September 27, 2015


News Clips For The Day


http://wcfcourier.com/ap/commentary/fiorina-s-planned-parenthood-dare-based-on-fake-video/article_a37ff0f3-59e7-57f4-bad1-e3e56b599b0c.html

Fiorina’s Planned Parenthood dare based on fake video
Martin Schram
Op-ed columnist for Tribune News Service.
September 27, 2015

Photograph -- Martin Schram


The conning of former corporate CEO Carly Fiorina is apparently proceeding with great success in this still-early race for the Republican presidential nomination.

And now, after careful fact-checking, the only question yet to be resolved is whether the Republican presidential top challenger should be categorized as one of the political con artists or one of the political con victims.

This much is indisputable: Fiorina launched herself into top challenger status in the crowded GOP presidential pack in the Sept. 16 Republican presidential debate. And she accomplished that improbable success mainly due to one moment when she took a position all the other candidates also have — but did it in a far more emotional and memorable way, urging the defunding of Planned Parenthood for performing abortions and providing harvested fetus tissue for scientific research.

“As regards Planned Parenthood, anyone who has watched this videotape, I dare Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama to watch these tapes,” she said. “Watch a fully formed fetus on the table, its heart beating, its legs kicking while someone says we have to keep it alive to harvest its brain.”

But Fiorina couldn’t have watched a video of a “fully formed fetus” from Planned Parenthood abortion on a table, “its heart beating, its legs kicking.” No such video of a Planned Parenthood abortion has ever been shown to exist.

Here’s what Fiorina saw: A carefully edited anti-Planned Parenthood video, one of a series posted online by an anti-abortion group, the Center for Medical Progress. In it, one former technician for a contractor who worked at an Alameda, Calif., Planned Parenthood clinic, Holly O’Donnell, poignantly discussed what she said a Planned Parenthood technician asked her to do with a fetus she said was fully formed.

While O’Donnell’s words were being aired, the anti-abortion group’s editors spliced in unrelated footage of another fetus, its limbs moving. That fetus video was credited to another anti-abortion group, the Grantham Collection and Center for Bio-Ethical Reform (which has since declined to identify the source of the fetus video).

Later in the video — when O’Donnell is heard saying, “I remember holding that fetus in my hands …” — a photo of a fetus being held in someone’s hand fills the screen. But that photo isn’t from an abortion; it is a 19-week-old fetus from a miscarriage in a hospital in Kokomo, Ind. The woman who miscarried, Alexis Fretz, and her husband, Joshua, posted photos of themselves and their other children with the lifeless fetus in a memorial online blog.

Strangely, when confronted with this fact-checking evidence, Fiorina chose to dig in, double down and deny. When Fox News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace asked whether she accepted fact-checkers’ conclusions she never actually saw a Planned Parenthood abortion video, Fiorina said: “No … I’ve seen the footage. … I haven’t found a lot of people in the mainstream media who’ve ever watched these things.”

Well, I watched them and heard them. And I know she didn’t see what she says, and probably believes, she saw. But if it makes Fiorina feel better, she isn’t the only big name to fall for the flimflam. Tuesday afternoon, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., apparently fell, too — big-time. His press office issued a press release titled: “Shame on Them.”

“Midway through one of the graphic videos of Planned Parenthood, a newborn baby slated to have his organs harvested gave a little kick, a feeble show of life for anyone willing to look,” McCarthy’s press release began — apparently unaware the video showed nothing of the sort. McCarthy’s release lambasted Senate Democrats for blocking a vote on a House-passed bill banning abortions after the 20th week. (The majority leader’s press office did not respond to telephone and emailed queries.)

With that, the powerful House majority leader has joined the long list of earnest believers who were adroitly conned into thinking their eyes really saw what their ears only heard.

But despite all this deceptive artistry, we must also address the real impact of the heartfelt concerns of decent people who fell for the visual deceptions. And that leads us to a perhaps surprising bottom line:

Planned Parenthood has fallen short in its responsibility to issue, publicly and apparently internally, firm professional guidelines stating just what its abortion and fetal cell research policy is — and isn’t. Planned Parenthood should forthrightly declare what it does, morally and ethically, in providing cells for scientific research — and what it doesn’t, and will never, do.

And finally: Planned Parenthood’s most powerful supporters — including President Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden — should urge Planned Parenthood to make clear, at last, its ethical and moral bottom line.




“While O’Donnell’s words were being aired, the anti-abortion group’s editors spliced in unrelated footage of another fetus, its limbs moving. That fetus video was credited to another anti-abortion group, the Grantham Collection and Center for Bio-Ethical Reform (which has since declined to identify the source of the fetus video). Later in the video — when O’Donnell is heard saying, “I remember holding that fetus in my hands …” — a photo of a fetus being held in someone’s hand fills the screen. But that photo isn’t from an abortion; it is a 19-week-old fetus from a miscarriage in a hospital in Kokomo, Ind. The woman who miscarried, Alexis Fretz, and her husband, Joshua, posted photos of themselves and their other children with the lifeless fetus in a memorial online blog. …. Well, I watched them and heard them. And I know she didn’t see what she says, and probably believes, she saw. But if it makes Fiorina feel better, she isn’t the only big name to fall for the flimflam. Tuesday afternoon, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., apparently fell, too — big-time. His press office issued a press release titled: “Shame on Them.” …. McCarthy’s release lambasted Senate Democrats for blocking a vote on a House-passed bill banning abortions after the 20th week. (The majority leader’s press office did not respond to telephone and emailed queries.) …. “Planned Parenthood should forthrightly declare what it does, morally and ethically, in providing cells for scientific research — and what it doesn’t, and will never, do. And finally: Planned Parenthood’s most powerful supporters — including President Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden — should urge Planned Parenthood to make clear, at last, its ethical and moral bottom line.”

