The new "Iran crisis" is such a sickening concoction of stupidity and lies that it almost defies comment. It certainly defies contemplation; even to think about it for thirty seconds is enough to bring on a bout of the dry heaves.

Fortunately, several other writers -- with iron-clad innards, no doubt -- have boldly waded in and dismantled the deception behind the manufactured hissy fit over Iran's "secret nuclear facility." Jason Ditz at Antiwar.com gives a good overview of the case, which, shucked of all the warmongering frenzy, boils down to this little nubbin of reality:

Iran was building a new nuclear enrichment facility, as it is allowed to do by international treaty. The United States and several other Western countries knew about the facility for years. The facility, which is still months away from completion, is not designed to enrich uranium to weapons grade. Iran is not required to inform the IAEA about any new enrichment plant until six months before the plant goes into operation. There is some quibbling about a codicil that was meant to require Iran to give extra early notice; but this was never ratified by the Iranian legislature, so Iran is in compliance with the Non-Proliferation Treaty which it signed and ratified years ago. (As opposed to such already nuclear armed American allies as India and Israel.) The facility was not secret, it can't build bombs, it is not even finished, and it has no nuclear material in it.

Er, that's it. But upon this paper-thin foundation, a vast fortress of sinister bullshit has been erected by the "progressive" American president and his laughable lapdogs in London and Paris. The long-known presence of a unfinished, non-weaponized, treaty-compliant building is now being presented to the world as a burning reason to impose harsh new sanctions on Iran -- harsh to the point of outright acts of war, such as an embargo on shipments of gasoline and other fuel products to Iran. And of course, our coddled, padded, well-protected War Party hacks have seized upon this non-event to bay even louder for oceans of Persian blood to slake their thirsts -- or bolster their faltering manhoods, or do whatever it is that the thought of foreigners being slaughtered in great numbers far, far away does for pathetic little wretches like Lindsey Graham, Joe Lieberman and the Whole Sick Crew.

I don't have much to add to the analysis of offered by Ditz, Scott Ritter, Justin Raimondo, Glenn Greenwald, among others. (And if you want to put the issue in its deepest, truest context, see this piece written two years ago by Arthur Silber: "So Iran Gets Nukes. So What?") But I will note what is likely to be a side issue, but an interesting one nonetheless -- the timing of these "revelations."

As we all know, Barack Obama and his Europuppies meant to make a big show of sword-waggling at the opening of the oh-so-momentous G20 summit in Pittsburgh. Iran beat them to the punch by formally notifying the IAEA of the new facility before the summit, but in any case, the "Iran crisis" served its purpose for the Masters of the West: it covered up the fact that they actually had nothing whatsoever to say about the ostensible theme of the summit -- solving the global economic collapse. If the "Iran crisis" had not sucked up all the media oxygen, these "leaders" might have had to explain why they have given trillions of public dollars to the perpetrators of the economic collapse, while letting millions upon millions of their citizens slide into jobless, homeless penury. They would have had to explain why they are taking nothing but the most ineffective, cosmetic measures to rein in the hyper-greed of the oligarchs. And they would have to admit that their only plan for addressing the crisis in the future is to do more of the same: giving the elite even more public money to use as they please.

But all the economic questions were blown away by the ever-sexy talk of war. And of course, all the hoo-rah about a new war also distracted from the White House dithering over the old, failing war in Afghanistan. It's the oldest con trick in the book: distracting the sucker while you pick his pocket.

But unfortunately it's not just a game: the militarists are in deadly earnest about attacking Iran, and year by year, they creep ever closer to their ultimate goal -- no matter which party controls the White House. As I wrote here last year:

There is literally nothing that Iran can do – or not do – to divert the American elite's desire to strike at their land and bring it under domination. And apparently there is nothing that anyone in America with any power or a major platform will do to stop it either.

Arthur Silber concludes his damning analysis of our unforced march to new horror with a heartbreaking quote from Martin Luther King Jr. Let it serve as the last word here as well; no one will put it better:

There is such a thing as being too late.... Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with lost opportunity.... Over the bleached bones of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words: "Too late."

Comments (29)

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Debbie Kimlin said:

	... Again, I thank you, Chris, for expressing so well the frustration I feel.
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September 29, 2009
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Rob Payne said:

... This is following faithfully the same pattern as W. Bush’s Iraq War though since this is Bush’s third term that isn’t surprising. Even the basic premise is the same – Iraq had WMD now its Iran who has WMD even though our warmongers have dropped the WMD moniker itself they’re saying the same thing. It’s WMD all over again and you have to wonder just how stupid we are supposed to be! I find it curious that WMD has been dropped from the palaver of politics. Perhaps they don’t wish anyone to notice that they are really just using the same old gambit Bush used.

