A lot of e-mails this week and I appreciate all. Let's start off with today's recipe. There are a number of ingredients but, as you read over them, do not panic, it's all going in one pot and this is a very easy recipe.
Vegetable Chowder
2 cups of broth (vegetable, chicken or beef)
2 cups of potatoes (cubed)
1/2 cup of chopped celery
2 cups of frozen whole kernal corn
2 cups chopped cabbage
3/4 cup of chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 cups of milk
2 tablesppons all purpose flour
black pepper to taste
1 cup of shredded swish cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
That seems like a lot but it is cooked in one pot. Everything except the cheese will go right in. Cook over a medium heat (not high heat) and stir. Continue cooking and stirring until the soup becomes thick and bubbly and then cook for one additional minute (needed to be sure the raw flour taste is cooked away). Remove the pot from heat -- don't just turn off the burner, move it to another burner. You're going to add the cheese now and you need to be away from the heat or the cheese will quickly get stringy. Stir slowly until the cheese is blended in and melted.
On vegetables. I don't measure anymore. I can eye ball and tell if something's a cup or whatever. Lucy e-mailed that she she had trouble figuring out how much to buy when it was cups. Here's my advice for this chowder recipe, if you like an ingredient don't worry. If you don't, buy a little less. For instance, I love potatoes so I would probably use six potatoes (and exceed the recipe's requirement) but you can get the same effect by going with two potatoes that you peel and then cube. I would recommend that you stay away from red cabbage for this recipe.
This is a chowder and those are traditionally white. If you use red cabbage, it's going to turn the chowder purple and that may not appeal to you or others.
This is a good recipe if you're trying to make sure that you're getting enough vegetables and fiber.
Maria, Shirley and Lynda all recommended that I suggest a rice and chicken recipe for Dina and Coy since they're trying to save money for a house. Each offered a recipe and I e-mailed back about why I didn't care for the recipes.
They're looking for other recipes and I'll explain my problem here. I don't suggest a recipe I haven't tried. Someone else can have cooked it and that's fine, but if I'm not eating it, I'm not suggesting it. There was no way I was cooking any of the three recipes offered.
As I explained in my e-mails, I don't care for chicken recipes with canned soup. When my husband and I first moved into our house (this was many, many years ago), you usually had an all day thing (at least one day) of getting the gas on, getting the phone turned on, getting whatever on. A next door neighbor who has passed away came by to introduce herself and brought a dish. It was a chicken and rice dish. She figured we'd be dealing with all that a move means and it was very nice of her to bring the dish.
My husband and I couldn't eat it. We tried. We tried to eat it several times.
It used a mushroom soup on the chicken and in the rice. It tasted as if she'd dumped two cans of condensed cream of mushroom soup (and at least one other cream soup) in, not bothered to dilute without water or milk, and cooked it.
Thus began my only food phobia. My husband and I both tried watering it down and that did no good. He finally gave up on it but I wanted to be a good neighbor and made my way through one serving. To this day, I sample any new dish utilizing chicken, rice and canned soup. None have ever been that bad but a few have come close. Shirley said I needed to share that story because she has a relative that cooks with condensed canned soup and never dilutes it. She knew exactly what I was talking about. So did Lynda who confessed that she once made a dish like that and no one ate it. Only later did she find out why. (She'd been too busy cooking, setting the table and making sure the dinner was going smoothly to actually eat.)
Maria's looking for an easy recipe involving tomatoes (for an arroz con pollo dish) but wanted it noted that she can always count on one of her brothers (and that he can count on her) to tell her when something never needs to be cooked again. She talked about how important it was to have one friend or relative like that. I agree with that.
When you've cooked something, you do want a compliment -- at least one -- but it's also important to have someone who's straight with you. (If you have children, don't worry about finding that one person, you've got it already.) I shared Maria's point with Lynda and Shirley and they both agreed. Shirley said that's probably the most needed ingrediant in the kitchen and the least covered.
She discussed how, when she was first learning to make gumbo, she had repeated problems with the okra. You really need someone to tell you, "It's not there yet." So if you don't already have someone like that, buddy up with a friend.
Now when you're cooking for yourself, a dish can be whatever you want. If I'm making a soup for myself, I'll do whatever I want and won't worry that it's too this or too that. But if you're taking a dish to work or a party or you're entertaining, you really do want to provide something that everyone will enjoy. So buddy up with someone you can provide and receive honest feedback from.
Lynda had one more point on that, never entertain with a new recipe you're making for the first time. I agree with that as well. I mentioned that to my youngest sister, Kathleen, who told me I could share the tale of an early Martha Stewart show that had her convinced she could pull off a recipe and so she dropped the planned meal for that night and, instead, served friends what Martha had whipped up on that day's show and ended up having to call in delivery at the last minute when it was obvious Martha had made it look much easier than it was.
My neighbor who's passed away was someone who would have benefitted from real feedback. I'm remembering her banana breads which were white bread loaves. She didn't use enough bananas and would make several loafs. For white bread, it was pretty good. But if you were expecting banana bread, you weren't getting it. All of her dishes were that way. Any neighborhood get together would find a lot of forced smiles and a lot of wondering who was going to be the one to take her aside.
She never served anything burned or undercooked. It just never tasted right. We were all much younger, in the neighborhood collectively, and no one ever felt comfortable giving her some real feedback. So most of us would go through the motions of eating (I did except on her dishes with canned soups, I lied and told her I had developed an allergy to cream soups). She did make some wonderful fried chicken so, usually, people would try to steer her towards that with a statement such as, "We all love your fried chicken, could you bring that?"
Maria, Shirley and Lynda all urged me to talk about this. I'm not trying to scare anyone off from cooking and, again, if you're just cooking something for yourself, as long as you enjoy it, that's what matters. But if you're cooking for others, buddy up with someone who will tell you that a dish is or isn't working. Lynda shared how she thought she made a wonderful rice, cheese and brocolli casserole until a friend pointed out that gummy rice with a container of Cheese Whiz "wasn't all that tasty." That was fifteen years ago and she was mortified (she'd taken it to her church because she thought that was her best dish) but "enough time's passed and I can laugh now." She said she'd been serving that dish for about four months before she was finally tipped off and that her first thought was, "Who have I served this too?"
Speaking of church, my friend Luisa and I are doing a food thing for Maria, Miguel and Francisco's newsletter. This will be more of a food memories than a recipe thing and we're going to write it every other week. The first one is in tomorrow's newsletter and if you're a community member, you can check that and other things out tomorrow. Luisa came to the United States from El Salvador (when Ronald Reagan's tight relationship with that country's government meant a lot of people, who could, left). She came over last Sunday, a few hours after church, and I was in the middle of reading the newsletter. My husband gets online first thing in the morning to hit community sites and check out the news. On Sundays, I usually move a little slower. So we were reading it together and she noticed that there were many Spanish speaking countries represented in it but didn't see anyone from El Salvador.
She wondered if they'd be interested and we called Francisco who said he loved the idea. I honestly think Luisa can write it herself. But she suggested we partner up because she was concerned about the English translation. I was fine with that (but her English is fine, she's more than fluent in speech and her writing is much stronger than she realizes) but told her that at some point she may want to just make her own contribution and, if/when that day comes, just let me know. She'll read this and say, "I also told you it would be more fun to do it with someone," so let me put that in as well.
I'm looking at the clock and realizing I've run off at the mouth enough for one day so I'll let the snapshot cover all the news you can use. Here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" for Friday:
Friday, February 16, 2006. Chaos and violence continue in Iraq (despite the capital crackdown), the House acts 'symoblically,' Ralph Nader explains the importance of making demands, and The Russians Are Snickering!
Starting with news of war resisters. In June 0f 2006, Ehren Watada became the first officer to publicly refuse to deploy to Iraq. Last week, he faced a court-martial at Fort Lewis in Washington.
Recap: On Monday, the court-martial of Ehren Watada began with jury selection for the military panel (seven officers were selected) who would, as Hal Bernton (Seattle Times) pointed out, "determine whether Watada spends up to four years in prison in one of the most high-profile cases to be tried at Fort Lewis." Watada was facing up to four years in prison and Lt. Col. John Head (aka Judge Toilet) refused to allow him to argue the reasons why he refused to deploy. This is why Norman Solomon (CounterPunch) called the proceedings "a kangaroo court-martial." . On Tuesday, the prosectution presented their case. Aaron Glantz discussed the day's events with Sandra Lupien on The KPFA Evening News noting: "The prosecution had 3 witnesses. It did not go as well as the prosecution would have liked. Lt. Col Bruce Antonia, who was the prosecution's star witness, as Lt. Watada's commander, said that nothing tangibly bad happened from Lt. Watada's refusal to go to" Iraq and "[a]nother thing that did not go well for the prosecution today was that their own witnesses clearly showed that Lt. Watada tried other methods of expressing . . . [his opposition] to the Iraq war, internally within the military, before coming forward to speak to the public." Also noting the prosecution's poor performance on Tuesday (when they rested their case), was civil rights attorney Bill Simpich who told Geoffrey Millard (Truthout): "The prosecution asked too many questions. By the time it was over, the prosecution witness had become a defense witness because the field was open. The defense was able to ask nuanced questions, it told the story clearly to the jury." On Wednesday, Judge Toilet began talking mistrial and, due to the lousy performance by the prosecution, it was seen as an attempt at a "do over" even before he called the mistrial.
That was last week and, since then, many legal experts have weighed in to offer that, as Watada's civilian attorney Eric Seitz has stated, Watada can't be retried without double-jeopardy entering into the picture. John Catalinotto (Socialist Worker) observes: "Watada's military defense lawyer -- appointed by the Army -- Capt. Mark Kim, said that he agreed with Seitz's interpretation of military law." Geov Parrish (Eat The State) offers that Watada may have won not just the round but the battle: "How did this happen? It happened because one young officer stuck to his principles, even under enormous pressure, and the Army didn't know how to react. Its handling of the case has allowed Ehren Watada -- young, photogenic, articulate, and deeply moral -- to become a folk hero within the antiwar movement, so much so that even his (supportive) parents have become minor celebrities in their own rights. US House Rep and 2008 presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich issued a statement last week: "The court improperly denied Lt. Watada's right to a dfense by blocking him from explaining why he believes the war in Iraq is illegal. Procedural decisions by the court have effectively denied Lt. Watada the right to engage in a protected activity -- freedom of speech. This [the declaration of a mistrial] is a significant ruling which empowers people to speak out against this unjust war."
Jim Cohen (Pepperdine University's The Graphic) ties recent news on the US administration's lies into the Watada story: "A recent report from the Pentagon has concluded that the former policy chief from the Pentagon, Douglas J. Feith, took 'inappropriate' actions by advancing unsubstantiated evidence to bolster the Bush administration's case for war in Iraq. Watada's justification of abstention to fight in Iraq has, in fact, been substantiated. This new information will hopefully give Watada the peace of mind by knowing he was right for following his former commander's advice to study everything, our government's arguments for going to war in Iraq as well as the purpose of the mission. By failing to do this kind of hard work, the commander in chief has left the troops without a mission caught in the middle of a civil sectarian war."
Watada is a part of a movement of resistance with the military that includes others such as Agustin Aguayo (whose court-martial is currently set to begin on March 6th), Kyle Snyder, Darrell Anderson, Ivan Brobeck, Mark Wilkerson, Ricky Clousing, Aidan Delgado, Joshua Key, Camilo Meija, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Jeremy Hinzman, Corey Glass, Patrick Hart, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Katherine Jashinski, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Tim Richard and Kevin Benderman. In total, thirty-eight US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.Information on war resistance within the military can be found at Center on Conscience & War, The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline, and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters.
Dave Ward (The Gazette) profiles Tim Richard, a war resister from Iowa who now attends the University of Western Ontario, who tells Ward: "I joined the army with the idea that I would be defending America. But Iraq has nothing to do with defending America. . . . I did have to pay some personal prices. My marriage broke up over it. Not to mention [I lost] what I had identified myself as, which was a U.S. soldier, a very patriotic American. At the same time, I did what I felt was the right thing to do -- which was not to participate in something I knew to be wrong. So I don't regret doing that."
Meanwhile Lance Hering's parents have been interviewed by Jodi Brooks for Boulder's CBS affiliate (CBS4). Hering, a marine who served in Iraq, was on leave and back in the United States when he disappeared on an August 29th hike. Hering, whose rank is Lance Cpl., has no made press statements but the friend he was hiking with has maintained they staged/arranged Hering's disappearance so that he would not have to return to Iraq. That is what his friend, Steve Powers, has told the press. Hering has not spoken to the press. He may or may not be a war resister. His parents, Lloyd and Ellyne Hering, tell Brooks that Lance's disappearance has led them to begin "talking about the war. Lloyd said he and Ellyne realized that supporting the troops meant stopping the war. Lloyd and Ellyne have traveled to Washington, D.C. twice to urge Congress to stop funding the war. Ellyne writes postcards as part of a nationwide campaign to stop special appropriations for Iraq." Lloyd Hering tells Brooks: "We're here to help him whenever he decides to come back. He'll get legal help, financial help, counseling help, and all the love that we can provide anytime he comes back."
Also in the United States, the House of Representatives passed their nonbinding resolution opposing Bully Boy's planned escalation of US troops in Iraq. As noted by Kris Welch in the middle of KPFA's Living Room, the vote was 246 in favor of the resolution and 182 against. Nicholas Johnston (Bloomberg News) puts it this way: "The House of Representatives renounced President George W. Bush's latest strategy to resolve the four-year war in Iraq, passing a nonbinding resolution that disapproves of his decision to send about 21,000 more U.S. troops to the conflict. The vote may be the strongest rebuke of a president during wartime since Congress in 1970 rescinded the Gulf of Tonkin resolution that authorized military action in Southeast Asia." Susan Cornwell (Reuters) notes the measure was "symoblic but politically potent". M.E. Sprengelmeyer (Rocky Mountain News) offers excerpts (text) of statements made during the days of deliberation by Colorado Representatives and KPFA has exceprts (audio) of Nancy Pelosi, John Boehner, John Conyers, Lynn Woolsey, Mike Thompson, Dennis Kucinich, Barbara Lee, Mike Honda, Ellen Tauscher. As CNN notes, the Senate now prepares to vote on the resolution tomorrow (yes, that is Saturday, yes they will be in session).
Yesterday US Rep Dennis Kucinch noted that the measure "is a nonbinding resolution. The war, however, is binding. The real -- and Constitutional -- power of Congress, as a co-equal branch of government, is to cut off fund for an immoral and illegal war. Money is there right now to bring our troops home, and bringing our brave troops home is part of a plan that involves enlisting the support of the United Nations to mobilize international peacekeepers so our men and women can come home. I have a 12-point plan which I have circulated among Members of Congress as to how we can get out of Iraq. The American people will not tolerate nonbinding resolutions as being an excuse for strong and substantive action to end the war as quickly as possible." Meanwhile Reps Lynn Woolsey, Barbara Lee and Maxine Waters issued their statement on the measure yesterday as well (Roll Call via Truthout): "Contrary to Republican claims that Democrats have no alternative plan for Iraq, there are in fact several on the table. Our own comprehensive bill, the Bring Our Troops Home and Sovereignty of Iraq Resotration Act, would complete a fully funded military withdrawal from Iraq within six months while ensuring that our troops and contractors leave safely and accelerate the training of Iraqi security forces. In addition, our bill would remove the specter of an endless occupation by preventing the establishment of permanent military bases and reiterate our commitment, at the invitation of the Iraqi government, to working with the international community to assist Iraq in its reconstruction and reconciliation efforts. We also would stand ready, if asked by the Iraqis, to participate in an international stabilization force."
