U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage was greeted by a bomb blast shortly after his arrival in the Afghan capital Kabul on the second leg of an Asian tour.
"Ya missed me, bitch!"
"President (George) Bush has asked me to come to Afghanistan ... to dramatically make the point that the United States, although we may at present be occupied by Iraq, is not going to forget our responsibilities in Afghanistan and that we are able to do two things at the same time," Armitage told reporters at a press conference. As he spoke, a mysterious explosion shook the capital and rattled houses in the upmarket Wazir Akbar Khan district near the U.S. embassy where he was staying.
What was so mysterious about it? He was in Afghanistan...
The cause and location of the blast were not immediately known.
Bomb. Kabul. That help?
Armitage said U.S. forces would remain in Afghanistan until the country was secure, the same statement echoed by U.S. officials as to the U.S. military presence in Iraq. "The United States will withdraw forces once we're sure that the government of Afghanistan feels perfectly secure and the people of Afghanistan have found necessary stability," he said after a meeting with President Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah.
"We expect that to happen, oh... two or three weeks after Doomsday..."
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
05/09/2003 01:49 pm ||
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The emir of Qatar has become the first Arab leader to visit Washington after the war. Analysts said the move was designed to show support for the U.S. and to signal to other Arab nations that America was willing to hear Arab postwar concerns. It also revealed Qatar as a small country with big ideas that had the clout to win an audience with President Bush. ``(It was) ... an occasion for the Americans to hear from the Arabs, behind closed doors, how the Arabs feel after the end of the war in Iraq, their worries and their concerns,'' said Gulf-based political analyst Qassem Jafaar. Emir Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani met with Bush a day after holding discussions with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and congressional leaders. He also was traveling to Britain and France to meet with leaders there. Like other Arab countries, Qatar is pushing for the quick establishment of a locally run administration in a unified Iraq. Bush ``is more prepared to listen to what Qatar has to say, and will find it easier to accept'' than from other Arab nations, Jafaar said. We'll listen to our friends.
In an affirmation of its ties with Qatar, the United States announced two weeks ago that its air operations base would move from Saudi Arabia to Qatar's al-Udeid base. About 3,000 coalition troops are operating out of Qatar now. Like most Arab countries, Qatar favored a diplomatic solution to the war in Iraq, but unlike the others, it did not hide its cooperation with Washington as Saudi Arabia did. Mohammed al-Musfir, a Qatari political analyst, said talks with the United States would also be smoothed by the fact that — unlike other Arab countries — Qatar has no vested interests in Iraq. ``It position is clear. It doesn't seek economic assistance from the United States, and is not worried about its internal security from instability in Iraq,'' he said. So we should listen, filter what they say through the BS meter, and take care not to offend them.
From the tiny bit I know of al-Thani, there won't be much BS to filter. He's smart, and he's a stayer.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/09/2003 02:20 am ||
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Does Qatar rhyme with butter or guitar. A thousand monkeys for an answer.
#2
Any reasonable and sane person wants a diplomatic solution to all problems. Unfortunately, some of the problems ARE insane or unreasonable people. Thus, sane and PRACTICAL people are usually forced to use force to solve some problems.
#3
guitar if you accept their spokesman's pronunciation, gutter if you don't like their politics
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 11:52 Comments ||
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A friend of mine who is a computer programmer from Qatar says it's pronounced "Kha-tar", accent on the first syllable. The second 'a' is a long vowel sound.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/09/2003 12:23 Comments ||
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Old Patriot--Can you rhyme that with a familiar word? Most of the newscasts I've heard pronounce it as "Kotter", like "Welcome Back, Qatar". Does that match your phonetics?
Posted by: Dar ||
05/09/2003 12:54 Comments ||
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I called up the Qatari embassy in Washington. The receptionist answered, âGood morning, Embassy of Qa-TAHR [not âGutterâ ].â I smiled. I then asked â this was a native â how Qataris (âguttereesâ?) pronounced the name of their country. She said âgutter,â or something close. But one gets the feeling that she wouldnât say âgutterâ when speaking in English. Neither would an American say âUnited Statesâ instead of âEtats-Unisâ when speaking French.
And this brings me to a marvelous note from a reader: âJay, I just watched the 60 Minutes piece on Qatar and was sent racing to my computer to e-mail you. Thatâs because, while Ed Bradley was pronouncing the name of the country as something close to âgutter,â none other than the Emir of Qatar himself â responding to Bradleyâs questions in English â pronounced it âQa-TAHRâ (i.e., the way it used be pronounced in the Anglosphere before it was subjected to sensitivity-police brutality).
âNotwithstanding my profound respect for the linguistic expertise of the talking heads on CBS, CNN, etc., I think we should all feel pretty comfortable following the lead of the good Emir when it comes to pronouncing his countryâs name.â
A Northamptonshire man who was fascinated with explosives blew himself up after putting a home-made pipe bomb in his mouth and lighting the fuse, an inquest has heard. Kevin Barnes, 20, of Joseph Priestly Court in Daventry, took the device into his mouth and flicked a lighter as his petrified flatmates and girlfriend looked on. The bomb, which might have been created using instructions from a book on explosives, then blew up, causing him serious head injuries, and he died on the same day. Sounds like his head was his least vital part, he didn't seem to be using it.
Recording a verdict of accidental death, Northamptonshire Coroner Anne Pember said she was satisfied he had not intended to take his own life. She said complications from a risky medical procedure meant to save him contributed to his death. WTF? Is she saying the doctors are partly to blame for using extreme measures to try to save his life?
Mr Barnes was described as a risk-taker with a history of harming himself and the inquest heard he had a short temper. "He was known far and wide as a man with a short fuse!"
His girlfriend, Elizabeth Elliot, said: "My opinion was that Kevin was mucking about but didn't actually mean for the pipe bomb to go off. People threatened to go to the police about it but Kevin was Kevin; nobody had the guts to." "Hey, watch this............Boom!"
Posted by: Steve ||
05/09/2003 12:23 pm ||
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She said complications from a risky medical procedure meant to save him contributed to his death.
What did they do, try to glue his head back on?
Damn socialized medicine!
#2
Yes, he was definitely mucking about. A darwin award candidate if I ever saw one.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
05/09/2003 12:47 Comments ||
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I'll be the 1st to make him a Darwin Award nominee
Posted by: Yosemite Sam ||
05/09/2003 12:47 Comments ||
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[C]omplications from a risky medical procedure meant to save him contributed to his death.
Oh, for crying out loud, does this mean they're gonna sue the hospital for trying to save him? This totally reeks of the same stench that article about British citizens being responsible for injuries to attackers/burglars left on here the other day.
Wonder what was the last thing that went through his mind--beside his teeth.
Posted by: Dar ||
05/09/2003 12:49 Comments ||
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The really frightening part is that there was actually a girl dumb enough to find this idiot attractive enough to date. She should be the real Darwin Award nominee. Let's just pray she's not pregnant with a Jr. Mind Blower.
#6
I took an EMT course a few years ago, and one of the training vids featured a guy who'd tried to dispose of himself by the old shotgun under the chin trick. (Chuck's probably seen this one, too.) Unfortunately for him, rather than pointing the gun back, he had it pointed slightly forward, and he blew off his face - eyes, nose, mouth, cheeks, the whole shebang. The paramedics intubated him and kept him alive long enough to get him to the local shock-trauma center, where they actually saved his life, though I understand he had to be fed through a tube and life, while painful, wasn't very interesting for him. Since the event was a local thing, I was still riding ambos when I heard about his second subsequent attempt to off himself, which was also unsuccessful.
Just as well Mr. "Hey, y'all! Look what happens when I do this" succeeded the first time, even though he may not have intended to...
Posted by: Fred ||
05/09/2003 13:23 Comments ||
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One of the dangers from this type of injury involves securing the airway. The intubation tube can, due to the damage, go through the throat into the brain. That would be my first guess as to the medical procedure involved.
As Fred found out, you can live with a whole lot of your face blown off. Look at Helen Thomas.
In this case, having a short temper and having a short fuse are one and the same, apparently.
#9
Fred - I read a newspaper story years ago about a guy who screwed up killing himself & blew his face off with a shotgun - twice. Both times they repaired him & gave him psychiatric help. The third time he succeeded in offing himself. It's got to be the same guy - there couldn't possibly be two of them (could there?).
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
05/09/2003 15:17 Comments ||
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Probably the same guy. I can't imagine many people doing it precisely that way, especially multiple times. The guy was from Severna Park, between Baltimore and Annapolis, if I remember correctly.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/09/2003 19:11 Comments ||
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Two women and a man have been charged by police in the UK in connection with a suicide bomb attack in Israel in which three people died. The three, who come from Derbyshire, have been charged under Section 38 of the Terrorism Act 2000. This covers failure to disclose information about acts of terrorism. Scotland Yard later named the man charged as Zahid Hussain Sharif, 46, and the women as 35-year-old Paveen Akthor Sharif, 35, and Tahari Shad Tabassum, 27. All three are from Derby. Paveen Sharif has also been charged under section 62 of the Terrorism Act which covers aiding and abetting acts of terrorism overseas. Three other people arrested on 2 and 3 of May in Derbyshire and London have been released from police custody.
I'm not too sure how accurate it is to describe these people as Brits. I understand they're originally from Pakistan — where else? I'd guess that Omar's probably back there by now...
Posted by: Bulldog ||
05/09/2003 02:54 am ||
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The Lord Mayor of London doesn't like GW Bush. I can't stand that Saudi loving, pious, dypso, over-achiever either and refer to him as Dork-One, but these reasons are laughable:
#2
Hmm, an overachiever being labelled as a Dork. New one to me.
There are good reasons for Bush to be kissing Saudi ass NOW. Those reasons are becoming less and less valid each day. If you look at recent posts, it's obvious the Saudis realize that. It remains to be seen whether Dubya eventually will decide to stop kissing and start biting.
Personally, I'm withholding judgment on Dubya until October of 2004: A lot can happen in a year.
However, anyone who thinks that I'm not going to vote for a man who does 80% of what I want so that some morons get a better chance to elect a fellow moron who does only 20% of what I want, is a moron themselves. I may be pissed, but I'm not stupid...
#3
Fred, Sharif (the sprinter) and Hanif (the boomer) can, unfortunately, certainly be described as British, though their families moved here from South Asia when they were young or before they were born. Quiet, unassuming characters too, apparently. Seems as though they fell under extremist influences when they left the family homes. Check the profiles I've linked to from the Beeb, and this Telegraph article.
#5
Hope the authorities in London are paying attention. As long as Paleos were blowing up Isrealis, one could ignore the issue as just a problem "over there". Now that the local boys are blowing themselves up "over there", it is not a stretch to see them try it in their own neighborhoods.
Posted by: john ||
05/09/2003 11:01 Comments ||
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"I'm not too sure how accurate it is to describe these people as Brits".
Well, that puts the finger right on top of the problem faced by all free and democratic governments today, doesn't it? We are all downright stumped on how best to rid ourselves of our "countrymen" (and guests) who not only, don't share our values, but actively work to destroy them and replace them with their own.
It's the question for our age. How do you protect freedom without restricting it? How do you protect a democracy if totalitarian forces are allowed to rally enough of our "countrymen" to vote against it?
#7
Saudi-loving? Have you been reading the news lately Anon? or just viewing it? One involves observation, the other - understanding. Perhaps you didn't notice the army based on Saudi's doorstep or the fact we've pulled out of PSAB? Have we noticed a different approach from the Saudis lately? Why is Al-Qaeda turning on the Princelings? I'd say Ptah's date is a fully acceptable milestone
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 8:04 Comments ||
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"The Lord Mayor of London doesn't like GW Bush. I can't stand that Saudi loving, pious, dypso, over-achiever either and refer to him as Dork-One, but these reasons are laughable: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/3011999.stm NUKE UNHOLY MECCA!
Posted by: Anonon 5/9/2003 5:16:36 AM"
Unfortunately, you have the wrong guy. Ken Livingstone is the Mayor of London, not the Lord Mayor. The Lord Mayor is for the City of London, or the Square Mile, or City as its called. Two different guys - believe me the Lord Mayor is the antithesis of "Red Ken". When Ken opens his mouth its as if the Soviet Union was still alive and needing all its western apologists. He is more than a dork - he is an idiot cum naive dufus.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
05/09/2003 9:17 Comments ||
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Becky makes a great point. I think the West's biggest weakness in this mess is the promotion of "tolerance" and "diversity" at any price--especially when it means tolerance of those who have proclaimed themselves to be intolerant of our values. However, from the other end comes the assault on our freedoms and personal liberties under the guise of the "Patriot" acts.
Posted by: Dar ||
05/09/2003 13:30 Comments ||
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One of my closest friends, and an old flatmate, is a Muslim who hails from the same neck of the woods as Hanif. She's a doctor and contributes more to British society than most, certainly more than me. She wasn't born here but is British, but has spent most of her life here, and wouldn't call anywhere else 'home' Two years before September 11, almost to the day, we visited the World Trade Centre together. What made one Muslim become a suicide bomber, and the other a model citizen? There are myriad reasons, and each individual is exposed to different influences.
Interesting article. I didn't know a lot about them.
Haven't heard of Poland's Special Forces? They're real, they're serious, and they're here to save the day. It came as a surprise to many when the U.S. postwar plans for Iraq were finally revealed. Like Gaul, Iraq would be divided into three parts: an American zone, a British zone, and a Polish zone. But what role did Poland play during the war? It turns out a very important one—albeit one that was kept mostly secret. One of the primary objectives during the early stages of Operation Iraqi Freedom was the port at Umm Qasr. Without it, delivering adequate humanitarian aid to the rest of Iraq would have been nearly impossible for the coalition. Not long after the start of the war, the port was secured—in large part thanks to GROM, Poland's elite commandos.
