Above the law: Obama’s drone killings
Mr. Obama has argued that he can kill Americans whose deaths he believes will keep us all safer, without any due process whatsoever. No law authorizes that.
Did you consent to a government that can kill whom it wishes?
NAPOLITANO: Obama demands unquestioning acceptance of his ability to kill http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/feb/7/obama-demands-unquestioning-acceptance-of-his- abil/#ixzz2KLwwpcgK By Andrew P. Napolitano , February 7, 2013 Drone strikes are legal, but the research is confidential Earlier this week, the government sent a summary of its legal memos on presidential use of drones to kill persons overseas — even Americans — to an NBC newsroom. This was done after more than a year of stonewalling federal judges and ordinary citizens who sought the revelation of the government’s secret legal research justifying the president’s use of drones. The administration claimed the research was so sensitive and so secret that it could not be revealed without serious consequences.
This revelation will come as a great surprise, and not a little annoyance, to U.S. District Court Judge Colleen McMahon, who heard many hours of oral argument during which the government predicted gloom and doom if its legal research were subjected to public scrutiny. She very reluctantly agreed with the feds, but told them she felt caught in “a veritable Catch-22,” because the feds have created “a thicket of laws and precedents that effectively allow the executive branch of our government to proclaim as perfectly lawful certain actions that seem on their face incompatible with our Constitution and laws, while keeping the reasons for their conclusion a secret.”
She was writing about President Obama killing Americans and refusing to divulge the legal basis for claiming the right to do so. Now we know that basis.
The undated and unsigned 16-page document leaked to NBC refers to itself as a Department of Justice white paper. Its logic is flawed, its premises are bereft of any appreciation for the values of the Declaration of Independence and the supremacy of the Constitution, and its rationale could be used to justify any breaking of any law by any “informed, high-level official of the U.S. government.” Continue reading
Alarm over USA’s so-called “legal,” “ethical” “wise” drone killings
The memo says the U.S. can carry out targeted drone executions even when the U.S. doesn’t have “clear evidence that a specific attack in U.S. persons and interests will take place in the immediate future.”
The White House this week defended the drone program as “legal,” “ethical” and “wise.”
Congress gets Obama data on use of drones, By Susan Crabtree The Washington Times, February 6, 2013 White House gives in before Brennan hearing With the fate of his pick to head the CIA in danger, President Obama reversed course Wednesday night and released to Congress the classified legal advice that the Justice Department has given the White House on using drones to execute American citizens in the war on terrorism.
The about-face came less than a day before John O. Brennan, Mr. Obama’s homeland security adviser and his pick to be CIA director, was to face a Senate confirmation hearing, and hours after Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon Democrat, threatened to hold up the appointment unless more information was forthcoming. Continue reading
New USA defence secretary Hagel supports reduction in nuclear arms
Hagel supports nuclear weapons reduction , Ahramonline, Chuck Hagel,
nominated to be President Obama’s next defence secretary, supports
‘Global Zero’ movement on nuclear disarmament Bassem Aly , 6 Feb 2013
Former Republican senator Chuck Hagel will likely be the first
American defence secretary, if approved, to back the so-called “Global
Zero” movement that supports reducing the number of US nuclear
weapons.
Global Zero members believe that stopping the spread of nuclear
weapons, securing all nuclear materials and eliminating all nuclear
weapons is the only way to end the nuclear threat, including
proliferation and nuclear “terrorism.”
The movement, joined by almost 300 world leaders and more than 400,000
citizens worldwide, was launched in Paris in December 2008.
Hagel had previously co-authored with other public figures the 2012
Global Zero U.S. Nuclear Policy Commission Report that outlined a
step-by-step plan to eliminate nuclear weapons, involving bilateral
negotiations with Russia to be followed by other key countries…..