US Rep Maxine Waters is BuzzFlash's Wings of Justice honoree for the week and among the examples cited is this statement Waters made on the House floor: "The citizens of this country are sick and tired of this war. It is not enough to talk the talk. You have got to walk the walk. They know the difference between nuancing and posturing, and they want action.
. . . They will know whether or not we mean business if we are prepared to stop funding this war."
Meanwhile, Matthew Schofield (McClatchy Newspapers) surveys Soviet veterans of the Afghanistan war and learns "many soldiers who fought there believe they're seeing history repeat itself. The United States -- then the force behind the Afghan resistance -- now appears trapped in a similar downward spiral in Iraq, besieged by a collection of forces not unlike those it trained and equipped to crippled the Soviets two decades ago." This as AP notes that Philip H. Bloom "whose companies made more than $8 million in Iraq reconstruction money through a gifts-for contracts scheme was sentenced Friday to nearly four years in prison." And as the AP reports that "three top auditors overseeing work in Iraq told a House committee their review of $57 billion in Iraq contracts found that Defense and State department officials condoned or allowed repeated work delays, bloated expenses and payments for shoddy work or work never done. . . Of the $10 billion in overpriced contracts or undocumented costs, more than $2,7 billion were charged by Halliburton Co., the oil-field services company once headed by Vice President Dick Cheney."
Would you rather have health insurance
you can actually aford, or bomb Iraq?
Would you rather have enough inspectors
to keep your kids from getting poisoned
by bad hamburgers, or bomb Iraq?
Would you rather breate clean air
and drink water free from pesticides
and upriver sh*t, or bomb Iraq?
-- "Choices," by Marge Piercy, Poets Against The War, p. 179
Stephany Kerns (Military Families Speak Out, mother of Nickolas Schiavoni who was killed November 15, 2005 in Iraq) writes: "Every time I hear George Bush talk about his determination to make those tax cuts of his permanent it makes me so upset. In reality, he is setting up this scenario: military families grandchildren will be part of the population that pays for this war. If these tax cuts are made permanent, it won't be George Bush or Dick Cheney's grandchildren that pay for it. It will be your grandchildren and my grandchildren who pay. Yes, my grandchildren, who lost their father in this war, will pay for the war that killed their Dad." Grandparents are in other binds as well. Donna St. George (Washington Post) reports on children being raised by grandparents when their parent dies in Iraq and finds that it's not at all uncommon for the $100,000 benefit to either be held (until the child turns 18) or to go elsewhere (such as the husband of Hannah McKinney who got her $400,000 life insurance but is not taking care of her son -- her parents Barbie and Matt Heavrin are.) The stories are all too common and the lack of foresight and compassion on the part of the US administration (can't have it all when you're rushing into an illegal war) is echoed in the (mis)treatment of veterans. Aaron Glantz (IPS) reports on the lack of a support system, the lack of money and the lack of oversight in the supposed 'care' for returning veterans.
In Iraq? It's Friday. There's never a great deal of reporting coming out of Iraq about Iraqis. Officials? Maybe on a day where they issue non-stop statements.
Bombings?
Reuters notes a roadside bomb in Kirkuk that killed one person and left three more wounded. Laith Hammoudi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports an IED killed one Iraqi soldier and left another wounded in Baghdad.
Corpses?
Reuters notes the discovery of eleven corpses in Baghdad and four in Mosul.
Kim Gamel (AP) reports that Iraqi Brig. Gen. Qassim Moussawi claims the "only 10 bodies" (eleven) demonstrates "a big reduction in terror and killing operations in Baghdad" because the average is 40 or 50 corpses and that his remarks were echoed by US Major General Joseph Fil. Really? I suppose some will buy it, some idiots.
But the reality is the figures come from Iraqi officials and US officials. Which may be why many have ignored noting the deaths in the past few days. So citing a decrease in figures you largely control the release of really proves nothing. That also explains why the shooting deaths the press is reporting today are from Thursday. (As AFP notes, they previously tried to pitch five corpses as success.) It'll be interesting to see if "___ died February 16th" announcements are released tomorrow, Saturday or Sunday by the US military.
Ned Parker and Michael Evans (Times of London) paint a more accurate picture of the latest 'extreme crackdown' in Baghdad noting that both it "and Basra ground to a halt yesterday" which is why the crackdown -- ongoing since June in Baghdad -- has never been a 'strategy' or a 'plan.' It's a holding move and every few weeks, the US administration and the puppet of the occupation, Nouri al-Maliki, increase it even more.
Tom Hayden (Huffington Post) offers four points to end the illegal war and occupation and we'll focus on the first: "Stop funding a sectarian Baghdad regime based on lethal militias. . . . . The coalition is carrying out ethnic cleansing in the name of security. Baghdad, once a mixed city of five million people, is dominated by a huge Shi'a majority." [Hayden recommends the creation of a transitional regime.]
Meanwhile CODEPINK, Ralph Nader, the Green Party and other activists are forming Pelosi Watch "to get Pelosi to take the lead in efforts to defund the war and get all U.S. troops out of the Middle East."
Nader spoke with Kris Welch today on KPFA's Living Room and noted of the two party system that encourages cowardice, "We've got to really ask ourselves, 'What's our breaking point?' . . . [when you make no demands] You just say, 'You've got my vote, take it and run with it.' If you don't make demands . . . the corporate interests are pulling in the other directions 24 hours a day. which is why both parties get worse when you engage in least worst voting without putting demands on the least worst candidate." He also noted that, "The Democrats have become very good in the last 20 years at electing very bad Republicans."
Finally, as Amy Goodman (Democracy Now!) noted today: "College and high school students across the nation walked out class Thursday in a national student strike against the Iraq war. In California, an estimated 1,000 students at UC Santa Barbara blocked traffic on a freeway. Up to 3,000 students turned out for an anti-war rally at UC Berkeley. And at least four hundred rallied at Columbia University here in New York. More than a dozen other schools took part around the country."
iraq
ehren watada
kpfa
leila fujimorigeoffrey millardbill simpich
geov parrish
aaron glantz
amy goodman
kris welchthe morning showliving roomralph nader
democracy now
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Chicken Cacciatore in the Kitchen
I love my e-mails that open with "Help" or "Help!" Well, most of them. The real e-mails, I love. The spam? All I can say on that is who would have ever guessed that so many diamond mine owners and diplomats would die of cancer and forget to get their money out of the country ahead of time? Fortunately, they've always left behind a wife or an "eldest" son or daughter who can contact anyone and everyone with an e-mail account to plead for help in moving millions and millions out of the country. Have you seen those e-mails?
I was mentioning those to Betty on the phone this week and she told me they'd been going around for years. I have two e-mail accounts, the one my son Mike created for me when we first got online and the one he created for me when this site started. My first account was only given out to friends and family so I avoided all those scam e-mails but Betty told me they've been doing that for years when I asked her on the phone who would read those scam e-mails and take them seriously? She pointed out that they send those things out by the hundreds and they probably trick at least one person for each hundred.
"The Wino Friedman," "The Hate-Addicted Fat Ass Friedman," and "Life -- or what passes for it -- with the Friedmans" are Betty's three latest chapters (the last one went up last night). That was one of the reasons I called her, to apologize because I do try to note her chapters since she and I both post once a week. But the two weekeneds prior were busy for both of us and I fell behind. She said not to worry about it and then we got to talking about the second reason I called, Ehren Watada. Which I will get back to but let's get to the help e-mail first, the real one.
Coy and Dina wrote me. They're a young married couple trying to save for a house. They both work outside the home full time and they try to both work inside the home so right away I wanted to help them before I found out what they needed. (I always think a "home" means everyone pitches in. If not, it's one person's home and the others are lodgers.) They love the rice recipes because the ingredients aren't costly. Coy cooks exclusively from recipes they find here. Dina already knew how to cook but Coy was used to eating out or making a sandwich. They will eat a meatless dinner both because it's inexpensive and also because they like vegetables. But they note that chicken is far less costly than beef or pork. They write fish is pretty much out except in the summer because they only have catfish in their local grocery store and "that's really easy to burn out on." So they were hoping for some chicken recipes and Coy "really wants an easy one."
The recipe today has eight ingredients and they were very upfront that Coy gets a little nervous when the recipe has a long list of ingredients. They don't need to worry here. I've mentioned before that there's a cookbook I like to give my children when they move out. It's by Kevin Mills and Nancy Mills and is entitled Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen. I think this cookbook is wonderful for people learning their way around the kitchen. It's geared to first time cooks and this recipe requires that everything go into a large pot which should make it even easier.
Chicken Cacciatore
3 chicken legs, with thighs attached
1 garlic clove
2 15-ounce cans ready-cut tomatoes
1/2 teaspon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspon dried parsley
Dash black pepper and salt
Cut any fat off the chicken but leave the meat on the bone. Peel and finely chop the garlic.
Put the chicken in a medium-size pot and add the remaining ingredients. Make sure the sauce covers the chicken. If it doesn't, add a little water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Turn down the heat to low and cook, uncovered, for at least 1 hour. The chicken should be falling off the bone.
Mom Tip
Add some sliced mushrooms or cut-up green bell peppers to make this dish more interesting. Serve with plain spaghetti or Italian bread.
The "Mom Tip" comes from Nancy Mills being Kevin Mills' mother. The cookbook really is geared towards first time cooks and I strongly recommend it for starting out cooks. I never have a problem when one of my children calls with a cooking question. But those who were really nervous become a lot less nervous after they've lived with this cookbook for a few months. So one more time, it's entitled Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen. The recipe is easy to master and you can use it when you have friends over as well. Add a green salad to it, along with bread and/or plain spaghetti (you would spoon the chicken cacciatore over the pasta) and you have a nice meal you can share with friends.
I went with this recipe because it's from a book I highly recommend and because it's a one pot dish. I think that cuts down on the nervous factor for those who get a little tense as ingredients add up. This was actually a dish that was very popular for years and years. Lemon pepper, as a spice, took off in the 90s and I think Lemon Chicken or Lemon Pepper Chicken has now overtaken it. That's not a bad thing, it's actually good because that means you have a recipe for a dish that's proven very popular over the years but everyone hasn't burned out on.
Coy also shared a tip in their e-mail. They do make green bean casserole. They double the cooking time. Coy says that was an accident but it did result in the dish not being runny. They enjoy that so dish so much that they've even taken to buying a frozen version from the Green Giant which they report is pretty useless. The green beans, when microwaved in the pouch, end up rubbery and undercooked. They recommend using the boiling direction and not the microwave directions on the packet. At their grocery store, this is a 10 items for ten dollars special about every six weeks. I haven't noticed that special at my own local store (and I do spend considerable time in the frozen food section) but if they have it at anyone else's local store, Coy and Dina say boil it, don't microwave it, unless you enjoy rubbery green beans.
As I said earlier, Betty and I were discussing Ehren Watada this week on the phone and I bet/hope that was true across the country. Ehren Watada's court-martial began on Monday with the jury/military panel being selected. Seven officers were selected to hear the arguments and determine . . . I have no idea what they were supposed to be determining because when the judge ("Judge Toilet") won't allow Ehren Watada to present his reasons/motives for refusing to deploy to an illegal war, exactly how that passes for justice, or is supposed to, I don't know. Tuesday, the prosecution argued their case and rested. Wednesday, the defense was supposed to hear from Ehren Watada and one other witness. However, Judge Toilet must have sensed how badly the prosecution had done because he began making noises about mistrial until finally the prosecution caught on and requested one. The defense didn't want a mistrial, they wanted to go forward with the case. Now, legal experts such as Marjorie Cohn, say that's it. To hold another court-martial would be double-jeopardy. If the rules apply, that seems to be the way it should go but since the Bully Boy's taken the oval office, what rule hasn't been shredded? However, if there's any real justice left in the United States, even a small amount that would fit in an eye dropper, Ehren Watada's ordeal is over and he won't be court-martialed again.
I should note that before the prosecution asked for the mistrial, when Judge Toilet was first tossing the idea out there on Wednesday, C.I. noted in Wednesday's "Iraq snapshot" that it would be a do over for the prosecution. That's exactly what it would be, after they failed miserably and risked losing, suddenly Judge Toilet wants to offer them a mistrial (over the objection of the defense). Wally's mother asked me to mention that because she heard a discussion of it Friday, on the radio, and the guest arguing that Watada should not face another court-martial was using "do over" and that had more of an effect on people calling in than the issue of double-jeopardy. Wally's mother thinks that may be due to the fact that, as children, we all become familiar with "do over" and the children who whine for one because they aren't happy with the results. She firmly believes that "do over" gets the message across and I agree with her. The military had their shot already. They had a military judge that bent to the prosecution on everything (including calling a mistrial). They were losing due to their own inept performance on Tuesday and now fairness goes out the window so that the 'favored child' can have a do over? That's not right. If you are unfamiliar with Watada and how he came to take the stand he did, please read Rebecca's "ehren in the clear?" which went up earlier this week.
This was an interesting week personally as well. Mike was in Tacoma, with Sunny, Cedric, Wally, Kat, C.I., Jim, Dona, Ty, Jess and Ava to show support for Watada, and now he's at Rebecca's (he and Elaine have been going there during the difficult weeks of Rebecca's pregnancy) and the house was so quiet. My youngest daughter is working on a school project that requires she goes to the library every evening. (No, I didn't buy that either.) So the house has been pretty empty all week. I was telling Wally's mother how weird that was. I have eight children and Mike and his sister are the youngest. I'll soon be a grandmother and that should provide much joy and excitement. But I told Wally's mother I was thinking that we might need to take in lodgers. I was only half-joking. The house that was always a tight fit for eight kids, my husband and me seems too large these days. Then Friday came and my husband called saying he either worked late or went in at five Monday morning to finish what needed doing. He got home a little after seven which isn't that late but I'm very serious about the thought of an empty house freaking me out. Between chuch and our family, I'm sure we can fill a bedroom or two. I've also told my son who's soon to be a father that the smartest thing they could do, he and his wife, is move back in and use what they're paying for rent right now to save up for a house. With a baby and rent, they're going to find it very difficult to save for a house. But we're going to have to do something because this house is going to be too big for my husband and me after Mike and his sister move out. I'm sure some of this is the 'empy nest' syndrome but it's also being practical. Two people do not need this much space.
This is C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" from Friday:
Friday, February 9, 2007. Chaos and violence continue in Iraq, Ehren Watada's mistrial continues to be debated, "Who cooked the intel?" becomes a popular question, a leader of one group of resistance fighters in Iraq is quite clear in what is needed to end the war, and "Woops! We thought they were 'insurgents' or al-Qaeda!"
Starting with Ehren Watada who, in June of last year, became the first commissioned officer in the US to publicly refuse to deploy to Iraq because the war was illegal and immoral. On Monday, the court-martial of Ehren Watada began with jury selection for the military panel (seven officers were selected) who would, as Hal Bernton (Seattle Times) pointed out, "determine whether Watada spends up to four years in prison in one of the most high-profile cases to be tried at Fort Lewis." Watada was facing up to four years in prison and Lt. Col. John Head (aka Judge Toilet) refused to allow him to argue the reasons why he refused to deploy. This is why Norman Solomon (CounterPunch) called the proceedings "a kangaroo court-martial." . On Tuesday, the prosectution presented their case. Aaron Glantz discussed the day's events with Sandra Lupien on The KPFA Evening News noting: "The prosecution had 3 witnesses. It did not go as well as the prosecution would have liked. Lt. Col Bruce Antonia, who was the prosecution's star witness, as Lt. Watada's commander, said that nothing tangibly bad happened from Lt. Watada's refusal to go to" Iraq and
"[a]nother thing that did not go well for the prosecution today was that their own witnesses clearly showed that Lt. Watada tried other methods of expressing . . . [his opposition] to the Iraq war, internally within the military, before coming forward to speak to the public." Also noting the prosecution's poor performance on Tuesday (when they rested their case), was civil rights attorney Bill Simpich who told Geoffrey Millard (Truthout): "The prosecution asked too many questions. By the time it was over, the prosecution witness had become a defense witness because the field was open. The defense was able to ask nuanced questions, it told the story clearly to the jury." On Wednesday, Judge Toilet began talking mistrial and, due to the lousy performance by the prosecution, it was seen as an attempt at a "do over" even before he called the mistrial.
Yesterday, on KPFA's Flashpoints, Nora Barrows-Friedman spoke with Marjorie Cohn (president of the National Lawyers Guild) about the mistrial. Cohn's belief (based on expertise) is that the government's case is over -- that, military or civilian, courts must respect the laws of the land and that includes avoiding double-jeopardy (trying a person for the same alleged crimes twice). As Rebecca notes, Cohn explained that the stipulation Judge Toilet made much ado over was a stipulation (agreement between the prosecution and the defense) that both sides had agreed to, that the jury was made aware of, that Judge Toilet had looked over and, up until it was time for the defense to present their case, Judge Toilet never voiced any concerns over the stipulation, More importantly, Cohen pointed out, "When a mistrial is declared, the defense has to agree to it. The only thing that will defeat a finding of double-jeopardy . . . is if there was manifest necessity to declare the mistrial" which, in Cohn's opinion, there wasn't. At Counterpunch, Cohen also made the case "that under the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Constitution, the government cannot retry Lt. Watada on the same charges of missing movement and conduct unbecoming an officers." Leila Fujimori (The Honolulu Star-Bulletin) spoke with Earle Partington ("local attorney with decades in military justice") who also stated that "military judge Lt. Col. John Head lacked authority to set a new date, March 19, for the trial after declaring a mistrial Wednesday". Marjorie Cohn had explained to Nora Barrows-Friedman that Judge Toilet floated the idea of a mistrial and when the prosecution (taking the hint) asked for one, the defense did not consent to a mistrial. Also making this point is Eric Seitz, Watada's civilian attorney. Bob Egelko (San Francisco Chronicle) reports: "The lawyer for an officer whose court-martial for refusing deployment to Iraq was abruptly halted this week says the Army's planned retrial of his client would violate the constitutional ban on double jeopardy. Because 1st Lt. Ehren Watada neither caused nor consented to the mistrial that an Army judge declared Wednesday, the charges against him must be dismissed, attorney Eric Seitz said. Those charges were punishable by up to four years in prison. 'I don't think the judge understands, and I don't think the Army realizes that this case cannot be retried,'' Seitz said in an interview after the trial at Fort Lewis, Wash., was halted."
Yesterday, reporting for Free Speech Radio News, Aaron Glantz noted Carolyn Ho's reaction to the mistrial ("tears started streaming down her cheek"). Carolyn Ho, mother of Ehren Watada: "He was quite prepared to vacate his apartment. It's been all packed up and, you know, and we were arranging to have his furniture moved on Monday. The expectation was that he would be sentenced and, um, that there would be incarceration." Reporting for IPS (text), Glantz noted Eric Seitz's contention: "Every time the government has tried to prevent political speech, which they are attempting to punish, from infusing the trial proceedings it has created a major mess and many of those cases result in mistrials."
Watada is a part of a movement of resistance with the military that includes others such as Agustin Aguayo (whose court-martial is currently set to begin on March 6th), Kyle Snyder, Darrell Anderson, Ivan Brobeck, Ricky Clousing, Aidan Delgado, Mark Wilkerson, Joshua Key, Camilo Meija, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Jeremy Hinzman, Corey Glass, Patrick Hart, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Katherine Jashinski, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell and Kevin Benderman. In total, thirty-eight US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.Information on war resistance within the military can be found at Center on Conscience & War, The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline, and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters.
War resister Joshua Key self-checked out of the US army after serving in Iraq. He, Brandi Key (his wife) and their children moved to Canada. Key has written a book on his experience in Iraq and after entitled The Deserter's Tale. Brian Lynch (The Georgia Straight) notes: "And when Key arrived in the bomb-cratered streets of Iraq, his commanding officers issued constant reports that heavily armed terrorist cells or mobs of Saddam Hussein's sympathizers were poised to attack. None of these threats materialized, he says. And as he recalls in his book, he began to sense that 'the repeated warnings of danger were meant to keep us off guard, and to keep us frightened enough to do exactly what we were told.'
This, he believes, is a tactic that the highest political and military leaders in his native country have used on the public itself. Field commanders, he says on the phone, 'try to keep you scared, keep you motivated. And that's exactly what's happened to the [American] people as well. Everybody is so afraid of terrorism... And of course, from my actions in Iraq, I think the terrorism hasn't begun yet--terrorism from all the little Iraqi children that I terrorized myself. There's going to be a flip side to that. There will be consequences'."
Cause and effect.
On today's Democracy Now!, Amy Goodman noted: "In Iraq, the US military is facing allegations of killing forty-five Iraqi civililans in an airstrike near Amiriyah. Police and hospital officials say the bombings flattened four homes in the village of Zaidan, just south Abu Ghraib, killing women, childre, and the elderly. A photograph released by the Associated Press shows the body of a boy in the back of a pickup truck taken to the nearby Falluja hospital. Several other children were reportedly admitted with injuries. The US military denies the account and says thirteen insurgents were killed."
That incident was explored in yesterday's snapshot (and you can tie it with the Najaf incident which Tom Hayden recently wrote about). Today, Al Jazeera reports: "The US military had said in a statement that US forces killed five armed men in the city of Mosul early on Friday during a raid targeting an al-Qaeda cell." Had? Before we get there, please note that in Najaf, in the strike near Amiriyah, in countless 'battles,' the motive is always said to be 'suspected' this or that. And when innocents die in the attacks, it doesn't change the fact that intended targets (present or not) are still only 'suspected'. So who were US forces ordered to kill in Mosul? The BBC says: "Eight Iraqi soldiers have been killed and six wounded in a US helicopter strike". Lauren Frayer (AP) reports that "U.S. helicopters on Friday mistakenly killed at least five Kurdish troops, a group that Washington hopes to enlist as a partner to help secure Iraq, U.S. and Iraqi officials said."
Now a few things to note. 1) When you have some level of power, you can have the record corrected. That's what happened here. The US military had already issued their press release claiming suspected al Qaeda had been killed. 2) Calling it a "mistake" doesn't mitigate the effects on the families and friends of the eight dead. 3) Even when 'apologizing' the flacks for the US military still want to quibble on how many were killed (8 is the Kurdish figure and the media's figure, the US military has tried to stick 5). This is why 'suspected' or potential 'suspected' really should raise eyebrows. As evidenced by yesterday's denial, which has only continued, the US military refuses to acknowledge that children were killed in the attack. Instead the military spokespeople want to crow about how they got 'insurgents' or al-Qaeda -- 'suspected.'
Meanwhile, Robert Fisk (Independent of London) reports on Abu Salih Al-Jeelani ("one of the military leaders of the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Resistance Movement") and his group ("20th Revolution Brigades") which has issued a statement on what it will take for there to be a ceasefire:
* The release of 5,000 detainees held in Iraqi prisons as "proof of goodwill"
* Recognition "of the legitimacy of the resistance and the legitimacy of its role in representing the will of the Iraqi people".
* An internationally guaranteed timetable for all agreements.
* The negotiations to take place in public.
* The resistance "must be represented by a committee comprising the representatives of all the jihadist brigades".
* The US to be represented by its ambassador in Iraq and the most senior commander.
All starred items are direct quotes from Fisk's article. The leader says they also want the constitution of Iraq and the deals arranged (especially with regards to the oil) cancelled -- to be replaced by things deriving from the Iraqi people and not foreign occupiers.
In the United States, one of the big stories is the cooking of intel. Julian E. Barnes (Los Angeles Times) notes that "the Pentagon's inspector general examined the activities of Douglas J. Feith, an influential undersecretary to former Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld during the months leading up to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003. . . . Its findings lend credence to charges by White House critics that Feith, who has since left the department, was out of line when he sought to discredit analyses by CIA intelligence officials that discounted alleged ties between Al Qaeda and then-Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein." Walter Pincus and R. Jeffrey Smith (Washington Post) report US Senator Carl Levin stated, "The bottom line is that intelligence relating to the Iraq-al-Qaeda relationship was manipulated by high-ranking officials in the Department of Defense to support the administration's decision to invade Iraq. . . . The inspector general's report is a devastating condemnation of inappropriate activities in the DOD policy office that helped take this nation to war" and the reporters note: "The summary document confirmed a range of accusations that Levin had leveled against Feith's office, alleging inaccurate work."
In some reports, Feith is noted as saying he was not wrong. Of course he wasn't wrong. He cooked the intel exactly as he wanted. Was it burned? Of course, that's how he wanted it, that's how he served it.
And on clever propaganda, CBS and AP report that US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has declared that there is "pretty good" evidence of Iran's involvement in Iraq. Pretty good? Gates' word is supposed to be all anyone needs. Gates paints a story of 'weapons' found that are from Iran. What is he suggesting? That the Iranian government gave the Iraqi resistance the weapons? No, he means markings show that they were made in Iran. (That's his word -- take it for what it's not worth.) How shocking! People could get weapons from a country that borders their own! Oh my!
It proves nothing -- and the US firearms are all over the Iraqi black market -- but it's the new talking point. Expect to see a lot more of it.
Addressing the issue of Iran, Juan Cole told Steve Rendell (on this week's CounterSpin): "Of coures the entire discourse of Washington has been, for many years, to get Iran and all Iranian attempts to reach out to the United States, some of which have been quite serious and wide ranging have been rebuffed. Iran has been kept as an enemy because Washington wants it as an enemy." Probably won't catch that in the mainstream.
Bombings?
Reuters notes 17 dead in Mosul from a roadside bomb while 2 were killed (eight wounded) in Hilla from a roadside bomb.
Shootings?Reuters reports that three people were shot dead (and 10 wounded) in Baghdad today.Corpses?
AFP reports that eleven corpses were discovered today in Mahawil -- "floating in the Al-Malih river" -- after they and two others were kidnapped on Thursday (the other were released and are alive*) and, in Amara, Mohammed Qasim Kerkuki 's corpse was discovered ("riddled with bullets"). (*AFP reports that, other agencies don't address the two. Al Jazeera notes that the kidnappers were wearing "Iraqi army uniforms and drove military vehicles".)
Yesterday's snapshot didn't note corpses. My apologies. Reuters reported 16 corpses were discovered in Mosul and 20 in Baghdad on Thursday. Please note, it's Friday. The majority of the violence (that gets reported) will emerge slowly throughout the rest of Friday.
Meanwhile the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence announced: "It is with deep regret that the Ministry of Defence must confirm the death of a British soldier in Iraq today, Friday 9 February 2007. MOD Announcement We can confirm that there was a roadside bomb attack on a Multi-National Forces patrol south east of Basra City that resulted in the death of the British soldier. Three other soldiers have also been injured, one of whom is described as critical." That brought the count for UK troops who have died in Iraq since the start of the illegal war to 132.
Also today the US military announced: "Three Soldiers assigned to Multi-National Force-West were killed Thursday from wounds sustained while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar Province." AP's count for the total number of US troops who have died in Iraq since the start of the illegal war 3,117.
Finally, seven days ago, the Democratica National Committee held the Winter Meeting in DC and the mainstream's coverage was -- "Who didn't stick to the time limit! Nobody said anything!" Dennis Kucinich, US House Rep and 2008 candidate for president did speak and addressed a number of issues. Our focus is Iraq so we'll focus on the Iraq section. Kucinich: "Fellow Democrats, I can win because of all the candidates for President, I not only voted against the authorization but I have consistently voted against funding the war and I have a 12-point plan devised with the help of international peacekeepers, to bring our troops home and to end the war. Fellow Democrats, of all decisions a President must make, the one most far reaching is whether to commit the lives of our young men and women to combat. I believe that I have demonstrated the clarity and foresight people have a right to expect of a President. This war would have never occured in the first place if I had been President. We do not have to wait for 2009 and my Inauguration as President to end it because, fellow Democrats, right now the Democratic Congress has the ability and the power to end the war and bring our troops home. This past November, Democrats received a mandate from the American people to end the war. Democrats have an obligation to reclaim Congress' constitutional power to end the war. If we support the troops, if we truly support the troops, we should bring them home. Money is there now to bring our troops safely home. Supporting my 12 point plan, Congress can require the Administration to end the occupation, close the bases, bring the troops home and stabilize Iraq. Fellow Democrats, I want to stress, the Democratic Congress must deny the President the money he wants to keep the war going through the end of his term, money which he can also use to attack Iran. If we give the President the money to continue the war the Democratic Party will have bought the war."
iraq
ehren watada
joshua key
marjorie cohn
nora barrows friedman
flashpointskpfa
leila fujimorigeoffrey millardbill simpich
sex and politics and screeds and attitude
aaron glantz
amy goodman
walter pincusr. jeffrey smithjulian e. barnesbob egelko
democracy now
I was mentioning those to Betty on the phone this week and she told me they'd been going around for years. I have two e-mail accounts, the one my son Mike created for me when we first got online and the one he created for me when this site started. My first account was only given out to friends and family so I avoided all those scam e-mails but Betty told me they've been doing that for years when I asked her on the phone who would read those scam e-mails and take them seriously? She pointed out that they send those things out by the hundreds and they probably trick at least one person for each hundred.
"The Wino Friedman," "The Hate-Addicted Fat Ass Friedman," and "Life -- or what passes for it -- with the Friedmans" are Betty's three latest chapters (the last one went up last night). That was one of the reasons I called her, to apologize because I do try to note her chapters since she and I both post once a week. But the two weekeneds prior were busy for both of us and I fell behind. She said not to worry about it and then we got to talking about the second reason I called, Ehren Watada. Which I will get back to but let's get to the help e-mail first, the real one.
