Saturday, March 31, 2012

Drum beat for another war

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Peninsula readers' letters: March 31

From Daily News Group readers mercurynews.com
Posted: 03/30/2012 08:43:44 PM PDT
March 31, 2012 6:52 AM GMT Updated: 03/30/2012 11:52:46 PM PDT








Drum beats for another war

Dear Editor: One neo-conservative had predicted the invasion of Iraq would be a "cakewalk." The war has killed well over 100,000 Iraqi civilians, cost nearly 4,500 American soldiers their lives, maimed many others and incurred costs that could reach more than $3 trillion before the last invoice comes due.

Yet here we are nine years later and once again the drumbeat sounds for war in the Middle East. This time the bullseye is Iran, and many of the bloodthirsty cries come from the same lusty throats that agitated a decade ago for invading Iraq. Now the neo-con armchair warriors call for hitting Iran before it builds a nuclear bomb to drop on Israel -- a scenario that remains in doubt.

One would refer to Afghan history here -- this is simply not a place that accommodates foreign invaders who think they know how to run the place better than the local population. Some neo-conservatives believe that somehow we are responsible for the Arab Spring, that it was a natural outgrowth of the Iraq war and the George W. Bush freedom agenda. That's nonsense. The origins of the Arab Spring come from within Arab nations.

Ted Rudow III,MA

Friday, March 30, 2012

The Arab Spring

The Arab Spring
literally the Arabic Rebellions or the Arab Revolutions) is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010. To date, rulers have been forced from power in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya,and Yemen; civil uprisings have erupted in Bahrain and Syria; major protests have broken out in Algeria, Iraq,< Jordan,< Morocco, and Oman; and minor protests have occurred in Lebanon, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, and Western Sahara Clashes at the borders of Israel in May 2011,as well as protests by Arab minority in Iranian Khuzestan,] have also been inspired by the regional Arab Spring.The protests have shared techniques of mostly civil resistance in sustained campaigns involving strikes, demonstrations, marches, rallies, as well as the use of social media to organize, communicate, and raise awareness in the face of state attempts at repression and Internet censorship.

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Nonsense

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2012/03/29/18710356.php
Nonsense
by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com ) Thursday Mar 29th, 2012
One neo-conservative advocate of the invasion had predicted would be a "cakewalk," had killed well over a hundred thousand Iraqi civilians, cost nearly 4500 American soldiers their lives, maimed many others, and incurred costs that could reach more than 3 trillion dollars before the last invoice comes due.
Yet here we are, nine years later, and once again the drumbeat sounds for war in the Middle East. This time the bull’s eye is Iran, and many of the bloodthirsty cries come from the same lusty throats that agitated a decade ago for invading Iraq. Now the neo-con armchair warriors call for hitting Iran before it builds a nuclear bomb to drop on Israel – a scenario that remains in doubt.
One would refer to Afghan history here, that this is simply not a place that accommodates foreign invaders who think they know how to run the place better than the local population. Some neoconservatives who believe that somehow we are responsible for the Arab Spring, that the Arab Spring is a natural outgrowth of the Iraq War and the George Bush Freedom Agenda. That's nonsense. The origins of the Arab Spring come from within Arab nations.
Ted Rudow III, MA

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Real fraud

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Real fraud
Issues Beyond Palo Alto, posted by Ted Rudow III, MA, a member of the Palo Alto High School community, Bank of America exposé

Dear Editor: In the article "Bank of America: Too Crooked to Fail," Rolling Stone reporter Matt Taibbi chronicles the remarkable history of the rise of Bank of America, an institution he says has defrauded "everyone from investors and insurers to homeowners and the unemployed."

In 2008, Bank of America received a $45 billion taxpayer bailout, but the bank has also received billions more in what could be described as shadow bailouts. The bailouts have helped Bank of America's market share grow. It now controls more than 12 percent of the nation's deposits, as well as 17 percent of all home mortgages.

But new questions have arisen over how Bank of America may actually benefit from the deal because the settlement includes a legal waiver to allow banks to escape billions of dollars in lawsuits. There are much, much bigger problems in the areas of creating loans and securitizing the loans. The real fraud was when Bank of America or some company went to a union and said, "Here's a whole bunch of mortgages we want you to buy. They're AAA-rated. They're all good." And they left out derogatory information about how bad the loans really were. That was the real fraud.