Who even knew Poland had special forces? For a while, not many. The Polish government waited three years before publicly disclosing GROM's existence. Standing for Grupa Reagowania Operacyjno Mobilnego (Operational Mobile Response Group), the name actually stems from a special-forces commander, Gromoslaw Czempinski, who, during the first Gulf War, led a Polish unit into Western Iraq to rescue a group of CIA operatives. One of the other men on that secret mission was Slawomir Petelicki—the father of GROM. "GROM was my idea," General Petelicki says in his husky, accented voice. "I presented it to the new democratic government" in 1991 "and because I liked to give honor to the commander of my unit, I named it after Gromoslaw." (Grom also means thunder in Polish.)
I thought that was where it came from, but probably they named it after Gromoslaw because it does mean "thunder"...
Petelicki, now retired from the military, spoke from Warsaw where he is now an independent consultant for, among others, Ernst & Young. It's quite a change of pace for a man once described in Jane's Intelligence Review as "his country's James Bond and Rambo wrapped neatly into one daunting package." Petelicki also serves as chairman of the Special Forces Foundation. "I try to help former commandos and discourage them from going into organized crime—where there are many lucrative offers for work." Just ask the retired Spetnaz guys.
Petelicki tried selling his idea of an elite Polish commando group much earlier, "but those Russians didn't like to have real special forces operating in Poland—they feared we could start training in guerrilla warfare against them." But the need did arise in 1990, following Operation Bridge, in which Poland helped Soviet Jews enter Israel. Intelligence reports indicated that Hezbollah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine were planning reprisals inside the Polish border. Then-Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki recognized the threat and approved of Petelicki's plan for a new counter-terror force. "I had a lot of candidates at first" says the general. "That first team I assembled from people I knew well. They were all in their 30s. Now the age of recruits is about 26."
According to Jane's Intelligence Review, "GROM candidates were first subjected to a grueling psychological examination meant to search for confident and innovative soldiers as well as those who, though they might be lacking in physical strength, possessed the rare gift of internal iron will." The candidates then undergo back-breaking training deep in the Carpathian Mountains. Only 1 to 5 percent of these candidates actually get into GROM. But once they are in, the real training begins: GROM operators practice "killing house" entries (with commanders often serving as hostages), storm hijacked commercial airliners complete with mannequin terrorists and bullet traps, and lead raids onto ships and offshore platforms. All of this is done with live ammunition. The commandos are trained in paramedics and demolitions and many are SCUBA experts. They mostly work in four to six-man assault teams except for the snipers who are separate because, as Petelicki explains, "that is a job for special people and they are very hard to replace."
Radek Sikorski, Poland's former deputy minister of defense and now executive director of the New Atlantic Initiative, recently told me he witnessed the snipers at their best during a training exercise in 1999. "The GROM operators were working alongside the Delta Force and were tasked with rescuing the chairman of the National Bank of Poland. He was being held hostage by terrorists in possession of a nuclear device." Sikorski says the snipers waited for days in complete disguise. "They just followed the terrorists' routines and then started to pick them off one by one."
GROM operators are said to be martial arts experts and capable of "cold killing." "We created our own style of martial arts," says Petelicki. "I have an old friend who is a master of karate and jujitsu and is a sixth degree black belt. He created the style with other specialists—it is most similar to what the Israelis do." And what about "cold killing"? Asked if the ominous term refers to garrotes or piano wire, Petelicki replies "Yes." Pausing to choose his words carefully, he explains, "Many things. For instance, we can create a weapon from . . . well . . . many things." The weapon used most by GROM is the MP5 submachine gun. They also get to choose their own sidearm—most choose either the Glock Model 19 or the SIG-Sauer P228.
PETELICKI says that GROM is a mixture of the Delta Force, SAS, and the Navy SEALs. "We took what we found best from each group." (GROM trainers have been to Fort Bragg as well as Hereford—home of the SAS.) For the past twelve years, GROM operators have engaged in numerous operations, including peacekeeping in the Balkans and Haiti. In 1997, they successfully captured Slavko Dokmanovic, aka, "the Butcher of Vukovar" who was held responsible for the murder of 260 Croats. Despite being well-protected by Serb commandos, Dokmanovic was successfully captured alive (his bodyguards didn't fare so well). So what was the significance in having 56 commandos from the 300-member GROM take part in Operation Iraqi Freedom? "This war saved GROM," says Petelicki. "Without it, it would have been broken up between the army and navy. But now everyone knows about GROM in Poland and they are proud of them." Yeah, Special Ops guys. These days, who needs them? Glad Poland wised up.
Radek Sikorski observes that "It was wise for the United States to show countries who backed it in this war that they are appreciated. This will probably pave the way for more 'coalitions of the willing.' Poland took a lot of risks supporting America. It also took a beating from some of its European friends." Sikorski thinks this could be the beginning of a special relationship with the United States, akin to the one shared by Great Britain, but warns "it is still in the very early stages and much will also depend on America's staying power in the region, its willingness to remain interested in Central Europe. One thing the Americans could do is move their bases out of Germany and into Poland, which has less population density and greater space to conduct exercises."
Since GROM's creation 12 years ago, only 4 commandos have been killed in operations. I asked General Petelicki if, during those years, there is one mission that stands out. "Although 70 percent of our operations are still top secret, the one operation I liked best was this last one at Umm Qasr. That was definitely my favorite. [He sighs.] I was jealous I could not be there instead of Colonel Polko [the current commander of GROM]. Umm Qasr was a very risky operation—a lot of explosives were used—but there were no casualties for us." He adds, "I liked it because we were able to help our friends, the Americans, who helped us create GROM. It was a real masterpiece."
#3
I love/hate these stories. Obviously there are some really great James Bond adventures to be told, but we won't get to hear them. It's just such a big tease...telling just enough to make us reeeally want to hear it.
Posted by: Sofia ||
05/09/2003 17:57 Comments ||
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We're talking about a nation that fully understands the value of France's word. "Treaty? What treaty? Invasion? What invasion?"
Posted by: Matt ||
05/09/2003 20:27 Comments ||
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We SHOULD move a base to Poland. If they want us and it makes sense financially, politically, and strategically, it's no brainer. Go with your friends.
Posted by: R. McLeod ||
05/10/2003 2:07 Comments ||
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An influential US lawmaker called Thursday for a government investigation into charges that France secretly supplied passports to fleeing Iraqi officials after the fall of Saddam Hussein. House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner wrote a letter asking Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge to investigate news reports that the French government in Syria issued French passports to an unknown number of Iraqis who worked for Saddam's government. "If the Department of Homeland Security receives or uncovers any information suggesting that this allegation is true, or that the French government has otherwise improperly issued its passports to any person who is not a French national, you should consider this the coup de grace for France," Sensenbrenner wrote. If the charges are found to be true, he added, France should be suspended â "because of the threat to the security interests of the American people" â from a visa waiver programme that allows citizens from designated countries to enter the United States as temporary visitors without having to first obtain a visa. The programme, he explained, presupposes that participant countries do not pose a terror threat. "While this premise might have been true in years past regarding nationals of countries such as France, it is questionable whether it is true today," the Wisconsin representative wrote. "The risk that French nationals might use the visa waiver programme to seek to enter the US to perform terrorist acts is not merely theoretical. Zacarias Moussaoui, who many believe was the '20th September 11 hijacker,' came to the US as a French national under the visa waiver programme, using his legitimately issued French passport," Sensenbrenner wrote.
The foreign ministers of Bulgaria and Romania said they would welcome bases for US troops once they became full members of Nato. The two countries were among seven from eastern Europe unanimously approved for membership of the Atlantic alliance by the US Senate on Thursday. Gen James Jones, the new head of American troops in Europe, is in the process of re-evaluating the US's "footprint" in the region, and is expected to recommend that many of the 80,000 troops based in Germany be moved eastwards. Pentagon insiders have said that Bulgaria and Romania, with their ports on the Black Sea that were used during the Iraq war, are leading contenders.
(con't see link)
Posted by: Anonymous ||
05/09/2003 07:20 am ||
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This should happen. US troops in W. Europe are on holliday.
#2
Watch what happens Sunday the 18th of May. It is national elections in Belgium. If the existing government and their pro-French/German view of the world survives, I give NATO remaining there about 20% probability. Most likely destination would be Warsaw or Prague but I don't see it going East.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
05/09/2003 9:21 Comments ||
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I think sending NATO headquarters to Prague or Warsaw would be a bit much,and would make Russia very nervous. I think a better disposition would be to upper Italy. The thrust of NATO is more likely to be to the south (as a protection of NATO's southern flank against terrorism arising in Africa) or to the southeast, into the Middle East. I don't see Russia as a major problem in the forseeable future. At that, I still believe we should keep some troops in the northern NATO countries, just to remind those people that we are there to protect them. At the same time, relocating the majority of our resources south and east would be a good thing.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/09/2003 12:44 Comments ||
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Well, the Russia-France alliance might be stirring up fears in intervening lands, as laughable as it really sounds...
As Hanson rightly points out, though, our basing should now be emphasizing political independence more than just location. How free are Bulgaria and Romania -- and any other countries -- going to be from French, Russian, and (like Turkey) internal pressures to restrict our base use and effectiveness? Poland already showed a bad sign yesterday.
Three Basque nationalist groups have been added to a US list of terrorist groups. Colin Powell, the secretary of state, has decreed that Batasuna, Euskal Herritarrok and Herri Batasuna are all fronts for the separatist guerrilla group Eta. An order signed by Mr Powell prohibits any financial transactions with the organisations, including donations. Eta has been on Washington's terrorist list for several years.
Posted by: Bulldog ||
05/09/2003 03:50 am ||
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Selected parts of the story to highlight the biased and intolerance of Richard Blow and the liberal left. Isn't it ironic that his name is "Mr. Blow"?
Americans demonstrated an unsettling impatience with dissent during Gulf II; the prevailing attitude among war supporters held that critics, especially vocal ones, should be punished rather than appreciated, squelched rather than heard. The Internet was flooded with images of Natalie Maines embracing Saddam Hussein in a composite photo. Hey, where can I get one of these?
A Louisiana radio station held a "Dixie Chicks Destruction" day. Pictures from the event showing little boys walking over a pile of CDs are truly chilling; though the differences are profound, you can't help but feel shades of 1930s Germany. And Mr. Blow how would you describe some of the "street theatre" from San Francisco earlier this year - the burning of our flag, defecating in the streets, closing down streets and commerce? "Chilling" or "empowering" as you blue-staters like to say?
It's difficult, but essential, to understand why. After all, "Red-State" America has its president, its Congress, its pickup trucks, its NASCAR on Fox, its domination of the political media, and its war. You'd think that Red-Staters would be feeling fat and happy. Why then do they sound so culturally insecure? And why do they manifest that insecurity with such testosterone-fueled rage?
I dunno. Maybe 'cuz they have the testosterone to fuel it?
Much of the answer has to do with lingering sexism within the world of country music and among white male Bush supporters (the overlap is substantial). Most of the backlash instigators and participants were men. The Dixie Chicks are, obviously, women, and in some quarters folks don't appreciate chicks criticizing a macho, ranch-owning, cowboy boot-wearing Texan president — especially when the women are claiming the Texas mantle for themselves. Once again, when you distill the left's rhetoric it always comes down to one thing — a virulent hatred of President Bush.
The Dixie Chicks are getting rich in the midst of a recession for which Bush supporters can't bring themselves to blame the president. No wonder status-anxious, economically-insecure white men are pissed off. The world is changing, and they're being left behind. Ahem, no Mr. Blow, you and you're hate-filled minions on the left are - and will continue to be - left behind.
Posted by: ColoradoConservative ||
05/09/2003 10:16 am ||
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I almost hit my wife after reading this. But just grabbed my keys and took my silverado out for a drive played some Beachboy tunes. The Dixie Chicks Blow
#2
I'm sick of these leftie asshats repeating the lie (they seem sure that if you repeat a lie often enough people will begin to believe it) that the recession is "Bush's."
It's only his because he inherited it: a cursory look at an S&P500 chart will clearly demonstrate that the bear market started in October of 2000.
Posted by: John Phares ||
05/09/2003 11:24 Comments ||
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#3
JP: Let me echo your post. Further indications show that the economy had been weakening at least as early as the Spring of 2000. It can be verified and it is the gospel truth. (I like to say "gospel truth" as much as possible as I know it irritates the hell out of my liberal friends.)
#4
Oh, please! Once again, for the slower among us, the right to free speech does not mean: (1) the right not to suffer consequences that fall within legal bounds from the reactions of your fellow free citizens, (2) the right to have someone actually listen to your free speech, and (3) the right to be subsidized to practice your free speech. (1) above means that your free speech can result in a boycott. (2) above means that I can walk away, even if it offends you. (3) above means that I don't have to pay you to insult me and my beliefs.
None of (1), (2), and (3) are censorship -- in spite of the PC redefinition of that word.
#5
A major FOREIGN terrorist strike in New York city also played havoc with both the feeling of safety and security US citizens had previously enjoyed, and in financial markets around the world. The WTC attack cost several BILLIONS of dollars, and it's difficult to replace that kind of financial support.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/09/2003 12:55 Comments ||
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I started to read this but then my TESTOSTERONE-FUELED RAGE kicked in and I had to go outside and have a cigarette and calm down.
Do you get the feeling that Mr. Blowjob has gotten the shit kicked out of him in a few bars maybe once or twice?
#7
Mr. Blow is of course dead wrong, us red staters as he so eloquently describes Bush supporters, are frankly sick to death of the liberal pap that the media has been force feeding us and I don't think any of us will be satisfied until the likes of Mr Blow are removed from the planet.
