangulation of the millions of people who are no longer considered “creditworthy” is progressively weakening demand and spreading pessimism across all income levels. Growing public desperation was the focus of a special weekend report by Bloomberg News:

“Americans have grown gloomier about both the economy and the nation’s direction over the past three months even as the U.S. shows signs of moving from recession to recovery. Almost half the people now feel less financially secure than when President Barack Obama took office in January, a Bloomberg National Poll shows.

The economy is the country’s top concern, with persistently high unemployment the greatest threat the public sees. Eight of 10 Americans rate joblessness a high risk to the economy in the next two years, outranking the federal budget deficit, which is cited by 7 of 10. An increase in taxes is named as a high risk by almost 6 of 10.

Fewer than 1 in 3 Americans think the economy will improve in the next six months….Only 32 percent of poll respondents believe the country is headed in the right direction, down from 40 percent who said so in September.” (Bloomberg)

The near-delirious optimism that followed the 2008 presidential election has fizzled in less than 12 months. While the policies of the Obama administration have improved Wall Street’s prospects for record profits and lavish bonuses, ordinary working people continue to fight to keep their jobs and maintain their standard of living. Recent data show that household debt which surged during the boom years is being pared back at a historic pace. Household debt to disposable income has plummeted from 136 percent to 122 percent in a little more than a year, leaving many families with little to spend at the malls or shopping centers.

Severe retrenchment has triggered a shift towards personal thriftiness which is reducing economic activity and strengthening deflationary pressures. 2010 is likely to be even worse, as mushrooming foreclosures and commercial real estate defaults force banks to slash lending accelerating the rate of decline. This is from Bloomberg:

“Foreclosure filings in the U.S. will reach a record for the second consecutive year with 3.9 million notices sent to homeowners in default, RealtyTrac Inc. said. This year’s filings will surpass 2008′s total of 3.2 million as record unemployment and price erosion batter the housing market…

Foreclosure filings exceeded 300,000 for the ninth straight month in November, RealtyTrac said today. A weak labor market and tight credit are “formidable headwinds” for the economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said in a Dec. 7 speech in Washington. The 7.2 million jobs lost since the recession began in December 2007 are the most of any postwar economic slump, Labor Department data show. Unemployment, at 10 percent last month, won’t peak until the first quarter, Quigley said.” (Bloomberg)

The Obama administration’s $787 billion stimulus pushed GDP into positive territory for the first time in more than a year, but the maximum impact has already been felt. President Obama–under advice from his chief advisors– has shifted his focus from soaring unemployment to long-term deficits. Additional stimulus will be no more than $200 billion, of which, a mere $50 billion will go towards jobs initiatives. At the same time, Fed chair Ben Bernanke will terminate the quantitative easing (QE) program which kept long-term interest rates low while providing financing for the housing market. When the program ends, rates will rise, housing prices will tumble, and liquidity will drain from the system. The end of QE coupled with dwindling stimulus ensures that economy will slide back into recession in the 2nd or 3rd Quarter of 2010.

Policymakers have decided to create conditions that are favorable to financial sector consolidation and the further privatization of public assets. The economy is being strangled by design.

Here’s economist Mark Thoma explaining why consumption will not return to pre-crisis levels:

“For the immediate future and likely for much longer than that, slow consumption growth is expected. One way that could change is if the government implements a successful jobs program or uses some other means to increase household income (e.g. a payroll tax cut), and households spend rather than save the extra income…, but the political environment makes a jobs program or further fiscal policy action highly unlikely.

Similarly…the Fed is anxious to unwind its massive policy intervention, not extend it, so monetary policy is unlikely to help much either. Since monetary and fiscal policy authorities are unwilling to provide further help, slow growth is the best outcome we’re likely to get.” (“Will Consumption Growth Return to Its Pre-Recession Level?” Mark Thoma, moneywatch.com)

Along with flagging consumption, economists Antonio Fatas and Ilian Mihov show why both investment and employment will not rebound in the way that many bullish analysts expect. By tracking the rate of recovery in the last 5 recessions, the two economists show that demand will remain flat for a prolonged period of time, precipitating a “jobless” and “investmentless” recovery. Their research supports additional stimulus to reduce the output gap and engage the labor force in productive activity. The administration’s policies are the exact opposite of the majority of professional economists who believe that deficits need to increase to effect overcapacity and underutilization. Obama is deliberately steering the economy into a double-dip recession.

