THE CASE AGAINST ATTACKING IRAN

Almost 4 years after President Obama took office, his campaign strategy of Change and Hope we can believe in has shifted to exploiting Fear. He now joins the leading Republican presidential candidates, with the exception of Ron Paul, in demonizing Iran to the extent that war is almost inevitable ~ a war that would benefit only Israel and the military/industrial complex at the further expense of the American tax payer: Allen L Roland

There are no real grounds for war with Iran.

If you're going to argue for war, you had better at least know what you're talking about, especially if you're going to be debating George Galloway. Here is Galloway responding on air to a questioner who uses all the talking points regarding the premise that Iran must be neutralized for the good of the world. ( very similar points that were made regarding invading Iraq ~ which Galloway points out )

George Galloway vs. the warmonger parrot who is very similar to Republican right wing zealots including Presidential contender Rick Santorum who said on NBC television's "Meet the Press" that he would tell Iranian leaders that either they open up those facilities, begin to dismantle them and make them available to inspectors ~ “ or the U.S. would attack them “.

7 Minute must see Video: http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/5887.html

Let’s talk about these recent U.S. sanctions against Iran ~ measures that were obviously supported by war hawk advisors in the White House as well as the powerful Zionist lobby ~ which the Bush/Obama administration continues to cater to. Dr. Ismail Salami, Veterans Today, comments on the U.S. Engineered sanctions and their effect and ultimate meaning ~ “The war of words which ensued between Iranian army commanders and the American military men testifies to the fact that the wall of fear has collapsed before the eyes of the Iranians and that the U.S. is no longer seen as an indomitable enemy.” http://www.veteranstoday.com/2012/01/04/us-engineered-sanctions-no-coup-de-grace-for-iran/

What is the United States and Israel really afraid of, since Iran’s nuclear capability has yet to be proven?

The answer is obvious and it’s the fact that Iran has upgraded its medium range conventionally-armed missiles with GPS technology, making its missiles much more accurate. This means Iran can now target Israel's own nuclear, bio and chemical weapons stockpiles, located inside Israel, as well as the Dimona nuclear reactor.

As Mark H Gaffney correctly writes ~ “I believe the US will exploit the situation to attack Iran's nuclear facilities. But, even more importantly, the US will target Iran's conventional missiles. Indeed, I believe this is the real reason for US sanctions in the first place, and for the buildup of tensions in recent days. Despite public perceptions, and all the rhetoric about nukes, the present crisis has nothing to do with Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program. In my opinion, that is just a cover story. I believe the present crisis has been manufactured to create the pretext for a US air campaign to take out Iran's conventional missile sites. The US will also target Iran's nuclear facilities, but the primary target will be Iran's conventional missiles. The US will be doing Israel's bidding. The Zionist tail will be wagging the servile US dog…

Obviously, you can't generate public support for such a bombing campaign, on Israel's behalf. Hence the cover story about nukes and the alleged Iranian threat to wipe Israel off the map, all of which is untrue but very effective propaganda nonetheless.”

Let’s get something straight about that threat ~ the supposed quote of newly elected Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to “Wipe Israel off the Map “ was fabricated by the U.S. media in order to justify an all-out war on Iran ~ a lie that is still being used by Obama and leading Republicans in order to garner support from Israel as well as the Military/Industrial complex.

Here are the facts, according to Arash Norouxi ~ “ In his speech, Ahmadinejad declares that Zionism is the West's apparatus of political oppression against Muslims. He says the "Zionist regime" was imposed on the Islamic world as a strategic bridgehead to ensure domination of the region and its assets. Palestine, he insists, is the frontline of the Islamic world's struggle with American hegemony, and its fate will have repercussions for the entire Middle East…Ahmadinejad acknowledges that the removal of America's powerful grip on the region via the Zionists may seem unimaginable to some, but reminds the audience that, as Khomeini predicted, other seemingly invincible empires have disappeared and now only exist in history books. He then proceeds to list three such regimes that have collapsed, crumbled or vanished, all within the last 30 years:

(1) The Shah of Iran- the U.S. installed monarch

(2) The Soviet Union

(3) Iran's former arch-enemy, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein

In the first and third examples, Ahmadinejad prefaces their mention with Khomeini's own words foretelling that individual regime's demise. He concludes by referring to Khomeini's unfulfilled wish: "The Imam said this regime occupying Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time. This statement is very wise". This is the passage that has been isolated, twisted and distorted so famously. By measure of comparison, Ahmadinejad would seem to be calling for regime change, not war.”

