Sarah Palin: palm reading at the Tea Party Convention

At the recent National Tea Party Convention, Sarah Palin delivered a speech for which she was reportedly paid $100,000. During the Q&A session that followed the speech, Palin was recorded checking out a list of words she had scribbled on the palm of her hand.

When she addressed the 'real' Americans in the audience... mostly white-folk-of-a-certain-age-who-all-dress-alike, she couldn't resist making a crack about Barrack Obama:

"This is about the people and it's bigger than any king or queen of a tea party and it's a lot bigger than any charismatic guy with a teleprompter."

It's a bit much for Palin to take a shot at teleprompter-use since she obviously required the assistance of palm-notes-to-self in order to jolt her memory. By contrast the President has fielded many tough and challenging Q&A sessions without consulting his palms or the insides of his fingers for scribbled back-up.

Cheat notes written on the palms is something kids have been known to do before exams. I'm sure most teachers are familiar with the 'palm squint' as the poorly prepared check out flesh notes for inspiration. The palm crib has now graduated into American politics with Sarah Palin doing the squinting.

Scribbled on her palm were the words "energy, tax, lift American spirits." There were also words that looked like "budget cuts" with "budget' scored out. How is it possible that the person a sizable percentage of Republicans believe is more qualified to be President than Barrack Obama, can't even get through a Q&A love-in session with adoring fans without palm-points to remind herself of her core beliefs.

Some might argue that she simply jotted down likely question topics on her palm. Well that suggests she lacks the capacity to keep them in mind, or more likely... that the question order had been pre-arranged. Considering that the Q&A session had the look of being carefully orchestrated, with strategic pauses for partisan applause, it makes you wonder just how choreographed Palin needs to be in order to stay on-track.

James O'Keefe: Louisiana arrest: white supremacist connections

The arrest of video propagandist, James O'Keefe, for planning to tamper with Lousiana Senator Mary Landrieu's phone lines has taken the gloss off the right-wing poster boy. Bill O'Reilly was so impressed with O'Keefe's attempt to embarrass ACORN, he said the 'corruption buster' deserved a congressional medal. O'Keefe's boss, Andrew Breitbart, joined in the chorus lauding O'Keefe as one of the all-time "great journalists"... deserving of a Pulitzer no less.

The version of events that O'Keefe and Breitbart have been peddling on the media about what really went down in Ms Landrieu's office is a joke that they seem to expect Americans to take seriously.

During media appearances O'Keefe has claimed that he and his associates went to the federal building where Ms Landrieu's office is located to determine whether she was 'trying to avoid constituents' following the Senator's declared support for the Senate health care reform bill. There were complaints by constituents and others that they were unable to lodge complaints because calls to Ms Landrieu's office were being forwarded to voice mail, or not forwarded on account of voice mail being full.

The FBI press release paints a much different picture from O'Keefe's version of events. It states that O'Keefe and associates were arrested "for entering government property under false pretenses for the purpose of committing a felony."

From left, James O’Keefe, Stan Dai, Robert Flanagan
and Joseph Basel.

When the crew showed up at the Hale Boggs Federal building in New Orleans, they were dressed in work attire... blue jeans, blue work shirts, green flourescent vests, tool belts and even a construction hats to complete the look. They said they were there to "fix problems with the telephone system"... a task that was to be undertaken while one of their number hung out in the reception area, cell phone in hand, "so as to record."

If they were simply interested in knowing the status of the Senator's phones as O'Keefe claims, they could have asked staffers. The FBI complaint makes no mention of any such query directed to staff. Instead 'the repairmen' asked where the wiring closet was located. The FBI believes they were planning to tamper "maliciously" with the federal government phone system.

It turns out that phone ops and shooting video with a hidden camera isn't O'Keefe's only claim to notoriety. A Max Blumenthal article titled "James O'Keefe's race problem" raises questions about the underlying motivations behind the crusader's "corruption buster" activities:

His right-wing admirers don't seem to mind that O’Keefe's short but storied career has been defined by a series of political stunts shot through with racial resentment. Now an activist organization that monitors hate groups has produced a photo of O'Keefe at a 2006 conference on "Race and Conservatism" that featured leading white nationalists. The photo, first published Jan. 30 on the Web site of the anti-racism group One People's Project, shows O’Keefe at the gathering, which was so controversial even the ultra-right Leadership Institute, which employed O'Keefe at the time, withdrew its backing.

