Such calls to escalate the war MUST be resisted. The horror in Madrid is small compared with the horrors we have and are perpetrating in Afghanistan, Iraq and Palestine.

Resist the warmongers (including the author of the above bloodthirsty rant)

You give your self away.

Cheap theatrical & shrill ... and very convenient.

Means, motive and method ... if you want to get nearer the truth.

Why, 5 hours after the blast were some spanish journalists claiming explosives had been analysed and found to be exactly the type 'found' two weeks previous in a remarkably lucky[sic] seizure of eta suspects? These things ususlly take days!

They are terrorists for killing us.

We are liberators for killing them (much more efficently at that).

What's not in question is the FACT that those responsible care not for life, liberty and the pursuit of happyness.

The means - coordination and planning along military lines
The methods - unknown outside all but the most extreme militarised organisations (like those founded, supplied and trained by the CIA/mossad and later to be 'abandoned' when there use as allies wore off)
The motive - fear and control. Fear and control.

Fear and control.

The truth will out, but who will look at it? Still there are those who think that 911 originated from a cave in afghanistan - ignoring all the evidence that draws the line of sight nearer washington, wall street and tel aviv.

Crow for one side or the other if you must mr solo spook - I for one am more interested in finding out the truth, the perpetrators and a means of bring them to justice - and not the dead or ... er ... dead kind that leaves its secrets in the grave.

Cheap theatrical & shrill ... and very convenient.

In other words, the more innocent people that die, the more war we need. Excellent logic.

If there are more terrorist attacks, this 'proves' the need for the 'war on terror' (rather than demonstrating its failiure apparantly)

If there are no more terrorist attacks, this 'proves' the 'war on terror' is being won so it must continue.

Either way the perpetual war for perpetual peace will persist indefinately, and tens of thousands more innocent people will die; the vast majority at the hands of the self-appointed 'liberators'. All in the name of peace. The 'war on terror' is the war of murderous fanatics who don't have to get their hands dirty; an ex-CIA religious nutter in a cave somewhere and our smartly suited leaders. All killers.

Of course if there is a group known to be plotting attacks then something should be done; but that something is not extrajudicial killing, which merely fuels the martyrdom game. There is now an International Criminal Court; put international terrorists on trial (whatever their clothing) and get justice. Al Qaeda are weak without martyrs, and tackling injustice reduces the supply of willing human bombs. No justice, no peace.

But of course if we go down the justice route, we may have to look at the actions of 'our' leaders too! Sod that, lets bravely anniahlate another impoverished country from 40,000 feet! That'll teach 'em. And obviously all the newly orphaned kids will grow up with a deep-rooted love of the western liberators, and world peace will spontaneously break out.

Stop the war on terror, start justice and peace.

While the crimes committed in New York and Madrid were terrible and unjustifiable within any normal moral framework, they were not “completely unprovoked”. The US government has been the most consistent and prolific terrorist organisation in the world for the last 50 years. The innocent people who died on 9/11 and in Madrid yesterday were certainly victims of violent individuals or dissident groups who seek to impose their will through terror. But they were also the victims of the foreign policies of their governments…policies that have left hundreds of thousands dead around the world. Have a look at the following article from Chomsky for just one of the most brutal examples of this.

 http://www.zmag.org/CrisesCurEvts/Timor/etretrospective.htm

‘solo’ goes on to suggest that the way to prevent repeats of the kind of tragedy that we witnessed in Spain yesterday is to ‘carry on the war on terrorism’. This is the logic of revenge and can only lead to an endless cycle of fear and violence. It is also based on the arrogant belief that the governments of the powerful nations (mostly consisting of rich, old, white men) have the moral authority to decide who should be the next victim of ‘our’ next terrorist attack.

Nearly 200 people died in Madrid yesterday, and millions feel sadness and fear today. 1000’s have died in the US/UK attacks on Iraq over the last year. That’s 1000’s of innocent people who’s lives were worth exactly the same as the lives of our Spanish brothers and sisters who were slaughtered yesterday. Condemning one and encouraging the continuation of the other (which ever way round) is a position that is based on ignorance and fear at best, or out and out racial/cultural bigotry at worst.

