Hi there, !
Today Mon 03/05/2012 Sun 03/04/2012 Sat 03/03/2012 Fri 03/02/2012 Thu 03/01/2012 Wed 02/29/2012 Tue 02/28/2012 Archives
Rantburg
531688 articles and 1855967 comments are archived on Rantburg.

Today: 64 articles and 132 comments as of 10:22.
Post a news link    Post your own article   
Area: WoT Operations    Non-WoT    Opinion        Politix    Main Page
39 Dead as Syrian Army Seizes Baba Amr and Rebels Withdraw 'Tactically'
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
17:07 0 [] 
17:05 0 [] 
16:52 7 22:28 Past Master of the Obvious []
16:39 8 23:51 JosephMendiola [] 
15:51 0 [1]
14:58 5 19:30 Secret Asian Man [1]
10:17 7 19:34 JosephMendiola [1]
06:14 0 []
06:05 2 22:44 Thosh Omugum4787 [] 
06:02 1 22:04 JosephMendiola [1]
05:57 1 22:57 JosephMendiola [1]
03:54 9 23:01 Thosh Omugum4787 [1] 
03:46 1 13:30 bigjim-CA [1]
03:42 4 23:57 JosephMendiola [] 
03:38 3 23:07 JosephMendiola [] 
03:20 0 []
03:18 13 16:48 regular joe [] 
03:15 12 21:34 RandomJD [1]
03:00 5 15:47 CrazyFool []
02:56 0 [1]
02:30 1 22:29 JosephMendiola []
02:18 0 []
01:57 0 [] 
01:24 3 21:03 Anguper Hupomosing9418 [1]
00:58 7 22:37 trailing wife [1]
00:24 1 22:34 JosephMendiola []
00:18 1 21:08 Frank G [1] 
00:16 0 []
00:00 9 14:39 newc [1]
00:00 13 14:00 DarthVader []
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 [1]
00:00 0 []
00:00 1 13:18 bigjim-CA []
00:00 1 21:06 Frank G [1] 
00:00 1 00:40 Clem Jereling1944 []
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 [1]
00:00 1 11:45 Zhang Fei []
00:00 0 [] 
00:00 2 22:22 JosephMendiola []
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 [] 
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 [1]
00:00 0 []
00:00 1 01:46 newc [] 
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 []
00:00 1 08:36 Anonymoose []
00:00 2 06:56 Bright Pebbles [1]
00:00 0 [] 
00:00 0 []
00:00 0 [] 
00:00 0 []
00:00 1 22:59 JosephMendiola []
00:00 0 [] 
00:00 2 08:44 Steve White [] 
00:00 6 19:29 SteveS []
Africa North
Dupe entry: Cameron vindicated! Grateful Libyan people thank Britain for their liberation from Gadaffi
Posted by: tipper || 03/02/2012 17:07 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


Dupe entry: Cameron vindicated! Grateful Libyan people thank Britain for their liberation from Gadaffi
Posted by: tipper || 03/02/2012 17:05 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


Fifth Column
GM dumps Volt. More taxpayer dollars wasted by Obama Admin.
Posted by: Water Modem || 03/02/2012 16:52 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Yay crony capitalism and green technology...
Posted by: DarthVader || 03/02/2012 17:30 Comments || Top||

#2  Future Collector's item?
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 17:34 Comments || Top||

#3  Park one right alongside your Delorean.
Posted by: Pappy || 03/02/2012 18:12 Comments || Top||

#4  The Delorean just isn't the same since I emptied the hubcaps :)
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 18:15 Comments || Top||

#5  I'll say it again - as per NEWT, the US of America = Amerika, the OWG Mighty USSA = OWG Weak USRoA Global SSR, needs to return to the Moon [+ beyond] in order to set up the basic Consumer/Free Markets for these "Green Techs" NT.

The Fed are the "Green Techs" only real Market = End-user, + both have failed miserably to prove its economies + potencies is par or superior to that of fossil fuels - MORESO AS GOVT-PERTS + MSM-NET KEEP PUTTING OUT REPORTS THAT THE US + WORLD HAS PLENTY OF ENERGY + OTHER RESOURCES AVAILABLE DESPITE NOT BEING AS EASY TO ACCESS AS BEFORE. IOW, NEITHER INDUSTRY NOR PRIVATE CONSUMERS, I.E. "THE WORLD" HAS ANY REAL REASON TO CUT BACK OF EFFECTIVE FOSSIL FUELS IN FAVOR OF THE SUPER-COSTLY, WEIRDO, ITS-NOT-EVEN-NUCLEAR F *** NEW GUYS ON THE BLOCK.

It taint ROCKET SCIENCE, + DOESN'T HAVE TO BE!

WE MISSED TOM CRUISE'S + NICOLE'S MOVIE ON THE OKLAHOMA LAND RUSH THAT DECADE, DIDN'T WE!?
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 18:51 Comments || Top||

#6  NEITHER INDUSTRY NOR PRIVATE CONSUMERS, I.E. "THE WORLD" HAS ANY REAL REASON TO CUT BACK OF EFFECTIVE FOSSIL FUELS
Until the cost of said fuels gets high enough to render their continued use INEFFECTIVE. By then switching will be extremely difficult. Nukes, anyone?
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 || 03/02/2012 21:00 Comments || Top||

#7  Damn, and I was so looking forward to the 'Johnny Storm' edition.
Posted by: Past Master of the Obvious || 03/02/2012 22:28 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Obama: I'm not bluffing on military action against Iran
Barack Obama has delivered his starkest threat so far that America is "not bluffing" when it warns that military action could be used to prevent the 'unacceptable' prospect of a nuclear armed Iran.
Bambi has to say this because he's built a reputation as a squish and a bluffer. Neither Reagan nor Dubya ever had to say, "I'm not bluffing."
Raising the spectre of a "nuclear arms race in the most volatile region in the world", the US president predicted that if Tehran's apparent ambitions succeeded four or five countries in the Middle East would scramble to acquire nuclear weapons in a "free for all" .
This has been noted for quite a while. It's still going to happen. Champ hasn't done anything other than kick the can down the road.
Speaking before critical talks in Washington with Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, Mr Obama moved to delay Israel from attacking Iran itself by stressing the US was prepared to "watch Israel's back".

"I think both the Iranian and the Israeli governments recognise that when the United States says it is unacceptable for Iran to have a nuclear weapon, we mean what we say," said Mr Obama.

He unequivocally dismissed Israeli fears that the US might resign itself to containing a nuclear Iran, telling The Atlantic magazine this ran "completely contrary" to his policy of nuclear non-proliferation.

"I think that the Israeli government recognises that, as president of the United States, I don't bluff," he said.
They do recognize that you're soft and in over your head...
Posted by: tipper || 03/02/2012 16:39 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Paper Tiger comes to mind!

Jihadis sees US as weaker because of his actions and words.
Posted by: Gruth McGurque5303 || 03/02/2012 17:46 Comments || Top||

#2  He's bluffing.
Posted by: Secret Asian Man || 03/02/2012 18:55 Comments || Top||

#3  Shia or Sunni, Salafi or Other, the so-called "CALIPHATE" needs Nuclear Weapons just for [rough] parity wid the Non-Islamic World - the Maha-Rushian Questionne' de Jour for US Govtcritters + USDOD-Intel is HOW LONG CAN RADICAL ISLAM, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SHIA RISING IRAN, FOREGO ANY PREMISE OF A NON-NUCLEAR CALIPHATE???

Because to do so strongly infers that Hardline or Conservative,Ultra-Conservative Shariaists + Islamists are willing to share Govt-Public Power wid Non-Muslims in "Fair, Equal, + Reasonable Terms" in any newly established Islamist Regimes or conquered territories.

Are they, or aren't they???
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 19:04 Comments || Top||

#4  Are they, or aren't they???

That would be a negatory, good buddy. What kind of Caliphate would be willing to share *anything* with the infidels.

The problem with "I'm not bluffing" is that Big O has never actually articulated actions or consequences, just vague statements of disapproval. Rather ironic that taking American power off the table has made the world more unstable.

And regardless of how one feels about the destruction of Israel, Iran With Nukes means two additional things: a nuclear arms race in the ME and nukes in the hands of jihadis; neither particularly desirable outcomes.
Posted by: SteveS || 03/02/2012 20:04 Comments || Top||

#5  what a p*ssy. "Don't call my bluff, Eric"
Posted by: Frank G || 03/02/2012 20:54 Comments || Top||

#6  Iff Iran holds true + refuses to give up its Nucprogs, don't be surprised iff Iran's threat of preeemptive strike includes agz the Bammer + WH, etc.

NUKES EZ FER THE CALIPHATE.

* FYI TOPIX > ALEXSEY VASLOV: THE KREMLIN [Russia] WILL DO ITS BEST TO PREVENT ANY MILITARY OPERATION AGZ IRAN AS IT WILL BLOW UP THE SITUATION IN SOUTH CAUCASUS.

* DEFENCE FORUM INDIA > USAF PREPARED TO BOMB IRAN IFF DIPLOMACY FAILS: GENERAL [USAF CoS Norton Schwartz].

* WORLD NEWS [old = this week] > [Guardian.UK] WASHINGTON EXPECTS TEHRAN TO HIT US TARGETS IFF ISRAEL ATTACKS IRAN.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 21:47 Comments || Top||

#7  Skinny U.S. Pharaoh sez,"What me worry? It didn't happen on my Watch!" "As everybody here knows,I AM the Corpesman-In-Chief and with My Czars, I intend to educate white-folk by forcing strangling and suffocating regulatory bull-shit down their sorry, soon to be cotten-pickin' throats". I am a prancing metro-sexual and am Not bluffing on this. I have only just begun to transform AmeriKa! So Help Me Holder!
Posted by: Thosh Omugum4787 || 03/02/2012 22:39 Comments || Top||

#8  WORLD NEWS > [Wash Times]SOME US ALLIES FORESEE A NUCLEAR-ARMED IRAN.

World not in sync on stopping Iran's Nucprogs.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 23:51 Comments || Top||


Home Front: Politix
Feel the Love: Tolerant Liberals celebrate death of Andrew Breitbart
I'm not going to repeast some of the vile tweets here posted on this article. Lets just say the 'tolerant' left just isn't. but then we already knew that didn't we?
As news broke this morning of the tragic death of Conservative journalist Andrew Breitbart, liberals celebrated the news on Twitter.

The most influential tweet came from Slate's Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), who tweeted: "Conventions around dead people are ridiculous. The world outlook is slightly improved with @AndrewBrietbart dead."

Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 15:51 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:


-Lurid Crime Tales-
Breitbart Dies Hours Before Promised "March 1 Obama Surprise"
In a stunning coincidence, It appears Andrew Breitbart suffered his untimely death just hours before he was set to release damning video footage that could have sunk Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign.

Around three weeks ago on February 9 during the ‘Blog Bash’ event in Washington DC, Breitbart made a prophetic comment that takes on a somewhat chilling nature given the fact that he died in the early hours of March 1st.

Speaking to Lawrence Sinclair of Sinclair News, Breitbart stated, “Wait til they see what happens March 1st.”

It’s almost certain that Breitbart was referring to his plan to release damning footage of President Obama that he had been promising to reveal throughout the month of February.

As we reported yesterday, Breitbart spoke of his intention to release the tape during his CPAC speech last month. The footage shows Obama in his college days appearing alongside former Weather Underground terrorists Bill and Bernardine Dohrn. Observers had speculated that the footage could have derailed Obama’s hopes for a second term.

“I’ve got video from his college days that show you why racial division and class warfare are central to what hope and change was sold in 2008 – the videos are going to come out,” said Breitbart, adding that Obama would be vetted.
Posted by: Throlutch Whamp5125 || 03/02/2012 14:58 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  UN Weapons inspector the late David Kelley (14 May 1944 – 17 July 2003)

Tony Blair's government set up the Hutton Inquiry, a public inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death. This determined that Kelly had committed suicide, the pathologist who conducted the postmortem examination giving the cause of death as "haemorrhage due to incised wounds of the left wrist" in combination with "coproxamol ingestion and coronary artery atherosclerosis". Lord Hutton also decided that evidence related to the death, including the post-mortem report and photographs of the body, should remain classified for 70 years.[3] In October 2010, Hutton explained that he had done so to protect the wife and daughters of Kelly from the distress of further media reports about the death. "My request was not a concealment of evidence because every matter of relevance had been examined or was available for examination during the public inquiry. There was no secrecy surrounding the postmortem report because it had always been available for examination and questioning by counsel representing the interested parties during the inquiry."[4]

Link
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 15:19 Comments || Top||

#2  Does his death have anything to do with the ricin discovered in a hotel a few days before?
Posted by: no mo uro || 03/02/2012 15:45 Comments || Top||

#3  The footage shows Obama in his college days appearing alongside former Weather Underground terrorists Bill and Bernardine Dohrn.

Bill Ayres was just a guy who lived in BO's Chicago neighborhood? Where's the tape?
Posted by: JohnQC || 03/02/2012 16:26 Comments || Top||

#4  So, any apologies from the folks who were yesterday assuring us all that no suspicion was warranted? Anyone? Bueller?
Posted by: Iblis || 03/02/2012 18:55 Comments || Top||

#5  I believe he was killed. Yes, I know he had health issues. All the better to use a compound that mimics heart attack. He may even have known that he was a target, and set things up to insure the perps get caught.
Posted by: Secret Asian Man || 03/02/2012 19:30 Comments || Top||


Science & Technology
NASA Laptop Stolen With Command Codes That Control Space Station
NASA’s inspector general revealed in congressional testimony that a space agency computer was stolen last year with the command codes to control the International Space Station.

In a statement given to a House committee on the security challenges facing NASA, Paul K. Martin said that an unencrypted NASA computer stolen last year was one of 48 taken between April 2009 and April 2011.

“The March 2011 theft of an unencrypted NASA notebook computer resulted in the loss of algorithms used to command and control the International Space Station,” Martin said in his written testimony. “Other lost or stolen notebooks contained Social Security numbers and sensitive data on NASA’s Constellation and Orion programs.”
Posted by: Beavis || 03/02/2012 10:17 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  All your station are belong to us!!
Posted by: DarthVader || 03/02/2012 10:52 Comments || Top||

#2  Would you like to play a game?
Posted by: AlmostAnonymous5839 || 03/02/2012 12:12 Comments || Top||

#3  hippy bus
Posted by: Fester Thinelet5758 || 03/02/2012 13:45 Comments || Top||

#4  Aw, come on. It's not like the ISS is a fully armed and operational battle station. In the latest trials, the lasers had only been charged to 25%.
Posted by: SteveS || 03/02/2012 14:21 Comments || Top||

#5  Its not like the Haliburton Earthquake Generator is mounted on it or anything.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 15:41 Comments || Top||

#6 

/Can't find the override, either
Posted by: Mizzou Mafia || 03/02/2012 19:23 Comments || Top||

#7  It [NOMAD] is trying to find "the Kirk"!
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 19:34 Comments || Top||


Home Front: Culture Wars
‘You Can Give This Day Back to the Indians’
Starting off with the above quote from Paulie on the Sopranos on how awful today feels, Jonah Goldberg told Hugh Hewitt this afternoon on his radio show:

One thing that he [Breitbart] and Bill [Buckley] shared was this basic contempt for the premise that the mainstream liberal elite institutions in the United States are in a position to judge and adjudicate the worth of conservatives. That they are in a position to judge our souls. That if we disagree with liberals, that proves that we are somehow wanting or lacking in compassion; lacking in humanity. That is a fundamental thing that enraged Andrew, this idea that if you disagreed about public policy, if you disagreed about how to organize society, that proved you were a racist. That proved you were a fascist. That proved you were a homophobe. It was the fundamental bad faith of the leading liberal institutions that controlled the commanding heights of this culture that infuriated him. And he refused, at the most basic level, to give them that authority over him or his ideas, and that is was fueled his Righteous Indignation, as his book title called it.

