|
|
|
The New Print Edition of CounterPunch, Only for Our Newsletter Subscribers! How Cops Extort Confessions;
|
home / subscribe / donate / books / archives / search / links / feedback / events / faq
The New Print Edition of CounterPunch, Only for Our Newsletter Subscribers!
How Cops Extort Confessions;
How the U.S. “Justice System” Really WorksNinety-two per cent of felony convictions in the U.S. are obtained by plea bargains or confessions. Without them the “justice system” would grind to a halt. In an important piece in our latest newsletter, available only to subscribers, Emily Horowitz shows how totally innocent people will “confess” under police pressure, even without physical torture. Horowitz outlines the powerful case for banning confessions altogether. Also in this new edition Marcus Rediker, co-author of the legendary The Many Headed Hydra, writes of popular heroism and resistance in the favelas of Medellin, Colombia. Alexander Cockburn reports on how America’s oldest bank, patronized by the global elites, washed billions smuggled out of Russia, and how the Russians might win their money back, shaking the world’s banking system if they do so. Serge Halimi describes the real battle for the soul of Europe. Get your copy today by subscribing online or calling 1-800-840-3683 Contributions to CounterPunch are tax-deductible. Click here to make a donation. If you find our site useful please: Subscribe Now! CounterPunch books and gear make great presents.
|
Today's Stories August 9 / 10, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Bruce Jackson Kevin Young Robert Fantina Brendan Cooney Mark Almond Lois Gibbs Rev. William Alberts John Ross Ron Jacobs Richard Rhames David Yearsley Brenda Norrell Website of the Weekend August 8, 2008 Patrick Cockburn Manuel Garcia, Jr. M. Shahid Alam Andy Worthington Lawrence J. Korb David Model Alan Farago Diop Olugbala Firmin DeBrabander Website of the Day August 7, 2008 Dr. Trudy Bond William Blum Paul Craig Roberts Ralph Nader Robert Weitzel Jacob G. Hornberger Binoy Kampmark David Macaray Howard Lisnoff Website of the Day August 6, 2008 Marc Herold Greg Moses Sheldon Rampton Kevin Young Michael Estrada Robert Weissman Dr. Susan Block Cindy Sheehan Ace Hoffman Website of the Day August 5, 2008 Paul Craig Roberts Jeff Halper Patrick Cockburn Nancy Welch Peter Morici Sousan Hammad Eamon Martin Shepherd Bliss Tim Matson Website of the Day August 4, 2008 Uri Avnery Saul Landau David W. Remington Rev. Jesse Jackson Dave Lindorff Peter Morici Joanne Mariner Ramzy Baroud Christian Wright Website of the Day August 2 / 3, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair Patrick Cockburn Winslow T. Wheeler James Abourezk Andy Worthington Brian Cloughley Robert Fantina Benjamin Dangl Marlene Martin David Yearsley Fatemeh Keshavarz David Michael Green Obama as Dukakis Harvey Wasserman Jason Hribal Phyllis Pollack Laray Polk Ron Jacobs David Macaray David Rosen Dan Bacher Joe Allen Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend August 1, 2008 Jonathan Cook Nikolas Kozloff Rannie Amiri Peter Morici Christopher Brauchli M. K. Bhadrakumar Patrick Cockburn James J. Brittain Dan Bacher Website of the Day
July 31, 2008 Michael Hudson Carl Finamore Mike Whitney Joshua Frank Andy Worthington Ralph Nader Bill Moyers / Robert Weissman Dave Lindorff Website of the Day July 30, 2008 Brian M. Downing Chuck Spinney William S. Lind David Ker Thomson Karl Grossman Mike Whitney Martha Rosenberg James Murren Dave Lindorff Ron Jacobs Website of the Day July 29, 2008 Jeffrey St. Clair John Ross Peter Morici Alison Weir Gary Leupp David Macaray Brenda Norrell Marjorie Cohn Eric Ruder Website of the Day July 28, 2008 Dr. Bryant Welch Kathy Kelly Mike Whitney Peter Morici Christopher Brauchli Clifton Ross Stephen Lendman Website of the Day July 26 / 27, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair James G. Abourezk Joseph Nevins Uri Avnery