ONE MORE REASON TO WIN – LET SIBEL EDMONDS SPEAK
by W. David Jenkins III
OpEdNews, PA
Oct 29 2006
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to
do nothing.”
– Edmund Burke
Sibel Edmonds once told me to “put aside 9/11” and instead concentrate
on the workings of the Defense Department, amongst other government
establishments, because what she had been trying to warn people about
was considered by those involved as nothing more than “business as
usual.” That was the real danger. What she had discovered during
her short time with the FBI was so threatening to those doing such
“business” that former Attorney General, John Ashcroft, couldn’t
slap a gag order on her (and Congress) fast enough. But a lot of us
already know that.
Truth be known, Dennis Hastert has a hell of a lot more to worry about
than the Mark Foley scandal. In fact, he may be seeing the writing
on the wall regarding his soon departure from Congress as a welcome
relief. However, that result is not only contingent upon a Democratic
win in November, but a Democratic majority willing to dig through
the tangled mess that is Turkish and American “business relations.”
Now, one must understand why Turkey is a big player, albeit a
clandestine one, on the world stage; that would be the desperate
need for security and acceptance. Turkey shares with Israel common
enemies such as Syria, Iran and Iraq and maintains relations in the
U.S. in order to secure financial aid and military technology. These
relations are enhanced by corporations, lobbyists and conservative
think tanks who share a mutual interest in geo-political advantage
in the Middle East as well as making some big money.
These relations are connected between former and present Defense
Dept. members, The Project for a New American Century members, AIPAC,
MIC Inc., Jack Abramoff, The Livingston Group and others. In other
words, the more you dig the bigger the headache you may succumb to,
yet you’ll get an idea of how intertwined all the players are. Would
you like to go for a little ride? Let’s start with Hastert.
The House Speaker has received contributions from Turkish sources
to the tune of at least $500,000 and Edmonds knows that there are
tapes from wiretaps that will back up this claim. One of the groups
who bragged on those tapes about these illegal contributions was the
American Turkish Council (ATC) but Hastert denies any ties to this or
other Turkish groups. Yet between 1996 and 2002, Hastert made multiple
trips to Turkey and would return home with so many “gifts” that his
support staff was surprised that the “plane even got off the ground.”
In turn, Hastert has been very helpful to Turkey by using his authority
to pull Congressional backing for a resolution recognizing the Armenian
genocide. Hastert, of course has denied this.
On June 3, 2003, Hastert’s political action committee held a $1500
a plate fundraiser at Jack Abramoff’s restaurant where he received
large donations from, among others, one Duane R. Gibson. Gibson is a
consultant with the Livingston Group who has been lobbying on behalf of
Turkey for about six years at the cost of $1.2 million a year. The only
problem is that the money is not coming from the Turkish government
and of course the FBI wants to know exactly who is shelling out all
the dough. This is what Edmonds refers to as “business as usual” and
what is behind the facade in all of this is obviously so threatening,
that the government felt it necessary to implement an extraordinary
gag order on Sibel and threaten members of her family.
Admittedly, the American – Turkish “connection” doesn’t make for
glamorous news when put up against Iraq, Iran or North Korea but many
of the players in those headlines are also involved with Turkey. And if
there was an active, inquisitive and motivated Congress in DeeCeeVille
right now then people might recognize the threat that so far remains
under the radar.
Sibel stated many times that when certain intelligence regarding
illegal activities (drug or illegal arms trafficking etc.) which
benefited alleged terrorist sponsors and that same intelligence
also implicated “certain allies or business interests” then that
intelligence was not passed on to counter-terrorism agents in the
field. Turkish front groups under surveillance by the FBI (ATC
and ATAA) were making large payments to officials high up in the
government as well as lobbyists with connections to some of these same
officials. These same groups were also nuzzling up to groups like
AIPAC who had a mutual desire to embrace certain business interests
that could enhance their pursuit of intelligence, influence and aid
against common enemies.
With the rise to power of the neo-conservatives years ago and their
drive to secure dominance in the Middle East, these front groups found
new opportunities now that the American government was infiltrated
with many of their “business partners.” Douglass Feith and Richard
Perle (PNAC), infamous for their push into Iraq, were also recipients
of hundreds of thousands of dollars from Turkish interests prior to
joining the Bush Gang.
Other groups with long ties to Turkey as well as upper offices in the
government consist of the aforementioned Livingston Group, Solarz &
Associates, and The Cohen Group. All three are top members of the
American Turkish Council with Vice Chairman of The Cohen Group,
Joseph Ralston, sitting on their board of advisors. Getting pretty
tangled up, huh?
One other firm I want to point out is the neo-con group, M.I.C.
Industries Inc. who boast of some “Ultimate Building Machine” on their
web site (it was worth a $60 million contract with Russia back in
’97). Their board consists of amongst others, William Cohen (Cohen
Group/ATC) and Richard Armitage (PNAC/Valerie Plame outing) and is
headed up by one Michael Ansari who once teamed up with Alexander Haig
in a corporation called US-CIS Venture Inc. which was established to
assist in “developments” in Central Asia as well as establishing oil
and gas pipeline projects through the region. M.I.C.
Inc. is also one of the Livingston Group’s top clients.
These are some of the “business interests” I believe Edmonds’ was
speaking of and here’s why.
Enormous amounts of money are being funneled to top government
officials and certain businesses whose members consist of former
Defense Dept. officials, State Dept. officials and conservative think
tanks that have a common interest in Turkey and Israel (in this case)
and other countries that play a strategic part in a geo-political
“business” plan. However, this money is not coming from those
particular governments in question.
Currently, according to former CIA agent Philip Giraldi, there is an
investigation into Israel’s illegal sale of U.S. military technology
to countries like China and India. The companies mentioned in this
article also have ties to the defense industry through their members’
history in government service – who also share close ties with Turkish
front groups (as well as an alliance with AIPAC and JINSA) currently
under investigation by the FBI. That these Turkish groups would be
involved in the same illegal sales with the aid of the aforementioned
businesses is not that difficult of a dot to connect as it definitely
reflects the “can of worms” that Edmonds’ superiors at the FBI did
not want opened. It’s also worth mentioning that Turkey is a large
hub in the drugs coming out of Afghanistan and Edmonds has alluded
to the drug trade in her past statements.
Yet, fellow FBI translator Malek Can Dickerson, who had encouraged
Sibel to join the ATC, was suppressing intelligence Edmonds was
uncovering regarding these front groups and their relationship to
“certain allies and American business interests” in deference to the
very organizations that the FBI had under investigation.
One can look back at the names mentioned in this criminal activity and
notice that many of the players were involved in the more glamorous
stories in the news over the past years. Armitage (MIC Inc./PNAC)
leaking the name of a CIA operative who was investigating arms
trafficking to Iran and Feith and Perle (IA Inc./PNAC) who were
instrumental in the invasion of Iraq and who are pushing for an attack
on Iran are just three of the most notorious examples.
One other thing I want to point out is the sorry state of affairs
when it comes to the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) Unit
database which is maintained by the Dept. of Justice. This database
contains the “who and how much” when it comes to “foreign investment”
in exchange for representation in DeeCeeVille.
Luke Ryland (wotisitgood4.blogspot.com), who has done some remarkable
and detailed work on the Edmonds story, pointed out on his blog
that the “huge database that serves as the public’s lone window on
lobbying activities by foreign governments has been allowed to decay
to a point they cannot even make a copy of its contents” according
to a report by the Center for Public Integrity in June of ’04. Even
worse, as far as we know, that system is still operating on Windows
95. So much for investing in technology to fight the “war on terror.”
Sibel stated in an interview back in late ’05 that “You can start
from the AIPAC angle. You can start from the Plame case. You can
start from my case. They all end up going to the same place, and they
revolve around the same nucleus of people. There may be a lot of them,
but it is one group. And they are very dangerous for all of us.”
I can’t think of a better reason to take back the Congress.
W.David Jenkins III is a writer/activist living in upstate N.Y. His
work has appeared in “Big Bush Lies” (Riverwood Books) and “The Girl
with Yellow Flowers in Her Hair” (Pitchfork Publishers). He also has
a regular column at oldamericancentury.org.
rticles/opedne_w__david_061028_one_more_reason_to_ w.htm