Schram uncovers a series of despicable activities by an antiabortion group, Grantham Collection and Center for Bio-Ethical Reform, which apparently stole the image of a dead fetus from a personal Facebook memorial and edited it to make it appear to part of their propaganda film. Conservatives have then used the image to make an attack on Planned Parenthood.

Unfortunately the real footage issued last month by Planned Parenthood which appears (after editing?) to show a worker talking to a potential “buyer” about their methods, was disturbing to view even to me. Scientific experimentation with tissue culture, etc., is allowed using human fetuses and produces important knowledge. Shram is correct, though, that Planned Parenthood needs to make a full statement of what they do and don’t do regarding fetuses, and Democrats need to stop backing them so blindly if some of their practices are unethical or illegal. I would like to see more about this business, and very soon.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/john-boehner-there-will-not-be-a-government-shutdown/

John Boehner warns of GOP's "false prophets" in D.C.

By REBECCA KAPLAN
FACE THE NATION
September 27, 2015

Photograph -- gang-of-seven1.jpg -- A poster of then-Rep. John Boehner and the "Gang of Seven" in 1990. COURTESY OF HOUSE SPEAKER JOHN BOEHNER'S OFFICE
Play VIDEO -- House Speaker John Boehner: There will not be a government shutdown
Play VIDEO -- Boehner: Pope Francis visit helped “clear the picture” for his resignation
Play VIDEO -- House Speaker John Boehner: “I was a rebel”
Play VIDEO -- John Boehner: Yes, I do yoga


Days after abruptly announcing that he would resign from the House at the end of October, Speaker John Boehner reflected on some of the "unrealistic" promises made by his colleagues.

"Absolutely they're unrealistic," he said in response to a question from "Face the Nation" moderator John Dickerson.

"The Bible says beware of false prophets. And there are people out there spreading noise about how much can get done," Boehner said.

He specifically referenced promises by his GOP colleagues in 2013 that they would be able to get rid of Obamacare through the process of funding the government - a tactic which ultimately led to the 16-day government shutdown that fall.

"This plan never had a chance. But over the course of the August recess in 2013 and the course of September, a lot of my Republican colleagues who knew it was a fool's errand, they were getting a lot of pressure at home to do this. And so we got groups here in town, members, the House and Senate here in town who whipped people into a frenzy believing they could accomplish things that they know, they know are never going to happen," he said.

Asked whether those "false prophets" include Ted Cruz, the presidential candidate and Texas senator who helped encourage the promises to end Obamacare in 2013, Boehner was a little coyer.

"You can pick a lot of names out, I'll let you chose them," he told Dickerson. But then he referred him to comments he made at an August fundraiser, where he reportedly called Cruz a "jackass."

Although Congress is once against [sic] facing internal battles over funding the government, Boehner told Dickerson the government will remain open this year.

Asked by Dickerson whether there would be a shutdown, Boehner responded with an unequivocal "no."

"The Senate is expected to pass a continuing resolution next week...we'll also take up a select committee to investigate these horrific videos that we've seen from abortion clinics that we've seen in several states," Boehner said.

The Senate is working on a bill that would fund the government, including Planned Parenthood, through Dec. 11. A vote on that measure is scheduled for Monday. Republicans have pledged to defund Planned Parenthood after anti-abortion activists recorded undercover footage some of the group's officials discussing the use of fetal parts for medical research.

The speaker also reflected on the timing of his resignation announcement, which came just a day after Pope Francis concluded the Washington, D.C. portion of his trip to the United States. It was an [sic] very meaningful visit for Boehner, a practicing Catholic.

"I think it helped clear the picture," Boehner said. "I never related one of those instances with the other, but clearly by Friday night it was pretty obvious to me."

He said he had planned to leave at the end of last year, but had to push back his departure after former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor lost the Republican primary in 2014. He had planned to announce his retirement on Nov. 17 of this year, but said he decided late last week that he shouldn't delay the news.

"I looked up and went, 'Why do I want put my colleagues through this when I'm going to make the same announcement six weeks from now. Why do I want to put the institution through this?'" Boehner said. "It was the right decision and frankly I thought we handled it the right way."

Many political insiders said some of the more conservative members of the party were planning on trying to oust him as speaker before he made the announcement.

Boehner told Dickerson, "winning that vote was never an issue" and said he would have gotten "the overwhelming number" of votes. But, he added, "Why do I want to make my members, Republican members, walk the plank? Because they're going to get criticized by home by some who think we ought to be more aggressive."

He pushed back against some of the critiques he has faced from his colleagues that he wasn't conservative enough. Boehner ticked off what he sees as accomplishments: A major deficit-reduction deal, averting a tax increase on the American people and making the biggest major entitlement reforms in 20 years.

