Hi there, !
Today Sun 11/19/2017 Sat 11/18/2017 Fri 11/17/2017 Thu 11/16/2017 Wed 11/15/2017 Tue 11/14/2017 Mon 11/13/2017 Archives
Rantburg
532919 articles and 1859659 comments are archived on Rantburg.

Today: 61 articles and 180 comments as of 1:30.
Post a news link    Post your own article   
Area: WoT Operations    WoT Background    Opinion        Politix   
Zimbabwe’s Military, in Apparent Takeover, Says It Has Custody of Mugabe
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 3: Non-WoT
5 19:03 gorb [] 
2 12:19 Procopius2k [] 
8 17:26 Zhang Fei [2] 
3 08:13 Rob Crawford [5] 
10 22:39 newc [4] 
1 04:33 Beau [5] 
1 10:40 Abu Uluque [5] 
6 20:20 Frank G [9] 
2 10:39 CC Reader [] 
3 17:13 JohnQC [2] 
6 13:56 gorb [] 
1 19:05 Anomalous Sources [4] 
10 22:28 newc [2] 
2 09:15 Frank G [] 
10 20:07 trailing wife [1] 
5 20:00 trailing wife [1] 
8 23:54 trailing wife [1] 
Page 1: WoT Operations
0 [9]
0 [2]
0 [2]
2 19:34 Skidmark [5]
0 []
1 12:28 Woodrow [1]
0 [8]
0 [7]
0 [2]
0 [3]
0 [3]
0 [8]
0 [1]
Page 2: WoT Background
2 20:05 trailing wife [5]
10 22:36 Mullah Richard [2]
1 02:18 newc []
0 []
3 12:30 Woodrow [3]
0 [2]
0 [1]
5 19:36 Skidmark [5]
0 [8]
0 [1]
0 []
3 14:48 Frank G [1]
0 [6]
0 []
0 [6]
0 [2]
0 [4]
0 []
0 [4]
0 []
Page 4: Opinion
17 23:19 Hupeting Sforza8196 [2]
6 10:40 Cesare [1]
0 [8]
4 21:26 Injun Bucket8891 [5]
0 [8]
Page 6: Politix
3 17:01 JohnQC []
16 22:38 Mullah Richard [4]
5 21:30 Injun Bucket8891 [3]
2 09:38 Matt []
11 22:10 newc [3]
6 21:44 Injun Bucket8891 [3]
-Lurid Crime Tales-
CA shooting suspect was on bail for assault with a deadly weapon
[NYPost] The crazed gunman who went on a shooting spree in Northern California, killing four people before being shot dead, had been out on bail for stabbing a neighbor — but told his mother a day earlier that he was done feuding with his rural community, according to reports.

“Mom, it’s all over now,” Kevin Janson Neal’s mother said he told her in their final conversation. “I have done everything I could do and I am fighting against everyone who lives in this area.”

The following day, he donned a ballistic vest, grabbed a semi-automatic rifle and two handguns and went on a 45-minute rampage across Rancho Tehama Reserve.

He killed two of his neighbors, stole their truck and drove around as he randomly picked off his targets in seven locations en route to the Rancho Tehama Elementary School.

Neal tried to enter the school, but couldn’t get in as he unleashed 30 rounds before taking off. No teachers or students were killed.

“He did shoot at a number of classrooms which resulted in the injury of at least one or two students that I’m aware of,” the sheriff said.

A short time later, a patrol car rammed Neal’s vehicle before officers opened fire and killed him.

By then, the 43-year-old had left four people dead and 10 injured, including a 6-year-old boy hit inside the school, the Sacramento Bee reported.

Tehama County Assistant Sheriff Phil Johnston said Neal’s motive appeared to be to exact revenge on his neighbors.

“And when it got that far, (he) went on a rampage … He was driving up and down the street shooting at passersby,” he said.

One of the fatalities was a woman who lived near the gunman and was the victim of an assault in January that ended with Neal in the slammer, the paper reported.

Neal’s mother, who would only give her first name, Annie, said her son told her he grabbed a steak knife out of his neighbor’s hand while being threatened. The neighbor was slightly cut, she said Neal told her.

The mother, who lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she raised Neal, said she posted his $160,000 bail and spent $10,000 on a lawyer after he was arrested in January.

Johnston said he believed Neal was slapped with a restraining order after the January arrest that would have prevented him from owning firearms, at least temporarily.

In April, the District Attorney’s Office charged him with assaulting a second person, also in late January, according to Tehama County court records.

Tehama DA Gregg Cohen told the Bee that his office was prosecuting Neal on charges related to a stabbing and assault with a deadly weapon involving two of his neighbors.

Police had also visited Neal’s house a day before the shootings on a domestic violence call, authorities said, but gave no details.

Neal’s mother said her son was working as a pot farmer and had recently married his longtime girlfriend.

In her last few conversations with her son, Annie said he sounded desperate and distraught over his relationship with his neighbors, who he said were cooking meth that created fumes that were harming his nine dogs.

Neal’s sister, Sheridan Orr, said she had not talked to her brother in months, but that he had struggled with mental illness and at times had a violent temper.

She said she believed he was addicted to drugs.

“We’re stunned and we’re appalled that this is a person who has no business with firearms whatsoever,” Orr said. “Our deep, deep sympathy for the victims and it sounds trite but our hearts are breaking for them.”

