Canada

I'm sure you've seen it ... the scary commercial done by the Canadian who claims she would have died if she hadn't come to the U.S. for treatment of a brain tumor? Well, there's more (and less) to the story. Thought y'all might be interested in reading the real reality of the sitchyashun north of the 49th parallel ...

Turns out this dear woman didn't have a malignant tumor at all. She had a benign cyst that had likely been where it was since birth. Click on the link above to read the rest of the story ...

Canada will not renew anti-terror legislation that stemmed from the hysteria following the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US. The vote came after the Canadian Supreme Court struck down one of the provisions, said BBC News:

"On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled that a system allowing the government to indefinitely detain foreign-born terror suspects or deport them violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms."

Apparently, Canadians feel a lot safer and calmer now. There have been no attacks on Canada. Why was the US targeted, any way? Why do the terrorists hate us, and not Canada?

This week, Amy Goodman interviewed former CIA consultant, Chalmers Johnson, on Democracy Now!. You can hear/watch/read this eye-opener HERE. Johnson is the author of the Blowback trilogy, and he talked with Goodman about his latest in the series, Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic. Among his not unexpected, but nonetheless startling to hear confirmed, revelations:

Every president, when he takes office, is told about his secret, private army, the CIA, which he can use for assassinations, destabilization of foreign economies and governments, or for any purpose he chooses, with impunity, even if those actions are illegal. Since the agency was formed in 1947, no president has declined to use the CIA for clandestine warfare. These operations are kept secret from the American people. When there is retaliation ("blowback") for these covert operations, the American people don't see the connection.