#8
I am male, not a redneck but I am a patriot - the Dixies are of the same mantra as Hanoi Fonda....We were attacked - it is natural for anyone who loves this country to react angrily to anyone causing harm - and remember loose lips sinks ships!
As for comparing the destruction of dixie cd's to the nazis burning books - this is totally uncalled for. The nazis, as a matter of STATE policy, conducted these burnings of books. The destroying of cd's was a grass roots reation to what was precieved as damaging our country.
And for this a-hole to state the instigators were men - talk about being sexist! I know many women, who are patriots, who had very unkind words for the Dixies...
Yes the world is changing but obvously this persons view has not.
The US will continue to proscecute this war on Terror and anyone who wants to oppose us protecting ourselves should leave. This will only end when - we destroy all who support TERROR or those who support TERROR stop on thier own. There is no other way and no turning back. We did not ask for this but will finish it, so yes the world has changed - at least from the american perspective.
Posted by: Dan ||
05/09/2003 14:56 Comments ||
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Clarification of comment: Regarding my comment "Isn't it ironic that his name is "Mr. Blow"?" I wish to clarify that the point I was trying to deliver is that the author is a "blowhard", or a windbag bereft of fact and rationale. I did not intend a sexual entendre or something untoward. My apologies if it was taken as such.
#10
Blow was an editor at George mag? Wrote a book on JFK Jr? Is writing one on Harvard? Figures. Only thing left out was that his university creative writing prof was Norman Mailer.
Posted by: Michael ||
05/09/2003 15:08 Comments ||
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I kinda liked it better when I thought you meant Mr. Blow as in Mr. Cocaine Head, or this is your brain on blow. Watch out kiddies, if you do drugs you'll wind up a wacky dead-head, just like Mr. Blow over there.
"Americans demonstrated an unsettling impatience with dissent during Gulf II"
Amazing how a little "blowback" so easily frightens people like Mr. Blow, whose website is ironically named after a man who was made of far stronger stuff.
Let's get it right, shall we. If the government silences it's opponents, that's censorship. If the people decide to boo, boycott, or ignore, that's the First Amendment. Got it?
Any anonymous, you're right, there were those on the right who were, and remain, virulently hateful towards Clinton. Now there are those on the left consumed by hatred of Bush. So? It's a free country man...and you know I may vote for Bush next time, but I'll sure as hell never buy a Dixie Chick record, pay for an Alec Baldwin, George Clooney, Jessica Lange, Susan Sarandon, Janeane Garofolo, or Tim Robbins movie, ever again.
My right.
Posted by: R. McLeod ||
05/10/2003 2:21 Comments ||
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Pakistani authorities have arrested two Afghans, including a former Taliban official, for suspected links with the shadowy al Qaeda network, intelligence officials said on Friday. The arrests were made in two separate raids on Thursday on the outskirts of Karachi, an intelligence official said on condition of anonymity. He identified one of the men as Ismat Kaka, a former low-ranking official in Afghanistan's former Taliban regime. Information from Kaka led to the arrest of another Afghan, Ibadat Jan, he said. Pak truncheons at work
Authorities seized weapons and a satellite telephone during the arrests, he said. Pakistani authorities have recently stepped up a crackdown on suspected al-Qaeda members and Pakistani supporters. More please!
Posted by: Steve ||
05/09/2003 11:04 am ||
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This article show why Pakland's offer to denuclearise the area is such a farce and also why China is a bigger threat to India than Pakland
India's pre-eminent defence and security expert says it was Pakistan's repeated "nuclear blackmail" that led India to test nuclear weapons in May 1998. Armed with nuclear technology provided by China and missiles provided by North Korea, Pakistan had threatened India three times with nuclear weapons since the mid-eighties, K Subrahmanyam, who was chairman of the National Security Advisory Board in 1998, said on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of the tests, which falls on Sunday, May 11. "At that time, the government faced the problem of somehow or other conveying the message to Pakistan that they cannot get away with nuclear blackmail," Subrahmanyam told IANS in an interview.
Posted by: rg117 ||
05/09/2003 09:05 am ||
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Altaf Hussain in âtrubbelâ
According to daily Pakistan, a lot of ulema in Pakistan have objected to MQM chief Altaf Hussain calling the late Qadiani leader Mirza Tahir a marhoom (deceased). The ulema said that calling a kafir marhoom and praying for him was an act of apostasy. They said those who pronounced a kafir marhoom without knowing the subtleties of the issue were sinners but those who did so knowingly were apostates themselves. The newspaper said that many people rang up to protest. The clerics in Pakistan asked the government not to allow the dead body of Mirza Tahir to be brought to Pakistan for burial. Khabrain reported the most anti-Ahmedi cleric Maulana Chinioti as thanking the government for refusing permission for Mirza Tahirâs burial in Pakistan. According to Khabrain, Maulana Abdul Hafeez Makki said in Chiniot that the UK was an old imperialist state which gave facilities for the funeral of Mirza Tahir. He said he would pursue the case of blasphemy against the Quran by the new Ahmedi leader Mirza Masroor and bring him to justice.
That obviously has something to do with fine points of Islamic law that kufirs like us will never understand. If he's dead, then he's by definition "deceased." If they really want to do it right, though, they should bring the poor guy's corpse back to Pakland so they can hold a synod horrenda. That's sure show those daggone Ahmadiya blasphemers, by gum...
No pants in NWFP
Daily Nawa-e-Waqt reported that the NWFP assembly had passed a law saying that Western pants and shirt were against Islamic shariah and were a burden financially on school going citizens. The assembly dubbed pants a symbol of slavery and banned it in all schools. The opposition walked out in protest.
Were they wearing pants? It's amazing, the number of things that're against Islamic shariah. Like toilet paper...
Hafiz Saeed refuses to bend
I would, too, if I wasn't wearing pants...
Daily Pakistan reported that the government had taken serious note of Lashkar e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeedâs statements against America and violent language used in regard to Kashmir and had asked him to use restraint but he had rejected the advice. Hafiz Saeed said that UN inspectors visiting Pakistan to inspect installation were CIA men who would fix electronic chips on Pakistanâs sensitive parts and then use satellites to bomb these sensitive parts. Daily Nawa-e-Waqt reported that Hafiz Saeed stated that Foreign minister Kasuri was following American dictation whereas the only way to go was look the Americans in the eye and do jehad against them.
Works like a charm for every place that tries it, doesn't it?
Pakistan should join the emerging powers
Retired chief of army staff Aslam Beg said in Jang that India and America did not have the guts to attack Pakistan. Pakistan should join the emerging powers in Europe. He said France, Germany and Russia who were the big shareholders in the IMF had asked Pakistan to support them against America. He also said that in 2002 Europe, America and Israel had encouraged India to attack Pakistan but now the situation had changed.
Aslam wants Pakland to be an emerging power instead of a failed state. The reflexive anti-Americanism of goobers like him makes the country an easy pluck if the Frenchies want to drive a wedge between them and us â so watch for that to happen. We'll be standing around looking anguished until the deed is done, at which point we can heave a sigh of relief and let Dominique deal with them until it's their turn in the barrel...
We will get Israel!
Military genius and ex-ISI chief retired general Hamid Gul told Khabrain magazine that Pakistanâs missiles could deliver a nuclear weapon as far east as Madras in India and Israel in the West. One-third of all Jews in the world were in Israel which meant that âthe bird had itself flown into the netâ. He said that sooner or later America will ask for control over Pakistanâs nuclear weapons. He said democracy was sinking in Britain and America and that America will cause its own destruction. He said Pakistan needed three Js: jamhuriat, jehad, jauhri programme (democracy, jehad and nuclear weapons).
Now, I'd say that what Pakland really needs is some serious medication...
Al Muhajiroun declares revolution
According to Nawa-e-Waqt retired and convicted major general Zaheerul Islam Abbasi told a congregation of the British-based organisation Al Muhajiroun Harkat al-Khilafa that it was no use enforcing Islam legally. It had to be enforced forcibly and for that the religious forces should surround Islamabad. The gathering decided that the crusades were on and the Islamic world had to do jehad.
I tend to agree with the statement. Once the forces of ignorance, hatred, and loose cannonry declared war on us, for our own safety it became incumbent upon us to fight back...
Islamic council against birthdays!
According to Jang, Council for Islamic Ideology (CII) declared that such ceremonies as birthdays, mehndi, engagement, circumcision, drinking milk, and many other rituals as against Islam. It disapproved of the feasts attached to these rituals. Only walima (feast from the bridegroom) was found to be Islamic.
At least there's something in this world that's Islamic. I think the basic principle here is that if it's not found in the koran or the sunnah, it's not Islamic. That means icebergs aren't Islamic, the planet Neptune is not Islamic, and microbes aren't Islamic...
Women killed for honour
According to daily Din, 450 women were killed in Pakistan in 2002 on the basis of honour. In Sindh, 88 women were killed, in Punjab 95, in Balochistan 91 and in the NWFP 76. The paper said it was because of lack of education.
If that was a reason for killing people, Pakland would be depopulated by now...
Posted by: Paul Moloney ||
05/09/2003 06:00 am ||
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Ahhhhhhh!!!!! Madness!!!! And they've got nukes. Or at least they live in a country with nukes and they've managed to get their own newspapers and after Afghanistan, one can never be confident that they will never gain power.
Posted by: Tokyo Taro ||
05/09/2003 6:21 Comments ||
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#2
Madness indeed. Apparently the Pakistanis and North Koreans both have a lot of lead in their drinking water. Iran is looking rather civil in comparison.
Posted by: Tom ||
05/09/2003 7:08 Comments ||
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#3
I got really confused by the first para. Were they objecting to the fact he was dead, or that someone said he was dead? Or that someone said the equivalent of "He's dead, God bless him."?
There's a drinking milk ritual? And it's against Islam? Moooooo.
#5
TT - all of them. Saudi money is about all that keeps the turbaneers going.
Posted by: Sofia ||
05/09/2003 11:12 Comments ||
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"Behind you Robin, More jihadies" POW.
"I see a lunatic fringe to all this Batman."
"Holy Koran Robin, It's the holy Koran."
"But why Batman?"
"Look out Robin, more jihadies"
#7
they were objecting to the fact that the word mahoum was used, apparently a term that implies "he's dead, god bless him" Objected because hes ahmedi, some breakaway group thats not considered truely Islamic. Apparently this group was a big issue in Pakland at one time, and for the crazy turbans it still is.
#8
intersting also that Aslam beg thinks pakland should aling with axis of weasels - while it illustrates the way anti-americans see hope in the axis, it also makes no sense for Pakland. On the one hand Russia and Pakland have had clashing interests in afghan and central asia a long time. Also France and Germany would have trouble justifying to Eurolefties an alignment with Perv, not to mention a more islamic Pakland. And of course such a realignment would have them dancing a jig in New Delhi - clearly the axis doesnt have the military clout of US/UK.
#9
Yes but the weasels had to know that they would attract (the interest at least) this type of riff-raff like flies to shit with their alternative node of ankle-bitting power to balance against the U.S. They want to do business with these freaks in the belief that they'll be able to control them. Idiots.
By the way, how many of these people studied at Saudi funded madrassas, or worship at Saudi funded mosques, or get publishing money from the Sauds?
Posted by: Tokyo Taro ||
05/09/2003 9:03 Comments ||
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#10
TT: I third that motion.
Posted by: Michael ||
05/09/2003 12:34 Comments ||
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"Qadiani" is a pejorative term for the Ahmadiyyah sect of Islam. After Wahabi clerics issued fatwah denouncements of the cult, Pakistan's Parliament altered the constitution of the "Islamic Republic" to declare the sect "non-Islamic." Freedom of religion doesn't exist in Bush Junior's two favored Muslim entities. Of course, he is thinking of the $60,000,000 in Wahabi booty that Cheney pocketed after the Gulf War 1. As for the "Urdu press" note, less than 10% of Pakis speak that proposed lingua franca. Most of the sources quoted are Punjabi.
One of Iraq's most prominent Shiite clerics, Ayatollah Mohammad Baqer al-Hakim, is set to return home after more than two decades of exile in Iran â an event set to be closely watched by US officials fearing any steps towards an Iranian-style Islamic regime. In seeking to boost the political clout of his Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SAIRI), Hakim is nevertheless expected to play a delicate balancing act between pushing his revolutionary ideology and not drawing the wrath of the coalition forces running his country.
Doesn't want to find his ass back in Teheran, and the rest of him with it...
When the US-led invasion of Iraq bagan, Hakim declared the war to be "against the interests of the Iraqi people" and called on the Iraqi people to stay neutral as coalition forces fought it out with Saddam Hussein's armies. He even threatened armed resistance against the coalition, if they evolved into a force of occupation and stuck around too long.
Then he saw what happened to Sammy's army...
And while being keen to avoid being compared â favourably or unfavourably â to Iran's late revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Hakim did call in a recent statement for "the rules of Sharia (Islamic laws) to be put in place and integrated into the social and political life of a future Iraq."
Yeah. That's zackly what Iraq needs...
But also keen to describe himself as a "simple soldier", analysts believe the 64-year-old ayatollah will not be seeking centre stage in the immediate term. Sources in the SAIRI say Hakim -- whose father Grand Ayatollah Muhsin al-Hakim was spiritual head of the Shiites between 1955 and 1970 â will be leaving the SAIRI's day-to-day politics to his younger brother, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim.
It's that family business thing...
Abdul Aziz â an astute and experienced cleric-turned-politician â has been appointed to a nucleus of an emerging Iraqi leadership by the retired US general now running Iraq.
Diplomats from coalition powers said they were keen to bring the SAIRI on board rather than isolate the group and its backers in Iran. And Ayatollah Hakim, his aides say, will be concentrating on his role as a "political and spiritual leader" of the Shiite community, which represents 60 percent of the Iraqi population.