Coy and Dina wrote me. They're a young married couple trying to save for a house. They both work outside the home full time and they try to both work inside the home so right away I wanted to help them before I found out what they needed. (I always think a "home" means everyone pitches in. If not, it's one person's home and the others are lodgers.) They love the rice recipes because the ingredients aren't costly. Coy cooks exclusively from recipes they find here. Dina already knew how to cook but Coy was used to eating out or making a sandwich. They will eat a meatless dinner both because it's inexpensive and also because they like vegetables. But they note that chicken is far less costly than beef or pork. They write fish is pretty much out except in the summer because they only have catfish in their local grocery store and "that's really easy to burn out on." So they were hoping for some chicken recipes and Coy "really wants an easy one."
The recipe today has eight ingredients and they were very upfront that Coy gets a little nervous when the recipe has a long list of ingredients. They don't need to worry here. I've mentioned before that there's a cookbook I like to give my children when they move out. It's by Kevin Mills and Nancy Mills and is entitled Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen. I think this cookbook is wonderful for people learning their way around the kitchen. It's geared to first time cooks and this recipe requires that everything go into a large pot which should make it even easier.
Chicken Cacciatore
3 chicken legs, with thighs attached
1 garlic clove
2 15-ounce cans ready-cut tomatoes
1/2 teaspon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspon dried parsley
Dash black pepper and salt
Cut any fat off the chicken but leave the meat on the bone. Peel and finely chop the garlic.
Put the chicken in a medium-size pot and add the remaining ingredients. Make sure the sauce covers the chicken. If it doesn't, add a little water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Turn down the heat to low and cook, uncovered, for at least 1 hour. The chicken should be falling off the bone.
Mom Tip
Add some sliced mushrooms or cut-up green bell peppers to make this dish more interesting. Serve with plain spaghetti or Italian bread.
The "Mom Tip" comes from Nancy Mills being Kevin Mills' mother. The cookbook really is geared towards first time cooks and I strongly recommend it for starting out cooks. I never have a problem when one of my children calls with a cooking question. But those who were really nervous become a lot less nervous after they've lived with this cookbook for a few months. So one more time, it's entitled Help! My Apartment Has a Kitchen. The recipe is easy to master and you can use it when you have friends over as well. Add a green salad to it, along with bread and/or plain spaghetti (you would spoon the chicken cacciatore over the pasta) and you have a nice meal you can share with friends.
I went with this recipe because it's from a book I highly recommend and because it's a one pot dish. I think that cuts down on the nervous factor for those who get a little tense as ingredients add up. This was actually a dish that was very popular for years and years. Lemon pepper, as a spice, took off in the 90s and I think Lemon Chicken or Lemon Pepper Chicken has now overtaken it. That's not a bad thing, it's actually good because that means you have a recipe for a dish that's proven very popular over the years but everyone hasn't burned out on.
Coy also shared a tip in their e-mail. They do make green bean casserole. They double the cooking time. Coy says that was an accident but it did result in the dish not being runny. They enjoy that so dish so much that they've even taken to buying a frozen version from the Green Giant which they report is pretty useless. The green beans, when microwaved in the pouch, end up rubbery and undercooked. They recommend using the boiling direction and not the microwave directions on the packet. At their grocery store, this is a 10 items for ten dollars special about every six weeks. I haven't noticed that special at my own local store (and I do spend considerable time in the frozen food section) but if they have it at anyone else's local store, Coy and Dina say boil it, don't microwave it, unless you enjoy rubbery green beans.
As I said earlier, Betty and I were discussing Ehren Watada this week on the phone and I bet/hope that was true across the country. Ehren Watada's court-martial began on Monday with the jury/military panel being selected. Seven officers were selected to hear the arguments and determine . . . I have no idea what they were supposed to be determining because when the judge ("Judge Toilet") won't allow Ehren Watada to present his reasons/motives for refusing to deploy to an illegal war, exactly how that passes for justice, or is supposed to, I don't know. Tuesday, the prosecution argued their case and rested. Wednesday, the defense was supposed to hear from Ehren Watada and one other witness. However, Judge Toilet must have sensed how badly the prosecution had done because he began making noises about mistrial until finally the prosecution caught on and requested one. The defense didn't want a mistrial, they wanted to go forward with the case. Now, legal experts such as Marjorie Cohn, say that's it. To hold another court-martial would be double-jeopardy. If the rules apply, that seems to be the way it should go but since the Bully Boy's taken the oval office, what rule hasn't been shredded? However, if there's any real justice left in the United States, even a small amount that would fit in an eye dropper, Ehren Watada's ordeal is over and he won't be court-martialed again.
I should note that before the prosecution asked for the mistrial, when Judge Toilet was first tossing the idea out there on Wednesday, C.I. noted in Wednesday's "Iraq snapshot" that it would be a do over for the prosecution. That's exactly what it would be, after they failed miserably and risked losing, suddenly Judge Toilet wants to offer them a mistrial (over the objection of the defense). Wally's mother asked me to mention that because she heard a discussion of it Friday, on the radio, and the guest arguing that Watada should not face another court-martial was using "do over" and that had more of an effect on people calling in than the issue of double-jeopardy. Wally's mother thinks that may be due to the fact that, as children, we all become familiar with "do over" and the children who whine for one because they aren't happy with the results. She firmly believes that "do over" gets the message across and I agree with her. The military had their shot already. They had a military judge that bent to the prosecution on everything (including calling a mistrial). They were losing due to their own inept performance on Tuesday and now fairness goes out the window so that the 'favored child' can have a do over? That's not right. If you are unfamiliar with Watada and how he came to take the stand he did, please read Rebecca's "ehren in the clear?" which went up earlier this week.
This was an interesting week personally as well. Mike was in Tacoma, with Sunny, Cedric, Wally, Kat, C.I., Jim, Dona, Ty, Jess and Ava to show support for Watada, and now he's at Rebecca's (he and Elaine have been going there during the difficult weeks of Rebecca's pregnancy) and the house was so quiet. My youngest daughter is working on a school project that requires she goes to the library every evening. (No, I didn't buy that either.) So the house has been pretty empty all week. I was telling Wally's mother how weird that was. I have eight children and Mike and his sister are the youngest. I'll soon be a grandmother and that should provide much joy and excitement. But I told Wally's mother I was thinking that we might need to take in lodgers. I was only half-joking. The house that was always a tight fit for eight kids, my husband and me seems too large these days. Then Friday came and my husband called saying he either worked late or went in at five Monday morning to finish what needed doing. He got home a little after seven which isn't that late but I'm very serious about the thought of an empty house freaking me out. Between chuch and our family, I'm sure we can fill a bedroom or two. I've also told my son who's soon to be a father that the smartest thing they could do, he and his wife, is move back in and use what they're paying for rent right now to save up for a house. With a baby and rent, they're going to find it very difficult to save for a house. But we're going to have to do something because this house is going to be too big for my husband and me after Mike and his sister move out. I'm sure some of this is the 'empy nest' syndrome but it's also being practical. Two people do not need this much space.
This is C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" from Friday:
Friday, February 9, 2007. Chaos and violence continue in Iraq, Ehren Watada's mistrial continues to be debated, "Who cooked the intel?" becomes a popular question, a leader of one group of resistance fighters in Iraq is quite clear in what is needed to end the war, and "Woops! We thought they were 'insurgents' or al-Qaeda!"
Starting with Ehren Watada who, in June of last year, became the first commissioned officer in the US to publicly refuse to deploy to Iraq because the war was illegal and immoral. On Monday, the court-martial of Ehren Watada began with jury selection for the military panel (seven officers were selected) who would, as Hal Bernton (Seattle Times) pointed out, "determine whether Watada spends up to four years in prison in one of the most high-profile cases to be tried at Fort Lewis." Watada was facing up to four years in prison and Lt. Col. John Head (aka Judge Toilet) refused to allow him to argue the reasons why he refused to deploy. This is why Norman Solomon (CounterPunch) called the proceedings "a kangaroo court-martial." . On Tuesday, the prosectution presented their case. Aaron Glantz discussed the day's events with Sandra Lupien on The KPFA Evening News noting: "The prosecution had 3 witnesses. It did not go as well as the prosecution would have liked. Lt. Col Bruce Antonia, who was the prosecution's star witness, as Lt. Watada's commander, said that nothing tangibly bad happened from Lt. Watada's refusal to go to" Iraq and
"[a]nother thing that did not go well for the prosecution today was that their own witnesses clearly showed that Lt. Watada tried other methods of expressing . . . [his opposition] to the Iraq war, internally within the military, before coming forward to speak to the public." Also noting the prosecution's poor performance on Tuesday (when they rested their case), was civil rights attorney Bill Simpich who told Geoffrey Millard (Truthout): "The prosecution asked too many questions. By the time it was over, the prosecution witness had become a defense witness because the field was open. The defense was able to ask nuanced questions, it told the story clearly to the jury." On Wednesday, Judge Toilet began talking mistrial and, due to the lousy performance by the prosecution, it was seen as an attempt at a "do over" even before he called the mistrial.
Yesterday, on KPFA's Flashpoints, Nora Barrows-Friedman spoke with Marjorie Cohn (president of the National Lawyers Guild) about the mistrial. Cohn's belief (based on expertise) is that the government's case is over -- that, military or civilian, courts must respect the laws of the land and that includes avoiding double-jeopardy (trying a person for the same alleged crimes twice). As Rebecca notes, Cohn explained that the stipulation Judge Toilet made much ado over was a stipulation (agreement between the prosecution and the defense) that both sides had agreed to, that the jury was made aware of, that Judge Toilet had looked over and, up until it was time for the defense to present their case, Judge Toilet never voiced any concerns over the stipulation, More importantly, Cohen pointed out, "When a mistrial is declared, the defense has to agree to it. The only thing that will defeat a finding of double-jeopardy . . . is if there was manifest necessity to declare the mistrial" which, in Cohn's opinion, there wasn't. At Counterpunch, Cohen also made the case "that under the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Constitution, the government cannot retry Lt. Watada on the same charges of missing movement and conduct unbecoming an officers." Leila Fujimori (The Honolulu Star-Bulletin) spoke with Earle Partington ("local attorney with decades in military justice") who also stated that "military judge Lt. Col. John Head lacked authority to set a new date, March 19, for the trial after declaring a mistrial Wednesday". Marjorie Cohn had explained to Nora Barrows-Friedman that Judge Toilet floated the idea of a mistrial and when the prosecution (taking the hint) asked for one, the defense did not consent to a mistrial. Also making this point is Eric Seitz, Watada's civilian attorney. Bob Egelko (San Francisco Chronicle) reports: "The lawyer for an officer whose court-martial for refusing deployment to Iraq was abruptly halted this week says the Army's planned retrial of his client would violate the constitutional ban on double jeopardy. Because 1st Lt. Ehren Watada neither caused nor consented to the mistrial that an Army judge declared Wednesday, the charges against him must be dismissed, attorney Eric Seitz said. Those charges were punishable by up to four years in prison. 'I don't think the judge understands, and I don't think the Army realizes that this case cannot be retried,'' Seitz said in an interview after the trial at Fort Lewis, Wash., was halted."
Yesterday, reporting for Free Speech Radio News, Aaron Glantz noted Carolyn Ho's reaction to the mistrial ("tears started streaming down her cheek"). Carolyn Ho, mother of Ehren Watada: "He was quite prepared to vacate his apartment. It's been all packed up and, you know, and we were arranging to have his furniture moved on Monday. The expectation was that he would be sentenced and, um, that there would be incarceration." Reporting for IPS (text), Glantz noted Eric Seitz's contention: "Every time the government has tried to prevent political speech, which they are attempting to punish, from infusing the trial proceedings it has created a major mess and many of those cases result in mistrials."
Watada is a part of a movement of resistance with the military that includes others such as Agustin Aguayo (whose court-martial is currently set to begin on March 6th), Kyle Snyder, Darrell Anderson, Ivan Brobeck, Ricky Clousing, Aidan Delgado, Mark Wilkerson, Joshua Key, Camilo Meija, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Jeremy Hinzman, Corey Glass, Patrick Hart, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Katherine Jashinski, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell and Kevin Benderman. In total, thirty-eight US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.Information on war resistance within the military can be found at Center on Conscience & War, The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline, and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters.
War resister Joshua Key self-checked out of the US army after serving in Iraq. He, Brandi Key (his wife) and their children moved to Canada. Key has written a book on his experience in Iraq and after entitled The Deserter's Tale. Brian Lynch (The Georgia Straight) notes: "And when Key arrived in the bomb-cratered streets of Iraq, his commanding officers issued constant reports that heavily armed terrorist cells or mobs of Saddam Hussein's sympathizers were poised to attack. None of these threats materialized, he says. And as he recalls in his book, he began to sense that 'the repeated warnings of danger were meant to keep us off guard, and to keep us frightened enough to do exactly what we were told.'
This, he believes, is a tactic that the highest political and military leaders in his native country have used on the public itself. Field commanders, he says on the phone, 'try to keep you scared, keep you motivated. And that's exactly what's happened to the [American] people as well. Everybody is so afraid of terrorism... And of course, from my actions in Iraq, I think the terrorism hasn't begun yet--terrorism from all the little Iraqi children that I terrorized myself. There's going to be a flip side to that. There will be consequences'."
Cause and effect.
On today's Democracy Now!, Amy Goodman noted: "In Iraq, the US military is facing allegations of killing forty-five Iraqi civililans in an airstrike near Amiriyah. Police and hospital officials say the bombings flattened four homes in the village of Zaidan, just south Abu Ghraib, killing women, childre, and the elderly. A photograph released by the Associated Press shows the body of a boy in the back of a pickup truck taken to the nearby Falluja hospital. Several other children were reportedly admitted with injuries. The US military denies the account and says thirteen insurgents were killed."
That incident was explored in yesterday's snapshot (and you can tie it with the Najaf incident which Tom Hayden recently wrote about). Today, Al Jazeera reports: "The US military had said in a statement that US forces killed five armed men in the city of Mosul early on Friday during a raid targeting an al-Qaeda cell." Had? Before we get there, please note that in Najaf, in the strike near Amiriyah, in countless 'battles,' the motive is always said to be 'suspected' this or that. And when innocents die in the attacks, it doesn't change the fact that intended targets (present or not) are still only 'suspected'. So who were US forces ordered to kill in Mosul? The BBC says: "Eight Iraqi soldiers have been killed and six wounded in a US helicopter strike". Lauren Frayer (AP) reports that "U.S. helicopters on Friday mistakenly killed at least five Kurdish troops, a group that Washington hopes to enlist as a partner to help secure Iraq, U.S. and Iraqi officials said."
Now a few things to note. 1) When you have some level of power, you can have the record corrected. That's what happened here. The US military had already issued their press release claiming suspected al Qaeda had been killed. 2) Calling it a "mistake" doesn't mitigate the effects on the families and friends of the eight dead. 3) Even when 'apologizing' the flacks for the US military still want to quibble on how many were killed (8 is the Kurdish figure and the media's figure, the US military has tried to stick 5). This is why 'suspected' or potential 'suspected' really should raise eyebrows. As evidenced by yesterday's denial, which has only continued, the US military refuses to acknowledge that children were killed in the attack. Instead the military spokespeople want to crow about how they got 'insurgents' or al-Qaeda -- 'suspected.'
