By Mail Foreign Service
 

International troops opened fire on a bus carrying Afghan civilians today, killing four people and setting off anti-American protests by furious locals.

Witnesses said the bus, which was travelling in Kandahar province's Zhari district, had pulled over to allow an American convoy to pass when gunfire broke out.

The shooting left another 18 people wounded, 12 of whom were taken to a military hospital.
Afghan policemen and protesters stand near a bus after it was fired upon by international troops, killing four people and wounding 18 others
 
 

Aftermath: Afghan policemen and protesters surround a bus after it was fired upon by international troops, killing four people and wounding 18 others

Nato said it was investigating the incident and would not reveal the nationality of the troops involved.

Passenger Rozi Mohammad, who was interviewed at hospital, said the bus had just left the Kandahar terminal when it pulled over to allow the convoy to take over.

Shooting broke out as the third or fourth American vehicle went by, he said, with gunfire coming from the direction of the convoy.

'They just suddenly opened fire, I don't know why. We had been stopped and after that I don't know what happened,' he said.

Within hours, scores of Afghans had blocked the main highway out of Kandahar city with burning tires, chanting 'Death to America,' and calling for the downfall of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, himself a Kandahar native.

Karzai issued a statement condemning the attack and expressing condolences to the victims.

'This shooting involving a civilian bus violates Nato's commitment to safeguard civilian life,' Karzai said.

'The Americans are constantly killing our civilians and the government is not demanding an explanation,' said resident Mohammad Razaq.
Afghan protesters burn tires near the scene of today's shooting in Kandahar
 
 

Afghan protesters burn tires near the scene of today's shooting in Kandahar

 

Afghan locals shout anti-American slogans during a protest rally in Kandahar

Afghan locals shout anti-American slogans during a protest rally in Kandahar

'We demand justice from the Karzai government and the punishment of those soldiers responsible.'

The shooting came as two suicide bombers attacked an Afghan intelligence services compound in Kandahar, which is the largest city in southern Afghanistan.

Afghan forces shot and wounded one of the attackers, who then detonated his explosives belt.

The second bomber was also killed, although it wasn't clear if he too had blown himself up.

Two intelligence agents and a teacher at a nearby school were injured in the attack, according to Ahmed Wali Karzai, the head of Kandahar's provincial council.

Kandahar was the seat of the Taliban regime ousted in 2001 and insurgents remain active there despite a heavy presence of foreign forces.

Nato is gearing up for long-anticipated allied operation to push the Taliban out of Kandahar, from which the hardline Islamic movement emerged as a political and military force in the 1990s.

Securing it is key to the U.S. military and Nato's aim of turning around the war, but anger stirred by civilian deaths could undercut local support.

The top Nato commander in Afghanistan, U.S. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, has issued strict orders to his troops to try to reduce civilian casualties.

Kandahar spokesman Ayubi said the provincial government strongly condemned the shooting.

Nato spokesman Mst. Sgt. Jeff Loftin said the alliance had dispatched a team to the scene to investigate, but didn't say whether its troops were responsible for the civilian deaths.

At least 2,412 Afghan civilians were killed in fighting last year, an increase of 14 percent from 2008, according to the United Nations.
 
 

http://www.infowars.com/google-ceo-and-obama-activist-wants-machines-to-pick-news/

Kurt Nimmo - Infowars.com
 
 

Drudge reports this morning that Google CEO Eric Schmidt wants Google’s machines to select what news you read on its website. “News sites should use technology to predict what a user wants to read by what they have already read, Schmidt told the American Society of News Editors, where a few humans still remained in the audience,” writes Drudge. Schmidt wants to be challenged through technology that “directs readers” to a story with an “opposing” view. Schmidt is a staunch Obama partisan. In 2008, at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, he took the stage and said the internet gave Obama the ability to bypass traditional media and claim the Democratic nomination. “I’m doing this personally,” Schmidt said. “Google is officially neutral.”

