The first thing you need to know about Goldman Sachs is that it's everywhere. The world's most powerful investment bank is a great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money.

As Americans celebrate July 4th, they can contemplate that the union of "free and independent states," like the former British colonial power, has evolved into its final manifestation--a complete whore house. While Members of Parliament in London charge their expense accounts with every personal expenditure, including the rental of adult xxx-rated films, an American newspaper put the reporting of public policy out to bids until politico.com blew the whistle.

After Obama apologized for the strike which the Afghan government claimed killed well over a hundred ordinary country folk, came the report that the families of those killed, and subsequent Afghani dead falling in harms way of the US military, continuing as before, can apply to receive up to $2,000 compensation. This is the price the great United States of America puts on an Afghan or Pakistan human being, while awarding $100,000 to families of Americans who die while fighting and killing wherever.

It began more than six years ago with a lie, followed by another lie, and another lie, and then two more, ten more, a hundred, a thousand, an avalanche of lies from heads of state and hatchet men and well-fed media types more interested in getting the interview than in getting the facts.

It began with lies like this:

"Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction."

- Dick Cheney, Vice President Speech to VFW National Convention 8/26/2002

... and this:

Today Israeli Occupation Forces attacked and boarded the Free Gaza Movement boat, the SPIRIT OF HUMANITY, abducting 21 human rights workers from 11 countries, including Noble laureate Mairead Maguire and former U.S. Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney (see below for a complete list of passengers). The passengers and crew are being forcibly dragged toward Israel.

from Crikey .....

Rundle: Grech, Dickensian, Dostoyevsky-like, or, erm, something out of John Grisham

Guy Rundle writes:

Politics is a hard game, a pyramid of pain, an inferno reverso. You see someone in your local branch, social movement, chamber of commerce, union and you think "that bloke/ette's a bit of a bastard - they'll always be one stage more ruthless than I can ever be. Better stay out of their way unless the fight can't be avoided."

Ms Julia Gillard, Deputy PM of Australia is currently visiting Apartheid Israel and the West Bank of the illegally Israeli-occupied Occupied Palestinian Territory (she will not be visiting what the Catholic Church describes as Israel's Gaza Concentration Camp to meet the Hamas Authority MPs whose party won 76 out of 132  . seats in the 2006 Occupied Palestinian elections held under racist Zionist guns - Gillard will only be talking to the minority Apartheid Israel-, US- and EU-backed Fatah "Prime Minister").

The Central Intelligence Agency crucified a prisoner in Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad, according to a report published in The New Yorker magazine.

How would you like a job with a six figure salary and the ability to vote yourself an additional healthy chunk of taxpayer money to be used for "expenses?"

Need millions and millions each year to run your household?

Then become a member of the Congressional royalty and you too can wallow in the pork of nearly FOUR BILLION dollars to be used for "expenses."

$3.7 billion divided by 535 members of Congress works out to a sweet $6.9 MILLION for each one of our Congressional "princes" to spend on "expenses."

The Rudd Government has buckled under pressure from the big supermarkets and abandoned its $13 million election promise to force grocery prices down.

The joint might of Woolworths and Coles has successfully blocked the Grocery Choice scheme just six days before its scheduled launch next Wednesday. The price monitoring website had promised to impose unprecedented transparency on the powerful supermarket duopoly.

And a bit of perspective is what Agriculture Minister, Tony Burke, who has a talent for getting under Turnbull's skin, gave us in question time this week.

On Tuesday, Mr Burke reminded Mr Turnbull of his decision, in the final days of his stint as environment minister, to approve a $2 million grant of federal money to the Australian Rain Corporation.

Officer Paul Abel, a veteran of counter-insurgency warfare in the Regime's illegal occupation of Iraq, was deeply drunk last June 28 when somebody punched him at a stoplight.

Abel, an eight-year veteran of the police force, "drove around the block, until he spotted [21-year-old Kaleb] Miller, whom he knew from the neighborhood," recounts the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "Witnesses said the officer hit Mr. Miller on the neck with the butt of his Glock and the gun went off, grazing Mr. Miller's hand."

Like a Fourth of July crescendo of fireworks, our gasoline prices are rising higher and higher. While this is tough on consumers, we're assured by a covey of tongue-clucking industry analysts that nothing can be done about it, for it's simply the law of supply and demand in action -- so suck it up, and pay up.

Since shortly after 9/11, BuzzFlash.com and other progressive sites - as well as many a book - offered extensive information that appeared to closely link some members of the Saudi Royal family to financing and supporting Al-Qaeda. This was something that the Bush Administration went to great lengths to deny, but their deference to the Saudis (including George W. walking pinky-entwined-with-pinky with Saudi princes, for real) was really all as usual about oil.

Barack Obama, the US president, has condemned as "unjust" the Iranian government's treatment of protesters disputing results of the recent presidential poll.

Obama said the international community was "appalled and outraged" by what he said were the "threats, beatings, and imprisonments" of demonstrators.

"I have made it clear that the United States respects the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and is not interfering in Iran's affairs,'' he said during a news conference at the White House on Tuesday.