Tuesday, April 30, 2013

13-04-30 Guantanamo Bay and the Ongoing Hunger Strike


6 Horrifying Facts Every American Should Know About Guantanamo Bay and the Ongoing Hunger Strike

As the hunger strike grows, the U.S. is sending more medical personnel to help force-feed the prisoners. Here are some of the facts you should know about the protest and the prison camp.
Guantanamo Prison Flight
Photo Credit: Publik15/Flickr
 
 
 
 
The hunger strike at Guantanamo Bay continues to grow. The U.S. recently forced many prisoners into solitary confinement. The military now admits that 100 prisoners at the camp are refusing to eat. But lawyers for Guantanamo detainees say that more than 130 detainees are on hunger strike.
While the claims and counter-claims bounce back and forth, the situation continues to deteriorate. Here’s 6 facts you should know about Guantanamo Bay and the ongoing act of protest most of the prisoners are participating in.
1. U.S. Medical Reinforcements Have Arrived to Force-Feed Prisoners
2. Hunger Strike Sparked By Raids, Fueled By Indefinite Detention
3. 86 Detainees Have Been Cleared for Release--But They’re Still There
4. Obama Can Help Change the Situation
5. Clashes at Camps
6. Torture Was Endemic
Alex Kane is AlterNet's New York-based World editor, and an assistant editor forMondoweiss. Follow him on Twitter @alexbkane.

13-04-30 OpEdNews.com: IDB bankruptcy in the Tel Aviv District Court - corruption of the courts and banking regulation

IDB bankruptcy in the Tel Aviv District Court - corruption of the courts and banking regulation

By (about the author)     Permalink       (Page 1 of 1 pages)
OpEdNews Op Eds 4/30/2013 at 08:43:36
The case ushers the financial crisis into the State of Israel, and  provides perfect documentation of the tight links between corruption of the courts and corruption of banking regulation.  It can further be seen  as the  parting gift of Stanley Fischer (Governor of Bank of Israel, and Bernanke's teacher) before packing his bags and leaving for good...

http://www.opednews.com/articles/IDB-bankruptcy-in-the-Tel-by-Joseph-Zernik-130430-581.html#comment431108

UPDATE: Apriil 30, 2013

"Too big to fail, too big to jail" established in the State of Israel...

This afternoon, in the second hearing within 48 hours, Judge Eitan Orenstein approved an out of court settlement, which leaves Tycoon Nochi Dankner at the helm of his failing pyramid scheme.

This is the largest financial scandal in the history of the State of Israel. But if the courts can help it, the People of the State of Israel will never know:
* Which bankers issued huge loans with no collaterals, through blatant conflicts of interests.
* Which banking regulators knew of the practice, but turned a blind eye.
* What part of Dankner's corporate financial reports was fraud.

Israel is now deep into the global financial crisis... all the components are here.

Monday, April 29, 2013

13-04-30 Putin And Merkel Survive Femen Booby Trap

Shouting obscenities and chanting "Putin - The Dictator," topless activists from the Femen protest group tried to disrupt the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chancellor Angela Merkel to the Hannover Messe tech show in Germany on April 8.

Videos URLs:
1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=zUyvlPRZMeM
2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=-HBtRSVfQow
3) http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=3P8wNutKNxg






13-04-30 The Bush II library


13-04-29 Hunger strike in GITMO

By Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!
86 Guantanamo prisoners have been cleared for release, yet they rot in prison far from their families. Their only hope is for the world to pay attention again. READ MORE»

13-04-29 פירוק אי.די.בי (36681-04-13) בבית המשפט המחוזי בתל-אביב - עובדים עלינו בעיניים!

 
"המזכיר הראשי" קובי בלייך והשופט איתן אורנשטיין, בית המשפט המחוזי ת"א


בדיקת הכתבים במערכת המקוונת לגישת הציבור (נט המשפט) מראה שהתיק אינו חסוי,
אך גישת הציבור נמנעת אפילו לנתונים הבסיסיים כגון - שמות הצדדים ומועדי
הדיונים.

