Gaza diary: Are we not human?

By Mohammed Ali in Gaza City

Many Gazans feel hopeless in the face of the Israeli bombardment [GALLO/GETTY]

"As the death toll from Israel's war on Gaza continues to climb, Mohammed Ali, an advocacy and media researcher for Oxfam who lives in Gaza City, will be keeping a diary of his feelings and experiences.

The air, the sea and the earth in Gaza City are now occupied by the Israeli military. They occupy Gazans' minds, nerves and ears too.

In a bid to stop my children twitching, jerking, trembling and waking at every sound of an attack during their few hours of sleep and their many waking hours, I put cotton wool in their ears - it has not worked.

I wonder what damage is being done to my children's tiny hearts. Theirs are not as big as mine, they can cope less with the stress that is being put on them.

We ran out of fuel for our generator, which meant that we were confined to a small room filled with eleven people, with little light for three days.

We have not had water either; our well can only pump water if it has electricity which most of the Gaza Strip has been denied since this nightmare started.
Unlike many other families, we were fortunate yesterday to find 20 litres of benzene to power our generator. No fuel has come in since the onset of this attack on Gaza so we had to pay seven times its usual price.
We have one day's worth of food left and the nappies I bought two weeks ago are nearly gone. They are not good quality as little has been able to enter this strip of land since the blockade was imposed on us 18 months ago. Bad quality nappies mean unpleasant leakages, and for the last few days the little ones have had to be bathed in freezing cold water.
My sister who was with us the last time I wrote decided to return home in spite of our protests. She feared that with food reserves running out we might have to eat one meal a day rather than the two we have been having of late. At home she has a little food left, enough to keep her and her family going for a while longer.
We are now 11, huddled together in my parents' dining room. My brother and I and our families moved there, thinking that the first floor may be the safest option.

There is a saying in Arabic which says "death in a group is a mercy". I guess if we die together maybe, just maybe, we will feel less of the pain than in doing so alone.
I have had 8 hours sleep since the beginning of this conflict; we can hear attacks almost every minute.
I think to myself, if one of us is injured or needs medical attention what will happen? Ambulances are finding it difficult to reach civilians, roads are blocked by rubble, Israeli forces in their path - you could bleed to death.

Even if they did get to us, maybe we would be bombed on our way to the hospital. If we did reach the hospital there might not be enough room to treat us - there is little medication or equipment or any electricity to fuel the life-saving equipment. We would not even be able to get out of Gaza for the life-saving treatment we needed.
Hospitals are now running on back-up generators making life even more difficult for the doctors who are trying to cope with the influx of the injured. If fuel runs out for the generators, those on life-saving equipment will perish.
I heard a woman calling into a radio station today - ambulance services could not reach her and I guess she thought the radio station might be able to do something. She was wailing down the phone "our home is on fire, my children are dying, help me". I do not know what happened to her and her children - I do not want to imagine.

I spend much of my time thinking that this could be the last hour of my existence.

As I try to fall asleep, I hear on the radio the numbers of people who have died rising by the hour. I wonder if tomorrow morning, I will be part of that body count, part of the next breaking news.

I will be just another number to all those watching the death and destruction in Gaza or maybe the fact that I work for Oxfam will mean that I will be a name and not just a number. I might be talked about for a minute and moments later forgotten, like all those other people who have had their lives taken away from them.
I am not afraid of dying - I know that one day we all must die. But not like this, not sitting idly in my home with my children in my arms waiting for our lives to be taken away. I am disgusted by this injustice.
What is the international community waiting for - to see even more dismembered people and families erased before they act? Time is ticking by and the numbers of dead and injured are increasing. What are they waiting for?
What is happening is against humanity, are we not human?"
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Comment by EA: 
Just wait until the US and Israhell turn their attention outward, and inward. Outward in the Middle East and Inward in the US. The US will turn into Gaza/Palestine. The enemy of the people their will be the US Government, just as in Israel. It is the same bloodline as the US. That is the reason their has always been the support from the US, and that their skin color is not dark.

