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Post by Nictoshek on Sept 11, 2015 7:34:23 GMT -7
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Post by pieter on Sept 11, 2015 11:48:42 GMT -7
New York Rock 'n Roll after 911. How a New York band dealt with it's feelings about 911 in a song.
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Post by karl on Sept 11, 2015 12:33:19 GMT -7
J.J.
My self and so many of us do remember this terrible tragedy that occurred on this day in September 11, 2001. Most of the off time conversation was on that subject and follow up news reporting as events unfolded. It was most shocking of the deeds so committed against the victims of those airliners high jacked and crashed on purpose with out regard to the lives destroyed for no good reason.
The first bit of news was of an airplane crashing into a building but no confirmation of size of airplane or which building at that early time of broadcast. Then gradually, the situation begin to unfold as being of multiple crashes and tremendious loss of life.
A most tragic situation of unimaginable consequences and a permanent change that was to be to the American life.
It is situations of such that will provide to you who your friends are, and you of America have a great deal of friends of Europe. Our hats are off to you in sympathy and admiration for your courage in times of such tradgidy.
Karl
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Post by Jaga on Sept 11, 2015 13:24:22 GMT -7
Karl,
My daughter Ela woke up and stated that today is 9/11, but when this happened she was not even one year old. I saw rainbow pictures which were posted recently, since apparently one day before there was a nice rainbow in NYC, with the towers visible.
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Post by pieter on Sept 12, 2015 5:39:23 GMT -7
J.J. My self and so many of us do remember this terrible tragedy that occurred on this day in September 11, 2001. Most of the off time conversation was on that subject and follow up news reporting as events unfolded. It was most shocking of the deeds so committed against the victims of those airliners high jacked and crashed on purpose with out regard to the lives destroyed for no good reason. The first bit of news was of an airplane crashing into a building but no confirmation of size of airplane or which building at that early time of broadcast. Then gradually, the situation begin to unfold as being of multiple crashes and tremendious loss of life. A most tragic situation of unimaginable consequences and a permanent change that was to be to the American life. It is situations of such that will provide to you who your friends are, and you of America have a great deal of friends of Europe. Our hats are off to you in sympathy and admiration for your courage in times of such tradgidy. Karl Dear Karl, This is due to the heritage of the support the Americans gave to European countries during the Frist and Second World War and also due to the fact that the Americans helped to rebuild West-Germany, Austria and other European nations (France, the Netherlands, Italy, Great Britain, Denmark, Belgium/Luxemburg, Greece, Norway, Sweden and Turkey) after the war with The Marshall Plan (officially the European Recovery Program, ERP), an American initiative to aid Europe, in which the United States gave $13 billion (approximately $130 billion in current dollar value as of August 2015) in economic support to help rebuild European economies after the end of World War II. ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_Plan ) The West German Wirtschaftswunder (" economic miracle", coined by The Times in 1950) was partly due to the economic aid provided by the United States and the Marshall Plan, but mainly due to the currency reform of 1948 which replaced the Reichsmark with the Deutsche Mark and halted rampant inflation. The Allied dismantling of the West German coal and steel industry finally ended in 1950. Secondly Western-Europe was guarded and kept free and democratic due to the presence of American troops and airforces bases in Germany, Italy and Great Britain, as part of the NATO built up in Europe. And many European remember that their poor, their religious persecuted, and some of their most adventurous people went over sees to built a new future in North-America in the United States of America. Family ties, old connections and the European heritage of America exists until today. Europeans felt the pain, hurt, shock and sadness of the Americans, because 911 hit the West. Europeans were hurt because Westerners were hit, because their values and ideals were attacked, and because thousands of innocent lives were lost in the USA. Cheers, Pieter
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Post by karl on Sept 12, 2015 6:14:57 GMT -7
Pieter
I think you have hit right on target with your reply, striking the head of the nail. The post war years was so vital with the help of the USA in rebuilding what the war destroyed, not just property, but renewal of hope for the present and future.
With the above though, there is a deeper currant of energy between The USA and Europe. For and as you have fore mentioned, The USA become the home of so many Europeans seeking a new life in a land that is so viberant in possibilities. A new beginning without the encomberants they have felt that prevented the realization of dreams and building they could contribute to the new land.
These immigrants, then become the new Americans and the land they left, has never forgotten them, that is us.
