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IAF hits 2 Hizbullah bases in Bekaa Valley
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Page 1: WoT Operations
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-Short Attention Span Theater-
Paris Honoured
Paris Hilton, that is.
Paris Hilton and her best friend and actress Nicole Richie have been honoured with roads named after them in a small Arkansas town. Altus Mayor Veronica Post says named an intersection in honor of the stars of the reality TV show The Simple Life, which shows the New York socialite asking what a soup kitchen is. The intersection will now be known as Paris Hilton Boulevard and Nicole Richie Avenue. The event, in the town which has a population of around 800, marks the release of The Simple Life on DVD. The entire town was on hand for the unveiling, reports www.katv.com.
I haven't seen The Simple Life. I've heard about her other video, though...
Posted by: tipper || 01/20/2004 9:42:31 PM || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Oooops
Here's the link.
http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_857701.html?menu=news.latestheadlines
Posted by: tipper || 01/20/2004 21:47 Comments || Top||

#2  C'mon, her video wasn't that good.
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 21:54 Comments || Top||

#3  Were those "Y" - shaped roads?
Posted by: Raj || 01/20/2004 22:43 Comments || Top||

#4  One Paris Hilton is suitable for housing German officers of the rank of major and above. The other is suitable merely for the use of German noncoms, a rougher trade to be sure, but one that she is clearly able to handle.

You know you're a lousy actor when you can't even do good porn.
Posted by: Chuck || 01/20/2004 22:51 Comments || Top||

#5  Slinky women, what's not to like. It's not like she has any thing to say that means anything.
Posted by: Lucky || 01/20/2004 23:47 Comments || Top||

#6  bet those roads are driven long and hard in wet and dry conditions...
Posted by: Frank G || 01/21/2004 0:11 Comments || Top||


Rantburg Origin
I've never seen an "about us" about this site. Anyone know when it got started ..etc.

Thanks
Posted by: American Anthem || 01/20/2004 9:26:06 PM || Comments || Link || [10 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Sorry to feed the troll, but I guess the "Bio" link to the right is too obscure?
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 21:46 Comments || Top||

#2  I talked about it once, here...
Posted by: Fred || 01/20/2004 22:00 Comments || Top||

#3  Somehow, though, I don't think the troll will be satisfied.
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 22:04 Comments || Top||

#4  If there were any justice in the world, obviously, we would cater to your equally obvious perceptual handicap by having something other than that obscure Mossad created disinformation piece that Fred chooses to call "bio."

In the interest of justice and diversity, here is the real story (pay attention, the Mossad-minions will sell us to a Brazilian slave dealer if we ever post this again):

Back in 2000, Fred and several other top Zionist agents came to the notice of the fourth dimensional Reptilian Overlords who secretly rule the Earth in cooperation with the Elders of Zion and the Texas Illuminati.

Fred and the others, including my humble self, were recruited with promises of a 7 figure annual stipend and first pick of the kidnapped blonde Aryan chicks who would otherwise join their less fortunate sisters on the Overlords' dinner tables.

Our cell created its secret underground headquarters in a disused uranium mine near Socorro NM, took some web-related courses at the local JC and waited for our activation signal from the top-secret HAARP satellites that form the backbone of our communications system.
The signal came the day after a different cell, headed by Ed Asner (that's called DEEEEP cover) and David Horowitz, destroyed the World Trade Center with a tempero-seismic bomb provided by the Overlords (they billed us for this, but that is all straight now).

We swung into action almost immediately, with Fred playing the role of blog-master and the rest of us pretending to be ordinary unenlightened folks (known in the biz as "pork chops") who come here and post screeds and comments.

Occassionally, some exceptionally courageous resistance fighter, with certain drugs and adhesive products providing an antidote to HAARP signals, will come here and try to disrupt our campaign with an exhibition of highest level LLL debating skills, ie arrogant pronouncements and ugly names.

At the moment, we have concluded a contract to supply the Overlords with ten million head of prime LLL peasant, on the hoof, in return for their new tera-hertz processor and first dibs on Swedish female abductees.
All trolls have been electronically earmarked and will be included when our Grey Alien wranglers fan out and begin the roundup in their special "cattle-car" ufos.
Head 'em up, move 'em out!
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 22:32 Comments || Top||

#5  And I settled for just six figures?

God f@&%'in damn it...
Posted by: Raj || 01/20/2004 22:37 Comments || Top||

#6  OK, OK, Raj
I'll ask the comptroller at Halliburton to raise your stipend.
I know it isn't much, but in the meantime, you can have first pick of the hippy chicks from the last roundup at Berkeley. They're still in the holding pens at Denver International, had to fatten 'em up and cull the diseased ones before they went on to processing.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 22:43 Comments || Top||

#7  Hey! My contract clearly specifies that I get Halle Barry!
Posted by: Patrick Phillips || 01/20/2004 22:44 Comments || Top||

#8  Sorry, no, that says "Halle Sellassie".
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 22:49 Comments || Top||

#9  Damn A.C. Now everyone will want to join!
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 22:52 Comments || Top||

#10  Well, Robert, he is Jesus after all.

So far this year I have been accused of being a Zionist and a lesbian. In fact, I am merely a pitiful creature of the cats known as the Iluminati, having to serve five of the Masters daily. I wish I could have a really good job like the guy who got to measure the gorilla dung in the census, lucky devil!
Posted by: Chuck || 01/20/2004 22:56 Comments || Top||

#11  ...kidnapped blonde Aryan chicks...

Shouldn't that be "sloe-eyed daughters of Arabia"?

I got no need for them, but I have yet to see a single stipend check. Did I forget to sign up or something?
Posted by: Angie Schultz || 01/20/2004 23:11 Comments || Top||

#12  Hey AC -- Ok, ok, the checks are nice, but what's up with the crappy dental plan? You'd think this Zionist-neoconservative conspiracy could come up with decent benefits, at least.
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/21/2004 0:12 Comments || Top||


Canadian Forces Light
Just a little light humor.
Posted by: Cheddarhead || 01/20/2004 6:18:23 PM || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Lord, ain't it the truth...

-Vic
Posted by: Vic || 01/20/2004 18:32 Comments || Top||


Israel added to America’s State Sponsored Terrorist List
Apparently hearing rumors that America will be adding Israel to the list of countries that sponser Terrorism. About time that terrorist regime of Ariel Sharon got their arses kicked.
I remind all posters that articles should be either hard news or commentary that expands our understanding on the mechanism and goals of terrorism.

Please edit all postings for length. Cut the parts that repeat what everybody knows by now because we've seen it so many times before. Try and keep them short and punchy. People try to read this stuff, y'know.

I will delete pure opinion pieces and such purely political hit pieces that bore me. This is because Rantburg concerns itself with the War on Terror. If you want to post Bush hit pieces, go to Indymedia. If you disagree with what Bush does, kindly confine yourself to the comments portion of real articles and take your lumps.

Please do not feed the trolls! I end up leaving troll pieces with a lot of comments because the comments are funnier than the posted article.

If you're a troll, please don't post and then comment on your post under another name. It's tacky.

Thank you,
The Management
Posted by: Bill Blass || 01/20/2004 3:54:34 PM || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Why do you think it is appropriate to abuse Rantburg?
If it is for your "cause", you are only hurting it.
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 15:57 Comments || Top||

#2  Looks like a lot of trolls got away after Modor fell.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 15:57 Comments || Top||

#3  Trolls. We realy got trolls today.
Posted by: doc || 01/20/2004 15:58 Comments || Top||

#4  Doc: not just trolls, but trolls who can't spell "sponsor"
Posted by: PlanetDan || 01/20/2004 16:01 Comments || Top||

#5  "Keep those doggies trollin', Rantburg Rawhide!"
Posted by: Raj || 01/20/2004 16:02 Comments || Top||

#6  I wonder what sludge pit it was that linked Rantburg and sent these dung beetles over here.
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats || 01/20/2004 16:12 Comments || Top||

#7  Appreciate your opinion, Governor Dean.
Posted by: tu3031 || 01/20/2004 16:16 Comments || Top||

#8  spaeaking of trolls whatever happened to our old buddie Faial? he was a real hoot.
Posted by: Jon Shep U.K || 01/20/2004 16:24 Comments || Top||

#9  Boy when Dean gets his ass handed to him the trolls go crazy.
Posted by: djohn66 || 01/20/2004 16:25 Comments || Top||

#10  djohns got it! We need a formula to connect Nakbas to trollage. Mr. Crawford did some breakthrough work on this subject.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 16:31 Comments || Top||

#11  It's sponsor, not sponser. I hate trolls that can't spell.
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 16:57 Comments || Top||

#12  For guys getting off on the word sponsor spelt sponser, haven't you guys heard of a mistype. You guys' are too anal, or maybe that's the way you like it done to you.
Posted by: Redneck || 01/20/2004 18:19 Comments || Top||

#13  Heck I think we Americans should go to war against Israel, its about time we taught that Neo-Nazi government a lesson or too. Who's with me ?
Posted by: Loser || 01/20/2004 18:21 Comments || Top||

#14  Jon Shep U.K - forget Faial, he just a ranting idiot. What I want to know is where is Murat - at least Murat could intelligently argue his point.
Posted by: Dan || 01/20/2004 18:23 Comments || Top||

#15  Murat shows up only when American soldiers die in large numbers. In his uncontained rapture he then comes to Rantburg and rejoices.
Posted by: Rafael || 01/20/2004 18:34 Comments || Top||

#16  This baord deals with War on Terror, seems more like a board for you bigots to rant about arabs and non-Jews. It a free country, I post whatever the hell I want prick
Posted by: IDF Destroyer || 01/20/2004 18:36 Comments || Top||

#17  Hey, I got squished when you took out the trash on this thread. Whitecollar redneck is one of the good guys.
Thanks.
Posted by: whitecollar redneck || 01/20/2004 18:52 Comments || Top||

#18  Hmmm. Hates Jews? Check. Hates Israel? Check. Poor grammar and profanity? Check. Can't tell the difference between those who blow up terrorists and those who blow up schoolbuses? Check. Can't tell the difference between an ally and an enemy? Check.

Yep. The idiotarian trolls are out in force today!
Posted by: Scooter McGruder || 01/20/2004 18:52 Comments || Top||

#19  #16
I delete whatever the hell I want, prick.

The urge to throw the charge of bigotry around seems to be insurmountable among ignorant lefties.

Feel free to read the posts. They go back to 9-11-01. You might learn something. But I doubt it.
Posted by: Fred || 01/20/2004 18:55 Comments || Top||

#20  And I take offense when dipshits abuse the handle "redneck". Try something else boy.
Posted by: whitecollar redneck || 01/20/2004 18:56 Comments || Top||

#21  heh heh - aroused the Master Fred - not good troll-boy
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 19:12 Comments || Top||

#22  Fred has been much too lenient recently.
Posted by: Rafael || 01/20/2004 19:21 Comments || Top||

#23  I've just developed a new troll-tool. It's 24 inches long, white ash, turned to 1 1/2", with a 5" turned handle. I've drilled six holes at 60-degree offset, 4" apart, beginning at the handguard going up to 1/2" below the top. I've taken #24 barbed wire, and braided it through the holes, wrapping the wire around the tool tightly, so at least three barbs are present between each hole. I've attached #4-0 treble snagging hooks to the barbed wire in three places between each hole. To use, insert the troll-tool anally to the hand grip, turn 180 degrees, pull out as fast as possible, and walk away.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 19:37 Comments || Top||

#24  Boy when Dean gets his ass handed to him the trolls go crazy.

Good catch! The Deaniacs are out in force!
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 19:58 Comments || Top||

#25  If there was justice in the world they would have been added. But us American's don't have the balls to do that.
Posted by: American Anthem || 01/20/2004 21:22 Comments || Top||

#26  Fred should post a little link that goes to OP's description of the troll-tool. The link would be the " troll policy" page.
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 21:38 Comments || Top||

#27  Not to be too conspiratorially minded, but this troll infestation could be a group effort by a few misguided f**ks.... oops... folks rather than happenstance. IP's anyone?
Posted by: whitecollar redneck || 01/20/2004 22:32 Comments || Top||

#28  OP (channeling Will Smith) - I gotta get me one of these!!
Posted by: Raj || 01/20/2004 22:33 Comments || Top||

#29  No, Raj, you can only have the Noisy Crickett.
Posted by: Phil Fraering || 01/21/2004 0:04 Comments || Top||


HATE MAIL
Brian Whitaker, Guardian, 1/19/04
http://www.guardian.co.uk/elsewhere/journalist/story/0,7792,1126294,00.html

Deborah Fink is a singer and music teacher living in London. She is also
Jewish. Last month, out of the blue, she received a deluge of hateful
emails - more than 150 in the space of a week.

One came from a rabbi in New York, informing her: "Your soul, my dear, is
petrified and lost." Another said, menacingly: "Hitler killed the wrong Jews."

Yet another - ostensibly from a Jewish doctor of medicine in the US -
elaborated on the Holocaust theme. "Too bad Hitler didn’t get your family,"
it said. "With six million Jews dieing [sic] 60 year [sic] ago it’s a shame
scum like you somehow managed to survive."

What, exactly, had Ms Fink done to deserve this vitriol? The short answer
is that she had been planning to sing.

Ms Fink is a member of Just Peace UK, a mainly, but not exclusively, Jewish group opposing the Israeli occupation and seeking "a viable and sovereign Palestinian state alongside a safe and secure Israel, with Jerusalem as the shared capital of both states..."

I remind all posters that articles should be either hard news or commentary that expands our understanding on the mechanism and goals of terrorism.

Please edit all postings for length. Cut the parts that repeat what everybody knows by now because we've seen it so many times before. Try and keep them short and punchy. People try to read this stuff, y'know.

I will delete pure opinion pieces and such purely political hit pieces that bore me. This is because Rantburg concerns itself with the War on Terror. If you want to post Bush hit pieces, go to Indymedia. If you disagree with what Bush does, kindly confine yourself to the comments portion of real articles and take your lumps.

Please do not feed the trolls! I end up leaving troll pieces with a lot of comments because the comments are funnier than the posted article.

If you're a troll, please don't post and then comment on your post under another name. It's tacky.

Thank you,
The Management
Posted by: Friendly Jew || 01/20/2004 3:25:14 PM || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Good to see that their are members of the Jewish faith that do not agree with the Nazi policies of Israel.

If only the current American administration could put an end to its double standards and take charge of the Palestine/Israel conflict.
Posted by: Jew for Peace || 01/20/2004 15:28 Comments || Top||

#2  occupation huh? do they oppose splodeydope booming of innocent civilians (Arab and Jew) indiscrimintely? Do they oppose a fence stopping terror attacks? Do they propose rewarding terror attacks by giving away half of Jerusalem? DO they oppose street killings of Paleos accused of collaborating? What about Honor/Shame killings? What about the outright corruption and theft of Paleo funds by the Arafat regime?

Just Peace huh?
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 15:29 Comments || Top||

#3  Hey Jew for Peace: fuck off.
Posted by: Unmutual || 01/20/2004 15:30 Comments || Top||

#4  A real Jew would never call Israel's policies "Nazi" ...nice, post the article(whhich is not news) and then comment on it...
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 15:31 Comments || Top||

#5  I agree the American administration has long served only the interest of the a few strong interest groups and in fact has ended up tarnishing the diplomatic image it once had.

We need to take back America and stop listening to self-serving interest groups. Funny when we try and tell Israel to play fair, they just bite back at us. And yet we support them as if our countries well being depended on them.
Posted by: Bonehead || 01/20/2004 15:32 Comments || Top||

#6  It's really obvious when junior high is done and the trolls go out to play, isn't it?
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 15:33 Comments || Top||

#7  Jew for Peace; Why is it Americas job too take action on this matter? Any time America gets involved in anything then we are "nosey" and should mind our own buisness. Learn too deal with your own problems instead of wanting someone too for you.
Posted by: smokeysinse || 01/20/2004 15:34 Comments || Top||

#8  Frank G - I think you need to pull your head at of your arse. Palestinians have every right to fight, too bad you get your news from CNN. Try watching a real news station like the BBC where the tell what's really going on over there. Your just a big bigot and I'm sure your proud of it
Posted by: Bonehead || 01/20/2004 15:34 Comments || Top||

#9  what a stupid unthoughtfull women this is,after all the continual struggle for Israel this dumb bitch starts singing to give it all back,what a din-low.And as for living peacefully with the palo's,well thats just idiotic to think that could happen even in 1000years.
Posted by: Jon Shep U.K || 01/20/2004 15:35 Comments || Top||

#10  Frank G - what do you call the policies of Israel - fair. Man you need to stop smoking the weed. Let me ask you one other question, have you stopped beating your mom ?
Posted by: Dilbert || 01/20/2004 15:37 Comments || Top||

#11  Isreal is untouchable .... we will nuke anyone that messes with us. Hey we are the only other country after America that had planned to use our nukes.

Power is everything.
Posted by: Bombem || 01/20/2004 15:39 Comments || Top||

#12  I'm turning on the com light. Hi guys welcome to Rantburg. Is math hard?
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:40 Comments || Top||

#13  Dhimmi Alert!
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 15:43 Comments || Top||

#14  Ah. Junior high. When stupidity outweighs all else.
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 15:44 Comments || Top||

#15  Frank G - "A real Jew would never call Israel's policies "Nazi". Well I'm a so called real Jew and I believe that the Israel is very wrong in their treatment of the Palestinians. Judaism does not teach us to treat others in such a way, we should be role models. You are the one who is not a real Jew.
Posted by: Tao Gold - Australia || 01/20/2004 15:46 Comments || Top||

#16  Trolls. Fresh trolls. We got trolls. Get them while they're hot.
Posted by: doc || 01/20/2004 15:47 Comments || Top||

#17  HMmmmm. Bonehead,eh? Such an appropos sobriquet.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 15:48 Comments || Top||

#18  This is my first time on this site.
Posted by: Redneck || 01/20/2004 15:50 Comments || Top||

#19  Seem's like you bigots just can't stand Israel bashers.
Posted by: Redneck || 01/20/2004 15:51 Comments || Top||

#20  LOL Redneck!
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:53 Comments || Top||

#21  Give me a break. The LAST thing the paleos want, or need, is their own country. Can you imagine if they didn't have the Jooooos to blame for their situation? The infighting that would arise? The corruption? The incompetence? The greed? They'd find some way to blame Israel. They'd have to. Besides, Arafat's making too much money this way. I'm sure he'd rather be a successful terror leader versus a failed country head.

Plus, who's Israel supposed to negotiate with?!?! Hamas? Islamic Jihad? Al Aqsa? They're too busy calling for pushing the Joooos into the sea.

Jew for peace. Give me a break.

Build the wall. Let the paleos reap what they have sown.

Posted by: PlanetDan || 01/20/2004 16:00 Comments || Top||

#22  Listen guys, I know that Dean got creamed last night, but we didn't have anything to do with it - I don't live anywhere near Iowa!
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 16:11 Comments || Top||

#23  "I agree the American administration has long served only the interest of the a few strong interest groups and in fact has ended up tarnishing the diplomatic image it once had.

We need to take back America and stop listening to self-serving interest groups. " Bonehead.


I agree 100% with that part of your post, the US should not be listening to or kow-towing to Saudi Arabia. The rest of what you say is subintelligent. I also think the US should stop jerking Israel around and let them do what has to be done to secure their borders and the peace but then what do I know. I prefer a brief war followed by a lasting Peace to decades of hot air and plans, and expoded buses filled with body parts, and promises of genocide.
Posted by: ruprecht || 01/20/2004 16:12 Comments || Top||

#24  Good to see that their are members of the Jewish faith that do not agree with the Nazi policies of Israel.

Actually, it's Muslims who use Nazi methods of torture and massacre. Just check out what happens to non-Muslim minorities in many Muslim countries, who are persecuted and discriminated against. Also check out the unwillingness of Muslims to live as minorities in non-Muslim countries, with numerous armed rebellions and terror attacks against the non-Muslim majorities.

On the issue of Jews who side with their Muslim murderers, there will always be Jews who side with the enemy against their co-religionists. As the Romans approached the gates of Jerusalem, Jews fought each other instead of their common enemy. It's actually telling about Islam how few Muslims will side with the good guys against Muslim mass murderers.

If only the current American administration could put an end to its double standards and take charge of the Palestine/Israel conflict.

I can agree with this statement - we need to stop imposing double standards on Israel and give them the green light to impose regime change on the Palestinian Authority. Unfortunately, the State Department flunkeys who treasure our relations with the Muslim world won't let this happen.
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 01/20/2004 16:27 Comments || Top||

#25  Tao Gold,
You miserable coward, I have a suggestion of how you can be role model. Schlepp your arse over here to Israel and get yourself blown to pieces by one of your suicidal Pali friends.
It seems you are too good at giving moral advice from a safe distance.
Posted by: The Dodo || 01/20/2004 16:32 Comments || Top||

#26  I take your attack as a compliment, idiot, and no I'm not Jewish, and neither are you....
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 16:43 Comments || Top||

#27  that was directed of course to Jew for Peace = Tao Gold = Bonehead = Dilbert = Bombem = Redneck ;-)
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 16:46 Comments || Top||

#28  Most middle schoolers these days don't care about politics. No, I think these are simply stubborn adults who don't know how to face the truth when it is presented to them. Stupidty is not always the curse of youth...
Posted by: S || 01/20/2004 16:52 Comments || Top||

#29  *Stupidity.
OK, mabye I was wrong about that curse part...Don't blame me for my spelling, I'm young...
Posted by: S || 01/20/2004 16:54 Comments || Top||

#30  I think everyone should get real excited and upset when a troll shows up. We wouldnt want them to not get the attention they so deeply crave right???? the more hysterical their logic, the more it should concern us, since such logic is especially persuasive to the various folks who might find their way here. The more it drives up our blood pressure the better.

also failing to react viscerally to trolls just MIGHT allow blogs and the internet to serve as useful discussion forums - which MIGHT lessen the role of real life, lead to things like the Dean campaign, Atrios, and neo-pets, and other affronts to western civilization(TM - Samuel Huntington)

So puhleeze, folks, never miss a chance to argue with a troll.
Posted by: bloggers for trolling || 01/20/2004 17:00 Comments || Top||

#31  Frank,
Is the continuously changing name by the poster of the article in the comment section fool me into thinking that there is a ground swelling of support for this individuals assinine ideas? I'm new at the blog thing - am I supposed to pretend that these commenters are more than one person? I don't want to spoil the game or anything.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 17:03 Comments || Top||

#32  SH - no one EVER changes their nickname, when posting to a forum like this. Whenever you see a different name you should assume a different person is posting, even if they are saying largely the same thing, and just coincidentally show up at the same time on the same thread.

I hope this helps.
Posted by: trollers for blogging || 01/20/2004 17:07 Comments || Top||

#33  Well I'm a so called real Jew and I believe that the Israel is very wrong in their treatment of the Palestinians.

Apparently, the message here seems to be that "humiliation" of Palestinians by Israeli policies carries the same weight as indiscriminate murder of Israeli civilians by Palestinian suicide bombings.

Nice. Problem is, only suckers buy this line.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 17:18 Comments || Top||

#34  I don't trust this Blogger's for Trolling. I think trolls can change their names, it goes against all science but then again who knows. what secrets they have. I miss our house trolls.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 17:32 Comments || Top||

#35  First... I doubt the self proclaimed martyr got the e-mails...
Second... appeasement of murderers deserves criticism
Third... 'Fink'? is a Fink?

I call bullshit.
Posted by: DANEgerus || 01/20/2004 17:57 Comments || Top||

#36  Ok, redneck so show us your bona fides. Ever gut a deer, butcher a hog or help a stranded stranger by the side of the road? Otherwise choose a handle like Metrosexual.
Posted by: whitecollar redneck || 01/20/2004 18:21 Comments || Top||

#37  Bomb-a-rama: "humiliation" of Palestinians by Israeli policies carries the same weight as indiscriminate murder of Israeli civilians by Palestinian suicide bombings.

You call Israel's human rights abuses 'humiliation'. Man once again seems Israeli policy supporters have their head up their arse.
Posted by: IDF Destroyer || 01/20/2004 18:33 Comments || Top||

#38  "IDF Destroyer"? That's a good one....tell me, you still live in your mama's basement, or have you moved back into the bedroom she turned into a crafts room yet?
Is it just me, or do these guys remind anyone else of that old SNL skit with William Shatner?
;) "You! I bet you've never even kissed a girl!"
(Sorry Frank....I know not to feed the trolls, but I couldn't resist....)
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/20/2004 19:28 Comments || Top||

#39  May Gld Bless Ariel Sharon and the IDF
Posted by: badanov || 01/20/2004 19:31 Comments || Top||

#40  We need to chip in and buy these trolls a burqa and ship them to Pakistan as "war brides". I'm sure they'd love it.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 19:41 Comments || Top||

#41  Nice comments in the posted article by the man who pays the rent. Thanks Fred for leaving the exchanges up. I liked the one where the ignorant troll called Frank G. a jew.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 20:54 Comments || Top||

#42  OP War brides? I love it! Especially of the trolls are male :).
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 21:21 Comments || Top||

#43  Great, Dean shows himself for the loser he is and the trolls come marching out. Somebody call Jeff Foxworthy and place a order for 'stupid' signs.
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 21:48 Comments || Top||

#44  Oh, this time let ME staple the signs to them! I promise not to use a nailgun again!
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 21:51 Comments || Top||

#45  If Israelis were really acting like Nazis, they'd have quickly rounded up 6 million Palistinians and gassed them. End of story. Arafat would have been gone long ago.

Trolls are definitely in season. If they aren't kids, then they are illiterate and/or stupid adults. And you know what? Call me arrogant, but either way it bums me out that their votes count as much as mine.
Posted by: Ughman || 01/20/2004 22:43 Comments || Top||

#46  God, what a really cool thread. Been gone all day and shit really hits the fan. Hat tip to Desert Blonde and of course all the Rantburgers. Just wish I could have been here.

But in my own two words, Quote. "Pincer the bastards."

Shep. I'm sorry, I will forever quote the quote.
Posted by: Lucky || 01/21/2004 0:39 Comments || Top||


BIGOTRY’S STING LINKS BLACKS, IMMIGRANTS
Mary Mogan Edwards
Today’s celebrations of Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy might make the civil-rights movement of the 1960s seem like a matter of history, but people caught in a modern-day struggle feel a connection to those who looked to King for leadership 40 years ago. They are people routinely held up by airport authorities, glared at by strangers or rejected by employers, in part because they are Muslim, foreign or look like one or both. And they have a new respect for black Americans’ complaints of racism...
Y'know, formerly I could look at a Muslim and just see a person. Then Osama bin Laden declared war on us and killed almost 3000 of us in New York and Washington. Now, no matter how multicultural I might want to be, I see Muslims in a new light. And it might be a bad thing. I'm sure the nice Somali lady who works at the convenience store has no intention of doing terrible things. I'm sure that the Moroccan guy on the third floor at work is nothing but a competent programmer. I'm sure the Arabian guy who's the mechanic at the Shell station's just another hard-working American. But I'm not totally sure anymore. It was't Norwegians who hijacked the planes. It wasn't Lutherans who crashed them into the Twin Towers.
Arab-Americans and others with perceived Middle Eastern ties "are finding out what it feels like to face racial profiling," said U.S. Rep. Jesse L. Jackson Jr., who spoke Thursday as part of Ohio State University’s observance of the King holiday. Jackson, an Illinois Democrat, is a son of the Rev. Jesse Jackson, a civil-rights leader.
He's the legitimate scion, right?
King would have found common cause with today’s targets of anti-Muslim bigotry, the younger Jackson said.
Always assuming he hadn't been flying out of Boston on September 11th, 2001, of course...
He added, however, that King would have expanded the issue — as he did with black civil rights — to one of broader moral significance for all Americans. "He would have made the case that unborn and uncounted Americans will reap the hostility of the whole world, brought on by these policies," Jackson said.
How about the dead Americans, Jesse Jr.? What do they reap?
Christine Ballengee-Morris, the director of Ohio State’s Multicultural Center, spent the 2002-03 academic year talking with students about how different cultural groups in America are getting along in the era of homeland security and the Patriot Act. Ballengee-Morris has seen black students and Muslims looking at one another in a new light...
You mean she's seen the black guys looking at the guys with turbans and wondering if the guys with turbans were going to explode? I can understand that.
Muslims and Arabs in America are more likely now to join blacks in the continuing push for equality, said Asma Mobin-Uddin, vice president of the Ohio chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "We are more aware of it now because we have become the potential victims," she said. Some "feel bad that we weren’t more active before. We might have seen discrimination, we might have been outraged by it, but we might not have been moved to take extra steps against it."
But not moved enough to take strong action against the guys with the automatic weapons. How many has CAIR turned in? I think the numbers approximately... ummm... zero.
An alliance between the black and immigrant communities would please lawyer Byron Potts, who would stand to make a lot of money from class action suits has represented blacks in civil-rights cases. "I think it should bridge the gap (between the groups)," he said. "Historically, when people come over here, they try to distance themselves from African-Americans. They know how African-Americans are treated." Blacks should return the empathy to immigrants and Arab-Americans, he said, because the struggle that King led continues. "We’re still on the list," he said of blacks. "We need to form an
allegiance and become partners."
Sounds like our enemy is looking for potential allies. Divide and conquer and all that stuff. But it wasn't blacks who flew the planes into the buildings, either.