Linn Washington, Jr. David Yearsley Binoy Kampmark Saul Landau Joshua Frank Brendan Cooney Jonathan Cook Robert Fantina Lee Sustar Michael Winship David Macaray Missy Beattie Robert Weissman Kim Nicolini Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend July 25, 2008 Harvey Wasserman Paul Craig Roberts Alan Farago Paul D'Amato Gary Leupp Niranjan Ramakrishnan Mike Whitney Paul Krassner Mike Roselle Website of the Day July 24, 2008 Greg Moses Andy Worthington James Bovard Joe Bageant George Wuerthner DC Larson William Willers David Macaray Website of the Day July 23, 2008 Winslow T. Wheeler Paul Craig Roberts Ralph Nader Mike Whitney Susie Day Website of the Day July 22, 2008 Nikolas Kozloff Patrick Cockburn Soldz, Olson, Reisner Arrigo and Welch Moshe Adler Martha Rosenberg Dan Bacher Harvey Wasserman Anthony Papa Binoy Kampmark Website of the Day July 21, 2008 Ishmael Reed Mike Whitney Andy Worthington Scott Pellegrino John Ross Robert Weitzel Mike Stark Website of the Day July 19 / 20, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair Dave Lindorff Saul Landau Ron Jacobs Uri Avnery Neve Gordon Roane Carey Robert Fantina Christopher Brauchli Fred Gardner David Macaray Richard L. Hutto Bill Moyers / Ronnie Cummins David Yearsley Alison McKenna Wajahat Ali Poets' Basement Website of the Day July 18, 2008 Corey D. B. Walker Mike Whitney Robert Bryce Mike Roselle Bouthaina Shaaban Eve Spangler Website of the Day
July 17, 2008 Paul Craig Roberts James G. Abourezk Ralph Nader Allan J. Lichtman Andy Worthington"Screwed Up" and"Abused": Omar Khadr's Interrogations at Gitmo Ronnie Cummins
July 16, 2008 Jeffrey St. Clair Paul Craig Roberts Conn Hallinan Dave Lindorff William S. Lind Christopher Brauchli Website of the Day
July 15, 2008 Michael Hudson Brian Cloughley Patrick Cockburn John Ross Howard Lisnoff Website of the Day July 14, 2008 Uri Avnery Paul Craig Roberts Trish Schuh Patrick Cockburn Mike Whitney Alan Farago Seth Sandronsky Phyllis Pollack Website of the Day July 12 / 13, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair James Abourezk Nicole Colson Stan Cox Ismael Hossein-Zadeh Wajahat Ali / John Stauber Alan Farago Missy Beattie Robert Fantina Rannie Amiri Gregory Kafoury Fran Shor Martha Rosenberg David Macaray Andrew Wimmer Ron Jacobs Farzana Versey Kim Nicolini Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend July 11, 2008 Kevin Alexander Gray Sasan Fayazmanesh Peter Morici Mike Whitney Manuel Garcia, Jr. Robert Weissman Ramzy Baroud Kelly Overton Adrian Burgos Website of the Day July 10, 2008 Brian McKenna Paul Craig Roberts Saul Landau Ron Jacobs Joshua Frank Peter Morici Alan Maass Robert Weissman William Blum Alan Farago Website of the Day July 9, 2008 Ismael Hossein-Zadeh Luis Rodriguez Sheldon Richman Fatemeh Keshavarz Chad Hanson Sen. Russ Feingold Niranjan Ramakrishnan Dave Lindorff Stanley Heller Philip Rizk Website of the Day July 8, 2008 Nikolas Kozloff Laura Carlsen Mike Whitney Andy Worthington Patrick Irelan Chellis Glendinning David Macaray Dave Lindorff John Chuckman Phillip Doe Website of the Day July 7, 2008 Patrick Bond Kathy Kelly Andy Worthington Clifton Ross Elizabeth Schulte Ralph Nader Dave Lindorff Binoy Kampmark Stephen Fleischman Website of the Day July 5 / 6, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Jeffrey St. Clair / Patrick Cockburn Mike Whitney Robert Fantina Binoy Kampmark Rannie Amiri Eric Ruder Brian Cloughley William Blum Frank Barat Christopher Brauchli David Yearsley Ron Jacobs Karim Makdisi Wendy Thompson / N. D. Jayaprakash Ramzy Baroud Kelly Overton Richard Neville Poets' Basement Website of the Weekend
July 4, 2008 Kathy Kelly Dave Lindorff Paul Krassner Jackie Corr Laray Polk Dan Bacher Walter Brasch Charles Modiano Website of the Day July 3, 2008 Sharon Smith Andy Worthington Laura Carlsen Peter Morici Ramzi Kysia Martha Rosenberg Anne Landman Dave Zirin Kristin Bricker Website of the Day
