Saturday, August 24, 2019

Five great tracks by the Fifth Dimension

The Fifth Dimension?  They were a very popular vocal group.  Marilyn McCoo, Billy Davis Jr.,  Florence La Rue, Lamonte McLemore and Ronald Townson were the five original members.

Bones Howe produced a lot of the group's work and he had previously produced The Mamas and the Papas (among others).  Some dismissed The Fifth Dimension as "the White Mamas & the Papas."  All five members of the group were African-American.  Their first charting hit was a cover of The Mamas & the Papas' "Go Where You Want To Go."

From 1966 to 1975, the group charted with multiple hit singles.  In 1975, McCoo and Davis left the band (and would have a huge hit together with "You Don't Have To Be A Star To Be In My Show"). 

1) "Wedding Bell Blues."

This was one of the group's two number one hits.  This was also one of the hits they had with a song written by Laura Nyro.   They also had hits with Laura's "Stoned Soul Picnic," "Sweet Blindness," "Blowing Away" and "Save The Country."

2) "Last Night I Didn't Get To Sleep At All."

Another strong recording.

3) "Medley: Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)."

"Aquarius . . ." was the group's other number one hit.

4) "California Soul."

This hit was written by songwriting greats Ashford & Simpson.

5) "One Less Bell To Answer."

This huge hit was written by another great songwriting team -- Burt Bacharach and Hal David.

So there are five great tracks by one of the great bands of the sixties.

"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):



How is this not an act of war?


That's from Michael Bachner's report for THE TIMES OF ISRAEL.

Repeating: How is this not an act of war? 

What if it was the US that was bombed?


We would rightly see that as an act of war.

How is this any different?








Nouri was prime minister from 2006 to 2010.  AP notes:








We'll note this Tweet.
New on MoA: U.S. Says Israel Bombed Iraq




The following sites updated:

  • Friday, August 23, 2019

    FACEBOOK is evil

    People still use FACEBOOK.  I have no idea why.

    Important thread on Twitter and Facebook censorship on behalf of US imperialism

    You really have to wonder why people continue to use FACEBOOK.

    It's the home of evil and that's not a design flaw, it's creator intent.

    1. Last year I asked Mark Zuckerberg if uses audio to enrich the personal data of its users. His emphatic answer was “No.” I'm demanding answers from him in response to reports that indicate his answer to my question was, at best, incomplete.
    2. Did Mark Zuckerberg Lie Under Oath About Facebook Secretly Spying On You?

    They can't stop lying and, is the Tweet below telling us, Mark Zuckerberg would hang with Jeffrey Epstein on pedophile island?

    1. Mark Zuckerberg on Little St James Island

    "Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):
    Thursday, August 22, 2019.  Another Democratic hopeful drops out, Israel's bombings of Iraq continue to outrage and more.

    The number of people seeking the Democratic Party's presidential nomination is one person smaller.

    I know you agree that our mission to defeat climate change must continue to be central to our national discussion -- and must be the top priority for our next president. But I’ve concluded that my role in that effort will not be as a candidate to be our next president.



  • As disappointing as this is, it is only right to recognize what we have accomplished and how far we have come together.

  • The tremendous grassroots outpouring of 130,000 individual donors, from every state in the nation, is a testament to the movement that we’ve built together. We hit this high bar set by the DNC. Together, we changed and shaped the entire national dialogue around climate change.


  • Most importantly, we have introduced a detailed and comprehensive policy blueprint for bold climate action and transformation to a clean energy economy. We will fight to ensure this gold standard of climate action is adopted and executed by our party and our next president.

  • As we turn to the future, I will have more to say about what comes next for me in the days ahead. I will continue to lead, to demand bold action, and to do everything in my power to ensure the fight to defeat climate change stays at the top of the national agenda.

  • But for now, I want to once again thank everyone who helped in this effort. We have so much to be proud of. Make no mistake, we also have a lot more work to do.

    So early to bed, early to rise, work like hell, and organize. Together, we will continue the fight to defeat the climate crisis.

    For those keeping track, Jay Inslee voted against the Iraq War when he was in the US Congress.  Under current DNC guidelines, he's apparently ineligible for the presidential ticket.  2004's ticket was John Kerry and John Edwards -- both of whom voted for the Iraq War.  2008 and 2012 was Barack Obama and Joe Biden -- Joe voted for the Iraq War (Barack was not in the US Congress in 2002).  2016 saw Hillary garner the nomination and she voted for the Iraq War.

    Jay's position was of no interest to the media.  Last month''s debate saw him attempting to speak about Iraq in response to a question from Jake Tapper only to be ignored and cut off by Don Lemon.  Don didn't want to talk about an ongoing war and the suffering, he preferred to waste everyone's time on a hypothetical impeachment discussion -- no one who wins the nomination, should they become president, will have any power of impeaching Donald Trump.  Impeachment is a matter for the US Congress.

    Jay ran a campaign based on issues.  The media had no use for issues and they largely ignored him.

    He was an important voice.  Unlike Tulsi Gabbard, he tried to use his debate time to discuss war.  He was there to discuss issues, not provide cover to War Hawk Joe Biden.

