Slave labor used to contruct U.S. Embassy In Baghdad.
During testimony before the House Oversight Committee today, Rory Mayberry, a former subcontract employee of the firm responsible for the construction of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, said he believes that at least 52 Filipino nationals had been kidnapped to work on the embassy project. He testified:
Mr. Chairman, when the airplane took off and the captain announced that we were heading to Baghdad, all you-know-what broke out on the airplane. The men started shouting, it wasn’t until the security guy working for First Kuwaiti waved an MP5 in the air that the men settled down. They realized that they had no other choice but to go to Baghdad. Let me spell it out clearly: I believe these men were kidnapped by First Kuwaiti to work at the US Embassy… I’ve read the State Department Inspector General’s report on the construction of the embassy. Mr. Chairman, it’s not worth the paper it’s printed on. This is a cover-up and I’m glad that I’ve had the opportunity to set the record straight.
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It was the only way to spread democracy through the Middle East.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:32 pmComment by Egreggious — July 26, 2007 @ 2:32 pm
Denying liberty to some to provide it to others?
July 26th, 2007 at 2:35 pmSo, how do you think they are going to smear this guy? I’m betting they’re going to say he has a history of depression and a problem with authority. Also, he once gave $5 to a Democrat running for mayor in 1977, so his partisanship caused Bush Derangement Syndrome.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:35 pmyikes
July 26th, 2007 at 2:36 pmHey well the bible mentions slavery is okay, as long as they aren’t from neighboring states.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:36 pmA cover up in the Bush Abomination? Say it ain’t so.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:36 pmYou have got to be fu*king kidding me.
Didn’t the Nazis use slave labor?
July 26th, 2007 at 2:37 pmComment by pete — July 26, 2007 @ 2:35 pm
Sorry, pete. I forgot to turn /sarcasm/ on.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:37 pmBill O’Reilly said they couldn’t have left Iraq any time they wanted to.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:37 pmUH OH!!!!!!
July 26th, 2007 at 2:37 pmOh…I meant ‘could have’
July 26th, 2007 at 2:37 pmIf this is true…
Rory Mayberry=Patriot!!!
July 26th, 2007 at 2:38 pmThe important question here is how is this Clinton’s fault?
July 26th, 2007 at 2:39 pmShanghai’d workers???
It is utterly unbelievable. Is there any, just any tiny wee bit of oversight to what is done with your money and how?? This is your taxes that buy slaves. You might want to change dollars to doubloons.
head shaking…
July 26th, 2007 at 2:39 pmMuch of what goes on in Iraq involves some type of cover up.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:39 pmSo, how do you think they are going to smear this guy? I’m betting they’re going to say he has a history of depression and a problem with authority. Also, he once gave $5 to a Democrat running for mayor in 1977, so his partisanship caused Bush Derangement Syndrome.
Comment by coda — July 26, 2007 @ 2:35 pm
Flaco? m12? r? Mr. P? Come on, boys, here’s your talking points for you, right here.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:39 pmFreedom is on the Forced March.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:40 pmIT HAPPENED AGAIN!
Everytime I think I can’t be surprised by what f-ups we are at re-buildinging Iraq, something comes along that just blows me away.
We are using SLAVE LABOR IN IRAQ? wow… just … wow
July 26th, 2007 at 2:41 pmEgreggious, yes I’d like to hear the trolls spin that one….
head still shaking vigorously…
July 26th, 2007 at 2:41 pmWow. Our government gets seedier and seedier every day.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:41 pmWow…I’m at a loss.
Just when I thought my opinion of the Bush Administration and their criminal accomplices could not possibly get any lower, we find out they actually re-instituted slavery!
It’s clear that the twenty percenters who support this regime really do “hate us for our freedoms.”
July 26th, 2007 at 2:42 pmnow to be serious. This was written about several weeks ago and didn’t get much more than a blip on the radar screen. I hope it gets the attention it deserves.
If memory serves me it was a republican that went to great lengths to make sure the US was not involved with slavery. This is just another black mark on the worst President ever.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:42 pmYou are either for America and the Constitution or you are for George W. Bush and his anti-American lackeys.
It is that simple.
-GSD
July 26th, 2007 at 2:42 pmOMG! That’s terrible!
July 26th, 2007 at 2:42 pmWho knew that construction of the U.S. Embassy in Iraq would be like the construction of the pyramids? Geez — I’m hoping (idealist that I am) that THIS falls outside the somewhat loose morality limits of our administration and there will be a stop put to it.