I remind all posters that articles should be either hard news or commentary that expands our understanding on the mechanism and goals of terrorism.

Please edit all postings for length. Cut the parts that repeat what everybody knows by now because we've seen it so many times before. Try and keep them short and punchy. People try to read this stuff, y'know.

I will delete pure opinion pieces and such purely political hit pieces that bore me. This is because Rantburg concerns itself with the War on Terror. If you want to post Bush hit pieces, go to Indymedia. If you disagree with what Bush does, kindly confine yourself to the comments portion of real articles and take your lumps.

Please do not feed the trolls! I end up leaving troll pieces with a lot of comments because the comments are funnier than the posted article.

If you're a troll, please don't post and then comment on your post under another name. It's tacky.

Thank you,
The Management

Posted by: Cheddarhead || 01/20/2004 3:19:51 PM || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  boo frickin' hoo. Don't like profiling at airports? Wait til you see what it's like if 15 Saudis fly another jet into an American institution. Profiling will be the least of your worries
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 15:24 Comments || Top||

#2  Cry me a river. It isn't the blacks, orientals, indians, or hispanics who are blowing themselves up, smuggling explosives onto airplanes, or flying jets into skyscrapers. As far as I'm concerned, go ahead and search every ME passport holder's bags and refuse entry into the country to anyone from the region.
Posted by: Unmutual || 01/20/2004 15:42 Comments || Top||

#3  En-slavers and slaves a natural alliance.
This is the competition?
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:42 Comments || Top||

#4  OP, are you aware of the modern day slavery in Sudan?
Probably not.
As you really could care less as it doesn't fit your political agenda right?
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 16:03 Comments || Top||

#5  The funny thing here is that the Arab word for black person is the same as the word for slave. How's that for Arab sensitivity?
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 01/20/2004 16:35 Comments || Top||

#6  Yeah...well I'm held up in airports too, hours every single time I fly. I also am exposed to suspicious looks from TSA officials and they confiscate my personal belongings, should I forget and leave a nail clipper or pocket knife in my bag.

So whine and cry all you want. But don't look for any sympathy from me. This victim schtick is old, tired and not just working any more. Deal with it.
Posted by: B || 01/20/2004 16:40 Comments || Top||

#7  And they have a new respect for black Americans’ complaints of racism...

Probably because they now understand that the system can be milked by crying racism, regardless of whether there's a valid claim of actual racism or not. All it takes is someone being overly concerned with being PC......

Arab-Americans and others with perceived Middle Eastern ties "are finding out what it feels like to face racial profiling," said U.S. Rep. Jesse L. Jackson Jr., who spoke Thursday as part of Ohio State University’s observance of the King holiday.

Sigh. Like father, like son. Jesse Jr. carries on the same shameful legacy of Victimhood&trade. So when dealing with Islamic terrorists, where is one supposed to look? In Finland? Please.

As the old saying goes: "The race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but that's the way to bet."

Muslims and Arabs in America are more likely now to join blacks in the continuing push for equality, said Asma Mobin-Uddin, vice president of the Ohio chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

WTF is this guy talking about?

"We’re still on the list," he said of blacks.

All these eternal-victim types need to get over it.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 17:54 Comments || Top||

#8  All right, who's this "TS" idiot, and why is he dragging me into this idiocy? Yes, I'm aware of the slavery in Sudan. I'm also aware that, although Saudi Arabia has said they've ended slavery, there are still some really peculiar things going on in Riyadh, mostly in "palaces". I'm also aware of slavery in Burma, parts of India, Indonesia, and a few other unsavory places, including some really nasty crap going on in Paraguay and parts of Brazil. I also know that Islam not only condones slavery, but promotes it.

My name's on the long list of volunteers willing to go to Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, and a few dozen other places to help clean out these pestholes of their "Islamic" clerics, rulers, and just plain ass-hats. It's time to flush the whole damned thing back into the Arabian Sea, and let it sink.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 20:06 Comments || Top||

#9  BAR -- The Ohio chapter of CAIR was, I believe, part of the effort that shut down a local play that was so ass-kissingly approving of Palestinian terrorism it was a parody. Apparently they objected to the portrayal of a Palestinian teenage girl in terms that a US audience would associate with teenage girls: worried about boys, clothes, music, etc.

CAIR is an Islamist group, and the local nutjobs are no exception.
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 20:08 Comments || Top||

#10  I was watching FOX the other day and they interviewed some person who was advocating 'Post Slavery Stress Disorder' which was of course a disorder for the descendant of slaves. I think this person wanted some federal funds or something to 'treat' this illness.

I find it remarkable that Jesse Jackson, and his associates are supporting a organization which condones and encourages slavery...... how Ironic.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 23:36 Comments || Top||

#11  Ass kick'n Rantburg. I could use some proactive love. Group hug!!
Posted by: Lucky || 01/21/2004 0:07 Comments || Top||


Red Army Joins Struggle to Save Beer
Russia has sent in the army to bolster a week-long struggle to rescue 10 tons of beer trapped under Siberian ice, Itar-Tass news agency said Tuesday. A lorry carrying the beer sank when trying to cross the frozen Irtysh river, and a rescue team of six divers, 10 workers and a modified T-72 tank from the emergencies ministry have so far failed to save the load.
If only that Russian sub had a load of beer......
"The situation hasn’t developed according to our ideal scenario," the deputy head of the Cherlaksky region, told the agency. Temperatures were around minus 27 degrees Celsius (minus 17 degrees Fahrenheit) in the region, near the Siberian city of Omsk and around 1,400 miles from Moscow.
Well, it’ll keep the beer nice and frosty.
A week-long effort to cut a 100 yard corridor to the river bank to pull the truck to dry land failed when the vehicle was swept away from the rescue site, Tass said. But it said the soldiers were confident it would take them just a day to retrieve the beer.
And then it will disapear just as fast.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 12:03:25 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Russian Beer was horrific.... is it worth fighting for now?
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 12:13 Comments || Top||

#2  "We must save Comrade Brewski!"
Posted by: Mike || 01/20/2004 12:27 Comments || Top||

#3  This reads like a bizarre story problem. In the U.S. Army, the solution would be: "Sergeant, there's beer under the ice. Go get it."

[Sounds of shouting and running feet as the Sergeant frantically tries to rein in the troops.]
Posted by: Patrick Phillips || 01/20/2004 12:29 Comments || Top||

#4  Yes, Patrick, but that just illustrates the difference between the US command structure, which devolves tactical decisions downward to our highly professional NCOs, vs. the central decision-making model the Soviets bequeathed to Russia. [smile]
Posted by: rkb || 01/20/2004 12:56 Comments || Top||

#5  Patrick, you are close, but if you were to call in the Navy, any Chief Petty Officer worth his anchors would get the beer, no sweat.
Posted by: USN, retired || 01/20/2004 14:15 Comments || Top||

#6  Bah, only -17°? Strip down to your o.d. boxers, dive to the truck, and drink the beer in place.
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 15:13 Comments || Top||

#7  Mmmmmmmmmmmmm beeeeeeeeeerrrr
Posted by: Unmutual || 01/20/2004 15:43 Comments || Top||

#8  Baltika No. 7 isn't bad Russian beer.
But Russians think that anybody who drinks beer are pansies.
Posted by: Baltic Blog || 01/20/2004 16:41 Comments || Top||

#9  Okay Mr. B. Blog if it's improved then we need to send what help we can. I am willing to supervise if someone will send airfare.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 18:11 Comments || Top||

#10  Baltika, huh? Do I sense some cheering for the home team? :)

Some of the Ukie beers aren't bad either - though the Russians I had some with at first were convinced they were a Russian brand :)

What's best about Russian beer in Moscow or Peter is the fact that you can buy it at a kiosk on the street and drink it there - made me feel delightfully sinful, somehow. Dunno if you can do that in the States, but here in Canuckistan, it's a no-no...

-Vic
Posted by: Vic || 01/20/2004 18:42 Comments || Top||

#11  Reminds me of that movie that Howard Hughes was obsessed with. Ice Station Zima.

(The only difference, if it were Zima, no one would care)
Posted by: Penguin || 01/20/2004 19:28 Comments || Top||


Karma’s Revenge
The inner thoughts of Britain’s wartime leader Winston Churchill live on, thanks to the foul mouth of his 104-year-old parrot who lives at a garden centre in southeast England. "F*** Hitler! F*** the Nazis!" says Charlie, a female blue and gold macaw which Churchill bought in 1937, two years before the outbreak of World War II in Europe.

"Parrots are remarkably adept at mimicking sounds and voices," says an article about Charlie in the February issue of Jack, a British men’s magazine, which hits the newsstands on Thursday. "So when Charlie gives her opinion of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, it is rendered with a Churchillian inflection," it said. Following Churchill’s death in 1965, Charlie was sold to pet shop owner Peter Oram, who keeps her at the garden centre in Reigate, Surrey, where she wanders around the grounds in summer but stays indoors in the winter. "She is a very old parrot," Sylvia Martin, who works with Oram, told Jack. "She has become increasingly quarrelsome — and, if the truth be told, is now looking a little scruffy."
Give the parrot a scotch on my tab.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 11:30:45 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Wow, I first heard this story on Howard Stern show this morning. Since when does that windbag "scoop" the Rantburg News Network?
Posted by: Capsu78 || 01/20/2004 11:37 Comments || Top||

#2  If it were April....
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 11:47 Comments || Top||

#3  I agree with Shipman.
Posted by: B || 01/20/2004 13:55 Comments || Top||

#4  There's nothing finer than a 104-year-old anti-idiotarian parrot.
Posted by: Unmutual || 01/20/2004 15:46 Comments || Top||

#5  We need to unbox Winston... the undertakers didn't need to use any extra uhhhh preservatives so he's good to go less a new liver & small motor funtions. Or perhaps we could clone the gentleman and implant same in Chelsea's womb.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:51 Comments || Top||

#6  Shipman, do you think the parrot or the reanimated corpse would do the best job of leading France?
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 17:08 Comments || Top||

#7  Damn SH that's a toughie. It would depend on how much Winston conversed in French in front of the parrot. I understand that Mr. Churchhill spoke the language well... but I don't know... nasty visions of a nude winnie with a Cuban blunt babbling to his secretary with an elderly parrot listening.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 17:39 Comments || Top||

#8  That Parrot is going to live longer than most of the people on this planet? I didn't know seeing a naked, fat man could prolong your life...
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 22:00 Comments || Top||


Gambling-Mad Aussies Flock to Annual Cockroach Race
I think this might be off topic.
Gambling-mad Australians, teased for willingly betting on two flies crawling up a wall, have expanded their horizons — now they’re placing bets on cockroaches. A record crowd of more than 7,000 betters is expected to attend the 23rd annual Cockroach Races in the east coast city of Brisbane Jan. 26, Australia’s national day, with some bringing their own runners and others buying competitors there.
Oooh! Mom! Take me there!
"More and more people are coming to town especially for this premier racing event, where everyone can be the owner of a thoroughbred," said organizer Richard Deery, general manager of Brisbane’s Story Bridge Hotel that hosts the races. As the story goes, the race dates back to the day 23 years ago when two old betters were sitting in the bar arguing over which suburb had the biggest and fastest cockroaches. Australia is home to about 450 native species of cockroach, which are not pests and are mainly bush dwellers, and also has around six species of pest cockroach, most of them introduced from outside the continent and that now plague almost every house. The two betters decided to race some roaches the next day -- and history was made.

Australians have the highest rate of gambling in the world, a passion dating back to when the first convict settlers, shipped out from Britain in 1788, reportedly bet on cards and dice. By the early 1800s, horse racing was the rage but this has now been overtaken by the flashing slot or poker machines that line the walls of almost every pub, hotel and casino. More than 20 percent of the world’s poker machines are in Australia, about five times as many as in the United States on a per capita basis. National gambling statistics released late last year showed Australians gambled away a record A$15 billion ($12 billion) in the year to June 2002 -- nearly two percent of Gross Domestic Product and slightly more than the nation’s defense budget. The nation grinds to a standstill every year for the Melbourne Cup horse race and the nation’s richest man, Kerry Packer, is an unrepentant gambler, known for spending millions at the baccarat table.

Packer probably won’t be spotted cheering on his favorite roach, but Deery said increasing numbers of people were heading to Brisbane to bet on the 14 races that are run over the day with contestants encouraged to train and bring their own cockroaches. Last year’s winner, Osama bin Liner, was lovingly reared by his owners who turned up on the day in full beards and headwear, dressed as the world’s most wanted man. Other past winners include Drain Lover, whose name plays on that of two-time Melbourne Cup winner Rain Lover, Millennium Bug and Guns’n Roaches, whose contestants modeled themselves on the rock band Gun’N Roses, carrying their roaches in boxes shaped like tiny guitars. Deery said people who lacked time to trap and train their own six-legged runners could buy a cockroach from the house stable for A$5 but warned that demand always outstripped supply. All funds raised go to a local children’s hospital. The races are held on a circular track with the cockroaches released from an upturned bucket in the middle. First to the edge is the winner. The steeplechase event is a bit trickier with the runner having to navigate a circular fence — well, a garden hose — to get to the edge. Deery said the same cockroach can be entered in any number of events for a $5 fee, if you can catch it after the first race. "But for the animals it is short-term success and glory as most don’t last to return the next year," said Deery. "They meet a varied end. One year the steward threw a handful into the crowd, while another year one better was talked into eating one, all in the name of charity."
Posted by: tipper || 01/20/2004 8:22:29 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  1-800-BETMYWIFE.
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 8:29 Comments || Top||

#2  As the story goes, the race dates back to the day 23 years ago when two old betters were sitting in the bar arguing over which suburb had the biggest and fastest cockroaches.

I'll vouch for the large-sized buggers. I saw a few biggies while spending some time on the Holiday Coast. Squashing them with a well-placed shoe would probably have resulted in a very loud POP.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 10:11 Comments || Top||

#3  EEEyuck
Posted by: raptor || 01/20/2004 11:05 Comments || Top||

#4  They had one in Iowa last night, and there's another next week in New Hampshire.

Ooops, sorry, that's the Democrat primary, not the . . . well, . . . they're hard to tell apart sometimes.
Posted by: Mike || 01/20/2004 11:07 Comments || Top||

#5  Is Blue Velvet running this year?
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 11:49 Comments || Top||


Another Darwin Award Contender
Police said a group of teens gathered at a park at Greeley Street and Rideout Way over the weekend to re-enact a stunt they had seen on the MTV program "Jackass."
Yup, another one of those.....
The teens attached a rope to a merry-go-round and tied the other end to a pickup truck. When the truck went forward, the ride would spin. Bobbi MacKinnon, 16, was killed when she was thrown 75 feet from the ride and landed in the street.
At least she got some good hang time.
The show does warn viewers
over and over
not to attempt any of the stunts, but MacKinnon’s friends and family say it’s not enough.
"They shoulda had Barney and the Teletubbies saying you could get bad boo-boos!"
"The audience it was aimed at doesn’t pay attention," MacKinnon’s grandmother, Pat Fleck, said.
I bet Bobbi’s buddies will pay attention now....maybe not
"I see the little thing on the TV show ...’Don’t try this at home.’ Yeah right ... I mean if they can do it, we can do it," future Darwin Award contender friend Andrew Royster said. Nationally, several teens have voluntarily kept themselves from contaminating the gene pool been killed or seriously injured in recent years after performing stunts they said they had seen on "Jackass."
Somebody told me once that Jackass has killed more people than John Wesley Hardin did. I dunno if it's true or not, but it sounds right...
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/20/2004 1:29:37 AM || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Some folks are just not cut out for horseback riding.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 2:07 Comments || Top||

#2  Don't forget the greatest teen birth control device ever. The Automobile in all it's various incarnations.

Dorf
Posted by: Anonymous || 01/20/2004 7:38 Comments || Top||

#3  "The audience it was aimed at doesn’t pay attention," MacKinnon’s grandmother, Pat Fleck, said.

They seem to pay attention to the stunts well enough. It's a pity that this girl had to die. I imagine she was just along for the ride with her boyfriend/friends. If anything, the other teens should be charged with Criminaly Negligent Homicide.
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 8:24 Comments || Top||

#4  Charles, but that would be holding them responsible for their own actions! Haven't they suffered enough?

"I see the little thing on the TV show ...’Don’t try this at home.’ Yeah right ... I mean if they can do it, we can do it,"... Apparently not.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 9:10 Comments || Top||

#5  "The audience it was aimed at doesn’t pay attention," MacKinnon’s grandmother, Pat Fleck, said.

That's just life. If the movie's target audience fails to pay attention, and tries the stunts anyway, then they might end up having to pay in another way. The intelligent person will know to choose the least painful/injurious method of payment. End of story.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 10:16 Comments || Top||

#6  I have a hard time accepting these deaths, even though I did some pretty stupid things when I was younger - not all of them as a teenager. Most people in their teens and early twenties are absolutely POSITIVE they're invincible, and nothing bad will happen to them. Then when something does, like this incident, or the death of one of my daughter's school friends in an automobile accident just before Christmas, it devastates them. It seems that every child must go through Reality101 on their own, and for some it's a deadly trip.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 11:21 Comments || Top||

#7  Must think. Can't remember. What did Dr. Thomas say? Is this force centripital or cetrifugal?
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 13:17 Comments || Top||

#8  Sorry, my comment should have been titled - Very Last Thought of Bobbi MacKinnon, 16.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 13:21 Comments || Top||

#9  Most people in their teens and early twenties are absolutely POSITIVE they're invincible, and nothing bad will happen to them.

That's where good parenting comes in. I have no kids myself, but I take my ex-roomate's kids out to do stuff on a regular basis. I always make it a point to tell them that they are NOT indestructible. If they try something risky, they could get hurt, and in extreme circumstances, lose their lives. There is NO RECOVERY from death. I tell them to think carefully about what they're going to do before they do it, and think about the wisdom of whether to carry through with it. And I tell them this clearly, with a serious face, not just in a passing mention sort of way.

They also know that, if they do manage to get hurt doing something stupid, I and my friends (their uncles and aunts) are going to be really, really pissed off.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 13:32 Comments || Top||

#10  My mother used to tell me: "If you go out and get yourself killed, I'll never speak to you again." Sounded really stupid, but I think on some level I knew what she meant.
Posted by: Slumming || 01/20/2004 14:32 Comments || Top||

#11  "There is no such thing as centripital force" she thought. "I am moving in a straight line away from the axis of rotation... I am pure kinetic energy."
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:17 Comments || Top||

#12  Like I said... it's a small niche:
I am pure potential energy.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:18 Comments || Top||

#13  Yeah, so in another thread I say that not all young people are morons, and then we get another prime example of sheer stupidity from people my age. Nice. I wish the girl hadn't died though, like Charles said, she was probably hanging out with her boyfriend and his friends and didn't want to do it in the first place but didn't want to be left out.
Posted by: S || 01/20/2004 17:18 Comments || Top||

#14  Shipman, if I were making a short film of this episode, I would cut in with a clip of an Olympic discus thrower going though his motion and freeze as the discus left his hand then cut to a slow motion wide view of the carousel spinning from a veiwpoint from a scaffolding or boom placed 100 feet away and 20 feet up. (the background music would be Sir Elton John singing Circle of Life) After several rotations I would switch to a camera placed on the center post of the wheel with for a face shot of Ms MacKinnon. Then back to the scaffold shot for the rest of the action.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 17:19 Comments || Top||

#15  SH you missed your calling.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 17:42 Comments || Top||

#16  SH -- You are a very sick, twisted man. I like you. ;)
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/20/2004 19:59 Comments || Top||

#17  You people make me sick. Bobbi was a good friend of mine, and you people act like she wasnt a person. You sick little people get amusement of the fact THAT A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG GIRL has been killed. That stupid show should have never been put on telivision, warning or not. You are sick,sad little people. You would be singing a different tune if it had been one of your friends.
Posted by: Shutch Hupains1662 || 10/12/2004 18:09 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
Combined Forces Command Afghanistan Statement
In Uruzgan province this weekend, coalition forces did engage five armed adult males who were fleeing from a known terrorist compound. Currently, we have no indications that civilians were killed in that incident. We reiterate our adherence to the rules of land warfare and to stringent rules of engagement. Saturday evening coalition forces received intelligence that in a compound in Uruzgan province, in the Cahar Cineh Valley, there was a gathering of mid-level Taliban leadership. Coalition Special Operations Forces and Afghan Militia Forces were sent to capture or kill the Taliban leaders at that compound. At approximately 8:00 p.m. on Saturday we observed 5 armed men leave the compound and move toward the coalition forces which have cordoned off the original compound. The commander on the ground verified that these individuals were indeed armed and, at night, moving toward a known coalition military unit. At approximately 8:12 p.m. on Saturday an aircraft engaged those 5 individuals in a streambed.

Our forces moved toward the engagement site, but a large massing of armed personnel then came out of nearby compounds and gathered near the streambed. In order to avoid a larger engagement in the area of the compounds that might incur civilian casualties our forces halted and observed the activity from secure positions. Those people near the streambed recovered the bodies from the streambed. The next day, coalition forces searched a number of compounds and the streambed without finding anything of significance. In the process of 72 hours of operation in this area, we detained six individuals.

Typically, the Taliban are attempting to spread disinformation, propaganda, in order to discredit the coalition. Let me lay out the facts,
--the only time of our firing was at 8:12 p.m. on Saturday, not 4 a.m. on Sunday.

--there were no helicopters in the area either at the time of the engagement on Saturday or at 4 a.m. on Sunday.

--at no time in the past 5 days did a US helicopter fire any ordnance of any kind in Oruzgan province.

--at no time during this operation were shots fired from any weapons system, ground or air, at any house compound or walled structure.

--our aircraft did not engage noncombatants. We clearly identified and engaged 5 armed adult males.
We have stringent rules of engagement and we continuously assess and refine those rules of engagement. In this case, as there are allegations of civilian casualties, we have reviewed the incident, but, as I stated above, there is no indication that any civilians were involved. The coalition’s long-term commitment to the people of Afghanistan is unwavering. While we continue to destroy terrorist organizations and their infrastructure, we enable and assist the accelerated growth of Afghan political, civil and military institutions.
Posted by: Chuck Simmins || 01/20/2004 11:08:55 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  why didn't they engage the subsequent large massing of armed individuals???
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 12:46 Comments || Top||

#2  Probably no clear indication that they were terrs.
Posted by: Chuck Simmins || 01/20/2004 13:33 Comments || Top||

#3  All those guys in dresses... It's hard to tell them apart at 800 feet.
Posted by: Fred || 01/20/2004 13:53 Comments || Top||


Afghan woman singer back on state-run television
A women singer has reappeared on Afghan state-run television, apparently signalling that reformists have won a dispute with conservatives over women entertainers. President Hamid Karzai said on Saturday it should be left to the government to decided whether women could be shown singing on television and hours later Kabul Television aired a tape of a performance by 1980s star Ustad Mahwash.
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 8:50:49 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I suppose that this issue is as good a place to test the new constitution as any, but the conservatives (Taliban Lite) aren't finished.

Moderate officials said showing women singers on television was in line with the new Afghan constitution as it gave equal rights to women.

But religious conservatives said the ban on women singers was justified because the constitution stated no laws could be contrary to the beliefs and provisions of Islam, which did not allow for women singers.


So each time someone advances under the new constitution, the supreme court pulls out the Sharia trump card and slaps them back.

My best wishes to the Afghans.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 10:18 Comments || Top||

#2  They're doomed. But, on the goodside, at least Afghanistan is no longer living in the 7th Century like the rest of the moooslimes. They jumped all the way to the 9th, maybe 10th century.
Posted by: Swiggles || 01/20/2004 11:01 Comments || Top||

#3  I think that Karzai made a pretty good short term solution. I knew a guy named Liedinger, who's dad had been the city manager of Richmond, VA. He explained that the best way to avoid ugliness when faced with a Neo-Nazi group, that wants to hold a march to incite people, is to grant the permit... for 4 am to 5 am.

Ideally, the TV station shouldn't be state censored by consumers boycotting advertisers who fund offensive shows. That's probably a stretch in the current Afghan reality. Hahmed's Opium Silo is unlikely to flood the local market with marketing dollars. Bubba's Discount UN Aid Package Retail, Omar's AK Repair and Mumar's Ordinance Salvage Shop are likely advertisers down the road but are probably currently using most of their spare funds for protection money
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 13:35 Comments || Top||


Arabia
UAE,Qatar to waive most Iraq debt after Baker trip
The Gulf states of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), key U.S. allies, said on Tuesday after talks with Washington’s Iraq debt envoy that they would waive most of the more than $7 billion Iraq owes them. The crown prince of the UAE capital Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, said his country was prepared to start talks to write off most of Iraq’s debts which a UAE source told Reuters were more than 14 billion dirhams ($3.8 billion). "The UAE will waive most of Iraq’s debts and is prepared, for this purpose, to start urgent negotiations over the matter so that the results of the talks are acceptable to the new Iraqi government," the state news agency WAM quoted Sheikh Khalifa as saying after meeting the U.S. envoy James Baker.

In Qatar, a Foreign Ministry official said his country would waive most of Iraq’s debts and consider writing off the rest. Another Qatari official told Reuters that Iraq owes Doha about $4 billion that has accrued since the 1980s.
"The state of Qatar will forgive most of the debts Iraq owes it and will consider waiving the remaining amount at a later, more appropriate time," the ministry official told the state news agency QNA after a meeting between Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and Baker.
Damm, James Baker must be carrying that briefcase from "Pulp Fiction".
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 3:09:07 PM || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The Velvet Hammer delivers yet another blow.

"Sheikh, you wouldn't BELIEVE some of the stuff ol' saddam is tellin us boys! I'm gonna make you an offer you cain't refuse."
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 15:18 Comments || Top||

#2  Remember all the gnashing of teeth by our liberal buddies when it was announced that the Axis of Weasels couldn't participate in the US contracts on Iraq being bid? How this would make Baker's job impossible because the various weasels would retaliate and not cancel Iraqi debt?

Yep, they said that. And look what happened: Qatar, UAE, France, Germany, China and Russia all agreed to cancel a big chunk of Iraqi debt.

Guess Baker's better than we thought. Or is briefcase is.
Posted by: Steve White || 01/20/2004 15:27 Comments || Top||

#3  Brother Baker is doing pretty well.... but ideally not only would they forgive the debt, they would help finance the War. I like to show a small profit on these interventions.

Hmmmmm... Has Baker been to SA yet?
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:47 Comments || Top||

#4  I'm sure Gary Hart will undercut Baker by leaking details from his own secret negotiations with all these countries.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 17:28 Comments || Top||

#5  We'd like to leak Gary Hart all over the Arapaho Basin ski area, about 2 grams per drop. Please, somebody, keep him from coming back to Colorado! The hog farms smell like roses compared to "Hartache" Hart. Why couldn't he go to Jamaica and start a really bad Reggae band or something?
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 20:16 Comments || Top||

#6  Agreed, OP! Can't we, like, arrange for Hart-less to go back to his yacht and sail off into the sunset? Preferrably forever?

Ed
Posted by: Ed Becerra || 01/20/2004 21:54 Comments || Top||


Saddam’s First Wife Moves to Little Baghdad, Sanaa
Debka report, you know what to do:
A new colony is quietly establishing itself in the Yemen capital of Sanaa as, one by one, Saddam Hussein’s close family and senior loyalists settle into a new life as political exiles.
Just when you thought property values in Yeman couldn’t get any lower...
“Little Baghdad” was discovered by DEBKAfile’s exclusive Persian Gulf sources, who note that almost every incoming flight from Damascus, Amman or Beirut - or even Baghdad - drops one or two members of the old regime at the Saudi airports of Jeddah and Riyadh, where they change over to Saudi or Yemeni planes bound for Sanaa. Sometimes, an entire clan of 15 to 20 members deposits three generations in Sanaa. Up until mid-December last year, Saddam’s fleeing supporters entered the southern Arabian republic in a trickle and were lodged in the few luxury hotels the Yemeni capital boasts. But in January, as their numbers jumped to hundreds, the Yemeni authorities began housing them all together in the Wadi Asrah suburb on the eastern edge of the town.
Keeping all the bad eggs in one basket?
Like Damascus, Aleppo, Palmyra, Beirut and Dubai, the Yemeni capital can now boast its own “Little Baghdad,” inhabited by some 600 Iraq expatriate officials. Leading lights of the new Baath community, according to DEBKAfile sources, are Saddam’s first wife Sajida Kheirallah Telfah, mother of the late Uday and Qusay and three daughters and her two brothers. Their late father was Saddam’s uncle and mentor. Their closest neighbors are the two sisters of Ali Hassan al Madjid, otherwise known as “Chemical Ali,” for poisoning thousands of Kurds to death in Halabja. Ali Majid, the deposed ruler’s closest adviser, has vanished since the American invasion of Iraq. Contrary to various reports, he escaped unharmed from the US-British bombardment of his palace near Basra in the first part of the Iraq war. In August, rumors of his capture circulated but were never confirmed. It is generally believed that he is the only key functionary of Saddam’s weapons of mass destruction programs to make good his escape. His whereabouts are a mystery to this day.
To the best of my recollection, there hasn’t been even a sniff of a rumor of a possible sighting of Chemical Ali. Wonder if he’s taking a dirt nap in a un-marked grave?
He's in custody...
Other denizens of the Yemeni Saddamstan are 40 former Iraqi ambassadors and 120 senior Baath administration officials. Some former regime VIPs would have been allowed to stay in Baghdad unscathed, but preferred not to live under American occupation.
Preferred not to live looking over their shoulders for someone with a grudge.
Yemeni president Abdallah Salah is happy to make the refugees of the Saddam regime at home for three reasons:
1. He was always on friendly terms with the Saddam regime’s heads. Chemical Ali and vice president Izzat Ibrahim al Douri were frequent visitors to the presidential palace in Sanaa. In December 2002, weeks before the war, Salah, always on the lookout for profitable deals, put together a plan for a North Korean freighter carrying illegal Scud missiles for Iraq to secretly unload its cargo in a Yemeni port and have it transported overland to Iraq. The plan did not come off. A Spanish vessel acting on information relayed by US spy satellites intercepted the North Korean ship in the Indian Ocean before it reached Yemeni shores. It was boarded by US special forces and the missiles impounded.
And now he’s stuck with a ship load of missiles that we’ve got the serial numbers of.