"Yasss... I feel it my duty to look out for the intersests of the little people. They love me, y'know?
Analysts interpret this as the SAIRI leader being eager to make a discreet return â possibly on Friday â in which he can gauge his own constituency among the the wealth of Shiite factions now operating in southern Iraq.
And even though the SAIRI had maintained an extensive network of cells inside Saddam's Iraq, Hakim has also been out of the country for 23 years -- mostly in a heavily-guarded compound in central Ayatollaburg Tehran. The ayatollah has survived seven assassination attempts, as well as losing much of his close family to quaint local customs political killings â another cause for keeping a cautious profile after an emotional return. Hakim will also have a delicate task on his hands regarding the role of the Badr Brigade, the several thousand-strong armed wing of SAIRI. This highly-disciplined and well-equipped militia was recently accused by US Secretary of State Donald Rumsfeld of being "trained, equipped and commanded by the Revolutionary Guards" â Iran's ideological army.
But they were much too important to waste fighting against Sammy...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
05/09/2003 03:03 pm ||
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#1
I don't think Gen. Garner is going to be too pleased if this turkey begins to start throwing his weight around. If that happens, I'd applaud Gen. Garner if he DID send his ass back to Iran - along with his head and his hands. The rest will be allowed to stay in Iraq, to fertilize some farmer's field.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/09/2003 16:52 Comments ||
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Eighty people were rounded up Friday in a northern Iraqi village after American forces were told they might find four local leaders of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party there, the U.S. military said. Col. Don Campbell, commander of the 4th Infantry Division's 1st Brigade, which is responsible for the area in northern Iraq, said it was likely many of the prisoners from Siwash would be released. But he said at least one man apprehended was being sought by U.S. forces, although he was not on the most-wanted list. ``They were looking for prominent Baath Party guys from that area who were causing trouble,'' Campbell said. ``We'll vet them and see what we get.'' Good idea, take your time
Soldiers came under fire after they surrounded the village block to look for the suspects, Campbell said. Nobody was injured, and the soldiers apprehended one of the gunmen and were searching for three others. "Hey, LT, you sure this is the right...BANG....Never mind"
Earlier Friday, soldiers in the area took three other prisoners after stopping a car at a checkpoint and finding large amounts of cash in the trunk and photos showing the men inside with Saddam, Campbell said. I'd like to hear them explain that away.
Posted by: Steve ||
05/09/2003 01:31 pm ||
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Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/09/2003 14:34 Comments ||
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#3
Failure to follow escape rule number 132:
Never carry a photo of Der Fuhrer
Oh, I should have read that closer. They found photos of the men in the trunk with Saddam. They were all in the trunk? Or, just one at a time with Saddam? At least that explains where he went, into the trunk.
Edited for brevity.
Seven thousand captured Iraqis have been released from the American internment facility at Umm Qasr, officials there said today. Roughly 2,000 remain captive. Most of those released have been civilians captured during the confusion of war or low-level Iraqi soldiers. Captives are put into one of three categories: enemy prisoner of war, illegal combatants or criminals. Low-level prisoners of war, generally enlisted men, are routinely paroled â roughly 3,700 to date. Parolees sign an agreement that they won't take up arms against American or other coalition forces. They are allowed to return to their military units but only perform administrative or medical duties. They are also required to carry their parole documents with them. More than 3,000 civilians have been released as well. After the vetting process, these individuals are released. Parolees and civilians are provided clothing, food and either transportation or money to get to their hometown or place of capture commercially, generally about $5. Senior military officials and unlawful combatants are not released. Others are being held because they are deemed to warrant "further interrogation by (military intelligence) screening teams" and other investigators. The internment facility is also holding 178 individuals who were caught committing crimes in Iraq.
Posted by: Dar ||
05/09/2003 12:41 pm ||
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Parolees sign an agreement that they won't take up arms against American or other coalition forces. They are allowed to return to their military units but only perform administrative or medical duties. They are also required to carry their parole documents with them.
Sounds like pretty much the same deal the "good injuns" got back in the 19th century...
Jalal Talabani, the Kurdish leader who is expected to take a senior post in Iraq's interim government, said that the heads of Arab countries should be called to account for Saddam Hussein's crimes against the Iraqi people. Mr. Talabani spoke in an interview on a day of political meetings between ranking American military and civilian reconstruction officials. He said that the discovery of mass graves in several locations around the country underscores the responsibility that Arab leaders must take for their support for Mr. Hussein and the Baath Party, which built and enforced his totalitarian rule. "The Arab governments must come and see those mass graves and decide what kinds of crimes were committed by Saddam Hussein," Mr. Talabani said. "And then they must go to the Iraqi people and apologize."
(con't see link)
Posted by: Anonymous ||
05/09/2003 07:25 am ||
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#1
Gee, would the Kurds be good caretakers of the sacred sites in Mecca and Medina? Just curious.
#2
Damn right, Talabani. But you're not an Arab, so you just get dissed by the Arab world. You're a troublemaker in their eyes.
Yesterday's Chicago Trib had an article about mass graves at Al-Hillah, a town south of Baghdad. Saddam put a bullet in everybody's skull for activities for during the Shiite uprising. (Ouch, gotta make up for that!)
Anyway the article quoted a Human Rights Watch guy whining about how in Bosnia there were FBI and all sorts of forensic experts around, but in Iraq, the US just isn't interested. Huh?
Bosnia was a three-year live civil war. Everyone was involved and screaming about it, especially the Muslim world. Why? Crusades, man. Christians killing Muslims. Iraq? Shit, no problem, just the normal Muslim killing Muslim, and THESE Muslims were Shiite, to boot. No publicity from the Muslim world. Why? Saddam, our great and strong Arab leader stuff, plus how many Arab/Muslim govts. had done the same to their citizens?
So, here you go Muslim world. Focus on Algeria and cause a storm with your words and actions. Upset the apple cart. Go, you Al-Ahram, Al-Safir, Arab News. Take the bull by the horns, Mr. Amer Moussa, Sec. Gen. of the Arab League. Get off your asses and do some work for a change. Estimates are that at least 100,000 people have died since '92, when the military took over. Don't wait for westerners to do the job for you. Otherwise when the graves in Algeria are dug up, you'll just start whining that the West propped up the military govt. there, and we'll get guilt-ridden articles from Al-guardian, and the Arabs/Muslims govts/press bitching along with them with crocodile tears.
Posted by: Michael ||
05/09/2003 13:05 Comments ||
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The United Nations Security Council is to discuss ending 12 years of sanctions on Iraq on Friday. The United States is to present a draft resolution - co-sponsored by Britain and Spain - which would immediately lift all restrictions imposed on Iraq after its invasion of Kuwait in 1990, apart from an arms embargo.
However, there are divisions within the council over the role the United Nations should play in post-war Iraq. Under the US proposals, a new body comprising Britain and the United States - known as The Authority - would decide how income from the sale of Iraqi oil would be spent. The UN, which currently controls Iraq's oil revenue, would be confined to an advisory role. The BBC UN correspondent, Greg Barrow, says it is by no means certain that other council members like France and Russia will give unreserved support to the US vision and there is every indication that negotiations over this draft resolution will be difficult. Somehow, I think that might be the intention. "UNSC - will you accept reality, or do you want to continue rolling around on the floor, gasping and thrashing your legs? your death rattle thing is quite amusing, but we have got work to do..."
The Security Council is scheduled to hold a closed door meeting in New York at 1030 local time (1430 GMT). For the resolution to pass, it needs the support of nine of the 15 members of the council, and must not be vetoed by any one of the five permanent members, which include France and Russia.
Russia wants to see a strong role for the UN to give any US-chosen Iraqi authority international legitimacy. Russia and France also want the UN to follow procedures - opposed by Washington - which would require UN arms inspectors to declare Iraq free of weapons of mass destruction before sanctions are removed. The draft resolution does not mention the return of UN weapons teams. US Assistant Secretary of State Kim Holmes met Russian officials in Moscow on Thursday hoping to get Russia's support. Afterwards he said he was "very pleased", but indicated no agreement had been reached.
France - which angered Washington before the war by threatening to block any resolution authorising the use of force against Iraq - has declined to make any comments ahead of the UN debate. European Union aid commissioner Poul Nielson, for his part, has made clear his opposition to the resolution. "They [the Zionist Conspirators Americans] will appropriate the oil," he told Danish radio on Friday. "It is very difficult to see how this would make sense in any other way." Maybe if you took a rational perspective for once in your goddam life you might begin to see the Iraqis need oil like Denmark needs sand eels and pigs. Did you miss school the day they did economics?
The White House has expressed confidence that the draft resolution would face few obstacles. "The president wants the Security Council to act quickly and there is no need for a lengthy debate," spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters. He said the resolution would "lift sanctions on Iraq, wind down the oil-for-food programme, provide for an appropriate administration to help provide security and rebuild Iraq, and encourage international participation in this effort". The resolution would apparently allow some contracts concluded by the old Iraqi regime under the oil-for-food programme to be honoured - a move designed to please the Russians, correspondents say. Who decides which ones?
Reports say the council is unlikely to make a decision before 24 May.
DRAFT RESOLUTION: MAIN POINTS
Lift economic embargo
Phase out oil-for-food programme
New body to administer oil revenues
US and UK to administer Iraq for at least 12 months
Posted by: Bulldog ||
05/09/2003 05:34 am ||
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Correct me if I'm wrong, but I vaguely recall that the primary suppliers of food for the oil-for-food program are France and Russia. Plenty of conflicts of interest on this one!
Posted by: Tom ||
05/09/2003 6:07 Comments ||
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Some sort of deal is going to have to be done eventually, though the question remains whether Paris and Moscow will take yes for an answer. Putin might, Chirac probably not.
#3
we have britain and spain aboard for a very aggressive resolution - theres lots of room for concessions to break the AoW and still come up with a decent res. Can the AoW hang togther is the big question.
#5
I think that we are drawing out the weasels again to see if they are with us or against us. The UN and UNSC will do something right or they will show how useless they are. We are offering an olive branch on one hand an a rope with the other. The AoW must choose and have to live with the consequences.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
05/09/2003 12:58 Comments ||
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#6
I'm not so sure that we are drawing out the weasles, (though we may well be) but rather are attempting to comply with UN resolutions already in place.
One reason why the AOW keeps saying that the war is illegitimate and that we are an "occupying army", rather than a victor, is due to the "lawyers" part of the "lawyers guns and money" cliche.
I think the US is just dotting the i's and crossing the t's to make sure that the AOW don't stumble on issues that their lawyers can easily sink their fangs into, allowing the UN/AOW the ability to start up big circus side shows that distract and delay us.
Insulting the president is a crime no longer. Murderers probably won't face the gallows. And outside the courthouse in Baghdad's Azamiyah neighborhood, someone has slathered the portrait of Saddam Hussein with what looks like wet cement. Iraq's criminal courts went back to work Thursday, but with a difference: The draconian laws of Saddam's era are no longer valid. ``Those provisions which are inconsistent with international law will be suspended,'' said Clint Williamson, the adviser appointed by the United States to get Iraq's Justice Ministry running again. Step by step.
In a country with no government and virtual anarchy in the streets, the collaboration of American officials and Iraqi legal staff — from the judge right down to the court stenographer — marked a striking step toward the resumption of orderly society. The Azamiyah courthouse, a modest two-story sandstone building tucked away on a cramped side street, didn't look like a shrine of the law at its debut Thursday. The bench was a shabby wooden table. Outside on the street, two middle-aged men with manual typewriters sat on simple chairs and sold their secretarial services while vendors hawked juice.
No drumhead? Dang. Bet the Indymedia bunch's disappointed... Not that it matters whether there's actually a drumhead. They'll probably just claim there is, the rest of us can't see it because we're racists or something...
U.S. soldiers helped escort six shabbily dressed suspects into the building. Their hands were bound behind their backs with white plastic handcuffs. Outside the courthouse, U.S. soldiers in Humvees with mounted machine guns stood guard. ``Today is an important day in the return to a functioning civil society in Iraq,'' Williamson said. Courts will apply Iraqi law, but certain new statutes introduced after Saddam's Baath Party took power in 1968 will no longer be enforced. ``There will be some small changes,'' court president Ibrahim Malik al-Hindawi said as he stood in front of the courthouse. For example, no shredding machines.
The death penalty is also likely to be suspended, Williamson said, because international treaties bar executions during military occupation. And whoever whitewashed the Saddam picture in front of the court is not likely to face charges either. What if he paints a picture of a nekkid woman on the whitewash?
More importantly for Iraqis, the law will also be applied equally to all — not just those without power or influence. ``There will be punishment for everyone, even if they have high positions,'' al-Hindawi said. ``The Iraqi justice system is completely independent, and we will not accept British or American interference.'' "Excepting of course, our good friend Mr. Williamson here. And the Marines."
Most of the six suspects brought to the court — one of only two now functioning in Baghdad — were suspected of robbery or murder during a wave of looting and lawlessness that swept the capital after Saddam's regime was overthrown last month. Another seven were taken to the other court. One suspect, a man who appeared to be in his 20s and wore a tricolored button-down shirt and sandals, was accused of stealing a car. He told the judge that he was a car salesman and was trying to buy the car he was accused of stealing. As he spoke, a court stenographer who was leaning on the table the judge was using took down his testimony, writing it on a sheet of paper. Another judge sat in the same room questioning another suspect. The suspects were arrested by Iraqi police or coalition forces. All were expected to return later in the week for additional questioning before the court decides whether to take action. ``I think people would assume that the Ministry of Justice would have been a tool of oppression in the previous regime,'' Williamson said.
Yep. That's what I'd assume...
