Damn I hate Reuters... so much misinformation peppered throughout their articles.

"Iran should "refrain from further missile tests if they truly seek to gain the trust of the world,"

It's the UNITED STATES the world doesn't trust there dumb-ass. Everytime some whitehouse spokesperson opens their mouth, the stupidest things come out. Bunch of liars they are.

How much easier it would have been for US and Israel had Iranians lacked "the natural touch". After all, even:

...the poor wren,
The most diminutive of birds, will fight,
Her young ones in her nest, against the owl.

Mutually assured destruction even without the Big ONE is waiting for the War profiteers.

Live by the sword and Die!

elmysterio-second that. Reuters is the definition of MSM bull$hit news pieces, anything out of that news agency has been CIA once overed before released, every time. More and more sabre rattling by proxy of the media.

The us military is stretched to the bone, and now the powers that be are crazy enough to want to open a third front in this "War of Terror" ooops, i meant to say "War on Terror", my bad. Where are all the top military commanders that will resist any calls to attack iran? oh, yeah thats right, after thirty years of service, any military brass that grows a conscience and resists is then told to take early retirement. What a Country! Go America! We Are Number 1!

"Iran should "refrain from further missile tests if they truly seek to gain the trust of the world," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said."

And how many, vasty more potent missiles does the US test every year? Are these people even faintly conscious of their hypocracy? If there is one aspect of US foreign policy I've never been able to get my mind around is the sheer hypocracy of it all.

Or, maybe it isnt hypocracy and chutzpah, maybe it's just that they simply dont regard other peoples of the world, or at least those darker-skinned, especially if there is oil under their land, are not humans at all and have no human rights. I't kind of like me and my cats don't recognize the sovereignty and right of self-defense of mice or cockroaches.

When will this insanity end? We've been there before. I'm sure many of the bomb shelters of the '50s remain as reminders of the daily fear we lived with then of the bombs suddenly turning our country into a wasteland we might never be able to come out of those shelters to see again, and the resignation of those of us who had no shelters to escape into should the time come.

I even remember the talk of stockpiling guns for the shelters to keep out those who would try to break in during an attack on the country.

Now we've got these lunatics bringing it all back again. And why should one country be allowed, or be given a stockpile of nuclear missles and another country not allowed to have any?

How would America feel if bully countries with stockpiles of nuclear weapons, and busily making more, told us we weren't allowed to even think of having any, saying they'd bomb us to hell if we even thought about making one, and there wasn't a damned thing we could do about it? Would we sit here and do nothing? I don't think so.

.

It is the threat of war that makes the business run.

The chances are that the war machine will try and keep the business of Empire as long as the bottom supports it.

The bottom is falling away...The times they are a changin.

The People are winnin!

No shit they will fight back. We are going to have not only the dumbest and the ugliest president ever but also the most surprised.

We may be the last humans to live here.

And the price of oil goes UP! Mission Accomplished!

By now, it should be self-evident to the meanest intelligence that a geopolitical strategy based on "full spectrum dominance" simply cannot and does not permit the evolution of any significant self-defence capability anywhere amongst targetted regions.

That is the real "threat" that Iran poses for the claimed proprietary "interests" of the U.S. and Israel alike and the true basis for their alliance as well as for the ongoing distortions in the roles of other "defensive" pacts such as NATO.

No one but a complete idiot could believe for a moment that the possession of a few nukes by Iran or anyone else creates any other kind of realistic threat to the most heavily armed states in the world. North Korea, for example, has recently been dropped from the "axis of evil" without much fuss about its actual nucleasr capacity. (It was only there in the first place to provide cover for the real Middle East target choices.) Self-defence capabilites are only a "threat" to people who have their own designs on your territory and/or possessions.

As for the article's headline, please show me ANY state that won't retaliate if attacked. I wouldn't mind setting up my own little two-gun fiefdom somewhere in such a compliant neighborhood.