2. Salah believes that providing ex-Saddam regime insiders with sanctuary adds to his credibility in his secret dealings with al Qaeda and lends him an image boost in the Arab world. At the same time, he claims to the Americans that this posture helps him maintain contacts with Osama bin Laden’s people for the purpose of gathering intelligence.
Playing both sides, a very dangerous game.

3. Salah’s overriding and constant motivation is the profit factor. Iraq’s evicted regime leaders arrive in Sanaa with bags of money, some smuggled out of Iraq, some salted away in secret Arab, Persian Gulf and European bank accounts. DEBKAfile’s intelligence sources report that in the last two months, the Iraq expatriates of Sanaa’s Little Baghdad have deposited an estimated $350 m in Yemeni banks. There is most certainly more to come. The Yemeni president has high expectations that the vast sums of Iraqi cash reposing in Syrian banks will follow the affluent Iraqi refugees and end up in Yemeni banks.
With the appropriate donations to his bank acount from the grateful affluent refugees.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 2:01:15 PM || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under:

#1  nuke Sanaa,can't make it any worse so why not
Posted by: Jon Shep U.K || 01/20/2004 14:05 Comments || Top||

#2  Steve, the information I have is that Ali Hassan al-Majid,"Chemical Ali" who was previously thought dead was taken into custody August 21, 2003. He is #5 in the deck of villians cards.
....the Yemeni authorities began housing them all together in the Wadi Asrah suburb.... With a little luck there would be a lake with a breachable dam on the upper end of that gully. Preferably akin to the reservoir above Jeddah as described by Wright. A flash flood of sewage might improve the stence now forming in the wadi.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 15:27 Comments || Top||

#3  The NKor ship was boarded by Spanish Marines, not US Special Forces.
Posted by: Chuck Simmins || 01/20/2004 15:41 Comments || Top||

#4  Gasse Katze, I just checked the CENTCOM 55 Most Wanted List and you're right. Guess he vanished into that black hole.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 15:55 Comments || Top||

#5  Note to Rumsfeld: When the SA party begins, make sure it doesn't stop short of Aden harbor.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 20:18 Comments || Top||

#6  I smell MOAB.
Posted by: ed || 01/20/2004 22:21 Comments || Top||


Saudi police arrest ‘suspects’ after Riyadh shootout
Saudi security forces arrested “a number of suspects” after a shootout with two gunmen in Riyadh, the capital’s police chief said Monday. The incident began on Sunday afternoon when a man sped away in his car after police tried to carry out a check on the vehicle in the eastern Al-Nassim neighbourhood, while a companion opened fire at the police patrol. Police gave chase and exchanged fire with the gunmen, whose vehicle broke down. “The driver and his companion stopped in a busy area, hijacked the car of a citizen at gunpoint and fled, but there were no casualties,” the police chief said. “A number of suspects were arrested and the incident is still being followed up,” the unnamed police chief said without giving more details.
Y'gotta pay attention to maintenance. Allah doesn't change your oil for you...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:58 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Allah doesn't change your oil for you...
And there you have it.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 14:51 Comments || Top||


Kuwait taking measures against terror finance
The Central Bank of Kuwait has been engaged in the combat of money laundering for more than ten years, even before the issuance of the legislation that criminalised money laundering in Kuwait. Facing the problem of money laundering at such an early stage demonstrates the Central Bank's recognition of the urgency of their responsibility towards the banking and financial system, said Sheikh Salem Abdul Aziz Al-Sabah, Governor of the CBK. After expressing the CBK's commitment to denounce and fight money laundering and the financing of terrorism in a opening statement given at the First Anti-Money Laundering & Combating the Financing of Terrorism Conference, Sheikh Salem Al-Sabah stressed that the CBK continually follows the international community's efforts in this field adopting the standards and recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF), the Basle Committee on Banking Supervision and the methodology of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) in this area.

Another key issue addressed by Sheikh Salem was the CBK's efforts in training employees of the Supervision Section in the CBK and in the banking and financial units so that they become familiar with the threats of money laundering. Training also aims at enabling employees in the sector to trace suspicious patterns and understand the way money launderers operate. Money laundering training programmes held at the Institute of Banking Studies in Kuwait, due to their relevance, are becoming permanent now. Furthermore, Sheikh Salem stated that the CBK revised its directives to banks in October 2002 enhancing their comprehensiveness and specifying the punishments to be imposed on those banks that fall short of meeting their responsibilities in setting and applying the policies and regulations necessary for the control of money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The CBK's directives require the external auditor of each bank to include in his report a clear opinion about the extent of each bank's compliance with all laws, resolutions, directives, policies and regulations related to these illegal activities, he said. Another step taken by the CBK was the establishment of the Kuwait Financial Intelligence Unit (KFIU), an independent unit headed by the governor of the CBK which assists the Public Prosecutor's Office in these matters, manages a database on the subject and provides training.
All this is dry as dust, expressed in bureaucratic language, and essential to the prosecution of the war. Good for Kuwait.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:58 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under:


Britain
Bomb ’joke’ student jailed
A British woman is being held in a US prison after she joked with an airport policeman that she was carrying a bomb.
"No, no! Not a bomb! I wuz talkin' about me bum!"
Shropshire student Samantha Marson triggered a security alert as she waited to board a British Airways flight from Miami back to Britain. The 21-year-old from Bridgnorth was asked what was in her rucksack and told officials she had a bomb.
Wrong answer, honey.
According to the arrest report, Ms Marson placed her bag on the belt at a security check, telling a Transportation Security Administration screener: "Hey be careful, I have three bombs in here" - before allegedly repeating the joke twice more when confronted by officials.
Not once, not twice, but three times.
She was taken into custody and within hours appeared before a judge who remanded her to Dade County Jail.
"Hi sweet cheeks, I’m your new cell mate, Big Sally."
Ms Marson - who is due to appear in court again on 6 February - will be released on bail if she can come up with a £2,700 bond. Sergeant Joe Wyche from Miami Airport Police told BBC Midlands Today that officers were left with no choice but to arrest Ms Marson. "First of all, it’s a violation of our state law. Before 9/11 we took it seriously - after 9/11 there’s no room for kidding or joking, if that’s the person’s intention, so it’s taken in a serious manner. There’s no room for playing games at security checkpoints. I’m sure probably over in Britain if similar comments are made it’s not laughed upon."
IRA bombs are no laughing matter to the Brits, she should have known better.
He added: "The specific penalty for this is probably a misdemeanour, so therefore it’s probably less than a year in jail, but of the specifics of what could happen to this person I have no idea." Ms Marson’s father Jim, 75, said: "We are beside ourselves with worry." She phoned at about 3am on Sunday and was hysterical."
Dade County Jail does that to people.
"I’m sure Samantha will accept that it’s a silly thing to say, but she’s the sort of girl who might have thought it would make people laugh."
I’m sure she’ll be a riot on Cell Block B.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 3:41:24 PM || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Story after story after story and yet people still do this.
Posted by: Rafael || 01/20/2004 15:51 Comments || Top||

#2  Idiot! Don't jail her. Make her walk back to Britian.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 15:55 Comments || Top||

#3  Michael Dukakis got some 'bad press' about ten years ago for muttering the same lame joke at Logan Int'l.

Agreed, Rafael, some people will never learn.
Posted by: Raj || 01/20/2004 16:04 Comments || Top||

#4  Her 'da is 75 and she's 21!??

The dirty old coot. Did he toss her mum over for a newer model?
Posted by: Anonymous2u || 01/20/2004 17:23 Comments || Top||

#5  According to the arrest report, Ms Marson placed her bag on the belt at a security check, telling a Transportation Security Administration screener: "Hey be careful, I have three bombs in here" - before allegedly repeating the joke twice more when confronted by officials.

One word: D-U-M-B-A-S-S.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 18:01 Comments || Top||

#6  Back in 1989, I was a speaker at a Democratic Party event in Dallas. Owing to a series of screwups (common at these events) I found myself without transportation back to the airport.

I accepted a ride from one of the guests, who turned out to be a local religious right activist who had attended to see what sort of dirt he could dig up on us.

He was pleasant enough on the way to the airport, though a bit odd. At one point, a car ran a stop sign in front of us. He commented that this was obviously the work of Satan, who was no doubt seeking to do me in before I could see the light and come over to the Falwell/Robertson side of things.

Continuing to be helpful, he offered to carry one of my bags when we got to the terminal. Having 3 bags, two hands, and very little time, I gratefully accepted.

As we entered the concourse, he commented very loudly, "This is kinda' heavy, IT MUST BE THE ONE WITH THE BOMB IN IT!"

I was released after several hours of grilling and FBI checks, but my erstwhile helper spent a night in jail before the less-than-amused judge relieved him of about a thousand dollars in fines and let him go.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 18:29 Comments || Top||

#7  The best one I've heard yet happened at an airport near here. A guy gets to the terminal, gets to the check-in line, and has his carry-on bag searched. There's a clockwork device in his luggage, with a couple of round objects attached to it. The entire security apparatus goes bonkers, and the airport's locked down. The bomb squad arrives, and carefully removes the cuckoo clock from the carry-on case. The guy had told them he had a cuckoo clock in his bags, even shown it at the ticket window, but the baggage screeners STILL went bonkers. Sometimes, security can get a bit overblown, and needs a little common sense. At the same time, ignoring something like that could cost someone a commercial airline - or worse. The tough part's drawing the line between too much and too little.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 20:27 Comments || Top||

#8  Samantha Marson is only a five on today's idiocy scale. The girl who flew off the F-150 powered carousel was a curve buster. Samantha should have tried yesterday.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 20:35 Comments || Top||


Down Under
Australian has the rights stuff
What’s Australia going to do? How can they live up to their predecessors? Maybe they could introduce a dictatorship and secret police. How about a human shredder for speedsters on the roads, instead of fines? We have got at least be able to match our predecessors, in breeches of human rights, or the UN won’t show us any respect.
AUSTRALIA today was chosen to chair the UN’s top human rights body, replacing Libya, which took the rotating post last year despite fierce opposition from the United States. The 53-member UN Human Rights Commission agreed by consensus to make Australian Ambassador Mike Smith chairman on behalf of Western nations, whose turn it was to take the seat. "I feel enormously privileged to have been elected as chair of the commission on human rights," Smith told a news conference at the UN’s European headquarters in Geneva.
It's mighty... ummm... unusual having you there, Mike.
His selection passed relatively smoothly compared with last year, when the United States called a precedent-setting vote to elect the new chair due to its opposition to Africa’s nomination of Libyan ambassador Najat Al-Hajjaji. The vote marked a break from the practice of agreeing to appointments by consensus, and underscored US opposition to Tripoli’s candidacy, mostly over the 1988 bombing of a PanAm jetliner over Lockerbie in Scotland.
Posted by: tipper || 01/20/2004 8:10:10 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  In retrospect, Putting Libya in charge of UNHRC seems to of had an impact on the Khadafi worldview.
Posted by: john || 01/20/2004 10:20 Comments || Top||

#2  I suspect Saddam's dental exam had a bigger impact...
Posted by: PBMcL || 01/20/2004 10:48 Comments || Top||

#3  Australia isn't perfect given its record with the Aboriginies. But then the US has had its problems in the past too. But we and the Australians have for the most part been able to overcome the problems of the past. Neither of us is a perfect society but we both benifit from having our legal system descend from the British one. Finally the UN gets one right.
Posted by: Cheddarhead || 01/20/2004 18:08 Comments || Top||


Downer hails Bali prosecutions
Just want you guys and gals to know you are not on your ownsome. =Plenty of other people hold the same values, so ignore the idiotarians.
THE hunt for the Bali bombers has led to one of the world’s most impressive set of terrorism prosecutions, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said today. But while the region was becoming more difficult for terrorists, they still had a formidable capability, he said. In a speech to the World Affairs Council in Los Angeles, Mr Downer said the highly successful joint Australian-Indonesian investigation of the Bali bombings had led to 36 arrests so far, with 29 people convicted. "It has been one of the most impressive sets of terrorism prosecutions conducted anywhere, either before or after 9/ll," he said.
I agree. It took my breath away. I had no idea the Indon cops were as good as they seem. Either that, or their Aussie puppet masters are mighty unobtrusive...
Mr Downer told his American audience Australia’s foreign policy was focused on outcomes rather than posturing. This focus had delivered freedom in East Timor, renewed prosperity in South-East Asia, small businesses opening in the Solomon Islands, Afghan girls going to their first schools and the Iraqi people emerging from the darkness of a vile tyranny. He said the nexus of terrorist groups, state sponsors of terrorism and weapons of mass destruction (WMD) was "the security nightmare of the 21st century". US leadership in the long and difficult war against terrorism was crucial. He said the resolve to deal with Saddam Hussein had sent a shiver through others who sought to defy and threaten the international community. "We demonstrated there were consequences for such actions and by doing so we have achieved results," Mr Downer said. He said Iran had started negotiating with the International Atomic Energy Agency, Libya had renounced its WMD programs and ambitions, North Korea had engaged in six-party talks and others like Syria were more carefully considering their approach.
Posted by: tipper || 01/20/2004 7:52:35 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Europe
Swedish museum to remove suicide bomber posters
A Swedish museum official said Tuesday that he will remove posters for an art exhibition that sparked a diplomatic spat with Israel, but said the display at the root of the controversy will remain.
The man in charge of the exhibition at the Museum of National Antiquities said he will take down posters showing a Palestinian suicide bomber that were posted in 26 subway stations throughout Stockholm to advertise the exhibit.
26?! I used to wonder how Europeans could walk past the starving Jewish children in the streets and not bat an eye during Nazi reign, I thought it was out of fear, but now I understand I was wrong.They do the same thing today, they ignore what is happening, they even help Islamofascism along.Europe never changed from the Nazi era.I understand what is meant by ’old europe’ now.
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 5:01:13 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The Swedes didn't seem to understand the concept of Qusay's people chipper either. Maybe we could do an art piece of a pyramid of life-like children's heads with each forehead penetrated by a large caliber bullet from close range. On top of the pyramid would be sitting a smiling Hans Blix eating an apple. I would title it = Beauty In the Eye of the Beholder.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 17:42 Comments || Top||

#2  I don't normally comment on mere art "concepts" but heck... I like it.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 18:20 Comments || Top||


Jewish bus firebombed in France; No injuries
A firebomb was thrown Tuesday at a school bus carrying Jewish kids in Strasbourg, France. There were no injuries reported in the incident. One community leader called the incident an apparent anti-Semitic attack, local police said on Tuesday.
D’ya think? Were they wearing headscarves?
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 11:43:49 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  There were no injuries reported in the incident

There will also be no arrests over this incident, count on it.
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 12:30 Comments || Top||

#2  Nor any investigation. Dont want to offend any muslims....
Posted by: Anonymous || 01/20/2004 12:35 Comments || Top||

#3 
This incident illustrates how the situations differ between France and the United States. We here reflexively consider the French dress code to be absurd, but France is much more infested with violent Moslem fanatics than the United States is.

Jews won't be the only victims. Girls from Moslem families who decide not to wear head scarves will be attacked too, before too long.
Posted by: Mike Sylwester || 01/20/2004 12:38 Comments || Top||

#4  ah the french,yes we can expect them to do fuck all about this race crime,I hate the French.
Posted by: Jon Shep U.K || 01/20/2004 13:21 Comments || Top||

#5  At a certain point it may be best if we return to the concept of someone riding shotgun on public transportation.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 13:40 Comments || Top||

#6  No mention on BBC, CNN, ABC (usa) either.... I guess there weren't enough body bags...
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 14:13 Comments || Top||

#7  Jews won't be the only victims. Girls from Moslem families who decide not to wear head scarves will be attacked too, before too long.

They already are being attacked when they venture out. Well documented at Merde in France, Dissident Frogman, LGF and other sites.
Posted by: Steve White || 01/20/2004 15:31 Comments || Top||

#8  The French Civil War is starting. Place your bets! 10-1 odds in favor of the Muslims!
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 21:50 Comments || Top||


Trans-Atlantic quarrel: An indifferent Washington shrugs
EFL
A senior Bush administration official is talking about the Europeans. "The quickest distinction between Europeans who come and sit on my couch," he says, "is between those who want to act and those who don’t."
Sounds like Rumsfeld...
No mistake, after an exceptionally divisive year in American-European relations, the line in Washington on Europe in relation to Iraq and fighting terrorism is that for all the understanding Poles and Spaniards, Dutch and Danes, a significant part of European leadership remains disinclined to do much that’s forceful about what America considers threatening to the peace.
and that will come back to haunt them, and possibly us, in the mid- or even near-term, I fear
Nuance here. The administration official thinks that the capture of Saddam Hussein, together with a great leap forward by the U.S. economy, American success in diverting Libya from nuclear arms, and signs of a return to a U.S.-Iran dialogue, are moving the recalcitrant Europeans - essentially the French and German governments, and significant slices of Continental and British public opinion that regard the United States as trampling caution and international law - toward accepting that American success in Iraq is in their interest. With a G-8 economic summit meeting in the United States, with President George W. Bush as host, and a NATO summit meeting both programmed for the first half of an American election year, the 2004 international agenda points toward less head-butting and a greater portrayal of solidarity, at least outwardly, across the sea. Indeed, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization could wind up taking over the command of troops in Iraq from the United States. But this is hardly, as some Europeans would have hoped, the soil of a new terrain for profound administration introspection about trans-Atlantic estrangement.
That could be because we're too busy doing important things to spend a lot of time in navel gazing...
The idea that something awful, fateful, has happened to the community of Western nations gets next to no attention here, if only because the complaint comes essentially from a fragmented Europe. In this view, Europe, officially designated by the Bush administration as "whole, peaceful and free," has devolved into an area of marginal strategic interest for the United States. Francis Fukuyama, the Johns Hopkins historian and author of the famous essay "The End of History," explains: "Generally, the American people just don’t care, whatever the ritualistic mention of America’s alienation from the rest of the world. I even doubt this gets much traction even with the base of the Democratic Party." Rather, the administration’s you’re-either-with-us-or-against-us judgments in relation to Europe sustain themselves because the Bush team sees Europe as disablingly divided, without anything approaching a foreign policy consensus, and because reticence in specific European countries about supporting Washington was regarded from the start of American engagement in Afghanistan not only as a disadvantage but also as a way of circumventing the bog of interallied consultations.
"If y'got nothin' to do, don't do it here!"
In reality, the great change on the U.S. side of European-American relations since the September 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington may be in the ready acceptance here of the neoconservative Robert Kagan’s characterization of two similar cultures with markedly different views on the use of power and military force. Many Europeans would want to caricature Kagan’s views as simplistic, even though he clearly refuses to qualify Europe as a crabby has-been. All the same, the Kagan vision is largely mainstream in Washington’s widest view of the world. Europe-as-ogre or rising danger to American pre-eminence - or, conversely, Europe-as-potential-returnee to an Atlanticist Garden of Eden - are convictions that appear, on the basis of a series of interviews here, to get much less palpable support.
We're discussing different approaches to doing business. In managementspeak, it's Theory X (top-down, do-it-my-way leadership) versus Theory Y (concensus building, power-flows-up management). People say they enjoy working in Theory Y environments because they're more congenial; everybody's input is valued. It's a world where memos are vetted before being disseminated, and agreements are reached before meetings are held. Both approaches have their place. Theory Y is best for established, working organizations. Theory X is best for crisis situations, which is why militaries, police and your local firehouse are all overtly organized on Theory X principles: somebody's got to be in charge, somebody's got to define the objective and allocate the resources for attaining it. Europe's an established, working organization. The U.S. used to be; but we're at war, while Europe's not. Europe at best is cooperating with us, when it sees fit, in the war on terror, but it's not yet been devastated. When the Eifel Tower is gone, the Brandenburg Gate is gone, and the Vatican's rubble, Europe will change. Not before.
Along this line, there is little American hesitancy now to slip around the once-sacred discourse of common Euro-American values or "a community of fate"- so much so that a collection of talks on European-American relations by a key administration figure refers, in a precisely calibrated definition, to "certain" common values. Fukuyama talked in an interview of the Bush administration’s reveling in an "in your face" attitude toward multinational institutions, and of the rise of a "nastier, contemptuous attitude" toward Europe on the part of key executives of American corporations with whom he had spoken. Europe, they told him, was "hopeless on entrepreneurship and innovation."
Theory Y gives everybody the chance to innovate, with ideas flowing up the chain. Whatcha might call Practice Y also gives those up the chain the opportunity to water down changes that they might find uncomfortable. Or that would be too much effort. Theory X, relying on principles of leadership rather than management, is more suited for startups or situations where the competition is intense.
This, in a sense, he said, was a response to a Europe that seemed to find gratification in saying the United States was a more brutal, styleless, fundamentalist culture.
A Theory X culture...
But unlike the Americans, who had not run away from decades of debate on race, in Fukuyama’s view, the Europeans, including the British, were now hiding from their most destabilizing contradiction - dealing with Europe’s growing Muslim and Arab population and its effect on terrorism and relations with the Islamic world."
Theory Y isn't good at reacting to threats. Since everybody's opinion counts, the threat can manage to get his own opinion into the stack.
What they basically don’t like is that it’s more democratic here than in Europe," Fukuyama said. "If you look at both sides’ public opinion polling on the death penalty and gay marriage, there just isn’t that much difference. But in Europe, it’s the elites that set social standards that don’t necessarily reflect mass opinion. People are more deferential to the elites in Europe. What people in Europe have no patience with is that America is a democracy that doesn’t reflect its elites’ desires. It will come back to bite them."

In an interview, Robert Zoellick, the U.S. trade representative, who is much admired in Europe for his nuanced views of European realities, and was the key State Department operational player in forging German reunification, offered an elegant description of contrasts in American and European world views as he had seen them evolve: "The post-modern European notion of international arrangements fits the European context, but doesn’t apply well in the rest of the world. That means that the European idea that all problems can be resolved through compromises at all-night sessions at nice locations just doesn’t work everywhere. This European concentration on local circumstances leads to a status quo outlook on the rest of world. And this is because Europe is preoccupied and uncomfortable with major new approaches to match very changed circumstances."
and therein lies the problem.....
At the least forgiving end of the judgmental U.S. political scale on Europe’s perceived incapacities, Richard Perle - the neoconservative often portrayed in European media with Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz as outranking the president, vice president and defense secretary combined - says the stakes are next to none: "The end of the cold war liberated the United States so as to be less concerned about Europe. Before, anything that divided us was very dangerous. While we would clearly prefer a close relationship, it isn’t vital. They’re not ready to invest in the military. That’s a given. They’re interested in their own comfort. I don’t see any coherent ambition to make a mark on the world. It’s not a very impressive performance."

Against this view, there is that of a senior foreign policy adviser to Howard Dean, the also- front-running Democratic candidate challenging Bush. .... "All the same," he told a visitor, "a Democratic administration is going to be much more unilateralist than the Europeans want." Steinberg accuses the Bush administration of not supporting EU integration, preferring to deal with individual European countries than a European whole. But he hardly sees the end-goal of such integration with the eyes of those Europeans who would want the EU to function as a counterweight to the United States. "I think more integration actually would have isolated the French and the Germans," he said, noting their effort to speak in Europe’s name against the United States on Iraq. "What so angered the other Europeans is the way the French and the Germans went off on their own."
... without vetting their memos and reaching agreement before the meetings were held.
Chancellor Gerhard Schröder "doesn’t give a damn about Europe," Steinberg said. And the other Europeans see the French and the Germans as "miscreants"... "It’s a serious matter involving the place of religion here and, the primacy of secularism as a value there," he said. "Most of the elite here now believes Europe is anti-Semitic. We think Europe has lost its societal moorings. They think we’re backward." What Europeans resist understanding, perhaps because they’ve been treated with disdain,
Ahem - WHO treats WHO with disdain, regularly?
he said, is that "the United States has the choice not to cooperate. Atlanticists say everything will be fine. No, in the end it may be that things are not fine. Europe has to actively work this issue. That involves offering things the U.S. wants." What does the United States want? Action, movement, change (simplistically perhaps, as Vedrine once argued), but from the same people who America regarded even 50 years ago as not necessarily comfortable with the concept. John Kornblum, a Clinton administration ambassador to Germany, ... quotes the American journalist Theodore White, who wrote "Fire in the Ashes," as describing the United States as it left World War II as wanting to act, to do, to make history. Europe, White said then, had "a bellyful of history," a "sense of powerlessness that is the incubator of all European restlessness," and "a sense of being swung about by the actions of strange men in distant places."

"Europe is stranger to American understanding than ever before in our linked histories," White wrote. Europe wants rest, quiet and forgetfulness. But even this it cannot have in the world of today, for it is helpless to calm the world." That was in 1953. Today, much of Washington does not disagree
Posted by: rkb || 01/20/2004 9:20:01 AM || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I used to worry about our troops defending them while they sit in their cafes sipping coffee. Now they are as likely to be taken over from within by Islamists as they were to be rolled over by the Soviet Union, with or without our troops there.

Any "neoconservatives" in Europe planning ahead for a 21st Century reconquista?
Posted by: eLarson || 01/20/2004 11:50 Comments || Top||

#2  Anybody have a clue what France wants? Germany? Besides a long vacation.
Posted by: Lucky || 01/20/2004 11:54 Comments || Top||

#3  Thanks rkb, that was a good read.
Posted by: Parabellum || 01/20/2004 11:57 Comments || Top||

#4  "Old Europe" is trying to do the impossible - freeze time. They don't want anything to change, since change requires action to deal with it. Most Europeans are comfortable, and want to continue their "comfort", even though the social, economic, and political system that creates that comfort is totally unsustainable. They have their collective heads in the sand (or somewhere else where reality is blotted out), and don't want to face reality. It will take another major bloodbath - something even more horrendous than 9/11 - to get them stirred up enough to pull out of their self-induced snooze. For those Europeans who actually want to move forward, it's like running through neck-deep molasses, and they get tired. Those that can emigrate, the others just give up. In many ways, modern Europe has the same problems that Latin America has - a large, irrelevant population, a small ruling class, and little incentive to change. Those caught between the other two masses are ignored, or treated with contempt as "being too American", or "out of step with European reality". Maybe someday it will change, but I doubt anything will happen without a major catastrophe overtaking Europe. I also see the potential for such a catastrophe just around the corner, triggered by unrealistic immigration policies, dependency, and neglect. The collapse of "Old Europe", when it comes, will be horrendous, and self-inflicted.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 12:09 Comments || Top||

#5  -- and of the rise of a "nastier, contemptuous attitude" toward Europe on the part of key executives of American corporations with whom he had spoken. Europe, they told him, was "hopeless on entrepreneurship and innovation."--

Hmmm, kind of makes me wish to be a fly on the wall. Must have been some interesting conversations.