Ted Rudow III, MA

Palo Alto

United States Senate

Dear Mr. Rudow:
Thank you for contacting me regarding the withdrawal of United States combat forces from Afghanistan. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.
I strongly believe that it is time to significantly decrease the presence of U.S. combat forces in Afghanistan. That is why I proudly co-sponsored an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act requiring President Obama to accelerate the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan and report to Congress on the progress of his plan. I was pleased that language based on this amendment was included in the final bill.
I believe that the United States has accomplished much of what it set out to achieve in Afghanistan and that the current cost - both to our armed forces and to the American taxpayer - is far too high. Ten years ago, the United States Senate unanimously voted to use all necessary and appropriate force against those responsible for the attacks of September 11, 2001 - the al Qaeda terrorist network. On May 2, 2011, the United States dealt al Qaeda a major blow by killing its leader, Osama bin Laden.
Although we must remain vigilant in our efforts to defeat al Qaeda and continue our support for the Afghan people, there is simply no justification for the continued deployment of roughly 90,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Our current forces should be drawn down to a point where they are sufficient only to conduct targeted counter-terrorism operations, train Afghan security forces, and protect American and coalition personnel.
As a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, be assured that I will continue to advocate for a plan to accelerate the withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from Afghanistan while protecting U.S. national security.
Again, thank you for writing to me. Please feel free to contact me in the future about this or any other issue of concern to you.
Sincerely,Barbara Boxer
United States Senator
Please do not respond to this message. If you would like to comment on legislation, please visit my website and use the correspondence form at https://www.boxer.senate.gov/en/contact/policycomments.cfm.

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Are you a good sport?


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NFL suspensions in Saints' bounty program scandal are justfiedby Nick Celario Mar 21, 2012 5:44 pm Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,



Nick Celario is a Spartan Daily Sports Editor.
Last semester, I wrote that the NFL should be played with intensity and toughness.
I am not retracting what I said because football is a violent sport, but acts of violence, and receiving payoffs for them, are just not acceptable.
ESPN reported New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton will be suspended without pay for the 2012 season and St. Louis Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, formerly of the Saints, was banned from the league indefinitely for arranging a bounty program that paid its players additional cash for targeting main opposing players.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Saints general manager Mickey Loomis will be suspended for eight regular season games and assistant coach Joe Vitt will be suspended for six games.
The Los Angeles Times also reported the Saints' organization was fined $500,000 and will have to forfeit its second-round draft picks in 2012 and 2013.
"We are all accountable and responsible for player health and safety and the integrity of the game," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement reported by USA Today. "We will not tolerate conduct or a culture that undermines those priorities.
"No one is above the game or the rules that govern it. Respect for the game and the people who participate in it will not be compromised."
I completely agree with this statement.
While I typically oppose Goodell's "No Fun League" type punishments, I feel these suspensions are justified.
According to USA Today, the bounty program occurred as far back as 2009 during the Saints' Super Bowl run and that such "non-contract bonuses" violate NFL rules.
It was also reported that Williams directed the program, and while Payton did not directly participate, he was aware of it and did not take any action to end it.
Williams' indefinite suspension is with good reason.
If he encouraged his players to cause possible career-ending injuries to their opponents, then he should not have a coaching position in the NFL.
If the league did not punish Williams, it could possibly send a message to college and high school players that such behavior is acceptable.
In a sport as aggressive and forceful as football, where serious bodily injury is already an enormous risk to those who participate, urging players to intentionally harm is cruel.
People who promote this kind of conduct should not have a place in professional or amateur sports — period.
Payton's suspension is also just.
ESPN reported Payton ignored instructions from the NFL and the Saints' owners to ensure a bounty program was not in place.
Condoning these acts makes him just as responsible.
USA Today reported an investigation from the NFL revealed that more than 20 Saints defensive players were involved in the program from 2009 to 2011 and were rewarded with cash, and while no punishments were handed down yet, the league plans to do so soon.
USA Today also said Saints middle linebacker Jonathan Vilma became synonymous with the program when SI.com reported he offered $10,000 to any Saints player who could knock out then Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre out of the 2009 NFC Championship Game.
Any Saints players who participated in the system, or anyone in the league who has, should be ashamed of themselves.
To be privileged to play professional football and be paid thousands, if not millions, of dollars and then take part in this inexcusable.
In addition, these players are looked up to by numerous fans, several of whom are probably football players, anywhere from Pop Warner, high school to college.
If they modeled themselves to pros who opt into this kind of playing, I can't imagine what the future of professional football would be.
Why take football and lower it to barbarism?
Despite its intensity, football can still be played with respect and sportsmanship.
I hope these suspensions gets that message across to everyone in the league and weren't for nothing.

