Saudi Arabia's Interior Minister has reached out to Iran, praising the country for hosting a conference on Iraq's security and saying the two countries can help with the upcoming Iraqi elections. "Both the kingdom and Iran can play an important role in founding stability in the Middle East region, especially in Iraq," Prince Nayef said, describing the two countries as "regional powerhouses ... that can help the Iraqi government in holding elections."Â
I don't know who's more gullible, the person who said this or the person who reported it as true.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/05/2004 1:19:33 AM ||
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There's some kinds of helping
That helping's all about.
And there's some kinds of helping
That we can do without.
Shel Silverstein
.
Posted by: Mike Sylwester ||
12/05/2004 1:38 Comments ||
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..and saying the two countries can help with the upcoming Iraqi elections.
Uhhh, no. Iraq doesn't need "help" from the likes of the Saudis or the mullahs..
#3
Saudi Arabia and Iran's long history of fair elections open to all makes them the perfect dynamic duo to help Iraq with theirs! Now if we could just get North Korea to lend some of their valuable experience...
In unrelated news the Los Angeles based Bloods and Cripps gangs jointly announced they are opening a series of Boys Camps to help get America's youth off the streets.
#4
Realizing that Iran and SA are the bastions of democracy and liberty, aren't these countries already trying (as they might) to influence the upcoming Iraqi elections?
Posted by: Capt America ||
12/05/2004 10:51 Comments ||
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Saudi Arabia and Iran? Isn't that a lot like having Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton on your campaign planning committee?
#7
Nice try at setting up the good-guy image, SA and Iran.
1. You know that elections are scheduled and going forward in Iraq.
2. You know how much your cannon fodder has been hurt in Fallujah and all around the 'triangle.'
3. This end-of-the-year makeover is not going to change the fact that you guys are the kings of terrorist funding on the globe.
4. You two also realize that a successful Iraq will spell doom to your kleptocracy.
5. You also will realize that one or both of you will be next for regime change, one way or another.
6. And that goes for your little dog Syria, too.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 13:33 Comments ||
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Long live Persia! Long live The Republic of Eastern Arabia!
#10
.com, you forgot long live, South Azeristan, Western Baluchistan, East Kurdistan, and how could I forget Arab Khuzestan cos thats where all the oil is.
Muslims from across the UK will join demonstrations against the Musharraf regime this Monday [December 6th] when President Musharraf meets with UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and later addresses a gathering of UK Pakistanis in Central London. Demonstrations will also take place at other events where President Musharraf will be in attendance including a lecture at the International Institute for Strategic Studies and a gathering of UK Pakistanis in Manchester on Tuesday [December 7th]. The demonstrations are organised by Hizb ut-Tahrir, and will draw attention to Pakistan's lack of independence under the Musharraf regime and the continued subservience of Musharraf to foreign powers.
They're really cheesed about his lack of subservience to holy men...
Nadeem Ajaib Khan, an organiser of the demonstrations, said, "Musharraf has dutifully carried out Bush's demands he has sold out over Kashmir, has permitted American forces to establish bases in Pakistan, has legitimised the occupation of Iraq, has provided logistical support and intelligence to US forces in Afghanistan and has surrendered control over Pakistan's economy to multinationals. The Western inspired dictator Musharraf is keen to use brutal tactics to suppress the rise of Political Islam in Pakistan whilst simultaneously promoting secular values it is therefore no surprise that he receives a warm welcome from Western warmongers."
... and equally no surprise that Islamist nutcakes squall about it.
Dr Imran Waheed, a UK based doctor and the Representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, said, "These demonstrations show the massive unease with the Musharraf regime amongst Muslims in Britain. Demonstrators will roll their eyes and jump up and down call for the re-establishment of the Islamic Khilafah [Caliphate] which will stop 'Busharraf', end Pakistan's subservience to foreign colonialist powers and unify the vast armies and resources of the Muslim world into a single state."
"A state ruled by holy men like, ummm... me. A state commanding vast resources billions of barrels of oil, disciplined armies of cannon fodder, millions of dancing girls..."
"Hizb ut-Tahrir can see the Khilafah on the horizon now is the time for the Muslims of Pakistan, particularly the people of power and influence, to remove the weak Musharraf and establish the Islamic Khilafah." The Downing Street protest will take place on Monday 6th December 2004 at 10 a.m. GMT and the later protest will convene at 8.00 p.m. GMT at The London Hilton, 22 Park Lane, London, W1K 1BE.
"Be there, or be square!"
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 12:11:45 PM ||
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get cameras out and keep snapping till u have no more film pls MI6 :) All those dipshits in one place at one time , great photo opportunity .... Smile ..... then deport ..
#3
So did the protesters rent out a hall in the Hilton, or are they using the venue as an address of convenience? Are you gonna make it to the show, Bulldog?
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 13:38 Comments ||
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Unfortunately not, AP. I'm not in London till next w/e. Shame.
"The demonstrations ... will draw attention to Pakistanâs lack of independence under the Musharraf regime ... Demonstrators will call for the re-establishment of the Islamic Khilafah [Caliphate] which will stop âBusharrafâ, end Pakistanâs subservience to foreign colonialist powers and unify the vast armies and resources of the Muslim world into a single state."
So they actually resent Pakistan's independence and want it in some sort of lock-step mediaeval Union of Malevolent Superstitious Former States? Some independence that would be. Sounds like a fate worse than membership of the EU.
Posted by: Donald ||
12/05/2004 14:03 Comments ||
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âMusharraf has dutifully carried out Bushâs demands â he has sold out over Kashmir, has permitted American forces to establish bases in Pakistan, has legitimised the occupation of Iraq, has provided logistical support and intelligence to US forces in Afghanistan ..."
And, unlike other local regimes, Musharraf has remained in power.
Hizb ut-Tahrir can see the Khilafah on the horizon ...
Yes, except that it's actually called the "event horizon," as in; "The Khilafah will come into existence only when our universe recedes into its event horizon."
Posted by: Howard UK ||
12/05/2004 14:49 Comments ||
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#8
There are also several excellent coloquial metahorps invented by the common folk: when hell freezes over and when pigs would fly (and they don't mean icicles on a town sign, nor gratuitious throwing of piglet into air).
People can't predict the future, but can predict trends. In the whole Star Trek or derivates, there is not one single moose-limb. Why do you think is that?
Everyone needs a good laugh
A presentation of writings on the subject "People Blessed with Generals" done by foreign students studying at Kim Il Sung University took place at the Taedonggang Club for the Diplomatic Corps on Thursday on the occasion of the 13th anniversary of leader Kim Jong Il's assumption of the supreme commandership of the Korean People's Army and the 87th birth anniversary of anti-Japanese war hero Kim Jong Suk. Present there were foreign students studying at different universities here.
Just how desparate a foreign student do you have to be to study in Pyongyang?
Put on the stage were dialogic poems, essays, travel notes, accounts of visits, impressions, etc. In the dialogic poem entitled "December 24 We are Observing" Chinese students impressively told the audience how significantly this day is marked not only by the Korean people but by the world progressives. In the essay titled "Focus of the World" and in the travel note captioned "Treasures of Korea" Chinese students highly praised the feats of President Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il who has successfully carried forward his cause, their traits as great men and the Korean people's happiness of being blessed with the generals generation after generation. A Mongolian student in a speech entitled "The Language I Have Learned" spoke highly of the greatness of Kim Jong Il. They presented chorus "Remembering the Old Home", male vocal solo "My Blessed Life" and other Korean songs. It closed with chorus "Comrade Kim Jong Il Is Our Supreme Dumbf*ck Commander." Where can I find the lyrics to that?
Posted by: Spot ||
12/05/2004 10:12:05 AM ||
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lyrics at www.juchetunes.com
it's sung to the tune of Queen's "Fat Bottom Girls"
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/05/2004 10:17 Comments ||
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....I don't know, guys. It just doesn't have the same ring as that golden oldie, "Can I Have That Boiled Grass When You're Done With It?"
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
12/05/2004 10:23 Comments ||
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"If I were a gate I'd be swinging"
"If I were a Nork I'd be grazing"
Posted by: Tom ||
12/05/2004 10:48 Comments ||
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#4
A Little Carrot Juche if you please... I just see Bugs and Dear Leader in a short.
Grab a fence post, hold it tight, Womp your partner with all your might.
Hit him in the shin, hit him in the head, Hit him again, the critter ain't dead.
Wop him low and wop him high, Stick your finger in his eye.
Pretty little rhythm, pretty little sound,
Bang your heads against the ground.
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/05/2004 11:53 Comments ||
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The image of being a foreign student in Pyongyong, graduating and coming home to your impoverished Asian or African country, and your parents and friends asking what you learned....and then you realized that you learned not a damned thing except a bunch of Nork drivel. And you got some 'splaining to do about the scholarship. Then it's a Mose Allison moment:
What do you do after you've ruined your life
Where do you go
Who do you know
What do you do after you've blown the game
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 13:48 Comments ||
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"People Blessed with Generals"
I can only assume this refers to how the American South, even now, feels it was "blessed" with General Sherman.