"All done over the last four and a half years with a Democrat president and all voted against by my most conservative members because it wasn't good enough," Boehner said. "Really? You know this is the part that I really don't understand...Our founders didn't want some parliamentary system where if you won the majority you got to do whatever you wanted to do. They wanted this long, slow press. So change comes slowly, and obviously too slowly for some."

Despite some of the frustrations, however, Boehner said, "I love my colleagues, even the ones that may disagree with me."

He said that in his next 30 days as speaker, he'll make decisions the same way he has since assuming the position in 2011.

"I expect that I might have a little more cooperation from some around town to try to get as much finished as possible. I don't want to leave my successor a dirty barn. So I want to clean the barn up a little bit before the next person gets there," he said.

That successor will not be named for several weeks, and it is still unclear which of the Republicans vying for the job will be the next speaker.

"Just do the right things for the right reasons," Boehner advised. "If you keep the country's best interests in mind and have the courage to do what you can do, then it's easy to have the courage to do what you can't do."

"It's not about Hail Mary passes. It's the Woody Hayes school of football. Three yards and a cloud of dust. Three yards and a cloud of dust. It's a slow and methodical process," he said.

When his portrait is unveiled in a year, Boehner said he hopes to hear just one thing said about him: "That he was a good man."

The speaker also revealed a bit of personal information at the end of the show: He does yoga, although he said his practice hasn't been as "diligent" lately.

"It's great for my back. I've had back problems for 50 years, but you know the older it get, all those tendons and muscles want to tighten up. Good to stretch them out," he said.




“Asked whether those "false prophets" include Ted Cruz, the presidential candidate and Texas senator who helped encourage the promises to end Obamacare in 2013, Boehner was a little coyer. "You can pick a lot of names out, I'll let you chose them," he told Dickerson. But then he referred him to comments he made at an August fundraiser, where he reportedly called Cruz a "jackass." …. "The Senate is expected to pass a continuing resolution next week...we'll also take up a select committee to investigate these horrific videos that we've seen from abortion clinics that we've seen in several states," Boehner said. The Senate is working on a bill that would fund the government, including Planned Parenthood, through Dec. 11. …. Many political insiders said some of the more conservative members of the party were planning on trying to oust him as speaker before he made the announcement. Boehner told Dickerson, "winning that vote was never an issue" and said he would have gotten "the overwhelming number" of votes. But, he added, "Why do I want to make my members, Republican members, walk the plank? Because they're going to get criticized by home by some who think we ought to be more aggressive." …. Our founders didn't want some parliamentary system where if you won the majority you got to do whatever you wanted to do. They wanted this long, slow press. So change comes slowly, and obviously too slowly for some." …. "It's not about Hail Mary passes. It's the Woody Hayes school of football. Three yards and a cloud of dust. Three yards and a cloud of dust. It's a slow and methodical process," he said.

“It was an [sic] very meaningful visit for Boehner, a practicing Catholic. "I think it helped clear the picture," Boehner said. "I never related one of those instances with the other, but clearly by Friday night it was pretty obvious to me." This is an interesting statement, but not clearly stated at all. What instances is he discussing? Another article yesterday referred to the possibility that what Pope Francis said might have prompted Boehner to act sooner. The only thing I can think of that might fit was his statement that the US legislature and government in general have been too full of internal conflict to act for the people and with a good efficiency. That is true, of course, but it doesn’t point toward Boehner particularly. It points toward the Tea Party and their government shutdowns. Boehner has usually opposed those and worked to block them. I just hope the next Republican who is elected to the top position will be as honest and (if only slightly) moderate as Boehner is.




ISIS UNDER THREAT BY UN, RUSSIA AND FRANCE – THREE ARTICLES


http://news.yahoo.com/un-peacekeeping-veers-toward-counterterror-us-steps-145304737.html

As UN peacekeeping veers toward counterterror, US steps in
AP By CARA ANNA and MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS
September 26, 2015

View gallery -- In this Feb. 25, 2015 photo provided by the United Nations, United Nations Peacekeepers stand in pat …


UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Along a quiet cease-fire line in Cyprus, U.N. peacekeepers handle an increasingly old-fashioned job: actually keeping the peace. The last deadly incident was in 1996. Today's challenges include keeping poachers and rogue farmers out of no man's land. "Most of the time we don't wear weapons," said the force commander, Maj. Gen. Kristin Lund.

In some places, trendy bars and cafes touch the walls of the buffer zone. "Club Med," some peacekeepers call their posting. They know the job has become far more dangerous almost everywhere else the U.N. has forces — notably Mali, where al-Qaida-linked fighters have claimed responsibility for deadly attacks.

Suicide bombings, improvised explosive devices and combatants with little regard for the rules of war are making the work of nearly 125,000 U.N. peacekeepers look more and more like counterterrorism operations.

Some U.N. member states balk at sending their troops into such conditions to protect civilians. Others ask how heavily armored U.N. troops can promote peace. And new allegations of sexual abuses by U.N. peacekeepers expose deep gaps in training and accountability.

President Barack Obama takes on these issues next Monday when he chairs a U.N. meeting aimed at persuading European and other countries to send money, people and high-tech tools to peacekeeping missions in some of the world's volatile places, from South Sudan to the Golan Heights on the Syria-Israel border.

It's a high-profile attempt to shove the "blue helmets" — now engaged in 16 missions at a cost of $8.2 billion — into modern times.