This is blatant Manipulation through fear as Arash Norouxi definitively points out in Global Research ~ “ What has just been demonstrated is irrefutable proof of media manipulation and propaganda in action. The AP deliberately alters an IRNA quote to sound more threatening. The Israeli media not only repeats the fake quote but also steals the original authors' words. The unsuspecting public reads this, forms an opinion and supports unnecessary wars of aggression, presented as self defense, based on the misinformation. This scenario mirrors the kind of false claims that led to the illegal U.S. invasion of Iraq, a war now widely viewed as a catastrophic mistake. And yet the Bush administration and the compliant corporate media continued to marinate in propaganda and speculation about attacking Iraq's much larger and more formidable neighbor, Iran. Most of this rests on the unproven assumption that Iran is building nuclear weapons, and the lie that Iran has vowed to physically destroy Israel. Given its scope and potentially disastrous outcome, all this amounts to what is arguably the rumor of the century.”

Read full article ~ http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=21188

Manipulation through fear ~ the ongoing mantra of the Bush/Obama administrations and most certainly the fuel that drives the Military/Industrial complex in its quest for unending war for perpetual financial profits.

The late George Carlin nailed it when he said War to many Americans and most certainly our political leaders is a macho game and they’re still playing it ~ with the exception of Ron Paul. See 7 minute video but beware ~ this is George Carlin at his x rated best. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaS2bRGS86c

As Paul Craig Roberts writes in his Outlook for The New Year ~ “The concepts that the Bush/Obama regimes have institutionalized are totally foreign to the Anglo-American concepts of law and liberty. In one decade the US has been transformed from a free society into a police state. The American population, to the extent it is aware of what has occurred, has simply accepted the revolution from the top.

Ron Paul is the only American seeking the presidency who opposes the tyranny that has been institutionalized, and he is not leading in the polls.

This tells us all we need to know about the value Americans place on liberty. Americans seem to welcome the era of tyranny into which they are now entering.” Read full article : http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2011/12/31/the-outlook-for-the-new-year/

80 years ago, Germany, steeped in a depression, also seemed to welcome the era of tyranny they entered into when they gave up their liberties and rights and allowed themselves to be controlled by institutionalized fear ~ and in the process became a police state while ravaging the world with their imperialistic agenda.

"As nightfall does not come all at once ~ neither does oppression. In both instances there is a twilight when everything remains seemingly unchanged. And it is in such twilight that we all must be most aware of change in the air - however slight - lest we become unwitting victims of the darkness." Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas

The twilight in America is rapidly fading into darkness and is fully revealed in the fear mongering of Iran by the Bush/Obama administration’s continuing effort to exploit fear for our own imperialistic purposes. In summary, there is no case for attacking Iran and the American people must make this case now ~ before it’s too late.

Allen L Roland

http://allenlrolandsweblog.blogspot.com/2012/01/case-against-attacking-iran.html

Freelance Alternative Press Online columnist and psychotherapist Allen L Roland is available for comments, interviews, speaking engagements and private consultations ( allen@allenroland.com )

Allen L Roland is a practicing psychotherapist, author and lecturer who also shares a daily political and social commentary on his weblog and website allenroland.com He also guest hosts a monthly national radio show TRUTHTALK on www.conscioustalk.net

2012 / DARKNESS AND BOTTOM UP CHANGE WE CAN BELIEVE IN

As the dark storm clouds of an economic depression and perhaps war with Iran bring down the curtain on 2011 ~ be aware that 2012 will initially bring deeper economic stress and turmoil ~ but out of that cocoon of darkness will finally emerge the change that millions of Americans voted for in 2008 and never received from a president who failed to deliver and never stopped campaigning: Allen L Roland

Make no mistake about it, 2012 has emerged from the blackness of a growing depression, which the White House still refuses to acknowledge ~ a depression that won’t be obvious until Americans are hit with a sledgehammer of reality which includes the fact that US government census figures reveal that 1 in 2 Americans have fallen into poverty or are struggling to live on low incomes.