Soon enough, the US will go down the route of this Genocide as well. It as well will be Human Right Violations, as the In habitats of the US  incorporate; represent, DNA from all Root Races on Earth.

The the New World Order will takes its place, where it ought not, and underestimate their true standing in the Universe.Their are many standing armies of people World Wide that are amassed ready for battle against them. There are others whom are seeking Metaphysical answers to such problems still. Still yet, some are awaiting some type of positive change that diverts around destruction of ourselves.

Much still are there imaginations and theories of what reality is, and ever more so of not knowing anything but questions.

Or maybe it IS ALL a distraction, a diversion, to keep the veil from falling. Creating shit that destroies indefinitely so that the real issue is never seen.

What is the real issue what something you never thought of it being. Something profoundly simple, but of great weight in consequence?

What if all was put before us for a reason that was not known by us; or many. This reason would not be understood unless the entire correlating circumstances and knowledge could be appended to the original thought. First someone has to know the reason. As of yet I have yet to meet any.

If the continual DUALITY continues this time line will no longer function as it should. Humanity become lost in Duality not long after it was presented.

And this Duality serves a purpose. Being lost and confused is imperative to induce if one is to conquer civilization. On the Earth, or else where in the Universe. Society is not the way it is, because what it has become has been entirely the natural path. Our Homeostasis; or characteristics thereof, has not followed a Natural Path, one of the reason so many people are starting to go back to the Earth. Great Grand Mother is calling us back on a Collective Field. This is one of the many reasons why the Elite have decimated Palestine so, the region is strong, and it has to be broken from their standpoint. That has always been the MO of the Elite that created Israel as the FRONT.

Or in this case back.

But, you see, things are getting very overt now. Most of the so called Conspiracy Theories have turned to Historical Fact, as history will hopefully bear out, if it is not again scrubbed before being let out again to the masses.

They are acting mad. They have the ability. The resources just gained by stealing the wealth of the US.

Thinking they have gone away, or are going to stop, go to jail, etc.

You are very mistaken. They ARE NOT GOING OUT WITHOUT A FIGHT.

Many on both sides feel this way. Thankfully as things continue to Even Horizon, the infighting within them will increase as well. "They will not know the way out".

And that hopefully will be their end. Many should do the right thing and Kill themselves.

Humanity just wants and needs you people gone. OVER WITH!

Its over. No more. We have had enough. You will never defeat us.

Humanity. Our ideas, thoughts, spirit, and force. Our perseverance. Our long suffering.

Our Modesty.

You will mock, but we have done all these things, otherwise you would not be breathing the air your lungs are as of now. You would have been hunted, tracked, and identified.

In your work areas, churches, schools, classrooms, banks.

I mean, just think, maybe your chauffeur?

You treat others like a shofer.

Watch out, your turning into a loafer.

We will one day meet on the battle field as well.

That is one of Humanities common Destinies.

Rahm’s Plan for Mandatory Service

There has been a small uproar around Obama’s call for a “civilian national security force” especially one “that’s just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded” as the military. But many have said that these words were taken out of context. If you read the whole speech, they argue, it is clear that he just wants to expand the Peace Corp a little bit.
Similarly, there was a mild uproar about his call for mandatory service from students, but many said that the programs were never intended to be mandatory. The college program was optional community service in exchange for a larger education credit, and the high-school one was no different from adding an art class or something to the public high-school curriculum. Obama initially called both mandatory on his change.gov website, but after the buzz began he changed the wording and removed several sections of the site.
But now there is new evidence that the critics are right. He does favor mandatory service and it might be worse than we thought. He has chosen Rahm Emanuel as his chief of staff. Rahm Emanuel wrote a book called The Plan in 2006. On page 60-65 of the book Rahm calls for universal conscription of 18-24 year olds for civilian service in order to prepare for a potential terrorist attack.

All Americans between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five will be asked to serve their country by going through three months of basic training, civil defense preparation and community service.