But, he said, the courts largely dealt with common criminals. Political prisoners were tried before military courts linked to the Baath Party. The Justice Ministry was relegated to dealing with cases in which the regime had little interest. Legal experts are expected to go out within a week to examine the other courts and see what it will take to reopen them. Step by step.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/09/2003 02:12 am ||
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A gunman opened fire Friday at the business school at Cleveland's Case Western Reserve University, a school spokesperson said. It was not immediately known if anyone was injured. A woman who was contacted by phone inside the building said two people are hurt. And, she said, emergency crews can't get in to help them because of continued gunfire. One of the wounded people had been shot outside and was taken to a hospital. The other is still inside the building. She said she continues to hear "rounds and rounds and rounds" of gunfire. Television footage shows squad cars surrounding the building and officers with guns drawn.
FoxNews sez it's a goober with a gun, who came crashing through a window. Has a set of camos, too â makes him look kind of like a soldier, even though doesn't have what it takes to be one...
#1
I hope this A-hole gets shot, and dies very slowly.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
05/09/2003 17:00 Comments ||
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#2
interestingly enough the journalists/media are already reporting he has a "machine gun", without describing it - most likely a semi-auto evil assault weapon...although I guess a nut like this could've altered it to full auto...
as with Mike N., I'd like him gut shot - but save everyone the time and effort. In a case like this there's premeditation, no need for further evidence, and no twinky defense
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 18:57 Comments ||
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#3
..As a native Clevelander, let me assure you - if this goon even THINKS about taking on the CPD, his life is forefit.
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
05/10/2003 1:44 Comments ||
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If youâve ever needed a textbook example of the psychological theory of projection, itâs those GOP operatives and their dingbat jihad against Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle.
It all got under way in 2001 when GOP pollster Frank Luntz sent around a memo urging Republicans to âGingrichâ the then-majority leader. Since then, they have spent their off-hours scouring the pages of Danteâs Inferno for epithets florid enough for the wild-eyed South Dakota Democrat.
The real shenanigans came after Election Day, when a group of Thune lawyers mounted its own voter-fraud âinvestigationâ by assembling some 50 affidavits detailing all manner of alleged irregularities and illegalities. The stateâs Republican attorney general decided that only three of the 50 affidavits alleged anything illegal. And the Argus Leaderâs David Kranz, the dean of South Dakota political reporters, found that even those three had some rather fishy origins.
Republican lawyers had âpre-wordedâ a stack of affidavits alleging a very specific vote-buying incident. They gave them to Kim Vanneman, a GOP county party chairwoman, who then traveled through the Rosebud Indian reservation, more or less seeing if anyone might be willing to sign one. Of those three affidavits, the attorney general found that one was made up, another was forged and the signer of a third couldnât be located.
That pretty much put an end to the GOPâs probe into Democratic âfraud.â But now the Daschle-bashers are revving up for â04.
Last week, a group of GOP operatives ran an ad in the Argus Leader comparing Daschle to Iraqâs infamous Information Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf. That reminded locals of an ad from last year tying Daschle to Saddam Hussein.
I am delighted that you posted this. And it is good to see that you are getting with the program.
Here's what another blogspot had to say about Josh Marshall's article:
"Josh Marshall, a notorious Thune-basher, writes about a phone call he recently made to Paul Erickson. Do you suppose David Kranz, Josh Marshall, and Steve Hildebrand (South Dakota Democract) schemed with each other on this story? It's so well-coordinated, isn't it? What a tag-team this bunch makes."
From: http://southdakotapolitics.blogspot.com/
Given that I have swapped a few e-mails with Josh Marshall I can readily attest to the fact that he is indeed a biased Thune-basher.
By the way, that Democratic fraud on the Indian reservations in 2002 was the real deal. The numbers coming in from the last reservation county counted came in something like 93 % for Johnson (the Democrat) and less than 7 % for Thune. Numbers that would make Richard Daley blush. Go sift through the archives at Powerline, another blog focusing on South Dakota politics.
#4
"93 % for Johnson (the Democrat) and less than 7 % for Thune. "
on an impoverished indian reservation - ohmigod - it must be fraud!!! you honestly think there are no other counties in the US that go 90% for one party or the other?
#5
"Last week, a group of GOP operatives ran an ad in the Argus Leader comparing Daschle to Iraqâs infamous Information Minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf. That reminded locals of an ad from last year tying Daschle to Saddam Hussein."
The "GOP operative" that Joshua Marshall refers to is Paul Erickson. Paul was also behind the Daschle-Hussein ad last year. I know, and have worked with, Paul in the past. He is NO GOP operative. I can attest to that. In fact he is a bit of a pariah within the state GOP in South Dakota - again LiberalHawk I know as I also was involved with South Dakota GOP activities - and has been publicly disavowed and refuted by Karl Rove. Paul distanced himself many years ago when he campaigned for Pat Buchanan.
Joshua went overboard on this story trying valiantly to tie the nefarious Republicans in on a(everybody say it together) vast right-wing conspiracy.
#6
"And the Argus Leaderâs David Kranz, the dean of South Dakota political reporters, found that even those three had some rather fishy origins."
David Kranz, by the way, is and has been for many, many years a close confidante of George McGovern especially when Kranz was the editor at the Mitchell Daily Republic. Again LiberalHawk, I know because that is where I grew up. Kranz is quite biased and leans very hard to the left. He does what he can to keep Senators Johnson and now Daschle in office. See: http://southdakotapolitics.blogspot.com/ which is a very good blog watch on Daschle and his buddy Kranz.
#9
"David Kranz, by the way, is and has been for many, many years a close confidante of George McGovern especially when Kranz was the editor at the Mitchell Daily Republic. Again LiberalHawk, I know because that is where I grew up. Kranz is quite biased and leans very hard to the left. He does what he can to keep Senators Johnson and now Daschle in office. See: http://southdakotapolitics.blogspot.com/ which is a very good blog watch on Daschle and his buddy Kranz. "
But of course what Kranz found was backed up by the State AG, so Mcgovernite or not he seems to be a good reporter.
#10
Let's keep in mind Daschle's undermining of the President as we were preparing for war. If you are a hawk on the war, you would want a Senator who supports the President - Thune - rather than one who subverts him and marches with the fifth column.
Of course, now Daschle has flip-flopped (given his impending election) and has shown his true colors desperately trying to crawl on to the bandwagon. Read Donald Lambro's fine article in the Washinton Times: http://washingtontimes.com/commentary/20030508-70352912.htm
Daschle NOW says Mr. Bush deserves "great credit" for his leadership on the war that was necessary and "justified," he told reporters last week. Why the switch? Mr. Bush's public approval scores on his handling of the war against Iraq and terrorism are in the high 70s and the South Dakota senator is running for re-election in a state where the president is very popular.
Let me underscore the final few words "where the president is very popular".
#11
"If you are a hawk on the war, you would want a Senator who supports the President - Thune - rather than one who subverts him and marches with the fifth column. "
Excuse me - its possible to be a hawk on the war, and not to find everyone who said something against the presidents policy to be someone who shouldnt be reelected regardless of every other issue. I was hawkish on Kosovo - which many republicans opposed - should i have been against all of them as well?
and to say someone marches with the 5th column, really.
And even if i did oppose daschle for reelection based on foreign policy, why shouldnt i poke fun at people who compare him to saddam and sahaaf?
Even if i was a tax cutter, a free marketer on health insurance, and a gun rights advocate, i wouldnt join in with this politics of viciusness(just as i reject it on the left) - or at least I hope I wouldnt.
#12
By the way, how many times have you heard the left compare the President to Hitler? How come such stalwarts as LiberalHawk don't jump all over these people?
#13
Err, cause usually im posting on the situation in Iraq, pakistan or whereever. Theres plenty of people jumping on left idiotarians - if you really dont know my stand i can jump in if you want.
No one else is posting this - so i thought id put it in - i thought you liked diversity?
George Galloway should be marched through Kurdistan.
Dixie chicks - help me, id hardly heard of them before this all started - does that make me an east coast elitist???? I will say i dont own any of their recordings - is that enough of a statement?? :) (thank goodness the Chicago Symphony hasnt made any such outrageous statements)
And Christopher Hitchens is a really cool guy, and a great basher of idiotarians.
#15
LiberalHawk, I think CC's problem with the 93% vote for Johnson was the fact that it hasn't been that big in past elections, (heavily D for sure, just not that heavy)for other races in that election, (not much of an indicator, I know)
not that disproportionate in other reservations near that one, (not much of an indicator either)and a huge turnout. That last one is what gets everybodies fishy indicator blinkin'. Mine you ask? Nope. I see what gets the righties going, but in lefties defense, they campaigned there. Heavily.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
05/09/2003 16:45 Comments ||
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#16
Someone:
It appears that LH flew away for today. In his defense I think his posting of this article and using a WOT tie-in was facetious and was a dig at non-WOT postings such as mine on Gary Hart on this page.
#17
CC: the Hart thing was on his foreign policy gripes, and mostly on-topic -- I mean the only reason the guy ever got back in the spotlight anyway was his presence on the pre-9/11 terror commission. On the other hand, some of your previous days' posts were pretty OT, though I'd say "innocently" rather than deliberately so... (Not that this is justification, it just makes 'em less annoying.)
[EFL from strategypage]
May 9, 2003: Bowing to small groups of loud idiots political pressure, the Vieques bombing range in Puerto Rico was closed earlier this month. The nearby Roosevelt Roads naval base is being closed. The base provided 1200 local civilians with jobs, as well as 700 military personnel. The base put $300 million a year into the local economy. The clueless governor of Puerto Rico ... apparently missed the fact that Roosevelt Roads would close as a result. Oops - too busy being a rabble rouser to think it through
The clueless morons activists who wanted Vieques closed thought that the bombing range would be cleaned up (unexploded bombs removed) so the area could be bought by developers and tourist facilities built. But cleaning up the old bombs is too expensive, and the Vieques range is being turned over to the Department of the Interior for use as a wasteland a wildlife refuge. The fence around the range will warn people to keep out, because of hundreds (no one knows exactly how many) unexploded bombs and shells in there. Gave them what they asked for, not what they expected. I smell Rumsfeld behind this one — quietly grinning like that cat that ate the canary
#1
Too sweet! Unfortunately for the DoI, though, they'll be the next target of the fury. Hope they can weather the storm until the 'Ricans ask for the base to come back.
Posted by: Dar ||
05/09/2003 13:35 Comments ||
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#3
So all of these protests over the years turn out to be rich landowners paying local losers to agitate, not really the environmentalists that the US press had been protraying. Puerto Rico needs to shit or get off the pot. Either clean up their corruption and request statehood or be forced to become an independent country. We pay enormous subsidies ($10 billion a year)to keep it running. So kudos to Rumsfield. As far as I'm concerned, they can lose their US citizenship and become the next Haiti.
#7
Alaska Paul and I have both had extensive dealings with USFWS and their related agencies. I can assure you that clearing the unexploded ordinance will require an Environmental Impact Report (3-5 years), then the actual clearing work, which would require mucho $&time and extensive disruption to the refuge heh heh, which would require Mitigation and Monitoring - 5 years, Before starting the process over to try and develop the land. This is a royal screwing of the first order. Where is Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Hillary Clinton et al? Nowhere to be seen now that the cameras are gone
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 16:48 Comments ||
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#8
This could very well be the best "you lie in the bed you make" move that the U.S. military will make in the the Western hemisphere for the next 50+ years. My hats off to whomever thought of it.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
05/09/2003 17:05 Comments ||
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#9
The only part of that island that was bombed was the far western tip. Now, since all the Navy land (most of the island) will be essentially undevelopable the Viequenses may start to smell the cat food.
KCNA -- Subscription for and purchase of people's life bonds are making successful progress in the DPRK. According to data available, public bonds worth tens of billion won have been subscribed for in a short span of time since the start of the sale of people's life bond by subscription and more than one million working people have bought public bonds in the first 3-4 days after the start of the sale this month.
"Y'wanna buy a bond?"
"Uhhh... Sure, Big Ernie."
"Here's yer bond. Now gimme yer dough."
All the officials of the ministries and national institutions including the foreign trade bank, the academy of sciences, the ministry of post and telecommunications, the ministry of construction and building materials industries, the commission for the construction of the capital city under the cabinet, the Ministry of Public Health and the Ministry of City Management have subscribed for the bonds.
"Youse got a gummint job?"
"Uhhh... Yeah, Big Ernie."
"Buy a bond."
Officials and working people in all parts of the country including Jagang, South Hwanghae, North Phyongan and Ryanggang provinces and Pyongyang are all out to purchase people's life bonds so as to contribute to the prosperity of the country. And once they sell that nuke to Syria, they can pay those bonds back. I'm certain they'll pay them back. After all, in the land of Juche, Songun policy, and plentiful grass foods, the Kimmy family always keeps up its of the bargain.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
05/09/2003 12:00 pm ||
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#1
It's amazing that their people can be dumb enough to beleive that government employees buying government bonds will give the No'K economy the boost that it needs.
Government money buying government bonds. Don't let the American left get a hold of this idea.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
05/09/2003 12:07 Comments ||
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#2
It couldn't be worse the what my 401K's doing lately. Now we can add, "Kim Jong Il: Financial Wizard of the People" to his long list of credits.
Hizbullah leader said Thursday his group might join Iraqis if they decide to launch an insurgency against U.S. forces. "As soon as it looks they're winning, we'll join in"
"It is a matter first for the Iraqi people to decide," Hizbullah Secretary-General Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said on the Qatar-based Al-Jazeera TV. "All Arabs, Muslims and honorable people in the world should support a people that decides to resist the occupation. Hizbullah is part of the Arabs and Muslims," he said. The icky part you find between your toes.