At National Review Online, former Breitbart colleague Michael Walsh describes Andrew as “the Right’s Achilles:”

In the war against the institutional Left, Andrew Breitbart was the Right’s Achilles; the bravest of all the warriors, now fallen on the plain. There was no combat in which he would not engage, no battle — however small — he would not join with glee, and no outcome acceptable except total victory. His unexpected death last night at the young age of 43 is not the end of his crusade, but its beginning.
Posted by: tipper || 03/02/2012 06:14 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Russia, China urge Syria to let in UN aid chief
Russia and China joined other UN Security Council members on Thursday in expressing disappointment at Damascus' failure to allow UN humanitarian aid chief Valerie Amos to visit Syria and urged that she be allowed in immediately
Provided Syrians keep her?
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 03/02/2012 06:05 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  TOPIX > US MILITARY HAS DETAILED PLANS ON SYRIA OPTIONS. USDOD only needs the formal order from the Bammer + Congress to implement.

versus

* IIRC TOPIX > SENATORS: US FORCES IN SYRIA [when-n-iff] AT RISK FROM [Assad]CHEMICAL, BIO WEAPONS.

Prolly safe to say also at risk vee the Qaida Boyz + aligned that are there.

* SAME > [Russia Today = old] CHINA: US HAS NO MORAL RIGHT TO "PROTECT" ARABS.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 22:42 Comments || Top||

#2  As much as I love sanctions, I love urging even more.
Posted by: Thosh Omugum4787 || 03/02/2012 22:44 Comments || Top||


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
AGW comes to Israel
The Egged bus company resumed transportation to and from Jerusalem Friday morning in light of easing conditions.

Several lines had canceled service as a result of snow earlier in the day.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 03/02/2012 06:02 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  ION CHINA DAILY FORUM > ITS NOT "GLOBAL WARMING" THAT IS FALSE, BUT THE "REASONS FOR IT" ARE FALSE.

Even though Man may had been around, he didn't have the numbers yet to induce the periods of extensive warming or other which occurred - 'TIS ONLY THE SUN DAT COULD'VE DONE IT.

* FYP SPACEWEATHER = says Earth's atmosphere is being hit by a magnetic disturbance.

SAME > BLUE FLASHES, save not oer Guam-Westpac.

Nuthin new about the magnetic disturbances - WHAT IS NEW ARE THE MAJOR DISTORTIONS IN [local]BACKGROUND REALITY THAT IS OCCURRING, at least to Me + its giving good Madonna Fans a' moi boucoup headaches. Ground worms are seemingly moving around in circles, while I've also seen a number of local birds here in Agana "misjudge" their takeoffs-n-landings [taint pretty].

I strongly urge + hope that NASA-JPL + the Space Boyz will investigate in-depth the Sun's activities + provide an honest answer.

THE SUN IS NOTHING TO PLAY WOT/TERROR, OWG POLITICS WITH.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 22:04 Comments || Top||


Britain
Cameron vindicated! Grateful Libyan people thank Britain for their liberation from Gadaffi
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 03/02/2012 05:57 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Post-Uncle Muammar LIBYAN "LIBERATION" [jury's still out] ...

versus

* CHINA DAILY FORUM > [UK] WALES NOW WANTS INDEPENDENCE FROM BRITAIN!? | WALES SIGNALS SHAKING LONDON OFF.

Just NOT as direct or strong as the Irish + pro-independence Scots, as WALES POLITELY WANTS "UPGRADES/MODERNIZATION" OF THE UK CONSTITUTION THAT ARE MINDFUL OF WELSH-SPECIFIC INTERESTS.

Meanwhile, not to be outdone by the Libyans or Welsh ...???

* WORLD NEWS > [Proposed Constitutional] DRAFT(s) GIVES JAPAN RIGHT TO DEFEND ITSELF.

In seeming more Nippon-specific, unilateral autonomy or quasi-"independence/freedoms" from the post-WW2 US-Japan security treaty.

TOPIX > NIGHTWATCH: JAPAN CHALLENGES CHINA AT SEA, vee expanded $$$ + training assistance to ASEAN Nations as per development + modernization of local military forces + Service, Personnel professionalism.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 22:57 Comments || Top||


Iraq
Politicians say new evidence shows Marine deserves Medal of Honor
In my opinion, a recommendation better left to the Commandant of the United States Marine Corps.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 03:54 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Mods please highlight my comment. Thank you.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 3:59 Comments || Top||

#2  conscious or not he saved lives and gave his
Posted by: chris || 03/02/2012 8:20 Comments || Top||

#3  Jumping on a hand grenade is not worthy of a MoH.

*This* is what is worthy of a MoH:

"For 8 hours he maintained a position made almost untenable by the density of artillery and mortar fire concentrated upon it and the proximity of enemy troops who threw hand grenades into the emplacement. While all other members of his squad became casualties, he remained at his gun. When he ran out of ammunition, he fearlessly dashed across bullet-swept, open terrain to secure a new supply from a disabled friendly tank. A fierce barrage pierced the water jacket of his gun, but he continued to fire until the weapon overheated and jammed. Instead of withdrawing, he crawled 50 yards across coverless ground to another of his company's machineguns which had been silenced when its entire crew was killed. He continued to man this gun, giving support vitally needed by the infantry. At one time he came under direct fire from a hostile tank, which shot the glove from his hand with an armor-piercing shell but could not drive him from his position or stop his shooting. W hen the American forces were ordered to retire to their original positions, he remained at his gun, giving the only covering fire. Finally withdrawing, he cradled the heavy weapon in his left arm, slung a belt of ammunition over his shoulder, and walked to the rear, loosing small bursts at the enemy as he went. One hundred yards from safety, he was struck in the leg by a mortar shell; but, with a supreme effort, he crawled the remaining distance, dragging along the gun which had served him and his comrades so well."
Posted by: Anonymoose || 03/02/2012 8:24 Comments || Top||

#4  Anonymoose, Who is the "he" in this account of heroism?
Posted by: JohnQC || 03/02/2012 11:33 Comments || Top||

#5  Sounds like WWII stuff.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike || 03/02/2012 11:57 Comments || Top||

#6  Basilone?
Posted by: Hellfish || 03/02/2012 12:02 Comments || Top||

#7  Has to be Audie Murphy
Posted by: blackjack || 03/02/2012 13:52 Comments || Top||

#8  GERSTUNG, ROBERT E., found at Medal of Honor Citations.

I just looked for one involving mostly infantry combat, instead of aircraft, naval, or armor.

But my point is that what TSgt. Gerstung did is not uncommon among MoH recipients. Even today there have been several personnel whose actions in Iraq and Afghanistan *may* have reached the threshold of the MoH, "Gallantry and intrepidity at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty".

At every level of heroism exhibited in the military, the question must be asked "To what level of commendation does this rise?", of *each* level. Only when it clearly exceeds each level of commendation can the question be asked, "Then does it rise to the next level of commendation?"

Nobody has ever done anything that starts at the level of Medal of Honor. Even Alvin York or Audie Murphy.

This is why posthumous Medals of Honor can and should only be given after extensive testimony by actual witnesses on the scene. Even enemy testimony, if possible. If the potential recipient is still alive, he will have to endure considerable interrogation about every aspect of his actions.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 03/02/2012 14:40 Comments || Top||

#9  I respectfully submit this US Army Hero's chronicle from the WWII/Korean Era. Very solid and touching...

http://www.greatamericans.com/video/Portraits-of-Valor-Tibor-Rubin
Posted by: Thosh Omugum4787 || 03/02/2012 23:01 Comments || Top||


-Short Attention Span Theater-
States consider adding military service to driver's licenses
Be sure to read the comments.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 03:46 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I can see what they are trying to do, but you probably aren't going to get any real veteran's benefits without your DD-214 in hand. Trying to give veterans a little 'attaboy' is great, but I would rather see them put the money into job training or employment assistance, cause you know this will cost a good bit of scratch to implement.
Just speaking from my observations of my brother and his trials upon returning.
Posted by: bigjim-CA || 03/02/2012 13:30 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
Training and advisory mission must go on despite Afghan violence
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 03:42 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Barno.
I don't remember him doing anything stellar.
Posted by: Blinky Slong9467 || 03/02/2012 4:13 Comments || Top||

#2  Easier than admitting a mistake, I guess.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 03/02/2012 6:14 Comments || Top||

#3  And the meat grinder continues on.
Posted by: newc || 03/02/2012 14:34 Comments || Top||

#4  Under the possible future Afghan Supreme Cleric-Cleric the "Ayatollah Omar" no doubt.

* DEFENCE FORUM INDIA > [Afghan]TALIBAN SEEK CONSTITUTIONAL ROLE FOR MULLAH OMAR.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 23:57 Comments || Top||


HASC chairman "Buck" McKeon wants new rules on Afghan security
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 03:38 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  HASC=House Armed Services Committee
Posted by: tipover || 03/02/2012 11:42 Comments || Top||

#2  "NEW AFGHAN SECURITY MANUAL"

versus

* CHINA DAILY FORUM > US BEGGING AFGHANS TO PROTECT THEIR TROOPS FROM THE PUBLIC | [US SecDef]PANETTA URGES KABUL TO PROTECT FOREIGN FORCES.

Leon allegedly makes a [frantic/desperate?]LD Phone Call to Kabul that is NOT-#867-5309 JENNY???

* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS [old] > OBAMA CONFIDENT ON KEEPING TO AFGHAN PULLOUT PLAN, despite recent flareups in violence agz US-NATO troops.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 23:06 Comments || Top||

#3  Hopefully, iff the AQ + Taliban field fighters can read English, they'll be able to follow the new Rules???

Oh, wait ...
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 23:07 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Pak gunbattle leaves 10 soldiers, 23 terrorists dead
At least ten Pakistani soldiers and 23 terrorists militants were killed early Friday in a gunfight in the Tirah valley of the lawless Khyber tribal district bordering Afghanistan.

A senior security official said, "At least 10 soldiers embraced martyrdom and three others were wounded. At least 23 militants were killed in the fighting which lasted for nearly six hours."

Khyber administrator Mutahir Zeb Khan said, "Militants from Lashkar-e-Islam group attacked our outpost and a gunfight erupted."

However, Reuters reported that Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan was the group behind the attack.
Posted by: ryuge || 03/02/2012 03:20 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


Afghanistan
U.S. Ambassador Doesn't Rule Out 'Proceedings' Against U.S. Troops Who Burned Qurans
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 03:18 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Karzai went on Afghan television and told his country he had discussed the Quran burning with "jihadi leaders," scholars and elected officials.

According to a BBC translation of his remarks, Karzai said: "Representing the Afghan nation and their pure sentiments, in fact the Islamic world, once again we call on the U.S. government to bring the perpetrators of the act to justice and put them on trial and punish them."

YCMTSU
Posted by: tipper || 03/02/2012 7:02 Comments || Top||

#2  I suggest putting the commander in chief on trial.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 03/02/2012 7:09 Comments || Top||

#3  Let us discover that it was indeed a plant by a clever boots local, and put him on trial.
Posted by: trailing wife || 03/02/2012 7:25 Comments || Top||

#4  Are the Afghanis going to try the people who murdered Americans?
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia || 03/02/2012 7:34 Comments || Top||

#5  The troops who burned the Korans were following lawful orders. Those who ordered the Korans burned did so because they also contained written radical information of use to the enemy. "Burning Radical Islamic Material".
Posted by: Anonymoose || 03/02/2012 8:29 Comments || Top||

#6  Recall a moment the events at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. A few members of a military police unit behaved in ways that were completely inappropriate. It was clear that they had lax oversight and command review.

The response of the left and the MSM (BIRM)? They demanded that the entire chain of command, up to and (especially) including Donald Rumsfeld and George W. Bush, be held accountable.

Okay, now fast forward to the Koran burning. We don't even know if this was inappropriate. But notice how the left and the MSM are NOT calling for anyone in the chain of command to be punished, and are instead proffering up the individuals assigned to burn the books.
Posted by: Steve White || 03/02/2012 8:41 Comments || Top||

#7  who are the jihadi leaders?
Posted by: Gruth McGurque5303 || 03/02/2012 8:55 Comments || Top||

#8  Quote From Susan Brown:
CBS News reported February 21, 2012 that an anonymous "military official with knowledge of the incident" said it appeared the Qurans and "other Islamic readings were being used to fuel extremism, and that detainees at Parwan Detention Facility were writing on the documents to exchange extremist messages."
Representative Allen West (R-FL) who was appointed to both the House Armed Services Committee and Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee concurs with the CBS report. In his February 26, 2012 newsletter, West said the Parwan detainees "used the Koran [Quran] to write jihadist messages."
Based on this information, the detainees, and not the military, are to blame for the incident because they defiled their own sacred books, hence violating both Islamic cultural practices and the Parwan Detention facility contraband rules.
According to the same CBS report, Islamic teaching mandates that defiled Qurans be "burned or buried" meaning there is much ado about nothing because the military followed Islamic teaching as well as their own procedures for disposal of contraband.


Why did it ever get so overblown when those that know proper procedures and the *sskissing that has gone on to appease the natives, including Amb. Crocker, could have all nipped this in the bud and instead they are fanning the flames. Sounds orchestrated to me....Zawahiri? Soros? Who else profits from bringing America down and playing into the UN's agenda of global governance?
Posted by: Omoluque Hapsburg8162 || 03/02/2012 11:26 Comments || Top||

#9  The way things are now, I wouldn't be surprised to see soldiers tried for this. I would be surprised, but not shocked to see them handed over for prosecution in Afghan courts. I think it will probably happen sooner or later.
Posted by: bigjim-CA || 03/02/2012 13:16 Comments || Top||

#10  Dunno much about UCMJ so I have a question: Will they be obligated to follow the orders up the chain of command?

Or, how about this: the military officials end up releasing an official finding that the burning was proper and justified? Who, then, would apologize?
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 03/02/2012 13:47 Comments || Top||

#11  At the highest level, we are in a policy Wonderland, where we will quite willingly drone-zap a suspect based on apparent behavior as view from afar, but are deeply concerned about offending people for doing exactly what their religion defines as the proper method for destroying holy writ that their own adherents defiled. Worse, we kowtow instead of asserting the appropriateness of our acts.
Posted by: NoMoreBS || 03/02/2012 14:01 Comments || Top||

#12  Ambassador asshat, STFU.
Posted by: newc || 03/02/2012 14:33 Comments || Top||

#13  Time to go.
Posted by: regular joe || 03/02/2012 16:48 Comments || Top||


Home Front: Culture Wars
Sebelius: Birth Control Will Cover Cost of Contraception Mandate
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 03:15 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Even if true, it doesn't make it right. Mandatory and permanent birth control of selected people would certainly cover the cost too - and would be less wrong.
Posted by: Glenmore || 03/02/2012 7:28 Comments || Top||

#2  Just think - in order for this to be true - Sebelius would have to force the use of contraception.

Sebelius responded, “Family planning is a critical health benefit in this country, according to the Institute of Medicine.”

Keep in mind that to her - you of course cannot be trusted to make these decisions on your own - the government, or more likely some government buearucrat, would make that critical decision for you.

And if the term 'contraception mandate' doesn't give you the heebe-jeebies....
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 8:26 Comments || Top||

#3  Even though utterly discredited, Paul R. Ehrlich and company's 'Population Bomb' theory still resonates with the left, with a simple concept:

"If everybody we hate died, the world would be a better place."

And this gets really inclusive. The infamous "scientific" speech by Dr. Eric Pianka in Texas, that was greeted with a standing ovation from his fellow "scientists", proposed that 90% of humanity should die.