If not, then it’s confirmed there ARE no morality limits in this administration and nothing is too sordid or shameful when it comes to achieving their objectives.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:45 pmJust precious…
July 26th, 2007 at 2:46 pmAnd what will be done about it? Nothing of course. The embassy is built (the only thing that got built on time and under cost. Now we know why) and the liberal media has more important things to talk about. Like what’s wrong with that Lindsay Lohan girl?
The proper thing to do would be to impeach the Bushies and as punishment stick a sledgehammer in their hands and tell them to dismantle their beloved embassy.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:46 pmWho was flying that plane, Jack Sparrow??
July 26th, 2007 at 2:46 pmIsn’t the only real question here what the senators were wearing when they were questioning this guy?
July 26th, 2007 at 2:47 pmTrolls like slavery for other people. Slavery is good.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:48 pmSubcontractor? And who was General Contractor? Those are the boys who should appear before the Committee. Taxpayer dollars are being used; now their behavior has become criminal. This is House Oversight–would it move to another committee for criminal investigation? Our lame duck Senator Coleman used head the Special Investigations Committee and he preferred to investigate the UN rather than Bush’s friends in Provisional Authority. I fear the worst about the Repubs; they didn’t have to cover up–they simply directed attention somewhere else.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:48 pmWe truly deserve the hatred of the world.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:50 pmIsn’t this old news???
July 26th, 2007 at 2:50 pmFilipino’s will do the work American’s won’t………at the end of a gun barrel.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:53 pmKuwait is one of our “allies” in the region and they’re using slave labor. Saudi Arabia is another one of our “allies” in the region and 45 to 50% of al Qaeda terrorists in Iraq are from there. Pakistan is another one of our “allies” and Osama bin Laden has been allowed to run free there. Musharif has granted AQ Khan a pardon and he has free run in the country as well.
It’s far past time for Americans to question whether the Bush administration and it’s neocon cronies really want peace or are they actively seeking chaos.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:53 pmAren’t you an idiot for not reading the fu*king story beyond the headline?
July 26th, 2007 at 2:55 pmand what would you bet that First Kuwaiti is a subsidiary of Halliburton?
July 26th, 2007 at 2:56 pmSlave labor used to contruct U.S. Embassy In Baghdad.
Other than US taxpayers?
/Sarcasm (?) off
July 26th, 2007 at 2:58 pmI can understand Shawns question. We’ve heard so much unbelievable stuff during the last months, I don’t wonder some are losing track, occasionally a story sounds like deja vu to me as well.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:58 pmWow, now Bush apologists have to add supporting slavery to the list of high crimes which already includes, supporting war crimes, supporting electoral fraud, supporting graft, supporting perjury, supporting treason and supporting torture.
As I’ve always suspected, there really is no act so evil and foul that Republicans won’t stoop to it.
July 26th, 2007 at 2:58 pmSlave labor.
As many of you folks know, I’m more than willing to believe most of the bad things we hear about our runaway government, but I confess that I had difficulty countenancing this at first.
Slave labor.
This is the “land of the free” we’re talking about here. The one which allegedly had learned its lesson regarding slavery a long time ago. The one which is supposed to be a beacon of light and hope to the rest of the world.
Slave labor.
It’s so grotesque that, like the idea of torture, the mind of the average American can’t even hit it headlong at first, but must sidle about the concept, regarding it out of the corners of their eyes. But, of course, we learned that our great and proud nation wasn’t above torturing helpless prisoners, so this additional revelation shouldn’t come s much of a shock. It shouldn’t, but it still does. Intellectually, we may have accepted our role as villains…as stormtroopers in a new Empire…but our guts haven’t caught up yet. Our guts still think we’re cowboys.
Slave labor.
Yes, I’ve repeated it several times now. That’s because it bears repeating. Like torture, this is not something we can hide from, although I’m sure most of the American Idol-watching, hamburger-eating, Busweiser-drinking, NASCAR-watching citizens of this once-great nation will certainly try. And they’ll succeed, too, aided by a complicit corporate media whose primary goal is not to inform and enlighten, but to stupefy and hypnotize.
But we can’t hide, so we must choose from one of the other options:
1) Abandon the sinking ship…the rotting corpse…that was once America. Flee to saner lands. But can you flee far enough? America has quite a reach.
2) Fight. Work to effect change from within. Organize marches and protests. Call your government representatives…all of them, and make it clear that this will not stand…that such behavior cannot be tolerated. But can you reasonably expect to be able to make a difference? And as we’ve seen, the price of dissent can be high.
3) Sleep. Accept your new status as a not-so-proud consumer-unit of the American Empire, and crack open another Bud. After all, “The Bachelor” is on. But you better have enough Buds in the fridge to dumb you down enough to be accepted by the rest of the sheep. They can sense that which does not belong.
So…which option will you choose?
