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offsite link North Korea Increases Aid to Russia, Mos... Tue Nov 19, 2024 12:29 | Marko Marjanovi?

offsite link Trump Assembles a War Cabinet Sat Nov 16, 2024 10:29 | Marko Marjanovi?

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The Saker
A bird's eye view of the vineyard

offsite link Alternative Copy of thesaker.is site is available Thu May 25, 2023 14:38 | Ice-Saker-V6bKu3nz
Alternative site: https://thesaker.si/saker-a... Site was created using the downloads provided Regards Herb

offsite link The Saker blog is now frozen Tue Feb 28, 2023 23:55 | The Saker
Dear friends As I have previously announced, we are now “freezing” the blog.? We are also making archives of the blog available for free download in various formats (see below).?

offsite link What do you make of the Russia and China Partnership? Tue Feb 28, 2023 16:26 | The Saker
by Mr. Allen for the Saker blog Over the last few years, we hear leaders from both Russia and China pronouncing that they have formed a relationship where there are

offsite link Moveable Feast Cafe 2023/02/27 ? Open Thread Mon Feb 27, 2023 19:00 | cafe-uploader
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offsite link The stage is set for Hybrid World War III Mon Feb 27, 2023 15:50 | The Saker
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Lockdown Skeptics

The Daily Sceptic

offsite link News Round-Up Wed Dec 25, 2024 00:32 | Richard Eldred
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The post News Round-Up appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Starmer Doesn?t Have a Feel for Politics and His Team Lacks the Skills to Run the Country, Says Vete... Tue Dec 24, 2024 19:00 | Will Jones
Keir Starmer "doesn?t have a feel" for the Labour Party or politics in general and his team lacks the skills to run the country, veteran Labour MP?Diane Abbott?has said.
The post Starmer Doesn’t Have a Feel for Politics and His Team Lacks the Skills to Run the Country, Says Veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Church of England Tells Clergy to Edit Christmas Carols to ?Avoid Unnecessary Offence? Tue Dec 24, 2024 18:00 | Will Jones
The Church of England has told clergy in Birmingham to watch out for "problematic words" in Christmas carols that imply Jesus is the "true Messiah" or other religions aren't valid. And they wonder why the pews are empty.
The post Church of England Tells Clergy to Edit Christmas Carols to “Avoid Unnecessary Offence” appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Best-Selling Hybrids Face Net Zero Ban From 2030 Tue Dec 24, 2024 15:42 | Will Jones
Some of Britain?s best-selling hybrid cars will be banned from sale after 2030 under a?Net Zero crackdown?proposed by Ministers, including the mild hybrid versions of the Ford Puma, Range Rover Evoque and VW Golf.
The post Best-Selling Hybrids Face Net Zero Ban From 2030 appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link Experts Call For Return of Lockdown-Style Social Distancing as Flu Surges, Claiming ?a Fifth of Thos... Tue Dec 24, 2024 13:46 | Will Jones
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The post Experts Call For Return of Lockdown-Style Social Distancing as Flu Surges, Claiming “a Fifth of Those Infected Have No Symptoms But Can Spread It” appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Lockdown Skeptics >>

Voltaire Network
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offsite link Voltaire, International Newsletter N?113 Fri Dec 20, 2024 10:42 | en

offsite link Pentagon could create a second Kurdish state Fri Dec 20, 2024 10:31 | en

offsite link How Washington and Ankara Changed the Regime in Damascus , by Thierry Meyssan Tue Dec 17, 2024 06:58 | en

offsite link Statement by President Bashar al-Assad on the Circumstances Leading to his Depar... Mon Dec 16, 2024 13:26 | en

offsite link Voltaire, International Newsletter N?112 Fri Dec 13, 2024 15:34 | en

Voltaire Network >>

Pre-sentence letter to Barack Obama

category international | rights, freedoms and repression | news report author Thursday August 22, 2013 09:47author by Justin Morahan Report this post to the editors

sent by e-mail to US Embassy

Below is a letter to President Barack Obama on the occasion of a protest by Colm Roddy and me outside the US Embassy in Dublin, Wednesday 21 July before Whistleblower Bradley Manning was given a horrendous sentence for telling the truth.

Dear President Barack Obama

I write to you, through your Ambassador in Ireland, as the sentencing of a whistleblower, Bradley Manning is imminent. Bradley is a member of the United States Forces of which you, President Obama, are the Commander-in-Chief. What happens in the US Armed Forces is your responsibility.

When there is heinous wrongdoing happening within your army, you bear the ultimate responsibility for that wrongdoing. If a whistleblower reveals the heinous wrongdoing, it is your duty to protect the whistleblower, to shield her or him from harm and, if possible, honour her or him in order to encourage other whistleblowers and to protect the truth.

What happened in the Baghdad "air strikes" of July 12 2007 was heinous in the extreme. I have seen and perused the video at length but even your own official account is chilling to read.

"When the cameraman on the ground aimed his camera in the direction of Bravo Company 2–16, a pilot remarked "He's getting ready to fire". An Apache maneuvered around a building to get a clear field of fire and shot all nine men, killing eight. " (US Central Command release)

We know that subsequently when a van pulled up to take on board an injured civilian, the Apache opened fire on van and helpers and injured civilian, killing three and wounding two children inside the van. The footage of these events and the accompanying dialogue resembles what one might expect from a seriously deranged horror movie. Bradley revealed the truth of these events. Admittedly he did not report them to his superior officer and later regretted that. But why should that make any difference to you, Mr President? The truth was out. You would be glad that you would be able to stop similar outrages by your forces in the future. You would take the necessary steps to prevent any repetition of the evil-doing of July 12 2007. And you would credit Bradley Manning for helping you to take these steps. Because, as Commander-in-Chief, you do not stand over such atrocities.

Or am I wrong? What did you do?

You allowed (or maybe even ordered) Bradley Manning to be arrested and charged with, among other thing, "aiding the enemy" - an offence that could have draw down the barbarous execution of the accused person. You prejudiced his trial by telling a reporter "He broke the law" at a time when he was not declared guilty of breaking any law. In four words you denied him any chance of a fair trial. Yet, you allowed a trial to proceed.

Meanwhile Bradley Manning was kept under lock and key in chains, subjected to nudity, isolation, harassment, sleep-deprivation - all inhuman punishments bordering on torture. Only international protest ended this inhuman treatment of a prisoner not yet tried in any court.

Now he has been found by a military court to be guilty of lesser charges and today the prosecutors are requesting a sixty year sentence! It is another day of infamy for you and the United States.

Unless, that is, you salvage some credibility by pardoning him, after sentence.

That is my request to you today.

With best personal wishes

Justin Morahan, human rights activist, pacifist.

 #   Title   Author   Date 
   Protests     Justin Morahan    Thu Aug 22, 2013 15:16 
    "Impeach now or forever hold up peace" ...     W. Finnerty    Thu Aug 22, 2013 16:08 
   Our posters are still saying "Bradley". Next time it will be "Chelsea"     Justin Morahan    Thu Aug 22, 2013 19:50 
   US imperialists want to make an example of Bradley.     fred    Thu Aug 22, 2013 22:29 
   Pics from last night's protest at the US Embassy     Justin Morahan    Fri Aug 23, 2013 09:25 
   Credit to Justin and Co     W P    Thu Aug 29, 2013 20:36 
   I am bradley manning     w    Tue Sep 03, 2013 12:34 


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