Keith Olbermann: "We all know 'the five second rule.' Drop food on the floor and if you pick it up before that span of time elapses, and it'll still be 'good.' There is also a life-and-death version of this: the five-day rule, by which we have surrendered to any US President the right to kill people in our name, provided he only does it for a couple of days."
Keith Olbermann speaks at the Television Critics Association Press Tour, 07/21/08. (photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
To watch the video of Keith's Special Comment click here.
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There is so much more of a world community than there has ever been. This global community is not much different than its countless smaller communities that are so similar to the one we live in.
More and more we realize that people in distant lands are much like us, and they want the same things from life that we want where we live. People everywhere want work that supports them, a safe place to live, and basic human rights and freedoms.
If a strong movement emerged to remove a corrupt leader from power in my home community, and that leader's response was to literally slaughter the people in the movement, I would want our municipal safety department and our national guard to respond quickly and aggressively to end the killing and remove that leader from power.
That is what we are doing in LIbya. All nations are members of the world community at large, and the world community must not allow the leaders of nations to massacre the people who reside in them.
Huff Jones
Eugene, Oregon
This is why it just doesn't matter whether it is a Democratic or a Republican President in office. They all obey the will of their overlords and any perceived differences are cosmetic. The corporates do not care whether it is the US army or any other that carries out it's policies by proxy. So although US policies will eventually lead to it's downfall, this doesn't matter to the real perpetrators because they have no loyalty to any country (except that which goes by the name of "off-shore account"). The USA, with the most advanced army is a useful tool for its toxic enterprises. Should the power of the US fail then another will be used instead. It is all win, win for the corporates. For them, the Soviet Union WAS a real problem as the USSR belonged to an alternative economic universe. China, USSR have now returned to the fold & they are emboldened with no threat to their multi-enterprises.
So! There is no hope that anything will get better, because we all look the other way while the economic magicians play their hand
This is clearly war over resources. Why don't user nations just pay the market price for the developing nations resources. Bargaining is a custom in the African and Arab world. Why can't we just compete with China, and stop being the "world's Bully." The one being bullied, at some point may turn out to be stronger than you. Haven't we learned yet that war only destroys resources, and causes more destruction of what has been built.
I agree with Keith Olbermann, it is time that we americans know exactly what this fight is about. Not knowing only adds to more distrust in our government.
The Big oil companies do not care whether some oil is lost because of violent conflict. Their concern is controlling the market-flow of supply to support greater price.
Given the tightness of message out of POTUS presidential campaign it's surprising how inept the administration has been since taking office.
we run out of the necessary resources to keep even half of these people reasonably well-fed and enabled to
work. Since there are so many religions and most of them indicate that there will be an afterlife, I am not
denigrating them. I simply want to stay alive until we discover, if we ever do, which one we should be
praying to in order to ensure life everlasting [to use their phrasing].
I grew up in St. Louis and was a St. Louis Cardinal fan and I
later found out that my granduncle was a private secretary to
August Busch.
"The Congress shall have Power * * *
"* * *
"To declare War * * *"
In case you don't know what you're trying to bomb out of existence, let me give you a few hints; free medical from birth to death; free education from nursery to university; guaranteed house & job when attaining age 22; guaranteed pension for life from age 60; no inflation since 1969! In short, one of the most advanced social welfare programs of all time
The Constitution gives Congress ALONE the power of declaring war. Even if the UN authorizes war, if Congress does not declare that war, the President cannot act. The President’s emergency power does not apply. E.G., The Caroline Case, 29 BFSP 1137-1138 (1841).
The Constitution trumps UN Resolutions that clash with the Constitution. The Constitution trumps also the War Powers Act. If the War Powers Act would make exception to the Constitutional provision, it is unconstitutiona l — especially if it “validates” Presidential thefts of Congressional power, as if the thefts’ frequency makes them valid.
The US military is attacking Libyan territory NOT to protect civilians, but to secure US petroleum interests by removing Gadhafi, whose government had become unstable (such instability threatens U.S. oil interests) and aligned with Venezuela's Chavez (who threatens US oil interests). In Bahrain & Yemen, oppressive measures kill & maim protestors, but we do not intercede, since those nations’ lands bear little or no oil.