So long as we have a world of growing inequality, controlled by powerful bullies, we will continue to see acts of terror carried out by small desperate groups seeking change and by powerful states protecting the status quo.

There will be no peace without justice.

Yes solo, we know. That is what we are SUPPOSED to think. It's all very predicatable really. Transparent.

The last 24 hours in Madrid have been extreme. After the murderous bombing attacks, the response of people in the city was with an instinct of mutual aid...taxi drivers offering free lifts, postworkers carrying the injured, thousands of volunteers at the scenes of the killings and enormous queues of donors at blood buses. Fantastic and human.

The politicians, gearing up for the elections here on Sunday began their announcements yesterday with words of solidarity with the victims and families and cancelations of their election campaigns. They also immediately condemned E.T.A. who they stated "without doubt are responsible for the attacks".

By the evening, the same political candidates who had cancelled their election campaigns, began calls for patriotic unity, national resistance to E.T.A., civilian vigilence and the need to accelerate and strengthen the war of terrorism and national security. They have called on the whole nation to attend manifestations under the slogan: "With the victims, for the constitution and for the war on terrorism". Their calls run as banners on all TV programmes, full page calls in newspapers and tabloids and are facilitated by free public transport and parking arrangements. The political message is extremely confused. The instinct of people is to go to show their solidarity with the victims and to resist fear by public appearance in the face of terrorism.

However, their appearance under the calls of the politicians and the royal family to also support the constitution and the war on terrorism is a deliberate attempt by the politicians to try to infer popular support for their war on terrorism and the continuing clampdown on civil liberties. The instincts of Spanish people on the whole seem to be opposite to this.

For example, yesterday, during the spontaneous concentrations of people in the cities of Spain most were shouting "E.T.A. NO! Basques Si!" with a tiny minority shouting "Viva Espana!". I was relieved to see equally spontaneous demonstrations in the Basque Contry against the bombings and E.T.A. and in solidarity with the victims.

Half an hour ago, here at the Autonomous University, where we had a spontaneous concentration of students, lecturers and workers there was confusion. Speakers were shouting "No to war, no to terrorism and no to death". But when, a small group of 15 of us stood with banners stating that both "ETA, Al Quaida and the governments are all culpable" and "Terror is in the death of civilians everywhere" and "No more war on terrorism = no more terrorism". We were attacked. Even simple calls for dialogue and discussion were howled at.

There is intense confusion and misinformation. Only late last night in news wires after 8pm did the statements in Arabic for "Death on the Trains" in the states of the invaders and their coalition allies, begin to be suggested in the Spanish mass media. However, these views were given minimum space and voice. And within an hour they disappeared altogether from news wires which were running continuously all day.

It is clear that the politicians are trying to profit as always from the horror so as:
1) To confuse and distance the attacks from the causes
2) To turn national pain and emotion into national pride and concensus
3) To justify increased surveillance, policing and pretence for military reaction

It is clearer by the day that the political structures are changing dramatically. The classic roles of politicians in the past to govern economically and socially through ministries of health, education, transport, culture... are changing. How can a minister of health, education, transport and culture be responsible when their services are now owned by private bodies? The politicians under privatised capitalism are becoming a shell whose role is becoming the sole role of national security, military intervention and social control. The big coup of the system has been to give people one choice split between two parties indistinguishable except by personality and colour.

Today I feel sad. Among the 198 who died yesterday and the 1400 who remain injured, I know that many of them were among the 2.5 million demonstrating against Spain's participation in the war on Iraq. And, I feel so heavy believing that have paid in blood for a war they actively opposed. I wanted to scream today vote for no one. But today is a day of intense emotions and respect for the dead.

Tomorrow, we must begin to live our human instincts that so many so naturally volunteered yesterday.

With a sad heart.

Michael.