I still think we make a mistake not imposing some of our ideals and practices on other countries, and made a BIG mistake not doing same in Europe. They're mired in 1000 years of stasism(?) or mutated monarchy, if you prefer. If we're going to be called "imperialistic" let's earn it. If we have to go back, this time give them at least the Bill of Rights.
Posted by: Anonymous2U || 01/20/2004 12:38 Comments || Top||

#6  I wrote it before, but Eu 's problem, and that's even more true in case of France, is that the ruling class, wether high-ranking civil servants, professionnal politicians, chattering class,... is cut off from the populace, self-reproducting, and has become basically a camarilla.
That's why, if you count abstentionnists and such, the majority of french voters go for the anti-establishment parties (far-right, non-communist far-left, hunters,...).
Again, a complete, if very didactical, approach to theses problems can be found at :
http://www.freeworldacademy.com/globalleader/france.htm ("where France is going")
http://www.freeworldacademy.com/globalleader/hurri.htm ("Europe at war")
http://www.freeworldacademy.com/globalleader/agendacont.htm ("Future of EU")
Excuse the basic-english, it was written by a french guy, which come from the under 5% of liberals (not Us meaning, more like reaganites & tatcherians), who are usually pro-Israel and pro-Us, quite an oddity in french political landscape.
Posted by: Anonymickeymouse || 01/20/2004 12:42 Comments || Top||

#7  camarilla
?
I google and get MUDD sites...
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 14:55 Comments || Top||

#8  Anonymickeymouse--Votre anglais est meilleur que mon francais. ;)
Welcome to Rantburg!
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/20/2004 15:18 Comments || Top||

#9  What less interested than indifferent?
Never mind, let's get on to the important story of Shipman and the oil change.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 18:23 Comments || Top||

#10  zzzz...What, what. Sorry. Oh, the French are mad. Oh, I guess that's allright. The Poles are still OK, right? That should work. (picks up remote, changes to home shopping network, eyesdroop....) ZZ..ZZ..zzzz....
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 20:41 Comments || Top||

#11  Shipman=Peter Pan. And thats a good thing!
Posted by: Lucky || 01/21/2004 0:54 Comments || Top||


Spain PM Asks for Parliament Dissolution
Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar on Monday set national elections for March 14 and asked King Juan Carlos to dissolve Parliament. "I am proud and honored to have served Spain and the satisfaction to leave the country in a better situation than it was when I took over," said Aznar, who is not running for re-election. "I go with a clear conscience. I believe serenely that I have carried out at my responsibilities at all times," Aznar said. "I have fulfilled the commitments I took on. I have no intention of looking back."

The date was announced more than a week ago, but it remained for Aznar to announce it officially at a final cabinet meeting, after which he went to the Zarzuela Palace to ask the king to sign a decree dissolving the national legislature. Aznar, 50, has been prime minister for two four-year terms, and his conservative Popular Party is favored to win again. The party recently endorsed Aznar’s hand-picked candidate, Mariano Rajoy, to lead its ticket. Two months ahead of the balloting, Rajoy leads in almost every poll over the Socialists’ candidate, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, a 43-year-old lawyer and congressman who has no experience in government. Rajoy was expected to continue Aznar’s conservative policies, including support for the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and cracking down on the militant Basque separatist group ETA. The Popular Party presided over an economic upswing in the 1990s marked by lower taxes and a balanced national budget.
Thank you for your support, Mr. Aznar, and I hope Rajoy is as good as his press.
Posted by: Steve White || 01/20/2004 12:52:24 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Aye, Muchas Gracias, Senor Aznar. Vaya con Dios.
Posted by: Ptah || 01/20/2004 8:21 Comments || Top||

#2  Iberian Notes covers this, transplanted American.
Posted by: Anonymous2U || 01/20/2004 12:41 Comments || Top||

#3  Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, a 43-year-old lawyer and congressman who has no experience in government. - you gotta love that Bio.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 13:42 Comments || Top||

#4  Aznar has been a stud with backbone, IMHO, many thanks for his resolute support!
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 15:22 Comments || Top||

#5  Aznar hung in through the bad times, indeed many thanks, and thanks for the Moor Killers.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 18:25 Comments || Top||


Frenchies may... ummm... surrender on headscarf issue
The French government's plan to ban Islamic veils from schools came under sustained fire yesterday when MPs, shaken by a weekend of protests and violence, began asking whether the move would inflame religious tensions rather than ease them. Most commentators feel President Jacques Chirac has invested too much in the proposed ban to back down now. But fears that the bill may alienate Muslims more than it helps integrate them have been significantly increased by marches against the ban on Saturday in more than a dozen French and foreign cities, and by Sunday's carbombing aimed at a top public official of Muslim origin. So far, bound by party lines, no senior members of either the ruling UMP or the Socialist opposition have questioned the wisdom of the law, which will outlaw all religious symbols from state schools from September. "I had my reservations, and I still have them, about a law that can only pour oil on the fires of extremism," said François Bayrou, leader of the UMP's main parliamentary ally, the centrist UDF party. "In the aim of fighting extremism, we are in fact abandoning the field."

Many observers fear that the fundamentalists' message - that Muslims in France are being discriminated against and denied one of their fundamental rights - could find many willing converts among an already disadvantaged Islamic community. "The headscarf question is political manipulation," said one Muslim leader, Karim Bouzid. "The real issues for us are high unemployment in the Muslim community, violence and harassment, discrimination in jobs and housing. The strife is only just beginning, believe me." The daily newspaper Libération said in its editorial that it was fast becoming plain that "unless the proposed headscarf ban is accompanied by a vigorous effort on serious integration, it will be nothing but a useless annoyance".

Within the ranks of the UMP, Edouard Balladur, head of parliament's foreign affairs committee, is the most senior figure to have spoken against "opportunistic" legislation which in his view risks "poisoning things irretrievably". But several junior MPs said yesterday they saw the law as "excessive", "unnecessary" and "counter-productive". One, Jean-Marc Nesme, told Libération the government was going "too far; it will offend the vast majority of believers".
What's French for "never mind"?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Will they allow Crosses? Roseries?
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 0:08 Comments || Top||

#2  HAHAHAAA! The frenchies fall apart faster than the Charles de Gaulle! Why don't they just get it over with and declare themselves under sharia law? Welcome to the ummah, pierre.

My $$$'s on them keeping the ban against rosaries, crosses, and yarmulkes. They fear the jihadis too much to do otherwise.
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 0:22 Comments || Top||

#3  the bill may alienate Muslims more than it helps integrate them
Uh....I think it's too late for that, buddy. I don't see any indication that they want to be integrated. Hell, the French won't do anything to keep them from burning cars, beating up Jews or gang raping women, so what's the big surprise that they are backing down on a headscarf?
Sharia in Francistan in 2008. Just watch.
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/20/2004 0:42 Comments || Top||

#4  "But fears that the bill may alienate Muslims more than it helps integrate them"

Well, that's the whole point. They don't WANT to integrate. Just like they dont around the rest of the world. They only want France to integrate into Islam. For crying out loud pick up a history book and read what lead up to the crusades. How the Islamics migrated, breed, and even back then refused to integrate.

I knew the French would show their true colors once again. Also notice how the Jews and Christians aren't out crying about the crosses and caps. It's only those poor, muslims the frenchies hate. (uh yeah right)
Posted by: 98Zulu || 01/20/2004 0:50 Comments || Top||

#5  Think about it: no matter what we all think about Islam, this idea was pretty dumb and specious for a western democracy. Even in the US we would have never sponsored such a national idiot idea. This was an attempt by the French pivot point of power and politics (Paris) to lower the profile of their big real problem - a national minority of Muslims.
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 01/20/2004 6:15 Comments || Top||

#6  Not quite,Jack.Ask the ACLU about what happens to individual student prayer,and Bible study groups in U.S. schools?
Posted by: raptor || 01/20/2004 7:00 Comments || Top||

#7  It was a particularly bad idea, but it was a French idea, so what do you expect? What has happened is that the French, unwilling/incapable of dealing with the real problems (lack of integration, rampant crime and violence on the part of their Muslim subpopulation) opted to make a symbolic move that would, they thought, quiet down the internal criticism while being an easy move to make.

Well, duh, it failed: they're up against people who use anti-tank weapons during bank robberies, who aren't afraid to blow themselves (and others!) up to make a point, and those people didn't back down!

So the French are left with a failed symbolic gesture, watching their country take the clear lead in the European Sharia Sweepstakes...

Any bets on when the real violence begins in France? 2006? 2008? Sooner?
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 7:58 Comments || Top||

#8  Well, LGF reported a failed car bomb on a high-ranking French official Sunday. Maybe that's what caused Chirac to shit his pants?
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 8:42 Comments || Top||

#9 
What if a Moslem father decides that his daughters should not attend school at all? What if he forces his daughter to attend school in a burka?

France is trying to deal with a social problem -- Moslem fanatics -- that is relatively much larger there than here in the United States.

The systematic oppression of girls and women that is common in Moslem societies is not acceptable in the rest of the world. In areas, like France, where this unacceptable oppression seriously might advance, society should oppose it with real counter-measures.
Posted by: Mike Sylwester || 01/20/2004 9:10 Comments || Top||

#10  Perhaps its a bad idea but France is running out of options. They must do something about the unassimilated population. I would suggest a combination of headscarf laws and plane tickets to Algeria for those that just cannot live with the new restrictions.
Posted by: ruprecht || 01/20/2004 10:27 Comments || Top||

#11  I really hope the French stand firm on this issue. Don't get me wrong - the headscarf ban was stupid, like putting a new coat of paint on a burning house. But if they back down on this, they are sending a powerful message to the moonbats: we are weak, you are strong, and we will always back down. They will never again be able to impose their will on these invaders.
Posted by: BH || 01/20/2004 10:29 Comments || Top||

#12  BH -- IMHO, the decision to ban the headscarf, rather than actually deal with the problem, already signalled France's weakness.
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 10:45 Comments || Top||

#13  I's skip the headscarf issue and start combating crime. Getting rid of the 35 hour work week wouldn't hurt either.
Posted by: Sharon in NYC || 01/20/2004 10:59 Comments || Top||

#14  This headscarf thing was a French way of asserting their tradition of separating religion from the state. If they back down, this will effectively be the end of France as it used to be. However, with the way attitudes are changing nowadays in EUrope, this may be viewed as a good thing.
Posted by: Rafael || 01/20/2004 14:17 Comments || Top||

#15  Back in the 50s, a French officer was quoted as saying that if they failed to defeat the Muslims in Algeria, they would eventually have to fight them in France itself.

This has become half-true, the Muslim invasion is a reality but the French are not fighting.

I still believe that there are many in France who will resist the invasion and destruction of French society, just as there were many who resisted the Nazis after the craven surrender of 1940.

Time is running out though, and the future French resistance does not have likes of Roosevelt and Churchill to support it from abroad.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 15:16 Comments || Top||

#16  Hey whats one more defeat if you're french?It's not like it is anything new too them
Posted by: smokeysinse || 01/20/2004 15:44 Comments || Top||

#17  Mike Sylvester

If a Muslim father doesn't send his daughter to school he will be fined and possibly jailed.

For the lesson givers

Allowing veiled girls on pretext of religion makes both them and their parents vunerable to pressure on the islamists. "Why don't ypu veil your daughter? Would you be a bad Muslim? Are you thinking of converting? (1)". It also sends the message that their values are acceptable and will not be fought, that those Algerians and Moroccans who aspire for secularization and modernity will not be helped by the law.

And now we have some politically correct Americans
whining about freedom of religion. Sorry but France (the orginal one not Chirak's France) was supposed to exist on the motto '"Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite" and the head scarve is accepting opression of women, unequality and wahabi hate. Accept head scarves in name religion? And what is next? Poligamy? (by the way what about your opressed Mormon minority?) Genital mutiliaton? We have to admit because it is their religion? Nuts. What if some of your Mexican minority intend to restore Huizipilotchli's cult? Will you allow the human sacrifices?

And for the obstinate lesson givers.

I were you I would remind that between 1993 and 2000 America was playing the appeasement game with the Islamists, even with the sadistic monsters of Algeria's GIA. France was very close to have its own 9/11 when the GIA put a bomb on the rails of the High speed train. Since it reaches 180 mph if the bomb hadn't failed to detnoate there would have been hundreds of dead (one of them my daughter who happened to be travelling that day). At that time the US was betting on the FIS/GIA reaching power and was busy trying to make friends with the asassins.

(1) Muslims who convert are to be killed on sight.
Posted by: JFM || 01/20/2004 16:12 Comments || Top||

#18  Tipping point time?
Posted by: tu3031 || 01/20/2004 16:21 Comments || Top||


Fifth Column
Thank you MoveOn for ensuring a Bush Re-election.
Click the link for the video. Careful now. Prolonged exposure to this kind of insanity has been shown to turn your brain to mush.
On January 15th, New Yorkers awoke to single-digit temperatures and a few inches of new snowfall. Al Gore chose the day to give a speech on global warming. The speech--delivered at the Beacon Theatre on Manhattan’s Upper West Side--was sponsored by MoveOn.org, a website-turned-political-action-committee that recently gained notoriety by hosting two political ads equating President Bush with Adolf Hitler. Although such comparisons were common at anti-war rallies, I still wasn’t sure whether this mindset was now infecting the Democratic base--the sort of folks who’d brave the cold to hear Al Gore speak. To find out, I spent a few shivering hours outside the Beacon.
Posted by: Daniel King || 01/20/2004 5:38:36 PM || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:

#1  And the looniest of them all had on tee shirts for Dennis Kucin.. You know that guy who was also running in Iowa (Idiots Out Wandering Around)
Posted by: Cheddarhead || 01/20/2004 17:50 Comments || Top||

#2  ...and in Revere, we have Sal and Vinnie in their Camaro IROC (Italian Retards Out Crusing).
Posted by: Raj || 01/20/2004 18:39 Comments || Top||

#3  /sarcasm
Whut? You talkin to me? You are a F****in 'tard. Revere girls love the beach because it is so close to the ocean.
/sarcsm

These people need help. Seriously. Time to break out that "Dean People Suck" T-Shirt.

Posted by: Angry Federalist || 01/20/2004 19:04 Comments || Top||

#4  Iowa (Idiots Out Wandering Around)

In case you didn't know, Iowahawk isn't an idiot.
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 20:08 Comments || Top||

#5  Picture the Hose's arm and hand held aloft waving an ignited lighter back and forth.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 20:45 Comments || Top||

#6  "stupid" "narrow-minded" "extermination" "most dangerous president in history" "coup d'etat" "chauvinistic"
"Hitler" "Hitler" "Hitler"
"he should stop playing on people's fears and start playing on something more positive..."

Doublethink, Orwell come to life.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 22:01 Comments || Top||

#7  It should be noted that however hyperbolic, comparisons to Hitler and fascism are not unknown in the American political debate. Rush Limbaugh has routinely called women's rights advocates "femi-Nazis," and references to "Hitlery Clinton" are a staple of right-wing talk radio. Republican power-broker Grover Norquist on NPR (10/2/03) compared inheritance taxes to the Holocaust.

Closer to home for Fox News, on the very same day that Gibson, Hannity and O'Reilly were talking about the Hitler/Bush comparison as evidence of the left's extremism, a column ran in the New York Post that described Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean as a follower of Josef Goebbels, referred to him as "Herr Howie," accused him of "looking for his Leni Riefenstahl," called his supporters "the Internet Gestapo" and compared them to "Hitler's brownshirts."
Posted by: JoeDoe || 01/20/2004 22:41 Comments || Top||

#8  Not to mention that IIRC, only 2 out of about 400 (I think) hosted ads made this Hitler comparison? And MoveOn wasn't actually sponsoring them, nor were they shortlisted or anything?

But do go here: http://www.bushin30seconds.org/ and check out the videoclip named "What are we teaching our children?" -- it's amazingly hilarious, even if you disagree politically with it.
Posted by: Aris Katsaris || 01/20/2004 22:55 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Pakistan told to find journalist
A court in Pakistan has ordered officials to find a journalist who has been missing for nearly a month. Khawar Mehdi Rizvi was arrested in December with two French reporters who were investigating the Taleban presence in the country.
He was "guiding" them.
They were later deported but Mr Rizvi’s family says he is still in custody . Karachi’s high court told officials to state Mr Rizvi’s whereabouts within two days but the authorities say they have no idea where he is.
That’s a bad sign.
The BBC’s Paul Anderson in Islamabad says that Mr Rizvi was paraded on Pakistani television several days after he was arrested, but he has not been seen since.
Maybe he slipped and fell down a flight of stairs? That happens to reporters, just ask the Iranians.
Human rights organisations like Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders have taken up the case, saying they fear for Mr Rizvi’s safety. He and the two French journalists were arrested in an area bordering Afghanistan. The trio had been investigating the presence of Taleban fighters in the area, and had interviewed a man they alleged was a lower-ranking Taleban commander.
Just happened to find them.
The two Frenchmen, Marc Epstein and Jean-Paul Guilloteau of the weekly L’Express, were charged with violating the terms of their visas and sentenced to six months in prison. They were deported a few days later after intense lobbying by French diplomats.
Don’t forget their valiant two hour hunger strike.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 3:24:29 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  really anyone reporter or not who meets with taliban or al-qiuda should imidietly be carted of to Gauntanamo bay to face interigation.I'm sick of seeing french journolists running round in iraq filming the scum bag baathists as they shoot on our troops,and the fuck nozzle journolists who go to Afgan of Pakstan to talk to these bastards.Bloody appeasing Jihadi Journo's,lock em up.
Posted by: Jon Shep U.K || 01/20/2004 15:40 Comments || Top||

#2  I'm picking Mr. Rivzi in the Dead Pool futures....fait accompli
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 16:48 Comments || Top||

#3  Reporters Without Borders??? Good grief.
Posted by: Rafael || 01/20/2004 17:46 Comments || Top||


Muslim protestors burn Taslima’s effigy
Scores of Muslims on Tuesday demonstrated against controversial Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen, demanding that she leave the city immediately. The protestors burned two straw effigies of the author
We hate her so much we wanna kill her twice!
and trampled on posters carrying her picture. "She is an insult to Islam and she can’t stay in this city," said Idris Ali, president of the All-India Minority Council, as about 250 people cheered him. "We have so far remained calm, but we will pick up swords if she is not asked to leave this country or at least our city immediately. The government is spending public money to protect an infidel. This is an insult to Muslims. She is an insult to Islam because she smokes and wears clothes that Islam doesn’t approve of," Ali said. The demonstration was held in a predominantly Muslim neighbourhood in central Kolkata near the office of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), which heads West Bengal’s ruling coalition.
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 1:53:23 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  wow bet this was one of those street carniaval atmosphere demo's.I love it when they go effigie burning - theres always one sorry fucker who ends up catching himself on fire,brilliant fun to watch that.Be better if the fire spread to all of them,fingers crossed eh.
Posted by: Jon Shep U.K || 01/20/2004 13:58 Comments || Top||

#2  another example of the religion of peace and tolerance.

makes me sick everytime i hear a muslim in a non-muslim country complain about their rights.
Posted by: Anonymous || 01/20/2004 14:01 Comments || Top||

#3  No, Jughead, an "insult to Islam" would be more along the lines of "F*** your prophet, and all the mullahs!"

Hope it helps.
Posted by: mojo || 01/20/2004 14:06 Comments || Top||

#4  They have a point, this could happen in the US she is a smoker.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:07 Comments || Top||

#5  "wears clothes that Islam doesn’t approve of"

a pastel with a plaid??? No wonder they're seething!
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 15:25 Comments || Top||

#6  this could happen in the US she is a smoker.

Yeah, but here it would just mean she wouldn't get invited on Oprah. She would make Ellen's show though.

Posted by: Pappy || 01/20/2004 20:21 Comments || Top||

#7  She'd have to skip New York and Commissar Bloomburg, too.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 20:41 Comments || Top||


Russian carrier deal to give Indian navy new power
India has finalised the purchase of a Russian aircraft carrier in a $1.5 billion deal giving Asia’s only carrier-equipped navy dramatically stronger firepower and bringing nuclear rival China within range. Announcing the deal -- one of New Delhi’s biggest with its main arms supplier -- Defence Minister George Fernandes described the acquisition of the Admiral Gorshkov and a squadron of MiG-29 multi-role fighters as historic. India’s only carrier at present, the INS Viraat, was built for defence and has a limited range, but the Gorshkov will give the navy the capacity to put a carrier taskforce into the South China Sea within range of China.
Threatening their eastern flank.
Russia will take five years to refit the Gorshkov, intended as a temporary replacement for the INS Vikrant -- decommissioned in the late 1990s -- until India can build its own carriers. India is the only country in the region with a carrier, an issue of concern among some of the country’s smaller neighbours.
It’s only a "issue of concern" if you have "issues" with India.
Its main rivals, Pakistan and China, both of whom have fought wars with India, also do not have carriers.
They are the people with "issues".
India is building up its navy and naval chief Madhvendra Singh said last month the Gorshkov was a "very, very powerful ship" which would "change the scene completely in our area".
At least in some people’s minds.
India has said it aims to build its own carriers in less than a decade but analysts expect this to take much longer. The navy has an ageing fleet of about 140 ships. It has patrolled widely in recent years, from the eastern coast of Africa to the Straits of Malacca in Southeast Asia. The Gorshkov, which joined the Soviet navy as the Baku in the mid-1980s, will be about 65 to 70 percent new by the time it is refitted.
With good maintenance, she’ll be fine.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 10:31:12 AM || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Link for carrier info
Posted by: Chuck Simmins || 01/20/2004 11:56 Comments || Top||

#2  The Mig-29 is a good fit but the carrier looks like an improved Essex. But perhaps that is a good a place as any to start. Odds on who in the homebuild IndiaChina carrier race?
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:13 Comments || Top||

#3  China will get the ship in the water first, but operational is something else again.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 16:02 Comments || Top||

#4  I suppose the Indian navy will now purchase the fleet oilers and logistics and ships required to ensure a carrier can actually leave port? Probably not. India already has a carrier and as far as I can tell its never left the Indian ocean. And a carrier doesn't really give them much of an advantage against their likely enemies (Pakistan and China) which happen to be more or less neighbors.

It's a pride project that India would be smart to avoid.
Posted by: ruprecht || 01/20/2004 16:07 Comments || Top||

#5  Actually ruprecht the oilers are there or at least should still be there. India used to have two older carriers the Viraat and Vikrant, the Vikrant was retired back in 1997 and the Viraat...well its a ship whose keel was laid down back in 1944 lets put it that way. These carriers were both purchased from the UK and to tell ya the truth I haven't heard any negative stuff about their performance.

Now as far as Gorshkov is concerned....Well lets put it this way, the Chinese got their carrier of the same Kiev class for 66 million dollars equivalent, compared to India's shelling out about 500 mill for the refurbished carrier PLUS airwing, so I have no idea as to whether its worth it.
Posted by: Val || 01/20/2004 16:20 Comments || Top||

#6  Someone asked for info on Arleigh Burke yesterday. I figured that I would dump the links here as this story was Navy related. Sorry if this annoys anyone.

The secret to a search for info on Arleigh Burke the person without getting links to the ship class is to add his nickname 31 Knot to the search. Here are some links:
1. THE BATTLE OF CAPE ST. GEORGE
2. Eulogy
3. Naval Institue Book Store
4. Link to Surface Warfare Magazine article - 100 years of ‘tin cans’ -- Fast ships in harm’s way

Please, allow me to return you to your regular programming.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 16:34 Comments || Top||

#7  And a carrier doesn't really give them much of an advantage against their likely enemies (Pakistan and China) which happen to be more or less neighbors.

The US currently takes care of freedom of the seas in the Southeast Asian region. If the 7th Fleet ever gets cut back, and China reasserts its claim to the South China Sea as Chinese territory, India may need to, in concert with the regional powers, patrol in the South China Sea. India's interest is in ensuring that trade routes to East Asia remain open, regardless of whether the US stays the course in the region. China is certainly moving towards a blue water navy - regional powers will have to keep up to avoid being presented with a Chinese fait accompli.
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 01/20/2004 17:23 Comments || Top||

#8  Well lets put it this way, the Chinese got their carrier of the same Kiev class for 66 million dollars equivalent,

Big deal, so the Peoples Army's Navy (is that an oxymoron?) has a Kiev class carrier. All that can operate off of it are AWS choppers and VSTOL fighters. What VSTOL fighters are they operating? Those POS Yakolevs. Or has the Yakolev Organization been able to build their generation VSTOL fighter? The Indian Navy has Harriers operating off of the carrier they have now. Not a lot of range but better birds than the YAKs. Add in the Gorshkov with MIG29s and they will be able to project power. Too bad the Aussies decided to get out of the Naval Aviation business. Two nation states in that area of the world that have to be having serious dicussions amongst their militaries are Australia and Singapore
Posted by: Cheddarhead || 01/20/2004 17:45 Comments || Top||

#9  Big deal, so the Peoples Army's Navy (is that an oxymoron?) has a Kiev class carrier. All that can operate off of it are AWS choppers and VSTOL fighters.

I believe what the Chinese bought was essentially a hulk.

Two nation states in that area of the world that have to be having serious dicussions amongst their militaries are Australia and Singapore

Thailand as well, tho they do have a small carrier.

Posted by: Pappy || 01/20/2004 20:43 Comments || Top||

#10  Pappy,
I'll be impressed when they unrep the carrier at 15 knots. Was it the Belknap that got t-boned by the Aussie carrier?
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 20:47 Comments || Top||

#11  The neighbors would be better off building a sub or two since I doubt these carrier will have an adequate fleet to protect them. There is a reason that only the US has a serious carrier fleet. It costs bucks and if you only a have a few they become big pride things that you don't dare risk in combat.

Ask the Argentines who kept the Bientocyno Demayo in port rather than risk it being sunk by the Brittish during the Falklands war.
Posted by: ruprecht || 01/20/2004 22:42 Comments || Top||

#12  I did wonder why not MIG-31's. They're carrier capable, aren't they?
Posted by: Chuck || 01/20/2004 23:01 Comments || Top||


Pakistani info minister rules out extradicting Omar Sheikh
Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad Monday said that shifting of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who has been awarded jail term in the murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl case, from Karachi to Adiala prison was in connection with the sentence saying that his extradition to some foreign country was not in accordance with the law. In an interview to a private television, he said that the accused was shifted to Adiala jail in connection with the life-imprisonment awarded to him in Pearl’s case saying his extradition to some other country was not legally correct.

In reply to a question regarding arrest of seven al-Qaeda suspects in Karachi on Sunday, he said that war against terrorism would continue claiming that the authorities had found important leads in President Musharraf’s case and ‘and investigation in this regard would take not more than couple of days’. When asked if Omar was also being investigated regarding attacks on Musharraf’s life the information minister declined to comment by saying ‘no comments.’ Ruling out the possibility of Omar’s shifting to Islamabad he said he had been awarded transportation for life and only jail to jail transference is possible ‘whereas there is no jail in Islamabad.’
Is there some sort of international school for information ministers, where they teach them goofy things to say and do?
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 12:10:42 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad Monday said that shifting of Ahmad Omar Sheikh, who has been awarded jail term in the murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl case, from Karachi to Adiala prison was in connection with the sentence saying that his extradition to some foreign country was not in accordance with the law.

Allrighty, how about killing him yourselves?
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 0:27 Comments || Top||


LeJ leader arrested in connection with Karachi church bombing
Pakistani police said on Monday they had arrested a key Islamic militant in connection with last week’s bombing outside a church in Karachi and seized a huge quantity of explosives on the basis of information he gave them. Shamim Ahmed, the 25-year-old operations chief of the outlawed Sunni Muslim group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, was arrested in an overnight raid in a middle-class neighbourhood of Karachi, city police chief Tariq Jameel told Reuters.

The information he gave them prompted police to raid a house in the centre of the city, where they seized a large quantity of explosives and weapons, including hand grenades and letter bombs. Jameel said Ahmed was suspected of involvement in Thursday’s bombing outside Karachi’s Anglican cathedral in which 11 people were wounded. A police officer, who did not want to be identified, described Ahmed as a bomb-making expert. Two unidentified militants threw a grenade outside the Holy Trinity Cathedral on Thursday, then a car bomb exploded as security officials searched the site for clues. The government has announced a bounty of one million rupees ($17,000) for information leading to the arrest of the attackers, who are thought to be krazed killers raving lunatics Islamist extremists outraged by Pakistan’s support of the U.S.-led war against terror.
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 12:07:50 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


‘Karachi saved from major catastrophe’
Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad on Monday said the city escaped a major catastrophe after the police seized a huge quantity of explosives and weaponry from an abandoned house in Mehmoodabad. Dr Ibad said the seizure of a huge quantity of arms, ammunition and explosives was a great breakthrough. “Such a huge quantity of dangerous stuff shows that the terrorists were planning something very dangerous against our people,” Dr Ibad said.
Do tell? Wotta surprise.
The governor said the seizure also showed that the local authorities and police were committed to saving people’s lives and property. “They (the police) took timely action and again showed that they are committed to the cause of saving the life and property of our citizens,” he said. The preliminary investigations show a well-trained and well-organised group had established a bomb-making factory in the house, which the terrorists had rented a couple of months ago. The police have also seized a “Guidebook for Jihadis” in Urdu language in which the terrorists were advised to implement “precautionary measures” while in action, said the Sindh Inspector of Police (IGP) Syed Kamal Shah.
I wonder who might have published that?
The book warns the terrorists from using the Internet, telephone and satellite phones, as that might guide the investigators towards their whereabouts. It also directs the terrorists not to gather in full at any place, as in a raid would imperil the entire group. The governor said the police officials who took part in the operation would be rewarded with cash and service promotions.
And what about the guys who were running the place?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The book warns the terrorists from using the Internet, telephone and satellite phones, as that might guide the investigators towards their whereabouts. It also directs the terrorists not to gather in full at any place, as in a raid would imperil the entire group.