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/9/64167/World/International/Hagel-supports-nuclear-weapons-reduction-.aspx
Yes, France is fighting in Mali on behalf of AREVA’s uranium mines
France protects Niger uranium mine BBC News, 4 Feb 13, Niger has confirmed that French special forces are protecting one of the country’s biggest uranium mines. President Mahamadou Issoufou told French media that security was being tightened at the Arlit mine after the recent hostage crisis in Algeria. French company Areva plays a major part in mining in Niger – the world’s fifth-largest producer of uranium.
Islamist militants kidnapped five French workers from the mine in Arlit three years ago. Four of them are still being held – along with three other French hostages – and it is believed they could be in the north of Mali close to where French troops are battling al-Qaeda-linked militants.
Asked if he could confirm that French special forces were guarding the uranium mine, President Issoufou told channel TV5: “Absolutely I can confirm. ”We decided, especially in light of what happened in Algeria… not to take risks and strengthen the protection of mining sites,” he added.
France’s Agence France-Presse news agency said a dozen French special forces reservists were strengthening security at the site.Areva gets much of its uranium from the two mines it operates in the country, at Arlit and Imouraren… http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21318043
North Korea- a new nuclear test creates new problems
Another nuclear test will make it impossible for the new South Korean government or the second Obama administration to look for resolution of long-standing enmities by focusing on issues beyond the nuclear dispute.
What to Expect from a North Korean Nuclear Test, Foreign Policy, Pyongyang is about to make some more trouble. Here’s what to look for when Kim Jong Un debuts his new bomb. BY SIEGFRIED S. HECKER | FEBRUARY 4, 2013 Pyongyang lashed out harshly at the United States following the most recent U.N. Security Council resolution condemning its December missile test. The Kim Jong Un regime threatened to increase its nuclear deterrent both quantitatively and qualitatively and vowed to conduct a third nuclear test at a “higher level.” So what might we expect from another test? Why, what, how will we know, when, and what difference will it make?
Danger of radical Islamists and Pakistan’s nuclear weapons
Pakistan’s nuclear bombs could be hijacked by radicals, claims scientistPress Trust of India : February 01, 2013
The nuclear physicist and defence analyst estimated Pakistan’s arsenal to be similar to India’s, at around 120-130 warheads.
“Earlier, such weapons were seen just as a means of deterrence. The most dangerous development is the increasing search for fissile material as a new dimension of tactical nuclear war has entered the picture. This means the number of weapons will steadily increase,” he said……
“Whether electricity generated from nuclear sources is really efficient is a big question mark. The construction of nuclear reactors is very expensive and should an accident similar to Japan’s Fukushima disaster in 2011 were to occur in India or Pakistan, both countries may not have the capacity to deal with it the same way,” he added. http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/pakistan-s-nuclear-bombs-could-be-hijacked-by-radicals-claims-scientist-325021
A manufactured danger- the supposed nuclear weapons threat from Iran
Contrast, then, the Iranian nuclear posture with that of the U.S. and
Israel – the two supposedly threatened parties.
Israel has perhaps as many as 200 nuclear weapons. It is unknown
precisely just how many bombs Israel possesses because it refuses to
sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty (which Iran has done), or allow in
international inspectors (which Iran continues to do).
Meanwhile, the U.S. – the only nation to actually deploy nuclear
weapons in combat – is currently in the midst of upgrading its arsenal
of 5,113 nuclear warheads. With conservative estimates approaching
$400 billion, the Washington Post reports, it will be the “costliest
overhaul in its history.”
And yet, it is Iran that poses the nuclear threat?
The Iran Nuclear Threat: Phantom Menace
http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-iran-nuclear-threat-phantom-menace/5321242
By Ben Schreiner
Global Research, February 01, 2013 They say you can’t kill that which
has never lived. It’s useful advice when analyzing the persistence of
the so-called “Iranian nuclear threat.”
According to a report in McClatchy, “Israeli intelligence officials
now estimate that Iran won’t be able to build a nuclear weapon before
2015 or 2016.”