"Our position in principle is to support any oppressed people that is subjected to tyranny and occupation," Nasrallah said, adding the caveat that Hizbullah should not be expected to take action for which it was not armed or prepared. Like fighting in the open against a real army
Nasrallah added his fighters would not disarm as the United States has demanded. "Nope, ain't gonna happen"
"My information is that what was demanded is for the resistance to end and be disarmed," he said. "This matter is out of the question," Nasrallah told Al-Jazeera. "Are we supposed to confront the Israeli aggression by speeches?" he asked. "People without weapons are helpless ... All they can do is stage a demonstration." "And what would we do for sex without guns?"
Posted by: Steve ||
05/09/2003 11:18 am ||
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#1
"People without weapons [...] All they can do is stage a demonstration."
Whoa, someone should have thrust a book on Gandhi and peaceful protest into this guy's hands, just then, end of sentence. The sooner these guys realise that peaceful demonstrations would help their cause, and that murdering people doesn't, the sooner they'll start climbing out of that stinking hole they've dug themselves so deeply into.
#5
Excellent point, Bulldog. If the paleos went non-violent, their beefs would be given legitimate scrutiny. I just don't think it's in the Muslim genetic code.
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 13:22 Comments ||
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#6
Nassy is trying to have it all ways at once - maintain credibility with the "Arab/Muslim street" by continuing to make noises like a real live terrorist group, but avoid getting himself/Hezbollah/Syria/Lebanon waxed and Windexed by the US for actually being one. Also, in the last three years, he's found there's more money and fun (read: power) in politics than in kidnappings and explosions. But if he gets too "legitimate political party" appearing, he'll lose the support of the Iranians; if he disarms, he'll lose the support of the Syrians, where Basher Assad, the Ba'ath toy of the Middle East, uses him as a proxy against Israel. Geez, it's enough to get your turban in a wad, all the problems a radical Islamic fundamentalist spit-flying fanatic has to deal with these days.
Posted by: Sofia ||
05/09/2003 14:05 Comments ||
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I just love it when they turn on their own.
But the Democrats offer little opposition, he added. While Bush and aides such as Paul Wolfowitz foment a revolution in U.S. foreign relations, "where's Joe Biden?" Hart asked, referring to the U.S. senator from Delaware who is a self-professed expert on international policy. Howard Dean, the former Vermont governor, is so inexperienced on defense and foreign relations that before his first trip to Israel in January, he called Hart and said, "Gary, what do I do?" Hart said. Whereupon, Dean promptly puddled himself. Joe Lieberman, U.S. senator and former vice presidential candidate, is making a futile appeal to the "amorphous middle" by parroting Bush policies. Just like Hart to cripple the Democrat's most rational and potentially strongest candidate.
Some Democrats are running as "crypto-Republicans," he said, instead of providing their own ideas. "We have become reactionary liberals, holding on to the gains of the past," he said. For once, Hart makes some sense.
Except for the part about holding onto the gains...
Posted by: ColoradoConservative ||
05/09/2003 11:10 am ||
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#1
Hm. In the beginning there were newspapers. Then there were radio and television.
Then came the Internet and eventually blogs.
Blogs and the 'net will be to 2008 what television was to Nixon vs. Kennedy.
I think I can tell you right now which Democrat will have the best shot at beating Hillary for the nomination in '08.
#4
domestic politics have nothing to do with the WOT? Clue stick necessary? C'mon LH - from your intelligent comments (although I may disagree with your points) you know better than that
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 11:31 Comments ||
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#5
Yeah, liberalhawk. Next you'll be dissing my monkey post. It's all cogs in one big machine.
#6
"And finally, none of these flunkos could bed a babe like Donna Rice."
Posted by: Dar ||
05/09/2003 11:56 Comments ||
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#7
"domestic politics have nothing to do with the WOT"
some aspects do, some dont. This post seems to be an example of what have been posted here more lately, which is simple attacks on the Dem. Party. And that has nothing to do with the WOT.
As you may realize, I have nothing but contempt for those on the left who are more interested in their anger at Bush then in the WOT, and for whom their position on Iraq was more about Bush than about the real situation over there. I also have contempt for those who on the right who are more interested in their anger at Dems then in the WOT, and whose position on Iraq has more to do with Bush and the Dems then with the real situation over there.
It leads to misunderstanding the Dem party (eg. the hatred for Hillary left over from the '92 campaign,the health care initiative, etc has caused many to completely miss her position on Iraq) misunderstanding of the GOP ( a tendency to give a free pass to Chuck Hagel, Brent Scowcroft and others who created real problems wrt Iraq, and who will certainly create real problems again should we ever turn our attention more forcefully to Saudi) and even more to overlooking the real situation in the world - somehow people think of Chirac as "left" and Blair as "right" - a true disservice to the man who I think is the greatest leader in the world right now (listening, Bulldog?)
#8
Liberalhawk:
" ...the hatred for Hillary left over from the '92 campaign,the health care initiative, etc has caused many to completely miss her position on Iraq ..."
Hillary's PUBLIC position on Iraq is to stay silent and not offend her hardcore liberal base. Please never ever interpert anything Hillary does as a sign of principle. She is driven by pure politics.
#9
Ah, the little weasel Joe Biden, author of the Rave Act, who managed to get it passed the second time around by sneakily attaching it to the Amber Alert bill and circumventing any congressional debate or hearing on it.
#10
L-hawk, told you a couple weeks ago, -liberalism is the new reaction. Conservatism is now progressive. And maybe even pervasive, if you look around the world. The old definitions and facisism/socialism line are obsolete.
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 12:53 Comments ||
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#11
she voted for the senate resolution. When Bush gave the state of the union she fairly ostentatiously sat next to Lieberman. She's making more of an effort not to offend her New York hawk constituency.
Is it driven by politics - maybe. But if its offensive when someone automatically attributes every position Bush takes to politics, its just as much so when someone does it for Dems.
I wonder how many GOP senators would have voted "no" if clinton had pushed regime change in Iraq - more than a few, i think.
#12
Listening, liberalhawk! Just a little Friday afternoon facetiousness. I share your admiration for Blair, but Bush can't be topped. Blair's words are mighty, but Bush's actions are mightier. They make a good team, all the stronger for the fact that they do not hail from the same side of the political arena. At least nominally. Blair's political leanings are, truth be told, centre-to-right, on balance, and drifting rightwards with time.
In reference to Chirac, he's just a ****. Schroeder has before claimed to emulate Blair's "Third Way" political philosophy. Left/right discriminations don't apply here, and are of little guide to allegiances WRT the WoT, and I think most appreciate that.
#13
Regarding Scott's post: "Conservatism is now progressive. And maybe even pervasive ... " Have any of you visited the website "Democratic Underground"? They invite only Democrats and those with a "progressive view". Thinking like Scott - that I indeed have a "progressive" world view - I've signed up as "ColoradoConservative" posted a story and had my password promptly revoked and I was tossed out of the discussion formats quite unceremoniously. Once again, I am reminded from my law school years up in Boulder, Colorado - liberals believe in progressive and liberal free speech as long as you toe THEIR line of thought. How fascist.
#14
Hillary just this past week made a nearly out-of-control rant to Dem partisans, ripping the President for not adopting the Dem proposals on the WOT (i.e.: more Fed money to state programs, many having absolutely nothing to do with homeland defense) - if that's not open to posting, critical commenting because it might offend Dems, then the terrorists have won ;-)
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 13:15 Comments ||
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#15
Blair positions are not center right, at least not by the standards of where I live. hell, the tories arent even particularly center right by the standards of where i live. lots of postering here about liberals, and leftie sites like Democrats underground.
Bulldog i think lots of people dont appreciate that the WOT is different from the old domestic alignments - at least not here in the US. I dont think you realize the extent of partisan bitterness among some elements in this country.
For about 40 years from 1940 to 1980 - we had pretty much a broad consensus in this country - a balance of capitalism and the welfare state, and an anti-communist foreign policy. The anti-com for policy was challenged from the left in the '60s but they never quite took power (although they got a lot of folks into congress in 1974) Reagan broke the consensus - perhaps rightly, but in ways that shocked. And Dems responded with a renewed partisanship over cabinet scandals, judicial nominations, the Presidents personality, etc. GOP has never gotten over that - when Clinton came in they determined on payback - despite Clintons 3rd way ideological moderation. We got GOP partisanship on cabinet scandals, judicial nominations, the Presidents personality, etc. All played up with vicious rhetoric led by talk radio. Then we got Monica-gate. And then the 2000 election, which had plenty of elements to leave both sides embittered.
And then into this mess a bunch of fanatical jihadis flew airplanes at our cities and killed 3000 of us.
many of us have seperated the war from the pre 9/11 partisan divide. A great many on both sides have not. Bush and Cheney and Karl Rove are the enemy - or alternatively Hillary and Gore and Daschle are the enemy - more than Bin Laden or Hekmatyar, Saddam or Rafsanjani. The real problems of the CIA pre 9/11 is not a real problem, but a stick to beat Bush. The failure of Oslo is not a real dilemma in mid east policy, but a stick to beat Clinton.
A few leaders in the US - notably Lieberman and McCain - seem able to go beyond this partisanship - but the continuation of it at this serious time makes me dispair for my country.
#16
Frank - a serious discussion of homeland security spending would be fine
but
"i love it when they turn on their own"
posts about judicial nominations
posts about gun control and the 2nd amendment
about bill bennet being compared to Bill Clinton
about Karl Rove
about Daschle tax proposal
about Gary Harts plans
(note also how many come from a particular poster)
Again those who own and run this blog can do as they like with it - i will only point out that there are, I believe, other places on the net to get this political perspective - not to mention all up and down the AM radio dial
#18
You're whistling past the graveyard, L-hawk. Just come out of the closet and have done with it. The old left-right line doesn't fit. You talk more like US. Are you afraid your friends will find out?
CC - Pervasive was indeed optimistic. Some quarters will never adapt. Like T-rex.
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 13:46 Comments ||
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#19
im not in the closet - i have never hidden my approach on foreign policy - but I daresay i dont talk like you on taxes, health insurance, guns, minumum wage, or most domestic issues. I daresay i talk like Joe lienberman or John edwards, or on my left leaning days like Dick Gephardt - and i think that some need to ignore these distinctions is a sign that they think they can use the WOT to get folks like me over to their side - sorry guys - it aint gonna work.
#20
L - why point at the social issues when we're talking about governance? Some people believe that the childish masses need told what to do until some hazy point in the future (dictatorship of proletariat or any fascist oligachy) others believe that gov't that governs least governs best. THIS should the line. On this, you probably don't come down too different than most of us. Unlike many liberals and closet socialists.
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 14:06 Comments ||
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C'mon, you're better than that, your own posts have misspells. You could follow it, non? We're not so different. An eastern (probably) Jew and a fly-over Jesus freak. e.g. I like having murat around. You gotta hear what the other side thinks. And you can't let 'em bait you into hate speech.
Now, about my more oppressive/less oppressive gov't continuum, think it could fly?
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 14:37 Comments ||
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#24
"I want YOU to try posting over at Democratic Underground your hawkish views on Iraq. They will toss you out of the forum quicker then you can say "failed McGovern-like Democratic strategies". Diverse voices, diverse opinions my a**!"
and i would expect to be tossed out of "republican underground" or whatever. Is this "republican underground" my impression was that it is not. I could be wrong.
#26
"Blair positions are not center right, at least not by the standards of where I live. hell, the tories arent even particularly center right by the standards of where i live."
True, L. Count yourselves fortunate you don't have REAL authoritarian lefties to contend with. Workers' paradise my arse...
Good reminder. The point is that domestic politics are inextricably linked with our foreign policy and the war on terror. As my radio dial hero, Hugh Hewitt, often says about (invariably) liberal politicians "Don't you understand, they will get you killed." This is why a discussion on who might be the Democratic nominee for President is quite germane to our foreign policy. And statements by Maxine Waters, Howard Dean, Madonna or whomever that undermine the will and resolve of the American people to make America, and the world, safe from terrorism should find a forum.
#28
one could also make the case that the US is stronger in the WOT if we have domestic policies I favor and that its worth it to accept the liberal wing of my party - i could also point out that there are plenty of isolationists in the GOP who are on board now only for partisan reasons. I generally dont discuss those points here - as theyre not on topic. I will talk about failures of the Bush Admin in the WOT - (Im beginning to think that a reluctance to nationbuild may get them in real trouble) but when i do so I will try to do so with respect.
I realize most of the posters here are Republicans. If there was a busy forum of liberalhawks with an active comments section id post there. But the closest thing is Katzmans winds of change, and thats a very different kind of blog. So i post here and try to be a good sport. But recently there have been people posting here who seem to want to take this in a different direction - if Fred is cool with that, well its his blogspace, and I respect private property :)
#29
L - You're a good man. It should have been "This should be the line(that governments are rated by)"
Re: Fred - do we have to do detention hall?
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 14:58 Comments ||
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#30
ok scott - i'll give it a try
this should (be) the line
Should be the line about what? should be the way we analyze ideological perspectives in US politics? I would say no - very few in the US have either extreme you mention, and to frame the differences among those closer to the center purely in terms of extent of government is to prejudge the issue - if im arguing health insurance, the extent of govt control over life is only one issue - what solution increases or decreases costs, which reduces the number of uninsured, which insures new drugs are developed are all legitimate issues. And in many cases it is not at all clear which side is more "statist" is a regressive tax less statist than a progressive tax?
and in any case, what does this have to do with the price of a kalishnikov in Peshawar?
#32
No, my willfully obtuse friend. ANY government. Relevance? Right now they're trying to plant democracy in Iraq. One side would say we need to give a democratic framework and let them choose their leaders, form of gov't and kalashnikov sales quotas in Najaf. The other side would say they aren't ready and we need to impose gov't until the institutions are in place that insure what we want (a la Trotsky)
Is a troll a matter of who posts where?