Kind of ensures that they will never be any bigger than ELF or any other little disgruntled group who decides to blow something/someone up to get attention, no??
Posted by: B || 01/20/2004 7:43 Comments || Top||


US-sought Qaeda suspect caught?
One of the five Al-Qaeda suspects, whom intelligence agencies picked up from an apartment in a Gulistan-e-Jauhar residential complex on Sunday, has been identified as Amir Hussain Abdullah al-Misri, intelligence officials said on Monday. An official said the Americans have been searching for Abdullah al-Misri and their Pakistani counterparts were determining whether the suspect is the same wanted man. “We are checking his documents carefully to see whether they are altered,” the official said.
Which set of documents?
Sources said the three Afghans and an Egyptian had occupied a flat from November last year while al-Misri joined them after an ongoing military operation was launched in South Waziristan. Sources said Pakistani officials have shared information relating to the arrests with their counterparts in the American FBI and it is expected that some FBI officials would join the interrogation on Tuesday.
That's grounds for low-key ululation...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Omar Saeed Sheikh being questioned on Musharraf attacks
A British-born militant sentenced to death for masterminding the murder of US reporter Daniel Pearl is being questioned about the two attempts to kill Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, police said on Monday. Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, better known as Sheikh Omar, was moved to Islamabad from Hyderabad at the weekend for questioning over the bomb attacks on Musharraf last month. “Sheikh Omar was taken to Islamabad on Sunday after a request from investigators in President Musharraf’s cases,” said Mansoor Ahmed, deputy superintendent of police in Hyderabad. “He was flown to Islamabad by helicopter.”
And didn't "escape." That's encouraging...
A police source said investigators suspected there might be a link between Mr Omar and the militants who attacked Gen Musharraf. “Before and after the attacks on the president, a few suspected militants visited Sheikh Omar at Hyderabad jail,” he said.
I won't bother asking why he was allowed visitors...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Kashmir Korpse Kount
Eleven people including a district commander of a hardline militant group were killed in fresh separatist violence in Held Kashmir. Indian troops shot dead two militants in the southern Kashmir district of Doda in an overnight clash, police said. One of the dead was identified as Mohammed Rafiq of the militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba. Troops have boosted their operations against militants in Kashmir over the past fortnight. Four more militants were killed in two separate clashes with Indian troops in the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch, police said. Police also said a soldier died and another was injured in a shootout between militants and security forces in Kupwara district. Another militant had been killed in a second clash near southern Shopian town, police said. Among the other dead, two Muslim civilians were killed and another was injured in an exchange of fire between militants and soldiers overnight in the districts of Kupwara and Poonch, a police spokesman said. He said another Muslim civilian was shot dead in the village of Hari Safedan in Poonch district Monday morning.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Brain test carried out on Lashkar suspect
This sounds painful...
For the first time ever, a novel method was used by the Indian Crime Investigation Department (CID) to extract the truth from a suspected terrorist. The CID subjected a man to ‘brain wave fingerprinting test’ to confirm the link between the Sai Baba Temple blast and suspected sabotage of the Hyderabad-Bangalore Express. Sources in CID told Deccan Chronicle that Syed Abdul Nayeem, a resident of Saidabad, suspected to be a Lashker-e-Taiba activist, was taken to the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences at Bangalore for the test. CID personnel arrested Nayeem in November 2003 along with Irfan Ali Khan for providing shelter to the accused in the temple blast case. A CID official on the condition of anonymity said, “We have information that the same module had executed the temple blast that killed two persons on November 21, 2002 and the Hyderabad-Bangalore train mishap in December 2002 in Kurnool, in which 19 persons lost their lives.”
That guy last night was saying there's no such thing as terrorism, that it's an articial construct concocted by neo-cons and other sinister elements. He wasn't on that train.
Two people, Mohammad Azam of Rein Bazaar and Syed Aziz, alias Imran of Malakpet, allegedly responsible for the blast, were killed in separate encounters on November 22 and 23 in 2002 in Parvatapur on the outskirts of the city and Karimnagar respectively. The police arrested Nayeem and Irfan in connection with the temple blast in October 2003. Police said that Abdul Bari from Riyadh was monitoring the two.
That's interesting. A Soddy controller on-site for a sabotage campaign in India...
Experts, who examined the train mishap site, confirmed sabotage after the rails were found cut with a hacksaw.
That's usually a pretty good indicator...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  That's interesting. A Soddy controller on-site for a sabotage campaign in India...
A former Indian intell operative who operated the South Asia Analysis Group has long claimed that apart from the Lashkar-e-Taiba's primary infrastucture in Pakistan, it has a large presence in Saudi Arabia too, with the two countries representing a division of labor.
While the LET's headquarters in Pakistan co-ordinate its activities in North India, including J&K, the Central Asian Republics (CARs) and Russia (Chechnya and Dagestan), its headquarters in Saudi Arabia co-ordinate its activities in Mumbai and South India, the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka and in the countries of S.E. Asia. Since 2001, there have been a number of arrests of LET cadres in Mumbai and South India, who reportedly claimed to have been trained, funded and directed by the LET set-up in Saudi Arabia and not directly by the LET headquarters in Pakistan.
Posted by: Paul Moloney || 01/20/2004 0:36 Comments || Top||

#2  Experts, who examined the train mishap site, confirmed sabotage after the rails were found cut with a hacksaw.

I hope they weren't cut with a hand-powered hacksaw. If so, one has to wonder what kind of steel they are using for their rails.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 0:51 Comments || Top||

#3  I hope they weren't cut with a hand-powered hacksaw
All it takes is time and plenty of willing hands. They've got both.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 8:49 Comments || Top||

#4  Is this where they suck your brain (if any) out your ears with a 1953 Hoover Electrolux?
Posted by: mojo || 01/20/2004 14:09 Comments || Top||

#5  The '53 (the Hurricane) is the vaccuum of choice for close in wet work.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 15:23 Comments || Top||

#6 
Brain test carried out on Lashkar suspect
So, did they find one? :-p
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut || 01/20/2004 15:32 Comments || Top||

#7  If they had had this technology available at my middle school, Iwould have spent even more time in detention.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 17:49 Comments || Top||


Bomb explodes in Quetta, no injuries
QUETTA: Another huge explosion rocked the provincial metropolis Monday evening. A homemade bomb placed near a Traffic Police booth on Jinnah Road went off at about 8:55pm, but nobody was injured. Eyewitness said doors and windows of nearby buildings were damaged but no casualties were. Police defused three bombs and a rocket on Sunday and exchanged fire with several people who were allegedly planting bombs, but the accused managed to escape.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Pakistan changing from ‘kleptocracy’ to democracy: Ambassador Qazi
Pakistan is “undergoing a transition from an unstable, corrupt and personality-centred ‘kleptocracy’ to a more sustainable, transparent and institutionalised democracy,” Pakistan’s US Ambassador Jehangir Ashraf Qazi said on Monday. In a letter published in the New York Times on Monday, Mr Qazi took issue with the newspaper which had said in an earlier report that Pakistani politics was “difficult to decode” and the immediate challenge was to “discover what is really going on there”. Mr Qazi writes that what is going on in Pakistan “should be plain enough” and then goes on to stress how General Pervez Musharraf was trying to transform Pakistan into an “institutionalised democracy”.
I guess it's "plain enough" if you're Anna Comnena or Theodosius. To the rest of us, it's tough to follow...
“Very significant successes have been achieved in the war on terror, in economic reform, in overcoming the impasse in parliament, in securing borders, in combating domestic extremists and in reducing tensions along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir,” he added. The ambassador said that “the price” paid for these efforts has come in the form of “the elevated risk to the president, as the recent attacks on him demonstrate”, adding that these attacks have only “reinforced the determination of the president, the prime minister and the people of Pakistan to root out extremism and violence”.
... which is a way of life for a significant portion of the Pakistani population.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  When they're done, can they pass some how-to notes to Kenya, Bobland and Venezuela?
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 20:49 Comments || Top||


Iraq
US Blueprints Resistance Cells
I discovered this while checking out the Arab Times story about Israeli jets going into Lebanon’s airspace. It is dated Jan 21, 2004.
The US military has recently drawn up "a much clearer picture" of the guerrilla network operating in the Iraqi capital, two senior officials said Monday, after a suicide car bombing in the heart of the city killed 31 people. They said the military had "nonspecific intelligence" that car bombs were being prepared in Baghdad. But the information wasn’t specific enough to prevent Sunday’s suicide bombing outside the US-led coalition’s headquarters. "We think in the past month we have made some significant advances against their organization. We have a much clearer picture of the network and who their cell leaders are," said one official, briefing a group of reporters. He did not say how long it will take the Army to wipe out the network, which officials earlier said was made up of 14 cells, each with 10 to 100 members.

The new picture has emerged from intelligence gathered from almost 600 suspected insurgents arrested since November by the 1st Armored Division, which is in charge of the Baghdad area. Saddam’s capture on Dec 13 also helped add clarity to the picture. "What we were able to do was put different pieces together that we knew were out there but it started to look lot more visible in terms of how it is working," he said. As in most insurgencies, the network is compartmentalized and works with semi-independent cells. This protects the network from being penetrated, but it also limits coordination. Still, the cell members know what needs to be done and are allowed to "go out and do it." The cells are made up principally of former Baath party members. The insurgents also include some criminals and "others" who include religious extremists and some foreign insurgents, he said. The foreign fighters comprise a small number although it would appear that the suicide car bombings were carried out by foreigners rather than Iraqis. "Obviously it has to be a guy with a great deal of zeal to punch himself. It’s certainly not a Baath party official," he said. The two officials said that out of 88 neighborhoods in Baghdad, about six are the most troublesome. They said there has been a steady decline in the number of hostile incidents since Saddam’s capture. In early October an average of 15 home-made bombs were being found or exploding in Baghdad every day. Today, the average is five or seven.
Hopefully, this ‘blueprint’ will soon result in action that will reduce these incidents to zero per day.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 5:35:18 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Great way to piss us off
It's from Reuters so no idea on how valid their sources opinions are..
If Iraqis ever see Saddam Hussein on trial, they want his former American allies shackled beside him. "Saddam should not be the only one who is put on trial. The Americans backed him when he was killing Iraqis so they should be prosecuted," said Ali Mahdi, a builder.
Where have we heard this before...oh yes those lefty organized protests and anti-war movements.
"If the Americans escape justice they will face God’s justice. They must be stoned in hell."
Like, wow, man. This article is some really good shit. I'm already stoned outta my zzzzzzzzz....
The United States continued to feel the backlash of its move to give Saddam prisoner of war status Tuesday as thousands of Iraqi protesters called for his execution. ... "Saddam was a top graduate of the American school of politics," said Assad al-Saadi, standing with friends in the slum of Sadr city, formerly called Saddam City, a Shiite Muslim area oppressed by Saddam’s security agents. "My brother was an army officer who was executed. Saddam is a criminal and the Americans were his friends. We need justice so that we can forget the past."
We're friends with Australia. We're friends with Britain. We're friends with Denmark and Czechoslovakia and Eritrea. We never invaded any of them. Normally, we don't invade our friends. When we do, like in Germany and Italy and Japan, it's a special circumstance and not because we're good buddies with the local dictator.
Saddam was captured on December 13 hiding in a hole near his hometown of Tikrit. A month later the United States declared him a prisoner of war. But his new POW status has only added to skepticism about American promises after toppling Saddam in April. "The Americans and Saddam should face justice. Do you really think the Americans are going to put themselves on trial?" said Ali, a U.S.-trained policeman.
Ah yes the legendary gratitude of a freed people by putting your liberators on trial and have to defend themselves!
"Of course we hope the Americans and Saddam will face trial. But will it ever happen? I doubt it."
Tell you what we COULD have left Saddam in power instead..I’m sure that would make you happier ingrates.
Little note here, as I said above I have no idea how widespread this attitude is among Iraqis currently, Reuters is known for blowing things out of proportion when it comes to anti-american slants
Posted by: Val || 01/20/2004 4:50:14 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  You could go to Baghdad (or anywhere else) and find any opinion that you want to if you search long enough. Reuters is a joke.
Posted by: Damn_Proud_American || 01/20/2004 16:57 Comments || Top||

#2  "The Americans and Saddam should face justice. Do you really think the Americans are going to put themselves on trial?" said Ali, a U.S.-trained policeman.
Ah yes the legendary gratitude of a freed people by putting your liberators on trial and have to defend themselves!

Sweet suffering Jesus, I didn't know that Iraq was a French province
Posted by: Cheddarhead || 01/20/2004 17:23 Comments || Top||

#3  Are you sure they were not at a DNC event? Sounds like one to me! DPA is right, opinons are like a$$#oles, everyones got one. If you look hard enough you will find someone who agrees with you.
Posted by: Cyber Sarge (VRWC CA Chapter) || 01/20/2004 17:35 Comments || Top||

#4  This idea was first put forward by the Iranian Mullahs several weeks ago. Ya don't suppose they have an intelligence operation going on inside Iraq do you? NAH, too far fetched. Then again there's Rooters....

Strange no mention of French,Germans,Chinese, North Koreans, or Russians.

BTW, tell me again just how it is that Saddam became available for trial and justice in the first place.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 17:48 Comments || Top||

#5  Can we pick which Americans to send them for the persecutions? My neighbor doesn't rake his leaves.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 17:53 Comments || Top||

#6  We need justice so that we can forget the past."
And there you have it. Likely failing practicaly math too.

Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 18:36 Comments || Top||

#7  Practically math? LOL

Likely failing practical math too.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 18:37 Comments || Top||

#8  Reuters...pronounced "rooters" as in pigs, rooting around in the mud for scraps.
Posted by: B || 01/20/2004 19:40 Comments || Top||

#9  I don't see the problem with this. I'd love to see MoveOn, ANSWER, Kucinich, Baldwin, Streisand, Moore, et al, on trial.
Posted by: Jackal || 01/20/2004 19:47 Comments || Top||

#10  Is Rooters still using their Baathist stringers?

That would also explain that attempt at a tear-jerker describing how bad the former regime's torturers have it now that their toys are free: The reporters are purposefully using former Baathists as their sources so as to put the worst spin possible on Iraq's condition. Who better to poor-mouth current conditions than one of the people who used to feed the shredders?
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 20:01 Comments || Top||


UN expected to intervene in Iraqi poll row
EFL:
The United Nations is likely to send a mission to Iraq to help resolve demands by Shiites for immediate direct elections in response to a request by Iraqi leaders and the United States.
Before you go off the handle, remember, "immediate" and "UN" are mutually exclusive terms.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said yesterday further discussions were necessary before he could make a decision to dispatch the team. UN officials said a four-member security unit, about to go to Iraq, would have to report back first.
Sticking their heads up, seeing if anybody takes another wack at them.
But diplomats expected a positive response, saying the decision had been made in principle after Annan met for several hours with members of the Iraqi Governing Council, the US administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, and his British counterpart, Sir Jeremy Greenstock.
Kofi really wants back in the game.
At issue is a demand from Iraq’s most revered Shiite cleric, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, for direct elections immediately for a provisional government.
Because his people would vote as a bloc, he thinks Shiite candidates would win. He’s most likely right.
The US-led occupation, known as the Coalition Provisional Authority, has called for a new national assembly to be established through a complicated caucus procedure before a temporary government can take office on June 30.
Think Iowa, with explosives.
After that Iraqis are to write a constitution and plan elections for a permanent government by the end of 2005. "I have indicated that I don’t believe there may be enough time between now and May to hold elections," Annan told a news conference after several hours of meetings with Iraqi leaders and the US-led occupation authorities. "But the team will go down and look into that further and then report to me," Annan said.
Being the UN, that could take some time. And time is on our side.
Being the U.N., the report on the feasibility of elections in May should be in sometime around the end of August...
A Sistani ally said that if the United Nations sent a mission, its findings would be accepted by the Shiite leader. "Some in Iraq say elections are not possible so he (Sistani) is demanding a neutral group to decide if elections are possible or not," said Abdul Aziz al-Hakim. "Then this conclusion will be respected by Mr. Sistani," Hakim told reporters.
Unless his side loses, at which point the seething will begin again. But, it will be against a UN decision instead of the US. That’s important internationally and politically.
I think Sistani will accept it. Moqtada won't, but Sistani will...
Annan has said repeatedly Iraq was too dangerous since he ordered out international staff in October, following two attacks on UN offices and humanitarian organisations in Baghdad. But the secretary-general said on Monday there was "widespread agreement" at the meeting for the UN to play a role once an Iraqi interim government was in place on June 30. "The issue now is whether the technical, political or security conditions exist for general direct elections to take place as early as May this year," he said.
I don’t think even Kofi believes that. Kofi will appoint a team, they’ll talk to everyone, consult the neighboring states, consult the EU, etc, etc. Then write a report, May will be long gone by that time.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 2:31:38 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Hey - I hear Al Gore has some experience with elections - send him!

Honestly we need time to teach the Iraqis what an election is about and how it works in specifics. How a cacus(sp?) works and why it is better then a simple election poll. Remember that most of these people dont have a clue what it means to participate in the decision making process and that they have a right and obligation to think for themselves (something americans need to be reminded of sometimes...).

Then we need to develop a election process in which the ballot is truly 'secret' and educate the people about how secret it is -- that even thou such-and-such a party may imtimidate and threaten eveyone who does not vote their way they can't actually do anything since the ballot is secret.

Also teach them to lie to exit polls.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 15:17 Comments || Top||

#2  The key statement is "...if the UN sent a mission, its findings would be accepted by Sistani". This is about saving Arab 'face'. Mr Sistani is in a win-win position here.
Posted by: ltcedk || 01/20/2004 15:22 Comments || Top||

#3  You know what? If these Shiite dumbasses think they can handle the big task of governing, I say let them. Keep ample forces stationed in Kurdistan and Kuwait so that when the eventual tribal feuding begins, the violence is kept contained within their territory. In the meantime, we take care of the rest of Iraq and set it up properly. Oh, and one more thing - if Iran's mullahs don't keep their hands off, there will be a very expensive price to pay.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 16:59 Comments || Top||

#4  I am torn on this one. Our Constitution could not have been written in any fashion other than by caucus because of the central big state/versus little state controversy. Unfortunately, I am not sure that Arabs are capable of engaging in compromise. Tarek Heggy has this insight.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 18:00 Comments || Top||

#5  Iraq is coming out of fourty years of Kleptocracy. Theocracy is not going to be step up. One way to get them to drop this whole idea for now is to take their Mullahs to California and show them just what "direct democracy" can do to a thriving ecenomy, much less one in the tiolet. At this point the best anybody could hope for is some sort of representational republic. Which would be a lot more than how many UN member states?
Posted by: Cheddarhead || 01/20/2004 18:00 Comments || Top||

#6  Partition.

Sistani wants mob rule (democracy vs. republic) because he rules the mob.

Partition.
Posted by: .com || 01/20/2004 21:30 Comments || Top||


Japan’s Iraq deployment gets little airtime at home
EFL
When Japanese soldiers crossed over into Iraq Monday, it marked the first time the nation’s troops entered a combat zone since World War II. But the send-off for this 40-person advance team was not the splashy news event one might have expected. Television coverage was mostly limited to file footage and bland announcements of equipment details by officials. The initial low-key coverage partly reflects the Japanese public’s ambivalence over the deployment, which the government has linked to larger goals of moving the nation from pacifism toward an embrace of military commitments. Alluding to stinging international criticism of "checkbook diplomacy" during the first Gulf War, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Monday, "We won’t have fulfilled our responsibility as a member of the international community if we contribute materially and leave the manpower contribution up to other countries."

But while Mr. Koizumi presses his Iraq case, the Defense Agency is working to mute media coverage of the deployment by asking Japanese journalists to leave Iraq. The Japan Defense Agency last week asked that all Japanese media "depart immediately from Iraq and give serious consideration whether or not to travel to Kuwait." Analysts see the clampdown as a threat to recent reform efforts by a press corps hampered by tight controls on information. The government’s request would force the Japanese media to rely on foreign news sources - a habit that Japanese journalists are striving to break, says Susan Kreifels, a media expert at the East-West Center in Hawaii. Japanese journalists are growing increasingly committed to sourcing their own work and recognizing the right to freedom of speech, she says.

So far, the Japanese press in Iraq appear to be staying. Reuters reported that about 100 Japanese journalists arrived in Samawah in advance of the soldiers. "As a focus point of international developments, Japanese are extremely interested in events in Iraq, and we plan to continue reporting from there," said a spokesman for the Asahi Shimbun, a major daily with a half dozen journalists in the war-torn country. Another major daily, the Mainichi Shimbun, said "we plan to keep our two correspondents in Iraq" regardless of the agency’s request. The Defense Agency had backed up its request by threatening a total blackout if any problems arise. "If the media are deemed an obstacle to the smooth implementation of the mission’s tasks... we will refuse all coverage," the agency said in a statement.
Way to play into the hands of the peaceniks and paranoid foilheads.
Last year, the government was forced by pressure from local media organizations to amend a series of bills concerning personal information that, if passed in their original form, could have infringed press freedoms. Worried about possible negative publicity about the mission from family of SDF personnel, the Defense Agency has also declared them off-limits to the press on grounds of possible violations of privacy. "We need to consider the feelings of the families," said Takeya Takahashi, a Defense Agency spokesman. "We won’t allow family members to speak with the media, be they foreign or local," he said.
I guess blogs and e-mail are out of the question.
The agency has cited security concerns as the major reason for the strict measures. A threat of terrorist attacks against Japan by the Al Qaeda network came as Tokyo late last year deliberated the timing of the troop dispatch. But the strict controls contrast sharply with the US decision to embed reporters with troops in the field. - But they don’t contrast with the US military’s attitude during the first Gulf War.
Clauswitz would probably theorize that the press censorship during GWI was one of the primary reasons that the American people allowed the military to be dismantled during the 90’s.
Indications suggest the crackdown won’t ease anytime soon. The agency also announced a plan to halt regular press conferences of the top commanders of the air, sea, and land forces. When reporters assigned to the Defense Agency objected to the plan, a top official on Defense Agency chief Shigeru Ishiba’s staff offered to discuss the issue, but added he only aimed to resolve it by the end of the month. Japan already has a spotty record concerning press freedoms. The system of exclusive press clubs in Japan has been criticized by foreign governments as hampering the free flow of information by allowing local and national officials to suppress news unfavorable to them. In addition, Japanese press clubs don’t admit foreign journalists. The media rights advocacy group Reporters Without Borders ranked Japan 44th in its world press freedom survey last year. Before Koizumi announced his decision in December to send the SDF to Iraq, polls showed public opposition to a dispatch as high as 88 percent. But a survey last week by a major satellite TV broadcaster showed for the first time that the number of people who support sending troops had surpassed those who oppose the dispatch - 49 percent agreed with the move while 46 percent disagreed. Other polls over the weekend showed opponents still outnumbering supporters by a slight margin.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 12:12:55 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I just want to extend my gratitude to the people of Japan for their flesh-and-blood military support of the U.S.A. and the coalition of the willing.

The right thing is always not so easy...
Posted by: Hyper || 01/20/2004 18:07 Comments || Top||

#2  Out of sight, out of mind, I always say...
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 18:08 Comments || Top||


CPA Announces $18 Billion Iraq Jobs, Reconstruction Program
A senior Coalition Provisional Authority official today announced an $18 billion jobs and reconstruction program for Iraq that aims to create 50,000 jobs by the June 30 handover of sovereignty. The main purpose of the program "is to help rebuild your country," retired U.S. Navy Rear Adm. David Nash, director of the CPA’s program management office, told Iraqis during a Baghdad news conference. About $12.4 billion is earmarked for 2,300 construction projects spread across Iraq, Nash pointed out, to include roads, schools, power plants and other infrastructure work. Many projects funded by the program, he noted, should be up and running by March. About a third of the $18 billion will be used for training Iraqis and purchasing needed equipment.

The admiral noted that many contractors already had signed on, and that he hopes the program would provide 50,000 new jobs for Iraqis by the time the coalition returns sovereignty to the Iraqi people. It would take three to four years, Nash estimated, to complete all of the projects funded by the program. He also noted that security would play an important role in the program’s success. Nash acknowledged that the U.S.-funded reconstruction program won’t be able to address all of Iraq’s infrastructure-renewal needs, but he expressed optimism that the international community also would pitch in toward the rebuilding process.
I feel optimism that my gut's eventually going to disappear and my hair's gonna grow back...
Iraqis participating in the reconstruction program will learn new skills, the admiral noted, and will assist Iraq in taking its rightful place among the nations of the world. The program puts "Iraqi men and women back to work, providing decent, honorable jobs for all," Nash pointed out. "These jobs will bring the dignity of honest earnings to Iraqi families, while providing tangible improvements in the quality of life for all Iraqi families."
Posted by: Chuck Simmins || 01/20/2004 11:37:04 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  But its all about the oil.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 22:04 Comments || Top||


Shiites Clamor for Saddam to Be Executed
EFL:
Thousands of Shiite Muslims marched through Baghdad on Tuesday clamoring for Saddam Hussein’s execution in the latest show of strength by people oppressed for decades by the former dictator.
"Yarrr! String 'im up!"
"Hey! Watch it with that pitchfork! You could put somebody's eye out!"
The 5,000-strong crowd was believed to be the first public demonstration in Iraq demanding death for Saddam since he was captured by U.S. forces Dec. 13. The Pentagon has said Saddam is a prisoner of war and that designation will not keep the deposed Iraqi president from standing trial before an Iraqi tribunal. "Saddam is a war criminal, not a POW! Execute Saddam!," the crowd chanted.
Sounds good to me, but the Red Thingy would calve on the spot. And the Frenchies would come down with group apoplexy...
Shiites also staged a smaller protest of several hundred people in the southern city of Najaf. "We call for the execution of Saddam the infidel, who killed our sons and kept them in mass graves," said Karima Hanoun, 40, speaking through a black veil at the demonstration. Another demonstrator, 43-year-old Samira Hassan, said, "Every good Muslim woman and every honest human being wants Saddam to be executed. How can America make him a POW?"
Don’t worry, Samira. He’ll be executed, just give it time.
Prisoner of war status under the Geneva Conventions grants Saddam certain rights, and many Iraqis fear that the status will shield him from a trial in his country. International Red Thingy Cross officials have said the conventions would not prevent the United States from handing Saddam over to an Iraqi tribunal, as long as a fair trial is guaranteed.
But we can't hand him over to an Iraqi angry mob? Damn. That's too bad.
Oh, it’ll be fair. And then he’ll go to the block.
A statement by the demonstrators said Saddam should be tried by an Iraqi court for crimes against humanity. "We emphasize our rejection and condemnation of the unjust American decision" to term him a prisoner of war, it said. "Did America forget, or is (it) forgetting the screams of the children, orphans, and the tears of women who are crying at the graves of their sons and husbands?"
No, we didn’t forget. There’s just some who don’t want to hear you.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 9:45:46 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  International Red Cross officials have said the conventions would not prevent the United States from handing Saddam over to an Iraqi tribunal, as long as a fair trial is guaranteed.

It's amazing how the Red Cross would have the nerve to say things like this, even as over a quarter million Iraqis died at the hands of Saddam's henchmen without the benefit of a fair trial themselves. At the very least, remaining uninvolved in this matter by witholding comment on it would have been a more honorable position.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 9:56 Comments || Top||

#2  "Saddam is a war criminal, not a POW! Execute Saddam!," the crowd chanted.

What they said.
Posted by: Mike || 01/20/2004 11:06 Comments || Top||

#3  I'm worried that I'm agreeing an Iraqi Shite Mob.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 12:04 Comments || Top||

#4  Shipman... don't worry about it. A stopped clock can tell the right time occasionally (even if it stopped in the 7th century...).
Posted by: snellenr || 01/20/2004 12:38 Comments || Top||

#5  Shipman may be right, but it chaps me that these Shiites are directing their anger at the US. These people are becoming a major headache. Their mob approach to issues (potentially rent-a-mob, directed by Iranian agents) is making me very nervous about the future of Iraq.
Posted by: remote man || 01/20/2004 13:38 Comments || Top||

#6  Shipman may be right, but it chaps me that these Shiites are directing their anger at the US.