Here’s some reality ~ The true unemployment rate is nearly 23% (according to Shadowstats.com) if it was calculated the way Bureau of Labor and Statistics reported it in 1994 and earlier. See story

http://bit.ly/ulYS7J

As Charlie McGrath, founder of Wide Awake News, explains ~ “Our nation is an empire in decline and there is a reason most of us have no idea what is going on. The lame stream media has us all focusing the latest trends and people fighting over shoes, while our rights are usurped and our government involves us in ever more conflicts overseas.

We are spread way too thin and we are losing the freedoms we were supposedly fighting for.

People are going to start waking up, but NOT because CNN, FOX, or MSNBC decided to actually start informing people. They are going to wake up because they've been hit with a sledgehammer of reality...” See 7 minute video

http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/6366.html

That long overdue wake up call will also include President Obama who will realize too late that his only base is the Wall Street corporate establishment ~ which is notoriously fickle when they realize their candidate is deeply wounded.

The time for the truth and transparency is now as we creep into 2012 and the immediate start of the Presidential primaries. In that regard, a vote for Ron Paul in the primaries is a vote against the establishment and the special interest groups that have hijacked our Republic as well as both parties.

The establishment is rightly afraid if not terrified of the possibility of President Ron Paul because his platform is largely in sync with what the vast majority of Americans want and have not received under the Obama administration. The Republican right wing is in lockstep with the corporate establishment and committed to the status quo ~ and they also fear a Paul presidency.

I’ll humorously make my point by parodying the great movie about the final days of Hitler's regime, titled "Downfall", with clever subtitles. (This is the famous scene from the movie where Hitler is told that Berlin's defenses have evaporated and the Thousand Year Reich is doomed) ~ but here Hitler apparently wants to support Newt so the corporate establishment can stay in control : 4 minute video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=hgRq6s7G

Here’s some more reality regarding Obama ~ The last day of 2011 was also the last day of representative democracy in America, as Corporate Puppet President Barack Obama chose the New Year's Eve holiday to sign the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 (H.R.1540) into law ~ with little if any comments from the lame stream press.

Along with signing NDAA, Obama released a Presidential Signing Statement in which he assured "Moreover, I want to clarify that my Administration will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens. Indeed, I believe that doing so would break with our most important traditions and values as a Nation."

That may sound reassuring, but it doesn't mean much. Presidential Signing Statements are political documents that have no Constitutional basis and do not modify the laws to which they refer. In these Orwellian times, Obama's empty promise that we have nothing to worry about should warn us that in fact we have plenty to worry about. It’s also is another example of the classic Obama straddle ~ where he appears to be taking a stand on principle after the bill passes and thus he doesn’t have to take responsibility for its consequences and can blame Congress if the people revolt even though he approved the bill.

As Michel Chossudovsky writes “To say that January 1st 2012 is "A Sad Day for America" is a gross understatement. The signing of NDAA (HR 1540) into law is tantamount to the militarization of law enforcement, the repeal of the Posse Comitatus Act and the Inauguration in 2012 of Police State USA.
As in Weimar Germany, fundamental rights and freedoms are repealed under the pretext that democracy is threatened and must be protected.
The NDAA is "Obama's New Year's Gift" to the American People”.

See story www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=28441

Mike Whitney correctly writes ~ “Ron Paul is the only antiwar candidate who has a (microscopic) chance of winning in 2012. He’s also the only candidate who will make an effort to restore the Bill of Rights and reverse Congress’s decision to allow the president to “indefinitely” imprison American citizens without due process. For these reasons alone, Paul should garner the support of leftists, liberals, and progressives.”

The time for the truth and transparency is now at hand as we nervously creep into 2012 ~ a vote for Ron Paul in the Iowa caucus is an important first step against the establishment and status Quo ~ as well as the special interest groups that have not only hijacked our Republic but are responsible for the Militarization of our Homeland.

As Robert Naiman, writes in Truthout: "While media may miss this story now, if election-night exit polls show antiwar Democrats and independents gave Paul the margin of victory, that story will appear in media around the world."