Orr added, “If we can do any good to make people realize there must be some gates on people like this from getting guns,” she paused. “This is the same story we’re hearing more and more.”

Cristal Caravez, who lives across a ravine from the road where Neal and his first victims lived, said she and others heard constant gunfire but couldn’t say for sure it was him firing.

She and her father, who is president of the homeowners association, said neighbors would complain to the sheriff’s department, which referred the complaints back to the homeowners association.

“The sheriff wouldn’t do anything about it,” Juan Caravez said.
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [9 views] Top|| File under:

#1  What happened to the girlfriend?
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 || 11/16/2017 2:35 Comments || Top||

#2  What girlfriend? If you meant his wife, he killed her and put her body under the floorboard in his house before his rampage.
Posted by: Seeking cure for ignorance || 11/16/2017 3:31 Comments || Top||

#3  ...This is unpossible. I have been assured every time something like this happens that if we will just add one more redundant layer of single-point failure bureaucracy, it can't possibly happen again.

(sarc/OFF)

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski || 11/16/2017 12:55 Comments || Top||

#4  Curious how this isn't getting national media attention....since it points out how the CA Justice system well and truly made the point about the ineffectiveness of the whole guncontrol/governmentiscompetent argument is debunked. Editorial decisions at the MSM reflect the true nature of the MSM in the US. A political power, not journalism.
Posted by: NoMoreBS || 11/16/2017 13:33 Comments || Top||

#5  What happened to the girlfriend?

He had recently married his longterm girlfriend. She's the one he killed and hid under the floor, according to Seeking Cure's link.
Posted by: trailing wife || 11/16/2017 18:40 Comments || Top||

#6  "Til death do us part"
Posted by: Frank G || 11/16/2017 20:20 Comments || Top||


Daily Depraved Digest
Weinstein accuser busted for coke
Rose McGowan has spoken for the first time since turning herself in to police on drug possession charges to protest her innocence and suggest that the cocaine police found in her wallet after she left it on a plane was planted.

The actress was arrested in Virginia on Tuesday on an outstanding warrant for cocaine possession which was filed in February. It stems from a flight she took to Virginia in January after which she left her wallet on the plane.

Actress sues Weinstein
An actress is suing Harvey Weinstein over claims he masturbated in front of her and later raped her in his swanky Beverly Hills hotel suite.

The woman, who is named as Jane Doe in the lawsuit, says the disgraced producer first invited her to discuss a potential role in his Netflix series Marco Polo in 2015.

Accuser Number 3 against Ed Westwick emerges
A third woman has come forward to accuse Gossip Girl actor Ed Westwick of sexual assault.

Rachel Eck told Buzzfeed that the actor assaulted her the night before the 2014 Academy Awards.

2nd Actress files lawsuit against Weinstein
A second lawsuit has been filed against Harvey Weinstein in as many days.

On Wednesday, an anonymous actress sued Weinstein for assaulting her during a casting couch meeting, and opened the lawsuit up to the 'dozens, if not hundreds' of his other victims.

Natasha Henstridge fingers Weinstein for sexual misconduct
Natasha Henstridge revealed on Megyn Kelly Today that she too was a victim of Harvey Weinstein's sexual misconduct.

That incident occurred in a hotel during the Sundance Film Festival, said Henstridge, who did not give a year.

Sulu was joking; wants to forget the whole thing
On Monday, former Star Trek actor George Takei posted a deceptive quasi-apology for a recent resurfaced interview with shock-jock Howard Stern in which Takei bragged about grabbing hesitant and "skittish" men by the penis in an effort to "persuade" them into sex.
Posted by: badanov || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:


#2  Male Prostitute Found Dead in Democrat Donor’s Home. Media Silence…
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 11/16/2017 12:58 Comments || Top||

#3  Rose McGowan has spoken for the first time since turning herself in to police on drug possession charges to protest her innocence and suggest that the cocaine police found in her wallet after she left it on a plane was planted. Planted? If that doesn't work she can always claim victimhood and say that Weinstein caused her to turn to drugs.
Posted by: JohnQC || 11/16/2017 17:13 Comments || Top||


Immigrant who doinked stepdaughter in ‘anchor baby’ scheme faces 90 years in prison
[RT] An illegal immigrant's plan to father a so-called “anchor baby” to stay in the US backfired after it emerged the mother of his child was his 15-year-old stepdaughter. He now faces multiple sexual assault charges and up to 90 years in prison. Horacio Alvarado, 32, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, insisted on a paternity test in 2015 for a child born in 2012, apparently believing that fathering a child in the US would shield him from deportation, according to a criminal complaint seen by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  ...Sounds like ol' Horacio didn't quite think his brilliant plan all the way through.

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski || 11/16/2017 5:26 Comments || Top||

#2  Looks like he will be anchored for a long time.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 11/16/2017 7:22 Comments || Top||

#3  Does anyone really think Horacio is from Milwaukee?
Posted by: Rob Crawford || 11/16/2017 8:32 Comments || Top||

#4  If he is from Milwaukee why does he need an anchor baby? Minneapolis I could see but......
Posted by: AlanC || 11/16/2017 9:58 Comments || Top||

#5  Lots of 'colonists' from south of the border in Milwaukee, AlanC.