July 26th, 2007 at 2:59 pmBushco: Fighting Democracy over there and over here, so you don’t have to.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:00 pmWell, they promised Iraqi freedom, not Filipino nationals freedom.
Really, these f*ckers deserve to die.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:02 pmWhat is the big surprise? Isn’t this the logical extension of the class warfare that has been going on for the last 6.5 years? Just wait until Exxon Mobil finds out how to get oil from those slaves…….
July 26th, 2007 at 3:03 pmWell there you go, one guy who “thinks” this was slave labor. Another Bush/Rove conspiracy to enslave the world.
Time to build the bunkers folks, you need to prepare for the Christian Stormtroopers who will soon be coming for you.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:04 pmI’m happy we’re using slaves!!!
Saves $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Comment by Mr. President — July 26, 2007 @ 3:01 pm
July 26th, 2007 at 3:05 pmJust wait until Exxon Mobil finds out how to get oil from those slaves
Lucky for Hillary that she divested herself of Exxon stock a couple of months ago, it might have been embarrasing to hold such stock while decrying the profits they make.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:05 pmSlaves = good!!!!
cuz I’m white!
July 26th, 2007 at 3:05 pmHere’s the company’s website:
http://www.firstkuwaiti.com/
On the project list, provided that info is correct, it seems we are shelling out over a billion dollars to this outfit… and that’s not including what could be ending up in their pockets via Halliburton or Bechtel, who are listed as clients of the company.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:06 pmSaves $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Comment by Mr. President
Now we know who namejacked the name of the dead soldier.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:06 pmSo…which option will you choose?
Comment by TripMaster Monkey — July 26, 2007 @ 2:59 pm
I am just waiting for my Soma
July 26th, 2007 at 3:06 pmSlavery saves $$$$$$$$$$$$$
July 26th, 2007 at 3:06 pmThey aren’t Christians. They are NeoCons. They only use the Christians, because the NeoCons know the Christians will believe anything if you tack the word God or bless to it.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:07 pmSaves $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Comment by Mr. President
Now we know who namejacked the name of the dead soldier.
Comment by Juan C — July 26, 2007 @ 3:06 pm
—————————————————–
Actually, I did not do that.
However, I tought I was banned, so I started posting outrageous shit to see if it would get through. Looks like it did!!!
July 26th, 2007 at 3:08 pm“Well there you go, one guy who “thinks†this was slave labor.”
WTF? He was on the plane with the slaves, dumbass! He talked to them on the plane. They thought they were going to work in DUBAI!
July 26th, 2007 at 3:09 pmList of First Kuwaiti clients.
-US Army Corps of Engineers, (USACE)
-Halliburton, Kellog Brown & Roots (KBR)
-US Government, Army
-US Government, Marine
-US Government, Air Force for Environmental Excellence (AFCEE), subcontract through ECCI
-Bechtel
Others, but these were the important names we should be aware of.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:11 pmWhat I want to know is…who ok’d this palace to be built? Did State and Defense just do it? When were the plans drawn up?
July 26th, 2007 at 3:11 pmI’m not surprised that slave labor is involved. This is quite common in the Middle East. When I worked in Saudi Arabia there were a bunch of kitchen workers brought from the Philippines. They were promised $400.00 per month. When they got there it was 400 Saudi Riyals per month ($100.00). Their passports were taken…as are all expat single women in Saudi Arabia . They lived in a dormitory and were not allowed out. They had to cook their meals on hot plates…which no doubt were a fire hazard. I’m sure conditions for the Bangledeshis, Pakistanis etc were worse.
Maybe what the administration and republicans really want is to push our public into our own civil war. It is common knowledge that many in the repug party are still pissed at having their asses kicked hard during the initial American civil war and current events prove they cling to a grudge like drunks to the bottle. If this ever comes to fruition they will once again have underestimated the “Enemy”, as the rage many of us feel will tear down any wall they hide behind. Yes I am angry as hell and if you ever want to be proud of our country again I suggest you allow the emotion as well.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:11 pmYou don’t need to test it. You know TP won’t delete anything their trolls say, unless you mention a month between August and October and include a date between 10 and 12.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:13 pmThis is Major Tom to TP ground control,
July 26th, 2007 at 3:13 pmAre my comments getting through?
Because I’m posting in a most peculiar way
And TP looks very different today!
Comment by Anne — July 26, 2007 @ 3:11 pm
What a horrible thing to say about our allies, the non-Muslim Saudis!
*snark*
July 26th, 2007 at 3:13 pm“There ought to be limits to freedom.”
