contributions

or, How LePen Made the Second Round in the Disguise of Sarkozy
By Patricia Alessandrini
I have yet to see a Sarkozy poster in Paris – or even just a sticker with his name on it – that has not been defaced within a few hours of being posted. The fear and resentment here in regard to Sarkozy, especially in working-class neighborhoods, is palpable. The French left credits the record highs in voter enrollment and turnout for the presidential election of April 22 to anti-Sarko sentiment. (…)

After the first round of balloting in the French presidential election, how can we evaluate the political dynamics now at work? Why are we convinced that – whatever our reservations – we must do everything in our power to assure the victory of Ségolène Royal in the second round?
1. In a time of generalized suspicion of politicians and parties, and in spite of a high percentage of undecided voters just before the polling, the very high level of participation (83.7% of registered voters) (…)

The British establishment is reeling with scandals. We can only hope that this signals its terminal implosion, something which should have occurred half a century ago.
Like a terrier with its teeth embedded deep into the ankles of the Royal Family, billionaire Mohammed Al-Fayed continues with a determined campaign to expose Prince Philip and Prince Charles as being the architects of Princess Diana’s death. Whether or not Diana was pregnant by Al-Fayed’s son, Dodi, he insists that neither (…)

Congress should deliver the war supplemental bill in a flag-draped coffin By Mary MacElveen April 29, 2007
On Tuesday which is the fourth anniversary of President Bush’s ‘Mission Accomplished’ speech, the $120 billion war supplemental bill is scheduled to be delivered to President Bush’s desk. On that day four years ago, in self-serving pageantry, President Bush flew onto the U.S.S. Lincoln in a fighter jet wearing a uniform he had no business wearing. In learning today that nine (…)

The majority of americans have shown their will to withdraw the USA troops from Iraq. The Democrates have insisted on this view and they are working to inforce this will by legislating laws to plan the widrawal of troops. The senate and congres have voted for a planned withdrawl recently. However Mr Bush is still behaving arrogantly and thretening to veto the laws of the congress.
Mr Bush is behaving like the losing gambler, who bids for higher money as he loses more. The problem in (…)

"Alhambra Pollock" is a huge painting conflating brilliant Medieval, pure Islamic geometrical Art with the post-WW2 American Abstract expressionism of Jackson Pollock (see: . If such cultural extremes can be fused in a beautiful painting then there is NO excuse for the current hatred and violence. WORDS having failed, can the hatred and violence be stopped by Beauty, Amity and Love?
27 April 2007 was the 70th anniversary of the Nazi German and Fascist Italian destruction of the Basque (…)

The major problem of war, aside from the death and destruction that it causes, is that it becomes extremely difficult to obtain accurate information about the events leading up to a conflict, about what is occurring at the present, and what is to be expected for the future. Basically, the most universally applicable statement regarding war is that "The first casualty of War is Truth".
The reasons for the invasion of Iraq by the United States and its allies are varied, what is occurring at (…)

by Cpl Cloy Richards, USMC
6 Marines 3 standing tall and proud in the foreground 3 crouching in the foreground 6 Marines posing in Fallujah, supposedly the "Graveyard of Americans". 6 young, strong men with battle hardened countenances. 6 marines in great health posing with rifles, deep in enemy territory. How brave they look, how American.
They can go to any country in the world, kick ass and take pictures to show the folks back home what their tax dollars are paying for. That picture (…)

April 25, 2007 — After being lulled into the morning corporate media hype concerning Vice President Dick Cheney’s trip to George Washington Hospital for a routine check up on his blood clot in his leg, and, perhaps with a bit of prodding from the weak-kneed House Democratic leadership, Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich postponed yesterday’s noon press conference where he was to introduce three articles of impeachment against Cheney. Kucinich delayed until 5:00 pm the press conference on his (…)

Senior British civil servant David Keogh. a former communications and cipher officer at Number 10 Downing Street, is on trial at London’s Old Bailey, charged with violating the Official Secrets Act for leaking a classified report on an April 2004 meeting between George W. Bush and Tony Blair. The four page report referred to Bush as a "madman." Keough is accused of slipping the report to parliamentary assistant Leo O’Connor, who then allegedly made it available to anti-war MP Anthony Clarke. (…)