July 2, 2008 Patrick Irelan Vijay Prashad Brian Cloughley Ralph Nader Robert Fantina Dave Lindorff Parvez Ahmed Robert Bryce Website of the Day July 1, 2008 Alexander Cockburn Mike Whitney Douglas Macgregor Steven Higgs Andy Worthington Binoy Kampmark Dave Lindorff Roger Burbach Richard W. Behan Gary Leupp Website of the Day |
Weekend Edition CounterPunch DiaryYou Want More Still Proofs the Crony, Old-Line Press is Dead?By ALEXANDER COCKBURN What have been the two hot stories this summer, helping us survive the arid steppes of the presidential campaign? Without a doubt, story number one has John Edwards’s love affair and love child. Story number two has been the suicide of one of the U.S. government’s top anthrax men, Bruce Ivins. CounterPunchers, I’m glad to say, have been kept up-to-date on the Edwards scandal, courtesy of this Diary, which has relayed the reports in the National Enquirer, which blew Edwards out of the water last October, with even deadlier salvoes in December, 2007 and then – conclusively -- in July and early August of this year. For nearly a year the Enquirer had a serious candidate for the Democrats’ presidential nominee cold as a USDA-rated prime grade rat who did not scruple to betray his ailing wife Elizabeth (while making political capital out of her condition), then to enlist her as a co-conspirator in lying to Edwards’s supporters and to the voters at large. Edwards survived into August of this year as a credible national political figure (recently touted as a cabinet member in an Obama administration) only because of the political press corps ensconced in the major papers and networks could not bring themselves to acknowledge that the despised Enquirer had the goods on Edwards and that the goods were a matter of legitimate public concern. When Edwards finally made it official to the crony press corps, via ABC News, on Friday one political reporter for the Washington Post mumbled defensively that they’d been working on the Edwards story “really hard”. Another explained that he’d called high-ups in the Democratic Party and received adamant denials that there was any truth in the Enquirer’s charges. Mr and Mrs Edwards relied on the crony mainstream press to protect them and their instincts were sound, until the Enquirer finally ran the pic of Edwards holding Rielle Hunter’s baby in his arms. In a final consummate parody of the Rat Finally Cornered, Edwards claimed on ABC, and in his whining statement that it was only a quickie thing with Rielle in 2006, that Elizabeth was in remission when he did it (so that’s okay), that he didn’t know his campaign was paying her off, that he was in the Beverly Hills Hilton hotel in LA in July but That’s not me in the photo and that’s not my baby! So, plenty of people, many of them on the leftward end of the Democratic Party (if that’s not a contradiction in terms), pinned their hopes on Edwards through months when he, his wife and at least one of his senior aides – the one whom Edwards persuaded last December to tell the Enquirer he was the father-to-be – surely knew that one day the scandal would destroy them. Suppose he had become the nominee, or the vice-presidential pick of Barack Obama – which Edwards obviously lobbied for when he suddenly stepped out last January after his South Carolina debacle? Suppose the Republicans had gone public with that as an October Surprise, as they surely would have done. After all, the New York Post, knew about it a year ago, publishing the first blind item on the matter. Edwards, if he was a rational being, should have known that politically it was all over for him , then and there. The remaining mystery? Who’s been the Enquirer’s source? My pick is the girlfriend, Rielle Hunter. Who else? The Crony Press and the Anthrax Saga Now for the second stake through the heart of the Crony Mainstream Press. In case you’re hazy on the details, here’s the anthrax story in sequence. Starting on