Meanwhile, Robert Fisk (Independent of London) reports on Abu Salih Al-Jeelani ("one of the military leaders of the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Resistance Movement") and his group ("20th Revolution Brigades") which has issued a statement on what it will take for there to be a ceasefire:
* The release of 5,000 detainees held in Iraqi prisons as "proof of goodwill"
* Recognition "of the legitimacy of the resistance and the legitimacy of its role in representing the will of the Iraqi people".
* An internationally guaranteed timetable for all agreements.
* The negotiations to take place in public.
* The resistance "must be represented by a committee comprising the representatives of all the jihadist brigades".
* The US to be represented by its ambassador in Iraq and the most senior commander.
All starred items are direct quotes from Fisk's article. The leader says they also want the constitution of Iraq and the deals arranged (especially with regards to the oil) cancelled -- to be replaced by things deriving from the Iraqi people and not foreign occupiers.
In the United States, one of the big stories is the cooking of intel. Julian E. Barnes (Los Angeles Times) notes that "the Pentagon's inspector general examined the activities of Douglas J. Feith, an influential undersecretary to former Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld during the months leading up to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003. . . . Its findings lend credence to charges by White House critics that Feith, who has since left the department, was out of line when he sought to discredit analyses by CIA intelligence officials that discounted alleged ties between Al Qaeda and then-Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein." Walter Pincus and R. Jeffrey Smith (Washington Post) report US Senator Carl Levin stated, "The bottom line is that intelligence relating to the Iraq-al-Qaeda relationship was manipulated by high-ranking officials in the Department of Defense to support the administration's decision to invade Iraq. . . . The inspector general's report is a devastating condemnation of inappropriate activities in the DOD policy office that helped take this nation to war" and the reporters note: "The summary document confirmed a range of accusations that Levin had leveled against Feith's office, alleging inaccurate work."
In some reports, Feith is noted as saying he was not wrong. Of course he wasn't wrong. He cooked the intel exactly as he wanted. Was it burned? Of course, that's how he wanted it, that's how he served it.
And on clever propaganda, CBS and AP report that US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has declared that there is "pretty good" evidence of Iran's involvement in Iraq. Pretty good? Gates' word is supposed to be all anyone needs. Gates paints a story of 'weapons' found that are from Iran. What is he suggesting? That the Iranian government gave the Iraqi resistance the weapons? No, he means markings show that they were made in Iran. (That's his word -- take it for what it's not worth.) How shocking! People could get weapons from a country that borders their own! Oh my!
It proves nothing -- and the US firearms are all over the Iraqi black market -- but it's the new talking point. Expect to see a lot more of it.
Addressing the issue of Iran, Juan Cole told Steve Rendell (on this week's CounterSpin): "Of coures the entire discourse of Washington has been, for many years, to get Iran and all Iranian attempts to reach out to the United States, some of which have been quite serious and wide ranging have been rebuffed. Iran has been kept as an enemy because Washington wants it as an enemy." Probably won't catch that in the mainstream.
Bombings?
Reuters notes 17 dead in Mosul from a roadside bomb while 2 were killed (eight wounded) in Hilla from a roadside bomb.
Shootings?Reuters reports that three people were shot dead (and 10 wounded) in Baghdad today.Corpses?
AFP reports that eleven corpses were discovered today in Mahawil -- "floating in the Al-Malih river" -- after they and two others were kidnapped on Thursday (the other were released and are alive*) and, in Amara, Mohammed Qasim Kerkuki 's corpse was discovered ("riddled with bullets"). (*AFP reports that, other agencies don't address the two. Al Jazeera notes that the kidnappers were wearing "Iraqi army uniforms and drove military vehicles".)
Yesterday's snapshot didn't note corpses. My apologies. Reuters reported 16 corpses were discovered in Mosul and 20 in Baghdad on Thursday. Please note, it's Friday. The majority of the violence (that gets reported) will emerge slowly throughout the rest of Friday.
Meanwhile the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence announced: "It is with deep regret that the Ministry of Defence must confirm the death of a British soldier in Iraq today, Friday 9 February 2007. MOD Announcement We can confirm that there was a roadside bomb attack on a Multi-National Forces patrol south east of Basra City that resulted in the death of the British soldier. Three other soldiers have also been injured, one of whom is described as critical." That brought the count for UK troops who have died in Iraq since the start of the illegal war to 132.
Also today the US military announced: "Three Soldiers assigned to Multi-National Force-West were killed Thursday from wounds sustained while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar Province." AP's count for the total number of US troops who have died in Iraq since the start of the illegal war 3,117.
Finally, seven days ago, the Democratica National Committee held the Winter Meeting in DC and the mainstream's coverage was -- "Who didn't stick to the time limit! Nobody said anything!" Dennis Kucinich, US House Rep and 2008 candidate for president did speak and addressed a number of issues. Our focus is Iraq so we'll focus on the Iraq section. Kucinich: "Fellow Democrats, I can win because of all the candidates for President, I not only voted against the authorization but I have consistently voted against funding the war and I have a 12-point plan devised with the help of international peacekeepers, to bring our troops home and to end the war. Fellow Democrats, of all decisions a President must make, the one most far reaching is whether to commit the lives of our young men and women to combat. I believe that I have demonstrated the clarity and foresight people have a right to expect of a President. This war would have never occured in the first place if I had been President. We do not have to wait for 2009 and my Inauguration as President to end it because, fellow Democrats, right now the Democratic Congress has the ability and the power to end the war and bring our troops home. This past November, Democrats received a mandate from the American people to end the war. Democrats have an obligation to reclaim Congress' constitutional power to end the war. If we support the troops, if we truly support the troops, we should bring them home. Money is there now to bring our troops safely home. Supporting my 12 point plan, Congress can require the Administration to end the occupation, close the bases, bring the troops home and stabilize Iraq. Fellow Democrats, I want to stress, the Democratic Congress must deny the President the money he wants to keep the war going through the end of his term, money which he can also use to attack Iran. If we give the President the money to continue the war the Democratic Party will have bought the war."
iraq
ehren watada
joshua key
marjorie cohn
nora barrows friedman
flashpointskpfa
leila fujimorigeoffrey millardbill simpich
sex and politics and screeds and attitude
aaron glantz
amy goodman
walter pincusr. jeffrey smithjulian e. barnesbob egelko
democracy now
Saturday, February 03, 2007
Easy Black Ben Chili on Rice in the Kitchen
Gillian passed on a recipe that's delicious but I feel like I'm doing a product placement here. The recipe was written by the people who make/market Land O Lakes Butter. I actually do use that butter and since it's real butter I'll use that as my excuse for sharing it.
EASY BLACK BEAN CHILI ON RICE
These small black beans are also called turtle beans. Their deep black color looks most striking when contrasted with the bright red of tomatoes and the white of sour cream.
Preparation time: 15 min Cooking time: 10 min
Yield: 4 servings
Chili Ingredients:
2 teaspoons Land O Lakes Butter
1 large (1 cup) onion, chopped
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh garlic
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed, drained
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons canned chopped green chiles
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 cups hot cooked rice
Topping Ingredients:
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/3 cup light or fat free sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Melt butter in 2-quart saucepan; add onions and garlic. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and lightly browned (5 minutes). Add beans, tomato sauce, chili powder, chiles and cumin. Continue cooking until heated through (5 minutes). Serve over hot cooked rice. Top with tomato, sour cream and cilantro. TIP: Chili can be served over baked potatoes, pasta or grains.
The recipe is a very good one in that it's simple to make and the final result tastes wonderful.
While I do use Land O Lakes Butter, I know nothing about their sour cream -- I'm not even sure I've even seen it. So I've changed the plug for that product to just "sour cream."
Gillian loves the recipe and, if you make it, I'm sure you will too.
You can use dried beans you cook yourself or fresh tomatoes instead of canned.
Can you tell I'm uncomfortable? I'm not with the results of the recipe, I just wondered about promoting Land O Lakes which I know nothing about (in terms of who owns them)? I think there's more than enough marketing in the real world and certainly in cooking. When someone shares a recipe, if it includes "Campbells Soup" that usually goes up here and I'll note you can use another soup brand. But this is a recipe put out by Land O Lakes to promote Land O Lakes products.
If you're cooking in your home, you are probably aware that many packages will contain offers for 'free' cookbooks. That's really something you send in for in your early days. You end up burned very quickly. They really aren't recipes, they're actually catalogues for the company's products. I think Kraft, for instance, would have a better image among people who do cook if they're "cookbooks" weren't a bunch of plugs for their own products.
"Kraft" on the cover is more than enough, to go through recipes that list one Kraft product after another is not only overkill, it's annoying. It turns people off. If Kraft really wants to be in our kitchen, they could offer 'free' cookbooks that actually contained useable recipes. These days, with six children already living on their own and two who are still home, I no longer go through that monthly pang of, "I need to find something new!" In the earliest days, that would pop up.
I still add recipes all the time but I'm talking about the panic and guessing some of you know what I mean. Maybe something burned and you're obsessed over that or maybe something else in your life isn't going all that well and you think, "Well I can cook. I'll focus on that right now."
When that happened to me, I would go on The Great Recipe Search and, if you've done that, you realize very quickly that some recipes are nothing but product promotion. Sometimes they end up with a recipe that's edible but the primary goal seems to be to get you rushing to the grocery store to buy up all their products.
That's insulting for a number of reasons including the fact that there are usually less expensive alternatives and there are usually fresh alternatives. If a company is selling canned goods, don't expect their cookbook to contain a lot of recipes for fresh fruits and vegetables.
Now I've been there where a 'free' cookbook wasn't only a nice thing but something that worked into my budget. I'd be excited when it arrived and eager to flip through the pages. The result would be heavily processed ingredients that had no real nutritional value and that also cost quite a bit more than if you'd used fresh. So they want you to pay the costs twice: pay the financial cost to spend more for their own products and pay the health costs for cooking dishes that are based on heavily processed foods where the vitamins, bran, et al has been stripped from them.
I do like the recipe above (and I did substitute fresh tomatoes). But I also think it's a way for us to think about the product placement and about the food industry.
I can actually do a plug here. I recently finished reading Frances Moore Lappe's Democracy's Edge. I've noted her book Diet for a Small Planet here (many times) and I strongly recommend this book. It's a big book, 317 pages. I was trying to get a friend to read it and she wasn't interested. The size and scope intimidated her. (I'm not referring to Elaine who enjoys tackling any book. I believe Rebecca noted that Elaine and I both enjoyed it and I'm not referring to Rebecca here either.) I was a little depressed by that because I thought the book addressed issues that my friend was concerned about and I love the book. I mentioned that in passing to C.I., who also loves the book, and got a wonderful suggestion: Get a friend to read one chapter they're interested in.
Not the first chapter. If the book intimidates them, encourage them to find a chapter on a topic they enjoy and read that. If nothing else, they'll have the one chapter but sometimes, if a book has a large scope, it can be intimidating to some people. I hadn't thought of that and that was my foolish mistake. My son Mike does that all of the time now (because C.I. had passed on the tip to him awhile back when he was having difficulty with one of his college text books).
I tried that with my friend and she went with chapter ten ("Learning") which she enjoyed so much she decided to pick another chapter. She ended up reading the entire book that way. It's a wonderful book that's addressing serious issues of how we are made to fit and telling us how we need to make the world fit us, not the other way around. The sections on the media will probably interest some easily. But I know that people don't always have time for reading and when the topic is a serious one (wonderfully executed by the author) and the pages go over a certain mark, people can feel intimidated or think, "I've got to clean, I've got to do this, I've got to do that, when am I going to have the time for a book?"
This is a book you should make the time for and if the size of Democracy's Edge intimidates you and starting from page one doesn't propell you through, grab a chapter that interests you and work your way around the book. I really think you'll enjoy it.
This week, Molly Ivins passed away and we also saw the month end with 90 US troops being killed in Iraq. (That was the AFP count.) With the illegal war continuing, the loss of Ivins was even greater because it wasn't the case of just losing a wonderful voice with something to say, but also the case of losing someone who grasped how serious the war was and how little media -- big and small -- tended to care. She had made a pledge to cover Iraq in her columns and it's a pledge I haven't heard any of the 'big voices' honoring her these last few days say they'd pick up. Which is why I find most of the honoring to be mere words, lip service, and hollow.
It's also true that a young man, Ehren Watada, faces a court-martial for refusing to fight in the illegal war. His court-martial is Monday and I haven't seen Norman Solomon, Phil Donahue, John Nichols, John Stauber or Marc Cooper rush to weigh in on the need to stand up for him this past week. Have you?
All of them wrote pretty silly pieces about the need to stop Sarah Olson from testifying. Those were silly, little columns that made wonder if they were written by silly, little men? Their silly, little actions didn't accomplish anything. However, Ehren Watada did take action to prevent any journalist from having to testify. In all the "We Did It!" nonsense that followed, I didn't see credit going where it was due, to Ehren Watada.
Do these men have children of their own? (Donahue does but his column on Olson was so shaky that I honestly didn't believe he even knew what he was writing about.) I do have children, eight of them, and I can very easily identify with Carolyn Ho, Ehren Watada's mother. She didn't want her son to take this stand. Not because she didn't believe in the stand, but because she knew it would be a lonely stand and he would be punished for it.
If you have children and they've taken a stand on anything, you know those mixed emotions. You're proud to see that you've raised someone with courage who won't just go along because it's the easy thing to do. But you're also scared for them because you're ticking off all the things that will come their way because of standing up.
It's a real conflict, as you know if you've gone through it, because your child is putting into practice what you've tried to teah them but there will be fallout for that. And you don't want to see them hurt. With my own kids, I've always caught my tongue in time to just praise them. But as soon as my husband and I were alone, the first question I would ask him would be, "Why can't someone else stand up?"
Ehren Watada is a very brave young man and his mother is a very brave woman who must be driving herself ragged as she speaks anywhere and every where she can to be sure we're all aware of what is coming down Monday. That's two days away and it would take a miracle at this point to stop the court-martial.
I don't see any miracle coming and I don't see any "saints" in the majority of the supposedly brave, supposedly independent media. I noted recently that I was done with The Nation. I am done with it. I don't see it ever changing in my lifetime. It refuses to cover the war resisters (I read print and don't call those silly little paragraphs by Marc Cooper -- a sidebar -- "covering" -- especially not after they appear one page after Ehren Watada is called a coward in the main article). It is a worthless magazine written by apparent cowards who cannot stand up. It has failed us on the war and it has failed war resisters. When the editor and publisher's child takes a stand, my hope is that it will be greeted with the same silence and lack of support that the magazine has given to Ehren Watada. She is a coward for allowing the magazine to stay silent.
May she also get seasick on her summer cruise.
I used to think she was a brave voice but it is in the standing when you need to stand that proves bravery. In her case, the silence has demonstrated that she's not a leader, she's not brave and she is useless. Since Katrina vanden Heuvel is a relatively young woman, the magazine will be useless for many years to come.