Recall that just this past September Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu was theatrically warning that Iran would achieve nuclear
weapons capability by “next spring, at most by next summer.”
Of course, Netanyahu has made a career out of warning that Iran is
about to go nuclear – claiming as early as 1992 that Iran was 3 to 5
years away from being able to produce a bomb
As one Israeli official justifiably lamented to McClatchy, “Did we cry
wolf too early?” Yes – early and often, to be precise. Continue reading
France wants to hang on to control of uranium resources in Mali
beneath
the deserts in Northern Mali and Eastern Niger, territory now
exclusively claimed by the nomadic Tuareg tribes, exists the world’s
third largest uranium reserves as well as substantial oil reserves.
“Paris has cultivated the dependency
of their former colonies by hand-picking weak regimes that gave them
access to resources,”
Is the French Invasion of Mali tied to a Colonial War for Uranium? By
Saeed Shabazz Global Research, January 30, 2013 There is still
confusion in UN corridors concerning France’s military intervention in
Northern Mali, which began on Jan. 11 with air strikes against the
so-called Islamist camps moving closer to the capital city of Bamako. Continue reading
Another nuclear capable missile test by India
India tests nuclear-capable missile
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/india-tests-nuclear-capable-missile/story-fn3dxix6-1226563126908
AAP January 28, 2013 AN Indian news report says India has
successfully tested a medium-range, nuclear-capable ballistic missile
fired from an underwater platform in the Bay of Bengal.
The Press Trust of India news agency says the missile would soon be
ready for deployment on platforms, including a nuclear submarine.
India’s Defence Ministry spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
Pallava Bagla, a defence expert, said Sunday’s test off the east coast
was 14th in the series with a range of 700 kilometres. It would
complete India’s nuclear triad – the capability to launch missiles
from land, air and below the sea.
India and its nuclear-armed rival Pakistan routinely test different
versions of their missiles. The countries have fought three wars since
they gained independence from Britain in 1947.
Australia has lost its moral compass on nuclear disarmament and non proliferation
despite the window of opportunity that Australia has open to it as chair of a number of relevant committees on the UN Security Council, Carr’s recent statements are devoid of any talk of global disarmament, or of a just dialogue between Iran, Israel and the West. The Australian government instead seems intent on reforging the policy bonds of the “Coalition of the Willing” which proved so morally, politically and economically disastrous in 2003.
Julia Gillard must not continue to take Australia further down the path of moral decay in the area of non-proliferation and disarmament as I’ve elsewhere argued she has done. Now on the Security Council, Australia must use its role to push for what Prime Minster Gillard herself promised in the candidate brochure:
… a lead role in advancing disarmament and non-proliferation efforts and continuing our longstanding efforts to promote respect for international law.
The decay of Australia’s nuclear ethic, Aljazeera, NAJ Taylor, 26 Jan 13, Australia must use its new position in the UN Security Council to push for conciliation with Iran. Within three days of Australia taking the chair of the UN Security Council committees overseeing “Iran’s WMD proliferation activities”, Foreign Minister Bob Carr announced that Australia is to adopt severe economic sanctions against Iran that are “broadly aligned” with those already actioned by the US, Britain and European Union.
Thursday’s announcement is bitterly disappointing, for it draws to the fore a deep moral inconsistency in Australia’s recent nuclear dealings.
Simply put, Iran is alleged to have an active nuclear weapons programme, despite it having undertaken a number of international obligations – including the primary instrument of the nuclear regime, the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Continue reading
France’s military in Niger to protect AREVA’s uranium mines
France orders special forces to protect Niger uranium: source PARIS Jan 24, 2013 (Reuters)– France has ordered special forces to protect uranium sites run by state-owned Areva in Niger as the threat of attacks on its interests rises after its intervention against rebels in Mali, a military source said on Thursday Reporting by John Irish, Geert de Clercq, Muriel Boselli, Michel Rose in Paris and Abdoulaye Massalatchi in Niamey; …….
