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The site is a sister to Atlantic Free Press and Brick Ogden an American Expatriate in Amsterdam has been a key supporter of this project.
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the slag-heap of lies, ignorance and witless diversion that has buried
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This week, Lebanese immigrant to the United States, and founder of the Palestinian Children's Welfare Fund was found dead in Austin's Lady Bird Lake.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008, the Austin Police Department announced Riad Hamad's death as a 'suicide,' despite his body being discovered gagged and bound with duct tape. Hamad had claimed he was being targeted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and local law enforcement.
Last February, while Riad Hamad was readying himself for another school day, the technology instructor's small Austin, Texas apartment was raided by more than a dozen FBI agents and police. The police were searching for something to implicate the founder of the Palestinian Children's Welfare Fund in: "wire fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering."
In an article for The People's Voice, colleague and friend Eileen Fleming expresses skepticism in the official story, and relates an e:mail she and other friends of Riad's received shortly before his death:
"Please DO NOT respond to this email as it is for your information only... besides the government harassment, the hateful environment from some students at school because I am an Arab and a Muslim... and their racist comments, I have been getting phone calls around midnight by some one saying "where is your camel?" ... and last... a car was vandalized about two years ago... last night around 1 30 in the morning... someone rang the bell and ran away.... and you could hear all the dogs in the neighborhood barking when the person who rang the bell ran away... A real loving environment towards Arabs and Muslims.... and it makes wonder... what have I done wrong?"
Despite the bindings around Hamad's hands and face, the Austin Police Department deemed the death not suspicious, with spokesperson Sergeant Joseph Chacon contending it was possible Riad had bound himself, saying:
"Right now, the indications are that this was not, there was not foul play
involved. The bindings, although I can't go
into them extensively, I can tell you that it is possible that he could have
done this to himself."
Riad Hamad is survived by his long-time partner and their two children.
Friend and fellow activist David Rovics remembers Riad Hamad, saying:
"[R]est in peace Riad Hamad, 1952-2008. He was a hard-working
activist for the Palestinian people in Austin, Texas, a school teacher and a
fixture of the Austin community. He formed the Palestine Children's Welfare
Fund, sold my CD's among many other things to raise money for the cause, and
endured regular harassment by the authorities. He was found dead two days ago
by Lady Bird Lake, gagged and bound. The police are calling it a
suicide.
His family called the police to report he was suicidal, and this was before his body was discovered. He was cleared by the FBI after they determined his charity was legitimate. He was a popular teacher at the Austin middle school where he taught. This is not a conspiracy as the tone of the article suggests.
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Riad's Last Phone Call? written by Paul Larudee,
April 19, 2008
Riad Hamad, 1952-2008
"Hi, Riad." I knew it was him from the caller ID, even though the phone had never been in his own name.
"Hey, Bolos. How you doin'?" He used the Arabic translation of my name.
"I'm good. How about you?"
"I'm OK." His voice didn't have the usual energy, but perhaps he was in a place where he couldn't speak loudly. "I sent you a couple of email messages."
"Yes, I saw them." The messages were about my role in helping with his charitable work on behalf of Palestinians. There were a few things I didn't understand about the messages, so Riad cleared them up for me. "Now it makes sense," I said.
"OK. Well, that's all I wanted to tell you." Typical Riad. Always in a hurry to get off the phone.
"Wait, I've got some good news!"
"Oh yeah? What is it?" He sounded surprised.
"We're finally getting donations here. A check for a thousand came in today." I had set up a nonprofit account to receive donations for Riad's work.
"Was it from __________?"
"Hang on a second."
"Well, it doesn't matter." Still anxious to get off the phone.
"What do you mean it doesn't matter? I've got the name right here. No, it's from ____________ ."
"That's nice. Well, gotta go."
"OK. Take care of yourself."
"You, too, Boulos."
Those were apparently Riad's last words, spoken from his car near Ladybird Lake in Austin, Texas. At the time I had thought it slightly odd that Riad was repeating what he had already told me by email. I think he just wanted to hear a familiar voice. The police found the phone and car keys on the seat of the unlocked car. Typical Riad. He was thinking of the person who would find the car.