Doing that 'icky' factory work that the 'inner city entitled class' refuses to do.
Posted by: Mullah Richard || 11/16/2017 11:02 Comments || Top||

#6  Anchor baby my a$$. He's just a pedophile looking for an excuse.
Posted by: gorb || 11/16/2017 13:56 Comments || Top||


Pakistani teen arrested for sexually assaulting chicken
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] A teenager who sexually assaulted and killed a chicken was arrested by the Police in Hafizabad, Punjab in Pakistan.
Five words: Ew. Ew. Yuck. Yuck. Yuck.
The 14-year-old allegedly assaulted a hen on November 11 in his village near Jalalpur Bhattian area, reported Tribune.
"She's a good-lookin' chick!"
According to a report filled by the owner of the bird, the boy stole, sexually assaulted and killed it on the spot. The man named two locals as eyewitnesses in his complaint.
"I seen it!" he cackled.
The teen was arrested after a medical examination of the chicken confirmed the assault and that the boy confessed to the crime.
"If the egg can get out, I can get in!"
The police report sited ‘unnatural offence.’
"So why'd you kill her?"
"I couldn't bear the thought of her being with another man!"

Sharia law requires killing the violated animal after the violation. The meat may not be sold in the same village, but the next village over is fine.
Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Pakistani Teen Hollywood's Harvey Weinstein Accused By Chicken of Sexual Assault

There, fixed that for you.
Posted by: Hupeting Sforza8196 || 11/16/2017 4:48 Comments || Top||

#2  “Better an old hen than pullet.”
Posted by: Skidmark || 11/16/2017 7:24 Comments || Top||

#3  He killed it out of fear it would squawk.
Posted by: Rob Crawford || 11/16/2017 8:24 Comments || Top||

#4  That was fowl.
Posted by: DarthVader || 11/16/2017 9:13 Comments || Top||

#5 
Posted by: Frank G || 11/16/2017 9:16 Comments || Top||

#6  The late, great, Slim Gaillard has something to say about this:
Posted by: Alaska Paul || 11/16/2017 10:53 Comments || Top||

#7  Totally not his fault.

"Say, cock of the walk," she squawked blackly.
"Got just what you're cravin', compactly
Served up with no trimmins
For less than them wimmins..."
"Ma'am, that's what I'm after, exactly!"
Posted by: Zenobia Floger6220 || 11/16/2017 17:59 Comments || Top||

#8  This video seems most appropriate.
https://youtu.be/PENJxl-THS8
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 || 11/16/2017 19:47 Comments || Top||

#9  Must of been watching some German films.
Posted by: bbrewer126 || 11/16/2017 20:51 Comments || Top||

#10  It's feathers were not covering it's ankle.
Posted by: newc || 11/16/2017 22:28 Comments || Top||


-Signs, Portents, and the Weather-
Thanksgiving outlook: Brutal cold, snow to blast Midwest as a storm may eye the East
Time to start planning for Thanksgiving, dear Reader. Mr. Wife informs me that if we get a foot of snow, we won't be driving up to Buffalo.
[AccuWeather] While warmth builds in the Southwest, re-surging cold air may trigger frequent snow in the Great Lakes and help spin up a storm along the East Coast around Thanksgiving Day.

Following a storm and shot of cold air that sweeps across the northern part of the nation into this weekend, there is the potential for very cold air with a punishing wind to take root over the Midwest and Northeast during the long Thanksgiving weekend.

"If indications are correct, some locations may be hit by up to one foot of snow, while gusty winds sweep cold air from the northern Plains to the Gulf Coast, Appalachians and eventually the Atlantic Seaboard," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson.

It is during that press of arctic air when another storm may come about with a swath of steady rain, ice and snow in the Northeast.

A piece of the polar vortex may break loose and settle in the swath from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The jet stream is a high speed river of air at the level where jets cruise at.
Posted by: trailing wife || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Snow around the Great Lakes in winter is a clear sign of global warming.

Yes, it has to get colder in order to snow, silly, but it is also getting warmer at the same time. Because of Science and other reasons. And while all this is confusing to the Great Unwashed, we have scientists working on the problem. And computers. Top computers.
Posted by: SteveS || 11/16/2017 0:41 Comments || Top||

#2 
Posted by: Hupeting Sforza8196 || 11/16/2017 2:17 Comments || Top||

#3  Where's AlGore?
Posted by: Frank G || 11/16/2017 7:17 Comments || Top||

#4  tw, Google Thanksgiving Storm 1956. That was a storm that deposited 22-33 inches of snow fro Buffalo to Erie, PA, my home town.

If you get a foot of snow where you live, Buffalo will probably have a lot more.

Of course, that was before global warming.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia || 11/16/2017 16:24 Comments || Top||

#5  Buffalo and Erie do get hit hard when it snows.
Posted by: JohnQC || 11/16/2017 17:10 Comments || Top||

#6  Google Thanksgiving Storm 1956

It looks like that was a bad one, Rambler, and covered quite a bit of territory. My perspective is the blizzards of 1977 and '78 in Buffalo. But neither of those was a Thanksgiving storm, and the '78 storm may be bigger in my memory than it was objectively, as a quick search yielded no links.
Posted by: trailing wife || 11/16/2017 19:56 Comments || Top||

#7  Try Watertown NY on the east end of Ontario for lake effect snow. They put the 10th Mountain Division there. At least they got the right equipment.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 11/16/2017 21:04 Comments || Top||

#8  Watertown gets more snow than Buffalo, I believe.
Posted by: trailing wife || 11/16/2017 23:54 Comments || Top||


Africa Subsaharan
How this power-mad first lady possibly sparked a military coup
Meet the woman whose insatiable appetite for power set in motion Zimbabwe's ongoing military coup: first lady Grace Mugabe.

