Kidnapping workers is the latest tactic of the Iraqi insurgents that some on the supposed left persist in glorfying as the "resistance." On June 25, unidentified gunmen kidnapped 16 employees of a technology institute in Taji, north of Baghdad. Taji was also the site of a kidnapping on June 21 when 64 workers of the Nasr General Company for Heavy Mechanical Industries were abducted by gunmen. Later, 34 of the workers were released, while the corpses of seven others were found. The fate and whereabouts of the remaining 23 missing workers remained uncertain. (DPA, June 25) Days earlier in Baghdad, gunmen stormed a bakery and kidnapped 10 workers. Iraqi police found nine bodies dumped in various parts of the city, all shot in the head with six of them showing signs of torture. Dumped bodies are discovered in the capital almost every day, and they are linked to sectarian violence. (CNN, June 18)

Here is the proof that the United States is not totalitarian state. Under totalitarianism, the government spies and collects data on its own citizens, without the formalities of warrants or court orders. In the United States, in contrast, these functions are left to the private sector. From AP, June 20:

WASHINGTON - Numerous federal and local law enforcement agencies have bypassed subpoenas and warrants designed to protect civil liberties and gathered Americans' personal telephone records from private-sector data brokers.

More scapegoats are hung out to dry, this time in relation to the Hamdania case. We're reminded of the famous line from Apocalypse Now: "Charging a man with murder in this place was like handing out speeding tickets at the Indy 500." One can't help but feel sorry for the families of these kids who, whatever atrocities they committed, were in way over their heads. From AP, June 22:

No "state of emergency," eh? Just like there's no civil war. These distinctions appear to be rather semantic. From Al-Arab, June 23:

Iraq's government will impose a curfew in Baghdad on Friday, from 2 p.m. (10:00 GMT) until 6 a.m.(02:00GMT) on Saturday, banning the movement of people and vehicles, state television reported.

The Japanese constitution—ironically imposed at US behest after World War II—states that "land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained." Now Japanese warships participate in US military maneuvers in the Pacific. From AFP, June 22, via Spacewar:

A US warship successfully shot down a target missile warhead over the Pacific Thursday in a test of a sea-based missile defense system, the US military said. A Japanese destroyer performed surveillance and tracking exercises during the test, marking the first time any US ally has taken part in a US missile defense intercept test, the US Missile Defense Agency said.

From AFP, June 7 via Spacewar:

A new world war involving nuclear weapons may have already begun, Malaysia's former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad said Wednesday, warning that an attack on Iran would be disastrous.

Having heretofore run only a photo with a caption, the New York Times today finally takes note of the labor strife and deadly repression in Oaxaca (albeit on page 6). Isn't it interesting, though, that rare accounts in the mainstream gringo press of the growing unrest in Mexico either mention the strike in Oaxaca or the Zapatista tour—but almost never both. Usually, the coverage of the Zapatitas implies (or baldly states) that they are forgotten and irrelevant. Also generally forgotten by the gringo press is the Atenco crisis, another focus of national attention which has radically eroded the state's credibility. In the run-up to next month's presidential race, the Zapatistas are arguably closer than ever to acheiving their long goal of a national civil revolutionary movement. But you'd never know it by reading norteamericano newspapers.

From Mexico's El Universal, June 21, via Chiapas95:

Arrest warrants issued for 23 officers

A top State of Mexico judge issued arrest warrants for 23 police officers who stand accused of abuse and use of excessive force during unrest in San Salvador Atenco last month.