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Thursday, July 12, 2007

Iraqi guards steal $282 million

As the cost of the "Occupation of Iraq" nears $400 billion; you have to ask,
Where has all the money gone?

In the news this week.."BAGHDAD: In an astonishing heist, guards at a bank here made off with more than a quarter-billion dollars on Wednesday, according to an official at the Interior Ministry.""CASH"
The stolen money was in American dollars, not Iraqi dinars. It was unclear why the bank had that much money on hand in dollars, or how the robbers managed to move such a large amount without being detected."

follow the money..
This from a few years ago..

"$12 billion in US currency removed from the vaults of the Federal Reserve and flown into Iraq, this money, mainly $100 bills, were packed into bricks, and each brick was worth $400,000 each. And I think we have a picture of the bricks on the screen. They were assembled into large palettes containing over $60 million in cash and flown into Iraq. In December 2003, Ambassador Bremer and the Coalition Provision Authority asked for a shipment of $1.5 billion to be flown into Iraq, and a Federal Reserve official described this in an email as the largest payout of US currency in US history. But this didn’t remain the largest for very long, because in June, $2.4 billion was sent to Iraq, and this time the Federal Reserve official wrote, quote, “Just when you think you’ve seen it all, the CPA is ordering $2,401,600,000 in currency.”
think progress.org

I only hope the thieves were motivated by greed alone and not part of an effort to put money in the hands of terrorists.
This was NOT the first bank robbery in Iraq since "the occupation".
Not even the second or third time the banks are looted.
Several attempts were thwarted but not all..

" vast sums of money were made available to the US-led provisional authorities, headed by Paul Bremer, to spend on rebuilding the country. By the time Bremer left the post eight months later, $8.8bn of that money had disappeared."

No surprise from another BushCo tool..

Thursday July 7, 2005
The Guardian

"When Paul Bremer, the American pro consul in Baghdad until June last year, arrived in Iraq soon after the official end of hostilities, there was $6bn left over from the UN Oil for Food Program, as well as sequestered and frozen assets, and at least $10bn from resumed Iraqi oil exports. Under Security Council Resolution 1483, passed on May 22 2003, all these funds were transferred into a new account held at the Federal Reserve Bank in New York, called the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI), and intended to be spent by the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) "in a transparent manner ... for the benefit of the Iraqi people"."

Anyone @BushCo want to take guess what happened to all the money?

"According to some estimates, we cannot track $2.3 trillion in transactions"
Donald Rumsfeld, 2002


I certainly hope people keep these events in mind going into the next election.
Our (the US Government) apparently collects SO much money from taxes
that they just can't keep up with where it is all spent.
Yet when I listen to a candidate like Edwards, he still talks about raising taxes to pay for nationwide health care and that is simply absurd.
Take PROFIT out of the equation John!
Another thing that is really absurd is all but ONE Republican candidate still mouthing the words "the War on Terror" at each debate.
They can't control spending and wouldn't know a budget if it bit them on the ass.
Is there any better example of out of control spending than the U.S. Embassy being built in Baghdad?
This embassy sits on 104 acres and is six times larger than the United Nations compound in New York. Estimated cost of over $1 billion!

So let's review.. most of our current politicians can't be trusted with our money nor to protect our civil liberties and uphold the Constitution..
Time to start over with some new faces and fresh ideas.
The old "lifers" have got to go.

If you have watched any of the so-called debates; and unless you have been drinking the "kool aid"; you have to be aware that so many candidates represent much of the same failed ideas that have put us in the mess we are in today. The only repub that's not ready to go to war is Ron Paul. I can't for the life of me understand why the other repub candidates are even candidates.
The dems aren't that much different with the exception of Gravel and Kucinich. You have two groups that have different talking points but basically plan to serve more of the same crap.
These people are corporate whores to the military industrial complex that Eisenhower warned us about.
The same representatives that voted for the war in Iraq, the Patriot Act, the Military Commissions Act and the Medicare Prescription Drug Bill did NOT vote to protect the interests of the people. Their votes on these issues have sacrificed our rights and freedoms.

Do you want more war and more debt?
Do you want warrant-less wiretaps and surveillance?
Don't you want a non-profit full coverage heath care plan for all?

WELL, DO YOU?
Please vote for change, not for more of the same.


Tuesday, July 03, 2007

kleptocracy

From Wikipedia-A kleptocracy (sometimes cleptocracy) (root: klepto+cracy = rule by thieves) is a government that extends the personal wealth and political power of government officials and the ruling class (collectively, kleptocrats) at the expense of the population.

If this is what you wanted, then this is what we have.
After watching George let Scooter off this week, I'm left with these feelings again..

I want to give a shout AGAIN to all you dumb asses that voted for George Bush in 2000 and very special F**K**UVERYMUCH to those who voted for him AGAIN in 2004!

From a previous post- How can 60,645,844 people be so dumb?
"You wanted it, you got it..4 MORE YEARS to watch Bush and his comrades screw the American people and our economy.
Thanks alot you deluded bunch of pinheads."

***

MoveOn.org sends email petitions with an area for "comment".
I received one calling on Congress; in the wake of Bush's dismissal of Libby's sentence; to take action and hold them accountable. Fat chance..
But here is my comment..

"I have a couple of quotes from Nov.06 for you.
“The days of the do-nothing Congress are over,” declared Democratic Sen. Harry Reid ..
“This new Democratic majority has heard the voices of the American people,” said Rep. Nancy Pelosi..
Quotes from when the Democrats "took back Congress".
You claimed to have a "plan" for the 1st 100 days.
So what happened?
The list of criminals in the Bush Administration is a long one and you haven't done anything to remove the criminal elements nor to restore the integrity of this country and our Constitution.
So I will ask again, What Happened?
If you can't or won't do the job, then please resign and make room for someone that can."


To everyone else, have a great 4th of July!

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