במקום כל אלה מופיעות אזהרות: "אינך מורשה לצפות בפרטים". [1]

מניעת גישת הציבור לכתבי בתי המשפט ללא בסיס חוקי היא עבירה על זכויות האדם
של כל תושבי מדינת ישראל ואף אינה עולה בקנה אחד עם החלטתה המלומדת של הנשיאה
לשעבר דורית בייניש תחת האגודה לזכויות האדם בישראל נ שר המשפטים (5917/97).

יחד עם זאת, אין כאן הפתעה גדולה - ה"מזכיר הראשי" בבית המשפט המחוזי בת"א,
מר קובי בלייך, יושב במשרדו מעל לשנתיים ללא כל כתב מינוי כדין.

הדיבורים הקשוחים כביכול של השופט איתן אורנשטיין [2] הם צחוק מהעבוודה.

קרית אי.די.בי. היא אחת השערוריות הפיננסיות הגדולות (או הגדולה) בתולדות
המדינה:
* אסור לתת לתיק זה להיסגר לפני שלב גילוי הראיות.
* חייבים לדעת אילו מן הבנקאים עברו על החוק במתן הלוואות ענק בניגוד לחוקי
הבנקאות הבסיסיים.
* חייבים לדעת מי בפיקוח על הבנקים היפר אימונים - ידע ועצם את עיניו.

הקריסה של אי.די.בי מבשרת למעשה את הגעת המשבר הבנקאי העולמי לישראל, והיא גם
מתנת הפרידה של סטנלי פישר בשעה שהוא אורז את המזוודות...

שחיתות בתי המשפט ושחיתות מערכת הבנקאות הולכות יד ביד!

בתי המשפט בישראל עברו השחתה חסרת תקדים בעשור האחרון תחת כהונתם של אהרון
ברק ודורית בייניש כנשיאי בית המשפט העליון.
____
דר' יוסף צרניק
סייג לזכויות האדם (NGO)
____
* דוח סייג לזכויות האדם לגבי ארה"ב נכלל בדוח התקופתי של האו"ם לגבי זכויות
האדם בארה"ב (2010) בליווי הערה, "שחיתות בתי המשפט ומקצוע עריכת הדין
בקליפורניה".
* דוח סייג לזכויות האדם לגבי ישראל נכלל בדוח התקופתי של האו"ם לגבי זכויות
האדם בישראל (2013) בליווי הערה, "חוסר יושרה בכתבים האלקטרוניים של בית
המשפט העליון, בתי המשפט המחוזיים ובתי הדין למוחזקי משמורת בישראל".
____
קישורים:
[1] 13-04-29 I.D.B. Bankruptcy (36681-04-13) in the Tel Aviv District
Court - online public records in Net HaMishpat– remote terminal
http://www.scribd.com/doc/138498932/
[2] 13-04-29 Judge Gives Dankner's IDB Development Two Days to Settle With
Creditors _ Haaretz
http://www.scribd.com/doc/138483148/

13-04-29 IDB bankruptcy in the Tel Aviv District Court - corruption from day one!

 
Judge Eitan Orenstein and "Chief Clerk" Kobi Bleich, Tel Aviv Disrtrict Court

The case has just started, but the public records are already corrupted!

The case is not sealed, but the public is denied access to any records – even the names of the parties in the case.
As previously established, Mr Kobi Bleich, who occupies the office of “Chief Clerk” for over two years, holds no lawful appointment record. Corruption of the courts and corruption of banking system go hand in hand!

LINKS:
[1] 13-04-29 I.D.B. Bankruptcy (36681-04-13) in the Tel Aviv District Court - online public records in Net HaMishpat– remote terminal


13-04-29 Judge Gives Dankner's IDB Development Two Days to Settle With Creditors

Nochi Dankner, one of a handful tycoons, who now control the Israeli economy, the parallel of the US "too big to fail", "too big to jail".