It's not just the US and Isreal here who are the problems - the British have been with us from day one, and the French and the Italians not far behind. Obviously Russia still has imperialistic inclinations - let's not let those guys off the hook. Do you think Bush's recent European trip was just a photo-op? As dumb as the guy looks, he still negotiates with other imperial powers to ensure that the "west" will continue to rule and have access to and control of the resources in the rest of the world.

...by now it should be crystal clear to most people with an IQ of 60 or higher (in other words NOT most voting Americans) that Reuters is nothing but a mouthpiece for Israel/USA's upcoming attack/invasion/WAR with Iran.

My favorite quote from this comical article is-

"Iran should "refrain from further missile tests if they truly seek to gain the trust of the world," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said."

Very funny, gov't media clown Mr. Johndroe! Very funny. I'm sure the USA has "gained the trust of the world"--as the world's nation's have watched in horror as the USA pulverized/attacked/ invaded/destroyed/and brutally occupied Iraq--turning it into the seething shithole of death, pain and endless misery that it is today.

...yes, please USA, please "save and spread democracy" in Iran the way you "saved and spread democracy" in Iraq. Never mind Falluja's depleted uranium nightmare, the ubiquitous military checkpoints, US military's bulldozing of olive trees (copying Israel military here, eh? etc, etc. Fucking assholes.

...who writes this shit for Reuters?

...and dumbshit Americans will read this article and believe it. "Yes please keep us all safe from Iran!"

...pathetic.

Russia is not worried about a retaliation from Iran or is China, India and Pakistan.

This is the US and Israel who have been asking for it... but they can't make a buck if they lose.

The House doesn't gamble, it is the suckers who do.

There is nothing I DESPISE more than IMPERIALISM. In the name of GOD I DESPISE the IMPERIALISTS!

The World hates imperialists too.

Bush is tryin desperately to drag as many countries into his last stand as he can.

France and Britain act nice to the US because of world war 2 and the money has been good.

I don't see them gettin ready to bomb Iran... actually this is all a show of saber rattling... we are at the crossroads now.

Talk with enemies or we all Die!

""Israel does not threaten Iran..."

I'm laughing so hard I could puke.

This is not good.

Despite what many may think, Iran is not up to a confrontation with US/Israel. The Persians are not warlike, and do not have a jones for war (unlike US/Israel). I expect that in a full confrontation, Iran will be reduced to rubble, much like Iraq.

Nouveau-nations like the US and Israel are determined to eliminate all traces of the cradle of civilization. I weep for Iran.

Iran has a right to defend itself against attack. That is law according to Article 51 of the UN Charter:

>>Article 51

Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right of individual or collective self-defence if an armed attack occurs against a Member of the United Nations, until the Security Council has taken measures necessary to maintain international peace and security. Measures taken by Members in the exercise of this right of self-defence shall be immediately reported to the Security Council and shall not in any way affect the authority and responsibility of the Security Council under the present Charter to take at any time such action as it deems necessary in order to maintain or restore international peace and security.>>

But Iran has no right to launch rockets at a city with civilians in it. That is state terrorism. The threat to attack Israeli cities is a war crime—a violation of Article 2 (4).

The US has also been violating Article 2 (4) of the UN Charter by threatening Iran:

Article 2, section 4 of the U.N. Charter reads:

>>4. All members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any member or state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations.

Purpose of the U.N.: (Article 1) To maintain international peace and security . . . >>

Therefore, Bush, Clinton and Obama saying "all options are on the table" is a war crime, a threat against the territorial integrity of Iran.

The law needs to be respected by all sides in this situation.

Furthermore, Iran has every right to enrich uranium according to Article 4 of the NPT. And the US is in obvious violation of Article 6 of the NPT, by failing to pursue nuclear disarmament.

There are two choices here: law or war.