It does seem that they are rather demanding assho^H^H^H^H^H people, aren't they?
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 17:03 Comments || Top||


Foreign Fighters Anger Baghdad Residents
For six months, the Arab foreigners lived quietly in a Baghdad neighborhood with their wives and children, until neighbors tipped off U.S. forces they could be insurgents. On Monday morning, American soldiers came to the door of a brown-brick house and — speaking in Arabic over a loudspeaker — ordered those inside to surrender.
"Come out witcher hands up!"
"You'll ever take us alive, infidels!"
When the raid was over, three men were dead, a Syrian and two Yemenis. Two of the men were shot trying to escape; the other blew himself up in the front yard. Inside the house, U.S. troops found a weapons cache.
"Damn, Tyrone! They wuz right!"
The U.S. military had no comment on the incident. But witnesses and Iraqi police described how Iraqi civilians, increasingly frustrated with guerrilla violence, are cooperating with the U.S.-led coalition to catch suspected rebels. Other Iraqi neighbors applauded the move. "Had I known who they were, I would have turned them in myself," said Almas Zia Youssef, 24, standing with curious onlookers outside the house where her neighbors were killed at dawn. "This is terrorism," she said of foreigners who sneak across Iraq's desert borders to join the anti-American insurgency. "This is tarnishing the image of the country, and it shows the coalition troops are not in control after the liberation."
Got control of that house, though, didn't they?
U.S. commanders have struggled for months to win the trust of Iraqis, hoping they will provide information useful in combatting the anti-American insurgency. But since Saddam Hussein was captured last month, U.S. officers say, more Iraqi civilians are coming forward with information about roadside bombs, planned attacks and guerrillas-in-hiding. That's what happened in al-Moalemeen, a Shiite Muslim neighborhood in southeastern Baghdad where the three Arabs lived. Iraqi police said someone in the neighborhood told American forces the men were suspicious.
"There's something strange about them guys, Kevin."
"Like what, Mahmoud?"
"Something about their turbans..."
"You don't wear a turban, Mahmoud."
"'At's what I mean."
Many Iraqis are growing angry with the insurgents because of the increasing number of innocent Iraqis killed or injured in attacks. On Sunday, 31 people were killed and about 120 wounded in a suicide car bombing near coalition headquarters. The overwhelming majority of the dead and injured were Iraqi civilians. Foreign fighters, estimated by U.S. officials to number a few thousand, often get the blame — even though U.S. and coalition officials believe most of the attacks are carried out by Iraqis linked to Saddam's ousted regime. "We were liberated from oppression that lasted for 35 years," said a neighbor, Bilal Ibrahim, 20, referring to the ouster of Saddam. "No jihad (holy war) or resistance is needed at all."
We've said we're going to leave. People exploding in every direction isn't going to make it happen any faster.
The American troops arrived at the foreigners' house at about 1:15 a.m., Iraqi police said. Over the loudspeaker, they ordered the Arabs to "step out of the house, your hands up. These are coalition troops. Do not resist." Only the men's wives and their three children came out. Fifteen minutes later, the shooting started. Two of the men were shot while trying to escape. The third blew himself up with a grenade in the front yard of the house, said Jassim Mouhan, an official in the local municipal council. Inside the house, the Americans found automatic weapons, grenades, TNT and other explosives, the official said. One of the wives was taken into custody. The two other women and three children were not detained. "This was a terrorist safe-house," police Capt. Ali Dawoud said.
Y'think?
Hours after the raid, dozens of neighbors gathered outside the house, starring at the large patch of dried blood in the yard. A car riddled with bullets was parked in the garage. Shattered glass lay everywhere. Neighbors said the six adults and the three children moved into the house six months ago, and kept to themselves. On the rare occasions the wives ventured out, their faces were covered by black Islamic veils that left only the eyes exposed. The children never went to school. Zeina Hossam, a neighbor across the street, said the families' behavior made her wary. "We suspected them, but were not sure," she said.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Well, this does get interesting, doesn't it?

To fit in, the ferreiner women will now NOT have to wear some variation of the burka. After all those years of wearing it, for the sake of Islam, they can't. That should make some grey cells spark.
Posted by: Anonymous2u || 01/20/2004 0:11 Comments || Top||

#2  "This is terrorism," she said of foreigners who sneak across Iraq's desert borders to join the anti-American insurgency.

Heh heh
Sounds like the Iraqis are in agreement with Richard Perle about where the problem lies.

I wonder if aljazeera is short a cameraman or three now.
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 0:16 Comments || Top||

#3  But witnesses and Iraqi police described how Iraqi civilians, increasingly frustrated with guerrilla violence, are cooperating with the U.S.-led coalition to catch suspected rebels.

Well this is very encouraging. These people seem to be finally realizing what's at stake here and are deciding to contribute to their security and their future. It's a shame though, that it's taken the lives of many Iraqi civilians to reach this point.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 0:47 Comments || Top||

#4  Neighbors said the six adults and the three children moved into the house six months ago, and kept to themselves.

I wonder if we're checking out all recent arrivals? Could be an approach that brings lots o breakthroughs.

And I applaud the Iraqis who handed the nutjobs over.
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 8:39 Comments || Top||

#5  ""We suspected them, but were not sure," she said."
F**kin duh.
Posted by: .com || 01/20/2004 21:33 Comments || Top||


First Japanese troops arrive at future Iraq base
A convoy of Japanese soldiers, the vanguard of Tokyo's first post-World War II deployment to a conflict zone, arrived at its future base in southern Iraq Monday.
Good luck, guys. And thanks for coming.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I bet the NKors and the Chinese REALLY don't like this. Heh!
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/20/2004 1:08 Comments || Top||

#2  Good! - d'ya think Kimmie will throw a hissy fit? Hope so!
Posted by: Tony (UK) || 01/20/2004 1:35 Comments || Top||

#3  I'm still amazed the Japanese government was able to do this given the politics at home. Didn't the Japanese deloy a medical unit in 1991?
Posted by: Cheddarhead || 01/20/2004 6:14 Comments || Top||


Southeast Asia
Malay mullahs plan book burning
The Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) will propose to the Home Ministry that 12 book titles with Islamic elements from abroad be burned banned for sale in this country. The Chairman of the Censor Committee on Publication Materials with Islamic Elements of the Islamic Affairs Council, Jakim, Datuk Seri Harussani Zakaria said the decision was made after making a thorough study of the contents of the books which were found to be misleading and could divert the faith of Muslims. "Some of the books contain photographic illustrations, including that of Jesus Christ, the picture of Prophet Muhammad S.A.W. talking to angels and pictures that could confuse the Muslims," he told reporters after chairing a meeting of the committee, here Thursday.

Harussani, who is also the Perak State Mufti, said the committee would send the titles of the books to the Home Ministry for further action. The titles are
"Tassawuf Dalam Al Quran" written by Dr Milwahidin;
"Islam and Terrorism" (Mark A Gibrel);
"Rahsia Menyingkap Manusia Roh Ilahi" (Nordin Ar Raniri);
"Menyoal Relevensi Sunnah Dalam Islam Moden" (Daniel W. Brown) and
"Wahdat Al-Ahdiat Dailog Ruralisme Agama" (Fatimah Osman)
"Pilihan Doa Jaljalut Menebasi Interfasi Gejolak Zaman Moden" (Mohammad Rafiat S.I);
"Ikhtisas Tajul Muluk -Mahkota Raja" (Abdul Hamid Jawhan);
"Petunjuk Membuat Ajimat dan Benda-benda Bertuah" (Abdul Hamid Jawhan);
"Fast Facts on Islam" (John Andeble);
"September 11 -Forgive Me America" (Abdul Daud Osman) and two titles that did not disclose the authors of the books, namely
"Women In Islam" and
"Manakib Qubra Volume 1".
Harussani said the committee also decided that two more titles be banned namely "Pilihan Sendiri Pengembaraan Anda" (Kes Raja Sutra) and "Al-Masih Kisah Nyata Ringkasan Nabi Isa" as they were unsuitable for reading by Muslims.Wish I could translate some of the other titles, but notice they don’t want muslims reading "September 11-Forgive Me America", nor do they want them to read about "Islam and Terrorism" and "Women in Islam".I suppose they don’t want them to read "Fast Facts on Islam" as that is the whitewash book for non-muslims only.
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 9:08:50 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  When you have the koran and an iman to read it to you, what else do you need? Just shut up and pray!

So, hell yes, ban the books or there's going to be a riot or even justifiable murder.
Posted by: Lucky || 01/20/2004 12:07 Comments || Top||


MILF receives support from MNLF
The separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) succeeded in getting the support of the mainstream Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) for its decades-old struggle for Muslim independence in Mindanao. MILF vice chair for political affairs Ghazali Jaafar, in a radio interview Monday, confirmed its unification with the MNLF with one common end — an independent state for Muslim Filipinos in the South. "Not only the (Nur) Misuari faction (had joined our cause), but all MNLF leaders, who believe that the true and legitimate way to peace in Mindanao is the century-old obsession for Muslim independence," Jaafar said.

The MILF has been conducting a series of dialogues since 2001 to know the pulse and sentiments of former MNLF rebels and other Mindanao inhabitants on how to resolve the long-drawn Moro rebellion. "This is the reason why in the past several days, we were busy meeting with MNLF leaders and other members of the Bangsamoro (highlanders and non-Muslim inhabitants) in the South," said Jaafar, former MILF chief peace negotiator. "Even business leaders and officials of non-government organizations took part," insisting that the fight for independence can be done peacefully, he said.

As stakeholders, Jaafar said they want the envisioned Moro state to be beneficial and relevant to all Mindanaoans and attained through peaceful means. Jaafar believes that "disagreement to vital issues is a big obstacle to the Moro quest for independence," adding that these conflicting opinions of various leaders have been the MILF’s major concern, thus the continued dialogues and meetings to iron out differences. Sultan Kudarat Governor Pax Mangudadatu and North Cotabato Governor Manny Pinol lauded the MILF’s "latest instrument to peace" through public consultations. They agreed that dialogues save lives and property, and prevent social dislocation and anxiety among the people wary of fighting and armed confrontation. Speaker Jose de Venecia, who is pushing for a federal and parliamentary form of government, said the MILF demand would fit into the picture if the Constitution was changed.
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 12:26:57 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Wait, wait, wait. I already know the alternative meaning for "MILF", but what the heck does "MNLF" mean? Does the 'N' stand for "nobody"?
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 8:40 Comments || Top||

#2  Moro National Liberation Front.
Posted by: Fred || 01/20/2004 10:23 Comments || Top||

#3  Mother's I'd like to F*** joins Mother's No-way I'd F*** to form the new militant group MotherF***ers.
Posted by: DANEgerus || 01/20/2004 17:59 Comments || Top||


Filippino military wary of JI inactivity
THE military is on its toes against terrorist threats in the country, especially with the silence of the militant Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) so far this year. Aside from saying there was nothing new in the US’ renewed terrorist warning for its citizens in the Philippines, Armed Forces spokesman Daniel A. Lucero said the military has already issued its own terror alerts to areas vulnerable to possible attacks. "So far, the JI in the country has been quiet in this time of the year. However, we believe this is the most alarming part since silence means they might be into something else," Lieutenant Colonel Lucero said without elaborating. Lucero said the military is still trying to determine the whereabouts of 30 JI terrorists believed to be still in the country. Lucero said the Armed Forces are looking into reports that the JI has linked up with a faction of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) opposing the ongoing peace negotiations between the secessionist group and the government. The MILF faction is believed to be behind the January 4 Parang, Maguindanao bombing that killed 15 people and injured several others. "However, we are also banking on the assurance made by the MILF that it will assist the government in looking, pursuing and arresting any JI member whom they find in its area of influence," he added.

The JI’s links with two of the country’s main threats to internal security, the bandit Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) and the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), is a specific concern of authorities. Although troops have degraded the capability of the ASG, the group’s ties with the JI means that they cannot be ruled out. In particular, troops in western Mindanao, specifically in Zamboanga, have been alerted to be on the lookout for ASG members. "But we are more alarmed with the links of the JI with this MILF faction which is opposing the peace talks," Lucero said.

The military is still scouring Mindanao for at least 30 JI operatives believed to be conducting bomb training with MILF lost commands. Although investigators said the January 4 explosion in a sports hall in Parang, Maguindanao that killed 16 people was politically motivated, rogue members of the MILF were believed to have perpetrated the attack. The military has tagged JI as the group behind the Rizal Day bombing in 2000.

Meanwhile, the Armed Forces shrugged off the United States’ renewed warning for its citizens to take extra precautions against a perceived high terrorist threat in the Philippines. The US advisory reminded its citizens not to go to Mindanao due to bombings and other criminal activities in the island. The US cited in particular the threats of the Abu Sayyaf and the communist New People’s Army (NPS) in the country. Lucero said even the AFP has issued the same warning, particularly in areas where the communist rebels are operating, following an attack by the New People’s Army of a power plant in Calaca, Batangas.
Carried out using MILF weaponry, if memory serves ...
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 12:25:24 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  THE military is on its toes against terrorist threats ... especially with the silence of ... Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) so far this year.

"It's quiet. TOO quiet. Think them jemaahs is up to sumthin'!" Sounds like a good excuse to go preemptive on the JI mutts.
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 0:28 Comments || Top||

#2  well i will tell you what. When i saw MILF i was thinking something else
Posted by: smokeysinse || 01/20/2004 15:46 Comments || Top||


Korea
South Korean POW finally returns home....after 50 years

CHIRWON, South Korea (AP) -- A South Korean prisoner of war who returned home last month after being held 50 years in North Korea was formally discharged from the army Monday as a military brass band played on a snowy parade ground outside Seoul.

"I am overwhelmed by emotion," said 72-year-old Jun Yong-il, dressed in a crisp new uniform, as 350 current members of his unit, the Blue Star 6th Army Division, stood at attention and presented arms.

Division commander Maj. Gen. Heo Pyong-hwan gave Jun a bouquet, a color TV set and a wristwatch, saying his will to survive 50 years in the North and finally escape "exemplifies the true spirit of a soldier."

Wiping away a tear, Jun snapped a salute and loudly bellowed his unit’s battle cry: "Victory!"

Jun is the latest of more than 30 South Korean POWs who have escaped the North since 1994, as the communist country lost relaxed control over the movements of its hunger-stricken populace.

Jun’s return has helped galvanize the South’s resolve to pursue the fate of at least 300 others still believed held.

Chinese forces, who fought alongside the North Koreans, captured Jun in July 1953 - days before a truce ended the three-year war.

Jun was first held in a POW camp but later worked in a mine and then several factories.

Last June, he reportedly swam across the North’s river border into China, where he was arrested. After lengthy negotiations, China allowed him to fly to South Korea on Dec. 24.

Jun, a private first class when captured, was promoted to staff sergeant before his discharge and reviewed troops at his farewell ceremony.

Among those present were 12 veterans from his unit, including his former platoon leader.

"I thought all my platoon members were dead except me," Lt. Lee Bo-young said. "I can hardly imagine what hardship you must have gone through in North Korea."

Jun declined to talk about his time in North Korea, saying only: "I’m glad to be home, to return to my country, my hometown and my old unit."

After his discharge, he went to his hometown of Youngchon, where his 80-year-old sister, Jun Yong-mok, said she planned to "feed him well."

"This is a miracle he could come back home alive after all that hardship in North Korea," she said.

Welcome home, soldier.
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/20/2004 10:17:30 PM || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  This is cool!

Did he receive back-pay?
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 22:45 Comments || Top||

#2  I sure hope they preapred this guy for culture shock.
Posted by: Mr. Davis || 01/20/2004 22:46 Comments || Top||

#3  Jun was first held in a POW camp but later worked in a mine and then several factories.

Hmmm, treating POWs as slave labor. Where's the UN outrage, the 'peace movement' protests of the PRC and NKOR, the Hollywood 'intellectuals' blasting the chicoms for these atrocities?

I hope this guy puts a boot up Roh's ass for his coddling lil kimmie.
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 22:53 Comments || Top||


Home Front
Terrorist Sympathizers Plan Trip To U.S.
EFL
Relatives and friends of British detainees at Guantanamo Bay announced plans Tuesday to travel to the United States in the spring, part of a new campaign to win the captives freedom or fair trials.
I sure hope we take a hard look at all of them and detain the AQ members, terrorism being a family thing and all
The supporters also said they have formed a group called the Guantanamo Human Rights Commission. It includes public figures such as actress Vanessa Redgrave and her actor brother, Whatsisname.
maybe comrade redgrave will try to sneak her AK into the country, then we can toss her in a cage, too
"Our hope is to speak as directly and simply as possible ... to the American conscience," Whatsisname Corin Redgrave said.
my hope is to kick you squarely in the balls
The American Civil Liberties Union said it will work with the group on behalf of the detainees.
:rolleyes:
ACLU President Nadine Strossen said the detentions violated the American Constitution.
not citizens=no constitutional rights; what’s so hard about that?
"With the help of the Guantanamo Human Rights Commission, my country will be true to what it said on paper," Strossen said.
At least we know which side Nadine's on. It's not ours...
"No government can put itself outside or above the law or we have a reign of lawlessness,"
you mean like the soviet union, china, n. korea, iraq, iran, sudan, libya, cuba ...
Vanessa Redgrave said. "We cannot fight terrorism that way, we will explode terrorism that way."
you don’t want to ’fight’ terrorism at all, you want them to win
Has Zakaev moved out yet? Or is he still dossing on your couch?
Azmat Begg, the father of detainee Moazzam Begg, called the detentions unjust and described himself as deeply disappointed by what he said was the British government’s failure to help.
do we have an extra cage for this begg the elder mutt to reside in?
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 6:04:04 PM || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:

#1  That's the problem with you people on this Jewish site, nothing buy rascist bigots. Get a life and stop complaining.
Posted by: Redneck || 01/20/2004 18:17 Comments || Top||

#2  The prick that posted this article should actually read the American constitution before commenting on it.
Posted by: Loser || 01/20/2004 18:23 Comments || Top||

#3  Boy, you commutards aren't taking dean's ass kicking very well, are you? What'sa matter, don't have a Vast Right Wing Conspiracy© to blame the loss on?
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 18:27 Comments || Top||

#4  Do these people not realize that our patience has worn thin? This isn't the year 1999 or 2000. We used to tolerate your nonsense - we aren't willing to anymore.

We'll still let you come, you can still make idiots or yourselves, but we just aren't willing to play this game anymore. We are tired of it.
Posted by: B || 01/20/2004 18:32 Comments || Top||

#5  Begg for it, biatch...
Posted by: mojo || 01/20/2004 18:33 Comments || Top||

#6  When did this become a "Jewish site"? Why didn't somebody tell me? Was there an e-mail I missed?
Posted by: Anonymous || 01/20/2004 19:31 Comments || Top||

#7  Was there an e-mail I missed?

I think it was encoded in Dean's primal scream.

No, my bad- that was the signal for the trolls to attack....
Posted by: Pappy || 01/20/2004 19:55 Comments || Top||

#8  I think the far left and the far right have decided that anyone not actively herding Jews to gas chambers is, in fact, Jewish.
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 20:03 Comments || Top||

#9  I think that body cavity searches are in order for these people. You never know what kind of noxious gas they may attempt to smuggle in.
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 20:35 Comments || Top||

#10  Unfortunately, Crazy, the biggest "body cavity" for most of these left-wing mindless morons is between their ears, and there are no openings to the outside.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 20:39 Comments || Top||

#11  Sorry, aptly named Redneck, we do not take your orders and nobody is obligated to accept your characterization of this site, especially when this is supported by nothing but your own presumed authority.

You make a habit of telling others what they think, and what they need to do; on your unsupported word alone. At the very least, this indicates a monumentally arrogant assumption of personal superiority. "Jewish site" is invective to you and you are too stupid to understand what "free country" really means.
Yet you call us bigots?
Look the word up or better yet, hold a mirror up to your pimply face.

This sudden upsurge in "bigot" invective from the LLLs is akin to their bush=hitler madness; an attempt to deflect criticism by attributing their own qualities to others.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 21:23 Comments || Top||

#12  These jerks get all bent out of shape for a group of possible terrorist detainees, yet shed not one tear for the countless hundreds of thousands of souls whose bodies still lie in the soil of the Iraqi countryside?

For shame, for shame.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 21:28 Comments || Top||

#13  This sudden upsurge in "bigot" invective from the LLLs is akin to their bush=hitler madness; an attempt to deflect criticism by attributing their own qualities to others.

This is true. If you aren't part of the 'groupthink', you get shouted down and threatened until you shut up or drink the koolaide.

I think this entire entourage of malcontents from the 'GHRC' [where do they get these names, some bolshevik handbook?] should be denied entry at C&I. Let them go suck castro's c*ck and grab some headlines in that socialist paradise.


ps. man, i really don't want to convert, i can't STAND matzoh ball soup
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 21:31 Comments || Top||

#14  Of course, Bomb, like attracts like. Status-seeker power-freaks and trustafarian art-snob wannabes have a natural affinity for terrorists. They understand that the terrs mostly come from their own class of society, or its shithole analogs, and that they represent authoritarianism and unbridled control in its purest forms. Considering the psychogical origins of compulsive power-seeking and other bullying behaviors, we can infer that the LLL's alliance with medieval Islamists is a mass movement based on poor toilet training and parental neglect.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 21:33 Comments || Top||

#15  I guess now would be a bad time to mention this.
Posted by: badanov || 01/20/2004 23:35 Comments || Top||


Iran
Oh those indecisive mullahs..
Western diplomats and nuclear experts voiced growing concern Tuesday that Iran has reneged on its promise to fully suspend uranium enrichment — a process that can be used to make nuclear weapons.
As opposed to what? Dairy food products?
Worries over Tehran’s nuclear intentions coincided with decreased concern among nuclear watchdogs about Libya’s nuclear ambitions. Tripoli volunteered last month to give up chemical, biological and nuclear weapons or weapons programs.
Ahhh you can say it, you mean the IAEA really IS working for the enemies of civilization
The United States interprets suspension as encompassing the whole process — including a halt in assemblage of enrichment equipment. U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher warned last week that failure by Iran to indefinitely suspend "all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities would be deeply troubling."
I'm "troubled" when my steak is all gray and leathery instead of mostly rare. When people lie to me I get cheesed.
The IAEA continues to negotiate with Iran on the meaning of "is" what constitutes suspension, but one diplomat told AP that Mohamed ElBaradei, the agency’s director general, "feels strongly" that Iran should also stop making and assembling centrifuges.
Sorry words fail me here, he’s trying to pull a "Clinton" with the definition of what is really is is.
They said Javier Solana, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, brought up the continued manufacture of centrifuges with Hasan Rowhani, head of Iran’s powerful Supreme National Security Council, during his visit to Tehran last week. The French also raised the issue Thursday, when Rowhani visited Paris, the diplomats said. For his part, Rowhani suggested Iran would not expand its narrow interpretation of what constituted an enrichment embargo — and pointedly urged the Europeans to deliver on promises of increased technological aid. "Iran will not accept restrictions on its peaceful nuclear program," he said, while in Paris. "Iran expects its European friends to honor their commitments."
And this folks is the real dilemma. The black turbans seem to have gotten it into their skulls that they have a right to make a nuclear bomb and then threaten anyone with it. There is no NEED for an enrichment plant that does better than 8% enrichment of nuclear material, past that and you start working your way up to nuclear grade levels. RTWT at the link. Oh and this is my first post here so sorry if its a bit cut up.
Posted by: Val || 01/20/2004 4:41:50 PM || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  no problem Val - good post
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 19:10 Comments || Top||

#2  Ditto, Val - good article.

The Black Hats have stated on at least 3 occasions I can recall, without any fuzziness, that they do have the right to possess nuclear weapons - while insisting that their program is peaceful and meant for production of electricity.

Only a UN member, an IAEA inspector, or a Euro could possibly be so smugly clueless as to believe them - regards their claims of a peaceful program or the reasons for having one at all, since they have enough oil to pump at current rates for over 100 years. Everyone else knows the long-range missiles they've simultaneously worked to obtain have no other purpose than to deliver nuke warheads. They've even gone so far as to label the targets, painted roght on the missiles they paraded a few months ago: Israel and the "Great Satan" America. Rafsanjanie has specified that Israel will be struck the "instant" they have a delievery able nuke warhead - on multiple occasions, putting the lie to all of their disingenuous claims.

We will soon rock their world. I suggest / predict a 2nd - 3rd Qtr 2004 strike against all known nuke facilities. If we have the stones, we should make it wide enough and deep enough and strategic enough to wipe out or hamstring the Mad Mullahs, the Rev Council, and the Governing Council which makes their "democracy" such a sham... if the Persian people also have the stones, they will topple them and take back their country. If not, they will suffer along with the Black Hats when we finally do tire of their games and deceits and transparent efforts to destroy Israel by their Hezbollah proxies and propagate their insanity. Enough, already. It is time to decapitate Iran.
Posted by: .com || 01/20/2004 21:24 Comments || Top||

#3  Yep, what .com sez!
Posted by: Lucky || 01/21/2004 1:01 Comments || Top||


Africa: North
In music news...
If you’re in the mood for some new tunes, an Egyptian singer named Sha’ban Abd Al-Rahim has a new album out:
"’Kharittat Al Tariq’ (Road Map) is the name of the song which gives voice to widespread views in the Egyptian street regarding the September 11th events and the U.S.-Iraq standoff. The song talks about the road map and includes quotes from U.S. President George W. Bush about the plan’s implementation. The song goes on to describe how America is the spitting image of Israel and it carries out its desires, making the world into a ’jungle.’ But it does not stop at that point. Abd Al-Rahim goes on to boldly sing that the USA is the perpetrator of the September 11th attacks.
How much money do we send Egypt again? Two billion a year or something like that?
"’Hey people it was only a tower and I swear by God that they are the ones who pulled it down.’ Abd Al-Rahim further sings that they purposely did it to make people think that Arabs and Muslims are terrorists and were behind that disaster. Now the U.S. can do what it pleases to the Arab world since everyone thinks they are to blame.
I sent the guy a song I wrote called, "Why Visit Egypt? There Are Plenty of Public Toilets On This Side of the Atlantic," but I’ve never heard back from him.
Posted by: Christopher Johnson || 01/20/2004 3:20:08 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Anything else on there? Lady Love? Having My Baby?
Posted by: tu3031 || 01/20/2004 16:13 Comments || Top||

#2  Musqat Love?
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 16:48 Comments || Top||

#3  I miss all these new guys. I stopped watching MTV, MTV2 and VH1 when they started broadcasting features of jailhouse garage bands that included rapers and murderers. Will the jihadi troubadors s be given their own catagory?
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 17:25 Comments || Top||

#4  Need to lay down about 30 Abba-Bombs on these suckers. Each Abba bomb will carry 40 self-targeting ear-worms.

If necessary we will fight behind the Wall of Sound.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 17:47 Comments || Top||

#5  I keep telling George - one really dirty nuke at Aswan, and it's all over. We can save that $3billion for something important, like a new Disneyworld.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 20:12 Comments || Top||


Home Front
Scrapple Face: Dean Flop Threatens Internet
More politial satire from Scott Ott.
The World Wide Web struggled to stay afloat this morning after a disastrous third-place finish in Iowa by Democrat Howard Dean’s internet-driven presidential campaign. So-called ’weblogs’ (or ’blogs’) were hardest hit, since Mr. Dean’s own Blog For America generated huge traffic numbers, but failed to propel him to victory in Iowa. "Once again, the Internet has proved to be a cash-sucking leech with no socially-redeeming value," said Dean campaign manager Joe Trippi. "Some people may see this as Howard’s failure, but he did everything he could. He blogged for more than 33,000 visitors per day. He accepted small donations through the Web. Clearly, the Internet must accept responsibility for Dean’s poor showing."

Experts say bloggers could be devastated by Dean’s Internet flop. "It’s a black eye for all of us in the so-called blogosphere," said Glenn Reynolds whose InstaPundit blog draws about 90,000 visitors per day. "If the blogosphere implodes, I don’t know what I’ll do with my spare time."
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 1:01:02 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  heh

I could see trippi spinning that fast.
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 13:10 Comments || Top||

#2  Drudge Report has the key piece of Dean's 'concession' speech. "Yaarrrrggggghhhh!"
Posted by: eLarson || 01/20/2004 14:14 Comments || Top||

#3  Hell, this is almsot true... I figure the the .mpeg of Dean melding down must have used 30% of available N. American bandwidth.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 14:58 Comments || Top||

#4  In other news, Dean's Flopsweat Threatens Keyboard.
Posted by: BH || 01/20/2004 15:24 Comments || Top||

#5  I like how the Daily show pictured Dean at his speech. It's on again here in a couple of minutes.