The default of Tycoon Nochi Dankner and his pyramid scheme – I.D.B. Pituach – are quickly developing into a landmark case in arrival of the global financial crisis to Israel. 
It started as an attempt by the banks to provide a “haircut” - waiving huge loans, on which Dankner is defaulting, to the determinant of shareholders and retirement funds. 
The total sum of the loans, which were given by all major Israeli banks with no adequate collaterals and in disregard of "sound banking principles" is still unknown, covered up by the pyramid scheme. 
Initially, the default was estimated at NIS 4 billions, then NIS 8-9 billions. 
Public outrage stopped that effort to end the case with a “haircut”.
Now, with the case in its first day in court, it appears that all sides – the I.D.B., the banks, and the court, are eager to close the case with no adequate public transparency. 
During the opening proceeding, yesterday, April 28, 2013, Judge Orenstein called for a settlement within 2 days, before any discovery has even been conducted.
Corruption of the courts and financial institutions go hand in hand in the global financial crisis...

LINKS:
[1] 13-04-29 Judge Gives Dankner's IDB Development Two Days to Settle With Creditors _ Haaretz

13-04-29 Yitzik the dancer - Hof HaCarmel, Haifa




His name is Yitzik, he is 76 years old. He worked for 40 years as a lifeguard on the same beach [Hof HaCarmel= Carmel Beach], and is now retired. But dancing is for life... 

THE SPACESHIP 2013 - AN INTERNATIONAL FREE PARTY, AUGUST 22-25, 2013 
Hof HaCarmel, is the final landing site of this year's SPACESHIP - staring in JERUSALEM, continuing through TAYBEH (Palestine) - home of the only brewery there - and ending on the beach in HAIFA (Israel). 

Come and join us in a historic first - a cross borders party!!! 

Hof HaCarmel is one of the best beaches in Israel. Golden sands, waves breaking close to the beach, great services - free wardrobes, lifeguards, shade, and also lots of coffee shops and restaurants along the promenade. 

The southern part of the beach is undeveloped, and my preferred part of the beach, goes on for a few miles, all the way to Atlit, where you find the ruins of a Crusaders' castle on windsurfing/wind gliding beach... 

Also lots of interesting touring places in the area of Mt Carmel, famous as the site where the Prophet Elijah defied King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. 

Today Haifa is also a unique case in the Middle East - a city of convivencia - where Jews, Muslims, Christians, Bahai live in unusual peaceful coexistence!

In the Mt Carmel national nature reserve you would find lots of hiking trails, going from the top of the mountain all the way down to the beach. Sleeping on the public beach is permitted. 

There are also free setups for BBQ, showers, toilets. 

You may also find in Haifa hostels and inexpensive hotels, mostly in the lower part of the city. Port Inn (hostel and small hotel)is highly recommended. 

Train and bus terminals are 2 minutes walking distance from the beach, with a small shopping mall. Easy way in and out to Tel-Aviv and the Galilee. 

LINKS: 
[1] 13-01-30 The Spaceship, August 22-25, 2013: International Free Party - Jerusalem - Taybeh (Palestine) - Mt Carmel (Israel) 

Sunday, April 28, 2013

13-04-28 Dispatch from Tel Aviv: Occupy Tel Aviv and the Israel Police



  1. The letter below was forwarded to newspapers and to members of Knesset today.  jz
____

Yesterday, I moved my tent a few dozen yard, in order to get further from the part of the encampment,controlled by "Ronna".

Ronna claimed in numerous opportunities that sheis responsible for the southern part of the encampment, and evidence shows that she has unusual ties with the authorities. For example: a few days ago, she decided for unknown reasons to to move the chemical toilets that were placed by the municipality of Tel Aviv. Indeed, within a couple of days, a bulldozer arrived and moved the toilet to another location. (Cost??? Decision making process??? Typical response by the municipality on citizen's request???)a

In parallel, , Ronna explains that "Eli" is responsible for entire encampment. Some kind of top authority. "Eli" himself does not even live in the encampment. In recent months I saw him twice, when he came for short visits.

Information, which I have recenlty received elsewhere, claims that Eli is related to Israel Police- Yamam (Israel )police special unit for fighting terrorism

Relative to Ronna's conduct: Ronna was adamant in inviting me' at times with veiled threats to participate in
.common meals in the encampment she dwells in. but since Passover I repeatedly refused

On Passover Eve, a traditional meal was planned. It turned out that I was the only one, who could conduct it, and at Ronna's explicit request, I ran an abridged "Seder". While I was reading, and with no apparent reason, a person, who identified himself as "Avi", and who does not reside in the encapment, but is well known by Ronna, threw at me hard a wine bottle cork, near my eye, and I could have easily lost an eye.