The military source confirmed a report in weekly magazine Le Point that special forces and equipment would be sent to Areva’s uranium production sites in Imouraren and Arlit very quickly, but declined to go into further details.
Defense ministry officials declined to comment on the report and Areva said it did not talk about security issues….
Areva, Niger’s biggest single investor, has about 2,700 workers in Niger and is planning to start up a third mine in Imouraren.
The planned startup of production in Imouraren was delayed to 2013 or 2014 from 2012, following the kidnappings and a labor dispute.
A Niger army officer said that there were already security arrangements agreed with France since 2011 after the kidnappings in Arlit and they had been reinforced over time.
“We also have our counter-terrorism units in the Agadez region,” he said. “For now, I don’t know of a decision by the Nigerien government to allow French special forces to base themselves in the north.”
An Areva spokeswoman said this month the French government had not asked the company to reduce staffing in Niger. She added Areva has an extensive security plan for its employees and that the plan has been reviewed by the French authorities.
Areva has been mining uranium in Niger for more than five decades and the country provides one third of the group’s uranium supplies.
According to a parliamentary committee enquiring into France’s supplies of uranium, about 18 percent of the raw material used to power France’s 58 nuclear reactors came from Niger in 2008…. http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/24/us-mali-rebels-niger-areva-idUSBRE90N0OD20130124
A little shark could beat a nuclear submarine
This Tiny Shark Can Take Out Nuclear Submarines Jennifer Welsh | Jan. 23, 2013,
The Cookiecutter shark (Isistius brasiliensis).
The cat-sized shark in the picture to the right doesn’t look that intimidating, but it has the power to take down an entire nuclear submarine. The fish’s strange bite can get at the softer areas of the submarines, National Geographic’s Ed Yong reports: The fearless cookie-cutters have even disabled the most dangerous ocean creature of all—the nuclear submarine. They attacked exposed soft areas including electrical cables and rubber sonar domes. In several cases, the attacks effectively blinded the subs, forcing them back to base for repairs. They later returned, fitted with fibreglass coverings.
The attacks happened in the 1970s and the problem seems to have been taken care of, though in several cases the sharks did enough damage to the vessel’s sonar equpiment that the oils inside that transmit sound would leak out of the ship and break the equipment — the subs could no longer see what was around them, according to the ReefQuest Centre for Shark Research.
Nuclear subs obviously aren’t all that tasty, but they seem to bite just about anything — even research equipment in the ocean. The distinctive bites have been found in all kinds of fish and other sharks, and even a human has been attacked by the little guys.
See the rest of Yong’s blog post for more fascinating facts about the cookiecutter shark and the analysis of a new paper out in Pacific Science this month, detailing cookiecutter bites on a great white shark. Here are some more images:……
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/this-tiny-shark-can-take-out-nuclear-submarines-2013-1#ixzz2IuvjPEFc
First hand witness of radiation to soldiers in Pacific atomic bomb tests
The with holding of evidence -Dave Whyte. http://nuclearhistory.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-with-holding-of-evidence-dave-whyte/ <dave.whyte@blueyonder.co.uk I doubt if we will ever be permitted to have a cytogenetic blood analysis carried out as the Authorities know what the results would be. Everything they do has a delaying action in the hope we will all be dead before they are forced to admit the truth. What irks me, is the fact all Servicemen were loyal to Queen and Country but loyalty has not been reciprocated by our respective Government’s.
It was the Ministry of Defence that kept informing me I should put in for a War Pension if I considered my medical problems were caused by nuclear testing. When I did apply they acknowledged my stomach problems were caused due to service and awarded me a 0% pension: They also admitted the Lymphadenopathy and again awarded a 0% pension; For my claim of infertility and other ailments I was informed I did not receive sufficient radiation to cause my ailments.