In a 2006 radio interview Rahm explains more about the program. He speaks about the dangers of a chemical attack and about the wonderful common experience that all Americans could have by being drafted for 3 months into a civilian national security force training program. He seems to be using the fear of attack to justify drafting all youth into a militaristic civilian security force – something more reminiscent of a dictatorship than a democracy. And all of his calls to unity and common experience only confirm his preference for nationalism or collectivism over individualism and freedom.
That Obama has chosen this man as his chief of staff should give anyone pause. This man has a “Plan” for the country that involves training our youth like soldiers, and calls upon “a new patriotism that brings us together again in a common mission” for his plan which will “unite us in a higher national purpose.”

The grandeur that is Rahm

Joseph Cannon
Cannonfire
November 8, 2008

"Come, O come Ema-a-anuel… We know you really work for Israel…"

Let’s take a further look at Rahm Emanuel, Obama’s new gatekeeper. This is from a 2006 Counterpunch story by John Walsh titled How Rahm Emanuel Has Rigged a Pro-War Congress. Walsh discusses the race for Henry Hyde’s seat, in a conservative Illinois district in which an anti-war Democrat, Christine Cegelis, was — at first — doing surprisingly well.

Enter Rahm Emanuel, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, who dug up a pro-war candidate, Tammy Duckworth. Although she had both her legs blown off in Iraq, she has remained committed to "staying the course" in Iraq (2). Duckworth had no political experience and did not live in the 6th District, but Rahm Emanuel raised a million dollars for her and brought in Dem heavyweights Joe Lieberman, Barak Obama, John Kerry, John Edwards and Hillary Clinton to support her. Despite all this help and with the Cegelis campaign virtually penniless, Duckworth barely managed to eke out a victory by a measly four percentage points.

Duckworth made her national debut when she was given the opportunity to offer a rebuttal to a Bush pro-war address:

AP, in its story on the exchange where Duckworth was supposed to differ with W on Iraq, concluded thus: "She offered no proposal for an immediate withdrawal or a timetable for withdrawal."

This, it seems, is Emanuel’s strategy: Present pro-war Dems as anti-war Dems. Criticism of Bush’s handling of the war replaces criticism of the war. This is from Walsh’s follow-up piece:

However a very recent profile in Fortune (9/25/2006), "Rahm Emanuel, Pitbull Politician," by Washington Bureau chief Nina Easton notes: "On Iraq, Emanuel has steered clear of the withdraw-now crowd, preferring to criticize Bush for military failures since the 2003 invasion. ‘The war never had to turn out this way,’ he told me at one of his campaign stops. In January 2005, when asked by Meet the Press’s Tim Russert whether he would have voted to authorize the war — ‘knowing that there are no weapons of mass destruction’ — Emanuel answered yes.

This stance puts Emanuel in line with Barack Obama’s speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. Careless listeners took the Great One’s words as a condemnation of the Iraq invasion; in fact, he offered nothing of the kind. Obama condemned the way Bush prosecuted the war. The Lightbringer said one thing and progressives heard another: That’s magic.

Back to Walsh:

The war on Iraq benefited Israel by laying waste a country seen to be one of its major adversaries. Emanuel’s commitment to Israel (4) and his Congressional service to it are not in doubt. The most recent evidence was his attack on the U.S. puppet Prime Minister of Iraq, Nouri al Maliki, because Maliki had labeled Israel’s attack on Lebanon as an act of "aggression." Emanuel called on Maliki to cancel his address to Congress; and he was joined by his close friend and DSCC counterpart, Sen. Chuck Schumer, who asked; "Which side is he (Maliki) on when it comes to the war on terror?"

On the side of the angels, at least in that particular instance. The invasion of Lebanon was an obscenity.

It is well-known that Emanuel was a civilian volunteer for Israel during the first Gulf War, at which his time his job was to "rust-proof brakes," or so we are told. His history gets odder:

…immediately upon his return from his desert sojourn, Emanuel at once became a major figure in the Clinton campaign "who wowed the team from the start, opening a spigot on needed campaign funds."(3) How did he do that after being isolated overseas, and with no experience in national politics?