The new peacekeeping vision calls for special forces, unarmed drones and intelligence work that brings the U.N. closer than ever to the sensitive issue of electronic surveillance.

The U.N. mission in northern Mali is already a testing ground for these approaches. Peacekeepers seek to calm a vast region of the Sahara, but 40 have been killed in little over two years. Only the U.N. mission in Lebanon, where peacekeepers have operated since 1978, has more total deaths.

Alarmed by the toll in Mali, the U.S. military stepped in to help the U.N. mission counter IEDs. And several European countries staff an intelligence cell there, unprecedented in U.N. peacekeeping, that analyzes input from unarmed drones, sensor-equipped attack helicopters and special forces.

Soon, the mission will be using long-range drones, a senior U.N. official told reporters on Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity because the details were private.

As the leader of the country that pays a quarter of the U.N. peacekeeping budget, Obama's goal is to get other nations to step up in similar ways.

Far from the decades-old mandate of the Cyprus mission, where force is only used in self-defense, U.N. peacekeeping now seeks the kinds of tools recently used in the war in Afghanistan.

The goal is "small units of high quality," said Jim Della-Giacoma, deputy director of the Center on International Cooperation at New York University and a former U.N. political affairs officer. Engineering, air support and improved medical facilities for wounded peacekeepers are other needs.

European countries, which contributed more than 40 percent of U.N. peacekeepers two decades ago but now provide less than 7 percent, are crucial to the changes in mind. So are East Asian countries, with China's peacekeeping involvement relatively new and growing.

"It's one of the serious deficiencies of U.N. peacekeeping today that the developed world — the people who have the capacities — are not participating," said Lt. Gen. Satish Nambiar, who led the U.N. peacekeeping mission in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now almost over, Nambiar said, meaning there are no more excuses.

More than 40 heads of state have signed up for Monday's meeting, but in order to speak, a country must announce a new peacekeeping contribution, according to Samantha Power, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. European countries make up roughly half the speakers.

Some countries have grumbled at the speaking rule. But the influence of the United States is clear. "To be honest, it's much more difficult to turn the U.S. down when asking for something than turning the U.N. down," said one Western European country's military adviser. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

A U.S. official on Tuesday said European countries are expected to announce the contribution of "one or two discrete military units" such as an engineering company or a field hospital, and the overall pledges of new troops should "significantly exceed" a goal of 10,000. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the meeting.

Obama's effort comes amid a peacekeeping crisis. In recent weeks, the mission in Central African Republic has faced multiple allegations of sexual abuse, including against minors, that prompted Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to take the unprecedented step of asking the head of mission to resign.

The uproar is a long way from U.N. peacekeeping's being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988. As the United Nations marks its 70th anniversary, its credibility is at stake, U.N. officials have said.

"Critically, we cannot be the source of additional suffering," Ban said this month, threatening repatriations and more.

But his intention to publicly name states whose soldiers face credible accusations of sexual abuse puts the world body in a bind: Angry countries might withdraw their troops from missions, leaving civilians even more vulnerable.

Having a wider range of countries involved in peacekeeping, beyond the large African and South Asian contributors, could soften that threat. Involving more countries could also draw wider political attention to vicious far-flung conflicts, said Arthur Boutellis, director of the Center for Peace Operations at the International Peace Institute.

A key question is what the United States, which has just 78 troops, police and military experts in U.N. peacekeeping, will announce as its own contribution Monday.

The U.S. official mentioned the possibility of airlift and counter-IED support. But there was little sign that other countries' pressure for the U.S. and other permanent Security Council members to involve more of their own troops has had any effect.

"I wouldn't use the word 'outsourcing,'" the official said when asked whether the U.S. was taking that approach to part of the war on terror. "I'd use the word 'burden-sharing.'"


Hadjicostis reported from Cyprus. Associated Press writer Nirmala George in New Delhi contributed to this report.

Related Stories

UN nations to offer thousands of troops at peacekeeping summit AFP
Obama set to get pledges for thousands of UN peacekeepers: official Reuters
UN chief says will repatriate peacekeepers over sex abuse Associated Press
Syria, Ebola Failures Highlight UN shortcomings Associated Press
C Africa UN mission hit by 17th sex abuse claim AFP




“Suicide bombings, improvised explosive devices and combatants with little regard for the rules of war are making the work of nearly 125,000 U.N. peacekeepers look more and more like counterterrorism operations. Some U.N. member states balk at sending their troops into such conditions to protect civilians. Others ask how heavily armored U.N. troops can promote peace. And new allegations of sexual abuses by U.N. peacekeepers expose deep gaps in training and accountability. …. Alarmed by the toll in Mali, the U.S. military stepped in to help the U.N. mission counter IEDs. And several European countries staff an intelligence cell there, unprecedented in U.N. peacekeeping, that analyzes input from unarmed drones, sensor-equipped attack helicopters and special forces. …. As the leader of the country that pays a quarter of the U.N. peacekeeping budget, Obama's goal is to get other nations to step up in similar ways. Far from the decades-old mandate of the Cyprus mission, where force is only used in self-defense, U.N. peacekeeping now seeks the kinds of tools recently used in the war in Afghanistan. …. European countries, which contributed more than 40 percent of U.N. peacekeepers two decades ago but now provide less than 7 percent, are crucial to the changes in mind. So are East Asian countries, with China's peacekeeping involvement relatively new and growing. …. Some countries have grumbled at the speaking rule. But the influence of the United States is clear. "To be honest, it's much more difficult to turn the U.S. down when asking for something than turning the U.N. down," said one Western European country's military adviser. …. European countries are expected to announce the contribution of "one or two discrete military units" such as an engineering company or a field hospital, and the overall pledges of new troops should "significantly exceed" a goal of 10,000. …. But his intention to publicly name states whose soldiers face credible accusations of sexual abuse puts the world body in a bind: Angry countries might withdraw their troops from missions, leaving civilians even more vulnerable. Having a wider range of countries involved in peacekeeping, beyond the large African and South Asian contributors, could soften that threat. Involving more countries could also draw wider political attention to vicious far-flung conflicts. …. A key question is what the United States, which has just 78 troops, police and military experts in U.N. peacekeeping, will announce as its own contribution Monday.”

