Last Report Filed around midnight 3/26

Dan Rather Hosts Bush Propaganda Special

On a special "all war all the time" edition of 60 Minutes II with Dan Rather, CBS rallied round Bush, who had come under attack earlier today (see press conference below) for his failure to constructively address humanitarian needs in Iraq, esp in Basra.

The CBS slot showed what was obviously a concentrated, limited zone where people were being given water and basic supplies by the troops. Dubbed over this heartwarming scene was a propaganda script about the great humanitarian aid effort the US was making and how the poor, grateful Iraqis had been living cowering in fear in their houses, afraid to go outside, until the US showed up...(though paraphrasing, I am not exaggerating the text!)

One journalist at the scene pointed out, quite tellingly, that he and other journalists had been, literally, "trucked in" from their "embedded" sites to witness and record the water and food dispensing event

One soldier was selected to provide on the scene commentary. It was obvious from his delivery that he was giving scripted lines. One of his comments was a lie being pushed by the Pentagon:

LIE: The water supply to Basra was cut off by the Iraqis to cruelly deprive their own people of water.

TRUTH: The Iraqi water supply runs on a system of pumps and desalination/purification equipment. The U.S. bombs of some days back took out a critical high-power line leaving the town without electricity - and thus without pumping or desalination equipment. If the water was cut just before the bombing, it was probably precautionary - to protect the people from the very real danger of salt-laden, untreated water in the event that the treatment plant was targeted by the U.S. - as so many were in Iraq, with catastrophic consequences for human health in 1991.

"Filed" 6:50 EST 3/25

THE BUSH WAR PLAN: SHOCK, AWE AND STARVATION: Withholding of immediate relief to starving Iraqis is all just part of the "Plan"

Press Conference with Ari Fleischer: 3/25. First, I want to congratulate the reporters present who had the courage and intelligence to ask REAL questions today. It was like rain in the desert! Thanks to these reporters, Fleischer was confronted by questions he couldn't adequately answer, - at least the ones he didn't simply lie in response to. The issue of humanitarian aid was one key point of Fleischer Failure. The other was the issue of whether Bush hoodwinked Americans into a war that would cost more money and casualties than they were led to believe.

ARI FLEISCHER LIE:
There is no way to get humanitarian aid to desperate Iraqis because there are mines in the harbor Umm Qasr.

TRUTH:
Food could be brought in via land and air, along the same routes used to provision U.S. troops. But if that were admitted, it would mean actually having to provide immediate humanitarian aid. The reality is, Bush WANTS to inflict maximal suffering on the Iraqis right now as a way to "demoralize them" and get the effect for the cameras he promised us all: grateful throwing down their arms and welcoming U.S. troops. Bush figures starving kids will win him his objective, even if bombs can't.

Earlier in the same press conference, a bold, conscientious reporter asked him how he expected the Iraqis to get any food while the mines are active in the harbor. Fleischer said that the U.S. troops were taking care of Iraqi needs as they went along. The reporter didn't swallow this BS and said, drily, "Oh, so you're handling humanitarian aid on a case by case basis?" (which of course, doesn't do a damn thing for most of the tens of thousands in dire need.).

So let's get this straight, Mr. Egg with Eyebrows: the troops are supposed to take care of the humanitarian needs for now....which confirms what I just said earlier: there are active supply lines available and these troops have access to food and other supplies. BUT, you still say you can't get food and supplies in because of mines in the harbor.

FLESICHER/BUSH LIE:
Bush has asked for a generous amount of money in his "supplemental" (his favorite word these days) for post-war humanitarian aid in Iraq.

TRUTH:
Bush asked for 8 billion in aid - but none of it is going to Iraq. Instead, it is being doled out as "rewards" to nations around Iraq who went along quietly with the Bush program (Jordan, for ex.), with $1 billion to Turkey, which never even came through with the use of their bases. The only real money for post-war aid Bush is actually putting up is about $105 million, and that was already earmarked last year and will last about two hours at the rate that people are being maimed, starved, and displaced from their homes.

ARI FLEISCHER LIE:
When asked if he thought Americans had been adequately warned re: length and mortalities of war: "I think the American people fully understood the risks."

TRUTH:
Bush, aided and abetted by the media, has failed to in any meaningful way to prepare the U.S. for any contingency other than a "Gulf War I Rerun." As soon as he declared war and it was too late, then and only then did he begin to talk about a "longer, costly" war with "many casualties."

In short, he hijacked American support for the war. Poll after poll - even skewed as most have been - have consistently shown over the past 6 months that Americans' attitude toward war is entirely tied to predicted casualties, with support dipping as casualties grow. In December, 2002, one DOD official, a marine, said Americans would rebel if casualties reached above 1,000 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-0212300190dec30,0,5571191.story?coll=chi-news-hed

In a poll just this week, it is clear that Americans still have a very inaccurate perception of the war: 3/24: CBS poll shows that 88% believe the war is "going well." They have nothing to contradict this perception as long as Tommy Franks, Bush, and Rumsfeld spout the line about "great progress" and it is unquestionably shored up by the media (Headlines like "BEARING DOWN ON BAGHDAD!" or "KNOCKING ON SADDAM'S DOOR" are totally misleading, presenting a picture of an unopposed charge).

More than half of the poll respondents (53-62%) said war would be "quick and successful". while only 32-43% said it would be long and costly

When asked how many casualties they expected, 67% said less than 1,000.

Does this in any way indicate that Americans "fully understand the risks?" The only thing statements like that mean is that the Egg Man and his boss are spinning in circles so tight they're bumping into each other on the way around. It won't be long now, Ari, before "all the kings horses and all the kings men, won't be able to put you - and your boss - back together again."

Bush Tries to Pay for New War Casualties at Expense of Existing Disabled Vets

Now, while Bush tries to find ways to wriggle out of actually spending money on any meaningful humanitarian aid, he is also trying to wriggle out of paying for the suffering of U.S. casualties of war. Not only has he proposed slashing the VA budget at a time when MORE VETERANS THAN EVER BEFORE are seeking assistance (the graying of WWII, Korean, and Vietnam Vets is taking a heavy toll), he also has instructed VA counselors NOT to inform vets of their rights and benefits, hoping to discourage thousands for applying. (The DAV is valiantly stepping into the breach and now using vans and mobile units to go to shopping centers and VFW halls to get the info. to vets). Today I learned that yesterday at a Congressional committee session, it has been suggested that the government bump veterans at home from benefits rosters to pay for unexpected high number of casualties of Bush war.

http://c-span.org/watch/index.asp?Cat=TV&Code=CS3

British MP Says Bush and Blair Plan to Carve Middle East Up To Suit Their Own Geopolitical Ambitions

British MP George Galloway told the Arab News on 3/25 that he has it on good authority that Bush and Blair plan to carve up the Middle East after the Iraq war to suit their schemes. "They openly discuss changing the boundaries of old countries, creating new countries - removing this and that leader." Galloway has not respect for Bush: "The U.S. has stirred up a vast amount of hatred against itself by this swaggering arrogance of its intellectually limited leader, roaring like a bull in a bomber jacket in air hangars" to the troops. Galloway suspects the real motivation for the war is the "geopolitical aspirations of the U.S. government."

http://www.arabnews.com/Article.asp?ID=24283