It is banned from our home because we take the war seriously and we want it to end. We respect Ehren Watada and we think he deserves support that independent media has largely failed to give him. I'm from a large family, I have a large family of my own. The word of mouth on The Nation's cowardly behavior will be difficult to overcome. My father is even more vocal about this than I am. In my church there is shock over the fact that The Nation would not stand up for Ehren Watada (there is also disgust as people are beginning to learn how few women the magazine will print articles by -- the figure is basically four men printed for every one woman). The Nation's taking a hit and that's going to gather and gather due to their own fault. Their image is now poor and that will spread and spread. As they've decided to ape other publications that offer mash notes to Democrats, they will find their circulation dropping to the same low numbers. It was the left (or 'left') magazine with the highest circulation. It has already taken a hit and will continue to do so. That's their own fault because they have refused to cover Ehren Watada and topics that matter. Instead, they offer one useless magazine after another as they gear up for their summer cruise.
"Summer cruise." During war time. My father is fond of pointing out all the things they had to give up during WWII and asking exactly why The Nation feels "cruises" are the answer? Because they're useless and they're run by a useless woman who wants to be in a position of power even though she has no idea how to use power.
Here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" from Friday:
Friday, February 2, 2007. Chaos and violence continue in Iraq, a US helicopter is shot down in Iraq, Ehren Watada's court-martial is scheduled to take place in three days, 'civil war' to describe Iraq becomes a less loaded term and the myth of Najaf continues to be dispelled.
Starting with Ehren Watada who became the first comissioned officer to publicly refuse to deploy to Iraq in June and now faces a court-martial in Fort Lewis, Washington on Monday.
Daisuke Wakabayashi (Reuters) says the case "could determine the limits of free-speech rights for officers." Dean Paton (Christian Science Monitor) takes a look at the life that led up to the brave stand: "When it came time for Watada to enlist, he was diagnosed with asthma and declared physically unfit. He paid $800 to have an outside test done and was accepted into the Army's college-option program. He completed basic training in June 2003, and went to Officer Candidate School in South Carolina. He emerged 14 weeks later as a 2nd lieutenant." Ben Hamamoto (The Nichi Bei Times) reports on some of the activities Carolyn Ho has been taking part in to raise awareness of her son including suggesting people write letters to Congress, sign petitions (one is at Ehren Watada's site) and "post signs demanding that the military drop the charges and allow Watada to resign" because, Ho stated, "The way this resolves itself will speak to the soldiers and tell them whether or not they are being supported and it will speak to the politicians as to how we feel about the war (and soldiers' rights)."
Diane Kay (The Maine Campus) traces his life from college to speaking out: "Watada was a finance major, and graduated magna cum laude. The war in Iraq had just begun, and Watada, like many Americans, believed that Iraq posed a real threat to the United States, had WMDs and was connected to Sept. 11. He entered the U.S. Army officer candidate program following graduation to pursue a career in the military. Watada served in Korea in 2003 and 2004, earned the rank of lieutenant, and received excellent reviews of his work by his superior officers. In 2005, Lt. Watada and his unit returned to the United States, and were stationed in Ft. Lewis, Wash. Lt. Watada knew that his unit would eventually be deployed to Iraq, and he began to study as much as he could to prepare himself and his unit for deployment." This is where Ehren Watada starts to learn about the Bully Boy's lies of war. He had been assigned to Iraq. It was his duty (and superiors encouraged him in it) to study up so that he would be more effective and also able to answer questions from those serving under him (big one: "Why are we even here?"). It took the American people (many, not all) time to wake up to the lies of war and that didn't happen overnight. (Nor did it happen via the media as Liza Featherstone laughably suggests in The Nation. But then how would she know about the Downing Street Memos -- which The New York Review of Books, not The Nation, published. Jessica Lee, of the Indypendent, covers what Featherstone can't or won't -- click here.) What happened in the United States was activists and some journalists and publications pursued the topic (again, really not The Nation -- they had food issues and environmental issues and so much more to cover -- which is why they've never once written of the gang rape and murder of 14-year-old Abeer). People carved out a space for it and certainly Cindy Sheehan took it up a notch.
All that was needed for the lies to be exposed and the public to turn against the war. Ehren Watada was not in the United States. He was stationed in Korea. And it's really important to remember that. Many who've served in Iraq have seen the lies fall away before their eyes (which reality will do) but in terms of how the war was sold, don't think that troops serving overseas are getting the same media that those in the United States do. In the lead up to his announcing his decision to his mother on January 1, 2006, he was cramming in three-plus years worth of information, reporting, critiques, etc. Which is why Hatsue Katsura of El Cerrito notes to The Contra Costa Times: "It was a gradual awareness and realization of facts about the war that were publicly disclosed over time. It became obvious our administration lacked reliable intelligence and was lying to justify an illegal and immoral war.I respect and support Watada for his decision. By refusing to obey orders, he knew he'd probably face a jail sentence. But he responded to a higher calling to serve his fellow man as an American and a world citizen."
Or, as Ehren Watada asked Daisuke Wakabayashi, "When you have leaders that are unaccountable, who have already deceived people over something as serious as war and are willing to do it again, you have to ask yourself, 'where do you stand?'" Or, as he explained to Judith Scherr (Berkeley Daily Planet), "I'm willing to go to prison for what I believe in. . . .
I've taken an oath to defend the constitution, I must be willing to sacrifice."
That sacrifice shouldn't involve sacrificing the truth of his story so possibly some might need to correct Tom Zeller Jr. (New York Times) who writes: "But Lieutenant Watada is no ordinary deserter, and he did not claim to be a conscientious objector." Ehren Watada is "no oridinary deserter" -- in fact, he's no deserter of any kind. Not since Zeller Jr. dismissed concerns over the Ohio vote immediately after the 2004 election has he seemed so out of touch with what he is supposed to be covering. Watada isn't a deserter. He refused to deploy. That is not desertion. He is not charged with desertion. Since he refused deployment, he has reported to the base for work every day. Zeller's fact-free approach to reporting made him a laughing stock in 2004 (all the more so with the recent Ohio convictions on voter fraud in the 2004 election) and he's obviously more concerned with maintaining that status. So let's speak slowly for Zeller Jr.: Desertion follows AWOL. AWOL is what most are charged with if they are gone for less than thirty days. Watada is not charged with desertion because he never went AWOL. He has been at Fort Lewis for every scheduled hour since he went public. He is not a deserter and the fact-free approach of Zeller's is not reporting. If the Junior Zeller is still confused, someone can refer him to the reporting of Andrew Buncombe (Independent of London): "When Lt Watada refused to go to Iraq last summer the army charged him with missing movement -- for failing to deploy -- as well as several counts of conduct unbecoming an officer."
Amnesty International has issued a press release entitled "USA: War objector's freedom of conscience must be respected" which notes: "'If found guilty, Amnesty International would consider Ehren Watada to be a prisoner of conscience and call for his immediate and unconditional release', said Susan Lee, Amnesty International's Americas Programme Director. 28-year-old Army Lieutenant Ehren Watada faces a possible four year prison sentence on charges of 'missing movement' -- due to his refusal to deploy to Iraq in June 2006 -- and of 'conduct unbecoming an officer' --- because of his public comments regarding his objections to the war in Iraq. Ehren Watada has stated that his refusal is based on his belief that the Iraq war is illegal and immoral. In a pre-court martial hearing held on 16 January, a military judge ruled that he could not base his defence on the legality of the war in Iraq." As Amnesty International steps up to the plate and The Nation plays useless, is it any wonder that so many are starting to believe organizations are more worthy of their dollars than those in independent media who make themselves useless?
As noted, Watada will not be allowed to present a defense. Lt. Col. 'Judge" Head will preside. A military jury will render the verdict on the charges. The hearing itself is expected to go rather quickly since the 'judge' has disallowed Watada's right to present a defense. (The August Article 32 hearing went quickly, since witnesses like Ann Wright, Denis Halliday and Frances Boyle will not be allowed to testify for Watada this time, it's expected to be over in a couple of hours.)
Suzanne Goldenberg (Guardian of London) interviewed Watada who told her, "It was so shocking to me. I guess I had heard about WMD and that we made a terrible, terrible mistake. Mistakes can happen but to think that it was deliberate and that a careful deception was done on the American people -- you just had to question who you are as a serviceman, as an American."
Saturday, Ehren Watada will be speaking:
Your last opportunity to hear from Lt. Watada
in person prior to his military court martial!!
Saturday, February 3, 7 PM
University Temple United Methodist Church
1415 NE 43rd Street,
Seattle WA(next to the University Bookstore).
$10 suggested donation for the event.
No one will be turned away.
In addition, his mother, Carolyn Ho, will be speaking Saturday in Little Tokyo (in Los Angeles) at an event Saturday organized by the Asian Emrican Veterans Organization (event starts with a meet up march at the intersection of San Pedro and Second at 4:00 pm)..
More information on all events can be found by clicking here.
Watada is a part of a movement of resistance with the military that includes others such as Agustin Aguayo (whose court-martial is currently set to begin on March 6th), Kyle Snyder, Darrell Anderson, Ivan Brobeck, Ricky Clousing, Aidan Delgado, Mark Wilkerson, Joshua Key, Camilo Meija, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Jeremy Hinzman, Corey Glass, Patrick Hart, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Katherine Jashinski, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell and Kevin Benderman. In total, thirty-eight US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.
Information on war resistance within the military can be found at Center on Conscience & War, The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline, and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters.
Again, the court-martial beings Monday. Courage to Resist lists actions taking place at Fort Lewis and elsewhere. They note that the court-martial is open to the public (you need to get a visitors pass), will be held (at Fort Lewis base) in Building 2027 and that the proceedings are scheduled to begin at 9:00 am.
And Iraq Veterans Against the War are staging actions throughout the weekend:
Friday, February 2nd through Monday, February 5th, the day of Lt. Ehren Watada's court-martial, IVAW's Olympia Chapter and IVAW Deployed will be holding a series of events/fundraisers in order to raise awareness on the importance and details of Ehren's action, and subsequently, his court-martial.
We will show up on the day of Ehren'' trial with a presence and message that cannot be ignored nor denied. Our message is simple: George W. Bush and those who choose to partake in war crimes are the people that should be on trial. Lt. Ehren Watada's argument is legitimate and should be adopted by all who might be given unlawful orders.
Yesterday on KFPA's Flashpoints, co-host Nora Barrows Friedman interviewed Dahr Jamail about the Najaf massacre. "What we do know for sure according to Iraqi doctors," Darh explained, that "253 killed and another 210 wounded." Jamail described the people in the region as wanting to self-govern and that "members of the tribes were starting to stand up because they want to be self-governing". The violence started with a tribal leader and his wife being gunned down which is a far cry from "the bogus story about a Shia messianic cult" plotting and conspiring to kill clerics.
Dahr Jamail and Ali al-Fadhily have covered many details of the Najaf story (see "Official Lies Over Najaf Battle Exposed") and Stan Goff (Huffington Post) notes their work and compares the lies of Najaf (from the US government and from the mainstream media) to the 'glory' days of Centcom past: "They were dead at the hands of the US and its sketchy Iraqi armed forces 'allies,' and one of the perennial CENTCOM lies of the day is that every Iraqi who dies during any US operation is an 'insurgent' or a 'gunman.' In fact, most of them were religious pilgrims who were gunned down without any provocation . . . more then 200 of them. This was no 'battle.' It was a massacre. The dead were religious pilgrims, not a 'cult.' All of us should figure it out, especially news people, that urban guerillas do not concentrate in groups of 200-plus, and that any time we learn that more than 200 people have been killed, it is a pretty good bet that they were mostly civilians.
Dahr also spoke of what happened in Baquba which had been a "very mixed town" for Shias and Sunnis prior to the illegal war but "just weeks after the fall of Baghdad in April 2003" the US military "brought together all of the religous leaders into a tent" in Baquba and had Shia and Sunnis go to opposite sides which is the sort of division that the US created and cemented and which some politicians (such as US Senator Joe Biden) favor: splitting Iraq into three regions (Kurds, Sunnis and Shi'ites). What Dahr spoke of echoes what MADRE's Yanar Mohammed witnessed and discussed with Laura Flanders on the December 9th broadcast of RadioNation with Laura Flanders -- after the invasion, all Iraqis faced one question when dealing with the occupation government (Americans): "Are you Shia or Sunni?"
That helped solidify divisions and conflicts. Today, Karen deYoung and Walter Pincuse (Washington Post) broke the news of the latest National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq which found the biggest obstacle in Iraq today to be the sectarian conflict. David Morgan (Reuters) reports: "Escalating violence between Iraqi Sunnis and Shi'ites met the definition for a civil war, but the politically charged term did not describe all the chaos in Iraq, the report said. . . . An unclassified version of the NIE's key judgments said the term civil war 'accurately describes key elements of the Iraqi conflict, including the hardening of ethno-sectarian identities, a sea change in the character of the violence and population displacements'."
In Iraq today, CNN reports: "A U.S. Apache helicopter went down Friday in Iraq, killing two American soldiers, the military said. It was the fourth helicopter to crash in two weeks.
The U.S. military recovered the soldiers' remains and secured the site northwest of Baghdad near Taji. The number of U.S. military fatalities in the Iraq war stands at 3,090, including seven civilian contractors of the Defense Department." For those who've forgotten, New Year's Eve brought the news that the count of US troops killed in Iraq since the start of the illegal war had reached 3,000. For those who've missed it, helicopters have been coming down in Iraq for some time. "Crash landings" and "emergency landings" and no press follow up to determine what happened. In January, that finally began to change. The helicopter that went down today was shot down. This morning, Ernesto Londono (Washington Post) reported, "An American helicopter crashed north of Baghdad Friday morning, and an Iraqi police spokesman said it had been downed by a shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missile." AP confirms it was shot down: "A U.S. Army helicopter crashed Friday in a hail of gunfire north of Baghdad, police and witnesses said -- the fourth lost in Iraq in the last two weeks. The U.S. command said two crew members were killed, and the top U.S. general conceded that insurgent ground fire has become more effective." Note that it was brought down with gunfire. As has happened before but the flacks for the military have dismissed crashes resulting from gunfire and have maintained that the 'hardware' needed to down helicopters just wasn't to be found in Iraq. Such claims fly in the face of reality, of memories of Vietnam and of your average action adventure film that features helicopters. It's taken some time for the mainstream press to address the realities that, yes, helicopters can be shot down with gunfire.
Bombings?
Sahar Al Shawi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports two bombings in Baghdad that left three people wounded, three people wounded in Kadhimiya "as a result of a Katiosha missile aimed at the area today", and three people wounded in Khalis from a mortar attack.
Kim Gamel (AP) notes a roadside bombing in Mosul that killed one police officer.
And Alexandra Zavis (Los Angeles Times) reports that the death toll for the two bombings in Hilla yesterday has now reached "at least 73 killed and 152 injured".
Shootings?
Sahar Al Shawi (McClatchy Newspapers) notes that yesterday's shooting of the Dean of the College of Physical Education (Walhan Hameed Al-Timimi) and his son was carried out "in full view of the teachers on campus" at Dyala University and that some are pointing the "finger at the President of the univeristy, Dr. Alla' Al-Atbi, saying that he is involved with armed groups and facilitates their tasks by setting up targets and doing nothing in way of calling for assistance if any attacks took place".
Kim Gamel (AP) reports that "Sunni chairman of the Fallujah City Council, Abbas Ali Hussein" was shot dead.