@TedrTed ·
Did you know that the Nicaragua-El Salvador war, in which 20,000 people were killed, started over a football game? In fact, Ernest Hemingway, the world famous writer, who spent so much of his time in Latin America and Spain, said you could eliminate most Latin American wars and their causes by simply banning football or soccer! Those games get them so worked up into a frenzy against each other that nothing but a total all-out war can truly satisfy the spirit of it The ultimate fulfillment of sports is war!--Destroying the other guy's body that your body might live! War is the ultimate fulfillment of the competitive spirit: the destruction of others for self-preservation. Sports is war in disguise, and the Olympics disguised all this under the totally false and contrary theme song of "Peace"! That's their theme!--Isn't that something! So they speak peace while war is in their hearts, and they talk peace while they prepare for war--prepare their bodies for war.
Ted Rudow III, MA
Class of 1996

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Real fraud

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document.write('\n') Peninsula readers' letters: March 24
From Daily News Group readers mercurynews.com Posted: 03/23/2012 06:43:58 PM PDT March 24, 2012 6:35 AM GMT Updated: 03/23/2012 11:35:16 PM PDT


Bank of America exposé
Dear Editor: In the article "Bank of America: Too Crooked to Fail," Rolling Stone reporter Matt Taibbi chronicles the remarkable history of the rise of Bank of America, an institution he says has defrauded "everyone from investors and insurers to homeowners and the unemployed."
In 2008, Bank of America received a $45 billion taxpayer bailout, but the bank has also received billions more in what could be described as shadow bailouts. The bailouts have helped Bank of America's market share grow. It now controls more than 12 percent of the nation's deposits, as well as 17 percent of all home mortgages.
But new questions have arisen over how Bank of America may actually benefit from the deal because the settlement includes a legal waiver to allow banks to escape billions of dollars in lawsuits. There are much, much bigger problems in the areas of creating loans and securitizing the loans. The real fraud was when Bank of America or some company went to a union and said, "Here's a whole bunch of mortgages we want you to buy. They're AAA-rated. They're all good." And they left out derogatory information about how bad the loans really were. That was the real fraud.
Ted Rudow III, MA
Palo Alto

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Real fraud

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2012/03/22/18709885.php

Real fraud
by Ted Rudow III, MA
Thursday Mar 22nd, 2012


"Bank of America: Too Crooked to Fail," Rolling Stone reporter Matt Taibbi chronicles the remarkable history of the rise of Bank of America, an institution he says has defrauded "everyone from investors and insurers to homeowners and the unemployed."
In 2008, Bank of America received a $45 billion taxpayer bailout, but the bank has also received billions more in what could be described as shadow bailouts. The bailouts have helped Bank of America’s market share grow. It now controls more than 12 percent of the nation’s deposits, as well as 17 percent of all home mortgages.
But new questions have arisen over how Bank of America may actually benefit from the deal because the settlement includes a legal waiver to allow banks to escape billions of dollars in lawsuits. There are much, much bigger problems in the areas of creating loans and securitizing the loans. That’s where the real fraud occurred. The real fraud was when Bank of America or some company went to a union, say, and they said, "Here’s a whole bunch of mortgages we want you to buy. They’re AAA-rated. They’re all good." And they left out derogatory information about how bad the loans really were. That was the real fraud.
Ted Rudow III, MA

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Won over

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Your Right To KnowSunday, March 18, 2012
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Won over

Ted Rudow III, MA, Encina Ave, Palo Alto, CA
Whether Wall Street was corrupted by greed and excess--more than three years after the financial crisis, the perception that little has changed on Wall Street -- and that no one has been held accountable for the risk-taking that led to the crisis -- looms large in the public consciousness.
So, little by little, the sceptics are won over to invest their funds, to take a chance on making more money, for the rebounds are relatively quick. And there is a rebound, for there are still people to be convinced that things will keep going up -- indeed, must keep going up. They too must be won over and convinced to overextend themselves little by little. It is a gradual process of boom, then downturn, then bigger boom, then another downturn. The downturn will become a recession, the recession will become a depression, and the depression will become the Crash.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Won over

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Peninsula readers' letters: March 17
From Daily News Group readers
mercurynews.com Posted: 03/16/2012 05:35:33 PM PDT March 17, 2012 5:35 AM GMT Updated: 03/16/2012 10:35:48 PM PDT
Won over
Dear Editor: Whether Wall Street was corrupted by greed and excess, more than three years after the financial crisis started the perception that little has changed on Wall Street -- and that no one has been held accountable for the risk-taking that led to the crisis -- looms large in the public consciousness.
So, little by little, the skeptics are won over to invest their funds to take a chance on making more money, for the rebounds are relatively quick and they do not feel too much pain.
And there is a rebound, for there are still people to be convinced that things will keep going up -- indeed, must keep going up. They too must be won over and convinced to overextend themselves little by little. It is a gradual process of boom, then downturn, then bigger boom, then another downturn. The downturn will become a recession, the recession will become a depression, and the depression will become the crash.
Ted Rudow III, MA
Palo Alto

Friday, March 16, 2012

Bring the troops home!!!!