Afterwards, when Ronna continued insisting that I participate in meals, I asked her if she could guarantee my safety in such meals. She insisted that she could not. but continued to insist that I come. I explained to her, that in the Middle East, since before the time of Abraham the Patriarch, the host is responsible for the guest's safety from entering to leaving the host's tent.

In this context, it would be interesting to figure out the relationships between "Eli", Ronna"Avi, and Israel Police.

It should be noted that I have been subjected to harassment by police both in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. But the Passover event was the first time that it neared physical harm.

It should also be noted that a civil law suit, now underway in Jerusalem, established that right-wing groups hired third parties to harass Human Rights activists.

In my specific case, [1] the person who was central to the harassment was known by the senior people in the   Jerusalem Police, and acting under their patronage

Joseph Zernik, PhD
Human Rights Alert (NGO)
Occupy Tel Aviv Encampment


-The Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission was incorporated into the UN HRC 2010 report on Human Rights in the United States with a note regarding "Corruption of the courts and the legal profession in California".

 The Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission was incorporated into the  UN HRC 2013 report on Human Rights in Israel with a note regarding" Lack of integrity in the electronic records of the Supreme Court, the district courts, and the detainees courts in Israel".



 [1] 

12-10-13 Dispatch from Jerusalem: SHMUEL/HAIM/YOEL - a stinker!


אתמול העברתי את האוהל שלי מספר עשרות מטרים, בכדי להתרחק מן המאהל הנשלט על ידי "רונה".
"רונה" טוענת בכל הזדמנות שהיא האחראית על חלקו הדרומי של המאהל, והראיות מצביעות על כך שיש לה קשר יוצא דופן עם הרשויות. לדוגמה: לפני כמה ימים החליטה מסיבות בלתי ברורות להזיז את השירותים הכימיים שהועמדו במקום על ידי העירייה. ואכן, תוך כיומיים הגיע בולדזר והעתיק את השירותים למקום אחר. (עלות??? תהליך קבלת החלטות???  מהירות התגובה הטיפוסי לפניות אזרחים???).

במקביל, "רונה" מסבירה ש"אלי" אחראי על המאהל כולו, מעין סמכות עליונה. "אלי" אפילו לא גר במאהל, ובחודשים האחרונים ראיתי אותו פעמיים, כשבא לביקורים קצרים.

מידע שהגיע לידיעתי לאחרונה ממקור אחר טוען שאלי הנ"ל קשור למשטרה -ימ"מ.

בהקשר להתנהלותה של "רונה" אוסיף:
"רונה" הזמינה אותי בתקיפות (לעיתים בצירוף איומים מוסווים) להשתתף בארוחות משותפות של המאהל שבו היא גרה, אך מאז פסח סירבתי.
בפסח, נערך סדר במאהל של "רונה".  התברר שאני הייתי כנראה היחידי המסוגל לקרוא בהגדה, ולכן ערכתי סדר מקוצר לבקשתה המפורשת של רונה.  תוך שאני קורא בהגדה, וללא כל סיבה נראית לעין, אדם שהופיע בשם "אבי", ושאינו גר במאהל, אך מוכר היטב לרונה, זרק עלי בכוח מעברו השני של השולחן פקק של בקבוק יין, שפגע סמוך לעיני ויכול היה בקלות להוציא עין.

בעקבות כך,כשהזמינה אותי שוב ושוב להשתתף בארוחות במאהל שלה, שאלתי את רונה, אם תוכל לערוב לשלומי מבואי ועד צאתי מן האוהל שלהם.  היא התעקשה שאין ביכולתה להבטיח זאת, אך המשיכה בעקשנות להזמין אותי. הסברתי לה, שבמזרח התיכון מקובל שהמארח אחראי לשלומו של האורח באוהלו, עוד מלפני זמנו של אברהם אבינו, אך היא בשלה.