According to One People's Project founder Daryle Jenkins, O'Keefe was manning the literature table at the gathering that brought together anti-Semites, professional racists and proponents of Aryanism. OPP covered the event at the time, sending a freelance photographer to document the gathering. Jenkins told me the table was filled with tracts from the white supremacist right, including two pseudo-academic publications that have called blacks and Latinos genetically inferior to whites: American Renaissance and the Occidental Quarterly.

O'Keefe's racist associations aren't surprising. A Daily Kos poll of 2,003 self-identified Republicans underlines how deeply entrenched racist and xenophobic attitudes are on the right. A startling number of Republicans think that President Obama is a racist, a socialist or a non-US citizen. Thirty nine percent think that Obama should be impeached. Fifty three percent believe that Sarah Palin is more qualified to be president than Obama.

Check out the complete poll results at Daily Kos - here.

O'Keefe's arrest comes with news that ACORN office director in Philadelphia, Katherine Conway-Russel, has filed suit against O'Keefe and Hannah Giles, claiming that they "purportedly sought information regarding housing and mortgage opportunities in Philadelphia, but were in reality imposters who deliberately and surreptitiously created video and audio recordings in an attempt to discredit plaintiff Conway-Russell and ACORN Housing Corporation," and that they subsequently "disseminated the illegally obtained recordings in a manner calculated to harm and injure" her.

On Fox News O'Keefe has been complaining that he's the real victim... a target of "flat-out slandering" and "journalistic malpractice".

Earlier this month a few of his deep thoughts were posted on CampusReform.org, a site that promotes conservative activism. He told his admirers that “The more you put yourself out there and you take those calculated risks" the more “you’re actually going to get opportunities.” He didn't include a trip to the big house in any list of possibilities.

James O'Keefe protests

Dino Boffo: Vatican accused of smearing Catholic editor

Dino Boffo

Vittorio Feltri, editor of the Belusconi newspaper Il Giornale, has made the claim that bogus documents used to smear Catholic editor Dino Boffo came from an 'authoritative institutional source' in the Holy See.

Last year Il Giornale broke the news that Dino Boffo, editor of the Bishop's Conference daily Avvenire, had been fined in 2004 for making harassing phone calls. It claimed that the target of the harassment was the wife of Boffo's alleged gay lover. The paper made a point of referring to Boffo as "a reknowned homosexual."

Boffo admitted that he had been involved in a harassment case but denied the suggestion that it related to a gay relationship.

The smear campaign took a toll on Mr Boffo's private life. He described the "defamatory attacks" by Il Giornale as "a violation of my life." He said he had decided to resign as editor of Avvenire because his name had been besmirched "for days and days in a war of words which has wrecked my family and stunned Italians".

In his capacity as editor of Avvenire Boffo had made no secret about his disapproval of Silvio Berlusconi's colorful lifestyle, even describing it as "immoral". Suspicions that the attacks had been orchestrated by the Berlusconi camp weren't a stretch since Il Giornale editor, Vittorio Feltri, had made noises about a "counteroffensive" to "unmask" critics of the Prime Minister.

In a surprising turn of events, Feltri is now making the accusation that the Holy See was the source of the bogus documents used to attack Boffo. He described the source as "a very authoritative, and institutional source at the Holy See." Feltri confided these claims to Dino Boffo during a lunch in Milan.

The Vatican issued a categorical denial. It's press spokesman, Frederico Lombardi, characterized Mr Feltri's claims as 'mischief-making' and went on to say "I can categorically deny these claims, which are designed to create confusion and false rumours."

Related coverage here and here.

Pope takes a shot at UK equality legislation

Pope Benedict will be visiting the UK in September. Earlier this week he fired a couple of advance warning shots. He's unhappy about aspects of British equality legislation... in particular legislation that would prevent Catholic adoption agencies in Britain from discriminating against gay couples. He is also unhappy with laws that would make it more difficult for churches to discriminate in the case of employment related applications. In criticizing the legislation he said: "...the effect of some of the legislation designed to achieve this goal [equality] has been to impose unjust limitations on the freedom of religious communities to act in accordance with their beliefs."

The upcoming UK visit will provide Benny with a platform to showcase his stylish wardrobe that in comparison with his predecessor John Paul II, is fairly regal and ostentatious... red cape and all. John Paul favored a more modest look. The visit will also provide an opportunity for Benedict to take pot shots at British laws he finds objectionable. For the privilege of hosting the Vatican road show the British taxpayer will be out of pocket to the tune of some 20 million pounds (around $31 million US).

