Democracy Now! | Headlines for January 10, 2008

Democracy Now! | Headlines for January 10, 2008

Bush Warns Iran on Naval Dispute

Meanwhile President Bush also continued to criticize Iran for a naval confrontation between Iranian and U.S. boats this week.

President Bush: “Our ships were moving along very peacefully off the Iranian border, in territorial waters–international waters, and Iranian boats came out and were very provocative. And it was a dangerous gesture on their part. We have made it clear, publicly, and they know our position–and that is there will be serious consequences if they attack our ships, pure and simple."

Iran has accused the U.S. of faking video footage showing Iranian speedboats approaching the U.S. warships.

Ex-CIA Official Demands Immunity for Videotape Testimony

The former CIA official who ordered the destruction of videotapes documenting prisoner interrogations has reportedly said he won’t testify before Congress without a grant of immunity. Jose Rodriguez was head of the CIA’s clandestine service when he ordered the tapes’ destruction in November 2005. He was subpoenaed last month.

NSA: “No Attack Happened” in Gulf of Tonkin

Newly declassified documents have provided more evidence the Johnson administration faked the Gulf of Tonkin incident to escalate the Vietnam War. The alleged 1964 attack on U.S. warships by North Vietnamese was used as a pretext to increase bombing and troop deployments in Vietnam. But a report from the National Security Agency concludes: “no attack happened that night.”

Democracy Now! | Shooting Back: The Israeli Human Rights Group B'Tselem Gives Palestinians Video Cameras to Document Life Under Occupation.

Democracy Now! | Shooting Back: The Israeli Human Rights Group B'Tselem Gives Palestinians Video Cameras to Document Life Under Occupation.

rthe whole article is important -- read it -- but this section is interesting here because it's a positive (rather than disparaging) example of Susan Sontag's equation of the camera with a gun.

" AMY GOODMAN: And the title of this project, why did you choose “Shooting Back”?

OREN YAKOBOVICH: Because it’s shooting back. It’s, first of all, kind of a weapon that a Palestinian has against human rights violation. Of course, I would prefer that people will have cameras and not guns. So it’s—and then they are shooting back.

AMY GOODMAN: And what, ultimately, do you hope to achieve?

OREN YAKOBOVICH: First of all, I have to say that we’re spreading more and more cameras all over the West Bank. In every place when there is a tension and [inaudible], we give them cameras. This is very important. And I know that it’s protecting the Palestinians. There are places that we know, when the Palestinian is taking out the camera, the settlers will run away, will escape, happening a lot in south of the West Bank.

It’s giving power. You know, this word is called “empowerment.” I don’t like this word so much, but I will use it. It’s the children and the kids are filming. It’s helping to mobilize communities. In Hebron, where the community was destroyed, suddenly they’re filming and they have some kind of an interest in seeing the videos, talking about it. And what I hope to achieve, that everything is going to be filmed, at least in the—there’s going to be a feeling that everything is being filmed, nothing is being done in the dark. And this what B’Tselem was basically established for, to bring light to places that are in the dark so violation will not occur."