While financial institutions have been propped up with zero-rates, myriad lending facilities and boatloads of Fed liquidity, the real economy continues to on a downward path. As households rebalance accounts and increase savings, the signs of distress are becoming more apparent. In Europe, the ECB and IMF have begun to use the financial crisis to wrest control of the budgets of deficits-plagued nations to apply business-friendly austerity measures. The economic meltdown–that was generated by overleveraged banks trading dodgy investment paper–is now being used to assert corporate/bank control over sovereign nations. Greece, Ireland, Iceland, Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal and Spain are all presently in the crosshairs of neoliberal restructuring. Surely, the same policies will be applied within the United States under the guidance of supply-side economist and chief advisor to the president, Lawrence Summers. Thus, in 2010, economic contraction will continue to force state and local governmnets to lay off millions of more workers while public assets and services are made available at firesale prices to private industry.

Debt deflation and deleveraging will continue into 2011, while foreclosures, personal bankruptcies and defaults continue to mount. The public’s frustration with ineffective government policies, is likely to change from pessimism to rage on short notice. The prospect of social unrest or sporadic incidents of violence can no longer be excluded.



]]> http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/2010-the-year-of-severe-economic-contraction/feed/ 0 US Cutting Gaza Lifeline http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/us-cutting-gaza-lifeline/ http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/us-cutting-gaza-lifeline/#comments Sat, 12 Dec 2009 08:15:02 +0000 TheTotalCollapse.com http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/?p=1463

Making an American ‘Impenetrable Underground Wall’ the Laughing Stock of the World—Leave It to the People of Gaza

By Ann Wright

December 10, 2009 “Information Clearing House” –  No doubt at the instigation of the Israeli government, the Obama administration has authorized the United States Army Corps of Engineers to design a vertical underground wall under the border between Egypt and Gaza. 

In March, 2009 the United States provided the government of Egypt with $32 million in March, 2009 for electronic surveillance and other security devices to prevent the movement of food, merchandise and weapons into Gaza. Now details are emerging about an underground steel wall that wil be 6-7 miles long and extend 55 feet straight down into the desert sand.

The steel wall will be made of super-strength steel put together in a jigsaw puzzle fashion.  It will be bomb proof and can not be cut or melted.  It will be “impenetrable,” and reportedly will take 18 months to construct. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8405020.stm)

The steel wall is intended to cut the tunnels that go between Gaza and Egypt. 

The tunnels are the lifelines for Gaza since the international community agreed to a blockade of Gaza to collectively punish the citizens of Gaza for their having elected in Parliamentary elections in 2006 sufficient Hamas Parliamentarians that Hamas became the government of Gaza.  The United States and other western countries have placed Hamas on the list of terrorist organizations.

The underground steel wall is intended to strengthen international governmental efforts to imprison and starve the people of Gaza into submission so they will throw out the Hamas government.

Just as the steel walls of the US Army Corps of Engineers at the base of the levees of New Orleans were unable to contain Hurricane Katrina, the US Army Corps of Engineers’ underground steel walls that will attempt to build an underground cage of Gaza will not be able to contain the survival spirit of the people of Gaza. 

America’s super technology will again be laughed at by the world, as young men dedicated to the survival of their people, will again outwit technology by digging deeper, and most likely penetrating the “impenetrable” in some novel, simple, low-tech way.

I have been to Gaza 3 times this year following the 22-day Israeli military attack on Gaza that killed 1,440, wounded 5,000, left 50,000 homeless and destroyed much of the infrastructure of Gaza. The disproportionate use of force and targeting of the civilian population by the Israeli military is considered by international law and human rights experts as as violations of the Geneva conventions.

When our governments participate in illegal actions, it is up to the citizens of the world to take action. On December 31, 2009, 1,400 international citizens from 42 countries will march in Gaza with 50,000 Gazans in the Gaza Freedom March to end the siege of Gaza.  They will take back to their countries the stories of spirit and survival of the pople of Gaza and will return home committed to force their governments to stop these inhuman actions against the people of Gaza.