~ George W. Bush, May 21, 1999
July 26th, 2007 at 3:13 pmFine work: 1 example
Construction Woes Add to Fears at Embassy in Iraq
By Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, July 5, 2007; A01
“The main builder of the sprawling, 21-building embassy is First Kuwaiti General Trade and Contracting Co., a Middle Eastern firm that is already under Justice Department scrutiny over alleged labor abuses. …… the problems exposed in the camp suggest trouble lurking ahead for the rest of the embassy complex.
The first signs of trouble, according to the cable, emerged when the kitchen staff tried to cook the inaugural meal in the new guard base on May 15. Some appliances did not work. Workers began to get electric shocks. Then a burning smell enveloped the kitchen as the wiring began to melt.
….the electrical meltdown was just the first problem in a series of construction mistakes that soon left the base uninhabitable, including wiring problems, fuel leaks and noxious fumes in the sleeping trailers.”
http://agonist.org/ 20070702/ iraq_afghanistan_dual_fronts_july_2_8
July 26th, 2007 at 3:13 pmFreedom’s on the [frog] march!!!
July 26th, 2007 at 3:13 pmFirst Kuwaiti is one of the primary subcontractors used by KBR a subsidiary of Halliburton.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:14 pmComment by Major Tom (Mr. P) — July 26, 2007 @ 3:13 pm
Anybody else picturing a young Karl Rove as Ziggy Stardust?
July 26th, 2007 at 3:15 pmSweet, I’ll shut up now.
.
.
I’m feeling very still…
and I think the Trolls know what to do…
Tell my wife I love her very much…
July 26th, 2007 at 3:15 pmSlave labor! Can our country sink any lower? The leaders of this country have no morals.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:16 pmI’m sure conditions for the Bangledeshis, Pakistanis etc were worse.
Comment by Anne
Also people from Haiti, Guatemala, Indonesia, Taiwan, China, Vietnam, etc… and what does the WTO say about this products and services made by slave labor?: Free trade is progress.
I remember two weeks ago I was at the Cleveland Airport and thought about buying some stuff for my family. There were these sleeveless summer shirts for women at 12 dollars. I was about to buy 3 when I read where they were from: Vietnam. I bought nothing and wonder how much of those 12 bucks the Vietnamese kids would see.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:19 pmOh…my….God.
There are not words to describe how sickening this is. Canada looks even more attractive now…
And here I thought Walmart taking somebody’s kids, castrating them, then using them as slave labor in the Cayman Islands was just a fanciful piece of imagination.
*sigh*
July 26th, 2007 at 3:20 pmThese are projects from First Kuwait web site.
Do you need a construction company for this:
13. BLANKET PURCHASE AGREEMENT FOR THE LEASING & CONSTRUCTION OF A TENT CITY AT CAMP FALLUJAH
What the hell does this mean:
11. CONSTRUCT THE PUBLIC ORDER AT FOB JUSTICE
July 26th, 2007 at 3:21 pmSlave labor. What a surprise.
———–egregious of firedoglake
July 26th, 2007 at 3:21 pmHey well the bible mentions slavery is okay, as long as they aren’t from neighboring states.
Comment by Krazny
Uh, why do you think Bush is pro immigration from Mexico. Do you think he is against the slave wages his cronies are able to pay these people? Do you think he cares about the Mexican people? He doesn’t even care about American people.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:24 pmYou have got to be fu*king kidding me.
Didn’t the Nazis use slave labor?
Comment by Spudge_Boy
We know Bush traded in his copy of the constitution of Mein Kampf.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:25 pmYou don’t need to test it. You know TP won’t delete anything their trolls say, unless you mention a month between August and October and include a date between 10 and 12.
Comment by Spudge_Boy
Or use a word that begins with Z and ends with IST and applies to Israel… they delete all those as well.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:30 pmI’m happy we’re using slaves!!!
Saves $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Comment by Mr. President
Maybe you should move to a country better suited to your tastes, like North Korea maybe.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:30 pmThis is justwhat I need to make myself proud to be an American. Note to self: Eschew Manilla.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:30 pmSo privatization equals slavery Mr P?
Is that your defense? Slaves save money?
Ludicrous. Your for free market capitalism and privatization for maximum profit thru slavery? You do realize this means that you are FOR Illegal immigration? Hardly a conservative view.
Well, I can safely say your the worst troll ever and have completely derailed ALL of your posts. You can remove your penis from the peanut butter jar now.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:31 pmNow we know who namejacked the name of the dead soldier.
Comment by Juan C — July 26, 2007 @ 3:06 pm
—————————————————–
Actually, I did not do that.
However, I tought I was banned, so I started posting outrageous shit to see if it would get through. Looks like it did!!!