After his White House stint, Emanuel worked for Wall Street financier Bruce Wasserstein, where he made quite a pile very quickly — over $18 million in two-and-a-half years.

Next Emanuel won a seat in Congress in 2002, and by 2006 he was chair of the DCCC. Another near miraculous rise.

In a previous post, I mentioned that the Israelis often say "He had a horse" when someone like Emanuel wows the world with a "near miraculous" rise. If you have a horse, you have a Powerful Someone-Or-Other secretly pulling for you. There’s a lot of horsepower behind Rahm Emanuel — and I don’t think the stable is painted red, white and blue.

Congressional wires. Rahm has remarkable knowledge of, and sway over, Congress. That’s the main reason why so many inside-the-beltway types have applauded Obama’s choice: With Rahm at the helm, the usual White House/Capitol Hill tensions should be kept to a minimum.

But how did Emanuel achieve this august position?

I’m reminded of a couple of earlier posts (here, for example) which looked into the strange tale of Foxcom and Jack Abramoff. Forgive a bit of self-quotation:

But you may recall that another Abramoff partner — congressman Bob Ney, chairman of the House Administration Committee — arranged for an Israeli communications firm called Foxcom to install communications equipment (which, in this case, basically means wireless connections) in the Capitol building. Ney seems to have done so at the bidding of Abramoff, who received the usual substantial lobbying fee.

By applying a liberal dose of grease, Foxcom managed to edge out another firm whose security arrangements had been cleared by the FBI and the NSA. For some reason, the Israeli company really, really wanted to set up the wireless network used by your congressfolk.

Bottom line: Whatever else he may be, Abramoff is one of those Israel-ueber-alles types. Seems to me that he went out of his way to curry favor with Ney and Savafian, both of whom were awfully well-positioned to help anyone who wanted to "listen in" on both Capitol Hill and the White House.

Am I speculating? Yeah. Is my speculation outside the limits of possibility or probability? Judge for yourself.

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi thus weighed in on the Foxcom contract:

Telecommunications security experts note that equipment that can be used to enhance or improve a signal can also be used to redirect the phone conversation to another location for recording and analysis. The possibility that someone in the Israeli Embassy might be listening to congressmen’s private phone conversations is intriguing to say the least.

Let me quickly state that I have found no hard evidence that Foxcom is a Mossad front. But if someone with Giraldi’s background considers the idea possible or even likely, then who am I to disagree?

Similarly, I’ve seen nothing (aside from a few crankish postings on deep-dish conspiracy sites) linking Emanuel to either Foxcom or Abramoff. A shared loyalty to Israel may offer the only linkage necessary. If private congressional communications are being directed to Emanuel, he would indeed hold great sway over Capitol Hill.

Emanuel Will Further American Imperialism

Diagoras

11-7-8

With the selection of Rahm Emanuel as Chief of Staff, Barack Obama pays back a critical supporter and constituency and signifies that his administration will not change from Bush in foreign policy except in certain minor ways. Will Obama reduce military expenditures? Will he reduce the number and scope of missions to which we are obligated? The bottom line is this-- for over 100 years we've used our military to support our standard of living... mainly for the rich, but for all of us, rich and poor. We've crushed resistance in the Americas to our agricultural interests, and we've done the same in the Middle East for our energy interests I'll keep this short. It doesn't matter if we can keep up this American imperial system. We can, until enough countries refuse to denominate their oil transactions in USA dollars. The more intelligent members of our community will have to correct my mistakes. Rahm Emanuel will not just be the gatekeeper, he'll be the one of the first five to have President Obama's ear. Emanuel's record is one of imperialism and gathering votes without regard for morality. He is a very capable practitioner of realpolitik. Will Rahm Emanuel help continue and expand our empire? He will. He already has. http://diagoras.dailykos.com/

Emanuel: From Clinton to Obama

The Associated Press

November 7, 2008

Rahm Emanuel, who turns 49 this month, grew up in the upscale Chicago suburb of Wilmette, son of an Israeli physician who moved to the U.S.

