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Tapes describe U.S. servicemen killing for sport in Afghanistan
Atlanta, Georgia (CNN) - Tapes obtained by CNN of interrogations of a group of U.S. servicemen charged with unprovoked killings of Afghan civilians describe gruesome scenes of cold-blooded murder.
"So we met this guy by his compound, so Gibbs walked him out, set him in place, was like standing here," says Cpl. Jeremy Morlock, detailing how, on patrol earlier this year and under the command of his sergeant, Calvin R. Gibbs, he and others took an Afghan man from his home and killed him.
"So, he was fully cooperating?" the military investigator asks on the tapes in a May 2010 interview.
"Yeah," Morlock responds.
Investigator: "Was he armed?"
Morlock: "No, not that we were aware of."
Investigator: "So, you pulled him out of his place?"
Morlock: "I don't think he was inside. He was by his little hut area ... and Gibbs sent in a couple of people."
Investigator: "Where did they stand him, next to a wall?"
Morlock: "Yeah, he was kinda next to a wall ... where Gibbs could get behind a wall when the grenade went off. And then he kind of placed me and [Spc. Adam] Winfield off over here so we had a clean line of sight for this guy and, you know, he pulled out one of his grenades, an American grenade, popped it, throws the grenade and tells me and Winfield, 'Alright, wax this guy. Kill this guy, kill this guy.'"
Investigator: "Did you see him present any weapons? Was he aggressive toward you at all?"
Morlock: "No, not at all. Nothing, he wasn't a threat." FULL STORY
Emanuel all but certain to run for Chicago mayor, sources say
(CNN) – Three Democratic sources close to Rahm Emanuel tell CNN that the White House chief of staff informed senior colleagues he is all but certain to run for mayor of Chicago, and will leave the White House to take the final exploratory steps.
Close associates are already building a campaign team according to sources.
An announcement by Emanuel is expected to be scheduled for Friday, sources said.
One of the sources, a prominent Democrat close to the White House chief of staff, told CNN, "We see nothing that will stop a run. But you don't announce a campaign for mayor of Chicago in Washington, D.C. You leave and go home and finish your business there."
The second source said Democratic pollster Stanley Greenberg's research of a possible mayoral run for Emanuel was "very positive. He has some obvious things to deal with, but it was very encouraging."
Asked what the potential issues were, the source said "nothing you wouldn't expect. Just reminding people Chicago always was before Washington."
Assuming there is no hitch – and none is expected – longtime Obama adviser Pete Rouse is in line to be tapped as interim chief of staff, two of the sources said.
All of the sources spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the White House personnel turnover and the campaign planning.
Americans' religious IQ lacking
Odds are that you know Mother Teresa was Catholic, but what religion is the Dalai Lama?
How about Maimonides?
And – no Googling – what's the first book of the Bible? How about the first four books of the New Testament?
Americans who can answer all of those questions are relatively rare, a huge new study has found.
In fact, although the United States is one of the most religious developed countries in the world, most Americans scored 50 percent or less on a quiz measuring knowledge of the Bible, world religions and what the Constitution says about religion in public life.
The survey is full of surprising findings.
For example, it's not evangelicals or Catholics who did best – it's atheists and agnostics.
It's not Bible-belt Southerners who scored highest – they came at the bottom. FULL STORY
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Neve knewhe was a teacher. Big Big respect for him. Wish I could be mor like him 🙂
So Barack Obama is going to UW-Madison today to hold a rally. I assume he is not campaigning for Republican candidates as well as Democratic candidates. So, who is paying for this election campaign rally? Who is footing the bill for Air Force One? The security? The traffic disruptions? I certainly hope this event is not having one dime of taxpayer money being used for it (including the rock concert before hand to draw the kids), since it is a Democratic campaign rally.
More proof that the 'know nothing' society is ascending in the US led by the flock of the faithful. No surprise here since too much knowledge is dangerous to unquestioning conviction and faith.
That 'everyone agrees' with extending obamacare benefits to military families' children but just can't get around to doing it while the TeaParty and GOP pledge to get rid of Obamacare is more of the same – totally dysfunctional, totally selfish and right in line with 'Know nothing, No to everything!"
Regarding the religious IQ piece... the one gentleman suggested that athiests and agnostics know more about religion because they have to defend their position. One may also suggest that the more one learns about religion the less one believes in it.
Signed,
A happy athiest
Hello And Good Morning John And Kira I Love American Morning And Watch Every Single Day! Iam Deeply Disturbed By The Killing Of Afghan Civilians Why Did This Happen, What Did This Afghan Man Do? All People Involved In The Killing Of This Afghan Man Should Be Sent To Jail Immediatly And Stripped Of All Military Rights And Honors! Also, Being From Illinois (Not Chicago But 3 Hrs From Chicago) Iam In Full Support Of Rahm Emmanuel Running For Mayor, Its About Time Chicago Get A Mayor Where Someone Is Actually Going To Tackle The Issues And Clean Up The Streets Of Chicago And I Feel In My Opinion Rahm Emmanuel Would Be Best To Fill The Job Of Mayor Of Chicago, I Support You To The Fullest Mr Emmanuel! When It Comes To Religion Your Right John And Kira I Don't Anything About Other Religions Except Christianity, I Know That Jesus Christ Is The Son Of God The Father And It Is The Duty Of All Christians To Except Jesus Christ As There Lord And Savior!
Scott Stodden (Freeport,Illinois)
Number 1 Fan Of American Morning!
I enjoyed the discussion on UFO's. John Roberts was skeptical, remarking that there was a great distance to any inhabitable planet. Kiran said that, perhaps they have faster ships.
With crop circles and various sightings over the years, it would seem that there is real evidence of an alien presence or influence within our planet's history.
Who built the pyramids? How were large stones moved in the building of ancient edifices? Did super-intelligent beings(aliens) have a hand?
I kind of think that maybe they did!
The first book of the bible? Genesis, written by Moses, who wrote the first five books of the bible.
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are the first four books of the new testament, referred to as the gospels.
I am a Christian, and even though I don't have all the answers, these were pretty easy. CNN, do you have any other easy questions?
If American servicemen have committed murder of civilians in Afghanistan they should be tried for murder and if they are convicted they should suffer the penalty for that crime. If America fails to deal with this problem as they would prosecute any one charged with murder it will show the world that America practices double standards once again. It will do more harm to the country than good by not prosecuting this case. America has to set an example for the countries that it is "Americanizing".