I have now added Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) citing the stress involved in attempting to obtain information on the levels of radiation received including the fact that It took the Ministry of Defence over five years to supply me with information on the levels of radiation at ground zero after Pennant and Burgee after denying it existed. They are still refusing to divulge the levels of ‘Beta’ radiation at ground zero after detonation of the bombs, or the radiation levels at our living quarters in the forward area.
There were around 200 of us living at ‘B’ site (I have attached a map) which was situated 3 miles from the atomic bomb ground zero and 6 miles from the point of detonation of the hydrogen bombs Flagpole and Halliard. I saw members of the AWRE regularly checking the area for radiation (they were wearing protective clothing at the early stages). My attempts have failed to get a copy of the logs showing the levels of radiation. I should add, we were never given protective clothing or respirators we went around in shorts and flip-flops.
I believe this was the forerunner to Operation Lighthouse which was cancelled due to the moratorium. The tests were held in quick succession as proposed for Lighthouse: Pennant atomic bomb 22 August, Flagpole hydrogen bomb 2 September, Halliard hydrogen bomb 11 September and Burgee atomic bomb 23 September 1958. I have proof that the forward area was radioactive for nine days after Pennant and six days after Burgee. The authorities are denying there was any radiation in the forward area after the two hydrogen bombs!
I have attached a photograph showing the condition of our living quarters after Pennant.
It is only now I realise there must have been radioactive particles blown into our bedding and other belongings which we could have inhaled or ingested whilst sleeping.
I hope some of this may be of interest.
UK: former Defence Secretary speaks out on out-dated nuclear missile program
Nuclear defence policy hit by fresh blow http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/e067f95a-6583-11e2-a3db-00144feab49a.html#axzz2IuuMBNTq By James Blitz, Defence and Diplomatic Editor, 23 Jan 13,
The government’s insistence on an identical replacement for the UK’s nuclear deterrent will receive a fresh blow on Thursday, when a former Labour defence secretary declares Britain should no longer deploy atomic weapons at sea around the clock.
In an important contribution to the debate on Trident, Lord Browne of Ladyton will argue that Britain should abandon a cornerstone of its nuclear policy known as “continuous at sea deterrence” (CASD). Continue reading
Uranium now the justification for invading Syria?
NOW IT’S SYRIA’S URANIUM??? Giza Death Star, JANUARY 17, 2013 BY JOSEPH P. FARRELL Really…it’s getting to be like a bit of theater isn’t it? It would be laughable, were it not for the loss of life and suffering involved. We’ve seen every excuse in the world trotted out, it seems, to justify an “intervention” by the West in Syria, with the usual “human rights” leading the charge. That, of course, didn’t pan out too well. So now, it seems, Syria has a lot of uranium we should all be worried about:
Now the West Is Worried About Syrian Uranium! Must Invade? This, it seems, is the latest scam….. The mention of Iraq in this article may recall, for some who remember the whole fiasco, what happened when we were all lied to about the necessity of the need to invade that country. First we were told that Saddam Hussein was sponsoring terrorism. That one quickly fell by the wayside to be replaced by the prospect of an immanent nuclear Iraq. He was building “weapons of mass destruction” (specifically atomic bombs), and had demonstrated his willingness to use such weapons by gassing the Kurds. No doubt, the man was evil, and may even have used a-bombs had he had them. Of course, Saddam was no fool either, and may not have used them, knowing that it may have called forth a similar response from the west. But in any case, he didn’t have them.
But you’ll recall there was story that was quickly circulated as the invasion was under way, and the evidence for such a program was not forthcoming: Saddam, we were informed, had dismantled his whole program and shipped it, lock, stock, and German-made centrifuge, to…
…Syria.
So in a certain sense, invading Syria would (follow the twisted logic here), be completing what we started in Iraq….. Watch this one carefully folks, because this seems to be what is happening here: a way to piggyback an Iranian project on a Syrian one. Same ole same ole. http://gizadeathstar.com/2013/01/now-its-syrias-uranium/
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