" Tis was a Busssssssshhsssssss faultsssss."
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 18:48 Comments || Top||

#6  I thought his head would literally explode! And what the hell word did he substitute for Massachusetts?
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 19:22 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon
Exile alliance to push reform - by getting themselves jailed and beaten.
EFL
An international alliance of Syrian exile groups, buoyed by events in Iraq, announced yesterday that it plans to confront Syria’s authoritarian regime by chartering a plane to fly dissidents to Damascus later this year. The recently formed Syrian Democratic Coalition also criticized the European Union for its ties with Syria. The coalition advised France and Germany, in particular, not to buck a trend away from authoritarianism toward democracy in the Middle East.
"Remember: We're democrats, but we're still Arabs! Don't even be makin' us seethe!"
After a three-day meeting in Brussels, the coalition of 19 associations and parties declared that it would hold a congress in the Syrian capital and that its members were willing to face jail — or worse — for their defiance. "We expect the worst," said coalition President Farid N. Ghadry, a naturalized American citizen, whose Reform Party of Syria is based in Potomac, Md.
I’m sure your expectations will be met.
"But we are determined to go back. We cannot liberate our country without being foolhardy and wasting our lives when Assad is already on the run taking risks." Some were skeptical that Syria would allow a planeload of dissidents to enter its airspace, let alone hold a conference.
Mr. Ghadry has totally misunderstood the dissident job description. Dissident are supposed to flee out of brutal despotic regimes. Maybe Mr. Ghadry will leave a diary. I have always wondered about the mentality of a bug that flies into the zapper.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 12:21:30 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  could be a laugh to see this happen,kinda like when those loony left anti war gang hired a london bus and went to Iraq to be human shields,-they came back a week later after getting threatened and told what to do and where to go.I wonder if the syrian police will be waiting at the airport for them :)
Posted by: Jon Shep U.K || 01/20/2004 13:19 Comments || Top||

#2  this should be supported - make the baths in syria look the monster they are - should also help move the whimps in euroland.
Posted by: Anonymous || 01/20/2004 14:04 Comments || Top||

#3  but we'd only ignore the murerous bastards over here in euro zone,in fact the french probably would take assads side.It could be a good opertunity to show the non believers what the syrians are like but i can't see it working.
Posted by: Jon Shep U.K || 01/20/2004 14:07 Comments || Top||

#4  I bet these guys think that Syria will turn them away. They ae grandstanding for when the regime falls. I bet they would be really nervous if Assad tells them to come on in.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 20:53 Comments || Top||


Korea
FT demonstrates continued inability to Comprehend Concept of Seige
Roh Moo-hyun, the South Korean president, had soothing words for his political supporters this week when they discussed the imminent withdrawal of all 7,000 US soldiers from the capital, Seoul. South Korea, he said, had done its best in negotiations with the US military and there was "nothing to worry about".
"Nope. Nope. Nothin' to worry about. Huh huh!"
Mr Roh may be right about the militarily prudent repositioning of US troops guarding South Korea against attack from the North. However, on almost every other issue concerning the North Korean dictatorship and its nuclear weapons programmes there is plenty of cause for concern. In contrast to the good news from south Asia, where nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan have agreed to talk peace, and from north Africa, where Libya has renounced weapons of mass destruction, there has been no recent progress in resolving the dangerous stand-off in north-east Asia. In fact, the crisis has deepened for North Korea. South Korea, which should be pushing for a new round of six-party talks over North Korea, is in confusion over foreign policy and its attitude to Washington. Yoon Young-kwan, the foreign minister, resigned last week after ministry officials accused Mr Roh’s advisers of anti-Americanism. Ban Ki-moon, his replacement, repaired only some of the damage by promising there would be no change in Seoul’s attitude towards the US.
Why would it be a good idea to sit down for six-party talks when one of the most important parties is in the midst of political unrest?
There was even a confused reaction to the deal on closing the US garrison in Seoul. After years of vociferous complaints about the American soldiers in their midst, some South Koreans are having second thoughts, just as Filipinos did when the US closed its military bases in the Philippines in the 1990s.
In the long run its better for us and better for them - just like kicking your unemployed 19 year-old out of the house.
Pyongyang, meanwhile, continues to threaten the world and demand foreign aid in exchange for an unverifiable promise to freeze its unverified weapons. Worse, it has deliberately covered its tracks by hiding fuel rods that could be reprocessed to make weapons-grade plutonium. These were previously kept under international inspection at the Yongbyon plant. US experts who visited Yongbyon this month on a private trip are due to brief the US Senate today but have already said the pond where the rods were once kept is empty. The status of a separate uranium enrichment project - its existence condemned by the US and denied by North Korea - is a mystery.
The rods haven’t gone far.
It is thus difficult to be optimistic, even if Beijing is still trying as hard as it claims to convene the next round of talks involving North and South Korea, the US, China, Japan and Russia.
Sounds like the Chinese are feeling the pressure.
Kim Jong-il, the North Korean leader, is probably delighted to see confusion in Seoul and divisions among those who want him to abandon nuclear weapons. This makes it all the more vital that North Korea be given no chance to exploit these splits as it has in the past. Nor should it be given indefinite time to develop new weapons while its people go hungry in the harsh Korean winter.
I suggest that the writer of this article never engage in poker for money. If there are splits within our coalition, now is not the time to come to the table. What new weapons are they going to invent, the crossbow?
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 12:00:23 PM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Africa: East
Ethiopian Genocide: Details of Alleged Military massacres of Anuak
EFL - I have been confused by much of what seems like random killing in the Sudan. This article helped sort a piece of it out in my mind.
On Saturday, December 13, in a single bloody burst of targeted mass murder, Ethiopia became the world’s latest sovereignty to attempt genocide as a way to solve its problems with a troublesome minority. The United States, which gave Ethiopia $32 million in foreign aid last year, is investigating the massacre, in which eyewitnesses say uniformed Ethiopian soldiers were aided in the murder of more than 400 members of the Anuak tribe. The charge is being made by dozens of refugees who live in the United States who spoke by telephone to surviving relatives. During the last decade more than 2,000 Anuak have settled in the United States after fleeing ethnic cleansing—said to be carried out by rival tribes backed by the Ethiopian government.

December’s massacre, by far the worst single-day killing of Anuak, was the first time Ethiopian soldiers were widely witnessed leading such an attack. It took place in Gambella, the capital of the state of Gambella in remote western Ethiopia, which shares a long border with Sudan. According to eyewitnesses, the soldiers were joined by dozens of members of the Amara, Oromo and Tigray tribes who were seen chopping and stabbing Anuak with machetes...

The Anuak have lived for centuries in a verdant western region of Ethiopia. There are active gold pits and oil reserves on the Anuak’s ancestral land, resources the Ethiopian government covets. Over the past decade the Anuak have pressed the factional government in Addis Ababa for a share in the projected development of these resources and have been answered in political subjugation, physical beatings and now the government-led pogrom. It is a small genocide compared to those of the Turks, Jews, Cambodians, Tutsis and Bosnian Muslims, but it has all the markings of a state-sponsored attempt to extinguish an entire race. Over the past decade some 20,000 Anuak have fled into refugee camps in northern Kenya (primarily the Ifo camp), and into southern Sudan. Until December 13, most of the killings of Anuak were by their ancient tribal enemies, the Nuer, many of whom have resettled on Anuak land as civil war refugees from Sudan. The United Nations runs three refugee camps in western Ethiopia for these refugees, most of whom are Nuer. Anthropologists and missionaries say the Anuak and the Nuer in previous decades evolved ritualistic peaceful ways to solve grazing rights disputes that arose between their tribes. The displacement of more than 100,000 Sudanese civil war refugees onto Anuak land upset those traditional ways.

The Anuak for years have claimed that the Ethiopian government was using the Anuak-Nuer rivalry as its main tool for Anuak extermination, arming Nuers and de-arming Anuak and then standing by when the inevitable occurred. According to witnesses and United Nations accounts, the massacre began when a van containing eight U.N. and Ethiopian government refugee camp officials was ambushed on a road connecting the towns of Itang and Gambella. All eight occupants of the van were killed. At 1 p.m. that afternoon, Ethiopian soldiers brought the van and the corpses to Gambella, attracting crowds of angry onlookers.

A spokesman with the Ethiopian embassy in Washington said eyewitness accounts of uniformed Ethiopian soldiers killing Anuak were “completely false and unfounded. The defense forces are doing their level best to look for those people who were involved in this sad event.” When asked why 2,000 Anuak had fled Ethiopia as refugees, the spokesman said they had not fled ethnic cleansing. Rather, “they are enjoying the right of movement to live anywhere they like and to enjoy their own pursuit of life.” A spokesman for the U.S. State Department, which has advised Americans not to travel to Gambella, said it had confirmed 113 dead and has sent a security team to the area to investigate the massacre.
Sounds remarkably like Sudan. All that's missing is the turbans and the Byzantine alliances in the capital, and that's probably just because we don't hear anything of the goings on within Addis Ababa. I'm guessing, though it's only a guess, that there's a Nilotic-Negro racial thing, too, though I don't have any pictures or text to confirm that.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 11:43:58 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Middle East
Update: IAF hits 2 Hizbullah bases in Bekaa Valley
Jpost Reg Req’d - EFL
IAF warplanes have bombed two Hizbullah bases in southern Lebanon’s Bekaa valley Tuesday evening. Hizbullah Radio reports IAF warplanes are attacking Zikim and Alman in southern Lebanon.
cause -> effect
The IDF has confirmed that IAF jets bombed two terrorist bases used by the Hizbullah to train operatives and prepare attacks against Israeli targets.
hope there were casualties
Residents in the northern border town of Metula say they heard about four or five very large explosions. Israel holds Syria personally responsible for the attack on Monday which along the northern border with Lebanon which killed one IDF soldier and seriously injured another, senior security officials said Tuesday following a meeting with Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz. "Israel perceives the laying of explosive devices to be a provocation from Syria and the Hizbullah," Mofaz said. "I propose that we all act reasonably for the sake of the whole region."
asking for the congenitally impossible
Sgt.-Maj. Jan Rotchneski, 21, from Herzliya was killed and another soldier seriously wounded Monday afternoon in a Hizbullah anti-tank attack on an IDF D9 bulldozer as it was being used to clear a minefield along the Lebanese border. In a hint to Syria, Mofaz said "One who speaks of peace negotiations better first put down his weapons and cease all the evil terror activity which we will never come to terms with." The other injured soldier has undergone a number of operations and is said to be in serious but stable condition. Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Tuesday that if President Assad intends to use Hizbullah in his struggle against Israel, he needs to know that Israel’s reaction will be very clear.
"remember the sonic boom over your house?"
One senior military officer from the Northern Command told Army Radio that the death could have been avoided. "It was naivete on our part to think that we could neutralize the minefields in such a blatant and noisy way without the Hizbullah taking the opportunity to hit us," he said. "We could have saved the price of a human life in this incident."
Snipers ready next time?
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 11:40:49 AM || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Sounds like just another pinprick. How many of these has Israel done over the years? It's going to take something a lot stronger than this to teach manners to those nuts.
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats || 01/20/2004 11:45 Comments || Top||

#2  It's going to take something a lot stronger than this to teach manners to those nuts.

Several passes by B-2s and a full release of JDAMS by each plane in a multiple target attack should do the job.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 13:19 Comments || Top||

#3  Actually a well-placed Nasrallah-seeking warhead would do the trick of delivering a message
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 14:35 Comments || Top||

#4  send em too hell
Posted by: smokeysinse || 01/20/2004 15:40 Comments || Top||

#5  "Israel perceives the laying of explosive devices to be a provocation from Syria and the Hizbullah,"

Brilliant, Holmes Mofaz, brilliant! How do you do it?
Posted by: Steve White || 01/20/2004 17:04 Comments || Top||


Africa: Southern
Nurse injects stepson with HIV-tainted blood
A South African nurse has appeared in court on charges of attempted murder after allegedly injecting her four-year-old stepson with HIV-contaminated blood, police said yesterday. The 32-year-old woman, who works as a nurse at the Matikwane Hospital in Bushbuckridge about 350km northeast of Johannesburg, was arrested on Saturday in the first reported case of its kind in the country. “She has been released on bail of 1500 rand ($206) and her case has been postponed to February 24,” said Captain Moatshe Ngoepe, a police spokesman from the northern Limpopo province, where the alleged incident occurred. “It’s the first case of its kind as far as we as police here are aware,” Captain Ngoepe said, adding police would not give names to protect the identity of the boy.

The alleged incident is reported to have taken place in the middle of last year, when the boy’s father noticed that his new wife was giving the boy an injection. “The father sent the boy back to his biological mother. The boy later told his mother, also a nurse, that he had been given an injection. According to our reports, his mother immediately rushed him to the doctor and blood tests were done, which showed that he was HIV-positive,” said Ngoepe.
I’m never going to a nurse or doctor again, after reading this and seeing Howard Dean’s crazy Ric Flair schreeching this morning, I think it may be best to stay away. BTW what in the hell are they doing letting this bitch out on bail??
I do hope that before they let he go they gave her a shot, to... uhhh... calm her down.
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 10:59:45 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Please don't ever, EVER compare Mad Howard Dean to Ric Flair again. I may have to hurt you. Flair is an honest man and a patriot. Dean is neither.
Posted by: Swiggles || 01/20/2004 11:21 Comments || Top||

#2  they should do the same too her and let her die the slow painful death that the bitch deserves
Posted by: smokeysinse || 01/20/2004 11:32 Comments || Top||

#3  Swiggles--that may be true, but you must admit that screech sounded like an attempt at Ric Flair's whooo.
I wasn't dissing Ric Flair, calm down.


Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 11:39 Comments || Top||

#4  A nice injection of a flesh-eating virus would be quicker, and a much greater deterrent to anyone else planning something this idiotic.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 11:57 Comments || Top||

#5  I say she should be taken out back and merrily beaten to a bloody pulp.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 13:36 Comments || Top||

#6  Sorry TS. I'm from NC, the Nature Boy is a cultural icon. We take that shit seriously down here.

Wooooooooo!
Posted by: Swiggles || 01/20/2004 14:06 Comments || Top||

#7  Swiggles...you worried me a little with that "I may have to hurt you comment" ;-)
I'm from NC too, which is probably why I thought Ric Flair when I heard Dean do his BAD attempt at the Wooo!
Go Panthers!!! Woooo!
Posted by: TS || 01/20/2004 15:54 Comments || Top||

#8  Good to hear from another Carolinian. I live in Charlotte, people are crazy with the Panther stuff. I LOVE IT! Go Panthers!

I'm a limousine riding, kiss stealing, son of a gun! Wooooooooooo!
Posted by: Swiggles || 01/20/2004 16:43 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon
Iraq riches whisked to Syria
Syria’s Central Bank and the Medina Bank in Lebanon are holding at least $2 billion in cash, as well as gold bullion and platinum, that was smuggled out of Iraq, according to a letter written on the stationery of the Syrian army’s intelligence department.
That’s a fair amount of cash.
The letter says $1.3 billion was deposited in the Syrian Central Bank in an official "presidency" account, while another $700 million was placed in the Medina Bank. The document does not state the value of the gold and platinum, although it says these are also in the Syrian Central Bank.
Baby Assad’s retirement fund?
The handwritten letter to a Syrian exile in Europe, which also bears what appears to be the official stamp of the Syrian army intelligence department, says the deal was struck not long before a U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq early last year. The document was sent to Nizar Nayouf, an exiled Syrian human-rights activist and past winner of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s World Press Freedom Prize who is living in Paris. While the claims in the letter could not be further verified, Mr. Nayouf, a journalist and democracy activist who was released from a Syrian prison in May 2001, said past information provided by the same person had proved reliable.
Maybe he’s got friends in high places.
The letter names two members of the Lebanese parliament as go-betweens. One of them is Emil Lahoud, son of the pro-Syrian president of Lebanon. The second is Talal Arsilan, a member of the minority Druze ethnic group. A third go-between is listed as Karim Bakr Adouni, who is described as head of the al Qataib Party.
All three should have someone else starting their cars.
The letter says the go-betweens met with three top Syrian security chiefs before they left on their secret trip to Baghdad. One security chief is listed as Gen. Ghazi Kanaan, Syria’s former chief of military intelligence in Lebanon, who has since been put in charge of Syria’s political security department. Other sources say Gen. Kanaan helped provide means of transporting the money and precious metals across the Iraqi-Syrian border. The other senior Syrian officers are listed in the document as Brigadier Zulhimmah Shalish, who is believed to be the chief of President Bashir Assad’s Special Guards, and Gen. Ristom Ghazali, the chief of Syrian intelligence in Lebanon.
They’d be the one’s I’d have handling the transaction.
Lebanon has been under varying degrees of Syrian domination for more than two decades.
Really?
American authorities have long suspected that Syria took Saddam Hussein’s money into safe custody shortly before the war.
Among other "things".
The Treasury Department sent senior investigators to Syria in October and again this month, demanding that the Syrians open their books. Saddam is believed to have stashed vast sums of money around the world, including funds that he and close associates siphoned from the United Nations’ oil-for-food program beginning in 1996. Money deducted from officials’ salaries supposedly to support Saddam’s Ba’ath Party is also unaccounted for. Secretary of State Colin L. Powell went to Syria soon after the war ended and publicly warned Mr. Assad to cooperate in tracking Iraqi fugitives and money.
"Don’t make me send for Rummy!"
"The U.S. has Syria firmly in its sights," said one analyst, "and Assad may feel compelled to admit the Iraqi money is there, if only to reduce American pressure for changing his regime."
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 10:59:27 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Africa: North
Weapons Experts Setting Up Bases in Libya
Teams from the United Nations, the United States and Britain are secretly setting up bases in Libya for the purpose of scrapping Tripoli’s weapons of mass destruction, diplomats said Tuesday.
"Don’t tell anyone."
The diplomats said on condition of anonymity that U.S. and British weapons experts - including specialists on nuclear, chemical and biological weapons - began arriving this past weekend. They also said members of a separate team from the International Atomic Energy Agency - the U.N. nuclear watchdog - were gathering in Tripoli, the Libyan capital.
They have their agenda, and we have ours.
"The idea is to move quickly," one of the diplomats said, speaking specifically of plans to dismantle Libya’s nuclear program. "Those involved expect to be well on the way to accomplishing our goal within weeks."
We’ll be done before IAEA finishes their coffee.
IAEA officials refused to confirm the start of the mission.
"Huh?"
In London, Britain’s Foreign Office said the country was "prepared to offer assistance with the dismantlement of Libya’s program" but declined to say whether British experts were in the North African nation.
"I can say no more."
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 10:00:58 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  the IAEA will be forced for credibilities' sake to proceed expeditiously or they'll end up cataloguing things the Merkins and Brits already uncovered
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 12:54 Comments || Top||

#2  US Secretary of State Colin Powell on Tuesday confirmed that a team of US experts is now on the ground in Libya, working to verify Tripoli's vow to dismantle its weapons of mass destruction.
"We do have people on the ground now working with the Libyans," Powell told reporters at a State Department news conference with visiting Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha. He said the team was headed by Donald Mahley, the State Department's special negotiator for chemical and biological arms control issues, and that he expected to see quick results on verification.
"I think things will start to happen rather quickly," Powell said, adding however that he could not provide a timeline on when the process might be complete "until the work is done on the ground."


Moving fast, I'm more interested in the paper trail of where Libya got it's nuclear supplies than what they have.
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 14:48 Comments || Top||


Africa: West
Family feud rocks Liberia rebels
The wife of the leader of Liberia’s main rebels says she has replaced him. Aisha Conneh said that she, unlike her husband, would work with Liberia’s interim leader Gyude Bryant to achieve peace and disarm rebel fighters. However, a rebel spokesman said that Mr Sekou Conneh was still in charge of the Lurd movement.
"Don’t listen to that woman! He’s still in charge, really!"
Speaking at her residence in Monrovia, Mrs Conneh, who calls herself the "Iron Lady", said she was the "boss lady" of Lurd, so Mr Conneh should do what she said.
Don’t mess with Mom. Especially when she’s got her own army.
She said she had funded the movement and installed her husband as its leader.
"It’s my money, dammit. He kept lying around the hut, drinking beer and watching tv, so I gave him the job to earn his keep."
Last week some 30 Lurd commanders said they had replaced Mr Conneh as their leader.
"It was in the pre-nup, she gets the group"
"I’m ready to work with Gyude Bryant because I want peace in Liberia," she said, accusing her husband of not wanting peace. The BBC’s Jonathan Paye-Layleh says Mr and Mrs Conneh have an on-off relationship but have a baby girl together.
Guess that happened during the "on" part.
Mrs Conneh, who is still breast-feeding, says she is the adopted daughter of Guinea’s President Lansana Conte.
Oh, great. Now I have this mental picture of her addressing the troops with the baby sucking away.
Guinea was accused of backing Lurd in their long struggle against Mr Taylor.
Shipment of AK’s was the wedding gift from Dad.
Mr Bryant was chosen at peace talks to head a power-sharing government of rebel group, members of Mr Taylor’s former administration and civilian political parties.
He was Chucky’s pick.
"Believe me, if I tell the children (fighters) to bring their arms, they will bring all and I will turn them in. Anyone who will not turn in guns will be turned over to the UN to be dealt with," Mrs Conneh said.
She might be able to do it. Nobody sez no to Mom
Posted by: Steve || 01/20/2004 9:30:00 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  And the survey says.....
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 20:31 Comments || Top||

#2  So that explains the dresses and wigs on their fighters.
Posted by: ed || 01/20/2004 22:12 Comments || Top||


Home Front
Nine reasons why we never sent our Special Operations Forces after al Qaeda before 9/11.
Interesting article.
Check out the link and read the rest.

SINCE 9/11, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has repeatedly declared that the United States is in a new kind of war, one requiring new military forces to hunt down and capture or kill terrorists. In fact, for some years, the Department of Defense has gone to the trouble of selecting and training an array of Special Operations Forces, whose forte is precisely this. One president after another has invested resources to hone lethal "special mission units" for offensive—that is, preemptive—counterterrorism strikes, with the result that these units are the best of their kind in the world. While their activities are highly classified, two of them—the Army’s Delta Force and the Navy’s SEAL Team 6—have become the stuff of novels and movies.

Prior to 9/11, these units were never used even once to hunt down terrorists who had taken American lives. Putting the units to their intended use proved impossible—even after al Qaeda bombed the World Trade Center in 1993, bombed two American embassies in East Africa in 1998, and nearly sank the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000. As a result of these and other attacks, operations were planned to capture or kill the ultimate perpetrators, Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenants, but each time the missions were blocked. A plethora of self-imposed constraints—I call them showstoppers—kept the counterterrorism units on the shelf...
Posted by: tipper || 01/20/2004 8:49:37 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The article blames fear of casualties, careerism and political caution. But the truth is that all are real concerns. The reason people in the military want total commitment is because it looks bad when the US goes after a target and fails - a reputation for failure is just as bad for deterrence as a reputation for timidity. And then, of course, there are the human costs - it's a waste of highly-trained troops and bad for morale when a mission fails miserably. Special forces strikes in foreign countries are akin to suicide missions - it's one thing to use special forces to scout out terrain, and quite another to initiate direct action. In Iraq, the reason special forces worked in securing the oil fields was because the regular troops were massed at the Kuwaiti border. If tens of thousands of US troops had not presented a threat at the Kuwaiti border, the Iraqis would have had plenty of time to knock off special forces teams one by one. Once their locations are revealed through the initiation of the assault, special forces teams are basically sitting ducks - against hordes of Somali fighters in Mogadishu, they gave a good account of themselves but were overwhelmed by sheer numbers.

Careerism is a real issue because unlike mishaps outside of the military realm, failure in military operations is catastrophic and involves dead soldiers. Failure is career-ending and can lead to long-time professionals being cashiered out of the military. Unlike failures in business, which are typically obscure, everyone hears about military failures. This is a heavy burden to take up, considering the high likelihood of disaster.

What people forget is that while the US military does have well-trained men, the reason it usually prevails is because of the ready availability of massed firepower - whether it takes the form of massed artillery barrages or smart bombs. Without the massed firepower in its favor, the odds are considerably slimmer. The problem with special forces efforts is that the massed firepower is in the enemy's favor and the enemy typically outnumbers US special forces by an order of magnitude (10x or more). In Somalia, the opposition did not have artillery or anti-aircraft missiles, yet managed to kill 19 highly-trained American commandos because they had unlimited local supplies of ammo and men. A similar mission into Afghanistan would have encountered many more obstacles, including enemy artillery, tanks and anti-aircraft missiles.

Political caution is also understandable - special forces missions are extremely risky and a failed mission can cause significant political damage. Clinton is still remembered today for the Mogadishu fiasco. Les Aspin died within six months of that disaster, probably out of a mixture of stress and guilt.

The solution to these issues isn't to send small teams of men into the lion's den - it's to emphasize areas where America's military has the advantage. Instead of teams of men skulking around, destroy the military facilities of countries that sponsor terror. (For example, carry out variations of the airstrikes in Libya). Unlike many others, I think Clinton did the right thing in launching cruise missile strikes, but the wrong thing in trying to avoid collateral damage. Reagan's airstrikes against Libya killed members of Ghadafi's family, and put him on notice that Libyan terror attacks would put not just him, but his family at risk. And in attacking al Qaeda camps, Clinton also chose the wrong targets. A more effective response would have been to systematically take out Taliban front line positions. Would Iran dare to sponsor terror attacks if the consequence was the destruction of Iran's air force? Its navy? The point here is that political leaders need to risk their political capital on missions that simultaneously have a high likelihood of success and leverage America's strengths. Special forces missions do not fit that profile.
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 01/20/2004 10:27 Comments || Top||

#2  In Iraq, the reason special forces worked in securing the oil fields was because the regular troops were massed at the Kuwaiti border. If tens of thousands of US troops had not presented a threat at the Kuwaiti border, the Iraqis would have had plenty of time to knock off special forces teams one by one.

I should also have mentioned that US forces had air supremacy over Iraq, with both choppers and fixed-wing assets in place to carry out close air support in case special forces teams got into trouble.
Posted by: Zhang Fei || 01/20/2004 10:31 Comments || Top||


Middle East
Yigal Amir to marry
Yigal Amir, the man who assassinated Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, wants to get married. Amir is serving a life sentence in an Israeli jail. His fiancee is Larisa Trimbobler. She is a divorced mother of four; she is an immigrant from the Soviet Union; she has a doctorate in philosophy; and she has been visiting Amir in jail since shortly after his arrest. The Israeli government is trying to block the wedding for political reasons. But, considering that actual terrorists who are serving multiple life sentences are allowed to get married all the time (and are often even released from jail in "terrorist-for-hudna" deals), Amir’s marriage will likely eventually take place.
Posted by: Alex || 01/20/2004 4:10:17 AM || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  "Actual terrorists?" What's Amir, a hologram?

If an assassin in a democratic country isn't technically a terrorist, he's certainly a related species. The guy should get the same rights as the other terrorist scum, but as a colleague, not a superior.
Posted by: VAMark || 01/20/2004 16:30 Comments || Top||

#2  Forget whether others have been allowed to marry, yadda, yadda, yadda...

Why is this zit on Israel's nose still drawing breath?
Posted by: .com || 01/20/2004 21:35 Comments || Top||

#3  Forget whether others have been allowed to marry, yadda, yadda, yadda... Why is this zit on Israel's nose still drawing breath?

Egg sac, Lee, .com.
Out here in Cally4nya (the state the world loves to hate), some of our REALLY bad guys have some REALLY interesting accidents. My favorite (a local psycho) fell out of a tree. In a prison yard. Supposedly.
Posted by: SLO Jim || 01/20/2004 22:59 Comments || Top||


Africa: North
U.S., U.K. Reach Deal With IAEA on Libya
The United States and the U.N. atomic agency agreed Monday to work together in examining, cataloging and scrapping Libya’s nuclear weapons program, ending weeks of squabbling over who has the authority to do so. The deal was reached by International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei, senior British arms expert William Ehrman, and U.S. Undersecretary of State John Bolton, a critic of the IAEA policy on Libya and Iran.
Looks like we got more than we gave.
Following the meeting at the offices of the U.S. mission to the IAEA, ElBaradei said the agreement gave his agency the role of establishing the scope and content of Libya’s nuclear program. Once IAEA verification was complete, U.S. and British experts would remove suspect materials from the North African country, he said. Diplomats familiar with the agency said the IAEA also was claiming the right to verify that all contentious equipment and material had been removed or rendered unusable.
With us looking over their shoulders.
Differing characterizations of the state of Libya’s program had fueled the dispute: The IAEA has said Libya was nowhere near producing a weapon, while Washington and London contended it was further along than the agency realizes.
Has the IAEA ever been ahead of anyone in an assessment of a nation’s ability to make nukes?
Meanwhile, British and American weapons experts have returned to Libya, a senior U.S. official told The New York Times. But both sides were eager Monday to put the disputes behind them. "It was a very productive meeting especially after we quit thwacking them upside the head. I think we’re on the same page with the IAEA on this very important project," Bolton said after the session at the U.S. mission in Vienna. ElBaradei called the meeting "very constructive," adding: "I think it went very well.
Could you pass me four Advils?
"We have agreement on what needs to be done," he said. "Clearly, the agency’s role is very clear - that we need to do the verification. A good part of the program needs to be eliminated, it needs to be moved out, and we clearly need the British and American support with logistics."
And with intel, leadership and truth-telling.
Diplomats said both sides had made concessions, but suggested some differences remained. "The Americans are not interested in having their hands tied," said one, speaking on condition of anonymity. He said that while the agency would be given the mandate to verify the state of Libya’s weapons activities, U.S. and British teams would essentially also be conducting their own investigations.
Yep, we’re not real big on having our hands tied.
Posted by: Steve White || 01/20/2004 12:58:09 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Has the IAEA ever been ahead of anyone in an assessment of a nation’s ability to make nukes?

No. And it's a record that defies belief.
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 7:51 Comments || Top||

#2  Once IAEA verification was complete, U.S. and British experts would remove suspect materials from the North African country, he said. Diplomats familiar with the agency said the IAEA also was claiming the right to verify that all contentious equipment and material had been removed or rendered unusable.

Actually, it looks like they figure out what's there, we and the Brits go in to remove it, and then they determine if we did remove it. They get to finger point and tut-tut if they find out we blew it. A form of "oversight" that's more window dressing than substance.

He said that while the agency would be given the mandate to verify the state of Libya’s weapons activities, U.S. and British teams would essentially also be conducting their own investigations.

This leaves open the possiblity that we could further humiliate the IAEA if we find stuff they don't. Incentive for the IAEA to uncover everything and not hold back.

However, with the IAEA, the problem is less that they'd hold anything back than not having the competence to find everything in the first place. I was in grad school when I attended a lecture on international institutions to control atomic energy and nuclear weapons. The professors from the Nuclear Engineering department guffawed openly when the lecturer go to the IAEA: It appears to be regarded as a standing joke amongst those in the know.
Posted by: Ptah || 01/20/2004 7:59 Comments || Top||

#3  I wonder if this has something to do with that article on Libya's black market purchases and how much they bought?
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 8:27 Comments || Top||

#4  I believe we call this a test. A test for the IAEA (as we already know what is in Libya and, apparently, Pakistan) to see if they have a clue.