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September 29, 2009 | url
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Sean O'Neil said:

	... But...but...but...this is the good war conducted by a good man who is supported by good progressives and liberals. Right? Or maybe this has something to do with it? http://img170.imageshack.us/im...sept09.jpg .............. PS to Mr Floyd -- 3d para has a typo, the word "planta".
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September 29, 2009
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Rob Payne said:

	... After the collapse of the Soviet Union the Caspian Basin became very important to the U.S. because it is an important source of oil and gas. Some believe that’s what the Afghan war is all about.
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Sean O'Neil said:

	... oil opium poppies Islam insecurity hiding behind Big Badass Bossman facade closeted gays turning their self-hatred against others using all the above in pursuit of money, "prestige" and power that's what it's about and if anyone has proof it's about something else, I'd love to read it
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September 29, 2009
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theadr said:

... The closest that the US will get to conquering Afghanistan is its "embassy" in Kabul. How much is the CIA's take on the poppies? Is that another reason why we don't get an accounting of Homeland Security's budget--we'd find out that they were spending more than they were appropriated? The fog of war is really getting me down. Fuck Obummer. We still have the opportunity to put him away for 1/2 of his life. Do we have the c"o"jones?

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September 29, 2009
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Chris Floyd said:

	... Sean, thanks for the typo catch. It's much appreciated.
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September 29, 2009
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IDHolm said:

	... @Sean O'Neil, I'm supposing 'familiarity might've bred conte... err, forgetting,' but you have omitted the Zs and their murder-for-land-theft aims of a "Greater Z-land?"
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September 29, 2009
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Sean O'Neil said:

to IDHOLM Idholm, the machinations of Zionist impulses fall within the major categories I listed. In itself Zionism cannot do a thing; it needs a bunch of people to implement it. When I list Islam I refer not to Islam itself causing problems, but various people around the Middle East and in the USA and UK blaming Islam instead of examining how various nations treat Islamic people. If you look in the proper places you can see plenty of discussion of how certain Zionist Christians and Zionist Jews want an "end times" war of Islam vs Judeo-Christian. However, I do not give that discussion much credence. Zionism isn't attacking people. People are attacking people. So I don't blame Islam, Judaism or Christianity for the troubles of the Middle East. I might blame tribalism as a human behavior, however. What Zionism does is unite people behind a belief or world-view. Without the people following it, it is but a world-view and world-views on their own cannot do a single thing to any single human. So I'm not quick to blame an "-ism" because that's just cheap scapegoating in my view. It's a lot like how people who support Obama think that "progressivism" in the Democratic party is a magic pill. By themselves, -isms can be rallying points but they do not implement themselves.

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September 29, 2009
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IDHolm said:

to Sean Zs: apologies; my imprecision. This may be a bit off the track, but - By Zs I mean the 0.1% of the world's pop. living in Israel, the same 0.1% again in the so-called 'Diaspora,' plus any extra-numerary accessories, sympathisers, apologists etc.. 'They' collectively are certainly no '-ism,' but by their actions and inactions 'they,' the Zs, are causing no end of problems, basically because they have 'conjured' an abomination based primarily on deception, then murder-for-theft of Palestinian land, genocide, ethnic cleansing and apartheid (have I missed something?) Silence and/or inaction inside that group is also support; only active, effective countervailing power can possibly stop, then reverse the criminality - clearly not (yet) present. In the beginning (run-up to Iraq; illegal invasion of, now morphed into a brutal occupation), I cried "Murder for oil!" Over time, I've generalised it to "mass-murder for spoil," so in that generality, I agree with your list. But (there's almost always one or more 'buts') then came LRB/M-W's "The Israel Lobby," and the hysterical denials. (In politics, one can say "Believe nothing - until it's denied.") Sooo, IMHO we should add the Zs - specifically, by name. More: It is claimed by some, that the Zs 'own' Congress, by 'owning' we could say control, and possibly extend that to the Zs having control over the whole M/I/C-plex. (Yeah; tall order. Q: What if these Zs put their energy into something constructive?) Since it is this M/I/C-plex which is actually doing most of both the killing and collecting of the spoil, then your list may need a tweak or two - with all due respect.