It does appear to me that as long as the US is financing some one quarter of the budget for peace keeping, we should be able to send fewer troops than other nations who don’t. Still 78 troops (really?) is a far cry from 10,000. I agree with Obama that “burden-sharing” is not merely a good thing, but necessary, given the extent and severity of the problems around the world now that ISIS is on the march and other largely Islamic radicals as well.

I am not exactly surprised, but I am a little shocked, that sexual abuse by UN peace keepers has occurred frequently enough to be mentioned in this article. Luckily, it’s apparently just with a few countries. The UN has a reputation to uphold, after all -- I’m glad to see that Ban has threatened to “name names” publically to expose those abusive groups. I’m also glad to see that UN peace keepers will be allowed to bear arms now, because they simply can’t be much use without that. The nature of the conflicts nowadays requires a more forceful role.






http://www.cbsnews.com/news/iraq-intelligence-sharing-deal-isis-russia-syria-iran/

Iraq announces ISIS deal with Russia, Syria and Iran
CBS/AP
September 27, 2015

Photograph -- A Kurdish man repairs weapons for Kurdish Peshmerga forces fighting against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria militants, in his shop outside of Erbil, north of Iraq, September 15, 2015. REUTERS/AZAD LASHKARI
Play VIDEO -- President Rouhani
Play VIDEO -- Putin talks ISIS and Syrian President Assad with Charlie Rose


BAGHDAD - Iraq will begin sharing "security and intelligence" information with Russia, Syria and Iran to help combat the advances of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS,) the Iraqi military announced Sunday.

A statement issued by the Iraqi Joint Operations Command said the countries will "help and cooperate in collecting information about the terrorist Daesh group," using the Arabic acronym for ISIS.

Iraq has long had close ties with neighboring Iran and has coordinated with Tehran in fighting the advance of ISIS - which controls about a third of Iraq and Syria in a self-declared caliphate. Iranian commanders have helped lead Iraqi Shiite militiamen in combat.

A U.S.-led coalition has been conducting aerial bombing campaigns against ISIS positions in Iraq and Syria, but U.S. officials insist they have no coordination with Tehran on the matter.

In response to the deal's announcement, a Pentagon spokesperson told CBS News the U.S. remains committed to working with Iraq to defeat ISIS.

"As a sovereign nation, Iraq has relations with many nations and the agreements the Iraqis take that work to our common objective are up to them," said Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. Steve Warren in Baghdad. "We recognize that Iraq has an interest in sharing information on ISIL with other governments in the region who are also fighting ISIL. We do not support the presence of Syrian government officials who are part of a regime that has brutalized its own citizens."

The agreement with Russia comes at a time when Moscow is ramping up its involvement in Syria in defense of its ally Bashar Assad, with Russian soldiers on the ground in Syria, according to activists. The Iraqi military statement said that Moscow is increasingly concerned about "the presence of thousands of terrorists from Russia who are carrying out criminal acts with Daesh."

The White House said Thursday that President Obama will meet face-to-face with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday in New York. Syria's civil war will undoubtedly come up.

Putin just sent a fleet of Russian warplanes to prop up the Assad dictatorship. Some of them struck ISIS positions in Aleppo on Thursday.

Charlie Rose spent time with Putin while on assignment recently for "60 Minutes," and asked him about Russia's intentions in Syria. Putin insisted that his country's actions in Syria were ultimately about destroying ISIS.

"It's my deep belief that any actions to the contrary in order to destroy the legitimate government will create a situation which you can witness now in the other countries of the region or in other regions, for instance in Libya, where all the state institutions are disintegrated," Putin said. "We see a similar situation in Iraq. And there is no other solution to the Syrian crisis than strengthening the effective government structures and rendering them help in fighting terrorism."

In an earlier interview with "60 Minutes," Iranian President Hassan Rouhani echoed Putin's sentiment about fighting ISIS in Syria.

"Look, in a county where a large segment of the country has been occupied by terrorists, and there is bloodshed inside the country, millions of people have been displaced, how is it possible that we fight the terrorists of this country without supporting and helping the government of that country?" Rouhani said. "How can we fight the terrorists without the government staying? Of course, after we have fought terrorism and a secure environment is created, then it is time to talk about the constitution, or the future regime to talk and discuss opposition groups and supporters sit at the table, but during a situation of bloodshed and during an occupation of the country, what options exist?"