בעניין זה, מעניין לברר מה הקשר בין "רונה", "אלי", "אבי", ומשטרת ישראל.

יש לציין שסבלתי מהטרדות והצקות בשנים האחרונות, הן בירושלים והן בתל-אביב. אך האירוע בפסח היה הפעם הראשונה שבה המצב הגיע לסכנה פיזית ממשית.

מן הראוי גם לציין שבמשפט אזרחי המתנהל כעת בירושלים, התברר שקבוצות ימניות שכרו את שירותיהם של אנשים בלתי קשורים לעניין להטריד אנשי זכויות אדם בירושלים.

לגביי באופן מיוחד, הראיות מראות שהדמות המרכזית שהייתה מעורבת בהתנהלות דומה נגדי בירושלים, הייתה מוכרת למשטרת ירושלים בדרגים הגבוהים ביותר, ופעלה בחסות המשטרה.

דר' יוסף צרניק  
סייג לזכויות האדם (NGO)
מאהל המחאה החברתית, דרך נמיר.
_______
 * דוח סייג לזכויות האדם לגבי ארה"ב נכלל בדוח התקופתי של האו"ם לגבי זכויות האדם בארה"ב (2010) בליווי הערה "שחיתות בתי המשפט ומקצוע עריכת הדין בקליפורניה".
* דוח סייג לזכויות האדם לגבי ישראל נכלל בדוח התקופתי של האו"ם לגבי זכויות האדם בישראל (2013) בליווי הערה "חוסר יושרה בכתבים האלקטרוניים של בית המשפט העליון, בתי המשפט המחוזיים ובתי הדין למוחזקי משמורת בישראל".

13-04-28 The death of sovereign nations and the takeover by the international banking cartel...


The demise of the US Constitution under Obama is not unique, but part of a global trend... In such terms, one may consider Stanley Fischer, Governor of Bank of Israel, a US citizen, and a prominent figure in the cartel, the first governor of the State of Israel on behalf of the cartel.   jz
______


In bailouts, the death of sovereign nations.


By John Titus, Creator of Bailout.

---
LINKS:
[1] http://dailybail.com/home/how-obama-surrendered-sovereignty-to-the-criminal-banking-ca.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheDailyBail+%28The+Daily+Bail%29

Saturday, April 27, 2013

13-04-28 US: Where left, right, and center converge: Obama,the constitutional law professor, has done more harm to the US Constitution than any US president...



By Mike Stivers, Noam Chomsky, TruthOut.org
Under Obama's administration, if you meet with someone in a terrorist group and advise them to turn to nonviolent means, then that's material assistance to terrorism. \

13-04-27 Where left, right, and center converge - US media fail their mission...

From the left:
By Todd Gitlin, Tom Dispatch
Because it has been failing us again and again since Watergate. READ MORE»

13-04-27 Phony Civil Rights organizations in the US...

From a discussion group:
1) Joseph Zernik wrote:


Zena Crenshaw - NFOJA
I know the lady, who heads NFOJA  - Zena Crenshaw (by email and by phone) since 2009, and I consider her a CROOK, although which type exactly, I am not sure, please help in defining this type.

a) The simplest test is: Who is on the Board of Directors of NFOJA? When I checked at the timeit was the crook, her elderly husband, and their secretary (possibly also the secretary's boyfriend).