Responding to the pope's criticisms of British equality legislation, Naomi Phillips of the British Humanist Association said:

"What the pope, together with other religious leaders such as the (Church of England) bishops sitting in our own Parliament are actually seeking, is for religious people to be allowed to discriminate against others in employment, services, education and many other areas, unfettered by the laws that everyone else in society must abide by and respect."

Objections to the pope's statements have also been coming from Catholics. European parliamentarian, Stephen Hughes, said: "As a Catholic, I am appalled by the attitude of the pope. Religious leaders should be trying to eradicate inequality, not perpetuate it."

Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said the Pope's comments were a "coded attack on the legal rights granted to women and gay people."

Tatchell also said:

"His ill-informed claim that our equality laws undermine religious freedom suggests that he supports the right of churches to discriminate in accordance with their religious ethos... He seems to be defending discrimination by religious institutions and demanding that they should be above the law."

It's not surprising that Benedict is offended by the idea of across-the-board equality. This is a pope who in trying to turn the clock back, has created profound division within the Catholic church. His reactionary approach rejects broad-based inclusiveness and diversity. He frequently refers to "religious freedom" and "natural law" when defending his position. But really... terminology aside, the pope is most interested in exerting control at the expense of genuine religious freedom. He is determined to resist creative approaches and innovations at the level of the local church... particularly as it pertains to the role of women and gay people.

The pope's reactionary agenda and the theological outlook that goes with it is badly out of sync with the needs of the times. The church has been deeply scarred by scandals that occurred when Vatican controls were more deeply entrenched. What Catholic in his or her right mind would trust Benedict to lead them back to a more structured and rigid church... or even close?

Despite Benedict's stage-managed admissions of shame and regret for the child sex abuse scandal, in his former role as head of the Congregation of Faith, he knew exactly what was going on. He reviewed the files and diocesan reports that detailed the activities of pedophile priests. And how did he respond? He referred bishops to the rules of Crimen Sollicitationis... an instruction that called for secrecy. Priests responsible for crimes against children were routinely shuffled from parish to parish to help keep the lid on the scandal.

As recently as 2001, Ratzinger and his secretary at the time, Archbishop Bertone, signed a letter titled De Delictis Graviorbus, which made clear that cases of sexual abuse by clerics should be subject to "the pontifical secret" or kept under wraps. Link to Guardian article - here - that discusses the letter.

With respect to the upcoming UK visit, the pope's traditionalist mindset may not be as popular with his flock as he likes to imagine. In 1983 a survey found that 62% of British Catholics thought that homosexual acts were usually or always wrong. A recent Social Attitudes Survey found that these days 36% think that way.

Not everyone will be waving as the man-in-white snakes his way through London in the popemobile. The National Secular Society says it intends to stage a film festival during the pontiff's visit. Two films that will be running include "The Magdalene Sisters", that deals with the abuse of teenage mothers by Catholic nuns in Ireland. The other film - "The Boys of St. Vincent" - is about sexual abuse at a Catholic orphanage in Canada.

Some positions pope Benedict has staked out in the past:

On homosexuality
"Although the particular inclination of the homosexual person is not a sin, it is a more or less strong tendency ordered toward an intrinsic moral evil; and thus the inclination itself must be seen as an objective disorder. Therefore special concern and pastoral attention should be directed toward those who have this condition, lest they be led to believe that the living-out of this orientation in homosexual activity is a morally acceptable option. It is not."

On Buddhism
"Auto-erotic spirituality."

The ordination of women
On the excommunication of seven women who called themselves priests: "... the penalty imposed is not only just, but also necessary, in order to protect true doctrine, to safeguard the communion and unity of the church, and to guide consciences of the faithful."

On same-sex marriage
"Call[s] into question the family, in its natural two-parent structure of mother and father, and make[s] homosexuality and heterosexuality virtually equivalent, in a new model of polymorphous sexuality."

On rock music
"[A] vehicle of anti-religion"; "the complete antithesis of the Christian faith in the redemption."

On cloning
"[A] more dangerous threat than weapons of mass destruction."

Related Guardian articles here and here.

Culture war

Sheikh Jarrah: take-over of Palestinian homes continues

Following the recent arrests of activists protesting the Jewish take-over of Palestinian homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of Jerusalem, the Jerusalem Magistrate's Court ruled that the arrests were illegal. Those arrested included Hagai El-Ad, the Israel director of the Association for Civil Rights.

Sheik Jarrah is one of the most contentious neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. Jewish settlers have been using pre-state property titles dating back to the British Mandate in Palestine to claim ownership. MK Ilan Ghilon (New Movement-Meretz) is not impressed. He said "If settlers can prove the ownership of 28 homes, the Palestinians can prove ownership of 28,000."

Sheikh Jarrah evictions have been condemned by the US. An earlier set of evictions prompted diplomats from the US Embassy to send a protest letter to the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem.

The police have made a concerted effort to suppress the protests, sometimes by violent means. On a number of occasions demonstrators have been attacked and beaten.

Police treat settlers and ultra-Orthodox less harshly than demonstrators protesting the evictions. The haredim and settlers have been allowed to riot and attack Palestinian residents with little or no interference by police. Activist Avner Inbar who witnessed the police handling of these situations said: "Jerusalem Police see themselves as the operating arm of the settlers in east Jerusalem, and this conduct harms police' credibility." Complaints about police conduct have also been made by professor Amnon Rubinstein and Yehuda Glick, chair of the Organisation for Human Rights on the Temple Mount (OHRTM).

The protests show the best of the Israeli spirit of resistance. Some well known names have been in attendance... former minister and Knesset Chair Avraham Burg, former minister Yossi Sarid, MK Muhamad Barak’e and former MK Uri Avnery. The painter Uri Lifshitz has also been present along with several professors from the Hebrew University.

Author David Grossman who has attended the protests had a few interesting insights:

"There are times when one cannot sit quietly. The settlers and the right - with tremendous help from the government, legal system and financial powers - are abusing the Palestinians in a thousand ways,"

When asked about the the strong turn-out to protest the evictions he said:

"...maybe it's because of the way in which the settlers are taking control of East Jerusalem, which is brazen even by their standards. And maybe because Jerusalem is so symbolic and sensitive that whatever happens here takes on enormous significance."

Uri Avnery, of Gush Shalom told reporters:

“We are protesting against the injustice done to the Palestinian families that were evicted. The eviction is based on the argument that these houses were bought by Jews a hundred years ago, long before the 1948 war. If every Jerusalemite were to get back the house he owned before 1948, half the Jewish population of West Jerusalem would have to be evicted, since they live in houses from which the Arabs were expelled during the 1948 war.”

He added:

“Everybody knows that there will be no peace without a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

Police say they are going to continue the crackdown despite the refusal of the courts to declare the demos illegal. This attitude isn't surprising. In Israel there is a glaring disparity in the way settler protests are handled as compared to protests on the left. For example 400 cases were brought against settlers protesting the 2005 Gaza Strip disengagement. These people engaged in acts of violence, including throwing acid, garbage and stones at soldiers. But little happened by way of consequence - the cases were closed and the criminal records expunged.

Similar clemency wasn't extended to demonstrators against operation Cast lead in Gaza. Many were arrested and charged. So it's no wonder that right-wing settlers think they can break the law with impunity. They know that in many instances they can get away with criminal behavior.

Attack on Sheikh Jarrah demonstrators - YouTube - here.

Sheikh Jarrah protest - YouTube - here.

iMussolini: Italian dictator comes to life on iphone app

An iPhone application known as iMussolini offers the full text of over 100 speeches by Italy's former Fascist dictator, Benito Mussolini. The app is a big hit in Italy. It was downloaded more than a popular video game based on the movie Avatar, and reached second spot on the Italian version of iTunes. Since it was launched January 21, it has been downloaded roughly 1,000 times a day.

If you think the market for the app might be older Italians with fond memories of their favorite strutting tyrant, you would be wrong. iPhone is biggest with the Facebook and Web 2.0 crowd, so clearly Benito has a whole new generation of fans. Not surprising really given the xenophobic attitudes that are commonplace in Italy these days. Without too much trouble you can find Mussolini busts and other Il Duce memorabilia. There are even sweatshirts to be had bearing the initials WIDS - Viva Il Duce Sempre (Mussolini Lives Forever).

The guy who designed the application, Luigi Marino, claims he is unhappy about his product being associated with fascism. He has taken pains to point out that the app is "history related' and not an endorsement of fascism. He's pulling in 70% of sales revenues courtesy of Benito fans, so it's a little hard to believe that he envisaged the app as a resource for history buffs. Given the reactionary climate in parts of Italy these days, it's pretty much a given that if you release an app with anything Il Duce related it will attract the predictable kind of attention.