San Mateo Daily Journal
Friday
March 16 2012
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Letter: Bring the troops home March 14, 2012, 05:00 AM Letter
Editor,
Unprovoked and uncaused attacks have been waged by the United States against Afghan civilians. It is not as though this was one deplorable act.
In the night raids all across Afghanistan (there are an average of 10 raids per night and sometimes as many as 40 raids in a night), the U.S. military is killing civilians steadily. Combine that with the drone surveillance and the combat helicopter attacks that have killed civilians. All of this will result in perpetual war, more such killing sprees and possibly an increase in terrorism and terrorist acts like Sept. 11. Bring the troops home!


Ted Rudow III, MA
Palo Alto

Won over

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2012/03/16/18709455.php
Won over
by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com ) Friday Mar 16th, 2012
Whether Wall Street was corrupted by greed and excess. More than three years after the financial crisis, the perception that little has changed on Wall Street — and that no one has been held accountable for the risk-taking that led to the crisis — looms large in the public consciousness. So, little by little, the skeptics are won over to invest their funds, to take a chance on making more money, for the rebounds are relatively quick and they do not feel too much pain. I’d never do such a thing—I’m smarter than that.”
-->
And there is a rebound, for there are still people to be convinced that things will keep going up—indeed, must keep going up. They too must be won over and convinced to overextend themselves little by little. It is a gradual process of boom, then downturn, then bigger boom, then another downturn. The downturn will become a recession, the recession will become a depression, and the depression will become the Crash.
Ted Rudow III, MA

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Bring the troops home!

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Bring the troops home : Indybay
by indybay.org Tue Mar 13 12:30:25 PDT 2012




But I think it actually encapsulates what the United States presence in Afghanistan has been all about. Unprovoked and uncaused attacks have been waged by the United States against Afghan civilians. It is'nt as though this was one deplorable act.



In the night raids on an average of 10 per night, sometimes as many as 40 per night, all across Afghanistan and killing civilians steadily. And combine that with the drone surveillance and the helicopter attacks that have killed civilians. And that will result in perpetual war, more such killing sprees, and possibly an increase in terrorism and terrorist acts like September 11th. Bring the troops home!

Ted Rudow III, MA

Bring the troops home!

RTF RADIO
live 24/7



Share comment
FEATURE THIS






Bring the troops home : Indybay
by indybay.org Tue Mar 13 12:30:25 PDT 2012




But I think it actually encapsulates what the United States presence in Afghanistan has been all about. Unprovoked and uncaused attacks have been waged by the United States against Afghan civilians. It is'nt as though this was one deplorable act.



In the night raids on an average of 10 per night, sometimes as many as 40 per night, all across Afghanistan and killing civilians steadily. And combine that with the drone surveillance and the helicopter attacks that have killed civilians. And that will result in perpetual war, more such killing sprees, and possibly an increase in terrorism and terrorist acts like September 11th. Bring the troops home!

Ted Rudow III, MA

Monday, March 12, 2012

Bring the troops home

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2012/03/12/18709152.php
Bring the troops home
by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com ) Monday Mar 12th, 2012 12:30 PM
But I think it actually encapsulates what the United States presence in Afghanistan has been all about. Unprovoked and uncaused attacks have been waged by the United States against Afghan civilians. It isn’t as though this was one deplorable act.
-->
In the night raids on an average of 10 per night, sometimes as many as 40 per night, all across Afghanistan and killing civilians steadily. And combine that with the drone surveillance and the helicopter—combat helicopter attacks that have killed civilians. And that will result in perpetual war, more such killing sprees, and possibly an increase in terrorism and terrorist acts like September 11th. Bring the troops home!
Ted Rudow III, MA

Wednesday, March 07, 2012

History is a set of lies

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2012/03/07/18708899.php
History is a set of lies
by Ted Rudow III, MA ( Tedr77 [at] aol.com ) Wednesday Mar 7th, 2012
One day after meeting with President Obama at the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gathered with congressional leaders Tuesday on Capitol Hill. Praising the wide bipartisan support for Israeli government policies, Netanyahu said no institution on earth can match what he called the "clarity,
Many of the so-called villains of history may really have been the heroes! It all depends on what the victorious historians History is a set of lies agreed upon.--Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821). About the only thing we ever learn from history is that we never learn from history.--A. Toynbee
Ted Rudow III, MA