ORHAN PAMUK GETS CHEATED BY A FRIEND
Sabah, Turkey
Oct 28 2006
Akcam, who defends Armenian genocide, has published one of Pamuk’s
letters in his new book: “This book is a perfect accounting of an
organized abolishment.”
Taner Akcam, author of many books that blame Turkey for Armenian
genocide has enlarged one of his old books and preparing to publish
it in the United States under the name “A Shameful Act.” On the back
cover of his book, Akcam has written Orhan Pamuk’s words: “This book
was written by a brave Turkish academician who dedicated his life
to record annals and is a perfect accounting of an Ottoman Armenians
oriented organized abolishment.”
A friend cheats on Pamuk
Taner Akcam, author of many books that blame Turkey for Armenian
genocide has published a letter written by Pamuk years ago on the
back cover of his new book; “A Shameful Act.”
Taner Akcam is preparing to publish his new book called “A
Shameful Act” in the United States. The book is again about the
Armenian issue. This book was published in Turkey years ago under
another name. Akcam says the new version has been enlarged. When he
published the first version back in 1999, Orhan Pamuk had sent him
a congratulation letter. Now 7 years later, in his enlarged version,
Akcam revealed Pamuk’s letter on the back cover. Pamuk wrote: “”This
book was written by a brave Turkish academician who dedicated his life
to record annals and is a perfect accounting of an Ottoman Armenians
oriented organized abolishment.”

