Edited for brevity.
He brought the Rolling Stones to Toronto And gay marriage to your bedroom! and now he wants to bring the world.
Liberal MP Dennis Mills has one last mission if heâs re-elected next year: he wants to convince the United Nations to move its headquarters to his riding in Canadaâs largest city. Oh, please please please please!
High on his success as the mastermind of last monthâs SARS benefit concert featuring the Stones, AC/DC and other rock royalty, Mills said his latest plot isnât far-fetched.
"We are traitors ingrates peacemakers," he said, citing foreign policy "from Pearson to Trudeau, to Chretienâs special respect (for the UN) in the latest international war we had in Iraq."
Chretien refused to join a U.S.-led coalition against Iraq this year because it wasnât UN-sanctioned. O Canada! O Canada! Uh-oh Canada -- looks like I wounât be taking my wife to British Columbis this year. Your loss.
Mills said he has consulted members of the Iranian, Greek, Turkish, Ukrainian, Irish and other Canadian immigrant communities, who say they will lobby the governments of their countries of origin. Buahahaahaha! Heck, maybe it would work.... power to the people!
"They all say, âPush the button and we will start (lobbying) in seconds,â " he said.
Multiculturalism "is going to have a global payoff for us." (once again) Buahahauhahahaaa!
A UN spokesman wasnât so optimistic. About multiculturalism? He said there hasnât been any serious discussion about moving the organization, which employs some 5,000 staff in the building housing the secretariat, which was built in the early 1950s
#1
Yeah right. The UN diplo-boobs all hate America but they will never want to leave New York. BTW, has Al-Doori (spelling?) left New York yet? If dweebs like him don't want to leave, likewise all the rest.
#2
Mills needs to think outside the box (or border). I'm sure there are a great many Americans who will be perfectly willing to help lobby to get the UN moved to Toronto.
Posted by: A Jackson ||
08/12/2003 20:03 Comments ||
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#3
I'll help them move!
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
08/12/2003 20:27 Comments ||
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#4
Bet Canada would love to have those H&K MP5's that Kofi likes to stock up on....btw is Kofi planning on his own lil' security force when he retires?
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 20:36 Comments ||
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#5
Canada's too close. How about . . . . . Vanuatu (the island chain that's sinking, and blaming it all on "global warming")?
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/13/2003 0:32 Comments ||
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#6
Is this a"Forlorn dream,lets hope not.I'm with you Barb.
Old Spook: Just curious if youâre still visiting since I havenât seen your commentaries for quite a while, and I enjoyed them and respected your insights based on your background. Are you lurking? Changed your pseudonym?
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 1:50:03 PM ||
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Edited for brevity.
The 5,300-year-old "Iceman" discovered in 1991 in the Italian Alps was killed by one or more assailants in a fight that lasted at least two days, shows evidence obtained by sophisticated DNA testing and old-fashioned detective work. Scientists initially presumed that the Stone Age Iceman, nicknamed Otzi, was caught in a storm and froze to death. But a new team said Monday that Otziâs case instead has become the worldâs oldest, and coldest, murder case.
In 2001, an Italian radiologist found an arrowhead embedded in Otziâs shoulder. Otzi had been hit from behind and managed to pull out only the shaft. That discovery led Eduard Egarter, Bolanzoâs chief medical examiner and curator of Otziâs body, to look for more evidence of a fight. Alois Pirpamer, one of the climbers who found Otzi, told Egarter that the Iceman had been clutching a knife in his right hand at the time of the discovery. Egarter matched the knife to the hand and found a deep gash on the hand that had been missed in previous studies. He then found another cut on the left hand and bruises on the torso, as if Otzi had been beaten. Blood from one person was found on the back of Otziâs cloak, and blood from two people was found on the same arrow in his quiver. More blood was on the knife.
[T]he team suspects blood on the back of the cloak may have come from a wounded colleague that Otzi was carrying over his shoulder. [B]lood of two people was found on the same arrow, suggesting Otzi killed both men and retrieved the arrow. Quincy, where are you?!
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 1:04:57 PM ||
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#1
Of course he died in the Italian Alps; he was stabbed in the back, wasn't he?
Posted by: raptor ||
08/12/2003 8:28:28 AM ||
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#1
raptor, I had problems with spyware in my home computer. Everytime I deleted them, they came back until I started using Ad-aware. They have a free download that searches and cleans spyware off your computer. I highly recomend it.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 8:38 Comments ||
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#2
you might also try spybot - i run both it and ad-aware, and spybot seems to find things ad-aware doesn't.
#3
My brother in law's got an instant messenger spoof on his machine that I've been trying to find for a month. Ad Aware blocks them as they open up, but I still haven't been able to find the ugly sonofabitch... I'll give spybot a try.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/12/2003 11:30 Comments ||
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#5
Mozilla/Firebird, Opera, and other pop-up blockers won't help against adware, since those are popping up from a program running on your computer (not the browser). A firewall will often catch them calling home for new ads.
Spybot catches things AdAware doesn't, and vice-versa. I'd advise using both.
And if you are running Win 2000 or Win XP go upgrade your virus software immediately -- there's a nasty worm running about.
Posted by: Kathy K ||
08/12/2003 12:42 Comments ||
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#6
Here's another combination that will provide very good protection. Proxomitron (ad-blocker the works as a local proxy on your PC - it's free!), SpyBot (use the innoculation after you clean your PC and check for updates - it's free!), McAfee Personal Firewall (comes with the Personal edition of the anti-Virus - sorry, got to pay for this one). One note - both Proxomitron and McAfee Firewall are not for novices - at least a modicum of PC savvy is required - you can really get technical with both [and screw up your PC access to the Internet good].
Has anybody else been having a problem with Rantburg?
I have been going along reading Rantburg,enjoying my morning coffee(keyboard spray shield installed),when 10-15 windows will pop open in a matter of 3-4 secounds.I end-up having to do a hard shut-down. After the first couple of times it happened my Norton anti-virus program found and qurantined a spybot worm.It has happened a couple of times since,but no virus found.
HELP,I would just die without my morning infusion of rantburg, dontcha know.
Posted by: raptor ||
08/12/2003 7:36:25 AM ||
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#1
No problem here, I've had to be careful when looking for stories on overseas sites, Arab News, etc. Lot's of programs there that try to load themselves.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 8:23 Comments ||
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#2
try Zone Alarm free fire wall...works for me and it's free...did I mention? it's free. that's the price I look for being the cheap bastard that I am lol
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 9:01 Comments ||
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#3
Hi Raptor,
You should use both a firewall like Zone Alarm (I use Zone Alarm pro) AND a worm/trojan detector like AdAware at a minimum. AdAware also has Ad Watch available for its plus version ($) that watches for any and all writes to the registry. Zone Alarm and Ad Watch run all of the time; AdAware runs when you tell it to. All three depend on you not to just let anything through, though. Also, an ad blocker like AdSubtract blocks popups. Lastly, Panda Platinum contains yet another firewall that works differently from Zone Alarm; they don't fight. I also have a hardware firewall. I use all of them. Layered approach. I'm not paranoid; it's just that there are a whole lot of people trying to kill me. And you.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
08/12/2003 9:41 Comments ||
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#4
Hi Steve, see my comments for Raptor. Everyone has these problems until they takes the corrective/preventative action steps.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
08/12/2003 9:42 Comments ||
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#5
These kinds of discussions are just never complete without a plug for Mozilla. Alternate browsers are more secure and block popups. I haven't seen a popup window in over a year.
#6
I use EMS Free Surfer and Popup Stopper on my machines and seldom see a popup. I use IE 6 almost exclusively -- it's what I design for at work, so everything has to work on it. I don't have MSN Messenger installed (nor AOL Messenger for that matter). I have AdAware and should have AdAlert, and I have McAfee Virus scan at work, Norton on one of my home machines, and BitDefender on the others, to include our Rantburg server. I've started running Spam Assassin on all my e-mail clients.
Friday we had some down time because QuackAx the hacker boy was pounding at the gates. I'd left FTP turned on. The system slowed as he was trying his (probably millions) of passwords, and he managed to upload a raft of games before I finally threw him out at 1.30 a.m.
Computers and the internet and e-mail are a great thing for all of us, but some people just delight in pooping in the punchbowl. Make's 'em feel important.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/12/2003 10:42 Comments ||
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#7
These kinds of discussions are just never complete without a plug for Mozilla.
While I also stand by Mozilla's pop-up rejecting features, it's worth repeating that regardless of usage, in order to avoid your machine being infected with spyware, never, NEVER, open an attachment you didn't ask to receive or download something you aren't 100% sure of. People that happen to use Outlook (ugh) need to turn off the preview pane.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/12/2003 11:39 Comments ||
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#9
I'm no networking whiz, but I think having a cheap cable/dsl router installed between the internet and your PC should help for those with a cable or dsl connection. Just don't enable port forwarding on the router. But of course you'd still be open to nasty websites and downloads.
#10
I'd go with that recommendation. Since getting my router (and its hardware firewall) for around $100, I haven't caught a single virus at home. Just before I got it, I was fdisking four machines, thanks to a little present from somebody.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/12/2003 14:02 Comments ||
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"Rock the Casbah" is my favorite tune by the Clash.
Security forces stormed several buildings in a Riyadh suburb and traded fire with suspected militants Tuesday, news reports said. It was the second day of reported clashes in Saudi Arabia. Jamil Thiabi, correspondent of the Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. in Riyadh, said Saudi security forces stormed buildings in the al-Suweidi suburb and surrounded a building under construction.
``Armed men in the building are hurling hand grenades and opening automatic rifle fire on the security forces,ââ he said. "Youâll never take me alive, copper!"
Helicopters were circling the area in pursuit of militants, the Dubai-based Al-Arabiya satellite station reported. The reports could not be independently confirmed, and it was unclear if there were any casualties. We hope so.
On Monday, Saudi police arrested 10 militants who allegedly belonged to a terrorist cell planning to attack a British target, according to a Saudi government official. For a country with no terrorists, there sure seems to be a whole lot of shooting going on.
The bombings in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, sparked unprecedented public discussion of the role of religion in Saudi society, with some daring to argue that the strict form of Islam preached in the kingdom fostered intolerance and extremism. And some arguing that they ainât strict enough.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 2:35:35 PM ||
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More details from Reuters: Four policemen and a Muslim militant were killed in clashes in Riyadh Tuesday after Saudi security forces raided a militant stronghold in the city, Saudi security sources said. "The shooting has now eased off," one security source told Reuters more than five hours after the clashes started. Other sources said four policemen and a militant were killed in the pitched battles that broke out. "More than 15 were wounded," a security source said without giving details. A resident reached by phone in the southern neighborhood of the Saudi capital said at least five houses were targeted in the raid, in which security forces were backed by helicopter gunships. "Security forces are using helicopters," said the resident about the fighting, in which the sound of machine guns and exploding grenades echoed through the area. "The operation is very big. The whole area is surrounded by security police. It is a big area," he added. Residents saw police drag out and arrest suspected militants. "I saw one man break free from police and run away after kicking off his shoes. Police were chasing him," a resident said. Ambulances sped from several houses in the district which is known as a fundamentalist stronghold. Police cordoned off the area, preventing passers-by and reporters from approaching.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 15:18 Comments ||
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#2
This should be in Arabia.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 15:20 Comments ||
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#3
Just think, before the Riyadh bombings on May 14th, there were no "militant" or "terrorist" elements in Saudi Arabia. Amazing, isn't it? In just 3 short months they've gone from perfect peace (snicker) to running gun battles in the streets and capturing tons of explosives and arms.
The growth medium (read: shit) of Saudi Wahabbism is nigh unto magical. Rather akin to Miracle Gro for asshats. I guess the Friday prayers are like Plant Lights, too. And the "subjects" of the Saudi Royals could be equated to mushrooms, as well. A hothouse of Izzoid stupidity. A day (read: generation) late and a dollar (read: 3.7401 SR) short. Methinks that for SaoodiLand (read: the Royals), peace is a Bridge Too Far.
#6
"Some of this is beginning to look like open warfare."
Works for me. :-)
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
08/12/2003 18:24 Comments ||
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#7
"Rock the Casbah" is my favorite tune by the Clash.
A little something from Peter Bergen's book Holy War, Inc.:
As to America, I say to it and its people a few words: I swear to God that America will not live in peace before peace reigns in Palestine, and before all the army of infidels depart the land of Muhammad, peace be upon him. -- Osama bin Laden, in a videotaped statement first aired on October 7, 2001
Shareef don't like it
Rock the Casbah
Rock the Casbah
-- from "Rock the Casbah", The Clash
Exactly as it appears in the Afterword chapter of the book. I need a Rock the Casbah bumper sticker ;)
Run your car on 85% ethanol: No more money for the SAUDIS Ethanol
Ethanol is manufactured exclusively from biomass (agricultural grain products, primarily). Midwestern states such as Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, and Illinois produce most of the ethanol used in the US. Plants in South Carolina have produced fuel grade ethanol in past years, but no fuel grade ethanol plants are currently operation in the state. This fuel is usually mixed with 15% gasoline, making E-85 fuel. Gasohol, (10% ethanol, 90% gasoline) was once used in the state. Vehicles that can run on E-85 or gasoline are called "flex-fuel" vehicles. Many auto manufactures now feature the flex-fuel capability as a standard feature. For a complete listing of these vehicles, visit the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition website.
Flex-fuel vehicles cost the same as a gasoline vehicle, and the fuel an be made available in refueling stations without extensive modifications, although some are necessary. United Energy Distributors in Aiken, SC, sells E-85 to the public. The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control makes E-85 available to all government fleets at 2600 Bull Street in Columbia, SC; and Santee Cooper has three refueling stations in throughout the Pee Dee region for its vehicles. The SC State Fleet operates about 1,200 of these flex-fuel vehicles.