The 52-year-old shopaholic, who has earned the nickname "Gucci Grace" thanks to her taste for designer clothes, allegedly convinced her hubby ‐ dictator "President" Robert Mugabe ‐ to sack his heir apparent, ushering in a military backlash that left the 93-year-old despot under house arrest while she hightailed it out of the African country to Namibia parts unknown.

"I say to Mr. Mugabe, you should . . . leave me to take over your post," the silver-tongued Grace said in a church meeting, according to the Globe and Mail. "Have no fear. If you want to give me the job, give it to me freely."

Then she gave him the not-so-subtle instruction to ax his vice president and right-hand man of 40 years, Emmerson "Crocodile" Mnangagwa ‐ so named because the beast is his clan's totem and because his erstwhile political resilience has been likened to the leathery reptile's skin.

"The snake must be hit on the head," Grace hissed, referring to Mnangagwa.

Within a few days, Robert delivered a proverbial crocodile-skin handbag to spendthrift Grace by ousting longtime ally Mnangagwa. The plot cleared the runway for his fashionista wife's ascent to leader ‐ until the military intervened Tuesday.

Grace's tale is equal parts Imelda Marcos and Lady MacBeth, a profligate first lady who has incurred a struggling nation's ire while manipulating her powerful husband.

The South African native's rise began in the early 1990s, when she was a single mother and secretary in Robert's typing pool.

Totes qualified
Posted by: Frank G || 11/16/2017 10:18 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I thought this was going to be a column on Hillary.
Posted by: Raj || 11/16/2017 12:04 Comments || Top||

#2  ....fortunately, the Trumpers saved us from that scenario.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 11/16/2017 12:19 Comments || Top||


Grace departs Zim scene for Namibia, and other briefs
[EXPRESS.CO.UK] The military has said Mugabe is “safe and sound” in custody amid reports that his powerful wife has left Zimbabwe for Namibia in the wake of the coup.

It is not clear whether Mugabe will be deposed but the main goal of the generals appears to be stopping his wife Grace from succeeding him.

Grace was being lined up to take over from her 93-year-old husband after the vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa was fired and fled in exile just over a week ago.

Mugabe agrees to step down, negotiates for Grace to leave Zim?

[TUMFWEKO] Verified reports confirm that Bob Mugabe has negotiated for Grace to leave the country while he prepares to step down,

Army arrests G40 ‘criminals’

[NEWSDAY.CO.ZW] ZDF Major General Sibusiso Moyo in a statement on State television early yesterday morning said their aim was to target “criminals around the President” who remains in charge of the country.

Moyo is a leading figure in Zanu PF’s G40 faction that engineered Mnangagwa’s recent expulsion from both government and the ruling party on allegations of disloyalty, deceit and attempts to usurp power from Mugabe, among others.

Other key members of the G40 faction include Grace, Kasukuwere and Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko. Mnangagwa reportedly leads a rival faction, Team Lacoste, over Mugabe’s succession. Public Service minister Patrick Zhuwao had, according to unconfirmed reports, skipped the border to Mozambique early yesterday while Mphoko was reportedly holed up out of the country.

Zimbabwe Youth Leader Apologizes to Army Leaders

[USNEWS] Zim-bob-we's state broadcaster has interrupted its programming to air an apology by the ruling party's youth leader to army commanders for "denigrating" them.

Kudzanai Chipanga says the statement he made earlier this week attacking the military did not originate with him. He also said he was making his public apology without coercion.

He says that "by this big mistake we have learned a lot."

Zim-bob-we's army early Wednesday announced that President Bob Muggsy Mugabe
Nonagenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case...
and his family were under house arrest.
Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Grace departs Zim scene for Namibia

Where she'll write a book: "what went wrong"?
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 11/16/2017 2:04 Comments || Top||

#2  An image of Grace Jones getting blown up in that bad Bond movie is needed for stories like this one.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 11/16/2017 3:37 Comments || Top||

#3  Zimbabwe Youth Leader Apologizes to Army Leaders

[USNEWS] Zim-bob-we's state broadcaster has interrupted its programming to air an apology by the ruling party's youth leader to army commanders for "denigrating" them.

Kudzanai Chipanga says the statement he made earlier this week attacking the military did not originate with him.

"Nope. Wudn't me. Never heard of the guy. Don't hurt me, okay?"


He also said he was making his public apology without coercion.

"My own free will, absolutely, you betcha."

He says that "by this big mistake we have learned a lot."

"We've learned not to pi$$ off people with just enough firearms training to actually hit their targets. PLEASE don't hurt us."