“Iraq will begin sharing "security and intelligence" information with Russia, Syria and Iran to help combat the advances of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS,) the Iraqi military announced Sunday. A statement issued by the Iraqi Joint Operations Command said the countries will "help and cooperate in collecting information about the terrorist Daesh group," using the Arabic acronym for ISIS. …. "As a sovereign nation, Iraq has relations with many nations and the agreements the Iraqis take that work to our common objective are up to them," said Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. Steve Warren in Baghdad. "We recognize that Iraq has an interest in sharing information on ISIL with other governments in the region who are also fighting ISIL. We do not support the presence of Syrian government officials who are part of a regime that has brutalized its own citizens." …. The Iraqi military statement said that Moscow is increasingly concerned about "the presence of thousands of terrorists from Russia who are carrying out criminal acts with Daesh." …. Rouhani said. "How can we fight the terrorists without the government staying? Of course, after we have fought terrorism and a secure environment is created, then it is time to talk about the constitution, or the future regime to talk and discuss opposition groups and supporters sit at the table, but during a situation of bloodshed and during an occupation of the country, what options exist?"

I agree with Putin that the removal of the dictators and resultant destruction of the governments of Iraq and Libya are the primary reason for the present state of disorder and terrorism in both places. Dictators do oppress the people, but they also “keep order.” They don’t usually make very good national citizens, though, because so often they are aggressive against their neighbors as well.

The US has a history of setting up or protecting some oppressive rulers while trying to oust others, for often mysterious reasons – access to natural resources, tactical advantages like a military base in their lands, etc. The reason I say “mysterious” is because the US (and Russia) never say that they want that oil, but that there is a “dictator” there who is villainously mistreating his people. If he has actually been gassing a minority group in his midst, then that is reason enough for the American citizens to stand behind their government in an action that may well be misguided.

The problem of course, is that when our agents leave, there is often a vacuum of power leading to groups like ISIS popping up like crocuses in the springtime, and some of them are more dangerous than others. We thought al-Qaeda was bad, but now that we have ISIS we see that Osama bin Ladin was an intelligent and comparatively disciplined man, though highly fanatical in his religious beliefs. The leaders of ISIS, it seems to me, are simply brutes. Actually they are all cut from the same cloth, clever and vicious – ignorant and poverty stricken populations join their ranks when they are promised goods and security by a “silver-tongued devil” (Kris Kristofferson, if you don’t’ know), and the size of the group swells. The ignorant and poor peasantry don’t get any richer or more secure, but at that point they can’t escape and throw off their oppressor.

Right now with ISIS we have the same kind of situation that Europe had in 1939 with Adolph Hitler. Their barbaric forces have grown so great that they and their several offshoots Boko Haram threaten to overwhelm a significant part of our world order. Religious fanatics are unspeakably dangerous, and that’s what we have here. Some people would say, “No, just let them all fight it out among themselves and then we’ll deal with whoever wins.” Congress has a tendency to take that stance. I don’t agree in this case. The situation in the Middle East is very frightening to me. The presence of hundreds of thousands of migrants fleeing that area should convince Europe and the US that it really is, after all, “our problem,” too.

As a result I’m relieved by the attention that Russia, Iran, and now France are paying to the problem and contributing their aid to Iraq and Syria. The fact that the US doesn’t trust Iran or Russia just adds human interest to the situation. I am grateful for the ground forces of strong and stable nations who are as committed to the war against ISIS as we should be, and maybe soon will be. And now, I’ll say it yet another time, if we would just give the Kurds some good weapons to work with I’d be even more relieved.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/france-launches-first-airstrikes-against-isis-in-syria/

France launches first airstrikes against ISIS in Syria
AP September 27, 2015

Photograph -- French President Francois Hollande gives a statement at the European Council headquarters in Brussels, June 26, 2015. Hollande said an attack that morning in southeast France was of "a terrorist nature" and that a suspect had been arrested and identified. YVES HERMAN/REUTERS
Play VIDEO -- Putin on upcoming U.N. speech
Play VIDEO -- ISIS terror group losing territory to Kurdish forces


PARIS - France has carried out its first airstrikes in Syria, expanding its military operations against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) extremists, President Francois Hollande's office announced Sunday. The strikes make good on a promise to go after the group that the president has said is planning attacks against several countries, including France.

Hollande's office said that "France has hit Syria" based on information from French reconnaissance flights sent earlier this month. It did not provide further details.

"Our nation will strike each time our national security is at stake," the presidential statement said.

France has carried out 215 airstrikes against ISIS extremists in Iraq as part of the U.S.-led coalition since last year, the Defense Ministry said earlier this month. But it previously held back on engaging in Syria, citing concern of playing into Syrian President Assad's hand and the need for such action to be covered by international law.

Following a change in strategy announced by Hollande earlier this month, his office on Sunday cited "legitimate defense" evoked in the U.N. Charter to support the move. Hollande, who has ruled out sending ground troops into Syria, has cited "proof" of plans for attacks on France and the growing danger to Syrian civilians, with a large chunk of the population fleeing in a massive exodus.

The president's office reiterated on Sunday the French argument that air strikes in Syria were a question of national defense. France has already been attacked by extremists claiming ties to ISIS.