He even suggested that this would optimally be done with a mutated form of ebola virus. Which shows not only that he is pro-genocide, but also that he has no clue about epidemiology.

Apologists for this speech use the really bizarre logic that since he didn't actually *call* for these "scientists" to develop this mutated form of ebola, it's okay.

One whistle blower, however, disagreed, and notified the FBI about Pianka's advocacy of "bioterrorism".
Posted by: Anonymoose || 03/02/2012 8:48 Comments || Top||

#4  Violates the firts rule of actuary. You cannot increase utilization and lower costs.
Posted by: Beavis || 03/02/2012 10:20 Comments || Top||

#5  At least not in our world Bevis -

Sebelius and Obama are on an entirely different world. Where raising taxes stimulates the economy and all sorts of bizarre things.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 11:26 Comments || Top||

#6  You talk about terror...

But then, this is a logical extension of the belief that government is responsible for everybody's health. Once you accept that notion, babies can be seen more as a cost and less as human life. And with all that money at stake there is no telling what Big Sister might do about it.

Congratulations to Rep. Murphy for getting her on the record with this.
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 03/02/2012 13:29 Comments || Top||

#7  So, do I get free Vlagra?
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 03/02/2012 13:57 Comments || Top||

#8  But there is no mandatory birth coverage...

That right there says a lot about the Democratic mindset. And it isn't pretty.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 15:44 Comments || Top||

#9  Obama,Sebelius, Pelosi, and the rest JUST DON'T GET IT. This is a religious freedom issue. It wouldn't matter if 100% of Catholic women use birth control. The point is that the mandate FORCES the Catholic Church to pay for contraceptives in violation of their principles. The Church cannot control the behavior of her members. All it can do is try to teach them. If Catholics don't follow the Church's teaching, that is THEIR problem, not the Church's. The Church will not - cannot - change her principles just because many Catholics don't follow them.

Would the administration force Muslims to pay for alcohol and pork products? Of course not - it is part of Muslims' religion. Yet they are forcing the Catholic Church to pay for something that goes against their religion.

Remember Pastor Niemoeller's poem. If Obama can do it to Catholics, he can do it to you.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia || 03/02/2012 18:14 Comments || Top||

#10  Problem is Rambler - I think they *do* get it - and get it very well.

Its just they don't give a rats arse about anything but their agenda. As for the consitution they are sworn to uphold - well we know how much they respect that.

And your right about him not forcing muslims to pay for pork products and alcohol (or even forcing them to touch it packaged.).
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 18:20 Comments || Top||

#11  CF, Catholics don't riot or cut people's heads off if their religion is attacked.

/sarc on
Hmmm. Maybe there's a way we could get some respect...
/sarc off
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia || 03/02/2012 18:56 Comments || Top||

#12  This is a religious freedom issue.

No. It's much bigger than that. It's an issue of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Freedom to choose our own destiny - as individuals, not as a collective. The instant the state has a financial interest in individuals' health, it has the power to micromanage every waking - and sleeping - moment of our lives.

Because every decision carries a health risk, and thus a potential cost: smoking; drinking; what we eat; keeping pets in the house; how often we floss, drive a car, stand on a ladder, or mountain bike on rocky singletrack; who we sleep with and all downstream consequences.

The door is open to infinite regulation. You don't have to be religious at all to feel a primal urge to smash that kind of slavery before it ever takes root.
Posted by: RandomJD || 03/02/2012 21:34 Comments || Top||


-Election 2012
US women loving Obama again
Free food, protected casual sex, and money. Who can beat it?

(Listed incorrectly as "Non-WoT")

Yes, it was, and incorrectly listed in the wrong category. This is about 'Elections 2012' and so that's where it goes.

It helps us mods greatly if, when you post, you do the little things for us.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 03:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  An Associated Press-GfK poll? Seriously?

Along with "margin of error", usually (± 3%) they need to include "margin of bias" (± 90%).
Posted by: Anonymoose || 03/02/2012 9:34 Comments || Top||

#2  Comment rest...
Posted by: M. Murcek || 03/02/2012 11:58 Comments || Top||

#3  Er, uh, TEST
Posted by: M. Murcek || 03/02/2012 11:58 Comments || Top||

#4  "Again?"

Did they ever stop?
Posted by: no mo uro || 03/02/2012 15:46 Comments || Top||

#5  Well the media never stopped. And that's both men and women. just ask Chris TingleLegs.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 15:47 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Foreign journalists buried in Syrian garden
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 02:56 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:


Southeast Asia
Three gunned down in Mindanao ambush
At least three people were killed in an attack by suspected Muslim terrorists rebels Thursday night in southern Philippines.

The three were heading to meet someone when they were ambushed at around 7:30 p.m. by a group of armed men, thought to be members of a Muslim rebel group in Cotabato province, said Donald Cabigas, the police chief of Matalam. Cabigas said the attackers, armed with automatic rifles, fled after their target had died from bullet wounds.

The incident came on the heels of Tuesday’s execution by gunmen of three high school students, Jubert Sumilhig dela Cerna, 13, Rico Divinagracia, 15 and Jomar Tamar, 13, in a secluded district in Parang.

See also:
MILF rebels suspend 3 commanders over clash
Posted by: ryuge || 03/02/2012 02:30 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  ION CHINA DAILY FORUM > US DRONES BEGIN TO KILL IN PHILIPPINES. Took out approxi 15 Members of Abu Sayyaff + JI Islamic Militant Groups.

Methinks the Drones will likely also be watching the Jihadi stuff still covertly trying to sneak in from outside.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 22:29 Comments || Top||


Roadside bomb kills Thai soldier
A soldier was killed and another severely wounded when terrorists insurgents detonated a roadside bomb to ambush a teacher protection unit in Pattani province.

The attack happened at 8:30 am on a local road in Mayo district, when a unit of eight soldiers from Pattani Taskforce 25 were on patrol. Terrorists Insurgents detonated a homemade bomb with a mobile phone, fatally wounding Private Jakkrit Jinarat, 22. His friend, Private Jirasak Boonruang, 22, was severely wounded.

Muslim couple gunned down in their home

A Muslim couple were gunned down in their home in Pattani province late Thursday night. Malee Jehmu, 54, and his wife, Bungo Jehmu, 51, were killed at 11 p.m. on Thursday.

Eyewitnesses said that the couple were sitting in front of their house when two men arrived on a motorcycle and started firing at them. The husband was killed in front of the house. His wife fled inside, but a gunman shot her in the house.

Police said the couple's son, who was a defense volunteer for the Sai Buri district, was killed by terrorists insurgents in 2010.
Posted by: ryuge || 03/02/2012 02:18 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


Down Under
Major sponsor walks over war hero comments on The Circle (Australia)
I haven't seen the show, but Negus is your basic sneering lefty TV journalist, who hopefully will be unemployable after this little incident
TV show The Circle has lost one of its major sponsors following the furore over disparaging comments about VC recipient Ben Roberts-Smith. Swisse Vitamins has announced that it has quit the Channel 10 morning show.

“Thank you to each and every one of you for contacting Swisse. We have spoken directly with Network Ten and have ended our association with The Circle,” Swisse posted on its Facebook site this afternoon.

The move follows a firestorm of criticism aimed at Yumi Stynes and George Negus after they made offensive remarks about Corporal Roberts-Smith on The Circle. A photo of Roberts-Smith in a swimming pool was shown on-air, to which Stynes remarked: “He's going to dive down to the bottom of the pool to see if his brain is there." Negus questioned whether the war hero was “up to it in the sack”.

The Circle’s Facebook site was flooded with complaints calling for the show to be axed. Swisse also received an avalanche of complaints - and has responded by withdrawing its sponsorship.
“You have done the right thing,” a Swisse customer posted.

Stynes and Negus later apologised for their remarks. Cpl Roberts-Smith later thanked the Australian public and the Australian Defence Force for their overwhelming support.
Posted by: Phil_B || 03/02/2012 01:57 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Logistics of an Israeli Strike on Iran
A taste:
Hans Rühle was one of the toughest and most perspicacious analysts in those heady days [of the Cold War]. Today he evaluates Israel's capacity to knock out Iran's nuclear program in an essay in the German conservative daily Die Welt. It is worth reading (for non-German speakers, there's Google Translate).

Rühle is highly confident that Israel could knock out Iran's nuclear program for a decade or more with about 25 of its 87 F-15 fighter-bombers and a smaller number of its F-16s. Each of the F-15s would carry two of the GBU-28 bunker busters, with the F-16s armed with smaller bombs. 

Most importantly, Rühle believes that it would take Iran a decade to restore its capabilities -- with the exception of Isfahan -- unless special forces could inflict more damage from the ground than was possible from the air. There are risks, of course: the Russians might have secretly given Iran more advanced surface-to-air missiles; refueling might be interdicted along a route that overflies potentially hostile countries; and Iran's proxies (Syria, Hizbollah, Hamas) might retaliate. Nonetheless, he concludes that Israel could lastingly disrupt Iran's nuclear program.
Posted by: trailing wife || 03/02/2012 01:24 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Nice - but the prob isn't the level of Israel's damage, but Iran's Regional, International response espec vee Proxy Terror.

* E.g. see DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > US WARNS [Israel] AGZ MILITARY ACTION TOWARD IRAN, i.e. may foster "greater instability" that could threaten the safety + security of Americans + Amer Interests in the ME e.g. AFRAG = Afghanistan-Irag.

WH Spox Jay Carney.

* TOPIX/WORLD NEWS > WHITE HOUSE FEARS [post-Attack]IRAN WILL TARGET AMERICANS.

ISRAEL has said it - the time to attack + invade Iran is NOW. In near-time, Iran is likely to have not only reliable indigenous NucBombs but also the LRBMS, etc. to deliver them, in addition to other Strategic-Tactical Weapon techs - this will cause or induce Iran's [post-Arab Spring = post-Islamist] Sunni competitors to also go Nuclear + dev potent Nuke-WMD Arsenals of their own. MANY SHIA OR SUNNI ISLAMISTS MAY HATE ONE ANOTHER, BUT THEY ALSO HATE ISRAEL AS WELL AS ANY + ALL NON-MUSLIMS.

* FYI DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > PAKISTAN PROPOSES TO CREAT A MILITARY BLOC OF ISLAMIC STATES.

Islamic NATO = Warsaw Pact?

* SAME > [Six ea. SUNNI] IRAQI MILITARY GROUPS TO KEEP FIGHTING AFTER US PULLOUT.

ARTIC = "War of the SUNNIS VS. SHIAS is a RELIGIOUS WAR, + HOLY WAR OF FAITH".
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 19:31 Comments || Top||

#2  Can't happen with the son of a muslim spouse and child abandoner in the White House.

Posted by: Don Vito Slolutle6982 || 03/02/2012 19:53 Comments || Top||

#3  Mad Iranian mullahs with nukes will pose a far greater threat to American interests than whatever threat the mullahs pose or can deliver now. Just need to keep bringing that up.
Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 || 03/02/2012 21:03 Comments || Top||


Home Front: WoT
VDH -- History Never Quite Ends
Victor Hanson Davis reminds us ---
The European Union and the United Nations, as well as globalization and advanced technology, were all supposed to trump age-old cultural, geographical and national differences and bring people together.

But for all the high-tech veneer of the 21st century, the world still looks a lot like it did during the last hundred years and well before that.

For centuries, Christianity often fought Islam in the mountainous, war-torn crossroads of the Balkans. And from the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand to the ethnic cleansing campaign of Slobodan Milosevic, the Balkans remain Europe's powder keg. Now with rioting and unrest in Athens, a financial earthquake that started in tiny Balkan Greece is shaking up some 500 million people in the European Union.

America is not exempt from such stereotyping. Every so often Americans reluctantly get involved abroad, grandly seek to remake the world in our image, become frustrated that we cannot, then start to disengage and disarm, retreat home and promise to stay there -- before starting the cycle over.
Here is history by the master -- at his best ---
After World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam and, more recently, our wars in the Middle East, we said "never again" -- only to lecture others and, in schizophrenic fashion, intervene once more. At times, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson and George W. Bush all thought they could make the world safe for democracy. Calvin Coolidge, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama assumed we had neither the money nor the virtue to try.

After the Greek financial meltdown and the emergence of German financial dominance, Europe once more obsesses over the so-called German problem. Should Europeans admire the industry of the German people, or fear that such competency and drive -- as in 1870, 1914 and 1939 -- will eventually translate into German political and military supremacy? The division of Germany, the common Soviet threat, the NATO alliance, the European Union and German war guilt for the last half-century all repressed German singularity.

Examine the violence of the world today more than a decade after 9/11. Much of it is still in the Middle East in general, and concerns Islam in particular.

The protests of the Arab Spring may well turn into the repression of the Arab Autumn. Syria is aflame. Bombs go off almost daily in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. Rockets are poised in Gaza and Lebanon. Iran either threatens to get a bomb or to use it once they get it.

Fascism, communism, Baathism, Pan-Arabism, Pan-Islamism and various dictators come and go. But the tribal nature of the Middle East and the unease of Islam with other religions, with a modernizing world and with a rival West somehow seem to remain the same -- whether at Lepanto in the 16th century or at the Strait of Hormuz in the 21st century.

After World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam and, more recently, our wars in the Middle East, we said "never again" -- only to lecture others and, in schizophrenic fashion, intervene once more. At times, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson and George W. Bush all thought they could make the world safe for democracy. Calvin Coolidge, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama assumed we had neither the money nor the virtue to try.

New cure-all ideologies and organizations likewise have come and gone. Fascism, communism, socialism and the Keynesian redistributive state all promised a sort of new, better man. But mostly they ended up bringing neither peace nor prosperity.

In response to all this depressing predictability, technocratic elites still dream up international solutions. The League of Nations was a noble idea that proved to be an irrelevant hothouse. No one still believes the pretentious United Nations is much more than a collective debating society. The non-democratic European Union is going the way of the past megalomaniac and failed dreams of Charlemagne, Napoleon and Hitler of one united European continent, one system, one ideology.

What, then, are we left with? Only the humility that human nature does not change much.

That unpleasant fact means that about all we can do is to keep muddling through, stay vigilant, and hope for the best while preparing for the worst. For all the problems of national pride, democracy, free markets, alliances and military preparedness, the alternatives seem far worse.
Posted by: Sherry || 03/02/2012 00:58 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  America is worth sticking for, just make sure that it does not get stabby.

Posted by: newc || 03/02/2012 1:53 Comments || Top||

#2  "I know nothing of philosophical philanthropy. But I know what I have seen, and what I have looked in the face in this world here, where I find myself. And I tell you this, my friend, that there are people (men and women both, unfortunately) who have no good in them--none. That there are people whom it is necessary to detest without compromise. That there are people who must be dealt with as enemies of the human race. That there are people who have no human heart, and who must be crushed like savage beasts and cleared out of the way."

Dickens
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 2:29 Comments || Top||

#3  Amen, Besoeker.

We live in an age where armchair philosophers are tripping over themselves to put forth proclamations of their own ability to do what no human ever has. Fukuyama's "end of history". Jared Diamond's "geographic determinism" and the idea that now that Western technologies are widespread we'll all be exactly the same despite cultural difference, so no more war.

Most recently, Pinker's preposterous claims that due to socialism and technology humans have become inherently less violent and that time tried observations about tension building and releasing (WWII? Aab Spring?) over the decades and generations are simply not true.

Wrong, each one of them. Human nature doesn't turn on a dime and forces of politics don't simply stop, no matter how much we wish it is so. Culture, not ease of food acquisition or lack of need to obtain necessities for a few decades, determines how a group of people will behave and how their interactions wth other nations will succeed or fail, absent some black swan event. Even regimes that believed otherwise and had mass quantities of military force couldn't make these work for more than a couple generations.
Posted by: no mo uro || 03/02/2012 6:16 Comments || Top||

#4  It's the idiotic conceit based on no understanding of economics.