I'm with you, USAn. The utter mendacity of my so-called Leaders is way beyond Hypocracy. These people need to be locked up in the looney-bin.
The right to self-defence is Primal, whether for a person, a group, or a Country. It is one of those god-given 'inalienable' rights spoken of in our Founding Documents. Any and every person alive knows this. How in world can such tripe as contained in this article not arowse interminable laughter in any who read it is way beyond me.

The sad thing is a great proportion of Americans actually feel threatened by Iran.... at home, here in America.

Considering these missles don't even travel the distance of a typical tomahawk cruise missle 700-800 miles.

WTF July 9th, 2008 1:52 pm:

"Despite what many may think, Iran is not up to a confrontation with US/Israel."

WTF, you are right. They were not up to facing US/Iraq either. After years of being on the receiving end of American poison gas attacks and missile strikes, though, it is a case of adversity making them stronger. No single nation can stand against the "hyperpower" in a war, but "every dog has its day" as they say.

Oh, dude. The Blue Pill Media simply loves those pictures of the missiles launching. Are those missiles going to hit YOU? We've asked them nicely to abandon their plans for world domination, and this is how they respond? How DARE they?

Get those Anglophones ready. Thanks to those pictures of missiles launching on every front page, 90% of anglophones will be 20% less surprised, 40% less outraged, and 80% more supportive of the home team when ALL HELL breaks loose.

"Those People" (Terriers? Terrorists? Tourists?) only had wierd weapons like IED's and RPG's and boxcutters and inflatable boats yesterday... Lookee what they got today! Something has to be done! SOON!

A very bad scene is playing out in very slow motion right before your eyes right now. Don't turn on the TV or you may miss it.

I guess we have to keep repeating this: The U.S. National Intelligence Estimate of 11-07 said Iran gave up on developing nuclear weapons 5 years earlier. Iran is legally entitled to pursue nuclear energy as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. U.S. and Israeli aggressions are about OIL, not nukes. And, of course, other countries cannot speak of "preventive" war, because it's a concept that cannot be universally applied.

Iran says it will retaliate if attacked.

Now, if we could get Israel and the U.S. to say the same thing and really mean it, maybe we could have some peace. But no, Israel and the U.S. believe in preemptive strikes.

If the US government bombs Iran, Iran will be the 21st country the US has bombed since the end of World War Two.

That bears repeating ...

If the US government bombs Iran, Iran will be the 21st country the US has bombed since the end of World War Two.

With many of these bombings lasting for several *years* (e.g., Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Iraq, etc.).

And so the question, by its very nature, reeks of obscenity; that is to say: What other country has bombed so many countries in a similar period of time?

Can you imagine what the US reaction would have been had the Soviet Union bombed as many countries. Or China. Or if twenty "9/11s" had occured in the US over the same period of time.

Notice, too, that the countries the US ruling class bombs are, invariably, third world countries -- with armies that are *dwarfed* in comparison to US military might.

Some of these countries didn't/don't even have air forces (Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq).

Iraq doesn't even have a standing army!

And the US ruling class, via its mainstream media outlets, has the vile, the obscene audacity to talk about "outrageous," "aggressive" behavior.

And where, pray tell, is that savior of the progressive community, "Saint Slick" -- err, I mean, Barack Obama?

Obama, like the rest of the Democratic Party mainstream, is right on board as far as an invasion of Iran is concerned. Commondream readers will remember that several months ago the Senate -- Democrats as well as Republicans -- indicated to Bush that if he goes ahead and invades Iran they won't interfere. ... The Senate to Bush: "Invade if you want to."

So, is it any wonder the Democrats have taken impeachment "off the table." Of course they have; and the reason is simple. The Democratic Party, in their ongoing criminal complicity, are as guilty as the Republicans in prosecuting an unjust, illegal, immoral war in Iraq ... an unjust, illegal and immoral war in Afghanistan ... and perhaps yet a *third* unjust, illegal, immoral war in Iran.