A sizable percentage of Italians are still enamored of Il Duce. Comments on the website Iphoneitalia left little doubt... "Sainthood now!" "Thanks for making an application on one of the greatest statesman in our history" and "Whoever doesn't like this application can always go live in China." There were also voices of sane people.... "This is just unadulterated masturbation for fascist egos." and "Are we insane? Collecting the speeches of a dictator who ruined Italy?"

Like many a fascist leader before him, Mussolini came to a sticky end. He and his mistress Clara Petacci, were shot to death in 1945. Their bullet riddled bodies were hung upside down from the roof of a gas station in Milan with the aid of meat hooks. Civilians took the opportunity to throw stones at the corpses and spit at them.

Mussolini did leave a few quotes that we can remember him by:

"I have been a racist since 1921. I don't know how they can think I'm imitating Hitler."

“Let us have a dagger between our teeth, a bomb in our hands, and an infinite scorn in our hearts”

Link to cartoon about fascism in Italy - here.

Norman Finkelstein: 'I refuse any longer to be intimidated'

Dr Norman Finkelstein's appearance at the University of Waterloo was a combative one with lots of heckling and cheering throughout the speech. As we've come to expect, he delivered a blistering message on Israel that was the polar opposite of the mainstream mantra.

The government of Canada is probably the most pro-Israel on the planet, or possibly the galaxy. Stephen Harper, our version of Captain Kirk, Israelly cool in the eyes of his Zionist fans who trust him to go boldly where no Canadian PM has gone before. The corporate media in this country has made every effort, subtle and not-so-subtle, to "normalize" the view of Israel as friend and ally. Critics of Israel who get too loud are savaged by journalists such as Rosie Dimanno who sees anti-Semitism lurking anywhere Israel is called to task. The difficulty with Finkelstein who is Jewish, is that Dimanno would have to come up with another smear. That old stand-by "self-loathing Jew" might do the job, but Dimanno is ever-resourceful when it comes to the use of adjectives.

Why is Canada supportive of an Israel that incubates and increasingly acts upon objectionable ethnocentric priorities... an Israel that employs military power in a criminal fashion at the expense of its neighbors... that bulldozes Palestinian homes and that operates a system riddled with discrimination?

Finkelstein has described Canadian media as the most biased in favor of Israel during the Gaza campaign. This bias is shameful, ongoing and clearly demonstrates that when it comes to Israel Canadian mainstream journalism is seriously compromised. How can the Canadian corporate media possibly show this level of support for Israel - which has as much to with what is not covered as what is - when you consider the positions the media routinely stakes out on issues of justice and human rights here at home. If we were talking about any other country with a similar track record the editorials would be crying foul, but when it comes to Israel criticism is strangely muted. If you get too loud with your criticism you will upset those people in Canada who like the conversation to remain polite when it comes to the topic of Israel. A Canadian blogger I was reading recently said he wouldn't be posting his true thoughts about Israel because he was afraid of being labeled anti-Semitic or worse. Joe McCarthy and his fellow inquisitors couldn't have done a better job at putting the chill on free speech.

So it was refreshing to see Norman Finkelstein at Waterloo University kicking out the jams and taking it to the rafters as he gave the metaphorical finger to polite conversation on the subject of Israel. When an audience member tried to guilt him with a show of tears because he used the "Nazi" word, Finklestein would have none of it. He dismissed her emotional outburst as "crocodile tears."

He went on to say:

"Every single member of my family on both sides were exterminated. Both my parents were in the Warsaw ghetto uprising and it's precisely and exactly because of the lessons my parents taught me and my two siblings, that I will not be silent when Israel commits its crimes against the Palestinians. I consider nothing more despicable than to use their suffering and their martyrdom [of his relatives] to try and justify the torture, the brutalization, the demolition of homes that Israel daily commits against the Palestinians. So I refuse any longer to be intimidated, or browbeaten by the tears. If you had any heart you'd be crying for the Palestinians."

Finkelstein's father, Zacharias, was a survivor of Auschwitz concentration camp. His mother Maryla was a survivor of Majdanek concentration camp and two slave camps. Despite the harrowing experiences of his family at the hands of the Nazis, Finkelstein has never shied away from attacking what he describes as "The Holocaust industry". The term refers to those institutions and organizations that have used the Holocaust to claim legitimacy for criminal assaults on the Palestinian people, the silencing of criticism and a high handed disregard for international law.

Link to YouTube video of the Waterloo showdown here.

Dr Finkelstein's site here.

Too close for comfort