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski || 11/16/2017 3:45 Comments || Top||

#4  LOL, Mike! My first thought: him speaking into a microphone with a gun barrel in his ear
Posted by: Frank G || 11/16/2017 7:15 Comments || Top||

#5  that's 50 cent's name in Zimbabwe? 400 million dollars.
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 11/16/2017 10:23 Comments || Top||

#6  What's. Sheesh i hate these small buttons.
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 11/16/2017 10:24 Comments || Top||

#7  Jail in Namibia?
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 11/16/2017 14:10 Comments || Top||

#8  You know how people say "it can't get any worse than this?" They're wrong. It can always get worse.
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 11/16/2017 17:26 Comments || Top||


Zimbabwe’s Military, in Apparent Takeover, Says It Has Custody of Mugabe
[NYTIMES] Zim-bob-we’s military said early Wednesday that it had taken custody of President Bob Muggsy Mugabe
Nonagenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case...
, the world’s oldest head of state and one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders, in what increasingly appeared to be a military takeover in the southern African nation.

After apparently seizing the state broadcaster, ZBC, two uniformed officers said in a short predawn announcement that "the situation in our country has moved to another level." While denying that the military had seized power, they said that Mr. Mugabe and his family "are safe and sound, and their security is guaranteed."

"We are only targeting criminals around him who are committing crimes that are causing social and economic suffering in the country in order to bring them to justice," said the main speaker, who was identified as Maj. Gen. S. B. Moyo, the army’s chief of staff.

General Moyo ‐ who was not widely known to the public but who was considered close to the commander of the Zim-bob-we Defense Forces, Gen. Constantine Chiwenga ‐ warned that "any provocation will be met with an appropriate response."

Around 6 a.m. on Wednesday, taxis were running on the main roads leading to central Harare and people seemed to be making their way to work. Some soldiers could be seen on the main roads but were not stopping commuters.

After the short announcement, commercials on farming and corn seeds appeared on the state broadcaster. There was no further clarification of the whereabouts or status of Mr. Mugabe, 93, who is the only leader his nation has known since independence in 1980.

The office of President Jacob Zuma of South Africa said in a statement that Mr. Zuma and Mr. Mugabe had spoken. Mr. Mugabe "indicated that he was confined to his home but said that he was fine," the statement said. It said that South Africa was in contact with the Zim-bob-wean military.
Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  This is doing it right. Grab the chief and hold him incommunicado. The coup in Turkey got off on the wrong foot when the plotters failed to get their hands on Erdogan.
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 11/16/2017 0:58 Comments || Top||

#2  This is doing it right. Grab the chief and hold him incommunicado. IIUC, in late summer 1945 this almost happened to Hirohito in Japan when Imperial army officers resisting surrender tried to take over his role.
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 || 11/16/2017 2:33 Comments || Top||

#3  I wonder if their custody is like Ptolemy's custody of Alexander.
Posted by: Rob Crawford || 11/16/2017 8:13 Comments || Top||


Zuma issues statement on Zim situation
[NEWSDAY.CO.ZW] President Jacob Zuma, on behalf of SADC, has noted with great concern the unfolding political situation in the Republic of Zim-bob-we.

President Zuma has called for calm and restraint and has expressed hope that developments in Zim-bob-we would not lead to unconstitutional changes of Government as that would be contrary to both SADC and African Union
...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful...
positions.

The President has urged the Government of the Republic of Zim-bob-we and the Zim-bob-we Defence Force to resolve the political impasse amicably and has urged the Zim-bob-wean Defence Force to ensure that the maintenance of peace and security in the country is not compromised.

SADC will continue to closely monitor the situation and remains ready to assist where necessary to resolve the political impasse in keeping with established SADC Protocols and processes.
Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Commie purges are always great fun for the purgers. For the purgees, not so much...
Posted by: M. Murcek || 11/16/2017 3:38 Comments || Top||

#2  Mugabe and Zuma are very much the same. A friend told me in June that, Zuma is untouchable for the crimes of “Captured Government”, if his wife wins the upcoming election. I recommend the “https://www.iol.co.za/capetimes”. One of the articles under the “Africa” tab states “Johannesburg — When Zimbabwe’s generals moved against President Robert Mugabe on Wednesday, their action foreshadowed the potential end of more than just one political career. It echoed across a continent where the notion of the “big man” leader is defined equally by the lure of power in perpetuity and the risk that, one day, the edifice will crumble under the weight of its own decay”.
Posted by: CC Reader || 11/16/2017 10:39 Comments || Top||


Zimbabwe's Mugabe Out Of Power For First Time Since 1980s As Military Takes Control
[NPR.ORG] President Bob Muggsy Mugabe
Nonagenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case...
and his family are "safe and sound," according to Zim-bob-we's military ‐ but his decades in power are seemingly at an end, after Mugabe, 93, was forcefully pushed aside. Both the ruling party and the military insist there was no coup.

"We are only targeting criminals around him who are committing crimes that are causing social and economic suffering in the country in order to bring them to justice," the Zim-bob-we Defense Forces said on Wednesday, adding, "As soon as we have accomplished our mission we expect that the situation will return to normality."

But it will be a new normal for Zim-bob-we, which has been led by Mugabe since the 1980s.

The dramatic shift comes a week after Mugabe fired longtime Vice President (and military veteran) Emmerson Mnangagwa, accusing him of disloyalty. That seemed to be the last straw for the military, which sent armored vehicles and soldiers on street patrols in the capital. As we reported, "Soldiers reportedly took control of the headquarters of the national broadcaster, ZBC, with an army front man saying on air, 'this is not a military takeover.' "

Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Iowahawk: "It wasn't true Mugabe-ism, Mugabe-ism has never really been tried."
Posted by: Anomalous Sources || 11/16/2017 19:05 Comments || Top||


Zimbabwe military: ‘We are targeting criminals around Mugabe’
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Zim-bob-wean military officers read an address live on state TV in the early hours of Wednesday, saying they were not launching a coup but were "targeting criminals around" President Bob Muggsy Mugabe
Nonagenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case...
"It is not a military takeover of government," said one general reading a statement.