Comment by Konservo
You are the biggest effing liar on the whole board. Whenever you get picked on you start the backpedalling and the I’ve been namejacked crap. Anybody who believes your intentions aren’t evil is naive and should stay away from you.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:33 pmWell Mr P, you will be happy to know that you are enslaved to oil. Exxon posted a 10 billion dollar quarterly profit. Even though their refineries are in bad shape and continually break down.
How does it feel to be a slave to foreign oil while your master profits from your hard work?
Bwahahahhaa
July 26th, 2007 at 3:33 pmSaves $? Mr. President can’t account for the money we’re spending now so how does Mr. President have the slightest idea if we are saving money. I doubt Mr. President cares.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:35 pmSlavery stiil exists throughout the Islamic, and especially the Arab, world.
Remember, they are hundreds of years behind the West technologically as well as culturally.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:36 pmComment by hellinabucket — July 26, 2007 @ 3:35 pm
Of course I don’t really condone slavery!!!
I thought that I was banned, so I started to post absurd sh*t to see if it would go through.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:40 pmI started to post absurd sh*t to see if it would go through.
Comment by Mr. President — July 26, 2007 @ 3:40 pm
In other words, business as usual.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:41 pmI just realized. I am a slave to nothing more than paper IOUs.
And that I am really nothing more than a feddie fascist pig.
Although Jesus, who is my Lord, turned the tables on the money changers and that materialism prevents me from entering heaven, I have embraced Mammon in search of wealth.
God forgive me, I know not what I do.
Remember, they are hundreds of years behind the West technologically as well as culturally.
Comment by Ringo
Your just a modernized slave, culturally.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:42 pmSlavery stiil exists throughout the Islamic, and especially the Arab, world.
Remember, they are hundreds of years behind the West technologically as well as culturally.
Comment by Ringo
These workers wer e from the Phillipines, did you read the thread. And slavery is not legal in the US and our taxes are paying the bills. Now I’d appreciate it if you’d just STFU so that people reading these posts from other countries don’t think Americans are the stupidest people on the planet. After you leave we’ll explain to them about the short bus you left on.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:42 pmOf course I don’t really condone slavery!!!
I thought that I was banned, so I started to post absurd sh*t to see if it would go through.
Comment by Mr. President
You said you were leaving and 15 posts later you’re still babbling.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:44 pmI thought that I was banned, so I started to post absurd sh*t to see if it would go through. Comment by Mr. President
You got more lame excuses than Doans has little pills. =)
Now, please, stop abusing that jar of Peter Pan.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:44 pmYou got more lame excuses than Doans has little pills. =)
Now, please, stop abusing that jar of Peter Pan.
Comment by Mr PresiDense — July 26, 2007 @ 3:44 pm
—————————————-
Oh, you’re right.
Sorry about the excuses. Why aren’t I defending my pro-slavery position now, you might ask?
Well, all of you caring people convinced me that slavery is wrong!
Thanks!
July 26th, 2007 at 3:46 pmShane, didn’t you know? Mr. President LIES. :) (Both of ‘em. ;) )
July 26th, 2007 at 3:47 pmJingo sez:
And so that makes it OK for us to condone it?
It doesn’t look like we’re as far ahead as them as you’d like to think.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:49 pmWell, all of you caring people convinced me that slavery is wrong!
Comment by Mr. President — July 26, 2007 @ 3:46 pm
But I’m still holding out on these two:
1) the Saudis are not Muslims.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:50 pm2) the Constitution is silly.
Remember, they are hundreds of years behind the West technologically as well as culturally.
Comment by Ringo
PhD in Sociology, I guess.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:52 pmI
startedDOtopost absurd sh*t…Comment by Mr. President
How exactly is that a Conservative Christian thing to do? You make the ‘liberals’ look like Angels. Please do stop, you are not helping the conservative movement. I have been reading your posts for some time and find you to be an embarassment. By posting sh_t and making ludicrous remarks you are not a ‘best Troll’. In order to be an effective Troll you must post factual links and give coherent unbiased arguments. You do not get people to switch teams by slinging pedantic manure and engaging in elementary schoolyard taunts.
Please, if you can’t act like a Christian, just don’t say anything at all.
GodBless.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:53 pmNow I’d appreciate it if you’d just STFU so that people reading these posts from other countries don’t think Americans are the stupidest people on the planet. After you leave we’ll explain to them about the short bus you left on.
Comment by shane
Really, shane, how low can these people go? Not a word of the slightlest condemnation. Low-lives.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:55 pmSlavery is something the GOP knows alot about. Senator Lott always wanted the South to raise again I guess the plan worked in Iraq so let’s move on to the United States again. Bush/Cheney are showing the world that what so many died for in the US Civil War is still part of the future of America. The Bush racist in the Supreme Court have already started with bringing back racism and destroying the Civil Rights Bill. Next we’ll see Woman’s Rights destroyed. For all the young people on this blog you will see what the 1920’s was like. The slaves built the White House and now slaves have built the Iraq United States Embassy we have learned nothing.