Nobody to blame but us if we keep giving those asshats our money! Ethanol can also be made out of non-drug, non-TCH hemp stalks with greater efficiency than corn, and can be burnt to produce electricity by boiling water. There is NO REASON BUT LAZINESS AND THE SHOCK COSTS OF CHANGING OUR INFRASTRUCTURE for us to be giving Islamists our MONEY!
also: ethanol burns clean in a closed-carbon cycle (ie: doesnât contribute to global warming). It is cleaner than nuclear, less expensive to set up and without the drawback of expensive nuclear waste. It is not as efficient at producing large amounts of energy but the positives of no waste/no potential chernobyl more than compensate for this.
Posted by: Anon1 ||
08/12/2003 2:40:37 AM ||
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#1
One major problem with ethanol is that it's production is not cost effective, it takes more energy to produce it than you will receive from it.
You must plant the crop, fertilize it, apply herbicides and harvest the crop, then grind the corn (or whatever) and convert it into a mash and then distill the mash into alcohol. Every step of the process requires energy. It is far more cost effective to plant corn (or whatever) sell it and buy oil from whoever. Government sponsored ethanol programs are a major boondoggle.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 3:57 Comments ||
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#2
As regards yesterdays article/posts on fuel-cell tech:The best way to get started is with baby steps,
(first)Provide tax credits incentives to major comercial buildings and hospitals that install FC power generators for back-up power.Eventually as the FC generators become more efficent,and accepted by the public they become the primary,stand alone power source.
(secound)As tech improves efficiency and per-unit-cost apply the tax incentives to government and commercial fleets.
(third)Agin after corrosponding improvments in effeciency and per-unit-cost,start marketing them to the general public.
As the popularity grows,effiency increases,and per-unit size/cost decreases the supply/support infrastructer will grow to fit the demand.
Today's supply/support infrastructer did not grow overnight but took nearly 100 years to develop.
#3
The statement that ethanol burns clean is quite deceptive. First, some CO2 is produced (however less than when gasoline is burned). Second, CO2 will be produced at many points in the process of producing ethanol.
Since ethanol doesn't have as high an energy content as gasoline, a user will have to fill up more.
The cost of setting up the infrastructure to convert to ethanol is staggering. The amount of land that would have to be reserved to produce the raw material for ethanol is also potentially a problem (there are people who believe that much of the brushlands of the western US can be converted to that use but this is not proved).
#4
Steve
You left out the last step. You have to dispose of the spent mash. You can only feed so many hogs.
There are companies in the recycling business that will take anything that will ferment and make fuel alcohol (like out of date soft drinks, candy, etc). They still have major expense to prepare the feed stock, distill, and dispose of waste.
To All
Ethanol as a fuel source is similar to that of hydrogen in that the stuff is merely an energy TRANSFER medium which has losses (ie no net gain in energy) and other difficult to solve problems.
#5
The question of which fuel to use is really a matter of economics. Currently, petroleum is cheap. Alternative technologies will be used when they become cost-effective, which will happen when petroleum becomes more expensive. The best solution is to let the free market decide!
#6
If we really were going to go cold turkey or
if there was a disruption in supply (which there
has not been) it would probably be more cost
effective to use modified coal (gasified coal?)
than ethanol. It may even make more sense
to build more electric plants burning coal
to run electrics or to crack hydrogen. I don't
see how an agricultural solution could replace
a fuel that has spent eons concentrating into
dense pure carbon.
#8
I think the main point is that it (coal
gasification) probably
is not cost affective in relation to buying
foreign oil. However, it is not necessarily
less cost affective than the ethanol solution.
I say let the corn and coal lobbies fight it out
in the marketplace (without big subsidies).
#9
Another misleading part of this website is its insistence that electric cars are the cleanest mode of individual transportation. This is only true if the power plant creating the energy is, uh, clean. Which I guess means it has to be a solar or wind power plant (NOT very common; lots of maintenance problems), because everything else (gas, coal, nuclear) produces pollution. I guess hydroelectric and thermal powerplants don't, but since the ecologists generally complain about them as well....
Now, hydrogen shows some promise. Generators and engines require minimal retooling to use it and, according the review of Ford's hydrogen SUV which I remember reading, it's got a good bit of !UMPH! to it when you hit the peddle. Technically speaking, you can run an electrical charge generated by solar panels through a container of water to produce, um, H3 and O2 I think it is. Now, the problem with the hydrogen/oxygen mix used for fuel is that it's highly unstable.... which is why nobody is marketing a "make hydrogen at home!" kit. Flick the switch on a bad day and they'll be calling you lefty â or Darkman!
#10
It's the economics that kills ethanol and other alternative sources of energy. I still think the eventual way to go will be using nuclear power (cheap) to produce hydrogen (clean).
Oil will still be needed for production of things like plastics.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/12/2003 11:32 Comments ||
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#11
For the scoop on coal gasification from the DOE:
The money quote:
"Current gasification-based power plants are estimated to cost about $1200 per kilowatt, compared to conventional coal plants at around $900 per kilowatt."
#13
Hydro is a great source of energy, to be sure, but a flooded canyon/basin is a sort of polution. Nuclear power's reputation has been sullied (Saudied?) The technology is just waiting.
#14
I don't know why, but after I read Steve's post, I envisioned stills in everyone's back yard. Too bad we can't find a way to mix our own and add it when we fill up.
#15
With fossil fuels, nature and time have already done the heavy lifting to change dead matter into concentrated energy. If we each lived 1,000,000 years we could bury our garbage and drill for it later. Since we can't do that, we have to add outside energy to make the conversion in a reasonable time. The energy we add is anything but efficient or free. Nature has no such qualms about burning huge amounts of power (our sun for instance) for an eternity (to our limited point of view.) Just remember what Homer said to Lisa "You'll not break the law of thermodynamics in this house." On the other hand, I am in favor of a still in every backyard.
#16
Solar Panel roofing tiles combined with a few laws that insist the power companies buy power instead of just crediting it would solve the clean power problem within a decade or less. It would create new industries, add value to homes, and decentralize our power plants so they are not juicy terrorist targets.
The only drawback is power companies are big political doners.
#17
What happened to the outfit in New Jersey that is/was working on a process to produce a synthetic oil out of waste from packing plants and other organic garbage? The solutions are out there to achieving energy independence if we really want to achieve it. Personally I really don't think I'd mind paying an extra 10 or 15 percent for fuels prduced here because at least the freaking money will stay here and not be going to asshatted SOBs in Sandy Arabia. The only thing that really stands in our way is the inertia of the current energy system. $.02 worth.
Posted by: Someone who did NOT vote for William Proxmire ||
08/12/2003 16:25 Comments ||
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#18
What Fred said... I don't see hydrogen-fueled power plants. Nukes fit that bill far better, and provide the energy for mass extraction of hydrogen, which in turn can be combusted for "small" engines and mobile power.
Spot, they don't come much more free market than me. But the techno lag between not having enough access to cost-effective petro, and getting the scale of hydro production up to speed, is going to be a long cold wait for a lot of pedestrians. In a worst case scenario (a future US isolated from foreign supplies for whatever reason), even if we can refine enough domestic crude for national security purposes, there are gonna be some highly PO'd taxpaying voters.
This is one of the few places where gov't. really can help, in part by facilitating, rather than blocking, good nukes. They will undoubtedly get MORE financially involved than we want, and screw things up at our expense, but we can't throw the baby out with the bathwater. There are long term geopolitical benefits that mightn't reward individual private companies to pursue, in the shorter term.
I'm not sure hydrogen is significantly more volatile than gasoline... you can't smoke around either one, and there aren't many "refine your own gasoline" kits out, either. The fuel cell developments seem to have a pretty good handle on it.
Posted by: Mark IV ||
08/12/2003 16:25 Comments ||
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#19
After reading mountains of schtuff, I come to the following conclusions:
In the end, to fulfill the goals of eliminating pollution and achieving energy independence, our transportation will have to be powered by electricity.
There are 4 steps in the transportation power cycle:
1) production of the fuel
2) distribution of the fuel
3) storage of the fuel
4) consumption of the fuel
If electricity is the "fuel", we have approx 3.5 of these already solved:
#1 - Full credit. This is the crux for it is where we can gain in quantum leaps - and get economy of scale improvements. Convert a power plant from a dirty fuel to a clean fuel and you have, effectively, converted tens of thousands of vehicles in one shot. And we have the choice of fuels to run the plants - nuke, coal, whatever we choose. And why can't THIS be the point where hydrogen power is introduced - reducing safety issues of clueless users handling it?
#2 - Full credit. We have distribution already in place - 100% of the existing infrastructure is usable.
#3 - Half credit. We're not doing badly on battery technology, either, but it is the weakest link. Funny, but in the distant future this could go away via induction systems (i.e. a modern version of the cable car - only buried in the roadbed of other means) technology. Finding higher efficiencies here and solving dangerous waste (worn out batteries) or recycling issues should be a high priority in the mean time - NOW.
#4 - Full credit. We have electric motors pretty-well figured out, though efficiencies can always be improved via various techniques (low temp to achieve near-frictionless motors, etc.)
The Producers and the Users must switch to electrical without an ecomonic meltdown - so it has to be incremental. Probably a 20-year process.
Well, this approach is inherently incremental - and the least painful overall. Each of us will buy an electric car when the economics are there to motivate us. Obviously, the gasoline + electricity hybrids, are the intermediate step. Some mfg's are already on this path and all could be - it's not magic - we already know how it can be done.
Petroleum fuel (gas + diesel) production quotas (as a percentage of the distillery output) and distribution / storage can be gradually phased out as direct demand for them declines and thus will be far less of a shock economically to the petro industry as they shift output to the myriad other products produced from petro: heating oil, plastics, pharmaceuticals, building mat'ls, etc.
Just my observation for the least painful process to energy independence.
#20
com,
If I understand you right you propose to make powerplants run off hydrogen instead of coal or oil. Where does the hydrogen come from? There are no significant sources of free (uncombined) hydrogen on earth. You have to use electricity to split it from water, or extreme heat to liberate it from natural gas. Both of these methods consume far more energy than is in the hydrogen they produce.
Hydrogen can be used as a store of energy but not as a source of energy.
Yank, solar powered roofs may be economic in 100 years, but are far from practical. Forcing utilities to buy inconsistant and diffuse power from hundreds of thousands of producers is a sure recipe for disasterous economic inefficiency, even in the few consistently sunny locales such as Arizona.
Hydrogen as a mobile vehicle fuel is far from a sure deal. Way too "non-compact" energy wise as a gas (vapor), way too difficult and expensive to store as a liquid. We are closer to practical application of liquified natural gas (LNG) as motor fuel. It is produced in huge quantities along with crude oil, burns very cleanly, and gasoline engines need only minor modification to burn it. It must be kept under pressure to stay liquid (and therfore eneregy dense), but nowhere near the pressure they hydrogen needs.
I live in the corn belt and get some work from alcohol producing plants like ADM, but it is not economic. Imagine if the coal or oil you burn was spread in a layer 1/2" deep over thousands of square miles, and is available only during a single month of the year! Very energy intensive to gather such a thin skein of power, and the expensive equipment will sit idle for 90% of the year, generating huge capital costs. Then add in all the energy costs to till, plant, weed, harvest, and process the grain.
Brazil already tried large scale ethanol power, and nearly bankrupted itself in the effort.
Spot- you are speaking sense- let the market decide!
#21
I once read a great article back in the late 70's in the Smithsonian about when Britain made the conversion from wood fuel to coal in the late 1700's. They didn't change over until they'd about run out of trees. Probably the same thing will happen with fossil fuels. It's partly human nature (procrastination) and partly economics (a dollar spent today is more expensive than one spent tomorrow, installed base, economies of scale). BTW, did you know our buddies the French generate 70-80% of their electricity from nukes?
#22
IIRC, the "most" nuclear country (as a % of total kilowatts) is our little pals in BELGIUM.
Petrol and LNG are both finite. Both are in kinda short supply domestically without a lot of recovery hassle and cost. I think the world's biggest deposits of natural gas are under Qatar.
It's not like we're going to run out of oil Friday, it's just not healthy in the long term to depend on finite resources under foreign control, when technology is making alternatives foreseeable.
Nukes (and, to a degree, hydrogen, which is probably gonna come from nuke power anyhow) are more or less infinite. Not in, like, Einsteinian terms, but we'll be done with this planet LONG before we run out of fissile stuff.
Posted by: Mark IV ||
08/12/2003 21:27 Comments ||
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#23
I'm all in favor of nukes! Illinois generates around 30% of it's juice that way. And it sounds like we might get a new reactor- the first in decades. The nuke plant at Clinton, Illinois has a long-held permit for a second reactor and their owners are seriously persueing a fluid or bubble bed type of reactor for this application.
This design is supposed to be cheaper and safer than the exisiting standard. (BTW- I have no safety concerns about the existing design.)
Solomon Islands rebel leader Harold Keke has agreed to surrender in return for a guarantee of safe passage on to the Australian warship HMAS Manoora. The "Get Me Off The Island Alive" plan.
The ship, which sailed out of Honiara last night, is believed to be headed for the Weathercoast, where Mr Keke is due to surrender his weapons to the intervention forces today. Iâm sure theyâll have a nice stateroom all ready for you, something with bars.
Sources close to the Solomon Islands peace process told The Australian yesterday Mr Kekeâs surrender was "imminent", but the timing remained delicate. The civilian leader of the intervention force, Nick Warner, who has met with Mr Keke twice in the past five days, has imposed a news blackout on his talks with the rebel leader because of the operational and political "sensitivities". "We donât have any comment on any Keke issue today," Mr Warner said at his daily press briefing yesterday. "I can say no more."
Following his first meeting with Mr Keke on Friday, Mr Warner announced that the rebel leader had agreed to the establishment of a police post at the village of Mbiti and to the handing over of all weapons today. The surrender will enable Mr Keke to help police with investigations, including those into murders on the Weathercoast. Iâm not sure that investigation is going to go the way you hope, Keke.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 12:27:42 PM ||
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Hope he has an accident at sea...save everyone some headaches - toss his ass over the side in a pool of chum
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 13:32 Comments ||
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It is Shark Week on the Discovery Channel. Wonder if we can find a opening in the schedule?
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 15:22 Comments ||
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AMSTERDAM â The Dutch government has been ordered to pay Mullah Krekar EUR 4,970 in damages after being found guilty of unjustifiably detaining the Iraqi-Kurd in a maximum-security prison for several months last year.
Haarlem Court also ordered the government on Tuesday to pay him EUR 540 in legal costs. Krekarâs lawyer had demanded EUR 100,000 in compensation, Dutch associated press ANP reported.
Lawyer Victor Koppe demanded the large compensation figure on claims the Netherlands had treated his client "scandalously". Vught prison â where Krekar was detained after his arrest on 12 September last year â is the most secure jail in the Netherlands.
Krekar was arrested at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam on heroin charges while en route from Iran to Norway, where he has lived since 1991 as a refugee. His wife, children and brother also moved to Norway under a family reunification programme for refugees. He is suspected of being the leader of Ansar al-Islam (Supporters of Islam), an Iraqi-based, anti-US and militant Islamic group and US officials questioned him over alleged terrorist links while in detention in the Netherlands.
Ansar al-Islam is alleged to have links with Osama Bin Ladenâs al-Qaeda network or ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and is suspected of involvement in the testing of chemical weapons. US bombing of several of the movementâs strongholds during the Iraq war killed dozens of the movementâs members and US-backed Kurdish forces routed Ansar from its bases.
But Krekar denied all charges and his lawyer accused Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner of working to appease the US in silencing Krekar in the lead-up to the war against Iraq.
After his arrest, Jordan submitted an extradition request with the Dutch authorities, accusing Krekar of involvement in the international heroin trade. But the Netherlands said Jordan failed to make a strong enough case and refused the request.
Krekarâs lawyers said Jordan used the drug allegation as a fabrication for an extradition request made as a favour to the US.
Faced with the prospect of having to release him, the Dutch deported Krekar to Oslo, Norway, where he arrived on 13 January. Norwegian authorities did not arrest him.
And it was reported last month that Koppe will also submit a compensation claim against Minister Donner for Krekarâs deportation.
"I actually think that it is indisputable that the Minister of Justice acted in violation of the law, the Constitution and all sorts of international treaties," the lawyer said.
Koppe also said he would submit the second compensation claim once Haarlem had down the initial ruling, but is not yet known when the new damages hearing will be held.
Uh, I know that the PC crowd likes to rewrite history but sheeessshhh the cajones on this guy!Likely 2004 third-party presidential hopeful Ralph Nader thinks the 9/11 terrorist attacks wouldnât have happened if he had been president. He claims that amid all the big decisions new presidents have to make after inauguration, he would have ordered cockpit doors to be hardened against attack. He says an old report warning about how easy it is to get in the cockpit still sticks with him. Whatâs more, he would have wiped out Osama bin Laden and his gang without a shot being fired. How? Bribe Osamaâs friends to hand him over.
#2
Talk to any airline pilot about hardened cockpit doors and they will tell you it's a double edged sword. In case of emergency, the door may be the only way out for the pilots. Any deformation in the airframe may cause the door to be un-openable. In such a case, a normal door may still be forced open, perhaps with an axe, but with a hardened door, it may be that much harder to do so. This is perhaps why that "old report" Nader mentioned had been dropped.
But of course, I doubt that Nader ever thinks about things like this.
#3
So he thinks he would have been able to order an immediate stand-down of the whole passenger air fleet redesign and refit equipment on every kind of airliner between inauguration 01/01 and 11/01 ? Without being impeached over the airline bankruptcies, massive layoffs and economic disruption? He would have, I guess, waved the report around and said, "I just saved you ungrateful jerks from certain terrorist attack." The two most discouraging thoughts that come to my mind are 1.) He has a constituency to whom his couterfactuals seem plausible, 2.) None of the above mentioned follow up questions seem to have occured to the interviewing journalist.
Edited for brevity (and reduced nausea).
San Franciscoâs New College of California is offering something for the socially conscious this fall that theyâd never get marching in the streets: a college degree in activism. For $5,500 to $6,000 a semester, the 32-year-old Mission District school is offering bachelorâs and masterâs humanities degrees with a concentration in "activism and social change." While schools from Vermont to Santa Cruz boast versions of do-gooding curricula, degrees in activism are hard to come by.
"Students can shape their own (activist) program at other schools," said Michael Baer, senior vice president at the American Council on Education and former provost at Northeastern University. "But to have it all together -- the theoretical and the practical -- under one roof and labeled as such is somewhat rare." Almost as rare is New Collegeâs eclectic lineup of activist instructors, a progressive all-star team that includes tree-sitting environmentalist Julia "Butterfly" Hill, "ecofeminist witch" and author Starhawk and San Francisco Supervisor Chris Daly.
Baer called the program instructors at the 800-student school accomplished and "as competent as any youâd see at a similar-sized school. The difference is, at at a larger school, youâd be exposed to wider array of different perspectives." But New College wears its progressive stripes proudly -- Hill once delivered a commencement address via cell phone from her tree perch in the Humboldt County wilderness -- so school officials said it was unlikely that conservative instructors would be on hand. Itâs high time to counter with the University of Rantburg, if you ask me...
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 3:13:11 PM ||
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One of the goodies the Army has is an M-167 Vulcan cannon mounted on a tracked chassis. It's primarily used for close-in air defense. I have always wondered how well one of those would work as an anti-activist weapon, and how much trouble activism would be after the first time it was used.
I see NOTHING in the Constitution of the United States that supports the legality of law by activism.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 15:54 Comments ||
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Time to educate the protestors because they are still using 60's era cheers and those massive protests during the runup to the Iraq war seemed to help George W. Bush's approval ratings.
#3
I'll bet Stanford is positively green with envy. Will prolly change their "mascot" from The Cardinal to The Phrog. Gotta hurt to be one-upped by this little upstart - man, what a roll-call of professional phools. Phunny.
The United States on Monday confirmed it had given the okay for Israel to sell Phalcon early-warning aircraft worth one billion dollars to India, nearly three months after the approval was reported in the Israeli press. "The United States has informed the governments of Israel and India that we have no objection to the Israeli transfer of the Phalcon airborne early-warning system to India," Deputy State Department spokesman Philip Reeker said. He said Washington had taken the step, reported May 22 by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, because the improving security situation between India and Pakistan had made the sale less likely to destabilize the region.
The Phalcon is an Israeli-developed long-range radar warning and control system carried in a Russian Ilyushin-76 cargo plane. Israel coordinates its military sales with Washington because the two nationsâ defense industries are closely linked and often share technological advances. A similar deal with China three years ago was dropped after a US veto, sparking a diplomatic crisis between Israel and China. The US confirmation that it had okayed the sale came less than a week after a team of senior Indian civilian and military officials traveled to Washington for defense talks. This will set some Pak turbans spinning.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 3:34:58 PM ||
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sounds like we just chose sides in the coming alliance? I think we are making the right move. Pakland is going into the crapper, with civil war between the fundos and the sane, it's just a matter of how long Perv can keep the lid on. It also has the benefit of screwing with China, and I like that - better to be on the offensive tahn defensive with them
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 15:58 Comments ||
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EFL
U.S. forces in Afghanistan mistakenly killed two Pakistani border guards and wounded a third yesterday while pursuing several other individuals who had shot at U.S. Special Operations troops, American and Pakistani officials said yesterday. U.S. military authorities offered sketchy details about the incident, which Pakistan said took place at a border post in the tribal Waziristan region, 160 miles southwest of Islamabad, the capital. According to an account provided by a senior U.S. defense official, U.S. Special Operations forces on a morning patrol in the vicinity of Orgun in southeastern Afghanistan came under fire from a group of people, some of whom appeared to be in some kind of uniform while others were dressed in civilian garb. Thought it had to be something like this. Sounds like Pak troops were escorting the Taliban.
Two AV-8 Harrier jets and two A-10 Warthog attack planes were called in to chase the enemy fighters, who were fleeing toward the Pakistani border, the official said. A Harrier dropped a 1,000-pound bomb and fired hundreds of 25mm rounds. The A-10s hit with rockets and shot 30mm rounds. Another military official said that preliminary reports from the field indicate the gunfire from one of the planes caused the Pakistani casualties. "The incident resulted in the unfortunate and unintended engagement of Pakistani security forces in the area," said a statement by the U.S. Central Command, which has responsibility for American military operations in the region. "The incident is currently under investigation." Iâll just bet it is.
It was the second reported inadvertent clash between U.S. and Pakistani forces in the border area in the past year, but the first case in which U.S. forces were said to have fired on Pakistani troops in error. On Dec. 29, a Pakistani border guard shot and wounded a U.S. soldier, prompting a U.S. F-16 jet fighter to drop a 500-pound bomb on a nearby site where the shooter had hidden. The shooter was subsequently taken into custody. Pity the bomb wasnât a little closer.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 9:43:02 AM ||
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Like I said, Pakistani troops only go patrolling at 5a.m. if they're helping the Taliban. Sounds like the Pakis never stopped supporting the Taliban.
#2
More info from Gulf News: A senior Pakistani official said the U.S. forces mistook the patrol for Al Qaida or Taliban fighters. "It was due to some misunderstanding," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. A statement from the Pakistani military's public relations department said a strong protest had been lodged with the U.S. authorities about the incident. "We have lodged a strong worded protest with the Americans over the happening. But we believe this was the result of mistake as the U.S. forces might have been following some unwanted elements in the area," a spokesman said in Peshawar.
That's a pretty mild statement.
Local tribesmen said the attack was the result of an assault on U.S. forces across the border in Paktika province of Afghanistan. The U.S. forces called for air cover soon after the attack, which led to the targeting of the Pakistani troops. Sources in the area said U.S. combat helicopters fired several missiles on the base of 69-Baloch Regiment and Shawal Rifles, a paramilitary force of the Pakistan armed forces in the Lwar Mandai area of the tribal belt at about 9.30.am local time.
Paramilitary force, huh? That explains why some were in uniform and some weren't. Makes a nice cover for, er, stuff.
In the ensuing shootout, they killed Muhammad Yamin and Khial Badshah on the spot while injuring three others including Lance Naik Amjad. Two injured troopers were shifted to the Agency headquarters hospital for treatment, where their condition is stable.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 12:40 Comments ||
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Damn! I'm beginning to believe the United States is about eleven divisions too short of the personnel and equipment necessary to achieve "peace" in the Arab world. That doesn't look good for my nephew's retirement next month...
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 13:15 Comments ||
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A man who says he was Sadddam Husseinâs sorcerer predicts the Iraqi dictator will be found dead.
The 62-year-old sprays perfume around the sparse, dingy room â âit smells nicer than incenseâ â then holds out his hands and feet for a visitor to bind, instructing him to knot the cloth three times and blow on it. Yeah, weâve got guys like this here in San Francisco too. Why, I remember one time.... uh, nevermind.
The lights go out, and small red flashes appear beneath the black cloak that covers a bowl of magic powders and water. Something pokes at the visitors - âbirds,â the wizard says â and water splashes from the bowl.
The genies have arrived, and the questions begin.
Will Saddam be found? A genie answers in the old manâs voice: âYes.â Well, that sounds good...
Dead or alive? âDead.â ....and that sounds even better!
The sorcerer asks that he not be identified â for now, at least â and will not even pronounce the name of the man he once served.
âThat man is still alive, so Iâm afraid,â he says. âI helped him, his sons, his ministers, his wife, his cousins, but I canât mention names. When he is dead I can talk about him.â Beatlejuice! Beatlejuice! Beatlejuice!
According to the magician and several others interviewed in Baghdad, Saddam was a firm believer in magic, and even applied himself, with modest success, to âstudying the sandsâ and summoning genies. Sure, what evil despot worth his salt doesnât believe in the occult. Besides Stalin, I mean - he was an athiest
He consulted frequently with two magicians from Iraq, one from Turkey, one from India, a French Arab and a beautiful Jewish witch from Morocco, the wizard says. Wow! How Doctor Doom! I wish I had a beautiful Moroccan Jewish witch for a consultant!
U.S. soldiers on Tuesday captured one of Saddam Husseinâs former bodyguards and an Iraqi general who was a senior Baath Party official, the U.S. military said. A total of 14 suspects were detained in a series of raids lasting three hours in the deposed dictatorâs hometown. All the suspects were from a single family that had been a pillar of support for Saddamâs regime, said Lt. Col. Steve Russell, commander of the 22nd Infantry Regimentâs 1st Battalion. He declined to identify the detainees or specify the location of the raid other than as a southern Tikrit suburb.
"We were targeting a specific family - one of the four controlling families of the former regime," Russell said. "They were trying to support the remnants of the former regime by organizing attacks, through funding and by trying to hide former regime members," he added.
About 250 soldiers surrounded and searched 20 homes, he said. Soldiers carried away a safe, photographs and computers that may be of intelligence value, Russell said. The Army had been watching the family for weeks, because of intelligence pointing to their involvement in recent attacks on soldiers in Tikrit, Russell said. They staged the sweep Tuesday when they thought they could catch the maximum number of people, Russell said. During his reign, Saddam depended on four families for support and rewarded them financially by giving them cash, prestige and land seized from other people, Russell said. Slowly and surely taking them down.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 1:04:39 PM ||
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this is the first post I've seen which indicates that we have been able to make sense of the sub clan structure (I'm presuming what the post says are 'controlling families' are sub clans) of the Tikriti clan
if this is true, it is good news indeed (at least for people who love freedom).
#2
Fred? Is "scumbag" enough to get stevey banned? Dissent is OK, referring to U.S. servicemen as scumbags is deplorable. Ban him, please. Let him find another place to slime
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 13:42 Comments ||
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Fred, I second Frank G on this. Stevey's last post was off the scale. No merit whatsoever.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
08/12/2003 14:02 Comments ||
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Stevey who?
Posted by: Fred ||
08/12/2003 14:10 Comments ||
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Stevey Robinson aka Not Mike Moore. Clarify exactly what you meant or I too will ask Fred to kick you off.
From August 9th, funny this isnât getting any exposure:
A high-ranking al-Qaeda operative in custody disclosed that Iraq supplied the Islamist militant group with material to build chemical and biological weapons, the White House said today. "A senior al-Qaeda terrorist, now detained, who had been responsible for al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan, reports that al-Qaeda was intent on obtaining (weapons of mass destruction) assistance from Iraq," the White House said in a report. The 25 page document was released as US President George W Bush holidayed at his Texas ranch. OT, but have you noticed that no one in the media uses the phrase "The Western White House"? I remember them calling LBJâs ranch that, but of course he wasnât getting the U.S. involved in unpopular wars.
The Bush administration cited links between al-Qaeda and Saddam Husseinâs Baath party regime as justification for attacking Iraq to oust Saddam. The administration also insisted Saddam had chemical and biological weapons and was pursuing nuclear weapons. (channeling the left) "Lies, all lies!" (channel off)
The report quoted the unnamed prisoner as saying al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden turned to Iraq after concluding his group could not produce chemical or biological weapons on its own in Afghanistan. Those mail order kits just donât work very well.
"Iraq agreed to provide chemical and biological weapons training for two al-Qaeda associates starting in December 2000," the report said.
"Senior al-Qaeda associate Abu Musab al-Zarqawi came to Baghdad in May 2002 for medical treatment, along with approximately two dozen al-Qaeda terrorist associates. I didnât think he went by himself.
"This group stayed in Baghdad and other parts of Iraq and plotted terrorist attacks around the world." Osama and Saddam hated each other, but I always felt that the people in the field had no such problems. Itâs that "enemy of my enemy" thing.
The report, quoting the State Department, also says the fallen regime of Saddam Hussein "provided material assistance to Palestinian terrorist groups, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, Hamas and the Palestine Islamic Jihad". The "Cash for Boomers" program for one. Someday, this fall I think, there is going to be a major show and tell on what has been found in Iraq. I canât wait.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 10:32:58 AM ||
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I've heard GW's ranch refered to as the Texas White House. Usually accompanied by a thinly disguised sneering tone.
#2
Seems I remember LBJ getting us bogged down in a quagmire in Vietnam. Something about micromanagement by the White House down to grunts in the field. OF course, LBJ knew about as much about running a counter-guerilla war as I do about singing soprano.
Bush's "Western White House" is usually referred to as "the Ranch" in Crofford. Of course, Bush is a Republican, whereas LBJ was a dyed-in-the-wool tax-and-spend Democrat, so of COURSE he got better reporting from our "unbiased" media "elite".
Now I need to go wash my mouth out with disinfectant. I'll be back in a few minutes...
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 12:06 Comments ||
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well one reason not to go to the screaming headlines is that we don't know whether Al Q's definition of chem and bio weapons is the same as ours. Another is that the assistance from Iraq might have been minimal (consisting of blueprints and inferior quality materials
An Iraqi Kurdish group said on Tuesday its Peshmerga fighters had captured several members of Ansar al-Islam, a shadowy group reported to have links with al Qaeda, near the border with Iran. "We captured a number of them yesterday (Monday) and we shall do our investigations to know who are those people and what is their plan," Adel Murad, a spokesman for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), told Reuters in Baghdad. Kurdish truncheon alert!
Murad said Kurdish fighters rounded up 50 people who had entered north of Iraq through borders with Iran coming from Afghanistan. "I do not know if all of them are from Ansar al-Islam or the majority of them or some of them. Our security forces captured them on the borders with Iran," Murad said. Gee, what a suprise. Well, not really.
Ansar al-Islam has been identified as one of several groups suspected of carrying out a car bomb attack against the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad last week which killed 17 people. Car bombs are one of their trademarks, but there are plenty of other suspects.
Murad said that before the U.S.-led war to topple Saddam Hussein the PUK raided headquarters of the group and killed and captured a number of militants. "Now we think the group returned to the area to resume their terrorist acts in Kurdistan and to participate in terrorist operations inside Iraq," he said. "We will capture them and send them to trial." Please do, call if you need help.
The PUK has clashed repeatedly in recent years with Ansar al-Islam and says its members have trained in al Qaeda camps in Afghanistan. Independent observers have not confirmed the Ansarâs link with al Qaeda and bin Laden. Independent observers have also not confirmed the earth is round.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 9:21:30 AM ||
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Gee, I like the sound of these Kurds. They are not sitting on their behinds bitching about things (water, electricity, heat, humidity) like it seems the rest of Iraq is doing, but are seizing the initiative and solving their own problems. And ours as well. I know the Turks have problems with them, but I can't help liking this apparent 'Can Do' attitude.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
08/12/2003 9:46 Comments ||
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The Kurds appear to be the only realistic and damned competent natives in the area. Gawd, I hope we don't sell them up the river like we did the Hmong.
#3
These guys are probably on their way to meet Allah already. Ansar al-Islam did not exactly treat the Kurds very nice.
Posted by: Douglas De Bono ||
08/12/2003 10:56 Comments ||
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I'm not a well read historian but it seems to me that the Kurds have been shit on as bad as any populi on this planet and have still survived. Compared to Paleo's of dubiuous decent! Might be a great place to build the next major Airbase.
#5
The Kurds certainly seem to have their shit together across the board. And Lucky's dead right: they've been shit on by just about everyone and have a hell of a lot of reasons to be pissed at just about everyone. Yet here they are pulling their weight and cleaning up their own back yard. AND you will notice they didn't ask for anything. Fucking unique people. Me like.
Explosions rock US military base
HUGE explosions rocked a US military base west of Baghdad, several hours after US troops raided two sleepy villages where they suspected pro-Saddam Hussein guerillas were hiding. US officials also announced the death of a US soldier, killed when assailants hurled a grenade at a police station he was protecting on Sunday night in the town of Baquba, 66km north-east of Baghdad. Two other soldiers were wounded in the attack, US Army Major Josslyn Aberle said. At least 57 US soldiers have now been killed in guerilla-style attacks, while another 60 have died in non-combat incidents since the White House declared main combat operations in Iraq over on May 1. No casualty toll was released after six powerful explosions shook a US military base in Ramadi, 100km west of Baghdad, last night as mysterious assailants fired on the compound.
Posted by: Anon1 ||
08/12/2003 2:59:05 AM ||
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No confirmation of this event. My guess is that the explosions related to the destruction of confiscated weapons caches. Like all British papers, left- and right-leaning, the Telegraph has a record of publishing unverified information. They are thus, less reliable than their American counterparts, which take considerable pains to avoid having to publish retractions. (British papers make so many mistakes they don't even bother with retractions, except when it's a real doozy). Publication without verification also means, however, that when British papers are right, they do manage to scoop their American counterparts.
In general, Iâve found the in-depth articles in the LA Times to be pretty balanced. The headline stuff is pretty shrill, but the analysis is OK. Read the whole thing. (registration required)
BAGHDAD â Saddam Hussein and his son Qusai crippled the Iraqi military through a multitude of erratic orders and strategic miscalculations, while its fighting units barely communicated with one another and were paralyzed from lack of direction, according to detailed interviews with more than a dozen former Iraqi commanders and servicemen. These woes â compounded by incompetence, poor preparation, craven leadership and wholesale desertions of thousands of soldiers unwilling to die for Saddam Hussein â contributed to the Iraqi militaryâs quick and stunning collapse against invading U.S. forces in early April, the former fighters said. Typical of the erratic orders were those imposed by Qusai upon a Republican Guard unit outside Baghdad. As American forces approached the city in late March, the unit received a new order every morning to reposition its tanks. Each order contradicted the one before, infuriating local commanders, Col. Raaed Faik recalled. But the orders had to be obeyed. They arrived by courier on slips of paper signed by Qusai, Saddamâs younger son and commander of the Republican Guard. Every time the tanks were moved from their bunkers, Faik said, a few more were exposed and destroyed by coalition air power. Meanwhile, he said, another commander was ordered to disable all three dozen of his tanks for fear they would be captured and used by Kurdish militias hundreds of miles north.
Posted by: 11A5S ||
08/12/2003 1:38:09 AM ||
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I think you can get by with the username and password "latimes". Some helpful soul at another blog posted when citing another article so you don't have to register.
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 9:00 Comments ||
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Just a sleepy comment but wouldn't some of those trained Iraqi military types just jump at the offer to help in Liberia. They take orders from crazy people!
EFL
Arab states will deal with the U.S.-appointed Governing Council in Iraq but not recognize it as a legitimate government, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher said Monday. Maher spoke at the end of a hastily convened meeting of foreign ministers of the "insignificant three in world terms" "big three" of the Arab world — Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Syria. The meeting was called after Israeli warplanes raided Lebanon Sunday following a bombardment by the Syrian-sponsored Hezbollah group that killed an Israeli teenager and wounded five other civilians. Maher declined to say how he and his colleagues decided to address the revival of fighting along the Israeli-Lebanese border, but said: "It is unimaginable that we meet here without discussing the Israeli provocations." "Itâs also unimaginable that weâll do something about it — I mean, are you nuts? You see what them Jooooos are flying?"
Maher accused Israel on Monday of impeding the "road map" peace plan and described Israelâs construction of a fence around the Palestinian territories as a violation of the peace process. "It is clear that the Israelis are violating their obligations under the road map plan and creating conditions that make it difficult for the Palestinians to carry out their obligations," Maher told reporters after meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud. Not that the Paleos are going to carry out their obligations under any circumstances.
The foreign minister made clear Arabs would not be swayed by growing support for recognition of the Governing Council in Iraq. Since the Arab League refused to recognize the council early last week, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov have said the body should be recognized as a transitional government. "We cannot recognize this council because it scares the living daylights out of us is illegitimate, but we are ready to deal with its members as we deal with the rest of the Iraqi political forces," Maher said. "Which means weâd prefer to shoot them on sight, but we canât right now."
Egypt and Saudi Arabia, seen as moderates in the Arab world and nowhere else, gave logistical support to the United States in the Iraq war.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/12/2003 12:36:45 AM ||
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"Hey, Ahmed! Remember those billions of dollars in foreign aid that you used to get from the United States?"
#3
What a load. Perhaps a quid pro quo is in order: withdraw recognition of all governments who do not practice democracy - and the joke "boutique democracy" of Bahrain, Kuwait, and the the media darling Morocco would be included, since they are all shams. And, of course, we don't give Foreign Aid to - or have "Special Relationships" with - unrecognzed mobs. Hmmm. Mobs... UN. Mobs. UN...
Under Indonesian law, Bali bomber Amrozi will be given three daysâ notice of his execution by firing squad, which will occur at night in a secluded forest or on a beach. His family will not be allowed to attend but, if he wishes to do so, he will be granted permission to pray one last time and to clutch Islamâs holy book, the Koran. If Amroziâs appeal against his death sentence is denied, he will be led to the place of execution wearing a white shirt with a red target marked over his heart. A hood will be placed over his head before 14 sharpshooters, who have practised on dummies, fire at the order of their commander. In order to soothe their consciences - so they never know who fired the fatal shot - only two of the 14 rifles available for them to choose will be loaded with live rounds. The reporter may have this wrong, it most likely is that two rifles are loaded with blanks and the other 12 have live rounds.
After the shots are fired, a doctor will check Amrozi for any sign of life. The law allows for a final shot in the head, fired by the commander, if the condemned man is not dead. The coup de grace.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 4:07:34 PM ||
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what about the burial in a pig hide?
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 16:18 Comments ||
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Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
08/12/2003 16:40 Comments ||
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They didn't mention the cigarette. I guess the appeal was approved!
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 16:40 Comments ||
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"The reporter may have this wrong, it most likely is that two rifles are loaded with blanks and the other 12 have live rounds."
Actually I find your version more unlikely - I've heard it before that firing squads often have *most* of the rifles filled with the blanks, so that the men involved can atleast think to themselves that most likely they weren't the ones whose bullets killed the convict in question.
#6
Yep--that's why if I were on this firing squad, I'd aim for the groin or a knee so I could be sure. The uncertainty would otherwise torment me for the rest of my life.
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 17:55 Comments ||
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#7
Given all the "gang that couldn't shoot straight" examples I've seen - so-called major gunbattles lasting hours - with NO casualties - I'd say, to be on the safe side, they need 200-300 in the firing squad, all using 50 cal weapons and all firing live rounds. Okay, ONE can be firing blanks - just to maintain the suspense illusion. Should be able to get the job done in a week or two. Maybe.
#8
You know, I think Indonesia has this "death by firing squad" bit all wrong. I think it would be far more "humane" to paint these pieces of walking fecal matter with fresh pig's blood, and give them the option of swimming from Jakarta, on Java, to the island of Borneo, to the north. Escort them with a naval patrol boat, to make sure they don't turn back.
Heck, even if they make it alive (it's a long swim through shark-infested waters), there are still headhunters and cannibals alive and well in Borneo. Saves the cost of convening a firing squad, the guys sending the vermin off can have a roast pig feast while the 'victim' is making his swim, and the inhabitants of Borneo get some much-needed protein.
Of course, if, somehow, the scumbag manages to survive, it just means 'it was the will of Allah'.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 18:38 Comments ||
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#9
OP - interesting - has a "win win" feel to it! ;->
#10
Yeah, I like it, too! Has potential to please the environmentalists (feeding the wildlife) and the anthropologists (feeding the natives), although PETA will bitch about the pig roast.
Plus, there's a chance we can watch it all next year on the Discovery Channel's "Shark Week"!
"Is he still smiling about his death sentence?"
"I can't tell--does ululating sound anything like shrieking?"
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 19:11 Comments ||
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#11
How about something more modern, like that nice romantic walk down the beach that they describe? Attach some jumper cables to his gonads, connect the other leads to a battery powered a Cutlass 442 sitting on blocks (for the wheel spin), douse him with a nice 6 foot wave while I rev the piss out of the motor to 7,000 RPM.
my only question is why put it on blocks. Every time I see this puke smiling I wonder why he's still alive...
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 21:11 Comments ||
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#13
The only thing the blanks do is disguise from the others whose gun wasn't doing the killing. The difference in the recoil from a real bullet and a blank make it obvious to the shooter that they had the blank. Many WWI and WWII firing squads were actually more gruesome when the target was a (former) comrade as opposed to a spy/attrocity victim. Frequently many of the shooters, thinking the others would shoot straight either shot in non-fatal areas, or over the condemned's shoulder. Either way the result was a harrowing mock/semi execution followed by a bullet in back of the ear by a grumbling non-com. Best to say all but one rifle has blanks, but load them all, and steel yourself to administer a coup-de-grace anyway.
Indonesian prosecutors urged a court on Tuesday to sentence cleric Abu Bakar Bashir to 15 years in jail for treason linked to his leadership of a militant Muslim group blamed for a string of deadly terror attacks. Scores of Bashirâs usually boisterous supporters, all wearing Muslim skull-caps, sat silently as the demand was read. They know that the Marriott bombing ended any chance of his getting off.
Bashir, 64, had faced a maximum of life in jail, although political analysts said the demand would amount effectively to a life sentence considering Bashirâs age and bouts of poor health. Yup.
Prosecutors charged Bashir with treason for trying to overthrow the government by using Jemaah Islamiah (JI), the Southeast Asian militant network accused of carrying out last Octoberâs Bali blasts and now the prime suspect in last weekâs car bomb attack at the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta. Bashir is also charged with approving church bombings across the worldâs most populous Muslim nation in 2000 that killed 19 people and has been linked to an aborted plot to kill President Megawati Sukarnoputri when she was vice president. "The defendant has been proven to have carried out acts of treason... We demand he be jailed for 15 years," chief prosecutor Hasan Madani told the heavily guarded Jakarta court. "Based on the facts, we can conclude that every JI action needs the blessing of the defendant as its emir," he said. Itâs part of the job description.
Wearing a gold embroidered skull-cap, checked sarong, black jacket and white scarf, the bearded, bespectacled cleric sat impassively throughout the hearing. Earlier, Bashirâs supporters had defied a police order and cried "Allahu Akbar (God is Greatest)" as he walked to his seat. The cleric denies the charges and insists JI — seen as the Southeast Asian arm of Osama bin Ladenâs al Qaeda network — does not exist. Tell that to the families of the dead.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 8:48:59 AM ||
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#1
"We are holy men, can you not see my embroidered skull cap"
#2
Lucky - we called 'em doilies - like your grandma used to put on the lamp tables. Beanie is pretty good, but they can't have propellers cuz you put the dish towel over it. His has gold embroidery - so he's Extra-Holy.
Amazing. Treason. Demonstrably complicit in a bombing that killed over 200 people. Not death - no, that's inhumane, unlike bombing infidels, which is divine. 15 years - prolly cuz he's old. Will have pipeline to the outside so he can spiritually lead other attacks, cuz he's a Holy Man. Will prolly play the "I'm a sick old man routine, sniff, sniff..." - again. Definitely will serve less than the paltry 15 yrs. A LOT less. Will prolly live to get out. If not, will become Holy Martyr. Yup. Twilight Zone.
Maybe now the Indonesians will really get serious, and start going after the pious Mullahs and paramilitary groups that have sprung up all over the country.
The terrorist suspected of blowing up Jakartaâs Marriott Hotel was a member of a new suicide brigade of up to 15 bombers who are preparing more attacks, Indonesian police have warned. Asmar Latin Sani, whose head was found on the fifth floor of the shattered hotel, was a member of Laskar Khos, an Arabic phrase meaning Special Force, whose members were prepared to die in their attacks, a police source told the Herald. The group was formed inside Jemaah Islamiah, the organisation accused of masterminding the Marriott and Bali atrocities. A separate police source told Tempo magazine that a man named Mustafa, one of five JI members arrested in Jakarta in mid-July, had confessed to being the commander of Laskar Khos. He told police the group had between 10 and 15 members skilled in bomb-making who were preparing to carry out suicide attacks. The Herald source said that besides Asmar, one Laskar Khos member named Ichwanudin had shot himself when police tried to arrest him during raids on JI hideouts in Semarang and Jakarta last month. Sidney Jones, a JI expert and director of the Jakarta branch of the International Crisis Group, says Laskar Khos exists and is "an elite operations unit".
The revelations came as new information emerged that the Jakarta offices of United States oil companies were on a list of JI targets. The Los Angeles Times reported that representatives of seven companies — Halliburton, Exxon-Mobil, Unocal, Caltex Indonesia, Conoco Phillips, Union Texas and Premier Oil — had attended a meeting at the US embassy before the Marriott bombing where Indonesian police had warned they were on the list. Company representatives confirmed the meeting yesterday but declined to discuss what new security measures had been taken. Police had also reportedly found a hand-drawn map showing the location of Halliburtonâs office in south Jakarta.
Posted by: Paul Moloney ||
08/12/2003 12:22:40 AM ||
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15 people and they call it a brigade? Sounds more like a cell, or a faction.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 8:32 Comments ||
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#3
What happens if the faction fraction fractures into fragments?
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 10:13 Comments ||
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#4
It becomes a splinter.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 11:52 Comments ||
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#5
My grandfather hosted a family reunion back when I was a kid, celebrating his 70'th birthday. More than 300 people - all family members - showed up. I'm sure I can get more of my deep-South, conservative, gun-totin', tabaccy-chewing cousins to come together as a unit than 15! Heck, they ain't even Muslims! Some are Southern Baptists, some or Methodists, and a couple are even Catholic.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 13:21 Comments ||
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At least one Democrat hasnât moved on.
Californiaâs political scene was looking more and more like a circus on Wednesday, when former Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader took a pie in the face during an appearance in San Francisco.
Nader was speaking at an event to endorse fellow Green Peter Camejo for California governor when a man ran into the room where he was speaking, forced a pie in his face, and made a quick exit.
Posted by: Christopher Johnson ||
08/12/2003 9:01:06 PM ||
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Possibly Al Gore?
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 21:08 Comments ||
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Buahahahaha! (holds sides laughing) Hey, if that is Chris Karma, good one my fellow San Franciscan!
Edited for brevity.
After eight months in Kuwait and Iraq, Marine Master Gunnery Sgt. Dale Racicot just wanted to see his wife and daughters. Giddy with excitement, they headed for the airport on Friday in Racicotâs cherished ``Marine Corps greenââ pickup truck to start what his daughter, Keri Magnarelli, called ``a reunion of a lifetime.ââ Back home three hours later, Racicot collapsed onto his dining room floor, dead of a heart attack at 54.
His wife, Janet, said she heard the thud from the kitchen, where she was getting a glass of water. ``I came running over to him and I knew something serious was going on,ââ she said in an interview Tuesday. ``He looked at me and said, âI love you all,â and that was the last thing he said.ââ Very tragic and very sad--I guess if it had to happen, it was better to be home around family and loved ones than in some hot, sandy sh*thole. But still...
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 8:18:15 PM ||
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Via LGF:
CRAWFORD, Texas (Reuters) - Over objections from some Muslim American groups, President Bush is expected to sidestep Congress and appoint a Middle East scholar who has been derided by critics as anti-Muslim to a federally funded think tank, congressional sources said on Tuesday. Standing up to the muslim pressure groups? Good!
Bushâs recess appointment of Daniel Pipes could spark a backlash from some Muslim Americans and Democrats in Congress, who oppose his nomination to serve on the board of the U.S. Institute of Peace, which was created by Congress to promote peaceful solutions to world conflicts. Pipes calls the Islamofascists for what they are, thatâs why they canât stand it. No dissent allowed from the Religion of Peaceâ¢
Bush has sought to improve relations with the Muslim American community since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. with the law-abiding tolerant majority fine, with CAIR, et al, no
Pipeâs nomination has been stalled for months in the Senate, where key Democrats objected to his controversial statements and writings defending racial and religious profiling and suggestions that mosques in America should be targets of police surveillance. Democrats? Pshaw! Whoâda thunk it?
Bush has stood by his nominee and, according to sources, plans to issue a recess appointment as early as this week. In so doing, Pipes would bypass the Senate confirmation process and could serve on the instituteâs board through next year. An election next year to put a 60+ vote pack majority on the senate would allow for renomination
Bush has used recess appointments in the past to appoint some of his most controversial nominees.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations called on Bush to withdraw the nomination after he was quoted by an online news service as comparing "Islamic people" to "Nazis." selective quotations out of context, huh?
Pipes aroused criticism when he launched an organization that collects complaints against professors and academic institutions deemed to be biased in favor of Islam, Muslims and Palestinians.
Supporters of Pipes say he is a respected scholar who was one of the few to warn before the Sept. 11 attacks of the threat posed by Islamic extremists.
"What he has said comes from a wealth of study and knowledge and understanding," said Shoshana Bryen, director of special projects at the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs.
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 5:41:48 PM ||
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Short blurb, probably will be more later.
Aug. 12â A British citizen has been arrested on suspicion of being involved in a plot to smuggle surface-to-air missiles into the United States, ABCNEWS has learned. The man was arrested in Newark, N.J., this morning as part of an international sting pulled off by the FBI, British and Russian authorities. Other arrests are under way. The person arrested allegedly sought to smuggle a Russian-made surface-to-air missile into the country and believed he was selling missiles to would-be terrorists, sources said. The name of the person has not been disclosed. Merc or True Believer?
Whichever, he's got some 'splainin' to do. Wonder how his mouthpieces is gonna handle this one...
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats ||
08/12/2003 4:40:21 PM ||
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Posted by: Fred ||
08/12/2003 17:06 Comments ||
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#3
The BBC page says the guy managed to get the missle here sucessfully. It also says "The man is an established arms dealer, thought to be a middle aged man of Indian origin, who lives in London."
#4
I hope he got it here successfully because they let him so they could follow the trail.
Yikes...
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats ||
08/12/2003 17:54 Comments ||
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#5
Could this be one of Galloway's grovellers? First, he's a Brit of INDIAN derivation. Second, he's an arms dealer. Third, he seems to have a pipeline into Russia, or somewhere for Russian weapons. Finally, he's sloppy, and gets caught. Sounds like a perfect fit with old George.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 18:21 Comments ||
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More:
Sources said the kind of missile he wanted to buy was the SA-18, which is said to be one of the most sophisticated such weapons in the world.
The weapon that came into the United States was unusable because the Russians who were participating with the sting sold it to the suspect that way, sources said.
This afternoon, law enforcement officials conducted a raid in midtown Manhattan to seize financial records and cash in connection with the case. Raids were also taking place in the United Kingdom but it is unclear what these yielded.
Today's arrest came as authorities in Saudi Arabia said they thwarted an al Qaeda cell that was allegedly planning to blow up a British Airways passenger jet.
Older Missiles on Black Market
The British national boasted that the missile could be used to shoot down Air Force One, the presidential 747. But he did not say the missile was going to be used for that purpose, sources said.
According to ABCNEWS consultant Richard Clarke, most older surface-to-air missiles are not difficult to obtain. Older, Russian-built SA-7 shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles are more readily available on the black market. Unlike the SA-7, the SA-18 is a more modern weapon with highly accurate red targeting capability, making it much sought-after by terrorists.
"The older generation of SA-7 missiles are relatively cheap and easy to get on the black market, but the problem is they don't work very well," Clarke said. "The younger generation of missiles are pretty much kept under lock and key and very hard to get." Surface-to-air missiles cannot reach aircraft once they are airborne, Clarke said. The weapons are used to attack planes once they take off or are about to land. Many U.S. aircraft, he said, are equipped to deflect surface to air attacks by using flares to throw off the targets of the heat-seeking missiles.
"Other aircraft, Air Force One and a few other high-value U.S. aircraft, have additional technology that's classified, and it's designed to confuse these missiles," Clarke said. "But to secure thousands of other aircraft, that would cost billions of dollars in defense."
Sources told ABCNEWS that the British national boasts of bringing down Air Force One were not taken seriously. In addition, sources said, Air Force One has the capability to thwart such an attack.