"We wish to assure the nation that his excellency the president... and his family are safe and sound and their security is guaranteed.

"We are only targeting criminals around him who are committing crimes... As soon as we have accomplished our mission we expect that the situation will return to normality."

Armoured vehicles were seen on the streets near the capital Harare on Tuesday as questions mounted over whether Mugabe, who has ruled since independence from Britannia in 1980, was still holding onto power.

Tensions between the 93-year-old leader and the military have intensified in recent days.

Prolonged gunfire erupted near Mugabe's private residence in the suburb of Borrowdale early Wednesday, a witness told AFP. No further details were available.

The shooting came after Mugabe's ZANU-PF party on Tuesday accused army chief General Constantino Chiwenga of "treasonable conduct".

The public dispute has presented a major test for Mugabe, who is in increasingly frail health.

Chiwenga had demanded that Mugabe stop purges of senior party figures, including vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa, who was dismissed last week.

Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The procedure is to kill the plague carrying fleas before killing the rats, otherwise the fleas just jump on the next meal which could be you.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 11/16/2017 7:21 Comments || Top||

#2  "We wish to assure the nation that his excellency the president... and his family are safe and sound and their security is guaranteed.

"Unfortunately, he slipped and fell tomorrow and perished"
Posted by: Frank G || 11/16/2017 9:15 Comments || Top||


Arabia
Saudi Arabia allows yoga, lists it under sports activity
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Saudi Arabia has officially introduced Yoga, listing it under sports activity, and has permitted Saudi citizens to practice or propagate it by getting a license, a news report has revealed. According to the India Today report, shortly after the United Nations declared June 21 as the International Yoga Day in 2015, the Indian diplomatic missions in Saudi Arabia organized maiden Yoga sessions in various Indian schools in the country.

Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Saudi Arabia

#1  Yoga pants in Saudi? Making popcorn ...
Posted by: Beau || 11/16/2017 4:33 Comments || Top||


Sportswear abayas become a market favorite in Saudi Arabia
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Women's sportswear abayas began to make a statement in women's clothing shops, particularly in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, merchants said, Saudi daily Ajel reported.

Demand on the new designs is expected to rise with the approaching date of allowing the families to enter the stadiums which is expected to start immediately in the New Year.

Pictures of the designs of the sportswear abayas of certain teams such as al Etihad, al Hilal, al Ahli and al Nasr showed the difference in the colors that represent each team.

The prices of the abayas ranged between $66 and $106, depending on the quality of the cloth used, with the expectation that prices will decline in the future with increasing quantities offered.

The former head of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Makkah, Sheikh Ahmed bin Qassim al-Ghamdi found it completely acceptable for women to enter football stadiums with colorful abayas stressing that, "there is nothing wrong with that."

Commenting on how some shop owners started importing colorful abayas for women who are fans of football teams in accordance with the implementation of the decision to allow the families to enter the stadiums, Sheikh al-Ghamdi told Agel "we encourage women to enter the stadiums wearing the color of their favorites team," adding that "it is permissible by the Charia." .

He stated that: "Abayas are like the Jilbab and doesn’t have a specific color." He continued saying that: "Religion does not order women to wear a specific color, so it is not acceptable to force people to do something that Allah hasn’t ordered."

Sheikh al-Ghamdi explained that "the aim is to cover up women in Jilbab, whether it is the color of the team they encourage or any color they choose."

Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Gosh. They're kinda daring, aren't they?
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 11/16/2017 10:40 Comments || Top||


China-Japan-Koreas
North Korea Says It May Give Up Nuclear Weapons If U.S. Abandons Them First
Posted by: DarthVader || 11/16/2017 11:11 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Riiiight....

You know why this didn't work with the Ruskies either, right?

How about a different deal?

Give up your nukes and we won't turn your country into a glowing glass sheet.
Posted by: DarthVader || 11/16/2017 11:13 Comments || Top||

#2  ...HahahahahahahahahahahahahaNO.

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski || 11/16/2017 12:47 Comments || Top||

#3  It appears "The Art of the Deal" doesn't translate well into Korean.
Posted by: Vast Right Wing Conspiracy || 11/16/2017 13:30 Comments || Top||

#4  Old playbook. Try again.
Posted by: Alaska Paul || 11/16/2017 15:38 Comments || Top||

#5  We could abandon a few over North Korea. Would that help?
Posted by: gorb || 11/16/2017 19:03 Comments || Top||


North Korea: Trump is a coward who deserves to die
That is certainly one opinion...
[MSN] North Korea gave its version of a diplomatic verdict Wednesday on President Trump's recent trip to Asia: He's a coward who deserves to die.

Pyongyang's state media slammed Trump for insulting North Korea's leader, Kim Pudge Jong-un
...the overweight, pouty-looking hereditary potentate of North Korea. Pudge appears to believe in his own divinity, but has yet to produce any loaves and fishes, so his subjects remain malnourished...
, while on a five-country tour of Asia. It said the American president, who Kim has feuded with for months, deserves the death penalty.