b) The ultimate test: What did they do?  NFOJA tried to undermine the 2010 UPR (Universal Periodic Review) of Human Rights in the United States by the United Nations.
Around 2009, the word spread that in April 2010 there would be a deadline for the first ever review of Human Rights in the United States by the United Nations.  It was a historic event.  But somehow, information regarding the protocol was difficult to come by, especially, for those of us, who were interested in reporting, but were living almost in underground conditions.
I made it clear in my blog, emails etc, that I intend to file a report on Human Rights conditions in LA County, and sought advice everywhere.
In parallel, I was somehow contacted by two phony organizations, NFOJA, and another one that claimed to represent medical professionals.  Both were spreading false information about the 2010 UPR protocol.  In particular, both were trying to convince people to submit the reports through them, instead of submitting directly to the UN, as the true protocol prescribed.
I am no legal professional, and I was under terrible stress at that time.  Prior to the deadline I got the threats from US Marshals, and a few days after the deadline, which coincided with my filing in SCOTUS in Richard Fine's Habeas Corpus, the US Marshals came to get me with guns, and I escaped from the United States.
In short, I was positive that my report was no good, and would be ignored by the UN.  At the end, when the final report from the UN was published (I remember the day, I was in Prague, Czech Republic, presenting my data on fraud in PACER and CM/ECF in an international computer science conference),my report was incorporated into the UN UPR reprot, with a note referring to "corruption of the courts and the legal profession in California".
On the other hand the NFOJA's report was entirely ignored (and so were the reports of some other US "Civil Rights" organizations).  
I was surprised, because the lady in question was  an attorney, worked at this full time for a couple of years, sitting in DC, padded with cash (not sure what the source is!!!) Likewise, the reports of some other US Civil Rights organizations, which were written by full time legal staff were ignored... 
So I took the time to browse through the UN records and read the NFOJA report.  It was a blatantly phony report.  You could not read it and take it seriously.  
I am sure you can still find it if you search UN, UPR, United States, 2010, NFOJA.  
By the way, that was for me that main reason for filing with the UN: I knew that my records were likely to be preserved for some 50-100 years (you can't tell what the future of the internet and censorship is).

c) Guilt by Association: Who they hang out with? The Daily Kos.
Please be reminded that the Daily Kos is the venue where Obama released some of his phony BC records...
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/06/12/534616/-Obama-s-birth-certificate


Bottom Line:
NFOJA represents the worst in Civil Rights conditions in the United States today.  Don't even know what to call it, it is not Cointelpro, this is not infiltration, as they did with Occupy from the start. Please help me define this type of operation... It is a takeover... 
I consider the Southern California Chapter of Judicial Watch another operation of the same type, and Sturgeon v LA County, the equivalent of NFOJA Human Rights submission to the UN...
And conditions in the US today, where you cannot figure out who is what, are similar to conditions in the former Soviet Union.

P.S.
Conditions in Israel are not much better.
When I arrived in Israel I tried to contact experts on the subject of electronic records of the courts, since in the US no legal or computer science person would dare to speak with me.  In Israel, quite a few did.
HOWEVER, one of the first suggestions I got was to contact one of the best known Israeli Civil Rights organizations, Israel Democracy Institute, headed by Hebrew University law professor Mota Kremnitzer. I contacted Prof Kremnitzer. He referred me to Attorney Dr Tehilla Altshuler (Harvard law PhD, if my memory serves me right...)  I met with her.  She was honest enough to disclose that in parallel to her work for the Israel Democracy Institute, she also consulted to the Israeli government on the subject of the latest generation of computer systems.  She would not opine one way or another on conditions in the US, but said everything was OK in Israel.
Fast forward: The 2013 Human Rights Alert (NGO) submission to the UN was incorporated into the UPR reprort with a note referring to "Lack of integrity in the electronic records of the Supreme Court, the district courts and the detainees courts in Israel"...
- hide quoted text -

On Saturday, April 27, 2013 6:53:52 AM UTC+3, Editor wrote:
Not sure why I got this. Anyone familiar with NFOJA? Opinions?

(Sorry if this has been discussed already. I’m only able to keep up with a small fraction of lawsters posts.)

Capt Phil 


------ Forwarded Message
From: NFOJA <mail@50states.ning.com>
Reply-To: <do-not-reply@50states.ning.com>
Date: Sat, 27 Apr 2013 01:47:59 +0000 (GMT)
To: Phil Graf <philgraf@comcast.net>
Subject: Noam Chomsky inspired this Daily Kos message . . .