His brother Ari is a Hollywood agent and the inspiration for Ari Gold, the Type A superagent on the HBO series Entourage.

Emanuel has been cited as an inspiration for presidential aide Josh Lyman on the drama The West Wing.

His start in politics came after college, when he worked for Paul Simon's 1984 Senate campaign and Richard Daley's run for Chicago mayor in 1989.

Then he went to work for a little-known Arkansas governor who wanted to be president.

He made his strongest mark under Clinton by pressing the centrist portions of the president's agenda, including welfare reform, tough-on-crime measures and the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Midway through Clinton's second term, Emanuel left for Chicago to work in investment banking. The firm he joined was soon sold, and Emanuel made millions, giving him the financial security to get back into politics.

Clinton appointed Emanuel to mortgage giant Freddie Mac's board, a post that paid him at least $292,774 in director's fees, according to a financial-disclosure report Emanuel filed in 2002 when he ran for Congress. Emanuel served on the board when Freddie Mac misstated its earnings by $5 billion for 2000-02.

He was vice chairman of the Chicago Housing Authority and also served on the boards of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, beautyjungle.com and Slim-Fast, whose founder, S. Daniel Abraham, is a major Democratic donor.

WHO OWNS OBAMA?

OBAMA HAS SO MANY MASTERS that he’ll be tap dancing 24 hours a day. His faithful cultists, kool-aid drinkers, entitlement junkies, and clueless supporters will be first to be stabbed…and last to realize it.

Zionist Jews own Obama, his ‘administration,’ and essentially control America via its monetary system, its professions, its education system, its media culture, and every other crucial piece of America’s societal infrastructure. If an incumbent president doesn’t play ball with the Zionist Jews, his political career is over.

And with “Rahmbo” Emanuel literally running the Obama White House, Mossad HQ will enjoy an unprecedented direct flow of America’s highest level national security information…and consequently, even MORE control over US policies.

America voted in ‘Change’ alright. The Barky dog and pony show must have the Jews laughing their Zionist butts off from NY to Tel Aviv to London.

Let’s take a look at Obama’s faithful cultists:

The Downtrodden Blacks: American blacks gave Obama a victory. Obama’s plans for Affirmative Action, National Health Care, and Zero to Five early care, held out “change” to the blacks. But with the economic down-turn & 2 wars to deal with, blacks may have to wait for a “change” to come about. View Articles Here & Here.

The Impressionable Youth: American youth turned out in droves to vote for Obama. The youth were enamored of Obama’s “Hope” campaign. But many now believe that the youth will have their “hopes” dashed. View Articles Here & Here.

The Anti War Left: American peaceniks really believe that Obama is a “dove.” But Antiwar.com finally nailed Barky as a “hawk.” View Article Here.

ENTER RAHM ‘ISRAEL’ EMANUEL

THE ZIONIST JEW BY THE NAME of Rahm Israel Emanuel officially accepted his appointment by Obama as Chief of Staff on November 6 2008. The Israeli press & media were beside themselves with applause and cheers.

Rahm Emanuel is a former investment banker who made millions on Wall Street. Emanuel’s sponsor is the Zionist Jew, Bruce Wasserstein, who is now the head of Lazard Banking.

Rahm Israel Emanuel is the son of an Israeli physician who was a gun runner for the Irgun, an Israeli terrorist group that murdered Arab civilians in Palestine between 1931 and 1948. Upon his son’s appointment as Obama’s Chief of Staff, Dr. Benjamin Emanuel (”Auerbach” was his original surname) had some choice slanderous words for the Arabs:

“Obviously my son will influence the president to be pro-Israel. Why wouldn’t he be? What is he, an Arab? He’s not going to clean the floors of the White House.” View Article Here.

Russian President Dimitry Medvedev, in sharp contrast, proffered a challenge to Obama upon his election & upcoming administration:

“Mechanisms must be created to block mistaken, egotistical and dangerous decisions of certain members of the international community.” View Article Here.

WHAT ABOUT BRZEZINSKI?