"The worst crime for which (Trump) can never be pardoned is that he dared (to) malignantly hurt the dignity of the supreme leadership. He should know that he is just a hideous criminal sentenced to death by the Korean people," it said.

The comments were published in an editorial in the Rodong Sinmun newspaper, a mouthpiece for Kim's ruling Workers' Party of Korea.

The paper also branded Trump a coward for canceling a visit to the heavily fortified border area that separates North and South Korea.

Trump returned to Washington on Tuesday after a tour of the region that included stops in Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines. The purpose of the trip was to discuss trade and efforts to halt North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

Trump characterized that endeavor as "tremendously successful," a description disputed by analysts who said little progress had been made on containing North Korea's nuclear program. On Saturday, Trump indirectly called Kim "short and fat" in a tweet.

"Why would Kim Jong-un insult me by calling me "old," when I would NEVER call him "short and fat?" Trump tweeted. "Oh well, I try so hard to be his friend ‐ and maybe someday that will happen!"
Posted by: Fred || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Commies

#1  While this tyrant rants about our democratically elected leader and while NFL players who get paid way to much to play sports and trash our flag I saw something very real today. I saw a group of teens and 20 somethings board a buss to leave town and a group of young and old relatives standing next to the bus of every race, age and background.

As the bus pulled a way half of the relatives began wiping away tears and watched the bus fade into the distance. They knew these young people they loved had just arrived at a decision to possibly lay down thier lives to protect the flag as new military recruits.

That seen hit me as I realized THESE are our heros, and what they are doing is far more important than stupid sports.
Posted by: Threatch Jeamp8135 || 11/16/2017 5:53 Comments || Top||

#2  Do the Norks have a lobbyist with the Congressional Black Caucus?
Posted by: Procopius2k || 11/16/2017 15:07 Comments || Top||

#3  Other POTUSes haven't done much in trying to get this guy to be more sane/reasonable. These sanctions and pressures Trump has wrangled from China and others might bring him about--it is hard to say.
Posted by: JohnQC || 11/16/2017 17:08 Comments || Top||

#4  He shall, at the appointed time and place.

But I suspect Kimmy's hourglass is a little less full.

Posted by: Anomalous Sources || 11/16/2017 17:43 Comments || Top||

#5  Yes, they are our heroes, Threatch Jeamp8135. Thank you.
Posted by: trailing wife || 11/16/2017 20:00 Comments || Top||


Science & Technology
Boston Dynamics is trying to make its robots less terrifying
[FOXNEWS] Boston Dynamics has given its robot dog an upgrade.

In a 25-second YouTube clip, the company unveiled the new SpotMini, a four-legged bot housed in a sleek yellow casing. "Coming soon," the video teases as SpotMini trots over grass and ducks down like a real dog.

The company showed off a prototype model last year without any exterior casing; its black and silver parts were exposed. The all-electric model weighed 55 pounds, and could run for 90 minutes on one charge. It could be equipped with a robot arm that sat on top of the SpotMini's back—allowing it, for example, to place a glass cup in a dishwasher, dump trash into a wastebin, and rather hilariously, fetch a can of soda to a human person like a dog might. It could also recover and stand back up again after stumbling over a pile of banana peels.

It's unclear if the upgraded SpotMini will come with a robot arm; the new video clip doesn't show it built with one. Boston Dynamics didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

SpotMini is a smaller version of Boston Dynamics's larger four-legged robot called Spot, which could stand and still walk, despite taking a kick from a human.

Both robots use a variety of sensors, including LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging)—the same technology self-driving cars are using—to navigate and maintain balance.
Posted by: Skidmark || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  A dog with a robot arm. Great for scaring the bejabus out of potential muggers.
Posted by: phil_b || 11/16/2017 1:48 Comments || Top||

#2  Robot arm, hell! We want the chainsaw bayonet.
Posted by: SteveS || 11/16/2017 2:03 Comments || Top||

#3  Give it a tail? Make it slobber? Scent glands? Lots of possibilities...
Posted by: M. Murcek || 11/16/2017 3:50 Comments || Top||

#4  Taser fangs.
Posted by: Skidmark || 11/16/2017 7:25 Comments || Top||

#5  I hope it won't hump my leg.
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 11/16/2017 10:30 Comments || Top||

#6  Yes, but can it fetch?
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 11/16/2017 10:48 Comments || Top||

#7  Can they swim?
Posted by: Shipman || 11/16/2017 10:59 Comments || Top||

#8  I just want a freakin' laser on its head.
Posted by: DarthVader || 11/16/2017 11:25 Comments || Top||

#9  Chop shops just opened a new counter?
Posted by: Procopius2k || 11/16/2017 12:22 Comments || Top||

#10  I just want a freakin' laser on its head.

Bad idea. Dogs chase laser lights -- it would be like a whippet or greyhound taking off after something, and having no idea how to get home when it finally stopped.
Posted by: trailing wife || 11/16/2017 20:07 Comments || Top||


Government
Top Army officer says 'significant amount' of soldiers' crime data not reported to feds
[FoxNews] The Army’s top officer said Wednesday that his service had many "gaps" to fill when it comes to sharing soldiers' criminal history with federal law enforcement agencies in the wake of this month's Texas church shooting, which was carried out by an Air Force veteran with a history of domestic violence.