Karl
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Post by Nictoshek on Sept 12, 2015 8:37:27 GMT -7
TSA agent patting down child in wheelchair
9 Liberties Lost Since 9/11Carey Wedler September 11, 2015 (ANTIMEDIA) Today and every year, “NEVER FORGET” echoes through the neighborhoods, cities, and Facebook statuses of America. 14 years after 9/11, Americans still bear the cross of a nation victimized and scorned after the brutal attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001. While Americans — and politicians who are still intent on capitalizing on the tragedy — vow never to forget the fateful day, far too many citizens forget the liberties they have relinquished as a result. Lest today’s valiantly waving flags, government ceremonies, and TV news specials replaying the plane crashes coax you into forgetting, these nine essential freedoms have been usurped since 9/11: 1. The liberty to not be spied upon: Essential to a free society — at least as the founders of the United States saw it — was the freedom to be left alone. In the not too distant past, government agencies suspicious of citizens had to obtain warrants to investigate private citizens. They had to prove to a judge why they deserved to violate a person’s sacrosanct privacy from the State. Though surveillance programs were in place long before 9/11, the tragedy enabled much more far-reaching impositions. Multiple federal agencies — most notably the NSA — are enabled to surveil citizens, all the time — all around the world. The government’s paranoid desire for total surveillance has only grown since 9/11. The FBI, which built the NSA’s foundation for dragnet spying, continuously throws temper tantrums over its inability to spy on encrypted communications. The Department of “Justice” argued just this week that it should have access to all Americans’ emails. A separate court recently ruled that a case challenging NSA bulk data collection could not move forward because the plaintiff could not prove — due to government secrecy — that he was being surveilled. 2. The liberty to not be harassed by law enforcement: The federal government’s total surveillance state is a direct consequence of 9/11 — or rather, the political exploitation of it. However, at the local level, police departments not only conduct their own invasive spying with secret technology provided by the federal government — they pose a far greater danger. Where police officers were once trusted to protect life, they now threaten it. Currently, the risk of being killed by a police officer is anywhere from eight to 55 times greater than being killed by a terrorist. In 2015, police are on track to kill 1,100 Americans — and since 9/11, have killed more than died that day. This year, it was revealed that Chicago’s Homan Square operated as a black site without due process but replete with torture. Other violations by police, constitutionally speaking, include a basic protection against unwarranted searches and seizures. This makes unauthorized cavity searches on the side of the road and civil asset forfeiture — a policy by which police have stolen millions of dollars from unaccused citizens — an egregious seizure of the freedoms Americans still drunkenly celebrate on national holidays. Checkpoints, anyone? 3. The freedom of movement and travel without being treated like a criminal: Considering how traumatized the collective American populace continues to be by incessant, repeated clips of two planes flying into the World Trade Center, it is unsurprising that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), formed after 9/11, is accepted as a vital element of modern society. Millions of Americans routinely huddle in cramped airport security lines, removing their shoes and flashing their private parts to security agents via X-ray machines so as to avoid more invasive gropings. Recently, two agents were caught tag-teaming to grope attractive women. Theft of passenger belongings runs rampant among officers. Racial profiling is allowed by the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the TSA. Unsurprisingly, these practices fail to find terrorists 95% of the time. Meanwhile, children in wheelchairs, the elderly, and otherwise innocent Americans are forced to endure what would amount to sexual harassment in any other environment. But rest assured, if travelers pay a special fee, they can bypass security lines. For your safety. 4. Freedom of Speech: While no one (that the government admits to) has been black-bagged for criticizing the government yet, the State has spent years incrementally criminalizing this fundamental right. In addition to designating anti-government activists, hippie communes, and Americans with seed libraries as potential terrorists, the federal government has made a habit of punishing individuals who attempt to shed light on the government’s crimes. From Bradley (Chelsea) Manning to Edward Snowden and countless others, those who attempt to inform the American people of the atrocities their government commits are promptly silenced. Though the story received little mainstream attention, the military’s new operating procedures condone killing journalists. Further, the people’s right to free speech has been widely suppressed. During the Bush years, protesters were cordoned off into “free speech zones” to air their grievances. Today, protests are heavily patrolled by police, who do not shy away from pestering — if not abusing — people peacefully exercising their most essential constitutional right. 