WITH THE FORMATION of an Obama administration, beginning with Obama’s pick of Rahm Emanuel as Chief of Staff, some are saying that Obama is “distancing” himself from the Pro-Palestinian Zbigniew Brzezinski.

But only 2 weeks before election day, Brzezinski affirmed his endorsement of Obama:

“Obama is a transformative figure. Look at the disastrous foreign policy decisions by the Bush administration. Give me Obama’s wisdom any day.” View Article Here.

Obama’s wisdom? No - slave-masters‘ wisdom. But who will ultimately own Obama? Brzezinkski or the Zionist Jews?

Methinks That Barky Will Have At Least 2 Sets Of Tap Dancing Shoes On Hand…
___________________________________

For More See: Obama ‘Lies’ For His Wall Street Handlers Click Here

And: Obama’s Secret Jewish Advisers Click Here

And: The Hand Pulling Obama’s Biggest Strings Click Here

And: Obama’s ‘Zionist’ Chief Of Staff Click Here

And: Brzezinski, Obama, & Their Zionist Bankers Click Here

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Obama's chief of staff choice favors compulsory universal service

Rep. Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, President-Elect Barack Obama's choice for chief of staff in his incoming administration, is co-author of a book, The Plan: Big Ideas for America, that calls for, among other things, compulsory service for all Americans ages 18 to 25. The following excerpt is from pages 61-62 of the 2006 book:

It's time for a real Patriot Act that brings out the patriot in all of us. We propose universal civilian service for every young American. Under this plan, All Americans between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five will be asked to serve their country by going through three months of basic training, civil defense preparation and community service. ...

Here's how it would work. Young people will know that between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five, the nation will enlist them for three months of civilian service. They'll be asked to report for three months of basic civil defense training in their state or community, where they will learn what to do in the event of biochemical, nuclear or conventional attack; how to assist others in an evacuation; how to respond when a levee breaks or we're hit by a natural disaster. These young people will be available to address their communities' most pressing needs.

Emanuel and co-author Bruce Reed insist "this is not a draft," but go on to write of young men and women, "the nation will enlist them for three months of civilian service." They also warn, "[s]ome Republicans will squeal about individual freedom," ruling out any likelihood that they would let people opt out of universal citizen service.

As chief of staff, Emanuel will not be in a position to directly introduce public policy, but his enthusiasm for compulsory service, combined with Barack Obama's own plan to require high school students to perform 50 hours of government-approved service, suggest an unfortunate direction for the new administration.

Emanuel’s father: His son will not “clean the floors of the White House” like an Arab

The Jerusalem Post
November 7, 2008

Illinois Congressman Rahm Emanuel, a key member of the Democratic leadership in the House of Representatives, has accepted President-elect Barack Obama’s call to serve him as chief of staff, party officials said on Thursday.

Obama barely had time to savor his victory before he began filling out his new administration and getting a sobering look at some of the daunting problems he will inherit when he takes office in just 10 weeks.

He got a quick start with the transition Wednesday, calling on Emanuel, a fellow Illinois politician, to serve as White House chief of staff.

Emanuel, who served in the Clinton White House, has Israeli family and spent significant amounts of time in Israel. He now serves as the fourth-highest member of the House of Representatives, is known as a skilled political operator who helped engineer the gains the Democrats made in Congress in 2006.

In an interview with Ma’ariv, Emanuel’s father, Dr. Benjamin Emanuel, said he was convinced that his son’s appointment would be good for Israel. "Obviously he will influence the president to be pro-Israel," he was quoted as saying. "Why wouldn’t he be? What is he, an Arab? He’s not going to clean the floors of the White House."

The Ma’ariv article also quoted Dr. Emanuel as saying that his son spends most summers visiting in Tel Aviv, and that he speaks Hebrew, but not fluently.

Obama’s staff said he would address the media by the end of the week, but Cabinet announcements were not planned that soon.

In offering the post of White House chief of staff to Emanuel, Obama turned to a fellow Chicago politician with a far different style from his own, a man known for his bluntness as well as his single-minded determination.