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/11/gates-wikileaks-video-pai_n_533215.html

Defense Secretary Robert Gates acknowledged on Sunday that leaked video showing the 2007 killing by U.S. Army personnel of a gathering of civilians in Iraq is "unfortunate" and "painful to see." But he did not think it would have a long-term affect on U.S. operations in that country.
 

Appearing on ABC's "This Week," Gates was asked about the video that recently surfaced on WikiLeaks, showing two Reuters journalists (in a gathering with Iraqis) being shot at and killed by U.S. forces in a hovering helicopter "Does the release of that video, and the fact that that happened damage the image of the U.S. in the world?" host Jake Tapper asked. "I don't think so," said Gates. "They're in a combat situation. The video doesn't show the broader picture of the firing that was going on at American troops. It's obviously a hard thing to see. It's painful to see, especially when you learn after the fact what was going on. But you talked about the fog of war. These people were operating in split-second situations."

"And, you know, we've investigated it very thoroughly. And it's unfortunate," he added. "It's clearly not helpful. But by the same token, I think it should not have any lasting consequences."

There has been some speculation that the WikiLeaks video would spur an equivalent wave of outrage as did the photos from the detention center at Abu Ghraib. While Gates argues that viewers are left with only part of the story (there is, as he notes, no footage of the apparent firing at U.S. troops), the image of people trying to provide help and provide medical attention to the wounded -- only to be shot at as well -- is jarring. Certainly, it has called into question whether this episode can be dismissed as simply a "fog of war" scenario.

Nevertheless, as Gates's comments suggest, the fallout seems, at this point, rather contained. Part of it may be that few lawmakers have been around Washington D.C. to be asked about the video -- owing to Congress' recess. But mainly it seems to be another byproduct of the secondary status that Iraq and Afghanistan now take in political discourse.
 
 

http://theweek.com/article/index/201774/NBCs_cynical_mindcontrol_games

The network admits it uses "behavior placement" on popular shows to encourage healthy, eco-friendly habits — and sell ads.
 
 

Tina Fey before NBC instituted "behavior  placement." Photo: Creative Commons

First there was product placement. Now there's "behavior placement," the planting of subtle messages in popular TV shows to encourage certain viewer behavior — such as healthy eating or eco-conscious habits — and thereby convince sponsors that their brands will be associated with "feel-good, socially aware" shows. NBC has owned up to the practice, reports The Wall Street Journal, as part of its Green Initiative: If "Tina Fey is tossing a plastic bottle into the recycling bin," the theory goes, audience members will be more apt to do the same. Innocuous or "Orwellian"?

This isn't just creepy, it's dumb: The pressure to be eco-conscious has reached a new high, says says Christopher Rosen in Movieline. NBC implies that people are too dumb to make healthy decisions on their own. How "patently stupid." Do viewers really need NBC "telling them how to run their life?"
"NBC thinks you're an idiot, part 56: 'Behavior placement'"

What's the big deal? Despite the hubbub, the principles NBC promotes are "fairly innocuous," says Amy Chozick in the Wall Street Journal. "Climate change may be controversial," but these shows don't make a political statement — they simply show characters making green-conscious decisions. "Most people can agree... [this] is a good thing."
"What your TV is telling you to do"

Unfortunately, healthy habits aren't the bottom line: Clearly, for NBC, behavior placement is about dollar signs and cynicism, says Jon Bershad in Mediaite. The execs' attempts to manipulate their viewers to draw eco-conscious, health-conscious advertisers is "soul-crushing" proof that "everything is a business" these days.
"NBC — Green initiative"
 
 

http://www.france24.com/en/20100412-ahmadinejad-urges-ban-probe-911-attacks

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark the National Nuclear Day day in Tehran on April 9. Ahmadinejad has written to UN chief Ban Ki-moon, asking him to launch an investigation into the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, news reports said on Monday.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark the National Nuclear Day day in Tehran on April 9. Ahmadinejad has written to UN chief Ban Ki-moon, asking him to launch an investigation into the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, news reports said on Monday.

AFP - Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has written to UN chief Ban Ki-moon, asking him to launch an investigation into the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, news reports said on Monday.