September 18, 2001, one week after the attacks on the Trade Towers and Pentagon, envelopes of white powder containing anthrax spores were mailed out to prominent Americans. They went to US Senate Majority leader Tom Daschle, to US Senator Pat Leahy, to NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw. Directly inhaled into the lungs, anthrax spores can be deadly. In the post-Sep 11 mailings five died Back in the fall of 2001 the anthrax envelopes convinced millions of Americans reeling from the collapse of the Trade Towers that Yes, this was war and Islam was the enemy. The crudely written notes accompanying the spores said “Death to America, Death to Israel, Allah is Great.” Within hours the Bush administration was leaking stories to the effect that analysis of the anthrax in the envelopes disclosed the presence of bentonite and this chemical footprint – so the anonymous sources insisted to their favored outlet, Brian Ross of ABC News -- was characteristic of products from the bio-terror Labs of Saddam Hussein. (Oddly enough, the mention of bentonite had a soothing effect on me. If this was the spoor of al-Qaida, then Caifornia’s wine industry had been taken over by Osama bin Laden. Bentonite is a derivative of lava ash and has many homely applications, from sealing leaky ponds to purging wine of unsightly protein haze. I use it myself to clarify my home-made cider.) ABC’s stories about bentonite-laced anthrax spores were hugely effective in helping prep public sentiment for the Patriot Act, granting dictatorial powers to Bush and Cheney. They also played a long-range role in prepping public the attack on Iraq which subsequent memoirs like those of Bush’s first Treasury Secretary, Paul O’Neill have disclosed as having been decided on more or less from the moment Bush ensconced himself in the Oval Office at the start of 2001. Soon politicians such as Senator John McCain were gravely confiding to TV network interviewers that if as seemed likely, Saddam’s anthrax was in the envelopes, then this cemented suspicions of an Osama-Saddam terror connection already inflamed by a long and totally inaccurate report by Jeffrey Goldberg in the New Yorker magazine. The lead government agency investigating the anthrax envelopes was the FBI and the Bureau was under huge pressure to come up with a suspect. It duly did so, and its suspicions ran athwart the pointers to Baghdad. Soon a fresh tide of leaks to the New York Times and a few other sources fingered Steven Hatfill, who had worked at the end of the 1990s as a civilian researcher at the United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), the U.S. Department of Defense's medical research institute for biological warfare (BW) defense at Fort Detrick, Frederick, MD. By 2004 Iraq had been invaded and Hatfill was suing his detractors in the New York Times and other publications for destroying his career. The U.S. Department of Justice disclosed that in March of this year it had taken Hatfill off the suspects list and was compensating him for false allegations, giving the 54-year old $5.8 million, with a down payment of 2.825 million in cash and $150,000 a year for 20 years. But the FBI had another suspect, Bruce E. Ivins a career anthrax researcher at Ft. Detrick, on the team at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Disease (USAMRIID). With Hatfill out of the picture, the heat was on Ivins and he buckled. On July 29 he died from a mix of Tylenol and codeine, diagnosed as a suicide. Exactly like Hatfill when the FBI had him in its sights, Ivins in the aftermath of his death has been the target of a torrent of disobliging stories, many of them apparently inspired by the FBI. A social worker who counseled him claims he was a drunk and a time-bomb of resentments. A practising Catholic, he wrote letters to a local newspaper hostile to Islam and calling Jews the chosen people. The inference, as with Hatfill, is that with