5. The liberty to simply know what the government does: When President Obama campaigned for the presidency in 2008, he decried George W. Bush’s cloak of secrecy shrouding government actions. Obama vowed to be more transparent, to make the government truly work for the people by allowing them to know what it does. His presidency is almost over, but any echo of that sentiment has been silenced. His administration, self-designated the “most transparent in history,” is one of the least transparent and denies more Freedom of Information Act requests than ever. Lawmakers refuse to reveal details of foreign policy, surveillance, and more, citing “national security” as a blanket excuse. This justification is how they perpetuated continued warrantless spying even after the Patriot expired. It is how they have instigated perpetual war with little explanation beyond “grave threats” to the American people. To say more would be to endanger the people further, of course. Whenever politicians feel threatened by real questions, they need only parrot the need for “public safety” and drum up memories of 9/11 to shirk accountability. 6. The liberty to not be harassed by the military in your own home: Many people view the third amendment as archaic. The Revolutionary War is long over and soldiers are no longer “quartered.” However, one specific program — mutated after 9/11 — allows this violation on a daily basis. Following last year’s protests in Ferguson against police brutality, the Pentagon’s 1033 program has faced intense scrutiny for arming local police with high-powered military gear, from armored vehicles to battle regalia. This program has emboldened SWAT teams and other local police — paramilitary wings of law enforcement armed to the teeth — to increasingly raid the homes of private citizens. “But they’re criminals!” loyalists might cry. But what about when they aren’t? Often, SWAT teams raid the wrong addresses, but even when they are in the right place, they inflict everything from beatings and murder on non-violent, often innocent citizens to shooting family pets. The 1033 program, intended to help fight the Drug War, increased in power after 9/11 — when its stated goal shifted toward preventing terrorism. 7. The right to a fair trial: When the near-mythical “founding fathers” crafted the Constitution, one of their greatest revolutions was ensuring fair trials to the accused. This banned cruel and unusual punishment while ensuring a speedy trial where the defendant was considered innocent until proven guilty — not the other way around, as had been practiced by despotic regimes throughout human history. However, this right to a fair trial has been increasingly eroded by autocratic elements within the so-called justice system, especially since 9/11. An Irish judge recently refused to extradite a terror suspect to the United States, citing fears he would endure cruel and unusual punishment. “Death by firing squad!” many patriots mourning 9/11 might chant. He is a terrorist, after all, and “innocent until proven guilty” is a moniker of the weak and those hell-bent on seeing Americans murdered. But what about the American citizens presumed guilty before an actual verdict is reached? Prosecutors have been criticized for exercising racism in jury selection, biasing courts in favor of conviction. One mentally ill black man died languishing away in prison for months — awaiting a (non-speedy) trial for allegedly stealing less than five dollars worth of snacks from a convenience store. In more high-profile cases, the government and media go out of their way to ensure defendants are presumed guilty long before their trials start. Such was the case with Ross Ulbricht (where FBI agents were found to have committed criminal acts during investigations and key evidence was suppressed). Chelsea Manning and others have faced similar fates. The government also actively campaigns against activists attempting to educate jurors about their rights. None of these violations of due process compete with the indefinite detention provision of the 2012-present National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Language found in Section 1021(b)(2) of the NDAA allows the president to order the indefinite detention of U.S. citizens without charge or trial, merely for being suspected of being a threat to national security. 8. The liberty of owning your body: Though not codified in the Constitution, a basic premise of liberty is self-ownership — that free individuals may choose what they want to do with and put in their bodies. Though the Drug War has been in full swing for decades, the events of 9/11 allowed the government to regulate people’s body chemistry more heavily. While the Patriot Act is widely associated with unwarranted surveillance — as it should be — it was used overwhelmingly to prosecute non-violent drug “crimes” and has helped to create the world’s largest prison population, because…freedom? 9. Economic liberty: While the state places many restrictions on economic freedom, it has done so for centuries through taxation, fees, fines, and regulations that favor corporations (such as the recent Trans-Pacific Partnership). Still, these policies have not been contingent on the 9/11 terror attacks. What 9/11 has allowed, however, are increased piles of tax dollars to fund military adventures throughout the world. Though the military chronically eats up trillions of dollars, every year it demands more money — and nearly every year it gets it. Without the jarring images of 9/11 branded into Americans’ brains, the military would have a much more difficult time securing funding. Those who disagree with such expenditures (whether out of fiscal responsibility or outrage at endless violence) must square off with the IRS — an entity more terrifying to most Americans than the government’s more murderous agencies. While the events that transpired on 9/11 should never be forgotten — and should be commemorated — often, the nationalistic grandstanding that comes along with mourning the dead removes any possibility to mourn the freedoms lost — or the very literal lost and tortured lives of individuals around the world subjected to the aggressive foreign policy enabled by 9/11. While the government is categorically to blame for these violations, it is an unfortunate fact that Americans are guilty of creating an environment where crimes against humanity go unchecked and nearly every element of American life is regulated and surveilled. By allowing themselves to be manipulated by constant fear-mongering, Americans have allowed — if not applauded — this confiscation of their freedoms.