"The minimum expectation from your excellency is to set up an independent and trusted fact-finding group to comprehensively investigate the real factors behind September 11," Ahmadinejad said in the text of the letter carried by official news agencies.

They did not say when the letter was sent.

The hardliner, who in March dismissed 9/11 as a "big lie," said in the letter that the attacks "were the main pretext for attacks" by NATO on Afghanistan and Iraq.

Several times Ahmadinejad has questioned the accepted version of the Al-Qaeda strikes on New York and Washington which killed nearly 3,000 people.

In January, he branded September 11 "a suspicious affair" similar to the Holocaust, which he dismissed as a "myth" in 2005, drawing widespread condemnation.

Ahmadinejad's latest remarks come with Iran locked in a standoff with world powers led by the United States over Tehran's controversial nuclear programme, and risking tougher sanctions over its defiance.

In his letter, he also asked Ban to condemn Sunni militant Abdolmalek Rigi and those who backed him.

Rigi, head of the rebel Jundallah (Soldiers of God) group, was captured by Iranian intelligence agents in February. According to officials in Iran, he had lived in Pakistan from where he launched attacks inside the Islamic republic.

"Based on the legal and humane duties of the secretary general, we want outright condemnation of Rigi's crimes and defence of the Iranian nation's rights as a victim of terrorism," Ahmadinejad's letter said.

He demanded "condemnation of NATO backing for this regional terrorist and impeachment of the criminals who backed him."

Iran touted Rigi's arrest as a major success and a blow to the United States and Britain, and state television showed what it said was Rigi confessing that he had received US backing.

Rigi reportedly spearheaded several bloody insurgent attacks in southeast Iran's Sistan-Baluchestan province, which borders both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
 

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/all-bets-are-off-if-us-under-biological-attack-warns-hillary-clinton/story-e6frf7jx-1225852517033

US SECRETARY of State Hillary Clinton says the US cannot rule out using nuclear weapons if it came under biological attack, saying in that case "all bets are off".

"If we can prove that a biological attack originated in a country that attacked us, then all bets are off," Ms Clinton said in an interview with CBS's Face the Nation.

Ms Clinton was referring to a new US nuclear policy unveiled last week that restricted the use of atomic weapons against non-nuclear states that comply with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Both Ms Clinton and Defence Secretary Robert Gates said in joint television interviews that Iran and North Korea represent exceptions to the limits on a US nuclear response, as both have defied UN resolutions on their atomic programs.

"We leave ourselves a lot of room for contingencies," she said.

Asked why Iran and North Korea are considered exceptions, Mr Gates said: "Well, because they're not in compliance with the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. So for them all bets are off. All the options are on table."

Ms Clinton and Mr Gates said a new arms control deal with Russia and the revised nuclear policy will bolster President Barack Obama's diplomatic efforts to isolate Iran and North Korea over their nuclear programs.
 
 

http://www.infowars.com/leaked-u-s-document-calls-for-global-regime-to-tackle-climate-change/

Steve Watson - Prisonplanet.com

Leaked U.S. Document Calls For Global Regime To Tackle Climate Change 120410featureA confidential U.S. government document obtained by the London Guardian highlights the ongoing agenda to create a structure of global governance in the name of combating climate change.

“Titled Strategic communications objectives and dated 11 March 2010, it outlines the key messages that the Obama administration wants to convey to its critics and to the world media in the run-up to the vital UN climate talks in Cancun, Mexico in November.” The Guardian reports.

The newspaper says that the document (full text below) was “accidentally left on a European hotel computer” before it was passed to their editors.

The number one item on the itinerary is to “Reinforce the perception that the US is constructively engaged in UN negotiations in an effort to produce a global regime to combat climate change.” (my emphasis)

The news comes on the back of revelations that rich countries have threatened to cut vital aid to developing nations if they do not back the deal agreed at the UN climate summit in Copenhagen last year.

Elsewhere, the leaked document pinpoints the need to continue “driving the climate change story” in the mainstream media, but also identifies the need to “disarm” critics and to bypass traditional media outlets to do so, focusing more on “new media”.