While no specifics were provided about the location or timing of the airstrikes, Prime Minister Manuel Valls said France was going after ISIS "sanctuaries where those who want to hit France are trained."

The goal of the strikes is to "slow, break, stop if possible the penetration of Daesh," Gen. Vincent Desportes said on the iTele TV station, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

Hollande, heading to the U.N. General Assembly, stressed the importance of seeking a political solution for Syria.

"More than ever the urgency is putting in place a political transition," including elements of the opposition and Assad's regime, Hollande said.

France has remained opposed however to recent diplomatic suggestions of allowing Assad to stay in power for a limited time.

The French government has insisted that while it is part of the U.S.-led coalition, France is deciding who and what to hit independently.

Hollande announced on Sept. 7 France's intention to start airstrikes, days after the photo of a dead 3-year-old Syrian boy galvanized public concern about Syrian refugees fleeing to save their lives.

In his statement Sunday, Hollande said: "Civilian populations must be protected from all forms of violence, that of ISIS and other terrorist groups but also the murderous bombardments of Bashar Assad."




“France has carried out its first airstrikes in Syria, expanding its military operations against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) extremists, President Francois Hollande's office announced Sunday. The strikes make good on a promise to go after the group that the president has said is planning attacks against several countries, including France. Hollande's office said that "France has hit Syria" based on information from French reconnaissance flights sent earlier this month. It did not provide further details. "Our nation will strike each time our national security is at stake," the presidential statement said. …. While no specifics were provided about the location or timing of the airstrikes, Prime Minister Manuel Valls said France was going after ISIS "sanctuaries where those who want to hit France are trained." The goal of the strikes is to "slow, break, stop if possible the penetration of Daesh," Gen. Vincent Desportes said on the iTele TV station, using the Arabic acronym for IS. …. "More than ever the urgency is putting in place a political transition," including elements of the opposition and Assad's regime, Hollande said.
France has remained opposed however to recent diplomatic suggestions of allowing Assad to stay in power for a limited time. The French government has insisted that while it is part of the U.S.-led coalition, France is deciding who and what to hit independently. …. "Civilian populations must be protected from all forms of violence, that of ISIS and other terrorist groups but also the murderous bombardments of Bashar Assad."

So France is cherry picking what it does on the basis of political considerations, also, but if they help dislodge ISIS, they are to my view very welcome. I hope they will contribute ground troops as well. I don’t think there are enough soldiers there with guns and heavier weapons. I don’t see any evidence of organization on “our” side either, but maybe there will be some soon.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/shoplifting-suspect-dies-police-custody-indianapolis/

Shoplifting suspect dies in police custody in Indianapolis
CBS NEWS
September 27, 2015


INDIANAPOLIS -- A man accused of stealing from a Burlington Coat Factory store in Indianapolis died while in police custody after an EMT crew determined he didn't need immediate medical attention, according to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

CBS affiliate WTTV-TV in Indianapolis reports the suspect had complained of breathing difficulties before he died.

Police said a "loss prevention officer" confronted the man, whose name has not yet been released, in the Washington Square Mall at 1 p.m. local time, who then pointed a handgun and ran from the store.

He was later discovered by Indianapolis police behind a nearby gas station, and was taken into custody without incident, police said.

The man then complained of breathing troubles, but the first EMT crew on the scene said he could be taken to jail, according to police. When the jail wagon arrived, the main complained again, and a second ambulance was called.

"Despite the best life-saving efforts by the EMS crew, the suspect died in the back of the ambulance," an IMPD media release states.

Homicide detectives are investigating.

IEMS Chief Charles Miramonti expressed sympathy for the family in a press release, and added: "We have already launched a full internal investigation. and at this time, are confident the highest level of response and care was provided."




Incidents like this when people do have transitory heart symptoms do happen. Heart symptoms are often masked as something else. In this case I would question the thoroughness of the first EMT team, however, and with the police department where a shortness of breath or chest pain is involved. I don’t see any other reason to blame the police unless the suspect was treated roughly, and there are no telltale videos showing that. If there is some proof of that we will hopefully hear more about it later.





http://www.cbsnews.com/news/bernie-sanders-touts-his-common-ground-with-conservatives/

Sanders touts his common ground with conservatives
By REBECCA KAPLAN
FACE THE NATION
September 27, 2015

Play VIDEO -- Sen. Bernie Sanders: I will not attack Hillary Clinton
Play VIDEO -- Bernie Sanders: House Speaker Boehner had “impossible job”


Earlier this month, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, deviated from the normal path of a Democratic presidential candidate and delivered a speech at Liberty University, a Christian college in Virginia.

Sanders has different views on social issues like abortion and same-sex marriage with many of the students there, but his message was on an area he hopes they can work together: Economic inequality.

"Can we not get together and talk about creating an economy that works for all of us, and not just millionaires and billionaires? When children go hungry in America, that is a moral issue. When 51 percent of African-American kids are either unemployed or underemployed, that is a moral issue," he said in an interview on CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday.

"At Liberty University, and among the evangelical community, you have some very sincere, honest people who take these issues seriously. And, by the way, many of them are concerned, as Pope Francis is, about climate change, and the need to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel. They believe that the Earth, created by God, cannot be destroyed by greed. And my question was, can we work together to address those issues?" he said.