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Post by JustJohn or JJ on Nov 23, 2015 7:05:01 GMT -7
November 23, 1804 : Franklin Pierce is born
On this day in 1804, Franklin Pierce, America’s 14th president, is born in a log cabin in Hillsborough, New Hampshire.
Pierce, described by biographers and contemporaries as a personable and sincere young man, worked as a lawyer before winning a seat in the New Hampshire state legislature in 1828, while his father served as New Hampshire’s governor. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1832 and fought in the Mexican-American War (1846-1848), for which he received military honors.
As president, Pierce facilitated the acquisition of the territories that now make up the states of Arizona and New Mexico through the Gadsden Purchase of 1853. He also improved trade relations with Canada in exchange for greater U.S. fishing rights along the continent’s North Atlantic coast. However, he is best remembered for his endorsement of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which allowed the new territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether they would allow slavery or outlaw the practice. Foreshadowing the brutal Civil War that was soon to come, the territories erupted in sectarian violence after the act’s passing. Pierce’s failure to stem the fighting and his role in the Ostend Manifesto fiasco of 1854 (a secret plan to start a war with Spain in order to annex Cuba) proved to be his political undoing. Members of his own Democratic Party refused to re-nominate him for president in the election of 1856, popularizing the slogan “anybody but Pierce.”
In 1834, Pierce had married Jane Means Appleton and the couple had three sons. The first, Franklin, died in infancy; a second, Frank Robert, died at age four from typhus; and their third son, Benny, was killed in a train wreck from which Pierce and his wife narrowly escaped. The string of tragedies led Pierce to drinking. He also suffered from chronic nervous exhaustion. By the end of his term, a Philadelphia Enquirer reporter described Pierce as “a wreck of his former self…his face wears a hue so ghastly and cadaverous that one could almost fancy he was gazing on a corpse.” Upon leaving office in 1857, Pierce was asked what he would do next; he allegedly replied “there’s nothing left [to do] but get drunk.” The effects of alcoholism led to his death in 1869 at the age of 65.
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Post by Jaga on Nov 23, 2015 19:41:06 GMT -7
John,
sad story of pres Pierce. I do not know that much as you about Am. history, but I have heard about Pierce rather positive things. It is sad to hear that he lost a lust for life after losing all his children.
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Post by JustJohn or JJ on Dec 7, 2015 7:11:31 GMT -7
"May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't." George S. Patton.In memory of Pearl Harbor attack, World War II on December 7, 1941.
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Post by karl on Dec 7, 2015 11:15:01 GMT -7
Dear J.J.
To you and all of our American friends, please accept my condolences for this date/day of 07 Dec. 1941 {Sunday} for your loses upon that fateful day.
Yes, your lose{s} are remembered by many of us with the deepest of sadness of those moments now history but not forgotten.
Karl
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Post by JustJohn or JJ on Dec 8, 2015 11:48:40 GMT -7
Strange day Karl. I didn't hear Pearl Harbor mentioned in the MSM. It was like it never happened.
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Post by karl on Dec 8, 2015 13:04:37 GMT -7
Strange day Karl. I didn't hear Pearl Harbor mentioned in the MSM. It was like it never happened. J.J. I may not answer a question with a question, but only by virtue of a statement: Here of late since the incident in Paris and of recent, the incident occurring in California, journalist have been ducking about with the news as if their tether strings are being mixed up. My best supposition is: Best to keep us foreigners around to remember these historic dates.... Karl
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Post by JustJohn or JJ on Dec 17, 2015 4:42:06 GMT -7
On Dec. 17, 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright made the first successful man-powered airplane flight, near Kitty Hawk, N.C.