“Little by little, in the name of fighting terrorism, our Bill of Rights is being repealed.... The Patriot Act, as bad as its violation of the 4th Amendment, was just one step down the slippery slope. The recently passed [NDAA] continues that slip toward tyranny and in fact accelerates it significantly.... The Bill of Rights has no exemption for ‘really bad people’ or terrorists or even non-citizens. It is a key check on government power against any person. This is not a weakness in our legal system; it is the very strength of our legal system.” Congressman Ron Paul

Allen L Roland

http://allenlrolandsweblog.blogspot.com/2012/01/2012-darkness-and-bottom-up-change-we.html

Freelance Alternative Press Online columnist and psychotherapist Allen L Roland is available for comments, interviews, speaking engagements and private consultations ( allen@allenroland.com )

Allen L Roland is a practicing psychotherapist, author and lecturer who also shares a daily political and social commentary on his weblog and website allenroland.com He also guest hosts a monthly national radio show TRUTHTALK on www.conscioustalk.net

THE PARTY’S OVER, THE BUBBLE HAS BURST, LET’S CLEAN UP THE MESS

Detroit's former Lee Plaza Hotel closed in the '90s. (photo: Marchand, Meffre /TIME)

The Party’s over for America, the greed bubble fueled by excessive debt has finally burst. Its time to clean up the mess started by the Bush/Cheney administration, perpetuated by the Obama/Biden administration and which is now a deserted ballroom ~ strewn with broken dreams, broken promises and economic devastation: Allen L Roland

As 2011 crawls to a close, the true reckoning of the financial devastation wrought by the policies of the Clinton and Bush administrations and perpetuated by the Obama administration have yet to be fully revealed ~ but the economic devastation by these political actions and inaction is now fully felt and experienced by millions of Americans.

Nobel laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz, Vanity Fair, brilliantly summarized this devastation on December 25, 2011 ~ “It has now been almost five years since the bursting of the housing bubble, and four years since the onset of the recession. There are 6.6 million fewer jobs in the United States than there were four years ago. Some 23 million Americans who would like to work full-time cannot get a job. Almost half of those who are unemployed have been unemployed long-term. Wages are falling-the real income of a typical American household is now below the level it was in 1997... The Bush and Obama administrations justified a bailout on the grounds that only if the banks were handed money without limit-and without conditions-could the economy recover….The banks got their bailout. Some of the money went to bonuses. Little of it went to lending. And the economy didn't really recover ~ output is barely greater than it was before the crisis, and the job situation is bleak. The diagnosis of our condition and the prescription that followed from it were incorrect … In the end, bank managers looked out for themselves and did what they are accustomed to doing..“ Read full article ~ http://www.readersupportednews.org/opinion2/279-82/9092-the-book-of-jobs

Stiglitz correctly makes this important point ~ “The fact is the economy in the years before the current crisis was fundamentally weak, with the bubble, and the unsustainable consumption to which it gave rise, acting as life support. Without these, unemployment would have been high. It was absurd to think that fixing the banking system could by itself restore the economy to health. Bringing the economy back to "where it was" does nothing to address the underlying problems.”

And therein lies my point ~ for re-inflating the same debt bubble that eventually burst in 2008 is not going to succeed when personal debt and unemployment are at such historic heights and real income is below the level it was in 1997. In other words, the financial elite are telling people to keep spending, keep borrowing by using your credit cards, keep the mirage of financial stability in tact, keep wishful thinking and, by all means, keep the debt party going ~ even though the economic dance hall is in shambles.

Here are the facts ~ 42% of all financial wealth is controlled by the top 1% in that 400 Americans have more money than the other 155 million Americans. Add to that, the fact that the billionaire Banksters, who wrecked the economic well-being of millions for pure profit, have apparently got off scot-free. Is it any wonder that a growing nonviolent Occupy movement has risen to decry those acts of greed as unjust, immoral and undemocratic.

Then we have the obvious hypocrisy of Pope Benedict, cloaked in gold and jewels, holding his solid silver staff, showing Jesus hanging on the cross, sardonically telling 1.3billion Roman Catholics “ Look through the glitter of Christmas “ http://beforeitsnews.com/story/1549/5/NL/Bejeweled_Pope_Says_Look_Through_The_Glitter_Of_Xmas.html

It’s all a blatant illusion, folks ~ and as far as the Obama administration is concerned, the ballroom is still operating, it’s only intermission and the music will resume at any moment. Just keep drinking my oratory Kool Aid, and re-elect me next year and then I’ll deliver on the many promises I never fulfilled because of the evil obstructionist Republicans (chuckle).

In other words, I’m your known political betrayer of your moral values and the constitution (which I swore to defend), so why replace me with an unknown betrayer of those same values and the constitution?