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 15:29 Comments ||
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#33
s - honestly im not willfully obtuse - I thought you were talking about "nanny state" issues in domestic politics.
What if a people want a non-democracy? I real dilemma. What does it mean to give a democratic framework?? Simply hold elections?? Surely not. In the absence of functioning political parties, a functioning press, an independent judiciary elections are a recipe for an elective dictatorship.
What if even with those institutions people want to vote in a theocracy - what if that means "one man - one vote - once" Im willing to say that there does need to be certain level of development to reach democracy - I dont know that every society is ready for it - OTOH i think its about more than just income or literacy level - India has maintained a functioning, if imperfect demo for many years. Culture plays a role, experience with demo, and the regional expectations and models- thats why in Eastern Europe and east asia we have seen "epidemics" of democracy.
If we had a choice, would it be better to stay long enough to make sure Iraq doesnt become a Mullacrocy? Yeah, but we dont really have that choice. If we stay too long we become "colonialists" and lose the ballgame. But a mullacrocy in Iraq is still better for us (and for the Iraqis) (IMO) than the previous regime. And i really dont think thats how it will turn out. The kurds are dead set against it, the sunnis must realize that they wont have influence in a shiite theocracy, and evidently quite a few shiites dont want one either.
#34
" ... thats why in Eastern Europe and east asia we have seen "epidemics" of democracy.
Thank God for Ronald Reagan. By the way Tommy Daschle was a junior Senator in 1986 and began his senatorial thwarting of Republican good deeds that year.
#35
the eastern european epidemic was set off ultimately, by the Soviet defeat in Afghanistan - the US policy there was started by Zbigniew Brezinski, under Carter of all people, and was continued by Reagan. US position in Europe was broadly bi-partisan for years, and began with Harry Truman.
democracy in epidemic in east asia began in phillipines, no particular connection to Reagan policies - and ultimately derived from Japan, another Truman (and MacArthur to give credit where credit is due) success.
Tommy Daschle was thwarting republicans in 1986 - oh my - he was a democrat - how shocking!!!
"Republican good deeds"
Yes, the republicans are GOOD, they do GOOD things, so the democrats who oppose them must be BAD.
But Daddy, was Ross Perot GOOD or BAD?? And how about this McCain fellow, who ran against the our hero? Thats a little more complicated, darling.....
#36
There you go, so you're not a reprobate yet. A realy and truly 'progressive'(as in progressing toward socialism) would demand we impose our handpicked leaders at every level. Knowing that we KNOW what's best for them. Our president is much more Jeffersonian, he wants them to choose for themselves. Is he Pollyanna? No, he actually believes in -"of the people, by the people, for the people". Something many on the left do not. What remains to be seen is whether the majority there will "vote themselves the treasury", or have the moral fortitude to respect a minority that disagrees with them. That'll be a stretch for radical muslims.
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 16:40 Comments ||
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#37
My God but I love to get people like LiberalHawk stirred up. He/she puts the "rant" in "Rantberg"!
But I do agree with LiberalHawk. Republicans are good. And that is the gospel truth.
#38
Hey CC, you do know that when I referred to you as progressive it was in a TR sense. Not in the communist, social engineering sense into which the elitists (which I think LH is) have hijacked the word.
Posted by: Scott ||
05/09/2003 17:10 Comments ||
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#39
Yep, I got the reference. It has always been a burr under my saddle how "progressive" has been appropriated by the left. The inference is that those who oppose are, of course, regressive. However, "progressing" or advancing toward what end or goal is the question to be posed, and the truest definition of the word. I mean lemmings progress toward eventual suicide in a mass migration of irrational motive. Thus, we should always question toward what end so-called progressives are aiming.
This has been my last late-afternoon mental meanderings.
Israeli troops raided a West Bank headquarters used by pro-Palestinian foreign activists on Friday, detaining three women and taking away computers and files, its director said. The raid in Beit Sahour, near Bethlehem, appeared to be part of a crackdown on the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), which has deployed dozens of volunteers in West Bank and Gaza combat zones as 'human shields' to protect Palestinians. Spring cleaning, time to throw out the trash
Israel said it would adopt tougher policies toward foreign activists after a British suicide bomber and his accomplice attacked a Tel Aviv nightclub last week. The two had entered Israel from Gaza, where they attended an ISM gathering. The ISM denies the two had any links to the group, which is a thorn in the army's side as it confronts a 31-month-old Palestinian uprising for statehood. Military sources confirmed Friday's raid and said the army would now oblige foreigners entering Palestinian-ruled Gaza to sign a waiver absolving Israel of responsibility for their safety, a procedure already in place for Israeli civilians.
"Here. Sign this release... Try not to stand in front of bulldozers or under Apache helicopters. Have a nice visit."
The crackdown also follows the May 2 killing of a British cameraman who was shot in the flashpoint Gaza town of Rafah as he approached Israeli soldiers in the dark. Didn't know it was at night, did you?
Ghassan Andoni, director of Beit Sahour's Palestinian Center for Rapprochement Between People, a group that helped found the ISM, said the army sent a truck and 15 vehicles to the center. 'There were three women there at the time, one from the United States, another who I think was also American and a Palestinian,' he told Reuters. 'They (the soldiers) took our servers, laptops and files. I think they thought there were dozens of internationals here.' Gil Kleiman, an Israeli police spokesman, said two foreigners were detained after violating a military order banning them from the area. He did not give their identities. Kleiman said information about them would be given to the Interior Ministry after they were questioned at a police station. The ministry is in charge of expulsions from Israel. The ISM said one of its members was also detained by Israeli forces at the Israel-Gaza border on Friday.
Posted by: Steve ||
05/09/2003 11:08 am ||
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In any other country, foreigners aiding an on-going terrorist threat would have been booted out. Just another sign that Israel is a friend of freedom, even its seamier parts.
Kim Jong Il is a great man endowed with unusual wisdom, outstanding leadership ability and lofty trait, said Khim Sarith, under-secretary of State of the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts of Cambodia. He said that during his visit to Korea he went round many grand monumental edifices in Pyongyang and localities and cultural assets of the Korean people, which are associated with the wise leadership exploits of Kim Jong Il. Khim? Nobody likes a suckup.
He went on:
The International Friendship Exhibition left deep impressions on me and the gifts presented to Kim Jong Il by party and state leaders and figures of all walks of life in different countries clearly represent ardent reverence of the world people for him. Flower baskets and ... more flower baskets.
The Korean art is well known to the world as brilliantly developing Juche art. It is unthinkable without the leadership exploits of Kim Jong Il. The Juche art? Probably all portraits of the Dear Leader himself. Maybe a few of the Great Leader, too.
All people are moved by his great feats. The world progressives will praise his exploits forever. Heroin dealer, film critic, nuclear blackmailer, agricultural expert, syringe tester, psychopath, ... there's just so much he does!
Posted by: tu3031 ||
05/09/2003 10:50 am ||
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#1
*Lifts card* 8.8. Points deducted for too short a program.
More than 120 people are feared dead in the Democratic Republic of Congo after being sucked out of a cargo plane. Military officials are quoted as saying that the rear ramp of a plane became detached soon after it had taken off from the capital, Kinshasa, on an internal flight. The Defence Minister Irung Awan told reporters that he was unaware of any deaths, but airport sources told the BBC in Kinshasa that only the Russian crew members survived. The accident took place on Thursday night about 45 minutes after the plane took off. The plane had been chartered by the military and was flying from Kinshasa to Congo's second city, Lubumbashi. "The doors opened including the ramp as the pressure system broke down," a military official told Reuters news agency. "Everybody was sucked out." The Russian crew was able to turn the Ilyushin 76 around and land at Kinshasa airport following the incident. Additional from AP:
Nine survivors were being treated for minor injuries and psychological trauma at Kinshasa General Hospital, said Kabamba Mbwebwe, chief doctor at the hospital's emergency ward. "They were traumatized and spoke of their baggage flying everywhere," Mbwebwe told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.
Their baggage? How about their relatives?
The plane, a privately owned Ilyushin 76, had apparently been chartered to transport Congolese police and their families from Kinshasa to the southeastern city of Lubumbashi, a diamond city.
"Look, Martha! It's raining policemen!"
No way I'd ever get on a Ilyushin or any other russian plane, or any third world airline. Shit like this happens all the time.
Posted by: Steve ||
05/09/2003 10:37 am ||
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#1
not amusing but it reminds me of the old joke; "Economy passengers may deplane now, for First Class passengers we will be landing in ten minutes"
Posted by: john ||
05/09/2003 10:54 Comments ||
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#2
I've flown on a few Russian planes and while they can certainly be nerve-rattling they are very reliable vehicles. Events like this are tragedies, but things like this do NOT happen "all the time."
(Well maybe in Africa they do, but blame goes to poor maintenance - not the make of the plane.)
#3
I found this to be an absolutely horrifying story and I don't think any amount of levity is appropriate here. Please send up a prayer for the victims.
#6
Update: A plane from which some 160 people hurtled to their deaths in a freak accident over Democratic Republic of Congo belongs to Ukraine's defence ministry, Russia's RIA Novosti news agency reported Friday. The crew of the Ilyushin-76 transport aircraft are also Ukrainians and have been working in the DRC on contract, according to diplomatic sources cited by the agency. About 160 people on the Russian-built plane plunged 2,200 metres (7,000 feet) to the ground after the cargo bay door burst open in mid-flight on Thursday night, halfway between the capital Kinshasa and the distant southeastern city of Lubumbashi. Military sources in Kinshasa said that some 40 passengers had survived the disaster. The pilot managed to turn the military transport aircraft round and return to the capital.
Posted by: Steve ||
05/09/2003 14:48 Comments ||
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"The Ilyushin76 is a medium- to long-range transport. The model was first flown in 1971. It is widely used around the world, particularly in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, as a civilian freighter.
The plane has had a checkered safety record, including at least 45 accidents that resulted in some 393 deaths, according to the Aviation Safety Network Web site, an air safety data base.
On Feb. 19, an Ilyushin 76 crashed in bad weather in Iran, killing 275, including more that 200 elite Iranian soldiers. A month earlier, another of the jets crashed while landing in thick fog in East Timor, killing all six people on board."
- a little follow up from AP
Thanks, I'll stick with Boeing.
Posted by: Mark IV ||
05/09/2003 15:12 Comments ||
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#8
The pilot later stated that he thinks that one of the passengers may have been fooling with the cargo door controls. On US cargo birds these are usually located in back near the cargo door/ramp for the loadmaster to operate while on the ground. Since this is a military cargo aircraft and was not designed for passengers (except paratroopers), these controls are probably not covered or locked away. Open the door just a crack at 10K (meters I suspect, not feet, the depressurization wouldn't have been this violent at only 10000 feet and this plane had been in the air about 45 minutes, time enough to get to altitude) and cabin air pressure will do the rest...
Posted on DefenseTech, but copying from that site is screwy, and I'm not about to take the time to pick through the source and remove all the HTML tags. Here are the highlights:
President Bush has named two Rumsfeld picks to become Sec'y of the Navy and Sec'y of the Army, Collin McMillan and James Roche, respectively. Rumsfeld is also pressing for the President to name Gen. Tommy Franks to replace Gen. Eric Shinseki as Army Chief of Staff.
Posted by: Dar ||
05/09/2003 09:59 am ||
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Publicly, not much at all has happened in the FBI's anthrax investigation since the search last winter of a small pond in upper Maryland. Divers went to the bottom but came up empty handed. Privately, however, agents say it would only have been icing on the cake because they believe they already have their man, even if they never get his indictment, reports CBS News Correspondent Jim Stewart. Bio-weapons researcher Dr. Steven Hatfill, sources confirm, remains the FBI's number one suspect in the attacks, even though round-the-clock surveillance and extensive searches have failed to develop more than what even Justice Department prosecutors describe as a "highly circumstantial" case."
And now one possible outcome, sources suggest, is that the government might take the unusual step of bringing charges against Hatfill unrelated to the anthrax attacks at all, if they become convinced that's the only way to prevent future incidents. Not unlike, for example, the income tax evasion charges finally brought against Al Capone, when evidence of racketeering proved elusive. Hatfill and his attorneys are aware of this possibility. They say they have always offered their full cooperation to the FBI.
Van Harp is the senior FBI official in charge of the case. He's retiring this week and he also declined to talk specifics. âI think we've made progress,â said Harp of the case against Hatfill. âIt's frustrating that it took so long. I think everyone involved in the investigation is frustrated over it.â Much of that frustration, investigators admit, has been the sheer volume of the science involved in not only identifying the strain of anthrax used, but then reverse engineering it and breaking down its DNA. âWe just can't hurry the science, nor would we want to. And we're making sure whatever the results are, that it's admissible," said Harp. Admissible in the event, that is, that anyone is ever actually charged with the crimes. Damn, I hope the FBI, which has had so many F-ups in the recent past, has this one right. If not, they've done another Richard Jewell on someone, and we'll end up paying the compensation. All this guy has to do is have another anthrax mailing while he's jugged and it'll blow up in their face
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 09:16 am ||
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Just another attempt to justify their concentration on Hatfill. No facts, just hints, sly looks, etc. This is an embarrassment.
It is possible, even likely, that there will be no future incidents. If it was a "lone gunman", he probably achieved his goal. If it was Iraq, we may never know unless files turn up at the Telegraph or Times of London.
#2
Okay let me get this straight. We can't prove you are the source of the Anthrax, so we'll cook up a set of charges (totally unrelated to the Anthrax crime) and take you down that way. Sounds like SOP for the Bureau.
I realize we need a counter-intelligence agency. I just wonder if the FBI is the right one. This sounds like another abuse of police power.