Just how desparate a foreign student do you have to be to study in Pyongyang?
I hear tell that Ethiopian students are awestruck by the dormitory cafeteria's mountainous portions.
#8
And it is quite clear that not a one of them is a protoge of Army First Man.
The quality of KCNA is steadily going downhill. At this rate, there will not be a Pyongyong Pete around that will be the NKOR equivalent of Baghdad Bob.
THE father of Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks was heckled at a Eureka Stockade event this morning. Terry Hicks was invited to lead the dawn lantern walk in the Victorian city of Ballarat today, a move criticised by many including Premier Steve Bracks. The ABC reported Mr Hicks kept a low profile during the walk and received support from about 1,000 people who marched with him during the event. However, after he spoke at the Eureka Centre, a small number of people accused him of using the Eureka story for his own political purposes. "How dare you hijack this event," one man yelled from the crowd.
Mr Hicks told the ABC: "I don't mind people having a go at me but could they please come and ask me the story personally." His 29-year-old son has been held on Guantanamo Bay for three years since he was captured with Taliban forces in Afghanistan, and is accused of fighting with the Taliban against US and coalition forces. During his speech, Mr Hicks said in some areas justice had not changed in a century and a half. "One hundred and 50 years ago there was a lot of injustices," he said. "Today, particularly on my side and what I'm doing, we still have injustices."
Today's dawn event was one of many held to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Eureka Stockade. The battle at the Eureka Stockade was the result of tensions between miners and the Victorian government over unjust taxes. Miners, who were not landholders, were not allowed to vote and were being targeted by crippling taxes enforced by an over-zealous police force. Rioting miners burnt down the Eureka Hotel and built the Eureka Stockade out of wooden slabs and carts on the site of the burnt-out hotel. Two days later, at 4.45am, government forces stormed the camp and about 30 miners and six soldiers were killed.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
12/05/2004 6:09:06 PM ||
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Seems to be a prime specimen of that particularly Australian species Wankeris Dexteris Australianensis, or the Southern Right Wanker...
Silence is too often assumed to be consent. It's great, his heckling made all the Nightly News in Australia, even SBS (Special Bash-america Service).
All the news networks showed him shouting 'how dare you hijack this event?!'
fantastic.
as if the fight for freedom from taxes without representation has anything to do with freedom for a traitor Islamist convert who fought with a represive bunch of Islamist nutters!
david hicks should have been shot on sight not dragged back to gitmo. Shoot him for the traitorous dog he is.
#3
I keep waiting for a Gitmo spokesman to announce, with great sadness, that ALL of the detainees died in a tragic mass slippling on bars of soap incident. Speaking haltingly, and wiping back tears, he could explain how the change in soap brands to a more Islamic-freindly one turned into disaster when the new brand was found, too late, to be more slippery than the old.
The Federal Government is under pressure to condemn the possible use of evidence obtained by torture in the United States military commissions taking place at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. A court in Washington hearing an appeal by Guantanamo detainees has been told that the US military panels may use such evidence. The Federal Government says that while torture is inappropriate, it has no intention of fighting plans by the US Government to use the evidence.
Australia's Attorney-General Philip Ruddock says that while such evidence is not an accepted part of civilian trials, it can be used in military trials. "We've always known that that was the approach in the military trial arrangements," he said. Opposition legal affairs spokeswoman Nicola Roxson says the use of such evidence condones torture. "I think it does and I think it highlights the reason that in Western countries like Australia, and in the ordinary American civilian system, would not allow material to be used in court when it's been obtained from torture because that gives it some weight, gives it some credibility, as an indication that the state says that this is acceptable material to use," she said. Ms Roxson says it is wrong to condemn torture, but then talk about how evidence obtained through it can be used. "It's inappropriate but we still want to go on and talk about how it can be used. I don't think you can have it both ways," she said. "This is something that all Australians would be concerned about. I am quite astounded Mr Ruddock is not being stronger on this issue."
Lawyers acting for Australian detainees in Cuba have called for the Government to renounce the practice. Two Australians, Mamdouh Habib and David Hicks, are being held at Guantanamo Bay. The lawyer for Hicks, Stephen Kenny, says the US Government's plan to use evidence resulting from torture will hamper any chance of a fair trial. "If you want to try people, give them the proper protection, give them the same rights you give your own citizens and put them before a proper court and give them a chance to defend themselves," he said. "Don't take them to a place where you're trying to hide them beyond the rule of law, which is what they did in Guantanamo Bay." Mr Kenny has again called on the Australian Government to bring Hicks home and allow him to defend himself against allegations of war crimes before an Australian court. About 70 years ago, the United States Supreme Court ruled evidence gained through torture was inadmissible. But the US deputy associate Attorney-General, Brian Boyle, has told the District Court in Washington DC that the Guantanamo review panels are allowing such evidence. This week the International Committee of the Red Cross accused the US military of using tactics "tantamount to torture" on prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, a claim the Pentagon rejects.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
12/05/2004 4:32:57 PM ||
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They were caught fighting against us. My response is to ship them back to Afganistan shoot them on the site of their capture and return ther ashes in a urn and be done with it once we have no further use for them. OED.
The Australian Government says it has tried and failed so far to get a copy of a report by the International Red Thingy Cross which claims psychological and physical coercion of detainees at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. The New York Times newspaper published leaked details of the report, which accuses the American military of beating some detainees, as well as using physical coercion described as "tantamount to torture". Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says the Red Thingy Cross has denied Australia's request to see the report, and it is not appropriate to ask the US for a copy. Mr Downer says he will wait for the results of a US Naval investigation into allegations of mistreatment at the prison. "If there are any concerns about maltreatment then that's something that we'd vigorously take up with the Americans," he said.
The Red Thingy Cross says it cannot release reports because of a confidentiality agreement with the US. "While the ICRTC has felt compelled to make some of its concerns public, notably regarding the legal status of the detainees, the primary channel for addressing issues related to detention remains its direct and confidential dialogue with the US authorities," it says on its website. "The ICRTC's lack of public comment on the conditions of detention and the treatment of detainees must therefore not be interpreted to mean that it has no concerns. Confidentiality is an important working tool for the ICRTC in order to preserve the exclusively humanitarian and neutral nature of its work."
The lawyer for David Hicks, Stephen Kenny says the Red Thingy Cross report alleging torture is consistent with inmate statements. "What it does is confirm the treatment and the allegations that have previously been made by not only David to us, but by others who have been released," he said.
Please tell me that this lawyer is just being a mouthpiece and that he's not this gullible.
The report, which the Red Thingy Cross is yet to confirm, says some prison doctors violated medical ethics by helping plan interrogations. The Pentagon says it is not mistreating detainees at Guantanamo Bay. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher has defended the US Government's treatment of detainees. "They're treated humanely and in accordance with standard international, relevant international practice," he said.
Australia's minor political parties have seized on the report. Incoming Democrats leader Lyn Allison accuses the Government of not doing enough for Australian detainees David Hicks and Mamdouh Habib. "It's been prepared to walk away and say, 'well, we'll just leave it up to the United States' and I think that's an abrogation of responsibility," she said.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
12/05/2004 4:33:46 PM ||
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The Australian Government says it has tried and failed so far to get a copy of a report by the International Red Cross which claims psychological and physical coercion of detainees at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba
First sentence and already this is confusing me. Why don't you ask the Red Thingy for the report?
Posted by: Charles ||
12/05/2004 9:38 Comments ||
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It's only available in selected edits to the NYTimes and WaPost, who'll do the "right thing", as teh Red Thingy sees it - i.e.: Bash America
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/05/2004 9:50 Comments ||
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Most of Norway's top politicians, but very few Imams participated in Saturday's Muslim torchlight protest march in Oslo against violence and terrorism.
Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik was disappointed over the fact that most Imams boycotted the protest march.
- They say they are against violence and murders. Why don't they join us here in this protest, Bondevik said to NRK during the march.
A group of Muslim leaders in Norway had wanted to disassociate themselves from violence and terrorism, and had organized the torchlight march through downtown Oslo to mark their stand.
However, another group had opposed the march.
The background for the march is a statement by the spokesman for the Islamic Council In Norway, Zahid Mukhtar, who earlier commented on the murder of the Ducth film maker Theo van Gogh.
Mukhtar said on a nationwide TV discussion program that he could understand that Muslims had been provoced by van Gogh's latest film, and that he could understand why someone murdered him.
-We object to the murder and violence under any circumstance. Mukhtar's statements have created an ambiguity which we cannot afford, says Khalid Mahmood, City Council representative for the Oslo Labour Party.
However, on Saturday morning Aftenposten reported that central Imams from several Oslo's mosques do not wish to take part in the march.