It’s all a big lie ~ Everything is rigged to give the illusion that things are fine; Illegal occupations are glorified as wars; Body counts are falsified ~ only those killed on the battlefield are listed as KIA ~ if you died from your wounds while in transit to care or in care, you are not listed as KIA ( Courtesy of Bush/Cheney ); Unemployment figures are falsified where large numbers of workers have supposedly left the labor force and they are not counted as unemployed; The core cost of living index does not include food and energy costs (thanks to Bill Clinton) ~ thus distorting the true inflation figures and robbing seniors of needed social security income; the stock market is rigged ( think plunge protection team ) whereas unregulated high speed trading as well as derivatives give the false impression of stability in a highly leveraged crap game fierce with insider trading. Regarding the still unresolved mountain of Derivatives ~ “Contrary to popular belief, which blames the global financial crisis on subprime borrowers, it was the derivatives, based upon the likelihood that those borrowers would pay their debts, that were the primary catalyst triggering the global economic crisis of 2008. Back then, the derivative obligations of AIG (AIG) imploded the insurer. Under the pressure of fear-mongering from the Federal Reserve and the financial industry, the U.S. government committed hundreds of billions of dollars to bail out AIG's counter-parties, including the biggest banks of Europe and America. Had the government not stepped in, virtually all the banks on Wall Street would have gone bankrupt. A host of European and Asian banks would have followed……Even if we net out the notional value of the derivatives involved, down to the net potential obligation, the amount is so large that the United States could not hope to pay it off without a major dollar devaluation…..” See story ~ http://seekingalpha.com/article/301260-bank-of-america-dumps-75-trillion-in-derivatives-on-u-s-taxpayers-with-federal-approval

The name of the game is to maintain the status quo and Obama was chosen by the global financial elite to do that very thing ~ and it is one of the few promises that he has kept. Meanwhile, almost 50% of Americans are in poverty or at a "low income" level ~ a claim based on a report by the Census Bureau that includes health care, transportation, and other essential living expenses in the poverty calculation.

The party’s over, the Bubble has burst , there’s no music and no one reveals this truth more knowingly than Gerald Celente ~ In his latest interview Celente discusses a variety of different topics ~ from Iran and Europe to domestic militarization and the economy ~ and warns that our worst fears will soon be realized.

“ Bottom line? You ain’t seen nothin’ yet ~ This (National Defense Authorization Act) passed the Senate by 93-7. I’m mentioning this because all the pieces are in place now; The economy is going to crash. There is going to be chaos. Economic martial law will be called. Banks will close. And, chaos will ensure. The law is now in place for the military to come in and take over. Fascism has come to America.”

Celente Warns Of 2012: Economy Will Crash, Banks Will Close, Chaos Will Ensue, Military Will Take Over | Before It's News http://beforeitsnews.com/story/1519/121/NL/

Meanwhile, the slow beat of corporate fascism continues on ~ While on Christmas vacation in Hawaii, Obama tapped Jerome Powell to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.
Powel served as the undersecretary for finance under president George H. W. Bush and was a partner of The Carlyle Group. The Carlyle Group is a massive private equity firm and one of the largest defense contractors in the world. See story ~ http://beforeitsnews.com/story/1556/379/NL/

There is a solution and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has offered it as a Constitutional Amendment to the Constitution to exclude corporations from First Amendment rights to spend money on political campaigns. The Sanders amendment is co-sponsored by Sen. Mark Begich (D-Alaska), and a similar amendment has been proposed in the House by Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Fla.).

Watch and listen to one of our true constitutional patriots make his impassioned case that Corporations are not persons with constitutional rights; that corporations are subject to regulations by the people; that corporations cannot make campaign contributions and that Congress and the states have the right to regulate campaign finance. 12 minute video http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article29930.htm#.TuRfMsr974w.email

“Few men are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, and the wrath of their society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence. Yet it is the one essential vital quality for those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully to change.” Robert F. Kennedy

Allen L Roland

http://allenlrolandsweblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/partys-over-bubble-has-burst-lets-clean.html

Freelance Alternative Press Online columnist and psychotherapist Allen L Roland is available for comments, interviews, speaking engagements and private consultations ( allen@allenroland.com )

Allen L Roland is a practicing psychotherapist, author and lecturer who also shares a daily political and social commentary on his weblog and website allenroland.com He also guest hosts a monthly national radio show TRUTHTALK on www.conscioustalk.net