Corpses?
CNN reports that 32 corpses were discovered in Baghdad today.
Lastly, on CounterSpin today, John Nichols discussed Molly Ivins passing and worried that Ivins, whose columns were the most heavily circulated progressive ones in newspapers around the world, death would mean the space would go blank (of course, it could also go to a right-winger or centrist) so he suggested that if your local paper carried Ivins' columns, you contact them and ask that they continue to carry a progressive column. To go one further, Molly Ivins was one of the few women to make the top twenty most widely circulated columnists. So if you want to continue to see columns that address reality and you'd like to see a woman continue to be represented on the op-ed pages, you can ask your local paper to carry Amy Goodman (of Democracy Now!). Goodman's doing a weekly column now. I personally doubt that top 10 lists make for worthy or even "good" reading. Molly Ivins stood for something in each column (and humor was a part of it though Nichols wanted to downgrade it -- don't stand by him at a party). It's not just that any progressive voice is needed (or liberal voice), it's one that will use the space well. Goodman's demonstrated that she intends to tackle real topics. Goodman's columns can be found many places and Common Dreams is one. That said, if you're recommending that it be picked up to a newspaper, you need to note a paper that provides the column. "Resistance to war cannot be jailed" is Goodman's most recent column and the link takes you to The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. If you're pitching Goodman to your local paper, you should also note that she wrote (with her brother David) two bestselling hardcover books (Exception to the Rulers and Static) (say "New York Times bestsellers") and that she is an award winning journalist (George Polk Award, Aflred I. duPont-Columbia University Award, Robert F. Kennedy Prize for International Reporting and is the 2006 RECIPIENT OF THE PUFFIN/NATION PRIZE FOR CREATIVE CITIZENSHIP). You should also note that she hosts (with Juan Gonzalez) Democracy Now! which is broadcast on over 500 radio stations around the world as well as online and as a podcast. Also stress that Ivins wrote a weekly column and Goodman does as well. (Important because, from time to time, a columnist may choose to do a series of columns -- think Bob Herbert -- and newspapers with a weekly slot now open aren't going to want to fill it with a twice weekly column when they only have one day open each week.)
Amy Goodman is my personal choice. Members may have their own choice. If your choice is someone else, e-mail and we'll figure out the best way to present to present your choice to your local paper. But it is not enough to say, as John Nichols did, demand a progressive voice. (He may have been trying to leave it up to listeners or may not have wanted to pick one person over another.) You need to provide a concrete example otherwise you may find that the same editorial boards that boast Thomas Friedman is a liberal (I'm referring to his column in syndication -- the Times is stuck with him) have a very different idea than you do of what "progressive" or "liberal" is. This isn't something you wait on. The op-eds are 'valuable real estate' and they have a fast turn over. Once a spot is occupied, it is very difficult to get a paper to drop a columnist. (Complaints are sometimes seen as 'proof' of how many people read the columnist.) (Sometimes it is proof -- sometimes it's just a sign of how bored and tired readers are with the same-old, same-old.)
iraq
ehren watada
the washington postkaren deyoungwalter pincus
radionation with laura flanderslaura flandersben hamamotodean patondiane kay
dahr jamailflashpointskpfa
nora barrows friedman
ali al-fadhily
the new york times
counterspin
amy goodmandemocracy now
EASY BLACK BEAN CHILI ON RICE
These small black beans are also called turtle beans. Their deep black color looks most striking when contrasted with the bright red of tomatoes and the white of sour cream.
Preparation time: 15 min Cooking time: 10 min
Yield: 4 servings
Chili Ingredients:
2 teaspoons Land O Lakes Butter
1 large (1 cup) onion, chopped
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh garlic
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed, drained
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons canned chopped green chiles
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 cups hot cooked rice
Topping Ingredients:
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/3 cup light or fat free sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Melt butter in 2-quart saucepan; add onions and garlic. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and lightly browned (5 minutes). Add beans, tomato sauce, chili powder, chiles and cumin. Continue cooking until heated through (5 minutes). Serve over hot cooked rice. Top with tomato, sour cream and cilantro. TIP: Chili can be served over baked potatoes, pasta or grains.
The recipe is a very good one in that it's simple to make and the final result tastes wonderful.
While I do use Land O Lakes Butter, I know nothing about their sour cream -- I'm not even sure I've even seen it. So I've changed the plug for that product to just "sour cream."
Gillian loves the recipe and, if you make it, I'm sure you will too.
You can use dried beans you cook yourself or fresh tomatoes instead of canned.
Can you tell I'm uncomfortable? I'm not with the results of the recipe, I just wondered about promoting Land O Lakes which I know nothing about (in terms of who owns them)? I think there's more than enough marketing in the real world and certainly in cooking. When someone shares a recipe, if it includes "Campbells Soup" that usually goes up here and I'll note you can use another soup brand. But this is a recipe put out by Land O Lakes to promote Land O Lakes products.
If you're cooking in your home, you are probably aware that many packages will contain offers for 'free' cookbooks. That's really something you send in for in your early days. You end up burned very quickly. They really aren't recipes, they're actually catalogues for the company's products. I think Kraft, for instance, would have a better image among people who do cook if they're "cookbooks" weren't a bunch of plugs for their own products.
"Kraft" on the cover is more than enough, to go through recipes that list one Kraft product after another is not only overkill, it's annoying. It turns people off. If Kraft really wants to be in our kitchen, they could offer 'free' cookbooks that actually contained useable recipes. These days, with six children already living on their own and two who are still home, I no longer go through that monthly pang of, "I need to find something new!" In the earliest days, that would pop up.
I still add recipes all the time but I'm talking about the panic and guessing some of you know what I mean. Maybe something burned and you're obsessed over that or maybe something else in your life isn't going all that well and you think, "Well I can cook. I'll focus on that right now."
When that happened to me, I would go on The Great Recipe Search and, if you've done that, you realize very quickly that some recipes are nothing but product promotion. Sometimes they end up with a recipe that's edible but the primary goal seems to be to get you rushing to the grocery store to buy up all their products.
That's insulting for a number of reasons including the fact that there are usually less expensive alternatives and there are usually fresh alternatives. If a company is selling canned goods, don't expect their cookbook to contain a lot of recipes for fresh fruits and vegetables.
Now I've been there where a 'free' cookbook wasn't only a nice thing but something that worked into my budget. I'd be excited when it arrived and eager to flip through the pages. The result would be heavily processed ingredients that had no real nutritional value and that also cost quite a bit more than if you'd used fresh. So they want you to pay the costs twice: pay the financial cost to spend more for their own products and pay the health costs for cooking dishes that are based on heavily processed foods where the vitamins, bran, et al has been stripped from them.
I do like the recipe above (and I did substitute fresh tomatoes). But I also think it's a way for us to think about the product placement and about the food industry.
I can actually do a plug here. I recently finished reading Frances Moore Lappe's Democracy's Edge. I've noted her book Diet for a Small Planet here (many times) and I strongly recommend this book. It's a big book, 317 pages. I was trying to get a friend to read it and she wasn't interested. The size and scope intimidated her. (I'm not referring to Elaine who enjoys tackling any book. I believe Rebecca noted that Elaine and I both enjoyed it and I'm not referring to Rebecca here either.) I was a little depressed by that because I thought the book addressed issues that my friend was concerned about and I love the book. I mentioned that in passing to C.I., who also loves the book, and got a wonderful suggestion: Get a friend to read one chapter they're interested in.
Not the first chapter. If the book intimidates them, encourage them to find a chapter on a topic they enjoy and read that. If nothing else, they'll have the one chapter but sometimes, if a book has a large scope, it can be intimidating to some people. I hadn't thought of that and that was my foolish mistake. My son Mike does that all of the time now (because C.I. had passed on the tip to him awhile back when he was having difficulty with one of his college text books).
I tried that with my friend and she went with chapter ten ("Learning") which she enjoyed so much she decided to pick another chapter. She ended up reading the entire book that way. It's a wonderful book that's addressing serious issues of how we are made to fit and telling us how we need to make the world fit us, not the other way around. The sections on the media will probably interest some easily. But I know that people don't always have time for reading and when the topic is a serious one (wonderfully executed by the author) and the pages go over a certain mark, people can feel intimidated or think, "I've got to clean, I've got to do this, I've got to do that, when am I going to have the time for a book?"
This is a book you should make the time for and if the size of Democracy's Edge intimidates you and starting from page one doesn't propell you through, grab a chapter that interests you and work your way around the book. I really think you'll enjoy it.
This week, Molly Ivins passed away and we also saw the month end with 90 US troops being killed in Iraq. (That was the AFP count.) With the illegal war continuing, the loss of Ivins was even greater because it wasn't the case of just losing a wonderful voice with something to say, but also the case of losing someone who grasped how serious the war was and how little media -- big and small -- tended to care. She had made a pledge to cover Iraq in her columns and it's a pledge I haven't heard any of the 'big voices' honoring her these last few days say they'd pick up. Which is why I find most of the honoring to be mere words, lip service, and hollow.
It's also true that a young man, Ehren Watada, faces a court-martial for refusing to fight in the illegal war. His court-martial is Monday and I haven't seen Norman Solomon, Phil Donahue, John Nichols, John Stauber or Marc Cooper rush to weigh in on the need to stand up for him this past week. Have you?
All of them wrote pretty silly pieces about the need to stop Sarah Olson from testifying. Those were silly, little columns that made wonder if they were written by silly, little men? Their silly, little actions didn't accomplish anything. However, Ehren Watada did take action to prevent any journalist from having to testify. In all the "We Did It!" nonsense that followed, I didn't see credit going where it was due, to Ehren Watada.
Do these men have children of their own? (Donahue does but his column on Olson was so shaky that I honestly didn't believe he even knew what he was writing about.) I do have children, eight of them, and I can very easily identify with Carolyn Ho, Ehren Watada's mother. She didn't want her son to take this stand. Not because she didn't believe in the stand, but because she knew it would be a lonely stand and he would be punished for it.
If you have children and they've taken a stand on anything, you know those mixed emotions. You're proud to see that you've raised someone with courage who won't just go along because it's the easy thing to do. But you're also scared for them because you're ticking off all the things that will come their way because of standing up.
It's a real conflict, as you know if you've gone through it, because your child is putting into practice what you've tried to teah them but there will be fallout for that. And you don't want to see them hurt. With my own kids, I've always caught my tongue in time to just praise them. But as soon as my husband and I were alone, the first question I would ask him would be, "Why can't someone else stand up?"
Ehren Watada is a very brave young man and his mother is a very brave woman who must be driving herself ragged as she speaks anywhere and every where she can to be sure we're all aware of what is coming down Monday. That's two days away and it would take a miracle at this point to stop the court-martial.
I don't see any miracle coming and I don't see any "saints" in the majority of the supposedly brave, supposedly independent media. I noted recently that I was done with The Nation. I am done with it. I don't see it ever changing in my lifetime. It refuses to cover the war resisters (I read print and don't call those silly little paragraphs by Marc Cooper -- a sidebar -- "covering" -- especially not after they appear one page after Ehren Watada is called a coward in the main article). It is a worthless magazine written by apparent cowards who cannot stand up. It has failed us on the war and it has failed war resisters. When the editor and publisher's child takes a stand, my hope is that it will be greeted with the same silence and lack of support that the magazine has given to Ehren Watada. She is a coward for allowing the magazine to stay silent.
May she also get seasick on her summer cruise.
I used to think she was a brave voice but it is in the standing when you need to stand that proves bravery. In her case, the silence has demonstrated that she's not a leader, she's not brave and she is useless. Since Katrina vanden Heuvel is a relatively young woman, the magazine will be useless for many years to come.
It is banned from our home because we take the war seriously and we want it to end. We respect Ehren Watada and we think he deserves support that independent media has largely failed to give him. I'm from a large family, I have a large family of my own. The word of mouth on The Nation's cowardly behavior will be difficult to overcome. My father is even more vocal about this than I am. In my church there is shock over the fact that The Nation would not stand up for Ehren Watada (there is also disgust as people are beginning to learn how few women the magazine will print articles by -- the figure is basically four men printed for every one woman). The Nation's taking a hit and that's going to gather and gather due to their own fault. Their image is now poor and that will spread and spread. As they've decided to ape other publications that offer mash notes to Democrats, they will find their circulation dropping to the same low numbers. It was the left (or 'left') magazine with the highest circulation. It has already taken a hit and will continue to do so. That's their own fault because they have refused to cover Ehren Watada and topics that matter. Instead, they offer one useless magazine after another as they gear up for their summer cruise.
"Summer cruise." During war time. My father is fond of pointing out all the things they had to give up during WWII and asking exactly why The Nation feels "cruises" are the answer? Because they're useless and they're run by a useless woman who wants to be in a position of power even though she has no idea how to use power.
Here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" from Friday:
Friday, February 2, 2007. Chaos and violence continue in Iraq, a US helicopter is shot down in Iraq, Ehren Watada's court-martial is scheduled to take place in three days, 'civil war' to describe Iraq becomes a less loaded term and the myth of Najaf continues to be dispelled.
Starting with Ehren Watada who became the first comissioned officer to publicly refuse to deploy to Iraq in June and now faces a court-martial in Fort Lewis, Washington on Monday.
Daisuke Wakabayashi (Reuters) says the case "could determine the limits of free-speech rights for officers." Dean Paton (Christian Science Monitor) takes a look at the life that led up to the brave stand: "When it came time for Watada to enlist, he was diagnosed with asthma and declared physically unfit. He paid $800 to have an outside test done and was accepted into the Army's college-option program. He completed basic training in June 2003, and went to Officer Candidate School in South Carolina. He emerged 14 weeks later as a 2nd lieutenant." Ben Hamamoto (The Nichi Bei Times) reports on some of the activities Carolyn Ho has been taking part in to raise awareness of her son including suggesting people write letters to Congress, sign petitions (one is at Ehren Watada's site) and "post signs demanding that the military drop the charges and allow Watada to resign" because, Ho stated, "The way this resolves itself will speak to the soldiers and tell them whether or not they are being supported and it will speak to the politicians as to how we feel about the war (and soldiers' rights)."
Diane Kay (The Maine Campus) traces his life from college to speaking out: "Watada was a finance major, and graduated magna cum laude. The war in Iraq had just begun, and Watada, like many Americans, believed that Iraq posed a real threat to the United States, had WMDs and was connected to Sept. 11. He entered the U.S. Army officer candidate program following graduation to pursue a career in the military. Watada served in Korea in 2003 and 2004, earned the rank of lieutenant, and received excellent reviews of his work by his superior officers. In 2005, Lt. Watada and his unit returned to the United States, and were stationed in Ft. Lewis, Wash. Lt. Watada knew that his unit would eventually be deployed to Iraq, and he began to study as much as he could to prepare himself and his unit for deployment." This is where Ehren Watada starts to learn about the Bully Boy's lies of war. He had been assigned to Iraq. It was his duty (and superiors encouraged him in it) to study up so that he would be more effective and also able to answer questions from those serving under him (big one: "Why are we even here?"). It took the American people (many, not all) time to wake up to the lies of war and that didn't happen overnight. (Nor did it happen via the media as Liza Featherstone laughably suggests in The Nation. But then how would she know about the Downing Street Memos -- which The New York Review of Books, not The Nation, published. Jessica Lee, of the Indypendent, covers what Featherstone can't or won't -- click here.) What happened in the United States was activists and some journalists and publications pursued the topic (again, really not The Nation -- they had food issues and environmental issues and so much more to cover -- which is why they've never once written of the gang rape and murder of 14-year-old Abeer). People carved out a space for it and certainly Cindy Sheehan took it up a notch.