Just as American smart bombs in Afghanistan and Iraq have not conquered the spirit of Aghans and Iraqis, America’s underground walls in Gaza will never conquer the courage of those who are fighting for the survival of their families.

One more time, the American government and the Obama administration has been an active participant in the continued inhumane treatment of the people of Gaza and should be held accountable, along with Israel and Egypt for violations of human rights of the people of Gaza.

Ann Wright is a retired US Army Reserve Colonel and a former U.S. diplomat who resigned in March, 2003 in opposition to the war on Iraq. She served in as a US diplomat in Nicaragua, Grenada, Somalia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Sierra Leone, Micronesia, Afghanistan and Mongolia.  She is the co-author of “Dissent: Voices of Conscience” .  Her March 19, 2003 letter of resignation can be read at http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0303/032103wright.htm. 


]]> http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/us-cutting-gaza-lifeline/feed/ 0 US-Israel war games start as deadline for Iran draws near http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/us-israel-war-games-start-as-deadline-for-iran-draws-near/ http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/us-israel-war-games-start-as-deadline-for-iran-draws-near/#comments Sun, 25 Oct 2009 11:10:37 +0000 TheTotalCollapse.com http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/?p=1156

The US and Israel launched a major joint military exercise yesterday as a deadline neared for Iran to approve a deal to delay its development of nuclear weapons and prevent Israel from attacking its nuclear facilities.

More than 1,000 US troops and 17 US Navy ships joined Israeli forces for a week-long missile defence exercise as it emerged that until recent progress in nuclear talks Israel may have been much closer to ordering a military strike than had been thought.

The deal to export much of Iran’s uranium to Russia and process it for civilian use should push back Iran’s acquisition of its first nuclear bomb by at least a year, analysts believe.

Iran has until today to approve the plan, which was provisionally agreed earlier this month. Until that point Israel was “on a glide path” to ordering a pre-emptive strike on Iranian nuclear facilities, one expert has said, echoing the privately-held views of some in the Obama Administration.

 

“The Israelis have been at pains to keep European governments and the US informed of their position, which is that if efforts to stop Iran’s enrichment are not going anywhere then this is going to force a difficult decision on the Israelis,” Patrick Clawson, of the pro-Israel Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told The Times.

Because of the uranium export deal being negotiated in Vienna “the US and Israel will not strike Iran’s nuclear facilities in the near future”, retired Brigadier General Shlomo Brom, of Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies, told The Jerusalem Post. “But the military option is not off the table.”

The Juniper-Cobra missile defence drill launched yesterday is an exercise held every two years but it serves as a timely reminder to an Iranian regime weakened by opposition demonstrations of the depth of Israel’s military alliance with the US.

Part of the purpose was to confirm that it could protect itself against attack from its regional enemies, one Cabinet minister said, adding: “We run these drills under a number of circumstances but it is clear that the scenarios are all based on a confrontation between Israel and Iran.”

Rear Admiral John Richardson, of the US Navy, said: “We hope this will contribute to the stability and security of this country. We hope for the best but are preparing for any contingency.” Iran was expected to give an answer today to a draft deal presented by the UN’s nuclear watchdog to ship 1.2 tons of enriched uranium — three quarters of its total stock — to Russia. It would then receive back lowenriched uranium, which can be used at small nuclear facilities but is not weapons-grade.

Israel has expressed hesitant support of the plan but has raised concerns that Iran would use it to buy time and still continue pursuing its nuclear weapons programme.

A team of inspectors is set to arrive at Qom on Sunday to take a first look at a newly-revealed enrichment plan there. Israeli officials said that Iran has regularly deceived inspectors on the intentions of its nuclear programme, using a complex system to hide military plants and complexes used to develop nuclear weapons.

Israeli defence officials were said to be concerned by their new estimates that show hundreds of targets within Israel that could be targeted by Iran. Israel’s plans for a strike on Iranian nuclear targets focus on just three facilities in Natanz, Isfahan and Arak.

Israeli officers said that the US would be testing a radar system installed in Israel a year ago to give early warning in the event of a missile launch.

