With political and military setbacks steadily sinking public perception of the US government's Iraq efforts, a marked increase in both slanted and outright erroneous official pronouncements has occurred. Taking advantage of media briefings, congressional testimony, and the creation of both an Arabic television channel (al-Hurra) and a Pentagon news service (DVIDS), the Bush Administration has vastly escalated its long-employed efforts to "spin" its way to success. Ritt Goldstein reports.

The Independent's Middle East correspondent Robert Fisk examines the US-UK military occupation of Iraq.

Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Spain's Socialist leader, said he will withdraw his country's support for the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq, restating a campaign promise a day after his party won elections overshadowed by terrorist bombings. Rodriguez Zapatero called the war that ousted Saddam Hussein an "error." A report on the election in Spain.

A little reminder of why we're doing this.

Another site, Wintersoldier.com, places records from Sen. Kerry's anti-war protests online, including the transcript of the full question and answer session before a U.S. Senate committee, where the young Vietnam veteran detailed, among other activities, his trip as a civilian to the Paris Peace talks involving the U.S., South Vietnamese and North Vietnamese governments.

"I have been to Paris. I have talked with both delegations at the peace talks -- that is to say the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the Provisional Revolutionary Government," Kerry said during testimony on April 22, 1971, before the Foreign Relations Committee, according to the transcript posted on the site.

Wintersoldier.com also features audio sound bites -- in the MP3 format -- of Kerry describing what he did in Vietnam, both in testimony before the Senate and in an interview.

"Yes, I committed the same kinds of atrocities as thousands of other soldiers have committed," Kerry said in the sound bite. "I took part in search and destroy missions, in the burning of villages."

http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20040309-122413-8660r

Analysis of current events in Haiti and US involvement. Chomsky argues that what has happened is similar to the overthrow of Haiti's first democratic government in 1991. The Aristide government, once again, was undermined by US planners, who understood, under Clinton, that the threat of democracy can be overcome if economic sovereignty is eliminated. Bush administration planners are dedicated to undermining democracy and independence in Haiti. The forces that reconquered the country are mostly inheritors of the US-installed army and paramilitary terrorists.

While many on the left have cast a vote for Nader as a largely symbolic and reckless act this article suggests that for his loyal followers, representing a broad cross-section of Americans, its not symbolic at all but the only real choice they have.

Background to the situation in Haiti including history of US economic relations and military interventions. This link is Part I. Part II by David Edwards is http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=54&ItemID=5070 .