On the eve of Mexico's presidential elections, a dialectic of militant protest and ugly repression is escalating throughout the country's southern and central regions—although you'd never know it by reading the gringo press. Note the multi-issue nature of this protest in the central-eastern state of Hidalgo, and the mixture of local and national demands. Also note that, despite the supposed transition to "democracy," things are as murky as ever, with the authorities apparently grooming proxy provocateur forces to justify repression. From APRO, June 27 via Chiapas95 (our translation, links added):

From the Mexican news agency APRO, June 27, via Chiapas95 (our translation):

Toluca- The first penal judge based in Tenang del Valle formally brought charges against 13 of the 21 police detained by the Mexican [state] prosecutor in the Atenco case.

With the world's eyes elsewhere, the still-unresolved status of Kosova is a major crisis just waiting to erupt. Kostunica delivered this speech outside a 14th-century monastery in the town of Gracanica rather than at the Plain of Blackbirds, the site of the famous Battle of Kosovo. But the allusions are obvious to Slobodan Milosevic's notorious June 28, 1989 speech at the Plain of Blackbirds which signaled the start of his long camapign against the province's Alabanian majority and also marked the beginning of Yugoslavia's self-destruction. It is amazing that the media accounts are not picking up on this. From AP, June 29:

How interesting. The Supremes rule that Congress did not give Bush a "blank check" to tear up the Geneva Conventions when it voted to approve military action after 9-11. Now, Bush uses precisely the same argument to justify the program of warrantless surveillance. Will the courts strike that down as well? Has the revolt of the judiciary finally begun? From the New York Times, June 29 (links added):

Greg Palast risks jeopardizing his wild popularity among the leftoid legions by raining on their increasingly beloved "Jewish Conspiracy" theory. Bashing this bosh is long overdue, but we sure wish Palast had done a better job of it. His arguments here are so weak and garbled that they can be easily shot down by the Judeophobes. They constitute a strawman which actually renders a disservice to the cause of opposing Jewish scapegoating.

More sacrifices for the American way of life. From Newsday, June 27:

Brooklyn bike rider killed on Houston Street

For the third time in 13 months, a bike rider was killed yesterday on Houston Street, leading one advocate to label it Manhattan's "boulevard of death."

Israeli tanks and troops have entered southern Gaza after warplanes attacked three bridges and knocked out electricity to the coastal strip—in response to the capture of a young Israeli soldier by Palestinian militants. (AP, June 28) But mainstream reports are missing some vital context. A letter printed in the Toronto Globe and Mail, June 27:

A taped message purported to be from fugitive Taliban leader Mullah Omar was broadcast on Geo TV, a commercial station in Pakistan June 25. The voice on the tape issued a challenge to the Afghan government and foreign troops fighting insurgents in the country, saying "They cannot solve the issue of Afghanistan based on their wisdom and thinking." Afghanistan is a Muslim country where believers are in a majority and outsiders will never be able to impose their ideology, the statement said. "The rulers of Kabul will not be able to run the country with the wisdom of others, and God willing they will be destroyed," the tape said. Taunting President Hamid Karzai, the voice said: "If today the American military abandons you, you have no standing. Russia's military also came to Afghanistan — remember its fate." (NYT, June 26)