"We have a significant amount of omissions," admitted Gen. Mark Milley, the Army chief of staff. "There are gaps and failures on our part." Milley was the first service chief outside the Air Force to publicly admit to widespread lapses in sharing data on violent service members.

Milley said about "10 to 20 percent" of Army criminal cases are not reported to the FBI.

Roughly 150 soldiers are given a dishonorable discharge each year, Milley said. He did not say how many former soldiers had "bad conduct" discharges, the same type Air Force veteran Devin Kelley had when he was kicked out in 2014 after serving a year in prison for multiple counts of assaulting his wife and baby.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 11/16/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Psst, the Army Are the FEDS.
Posted by: newc || 11/16/2017 1:17 Comments || Top||

#2  "We have a significant amount of omissions," admitted Gen. Mark Milley, the Army chief of staff. "There are gaps and failures on our part." Milley was the first service chief outside the Air Force to publicly admit to widespread lapses in sharing data on violent service members.

TRANSLATION: It's bad. Really, really bad.

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski || 11/16/2017 5:28 Comments || Top||

#3  The MPs(cops) pointing at the JAG(lawyers) pointing at the AG(personnel) in a circular firing squad formation, "It's his job".
Posted by: Procopius2k || 11/16/2017 7:27 Comments || Top||

#4  Circular firing squads are particularly amusing when they all pull the trigger simultaneously.
Posted by: AlanC || 11/16/2017 9:55 Comments || Top||

#5  Serves a purpose though. If your goal is to pass ever more restrictive legislation to limit citizens' access to guns you want more incidents like the Texas church shooting. And who better to perpetrate these crimes than whack jobs on psych meds who've had military training with automatic weapons?
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 11/16/2017 10:45 Comments || Top||

#6  Or: your systems are strained to the breaking point after 16 years of constant deployments, ditto your soldiers.

Think I'm kidding? Take a look at how hard the Army is finding it to recruit new solders. At the massive shortage of Air Force pilots. At the number of vets killing themselves daily (22/day last I checked).

Our military is in serious trouble.
Posted by: Knuckles Slineger2610 || 11/16/2017 16:13 Comments || Top||

#7  noted
Posted by: Sholush Unineng9872 || 11/16/2017 16:29 Comments || Top||

#8  I believe you, Knuckles. And that'll make it all the more difficult and dangerous if we were to get into a real war.
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 11/16/2017 18:42 Comments || Top||

#9  Better yet, You can recruit the mentally F^@&ed in the head now because - personnel shortage.
Posted by: newc || 11/16/2017 22:20 Comments || Top||

#10  What kills a Man after war? A man no longer in the war with the Brotherhood that is now missing in America.
Posted by: newc || 11/16/2017 22:39 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
30[untagged]
7Islamic State
4al-Shabaab (AQ)
3Govt of Iran Proxies
2Moslem Colonists
2Govt of Saudi Arabia
1Govt of Iran
1Govt of Iraq
1Govt of Pakistain Proxies
1Hezbollah
1Muslim Brotherhood
1Narcos
1Palestinian Authority
1Taliban
1Abu Sayyaf (ISIS)
1al-Nusra
1al-Qaeda
1Boko Haram (ISIS)
1Commies

Bookmark
E-Mail Me

The Classics
The O Club
Rantburg Store
The Bloids
The Never-ending Story
Thugburg
Gulf War I
The Way We Were
Bio

Merry-Go-Blog











On Sale now!


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.
Click here for more information

Meet the Mods
In no particular order...
Steve White
Seafarious
tu3031
badanov
sherry
ryuge
GolfBravoUSMC
Bright Pebbles
trailing wife
Gloria
Fred
Besoeker
Glenmore
Frank G
3dc
Skidmark

Two weeks of WOT
Thu 2017-11-16
  Zimbabwe’s Military, in Apparent Takeover, Says It Has Custody of Mugabe
Wed 2017-11-15
  Mall of America Stabber Identified as Mahad Abdiaziz Abdirahaman
Tue 2017-11-14
  Pakistani militants among 4 killed in US drone strike in Nangarhar
Mon 2017-11-13
  At least 50 dead in artillery fire, Russian strikes in Syria
Sun 2017-11-12
  US Drone Strike In Somalia Kills ‘Several’ Al-Shabaab Militants
Sat 2017-11-11
  700+ Russian and and Azerbaijani ISIS wimmin busted in Mosul
Fri 2017-11-10
  Turkey detains more than 160 IS suspects in Ankara
Thu 2017-11-09
  Syria declares victory over Islamic State
Wed 2017-11-08
  JeM chief Masood Azhar's nephew killed in IHK operation
Tue 2017-11-07
  ISIS appoints new leader in southeast Asia following defeat in Marawi City
Mon 2017-11-06
  ISIS car bomb attack kills 75 in Deir Ezzor
Sun 2017-11-05
  'At least 27 people killed' at a Texas church
Sat 2017-11-04
  ISIL loses al-Qaim in Iraq and Deir Az Zor in Syria
Fri 2017-11-03
  Iraqi army recaptures key natural gas field from Daesh
Thu 2017-11-02
  Hamas cedes control of Gaza crossings to PA


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.
18.224.64.226
Help keep the Burg running! Paypal:
WoT Operations (13)    WoT Background (20)    Opinion (5)    (0)    Politix (6)