Sanders is still dogged in his focus on income inequality and getting money out politics. He said that the early exit from the presidential race by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker - a Republican candidate who had a wealthy super PAC and was well-liked by the billionaire Koch brothers - does not mean that money has become less influential in politics.

"I wish that the Koch brothers would say, well, gee, now we're going to take the $900 million that we planned to spend in this campaign supporting right-wing Republicans, more, by the way, than either the Democratic Party or the Republican Party will spend, and we're not going to spend it," he said. "I don't think the Koch brothers learned that lesson. I think the power of money over the political process is horrendous."

Sanders and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have both said they won't attack each other on the campaign trail, but the two are still airing their differences on issues like whether a college education should be free. Reflecting on Sanders' push for free tuition at public colleges and universities, Clinton said, "I am not going to give free college to wealthy kids. I'm not going to give free college to kids who don't work some hours to try to put their own effort into getting their education."

Sanders said he stands by his idea, which is not free college anywhere but merely free tuition in the public education system.

"I think it is simple, it's straightforward. It exists in other countries and, in fact...50 or 60 years ago, used to exist in the United States of America," he said.

He predicted his agenda won't be popular among most wealthy people because he will ask the wealthiest Americans to pay "substantially more in taxes," as well as large, profitable corporations.

These differences will play out in the Democratic debates, and Sanders said he has "the feeling that there will be" more than the six currently scheduled.

"I think debates are a good way for candidates to differentiate their differences. I think it's good for the American people. I think it promotes a serious discussion in our democracy. And I would like to see more of them," he said.

He also weighed in on House Speaker John Boehner's abrupt announcement last week that he is retiring at the end of October.

"John has had an impossibly difficult job trying to reconcile the conservative wing of his caucus with the extreme, extreme right wing of his caucus that really will not do anything and pass any legislation that Barack Obama will sign," he said. "It's an impossible job. And I admire John for his tenacity and hanging in there for five tough years."




“Earlier this month, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, deviated from the normal path of a Democratic presidential candidate and delivered a speech at Liberty University, a Christian college in Virginia. Sanders has different views on social issues like abortion and same-sex marriage with many of the students there, but his message was on an area he hopes they can work together: Economic inequality. "Can we not get together and talk about creating an economy that works for all of us, and not just millionaires and billionaires? When children go hungry in America, that is a moral issue. When 51 percent of African-American kids are either unemployed or underemployed, that is a moral issue," he said in an interview on CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday. …. And, by the way, many of them are concerned, as Pope Francis is, about climate change, and the need to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel. They believe that the Earth, created by God, cannot be destroyed by greed. And my question was, can we work together to address those issues?" he said. …. Sanders and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have both said they won't attack each other on the campaign trail, but the two are still airing their differences on issues like whether a college education should be free. Reflecting on Sanders' push for free tuition at public colleges and universities, Clinton said, "I am not going to give free college to wealthy kids. I'm not going to give free college to kids who don't work some hours to try to put their own effort into getting their education." …. Sanders said he stands by his idea, [concerning free tuition] which is not free college anywhere but merely free tuition in the public education system. "I think it is simple, it's straightforward. It exists in other countries and, in fact...50 or 60 years ago, used to exist in the United States of America," he said. …. He predicted his agenda won't be popular among most wealthy people because he will ask the wealthiest Americans to pay "substantially more in taxes," as well as large, profitable corporations.” These differences will play out in the Democratic debates, and Sanders said he has "the feeling that there will be" more than the six currently scheduled.

“I'm not going to give free college to kids who don't work some hours to try to put their own effort into getting their education." This is an interesting idea. When I went to college I did work on the campus in the library. I do believe that a commitment of effort is only fair, and increases the student’s interest in his education. Too many wealthy kids live in a Frat house with that certain exclusivity taint to it. They have a tendency to drink and party more than they study. If kids do all have totally free tuition that is not based on work or their grades, they may not do as well academically. Sanders comment that 50 or 60 years ago there were free tuition colleges was interesting. I wasn’t aware of that. However, just now I looked on Google for free tuition colleges and found a number, and they aren’t all state schools, either. I went to a state school in 1970, UNC at Chapel Hill. It was lower tuition for in-state students, but it wasn’t free. They did have work-study programs and scholarships, of course.

There are kids who come from families that were poorer than mine was, often minority homes, and for them to get tuition free classes would be fair. Still, I think it would be better if they worked on the campus. I enjoyed my campus jobs, and I did see it as a way of “paying back.” In my first year at a Greensboro, NC Methodist college, I was a library assistant which I loved because I loved books. Though I had a scholarship for tuition, the work helped with my expenses. If I remember correctly I had free food in the cafeteria and lived in the dorm but there was books and daily expenses.

When I went to UNC I was married and got a loan. At one point I did work in a lab in the Zoology Department feeding hydras, cleaning their petri dish and then counting them using a grid. That was a population study. Watching them stretch up and sting a brine shrimp, which they would stuff down into the only opening in their body called a hypostome was exciting. Food goes in there and once it is digested, which is within 20 minutes or so, they eject it back out into the water. I then had to change their water to clean up their environment. I also grew the brine shrimp. Hydra are in the same genus with jellyfish and sea anemones, but they are fresh water animals. They are as cute as a baby kitten, and I loved that job! So college is more than books or drinking parties, and my campus jobs were a real addition to my life.