contributions

by William Fisher
NEW YORK, Whistleblowers — those who go public with allegations of waste, fraud and abuse — continue to have a tough time, despite a law protecting them and repeated assurances from the White House, many government agencies and Congress that they maintain a policy of zero tolerance for retaliation.
The latest victim of apparent retaliation is Bunnatine H. "Bunny" Greenhouse, the senior contracting officer for the Army Corps of Engineers, who objected — first, (…)

BRIDGEPORT, Connecticut (Reuters) - A controversial clause in the U.S. Patriot Act that allows authorities to search citizens’ personal records faced its first public challenge in federal court on Wednesday as a library sought to lift a gag order on a FBI probe into its records.
The case stems from an FBI request for records of a library patron without identifying the threat posed by the person, said an attorney from the American Civil Liberties Union, representing the unidentified (…)

Today (Thursday, September 1), representatives of two major anti-war coalitions - A.N.S.W.E.R./September 24 National Coalition and United for Peace and Justice - held a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington DC to announce plans for a joint anti-war rally and march to take place at the White House on September 24.
Local, national and international media packed the room. Press in attendance included CNN, New York Times, Washington Post, ABC, NBC, Fox, Associated Press, (…)

WASHINGTON - Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich (D-OH) gave the following speech today on the House floor during a special session to provide relief money for the victims of Hurricane Katrina: “This amount of money is only a fraction of what is needed and everyone here knows it. Let it go forward quickly with heart-felt thanks to those who are helping to save lives with necessary food, water, shelter, medical care and security. Congress must also demand accountability with the appropriations. (…)

Michael P. Wright — Norman, Oklahoma USA mpwright9@aol.com Yesterday, using the Google news search, I entered the name George Tenet, the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, who resigned from that position in 2004. A link came up with the phrase "Tenet won’t take the rap for 9/11." This was a United Press International story. After clicking on the link, I learned that the story had already been taken down. I was greeted with the phrase "Not Found," and the additional (…)

by Julian Borger in New Orleans
The sprawling convention centre in New Orleans was no doubt once a source of civic pride, but yesterday the concrete and glass edifice was a symbol of national shame, giving out a stench that could be smelt two blocks away.
A dense mass of people - perhaps 20,000, almost all of them black - packed the cavernous building and filled the surrounding pavement, sitting amid debris left by Hurricane Katrina and the rubbish accumulated in four days of waiting for (…)

by MAUREEN DOWD
Stuff happens.
And when you combine limited government with incompetent government, lethal stuff happens.
America is once more plunged into a snake pit of anarchy, death, looting, raping, marauding thugs, suffering innocents, a shattered infrastructure, a gutted police force, insufficient troop levels and criminally negligent government planning. But this time it’s happening in America.
W. drove his budget-cutting Chevy to the levee, and it wasn’t dry. Bye, bye, (…)

In 2001, FEMA warned that a hurricane striking New Orleans was one of the three most likely disasters in the U.S. But the Bush administration cut New Orleans flood control funding by 44 percent to pay for the Iraq war.
By Sidney Blumenthal
Biblical in its uncontrolled rage and scope, Hurricane Katrina has left millions of Americans to scavenge for food and shelter and hundreds to thousands reportedly dead. With its main levee broken, the evacuated city of New Orleans has become part of (…)

By Amira Hass
For about 10 years, Omar and Khaled of Khan Yunis - who until recently worked in the hothouses of the settlers in Muasi (Gush Katif) - "hitched a ride" on Israeli water statistics. While they worked in the hothouses, they could enjoy clean, clear water that flowed straight from the faucet, and to feel the tremendous difference when compared to the water awaiting them in the faucets at home.
The 1.3 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip consume about 150 million cubic (…)

By Colum Lynch
John R. Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has voiced firm opposition to U.N. reorganization measures that the Bush administration fears would inhibit U.S. authority to use force and place new legal obligations on countries to intervene where genocide, ethnic cleansing or war crimes were being committed.
Bolton outlined his positions in a series of letters to U.N. delegates participating in negotiations to draft a 39-page statement to be read by world (…)