All that was needed for the lies to be exposed and the public to turn against the war. Ehren Watada was not in the United States. He was stationed in Korea. And it's really important to remember that. Many who've served in Iraq have seen the lies fall away before their eyes (which reality will do) but in terms of how the war was sold, don't think that troops serving overseas are getting the same media that those in the United States do. In the lead up to his announcing his decision to his mother on January 1, 2006, he was cramming in three-plus years worth of information, reporting, critiques, etc. Which is why Hatsue Katsura of El Cerrito notes to The Contra Costa Times: "It was a gradual awareness and realization of facts about the war that were publicly disclosed over time. It became obvious our administration lacked reliable intelligence and was lying to justify an illegal and immoral war.I respect and support Watada for his decision. By refusing to obey orders, he knew he'd probably face a jail sentence. But he responded to a higher calling to serve his fellow man as an American and a world citizen."
Or, as Ehren Watada asked Daisuke Wakabayashi, "When you have leaders that are unaccountable, who have already deceived people over something as serious as war and are willing to do it again, you have to ask yourself, 'where do you stand?'" Or, as he explained to Judith Scherr (Berkeley Daily Planet), "I'm willing to go to prison for what I believe in. . . .
I've taken an oath to defend the constitution, I must be willing to sacrifice."
That sacrifice shouldn't involve sacrificing the truth of his story so possibly some might need to correct Tom Zeller Jr. (New York Times) who writes: "But Lieutenant Watada is no ordinary deserter, and he did not claim to be a conscientious objector." Ehren Watada is "no oridinary deserter" -- in fact, he's no deserter of any kind. Not since Zeller Jr. dismissed concerns over the Ohio vote immediately after the 2004 election has he seemed so out of touch with what he is supposed to be covering. Watada isn't a deserter. He refused to deploy. That is not desertion. He is not charged with desertion. Since he refused deployment, he has reported to the base for work every day. Zeller's fact-free approach to reporting made him a laughing stock in 2004 (all the more so with the recent Ohio convictions on voter fraud in the 2004 election) and he's obviously more concerned with maintaining that status. So let's speak slowly for Zeller Jr.: Desertion follows AWOL. AWOL is what most are charged with if they are gone for less than thirty days. Watada is not charged with desertion because he never went AWOL. He has been at Fort Lewis for every scheduled hour since he went public. He is not a deserter and the fact-free approach of Zeller's is not reporting. If the Junior Zeller is still confused, someone can refer him to the reporting of Andrew Buncombe (Independent of London): "When Lt Watada refused to go to Iraq last summer the army charged him with missing movement -- for failing to deploy -- as well as several counts of conduct unbecoming an officer."
Amnesty International has issued a press release entitled "USA: War objector's freedom of conscience must be respected" which notes: "'If found guilty, Amnesty International would consider Ehren Watada to be a prisoner of conscience and call for his immediate and unconditional release', said Susan Lee, Amnesty International's Americas Programme Director. 28-year-old Army Lieutenant Ehren Watada faces a possible four year prison sentence on charges of 'missing movement' -- due to his refusal to deploy to Iraq in June 2006 -- and of 'conduct unbecoming an officer' --- because of his public comments regarding his objections to the war in Iraq. Ehren Watada has stated that his refusal is based on his belief that the Iraq war is illegal and immoral. In a pre-court martial hearing held on 16 January, a military judge ruled that he could not base his defence on the legality of the war in Iraq." As Amnesty International steps up to the plate and The Nation plays useless, is it any wonder that so many are starting to believe organizations are more worthy of their dollars than those in independent media who make themselves useless?
As noted, Watada will not be allowed to present a defense. Lt. Col. 'Judge" Head will preside. A military jury will render the verdict on the charges. The hearing itself is expected to go rather quickly since the 'judge' has disallowed Watada's right to present a defense. (The August Article 32 hearing went quickly, since witnesses like Ann Wright, Denis Halliday and Frances Boyle will not be allowed to testify for Watada this time, it's expected to be over in a couple of hours.)
Suzanne Goldenberg (Guardian of London) interviewed Watada who told her, "It was so shocking to me. I guess I had heard about WMD and that we made a terrible, terrible mistake. Mistakes can happen but to think that it was deliberate and that a careful deception was done on the American people -- you just had to question who you are as a serviceman, as an American."
Saturday, Ehren Watada will be speaking:
Your last opportunity to hear from Lt. Watada
in person prior to his military court martial!!
Saturday, February 3, 7 PM
University Temple United Methodist Church
1415 NE 43rd Street,
Seattle WA(next to the University Bookstore).
$10 suggested donation for the event.
No one will be turned away.
In addition, his mother, Carolyn Ho, will be speaking Saturday in Little Tokyo (in Los Angeles) at an event Saturday organized by the Asian Emrican Veterans Organization (event starts with a meet up march at the intersection of San Pedro and Second at 4:00 pm)..
More information on all events can be found by clicking here.
Watada is a part of a movement of resistance with the military that includes others such as Agustin Aguayo (whose court-martial is currently set to begin on March 6th), Kyle Snyder, Darrell Anderson, Ivan Brobeck, Ricky Clousing, Aidan Delgado, Mark Wilkerson, Joshua Key, Camilo Meija, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Jeremy Hinzman, Corey Glass, Patrick Hart, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Katherine Jashinski, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell and Kevin Benderman. In total, thirty-eight US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.
Information on war resistance within the military can be found at Center on Conscience & War, The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline, and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters.
Again, the court-martial beings Monday. Courage to Resist lists actions taking place at Fort Lewis and elsewhere. They note that the court-martial is open to the public (you need to get a visitors pass), will be held (at Fort Lewis base) in Building 2027 and that the proceedings are scheduled to begin at 9:00 am.
And Iraq Veterans Against the War are staging actions throughout the weekend:
Friday, February 2nd through Monday, February 5th, the day of Lt. Ehren Watada's court-martial, IVAW's Olympia Chapter and IVAW Deployed will be holding a series of events/fundraisers in order to raise awareness on the importance and details of Ehren's action, and subsequently, his court-martial.
We will show up on the day of Ehren'' trial with a presence and message that cannot be ignored nor denied. Our message is simple: George W. Bush and those who choose to partake in war crimes are the people that should be on trial. Lt. Ehren Watada's argument is legitimate and should be adopted by all who might be given unlawful orders.
Yesterday on KFPA's Flashpoints, co-host Nora Barrows Friedman interviewed Dahr Jamail about the Najaf massacre. "What we do know for sure according to Iraqi doctors," Darh explained, that "253 killed and another 210 wounded." Jamail described the people in the region as wanting to self-govern and that "members of the tribes were starting to stand up because they want to be self-governing". The violence started with a tribal leader and his wife being gunned down which is a far cry from "the bogus story about a Shia messianic cult" plotting and conspiring to kill clerics.
Dahr Jamail and Ali al-Fadhily have covered many details of the Najaf story (see "Official Lies Over Najaf Battle Exposed") and Stan Goff (Huffington Post) notes their work and compares the lies of Najaf (from the US government and from the mainstream media) to the 'glory' days of Centcom past: "They were dead at the hands of the US and its sketchy Iraqi armed forces 'allies,' and one of the perennial CENTCOM lies of the day is that every Iraqi who dies during any US operation is an 'insurgent' or a 'gunman.' In fact, most of them were religious pilgrims who were gunned down without any provocation . . . more then 200 of them. This was no 'battle.' It was a massacre. The dead were religious pilgrims, not a 'cult.' All of us should figure it out, especially news people, that urban guerillas do not concentrate in groups of 200-plus, and that any time we learn that more than 200 people have been killed, it is a pretty good bet that they were mostly civilians.
Dahr also spoke of what happened in Baquba which had been a "very mixed town" for Shias and Sunnis prior to the illegal war but "just weeks after the fall of Baghdad in April 2003" the US military "brought together all of the religous leaders into a tent" in Baquba and had Shia and Sunnis go to opposite sides which is the sort of division that the US created and cemented and which some politicians (such as US Senator Joe Biden) favor: splitting Iraq into three regions (Kurds, Sunnis and Shi'ites). What Dahr spoke of echoes what MADRE's Yanar Mohammed witnessed and discussed with Laura Flanders on the December 9th broadcast of RadioNation with Laura Flanders -- after the invasion, all Iraqis faced one question when dealing with the occupation government (Americans): "Are you Shia or Sunni?"
That helped solidify divisions and conflicts. Today, Karen deYoung and Walter Pincuse (Washington Post) broke the news of the latest National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq which found the biggest obstacle in Iraq today to be the sectarian conflict. David Morgan (Reuters) reports: "Escalating violence between Iraqi Sunnis and Shi'ites met the definition for a civil war, but the politically charged term did not describe all the chaos in Iraq, the report said. . . . An unclassified version of the NIE's key judgments said the term civil war 'accurately describes key elements of the Iraqi conflict, including the hardening of ethno-sectarian identities, a sea change in the character of the violence and population displacements'."
In Iraq today, CNN reports: "A U.S. Apache helicopter went down Friday in Iraq, killing two American soldiers, the military said. It was the fourth helicopter to crash in two weeks.
The U.S. military recovered the soldiers' remains and secured the site northwest of Baghdad near Taji. The number of U.S. military fatalities in the Iraq war stands at 3,090, including seven civilian contractors of the Defense Department." For those who've forgotten, New Year's Eve brought the news that the count of US troops killed in Iraq since the start of the illegal war had reached 3,000. For those who've missed it, helicopters have been coming down in Iraq for some time. "Crash landings" and "emergency landings" and no press follow up to determine what happened. In January, that finally began to change. The helicopter that went down today was shot down. This morning, Ernesto Londono (Washington Post) reported, "An American helicopter crashed north of Baghdad Friday morning, and an Iraqi police spokesman said it had been downed by a shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missile." AP confirms it was shot down: "A U.S. Army helicopter crashed Friday in a hail of gunfire north of Baghdad, police and witnesses said -- the fourth lost in Iraq in the last two weeks. The U.S. command said two crew members were killed, and the top U.S. general conceded that insurgent ground fire has become more effective." Note that it was brought down with gunfire. As has happened before but the flacks for the military have dismissed crashes resulting from gunfire and have maintained that the 'hardware' needed to down helicopters just wasn't to be found in Iraq. Such claims fly in the face of reality, of memories of Vietnam and of your average action adventure film that features helicopters. It's taken some time for the mainstream press to address the realities that, yes, helicopters can be shot down with gunfire.
Bombings?
Sahar Al Shawi (McClatchy Newspapers) reports two bombings in Baghdad that left three people wounded, three people wounded in Kadhimiya "as a result of a Katiosha missile aimed at the area today", and three people wounded in Khalis from a mortar attack.
Kim Gamel (AP) notes a roadside bombing in Mosul that killed one police officer.
And Alexandra Zavis (Los Angeles Times) reports that the death toll for the two bombings in Hilla yesterday has now reached "at least 73 killed and 152 injured".
Shootings?
Sahar Al Shawi (McClatchy Newspapers) notes that yesterday's shooting of the Dean of the College of Physical Education (Walhan Hameed Al-Timimi) and his son was carried out "in full view of the teachers on campus" at Dyala University and that some are pointing the "finger at the President of the univeristy, Dr. Alla' Al-Atbi, saying that he is involved with armed groups and facilitates their tasks by setting up targets and doing nothing in way of calling for assistance if any attacks took place".
Kim Gamel (AP) reports that "Sunni chairman of the Fallujah City Council, Abbas Ali Hussein" was shot dead.
Corpses?
CNN reports that 32 corpses were discovered in Baghdad today.
Lastly, on CounterSpin today, John Nichols discussed Molly Ivins passing and worried that Ivins, whose columns were the most heavily circulated progressive ones in newspapers around the world, death would mean the space would go blank (of course, it could also go to a right-winger or centrist) so he suggested that if your local paper carried Ivins' columns, you contact them and ask that they continue to carry a progressive column. To go one further, Molly Ivins was one of the few women to make the top twenty most widely circulated columnists. So if you want to continue to see columns that address reality and you'd like to see a woman continue to be represented on the op-ed pages, you can ask your local paper to carry Amy Goodman (of Democracy Now!). Goodman's doing a weekly column now. I personally doubt that top 10 lists make for worthy or even "good" reading. Molly Ivins stood for something in each column (and humor was a part of it though Nichols wanted to downgrade it -- don't stand by him at a party). It's not just that any progressive voice is needed (or liberal voice), it's one that will use the space well. Goodman's demonstrated that she intends to tackle real topics. Goodman's columns can be found many places and Common Dreams is one. That said, if you're recommending that it be picked up to a newspaper, you need to note a paper that provides the column. "Resistance to war cannot be jailed" is Goodman's most recent column and the link takes you to The Seattle Post-Intelligencer. If you're pitching Goodman to your local paper, you should also note that she wrote (with her brother David) two bestselling hardcover books (Exception to the Rulers and Static) (say "New York Times bestsellers") and that she is an award winning journalist (George Polk Award, Aflred I. duPont-Columbia University Award, Robert F. Kennedy Prize for International Reporting and is the 2006 RECIPIENT OF THE PUFFIN/NATION PRIZE FOR CREATIVE CITIZENSHIP). You should also note that she hosts (with Juan Gonzalez) Democracy Now! which is broadcast on over 500 radio stations around the world as well as online and as a podcast. Also stress that Ivins wrote a weekly column and Goodman does as well. (Important because, from time to time, a columnist may choose to do a series of columns -- think Bob Herbert -- and newspapers with a weekly slot now open aren't going to want to fill it with a twice weekly column when they only have one day open each week.)
Amy Goodman is my personal choice. Members may have their own choice. If your choice is someone else, e-mail and we'll figure out the best way to present to present your choice to your local paper. But it is not enough to say, as John Nichols did, demand a progressive voice. (He may have been trying to leave it up to listeners or may not have wanted to pick one person over another.) You need to provide a concrete example otherwise you may find that the same editorial boards that boast Thomas Friedman is a liberal (I'm referring to his column in syndication -- the Times is stuck with him) have a very different idea than you do of what "progressive" or "liberal" is. This isn't something you wait on. The op-eds are 'valuable real estate' and they have a fast turn over. Once a spot is occupied, it is very difficult to get a paper to drop a columnist. (Complaints are sometimes seen as 'proof' of how many people read the columnist.) (Sometimes it is proof -- sometimes it's just a sign of how bored and tired readers are with the same-old, same-old.)
iraq
ehren watada
the washington postkaren deyoungwalter pincus
radionation with laura flanderslaura flandersben hamamotodean patondiane kay
dahr jamailflashpointskpfa
nora barrows friedman
ali al-fadhily
the new york times
counterspin
amy goodmandemocracy now
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)