-I react to the fact that Muslims continuously have to prove that we are against violence by participating in protest marches. We feel we are being forced to take part, says Imran Mushtaq, deputy leader of the Islamic Council of Norway, to Aftenposten.
He has therefore launched a campaign encouraging people to sign a petition titled "Muslims in Norway are of course opposed to all violence and criminal acts".
-This campaign is an alternative to the torchligh parade, Mushtaq says.
At the same time he accused Khalid Mahmood of creating a conflict in the Muslim community.
The founder of radical Islamist group Ansar al-Islam was questioned in Oslo by German police ahead of the arrests in Germany of three men suspected of plotting to attack visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allaiwi.
German police interrogated Mullah Krekar in Oslo early last week and he is thought to be linked to at least one of the men arrested on Friday on suspicion of planning attacks during Allawi's visit, the Norwegian daily VG reported Sunday.
All three have been ordered held over their alleged membership of Ansar al-Islam, described by German authorities as a foreign terrorist organisation. A fourth man, a Lebanese, was also arrested on Saturday in Berlin on suspicion of supporting Ansar al-Islam.
Krekar, who has lived in Norway since 1991, founded the group in December 2001, but insists that he has not been its leader since May 2002. "The content of what happened in the Oslo court has been classified by the court, so I cannot offer concrete comments," Krekar's lawyer Brynjar Meling said in a public television interview. He confirmed however that German police among other things wanted details of his client's European contacts.
Asked whether the telephone number of one of the men arrested on Friday was found in Krekar's possession, Meling told NTB news agency that, when Krekar was arrested in the Netherlands two years ago "he had an electronic phone book containing up to 2,000 names and numbers... so it is possible that the police found this man's telephone number at Krekar's" home.
Krekar's brother Khalid Faraj Ahmad meanwhile told NTB that Krekar's interrogation last week was in connection with an old case and that the interview had been planned for months. "He was questioned as a witness in a case concerning several Kurds who were arrested in Germany a long time ago," Ahmad insisted
I doubt if he'll go the way Carlo or Barzini did. But I wouldn't expect an invitation to Crawford any time soon if I was him.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 9:55:29 PM ||
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He is a loser, with a big letter "L" on his forehead. First and foremost, he is tactless and has no ability to conceal that fact, a cardinal sin in international politics. He bears comparison to Napoleon III, a novice who thinks himself a master of realpolitik, made a fool by the real masters he despises.
#2
Will Zapatero receive forgiveness from Bush⦠for getting out-of-line? If so, what tribute must Spain pay to stay in Americaâs good graces?
Tansoborn obviously has 'issues'. Zapatero is going to remain at arms-length with the White House for a long, long while. He might as well use the time practicing his role as Chirac's flunky.
#3
Zapetero is Chiraq's suck boy. No chance Bush will warm to him any time soon. He has a mouth that writes checks even Chiraq can not honor. As long as he is running things Spain will suffer with the US. His "popularity" hurts Spain as well.
The King is a devout christian and Bush honored him with a long visit. It certainly was not to dis Zappy. I am quite sure Bush made that very clear.
The state I live in was once part of Spain and the El Camino Real means something to us native sons. It is quite proper to honor the King of Spain in Texas another state that was once part of the Spanish realm.
#3
Too bad the MSM did not show any snuffie beheading videos, that should have adjusted the idle screws of the American public. Know your enemy and all that.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 20:20 Comments ||
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Hard to believe, but we have an even greater abundance of deserving nominees than in years past. From the unspeakably vile Ted Rall to the evil (though defeated) mastermind George Soros, the idiotarian ranks have grown even as those of their terrorist clients have declined.
Nevertheless, I have to go back to a sentimental favorite, Mike Al-Moor, aka Lumpy Riefenstahl, the Ham-ass terrorist, etc.
Always a bridesmaid, never a bride, but that has to change.
Lumpy has been so close so often and is a perenniel contender.
I think he deserves it this year, if nothing else for his obscene attempt to equate the Iraqi terrorists with the Minutemen and other Revolutionary War heroes.
That statement alone summarizes everything that is wrong and evil in the MSM and the pop-left. Osama=James Dean for these narcissistic demons, and Lumpy is the purest and most visible expression of their culture and their depravity.
Ted Rall, while surely an evil mediatarian terror-shill and prostitute himself, is too far outside the pop-left mainstream to matter.
He lacks MM's ability to pretend friendship and sympathy with his victims, transparent though that is. Rall is therefore less destructive, though probably more vicious in intent.
He may deserve a bullet or a rope, but not the Fiskie.
#4
Don't forget your organizational nominees -
International Red Cross
Amnesty International
Human Rights Watch
BBC
UN [why just one man and not the pack of liers and crooks?]
Posted by: Don ||
12/05/2004 8:56 Comments ||
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If we open the competition to blogs we could add
#6
I say Kofi is the target of opportunity, with the Oil for Food scandal gaining steam, and now is the time to "crown" him. With any luck (fingers firmly crossed) he will be out of power by next year, while Moore will still be around (providing his health cooperates).
Besides, Moore has been keeping (by his standards) a low profile of late. I'm sure he has tons of treasonous crap (F911 sequel, etc.) on tap for the runup to the 2006 elections, let's save his for then.
#7
My Nominee list - By category (my own breakdown) and in no particular order within each - there are just too many deserving entities this year. I borrowed any good stuff I saw, so some of the commentary is mine, some came from Snark Specialists - I am not worthy.
Evil / Malevolent / Dangerous
1. Ted Rall (Subhuman)
2. Jacques Chirac (Missed so many opportunities to STFU)
3. George Soros (Tranzi / Socialist / Fascist Enabler)
4. Arafat (For taking so long to die)
5. CP Abdullah (Zionist Conspiracies, etc.)
6. John F'n Skeery (Traitor, Professional Liar, back-shooter, and worst Prez candidate Ever)
7. Tsar Putty (Speedbump)
8. Markos Zuniga (Daily Kos Blog)
9. Clinton Hangover (Tenet, Clark, Berger, Sheurer, et al - still endangering us after all these years)
10.Kofi Anon (UN Sacrificial Lamb and First Rank Fuckwit)
11.Mad Mullahs (For breathing)
12.Fat Fuck (For breathing)
Pure Partisan Politicians / Mercenary Agents
1. Ted Kennedy (Still stupid. Still drunk. Still a murderer.)
2. Howard Dean (YEAARRRRRGGGGHHHH!)
3. Tom Harkin (Liar. Vietnam Fighter Pilot flying cargo based in Japan)
4. Dhimmicrap Nat Committee (McAuliffe & Co - Gave Us Skeery and Meme Machine)
Socialist Media
1. Dan Rather (Truth & document expert)
2. NYT Staff (Consistency in lies, apologia, spin)
3. Al G (Consistency in lies, apologia, spin)
4. BBC (Consistency in lies, apologia, spin)
5. Air Amerikkka (Stupid concept, stupid execution, stupid staff)
6. Howard Stern (Lost in space. Didya send W that message, yet?)
7. DU Website (Insane. Spleen. Vent.)
8. Larry O'Donnel (Insane. Spleen. Vent.)
9. Kanadian Press (Insane. Spleen. Vent.)
Tool Fool
1. Kanadian Politicians (Insane. Spleen. Vent.)
2. Wally Crankcase (Alzheimers, but won't Go Away)
3. "Sorry Everybody" Blog (Sorry. Indeed.)
4. Hollyweird (Bullshit walked)
5. Bruce Springsteen, et al (Bullshit walked)
6. Al Gore (Still insane after all these years)
Special Mention
1. Noam Chomsky (Lifetime Achievement)
2. 56 Million Amerikkans with BDS & PEST (Psychobabble boon)
#9
What a list!! I'd vote for the NYT staff, but that's kind of a personal foible of mine. (I'm old enough to remember when the NYT was an American newspaper instead of an Al-Qaeda recruiting poster.) I'd include on the list Thereza (or maybe she gets the special Marie Antoinette Award); and Plantu, the LeMonde cartoonist who thinks dead American soldiers make for good fun.
Posted by: Matt ||
12/05/2004 14:33 Comments ||
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Vi French have the best idiotarians in world, here is the choice of a honest jury:
1) Gold Medalist and Idiotarian champion: Jacques Chirac from France
2) Silver medalist: Dominique de Villepin from France
3) Bronze medalist: John F Kerry from France
You Americans just can't compete vith ze country who produced Sartre and Derrida.
Now everyone raise for the French national anthem:
#2
I agree with Reynolds. For the first time in my life the UN is coming under some desperately needed scrutiny. Making Annan a scapegoat will just allow them to carry on with business as usual.
The UN is a corrupt institution, always has been. There are very good reasons why democracies always put elected officials (or the political nominees of elected officials) in charge of bureaucracies. Its to stop the bureaucrats spending all their time with their face in the trough.