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 18:49 Comments ||
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Maybe we need to merge Liberia (Africa West) news with Short Attention Span Theater...Jeez....one day?
There are reports of fresh fighting in Liberia, one day after President Charles Taylor resigned and left the country.
Government forces and the nationâs smaller rebel group, MODEL, are battling near the airport, about 40 kilometers outside the capital, Monrovia.
The international airport is the base for hundreds of Nigerian peacekeepers who began deploying last week. The rebels had vowed to quit fighting once Mr. Taylor went into exile.
The French news agency (AFP) also reports fighting between the rebels and government troops in the second city, Buchanan. AFP quotes an army chief who accused rebels from Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) of attacking loyalist soldiers in the town of Gbarnga.
News of the fighting came shortly after LURD rebels announced they want to head Liberiaâs interim administration.
Earlier, LURD rebels rejected an offer from Mr. Taylorâs successor, former Vice President Moses Blah, to take over the post of the vice president. They are against Mr. Blah leading the transitional government, because of his close ties to Mr. Taylor.
President Blah is expected to lead the country until October, when a national transitional government is to take over.
Inside the capital, Monrovia, efforts are underway to open the rebel-held port, where desperately needed humanitarian supplies are stored.
The commander of U.S. military forces positioned off Liberiaâs coast flew ashore earlier Tuesday to meet rebel leaders. He is also expected to meet with the Nigerian commander of the West African peacekeeping forces, Festus Okonkwo and the U.S. ambassador to Liberia, John Blaney.
LURD rebels had promised to withdraw from the port once Charles Taylor left the country. On Monday, he resigned the presidency and is now in exile in Nigeria.
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 2:27:57 PM ||
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"Jeez....one day?"
Remember, this is Africa. One day between fighting is pretty much the norm.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 14:40 Comments ||
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#3
OK, its not working. We have no national interest there and the native leadership doesn't have any humanitarian interests either. This is, dare I say it, a true QUAGMIRE in the making.
Your seat cushions can be used as flotation devices. Please don't run but exit quickly through the doors lit with the "Exit" signs. Thanks for flying Quagmire Air. Bye, buh-bye, bye, buh bye,
#4
OK, its not working. We have no national interest there and the native leadership doesn't have any humanitarian interests either. This is, dare I say it, a true QUAGMIRE in the making.
Your seat cushions can be used as flotation devices. Please don't run but exit quickly through the doors lit with the "Exit" signs. Thanks for flying Quagmire Air. Bye, buh-bye, bye, buh bye,
#6
Maybe this type of diplomacy will work better -
"Children, stop that right now otherwise Mommy(tm) is coming up there and you won't like it when Mommy(tm) is angry! I don't care who started it first. If I brought you into this world, I can take you out of it."
Posted by: Don ||
08/12/2003 16:56 Comments ||
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As American investigators are focusing on a Jordanian with ties to al-Qaeda as the possible mastermind of the explosion of the Jordanian Embassy in Baghdad, Iranian political analysts said Tehran is using all its assets in Iraq and the region to force Washington into entering negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
If so, they're going about it the wrong way...
The last Saturday blast that killed at least 19, all Iraqis, and wounded many more, is reported to be the work of Abu Musab al Zarqawi, a noted terrorist affiliated with the Iran-backed Ansar al-Islam.
At almost the same time, the Iran-supported and trained Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas fired shells over northern Israel, killing one person and injuring four other. Hezbollah said the shelling was retaliation for the 2 August killing of Ali Hoseyn Saleh, one of its security official by a bomb in his car south of Beirut, blaming Israel for his death. The Organisationâs Deputy Secretary-General Sheik Naim Qassem said Sunday that Hezbollah "is fully prepared and ready to respond in the proper manner to any Israel aggression or threat."
They're kinda the Elite Republican Guard⢠of Lebanon...
British forces in the predominately Shiite region of Basra were not spared, as they also suffered new attacks on the same day, after irate Iraqis, waiting in the searing heat to fill up their cars with petrol, threw stones in frustration, according to a British army spokesman. A foreign security guard and two Iraqis were killed in a second day of violence in Basra on Sunday in which British troops fired warning shots as crowds attacked vehicles and blocked streets with burning tires. The British patrolled in tanks as hundreds of stone-throwing Iraqis rampaged in protest against fuel and power shortages. In one incident troops said they returned fire from gunmen, but a tense calm settled over Iraq's second city by evening. The violence was some of the worst in Iraq since Saddam Hussein was toppled by U.S.-led forces on April 9 and occurred in a city at the heart of the mostly Shi'ite Muslim south, which has been relatively peaceful in the wake of his fall.
Stinky Iranian fingerprints on any one of the three incidents would be enough to earn the nearest ayatollah a stern talking-to...
Following the Jordan Embassy blast, the U.S. civilian Administrator of Iraq Paul Bremer on Saturday said the security is far being satisfactory in Iraq and added that he suspected that foreign fighters, Ansar al-Islam could have been involved in the attack.
He was referring to mounting and repeated attacks by the pro-Saddam Hoseyn Iraqis as well as both the radical Shiâites and Sunnis backed by Tehran. Iran piously condemned the attack on the Jordanian Embassy and at the same time, repeated that it would try on its soil those of the al-Qaeda whose identities were not established.
And now comes the good part. This cracks me up...
Tehran has acknowledged that it holds some 500 al-Qaeda and Taliban members, prominent among them are, besides Zarqawi, Suleiman Abu Ghaith, al-Qaedaâs treasurer, Saif al-Adel, the networkâs chief of staff alleged to have organised the 12 May explosions in Riyadh, as well as Saad Bin Laden, Osamaâs elder son, according to US intelligence and Administration sources.
Now, lemme see here. I ain't too bright, but it seems to me that if these four beauzeaux are in custody of the Medes and Persians that would imply an inability on their part to engage in extracurricular activities against the rest of the world. "In custody" implies being in some sort of jug, be it the big house, the local calaboose, or even just house arrest at the local MarriottSheraton Holiday Inn. But the Jordan blast whispered "Zarqawi" loud enough for my tin ear to pick it up, and the Riyadh blasts whispered "Saad and Saif" loud enough for the tin ear of Prince Nayef fewgawdsake to pick it up. That would imply that either the Medes and Persians aren't real good at this "custody" thing, or that the Qaeda snuffies are being use as agents of Iranian policy, to whit, exporting death and destruction while using wahhabi thugs as their agents. If Bush is feeling particularly prickly, that'd be a causus belli right there, forget the nuclear power plants. And Tony and the Brits could play, too, because Basra's Moqtada Sadr country, and guess who owns him?
Government official spokesman Abdollah Ramezanzadehdid his best to keep the issue murky said recently that due to security problems, Iran would not disclose the names of the senior terrorists it has arrested and repeated that anyhow, none of them would be handed over to the Americans, who have placed the Islamic Republic in their list of "rogue states" and with whom Tehran has no relations.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
08/12/2003 14:00 ||
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#1
WaPo this AM says Saudis want Saad and Saif, Iranians arent playing nice, theyre really in safe houses, not custody. Saudis show this as instance that they, the Saudis, are doing their level best.
#2
If Iran starts playing these kinds of games, we'll have "relations" all right - large, glowing relations. Wonder if Allah can protect one of these mullahs from a 100Kt blast at, say, 40 meters?
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 14:10 Comments ||
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#3
Wonder if the mullahs ever read Tom Clancy? We should send over our new ambassador, John Clark
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 16:24 Comments ||
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The United States said on Tuesday that a senior American official, condemned by North Korea as ``human scumââ for a personalized attack on its leader, would not take part in nuclear crisis talks in Beijing this month.
But U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage told a news conference in the Australian capital Canberra that many in the United States shared the views of arms control negotiator John Bolton on the reclusive communist state.
``His recent comments reflect a point of view in the United States held by many. Clearly they did not affect the talks. Weâre going ahead with them in Beijing later in the month,ââ he added.
Damn straight they reflect our point of view...
North Korea said earlier this month it would not deal with Bolton after he said that life in the secretive state was a ``hellish nightmareââ and called its leader Kim Jong-il a ``tyrannical dictator.ââ
Truth hurts...doesnât it?
Its official KCNA news agency described him in a report on Tuesday as ``human scumââ and accused him of a ``provocative attempt to intentionally spoil the atmosphere.ââ
What Bolton said is totally unacceptable! oh and by the way... we will destroy you in sea of fire Yankee running dogs!
China said Monday there were still serious gaps between the two sides. (Translation: we havenât be able to get the Americans to fork over any cash yet...) But analysts have interpreted the fact that the impoverished North has not pulled out of the talks, despite Boltonâs criticism, as a sign it has few options left. (Yup... man can not live on grass alone)
In the latest salvo of tit-for-tat exchanges between the North and South, Pyongyangâs official news agency said South Korea had conducted a military provocation inside the demilitarised zone Tuesday, but Seoul dismissed the allegation.
The Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) said the South Korean army brought two tanks to the verge of the military demarcation line inside the DMZ and took a firing posture at the Northern side, quoting military sources. How dare the running dogs aim tanks at all of the artillery we have pointed at them!
``We never menace North Korea with such a kind of military action, tee heeââ a lieutenant colonel and spokesman for the Southâs Defense Ministry told Reuters.
#2
I hereby petition the President of the United States of America to make our next Ambassador to the Republic of Korea one John Bolton. It appears to me that this is one man that can see the trees, even in the densest forest.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 18:26 Comments ||
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From MEMRI: In an article titled "Why Do Arabs Hate the West, Especially the U.S.," Zuheir Abdallah, columnist for the London-based Arabic daily Al-Hayat, blames Arab fascism and Islamism for failing to achieve any accomplishments for the Arab world since 1948, leading to its backwardness today. The following are excerpts from the article:
"The West and the U.S. in particular, as a result of their growing financial and moral power since the 1950s, and just like any human force, dominates and colonizes⊠just like them the Assyrians, the Romans, the Greeks, the Persians, the Arabs, the Tatars, the Ottomans and others did before them⊠But since the 1950s, both the dominating and dominated initiated an attempt to build a new world, where competition (which is part of human nature) gradually moved from the battlefields to the realm of creation, economy and trade. Sciences and inventions developed as never before, especially in the fields of space, communications and medicine, which led to the invention of computers, the Internet and satellites, and many medicines and antibiotics were discovered, overcoming many diseases and increasing humans' life expectancy. In general, the world went on a stable path of progress, as trade prospered (with the elimination of tariffs and the speed in transportation)."
"But despite this, the Arab world failed to ride the same wagon (except for the consumption part), ever since the Palestinian Nakba in 1948. Since then, under the pretext of liberating Palestine and destroying the occupation's agents, most Arab countries were taken over by not so intelligent and more tyrannical people (mostly from the military). Thus, the economic and scientific growth regressed and reached the bottom level, in comparison to the rest of the countries in the world (according to the last report of the UN)."
"Since 1948, the primitive Arab fascism was given free reign, and boosted by the backwards soldiers, from the officers to reactionary parties (sometimes self-dubbed progressive), and other times allied with fundamentalist Islam. It has nothing to offer to its people except empty slogans revolving around the themes of resistance and struggle, for no voice can be louder than that of the fight, and consequently, corruption spread, and this Arab fascism was constantly being defeated in its Don-Quixote-like-battles with any foreign force (except its people, as it always vanquished them).
"All around the world, extremist slogans and concepts are falling one after the other; but in the Arab world, they have reached such a level that many simple-minded people and ignorant persons were unfortunately brainwashed and turned into the fuel of this extremism. When discussing with many Arab citizens, even those claiming to be educated, about the reason for our backwardness, you get a preset answer to the effect that the West with the U.S. in particular are stopping the Arabs from progressing. If this hypothesis is true, then why did certain Arab and Islamic countries, such as Malaysia and Dubai [sic], manage to achieve progress (even if partially)?"
It's good that some Arab thinkers can recognize the sterility of thought that's prevalent throughout not only the Arab world but the entire Muslim world.
Sometimes I genuinely pity the entire Muslim world. Ignorant and oppressed, the women are reduced to breeding stock, the men to cannon fodder. They're forbidden to do things most of us barely think of in passing â singing, dancing, swimming (even skinny dipping), cracking jokes, getting drunk, occasionally getting laid. They're "educated" with a continuous diet of hatred and religious mumbo-jumbo instead of acquiring skills that would make them competetive in the world. It's sad, really â an utter waste of a large segment of humanity. Who would want to live in a world where his/her/its children's greatest aspiration would be to grow up to be dangerous?
Then some bastard hollers "jihad!" and the shootings and the bombings start up again and I realize they could all go straight to hell and I wouldn't really bat an eye.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt ||
08/12/2003 13:33 ||
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#1
How do you spell fatwa? I agree with what this guy is saying, but I hope he's got somebody he trusts watching his back.
#2
Fred's summary really does summarize the dilemma.
I would add that the author is overgenerous regards Arab achivements - they stopped long before 1948 - they stopped when Little Mo's influence began to hold sway in the region.
Note: It IS Islam that created the sick twisted societies that Arabs accept as normal - they've had 1400 yrs of it, so it is their norm. Even when they go abroad long enough to begin to appreciate that it isn't the world's norm, they still revert to it upon return - for it is thoroughly institutionalized and enforced. They do not produce any lone wolves (free thinking people)in Islam - it is specifically bred out, in fact.
In the end, however, and as Fred uses as his closer, the tragedy of Islam becomes moot. Islam is a pathogen that causes a fatal disease.
#3
*com, you are correct, but, if you want to persuade it is best not to insult everything about the culture and religion of those you wish to persuade.