At an international war crimes trial, anyone who voted for the War, Democrat or Republican, would be found guilty. Any first-year international law student would be able to win convictions.

And the ruling class knows it.

Why do you think Bush withdrew the US from the ICC, the International Criminal Court. He and his Republican henchmen -- as well as his Democratic enablers -- know full well that the ICC would nail them in a heartbeat.

The US judges at Nuremberg were quite clear as to what the Nazis' basic, underlying crime was -- the crime from which all other Nazi crimes emanated -- and that crime was the unnecessary, unprovoked invasion of another country.

IN SHORT: THOSE WHO VOTED FOR THE WAR IN IRAQ WOULD BE FOUND GUILTY BY THE VERY STANDARDS ESTABLISHED BY THE US JUDGES AT NUREMBERG IN 1945.

(Continued)

Of course, needless to say, this 800-pound gorilla sitting in the middle of the room, that is to say, the Democratic Party as well as mainstream media's complicity as regards the War in Iraq and the proposed war with Iran, is something that Senator Obama will assiduously and obediently ignore.

Saint Obama will continue to act as if he's literally "descended from the skies," here to, hallelujah, SAVE US ALL!

(As Nelson Algren once put it: "However do senators get so close to God?")

Obama's cynical and shameless move to the right since he's gotten the nomination will, if he's elected, only get worse. In short, the Democratic leadership, via their presidential nominee, has YET AGAIN played the liberals in America for the suckers they most certainly are. (Talk about enablers!)

So when you go to the polls, loyal liberals, and pull the lever for Obama, keep in mind that should he win, he will undoubtedly continue to pursue America's "imperial ambitions" -- brutal and mass murdering as those imperial ambitions have been and will continue to be. ... Or, put another way: when the dead bodies continue to pile up, just remember the misery, the carnage and the evil *you* voted for.

NOTE: After World War II was over and the concentration camps were liberated, Einsenhower arranged for busloads of German civilians -- housewives, retirees, factory workers, non-military individuals from all walks of life -- to be bused out to Auschwitz, Buchenwald, Treblinka, all the concentrations camps -- so that the average German, the "good Germans" could see up-close-and-personal precisely what their support for German imperialism produced.

Where are the buses now?

As usual RichM (July 9, 2008 12:35pm) hits the nail on the head.

Should anyone be surprised that a political/economic system (that of the USA -- the "Unsane States of Avarice") that consistently rewards and elevates the most unprincipled, avaricious, and dishonest would evolve over time into such a monstrous and mendacious predatory power?

We constantly hear about Israel's "right to defend itself". Does Iran not have the right to defend itself from Israeli and American aggression?

>>Some of these countries didn't/don't even have air forces (Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq).<

Vietnam did when we fought the war there. Iraq did till the first war.

>Iraq doesn't even have a standing army! <<

It did when we invaded.

I don't think the argument of one side being at a disadvantage to the other carries much water now or historically.

Stopping war is about believing it is wrong regardless of the force match or disparity. Regardless of what will happen or not to the Iranians or our forces, we should be working to stop this war. Arguing that it won't be *fair* plays into the hands of the imperialists and is ignored by everyone else because no one cares if a war if *fair* or not.

and now defense sec. gates has just said that the 'tests' prove tehran is a threat and that they could develop long-range missiles to use against europe.................why would they want to attack europe??? nothing makes sense any more.

coco,

You just don't get it. If the Nazis had not liberated Poland, those Poles would have someday developed long-range missiles and might have attacked the US. And now there is the risk the Iranians could invent flying pigs and then the whole world will be in trouble. You sound like you have yet to step through the looking glass.

Do the American people have a right to defend themselves from AIPAC's lobbying? Just wondering as we are the ones who will end up as cannonfodder as we did in Iraq.

KIVALS

i get it alright............i understand that the europeans have to be terrified too into thinking the big bad bogeyman is iran. and dangerous comments like that plant ideas into sheeples' heads...........it's another tactic for assuring the missile defence system in eastern europe.

Cripes, it's over folks. I wouldn't be surprised if cheney was even working with chalibi and Iran to start another "war" to line the pockets of the oil barrens and military contractors. And I'm sick of hearing the words "speculate" or "speculators" or "speculation". These words simply raise the price of oil and/or the chance of war.

Now with Congress passing the FISA bill, cheney can legally spy on us.

Iran can live without oil. Can the Zionists' Sugar Daddy?

K I V A L S,

It'd be too much, as We're getting soaked daily from bu$h!t reigning down on us,

how could we ever deal with all of the extra pig$h!t ?

While Bush threatens Venezuela and Iran, our ally, Pakistan is befriending al Qaeda and the Taliban. With an ally like that, who needs enemies?

Funny, but I do not recall everybody being so "up in arms" when Israel staged their simulated air attack last month for the purpose of intimidating Iran. This little missile firing episode was just good, clean, harmless fun on the part of the Iranians.

I guess this is what is commonly referred to as the "double standard". If you've got the U. S. kissing Israel's ass and vice versa then everything is just hunky dorey.

Taking our eyes off this for a minute, I see we've got the Turks blaming Al Qaeda for a U. S. embassy attack. The Afghans are suspecting that Pakistan was responsible for the attack on the Indian embassy. Of the two, that would be my preferred scenario. That way, with Pakistan and India both being nuclear powers, they can blow each other the hell off the face of the earth and we've got two less players in the game.

It would really be interesting if Iran got attacked by Israel and/or the U. S. and then interrupted the flow of oil tankers through that strait.

That might raise the price of crude so high that with resulting higher prices at the gas pumps, people might even start getting out of their cars and walking into the bank, drug store or fast-food restaurant. Imagine that if you will.

I think the way the game is being played (at least on our side) is the Bush administration would probably like to see the attack of Iran being left as McCain's first act after being inaugurated. Trouble is, the election's not a sure thing. I guess they could wait and see if OBama gets elected in November; then if he does, they have time between then and January 20th to "do their thing".

I could be wrong, but I consider it doubtful that Israel (while talking tough) would attack Iran without the assurance that the U. S. will take part with them, or at least immediately thereafter.

It will be interesting to see the results of Obama's Middle East trip. I sense that if he does not come off as showing strong enough support for Israel, the next thing would be for the Republicans to say that he's anti-semitic. Sounds too far out? Nothing's too far out in these troubled times.

And where is Condi while she's making all this noise? I haven't seen her on the tube lately.

She doesn't call....she doesn't write.

It sure would be nice to lock Bu$h the inferior and Shotgun Dick in a room with the two biggest tough talking Iranians.

It would be funny to watch them all wet their panties when they realized they had to actually back up their words. Bu$h the inferior and Shotgun Dick 'aren't tough enough to run with the dogs so they will have to piss with the puppies.'

(Old saying when I drank and raised a little hell with some college friends about 27 years ago, The Big Moon Saloon, The Flame were a bit rough)

The escalation of tensions in the MiddleEast by the US, the West and their satellite country Israel for decades is annoying. For the "International Community" (read: Imperial powers) the presence of the US warships near Iran and Lebanon, and recent war rehearsals by Israel are not a threat to the peace and security in the MiddleEast, but Iran's testing of missiles is a threat??????

What is happening in the MiddleEast is the execution of the US imperial foreign policy by a group of mostly unelected conservative ideologues. Playing on the imperial associations of the Roman and British empires, they have aimed to lay the foundations for a century of unbroken American political, military, and economic pre-eminence to be known as "Pax Americana".