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September 29, 2009
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Sean O'Neil said:

I'm happy with the list. I don't think it needs tweaking. It may require explanation, but not tweaking. Militarism and the MIC are the vehicles through which oil is chased, through which control over opium poppies is sought, through which insecure men and women pretend to be Big Badass Bossmen. What I am listing is motives, not methods. You are talking about methods, as I see it. And Mr Floyd has long written, and extensively so, regarding the motives of those who are using militarism and imperialism. The motives are pretty basic, they are reptilian and primitive and rooted in a strong sense of insecurity. Methods change as technology changes. Motives remain the same. The over-arching motive is the need to feel like one is "in control" of one's destiny. Hence the scrambling for oil, because people who examine the reality of petroleum supplies and oil consumption can observe that we have passed the high point of supply vs demand/use and are on the downslope where demand/use exceeds supply. The scrambling for opium poppy control rewards the douchenozzle fratboy desire for skullduggery, to have a secret criminal enterprise lurking behind a respectable Country Club facade... it's an extension of the Skull&Bones-turned-OSS-turned-CIA boys' club. Conveniently it provides a source of money, and enables destabilization of Afghani social order, which weakens Afghanis and makes it slightly more possible to run that phocking pipeline network across Afghanistan. If you want to examine motives of Zionists, you need to avoid the connections to Judaism and Israel. Two reasons for that. One is that you're always going to get shouted down with cries of "anti-Semite!" The second is what I noted above. Zionism is but a world-view. What you're complaining about is human behavior, not a world-view. The world-view is not self-executing. So you must ask, why do certain humans find Zionism worth chasing? What needs within those followers are met by the perspectives offered in Zionism? That's where you'll find the answers you seek.

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D R Alexander said:

	... It eludes me why this website is not THE top destination for those thirsty for the truth. Simply the best writing on the web,IMVHO. Mr. Floyd, you are truly the oasis of intelligence and sanity for me,and many thanks for both the content and intent of your gifted articles.
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Shep said:

Another war buildup being ignored.... Because many have not been directly affected by the Empire's recent wars, the general public is sleep-walking through another deadly propaganda buildup. This time, though, promises to be different and if war does break out and the flow of oil is disrupted, the "average american" just might -- for the first time -- feel the consequences of giving their tax dollars to the most murderous government in history. Time will tell....

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Paul J said:

... Excellent piece Chris. I like "Europuppies". Being European myself (Dutch actually) I am much ashamed at our disgraceful servility towards the US. Just yesterday there was this Belgian foreign minister sitting like some yokel having the time of his life while visiting with the great celebrity Hillary Clinton and afterwards declaring how Belgium is completely on the same page as the US in all the major "international dossiers". My own government is even worse. Makes you kind of nostalgic for the days before the Iraq when European goverments at least managed some resistance to US war mongering. How sad all this is. One (minor) point intrigues me. Did Western countries really know of the existence of this new enrichment facility? Might be one gigantic spin. I've seen nothing persuasive on this point. Keep the great work!

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September 29, 2009
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Sean O'Neil said:

	to Paul J Paul, there are plenty of stories detailing that this "new" facility was already known to the IAEA. You could start by clicking on Mr Floyd's embedded link to the Jason Ditz article at AntiWar.com and then go from there. Over the past 3 days I've seen at least 7 or 8 stories detailing the foreknowledge of this supposedly "new" facility. It wouldn't take much work for you to find them.
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Paul J said:

... Sean, I actually did read the Ditz summary as well as pieces on the Wall St. Journal and Daily Mail websites. The stories are based on mere assertions by US officials and we all now how reliable that is. As it happens, just today Gareth Poster has a piece up on Antiwar.com about the lack of firm evidence. He cites a former US intelligence official (ahum, at least he is a "former") who says: "I think they didn’t have the goods on them" (referring to the newly revealed facility). Porters notes some pretty damaging contradictions in the story as told by the US goverment. "US Story on Iran Nuke Facility Doesn’t Add Up"the piece is called. Best, Paul

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September 30, 2009
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IDHolm said:

to Sean (The List; Zs the 3rd & last) The challenge: "if anyone has proof it's about something else, I'd love to read it." The List (agreeing, explaining): oil opium poppies Islam insecurity hiding behind Big Badass Bossman facade closeted gays turning their self-hatred against others using all the above in pursuit of money, "prestige" and power 1. Oil is 1st a fuel, 2nd a source of wealth; 3rdly controlling oil is an exercise in power. 2. Opium is 1st a drug, 2nd a source of wealth; 3rdly controlling opium is an exercise in power. Exploiting these two, and more specifically extracting $s at the expense of the sovereign owners, is the same sort of rip-off that mainly US capitalism does everywhere they can to all extracted 'natural' resources (mining, forestry etc.). This rip-off is more properly termed theft. When the military gets involved ("Economic Hit Man"), it becomes murder for spoil. 3. Islam is 1st a religion[1], 2nd is co-located with massive amounts of oil; 3rdly attacking Islam is a grossly cynical crime against humanity, a totally abusive exercise in power. 4. Undoubtedly, 'insecurity ... closeted gays' etc. are aspects of the psychopathic ruling clique. -=*=- About something else: Sean, you mentioned two grounds *not* to include Zs; 'scapegoating' qualified by the denigratory 'cheap' & 'shouted down with cries of "anti-Semite!"' It should be noted that "anti-Semite" is in fact a cowardly erroneous term; it should be "anti-Z" and/or "anti-J;" the definition of Semite includes both Js and Arabs. For the record, Js make themselves enemy to lots of Arabs. But: We are here to discuss facts, not to dodge debate or hurl epithets. Scurrilously "shouting down" is not a valid debating technique, obviously not a problem for those who support murder for spoil. Sadly, we do see shouting down, and people caving in. -=*=- One applicable fact is that Zionism[2] is inextricably bound to Israel. Another applicable fact is that the Palestinians have been dispossessed of their homeland, partly as a result of the UN swindle (how could they ever assume the right?) - then the rest dispossessed by murder for land & water as previously mentioned; genocide, ethnic cleansing apartheid and outright terrorism numbering amongst the Z-crimes against humanity. IF: one was to maintain that the theft of the Palestinian homeland was merely an artefact in the campaign against Islam on the way to seizing oil THEN: the Z-issue could be 'written down' in significance. Finally, recall that this thread is about yet anther attempt to manufacture a casus belli for the Zs and/or the US to attack Iran, and the Zs are inextricably bound to this travesty. Fazit (repeat): IMHO, the Z-issue *is* part of 'what it's about.' -=*end*=- [1] Islam n. 1 the religion of the Muslims, proclaimed by Muhammad. 2 the Muslim world.  Islamic adj. [Arabic, = submission (to God)] [POD] [2] Zion n. 1 ancient Jerusalem; its holy hill. 2 a the Jewish people or religion. b the Christian Church. 3 the Kingdom of Heaven. [Hebrew siyôn] Zionism n. movement for the re-establishment and development of a Jewish nation in what is now Israel.  Zionist n. & adj. [ibid.]

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Expat said:

... WRITTEN BY SEAN O'NEIL, SEPTEMBER 29, 2009 oil opium poppies Islam insecurity hiding behind Big Badass Bossman facade closeted gays turning their self-hatred against others using all the above in pursuit of money, "prestige" and power Reconsider your list: oil opium poppies and other scarce resources belief systems pathology of dominance/management/administration feudalist / aristocratic renascence also methods for the pursuit of wealth, status, and power (if you will) Idholm's definition of oil above: "1. Oil is 1st a fuel, 2nd a source of wealth; 3rdly controlling oil is an exercise in power." works nicely IMO. As does the definition of opium poppies if made broader to include the controlling possession of an irreplaceable economic resource, the goal of monopolistic endeavors. Belief systems would be generic for what you are after. It is inclusive of religion as well as political constructs, particularly when political constructs are based on economic ideology, e.g. new world order, globalization, the neo-con so-called neo-liberalism, teh "empire", etc. As feudalism was replaced by mercantilism, that in its turn replaced by "modern" economic theory (Adam Smith's "Wealth of Nations" et al), the advent of uncontrolled monopolies into the politico/economic forum creates their natural disposition to dominate and control the political processes of the republic for their needs, having the where-with-all to do so. As the management of these corporate edifices is necessarily feudal, aristocratic in the psychological profile, it should be of no surprise that the methodology used to control the political process would also be colored by the aristocratic feudalists. In this context, your "closeted gays" is a straw-man that deflects observation away from reality, and may indicate some other problem, much like the conspiracy theorists utilize "teh Jews", masonic orders, etc. Be aware. The concoction of outright lies by Obama and the administration over Iran is breathtaking. Not so much Brown and Sarkozy, they following Washington's lead as lapdogs will. There is a frightening development in the EU where one of the three forums is being changed into a form that these people can more easily dominate. The Nice Treaty/European Constitution/Lisbon Treaty is an attempt to change the architecture of the "executive" council of the Union having rotating access to the council by the member nations. If it passes, the future holds a reduced ability to resist such agendas by the member states. Just something to watch out for, another lapdog supporting rogue agendas. One observation more, when the attack on Iran happens, count on that signaling the end of the dollar as well as the end of the fictional "Republic".