Irrespective of how IAEA passes or fails this test, we will find out a great deal about Iran.
Posted by: john || 01/20/2004 10:13 Comments || Top||


Middle East
Sharon: Golan Withdrawal Key to Peace
Addressing two of Israel’s thorniest issues, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told lawmakers Monday that peace with Syria would require a full withdrawal from the Golan Heights and ordered a review of the contentious West Bank separation barrier. Sharon’s comments on the Golan, made to parliament’s Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee, were an unprecedented admission by the career hard-liner. In the past, right-wing Israeli governments insisted a peace deal could be reached without a withdrawal from the strategic plateau captured in the 1967 Mideast war.
Only possible if a baby duck became leader of Syria.
The prime minister did not tell the closed-door meeting whether he was willing to pay what he defined as the price for peace. However, one committee member said it was clear from the context that Sharon is not ready to return the Golan in exchange for a peace deal.
Since baby Doc prolly won’t be around very long to honor such a deal.
In an interview published Monday in the London-based newspaper Asharq al-Awsat, Assad appeared pessimistic about the chances of talks with Sharon. "From the beginning and until this moment, the U.S. administration did not wish to throw itself into the peace process. As for Sharon ... it is hard for him to succeed on a peace platform," Assad said. The Syrian president has said talks must resume where they broke off under Sharon’s predecessor, Ehud Barak. But Sharon wants to start from scratch and also has demanded that Syria crack down on militant groups.
I think the correct diplospeak is "Both sides remain far apart on the issues."
Israeli officials believe Assad is trying to deflect U.S. pressure, especially in light of the American presence in neighboring Iraq. But some Cabinet ministers say Israel should take Syria up on its offer. Sharon was asked by a lawmaker at Monday’s committee meeting if now is a good time to renew talks with Syria, said Sharon’s spokesman, Raanan Gissin. "No one should have any illusions. The price of peace with Syria is leaving the Golan Heights," Gissin quoted the prime minister as saying. Ran Cohen, a committee member from the left-wing Meretz Party, said Sharon suggested such a pullback would be too much for Israel to bear. "His main declaration was that he is not ready to withdraw from the Golan, even for peace with Syria," Cohen told The Associated Press.
Stall, Ariel, and see what happens up north.
Posted by: Steve White || 01/20/2004 12:47:19 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  lets see, israel gives up this piece, gets peace for a little while, then gives up this piece...

How about this tact: Give Israel peace, or die. I think that sends a stronger message.
Posted by: flash91 || 01/20/2004 12:11 Comments || Top||

#2  Only possible if a baby duck became leader of Syria.


...Oh, come on now Steve, you know that that's impossible - the Israelis slaughtered all the baby ducks ages ago in one of their unprovoked attacks on the peaceful terrorist camps duck farms!

In fact, I hear that U.N. is looking into the matter right now - probably issue another resolution
Posted by: Dripping Sarcasm || 01/20/2004 14:53 Comments || Top||


Home Front
Gephardt Signals End to Presidential Bid
Rep. Dick Gephardt conceded defeat in the Democratic presidential race Monday night after a weak fourth-place finish in the Iowa caucuses and aides said he would fly home to make a formal withdrawal. "My campaign to fight for working people may be ending tonight, but our fight will never end," Gephardt said in a post-caucus speech that bore the markings of a political farewell. Aides said he would drop out of the race at a St. Louis news conference at midday on Tuesday.
So long.
The Missouri lawmaker offered his congratulations to his presidential rivals, and said one of them would wind up with the party’s nomination to challenge President Bush this fall. He pledged he would support that person "in any way I can," but did not indicate whether he would endorse anyone while the nominating campaign continues. Nor did Gephardt say whether he intends to serve out his current term in Congress, his 14th and last.
He’s been generally helpful in the WoT. For that, thanks.
Posted by: Steve White || 01/20/2004 12:41:36 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Now if only Clark and Dean would quit.
Posted by: Desert Blondie || 01/20/2004 0:45 Comments || Top||

#2  My humble opinion is that Kerry and Edwards aren't any great prizes, either, but since I'm not a Democrat I suppose I'll just make popcorn and enjoy the show.
Posted by: Steve White || 01/20/2004 0:48 Comments || Top||

#3  The Des Moines Register shows Clark (0.1%) with a commanding lead over Lieberman (0%) and Sharpton (0%), but as predicted he still trails Kucinick's 1.3%.
Thanks Iowa. (Tip of hat to Instapundit.)
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 2:00 Comments || Top||

#4  Gephardt was an "old-fashioned" Democrat in both the bad and the good sense. In the bad sense, he was, domestically, a socialist idiotarian. But in the good sense, he was also a gut-level patriot, and-- as his withdrawal tonight demonstrated-- a decent and honorable man. For those reasons, I'm a little sad to see him go...
Especially when I consider what that tells me about the "new-fangled" Democratic Party.

It just cannot be a good thing for a nation when one of its two major parties has been captured by people who are pretty much as idiotarian as Dick, domestically, but seem far more willing than he was to put personal ambition ahead of love of country.

Posted by: WUZZALIB || 01/20/2004 2:14 Comments || Top||

#5  Dick Gephardt: "a miserable failure."
Posted by: Anonymous || 01/20/2004 6:42 Comments || Top||

#6  This is good, but I'm still worried about Edwards. He just has that personality that gets the 'Soccer Mom' vote. And that is the vote which gave Clinton his Presidency.
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 8:36 Comments || Top||

#7  He just has that personality that gets the 'Soccer Mom' vote. And that is the vote which gave Clinton his Presidency.

It's up to the voter to look beyond superficial stuff like a Clintonian personality. If Edwards can pull one over on people and win using his personality instead of actually addressing real concerns, then the people who voted for him will truly get what they deserve.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 10:30 Comments || Top||

#8  WaPo had an interesting Caucus story,At Precinct 21, Politics Played Out in a Barn . Gives a local example of how Gephardt lost and Kerry won. In Precinct 21 a group of nuns showed up in support of Kerry's strong core Catholicism?
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 11:27 Comments || Top||

#9  Edwards simply came accross as a "nice young man" to Iowan's who place a premium on "politeness". Dean was toast when the interview of him berating the Iowa caucuses on Canadian TV becaome public. And whoever tossed that gernade onto the playing field did so with a certain "right wing conspiracy" deftness, even though it certainly came from within the Donk party. Karl Rove must be bummed.
Oh,and who would have known that rude "body piercers from Seattle" (Deannie Babies) would not sell well in a place like Iowa???
Posted by: Capsu78 || 01/20/2004 11:34 Comments || Top||

#10  Re #1 & 2:
Dean would probably be easier for Bush to beat than Kerry or Edwards, but IMHO it's good for the country to have a strong, reasonable opposition. I want Bush to win, but not by the collapse of the Democrats into hatred and irrational ranting(tm). I'd like to see the Democrats find a viable and popular voice. Seems a lot to ask for these days ...
Posted by: Lynwood || 01/20/2004 11:38 Comments || Top||

#11  If Edwards can pull one over on people and win using his personality instead of actually addressing real concerns, then the people who voted for him will truly get what they deserve.
The problem is, so do the rest of us. The problems that arose on Clinton's watch, and which mainly went unaddressed, are still causing problems today, under a different administration. As the old saying goes (paraphrased), "the good presidents do ends with their administration, but the bad lives on forever". There's still a ton of extraneous agencies left over from the Roosevelt presidency that need to be chisled out of Washington. I hate the idea of "choosing the lesser of two evils", because we still end up with an albatross instead of an eagle.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 01/20/2004 11:51 Comments || Top||

#12  Meh. Kerry's nutcase LLL wife will be a liability, assuming he gets the nod, and Iowa doesn't mean that at all. Granted, lots of soccer moms can get suckered in by a line of BS from a prettyboy, but without the WoT, "Where's Saddam?", and the Great Depression the dems were devoutly hoping for, they don't have anything. Dean's negative message might be enough to carry him through, but it's only a matter of degrees of how badly Dubya thrashes them.
Posted by: 4thInfVet || 01/20/2004 12:36 Comments || Top||

#13  The problem is, so do the rest of us. The problems that arose on Clinton's watch, and which mainly went unaddressed, are still causing problems today, under a different administration.

All too true, but unfortunately, some people (and for our sakes this hopefully isn't too large a number) just aren't going to learn anything unless they are hit hard between the eyes. I would much rather that this not happen, but....

I hate the idea of "choosing the lesser of two evils", because we still end up with an albatross instead of an eagle.

If GWB doesn't tone down the spending of our tax dollars domestically, the coming election may turn out to be just that. But still, he'd be a better choice than any of the likely alternatives.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama || 01/20/2004 13:58 Comments || Top||

#14  Looks like using the f-word was a winning strategy after all. Can't wait to see what Dean tries next.....oops, that's right, we saw it last night .
Posted by: Rex Mundi || 01/20/2004 14:25 Comments || Top||

#15  Dean was toast when the interview of him berating the Iowa caucuses on Canadian TV becaome public

You're welcome :)
Posted by: Rafael || 01/20/2004 14:40 Comments || Top||

#16  If Kerry wins in NH and starts to pull ahead decisively ahead, we will see my prediction of a few months ago come to pass: the pop-culture lefty fruitbat element will pull out all the stops to de-legitimize the result, leading to a figurative and conceivably a literal bloodbath at the Dem Convention.
Tin-foil Kucinich was the fruitbats' first choice with the thorazine-deprived Dean as a best second.
If the Convention cannot be intimidated into major concessions for the Moonbats, they will desert to the Greens.
I say good riddance, though more timid souls will probably cave in the best tradition of lefty post-60s appeasement-think.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 17:08 Comments || Top||


Iran
Iran extradicts 2 PKK to Turkey
In what has been regarded as a goodwill gesture, Iran has extradited Kurdish insurgents to Turkey.
"For us? Oh, thank you! You shouldn't have!"
Turkish security sources said Iran has sent two detained members of the Kurdish Workers Party to Turkey. The two were wanted insurgents who had sought refuge in Iran. The Iranian decision was said to have come as a result of years of pressure by Turkey for security cooperation regarding the PKK. Iran has been harboring more than 1,000 PKK and other Turkish fugitives over the last five years. The sources said they did not know whether Iran would extradite additional PKK members to Turkey. They said so far Syria, another Turkish neighbor and Iran’s leading ally, has extradited 39 fugitive insurgents to Turkey over the last few months.
Keep in mind that the Istanboom al-Qaeda fled to Iran after the attacks and have yet to be found. Iran wants to calm Turkey down, but it also wants to stay in the terrorism business, at least with regard to al-Qaeda, now that the PKK is pretty much a spent force. So tossing a few Kurdish Marxists every now and again would seem to be the best way to keep Ankara calm and buy the ayatollahs more time.
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 12:20:03 AM || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I'm sure Murat the Weasel is pleased: he got his Kurds.
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 8:35 Comments || Top||

#2  To me it just proves that you can't trust ErDogman. COME ON! Don't be so blind to this man. The Iranians didn't just wake up one day and have a change of heart. They got something really good in return that inspired their change of heart. The question is, what???

Dogman is just continuing his pattern of smiling to our faces while waiting for an opportunity to stab us in the back. I think we should be wondering WHY the Iranians had a sudden change of heart. Erdogman has already proved that he is not our friend.
Posted by: B || 01/20/2004 9:29 Comments || Top||


Africa: East
Latest Somalia festivities threaten peace talks
Tension between regional Somali leaders may scuttle the peace talks in Kenya, mediators have warned as fighting continues in central Somalia.
Is there anything that won't scuttle the Somali peace talks? Think hard, now...
Some 13 people were killed and several others injured after inter-clan fighting over land and water in Hiirran region at the weekend.
If they weren't fighting over land and water they'd be fighting over women and beer, or cheese and crackers, and whether today's Tuesday...
Kenya’s foreign affairs minister Kalonzo Musyoka has asked the leaders to exercise restraint to save the fragile negotiations.
"Yar! We be ferocious Islamic tough guys! We ain't got no restraint! Harrrr!"
The BBC’s Mohammed Olad Hassan in Mogadishu says the fighting in Hiirran is the worst since the faction leaders signed a ceasefire agreement last October.
"Yup. Yup. This is def'nitely worse'n last time..."
Efforts by local Somali elders to reconcile the warring militias are proving to be futile.
"Knock it off, youse guys!"
"Harrrr!"
"Never mind."
Meanwhile, the president of the breakaway region of Puntland in north-east Somalia, Abdulahi Yusuf Ahmed, has accused Djibouti of backing the self-declared republic of Somaliland. Troops from the two regions have recently been involved in border clashes. Mr Ahmed said that Djibouti was supplying arms, money and advice to authorities in Somaliland.
"Harrr! Yez can't trust them Djiboutis! Or Djiboutians. Or whatever the hell they call 'emselves!"
But Djibouti’s foreign affairs minister Ali Abdi Faraah dismissed the claims as "sheer propaganda".
"Those people are crazy!"
East Africa’s Inter Governmental Authority on Development (Igad) ministerial committee, which is trying to mediate in the Somali conflict, says the tension may plunge the region into conflict.
Where the hell's it been all this time?
Mr Musyoka called on the international community supporting the process to prevail upon the two parties to refrain from acts that would escalate into a fully fledged conflict.
"Yeah! Quit yellin' 'yarrr!' at each other! An' get them turbans off!"
Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni and his Kenyan counterpart, Mwai Kibaki have warned the delegates that the process has been going on for far too long.
"C'mon! C'mon! Snap it up! There's others wants a turn in the peace procesor, y'know!"
The Somali peace process has so far cost over $7m with little results. Interim Somali President, Abdulkassim Salat Hassan, whose delegation walked out of talks in November, was persuaded to come thanks largely to a personal invitation from Mr Museveni. Correspondents say the deep divisions which exist between the different parties at the talks are plain for all to see.
"Harrrr!"
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 12:15:11 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Home Front
FBI probing reports of additional 9/11 hijackers
The FBI is investigating whether as many as a dozen al-Qaeda operatives tried to enter the USA to join the 19 hijackers who carried out the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, two top federal law enforcement sources said Monday. Based in part on an examination of immigration records, some FBI officials are examining whether al-Qaeda deployed more operatives than it needed to carry out the 9/11 attacks because it expected some of them would be turned away at U.S. borders. Meanwhile, the FBI continues to investigate a theory that al-Qaeda wanted to hijack more than the four jets that were crashed in New York City, Washington and Pennsylvania in the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.

One of those identified by the FBI as a potential hijacker is a Saudi Arabian in his mid-20s who was turned away from the USA after arriving at Orlando’s airport in late August 2001, the sources said. The FBI is focusing on the man, identified only as al-Qahtani, because security cameras captured 9/11 hijacker Mohamed Atta on a phone in that airport about the same time al-Qahtani was to arrive. Atta called a number in the Middle East.
Whose number?
FBI agents do not know whether there is a link between Atta’s appearance at the airport and al-Qahtani’s arrival. "We can’t prove it at this point," one of the law enforcement sources said. "But, certainly, it’s suspicious."
Depends on how many other Arabs — especially Soddies and Egyptians — were in the airport at the same time, and what al-Qahtani does for a living...
One of the most intriguing questions about the 9/11 plot has been why United Flight 93, the jet that crashed in Pennsylvania during a revolt by passengers, carried four hijackers while the three other hijacked jets each had five. Many FBI officials have doubted that accused terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui, 35, a French citizen arrested while taking flight lessons in Minnesota in August 2001, was meant to be the "20th hijacker."
Everybody else was Soddy or Egyptian. And Moussaoui isn't very bright...
Moussaoui, who acknowledges being a member of al-Qaeda but denies being part of the 9/11 plot, is in a Virginia jail awaiting trial on terrorism conspiracy charges. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. In November, USA TODAY reported that some FBI officials believed that a man who tried to enter the USA in late August 2001 was meant to be the 20th hijacker. A third law enforcement source said that the man had made it to the USA but "had to leave." In its editions Monday, Newsweek said the FBI thinks that al-Qahtani was to have been the 20th hijacker.
It could also be that they only intended to have 19, which is a mystical number, as we all know...
The two law enforcement sources interviewed by USA TODAY said al-Qahtani is among the dozen operatives being investigated as potential hijackers. Al-Qahtani raised suspicion at Orlando’s airport and was turned out of the country by a U.S. immigration official. Al-Qahtani later was captured in Afghanistan and sent to the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where he is being interrogated.
"More giggle juice, Qahtani?"
"Yersssh, shank yew!"
The sources said that none of the suspected operatives, including al-Qahtani, has been linked to the 9/11 plot. In some cases, their names were flagged after being checked against the hijackers’ backgrounds and travel patterns. The locations of the suspected operatives besides al-Qahtani are unclear. A U.S. panel investigating 9/11 will hear testimony next week from Jose Melendez-Perez, the immigration agent who stopped al-Qahtani in Orlando.
I'd think that if there were more Bad Guys trying to come in, they were more likely to be additional hijack crews, so we should be looking at groups of four or five. Either that, or that they were supposed to form the second wave, which would have actually wreaked havoc on the country at the time. If I'd planned 9-11, I'd have had the twin towers strike, followed by a week's worth of car booms and random assassinations, probably using no more than a half dozen people. Then I'd have had a second, nearly as impressive incident, perhaps booming the Mall of the Americas or the Space Needle, which would have involved no more than four people. Instead, these guys staged one strike, then sat back and waited for a counterstrike. Military genius in its finest flower.
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 12:05:58 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  They're only just investigating this NOW?
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 8:37 Comments || Top||

#2  Two hands and a flashlight - well you get the picture.
Posted by: Douglas De Bono || 01/20/2004 8:55 Comments || Top||

#3  Doug -- no doubt the FBI don't get the picture.

They caught the anthrax culprit yet?
Posted by: Robert Crawford || 01/20/2004 9:50 Comments || Top||

#4  Many FBI officials have doubted that accused terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui . . . was meant to be the "20th hijacker."

Huh ?

Well, sure, if they mean that Ramzi bin Al-shibh was meant to be the 20th hijacker.

Zach was just his backup, or possibly one of several, in which case the speculation about "al-Qahtani" sounds about right.

What *doesn't* sound right is that Zach is a member of Al-Qaeda, but has nothing to do with 9/11. (What, he was just in the US for his vacation break after a busy year training in the al-Qaeda camp ?)
Posted by: Carl in N.H. || 01/20/2004 12:20 Comments || Top||

#5  Carl, do you get as annoyed as I do with the mental midgets in the American press? It is my belief that any sensible American would agree that the actual number hi-jacker Zacarias was supposed is pretty immaterial. What is material is that he wanted to learn to pilot a plane in flight without wanting to learn how to take off or land.

Let me illustrate - I don't think that many New Englanders could tell you what the uniform numbers were for Bob Kelly or Dave Schultz were. For any Bruins fan, the important assumption was that if either of them were on the ice, they were up to know good. Waiting for Bobby Orr to be crumpled in the corner was never an option. The idea was for Terry O'Reilly and/or Stan Jonathan to hit the ice immediately and take care of business.

It is sad that there actually are Americans that are concerned with ZM's rights.

Note - if you are still looking for Arleigh Burke info, I put some links under the post about the Russian carrier.
Posted by: Super Hose || 01/20/2004 16:53 Comments || Top||


International
Pakistan, Turkey forge security agreement
Pakistan and Turkey, two Muslim nations battered by militant violence, will pool resources in the battle against Islamic extremists. Officials said an agreement on "terrorism and crime" was one of three accords due to be signed during President Pervez Musharraf’s three-day visit to NATO member Turkey on Tuesday.

Musharraf maintains close personal ties with Turkey. He lived there for a while as a youth and speaks some Turkish. "It is a joint endeavor between Turkey and Pakistan that terrorism should be rooted out," Pakistan’s ambassador in Ankara, Sher Afgan Khan, told the Turkish Daily News in an interview published on Monday. "The decision is there, the commitment is there and cooperation with Turkey will be very welcome."

Washington sees both countries as key strategic allies. Turkey in particular it views as a model "Muslim democracy" that should be emulated elsewhere. Ankara portrays itself to the European Union it seeks to join as a potential channel to strengthen European influence in the Islamic world.

It was not clear what kind of co-operation had been agreed. Both countries maintain strong intelligence services that co-operate closely with U.S. agencies. Turkish intelligence has in the past been very active in Afghanistan, which neighbors Pakistan, and is eager to trace any links between domestic Islamic militants and groups beyond Turkey’s frontiers. Erdogan is himself viewed with some suspicion by the armed forces which, as in Pakistan, have traditionally played a key role in politics. The generals are wary of his roots in political Islam though his policies are strongly pro-Western. Khan said Musharraf would discuss the situation in Afghanistan where Turkey has sent troops as part of a NATO force trying to stabilize the country after the ouster of the Taliban regime by U.S.-backed forces in late 2001. Both Turkey and Pakistan were asked to contribute troops to U.S.-led forces in Iraq after the fall of President Saddam Hussein. Ankara initially agreed but subsequently withdrew the offer in the face of Iraqi opposition, while Pakistan has declined in the absence of a U.N.-endorsed force.

Khan said Pakistan backed Turkish opposition to Kurdish autonomy under Iraq’s new political system, which Ankara fears could stir similar aspirations among its own Kurdish minority. The United States says Iraq’s future political system is a matter for the Iraqis. "If you in Turkey are not happy with a particular political development, you will always find us behind you," the newspaper quoted Khan as saying. "(The) territorial integrity of Iraq should be maintained as it was before the invasion."
Posted by: Dan Darling || 01/20/2004 12:04:42 AM || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Erdogan is himself viewed with some suspicion by the armed forces which, as in Pakistan, have traditionally played a key role in politics. The generals are wary of his roots in political Islam though his policies are strongly pro-Western.

As well they should be. Watch your back, Perv. Er'dogman's blind ambition doesn't make for a good bed partner. Once your in bed with him, don't expect to get much sleep.
Posted by: B || 01/20/2004 9:15 Comments || Top||


Middle East
Secret Israeli Palestininan talks
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has revealed that opposition Labour party leader Shimon Peres held a secret meeting with Palestinian PM Ahmad Quraya last week. Sharon made the disclosure to parliament's foreign affairs and defence committee on Monday, but without giving details of what was discussed. His statement sparked off protests from Labour Knesset members. Although nominated in September 2003, Quraya has never met Sharon despite a number of preliminary contacts aimed at clinching a summit between the two prime ministers. Later in his speech to the committee, Sharon warned Jordan would damage its ties with Israel by joining an international campaign against the separation barrier being built in the West Bank. Amman was "leading" the campaign in the Arab world despite having "much to lose in worsening of its relations" with Israel, he said. Sharon was addressing parliament's foreign affairs and defense commission during a debate on the barrier's construction ahead of hearings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague on the legality of the works. The Israeli PM said Jordan was merely frightened that many Palestinians would settle on its territory because of the barrier's erection.
And he's probably correct.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  So what if he's right. Better to have the Jordanians experience what the Isreali's have for the last 3 years. Maybe then at least a couple will open their eyes to the truth.
Posted by: Charles || 01/20/2004 8:34 Comments || Top||


Israeli jets violate Lebanon airspace
Israeli warplanes violated Lebanese airspace on Monday, causing supersonic bangs over southern and eastern cities. The fighter bombers broke the sound barrier at around 11:10 am (0910 GMT) over the southeastern Western Bekaa border region patrolled by the United Nations peacekeeping forces.
This would be in response to Hezbollah rocketing a mine-clearing bulldozer yesterday. DEBKA reported it as bombing in Syria.
The jets also caused bangs over Nabatiyeh, Zahrani and the port of Sidon, the main city of southern Lebanon, they said. The Israeli warplanes then made more booms over the ancient city of Baalbek, a stronghold of the Shiite Muslim fundamentalist Hezbollah in Syrian-patrolled eastern Lebanon, they said. Two Israeli jets flew over the southern cities of Sidon and Tyre and the market town of Nabatiyeh as well as the Hermel region in eastern Lebanon, breaking the sound barrier.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 01/20/2004 23:59 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I like it - the implications have got to be clear; "look, we can come over any of your cities anytime we like and break some windows, so don't make us come back carrying the BIG thundersticks! Ok?"

Not that they'll get it of course...
Posted by: Tony (UK) || 01/20/2004 1:27 Comments || Top||

#2  Yeah, great. Maybe this'll raise the price of backhoes in Syria and Lebanon, with resultant windfall profits to John Deere, Haliburton, and all the other corporate profiteers who control our idiot Prez.

But before y'all start to ululate, please recall that those Israeli jets woodna been scurrying the rats into ratholes were it not for the DIPLOMACY that preceded it. Like for example... er... can I get back to you on that in the morning? I'm sure I read sumpin somewhere... think it was in the NY Times... or maybe the LA Times?

Whatever... gots to go back to sleep now...



Posted by: WUZZALIB || 01/20/2004 2:47 Comments || Top||

#3  Okay...mebbe I need some more drinks here, but did anyone else understand what the heck wuzzalib was talking about???
Posted by: Val || 01/20/2004 4:06 Comments || Top||

#4  Hey wuzzalib. Incoherent much?
Posted by: Scott || 01/20/2004 5:57 Comments || Top||

#5  Near as I can figure Wuzzy is saying that talking nice to terrorists will make them friends. Oh and Bush is an idiot, Halliburton owns Bush, yada,yada,yada
Posted by: Ben || 01/20/2004 6:20 Comments || Top||

#6  so...are their news agencies just ignoring the bombing in Syria and pretending the Israelies just flew over Lebanon, or what? Did the bombing not happen?

It seems more likely to me that if they flew over, they would have had a purpose to do so.

If they bombed Syria, the Arab news media can't ignore it, nor can the Syrian government. Their credibility will be ruined if they do. ...well more so than usual.
Posted by: B || 01/20/2004 7:35 Comments || Top||

#7  Incoherence thy name is Wuzzalib.

"...gots to go back to sleep now..."

Good idea,and make sure you take your anti-psycotic meds.
Posted by: raptor || 01/20/2004 7:50 Comments || Top||

#8  GOOD MORNING LEBANON! *BOOM*
Posted by: CrazyFool || 01/20/2004 9:55 Comments || Top||

#9  Sweet.

"We know where you live..."
Posted by: mojo || 01/20/2004 11:06 Comments || Top||

#10  Avon calling!
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 11:32 Comments || Top||

#11  update posted above - good going IAF!
Posted by: Frank G || 01/20/2004 11:41 Comments || Top||

#12  Wuzzalib. Incoherent
Amateur.
It's a one-person niche at RantBurg.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 12:10 Comments || Top||

#13  Raptor and Shipman, Fuzzywuzzy wuzzabear, but Wuzzalib still is.
Posted by: Gasse Katze || 01/20/2004 12:24 Comments || Top||

#14  Gee, Wuzza, how would diplomacy work in this situtation? What do you propose as a likely or desirable outcome for such an exchange, meaning desirable to both sides and not just to your friends in the Hezbollah killer-cult? Israel did negotiate with Hezbollah for the return of the mutilated remains of Israelis soldiers the Hezzies had butchered, but it dragged on for years and required the release of hundreds of your heroes and role-models live terrorists from Israeli jails. What diplomatic efforts did Hezbollah and its paymasters make before they launched the rocket that destroyed the bulldozer? Diplomacy requires agreement by two sides, and it is obvious that Israel will not accept the killing of Jews as a concession, much as that disappoints the peace industry.
Peaceniks push diplomacy because it allows the murdering savages to go on with their real agenda. The peace movement is complicit in terrorism and mass murder, as its predecessors were during WW2. There will be an accounting. Take it to the bank.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 01/20/2004 14:39 Comments || Top||

#15  You guys know better than to feed the troll
Posted by: JerseyMike || 01/20/2004 15:22 Comments || Top||

#16  I don't think Wuzza is a troll... he is just trying to horn into a very competitive RantBurg Niche.

and Michigan, Wyoming, we're going to Georiga, South Carolina, South Dakota, Guam, We definitely going to the Virgin Islands, to the ten-thousand Islands and Roquefort we will eat what is necessary and kiss the rest, on the beaches and praries and we will never surrender until we retake Washington and it's holy water supply to reinvingorate our precious bodily fluids.
Posted by: Shipman || 01/20/2004 16:13 Comments || Top||

#17  Shipman, bang!
Posted by: Lucky || 01/21/2004 0:17 Comments || Top||



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Two weeks of WOT
Tue 2004-01-20
  IAF hits 2 Hizbullah bases in Bekaa Valley
Mon 2004-01-19
  Kadyrov sez Soddies stop Chechen money
Sun 2004-01-18
  25 dead in Baghdad car boom
Sat 2004-01-17
  Iran Earthquake Death Toll Exceeds 41,000
Fri 2004-01-16
  Castro croak rumors
Thu 2004-01-15
  Pak car boom injures 12
Wed 2004-01-14
  Libya Ratifies Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
Tue 2004-01-13
  Cleveland imam indicted
Mon 2004-01-12
  Premature boom near Nablus
Sun 2004-01-11
  Premature boom near Qalqilya
Sat 2004-01-10
  Possible Iraqi blister gas weapons found
Fri 2004-01-09
  Paleos Ready to Push for One State
Thu 2004-01-08
  Pak army launches S. Waziristan operation
Wed 2004-01-07
  Russers just missed Maskhadov
Tue 2004-01-06
  Toe tag for Gelaev?


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