    In other news, Liz Sly (WASHINGTON POST) reports:

    The warning came in a statement issued by Abu Mahdi al-Mohandes, the deputy commander of the powerful coalition of Shiite Muslim militias known as Hashd al-Shaabi, or Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), which includes paramilitary groups that owe allegiance to Iran. 
    “We have informed the Joint Operations Command that we will regard any foreign aircraft flying over our headquarters without the knowledge of the Iraqi government as hostile, and will deal with it accordingly,” the statement said.
    Israel has apparently been bombing Iraq for some tie now.  Peter Beaumont (GUARDIAN) adds:

    The claim came after the findings of an Iraqi government inquiry into the huge blast at the facility of the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) were leaked.
    A spokesman for the PMF said it had intelligence that showed the US had brought in four Israeli drones earlier this year to work as part of the US fleet in Iraq and target militia positions in the country.

    Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis said the PMF would from now on use “all means at its disposal to deter and prevent such attacks on our positions”.

    Last week, Iraq made a move that surprised some.

    Ken Hanly (DIGITAL JOURNAL) reported, "The US-led coalition in Iraq has issued a statement indicating that they intend to comply with demands from the PM Adel AbdulMahdi respecting the use of Iraqi airspace for US warplanes."  Meghann Myers (MILITARY TIMES) explained:

    Top leaders with Operation Inherent Resolve, the joint task force leading anti-ISIS efforts in the country, have met with Iraqi defense officials to discuss the mandate to have every helicopter, unmanned aerial vehicle and fighter aircraft launch pre-approved, according to a Friday release from the Pentagon.

    “As guests within Iraq’s sovereign borders, CJTF-OIR complies with all Iraqi laws and direction from the Government of Iraq,” the release said. “The U.S.-led coalition immediately complied with all directions received from our Iraqi partners as they implemented the Prime Minister’s order.”

    KURDISTAN 24 added,"The orders came after rumors spread on the Iraqi social media networks with some activists claiming the explosion in the militia’s munitions warehouse was in the result of an air attack by an Israeli fighter jet. Multiple Iraqi officials made the same claim."  Israeli government sources (unnamed) have claimed to the Israeli press that the government was responsible for two bombings of Iraq awhile ago.  From the June 30th snapshot:

    How is this not an act of war?


    That's from Michael Bachner's report for THE TIMES OF ISRAEL.

    Repeating: How is this not an act of war? 

    What if it was the US that was bombed?


    We would rightly see that as an act of war.

    How is this any different?

    Tzvi Joffre and Anna Ahronheim (THE JERUSALEM POST) add:

    Israel used their F-35i stealth fighter jets to conduct attacks on Iranian targets to Iraq in the past month, hitting two Iraqi bases used by Iranian forces and proxies and storing Iranian ballistic missiles, the London-based Saudi daily Al Sharq Al Awsat reported on Tuesday.  
    The first attack happened on July 19 at a base in Amreli in the Saladin province of Iraq. Iraqi and Iranian sources blamed Israel at the time, and Al Sharq Al Awsat reported that "diplomatic sources" confirmed this to be true, specifying that the attack was carried out by an Israeli F-35.

    Al-Arabiya reported that Iranian-made ballistic missiles were transported to the base shortly before the attack via trucks used to transport refrigerated food. The identity of the aircraft which conducted the attack was unspecified at the time, and the US denied any involvement. Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah members were killed in the air strike, according to Al-Arabiya, however the Iranian-backed al-Hashd ash-Sha'abi (Popular Mobilization Forces - PMF) denied that any Iranians had been killed in the attack, according to Fars.

    Again, if Turkey did that to the US, we would rightly see it as an act of war.  The only way we wouldn't see it as such would be if we learned that whomever our sitting president at the time was, that the sitting president had given an okay for the operation.

    So that's really the first question to be asking right now.

    Did the Iraqi government give permission?

    We know the Parliament didn't.  Allowing Israel to drop bombs on Iraq would be a very unpopular position in Iraq.  Anyone known to have supported it would not only have trouble being re-elected, they might be targeted with violence.  More to the point, though, the body is too large to keep a secret so if the Parliament signed off on it, it would have been known before the attack took place.

    So did the leadership sign off on the attack?  That would be the prime minister -- who has the actual power -- and the president.  The presidential post is supposed to be a ceremonial one with no real powers to speak of.  But Barham Salih has gone out of his way to grab powers and the US press, mirroring the US State Dept's position, has gone out of their way to treat him like a leader of the country.  Adil Abdul-Mahdi is the prime minister.  He's the only one who should have had the power for the okay (if Parliament's approval was not sought, he's the only one who could have given permission).

    So the recent attack on the munitions warehouse is the third attack that the Israeli government is suspected of having carried out.  These attacks are likely the reason for the prime minister addressing the issue of Iraqi air space -- finally addressing.

    The notion that Israel is bombing Iraq has outraged the Iraqi people (as well as their neighbors).

    Meanwhile in news of hysterics . . .

    This is no longer funny. Danish troops fought alongside the US in Afghanistan and Iraq. 50 Danes died. The president dishonors the alliance and their sacrifice. On the same day he sought to appease Putin by supporting his return to the G8.

    Clutch the pearls, Tom, with your anus.  Nothing the president has in the Tweet you reposted is worth gasping over.  And you're the one who is "no longer funny" as you try to use the illegal Iraq War to prop up your stupid argument because you're too inept to argue policy.  This has nothing to do with the ongoing Iraq War.  This has nothing to do with X number of people killed -- or when!  You trot out Iraq to use as a prop, you try to silence a serious conversation by hiding behind that topic but otherwise you ignore the ongoing suffering in Iraq, ,the ongoing war.

    You're pathetic.  I don't expect much from Donald Trump -- I didn't vote for him.  But right now, I'm more appalled by you than by his Tweet.  You have serious issues and you actually are a menace to honest and free debate.

    The following sites updated: