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| September 8, 2011 |
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September 8, 2011
Tomgram: Engelhardt, Tear Down the Freedom Tower
[Note to TomDispatch Readers: The
remarkable Timothy MacBain’s interview with me today marks the 100th
he’s done for TomDispatch. He operates with little but his native
intelligence, a great radio voice, and the most minimal of equipment.
It’s a small miracle. To catch today’s TomCast audio interview in
which, among other things, I think back to the ways in which the
original 9/11 rites and ceremonies led to this website, click
here, or download it to your iPod
here. If you want to wander among the previous 99 interviews, click
here. Tom]
Let’s Cancel 9/11 Bury the War State's Blank Check at Sea
By Tom Engelhardt
Let’s bag it.
I’m talking about the tenth anniversary ceremonies for 9/11, and everything that goes with them: the solemn reading of the names of the dead, the tolling of bells, the honoring of first responders, the gathering of presidents, the dedication of the new memorial, the moments of silence. The works.
Let’s just can it all. Shut down Ground Zero. Lock out the tourists. Close “Reflecting Absence,” the memorial built in the “footprints” of the former towers with its grove of trees, giant pools, and multiple waterfalls before it can be unveiled this Sunday. Discontinue work on the underground National September 11 Museum due to open in 2012. Tear down the Freedom Tower (redubbed 1 World Trade Center after our “freedom” wars went awry), 102 stories of “the most expensive skyscraper ever constructed in the United States.” ( Estimated price tag: $3.3 billion.) Eliminate that still-being-constructed, hubris-filled 1,776 feet of building, planned in the heyday of George W. Bush and soaring into the Manhattan sky like a nyaah-nyaah invitation to future terrorists. Dismantle the other three office towers being built there as part of an $11 billion government-sponsored construction program. Let’s get rid of it all. If we had wanted a memorial to 9/11, it would have been more appropriate to leave one of the giant shards of broken tower there untouched.
Ask yourself this: ten years into the post-9/11 era, haven't we had enough of ourselves? If we have any respect for history or humanity or decency left, isn’t it time to rip the Band-Aid off the wound, to remove 9/11 from our collective consciousness? No more invocations of those attacks to explain otherwise inexplicable wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and our oh-so-global war on terror. No more invocations of 9/11 to keep the Pentagon and the national security state flooded with money. No more invocations of 9/11 to justify every encroachment on liberty, every new step in the surveillance of Americans, every advance in pat-downs and wand-downs and strip downs that keeps fear high and the homeland security state afloat.
The attacks of September 11, 2001 were in every sense abusive, horrific acts. And the saddest thing is that the victims of those suicidal monstrosities have been misused here ever since under the guise of pious remembrance. This country has become dependent on the dead of 9/11 -- who have no way of defending themselves against how they have been used -- as an all-purpose explanation for our own goodness and the horrors we’ve visited on others, for the many towers-worth of dead in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere whose blood is on our hands.
Isn’t it finally time to go cold turkey? To let go of the dead? Why keep repeating our 9/11 mantra as if it were some kind of old-time religion, when we’ve proven that we, as a nation, can’t handle it -- and worse yet, that we don’t deserve it?
We would have been better off consigning our memories of 9/11 to oblivion, forgetting it all if only we could. We can’t, of course. But we could stop the anniversary remembrances. We could stop invoking 9/11 in every imaginable way so many years later. We could stop using it to make ourselves feel like a far better country than we are. We could, in short, leave the dead in peace and take a good, hard look at ourselves, the living, in the nearest mirror.
Click here to read more of this dispatch.
Brazilian Army accepts first Elbit Systems unmanned turret
The Brazilian Army's Land Forces has accepted Elbit Systems' first 30mm unmanned turret UT30BR, which was integrated into the IVECO 6×6 Guarani vehicle after conducting customer acceptance tests.
Iraqi Army receives M1A1 Abrams tanks
The Iraqi Army has received its final shipment of M1A1 Abrams tanks, which were ordered by the Iraqi Government through a foreign military sales agreement with the US.
Meggitt to operate and maintain ADF WTSS centre
Meggitt Training Systems has been awarded a contract by the Australian Defence Force (ADF) to operate and maintain small and supporting arms simulation training centres, known as weapon training simulation system (WTSS) facilities.
SAIC to support Egyptian Armed Forces
Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) has been awarded a prime contract to enhance and expand Egyptian Armed Forces' realistic force-on-force training capabilities.
CORPORATE NEWS
Colibrys Precision Tilt Sensor Locked Into High Reliability Platform Stabilization Applications
Colibrys
Barrett Receives JITC Certification for the Barrett 2050 HF Transceiver
Barrett Military Communications
DHS Systems International to Unveil Drash Xytex 500™ at DSEi 2011
DHS Systems
PQS Certification for Vaccine Refrigerator / Freezer TCW 3000 AC
Dometic
Aqeri at Exhibition in Belgium
Aqeri
Suspect Accuses U.S. of Aiding Mexican Cartel: Unlikely, but Clever Defense
Many people interested in security in Mexico and the Mexican cartels
will turn their attention to Chicago in the next few days. Sept. 11 is
the deadline for the U.S. government to respond to a defense discovery
motion filed July 29 in the case of Jesus Vicente Zambada Niebla, aka
“El Vicentillo.” El Vicentillo is the son of Ismail “El Mayo” Zambada
Garcia, a principal leader of the Sinaloa Federation. While not as
well-known as his partner, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera, El Mayo
nevertheless is a very powerful figure in Mexico’s cartel underworld,
and one of the richest men in Mexico.