July 26th, 2007 at 3:58 pmThese workers were from the Phillipines, did you read the thread.
Comment by shane
——————————————————-
Yes I did read it. As we speak there a hundreds, if not thousands, of slave laborers from the Philippines in Saudi Arabia alone….This is how it works: A poor young Christian woman is offered a job as a domestic servant inside Saudi Arabia. Once in the country, her passport is taken away by her employer. Then she is accused of a crime, usually the crime is a religious crime such as praying to Jesus, making a cross or writing down passages from the Bible, all of which are illegal inside the Saudi Kingdom. In Saudi courts an infidel’s word can never be taken over that of a Muslim so she is found guilty and sentenced to prison time, but the judge will offer her the option of working off her sentence at her job, only for no pay….Thus she becomes a slave, at least for a prescribed period of time.
Throughout the Arab Emerites there is a long history, right up to the present day, of young boys from India and Sri Lanka,5-7 years old, purchased as camel jockies for the amusement of wealthy Arabs…http://www.open2.net/open2static/source/file/root/33/10/135856/camelboy_cropped.jpg…In the Sudan there are thousands of black slave children working in the homes of Arab masters.
Read this book: http://www.amazon.com/ Slave-Mende-Nazer/ dp/ 1586483188/ ref=pd_bbs_1/ 103-2343641-0415823?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1185479819&sr=8-1
Also here: http://www.open2.net/ society/ international_development/ modern_problem.html
July 26th, 2007 at 4:01 pmNow, please, stop abusing that jar of Peter Pan.
Comment by Mr PresiDense
Indeed, why do conservatives hate Peter Pan so?
July 26th, 2007 at 4:03 pmBut I’m still holding out on these two:
1) the Saudis are not Muslims.
2) the Constitution is silly.
Comment by Egreggious
You go, Egreggious, you go!
July 26th, 2007 at 4:04 pmAnd so that makes it OK for us to condone it?
Comment by TripMaster Monkey
————————————————————-
No.
We should expose it and condemn it.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:05 pmCONTRUCT? Hello, McFly….
July 26th, 2007 at 4:05 pmThey were practicing astronomy while you were hitting people with sticks, burning witches and executing anyone who said the world wasn’t flat.
Try again, tiny little man.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:06 pmI spent years in the Philippines. It makes me sick to hear about this. The “Ugly American” continunes. I worked closesly with labor on our bases there to bring about fair wages. We eventually won. Anybody who exploits them into slave conditions should never be allowed to receive a contract with the U.S. again. In fact, they should be have their citizenship in the U.S. stripped, regardless born here or not. The Filipino saved our buts there during WWII. To hell with companies that exploit them.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:07 pmThey were practicing astronomy while you were hitting people with sticks, burning witches and executing anyone who said the world wasn’t flat.
Comment by Loonie
———————————————————————
Now, it’s the other way around.
Hell, they could not even get the oil out of the ground if not for Western technology.
Try again Looney
July 26th, 2007 at 4:10 pmAnything goes in Iraq. Duh.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:11 pmTry again, tiny little man.
Comment by Loonie
Hmmm… I could have sworn I heard about these things called “arabic numerals” once. Anyone know anything about them?
July 26th, 2007 at 4:11 pmComment by Ringo — July 26, 2007 @ 3:36 pm
Remember, they are hundreds of years behind the West technologically
Really?
No cars, no planes, no electricity, no radio, no television, no internet?
Still using muzzle-loading black powder muskets too, I guess.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:12 pmHell, they could not even get the oil out of the ground if not for Western technology.
Comment by Ringo — July 26, 2007 @ 4:10 pm
And algebra might have helped as well.
And writing.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:13 pmThe Republic of Stupidity,
“I could have sworn I heard about these things called “arabic numeralsâ€
———————————————————————————————-
Could you come up with an example less than a thousand years old?
July 26th, 2007 at 4:14 pmNo cars, no planes, no electricity, no radio, no television, no internet?
Still using muzzle-loading black powder muskets too, I guess.
Comment by pete
———————————————————————————————–
None of those things were invented in Islamic countries…..including muzzle-loading black powder muskets.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:16 pmStill using muzzle-loading black powder muskets too, I guess.
Comment by pete
And box cutters… don’t forget the box cutters!