It is best to provide a target that is part of the problem and that everyone dislikes (like the military and corrupt governments) and concentrate your shots there.
#4
Yank - I hear you, bro. I just have this little problem with lies and prevarication. I have never known how to lie nicely - nor to use the diplo-speak of partial truth. Call it a personality flaw and near-total lack of social skills. I know, I'm screwed - I'll never get elected to anything, but that's okay with me. Prolly why I eventually chose to be a programmer - where neither of those skills is of value, but accuracy and precision as well as maintaining a handle on the big picture are.
Here in Rantburg, I hope it's allowed to call 'em like we see 'em - and this is the final sum from my up-close and waay-too-personal experiences with Islam. 8-)
#5
De-humanizing your enemies is always a bad strategy. You'll end up underestimating them at the worst possible time. Some old Chinese guy told me that. He also said that it helps to know your own weaknesses and strengths, too.
I know that this must sound very sacreligious, but when I think about Dar al Islam, I sometimes feel like Abraham bargaining with God over Sodom and Gomorrah. Only it won't be God smiting the Muslims, it'll be us.
Switching from the religious to the secular, I once sat next to a psychiatrist on a long trip. She told me that what she does is de-program people from the crappy ideas their parents put in their heads. I have no idea how you deprogram so many people of so many bad ideas. Fear and utter defeat seem to be the only solutions. Hate so long as you fear, eh, Fred?
#6
If there is any hope for the Arabic world, it's the women. Arabic women who get a proper education, who become doctors, engineers, writers... whatever... you don't find many of them believing in jihad crap and "destruction of the West". This is not the case with many men, who can be as smart and educated as a Harvard man but still don't adapt to reality.
Just think of the brave girls of SOS Racisme in the Paris banlieue who defy Islamic violence directed against them ("ni putes ni soumises"). Take the RAWA women in Afghanistan, the Iranian students.
There is a lot of hate brewing. But as the German poet Hölderlin formulated 200 years ago: "Wo aber Gefahr ist, wächst das Rettende auch" (But where there is danger, A rescuing element grows as well).
Germany plunged into darkness, too. How much hope did the world have for a democratic, peace loving Germany in 1944?
#7
Women, urbanization, and education, I think TGA. You won't reach the women as long as they are under the tight control of clan leaders in the countryside and even if they're in the cities, you won't affect them without education. Maybe our islamist adversaries understand their weaknesses better than we know? Maybe that's why they keep their women under such tight wraps.
In a perverse sort of way, I admire the Islamists for not giving up. Every other culture has let themselves be assimilated into the network of modernism and all it entails. Little by little, the boundaries of Confucianism, Bushido, feudalism, the caste system, etc. are eroded. Some scarcely exist any longer. The Russians, Chinese, and Japanese have all given up. Only the wahhabi/salafist/deobandi core continues to resist.
My admiration for the "noble savage" is insignificant when placed alongside my fear of savagery armed with nuclear weapons. I hope that Iraq works out. I hope that Syria and Iran fall. I hope that Saudi Arabia follows. I hope that Arabs will start ranking one another on the basis of success and failure rather than shame and honor. But my instincts, my reading of history and my knowledge of human nature tells me we are heading towards another genocidal convulsion like 70 AD, or the Thirty Years War or WW II. I pray that I am wrong.
#10
Because... well look at it this way. Basically what he said in his comment is that all or most Muslims are bad. Well? What about Christians? Do we not kill, rape, lie, cheat, and steal? I work with many Muslims from Palestine, Sudan, Pakistanm, Syria, and Kuwait. They are the most friendly and nice people that I know. According to this they are bad people, but I like to make up my own mind.
Posted by: David A. Garrett, Jr. ||
08/13/2003 1:10 Comments ||
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#11
Actually, my comment didn't say that most Muslims are bad. I said it was sad that the structure of Islam wastes human potential on a breath-taking scale. And I said that because of the inherent love for mindless violence among Islamists, I wouldn't give a hairy communist's rectum if they all went away tomorrow.
What about Christians? Christians, with the exception of a few nutbags like Kony in Uganda, are not leading jihads and calling for the establishment of a Christian caliphate (I suppose the equivalent would be to elevate the Pope or Billy Graham to a position with veto over all secular leadership). We're discussing a movement based on religion and rooted in that religion that has led to a stunted and distorted world view that allows the individual next to no freedom and which contributes next to nothing to the world's intellectual discourse.
Muslims as individuals aren't necessarily bad people -- nor are they necessarily good people. Immigrants tend not to be mainstreamers in their own countries -- it's the ones with ambition and drive who come here, precisely for the individual liberty that allows them to be successful. There are also a certain number who're here to destroy what we have because of that liberty, but that's one of the general subjects of Rantburg so there's no need to go into it in detail.
You're free to make up your own mind. You should. But you should make up your mind when you've got sufficient data to have an opinion. You can make up your mind that the sky is hotrod orange, and that's not going to change the underlying reality.
I suggest a bit more reading of Rantburg and the source articles that go into it every day before flinging charges of ignorance and bastardy.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/13/2003 10:53 Comments ||
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#12
Christinas never led a Jihad? What about the crusades?! What about the wich burnings. Everyone, muslim and christian, sins. If you get to know some of them you'll see that we are the same.
Posted by: David A. Garrett, Jr. ||
08/13/2003 14:07 Comments ||
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Edited for brevity.
The Navy has embarked on a revolutionary move to staff its hardest-to-fill positions: open them up to online auction. The Wall Street Journal has the scoop (subscription required):
For decades, when the Navy needed to fill an unpopular job in a distant place, it simply ordered a sailor and his or her family to move. Recently, it took a different tack. To keep skilled sailors in the service -- which entails keeping their families happy -- Navy officials put some of those out-of-favor jobs up for online auction, a la eBay.
Among the first to bite was Petty Officer 1st Class Elishaine Moses. He offered to take a job in Yokuska, Japan, but only if the Navy was willing to bump up his salary by $350 a month. He doesnât want to live in Japan. Nor does his wife. But they figured an extra $350 a month would go a long way toward a down payment on a house. "My No. 1 goal in life right now is to save enough money to build a house," his wife, Shana Moses, says.
In the new system, sailors will be able to bid on jobs that no one wants. Ships with vacancies also will be able to bid for sailors that they really want. The Navy is even considering allowing sailors who are particularly good at their jobs to apply for positions that would traditionally go to higher-ranking officers...
Iâm not too sure how this would go over in all branches of service. "Sure, Sarge, Iâll take point--for an extra $1,000!"
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 1:16:30 PM ||
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how is it that he gets paid more? normally pay is tied to rank or another special inclusion like hazardous duty pay or a housing allowance or some other such thing. I've never heard of anyone having their pay adjusted for a specific job as part of a negotiation or incentive.
maybe the navy has some kind of technical kicker pay that the army doesn't have?
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 14:21 Comments ||
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#3
Big changes. When I was in, most detailers would try their best to get you something you liked, but if all they had were s**t jobs, you were shafted. I actually got a pretty plum final tour from a guy who said he was making up for my previous assignment.
#5
I know the Coast Guard has a semi-similar system. If you took ice-breaker duty you got to choose your next assignment. Similar, but I think wiser because it doesn't screw up the pay scales, etc.
#6
Saint, you get extra pay for serving overseas. This is actually a good way to keep troops in hard to fill slots. I would much rather have that guy that wanted to go to Japan than forcing someone to go. The Air Force used to allow personnel to 'homestead' at locations (mostly overseas) and it really helped with the manning. They also offered extra incentives to remain at remote locations (like Korea). There were several people that had lived there for more than 10 years when I was stationed there. That's a lot of Kimchi eating! Of course Osan AB looks more like 'little USA' than it does a Korean Town, Burger King, Pizza, etc.
The United Nations, under pressure from the Bush administration, has decided to move a stash of submachine guns out of the organizationâs New York City headquarters. The MP5s, made by Heckler and Koch of Germany, are to be moved to U.N. peacekeeping operations overseas, State Department sources said. The United Nations purchased the restricted weapons for the personal protection of Secretary-General Kofi Annan in his travels around the New York metropolitan area. The weapons often were visible in the support van of Mr. Annanâs motorcade as it moved throughout the city. It was not clear why Mr. Annanâs bodyguards needed such weapons, said sources within the State Departmentâs Diplomatic Security Service (DSS). Under a U.S. agreement with the United Nations, DSS bears ultimate responsibility for Mr. Annanâs protection within the borders of the United States. Kofi wanted his own private army, just like all his friends, Yassar, Chucky, Kadaffi, Bob, etc.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), which regulates the sale and purchase of the MP5s, originally denied the United Nations permission to purchase the guns. Key factors were the U.N. security departmentâs lack of formal status as a law-enforcement agency and the risk of non-U.S. citizens gaining access to the weapons, State Department sources said. The United Nations, aided by senior officials in the Clinton administration, persuaded the ATF to grant permission. Big suprise there.
In February 2002, the Bush administration ordered a review of the U.N. security officersâ use of the weapons. Shortly after the 2002 ATF examination, U.N. security officials told The Washington Times, the MP5s were removed from Mr. Annanâs security detail and locked up. And heâs been pouting ever since.
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 12:00:54 PM ||
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I feel much safer...
Posted by: Fred ||
08/12/2003 14:14 Comments ||
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In the context of their campaign against the ongoing construction of the security fence in the West Bank, the Palestinians have declared this coming Friday as a day of "rage" to be marked with protests and rallies. (With the blessing of the PA)
Days of rage in the West Bank and Gaza Strip are usually marked with clashes between Palestinians and the IDF. Over the past two and a half years, the Palestinians have declared days of "rage" to protest against Israelâs military operations and visits by Jews to the Temple Mount.
(Hmmm Would this be like those jokers that âinvadedâ the church of the nativity?)
Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat, who has repeatedly condemned the fence as a "big crime against humanity," has instructed the Palestinian media and leadership to put increased emphasis on the issue with the hope that US and European pressure would force Israel to halt the project or change the route of the fence. (And it makes it much harder for our Human Bombers to get into Israel!)
Palestinian Authority officials and human rights groups have also begun organizing tours for foreign diplomats to the West Bank to explain the dangers of the fence. The Palestiniansâ main argument is that the "Apartheid Wall" is being built inside the West Bank a move resulting in the confiscation of tens of thousands of dunams of Arab-owned land. Moreover, the Palestinians see the fence as a political step designed to create irreversible facts on the ground and torpedo any attempt to establish an independent Palestinian state on the West Bank. (Some of the dangers include terrorists having to go through checkpoints and in some cases being shot.)
Representatives of different Palestinian political factions who met in Ramallah Sunday night decided to escalate the campaign against the fence by calling on Palestinians to devote Friday for demonstrations in all parts of the West Bank. "We urge our people to intensify their protests against the racist wall and the settlements and in support of our detainees," said a leaflet distributed in a number of Palestinian cities Monday. (At last something to vent at! I love the racists comment, it makes the case for them.)
The leaflet said the Israeli government bears the full responsibility for the possible collapse of the current cease-fire because of its "continued aggression against the Palestinian people." (The homcide bombers have nothing to do with the âcollapseâ)
It accused Israel of "violating" the unilateral cease-fire declared by the Palestinians four weeks ago by continuing to build the fence, expropriate land, expand settlements and launch daily raids against Palestinians suspected of involvement in terrorism. (Also they shook their testicles at us in a most unholy manner!)
In a separate development, the families of Israeli-Arab security prisoners met in Ramallah with Arafat to discuss the future of their sons. The families appealed to Arafat to demand the release of their sons together with Palestinian prisoners. (After the last bombing,I think this is wishful thinking.)
(The fact that the Israelis are building a fence suggest that they are evisioning a PA State. The fence will probably act as a border for that state. The PA should take the hint and maybe crack down oentire months pay to the PA on the day they arrest the first militant n some of these militant groups.)
Posted by: Cyber Sarge (VRWC CA Chapter) ||
08/12/2003 11:00:10 AM ||
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What would happen if a bunch of Pals leaned on the fence during the protest and the Israeli's hooked a car battery or two up to the chain links? Shock or death?
List of Israeli-Palestinian Violence
7:34 AM EDT,August 12, 2003
By The Associated Press
Since a June 29 cease-fire by Palestinian militants, seven people have been killed on the Israeli side and 15 -- including three suicide bombers -- on the Palestinian side. Here is a breakdown of some of the major incidents:
* Aug. 12: Two suicide bombings less than an hour apart kill at least two Israelis and injure about a dozen people in a central Israel town and a West Bank Jewish settlement. 2 Paleo boomers down
* Aug. 8: Israeli troops raiding a West Bank bomb lab kill three Palestinians, including two Hamas members, prompting threats of revenge from the Islamic militant groupâs military wing. An Israeli soldier also dies in that gunbattle in the city of Nablus. 3 paleo boomers/preparers down
* Aug. 3: A Palestinian gunman ambushes an Israeli car near the West Bank town of Bethlehem, badly wounding a woman and her 9-year-old daughter and slightly injuring two other children.
* July 28: The body of an Israeli soldier who had been missing for a week is found in northern Israel. Police investigators suspect the 20-year-old serviceman was kidnapped and killed by Arabs.
* July 25: An Israeli soldier fires a tank-mounted machine gun at a car stopped at a West Bank roadblock, killing a 5-year-old Palestinian boy. The military said the shooting was accidental. 1 innocent Paleo down
* July 15: A Palestinian stabs an Israeli man to death as he sits with his girlfriend on a Mediterranean beach promenade near the seaport of Jaffa.