PanARMENIAN.Net
Isagulyan: Serge Sargsyan Most Preferred Candidacy for Armenian President
28.10.2006 15:30 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Owing to absence of healthy competition at the
political arena of the country the outcome of parliamentary election
is predetermined in principle, stated Armenian President’s Advisor
Garnik Isagulyan October 28. In his words, many political forces of
Armenia never managed to understand that the political opposition,
political dialogue and political dispute should be aimed at solving
certain political issues, not against specific
personalities. Thereupon, he said only parties having clearly worked
out program for development of the country will appear at the
Parliament.
According to the estimates of the President’s Advisor, the political
situation available will have a negative impact on the elections, as
the losers will «again sing the song of illegitimacy,» trying to
justify their own idleness. Touching upon presidential elections, he
remarked that incumbent Defense Minister of Armenia Serge Sargsyan is
the most preferred candidacy for the President upon expiration of
Robert Kocharian’s tenure, as he is the most prepared political
figure, reports IA Regnum.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

PanARMENIAN.Net
Monument to Holocaust and Genocide Victims Opened in Yerevan
28.10.2006 16:19 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ October 27 a monument to Holocaust and Genocide
victims opened in Yerevan. Chair of the Jewish community of Armenia
and initiator of creation of the monument Rimma Varzhapetyan-Feller
made the opening address. Members of Armenian Government,
representatives of foreign embassies, media, Union of Nationalities of
Armenia, Jewish community members were present at the opening. As
PanARMENIAN.Net got informed, the opening meeting was accompanied by
violin music of Song of Songs of famous Armenian composer Willy Winer,
who announced a minute of silence to commemorate the innocent victims
of Holocaust and Genocide. Chief rabbi of Armenia Gersh Meir-Burstain
lit candles and read Kadish, after which music from Schindler’s List
film was played.

Armenpress
KOCHARIAN TO VISIT MOSCOW ON OCTOBER 30

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 27, ARMENPRESS; President Robert
Kocharian is flying to Moscow on October 30 for a
meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
Kocharian’s press office said the president will
also meet Russian prime minister Mikhail; Fradkov and
Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov. Kocharian will also attend
a ceremony of unveiling a monument in Moscow to
Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian.

Panorama.am
14:02 28/10/06
E-LIBRARY OPENS AT ENGINEERING UNIVERSITY
The opening of a new electronic reading room took place today at the
State Engineering University of Armenia. Vostanik Marukhyan, rector of
the establishment, said it enables students and faculty to take
maximum use of information resources throughout the world. He said it
will also foster individual work among students. The reading hall is
equipped with 24 computers 6 of which are connected to local network
and 6 of them to internet. Knar Lazarian, head of card index of the
library, said students will be given pin codes with which they can
connect to scientific resources from any computer connected to
internet. /Panorama.am/

From: Sebouh Z Tashjian
Subject: Armenian Choreographer Heads Russian Ballet Group
Panorama.am
14:23 28/10/06

ARMENIAN CHOREOGRAPHER HEADS RUSSIAN BALLET GROUP
Renowned choreographer from Armenia, Vilen Galstyan, headed a new
group created in Krasnodar philharmonics. Yerkramas, newspaper of
Russian Armenians, reports the new group is named `Young ballet of
Kuban.’ The group enrolls both Russian and Armenian dancers.
Galstyan is also the head of Yerevan Choreography College.