Posted by: Douglas De Bono ||
05/09/2003 12:12 Comments ||
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#3
Ed Lake has more on the so-called case against Dr. Hatfill.Given FBI's record (remember Wen Ho Lee?),I'm very skeptical about this investigation.
Way off topic Fred, but I know Rantburgers like to keep up to date with scientific advances. Delete at will...
A bizarre experiment by a group of students has found monkeys cannot write Shakespeare. Lecturers and students from the University of Plymouth wanted to test the claim that an infinite number of monkeys given typewriters would create the works of The Bard. A single computer was placed in a monkey enclosure at Paignton Zoo to monitor the literary output of six primates. But after a month, the Sulawesi crested macaques had only succeeded in partially destroying the machine, using it as a lavatory, and mostly typing the letter "s". Sulawesi monkeys? They used Sulawesi monkeys? Oh fer C*****'s sake! Everyone knows red-bellied tamarins are the most literally gifted of all the primate species.
The project, by students from the university's MediaLab Arts course, received £2,000 from the Arts Council. Money. Well. Spent.
Director of the university's Institute of Digital Arts and Technology (i-DAT), Mike Phillips, denied the project was a disaster and said they had learned "an awful lot about resource allocation". He also denied it had been a waste of money. He said the £2,000 was spent on purchasing the hardware to set up a radio link so the activities in the enclosure could be watched live on a website. "Compared to the cost of reality TV, this was a tiny pinch of money," he said. "It provided very stimulating and fascinating viewing." The six monkeys - Elmo, Gum, Heather, Holly, Mistletoe and Rowan - produced five pages of text which consisted mainly of the letter "s". Was one line of "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" too much to ask? Illiterate hippies.
But towards the end of the experiment, their output slightly improved, with the letters A, J, L and M also appearing. However, they failed to come up with anything that remotely resembled a word. Do you speak Monkey? No? Then how the hell do you know what they were trying to say?! A bit of cultural relativism wouldn't have been amiss here, BEEB
Paignton Zoo scientific officer Dr Amy Plowman said: "The work was interesting but had little scientific value, except to show that the 'infinite monkey' theory is flawed." Erm, how many less than "infinite" is six monkeys? I thought they were supposed to have infinite time, too. You proved nothing! Oh, yeah, you should have had an infintely large research grant, too. OK.
The results of the experiment formed part of a larger project developed by i-DAT. They have been published in a limited edition book entitled Notes Towards The Complete Works of Shakespeare. Authors: Lee Muir & Rhys Uss-McCack
Posted by: Bulldog ||
05/09/2003 08:51 am ||
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#1
Wow, but that story had me laughing! Thanks for getting my day started on the right foot.
#2
I've got to to think that the invinite monkey theory is still viable. It's just to early to make a case for or against. Couldn't a stronger, more powerful, computer be procured. Lets give this "ground breaking" scientifific excercise a chance.
#3
Whoa! The results are being printed in a limited-edition book? I'd better rush out and buy several copies , and put even more money into their pockets!
Just curious, will the limited edition books be signed by the monkeys as well?
#8
*blinks* WTF??? *looks through site*. Damn, thanks, Mojo! I learned something new today!
Hmm. Actually the significance of the appearance of the letter "s" may be illusory: The key may have been stuck.
Hey guys! Perhaps your next pass at the problem could be financed by manufacturers of Harsh Environment and Mil Spec computer laptop manufacturers: Our grunts are now too computer literate to REALLY field test such equipment, and the substitutes work only for bananas, which are only slightly more expensive than peanuts.
#11
Ms Plowman's comment about the infinite monkey theory being flawed is revealing. She is identified as a scientific officer, which, I presume, means that she has some training in science and, perhaps, math and specficially probability theory.
As I recall, the "theory" is that an infinite number of monkeys, given enough time, would recreate Shakespeare. The theory may or may not be flawed. But this "test" of the theory is obviously flawed. To conclude that six monkeys equate to an infinite number of monkeys is quite a leap. The duration of the experiment was not provided, but I'd wager that it was rather limited. In short, it was no test whatsoever.
Do I care whether monkeys can create Shakespeare? No. Was this a test or a publicity stunt? That's a self-answering question. But Ms. Plowman's comment has the air of a good deal of contemporary "expert" explication. It reveals absolutely nothing about the issue at hand, but a good deal about the credibility of the expert.
#12
My 7 year old suggested that his golden comet chicken Henrietta do a little "hunt and peck" on the keyboard and we will see what we get. Got to wait till she finishes her daily egg laying first.
This monkey business above reminds me of a cartoon in a magazine. Dog sitting at desk, typwriter before him. Man standing over dog, frowning, reading typed page. Caption reads, dog:
"sure it's doggerel, what did you expect?"
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
05/09/2003 12:43 Comments ||
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#13
Damn, thanks, Mojo! I learned something new today!
What, that programmers do really elaborate April Fools Day jokes?
#14
as was pointed out years ago, the infinite monkeys typing Shakespeare as a model of evolution (generally stated by detractors of evolution) is not accurate to begin with. The whole point of evol is that while the genetic changes may be random, which ones survive are not. Therefore a more accurate model would be one where a group of monkeys at random type a document the length of Hamlet. An editor, playing the role of natural selection, would then review the work and keep those letters that matched up to Hamlet. The monkeys would then have another go. Sooner or later they would eventually get Hamlet - and sooner than one might think.
Republicans plan to begin the process today of using their so-called "nuclear option" (so called by both sides because it has the potential to wreak havoc in the Senate and even further intensify partisan discord) to end the Democratic filibusters of judicial nominees by changing Senate rules governing how many votes are required to break such blockades. Majority Leader Bill Frist, Tennessee Republican, plans to introduce the rules change today, according to two Senate aides involved in the Republican planning. A nuclear option which will wreak havoc and intensify partisan discord ... Gads, I hope none of the poor widdie Senators get a case of the vapors over it
Yasss... We've gone this long without havoc and partisan discord. Why introduce it now?
Currently, 60 votes are required to break a filibuster. The resolution, co-sponsored by several senators, will require 60 votes only in the first attempt at invoking cloture. In each attempt after that, the vote requirement will drop by three until it reaches a simple majority of 51 votes. This rule change will apply only to executive nominations, not legislative business. Republicans hope the plan will be greeted favorably by some Democrats and thus increase their chances of getting it passed. The idea was first floated by Sen. Zell Miller, Georgia Democrat, in an Op-Ed piece in the Wall Street Journal several months ago. Mr. Miller has consistently voted with Republicans to end the filibusters. In 1995, a similar plan was introduced by Democratic Sens. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and Tom Harkin of Iowa.
Posted by: John Phares ||
05/09/2003 05:35 am ||
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This is long overdue. Besides, the democrats went nuclear a long, long time ago.
Posted by: Douglas De Bono ||
05/09/2003 6:45 Comments ||
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#2
Bah. This'll be filibustered.
Nevertheless, I agree with Douglas that this is long overdue: I thought the Consitution was the supreme law of the land, not Robert's Rules of Order or senatorial operating rules....
#3
Robert Byrd will stain his sheets over this one.
Posted by: eric ||
05/09/2003 7:49 Comments ||
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The rational for Senate confirmation was to remove politics from the process. Well, that's point is now long dead. Its time for the final democratization of our own government, in the spirit of the XVII Amendment which made Senators directly elected. Its time for the people to confirm nominations as well.
1. The President shall have the power to nominate Judges of the Supreme Court, Districts and Appellates of the United States with confirmation by the consent of the governed. The Senate
no longer retains the authority under Article II, Section 2 to confirm these nominations.
2. Nominees will stand for confirmation on the date of election by a vote of the people. The date of election will correspond to the nearest date of regular voting, not to be less than 90 days from the date of nomination.
3. The confirmation vote will be conducted only in the area or region in which the judicial nominee will have jurisdiction. Nominees for
Supreme Court will be subject to national confirmation.
Make this an issue for the next national election. See who really trusts the people and who only seeks to rule the people.
Posted by: Don ||
05/09/2003 9:16 Comments ||
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#5
I believe this is actually the tactical nuclear option -- the strategic weapon would be a ruling by the chair that items on the Senate's executive calendar can't be filibustered. Since this is the Senate equivalent of All your base are belong to us, they're reluctant to use it -- particularly since things will change in November 2004...
#6
The Dems have pushed the Packs to this, and are solely to blame for the rule change. They've dumbed-down their "extremist" criteria to anyone who believes in state's rights and might not pass a litmus test barrage on abortion - it is the law of the land, and just assuring that you would obey that law is not enough to the Schumers and Leahys and Neas of the left
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 9:24 Comments ||
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#7
Snellenr - yup things will change Nov 2004. All indications are they will not need this rules after that point as they pick up a net gain of 4 to 5 seats, extending their majority to 55 or so. There are far more Dem seats up, and far more of them vulnerable in 2004, do the math. If the Repubs can pull this off, they ough tot ask Zell Miller if he wants to change parties like Nighthorse Campbell (the only Harley riding biker in the Senate) did out here in Colorado. The Dem party has changed and left people like Miller out in the cold.
#8
JohnPhares: I'm surprised LiberalHawk hasn't called you on posting something like this which is not related to the war on terror. You see, liberals - at heart - simply can not tolerate hearing views contrary to theirs.
#10
OldSpook - Miller has announced that he is retiring and not running for reelection in '04.
Hopefully the GOP can pick up his seat. Even if they do it was nice having a Democrat side with the GOP on most matters - helped defuse the "partasinship" argument against the GOP
I believe it may have been LiberalHawk who posted an article along with some disapproving comments about the content of other articles submitted to this section a few hours ago. In response, I humbly asked for any refined sort to show me the section to which I should have posted instead (I even listed them all, since none made more sense to me than this one), but it seems that the article and my heartfelt request for enlightenment have somehow vanished, leaving me none the wiser about the particulars of my posting faux pas.
I am, needless to say, as wounded by this as by the impression others often seem to have of me that I am, somehow, a person who uses sarcasm as a rhetorical device.
Posted by: John Phares ||
05/09/2003 17:33 Comments ||
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#12
Well then, having read Fred's comments elsewhere about the intent of this blog, I can see why some might take exception to articles that don't deal with terrorism being posted to this section.
Will somebody please direct me to the rule book, lest I violate other Rantburgian taboos?
Posted by: John Phares ||
05/09/2003 18:05 Comments ||
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#13
No book, and Fred moves, edits, deletes at his pleasure. He pays the bills. Take no offense JP :-)
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/09/2003 19:44 Comments ||
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The Israeli military yesterday began obliging foreigners entering the Gaza Strip to sign waivers absolving the army from responsibility if it shoots them. What about bulldozers?
Visitors must also declare that they are not peace activists. That'll cut into the number of foreigners coming to Gaza.
The move came hours before an autopsy on James Miller — the British cameraman killed in a Gaza refugee camp — confirmed that he was almost certainly killed by an Israeli soldier, despite the army's assertions to the contrary. Yesterday, the British government demanded an Israeli military police criminal investigation into Miller's death and the shooting of another Briton by the army in Gaza, Tom Hurndall, a peace activist. Mr Hurndall is in a coma with severe brain damage after being shot in the head by an Israeli soldier last month as he attempted to protect a small child from gunfire. The Foreign Office minister, Mike O'Brien, called in the Israeli ambassador to London to press the demand, which diplomatic sources portrayed as a ratcheting up of pressure on the Israeli government. "On the basis of the evidence we've seen, we feel this case is so serious that we are asking for a military police investigation," said a Foreign Office spokesperson.
The waiver to enter Gaza requires foreigners, including United Nations relief workers, to acknowledge that they are entering a danger zone and will not hold the Israeli army responsible if they are shot or injured. The army document also warns visitors they are forbidden from approaching the security fences next to Jewish settlements or entering "military zones" in Rafah refugee camp close to the Egyptian border where Miller was shot dead on Saturday. What was he doing there?
He was the third foreigner killed or severely wounded in the area in recent weeks, besides numerous Palestinian civilians hit by Israeli fire, many of them children. The army invariably claims the victims were caught in crossfire. Palestinians say most of the shooting is indiscriminate and reckless, or worse.
Yesterday, Israel's forensic institute issued its autopsy report which backs up the accounts of witnesses who say that Miller was killed by a shot from an Israeli armoured vehicle. A video of the shooting also appears to undermine Israeli army claims that Miller, 34, was caught in crossfire and that soldiers shot in his direction in response to incoming fire from a Palestinian gunman nearby. The film shows three journalists in flak jackets and helmets, clearly marked with the letters TV. They are shouting "Is there anyone there? Is there anyone there? We are British journalists." A single shot is heard and then another followed by the sound of Miller groaning after he was hit. There is no sound of crossfire. Sounds like a Charlie Fox situation.
The military also now requires visitors to Gaza to declare that they have no affiliation to the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) which is close to becoming a banned organisation since it was revealed that members met with two British suicide bombers days before the attack on a Tel Aviv bar last week in which three people were murdered. 'bout time to send them home to their mommies.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/09/2003 02:05 am ||
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When someone the lacks the desire or good sense to stay out from between two armed and hostile parties, is signing a waiver really necessary to absolve one of the hostile parties? In my book, foreigner plus Gaza already equaled lack of good sense. Probably already dumb enough to sign this IDF "hunting permit".
Posted by: Tom ||
05/09/2003 6:55 Comments ||
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The Israelis are doing their best to protect their troops but unit discipline is a bit frayed after all this time with the Intifada. Lots of reserves being used, and the fact that everyone in Israel knows more than one person killed makes it very, very difficult to enforce weapons tight rules.
And, otoh, Israel has been known to send messages through these sorts of incidents, as has been speculated about the Liberty attack in 1967.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