Those technologies are only the coefficient of productivity, real productivity (wealth creation) only comes about from comparative advantage, and that requires a reciprocal culture.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 03/02/2012 7:08 Comments || Top||

#5  Sometimes I marvel at the wisdom and insight shown here, and the depth of understanding of macro-trends and principles, as evidence here by Dr. Hanson and the comments above. Thank you Rantburgers for what you offer.
Posted by: NoMoreBS || 03/02/2012 13:37 Comments || Top||

#6  Didn't VDH cheerlead GWB's nation-building follies? The afghan terror entity should have looked like the Moon after 9-11.

Color VDH with jihad-subsidy. He's a self-important gas-bag posing as a historian.
Posted by: Ebbavitle Unaith6504 || 03/02/2012 19:51 Comments || Top||

#7  Lots of us agreed with nation building, Ebbavitle Unaith6504, whether because they thought the society could've been changed after the defeat, or because they saw it as an excuse to keep armed troops where the killing needed to happen.

Mr. Hanson is a tenured history professor, which makes him a historian. His area of expertise is the Classical Period of Greece and Rome, with a concentration in the wars of the period. However, whether he is a self-important gasbag is legitimately a matter of opinion.
Posted by: trailing wife || 03/02/2012 22:37 Comments || Top||


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Between politics and principles, Hamas' perilous maneuvers
By Ramzy Baroud

Despite all of Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason,` assurances to the contrary, a defining struggle is taking place within the Paleostinian Islamic movement.

The outcome of this struggle -- which is still confined to polite political disagreements and occasional intellectual tussle -- is likely to change Hamas' outlook, if not fundamentally alter its position within a quickly changing Arab political landscape.

The current Hamas is already different from the one initially set up by a local Gazoo leadership in December 1987 in response to the first Paleostinian uprising. One of the very first statements circulated by their newly established 'military wing' (masked men armed with wooden clubs and cans of spray paint) expressed the nature of that political era:

"What has happened to you, O rulers of Egypt? Were you asleep in the period of the treaty of shame and surrender, the Camp David treaty? Has your national zealousness died and your pride ran out while the Zionists daily perpetrate grave and base crimes against the people and the children?"

Although the power discrepancy between Israel and the Paleostinians has remained largely unchanged, Hamas has morphed from a local Paleostinian branch of Egypt's Moslem Brüderbund into a tour de force within Paleostinian society.

It has also become an important regional player, long designated by the US and Israel as a member of the radical camp in the Middle East (the other members being Iran, Syria and Hezbullies). While Iran and Syria were demonized for aiding and enabling Paleostinian and Lebanese resistance to Israel, Hamas and Hezbullies successfully resisted Israel's military adventures in Gazoo and Leb.

Arab revolutions, however, forced a remarkable transformation in terms of power relations in the region. Longtime symbols of Western influence in Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen were violently and decisively forced out of power, although their cronies are still battling for position and sway.

The 'moderate camp' was shocked to its core by the removal of Hosni Mubarak
...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011...
, who, for three decades, diligently guarded a pro-American fort in exchange for a fixed sum of money. The dramatic events that swept the Arab world required urgent action, a spectacular jockeying for influence - to either coerce where change was deemed unacceptable, or exploit genuine, homegrown uprisings where change presented an opportunity to settle scores.

Syria was a prime example of the latter. It is widely understood that to balance the power play of gains and losses, the removal of Mubarak could only be offset with the ousting of Syria's Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Before going into the family business Pencilneck was an eye doctor...
Only then would the game return to a state of normality - especially when we consider the diminishing American influence in the region following its withdrawal from Iraq. Unfortunately for Syria, the conflict was quickly redrawn around regional politics.

The horrifying violence in Syria is being contextualized within dangerous paradigms concerning NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A single organization with differing goals, equipment, language, doctrine, and organization....
intervention and some Arab countries' insistence on transforming the civil war into a zero-sum game.

Hamas, which had successfully survived factional rivalry, Israeli wars and international isolation, was faced with its most pressing dilemma since the legislative elections of January 2006. On one hand, the so-called Arab Spring has ushered the unmistakable (and predicted) rise of Islamic political forces - of which Hamas is part and parcel. On the other, it has confusingly renovated the political equilibrium of the entire region.

It is no secret that without Iran's financial support, Hamas would have found it very difficult to operate in the Gazoo Strip following the Israeli blockade in 2007. Damascus
...The City of Jasmin is the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world. It has not always been inhabited by the same set of fascisti...
had provided Hamas with a political platform, allowing the Islamic movement a level of freedom to propagate its ideas and take some of the heat off its besieged leadership in Gazoo and the West Bank.

Disowning its allies due to an increasingly polarizing political (and sectarian) discourse in the region is not an easy decision by any means. Here lies Hamas' predicament.

Political realism is unavoidably opportunistic. Hamas' reputation among its supporters was maintained through a careful balance between political savvy and religiously motivated ideological principles. Revolutionary times can upset any balance, however skillfully cultivated.

A series of agreements between Hamas and Fatah - including the landmark Doha accord on February 6 - were attributed to the reformatting of regional alliances: the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas
... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial...
' Fatah suffered a serious blow with the ousting of Mubarak, and Hamas' future in Syria looked increasingly dim in light of the escalating violence.

Although Paleostinians have been demanding reconciliation between the rivals, to no avail, the successive unity episodes were incriminating to both parties as national accord and resisting Israel proved less urgent than regional politics. Hamas' drift to a new camp continued at astonishing speed.

Hamas leaders in Damascus, and also Gazoo, went out on regional tours, hoping to forge new alliances to the once shunned resistance movement. And in another twist, exiled Hamas leaders have suddenly emerged as agents of political moderation. The swiftness of the new terminology is explained by Brian Murphy and Karin Laub: "The movement's top leader in exile, Khald Mashaal, wants Hamas to be part of the broader Islamist political rise...For this, Hamas needs new friends like the wealthy Gulf states that are at odds with Iran," (AP, Feb 9).

Writing in the Lebanese Daily Star, Michael Broning, Israel-based director of the German Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung foundation, agrees.

"Meshaal has come to represent a force of change," he states, while Gazoo Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh
...became Prime Minister after the legislative elections of 2006 which Hamas won. President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from office on 14 June 2007 at the height of the Fatah-Hamas festivities, but Haniyeh did not acknowledge the decree and continues as the PM of Gazoo while Abbas maintains a separate PM in the West Bank...
"represents the conservative wing of Gazoo's Hamas leadership."

Thus a long-coveted opening is presenting itself as "disagreements within Hamas have been escalating, pitting the movement's diaspora leadership against the Hamas-led Gazoo administration." Tellingly, the title of Broning's article is: 'Engage Hamas' moderates and test their newfound flexibility' (Feb 24).

Some commentators, Broning included, are widely speculating on the future of the movement. News outlets are rife with reports regarding Hamas' maneuvering - whether compelled by political necessity or propelled by the ideological triumph of Islamist forces in the region.

Hamas might be reinventing itself, or it may simply be trying to weather the storm. Either way, the political context of Hamas' maneuvers is quickly leaving its traditional home (the Israeli occupation), and moving into a whole new dimension regarding the region as a whole.

While Hamas might convincingly argue that survival necessitates measured shifts in politics, it is more difficult to explain how quickly and readily regional politicking is trumping national priorities.

Indeed, the line separating principles and politics can at times be a very fine one.

Ramzy Baroud is an internationally syndicated columnist and the editor of PaleostineChronicle.com
Posted by: trailing wife || 03/02/2012 00:24 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Lest we fergit, 1990's CLINTONISM = RIGHTISM IS THE "NEW LEFTISM".

[Pre-Civil War KANSAS-MISSOURI BORDER Conflicts here].
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 22:34 Comments || Top||


Intifada unsettled Arab-Israelis more than Jews
Hebrew University researches survey finds that the five-year 2nd Intifada had "almost no impact" on Jewish Israelis.

Most Israelis who lived through the horrendous second intifada a decade ago -- during which over 1,000 of their countrymen died -- recall it as a traumatic period of terror.

But a study by researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem based on surveys conducted at the time found that the five-year period of intensive Paleostinian terrorism had "almost no impact" on Jewish Israelis self-reported satisfaction levels yet adversely affected the happiness of Arab Israelis.

The research was conducted by Dr. Asaf Zussman from HU's economics department, together with researchers from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) and the Bank of Israel. The report -- "Does Terrorism Demoralize? Evidence from Israel" -- was published in the January 2012 edition of the journal Economica.

Zussman analyzed CBS surveys conducted from 2002 to 2005 among 22,000 Israelis.

"During the intifada, and especially since the spring of 2002, Israel's counterterrorism strategy proved successful in reducing Paleostinian terrorism," he said. "This may help to explain why the Israeli public did not become demoralized.
Each year, the surveys asked a different group of 7,000 people dozens of questions, including "Overall, are you satisfied with your life?" The surveys showed that Israeli Jews' self-reported satisfaction levels remained stable despite changing levels of terrorism.

In 2002, considered the most violent year of the second intifada, 82.9 percent of Israelis stated that they were "very satisfied" or "fairly satisfied" with their lives; in 2003, which was calmer, 81.7% of Israelis expressed satisfaction; and in the following, even calmer year of 2004, the percentage was 82.4%.

"The research shows that the level of life satisfaction among Israelis is less affected by terror than we are accustomed to think," Zussman said. "Even in 2002, at the peak of the at the peak of the intifada, Jewish Israeli citizens were content enough with their lives to be placed at a good middle spot in comparison with other Western countries."

On the other hand, Israeli Arabs' life satisfaction displayed a robust negative reaction to terrorism. The researchers suggested this may be related to increasing concerns about discrimination in response to terror attacks.

The study found that while terrorism did not significantly alter happiness levels, the weather did. People attested to being less happy during periods of unusually bad weather than on pleasant sunny days.

Zussman suggested that one possible explanation for terrorism's minimal effect is the public's trust in the government's strategy to defeat terrorism.

"During the intifada, and especially since the spring of 2002, Israel's counterterrorism strategy proved successful in reducing Paleostinian terrorism," he said. "This may help to explain why the Israeli public did not become demoralized.

Also, over the years the Israeli public has developed a resiliency and managed to adjust to terrorism, with optimism that terrorism is a temporary situation and that things will look better soon."

The study raises doubts about the effectiveness of terrorism in achieving one of its main objectives -- demoralizing the enemy population.

"Terrorism is a political instrument meant firstly to create psychological demoralization among the enemy," Zussman said, "but it would seem that it's not as useful as one would think."
Posted by: trailing wife || 03/02/2012 00:18 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  suck it up, Israeli-Arabs. You're at ground zero and considered unwilling martyrs
Posted by: Frank G || 03/02/2012 21:08 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
13 bad guys die in Nuevo Laredo

For a map, click here. For a map of Tamaulipas state click here

By Chris Covert

A total of 13 armed suspects were killed in a firefight with a detachment of Mexican Army soldiers in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas Thursday afternoon, according to an announcement posted on the Secretaria de Defensa Nacional (SEDENA) website.

The unit was on patrol on Mexico Highway 2 at the 15 Kilometer marker when soldiers came under small arms fire from an armed group who were travelling en convoy aboard several vehicles. Army return fire killed 13 suspects. Three army fusileros were wounded in the encounter.

Following the attack the unit seized 12 rifles, one loaded rocket launcher, one grenade launcher attachment, one 40mm grenade, weapons magazines, ammunition, a package of cocaine of undisclosed size and three vehicles.

Tamaulipas state is one of the most heavily patrolled states in Mexico at the moment with about 8,000 army troops and about 1,500 Policia Federal effectives. The massive deployment began at the first of the year in support of the ongoing Operacion Noreste security operation.
Posted by: badanov || 03/02/2012 00:16 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


India-Pakistan
Arshad Pappu acquitted in kidnap, murder case
[Dawn] A sessions court acquitted on Wednesday Arshad Pappu in a kidnapping and murder case for want of evidence.

It appears that this was the last case pending trial against Arshad, said to be the chief of one of the several criminal gangs operating in Lyari.

The accused along with his accomplices was charged with kidnapping and killing Faiz Mohammad alias Mama Fazua in January 2003 within the remit of the Chakiwara cop shoppe.

The accused, through his lawyer Javed Mir, moved an acquittal application under Section 265-K (power of court to acquit accused at any stage) of the criminal procedure code in court.

Judge Javed Ahmed Keerio, who was conducting the trial in the judicial complex inside the Bloody Karachi
...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It may be the largest city in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous...
central prison, allowed the plea after hearing both sides.

The court ruled that the prosecution had failed to bring on record any solid evidence to connect the applicant with the alleged offence.

Earlier, in his arguments, the defence counsel contended that despite the passage of many years the prosecution was unable to produce any witness against the accused, adding that one of the co-accused had already been acquitted while the case of the applicant was also on the same footing and pleaded for acquittal.

However,
the difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits...
the prosecutor argued against the plea and maintained that such applications should not be entertained in the absence of the accused.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


Arabia
Yemen Troops Protest Demanding Army Chiefs' Ouster
[An Nahar] Hundreds of Yemeni soldiers staged protests at several military institutions across the country on Thursday demanding the departure of their chiefs, whom they accuse of corruption.

The demonstrations come just days after President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh
... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it...
formally handed power to his deputy Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi following a year of protest.

Around 500 soldiers and officers from the First Brigade of Marine Infantry, based on the Yemeni island of Socotra in the Gulf of Aden, protested outside Hadi's residence in the capital Sanaa, an Agence La Belle France Presse correspondent reported.

The soldiers were calling for the ouster of Brigadier General Hussein Khairan whom they accuse of corruption.

Several soldiers told AFP that the remaining officers were also staging a sit-in at their base in Socotra.

Meanwhile,
...back at the shattered spaceship, Fffflirgoll the Arcturan slithered stealthily toward the control room, where the humans had barricaded themselves...
air force soldiers held a massive rally that began outside Hadi's residence and headed towards the air base near Sanaa International Airport, calling for the ouster of air force commander General Mohammed Saleh al-Ahmar.

Military sources said that protests against Ahmar, a half-brother of Saleh, were also being held at other air bases -- al-Anad in the south and in Taez, Yemen's second city.

Anti-corruption strikes have spread across several military and government departments in the impoverished Arab country, where the economy is on the brink of collapse after last year's popular uprising and months of violence.

Saleh finally stepped down on Monday after 33 years in power, based on a Gulf-brokered power transfer deal he signed in November.

But during his time in office, he carefully chose members of his regime, appointing relatives to head the country's military and security apparatus.

In addition to his half-brother, Saleh's son commands the elite Republican Guard troops while his nephew Yehya commands the central security services and Tariq, another nephew, controls the presidential guard.

The power transfer deal stipulates that during the two-year interim period, Hadi will oversee the restructuring of the army.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


Down Under
Australian Charged in Plot to Send Military Items to Iran
[An Nahar] An Australian man indicted by a U.S. federal grand jury for plotting to export components for missiles, drones and torpedoes to Iran said Thursday he had no idea his actions were in breach of an embargo.

David Levick and his Sydney-based company ICM Components were each charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Arms Export Control Act, according to the U.S. Justice Department.

Levick, 50, was also charged with four counts of illegally exporting goods to an embargoed nation in violation of the IEEPA.

He and his company allegedly carried out purchases from 2007-2009 on behalf of an unnamed Iranian who would not have been able to make such purchases without U.S. government consent.

But Levick said he'd had no idea when contacted by the Iranian that shipping the products in question, which he had purchased in the United States, was in breach of an embargo.

"I didn't even know there was an embargo against it... he asked me all these questions about could I supply these, and I said 'yeah, okay, I'll supply you'," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Levick said he had been investigated by ASIO, Australia's domestic spy agency, over the Iran claims in 2008 and they had seized his computers but he "heard nothing else from them and that was ages ago".

When ASIO informed him that he was breaching an embargo Levick said he cancelled everything he had on order for the Iranian contact straight away.

"It's just that he asked me for it, and I'll supply anything if someone asks me for it," he said.

"I didn't realize that I wasn't allowed to sell stuff to Iran."

Levick said his business mostly sold semi-conductors to clients around the world including Europe, India, Japan and Taiwan.

He faces a potential maximum sentence of 85 years in prison if convicted of all charges, according to the U.S. Justice Department.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran


Africa Horn
South Sudan Accuses Khartoum of Airstrike, Troop Incursion
[An Nahar] South Sudan on Thursday accused the Khartoum government in the north of bombing 74 kilometers deep inside its territory, and of sending troops into contested border areas.

"They have flown into our territory 74 kilometers and are violating South Sudanese airspace," Information Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin said of the Arclight airstrikes midday Wednesday.

Sudanese troops are 17 kilometers inside the South's oil-rich Unity state, an area also claimed by Khartoum, according to Juba.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Sudan


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Mufti's Son Assaulted, Al-Mustaqbal Denies Involvement
[An Nahar] Four men have assaulted Grand Mufti Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Qabbani's son at a restaurant in Beirut's seafront of Raouche, the Dar al-Fatwa's press office said.

The statement said that Sheikh Ragheb Qabbani was "beaten by "provocateurs while having lunch at a Beirut restaurant" on Wednesday. The men also cursed him and his father, it said.

Following the incident, ex-PM Saad Hariri
Second son of Rafik Hariri, the Leb PM who was assassinated in 2005. He has was prime minister in his own right from 2009 through early 2011. He was born in Riyadh to an Iraqi mother and graduated from Georgetown University. He managed his father's business interests in Riyadh until his father's liquidation. When his father died he inherited a fortune of some $4.1 billion, which won't do him much good if Hizbullah has him bumped off, too.
's Future News denied that the assailants were al-Mustaqbal
... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri...
movement members.

The denial came after Hizbullah's al-Manar TV said Qabbani's son was assaulted by Hariri's al-Mustaqbal supporters.

Relations between the mufti and the movement deteriorated last year when Qabbani held talks with a Hizbullah delegation and Syrian Ambassador Ali Abdul Karim Ali.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:


Africa Subsaharan
Mugabe admits 'comrades' have died of AIDS
[Daily Nation (Kenya)] Zim-bob-we President Bob Muggsy Mugabe
Octogenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case...
admitted Thursday that some of his political allies have died of AIDS, as he launched a programme urging parliamentarians to lead by example in fighting the disease.

"In my political family as well, comrades I have worked with perished and quite a number of them it has been HIV and AIDS," Mugabe told politicians.

"Parliamentarians are certainly not immune to HIV/AIDS and its consequences," Mugabe said.

"I have witnessed the challenges that both they and our people face as a result of HIV and AIDS, and yet I do not recall any politician who has come out in the open about their HIV status."

Three years ago, 88-year-old Mugabe admitted that members of his extended family had died of the disease, but he rarely speaks publicly about the disease that has exacted a heavy toll on his country.

Zim-bob-we has made gains in fighting HIV, which had infected 14 percent of the population in 2009, down from 23 percent in 2003, according to the United Nations
...aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society...
. Some experts attribute the drop to Zim-bob-we's economic collapse, which left people without enough money to pursue multiple sexual partners.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  This is basically an eco and adaptive behaviors issue. Since the environment can't support unlimited population growth, not all individuals get to reproduce to their full potential. Natural... something or other, I cannot recall the term.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 2:42 Comments || Top||

#2  9% of the population died?

More likely they turfed up to the U.K. to get British taxpayers to fund the consequences of their irresponsibility.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 03/02/2012 6:56 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
11 found dead in Durango state

For a map, click here For a map of Durango state, click here

By Chris Covert

A total of 11 unidentified individuals were found dead in several locations in Durango state Thursday, according to Mexican news accounts.

Near the intersection of the main north-south road and Calzada Jose Ramon Valdez in Santiago Papasquiaro city seven victims were found dead inside an abandoned van. All seven had been shot once the head and then lined up in the vehicle.

Additionally, near the village of Nuevo Ideal, two more unidentified men were found along the side of the highway north of Santiago Papasquiaro. Those victims were also shot in the head.

An eleventh victim was found in Gomez Palacio in far eastern Durango near a shopping center near Prolongacion Primo de Verdad. He had been shot in the torso.
Posted by: badanov || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


India-Pakistan
Peshawarites decry Quran burning
Political and student activists on Thursday took out rallies in different parts of the provincial metropolis against desecration of Holy Koran
...One of the basic tenets of Islam is that once a Koran has been printed it is expected to last for all time, no matter how old, ratty, and smelly other, lesser holy books may become. Should it actually become necessary to put a Koran out of its misery there is a ritual that includes extensive charivari, featuring long drawn-wailing and head bonking, ritual wife beating, and the sacrifice of dozens of women's noses and pubic lips. When the actual disposal has been completed there is a prescribed period of celebratory gun sex with the expectation of a minimum of two hundred casualties. Should actual infidels dispose of a Koran, Islamic custom calls for three weeks of rioting and a minimum of three dozen dead, which is a holdover from the days of Moloch worship...
by NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A collection of multinational and multilingual and multicultural armed forces, all of differing capabilities, working toward a common goal by pulling in different directions...
forces in Afghanistan.

Holding banners and placards with messages against NATO and the US, Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf
...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations....
youth and student wing activists marched from Baghi Naran to Phase-III Chowk in Hayatabad.

Furqan Kakakhel, Tajamul Hayat and Sajjad Bangash, who led protesters, blamed violence in Afghanistan on the US and said Moslems in the world should unite to force foreign troops into leaving the Islamic state for restoration of peace.

Pasban demonstrated outside Beautiful Downtown Peshawar Press Club, where participants led by Asif Khan Jadoon shouted slogans against the US and NATO for burning copies of Holy Koran.

A similar demonstration was staged by PTI Peshawar chapter on Sher Shah Suri Road near the press club.

Zafar Khattak and Haji Iqbal, who led protesters, condemned the torching of the copies of Holy Koran and said the NATO forces' act was deliberate and meant to hurt the religious sentiments of Moslems all over the world.

They regretted silence of Islamic countries by and large over the incident. They demanded that Pakistain suspend diplomatic relations with the US unless the culpable NATO soldiers were punished by death.

Also in the day, Fata Students Federation led by president Bahadar Khan Janikhel took out a rally in the city to condemn the desecration of Holy Koran by NATO forces.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan

#1  They hate us; they REALLY hate us!!!
Posted by: Clem Jereling1944 || 03/02/2012 0:40 Comments || Top||


Africa North
Foreign NGO Suspects Leave Egypt
[An Nahar] American and other foreign democracy activists on trial in Egypt flew out of Cairo airport on Thursday, airport officials said, a day after the judiciary lifted a travel ban on them.

Their departure is expected to ease tensions with Washington, which had urged Egypt's military rulers to resolve the case which American officials had suggested could imperil U.S. aid to its key Middle Eastern ally.

The official MENA news agency reported that 15 foreigners left, including eight Americans, heading for Larnaca airport in Cyprus on board a private aircraft, and published a list of the names and nationalities of the passengers.

It said the non-American passengers comprised a Norwegian, three Serbs, two Germans and a Paleostinian.

Airport officials had said 17 foreigners including nine Americans who had been on the no-fly list left on a private plane which had flown in from Cyprus. It was not immediately clear why there was a discrepancy in the figures.

The activists worked with five foreign NGOs accused of receiving illicit foreign funds and operating without licenses.

Four of the groups are American and the remaining one is German, and there are 43 defendants altogether.

The only defendants who appeared at the trial's opening session on Sunday, days before the judges recused themselves without providing an explanation, were all Egyptians.

The defendants and their lawyers have denied the charges, which they said were political.

Earlier on Thursday, the head of the Cairo appeals court, Abdul Moez Ibrahim, confirmed reports that the travel ban had been removed and that each defendant had paid two million pounds (roughly $330,000/247,000 euros) in bail.
I seem to recall that whole "Shores of Tripoli" thingy had something to do with the local tradition of holding Westerners for ransom...
The Americans include Sam LaHood, the son of U.S. transportation secretary Ray LaHood and head of the International Republican Institute (IRI) in Egypt. He and several other U.S. citizens had taken refuge inside their Cairo embassy.

The other foreign groups involved in the trial are the National Democratic Institute, Freedom House, the International Center for Journalists -- all American -- and the German Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

The trial, which came after raids on the groups' offices in December, led to a crisis in relations between Egypt and Washington, a close ally of the strategic nation.

Egypt's military, in power since an uprising ousted president Hosni Mubarak
...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011...
a year ago, appeared to have underestimated the fallout from the crackdown on the civil society groups.

The raids came amid growing unrest against the generals, as the authorities suggested that the regime's opponents were being directed by foreigners, playing on abundant suspicion in the country of foreign plots, particularly U.S. and Israeli.

Fayza Abul Naga, the international cooperation minister believed to have sparked the probe into the groups, told investigating judges that the NGOs were part of an American conspiracy to spread chaos in Egypt.

On Thursday, she insisted that the trial would go ahead once a new judicial panel has been appointed.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


Iraq
U.S. Teacher Shot Dead by Student in North Iraq
[An Nahar] An American teacher was rubbed out on Thursday by one of his students in a murder-suicide at a private Christian school in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region, officials said.

The student, 18-year-old Piyar Suroor, killed himself after firing multiple gunshots at Jeremiah Small, a teacher at the Medes School in Kurdistan's second biggest-city of Sulaimaniyah.

"A student killed his American teacher by shooting him dead," said Sulaimaniyah police front man Lieutenant Sargut Ahmed.

Suroor then shot himself dead, according to Sulaimaniyah provincial health chief Raykot Hama Rashid.

It was not immediately clear why Suroor opened fire on Small.

The Medes School describes itself on its website as a private Christian network of schools in Iraq's Kurdish region that teaches in English.

"We have heard reports regarding the shooting of a teacher in Sulaimaniyah and are working through our consulate in Erbil and Iraqi authorities to ascertain the details of the incident," said a U.S. embassy front man in Storied Baghdad
...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate...
"At this time, we are waiting for identification to be completed and for the family to be notified."
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


India-Pakistan
Cross border shelling injures six in North Wazoo
[Dawn] Six mortar shells landed in the Dattakhel area
... which is owned and operated by Hafiz Gul Behadur...
of the North Wazoo tribal region, near the Afghanistan border, wounding six people, four of them children, security officials said.

According to official sources, the NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all....
forces had allegedly fired the mortars from the Afghanistan side in the area of Garlami of the tribal region.

Two combat jets had on Wednesday violated the Pakistain's airspace and remained in the North Waziristan's region for 15 minutes.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Pakistan


Arabia
GPC officials to form new political party
[Yemen Post] The Aden-based Al-Omana'a Newspaper has revealed that consultations by big shots of the General People Congress are ongoing to form anew political party.

The most circulated newspaper in Aden said the veteran politician Abdul-Karim Al-Iriani, Minister of Tel-Communication Ahmed Bin Daghar and Minister of Foreign Affairs Abu Bakar Al-Qairbi spearheaded the consultations, Al-Omana said.

The newspaper said the new party would absorb all leaders of the resigned officials of the GPC and those officials who declared their jointing to anti-Saleh protests early of the last year.

The newspaper that quoted well-informed sources said the new party would help overcome challenges and difficulties Yemen witnesses due to the political crisis sweeping the state last year, pointing out that the Untied States supports the notion of creating the new party.

It made reference that the party whose name is still uncertain would stand by the new Yemeni president who will lead the country for a two-year-long interim period as stipulated by the so-called power transition deal.

This nation surfaced days after Abdo Rabu Mansour Hadi was elected as a new president of Saleh who was forced to step down under international pressures.

Local sources affirmed that many aides of the ousted President President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh
... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it...
left Yemen, stressing that the former security chief of Taiz who was accused by protesters of committing crimes and violations left to Cairo on Sunday.

Yemeni protesters constantly took into streets, demanding to prosecute Saleh and his cronies and bring them to justice.

However,
alcohol has never solved anybody's problems. But then, neither has milk...
the GCC deal had granted Saleh and his closest allies immunity from prosecution for crimes they committed during deadly crackdown on the anti-regime protests.

Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
France Jails Abu Nidal Members in Absentia over 1988 Attack
[An Nahar] A Gay Paree court on Thursday sentenced three ex-members of the Paleostinian group Abu Nidal in absentia to 30 years in prison for a 1988 attack on a Greek cruise ship in which nine people died.

The convictions were the first for the attack in which gunnies on the City of Poros opened fire on their fellow passengers as the ship, carrying hundreds of tourists, was on its way back to Athens after a day trip.

Judge Laurence Turbe-Bion handed down the verdict at the end of the case centered on the three men whose whereabouts are unknown and who Sherlocks say may even be dead.

Three Frenchies were killed in the attack, meaning a French court could handle the case.

Victims' lawyer Francis Szpiner said: "The message from this trial is that French justice never gives up on those who commit terrorist acts."

In the July 11, 1988 attack, at least one bad turban suddenly opened fire on fellow passengers with a machine pistol, before throwing a grenade and a Molotov cocktail, killing nine and wounding dozens.

The French dead were two students who had been due to get married and a 21-year-old secretary who had been playing cards with the main shooter before the attack.

Greek police initially said that one of the French students was the shooter and that the secretary was his accomplice.

"The victims expect you to strongly condemn the infamy committed by the Greek authorities ... and that you recognize the dysfunctioning of French justice because of the time it has taken for a trial," lawyer Szpiner said during the trial.

Following the verdict, the court requested fresh arrest warrants for the three, two Lebanese and a Jordanian national.

If one day the men are incarcerated, a new trial must be held.

Around 30 witnesses identified a man in a photo named as Adnan Sojod as the main shooter, 21 years old at the time. Sojod was found guilty of murder, attempted murder and membership of a terrorist group.

Fellow bad turban Abdul Hamid Amud was placed in durance vile for helping him, as was Paleostinian-born Jordanian national Samir Mohammed Ahmed Khaidir for organizing the attack from Greece, Sweden and Libya.

Abu Nidal's group, believed to be responsible for a string of attacks which claimed at least 900 lives, notably in Europe, between 1970 and 1988, was for years on the U.S. State Department list of "terrorist" organizations.

Abu Nidal died in Iraq in August 2002.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Hizbullah: U.N. 'Miserably Failed' to Liberate Lebanese Land
[An Nahar] Hizbullah on Thursday hit back at U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon's call for the group to disarm, stressing that "Lebanon has the right to possess weapons to defend its land and sovereignty against Israel's occupation and threats."

"Hizbullah stresses that it took up arms to liberate the Lebanese territory, which Ban Ki-moon and his international organization had miserably failed to protect," Hizbullah said in a statement, noting that the U.N. "failed to force the Israeli occupier to withdraw."

In his latest report on the implementation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hizbullah, Ban described Lebanon's security situation as generally stable and reiterated his call on Hizbullah to transform itself into a political party.

The party's arms continue to pose a serious challenge to the state's ability to exercise full sovereignty and authority over its territory, he said.