The document also highlights a need to “Create a clear understanding of the CA’s [Copenhagen accord's] standing and the importance of operationalising ALL elements.”

Although the final Copenhagen agreement was largely dismissed as a failure by both the mainstream media and climate skeptics, it established the framework for a global government which will control climate finances via taxes on CO2 emissions.

The latest leaked U.S. document calls for operationalising the elements of that framework.

The final text of the accord (PDF) states that funds obtained from climate financing will be controlled by a “governance structure,” and that a “High Level Panel” will be appointed to decide where the money will come from. In effect, this means that a UN-controlled structure of global governance will override the sovereignty of nation states in collecting and doling out funds obtained under the justification of climate change.

The agreement also gives the green light for carbon trading markets, which as we have documented are all owned by climate kingpins like Maurice Strong and Al Gore, to be more heavily financed and expanded.

Leaked UN documents uncovered in February also highlighted the need to establish a global governance structure in the name of combating climate change by 2012.

“Moving towards a green economy would also provide an opportunity to re-examine national and global governance structures and consider whether such structures allow the international community to respond to current and future environmental and development challenges and to capitalize on emerging opportunities,” the leaked white paper stated.

The paper outlined that the imposition of such “global governance structures” will be achieved with the help of “vast wealth transfers” from richer countries (in the form of carbon taxes levied on citizens) to poorer nations, amounting to no less than $45 trillion dollars.

The UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, has not been shy in proclaiming the unfolding agenda for a global governance structure to override national parliaments on the issue of climate change.

In an October New York Times editorial entitled “We Can Do It,” Ki-moon wrote that efforts to impose restrictions on CO2 emissions “Must include an equitable global governance structure.”

He re-iterated those sentiments in December following the Copenhagen summit, telling the LA Times “We will establish a global governance structure to monitor and manage the implementation of this.”

Last year at a forum in Oxford, England, Al Gore also called for global governance in order to implement global agreements on climate change.

Globalists are persistent and they will continue hammering away until they get what they want, not because the environment is on the verge of collapse, but because their agenda for world government is stalling as more people find out the true agenda behind the global warming scam.

Meanwhile, anyone who suggests global governance is on the agenda is derided as a conspiracy theorist, despite such open announcements of this very intention.

*******************

Text of the leaked document:
 

    Strategic communications objectives

    1) Reinforce the perception that the US is constructively engaged in UN negotiations in an effort to produce a global regime to combat climate change. This includes support for a symmetrical and legally binding treaty.

    2) Manage expectations for Cancun – Without owning the message, advance the narrative that while a symmetrical legally binding treaty in Mexico is unlikely, solid progress can be made on the six or so main elements.

    3) Create a clear understanding of the CA’s standing and the importance of operationalising ALL elements.

    4) Build and maintain outside support for the administration’s commitment to meeting the climate and clean energy challenge despite an increasingly difficult political environment to pass legislation.

    5) Deepen support and understanding from the developing world that advanced developing countries must be part of any meaningful solution to climate change including taking responsibilities under a legally binding treaty.

    Media outreach

    • Continue to conduct interviews with print, TV and radio outlets driving the climate change story.

    • Increase use of off-the-record conversations.

    • Strengthen presence in international media markets during trips abroad. Focus efforts on radio and television markets.

    • Take greater advantage of new media opportunities such as podcasts to advance US position in the field bypassing traditional media outlets.

    • Consider a series of policy speeches/public forums during trips abroad to make our case directly to the developing world.

    Key outreach efforts

    • Comprehensive and early outreach to policy makers, key stakeholders and validators is critical to broadening support for our positions in the coming year.

    • Prior to the 9-11 April meeting in Bonn it would be good for Todd to meet with leading NGOs. This should come in the form of 1:1s and small group sessions.

    • Larger group sessions, similar to the one held at CAP prior to Copenhagen, will be useful down the line, but more intimate meetings in the spring are essential to building the foundation of support. Or at the very least, disarming some of the harsher critics.