The UN Resolution did not authorize the US to bomb Libyan territory or destroy Gadhafi’s military & communications apparatus & infrastructure. The Resolution authorized only creation of a no-fly zone & interceding merely to stop the actual or imminent harming of civilians.
This was not an act of War. UN asked for intervention, many countries went, We just were better, needed to waste money..not needed elsewhere.
but I have not see us defend anyone else except in bull, or money. Rebels wanted Weapons but GOP were not giving handouts
Congress ought force Obama to stop invading Libya, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan.
Obama’s Libya invasion goes beyond the UN authorization; so it is illegal. Congress did not authorize it; so it is illegal.
The other invasions are clear violations of international law and, so, illegal.
The House of Representatives ought impeach Obama. The Senate ought convict him. He is an arch criminal, like Bush & Cheney, and for the same reasons, and more.
The D of J ought prosecute Obama, Bush, and Cheney. The federal judiciary ought imprison all three for life without chance of parole.
Not only are Obama, Bush, and Cheney arch criminals, but their military crimes have cost the federal budget a deficit of more than $6.6 Trillion, while social services, clean & safe energy, and infrastructure have suffered huge funding-lacks.
Do not vote for Republicans or Democrats, except the very rare Democrat true progressives. Vote for independent progressives and progressive third party candidates. Join the Wisconsin labor revolution.
Meantime, put the Military on Trial for the acts they have allowed/trained Service People to do.
GOP is making billions off this war helping out Halliburton...
You are in Hell when your tax dollars are used to shoot and bomb innocent civilians on the other side of the planet. You are in Hell when the government monitors your telephone calls, emails, web surfing, and library usage.
And then you suggest actually holding oil villainaires accountable for their evil involvement and criminal negligence.
It's like someone just opened a window, and a breath of fresh air and glimmer of hope drifted in. Thank you, todd!
Up is down, black is white and war is peace.
a la Walter Cronkite.
When you have lost Olbermann, you have lost the loony left.
Or just pick those whose ass we know we can beat and who do not have us by the financial tit?
Will we soon be invading the Sudan to protect the Darfur refugees? If not, why not?
America".
Glad you're here, but you need to update your website with a "print" button that allows one to only print your comment without all the pages that follow.
Come to the 21st century.
Thanks
The Western media are basing a great deal of their reporting on supposed facts provided by the exile group National Front for the Salvation of Libya, which was trained and financed by the U.S. CIA. Google the front’s name plus CIA and you will find hundreds of references.
The Wall Street Journal in a Feb. 23 editorial wrote that “The U.S. and Europe should help Libyans overthrow the Gadhafi regime.” There is no talk in the board rooms or the corridors of Washington about intervening to help the people of Kuwait or Saudi Arabia or Bahrain overthrow their dictatorial rulers. Even with all the lip service being paid to the mass struggles rocking the region right now, that would be unthinkable. As for Egypt and Tunisia, the imperialists are pulling every string they can to get the masses off the streets.
(snip)
Imperialism’s interest in Libya is not hard to find. Bloomberg.com wrote on Feb. 22 that while Libya is Africa’s third-largest producer of oil, it has the continent’s largest proven reserves - 44.3 billion barrels. It is a country with a relatively small population but the potential to produce huge profits for the giant oil companies. That’s how the super-rich look at it, and that’s what underlies their professed concern for the people’s democratic rights in Libya.
er, government.
Rep. Markey has it exactly right. If Libya didn't have OIL it would be of zero strategic interest. Syria, Baharain, Yemen slaughter their own people. Does the US lift a finger? Of course not. Did the US involve itself in the destruction of Yugoslavia or the Rwandian genocide? Of course not.
Toppling Qaddafi and replacing him with a pro-Western government has been the wet dream of Presidents since Reagan. So, yes, it is about the oil; and manifestly not about human beings who are just so much collateral damage or casualties of war.
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