"It seems that Mr. Ban Ki-moon's eyes cannot see Israel's hostile practices, the same as they cannot see the Judaization of Jerusalem and the occupation's terrorist practices in occupied Palestine," Hizbullah charged.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Hezbollah


Africa North
Chinese Workers Freed after Cairo Kidnapping
Two Chinese workers, kidnapped for ransom in Cairo on Thursday in a sign of growing insecurity a year after the ouster of Hosni Mubarak
...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011...
, were released after several hours, an embassy official said.

"They are free," embassy spokesperson Lu Jingchun told Agence La Belle France Presse, without providing details of how the pair's release had been secured.

Earlier, another embassy official told AFP the kidnappers were seeking a ransom payment.

"Two Chinese workers were hijacked by gunnies this morning in Cairo. They want money," the official told AFP.

"The two work at a stone materials company, which mainly focuses on producing marble," the official added.

An Egyptian security source said it was the first kidnapping of foreigners for ransom in Cairo that he could remember.

China's state Xinhua news agency quoted the deputy head of the Chinese People Association in Egypt, Chen Jiannan, as saying that the kidnappers were demanding a ransom of 500,000 Egyptian pounds ($83,000/62,000 euros).

The pair was leaving for work from their residence in the Maadi neighborhood of south Cairo when they were seized, Chen added.

The kidnapping came barely a month after 25 workers in a military-owned cement factory in the Sinai Peninsula were kidnapped by Egyptian Bedouin demanding the release of Islamist relatives.

They were freed unharmed on February 1 after being held for 24 hours.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


Arabia
Al-Qaeda kidnaps Yemen's general in Abyan
[Yemen Post] Al-Qaeda kidnapped on Wednesday a Yemeni general in Abyan after the military launched strikes against strongholds of the terrorist organization and killed dozens of the organization's operatives, sources of the Yemeni Interior Ministry Said.

The Sources said the colonel Ahmed Jaafal, commander of the battalion 103, was kidnapped after Al-Qaeda beturbanned goons set an ambush to his convey in a main road linking between Aden and the town of Mukairas.

The sources said the abduction came after Al-Qaeda sustained big loses due to the attacks carried out by the army that used on Tuesday heavy artilleries against Al-Qaeda's shelters.

Military sources said bloody confrontations had been continuing between the army and Al-Qaeda bad boys.

Separately, the Interior Ministry revealed that three car booms planed to went kaboom! government facilities in the Yemeni capital, Sana'a.

Al-Qaeda in Yemen claimed on Wednesday responsibility for a weekend suicide kaboom that killed at least 25 people in southern. The group said the car kaboom was a warning to the U.S. to stop meddling in Yemen's affairs.

It further said the attack came in response to U.S. war against Islamist forces in Yemen.

The newly-elected president had said during his inauguration on Feb. 24 that he will fight Al-Qaeda, and to bring back displaced people to their villages and towns.

"One of the most prominent tasks is the continuation of war against al-Qaeda as a religious and national duty, and to bring back displaced people to their villages and towns," Hadi said.

However,
the difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits...
Al-Qaeda attacked the presidential palace of Muklah of Hadhramout two hours after the address of Hadi before the parliament.

Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Arabia

#1  Well, the Qaeda Boyz did give an Ultimatum.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 22:59 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Security Council Unanimously Agrees Statement Demanding Syria Humanitarian Access
[An Nahar] The U.N. Security Council on Thursday called on Syria to allow "immediate" humanitarian access to protest cities in a unanimously agreed statement.

Russia and China significantly signed up to the statement which was approved after Syria refused to let U.N. humanitarian chief Valerie Amos into the country. Syria has said the date proposed by Amos was not suitable.

"The members of the Security Council express their deep disappointment" that Amos "was not granted authorization to visit Syria by the Syrian government in a timely manner, despite repeated requests and intense diplomatic contacts aimed at securing Syrian approval," said the statement, which was obtained by Agence La Belle France Presse ahead of its release.

The 15-nation body called for "immediate and unhindered access" for Amos.

"The members of the Security Council deplore the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation, in particular the growing number of affected civilians, the lack of safe access to adequate medical services, and food shortages, particularly in areas affected by fighting and violence such as Homs, Hama, Deraa, Idlib," said the statement.

The Security Council called on Syria "to allow immediate, full and unimpeded access of humanitarian personnel to all populations in need of assistance, in accordance with international law and guiding principles of humanitarian assistance."

Russia and China vetoed two U.N. Security Council resolutions on Syria and have been very cautious of any statement that could be seen as taking sides against Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Despoiler of Deraa...
In a concession to the two powers, the council statement referred to "all parties" to cooperate with efforts to evacuate the maimed from Syrian cities.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


39 Dead as Syrian Army Seizes Baba Amr and Rebels Withdraw 'Tactically'
[An Nahar] Syrian forces overran the Baba Amr district of powderkeg Homs on Thursday after rebels retreated, potentially marking a turning point in Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Trampler of Homs...
's bid to crush an increasingly armed uprising.

As rebel fighters pulled back, the opposition Syrian National Council (SNC) warned of a "massacre" in the rebel neighborhood by Syrian forces, while aid agencies said they would urgently try to get there to deliver aid and evacuate the maimed.

The SNC, slamming "confusion" among the rebel ranks, said in Gay Paree it would provide leadership to an outgunned and fragmented force and control the flow of arms to fighters on the ground.

The rebels said they had pulled out "tactically" from Baba Amr after nearly two days of an all-out assault by the feared Fourth Armored Division, led by a younger brother of President Bashir al-Assad, Maher, following 27 straight days of relentless shelling of their bastion.

Rebels "have pulled out tactically in order to protect the remaining civilians," said Colonel Riad al-Asaad, the leader of the Free Syrian Army, which is made up mostly of deserters.

The FSA was formed mid-2011 in response to a brutal crackdown by Assad's forces on anti-regime protesters, and now boasts at least 20,000 armed fighters, although the numbers are impossible to verify.

A Syrian security official said in Damascus
...Home to a staggering array of terrorist organizations...
that the army was in total command of the Homs neighborhood, which had become the symbol of resistance to the regime.

"The Syrian army controls all of Baba Amr. The last pockets of resistance have fallen," the official told Agence La Belle France Presse.

State television aired footage it said was filmed inside Baba Amr, including interviews with people it said were residents angry with the rebels.

The SNC urged the international community to act to prevent to protect residents, charging that the Fourth Armored Brigade was conducting "barbaric operations against civilians."

"We urge the international community, Moslem and Arab states to intervene immediately to prevent a potential massacre in the coming hours against tens of thousands of children, women and elderly people," it said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 21 people were killed in Homs on Thursday, including 17 civilians caught up in the battle for control of Baba Amr.

Global campaigning organization, Avaaz, said the 17 were "beheaded or partially beheaded" in the farming area on the outskirts of Baba Amr.

In total, 39 people, including eight loyal soldiers and seven deserters, were killed in violence across Syria on Thursday, the Observatory said.

The International Committee of the Red Thingy and the Syrian Arab Red Islamic Thingy were preparing to urgently reach the conflict zone, an ICRC front man said.

"The ICRC and the SARC will go on Friday to Baba Amr to deliver humanitarian aid and evacuate the maimed," Damascus front man Saleh Dabbakeh told AFP.

French journalist Edith Bouvier, who suffers from multiple fractures, is believed still trapped inside Baba Amr.

On the political front, the SNC said its military bureau, announced on Wednesday, would coordinate the flow of weapons to the rebels following mounting calls from Gulf Arab states for arms to be delivered despite U.S. fears that al-Qaeda may exploit any further militarization of the crisis.

"The SNC will be this link between those who want to help and the revolutionaries," its leader Burhan Ghalioun told news hounds in Gay Paree.

"It is out of the question that arms go into Syria in confusion," he added.

The all-out assault on Homs' defiant neighborhood came as international envoy Kofi Annan said he hopes to go to Damascus with a clear message that the "violence must stop," and the U.N. Human Rights Council called on Syria to allow relief supplies in to besieged protest cities.

Britannia announced that it was following the United States in closing its embassy and pulling out its remaining diplomats in response to the "deterioration of the security situation in Damascus."

U.N. political chief B Lynn Pascoe told the Security Council on Tuesday that "well over 7,500" people have been killed since Assad's forces began a crackdown on anti-regime protests that erupted in March last year.

A resolution adopted by the U.N. Human Rights Council on Thursday condemned the "continued widespread and systematic violations of human rights
...which often include carefully measured allowances of freedom at the convenience of the state...
" and called on Damascus allow aid organizations and U.N. agencies to deliver desperately needed supplies.

Russia, Cuba and China voted against the resolution while India, the Philippines and Ecuador abstained.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
... sometimes described as For a good time at 3 a.m. call Hillary and at other times as Mrs. Bill, never as Another John Jay ...
, meanwhile, lambasted Russia for its failure to produce an aid plan for Syria, despite Moscow's great influence with Assad.

"We are doing everything we can think of to influence the Russians and the Chinese, particularly the Russians: they're the ones with the very deep, long-standing relationship with the Assad family," Clinton told the House Foreign Affairs Committee in Washington.

The Syrian foreign ministry said it was willing to discuss a date for a visit by U.N. humanitarian chief Valerie Amos, after her announcement on Wednesday that she had been turned away prompted an outcry.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Syria

#1  The SNC, slamming "confusion" among the rebel ranks, said in Gay Paree it would provide leadership to an outgunned and fragmented force and control the flow of arms to fighters on the ground.

There's nothing like issuing communiques from Paris as a way to restore troop morale.
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 03/02/2012 11:45 Comments || Top||


Arabia
Exiled leaders distribute weapons in Aden
[Yemen Post] The big shot of the Yemeni Socialist Party Anees Yahya has accused exiled southern leaders of distributing weapons for the Southern Movement in Aden, confirming that even government military and security officials took part in providing militias with weapons to achieve their own agendas.

In an interview with Aleshatraki Net, he called all Yemeni parties to engage in dialogue, stressing that the early presidential elections held on February 21 was a turning point towards the creation of a modern and civil state.

Yahya said those people who carried weapons with the aim of disturbing the elections distorted the peaceful demands of the Southern case, pointing out that federalism is the best solution for Yemen.

Armed men of the Southern Movement had deployed in the streets of Aden and tried to prevent voters from participation in the elections. However,
a person who gets all wrapped up in himself makes a mighty small package...
voters in most southern provinces turned out in unexpectedly large numbers on February 21 to mark a formal end to the 33-year-rule of Saleh.

Ambassadors of the European Union
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
, Permanent members of the UN Security Council and Gulf states met with leaders of the Southern Movement and agreed to renounce violence, but the election day witnessedviolence acts in which about ten persons were killed.

Yemeni analysts says the new Yemeni President Abdrabuh Hadi has major challenges in reunifying Yemenis, affirming that the cases of the South and Saada are among the difficult challenges.

While a few Yemeni politicians in exile demanded to separate from the north, most leaders of the YSP leaders and other southern politicians view federalism as the best solution for Yemen to disentangle itself from its recurring crises.

Others see decentralization and local governments as the right solution that will guarantee the country's unification .

Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


Home Front: Culture Wars
Health department raids community picnic and destroys all food with bleach
Posted by: Dar || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Food police state.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 03/02/2012 0:17 Comments || Top||

#2  In Soviet Nevada, picnic eats you.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 03/02/2012 0:26 Comments || Top||

#3  Queen Michelle says "Eat Right and Live."

Soylent Corporation Algae and Plankton.

Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 2:16 Comments || Top||

#4  Somebody pissed off Harry Reid?
Posted by: Water Modem || 03/02/2012 3:21 Comments || Top||

#5  Time to fight.
Posted by: Secret Asian Man || 03/02/2012 5:16 Comments || Top||

#6  Big business rent-seeking, enabled by massive state over-regulation, created by bribed politicians.

Time to assemble heads on pikes.
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 03/02/2012 5:45 Comments || Top||

#7  So now the government tells us what to eat.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/02/2012 8:17 Comments || Top||

#8  they've been telling us what too eat for years, it just took a real dictator too get into office before it would be enforced.
Posted by: chris || 03/02/2012 8:24 Comments || Top||

#9  I wonder what corrupt government official (Harry Reid) they didn't pay off ahead of time. Such raids never have anything to do with a legitimate reason. Had they been in complete conformity with all regulations, the "inspector" would have found or imagined violations to the same end.

If it wasn't for bribery, then it was just harassment of political enemies, or even people who live in the territory of political enemies, that the villain wants to hurt indirectly.

This is what you get with a "gangster" government.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 03/02/2012 9:42 Comments || Top||

#10  It is long past time to start arming the guests and if the food nazis come to start trouble, invite them to leave with guns at the ready.

The only way this is going to stop is to make the nazis too afraid to enforce their unconstitutional laws.
Posted by: DarthVader || 03/02/2012 10:20 Comments || Top||

#11  As if being told you can't eat the food you grew and prepared wasn't enough, that you must destroy the food with bleach so it can't even be used for pig fodder or compost is the ultimate insult. The insanity has pegged the meter.
Posted by: Dar || 03/02/2012 13:15 Comments || Top||

#12  A deluge of lawsuits may be appropriate for this sort of bureaucratic madness. It sounds lame, but when the health dept. has to pay out many millions on 50 different lawsuits all stemming from one party, someone will take notice.
Posted by: bigjim-CA || 03/02/2012 13:44 Comments || Top||

#13  There is a reason the left hates the second amendment. Imagine if they tried to do this to a bunch of farmers in Texas.
Posted by: DarthVader || 03/02/2012 14:00 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Sarkozy Says Wounded French Journalists Safe in Lebanon
[An Nahar] French journalists Edith Bouvier, who sustained serious leg wounds in Syria, and William Daniels, trapped for days in bombarded Homs, have beat feet Syria for Leb, French President Nicolas Sarkozy
...23rd and current President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra. Sarkozy is married to singer-songwriter Carla Bruni, who has a really nice birthday suit...
said Thursday.

"Edith Bouvier and William Daniels are currently safe on Lebanese territory and will within moments be under the protection of our embassy in Beirut," Sarkozy said during a brief news conference on the sidelines of an EU summit in Brussels.

"I have just spoken with Edith Bouvier, who is naturally exhausted, having suffered hugely but she knows she is free and that she will soon be taken care of," said Sarkozy.

"I want to thank all those who contributed to this happy ending after a week of efforts to evacuate them involving the International Red Thingy and the Syrian Red Thingy, which didn't succeed," Sarkozy said.

Sarkozy added that "the medical urgency took precedence and Edith Bouvier and her companion were to leave their surroundings using all available means".

The French president said the pair were not currently in Beirut, and could be brought back to La Belle France "tonight in a hospital plane belonging to the French republic", if doctors gave their go-ahead.

Bouvier has multiple fractures from a February 22 rocket attack on a makeshift media center in Baba Amr, a rebel stronghold in the central Syrian city of Homs, in which U.S. veteran news hound Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik were killed.

Photographer Daniels was also on assignment for Le Figaro, and was trapped alongside Spaniard Javier Espinosa of El Mundo daily.

Another journalist maimed in the attack, British photographer Paul Conroy, was evacuated to Leb on Tuesday.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Syria


India-Pakistan
Sectarian menace
[Dawn] TUESDAY'S brutal sectarian massacre on the Karakoram Highway in a remote part of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's
... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central...
Kohistan
...a backwoods district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa distinguished by being even more rustic than is the norm among the local Pashtuns....
district bore a chilling resemblance to the butchery witnessed last year in Mastung, Balochistan
...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it...
. As in the Mastung attack, passengers travelling in a convoy of buses, and comprising mostly Shia pilgrims returning from Iran to Gilgit via Rawalpindi, were pulled out and killed on the basis of their belief by men apparently in army uniform. Kohistan has not witnessed the sectarian bloodletting other parts of Pakistain have, yet it is possible the atrocity was carried out as communal tensions in neighbouring Gilgit-Baltistan spilled over. A few Sunnis were killed in Gilgit recently, and the targeting of passengers may have been a reprisal, with indications that the killers came from Chilas. Though Jandullah has grabbed credit, it is unclear if it is the same group involved in past sectarian attacks in Bloody Karachi
...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It may be the largest city in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous...
or a new one. Certain names have developed into 'brands', and it is likely that the absence of a central organizational structure has propelled other jihad boy actors to carry out acts of terrorism using the name of more recognisable groups.