Want to get a shocked silence at a dinner party, tell them 90% of the money their kids collect for UNICEF goes to fly 2nd cousins of corrupt 3rd world dictators around the world 1st class.
UN nuclear chief Mohamed ElBaradei has denied charges that he collaborated with Iran ahead of publishing written reports on his investigation of the Islamic republic's controversial nuclear program. Mr ElBaradei says members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are never shown reports on individual members, "not the least of course an inspected country".
He was reacting to news reports that he had heeded Iranian demands to drop mentions of IAEA requests to visit the Parchin military site and Iran's use of the sensitive material beryllium in a report he had made to the IAEA board in September. The United States wants the IAEA to take Iran to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions. The US alleges that Iran is running a covert nuclear weapons program. But Mr ElBaradei says the "jury is still out" on whether Iran's program is peaceful or not. Mr ElBaradei characterised as "gutter accusations" reports that he gives Iran advance looks at his reports. The reports are filed ahead of IAEA board of governors meetings that decide how tough the agency will be on Iran over its nuclear program.
He says "we don't leak (special IAEA reports on Iran) to any single person outside the 10 or 20 people who are involved in the process" of drafting the text at IAEA headquarters. "We don't negotiate our report . . . at the end of the day not a single paragraph is shown to any single country until the report is out," Mr ElBaradei said. He says the IAEA did not "even discuss" the report ahead of time with Iran beyond technical requests for information.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
12/05/2004 4:42:11 PM ||
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#1
Sorry I can't trust the "word" of a member of the RoP. Prove it El Baradei. Your word is meaninless.
#2
Worthless as all other regular denials of the same sort from the same Creed.
Posted by: Wo ||
12/05/2004 7:03 Comments ||
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"He says 'we donât leak...' "
Does anyone else find this curious, in view of the pre-election Al Qaqaa leaks? El Baradei and Annan both need to go ... NOW.
No, never! Iran hasn't been making the least attempt to influence Europe's perception of their nuclear power weapons program.
Asked if there was a guarantee for Europeans to fulfill commitments they had made in relations to Iran, Asefi said, "Their words are their guarantee." "If they (Europeans) fail to keep their words and fulfill their commitments, then the Islamic Republic will no longer be faithful to its commitments, too," Asefi said.
As to ElBaradei. I hereby nominate him for the Kofi Annan honorary "Most Effective Leadership in the role of Assuring Regional Stability" award.
It couldn't be any worse, even if ElBaradei leaked the verbatim contents of all negotiations to Iran. Whether it is a case of malfeasance or sheer incompetence, the results are identical. Nuclear aspirations of Islamist autocracies are being green-lighted by the UN while they simultaneously seek to thwart all attempts at stopping them.
Annan and ElBaradei both must shoulder the blame for whatever Jihadist nuclear atrocity arises out of their obstructionism. May they rot in hell.
#8
Nuclear aspirations of Islamist autocracies are being green-lighted by the UN while they simultaneously seek to thwart all attempts at stopping them.
And why should anyone be surprised that this is the policy being adopted?
Posted by: very anonymous ||
12/05/2004 15:12 Comments ||
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'Lets Talk' your host Dr.Kareem, letters to Al-Jazeera...
Dear Dr. KareemâŠ
The existence of Syria in Lebanon is a source of power for the Lebanese people and for the Arab nation.
Anybody can see that... Ummm... How?
Syria is the leader of unitary ideology in the Arab world, and it has the right to support its neighbor Lebanon to enhance the modern Arabic renaissance after the unbelievable number of disasters over our heads.
Exactly what gives it this 'right'? Where's it enumerated?
It is great mistake for any native Arabic speaker and those who have Arabic blood to adopt the ideology of those who resist and fight any idea that might irrigate the idea of unity among Arab countries.
Why? What if the person, even if he's a native Arabic speaker or has a drop or two of Arab blood, doesn't agree that unity should be imposed across the Arabic-speaking world? What if he/she/it thinks there are legitimate national interests in the existing Arab countries and even in propsective Muslim countries that wouldn't be represented by a Baathist regime?
Any country asks for the Syrian withdrawal definitely doesn't look for the Lebanese interest, but rather wants to separate Arab countries from each other and undo and lateral relations between them.
What if there are legitimate historical reasons for thinking that Lebanon doesn't necessarily have to bow the knee to Syria? Syria's historically tried to be Lebanon's hegemon, and Lebanon's historically tried to maintain its independence. Its moments of greatness have come when it hasn't been anyone else's footstool. Rather than wanting to be Syria's lapdog, if I was Lebanese I'd be thinking "Phoenecian," rather than "Arab." But what the hell do I know?
Alzoabi from Michigan
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 2:26:08 PM ||
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Is Dr Kareem going for the pith helmet-turban look? Class. Very 2005.
Iran is "seriously concerned" about the human rights situation in Europe, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi in Tehran Sunday, responding to an EU letter recently sent to Iran on its alleged human rights violations.
"I mean, they hardly hang anybody in Europe anymore, much less girlies who flirt..."
Speaking during his weekly briefing, Asefi told reporters, "human rights are not a one-sided issue, Iran, too, is seriously concerned about human rights situation in Europe. Unfortunately, anti-Islamism is increasingly growing in Europe and Europeans should consider necessary measures to prevent further violations of (religious) minorities rights and those of Muslims in particular, in all European countries." Asked on the date of resumption of Tehran's talks with Europe under the Paris agreement, Asefi said that serious talks would start "next week," according to IRNA news agency. He added that a number of "working groups" are currently being formed to work on the materialization of agreements in different fields. Asked if there was a guarantee for Europeans to fulfill commitments they had made in relations to Iran, Asefi said, "Their words are their guarantee." "If they (Europeans) fail to keep their words and fulfill their commitments, then the Islamic Republic will no longer be faithful to its commitments, too," Asefi said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 2:07:25 PM ||
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#1
This is like Stalin critiqueing America on its death penalty.
#2
I just can't think of anything funny enough to cover this.
Posted by: Matt ||
12/05/2004 15:02 Comments ||
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that last line was the nugget - this is another "out" for the mullahs from any promises on nukes. "We have to sadly withdraw from our previous committments due to human rights disregard by our European partners"
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/05/2004 15:10 Comments ||
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#4
So how soon do we and Israel start making glass in Iran? Tomorrow sounds like a great time...
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
12/05/2004 16:34 Comments ||
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Not at all. This is a message to the Europeans that they had better stop cracking down on Muslims for whatever reason. They have indicated their dhimmitude in the nuclear power deal and if they now try to act uppity, the Iranins will start saying they are building the nukes we all know they are building.. The Europeans should expect a lot more lecturing from their betters the Mullahs.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
12/05/2004 20:05 Comments ||
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#7
I said it yesterday and I'll say it again: you can't make a deal with the devil and still hold the high moral ground. And you can't really win in the deal either. Europe has been totally suckered.
Posted by: Tom ||
12/05/2004 20:21 Comments ||
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I cannot believe that Europe has been totally suckered. They know damn well what the Iranians are up to. There is some serious money in contracts with Iran, oil, gas, nuclear, infrastructure, that the EUniks are into with Iran. Russia, same boat. They lost Iraq. They are not suckers. They have sold their souls for filthy lucre.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 20:28 Comments ||
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#9
I agree, AP. They aren't being snookered - they went into this intentionally and frankly don't care about the nukes -- or the mullah's oppression of Iranians, for that matter.
Posted by: too true ||
12/05/2004 21:09 Comments ||
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#10
Mike Tyson decries lack of class in athletics today...film at 11.
#11
Europe hasn't "been suckered." They're on the same side as the Iranians. The goal is to prevent the US hegemon from attacking Iran while preserving fat Iranian contracts for the Three Dwarves' national champion exporters.
The Afghan authorities plan to invigorate the country's fledgling tourist industry by developing Osama bin Laden's Tora Bora mountain hideout as a visitor attraction.
Hassamuddin Hamrah, the man in charge, believes that the caves which once housed bin Laden and his fighters, together with the remains of mangled Russian tanks and crashed helicopter gunships from the 1980s, will prove a tourist magnet.
But he said the plan was being undermined by scrap metal merchants from across the border in Pakistan who were taking the wrecked military hardware.
"We wished to keep the artillery, tanks, aircraft and also the military posts and front lines. But the Pakistanis have frustrated our plans," Hamrah said.
"They were coming and buying the metal scraps so a lot of people took these things to Pakistan. The things we thought existed have been taken away."
It is a popular saying in Logar province, south of Kabul, that the Russian artillery shells were not cold before the high quality steel was being sold across the border to the scrap dealers.
"We have plans to make a tourist site at the Tora Bora caves. Many Americans wish to go there," Hamrah said.
"Our main problem is lack of budget so we are approaching the private sector. We request that anybody, any company, who is interested should contact us."
He added that three Japanese tour company bosses had already visited the site, high in the White Mountains near Jalalabad.
The extraordinary complex of caves and bunkers was created during the 1980s as a mountain fastness by the Mujahideen, and expanded at bin Laden's expense in the 1990s. It is reported to include barracks, lavish living quarters and tunnel systems large enough to hide armoured vehicles.
In October 2001, American B-52s pounded Tora Bora with Daisy-Cutter liquid fuel bombs to try to winkle out bin Laden and his followers.
Bin Laden escaped and is still at large, probably still near the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The Afghan Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry believes that the country's notoriety is a strong pull for adventurous tourists. "We have a lot of historical places but Afghanistan is known all over the world because of the war," Dr Hamrah said.
With this is mind the Tourism Ministry also hopes to develop some of the great battlefields of the Soviet occupation as tourist destinations.
Tourism was once a major industry for Afghanistan. In the 1960s and 1970s the country was a key stopping point on the Hippy Trail from Europe to India — famed for its spectacular scenery, ancient ruins and local intoxicants. But the Russian invasion of 1979 placed Afghanistan off limits and, for 25 years, it has remained in tourist limbo.
Now the first visitors are returning. The latest issue of the Lonely Planet Central Asia guide is the first to include a section on the country.
Previous editions contained a two word entry on Afghanistan: "Don't go!" Since the fall of the Taliban, the Afghan tourist board has hosted 35 tour groups, numbering some 247 people, mainly from Europe and Japan.
The aid community in Kabul was astonished by the appearance in September of a tour party of septuagenarian Californians who arrived on the day of a large car bomb. One of the group, who were napping as their hotel was rocked by the blast, described the experience as "a pretty loud wake up call".
The kidnap of three United Nations workers in October and a suicide bomb on a Kabul street that killed a young American woman have put the expatriate community on high alert.
But Dr Hamrah dismissed any scaremongering. "We have sent groups to the farthest parts of the country. They have come back safely and are saying that the people welcomed them warmly."
Sudan's Minister of Foreign Affairs Mustafa Osman Ismael pledged Sunday that his government will enter dialogue with a newly established armed group in Darfur in response to a call by the United Nations special representative. Speaking shortly following the Joint Mechanism meeting between Sudan and the United Nations, Ismael did not reveal any specific date set for the dialogue to start. He said however that the Sudanese government "will establish contacts with the Darfur Movement of Reform and Development to enter talks on the issues of humanitarian and security in Darfur, just as it did with the SLM and JEM in Abuja in November". On November 11 in Abuja, Nigeria, the three Sudanese parties to the conflict in Darfur signed an agreement on humanitarian and security expected to end almost two years of war in the area. Speaking to reporters, the U.N. Secretary-General's Special Representative to Sudan, Jan Pronk, said the meeting of the Joint Mechanism discussed the recent rebel attacks on Taweela area in north Darfur, and aerial bombardment of rebels by the government.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 9:11:18 PM ||
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Palestine Media Center - PMC (Official PA website)
www.palestine-pmc.com/details.asp?cat=1&id=741
The PLO Executive Committee on Saturday affirmed its commitment to the peace process, urged a balanced, simultaneous and reciprocal implementation of the UN-adopted "roadmap" for peace in the Middle East, and reiterated the Palestinian demand that Israel's unilateral plan for "disengagement" from the Gaza Strip be an integral part of the Quartet-drafted blueprint. In a statement released following a meeting by the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the West Bank city of Ramallah, the Palestinian leadership demanded a "timetable" for implementing the roadmap under the supervision of the Quartet of the US, UN, EU and Russian mediators.
PLO chief Mahmud Abbas chaired the meeting, which was also attended by Prime Minister Ahmad Qurei, and Minister of local government Jamal Al-Shobaki. The PLO demanded that Israel take "urgent measures" to lift the siege and closure it is imposing on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, end its military incursions, and stop its extra-judicial killing policy in order to facilitate Palestinian elections, the statement said. Local elections are scheduled for December 23, presidential elections for January 9 and legislative polls for mid-2005. PLO Chairman Abbas briefed the Committee on his latest meetings with Palestinian anti-occupation factions in Gaza City and confirmed that national dialogue will continue until the Palestinian house is put in order.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 9:03:06 PM ||
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That is quite the Paleo laundry list. And they have not even met with the Israelis yet. The Israeli govt will probably have only one or two demands:
1. Stay the hell out of Israel
2. Don't lob anything over the border.
Consequences stay the same, so no need to rehash that. I guess that about does it.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 23:32 Comments ||
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Sami Abu Zuhri, Hamas Movement media spokesman in the Gaza Strip, has declared that Khaled Mishaal, political bureau chief of the Movement, would meet PLO executive committee chairman and PA presidential-hopeful Mahmoud Abbas in Damascus. Abu Zuhri in a press statement said that the Mishaal-Abbas meeting would tackle national dialogue, political partnership, unified leadership and the PLO as a possible grouping for all Palestinians.
Hamas considers the PLO as an accomplishment for the Palestinian people that should include all Palestinian forces after restructuring it on the basis of the Palestinian people's real interests, he elaborated. The Hamas spokesman stressed that his Movement did not table any new initiative as certain media were trying to circulate. "Hamas has nothing new on the Hudna (truce) issue and the time was not proper to table any such initiative on our part," he explained. Abu Zuhri affirmed that such an initiative could be considered only after the Zionist occupation authorities halted the daily aggression on the Palestinian masses. He noted that news reports quoting Sheikh Hassan Yousef, the recently released Hamas leader from Zionist jails, was not carried in full. The Sheikh only reiterated past ideas about a Hudna, Abu Zuhri noted, adding that the Palestinian forces could never ponder such a truce while the Zionist aggression was ongoing.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 8:55:57 PM ||
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The Mizan center for human rights has ascertained the importance of the supremacy of law and warned of the security chaos in the Palestinian lands. In a memo to the PLO executive committee chief and PA presidential-hopeful Mahmoud Abbas, the center warned that such chaotic conditions posed a real threat to the Palestinian society. It expressed satisfaction for fixing 9th January 2005 as the date for PA presidential election but opined that elections should also include the legislative council and local councils in order to realize the goals of ending the current Palestinian political impasse. The center pointed to its own statistics that showed 600 Palestinians were the victims of internal violence over the past three years. It elaborated on details of such incidents and underlined that 11 kidnappings were registered this year alone. The rivalry among various wings of the PA security apparatuses and misuse of influence and senior posts were among the prominent titles of such chaotic security situation.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 8:54:10 PM ||
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The Israel Air Force on Sunday positioned a battery of Patriot anti-aircraft missiles in the Haifa Bay area, in order to intercept any Hezbollah-operated drones launched from Lebanon. The decision to place the battery was reached after a Hezbollah drone invaded Israeli airspace over the town of Nahariya last month. The Iranian-made drone managed to fly in Israeli skies for about 15 minutes, undetected by the IDF's anti aircraft forces. Initially, IDF officials interpreted the incident as a Hezbollah muscle flex. Later, however, IDF Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon said that such a drone could theoretically carry 50 kilograms of explosives, and could be used to attack targets in Israel. The new Patriot missile battery is meant to facilitate the detection and destruction of any drone in the future, in the event Hezbollah decided to launch one.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 8:49:12 PM ||
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This is ridiculous. Patriots are mid and high-altitude interceptors. That is like using a 105mm Howitzer to kill flies in your house(*). They are obviously there for a different reason--I suspect large missiles shipped to Lebanon from Iran. (*) amusing mental image, though.
A radical Islamic group has threatened to kill Indian cricketers when they tour Bangladesh from tomorrow, the Indian High Commission (embassy) said yesterday. "We received a hand-written fax letter on Thursday from a group called Harkat-ul-Zihad, saying that Indian cricketers will be killed if they visit Bangladesh," said a spokesman.
That's cuz beating a Bangla team would be un-Islamic...
Bangladeshi authorities suspect the locally-based group was behind an assassination bid on leading secular poet Shamsur Rahman here in 1998. "In revenge for the killing of 2,000 Muslims in Gujarat, we are going to kill Indian cricketers if they visit Bangladesh," Chowdhury quoted the letter as saying. The threat letter also drew a parallel with the Palestinian Black September attack which left 11 Israeli athletes dead at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
And their attackers dead over the next year or two...
The Indian cricket board delayed the team's departure by a day and the high commission said a security team would arrive in Bangladesh today to assess the situation. Bangladesh has promised to take high-level security measures, the spokesman said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 8:46:51 PM ||
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A black-turbaned Shia cleric drove through the streets of the southern Baghdad district of al-Amel on Saturday, carrying a loudspeaker and mocking the insurgents who scrawled anti-election slogans on the neighbourhood's walls. "Let those who wrote this show their faces, if they are men," residents quoted him as saying, as two dozen armed supporters followed his motorcade on foot, painting over graffiti that threatened to "cut off the heads" of voters. "Come and vote," the cleric said to passers-by. "We will protect you."
It was a rare display of militancy by one of the pro-establishment Shia clerics, who have so far strongly discouraged any action by their followers against predominantly Sunni insurgents, lest it trigger a civil war. However, with attacks against the Shia on the increase, and the strong likelihood that the Shia parties will dominate Iraq's first elected postwar government, clerical resistance against direct anti-insurgent action may be wavering. In the past, Shia-dominated parties and a few mosque-centred networks co-operated quietly with the US military in the gathering of intelligence, but the clergy kept its distance from the US military in the name of national unity. When bombers accused of being Sunni insurgents struck at Shia holy sites in August 2003 and February 2004, many Shia clerics saved their strongest criticism for the coalition authorities, who they said had failed to protect them from attack. However, insurgent threats against forthcoming elections, which have been strongly endorsed by senior Shia scholars such as Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, may be breaking down the clergy's resolve to stay aloof.
Residents of al-Amel say the anti-election graffiti marked the first time that insurgents had directly threatened them personally as Iraqi citizens exercising their rights as opposed to threats against "collaborators" with the US military or the government. Religious Shia had already been split over violence in Latifiya, a Sunni enclave that lies on the main highway south of Baghdad leading to the Shia holy cities of Najaf and Karbala. Dozens of Shia, from clergy to army and National Guard recruits, have been killed by Sunni ultra-puritans while driving through Latifiya, which along with two nearby towns has been labelled the "Triangle of Death". Two weeks ago, a delegation of tribesmen from Basra calling themselves the "Brigades of Anger" approached Mr Sistani, asking him for permission to launch reprisals in Latifiya, says Sheikh Musa al-Musawy, a representative of the Grand Ayatollah in Baghdad. Mr Sistani refused them his blessing. "The government will deal with this problem, and the law will take its course," he reportedly said. However, the Washington Post reported that the brigades had launched an attack on Latifiya on Saturday, clashing with Sunni insurgents in the town.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 8:36:10 PM ||
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Hmm. I'm thinking the "black-turbaned Shia cleric"
in this article might deserve some patented RB respect.
Posted by: Mark Z. ||
12/05/2004 21:30 Comments ||
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#2
âLet those who wrote this show their faces, if they are menâ
Is he calling them terrs 'girlie-men'???!!!!
"...and since then, he was known as Abu Ahnuld"
#3
It was a rare display of militancy by one of the pro-establishment Shia clerics, who have so far strongly discouraged any action by their followers against predominantly Sunni insurgents, lest it trigger a civil war.
The only thing that is protecting the Sunni's right now is the American presence. Sheer numbers will dictate that the Shia will be able to win any "civil war" that breaks out between the Shia and Sunni's. It's really not a US problem.
#4
2b,"The only thing that is protecting the Sunni's right now is the American presence", very good point. But how to implant that message into them sunni numbskulls is another matter.
President George W. Bush told visiting Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf Saturday that he would make the creation of a Palestinian state a central priority of his second term in office. "I assured President Musharraf that there is an opportunity at hand to work toward the development of a Palestinian state and peace in the Middle East. I told him that this will be a priority of my administration," said Bush.
Speaking to reporters outside the White House after they met, Musharraf went a step further, saying Bush agreed that resolving the conflict was "the core issue" of the global war on terrorism and pledged deeper personal involvement. "I think the president himself said that this is the core issue, the core at fighting terrorism is resolution of the Palestinian dispute," said the Pakistani leader, who has repeatedly expressed that view himself. "Within that, whatever I can do, I will contribute, but I'm very glad to say that president Bush is absolutely concerned and he thinks that it's a priority with him to resolve the Palestinian dispute and create a Palestinian state."
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 7:58:22 PM ||
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Ah, I see. So for Mubarak, having more candidates that have some chances of getting votes damages the Paleo unity.
Well, somewhat close, Mubarak, the unity as an overriding factor is not a democratic vote but a demographic vote... so no cigar.
#4
There is obviously bad blood between Marwan B and the Egyptians. I think Mubarak thinks that Barghouti's people were the ones who spat at the Egyptian FM when he visited Temple Mount (aka Holy Enclosure) in Jerusalem.
#5
Refresh me, does this mean that if Barghouti runs (from jail) and wins the election, Israel HAS to let him out of prison...on 'gp'? Or would this require just a run off of the second and third choices?
#6
If Barghouti wins, this will just show that the Paleostinians have dug themselves such a deep hole that it would be most efficient to keep digging till they came out the other side. But based upon the history of Paleostinian choices, I would not be surprised that they would vote for such a stupid choice.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 20:24 Comments ||
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#7
If Barghouti wins, all Israel has to do is put his cabinet in adjoining cells.
The leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Mahmud Zahar, dismissed any suggestion that his movement could soon halt attacks against Israel. Last week, there were reports that Zahar and PLO chief Mahmud Abbas discussed a possible declaration by Hamas of a truce. But the Hamas leader said Sunday talk of a ceasefire had not even featured in the discussions. "No single word was said about a truce," he said, according to AFP.
"Nope. Nope. Never happened."
"Until now we are still defending ourselves, defending our people, pushing the Israelis outside our territory." Meanwhile, Dr. Mohammed Al-Hindi, a prominent leader of the Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip, has asserted his Movement's rejection of either short or long-term truce with Israel, especially in light of the "Zionist continuous aggressions on the Palestinian people," the latest of which was the assassination of Mahmoud Kamil, one of the Movement's field commanders. Al Hindi's comments came after the meeting with Egyptian embassy's officials held Saturday in Gaza city. Well-informed sources in the Islamic Jihad said that Dr. Al-Hindi confirmed, during meeting the Movement's absolute boycott of the PA presidential elections. He noted that his Movement was still considering its participation in the PA legislative elections.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 1:58:49 PM ||
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Well, not now that Islamic Jihad has pissed in the punch bowl.
KHUSHGUNBAD, Afghanistan - Eight-year-old Mohammed Imran thinks Jaweed, the local shopkeeper in this eastern Afghan village is "cool" because his shop is full of sweets. "Uncle shopkeeper is a cool man -- he has got lots of candies," Mohammed told AFP as he hung around outside the store. But it wasn't long ago that local children were scared of Jaweed and people insulted the 28-year-old for being a gun-toting militiaman -- one of around 60,000 fighters loyal to local warlords and commanders across Afghanistan.
Jaweed is one of almost 25,000 fighters who have laid down their weapons as part of a UN-backed Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration program which was launched in Afghanistan last May and is almost at the halfway point. After more than two decades of war, the country is awash with weapons and privately disarmament staffs think there may be as many as five guns per militiaman, most of whom owe allegiance to local commanders. But while only 25,000 guns have been collected, officials from the program hope that if they can break the link between local commanders and their poorly paid fighters and offer people an alternative livelihood, many like Jaweed would jump at the chance. "I'm happy with my new life -- very, very happy," he said at his booth-like shop in Khushgunbad village some 15 kilometers (9 miles) northeast of Jalalabad, the capital of eastern Nangarhar province.
The ex-fighters are given the choice of working in agriculture, training for the police force, national army or de-mining, or setting up a small business like the shopkeeper, who said was sick of toting a gun for a living. "I was tired of weapons, I wanted something different so I decided to become a shopkeeper," said the ethnic Pashtun, who has fought to feed his family for more than a decade.
Jaweed said he did not bear arms for a cause but simply to keep a roof over his head in his poverty-stricken village, switching sides to join whichever commander held sway over the area at the time. First he fought for Mohammad Zaman, a regional mujahedin leader, then for the fundamentalist Taleban who ruled Afghanistan between 1996-2001, and finally he joined the forces of Hazrat Ali, another regional warlord who decided to disarm just over a month ago. "I had no cause to fight for. I took the gun because they were paying me. I was hungry and I needed to feed my family," says the father of five children.
Former fighters receive an initial 250 dollars to start a business and a further 450 dollars to invest in the business a month and a half later, according to the UN scheme's officer for Nangahar province, Homayoun Wafa. Another ex-militiaman, 40-year-old Wahidullah, from Laghman province, told AFP: "I was sick of having a gun on my shoulder, it gave me nothing."
"I carried a gun for 22 years, I fought the Russians, I think now it is time for work, not for fighting," he said as he came to the disarmament program office to collect his second cash package. Afghanistan's disarmament drive only picked up speed ahead of the country's October 9 election, so it is too early to say whether demobilised militiamen might later revert to being soldiers working under local commanders. Disarmament officials are working on incentives to offer alternative jobs, overseas travel and other sweeteners to local commanders, 80 percent of whom are illiterate and struggle to be re-integrated into civilian life.
The program is a priority for President Hamid Karzai, who won Afghanistan's presidential election having pledged to break the control of warlords and militia commanders who have mocked the central government's attempts to extend its authority into the provinces. Disarmament staff admit that military strongmen like Hazrat Ali, who has maintained his private militia in Jalalabad even though he was appointed as police chief, are reluctant to cede power. "The powerful warlords are resisting the program despite the fact that many ordinary militiamen are happy to be disarmed, because they fear that they will lose their power," said one official. A US-led scheme is also underway to build a multi-ethnic national army recruited from ordinary citizens, including volunteers from among the former militiamen.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 1:44:27 PM ||
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If the Democrats had any common sense, they'd be pushing the administration for a boost to this program. Relatively low-cost, a somewhat sucessful UN operation, and politically amenable objective.
Then again, while it would lend some much needed foreign policy gravitas, it doesn't buy/get them any domestic votes, so it won't happen.
The United States could cut its forces in Afghanistan next summer if Taliban militants accept an amnesty to be drawn up by President Hamid Karzai and neighboring Pakistan, the senior U.S. commander here said Sunday. Any reduction in the 18,000-strong mainly American combat force in Afghanistan would relieve the U.S. military, stretched thin by the much larger deployment in Iraq. Still, the force is unlikely to shrink before parliamentary elections slated for April. "By next summer we'll have a much better sense if the security threat is diminished as a result of, say, a significant reconciliation with large numbers of Taliban," Lt. Gen. David Barno told The Associated Press in an interview. "That will change the security dynamics tremendously," he said.
Afghan officials have repeatedly urged supporters of the former ruling regime to abandon the fight or return from exile to help rebuild the country shattered by 25 years of war and a debilitating drought. But plans for a reconciliation program have emerged only since Karzai's landslide victory in the landmark Oct. 9 presidential election. Such a program could anger ethnic minorities who suffered under the Taliban as well as regional powers, such as India and Iran, who are wary of Pakistan's influence in the region. Barno said Karzai, who is to be sworn in as Afghanistan's first popularly elected leader on Tuesday, is to produce a list of Taliban members who are considered beyond rehabilitation and pass it to Islamabad. The government of Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf would then "review it and make any comments on it, and I think there'll be a collectively subscribed-to list that says here (are those) who we all believe we're going to go after," he said. "As that list gets finalized here ... we'll see both countries moving forward to look to arrest and bring to justice those individuals," Barno said. He said the final number could be whittled down to less than 100.
Meanwhile, the U.S. military will start a register of lower-level Taliban members willing to return to their villages and live in peace. The step would be a precursor to a reconciliation plan the Afghan government has yet to formally announce. "There'll be great interest in those first few figures who come in to see how they're treated, to see if they're protected or not," the general said. "If it works, I think that there will be a significant number of people following it up. You'll see some of it starting in December, or in January for sure," he said.
The military hopes the Taliban's failure to derail the Oct. 9 vote has persuaded a significant number of the rebels that the insurgency has no future, easing pressure on U.S. troops who have failed to crush a rebellion along the Afghan-Pakistan border. Commanders say the Taliban are divided internally and that the authority of fugitive Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammed Omar is fraying. Supporters of renegade Afghan leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a group viewed as smaller but more fanatical than the Taliban, Barno said, are also signaling their willingness to give up the fight.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/05/2004 1:37:00 PM ||
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This is nothing but The BEAUCRATIC BULLSHIT BLUES.
PLEASE READ MUSHARRAF: BIN LADEN LOCATION IS UNKNOWN. BY PETER BAKER, WASHINGTON POST STAFF WRITER.
I feel that Musharraf has cut a deal with Bin Laden, to allow him safehaven in the remote area of Pakistan in return for him not making any more assassination attempts on him. He is there-believe that! Don't ever think that Musharraf wasn't up to his neck in nuclear prolifertion with Khan. That is why he is being given full protection. In return for Khan keeping his mouth shut about Musharrafs role with nuclear sales to varous countries. There is a lot we don't know about and too much nepotism and cronism going on. We have a situation where the fox is in charge of the hens once again.
Let us look at this 20 /20 and from many angles
or perspectives. Fred your list needs to be checked more than TWICE thus, it is inconclusive!
Your article is terrific, but the jury is still out on this matter.
Andrea Jackson
Posted by: Andrea ||
12/05/2004 14:02 Comments ||
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NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer announced the opening of the Western military alliance's Iraq headquarters during a surprise snap visit to Baghdad on Friday. And addressing a group of alliance officers already in the country to train Iraqi officers, de Hoop Scheffer stressed that NATO was in Iraq "on behalf of the Iraqi people". "It is their priority, they want to be as soon as possible less dependent on others," said de Hoop Scheffer, whose visit was the first by a NATO chief to the war-wracked country. Asked about how many Iraqis had so far benefited from the training, in Iraq and abroad, NATO information officer Colonel Petter Lindqvist said "perhaps a hundred". Lindqvist stressed that NATO itself would not be involved in fighting insurgents, despite a rising tide of violence ahead of the elections. "It is a NATO decision that NATO will not engage on the tactical level and we are not entering into any combat whatsoever, except from self-defence point of view," he said. We don't do windows.
Several hundred instructors due in the country will be protected by a NATO force, with the aim of training 1,000 Iraqi officers a year. Lindqvist said NATO at present had 20 instructors in the country and the rest were being trained for the job. Several alliance members opposed to last year's US-led invasion of Iraq will not be participating, including Belgium, France and Germany, as well as Spain, which withdrew its troops from the country following a change of government. The article does not break down participation by country. Let me clue you in. The majority are American.
EILAT, Israel (AP) - Egypt freed an Israeli Arab man convicted of spying in exchange for Israel's release of six Egyptian students Sunday, a swap that signaled a warming of relations between the two countries. Israel may also release Palestinian prisoners in the future, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said.
Egypt released Azzam Azzam, who was sentenced in 1997 to 15 years in prison after an Egyptian court convicted him of espionage. At the time, Azzam ran a textile factory in Egypt, and Israel has denied he was an agent. The case against Azzam was based, in part, on allegations he used invisible ink to transmit information. Israel, in turn, released six Egyptian students who had sneaked into the country in August and were arrested on suspicion they tried to kidnap Israeli soldiers and commandeer a tank.
Azzam's imprisonment has been a key point of friction between Israel and Egypt, whose ties remain cool despite their 1979 peace treaty, and the students' arrest had angered many in Egypt. But Israel's relations with the Palestinians and with Egypt have been steadily improving since the death last month of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
The transfer took place at the Taba crossing between Israel and Egypt. After Azzam crossed into Israel in a van, he was taken to a nearby airport at the Red Sea resort of Eilat. Israeli security officials who accompanied Azzam said he cried and flashed a victory sign as he emerged from the van.
Several hours later, he boarded a small military aircraft, smiling an waving before takeoff. Asked by reporters how he was, he said: ``Very good. Thank you, thank you.'' Azzam briefly spoke to his wife Amal, as well as to Sharon, from Eilat. ``Azzam, I can't believe it's you,'' his wife told him, looking faint and emotional as the family cheered in the background. Sharon told Azzam he had worked hard for his release and that ``the entire country is united in happiness over your return home.''
Azzam was expected to undergo a medical check before returning to his family in the northern Israeli village of Mughar. His brother, Iftan, said the family only found out earlier Sunday that he was about to be released. ``We invite the whole state of Israel to celebrate with us,'' Iftan Azzam told Israel Radio.
Sharon said in a statement Sunday that he was considering releasing an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners as part of the swap with Egypt. More than 7,000 Palestinians are being held by Israel.
Um, no, you got your boy back, the Paleos should stay in the slammer.
The swap came several days after Egypt's foreign minister and intelligence chief met with Sharon in Jerusalem. Earlier this week, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak praised Sharon, saying Palestinians should be able to strike a peace deal with the Israeli leader. Mubarak's comments marked a significant warming of ties after an extended frosty period during more than four years of Israeli-Palestinian fighting. Shortly after the outbreak of the conflict in 2000, Egypt had withdrawn its ambassador from Israel.
Azzam was arrested by Egypt in November 1996. At the time, he was the director of a textile factory in Egypt under joint Israeli-Egyptian ownership. The case against him included women's underwear allegedly soaked in invisible ink.
This guy got jugged not for espionage but for handling womens' underwear.
An Egyptian teacher convicted as his accomplice was jailed for life with hard labor. Under Egyptian law, the court's decision could not be appealed.
The arrests of the six Egyptian university students - and the recent shooting deaths of three Egyptian policemen by Israelis along the border - had inflamed public sentiments in Egypt. Israeli officials said the six crossed into Egypt after their release. A security officer in the Egyptian city of al-Arish, near the border with Israel, said forces in the area were preparing to receive them. Another Egyptian security official said the students may face charges in Egypt for illegally crossing the border.
"You stupid boy! Whattaya think you are, a Paleostinian?"
"Gee, Dad, we thought it was a good idea at the time."