his alleged dispatch of the anthrax-filled envelopes he was setting up Muslims as the originators of the anthrax attacks. Ivins’s suicide rekindled deep suspicions, most consistently voiced down the years by Glen Greenwald (a lawyer and blogger on the Salon site), that the US government certainly used, and perhaps even sponsored the anthrax attacks as a way of ratcheting up national panic after 9/11 to a level where the public would gladly endorse special emergency powers sought by the White House, accepting a Saddam-Osama linkage into the bargain. Those who most emphatically do not believe that George Bush and Dick Cheney masterminded the 9/11/2001 attacks on the Trade Towers and Pentagon – have much less difficulty in agreeing with these dark surmises. Greenwald, who has written well for a number of years on the dictatorial powers sought and mostly won by the Bush administration, is now calling on Ross and ABC to identify their “four separate sources” who promoted what turn out to have been an entirely bogus discovery of bentonite in the anthrax, and an equally bogus suggestion that anthrax-plus-bentonite = Saddam’s terror labs in Baghdad. As Greenwald wrote last week, ABC News is not “protecting ‘sources.’ The people who fed them the bentonite story aren't ‘sources.’ They're fabricators and liars who purposely used ABC News to disseminate to the American public an extremely consequential and damaging falsehood.” True enough. ABC News is clearly embarrassed by Greenwald’s soundly based charges. Will Ross ’fess up to who fed him the stories? I doubt it. He’s been a useful conduit for government leaks on matters such as the utility of water-boarding as a vital weapon in the war on terror. He’ll keep his mouth shut, even as public cynicism about Bush and Cheney, and the press, soar to new highs. Russia Resurgent Not only is Russia giving NATO the finger in the Caucasus -- a well-justified finger in my opinion – it is setting the legal stage for seizing a third of the capital of America’s oldest bank, the Bank of New York, a slimy institution now welded to the Mellon interests. I relate this fascinating affair in the latest issue of our CounterPunch newsletter, now available exclusively to subscribers. Aside from my piece there are other terrific pieces in the newsletter. Intelligent people have said that confessions of guilt should never be accepted at their face value. In a very important article Ruth Horowitz writes fascinatingly about false confessions either volunteered for complicated psychological reasons or extorted by police interrogators by guile and fraud. How this plays out in the U.S. justice system and how the abuses of coerced confessions can be curbed is Horowitz’s theme, starting with an appalling case, reminiscent of the “Satanic abuse” trials of the late ’80s and ’90s, where an obviously innocent immigrant, Khemwatie Bedessie, was bullied into a “confession” that has put her in prison for 25 years. Also in this great new issue of our newsletter, subscribers can read Marcus Rediker’s report of popular resistance in the comunas in Medellín, Colombia. Here at CounterPunch we greatly admire Rediker for his book The Slave Ship, also for his tremendous book written with CounterPuncher Peter Linebaugh, The Many-Headed Hydra. We’re excited to have Marcus aboard. Subscribe now and give yourself a treat.
|
Now Available from CounterPunch Books!
RED STATE REBELS:
Edited by  Buy End Times Now! CounterPunch Books of the Crossroads: HOW THE IRISH INVENTED SLANG By Daniel Cassidy AMERICAN BOOK AWARD!  Click Here to Buy! Click Here for Dates & Venues Michael Neumann's Devastating Rebuttal of Alan Dershowitz  Click Here to Buy! Saul Landau's Bush and Botox World with a Foreword by Gore Vidal  Click Here to Order! How They Made a Killing on the War on Terrorism     
    
 
 Humanitarian Imperialism By Jean Bricmont               CITY BEAUTIFUL By Tennessee Reed                   |