The Mexican military arrested El Vicentillo in March 2009 in an exclusive Mexico City neighborhood. Grand juries in Chicago and Washington had indicted El Vicentillo on drug smuggling charges, prompting the United States to seek his extradition from Mexico. Upon his February 2010 extradition, it was decided he would first face the charges pending against him in the Northern District of Illinois. According to the Justice Department, El Vicentillo is "one of the most significant Mexican drug defendants extradited from Mexico to the United States since Osiel Cardenas Guillen, the accused leader of the notorious Gulf Cartel, was extradited in 2007." Read more »
The Mexican military arrested El Vicentillo in March 2009 in an exclusive Mexico City neighborhood. Grand juries in Chicago and Washington had indicted El Vicentillo on drug smuggling charges, prompting the United States to seek his extradition from Mexico. Upon his February 2010 extradition, it was decided he would first face the charges pending against him in the Northern District of Illinois. According to the Justice Department, El Vicentillo is "one of the most significant Mexican drug defendants extradited from Mexico to the United States since Osiel Cardenas Guillen, the accused leader of the notorious Gulf Cartel, was extradited in 2007." Read more »
Above the Tearline: The Value of Medical Intelligence
Vice President of Intelligence Fred Burton explains the tactical methods
used by intelligence agencies to monitor and evaluate the health of
foreign leaders. Watch the Video »
- Ao vivo no blog a partir das 22:30 horas participe
- O “milagre” de Cabral e Beltrame é uma fraude, como sempre se disse aqui. Mas o Jabor quer mais…
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- A FARSA DA UPP: Ação do tráfico no Complexo do Alemão surpreende governo do Rio e PF
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- A FARSA DA UPP: Vídeo mostra tiros traçantes no Complexo do Alemão
- A FARSA DA UPP: Apavorados, moradores não conseguem voltar para casa durante tiroteio no Complexo do Alemão
- A FARSA DA UPP: Bonde de carros com 50 traficantes armados invade o Complexo do Alemão, diz polícia
- A FARSA DA PACIFICAÇÃO: Traficantes invadem o Complexo do Alemão e atacam Exército
Chicken, Sausage, and Black Olives Recipe
Tarragon lends a hint of licorice flavor which gives a huge wow factor to chicken and Italian sausages. The flavors are further rounded out with the addition of sweet bell peppers (capsicums), onions, garlic, and mushrooms. Please use fresh tarragon for best results. I like to serve this mixture over simple white rice, but it is also excellent over pasta. This makes a filling meal for hearty appetites, perfect for larger families... Read more
Zucchini Casserole Recipe
If you have an abundance of zucchini from your garden and need to use it up, look no further. Old-fashioned zucchini casserole is long on flavor but short on ingredients. The recipe uses zucchini, canned tomatoes, onion, oregano, and mozzarella cheese. You probably already already keep these staples on hand. It goes together fast and bakes for 30 minutes. And voila! A side dish just like Grandma used to make... Read more
Nutty Chocolate Dream Bars Recipe
I was chatting with a friend about our mutual love of brownies when she started dreaming about an ideal brownie with a fudgy chocolate filling and her beloved cashews. Of course, it had to have some type of frosting to complete the decadent picture. And this is the delicious result. They are easier to make than you might think, especially since they begin with a cake mix. Everyone loved them. I think you will, as well. .. Read more
Zucchini Recipes and Cooking Tips
Zucchini is also known as summer squash and courgettes. Your bushel runneth over with zucchini? No problem! Zucchini, also known as courgette and summer squash, has many cooking applications as a vegetable as well as in sweet concoctions. Check out zucchini history, selection, storage, and cooking tips. Then try such zucchini recipes as Banana Zucchini Bread, Grilled Veal Chops and Zucchini, Zucchini Bites Appetizers, and more... Read more
Se moviliza Brasil contra la corrupción |
Miles de personas salieron a las calles para protestar por los escándalos; piden a Dilma que profundice la "limpieza" en su gobierno |
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Rebrote de violencia en una favela de Río de Janeiro |
Los narcos intentaron ingresar al Alemão |
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La bonanza se agota; la paciencia, también |
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Rechazan una iniciativa del PT contra la prensa |
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Piden a los países africanos que no refugien a Khadafy |
Los rebeldes enviaron una delegación a Níger; confusión sobre el paradero del coronel |
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Juan Fernández, entre las leyendas y la tragedia |
Un halo de misterio envuelve al mítico archipiélago chileno |
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Rusia: cae un avión con un equipo de hockey |
Hubo 43 muertos y dos heridos graves |
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Un fallo avala a Merkel |
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Murió el ex canciller Valdés |
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Síntesis |
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Eleva EE.UU. la alerta en todas sus bases militares |
El gobierno advirtió que el aniversario es una "fecha sensible" |
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