No Speedy Trial for Bradley Manning

[Charles Pegge]

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/14-3

[danbaron]

(Revisions in red.)

I can't even read the whole thing, it's too sickening.

What a den of snakes this country has become.

You also see evidence of it with respect to OWS.

(Actually, it's interesting what is happening here. Those in power are trying to blame the homeless and jobless for being homeless and jobless. The next step will be to turn them into criminals.)

The system is determined to shut down the OWS movement.

The cops are indistinguishable from soldiers (Do you remember a long time ago, when cops looked like cops?).

I think it (regulating demonstrations) started during Bush Jr. (Can you imagine it, a psychopath with the IQ of a lemon, as boss of the most powerful country in the world? - To me, it shows, all that matters, is pedigree.), when, the first, "free speech zones", were established.

Demonstrators were quarantined in designated areas, like in cages.

What will happen if and when the system becomes fearful that a critical number of people may begin defying it?

My guess is that, then, "the gloves will come off".

It may be, "Surprise!, the United States is fascist!".

(Wait until if and when the United States gets its own version of Tiananmen Square. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiananmen_Square_protests_of_1989 My understanding is that the Chinese government did not even bother to record who was killed. As far as it was concerned, those people never existed. Right now, I see the United States as walking a, "fine line". It desperately wants to crack down on OWS type demonstrations, but, it doesn't want to use overt force to do so, because, then, everyone will see its true nature. Everyone will see its hypocrisy - praising the uprisings of the, "Arab Spring", while, crushing much milder protests in its own country.

I think sooner or later, the people in the United States (and probably many of the other western countries) are finally going to realize that, the government considers them to be not more than peasants, serfs. And that the government exists to serve itself, and its monetary backers.)

Can you imagine what will happen if the dollar collapses ("Guess what? Your money just became worthless. Are you upset? Sorry, have a nice day.")?

What a land of big lies - the country spends 19 times what the next country spends on the military, and simultaneously a huge percentage of its population is below the poverty level. I said it before, this place has become entirely for the 1% at the top, who enforce what they want against the rest of the world and the bottom 99%, by military and police power.

When governments of countries in which there is huge inequality are faced with the prospect of widespread disrespect of the system, what are their choices?

They can stand by passively, or, attempt to crush it.

And, history shows, they don't stand by passively.

Immediately, "emergency" laws are passed which make almost everything illegal.

And, anyone with even the wrong expression on his face, is locked up.

Amazingly, already, before any civil disobedience, the US has the highest incarceration rate in the world.

I think it is at least 7 times the average for Europe.

I guess the reason must be that more bad people are born here, do you think?

It's not rocket science, those at the top try to maintain what they have, by instilling fear in the populace.

Maybe, in a way what is happening is good, America will be forced to reveal its true face to its people and the world.

And, to me, when Obama talks, for instance, about Bradley Manning, it's like, "up is down", "in is out", "far is near", "blue is green", "fat is smooth", "run is sky" - the analogies become more and more cuckoo.

There is an old quote from a very smart guy, Frederick Douglass, who was American slave.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Douglass

It goes something like, "Determine how much the people will tolerate without rebelling, and you have found exactly what they will be subjected to.".

And here, the propaganda never stops - "Those without jobs are lazy, defective.", "The demonstrators want something for nothing, they're anarchists, socialists, violent.", "They hate the rich for their success.", "The demonstrators represent only a tiny minority, surveys show the vast majority of Americans are happy, and believe America is the greatest country in the world.".

The crooks at the top know that unrelenting false propaganda is effective. It can prevent, "the pot from boiling". Brainwashed people doubt their own eyes and ears. Then, they are less likely to voice their discontent. Each thinks, "Everyone else is happy, something must be wrong with me.". They remain isolated, they don't organize. Organized populist movements are what the, "elites", fear most.

(I can imagine this future. It sounds like science fiction, something from a movie, but, who knows? (Maybe I can "pitch" it to Hollywood.) - A huge demonstration in one of the biggest US cities, while overhead American drones selectively target and "neutralize" demonstrators. If it was made into a movie, would you want to see it?

Maybe this will be the "hot" new movie type. The government, using super-weapons, to obliterate its own people, like kids stomping on an anthill, i.e., the people portrayed as ants in the government's kitchen, and being exterminated.)

[danbaron]

"Our F— You System of Government":

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/16-11

(http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/16-11)"Police State Tactics":

http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/16/police-state-tactics/
(http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/11/16-11)
"Oakland Mayor Jean Quan Admits Cities Coordinated Crackdown on Occupy Movement":

http://my.firedoglake.com/gregglevine/2011/11/15/oakland-mayor-jean-quan-admits-cities-coordinated-crackdown-on-occupy-movement/

(http://my.firedoglake.com/gregglevine/2011/11/15/oakland-mayor-jean-quan-admits-cities-coordinated-crackdown-on-occupy-movement/)"Rebellion in the Air: Quan's Quackery and Bloomberg's Bullshit":[/URL]

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Rebellion-in-the-Air-Quan-by-Dave-Lindorff-111117-501.html (http://my.firedoglake.com/gregglevine/2011/11/15/oakland-mayor-jean-quan-admits-cities-coordinated-crackdown-on-occupy-movement/)

"After an Earlier Misstep, a Minutely Planned Raid":

[URL]http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/16/nyregion/police-clear-zuccotti-park-with-show-of-force-bright-lights-and-loudspeakers.html?_r=2&hp

"The coming War on the Occupy Movement":

http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/17/the-coming-war-on-the-occupy-movement/

(http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/17/the-coming-war-on-the-occupy-movement/)"Lessons from the Crackdown":

http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/17/lessons-from-the-crackdown/

(http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/17/lessons-from-the-crackdown/)"This is what America looks like":

"This fight is about race, and class, and justice, and what happens to a nation when it becomes addicted to war and the profits earned for a few by the delivery of death. "

http://www.truth-out.org/what-america-looks/1321471600
(http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/17/the-coming-war-on-the-occupy-movement/)
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(Here is a hypothetical situation.

Say, you had to pick one of the following, which would you choose?

1) Being murdered while you were asleep.

2) Being given the opportunity to defend yourself against your potential murderer.

My guess is that, either subconsciously or consciously, many people would choose 1, because, for them, 2 is too scary.

(And, of course, there are also those who don't worry about what happens to anyone else - when, "push comes to shove", the only thing that matters to them is their own personal survival, on this plane of existence. They hope that if they obey the, "shepherd", he won't leave them for the wolves. Isn't there an old saying, something like, "And then they come for you."?))

[danbaron]

This is one of the ways repressive governments, "keep the lid on", correct?

They try to prevent the public from seeing any displays of despair.

Because, they are rightfully afraid that any public display, could spread like an infection, yes or no?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/8893337/Chinese-man-sets-himself-on-fire-in-Tiananmen-Square.html?mid=52

Five minutes after the event, everything is normal, everyone is happy, yeah?

And, to me, repressive governments are all alike, so, by studying one, you can see what other currently less repressive governments will do, when confronted with ever increasing levels of antipathy/contempt, from the composite of the people.

And, another thing such governments do, is to encourage each person to only be concerned about him/her self. To implicitly encourage, I guess by influencing the media/culture, a society in which people walking by, are entertained by someone burning to death on the pavement. I remember seeing an article last week, about China, which said the same thing. There recently have been a number of incidents there where people, including children, needed immediate medical attention, and many many pedestrians, just walked on by.

[danbaron]

On mainland China (http://ww4report.com/node/10546), authorities have again taken pre-emptive electronic action to snuff protest calls (http://ww4report.com/node/9601). The Beijing government has added to its list of banned terms in web searches. Users of the country’s popular microblogging site Sina Weibo will now be blocked from searching for phrases that could be tied to the Occupation movement. The banned search terms include any permutation of the word “Occupy” followed by any of China’s cities. For instance, searches for “Occupy Beijing” will come up empty. (Government Computer News (http://gcn.com/articles/2011/10/24/agg-china-occupy-wall-street-search-terms.aspx), Oct. 24)

http://stevebeckow.com/2011/11/tokyo-seoul-taipei-hong-kong-occupied-%e2%80%94beijing-worried/

[danbaron]

I guess, depending on who is running a country, publicly advocating for peace could be considered, "incitement".

People need the government to filter the information which is directed at their ears.

Of course, the last thing any reasonable person would want, would be for people to be allowed to decide for themselves, without the influence of only one-sided opinions.

Powerful people know what's best, otherwise they wouldn't be powerful, right?

And, obviously, all other goals, are, should be, and must be, subservient to the preservation of the state, in the form that its current rulers designate.

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/11/20-2

(http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/11/20-2)Now I saw this one, too.

Everyone should realize that, always, as has been divinely ordained, freedom can never be permitted to threaten the control of the state!

One would think that by now, this would be self evident!!

http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/18/weimar-revisited/
(http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/11/18/weimar-revisited/)

[danbaron]

"All tyrannies rule through fraud and force, but once the fraud is exposed they must rely exclusively on force."
- George Orwell

How did George Orwell know so much?

http://www.truthout.com/peoples-surveillance-state/1321898348

[danbaron]

"What's good for the goose, is" not necessarily "good for the gander"?

http://stevebeckow.com/2011/11/israel-says-no-to-nuclear-transparency/

[Charles Pegge]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2011/dec/16/bradley-manning-hearing-live-updates

[danbaron]

The judge accused of being biased, should be the one to judge, as to whether he is in fact biased?

The Trial of Bradley Manning - Rule of Law or Rule of Intimidation, Retaliation and Retribution:

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/12/17-0

The US government's standard of bias is if a "reasonable person" would consider the judge to be so. The judge has decided that a reasonable person would not consider him to be biased. Notice that his decision is not based on if he is in fact biased (who would know if not himself?), but rather on the appearance of bias. To me, this is a wonderful example of the bureaucratic phenomenon/strategy of looking with an "electron microscope" at one "leaf", and ignoring the "forest".

A reasonable person would not consider the judge to be biased?

The US government is not intent on finding Bradley Manning guilty?

The judge is not an employee of the US government?

[danbaron]

A Man in Tunisia, a Movement on Wall Street, and the Soldier Who Ignited the Fuse:

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/12/18