July 26th, 2007 at 4:16 pmArab Nobel Prize Winners:
Literature
1988 - Najib Mahfooz
Peace
1978 - Anwar El-Sadat
1994 - Yasser Arafat *
2003 - Shirin Ebadi
Chemistry
1999 - Ahmed Zewail
Physics
Abdus Salam
July 26th, 2007 at 4:17 pm“arabic numerals†… Anyone know anything about them? - - “15 out of 19″ is all you need to know.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:18 pmAnd box cutters… don’t forget the box cutters!
Comment by The Republic of Stupidity
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Good point, they can’t build an airplane but they can destroy ‘em.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:18 pmHell, they could not even get the oil out of the ground if not for Western technology.
Try again Looney
Comment by Ringo
Not sure “Western tehcnology” would even exist w/ out algebra…
just a thought…
On the other hand, if the evangelicals are right, and the Earth really is only 6,000 yrs old, you can kiss off almost ALL recorded knowledge, including the sciences: geology, chemistry, astronomy, paleontology…
July 26th, 2007 at 4:19 pmAnyone who read about US TAX PAYER DOLLARS PAYING TO ENSLAVE PEOPLE, and then, rather than expressing complete repulsion, chooses to engage in a debate over the technological advances of arab nations, IS AN ASS. stop feeding the trolls…
As of today, George Bush & Co are Pro-Slavery.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:21 pm1994 - Yasser Arafat
Comment by Egreggiou
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Ahhh yes, Yassar Arafat, a true man of peace.
Sheesh.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:21 pmAs a boy, I read a book entitled “An American Guerilla in the Philippines”. Good read, the natives were our eyes and ears for some operations. Entire villages were executed for collaborating with American infiltrators.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:23 pmWhat does this president have to do to get the attention of the masses that he is DANGEROUS? Oh I know, dog fights on his property!
July 26th, 2007 at 4:23 pmWaltTheMan,
I’ve spent a great deal of time in the Philippines and, aside from a tiny but loud Communist minority and a blood thirsty Islamic insurgency in the far south, it is one of the most pro-American countries you’ll find anywhere in the world.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:26 pmPlease, if you can’t act like a Christian, just don’t say anything at all.
GodBless.
Comment by Mr PresiDense — July 26, 2007 @ 3:53 pm
——————————
Hi, Mr. PresiDense!
Long time no see!
July 26th, 2007 at 4:28 pmOh yes, the ultimate pinnacle of technological achievement! Sticking a giant metal straw in the ground and slurping up the black stuff. Real breakthrough.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:28 pmAhhh yes, Yassar Arafat, a true man of peace.
Sheesh.
Comment by Ringo
I have to agree with Ringo. If Kissinger is a Peace Nobel Laureate…
it is one of the most pro-American countries you’ll find anywhere in the world.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:29 pmComment by Ringo
Maybe those kidnapped workers were really happy, becuz they were pro-americans.
I have to agree with Ringo. If Kissinger is a Peace Nobel Laureate…
Comment by Juan C
And don’t forget, Rush Limbaugh was nominated… by someone… his mommy?
July 26th, 2007 at 4:32 pmActually, the Soviet Union invented the kind of bit being used now to drill for oil. The invention arose in a Muslim SSR.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:40 pmAh yes……enslaving them over there so we don’t have to enslave them over here
/snark
How f8cking sad is this? No wonder the world hates the US.
July 26th, 2007 at 4:49 pmThis originally came out several days ago, was anyone paying attention???
July 26th, 2007 at 4:51 pmWho would the US have to fight and keep the war business humming, if it weren’t for those A-rabs? They serve us well.
/sarcasm
July 26th, 2007 at 4:56 pmIsn’t this the gazillion dollar construction project that is poorly built, falling apart before it’s even complete, rife with substandard construction — but the profits of the contractor were astronomical?
July 26th, 2007 at 5:31 pmKidnapped, slave labor didn’t measure up to standards — surprise! But the contract must be paid - it’s signed and sealed.
I think there was a documentary on the slave labor trade on TV a while back. Young men kidnapped from parts of asia and sold as slaves.
July 26th, 2007 at 5:33 pmPut Bush and Cheney and their WHOLE FAMILIES there after they are convicted for TREASON, when a Democratic President takes over.
Let them DIE in the hell that THEY have created…
July 26th, 2007 at 6:35 pmWHAT?!
Holy… good lord.
Simply unbelievable. Ungodly.
~Sean
July 26th, 2007 at 11:10 pmOff topic. This is a story that every American must see.