Unfortunately, no part of Pakistain is free from the scourge of sectarian terror. While Hazara Shias are routinely murdered in Balochistan, tribal-cum-sectarian violence has become a part of life in Kurram Agency
...home of an intricately interconnected web of poverty, ignorance, and religious fanaticism, where the laws of cause and effect are assumed to be suspended, conveniently located adjacent to Tora Bora...
; Bloody Karachi has witnessed several sectarian attacks; bombings and cycles of sectarian violence also occur in Dera Ismail Khan
... the Pearl of Pashtunistan ...
as well as south and central Punjab. Though the denominational schism has always existed, it took on a very bloody character during the Ziaul Haq regime, especially with the rise of sectarian death squads. Today, sectarian outfits in Pakistain have found common cause with pan-Islamic jihadis, fusing their anti-Shia worldview with a jihad-centric, anti-West outlook, which perhaps explains the heavy sectarian undercurrent in the overall rise of militancy in Pakistain. It is also troubling that overtly sectarian and jihadi concerns are now appearing on the same stage as 'mainstream' religious and right-wing parties, indicating the full acceptance of the former by the latter.

There needs to be greater vigilance where misuse of police and army uniforms is concerned. Also, buses and other vehicles must only be stopped at designated and clearly marked checkpoints and escorted by security forces when transiting 'sensitive' regions. Overall, while communities need to ensure such provocations don't result in escalation and reprisals, it is the state that must do the most by identifying, capturing, prosecuting and punishing those involved in sectarian terrorism. If it fails to do so, the current situation may well give way to wider communal conflict.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Russia Says Qaida Helping Syrian Opposition
[An Nahar] Al-Qaeda combatants are fighting alongside armed Syrian opposition orcs, Russian foreign ministry front man Alexander Lukashevich was quoted Thursday as saying by the Itar-Tass news agency.

"It is not a secret that our proposals are being rejected by the West or blocked by Syria's radical opposition, not to mention armed units fighting against governmental forces that include al-Qaeda gunnies and other jihad boys," he said.

Washington warned Tuesday that sending weapons to the forces fighting against Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
The Scourge of Hama...
's regime could benefit al-Qaeda.

"We are aware of the fact that al-Qaeda and other cut-throats are seeking to take advantage of the situation created by Assad's brutal assault on the opposition," said White House front man Jay Carney.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Syria


India-Pakistan
KP to adopt holistic approach against extremism: minister
[Dawn] The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central...
government has adopted a holistic approach to counter extremism by improving economic conditions, creating jobs and promoting sports and culture, said Provincial Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain while speaking at a presser at the Civil Officers Mess here on Thursday.

He said that the directorate of culture had made preparations for arranging cultural festivals in Beautiful Downtown Peshawar and Dera Ismail Khan
... the Pearl of Pashtunistan ...
in March.

"Extremism cannot be eliminated by bullets only. It requires a change in mindset to weaken the hard boyz by making people to make a conscious decision to withdraw their support from cut-thoat elements," said Mr Hussain, who also heads the culture
ministry.

He said that a two-day cultural event titled as "The Cultural Revival of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa," would commence from Saturday (tomorrow). He added that a three-day "Peace Spring Festival" had been planned in Dera Ismail Khan in the third week of
March.

Events like folk dance and local music would also be organised side by side food and embroidery stalls
The Peshawar's festival, he said, would entail two full days of entertainment for families. Apart from stage shows and musical programmes that would include performances by local and national level artists and singers, traditional dances, including Attanr (to be presented by Mehsud performers), Khattak dance, and Chitrali dance would feature in the festival.

"We request the fun-loving families of Peshawar and other areas to come and attend the entertainment events because we all deserve a better life, escaping for a while from the tensions of terrorism," said the minister. Senior officers of the culture department were also present at the presser.

The spring festival at D.I. Khan will feature local sports, including dog race, camel race, horse dance, wrestling, tent-pegging, and weight (heavy stone) lifting competition. The minister said that teams from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Federally Administered Tribal Areas would participate in the competitions.

Events like folk dance and local music would also be organised side by side food and embroidery stalls, he added.

Answering a question, he acknowledged security risks at the Peshawar event and said that the provincial government would make complete security arrangements in and around the festival venue. Mr Hussain said that in view of the overwhelming response to the recently-held cultural events in Peshawar the government knew that people wanted more entertainment activities, forgetting about Orcs and similar vermin for a while.
Until they blow your Islamic asses up...
"Our society, as a whole, has developed psychological issues, they need entertainment and opportunities to enjoy their surroundings," he said.

The minister said that the government was working to isolate the hard boyz by implementing plans to create jobs and income generation opportunities for the youth, arrange sports and cultural activities, and carry out development works.

The strategy, he added, would create a long lasting imprint on the conscience of those who held soft corner in their hearts for cut-thoats, making them to withdraw their support from them.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan

#1  sounds like a farmers market/bazaar of holistic love...before the suicide bombers hit
Posted by: Frank G || 03/02/2012 21:06 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
Final death toll in Durango set at 331

For a map, click here For a map of Durango state, click here

By Chris Covert

The final death toll for the mass graves find in Durango state is 331 victims, according to Mexican news accounts.

Last December in Christoph Colon ejido in Durango municipality, a total of 50 dead had been found. At the time it was reported that ten had been found in the area, but recent reports said that the actual count was fifty total.

The latest, and according to Fiscalia General del Estado, or attorney general of Durango Sonia Yadira Fragoso, the last likely to be found, was part of a string of finds in Durango primarily in Durango city, the capital of Durango state.

Other locations for the graves include Santiago Papasquiario, Cuencame and Ciudad Lerdo. The searches and exhumations began in April, 2011, following the detention of a suspect.

Of the 331 victims found, only 37 have been identified by relatives to date. Also, most of those killed were killed by asphyxiation, mainly by being buried alive. The victims were killed as far back as 2005, well before the start of Mexican President Felipe Calderon Hinojosa's war on the cartels.

It was reported last summer in the Mexican press that the Sinaloa cartel was the most likely culprit in the murders. The killings were probably part of the normal course of organized crime business in Durango.

Apparently, Mexican press had varying counts for the dead. Last Monday it was reported that the total dead was 300, which would have jibed with the find in December. However even with the newly announced find, reports said the total was 301, while the Proceso leftist weekly had the total at 321. This writer had the total at 330.

The Durango mass grave find is the worst mass murder in modern Mexican history, eclipsing even the 193 dead found in and around San Fernando, Tamaulipas last summer. However, all of the dead in San Fernando were killed between August, 2010 and April, 2011.
Posted by: badanov || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:


India-Pakistan
A few bring a bad name
[Dawn] IT has been a complicated time for the Lahore Bar Association, given the ban on a soft drink brand proposed recently by a faction of lawyers.

The entire legal community has resultantly come under fire with its reputation -- if any remained -- plummeting into the negative. Yet while sitting in the District Bar room, I find certain colleagues' insensitivity towards the destruction of the legal fraternity's image in the press more perturbing.

The term 'legal community' needs to be interpreted and analysed therefore. Further, it must be asked whether, in criticising the entire legal community for the singular acts of a faction, people are not displaying short-sightedness: a group of lawyers who have proposed a scandalous resolution does not represent the legal community as a whole. Most importantly, the basis on which the ban was proposed constitutes a contravention of the country's constitution.

First, the term 'legal community' (of Pakistain) denotes and includes all members of benches, all law-practising members of the District and High Court Bar Associations of Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan
...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it...
and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central...
. It also includes all members of the Supreme Court Bar Association and the benches of the apex court. So to castigate the legal community for an abstruse resolution or for other acts of an ignorant minority is wrong and amounts to short-sightedness.

The Khatam-e-Nabuwat Lawyers Forum (KNLF), which proposed the ban, is in no way a representative body of the legal community. Its acts, omissions or resolutions do not carry the weight of the law or the support of the legal society; they do not reflect the mindset of the legal community, which is clearly a silent majority. Even if the incumbent elected representatives of the Lahore Bar Association ratified the absurd resolution, in no way would that reflect the opinion of a sizeable number of lawyers and would be disowned. Such a move should and would be strongly condemned.

Many short-sighted western citizens and journalists label the entire Pak population as intolerant, illiterate, narrow-minded and overly religious (for the acts of a few). Similarly, many bewildered and imprudent members of our own society are branding the entire legal community as intolerant and obdurate for the acts of a few. This is also not right.

To give an example, Faisal Shahzad, the would-be Time Square bomber was connected to Pakistain and apparently had some level of support in the country. But does he, or even Baitullah Mehsud, represent the Pak public's way of thinking? To condemn all Paks due to the abhorrent acts of such people is simply outrageous. Similarly, the act of a faction of lawyers must not be allowed to define the character and reputation of the legal community on the lam.

Then, for the KNLF to propose a senseless ban that demands a blockade on selling a drink allegedly manufactured by Ahmedis (or non-Mohammedans, as they are called) is absurd by all standards. The intention was apparently to cause economic loss to the alleged Ahmedi manufacturer. Principally, the law requires the other side to be heard. The company issued a blurb that it is not owned by Ahmedis. For the sake of argument, however, let us hypothesise that the company is indeed owned by Ahmedis. If that is the case, would it be constitutionally or religiously barred from trading within the country? The answer is in the negative.

Constitutionally, the Ahmedis were declared non-Mohammedans by the Second Amendment to the constitution of the Islamic Theocratic Republic of Pakistain, thereby converting them statutorily into a minority. But neither this amendment nor any subsequent law takes away the right of minorities to conduct business and fair trade within this land of the pure. Therefore, any move to ban their business is not only unconstitutional but discriminatory and in violation of Article 18 (Freedom of Trade, Business and Profession) and Article 25 (Equality of Citizens) of the constitution.

From the point of view of religion, trade was an integral part of Islamic teachings and culture. The Prophet Muhammad (PTUI!)'>(PTUI!)) traded with the Jews of his time. From an Islamic perspective, if the Prophet never advocated an ideology that stood for causing economic loss to non-Mohammedans, why should anyone else?

If the ideology of causing economic loss on the basis of religion were attached to any truth, there would be a trade deadlock causing widespread scarcity of valuable resources located in different parts of the world. There would have been no electricity in Mohammedan lands, no development in the agricultural or health sector. People of other faiths would have been deprived of oil which would have halted all invention and the modern transportation facilities we enjoy today.

Oil from Mohammedan lands would have had no value without trade; Christians, Jews, Hindus and people of all other faiths would have kept their technology, inventions and discoveries to themselves. Adherents of all faiths would have been doomed to paucity without trading with each other.

But let us, for a minute, go the KLNF way and boycott everything manufactured/produced by non-Mohammedans. It would soon become clear that the vehicles they use, the cellphones with which they communicate, the television they watch, their laptops, the software they use to draft their petitions, the ties they wear and the stitching units which stitch their uniforms are manufactured/produced by mostly non-Mohammedans. What are they going to do about this?
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Annan to visit Arab League before Syria
[Daily Nation (Kenya)] United Nations
...boodling on the grand scale...
and Arab League
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
envoy to Syria Kofi Annan will visit the league's headquarters in Cairo next Wednesday and later head to Damascus
...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world...
, the head of the pan-Arab bloc said on Thursday.

Annan, a former UN secretary general, "will come to Cairo on March 7," Arabi said. "He will then conducts trips to Syria and countries with influence" on Syria, he added.

Arabi, who repeated his call for a ceasefire in Syria, added that the vaporous Arab League will host a Syrian opposition meeting in two weeks.

Annan on Wednesday said he hoped to be in Damascus soon with a "clear" message that the deadly crackdown on anti-regime protesters and rebels must end.

But Annan also demanded, after meeting UN Secretary General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon
... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan...
, that the divided international community unite behind his mission as special envoy for the United Nations and Arab League.

Annan and Ban said the priority must be to halt the violence and secure humanitarian access to the Syrian cities where the UN estimates that more than 7,500 people have been killed in the past 11 months.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Syria


The Grand Turk
16 Wounded as Blast Hits Police Bus in Istanbul
[An Nahar] A remote-controlled roadside kaboom maimed 16 people, mostly coppers, when it went kaboom! near a passing police bus in the center of Istanbul on Thursday, Turkish authorities said.

"It appears to be a remote-controlled bomb that went off as a duty vehicle with 21 coppers on board drove by," Istanbul police chief Huseyin Capkin told the Anatolia news agency.

Huseyin Avni Mutlu, the governor of Istanbul, was quoted by the agency as saying that the device was composed of plastic explosives.

"The bomb was planted on a cycle of violence waiting by the roadside, and went off around 0700 GMT as the police vehicle passed," Mutlu added.

The blast hit close to the offices of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), said the private NTV news channel.

Witnesses in nearby vehicles spoke of a strong blast that had left their cars rocking, causing panic.

The maimed were admitted to hospital but none of their injuries are critical, Capkin added.

Police blocked access to the blast zone, fearing a second kaboom.

Several outlawed gangs -- Kurdish, Islamist and leftist turban -- have carried out kabooms in Istanbul in the past.

Last September a powerful bomb rocked the center of the capital Ankara, killing three people and wounding at least 15.

And a kaboom in May last year injured eight people near a bus stop in Etiler, an upscale district in Istanbul.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  For no particular reason:

Istanbul, by They Might Be Giants.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 03/02/2012 8:36 Comments || Top||


Arabia
Hadi office: Saleh to leave Yemen soon
[Yemen Post] After he attended the official power handover ceremony, former Yemeni President President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh
... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it...
will leave Yemen soon, according to media outlets, citing official sources the Presidential Palace.

Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi's, the new Yemeni President, office has confirmed that Saleh is going to leave Yemen soon, however they refused to reveal his destination, CNN reported.

Saleh is still studying his options and has yet to make up his mind as to which country he would choose for exile, the unidentified source at the Presidential Palace said.

One of his top aids refused to comment on the matter in a phone call with Yemen Post, asking us to go and ask the new President's office for information.

On Tuesday, Saleh's top aids and cronies in the General People Congress emphatically dismissed media reports that Slaeh would live in exile as baseless, emphasizing that he would stay in Yemen and assume the leadership of the former ruling party GPC.

Saleh is reportedly under mounting pressures from the GCC states, USA and EU to leave Yemen and live in exile for the rest of his life.They threatened that if he refused to leave Yemen they would freeze his and his family's assets.

He is widely perceived as a major source of tension, discontent, and unrest. Furthermore, they fear that he would try to influence the scene in the country for his favor given that his relatives and cronies still hold key govermental and military posts.

Saleh, who held his grip over power in the country for 33 years, stepped down in exchange for immunity from prosecution after months of being defiant in the face of massive protests calling for his ouster.Yet it's undeniable that he still has some supporters and sympthizers in some areas especially in the capital.

On Monday, Saleh has handed over the flag of Yemen to who once was his deputy, Hadi, affirming that he has handed over power to safe hands.

The presidential polls that Hadi won was a part of the GCC-initiated, US and west backed power transfer deal signed in the Suadi capital of Riyadh in November.