Emanuel maintained neutrality during the long primary battle between Obama and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, not surprising given his long-standing ties to the former first lady and his Illinois connections with Obama.

With hundreds of jobs to fill before his January 20 inauguration, Obama and his transition team confronted a formidable task complicated by his anti-lobbyist campaign rhetoric.

The official campaign Website said no political appointees would be permitted to work on "regulations or contracts directly and substantially related to their prior employer for two years. And no political appointee will be able to lobby the executive branch after leaving government service during the remainder of the administration."

Because they often have prior experience in government or politics, lobbyists have routinely filled out the list of potential appointees for past presidents of both parties.

The day after the election there already was jockeying for Cabinet appointments.

Several Democrats said Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, who won a new six-year term on Tuesday, was angling for secretary of state. They spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they were not authorized to discuss any private conversations.

Kerry’s spokeswoman, Brigid O’Rourke, disputed the reports.

In light of the financial crisis, Obama is expected to quickly name members of his economic team. Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers, who served in the Clinton administration, and Timothy Geithner, president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank, are among the names being mentioned for Treasury secretary.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has pledged to work with Obama to ensure a smooth transition. He has already set up desks and phone lines at the department where Obama’s incoming Treasury team can work between now and the inauguration.

Obama’s transition team is headed by John Podesta, who served as chief of staff under former President Bill Clinton; Pete Rouse, who has been Obama’s chief of staff in the Senate, and Valerie Jarrett, a friend of the president-elect and campaign adviser.

Several Democrats described a sprawling operation well under way. Officials had kept deliberations under wraps to avoid the appearance of overconfidence before the election.

They said the group was stocked with longtime associates of Obama, as well as veterans of Clinton’s White House.

As president-elect, Obama begins receiving highly classified briefings from top intelligence officials Thursday.

Already, Russia was threatening to put missiles alongside US-ally Poland if US President George W. Bush’s plan for a missile defense shield in Europe is not repealed. In Afghanistan, US-backed President Hamid Karzai demanded that Obama "put an end to civilian casualties" by changing US tactics to avoid airstrikes in the hunt for terrorists.

IS RAHM EMANUEL A SECURITY RISK?

Rahm Emanuel's background is well-known. His father was a member of the Israeli Irgun, which was a violent underground movement against the British in Palestine. Rahm has deep ties to Israel and served as a civilian volunteer in the IDF in 1991. That, in and of itself, doesn't make him a security risk. What is disturbing, though, is that the FBI has, according to Wayne Madsen, a Counterintelligence file on him for his past connections with Mossad, and that this is what forced him out of the Clinton White House in 1998.

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Is this far-fetched, that Rahm Emanuel may have active links to the Israeli Intelligence Service, Mossad? Not according to Wayne Madsen. We certainly should not be surprised that Mossad wants to penetrate the White House, whether it is through Emanuel or someone else. Apparently they may have done so in the past to great advantage. To say the least, the FBI must be allowed to do a full background check on everyone, including Emanuel. No free passes on such a critical issue, the security of the President.

This is an excerpt from the Nov 6 Wayne Madsen Report, which you will have to subscribe to at: http://www.waynemadsenreport.com/ to read the entire article:

November 6, 2008 -- Obama faced with security problem at outset of transition process

WMR has learned from informed U.S. intelligence sources that prospective Barack Obama White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has an active FBI counter-intelligence file maintained on him. Emanuel's rise to the Chief of Staff position may pose a significant security problem for President-elect Obama if the FBI insists on conducting the full background security investigation normally required for senior White House officials.

Questions about Emanuel's links to the Israeli intelligence service, the Mossad, were allegedly so great that President Bill Clinton was forced to dismiss Emanuel from the White House staff in 1998............

Student of history, religion, exoteric and esoteric, the Humanities in general and advocate for peace, justice and the unity of humankind, not through force, but through self-realization and mutual respect. I have also just come out with my first book, a combination of poetry, photography and essays entitled "Post Katrina Blues", my reflections on the Gulf Coast and New Orleans two years after Katrina struck, published by San Francisco Bay Press.