From pakalert.
]]> http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/us-israel-war-games-start-as-deadline-for-iran-draws-near/feed/ 0 “Green shoots” are false claims, the dollar to collapse, experts say http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/green-shoots-are-false-claims-the-dollar-to-collapse-experts-say/ http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/green-shoots-are-false-claims-the-dollar-to-collapse-experts-say/#comments Sat, 04 Jul 2009 18:39:00 +0000 TheTotalCollapse.com http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/?p=706

A false dawn for the dollar
July 4th, 2009 – Russia Today

The US administration has been saying it sees the first green shoots of economic recovery. However consumer spending remains low in America, and some experts argue the signs are misleading.

What can you get for a dollar? Not much these days.

Its value dropped considerably at the end of June – and this is despite the Obama administration announcing signs of an economic rebound.

Experts think these are false claims of hope. They see a gloomy future for the dollar and say the $787 billion stimulus package passed earlier this year is only making things worse.

“The green shoots that they think they see don’t reflect any genuine economic growth. They reflect the initial reaction to the stimulus. If you shoot someone up with heroin, you’re gonna get a reaction before there is a withdrawal,” says economic expert Peter Schiff.

And as job losses continue in the US and Americans have less money to spend, their problems become everyone’s problems.

“America consumes 25 per cent of the world’s energy. It takes $3 trillion of the world’s exports every year. If America doesn’t consume, the global markets will slow down dramatically,” believes trend expert Gerald Celente.

Faith in the dollar as a global reserve currency is long gone.

“I think the dollar’s days as a reserve currency are over,” Peter Schiff says.

This becomes obvious when China, the biggest foreign holder of the currency, wants out. They’ve even asked for the topic to be discussed at the upcoming G8 financial summit.

Economists are predicting the death of the dollar. But the US has been printing more and more of them to keep its sick economy afloat.
]]> http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/green-shoots-are-false-claims-the-dollar-to-collapse-experts-say/feed/ 0 A step closer to US martial law http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/a-step-closer-to-us-martial-law/ http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/a-step-closer-to-us-martial-law/#comments Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:22:02 +0000 TheTotalCollapse.com http://www.thetotalcollapse.com/?p=654

President Obama may have preached change, but the reality on the ground is rather different. Following in Bush’s footsteps, the Obama administration is modifying laws as it pleases.

From WSWS: Obama administration preparing order for indefinite detentions

The Obama administration is drafting an executive order that would give the US president the power to arrest without charge, and imprison indefinitely without trial, foreign nationals it accuses of being terrorists, according to several senior government officials who spoke with the Washington Post and a reporter for non-profit news source ProPublica on condition of anonymity.

The order, should it be released, would likely reuse arguments made by the previous administration of George W. Bush that the laws of war allow the executive branch to disregard the established judicial system and domestic laws and rights, such as those guaranteed in the Bill of Rights.

Behind Obama’s turn toward indefinite detention is the quandary he faces over the prison camp at the US military naval base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Shortly after entering office in late January, Obama issued an executive order-to great media fanfare-calling for the closure of the Guantánamo prison by January 2010. But the debate that has ensued in Washington, while nominally focused on what to do with the remaining Guantánamo inmates, has developed into a discussion of the broader anti-democratic methods of the “war on terror.”

The Obama administration hopes an executive order will resolve the legal fate of the 229 remaining Guantánamo prisoners-as well as future prisoners in the “war on terror”-by allowing the president to incarcerate them indefinitely, likely at military installations in the US.

From The Examiner:

President Barack Obama is actively considering issuing an executive order authorizing the continued, indefinite detention of terrorism suspects, without trial, according to the Washington Post and Pro Publica. The news is widely being treated as a shocking about-face for a president who has criticized his predecessor’s harsh tactics in dealing with alleged terrorists. But for anybody paying attention, this is just one more step along a path the president has has already traveled, with indefinite detention hinted at in a May speech and even championed by the Obama administration in legal papers filed in March.

According to the Washington Post report: Obama administration officials, fearing a battle with Congress that could stall plans to close the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, are crafting language for an executive order that would reassert presidential authority to incarcerate terrorism suspects indefinitely, according to three senior government officials with knowledge of White House deliberations.

Such an order would embrace claims by former president George W. Bush that certain people can be detained without trial for long periods under the laws of war. Obama advisers are concerned that an order, which would bypass Congress, could place the president on weaker footing before the courts and anger key supporters, the officials said.



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