Hadi has addmitted on Monday that Yemen is at a very delicate and complex stage, calling on all factions in the country to engage in an inclusive national dialogue to overcome the current challenges.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring

#1  Someday...
Posted by: newc || 03/02/2012 1:35 Comments || Top||

#2  ...when I'm awfully low...
Posted by: Steve White || 03/02/2012 8:44 Comments || Top||


Africa Horn
Sudan Says ICC Warrant against Defense Minister Means 'Nothing'
[An Nahar] An International Criminal Court
... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ...
warrant issued against Sudan's defense minister means "nothing" and Khartoum does not care about the decision, the foreign ministry said on Thursday.

The reaction came after the Hague-based court said it has issued an arrest warrant for Defense Minister Abdel Rahim Mohammed Hussein, for alleged crimes against the civilian population in Sudan's western region of Darfur.

"The government will not issue any statement reacting to the ICC decision because we believe it means nothing to us," since the country is not a party to the Rome Statue governing the court, foreign ministry front man Al-Obeid Meruh told Agence La Belle France Presse.

"We don't care about any decision coming from the ICC."

Hussein, 60, is the sixth person sought by the ICC or before the court for crimes committed in Darfur, where rebel groups drawn from Darfur's non-Arab tribes rose up against the Arab-dominated Khartoum government in 2003.

Among those sought is Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir
Head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself president-for-life. He has fallen out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it.
The court's chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, said in December when he asked for the warrant against Hussein that it would cover crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Darfur from August 2003 to March 2004.

Hussein, who was interior minister from 2001 to 2005 and also Bashir's special representative for Darfur from 2003 to 2004, is wanted for allegedly coordinating attacks against civilians in villages in west Darfur.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Sudan

#1  Let's see, Bashir sparks trade cutoff, shuts down routes in order for Abaei. (vote and control trade)

The separatist in the south hold permanent rights as travelers do not hold land. The prime objective of the CPA was since the moslem (crapbag)North held a port and the black settled south BLACK Christians has the BLACK GOLD, they could have a fighting chance against what Osama Bin Ladin set up.

This whole argument makes me want to get out an ancient notepad. Should I do so?

Bashir, you bitch, you will make the CPA happen.

Janjaweed, Saudis, Darfur, Blue Nile, White Nile, Karadashun, you are going to make me loose my damn mind.
Posted by: newc || 03/02/2012 1:46 Comments || Top||


Home Front: Politix
Albuquerque dog becomes registered voter
An Albuquerque man says he successfully registered his dog to vote in Bernalillo County.

The dog owner said he saw a voter registration booth on the University of New Mexico's campus a few weeks ago and decided to see how easy it would be to register his dog to vote.

He said he was trying to expose the problems with the registration system. He said he just received the dog's voter registration card in the mail Wednesday, and it was way too easy.

"They should verify. Somebody should have verified this information and somebody should have come out and took a look at exactly who it was. But I made up a birth date, and I made up a social security number and I had a voter registration card in my hand for Buddy two weeks later," the dog owner said.

KOB Eyewitness News 4 contacted the Bernalillo County Clerk's Office. They said state law does not require proof of your social, your date of birth, or even your name. But they said what this man did is voter fraud.

They also said they strictly look over all the applications that come from third-party registration agencies before sending out registration cards. But this time, Buddy the dog made it through the system.

"We're going to have a lot of people that are registered to vote that shouldn't be able to vote," the dog owner said.

He said he has no intention of voting under Buddy's name.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Well, maybe he will be faithful to his Creator.
Posted by: newc || 03/02/2012 1:59 Comments || Top||

#2  So called Blue Dog Democrat ?
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 2:24 Comments || Top||

#3  In Australia, the voter rolls are publicly released. One of my relatives decided to do a market campaign for his business using the local voter roll. He discovered in the list major errors. He was quite disturbed how many he found.

Posted by: BernardZ || 03/02/2012 5:51 Comments || Top||

#4  Do they have Voter ID in New Mexico? To quote another registered voter, "Hmm, I knew I should've taken that left turn at Albuquerque."
Posted by: Eric Jablow || 03/02/2012 7:40 Comments || Top||

#5  Let him vote; would probably be an improvement over the average voter.
Posted by: Glenmore || 03/02/2012 7:46 Comments || Top||

#6  Another reason the US is sinking into the third world. Politicians just don't care about vote integrity if it might favor them. The Republicans should put vote integrity issues on every state ballot trying to clean things up. Its probably too late now but getting it onto the next election ballot shouldn't be hard. Require ID to vote at a minimum. Perhaps something like requiring ID 6 months ahead of time to get an absentee ballot. Strike everyone from the rolls who does not vote in two elections in a row and have them reregister. Felony charges filed against anyone submitting false names or involved in any election hijinx (including voter intimidation). Separate ballots for national and state elections and have the national ballot a basic scantron style that can be filled out easily and read in seconds. Stuff like that. Basic stuff like that.
Posted by: rjschwarz || 03/02/2012 8:52 Comments || Top||

#7  Actually they're getting serious about it. The current Secretary (R) was elected by the largest state margin in 2010 because her predecessor overtly and publicly did nothing to insure the troops got their ballots in a timely matter. Been a lot of screaming and whining about cleaning the rolls due to the point in the first link that 10 percent of registrations were possible fraud.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 03/02/2012 8:54 Comments || Top||

#8  Kobach in Kansas has written and the legislator has passed tough new voting laws including picture I.D. Of course, it will be challenged in the courts and Sebellius's Kansas Supremes will rule it unconstitutional.
Posted by: bman || 03/02/2012 10:07 Comments || Top||

#9  Just as long as he is not a democrat.
Posted by: newc || 03/02/2012 14:39 Comments || Top||


Arabia
Armed men continue control of major newspaper in Sana'a
[Yemen Post] Dozens of gunnies loyal to the ousted President President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh
... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it...
have been continuing their control on the state-run Al-Thwara Newspaper since the early of February.

The gunnies imposed a siege on the newspaper after an image of Saleh was taken out by the editorial board that aligned with Yemen's populist revolt.

For 33 years, a small photograph of President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ran every day on the top left corner of the front page of al-Thawra.

Now the photo of Saleh was removed a day after the election of Hadi, but the gunnies still surround the headquarters of the paper.

For its part, the Yemeni Information Ministry affirmed that the newspaper are still run by armed gangs that are affiliated with political and security authorities that are still loyal to Saleh.

Sources of the Information Ministry said that most journalists and editors are not able to access to the newspaper, pointing out that its content does not respect the reconciliation agreement reached between Yemenis.

Meanwhile,
...back at the hoedown, Bob finally got to dance with Sally...
the Yemeni Journalist Syndicate called President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi to immediately remove the gunnies and unleash the newspaper.

Yemeni journalists held a meeting at the headquarters of YJS on Wednesday, demanding the Interior Ministry to immediately end the siege, arrest the gunnies and bring them to justice.

They further held the interim government responsible for protecting journalists of the newspaper.

The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Yemeni authorities to end an ongoing siege at the offices of a daily newspaper and ensure the protection of journalists and their equipment.

Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


India-Pakistan
Pakistani Taliban says it killed Chinese woman
[Dawn] A front man for the Pak Taliban has grabbed credit for killing a Chinese woman in the northwestern city of Beautiful Downtown Peshawar.

Taliban front man Mohammad Afridi said on Thursday the woman was targeted to avenge what he said were atrocities carried out by Chinese security forces in the heavily Moslem northwestern region of Xinjiang.

Peshawar police chief Imtiaz Altaf says that faceless myrmidons may have been behind the Tuesday shooting, but that no conclusions had been reached yet.

Gunmen killed the woman in a bazaar in Peshawar along with a local man accompanying her.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: TTP

#1  Brave Lions of Islam.
I'm impressed....not.
Posted by: bigjim-CA || 03/02/2012 13:18 Comments || Top||


Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia
Russia Accuses U.S. of Meddling in Presidential Vote
[An Nahar] Russia on Thursday accused the United States of trying to influence its election process by funding opposition groups in advance of Vladimir Putin
...Second President of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Because of constitutionally mandated term limits he is the current Prime Minister of Russia. His sock puppet, Dmitry Medvedev, was installed in the 2008 presidential elections. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law. During his eight years in office Russia's economy bounced back from crisis, seeing GDP increase, poverty decrease and average monthly salaries increase. During his presidency Putin passed into law a series of fundamental reforms, including a flat income tax of 13%, a reduced profits tax, and new land and legal codes. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile...
's expected return to the Kremlin in the weekend poll.
Egypt just set the stage; expect more of these charges around the world.
The charges came as officials braced for mass protests that have been called for the day after Sunday's election in which the Russian strongman is expected to breeze his way past four weak rivals to a third presidential term.

Investigators began to probe alleged dirty tricks practiced by Putin's opponents while Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov launched a lacerating critique in which he accused the United States of trying to push Russia around.

"The days when Russia could be lectured or preached to are over," Lavrov said in an interview with the online edition of the Rossiyskaya Gazeta government daily.

"Our American partners understand this perfectly well, but the inertia of past approaches and stereotypes in Washington is still evident," Lavrov said.
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  "Our American partners (Obama) understand this perfectly well, but the inertia of past approaches and stereotypes (Reagan) in Washington is still evident," Lavrov said.

Posted by: Besoeker || 03/02/2012 2:47 Comments || Top||

#2  Also from Vlad, CHINA DAILY FORUM > PUTIN: US IS SEEKING "ABSOLUTE INVULNERALILITY" [ geopol
"Utopia], which by Vlad's logic also infers the US desires to possess the ability to make the rest of the World "absolutely vulnerable" to its destructive power.

* ION SAME > NEW NAVY RAILGUN LEADING TO SHIP [Shipboard] SUPERWEAPON BY 2020, throughout the USN Fleet.

* [USAF CoS] SCHWARTZ: SMALLER USAF WILL CONCENTRATE ON KEY CAPABILITIES, namely ...

> AeroSpace Combat.
> Global Surveillance + Reconnaissance.
> Global Mobility
> GLOBAL STRIKE [Prompt Global Strike + Air-Space BMD].

ARISE, STARFLEET COMMAND, ARISE!

versus

* FREEREPUBLIC > OBAMA GIVING AWAY OIL-RICH [Alaskan] ISLANDS TO RUSSIA.

ARTIC = Islands are part of the US sovereign incorporated state of Alaska.

D *** NG IT, ALA HUGO + 1960's-70's GUAM TAOTAMONAS, CLEARLY THE US WILL HAVE TO SINK THE ISLANDS WID NT "EARTHQUAKE/TECTONIC BOMBS" TO PDENIABLY DENY STRATEGIC USE TO THE RUSSKIS!

Iff the NT EQ/Tecton Bombs don't do it, the "fracking" will???
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/02/2012 22:22 Comments || Top||


Good morning
Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Happy Birthday/Daily Gam Shot

Gates McFadden aka Doctor Beverly Crusher in "Star Trek: The Next Generation (TV Series 1987–1994)" aka Beverly in "Star Trek: Generations (1994) & Star Trek: First Contact (1996) & Star Trek: Insurrection (1998) & Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)" aka Martha Stanford in "Make the Yuletide Gay (2009)" aka Caroline Ryan in "The Hunt for Red October (1990)" aka Diane Connors in "Taking Care of Business (1990)" (age 63)



Set Phaser to Stun
Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC || 03/02/2012 0:25 Comments || Top||

#2  I always liked the way she looked.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike || 03/02/2012 5:29 Comments || Top||

#3  Had the pleasure of meeting Miss McFadden some years ago - a charming, funny, and gracious lady.

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski || 03/02/2012 7:12 Comments || Top||

#4  Stretching with Beverly and Troi
Posted by: Scooter McGruder || 03/02/2012 9:52 Comments || Top||

#5  If Miss Held could do something about that dry, fly-away hair, and if she could just get her eyes to look in the same direction at the same time . . . . . . I think she'd be quite attractive . . . . or should I say "would have been quite attractive".
Posted by: Canuckistan sniper || 03/02/2012 18:59 Comments || Top||

#6  "I ain't afraid of heights, snakes or red-headed women."
-- Raylan Givens
Posted by: SteveS || 03/02/2012 19:29 Comments || Top||


Arabia
Efforts to reform Saleh's party
[Yemen Post] Sources close to Deputy Head of the General People Congress Abdul-Karim Al-Iriani has revealed that efforts are exerted to make changes in the ranks of the party.

The sources told Akhbar Alyawam Newspaper that many bigwigs will be replaced, pointing out that officials who are charged with committing violations against human rights
...which often intentionally defined so widely as to be meaningless...
would be replaced.

They said these moves came on the base of recommendations that were provided by ambassadors of the countries tasked with overseeing the implementation of the GCC deal.

The sources anticipated that these changes will come simultaneously with changes of governors and officials of the local authorities.

Yemeni analysts anticipated that the GPC will politically fade away after its long-standing head, the former president of Yemen Ali Abdullah Saelh, who enjoyed strong ties with tribal leaders and powerful figures, abandons politics.

However,
we can't all be heroes. Somebody has to sit on the curb and applaud when they go by...
some high-ranking officials of GPC said that Saleh would not abandon politics and that he would continue on as head of the GPC.

Spokesman of the GPC Abdu Al-Ganadi had affirmed that Saleh intends to keep his position as a head of the GPC.

Meanwhile,
...back at the desert island, Bert was realizing to his horror that he'd had only one bottle for one message, and he'd forgotten to include a return address...
front man of the Islah Party Mohammad Qahtan said Saleh who was granted immunity of prosecution under the GCC deal might be prosecuted in case he continued his political activities.

Saleh frequently emphasized that he desires to stay as the head of GPC, but his opponents hinted that he must leave politics according to the compromise deal.

GPC was founded by Saleh on 1982 in Sana'a, and since then the party has majority inside the parliament. At the last legislative elections, 27 April 2003, the party won 238 out of 301 seats in the Assembly of Representatives.

Posted by: Fred || 03/02/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || E-Mail|| [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring



Who's in the News
41[untagged]
8Arab Spring
4Govt of Pakistan
4Govt of Syria
2Govt of Sudan
1Govt of Iran
1al-Qaeda in Arabia
1TTP
1Hezbollah
1al-Qaeda in Pakistan

Bookmark
E-Mail Me

The Classics
The O Club
Rantburg Store
Comments Spam
The Bloids
The Never-ending Story
Thugburg
RSS Links
Gulf War I
The Way We Were
Bio
Sink Trap

Alzheimer's Association
Day by Day
Counterterrorism
Hair Through the Ages







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
Fri 2012-03-02
  39 Dead as Syrian Army Seizes Baba Amr and Rebels Withdraw 'Tactically'
Thu 2012-03-01
  Syrian rebels pull out of Homs after siege
Wed 2012-02-29
  Singapore: Iran assassination plot against Israeli Defence Minister Barak foiled
Tue 2012-02-28
  Yemen's Saleh formally steps down after 33 years
Mon 2012-02-27
  Congressmen Attacked on Mount of Olives
Sun 2012-02-26
  Afghan interior ministry employee sought in NATO killings
Sat 2012-02-25
  Yemen gets new president after 33 years
Fri 2012-02-24
  Air strke kills al-Shaboobs
Thu 2012-02-23
  Ansar as-Sunna Chief Arrested on Syria-Iraq Border
Wed 2012-02-22
  Hugo has new tumor
Tue 2012-02-21
  Afghans rescue 41 child suicide bombers
Mon 2012-02-20
  Syrian army reinforcements head to Homs
Sun 2012-02-19
  Iran stops oil sales to British, French
Sat 2012-02-18
  SWIFT To Cut Off Iran - No Financial Telecommunications
Fri 2012-02-17
  Feds arrest another thinks-he-is suicide bomber heading to Capitol building

Better than the average link...



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.
54.90.236.179
Paypal:
WoT Operations (25)    Non-WoT (10)    Opinion (7)    (0)    Politix (4)