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Post by JustJohn or JJ on Jan 2, 2016 5:20:07 GMT -7
By R. HART PHILLIPS
Tokyo, Jan. 2. 1905 --Port Arthur capitulated at 4:30 o'clock this afternoon. Gen. Nogi received from Gen. Stoessel at 9 o'clock last night a letter formally offering to surrender. He appointed officers to meet Russian officers in conference at noon today.
The text of Gen. Nogi's telegram announcing the capitulation of the Russian forces is as follows:
"The plenipotentiaries of both parties concluded their negotiations today at 4:30 o'clock. The Russian Commissioners accepted on the whole the conditions stipulated by us and consented to capitulate. The document has been prepared and signatures are now being affixed. Simultaneously with the conclusion of negotiations both armies suspended hostilities.
"It is expected that the Japanese Army will enter the City of Port Arthur tomorrow."
An earlier report from Gen. Nogi said:
"At 5 in the afternoon Jan. 1 the enemy's bearer of a flag of truce came into the first line of our position south of Shuishiying and handed a letter to our officers. The same reached me at 9 o'clock at night. The letter is as follows:
"'Judging by the general condition of the whole line of hostile positions held by you I find further resistance at Port Arthur useless, and for the purpose of preventing needless sacrifice of lives I propose to hold negotiations with reference to capitulation. Should you consent to the same, you will please appoint Commissioners for discussing the order and conditions regarding capitulation, and also appoint a place for such Commissioners to meet the same appointed by me.
"'I take this opportunity to convey to Your Excellency assurances of my respect. STOESSEL."
"Shortly after dawn to-day I will dispatch our bearer of a flag of truce with the following reply addressed to Stoessel:
"'I have the honor to reply to your proposal to hold negotiations regarding the conditions and order of capitulation. For this purpose I have appointed as Commissioner Major Gen. Ijichi, Chief of Staff of our army. He will be accompanied by some staff officers and civil officials. They will meet your Commissioners Jan. 2, noon, at Shuishiying. The Commissioners of both parties will be empowered to sign a convention for the capitulation without waiting for ratification and cause the same to take immediate effect. Authorization for such plenary powers shall be signed by the highest officer of both the negotiating parties, and the same shall be exchanged by the respective Commissioners.
"'I avail myself of this opportunity to convey to your Excellency assurance of my respect. "'NOGI.'"
Marshal Yamagata, Chief of General Staff, under orders from the Emperor, dispatched the following cablegram to Gen. Nogi:
"When I respectfully informed his Majesty of Gen. Stoessel's proposal for capitulation, His Majesty was pleased to state that Gen. Stoessel had rendered commendable service to his country in the midst of difficulties, and it is His Majesty's wish that military honors be shown to him."
It is believed here that the Port Arthur garrison has received liberal terms. There is a general disposition to be magnanimous in view of the garrison's marvelous defense. In military circles the opinion is expressed that the discussion between the Commissioners covered only a few questions, including allowing the garrison to march out carrying their arms, permitting the garrison to return to Russia with or without their officers, and requiring their parole not to take any further part in the war.
A dispatch from the Japanese Army before Port Arthur received at noon today says:
"The enemy's forces occupying Keekwan Mountain and 'Q' Fort, following an explosion at 12:30 this morning, opened a sudden and fierce rifle fire, which suddenly stopped.
"Our scouts were dispatched to the scene, and immediately afterward found the enemy evacuating these places. Our forces immediately occupied these two forts, and also the heights known as 'M' and 'N' south of the forts.
"This morning almost all the enemy's ships, large and small, were blown up in the entrance and inside the harbor. Our offensive movements have been suspended pending the negotiations."
Gen. Nogi's telegram announcing that Gen. Stoessel was prepared to discuss terms of capitulation reached Tokio early this morning, but was not made public until 10 o'clock.
The fall of Wan-Tai, popularly known as Signal Hill, following the loss of new Pan-Lung, is regarded here as a clear indication that the Port Arthur garrison had lost its power of serious resistance.
It is probable that the back of the Russian defense was broken when 203-Meter Hill was captured. The Russians desperately sought to retake that eminence, and sent infantry and marines against it in a series of counter-attacks, fruitlessly losing thousands of men.
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