The US had played a key role in the Middle East since the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)overthrew an elected Iranian government in 1953, replacing it with Shah, a monarch whose universally unpopular reign was terminated in 1979 by the Iranian Revolution. Iran's oil resources were the touchstone for the CIA intervention, even then. US domination of Iran and its oil during Shah's dictotorial reign, together with its partnership with Israel, enabled it to call the shots throughout the Middle East until the Iranian revolution left it without either a regional powerbase or direct control over Middle Eastern energy resources.

In order to reclaim its control over MiddleEastern resources the neo-conservative architects of the Project for a New American Century, such as John Bolton, Dick Cheney, Richard Perle, Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz, undertook a CHRISTIAN GENOCIDAL CRUSADE on Iraq causing death and destruction, pain and misery to millions of innocent Iraqis.

Now by using Iraq as its base the US with the help of its allies and Israel want to strike at Iran.

Long before the US occupied Iraq, France and Britain covertly helped Israel to develop a nuclear capability of about 200 warheads, backed up by sophisticated missiles. Germany is about to provide Israel with nuclear capable submarines. In a worst case scenario, Israel's underwater missiles could wipe much of the Middle East from the map.

The investigative journalist Seymour Hersh recently revealed "an open secret" that the US has been using Afghanistan as a base for training and equipping terrorists and planning and executing subversive activities directed against Iran with a view to bring a "regime change" in Iran, SO THAT IT CAN AGAIN INSTALL A DICTATOR, LIKE SHAH, WHO WILL FECILITATE THE PLUNDER AND CONTROL OF IRAN'S OIL AND NATURAL RESOURCES.

Although the US, the West and Israel are the main destabilizing factors in the region with militarization and weapon-sales, they relentlessly demonize Iran as a malignant cancer threatening regional and world peace.

One final thought: Just think how G8 countries have become economically rich??????

For the benefit of whoever said up above that they dislike Reuters for its numerous inaccuracies in reporting.

In watching the movie "Message From Reuters" (I think was the title) in which Edward G. Robinson played Julius Reuters, it showed how, previous to using wire services, much of his news was transmitted from continent to continent by means of carrier pigeons.

I guess you could say that the earliest stage of his news service was "Strictly for the birds"

The French said it best. "Cet animal est très méchant. Quand on l'attaque, il se défend."

M E E T _ M R _ C A L L A G H A N,

Perhaps you forgot to add that we all know What birds do do
when they take off

Looks like the worst will happen then.
Bye-bye world...

" elmysterio July 9th, 2008 12:24 pm

Damn I hate Reuters… so much misinformation peppered throughout their articles.

"Iran should "refrain from further missile tests if they truly seek to gain the trust of the world,""

IF YOU THINK that that is misinfo. on the part of Reuters, then you evidently are either not a good reader, or else you are the one providing the misinfo. And what you clearly did deliberately choose to selectively OMIT from the short, one-sentence paragraph you copied all but the source identification from is a manner [often], regularly employed by liars, frauds, .... You should have fully copied that sentence.

Reuters did NOT say that Iran should "refrain from ...", for Reuters only said what the White House spokesman said. That's how the 'Iran should' beginning should be interpreted.

Whether or not Reuters agrees with that WH spokesman is definitely not evident in the one-sentence paragraph you quoted from. If Reuters does agree with him, then this definitely should be [explicitly] stated and clear, but Reuters didn't do that, so we don't know whether the writer agrees, or not.

I don't think there's much value with Reuters, for I don't like it as a news provider, but this is a separate matter or concern.

What the article is about bears truths, but also is not about anything new. There have been plenty of reports posted at www.globalresearch.ca over the past year or two, if not even longer, about U.S., Israel, and Iran holding war games or exercises. Some reports were of UK sources; some were from Chinese sources; some from Reuters, AFP, AP, likely IHT, and then others.

Iran hasn't held hundreds of serious or major scale war exercises, but the present one has to be the third or fourth over the past year or two. And all of these have been related to threats from and war exercises by the U.S. and Israel in the same region; well, as for the many, unrelenting threats, then also hellbent European "allies" of the U.S. and Israel, all allied together and against all of Humanity, the World (of Earth).