* July 7: A suicide bomber from a breakaway faction of Islamic Jihad blows up inside a house in central Israel, killing a 65-year-old woman. 1 paleo boomer down
* June 30: A Palestinian gunman kills a Bulgarian laborer of an Israeli construction crew working on the barrier Israel is constructing along its boundary line with the West Bank.
* Eight others were killed on the Palestinian side: four in encounters with Israeli troops, two in unexplained explosions, one shot by Israeli border police when he failed to stop at a road block and one shot by Palestinian militants who accused him of collaborating with Israel. 8 militants (including one collaborator(?)) down in "encounters" and work accidents
* Israelâs military says there have been 120 shooting incidents in the West Bank and 10 mortars fired on Israeli targets in the Gaza Strip since the cease-fire was declared.
so basically, only one of the Paleo dead was an innocent, the 5 yr old boy, in a tragic accident. The rest were killed in attacks, preparing attacks, running road blocks, "work accidents". Explain to me again how this is a "ceasefire"
meeting any part of the RoadMap⢠to peace? Must be the lack of "trust" and "confidence" inspired by the Jooos and their fence
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 10:25:41 AM ||
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and the one shot by Paleos for alleged collaboration was a releasee from an Israeli prison
Kenyan authorities have identified a man who escaped from police custody earlier this month as a most-wanted terror suspect indicted over two deadly attacks on US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998, a top police source said Tuesday. The suspect was named as Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, a national of the Comoros islands who has a 25-million-dollar bounty on his head. Mohammed has been indicted in a US court over the twin attacks that destroyed the US embassies in Dar Es Salaam and Nairobi, killing 224 people, including 12 Americans. Mohammed had been in custody at a Mombasa police station on August 1 when another terror suspect blew himself up with a grenade, killing a police officer and allowing Mohammed to escape, said a senior anti-terrorism official who requested anonymity. I heard about the guy blowing up, but the earlier report said that the "suspect" in custody was talking and the guy who boomed himself and the cop was trying to get into the jail in order to kill him. The boomerâs partner was said to have gotten away when he was captured. No mention about the guy in jail escaping or who he was. Major egg on Kenyan cops faces.
Ever since the Mombasa attacks, Kenya's demonstrated a previously unsuspected degree of ineptitude. You'd think a country that invented the term "mau mau" would be able to deal with a bunch of beturbaned Bad Guys, but they just don't seem overly concerned, despite the number of Kenyakorpses produced...
Posted by: Steve ||
08/12/2003 9:05:14 AM ||
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Kenyakorpses. Now that's a good one Steve.
Posted by: Bill ||
08/12/2003 17:47 Comments ||
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AT least one person has been killed in a huge explosion that has rocked a supermarket in the central Israeli town of Rosh Haayin. The blast is believed to have been triggered by a murdering Islamist terrorist suicide bomber. There were at least seven people injured, it has been reported. The bomber died in the blast. Police had been on high alert in the area following warnings of an impending attack in central Israel. Violence in Israeli towns has been at a lull in recent weeks as Israelâs Government and the Palestinian Authority have been working on the so-called "Road Map" for peace. Palestinian terrorist militant groups have been on tactical pauses ceasefires, which they have pretended warned were dependent on progress on the road map.
Heard on the news this morning that Hamas was claiming the glory...
Posted by: Anon1 ||
08/12/2003 2:55:29 AM ||
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How many people have to die before the WHite House gives up on the road map and allows Israel to permanently dismantle the Syrian and Iranian backed terrorists on their borders?
This is a failed foreign policy and it has the same idiotic approach as the new tone with the democrats (that's been working well).
Posted by: Douglas De Bono ||
08/12/2003 8:50 Comments ||
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#2
Hamas claims credit. Kill.Them.Now
Posted by: Frank G ||
08/12/2003 9:02 Comments ||
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#3
Looks like two more boomers, two more Israeli dead.
As for the fence, or wall, or whatever, I've already said my two cents' worth. I do believe the Israelis would make much more progress if they mixed in a bit of spent uranium from their nuclear "power" plants into the cement used on the outside of the wall - or at least, let the rumor spread... 8^)
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 12:21 Comments ||
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Long but interesting piece in the International Herald Tribune about the near-worthlessness of the peacekeepers coming to Liberia. Too long to post here in full, but Iâve excerpted some key paragraphs.
Counting on regional forces to bring peace to Liberia without substantial American participation is a mistake, one that will likely come with tragic consequences. As the UN human rights officer in Liberia in 1995 and 1996, I had the misfortune to witness the last round of West African peacekeeping in the country. At the time, the regional coalition forces (then called Ecomog) supported and armed an ever-growing list of ethnically based rival rebel factions. The theory was that these factions would thwart the biggest rebel, Charles Taylor, from taking power by force. The tactic backfired. ... As a result, the war degenerated into a bloody stalemate and the chaos of a failed state. Almost every citizen was displaced by the war amid a mind-bending series of torture and cannibalism cases. By my calculation, one in every six women had been raped.
The regional coalition forces managed to do considerable damage at the tactical level, too. The State Department reported that soldiers not only engaged in the systematic looting of small, easily transportable goods, but even shipped entire buildings for scrap to be sold abroad. (In the field we had an additional name for Ecomog: "Every Conceivable Moving Object Gone.") UN officials reported observing Nigerian forces, which made up 80 percent of the coalition troops, at the port of Monrovia trafficking in narcotics. ... Peacekeeping forces were also responsible for sexual violence. In 1996, my colleagues and I investigated - and confirmed - reports of child prostitution. And these are our peacekeepers of choice in Liberia today. The lure of regional forces for peacekeeping operations is understandable. Regional forces, the thinking goes, have significant advantages over their international counterparts: Theyâre more likely to understand the society theyâve entered, they have a stronger interest in bringing security to their own neighborhood, they are more willing to absorb casualties, and they are relatively inexpensive. But the last decade in Liberia should show us that these theories can crumble the minute they are tested in battle.
If U.S. forces are active, their professionalism will raise the bar considerably for everyone. Competence breeds — or at least inspires — competence. Witness Sierra Leone. The initial Ecomog and UN arrangement was on the verge of failure until a very small force of approximately 1,000 British soldiers arrived in 2000. Since then, the situation has stabilized... Of course, the responsibility is not Americaâs alone. The United Nations needs to go public with its oversight, reporting on the actions of the soldiers sent to Liberia in a vigorous manner. It should place greater emphasis on fighting corruption. And it should fully detail the horrifying extent to which rape has been used as a weapon during the last 14 years. Washington hailed as an achievement the arrival of a seven-member U.S. military team in Monrovia last week. To those familiar with Liberiaâs civil war, it is a failure. More than 2,000 marines are on ships just off the Liberian coast. In a short time, they could be working with African troops to put an end to a crisis that is getting worse by the day. Holding American soldiers back in deference to a regional force that has been demonstrably brutal and misguided is a grave mistake. And itâs certainly no cause for celebration. He saw what the Nigerians, et al. did last time so itâs hard to argue against him. I still donât like having our troops in Liberia.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/12/2003 12:30:52 AM ||
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We have no stake in the outcome of the civil war or the UN operation in Liberia.
If the UN was more receptive about our own national security needs last year concerning Iraq, I would say consider sending troops. But since this is a UN operation, the only goal the UN has in mind is for soldiers to become targets and subsequently corpses. If the UN can kill US troops by proxie, all the better for the UN.
#2
If the world really wants our troops in Liberia, they can offer to deploy troops under US command in Iraq in exchange for a US deployment to Liberia. Since that's not happening, I can only conclude that all the posturing about Liberia is just another ploy to tie our troops down in yet another bottomless sinkhole.
#5
When I read about why we need to send troops to Liberia I get this image of the headline the NYT, the Guardian or the Beeb will print the first time a 19-year old Marine fires when he shouldn't have (in hindsight), or the first time a Marine shoots a 10-year old Liberian "soldier". What some folks seem to have in mind is an "Immaculate Intervention" in which the Marines simply explain to the bad guys that burning and eating people is considered tacky, and the bad guys then stop.
Posted by: Matt ||
08/12/2003 11:51 Comments ||
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#6
We need to stay far, far away from this. We have no business there and they (UN / Media), won't let us fight for real. Stay away!
#7
What part of "NO" do they NOT understand?
Any of it, Ptah, that doesn't allow them some control of US Military Forces. That's Kofi's (and the UN's) goal in all of this - direct control of US forces. That's the number one reason we should stay out of this stupidity.
Number two reason is that nothing ANYBODY does is going to make a nickel's worth of difference as long as the primary commitment of 99.9999999% of Africans is to their Tribe, their Family, or their "god". There IS no link to "nation". There is no commitment to "nation". There is no understanding of why governments are created, or what they're supposed to do. Africa is even farther behind today than the native North Americans were in 1700. There were at least several "nations" among the native Americans, where there are currently none among African tribes.
Among all the other trappings of management I received as an Air Force NCO was an introduction to Abraham Mazlow's pyramid. Right now, 99% of Africans are concerned with personal survival. Until enough people can escape from the endless loop of spending every waking moment thinking about survival, there can be no successes in Africa.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 13:03 Comments ||
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#8
ZF and badanov
Ive been thinking for weeks that a tradeoff like that would make a lot of sense - US marines to Liberia, in exchange for a UNSC res authorizing troops to Iraq under US or NATO or equivalent command, with no significant concession of political authority. Hasnt happened yet, but it is interesting that we're keeping the Marines offshore. I mean if we're never going to put them in under any circumstances, why not just let them go home already? and if we're going to send them in without quid pro quo, why not just send them now, now that Chuckles is gone? And Germany the other day said they WOULD be willing to send troops to Iraq under NATO command, as long as there was a UN mandate. And there is talk that some UNSC res, recognizing the interim governing council, could go through any day.
A helmet that might have belonged to an Israeli pilot whose plane was shot down over Iraq in the 1967 Middle East war is back in Israeli hands, the military said Monday. The helmet was in a Baghdad museum. Israeli media reports said it was handed over to the Israeli Embassy in Amman, Jordan, last week by U.S. officials. Three Israeli planes were shot down over Iraq in June 1967 on the first day of the brief war. One of the pilots was captured, and the other two were presumed killed. Israeli media said the helmet belonged to one of the dead pilots. In its statement, the military said the helmet was found by U.S. forces in Iraq several weeks ago, and it is trying to determine which pilot wore it. The Haaretz daily ran a front-page picture of the white helmet, which appeared to be in good condition. The paper said Israel also received pictures of what appeared to be remains of an Israeli aircraft.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/12/2003 12:18:06 AM ||
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Ohmigod! They're looting artifacts out of the Baghdad museums again! Where's the outrage, lefties?
Posted by: Dar ||
08/12/2003 9:08 Comments ||
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#2
The outraged lefties don't care about these artifacts, as they belonged to Jews.
Posted by: Ben ||
08/12/2003 9:22 Comments ||
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#3
That's it! Now the troops are looting what little the Iraqis people have left! I am calling for an Impeachement hearing to find out what I know and when did I find out! We should bring our troops home now! And Israel must return the helmet and release all PA prisoners, that is the only way they will have peace in our time.
Posted by: Howard Dean ||
08/12/2003 15:37 Comments ||
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Japanâs Defense Agency, worried about the threat from North Koreaâs nuclear weapons and missile programs, hopes to have an anti-missile system in place within three years, a major Japanese newspaper reported Tuesday. That Long-Dong overflight a few years back made the Japanese pay attention, though not the way Kimmie wanted.
The agency is expected to increase spending considerably in the coming years for the initial setup costs and high-tech telecommunications systems for the advanced missile defense, the national Asahi newspaper said. The agency will request nearly $1.2 billion next fiscal year. That request will be nearly nine times greater than the $132 million Tokyo spent on missile defense research from 1999 to 2003. $1.2 billion out of a $42 billion defense budget: thatâs a big chunk, and percentage wise is the same or a little more than weâre doing on missile defense.
Japan has 27 Patriot anti-missile batteries, but they can only down missiles with a shorter range and slower speed than the ballistic missiles North Korea is believed to be developing. One of the those missiles — the Taepodong — was test-launched over Japanâs main island in 1998. The upgraded system would create a two-layer defense system. The first layer uses Aegis-equipped naval destroyers, which have top-of-the-line surveillance systems, to track incoming missiles and intercept them with ship-to-air missiles, Asahi reported. Backup would be provided by an enhanced version of the Patriot PAC2, capable of downing ballistic missiles with a range of 620 miles. In a government report last week, the Defense Agency urged accelerated research on an anti-missile system to protect against possible nuclear and terrorist attacks. It also stressed that North Koreaâs nuclear ambitions are one of Japanâs biggest security concerns. Japanâs overall defense budget remains among the worldâs largest. In 2003, Japan expects to spend $42 billion on defense, or less than 1 percent of its gross domestic product. Hello, Mr. Hu? Better curb your dog.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/12/2003 12:11:25 AM ||
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Three years? What's the plan until then?
Float the rumor that Japan has the plans for a nuclear weapon, and can manufacture one in 30 days, if attacked. Since there are nuclear reactors all over the island chain, I'm sure little Kimmie will be leaving grass stains in his underwear, once he hears that.
It's time for Japan to shake off the past, accept its responsibilities for its own defense, and start making some alliances with its sister states in the Far East. I'm sure a mutual defense agreement between Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Australia, Indonesia, and Thailand would give the Chinese enough heartburn to curb Kim's irrational behavior, especially if the United States joins as an "interested third party".
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
08/12/2003 13:11 Comments ||
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#5
In 2003, Japan expects to spend $42 billion on defense, or less than 1 percent of its gross domestic product.
If they want to become a player, they're going to have to spend 3-4%, like we do. Right now, they're pretty much using us as a crutch.
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.