July 27th, 2007 at 12:57 amhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/ wp-dyn/ content/ article/ 2007/ 07/ 26/ AR2007072602025.html
Not sure “Western tehcnology†would even exist w/ out algebra…
just a thought…
On the other hand, if the evangelicals are right, and the Earth really is only 6,000 yrs old, you can kiss off almost ALL recorded knowledge, including the sciences: geology, chemistry, astronomy, paleontology…
Comment by The Republic of Stupidity — July 26, 2007 @ 4:19 pm
Even Algebra is an arab language word…
July 27th, 2007 at 5:59 am#121 As a boy, I read a book entitled “An American Guerilla in the Philippinesâ€. Good read, the natives were our eyes and ears for some operations. Entire villages were executed for collaborating with American infiltrators.
Comment by WaltTheMan — July 26, 2007 @ 4:23 pm
But the irony is that the USA transformed the Phillippines in a USA colony from a Spanish colony, after “liberating” them from our “imperialism”:
http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Overseas_expansion_of_the_United_States
In 1898, the United States lent strong support to Emilio Aguinaldo’s native liberation movement and helped to defeat Spanish occupation forces. Aguinaldo and his supporters declared independence, but the U.S. reversed its policy and annexed the islands. The natives resisted, and the Philippine-American War ensued.
The Philippine-American War (1899 to 1913) is often cited as another instance of United States imperialism. While many Filipinos were initially delighted to be rid of the Spanish rule of the Philippines, the guerrilla fighters soon found that the Americans were not prepared to grant them much more autonomy than Spain had allowed. Thus, for the next 15 years, American forces engaged in a war in the jungles of the Philippines against the Filipino resistance. An estimated 200,000 Filipinos died from war, war induced famine, and conditions in American concentration camps. Some American soldiers participated in war crimes, including torture and killing POWs.[2]
The Philippines became a U.S. colony in the fashion of Europe’s New Imperialism, with benevolent colonial practices. The Philippines remained under U.S. or Japanese rule until after World War II. The English language was made compulsory, but the native Tagalog also gained official status in 1937. Both languages are official today. The Filipinos welcomed the American reconquest from Japan in 1944, and gained political independence, for the first time, in 1946.
July 27th, 2007 at 6:05 amyes this story has popped up in the past, workers being hired outside Iraq for construction but not being told they’re headed for Iraq until they are on the plane/bus/convoy. it is now simply being confirmed by an American who witnessed the sordid act. apparently it’s not real until an American reports it.
July 27th, 2007 at 9:16 amPersonally, I like the idea of using Republicans as slave labor. I can think of no group more deserving, well, maybe sex offenders… whoops…
July 27th, 2007 at 10:05 amWhen you choose your overseer’s…..is it really oversight?
July 27th, 2007 at 2:58 pm…and Jesus wept
July 27th, 2007 at 4:43 pmI’m sure that Tony Snow-job will rationalize this as “okay” since “they volunteered” and they were paid for their work. It’s the same argument they use for sending the kids of America’s working class to die for control of Iraq’s oil while Jenna and Babs and Mary and Liz work for Republican think-tanks.
Hypocrisy–it’s not just for breakfast anymore!
July 28th, 2007 at 11:52 amRingo, you have to be one of the dumbest, most inbred redneck pieces of xenophobic trash I’ve ever come across.. if you want to go back to “they couldnt use it if X hadnt invented it”, well, where would we be without algebra and written language? (from the Phoenicians)
And as far as being hundreds of years behind us..well… they dont seem to be hundreds of years behind us in the art of guerilla warfare, do they?
And arent those Explosively Formed Projectiles (EFP’s) which make short work of our hi tech armor supposed to be a Persian invention? Thats what your heroes have been claiming and screaming about. I did some research and I can’t find mention of them anywhere outside the middle east…
thank god deluded fooks like you are a dying breed. when are you going over to iraq to help tame the primitive savages, anyway?
July 28th, 2007 at 3:23 pmThe Bush family has a history of employing slave labor. Directly related to their Nazi history.
NEWSWEEK [POLISH EDITION] - “Prescott Sheldon Bush, grandfather of George Walker Bush, had financial dealings during World War II with the Nazis, amassing a family fortune as a banker. Prescott Bush was a shareholder of the company United Banking Corporation, working with industrialist Fritz Thyssen from the Nazistowskiego Silesian Consolidated Steel Corporation, where Auschwitz prisoners worked.”
http://www.watch.pair.com/reich.html
July 29th, 2007 at 1:43 pmMayberry’s testimony is discredited.
August 19th, 2007 at 2:40 amThe plane hada capacity of 40 seats. The day he flew there were 11 Pinoys on the flight, not 50+. The Philippine government has investigated and spoken to all of the men on the flight. they all knew where they were going and freely signed contracts to take them there. 5 continue to work for First Kuwaiti, of the balance 3 sre still in iraq working for others and the rest are in the Philippines.
Check Mayberry’s history. He was employed by First Kuwaiti as a qualified medic. He is a morticians assistant and a professional whistleblower.