Iran not folding is a defence for itself, but also for all of Humanity, really; definitely, imo. If Iran folds, then these hellbent U.S., Israeli, and EU "leaders", actually FIENDS married with the Prince of ... Hell, will gain another BIG win for their HEGEMONY, hypocrisy, NWO (New World Order), ..., the kind of project that's of Hell's kind of making.

www.globalresearch.ca has been providing copies of articles, reports, as well as analyses by various contributors to GR, for at least a year, and for war exercises of the U.S., Israel, Iran, Russia, and Russia with other Asian countries; including China and some Central Asian countries. China and Russia are aligned according to two plans or agreements, and other countries are included, but some are aligned only through one of the military agreements, while others are according to the other military alignment plan. Pakistan and India are associated with one or both of these alignment plans, but maybe not fully, and because of their relationships with the U.S. Due to that reason, and possibly an additional one, those two countries have been careful with how they associate with these Asian military alignments.

The two military (and, I guess, also economic) alliances are:

*) Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO); and,

*) Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

The following article says, "Russia will be representing the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). The Russians and their allies in the two organizations ....". It also says that the "SCO was jointly created with China and includes several countries which border on Afghanistan.".

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=8488

More articles can be easily found by doing a Web search and for pieces at Global Research, Counterpunch, and surely other websites, on the SCO and CSTO. Even specifically or directly using Google works well for searching for articles at websites and without specifying the website to search through, but that also returns linked references at other websites. To avoid the latter combined result, we can just use the Google 'site' search tag; f.e., "CSTO SCO site:globalresearch.ca", minus the quotes, and using Google.

I just tested the latter, using the 'site' search tag and for articles at GR; and plenty of links were returned. Also tried for Counterpunch (.org), but only one link was returned.

Do a search for articles on 'war games', 'war exercises', and at GR, and you'll find past articles on such exercises by states other than the U.S. and Israel. But articles there and on the SCO and CSTO do considerably mention some of the war exercises by countries of these two Asian military alliances.

It is absolutely astonishing that you, "Common Dreams", have not published a comment today on the suggested new "war powers act" concocted by Baker and Christopher, reason enough to be on guard.
Here are two arrogant lawyers who believe that I am too stupid to understand our Constitution hence that they must explain it to me. Hey Baker/Christopher I do not need your expertise. Sure, the old "war powers act" was unconstitutional but so is your Baker-Christopher miscreant. Here is why I think that is the case.
When our country goes to war in consonance with the constitution as it did for example when Hitler declared war on us in 1942 it commits to war not only the entire Federal Government and our Armed Forces but above all it commits "we the people". The President is "commander-in-chief" of the armed forces but he is NOT, I repeat he is NOT the commander-in-chief of "we the people". Hence as commander-in-chief he cannot unilaterally declare war for me because he is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces but he is NOT MY commander-in-chief. Only Congress can commit "we the people", hence me, to war and the President must obey the instructions of the Congress. If the congress says NO, then there is no war and the NO or YES for that matter must precede any action by the President. The proposed new Baker-Christopher "war powers act" rapes the intent of the "Founding Fathers" who despised and rejected the idea that a President could go to war on his own and ask the Congress for permission afterwards because that would have smacked of an American King George. It is abundantly clear why the two advocate an American King George because that is a perfect way to keep the American society divided into the powerful and powerless.

Hate paying $10 a gallon for gas then thank a Jew. Any Americans who support the fascist government of Israel should be sent to live there. The only thing Israel has ever done for the U.S. is bomb the USS Liberty and subvert Congress through AIPAC.

If anyone's bothered to pay attention, Iran is already under attack and US troops are on their soil. You can thank the Democratic Congressional leadership for authorizing that.

For those who have not been paying attention, read what Seymour Hersh is reporting.