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September 30, 2009
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Sean O'Neil said:

	amen, EXPAT well said.
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Sean O'Neil said:

	PS the remark about closeted gays and their self-hatred is a reference to the SS in Hitler's Third Reich... not a smear on gays.
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September 30, 2009
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Expat said:

	... Thanks Sean, that went over my head, hope the response made up for teh stupids.
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September 30, 2009
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Sean O'Neil said:

I'm cryptic EXPAT, as a relatively impatient person, I tend to reference things briefly, which ends up being cryptic I'm sure. Back when Homeland Security arose and the Patriot Act was being pushed into law, I researched the SS and its origins. The Night of the Long Knives, etc. One theme that kept coming up is the frequency of brutality committed by closeted gay members & leaders of the SS and SA. Maybe that's attributable to the writers I read, and their dislike/disapproval/fear of homosexuality? I don't know. I do know that the theme popped up fairly often.

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sadeghi said:

	... I like your comments very much. I would like to communicate with Sean O'Neil. please provide me with his e-mai. thank you, ali
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October 09, 2009
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sadeghi said:

	... please provide me with sean o'neil e-mail. thank you, ali
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October 09, 2009
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Patrick Sullivan said:

Extermination of the Human race is still the plan Iran is a cover to let the heavy metal fly and kill us all. The decision to do this was made in 1946 and nothing has changed since then. They have pulled the nuclear trigger many times on us. Sooner or later, the folks are going to figure it out. You can watch the 1968 movie "The Night of the Living Dead," on the web for free. It has a few clues in it for what is going on.

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October 11, 2009
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Obammy said:

King I AM NOT G. BUSH! And after everything I do has failed, and we have hyper-inflation leading to complete devastating deflation, and you have no food to eat, I'll blame HIM for everything that happened. And by design, blame will go to those RIGHT-WING EXTREMISTS who went along with Bush. And of course that will lead to Christians!!! This is of course, the real issue. Its a spiritual war. Hey, go figure.

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October 11, 2009
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David said:

Lessons from History If anything the lessons from history go unlearned in America. Even though their own founding is based on the same lessons. The British arrogance that over extended them allowing for the American independence,is now the same Arrogance that America displays. Indeed it is the same arrogance that America dusplayed during the Vietnam war. Instead of Running America with a comprhensive economic policy ,America has been run like whore house. Everything is unfunded,infrastructure falling apart,no rainy day funds no reserves to lean on .Facing bankruptcy due to corrupt economic practices, America can not afford the world giving up on the USA dollar. They Can not afford Iraq selling oil in euros and they attack them and burried 1.2 million Iraqi civilians. Now Iran is selling oil in Euros and the drums of war once more begin to pound. Americans do not mind that their country's finances are run like a whorehouse .The only time Americans even bother to blink is if the govt wants to raise taxes. This blindness is their demise ,for now the American in the street has no money himself no credit no money and no job or about to lose thier job. this will all add up to a bad nightmare soon, things are just now heating up. The biggest Great depression is now looming over America for the whorehouse is crumbling like the once great city of Detroit. nothing can save America they have printed far too much money out of thin air. It will cost the sovereignty of Americans and could end in civil war. A once great nation now a ghost of itself grovels at the feet of the communist Chinese.They now are running out of patience with America ,the world in general no longer trusts America. Too many lies too many fools. Though the American population is easily fooled the world looks on and ponders the day when the once great nation America finally ceases to exist. for a 1000 years no nation could defeat America but within 235 years the fools of America have burried America long before it's time their greed was too much for even America to over come. When the Great nations of the world come to the funeral they will not come to raise America up but to divide it up for debts unpaid for pennies on the dollar. Still today the American congress are stuffing the bills with ear marks and groveling at the feet of lobbyists. the traitors are every where they can smell the titanic sinking and are stealing what they can before it goes down.

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October 11, 2009
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Ben said:

Re above Dry Heaves and Sucker Ploys: The Great New Iran "Crisis".... American elite's desire to strike at their land and...bring it under domination.' Trying to understand what if Lord Stirling's comments are anywhere near the truth why would anyone want to dominate a radioactive wasteland? http://www.rense.com/general87/zatt.htm Zionist Attack On Iran - Scenarios Do like the choice of words:- manufactured hissy fit

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gravel kucinich paul nader said:

REPRISE CHARLIE FOXTROT US of israel B52 cheney Nobel peace 911 false flag NAFTA nation Treasury theft 7 nation army Persia nat gas Of mice & men Red dawn 2010 Mil spec anthrax Pres carter smile Chickenhawk roost American holocaust Mossad megaphone USS liberty & trident James blunt no bravery Jericho III north america Tillman tight 3 round group Nile is not just a river in egypt watch?v=Uyu07k4iZpE

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