I wish I had told him that the person who sent the check had also written a letter thanking him for the gifts of handmade Palestinian crafts and other items that Riad had sent as a thankyou for a previous donation. He had also included handmade thankyou cards from his two young daughters. The older daughter, age 11 had written, "Live in peace on the world. Everybody should LOVE! I am sad because people should be nice to you, but they are not." The younger, age 8, had written, "I hope you start to live in peace."
I would have read them to him over the phone if he hadn't been so anxious to end the conversation, but I decided to send them for him to read later, and enjoy the children's drawings. The father's letter was longer and more specific in his praise for Riad's tireless efforts on behalf of Palestinians and their rights.
"I have included 2 checks for the needs of Palestinian children. It is my hope that you will use it to create hope for those oppressed. As we both see the dollar's value sink, the value of life especially in the eyes of the Creator never loses value. I extend this help to you and these children as if they were my own. We have the misfortune in living in very dark times, but in that darkness hope, love, and peace shine like the sun. To those that plant hope, they shall harvest peace."
Harvest peace, Riad.
SHUKRAN for your work and support Salamat
Paul Larudee Treasurer and Grants Administrator The Palestine Children's Welfare Fund
Riad's legacy, the Palestine Children's Welfare Fund lives on, providing food, medicine, jobs and education to Palestinians and their children. Tax-exempt donations may be made to:
PCWF 405 Vista Heights Road El Cerrito, CA 94530
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Austin Texas... That's Alex Jones Territory written by Martin Timothy,
April 20, 2008
Riad Hamad's death in the heart of his home town, should give renowned truth seeker Alex Jones something other than guns and ammo to talk about.
Is Alex gonna pick the story up and run with it... it could be the tip of the same iceberg of Israeli terrorism that exists as far as new Mexico at least.
Jones regular columnist Kurt Nimmo says juvenile Israeli thugs threatened him, in response to him revealing the extent of Israeli infiltration of the US political and defense establishments, that included collusion in both the planning and execution of the 911 attacks, and on the subsequent cover up.
Alex is keeping some pretty heady company with the Scott Makufka / Christopher Thorn double as his on air guest, Makufka / Thorn is likely Mossad and just as likely to have knowledge of Hamad's death.
How will I face my fake suicide? Will they come to me deep in the night? Will they make me write a letter saying why I chose this end, before giving me a bullet and putting the gun in my wrong hand?
How will I face my unfortunate demise? Will I even know it at the time? Or will they cut the brakes or crash the plane or mug me on the street or hire a doctor to lock me away to die mysteriously one day?
We who dare call it conspiracy we see macro and order within the chaos we understand that the convergence of coincidence is part of a bigger plan
The masses need simplicity and disconnect as an existential crutch they can’t comprehend the depths of man’s treachery in magic bullets they believe
I know too much I saw too much I must pack my suitcase then shoot myself in the back of the head I must jump out of this tall window a day before testifying in court I’ll slit my wrists and take some pills and not interfere with the war plans.
It’s a paranoid paradox twitch of fear every time the door knocks. A paranoid—paradox digging deeper into Pandora’s box. Paranoid—paradox ’tis a dubious honor being on a hit list But if no one’s trying to kill you then you don’t know s***!
Inventors whose creations hurt oil companies Soldiers who speak out against corruption Scientists whose cures hurt the drug industry Authors whose words inspire action Journalists who expose human trafficking We are the mausoleum of convenient deaths
Embrace cognitive dissonance and run the gauntlet in your mind when you break the matrix’s spell lies form a pattern fake news makes sense and now you are a spy amongst the zombies and slaves
Countless ways to make a man to die, Car crash, botched mugging the many forms of suicide. But there are too many of us now Armed by the internet we’re millions strong The only way to silence us all is a nuclear bomb!
Martin Timothy's suggestion regarding racist/zionist infiltration of our agencies (FBI and Air Force military {pilots}) he's right on. Our Air Force is highly populated with murderous pilots who like nothing better than bombing innocents from a safe position and the FBI is synonamous with the ADL.
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This week, Lebanese immigrant to the United States, and founder of the Palestinian Children's Welfare Fund was found dead in Austin's Lady Bird Lake. 
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