May 29, 2004
Vatican endorses child rape
Letter to the Editor
I've always believed that it's not what you say that matters - it's what you do. Although the Catholic Church claims to be against priests raping children their actions tell a different tale. Archbishop Bernard Law who covered up the raping of children by priests in Boston has now been transfered to the Vatican. This sends a message that the Catholic Church is more interested in protecting the careers of the clergy that protecting Catholic children from being raped by priests.
Although the Church gives lip service saying that priests should not have sex with children - what they are doing speaks louder than what they are saying. So when the church says that some politicians aren't fit to take communion because of their stance on abortion - I say that the Catholic Church isn't fit to give communion based on their stance on allowing priests to have sex with children. Any religion that allows child rape has no moral authority to take a stand on anything.
If you're looking for a new religion try the Church of Reality - a religion based on believing in everything that's real.
Ashcroft issues fake terror warning.
John Ashcroft's terror warning this last week was fake and no more than a political stunt to attempt to distract attention away from the administrations incompetence. Interestingly enough - it only highlighted the incompetence.
According to MSNBC Ashcroft's sources were know to not be credible. It came from a group that claims responsibility for everything.
John Ashcroft is putting Americans at risk issuing these fake warnings because once people know he's doing that then people are likely to ignore a real warning. John Ashcroft's actions serve the goals of our enemies and not Americans.
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Terror threat source called into question
Ashcroft cites al-Qaida plan, but how credible is the information?
By Lisa Myers
Senior investigative correspondent
NBC News
Updated: 6:57 p.m. ET May 28, 2004
WASHINGTON - Earlier this week Attorney General John Ashcroft warned of an attack planned on America for sometime in the coming months. That may happen, but NBC News has learned one of Ashcroft’s sources is highly suspect.
In warning Americans to brace for a possible attack, Ashcroft cited what he called “credible intelligence from multiple sources,” saying that “just after New Year's, al-Qaida announced openly that preparations for an attack on the United States were 70 percent complete.… After the March 11 attack in Madrid, Spain, an al-Qaida spokesman announced that 90 percent of the arrangements for an attack in the United States were complete.”
But terrorism experts tell NBC News there's no evidence a credible al-Qaida spokesman ever said that, and the claims actually were made by a largely discredited group, Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades, known for putting propaganda on the Internet.
“This particular group is not really taken seriously by Western intelligence,” said terrorism expert M.J. Gohel of the Asia-Pacific Foundation, an international policy assessment group. “It does not appear to have any real field operational capability. But it is certainly part of the global jihad movement — part of its propaganda wing, if you like. It likes to weave a web of lies; it likes to put out disinformation so that the truth is deeply buried. So it is a dangerous group in that sense, but it is not taken seriously in terms of its operational capability.”
The group has claimed responsibility for the power blackout in the Northeast last year, a power outage in London and the Madrid bombing. None of the claims was found to be credible.
May 26, 2004
Bush's Uncle Caught Laundering Money to Terrorists
Fed Orders Riggs Bank Over Laundering
Fri May 14, 5:12 PM ET
By MARCY GORDON, AP Business Writer
WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve (news - web sites) ordered Riggs Bank's parent company Friday to take steps to prevent money laundering after the bank was fined $25 million in connection with a probe into possible links to terrorism financing.
The action came a day after Treasury Department (news - web sites) regulators levied the record-setting fine against Riggs for its handling of millions of dollars in foreign-held accounts.
In a cease-and-desist order issued by the central bank, Riggs will have to take actions such as hiring an independent consultant to conduct a review. Its operation in Miami — which Riggs plans to close — will be required to retain an outside consultant to review previous account transactions for suspicious activity.
The Federal Reserve has jurisdiction over bank holding companies. The Atlanta Fed had previously advised Riggs's Miami-based subsidiary of deficiencies in its compliance with laws to prevent money laundering, the order noted.
Riggs is a midsize Washington bank with a near-exclusive franchise on business with the capital's diplomatic community.
Credit-rating agency Standard & Poor's said that the fine, combined with anticipated restructuring charges of $15 million to $21 million in the April-June quarter, "should result in a large loss in the second quarter and prevent Riggs from being profitable for the year."
Standard & Poor's and other agencies have recently downgraded their ratings of Riggs, reflecting what S&P on Friday called "continued profitability pressures and regulatory uncertainty."
Treasury's Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued the fine in an order made public late Thursday, after weeks of negotiations between Riggs officials and banking regulators.
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Dudley Elected Chairman of Riggs Investment Management Subsidiary; Bush to Serve as President & CEO
Washington, D.C., May 31, 2000 - Riggs Bank N.A. today announced that the Board of Directors of RIMCO, a wholly owned investment management subsidiary, has elected Jonathan J. Bush President & Chief Executive Officer and a Director, replacing Philip Tasho who resigned. In addition, Henry A. Dudley, Jr. was elected Chairman.
Mr. Bush will continue as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of J. Bush & Co., an investment management company he founded in 1970, which Riggs acquired in 1997. Mr. Dudley, a 24-year veteran of Riggs, will continue to be responsible for all of Riggs Bank's investment management, trust and private banking business.
Located in the nation's capital, Riggs Bank has 53 branches in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, as well as banking offices in Miami, London and Berlin.
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Jonathan J. Bush (Jonathan James Bush) (1931- ) is an uncle to President George Walker Bush.
A Wall Street financier, Jonathan Bush pulled together two dozen investors to raise $3 million to help launch Arbusto. Among the investors was Dorothy Bush, George W.’s grandmother. At the same time, Jonathan Bush was lining up investors for Arbusto, he also was raising money for George H.W. Bush’s presidential explorations. Many of the funders were the same.
Bush is a Trustee of the George Bush Presidential Library Foundation.
More on Democratic Underground
Tearing Down Abu Ghraib Prison
Letter to the Editor
Bush wants to waste taxpayers money by tearing down Abu Ghraib Prison because of the US torture scandal and build a new prison at our expense. I find it amazing that Bush thinks that rape, torture, and murder problem can be solved by tearing down a building. If that kind of reasoning made sense them maybe we should tear down the Whitehouse to solve the national debt.
May 23, 2004
Tough choices for Republicans
Letter to the Editor
Republicans are facing tough choices this election year. More pictures and videos are surfacing that document atrocities at prisons in Iraq. We are seeing rape, sodomy, torture, and the murdering of prisoners in US custody. It is now believed that the orders to commit these war crimes came directly from the White House.
So what do Republicans do? Do they stick with the President and try to downplay these extremely graphic pictures? Or do they put the interests of Americans first and get to the bottom of this? Will Republicans like John McCain do what's right - or will he sell out to election year politics? Time for McCain to put his money where his mouth is. I challenge McCain's honesty.