[slap] "Who told you to think?" [slap]
Ahead of the swap, Youssry Hassan Salem, the father of one of the students held in Israel, said ``we are sitting beside the phone to know the time and place where they are going to be released today.'' Salem said his son, Mohammed Youssri Hassan Salem, 24, engineering student at Helwan university, spoke to his family once in September and they received four letters from them since then. The other five were university students or recent graduates living in suburban Cairo.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/05/2004 9:51:31 AM ||
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Great Islamic Ideasâ¢
"Hey! I know what we can do! We can steal a Joooooo tank! No, really! Stop laughing!"
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/05/2004 10:01 Comments ||
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#2
Sounds like one of those Brilliant Ideas hatched during an all-nighter...
#3
Those guys must have gotten a bag of White Slag at their all-nighter to hatch that hare-brained plot. Mebbe their controller was into it.
So for all the armor chaps out there, a question: What security is there to protect from unauthorized entry and starting of a tank? Just out of curiosity.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 13:24 Comments ||
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#4
Lol! "This guy got jugged not for espionage but for handling womens' underwear."
FYI for the RB femalians: in Saudi there are many lingerie stores - largely answering the "What's under that burqha?" question... but did you know that the staff of these emporiums are all men? Obvious - after the fact... So, um, need some help in the fitting room? I'll send Ahmad on the double... Double-heh.
#5
Jeeez.... .com you saying the staff handles the hmmm... merchandise? Damn now that could cause seething, it also explains the bizzare google image requests from that area.
I mean Camel, panties, smoking, sailor suit? I just don't know.
#6
I tried the search on Google, Shipman. No matches. In fact, it was so weird of a request that there was a statement there that said, "WTF is this?" LOL!
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 16:28 Comments ||
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#7
It pretty obvious you aren't a member of the Silver Searchers AP.
#1
Same article as yesterday, same big trainwreck-of-a-personal-life RED WARNING FLAG:
Like a lot of people who convert to Islam or any other religion, he did so after a particularly difficult period in his life in which he not only lost his "way" but also his job and his apartment, and, after a fight outside a nightclub, came close to losing an eye as well.
Same reply:
"Isn't it funny how so many people find God only after they have painted themselves into a moral corner and made life a living hell for those around them. Nobody finds Jesus on prom night."
#4
The left demonized Christianity, the Christian churches allowed Christ to leave the building and now the lost have to settle for Islam - where the accepting "grace" is replaced by "smite your enemies". It's a shame. 2,000 years of western civilization advanced on the idea of grace, charity, hope, peace and forgiveness and now we offer them the dark ages.
GAZA A senior leader of the Islamic Jihad movement insisted yesterday that his group would reject any ceasefire or long-term truce with Israel. Mohamed Al Hindi told reporters in Gaza that "in light of the numerous statements on ceasefire or truce, the Islamic Jihad rejects even discussing this issue and talking about either short- or long- term truces."
Well okay then, this means the Israelis can just whack these boys.
He said that "this is the clear position as long as the attacks are continued against our people and the Palestinian territories," adding "the latest aggression was Friday's assassination of an Islamic Jihad militant in Jenin." "We reject talking about a truce or a ceasefire as long as the reasons of death of Yasser Arafat are still vague, and we don't know if he died of a food poisoning or radiation," said Al Hindi.Â
Oh, make something up, you're good at that.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/05/2004 1:23:57 AM ||
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Hudna or no hudna, it's still pretty difficult to tell Hamas operatives apart from those of Islamic Jihad. I guess we're back at the old "point and shoot" solution once again. Too bad for Hamas.
The American Ambassador in Cairo, David Welsh, met the spokesman of the Egyptian opposition parties, Rifaat Al Saeed, on Thursday for two hours, and talks between the two reportedly focused on democracy. This is for the first time in many years that an American Ambassador has met a representative of Egyptian opposition parties. Saeed said his meeting with Welsh focused on general issues, including democracy, but refused to elaborate further. He said it was the American Ambassador who had called the meeting. The opposition in Egypt has launched a campaign, demanding political reforms and changes in the constitution. They are also demanding a maximum of two successive terms for President. The 'Consensus Party', at a Press conference on Tuesday, accused the Egyptian government of using the emergency law to ban public meeting in Cairo.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/05/2004 1:05:43 AM ||
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Government-backed militia in Sudan's Darfur region continue to rape women refugees with complete impunity, according to a UN report which said the overall humanitarian situation in Darfur was worsening. "Sexual violence and rape continue to be reported in all three regions of Darfur," said Jose Diaz, a spokesman for UN High Commission on Human Rights, based on a report from a team of UN observers in the war-torn western region. "Women and girls are afraid to leave the camps... there is widespread impunity because the police refuse to register complaints by IDPs (internally displaced persons)," he told reporters on Friday.
"We have to do something about it!"
"Right. Let's have a meeting."
In their November report, the 16 observers also reported attempts by the Sudanese government to forcibly relocate civilians who have sought shelter from the fighting in camps in South Darfur, notably in Al Ger and Otash. Diaz said that the observers had brought all known cases of abuse to the attention of the authorites, to little effect. Concerning the forced displacement of civilians, Diaz said that UN staff were often powerless to act because the relocations were "undertaken by police and law enforcement officials".Â
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/05/2004 12:55:08 AM ||
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UN staff's jealous
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/05/2004 8:18 Comments ||
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#2
I say we send in the Kurds. They'll know what to do.
Posted by: Charles ||
12/05/2004 9:34 Comments ||
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Hold a meeting, have a lunch, and get the Seattle papers to ask "why?" and then maybe eventually they will all be dead and we won't have to do anything about it.
#4
Slap a study on it, all right, that's the ticket. When the study is completed, there will be two situations:
1. Everyone will be dead, like 2b sez, or
2. The UN will not implement the recommendations, so #1 will apply anyway.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/05/2004 13:18 Comments ||
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A leading rights group is urging Afghan President Hamid Karzai to sideline warlords implicated in rights abuses and strengthen the rule of law when he announces a new cabinet. Mr Karzai will be sworn in for his first elected term, which will run for five years, next week. Human Rights Watch also urges Mr Karzai to be more forceful in seeking greater assistance from the United States and NATO to improve security ahead of April parliamentary elections. In an open letter, the New York-based group calls on Mr Karzai to also take up the issue of US military abuses in the battle against Islamic militants and to take stronger action to promote women's rights.
Mr Karzai, who has been interim President since US-led forces overthrew the Taliban in late 2001, is to be inaugurated on Tuesday in Kabul. The Government says he is expected to announce his new cabinet within a week of the inauguration, which is to be attended by Vice President Dick Cheney. "This is President Karzai's big chance," Brad Adams, Human Rights Watch's executive director for Asia, said. "He has a popular mandate from the Afghan people. He should use it to end impunity and warlord rule, now and forever."
The rights group praises Mr Karzai's efforts to sideline warlords in his previous administration. However, it says there is an urgent need for him to create a commission to vet all senior government posts and exclude those guilty of rights abuses. The Government has given few clues about its choices for the new cabinet. The panel's make-up is seen as crucial to determining whether Afghanistan can chart a course of reform away from warlordism and weak central control, and whether it can shape an economy that is not dominated by illicit drugs.
Boy, this stuff is all so simple when you don't have to worry about the side effects of anything you do.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
12/05/2004 4:41:03 PM ||
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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.
Muslims from across the UK will join demonstrations against the Musharraf regime this Monday [December 6th] when President Musharraf meets with UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and later addresses a gathering of UK Pakistanis in Central London. Demonstrations will also take place at other events where President Musharraf will be in attendance including a lecture at the 
Australia's Attorney-General Philip Ruddock says that while such evidence is not an accepted part of civilian trials, it can be used in military trials. "We've always known that that was the approach in the military trial arrangements," he said. Opposition legal affairs spokeswoman Nicola Roxson says the use of such evidence condones torture. "I think it does and I think it highlights the reason that in Western countries like Australia, and in the ordinary American civilian system, would not allow material to be used in court when it's been obtained from torture because that gives it some weight, gives it some credibility, as an indication that the state says that this is acceptable material to use," she said. Ms Roxson says it is wrong to condemn torture, but then talk about how evidence obtained through it can be used. "It's inappropriate but we still want to go on and talk about how it can be used. I don't think you can have it both ways," she said. "This is something that all Australians would be concerned about. I am quite astounded Mr Ruddock is not being stronger on this issue." 
The Australian Government says it has tried and failed so far to get a copy of a report by the International Red 
Dear Dr. KareemâŠ
A leading rights group is urging Afghan President Hamid Karzai to sideline warlords implicated in rights abuses and strengthen the rule of law when he announces a new cabinet. Mr Karzai will be sworn in for his first elected term, which will run for five years, next week. Human Rights Watch also urges Mr Karzai to be more forceful in seeking greater assistance from the United States and NATO to improve security ahead of April parliamentary elections. In an open letter, the New York-based group calls on Mr Karzai to also take up the issue of US military abuses in the battle against Islamic militants and to take stronger action to promote women's rights. 