  
Why Not Embrace NFOJA - National Forum On Judicial Accountability? Most likely anyone perceiving a need for sweeping reform of America’s legal system lacks an “acceptable opinion”.  How tragic it is when even these patriots stifle debate about the optimal course of legal reform in America.  Those convinced it must unfold “Tea Party” or “Occupy”-style accordingly shelf National Forum On Judicial Accountability (NFOJA) and its thoughtful quest for “Citizen Panels On Judicial Misconduct”.  Rather than reasonably support this and similar lawful plans for self-empowerment, many grassroots legal reform advocates seem content to leave America’s legal system intact while somehow forcing it to produce fair outcomes. Read More <http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/04/26/1205141/-Why-Not-Embrace-NFOJA-National-Forum-On-Judicial-Accountability               

Visit NFOJA at: http://50states.ning.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network




 
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Friday, April 26, 2013

13-04-27 Privatized secret police state - the epitome of capitalism?

From the start, there were "conspiracy theories" about the private security mercenaries at the Boston Marathon, which were seen in photographs of the finish line.
But the article below shows the deplorable level of a privatized secret police state we have reached.  Even the Soviet Union never got that far - privatizing the secret police... This is a unique capitalistic achievement, I guess. jz
____

Hired guns at the Marathon: Why Such Secrecy about Private Military Contractor's Men Working the Event?

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By Dave Lindorff

Seven Craft Intl. mercenaries near a communications van post-bombing by ThisCantBeHappening)
Speaking as an investigative reporter with almost 40 years's experience, I can say that when government officials won't talk, they're generally hiding something embarrassing or worse.
And nobody will talk about those Craft International Services private security personnel who were widely observed and photographed near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, wearing security ear-pieces, hats and T-shirts bearing the company's skull logo, and all wearing the same dark coats, khaki pants and combat boots, some carrying what appear to have been radiation detectors.
I first contacted a man identifying himself as Jack Fleming, a public affairs person with the Boston Athletic Assn., sponsor of the marathon. Fleming advised me that "If you want to ask about that you should contact the Commonwealth (of Massachusetts) Executive Office of Public Safety."
I called that agency and spoke with the public information office there, a man named Terrell Fleming. He first said, "Did you call the Marathon organizers?" When I replied that I had, and that they had said to call his office, he replied, "They did?" Then he said, "You should call the City of Boston Police Department. They released a security plan to some media organizations."  
Indeed they had released that plan to the  Boston Globe . Based upon the information it got from the police  the article the Globe ran , did report that the Police had deployed "air patrols, K9 units, and more than 1,000 uniformed officers and soldiers along the 26-mile course and the finish line," but it made no mention of the private contracting of soldiers-for-hire, which is what Craft International does (see the  Craft website ).  News agency Reuters  reported, meanwhile, that a top official for the Massachusetts state Homeland Security Department, Undersecretary Kurt Schwartz, told a group at Harvard U. that his agency had "planned" for a possible bombing attack on the marathon, even running a "table-top" exercise about such an event a week before the race. 
I called the Boston Police to ask if they had hired the Craft International personnel observed at the scene just before and after the bombing, and was told by the public affairs office there  that "Anything having to do with the investigation of the bombing would have to be referred to the FBI Boston Division office."  When I pointed out that I wasn't asking anything about the investigation, but was simply asking who had hired the security personnel from Craft International, the answer was simply repeated: "You'll have to ask the FBI."
So I called the FBI, and got a public affairs person there named Amanda Cox. Her initial response to my question was, "I do not have any information on that." 
I then said I had been referred to her by the Boston Police Department, and said that photos of the scene after the bombing had shown Craft International personnel conversing with FBI agents. She then put down the phone, and I could hear her turn to a supervisor and ask, her voice muffled, "This guy's asking about the Craft Security Consultants -- who hired them and what they were doing."
I next overheard the muffled voice of another woman to whom she had been speaking reply, "I think you could safely say, "I do know we worked with a lot of people who worked on security at the marathon...'"  After that I couldn't make out what was being said. ..
For the rest of this article by DAVE LINDORFF in ThisCantBeHappening!, the new independent three-time Project Censored Award-winning online alternative newspaper, please go to: www.thiscantbehappening.net/node/1718

Dave Lindorff is a founding member of the collectively-owned, journalist-run online newspaper www.thiscantbehappening.net. He is a columnist for Counterpunch, is author of several recent books ("This (more...)