From: Sebouh Z Tashjian
Subject: President Adviser Deliberates on National Security Issues
Panorama.am
17:05 28/10/06

PRESIDENT ADVISER DELIBERATES ON NATIONAL SECURITY ISSUES
Garnik Isagulyan, president’s adviser on national security issues,
thinks that the arrest of United Javakhk Alliance chairman is not a
national security issues. Vahagn Chakhalyan, the chairman of the
mentioned alliance, is indicted in violation of the Armenian
border. Isagulyan said it would be impossible to arrest him if he did
not cross the border illegally. However, he assured Chakhalyan will
soon be set free.
On the other hand, Isagulyan believes that it is within the national
security interests of Armenia to build a highway on Parakar and
Argavand section of Yerevan Echmiatsin road. He said all top-level
officials come to Yerevan from Zvartnots airport taking that
road. /Panorama.am/

Mark Zoryan: The West is beginning to realize that the `Georgian situation’
is absurd

_
()
11:43 10/28/2006

The attempts of the US administration and the European structures to
pretend that nothing worth mentioning is going on in Javakhq no longer
make sense. As far as we know, the embassies of almost all European
states and the US embassy in Georgia have informed their governments
of the processes that took place during the local elections in Georgia
and pointed out the peculiarity of the situation in Samtskhe-Javakheti
and Kvemo-Kartli.

Presently the diplomatic circles in Tbilisi are actively discussing
the `bad marks’ Georgia has received for its local elections. These
discussions got especially active after the Tbilisi visit of the US
assistant secretary of state Daniel Fried, who was obviously trying to
save the face of the ruling regime. At the same time, we have received
enough reports saying that the US administration are extremely
displeased with the style and outcome of the elections. Now that the
Georgian-Russian conflict has gone beyond any sensible limits of
inter-state confrontation, the Americans and Europeans have faced a
problem similar to the ones they faced in the Balkans and solved by
political and military interference.

The recent ` deliberately representative ‘ Washington seminar on
Russian-Georgian relations has come to a conclusion that the
propaganda task has lost any sense as it has become very hard to find
arguments to explain to the world community the point and the
political causes of this conflict, which is already spreading outside
the region.

During the seminar, one of the leading US experts on Eastern Europe,
representative of the OSCE office in the US congress Michael Ox said
that the present situation in Georgian-Russian relations does not
serve the interests of the US and is a barren scheme.

On the whole, the American experts on Eastern Europe, who are known
for their colorful language, describe this situation as `an absolute
deadlock,’ while the attempts of the West to `separate the fighting
sides’ are qualified as `rotten politicking.’ If there is anything
that unites the American and European experts, it is their unanimity
that the `Georgian situation’ is absurd.

Exactly now that there is a real want of effective political
expertise, the International Crisis Group ` who we know well for its
activities in Karabakh ` has been assigned the task of facilitating
the development of proposals ` in fact, a plan of how to settle the
situation in Samtskhe-Javakheti. This work will certainly cover a
complex of problems concerning the ethnic rights of the local Armenian
population. Certain Georgian and Armenian experts are involved in this
project. According to the preliminary information, the group will
recommend to enlarge self-government in Javakheti and
Kvemo-Kartli. Well aware of the ICG’s position on the Karabakh
problem, we can hardly expect that they will make any realistic
proposals and that the Georgian authorities will accept them. At the
same time, this initiative is hardly the result of the activities of
the Armenian lobby or of the talks of US administration
representatives with Armenian politicians. The US has just waited for
a tenser scenario in Javakhq to interfere and is now ready to show an
open interest in this region of Georgia.

Today, the problem is that the US has realized that Georgia is a
peculiar country and one can’t just apply general operational
approaches to it. That’s why they have decided to `divide’ Georgia
into political or regional-political blocs and to deal with each of
them individually. Obviously, they hope that this will help them
achieve certain goals in the sphere of system security. Still, it
seems that they have not yet fully grasped Georgia’s problems. We
don’t mean the current policy but some more fundamental problems. So,
we can assume that, having learned about new circumstances in the
policy of Russia, Turkey and the South Caucasian states, the US has
decided to work out new scenarios of its political and economic
expansion in the region. Otherwise, it would be hard to explain why
they have suddenly taken so keen interest in the processes they
formerly ignored.

Mark Zoryan ` expert of Caucasus analytical center

A1+
«GASPROM» BOUGHT ADDITIONAL STOCKS OF «ARMRUSGASARD»
[08:33 pm] 27 October, 2006
Russian `Gasprom’ has bought additional stocks of `ArmRusGasArd’. As a
result of the bargain `Gasprom’ has 58% of the shares of
`ArmRusGasArd’ instead of 45%.
Let us remind you that before now 45% of the stocks of `ArmRusGasArd’
belonged to the RA Government, 45% belonged to `Gasprom’ and 10%
belonged to organization `Itera’.
From: Baghdasarian